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Live news updates: "India was hardly counted in start-up ecosystem; it now ranks third in the world," PM Modi said

5:03 PM

SC's notice to Centre, States on plea for sign language interpreters in press briefings

The Supreme Court bench comprising of Justices S Abdul Nazeer and Vikram Nath issued notice to the Centre and States on a plea seeking direction to the governments to provide sign language interpreters in all the official press briefings conducted by the government.

"Issue notice," stated the bench in its order on Friday.

The PIL, filed by disability rights activist and advocate M Karpagam, stated that all the press briefings held in India are neither inclusive nor accessible. It argued that irrespective of the fact that these press briefings serve to be an important way to create awareness and education for the general public about the various developments in the country.

4:53 PM

China to further rein in domestic tech giants to revive Internet sector

Alarmed at the slowing tech and internet sector, China is now planning to further shift its policies to control domestic tech giants like Alibaba and Tencent, as the country battles Covid-19 lockdowns, the media reported.

According to a report in Nikkei Asia citing sources, Chinese President Xi Jinping "intends to shift policies regarding its control over the country's major tech companies such as Alibaba Group and Tencent Holdings".

 

4:45 PM

Regional languages will revolutionalise education, says Amit Shah

Amit Shah said that regional languages will play a crucial role in revolutionising the education system guided by the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

The Centre aspires to inculcate the culture of patriotism among students during the celebration of 75 years of Independence (Azad ka Amrit Mahotsav), he said.

4:17 PM

India falls 7.6% short of coal targets in April as demand hit record high

India fell short of domestic coal supply targets to utilities by 7.6% in April, as output from mines owned by companies for self-use was 33% lower than required while a shortage of trains for delivery further exacerbated a crippling power crisis.

This came as India faced its worst power crisis in over six years in April as demand hit a record high.

4:00 PM

Some volcanoes might warm climate, devastate ozone layer, says NASA study

Extremely large volcanic eruptions called "flood basalt eruptions" might significantly warm Earth's climate and devastate the ozone layer that shields life from the Sun's ultraviolet radiation, suggests a new NASA climate simulation.

Flood basalts are regions with a series of eruptive episodes lasting perhaps centuries each, and occurring over periods of hundreds of thousands of years, sometimes even longer. Read more

3:47 PM

April exports up by 24% at $38 bn on petro products, electronics push

Exports rose by 24.22 per cent to $38.19 billion in April on account of healthy performance by sectors like petroleum products, electronic goods and chemicals, the commerce ministry said.
Imports during the month under review grew 26.55 per cent to $58.26 billion. The trade deficit in April 2022 widened to $20.07 billion as against $15.29 billion in the year-ago period, it said.

3:20 PM

Putin could officially declare war on Ukraine as soon as May 9

Russian President Vladimir Putin could formally declare war on Ukraine as soon as May 9, a move that would enable the full mobilisation of Moscow's reserve forces as invasion efforts continue to falter, US and Western officials believe.

May 9, known as "Victory Day" in Russia, commemorates the country's defeat of the Nazis in 1945, reports CNN.

Western officials have long believed that Putin would leverage the symbolic significance and propaganda value of that day to announce either a military achievement in Ukraine, a major escalation of hostilities, or both.

Officials have begun to hone in on one scenario, which is that Putin formally declares war on Ukraine on May 9.

To date, Putin has insisted on referring to the brutal months long conflict as a "special military operation", effectively banning words such as invasion and war.

"I think he will try to move from his 'special operation'," UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told LBC Radio last week.

3:12 PM

Sri Lanka to provide special allowance for low-income families amid economic crisis

The Sri Lankan government will provide special cash allowance to low-income families affected by the current economic crisis for three months from May, Minister of Mass Media Nalaka Godahewa said on Tuesday.

During a press briefing, the minister noted that low-income families have been severely affected by the current economic crisis in the country, adding that there is a need to provide immediate relief to them, reports Xinhua news agency.

Godahewa said that the cabinet of ministers on Monday approved providing the special allowance from May to July under the framework of Contingent Emergency Response Component (CERC) Pool funding, an emergency response mechanism under the World Bank Group.

3:11 PM

California's population declines for second consecutive year

California's population declined for the second consecutive year, bringing the Golden State's total to 39,185,605 as of January 1, 2022, local authorities announced.

The population of the California, which is still the most populous state in the US, dipped slightly by 117,552 last year, Xinhua news agency quoted data released by the Department of Finance as saying.

The authority blamed the population loss on a declining birth rate coupled with an increase in deaths from the Covid-19 pandemic.

"As Baby Boomers age, and fertility declines among younger cohorts, the continuing slowdown in natural increase, births minus deaths, underlies the plateauing of the state's population growth," the Department said in a statement.

"The addition of Covid-19-related deaths, federal policies restricting immigration, and an increase in domestic out-migration further affected population totals," it added.

According to the latest data, a total of 89,582 residents died of the virus.

3:08 PM

DMK allies, activists to block mineral-laden trucks to Kerala

Alliance partners of the DMK, including the Congress, MDMK, and other social activists, will be blocking the mineral-laden trucks bound from Tenkasi to Kerala from May 16.

Tenkasi Green Forum (TGF), a group of environmentalists, have also raised strong allegation against the government authorities for allowing the mineral wealth from Tenkasi to be transported in trucks to Kerala.

M. Selvaraj Babu of the TGF while interacting with IANS said: "The mineral wealth from Tenkasi district of Tamil Nadu is transported illegally to Kerala and this is to be blocked. We have given several petitions to the state government but to no avail. Hence we have decided to block the trucks bound for Kerala from May 16 onwards."

Naam Tamilar Katchi, Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam, and Tamilaga Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam cadres will also participate in the road blockade of mineral-laden trucks to Kerala.

The joint action council of political parties and activists has also written to the Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary to cancel the mining license of quarries in Tiruvengadam, Andipatti, Therkumadathur, and Perumpathu.

3:01 PM

BJP tweets Rahul's video at Nepal club, Cong says he is in Himalayan nation for friend's wedding

The BJP on Tuesday tweeted a video of Rahul Gandhi apparently at a nightclub in Nepal, inviting a strong response from the Congress which said he was in the friendly country to attend the marriage function of a journalist friend and that it is not a crime to attend weddings of family and friends.

 

BJP's social media department head Amit Malviya tweeted Gandhi's video that went viral on social media.

 

2:49 PM

Curfew imposed in 10 police stations area in Jodhpur city, tension continues: Police

Curfew imposed in 10 police stations area in Jodhpur city, tension continues: Police

2:48 PM

PM Modi arrives in Denmark; to hold discussions with Danish PM & participate in 2nd India-Nordic summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday arrived in Denmark on the second leg of his three-nation Europe trip during which he will hold talks with his Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen and attend the 2nd India-Nordic Summit.

 

Modi arrived here from Germany where he held detailed bilateral discussions with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and co-chaired the India-Germany inter-governmental consultations.

 

It is Prime Minister's first visit to Denmark.

 

"I will travel to Copenhagen where I will have a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Frederiksen which will provide an opportunity to review the progress in our unique ‘Green Strategic Partnership' with Denmark, as well as other aspects of our bilateral relations," the Prime Minister had said in his departure statement.

2:43 PM

PM Narendra Modi arrives in Copenhagen

PM Modi tohold taks with Danish PM Frederiksen, to attend second India-Nordic summit.

2:41 PM

Congress, BJP trade barbs over Rahul Gandhi's viral nightclub video

The Congress and BJP on Tuesday exchanged barbs after the video of Rahul Gandhi in a Kathmandu nightclub party went viral.

Both the parties were attacking each other over the video and the Congress raked up Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Pakistan.

Law Minister Kiren Rijiju retweeted the video and said, "Regular Parties, Vacations, Holidays, Pleasure Trips, Private Foreign Visits etc are nothing new to the nation now. As a private citizen there's no issue at all but when an MP, a permanent boss of a national political party who keeps preaching others..."