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Sun, 20 September 2020
Pak's Sharif launches attack on army, Imran govt

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21:22   Pak's Sharif launches attack on army, Imran govt
Pakistan's deposed premier Nawaz Sharif staged a political comeback by criticising the powerful army and said the Opposition was not against Prime Minister Imran Khan but against those who brought an "inefficient" man to power.
Addressing the All-Parties Conference hosted by the Pakistan Peoples Party via a video link aimed at launching a protest movement against the Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, the three-time premier launched a scathing attack on the ruling party for its "failure to address the basic problems of the people".
Sharif, 70, the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz supremo, has been living in London since November last year after the Lahore High Court granted him permission to go abroad for four weeks for treatment.
Addressing the conference, Sharif criticised the country's powerful establishment for allegedly supporting Khan.

"Our struggle is not against Imran Khan. Today, our struggle is against those who installed Imran Khan and who manipulated elections (of 2018) to bring an inefficient man like him into power and thus destroyed the country," he said.
Sharif said that the foremost priority should be to remove "this selected government and this system", adding that "if the change is not brought, it will bring irreversible loss to this country".
He asked the powerful army to stay away from politics and follow the Constitution and vision of the country's father 'Quaid-e-Azam' Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

-- PTI
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20:50   HK bans AI flights after surge in Covid cases
The Hong Kong government on Sunday suspended flights from Air India after a surge in the number of coronavius disease cases, according to local media reports.

Many local outlets quoted Hong Kongs department of health as saying the flights of Air India and Cathay Dragon have been suspended till October 3 after passengers aboard were found to be infected with Covid-19.

Cathay Pacific said in a statement that five passengers from India who were on a Cathay Dragon flight between Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong on September 18 tested positive for Covid-19, even after they submitted negative nucleic acid tests before their trip. The passengers were earlier on an India Express flight.

Hong Kong recorded the highest number of new infections in almost a month. One-third of the 23 new cases were in people who had recently travelled from India, according to the Centre for Health Protection. Only four local infections were reported.

Hong Kong had banned flights operated by Air India in August too. These flights were part of the Vande Bharat Mission.
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20:26   Will take BJP to court over farm bill: Amarinder
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Sunday said his government will take the BJP and its allies, including the Shiromani Akali Dal, to the court over the "unconstitutional, undemocratic and anti-farmer" laws of the Centre.
The CM vowed to fight till his last breath to protect the interests of the state's farmers, according to a statement.
"We will move the court and fight the draconian legislations as soon as they get the presidential nod and become the law of the land," the chief minister said.
Singh expressed shock at the way the BJP-led Union government "brute-forced" the agriculture bills through the Rajya Sabha.
The CM questioned the rationale behind putting the 'controversial and vicious' bills to voice vote despite strong reservations by the Opposition and inadequate numbers in the House. 
He said the bills were a "blatant encroachment" on the state's powers and control of the agriculture sector. 
"Why did the House not go for division of votes on this critical issue, which has even divided the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA)," he asked.
He said his government will not allow the Union government, of which the Shiromani Akali Dal shamelessly continues to be a part, to trample upon the rights and interests of farmers through the cruel legislations designed to destroy the farmers.  
"We stand with the farmers and will do whatever it takes to protect their interests," he said in a statement.

-- PTI
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19:58   Ruckus in RS taints Parliament's image: Rajnath
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said that the ruckus which took place in the Rajya Sabha during the debate on farm bills has tainted the image of Parliament in front of the entire nation.

He also hailed the bills passed by Parliament, saying these are landmark legislations.

Rajya Sabha is called House of Elders. Those who beleived in parliamentary procedures will be hurt by such behaviour, Singh said while addressing a press conference.
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19:46   Fifth wave of virus possible in China, says expert
Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, says a fifth wave of the virus in China is possible, amid warnings that vigilance was needed for the approaching winter. Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, says a fifth wave of the virus in China is possible, amid warnings that vigilance was needed for the approaching winter.

The South China Morning Post reports Wu characterised the four waves so far as:

>> The first outbreak in Wuhan, controlled by early March
>> A regional outbreak in north-eastern China in April and May, driven by imported cases
>> The outbreak starting at a Beijing food market in June
>> Sporadic cases in the northeastern city of Dalian and Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang region, in July

Except for the initial outbreak in Wuhan, the outbreaks were sporadic, regional cases and they were effectively controlled, Wu said.
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18:53   'No significant mutation of Covid in India'
No significant or drastic mutation in strains of SARS-CoV-2 has been found in India till now, Union Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Sunday during an interaction with his social media followers.
  
He also said the Indian Council of Medical Research has been conducting large-scale sequencing of nationally representative strains collected over a few months and detailed results on mutations of the virus will be available in early October.

Replying to queries during the 'Sunday Samvad' platform, Vardhan further said enough oxygen is being produced in the country and the health ministry is closely monitoring the situation.

He took the occasion to remind everyone that the ministry had dispatched oxygen concentrators to the rural parts of the country specifically to avert the logistic issues coming to light, a health ministry statement said.

On the recent saliva-based test for COVID-19, Vardhan noted that ICMR has validated a few tests, but no reliable test has been found and companies with tests approved by US-FDA have still not approached the Government of India.

The minister added that ICMR is actively exploring this test method and will inform as soon as reliable options are available, the statement said.

To a question regarding the Centre's achievement of engineering polio eradication in India, he reminded the audience that coronavirus is a novel pathogen and unlike polio, literature is absent on it.

India's handling of outbreaks in the past such as SARS, Ebola and Plague will play a major role in containing coronavirus, Vardhan said.

-- PTI
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18:37   Rahul terms farm bills 'death orders' against farmers, says democracy is 'ashamed'
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday lashed out at the Narendra Modi government for Parliament's nod to two farm sector reform bills and termed it "death orders against farmers".

Amid massive uproar by opposition members, the Rajya Sabha on Sunday passed the Farmer's Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020. They were passed by the Lok Sabha on Thursday.

In a strongly worded tweet, Rahul Gandhi said "democracy is ashamed" as the government "took out death orders against farmers in the Rajya Sabha".

"The farmer who grows gold from the earth, the pride of the Modi government makes them cry. Democracy is ashamed by the manner in which the government took out death orders against farmers in the Rajya Sabha today in the name of Agriculture Bill," Rahul Gandhi tweeted.

Earlier, Rahul Gandhi had termed Centre's farm bill as "anti-agriculture 'black law' of Modi government". He accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of allowing "farmers to be slaves of the captalists" by bringing in the farm-related bills.
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18:10   Tharoor hits out at Centre over COVID, economy
Congress Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor on Sunday hit out at the Central government over the COVID-19 handling and management of the economy.

"We have the worst of both worlds. We have neither managed to limit the spread of the virus nor have we managed to keep the economy afloat. GDP for the first time in 41 years will actually shrink, our employment crisis has even become worst before, small and medium businesses have been devastated, trade is crashed and foreseeable national prospects are dying," he said during a discussion in the Lower House discussion on the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The Member of Parliament from Thiruvananthapuram said that the states were not consulted before the 21-day lockdown.

"Even though people of this country were given three days' notice before locking down for a mere 17-hour Janata Curfew on a Sunday when most individuals spend a lot of time at home anyway. A trial for a longer national lockdown what followed was horrific," Tharoor said.

"The Prime Minister in his address to residents of his constituency likened the disaster he had unleashed upon the nation to Kurukshetra. He said that Mahabharat took 18 days before victory was earned and tackling the COVID-19 will take 21 days. 180 days have passed, our national caseload is the second largest in the world and heading for number 1. Daily cases have nearly reached a lakh. The economy is in tatters having suffered a contraction far more severe than any other country," he added.

Reciting a poem in Hindi, he said: "We don't say there was no pandemic, we were saying that there was no preparation."

-- ANI
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17:36   32,238 paramilitary personnel contract COVID-19: Govt
The government on Sunday said a total of 32,238 paramilitary personnel were infected by the Coronavirus so far. 

 Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said in Lok Sabha that 9,158 personnel of the CRPF, 8,934 personnel of the BSF, 5,544 personnel of the CISF, 3,380 personnel of the ITBP, 3,251 personnel of the SSB, 1,746 personnel of the Assam Rifles and 225 personnel of the NSG were infected by the virus. 

Among the infected, the highest recovery rate is reported in CRPF (84.4 per cent), followed by BSF (80.41 per cent) and CISF (75.25 per cent), he said replying a written reply. 

Rai said the highest death rate has been reported in CISF (0.43 per cent), followed by the Assam Rifles (0.40 per cent) CRPF (0.39 per cent). 

-- PTI
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17:19   Oppn move no-confidence against RS Dy chairman
Opposition parties on Sunday moved a no-confidence motion against Rajya Sabha deputy chairman Harivansh after he overruled opposition pleas for postponing Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar's reply to the debate on the two farm bills till Monday since the sitting time scheduled of the House was over.

The motion, signed by around 100 members has been submitted in the notice office of the Parliament as the secretary-general was not present.

This came after The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill passed by Rajya Sabha today amid protest from Opposition parties. The two bills have already been passed the Lok Sabha.

"This day will go down in history as 'black day'. The way these bills have been passed goes against democratic processes and amounts to killing democracy. Twelve Opposition parties have moved a no-confidence motion against Rajya Sabha Deputy chairman," Congress MP Ahmed Patel told reporters here.

"He (Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh) should safeguard the democratic traditions but instead, his attitude today harmed the democratic traditions and processes. So we have decided to move a no-confidence motion against him," Patel said.

Opposition MPs protested against agriculture Bills and were demanding that bills be sent to the select committee.

-- ANI
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16:53   Don't sign farm bills: Sukhhbir Badal urges President
Shiromani Akal Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday urged the President not to give his assent to the farm bills passed by Rajya Sabha, asking him to return them to Parliament for reconsideration.
 
Badal said the passage of the bills marked a 'sad day' for democracy and millions in the country.
 
"Democracy means consensus, not majority oppression," the SAD leader said in a statement shortly after Rajya Sabha passed two of the three bills.
In a rarely exercised provision, the Constitution gives the President the power to withhold assent to certain categories of bills passed by Parliament.
"Please stand by the farmers, 'kisan mazdoors', 'arhtiyas', mandi labour and Dalits," Badal urged President Ram Nath Kovind.
"Please intervene on their behalf with the government. Otherwise they will never forgive us," he said in the statement.
"Don't let the 'annadata' (farmers) starve or sleep on the roads," he added.
Amid an uproar by the opposition, Rajya Sabha on Sunday passed the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020.

-- PTI
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16:35   RS Chairman may take action against MPs
Vice President and Rajya Sabha chairman M Venkaiah Naidu is likely to take action against those Members of Parliament who created ruckus in the Upper House over agriculture bills. 

Amid protest from Opposition parties, The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill passed by Rajya Sabha.

Trinamool Congress MP Derek O'Brien, Congress MP Ripun Bora, AAP MP Sanjay Singh and DMK MP Tiruchi Siva were seen making attempts to snatch the podium mike of Deputy Chairman Harivansh, raised slogans against the chair, and tore papers.

Due to ruckus in the House, the proceeding of the Rajya Sabha was stopped for 10 minutes. Later, the agriculture bills were passed finally.

Sources said that Rajya Sabha Chairman is very upset with the incident and he is likely to take action against those MPs who have created ruckus in the house and raised slogans against the chair and also tore papers.

Opposition MPs protested against agriculture Bills and were demanding that bills be sent to the select committee.

-- ANI
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16:07   LS member N K Premachandran tests positive for coronavirus
Lok Sabha member and RSP leader N K Premachandran has tested positive for coronavirus, his office said on Sunday. 

 He has been admitted to AIIMS. The leader of the Revolutionary Socialist Party from Kerala has been attending the current Lok Sabha session and was also actively participating in discussions.

-- PTI
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15:41   'Watershed moment': PM on passage of farm bills
Hailing the passage of the agriculture reform bills as in Rajya Sabha a watershed moment, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday again assured protesting farmers that the Minimum Support Price system wont be touched and government purchase of their produce would continue.

A watershed moment in the history of Indian agriculture! Congratulations to our hardworking farmers on the passage of key bills in Parliament, which will ensure a complete transformation of the agriculture sector as well as empower crores of farmers, Modi said on Twitter, shortly after the bills were passed amid opposition chaos in the Upper House.

For decades, the Indian farmer was bound by various constraints and bullied by middlemen. The bills passed by Parliament liberate the farmers from such adversities. These bills will add impetus to the efforts to double income of farmers and ensure greater prosperity for them, he added.

The two contentious farm bills -- Farmer's Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 -- were passed amid chaos in the Rajya Sabha, three days after they were cleared in the Lok Sabha.

A voice vote to pass the bills was drowned amid sloganeering by opposition members, some of who wanted the discussion to be continued on Monday, while others wanted the bills to be sent to a Select Committee. Some MPs trooped to the Well of the Upper House, while Trinamool Congress MP Derek OBrien rushed to the Chair and tore up with documents.
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15:28   BJP hails passage of farm bills in Parliament
BJP president J P Nadda hailed Parliament's nod to two farm sector reform bills on Sunday, saying they will give farmers freedom in selling their produce and rid them of middlemen. 
  
He also hit out at the opposition parties over the ruckus in the Rajya Sabha after the Chair proceeded to take up the bills for passage as he termed the behaviour "highly irresponsible" and an attack on democracy, and hoped that the House chairman will take note of that. 

Opposition members also violated COVID-19 protocols by storming the Well of the House, he told reporters. 

Amid massive uproar by opposition members, the Rajya Sabha on Sunday passed Farmer's Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020. They were passed by the Lok Sabha on Thursday.

Nadda asserted that the minimum support price  and Agriculture Produce Market Committees will continue even as farmers will get more and better options under these bills, which will become laws after being notified. 

"Showing foresight, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken these steps for a better future for farmers. They will play an important role in doubling their income," he said. 

The Modi government has taken a number of steps for farmers' welfare, including implementing the Swaminathan Commission report and announcing over Rs 1 lakh package for the agriculture sector, he said. 

Attacking the Congress, the BJP president said the opposition party had promised abolishing APMC in its 2019 general election manifesto while this will continue under the Modi government. 

Opposition parties have called these bills "anti-farmers" amid protests by farmers in states like Punjab and Haryana. 

-- PTI
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15:09   Centre broke every rule today: Derek O'Brien
The Rajya Sabha had to be adjourned till Monday over the uproar in the house over passange of two contentious Agriculture Bills. 

The session saw members of the Opposition raising slogans of hai hai and asking the government to take back the bills. Reports said that MPs tried to tear copies of the farm bill, said reports. 

TMC MP Derek OBrien was among the MPs who rushed into the well of the house. During the period in which the Upper House was shortly adjourned, O Brien tweeted a video from the central hall of the Parliament saying, They cheated. They broke every rule in Parliament. It was a historic day. In the worst sense of the word. They cut RSTV feed so the country couldnt see. They censored RSTV. Dont spread propaganda. We have evidence. But first watch this. 
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14:33   Army has occupied 6 new major heights on LAC
In the last three weeks, the Indian Army has occupied six new major hill features on the Line of Actual Control during the ongoing conflict with the Chinese Army in the Eastern Ladakh sector.

"The Indian Army has occupied six new heights between August 29 and the second week of September. The new hill features being occupied by our troops include the Magar hill, Gurung Hill, Recehen La, Rezang La, Mokhpari and the dominating height over Chinese positions near Finger 4," top government sources said.

These hill features were lying dormant and the Indian Army had occupied them before the Chinese army which was eyeing to sit on the dominating heights and now our troops have an edge over the adversary in those areas, they said.

Sources said the foiling of Chinese army's attempts in occupying the heights led to the firing of bullets in the air on at least three occasions from the northern bank of Pangong to the southern bank of the lake.

The sources clarified that the Black Top and the Helmet Top hill features are on the Chinese side of the LAC while the heights occupied by the Indian side are on the LAC in Indian territory.

-- ANI
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14:07   2 key farm bills passed in RS amid slogans
The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 have been passed in Rajya Sabha by voice vote, amid protest by Opposition MPs. 

The voice vote took place amid MPs sloganeering over the farm bills. 

Rajya Sabha adjourned till 9 am on Monday. 
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14:01   RS resumes after ruckus, voting on farm Bills on
Proceedings in the Rajya Sabha were adjourned for a brief period on Sunday due to a major ruckus after opposition parties surrounded the well of the House and protested against the governments alleged hurry to push the contentious farm bills. 

TMC MP Derek OBrien stood infront of the Deputy Chairmans seat and attempted to show him the rulebook of the House. 

The session has resumed and is currently underway.
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13:27   Derek O'Brien reaches Chair in RS, tears papers
TMC MP Derek O'Brien entered the well and showed the House rule book to Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh, during the discussion in the House on agriculture Bills.

Protesting MPs have broken the mike placed in front of the Chair. Trinamool Congress's Derek O'Brien reached the Chair and tore some papers. The Opposition MPs are now sloganeering inside the House.

The three contentious agriculture reform bills -- The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020, and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020 -- have been moved for passage in the Rajya Sabha.
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13:27   Derek O'Brien reaches Chair in RS, tears papers
TMC MP Derek O'Brien entered the well and showed the House rule book to Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh, during the discussion in the House on agriculture Bills.

Protesting MPs have broken the mike placed in front of the Chair. Trinamool Congress's Derek O'Brien reached the Chair and tore some papers. The Opposition MPs are now sloganeering inside the House.

The three contentious agriculture reform bills -- The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020, and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020 -- have been moved for passage in the Rajya Sabha.
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12:55   Farmers protest against farm bills in Haryana
Farmers in Haryana began their three-hour protest against the agriculture-related farm bills on Sunday.
 
The farmers started to gather at various places in the state amid elaborate security arrangements which have been made to ensure that the event passes off smoothly.
The Bharatiya Kisan Union's Haryana unit, supported by some other farmer outfits, is holding a statewide protest against the Centre's farm bills during which they will block roads for three hours from 12 pm to 3 pm.
The farmers are also joined by the 'arhitiyas' or commission agents during their protest.
The Punjab Youth Congress, meanwhile, is also taking out a 'tractor rally' from Punjab to Delhi against the Centre's farm-related measures.
The rally started from Mohali district in the morning and was moving on the national highway towards Ambala.

However, the Haryana Police in Ambala had heavily barricaded the national highway and there was heavy police deployment on the Haryana-Punjab border, police department sources said.
On his way to join the tractor rally, Indian Youth Congress president Srinivas B V said his party stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the farmers and dubbed the farm reforms as 'anti-farmers'.
Meanwhile, the Haryana government issued directions to ensure law and order, and minimise inconvenience to the people of the state during the protest from 12 noon to 3 pm on Sunday.

-- PTI
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12:32   Taapsee extends support to Anurag Kashyap on sexual assault allegations
Taapsee Pannu came out in support of filmmaker Anurag Kashyap who was accused of sexual assualt by actor Payal Ghosh.

In an Instagram post on Sunday, the Thappad actor called her friend, Kashyap the biggest feminist.

She said, "For you, my friend , are the biggest feminist I know.

See you on the sets soon of yet another piece of art that shows how powerful and significant women are in the world you create :)"

She shared a picture of both of them from the sets of, what looked like, Manmarziyaan.

Payal Ghosh has accused filmmaker Anurag Kashyap of sexual harassment.

Payal took to her verified Twitter account to open up against Kashyap on Saturday evening. She tagged the office of the Prime Minister of India in her tweet.

"@anuragkashyap72 has forced himself on me and extremely badly. @PMOIndia @narendramodi ji, kindly take action and let the country see the demon behind this creative guy. I am aware that it can harm me and my security is at risk. Pls help!," tweeted Payal.

Responding to sexual assault allegations of actress Payal Ghosh, filmmaker Anurag Kashyap rejected all the accusations saying they are "baseless".
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12:23   Record 12 lakh samples tested for COVID-19 in last 24 hours: Health ministry
India has tested a record 12 lakh samples for coronavirus in the last 24 hours, informed the Union ministry of health and family welfare on Sunday.

So far, as many as 6.37 crore samples have been tested across the country. "India scales another peak. In last 24 hours, 12 lakh tests were conducted across the country which is an all-time record high. Total COVID-19 tests more than 6.37 crore," the ministry tweeted.

India's COVID-19 case tally crossed the 54-lakh mark with a spike of 92,605 new cases and 1,133 deaths in the last 24 hours, the Ministry said.

The total case tally stands at 54,00,620 including 10,10,824 active cases, 43,03,044 cured/discharged/migrated and 86,752 deaths. 

-- ANI
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11:58   Sushant case: AIIMS team may meet CBI today
The forensic team of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, which went to Mumbai to re-examine the circumstances leading to Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajputs death, is likely to meet the CBI Special Investigation Team and submit its report on Sunday. The Central Bureau of Investigation had approached the AIIMS seeking its medico-legal opinion on the autopsy files.

The forensic team, led by Dr Sudhir Gupta, conducted a viscera test to check the possibility of poisoning. The team is scheduled to meet the SIT today.

The report, however, will not be made public as the case is subjudice now.

The report will be conclusiv, Dr Gupta said earlier.

Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at his Mumbai residence on June 14.
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11:27   Kejriwal urges non-BJP parties to vote against farm bills in Rajya Sabha
National convener of AAP and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday appealed to all non-BJP parties to vote against three agriculture-related bills in the Rajya Sabha, saying farmers in the country wished so.
 
Earlier, Kejriwal had said his party will vote against the three bills and termed them "anti-farmer".

"Farmers all over the country are watching the Rajya Sabha today. The BJP is in minority in the Rajya Sabha. I appeal to all the non-BJP parties to defeat these bills, this is what farmers in the country wish," Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi.
He on Thursday had demanded that the Centre should withdraw the three bills and said his party MPs will vote against them in Parliament.
The Aam Aadmi Party has three Rajya Sabha and one Lok Sabha MPs.
The Centre had on Monday introduced 'The Farmers' Produce Trade And Commerce (Promotion And Facilitation) Bill', 'The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill', and 'The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill' to replace the ordinances promulgated earlier.

These bills seek to provide barrier-free trade for farmers' produce outside notified farm mandis, and empower farmers to enter into farming agreements with private players prior to production for sale of agri-produce.

-- PTI
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11:07   Large quantity of narcotics seized along IB
The Border Security Force (BSF) has recovered 58 packets of narcotics and two pistols after foiling an infiltration attempt from Pakistan along the International Border (IB) here, officials said on Sunday.

The infiltration bid by suspected smugglers was scuttled in Arnia area of R S Pura sector during the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday, an official of the border guarding force said.

He said troops of border outpost Budhwar and Bullechak observed suspicious movement of some Pakistani's near IB who were trying to sneak into this side under the cover of darkness.

The BSF opened fire and foiled their attempt, the official said.

During thorough search of the area this morning, 58 packets of narcotics, two pistols, four magazines and some ammunition were seized,he said.  -- PTI
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10:17   Deve Gowda takes oath as Rajya Sabha member
Former prime minister H D Deve Gowda on Sunday took oath as a member of the Rajya Sabha.

Gowda, 87, was in June elected to the Rajya Sabha from Karnataka. This is the first time that the Janata Dal-Secular leader has become a member of the Upper House since 1996.

When the House met for the day, Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu called for oath-taking by newly elected members.

After taking oath in Kannada, Gowda greeted the chair with folded hands.

Naidu remarked that he is a 'good addition to our House'.

"Former prime minister and one of the senior-most leaders of our country has come to our House," he said.   -- PTI
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10:01   92,605 new Covid cases, 1,133 deaths in 24 hrs
India's COVID-19 case tally crosses 54-lakh mark with a spike of 92,605 new cases and 1,133 deaths in last 24 hours.

The total case tally stands at 54,00,620 including 10,10,824 active cases, 43,03,044 cured/discharged/migrated and 86,752 deaths, says ministry of health and family welfare.

Meanwhile, the Indian Council of Medical Research said that 6,36,61,060 samples tested up to September 19 for COVID-19. Of these, 12,06,806 samples were tested on Saturday.   -- ANI
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09:20   Package addressed to Trump containing poison intercepted
Law enforcement officials intercepted a suspicious package containing deadly poison ricin addressed to United States President Donald Trump earlier this week.

Two tests were conducted to confirm the presence of ricin, CNN reported on Saturday citing two law enforcement officials.

All letters for the White House are sorted and checked at an offsite facility before reaching the White House.

A US law enforcement official told the American cable network that investigators are looking into the possibility that the package addressed to Trump came from Canada.

Ricin is a highly toxic substance extracted from castor beans that have been used in terror attacks.

It can be used in the form of powder, mist, pellet or acid.

If one ingests the poison, it causes vomiting and internal bleeding of the stomach and intestines, failure of the liver, spleen and kidneys and subsequent death by collapse of the circulatory system.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Secret Service are probing the matter.

"The FBI and our US Secret Service and US Postal Inspection Service partners are investigating a suspicious letter received at a US government mail facility. At this time, there is no known threat to public safety," the FBI's Washington field office said in a statement to CNN. -- ANI
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08:27   PM to hold Covid review meeting with CMs
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to chair a meeting of the chief ministers of seven states next week to review the coronavirus situation.

Sources said the meeting is likely to be held on September 23.

Chief ministers of Maharashtra, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh among others are expected to attend the meeting, they said.

The prime minister has been regularly holding meetings to review the pandemic situation across the country with a focus on states/UTs where the situation is more serious.

His last COVID-19 review meeting was on August 11 with chief ministers and representatives of 10 most-affected states, namely, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Punjab, Bihar, Gujarat, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh.   --  PTI

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