Delhi

New Delhi, Aug 12 (PTI) The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Friday a plea which has sought a direction to the Centre to appoint a commission, headed by a retired apex court judge, for inquiry into the alleged mismanagement of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

The petition has alleged that the Centre failed to undertake timely and effective measures for containing transmission of the virus and an independent inquiry by a commission, appointed under the Commissions of Inquiry Act 1952, was essential to inquire into the "lapses".

New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI) Drug firm Zydus Cadila on Thursday said it has launched Remdesivir under the brand name Remdac, used to treat patients suffering from severe symptoms of COVID-19, in the Indian market.

Priced at Rs 2,800 per 100 mg vial, Remdac is the most economical Remdesivir brand in India, Zydus Cadila said in a regulatory filing.

The company said the drug will be made available across India through the group's strong distribution chain reaching out to government and private hospitals treating COVID-19 patients.

New Delhi, Aug 11 (PTI) Hindon, a tributary of Ganga, is one of the polluted river stretches and no meaningful action has been being taken to clean it, the National Green Tribunal said Tuesday while directing the UP chief secretary to ensure coordination for rejuvenation of the waterbody.

The green panel said instead of shifting of blame from one department to another, steps should be taken for the restoration of water quality of Hindon.

New Delhi, Aug 11 (PTI) India's industrial production declined by 16.6 per cent in June, on account of disruption in normal business activity following the outbreak of coronavirus pandemic, the government data showed on Tuesday.

The decline in factory output was widespread across the sectors, including manufacturing, mining, power generation, capital goods and consumer durables, as per the data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.

The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) had expanded by 1.3 per cent in June 2019.

New Delhi, Aug 11 (PTI) The Congress on Tuesday said every party worker wants Rahul Gandhi to be its president and hoped that good things will happen in future.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said Rahul has shown the courage and mettle to take on the government by "pointing out and criticising every anti-people policy".

Ahmedabad, Aug 11 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday stressed on the need to increase coronavirus testing in Gujarat in view of the "high positivity rate" prevailing in the state.

The PM made the suggestion during his virtual interaction with chief ministers of 10 states, including Gujarat's Vijay Rupani, on the latest COVID-19 situation.

"Testing needs to be ramped up especially in those states where testing rate is low and positivity rate is high.

These states are Bihar, Gujarat, UP, West Bengal and Telangana.

New Delhi, Aug 11 (PTI) An expert committee under the chairmanship of NITI Aayog member Dr VK Paul will meet on Wednesday to consider the logistics and ethical aspects of procuring and administering the COVID-19 vaccine, the Union Health Ministry said on Tuesday.

The committee on vaccine administration will engage with all the stakeholders including state governments and vaccine manufacturers, the ministry said in a tweet.

New Delhi, Aug 10 (PTI) Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday alleged that there is "severe unemployment" in Uttar Pradesh and asked the Yogi Adityanath government to state how MoUs signed during investors' summit every year fructify and generate jobs.

New Delhi, Aug 10 (PTI) A Delhi court Monday granted bail to two persons in a case of communal violence in north east Delhi in February, saying there was no electronic evidence on record against them.

Jaipur, Aug 10 (PTI) Rebel Congress MLA Bhanwar Lal Sharma here on Monday met Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, indicating a patch-up between rival party factions.

After the meeting at Gehlot's official residence, Sharma said the "government was safe" and things will get clear by Tuesday. He said other rebel MLAs should also return to Jaipur.