Live News June 20: J&K Assembly placed under suspended animation

The Mumbai traffic police department is planning to implement an "odd-even" style of parking for vehicles in congested market areas, the Bombay High Court was told on Wednesday.

The department has filed an affidavit in the HC on behalf of the Joint Commissioner, Traffic. The department told a bench of Justices Naresh Patil and GS Kulkarni that to begin with, the odd-even system will be allowed on a pilot basis, for vehicles in the Kalbadevi market area in South Mumbai.

TDP MP C M Ramesh on Wednesday launched an indefinite fast along with a state legislative council member demanding that the Centre immediately establish an integrated steel plant in the district as per provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014.

The party's Rajya Sabha MP had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, saying he would be "constrained to undertake an indefinite fast" if immediate steps were not taken to set up the plant.

A farmers' body along with the Congress party in Gujarat will hold a "referendum" among cultivators affected by the land acquisition for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train project. The organisation further plans to submit views of farmers in Parliaments of India and Japan.

The land acquisition for the project is facing opposition from farmers in Gujarat, with villagers not allowing the measurement survey to take place in many places. Farmer leaders are demanding that acquisition take place under the Central law and not the state act.

Twenty one fishermen from Tamil Nadu who went to Iran for jobs are in dire straits, with no pay and little food, and their travel documents impounded by their employer, a fishermen's welfare body said and urged the government to take steps for their safe return.

They belong to Kanyakumari, Tuticorin and Tirunelveli districts, and had gone to Iran to take up fishing activity on a "share in income" arrangement with a firm, International Fishermen Development Trust president P Justin Antony said.

A Kanyakumari district official said out of these eight are from the district and steps are under way to bring all the 21 fisherfolk back.

The Congress on Wednesday took a dig at the Modi government over Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) Arvind Subramanian's decision to quit his post, saying financial experts of the government were completely fed up by its "colossal economic mismanagement".

The imposition of governors rule in Jammu and Kashmir will not affect anti-terror operations, Army chief General Bipin Rawat said on Wednesday and noted that there was no political interference.

"We only stopped our operations during Ramzan. But we saw what happened. The terrorists continued with their actions," said General Rawat.

"The imposition of Governor's rule will not affect our operations. Our operations will go on like they used to. We don't face any political interference," he said.

Odisha CM writes to PM Modi to notify Hockey as the national game, states, "The next Hockey Men's World Cup will be held in Odisha in November. I was surprised & shocked to know that what is popularly know as national game has in fact never been notified as our national game."

Jammu and Kashmir Governor NN Vohra on Wednesday placed the state Assembly under suspended animation.

After the imposition of Governor's rule, Vohra exercised his powers under the Constitution.

China on Wednesday distanced itself from its envoy's comments on the idea of trilateral cooperation between India, China and Pakistan under the aegis of the SCO, but underlined the importance of strengthening of dialogue between New Delhi and Islamabad to improve mutual trust.

Chinese Ambassador to India Luo Zhaohui on Monday endorsed the idea of trilateral cooperation between India, China and Pakistan under the aegis of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), saying it could "in the future" help resolve bilateral issues between New Delhi and Islamabad and help maintain peace.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang, when asked about Luo's comments, said both India and Pakistan are China's friends and neighbours.

"We are willing to conduct relations with all our neighbours including Pakistan and India to strengthen our cooperation for better development and stability in this region.

"We also hope India, Pakistan can strengthen their dialogue to improve mutual trust in their bilateral relations. This is in the interest of the regional countries," he said.

Asked whether China is distancing from Luo's remarks, Geng said "what I said represents the official position of the Chinese side".

He also declined to answer a question on the Chinese Embassy erasing envoy's comments from the transcript posted on the website.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday said the government will not tolerate terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir any more and that operations will be launched to flush out militants.

He added that restoration of peace in the strife-torn state was on top of the agenda for the Modi government.

Union Minister Arun Jaitley said on Wednesday that Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian will be leaving the finance ministry because of "pressing family commitments" and will return to the US.

Subramanian was appointed as CEA to the finance ministry on October 16, 2014 for a period of three years. In 2017 his term was extended for a year.

Settling speculation over the nature of the state budget for fiscal 2018-19, Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy has said that he will present a full budget in July.

"I will present a full budget in July first week," Kumaraswamy told reporters on Tuesday at the Press Club in his maiden press conference after assuming office on May 23.

He said Congress President Rahul Gandhi had agreed to his proposal for a full-fledged budget with suggestions from the two allies.

"When I discussed the issue with Gandhi in New Delhi, he asked me to go ahead with a full budget and not to worry about what others may say," Kumaraswamy said.

His clarification came two days after former Congress Chief Minister Siddaramaiah told the media that Kumaraswamy need not present a full budget as he had already presented a budget for the fiscal in February ahead of the May 12 Assembly election.

Aiming to speed up train movement over the Yamuna and also decongest the Ghaziabad-New Delhi rail corridor -- one of the busiest in the country -- Indian Railways has proposed an additional rail bridge over the river in the capital.

While the old Yamuna rail bridge -- also known as Loha Pul -- will give way to a new double-line rail bridge by March next year, another bridge is set to come up near the existing Nizamuddin rail bridge to ensure faster and seamless movement of about 150 outbound and inbound passenger and freight services.

BVR Subramanyam, the Additional Chief Secretary (Home) in Chattisgarh, was posted to Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday following the imposition of Governor's Rule in the state.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet cleared his posting on Tuesday evening.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un thanked Chinese President Xi Jinping for his support in last week's groundbreaking summit with President Donald Trump, the North's official media reported on Wednesday.

Nepal and China on Wednesday signed eight agreements worth $2.4 billion on the second day of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's visit. These agreements were reached between the two governments and private sectors where Chinese investors will put money on developing hydroelectricity, water resources, cement factories and fruit cultivation and farming.

The signing ceremony took place at the Nepal Embassy in Beijing. Additional memorandum of understandings will be signed on Thursday after delegation-level talks between Oli and his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang.

Israeli fighter jets hit 25 targets in the Gaza Strip early on Wednesday in response to rocket fire from the Palestinian territory, the army said.

Around 30 projectiles, including rockets, were fired overnight from Gaza towards Israel, the army said in a statement.

The fresh hostilities come with tensions high in Gaza after mass protests and clashes broke out along the border on March 30. At least 132 Palestinians have been killed. There have been no Israeli fatalities.

Music composer A R Rahman has been appointed as the Brand Ambassador of the Sikkim government.

Rahman will promote and project the state's achievements nationally and globally, the notification issued by the Chief Secretary A K Srivastava said.

Sikkim, with its natural and pristine beauty, has over the last two decades emerged as a world famous eco-tourism destination, besides attaining a distinct identity as the first fully organic farming state of the country, it said on Monday.

The state government had earlier this year made Rahman its Brand Ambassador of tourism and business.

Six people were allegedly beaten by a group of men here after they protested against the harassment of a woman, police said on Wednesday. The incident took place in Vilayat Nagar area on Tuesday evening. The injured persons, including two women, were admitted to a local hospital, police said. A case was registered at the Bhopa police station and the matter is being investigated.

US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump hosted King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain at the White House

Goa's BJP unit has said that Vasudev Parab, holder of a government-allotted industrial plot in the coastal state where a Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) raid unearthed a ketamine manufacturing racket, was not involved in its trade

Kashmiris fear that after withdrawing from the coalition government with PDP, BJP will now work on its political agenda of presenting Kashmiris as enemies of Hindutva ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha election

"The Secretary-General would have much preferred for the United States to remain in the Human Rights Council," reported Xinhua news agency quoting UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ spokesman Stephane Dujarric as saying

• President Ram Nath Kovind approves Governor’s Rule in Jammu and Kashmir
• 3 militants killed, 5 security men injured in J&K gunfight
• Oil prices decline ahead of OPEC meeting
• United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres regrets withdrawal of the United States from United Nations Human Rights Council

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