LIVE: US Supreme Court bans use of race, ethnicity in university admissions

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10:45 PM

Former President Barack Obama strongly spoke out against the US Supreme Court's decision

Former President Barack Obama strongly spoke out against the US Supreme Court's decision to ban the use of race and ethnicity in university admissions, saying that affirmative action policies had "allowed generations of students" including him and his wife Michelle to "prove we belonged".
 

Mr Obama argued that these policies were essential to ensuring that all students, regardless of race or ethnicity, have the opportunity to succeed.

 

"Affirmative action was never a complete answer in the drive towards a more just society. But for generations of students who had been systematically excluded from most of America's key institutions-it gave us the chance to show we more than deserved a seat at the table," Mr Obama wrote on social media. 

10:41 PM

I strongly disagree with the court's decision: Joe Biden on US Supereme Court ruling on college admission

Court has effectively ended affirmative action in college admissions: Joe Biden

10:37 PM

"We will face this legally," says TN CM Stalin on dismissal of V Senthil Balaji by Governor RN Ravi

10:05 PM

A crowd gathered near the regional office of BJP in Imphal, Manipur

7:39 PM

Rahul Gandhi visits a relief camp in Imphal to meet the people affected due to the violence in the state

7:38 PM

J&K L-G Manoj Sinha arrives at Amarnath Yatri Niwas Base Camp in Jammu

6:26 PM

I came to listen to all my brothers and sisters of Manipur: Rahul Gandhi

6:25 PM

Ensure enhanced and affordable credit to MSMEs: Union Minister Piyush Goyal to bankers

5:52 PM

Portion of an under-construction bridge collapses due to heavy rains in Chhattisgarh's Durg district

5:50 PM

Earthquake hit East South East of Fayzabad, Afghanistan today at 5:05 PM: National Centre for Seismology

5:26 PM

Bhim Army leader Chandra Shekhar Aazad discharged from SBD Hospital in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh

4:19 PM

Seeing ground situation, we stopped Rahul Gandhi, advised him to travel to Churachandpur via helicopter: SP

3:41 PM

No one stopped Rahul Gandhi from going to Manipur: Sambit Patra

3:19 PM

Badrinath National Highway blocked following landslide, pilgrims stranded

The Badrinath national highway was blocked on Thursday following a landslide triggered by heavy rain near Chhinka in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district, leaving hundreds of pilgrims stranded. The stranded pilgrims included those on way to Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib, officials said.

A mound of debris accumulated on the road in the wake of the landslide near Chhinka blocking the national highway leading to Badrinath, they said.

 

2:54 PM

Everyone is free to come to Bihar: Nitish Kumar on Amit Shah's visit

Ahead of Union Home Minister Amit Shah's visit to Lakhisarai on Thursday, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said everybody is free to visit the state. Shah's visit to the state later during the day will be the first by any top BJP leader after the June 23 meeting here of opposition parties which was held to discuss and chart out a path ahead of the 2024 general election.

 

2:36 PM

TN CM Stalin lashed out at PM Modi for pushing Uniform Civil Code

DMK President and Chief Minister M K Stalin on Thursday lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for seeking to implement the Uniform Civil Code. Modi was thinking of winning the 2024 Lok Sabha polls by fanning communal sentiments and creating confusion in the country, the DMK chief said.

 

2:14 PM

'Don't insult people of Delhi': Kejriwal to LG on 'freebies'

Hitting out at Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena over his remarks on "freebies", Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal asked him not to "insult" the "hard-working people" of the national capital. On Wednesday, Saxena said people of Delhi are now "used to freebies" at an event titled 'Delhi 2041 - New Master Plan' organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

 

1:55 PM

Paracetamol maker Granules India flags operations hit from cyber attack

Granules India on Thursday warned of a significant loss of revenue and profitability due to a cyber security attack that the pharmaceuticals company faced late last month. Due to significant changes in its IT systems, the IT security incident caused a major disruption in its business operations, the Paracetamol maker said in an exchange filing. On May 25, Granules India reported the information security incident, adding that impacted IT assets affected have been isolated.

12:49 PM

Bihar education department bans wearing jeans, T-shirts at workplaces

The Bihar government has asked staffers of the state education department not to wear casual outfits such as jeans and T-shirts in the office as the ongoing practice goes against the culture at workplaces. The director (administration) of the education department, in an order issued on Wednesday, has taken exception to employees coming to offices in T-shirts and jeans.

 

12:34 PM

NERPC meet takes decisions on key issues of Northeast's power sector

The 24th Technical Coordination Committee meeting of the North East Regional Power Committee (NERPC) discussed various crucial issues pertaining to the power sector in the region. The meeting chaired by Arunachal Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein at Tawang on Wednesday discussed the challenges and opportunities for the development of the power sector in the northeastern states.

 

12:06 PM

Procter & Gamble India to invest $244 mn to set up manufacturing facility

Procter & Gamble India said it would invest 20 billion rupees ($243.79 million) to set up a personal healthcare manufacturing facility in the western state of Gujarat. The company will manufacture digestive products that are part of parent P&G's global healthcare product portfolio at the facility, it said in a statement on Wednesday.

 

11:56 AM

Rahul Gandhi arrives at Imphal for 2-day visit to strife-torn Manipur

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi arrived at Imphal for a two-day visit to strife-torn Manipur on Thursday. He left for Churachandpur district where he will visit relief camps to meet people displaced by ethnic strife that rocked the northeastern state since early last month. Around 50,000 people are now staying in over 300 relief camps across the state since ethnic strife started in May this year.

11:28 AM

Assam CM issues advisory to DCs listing guidelines followed during his visit

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has issued an advisory to all Deputy Commissioners listing simple programme details to be followed during his official visits to the districts. The advisory states that felicitation of the chief minister with gamocha/flower bouquet must be strictly avoided and no gift item should be offered to him. The lamp may be lit by the organiser before the start of the function which may continue to be lit throughout the meeting.

 

11:06 AM

Ensure no illegal slaughter of animals in south Mumbai housing society on Bakrid: HC to BMC

The Bombay High Court has directed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to ensure no illegal slaughtering of animals is carried out during the Bakrid festival at a residential colony in south Mumbai. Bakrid or Eid-al-Adha is being celebrated on Thursday. In a special urgent hearing held on Wednesday after the regular court hours, a division bench of Justices G S Kulkarni and Jitendra Jain said slaughtering can be permitted at the Nathani Heights society only if licence is granted by the civic body.

 

10:47 AM

Made efforts to exclude India from UN report on children in armed conflict: Govt

The government was consistently making efforts to exclude India from the UN's annual report on the impact of armed conflict on children, the Women and Child Development Ministry has said after the country did not feature in the report for the first time since 2010. The United Nations has removed India from its annual report on the impact of armed conflict on children, citing "measures taken by the government to better protect" them.

 

10:14 AM

Made consistent efforts to exclude India from UN report on children in armed conflict, says govt

The government was consistently making efforts to exclude India from the UN's annual report on the impact of armed conflict on children, the Women and Child Development Ministry has said after the country did not feature in the report for the first time since 2010.

The United Nations has removed India from its annual report on the impact of armed conflict on children, citing "measures taken by the government to better protect" them.

In a statement, the Women and Child Development Ministry said, "The ongoing engagement of the Government of India with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General sped up after an inter-ministerial meeting in November 2021."

10:14 AM

Never spoke about rotational CM post, buzz created by media: TS Singh Deo

A day after the Congress's move to appoint T S Singh Deo as the deputy chief minister of Chhattisgarh, the state minister said he had never spoken of an "agreement" over rotation of the chief ministerial post and claimed it was a buzz created by the media. After arriving at the Raipur airport from New Delhi on Thursday morning, Singh Deo expressed gratitude to the party for the announcement of his elevation and said "der aaye durust aaye" (better late than never). A Congress statement on Wednesday said party president Mallikarjun Kharge has approved the proposal for the appointment of Singh Deo as the deputy chief minister in Chhattisgarh.

 

9:50 AM

Aurangzeb Lane in Lutyens' Delhi renamed as APJ Abdul Kalam Lane

The Aurangzeb Lane in the Lutyens' Delhi has been renamed Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Lane, NDMC officials announced on Wednesday. The New Delhi Municipal Council approved the renaming of the road in a meeting of its members. The NDMC had in August 2015 changed the name of Aurangzeb Road to Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Road. The Aurangzeb Lane connects the Abdul Kalam Road with Prithvi Raj Road. "An agenda item was placed before the Council to consider renaming 'Aurangzeb Lane' under the NDMC area as 'Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Lane' in terms of clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 231 of the New Delhi Municipal Act, 1994," a statement from NDMC Vice Chairman Satish Upadhyay said.

9:46 AM

Heavy rains pound Thane, Palghar in Maha; 2 persons swept away in flood waters, many areas inundated

Heavy rains pounded Thane and neighbouring Palghar district of Maharashtra in the last 24 hours, resulting in water-logging in many areas and a number of incidents of tree fall, officials said.

Two persons were swept away in swollen water bodies in the last two days. While the body of one of them was recovered, efforts were on to trace the other person, they said.

A number of cars were also damaged in Thane district in rain-related incidents, the officials said.

 

9:32 AM

Delhi police beef up security in view of Eid-al-Adha

Delhi police have beefed up security amid the ongoing celebration of Eid-al-Adha on Thursday and said that the security of the people is their top priority.

DCP Central, Sanjay Kumar Sain said, "Security of the people is our top priority and with the help of MCD, we are ensuring that the area is clean and hygienic."

He also said that around 1000 district police personnel are present and outside force is also supporting them.