Morning Digest: Rains lash Mumbai after long break; vehicles and trains crawl, flights diverted; Israel tells its troops to prepare for a possible ground operation in Lebanon, and more

Here is a select list of stories to start the day

Rains lash Mumbai after long break; Vehicles and trains crawl, flights diverted

After a long gap, heavy rains battered Mumbai inundating low-lying areas, halting local trains in their tracks and forcing the diversion of at least 14 incoming flights. Some roads virtually turned into rivers of fast-moving water as several areas received more than 100 mm of rain in five hours of evening. As local trains stopped between Kurla and Thane stations on the Central line, thousands of commuters were stranded as CSMT and other stations, while there were traffic jams in various places. The India Meteorological Department upgraded its orange alert for Mumbai city and its neighbouring districts to a red alert, valid till 8.30 a.m. on Thursday.

Input on infiltration by 900 Kuki militants could not be substantiated on the ground, says Manipur security advisor

Manipur security advisor Kuldiep Singh and Director-General of Police (DGP) Rajiv Singh said in a joint statemen that the input regarding the infiltration of 900 trained Kuki militants from Myanmar to carry out attacks on Meitei people on September 28 “could not be substantiated on ground.”

Centre estimates record foodgrains production; dip likely in pulses, oilseeds

The Union Agriculture Ministry has estimated a record production of foodgrains for the financial year 2023–24. The production of pulses, oil seeds, and sugarcane is likely to be lower than in the last fiscal, according to the fourth and final estimates of production of major agricultural crops for 2023-24 released in Delh

YouTuber ‘Savukku’ Shankar walks out of Madurai prison after Supreme Court orders his release

The Supreme Court ordered the release of YouTuber ‘Savukku’ Shankar after being informed by the Tamil Nadu government that the State’s Advisory Board had revoked his detention under the Goondas Act. “Acting on the opinion of the Advisory Board, the State has revoked the order of detention today, i.e., September 25, 2024. In view of the aforesaid, the detenue Shankar @ Savukku Shankar shall be released forthwith, if not required in any other case. The writ petition is accordingly disposed of,” a Bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said.

Badlapur encounter: Bombay High Court refuses to accept encounter narrative; pulls up Thane police

The Bombay High Court grilled the Maharashtra Police over the custodial death of Akshay Shinde, accused in the Badlapur sexual assault case. Shinde was allegedly shot dead in an encounter by Thane Police on Monday (September 23, 2024).

Supreme Court empathises with ‘middle-class’ owners who lost their homes in 2020 Maradu high-rise building demolitions

Four years after ordering the demolition of high-rise buildings at Maradu in Kerala, the Supreme Court voiced empathy for the families who lost their homes, saying they were “ultimately middle-class who have suffered”.

Journal ‘retracts’ controversial paper published by BHU on Covaxin safety

The journal ‘Drug Safety’ has “retracted” a paper published on May 13 by researchers of the Banaras Hindu University, on the safety of COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin. The paper, “Long-term safety analysis of the BBV152 coronavirus vaccine in adolescents and adults: Findings from a 1-year prospective study in North India”, was based on a follow up of 635 adolescents and 291 adults one year after vaccination, to find the safety of Covaxin. 

Zelenskyy warns of nuclear risk, urges countries to accept his peace plan

Addressing the 79th session of the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA), Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned of the risk of a nuclear accident with Russia’s continued occupation of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia power plant. Mr. Zelenskyy also suggested his plan for peace was the way forward as resolving the war at the U.N. was “impossible” because of Russia’s veto power at the Security Council.

Israel tells its troops to prepare for a possible ground operation in Lebanon

Israel is preparing for a possible ground operation in Lebanon, its army chief said as Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets across the border and a missile aimed at Tel Aviv that was the militant group's deepest strike yet.A ddressing troops on the northern border, Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said Israel's punishing airstrikes this week were designed to ”prepare the ground for your possible entry and to continue degrading Hezbollah.”

AICF announces ₹3.2 crore rewards for Olympiad-winning teams

The All India Chess Federation announced a whopping ₹3.2 crore in rewards for the historic 45th Olympiad-winning Indian teams during a felicitation ceremony. AICF president Nitin Narang made the announcement during the event. Each player from the winning teams will receive ₹25 lakh, while the captains of the men’s and women’s teams, Abhijeet Kunte and Srinath Narayanan, will be rewarded with ₹15 lakh each.

Published - September 26, 2024 06:31 am IST