Indian Sub-continent

Lucknow, Apr 14 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday said he has tested positive for COVID-19.

He had on Tuesday isolated himself after some officials in his contact tested positive for coronavirus.

"After initial symptoms, I got myself tested. My report is positive. I am in self-isolation and following doctors advice. I am doing all the works virtually," Adityanath tweeted from his official Twitter handle.

Kanpur: Various irregularities have been seen at the city's inter-state Jhakarkatti bus station. In his inspection even the divisional commissioner his expressed his serious annoyance. 

When there is given so much emphasis on ways to control the virus, the Covid help desk was not involved in extending helping hand to the passengers at the bus station. 

What remained more surprising was that the bus conductor was neither provided with hand sanitizer nor mask. The passengers and the roadways employees were also not wearing mask.

NEW DELHI, April 14 (Xinhua) -- India's federal finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the Indian government has no plan to impose a nationwide lockdown amid the recent spike in COVID-19 cases in the Asian country.

Sitharaman said that the federal government does not want to totally arrest the economy and the second wave of COVID-19 in the country will be handled through isolation and quarantine methods at the local level.

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistani security forces swinging batons and firing teargas moved before dawn Wednesday to clear sit-ins by protesting Islamists in the garrison city of Rawalpindi and elsewhere after five people died in earlier clashes, officials said.

The government action comes two days after the arrest of Saad Rizvi, head of the Tehreek-e-Labiak Pakistan party, sparked protests by his supporters.

ISLAMABAD, April 13 (APP): Prime Minister Imran Khan and President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Miromonovich Mirziyoyev will review the entire spectrum of bilateral relations, at a virtual summit being held on Wednesday.

The two leaders will discuss matters pertaining to areas including political, trade, economic, security, connectivity and people-to-people exchanges.

“Both sides will focus on enhancing political and strategic linkages, fast tracking transit and trade cooperation, and building educational and cultural collaboration,” the Foreign Office on Tuesday.

NEW DELHI (AP) — India said Tuesday that it will approve the use of all coronavirus vaccines that have been given an emergency nod by the World Health Organization or regulators in the United States, Europe, Britain or Japan.

India’s Health Ministry said the decision was aimed at hastening the use of shots made in other countries and expanding the “basket of vaccines” available for domestic use. The country of almost 1.4 billion people is seeing a crippling surge of infections that is threatening to overwhelm hospitals in hard-hit cities.

Kanpur: Ramazan, a month of prayer and fast, now begins from Wednesday. There has been stress on pursuing guidelines. 

As crowd is not allowed in the wave of the deadly virus only five devouts are allowed in the mosque to offer prayers.

Some think it is like the arrangements made in the last year.

Obligatory prayers can be offered at home but taraweeh is not permitted. There is a condition of several people. 

When the gathering of people is restricted, the more people can not be collected even at the house.

12 Apr 2021; MEMO: A prominent Kashmiri human rights group on Monday said that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not welcome in the UK and called on UK premier to not invite him to the G7 summit, Anadolu Agency reported.

New Delhi, Apr 12 (PTI) The Supreme Court Monday termed as "absolutely frivolous" a petition filed by former UP Shia Waqf Board chairman Waseem Rizvi seeking removal of 26 verses from holy Quran and dismissed it with a cost of Rs 50,000.

A bench of Justices R F Nariman B R Gavai and Hrishikesh Roy rejected the petition in which Rizvi alleged that these 26 verses of Quran promoted terrorism.

Washington, Apr 13 (PTI) A top Republican Senator has said that imposing CAATSA sanctions on India for buying the multi-billion-dollar S-400 missile system from Russia would be a geostrategic victory for Moscow.

Senator Todd Young, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, wrote in the Foreign Policy magazine that if the Joe Biden administration imposes sanctions on India, it would weaken two strategic fronts at a critical time -- undermine Washington's relationship with India and also affect the QUAD's ability to counter China.