Breaking News, November 3

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Thursday said the persons arrested in connection with the "TRS MLAs poaching case" were planning to topple four state governments including his own and Congress-ruled Rajasthan and appealed to the judiciary to safeguard democracy. At a press conference here, Rao referred to the recent 'TRS MLAs poaching case' and played a video allegedly concerning the episode in which three persons were arrested.

Violation of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) led to fines totalling Rs 4.25 lakh on more than a dozen offenders in Noida on Thursday, the local authority said. The average air quality index (AQI) for a 24-hour period at 4 pm Thursday was recorded at 423, according to a government agency monitoring pollution.

 As Delhi stared at a public health emergency, a central government panel on Thursday directed authorities to ban the plying of four-wheeled diesel light motor vehicles in the city and adjoining NCR districts and the entry of trucks into the capital as part of anti-pollution measures under the final stage of the Graded Response Action Plan. However, BS-VI vehicles and those used for essential and emergency services are exempted, according to an order issued by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM).

A fire broke out in a godown storing scrap materials like plastic, tin as well as cylinders in Sopan Nagar area on Pune-Ahmednagar road on Thursday, an official said. No one was injured in the blaze, which started at noon and was doused an hour later in an operation that saw the deployment of 15 water tankers, he informed.

The Indian Army has gifted four explosive detection dogs to the Royal Cambodia Armed Forces (RCAF) in reflection of growing cooperation between the two sides, military officials said on Thursday. The dogs were transported from New Delhi to Phnom Penh in a civilian flight on October 24, they said. The Army also conducted a four-week training on handling of the sniffer dogs to a number of RCAF personnel at the Remount Veterinary Corps facility in Meerut, they said.

Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, M K Stalin and Mamata Banerjee, respectively attended a family function of West Bengal Governor La Ganesan here on Thursday. Ganesan, Governor of Manipur, also holds additional charge of West Bengal. The CMs, besides top actor Rajinikanth among others, attended the 80th birthday celebrations of Ganesan's brother.

The BJP on Thursday alleged that Union Minister of State (MoS) for Home Nisith Pramanik's convoy was attacked in West Bengal's Cooch Behar district, but police said it was a "minor scuffle" as some people tried to wave black flags at him. Pramanik was in the Sitai area to visit the houses of BJP workers who were attacked last week, the BJP said. Stones were hurled at his cavalcade by TMC supporters, it alleged. Rejecting the allegation, TMC claimed the incident might be the result of infighting 

A 16-year-old girl was allegedly killed by her brother over suspicion of having an affair with a man from their village here, police said on Thursday. The 22-year-old accused hacked his sister to death with a sharp-edged weapon in the Katra area on Wednesday night, Circle officer Munna Upadhyay said. On the complaint of the girl's mother, an FIR was registered and the youth was arrested.

A voter turnout of 16.89 per cent was recorded in the Andheri East Assembly byelection in Mumbai till 1 pm on Thursday, an official said. Polling for the byelection, which started at 7:00 am, will continue till 6:00 pm. The process is underway at 256 polling booths in the constituency. "Till 1:00 pm, 16.89 per cent voters cast their votes," returning officer Prashant Patil told reporters. This is the first Assembly election in Maharashtra after the Uddhav Thackeray-helmed Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government collapsed in June this year following a revolt by Shiv Sena MLAs led by Eknath Shinde.

BJP president JP Nadda on Thursday welcomed the announcement of the Gujarat assembly polls and claimed that his party will again form "double engine" government in the state with a big majority under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership. In a tweet after the Election Commission announced the poll schedule, Nadda added that the BJP will work with commitment to fulfil people's aspirations in the next five years. Assembly elections in Gujarat will be held in two phases on December 1 and 5 with the counting of votes on December 8 along with that of Himachal Pradesh, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar announced on Thursday.

The share of stubble burning in Delhi's PM2.5 pollution jumped to 38 per cent on Thursday, which, experts said was the reason behind the thick layer of pungent smog over the national capital. The increase in stubble burning has kicked off a political slugfest, with Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Wednesday saying that there had been a 19 per cent rise in farm fires over 2021 in Punjab and that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had turned the national capital into a gas chamber. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, in turn, blamed the central government for rising incidents of stubble burning in Punjab and said it 

A voter turnout of 31.90 per cent was recorded till 1 pm in Mokama and Gopalganj assembly constituencies in Bihar where polling was underway for by-elections on Thursday, officials said. While Mokama recorded 34.26 per cent voter turnout, Gopalganj saw 29.90 per cent turnout till 1:00 pm, they said. The bypolls to the two seats are the first election in the state after the formation of the 'Mahagthabandhan' government around three months back. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the de-facto leader of the JD(U), dumped the BJP and formed a new coalition government with the RJD, Congress and Left parties in early August. The polling began at 7 am, and will continue till 6 pm, election officials said.

A bumper apple production in Kashmir this season has failed to cheer up growers as their produce is being sold at nearly 30 per cent lower rates than last year. Faced with huge losses, apple farmers have now sought government intervention. The Kashmiri apple hogged the headlines in September after an uproar over frequent disruption in its transportation from the orchards in the valley to markets outside the Union territory, including Azadpur Mandi, Asia's largest wholesale market. Kashmir produces about 75 per cent of the total apple crop in the country and is considered the backbone of its economy, contributing about 8.2 per cent to Jammu and Kashmir's GDP.

Former Navy Chief Admiral L Ramdas joined Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in the 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' in Telangana on Thursday. The Yatra resumed from Patancheru on the city outskirts Thursday morning and it will halt at Sivampet in Sangareddy district for the night, Congress sources said. "Admiral Ramdas, former Chief of Naval Staff, who at 89 continues to be an indefatigable campaigner for public causes, along with his wife Lalita Ramdas, herself the daughter of Admiral Katari, 1st Indian Chief of Naval Staff, walked with @RahulGandhi on Day 57 of #BharatJodoYatra," AICC General Secretary, in-charge, Communications, Jairam Ramesh, tweeted.

Karnataka Minister of School Education and Literacy B C Nagesh on Thursday said he has issued directions for meditation to be introduced for school and pre-university college students. He has also sent a note to officials of his department in this regard. "It is directed to take necessary steps to introduce 10 minutes of meditation for students in schools and pre-university colleges daily, aimed at increasing their concentration, improving health, positive thinking, stress-free learning, personality development, and thereby imbibing good qualities," Nagesh said in a tweet on Thursday with the note.

Gujarat will go to polls in two phases on December 1 and 5 with the counting of votes on December 8 along with that of Himachal Pradesh, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar announced on Thursday. Of the total 182 assembly seats in Gujarat, voting for 89 seats will be held on December 1 and the balance 93 seats on December 5. Gujarat has a 182 member assembly and the BJP had pulled off its sixth consecutive victory winning 99 seats in the last polls, while the Congress put up a spirited fight by bagging 77 seats. In percentage terms, the BJP had polled 49.05 per cent of the valid votes, while Congress had polled 42.97 per cent. The Congress witnessed a series of defections after the assembly elections and the BJP increased its tally in the House to 111. The Congress numbers were reduced to 62.

A voter turnout of 24.17 per cent was recorded till 11 am in Mokama and Gopalganj assembly constituencies in Bihar where polling was underway for by-elections on Thursday, officials said. While Mokama recorded 27.30 per cent voter turnout, Gopalganj saw 21.76 per cent turnout till 11 am, they said. Long queues were seen outside many booths as people turned up early to exercise their franchise, officials said. The bypolls to the two seats are the first election in the state after the formation of the 'Mahagthabandhan' government around three months back. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the de-facto leader of the JD(U), dumped the BJP and formed a new coalition government with the RJD, Congress and Left parties in early August.

Delhi's air quality continued to be in the 'severe' category on Thursday, according to Central Pollution Control Board data While the forecasters on Wednesday predicted the air quality was likely to improve on the back of stronger winds, the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi stood at 426 at 9.10 am. An AQI of above 400 is considered “severe” and can affect healthy people and seriously impact those with existing illnesses. Anand Vihar and Jahangirpuri were the most polluted places in the capital with AQI at 460. The areas that recorded “Severe” AQI are Alipur (439), Ashok Vihar (444), Bawana (456), Burari (443), Mathura Road (412), DTU (436), Dwarka (408), ITO (435), Mundka (438), Narela (447), Nehru Nagar (433), Patparganj (441), Rohini (453), Sonia Vihar (444), Vivek Vihar (444) and Wazirpur (444). The AQI continued to remain in the ‘very poor’ category in Ghaziabad (391), Noida (388), Greater Noida (390), Gurugram (391) and Faridabad (347), the CPCB data stated.

The customs has seized USD 4,97,000, worth Rs 4.1 crore, at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport here, an official said on Thursday. After receiving a tip-off, the Air Intelligence Unit of Airport Customs intercepted three members of a family who were about to fly to Dubai on Wednesday morning, he said. An examination of their baggage led to the recovery of USD 4,97,000 in cash, hidden inside sarees, footwear and in a bag, the official said. All three were arrested and a local court sent them in judicial custody. Further probe is on, the official said. 

A fire broke out at a hotel in Vrindavan on Thursday in which two of its employees were killed and as many injured, police said here. The fire started in the early hours of the day while the employees were asleep, SHO, Vrindavan, Suraj Sharma said. Although most of them managed to escape the fire, two got trapped, he said. Among the two injured, the condition of one was stated to be serious and he was rushed to Agra for better treatment, the SHO said. Three fire tenders doused the flames at the three-storey hotel. All of its 25 rooms were occupied at the time. Additional Superintendent of Police, City, Martand Prakash Singh said Hotel Vrindavan Garden has two parts. Tourists stay in one part of the hotel, while the other part houses its restaurant, pantry and store room, he said.

India has abstained on yet another resolution involving Ukraine, this time a motion sponsored by Russia at the UNSC that sought to establish a commission to investigate claims by Moscow that the US and Ukraine are carrying out “military biological activities” in laboratories in Ukraine in violation of the biological weapons convention. The resolution failed to get adopted Wednesday as only two Council members - Russia and China - voted in its favour, while the US, the UK and France voted against it and the other Council members, including India, abstained.

Asian stock markets tumbled on Thursday after the Federal Reserve added to recession fears by saying it wasn't finished raising US interest rates to cool inflation. Hong Kong's benchmark lost 3.1 per cent. Shanghai, Seoul and Sydney also followed Wall Street lower after the Fed on Wednesday raised its key rate to the highest level in 15 years. Oil prices declined while the euro stayed below 99 cents. Wall Street's benchmark S&P 500 index plunged 2.5 per cent after the Fed raised its short-term lending rate by 0.75 percentage points, three times its usual margin, for a fourth time this year.

Polling was underway amid tight security in the bypoll to Munugode Assembly constituency in Telangana on Thursday. Voting began at 7 am and will continue till 6 am. Over 2.41 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the election. There are a total of 298 polling stations and web casting would be done from all of them. Of the total, 105 booths have been identified as 'critical.' The Election Commission has made elaborate arrangements for polling, including deployment of 3,366 state police and 15 companies of central security personnel.

The Election Commission will announce the schedule for Gujarat assembly polls at 12 noon on Thursday. The poll panel has convened a press conference to announce the schedule. The term of Gujarat assembly ends on February 18 next year. 

Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC and ESR Group Ltd have formed a joint venture to set up a USD 600 million-fund to acquire logistics and industrial assets in India. On Thursday, GIC and ESR announced an 80:20 strategic partnership to establish the fund worth USD 600 million (around Rs 5,000 crore) to acquire the "income-producing assets". ESR is already developing various industrial and logistics parks across major Indian cities. The joint venture represents an extension of the existing partnership in India between the GIC and ESR, which was initiated in 2020, with the initial capital pool dedicated to investing in development and value-add to logistics and industrial opportunities across India.

Polling began on Thursday for bypolls in Haryana's Adampur assembly constituency, whose outcome will decide if the Bhajan Lal family holds on to its bastion of five decades. Polling began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm. Nearly 1.71 lakh voters are eligible to cast vote. Counting of votes will be taken up on November 6. Twenty-two candidates, all men, are in the fray. The main parties contesting are the BJP, Congress, Indian National Lok Dal, and the Aam Aadmi Party. The bypoll was necessitated after former Haryana Chief Minister Bhajan Lal's younger son Kuldeep Bishnoi resigned as MLA from the seat and switched sides from the Congress to the BJP in August. Bishnoi's son Bhavya, who is contesting the bypoll as the BJP candidate, had also quit the Congress and joined the BJP.

Polling began on Thursday morning for by-election to the Dhamnagar assembly constituency in Odisha amid tight security, officials said. The voting began in all the 252 polling stations of the constituency in Bhadrak district at 7 am, and will continue till 6 pm, they said. A total of 2.38 lakh voters- 1.23 lakh males and 1.15 lakh females- are eligible to exercise their franchise in this election. The rural constituency usually records around 70 per cent voter turn out. In the 2019 assembly election, 72.64 per cent of voters cast their votes, while it was 73.46 per cent in 2014.

A top ally of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is demanding fresh answers from the US Capitol Police about security failures that led to a brutal attack on Pelosi's husband last week, questioning the embattled agency about whether it can keep lawmakers and their families safe. House Administration Committee Chairwoman Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., wrote a four-page letter to Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger on Wednesday, saying that the attack on Paul Pelosi raises “significant questions about security protections for Members of Congress.”

Russia agreed Wednesday to rejoin a wartime agreement that allows Ukrainian grain and other commodities to be shipped to world markets. The UN's refugee chief, meanwhile, put the number of Ukrainians driven from their homes since the Russian invasion eight months ago at around 14 million. It is “the fastest, largest displacement witnessed in decades,” said Filippo Grandi, who heads the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. In announcing that Russia would rejoin the grain pact, President Vladimir Putin said Moscow had received assurances that Ukraine would not use the humanitarian corridors to attack Russian forces. He warned that Russia reserves the right to withdraw again if Kyiv breaks its word.

Japan says missiles fired by North Korea flew over northern Japan on Thursday, the latest in a series of weapons tests that have raised tensions in the region. The announcement by Japan's Prime Minister's Office came shortly after South Korea's military said it detected North Korea launching at least one ballistic missile toward its eastern sea. Japan said more than one missile was fired, although it didn't immediately say how many. It said the missiles flew over its territory and landed in the Pacific Ocean. The Prime Minister's Office issued warnings to residents in the northern prefectures of Miyagi, Yamagata, and Niigata, instructing them to go inside firm buildings or go underground. There have been no reports of damage or injuries from areas where the alerts were issued.

The United States announced Wednesday it will seek to oust Iran from the UN's premier global body fighting for gender equality because of its violation of the rights of women and girls and its ongoing crackdown on demonstrators who took to the streets in September after the death of a 22-year-old woman taken into custody by the morality police. Vice-President Kamala Harris made the announcement of the US intention to work with other countries to remove Iran from the Commission on the Status of Women, saying no nation that abuses women's rights “should play a role in any international or United Nations body charged with protecting these very same rights.”