LIVE: Centre releases agenda of Parliament's special session from Monday

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10:41 PM

Lloyds Engineering Works Limited enters into an agreement with Bhabha Atomic Research Centre

 The License is valid for five years from the date of commencement of the agreement. Further, this Technology tie-up would assist the Company on along-term basis as it helps in further diversification of the order book.

 

 

10:34 PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi leaves from BJP headquarters as meeting Madhya Pradesh elections concludes

9:44 PM

Pakistan Bar Council invites Indian lawyers to play cricket matches

The Pakistan Bar Council has invited cricket teams of men and women lawyers from India to visit the neighbouring country in October for friendly matches which would be followed by matches in India, Chairman of All India Bar Association Adish C Aggarwala said on Wednesday.

 

9:15 PM

Assam CM, Meghalaya CM Conrad K Sangma held meeting on state border dispute

9:02 PM

Last respects paid to Indian Army dog Kent of 21 Army Dog Unit in Rajouri, J&K

8:45 PM

Manoj Sinha lays wreath to pay tribute to J&K police personnel who lost his life in Anantnag encounter

6:23 PM

Another INDIA bloc meeting under way in Delhi

INDIA alliance Coordination Committee meeting underway at NCP chief Sharad Pawar's residence in Delhi

 

6:22 PM

Pak President Alvi unilaterally proposes November 6 as date for general elections

Pakistan President Arif Alvi on Wednesday unilaterally proposed November 6 as the date for the general elections in a letter written to the chief election commissioner. In his letter to CEC Sikandar Sultan Raja, President Alvi cited Article 48(5) of the Constitution, which he said "empowers and mandates the president 'to appoint a date not later than 90 days from the date of the dissolution, for the holding of a general election to the Assembly'".

2:56 PM

AAI gets nod to install full-body scanners at 4 airports

To make security checks quicker and error-free at India's hypersensitive airports, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) received clearance from the Public Investment Board (PIB) to install full-body scanners that will cut down the passenger frisking time by half.

These full-body scanners will be installed at four airports in the country including Kolkata, Chennai, Pune and Goa.

In July, the government had floated a tender to procure 131 full-body scanners- that cut down the average passenger frisking time to 15 seconds from the current 30 and 600 new hand baggage scanners at over Rs 1,000 crore at airports run by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) but it was later withdrawn as it needed clearance from PIB.

2:37 PM

BJP to accord warm welcome to PM Modi at party HQ following G20 summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be accorded a rousing welcome at the BJP headquarters here on Wednesday evening when he arrives to attend its central election committee meeting, party leaders said.

This will be Modi's first visit to the party office after he chaired the G20 summit here last weekend, which has been seen as a hugely successful event with his leadership drawing praise from world leaders.

The BJP has often highlighted the global recognition of his leadership and India's enhanced stature at the international level in its political discourse, an issue which is likely to rise in salience following the G20 meeting.

2:27 PM

BJP suffers from Abhishek phobia, TMC claims as leader appears before ED

The Trinamool Congress on Wednesday lashed out at the BJP for allegedly manipulating central probe agencies to meet its political interests and accused it of suffering from "Abhishek phobia" in the backdrop of the ED summoning its general secretary Abhishek Banerjee.

Banerjee, considered number 2 in the TMC, on Wednesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate in Kolkata for questioning in connection with its probe into the school jobs scam in West Bengal.

"The BJP has been using CBI and ED to serve its political interests. But they can't force us to surrender before them using central agencies. We have faith in the people. The BJP is suffering from Abhishek phobia as they have been unable to fight us politically," TMC MP and spokesperson Santanu Sen told PTI.

1:57 PM

INDIA Coordination Committee meeting: Special Parl Session to be discussed

National Spokesperson of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Clyde Crasto, said that the first meeting of the Coordination Committee of the INDIA alliance, scheduled to be held on Wednesday in the national capital will discuss the Special Session of Parliament among other things.

Speaking to ANI, Crasto on Tuesday said that there are a lot of things to discuss including the five-day special session of Parliament.

"INDIA alliance is doing very well as it has won four of the seven by-poll seats. INDIA alliance is coming together strongly. A lot of issues will be discussed. In the coming time, we will win many more seats. The special session of Parliament will also be discussed in the meeting," he said.

1:52 PM

Cauvery water sharing row: Karnataka CM chairs cabinet meet for 2nd straight day to discuss way forward

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah convened a meeting of his cabinet on Wednesday to discuss the next course of action after the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee directed the state government to release 5,000 cusecs of water to neighbouring Tamil Nadu over the next 15 days.

Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, who additionally handles the Irrigation portfolio, was in attendance at the meeting along with other cabinet members.

The meet started at 12 noon.

1:32 PM

Village in Manipur's Imphal attacked by gunmen, bombs hurled, none injured

Conflict-torn Manipur witnessed a fresh incident of violence as unidentified gunmen, suspected to be cadres of banned terror groups, attacked people and hurled bombs at a village in Imphal West district, bordering Kangpokpi where three persons were killed a day before, officials said on Wednesday.

No one was injured in the incident in Koutruk village where armed men hurled at least ten bombs late Tuesday night, they said.

1:19 PM

Demand for declaring HP crisis as disaster to be raised in Parl: Priyanka

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday said that party MP from Mandi, Pratibha Singh, would raise in the special session of Parliament the demand for declaring the recent calamity in Himachal Pradesh a "national disaster".

However, Gandhi said she was not sure if the party MP would be allowed to raise the demand during the session.

1:03 PM

Please inform us about real 'mann ki baat': Sibal's dig at govt over praise for Akbar in G20 booklet

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal took a swipe at the government on Wednesday over a G20 booklet praising Mughal emperor Akbar, alleging that it has one face for the world and another for "India that is Bharat".

Sibal cited a G20 booklet titled "Bharat: The Mother of Democracy", the 38th page of which talks about Akbar.

12:52 PM

7 villages declared containment zones, schools closed in Kerala amid Nipah deaths

The Kerala government on Wednesday announced that seven village panchayats in Kerala's Kozhikode, where two people died due to the Nipah virus, were declared as containment zones and strengthened measures to prevent the spread of the infection.

 

 

The move came after four Nipah cases were confirmed in four people, including a nine-year-old boy, in Kozhikode district, following which an alert was sounded by the state health ministry. Authorities shut down some schools and offices in the affected areas.

12:41 PM

12 killed in Vietnam's Hanoi after fire burns a 9-storey apartment building

A fire in a nine-story apartment building in Vietnam's capital killed about 12 people and injured more than 50, state media reported Wednesday.

The fire has been extinguished and rescue operations were continuing, the official Vietnam News Agency reported. Authorities have not confirmed an exact death toll.

12:27 PM

Sugar output in India's Maharashtra set to fall to lowest in 4 years after dry August

Sugar output in Maharashtra, India's top producing state, is likely to fall 14% in the 2023/24 crop year to its lowest in four years due to lower cane yields following the driest August in more than a century, industry and government officials told Reuters on Wednesday.

The reduced output could add to food inflation and discourage New Delhi from allowing sugar exports, supporting global prices which are already near their highest in more than a decade.

12:06 PM

PM Modi to visit MP, Chhattisgarh tomorrow to launch development projects

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh on Thursday to launch a slew of projects in the two states.

His office said in a statement that he will lay the foundation stone of projects worth over Rs 50,700 crore in Madhya Pradesh from an event in Bina in the state.

 

11:47 AM

Police vigil continues in violence-hit village in Satara; Internet still shut

Police continued to maintain strict vigil in Pusesawali village in Maharashtra's Satara district where communal violence claimed one life, while the Internet services which have been suspended are likely to be restored by Wednesday evening, officials said.

Two groups clashed in Pusesawali village on Sunday night over an "objectionable" post on social media. Rioters also set on fire some houses and vehicles, police earlier said.

11:33 AM

Putin gives Kim Jong Un tour of rocket launch center as leaders meet

The leaders of Russia and North Korea met at a remote Siberian rocket launch facility for a summit that underscores how the two leaders' interests are aligning in the face of their separate, intensifying confrontations with the United States.

The two men began their meeting with a tour of a Soyuz-2 space rocket launch facility, at which North Korean leader Kim Jong Un peppered Russian President Vladimir Putin with questions about the rockets.

11:23 AM

PM Modi announces package as 11 killed, 15 injured in Rajasthan accident

Eleven people from Gujarat were killed and at least 15 injured when a trailer rammed into their private bus from behind in Rajasthan's Bharatpur district early on Wednesday, police said.

Expressing grief at the loss of lives and offering condolences to the victims' families, Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the next of kin of the dead and Rs 50,000 to the injured.

 

11:10 AM

Anand Group ties up with Korean entity to boost aftermarket biz for PVs

Auto component maker Anand Group on Wednesday said it has joined hands with South Korea's HL Group to provide a wide range of aftermarket components for the passenger vehicle segment in domestic and international markets.

The companies have formed a joint venture (JV) -- HL Anand Automotive Parts Pvt Ltd -- under which two dedicated distribution centres will be set up in the next two years.

10:46 AM

Odisha govt to promote employment-generating projects on unutilised land

The Odisha government has decided to promote employment-intensive projects on unutilised land acquired earlier for industrial purposes, officials said.

The decision was taken at a meeting of senior officers at the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) on Tuesday after it received grievances from people on the non-utilisation of industrial land.

10:22 AM

Delhi govt's free services schemes provided relief from inflation, says CM Kejriwal

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday claimed inflation is the lowest in Delhi and the city government's schemes for free education, health care, electricity and water have provided "tremendous" relief to people of the national capital.

Retail inflation in India declined to 6.83 per cent in August after touching a 15-month high of 7.44 per cent in July, mainly due to softening prices of vegetables, but remains above the RBI's comfort zone, according to official data released on Tuesday.

9:51 AM

Crimea shipyard burning after a Ukrainian attack and 24 are injured, Russian-installed official says

The Sevastopol Shipyard in Russian-annexed Crimea was on fire Wednesday after a Ukrainian attack, and 24 people were injured, local Russian-installed official reported.

Mikhail Razvozhayev, Moscow-appointed governor of the port city of Sevastopol on the Crimean peninsula, said on Telegram on Wednesday that the fire was sparked by a missile attack.

9:34 AM

Australia's highest court finds Qantas illegally fired 1,700 ground staff

Qantas Airways lost its challenge to a court ruling on Wednesday that the Australian flag carrier had illegally fired 1,700 baggage handlers, cleaners and other ground staff at the height of pandemic travel disruptions.

Seven High Court judges unanimously rejected Qantas' appeal against a Federal Court full-bench decision. That court upheld a Federal Court judge's ruling that the sacking of Qantas staff at 10 Australian airports in 2020 was illegal.

9:18 AM

Georgia election case prosecutors cite fairness in urging 1 trial for Trump

Prosecutors who have accused former President Donald Trump and 18 others of participating in an illegal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 election in Georgia maintain that all of the defendants should be tried together, citing efficiency and fairness.

The case was brought under the state's anti-racketeering law, meaning the same witnesses and evidence will be used in any trial, they wrote in a brief they said was filed on Tuesday

8:58 AM

Israel's Supreme Court holds first hearing challenging Netanyahu's overhaul

The Israeli Supreme Court has heard the first petition challenging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's contentious judicial overhaul, reported Al Jazeera on Tuesday.

Despite large protests and strikes, including dissent within the military, Netanyahu's far-right government drove the bill, which limits the judiciary's ability to strike down laws deemed "extremely unreasonable" by the court, through parliament in July.