China steps up LAC air drills as talks stall
China on Tuesday defended its stepped-up military activity near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) as “normal”, amid concerns from India on Chinese aircraft flying close to the contested areas even as border talks remain in a stalemate. After Chinese aircraft flew close to contested areas along the LAC, India scrambled aircraft in response and also raised the matter with the Chinese side, according to reports.
Sri Lanka to witness three-way contest for Presidency
Sri Lanka will witness a three-cornered race for Presidency on Wednesday, as the island awaits a new leader and government after an astounding people’s uprising ousted Gotabaya Rajapaksa last week. Acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe; the formerly Rajapaksa-aligned, and now independent Dullas Alahapperuma; and the leftist Anura Kumara Dissanayake were on Tuesday nominated by parties in Parliament, a day ahead of the poll through a secret ballot.
Rishi Sunak tops new vote to edge closer to final spot in British PM race
Former U.K. Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, held on to his lead in the Tory contest after the fourth round of voting on Tuesday sent former equalities minister Kemi Badenoch out of the race with 59 votes from fellow Tory MPs. Mr. Sunak (42) won 118 votes, a gain of three since the third round of voting on Monday night. Trade minister Penny Mordaunt came in second with 92 votes, a gain of 10 votes since Monday, followed by Foreign Secretary Liz Truss who got 86 votes.
Sri Lanka failed to show fiscal prudence, India’s help unprecedented: Jaishankar
The Centre told the all-party meeting on the situation in Sri Lanka that “fiscal prudence and responsible governance” are the lessons the country has to learn from the crisis in the neighbouring country and that there should not be a “culture of freebies”. When asked about whether the aid to Sri Lanka was being equitably distributed in the country’s northern areas as well, Mr. Jaishankar said that the government had been coordinating to ensure this.
Parliament disrupted on Day 2 over price rise and GST on new items
The second day of the Monsoon session of Parliament had to be adjourned without any substantial business transpiring as both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha on Tuesday witnessed disruptions and protests over price rise and the newly imposed goods and services tax (GST) on essential commodities.
In 2021, over 1.6 lakh Indians renounced citizenship
Over 1.6 lakh Indians renounced their citizenship in 2021, highest in the past five years, according to information provided by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. Over 78,000 Indians acquired U.S. citizenship, the highest among all other countries, by giving up Indian citizenship. India does not allow dual citizenship. As many as 362 Indians living in China also acquired Chinese citizenship.
Shiv Sena splits in the Lok Sabha as 12 MPs join rebel camp
Following the revolt of Shiv Sena MLAs led by Eknath Shinde in Maharashtra last month, the party’s Lok Sabha group was split wide open on Tuesday after 12 of the party’s 19 Lok Sabha MPs moved over to the rebel Shinde camp, dealing another body blow to Uddhav Thackeray’s dwindling Sena faction. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Tuesday named rebel Shiv Sena MP Rahul Shewale as the leader of the party in the Lower House of Parliament.
Judge sets October trial for Musk-Twitter takeover dispute
Elon Musk lost a fight to delay Twitter’s lawsuit against him as a Delaware judge on Tuesday set an October trial, citing the “cloud of uncertainty” over the social media company after the billionaire backed out of a deal to buy it. Twitter had asked for an expedited trial in September, while Mr. Musk’s team called for waiting until early next year because of the complexity of the case.
Uphaar cinema fire: Delhi Court orders release of Sushil, Gopal Ansal in evidence tampering case
A Delhi court on Tuesday ordered the release of real estate tycoons Sushil and Gopal Ansal against the jail term already undergone by them in a case of tampering with evidence in the case related to the 1997 Uphaar cinema fire, which had claimed 59 lives. The court, however, upheld the fine of ₹2.25 crore imposed on each Sushil and Gopal Ansal and ₹ 3 lakh each on the other two by the magisterial court earlier.
Nearly 160 world leaders plan to attend U.N. September meeting
A very high number of heads of state and government—157—say they plan to attend September’s first totally in-person gathering of world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly since the COVID-19 pandemic began in early 2020.
RBI said to help Indian rupee steady after record-low seven sessions in a row
India's central bank intervened in the currency market on Tuesday to help the rupee steady slightly after the unit weakened to 80.05 per dollar, notching a record low for a seventh successive session.The Reserve Bank of India has been intervening in both the spot and forwards markets to slow the rupee's fall and has taken several measures in recent weeks to boost foreign fund inflows.
WHO's methodology for estimating COVID-19 deaths unscientific, says Centre
The mathematical modeling approach adopted by the WHO to project excess mortality estimates related to COVID-19 suffers from erroneous assumptions and is unscientific and India had registered its strong objection to this methodology, the government informed Parliament on July 19.
Railways turns to Google Maps to allot nearer exam centres for candidates
For the first time, the Railways will leverage ‘Google maps’ to ensure that almost all the candidates are allotted an examination centre within 300 kilometres of their home for the upcoming exam scheduled on July 30. The decision came after several candidates raised concerns about the Railways fixing centres for RRB-NTPC exams far away from their location.
Lulu Mall row: Yogi Adityanath orders strict action against those disturbing communal harmony
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath responded to the Lulu Mall controversy by directing the Lucknow administration to take strict action against those trying to disturb communal harmony and obstruct people from doing their work. Tension broke out around the mall, inaugurated by Mr. Adityanath on July 10, after a video showing some people offering namaz on its premises went viral.
Decision on GST hike taken after all States’ consent: Nirmala Sitharaman
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on July 19 clarified the GST Council has exempted from Goods and Service Tax (GST), all food items including wheat, pulses, rice, maize, when sold loose, and not pre-packed or pre-labelled. The Finance Minister further said that it was a unanimous decision by the GST Council. All states were present in GST Council when this issue was presented by the Group of Ministers on Rate Rationalisation in the 47th meeting held in Chandigarh on Jun 28, 2022.
China threatens 'strong measures' if Pelosi visits Taiwan
China will take “resolute and strong measures” should the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi proceed with reported plans to visit Taiwan, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. A visit by Ms. Pelosi would “severely undermine China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, gravely impact the foundation of China-U.S. relations and send a seriously wrong signal to Taiwan independence forces," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijiang said at a daily briefing.
U.K. has warmest-ever night, braces for record-smashing heat
Millions of people in Britain woke from the country's warmest-ever night on July 19 and braced for a day when temperatures are forecast to hit 40° Celsius (104° Fahrenheit), as a heat wave scorching Europe wallops a country more used to mild weather and rain.
