HIGHLIGHTS

Following are the top stories at 2100 hours: NATION DEL45 PM-2NDLD MANNKIBAAT PM recalls valour of soldiers in Kargil, says wars fought on borders and within country too New Delhi: Hailing the valour of the armed forces during the Kargil war, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday asked people to speak and act keeping in mind the morale of soldiers and asserted that wars are fought not just on borders but on many fronts within the country too DEL56 VIRUS-2NDLD CASES India's COVID-19 tally soars to 13,85,522 with 48,661 fresh cases New Delhi: With 48,661 people testing positive for coronavirus infection in a day, India's COVID-19 tally climbed to 13,85,522 on Sunday, while the recoveries mounted to 8,85,576, according to the Union health ministry data. DEL50 AYODHYA-TEMPLE-TRUST Advani, Bhagwat among invitees to Ram temple 'bhoomi pujan', will be aired live by Doordarshan: Trustees New Delhi: Veteran BJP leaders LK Advani, MM Joshi and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat are among those being invited to the 'bhoomi pujan' ceremony of Ram temple in Ayodhya on August 5 which will be shown live by Doordarshan, trustees of the temple said on Sunday.

DEL51 DL-VIRUS-2NDLD CASES Delhi's COVID-19 recovery rate nearly 88 pc; CM says active cases 'steadily' going down New Delhi: Delhi's COVID-19 recovery rate reached nearly 88 per cent on Sunday, with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal saying the national capital is now in the 10th position among states and union territories as the number of active cases are "steadily" going down. DEL60 LD KARGIL DIWAS India celebrates 21st anniversary of Kargil War victory; PM says world has seen the nation's strength New Delhi/Drass: Glowing tributes were paid to the soldiers who fought the Kargil War as India on Sunday celebrated the 21st anniversary of its victory, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying the world had witnessed the country’s strength and the valour of its armed forces when Pakistan tried to "backstab" it.

CAL16 AS-LD FLOOD 5 more die as flood situation in Assam remains critical Guwahati: The flood situation in Assam remained critical with five more persons losing their lives, while nearly 25 lakh people have been affected by the deluge in 23 districts, an official bulletin said on Sunday DEL57 CONG-RAHUL-YOUNG BRIGADE Apprehension prevails in Cong after Pilot rebellion; all eyes on 'Rahul brigade' New Delhi: After rebellions by Jyotiraditya Scindia in Madhya Pradesh and Sachin Pilot in Rajasthan, the focus is now on Rahul Gandhi's "youth brigade" and those whom he had given key responsibilities when he was Congress president. MDS22 SOUTH-VIRUS Karna reports high number of COVID-19 cases, marginal dip in other southern states Chennai: Karnataka reported yet another day of unprecedented COVID-19 cases, but the rest of the southern states with high daily caseloads-Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, saw minor dips compared to the previous days. DEL18 JK-ABDULLAH-INTERVIEW Farooq Abdullah calls for restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, pins hopes on SC New Delhi: As the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status is set to complete one year on August 5, former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah on Sunday called for restoration of its statehood and hoped the Supreme Court would render justice by striking down the repeal of Article 370 provisions. By Sumir Kaul DEL62 VIRUS-ITOLIZUMAB-LD PROTOCOLS Health ministry decides against including Itolizumab in clinical management protocols for COVID-19 New Delhi: The National Task Force on COVID-19 has decided against including Itolizumab drug in clinical management protocols for treating the disease even though the DCGI has approved its "restricted emergency use" in infected patients, official sources said. LEGAL LGD2 GREEN-REFINERY NGT directs IOCL's Panipat refinery to pay Rs 25 crore New Delhi: The National Green Tribunal has said the Indian Oil Corporation Limited's Panipat refinery in Haryana has failed to take effective and adequate steps for pollution control and directed it to submit Rs 25 crore for restoration of the environment.

FOREIGN FGN18 UK-MINORITIES-DIVERSITY-COINS Rishi Sunak considers ethnic minority figures on UK coins London: UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak is reportedly considering a proposal for influential ethnic minority figures to be featured on a set of UK coins to celebrate Britain’s diversity. By Aditi Khanna FGN17 VIRUS-AUS-MIGRATION-INDIANS Australia's migration intake to fall by over 2 lakh due to COVID-19; Indians affected Melbourne: Australia's migration intake will drop significantly to 31,000 in 2020-21 from 232,000 in 2018-19 due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, impacting thousands of Indians planning to emigrate to this country. By Natasha Chaku SPORTS SPD6 SPO-CRI-IPL-ACU Managing IPL's ACU operations at 3 venues in UAE will be slightly easier: Ajit Singh New Delhi: Taking the IPL to the UAE would be quite a task logistically for the tournament organisers but for BCCI Anti-Corruption Unit head Ajit Singh, the move will make monitoring the event "slightly easier" as it would be restricted to just three venues. (PTI EXCLUSIVE) By Kushan Sarkar PTI SRY.