LIVE updates: India logs 1,5674 new Covid cases, toll climbs to 529,008

From national and international political developments to rising air pollution and farm fires, catch all the latest news from across the globe here

2:59 PM

Former Union IT Minister Kapil Sibal on amended IT rules

"Safe for the government and unsafe for others, that is what the policy of this govt always has been. The only platform left for ordinary citizens was social media; when statements defamatory are made,people will be prosecuted," said Former Union IT Minister Kapil Sibal on amended IT rules.

1:53 PM

Preparations for Chhath Puja underway in Delhi

1:46 PM

Bhalswa lake was dirty earlier, it has now been cleaned within 10 days: Delhi Lt Gov Vinai Kumar Saxena

Bhalswa lake was dirty earlier, it has now been cleaned within 10 days. I hope devotees will get to offer prayers in a clean space this time. The lake will be further improved in the time to come, said Delhi Lt Gov Vinai Kumar Saxena, after inspecting Bhalswa Lake ahead of Chhath Puja.

1:46 PM

The second edition of Naval Commanders' Conference of 2022 is scheduled from 31st Oct to 3rd Nov

The conference serves as a platform for Naval Commanders to discuss important maritime matters at the military-strategic level through an institutionalised forum.

1:38 PM

Use of unmanned aerial systems by terrorist groups is challenge for govts around world, says EAM Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday highlighted the global threat of terrorism is growing and expanding, particularly in Asia and Africa, despite the UN Security Council's (UNSC) best efforts to combat the "gravest threat to humanity".

1:35 PM

Lakhs turned overage waiting for UP Police recruitment, alleges Varun Gandhi

BJP MP Varun Gandhi on Saturday said lakhs of youths have become overage for recruitment in the Uttar Pradesh Police after waiting for it for four years.

"No recruitment was done and nor was any hope offered. They (youths) have been raising their voice on social media but there is no redressal," he said in a tweet in Hindi.

"The same students, if they hit the streets, will be called troublemakers. Isn't this injustice," Gandhi asked.

1:34 PM

Imran begins long march with guns aimed at ISI chief

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chair­man Imran Khan has kicked off his much-awaited 'Haqeeqi Azadi march towards Islamabad with a no-holds-barred speech targeting the countrys premier spy chief and other intelligence officers.

Addressing from atop a container at the starting point of the march, the Lib­erty Roundabout, Khan incriminated the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) director general (DG) for holding a "political presser", and called out two other army officers for playing the role of "Dirty Harry" for picking up and torturing a party senator, Dawn news reported.

Seeking the attention of army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, the former Prime Minister said these officers were tarnishing the image of the institution.

1:15 PM

Social media platforms turning into potent instruments in 'toolkit' of terror groups: Jaishankar

India on Saturday pitched for concerted global efforts to stop possible misuse of new technologies such as encrypted messaging and crypto-currency by "non-state actors", and cautioned that the social media platforms have turned into potent instruments in the "toolkit" of terror groups.

In an address at a special meeting of the UN Security Council's Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC), External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said terrorist groups, their "ideological fellow-travellers" and "lone wolf" attackers have significantly enhanced capabilities by gaining access to the new technologies.

He also said the counter-terror sanction regime of the United Nations has been effective to put countries on notice that turned terrorism into a "state-funded enterprise", seen as an apparent reference to Pakistan.

12:46 PM

Fired Twitter employees carrying boxes outside its HQ was 'fake'

As Elon Musk fired Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal and CFO Ned Segal in a dramatic style, two men carrying boxes were seen outside the entrance of Twitter's San Francisco headquarters, claiming they have been laid off by Musk. One of them, however, turned out to be a fake employee, at least.

One man "Rahul Ligma" identified himself as a software engineer at Twitter, who later turned out to be someone whose name does not even exist in Twitter's Slack or email system.

There is also no evidence that the employee exists on LinkedIn, reports The Verge.

After seeing these two men with boxes in their hands, several media outlets had earlier reported that laid-off Twitter employees were leaving the Twitter building.

Musk poked fun at media outlets, tweeting: "One of the best trolls ever."

12:25 PM

India to contribute USD 500,000 for UN Trust Fund for Counter-Terrorism

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday said that India will contribute $500,000 to the United Nations Trust Fund for Counter Terrorism this year to aid capacity-building support to member states in combating terrorism.

He made this announcement during his keynote address at the plenary session of the UNSC special meeting of the Counter Terrorism Committee (CTC ) on 'Countering the use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes' in New Delhi today.

Addressing the UNSC's special meeting in the national capital, Jaishankar said, "India will be making a voluntary contribution of half a million dollars to the UN Trust Fund for Counter Terrorism this year to augment the efforts of Office of Counter-Terrorism in providing capacity-building support to member states in preventing and countering the threat of terrorism."

12:18 PM

Gadkari pitches for investments from Tata Group in Nagpur

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has sought investments from the Tata Group in and around Nagpur, citing strengths like infrastructure, land availability and connectivity in his home city.

In a letter to Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran on October 7, Gadkari, who handles the road transport and highways portfolio, said group companies engaged in businesses like steel, auto, consumer products, IT services and aviation can choose to invest in Nagpur.

The letter shared with the media on Saturday comes amid Maharashtra losing several big-ticket projects to neighbouring Gujarat, like the over Rs 1.5 lakh crore investment from Foxconn-Vedanta on chip manufacturing and the Rs 22,000 crore aircraft manufacturing project where the Tata Group has tied up with Airbus.

12:11 PM

CEC intentionally not announcing Gujarat Assembly poll dates, alleges Ashok Gehlot

Rajasthan Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot on Saturday alleged that the Chief Election Commission (CEC) is "intentionally" holding back the announcement of the Gujarat Assembly poll dates, so that Prime Minister Narendra Modi can address more and more meetings and inaugurate or dedicate projects to the state to woo electorate.

However, at the same time, he also said that election dates are likely to be announced soon, for which the Congress party and workers are ready and reaching out to all sections of the society.

Addressing media persons here, he challenged the BJP government to restore the old pension scheme for government employees as the Rajasthan government did.

12:09 PM

Poland chooses US to build its first nuclear power plant

Poland says it has chosen the US government and Westinghouse to build its first nuclear power plant, announcing an important step in its efforts to burn less coal and gain greater energy independence.

Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said late Friday that Poland's nuclear energy project will use the reliable, safe technology of Westinghouse Electric Company, saying a strong Poland-US alliance guarantees the success of our joint initiatives.

Poland has been planning for many years to build a nuclear power plant to gain greater energy independ

11:57 AM

Govt extends curbs on sugar exports till Oct 31, 2023

The government has extended restrictions on sugar exports till October 31 next year, a move aimed at increasing availability of the commodity in the domestic market.

Earlier, the restrictions were imposed till October 31 this year.

"Restriction on export of sugar (raw, refined, and white sugar) is extended beyond October 31, 2022 till October 31, 2023, or until further orders, whichever is earlier. Other conditions will remain unchanged," the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification dated October 28.

11:26 AM

ISRO carries out key test of its heaviest rocket's engine

The flight acceptance hot test of CE-20 engine has been carried out in the High Altitude Test facility of ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC) at Mahendragiri in Tamil Nadu.

The engine is assigned for the LVM3-M3 mission identified for launching the next 36 OneWeb India-1 satellites, the Indian Space Research Organisation said.

Sources said these satellites of OneWeb, the London-based satellite communications company, are expected to be launched by the NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), the ISRO's commercial arm, aboard LVM3 early next year.

11:09 AM

Delhi's air quality nears 'severe' zone

A layer of pungent haze lingered over Delhi on Saturday morning as the city's air quality neared the "severe" zone amid adverse meteorological conditions -- low temperatures and calm winds -- and an increase in incidents of stubble burning in Punjab.

The overall Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi stood at 396 at 10 am, worsening from 357 at 4 pm on Friday. It was 354 on Thursday, 271 on Wednesday, 302 on Tuesday and 312 on Monday (Diwali).

Anand Vihar (AQI 454) was the most polluted place in the capital. Wazirpur (439), Narela (423), Ashok Vihar (428), Vivek Vihar (427) and Jahangirpuri (438) were among the monitoring stations that recorded "severe" air quality.

The air quality in the neighbouring cities of Ghaziabad (381), Noida (392), Greater Noida (398), Gurugram (360) and Faridabad (391) also inched closer to the "severe" category.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered "good", 51 and 100 "satisfactory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor", and 401 and 500 "severe".

10:59 AM

Canada confirms 21,810 new Covid cases in a week

Canada confirmed 21,810 new Covid-19 cases in the week ending October 22, according to health authorities.

The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) said on Friday that the number of total cases and deaths in the country now stood at 4,336,860 and 46,389, respectively, reports Xinhua news agency.

According to the PHAC, the cumulative people who had received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine was 83 per cent as of October 9.

However, those who had in the last six months completed the primary series or received a booster dose with a vaccine was only 17.2 per cent as of October 9.

10:49 AM

Patnaik suggests L&T to set up aerospace and defence manufacturing units in Odisha

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has suggested to Larsen and Toubro (L&T) to set-up units in aerospace and defence manufacturing and green hydrogen sectors in the state.

Patnaik made several suggestions when L&T's CEO & MD SN Subramaniyan called him here on Friday.

"As the L&T has an eminent presence in Odisha, the company may explore an option to set-up units in aerospace and defence manufacturing and green hydrogen sectors," Patnaik told Subramaniyam.

10:45 AM

India logs 1,5674 new Coronavirus cases, death toll climbs to 529,008

With 1,574 people testing positive for the coronavirus infection, India's tally of COVID-19 cases rose to 44,650,662, while the active cases declined to 18,802, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Saturday.

A decrease of 596 cases has been recorded in the active covid caseload in a span of 24 hours, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The death toll has climbed to 529,008 with nine fatalities which includes five reconciled by Kerala, while one death each has been reported from Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana and Maharashtra. it said.

The active cases comprises 0.04 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has increased to 98.77 per cent, the health ministry said.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 0.95 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 1.11 per cent, according to the health ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 44,102,852, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.18 per cent.

10:13 AM

Finland, Sweden pledge to join NATO together

Ways to further enhance cooperation between Finland and Sweden, especially on their path to membership of the NATO, topped the agenda of talks held in Helsinki by Sweden's newly-elected Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and her host and Finnish counterpart, Sanna Marin.

The two Prime Ministers on Friday highlighted the importance of cooperation between Finland and Sweden, particularly in the future NATO membership, Xinhua news agency reported.

"This relationship plays a particularly important role in the current crises. Concrete areas where cooperation should be strengthened include developing security of supply and countering hybrid threats," the Finnish government said in a statement.

10:13 AM

Shooting in US Pittsburgh leaves at least 6 injured

At least six people were shot outside of a church in Pittsburgh of the US state of Pennsylvania, police said.

The incident took place on Friday afternoon, Xinhua news agency reported.

One victim is in critical condition, while others suffered less serious injuries, in the shooting that took place during a funeral service, police added.

10:10 AM

G20 members launch call to action on tuberculosis

Health Ministers of the G20 members launched a "Call to Action on Financing for Tuberculosis Response" to tackle the second leading cause of death from infectious diseases after Covid-19.

 

The launch was carried out on Thursday during the second G20 Health Ministerial Meeting held on October 27-28 in Indonesia's Bali.

10:07 AM

India will be making a voluntary contribution of half a million dollars to the UN Trust Fund: EAM S Jaishankar

10:06 AM

UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly in Delhi

10:05 AM

Air quality dips in the Delhi-NCR; Noida recorded AQI of 392, remains in the 'very poor' category this morning

10:03 AM

Elon Musk says Twitter will form "content moderation council"

Twitter's new owner billionaire Elon Musk has said the social media company will form a “content moderation council” and any major content decisions or account reinstatements will happen after such a body has convened.

 

Musk's comments came a day after he completed the USD 44 billion acquisition of the social media giant.

 

“Twitter will be forming a content moderation council with widely diverse viewpoints. No major content decisions or account reinstatements will happen before that council convenes,” Musk, 51, tweeted on Friday.

 

“To be super clear, we have not yet made any changes to Twitter's content moderation policies,” he added.

9:30 AM

Fire sparks cylinder blast at Bihar Chhath Puja, 30 injured, many critical

More than 30 people have been hospitalised in Bihar's Aurangabad district after a short circuit led to a gas cylinder blast, causing a huge fire. At least 25 victims are in a critical condition. 
 

The tragedy occurred while a family was cooking for Chhath Puja at 2:30 in the morning.

 

Many police personnel have also sustained burn injuries while trying to put out the fire.

9:28 AM

Elon Musk's Twitter roils with hate speech as trolls test new limits

In the wake of Elon Musk buying Twitter Inc., a tide of slurs and racist memes swelled on the platform, sparking concern that the site is entering an era of hateful speech.
 

Twitter has long wrestled with how to enforce content policies fairly on its platform in order to appease the advertisers, users and powerful world leaders that use its service. But as Musk, a self-styled "free speech absolutist," took over ownership of the company, some conservative officials, partisan extremists and conspiracy peddlers saw reason to celebrate the change.

9:27 AM

DGCA says follow-up action to be taken after detailed probe into IndiGo

Aviation regulator DGCA on Saturday said it will take suitable follow-up action after conducting a detailed probe into an incident of an IndiGo plane's engine catching fire at the Delhi airport.

 

A Bengaluru-bound A320 ceo aircraft, carrying 184 people, aborted takeoff at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) here due to fire in one of its engines Friday night. The plane returned to the bay and passengers were deboarded safely.

 

"The priority is to carry out a detailed investigation of the incident and ascertain the reasons for the fire in the engine. Fortunately, the fire was extinguished swiftly and the aircraft is now grounded," DGCA chief Arun Kumar told PTI.

9:27 AM

Intruder attacks House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband, calling, ''Where is Nancy''

The husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was attacked and severely beaten with a hammer by an assailant who authorities said broke into the couple's San Francisco home early Friday, searching for the Democratic leader and shouting: “Where is Nancy, where is Nancy?”

 

The assault on the 82-year-old Paul Pelosi injected new uneasiness into the nation's already toxic political climate, just 11 days before the midterm elections.

 

It carried chilling echoes of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol when rioters chanted menacingly for the speaker as they rampaged through the halls trying to halt certification of Joe Biden's victory over Donald Trump.