Delhi

New Delhi, Sep 7 (PTI) UK-based Cairn Energy PLC on Tuesday said it will drop litigations to seize Indian properties in countries ranging from France to the US, within a couple of days of getting a USD 1 billion refund resulting from the scrapping of a retrospective tax law.

New Delhi, Sep 6 (PTI) The Centre has issued standard operating procedures (SOPs) for police officers to seek mandatory prior approval before conducting any investigation against allegedly corrupt public servants, according to a Personnel Ministry order.

New Delhi, Sep 8 (PTI) The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has said that Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations at public places will not be allowed in the national capital in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In an order issued on Tuesday, the DDMA said that district magistrates and deputy commissioners of police will ensure that idols of Lord Ganesha are not set up in a tent or pandal. Further, it should be ensured that crowds do not gather at any religious or social place.

Permission will also not be granted for any procession, it said.

Ballia, Sep 8 (PTI) Amid the ongoing protests by farmers against the Centre's farm laws, BJP MP Virendra Singh Mast said the government will not withdraw the three legislations.

The laws were not made to be withdrawn later, the MP from Uttar Pradesh's Ballia said on Tuesday.

New Delhi, Sep 7 (PTI) The Supreme Court Tuesday granted more time to the Centre to decide on filing a further response to a batch of pleas seeking an independent probe into the alleged snooping of certain people in India through the use of Israeli spyware Pegasus and slated the matter for further hearing on September 13.

New Delhi, Sep 6 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Monday refused to entertain a plea filed by residents of Sonipat seeking opening of the roads connecting Delhi and Haryana at Singhu border here, which have been blocked by farmers protesting against three agri laws and asked the petitioners to approach the High Court.

New Delhi, Sep 6 (PTI) Former JNU student leader Umar Khalid, arrested under stringent anti-terror law UAPA in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case, has withdrawn his bail application and filed a fresh one after the city police objected to its maintainability.

Senior advocate Trideep Pais, appearing for Khalid, told Additional Sessions Judge Amitabh Rawat that the application seeking bail under section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) has been substituted with the one under section 437 after the police objected to it.

New Delhi, Sep 6 (PTI) Air India's Delhi-London flight, which was to depart from the IGI airport here at 2 pm on Monday, got delayed for more than three hours after a swarm of ants was found in the business class, sources said.

The AI-111 flight departed from the Delhi airport at around 5.20 pm instead of its scheduled departure time of 2 pm, they said.

According to the sources, ants were found in a section of the business class just before the plane was about to take off.

The plane was replaced with another Boeing 787-8 aircraft.

New Delhi, Sep 6 (PTI) India and Australia on Monday began a five-day mega naval wargame with an aim to strengthen joint capabilities in support of a stable and secure Indo-Pacific region.

The AUSINDEX exercise will include complex surface, sub-surface and air operations between ships, submarines, helicopters and long-range maritime patrol aircraft of the two navies, Indian Navy Spokesperson Commander Vivek Madhwal said.

The wargame is taking place in the North Australian exercise area.

New Delhi, Sep 6 (PTI) The CBI Monday arrested four people including an assistant professor from an engineering college in Sonepat in connection with the alleged manipulation of JEE-Main 2021, officials said.

Assistant professor Sandeep Gupta, lab technicians Arvind Saini and Kuldeep Garg, and peon Tulsi Ram, working at a private engineering college in Sonepat, were taken into custody by the CBI Monday, they said.