News Highlights: FIU IND issues showcause notice to Binance and others for not complying with PMLA provisions

Today Wes Bengal registered the death of a COVID-positive patient after over nine months, a health official said. The patient, who had tested positive for the coronavirus, had multiple comorbidities, he said. This person was admitted to a private hospital in Kolkata. He died after suffering a cardiac arrest, said the official. The state had recorded the last COVID death on March 26.

Senior IPS Rahul Rasgotra appointed as Director General of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and senior IPS Nina Singh appointed chief of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF)

FIU IND wrote to Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to block URLs of the nine entities operating illegally without complying with the provisions of PML Act in India. Binance, Kucoin, Huobi, Kraken, Gate.io, Bittrex, Bitstamp, MEXC Global, and Bitfinex have been issued compliance showcause notice by Financial Intelligence Unit India

Indian batsmen were all out in their second innings on the third day itself, registering a massive defeat against the hosts, by an innings and 32 runs. Kohli's 76 run knock went in vain as the visitors could not build a partnership. Quick wickets at the end by Marco Jansen and Nandre Burger dismissed the Indian batting lineup.

Section 194-O of the Income-tax Act, 1961 provides that an e-commerce operator shall deduct income-tax at the rate of one per cent of the gross amount of sale of goods or provision of service, or both, facilitated through its digital or electronic facility or platform.

Vide CBDT Circular No. 20/2023 dated 28.12.2023 guidelines have been issued for removal of difficulties and clarity has been provided on various issues pertaining to applicability of section 194-O of the Act in a multiple e-commerce operator model framework, such as the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC).

--"We have already configured 50 satellites to be realised in the next five years and this is going to be launched for India for supporting this particular geo-intelligence over the next five years plus (period): ISRO Chief Somanath.

--If India can launch satellites at this scale, threats to the country can be better mitigated, ISRO chief Somanath said.

The environmental damage compensation (EDC) is imposed and as a consequence revokes the earlier show cause notice dated
May 19, 2023, as was received by the Company on May 23, 2023, Tata Steel said in a regulatory filing.

The company has paid the EDC on December 27, 2023, to the relevant authorities, on a “without prejudice” basis, it added.

--In view of high ammonia levels in Yamuna River, Delhi’s Water Minister Atishi writes to Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar.

--The letter reads, "CM Arvind Kejriwal given the directions to Delhi Jal Board to set up an ammonia treatment plant in Wazirabad in March. The work was to be finished within 6 months. Despite constant follow-up, DJB has not even started the project"

In a chargesheet filed earlier this month, the ED submitted in court that the four accused conducted illegal activities that enabled Vivo India to make wrongful gains up to the tune of ₹1 lakh crore, which the company remitted abroad between 2014 to 2021.

Sources told CNBC-TV18 that around 50 out of 58 flights have diverted since December 25 due to Captain Minima regulations. These diversions, predominantly caused by adverse fog conditions, have disrupted the operations of various airlines, with Indigo bearing the brunt of the impact. Here is a list of flight diversions so far:

--Indigo-13
--Spicejet-10
--Air India-10
--Vistara-5
--Akasa Air-3
--Alliance Air - 2
--Viet Jet - 1
--Malindo Air - 1
--Air Asia - 1
--Private jet - 1
--Fly Dubai - 1
--Ethopian - 1
--Quick Jet (Cargo) - 1

"PM Modi blames us that the Congress and opposition don't come to Parliament. You are the one who sent us outside the Parliament, we are not allowed to speak in Parliament. We only wanted to ask how those 2-4 people managed to sneak inside (Parliament) and who were behind them," says Congress president Kharge
during party's Hain Tayyar Hum' rally in Nagpur.

--PM Modi will visit Ayodhya on 30th December to inaugurate the redeveloped Ayodhya Railway Station and flag off new Amrit Bharat trains and Vande Bharat trains. He will also dedicate several other railway projects to the nation.

--PM will also inaugurate the newly built Ayodhya Airport and will participate in a public programme where he will inaugurate, delicate to the nation and lay the foundation stone of multiple development projects worth more than Rs 15,700 crore in the state.

--These include projects worth about Rs 11,100 crore for the development of Ayodhya and its surrounding areas and projects worth about Rs 4600 crore related to other projects across Uttar Pradesh.

South Africa scored 408 runs all out in 108.4 overs on Day 3 of 1st Test. Lead by India (245) by 163 runs

--Red Sea disruption is a matter of fact. As of now, no immediate impact has been reported: Goyal

--One industry that we know that has been affected is rice. But we will know all the details once we have the data for the current month: Goyal

--India is going through a massive revolution in its engagement with the rest of the world. We are organising five-six big exhibitions in the next two months in the world-class facilities of Bharat Mandapam and Yashobhoomi: Goyal

--The National E-commerce Policy is at the final stage of discussions at the highest levels of the government. We hope to come out very soon with it: Goyal

DGFT's Santosh Kumar Sarangi: We will be signing an MoU with Shiprocket to build capacity in different districts with relation to e-commerce exports. We are also in talks with Walmart, ShopClues, and eBay.

--MEA said on verdict, "We have noted the verdict today of the Court of Appeal of Qatar in the Dahra Global case, in which the sentences have been reduced...The detailed judgement is awaited....Our Ambassador to Qatar and other officials were present in the Court of Appeal today, along with the family members. We have stood by them since the beginning of the matter and we will continue to extend all consular and legal assistance. We will also continue to take up the matter with the Qatari authorities."

--Qatar court commutes death sentence 8 Indian ex-Navy personnel, says MEA; To continue to take up the matter with Qatari authorities, the ministry adds.

--The eight Indian ex-Navy personnel in Qatar were on a death sentence given by the court in Qatar.

--"I have asked officials of Kannada and Culture department to bring an ordinance and implement 60% Kannada nameplates and 40% other language nameplates and the same will be notified and rules will be formed. I request companies, organisations and other shops to change their nameplates before February 28, 2024. People need not to be panic," says Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah.

--The decision came after the CM held a high-level meeting regarding the installation of Kannada nameplates in front of shops and offices. BBMP and Culture Department officials were also present in the meeting.

An earthquake of magnitude 6.3 on the Richter Scale strikes Kuril Islands, Japan: National Center for Seismology

In a collaborative investigation published on Thursday, Amnesty International and The Washington Post revealed that the Indian government has once again employed the Pegasus spyware to target prominent journalists. Developed by the Israeli firm NSO Group, Pegasus has the capability to infiltrate a phone, accessing messages and emails, viewing photos, listening to calls, tracking locations, and even using the camera to record the device's owner. Amnesty International identified journalists Siddharth Varadarajan from The Wire and Anand Mangnale from The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) as individuals targeted with this spyware on their iPhones.

The Secretary of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) notified via X that the government has received about Rs 832 crore from Power Finance Corporation Limited (PFC) as dividend tranche.

The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) projects a substantial economic boost in India following the inauguration of the Shri Ram Temple on January 22. Estimated at Rs 50 thousand crore in January, the historic event is anticipated to be a momentous occasion, evoking nationwide enthusiasm. Traders nationwide are preparing for heightened demand, with the CAIT leaders urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to declare January 22 as "Ram Rajya Diwas." The Vishwa Hindu Parishad's campaign leading up to the temple inauguration has sparked nationwide enthusiasm, offering significant business opportunities. The demand for Ram Temple-associated products is soaring, with a focus on Shri Ram Mandir models providing employment opportunities for women and benefitting artisans and handworkers. The anticipation of Diwali celebrations on January 22 is expected to drive substantial business in various sectors, including the service industry, as the cultural wave extends to the music industry, creating employment opportunities for artists and orchestras. CAIT is actively coordinating business organizations nationwide to ensure widespread economic benefits.

Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar, the Minister of State for Health, mentioned that Minister Mansukh Mandaviya conducted a meeting with all states to discuss the current situation. Testing and genome sequencing efforts have been intensified in various states. Dr. Pawar advised senior citizens to exercise caution, emphasizing that there is no need for undue concern but precautions should be observed. She also highlighted the monitoring of the situation in Kerala, where the number of cases is high.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has named Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in its charge sheet mentioning her role in purchasing agricultural land, measuring 40 kanal (five acres) in Haryana's Faridabad, from a Delhi-based real estate agent HL Pahwa in 2006 and selling the same land to him in February 2010.

Sachin Tendulkar's investment in Azad Engineering grew 6 fold following the stock's stellar listing. Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu, and VVS Laxman also saw their holdings baloon. Full report here

Follow our LIVE Market Blog here

PM Modi, Amit Shah, and Kamal Haasan led the tributes after 'Captain' Vijayakanth passed away in the early hours of December 28 in Chennai. All reactions here

Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj said on Thursday, "We have increased the number of tests. Yesterday (December 27) we performed 636 tests in private and govt hospitals. 3 genome sequencing results were received yesterday, out of which two were old Omicron variants and one was JN.1. The new variant is mild and people are not getting severely ill because of this. The patient with the JN.1 variant has already been discharged from the hospital and she is healthy now. We can say that there are no patients of JN.1 variant in Delhi currently..."

The total cases of coronavirus in India since its outbreak in January 2020 is now pegged at 4,50,10,944, and the total number of deaths is at 5,33,346.

India records six Covid-19 deaths, 692 new cases in 24 hrs; total active caseload at 4,097 as of December 28. The Union Health Ministry data further shows that the six deaths happened in Maharashtra (2), Delhi, Karnataka, Kerala, and West Bengal.

The United States, backed by the UK, Japan and Canada, has proposed moving forward with preparatory work so that options would be ready for G7 leaders to consider at a potential meeting around February 24, according to a Reuters report.

Moneycontrol has specially curated a wrap of the biggest headlines that is making the news today to help you stay at the top of your game. Click here for the full list

The Union Ministry of Health Affairs said total number of active Covid cases in Tamil Nadu stands at 135, as of December 27, Wednesday.

Powered by an insatiable thirst for financial gains, millions of young Indians armed with smartphones have taken to equity investments in the world’s most-populous nation. Full Story here

India will lock horns with Australia in the first of the 3-match Women's ODI series at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday, December 28. Today's match will begin at 1.30 pm IST. In the 50 matches the two sides have played in women's ODIs, Australia have won 40 while the Indians could manage only 10 wins.

The unreleased version of the draft rules of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act also states that the Cabinet Secretary is likely to head a search-cum-selection committee tasked with appointing the chairperson for the Data Protection Board. Read our full story here

According to an unreleased version of the draft rules of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, social media companies, e-commerce platforms, and online gaming services might be required to delete personal data of users who have been inactive on these platforms for 3 years. Click here to read the full story

Delhi Airport is facing delays affecting approximately 134 flights, both (domestic and international) arrivals and departures, due to dense fog, according to Delhi Airport's FIDS (Flight Information Display System). Meanwhile, over 20 Delhi-bound trains are delayed

Earlier on December 28, the DMDK had announced that their chief Vijayakanth had tested positive for COVID and was admitted to MIOT Hospital in Chennai and put on a ventilator due to breathing issues. Vijayakanth had been experiencing health issues since November 2023 and on December 15 Vijayakanth's wife, Premalatha Vijayakanth, took charge as the general secretary of DMDK.

'Captain' Vijayakanth was admitted to MIOT Hospital in Chennai after his health deteriorated early on December 28. As per hospital, Vijayakanth was on ventilatory support following his admission for pneumonia.

Actor and DMDK Chief 'Captain' Vijayakanth passes away at a hospital in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He was on ventilatory support after testing positive for COVID-19.

After Bharat Dal and Atta succeeded in keeping the prices of these food items from running away, the government is now reportedly mulling the launch of Bharat Rice. Read our full report here

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has called a meeting of the newly appointed General Secretaries and state in charge of AICC today, December 28, in Nagpur later in the evening after the rally.

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the national capital has put out guidelines on Wednesday, December 28, for handling suspected or positive Covid patients arriving at their hospitals. New Delhi has recorded the first case of the JN.1 coronavirus variant.

Going in India's favour are the country's economic growth (nominal growth that exceeded 12 percent in 2023, and which could come in at the same level or even higher in 2024) and improvement in currency stability in comparison to China. Read the full story here

The Bihar health department has ramped up testing in hospitals and surveillance systems at airports to prevent new coronavirus variants. The Baga subdivisional hospital is conducting a dry coronavirus ward management exercise to prevent new variants in West Champaran district.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah will hold a meeting with the Core Group of BJP Telangana in Shamshabad today, December 28. He will also offer prayers at the Bhagyalakshmi Temple in Hyderabad and is also expected to hold a meeting with Mandal Presidents of BJP Telangana in Ranga Reddy later today.

India recorded 529 new coronavirus cases in a single day on Wednesday, December 27, taking the number of active cases in the country to 4,093. According to the ministry's data updated at 8 am, three new deaths - two in Karnataka and one in Gujarat - were reported in the last 24 hours. The number of daily infections had fallen to double digits by December 5, but the number rose again as new variants and colder weather conditions emerged.

Two women in Uttarakhand displayed remarkable courage after they fought off a tiger to rescue their friend, who was being attacked by the big cat. Full story here

From Sensex & Nifty scaling new heights and an influx of foreign investments to ICC's cricket media rights, these are the stories making the headlines today. Full report here

Congress leader and Karnataka minister Kharge has urged disgruntled BJP member Basanagouda R Patil (Yatnal) to release documents related to the alleged ₹40,000-crore Covid-19 scam the previous BJP government allegedly oversaw during their tenure in the state.

Covid-19 JN.1 news LIVE: Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) leader Vijayakanth has tested positive for COVID. The party informed that Vijayakanth, who is fondly known as 'Captain', has been put on a ventilator due to a breathing issue.