The power battle in West Bengal has reached its penultimate stage as polling for the seventh phase of the state assembly elections is going to be held today, i.e. April 26. In Phase-VII, 34 assembly constituencies spread across five districts will go to polls.

Of the 34 constituencies, 9 assembly constituencies each are in Murshidabad and West Burdwan, 6 each in South Dinajpur and Malda and 4 in Kolkata.

India reported yet another grim milestone of highest number of daily new Covid-19 cases and deaths. A total of 3,46,786 Covid cases were recorded in the last 24 hours, and 2,624 deaths, the highest single-day deaths so far in the country, according to health ministry's reports on Saturday.

The active cases in India stood 1,89,544 on Saturday.

The first case of coronavirus has been reported from Mount Everest, the world's tallest mountain. Norwegian climber Erlend Ness was tested positive for the coronavirus and was evacuated by helicopter from the Mount Everest base camp to Kathmandu, reported The Hill.

A Sherpa -- a member of a Tibetan ethnic group native to the Himalayas -- working in his party also tested positive for the virus. Initially, it was believed that Ness had pulmonary edema, a condition where the air sacs in the lungs fill with fluid that is often associated with altitude sickness.

As dead bodies pile up at the capital’s crematoriums, with hundreds dying every day, fear of Covid pandemic has engulfed Delhi residents like never before. A recent survey conducted across the capital shows, nearly 7 out of 10 Delhi residents are now in favour of remaining locked inside their homes as thousands of Covid patients choke the capital’s healthcare infrastructure.

The survey conducted by LocalCircles in all the 11 districts of the city reflects the change in opinion among Delhiites of late.

A senior US State Department official has said that the Biden administration's first obligation is to take care of the requirements of the American people. This statement comes at a time when the United States has restricted the export of key raw materials for the manufacture of the COVID-19 vaccines.

State Department spokesperson Ned Price said, The United States first and foremost is engaged in an ambitious and effective and, so far, successful effort to vaccinate the American people.

Justice Nuthalapati Venkata Ramana on Saturday took over as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India. He is now the 48th Chief Justice of India (CJI) and succeeded the post after Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde.

President Ram Nath Kovind administered the oath of office to Justice Ramana in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and many other dignitaries at the Rashtrapati Bhawan.

Amid the oxygen crisis in many states, the Central government said it is in talks for the import of high-capacity oxygen-carrying tankers from Singapore and the UAE. The government has also directed states to revive all closed oxygen plants for augmenting their production.

In separate letters, the Centre asked all states to prepare a list of oxygen producers in their respective jurisdiction and directed them to ensure uninterrupted supply and transport of oxygen in the places where there is a demand.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday expressed his displeasure over Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s decision to telecast his comments live during a meeting the PM was holding with 10 CMs on the pandemic situation.

This is strictly against our tradition, our protocol... that some Chief Minister is showing a live telecast of an in-house meeting… This is not ap­propriate. One should alw­ays maintain restraint, Modi said.

The Biden administration has came under intense pressure from various quarters, including the powerful US Chambers of Commerce, lawmakers and eminent Indian-Americans, to ship AstraZeneca and other Coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccines along with several life-saving medical supplies to India, which is witnessing a deadly surge in coronavirus cases.

Reliance Industries (RIL)-promoted Hathway Cable & Datacom will launch an offer for sale (OFS) on Monday -- the second time in a month it will be doing so. The last OFS for Rs 853 crore was partially subscribed.

This month, the company will launch a Rs 442-crore share sale, offloading 205.44 million shares, or an 11.61 per cent stake, at a floor price of Rs 21.50. Promoter group firms that will sell shares include Jio Content Distribution Holdings, Jio Internet Distribution Holdings, and Jio Cable and Broadband Holdings.

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