Explore CSR funding for cow shelters, Uttar Pradesh asks district officials

The Uttar Pradesh government has asked district magistrates in the state to explore the possibility of companies running temporary cow shelters under their Corporate Social Responsibility programmes. On January 1, the state cabinet approved a plan to set up temporary cattle shelter facilities in urban and rural areas for stray cows, and impose a “cow welfare cess” for the maintenance of these facilities.

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Maharashtra: Man who helped uncover kidney racket found dead in his home

The Maharashtra Police on Tuesday said they found Sundar Balvant Singh – a key witness in a kidney racket they had busted in 2016 – dead in his home in Diva on Tuesday, PTI reported.

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Pongal: Madras HC stays Tamil Nadu government scheme to gift Rs 1,000 to all ration card holders

The Madras High Court on Wednesday ordered a stay on a Tamil Nadu government scheme allowing Rs 1,000 in cash to be distributed as a gift for Pongal festival to all ration card holders in the state, PTI reported.

In a setback to Mamata Banerjee, Trinamool Congress MP Saumitra Khan joins BJP

Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha MP Saumitra Khan on Wednesday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in New Delhi.

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Odisha: BJD will not be a part of grand Opposition alliance, says Naveen Patnaik

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday said his party – the Biju Janata Dal – would not be a part of the mahagathbandhan, or the grand alliance of Opposition parties that aims to fight the Lok Sabha elections against the Bharatiya Janata Party, PTI reported.

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Citizenship Bill protests: Curfew imposed in parts of West Tripura district

Authorities on Wednesday imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure in Tripura’s Madhabbari and nearby areas, where at least seven people were injured in clashes with the police the previous day during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, PTI reported.

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J&K: IAS officer Shah Faesal resigns in protest against ‘unabated killings’, may join politics

Kashmiri Indian Administrative Services officer Shah Faesal on Wednesday resigned from the civil services and is likely to join politics ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections later this year.

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Jaipur: Congress will waive farm loans across India if voted to power, says Rahul Gandhi

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday promised to waive farm loans across the country if his party is voted to power in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

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CAG says Centre hid true extent of fiscal and revenue deficits in 2016-’17 financial year

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India on Tuesday said the Centre borrowed through off-budget channels to finance capital and revenue expenditure in the 2016-’17 financial year, Mint reported.

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Upper caste quota bill: Modi urges Rajya Sabha to respect public opinion and pass draft law

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said he hoped that the Rajya Sabha would “respect public opinion” and pass the bill on Wednesday. The government’s goal of “Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas [Together, development for all]” was strengthened after the Lok Sabha passed a bill allowing 10% reservations for economically backward upper castes, added Modi. He was speaking at an event in Maharashtra’s Solapur.

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CAG says Centre hid true extent of fiscal and revenue deficits in 2016-’17 financial year

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India on Tuesday said the Centre borrowed through off-budget channels to finance capital and revenue expenditure in the 2016-’17 financial year. The agency, in a report tabled in Parliament, said this practice hides the true extent of fiscal and revenue deficits.

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Odisha: BJD will not be a part of grand Opposition alliance, says Naveen Patnaik

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday said his party – the Biju Janata Dal – would not be a part of the mahagathbandhan, or the grand alliance of Opposition parties that aims to fight the Lok Sabha elections against the Bharatiya Janata Party, PTI reported.

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‘The Accidental Prime Minister’: Delhi High Court turns down plea seeking ban on movie and trailer

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday dismissed a public interest litigation that sought a ban on The Accidental Prime Minister and its trailer on the grounds that it defamed the constitutional post of the prime minister. The film is scheduled to release on January 11.

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CBI row: Justice AK Sikri replaces CJI on PM-led panel that will consider Director Alok Verma’s case

Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi has nominated Justice AK Sikri to take his place on the high-power panel that will consider Central Bureau of Investigation Director Alok Verma’s case on Wednesday.

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Ghazipur mob violence: Main accused in constable’s murder surrenders in Varanasi in a different case

Arjun Singh Kashyap, the general secretary of the Nishad Party’s Uttar Pradesh unit and one of the main accused for the murder of a constable in Ghazipur last month, surrendered in Varanasi on Monday in connection with a different case.

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Nations are using terrorism as state policy, says Army chief Bipin Rawat

Army chief General Bipin Rawat on Wednesday said terrorism is becoming a new form of warfare and would remain so as long as nations continue to use it as state policy.

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Gujarat ‘fake encounters’: Final report of monitoring panel should be given to petitioners, says SC

The Supreme Court on Wednesday received a report submitted by the head of the inquiry committee that looked into alleged fake encounter cases in Gujarat and asked him to share it with petitioners who had sought the investigation.

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Parliament: Rajya Sabha adjourned till noon as Opposition protests extension of Winter Session

The Rajya Sabha was adjourned till noon on Wednesday amid protests by Opposition members who questioned the manner in which the Winter Session was extended by a day.

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#MeToo: Actor Alok Nath could have been falsely implicated in rape case, says Mumbai court

A sessions court in Mumbai that granted actor Alok Nath anticipatory bail in a rape case on Saturday, observed that he could have been falsely implicated.

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Upper caste quota: Judge on SC bench that capped reservation at 50% in 1992 calls it a poll gimmick

Former Chief Justice of India AM Ahmadi, who was part of the Supreme Court bench that in 1992 capped caste-based reservation at 50%, on Tuesday criticised the government’s move to introduce 10% reservation for economically weaker upper-caste people.

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Patna High Court issues notices to former Bihar CMs on official bungalows allotted for life

The Patna High Court on Tuesday issued notices to the Bihar government and all former chief ministers, as well as incumbent Nitish Kumar, for being allotted official bungalows for lifetime.

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India GDP: World Bank pegs 7.3% growth in 2018-’19

The World Bank has projected India’s economic growth at 7.3% in the ongoing financial year and 7.5% in the two years after that.

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Upper caste reservation: ‘Passage of quota bill a landmark moment in nation’s history,’ says Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday praised the passage of the quota bill which seeks to allow 10% reservation for economically backward upper castes.

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‘Underestimating Congress in UP a big mistake, we will surprise people’: Rahul Gandhi to Gulf News

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday claimed that his party has the ability to surprise people in Uttar Pradesh during the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

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Delhi: N Chandrababu Naidu meets Opposition leaders, says next step will be decided at Kolkata rally

Telugu Desam Party President N Chandrababu Naidu met several Opposition leaders in New Delhi on Tuesday and held discussions about creating an anti-Bharatiya Janata Party front ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

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Kerala: Congregation threatens to expel nun who joined protests against rape-accused bishop

The Franciscan Clarist Congregation at Aluva on Tuesday threatened to expel from the congregation a nun who had joined protests against rape-accused Jalandhar bishop Franco Mulakkal.

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Supreme Court allows Monsanto to claim patent on genetically modified cotton seeds

The Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed United States-based seed manufacturing company Monsanto to claim patents for its genetically modified cotton seeds. The top court’s verdict set aside a Delhi High Court ruling from 2017.

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