THE HEADLINES:-
- Government approves restructuring and extension of PM SVANidhi Scheme for street vendors till 2030; Also clears four major railway projects worth over 12,300 crore rupees.
- Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh terms US decision to impose 50 percent tariff on Indian imports unreasonable and unjustified; Assures, government will not let the country suffer.
- Incessant rainfall causes widespread destruction across Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab; Authorities working to restore essential services; Northern Railways cancels 45 trains in Jammu region.
- Russia launches massive drone strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructures across six regions.
- In Sports, India’s Anish Bhanwala clinches silver in Men’s 25m Rapid Fire Pistol event of Asian Shooting Championships in Kazakhstan.
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The Union Cabinet today approved the restructuring of Prime Minister Street Vendor’s Atma Nirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) Scheme. The Cabinet also gave approval for extension of the lending period beyond the 31st of December 2024. The lending period has now been extended until the 31st of March, 2030. The total outlay for the scheme is seven thousand 332 crore rupees. The key features of the restructured scheme include enhanced loan amount across the first and second tranche, provision of UPI-linked RuPay Credit Card for beneficiaries who have repaid the second loan and digital cashback incentives for retail and wholesale transactions. The first tranche loan has been increased up to 15 thousand rupees from ten thousand rupees and second tranche loans increased up to 25 thousand rupees from 20 thousand rupees, while the third tranche remains unchanged at 50 thousand rupees. We have a report:
“The restructured scheme aims to benefit one crore 15 lakh beneficiaries including 50 lakh new beneficiaries. The scheme’s coverage is being expanded beyond statutory towns to census towns and peri-urban areas in graded manner. The introduction of UPI-linked RUPAY Credit Card would provide immediate access of credit to the street vendors in order to meet any emergent business and personal requirements. In order to give boost to digital adoption, the street vendors can avail cashback incentives upto one thousand 600 rupees on making retail and wholesale transactions. The Government had initially launched PM SVANidhi Scheme on 1st June 2020 to support street vendors who faced unprecedented hardships during the COVID-19 pandemic. Anupam, Akashvani News, Delhi.”
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The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs today cleared four major railway projects worth around 12,328 crore rupees aimed at boosting connectivity, freight movement, and regional development in the country. The projects include one new rail line to connect far flung areas of Kutch in Gujarat and multi-tracking works to enhance connectivity to over three thousand villages, benefitting the states of Karnataka, Telangana, Bihar and Assam. These initiatives will improve travel convenience besides reducing logistic cost and decrease dependence on oil imports.
The completion timeline for the 173 km long Secunderabad (Sanathnagar)-Wadi 3rd and 4th Line, having cost of 5012 crores, is five years. The timeline for the 53 km long Bhagalpur-Jamalpur 3rd line in Bihar is three years for which the cost is 1156 crore rupees. The work for the 194 km long Furkating – New Tinsukia Doubling, with a cost of 3634 crore rupees, will be completed in four years. The completion timeline of the new line to connect far-fetched area of Kutch region at an estimated cost of 2526 crore rupees is 3 years.
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The Cabinet has approved the proposal of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports for submission of bid for the Commonwealth Games 2030. It also gave its approval to sign the Host Collaboration Agreement along with the required Guarantees from concerned Ministries, Departments and Authorities and sanction of required grant-in-aid to the Gujarat Government, in case the bid gets accepted. An official release said, Ahmedabad is an ideal host city offering world class stadiums, cutting-edge training facilities, and a passionate sporting culture.
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Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh today termed the US decision to impose 50 percent tariff on Indian imports as unjustified, unreasonable, and unfair. Replying to a media query on the issue on the sidelines of an event in New Delhi, Mr Singh stressed that the economy is strong enough and the government will not let the country suffer.
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Incessant rainfall over the past few days has caused widespread destruction across Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.
In Jammu and Kashmir, though the intensity of rainfall has eased across Jammu division, all districts continue to receive showers. The telecom department has activated intra-circle roaming across the Union Territory to ensure connectivity, while the Railways has partially restored operations, resuming two train services so far. Our correspondent reports that rescue and relief operations are underway as officials monitor the situation closely.
“A major landslide near Indraprastha Bhojnalaya at Ardhkuwari on the Vaishno Devi Yatra route claimed multiple lives, prompting suspension of the yatra. In Doda, four people lost their lives as flash floods washed away 15 houses and three footbridges in Marmat and Tanta areas. Major rivers including the Tawi, Chenab, Kalnai, and Neru rose sharply, posing a threat to low-lying areas. Multiple roads and Key highways, including the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway (NH-44), remain blocked due to landslides, Power supply, and mobile networks have also been disrupted in several affected areas. NDRF has deployed multiple teams across the region. These teams are actively assisting in rescue and relief operations . Gulshan Raina for Akashvani News from Jammu.”
President Draupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh has expressed grief at the loss of lives due to a landslide on the route to the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Temple in Katra. The Prime Minister assured that the administration is providing all possible assistance to the affected people.
Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has announced an ex gratia of 5 lakh rupees to the next of kin of each deceased who lost their lives in landslide in Katra while those injured will be given 50 thousand.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today visited flood-affected areas of the Jammu division to take stock of the situation. He inspected the damaged 4th Tawi Bridge.
Meanwhile, Northern Railway has cancelled 45 trains and short terminated 25 trains due to heavy rains in Jammu region. Chief Public Relations Officer of Northern Railway, Himanshu Shekhar informed about the decision while talking to media in New Delhi today.
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In Himachal Pradesh, Chamba, Kangra and Kullu districts are worst affected. We have a report –
“Chamba district is currently cut off from the rest of the country. Pathankot-Chamba National Highway is blocked due to floods and landslides. More than one hundred vehicles are stranded on this route and around one thousand vehicles are also stranded on the Mani Mahesh Yatra route. The devotees stranded in the Mani Mahesh Yatra have been accommodated at safe places by the district administration. The government and administration are working on a war footing to restore road connectivity in the district. For the convenience of people in Chamba, Kullu and Lahaul Spiti districts, the Himachal Pradesh License Service Area Telecom Department has activated intra-circle roaming facility till 3rd September. Prabha Sharma Akashvani News Shimla.”
The flood situation in Punjab is worsening as major rivers, including Ravi, Beas and Sutlej, continue to swell. Seven districts, including Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Fazilka, Ferozepur and Kapurthala, remain on high alert. Relief and rescue work is underway in the affected region.
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The India Meteorological Department has forecast very heavy rainfall over Chhattisgarh, Coastal Karnataka, Central Maharashtra and Uttarakhand tomorrow. The Met Department has also predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall tomorrow over parts of Coastal Andhra Pradesh, East Rajasthan, Gujarat Region, Himachal Pradesh, Interior Karnataka, Kerala and Mahe, Konkan and Goa.
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Thirty Maoists surrendered in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh today. Out of them, 20 were carrying rewards amounting to eighty-one lakh rupees. The Maoists were provided an incentive amount of fifty thousand rupees each, under the state government’s rehabilitation policy.
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The festival of Ganesh Chaturthi is being celebrated across the country with great devotion. The day marks the birth of Lord Ganesha, who is a symbol of wisdom, prosperity and good fortune. Also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi or Ganesh Utsav, the day marks the beginning of ten day long festivities during which people place clay idols of Lord Ganesha at their homes and worship them. In Maharashtra, Ganeshotsav began today amidst tunes of dhol-tasha and chants of Ganpati Bappa Morya. More from our correspondent:
“People of Maharashtra welcomed their beloved Ganpati Bappa to their homes with great reverence. Devotees, including Bollywood celebrities, were seen queuing at prominent Ganesh mandals in Mumbai, such as Lalbaugcha Raja. The Maharashtra government has officially declared Ganeshotsav as the state festival. As part of the initiative, Bhajani Mandals will be eligible for a grant of up to Rs. 5 crore. Security has been tightened in the city and suburbs. The BEST has announced special initiatives to facilitate the movement of devotees. The Railways has arranged several special trains during the festival. Prarthana, Akashvani News, Mumbai“
President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted people on the auspicious occasion.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi has greeted the nation on occasion of Samvatsari, emphasizing the timeless values of forgiveness, compassion, and sincere human connection.
Samvatsari is a day of reflection, atonement, and reconciliation within the Jain community.
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Russia launched a massive drone attack on energy and gas transport infrastructure across six Ukrainian regions overnight. According to media reports, Russian forces significantly damaged gas transport infrastructure in Poltava region and struck equipment at one of the key substations in the Sumy region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said, the attacks left more than one lakh people without power in the Poltava, Sumy and Chernihiv regions. Ukraine’s energy ministry said, Kharkiv region was also hit overnight, as were the regions of Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk.
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Indian Shooter Anish Bhanwala clinched the silver medal in the Men’s 25m Rapid Fire Pistol event at the ongoing Asian Championships at Shymkent in Kazakhstan today.
In the Men’s 25m rapid fire pistol team event, India settled for silver.
India witnessed success in the junior division as well, with the country winning gold in the Men’s 50m pistol team event. India is leading the overall tally so far with 75 medals including 40 gold, 18 silver and 17 bronze.
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Members of the North East United Football Club, who won the President’s Cup of the Durand Cup Tournament, 2025, called on President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan today. The President handed over the President’s Cup trophy to owner of the football club, John Abraham.
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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN:-
- Government approves restructuring and extension of PM SVANidhi Scheme for street vendors till 2030; Also clears four major railway projects worth over 12,300 crore rupees.
- Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh terms US decision to impose 50 percent tariff on Indian imports unreasonable and unjustified; Assures, government will not let the country suffer.
- Incessant rainfall causes widespread destruction across Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab; Authorities working to restore essential services; Northern Railways cancels 45 trains in Jammu region.
- Russia launches massive drone strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructures across six regions.
- In Sports, India’s Anish Bhanwala clinches silver in Men’s 25m Rapid Fire Pistol event of Asian Shooting Championships in Kazakhstan.
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