At least six people have died and hundreds have been displaced in Maharashtra. Incessant rains have disrupted life across the state, causing floods, road blockages and widespread damage to crops.
The capital, Mumbai, has been one of the worst-hit cities, with public transport and flight operations affected. The state government has been monitoring the situation and ensuring evacuation of citizens from low-lying areas.
The State Disaster Response Force and the Army have been deployed in several pockets across the state. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said the next 48 hours will be crucial for major cities including Mumbai and Thane, which remain on high alert.
Opposition’s VP candidate
The opposition INDIA bloc has named former Supreme Court judge B. Sudershan Reddy as its candidate for the Vice-Presidential election. Justice Sudershan served as a Supreme Court judge from January 2007 until July 2011. He is currently on the Board of Trustees of the International Arbitration and Mediation Centre, Hyderabad.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge announced the former judge’s candidature for the Vice-President’s post. Kharge said he was happy that all opposition parties had agreed on one name and called it a big achievement for democracy.
PM’s appeal for NDA candidate
The opposition’s announcement came on a day when Prime Minister Modi appealed for the unanimous election of C. P. Radhakrishnan as Vice-President.
The Prime Minister appealed to all parties, including the Opposition, for the unanimous election of the NDA’s Vice-Presidential candidate. He also praised Radhakrishnan’s life of public service at a meeting of the ruling alliance’s MPs.
China-India ties thaw
China has agreed to ease restrictions on the supply of fertilisers and rare earth minerals to India. According to a PTI report, quoting authoritative sources, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has conveyed the forward movement on the issue to his counterpart S. Jaishankar.
This comes as a big relief for India, especially at a time when it is facing a 50 per cent tariff imposed by the United States government.
China’s decision also comes months ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China to attend the upcoming summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. The SCO Summit is scheduled to open on 31 August.
India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval on Tuesday confirmed the Prime Minister’s plan during his talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. This will be Prime Minister Modi’s first visit to China since 2018.
Dalal Street gains
Indian equities continued to trade higher on Tuesday. The Sensex gained half a per cent, adding around 400 points and inching closer to 82,000. The Nifty also added more than 100 points to close just shy of 25,000.
In stock-specific action, Reliance Industries was one of the top-performing shares of the day, as RIL’s telecom arm Jio discontinued one of its cheapest data plans.
