LIVE News updates: Another earthquake hits Nepal, fourth in 2 weeks time

Live news updates: The UN said that it took about 12 years for the world population to grow from 7 to 8 billion

1:07 PM

BJP announces list for Lok Sabha and Assembly by polls

The Central Election Committee of the Bharatiya Janata Party, today, released a list of candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha by-elections to be held in Uttar Pradesh and the assembly by-elections of Rajasthan, Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh.

For the upcoming Lok Sabha bypolls in Mainpuri, the BJP has announced Raghuraj Singh Shakya's candidature.

For the Assembly bypolls, BJP has fielded Ashok Kumar Pincha from the Sardarshahar Assembly constituency in Rajasthan.

1:06 PM

Gujarat Assembly polls: 1,362 nominations filed for 1st phase

As many as 1,362 candidates have filed the nomination forms for the first phase of Gujarat Assembly polls in 89 seats, state election officials said on Tuesday.

 

Among notable candidates who have filed their nomination for the first phase are Gujarat Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party's CM candidate Bhupendra Patel, who is contesting from Ghatlodia seat in Ahmedabad, and Aam Aadmi Party's chief ministerial candidate Isudan Gadhvi, who is contesting from Khambhalia seat in Devbhumi Dwarka district.

 

The Election Commission started accepting the forms for the first phase on November 5 and Monday was the last day for filing the nominations.

12:16 PM

Lavrov stays put during Zelenskiy’s virtual speech

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stayed in the room during a virtual address by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to a Group of 20 summit, before firing back with a litany of often-made but unsubstantiated accusations. 

 

A majority of G-20 nations are set to condemn Russia’s war in Ukraine, according to a joint statement drafted for the summit in Bali, Indonesia.

 

12:00 PM

G-20: Need to find way to return to path of ceasefire, diplomacy in Ukraine, says PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday called for a return to the path of "ceasefire and diplomacy" to resolve the Ukraine conflict, and opposed the promotion of any restrictions on the supply of energy, amid the West's call against procurement of Russian oil and gas.

 

In an address at the G-20 summit here, Modi said that climate change, the Covid-19 pandemic, the developments in Ukraine and the global problems associated with it have caused havoc in the world and rued that the global supply chains are in "ruins".

 

11:47 AM

China state media demands strict adherence to 'zero-COVID'

China's ruling party called for strict adherence to the hard-line “zero-COVID” policy on Tuesday in an apparent attempt to guide public perceptions after regulations were eased slightly in places.

 

The People's Daily, the Communist Party's flagship newspaper, said in an editorial that China must “unswervingly implement” the policy that requires mass obligatory testing and places millions under lockdown to try to eliminate the coronavirus from the nation of 1.4 billion people and the world's second-largest economy.

 

11:38 AM

Delhi: Air quality improves but still in 'poor' category; AQI at 221

In a relative relief the air pollution levels in Delhi came down to the 'poor' category from 'very poor', as the national capital recorded an AQI of 221 on Tuesday morning, as per System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research SAFAR.

The National Capital Region (NCR) also witnessed some improvement in the air quality as Gurugram fell in the 'Moderate' category with an AQI of 162 and Delhi Airport (T3) recorded 'poor' quality air with an AQI of 218. However, Noida continued to breathe in 'very poor' quality air as the AQI of the city stood at 302.

Speaking of other places, Dhirpur recorded an AQI of 303, Lodhi Road recorded 152 in the 'Moderate' category while Mathura road recorded an AQI of 232, and Pusa recorded an AQI of 186.

11:24 AM

Covid Lockdowns Spark Violent Protests in China’s Guangzhou City

China’s tough Covid lockdowns are fueling an increase in public anger, with some residents in Guangzhou, one of the country’s biggest cities, staging rare protests against the stringent rules. 

 

In videos circulating on social media, hundreds of protesters were seen marching in the street and pushing over police barriers in Guangzhou’s Haizhu district, which has been in lockdown since late last month. The demonstrations took place in several “urban villages,” mainly poorer neighborhoods where migrant workers live, Hong Kong Economic Journal reported. The local government sent multiple police vehicles to the protests, according to the report. 

 

Calls by Bloomberg News to Haizhu’s government office weren’t answered. 

 

10:23 AM

India logs 474 new Cobid cases, active cases dip to 7,918

India recorded 474 new coronavirus infections, the lowest since April 6, 2020, taking the total tally of Covid cases to 44,667,398, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Tuesday.

 

The active cases further declined to 7,918, while the death toll climbed to 530,533 with one fatality being reported from Gujarat, the data updated at 8 am stated. The country had reported 354 cases on April 6, 2020.

 

The active cases comprise 0.02 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate increased to 98.79 per cent, according to the ministry website.

10:03 AM

India has the potential to become a world leader in production of electric vehicles: Berkeley Research

India has the potential to become the world leader in electric vehicles production, a research by Berkeley National Laboratory and UCLA said, underlining that making the transition from diesel-fuelled trucks to electric-charged will enable the country to meet the goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2070.

India imports 88 per cent of the oil it uses and of the total petroleum consumed by the country's transport sector, nearly 60 per cent used by freight trucks.

A study by the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) on Monday revealed that electric trucks would be more affordable to operate than diesel and India could become a world leader in producing electric vehicles.

9:46 AM

There should be no restrictions on energy supplies, says PM Modi

There should be no restrictions on energy supplies and stability in the energy market should be ensured, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday in remarks made at the G20 summit in Indonesia.

"India's energy security is also important for global growth," Modi was quoted as saying in a statement released by the Indian foreign ministry.

"Today's fertilizer shortage is tomorrow's food crisis, for which the world will not have a solution. We should make a mutual agreement to keep the supply chain of both fertilizers and food grains stable and assured," Modi said.

 

9:45 AM

President Murmu greets people of Jharkhand on state's foundation day

President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday greeted the people of Jharkhand on the state's foundation day and hoped that they will establish new dimensions of eco-friendly development by cherishing their culture.

Jharkhand was formed on this day in 2000 after being carved out of Bihar.

"Johar Jharkhand! On the State Foundation Day, I extend my warm greetings to all the residents of Jharkhand! I want the people of Jharkhand to establish new dimensions of eco-friendly development by cherishing their culture, traditions and customs," the president tweeted in Hindi.

8:26 AM

G 20 Summit: PM Modi, US President Biden share warm hug at Bali

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biedn on Tuesday shared a warm hug as the G20 Summit began in Bali.

In an photo shared by the Prime Minister's Office, the two leaders are seen shaking hands

"PM @narendramodi and @POTUS @JoeBideninteract during the @g20org Summit in Bali. G20 working session on Food and Energy Security," Prime Minister's Office tweeted.

The two leaders will participate in the G20 working session on Food and Energy Security today.

8:25 AM

PM Narendra Modi arrives at venue to attend G20 summit in Bali

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived at Apurva Kempisnky Hotel in Bali to participate in the Food and Energy Security Session at the 17th G20 Leaders Summit. Indonesia's President Joko Widodo greeted PM Modi at the venue.

 

The two leaders shook hands as they met at Apurva Kempisnky hotel in Bali. PM Narendra Modi is on a three-day visit to Bali to attend the G20 Leaders Summit. After arriving in Bali, PM Modi tweeted, "Grateful to the Indian community for the warm welcome in Bali!"

 

During the summit, PM Modi will have extensive discussions with other G20 Leaders on issues of global concern, including reviving global growth, food & energy security, environment, health, and digital transformation.

8:06 AM

World population to hit 8 billion people today

The world's population is projected to reach 8 billion people on Tuesday, according to the UN estimates, which consider this a milestone in human development.

 

The latest projections by the United Nations suggest that the global population could grow to around 8.5 billion in 2030, 9.7 billion in 2050 and 10.4 billion in 2100.

 

The annual World Population Prospect report, released on Monday to coincide with World Population Day, also notes that the global population is growing at its slowest rate since 1950, having fallen to less that one per cent in 2020.

 

While it took the global population 12 years to grow from 7 to 8 billion, it will take approximately 15 years--until 2037-- for it to reach 9 billion, a sign that the overall growth rate of the global population is slowing.

 

In 2022, the two most populous regions were both in Asia: Eastern and South-Eastern Asia with 2.3 billion people and Central and Southern Asia with 2.1 billion. China and India, with more than 1.4 billion each, accounted for most of the population in these two regions.

8:06 AM

Annual G20 Summit opens in Indonesia's Bali province

The annual G20 Summit opened here on Tuesday with world leaders set to discuss over the next two days challenges triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic and more recently topped by Russia's war in Ukraine.

 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was welcomed at the summit venue by Indonesian President Joko Widodo, ahead of the formal opening of the summit.

 

"Recover Together, Recover Stronger. Indonesian President @jokowi welcomes PM @narendramodi for the G20 Bali Summit. Detailed deliberations on contemporary global challenges including food & energy security and health are on the @g20org Summit agenda today," Spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs Arindam Bagchi said in a tweet.

 

After the meeting in Indonesia, India will take over the Group of 20 presidency for one year.