Republic Top Headlines: Kappa Variant Of COVID in UP, Bangladesh factory fire & more

'Covishield One Of The Main Vaccines': Belgium Recognises SII-produced Vaccine

Belgium on Friday recognised the Serum Institute of India (SII)-manufactured COVISHIELD vaccine against the COVID-19 infection. The AstraZeneca and Oxford University vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India (SII) is one of the main vaccines, said Arnaud Lion, Chargé d’Affaires, Belgium to India.

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What Is The Kappa Variant Of COVID-19 Detected In UP? Here's All You Need To Know

With the authorities in India preparing for the speculated third wave of coronavirus, two cases of Kappa variant have been detected in Uttar Pradesh. On Friday, the Uttar Pradesh government confirmed the presence of the Kappa variant in the state as two samples tested positive with the ‘variant of interest’.

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Sachin Tendulkar Turns 'Salt Bae' As Master Blaster Dons Chef Hat, Asks What's Cooking

India's Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar on Friday shared a never-seen-before avatar of himself as he took to social media to flaunt his cooking skills on Friday. Sachin Tendulkar shared a video of himself whipping up a dish for breakfast. Sachin Tendulkar shared the video with the caption stating, 'Say Hi to your chef for today! Guess what's cooking?'

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PM Modi Receives First Copy Of 'The Ramayana Of Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji' From KTS Tulsi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi received the first copy of the book 'The Ramayan of Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji' penned by Late Baljit Kaur Tulsi on Friday. Late Baljit Kaur Tulsi is the mother of lawyer KTS Tulsi. The book was handed over to PM Modi by Rajya Sabha MP KTS Tulsi himself in the presence of his daughter Japna Tulsi and granddaughter Mukti Tulsi.

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EAM Jaishankar Discusses Afghanistan With Russia's FM, Dismisses 'violence As A Solution'

India's External Affairs Minister  (EAM) S Jaishankar on Friday held talks on Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and revealed that the ongoing developments in Afghanistan 'occupied' their attention. Addressing a joint media briefing along with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, EAM S Jaishankar shed light on the plethora of discussions that took place between them. 

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Despite Threat From Across Border, Last Village At LoC Achieves 100% COVID-19 Vaccination

In a heartening development in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the border village of Bobiya has achieved a 100% vaccination against COVID-19. All the 18 plus individuals who are inhabitants of Bobiya village of the Hiranagar sector have been vaccinated against COVID-19. This development assumes significance and is also encouraging because the Bobiya village in Jammu is said to be the last village of India as it lies on the international border along the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan.

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HC Turns Down Chirag Paswan's Plea Challenging Pashupati Paras' Appointment As LJP Chief

In a massive setback for ousted LJP chief Chirag Paswan, the Delhi High Court on Friday dismissed his petition to remove newly-inducted Cabinet Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras as party's Legislative chief in the Lok Sabha. A single judge bench comprising Justice Rekha Pali said the petition is not maintainable, therefore it would not interfere with the plea.

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PV Sindhu Opines On Japan's strict COVID Norms For India's Tokyo Olympics-bound Contingent

With almost a fortnight to go for the Tokyo Olympics, India's star shuttler PV Sindhu is all prepped up for the mega-event. In an exclusive interview with Republic TV on Friday, PV Sindhu spoke about her preparation for the Tokyo Olympics before she takes off for Japan and also opined on the strict guidelines imposed by Japan on India and Group A countries. 

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52 Killed In Bangladesh Factory Fire

 At least 52 people were killed and over 50 others injured in a massive fire that broke out at a six-storey juice factory outside Bangladesh's capital Dhaka, according to media reports on Friday. The fire broke out at around 5pm on Thursday at the Shezan juice factory in Naryanganj's Rupganj, according to fire officials.

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Lambda Variant Of COVID-19 Is 'variant Of Interest'; No Cases In India So Far: Health Min

The new Lambda variant of COVID-19 is a 'variant of interest', but there is no evidence that such a strain has been identified in India, said Niti Aayog Member-Health Dr VK Paul on Friday. He however cautioned that we should, however, be watchful of such mutations.

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