Asia's richest man has launched a hostile bid to take over an influential broadcaster in India and gain a firmer footing in the country's vibrant media space.

At least 32 people have died since Friday in flash flooding and landslides triggered by heavy monsoonal rains in two of India's northern states.

Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Sunday said the country will repeal the colonial-era Section 377A of Singapore's Penal Code, thereby decriminalizing gay sex in Singapore, but added that same-sex marriage will continue to be illegal in the city-state.

The Japanese government has been hit in the pocket by an unusual problem -- its young people aren't drinking enough.

Thailand's health minister on Wednesday discouraged tourists from visiting the country only to smoke weed, just two months after new laws were passed that have largely decriminalized the drug.

• These women walk for three hours every day hoping to find food for their children

At least eight people were killed in Seoul on Monday after record downpours flooded homes, roads and subway stations in the South Korean capital, cutting power and forcing hundreds to evacuate, according to authorities.

Chinese forces took part in drills focused on land attacks and long-range airstrikes around Taiwan on Sunday, its military said, on what was expected to be the final day of extensive exercises rolled out in response to a visit to the island from US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.