News Dabba for 15 January 2026: Five stories for a balanced news diet

Indie Journal brings you the daily updates that the internet is talking about through various news websites. Here's a glance through some of the National and International news updates, from Maharashtra civic polls, Thailand crane crash, to biting cold in Ukraine.

2 teen girls found dead at Sports Authority of India hostel in Kerala’s Kollam: Indian Express

Two teenage athletes were found dead on Thursday at a Sports Authority of India (SAI) hostel in Kerala’s Kollam district, Indian Express reports. The 18- and 16-year-olds were from Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram districts, respectively. The report says that their bodies were found in their hostel room in the morning when others searched for them after they failed to turn up for their daily coaching. Read the full report here.

The Hindu live updates on Maharashtra civic polls

Voting in 29 municipal corporations across Maharashtra began on Thursday morning with a spotlight on Mumbai, The Hindu reports, where the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance is locked in an intense battle with the reunited Thackeray cousins for control of India’s largest and richest civic body. A row erupted over the alleged use of marker ink instead of indelible ink to mark voters’ fingers to indicate that they have cast their vote. The report says that the State Election Commission clarified that it is an “offence” to remove ink marks from a voter’s finger, and anyone doing so will face legal action. Polling for 2,869 seats spread across 893 wards in these municipal corporations began amid tight security at 7.30 am, the report says. Read the full report here.

Zelensky declares energy emergency as biting cold persists, BBC reports

Ukraine has declared a state of emergency in the country's energy sector, with a particular focus on Kyiv, BBC reports, as ongoing Russian strikes continue to leave thousands of residents without power. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Moscow of deliberately exploiting the harsh winter conditions as part of its war strategy, with overnight temperatures in Kyiv recently dropping to around -20C. The report adds that the declaration comes as Zelensky's US counterpart Donald Trump said he was holding up efforts to secure a peace deal to end nearly four years of war with Russia. Read the full report here.

Air India plane's engine damaged after container gets stuck in it at Delhi Airport

A container got sucked into an engine of the A350 Air India aircraft at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI) in Delhi, damaging the engine of the jet on Thursday, Hindustan Times reports. A video, seemingly captured by a passenger who was on board the aircraft, showed the aircraft stationed on the tarmac and surrounded by on ground staffers. The damaged to the engine could also be seen in the video, the report says. Read the full report here.

Al Jazeera: Another crane collapses in Thailand, killing two, after 32 die previous day

A crane collapse has killed two people on the outskirts of Thailand’s capital Bangkok, Al Jazeera reports, one day after a falling crane in the country’s northeast killed 32. Thursday’s accident in Samut Sakhon province involved a crane being used to construct an elevated highway that fell onto the road below, Police Colonel Sitthiporn Kasi, superintendent at the local district police station, said. Another police official from the station said that five people ​had also been injured ‌in the accident, the report says. Read the full report here.