HIGHLIGHTS

New Delhi, Mar 19 (PTI) Following are the top stories at 9 pm: NATION DEL70 MEA-INDIA-LD-GAZA

India concerned over situation in Gaza; calls for humanitarian aid to affected people New Delhi: India on Wednesday said it is concerned over the situation in Gaza and called for supply of humanitarian assistance to the affected people as Israel resumed bombing in conflict-hit Palestinian territory shattering its fragile ceasefire with Hamas.

BOM40 MH-LDALL-NAGPUR VIOLENCE

RSS says Aurangzeb irrelevant, Fadnavis vows to dig out cops’ attackers from graves Nagpur/Bengaluru/Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said attackers of police during Nagpur violence will be "dug out from their graves", even as the RSS condemned the violence and described the 17th-century Mughal emperor Aurangzeb as "irrelevant".

DEL88 LD-BILL-GATES

Gates meets PM Modi; says impressed by India's innovation powering development locally - and globally New Delhi: Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates on Wednesday said he is impressed by how innovation in India is driving "progress locally -- and globally", as he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discussed a host of subjects including technology, innovation and sustainability.

DEL98 DIALOGUE-JAISHANKAR-TRADE

Jaishankar flags concern over weaponisation of trade New Delhi: The world is witnessing "greater weaponisation" of tariffs, sanctions and export controls and India must navigate the challenge by working with partners who are trustworthy and present fewer risks, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Wednesday.

DEL62 SUNITA WILLIAMS-2ND LD REAX

Welcome back: Prez, PM and others celebrate Sunita Williams' return to Earth New Delhi: President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi joined celebrities, politicians, scientists and others on Wednesday to celebrate the return of NASA astronaut Sunita Williams to Earth after nine months, terming her an inspiration for generations to come and lauding her determination.

DEL91 DL-SATYENDAR JAIN-2NDLD FIR

Ex-AAP minister Satyendar Jain booked in CCTV project graft case; AAP, BJP spar New Delhi: The Delhi government's Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) has registered a case against former PWD minister and senior AAP leader Satyendar Jain over alleged corruption in a Rs 571-crore CCTV project, an official said on Wednesday.

DEL101 CAB-LD UPI TRANSACTION

Govt approves Rs 1,500 cr incentive for promotion of small-value UPI payments New Delhi: The government on Wednesday approved a Rs 1,500 crore incentive for the promotion of small-value BHIM-UPI (P2M) transactions up to Rs 2,000, a move aimed at benefiting common people and small merchants.

DEL75 PB-FARMERS-3RDLD MEETING

Talks between farmer leaders, Centre remain inconclusive; next meeting on May 4 Chandigarh: A fresh round of meeting between farmer leaders and a central delegation to discuss the formers' various demands remained inconclusive on Wednesday, even as the Union ministers attending the talks called the farmers' interests paramount.

CAL19 BH-ED-LD LALU

Bihar: Lalu appears before ED over land-for-jobs scam Patna: The Enforcement Department (ED) on Wednesday grilled RJD president Lalu Prasad for nearly four hours in connection with the land-for-jobs case, officials said.

MDS21 TL-LD BUDGET

Telangana govt presents Rs 3.05 lakh cr budget for 2025-26, allots Rs 56k cr for '6 poll guarantees' Hyderabad: The Congress government in Telangana on Wednesday presented a budget of nearly Rs 3.05 lakh crore for 2025-26, with over Rs 56,000 crore for the implementation of the party’s 'six poll guarantees', while expecting to raise Rs 64,000 crore through open market loans.

DEL85 RSQ-ED-CONVICTION

ED filed 193 cases against serving, ex-politicians; secured 2 convictions: Govt in Parl New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) registered a total of 193 cases against politicians, including serving and former MPs and MLAs, over the last 10 years and secured conviction in two of those, the government has informed Parliament.

DEL83 NIA-JK-LD SEARCHES

NIA raids 12 locations in Jammu linked to terrorist sympathisers, overground workers New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency on Wednesday conducted searches at 12 locations across Jammu, including premises of terrorist sympathisers, as part of its probe into infiltration by terrorists from across the border.

DEL97 PB-LD-FARMER-LEADERS-DETAIN

Returning from meeting with central delegation, over dozen farmer leaders detained by Punjab Police Chandigarh: More than a dozen farmer leaders including Sarwan Singh Pandher and Jagjit Singh Dallewal were detained in Mohali Wednesday evening by Punjab Police while they were headed to the Shambhu border protest site after a meeting with a central delegation here, a farmer leader claimed.

CAL21 MN-LD VIOLENCE

Fresh shutdown in curfew-bound Churachandpur; MLAs, tribal bodies appeal for peace Churachandpur/Imphal: Hours after a fresh shutdown was imposed by a student body in Manipur’s curfew-bound Churachandpur district following clashes between Hmar and Zomi people, a group of MLAs and tribal organisations separately appealed for peace on Wednesday.

LEGAL LGD16 SC-STAINES-REMISSION PLEA

Staines murder case: SC asks Odisha to consider remission plea of lifer Dara Singh New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Odisha government to decide the remission plea of a "repenting" Ravindra Pal alias Dara Singh, who is serving life sentence for the murders of Australian missionary Graham Stuart Staines and his two minor sons in the state's Keonjhar district in 1999.

LGD22 SC-LD MIGRANT WORKERS

Are benefits for poor reaching genuine beneficiaries? SC asks New Delhi: Observing that ration cards have become a "popularity card", the Supreme Court on Wednesday wondered if the benefits meant for the poor percolated to undeserving persons.

LGD30 DL-HC-ELECTORAL BONDS

Electoral bonds plea: No concrete material for court-monitored probe, says Delhi HC New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday said there was no concrete material in the allegations raised in a plea for a court-monitored investigation into the alleged quid pro quo and corruption in donations made through electoral bonds to various political parties.

BUSINESS DEL67 BIZ-RBI-ECONOMY

Indian economy remains resilient despite global trade tensions: RBI Bulletin Mumbai: Indian economy continues to demonstrate resilience as evident in the robust performance of the agriculture sector and improving consumption despite escalating trade tensions, the RBI March Bulletin said on Wednesday.

DEL94 BIZ-GADKARI-EV-COST

Prices of EVs to be same as petrol cars in 6 months, says Gadkari New Delhi: Prices of electric vehicles (EVs) will be equal to those of petrol vehicles in the country within six months, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Wednesday.

DEL95 CAB-2NDLD MILK

Govt raises outlay for 2 schemes by Rs 2,000 cr to Rs 6,190 cr to boost milk production New Delhi: The government on Wednesday revised two schemes – National Program for Dairy Development and Rashtriya Gokul Mission, raising the outlay by Rs 2,000 crore to Rs 6,190 crore to boost milk production, procurement level, processing capacity, lab testing facilities and other related infrastructure.

DEL92 BIZ-SAFEGUARD-2NDLD STEEL

Commerce ministry recommends 12 pc import duty on certain steel products for 200 days New Delhi: The commerce ministry's investigation arm DGTR has recommended the imposition of a 12 per cent provisional safeguard duty for 200 days on certain steel products with an aim to protect domestic players from a surge in imports.

FOREIGN FGN56 CHINA-US-MISSILE

US military to integrate long-range anti-ship missile to fighter jets to counter Chinese war ships: Report Beijing: The US military is set to integrate long-range ship attack missiles into its fleet of modern fighter jets to strengthen its ability to launch air assaults in a potential conflict with the Chinese military in the Indo-Pacific, according to a media report.

FGN65 PAK-AFGHAN-LD TORKHAM

Pak-Afghan Torkham border crossing reopens after 27 days Peshawar: The Torkham border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan reopened on Wednesday after 27 days of closure following successful negotiations between jirga members from both sides.

FGN35 LANKA-POLICE CHIEF

Sri Lanka's police chief surrenders Colombo: Deshabandu Tennakoon, the suspended inspector general of police, surrendered to the court on Wednesday after evading arrest for over two weeks in a case related to a shooting incident in 2023.

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Source: PTI