Breaking News, July 22

The flood condition in Assam improved further on Friday although over 10,100 people are still reeling under the deluge in three districts of the state, an official bulletin said. On Thursday, over 17,200 people had been hit by the deluge in four districts.

Four out of five permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC) have supported India's candidature for a permanent seat in the top world body, the government told the Lok Sabha on Friday. In response to a question, Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said India has been consistently taking up China the issue of reform of the UNSC. China is the only country that has not yet supported India's bid to become a member of the UNSC.

 More than 100 people were booked for allegedly clashing with government officials during an anti-encroachment drive in Noida, police said on Friday.
They said five of the main accused have been arrested The clash broke out on Thursday when the Noida Authority officials were removing illegal occupation from government land on the Hindon floodplains, police said.

A 63-year-old man was arrested for allegedly raping and impregnating a Class 10 girl, the police said. The child was 15 years of age when the crime took place. The man, according to the police was her neighbour and he raped her when she was alone at home.

India's largest telecom operator Reliance Jio Infocomm on Friday reported a nearly 24 percent year-on-year rise in its standalone net profit to Rs 4,335 crore for the June 2022 quarter.

Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday demanded the central government to reconstitute its newly-formed committee on MSP (Minimum Support Price) giving due representation to the state.

Unidentified persons broke into a jewellery store and decamped with valuables worth Rs 41 lakh in Maharashtra's Thane city, police said on Friday. The accused stole 652 gm of gold and 40 kg of silver worth Rs 41 lakh from the shop, an official said.

The PMK on Friday urged the Tamil Nadu government to observe the birth anniversary of 19th century British irrigation engineer, Sir Arthur Thomas Cotton as a state event.

The BJP-led Uttar Pradesh government accorded 'Y' category security to Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party president Om Prakash Rajbhar, a move seen in the context of the SP ally’s growing proximity to the ruling party.

ICC Elite Panel member Nitin Menon is among 10 officials grouped in the newly introduced A+ category of BCCI umpires. The others in the A+ category include four international umpires -- Anil Chaudhary, Madangopal Jayaraman, Virender Kumar Sharma and K N Ananthapadmabhanan.

Gold in the national capital on Friday jumped by Rs 594 to Rs 50,341 per 10 grams, reflecting a rally in international precious metal prices, according to HDFC Securities.

Fire broke out at two factories in northwest Delhi's Lawrence road on Friday morning, officials said. No casualties were reported. According to the fire department, information regarding the blaze was received at 9.35 am from the Lawrence Road area about fire in factories.

Leaders of various Opposition parties staged a protest in Parliament on Friday against the recent hike in Goods and Services Tax (GST) on essential items and sought its rollback. The Opposition members also sought a discussion on the issue of price rise in both houses of Parliament.

A woman and her two minor grandchildren drowned in a pond located in a forest area of Chhattisgarh's Korba district where they went to pluck mushrooms, police said on Friday. The incident took place in the area located around 45 km from the district headquarters, under Kartala police station limits on Thursday, Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Abhishek Verma said.

In the wake of confirmed cases of 'Monkeypox' disease in neighbouring Kerala, the Karnataka government has decided to speed up surveillance activities and keep a strong vigil in the state. It has instructed all the districts in the State to ensure effective preparedness and take required action as per the Centre's guidelines and Technical Advisory Committee recommendations regarding Monkeypox.

The Election Commission on Friday issue a 'certificate of election' to NDA nominee Droupadi Murmu who has emerged victorious in the presidential poll. The certificate is issued after the returning officer hands over the result to the poll panel.

A 42-year old man, who was taken into police custody in connection with a road accident, died in nearby Vadakara, police said on Friday. Relatives of the deceased alleged that he was tortured by the police during questioning, which led to his death. According to sources, P P Sajeevan, and two of his friends were detained by Vadakara police for causing public nuisance on the road on Thursday.

Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned till 2 pm on Friday following protests by the Opposition on price rise and other issues. As soon as the House reconvened at 12 pm, members of opposition Congress and Left parties stormed the well, waving placards and raising slogans against rising inflation.

The national capital is likely to witness a generally cloudy sky with light to moderate rain on Friday, India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. The minimum temperature was recorded at 27 degrees on Friday morning while the relative humidity around 8:30 am was recorded at 90 per cent, the weather office said.

Japan's Cabinet on Friday formally decided to hold a state funeral on Sept 27 for assassinated former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe amid national debate over the plan, which some criticise as an attempt to glorify a divisive political figure.

The closure of a few coal-fired power plants within 300 km radius of Delhi last year helped reduce pollution levels, the government has said. In November last year, India had temporarily shut down six of the 11 thermal power plants (TPPs) within 300 km radius of Delhi in view of hazardous air quality in Delhi-NCR. The directions were extended till December 15 as the air quality remained in the adverse range.

New airline Akasa Air on Friday said it will launch commercial flight operations on August 7 by operating its first service on Mumbai-Ahmedabad route using Boeing 737 Max aircraft. In a statement, the carrier said it has opened ticket sales on 28 weekly flights it will be operating on Mumbai-Ahmedabad route from August 7, as well as on 28 weekly flights it will operating on Bengaluru-Kochi route from August 13.

The Nationalist Congress Party on Thursday alleged that whenever there are protests against the Narendra Modi government's various failures, central agencies are used to harass Opposition leaders. Earlier in the day, Congress president Sonia Gandhi was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case related to the National Herald newspaper.