India

Lucknow, Aug 29 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister Satish Mahana said on Saturday that he had tested positive for the novel coronavirus and isolated himself at home.

Mahana requested those who have come in contact with him in the past few days to get their coronavirus tests done.

"After initial symptoms of COVID, I got myself tested yesterday (Friday) and the report came positive," the infrastructure and industrial development minister tweeted. "I have isolated myself at home on the advice of doctors.

Lucknow, Aug 28 (PTI) A Congress leader in Uttar Pradesh on Friday said the party should expel Ghulam Nabi Azad who is among 23 signatories to a letter which called for an overhaul of the organisation.

Twenty-three Congress leaders wrote to party chief Sonia Gandhi, seeking an active and full-time party leadership among other organisational changes.

Tura (Meghalaya), Aug 28 (PTI) An ammunition dump has been unearthed in a forested area in Meghalaya's South Garo Hills district, police said on Friday.

It is suspected that the seized cartridges belonged to proscribed outfit Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA), a senior police officer said.

Mumbai, Aug 28 (PTI) The country's foreign exchange reserves rose by USD 2.296 billion to reach USD 537.548 billion in the week to August 21, RBI data showed on Friday.

In the previous week ended August 14, the reserves had declined by USD 2.939 billion to USD 535.252 billion.

The forex kitty had increased by USD 3.623 billion to reach a record high of USD 538.191 billion in the week ended August 7.

Mumbai, Aug 28 (PTI) The Congress in Maharashtra on Friday demanded that the "BJP angle" in the Sushant Singh Rajput suicide case should be probed.

The state BJP, however, rubbished the Congress' demand and allegations.

State Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant claimed that the CBI was going to question Sandeep Singh, who was producer of the biopic "PM Narendra Modi", with regard to the drugs aspect of the case.

New Delhi, Aug 28 (PTI) The Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) on Friday announced it will not hike power tariffs in the city for 2020-21 in view of the coronavirus pandemic.

Muzaffarnagar (UP), Aug 29 (PTI) A girl was allegedly abducted in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar district by four people who wanted to sell her for marriage, an official said on Saturday.

The teenager, who is around 18 years old, was abducted from her house at a village under Sikheda police station area on August 18 by a man and three women after intoxicating her. She was kept at a house in Panipat, Haryana, the childcare helpline official said.

New Delhi/Jammu, Aug 29 (PTI) The Border Security Force (BSF) has detected a tunnel just beneath the India-Pakistan international border fence in Jammu, officials said on Saturday.

The force has launched a major search operation in the area to look for other such hidden structures that aid infiltration even as it is analysing the spotted structure, they said.

BSF Director General Rakesh Asthana has directed his frontier commanders to ensure that the anti-infiltration grid is intact and there are no gaps along this front, they added.

Thane/Pune, Aug 29 (PTI) Several BJP activists on Saturday staged protests outside temples in Maharashtra's Thane and Palghar districts and Pune city demanding the reopening of places of worship, which have remained shut amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

BJP MLAs, legislators, corporators and office-bearers led the protests in all cities of Thane and Palghar districts, with activists resorting to 'ghanta naad' (ringing of bells) and banging of plates outside temples.

Lucknow, Aug 29 (PTI) At a village in Barabanki district, 37-year-old Vivek allegedly poisoned his wife and three children and then took his own life. And some 250 km away in Banda, migrant labourers Chutku and Rambabu killed themselves in their native villages.

The three cases tell the stories of people unable to cope with the stress, often related to unemployment, during these tough times brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.