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Parliamentary panel on IT to discuss Facebook; SC to hear loan moratorium petitions; Justice Arun Mishra demits office; Rajnath Singh leaves for Russia to attend SCO meet; US Open second round

Eastern Ladakh is on a knife’s edge with reports of more "provocative actions" by Chinese troops on Monday, and China’s state-run tabloid, staying true to type, has warned that a “much stronger” China can easily rope in other countries against India, “including Pakistan”. In this backdrop, it is hard to envision a time when Indian and Chinese troops fought and died together — not against each other.

Today marks the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, an opportune moment to look at relics of a different era:

• In Changlang district in Arunachal Pradesh, by the historic Stilwell Road lies a cemetery dedicated to fallen heroes of World War II. The Chinese epitaph on a metal message board by one of the headstones reminds us of Major Hsiao Chu Chino, the company commander of the Second Company of the Second Battalion, the 10th Regiment, of the Independent Chinese Army stationed in India.
• His is one of the nearly 1,000 graves of Chinese, Kachin, American, Indian and British soldiers, from an era when battle lines were drawn differently.
• The Stilwell Road, a 769-km long engineering marvel cutting through dense forests, rugged hills and treacherous swamps, was crucial to ward off the marauding Japanese troops. A brainchild of General Still, the road (now called the Ledo Road) was laid by 17,000 Americans, including many engineers, and around 50,000 Indian labourers and a huge number of Chinese troops.

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Tuesday’s count:

• Cases: 80,024, second-highest daily count; Overall: 3,762,063
• Deaths: 1,021, in four figures after a gap of three days; Overall: 66,460

• The number of active cases in the country crossed 800,000, having risen from the 700,000 mark in 11 days. (It took 15 days for active cases to rise from 600,000 to 700,000.)
• India has the second biggest pool of active cases in the world after the US. Only three countries — US, Brazil and Russia — have a higher count of total cases than the number of active cases in India.
• Delhi recorded 2,312 new cases of the viral infection — its highest single-day tally in nearly two months.
• The first two sessions of JEE (Main) kicked off amid stringent safety measures in view of the pandemic, with no technical glitches or breach of standard operating procedures being reported from any of the over 500 centres across the country.

• American teenage sensation Coco Gauff, a crowd favourite in New York, was in want of some support in a surprise 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 defeat to 31st seed Anastasija Sevastova in the first round of the US Open, held behind closed doors due to the pandemic. It marked the first opening-round exit from a major for Gauff; for Sevastova, her first win of the year.
• No such troubles bothered former champion and two-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka, who cast aside fears of injury to beat Misaki Doi 6-2, 5-7, 6-2. A left hamstring injury had forced Osaka to withdraw from the final of the Western & Southern Open, a precursor to the US Open held in the biosecure bubble last week.

• In the men’s singles, Novak Djokovic, chasing his 18th major, did not let off-court distractions — there were plenty — get in the way, dispatching Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 6-4, 6-1 in the first round. Djokovic was recently pilloried over his decision to hold an exhibition tournament with no social distancing, causing many, including himself, to get infected.
• Last week, Djokovic, John Isner and Vasek Pospisil, resigned from the ATP to start their own breakaway players’ union, the Professional Tennis Players Association. The decision was criticised by his rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, saying tennis needs “unity, not separation”. Federer and Nadal are giving the US Open a miss.

• The manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index, released by IHS Markit, returned to growth in August — to 52.0 from 46.0 in the previous month. This after four consecutive months of contraction. (A figure of above 50 indicates expansion, while a sub-50 print signals contraction.)
• The upturn was led by an improvement in customer demand as client businesses reopened, following the easing of lockdown restrictions. And both output and new orders expanded at their fastest paces since February — a 21-month high. Job cuts, however, continued into August, extending the current sequence of decline to five months.
• Automobiles: The auto sector, battered by the lockdown and the resultant economic downturn, seems to be taking small steps towards a recovery, with wholesale deliveries to dealerships in August beating the numbers achieved in the same month last year. The sales of small entry-level cars are driving the figures, both in case of Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai.
• GST mopup: GST collections stayed flat on a month-on month basis (graphic below). Although the mop-up in August was 12% lower than a year ago, the pace of decline was a little slower from the 14% registered in July, indicating that economic activity is stabilising.

• 48 people die in accidents
• 16 die by suicide
• 1 person dies due to forces of nature (lightning, flood, heat etc)
• 50 road accidents happen in which 50 are injured and 18 die
• 3 people die from heart attack

The deadliest hours

• Most road accidents (83,097 out of 4,37,396) were reported between 6 pm and 9 pm, accounting for 19% of total road accidents.
• Most railway accidents (4,518 out of 27,987) took place between 6 am and 9 am, accounting for 16.1% of total railway accidents.

This according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data for 2019 released on Tuesday.

Chennai Super Kings. All members of the contingent, except the 13 that tested positive for Covid-19 early last week, have come out negative in the latest tests, CEO KS Viswanathan said on Tuesday. "All others, apart from the 13, have tested negative for Covid-19. They will have to undergo another test on Thursday, September 3. We are likely to start training on Friday, September 4," Viswanathan told PTI.