LIVE: India records 3,824 Covid cases, biggest month rise in 12 mnths

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1:30 PM

Par panel flags large number of outsourced staff in CIC, asks SSC to look into it

Highlighting a large number of outsourced employees in the Central Information Commission, a Parliamentary Committee has asked the Staff Selection Commission to look into the reasons hindering direct recruitment in the transparency watchdog.

According to the committee, the Central Information Commission (CIC) has filled 100 out of the 160 sanctioned posts by recruiting outsourced staff on a contractual basis.

1:10 PM

Road crash in Rajasthan leaves five dead

Five people, including three children, were killed and 19 others injured in a collision between a truck and a pickup van in Rajasthan's Churu district, police said on Sunday.

 

Station House Officer Subhash Chandra said the accident took place on Saturday night. The people travelling in the pickup van were residents of Hisar in Haryana and returning from the Salasar Balaji temple in Churu. The injured have been admitted to a hospital in Hisar.

12:46 PM

90% cattle vaccinated against lumpy skin disease in Punjab

Punjab's animal husbandry department is close to achieving 100 per cent vaccination of the 25 lakh cattle in the state against lumpy skin disease (LSD) and has inoculated more than 22 lakh of them.

In an official statement issued on Saturday, Animal Husbandry Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar said the vaccination drive is nearing completion ahead of the April 30 deadline.

12:17 PM

Rahul Gandhi to file appeal in Gujarat court on April 3 against conviction in defamation case

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will on Monday file an appeal before a court in Surat in Gujarat against his conviction in a criminal defamation case.

Gandhi is likely to remain present in the sessions court when the plea will be filed challenging the lower court's order sentencing him to two years in jail, sources said on Sunday.

11:57 AM

Cannot be like Savarkar even if he takes 10 births: Thakur slams Rahul

Training his guns at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his remark on Veer Savarkar, Union Minister Anurag Thakur on Sunday said that the former "cannot become like Savarkar even if he takes 10 births."

 

Rahul Gandhi, who was disqualified as an MP after being convicted in the criminal defamation case over the 'Modi surname' remark, on March 25 said, "My name is not Savarkar, my name is Gandhi. Gandhis don't apologise to anyone".

11:26 AM

Kane Williamson ruled out of IPL owing to injury, Gujarat Titans confirm

Kane Williamson, the Gujarat Titans batter, has been ruled out of the Indian Premier League owing to a knee injury, the franchise said on Sunday.

 

The New Zealand batting mainstay sustained the injury during the season opener against Chennai Super Kings here last Friday.

11:23 AM

Ram Navami violence: Security beefed up in Nalanda, police say over 50 held

Union Minister Anurag Thakur on Sunday hit out at the Bihar and West Bengal governments over clashes in the states during the Ram Navami celebrations. Hitting out at the Bihar government over violence, Thakur alleged that "Jungleraj" has returned in the state. Speaking to ANI, the Union minister said, "I would only say that the worsening law and order situation in Bihar suggests the return of 'Jungleraj'.

11:05 AM

Indian Biogas Association makes a case for biogas plants in PPP mode at landfill sites in Delhi

Indian Biogas Association (IBA) has urged the Delhi government to set up biogas plants under the public-private-partnership (PPP) model at landfill sites in the national capital to deal with the problem of mounting solid waste in an environment-friendly manner.

In a letter to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the IBA said, "Biogas plants can be set up under the PPP model."

10:47 AM

India records 3,824 Covid cases, biggest single-day rise in six months

India on Sunday recorded a single-day jump of 3,824 Covid-19 infections, the biggest in 184 days, while the number of active cases increased to 18,389, according to Union health ministry data.

With the fresh infections, India's Covid-19 tally rose to 4.47 crore (4,47,22,605). The death toll climbed to 5,30,881 with five deaths, the data updated at 8 am stated.

10:27 AM

Former Indian cricketer Salim Durani passed away

Former Indian cricketer, 88-year-old Salim Aziz Durani passed away in Jamnagar on Sunday morning. He was suffering from illness for a brief period of time.

Former Indian cricketer Ravi Shastri expressed his grief in a tweet, "Easily one of the most colourful cricketers of India - Salim Durani. Rest in Peace. AUM shaaNti."

 

10:09 AM

Rajasthan: CM Ashok Gehlot flags off 'JITO Ahimsa Run' in Jaipur

Rajasthan is the only state in the country where there is a department of "peace and non-violence," Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said here on Sunday while flagging off 'JITO Ahimsa Run'.

The event was organised by Jain International Trade Organisation (JITO) at the Mahavir Digambar Jain School in Jaipur.

10:00 AM

Salim Durani dies at 88

Legendary Indian cricketer Salim Durani passed away at 88 after prolonged illness.

9:47 AM

Candidates now need to account for spending on virtual campaigns

With the increasing trend of virtual campaigns by candidates and political parties during elections, candidates contesting polls will need to maintain an account of expenditure incurred by them in this regard.

As per the Commission guidelines, candidates are required to maintain expenditure incurred by them in this regard in their accounts and the same shall be reflected in their Abstract Statement of election expenses (Schedule 11) to be submitted by them to the concerned DEOs along with their accounts of election expenses within 30 days of declaration of results.

9:44 AM

"Mamata Didi is sleeping...Jungleraj has returned," Anurag Thakur on communal clashes in West Bengal, Bihar

Union Minister Anurag Thakur on Sunday hit out at the Bihar and West Bengal governments, over the communal clashes in the states during the Ram Navami festivities.

The Union Minister has spoken at the JITO Ahimsa Run at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, here in the national capital.

9:28 AM

East Asia, Pacific growth to accelerate to 5.1% in 2023 as China rebounds

Growth in developing East Asia and the Pacific is forecast to accelerate in 2023 as China's economy reopens, while the pace of growth in most of the economies in the rest of the region is anticipated to ease after a strong rebound last year, a World Bank report said.

 

Economic performance across the region, while robust, could be held back this year by slowing global growth, elevated commodity prices, and tightening financial conditions in response to persistent inflation, according to the World Bank's East Asia and Pacific April 2023 Economic Update