LIVE News Updates: PM Modi approves the reconstitution of NITI Aayog, Rajiv Kumar to continue as VC 

PM Modi approves the reconstitution of NITI Aayog Rajiv Kumar to continue as Vice Chairman. Other members include: VK Saraswat, Ramesh Chand and Dr VK Paul

Refuting the allegation that the saffron party roped in a Bangladeshi national Anju Ghosh, the BJP on Thursday said that she is an Indian citizen.

Ghosh, known for her role in the high grosser Bangladeshi movie 'Beder Meye Josna', had joined the BJP at the state party headquarters in the presence of its West Bengal unit chief Dilip Ghosh on Wednesday.

"After Anju Ghosh joined, Bobby babu (Trinamool leader Firhad Hakim) had laughed saying that BJP has included a Bangladeshi national. I would request him to read and update himself. All documents identify her as an Indian citizen," party's state unit Vice President Jay Prakash Majumdar told reporters.

The membership of BJP MLA Ashok Chandel was annulled on the grounds that he has been convicted by the Allahabad High Court for a mass murder that took place 22 years ago in Hamirpur.

Speaker of the UP assembly, Hriday Narain Dixit, on Thursday, announced the disqualification of the BJP with retrospective effect from April 19 – the day on which the high court convicted him.

The case against Ashok Chandel dates back to January 26 , 1997 when a minor altercation between local BJP leader Rajiv Shukla and Chandel led to a shootout in which five persons, including Shukla's two elder brothers Rakesh, Rajesh and nephews Ambuj, Ved Nayak and Srikant Pandey were killed.

State Bank of India (SBI) has provided more than 11,000 loans so far for rehabilitation and resumption of livelihood activities of people in districts affected by cyclone Fani in Odisha.

Stating this here on Thursday, SBI's Managing Director (Retail & Digital Banking) P K Gupta said the bank has also provided over 8000 agri loans and more than 1300 loans to Self Help Groups (SHGs) in the cyclone-hit areas.

Two special police officers (SPOs) went missing along with their weapons on Thursday from the police lines area in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district, police sai

The missing SPOs have been identified as Shabir Ahmad Dar and Sulaiman Ahmad Khan. An FIR has been registered and a manhunt started to trace them, police sources said.

SPOs are engaged by the state police on a fixed monthly pay to fight militancy in Jammu and Kashmir.

US Ambassador to India, Kenneth Juster has confirmed that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will be visiting Delhi later this month

Dhoni's tribute to Indian Army hit with fans but ICC wants insignia removed from gloves Southampton, Jun 6 (PTI) Mahendra Singh Dhoni sporting an Army insignia on his glove during the India-South Africa clash was well appreciated by his fans but the International Cricket Council on Thursday requested the BCCI to have the badge removed, saying it is against its regulations.

Claire Furlong, ICC General Manager - Strategic Communications, told PTI that the apex body has requested the Indian cricket board to have the sign removed. India's next game is against Australia on Sunday.

"It is against the regulations and we have requested it is removed," Furlong said

Rajasthan BJP chief Madan Lal Saini Thursday claimed Mughal emperor Akbar tried to misbehave with a Bikaner queen in an all-women Meena Bazaar, which he used to frequent in disguise.

Saini's statement invited swift condemnation from the Congress, which accused the state BJP of creating communal disharmony.

"The entire world knows that Akbar organised 'Meena Bazaars' where only women worked. Men were not permitted to visit them. But Akbar used to visit them in disguise to commit 'dushkarm'," claimed Saini.

Thailand's former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on Thursday was in absentia sentenced to two years in jail for launching an illegal government lottery over a decade ago.

The Supreme Court judges in charge of criminal lawsuits against politicians ruled the former Prime Minister guilty of involvement in running the illegal two-and three-digit lottery, which allegedly incurred some $53.8 million losses between 2003 and 2006, Xinhua news agency reported.

Thaksin was ousted in a military coup in 2006 and has been absent from Thailand since 2008, when he fled the country to avoid serving a two-year prison on a conflict of interest conviction.

Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia responds to Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri's remark on Delhi govt's proposal to make metro&bus rides free for women, says “with a lot of respect, I want to tell him that he must keep smiling & just give his blessings to Delhi people. We will do the work.”

US President Donald Trump said that he would wait until after a G20 meeting in Japan at the end of the month before deciding whether to impose new tariffs on Chinese goods that could be worth USD 325 billion.

"Additional tariffs on China? You mean, when am I going to put the extra USD 325 billion worth of tariffs?" Trump said on his trip to northern France in response to a question from a reporter about when the new tariffs were coming.

"I will make that decision over the next two weeks, probably right after the G20," Trump said, adding that he would hold talks with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping at the summit in Osaka on June 28-29.

"One way or the other I will make that decision after the G20," Trump added. "I will be meeting with President Xi (at the summit) and we'll see what happens." Trump began imposing tariffs on Chinese imports last year in a bid to reduce the US trade deficit and force Beijing to undertake economic reforms.

Navjot Singh Sidhu gets Power and New & Renewable Energy Sources, in Punjab Cabinet reshuffle. Barring 4 ministers, there are some changes in the portfolios of all the state ministers

ED conducts raids under Prevention of Money Laundering Act, in 10 premises at Mumbai and Parbhani in a bank fraud case involving Ratnakar Gutte, chairman of M/s. Gangakhed Sugar and Energy Pvt Ltd (GSEPL) & others

Australia all out at 288 after being invited to bat first by the West Indies

Nathan Coulter-Nile scores 92 of 60 and Steven Smith scored 73 of 103

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday filed a charge sheet in a court here in connection with the September 28, 2018, theft of weapons from the residence of a legislator in Srinagar.

An NIA official said the charge sheet in the theft of 7 AK rifles and one pistol along with ammunition from the residence of former PDP legislator, Aijaz Ahmad Mir, was filed in the NIA court in Jammu on Thursday.

"The case was taken over by NIA for investigation on October 18, 2018. It was established that SPO (Special Police Officer), Adil Bashir Sheikh entered into a conspiracy with other accused persons, Rafique Ahmad Bhat, Yawar Ahmad Dar and Abid Manzoor Magray, who was an active militant of Hizbul Mujahideen terror outfit, to steal the weapons," the official said.

A Delhi Court on Thursday reserved its order on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's plea seeking exemption from personal appearance to record his statement as an accused in a defamation case filed by BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Samar Vishal said that he would deliver the order on Kejriwal's plea on Friday.

Kejriwal's lawyer Rishikesh Kumar and Mohammad Irshad had requested the court to grant permission to Kejriwal to file written submissions to a questionnaire which was to be part of the statement of the accused

Delhi Minister of Food and Civil Supplies Imran Hussain on Thursday ordered sealing of a ration shop, which was found shut in a surprise inspection in east Delhi.

"A Fair Price Shop (FPS) in Pandav Nagar was sealed after it was found closed during working hours and locals complained that the shop usually opens during evenings," a government official said.

The Minister also found the FPS not displaying outside its premises, the mandatory information for the benefit and guidance of ration beneficiaries.

Following the failure of multiple attempts by the Indian Air Force (IAF) choppers to land on a mountain slope near Nanda Devi East to retrieve the bodies of climbers belonging to a mountaineering expedition killed in an avalanche, a joint "ground mission" would be launched for the purpose, a top state government official said on Thursday

Pithoragarh District Magistrate V.K. Jogdande said IAF helicopters made two attempts on Thursday morning to retrieve the bodies but bad weather and tough topography hampered the operations.

Following these failed attempts by the IAF choppers, a joint team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has been formed to launch a land operation to retrieve the five bodies.

Three losses in their first three games in the 2019 edition of the World Cup has opened a can of worms in the South African unit. It has been revealed that former South Africa skipper AB de Villiers had offered to come out of retirement to play in the showpiece event, a move that was rejected by the Cricket South Africa selectors.

While the news has seen widespread reaction from cricket fans across the world, de Villiers has asked all to show solidarity and support the team as it plays the World Cup. Taking to Twitter, ABD wrote: "All that's important is that we should all focus on supporting the team at the World Cup. There is a long way to go and I believe the boys can still go all the way #ProteaFire."

The police in Germany launched raids across the country on Thursday as part of a crackdown on incitement crimes being spread on the Internet.

According to the German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), apartments had been searched and suspects were questioned in 38 individual cases, Xinhua news agency reported.

These suspects are accused of having posted hate comments on the Internet "such as public calls to commit crimes, insults to public officials or anti-Semitic insults" which are illegal under German law and can be sentenced to up to five years in prison.

An 18-year-old girl committed suicide by hanging herself in her house near here on Thursday after failing to clear the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test, a day after two girls ended their lives in Tamil Nadu for the same reason.

A total of three girls have committed suicide within two days in the state after the NEET results were declared.

M Monisha took her life after she could not crack the exam for the second time this year.

"She could not succeed in her previous attempt last year and the girl this year has got a very low score in NEET," a district police official told PTI.

The Sudanese government said on Thursday that 46 people were killed in "recent events" that began with an assault on a protest camp earlier this week in the capital Khartoum, while the opposition Committee of Doctors said at least 108 people had died.

In what was the first official death toll since a military crackdown on a camp that had been set up for two months, the Sudanese Undersecretary for the Health Ministry, Suleiman Abdul Jabbar, said in a statement that the toll had not reached 100, Efe news reported.

In the early hours of Monday, Sudanese security forces raided an encampment that had been set up in front of the Army headquarters since April 6 and began firing to clear the area.

The Army cracked down on the demonstrators and destroyed the encampment, the nerve centre of the protest that led to the overthrowing of long-running President Omar al-Bashir on April 11.

Exchange of fire between terrorists and security forces in Lassipora of Pulwama district in Jammu and Kashmir

This is a developing story

Large parts of the country will continue to be gripped by a heat wave for another week as the monsoon's arrival has been delayed, an expert said on Thursday.

Although the monsoon is expected to hit Kerala in the next 48 hours, it would take at least seven days to reach the central and western regions of the country that are witnessing severe heat wave conditions now.

Several people have reportedly died in the past few days in the country due to heat stroke as the maximum temperatures ranged between 45 and 50 degrees Celsius.

After years of speculation over her retirement, six-time world champion MC Mary Kom on Thursday said she plans to hang her gloves after winning the elusive gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

The 36-year-old has been the inspiring force in Indian boxing. In her 18-year long illustrious career, she has won six World Championships, an Olympic bronze medal, and five Asian Championships.

Besides being an active and top-level boxer, she is also a sitting Rajya Sabha MP.

"After 2020 I want to retire. So my main mission is to get a gold for India. I really really want to win ( gold)," Mary Kom said on the sidelines of an event organised by Colgate.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy will expand his cabinet on Saturday, officials said.

Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan will administer the oath to the new Ministers on the grounds near the State Secretariat here at 11.49 a.m.

Jagan Reddy, who took oath as Chief Minister on May 30, is expected to set up his ministry at one go.

Even after six patients suffering from fever tested negative for Nipah virus in Kerala, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday said studies need to find out the reason for the second outbreak of the virus in the state.

"The source of the Nipah virus and the reason why we have had a second outbreak has to be probed and for that, the Centre has to provide necessary support. We will be asking the Kerala Animal Husbandry, Forest Agriculture and Health Department to study about bats, believed to be the carriers of the virus," said Vijaya

Around 355 people are at present under observation in Thrissur, Ernakulam, Thiruvananthapuram.

To review the liquidity management framework, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will set up an internal working group, which will suggest measures to simplify the current framework, last reviewed in 2014. The group is expected to submit the report by mid-July

"It has been decided to constitute an internal working group to review comprehensively the existing liquidity management framework and suggest measures, among others, to simplify the current liquidity management framework; and clearly communicate the objectives, quantitative measures and toolkit of liquidity management by the RBI," the statement of developmental and regulatory policies noted.

8 member Chinese delegation led by Li Xi, member of the Politburo of Communist Party of China met UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Thursday June 6

After the Trinamool Congress suffered a major setback in the Lok Sabha elections, West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool leader Mamata Banerjee on Thursday met election strategist Prashant Kishor.

Kishor was accompanied by party MP Abhishek Banerjee to the state Secretariat. The meeting with the Chief Minister lasted for about 90 minutes.

Of 42 Lok Sabha seats, the Trinamool Congress won 22, 12 less than in 2014 while the BJP tally zoomed to 18 from 2. The Congress bagged two seats.

Trinamool Congress' new women outfit Banga Janani Vahini on Thursday held a protest here against Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy's shocking comment that Bengali boys are working as sweepers and the girls as bar dancers in other states.

In a series of tweets posted on June 4, Roy, a former BJP leader, had argued that Bengalis' opposition to learning Hindi was political and claimed that many boys in Bengal are "now sweeping floors" in other states, while the Bengali girls are working as "bar dancers" in Mumbai.

Protesting against Roy's statement, senior women Trinamool Congress leaders, including state Minister Sashi Panja, Jaynagar MP Pratima Mondal, Barasat MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, accompanied by the party's women activists held a sit-in at South Kolkata's Hazra crossing on Thursday afternoon.

The women, dressed in white and red sarees, blew conch shells to invoke women power and held up placards condemning Roy's comments.

The Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy government Thursday cancelled a controversial government order issued by the previous Chandrababu Naidu-led dispensation, paving the way for the CBI to probe various cases in Andhra Pradesh.

On November 8, 2018, the ruling Telugu Desam Party had issued a government order (GO) withdrawing the "general consent" accorded to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to carry out investigations and raids in the state.

"In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 6 of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946, the government hereby withdraws the general consent accorded (in GO Ms 109) to all the members of the Delhi Special Police Establishment to exercise the powers and jurisdiction under the said Act in the state of Andhra Pradesh," the GO had said.

Former US President Barack Obama has praised San Diego-based Sikh neuroscientist Jiwandeep Kohli who is celebrating this year's Pride Month with a rainbow turban.

Kohli, who is a bisexual, went viral a few days ago when he shared an image of his elaborate creation -- his turban that featured the colours of the LGBT flag -- on Twitter.

"I'm proud to be a bisexual bearded baking brain scientist. I feel fortunate to be able to express all these aspects of my identity and will continue to work towards ensuring the same freedom for others," he captioned the image.

Complimenting Kohli, Obama tweeted on Tuesday: "You've got a lot to be proud of, Jiwandeep. Thanks for everything you do to make this country a little more equal. Turban looks great, by the way. Happy Pride Month, everybody!"

A 28-year-old man has been arrested in West Bengal's Paschim Midnapore district for strangulating his wife to death after she gave birth to a girl child, police said on Thursday.

"Lakshmipriya Jana, 25, was killed on Wednesday night. Her husband Shintu Jana has been held for interrogation," a police officer said.

The victim's family has lodged a complaint mentioning domestic violence, repeated harassment over dowry and also about giving birth to a girl child, the officer added.

In a viral video which underlines the issue of women safety in Goa, a woman artist has expressed outrage over being assaulted on a busy Goa road last week.

In the video, artist Durga Gawde from Mumbai has uploaded the clip of her assault while also urging social media users to popularise the hashtags - #StandUpForYourself and #LockUpBrianFranco.

She also expressed disappointment at the release of the accused -- Brian Franco -- on bail after four days.

A case was registered Thursday against a Government Medical College and two private hospitals here for allegedly denying admission to a 62-year-old man who died after being turned away by the hospitals, police said.

The case was lodged on the basis of the complaint by the relatives of the patient, identified as Jacob Thomas of Kerala's Idukki district, they said.

The hospitals were charged under Indian Penal Code Section 304 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder).

Known for stoking controversy on social media, Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy has again raked up a storm by posting a series of anti-Bengali tweets, saying that the greatness of Bengalis was long gone and that Bengalis were either "sweeping floors" or working as "bar dancers" in Mumbai.

The former BJP leader, who hails from West Bengal, was offering his views on states opposing making learning Hindi mandatory in schools.

"There is no great opposition. They are only making empty noise for political reasons. Assam, Odisha and Maharashtra are also non-Hindi speaking states, but they don't oppose Hindi," Roy tweeted in Bangla on Tuesday.

IT czar Azim Premji to retire as Executive Chairman of Wipro, to serve on board as non-executive Director and Founder Chairman.

He will retire on July 30

Wipro appoints Rishad Premji as Executive Chairman

Expressing their grief over the suicide of two girls who had scored low marks in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), leaders of various political parties in Tamil Nadu on Thursday reiterated their demand for scrapping the entrance test.

Two teenage girls from the state committed suicide after scoring low marks in the NEET exam, though they had earlier scored good marks in their school Board exams.

In a statement issued here, former Union Minister Anbumani Ramadoss said there are no longer any doubts that NEET is destroying the dreams of village youth of studying medicine.

The new Modi government will remain a junior ally of the US and Indias national interests will be subordinated to that of Washington, the CPI-M has said.

"All indications are that the second term of the Modi government will mark a further reinforcement of its role as a junior partner of the US," said an editorial in the CPI-M journal "People's Democracy".

"This will, in turn, quicken the implementation of the neo-liberal agenda and the consequent adverse impact on the lives of the people," it added.

The editorial said that in 2014-19, the Modi government took substantial steps to further interlink India strategically and militarily with the US.

Market experts were bullish on the RBI decision to cut the repo rate to 5.75% by 25 bps and change in its stance to being accommodative at a time of slowdown in demand and consumption, but they were equally vocal about higher and more such cuts, effective transmission rates of such reductions for any tangible results to check slide in growth.

The Sensex (BSE) has taken a cue from this and is down 1.29% at 39,571.60 at 3 p.m. while the broader NSE Nifty cracked 178 points or 1.48 per cent to settle at 11,850. Some had expected rate cuts to the extent of 35-50 bps.

Naveen Kulkarni, Head of Research, Reliance Securities, said while the rate cut of 25 basis points was in line with his expectation, concerns over growth and challenges on liquidity continue to linger. The market is not necessarily cheering the rate cut as it had already factored it, and that something more was expected.

Residents of Kasimedu, Royapuram in Tamil Nadu, block roads to protest against the water crisis in the area

A 10-year-old boy was killed when a mobile telephone battery exploded in Dhar district in Madha Pradesh, police said on Thursday.

The incident took place on Wednesday evening in Wadlipara village.

The phone was put on charging when the explosion took place, injuring Lakhan's face and hands. He was taken to a health centre where he succumbed to his injuries, police said.

ICC World Cup 2019: Glenn Maxwell departs after scoring 0 runs. Wicket taken by West Indies baller Andre Russell Cottrel and catch by Hope

Steven Smith and are on the crease 4 (12) and Stoinis 0 (2) at 38-4 in 8 overs

Nepal's famed Pashupatinath Temple owns over 9 kg gold, 316 kg of silver and holds 1.29 billion Nepalese rupees in banks, a media report said.

The temple's income has remained a matter of curiosity for many. It is believed that Pashupatinath Temple is the biggest money-spinner among Hindu shrine in Nepal. Thousands, both Nepalese and Indians, offer money, gold and silver to the temple every day.

According to data published by the governing body of the temple on Wednesday, the shrine collected 9.276 kg gold and 316 kg silver in the past 56 years, the Himalayan Times reported.

It is not clear when the temple was built but some say the temple complex -- with over 500 shrines and monuments -- has existed since 400 BC.

National Conference leader Omar Abdullah Thursday asked his party leaders to desist from lobbying for party ticket for the forthcoming Assembly election in Jammu and Kashmir by using the open access to him on the occasion of Eid.

"When you use the open access of Eid to bring a delegation to my home to lobby for your assembly mandate you aren't doing yourself any favours," Abdullah, a former chief minister, tweeted.  He asked his party leaders to keep politics out of Eid celebrations.

"Please leave the politics out of my celebrations for a couple of days," he added.

Jammu and Kashmir is under President's rule as the last elected government of the PDP-BJP coalition fell in June last year after the ruling party at the Centre pulled out. Election to the Assembly is expected in autumn this year.

French President Emmanuel Macron and outgoing UK Prime Minister Theresa May launched a commemoration event on Thursday to mark 75 years since the Normandy landings that saw allied forces invade northern France and start an operation to liberate the nation from Nazi German forces during the World War II

In his speech, Macron highlighted the sacrifice British soldiers made in their efforts to free France of Germany's occupation.

"The force of our friendship will outlast current events," the French President said, adding that both nations should be proud of the results that had been achieved.

The event was taking place at the British Normandy memorial which is built on a hill in Ver-sur-Mer, which overlooks the beach British troops landed on on June 6, 1944.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath on Thursday called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discussed issues pertaining to his state.

The meeting at the prime minister's residence lasted about half an hour during which Nath wished Modi for assuming office for the second term, a statement from the Madhya Pradesh government said.

Nath, a senior Congress leader, also discussed in detail about various issues pending with the central government for approval and release of funds to the state government, it said.

Army deploys its UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) to search for the missing AN-32 transport aircraft over Arunachal Pradesh-Assam. IAF’s Mi-17 choppers and other aircraft also being used for the operation

Star Indian shuttler P.V. Sindhu got knocked out of the ongoing $150,000 Australian Open World Tour Super 300 tournament after suffering a defeat to Thailand's Nitchaon Jindapol in the second round on Thursday.

Sindhu, who had defeated Indonesia's Choirunnisa in the opening round, lost 19-21, 18-21 to Jindapol in a match that lasted for around 50 minutes.

Meanwhile, in the men's singles, sixth-seeded Sameer Verma also bowed out of the competition after suffering a 16-21, 21-7, 13-21 defeat in the second round against Taiwan's Wang Tzu Wei.

Three people were injured in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district after soldiers tried to flag down and then fired at a vehicle which jumped an Army checkpost, police sources said.

Three people in the car suffered injuries as Army soldiers fired at the vehicle after the driver ignored the signal and went past the checkpost in Drabgam village on Wednesday, police sources said.

One of them sustained a bullet injury and was shifted to a hospital in Srinagar, while the other two were injured by broken glass pieces and were taken to a local hospital, the sources said.

Brazilian forward Neymar will miss this summer's Copa America after suffering an ankle injury in Brazil's 2-0 friendly win over Qatar

On Wednesday night, Neymar limped off the pitch in the 22nd minute of the match at the Mane Garrincha stadium after appearing to injure his right ankle in a tackle, reports Xinhua news agency.

The 27-year-old was later seen in distress while being evaluated by medical staff on the Brazil bench.

In a statement released on Thursday morning, Brazil's football governing body said that Neymar had ruptured a ligament in his ankle and would not recover in time to play in the Copa America.

The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear a petition filed by former Karnataka minister and mining baron Gali Janardhana Reddy seeking its permission to visit Ballari to see his ailing father-in-law.

Reddy, who is accused in a multi-crore illegal mining case, is currently out on bail. A vacation bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and Ajay Rastogi agreed to hear his plea on Friday.

Reddy's counsel senior advocate S. Ganesh Reddy's counsel moved the plea seeking an urgent hearing in the matter. He told the court that Reddy's father-in-law had suffered a stroke and was recuperating at a hospital in Ballari, Karnataka.

The former Minister has been barred from visiting Ballari, his native place, by a judicial order.

In a shocking incident, a two-and-a-half year old girl was strangled to death and her eyes gouged out after her parents allegedly failed to repay a loan of Rs 10,000. Two of the accused have been arrested, police said

The incident took place in Tappal town here in Uttar Pradesh. According to reports, the girl's body was found on June 2 in a dumping ground near her house, three days after she went missing.

Reportedly, the mutilated body was discovered after a pack of stray dogs had been spotted carrying what appeared to be human body parts.

Punjab govt. gives approval for a Four Year Strategic Action Plan for 2019-23 which is in line with the United Nations 2030 Development Agenda comprehensively covering social, economic and environmental dimensions

Newly-elected Biju Janata Dal (BJD) legislator from Patnagarh in Odisha has courted controversy by forcing a government official to do sit-ups as punishment for alleged poor quality of road construction in his constituency.

A video clip of Saroj Kumar Meher forcing a junior engineer of the Public Works Department (PWD) of Belpada block to do 100 sit-ups in public has gone viral on the social media.

The MLA also threatened the engineer with violence if he refused to follow his orders.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das on Thursday said the RBI will issue a new circular on non-performing assets (NPAs) in three to four days.

The circular is likely to set new norms and bring clarity over classification of companies as NPAs.

The apex court had on April 2 struck down RBI's February 12 circular whereby the central bank had mandated lenders to initiate resolution or restructuring of loans worth Rs 2,000 crore or more even if the default was recorded for a single day.

Addressing the media after the monetary policy meeting, the Governor noted that it had taken the apex bank more than anticipated time for coming out with a revised circular on bad loans.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Thursday announced to make the state the country's basketball hub.

"Happy to have met with these young players who will be representing India in the @FIBAWC (FIBA Basketball World Cup) 2019 in Amsterdam," he said in a tweet.

"Delighted to share that one of our own from @PunjabPoliceInd will also be playing for India. We will work towards making Punjab a hub for basketball in India."

In an apparent case of honour killing, a 22-year-old woman was drugged and thrown into a canal here by her father and his accomplices in a village here, police said on Thursday.

The incident took place in Parai village on Wednesday, they said.

The victim's father, Virpal, and another person were arrested in this connection based on a complaint by 23-year-old man Arjun, who was in a relationship with the woman, Chapar police station in-charge H Singh said.

During interrogation, Virpal admitted that he gave his daughter an intoxicant and had her thrown her into the canal for "tarnishing the family's name", Singh said.

The body of the woman is yet to be recovered, he added. PTI COR IJT

Former South Africa batsman AB de Villiers had offered to come out of retirement for the ongoing World Cup, but it was turned down by Cricket South Africa.

According to a report in ESPNcricinfo, the offer was made by de Villiers in May, just a day before South Africa selectors announced their final 15-member squad for the prestigious quadrennial event.

However, South Africa team management declined the offer with a thinking that a recall would, among other things, be unfair to the squad that had been together for the past year since de Villiers announced his retirement.

The report also said that De Villiers had approached Proteas skipper Faf du Plessis, head coach Ottis Gibson and convenor of selectors Linda Zondi, where he expressed his desire to reverse his retirement and play for the team in the World Cup. However, the team management declined his offer.

A five-member team of the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) is in Mumbai to meet top government officials and the management of the BYL Nair Hospital regarding the Payal Tadvi suicide case.

The team, led by NCST Chairman Nand Kumar Sai, will hold meetings with top administration and police officials, including the Maharashtra chief secretary, secretary (Health) and the Mumbai police commissioner, on June 8, an official said.

The commission will also meet the managing director, TN Topiwala National Medical College, and the management of the BYL Nair Hospital in connection with the case.

Unfazed by the recent Indo-Pak tensions, a Dubai-based Indian businessman has installed over 60 hand pumps in a poverty-stricken district of Pakistan's southeastern Sindh province, according to a media report.

Joginder Singh Salaria set up nearly 62 water pumps in Tharparkar district with the help of local social workers after knowing the plight of the area through social media. He also sent bags of grains to the community.

A Delhi court on Thursday reserved its order on a petition filed by Vinay Kochhar, co-accused in the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) hotels maintenance contract case case, seeking the court's permission to travel abroad. The court said it will deliver the order on Friday.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) have opposed Kochhar's plea seeking permission to visit Singapore and the UK.

Kochhar told the court that he wanted to visit his son and grandchildren in Singapore between June 12 and 20, and thereafter wanted to travel to the UK from July 4 to 23.

One person was killed and three persons were injured on Thursday following a shooting-related incident in New Zealand's North Island, police said.

The police were called to a rural address near Kawhia following a report that four people were found injured

Delhi Minister of Food and Civil Supplies Imran Hussain on Thursday conducted a surprise inspection of ration shops in east Delhi and ordered one of them sealed after finding it shut.

"A shop in Pandav Nagar was sealed after it was found closed during working hours and locals complained that the shop usually opens during evenings," a government official said.

The Minister also conducted surprise inspections at other ration shops in the area and issued direction for strict action against shops that indulge in irregularities.

The Punjab Cabinet on Thursday approved the creation of 994 posts of teaching faculty, para-medical staff and multi-task workers for the upcoming Government Medical College in Mohali, with an intake capacity of 100 MBBS seats.

The Cabinet, which was presided over by Chief Minister Amarinder Singh here, took the decision, which would pave the way for commencement of the college session from next year.

The creation of the posts was in conformity with the minimum requirements laid down by the Medical Council of India for 100 MBBS seats, a government spokesperson told IANS.

Mahant Balak Das of Patalpuri temple here in Uttar Pradesh has sent a copy of "Ramcharitmanas" to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in the hope that reading it will ‘purify her thinking.

"I hope her mindset will get purified once she reads the 'Ramcharitmanas'. She is opposing the slogan ‘Jai Shri Ram' which reflects her hatred for Lord Ram. This will lead to her fall one day. I have posted a copy of the scripture and requested her to read it," he told reporters.

He said that he was willing to help her in understanding the scripture and would continue to send her more copies.

Setting a deadline for the completion of his government's flagship programmes within six months, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Thursday directed his Cabinet colleagues to expedite the execution of schemes.

Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, who is at loggerheads with the Chief Minister, was conspicuously absent from the first Cabinet meeting after last month's parliamentary elections.

Expressing satisfaction that the Congress bucked the national trend to win in the state despite a Modi wave, the Chief Minister pointed out that Punjab was the only state where the Congress was in direct contest with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies.

Six persons were killed and over 30 injured when a tractor-trolley collided with a truck in Hardoi district in Uttar Pradesh.

The accident took place in Sadarpur area on Wednesday night. There were more than 42 passengers on the tractor trolley

Circle Officer Vijay Singh Rana said that the impact of the collision was so strong that the tractor trolley fell into a ditch and turned turtle.

The deceased have been identified as Vishram, 60, Ganga Ram, 50, Shankar, 55, Balak Ram, 60, Rishi Kumar,30, and Raja Ram, 35.

Malgaon blast accused Pragya Singh Thakur, who had been directed to appear before a special court in Mumbai this week, skipped the hearing as she was hospitalised for a stomach ailment and discharged early Thursday morning.

On Monday, special NIA Judge V.S. Padalkar had rejected her application for exemption from appearance in the court this week, in which she had stated that she has to complete formalities relating to Parliament. The court has said her presence is necessary at this stage in the case.

Home and auto loans are set to become cheaper as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday lowered its key lending rate for commercial banks by 25 basis points (bps) to 5.75 per cent.

As per the monetary policy statement, the main considerations behind the MPC's decision were the decline in private final consumption expenditure (PFCE) and moderation in exports.

Currently, high interest rates and liquidity constraints have demoralised auto, home and capital goods buyers. Even the high frequency indicators suggest moderation in activity in the service sector.

Communal tension prevailed in Rohaniya village in Uttar Pradesh's Pilibhit district where a mob ransacked a temple and took away the idols.

In the incident which took place on Wednesday evening, the mob also broke the loudspeakers in the temple.

The police have registered a complaint against five men but no arrests have been made yet. Tension continues to prevail in the village and additional forces have been deployed.

Search mission for Indian Air Force AN-32 aircraft enters fourth day, IAF carrying out extensive and continuous search operations. Satellites and other resources are being used to locate the plane. Su-30, C-130J and other assets to be used again today for search.

Delhi's Rouse Avenue Court reserves order on a plea of Vinay Kochhar, co-accused in IRCTC scam related money laundering case along with former Bihar CM Lalu Yadav, seeking permission to visit Singapore and UK in June and July.

Taking a cue from global markets, the key Indian equity market indices on Thursday opened higher but immediately on commencement of trading, both the indices were quoting in red, ahead of the Reserve Bank of India's bi-monthly monetary policy announcement.

The Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the BSE, which had closed at 40,083.54 on Tuesday, opened higher at 40,136.43.

Minutes into trading, it was quoting at 40,016.87, down by 66.67 points, or 0.17 per cent.

External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar at an event in Delhi: The five years of government has kept alive and perhaps even strengthened the expectation of change in the country.

Globalisation is under stress, many of the assumptions of the globalisation, global supply chains, mobility of talent, market access, all those are no longer assumptions we can make to the same degree, with same confidence.

Today, if we want to propel economic change, I think there is a greater responsibility for Indian foreign policy to focus on external aspects of it, to create partnerships and mechanisms which help Indian businesses do their business outside the country.

Second change, I would say is, across the world you have had broadly a growth of nationalism and reasons are very complex, that nationalism has been validated electorally in many places. At one level each is different, but somewhere there is a message out there.

3rd which is actually longer term change is sort of global re-balancing, sharpest manifestation of that is rise of China,to some extent rise of India as well but overall if you look at it in a 20-yr time frame,it's very clear relative weights of global economies are changing

A social media campaign that seeks to build a movement for making Bengali the first language of Assam in the coming 2021 census has raised the hackles of Bengali minority groups in the north-eastern state, who flay it as an attempt to disturb peace by spoiling the age-old ties between the Assamese and Bengalis.

The campaign 'Mission Chalo Paltai 2021' (Mission Let Us Change 2021) - said to be the brain child of a group of Bengali speaking persons in Kolkata, Delhi and Assam - has asked Muslim and Hindu Bengalis in Assam to come together by forgetting their differences and give their mother tongue as Bengali when census enumerators knock their doors.

Two posters threatening to behead a Trinamool Congress leader and those working for the BJP created a sensation in Nimta and Rajarhat-Newtown areas close to Kolkata on Wednesday.

The poster at Nimta, around 15 km from Kolkata in North 24 Parganas district, threatened to decapitate a Nirmal Bala for working for the Trinamool.

"Nirmal Bala, you are working for Trinamool. We will sever your head and pay football with it. Others are also there," said the poster written in red ink. It concludes with "Jai Shri Ram" and BJP zindabad.