1. New rules for salary, pension, ATM withdrawal, ICICI Bank; all you need to know
Bank customers will not have to worry that their salaries or pension will not be credited into their account as it is a Sunday or a holiday. Effective August 1, NACH, a bulk payment system operated by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) will be available all days of the week effective from August 1, 2021. Moreover, banks are now allowed to increase interchange fee per transaction from Rs 15 to Rs 17 for financial transactions and from Rs 5 to Rs 6 for non-financial transactions in all centres, the RBI said in a circular. In addition to that, Customers of India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) will have to pay Rs 20 plus GST charge on every request for doorstep service.
2. India to see third wave of COVID-19 from August?
India may see a possible rise in number of infections in August, which may build into a new, but smaller, virus wave that may peak in October. As per a report in Hindustan Times, the prediction made by the researchers, who accurately forecast the lessening of the surge in Covid-19 cases earlier this year, is based on a mathematical model. Leading researchers of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Hyderabad and Kanpur, namely Mathukumalli Vidyasagar and Manindra Agrawal, stated in the report, that the possible third COVID-19 wave can arrive in India as soon as August, following which the country can likely witness a peak in coronavirus cases with less than 100,000 COVID-19 cases a day in the best-case scenario or nearly 150,000 in the worst scenario.
3. Mumbai: BJP MLC Prasad Lad's remark on vandalising Shiv Sena Bhavan sets off war of words between two former allies - Story so far
A Maharashtra BJP legislator's reported remark about the Shiv Sena headquarters has sparked off a verbal duel between the two parties, with Sena leader Sanjay Raut saying on Sunday that Marathi 'manoos' (person) would not spare the "drug-addict politicians", while former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis asserting that if anyone attacks the BJP, it knows how to counter it. Prasad Lad, a member of the state Legislative Council, had said during a BJP function on Saturday that the Shiv Sena Bhavan, the party's headquarters at Dadar in central Mumbai would be demolished if needed. He had later expressed regret saying that his statement was presented out of context by the media. He also withdrew the remarks.
4. FPJ Legal: Why vaccinated people can't be allowed to travel by Mumbai local trains? High Court asks Maharashtra govt
The Bombay High Court asked the Maharashtra government on Monday why people who had received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine could not be permitted to travel by local trains in Mumbai. What was even the purpose of taking both doses of the vaccine if citizens were expected to stay inside their homes even after taking the anti-COVID-19 jabs, a bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice GS Kulkarni asked. The bench was responding to a submission made by Maharashtra Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni. Currently, only frontline health workers and government staff are permitted to use local trains. "A meeting of the authority, presided over by the chief minister, will be held soon to take a decision," Kumbhakoni added.
The Indian women's hockey team registered one of its biggest wins in history by starting Monday with a stunning 1-0 win over three-time champions Australia 1-0 to reach their maiden semifinals in women's hockey at the Olympics in Tokyo. Gurjit Kaur converted a penalty corner to score her maiden Olympic goal in the 22nd minute through dragflick, putting India in the lead. India managed to hold on to their lead from there onwards, denying wave after wave of attacks from Australia to book clash against world No. 2 Argentina in the semi-final which will be played on August 4.
