HIGHLIGHTS

The following are the top stories at 2120 HRS: NATION BOM43 MH-2ND LDALL CYCLONE Cyclone Nisarga makes landfall, uproots trees, spares Mumbai Mumbai: Cyclone Nisarga made landfall near Mumbai on Wednesday but spared the city already reeling under the COVID-19 pandemic, even as it uprooted trees in nearby Raigad and Palghar districts. DEL95 AVI-AIR INDIA-FLIGHTS Air India to operate 75 outbound passenger flights to US, Canada from June 9-June 30 New Delhi: Air India on Wednesday said it will operate 75 outbound passenger flights to select destinations in the US and Canada between June 9 and June 30 under the Vande Bharat Mission. DEL91 SINOINDIA-LD RUSSIA Russia pitches for constructive relationship between India and China for regional stability New Delhi: Russia on Wednesday said a "constructive" relationship between India and China is crucial for regional stability and hoped that the two countries will be able to resolve their border standoff in eastern Ladakh through bilateral dialogue. DEL67 JK-LD LEADERS-PSA JK administration revokes PSA against Shah Faesal and two PDP leaders Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Wednesday revoked the controversial Public Safety Act (PSA) against former IAS officer-turned-politician Shah Faesal and two PDP members, including the maternal uncle of former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, officials said.

DEL89 LDALL VIRUS India's COVID-19 tally sees record rise; Recoveries cross 1-lakh mark New Delhi: The nationwide tally of confirmed COVID-19 infections saw a record single-day spike of nearly 9,000 cases on Wednesday with more people testing positive across states and union territories. The government said the count of those having recovered from the disease has also crossed the one-lakh mark and the testing infrastructure has been ramped up considerably. LEGAL LGD22 SC-LD BHARAT Plea for renaming India as 'Bharat' be treated as representation, says SC New Delhi: The Supreme Court Wednesday directed that a plea, seeking direction to the Centre to amend the Constitution and replace the word India with 'Bharat' or 'Hindustan', be treated as a representation by the authority concerned. LGD17 DL-COURT-LD RIOTS Deep rooted conspiracy behind killing of IB officer during Delhi riots, police tells court New Delhi: There was a deep rooted conspiracy behind the riots and ”murder” of IB officer Ankit Sharma during northeast Delhi violence as he was “specifically targeted” by a mob led by suspended AAP councillor Tahir Hussain,the police told a Delhi court in its charge sheet on Wednesday. FOREIGN FGN22 US-TRUMP-LD MODI US to ship first batch of 100 ventilators donated to India next week: White House Washington: The US will ship next week the first batch of 100 ventilators it has donated to India to treat the coronavirus patients, President Donald Trump has told Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a conference call, the White House said. By Lalit K Jha FGN36 SINOINDIA-BORDER Situation at Sino-India border stable, no need for 'third party' intervention: China Beijing: China on Wednesday emphasised that there was no need for the intervention of a "third party" to resolve its current standoff with India as the two neighbours have full-fledged border-related mechanisms and communication channels to sort out their differences through dialogue. By K J M Varma BUSINESS DEL64 BIZ-GOOGLE-LD REMOVECHINA Google pulls down Remove China Apps, Mitron from Play Store for policy violation New Delhi: Google has removed from its app store an Indian mobile application, 'Remove China Apps' that allowed users to delete Chinese games and other software from their Android smartphones, citing violation of its policies. DEL29 BIZ-PMI LD SERVICES Services sector activities contract sharply in May; firms cut jobs: Survey New Delhi: India's service sector activities declined sharply in May as the coronavirus pandemic continued to impair business operations, restrict consumer footfall at shops and resulted in job losses, a monthly survey said on Wednesday.