HOURS AFTER 5-POINT PLAN TO EASE LAC TENSIONS, CHINA ASKS INDIA TO PULL

BACK

India and China agreed on a five-point approach that entails further talks

to end the tensions on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) following a

discussion between their Foreign Ministers that saw both of them touch on

the linkages between bilateral ties and the border problem.

A joint statement, issued after a two-and-a-half-hour meeting Thursday night

in Moscow between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Chinese State

Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, said the ministers "agreed that the

current situation in the border areas is not in the interest of either

side".

Three hours after the discussion, however, the Chinese embassy e-mailed a

version of the meeting that quoted Wang as stating that India-China ties

were once again at a "crossroads". Wang outlined China's "stern" position on

the situation at the border and called on the Indian side to "move back all

men who have trespassed". It said it was willing to hold "enhanced dialogue"

at the field commander level to facilitate the process. Sources here said

the Moscow meeting saw the Indian side seeking disengagement in all friction

areas with the military commanders working out the final deployment to

permanent posts. The Chinese side was also told that its large amassing of

troops had created several flashpoints along the LAC.

Joint statement had made no mention of timeline for disengagement or

restoring April status quo.

Jaishankar and Wang had said both sides would continue the dialogue at three

planes - through the Special Representative mechanism, Working Mechanism for

Consultation and Coordination and field commanders level. The ministers

agreed that as the situation eases, the two sides should expedite work to

conclude new confidence-building measures to maintain peace in border areas.

The interaction held on the sidelines of the SCO meeting agreed not to allow

differences to become disputes by abiding with all the existing agreements

and protocol on China-India boundary affairs, maintain peace and

tranquillity in the border areas and avoid any action that could escalate

matters.

Although divergences remain, the joint statement had invoked the consensus

among the leaders of the two countries, developed since the June 2017

meeting in Astana between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President

Xi Jinping, and reiterated at the two informal summits in Wuhan and

Mahabalipuram.

"The two Ministers agreed that both sides should take guidance from the

series of consensus of the leaders on developing India-China relations,

including not allowing differences to become disputes," the joint statement

said.

CONGRESS MAKES ORGANISATIONAL RESHUFFLE, RAHUL AIDES DOMINATE CONGRESS

REVAMP

Interim Congress president Sonia Gandhi announced a major organisational

reshuffle on Friday and constituted a six-member special committee to assist

her in organisational and operational matters.

AK Antony, Ahmed Patel, Ambika Soni, KC Venugopal, Mukul Wasnik, Randeep

Singh Surjwala were appointed as members of this panel. During the last

meeting of Congress Working Committee (CWC) held on August 24, it was

decided that a committee would be set up to assist Sonia Gandhi to look into

the issues raised in the letter by 23 leaders, who called for sweeping

reforms within the Congress.

Ghulam Nabi Azad, Mallikarjun Kharge, Motilal Vora, Ambika Sonia and

Luizinho Faleiro were dropped as party general secretaries. The president,

instead, appointed Wasnik, Harish Rawat, Oommen Chandy, Tariq Anwar,

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Surjewala, Jitendra Singh, Ajay Maken, KC Venugopal

as new general secretaries.

Several of former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi's aides have found a place in

the revamped CWC with veteran Digvijay Singh, Jairam Ramesh, Salman

Khursheed and Pramod Tewari also entering as permanent invitees.

Out of 26 permanent invitees to the CWC appointed by Congress president

Sonia Gandhi on Friday, 11 are known to be close to Rahul. Even among the 22

regular CWC members, KC Venugopal, Randeep Surjewala, Ajay Maken, Jitendra

Singh and RS Meena are part of Rahul Gandhi camp.

Among nine special invitees, seven are leaders who were first promoted and

encouraged by Rahul Gandhi.

INDIA HAD ESTIMATED 6.4 MILLION COVID-19 INFECTIONS BY EARLY MAY: NATIONAL

SEROSURVEY

The much-awaited findings of the first national serosurvey conducted by the

ICMR, published in the Indian Journal of Medical Research, indicate that

0.73 per cent adults in India were exposed to SARS-CoV-2 amounting to a

total of 6.4 million infections by early May. The official count of cases

(i.e. those who had been tested and found positive) at that time was about

60,000.

The survey was conducted from May 11 to June 4 and covered 28,000

individuals whose blood samples were tested for IgG antibodies.

Also, seropositivity was the highest in the age group of 18-45 years (43.3

per cent), followed by those between 46-60 years (39.5 per cent) and it was

the lowest among those aged above 60 (17.2 per cent).

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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

BAHRAIN FOLLOWS UAE, NORMALISES TIES WITH ISRAEL

Bahrain has become the latest Arab nation to agree to normalise ties with

Israel as part of a broader diplomatic push by President Donald Trump and

his administration to fully integrate the Jewish state into the Middle East.

Trump announced the agreement on Friday, following a three-way phone call he

had with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Bahrain's King Hamad

bin Isa Al Khalifa. The three leaders also issued a brief six-paragraph

joint statement, attesting to the deal.

"This is a historic breakthrough to further peace in the Middle East,"

Trump, Netanyahu and King Hamad said in the statement. "Opening direct

dialogue and ties between these two dynamic societies and advanced economies

will continue the positive transformation of the Middle East and increase

stability, security, and prosperity in the region."

It represents another diplomatic win for Trump less than two months before

the presidential election and an opportunity to shore up support among

pro-Israel evangelical Christians. Just last week, Trump announced

agreements in principle for Kosovo to recognize Israel and for Serbia to

move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

The joint statement made passing mention of the Palestinians, saying the

parties will continue efforts "to achieve a just, comprehensive, and

enduring resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to enable the

Palestinian people to realize their full potential."

FROM COVID TO SECRET NUCLEAR WEAPONS SYSTEM: TOP REVELATIONS FROM NEW BOOK

ON TRUMP

In Bob Woodward's forthcoming novel 'Rage', which is based on 18 interviews

the author conducted with Donald Trump, the US President admits to initially

underplaying the severity of the Covid-19 pandemic and boasts about his

relationship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.

Predicting the uproar that was bound to ensue following the book's release,

President Trump earlier tweeted that Woodward's book was "fake". Despite his

warnings, the much-awaited book stirred up a storm on social media after its

author released audio recordings of his conversations with Trump on

Wednesday.

Speaking about the tensions that arose between the US and North Korea in

2017, Trump revealed that he had built a nuclear weapons system "that

nobody's ever had in this country before". "We have stuff that you haven't

even seen or heard about. We have stuff that (Russian President Vladimir)

Putin and (Chinese President Jinping) Xi have never heard about before.

There's nobody - what we have is incredible," he added.

In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday, Trump's National Security

Adviser Robert O'Brien clarified that the President was not referring to any

specific weapons system. "We're always on the cutting edge and we've always

got something out there that our adversaries don't know about," he said.

Boasting about his relationship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un,

President Trump said that he felt flattered when Kim addressed him as "your

excellency", adding that he was "the only one he smiles with". According to

Trump, the North Korean dictator was "far beyond smart".

While working on the book, Woodward was able to speak with top officials

from the Trump administration, some of whom believed that the US President

was a dangerous man, the Guardian reported. "The president has no moral

compass," US Defence Secretary James Mattis reportedly said. "He's

dangerous". Officials claimed that President Trump was impulsive, lacked

focus and was "unfit" to serve in the Oval Office.

THE REST

========

FIVE MISSING YOUTHS FROM ARUNACHAL LIKELY TO BE HANDED OVER BY CHINA

TOMORROW: RIJIJU

Five youths who went missing from Arunachal Pradesh last week will likely be

returned to the Indian authorities by the China's People Liberation Army

(PLA) on Saturday, Union minister Kiren Rijiju said. "The Chinese PLA has

confirmed to the Indian Army to hand over the youths from Arunachal Pradesh

to our side. The handing over is likely to take place anytime tomorrow i.e.

12th September 2020 at a designated location," Rijiju tweeted on Friday.

The Indian Army had on Tuesday received a communication from China about the

whereabouts of the five youths who ment missing from Arunachal Pradesh's

Upper Subansiri district. The PLA had conveyed that the youths were found by

them across the Sino-Indian border.

Government officials and local residents say that it is common for people to

visit interior parts of forests along the border for livelihood purposes.

Since the Line of Actual Control is not clearly demarcated in many places,

they are caught by PLA soldiers, they said.

PARLIAMENT PANEL BATS FOR VIRTUAL COURTS POST COVID

Even as Bar bodies build up pressure on judicial administration for

resumption of physical court hearings, a parliamentary standing committee

has recommended continuation of virtual courts even in post-Covid period and

favoured live-streaming of court proceedings to promote transparency.

The Rajya Sabha BJP MP Bhupender Yadav-headed panel observes that the

concept of virtual courts will also mitigate the inconvenience of attending

courts as long distance travels can be dispensed with and proceedings become

less expensive as well

"The committee fully understands that virtual courts have their own

shortcomings. However, they constitute an advancement over the existing

system. Therefore they are worth embracing," the Parliamentary Standing

Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice said in its 103rd

report on the functioning of virtual court proceedings through

videoconferencing.

SWAMI AGNIVESH PASSES AWAY

Social activist and Arya Samaj leader Swami Agnivesh passed away Friday at

the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences in New Delhi. He was 80.

Agnivesh had been suffering from liver cirrhosis and was put on ventilatory

support on Tuesday due to multiple organ failure.

Born in Andhra Pradesh, Swami Agnivesh came to be known for his campaign

against bonded labour through his foundation Bandhua Mukti Morcha. His

public work spurred him to enter active politics. He was elected to the

Haryana Assembly in 1977 and was made education minister after two years.

JEE MAIN RESULT DECLARED: 24 STUDENTS GET 100 PERCENTILE

Twenty four candidates scored 100 percentile in the Joint Entrance

Examination (Main) this year, with the largest number of toppers coming from

Telangana. Among the remaining toppers, five are from Delhi, four from

Rajasthan, three from Andhra Pradesh, two from Haryana, and one each from

Gujarat and Maharashtra.

The National Testing Agency (NTA) announced the results late Friday night,

in less than a week after the entrance test finished. Since 2019, JEE (Main)

is being conducted twice a year. The first cycle was held in January. The

second cycle of the entrance test this year was delayed because of the

pandemic. It was finally held in 12 shifts over six days from September 1 to

6.

The results announced Friday night reflect the best performance of

candidates who appeared for the test in January and September.

RELIANCE'S DREAM RUN IN THE MARKET HAS EQUITY MUTUAL FUNDS WORRIED

The scorching rally in Reliance Industries Ltd.'s shares is becoming a

problem for India's equity mutual funds. The stock has more than doubled

from a March low, thanks to Chairman Mukesh Ambani's fundraising blitz. The

run up has increased the company's weighting in the S&P BSE Sensex to 17.4

per cent, from 11 per cent at the end of 2019.

Money managers have hit a regulatory wall because of the surge. They can't

buy more of India's most valuable company as actively-run plans aren't

allowed to own more than 10 per cent of a single stock. This means funds

can't add rising stocks, such as Reliance, and therefore risk trailing the

market, said Nilesh Shah, managing director of Kotak Asset Management Co.

"Clients don't understand this technicality so it's hard to explain to them

why a particular fund is under-performing," said Shah, who is also chairman

of the Association of Mutual Funds in India. "Funds have no option but to

book profits in such cases to comply. We have asked Sebi to allow us to

align our holdings with changes in the stock's weighting."

INVESTORS BET RS 90,000 CR ON TWO TINY IPOs

Nearly Rs 90,000 crore is riding on the two tiny initial public offerings

(IPOs) - that of Happiest Minds Technologies and Route Mobile - that

concluded this week. The combined issue size for the offerings, excluding

the anchor book, was just Rs 806 crore - translating into 111 times demand

for the shares on offer.

Forecasts of bumper debut and success of previous listing spurred these

bets, said experts. The previous IPO to hit the market, specialty chemicals

firm Rossari Biotech, saw its stock nearly double on listing, which helped

several high networth individuals (HNIs) pocket quick gains.

Both Happiest Minds and Route Mobile are expected to surge over 50 per cent

during their debut, said market players. Route Mobile's IPO, which closed on

Friday, was subscribed 74 times, while that of Happiest Minds, which closed

on Wednesday, garnered 151 times subscription.

Market players say the huge subscription figures are a sign that the

exuberance seen in the secondary market could be spilling onto the primary

markets.

KANGANA TARGETS SONIA AS MAHARASHTRA ORDERS DRUG PROBE

Actor Kangana Ranaut, in her fight against Maharashtra's ruling Shiv Sena,

yesterday targeted Sonia Gandhi, whose Congress party is part of the

Sena-led coalition government. "History will judge your silence and

indifference," she told the Congress president, calling the demolition at

her office on Wednesday an act of "harassment" by the state government.

"Dear respected honourable Congress president Sonia Gandhi ji, being a woman

aren't you anguished by the treatment I am given by your government in

Maharashtra? Can you not request your government to uphold the principles of

the constitution given to us by Dr. Ambedkar (BR Ambedkar)," Kangana Ranaut

said in tweets.

"You have grown up in the west and lived here in India. You may be aware of

the struggles of women. History will judge your silence and indifference

when your own government is harassing women and ensuring a total mockery of

law and order. I hope you will intervene," said the 33-year-old actor.

Meanwhile, a special court yesterday rejected the bail pleas of Rhea

Chakraborty and her brother Showik, arrested by the NCB in connection with a

drugs-related case pertaining to the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput.

ENGLAND VS AUSTRALIA 1ST ODI: AUS WIN BY 19 RUNS

Australia, batting first in the 1st ODI vs England in Manchester, scored

294/9 in their 50 overs. England, led by a Sam Billings 118, fell 19 runs

short, scoring 275/9.

Mitchell Marsh (73) and Glenn Maxwell (77) then put on a partnership that

set Australia on the road to recovery after they were down to 123/5 in 24th

over.

England were off to a horrible start in their chase but were given some

momentum in the chase by a 5th wicket partnership between Jonny Bairstow

(84) and Sam Billings (118), who scored his highest ODI score. Josh

Hazlewood (3/26) and Adam Zampa (4/55) were the wreckers-in-chief. Billings

kept England's hopes alive till the last over, but he was out off the last

ball, England falling 19 runs short.

US OPEN: ZVEREV MAKES A HUGE COMEBACK, MEETS THIEM IN FINAL

Alexander Zverev completed a stunning comeback on Friday in the US Open

semi-finals, rallying past Pablo Carreno Busta 3-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 to

reach his first Grand Slam final.

Entering the match, the fifth seed had never rallied from two sets down. But

he showed great mental fortitude, drastically reducing his unforced errors

to earn his 14th five-set victory after three hours and 22 minutes.

This was the first time since 2011 - and the sixth time in the Open Era -

that a player rallied from two sets down in the US Open semi-finals. Novak

Djokovic saved two match points against Roger Federer to reach the

championship match that year, in which he lifted his first trophy at

Flushing Meadows.

Zverev made his first Grand Slam semi-final earlier this year at the

Australian Open, and now he will face second seed Dominic Thiem, who ousted

2019 finalist Daniil Medvedev, for the trophy. None of these two has won a

Grand Slam title, guaranteeing a first-time major champion for the first

time since the 2014 US Open (Marin Cilic).

INDICATORS

Sensex 38,854 (+14), Nifty 11,464 (+15), Trading Value NSE ,(Rs.crores)

51330.18

Nasdaq 10,854 (-66) Dow 27,666 (+131), S&P 3,341 (+2)

US$-Rs. 73.38 GBP-Rs. 93.66, Euro-Rs. 86.89, UAE Dhm-Rs.19.97, Can$-Rs.

55.67, Aus$- Rs. 53.43

GBP 0.78 /US$, Euro 0.84 /US$, Jap.Yen 106.15 /US$, Aus$ 1.37 /US$, Sing

1.36 /US$, Bang Taka 83.28 /US$, Can$ 1.31 /US$, Mal Ring 4.15 /US$,

Pak Re 165.72 /US$, Phil Peso 48.53 /US$, Russian Rouble 74.97 /US$, NZ$

1.49 /US$, Thai Baht 31.25 /US$, Ukraine Hryvnia 27.67 /US$, Norway NOK 9.03

/US$

Bitcoin - USD 10,341

Dollar Index 93.25 Brent Crude 39.83 BDI 1,269

Gold world Spot Price USD/aoz 1,940 India (Rs. per gm 24k/22k) 5,045 / 4,945

Silver (Rs. Per KG) 68,000

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Some people believe that holding on and hanging in there are signs of great

strength. However, there are times when it takes much more strength to know

when to let go -- and then do it. - Ann Landers

OFF TRACK

Two deaf men were talking on their coffee break about being out late the

night before.

The first man signed to his friend, "My wife was asleep when I got home, so

I was able to sneak into bed, and not get into trouble."

The second deaf man signed back, "Boy, you're lucky. My wife was wide awake,

waiting for me in bed, and she started swearing at me and giving me heck for

being out so late."

The first deaf man asked, "So, what did you do?"

The second deaf man signed, "I turned out the light!"