News Digest: User fee may kick in at 120 railway stations

THE TIMES OF INDIA

Monday, December 07, 2020

Today's Headlines

India

User fee may kick in at 120 railway stations

4 men gang-rape minor, 2 held

Covid positive cabin crew flew on Air India Express flight

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Science

Japan's capsule with asteroid samples retrieved in Australia
A Japanese capsule carrying the world's first asteroid subsurface samples shot across the night atmosphere early Sunday before landing in the remote Australian Outback, completing a mission to provide clues to the origin of the solar system and life on Earth.

China successfully launches new Earth observation satellite
China on Sunday successfully launched a new Earth observation satellite which can take high-resolution pictures of ground objects across the globe. The satellite was launched from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in southwest China's Sichuan province, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

China completes 1st spacecraft rendezvous, docks in lunar orbit
The ascender of China's Chang'e-5 probe successfully rendezvoused and docked with the orbiter-returner combination in lunar orbit on Sunday, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) has announced.

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Technology

Apple iPhone users, there's a new scam you need to be careful about
Scammers have figured out a new way to make iPhone and other Apple device owners into revealing their iCloud login credentials.

Apple HomePod mini review: Small wonder
In the smart speaker race, Apple is merely a participant. Worldwide, Amazon with its Echo devices has a sizable lead and even Google with its Nest devices remains ahead of the Cupertino-based tech giant. In China, it faces threats from the likes of Baidu, Xiaomi and others whereas in India, it’s Alexa (read Echo) that seems to reign supreme. Apple was notably late to the smart speaker game but HomePod arrived in 2017 — in India it arrived earlier this year only. So you can see why Apple isn’t mentioned in the smart speaker game.

Broadband plans from Reliance Jio, Airtel, Tata Sky and BSNL offering unlimited data

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Business

Cargo traffic at 12 major ports falls for 8th month in Nov; down 10.5% in Apr-Nov

Take strict action against Amazon for alleged violation of laws: CAIT
Traders' body CAIT on Sunday said it has written to the Enforcement Directorate seeking "strict action" against Amazon, claiming that the e-commerce major has caused "misery" to small traders by resorting to predatory pricing.

FDI equity inflows into India cross $500 bn milestone

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Sports

Shikhar Dhawan, Hardik Pandya seal T20I series win for India
India sealed the T20 International series against Australia with a game to spare after a swashbuckling Hardik Pandya finished what Shikhar Dhawan had set out to achieve with a scintillating 36-ball 52 in the second and penultimate match here on Sunday. The visitors thus avenged their 1-2 ODI series loss, chasing down a challenging 195-run target set by the home side.

Arise, Hardik Pandya the finisher!
A six sailing into the stands at long-on to seal a game has been one of the most celebrated and reassuring sights in Indian cricket for a good part of the last decade.

Jehan Daruvala creates history, becomes 1st Indian to win F2 race
Promising Indian driver Jehan Daruvala created history when he became the first Indian to win a Formula 2 race during the Sakhir Grand Prix on Sunday. A thrilling battle against F2 champion Mick Schumacher and Daniel Ticktum saw the 22-year-old Indian emerge on top in the support race of the season-ending Formula 1 Grand Prix. Jehan, driving for Rayo Racing, had a good launch from second on the grid.

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Education

Hyderabad's Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan wins National Inter School Crossword Contest, Patna's Don Bosco second

AIIMS Bhubaneswar starts process to recruit 108 faculty posts

RGUKT CET answer key 2020 released, check here

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Environment

Conservation outlook of Western Ghats grim, says report

Cher to visit Pakistan to help 'world's loneliest elephant'

Global warming likely to raise disease risk for animals

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World

Iran prepares to raise oil exports if sanctions eased: Report

NATO must devote more time, action to counter security challenges posed by China: Report
North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) must devote more time, political resources, and action to counter the security challenges posed by China, said NATO in its report 'NATO 2030 - United for a New Era report' while recommending a special unit within the Joint Intelligence and Security Division (JISD) to monitor Russia-China cooperation impacting Euro-Atlantic security.

UK prepares for 'historic moment' of vaccination against Covid-19
The first 50 National Health Service (NHS) hospitals are gearing up for what the UK government has described as the “biggest immunisation programme in history” as the first doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine against Covid-19 arrived at “secure locations” in the country from neighbouring Belgium this weekend.

More World News»

Environment

Conservation outlook of Western Ghats grim, says report

Cher to visit Pakistan to help 'world's loneliest elephant'

Global warming likely to raise disease risk for animals

More Environment News»

Hyderabad

Hyderabad: 2 engineering students killed in bike crash, cops find 1 kg ganja in their backpack
Two engineering students, who died when their bike crashed into a road divider at Suraram on Saturday night, were found to be carrying a kilo of ganja in a backpack.

K Chandrasekhar Rao too backs farmers, tells TRS cadre to make bandh a success in Telangana
Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday extended his party’s full support to the ‘Bharat Bandh’ call given by farmers on December 8 opposing the three agriculture acts brought by the central government.

APPCB calls for public hearing on uranium project expansion

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Chandigarh

Rly minister 'enemy of farmers': Bittu

AAP Punjab chief says party backing bandh too

Pb BJP says Yograj should be jailed for his comment

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Ahmedabad

Growing your own food in lockdown

Home ownership: Woman accuses daughter of cheating

Man robbed of cow, calf by gunslinger

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Chennai

Chennai: Wholesale prices of vegetables to go up by over Rs 10 a kg
Don't be surprised if your neighbourhood anna at the kirana shop charges you more for vegetables. Wholesale prices of all vegetables are likely to go up by 10 to 15 a kilogram this week, a fortnight after rates fluctuated due to rain.

Woman, daughter die falling into open drain on Chennai road
A 50-year-old city doctor and her 20-year-old daughter, an architecture student, died after they fell into an open drain on the Irumbuliyar-Maduravoyal bypass service road near Mogappair on Sunday.

Goaded by lover, Tamil Nadu girl ends life on video call
In a long-distance relationship that went fatally wrong, a 24-year-old woman committed suicide, goaded by her boyfriend, an Army man, while on a video call with him in the city on Wednesday. Police arrested the accused, Muthu Kumaresan, 32, an Army ambulance driver working in Nagpur, on the charge of abetment to suicide on Saturday. The purported video was retrieved from the victim's mobile by police on Thursday.

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Bangalore

Minor raped by 4 youths in Shivamogga; two arrested
A minor girl taking care of her mother at McGann Hospital, a Covid care centre here, was sexually assaulted allegedly by four youths near Shivamogga late Saturday evening. One of the accused is a contract worker at the hospital.

Karnataka: Arun Singh lends an ear to MLAs' plaints against BS Yediyurappa, son
A day after getting a stern warning against taking unilateral decisions, chief minister BS Yediyurappa on Sunday faced another setback with BJP general secretary incharge of Karnataka Arun Singh entertaining complaints by several legislators.

Leopard attack? 17 animals dead near Girinagar
Six goats and 11 sheep were found dead in Veerabhadra Nagar, near Girinagar in south Bengaluru, in what is suspected to be a leopard attack late Saturday night. A state forest officer said bite marks on the animals suggest it was a leopard attack, but it’s not conclusively established yet. P 4

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Mumbai

Wedding eve cylinder blast kills 1, injures 15 in Mumbai's Lalbaug
An elderly woman died and 15 persons were injured in a cooking gas cylinder blast that occurred moments after a fire broke out during food preparation on the day of a pre-wedding ritual at Sarabhai building in Lalbaug early on Sunday. The bride's father was one of the injured.

2,800 school employees show Covid infection in Maharashtra
As many as 2,800 teaching and non-teaching staff in government schools in the state have tested positive for Covid-19 when they took the RT-PCR tests. All such teachers and staff with Covid infection cannot report to school till they recover fully and get a negative report.

Sharp fall in dengue cases, Maharashtra sees 84% drop compared to 2019
Dengue incidence this year has shown a marked decline in the state which experts say could be linked to low transmission due to physical distancing, a shift to work-from-home mode and closure of schools, or even under diagnosis and less reporting. Data till October shows an 84%decline in cases and 86% fall in deaths compared to 2019.

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Delhi

Delhi: Corporations to present budget, unkept promises in focus
Delhi's three civic bodies are all set to present their budget proposals this week. While South Delhi Municipal Corporation's executive wing will deliver its budget proposal on Monday (December 7), North Delhi Municipal Corporation's budget proposal will be presented on Tuesday.

Salary not our income source: Delhi councillor on tape
South Delhi councillor Manoj Mehlawat, arrested by CBI for allegedly taking Rs 10 lakh bribe from a builder, was caught on tape telling the complainant that "ab hamari source of income salary nahi hai...aise hi hoga (now salary is not my source of income...it will be like this only), the agency has claimed. BJP had suspended Mehlawat from its primary membership after his arrest last week.

Delhi: AQI very poor after wind aids dispersal of pollutants
The air quality in the capital improved marginally on Sunday after it slipped back to very poor category. The overall Air Quality Index (AQI) reading of the national capital was 389 on Sunday, as against 404 in severe category on Saturday. Met officials said the air quality is predicted to improve further on Tuesday and Wednesday.