Breaking News, August 7

A 36-year-old man was killed while his brother was injured following a clash between two groups here on Sunday, police said. Circle officer, Lakshmikant Gautam said Arun Prasad Mishra and his brother Shivakar Mishra (32) were injured during a clash between two groups at Thakur Deen Purwa area here.
Both were rushed to a hospital where Arun died during treatment, while the condition of his brother is stated to be stable, police said. Efforts are on to arrest those involved in the incident, while the body of deceased has been sent for postmortem, police added.

BREAKING: Around 8 bogies of a goods train derailed on the Delhi-Rohtak railway line near Kharawar railway station of Haryana, railway track blocked. 

City mayor, a local BJP MLA and a former party legislator are among the 40 people whom the Ayodhya Development Authority has accused of illegally selling plots and building infrastructure in such land. Mayor Rishikesh Upadhyay and MLA Ved Prakash Gupta have, however, claimed innocence and alleged foul play in the list of alleged offenders released by the authority. "A list of 40 people who illegally bought and sold land and got construction work in the authority area was issued by the authority on Saturday night," the authority's vice chairman Vishal Singh told PTI on Sunday.

Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena on Sunday flagged off a 'tiranga' bicycle rally from Tilak Marg to create awareness about the 'Har Ghar Tiranga' programme to mark India's 75 years of Independence. The rally was organised by New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), in which 200 cyclists rode to Khan Market via India Gate, Shahjahan Road, Prithvi Raj Road and Rajesh Pilot Marg. "Flagged off the Tiranga Cycle Rally organized by NDMC to create awareness about #HarGharTiranga  campaign to celebrate #AzadiKaAmritMahotsav. The enthusiasm & celebratory fervor of the cyclists /participants is indeed infectious," the LG said in a tweet.

A Nigerian man, wanted in connection with a drugs case, was found dead after a police chase in a forest of Maharashtra's Thane city, an official said on Sunday. The deceased, Joe Izzikil, had disappeared into the forest near Naglabunder while being chased by a police team on Friday morning, an official from the city police said. Izzikil was later found lying on a pipe after a fall near a deserted house in the forest. He was rushed to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead, he said. Izzikil, a resident of Nallasopara, had several cases of drug possession registered against him, and his wife had also been arrested by the police in neighbouring Mumbai, the official said.

On National Handloom Day, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday asked everyone to promote the country's handloom heritage and empower the weavers, especially women. Shah said India's handloom sector signifies the rich and diverse cultural heritage. He said in 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared August 7 as the National Handloom Day to commemorate the Swadeshi movement that began in 1905 on this day and to revive the ancient Indian art. “It is also aimed at encouraging the countrymen to use handloom products woven by the indigenous weavers. On this 8th National Handloom Day, let us join hands to further the Modi government's resolve to preserve and promote our handloom heritage and empower our handloom weavers, especially women,” he said in a message. 

Light to moderate rainfall was recorded in parts of Rajasthan in the last 24 hours, a MeT department spokesperson said on Sunday. Heavy rain was recorded at one or two places in the state, with Keshwana in Jalore recording the highest 65 mm rain during the period, the official said. Bhainsrodgarh in Chittorgarh recorded 60 mm rainfall, Tatgarh in Ajmer and Shahabad of Baran recorded 30 mm each and Mandrayal in Karauli recorded 20 mm rains, the official said. Various places in the state recorded 10 mm rainfall in last 24 hours.

Harbouring a grudge over his daughter not severing ties with her lover, a man in this Uttar Pradesh district allegedly gave a contract to kill her to a ward boy of a hospital, who injected a high dose of potassium chloride to the 17-year-old girl, police have said. After a sudden deterioration of her health conditions, doctors at the hospital found out that she was injected with a high dose of potassium chloride, police said, adding that Naveen Kumar, the father of the girl, ward boy Naresh Kumar and a woman employee of the hospital were arrested in connection with the incident on Saturday.

Aam Aadmi Party national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday promised implementation of the Constitution's Fifth Schedule and the Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act in tribal regions of Gujarat if the AAP is voted to power in the state. Kejriwal also guaranteed that Gujarat's tribal advisory committee would be headed by a person from the community instead of the chief minister, as has been the case in the state. The Delhi chief minister was speaking to reporters in Vadodara on the second day of his two-day visit to the BJP-ruled Gujarat, where the Assembly elections are due later this year.

NITI Aayog's seventh Governing Council meeting, which will discuss various issues such as crop diversification, urban development and implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP), began here on Sunday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is chairing the meeting. This is the first physical meeting of the Council after July 2019. The Council, the apex body of NITI Aayog, includes all chief ministers, lieutenant governors of Union Territories and several Union ministers. The prime minister is the Chairman of NITI Aayog. Generally, a full council meeting happens every year. The meeting was not convened in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The first meeting of the council took place on February 8, 2015. 

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has advised fishermen in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands not to venture into the sea till Tuesday as squally weather and wind speed exceeding 45 kmph is likely of prevail over Andaman sea along and off the coast of the union territory. The IMD in a weather warning said thundersquall (speed reaching 50-60 kmph) is likely to occur at one or two places over Andaman and Nicobar Islands on Sunday. Heavy rain is likely to occur at one or two places in the archipelago. Thunderstorm and lightning with gusty wind speed (40-50 kmph) is likely to occur at one or two places over Andaman and Nicobar Islands on Monday and Tuesday, it said. 

The auto industry expects car sales to be on the fast lane this festive season on the back of new launches and improved production but is cautiously optimistic on the road ahead once the festivities peter out. The festive season, which usually witnesses a spike in automobile sales, begins this year on August 11 with Rakshabandhan stretching up to Diwali on October 25. "We expect the festive season this year to be the best in terms of passenger vehicle sales on the back of new launches and improved production activity. The industry has been rolling out over 3 lakh units on an average in the past 4-5 months which is helping in retails," automobile dealer's body President Vinkesh Gulati told PTI in an interaction.

As West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday announced a reshuffle of her cabinet by inducting nine new faces in the backdrop of the multi-crore WBSSC recruitment scam, many people opined that this reshuffle was an attempt by the chief minister to project a "clean cabinet" image. The attempt was visible in two particular decisions in the reshuffle. The first was the inclusion of party veteran Pradip Majumdar as the panchayat affairs and rural development minister, which was applauded by political observers. Majumdar, who had been the principal agriculture adviser to the state government since the Trinamool Congress came to power in 2011, was considered a good choice for the post considering his vast experience and an extremely clean image as there had been frequent charges of corruption in running the panchayat affairs.

ISRO Chairman S Somanath on Sunday informed the space agency's maiden Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) suffered "data loss" at the terminal stage, although three stages "performed and separated," and said the space agency was analysing the data to ascertain the status of the vehicle and the satellites. SSLV-D1/EOS 02 was carrying an earth observation satellite and a student satellite.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday lauded the medal-winning efforts of several athletes at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham after a string of podium finishes for Indians.  Tagging a video of Indian wrestler Pooja Gehlot who got emotional after winning a bronze medal in the women's 50kg freestyle wrestling and apologised to the people, Modi said, "Pooja, your medal calls for celebrations, not an apology." "Your life journey motivates us, your success gladdens us. You are destined for great things ahead…keep shining!" the prime minister said. Modi also praised wrestler Pooja Sihag for winning the bronze and said she has made a mark for herself as a talented wrestler. 

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A fake traffic police officer was nabbed when he was levying fine on violators along with real on-duty personnel in Sonitpur district of Assam, officials said on Sunday. According to a senior police officer, the man posing as a traffic police officer came from Guwahati on a bus and got down at Paruwa Chariali in Tezpur city on Saturday. "Immediately, he called the traffic policemen present there and started checking vehicles that were violating rules. He started collecting fines. This led to suspicion to the other junior officers and they called their seniors," he added.

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Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal will address a public rally on Sunday in the tribal-dominated Chhota Udepur district of Gujarat where the Assembly polls are due later this year. On the second day of this two-day visit to the BJP-ruled Gujarat, the Delhi chief minister will also address the media in Vadodara, AAP leaders said. Kejriwal on Saturday interacted with traders in Jamnagar and heard problems faced by the state's business community. He had said the AAP will form an "advisory body" of traders to guide the government if his party came to power in Gujarat in the Assembly elections due this year-end.

President Droupadi Murmu on Sunday congratulated boxers Rohit Tokas and Mohammed Hussamuddin, para table tennis player Sonalben Patel, wrestlers Deepak Nehra and Pooja Sihag for winning bronze medals at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. "Congratulations to Rohit Tokas for winning bronze in boxing at #CommonwealthGames. You held your ground in a close bout, showing your firmness of resolve and fortitude. It is a praiseworthy performance from you," Murmu tweeted. Tokas won the medal in the men's welterweight category after going down to Zambia's Stephen Zimba in the semi-final.

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A racist text message sent by a police officer has prompted officials in a small Alabama town to disband their police department and fire the police chief and assistant chief. Vincent Mayor James Latimore on Thursday confirmed that Police Chief James Srygley and Assistant Chief John L. Goss had been dismissed, al.com reported.

India advanced to the men’s hockey gold medal match after beating South Africa 3-2 in the semi-final #CommonwealthGames

A fire set off by a lightning strike at an oil storage facility raged uncontrolled in the city of Matanzas, where four explosions and flames injured nearly 80 people and left 17 firefighters missing, Cuban authorities said. Firefighters and other specialists were still trying to quell the blaze at the Matanzas Supertanker Base on Saturday, where the fire began during a thunderstorm on Friday night, the Ministry of Energy and Mines tweeted.

Mobile data services have been suspended for five days across Manipur, an order issued by Special Secretary (Home) H Gyan Prakash said on Saturday. According to the order, some anti-social elements are using social media to transmit hate speeches inciting the passions of the public. The decision came following a report by the Superintendent of Police of Bishnupur district that a vehicle was set ablaze by 3-4 men at Phougakchao Ikhang on Saturday evening. The crime has created communal tension, the order said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair the seventh meeting of the Governing Council of Niti Aayog at Rashtrapati Bhawan Cultural Centre in the national capital on Sunday.This would be the first in-person meeting of the Governing Council since July 2019.

Senior scientist Nallathamby Kalaiselvi was on Saturday appointed as director general of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the first woman to lead the consortium of 38 research institutes across the country. Known for her work in the field of lithium ion batteries, Kalaiselvi is at present director of the CSIR-Central Electrochemical Research Institute at Karaikudi in Tamil Nadu. She succeeds Shekhar Mande, who superannuated in April. Rajesh Gokhale, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, was given the additional charge of CSIR upon Mande's retirement.

The countdown for the launch of India's maiden Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) carrying an earth observation satellite and a student satellite commenced at 2.26 am on Sunday, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said. ISRO has embarked on a mission to place satellites that weigh up to 500 kg into the 500 km low earth orbit, as it aims for a bigger share of the demanding SSLV market. "SSLV-D1/EOS-02 Mission: the countdown commenced at 02.26hrs," ISRO said on its website on Sunday.

Indian American teenager Aarya Walvekar from Virginia has been crowned Miss India USA 2022 at the annual pageant held in New Jersey. An aspiring actress Aarya (18), said, "It has been my childhood dream to see myself on the silver screen and work in films and TV." Her hobbies include exploring new places, cooking and debating, she said. Saumya Sharma, a second-year premedical student at the University of Virginia, was declared first runner up and Sanjana Chekuri of New Jersey was the second runner up.