BREAKING highlights: 259 fresh Covid cases recorded in Delhi in a day

Maharashtra recorded 177 new Covid cases on Monday, a significant drop from the 425 new cases recorded a day earlier, taking the state’s tally to 81,66,068. Read more

Delhi reports 259 fresh COVID cases and 2 deaths in the last 24 hours. The positivity rate stands at 14.36%

The BJP on Monday launched an indefinite dharna near Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's official residence asking him to open his bungalow to the people for a visit amid allegations that ₹45 crore was spent on its renovation. Read more

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MP Afzal Ansari, brother of gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari, was disqualified from Lok Sabha on Monday following his conviction in a 2007 Gangsters Act case. Read more

Over 4.7 million WhatsApp accounts have been banned in India in last month followed by the ‘negative feedback’ received from users, according to a monthly report published by the Meta-owned instant messaging platform. Read more

A fire has been reported from Mumbai's Mohammed Ali Road. The fire was reported from inside a shop. Further details awaited.

GST collection grew by 12 per cent in April to ₹1.87 lakh crore, the highest monthly mop-up since the rollout of the indirect tax regime.

The gross GST revenue collected in the month of April 2023 is ₹1,87,035 crore of which CGST is ₹38,440 crore, SGST is ₹47,412 crore, IGST is ₹89,158 crore (including ₹34,972 crore collected on import of goods) and cess is ₹12,025 crore, the finance ministry said in a statement.

The previous high collection of ₹1.68 lakh crore was in April last year.

"The revenues for the month of April 2023 are 12 per cent higher than the GST revenues in the same month last year," the ministry said.

Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee Chairman Ajendra Ajay appealed to the pilgrims visiting Kedarnath to take information about the weather before heading for yatra and said that the state government and the temple committee have made all arrangements for the Chardham Yatra. (ANI)

FIR against AAP Gujarat chief Isudan Gadhvi for tweet claiming ₹830 crore spent on PM Modi's 'Mann ki Baat' programme, PTI says quoting officials.

NSA Ajit Doval on Monday held wide-ranging talks with his Iranian counterpart Ali Shamkhani in Tehran focusing on economic, political and security ties between the two countries.

The National Security Advisor is on a day-long visit to Iran.

The two officials discussed economic, political and security issues concerning the two countries as well as the most important regional and international developments, Iran's IRNA news agency reported.

The health condition of Union Minister G Kishan Reddy was stable and he was under observation at the AIIMS, hospital authorities said on Monday. Read more

The Naveen Patnaik government on Monday began its first-ever survey of social and educational conditions of people belonging to 208 backward castes in the state with a detailed questionnaire on the kind of houses they live in, their livelihood, access to basic infrastructure such as highways and railways and percentage of the cases in panchayatiraj institutions and urban local bodies.

The survey which will be conducted till May 27 kicked off in 314 blocks and 114 urban local bodies with people queuing up at common service centres, PDS centres and anganwadi centres with their ration cards and Aadhar cards for participating in the survey. Those who can't go to the common service centres can submit the ICR survey forms on the survey portal. In offline mode, Anganwadi workers and teachers will be engaged as enumerators.

Fierce fighting broke out again Monday between Sudan's army and paramilitaries despite the formal extension of a truce, after the United Nations warned the humanitarian situation reached “breaking point”, AFP reports

Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu on Monday visited Jantar Mantar to extend his support to the wrestlers protesting against WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

After the gas leak in Punjab's Ludhiana killed at least 11 people, SDM of Ludhiana West stated that the situation is under observation and that they are monitoring gas levels every 2 hours, ANI reported.

“A technical team has been formed by the Punjab Pollution Control Board which will examine the disposal of all the industry's waste here. Investigation is on in the matter. Injured are undergoing treatment,” official further said.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers on Monday staged an indefinite sit-in protest outside Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal's residence over the renovation row, ANI reported. Earlier, during a protest, BJP alleged that Delhi government has spent ₹45 crore on the renovation of Arvind Kejriwal's residence during Covid outbreak.

The central government has blocked 14 mobile applications used by Militants in Pakistan to send coded texts in Jammu and Kashmir.

The banned messenger applications include Crypviser, Enigma, Safeswiss, Wickrme, Mediafire, Briar, BChat, Nandbox, Conion, IMO, Element, Second line, Zangi and Threema.

Tamil Nadu government has told the Supreme Court that no incident of forceful conversion has been reported in the State in the last many years. Citizens are at liberty to choose the religion they want to follow, TN said in an affidavit filed in a plea alleging forcible conversions, ANI reported. TN govt said that there is nothing illegal about missionaries spreading Christianity unless they employ unlawful means to do so.

The Search and Rescue operation declared closed at the building collapse site in Maharashtra's Bhiwandi after 45 hours, ANI reported citing NDRF'a statement. 

A total of 8 people have lost their lives in the collapse.

Television actor Sheezan Khan filed an application in Vasai court to return his passport seized by police, ANI reported. Vasai court will hear this application of Sheezan Khan tomorrow.

Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde on Monday paid tributes to those who sacrificed their lives for the Samyukta Maharashtra Movement at Hutatma Chowk on the occasion of 63rd Maharashtra Foundation Day.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Sunday handed over an appointment letter to Sunita Sharma, the widow of Sanjay Sharma, a civilian killed in a terror attack. Sinha also assured all possible assistance and support to the bereaved family while handing over the appointment letter to the widow at Raj Bhavan.

A car in Delhi's Ashram Chowk carried a man hanging on bonnet for 2 to 3 km at around 11 pm on Sunday night, ANI reported.

"I work as a driver, I was returning after leaving a passenger. When I reached near Ashram, a car touched my car three times, then I came out of my car and stood in front of his car. After which he started driving the car, I hung on the bonnet and he kept driving from Ashram Chowk to Nizamuddin with me hanging on the bonnet. I kept asking him to stop, but he did not stop. The person was totally drunk. On the way, I saw a PCR standing, they followed us until he stopped the car," said the victim Chetan

Oil marketing companies have revised the prices of commercial LPG gas cylinders and the rate of 19 kg commercial LPG gas cylinders has been slashed by ₹171.50 with effect from Monday, ANI reported citing sources.

Delhi retail sales price of 19 kg commercial LPG cylinder is ₹1856.50.