HIGHLIGHTS

Following are the top stories at 9.00 pm NATION: DEL34 PM-2NDLD BJP On BJP foundation day, Modi says it stands for 'rashtra bhakti', rivals for 'parivar bhakti' New Delhi: Asserting that the BJP stands for ''rashtra bhakti'' and its rivals for ''parivar bhakti'', Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday that people are gradually coming to the realisation that dynastic parties are the ''biggest enemies'' of democracy. DEL65 PM-LS-UKRAINE DEBATE Such bipartisanship augurs well for India at world stage: PM on Ukraine discussion in LS New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday hailed the discussion on the situation in Ukraine in Lok Sabha, saying the rich level of debate illustrates there is bipartisanship on the matters of foreign policy which augurs well for India at the world stage. BOM21 MH-VIRUS-2ND LD XE First case of Omicron’s new sub-variant XE detected in Mumbai Mumbai: The first case of XE, a more transmissible COVID-19 variant, was detected in Mumbai on Wednesday, a civic health official said.

DEL37 AQ-HIJAB-INDIA Al-Qaeda chief uses Karnataka hijab row to target democracy in India New Delhi: Al-Qaeda chief Ayman Al-Zawahiri has used the recent Hijab controversy in Karnataka to target democracy in India, saying ''we must stop being deceived by the mirage of the pagan Hindu democracy''.

DEL63 CAG-RAIL-EXPENSE Railways failed to improve mobility outcomes despite investing Rs 2.5 lakh crore on track infra: CAG New Delhi: Despite investing Rs 2.5 lakh crore on track infrastructure in the 2008-19 financial year, the railways has failed to improve on its mobility outcomes, the CAG has said in its latest report and pulled up the national transporter for avoidable expenses.

DEL44 RSQ-JK-TERROR 87 civilians, 99 security personnel killed in JK since Article 370 scrapped: govt New Delhi: As many as 87 civilians and 99 security personnel have been killed in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, as compared to 177 civilians and 406 security personnel in the previous five years, Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai informed the Rajya Sabha. DEL60 UP-AMU-LD SUSPENSION AMU prof lectures on 'rape' in Hindu myths: cops register FIR, univ suspends him Aligarh: Police on Wednesday registered an FIR against an Aligarh Muslim University professor who referred to examples of “rape” in Hindu mythology during a forensic science class, provoking accusations of hurting religious sentiments.

DEL62 LD AMNESTY CHIEF-AIRPORT-STOPPED Amnesty International India chief Aakar Patel stopped from flying abroad over FCRA case New Delhi/Bengaluru: Amnesty International India chief Aakar Patel was on Wednesday stopped from leaving the country at the Bengaluru international airport in the wake of a CBI look out circular (LOC) issued on December 31 last year in an FCRA case, after which he moved a special court in Delhi challenging it.

DEL56 RAHUL-ARMY-RECRUITMENT Rahul questions govt on stalled army recruitment New Delhi: Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi Wednesday hit out at the government over the issue of stalled recruitment in the army, saying youths are ready to lay down their lives for the country, but ''this incompetent government'' is not recruiting them.

MDS10 KA-MOSQUE-NOTICE Azaan row: Police ask mosques in Karnataka not to violate noise pollution rule Bengaluru: Mosques in Karnataka have started receiving notices from the police to use their loudspeakers within the permissible decibel levels. DEL54 PAWAR-LD MODI Pawar meets PM, flags ED action against Sanjay Raut New Delhi: As the Enforcement Directorate stepped up heat on Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar on Wednesday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and told him injustice was being done against the senior Parliamentarian and editor.

MDS16 TN-CM-PM-CUET TN CM Stalin terms CUET 'regressive', asks PM Modi to scrap proposal Chennai: Denouncing the Common University Entrance Examination (CUET) for central universities, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Wednesday dubbed the proposed exam as 'regressive' and 'undesirable' and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to withdraw the move to hold the national level test.

BOM25 MH-SIGNBOARDS-MUMBAI Mumbai civic body asks shops and establishments to follow Marathi signboard rule Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Wednesday asked all shops and establishments in the city to have signboards with a name written in Marathi -- in Devnagari script -- displayed prominently.

DEL29 IMD-HEATWAVE Temperature to be higher than normal in northwest India, adjoining central India in April: IMD DG New Delhi: Northwest India and adjoining parts of central India are predicted to see “more intense and frequent heatwave” conditions in April, India Meteorological Department Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said on Wednesday.

BUSINESS: DEL49 BIZ-CNG-PRICE-HIKE CNG prices in Delhi, Mumbai, Gujarat see steep hike New Delhi: CNG prices in Delhi, Mumbai and Gujarat on Wednesday saw steep hikes after the government raised input natural gas prices to record levels.

DEL61 BIZ-LD-RUPEE Rupee plunges by 55 paise to 1-week low against USD on rate hike worries Mumbai: Snapping its three-day winning streak, the rupee tanked 55 paise, its steepest single-day fall in a month, to close at a one-week low of 75.84 against the US dollar on Wednesday as expectations of aggressive rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve bolstered the American currency.

LEGAL: LGD18 DL-HC-LENDING APPS Online lending platforms offering loans at exorbitant rates: HC asks RBI to file status report New Delhi: The Delhi High Court Wednesday asked the RBI to file a status report on the steps taken for implementation of a committee's report to look into the issue of online lending platforms offering short-term personal loans at exorbitant interest rates through mobile apps.

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