June Round-Up: A Look At Major Events As They Unfolded

June 1

The country stepped into Phase One of the three-stage unlock plan announced by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India. As per the unlock plan announced by MHA in Phase 1, places of worship and other religious places would be open to the public from June 8. Hotels, restaurants, pubs, shopping malls and other facilities including hospitality services would be permitted to function from June 8, among other things.

June 3

Just over four months after the pandemic hit India, the country crossed the 2 lakh mark in the number of coronavirus positive cases. The tally at the end of the month, has climbed to over 5,66,000 COVID-19 cases, with 16,893 deaths.

Cyclone Nisarga made a landfall at Murud near Raigad in Maharashtra. The state had braced itself for the fury of the cyclone and a number of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams were deployed in vulnerable places for relief and rehabilitation work. Mumbai, already reeling under the impact of the coronavirus crisis, was fortunately spared by Nisarga which affected Alibaug and other places.

June 6

India and China held the first round of Corps Commander level discussions to ease the tensions on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh. India was represented by Lieutenant-General Harinder Singh.

June 8

India's tally of coronavirus cases surged past the 2,50,000 mark. Maharashtra continued to have the highest viral load in the country.

June 12

The Supreme Court ruled that employers and employees should negotiate between themselves on wages to be paid during the lockdown period. The apex court also said that the earlier order stating that no coercive action should be initiated against employers with regard to the March 29 notification of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) forcing them to pay full wages, continues to remain in force.

June 15

20 Indian soldiers including Col. Santosh Babu were martyred in Galwan Valley of Eastern Ladakh in a violent clash with Chinese soldiers. Col. Babu, who had reached the point of the clash to ask the Chinese to remove structures erected by them on the Indian side, was attacked by the Chinese in an act of pre-planned aggression.

Indian high commission staff in Pakistan went missing for several hours. Later, the authorities learnt that Pakistan's ISI had kidnapped them and held them on trumped up charges.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah called for an all-party meeting to discuss the coronavirus crisis in the national capital.

June 16

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain was admitted to a hospital following difficulty in breathing after he tested positive for coronavirus.

June 17

PM Modi took up a review of the tension on the LAC at a meeting at which Defence Meeting Rajnath Singh, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Chief of Defence Staff Bipin Rawat and the three service chiefs were present.

Congress leader and Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi questioned PM Modi's silence over the Galwan Valley clash in which 20 Indian soldiers were martyred.

June 19

PM Modi held an all-party meeting with Opposition leaders. A vast majority of the opposition leaders who attended the virtual meeting backed the Government on the issue, including NCP chief Sharad Pawar, BSP supremo Mayawati, TMC chief and West Bengal chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, TRS chief and Telangana chief minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao, YSRCP supremo and Andhra Pradesh chief minister, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, Shiv Sena chief and Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and Samajwadi Party supremo Akhilesh Yadav. The Congress working president Sonia Gandhi was also present at the video interaction.

June 21

Massive public outrage erupted over the custodial deaths of a father-son duo, Jeyaraj and Bennix in Tuticorin of Tamil Nadu, with social media users describing the deaths as cold-blooded murder by Tamil Nadu police in Santhankulam .

June 22

A week after the violent clash between Indian and Chinese troops in Galwan Valley in Eastern Ladakh on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in which 20 Indian soldiers were martyred, both sides held a Corps Commander level meeting to discuss the process of disengagement agreed upon earlier at the June 6 meeting.

June 24

The hike in the prices of fuel took diesel to a costlier high than petrol in many parts of the country.

On the same day, India breached the 4.50 lakh mark in the number of COVID-19 cases.

The Chief Of Army Staff Gen. MM Naravane visited forward areas in Eastern Ladakh on a two-day review of the situation on the ground.

June 27

India shot past the 5 lakh mark in the total number of coronavirus cases, as the number of fresh cases rose close to 20,000 a day.

June 29

In a major move to block China's digital silk route, India banned 59 Chinese apps including TikTok, the popular video-sharing networking platform.

June 30

The third round of discussions at the Corps Commander level were held between Lt. Gen Harinder Singh on the Indian side and his Chinese counterpart, to ease the tensions on the LAC and take the process of disengagement forward.

The Madras High Court that there was enough evidence to file an FIR against the Santhankulam cops with respect to the custodial deaths of Jeyaraj and Bennix on June 20.