Rajasthan Gujjar protest turns violent, police vehicles set on fire
The Gujjar community agitation demanding 5% quota in jobs and educational institutes turned violent in Rajasthan’s Dholpur district on Sunday. Unidentified miscreants fired 8-10 rounds in the air, while three police vehicles, including two jeeps and a bus were set afire by agitators. Dholpur Superintendent of Police (SP) Ajay Singh said the protesters also pelted stones, injuring four jawans.
Dhoni saves Indian flag from touching ground as fan touches his feet
An Indian fan carrying the tricolour invaded the pitch and rushed towards MS Dhoni to touch his feet during New Zealand’s innings in the third T20I at Hamilton on Sunday. As the fan kneeled down to touch Dhoni’s feet, Dhoni noticed that the Indian flag was about to touch the ground. Dhoni immediately took the flag from the fan’s hands.
NZ Women beat India Women by 2 runs, complete 3-0 T20I whitewash
New Zealand Women defeated India Women in the third T20I at Hamilton on Sunday to register a 3-0 series whitewash. Chasing 162, India needed 16 runs from the final over for a win but fell short of two runs. India Women opener Smriti Mandhana slammed 86 runs, the highest individual score in an unsuccessful run-chase in women’s T20I cricket.
Rajasthan Royals to don pink jersey in Indian Premier League 2019
Rajasthan Royals, who wore a blue jersey in the nine IPL seasons they played, will don pink jersey in IPL 2019 season. “This comes as a response to the fantastic reaction from the fans to our training kit and Cancer Out jersey last year, as well as of course Jaipur being the Pink city,” Royals’ lead owner Manoj Badale said.
Time to fly away to Mars: Mahindra on Gmail autocompleting e-mails
Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra on Sunday remarked on Gmail’s ‘Smart Compose’ feature to autocomplete entire e-mails and tweeted, “Time to fly away to Mars”. “I was writing a mail on Gmail when this feature popped up offering to complete my sentences,” said Mahindra. “This is sci-fi horror movie: first, emojis to abbreviate emotions, & now entire messages,” he added.
Passengers will not be able to opt out of meals on Train 18
The meals on board the Vande Bharat Express or Train 18 will not be optional for passengers, officials have said. However, passengers travelling the last leg on the train’s route, Prayagraj to Varanasi, will have the choice of opting out of the meals. The semi-high speed train will run between Delhi and Varanasi on its maiden journey on February 15.
Mehbooba Mufti praises Pak PM Imran Khan, criticises Centre
Former Jammu and Kashmir CM Mehbooba Mufti has praised Pakistan PM Imran Khan for taking steps to name a forest reserve after Guru Nanak Dev. Mufti also criticised the Centre saying its “top priority” seems to be renaming ancient cities and building Ram temple. Khan on Saturday expressed his desire to name a forest reserve and university in Guru Nanak’s name.
BJP leader Mukul Roy booked for TMC MLA’s murder
BJP leader Mukul Roy on Sunday was booked in connection with the killing of Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas in West Bengal’s Nadia district, police said. “In Bengal, there is huge infighting in TMC and on Mamata Banerjee’s direction, they are putting blame on the BJP,” Roy said. He added the politics of “killing” is not “BJP’s style of politics”.
A failed student always hates class topper: Jaitley to Rahul
Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said, “Rahul Gandhi’s speeches on Rafale are based on personal hatred for PM emanating from envy. A failed student always hates the class topper.” “The context of the speeches points more to college-level lumpenisation in content,” he added. This comes after Rahul accused PM Narendra Modi of holding ‘parallel negotiations’ with France on Rafale.
Cong ignored nation’s security, indulged in defence scams: PM
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday criticised the Congress party saying it ignored the nation’s security during its tenure and alleged it was associated with several scams in the defence sector. Addressing a rally in Tamil Nadu, he added the Congress didn’t bother about India’s defence sector. He further said the NDA government had a different approach to national security.
India gets its first four Chinook heavy-lift helicopters
Aerospace company Boeing on Sunday announced the arrival of the first four CH-47F (I) Chinooks for the Indian Air Force (IAF) at the Mundra Port in Gujarat. India has procured 15 of these helicopters from the United States. These helicopters will be ferried to Chandigarh, where they will be formally inducted in the IAF later this year, Boeing said.
Five militants shot dead by security forces in J&K’s Kulgam
At least five militants were killed on Sunday in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kulgam district, the Army said. Weapons and war-like stores have been recovered from the encounter site, an Army official said. The encounter broke out after the militants opened fire on a search team of the security forces, the official added.
Fiji Water countersues viral Fiji Water girl for alleged extortion
Viral Fiji Water girl whose real name is Kelly Steinbach has been countersued by Fiji Water days after she sued the bottled water company for using her image on cardboard cutouts without her authorisation. The company accused Kelly of attempting to extort nearly $5,00,000. It added that Kelly wanted a better deal than the original $90,000 accepted by her.
India’s Prajnesh breaks into ATP top-100 for the 1st time
Indian tennis player Prajnesh Gunneswaran is set to break into men’s singles ATP top-100 for the first time on Monday. Recently the 29-year-old had navigated through the qualifiers of the Australian Open to make it to the main draw of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career. Notably, Gunneswaran was ranked 266th last April.
Real beat Atletico Madrid 3-1 to climb back to second spot
Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid 3-1 in the Madrid derby to reach to the second spot in the La Liga points table. For Real Madrid, Casemiro scored with an overhead kick, while Sergio Ramos converted a penalty and Gareth Bale scored a second-half goal. Real Madrid are now five points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona.
Decline of Sri Lankan cricket saddens me: Muralitharan
Speaking about Sri Lankan cricket, former spinner Muttiah Muralitharan said, “The decline of Sri Lankan cricket saddens me. For a team that had reached the World Cup final three times… it is a worrying sign.” “In the 90s, there wasn’t much money. Our passion was to take wickets and score runs. That passion has changed a bit,” Muralitharan added.
Apple sued over ‘time-taking’ authentication process: Report
A class-action lawsuit has reportedly been filed against Apple over its ‘time-wasting’ two-factor authentication process. The lawsuit has accused the technology giant of not seeking user consent before enabling the process, further pointing out that it can’t be rolled back after 14 days. It added Apple’s e-mail after enabling the process was insufficient to warn users that it was irrevocable.
Networked freezers in stores, hospitals at hack risk: Report
Researchers have reportedly found vulnerabilities in internet-enabled refrigerators at supermarkets and hospitals which enable hackers to achieve tasks like adjusting temperatures and changing alarms. The security breach was discovered in over 7,400 devices manufactured by Scotland-based Resource Data Management (RDM). RDM has reportedly said the issue is related to the use of default passwords.
Ex-PM Nehru’s great-grandson damaged Parliament: Jaitley
Hitting out at Congress President Rahul Gandhi, Union Minister Arun Jaitley said, “History will record that (former PM) Jawaharlal Nehru’s great-grandson…singularly damaged India’s Parliament…more than anyone else.” “It’s…time that India and its institutions are protected from these institution wreckers,” he added. He further alleged that the Congress sheds “crocodile tears for democracy”.
California University to get gene-editing tech CRISPR patent
The US patent office has filed a document to grant patent on pioneering the revolutionary gene-editing technology known as CRISPR to the University of California. “The issued patent will encompass use of CRISPR-Cas9 technology in any cellular or non-cellular environment,” lead patent strategist for the university on CRISPR matters said. The university had applied for the patent in March 2013.
Deposits in Jan Dhan accounts set to cross ₹90,000 cr: Govt
The total amount of deposits in Jan Dhan accounts is set to cross ₹90,000 crore, the Finance Ministry has said. The deposits, which have been steadily rising since March 2017, already reached nearly ₹89,258 crore as on January 30, it stated. Over 34 crore accounts have been opened under the scheme so far, with an average deposit of ₹2,615.
9 cr homes with TV migrated to new tariff regime: TRAI chief
Telecom regulator TRAI’s Chairman RS Sharma has said 9 crore of the 17 crore homes with television have made channel preferences under the new tariff regime. “The speed [of onboarding] has increased… we expect the rest… to register their choice of channels soon,” he added. TRAI is constantly monitoring the situation to ensure consumers don’t face inconvenience, he further said.
NCLT dismisses Standard Chartered’s plea in Ruchi Soya case
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has dismissed Standard Chartered Bank’s petition to reclassify it as a financial creditor to Ruchi Soya, stating the lender is too late in seeking the change. Standard Chartered is seeking to recover around ₹375 crore from Ruchi Soya, which is undergoing insolvency resolution. The company owes over ₹10,000 crore to banks and financial institutions.
Shoplifter extortion case against Walmart, 6 others dismissed
A US federal judge has dismissed a shoplifter extortion case filed against US retail giant Walmart and six other retailers as no conclusive proof was found. The lawsuit alleged the retailers forced the accused shoplifters to take expensive “restorative justice classes” or be reported to the police. The lawsuit’s three plaintiffs were accused of shoplifting at Walmart stores in 2017.
India lose a T20I series for the first time after 30 months
New Zealand defeated India by four runs in the third T20I at Hamilton on Sunday to win the three-match T20I series 2-1. With this, India suffered their first series defeat in T20I cricket after 30 months. Before the New Zealand series, India were unbeaten in 10 consecutive T20I series (of two or more matches) dating back to January 2017.
It took India nearly 20 years to win their first Test match
India defeated England by an innings and eight runs on February 10, 1952, in Chennai to register their first-ever Test victory after 24 unsuccessful attempts in nearly 20 years after becoming a Test playing nation. The members of the team were awarded ₹250 each following the win. Later in the year, India clinched their first Test series victory against Pakistan.
Actor Amol Palekar interrupted during speech for criticising govt
Veteran actor-director Amol Palekar was interrupted during his speech by National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) members in Mumbai when he criticised the government on Friday. During the speech, he called an apparent decision by the Ministry of Culture “disastrous”. Soon after, he was interrupted by an NGMA member on the stage and was asked to “stick to the topic”.
Should my script be censored before I speak? Palekar asked at NGMA
Veteran actor-director Amol Palekar, who was interrupted during a speech at National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) in Mumbai for criticising the government, had asked, “Should my script be censored before I speak?” “Director was present there…she said I should’ve spoken to her before speaking this here,” he added. Palekar was asked to “stick to the topic” during the speech.
MS Dhoni becomes first Indian cricketer to play 300 T20 matches
Former India captain MS Dhoni has become the first Indian cricketer to play 300 T20 matches, reaching the milestone by featuring in the third T20I against New Zealand at Hamilton on Sunday. Overall, Dhoni is the 13th cricketer to make 300 appearances in T20 cricket. Windies all-rounder Kieron Pollard holds the record of featuring in most T20 matches (446).
Quit Congress over Rahul’s constant interference: SM Krishna
Former Karnataka CM SM Krishna on Saturday claimed he quit the Congress in January 2017 because of the party President Rahul Gandhi’s “constant interference”. Krishna said he left the Congress as Rahul had issued an order saying that leaders who reached 80 years shouldn’t hold any ministry. Krishna joined the BJP in 2017, after giving 46 years to the Congress.
Tesla fired delivery staff over low Model 3 orders: Report
Tesla fired 150 employees out of around 230 from its Las Vegas facility which makes deliveries to US and Canada over low Model 3 demands, a Reuters report claimed. “You don’t need a team because there aren’t that many cars coming through,” a former employee said. Tesla fired over 3,000 workers, reducing its 45,000-strong workforce by around 7% in January.
Abu Dhabi includes Hindi as third official court language
Abu Dhabi has included Hindi as the third official language used in its courts, alongside Arabic and English. The language’s inclusion is aimed at helping Hindi speakers to learn about litigation procedures, their rights and duties without a language barrier, the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department said. Notably, the Indian community in the UAE constitutes 30% of the total population.
Over 1,800 mementoes of PM auctioned, Ashok Stambh replica gets ₹13L
Over 1,800 mementoes received by PM Narendra Modi have been auctioned, with a wooden replica of the Ashok Stambh, which had a base price of ₹4,000, receiving the highest bid of ₹13 lakh. ‘Horai’, a traditional symbol of Assam, which had ₹2,000 base price, was sold for ₹12 lakh. The auction proceeds will support PM’s flagship scheme ‘Namami Gange’.
Pak govt not to remove Nawaz Sharif’s name from Exit Control List
The Pakistan government has rejected former PM Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law Mohammad Safdar’s requests seeking removal of their names from the Exit Control List (ECL), which prevents them from flying abroad. The decision to place the names of the trio on ECL was taken in August last year during a meeting chaired by PM Imran Khan.
Foreign investors invest ₹5,300 cr in India in just 6 trading days
Foreign investors have infused close to ₹5,300 crore in the Indian equity markets in the last six trading sessions between February 1-8, mainly on expectations of higher economic growth. However, they pulled out ₹2,795 crore from the debt market during the period under review. This comes after a pullout of ₹5,264 crore by the foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) in January.
Created 3.79L jobs in 3 yrs, says govt amid unemployment row
The government has claimed to have generated 3.79 lakh jobs between 2017-2019, according to Interim Budget 2019-20. This comes amidst a leaked report by NITI Aayog which claimed India’s unemployment rate reached a 45-year high in 2017-18. The government said it generated 2,51,279 jobs in central government establishments between 2017-2018 and this is estimated to rise to 36,15,770 by March.
2 held, officer suspended over TMC MLA Satyajit’s murder
Two people were arrested and a police officer has been suspended in connection with the murder of Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas in West Bengal, police said on Sunday. “Another person has been detained for questioning,” a police officer added. Biswas, an MLA from Krishnaganj was shot dead by unidentified assailants while walking down from a stage on Saturday.
Worried for Gadkari as he is being shown as PM face: Pawar
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday said he is “worried” for Union Minister Nitin Gadkari as he is being projected as an alternative prime ministerial face to PM Narendra Modi. “Gadkari is my friend. We’ve worked together,” Pawar added. Talking about him being an alternative PM face, Gadkari had said, “No chance…I’m happy with where I am”.
PM Modi govt a ‘textbook case of moral bankruptcy’: Rahul
Congress President Rahul Gandhi has said the PM Narendra Modi government is a “textbook case of moral bankruptcy”. He further said that “incompetence coupled with arrogance” was responsible for this. Rahul said this while referring to a media report which quoted an Uber driver as saying that the government has not given jobs and he found one after investing lakhs.
Ex-VHP leader Pravin Togadia launches new political party
Former Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Pravin Togadia launched a political party, Hindusthan Nirman Dal, on Saturday. Speaking at the party’s launch, Togadia said if voted to power, construction of Ram temple will begin within a week. Taking a dig at BJP, he added, “Presently, BJP is in power from panchayat to Parliament…still Ram Temple hasn’t been built in Ayodhya.”
