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10:21 AM

Foundation stone for Ayodhya mosque to be laid on R-Day; blueprint this week

The blueprint of the mosque to replace the Babri Masjid will be unveiled this Saturday and its foundation laid on Republic Day on the five-acre land allotted for it here, members of the Trust formed for its construction said. "The Trust chose January 26, 2021 for laying the foundation stone of the Ayodhya mosque as on this day our Constitution came into effect over seven decades ago. Our Constitution is based on pluralism, which is the leitmotif of our mosque project," said Athar Hussain, secretary of the Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF). The IICF was set up by the Sunni Waqf Board six months ago to build the mosque.

10:09 AM

JP Nadda thanks Kerala for improved mandate

9:59 AM

MARKET LIVE: Sensex, Nifty trade flat; IndusInd Bank, RIL top gainers

The domestic equity markets were trading flat with a positive bias on Thursday amid mixed global cues. Among the headline indices, the S&P BSE Sensex gained 47 points to 46,710 levels and the broader Nifty50 index was testing the 13,700-mark. IndusInd Bank rose 2 per cent after the Sebi granted one-month extension for the bank's promoters to infuse residual capital in lieu of conversion of warrants, issued to them last year, into equity. Besides, Reliance Industries, Sun Pharma, and Ultratech Cement (all up 1%) were the other top gainers. Follow Market LIVE Updates Here

 

9:48 AM

Encounter in J-K's Anantnag, militant arrested

A militant was arrested in an injured condition during an encounter with security forces in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday, police said. Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Baba Gund Khaleel area in Anantnag district following information about presence of militants there, a police official said. He said the search operation turned into an encounter after militants opened fire on the security forces. One militant was arrested by the security forces in an injured condition and rushed to SMHS hospital here, the official said.

 

9:34 AM

How a US lawsuit claims Google, Facebook cooperated to undermine ad competition

Facebook Inc and Alphabet's Google, the two biggest players in online advertising, used a series of deals to consolidate their market power illegally, Texas and nine other states alleged in a lawsuit against Google on Wednesday. Google and Facebook compete heavily in internet ad sales, together capturing over half of the market globally. The two players agreed in a publicized deal in 2018 to start giving Facebook's advertiser clients the option to place ads within Google's network of publishing partners, the complaint alleged. Executives at the highest level of the companies signed off on the deal, according to the complaint. For example, a sneaker blog that uses software from Google to sell ads could end up generating revenue from a footwear retailer that bought ads on Facebook.

9:17 AM

India vs Australia 1st Test: Kohli wins toss, elects to bat

In the first Test of the four-match bilateral series, the Indian cricket team will take on hosts Australia at the Adelaide Oval today. This will be Virat Kohli and company’s first pink ball Test overseas and that too against the most experienced side in day-night Tests. Australia has played and won 7 matches under lights, four of them at the Adelaide Oval. India, on the other hand, played its first and only win late last year against Bangladesh at the Eden Gardens. Follow LIVE Scores Here

 

9:08 AM

Cold waves to continue in north India

Cold wave conditions very likely in some pockets over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh Rajasthan, Delhi & West Uttar Pradesh during next 2 days. Dense fog in isolated pockets very likely over Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh during the morning on 17th December. Under the influence of an easterly wave, scattered to fairly widespread rain/thundershowers are very likely over Tamil Nadu, Puducherry & Karaikal, Kerala & Mahe and Lakshadweep area during next 4 days.

9:00 AM

BSF guns down two terrorists along Pak border in Punjab

The Border Security Force (BSF) gunned down two terrorists along the India-Pakistan International Border in Punjab in the early hours of Thursday, official sources said. The armed infiltrators were shot dead close to the Attari front around 2:30 am, they said. More details will be known once the troops conduct a search operation, but a dense fog has engulfed the area, the sources said.

8:43 AM

India wants a V-shaped recovery at any cost. But what will RBI do?

A collapse in imports during the coronavirus lockdown has left India awash with dollars. Now a further influx of greenbacks is expected as an embryonic economic recovery draws investors back. To banks, this means one thing: The local currency is a sitting duck for appreciation against a weakening dollar. Policy makers won’t want a stronger rupee to become a one-way bet, but the market doesn’t believe them to have many other options. What the authorities have done so far — scoop up the dollars by giving banks rupees — has left the financial system swimming in money and threatens to fuel inflation that’s already above the central bank’s target. It’s a mirror image of China, where a spate of corporate defaults has squeezed interbank liquidity. Read More

 

8:30 AM

Isro to launch CMS-01 onboard PSLV-C50 today

PSLV-C50 will launch CMS-01 from the Second Launch Pad (SLP) of Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota today. The launch is tentatively scheduled at 1541 Hrs IST. CMS-01 is a communication satellite envisaged for providing services in Extended-C Band of the frequency spectrum. The Extended-C Band coverage will include Indian mainland, Andaman-Nicobar & Lakshadweep Islands. CMS-01 is the 42nd Communication Satellite of India.

8:15 AM

Chinese spacecraft returns to Earth carrying rocks, debris from Moon

8:07 AM

Canada signs deal with US to send astronaut around moon

Canada has signed an agreement with the US to send a Canadian astronaut around the moon in 2023, Navdeep Bains, Canada's minister of innovation, science and industry, has said. At a video news conference on Wednesday, Bains unveiled the Gateway Treaty, which formalises Canada's involvement in the US-led effort to build a new international space station above the moon surface to allow for exploration and future missions to Mars, Xinhua reported. The treaty includes a commitment to having a Canadian on board when the US conducts a flyby of the moon in 2023, as well as a second flight to the future station. It will not include a moon landing.

7:55 AM

First Australia Open in post-Covid era from Feb 8-21

The 2021 ATP Tour calendar outlining a revised schedule for the first seven weeks of the season announced; Australian Open men’s qualifying will take place from 10-13 January in Doha. Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the season, will follow from 8-21 February.

7:34 AM

Boeing hires pilots for airlines to help relaunch 737 MAX: Report

Boeing Co is hiring up to 160 pilots to be embedded at airlines in its latest bid to ensure its 737 MAX has a smooth comeback after a 20-month safety ban, according to a recruitment document seen by Reuters and people familiar with the move. The new "Global Engagement Pilots" will act as instructors or cockpit observers on 35-day assignments at an equivalent annual salary that could reach $200,000, for a total potential cost of $32 million, one of the people said. Read More Here

7:25 AM

Chips manufacturing unit demolished as part of anti-adulteration drive in MP's Indore

A chips manufacturing unit was demolished by the Indore administration on Wednesday as part of an anti-adulteration drive, an official said. "Chips were being made from rotten potatoes. They used to wash these potatoes in a hydro powder, which is dangerous for health, to remove blackness over it. Thus, we have demolished their factory," District Collector Manish Singh said. On Monday, the factory was raided by the team of Additional Collector, and action was initiated after they saw the condition of the potatoes lying in the factory's godown.