LIVE: Not interested in talking to China about Phase 2 deal, says Trump

The Congress on Tuesday sacked Sachin Pilot from the posts of Rajasthan's deputy chief minister and the party's state unit chief

2:54 AM

Rajasthan crisis: Congress grounds Sachin Pilot; Cabinet meeting today

The Congress on Tuesday stripped Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot and two supporters of their ministerships and sacked Pilot as state Congress chief when he and his supporters disobeyed a party whip asking them to attend the Congress Legislature Party meeting — but, not before Pilot inflicted significant damage to the government led by Ashok Gehlot.  Read more

2:53 AM

Foot-operated taps & ionised AC air: Railways preps for travel post-Covid

From foot-operated soap dispensers and toilet flushes to door handles manoeuvred with the forearm and handrails coated with anti-microbial copper, the Railways’ new coaches for post-Covid travel launched on Tuesday come packed with features to help stave off infection.

 

The first two coaches that rolled out from the Railway Coach Factory in Kapurthala also have fixtures coated with titanium dioxide and the provision for plasma air equipment in AC ducts to sterilise interiors using ionised air, officials said.

 

All future coaches will now have these specifications, a railway spokesperson said. “The present ones will also be retrofitted to include these changes wherever possible,” he said.

2:53 AM

RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani to detail post-Covid business plan at AGM

Mukesh Ambani is likely to announce plans of leveraging recent partnerships with global technology giants like Facebook as well as a vision to maximise oil to chemical conversion at his flagship Reliance Industries' annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday, analysts said.

 

Ambani, 63, may at the company's first online AGM also give a sneak preview of his vision for decarbonisation of energy molecules to create value-added products with almost no carbon emissions.

 

Strategic direction post-Covid-19 and further details on asset monetisation are key expectations from the 43rd AGM of RIL, analysts said.

2:34 AM

Trump says he is not interested in talking to China about Phase 2 deal

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he is not interested in talking to China about a Phase 2 trade deal. "I'm not interested right now in talking to China," Trump replied when asked in an interview with CBS News whether Phase 2 trade talks were dead.

1:06 AM

Trump administration rescinds order denying foreign students US visas

12:36 AM

US says room for sanctions in response to China in South China Sea

The top US diplomat for East Asia warned on Tuesday that Washington could respond with sanctions against Chinese officials and enterprises involved in coercion in the South China Sea after the United States announced a tougher stance to Beijing's claims there.

 

"Nothing is off the table ... there is room for that. This is a language the Chinese understand - demonstrative and tangible action," David Stilwell, the assistant secretary of state for East Asia, told a Washington think tank when asked if sanctions were a possible US response to Chinese actions.

 

Stilwell spoke a day after Washington rejected China's claims to offshore resources in most of the South China Sea as "completely unlawful," a stance denounced by Beijing.

12:28 AM

Jharkhand govt transfers 18 IAS officers

The Jharkhand government on Tuesday transferred 18 IAS officers including the district magistrates (DM) of more than 12 districts, an official said.
 

Director of Agriculture, Chhavi Rajan will be the new District Magistrate (DM) and Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Ranchi, an official notification said.
 

Manish Ranjan, Rajesh Kumar Sharma and K Srinivasan, all waiting for posting, have been appointed as Divisional Commissioner (Kolhan), Chaibasa, Secretary (Information & Technology/egovernance) and officiating secretary (Mines & Geology departments) respectively, it said.

12:27 AM

BMTC to suspend bus services for public, essential services to continue

The Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) on Tuesday decided to suspend bus services from July 15 to July 21. However, the corporation will perform essential services for permitted activities.

 

"In view of the lockdown of Bengaluru Metropolitan area comprising of BBMP area, Bengaluru Urban and Bengaluru Rural districts to combat the spread Of Covid-19, BMTC bus services to the general public are suspended from July 15 to July 17. However, as per orders of the government, BMTC will operate essential services for permitted activities during the lockdown period as detailed below," a statement by BMTC said.

12:26 AM

Rajasthan govt on autopilot as CM Gehlot is busy in chasing Pilot: Union minister Shekhawat

12:26 AM

China has all too often sought to 'redraw' Asia's map without regard for its neighbours: US senator

12:21 AM

CM Gehlot should prove majority if he wants to expand Cabinet, says Rajasthan BJP leader Gulab Chand Kataria

11:49 PM

Over 11,000 beds available for Covid-19 patients in Delhi hospitals: City govt

11:22 PM

Indian envoy to France Jawed Ashraf concurrently accredited as ambassador to Monaco

11:20 PM

133 mn jobs globally by 2022 that combine humans efforts, machines, algorithms: NGO

10:56 PM

Young turks vs old guards debate comes to the fore again

The sacking of Sachin Pilot from the Congress and his imminent exit have again ignited the debate of young turks vs old guards and spawned fears of a fresh wave of defections from the party.

 

The former Rajasthan deputy chief minister's refusal to yield to the party high command's overtures is already being linked to his proximity to Jyotiraditya Scindia, who earlier revolted and left the Congress in March.

 

A senior party leader said the Congress cannot afford to lose its 'GenNext' to the BJP after having given eminence to its 'young turks' for so long.

 

With the Congress on Tuesday suffering a jolt in Rajasthan, the worry within the party now is whether this could trigger a fresh wave of defections of its younger generation which is already getting edgy.

10:55 PM

India needs to leverage performance of farm sector to push growth: Ex-RBI Governor Subbarao

10:55 PM

Sad to see Sachin Pilot leave, says Shashi Tharoor

10:53 PM

Maharashtra govt won't last long: Ramdas Athawale

10:40 PM

Sachin Pilot's removal as Rajasthan deputy CM, PCC chief: Most Congress leaders dub it as 'unfortunate', 'sad'

10:24 PM

PM Narendra Modi will deliver a video address on World Youth Skills Day tomorrow.

10:18 PM

Sanjay Jha has been suspended from Congress party with immediate effect

10:16 PM

30 former South Africa cricketers issue statement supporting 'Black Lives Matter' movement

10:04 PM

Scindia, Pilot episodes reflective of leadership crisis plaguing Congress: Analysts

With Jyotiraditya Scindia having exited the Congress and Sachin Pilot rebelling, political observers feel the recent events relating to the two leaders were reflective of a deeper crisis of leadership plaguing the grand old party and lack of a clear roadmap.
 

The Congress on Tuesday cracked the whip on dissident leader Pilot, stripping him of the posts of Rajasthan's deputy chief minister and the party's state unit president, for revolting against Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.
 

The crisis for the Congress in the Hindi heartland state comes close on the heels of the jolt it received in Madhya Pradesh where its government fell after another young leader of the party, Jyotiraditya Scindia, quit and joined the BJP with MLAs supporting him.

10:03 PM

PM Modi greets France President Macron on Bastille Day

10:02 PM

Rajasthan cabinet meeting at CM Gehlot residence concluded

9:46 PM

UK tables new 'cheaper, quicker and easier' Health Visa in Parliament

The UK government tabled a new "cheaper, quicker and easier Health and Care Visa in Parliament on Tuesday, aimed at attracting overseas doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals to the state-funded National Health Service (NHS) as part of a new post-Brexit visa and immigration system.
 

The new visa, welcomed by Indian professional groups, will be launched from August to create a new fast-track visa route designed to attract the best global health professionals to work in the NHS, for NHS commissioned service providers, and in eligible occupations in the social care sector.
 

"We are indebted to overseas health and care professionals for their tremendous contributions, not just in saving thousands of lives throughout this crisis, but for the vital role they play year-round, said Home Secretary Priti Patel, who worked on the new visa with Cabinet colleague Health Secretary Matt Hancock.

9:36 PM

BJP to hold key meeting tomorrow amid Rajasthan crisis

9:22 PM

BSNL employees union to protest against cancellation of 4G tender

The employees union of state-run telecom operator BSNL will stage protests across the country on Thursday on a host of issues including the cancellation of its 4G tender and non-payment of salaries.

 

All major unions are organising 'lunch-hour black-flag' demonstrations throughout the country under the banner of All Unions and Association of BSNL (AUAB), said a statement by AUAB. These demonstrations will be organised, by maintaining social distancing and by taking other precautions, like wearing of masks. The BSNL employees will also wear black-badges the whole day on July 16.

 

The employees body would demand that BSNL should immediately be allowed to roll out its 4G services and the tender should be issued immediately. Further, they want that in the matter of procuring new equipments and upgradation, there should not be any discrimination between BSNL and other private telecom service providers.

9:20 PM

Expert Views: UK bans Huawei from its 5G network

Digital Secretary Oliver Dowden said:

 

"5G will be transformative for our country, but only if we have confidence in the security and resilience of the infrastructure it is built upon."

 

"Following US sanctions against Huawei and updated technical advice from our cyber experts, the government has decided it is necessary to ban Huawei from our 5G networks."

 

"No new kit is to be added from January 2021, and UK 5G networks will be Huawei free by the end of 2027. This decisive move provides the industry with the clarity and certainty it needs to get on with delivering 5G across the UK."

 

"We are already working with all our Five Eyes partners on those alternatives," Dowden told parliament, referring to cooperation between the group of allies comprising the US, Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

 

"The first thing we need to do is ensure that we protect the other two vendors in this market so Nokia, and Ericsson. Secondly we need to get new suppliers in, that starts with Samsung, and it starts with NEC," he said.

 

Huawei spokesman:

 

"This disappointing decision is bad news for anyone in the UK with a mobile phone. It threatens to move Britain into the digital slow lane, push up bills and deepen the digital divide. Instead of 'levelling up' the government is levelling down and we urge them to reconsider. We remain confident that the new US restrictions would not have affected the resilience or security of the products we supply to the UK.

 

"Regrettably our future in the UK has become politicized, this is about US trade policy and not security. Over the past 20 years, Huawei has focused on building a better connected UK. As a responsible business, we will continue to support our customers as we have always done.

 

"We will conduct a detailed review of what today's announcement means for our business here and will work with the UK government to explain how we can continue to contribute to a better connected Britain."

9:14 PM

9 more people die in flood-related incidents in Assam, toll rises to 85; over 3.3 million affected in 28 districts: Officials