London, PTI: A pair of gold-plated spectacles believed to have been worn by Mahatma Gandhi and presented as a gift in the 1930s have emerged on the UK auction circuit. The glasses are estimated to fetch between 10,000 pounds and 15,000 pounds.
East Bristol Auctions in Hanham, south-west England, said on Sunday that they were pleasantly surprised to find that the spectacles, dropped through their letterbox in an envelope, may have such a rich history behind it.
&ldquo;It's a huge find of great historical importance. The vendor had presumed them to be interesting, but of no value and did tell me to dispose of them 'if they're not worth anything',&rdquo; said auctioneer Andy Stowe of East Bristol Auctions.
&ldquo;I think he nearly fell off his chair when we presented our valuation. It's a really great auction story &ndash; and one that we all dream of,&rdquo; he said.
The glasses, which have already attracted an online bid for 6,000 pounds, are said to have been in the family of the unnamed elderly gentleman vendor in England, who was told by his father that they were a gift to his uncle when he was working for British Petroleum in South Africa between 1910 and 1930.
&ldquo;The vendor's uncle definitely worked for British Petroleum in South Africa, and I believe Gandhi didn't wear glasses until the late 1910s early 1920s,&rdquo; says Stowe in reference to the provenance of the glasses, which are likely to be one of Gandhi&rsquo;s earliest pairs during his time in South Africa.
&ldquo;The story that appears with the lot is exactly what the vendor told us, and exactly what was told to him by his father some 50 years ago,&rdquo; explains Stowe.
The lot, titled &ldquo;Pair of Mahatma Gandhi&rsquo;s Personal Spectacles&rdquo;, forms part of the auctioneers&rsquo; Military, History and Classic Cars online sale and will go under the hammer on August 21. It has already attracted much interest, including from India.

The pilots of the aircraft that crashed while landing in Kerala's Calicut International Airport on Friday, were alerted about the bad weather in the area. They were also told about the tailwinds, which, however, were "within permissible limits", NDTV has reported quoting the Director General of Civil Aviation, Arun Kumar. The flight, trying to land on the tabletop runways, had touched down a km down the runway at full speed and toppled over into a gorge before breaking into two. Both the pilots and 18 passengers died in the crash.

Taking a leaf out of the Delhi govt's book, Assam on Sunday announced that it will provide Covid-19 patients preferring to stay in home isolation a pulse oximeter and first-line supportive medicine completely free in Guwahati, news agency ANI reported. The state government has also activated Tele Medicine service for Covid-19 patients through 104 helpline, which will be expanded to other places soon. Assam has recorded over 57,000 Covid-19 cases and 140 virus related deaths so far.

As many as 743 employees of Tirumala Tirupati temple have tested positive for Covid-19 since its opening for darshan to devotees. Executive officer of the temple board Anil Kumar Singh said on Sunday that 402 of those infected have recovered while 3 have died due to the infection. The temple management has rejected the criticism that it is being kept open only for making money amid the outbreak, saying that the temple was opened on public demand on June 11 after govt relaxed lockdown norms. The temple board insisted that it is spending more money on Covid precautionary measures.

PTI, New Delhi: The Congress on Sunday said Sonia Gandhi will continue as interim president till such time a "proper procedure" is implemented in the "not too distant future" to elect a party chief.&nbsp;
 Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi, during an online media briefing, said it was true that Sonia Gandhi's tenure as interim chief comes to an end on August 10, one year after she assumed the post, but it did not mean that the seat automatically falls vacant that day.&nbsp;
"Sonia Gandhi is the president, she will continue till such time as a proper procedure is implemented and it will be implemented in the not too distant future," he told reporters.&nbsp;
"Yes, her tenure comes to an end on August 10. But be rest assured that there is a process which goes through the CWC (Congress Working Committee). This will be followed in the near future and a result will emerge," he said. The procedure is written in the Congress' constitution and the party is committed to follow it, Singhvi said, adding that it was being done and information will be shared on it soon.&nbsp; Asked about the prevailing confusion over whether Sonia Gandhi's term ends tomorrow or there is no deadline for when the term of an interim president ends, he said it is very clear that neither nature nor politics, nor political parties, permit or tolerate a vacuum.&nbsp;
"Just like nature abhors a vacuum, political parties cannot function in a vacuum. It is true that the tenure is expiring tomorrow. There is a laid down procedure in the (party) constitution for elections. As you know it goes through the CWC etc.," Singhvi said.&nbsp;
"Now, in the meanwhile, if anybody is suggesting that the Congress will become headless on the stroke of midnight on August 10 you have to only ask yourself, is it possible, is that a fair interpretation of any constitution that on August 10 suddenly the seat becomes vacant," he said.&nbsp;
Sonia Gandhi had taken over as interim chief on August 10 last year after Rahul Gandhi resigned taking responsibility for the party's debacle in the Lok Sabha election.&nbsp; &nbsp;

PTI, New Delhi: Scaling up testing capacity, over seven lakh samples have been examined for COVID-19 in a day taking the cumulative tests conducted so far to 2,41,06,535, the Union Health Ministry said on Sunday.
The number of recoveries too has surged to 14,80,884 with 53,879 coronavirus patients having recuperated and discharged in 24-hours, the highest in a day so far, pushing the recovery rate to 68.78 per cent. The fatality rate has further dropped to 2.01 per cent, it said.
The ministry said the number of single-day tests has been growing exponentially and India has been testing over six lakh samples daily for several days.
"A record 7,19,364 samples have been tested on Saturday, the highest in a day so far. India is conducting around 500 tests for detection of COVID-19 per minute and the per-day testing capacity has increased over five lakhs," Scientist and media coordinator at ICMR, Dr Lokesh Sharma said.
Such elevated level of testing will also lead to high number of daily positive cases, the health ministry said, adding states have been advised to firmly focus on comprehensive tracking, prompt isolation and effective treatment, following the Centre-led strategy of 'test, track and treat'.
The number of recoveries has surged to 14,80,884 with 53,879 coronavirus patients having recuperated and discharged in 24-hours, the highest in a day so far, pushing the recovery rate to 68.78 per cent. The fatality rate has further dropped to 2.01 per cent, the ministry said.
Recoveries are over twice the number of active cases (6,28,747) of coronavirus infection at present.
"The number of recovered cases has touched another high of 2.36 times the active cases. All patients are all under medical attention either in home isolation or in hospitals," the ministry said.
From 7.69 per cent on April 5, the recovery rate improved to 26.59 per cent on May 3, 48.37 per cent on June 7 and to 68.78 per cent as on date, it said.
"The widening gap between recovered and active cases, indicative of the higher number of recoveries as compared to those either in hospitals or in home isolation, is 8,52,137 at present," the ministry said.
It said the high number of recoveries is a result of focused implementation of various actions taken by the Centre, state and Union Territories towards ramping up hospital and clinical management infrastructure for providing quality clinical care based on the standard of care, as advised by the Union government in its Clinical Treatment Protocol.
"Due to these efforts, the case fatality rate has further slumped, touching an improved rate of 2.01 per cent today," the ministry said.
With a record single-day increase of 64,399 cases, India's COVID-19 tally mounted to 21.53 lakh, while the death toll climbed to 43,379 with 861 new fatalities being reported in a day, the health ministry's data updated at 8 am showed.

Karnataka Health Minister B Sriramulu on Sunday said he has tested positive for coronavirus and has been admitted to the Government Bowring hospital in Bengaluru for treatment.
The Minister said he is praying to God for a quick recovery so that he can get back to public work at the earliest.Sriramulu is the fifth minister in Karnataka to have tested positive for coronavirus. Prior to him, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, Forest Minister Anand Singh, Tourism Minister C T Ravi, B C Patil were found infected by the virus.
Besides him, leader of opposition Siddaramaiah too tested COVID-19 positive.
&nbsp;

PTI, Chennai:&nbsp;DMK MP Kanimozhi on Sunday said a Central Industrial Security Force officer asked her if she was an Indian, when she asked the woman official to speak in Tamil or English.&nbsp;
"Today at the airport a CISF officer asked me if 'I am an Indian,' when I asked her to speak to me in tamil or English as I did not know Hindi.
I would like to know from when being indian is equal to knowing Hindi. #hindiimposition," Kanimozhi who is also the DMK's women's wing secretary said on her twitter handle.
A number of social media users replied supporting her, with one of them saying, "I am an Indian and Hindi has nothing to do with it! #hindiimposition Pass it on!.

PTI,&nbsp;New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will present a new outline for a self-reliant India in his address to the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort on August 15, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Sunday.
The defence minister said various departments and ministries of the government are working seriously to implement Modi's initiative for a self-reliant India and that it is an attempt to give a fresh dimension to Mahatma Gandhi's push for 'Swadeshi'.
Singh was speaking at an online event organised to pay tributes to revolutionary freedom fighter Udham Singh.
Talking about the 'Atmanirbhar' initiative, the defence minister said that the coronavirus pandemic has shown that a country may not be able to effectively protect its sovereignty if it is not self-reliant.
"Our government will not allow any harm to India's self respect and sovereignty at any cost," he said.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi will present before the nation a new outline for a self-reliant India in his address from the ramparts of the Red Fort on the Independence Day," Singh said.
Referring to the defence ministry's decision to ban import of 101 military weapons and platforms, Singh said major and tough decisions are being taken to promote self-reliance in defence production.
He said big weapons systems will now be produced in India and the country will look for their export to make it a hub for defence manufacturing.
In a major push to promote the domestic defence industry, Singh on Sunday morning announced restrictions on import of 101 weapons and military platforms including light combat helicopters, transport aircraft, conventional submarines and cruise missiles by 2024.&nbsp;

Top Naga&nbsp;civil society groups have written to Prime Minister Narendra&nbsp;Modi&nbsp;against Governor RN Ravi&nbsp;alleging that he is undoing 23 years of progress achieved in the peace talks with insurgent group NSCN-IM and is also threatening them. The Nagaland&nbsp;Governor is also the Centre's interlocutor for the peace dialogue.&nbsp;In a memorandum to the prime minister, the Naga Hoho, which is the apex body of different Naga tribal communities,&nbsp;said Ravi "is functioning in an autocratic manner and is&nbsp;breaking the hard-earned trust of the people. The&nbsp;Naga Mothers' Association meanwhile has alleged that the Governor is&nbsp;threatening and hounding the same Naga political groups, with whom he is supposed to negotiate and conclude the&nbsp;peace talks. The group also accused him of disrespecting women representatives.&nbsp;

PTI, New Delhi:&nbsp;Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Sunday attributed the recent rise in COVID-19 cases in the national capital to "patients from outside getting tested here".
On Saturday, 1,404 new COVID-19 cases and 16 deaths were reported in Delhi, taking the tally of cases to 1,44,127.
While 1,130 people recovered from the infection on Saturday, there are 10,668 active cases. The death toll rose to 4,098, Jain told reporters.
The number of active cases on Saturday rose to 10,667, from 10,409 the previous day, according to the Delhi government's health bulletin.
"There have been reports that coronavirus cases are increasing in the national capital. Many patients from outside Delhi are getting tested here, hence the rise in the number of cases.
"There is otherwise a decline in cases here," Jain told reporters.
The health minister also said hospital admissions have also increased due to the patients coming from outside Delhi.
In June, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal had overruled the AAP government's decision to reserve hospital beds in city-run and private hospitals only for residents of the national capital afflicted with the coronavirus infection.

New Delhi, PTI: The Congress must expedite the process of finding a full-term president to arrest the growing public perception that the party is "adrift and rudderless", senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said on Sunday.
Tharoor also said that he certainly thinks Rahul Gandhi has the "mettle, capability and aptitude to once again lead the party", but if he does not wish to do so then the party must "take action" to elect a new chief.
His comments assume significance as they come just ahead of Sonia Gandhi completing one year as interim chief on August 10, with the party yet to find her successor.
"I certainly believe we should be clear about our leadership going forward. I welcomed Sonia ji&rsquo;s appointment as interim president last year, but I do believe it&rsquo;s unfair to her to expect her to carry this burden indefinitely," Tharoor told PTI in an interview.
"We also need to arrest the growing public perception, fuelled by a dismissive media, that the Congress is adrift and rudderless, incapable of taking up the challenge of a credible national Opposition," the former Union minister said.
That is precisely what the Congress needs to urgently address by expediting the process of finding a full-term president, through a participatory and democratic process that will offer the winning candidate a legitimate mandate and the credibility that will be indispensable in ushering in much needed organisational and structural revival of the party, Tharoor said.
Asked about growing voices in the Congress that Rahul Gandhi must come back as party chief and if it was the best possible scenerio that he returns, Tharoor said, "Of course, if Rahul Gandhi is ready to resume the leadership, all he has to do is to withdraw his resignation. He was elected to serve till December 2022 and can just pick up the reins again." "But if he does not, we have to take action. My own personal view, which as you know I have been advocating for some time now, is that elections to the CWC (Congress Working Committee) and for the post of president would certainly have a number of beneficial outcomes for the party," Tharoor said.
A participatory democratic process would significantly add to the incoming leader's credibility and legitimacy which, in turn, would be vital assets as they set about the significant organisational challenges associated with re-energising the rank and file of the party, the Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram said.
Tharoor asserted that his larger argument was not about any individual but about advocating a process or a system through which the Congress can address existing leadership issues and then embark immediately on the process of revitalising and energising the party nationally.

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut has slammed the Centre for handing over the Sushant Singh Rajput death case to the CBI. He said that the decision has been taken for political gains and as part of pressure tactics. Terming it as a &ldquo;conspiracy against Maharashtra&rdquo;, Sena mouthpiece 'Saamna' editor said that the BJP has politicised the case by linking a state minister with it. Raut, in his weekly column, has said that the decision of handing over the investigation is an attack on the state&rsquo;s autonomy.

Jaipur, PTI: Ahead of the Rajasthan Assembly session, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Sunday appealed to all MLAs to listen to the voice of people to save democracy and stand with the truth.
The assembly session in the state, which has been witnessing politicial turmoil after the rebellion by Sachin Pilot and legislators loyal to him, will start on August 14. Gehlot is likely to seek a trust vote during the session. In a letter to all MLAs, Gehlot sought their cooperation in fulfilling the promises of development and prosperity of the state.
"It is my appeal that you should listen to the voice of people in order to avoid wrong tradition, to maintain people's trust in us and to save democracy," Gehlot said in the letter. 
Pilot was sacked as deputy chief minister and the president of the state unit of the Congress after he and some MLAs loyal to him rebelled against Gehlot. Many believe that Gehlot still has an edge in the numbers game and is confident of a majority.
"You may be a legislator from any political party, you should ensure and take a decision after understanding voter's feeling that how a people's elected government continues to work strongly for state's welfare,", he said, emphasising that efforts to destabilise government are not successful.
The chief minister expressed faith that legislators will act in the larger interest of people of the state and will cooperate in fulfilling the promises of development and prosperity.
Ahead of the session, half a dozen BJP MLAs from Rajasthan have shifted to Porbandar in Gujarat.
BJP MLA Nirmal Kumawat had alleged that the Congress government in Rajasthan was "harassing" opposition MLAs, and said they were on a pilgrimage to Somnath to seek mental peace.
Congress MLAs are currently holed up in a Jaisalmer hotel as the party has accused the BJP of horse-trading following the revolt by Pilot and 18 MLAs loyal to him.

New Delhi, PTI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched a financing facility of Rs 1 lakh crore under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund for agri-entrepreneurs, startups, agri-tech players and farmer groups for post-harvest management and nurturing farm assets.
Modi also released the sixth installment of Rs 17,100 crore to more than 8.55 crore farmer beneficiaries under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme.
The Prime Minister launched the new Agriculture Infrastructure Fund through video conference. Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and senior ministry officials were also present on the occasion.
Last month, the Union Cabinet had approved this fund as part of the over Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package announced in response to the Covid-19 crisis, while PM-KISAN is an ongoing scheme being implemented since 2018.
The new agri-infra fund, the duration of which will be 10 years till 2029, aims to provide medium-to-long term debt financing facility for investment in viable projects for post-harvest management infrastructure and community farming assets through interest subvention and financial support.
Under this, about Rs 1 lakh crore will be sanctioned under the financing facility in partnership with multiple lending institutions as loans to primary agri-credit societies, farmer groups, farmer producer organisations (FPOs), agri-entrepreneurs, startups and agri-tech players.
Already, 11 of the 12 public sector banks have signed memorandum of agreement with the Agriculture Ministry.
Under the fund, about 3 per cent interest subvention and credit guarantee of up to Rs 2 crore will be provided to the beneficiaries to increase the viability of the projects.
Loans will be disbursed in four years starting with sanction of Rs 10,000 crore in the current year and Rs 30,000 crore each in the next three financial years.
Moratorium for repayment under this financing facility may vary, subject to a minimum of six months and maximum of two years.

Senior Congress leader and former union minister P Chidambaram on Sunday dismissed defence ministry's import embargo announcement as a mere high sounding jargon. Reacting to Rajnath Singh's announcement, Chidambaram tweeted that while the defence minister promised a bang, he just delivered a whimper. "What it means is we will try to make the same equipment that we import today in 2 to 4 years and stop imports thereafter," Chidambaram tweeted. He added that since defence ministry is the only importer of defence equipment if the defence ministry itself, all this announcement deserved was an office order from the ministry to its secretaries.

Here is the complete list of defence items that the defence ministry will stop importing to promote domestic industry. The list includes high technology weapon systems like "artillery guns, assault rifles, corvettes, sonar systems, transport aircraft, light combat helicopters, radars and many other items", the centre said in a statement. The list has been prepared by the Defence Ministry after consultations with all stakeholders, including the armed forces, public and private industry, defence minister Rajnath Singh said.

A record single-day spike of over 64,000 new coronavirus cases has pushed India's Covid tally past the 21 lakh-mark, the Union Health Ministry data showed on Sunday morning. Of these, over 14.8 lakh patients have recovered so far. This is the third consecutive day that more than 60,000 fresh Covid-19 infections have been recorded. The country also recorded 861 deaths in the last 24 hours taking the number of fatalities due to the virus to 43,379. Maharashtra, the worst-affected state, on Saturday passed 5 lakh cases. The state has close to 1.5 lakh active cases, the highest in the country.

New Delhi, PTI:&nbsp; In a major reform initiative to boost the domestic defence industry, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday announced restrictions on import of 101 weapons and military platforms including artillery guns, assault rifles and transport aircraft.
"The Ministry of Defence is now ready for a big push to #AtmanirbharBharat initiative," Singh said on Twitter while making the announcement.
He said the ministry has prepared a list of 101 items for which the embargo on imports is planned to be progressively implemented between 2020 and 2024.
The list of 101 embargoed items comprises some high technology weapon systems like artillery guns, assault rifles, corvettes, sonar systems, transport aircraft, light combat helicopters (LCHs), radars and many other items.
Singh said all necessary steps would be taken to ensure that timelines for domestic production of equipment identified under a negative list for import are met, adding the measures will include a co-ordinated mechanism for hand-holding of the industry by the defence services.
"The embargo on imports is planned to be progressively implemented between 2020 and 2024. The aim behind promulgation of the list is to apprise the Indian defence industry about the anticipated requirements of the armed forces so that they are better prepared to realise the goal of indigenisation," he said.

Mukesh Ambani has surged past Europe's wealthiest man, making him the world's fourth-richest person. Reliance Industries Ltd.'s chairman is now worth $80.6 billion, after amassing $22 billion this year, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Ambani's wealth pile is npw bigger than French billionaire Bernard Arnault's fortune. India's richest person has already surpassed some of the biggest tycoons in recent weeks, including Elon Musk and Alphabet Inc. co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, as well as Warren Buffett. Reliance shares have more than doubled since March as its digital unit Jio got billions in investments from companies including Facebook and Google.

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