News Highlights: Ensure greater participation of women in highway construction, says transport ministry

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As an opposition MP during UPA’s ‘Lost Decade’, I raised the issue of the worsening NPAs in Parliament and urged an increase in the transparency of PSBs, says union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar in a social media post on January 30.

Listing how India’s banking sector has undergone tremendous transformation over the past 10 years, he said:

“Profits of PSBs touched Rs 1.05 lakh crore in 2022-23, almost triple from net profits earned in FY 2013-14.”

“Gross NPAs have been falling every year since 2018-19, and are back to 3.9 per cent as of March 2023, the lowest in 7 years.”

“India’s Fintech Adoption Rate is the highest in the world, and the nation ranks the 2nd highest in securing fintech deals.”

“While some big banks suffered collapse, Indian PSBs have proven to be robust and resilient.”

After the conclusion of the meeting at CM's residence, Congress MLA Pradeep Yadav said, "All the MLAs of INDIA Alliance were present. All of them gave an introduction to their unity... All MLAs showed their faith in the leadership of CM Hemant Soren... We will not let the BJP reach the CM's chair..."

The local meteorological station here has issued an “orange” alert of heavy snowfall at isolated places in mid and higher hills of the state on January 31 and February 1.

The Atal Tunnel in Kullu's Rohtang, peaks of Dalhousie, Chamba and parts of Lahaul and Spiti has witnessed snowfall this evening, videos of which made rounds on social media.

The local MeT office has also issued a “yellow” warning of thunderstorms and lightning on February 3 and predicted a wet spell in the region from January 30 to February 4.

Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) issued an advisory on ensuring "greater participation of women in workforce in highway construction". There should be no discrimination and the principle of equal pay for equal work should apply.

The Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena on Tuesday demanded that a bill on the Uniform Civil Code be passed in the coming budget session of Parliament. Speaking at a news conference in Delhi after an all-party meeting on the eve of the session, Sena MP Rahul Shewale also demanded that Parliament pass a resolution congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami says, "The Committee has given us the date of 2nd February when they would submit their draft (on UCC) to us. After that, the formalities that are needed to make it a law will be taken up. A meeting of the state cabinet will also be held. We will discuss it there too. The Assembly session will begin on 5th February...It is a special session for UCC. The Bill will be brought introduced during the session and passed."

Meeting of BJP Coordination Committee over Lok Sabha elections 2024 held at the party headquarters in Delhi. The meeting is being held under the chairmanship of party president JP Nadda.

BL Santhosh, Sunil Bansal, Vinod Tawade, Bhupendra Yadav, Himanta Biswa Sarma, and Ashwini Vaishnaw are also in attendance.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be inaugurating the Bharat Mobility Global Expo, India’s first-of-its-kind mobility show, on February 2.

The mobility show will be held from February 1 to February 3 at the Bharat Mandapam. It will bring the entire mobility value chain under one roof, including more than 800 exhibitors and over 50 overseas players.

CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury says, "In most of the states, we will be able to make common candidates and the discussions are in the final stages...Assessment is happening between the parties.”

“In Bengal, if the INDIA bloc allies get together it will be beneficial for the BJP because there is huge anti-incumbency...In Kerala, the Congress party is adopting a negative and anti-democratic approach to the LDF government and making baseless allegations against the Chief Minister. It keeps silent on the Centre's assault on the rights of Kerala which helps the BJP in its maneuvers against the state government. The people of Kerala will reject this disruptive approach to the Congress party.”

Two days after Nitish Kumar's exit from the INDIA bloc, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the Janata Dal-United (JDU) will lose all Lok Sabha seats from Bihar in the upcoming general elections as people do not like such tactics, asserting that the opposition alliance is still a strong entity.

Nitish Kumar on Sunday resigned as the Chief Minister of Bihar, saying "things were not working well" for him in the 'Mahagathbandhan' or the grand alliance and the opposition bloc INDIA, and formed a new government with the BJP.

Addressing a press conference on alleged cheating in Chandigarh mayoral polls in which the BJP registered a victory, Kejriwal said, "I feel that the BJP-led NDA is not getting a majority and the INDIA alliance is strong. You can take from me in writing that like last time if they (BJP) allow Nitish Kumar's party to contest 17 seats in the Lok Sabha polls, they (JDU) will lose these seats after what they did in Bihar."

Former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav waves at his supporters and party workers as he leaves from the ED office after around 8 hours of questioning in the land-for-job-scam.

The colourful tableau of Odisha that showcased women empowerment in the state as well as its rich handicraft and handloom sector during the 75th Republic Day parade here, has bagged the first prize among the tableaux showcased by various states and UTs, officials said on Tuesday.

Gujarat's tableau showcasing Dhordo tourism village has earned first place in the people's choice category.

The awards for best tableau in the two categories were announced on Tuesday and handed over during a ceremony held at Delhi Cantonment on January 30.

To boost air connectivity for Ayodhya and facilitate the arrival of pilgrims, the Ministry of Civil Aviation is set to launch 8 new flight routes for Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh on February 1, 2024. The new flight routes will connect Ayodhya with Delhi, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Patna, Darbhanga, Mumbai and Bengaluru.

Lambasting the BJP for allegedly bringing up the issues of NRC, CAA, and Uniform Civil Code ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday asserted she would not allow anyone to take away the citizenship of people during her lifetime.

Speaking at a public distribution programme at Raiganj in Uttar Dinajpur district, she alleged that the BJP "opportunistically raised" the issue of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act or CAA ahead of the upcoming elections.

Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar invoked the authority vested in him to revoke the suspension of all 11 members of the House, enabling them to attend the Special address by the President to be held on January 31, 2024, on the first day of the Budget Session.

The Rajya Sabha Privileges Committee had held the 11 suspended MPs guilty of breach of privilege and contempt of the House.

Aam Aadmi Party moves Punjab and Haryana High Court, seeks fresh polls for Chandigarh mayor's post under supervision of a retired judge

On Congress Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Bihar, Union Minister Giriraj Singh says, "Rahul Gandhi has been proven to be inauspicious for the INDIA bloc. The alliance is breaking everywhere he goes... The same happened in West Bengal and Bihar. In UP, if he bows down before Akhilesh Yadav then it is a different thing... First Rahul Gandhi should do 'Nyay' within the party..."

The Budget session of the Haryana Assembly will begin on February 20.

Haryana Education Minister Kanwar Pal, who also holds the parliamentary affairs portfolio, said, "The session will commence on February 20."

The Indian Navy has successfully intercepted and rescued a hijacked vessel, in collaboration with Seychelles Defence Forces and Sri Lanka Navy. In a coordinated multilateral response to the hijacking of a Sri Lankan fishing vessel, the Indian Navy, Seychelles Defence Forces, and Sri Lanka Navy, successfully intercepted and rescued the vessel which was hijacked on January 27.

The three pirates surrendered to the Seychelles Coast Guard (SCG) and all six crew members are safe and the vessel is being escorted to Mahe, Seychelles. Indian Navy deployed INS Sharada ex Kochi PM 28 Jan and also tasked HALE Sea Guardian drone to locate and intercept the hijacked fishing vessel.

- Renowned actor Ashok Saraf's name announced for Maharashtra Bhushan award for the year 2023.

- Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced his name on January 30.

- The Chhattisgarh High Court has issued a notice to former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel on a petition challenging his election as an MLA in recent assembly polls over alleged violation of the model code

- The petition was filed by BJP MP Vijay Baghel who had unsuccessfully contested the assembly election against Bhupesh Baghel from the Patan seat.

- Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) on Tuesday questioned the visit of Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials to the chief minister’s official residence in Delhi on Monday.

- JMM spokesperson Supriyo Bhattacharya asked: “When the state chief minister Hemant Soren called the Enforcement Directorate to record his statement on January 31, why did they reach his official residence in Delhi yesterday?”"

- Four security personnel were injured in an encounter with Naxalites along the border of Sukma and Bijapur districts in Chhattisgarh on Tuesday, police said.

- The incident occurred near Tekalgudem village when a joint team of security personnel was out on a search operation, they added.

- Samajwadi Party (SP) announces the names of 16 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections 2024.

- Dimple Yadav to contest from Mainpuri, Shafiqur Rahman Barq from Sambhal and Ravidas Mehrotra from Lucknow.

“If Chandigarh mayor elections were conducted honestly, the INDIA bloc would have registered its first win today,” Arvind Kejriwal said on January 30.

BJP got their candidate elected by force; it was a straight election since AAP-Cong had the majority, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said on the Chandigarh mayor polls.

As many as 25 percent of votes in the Chandigarh mayor polls were declared invalid; what kind of election was this? they will stoop to any low to win, he added.

The Delhi Chief Minister pointed out that the democratic process is more important than the mayor's post. “We are upset with the way votes have been counted,” Arvind Kejriwal said.

The AAP supremo also said that despite the Ram Mandir inauguration on January 22, if the BJP still has to use the Enforcement Directorate and the CBI against political opponents, it means the party is finding it very difficult to come back to power.

Commenting further on the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Kejriwal said: “We are having positive discussions with the INDIA alliance on seat-sharing” and added that the BJP and JDU are about to face a debacle in Bihar because "people are fed up with such malpractices".

Legally, every party's agent was supposed to sit while votes were being counted so that they could raise objections if they found an invalid vote. This time no agent was allowed to come near, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleged.

“They have cancelled eight of our votes, declaring them invalid, but we have footage that shows BJP has deliberately plotted it,” he said.

“If BJP can go to this extent in mayoral polls, this government can do anything when 90 crore people vote. The BJP would be tampering with EVMs in the polls,” he added.

The BJP has won the polls with might and it is not good for democracy. We have 13 councillors and Congress has 17 and BJP has 16. We contested the polls in alliance with Congress, and BJP from the beginning had ill intentions. First polls were scheduled on January 18 and presiding officer said he is ill. We had to seek Court's intervention to hold poll, says Kejriwal

On this day, the God of non-violence (Gandhi Ji) was killed and today democracy too has been murdered by them in mayoral polls (BJP), says Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal

“In our democracy, today marks a black day. Unfortunately, it is the same month in which we all celebrated Republic Day on the 26th, and on the 30th, the Constitution was blown up. BJP has looted the Chandigarh Mayoral elections,” says Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwat Mann

Delhi High Court refuses to grant immediate relief to AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan against the summon issued to him by the ED and lists the matter for hearing on February 1.

Khan has challenged the summons issued to him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to appear in person. He was summoned by the ED to appear before it today.

The Counsel for the ED sought the adjournment. Thereafter the matter was adjourned till Thursday.

The Ayodhya Ram temple inauguration on January 22 has sounded the "death knell" of secularism defined as the separation of religion from the State, administration and politics, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) said Tuesday.

In a statement issued after a three-day meeting of its Central Committee in Thiruvananthapuram that ended on Tuesday, the Left party said while it respects religious beliefs which are the personal choice of every individual, the January 22 event was held only for political gains.

This also signals the Places of Worship Act, 1991, will now be "put in cold storage", the party said. "The Temple inauguration at Ayodhya on January 22, 2024 has virtually sounded the death knell of secularism, defined as the separation of religion from the State, administration and politics. The whole programme was a State sponsored event directly involving the Prime Minister, UP Chief Minister, UP Governor, and the entire state machinery," the CPI(M) Central Committee said in a statement.

On ED questioning of Jharkhand CM Hremant Soren, RJD MP Misa Bharti says, "I think the Prime Minister is very scared for 2024 elections...Attempts were made to scare him (Hemant Soren) to get him to their side but perhaps he did not do that. So, this is being done. An elected CM had given the time that he will appear before them between 29-31 January, but his residence was still raided...This is just the beginning, the PM is scared for 2024 elections and attempts are being made to scare all Opposition leaders like this. But we won't be scared. Public is watching. I think BJP and PM Modi will have to bear the brunt of it."

Delhi minister & AAP leader Saurabh Bhardwaj says, "This is robbery. In Chandigarh, there are 36 Councillor seats out of which 14 seats are BJPs & 13 seats are AAPs and 7 seats of Congress. Total AAP (13 + 7) has 20 seats...BJP has been exposed again..."

AAP MP Raghav Chadha says, "This is not a setback for one coalition, one alliance or one party. It is a setback for India's democracy...We are aggrieved and hurt and we are worried as to what will happen in the upcoming 2024 polls. If the BJP can resort to such low levels & commit forgery & illegality...BJP can go to any level to rig the election process..."

With reference to reports around IndiGo flight 6E 1803 operating between Delhi and Baku, the incident is currently under investigation and, appropriate action will be taken as necessary, the airline said in a statement

-- The DGCA has initiated a probe into IndiGo's flight 6E-1803 Delhi-Baku that took off on January 29

-- The matter is under investigation.

-- The pilots have been off-rostered pending investigation, a DGCA official said

-- Meanwhile, the pilots of IndiGo's Airbus A320neo (VT-IZN) aircraft on January 29th have been suspended, the DGCA official added

Commenting on the Chandigarh mayor election, Aam Aadmi Party MP Raghav Chadha says, “For the first time in the Chandigarh mayor elections, 8 out of the 36 votes were declared invalid. The Congress and AAP alliance had to get 20 votes. We got 12 votes and 8 were declared invalid. Not a single vote of the BJP was declared invalid...”

Just days after Rahul Gandhi kickstarted the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra from the state, several prominent Congress leaders from Assam jumped ship to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party with these high profile exits denting Congress's stature in the state. Full Story Here

Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren reached his official residence in Ranchi on January 30 after hours of suspense over his whereabouts. The BJP said Soren was on the run as he is embroiled in an investigation by the Enforcement Directorate, who want to question the CM in a money laundering case. A letter from his office mentioned that he will be available for questioning on Wednesday, January 31, at 1 pm. Full Story Here

Porsche India recorded its best retail year since its inception by selling 914 new vehicles in 2023, including 65 units of its iconic sportscar 911. This represents a 17 per cent growth compared to 2022, and follows a 64 per cent increase the year prior. Of the 914 new sales in 2023, Porsche recorded 113 units of its Taycan EV.

The next big fintech disruption will come from ONDC. Here's How

Rohit Sharma's Indian team will face an uphill battle in the second Test against England at Visakhapatnam, which is scheduled for February 2-6. Having lost the first test match in Hyderabad, team India have more problems on their plate as senior players Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul will miss the second test due to injuries. Read our story on the challenges India will have to encounter ahead of the game on Friday. Click Here

Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan's political party, PTI, has responded to his jail sentence. On its X account, PTI said, "Pakistan stands with Imran Khan and Shah Mehmood Qureshi, who defended Pakistan and stood for Haqeeqi Azadi. No such sham trial can change what happened in March- April 2022, on the orders of Donald Lu. A complete mockery and disregard of law in the cipher case shall not lead us to forget our primary responsibility in order to provide justice to IK and SMQ: vote and protect your vote on 8th! InshAllah Kaptaan and Vice Kaptaan will be back soon, and this sentence will be in dustbin in appeal stage."

Former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan has been sentenced to 10 years in jail alongside former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in a controversial case related to a leaked document, state media and a spokesman for the PTI party said.

Swedish home furnishings retailer IKEA announced on Jan 30 it will launch its ecommerce deliveries across 62 districts across Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh. Customers can make their orders through the IKEA app, website, or through its “Shop by Phone” assistance service.

A Kerala court on Tuesday sentenced to death 15 persons associated with the now-banned Islamist outfit Popular Front of India (PFI) in connection with the murder of BJP OBC wing leader Ranjith Sreenivasan. The sentence was pronounced by Mavelikkara Additional District judge V G Sreedevi. The prosecution had sought the maximum sentence for the convicts, saying that they were a "trained killer squad" and the cruel and diabolical manner in which the victim was killed in front of his mother, infant, and wife brings it within the ambit of the "rarest of the rarest" of crimes.

A court in Kerala has sentenced 15 PFI activists to Death in connection with the murder of an RSS member Ranjeeth Srinivasan, who was murdered in 2021. Sreenivasan, the BJP OBC Morcha state secretary, was killed at his home on December 19, 2021, in front of his family. More details are awaited.

Indian IT firms are divided on why employee headcount is declining with disruptive technologies such as generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) making certain jobs redundant. The industry is witnessing a divergence of opinions within its key players regarding the extent to which emerging technologies might replace certain roles. Read our Full Story Here

The Supreme Court stopped proceedings on January 30 mid way to pay respects on martyrs day. Judges and lawyers observed a two-minute silence before continuing.

More than 60 battery, recycling, and electric vehicle infrastructure firms will participate at the Bharat Mobility Global Expo, which is scheduled for February 1-3 in New Delhi's Pragati Maidan. Leading companies in the space such as Amara Raja, Livguard, GODI Energy, Epsilon Advanced Materials, and more will be at the event.

Elon Musk's startup Neuralink has implanted its brain chip, Telepathy, in a human for the first time. The trial, which the US FDA gave clearance for in 2023, will assess the functionality of the interface, which enables people with quadriplegia or paralysis of all four limbs to control devices with just their thoughts. The patient is recovering well and initial results show promising neuron spike detection.

The letter reads, " You are well aware that the Budget Session of the Legislative Assembly will be held between 2nd and 29th February 2024 and the undersigned will be pro-occupied with preparations for the same apart from other prior scheduled official engagements. In these circumstances, your insistence to record a further statement of the undersigned on or before 31st January 2024 rocks of malice and reveals your political agenda to disrupt the functioning of the State Government and prevent an elected representative of the people from discharging his official duties. The undersigned's apprehensions that your acts are malefice and politically motivated stand vindicated. The issuance of summon to the undersigned is wholly vexatious and in the colourable exercise of powers given by the statute"

Indian Naval Ship Sumitra, having thwarted the Piracy attempt on FV Iman, has carried out yet another successful anti-piracy operation off the East Coast of Somalia, rescuing Fishing Vessel Al Naeemi and her Crew (19 Pakistani Nationals) from 11 Somali Pirates, the Indian Navy has said.

Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will address his first rally in Bihar to drum up support for the opposition INDIA bloc ahead of the general elections 2024. The INDIA bloc suffered a big blow after Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's exit. Today's rally will also be addressed by AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, who has also invited other leaders of the opposition INDIA bloc to share the stage. Also expected in attendance is

Also likely to be present is outspoken Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar, who hails from the state's Begusarai district.

Indian student Neel Acharya, who was reported missing since Sunday, has been confirmed dead by local police authorities in the US. Acharya, a student at Purdue University, was found dead in the university campus by Tippecanoe County Coroner's Office. This comes only a week after another Indian student was found dead after he was brutally murdered with a hammer by a homeless man inside a store in Lithonia, Georgia, US.

The Congress party has announced its Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra schedule for today, Jan 30, on their official X account. The yatra, which is in Bihar, has begun at 8 am with a flag hoisting ceremony. Rahul Gandhi also paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi during the ceremony. More of the schedule:

* 08:30 am - The Yatra resumes from Ambedkar Chowk, Ararai, Bihar
* 11:00 am - Rahul Gandhi will interact with farmers in Purnea, Bihar
* 11:30 am - Gandhi and the Yatra will take a break at the Mayfair ground in Purnea
* 02:00 pm - Rahul Gandhi will resume the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra with a public meeting at the Rangbhumi Maidan in Purnea. The meeting is expected to go on throughout the afternoon, evening and beyond until end of the day.

Post the public meeting, the Yatra will come to a night halt in Kheria, Katihar, in Bihar before resuming tomorrow.

Workers of the state unit of the BJP and West Bengal police clashed during a protest in the Barrackpore district of the state. The protest, which was led by state BJP president Sukanta Majumdar, was regarding the deteriorating law and order situation in North 24 Parganas district of Barrackpore. The demonstration was staged in front of the Barrackpur Police Commissionerate and the police responded with lathi charges and water cannons. As tensions escalated, the Rapid Action Force (RAF) and additional police forces were deployed to control the situation. Some BJP party workers sustained injuries during the clash

Senior congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is on his east-west Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, alleged on Monday alleged that the ideologies of the RSS and the BJP are spreading violence and hatred in India. Addressing a public gathering in Kishanganj, he alleged people belonging to different religions and castes are fighting among themselves under the BJP-led NDA rule at the Centre.

Good morning, viewers. Follow moneycontrol's live blog for regular updates on Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, ED raid on Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren, weather reports, and other breaking news from India and the world. Stay tuned for more