No form, identity proof needed to exchange ₹2,000 notes: SBI
No form or requisition slip is required for exchange of ₹2,000 notes up to a limit of ₹20,000 at a time as part of exercise to withdraw high-value currency notes from circulation. In a communication to chief general manager of all its local head offices, State Bank of India informed that the facility of exchange of ₹2,000 notes by public up to a limit of ₹20,000 at a time will be allowed without obtaining any requisition slip.
Ukraine denies loss of Bakhmut to Russia after epic battles
President Volodymyr Zelensky denied Bakhmut had fallen to the Russians, his spokesman said May 21, while admitting there was “nothing left” of the flattened city after the longest battle of the war. A day after President Vladimir Putin congratulated his troops and private mercenary group Wagner who claimed to have taken the symbolic target, Zelensky suggested it would be a pyrrhic victory for Moscow in a lengthy, emotional answer. “You have to understand there is nothing” there in Bakhmut, he said, sat next to U.S. President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan. “For today, Bakhmut is only in our hearts.” Zelensky’s spokesman had to clarify that the Ukrainian president did not confirm the loss of Bakhmut to Russian troops. “The president denied the capture of Bakhmut,” spokesman Sergiy Nykyforov said on Facebook.
PM Modi strongly calls for reform of United Nations
The United Nations and the Security Council will remain just a “talk shop” if they do not reflect the realities of the present world, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on May 21, strongly pitching for reform of the global body. In an address at a G7 session in Hiroshima, Mr. Modi wondered why different forums have had to deliberate on issues relating to peace and stability when the UN was formed to deal with these challenges.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets Jaishankar, discusses PM Modi’s upcoming visit to U.S.
U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken on May 21 met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Hiroshima and discussed the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to America. “I had a great discussion with Indian Minister of External Affairs @DrSJaishankar on the sidelines of the G7 in Hiroshima. We look forward to hosting Indian Prime Minister @NarendraModi in June, whose visit will celebrate the deep partnership between the United States and India,” tweeted Mr. Blinken.
Six entities under lens for suspicious trading in Adani shares: Supreme Court panel
Six entities including four foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) are under the lens for suspicious trading in Adani Group shares prior to the release of the damning Hindenburg report, the Supreme Court-appointed expert committee has said. There was a build up of short positions in the Adani scips prior to the January 24 release of the Hindenburg report, and substantial profits were booked thereafter as stocks crashed, the 178-page report said.
STF arrests accused in 2013 Bihar Gandhi Maidan bomb blast case
In a major breakthrough, the Special Task Force (STF) team arrested one of the accused of Patna’s Gandhi Maidan bomb blast case of 2013 from Bihar’s Darbhanga, officials informed on May 21. The STF arrested accused Mehre Alam on Saturday, an accused who had escaped from the NIA in the bomb blast cast. The NIA team registered case number 612/13 against Mahre Alam in the city police station of Muzaffarpur on October 30, 2013, and he was absconding since then.
Kashmir G-20 meet: Delegates’ Dachigam, Gulmarg tour dropped, Polo View market, Mughal gardens added
There has been a last-minute change in the itinerary of around 60 foreign and local delegates touring Kashmir from May 22-May 24 for a working group meeting on tourism. The alteration in the plan is on the advice of security agencies. The scheduled sightseeing visits to the Dachigam National Park, Srinagar, and tourist hotspot Gulmarg in north Kashmir have been dropped, officials said. The organisers, according to senior government officials, have decided to showcase Polo View market, the Valley’s first pedestrian-only bazaar thrown open with multi-facilities recently, under the ongoing ₹980-crore Srinagar Smart City project, to the delegates.
Nitish Kumar meets Kejriwal in Delhi, assures support to AAP govt amid tussle with Centre
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on May 21 met his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal at the latter’s residence here and extended “complete support” to him in the AAP government’s ongoing tussle with the Centre over the control of administrative services. Mr. Kumar was accompanied by his deputy and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav.
President, not PM, should inaugurate new Parliament building: Rahul
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on May 21 said that the President should inaugurate the new Parliament building and not the Prime Minister. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the newly-constructed Parliament building on May 28. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla met Mr. Modi on May 18 last and extended an invitation to inaugurate the new building, the Lok Sabha Secretariat had said.
After a stunning victory in Karnataka, the focus of Congress leadership has shifted to the next round of Assembly elections where the party is locked in a direct contest with the BJP in some States. With Assembly elections due in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram in the next few months, the Congress is working on poll strategies in these States and has convened a meeting of State leaders on May 24.
San Francisco officials are investigating if Elon Musk’s ‘Twitter Hotel’ plan broke laws
San Francisco officials are investigating Twitter after six former employees allege that owner Elon Musk’s leadership team broke laws by turning the company’s headquarters into a “Twitter Hotel” for workers who were pushed to stay up late to transform the social media platform. The San Francisco Department of Building Inspection said on May 19 that it has opened a new complaint and will be conducting an investigation into the new allegations.
Murray pulls out of French Open: reports
Former world number one Andy Murray has withdrawn from the French Open, British media reported on May 21. The 36-year-old, who has made just one appearance at Roland Garros since reaching the semi-finals in 2017, last month said he wanted another chance to play at the clay court Grand Slam while he is still fit and healthy. Three-times Grand Slam champion Murray won the second-tier Aix-en-Provence Challenger Tour crown earlier this month, but suffered early exits in Monte Carlo, Madrid, Rome and Bordeaux.
