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February 13, 2025 2:49 PM

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Midday News

THE HEADLINES:  

 

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard discuss strengthening intelligence cooperation between the two nations; Bilateral talks with President Trump scheduled in Washington DC, tonight .
  • JPC report on Waqf Amendment bill – 2024 tabled in Rajya Sabha, amidst opposition uproar.
  • Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to introduce new Income-Tax Bill 2025 in the Lok Sabha.
  • Government plans to consolidate various National Pension Schemes under one umbrella.
  • And, in football, NorthEast United FC to face Jamshedpur FC in the Indian Super League in Jamshedpur, this evening.

 

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Prime Minister Modi Narendra and U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard held discussions on strengthening intelligence cooperation between the two nations in Washington DC today. During the meeting, the Prime Minister fondly recalled his earlier interactions with Ms. Gabbard. The discussions focused on enhancing bilateral intelligence cooperation, particularly in counter-terrorism, cybersecurity, emerging threats, and strategic intelligence sharing. They also exchanged views on regional and global developments of mutual interest, reaffirming their commitment to a secure, stable, and rules-based international order. A Report….

“The discussions between Mr Modi and Ms Gabbard touched on enhancing bilateral intelligence cooperation, particularly in counter-terrorism, cybersecurity, emerging threats and strategic intelligence sharing. They also exchanged views on regional and global developments of mutual interest, reaffirming their commitment to a secure, stable, and rules-based international order. Today, Mr Modi will hold bilateral talks with President Trump in both the restricted and delegation level formats. Mr Modi is also scheduled to interact with senior U.S. administration figures, business leaders and members of the Indian community. Mr Modi has been invited to visit the U.S. within barely three weeks of the new administration taking office. This shows the importance of the India-U.S. partnership. There is a convergence of interests between the two countries in a number of areas including trade, investment, technology, defence cooperation, counter terrorism, security of the Indo-Pacific and people-to-people relations. ANUPAM MISHRA, AKASHVANI NEWS, DELHI.”


Prime Minister Modi arrived in Washington DC in the wee hours today on a two-day visit to the United States of America. India’s Ambassador to the US, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, and other officials welcomed Prime Minister Modi at the airport. Members of the Indian community braved the harsh winter weather and gathered outside Blair House to welcome Mr. Modi, who is among the first few world leaders to visit the United States following the inauguration of the second term of U.S. President Donald Trump.

In a social media post after landing, Mr Modi said, he is looking forward to meet US President Donald Trump and building upon the India-USA Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership.

 

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Joint Committee report on the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024 has been tabled in the Rajya Sabha amidst opposition uproar.

When the House met this morning, BJP MP, Dr Medha Vishram Kulkarni tabled a copy of the report in the Upper House. As the opposition members continued with their sloganeering, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar urged them to allow the House to function, but in vain.

Leader of the Opposition, Mallikharjuna Kharge alleged that the dissent notes given by the opposition members in the committee meetings have not been included in the report. He described it as an anti-democratic move.

Responding to it, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju clarified that no part of the report, proceedings and dissent notes has been deleted. He accused the opposition of misleading the House over the issue. He added that the Parliamentary Committee conducted the entire proceedings as per the rule. He also said all the dissent notes are attached in the appendix of the report.

 

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The Income-Tax Bill, 2025 is scheduled to be introduced in the Lok Sabha today. The Bill, which is aimed at consolidating and amending the law relating to income-tax, has been listed in the business of the House. In her Budget speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced to bring a new Income Tax Bill. She had also announced that individuals earning up to 12 lakh rupees annually will pay no income tax.

Meanwhile, the Rajya Sabha today resumed the discussion on the Union Budget 2025-26. Participating in the discussion, BJP MP Darshana Singh said this budget is the roadmap to Viksit Bharat-2047. She said that this budget has laid special focus on the welfare of women, and farmers. She added that the budgetary allocation to the agriculture sector will definitely improve the economic conditions of farmers across the country.

Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi while criticising the government said that budgetary allocation for MGNREGA has not been increased. He said that the budget doesn’t address the issue of inflation. He said that the budget of the Minority Affairs Ministry has been cut. The discussion is underway.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is scheduled to reply to the discussion on the Budget 2025-26 this evening.    

 

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The government is planning to bring various national pension schemes under one umbrella in the days to come. Replying to supplementaries in the Rajya Sabha, Labour and Employment Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya said there are several pension schemes available for the people especially those in the unorganised sectors. These schemes include Atal Pension Yojana, PM Shramik Manthan and PM Shram Yogi Manthan. He further said the Government is contemplating to bring all the National Pension Schemes under one umbrella by simplifying them.

 

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The Government today said, more than 15.45 Crore of over 19 crore rural households in the country have tap water supply in their homes under Jal Jeevan Mission. In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil said, at the time of the inception of the Mission in 2019, only 3.23 Crore rural households were having tap water connections. He also informed that around 12.22 Crore rural households have been provided with tap water connections ever since under the Mission.  

 

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The government today said that it has adopted a multi-pronged strategy to strengthen earthquake risk reduction mechanism.

Replying to the supplimentaries, Minister for Earth Sciences, Dr Jintendra said that the government has installed early warning systems in Himalayas and elsewhere.

The Minister said that though it isn’t always possible to forecast earthquakes in advance, the government is using both technological and other means for risk reduction.

 

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Now News from the Mahakumbh Mela.


In an effort to protect people from rumours and misinformation during the Mahakumbh in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh Police is taking strict actions. Director General of Police Prashant Kumar said that action is being taken on the instructions of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, by identifying such accounts on social media which are spreading fake news about Maha Kumbh.

“During its social media monitoring, UP police has identified seven such accounts which were allegedly spreading fake news by linking an old video with the MahaKumbh. The police clarified that this video is actually from 2021 in Ghazipur where dead bodies were found on the river bank in the city.


The police has accused them of tarnishing the image of the state government and the police as well as spreading hatred in the society. A case has been registered in this regard at the Kotwali Kumbh Mela police station in Prayagraj while legal action is being taken. While exposing this fake video, the police clarified that this is being misleadingly linked to Mahakumbh. The official account of the Kumbh Mela Police has also denied this. The administration has made it clear that any misleading information related to Maha Kumbh will not be tolerated. Those who spread rumours on social media will be identified and strict legal action will be taken against them. The police has appealed to the public not to pay attention to rumours and report any suspicious posts. Adarsh with Abhishek Kapil, Akashvani News, Prayagraj.”

 

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Information and Broadcasting Secretary Sanjay Jaju has said that radio is a trusted source of information, education and entertainment. Inaugurating the Radio Festival 2025 in New Delhi, on World Radio Day, Mr Jaju said, Akashwani is among the largest broadcasting organizations in the world and reaches 98 per cent of the population.

Speaking on the occasion, Director General Akashvani Dr. Pragya Paliwal Gaur said, Akashvani is always committed to creating awareness among the people about climate change.

 

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In Kerala, a dawn to dusk hartal is being observed in Wayanad today, in protest against the state government’s failure to address the rising incidents of human-animal conflict in the region. The hartal, called by the Congress -led UDF, is in the backdrop of a couple of recent incidents in which two persons had lost their lives in wild elephant attack.

 

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In Indian Super League (ISL) Football match, NorthEast United FC will take on Jamshedpur FC at the JRD Tata Sports Complex in Jamshedpur, today. The match is scheduled at 7:30 PM IST.

Jamshedpur FC currently holds a strong position in the ISL table, sitting in third place. In contrast, NorthEast United FC is down in sixth place with 29 points.

 

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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN:

 

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard discuss strengthening intelligence cooperation between the two nations; Bilateral talks with President Trump scheduled in Washington DC, tonight .
  • JPC report on Waqf Amendment bill – 2024 tabled in Parliament, amidst opposition uproar.
  • Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to introduce new Income-Tax Bill 2025 in the Lok Sabha.
  • Government plans to consolidate various National Pension Schemes under one umbrella.
  • And, in football, NorthEast United FC to face Jamshedpur FC in the Indian Super League in Jamshedpur, this evening.

 

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