From the Newsroom: MHA extends guidelines for reopening; SC refuses to monitor CBI probe into Hathras case

In your evening news brief, From The Newsroom, The Supreme Court refuses to monitor CBI probe into Hathras case; India and the US signed the landmark defence pact; Karnataka Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar said that it was difficult to pinpoint the month in which Covid-19 vaccine will be available in Karnataka; MHA extends guidelines for reopening to further ease Covid-19 restrictions; Outsiders can now buy land in Jammu and Kashmir and blast kills 8 in Pakistan.

Hi, this is Ahmed Shariff and you are listening to, From The Newsroom— your daily evening news catch up show from Deccan Herald.

Here are the top news of October 27, 2020:

India and the US signed the landmark defence pact, BECA, that will allow sharing of high-end military technology, geospatial maps and classified satellite data between their militaries as the two countries held a high-level dialogue on Tuesday and vowed to ramp up their security ties and boost strategic cooperation in the Indo-Pacific amidst China's growing economic and military clout in the region.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held the third edition of the 2+2 talks with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defence Secretary Mark T Esper. Both sides were assisted by their top military and security officials.

During the talks, the US side also assured India that America stands with it as they confront threats to their sovereignty and liberty.

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The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to monitor itself the CBI probe into the Hathras case of an alleged gang-rape of a 19-year-old Dalit girl, saying the Allahabad High Court was already looking into all aspects of the matter.

A bench of Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian said all issues including security of the victim's family and witnesses would be considered by the High Court.

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After reports that UK's National Health Service was preparing for an initial rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca Plc from the week "commencing November 2", Karnataka Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar said that it was difficult to pinpoint the month in which it will be available in Karnataka. He, however, added that it will tentatively be available in 2021.

After a detailed presentation on the research status of the vaccine by AstraZeneca Pharma India Limited Managing Director Gagan Singh, responsible for overall commercial operations in India, Sudhakar told reporters here on Tuesday that neutralising antibodies were found in trial volunteers administered with the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine, but that data was available only for 56 days.

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The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Tuesday extended the guidelines for reopening to further ease Covid-19 restrictions issued for October till November 30, saying the essence behind the decision is to "move ahead" but warned that it did not mean the end of the pandemic.

The MHA said there is a need to exercise abundant caution by adopting Covid-19 appropriate behaviour and referred to the 'Jan Andolan' launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi October 8 to follow three 'mantras' -- wear your mask properly, wash your hands frequently and maintain a safe distance of six feet.

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The Centre has paved the way for people from outside Jammu and Kashmir to buy land in the union territory by amending several laws, over a year after the nullification of Articles 370 and 35A of the Constitution.

In a gazette notification, the Centre has omitted the phrase "permanent resident of the state" from Section 17 of the Jammu and Kashmir Development Act that deals with disposal of the land in the union territory.

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A powerful blast ripped through a religious seminary in northwest Pakistan's Peshawar city on Tuesday, killing at least eight people, mostly students, and wounding over 120 others, senior police officials said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast in the city, bordering war-torn Afghanistan.

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That is it today, From the Newsroom. Tune in tomorrow morning for our feature show, The Lead.

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