As COVID-19 vaccine trials move ahead at a break-neck speed, an approved vaccine is likely to hit the Indian market by the first quarter of 2021, Bernstein said in a report. Globally, there are 4 candidates that are close to approval by the end of 2020 or early 2021. Through partnerships, India has access to two of those – AZ/Oxford's viral vector vaccine and Novavax's protein subunit vaccine.
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Friday targeted the BJP over the holding of the JEE and NEET exams amid the COVID-19 pandemic, saying the party's attitude towards students is "devoid of humanity". This comes a day after Samajwadi Party (SP) workers staged a protest outside the Raj Bhawan here over the issue.
The CBI has begun questioning actor Rhea Chakraborty in Mumbai on Friday in the case of the mysterious death of Sushant Singh Rajput. Also questioned was Samuel Miranda, Sushant’s house manager, said to be one of those assistants who procured drugs for Rhea. On Thursday late till midnight, CBI had in a marathon interrogation for over 12 hours questioned Rhea’s brother Showik, Sidharth Pithani, house staff Niraj, Keshav and Sushant’s former accountant Rajat Mewati in connection with the actor’s death. Enforcement Directorate officials took Rhea’s father retired army officer Indrajit Chakraborty to the Axis bank branch to check his locker, while the Narcotics Control Bureau is on the hunt for suspected drugs peddler Gaurav Arya in Goa and other places. With the dragnet fast closing in, Rhea Chakraborty in a TV interview presented her side of the story. In Patna, Sushant’s father K K Singh, speaking for the second time in 25 days, described Rhea as a murderer who gave slow poison to his son to ensure his death. He demanded her arrest. Sushant’s sisters also joined in and levelled fresh charges against Rhea. Sushant’s former girlfriend Ankita Lokhande posted a small video in which Sushant was saying that his dream was to become a pilot. This was meant to debunk Rhea’s claim that Sushant was afraid of air travel. Sushant’s sister Sweta Singh Kirti alleged that it was the group led by Rhea which was instrumental in giving slow poison leading to her brother’s death. In a long thread, she wrote on Twitter: “I wish Bhai would have never met that girl at all!! Drugging someone without his consent and then convincing him that you are not well, taking him to the psychiatrists... what level of manipulation is this!! How will you ever redeem your soul!!! You are so done!!.. “ You have guts to come on National Media and tarnish the image of my pure brother after his death!! You think God is not watching for what you have done! I believe in God and I have faith, now I really want to see what he will do to you..So these are the probing questions you are asking… that Sushant has mental depression and maybe he is Bipolar and by when Rhea came to know about it!! And you say you loved Sushant!! What a SHAME!!... “ As Rhea mentioned in her interview,We didn’t love our brother!! Yeah right, that’s why I flew all the way from USA to India in Jan as soon as I got to know Bhai is visiting Chandigarh and is not keeping well. I had to stall my business and leave my kids behind!.… “The worst part was I didn’t even get to meet him coz by the time I reached, Bhai had already left Chandigarh because of the constant pestering calls of Rhea and some work commitments. Family was always there standing rock solid for him!!.. Jan was the time when Bhai made a SOS call to Rani Di, he was drugged, confined and isolated. Soon after he reached Chandigarh there were 25 calls made by Rhea in less than 2-3 days time frame. WHY??What was the urgency to call him back!” “So to put things in perspective, what we have gotten to know in the past 2 days as per the media revelations of the investigation that is unfolding: 1. Rhea and Gang drugged and sedated Sushant over the months to take control of him. Financially robbed him and made sure family members can’t reach him by any means to rescue him. 2. When Bhai put his foot down on May 18th and tried to take over the charge, and got in touch with the family. This gang panicked and exchanged texts regarding how to still have control over Bhai’s finances. 3. On 8th, when Rhea walked out of my Brother’s house, she sent an IT team to collect data from my brother’s devices. What??? They collected 8 hard disks full of data and when my brother stopped them, he got a threat call. As per the statements recorded by CBI. 4. The same night Disha died. I am quoting Shweta Singh Kirti’s Twitter posts in full in order to convey the depth of pain and anguish that she and her family members are presently going through. On Thursday, Sushant’s father’s lawyer Vikas Singh that the eight hard disks surely contained data which Rhea did not want to make them public. According to the lawyer, the disks could have contained matters relating to drug transactions and procurement which could have created problems for Rhea. In her interview, Rhea had claimed that Sushant feared air travel, but Sushant’s former girlfriend Ankita Lokhande posted a video in which Sushant was himself saying that his first among 50 dreams was to become a pilot. Till now, most of the facts and disclosures that have come to light in this case point the finger of suspicion towards Rhea. The female actor has already faced questioning from ED and Mumbai Police, and yet suspicions about her role in this case remain. On Thursday, she levelled charges against Sushant’s family in her interview. Now that Rhea has levelled charges in public, she should now be prepared to face fresh counter-charges too. In her interview, Rhea has claimed that Sushant used to take marijuana even before he met her. But all the WhatsApp messages that Rhea exchanged with her ‘gang’ clearly point otherwise. She and her associates had close links with drug peddlers, they used to regularly procure narcotics for Sushant and themselves. Sushant’s sister Shweta has revealed that her brother faced danger from June 8, the day when Rhea left the house and sent an IT team to destroy all crucial data in the eight hard disks. Sushant had by then decided to take charge of his life. Shweta has alleged that Rhea reportedly changed the PINs of Sushant’s credit cards, and destroyed all incriminating data from his computer system. In her defence, Rhea has claimed that she was asked by Sushant to leave his house and she herself was facing problems due to Sushant’s mental health. Rhea says, she had disclosed this to Mumbai Police. It is however strange that despite all these revelations, Mumbai Police neither filed any FIR nor did it make its investigation public.
India's aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has asked the airlines to put on a no-fly list those air passengers who are not prepared to wear masks during flight and violate the set COVID-19 pandemic standard operating procedure (SOP). The aviation watchdog DGCA has asked the airlines: 
A seven-year-old boy has survived a rare life-threatening post-COVID-19 complication called "hyper-inflammatory syndrome" with which he was diagnosed at a city hospital, doctors said on Friday.
New Delhi: India is the only country that has been able to stare down China with the might of its border troops and the Chinese will be forced to realise the strategic mistake they are making by provoking a powerful neighbour, BJP leader Varun Gandhi said on Thursday. In an interview with PTI, the saffron party MP from Pilibhit (Uttar Pradesh) also said it was "a dream come true" for him as a devotee of Lord Hanuman that the Ram Temple was being built in Ayodhya after years of struggle.
Union Minister Ramdas Athawale on Friday said that actor Sushant Singh Rajput's killers should be hanged. "I believe Sushant Singh Rajput's death was not a suicide but murder. His family demands justice. They are satisfied with the ongoing CBI inquiry."Republic Day 2024 : As India's 75th Republic Day Parade kicked off in the national capital, a 30-member band contingent and a marching c...
