Here are the top 5 news updates of May 25, 2021:
1. Sea water enters residential areas in West Bengal's Digha as Cyclone Yaas rages
As Cyclone Yaas passed through coastal areas of West Bengal and Odisha, several areas have now been inundated, with villages and towns in the coastal districts have faced damages. One individual has passed way in West Bengal's Purba Medinipur district.
The seaside towns of Digha and Mandarmoni in Purba Medinipur and Fraserganj and Gosaba in South 24 Parganas were among the areas affected by a storm surge of more than 2 metres above the astronomical tide level. The surging waters have breached embankments at several places in the two coastal districts and the water levels of several rivers including Bidyadhari, Hooghly and Rupnarayan had also risen.
Visuals shared online showed sea waves touching coconut tree-tops and cars floating in floodwaters. Over the last few days, people living in low-lying and vulnerable areas had started moving to a cyclone shelter in Digha. The NDRF had earlier said that it was undertaking evacuation efforts in the area, with people in temporary shelters being moved out.
Visuals share on Wednesday show water from the sea enters residential areas along New Digha Sea Beach in East Midnapore. As per images shared by the Congress' West Bengal unit, roads are now flooded, with waves cresting over the embankment.
In recent days, a shortage of COVID-19 vaccines in Delhi had let to the closure of numerous inoculation centres, even as the state government sought to procure vaccines directly from the manufacturers. But while talks with two of these - Pfizer and Moderna may not have panned out, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Wednesday that Delhi would soon get doses of Sputnik V.
According to Kejriwal, talks with the makers of Sputnik V are presently underway. "Talks with the makers of Sputnik V are on. They will give us vaccines, but the quantity is yet to be decided. Our officials and the representatives of the manufacturers met on Tuesday, too," the CM told reporters at the launch of Delhi's first drive-through vaccination centre at Vegas Mall in Dwarka.
The Centre has asked states to procure vaccines from the international market, but no state government has been able to purchase even "one additional vaccine" so far, he said.
"All state governments have tried everything, they have (floated) global tenders and talked to all vaccine-manufacturers. All firms have declined to talk to us," he said. The Centre needs to demonstrate a sense of urgency and run the vaccination drive on a war-footing, he added. He said it is the Central government's responsibility to procure vaccines.
On November 26, 2020, hundreds of farmers began marching towards Delhi's borders in protest against three recently passed farm laws. The agitators congregated in and around Delhi, setting up makeshift camps and braving heat, cold and the COVID-19 pandemic to make their points heard. Multiple rounds of talks with the Central government failed to resolve the issue, and six months later they still remain in the vicinity of Delhi, with no clear end in sight.
On Wednesday, protesting farmers at the Ghaziabad border observed a 'black day' amid heavy security deployment. Visuals shared by news agency ANI showed men and women waving black flags and milling about even as uniformed officials stood by. As people gathered, security has also been tightened at Delhi's Singhu border.
The protest comes even as Punjab, Haryana and Delhi are observing a lockdown due to the prevailing Covid-19 situation. But while many were photographed wearing masks, some appeared to be ignoring both social distancing protocols and rules regarding mask usage.
The hashtag 'National Black Day' is now trending on Twitter, used by the Congress and other critics. Similar hashtags are also being used by the protesters. Visuals shared by the Kisan Ekta Morcha Twitter handle shows farmers lighting effigies on fire and protests with posters and black flags in various parts of the country.
4. 'COVID-19 vaccines absolutely important to defeat pandemic': PM Modi as cases surge
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday greeted the nation on the occasion of Buddha Purnima and said that the coronavirus pandemic is the worst crisis humanity has faced in decades and has not seen a crisis like this in a century.
In a keynote address on the occasion of Virtual Vesak Global Celebrations on Buddha Purnima, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the ongoing Covid-19 crisis "the worst crisis humanity has faced in decades".
PM Modi said that the planet will not be the same after COVID-19 and noted that the events in the future will be remembered as either pre or post-Covid.
“The pandemic has impacted every nation. Our planet will not be same after Covid-19. In the times to come, we will remember events in the future as either pre or post-Covid,” PM Modi said.
The markets ended the day on a positive note with Nifty50 closing above the resistance level of 15,300.
The 30-share BSE index ended 379.99 points or 0.75 per cent higher at 51,017.52, and the broader NSE Nifty surged 93 points or 0.17 per cent to 15,301.45.
The top gainers were the Bajaj twins. Bajaj Finserv and Bajaj Finance closed the trading session with gains of 4.5 percent and 2.6 percent respectively. Among the sectoral indices, the Nifty IT acted as the major gainer in today's trade with the gains of over 1.7 percent.
