India News Updates: Yamuna breaches danger mark; prompts authorities to issue warnings, plan for evacuation

The Yamuna breached the danger mark on Monday, with the water level expected to rise further, prompting authorities to issue warnings and begin preparations for temporary relocation of residents from the floodplains. Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Monday assured that the national capital will not experience widespread flooding, and that any inundation will be confined to the floodplains.

Earlier in the day, the Yamuna crossed the danger level, reaching the mark of 205.36 metres at 2 pm on Monday at the Old Railway Bridge. The river had swelled to 205.55 metres at 6 pm. The warning mark for the river in the city is 204.50 metres, while the danger mark is 205.33 metres, and evacuation of people starts at 206 metres. The Old Railway Bridge serves as a key observation point for tracking the river's flow and potential flood risks.

What began as a routine afternoon at Mahajan Electronics, a bustling store in west Delhi’s Raja Garden, turned into a nightmare within minutes on Monday when a massive fire erupted at the shop, claiming four lives and leaving another injured.

Sharing the photos, PM Narendra Modi wrote on X, "Chaired a meeting to discuss the roadmap for Next-Generation Reforms. We are committed to speedy reforms across all sectors, which will boost Ease of Living, Ease of Doing Business and prosperity."

PM Modi chairs high-level meeting to discuss roadmap for Next Gen reforms

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday chaired a high-level meeting, which included top Union ministers, secretaries and economists, to deliberate on the roadmap for the next generation reforms, one of the key announcements he had made in his Independence Day address. Union ministers Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Nirmala Sitharaman, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Piyush Goyal and Lalan Singh attended the meeting.

Modi had on August 15 announced the formation of a task force for 'next-generation reforms' and revision of GST laws, as he devoted a major part of his 103-minute speech on making India self-reliant in a host of sectors ranging from semiconductors to fertilisers.

"Give us some time, we will catch your theft in every assembly, Lok Sabha seat and put it before people," says Rahul Gandhi in Bihar.

He further says, "Like PM Modi talks of special package, EC brought special package for Bihar named SIR which means new form of vote theft."

EC's 'vote theft' has been caught, instead they ask me to file an affidavit: Rahul Gandhi during 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' in Bihar's Gayaji. He said, "want to tell EC, the whole country will ask you to give an affidavit."

Want to tell 3 election commissioners that when there'll be a INDIA bloc govt, we will take action against you for vote theft, says Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

Opposition parties on Monday accused the Election Commission of failing to discharge its constitutional duty of ensuring a free and fair electoral system, and did not rule out moving an impeachment motion against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, whom they alleged was acting like a "BJP spokesperson".

Maharashtra Governor C P Radhakrishnan arrived in the national capital on Monday and met leaders of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a day after he was named as its vice-presidential candidate.

A host of Union ministers, including the BJP's Bhupender Yadav, Pralhad Joshi and Kiren Rijiju and the TDP's K Ram Mohan Naidu, received Radhakrishnan here, ahead of a host of meetings the NDA has planned in connection with his campaign.

Later in the evening, the vice-presidential candidate attended a meeting of NDA leaders where he was felicitated. -- PTI

India News Live: PM Modi meets astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla at his official residence

Astronaut Shukla presents Axiom-4 mission patch to PM Modi; shares pictures of the Earth clicked from International Space Station

Tamil Nadu News Live: Transwomen stage road-blockade to protest against alleged 'low quality' of houses built by government

Bharti Airtel experienced a network outage in the Delhi-NCR region on Monday, with several users reporting difficulties in making or receiving calls.

The network service tracking website Down Detector showed that the complaints about the Airtel network started around 3.30 pm and peaked about an hour later.

"We are currently experiencing a network outage, our team is actively working to resolve the issue and restore services promptly. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused," Airtel social media customer care handle Airtel Cares said. -- PTI

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi began his two-day visit to India on Monday to hold border talks with National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval.

Wang's visit comes days ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's planned trip to China to attend the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

He was received at the Delhi airport by Gourangalal Das, the Joint Secretary of the East Asia division of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). -- PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a telephone call today from the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin. President Putin shared his assessment of his meeting with the President of the United States Donald Trump, in Alaska last week.

While thanking President Putin, Prime Minister underlined India’s consistent position for a peaceful resolution of the conflict through diplomacy and dialogue.

He reiterated that India supports all efforts in this regard. The two leaders also touched upon a number of issues of bilateral cooperation with a view to further strengthen the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia. The two leaders agreed to remain in close touch. -- ANI

The Congress on Monday hit back at Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, saying that first the poll body should submit an affidavit in the Supreme Court that its voter list is clean and then it will also give an affidavit that there are irregularities in the existing list.

The opposition party also alleged that Gyanesh Kumar sounded like a "BJP spokesperson" during his press conference in New Delhi.

The Congress made the remarks a day after the CEC served a seven-day ultimatum on party leader Rahul Gandhi to submit a signed affidavit to back his claims, else his allegations will be considered baseless and invalid. -- PTI

Congress workers hold protest outside the residence of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in Agra over the allegations of 'vote chori' against the BJP and the Election Commission of India.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Washington today ahead of crucial talks with US President Donald Trump, expressing a firm commitment to ending the conflict with Russia swiftly and sustainably.

Zelenskyy stressed that any peace must be lasting and should not repeat past mistakes, such as Ukraine’s loss of Crimea and parts of Donbas.

“I have already arrived in Washington. Tomorrow I am meeting with President Trump and speaking with European leaders. We all share a strong desire to end this war quickly and reliably. And peace must be lasting—not like it was years ago, when Ukraine was forced to give up Crimea and part of our East, and Putin simply used it as a springboard for a new attack,” Zelenskyy said in a post on X.

Mumbai continued to experience heavy rainfall for the third consecutive day today, causing water-logging in several low-lying areas, officials said.

The downpour reduced visibility and slowed traffic movement in parts of the city, according to motorists. Roads in areas such as the Andheri Subway and Lokhandwala Complex saw water accumulation, disrupting vehicular flow.

Local trains, the lifeline of the metropolis, were running 15 to 20 minutes late, commuters and officials reported. However, the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) bus services did not require any route diversions.

Yamuna Water Level News Live: Yamuna flows above warning level in Delhi for second day

The Yamuna in Delhi continued to flow above the warning mark for the second consecutive day today, with the water level recorded at 204.80 metres at the Old Railway Bridge at 7 am, officials said.

The warning level for the river is 204.50 metres, while the danger level is 205.33 metres. Evacuation of people begins once the river touches 206 metres. On Sunday evening, the water level stood at 204.60 metres.

Authorities have attributed the rise to heavy discharge of water from the Hathnikund and Wazirabad barrages.

The Hathnikund barrage released about 58,282 cusecs of water, the highest this season, while Wazirabad discharged nearly 36,170 cusecs every hour, according to the flood control department.