LIVE news updates today: Six school children died after a boat carrying 27 students, who were on a picnic, overturned in a lake on the outskirts of Vadodara city in Gujarat on Thursday, officials said. A search operation is underway to trace the remaining students at the Harni lake, where the incident happened, they said. Gujarat Education Minister Kuber Dindor said, "I have just learnt that six children died after a boat carrying school students overturned in a lake." "Rescue operations are underway. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the fire brigade personnel are on the job along with other agencies," he said. Vadodara district collector A B Gor said there were 27 children on the boat. "We are trying to trace and rescue others," he said. "A boat carrying school students, who came here on a picnic, overturned in Harni lake in the afternoon. The fire brigade has so far rescued seven students, while search is on for the missing ones," Vadodara's chief fire officer Parth Brahmbhatt said. Few local residents rescued some children before the fire brigade personnel reached the spot, he said.
The ban on non-essential construction, plying of BS-III petrol, BS-IV diesel cars has been lifted in Delhi. The Commission for Air Quality Management's (CAQM) sub-committee revoked Stage-III of GRAP in the entire Delhi-NCR with immediate effect amid improvement in Delhi's air quality.
Indian Navy warship assisted a ship on Wednesday following a drone attack in Gulf Of Aden. Guided Missile Destroyer INS Visakhapatnam swiftly responded to the distress call flagged by MV GencoPicardy.
Probe agency Enforcement Directorate (ED) today began conducting raids simultaneously at seven places in and around Kolkata in connection with its probe into the alleged irregularities in recruitment of school teachers in schools of West Bengal, news agency PTI reported today. The raids are being conducted at the residences and offices of those who allegedly "acted as middlemen" in the scam, PTI reported.
Despite the recent sharp fall in core inflation monetary policy in India must remain actively disinflationary, Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das stated at the World Economic Forum in Davos. He also said it gives the committee the satisfaction that monetary policy is working but the target for the MPC remains the headline number. Das said that it would be too premature to talk in terms of a pivot in our monetary policy when inflation is rather close to 6 per cent. He acknowledged the dip in core inflation, which strips out fluctuating food and fuel prices.
The idol of Lord Ram was brought inside the sanctum sanctorum of the Ayodhya temple on Wednesday night, Shri
Ram Mandir Construction Committee Chairperson Nripendra Mishra stated. The idol is likely to be installed in the sanctum sanctorum on Thursday, he added. A special puja was conducted in the sacred space before the idol was brought inside. The idol was brought to the Ram temple in a truck. The consecration ceremony will start at 12:20 pm on January 22 and is expected to end by 1:00 pm. The rituals will continue till January 22, the day of the consecration cermony.
Pakistan has struck targets in Iran, a day after warning Tehran of " serious consequences" over its missile strikes on the Jaish al-Adl group's bases in Balochistan, the country's foreign ministry confirmed today. Pakistan has reportedly struck the posts of the Balochistan Liberation Front and the Balochistan Liberation Army. On Wednesday, India stated it understands actions that countries take in their self defence. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal emphasised that it is a matter between Iran and Pakistan, and asserted that India has "an uncompromising" position of "zero tolerance" towards terrorism.Islamabad had expelled the Iranian ambassador and recalled itsenvoy from Tehran following Iran's launch of a barrage of missiles on Pakistan. Earlier, Iran attacked the headquarters of a terrorist group opposed to Tehran with drones and missiles in Pakistan on late hours of Tuesday, Al Arabiya News reported citing Tasnim news agency.
 "LIVE: 12 students on picnic die as boat overturns in lake near Vadodara")
