India

New Delhi, Jun 30 (PTI) The historic Jama Masjid, which had closed earlier this month due to a surge in COVID-19 cases in the city, will reopen for congregational prayers (namaz) from July 4, Shahi Imam of the mosque Syed Ahmed Bukhari said on Tuesday.

The mosque was closed on June 11 in view of the "critical" conditions in the city due to a surge in COVID-19 cases, till June 30.

Visakhapatnam(AP), June 30 (PTI) Two people were killed and four others taken ill after benzene gas leaked at a pharmaceutical company at Parawada near here early on Tuesday morning, but officials said the situation was under control while the plant was temporarily shut.

The incident occurred in Sainor Life Sciences unit at Pharma City but the situation was under control as the leak was restricted to one reactor unit, official sources said.

CHENNAI/GUWAHATI, India (Reuters) - Several Indian cities prepared to extend their lockdowns to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus on Tuesday, as daily cases in the country remained close to 20,000.

India reported 18,522 new cases over the previous 24 hours, according to federal health data released on Tuesday, down slightly from Sunday’s record of 19,906.

With more than 550,000 total infections, India lags only the United States, Brazil and Russia in total cases.

Bhubaneswar, Jun 30 (PTI) Twenty-nine more BSF jawans have tested positive for COVID-19 in Odisha's Maoist-hit Malkangiri district, a senior official said on Tuesday.

Earlier, nine BS jawans were diagnosed with the disease in Nabrangpur district.

The 29 who tested positive for the virus in Malkangiri had returned from Bihar, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, Malkangiri District Collector Manish Agarwal said.

New Delhi, June 30 (PTI) The recovery rate of COVID-19 patients in the country is fast approaching 60 per cent, with the Union Health Ministry attributing it to

collective and focussed efforts of the Centre and states for containment and management of the pandemic.

As on date, there are 1,19,696 more recovered patients than COVID-19 active cases.

The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at 2,15,125, while 3,34,821 patients have been cured/discharged. A total of 13,099 COVID-19 patients have recovered in the last 24 hours, the ministry said.

New Delhi, June 30 (PTI) With 18,522 people testing positive for coronavirus in a single day, India's COVID-19 tally climbed to 5,66,840 on Tuesday while the death toll rose to 16,893 with 418 new fatalities, according to the Union Health Ministry data.

Recording nearly 4,000 cases in the last 24 hours, Tamil Nadu has surpassed Delhi to regain the second spot among the list of worst-hit states by the pandemic, while Karnataka also recorded more than 1,100 overtaking Haryana and Andhra Pradesh.

KANPUR: Amidst the fear of locusts entering the precincts of Jajmau here, the people were seen moving in the afternoon today. Even the repairing work in regard to the electricity pole was also carried by the labourers. It showed that common people have not been deterred by the lurking fear of the locust swarms.

The roads linking the Nai Chungi crossing were on like normal days. Though the sunny sun was shining brightly there was no hesitation in beating the intense heat.

The shops remained open and the people  were purchasing what they required at the moment. 

Delhi; 29 June 2020 (UMMN): India has banned 59 Chinese apps that include TikTok, ShareIt and WeChat.

Decesion came after a survey showing more than 60% saying that Indian government has not taken suitable steps to give China a befitting reply after recent violence at LAC in which an army officer and 19 Indian soldiers were killed, and Chinese forces encroached the lands across LAC..

Srinagar, Jun 29: Three Kashmiris were killed on Monday in an encounter with Indian security forces in Anantnag dist of the Indian Administered Kashmir, Indian officials said.

Jaipur, Jun 28 (PTI) Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Sunday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to withdraw his statement at an all-party meeting, claiming that he had given a certificate to China that it did not intrude into Indian territory or capture any post.

"The prime minister should tell the people of the country what happened on the border," Gehlot told reporters at a video conference while referring to the Ladakh's Galwan Valley clash between soldiers of both countries.

Twenty Indian Army personnel were killed in the clash.