Coronavirus impact: Election Commission defers Mar 26 Rajya Sabha elections
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The Election Commission has deferred the Rajya Sabha polls scheduled for March 26 in view of the coronavirus outbreak, official sources said on Tuesday.
Election to fill up 55 seats in the Upper House of Parliament was to be held on March 26, but 37 candidates have already been elected without a contest.
The decision on holding the election for the remaining 18 seats will be taken based on the prevailing situation, the sources said.
Nearly 500 coronavirus cases have been reported in India so far, according to Health Ministry data on Tuesday.
As cases of the viral infection surged, authorities have put almost the entire country under lockdown, banning gathering of people and suspending road, rail and air traffic till March 31.
Other Covid-19 developments
In other major development, Prime Minsiter Narendra Modi will address the nation once again at 8 pm tonight.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal informed that no new cases were reported in New Delhi in last 24 hours and five people were discharged. However, the cases count across India is now every close to 500.
Other Latest News
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US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) announced a 50 per cent tariff on all copper imports, marking his fourth major tariff hike during his second term. Trump also signalled a more severe move on the pharmaceutical sector, threatening a 200 per cent tariff on drug imports after a transition period of one to one-and-a-half years.
“Today we’re doing copper,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, without offering a timeline for when the new tariff will come into effect.
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Tech giant Apple on Tuesday (local time) announced the appointment of Sabih Khan, an Indian-origin executive, as its new chief operating officer (COO). Khan, who has been with the iPhone-maker for three decades, will succeed Jeff Williams, who is stepping down later this month and retiring later this year.
Khan’s elevation comes at a time when Apple is facing a series of challenges, including slowing mobile handset growth and the reciprocal tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump’s administration.
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The University Grants Commission (UGC) has directed higher education institutions to monitor any informal WhatsApp groups created to harass juniors, saying it will be treated as ragging and attract strict action under anti-ragging rules, according to officials.
The UGC receives dozens of complaints every year from freshers alleging harassment by seniors.
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Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor launched a sharp critique of the Bihar government's recent policy announcements, accusing Chief Minister Nitish Kumar of misleading the public through recycled promises and symbolic measures that fail to tackle the state's deep-rooted unemployment crisis.
Reacting to the Bihar cabinet's approval of a 35 per cent job reservation for women, Kishor claimed the move was nothing more than a rebranding of an earlier decision.
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More than 250 million workers from diverse sectors—including banking, insurance, postal services, and coal mining—are expected to participate in a nationwide general strike on Wednesday. Organised by a forum of ten central trade unions, the strike or ‘Bharat Bandh’, seeks to protest what the unions describe as “anti-worker, anti-farmer, and anti-national pro-corporate policies” of the Centre.
Amarjeet Kaur of the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) told news agency PTI that farmers and rural workers will also join the protest across the country.
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