News18 Afternoon Digest: India’s Covid Tally Past 75 Lakh, Uproar Over Kamal Nath’s ‘Item’ Remark and Other Top Stories

Over 55,000 Fresh Covid-19 Cases, India’s Tally Crosses 75 Lakh-mark 

A day after a government-appointed committee on the coronavirus pandemic warned of an exponential increase of Covid-19 cases during the festive season, the country's coronavirus tally crossed the 75 lakh-mark with 55,722 fresh Covid-19 cases and 579 deaths in the past 24 hours. The total number of cases stood at 75.5 lakh, the death toll was reported at 1,14,610. READ MORE

Shivraj Chouhan’s 'Silent' Protest Against Kamal Nath's 'Item' Remark Begins

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today declared a "silent protest" over former Chief Minister Kamal Nath's "item" remark against a woman Congress leader who switched over to the BJP. Chauhan said he would observe a two-hour "Maun Vrat" as "penance for Kamal Nath's act" in state capital Bhopal while other party leaders joined him. FOLLOW LIVE UPDATES

Experts Decode How Covid-19 Has Spurred Restless Sleep Cycles, Nightmares

Amid pandemic, with erratic sleep patterns and vivid dreams, psychological experts believe that there is a correlation between our well-being when we are awake and what we dream about at night. Nightmares, they say, can be indicators of underlying stress.A baseline level of stress has been typical for the majority part of 2020, most of it is characterised by social distancing and isolation. READ MORE

Sensex Rallies Over 300 Points in Early Trade Amid Strong Gains in HDFC, Nifty Tops 11,800

Equity benchmark Sensex rallied over 300 points in opening trade tracking strong gains in HDFC twins, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank. While, the 30-share BSE index was trading 322.40 points or 0.81 per cent higher at 40,305.38, and the broader NSE Nifty rose 85.80 points or 0.73 per cent to 11,848.25. READ MORE

Joe Biden Could Be Soft on China, Not Good for 'Near & Dear' India, Says Trump's Son

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden is not good for India as he could be soft on China, US President Donald Trump's son said in his address at a meet and greet event. Praising Indian-Americans, Trump Jr added that the community is near and dear to his heart, "I understand the community pretty well." READ MORE. 

Himachal Man Elected as MP in Jacinda Ardern's Cabinet

A 33-year-old Indian, Dr Gaurav Sharma is among the newly-elected members of the New Zealand Parliament. Defeating Tim Macindoe from the National Party with a margin of 4,425 votes, Sharma won the elections as Labour Party candidate from Hamilton West electorate. Congratulating him on the victory, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur said that Sharma had earned recognition for the Indian state. READ MORE. 

NCB Arrests Brother of Arjun Rampal's Girlfriend Gabriella Demetriades in SSR Case

The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) arrested the brother of actor Arjun Rampal's girlfriend Gabriella Demetriades in a drug case related to death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput. The NCB official alleged that Agisilaos Demetriades- a South African national, was arrested after it came to the fore that he was in touch with the drug peddlers arrested in Sushant's case. READ MORE