Morning Digest: Centre terms Delta plus 'a variant of concern'; Congress goes into damage control over Punjab dissidence, and more

A select list of stories to read before you start your day

Coronavirus | Delta plus is a variant of concern, says government

The Centre on Tuesday termed the emerging Delta plus variant a ‘variant of concern’ just hours after Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan and chairman, National Empowered Group on Vaccination V.K. Paul said it was only a ‘variant of interest (VoI)’.

Many opposition parties skip Rashtra Manch meeting hosted by Sharad Pawar

The Rashtra Manch meeting hosted by Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar in the Capital on Tuesday turned out to be a damp squib with a majority of the opposition parties giving it a miss and many of them sending in second line leaders.

Congress goes into damage control over Punjab

Amid growing tensions between Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and former Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, top Congress leaders, including former party president Rahul Gandhi and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, held back-to-back meetings on Tuesday to resolve the crisis.

Yogi Adityanath, RSS leaders meet U.P. Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya

Amid speculation of differences within the BJP in Uttar Pradesh over the question of leadership ahead of the 2022 Assembly polls, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday called upon his Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya over lunch.

MPs panel seeks survey on pandemic impact on malnutrition

A parliamentary panel on Tuesday asked the Ministry of Women and Child Development to conduct a survey on the impact of the pandemic on anganwadi services and malnutrition levels among children.

Coronavirus | Over 50 lakh jabs given in a single day again

Until 9 p.m. on June 22, over 5.28 million new doses of COVID-19 vaccines were administered in India which is only the second instance when the number of doses in a single day crossed the 5 million-mark. A day before, 8.73 million doses were administered, the highest-ever in a single day since the inoculation drive began.

Indian students of Australian universities in dire straits

When 19-year old Pranavi Jamwal got admission last year into one of the world’s top ten political science programmes at Australia’s top university which has produced Nobel Laureates and Prime Ministers, she was thrilled.

Kabul-Taliban talks have not resulted in any reduction in violence: Jaishankar

Talks between the Afghanistan government and the Taliban have not resulted in any reduction in violence, said External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, pointing out that reports from the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) showed a major increase in violence despite the talks and a U.S.-Taliban agreement last year.

No military solution’ to Afghan situation, U.S. tells Taliban

The U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the Taliban that there is no “military solution” in Afghanistan, as American troops approach a September 11 deadline for complete withdrawal from the country after two decades there. Afghanistan has seen an increasing level of violence in recent months, as the Taliban makes territorial gains.

Arnab Goswami booked in TRP manipulation case

The Mumbai Police has named Arnab Goswami, the editor-in-chief of Republic TV and owner of ARG Outlier Media, as an accused in the Television Ratings Points manipulation case.

First-ever genetically modified rubber planted in Assam

A Rubber Board research farm on the outskirts of Guwahati now sports the world’s first genetically modified (GM) rubber plant tailored for the climatic conditions in the Northeast.

WTC Final | Shami and Ishant’s incisive spells keep Kohli’s men in the contest

India was 64 for two in 30 overs in its second innings at stumps on the fifth day of the World Test Championship final against New Zealand here on Tuesday.

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