Republic top 10 headlines: PM Modi security breach, India-China border dispute & more

PM Modi Security Breach: Another PIL In SC Seeks Criminal Action Against Punjab CM Channi

A day after the Supreme Court agreed for a court-monitored probe into the lapses in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's security, another PIL has been filed in the top court seeking criminal action against Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, Punjab DGP, and other state government officials for the 'deliberate' compromise of the PM's security. The plea, filed by advocate Neeraj Kumar on January 7, seeks an NIA probe into the terror angle and the alleged role of Punjab police and Congress government in risking PM Modi's life by 'leaking' sensitive information to the protesters to block his route to Ferozpur on January 5.

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US Monitoring India-China Border Dispute As Beijing Continues To Intimidate Neighbours: WH

The United States is closely monitoring the India-China border dispute, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Monday. While responding to a question on the India-China border dispute during a press briefing, Psaki said that the US continues to support dialogue and peaceful resolution of the border dispute between the two nations. She added that the Biden administration is concerned by the PRC attempt to intimidate its neighbours. 

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India And South Korea To Hold Bilateral Trade Talks Today; Here's What All On The Agenda

India and South Korea will hold a round of talks on bilateral trade on Tuesday, led by Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and his South Korean counterpart Han-koo Yeo. According to a press release, the two sides will address the large trade deficit, market access issues and non-tariff barriers faced by Indian exporters. The meeting is also expected to further boost trade relations between India and South Korea in an equitable and balanced manner. 

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Uttarakhand Election: CM Dhami Confident Of Win; Avers 'people Know Cong's Black Deeds'

Speaking exclusively to Republic TV, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami exuded confidence about BJP winning the Assembly elections once again. Listing the development works during the BJP government's tenure, he asserted that Congress did not stand a chance owing to their misgovernance. Taking a dig at the Sonia Gandhi-led party, Dhami contended that many of its leaders had not supported the creation of Uttarakhand as a separate state. Apart from Congress whose campaign is being spearheaded by ex-CM Harish Rawat, AAP is also seeking to make inroads in the poll-bound state.

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COVID-19: India Logs 1,68,063 New Cases And 277 Deaths; Omicron Tally Jumps To 4,461

With surging COVID-19 cases followed by a concerning spread of Omicron variant, India on Tuesday reported 1,68,063 fresh coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours. With a slight dip of 6.5% in infections compared to Monday, the total caseload has jumped to 3,58,75,790. Apart from that, India has also recorded 277 COVID deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the total death toll to 4,84,213. Similarly, India's Omicron tally has jumped to 4,461 cases.

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'3rd COVID Wave To Peak By January End, Likely To End By Mid-March': IIT Kanpur Professor

Amid rising COVID-19 cases, IIT Kanpur professor Manindra Agrawal on Monday said that the peak of the infection will hit the nation towards the end of January. "Cases in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata are likely to peak around the middle of this month, in the next few days in fact," said the professor. However, he also mentioned that the cases will decline very sharply and it will be over by March. IIT Kanpur professor on COVID-19 cases peak and decline:

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Pfizer CEO Confident 'tailor-made' COVID-19 Vaccine Against Omicron Will Be Ready By March

Pfizer is set to produce a tailor-made vaccine against the Omicron variant of COVID-19 and will be ready in March, the company's CEO Albert Bourla informed on Monday. Bourla highlighted that the said vaccine will also target other variants that are currently circulating. The potential Omicron vaccine is being developed "at risk," which was also earlier done for Beta and Delta variants.

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Rafael Nadal Terms Novak Djokovic's Visa Saga 'circus', Says 'much Rather He Didn’t Play'

Following the Australian court's decision to reinstate famous tennis player Novak Djokovic's visa for playing in the Australian Open, Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal called it an "end of a saga" and further proclaimed the judge's decision to be the fairest in the overall controversy so far. His statement came shortly after Federal Circuit Court judge Anthony Kelly turned down the Australian government's cancellation of Djokovic's visa and further ordered the government to release the player within 30 minutes from the Melbourne quarantine hotel. 

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Omicron: Mylab's CoviSelf Can Identify 'highly Mutated' B.1.1.529 Strain, Says Study

The first Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)-authorised self-test kit, CoviSelf, correctly identifies the new COVID-19 variant Omicron, revealed a recent study conducted by the researchers of Columbia University, the United States. The Columbia University Center of Infection and Immunity showed that CoviSelf can identify the extremely infectious SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.529 mutation, or Omicron variant, which was first reported in South Africa in November 2021. 

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US Doctors Perform 'breakthrough' Transplantation Of Pig's Heart Into Human Patient

In a first-of-its-kind surgery, doctors in the US' Maryland School of Medicine transplanted a genetically modified pig's heart into a human patient. The last-ditch effort was made to save a patient David Bennett when he was diagnosed with terminal heart disease and became ineligible for accepting a human heart. On Monday, doctors at the medical facility confirmed that 57-year-old Bennett was "doing well" three days after the highly-experimental animal-to-human surgery. However, they cautioned that it was indeed too early to comment on the tentative step and overall success of the operation.

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