Wayanad landslides: Death toll rises to 167
Wayanad district administration confirmed that 167 people dead in Wayanad landslides. Earlier in the day, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on July 31 refuted Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s claim that the State government was warned as early as July 23 regarding a possible natural calamity in Wayanad due to heavy rains. Mr. Vijayan said that the India Meteorological Department had only issued an orange alert in the district ahead of the landslides. However, the district received over 500 millimeters of rainfall, which was extremely higher than what was predicted by the IMD. The CM also said that this was not the time for “blame game” and that he was not taking Shah’s remarks in an adversarial manner.
Delhi LG V.K. Saxena forms committee to address issues related to regulation of coaching centres
Delhi Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena on July 31 formed a committee headed by the Chief Secretary to frame guidelines and regulate coaching centres in the city and redress issues faced by students, Raj Niwas officials said. The move comes in the wake of a tragedy that claimed the lives of three civil services aspirants in a flooded basement library of a coaching centre in Old Rajinder Nagar. The committee will comprise five to six representatives of coaching institutes, students and officials of the departments concerned.
Delhi coaching centre deaths: Court rejects bail pleas of SUV driver, basement co-owners
A court in Delhi on July 31 rejected the bail pleas of an SUV driver and four owners of the coaching centre basement in the Old Rajinder Nagar area which was flooded with rainwater and led to the death of three civil services aspirants. Judicial Magistrate Vinod Kumar rejected the bail plea of driver Manuj Kathuria and basement owners Tejinder Singh, Parvinder Singh, Harvinder Singh, and Sarabjeet Singh.
Delhi coaching centre deaths: HC orders removal of encroachments; slams civic officials for ‘criminal neglect’
The Delhi High Court on July 31 directed civic authorities to clear all encroachments on drains in Old Rajinder Nagar by August 2, following the drowning deaths of three civil service aspirants in a coaching centre basement. A Bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela summoned the MCD commissioner, the concerned Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) as well as the investigating officer to be present in court will all relevant files on August 2 (Friday), the next date of hearing.
Opposition protests over caste remarks, census disrupt Lok Sabha; House adjourned briefly
The Lok Sabha witnessed noisy scenes on July 31 as Opposition members sought an apology from BJP leader Anurag Thakur over his remarks on Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and persisted with their demand for a caste census. The proceedings were adjourned for around 20 minutes till noon. As soon as the Question Hour began, Opposition members, mainly from the Congress, were on their feet and sought to raise the issues but Speaker Om Birla did not entertain their requests.
Congress moves motion against PM Modi for sharing Anurag Thakur’s speech on X amid caste row
Congress MP Charanjit Singh Channi on July 31 moved a Privilege Motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for sharing portion of BJP MP’s Anurag Thakur speech from July 30 Lok Sabha proceedings, that was later expunged from the record. The BJP member had made remarks against Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s caste during a discussion on the Union Budget in the Lower House on July 30.
UPSC cancels Puja Khedkar’s candidature for CSE 2022, debars from all future exams
The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on July 31 cancelled Puja Khedkar’s provisional candidature for the Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2022. “She has also been debarred permanently from all the future Examinations/Selections of the UPSC,” the Commission said. The UPSC stated it neither has the mandate nor the wherewithal to check the veracity of thousands of certificates submitted by the candidates every year. “However, it is understood that scrutiny and verification of genuineness of certificates is carried out by the authorities mandate with the task,” the UPSC said in a statement.
Karnataka rains: Schools in Uttar Kannada closed; work to restore railway tracks affected by landslips continues despite challenging weather conditions
Rains receded in parts of Karnataka, including Shivamogga and Kodagu districts, on July 31, but several parts villages in Sagar, Tirthahalli and Hosanagar taluks reported light rain early in the morning. However, Kodagu continues to remain on alert. With the India Meteorological Department and the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre issuing a red alert for Dakshina Kannada on Wednesday, Deputy Commissioner M.P. Mullai Muhilan declared a holiday for Anganwadis, schools, and pre-university colleges in the district.
Chandipura virus in Gujarat | 47 cases registered, almost all are children
Viral encephalitis has caused at least 56 deaths in Gujarat, forcing authorities to step up surveillance for the disease caused by a viral infection, often spread by sand flies and ticks. Viral encephalitis, which can cause high fever and in many cases affect the brain, is common in several parts of India during the monsoon season, but many of the deaths in Gujarat were caused by the Chandipura virus, that is known to affect mostly children under 15. Of the 56 dead over the last month, a quarter were confirmed to have died from the Chandipura virus, Gujarat Health Commissioner Harshad Patel said.
Modi government refuses to learn from ‘significant decline’ in Lok Sabha elections, alleges Sonia Gandhi
The Narendra Modi government continues to be “self-delusional” even as crores of families are “devastated by mounting unemployment and price rise,” Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) chairperson Sonia Gandhi said on July 31. With Assembly polls in key States coming up, the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) chairperson said the “mahaul (public mood)“ is in the party’s favour but there is a need to sustain the momentum and the goodwill that was generated for in the Lok Sabha polls.
Supreme Court reserves decision on whether its verdict upholding State’s right to tax mineral rights should apply only prospectively
A nine-judge Bench of the Supreme Court on July 31 reserved for orders a query raised by the Centre on whether its July 25 judgment upholding the power of State Legislatures to tax mines and minerals rights would be applied retrospectively. Appearing before the Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta urged the court to clarify that the judgment would only apply prospectively, that is, from July 25 and not prior.
Chinese ship detained in Odisha port following HC order
The Paradip Port Trust authorities in Odisha have detained a Chinese cargo ship following the “arrest” order of the vessel by the High Court over a monetary dispute, an official said on July 31. Under admiralty law, a ship can be arrested for the enforcement of maritime claims that arise out of the ownership, construction, possession, management, operation, or trading of any ship. The Orissa High Court order came following a monetary dispute between the owner of the ship and the company that had dispatched the cargo — low sulfur marine gasoil. The ship will remain detained at the port until further orders.
At least 13 coaching institutes, libraries in Indore running from basements sealed
In the wake of the tragedy in Delhi, the Indore administration on July 31 sealed 13 coaching institutes or ‘study centres’ operating from basements in the city for lack of safety provisions, an official said. A survey of coaching institutes in Indore was ordered after three students preparing for the civil services examination drowned in the flooded basement of Rau’s IAS Study Circle in the National Capital, he said.
Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh killed in Iran
Palestinian militant group Hamas said July 31 its political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, was killed in an Israeli strike in Iran, where he had been attending the inauguration of the country’s new president. “Brother, leader, mujahid Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the movement, died in a Zionist strike on his headquarters in Tehran after he participated in the inauguration of the new (Iranian) president,” the movement said in a statement.
Palestinians detained by Israeli authorities faced torture, mistreatment: U.N. report
The U.N. human rights office issued a report on July 31 saying Palestinian detainees taken by Israeli authorities since the October 7 attacks have faced waterboarding, sleep deprivation, electric shocks, the release of dogs, and other forms of torture and mistreatment. The report on detention says Israel’s prison service held more than 9,400 “security detainees” as of the end of June, and some have been held in secret without access to lawyers or respect for their legal rights. A summary of the report, based on interviews with former detainees and other sources, decries a “staggering” number of detainees — including men, women, children, journalists and human rights defenders — and said such practices raise concerns about arbitrary detention.
Kamala Harris to be sole Democratic presidential candidate heading into official party vote
Vice President Kamala Harris is the only White House hopeful who has qualified to compete for the Democratic presidential nomination, the Democratic National Committee said in a statement on July 30. Although no other major Democrat had indicated any plans to challenge Ms. Harris, the DNC’s announcement officially cleared the path for the Vice President to seek her party’s nomination uncontested, just nine days after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race and created a vacancy at the top of the ticket.
Up 4%, core sectors’ growth at 20-month low in June
Growth in India’s eight core sectors slipped to a 20-month low of 4% in June from an upgraded 6.4% rise in May, with most sectors barring coal recording a sharp decline in output growth, steel production at a seven-month low, and refinery products slipping into contraction for the first time in five months. Coal output grew 14.8%, the fastest pace in eight months, with production levels at a three-month high. However, electricity generation slipped to a four-month low of 7.7% in June, with output 3.6% below May’s all-time high levels, amid a heat wave in many parts of the country.
Cost of data breaches in India hits all-time high in FY24: IBM
IBM has released its annual Cost of a Data Breach report, which revealed that the average cost of a data breach in India has reached an all-time high of Rs. 19.5 crore ($2.35 million) during the financial year 2024. The numbers have jumped by 39% since 2020 and 9% from the previous year as data breaches become increasingly common. Collateral damage from these costs including operational downtime, local customers and reputational damage has increased by 45% with notification costs jumping up by 19% from the previous year.
Paris Olympics: Lakshya Sen stuns World No. 3 Christie to enter men’s singles pre-quarterfinals
India’s Lakshya Sen progressed to the pre-quarterfinals of the Olympics men’s singles badminton competition with a stunning straight-game win over Indonesia’s world number 4 Jonatan Christie in the final group match on July 31. The 22-year-old from Almora, a 2021 world championships bronze medallist, displayed great maturity and tactical acumen to outwit Christie, the reigning All England and Asian champion, 21-18 21-12 in what turned out to be a lop-sided contest.
