MODI ADDRESSES THE NATION ON FREE RATIONS TO POOR

The Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, providing free ration to 80

crore people, will be extended till November, involving Rs 90,000 crore

expenditure. The scheme has been in operation for the past three months so

that the poor and marginalised, suffering on account of loss of income due

to Covid-19, do not remain hungry. Together with this extension, the scheme

will cost Rs 1.5 lakh crore.

Announcing this in a 16-minute address to the nation that had no mention of

China, PM Narendra Modi said that during monsoon, activities around the farm

sector increase while decreasing in other sectors. This coupled with a

number of festivals between July and November added to the expenses of

people. Keeping these factors in view, the scheme which entailed 5 kg wheat

or rice per person and 1 kg of pulses per family every month was being

extended.

The world, PM Modi said, was both surprised and amazed that India was

providing free ration to 80 crore people for the last three months. The

beneficiaries were over 2.5 times the population of the United States, 12

times the population of the United Kingdom and double the population of the

European Union.

Congress promptly responded saying that the highly publicized impending

address was much ado about nothing. It could have easily been replaced with

a government notification, the party said.

LAC DE-ESCALATION TALKS STRETCH, ARMY PREPARES FOR THE LONG HAUL

Talks between XIV Corps Commander Lt General Harinder Singh and South

Xinjiang Military Region Commander Major General Liu Lin to discuss a

roadmap for de-escalation and disengagement of troops along the Line of

Actual Control continued well into the night Tuesday at the Chushul border

point.

The meeting, the third between the two commanders who first met on June 6,

started around 11 am at Chushul - the meetings on June 6 and June 22 were

held at Moldo on the Chinese side of the border with Chushul.

While there was no official word on what transpired at the meeting, sources

in the Army, pointing to a trust deficit given the build-up along the LAC

and the loss of 20 Indian Army personnel in a violent showdown with Chinese

troops in Galwan Valley on June 15, said: "Army is preparing for the long

haul and the standoff is expected to continue well into the winter."

In the previous two meetings, India has sought restoration of status quo

ante - of troops returning to locations before the faceoff began in May.

NEPAL PARTY LEADERS TELL PM OLI TO PROVE INDIA CHARGE OR RESIGN

Two days after Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli claimed that India was

trying to topple his government with support from some politicians at home,

party leaders, including three former prime ministers, Tuesday asked him to

prove his allegations or quit.

Speaking at a closed-door standing committee meeting of the ruling Nepal

Communist Party, Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda, Madhav Kumar Nepal and

Jhalnath Khanal, as well as former deputy PM Bamdeb Gautam, demanded that

Oli resign, having failed on every count.

Prachanda said at the outset that Oli's allegation against India was wrong.

"Not India, it is me who is demanding your resignation. You must furnish

proof of such irresponsible remarks," Dahal is believed to have said.

According to a member of the standing committee, Khanal, Madhav Nepal and

Gautam accused Oli of being insensitive and irresponsible in his remarks

against a friendly country.

Trying to defend his allegations, the PM shot back, "How come accounts of a

confidential meeting are getting reported verbatim in the Indian media?"

Speaking at a function at his official residence on Sunday, Oli had said

India was out to bring down his government in collaboration with some Nepali

leaders, and that the content in certain Indian media as well as activities

of the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu proved this.

Meanwhile, in an interview to the Nepal government-owned The Rising Nepal

published on Tuesday, Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Hou Yanqi criticised

remarks made by Indian Army Chief Gen M M Naravane that the anti-India

protests in Nepal over border issues might be "at the behest of China".

Oli has come under criticism outside the party forum as well. Former PM

Baburam Bhattarai, holding a rally, said Oli must furnish proof to

substantiate his allegations against India. "If the Embassy of India is so

actively engaged in toppling him, why don't you expel their Ambassador?" he

asked.

UNLOCK 2.0, STATES CAN NO LONGER SEAL BORDERS

The Centre on Monday issued guidelines for Phase II of the 'Unlock'. In view

of rising Covid-19 cases, most existing curbs such as the ban on reopening

schools and colleges, as well as multiplexes, gyms, and bars, and the

operation of Metro rail services, have been maintained.

However, the most important part of the order issued on Monday night is that

the Centre has taken away the right of states to seal their borders.

Over the past month, since the central government ushered in the phase of

reopening of the economy and restoration of public life and normalcy through

what was called "Unlock" (as opposed to 'lockdown'), multiple states have

resorted to sealing their borders to arrest the spike in novel coronavirus

infections. Some states such as Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have even imposed

lockdowns.

The new order from Ministry of Home Affairs is likely to make some states

that are struggling with rising Covid numbers uncomfortable - and may become

a point of friction between these states and the Centre.

"States/ UTs, based on their assessment of the situation, may prohibit

certain activities outside the Containment zones, or impose such

restrictions as deemed necessary. However, there shall be no restriction on

inter-State and intra-State movement of persons and goods including those

for cross land-border trade under Treaties with neighbouring countries. No

separate permission/ approval/ e-permit will be required for such

movements," the MHA guidelines said.

COVID-19 DASHBOARD - (Nos. IN INDIA / Nos. WORLDWIDE)

(Indian data from covid19india / and World Data from

worldometers.info/coronavirus/ )

Total Cases 5,85,726 (+18,250) / 1,05,85,641 (+1,77,208)

Total Deaths 17,410 (+506) / 5,13,913 (+5,835)

Total Recovered 3,47,839 (+12,568) / 57,95,651 (+1,31,244)

Active Cases 2,20,477 (+5,176) / 42,76,077 (+40,129)

Serious / Critical Cases - N.A. / 57,788 (+258)

Top impacted nations so far: (And some of India's Neighbours)

Country, Total Cases / Total Deaths / Recovered Cases / Active

Cases

1 USA 27,27,853 / 1,30,122 /

11,43,334 / 14,54,397

2 Brazil 14,08,485 / 59,656 /

7,90,040 / 5,58,789

3 Russia 6,47,849 / 9,320 /

4,12,650 / 2,25,879

4 India 5,85,792 / 17,410 /

3,47,836 / 2,20,546

5 UK 3,12,654 / 43,730 / N/A

/ N/A

6 Spain 2,96,351 / 28,355 / N/A

/ N/A

7 Peru 2,85,213 / 9,677 /

1,74,535 / 1,01,001

8 Chile 2,79,393 / 5,688 /

2,41,229 / 32,476

9 Italy 2,40,578 / 34,767 /

1,90,248 / 15,563

10 Iran 2,27,662 / 10,817 /

1,88,758 / 28,087

11 Mexico 2,26,089 / 27,769 / 1,34,957

/ 63,363

12 Pakistan 2,09,337 / 4,304 /

98,503 / 1,06,530

18 Bangladesh 1,45,483 / 1,847 /

59,624 / 84,012

108 Sri Lanka 2,047 / 11 /

1,711 / 325

Top 18 impacted Indian States so far: (Total No. of Confirmed case / No. Of

Deaths)

State / Confirmed Cases / Active Case / Recovered /

Deceased

Maharashtra 1,74,761 / 75,979 / 90,911 /

7,855

Tamil Nadu 90,167 / 38,892 / 50,074 /

1,201

Delhi 87,360 / 26,270 / 58,348 / 2,742

Gujarat 32,643 / 7,125 / 23,670 / 1,848

Uttar Pradesh 23,492 / 6,711 / 16,084 /

697

West Bengal 18,559 / 5,761 / 12,130 /

668

Rajasthan 18,008 / 3,375 / 14,220 /

413

Telangana 16,339 / 8,785 / 7,294 /

260

Karnataka 15,242 / 7,072 / 7,920 /

246

Andhra Pradesh 14,595 / 7,897 / 6,511

/ 187

Haryana 14,548 / 4,340 / 9,972 /

236

Madhya Pradesh 13,593 / 2,626 / 10,395 /

572

Bihar 9,988 / 2,376 / 7,544 / 68

Assam 8,408 / 2,745 / 5,648 / 12

Jammu and Kashmir 7,497 / 2,674 / 4,722 /

101

Odisha 7,065 / 1,844 / 5,189 / 32

Punjab 5,568 / 1,557 / 3,867 / 144

Kerala 4,443 / 2,112 / 2,304 / 25

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

======================

POMPEO PUSHES IRAN ARMS EMBARGO AT UN, RUSSIA SAYS U.S. KNEE ON IRAN'S NECK

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pushed the U.N. Security Council on

Tuesday to extend an arms embargo on Iran before it expires in October. The

United States has circulated a draft resolution to the 15-member council

that would indefinitely extend the arms embargo on Tehran, but council

veto-powers Russia and China have already signalled their opposition to the

move.

"Don't just take it from the United States, listen to countries in the

region. From Israel to the Gulf, countries in the Middle East who are most

exposed to Iran's predations are speaking with one voice: Extend the arms

embargo," Pompeo told a virtual Security Council meeting.

The arms embargo is set to end in mid-October under Tehran's 2015 nuclear

deal with Britain, Germany, France, China, Russia and the administration of

Trump's predecessor, Barack Obama.

Addressing the council, Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia described

the policy as "a maximum suffocation policy." "The task is to achieve regime

change or create a situation where Iran literally wouldn't be able to

breath. This is like a putting a knee to one's neck," he said in a veiled

reference to the death of a Black man in Minneapolis after a white police

officer knelt on his neck.

US FCC DEEMS HUAWEI, ZTE TO BE THREATS TO NATIONAL SECURITY

The Federal Communications Commission designated Huawei Technologies Co. and

ZTE Corp. as national security threats, a step toward driving the Chinese

manufacturers from the U.S. market where small rural carriers rely on their

cheap network equipment.

"Both Huawei and ZTE have close ties to the Chinese Communist Party and

China's military apparatus," FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said on Twitter. "We are

sending a clear message: the U.S. government, and this @FCC in particular,

cannot and will not allow the Chinese Communist Party to exploit

vulnerabilities in U.S. communications networks."

The U.S. contends that Huawei's equipment could be used by China for spying.

EU BANS PAKISTAN AIRLINE FROM FLYING TO EUROPE FOR 6 MONTHS

The European Union's aviation safety agency said on Tuesday that Pakistan's

national airline will not be allowed to fly into Europe for at least six

months after the country's aviation minister revealed that nearly a third of

Pakistani pilots had cheated on their pilot's exams.

Pakistan International Airlines spokesman Abdullah Hafeez says PIA has not

been flying to Europe because of the pandemic. But the airline had hoped to

resume its flights to Oslo, Copenhagen, Paris, Barcelona and Milan within

the next two months.

An inquiry into a May 22 PIA crash that killed 97 people at the southern

port city of Karachi resulted in the stunning revelation that 260 of 860

pilots in Pakistan had cheated on their pilots exams but were still given

licences by the Civil Aviation Authority.

The government has since fired four officials of the regulatory agency and

criminal charges are being considered.

THE REST

========

CHINA SAYS CONCERNED ABOUT INDIA BANNING CHINESE APPS

Reacting to India's ban of the Chinese mobile phone apps at a Chinese

Foreign Ministry briefing, spokesman Zhao Lijian said, "China is strongly

concerned about the relevant notice issued by the Indian side. We are

checking and verifying the situation. "I want to stress that the Chinese

government always asks the Chinese businesses to abide by international

rules, local laws and regulations in their business cooperation with foreign

countries," he said.

"The Indian government has the responsibility to uphold the legitimate and

legal rights of the international investors including the Chinese ones," he

added.

The ban comes at an inopportune time for TikTok's Beijing-based ByteDance,

which was planning a massive ramp up of operations in India, where revenues

are still low. But in a bigger blow to China, the campaign against TikTok,

including by US Senators, has come at a time when it was emerging as the

first example of Chinese soft power in the form of a globally successful

social network, with an appeal that extended to the Western world.

INDIA NEEDS TO DEAL WITH CHINA DECISIVELY, NOT WITH SYMBOLIC GESTURES LIKE

BANNING APPS: CONGRESS

The Congress on Tuesday said India needed to deal with China decisively and

not with symbolic gestures like banning apps with Chinese links.

Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate alleged that China had not only

intruded into India's territory but also the economy as under Prime Minister

Narendra Modi's watch the trade deficit with China had gone up to 53 billion

dollars.

"Facts don't lie. BJP says: Make in India. BJP does: Buy from China," Rahul

Gandhi said in a tweet along with a graph showing comparative volumes of

imports from China during the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance's

tenure and the current BJP-led NDA government.

Continuing his offensive against the government on the LAC standoff, Gandhi

also asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi when and how he will throw out the

Chinese army from Indian territory. "The entire country knows that China has

snatched India's sacred land. Everyone knows that China has transgressed

into Indian territory at four places in Ladakh," the Congress leader said in

a video message ahead of Modi's address to the nation.

STAMP DUTY ON MUTUAL FUNDS COMES INTO PLAY FROM TODAY

Beginning July 1, all shares and mutual fund purchases will attract a stamp

duty of 0.005 per cent (Rs. 5 per lakh). The government had introduced

changes to the Stamp duty Act last year by introducing a uniform rate of

stamp duty on trading of shares and commodities.

While all categories of mutual funds (except for ETFs) will attract stamp

duty for the first time, shares purchased by individuals at stock exchanges

were charged stamp duty at different rates by respective states.

The stamp duty will be applicable on all transactions, including shares,

debt instruments, commodities and all categories of mutual fund schemes.

As for mutual funds, it will be applicable on all fresh purchases, including

the fresh monthly purchases in previously registered Systematic Investment

Plans. It will also be applicable if investors switch from one scheme to

another and also in case of dividend reinvestment transactions. Transfer of

units from one demat account to another, including market/off-market

transfers, will also attract stamp duty.

BOMBAY HIGH COURT SUSPENDS TWO FIRs AGAINST ARNAB GOSWAMI

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday suspended two FIRs lodged against Republic

TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami for his alleged provocative and

inflammatory comments on the Palghar mob lynching and gathering of migrant

workers outside Bandra railway station amid lockdown.

In an interim order, a division bench of Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and Riyaz

Chagla noted that prima facie, no offence was disclosed against Goswami and

he had not intended to cause public disharmony or incite violence.

The court, while admitting the petition filed by Goswami, directed the

police to not take any coercive action until final hearing and disposal of

the plea.

Goswami had sought quashing of the two FIRs lodged against him one in

Nagpur and the second at Pydhonie police in Mumbai.

The Nagpur case pertains to a show aired on the news channel where Goswami

allegedly made communal remarks on the Palghar lynching case, where two

seers were killed by a mob.

The case in Mumbai was lodged after another show aired on the channel, in

which Goswami made allegedly provocative comments about a community after

the gathering of migrant workers outside the Bandra railway station.

Goswami'ss counsel Harish Salve argued that the Congress party orchestrated

multiple FIRs against Goswami across the country and told the court that

such cases require balancing of free speech and criminal law.

PATANJALI TAKES A U-TURN; SAYS NEVER CLAIMED TO HAVE MADE COVID-19 MEDICINE

Patanjali Ayurved on Tuesday said that it never claimed to have made

medicine for coronavirus.

The Haridwar-based organisation has withdrawn from its earlier claim, in

reply to the notice given by Uttarakhand Ayush Ministry.

"Patanjali has never claimed to make corona medicine. Rather, corona

patients have been cured with this medicine. The drug was made under the

license issued by the Ayush Ministry," stated the reply by Patanjali Ayurved

CEO Acharya Balakrishna to the notice.

"We made the combination of Tulsi Giloy Ashwagandha at an advanced level and

when the clinical trials were done on the patients of Covid-19, the

coronavirus patients were cured. A conspiracy has been hatched against us

and if the Ayush Ministry tells us to conduct clinical trials once again

then we are ready to face it," he added.

On June 23, Patanjali Ayurved, had launched Coronil and Shwasari Vati,

claiming to cure corona patients.

TELL-ALL BOOK BY TRUMP'S NIECE IS TEMPORARILY BLOCKED BY NEW YORK JUDGE

A tell-all book about President Donald Trump's family written by his niece

has been temporarily blocked by a New York judge after a lawsuit claimed

disclosures in the manuscript violated a 20-year-old secrecy agreement.

A temporary restraining order against Mary Trump and her publisher, Simon &

Schuster, was issued Tuesday. Mary Trump was ordered to explain by July 10

why the judge shouldn't issue a longer-lasting injunction against the book

sought by the president's brother, Robert Trump, who filed the lawsuit.

The book, "Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most

Dangerous Man," which is due to be published on July 28, will include

purported psychological observations about the author's "toxic" family and

other personal information, according to the lawsuit.

INDICATORS

Sensex 34,916 (-46), Nifty 10,302 (-10), Trading Value NSE ,(Rs.crores)

49,181

Nasdaq 10,059 (+185) Dow 25,813 (+217), S&P 3,100 (+47)

US$-Rs. 75.22 GBP-Rs. 92.71, Euro-Rs. 84.45, UAE Dhm-Rs.20.47, Can$-Rs.

55.13, Aus$- Rs. 51.72

GBP 0.81 /US$, Euro 0.89 /US$, Jap.Yen 107.78 /US$, Aus$ 1.45 /US$, Sing

1.39 /US$, Bang Taka 83.47 /US$, Can$ 1.36 /US$, Mal Ring 4.28 /US$,

Pak Re 167.35 /US$, Phil Peso 49.77 /US$, Russian Rouble 70.73 /US$, NZ$

1.55 /US$, Thai Baht 30.85 /US$, Ukraine Hryvnia 26.52 /US$, Norway NOK 9.67

/US$

Bitcoin - USD 9,132

Dollar Index 97.31 Brent Crude 41.15 BDI 1,799

Gold world Spot Price USD/aoz 1,782 India (Rs. per gm 24k/22k) 4,836 / 4,736

Silver (Rs. Per KG) 48,510

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Everybody pities the weak; jealousy you have to earn. - Arnold

Schwarzenegger

OFF TRACK

A Bedouin wandering in the Sahara happened upon an American dressed in a

bathing suit, flip-flops, a big, over-sized t-shirt and sunglasses. The

Bedouin gazed at him in amazement, "What are you doing all the way out here

dressed like that!?"

"I'm going swimming," the tourist explained.

"But the ocean is five hundred miles away," the Arab informed him.

"500 miles!" the American exclaimed with a whistle of appreciation. "Boy,

what a beach!"