LIVE updates: 'Centre monitoring situation', says BJP on Adani stock rout

The Adani group has dismissed the charges as lies, saying it complies with all laws and disclosure requirements. Stay tuned for the latest updates.

11:47 PM

US considering plan to down Chinese balloon over Atlantic

The Biden administration is considering a plan to shoot down a large Chinese balloon suspected of conducting surveillance on US military, by bringing it down once it is above the Atlantic Ocean where the remnants could potentially be recovered, according to four US officials.

 

The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive operation, said it was unclear whether a final decision had yet been made by President Joe Biden.

 

In a brief remark Saturday in response to a reporter's question about the balloon, Biden said: We're going to take care of it. The balloon was spotted Saturday morning over North Carolina as it neared the Atlantic coast.

 

Biden had been inclined to down the balloon over land when he was first briefed on it on Tuesday, but Pentagon officials advised against it, warning that the potential risk to people on the ground outweighed the assessment of potential Chinese intelligence gains.

11:30 PM

Budget has outlined development roadmap of country for next 25 years: Mandaviya

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Saturday said the Union Budget for 2023-24 has outlined the development roadmap of the country for the next 25 years.

 

At a "Budget pe Charcha" programme in Gurugram in Haryana, the minister interacted with a group of people, including intellectuals and traders, and shared his views on the budget.

 

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget for 2023-24 in Parliament on February 1. Mandaviya said this was the first budget of "Amrit Kaal" -- the 25-year period up to the centenary of India's independence.

10:50 PM

Five new judges appointed to SC to take oath on Monday

The five new judges appointed to the Supreme Court on Saturday will take the oath of office at 10.30 am on February 6, sources in the apex court said.

 

Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud will administer the oath to the five judges in a ceremony on the top court premises, they said.

 

Earlier in the day, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju tweeted to announce the appointment of Justice Pankaj Mithal, Chief Justice, Rajasthan High Court; Justice Sanjay Karol, Chief Justice, Patna High Court; Justice P V Sanjay Kumar, Chief Justice, Manipur High Court; Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah of Patna High Court; and Justice Manoj Misra of Allahabad High Court as apex court judges.

 

Their names were recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium on December 13 last year.

10:39 PM

Front-of-package warning labels can discourage unhealthy food choices: ICMR-NIN study

A study by the ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition on acceptability and potential use of different formats of front-of-pack nutrition labels in promoting informed food choices suggests 'warning labels' can deter choice and consumption of even moderately unhealthy foods.

 

It also showed that 'summary ratings' like health star or Nutri-Score can help identify healthier variants among the available foods.

 

Summary labels provide a brief and concise overview of a product's key features and benefits, often including information about positive as well as negative nutrients. Warning labels, on the other hand, provide information about potential hazards associated with a product as they take into consideration the nutrients of concern like sugars, fats and salt.

10:11 PM

Indian Army announces a change in recruitment process for Agniveers

10:07 PM

India, France, UAE unveil plans for co-operation under trilateral framework

India, France and the United Arab Emirates on Saturday unveiled an ambitious roadmap for cooperation in a plethora of areas including defence, energy and technology under a trilateral framework, a move that comes amid the geopolitical turmoil triggered by the conflict in Ukraine.

 

The plan was finalised during a phone conversation among External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, his French counterpart Catherine Colonna and UAE's Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan. READ MORE...

9:46 PM

LIVE: Fire breaks out in a factory in Gujarat's Umargam

9:25 PM

Adani row: Financial markets highly regulated, Centre monitoring situation, says BJP

Amid the raging controversy over Adani Group's stocks, the BJP on Saturday said financial markets are highly regulated and the Centre is closely monitoring the situation.

 

Stocks of the Adani Group have taken a beating on the bourses after US-based activist short-seller Hindenburg Research made a litany of allegations, including fraudulent transactions and share price manipulation at the Gautam Adani-led group.

 

The Adani group has dismissed the charges as lies, saying it complies with all laws and disclosure requirements.

9:22 PM

P T Usha alleges security threat in her academy; breaks down before media

Legendary athlete and Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president P T Usha on Saturday broke down before the media alleging that illegal constructions were being carried out at her academy campus in Kozhikode district and strangers were trespassing into the property posing a security threat to the inmates.

 

Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, she said those at the Usha School of Athletics had been facing such harassment and security issues for some time and it has intensified after she became the Rajya Sabha Member.

 

Usha had been nominated to the Upper House by the BJP in July 2022.

9:12 PM

UAE set to host Asia Cup, venue to be finalised in March

The Asian Cricket Council will decide on an alternate venue for the Asia Cup ODI tournament in March after BCCI secretary Jay Shah and PCB chairman Najam Sethi had their first formal meeting in Bahrain on Saturday.

 

The Asia Cup was initially allotted to Pakistan and was scheduled in September this year but Shah, who is also the ACC chairman, had announced last October that India will not travel to Pakistan.

 

It is understood that United Arab Emirates with three venues -- Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah -- are favourites to host the tournament but the decision has been withheld for the time being.

9:05 PM

ASG Hospital's Rs 526-cr resolution plan for Vasan Eye Care gets NCLT nod

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Chennai, has given nod to a Rs 526-crore resolution plan of ASG Hospital for Chennai-based eye care chain Vasan Health Care.

 

Through an order passed on February 3, NCLT has cleared decks for ASG to take over the business of Vasan Eye Care, once dues to creditors, employees, and stakeholders are paid. As per the plan, dues will be cleared within 30 days from the date of approval. This was the first case admitted in Chennai under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy code.

8:49 PM

GSI team inspects J&K's Doda for ascertaining underlying factors for cracks in buildings

A team of experts from the Geological Survey of India (GSI) on Saturday inspected a village in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district to ascertain the underlying factors for the development of cracks in nearly two dozen concrete buildings, an official said.

 

Doda Deputy Commissioner Vishesh Paul Mahajan said the GSI experts visited the affected Nai Basti village in Thathri tehsil to know the reason for the cracks in 19 residential houses, a mosque and a religious school for girls.

 

Mahajan, who along with other senior officers including Senior Superintendent of Police Abdul Qayoom met the affected families, said the GSI team will submit its report soon.

8:26 PM

ISRO-NASA built satellite ready to be shipped to India for launch

An earth-observation satellite jointly developed by NASA and ISRO that will help study Earth's land and ice surfaces in greater detail is all set to be shipped to India later this month for a possible launch in September.

 

ISRO Chairman S Somanath visited NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in the US state of California on Friday to oversee the final electrical testing of the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite before being shipped to India.

 

This mission will be a powerful demonstration of the capability of radar as a science tool and help us study Earth's dynamic land and ice surfaces in greater detail than ever before, Somanath said at the formal send-off ceremony organised at the JPL which was attended by senior scientists from the two space agencies.

8:13 PM

Commodity bourse MCX's Q3 net profit up 12.56% at Rs 38.79 crore

Leading commodity bourse MCX on Saturday posted a 12.56 per cent rise in its consolidated net profit to Rs 38.79 crore for the third quarter ended December 2022.

 

Its net profit stood at Rs 34.46 crore during the same quarter of the previous fiscal, according to a regulatory filing.

 

The company's total income rose on a consolidated basis to Rs 163.65 crore in the December 2022 quarter from Rs 104.06 crore in the year-ago period. MCX largely offers derivatives in the non-commodity segment.

8:06 PM

Four women die in Tamil Nadu stampede during free distribution of sarees

Four women died in a stampede at Vaniyambadi in Tamil Nadu where a private organisation was distributing free sarees as part of the Thaipooyam festival celebrations.

 

Police said that around 1,000 women reached the place where the saris were being distributed. An stampede ensued leading to many women getting injured. Several women were admitted to a hospital in Vaniyambadi Taluk and four of them, who were serious, died in the hospital.

 

Many of the injured are serious. Police have commenced an investigation. Further details are awaited.