Issuing an alert to the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the Central government has asked them to keep a close watch on the monkeypox situation, in wake of a rapid spurt of cases abroad, and send samples of symptomatic travellers to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune for further investigation. "Keep a close watch on monkeypox situation abroad. Send samples (to NIV, Pune) only in such cases where people display certain specific symptoms. Not samples of sick passengers," sources told ANI. Monkeypox passes from infected anima

Rains in parts of Delhi on Friday brought in much-needed relief from the scorching heat as the drizzle and the breeze resulted in a dip in temperature. Earlier on Thursday, the maximum temperature rose to 43.6 degrees, three degrees above normal, at Safdarjung, the city's base weather station. However, relief is expected from Saturday as India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted rain along with gusty winds from May 21 to 24.

Flood situation in Assam's Nagaon is still grim as more than 3.31 lakh people in the district are reeling under the fury of floods. According to the reports of Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), Kampur revenue circle of the district has been badly affected by the current wave of the flood as nearly 2.37 lakh people were affected and around 80000 people were affected in the Raha revenue circle of the district. A total of 184 villages under three revenue circles of the district are currently underwater and rescue teams of NDRF, SDRF and local administration are engaged in opera

Alberta RCMP say a 70-year-old man has died in hospital following a head-on crash in Jasper National Park. Police say a vehicle travelling east collided with a semi-trailer truck after crossing into oncoming traffic Wednesday. They say the driver of the vehicle -- who was the only person inside -- was taken to hospital in nearby Hinton where he later died of his injuries. The Mounties say the driver and a passenger in the truck were not injured.

Jason Kenney's main caucus critic says the Alberta premier needs to step down immediately after announcing plans last night to resign. Kenney did not say when he would leave when he made the announcement after getting only 51.4 per cent support in a United Conservative Party leadership review. But Brian Jean (GENE) says an interim leader needs to be selected immediately ahead of the leadership race. Jean -- who lost the leadership in 2017 and plans to run again --says Kenney knows the healing process can't start until he leaves.

The Kejriwal Government raised the dearness allowance (DA) for labourers, on Friday. With the latest revision in the dearness allowance, the monthly wages for unskilled labourers have been raised from Rs 16,064 to Rs 16,506 per month. Similarly, the wages for semi-skilled labourers have been increased from Rs 17,693 to Rs 18,187 per month. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said in a statement, ''The move will benefit unskilled, semi-skilled, skilled and other workers in all scheduled employment under the aegis of the Delhi Government.'' For skilled labourers, the wages have been increased

France reported its first case of monkeypox on Friday, country's Health Ministry confirmed the case after a PCR test was done on the patient a day before. Citing French news channel BFMTV, Xinhua reported that a patient is a 29-year-old man residing in the Ile-de-France region. As his condition is not considered serious and worrying, the man is isolating at his home, the report said. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) has decided to convene an emergency meeting of experts to discuss the latest outbreak of monkeypox in wake of rapidly rising cases, according to Russian media. Sinc

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney says he will remain in the job until a new United Conservative Party leader is chosen. This decision came just a day after he announced that he was stepping down for the good of his party. Earlier yesterday, some of Kenney's caucus critics called for him to step down immediately to help heal divisions wracking the party. Kenney announced his departure Wednesday night after receiving 51 per cent support in a mail-in ballot of party members. Opposition N-D-P Leader Rachel Notley says Kenney is now officially a caretaker leader, further delaying crucial work on issues

Punjab Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu, who has been sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment in a 1988 road rage case, surrendered himself before Chief Judicial Magistrate in Punjab’s Patiala court on Friday (May 20).After surrendering, the former Punjab Congress chief reached Mata Kaushalya Hospital in Patiala for medical examination. After a medical check-up, the former cricketer-turned-politician was lodged in the Patiala Central Jail. Supreme Court had yesterday imposed one-year rigorous imprisonment on him in the three-decade-old road rage case.