National News

PTI New Delhi President’s secretary Sanjay Kothari on Saturday took over as the Central Vigilance Commissioner, ten months after the top post in the country’s anti-corruption watchdog CVC fell vacant. Kothari was sworn in by President Ram Nath Kovind at a ceremony attended by Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, among others, at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. …

PTI New Delhi The nationwide tally of coronavirus positive patients crossed 26,000 on Saturday with fresh cases getting detected in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and the national capital among other places, but the government said the daily growth rate has dipped to 6 per cent and some states began relaxing some lockdown conditions by allowing more shops to open. …

PTI New Delhi States and Union Territories have been asked to put on hold the use of COVID-19 rapid antibody test kits till their accuracy is rechecked by apex health research body the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), official sources said on Saturday. According to the sources, teams constituted by ICMR are analysing the rapid antibody test kits, procured …

PTI Bengaluru The Karnataka government on Saturday commenced clinical trials of convalescent plasma therapy to treat coronavirus patients in critical condition. Karnataka Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar, along with Health and Family Welfare Minister Sriramulu inaugurated clinical trials of the Therapy at Victoria hospital here. “This is a historic moment for the state and I am confident that Plasma …

PTI Agartala The Tripura government has instructed government offices to slash power and telephone bills by 10 per cent and use air conditioners only after permission as part of the cost-cutting measures due to coronavirus pandemic. A meeting of the council of ministers here on Friday, also decided to assess and regulate the use of television and cable connections in …

PTI New Delhi Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund’s decision to wind up six debt schemes is a matter of “grave concern” to investors, mutual fund industry and financial markets, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said on Saturday, urging the government to act promptly to resolve the issue. In an unprecedented move, Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund has voluntarily decided to wind up …

PTI New Delhi The Delhi High Court has granted interim bail of eight weeks to one of the directors of a private firm in a case related to alleged siphoning of Rs 4 crore allotted by the government for development of a solar park in Maharashtra. Justice Yogesh Khanna, who conducted the hearing through video conferencing, granted the relief after …

IANS New Delhi As it awaits clear health safety guidelines from the Centre, the  national capitals IGI Airport is preparing Terminal-3 to eventually open up for full fledged flight  operations. Accordingly, DIAL, which manages and operates IGIA may temporarily shut-down Terminal-2  and the T-1D.  “DIAL is assessing the quantum of domestic demand along with the Airlines, once the  suspension of …

IANS Hyderabad The ongoing lockdown, which has crippled the economy for more  than a month and sparked unprecedented distress, has turned the so-called lower middle class  into the new poor identities of the society. Teachers in unaided private schools, office assistants, data entry operators, salespersons, receptionists, beauticians, those who run small mobile phone service and repair shops and other service …

New Delhi: The COVID-19 situation is “especially serious” in major or emerging hotspots like Ahmedabad, Surat, Hyderabad, Chennai and Thane, the Centre said on Friday, as it rushed inter-ministerial central teams (IMCT) to monitor the situation in these cities. The assessment by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) came on a day when Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner Vijay Nehra said the …