New Delhi (NVI): At least 20 people were injured today in a cylinder blast in Mumbai’s Lalbaug area. Eight of the injured are critical, as per reports.
The incident took place this morning on the second floor of Sarabhai building at Ganesh galli.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said that two fire brigade and two jumbo tankers were on the spot.
Meanwhile, the fire is under control now and the injured have been shifted to a local hospital.
-ARK
New Delhi (NVI): A massive fire today broke out at a shopping complex in Bapunagar area of Ahmedabad district in Gujarat, with at least 22 shops gutted in the incident.
According to reports, the incident took place this morning after a tea kettle caught fire and soon engulfed a PVC board above it.
Today morning fire breakout at Shayam Shikhar complex in Bapunagar area of Ahmedabad
.
.@LangaMahesh @aravindchaudhri pic.twitter.com/eSY5bEtbIo— Ajit Solanki (@ajit__solanki) December 6, 2020
The fire then spread in Shyam Sikhar shopping complex at Bapunagar with at least 22 shops engulfed in flames.
However, no life was lost in the mishap as the complex was closed at the time of the incident.
-ARK
New Delhi (NVI): With 36,011 new Covid-19 cases, India’s total caseload today rose to 96,44,222, according to the data available with the Health Ministry.
The death toll mounted to 1,40,182 with 482 new deaths in the last 24 hours. The total active cases in the country stand at 4,03,248, while a total of 91,00,792 people have recovered with 41,970 being discharged since yesterday.
Apart from that, the Health Ministry has said that the present active caseload comprises 4.26% of the total positive cases. It said that the new recoveries have led to a net decline of 6,393 in the total active cases.
For the past eight days, the daily new recoveries recorded in the country have been more than the daily cases, the ministry said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Pfizer India has sought approval from India’s drug regulator – DCGI (Drugs Controller General of India) – for emergency use authorisation of its coronavirus vaccine.
Pertinent to mention here that the US pharma giant has already secured clearance to roll out its vaccine in the United Kingdom and Bahrain.
The Covid death toll in the world’s worst-affected country- the US- surpassed 280,000, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University. The overall caseload in the US has topped 14.4 million.
-ARK
New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi today paid tributes to Dr B R Ambedkar on his death anniversary, saying that his thoughts and ideals continue to give strength to millions.
Taking to Twitter, PM wrote: “Remembering the great Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar on Mahaparinirvan Diwas. His thoughts and ideals continue to give strength to millions. We are committed to fulfilling the dreams he had for our nation.”
Remembering the great Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar on Mahaparinirvan Diwas. His thoughts and ideals continue to give strength to millions. We are committed to fulfilling the dreams he had for our nation. pic.twitter.com/dJUwGjv3Z5
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 6, 2020
Ambedkar, the chief architect of the Indian Constitution and a Dalit icon, passed away on this day in 1956. His death anniversary is observed as ‘Mahaparinirvana Diwas’.
New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the construction of the Agra Metro Project on December 7 via video conferencing.
Comprising two corridors, the Agra Metro Project will connect major tourist attractions like Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Sikandra with railway stations and bus stands.
The project will benefit the 26 lakh population of the city of Agra and will also cater to more than 60 lakh tourists who visit Agra every year.
It will provide an environment-friendly Mass Rapid Transit System to the historic city of Agra. The estimated cost of the project will be Rs 8,379.62 cr which will be completed in 5 years and will cover an area of 29.4 km.
Union Minister of Housing & Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath, and other dignitaries will also attend the event that will be held at 15 Battalion PAC parade ground in Agra.
-CHK
New Delhi (NVI): Aviation regulator, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), today grounded two pilots who were operating a SpiceJet flight that undershot the runway in Guwahati on Friday.
The flight in question was a Boeing 737 aircraft. It touched down before the designated landing point on the runway, according to media reports.
Taking note of the matter, the DGCA has ordered that the two pilots should be grounded.
“The pilots have been off-rostered. It (matter) is under investigation,” DGCA said.
Reportedly, none of the passengers in the flight were affected.
However, some of the runway lights were damaged while landing the SG960 Bengaluru-Guwahati flight.
-CHK
New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone for the new Parliament building on December 10 in New Delhi, Lok Sabha speaker, Om Birla, said today.
He will also perform ‘bhumi pujan’ or the groundbreaking ceremony on the same day.
Sharing details of the project, Birla informed that the four-storied new Parliament building would be built in an area of 64,500 square metres at an estimated cost of Rs 971 crore.
He observed that it is a matter of immense pride for 130 crore Indians that for the first time after independence, Indian artisans and sculptors from all over the country, would contribute and showcase India’s cultural diversity in the New Parliament Building, making it a symbol of Atmanirbhar Bharat.
The construction of the building will begin in December and is likely to be completed by October 2022. The new Parliament building will have a built-up area of approximately 60,000-metre square.
It is set to come up on plot number 118 of the Parliament House Estate, which currently houses a reception, boundary walls and other temporary structures.
“The new building will also have a grand Constitution Hall to showcase India’s democratic heritage, a lounge for members of Parliament, a library, multiple committee rooms, dining areas and ample parking space,” Om Birla said.
He also said, “Keeping future needs in mind, the proposed building will have a seating capacity for 888 Members in the Lok Sabha Chamber with an option to increase to 1,224 members during joint sessions. Similarly, the Rajya Sabha Chamber would have a seating capacity for 384 members.”
He added that adequate safeguards for earthquake safety is being followed keeping in mind zone V regulations, specific to New Delhi and surrounding areas.
Furthermore, new building is to be equipped with all modern Audio-Visual communication facilities and data network systems. Special care is being taken to ensure all environmental safeguards are followed, including minimal disturbance to Parliament sessions during construction work, the Lok Sabha speaker stated.
The existing building is a British era building, designed by Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker who were responsible for planning and construction of New Delhi.
-CHK
Srinagar (NVI): In yet another ceasefire violation, Pakistan Army today resorted to heavy unprovoked ceasefire violation (CFV) in Qasba and Kirni sectors of Poonch district in Jammu and Kashmir, defence officials said.
The Pakistani troops, at around 4 pm, fired with small arms and continued intense shelling with mortars along the LoC, officials added.
The official further stated, “The Indian Army retaliated befittingly.”
In the morning, at around 11.40 am, Pakistan violated ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) in Balakote sector of Poonch district.
-CHK
New Delhi (NVI) When Army Chief General M M Naravane travels to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) tomorrow on a four-day visit, it will mark a huge milestone in India’s ties with the Arab world amid slackening of traditionally strong relations between Pakistan and these two influential nations.
Naravane will be the first Indian Army Chief to visit Saudi Arabia when he embarks on two-day visit in the first leg of the tour and interacts with the top Defence officials of the country.
The visit to these influential Arab countries is expected to result in a boost in defence and security.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE have traditionally enjoyed very close relations with Pakistan and have been its main supporters. However, lately these two nations have been distancing themselves from Pakistan, probably unhappy with Islamabad’s continued support to and sponsoring of terrorism.
Saudi Arabia particularly has made its unhappiness with Pakistan obvious in more than one way.
Firstly, it rebuffed Pakistan’s repeated pleas for convening a special session of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) on Kashmir after Article 370 was abolished in August last year. Saudi Arabia was the Chair of the 57-member grouping of Islamic countries at that time and the onus was on it regarding convening of a special session.
The Saudi rebuff frustrated Islamabad to such an extent that its Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi went to the extent of saying that Pakistan might think of quitting the OIC and floating a separate grouping of Islamic countries.
This outburst angered Saudi Arabia further and it demanded immediate return of one billion dollars of loan which it had given to Pakistan.
Further salt was added to Pakistan’s wounds when its Army Chief Gen Qamar Bajwa was denied meeting with Saudi Prince Mohammad Bin Salman when he went to Riyadh in an attempt to repair the ties.
In the meanwhile, Saudi Arabia has announced new investments in India, making clear its preferences.
Similarly, relations between India and the UAE have been on the upswing in the last few years. This has particularly helped in addressing India’s concerns regarding its fugitives finding the UAE a safe place for escaping the Indian laws.
Over the last few years, the UAE government has quietly turned over a number of Indian fugitives, including those involved in major scams and terror activities.
This has sent out a message to the fugitives that the UAE is no more a safe haven for them. According to reports, even Dawood Ibrahim, the mastermind of 1993 Mumbai serial blasts, has lately been avoiding travel to the UAE from Pakistan, where is sheltered, because of the fear that he may be handed over to India. Earlier, Dawood used to frequently visit Dubai for his sojourns.
Interestingly, Gen Naravane’s visit to Saudi Arabia and the UAE is taking place at a significant time when the Arab world is witnessing a churning.
More and more countries are shedding their animosity towards Israel and establishing diplomatic ties with it. There are reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently flew secretly to Riyadh to meet the Saudi Prince.
Therefore, the Indian Army Chief’s visit to these influential Arab countries in the changing geo-strategic scenario is expected to be immensely fruitful.
New Delhi (NVI): Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today said that schools for Classes 1 to 8 in the state will remain shut till March 31 next year in view of the coronavirus pandemic.
He also said that no test would be conducted for the students of these classes this academic year and they would be evaluated on the basis of their project work.
However, schools for classes 10 and 12 would resume shortly for the Board exams. But social distancing and other norms will be fully observed in the classrooms to prevent the spread of COVID-19, he said.
Students of Classes 9 and 11 will be called to schools once or twice a week, Chouhan added.
There are around 1.50 lakh schools, including private ones, across the state.
-CHK
