India logged 2,876 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 4,29,98,938, while the active cases dipped to 32,811, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Tuesday.

The death toll climbed to 5,16,072 with 98 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed.

India has restored all currently valid five year e-tourist visa given to citizens of 156 countries and regular paper visa to nationals of all countries with immediate effect, two years after their suspension follow the COVID-19 outbreak.

Officials also said all currently valid old long duration (10 years) regular tourist visa given to nationals of the US and Japan have been restored.

Covid vaccination of children in 12-14 years age group started in Delhi on Wednesday amid a steady decline in new coronavirus cases being reported in the city.

Day one of the exercise saw children arriving largely through 'walk-in for vaccination' and the numbers were very few at session sites.

AAP leader Bhagwant Mann was sworn in as the Punjab chief minister on Wednesday.

Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit administered the oath of office and secrecy to Mann in the swearing-in ceremony that took place at Khatkar Kalan, the ancestral village of legendary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in Punjab's Shaheed Bhagat Singh (SBS) Nagar district.

Mann took oath in Punjabi.

In a major victory for Tamil Nadu, the Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to stay its decision allocating 50 per cent super-specialty seats in government medical colleges to NEET-qualified in-service candidates.

A bench comprising Justices L Nageswara rao and B R Gavai permitted the state government to continue providing 50 per cent quota for in-service candidates in super speciality courses in its colleges.

Shares of ITC hit an over three-month high of Rs 242, up 2 per cent on the BSE in Wednesday's intra-day trade, on expectation of healthy earning going ahead. It traded at its highest level since November 18, 2021.

In the past two weeks, the stock has outperformed the market by surging 12 per cent, as compared to a 5 per cent decline in the S&P BSE Sensex. The stock was close to its 52-week high level of Rs 265.30 touched on October 18, 2021.

Shares of cement companies rallied up to 20 per cent, bouncing back from previous week's lows, amid declining crude oil prices.

Frontline cement stocks like UltraTech Cement, Ambuja Cements, ACC, Dalmia Bharat, India Cements, Ramco Cement and Shree Cement rose in the range of 2 per cent to 3 per cent in intra-day deals today. Sagar Cements, meanwhile, zoomed 20 per cent on the BSE in the intra-day trade while JK Cements, Orient Cement and Sanghi Industries added 4 to 6 per cent. In comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 1.5 per cent at 56,607 points at 12:12 PM.

Amazon Academy, the edtech unit of the e-commerce firm, has launched JEE/NEET ‘Ultimate Pack for 2022-23’ in both Hinglish and English languages for students moving from Class 10 to Class 11 and Class 11 to Class 12 respectively. The year-long course is designed to help students secure high scores in competitive exams by providing a holistic preparation that includes live classes, high-quality content and data analytics backed teaching. The course also guides students via a research-based revision program at Amazon Academy by highly rated expert faculty who have coached top JEE/NEET rankers in the past.

IndiGo started flights between India and Thailand from Tuesday onwards after a span of two years, a statement said.

Thailand is opening its borders nearly two years after it restricted entry for tourists in March 2020, the airline's statement noted.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in Rajya Sabha (RS) on Tuesday that Rs 96,756 crore had been disbursed to states as goods and service tax (GST) compensation, but Rs 53,611 crore was still pending.

“The Centre is committed to release full GST compensation to states/Union Territories, according to the GST (Compensation to States) Act, 2017, for the transition period by extending the levy of compensation cess beyond five years to meet the GST revenue shortfall, as well as servicing the loan borrowed through a special window scheme,” Sitharaman said in reply.

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