Today’s Top News Headlines and Latest News at 10:30 am on 2nd August 2022

You are listening to the Expresso News Update. Here is the latest news from The Indian Express.
“Let us begin with the top national news: Days after a 22-year-old Kerala man monkeypox patient died, the Indian government has reached out to authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to know how he could board a flight to India despite having declared positive for the infection. The man, as per sources, boarded a flight to Kerala on July 22 after even as he was positive in the UAE itself.

This is the first death linked to monkeypox infection in India. Kerala Health Minister Veena George said since the person did not have the typical symptoms of monkeypox, even though he tested positive for the infection, a high-level probe will be conducted to determine the cause of death.

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“Asserting that India’s economy is showing “very positive signs” and getting “more robust”, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that there is “no question” of the country “getting into recession or stagflation”.

Replying to a discussion on price rise in Lok Sabha, Sitharaman hit out at the Opposition for comparing the country’s economic conditions with that of neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka, and said India is in a far better position as its “macroeconomic fundamentals are perfect”. Sitharaman also quoted former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan and said that the Reserve Bank of India has done a “very good job in increasing the foreign exchange reserves in India, insulating (it) from problems being faced by neighbouring countries, such as Pakistan and Sri Lanka”.

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“In other news: For the third consecutive month this monsoon, rainfall over the country is expected to be normal, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Moreover, cumulative rainfall in August and September will also be normal over India. Quantitatively, rainfall will range between 94 and 106 per cent of the Long Period Average.

Normal or above rainfall is forecast over Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi-Chandigarh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh. But Maharashtra, coastal Karnataka, Goa, Kerala, Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura will receive below normal rainfall in August.”
“Meanwhile, The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will undertake the maiden flight of its newly developed Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) on August 7, ahead of Independence Day celebration.

This is significant given that India was set to celebrate 75th Independence Day with the first human spaceflight, as per the deadline set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort on Independence day, 2018.”
“In other news: The United States killed al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in a strike in Afghanistan over the weekend, President Joe Biden said on Monday, the biggest blow to the militant group since its founder Osama bin Laden was killed in 2011.

Zawahiri, an Egyptian surgeon who had a $25 million bounty on his head, helped coordinate the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people.

US officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Zawahiri died after a US drone strike in the Afghan capital Kabul at 6.18 am (0148 GMT i.e. 7.18 am IST) on Sunday.
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“In news from Delhi: Revenue losses to the government, “windfall gain” for a few vendors and discounts leading to unhealthy market practices that pushed “weaker hands” from the competition are among the reasons that the Delhi government decided to revert to the old excise policy that was in place till November 2021, according to a cabinet note sent by the AAP government to Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena for approval on Sunday night.

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia is also learnt to have asked the excise department to prepare a fresh excise policy based on the experiences of the new policy that was introduced in November last year, which aimed to privatise the liquor business and weed out corruption.”
“Bollywood star Alia Bhatt in a conversation with Express Adda on Monday spoke about her career and film choices. During the hour-long chat, the actor was also asked about stardom, especially in the context of what is happening in the Hindi film industry right now. Several major Hindi films have failed to perform at the box office this year, leaving the bankability of their stars in question.

Speaking about the definition of a star in the modern context, Alia said, “What makes a star? It’s the love, but there is also a certain kind of star who will bring in the money at the box office. But that cannot happen now without content, ultimately it’s the power of the content that is pulling the audience to cinemas. So, the stardom comes from the content you give to the people.””
“Lastly, the police in West Bengal on Sunday placed under arrest the three Jharkhand Congress MLAs, who were detained in Howrah on Saturday, after allegedly recovering “almost Rs 50 lakh” from their vehicle, senior officers told The Indian Express.

The case has been transferred to the state’s CID, the officers said, even as the Congress party suspended the three MLAs, Irfan Ansari, Rajesh Kachchap and Naman Bixel Kongari.

The arrests came on a day when another Congress MLA from Jharkhand, Kumar Jaimangal, lodged a police complaint in Ranchi, accusing the three arrested MLAs of “offering…Rs 10 crore” to “topple the present JMM and Congress government” allegedly at the behest of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.”

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