India

New Delhi, Jan 23 (PTI) India logged 333,533 new coronavirus infections, taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 39,237,264, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Sunday.

The active cases have increased to 2,187,205, while the death toll has climbed to 489,409 with 525 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The active cases comprise 5.57 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has decreased to 93.18 per cent, the ministry said.

Lucknow, Jan 23 (PTI) At 8 feet and 1 inch, Dharmendra Pratap Singh from Uttar Pradesh's Pratapgarh has always stood out, dwarfing most others around him and leaving them awestruck.

Now, the former event manager, who claims to be the tallest man in India, is making his political debut with the Samajwadi Party and hopes to help it come out on the top in the upcoming state assembly polls.

Kanpur: The BJP has fielded different candidates from constituencies in Kanpur.

The sitting MLA Neelima Katiyar from Kalyanpur, sitting MLA Abhijit Singh Sanga from Bithoor, sitting MLA Surendra Maithani from Govind Nagar, sitting MLA Mahesh Trivedi from Kidwainagar, sitting MLA and state minister Satish Mahana from Maharajpur, and runner-up candidate of 2017 Raghunandan Bhadauria from Cantonment seat respectively.

Prayagraj, Jan 23 (PTI) A Vedic Paint will be soon be manufactured in four places in Uttar Pradesh, an official from Khadi & Village Industries Commission (KVIC) said on Sunday.

The commission's Varanasi director DS Bhati told PTI that units will be set up at Barabanki, Varanasi, Ballia, and Meerut to manufacture the paint.

He said the paint is different from usual ones as it does not contain any chemical, is made from natural sources, and is just as durable as the other paints.

New Delhi, Jan 23 (PTI) Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi on Sunday alleged that over four crore people have been pushed into poverty in the country and that there has been development of only "Hamare Do".

"'Vikas overflow' only for 'Humare Do'! While our 4,00,00,000 brothers and sisters are pushed into poverty," he said on Twitter.

Panaji, Jan 22 (PTI) As many as 24 legislators in Goa, which is 60 per cent of the total strength of the 40-member state Assembly, have switched parties in the last five years, a report by an organisation has said.

The Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) said in its report that with this, Goa has set a unique record, which is "unparalleled" in the history of Indian democracy.

Assembly polls in Goa will be held on February 14.

NEW DELHI, Jan 22 (NNN-PTI) – India’s COVID-19 tally rose to 38,903,731 today, as 337,704 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours across the country, showed the federal health ministry’s latest data.

This is the third consecutive day when over 300,000 daily cases were registered in more than eight months.

Besides, 488 deaths due to the pandemic since yesterday morning, took the total death toll to 488,884.

Aligarh, Jan 22 (PTI) Congress candidate from Aligarh city Salman Imtiaz has been slapped with an order barring him from staying in the district, authorities said on Saturday.

The externment order which was pasted on his house on Friday was dated January 14.

Imtiaz had filed his nomination for the Uttar Pradesh polls on Thursday.

"The ban was imposed on the basis of his being charged under the Gunda Act since he posed a threat to the peace of the city, Additional District Magistrate city Rakesh Kumar Patel said.

New Delhi, Jan 21 (PTI) The Supreme Court Friday permitted a former judicial officer to submit his suggestions on training of judges to National Judicial Academy for consideration.

A bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and Dinesh Maheshwari said these are not matters which can be debated on the judicial side and instead experts should look into these things.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the petitioner, submitted that there is a problem with regard to curriculum and these judicial academies have syllabus like law schools

New Delhi, Jan 21 (PTI) Lt Governor Anil Baijal on Friday approved the Delhi government's proposal to allow private offices to function with 50 per cent staff but suggested maintaining the status quo on lifting weekend curfew and removing odd-even rule for the opening of shops in the markets, LG office sources said.

Any decision on lifting the weekend curfew could be taken once the COVID-19 situation in Delhi improves further, they said.