Indian Sub-continent

Kanpur: A total 30 fresh cases of Zika Virus were reported in Kanpur on Thursday, taking the total count for Zika Virus in the city to 66.

As many as 30 more people have tested positive for Zika virus in Kanpur city of Uttar Pradesh.

With this, the total tally has gone up to 66, said Chief Medical Officer Dr Nepal Singh, according to news reports.

The first case of the Zika virus came to the fore in Kanpur on October 25. Later, the central government sent a multi-disciplinary team to Kanpur.

New Delhi, Nov 3 (PTI) The Supreme Court has quashed the Kerala High Court order which discharged an accused, arrested for his alleged Maoist links, for the purported offences including sedition and under the provisions of the anti-terror law, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, in three cases.

New Delhi, Nov 4 (PTI) With the share of stubble burning in Delhi's pollution rising to 25 per cent on Diwali, the highest this season so far, authorities have said that the air quality in the city may turn "severe" by midnight and shoot up rapidly by Friday morning if firecrackers are burnt.

The PM2.5 pollution in the capital may enter the "severe" zone by midnight even if there is 50 per cent of firecrackers emissions as compared to last year, said Gufran Beig, the founder project director of SAFAR.

New Delhi, Nov 4 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Israeli counterpart Naftali Bennett exchanged Diwali greetings on Thursday.

Taking to Twitter, Bennett said, "Happy #Diwali to my friend @NarendraModi and to all the people celebrating in #India and around the world."

He also tweeted his greetings in Hindi.

Responding to Bennett's tweet, Modi said on Twitter, "Thank you, my dear friend @naftalibennett for the wonderful greetings. Wishing you a Happy Diwali too.

Rangia (Assam), Nov 5 (PTI) Several houses and commercial establishments were gutted and property estimated to be worth crores of rupees destroyed in a fire in Rangia town of Assam's Kamrup (Rural) district, an official said on Friday.

No person was injured in the fire incident on Thursday night, he added.

The fire broke out near Mrittunjay Shiv Temple in the town on Thursday night during Diwali celebrations, engulfing several houses, shops and godowns.

ISLAMABAD, Nov 4 (APP): The Grand Mufti of Egypt Shawki Ibrahim Allam Thursday called on Ambassador of Pakistan in Cairo Sajid Bilal.

During the meeting, they discussed opportunities for close cooperation in the field of Fatwa and other matters of mutual interest.

Allam is the 19th Grand Mufti of Egypt. He is also a professor of Islamic jurisprudence and law at the Al-Azhar University, and has written more than 25 works, many of which address issues pertaining to women.

KABUL, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- The recent terrorist attacks reportedly conducted by the affiliates of Islamic States (IS) in Afghanistan have spread fear among Afghans who believed that peace had returned following a change of regime in the war-torn country.

"I was very happy after Taliban's August takeover as I had believed that suicide attacks and bomb blasts would not occur any more. But my hopes and wishes for peace shattered as we had witnessed a series of bomb blasts, killings and disappearances in recent weeks," Kabul resident Sayyed Hashmat told Xinhua.

The ICMR-DHR centres of excellence have been set up at seven IITs including Kanpur.

The setting-up of the 'ICMR at IITs' will bridge the gap in technology development and commercialisation cycle for a larger public health impact.

The Indian healthcare sector is heavily dependent on imports for its medical device needs.

New Delhi, Nov 3 (PTI) Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Wednesday said the bypoll results in assembly constituencies show "the honours are even" today between the BJP and the parties opposed to it, as he wondered which way will the wind blow in the 2022 elections in various states.

Firozabad (UP), Nov 3 (PTI) A POCSO court here has sentenced a man to life imprisonment in connection with the rape of a minor girl.

The court also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on the accused, identified as Monu.

Advocate of the prosecution side, Kamal Singh, on Wednesday said that on June 8, 2019, a man had lodged a complaint with police that his five-year-old daughter was raped by the son of his landlord.