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BJP has breached trust of people. Audio clip reveals horse trading deal: Congress leader Randeep Surjewala on Rajasthan crisis. Stay tuned for the latest news of the day

2:27 AM

Madras High Court restrains Patanjali from using trademark 'Coronil'

The controversial drug of yoga guru Ramdev's Patanjali Ayurved Ltd - Coronil- which is claimed as a cure for Covid-19, has received a blow with the Madras High Court restraining the company from using the trademark 'Coronil'.

 

Justice C V Karthikeyan passed the interim order valid till July 30 on the plea of Chennai-based company Arudra Engineering Private Limited which has claimed that 'Coronil' is a trademark owned by it since 1993.

2:27 AM

Banks sanction Rs 1.23 trn loans to MSMEs under credit guarantee scheme

Lenders have sanctioned Rs 1.23 trillion of loans to MSMEs, which is 41 per cent of the amount that was promised under the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme.

 

This data is as of July 15. However, at Rs 68,000 crore, the disbursed amount is 23 per cent of the promised Rs 3 trillion. Read more

2:26 AM

Rajnath Singh says can't guarantee full resolution of intrusions

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on a two-day visit to Ladakh and Jammu-Kashmir, is the first senior leader to signal that China might not agree to fully resolve the crisis in Ladakh and that, in that event, India would not hesitate to use force.

 

Addressing soldiers at Lukung, on the shore of the scenic Pangong Tso that is at the centre of the ongoing Sino-Indian crisis, Singh warned: “Based on the progress of (Sino-Indian) talks so far, the situation should be resolved. But, to what extent it will be resolved, I cannot guarantee. However, I can assure you that no power on earth can touch, or capture, even an inch of Indian territory." Read more

2:25 AM

Less than 1% Covid-19 patients required ventilator support: Govt

India crossed 1 million Covid-19 cases on Friday, according to the health ministry data, reaching another grim milestone.

 

In the time it took for the cases to grow tenfold to 1,003,832, the number of fatalities increased by over five times to more than 25,000. Maharashtra and Delhi have seen the highest number of coronavirus deaths in the country so far. Read more

2:25 AM

India signs MoU to develop strategic petroleum reserve in America

India and the US have signed an MoU to develop a strategic petroleum reserve in America and the two countries are in advanced stage of discussion to store crude oil in America to increase India's stockpile, Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan said on Friday.

 

Pradhan co-chaired with his American counterpart Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette a virtual US-India Strategic Energy Partnership Ministerial.

2:25 AM

Global debt surged to record $258 trillion in first quarter of 2020

Global debt surged to a record $258 trillion in the first quarter of 2020 as economies around the world shut down to contain the coronavirus pandemic, the Institute for International Finance (IIF) said in a report. Debt levels are continuing to rise, it further said.

 

The IIF, which represents global banks and financial institutions, said the first-quarter debt-to-GDP ratio jumped by over 10 percentage points, the biggest quarterly surge, to reach a record 331 per cent. While the rise in debt levels was well below average quarterly gains seen from 2015 to 2019, the pace of global debt build-up by governments, companies, financial institutions and households had accelerated since March, it said.

2:24 AM

SoftBank quietly sells additional $2.2 bn of its stake in Alibaba Group

SoftBank sold an additional $2.2 billion of its stake in Alibaba Group as part of the Japanese conglomerate’s fundraising effort to pay down debt and buy back its own shares.

 

The deal, which includes a collar contract and call spread, is expected to be settled between May 2024 and June 2024. The details were disclosed in the SoftBank’s year-end financial filing released on June 25, but have not been previously reported.

2:24 AM

Before Twitter hack campaign, online forum offered user accounts for $2,500

Before a hacking campaign tore through Twitter and compromised some of its most high-profile users, an ad went up on a gray market site that facilitates the trade of user accounts for many popular websites including Twitter.
 

For $250 in digital currency, the seller promised they’d reveal the email linked to a Twitter account. And for $2,500, the buyer would get the account itself — satisfaction guaranteed.

1:10 AM

EU no closer to agreeing Covid-19 economic recovery plan, Czech PM says

12:40 AM

Several agreements signed at US-India Strategic Energy Partnership ministerial meeting

Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan and US Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette in a virtual ministerial meeting of the US-India Strategic Energy Partnership (SEP) prioritised new areas for cooperation. A number of agreements and partnerships were announced to advance the strategic and economic interests of both countries.

 

An official release said that two sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to begin cooperation on Strategic Petroleum Reserves operation and maintenance, including exchange of information and best practices.

 

They also discussed the possibility of India storing oil in the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve to increase their nation's strategic oil stockpile.

12:40 AM

Income of Russians falls most in 20 years in second quarter, GDP down 9.6 per cent

12:39 AM

At UN High-Level session on multilateralism, Pakistan rakes up issue of Jammu and Kashmir

12:39 AM

Mizoram hit by ninth quake in one month

An earthquake of 4.2 magnitude hit Mizoram's Champhai district on Friday, the ninth quake to rock the state in the last one month, officials said.

No loss of life and property was reported, they said.

The earthquake occurred at 3.56 pm and its epicentre was 33 km south-southwest of Champhai, according to the National Centre for Seismology.

The depth of the quake was 10 km, it said.

12:26 AM

Three members of a family killed in heavy shelling by Pakistan army along LoC in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch on Friday night: Officials

11:45 PM

Sanjay Jain arrested in connection with conspiracy to topple Rajasthan govt

The Special Operations Group (SOG) of Rajasthan Police on Friday arrested Sanjay Jain whose name had surfaced in a viral audio recording about horse trading of legislators to topple the Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government in Rajasthan, an official said.

 

"Jain has been arrested following interrogation into the FIR lodged on the basis of audio recording that had gone viral on social media," Additional Director General (ATS and SOG) Ashok Rathore said.

 

Jain was interrogated Thursday and Friday following which the arrest has been made, officials said.

11:28 PM

Death toll in south Mumbai building collapse rises to 10

The death toll in the building collapse in the Fort area of Mumbai has gone up to ten with a 32-year-old man being declared brought dead at hospital on Friday evening, civic officials said.

 

Two injured persons are undergoing treatment.

 

As per the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) which looks after the maintenance of old buildings in the city after charging a cess, the six-storey Bhanushali Building in south Mumbai was around 100 years old.

 

A portion of the building caved in around 4.45 pm on Thursday as heavy rains lashed the city.

11:23 PM

Earthquake of magnitude 5.3 hits Myanmar-India Border Region

11:02 PM

West Bengal Power Minister says CESC must justify "exaggerated" electricity charges

11:02 PM

Dubai, Dharmasala, Ahmedabad 3 options for India's training camp, UAE favourites for hosting IPL

11:00 PM

Pompeo 'deeply disappointed' in EU court decision to ditch trans-Atlantic data transfer deal

10:59 PM

Lalu targets Nitish for not venturing out of home; Sushil Modi hits back

RJD president Lalu Prasad Friday charged Nitish Kumar with remaining cocooned inside his official bungalow in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, a criticism that prompted a sharp reaction from Chief Minister's deputy and BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi.

 

The jailed former chief minister, serving sentences in Ranchi in fodder scam cases, came out with a couple of tweets in his native dialect Bhojpuri to take potshots at Kumar.

 

"Does a Chief Minister lead from the front or sleep with a blanket pulled over himself? In the four months since the first lockdown, Nitish has not ventured out of his bungalow even four times, said the septuagenarian, whose Twitter account is operated by people close to him.

10:51 PM

Haryana CM Khattar directs officials to make adequate arrangements to deal with locust attacks

10:45 PM

Intense rainfall over north, northeast from July 19-21, may accentuate flood conditions: IMD

10:44 PM

L&T Finance Holdings to wind up Dubai wealth management business

L&T Finance Holdings Ltd (L&TFH) on Friday said it has decided to wind up its Dubai-based subsidiary L&T Capital Markets (Middle East) Ltd, after the proposed sale plan didn't materialise.

 

In early July, L&TFH informed that the share purchase agreement (SPA) with Proud Securities and Credits Pvt Ltd (an NBFC firm forming a part of InCred group) to sell 100 per cent of its shareholding in L&T Capital Markets (Middle East) was mutually terminated.

 

L&T Capital Markets (Middle East) LTCM (ME), a wholly owned subsidiary of the L&TFH, was into wealth management business based in Dubai, UAE.

10:35 PM

Maternal mortality ratio (MMR) in India declines

9:42 PM

US economy plunged 37% in Q2

9:40 PM

India looking to store oil in US reserves; signs MoU for coop in strategic petroleum reserves

9:36 PM

Assam flood situation remains grim; 5 more dead, nearly 3.6 million affected

9:34 PM

15th Finance Commission holds meeting with housing and urban affairs ministry

9:17 PM

Sebi puts in place framework to provide exit option to dissenting unitholders of REITs, InvITs