Live news: Two women journalists arrested in Tripura released on bail

Latest live news: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman will meet chief ministers and state finance ministers; Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate Bhopal's revamped railway station.

12:20 AM

Coal shares lose ground after Glasgow climate deal

An international agreement to reduce coal use dragged miners' shares lower on Monday, but tight supply of the commodity provided a floor for a sector that has chalked up huge gains this year.

 

U.N. climate talks in Glasgow ended on Saturday with a deal targeting fossil fuel use https://www.reuters.com/business/cop/un-climate-negotiators-go-into-overtime-save-15-celsius-goal-2021-11-13. Wording was softened https://www.reuters.com/business/cop/how-dispute-over-coal-nearly-sank-glasgow-climate-pact-2021-11-14 to call for a "phase down" rather than "phase out" of coal after lobbying from India, among others.

 

Big miners China Shenhua Energy and Yanzhou Coal fell 1% and 2.4% respectively in Hong Kong, where the broader stock market edged up slightly.

 

10:37 PM

Oil prices slide on expectations of higher crude supply

Crude oil prices fell on Monday on expectations of increasing supply, while the recent surge in energy costs and rising COVID-19 cases are expected to weigh on demand.

Brent crude futures fell 87 cents , or 1.1%, to $81.30 a barrel, as of 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude lost 80 cents, or 1.0%, to $79.99 a barrel.

Oil markets have ended each of the last three weeks lower than the previous one. However, Brent has only shed a total of 4% in that time, as the market see-sawed between concerns about insufficient supply and worries that high prices will cool demand just as drillers ramp up activity.

 

9:55 PM

UK to extend Covid-19 booster vaccine doses to over-40s

The UK health authorities on Monday extended the rollout of the COVID-19 booster vaccine shots to all those aged 40 and over, from the current over-50s age cohort.

 

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advised the government that a third top-up dose should be offered to the wider age range six months after their second doses to to-up the immunity against the deadly virus.

 

The JCVI, an independent expert committee that advises ministers on immunisation, also advised that all 16 and 17 year olds be given a second dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, at least 12 weeks after their first jabs. UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid confirmed that the National Health Service (NHS) in all four parts of the UK intend to follow the JCVI advice to help contain the spread of coronavirus.

9:24 PM

Pakistan hands over 20 Indian fishermen to India at Wagah

Pakistan on Monday handed over 20 Indian fishermen, who completed their four-year prison terms for allegedly fishing in Pakistani waters, to India at the Wagah border, according to officials.

 

The batch of 20 Indian fishermen, who were released from the District Prison and Correctional Facility, Malir in Sindh province on Sunday, arrived here on Monday.

 

The Edhi Foundation received them in Lahore and provided them with food. They were taken to the Wagah border where they got through immigration process and certain COVID-19 related tests. They crossed into their homeland in the evening, an Edhi Foundation official told PTI.

9:17 PM

Contribution of stubble burning in worsening air pollution in Delhi-NCR remains unclear in SC

The contribution of stubble burning in worsening air pollution in Delhi-NCR remained unclear on Monday in the Supreme Court with the Centre citing different figures on this aspect.

 

While Solicitor General Tushar Mehta during the hearing claimed that the stubble burning only contribute 10 per cent of the air pollution, senior advocate Vikas Singh, appearing for the petitioners seeking action to curb air pollution, pointed out that the Centre's Sunday meeting had recorded a finding that stubble burning is responsible for 35-40 per cent in Delhi air pollution.

 

As the hearing before a bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana commenced, Singh submitted that he had some suggestions to make and opposed a complete ban on construction activity saying it needs to be regulated.

8:34 PM

20 Indian fishermen released by Pakistan enter India via Attari-Wagah border

8:32 PM

General Naravane visits Special Operations Unit of Israel Defence Forces

8:31 PM

Manipur ambush: Martyred colonel cremated

8:29 PM

Jawan killed in Manipur ambush cremated in ancestral village in Rajasthan

The mortal remains of Assam Rifles jawan R P Meena, who was killed in an ambush by insurgents in Manipur, were consigned to flames on Monday at his ancestral village in Rajasthan's Dausa district.

 

Around 5,000 people had gathered to bid adieu to the slain soldier whose body arrived in Jaipur by air and was taken to Dilawarpur village in Dausa in a military truck.

7:45 PM

Parliamentary panel discusses crypto finance; several members against ban

A parliamentary panel, chaired by BJP leader Jayant Sinha, on Monday discussed the pros and cons of crypto finance with various stakeholders, and several members were in favour of regulating crypto currency exchanges rather than imposing an outright ban on crypto currencies, according to sources.

 

The meeting took place against the backdrop of rising concerns in various quarters about crypto currencies and the possible risks emanating from trading in them, especially since there is a growing interest in such assets worldwide. Currently, there are neither specific regulations nor an outright ban on use of crypto currencies in the country.

7:32 PM

Sitharaman holds meetings with CMs, state Finance Ministers on economic recovery

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday chaired a meeting of chief ministers/finance ministers of states, via video conferencing on the subject of economic recovery post-Covid pandemic.

 

Briefing about the meeting, TV Somnathan, Finance Secretary had earlier said, "Growth had slowed down in the COVID-19 pandemic. However, after the first quarter of the current fiscal, the economy has picked up again with green shoots of recovery clearly visible. Several economic indicators are now at pre-pandemic levels. Projections of International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank peg India's GDP growth at about 9.5 per cent and 8.3 per cent respectively, as one of the fastest-growing economies."

7:15 PM

Singapore plans quarantine-free travel for fully-vaccinated Indians: Report

Singapore is planning to allow quarantine-free travel for fully-vaccinated passengers from India and Indonesia from November 29 and will add three more countries early next month as it hopes to reclaim and rebuild the country's status as an international aviation hub with global connectivity, according to media reports on Monday.

 

Currently, there are 13 countries, including Canada, Australia and Germany, under Singapore's vaccinated travel lane (VTL) programme, the Channel News Asia (CNA) reported.

7:09 PM

'India needs to check use of cryptocurrencies for terror financing'

The use of cryptocurrencies on the dark net for terror acts and drug trafficking by militant organisations is posing a severe threat to the national security and a big challenge to security agencies in India, according to cyber experts.

 

Cryptocurrencies have emerged as the most advanced methods of terror financing and when it is being transacted on the dark net like TOR, Freenet, Zeronet and Perfectdark, it becomes untraceable for the security agencies.

 

Money launderers, cyber criminals and terrorists find cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Monero, Ripples and Zcash highly convenient because they offer anonymity and non-traceability.

7:07 PM

Encounter breaks out between security forces and terrorists in Srinagar

7:03 PM

Sitharaman chairs meeting of chief ministers/finance ministers of states

6:51 PM

UK taxi explosion outside hospital declared a terror incident

An explosion outside Liverpool Women's Hospital on Remembrance Sunday has been declared a terror incident by British police on Monday.

 

The motive behind the attack, which ended in one fatality, remains unclear as Britain's Counter Terrorism Police lead an investigation into the case involving a taxi explosion, alongside MI5 intelligence agency.

6:50 PM

Currently investigating use of platform for sourcing marijuana, says Amazon

E-commerce major Amazon India on Monday said it is currently investigating an issue, wherein its platform was allegedly used to source marijuana.

 

On Saturday, an online marijuana sale racket was busted by Bhind police in Madhya Pradesh, leading to the arrest of two persons and seizure of 20 kilograms of the contraband, according to an official.

 

The accused were operating the racket through a leading e-commerce firm, which received two-thirds of the profits generated, as per the official.

6:48 PM

Delhi's air very poor; no improvement in sight for another 3 days

Delhi's air quality deteriorated marginally on Monday and no improvement is predicted over the next three days, authorities said.

 

The share of stubble burning in Delhi's pollution stood at 10 per cent on Monday, the lowest since Diwali (November 4).

 

On an average, farm fires have accounted for around 25 per cent of the PM2.5 pollution in Delhi from November 1 to November 15.

6:47 PM

Pope honours Catholic priests, nuns who cared for HIV victims

Pope Francis has paid tribute to Catholic priests, nuns and laypeople who helped care for people with HIV and AIDS during the early period of the epidemic in the U.S. at great risk to their profession and reputation.

 

Francis offered the words of praise in a letter to Michael O'Loughlin, national correspondent for the Jesuit magazine America, who wrote the book Hidden Mercy: AIDS, Catholics, and the Untold Stories of Compassion in the Face of Fear, out this month.

6:22 PM

Exports jump 43% to $35.65 billion in Oct, imports soar 62%

India's exports rose by 43 per cent to USD 35.65 billion in October while trade deficit widened to USD 19.73 billion during the month, according to the official data released on Monday.

 

Imports soared by 62.51 per cent to USD 55.37 billion widening the trade deficit.

6:19 PM

Looking for strategic, financial partner for Switch Mobility: Ashok Leyland

Hinduja Group flagship Ashok Leyland is looking for investors both strategic and financial for its electric vehicle arm Switch Mobility as the electric vehicle initiative was going to be crucial to the commercial vehicle-manufacturer, according to a top company official.

 

The city-based company plans to roll out CNG-fitted commercial vehicles during the later part of this financial year, the chief financial officer and whole- time director of the company, Gopal Mahadevan said.

5:58 PM

Nitish Kumar says, crime rate in Bihar has come down after liquor ban

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday said the crime rate in Bihar has come down after the liquor ban and he stands against liquor.

 

Speaking to media persons here, Kumar said, "Some people have turned against me because I ordered a liquor ban and I am serious about it. Those who are against it, feel bad. It is a different matter. They might have their own opinion. But we listened to the people - both men and women. I stand against liquor."

5:55 PM

Delhi records highest number of dengue cases in 6 years

The number of dengue cases in Delhi this season has crossed 5,270, the highest in the national capital in a year since 2015, according to a civic report released on Monday.

 

Nearly 2,570 fresh cases of the vector-borne disease were logged in the city in the last one week. However, no fresh fatality was reported.

 

According to the report on vector-borne diseases, a total of 5,277 dengue cases were recorded this year till November 13.

5:47 PM

Bharat Bond ETF's third tranche to open for subscription on Dec 3

The third tranche of Bharat Bond ETF, through which the government is looking to raise over Rs 10,000 crore, will open for subscription on December 3, an official close to the development said on Monday.

 

The subscription will be closed on December 9. Further, the base size of the issue will be Rs 1,000 crore with an open green shoe option, the official added.

5:43 PM

Ronaldo: Portugal can overcome letdown after qualifying loss

Cristiano Ronaldo wants Portugal to rebound quickly after the stunning loss that kept the team from securing a spot at next year's World Cup.

 

Playing at home and needing only a draw to clinch a berth in the tournament in Qatar, Portugal conceded in the 90th minute in Sunday's 2-1 loss to Serbia and was relegated to a playoff that will be held next year with 11 other nations.

 

Football has shown us time and time again that sometimes the most difficult paths are the ones that lead us to the most desired outcomes, Ronaldo said on Instagram on Monday.

5:18 PM

Beyond stubble burning: What else is causing Delhi's air pollution?

While stubble burning is undoubtedly a contributor to the pollution in the national capital, a Business Standard analysis shows that most of Delhi’s pollution is from other factors. An analysis of data available on the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR) platform shows that over the last 30 days, the average share of stubble burning in Delhi’s PM2.5 concentration was just 18 per cent. Read more

4:55 PM

Tripura: Two women journalists released on bail bond of Rs 75,000 each

4:50 PM

Tripura: Court releases on bail two women journalists arrested for alleged inflammatory posts

4:34 PM

Belgium expedites decision on Covid-19 measures to Wednesday

Belgium's government is bringing forward a meeting to decide on tighter measures to control the spread of Covid-19 amid a rapid increase in infections and hospital admissions in the nation.

 

The meeting, which was originally set for Friday, was moved up to Wednesday so that any measure approved midweek could be operational by the weekend, the government said Monday.

4:34 PM

EU moves to add airlines, others to Belarus sanctions list

The European Union on Monday ratcheted up pressure on Belarus by agreeing to slap new sanctions on President Alexander Lukashenko's regime and others accused of helping him wage a hybrid attack against the bloc using migrants.

 

The 27-country EU has already imposed four sets of sanctions on the Belarus authorities and senior officials over the disputed election in August last year that returned Lukashenko to office and the security crackdown on peaceful protesters that followed.