Top News on November 3: Srinagar grenade attack, death threats to Yogi Adityanath, Delhi air pollution, and more

Five people were injured on Sunday after terrorists lobbed a grenade into a crowded flea market in Srinagar. The Mumbai Police arrested one individual for sending death threats to UP chief Minister Yogi Adityanath while Delhi strove to control a surge in air pollution. Four major companies including Sagility India and Swiggy are currently preparing for the launch of their IPOs. Meanwhile new data indicated that the combined market capitalisation of six of the top-10 most-valued companies had soared by more than ₹1 lakh crore last week. Both Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are making last-ditch attempts to persuade voters with less than three days to go until the ballots are cast. The multi-pronged Middle East conflict also continued to escalate on Sunday with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — the Supreme leader of Iran — vowing a ‘crushing response’ to recent strikes by Israel.

Srinagar grenade attack
Five people were injured on Sunday as terrorists threw a grenade into a crowded flea market. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah dubbed the incident ‘deeply disturbing’ and lambasted the recent spurt of attacks targeting civilians. Meanwhile senior Congress leader Ravinder Sharma broached the possibility of a “conspiracy” behind the recent attacks.

Yogi Adiyanath gets death threats
The Mumbai Police arrested one individual named Fatima Khan on Sunday for sending death threats to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The development came after the official police WhatsApp number received a warning message. The sender had called for the CM to resign within 10 days — or face death in the same manner as NCP leader Baba Siddique.

Delhi Air Pollution
Delhi is grappling with twin pollution issues ahead of Chhath Puja amid deteriorating air quality. Toxic foam was seen floating across the section of Yamuna River in Kalindi Kunj on Sunday, ahead of Chhath festival. Meanwhile some parts of the city saw air quality drop to the ‘severe’ category as a thick fog continued to envelop Delhi.

India-Canada Row
The brewing diplomatic crisis between India and Canada took several fresh turns this week — with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau celebrating Diwali with great fervour while Ottawa named India in a list of cyberthreat adversaries for the first time. Foreign Affairs expert Robinder Sachdev alleged on Sunday that Canada was seemingly trying to “ teach India a lesson”.

IPOs in the making
There will be significant activity in the primary market from November 4 as four mainboard companies — including Swiggy — prepare for their debut. One SME IPO will also be aiming to raise funds in the first week of Samvat 2081. The list also includes Sagility India and Afcons Infrastructure — an engineering and construction company owned by the Shapoorji Pallonji Group.

Market Valuation Surge
The combined market valuation of six of the top-10 firms in India jumped by ₹1,07,366.05 crore last week — with State Bank of India and ICICI Bank emerging as the biggest gainers. The market capitalisation of Reliance Industries, ITC, Hindustan Unilever, and Life Insurance Corporation of India also witnessed a jump. Meanwhile Tata Consultancy Services, HDFC Bank, Bharti Airtel and Infosys faced erosion.

FMCG firms caution price hike
FMCG) companies reported a decline in margins for the July to September quarter due to higher input costs and food inflation, which is slowing the pace for urban consumption.

(With inputs from agencies)