LIVE news updates: Covid virus jumped to humans at Wuhan mkt, find studies

Live news updates:The findings may quash the theory that the virus leaked from the lab at the infamous Wuhan Institute of Virology

9:39 AM

Sonia Gandhi to appear before ED for 3rd round of questioning today

Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi will depose before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for her third round of questioning in the money laundering case linked to the National Herald newspaper.

She has been asked to appear before the ED by 11 a.m on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, she was questioned for almost six hours with a lunch break in between.

For her third day questioning, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will again accompany her with a medicine box.

8:57 AM

Pak President Alvi administers oath to new Punjab CM Parvez Elahi amid high political drama

Chaudhry Parvez Elahi took oath as the chief minister of Pakistan's Punjab province on Wednesday, hours after the Supreme Court struck down the deputy speaker's ruling and named the PML-Q leader as the new executive head of the politically crucial province.

 

The apex court's verdict delivered a big blow to the Sharif-led coalition government as it saw Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Hamza Shehbaz, son of the prime minister, lost his status of the "trustee" chief minister.

 

8:40 AM

Wuhan locks down 1 million residents in echo of pandemic’s start

A district on the outskirts of Wuhan has been locked down, the first time the Chinese city that saw the world’s first Covid-19 lockdown has imposed such a measure since 2020, underscoring how far the country is from post-pandemic normalcy.

 

More than two years since the city was sealed off to contain what was then a mysterious pneumonia, almost 1 million residents of Wuhan’s Jiangxia district have been told to stay in their homes and not go out unless necessary. All public transport has been stopped and entertainment venues shut for three days after four asymptomatic cases were found in the district on Tuesday.

 

While so far the restrictions are contained to just the one district, the move is likely to spark concerns about a widening of curbs. Life in the pandemic-scarred city of 11 million people had largely returned to normal since its initial lockdown in 2020 -- which set a precedent for how Chinese authorities would handle flare ups in other parts of the country -- with a small outbreak in April and a handful of cases in the past month. 

 

8:21 AM

Samajwadi Party's two estranged partners willing to fight LS polls with Akhilesh-led alliance

Two estranged partners of the Samajwadi Party--Janwadi Party (Socialist) and Mahan Dal--are showing inclination to return to the Akhilesh Yadav-led opposition alliance to take on the ruling BJP in the next Lok Sabha polls.

The leaders of the two OBC caste-based regional parties, which were SP allies in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly polls but had left the alliance after its defeat in the elections, have all praise for the SP chief.

The development comes days after the exit of Om Prakash Rajbhar-led Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) from the SP-led alliance.

8:20 AM

Jammu-Srinagar highway closed for traffic due to bad weather

The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway has been closed for vehicular traffic due to landslides and shooting stones at Jammu and Kashmir's Ramban district, Police said on Wednesday.

"Jammu-Srinagar NHW (NH-44) blocked at Mehad Ramban due to shooting stones. People are advised not to travel along Jammu-Srinagar NHW without confirmation from TCU Jammu/Srinagar/Ramban," Jammu and Kashmir Traffic Police said.

The highway is the lifeline of the Kashmir Valley and the main road link connecting Kashmir with the rest of the country.

7:54 AM

Gyanvapi case: Hearing on maintainability of 1991 suit adjourned till Aug 3

The Allahabad High Court Tuesday adjourned hearing till August 3 in a case filed by the Anjuman Intazamia Masjid Committee challenging the maintainability of a 1991 suit seeking right to worship by Hindu petitioners.

The suit has been filed seeking the restoration of the ancient temple at the site where the Gyanvapi mosque currently stands. The petitioners claimed in the suit that the mosque is a part of the temple.

Hearing in the Gyanvapi case resumed in the Allahabad high court on Tuesday.

7:53 AM

ED's raids, cases increased manifolds during last 8 yrs: Minister

Union Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary has informed the Rajya Sabha that since the NDA government has been in power, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) attached proceeds of crime worth Rs 99,356 crore and filed charge-sheets in 888 cases resulting in conviction of 23 accused whereas no person was convicted during the previous UPA government's tenure.

He said that the ED carried out 3,010 search operations between 2014-2022 (NDA government's tenure) whereas it was only 113 between 2004-2014 (UPA government's tenure). Thus, the ED witnessed a hike of 27-fold increase in its raids.

He gave the reply in written form to a question asked by Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi on behalf of the ruling Union government.

7:52 AM

Debate between Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss cancelled after presenter Kate McCann faints

The Tory leadership debate between Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss was cancelled on Tuesday (local time) after presenter Kate McCann fainted and collapsed live on air.

"Kate McCann fainted on air tonight and although she is fine, the medical advice was that we shouldn't continue with the debate. We apologise to our viewers and listeners," tweeted TalkTV, which was co-hosting Tuesday evening's programme with the Sun.

Former chancellor Rishi Sunak and British Foreign Secretary, Liz Truss were taking part in a second head-to-head debate when a loud crash was heard in the studio, reported UK-based media.

7:51 AM

Mexico confirms 60 monkeypox cases

Mexico has confirmed 60 cases of monkeypox, Undersecretary of Prevention and Health Promotion Hugo Lopez-Gatell said on Tuesday.

To date, there have been no fatalities from monkeypox in Mexico, Lopez-Gatell said.

"Only about five or six people have been hospitalized because they had severe immunosuppression, but in general everyone has recovered in approximately 21 days," he added.

7:50 AM

13-yr-old Hyderabad boy climbs Mt Kang Yatse, Mt Dzo Jongo

Setting new record globally, a thirteen-year-old Hyderabad boy has managed to climb Kang Yatse and Dzo Jongo mountain ranges located in the Markha Valley, in the Ladakh Region.

Vishwanath Karthikey, a student studying in Class IX, of a school in Hyderabad managed to achieve this feat.

"I started trekking to Kang Yatse and Dzo Jongo on 9th July and ended it on 22nd July. The journey from base camp to the summit, when we reached the crampon point was not so easy. It is because, at higher altitudes, the air pressure decreases. However, I did not give up and the first feeling was a memorable one. I remembered the hard work I had put in to achieve this feat and now it has come true," he said to ANI.

7:49 AM

Trump back in Washington, repeating election lies

In duelling speeches not far from the US Capitol on Tuesday, former President Donald Trump repeated the false election claims that sparked the January 6 insurrection while his former vice president, Mike Pence, implored the Republican Party to stop looking backward.

Potential foes for the 2024 GOP nomination, neither man was ready to announce a campaign, but their speeches underscored divisions in the party between Trump loyalists and Republicans who may still like Trump's ideas but are more than ready to move on.

The former president was clearly not ready to move on.

7:42 AM

National Herald case: ED asks Sonia Gandhi to appear again today

A day after the Enforcement Directorate questioned Congress President Sonia Gandhi for over six hours on the second day of her appearance in connection with a money laundering case linked to the National Herald newspaper, the 75-year-old has been asked to appear again on Wednesday, officials said.

 

She left the agency's office in central Delhi just before 7 pm on Tuesday after recording her statement. Sonia Gandhi reached the ED office on Tuesday morning with her armed security cover, accompanied by Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. As Rahul Gandhi left for the protest, Priyanka Gandhi stayed back at the agency's office.

 

Officials said that on Tuesday, Sonia Gandhi's response was sought to around 30 questions regarding her involvement with the National Herald newspaper and Young Indian Pvt Ltd, the company under investigation.

7:33 AM

Bharat Biotech, ExcellGene consortium to develop variant-proof Covid vax

Switzerland’s ExcellGene SA has announced its role in the recently approved consortium funding through the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) for co-developing a variant-proof coronavirus vaccine with India’s Bharat Biotech.

 

The consortium is developing or designing a new vaccine concept that confers highly cross-reactive protection against numerous SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern as well as other betacoronaviruses.

 

Betacoronaviruses are one of the four genera of coronaviruses — alpha, beta, gamma and delta. The natural reservoirs for betacoronaviruses are bats and rodents. There have been multiple betacoronavirus outbreaks in humans since the early 2000s.

7:32 AM

Govt has taken multiple steps to further increase availability of doctors in country

The Central Government has taken multiple steps to further increase the availability of doctors in the country, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said on Tuesday.

 

As per information provided by National Medical Commission (NMC), there are 13,08,009 allopathic doctors registered with the State Medical Councils and the National Medical Commission (NMC) as on June 2022.

 

Assuming 80 per cent availability of registered allopathic doctors and 5.65 lakh AYUSH doctors, the doctor-population ratio in the country is 1:834 which is better than the WHO standard of 1:1000. Also, there is 34.33 lakh registered nursing personnel and 13 lakh Allied and Healthcare Professionals in the country, informed Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

7:32 AM

PM Narendra Modi congratulates Lanka Prez; assures support in recovery

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has congratulated Sri Lanka's newly-elected President Ranil Wickremesinghe and said that India will continue to be supportive of the quest of the people of the island nation for stability and economic recovery, through established democratic means, the Indian High Commission said on Tuesday.

 

Wickremesinghe, 73, was on Thursday sworn in as Sri Lanka's eighth president after he was elected by lawmakers.