1. 2 home guards shot dead, several policemen injured as clashes break out between 2 groups in Nuh
2. Manipur violence: Supreme Court pulls up police for delay in zero FIR during hearing
3. NIA attaches 6th oldest and largest PFI arms training center in Kerala spread over 10 hectares
4. 25-year journey of NDA has been unprecedented, will take it forward: PM Modi
5. 6 Bills, including Multi-State Co-operative Societies Bill, 2023, listed in RS today; 2 for introduction, 4 for consideration and passage

What Else

6. Navy Chief on 3-day Oman visit, aims to boost bilateral defense ties
7. RPF Constable who opened fire, and killed 4, lost composure, says official
8. With CPEC entering 2nd phase, some nations making efforts to bypass Pakistan in this process of connectivity: PM
9. Death toll from Bajaur blast rises to 54; FIR registered against unidentified culprits
10. Sri Lanka’s inflation drops to single-digit levels in July
11. China, UAE set for joint air force training in military first, as Beijing forges closer Middle East ties

2 home guards shot dead, several policemen injured as clashes break out between 2 groups in Nuh

• Two home guards were shot dead and about a dozen policemen were injured after a clash broke out between two groups in Haryana’s Nuh district on Mon, the police said.
• The policemen have been admitted to Medanta Hospital in Gurgaon.
• As per the police, the mob attacked the police teams when they were marching towards Mewat from Gurugram.
• Gurugram CP appealed to the people not to post anything related to the incident on social media which can hurt religious sentiments.
• Therefore, do not pay attention to any kind of rumor and maintain peace and harmony.
• Meanwhile, the state govt has suspended mobile internet services. (here)
• School collages will remain closed.
• Haryana: At Least 1 Killed, 5 Injured as Clashes Breakout During Rally by Hindutva Outfits in Nuh: Haryana home minister, said ‘3,000-4,000 persons were held hostage in a temple’, and the state govt has sought additional forces from the Centre. (here)

Manipur violence: Supreme Court pulls up police for delay in zero FIR during hearing

• The SC on Mon called for evolving an apparatus to deal with violence against women in Manipur and asked how many FIRs have been registered in such incidents since May
• Solicitor General appearing for the Centre, told a bench headed by Chief Justice that the central govt has no objection if the apex court monitors the investigation.
• The bench is hearing a batch of petitions concerning the violence in Manipur.
• The hearing will continue today at 2 pm. (here)
• SC says violence against women in Manipur is unprecedented and refuses to hear cases of other states.
• Monsoon Session: RS adjourned as Oppn protests govt’s move for discussion Manipur: Rajya Sabha was adjourned till 2:30 PM shortly after a discussion on the Manipur issue began in the House.
• Rajya Sabha was adjourned till 2:30 PM after Oppn objected to Chairman’s short-duration discussion on issues connected with Manipur.
• Earlier in the day, Rajya Sabha was adjourned till noon soon after convened for the day, amidst a ruckus over a discussion on the ongoing Manipur issue. (here)
• Opposition I.N.D.I.A. alliance that went to assess the situation in violence-hit Manipur, on Mon, briefed floor leaders of the grouping, including RS LoP Mallikarjun Kharge.
• The briefing was held at the Parliament House building. Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi was also present. (here)
• West Bengal assembly passes motion condemning Manipur violence: Suvendu Adhikari calls the resolution illegal and says he would move SC against it.
• BJP stages walkout from Assembly floor, the 2^nd time during the day, protesting against the Manipur resolution tabled by the CM, Mamata Banerjee govt
• BJP MLAs walked out of the floor during the 1^st half of Assembly business after their demand for adjournment motion and discussion on dengue was not entertained
• CM though, in her speech before the House, confirmed 8 dengue deaths and 4401 cases reported across the state till Jul 26, 897 of whom have had to be hospitalized (here)
• Sisters raped and murdered in Imphal: Man tells ‘DCW chief’: Delhi Commission for Women chief on Mon said that 2 siblings were raped and murdered in Imphal amid the ethnic clashes in strife-torn Manipur. (here)
• ‘Will stop transporting sand along NH-37 from Aug 1^st’: Manipur Sand Distributor Association on Sun announced that sand transporting trucks plying to Dimapur and Assam under the association will cease work NH-37 was opened properly.
• Majorkhul, general secy of the association sought the support of all private truckers and companies in the cease work strike and appealed to them to cooperate with the decision
• He alleged that Kuki miscreants along NH-37 were collecting unwarranted taxes from the sand trucks which pushed the association to resort to the strike.
• He cautioned that the association would not be responsible for any untoward incidents towards sand truckers if they go against the decision (here)
• ERDO on Sun condemned ITLF for misinforming the public and alleging that guns and ammunition were transported on the Khongsang railway line on July 24. (here)

NIA attaches 6^th oldest and largest PFI arms training center in Kerala spread over 10 hectares

• The NIA has attached one of the oldest and largest arms and physical training centers in Kerala Spread over 10 hectares, this is the 6^th arms training center and the 18^th property in Kerala as “proceeds of terrorism” under the provisions of the UAPA.
• The Green Valley Academy, Manjeri, Kerala is managed by ‘GV Foundation’ and was used by the cadres of the NDF and subsequently by the PFI into which it merged.
• The PFI had been using the property for “imparting arms, physical training, and testing of explosives to its cadres, identified to be part of their ‘Service Wing’.” (here)

25-year journey of NDA has been unprecedented, will take it forward: PM Modi

• PM Modi on Mon in a meeting with NDA MPs from West Bengal, Odisha, and Jharkhand said that the journey of 25 years of the alliance has been unprecedented and the NDA intends to take it forward.
• The PM emphasized winning in the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha polls because, he said, the NDA govt in 9 years has done “unprecedented work in infrastructure development”.
• In the meeting PM Modi also asked all MPs to be “active” and “communicate directly” with the voters ahead of the 2024 polls.
• The meeting which lasted for around 1:30 hours featured some presentations given by the NDA MPs.
• The BJP has identified 160 relatively weak constituencies and the party is putting up extra efforts to turn around its prospects in those constituencies.
• The BJP-led NDA has 38 parties under its fold. (here)

6 Bills, including Multi-State Co-operative Societies Bill, 2023, listed in RS today; 2 for introduction, 4 for consideration and passage

• The Rajya Sabha on Tue listed 6 Bills in its Legislative Business.
• Two of them will be introduced and 4 will be moved by ministers for their consideration and passage.
• The Bills listed for introduction are the Advocates Bill; and the Press and Registration of Periodicals Bill, 2023.
• The Bills listed for their consideration and passage are the Mediation Bill, 2021; the Multi-State Co-operative Societies (Amendment) Bill, 2023; the Biological Diversity Bill, 2023, and the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023 (here)
• A few of these six Bills are repeated in the revised list of Legislative Business on Tue as they could not be moved to the Upper House due to a ruckus created by the Opposition (here)

Navy Chief on 3-day Oman visit, aims to boost bilateral defense ties

• Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar is on a 3-day visit to Oman to consolidate existing bilateral defense relations and high-level discussions with the military leadership.
• He will call on Gen Sultan bin Mohammed Al-Nu’amani, Min of Royal Office.
• He will hold bilateral talks with his counterpart, the Commander of the RNO, and with the Commander of the Royal Army
• The ties between the Indian Navy and the Royal Navy of Oman align with the Government of India’s vision of ‘Security and Growth for All in the Region. (here)
• Coinciding with the visit, the Indian Navy’s indigenously designed and constructed Guided Missile Destroyer INS Visakhapatnam arrives at Port Sultan Qaboos.

RPF Constable who opened fire, and killed 4, lost composure, says official

• Railway Force jawan, who opened fire at 4 railway passengers including an RPF ASI in the Mumbai-Jaipur Superfast Express, was not feeling well and lost his calm on Mon.
• Western Railway Police Chief said, “He (RPF constable, Chetan Kumar) wasn’t feeling well and lost his calm. There was no argument.”
• 4 Railway passengers including a Railway Force ASI were shot dead by an RPF jawan who opened fire in the Mumbai-Jaipur Superfast Express.
• 4 persons onboard a moving train from Jaipur to Mumbai were shot dead by a Railway Force jawan in Maharashtra. (here)

[NEIGHBORHOOD]

With CPEC entering 2^nd phase, some nations making efforts to bypass Pakistan in this process of connectivity: PM

• The PM said that CPEC — part of Beijing’s BRI — was entering its 2^nd phase, but there were efforts by ‘some countries’ to “bypass Pakistan in this process of connectivity”.

• On Mon morning, the Chinese Vice Premier, He Lifeng was accorded a welcome after he arrived at the PM’s House in Islamabad to meet PM Shehbaz Sharif.
• The premier received the foreign dignitary at the main entrance of the PM House.
• Earlier, the FO had also acknowledged He’s “prominent role” in China’s international economic relations and implementation of the BRI, of which CPEC is a flagship project.
• As the chairman of China’s NDRC from 2017 to 2023, He was “instrumental in the planning and execution of multiple CPEC projects in Pakistan”, the FO had said.
• Security tightened in Islamabad: According to the security details, around 2,716 personnel from top security
• Earlier today, President Arif Alvi conferred Pakistan’s 2^nd-highest civil award, Hilal-i-Pakistan (Crescent of Pakistan), on He during an investiture ceremony.
• Lifeng also met Chief of Army Staff Gen Asim Munir, with the military’s media affairs wing saying matters of mutual interest and defense cooperation were discussed
• China and Pakistan signed 6 agreements for the promotion of bilateral cooperation.
• The PM highlighted that the agreements would lead to investments in agriculture and IT, enabling Pakistan, with China’s support, to export items. (here)

Death toll from Bajaur blast rises to 54; FIR registered against unidentified culprits

• The death toll from Sun’s suicide bombing at a JUI-F gathering in KP’s Bajaur rose to 54 on Mon as the Counter Terrorism Department registered the 1^st report of the attack.
• The blast occurred in Khar, a town bordering Afghanistan, and according to eyewitnesses, hundreds of party workers along with local leaders were present.
• “We have collected ball bearings from the site of the blast,” officials said, adding that the group behind the blast and that there was no specific target of the attack.
• The police further stated that the suspects “have been almost tracked down in the initial action” taken so far, adding that a forensic report of the incident was awaited. (here)

Sri Lanka’s inflation drops to single-digit levels in July

• Sri Lanka finally witnessed a downfall in the inflation rate as it reached single-digit levels, Daily Mirror reported citing Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) data.
• Lanka’s inflation rate dropped to single-digit levels, 6.3% in Jul, easing from 12% in Jun
• The sharp reduction is largely a result of the high statistical base effect stemming from last year and the sharp deceleration in non-food inflation.
• Food inflation in July was -1.4% against 4.1% in Jun and non-food inflation was 10.5% against 16.2% in Jun.
• Core inflation in July was at 6.1%.
• Insufficient foreign reserves at the Central Bank and loss of access to international capital markets led to the country defaulting on debt for the first time in history.
• Of the total USD 3 billion funds, the country was immediately promised an initial disbursement of about USD 330 million. (here)

China, UAE set for joint air force training in military first, as Beijing forges closer Middle East ties

• The air forces of China and the UAE will train together for the first time next month, according to the Chinese defense ministry.
• The “Falcon Shield 2023” exercises will take place in China’s northwestern Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, the ministry said in a brief statement on Mon.
• China has focused on forging closer economic and military ties with countries in the Middle East, such as the UAE, as part of its post-pandemic diplomatic outreach.
• Although the US still maintains a much larger footprint in the region, China’s anti-piracy operations, the building of commercial ports, and growing arms sales are proof of its intention to play a bigger role in regional geopolitics beyond energy trade.
• At the first China-Arab States summit in Dec, the 21 members of the Arab League and Beijing agreed to more cooperation between their militaries, including on international peacekeeping, maritime security, and combined exercises and training. (here)