THE HEADLINES::
- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says, India and European Union are on cusp of historic Free Trade Agreement that could reshape global commerce and supply chains.
- Election Commission deploys 22 more roll observers in states where Special Intensive Revision is underway.
- BJP appoints Vinod Tawde as party in-charge for upcoming Kerala assembly polls.
- Government amends Central Motor Vehicles rules to strengthen user fee payments compliance.
- Vande Bharat Sleeper Train between Kamakhya and Howrah receives overwhelming response from passengers; Tickets sold out within hours.
- Santosh Trophy football championship to begin today in Assam.
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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said that India and European Union are on the cusp of a historic Free Trade Agreement that could reshape global commerce and supply chains.
“Addressing global leaders at World Economic Forum in Davos, European Commission President described the proposed trade agreement as the mother of all deals. Ms Von der Leyen said, European Union is committed to de-risking its economy and diversifying supply chains by deepening ties with the world’s major growth centres. Ms von der Leyen said, India-EU free trade agreement is part of Europe’s broader strategy to champion what she described as “fair trade over tariffs, partnership over isolation, sustainability over exploitation. According to her, the agreement would create a combined market of around two billion people and account for nearly a quarter of global GDP. She said, the agreement would give European companies a crucial first-mover advantage in one of the world’s fastest-growing regions. Ms Von der Leyen placed India at the heart of this strategy, describing the Indo-Pacific as one of the “economic powerhouses of this century.” European Commission President said that after at World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, she will travel to India. European Council President Antonio Costa and Ms Von der Leyen will be on a state visit to India from January 25 to 27. They will be chief guests at the Republic Day celebrations before jointly co-chairing the India-EU Summit. Aashish P Abraham, Akashvani News Delhi.”
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Electronics and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said that India is building a complete semiconductor ecosystem covering design, fabrication, packaging, materials, gases and equipment. In a social media post, Mr Vaishnaw said that global industry sees India as an increasingly reliable supply‑chain partner. He said, Google is strengthening its commitment to India’s AI ecosystem, including a 15 billion US dollars AI data centre in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh and partnerships with Indian startups.
Mr. Vaishnaw has also said that India is focusing on the systematic diffusion of artificial intelligence across every sector of the economy. He made the remarks while speaking at a session titled AI Power Play, No Referees at the World Economic Forum in Davos yesterday. The Minister noted that the biggest constraint in scaling AI adoption is the availability of GPUs (Graphics Processing Units). He added that India is addressing this challenge through a government backed public private partnership.
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The Election Commission has deputed 22 more roll observers across the Special Intensive Revision states. Of them, eleven newly deputed observers are in West Bengal, taking the total number of Roll Observers in the state to 20. These observers will ensure that no eligible voter is excluded and no ineligible names are added to the list.
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The Election Commission will host the India International Conference on Democracy and Election Management (IICDEM) 2026 in New Delhi from today. Our correspondent reports that the three day conference is poised to be the largest global conference of its kind hosted by India in the field of democracy and election management.
“Nearly one hundred international delegates representing over 70 countries from across the world are expected to participate in the three-day conference. The event will also see the participation of representatives from international organisations, foreign missions based in India, as well as academic scholars and practicing experts in the field of electoral management. During the conference, the Commission will hold over 40 bilateral meetings with various Election Management Bodies (EMBs) to deepen dialogue and cooperation on shared electoral challenges faced globally. The three-day programme will feature a series of general and plenary sessions involving Election Management Bodies, including the Inaugural Session, the EMB Leaders’ Plenary, and EMB Working Group Meetings. Saklen Akhtar, Akashvani News, Delhi.”
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BJP President Nitin Nabin has appointed Vinod Tawde as the Election In-Charge and Sobha Karandlaje as Election Co-Incharge for the upcoming Kerala assembly elections. Mr Nabin has also appointed Ashish Shelar as the Election In-Charge and Ashok Parnami along with Rekha Sharma as Election Co-Incharges for the upcoming Telangana Municipal and Corporation elections.
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Centre has notified the Central Motor Vehicles (Second Amendment) Rules, 2026 to strengthen compliance towards user fee payment at the toll plazas on National Highways. These amendments are aimed at improving user fee compliance, enhancing efficiency of Electronic Toll Collection and discouraging user fee evasion on National Highways. Road Transport and Highways Ministry said, these amendments will help NHAI in fostering transparent and technology-driven tolling systems for sustained development and maintenance of the National Highway network across the country.
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The first commercial run of the Vande Bharat Sleeper train between Kamakhya, Guwahati and Howrah has received an overwhelming response from passengers. The Railway Ministry said that all the seats were booked within a few hours of opening the ticket reservation. The swift sell-out of tickets reflects passengers’ eagerness to experience the speed, comfort and modern amenities of the Vande Bharat Sleeper. The train was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week. The train is scheduled to commence its maiden commercial journey from Kamakhya with effect from tomorrow and from Howrah on Friday.
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Prime Minister’s flagship platform for Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation, PRAGATI, has marked a significant milestone with the successful conduct of its 50th meeting. Since its launch by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015, PRAGATI has transformed governance by enabling real-time monitoring and resolution of key infrastructure projects and public grievances through direct Prime Ministerial review. The platform exemplifies cooperative federalism, bringing together the Centre, States, and Union Ministries on a single digital interface. Over a decade, PRAGATI has helped accelerate decision-making, resolution of issues causing delay in key infrastructure projects, and instilled a strong culture of accountability. Today, in this special series, we take a look at the projects related to Ministry of Coal.
“The Ministry of Coal facilitates a range of initiatives relating to the coal sector, including coal mining projects and associated infrastructure. These initiatives are aimed at ensuring the availability of coal for key end-use sectors such as power generation and railways, in support of national energy requirements. At present, 134 projects with a total investment of over three lakh crore rupees are being monitored under PRAGATI led Ecosystem, comprising 122 coal sector projects. Out of them, 16 key projects worth over one lakh 19 thousand crore rupees have been reviewed by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi under PRAGATI. Of which five projects are already commissioned, and 11 projects are under implementation. The directions issued during PRAGATI reviews have strengthened accountability, improved inter-ministerial and State-level coordination. With Dipendra Kumar, Bhanu Pratap Singh, Akashvani News Delhi.”
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Department of Posts has revamped its ATM infrastructure with activation of 887 ATMs across the country. The Communications Ministry informed that through these ATMs, customers can conveniently withdraw cash, check account balances, and carry out other basic banking transactions. The Ministry added that this initiative is especially beneficial for people living in rural, and underserved areas. The ministry said, it also supports the Government’s vision of ensuring financial inclusion through digital transformation. It also said this step helps towards making banking services more accessible, user friendly and banking services close to their homes.
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US President Donald Trump has refused to attend an emergency G7 meeting proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron amid rising tensions over Washington’s push to acquire Greenland.
Speaking at a White House briefing marking one year of his second term, Trump said he would not attend the meeting because he believed Mr. Macron’s leadership role in his country was coming to an end.
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The 79th National Football Championship for Santosh Trophy is all set for kick-off in Assam today. A total of 12 teams will compete in the tournament, which have been divided into two groups of six teams each. Group A consists of holders West Bengal, hosts Assam, Nagaland, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Tamil Nadu, while Group B has Railways, Services, last season’s runners-up Kerala, Punjab, Meghalaya and Odisha. All the matches will be streamed live on FIFA+ platform. The top four teams will advance to the knock-out quarter-final rounds which will be held on 2nd and 3rd of next month. The two semi-finals are billed for 5th of February, with the grand final set for 8th of February.
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In Men’s Cricket, a 5-match T20 International series between India and New Zealand begins from today. The opening match of the series will be played at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur. The match will begin at 7 PM. This will be a crucial T20 series for Suryakumar Yadav led Men in Blue, as part of their preparations for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup scheduled for next month.
Speaking on the eve of the first T20I against New Zealand, India’s T20 captain confirmed that Ishan Kishan will slot in at No.3, underlining the management’s faith in the batter who is part of the World Cup squad.
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All India Football Federation has appointed Amelia Valverde as the coach of the senior Indian women’s football team. 39-year old Valverde, who hails from Costa Rica, has joined the Indian camp in Antalya, Türkiye, where the Blue Tigresses are preparing for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026, scheduled for March. She joined the existing coaching staff – Crispin Chettri, Priya PV, and Mario Aguiar, to strengthen the Indian Senior Women’s Football Team.
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The India Meteorological Department, IMD has forecast dense fog conditions over Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh while cold wave conditions will prevail over Himachal Pradesh today. The Met department has also said that Uttarakhand will experience ground frost. The Met Department further predicted a gradual rise in minimum temperatures by 2 to 4 degree Celsius over Maharashtra during next four days.
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TODAY’S NEWSPAPERS HEADLINE,
- Almost all papers lead with the story of Ursula von der Leyen stating that India and the European Union are on the cusp of signing the free trade agreement. The Indian Express headlines “2 billion strong market, EU chief on pact with India,” while the Hindustan Times leads “On cusp of mother of all deals with India”.
- Most papers also carry on their front page with pictures the story of Nitin Nabin taking charge as BJP National president. The Statesman leads “PM welcomes boss Nabin; BJP’s next gen chief says politics not ‘bhog’ but ‘tyag'”.
- All the Financial papers headline the Sensex sinking a 1000 points while gold and silver hit new highs. The Financial Express headlines “markets log worst day in 8 months on weak earnings”. The Sensex closed at 82,180 while gold breached the 1.5 lakh per 10 gram mark for the first time and silver trading above the 3 lakh per kg mark.
- And astronaut Sunita Williams in a Times of India story, says “She missed meeting Shukla on ISS, saying he reached just after she left. She added that even though she spent 9 months in space, she missed group captain Subhanshu Shukla”.
- The Indian Express in an editorial, deliberates that the World Book Fair turned into Delhi book rush as a free book giveaway at a particular stall led to crowding, overwhelming staff and general chaos.
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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN,
- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says, India and European Union are on cusp of historic Free Trade Agreement that could reshape global commerce and supply chains.
- Election Commission deploys 22 more roll observers in states where Special Intensive Revision is underway.
- BJP appoints Vinod Tawde as party in-charge for upcoming Kerala assembly polls.
- Government amends Central Motor Vehicles rules to strengthen user fee payments compliance.
- Vande Bharat Sleeper Train between Kamakhya and Howrah receives overwhelming response from passengers; Tickets sold out within hours.
- Santosh Trophy football championship to begin today in Assam.
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