LIVE: Rs 2,000 relief to each household in flood-hit districts of Andhra

Andhra Pradesh CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy announced Rs 2,000 relief for every household in districts affected by floods. Stay tuned for the latest news of the day

2:11 AM

World's largest sovereign wealth fund reports $21 bn loss

Norway’s $1.15 trillion sovereign wealth fund posted a loss of $21.27 billion in the first half of 2020 as stocks and real estate holdings fell in value during the Covid-19 pandemic, it said on Tuesday.
 

The decline followed record earnings in 2019, when the fund raked in profits of $180 billion as global stock markets soared. “Even though markets recovered well in the second quarter, we are still witnessing considerable uncertainty,” the fund's deputy chief executive, Trond Grande, said in a statement.
 

The world’s largest sovereign wealth fund holds stakes in some 9,200 companies globally, owning 1.5 per cent of all listed stocks. It also invests in bonds and real estate.

1:07 AM

Democrats' Day 2 focus: Trump's global leadership deficit

A day after Michelle Obama's passion wowed Democrats, Joe Biden is drawing on a collection of his party's most experienced leaders at the Democratic National Convention to underscore what he calls a global leadership deficit that threatens US national security.

 

In addition to the former foreign and domestic policy leaders, Jill Biden will introduce herself to the nation for the first time as the prospective first lady. A longtime teacher, she'll speak from her former classroom at Brandywine High School near the family home in Wilmington, Delaware.

1:07 AM

Oil steadies as demand fears offset high OPEC+ compliance

Oil prices steadied on Tuesday as high compliance with supply cuts from the OPEC+ producer group offset demand fears from the new coronavirus.

 

Brent crude futures rose 9 cents to settle at $45.46 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures settled flat at $42.89 a barrel.

 

Supporting prices on Tuesday, a technical panel found that compliance with OPEC+ oil output cuts in July was between 95 per cent and 97 per cent, according to a draft report seen on Monday by Reuters.

12:49 AM

Cancer cases in India estimated to be 1.3 million in 2020, may rise to 1.5 million by 2025: Report

12:48 AM

No differences in Bengal BJP, party to fight TMC unitedly: Dilip Ghosh

12:07 AM

14 IAS officers transferred in Rajasthan

Fourteen IAS officers, including two additional chief secretaries, were transferred in Rajasthan on Tuesday night, according to an order of the state Department of Personnel.

 

The order said Additional Chief Secretary Rajeshwar Singh was transferred from the Rural Development and Panchayti Raj Department to the Tribal Area Development Department.

11:55 PM

Flipkart gross merchandise value exceeds pre-Covid-19 level: Walmart

The gross merchandise value (GMV) of Flipkart has exceeded the pre-Covid-19 levels, global retail major Walmart Inc, which owns a majority share of India's leading e-commerce platform, said.

 

Walmart's overall revenue was up 5.6 per cent to $137.7 billion while its international sales were down 6.8 per cent to $27.2 billion in the second quarter, Walmart said in earning statement.

11:42 PM

Shringla meets PM Hasina; discusses issues of mutual interest and post-Covid-19 economic recovery

10:47 PM

Gehlot directs officials to check frauds by credit societies

Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday directed officials to put in place a strong system to protect people from frauds by various credit societies in the state.

 

The chief minister expressed concerns over complaints of multi-state cooperative societies cheating common people in the name of investment.

 

Gehlot instructed the officials to prepare such a system that in future no such cooperative society in the state could cheat poor people in the name of investment. He also stressed on making general public aware of such societies.

9:29 PM

Divest governance of PSBs from govt: Former RBI deputy guv

Former Reserve Bank deputy governor N S Vishwanathan on Tuesday said there is a need to separate governance of state-run banks from the government and pitched for doing away with the nationalisation laws from which the executive derives its powers.

 

Privatisation is a bigger political decision and not an economic one alone, Vishwanathan said, adding that a bank holding company needs to be created first.

 

Vishwanathan, who was head of banking regulation, said the first need is to "divest" governance of the lenders from the government, and suggested doing away with the powers vested with the government under the bank nationalisation laws as a starter. He said having a holding company structure is essential.

9:12 PM

UK, EU resume talks on future ties, as new deadline looms

Negotiations were to resume Tuesday on the future trade ties between the European Union and the United Kingdom after Brexit, with the Europeans insisting that important differences in the two sides' positions must be bridged and an agreement found by October.

 

The UK officially left the EU on January 31, becoming the first country ever to withdraw from the world's biggest trade bloc, but the country remains inside the EU's tariff-free economic zone until the end of the year.

 

The parties disagree on state aid for businesses and on fisheries. The British government remains opposed to EU demands for long-term access to British waters. Both say they want to avoid a no deal scenario that would see tariffs and other restrictions imposed on trade. Four days of talks have been scheduled this week to try to push the negotiations forward.

9:06 PM

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to address the opening session of the Naval Commanders Conference tomorrow

8:59 PM

Visva Bharati demands CBI inquiry into August 17 campus violence: PTI

8:48 PM

Vistara enters long-haul flights, to operate Delhi-London route for a month

Vistara will operate non stop flights between Delhi and London Heathrow from August 28 to September 30 making a foray in long haul operations.

 

The airline will deploy its brand-new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft on the route. The airline received its second 787-9 aircraft recently and is also seeking necessary regulatory approvals to soon operate similar special flights to Paris and Frankfurt.

 

Vistara will compete with Air India, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic for traffic on London-India route. Vistara's one-way fares from Delhi to London start at Rs 29,912 in economy class, Rs 44,449 in premuim economy, and Rs 77,373 in business class, the airline said. READ MORE...

8:31 PM

Govt not bound to transfer funds from PM CARES to NDRF, rules SC

Money collected under the PM CARES Fund for the Covid-19 pandemic need not be transferred to the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), the Supreme Court said today, adding that the government is free to transfer money to the disaster response fund if it feels it is appropriate to do so.

 

The court also said there is no need for a new plan and that one under the National Disaster Management Act, made by the government last November, is enough to deal with Covid-19. READ MORE...

8:19 PM

Latest News LIVE update: Death toll in Kerala's Rajamala landslide rises to 61

8:07 PM

Will settle all homebuyer complaints in 6 months: Supertech

Real estate group Supertech on Tuesday said it has launched a special drive to settle all its RERA complaints in the next six months, including handing over of delayed flats. Supertech said out of the total 864 complaints, it has settled 334 since the opening of the COVID-19 lockdown by providing alternative flats or compensation to complainants.

 

"The company plans to settle the remaining 530 complaints by 100 cases per month and the entire complaints will be settled within next six months," the company said in a statement.

7:55 PM

PM CARES fund created in wake of public health emergency, no exception can be taken: SC

PM CARES fund has been constituted with an objective to extend assistance in the wake of public health emergency like COVID-19 and no exception can be taken at this need of the hour in its constitution, the Supreme Court Tuesday said, according to a PTI report.

 

The apex court noted that it was created as a dedicated national fund with a objective of dealing with any kind of emergency or distress situation as posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and to provide relief to the affected.

 

A bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan said it is for the Central government to take the decision as from which fund what financial measures are to be taken and it is neither for PIL petitioner to claim that any financial assistance be made from particular fund nor this Court to sit in judgement over the financial decisions.

 

The observations came on a PIL, filed by NGO ''Centre for Public Interest Litigation, seeking a direction that all the money collected under the PM CARES Fund for the COVID-19 pandemic should be transferred to the NDRF.

7:49 PM

Govt allows foreign journalists with valid visas to come to India along with family members: PTI

7:49 PM

Villages in Andhra Pradesh districts flooded due to rise in water level of Godavari river

7:38 PM

Flash floods threatening Indo-Pak border fencing in Jammu and Kashmir

Flash floods triggered by heavy rains are threatening the three-tier border fencing along the Indo-Pak International Border and have caused minor damage to a section of the fencing in Jammu frontier belt, officials said. Heavy rains have caused flash floods in various rivers along the border, threatening the border fencing in Samba-Kathua-Jammu belt, they said.

 

A senior BSF officer told PTI that parts of the fence in Basantar river area are likely to get washed away. "It is 150 to 200 metres of patch. There was partial damage to it. If there is more flooding, it will cause complete damage to the fence and to the adjoining village in Ramgarh."

 

"Efforts are being made to repair the damage," he said. He said no post has suffered damage and jawans were keeping vigil along the border.

7:23 PM

Andhra Pradesh CM conducts aerial survey of flood-affected regions

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday conducted an aerial survey of the flood-affected East and West Godavari districts.

 

He was accompanied by Home Minister M Sucharita, Transport Minister Perni Venkatramaiah and others.

 

Meanwhile, CM Reddy has spoken to the Collectors of East and West Godavari districts through a video conference. The Godavari river has been in spate for the last two days amid heavy rain that battered both the districts majorly.

6:59 PM

LIVE: Rs 2,000 relief to each household in flood-hit districts of Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday announced Rs 2,000 relief for every household in districts affected by floods in the Godavari river which has been in spate for the last two days after heavy rains, according to an ANI report.

 

The chief minister made the announcement while taking stock of the flood situation and holding discussions with the collectors of East and West Godavari districts through a video conference.

 

The CM said people in the relief camps should get all the necessary help, and there should be no difficulty in procuring essential commodities. Food, ration, medicines should be distributed on time.

6:56 PM

Death toll in flood-related incidents in Uttar Pradesh rises to 14

Fourteen people have died in flood-related incidents in Uttar Pradesh this year and 16 districts in the state are affected by the deluge, an official said.

 

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has stressed that flood relief work is the state government's priority and there will be no dearth of funds to help people hit by the deluge, Relief Commissioner Sanjay Goyal said.

 

The Sharda river at Palia Kalan in Lakhimpur Kheri, the Saryu and the Ghagara at Ayodhya, Barabanki's Elgin Bridge and Ballia's Turtipaar are flowing above the danger mark.

6:55 PM

14 people died in flood-related incidents in UP so far this year and 16 districts in state affected by deluge: PTI

6:09 PM

Assam floods: No new deaths in three days, number of affected people surge to 56,91,694

With no new deaths reported in Assam due to the floods in the past three days, the number of people who have lost their lives to the deluge stands at 112. However, the number of affected people has increased in as many days to 56,91,694, according to an ANI report.

 

"112 people dead and 56,91,694 affected due to floods across 30 districts of Assam," the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) said in a notification on Tuesday.

 

Earlier on August 15, the number of deaths was 112, while those affected were 56,89,584 people across 30 districts of the state. The state government has set up a number of relief camps in the states as the flood situation is getting worse.

5:53 PM

India likely to see rise in populism; trend poses risk to economy: JPMorgan

India is likely to see a surge in populist politics as it battles the world’s third-highest number of coronavirus cases, posing a key risk for companies whose fortunes are closely tied to the economy, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.

 

“Rising populism could impact market valuations, at least in part due to protectionist trade and foreign direct investment policies inhibiting growth,” analysts led by James R Sullivan in Singapore, wrote in a note. “Populism is a justifiable concern for investors.” READ MORE...

5:32 PM

Telangana ministers visit flood-hit Warangal, Godavari water recedes

Four Telangana ministers on Tuesday visited the flood-affected areas of Warangal town while the receding water level in the Godavari river provided some respite to the people at Bhadrachalam.

 

Minister for Municipal administration K. T. Rama Rao and Minister for Health Eatala Rajender flew to Warangal from Hyderabad in a helicopter and conducted an aerial survey of the flood-affected areas.

 

Later they were joined by two other ministers, E. Dayakar Rao and Satyavathi Rathod and all of them visited some inundated colonies in the town and met the affected people.

5:22 PM

Election Commission to frame guidelines for polls within three days

The Election Commission (EC) would come up with "broad" guidelines within three days for holding elections during the COVID-19 pandemic. An EC statement said the matter of issuing broad guidelines for elections and by-elections during "COVID-19 period" was discussed at the commission meeting on Tuesday.

 

The commission considered the views and suggestions given by the political parties. It also considered the suggestions and recommendations made by chief electoral officers of states and union territories, according to a PTI report.

 

"After considering all these, the commission directed to frame broad guidelines within three days," it said.

5:09 PM

ADB approves $1 billion loan for Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Tuesday said it has approved a USD 1 billion loan to support construction of modern, high-speed Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System, according to a PTI report.

 

The transit system project aims to help decongest the city and improve regional connectivity by establishing transit options through the densely populated sections of the NCR, connecting Delhi to Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, ADB said.

 

Announcing the approval of the loan, ADB in a release said that this project will finance the construction of railway tracks, station buildings, maintenance facilities, and traction and power supply.