LIVE: India to host third 2+2 ministerial dialogue with US on Oct 27

At least three people were killed and 15 others suffered injures in Pakistan in an explosion near Maskan Chowrangi in Karachi's Gulshan-i-Iqbal area. Stay tuned for Latest LIVE news

1:38 AM

China is the threat of the century: Trump's security adviser

President Donald Trump's national security adviser accused China on Wednesday of trying to steal Covid-19 vaccine research from the West, casting it as a malign rival that was seeking to monopolise every important industry of the 21st Century.

 

Trump identifies China as the United States main competitor, and has accused the Chinese Communist Party of taking advantage over trade and not telling the truth over the novel coronavirus outbreak, which he calls the China plague.

 

In a 20-minute broadside against China, Robert OBrien told top British and US military and intelligence officials that China was a predatory power that repressed its people and had sought to coerce both neighbours and Western powers.

1:12 AM

Dazzling Snap rally extends $2.7 billion windfall to its co-founders

Snap Inc.’s co-founders got richer by billions of dollars in just a few hours, after the company reported better-than-expected results as the coronavirus pandemic boosted usage of its app.

 

Shares soared as much as 25 per cent to $35.57 in late New York trading Tuesday after the owner of the popular Snapchat mobile app said sales jumped 52 per cent to $678.7 million in the third quarter, with 249 million daily active users. The gains lifted the fortunes of Snap’s co-founders, Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy, by $1.3 billion and $1.4 billion, respectively, taking them to $6.9 billion and $7.2 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

 

12:33 AM

Taliban ambush kills 25 Afghan security personnel

At least 25 security personnel were killed in northeast Afghanistan. The attack has been blamed on the Taliban, according to officials.

 

One official said that the fighting is ongoing and that the Taliban itself has suffered heavy causalities. The security forces were on their way for an operation when they were attacked by the terror group.

 

The Taliban have not commented on the attack, yet.

11:36 PM

Mike Pompeo to visit India next week for India-US 2+2 Dialogue

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo would travel to New Delhi for the third India-US 2+2 Dialogue next week on his second Asia trip in less than a month that would also take him to Maldives, Sri Lanka and Indonesia.

 

"Looking forward to my upcoming trip to India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Indonesia, for productive conversations with our friends and partners, and the US-India 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue with" Defence Secretary Mark Esper and "our Indian" counterparts, Pompeo said.

 

Each stop, he said, will include discussions on a "broad range of bilateral topics." Discussions will also include how they can cooperate to maintain a "free and open Indo-Pacific," he said. "I'm sure my meetings will also include discussions on how free nations can work together to thwart threats posed by the Chinese Communist Party," he told reporters at a news conference.

10:46 PM

India, US to explore ways to further expand, strengthen strategic ties during 2+2 dialogue on Oct 27

9:27 PM

Twelve districts of Jammu and Kashmir have figured in the list of PMGSY top performing 30 districts of the country

9:17 PM

Trump tends to his electoral map, Biden eyes Obama boost

President Donald Trump is hopping from one must-win stop on the electoral map to the next in the leadup to a final presidential debate that may be his last, best chance to alter the trajectory of the 2020 campaign.

 

As Democrat Joe Biden holes up for debate prep in advance of Thursday's faceoff in Nashville, Tennessee, he's hoping for a boost from former President Barack Obama, who will be holding his first in-person campaign event for Biden on Wednesday in Philadelphia.

 

Obama, who has become increasingly critical of Trump over the three and a half years since he left office, will address a drive-in rally, where supporters will listen to him over the radio inside their cars.

8:52 PM

Delhi's pollution levels worsen, air quality still in 'poor' category

Delhi's pollution levels worsened on Wednesday even as the air quality index remained in the 'poor' category, with a government agency forecasting improvement in the situation on Thursday with cleaner easterly wind coming in.

 

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Delhi's air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 268 on Wednesday morning. However, the data updated in the evening showed the average AQI of the past 24 hours at 256.

 

The figures are based on data collected from 34 monitoring stations in the city.

8:35 PM

Mobile internet speed in J&K to be restricted to 2G, except in Ganderbal, Udhampur

8:27 PM

India will host the third India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue on 27 October, 2020 in Delhi: Ministry of External Affairs

8:14 PM

E-tailing to become $200-bn opportunity by 2025: Report

Online spending, which has got a boost during the pandemic, is expected to grow at an annual rate of over 35 per cent to $200 billion in the next five years, and a lot of this growth will come from direct-to-consumer brands, according to a report.

The domestic direct-to-consumer (D2C) market is estimated to be $100 billon by 2025, or 11 per cent of the total retail market that is slated to touch $1.7 trillion by then, investment bank Avendus Capital said in the report.

Overall retail market stood at $977 billion in 2019, it said.

The domestic retail market, which is the fifth largest globally, is projected to surpass $1.7 trillion by 2025, driven by e-tailing. Of the total retail market, only 17 per cent was in the modern trade in 2019, which is slated to touch 31 per cent by 2025.

8:01 PM

AAI plans to develop 100 airports, waterdromes, heliports under UDAN by 2024

Airports Authority of India (AAI) plans to develop at least 100 airports, waterdromes and heliports by 2024 under the regional air connectivity scheme, according to an official release.

 

The fourth anniversary of the scheme, also known as UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik), was commemorated on Wednesday. The scheme is aimed at providing affordable, economically viable and profitable air travel on regional routes.

 

"50 unserved and underserved airports (including five heliports) with 285 routes have been added under UDAN across the length and breadth of India. As the implementing agency, AAI has an ambitious plan to develop at least 100 airports/ waterdromes/ heliports by 2024 under the scheme," the release said.

 

During a video conference to commemorate UDAN Day on Wednesday, Civil Aviation Secretary Pradeep Singh Kharola said stakeholders should work towards making the scheme sustainable on its own and improve its efficiency.

7:49 PM

KVIC launches khadi footwear, eyes Rs 1,000 cr market share

Eyeing the Rs 50,000 crore footwear market in India, Khadi Village Industries Corporation (KVIC) on Wednesday launched a range of footwear made of khadi fabric and said that it targets a Rs 1,000-crore market share in the first year.

The footwear range for both men and women was launched by MSME Minister Nitin Gadkari, Minister of State for MSME Pratap Chandra Sarangi, and KVIC Chairman Vinai Saxena.

Speaking at the launch, Gadkari said: "Global footwear industry is valued at Rs 1.45 trillion. KVIC will generate immense demand for khadi footwear with its range of products."

"Khadi footwear is a unique product. International quality and use of fine fabric like Patola silk, Banarasi silk, cotton, and denim will attract youngsters who can purchase it online. These footwear are cost-effective," Gadkari said.

7:35 PM

In 2024 election, we will support the party that will take up this cause: Bimal Gurung

7:23 PM

Cabinet approves procurement of 1.2 mn tonne apple in J&K this season

The Cabinet on Wednesday approved the extension of a scheme under which cooperative NAFED will procure 12 lakh tonne apple in Jammu and Kashmir during the current 2020-21 season.

 

National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation (NAFED) has also been allowed to use the government guarantee of Rs 2,500 crore for this operation. The losses, if any, will be shared between the Centre and Jammu and Kashmir government on a 50:50 basis.

 

A decision in this regard was taken in the Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.