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- TODAY NEWS ON January 14, 2025
TODAY NEWS ON January 14, 2025
News headlines for CAT, CLAT and IPM aspirants
Source: The HINDU
National News
- Maha Kumbh begins in U.P.’s Prayagraj, nearly 60 lakh devotees take holy dip
- UGC-NET exam on January 15 postponed
- Minister terms Meta CEO’s description of Indian election as ‘misinformation’
- SBI manager saves 68-year-old retired school teacher from digital arrest scam
- GST rate cut uncertainty dents life insurers’ new business 22% in Dec.
- M.P. CM changes names of 11 villages in Shajapur district
- PM inaugurates strategic Z-Morh tunnel in J&K, remains non-committal on timeline of Statehood restoration
- SC returns to full strength with elevation of Justice Vinod Chandran
- Rupee sinks to record low, settles 58 paise down at 86.62 against U.S. dollar
- Politically motivated attacks on religious minorities unacceptable: India to Bangladesh
- Cyclic incidents of violence continue in Manipur, armed forces trying to bring peace: Army Chief
- India summons Bangladesh’s Deputy High Commissioner over border issue
- Six-year-old query from the Supreme Court on rat-hole mines remains unanswered even as rescuers bring out miners’ bodies in Assam
- ‘Way you dragged your feet raises doubts’: Delhi HC questions Delhi Govt over delay in action on CAG reports
- Corps Commanders empowered to resolve issues at ground level: Army Chief on LAC situation
International News
- Lebanon’s President names ICJ judge Nawaf Salam Prime Minister
- Magnitude 6.9 earthquake rattles southwestern Japan, followed by tsunami advisories
- Bangladesh files graft cases against Sheikh Hasina’s family
- Judge clears the way for release of special counsel’s report on Donald Trump’s 2020 election interference case
- Los Angeles fires: 24 dead as fire crews try to contain Los Angeles blazes before winds return this week.
Headlines
Maha Kumbh begins in U.P.’s Prayagraj, nearly 60 lakh devotees take holy dip
A thick blanket of fog could not blur their vision, the cold breeze failed to reduce their energy levels and the bone-chilling water of river Ganga in Sangam area could not dampen their excitement, as lakhs of devotees from different walks of life took the holy dip on the occasion of ‘Paush Purnima’ on Monday (January 13, 2025).
UGC-NET exam on January 15 postponed
The National Testing Agency (NTA) has decided to postpone the University Grants Commission – National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) scheduled on January 15 (Wednesday) on account of Pongal, Makar Sankranti and other festivals. The new exam date would be announced later, a circular issued by the NTA on Monday (January 13, 2024) said. The NTA said it had received representation to postpone the UGC-NET December 2024 examination and it had decided to grant the request in the interest of aspirants.
Minister terms Meta CEO’s description of Indian election as ‘misinformation’
Union Minister for Railways, Information and Broadcasting, and Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw on Monday accused Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg of furthering “misinformation” following the latter’s characterisation of the 2024 General Election as a loss for the “incumbent” government. “People of India reaffirmed their trust in NDA [National Democratic Alliance] led by PM @narendramodi Ji’s leadership,” Mr. Vaishnaw said.
Lebanon’s President names ICJ judge Nawaf Salam Prime Minister
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Monday picked international jurist Nawaf Salam to form a government to pull the war-scarred country out of economic crisis. A majority of Lebanese lawmakers endorsed Mr. Salam, the presiding judge at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, after two years of a caretaker government. “The president of the republic has called on Judge Nawaf Mr. Salam to task him with forming a government,” the presidency said.
Magnitude 6.9 earthquake rattles southwestern Japan, followed by tsunami advisories
A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.9 has hit southwestern Japan, the country’s Meteorological Agency said on Monday (January 13, 2025), while warning the public to stay away from coastal areas because of a tsunami threat. Tsunami advisories were issued for Miyazaki Prefecture, where the quake was centred, in the southwestern island of Kyushu, as well as nearby Kochi Prefecture, shortly after the quake struck at 9.19 p.m. local time, according to the agency.
SBI manager saves 68-year-old retired school teacher from digital arrest scam
An alert bank manager with the State Bank of India (SBI) in central Delhi saved a 68-year-old retired school teacher from becoming a victim of a “digital arrest” scam a few days ago. The manager saved ₹79 lakh belonging to the victim, which the latter was all set to transfer to the scam accused. From January 1 to November 15, 2024, as many as 92,323 cases of digital arrests were reported across the country with the swindled amount pegged at ₹2,140.99 crore.
Congress to carry out caste census in Delhi if voted to power: Rahul Gandhi
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday (January 13, 2025) asserted that a caste census will be carried out in Delhi if the Congress is voted to power in the National Capital.
Bangladesh files graft cases against Sheikh Hasina’s family
Bangladesh’s anti-graft commission has filed cases against ousted leader Sheikh Hasina and her family, including a British government Minister and a senior United Nations official, its chief said Monday (January 13, 2025). Ms. Hasina, 77, fled a revolution in August 2024 to neighbouring India, where she has defied extradition requests from Bangladesh to face charges including mass murder.
Judge clears the way for release of special counsel’s report on Donald Trump’s 2020 election interference case
The Justice Department can publicly release its investigative report on President-elect Donald Trump’s 2020 election interference case, a federal judge said on Monday (January 13, 2025) — the latest ruling in a court dispute over the highly anticipated document days before Mr. Trump is set to take office again. But a temporary injunction barring the immediate release of the report remains in effect until Tuesday (January 14, 2025), and it’s unlikely U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon’s order will be the last word on the matter. Defence lawyers may seek to challenge it all the way up to the Supreme Court.
GST rate cut uncertainty dents life insurers’ new business 22% in Dec.
New business of life insurers declined almost 22% year on year in December to ₹30,218.71 crore, likely due to the continuing suspense over the indirect tax levies on insurance policies with the GST Council deferring a call on an expected tax cut at its December 21 meeting, along with tight liquidity conditions and a general slowdown in the economy. December’s drop in new business marks a deepening contraction from November, when such business fell for the first time in 2024-25, albeit by a relatively moderate 4.5% to ₹25,306.56 crore In December 2023, insurers had reported ₹38,583.13 crore as first year premium receipts.
M.P. CM changes names of 11 villages in Shajapur district
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has announced name changes for 11 villages in Shajapur district. The move comes just days after he changed the names of three villages in his home district of Ujjain. At an event in Shajapur’s Kalapipal tehsil on Sunday (January 12, 2024), Mr. Yadav changed names of villages Mohammadpur Machhanai to Mohanpur, Dhabla Hussainpur to Dhabla Ram, Mohammadpur Pawadiya to Rampur Pawadiya,Khajuri Alahdad to Khajuri Ram, Hajipur to Hirapur, Nipaniya Hisamuddin to Nipaniya Dev, Reechdi Muradabad to Ritchdi, Khalilpur to Rampur, Ghatti Mukhtiyarpur to Ghatti, Unchhod to Unchavad and Sheikhpur Bongi to Avadhpuri.
PM inaugurates strategic Z-Morh tunnel in J&K, remains non-committal on timeline of Statehood restoration
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who inaugurated the strategic Z-Morh tunnel in Ganderbal’s Sonamarg area on Monday (January 13, 2025), remained non-committal on the timeline to restore Statehood to J&K but said the new network of road and railway lines in the Union Territory (UT) has “already ended Dili ki Doori [distance between J&K and Delhi]“.
SC returns to full strength with elevation of Justice Vinod Chandran
President Droupadi Murmu on Monday (January 13, 2024) appointed Justice Krishnan Vinod Chandran, Chief Justice of Patna High Court, as a judge of the Supreme Court. The appointment returns the apex court to its full sanctioned strength of 34 judges. The Supreme Court Collegium had on January 7 recommended Justice Chandran for the appointment. In its resolution, the Collegium headed by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna noted that there was currently no judge from the High Court of Kerala on the Bench of the Supreme Court.
Los Angeles fires: 24 dead as fire crews try to contain Los Angeles blazes before winds return this week
Firefighters scrambled on Sunday (January 12, 2025) to make further progress against wildfires that have destroyed thousands of homes and killed 24 people in the Los Angeles area as forecasters again warned of dangerous weather with the return of strong winds this week. At least 16 people were missing, and authorities said that number was expected to rise.
Rupee sinks to record low, settles 58 paise down at 86.62 against U.S. dollar
The rupee logged its steepest single-day fall in nearly two years and ended the session 58 paise down at its historic low of 86.62 (provisional) against the U.S. dollar on Monday (January 13, 2025), weighed down by a stronger American currency and surging crude oil prices.
Politically motivated attacks on religious minorities unacceptable: India to Bangladesh
A day after Bangladesh Police declared the recent attacks on the minority communities in the country as “politically motivated” discounting “communal” angle, sources criticised the approach of the interim government in this matter and said this raises questions about the credibility of the Mohammad Yunus-led government.
Cyclic incidents of violence continue in Manipur, armed forces trying to bring peace: Army Chief
Synergised efforts by security forces and proactive government initiatives have brought the prevailing situation in Manipur under control, Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi said on Monday (January 13, 2025).
India summons Bangladesh’s Deputy High Commissioner over border issue
A day after the interim government of Bangladesh expressed “deep concern” about the prevailing situation along the India-Bangladesh borders, India has summoned the Bangladesh’s Deputy High Commissioner Md. Nural Islam over border issue on Monday (January 13, 2025).
Six-year-old query from the Supreme Court on rat-hole mines remains unanswered even as rescuers bring out miners’ bodies in Assam
An oral question from the Supreme Court to the Union government continues to remain unanswered even as rescue workers recover bodies of workers who died trapped in a flooded rat-hole coal mine at Dima Hasao district in Assam.
Corps Commanders empowered to resolve issues at ground level: Army Chief on LAC situation
Stating that a “degree” of standoff prevails along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi said on Monday (January 13, 2025) that he has authorized all Corps Commanders to handle issues at the ground level with respect to patrolling and grazing so that these trivial issues can be resolved at the military level itself.
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