Breaking news: August 8, 2020 | As it happened

Swollen rivers, originating in Nepal and flowing through north Bihar, continued to wreak havoc on Saturday when more areas and inhabitants were hit by the floods raising the number of people affected by the calamity to over 73 lakh, said the disaster management department.

According to the departments bulletin, the size of the affected population grew by two lakh since the previous day though no loss of lives was reported during the period and the death toll remained stable at 23.

SpiceJet on Saturday said it has operated its maiden long haul flight to Canada, repatriating 352 Canadian nationals and permanent residents from the national capital. A wide-body A330 neo aircraft from Hi Fly was chartered for the flight to Toronto. The twin-aisle plane had a configuration of 353 economy and 18 business class seats.

In a release, SpiceJet said it is also the first Indian budget airline to operate a non-stop long haul flight to North America.

Maharashtra on Saturday reported a highest single-day spike of 12,822 new coronavirus cases, taking the tally in the state to 5,03,084, a health official said.

With 275 COVID-19 patients succumbing, the death toll in the state increased to 17,367, he added.

The flood in Assam maintained a falling trend on Saturday with the waters ebbing from two districts and remaining in only four affecting 6435 persons, an ASDMA bulletin said.

A fire broke out after an LPG cylinder exploded in south Delhi's Tigri area on Saturday, officials said. According to fire officials, they received information about the incident from Tigri JJ camp at 7.07 pm.

Eight fire tenders have been rushed to the spot, they said. Further details are awaited.

The number of flood-affected districts in Uttar Pradesh rose to 18 on Saturday with Sharda, Rapti and Saryu-Ghagra rivers continuing to flow above the danger mark in different places. Deoria was hit by the deluge on Saturday taking the number of affected districts to 18. So far, 672 villages have been inundated, according to a statement issued by Relief Commissioner Sanjay Goyal.

The statement said that 460 villages in these districts are marooned.

Inching towards the three lakh mark in COVID-19 tally, Tamil Nadu on Saturday recorded 5,883 fresh cases while 118 deaths saw the toll climbing to 4,808, the Health Department said. The state's tally mounted to 2,90,907 while that of the state capital to 1,08,124 with the addition of 986 cases, the second day in a row it logged less than 1,000, a bulletin issued by the department said.

Prime Narendra Modi on Saturday launched a week-long campaign to free India of garbage and stressed that the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan has been a big support in the fight against coronavirus. Delivering the inaugural address at the launch of the Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra here, which was also attended by students, Modi urged children to follow social distancing norms and wear masks to guard against coronavirus.

"Swachh Bharat Abhiyan has been a big support in fight against coronavirus," he said. The week-long campaign to free India of garbage will be till August 15.

Modi said the Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra is a tribute to Mahatma Gandhi's efforts towards cleanliness.

Amid the political crisis in Rajasthan, former chief minister and BJP leader Vasundhara Raje met senior party leader and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday and is believed to have discussed the political situation in the state. Raje, who is in the national capital for the last few days, met BJP president J P Nadda on Friday. She had also met the party's general secretary (organisation) B L Santhosh.

However, there was no official word on what transpired in these meetings.

A seven-year-old girl was mauled to death by a leopard in Dahod district of Gujarat, a forest department official said on Saturday.

The national capital is likely to witness moderate to heavy rains over the next four days, the India Meteorological Department said on Saturday.

Kuldeep Srivastava, head of the IMD's regional forecasting center, said the monsoon trough is likely to shift northward and will stay close to the Delhi-NCR region from Sunday evening to Wednesday.

The Mizoram government has curtailed the period of deferment of employees' salary from three months to two in view of a slight improvement in the financial condition of the state and all staffers will be paid in full from August, according to an order.

The state government had earlier decided to defer a portion of the salary of a large number of employees for three months from June to ease the financial constraints caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

In the last few years, lakhs of people across the country, who are inspired by Gandhiji, have made 'Swachh Bharat Mission' a goal of their lives. This is the reason that we have been able to provide toilet facility to over 60 crore people in just 60 months, said PM Modi.

The whole world is coming forward to adopt the values and principals of Mahatma Gandhi. When Gandhi ji's 150th birth anniversary was celebrated last year, that was unprecedented. Singers of different countries learned and sung his favourite song 'Vaishnav Jan To,' said Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra.

A fire broke out in a fishing boat in the sea a short distance from Visakhapatnam fishing harbour. It appears that the boat caught fire due to technical fault in the morning. No casualties reported: Harbour Police Station, Andhra Pradesh.

We all are a part of a campaign now, 'Gandagi, Bharat Chorho'. I am glad that all of us, including the children present, are following social distancing norms and wearing masks, to control the spread of COVID-19, said PM Modi at the Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra. A while back, PM Modi inaugurated the Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra near Raj Ghat in New Delhi. The new kendra is an interactive experience centre that has been built to promote 'Swachh Bharat Mission'.

The Prime Minister also watched a short video on 'Swachh Bharat Mission' at the Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra.

We all are a part of a campaign now, 'Gandagi, Bharat Chorho'. I am glad that all of us, including the children present here, are following social distancing norms and wearing masks, to control the spread of COVID-19, PM Modi said at the Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra.

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The 35-year-old owner of an eatery died and 11 others were injured when a gas cylinder exploded, resulting in a fire in Ulhasnagar town of Maharashtra's Thane district on Saturday, police said.

The passengers killed in the Air India Express crash here have been identified and as many as nine of the 18 victims were from Kozhikode city, authorities said on Saturday.

Swollen rivers and flood like situation continue to threaten lives and property in several parts of Karnataka that have been ravaged by torrential rains over the last few days.

Indonesian authorities on Saturday issued a flight alert following the eruption of the Sinabung volcano in North Sumatra province.

The National Volcanology Agency said that the 2,475-meter high volcano located in Karo district spewed a 2-km high column of volcanic ash, reports Xinhua news agency.

IMD issues red and orange alert in various districts of Kerala. Red alert issued for 8th Aug in Idukki, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad and Kannur. Orange alert issued for 9th Aug in Pathanamthitta, Alapuzha, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad and Kasargod.

Civil Aviation Minister, Hardeep Singh Puri visit Kozhikode Airport, where an Air India Express flight crashlanded yesterday. 18 people, including two pilots, lost their lives in the incident. 

Pakistan’s coronavirus cases have reached 283,487 with 842 new cases in the last 24 hours while the death toll has climbed to 6,068, the health ministry said on Saturday.

Girish Chandra Murmu took oath as the comptroller and auditor general (CAG) on Saturday. 

Rajasthan records 499 new COVID19 positive cases and 9 deaths, taking the total positive cases and deaths to 50,656 and 776 respectively. Active cases stand at 13,570

Deeply saddened by the news of Air India Express aircraft's accident in Kerala, India last night. Nepal extends deep condolences to the bereaved families and wishes for speedy recovery of those injured, says Pradeep Gyawali, Nepal Foreign Affairs Minister

Single-day spike of 61,537 cases and 933 deaths reported in India, in the last 24 hours. The COVID-19 tally rises to 20,88,612 including 6,19,088  active cases, 14,27,006 cured/discharged/migrated and 42,518

Latest visuals from Kozhikode International Airport in Karipur, Kerala where an Air India Express flight crash-landed on Friday. 18 people, including two pilots, have lost their lives in the incident.

Wreckage of Air India Express flight that crash-landed at Kozhikode International Airport in Karipur on Friday. 17 people, including two pilots, have lost their lives in the incident.

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Two special relief flights have been arranged from Delhi and one from Mumbai for rendering humanitarian assistance to all the passengers and the family members. AAIB, DGCA and Flight Safety Depts have reached to investigate the incident: Air India Express

Death toll in Kerala plane crash rises to 17; 2 pilots dead, all 4 crew members safe

Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan reaches #Kozhikode where Air India flight (IX-1344) crash-landed yesterday. 17 people including two pilots have lost their lives in the incident. Injured are admitted to hospitals in Malappuram & Kozhikode.

Hello and welcome to today's live coverage of coronavirus news in India and across the world, with me, Sushmita Panda and my colleagues  Himanshu Shekhar, Shashwat  Bhandari, Vani Mehrotra, Priya Jaiswal,  Sidhant Mamtany and Rashi Hardaha. You can get in touch with us directly on twitter​​​​@sushmitapanda, @himaanshus, @ShashBhandari​ @vani_mehrotra​ @priyajais, @SidMamtany, and  @rashihardaha for news, tips, photos, questions and comments. Stay tuned to Indiatvnews.com (@indiatvnews) for all the latest updates on what's happening around the world. 

Here's a quick overview: 

The total number of global cases has surpassed 19.5 million, including more than 722,000 fatalities. More than 12,533,000 patients are reported to have recovered.

Total positive cases country-wise: