Daily News Summaries

India recorded 86 thousand fresh COVID infections as the case tally reached 58.1 lakh. Recoveries rose by 87 thousand to 47.5 lakh. Deaths rose by 1,141 to 92 thousand. Following a record nosedive in India's GDP, the government (Modijhi) is likely to announce a fiscal stimulus package ahead of the festive season to attempt saving the economy. Playback singer SP Balasubrahmanyam passed away yesterday aged 74, after battling coronavirus for over a month. Farmers held protests across the country against the recently passed Farm Bills. Modi says it's for the best. Farmers say Modi says everything for the best, but that doesn’t necessarily translate. Following the overseas success, Air India is planning to launch its very own 'flights to nowhere' allowing travellers who are missing the experience to take a flight and enjoy a picturesque journey in the sky. Reported HT. The central government wrongly diverted ₹47,272 crores of GST compensation in the Consolidated Fund of India in 2017-18 and 2018-19 and used it for other purposes, the Comptroller Auditor General said in its audit report of government accounts. American motorcycle maker Harley Davidson shut down its operations in Atma Nirbhar India, closing down its sales and manufacturing operations and laying off staff. The firm booked a $75 million restructuring cost in this regard. Thousands of jobs including dealership closures are likely to follow. UK's telecom giant Vodafone won an international arbitration against India at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague. The court said that the conduct of the Income Tax Department is in breach of 'fair and equitable' treatment for its retrospective tax demand of ₹20,000 crores. Further, India's got to pay Vodafone 4.3 million pounds as compensation for legal costs. In June, Vodafone Idea and Airtel lost 4.8 and 1.1 million users respectively. State-owned BSNL lost 1.7 million. But there's a winner – Jio – which added 4.5 million! The Ambani led telecom provider also partnered with international airlines including Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines, Emirates, Etihad and Lufthansa among others to offer mobile services. UNITED STATES The US' COVID case tally surpassed 7 million, with the country accounting for more than one out of every five infections worldwide. Cases have particularly surged in the Midwest where residents oppose face masks. House Democratic lawmakers are preparing a new $2.4 trillion coronavirus aid package to aid the economy as the previous trillions sanctioned in May aren’t enough, reported MarketWatch. Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf told a congressional hearing on Wednesday that white supremacists are the most persistent extremist threat in US politics. Reported Reuters. In San Antonio Texas, a teacher Lillian White claimed that she was fired from her school for wearing a Black Lives Matter face mask. US co Sargeant Marine pleaded guilty to paying bribes to officials in Brazil, Ecuador and Venezuela for nearly a decade to gain lucrative contractors. The company agreed to pay over $16 million in fines after it netted over $38 million in profits as a result of the bribes between 2010 and 2018. Putting a dollar tag on racism: A new report by Citigroup suggested that America could have been $16 trillion richer if it had closed racial gaps for Blacks 20 years ago. The report further added that if the racial differences are closed today, $5 trillion can be added to the US economy over the next five years. AROUND THE WORLD Guy Rider, director-general of the International Labour Organization, said that the COVID pandemic has wiped out $3.5 trillion in wage losses for workers, with developing nations and younger workers being the worst hit. A new study by global analytics firm Gallup found that Canada is the world's most accepting country for migrants in 2019. Moscow's mayor urged businesses to continue working from home as Russia hit a new daily jump in COVID infections. It recorded over 7 tho

INDIA India recorded 86 thousand fresh COVID infections while 87 thousand COVID patients recovered in a single day. Case tally hit 57.3 lakh while recoveries hit 46.7 lakh. Deaths rose by 1,129 to 91 thousand. The Centre suspended the bankruptcy code (IBC) by another 3 months to protest distressed companies amid the pandemic. In a written reply, the Ministry of External Affairs said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has visited 58 countries and ₹517.82 crores have been spent on them in total, since 2015. West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee said that Durga Puja carnival will not be hosted this year due to the pandemic. A survey in Hyderabad found that most IT employees in the city prefer to continue working from home. Most large and very large companies have reported productivity of 90% as they continue the WFM trend. In Chennai, SP Balasubrahmanyam is in an extremely critical condition, at a private hospital where he’s being treated for Coronavirus. Former Australian cricketer and commentator Dean Jones passed away in his Mumbai hotel room following a sudden heart attack aged 59. “How lonely and helpless you must’ve felt on your own in that hotel room-a death we commentators fear the most”, wrote fellow commentator Ramiz Raja. Actor Nawazuddin Siddique’s wife accused him of rape and cheating and filed a police case against him. The media continues to run Bollywood headers, as they look to solve India's number one problem – POT. UNITED STATES Donald Trump's niece, Mary Trump filed a lawsuit against the President and his siblings for fraud. In 2001, Mary had agreed on a settlement over the family's estate but now she alleges that she was 'forced to sign'. The US has allegedly warned Kenya to either support Israel’s political and commercial moves or lose its free trade deal (FTA) with the US. Reported The EastAfrican. After a whistleblower alleged that the US was conducting illegal sterilizations on immigrants without their full consent, Mexico's Foreign Minister said that his country has launched investigations into the matter. Portland, which has been the centre for months of BLM protests, rejected a permit for a right-wing group citing COVID risks. California passed an order to ban the sale of gas-only cars by 2035, as it shifts gear to combat climate change in light of the recent massive wildfires. US oil giant Chevron directed all its employees around the world to delete Chinese owned WeChat from their work phones, becoming one of the first US companies to follow in Trump's steps. AROUND THE WORLD New research shows that most people who have contracted Coronavirus, at some point through the course of infection, show some symptoms of the virus. Earlier, it was believed that the majority of cases are asymptomatic hence causing the virus to spread far and spread quickly. While most countries in Europe are nearing or experiencing a second surge in COVID infections, Italy is bucking the trend. The nation which was one of the worst-hit countries at the beginning of the global pandemic is treading carefully as it's still scarred with the deadly few months. The EU said it doesn’t recognise Alexander Lukashenko as Belarus’ president, after he was abruptly sworn in, in secret for a sixth term after an allegedly rigged election. The EU's diplomatic chief said his re-election lacked “any democratic legitimacy”. Facebook warned that it may have to pull out of Europe if Ireland enforces a ban on its data sharing with the US. The social media said that data transfers between the EU and the US are essential in various organizations and any restrictions would hamper the growth of data-driven businesses in the EU. In Australia, e-cigarettes are set to become prescription only from mid next year, as the Therapeutic Goods Administration has decided to reclassify nicotine as such. China has allegedly expanded its detention centres for Uighur Muslims despite claims otherwise. The Australian Strategic Policy Institute said that it suspects ther

INDIA India recorded 75 thousand fresh COVID infections yesterday, its lowest in almost a month. Meanwhile, recoveries rose by over 1 lakh pushing recoveries to nearly 45 lakh. Deaths rose by over one thousand to nearly 89 thousand. India and China issued a joint statement that they agreed to stop sending more troops to the border and that they will refrain from unilaterally changing the status quo on ground. Pakistan denied issuing a visa to Indian diplomat Jayant Khobragade who was set to be appointed as acting head of Indian High Commission in Islamabad, on grounds that he was too senior for the post. Hong Kong suspended Air India flights after it was suspected of carrying COVID positive passengers into the island. The Parliament passed a bill to remove cereals, pulses, oil seeds, onions and potatoes among others from the list of essential commodities. Public sector banks reported frauds worth nearly twenty thousand crore during April – June this year, reported PTI. The highest by value was Bank of India which alone took a hit of over 5 thousand crores. As their relationships turned sour, the Shapoorji Pallonji Group is set to exit from the Tata Group, where it holds a 18% stake, ending a 70 year old relationship with the Indian conglomerate. Mukesh Ambani’s latest low cost weapon to dominate the Indian telecom market is the Jio Phone. India’s most valuable company is in talks with domestic assemblers to ramp up production and manufacture millions of Jio Phones which would run on Android and cost just around ₹4,000. Reported Bloomberg. Union Minister Piyush Goyal claimed that India’s imports from China declined by over 27% during Apr-Aug this year compared to last year. BCCI secretary Jay Shah said that “an unprecedented 20 crore people tuned in” to watch the IPL opener between Mumbai and Chennai on September 19. “Highest ever opening day viewership for any sporting league in any country”, he said. APPLES TO APPLES India, South Asia’s biggest economy has been ineffective in stamping out the coronavirus outbreak and it will show up in its economic performance: India is set to lag regional peers in the race to recovery. The relative success of Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in containing the virus will help their economies recover at a faster pace than India, Capital Economics Ltd. said in a report to clients. Reported Bloomberg. AROUND THE WORLD The 2021 World Economic Forum planned for summer 2021 in Davos has been cancelled, and is likely to be moved to Switzerland. Late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is set to become the first woman ever to be laid to rest in state in the US Capitol, an honor given to the distinguished select few. Louisville police declared a state of emergency in the city, ahead of the grand jury's decision in the Breonna Taylor case. Breonna was shot dead by cops at her apartment earlier this year. Three NFL teams are being fined $250,000 each and their head coaches $100,000 each because their coaches were not wearing face coverings during games on Sunday, reported CNN. The teams include Seattle Seahawks, the Denver Broncos and the San Francisco 49ers. American electric vehicle maker Nikola's founder chairman Trevor Milton resigned from his role, after accusations of fraud, while dismissing the accusations as false. “The focus should be on the Company ... not me”, he said. The UK’s Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance said that the epidemic is doubling roughly every seven days and that if it continues like this, the country’s cases could skyrocket to 50 thousand a day in a month's time. The United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced fresh curbs fearing a second surge in COVID infections in the country, as he discouraged office goers from heading back into office and urged them to continue working from home. The new rules include making face coverings mandatory in many public places and higher fines for violators. China’s Global Times reported that Beijing is unlikely to approve

INDIAIndia recorded over 96 thousand fresh COVID infections yesterday as the case tally rose to 52 lakh. Deaths reached 84 thousand while recoveries topped 41 lakh. BJP Member of Parliament, Sukhbir Jaunapuria, who claimed that bathing in mud and blowing a conch shell will get rid of coronavirus tested positive for it. Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said that the domestic aviation sector is returning to pre-COVID figures with 1.16 lakh passengers flying on Thursday. Dubai Civil Aviation Authority suspended Air India Express operations for 2 weeks after the airline carried COVID positive patients onboard its flight to the UAE on September 4. Some good news: For the first time in six months – since Modi imposed a lockdown – gasoline sales rose in the first half of September by 2.2%. A small rise, but a rise nonetheless. A sign that people are moving and factories have turned it up a notch. E-commerce player Snapdeal is testing last-mile deliveries using robots. The autonomous robots were developed by startup Ottonomy IO and use machine learning, and another new tech to understand the external world. ‘India’s most valuable startup’/ 'India's largest payment gateway' Paytm was removed from the Google Play Store yesterday. Google alleged that Paytm repeatedly violated its policy. Google specifically prohibits online casinos and other unregulated gambling apps while Paytm promotes one such service on its app. Reported TechCrunch. Sports betting is expected to skyrocket as the IPL season kicks off and unemployment soars, with gambling apps luring consumers with easy money. Paytm reassured panicking users that their money is ‘completely safe’ and that the app will be restored on the Play Store ‘very soon’. The Indian Railways plans to levy a ‘user fees’ at major stations soon and use that funds to redevelop and modernise existing railway stations. UNITED STATES FBI Director Christopher Wray told lawmakers Thursday that Antifa is an ideology, not an organization, delivering testimony that puts him at odds with President Donald Trump, who has said he would designate it a terror group. Reported AP. “And I look at them as a bunch of well-funded ANARCHISTS & THUGS who are protected because the Comey/Mueller inspired FBI is simply unable, or unwilling, to find their funding source, and allows them to get away with “murder”, said Trump. FBI Director Christopher Wray claimed that Russia is trying to influence the upcoming US Presidential elections to stop Biden from winning by using social media primarily. US Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden warned the United Kingdom that it must honour Northern Ireland’s 1998 peace agreement as it withdraws from the European Union or there would be no separate US trade deal. Reported Reuters. The devastating wildfires in the western US have sent smoke far and wide, even reaching Europe, said scientists from CAMS. The US will be banning WeChat and TikTok from US app stores from tomorrow, over national security concerns. Those who already have the apps downloaded can continue to use it until November 12, by which time owner ByteDance can possibly sort out its fate with the Trump administration. Reuters had previously reported on Thursday that Trump does not want ByteDance to maintain a controlling interest in TikTok. Facebook is being sued by an Instagram user for allegedly spying on Instagram users using their mobile phone cameras. Reported Bloomberg. Separately, Facebook partnered Rayban to develop smart glasses. Forrest Gump's writer Winston Groom passed away aged 77. His novel was made into a six-Oscar winning movie in 1994. Self-proclaimed “no-masker”, Paul Van Noy, a pastor in Idaho, is in the ICU after contracting coronavirus. Five other staff at his church too have been infected with the virus. AROUND THE WORLD Global COVID infections crossed 30 million on Thursday as countries around the world set new records. Casualties from the virus are at 950 thousand. The number

India reported over 90 thousand fresh COVID infections yesterday as the case tally crossed 5 million (50.2 lakh). Active cases stood at 9.95 lakh and deaths at 82 thousand. Delhi recorded 4,473 fresh COVID infections yesterday, its highest single-day spike yet as the case tally rose to 2.3 lakh. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Delhi BJP President Adesh Gupta, the state's Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, and seven MLAs have tested positive for Coronavirus. Karnataka home minister Basavaraj Bommai tested positive for COVID. The state's capital Bengaluru overtook Mumbai to become the second most affected city in the country with over 1.75 lakh cases. Russia concluded a deal with Dr. Reddy's lab to carry out a clinical trial and if successful, supply 100 million doses of its COVID vaccine – Sputnik V in India. Despite criticism from the West, Russia believes its vaccine elicits an antibody response without any adverse side effects. Addressing the Indo-China debacle, the home ministry told the Rajya Sabha yesterday that “there has been no infiltration along the Sino-Indian border in the last six months”. A year has passed since the PMC Bank debacle, depositors are yet to find a solution while the Lok Sabha passed a Banking Regulation Amendment Bill. Finance Minister Shri Shri Nirmala Sitharaman said the bill will protest the depositors. A special CBI court hearing on the Babri mosque demolition case will announce its judgment on September 30, and the judge SK Yadav has directed all the accused to be present in court on the day – including LK Advani and other BJP leaders such as MM Joshi, Kalyan Singh, and Uma Bharti. India banned air travel, with a blanket sweep overnight on March 24. A few weeks after, they allowed one single operator to 'repatriate' Indians stuck aboard – the government-owned Air India. Just how much money did the airline make from this? Over ₹2,500 crores. Meanwhile, the total revenues of the country's airlines fell over 85% to just ₹3,651 crores in the first quarter. Do we chase the virus or pot? The Narcotics Control Bureau investigator who was investigating the Sushant Singh Rajput drug case tested positive for Coronavirus himself, bringing to light the country’s priorities. 2020 has been rough enough for Bollywood, with the entertainment and media industry practically shut down for months and cinemas yet to reopen leading to thousands of crores in losses. But it's getting worse with a barrage of controversies that kicked off as justice for Sushant Singh Rajput and has now morphed into a war against drugs. Jaya Bachchan gave an emotional speech defending the industry in Rajya Sabha. In response, Kangana threw hate. UNITED STATES The vaccine’s coming claimed Trump. “The previous administration would have taken perhaps years to have a vaccine, because of the FDA and all the approvals,” Trump said. “We’re within weeks of getting it. You know, could be three weeks, four weeks.” Trump claimed that he never downplayed the pandemic, he “up-played” it instead. A World Trade Organization panel ruled that the Trump administration's tariffs on over $500 billion worth of Chinese goods violate international rules. But the ruling is ineffective as Trump denounced the WTO. Reported Bloomberg. A surge in people buying guns since the coronavirus pandemic began has flooded the FBI’s background check system, causing a spike in the number of delayed checks and allowing gun sales to proceed without them, FBI data disclosed on Tuesday showed. Reported Reuters. Bill Gates' father Bill Gates Sr passed away aged 94, due to Alzheimer's disease. AROUND THE WORLD Japan's parliament elected Yoshihide Suga as the country's new prime minister replacing Shinzo Abe who resigned earlier. The Caribbean island of Barbados will remove Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state and declare a republic by November next year, said its prime minister Mia Mottley. “Time to fully leave our colonial past behind”, she added. The European Union does not recognize Al

INDIA India reported over 83 thousand fresh Covid infections yesterday as the case tally rose to 49.3 lakh including 38.5 lakh recoveries, 9.9 lakh active cases and 80 thousand plus deaths. Bill Gates said he hopes that that covid vaccine will be rolled out from India next year. “It's very likely that roll-out of COVID-19 vaccine will take place in fairly big volume (in India) sometime next year,” he said. Indian women are at 2.7 times more risk of dying of covid-19 compared to white women, indicated a provisional analysis done by the UN Women and United Nations Development Programme. India and China border issue remain unresolved and there has been no mutually acceptable solution so far, said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh regarding the standoff between the two countries in eastern Ladakh. Civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri said that the country's flag carrier Air India will either have to be privatised or it will have to be closed down by the Indian government due to its sky-high ₹60,000 debt. The Indian government is considering dropping its debt clause in its Air India sale, as just about nobody wants to buy the airline. Further, foreign direct inflow (FDI) into the country from China has declined for the last 3 years, said Thakur. 2019-20 brought in only $163 million compared to $350 million in 2017-18. The Union ministry for MSME said it was written to the country’s top 500 private companies asking them to quickly clear the dues toward small payments. As Bihar is about to head into elections, Prime Minister Modi continued his star campaign in the state. Yesterday, he laid the foundations for seven urban infrastructure projects worth over five hundred crores in the state. Tamil Nadu cleared a new bill to provide a 7.5% quota for government school students in the medical admission for undergraduate students. Walmart owned Flipkart announced that its Big Billion Days sale will lead to 70 thousand direct jobs this festive season along with over 50 thousand kiranas being added on for last-mile delivery. Amazon partnered with actor Amitabh Bachchan to bring his voice to its digital assistant Alexa. We should be able to hear him by the end of this year. AROUND THE WORLD University of Pittsburgh scientists said that they were able to isolate a molecule that “completely and specifically neutralizes” SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. They discovered a tiny antibody component that can prevent and treat the infection. Coronavirus vaccines being developed in China may be ready for use by the general public as early as November, said a China Centre for Disease Control and Prevention official. Developing Asia’s coronavirus-battered economy will shrink for the first time since the early 1960s, with the level of output next year still seen below pre-pandemic projections even as growth recovers, according to the Asian Development Bank. The biggest economy though, China will buck the trend. Reported Bloomberg. Germany claimed that laboratories in France and Sweden have independently confirmed that Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was poisoned with the Soviet-style nerve agent Novichok. Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused the West of using the incident as a pretext to impose additional sanctions on Russia. Reported Reuters. Pringles is being reimagined. As environmentalists deem its iconic tube the “number one recycling villain” in the UK. “We are eager to play our part and reduce our impact on the planet,” said its VP. A lock of Abraham Lincoln's hair along with a blood-stained telegram about his 1865 assassination has been sold at auction for more than $81,000. Reported AP. AGING The number of people aged 100 or older in Japan has surpassed 80,000 for the first time amid the rapid ageing of the country’s population. 88% are women. Reported Japan Times. Kane Tanaka, recognized as the world's oldest living person by Guinness World Records, receives a birthday cake for her 117th birthday at a nu

INDIA India's case tally rose to 48.4 lakh yesterday after over 92 thousand fresh Covid infections were recorded. Recovery rate climbed to 78% and deaths rose by 1,136 to 79 thousand. As the Winter Parliament session begins, 25 Members of Parliament tested positive for Coronavirus yesterday. But fear not, the government said that the use of ‘Chyawanprash’ is believed ‘to be effective’ in post-Covid-19 recovery for patients. The government banned the export of all varieties of onions with immediate effect yesterday as “rates have increased and there is a shortage of onion in the domestic market”. Husband of former ICICI head Chanda Kochhar, Deepak Kochhar has tested positive for Coronavirus after he was arrested in the ICICI Bank-Videocon money laundering case by the ED. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced a scheme for thousands of poor Sanatan Brahmin priests in the state including a monthly allowance and free housing. Malayalam actor Prabeesh Chakkalakkal collapsed and died during a film shooting in Kochi. The Narcotics Control Bureau said that Rhea Chakraborty named Sara Ali Khan and Rakul Preet Singh among others while being questioned in the drug case. A boy from Bihar, Santosh Kumar Yadav, travelled 700 kilometres taking over 24 hours to reach Kolkata to take the NEET test for medical school. Unfortunately, he was 10 minutes late and authorities denied him the exam. “I lost a year”, he said. The GST collection during April-August declined on account of COVID-19 induced lockdown, and the compensation due to states stands at over ₹1.51 trillion, announced Minister of State for Finance Anurag Singh Thakur. The union finance ministry requested Parliament's approval to infuse ₹20,000 crores into public sector banks, to ease liquidity concerns amid rising NPAs. After four months, India's wholesale price inflation finally turned positive in August, a sign that the supply and demand shock caused by the pandemic is easing. Mukesh Ambani has kept US-based Carlyle Group and Japan’s SoftBank on the waiting list for Reliance Retail stakes, reported Bloomberg as investors demand is so strong for Reliance Retail. UNITED STATES In the US, 11 states have been witnessing growing rates of Covid infections – Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Reuters reported that ByteDance rejected Microsoft's bid to acquire TikTok US while announcing that it will partner with Oracle and give them the management of TikTok's US user data in order to spare its US ban while also appeasing China's government. But over in China, CGTN reported that ByteDance will neither sell TikTok’s US operations to Microsoft or Oracle nor will it give the source code to any US buyers. After hiring 175 thousand people this year, Amazon announced to hire another 100 thousand people to keep up with the spike in online orders. A group of 19 black families bought nearly a hundred acres of land in Georgia in order to create a safe city for Black families. “Watching our people protesting in the streets, while it is important, and I want people to stay out in the streets, bringing attention to the injustices of Black people. We needed to create a space and a place where we could be a village, again, a tribe, again,” said the real estate agent Ashley Scott. AROUND THE WORLD The world recorded its highest daily jump in fresh Covid infections with near 308 thousand new cases on Sunday. The WHO warned that the upcoming winter season is going to cause a new wave of infections and spike in deaths. France reported over 10 thousand fresh Covid infections for the first time since the pandemic broke out. Israel became the first nation to go for a second national lockdown to contain the spike in Covid infections. Chinese and Russian forces will take part in joint military exercises in southern Russia later this month along with troops from Armenia, Belarus, Iran, Myanmar, Pakistan and

INDIA India reported 94 thousand fresh covid infections yesterday as the case tally rose to 47.5 lakh. Recoveries rose by 78 thousand to 37 lakh, while deaths rose to 78 thousand. Delhi, which was touted for flattening the curve, just reported its highest single-day jump in Covid infections – 4,321. The Union Ministry of Finance announced that ₹30,000 crores have been progressed as a Special Liquidity Scheme for non-banking, housing finance companies and Monetary Financial Institutions as part of the Atmanirbhar Bharat package. The CBI booked two senior GST department officials in Hyderabad for allegedly demanding a five crore rupee bribe to settle a GST fraud case. As Bihar heads into elections, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji inaugurated and dedicated 3 petroleum projects in the state on Sunday. Over the last week, he also launched animal husbandry and fisheries schemes in the state. “We must ensure sushasan in Bihar. The good work done in the last 15 years must continue,” he said. In Mumbai, dabbawalas have requested the government to permit them to use the local trains, which are currently operating under limited numbers and only for those who work in essential services. “Never before in the 130-year-old history of the tiffin services, has there been a six-month break,” said their association president. Former Union minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh passed away. In Delhi, a 16-year-old boy who had no heartbeat for 36 hours after suffering a high voltage electric shock regained consciousness. UNITED STATES The United States should “better manage” its own affairs and stop meddling in those of other nations, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Friday. “Now is the time for China to ask the United States not to interfere in China's internal affairs”. On Sunday, China's Defense Ministry hit out at the US. “Many years of evidence shows that it is the US that is the fomenter of regional unrest, the violator of the international order and the destroyer of world peace,” said a spokesman. While many cities around the US are cutting police funding in light of national protests, the state of Tennessee is planning on using Coronavirus relief money to fund the training of more police. At Michigan State University, all local students have been asked to self-quarantine for 2 weeks as authorities fear an exponential surge in Covid infections in the county. In New Jersey, Governor Phil Murphy declared Juneteenth as a public holiday. The day, June 19 marks the abolition of slavery in the US back in 1865. The Ohio Supreme Court rejected Kanye West's presidential ballot. 22-year-old Naomi Osaka won the US Open. AROUND THE WORLD AstraZeneca/ Oxford University restarted the trials of their Covid vaccine days after it was suspended following an unexpected illness of one of the candidates. North Korea allegedly executed five Economic Ministry workers after they criticised the supreme leader Kim Jong Un’s policies at a dinner party, reported DailyMail. It is believed the communist party officials were shot by a firing squad on July 30. A Chinese virologist, Dr Li Meng-Yan, who fled to the US after claiming China covered up the coronavirus outbreak, has vowed to publish proof the virus was made in a lab. Reported The Sun. Japan’s Defense Minister Taro Kono said that China has now become a “national security threat” to Japan. “When I was foreign minister, I was very careful not to say that China is a threat although I repeatedly said ‘grave concern’ at news conferences… But as defence minister, I must say China has become a security threat to Japan.” The United Arab Emirates reported its highest yet daily rise in Covid infections after over one thousand people testing positive on Saturday. Despite the international and domestic protest, Iranian wrestling champion Navid Afkari was executed in Iran on Saturday. The 27-year-old was sentenced in connection with protests against the regime in 2018. The Kaduna state in Nigeria has approved

INDIAIndia recorded over 95 thousand fresh Covid infections in 24 hours yesterday – the highest yet – as the case tally topped 44 lakh including 75 thousand deaths and over 9 lakh active cases. After a UK volunteer developed an 'unexplained illness', Serum Institute of India paused its clinical trial of the covid vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca. Serum Institute will resume the trials once AstraZeneca resumes it. External affairs minister S Jaishankar is scheduled to meet his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Moscow to address escalating tensions at the border between the two countries. The Supreme Court extended its interim order of loan moratorium till September 28 while directing the Centre, RBI and banks to file their reply within 2 weeks on interest waiver during the lockdown period. A survey by LocalCircles found that over 80% of Indians do not intend to travel anywhere this festive season, as Covid infections continue to mount across the country. India expects its hotel occupancy to remain at a mere 30% till next year, as the pandemic induces massive revenue losses of nearly $20 billion. The government is yet to decide whether to lend the ailing industry a helping hand. Plenty of businesses in the industry have already shut shop having given up hope. Gurgaon based food aggregator Zomato raised over $100 million led by Tiger Global at a $3.4 billion valuation. Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd. is offering to sell a roughly $20 billion stake in its retail business to Amazon, reported Bloomberg. The move will make the two rivals allies handing over the retail ecosystem on a platter to Ambani. Reliance Industries shares rose to record highs becoming the first Indian company to cross a market value of $200 billion. Separately, Bank of America Securities noted that after building a 'digital layer' (Jio Platforms) on top of the existing 'physical layer' of retail shops, Reliance Industries would over the next four years focus on adding a third 'layer of commerce' and monetize the existing investments. For example – selling advertisements to hundreds of millions of Jio users. In Indore, an 11-year-old boy allegedly smashed a 10-year-old girl’s head killing her after she repeatedly beat him in an online game. In Mumbai, filmmaker Anurag Kashyap and comedian Kunal Kamra visited Republic TV’s Arnab Goswami’s office in Mumbai to hand over an ‘excellence in journalism award’ – framed slippers. However, they were denied admission into the unbiased journalist’s office. 2 Republic TV employees were arrested for allegedly trespassing Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s farmhouse in Raigad and manhandling a security guard. UNITED STATES The United States has revoked more than 1,000 visas of Chinese nationals as of September 8, a State Department spokesperson said on Wednesday, as part of the Trump administration's push to block entry of students and researchers from China believed to have links to the Chinese military. Reported Reuters. Bloomberg reported that more Americans are quitting their jobs and why that’s a good sign: The number of US workers who voluntarily left their jobs in July increased to a five-month high, indicating more Americans are becoming sanguine about their prospects of finding a new position as the economy recovers. President Donald Trump says US companies should leave China and return home. But, a new survey of US businesses in the country shows most aren’t interested in taking him up on the offer. Only about 4% of the more than 200 manufacturers surveyed by the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai said they will shift any production to the US. Reported Bloomberg. Home Depot said it will cancel Black Friday this year. Instead, it'll 'reinvent' the holiday discounts by offering them over a two month period from November through December. In more Halloween updates, the Los Angeles county-issued strict trick-or-treating guidelines including a b

INDIA India recorded 90 thousand fresh Covid infections as the case tally topped 44 lakh including nearly 9 lakh active cases. Deaths rose by over 1,100 to nearly 75,000. India issued guidelines for a partial reopening of schools for students of classes 9-12 from September 21. An ICMR study found that India's coveted plasma therapy has no effect on reducing a Covid patient's mortality. India became the fourth country after the United States, Russia and China to develop and successfully test hypersonic technology from APJ Abdul Kalam testing range in Odisha. This indigenous technology will pave the way towards the development of missiles travelling at six times the speed of sound. Reported HT. Maharashtra scrapped its 70:30 reservation rule (70% for locals of the region and 30% for those coming from the rest of the state) in medical courses. 'One Maharashtra, one merit', said the Education Minister. Fifteen video streaming services including Netflix, Amazon, Disney+Hotstar signed a self-regulatory pact to make collective informed decisions to benefit viewers and regulate the industry effectively. After India's quarterly GDP sank at the steepest rate globally, Fitch Ratings revised downward its forecast and projected a 10.5% drop in the country's economic output for the current financial year. “The sharp decline in economic growth should alarm us all. The 23.9 per cent contraction in India (and the numbers will probably be worse when we get estimates of the damage in the informal sector) compares with a drop of 12.4 per cent in Italy and 9.5 per cent in the United States, two of the most COVID-19-affected advanced countries,” said former RBI Gov Raghuram Rajan. “All this requires a more thoughtful and active government”, he added. Politician Kangana Ranaut is at war with Shiv Sena, Rhea Chakraborty, Bollywood (the industry that employs her), Mumbai and Hrithik Roshan among others. Why? Because she speaks the bitter truth and everyone hates her for it. Allegedly. Amid the standoff, Mumbai’s municipality started bulldozing her building in Mumbai for alleged building violations until the Bombay High Court issued a stay. “Uddhav Thackeray, tujhe kya lagta hai ” Today my house is destroyed, tomorrow it will be your ego”, she said in a clip addressed to the Chief Minister. After arresting Rhea Chakraborty, the Narcotics Control Bureau shifted her to the Byculla jail. A court rejected her bail application as the NCB argued that she was 'an active member of a drug syndicate'. UNITED STATES United States President Donald Trump has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize 2021 for his role in brokering a historic deal between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. He might win, too. Further, Trump is expected to withdrawal more US troops from Afghanistan and Iraq, as part of his pledge to stop ‘endless’ wars. Dr Fauci said a coronavirus vaccine is unlikely to be ready before the US Presidential election in November this year. Half a million children in the US have tested positive for Coronavirus, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association. In Salt Lake City, a 13-year-old boy with autism was shot several times by police. Police reportedly responded to his mother's call to help her after the boy was having an episode caused by “bad separation anxiety”. While the mother hoped the cops would help de-escalate the situation, they instead sent the boy to the ER. AROUND THE WORLD Final clinical trials for a coronavirus vaccine, developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, have been put on hold after a participant had a suspected adverse reaction in the UK. In India, drug regulator DCGI issued a show-cause notice to Serum Institute of India, the firm that has partnered AstraZeneca in manufacturing the potential vaccine. A poll found that 44% of Greeks will not take the Coronavirus vaccine if and when one becomes available. Reported To Vima. Further, nearly 20% of the respondents said they oppo