India will soon know if its first interplanetary mission will achieve its goal, when a spacecraft built with home-grown technology for a remarkably low price tag of US $75m begins its final manoeuvres into orbit around Mars.

A ROCKET carrying an Indian communication satellite exploded just after liftoff on Saturday in the second launch failure for India’s space agency this year.

A jeep exploded in a South Indian village today, killing 16 people and injuring 22 more, a senior police official said.

Teachers at a school in India where a fire killed at least 84 children have been accused of fleeing the blazing building without helping the children escape.