The Biggest Stories Of August 17, 2018

Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, a titan in Indian politics was cremated with full state honours on Friday as Mr Vajpayee's foster daughter Namita Bhattacharya lit the funeral pyre and a 21-gun salute went off at the Smriti Sthal; Kerala's savage monsoon in a century has now killed 324 people over last nine days; Over two lakh people have been displaced and housed in 1,500 relief camps; Even as the weather deparment said the intensity of rains have reduced, a red alert has been issued for 12 out of the 14 districts in Kerala; Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived in Kerala on Friday night will make an aerial survey of the worst affected districts with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, All this and more in the news wrap of the day.