Moscow:

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned the US not to cross Russia’s “red lines” on the Ukraine conflict, asserting that Washington is starting to lose its sense of mutual restraint with Moscow, state-owned TASS news agency reported.

In an interview on Wednesday, Lavrov said that Americans have “crossed their own red lines” on the supply of arms to Ukraine, the Russian news agency reported.

“They (the US) should understand that our red lines are nothing to fool with. And they know very well where they are,” the report quoted him as saying.

Lavrov said the US is starting to lose its sense of mutual restraint with Russia, calling it “dangerous”.

“(US National Security Council spokesman John) Kirby said that the issue of stepping up support for Ukraine should be approached carefully so as not to provoke World War III because it will be sad to see Europe gone,” he said, adding that the US has a “deep-seated conviction that they are untouchable”.

Lavrov said he hoped Washington would realise the potential consequences of supplying Ukraine with weapons.

“I am convinced that there are reasonable people with significant influence left there. And I hope that the interests of the US will be taken into account,” he said.

Meanwhile, at a press conference on Wednesday, Kirby said the US welcomes any nation that is willing to try to help end the conflict in Ukraine.

“Any nation that is willing to try to help end this war and do so in keeping with President Zelenskyy’s prerogatives, the Ukrainian people’s prerogatives, his plan for a just peace, we would certainly welcome a role like that,” he said.

On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin named India among the three countries he is constantly in touch with over the Ukraine conflict, asserting that they are sincerely making efforts to resolve it.

“We respect our friends and partners, who, I believe, sincerely seek to resolve all issues surrounding this conflict, primarily China, Brazil and India. I constantly keep in touch with our colleagues on this issue,” Putin was quoted as saying in a separate report by TASS.

Putin’s remarks came within two weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s historic visit to Ukraine, where he held talks with President Zelenskyy.

On August 23, Modi visited Ukraine, where he conveyed to President Zelenskyy that Ukraine and Russia should sit together without wasting time to end the ongoing war and that India was ready to play an “active role” to restore peace in the region.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Bengaluru:

The Karnataka High Court has dismissed two pleas to continue investigating Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar in a disproportionate assets case. The pleas were filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the other by BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal.

The state government had withdrawn an earlier order – passed by the BJP government led by former Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa – for an inquiry by the federal agency.

New Delhi:

Another steel bridge of 100 m length has been launched for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project on August 25 near Silvassa in Dadra & Nagar Haveli.

This 1464 MT steel bridge of 14.6 m in height and 14.3 m in width has been fabricated at the workshop in Trichy, Tamil Nadu and was transported on trailers to the site for installation.

A temporary launching nose spanning 84 meters and weighing 600 MT was connected with the main bridge for launching, to avoid any intermediate support. Additional temporary members were also installed to strengthen the bridge during launching.

A total of 27,500 nos. of HSFG (High-strength friction grip) bolts were utilised to connect the components of the launching nose and approximately 55,250 nos. of Tor-Shear Type High Strength (TTHS) bolts with C5 system painting and elastomeric bearings, were utilized for the main bridge.

The steel bridge along with the launching nose was assembled near the site at a height of 14.5 m from the ground on temporary trestles and was pulled with an automatic mechanism of 2 semi-automatic jacks, each of capacity of 250 tons using mac-alloy bars.

The Bullet Train project is being executed meticulously, maintaining the utmost standards of safety and engineering excellence. Leveraging Japanese expertise, India is increasingly utilizing its own technical and material resources to build infrastructure under the “Make in India” initiative. 

This is the fourth out of the 28 steel bridges, completed for the Bullet Train corridor.

There are a total of 24 river bridges in the project, 20 are in Gujarat and 4 in Maharashtra. Out of 20 bridges in Gujarat, 10 have been completed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his then-Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe launched the project in Ahmedabad on September 14, 2017.

National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) was incorporated on February 12, 2016, under the Companies Act, 2013 with the object of financing, constructing, maintaining and managing the High-Speed Rail Corridor in India.

The Company has been modeled as a ‘Special Purpose Vehicle’ in the joint sector with equity participation by the Central Government through the Ministry of Railways and two State Governments — Government of Gujarat and Government of Maharashtra.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Mumbai:

A murder accused out on parole allegedly raped a 15-year-old girl in Maharashtra’s Sangli city, police said on Saturday.

The accused, Sanjay Prakash Mane (34), was arrested in the morning, an official said.

Mane is an accused in a 2011 murder case and had come out on parole two months ago, he said.

The girl had stepped out to go to a shop around 9.30 pm on Friday when the accused waylaid her, forcibly took her to his house and raped her, the official said.

The girl informed her mother about the assault on Saturday, following which a complaint was lodged, and the accused was apprehended within two hours, he said.

Mane had allegedly also molested the girl last month, the official said.

The accused has been booked under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, he said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Washington:

The military-to-military relationship between India and the United States is strong, the Pentagon said Thursday on the eve of the meeting between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Defense Secretary Austin Lloyd.

Rajnath Singh arrived in Washington Thursday morning as part of a four-day visit to further boost the comprehensive global strategic partnership between the two countries. He is scheduled to meet Austin at the Pentagon on Friday.

“The mil-to-mil relationships between the United States and India are strong,” Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters at a news conference here.

“You’ve seen that cooperation deepen, and not just from a DOD perspective, but from an administration perspective. Our close coordination and working together remains strong. The (Defense) secretary when he visited India, you know, announced some of those deliverables,” Sabrina Singh said in response to a question.

“I’m not going to go through all of what he announced then, but it remains strong,” she said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Saharanpur:

A 13-year-old boy took his own life on Saturday after being scolded by his father in the Deoband area of this Uttar Pradesh district, police said.

Superintendent of Police (Rural) Sagar Jain said Umar, a Class-5 student, was the son of Shamsher, a grocery shop owner in the Sarai Peerzadagaan neighbourhood.

Shamsher had asked Umar to bring some items for the shop. When Umar refused, he scolded him, the SP said.

“Distressed by the reprimand, Umar went to the kitchen on the upper floor of their house and hanged himself with a scarf from a grill above the door. The family found out about the incident shortly afterwards,” the officer said.

Police arrived at the scene on receiving information about the incident.

After completing the necessary formalities, the body was handed over to the boy’s family, police said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Dhaka:

The Indian High Commission in Bangladesh remains functional, and senior diplomats and essential staff continue to remain in the country, sources told ANI. Non-essential staff and families of Indian diplomatic missions have returned to India on a voluntary basis through a commercial flight, the sources said.

Amid political unrest in Bangladesh, an Air India flight from Dhaka carrying 199 passengers and six infants landed in Delhi early this morning. Air India operated a special charter flight at short notice despite infrastructure challenges at Dhaka Airport late last night and landed in Delhi early this morning, as per information provided by sources.

Bangladesh is facing a fluid political situation, with Sheikh Hasina tendering her resignation from her post in the wake of mounting protests on August 5. The protests, led mainly by students demanding an end to the quota system for government jobs, evolved into anti-government demonstrations.

A day after Sheikh Hasina resigned as Prime Minister of Bangladesh and left the country, President Mohammed Shahabuddin announced the dissolution of the country’s parliament to make way for the formation of an interim administration, the Dhaka Tribune reported.

Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has been appointed as the head of Bangladesh’s interim government, the Dhaka Tribune reported. The Bangladesh President’s Press Secretary, Joynal Abedin, made the announcement.

The decision regarding the appointment of Bangladesh’s interim government head was made during a meeting between President Shahabuddin and the coordinators of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement.

On Tuesday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that there are an estimated 19,000 Indian nationals, of whom about 9000 are students, while ensuring the country that the government is in close contact with the Indian community in Dhaka.

Jaishankar informed the Lok Sabha that the bulk of the students returned to India in July.

“We are in close and continuous touch with the Indian community in Bangladesh through our diplomatic missions. There are an estimated 19,000 Indian nationals there, of which about 9000 are students. The bulk of the students returned in July,” he said.

He also said that Bangladesh’s former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina requested approval from India to come at very short notice, and she arrived on the evening of Monday.

“On August 5, demonstrators converged in Dhaka despite the curfew. Our understanding is that after a meeting with leaders of the security establishment, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina apparently made the decision to resign. At very short notice, she requested approval to come for the moment to India. We simultaneously received a request for flight clearance from Bangladeshi authorities. She arrived yesterday evening in Delhi,” he said.

The External Affairs Minister also mentioned that the government is monitoring the situation with regard to the minorities living in Bangladesh. Jaishankar noted that ties between India and Bangladesh are exceptionally close.

“Since the election in January 2024, there have been considerable tensions, deep divides, and growing polarisation in Bangladesh politics, and “this underlying foundation aggravated a student agitation that started in June this year.”

“There was growing violence, including attacks on public buildings, and violence continued in July. We counselled restraint and urged the situation to be resolved by dialogue, Jaishankar said in his statement in Rajya Sabha.

He said that the growing violence included attacks on public buildings and infrastructure, as well as traffic and rail obstructions.

Jaishankar said, “Throughout this period, we repeatedly counselled restraint and urged that the situation be defused through dialogue. Similar urgings were made to various political forces with whom we were in touch.”

New Delhi:

As the Parliament convenes for the ongoing Monsoon Session, the discussion regarding National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), unemployment, and regulation of airfares will be taken up in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha today.

According to the agenda released, the Union Ministers Arjun Ram Meghwal, Prataprao Jadhav, Anupriya Patel, Kritivardhan Singh, and Shantanu Thakur will lay papers on the tables in Lok Sabha.

A discussion is to be held on the working of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. The monsoon session of Parliament commenced on July 22 and as per the schedule, the session will conclude on August 12.

Here are the Live Updates on Monsoon Session of Parliament:

Monsoon Session Updates:

BJP MP from Mandi, Kangana Ranaut says, “It’s the very saddening thing for us. The life of people living in the mountains is tough. Every year such tragedies come and damage the lives and property of the people of Himachal Pradesh. The PM and the Union HM have taken reports for all the things and have given assurance that more help through relief funds will be provided. I’ll also meet different ministers to seek as much help as I can get. After my work is completed here, I’ll visit Himachal to meet people in their tough times…”

Parliament LIVE Updates:

Congress MP Manickam Tagore gives adjournment motion notice in Lok Sabha.

“The opposition condemns the BJP government’s misuse of agencies like the ED, CBI, and Income Tax for political harassment. Despite their reduced number from 303 to 240 seats and the reliance on alliances with TDP and JDU, the government continues to deploy these agencies to intimidate opposition leaders and force compliance, undermining democratic principles.” reads the notice.

Monsoon Session Updates:

Union Minister Giriraj Singh says, “I believe that it is the country’s misfortune that Rahul Gandhi is LoP. Along with lying inside the Parliament, he is also spreading disinformation outside…he is ashamed, he asks about the caste of the whole world…”

#WATCH | Delhi: Union Minister Giriraj Singh says, “I believe that it is the country’s misfortune that Rahul Gandhi is LoP. Along with lying inside the Parliament, he is also spreading disinformation outside…he is ashamed, he asks about the caste of the whole world…” pic.twitter.com/ne7Li5bTn4

– ANI (@ANI) August 2, 2024

Monsoon Session Updates: Discussion on demand for grants for Health Ministry in Lok Sabha today

The Lok Sabha today will take up a discussion followed by voting on demand for grants for the Health and Family Welfare Ministry for 2024-25.

Discussion and voting on demand for grants for Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying is also slated for the day.

According to the list of business, Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda will move a motion in the Lower House on Friday for the election of one member to the Governing Council of North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS), Shillong.

• Union Minister Piyush Goyal will move a motion for elections to the rubber board.
• Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will move the statutory resolution.
• A discussion is to be held on the working of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. 
• The monsoon session of Parliament commenced on July 22 and as per the schedule, the session will conclude on August 12.

• BJP leader Smita Uday Wagh will move a resolution to discuss Immediate steps for the inclusion of the Lower Tapi Project under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana.
• In the Rajya Sabha Union Ministers Jitin Prasada, Ram Nath Thakur, Prof. SP Singh Baghel, L Murugan, Bhagirath Choudhary, and Pabitra Margherita will lay apers on the table entered in separate lists.
• Minister of State in the Ministry of Food Processing Industries Ravneet Singh Bittu will make a statement regarding the Status of implementation of Recommendations/ Observations contained in the 67th Report of the Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Food Processing on ‘Scheme for Creation/ Expansion of Food Processing and Preservation Capacities – An Evaluation’.
• Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal will move a motion for elections to the joint committee on offices of profit.

• Meanwhile, Minister of State Sanjay Seth will move a motion for the election of two members to the central advisory committee for the National Cadet Corps.
• Later the discussion and voting will be held on demands for Grants under the control of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for 2024-25 and the control of the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying for 2024-25.
• In the private members business Congress leader Shafi Parambil will move a resolution on the further discussion on Appropriate Measures to Regulate Airfare in the Country.
• Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Shripang Appa Barne to move a resolution for further discussion on Appropriate measures on the regulation of Private Financial Companies.

• Ministry of Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal will make a statement regarding Government Business during the remaining part of the 2nd session of the 18th Lok Sabha.
• Union Minister JP Nadda will move the motion for the election of one member to the Governing Council of North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institue of Health and Medical Sciences (Neigrihms), Shillong.

• As the Parliament convenes for the ongoing Monsoon Session on Friday, the discussion regarding National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), unemployment, and regulation of airfares will be taken up in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha today.
• According to the agenda released, the Union Ministers Arjun Ram Meghwal, Prataprao Jadhav, Anupriya Patel, Kritivardhan Singh, and Shantanu Thakur will lay papers on the tables in Lok Sabha.