Live news: Russian negotiator accuses Kyiv of 'rolling back' on agreements

Live news updates: Some 344 people have been evacuated in and around the besieged city of Mariupol, says Ukraine's president.

12:20 PM

ArcelorMittal Q1 net income jumps over 80% to $4,125 mn

Global steel giant ArcelorMittal on Thursday posted 80.52 per cent growth in net income at $4,125 million (about Rs 31,350 crore) for the first quarter ended March 31, 2022.

 

It had posted a net income of USD 2,285 million for the year-ago quarter, the company said in a statement.

 

"ArcelorMittal recorded net income for 1Q 2022 of USD 4,125 million as compared to...a net income of $2,285 million for 1Q 2021," the Luxembourg-based firm said.

 

12:20 PM

SC to hear on May 10 pleas challenging validity of penal law on sedition

The Supreme Court on Thursday said it would hear arguments on May 10 on the legal question whether the pleas challenging the colonial era penal law on sedition be referred to a larger bench and granted time to the Centre to file its response.

 

A special bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justices Surya kant and Hima Kohli commenced hearing arguments on a batch of pleas against the sedition law and after sometime adjourned it to next Tuesday.

 

12:15 PM

Amit Shah inaugurates BSF's floating border outposts in West Bengal's Hingalganj

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday inaugurated BSF's floating border outposts at Hingalganj in West Bengal, where he arrived on a two-day visit, his first since the 2021 assembly polls.

 

He was received by senior BSF officials at the Hingalganj camp.

 

Shah's Bengal itinerary includes organisational meetings and a public rally, besides travel to forward areas along the India-Bangladesh border.

12:05 PM

Russian strikes try to disrupt delivery of Western weapons to Ukraine

Russia moved to obstruct the flow of Western weapons to Ukraine by bombarding rail stations and other supply-line targets across the country while the European Union weighed whether to further punish Moscow with a ban on oil imports.

Heavy fighting also raged Wednesday at the Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol that represented the last stronghold of Ukrainian resistance in the ruined southern port city, according to the mayor. A Russian official denied that Moscow's troops were storming the plant, but the commander of the main Ukrainian military unit inside said Russian soldiers had pushed into the mill's territory.

The Russian military said it used sea- and air-launched missiles to destroy electric power facilities at five railway stations across Ukraine. Artillery and aircraft also struck troop strongholds and fuel and ammunition depots.

11:54 AM

Global steel giant ArcelorMittal reports over 80% jump in net income

Global steel giant ArcelorMittal reports over 80 pc jump in net income to $4,125 million in March quarter. 

11:51 AM

Hong Kong reopens beaches, Beijing relaxes quarantine rules

Hong Kong on Thursday reopened beaches and pools in a relaxation of COVID-19 restrictions, while China's capital Beijing began easing quarantine rules for arrivals from overseas.

 

Hong Kong had closed water sports venues amid an outbreak of the highly transmissible omicron variant but has been tailing off restrictions as new case numbers fall. Deaths from COVID-19 have fallen from a high of almost 300 per day in March to zero in recent days.

 

Restaurants are also allowed to seat up to eight customers to a table and masks will not be required during outdoor exercise.

11:39 AM

Auto retail sales grow 37 pc in April on low COVID-hit base effect

Automobile retail sales in India increased by 37 per cent in April on a low base of COVID-hit April last year, automobile dealers' body FADA said on Thursday.

 

Total sales across categories rose to 16,27,975 units in April, as compared to 11,87,771 units in the year-ago period.

On a year-on-year basis, all vehicle categories including passenger vehicles and two-wheelers were up as compared with April last year.

 

Passenger vehicles registrations stood at 2,64,342 units last month, up 25 per cent from 2,10,682 units in April last year.

 

11:32 AM

PM to chair review meeting on preparedness to deal with heatwave, monsoon season

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair here on Thursday an important review meeting on preparedness to deal with the heatwave affecting parts of the country and the upcoming monsoon season, government sources said.

 

They said Modi is expected to hold seven to eight meetings during the day following his return from the three-day visit to as many European countries.

 

The prime minister will immediately attend office after arriving here, they said.

11:24 AM

Amit Shah arrives in West Bengal on two-day visit

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday arrived in West Bengal on a two-day visit, his first since the 2021 assembly polls, with his itinerary including organisational meetings and a public rally, besides travel to forward areas along the India-Bangladesh border.

 

Shah, who arrived at the Kolkata airport, was received by senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari and Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nisith Pramanik.

 

The home minister will on Thursday inaugurate BSF's floating border outposts at Hingalganj and lay the foundation stone of the ‘Maitri' museum at Haridaspur, official sources said.

 

He will address a public meeting in Siliguri in the evening.

11:17 AM

Poll strategist Prshant Kishor lays out Bihar gameplan

Poll strategist Prshant Kishor launches poll campaign in Bihar, to go on padyatra 

11:04 AM

China reports 360 new COVID-19 cases, food shortage hurting Shanghai residents

China reported a total of 360 locally transmitted confirmed COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, of which 261 were reported solely in Shanghai, according to the National Health Commission's report on Thursday, while people in Shanghai are falling sick after consuming some of the food supplied by the local administration.

Shanghai reported most of the new cases. The city reported a total number of 261 confirmed locally transmitted COVID-19 cases. Moreover, a total of 4,390 local asymptomatic cases were reported, the municipal health commission informed. Meanwhile, as the COVID-19 outbreak continues to spread in more and more cities in China, questions are mounting over the country's much-publicized "zero-covid" strategy that the government credited for bringing the country out of the pandemic.

The ongoing severe lockdown restrictions in China's Shanghai to contain the spread of COVID-19 has drastically affected the day-to-day lives of the people due to food shortage.

10:46 AM

Prominent political strategist Prashant Kishor to disclose his future strategy today

Prominent political strategist, Prashant Kishor (PK) is to disclose his future plan and agenda on Thursday.

After rejecting the Congress offer to join the party, Kishor on Monday had announced to start 'Jan Suraaj' from Bihar. However, he has not disclosed the actual strategy that he wants to execute in his native state.

His 'Jan Suraaj' announcement has forced political pandits to analyse his future planning. Many of them believe that he wants to start a new party from Bihar. His 'Jan Suraaj' announcement has made the political pandits to analyse his future planning and many believe that he wants to start a political party from his home state, Bihar.

Kishor during an earlier tweet had hinted about going to the 'real political masters' which means the people of Bihar.

10:22 AM

India, France discuss unitedly dealing with terrorism, challenges in Indo-Pacific

India and France have agreed to unitedly deal with the menace of terrorism and the challenges in the Indo-Pacific, amid China flexing muscles in the strategically vital region.

A joint statement issued after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met French President Emmanuel Macron here on Wednesday said that the two countries were committed to the shared values of democracy, fundamental freedoms, rule of law and respect for human rights.

It noted that India and France have built one of the premier strategic partnerships for advancing peace, stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region.

10:10 AM

Musk invited to UK Parliament to discuss $44 billion Twitter buyout

Tech billionaire Elon Musk has been invited to testify in the UK Parliament regarding his proposed $44 billion acquisition of the micro-blogging site Twitter.

In a letter, Julian Knight, the Chair of the UK House of Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Select Committee requested the Tesla CEO to appear before lawmakers to discuss the proposal.

"At a time when social media companies face the prospect of tighter regulations around the world, we are keen to learn more about how Mr Musk will balance his clear commitment to free speech with new obligations to protect Twitter's users from online harms," Knight said.

10:05 AM

Global Covid caseload tops 515.4 million, death toll crosses 6.24 million

The global coronavirus caseload has topped 515.4 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 6.24 million and vaccinations to over 11.31 billion, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

In its latest update on Thursday morning, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload and the death toll stood at 515,460,120 and 6,244,594, respectively, while the total number of vaccine doses administered increased to 11,319,883,174.

The US continues to be the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 81,620,383 and 996,702, respectively, according to the CSSE.