Live: Delhi turns into hot cauldron; mercury leaps to 49°C in some parts
Mungeshpur tops with 49.2 degrees Celsius in northwest Delhi and 49.1 degrees Celsius at Najafgarh in southwest; All weather stations recorded a heatwave day
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New centre in Kozhikode for welfare of Assam Rifles' ex-servicemen
A new centre for Assam Rifles Ex-Servicemen Association (ARESA) was inaugurated at Kozhikode in Kerala on Sunday.
The latest addition to the association, which has 30 centres across the country, was opened by Lieutenant General P C Nair, AVSM, YSM, DG Assam Rifles, said a release from the association.
ARESA aims to extend welfare-related facilities to all veterans and families of the Assam Rifles, the release said.
During the inaugural function, the ex-servicemen were made aware of the welfare-related schemes and financial grants available to those from the force, it said.
"During the course of the last six months, Assam Rifles has granted an amount of Rs 2.68 crore as financial grants and benefits to veterans and veer naris (widows of the armed personnel)," the release said.
Jet Airways conducts first set of three proving flights
Jet Airways on Sunday conducted the first set of three proving flights with 18 people, including officials of the aviation regulator DGCA, on board the aircraft, sources said.
The second set of two proving flights will be operated by Jet Airways on Tuesday, they said.
Proving flights is the last step for the airline to obtain the air operator certificate (AOC).
The first of the three proving flights was conducted on the Delhi-Mumbai route, sources said.
The second flight was scheduled to return to Delhi, but after it departed from Mumbai, officials of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) asked the pilots to divert it to Ahmedabad, they said.
The DGCA diverts aircraft during proving flights to test the readiness of a new airline in handling such situations, they said.
The second flight safely landed in Ahmedabad, and sometime after that, the third flight was conducted on the Ahmedabad-Delhi route, they mentioned.
The aircraft used for these three proving flights was a Boeing 737 plane with registration number VT-SXE of Jet Airways, they said.
Mundka fire: AAP claims building owner enjoyed protection from BJP leaders
The AAP on Sunday held the BJP responsible for the death of 27 people in the Mundka fire, alleging that "illegal industrial activities" were going on in the building as its owner Manish Lakra enjoyed protection from leaders of the saffron party.
The BJP, however, said Lakra is neither its member nor has he ever held any position in the party.
Lakra was arrested on Sunday in connection with the May 13 fire that ripped through the four-storey building that did not have a fire safety certificate or firefighting equipment.
Addressing a press conference here, senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Durgesh Pathak showed some pictures in which Lakra is seen with some BJP leaders, including former North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) mayor Master Azad Singh.
"Lakra is a BJP man. That's why MCD gave him protection and illegal industrial activities continued in the building," Pathak charged, adding "the BJP and its leaders are responsible for the death of 27 people in the tragic incident of fire in the building. They were all hand in glove".
The AAP leader demanded that a thorough probe be conducted into the incident and the strictest action be taken against all those responsible, including those from the BJP who gave protection to Lakra and allowed the illegal activities to continue in the building in violation of rules.
"Lakra and BJP MP Parvesh Verma's uncle Master Azad Singh have deep ties," Pathak alleged.
BSY's son Vijayendra prefers to wait till BJP decides his name as MLC candidate
Karnataka BJP's vice-president and former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa's son B Y Vijayendra on Sunday preferred to wait till the final decision comes from the BJP parliamentary board regarding his candidature for the legislative council election.
"It has come to my notice that my name has been recommended during the BJP core committee meeting, which was held on Saturday, as one of the candidates for the four MLC seats the party is going to win," Vijayendra told reporters.
"However, it's the central parliamentary board of the party, which will take a final call. So it's premature (to celebrate). Let's wait because the final decision has to come from Delhi. Probably, it may take two to three days," the former Chief Minister's son said.
The BJP leader was reacting to the news that his name is among the 20 names recommended by the core committee to contest the Rajya Sabha and legislative council elections next month.
Biennial elections to four Rajya Sabha seats from Karnataka -- two each in graduates and teachers constituencies of the state Legislative Council will be held on June 10 and 13 respectively.
Also, biennial elections to the Karnataka Legislative Council for seven seats will be held on June 3.
Vijayendra expressed gratitude to Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, State BJP president Nalin Kumar Kateel, senior leaders of the party and core committee members for recommending his name.
MP reports 42 Covid-19 cases, no death; active count now 262
The COVID-19 tally in Madhya Pradesh reached 10,41,945 on Sunday after the detection of 42 cases at a positivity rate of 0.5 per cent, while the death toll remained unchanged at 10,735, an official said.
The recovery count increased by 24 to touch 10,30,948, leaving the state with 262 active cases, he added.
With 7,780 samples examined during the day, the number of tests in MP went up to 2,91,93,258, the official said.
A government release said 11,82,94,228 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered so far in the state, including 1,180 on Sunday.
Coronavirus figures in MP are as follows: Total cases 10,41,945, new cases 42, death toll 10,735, recoveries 10,30,948, active cases 262, number of tests so far 2,91,93,258.
Small wins buoy Ukraine; West says Russians losing momentum
Almost three months after Russia shocked the world by invading Ukraine, its military faced a bogged-down war, the prospect of a bigger NATO and an opponent buoyed by its wins on and off the battlefield Sunday.
Finland decided to seek NATO membership as top diplomats from the Western alliance met in Berlin.
The leaders of the militarily neutral country said the invasion had changed Europe's security landscape, although NATO's chief declared that Russia's war in Ukraine is not going as Moscow had planned.
Ukraine can win this war, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said, adding that the alliance must continue to give the country military support.
Sweden's governing party plans to announce its position on applying to join NATO later Sunday.
Mumbai sees 151 Covid-19 cases, one death and 122 recoveries
Mumbai on Sunday reported 151 COVID-19 cases and one death, taking the tally here to 10,61,614 and the toll to 19,566, a civic official said.
The recovery count increased by 122 to touch 10,41,163, leaving the metropolis with 885 cases, he added.
With 7,822 samples being examined in the last 24 hours, the overall number of tests conducted went up to 1,70,11,472, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation official said.
BMC data showed the city's recovery rate was 98 per cent and the caseload doubling time was 5,855 days.
PM hails Thomas Cup triumph, invites shuttlers to his residence
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday termed the Thomas Cup triumph of the Indian badminton team as one of the country's finest sporting wins and invited the shuttlers to his residence on returning from Bangkok.
The PM never forgets to applaud the achievements of athletes, and on Sunday, he promptly dialled the players to congratulate them on their stupendous success, thanked their parents for helping them develop into world beaters and doing the country proud with their exploits on the global stage.
The Indian men's team produced a historic performance to blank 14-time winners Indonesia 3-0 in the summit showdown of the prestigious tournament.
"You all have made it ... It is one of India's finest sporting wins," PM Modi said during the call.
Flanked by his teammates, Kidambi Srikanth spoke to the PM first, followed by Lakshya Sen, HS Prannoy and Chirag Shetty.
The PM also took note of the fact the Indian team won the final without dropping a match, and mentioned it during the interaction with the players. He said it made the win even more special.
The PM said his office would coordinate the players' visit to his residence.
Aware of India's record in the tournament, the PM asked when did the team start to think that it could go all the way to pull off a win of this magnitude and create history.
Union minister calls on Sikkim CM, lauds Garib Awas Yojana in state
Union Minister for Heavy Industries Mahendra Nath Pandey on Sunday called on Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang at his official residence here, a release said.
In the courtesy call, Pandey was accompanied by Rajya Sabha member Seema Dwivedi and Secretary for Ministry of Heavy Industries, Arun Goel.
Pandey expressed happiness about the successful implementation of the Sikkim Garib Awas Yojana, a scheme facilitating housing for the poor, and lauded the development initiatives of the Tamang government.
Tamang said he had approached Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for the allotment of 5 acres of land in Ayodhya for constructing a guest house for pilgrims from the Himalayan state.
He said the Sikkim government is also looking forward to the construction of another guest house in Varanasi.
Pandey assured Tamang that he will apprise the matter to Adityanath for necessary patronage.
Active COVID-19 cases drop below 400 in Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu on Sunday logged 30 new COVID-19 infections, pushing the tally to 34,54,621 till date. The death toll remained unchanged at 38,025 with zero fatalities recorded in the last 24 hours.
Chennai accounted for 16 new infections, Chengalpet recorded seven, Coimbatore and Tiruchirappalli recorded two each while Cuddalore, Sivagangai and Tiruvallur saw one case each.
The number of people who recovered from the disease rose to 34,16,237 with 79 more getting discharged in the last 24 hours.
Tamil Nadu currently has 359 active cases.
Among those tested positive include 19 men and 11 women.
The State capital - Chennai - leads among districts with 199 active infections and 7,52,096 cases overall.
A total of 16,027 samples were tested in the last 24 hours, pushing the cumulative number of tests to 6,64,04,505 so far, the bulletin said.
Muslim group wants Cong to field at least one from community in RS polls
A Muslim group has urged Congress President Sonia Gandhi to field at least one candidate of the community from Rajasthan for the Rajya Sabha elections, to be held next month.
Making the demand, the Rajasthan Muslim Alliance gave a copy of its letter to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot as well as Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Out of 10 Rajya Sabha seats from Rajasthan, four are falling vacant in June 2022.
Going by the number of Congress MLAs in Rajasthan, of the four vacant Rajya Sabha seats from the state, at least three party candidates are likely to win the polls for the Upper House, the Muslim group's coordinator Mohsin Rasheed Khan said in a statement.
He also claimed that neither Congress nor BJP has made any effort to send any Muslim candidate to the Rajya Sabha in the last 11 years.
The term of four Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan -- Om Mathur, K J Alphons, Ram Kumar Verma and Harshvardhan Singh -- is going to end next month.
BJP chief J P Nadda to interact with 14 heads of mission Monday
Heads of missions from 14 countries will participate in an interaction with BJP president Jagat Prakash Nadda on Monday at the party's headquarters here as part of its "Know BJP" initiative.
Nadda had launched the exercise on the party's foundation day on April 6 specifically to address the overseas audience and had then interacted with heads of missions of 13 countries.
The party said in a statement that it intends to continue such interactions with small groups of foreign diplomats in future too, and exchanges of delegations with political parties from different countries are also being planned.
Under the ongoing initiative, the party will present detailed information on its historical journey, ideology, structure and ongoing activities, it said, noting that Nadda will elaborate on them.
He will also address queries from the guests, the party said. A documentary film depicting the journey of the Jan Sangh and Bharatiya Janata Party will also be shown during the programme.
Vice President Naidu in UAE conveys India's condolences over death of Sheikh Khalifa
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday visited the UAE and offered condolences to the UAE leadership on the demise of former President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan and reaffirmed that India and its people stand by the UAE at this difficult time.
Sheikh Khalifa passed away on Friday after battling illness for several years. He was 73.
Vice President Naidu, on landing here at noon, went straight to Mushrif Palace and offered his condolences to Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, newly-elected President of the UAE, the royal family and the entire leadership of the UAE, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.
He conveyed the condolences of President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and reiterated that India and its people stand by the UAE at this difficult time.
Naidu fondly recalled that under the leadership of Sheikh Khalifa, the India-UAE ties prospered greatly to the mutual benefit of the people of the two countries and also that Sheikh Khalifa took exceptional care of the large Indian community in UAE, who held him in high esteem, the MEA statement said.
AAP forms alliance with Kerala's Twenty20 party ahead of Thrikkakkara assembly by-polls
Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party's National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday announced 'People's Welfare Alliance', which is an alliance of AAP with Kerala's Twenty20 party, ahead of Thrikkakkara assembly byelection.
Kejriwal on Sunday highlighted the journey of the party over the years in various parts of the country.
Kejriwal addressed the gathering in the presence of Twenty20 Party head Sabu Jacob.
The Election Commission of India has scheduled the by-election to the Thrikkakara assembly constituency for May 31. Votes will be counted on June 3.
Addressing a public gathering of Twenty20 Party and AAP Kerala volunteers in Kochi today, the Delhi Chief Minister said, "Now, there will be four political alliances in Kerala--LDF, UDF, NDA and the name of our alliance will be People's Welfare Alliance."
"Kerala is God's own place. Such a beautiful place, such beautiful people! 10 years ago, nobody knew Arvind Kejriwal. Today, we have governments in Delhi and Punjab. This was all because of God. Now, who wants AAP to form government in Kerala?" he asked.
"When I fasted for 15 days, doctors said I won't survive. But here I am. All because of God. Our newly formed party's candidates including homemakers, students, and mobile repairers, defeated the sitting Chief Minister of Punjab and Delhi. All because of God," the AAP national convenor said.
Pak's attempts to spread terror, instigate people in name of religion will be foiled: J-K BJP chief
Pakistan will try to instigate people in the name of religion but its attempts to spread terror and propaganda will be foiled, BJP's Jammu and Kashmir unit chief Ravinder Raina said on Sunday, days after a bus in Katra carrying passengers caught fire mysteriously.
Four persons were killed and 24 others injured on Friday when a fire ripped apart the moving bus, mostly carrying devotees, near Nomai, about 3 kilometres from Katra, shortly after it left for Jammu from the base camp for the pilgrims visiting Mata Vaishno Devi.
"The NIA investigation has pointed at the use of a sticky bomb," Raina told reporters here.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday said a detailed forensic probe is continuing to identify the reason for the cause of the fire in the passenger bus near Katra town.
Though the survivors and the people residing in the vicinity of the incident spoke about hearing a sound of an explosion in the bus, Additional Director General (ADG) of Police, Jammu zone, Mukesh Singh on Friday had said that the initial probe does not point to use of any explosive.
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First Published: May 15 2022 | 6:57 AM IST
