Highlights of the day: Repair work on Munak Canal likely to complete by Friday night, says Atishi

From Amit Shah's announcement of Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas to Supreme Court hearing Arvind Kejriwal's plea; stay with us for all the news updates from across the globe

5:03 PM

Another headline grabbing exercise: Cong on govt declaring Jun 25 as Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas

5:02 PM

India, Qatar agree to expeditiously address bilateral trade issues, facilitate trade promotion

India and Qatar have agreed to expeditiously address all impending bilateral trade issues and have identified several areas of focus for enhancing both bilateral trade as well as mutually beneficial cooperation sectors. Representatives from both nations reviewed recent developments in a Joint Working Group meeting in Doha this week, the Commerce Ministry said on Friday. Both sides undertook a detailed review of recent developments in bilateral trade and economic cooperation and noted that the relationship has a huge potential to be scaled up even further, the Commerce Ministry stated.

4:57 PM

Centre launches 321 fisheries projects worth over Rs 114 crore in Tamil Nadu

Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh virtually inaugurated 321 projects at the Fisheries Summer Meet held in Madurai, Tamil Nadu on Friday. These initiatives, approved under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), represent a total investment of Rs 114 crore, an official statement said. The projects covering 19 states and Union Territories include fish retail kiosks, shrimp hatcheries, brood banks, ornamental fish units, biofloc units, fish feed mills, and fish value-added enterprises.

4:43 PM

My role as DoNER minister is to translate aspirations of states into reality: Scindia

Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia on Friday said his role would primarily be that of a facilitator, ensuring that aspirations of the states in the region are realised. He emphasised the importance of showcasing the North Eastern region's rich cultural heritage, traditions, and natural resources to the world. Talking to reporters at the airport here on his first visit to the North East since assuming charge, Scindia said he will work towards realising the government's vision of making the region the "gateway of India's progress". "Work to achieve it has already been on track for the last 10 years," he added.

4:40 PM

Declaring Emergency was brazen display of dictatorial mindset: Amit Shah

4:22 PM

Water level in India's main reservoirs rise to 26% of total live storage capacity: CWC

Amid heavy rains in different parts of the country, water levels in 150 main reservoirs of the country have increased to 26 per cent of the total live storage capacity, still lower than in the same period last year, according to official data. Last week, the water level was at 22 per cent. The current live storage stands at 46.311 billion cubic meters (BCM), which is 26 per cent of the total live storage capacity of these reservoirs. This is a significant drop compared to the same period last year, when the live storage was 58.864 BCM, according to Central Water Commission's (CWC's) Friday bulletin.

4:12 PM

U'khand govt releases expert panel's report on Uniform Civil Code; CM says 'people will get justice easily'

Shatrugan Singh, the Chairman of the Rules and Implementation, released the report of the Expert Committee on the Uniform Civil Code of Uttarakhand on Friday. The report was released at the Circuit House Annexe, Dehradun. While speaking to the media, Singh said, "The details of the UCC are given on the website http://ucc.uk.gov.in . You can read the report of the Expert Committee on the website." Uttarakhand CM, Pushkar Singh Dhami, said, "The UCC is a very big thing for our state. The people of the state had elected us for the same reason. I congratulate all the people of Uttarakhand on the implementation of the UCC. After the implementation, several complexities would be made easier."

3:57 PM

Comprehensive India-UK trade pact to deliver win-win result for both economies: Experts

With the new government taking charge in Britain, the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the UK will get a renewed push and a comprehensive pact would deliver a win-win result for both economies, said experts. They said that promoting export of services seem to be a priority for the UK's Labour government and it will seek to negotiate standalone sector deals, such as digital, or mutual recognition agreements, to promote services exports.

3:47 PM

Sensex jumps 622 points to settle at an all-time high of 80,519.34; Nifty rallies to 24,502.15

Benchmark stock market indices hit fresh record highs on Friday, with the S&P BSE Sensex rising over 900 points and the NSE Nifty50 jumping nearly 250 points. The Sensex hit a lifetime high of 80,893 during intraday trade and the 50-share Nifty hit a new record high of 24,592.20.

3:34 PM

Bail order should be stayed only in rare and exceptional cases: SC

Courts should refrain from staying bail orders in a mechanical manner and without giving any reason, the Supreme Court said Friday, underlining that the relief should be denied to an accused only in rare and exceptional cases. A bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Augustine George Masih said courts cannot curtail the liberty of an accused in a casual manner. "The courts should stay bail order only in rare and exceptional cases like somebody is involved in terrorist cases, where order is perverse or provisions of law have been bypassed. You cannot restrict liberty like this. This will be disastrous. If we grant stay like this, this will be disaster. Where will Article 21 go," the bench observed.

3:30 PM

Establishing 'Gram Nyayalayas' would provide access to affordable justice, reduce pendency: SC

The Supreme Court on Friday said establishing 'Gram Nyayalayas' would help in providing affordable and speedy justice to the citizens at their doorsteps and also reduce the huge pendency of cases in trial courts. An Act passed by Parliament in 2008 provided for the setting up of Gram Nyayalayas at the grassroots level for providing access to justice to citizens and to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to anyone by reason of social, economic or other disabilities.

3:25 PM

Budget must address fundamental questions, why is private investment very sluggish: Congress

The Congress on Friday said the forthcoming budget must address fundamental questions such as why private investment is "very sluggish" and private consumption is not picking up as the party dismissed claims that economic growth is accelerating sharply and large numbers of jobs being created. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is scheduled to present the Budget for 2024-25 in the Lok Sabha on July 23. Congress general secretary, in-charge communications, Jairam Ramesh said, "The non-biological PM's cheerleaders and drumbeaters claim that economic growth is accelerating sharply and that jobs are being created in large numbers."

3:23 PM

SC stays Karnataka HC's interim order restraining Kannada news channel Power TV from broadcasting

The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the Karnataka High Court interim order restraining Kannada news channel Power TV from broadcasting and issued notice on its plea challenging the Karnataka HC order. The top court remarked that this was a "political vendetta." A bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud issued notice to Centre on Power Smart Media Pvt Ltd plea and stayed the HC order till further hearing, which is listed on July 15. The top court also remarked that they are inclined to protect freedom of speech and expression. It looks like a case of political vendetta, the court observed, saying that the court will be failing in its duty if it does not protect freedom of speech and expression.

3:17 PM

SC to consider listing PIL for court-monitored SIT probe into electoral bond scheme

The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to consider listing a public interest litigation that urged a court-monitored investigation into the electoral bonds scheme. The PIL, filed by NGOs Common Cause and the Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL), alleges an "apparent quid pro quo" between political parties, corporations, and investigative agencies. A bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra took note of the submissions of lawyer Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGOs, that despite his several visits to the apex court registry in the last few months, the pleas are yet to be listed.

3:07 PM

Adani Wilmar to acquire 67% stake in Omkar Chemicals Industries at Rs 56 cr enterprise value

Edible oil major Adani Wilmar Ltd will acquire a 67 per cent stake in Omkar Chemicals Industries at an enterprise value of Rs 56 crore. Adani Wilmar, a joint venture between Adani Group and Singapore's Wilmar Group, is one of the largest consumer food FMCG companies in India. The company has a diversified product portfolio offering most of the primary kitchen essentials, including edible oil, wheat flour, rice, pulses, chickpea flour (besan) and sugar. It is also a leading player in oleochemicals.