LIVE: Delhi pvt schools to remain closed till January 15 due to cold wave

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5:53 PM

Cold wave grips north India

"We have issued a Red warning for Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi and UP and Orange alert for Rajasthan and Bihar. There will be very dense fog to dense fog. 10th January onward there will be no coldwave," says IMD Scientist Dr RK Jenamani.

 

5:49 PM

Several ex-Army officers joined Bharat Jodo Yatra in Haryana today

4:35 PM

Union Education Minister holds padayatra at Mahanga assembly constituency in Odisha's Cuttack district

3:32 PM

The airline's response should have been ‘much swifter’ in handling an unruly passenger: Tata Sons Chairperson

Tata Sons Chairperson N Chandrasekaran has said that the airline's response should have been ‘much swifter’ in handling an unruly passenger. Referring to the indecent and harrowing event that took place on an Air India Delhi-bound flight from New York, Chandrasekaran said that the crew should have handled the situation in a much more swift manner. 

3:28 PM

Private bus catches fire in Telangana's KPHB colony; no casualty reported

3:26 PM

BrahMos, Astra missiles give Indian Su-30s edge over Flankers operated by other countries: IAF fighter pilots

2:56 PM

BSF deploys drone-mounted radars to check under-ground tunnels along border with Pakistan

Drone-mounted ground penetration radars have been deployed for the first time by the Border Security Force (BSF) to check for the presence of under-ground tunnels used by terrorists to infiltrate the India-Pakistan International Border in Jammu region, officials said.

The indigenously-made gadget was deployed recently as part of the below-the-earth tunnel detection exercise carried out by the force. These structures have also been used to smuggle narcotics, arms and ammunition.

The BSF has unearthed at least five under-ground tunnels in the about 192 km of the Jammu front (of the India-Pakistan IB) in the last three years.

 

1:50 PM

Still open' to ceasefire agreement with Pakistan government, says TTP chief

The chief of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has said his group is still open to a ceasefire agreement with the Pakistan government, according to media reports.

The TTP, which is believed to have close links to al-Qaeda, has threatened to target top leaders of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's PML-N and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari's PPP if the ruling coalition continued to implement strict measures against the militants. However, the dreaded outfit insisted that it has not scrapped the ceasefire agreement with the government.

"We held talks with Pakistan mediated by Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan. We are still open to the ceasefire agreement," the Dawn newspaper quoted TTP chief Mufti Noor Wali Mehsood as saying in a video.

 

1:45 PM

'They can poison me': Akhilesh Yadav refuses tea offered by UP police

Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday refused to drink tea offered by the police officers at the DGP headquarters.

He asked his party worker to get tea from outside for him. "You never know, they may mix poison in my tea. I will drink my own tea and you people (cops) can drink your tea," he said.

Akhilesh Yadav had reached the DGP headquarters unannounced to protest the arrest of media handler of the party's Twitter account, Manish Jagan Agarwal, from Hazratganj. Agarwal was arrested on Sunday morning after three cases were registered against him for allegedly making objectionable remarks on Twitter through the party's social media handle.

 

12:34 PM

PMO to discuss Joshimath crisis; Uttarakhand officials to join via video link

The Prime Minister's Office will hold a high-level meeting on the Joshimath crisis Sunday afternoon amid an alarm in the Uttarakhand region after deep cracks developed in several houses.

P K Mishra, the principal secretary to the prime minister, will hold the review meeting with the cabinet secretary, other senior officials of the central government and members of the National Disaster Management Authority, an official statement said.

District officials of Joshimath besides senior officials of Uttarakhand will also attend the review meeting through video-conferencing.

 

12:24 PM

Identity of diaspora derived from how closely it is connected to its roots: Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday said the identity of a diaspora is very much derived from how closely it is connected to its roots and India's efforts have been to encourage easier exposure to its culture and traditions.

Addressing the Youth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) programme in Indore as part of the three-day PBD convention, Jaishankar said the youth living outside India have many more opportunities than before. "It is a matter of pride for us that centres of faith are growing abroad and serve the purpose of inculcating values, promoting culture and nurturing traditions. I think the one in Abu Dhabi has attracted particular attention of the people," he said.

"Our efforts have been to encourage easier exposure (for diaspora) to the Indian culture and traditions," he added.

 

12:21 PM

Railways says more than 335 trains delayed, 88 cancelled due to dense fog

The railways on Sunday said foggy weather has affected the movement of over 480 trains.

"Around 335 trains have been delayed, 88 cancelled, 31 diverted and 33 short terminated due to foggy weather," a railway official said.

A blinding layer of dense fog enveloped northwest India and the adjoining central and eastern parts of the country, affecting road, rail and air traffic movement.

Very dense fog lowered visibility to 50 metres at the Palam observatory near the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport at 5:30 am.

 

12:01 PM

Indo-Bangla Friendship Pipeline likely to be commissioned in February

The ambitious 130-km-long Indo-Bangla Friendship Pipeline, constructed at a cost of Rs 377.08 crore, is likely to be commissioned by next month, official sources tell PTI.

The international oil pipeline, IBFPL, will carry fuel from Assam-based Numaligarh Refinery Ltd's (NRL) marketing terminal at Siliguri in West Bengal to the Parbatipur depot of Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC). The mechanical works of the bilateral project, being funded by India, was completed on December 12 last year, a senior official of NRL told the agency on condition of anonymity.

"We have set the commissioning target completion in February 2023," he added.

The ground breaking ceremony for the 130-km IBFPL was held in September 2018 in the presence of Prime Ministers of India and Bangladesh through video conferencing.

11:38 AM

Trial run of vistadome coaches on Kalka-Shimla route likely to be conducted soon

People taking the train on the Kalka-Shimla heritage line may soon get to travel in advanced vistadome narrow gauge coaches which will have glass roofs and large windows and offer a panoramic view of the scenic route.

The Rail Coach Factory (RCF) in Kapurthala has commenced production of these coaches, which are expected to be ready by next month. These coaches will have a trial run on the Kalka-Shimla route before they are put into service, officials said.

The production of the vistadome narrow gauge coaches commenced following successful oscillation trials of two prototype coaches on the Kalka-Shimla heritage track in December last year. The RCF is likely to roll out four of these coaches by the first week of February, its general manager Ashesh Agrawal told PTI.

 

11:03 AM

Youth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas: Union minister Thakur asks young diaspora to innovate, invest in India

Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur on Sunday appealed to the young Indian diaspora to innovate, invest and initiate their ideas in India.

Speaking at the inaugural function of the Youth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) as part of commencement of the three-day PBD convention, Thakur said India became the fifth largest economy in the world in 2022 by overtaking those who ruled the country for 200 years.

Australia's Member of Parliament Zaneta Mascarenhas was the guest of honour at the Youth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas.

Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar were also present.