Latest news: Vikas Dubey arrested in Ujjain; PM Modi interacts with NGOs; China whimpers

Here are the latest and biggest stories on Thursday afternoon:

Vikas Dubey arrested in Madhya Pradesh

In a massive breakthrough in the Kanpur encounter case on Thursday morning, wanted gangster Vikas Dubey was arrested in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. His arrest comes 6 days after Dubey and his associates fired on UP Policemen killing 8 and injuring 6. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has spoken with Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath over the arrest of Vikas Dubey from Ujjain. MP Police will hand over him to UP Police," a statement from Madhya Pradesh CMO said.

Read the full story here

India adds 24,879 new COVID-19 cases

India saw a record single-day surge of 24,879 COVID-19 cases taking the caseload to 7,67,296 on Thursday, with Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Delhi, Telangana, UP and Andhra Pradesh contributing to around 75% of the new cases, according to the Union Health Ministry data. The death toll climbed to 21,129 with 487 new fatalities, the updated data at 8 am showed. The number of recoveries stands at 4,76,377, while there are 2,69,789 active cases of coronavirus infection in the country.

Read the full story here

Xi Jinping's FM's stunning climb down

Amid the rising tensions between the US and China over issues like Coronavirus pandemic, Beijing's action on Hong Kong among others, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Thursday said both the countries are facing their most serious challenge since the establishment of diplomatic ties. He hoped that Washington will build a more objective understanding of China and a more rational policy towards Beijing. "China has never had any intention of challenging or replacing the US, or confront it comprehensively," Wang said addressing a US-China think tank media forum. 

Read the full story here

'India likely to see 2.87 lakh COVID cases a day by Feb 2021 if...'

India might witness the worst figures of the Coronavirus pandemic early next year in the absence of a vaccine, a team of researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has claimed in the most recent foreign study detailing impending doom. According to their prediction, India might record 2.87 lakh coronavirus COVID-19 cases per day by February 2021 if the process of vaccine remains elusive. The researchers used data from about 84 countries spanning an estimated 4.75 billion people. Foreign studies have been woefully wrong in their predictions for India.

Read the full story here

PM Modi interacts with Varanasi-based NGOs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday interacted with representatives of NGOs belonging to his Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi via video conferencing. During the interaction, PM Modi speaking about COVID-19 said that India has managed to contain the spread of the virus despite its huge population.

Read the full story here