THE HEADLINES:

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend two-day virtual BRICS Summit being hosted by China beginning today.

• India expects 7.5 percent economic growth rate this year, says Prime Minister at the BRICS Business Forum meeting.

• Commerce and Industry Ministry's new premises, Vanijya Bhawan to be inaugurated by Prime Minister this morning; To also launch NIRYAT portal for information related to India’s foreign trade.

• ISRO successfully launches India's Communication satellite GSAT-24 from Kourou in French Guiana.

• Janata Dal (United) extends support to NDA presidential candidate Draupadi Murmu.

• Voting underway for by-elections to three Lok Sabha and seven assembly seats.

• Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray offers to resign as more Shiv Sena MLAs join rebel leader Eknath Shinde's camp.

• In Afghanistan, deadliest earthquake in decades claims over 1,000 lives; Prime Minister Modi says, India stands by people of Afghanistan in their difficult times.

• JEE Main examination for June 2022 session commences today.

• Common University Entrance Test for Undergraduate programs  to be conducted from 15th July to 10th August.

• Indian Women's Hockey Team defeats United States 4-Nil to finish third in debut FIH Pro League in Netherlands.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the two-day 14th BRICS Summit hosted by China beginning today. The summit will be held in virtual format under the theme of Foster High-quality BRICS Partnership, Usher in a New Era for Global Development. The BRICS group comprises Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

Chinese President Xi Jinping will also chair a High-Level Dialogue on Global Development with guest countries tomorrow. BRICS leaders and leaders of relevant emerging markets and developing countries will attend the High-Level Dialogue on Global Development.

The Ministry of External Affairs said, BRICS has become a platform for discussing and deliberating on issues of common concern for all developing countries. BRICS countries have regularly called for reform of the multilateral system in order to make it more representative and inclusive.

During the 14th BRICS Summit, deliberations are expected to be held in areas like terrorism, trade, health, traditional medicine, environment, Science and Technology, innovation, agriculture, technical and vocational education and training and Micro Small and Medium Enterprises. Discussions are also likely to be held on issues like reform of the multilateral system, combating COVID-19 pandemic and global economic recovery.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said, the government is expecting the Indian economy to grow by 7.5 per cent this year. In a virtual address at the BRICS Business Forum meeting last evening, Prime Minister Modi highlighted the strength of the Indian economy. He said, the value of the Indian digital economy will reach one trillion dollars by 2025. He said, there is an opportunity to invest 1.5 trillion dollar under the country's national infrastructure pipeline.

The Prime Minister added that India’s success is based on technology-laid growth with innovation and startups, even during COVID-19.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the new premises of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry Vanijya Bhawan at 10:30 AM today. During the Programme, Mr Modi will also launch a new portal, NIRYAT (National Import-Export Record for Yearly Analysis of Trade), which is developed as a one stop platform for stakeholders to get all necessary information related to India’s foreign trade. The Prime Minister will also address the gathering on the occasion. More from our correspondent:

Constructed near India Gate, the Vanijya Bhawan is designed as a smart building. It incorporates the principles of sustainable architecture with a special focus on energy saving. It will serve as an integrated and modern office complex. Vanijya Bhawan will be used by the two Departments under the Ministry, Department of Commerce and Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade DPIIT. ANUPAM MISHRA, AIR NEWS, DELHI.

Talking to AIR News, Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash enumerated the facilities that will be available at Vanijya Bhawan.

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Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully launched communication satellite GSAT-24 from Kourou in French Guiana early this morning. GSAT-24, built by ISRO for NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), was launched by French company Arianespace. GSAT-24 is a 24-Ku band communication satellite weighing 4180 kg with pan-India coverage for meeting DTH application needs. It was the first demand driven communication satellite mission undertaken by NSIL post space sector reforms. NSIL, a Government of India company under the Department of Space, has leased the entire satellite capacity to Tata Play.

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Janata Dal (United) has extended its support to NDA presidential candidate Draupadi Murmu. Making the announcement, party national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh said, Janata Dal United welcomes and supports the candidature of Draupadi Murmu. Expressing happiness over the announcement of Ms Murmu as the NDA’s presidential candidate, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said selection of a tribal woman as candidate for the country’s highest post is a matter of great happiness. Mr Kumar thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for selecting a tribal woman who has proven her mettle as a minister in Odisha and also during her gubernatorial stint in Jharkhand.

President of Lok Janshakti Party (Ramvilas), Chirag Paswan, also extended his party's full support to the NDA’s presidential candidate, while RJD has announced its support to the opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha.

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Voting is underway for by-elections to three Lok Sabha and seven Assembly seats. These seats are spread over Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Tripura, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and Delhi. Bypolls for the Sangrur Lok Sabha seat in Punjab was necessitated following the resignation of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Man after winning the Assembly Election from Dhuri constituency earlier this year.

Polling is being held for two Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh. While the Rampur seat fell vacant after Azam Khan won the elections from the Rampur assembly seat, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav won the Karhal Assembly seat leaving the Azamgarh seat vacant.

In Delhi, Rajindar Nagar Assembly seat fell vacant after AAP MLA Raghav Chadha got elected to Rajya Sabha last month.

In Tripura, voting is taking place for four assembly seats - Borodvali town, Agartala, Surma and Jubarajnagar.

In Andhra Pradesh, Atmakur assembly seat was vacated by the sudden demise of YSR Congress MLA Mekapati Goutham Reddy in February this year.

In Jharkhand, Mandar assembly constituency fell vacant after Bandhu Tirkey who had won the seat in 2019, was disqualified following his conviction in a disproportionate assets case.

The counting of votes will be taken up on 26th of June.

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Haryana State Election Commission has declared the results of the election of Chairman to 28 Municipalities and 18 Municipal Councils. State Election Commissioner, Dr. Dhanpat Singh said, in the election to 18 Municipal Councils, BJP won 10 seats, Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) and Indian National Lok Dal got one seat each, while 6 seats have gone to Independents. State Election Commissioner further informed that in the elections of Chairman of 28 Municipalities, BJP has won 12, AAP got one, JJP bagged two and independents 13 seats.

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Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has offered to resign as more Shiv Sena MLAs have joined rebel leader Eknath Shinde's camp. Four more MLAs including two from Shiv Sena and 2 independent have reportedly joined the Shinde's camp in Guwahati.

Earlier yesterday, 40 Shiv Sena legislators were claimed to have reached Guwahati from Surat by Mr Shinde.

The Maharashtra Chief Minister has offered to make way for another Shiv Sena leader to become the Chief Minister. However, it appeared to have made little impact on the rebels. Mr. Thackeray also vacated the official residence of Chief Minister - Varsha and returned to Matoshree, his family residence.

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The Taliban in Afghanistan have appealed for international support, as the country deals with the aftermath of a devastating 6.1 magnitude earthquake. More than 1,000 people have died and at least 1,500 were injured in one of the deadliest temblors in decades. Paktika province in the south-east region has been the most affected. The rescue efforts are being hampered by heavy rain and hail. The deadliest earthquake to strike the country in two decades is a major challenge for the Taliban, which regained power last year. The earthquake struck about 44 km from the city of Khost yesterday and tremors were felt as far away as Pakistan and India.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed sadness on the news of the devastating earthquake in Afghanistan. In a tweet, Mr Modi said, India stands by the people of Afghanistan in their difficult times and is ready to provide all possible disaster relief material at the earliest.

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In Assam, the flood situation continues to remain grim despite slight improvement in Brahmaputra valley due to better weather conditions. The situation remains critical in the three districts of Barak valley. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma will visit flood-affected areas of Silchar and Barak Valley today. 12 people lost their lives due to flood in the state during the last 24 hours. Here is more from our correspondent:

"The ongoing second spate of floods in the Barak Valley has now submerged the whole city of Silchar within a high velocity flood water stream getting continuously flown out of the river Barak. Water-level inside the city is now varying up to eight feet in height and increasing while the water level of the Barak river at Annapurnaghat is decreasing, as river water is freely coming inside the city from multiple points. All the roads of the city have turned into waterways. Dead bodies cannot be cremated as the Burning Ghats and Burial Grounds are all under water. Water logging in all the roads has also led to the collapse of the medical facilities as nobody can approach those without plying boats through the city roads. Saswati Bhattacharjee, AIR News, Silchar."

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In Uttar Pradesh, 10 people died while 7 others were injured in a road accident in Pilibhit district during the wee hours today. The incident took place when a jeep carrying devotees from Haridwar collided with a tree near Gajraula on National Highway 0730. In another accident, six people died in Hamirpur district of the state yesterday evening. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief and sorrow over the incident.

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The Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Main for the June 2022 session will commence today. The National Testing Agency is conducting the JEE (Main) exam at different centers located in 501 cities throughout the country and in 22 cities outside India, on 23rd, 24th, 25th, 26th, 27th, 28th, and 29th of this month.

The National Testing Agency will also be conducting the Common University Entrance Test-Under Graduate (CUET-UG) this year at different centers located in 554 cities across India and in 13 cites outside India. The CUET (UG) will be spread over 10 days, starting from 15th of July. It will be held on 15th, 16th, 19th, 20th of July and 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 10th of August through Computer Based Test mode. Over 11 lakh candidates have registered for the first edition of CUET for admissions to undergraduate courses in the 2022-23 academic session. In March, University Grants Commission Chairman Jagadesh Kumar had announced that CUET scores would be mandatory for admission to 45 central universities, and that the central universities can fix their minimum eligibility criteria.

Talking to AIR News, Educationist Dr. Sant Kumar Chaudhary said, CUET-UG examination will prove advantageous for the students.

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The News Services Division of All India Radio will bring an exclusive interview with Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Dr Surjit Bhalla at 9.30 tonight

Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu released a book "Modi@20: Dreams Meet Delivery" last month. The book is a compilation of 21 articles by 22 domain experts bringing out various aspects of the thinking and performance of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in various domains as Chief Minister of Gujarat and later, as Prime Minister of India.

Dr Balla who contributed a chapter ‘ Success of People centric approach’ in the book narrated themes of his chapter with AIR News.

This interview can be heard on FM Gold Channel and additional frequencies from 9.30 pm onwards.

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And now, let's listen to our special programme, 'Azadi ka Safar' highlighting the importance of the day during the freedom struggle.

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US President Joe Biden has called on Congress to suspend federal gasoline and diesel taxes for three months in response to the country's soaring energy prices. If the gas savings were fully passed along to consumers, people would save roughly 3.6 per cent at the pump when prices are averaging about 5 dollar a gallon nationwide. The White House in its fact sheet stated that at present the federal government charges an 18 cent tax per gallon of gasoline and a 24 cent tax per gallon of diesel.

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The Indian Women's Hockey team produced a dominating performance to defeat United States 4-nil, finishing on a creditable third position in its debut season at the FIH Pro League in Rotterdam in Netherlands. The victory follows a brilliant performance by the Indian side which beat the United States 4-2 in the first match. Argentina have already won the title with Netherlands finishing second. The win will boost India's confidence ahead of the Women's World Cup to be co-hosted by the Netherlands and Spain from 1st to 17th of July.

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Take a look at the weather forecast for today.

The National Capital Delhi will have strong surface winds during day time. The minimum temperature was 24 and maximum will be 38 degrees celsius.

Mumbai will have a generally cloudy sky with Heavy rain.

Chennai will have a generally cloudy sky with moderate rain.

Kolkata will have a generally cloudy sky with one or two spells of rain or thundershowers.

Srinagar and Jammu  will have mainly Clear sky.

Leh will have a partly cloudy sky.

Gilgit will also have a partly cloudy sky.

Muzaffarabad will have mainly Clear sky.

Visakhapatnam and Bengaluru will have generally cloudy sky with one or two spells of rain or thundershowers.

Hyderabad and Thiruvananthapuram will have generally cloudy sky with one or two spells of rain or thundershowers.

Guwahati and Imphal will have generally cloudy sky with light rain or drizzle.

Agartala will have generally cloudy sky with one or two spells of rain or thundershowers.

Gangtok will have generally cloudy sky with a few spells of rain or thundershowers.

Kohima, Shillong, Aizawl, and Itanagar will have generally cloudy sky with light rain or drizzle.

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TODAY'S NEWSPAPERS HEADLINE:

"Biggest quake in decades kills 1000 in Afghanistan" is an Hindustan Times headline.

The Business Standard reports that its busy season for Indian producers of orthodox tea as Sri lanka is in grip of economic crisis.

The Statesman reports of Dr Him Chatterjee of a Himachal Pradesh University professor  who has created World's Longest outdoor mural at the integrated transit corridor in Pragati Maidan in Delhi.

"A wood without wood to save forests" is a story in The Hindu Business Line talking about a startup in Chennai that has been making composite board from agricultural husk - 3000 tonnes being produced annually.

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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN:

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend two-day virtual BRICS Summit being hosted by China beginning today.

• India expects 7.5 percent economic growth rate this year, says Prime Minister at the BRICS Business Forum meeting.

• Commerce and Industry Ministry's new premises, Vanijya Bhawan to be inaugurated by Prime Minister this morning; To also launch NIRYAT portal for information related to India’s foreign trade.

• ISRO successfully launches India's Communication satellite GSAT-24 from Kourou in French Guiana.

• Janata Dal (United) extends support to NDA presidential candidate Draupadi Murmu.

• Voting underway for by-elections to three Lok Sabha and seven assembly seats.

• Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray offers to resign as more Shiv Sena MLAs join rebel leader Eknath Shinde's camp.

• In Afghanistan, deadliest earthquake in decades claims over 1,000 lives; Prime Minister Modi says, India stands by people of Afghanistan in their difficult times.

• JEE Main examination for June 2022 session commences today.

• Common University Entrance Test for Undergraduate programs  to be conducted from 15th July to 10th August.

• And, Indian Women's Hockey Team defeats United States 4-Nil to finish third in debut FIH Pro League in Netherlands.

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