LIVE: Rahul Dravid appointed head coach of Indian men's cricket team

Live news updates: Logistics firm Delhivery opts for IPO; RBI wants early sale of stressed assets.

12:54 AM

UP sweetens Centre's Diwali gift: Lowers VAT on petrol diesel, makes them yet more cheaper

With the central government slashing the excise duty on petrol and diesel, the Uttar Pradesh government too on Wednesday lowered the VAT on the two fuels making them cheaper by Rs 12 per litre in the state.

 

The state government has decided to reduce the VAT by Rs 7 and Rs 2 respectively on petrol and diesel. Now with the cut in excise duty by the Centre and reduction of VAT by the state government, their prices will come down by Rs 12 per litre in the state, Additional Chief Secretary (Information) Navneet Sehgal said.

 

Earlier in the day, the central government had announced a cut in the excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 5 and Rs 10 respectively, bringing down their retail rates from record highs.

12:18 AM

All-round India demolish Afghanistan by 66 runs, stay in competition

A formidable India led by their stylish openers Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul finally put up a near-flawless performance to annihilate a hapless Afghanistan by 66 runs to stay afloat in the ICC T20 World Cup here on Wednesday.

 

It could well be a case of joining the party two games too late but a solid batting show to first score 210 for 2 and then bowl the disciplined lines to restrict Afghanistan to 144 for 7 kept their billion plus fans interested.

 

With their net run-rate finally entering the positive bracket (+0.073), India would now hope that Afghanistan can recover from this drubbing and upset New Zealand, giving Virat Kohli's men an outside chance to qualify for the semi-finals behind Pakistan who are set to top the group.

 

On the day, India did everything that perhaps was expected of them against the big teams.

 

Rohit brought his carefree elegance to the table while Rahul was classy as ever in India's imposing total.

10:54 PM

PNB cuts benchmark lending rate to 6.50 pc; launches special Diwali offer

State-owned Punjab National Bank on Wednesday announced cutting its benchmark lending rate by 5 basis points to 6.50 per cent. The Repo Linked Lending Rate (RLLR) has been reduced from 6.55 per cent to 6.50 per cent with effect from November 8, PNB said in a regulatory filing.

 

As part of continued efforts to enhance customer service, PNB also launched a range of deals and offers on its retail loans this festive season.

 

With reduction in RLLR, all loans including home, car, education and personal loans would become cheaper. The bank had last cut its RLLR on September 17 from 6.80 per cent to 6.55 per cent.

10:14 PM

On Diwali, Delhi Metro to run last train service at 10 pm on all lines, except Green line

On the occasion of Diwali on Thursday, the Delhi Metro will operate its last train services at 10 pm from all its terminal stations except the Green Line, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) said today.

 

On regular days the last trains start from 11 pm at all its stations.

 

"On account of the Diwali festival, the last metro train service on November 4, will start at 10pm from terminal stations of all metro lines except Green Line (i.e, Line-5 from Inderlok/Kirti Nagar to Brig. Hoshiar Singh (Bahdurgarh) stations)," the DMRC said in a statement on Tuesday.

 

DMRC further said that the last metro train service from the terminal stations of Green Line will be as per the revised schedule: Brigadier Hoshiar Singh to Inderlok at 9 pm; Brigadier Hoshiar Singh to Kirti Nagar at 9:10 pm; Inderlok to Brigadier Hoshiar Singh at 9:30 pm and Kirti Nagar to Brigadier Hoshiar Singh at 9:30 pm.

9:24 PM

India, Bhutan to have 7 more entry/exit points for trade: Govt

India and Bhutan will have seven additional entry and exit points for trade as part of measures to increase trade connectivity, the government said on Wednesday.

 

The decision was taken at a commerce secretary-level meeting held between India and Bhutan on trade and transit issues here.

 

The Indian delegation was led by BVR Subrahmanyam, Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the Bhutanese delegation was led by Dasho Karma Tshering, Secretary, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Royal Government of Bhutan.

9:14 PM

US puts new controls on Israeli spyware companies

The Biden administration announced Wednesday it is putting new export limits on two Israeli hacker-for-hire companies including the well-known spyware company NSO Group saying their tools have been used to "conduct transnational repression.

 

Based on leaked targeting data, findings by a global media consortium earlier this year provided evidence that the spyware from NSO Group was allegedly used to infiltrate devices belonging to a range of targets, including journalists, activists and political opponents in 50 countries.

 

The US Commerce Department said NSO Group and the firm Candiru are being added to the entity list, which limits their access to US components and technology by requiring government permission for exports.

8:49 PM

Rahul Dravid appointed head coach of Indian men's cricket team

8:13 PM

Govt reduces excise duty on petrol, diesel

7:51 PM

Glad to see one more vaccine being granted EUL: WHO chief

6:14 PM

DRDO & IAF carry out successful flight tests of indigenously-developed smart anti-airfield weapon

6:11 PM

Mandaviya thanks WHO

5:29 PM

42 companies selected under PLI Scheme for white goods

Ministry of Commerce finalised 42 companies under PLI Scheme for white goods. 26 companies will invest Rs 3,898 crore for air conditioner components and 16 companies will invest Rs 716 crore for LED component manufacturing.

 

Total investment in the scheme is pegged at Rs 4,614 crore, with direct employment generation of about 44,000.

4:43 PM

Centre releases Rs 17,000 crore as GST compensation to states/UTs

3:35 PM

CDSCO approves extension of shelf life of Covaxin up to 12 months

3:10 PM

Centre launches 'Har Ghar Dastak' campaign

2:51 PM

'You will have to contact those people who have not taken the second dose'

The Prime Minister cautioned that while knocking on every house, equal attention needed to be paid to the second dose as well as the first dose. Because whenever the cases of infection start decreasing, sometimes the feeling of urgency decreases. The urgency in administering the vaccines comes down among the people. “You will have to contact those people who have not taken the second dose despite the stipulated time on a priority basis...ignoring this has created problems for many countries in the world,” PM Modi alerted the District Magistrates.

2:24 PM

You've major challenge of 'rumour' and 'misconception among people': PM tells DMs

2:22 PM

PM Modi speaks at key vaccine meet

Progress made so far is due to your hard work. ASHA workers worked a lot, walked for miles and took Covid vaccination to remote locations. But if we become lax after 1 billion doses, a new crisis can arrive, says Prime Minister Modi at Covid vaccination review meet

1:13 PM

Supreme Court to examine if education is a consumer service

The Supreme Court has agreed to examine the issue whether education is a service within the Consumer Protection Act. A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and B V Nagarathna noted that a similar legal issue is pending adjudication in another case and tagged the matter along with it, PTI reported citing a court order on Oct. 29.

12:51 PM

Modi holds meeting on districts trailing in vaccinations

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is meeting with district magistrates of over 40 districts having low COVID-19 vaccination coverage. The meeting, being held via video conferencing, includes districts with less than 50 per cent coverage of the first dose and low coverage of the second dose of vaccine. The 40 districts are spread across India, according to the Prime Minister's Office.

12:23 PM

Karnataka company hid Rs 70 crore income: Tax department

The Income Tax Department has detected unaccounted income of more than Rs 70 crore after investigating a Karnataka-based civil construction group, said a statement on Wednesday. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said the group was "suppressing" profits by booking "bogus" expenses in the purchase of materials, labour expenses and payment to contractors, PTI reported.

 

12:08 PM

Nokia claims top 5G speed during Gujarat trials

Telecom-gear maker Nokia recorded a top speed of 9.85 Gigabit per second on Vodafone Idea’s network during trials for 5G spectrum, said the company on Wednesday. The company said achieved the speed while connecting a network of mobile base stations during trials in Gandhinagar, PTI said.

11:41 AM

Taliban govt bans foreign currency in Afghanistan

The Taliban government has banned the use of foreign currency in Afghanistan in a surprise move that could further weigh on an economy struggling with a cash crunch amid widespread hunger. The militant group’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahed said the Afghans should use the local currency in view of the economic situation, Bloomberg reported. Much of Afghanistan’s local trade is done in US dollars.

11:26 AM

ED attaches assets of Bengaluru company

Assets worth Rs 35.70 crore have been attached under the anti-money laundering law after the probe of a Bengaluru-based ponzi scheme the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Wednesday. The land, office spaces and residential flats in Bengaluru and bank deposits of Rs 1.49 crore were held in the name of Vikram Investments and Associates, a company accused of cheating people, PTI said.

10:55 AM

Adani Power approved to acquire Essar's Mahan project

Adani Power said on Wednesday the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved it to acquire Essar Power's 1,200 MW thermal power project in Mahan, Madhya Pradesh. The deal size of the project is estimated at Rs 2,800-3,000 crore, PTI reported quoting unnamed sources.

10:21 AM

Centre sends health teams to states battling dengu

The union health ministry has sent teams of experts to nine states and union territories reporting a high number of dengue cases. The experts will help states in public health measures for control and management of the disease.

10:07 AM

Djokovic shakes off rust with win at Paris Masters

In his first singles match since missing out on a calendar-year Grand Slam, Novak Djokovic beat Marton Fucsovics 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 in the second round of the Paris Masters. No. 1 ranked Djokovic showed signs of rustiness with a couple of unforced errors in the opening game, but he put pressure on his Hungarian opponent with the quality of his service returns, breaking him twice in the first set, the AP reported.

9:49 AM

India record 11,903 new cases of Covid-19

India recorded 11,903 new cases of Covid-19 and 311 deaths from the disease in 24 hours, said the health ministry on Wednesday. The country has 34.3 million cases and 459,191 have died of the disease yet.

9:31 AM

Tata Power top bidder for UP transmission firm: Report

Tata Power is the highest bidder for South East UP Power Transmission Company after topping four other bidders with Rs 3,000-crore offer to buy the bankrupt transmission firm, the Economic Times reported. Tata Power had submitted a final bid on October 30 through its subsidiary.

 

8:54 AM

Birla to invest Rs 15 crore in Vodafone Idea: Report

Aditya Birla Group chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla will invest at least Rs 15 crore of his own money in Vodafone Idea, Mint daily reported citing unnamed sources. The investment will help the group’s cash-strapped telecom company to stay afloat.