HIGHLIGHTS

CES1 MZ-VIRUS-CASES 6 BSF personnel, 1 policeman among 11 fresh COVID-19 cases in Mizoram Aizawl: Eleven people, including six Border Security Force (BSF) personnel and a policeman, have tested positive for COVID-19 in Mizoram, taking the state's tally to 395, a health department official said on Wednesday. CAL2 WB-LOCKDOWN Bengal wears deserted look on 3rd day of biweekly total lockdown Kolkata: Residents of West Bengal woke up to empty roads and deserted public places on Wednesday as a complete lockdown was enforced across the state to break the chain of surging coronavirus cases.

Following are the top stories at 12 pm: NATION DEL5 HR-RAFALE Five Rafale jets to land in Ambala today, security tightened around air base Ambala: The first batch of five Rafale jets are scheduled to land at the Ambala air base here on Wednesday afternoon with police tightening the security around the air force station. DEL9 VIRUS-CASES India's COVID-19 tally crosses 15-lakh mark New Delhi: India's COVID-19 tally went past 15 lakh on Wednesday, two days after it crossed the 14-lakh mark, with 48,513 fresh cases recorded in a day while the recoveries surged to 9,88,029, according to the Union Health Ministry data.

BES1 MP-VIRUS-SILAWAT MP minister Tulsi Silawat, his wife test COVID-19 positive Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Water Resources Minister Tulsi Silawat and his wife have tested coronavirus positive. CAL4 MN-VIRUS-DEATH Manipur reports first COVID-19 death Imphal: Manipur reported its first COVID-19 death as a 56-year-old man succumbed to the disease at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) here on Wednesday, an official said.

CAL3 AR-VIRUS-CASES 91 new COVID-19 cases in Arunachal Pradesh; tally rises to 1,330 Itanagar: Ninety-one people, including 19 security personnel have tested positive for COVID-19 in Arunachal Pradesh, taking the northeastern state's caseload to 1,330 on Wednesday, a senior health department official said. CES1 MZ-VIRUS-CASES 6 BSF personnel, 1 policeman among 11 fresh COVID-19 cases in Mizoram Aizawl: Eleven people, including six Border Security Force (BSF) personnel and a policeman, have tested positive for COVID-19 in Mizoram, taking the state's tally to 395, a health department official said on Wednesday.

CAL2 WB-LOCKDOWN Bengal wears deserted look on 3rd day of biweekly total lockdown Kolkata: Residents of West Bengal woke up to empty roads and deserted public places on Wednesday as a complete lockdown was enforced across the state to break the chain of surging coronavirus cases. CAL1 AN-LOCKDOWN Complete lockdown on weekends in Andaman and Nicobar Islands Port Blair: The Andaman and Nicobar administration has decided to impose a complete lockdown on weekends beginning August 1 to contain the spread of coronavirus, an official said on Wednesday.

LEGAL LGD3 RJ-HC-BSP BSP challenges merger of six party MLAs with Cong in Rajasthan Jaipur: The Bahujan Samaj Party on Wednesday filed a writ petition in the Rajasthan High Court challenging the merger of six BSP MLAs with the ruling Congress in Rajasthan. LGD4 DL-HC-GOVT ACCOMMODATION PIL against illegal occupation of govt accommodation: HC seeks Centre's stand New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has sought the Centre's response on a PIL filed by a society against illegal occupation of government accommodation by retired public servants, particularly the former chairman of the Forward Market Commission.

FOREIGN FGN12 VIRUS-CHINA-LD CASES COVID-19: China sees over 100 cases for 1st time in over 3 months amidst fear of second wave Beijing: China's COVID-19 cases in a single day have crossed the 100-mark for the first time in over three months, sparking the fear of a rebound after Beijing contained it in Wuhan where the contagion first emerged in December last year. By K J M Varma. FGN11 US-TRUMP-LD HCQ Trump defends use of hydroxychloroquine, says it works in early stages of COVID-19 infection Washington: US President Donald Trump has again defended the use of hydroxychloroquine to ward off coronavirus, saying many frontline medical workers agree with him that the malaria drug works in the early stages of COVID-19 infection, despite mounting evidence that it is ineffective in treating the disease. By Lalit K Jha FGN4 US-CHINA-HALEY China under Xi has become very aggressive, bullish: Nikki Haley Washington: China under President Xi Jinping has become more aggressive and bullish, former US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on Tuesday, asserting that such a behavior is unlikely to last long. By Lalit K Jha. SPORTS SPD3 SPO-CRI-GAMBHIR India have bowling attack to rattle Australia including Smith, Warner: Gambhir Mumbai: Former India opener Gautam Gambhir believes that the Virat Kohli-led side has the bowling attack to rattle the Australian batting line up including Steve Smith and David Warner, who were serving ball-tampering bans in the previous series Down Under.