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Aditi Tatkare said women listed under Namo Shetkari and direct benefits schemes will not be eligible for Ladki Bahin Yojana — the scheme which promised ₹2,100 as pension to all women above 18 years and helped the Mahayuti alliance to come back to power. Early estimates show that this will help the Maharashtra government prune the 2.63-crore beneficiary list by 20 lakh. On January 1, Himachal CM Sukhvinder Sukhu voluntarily surrendered the free electricity subsidy of 125 units in his name and urged all self-reliant individuals to follow suit. The appeal aims to benefit the state electricity board by ₹200 crore. The Congress government, which assumed power in December 2022, has been facing severe financial crunch and struggling to implement its election promises. In the process, it has started pruning the beneficiary list and tweaking freebies introduced by the previous BJP government. In October, in an exclusive interview to ET, Andhra CM N Chandrababu Naidu admitted he was struggling to implement super six promises made in the run-up to the assembly polls because of financial constraints.

Neville Noronha, the chief executive of Avenue Supermarts that operates DMart retail stores, said the foundational ethos and principles that have guided the company should remain unchanged, irrespective of leadership transitions. «We operate on straightforward, fundamental business principles, and these must stay intact. While strategies and operational details might evolve, the culture of the company should never be compromised,» he said in a chat with ET, a day after announcing his plan not to extend his contract as CEO. Noronha has spent more than two decades in the supermarket chain. On Saturday, Avenue Supermarts announced that Anshul Asawa will replace Noronha in February 2026, after the latter chose not to continue.

AIIMS to arrange hip replacement surgery for jailed British national Christian Michel James, the alleged middleman arrested in 2018 in a money laundering case connected to the Rs 3,600-crore AgustaWestland chopper case. Special Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal passed the order on an application filed by James who has claimed that his total hip replacement surgery could not be avoided, considering that he was suffering from «excruciating pain» in day-to-day activities. James, who was extradited in 2018, claimed that the doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) had advised the surgery. «The Director, AIIMS is requested to arrange for the total hip surgery, as advised by the doctors of AIIMS as per the medical prescription dated December 30, 2024, and to fix the surgery i.e. total hip replacement, as stated in the report, preferably, in the first/second week of February, 2025 as per the convenience of the operating surgeon,» the judge said in an order passed on January 9.

Kalkaji in next month's Assembly elections, on Sunday hit out at her rival BJP candidate Ramesh Bidhuri for his alleged remarks on her family made last week. In an interview with PTI Videos, Atishi also claimed that her crowd-funding initiative launched on Sunday morning generated Rs 17 lakh in donations within just 10 hours. Atishi, who defeated BJP's Dharambir Singh in 2020, said she will proceed to file her nomination for the February 5 polls at the district magistrate's office after praying at the Kalkaji temple and at a gurdwara. On her BJP rival's recent remarks, Atishi said, «Bidhuri has shown his character. Within 24 hours of getting a ticket, he made an indecent comment on Priyanka Gandhi. In the next 24 hours, he abused me and my family from Prime Minister Modi's stage at a rally.»

Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Sunday announced India batter Shreyas Iyer as their captain for the 2025 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The franchise secured Iyer’s services at the IPL 2025 mega auction for a record-breaking Rs 26.75 crore. Punjab fended off stiff competition from Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Delhi Capitals (DC) in an intense bidding war to sign the star batter. While Iyer became the most expensive player in IPL auction history for a brief moment, he was later surpassed by Rishabh Pant, who fetched an even higher bid.

loan disbursal with several of them completely stopping acquisition of new-to-credit customers amid rising asset quality stress. The sector's asset quality may have also worsened as collection efficiency has faltered for several lenders. Heads of the microfinance lenders however expressed hope that the sector would bounce back but it may take a couple of quarters from now. It is now in the process of healing with guardrails being in place to protect it from further degeneration, they said. The sector contributes 2.03% to the country's GDP and supports 13 million jobs.

Kannauj railway station following a 16-hour overnight operation, officials said on Sunday. An FIR has been registered against the contractor and an engineer for various offences including negligence and endangering lives, they said. The rescue teams, including personnel from the national and state disaster response forces and the railways, worked through the cold winter night to clear the debris and pull out the trapped workers. No fatalities have been reported, the officials said. Twenty-six workers have been admitted to various hospitals in Kannauj, while two with serious injuries were shifted to the Lala Lajpat Rai (LLR) Hospital in Kanpur, they said.

eco-sensitive zone of the Hoollongapar Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary in Assam's Jorhat district. The Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL), chaired by Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, approved the proposal by Vedanta Group's Cairn Oil & Gas during its meeting on December 21, according to the minutes of the meeting. Assam's principal chief conservator of forests (wildlife) and chief wildlife warden had recommended clearance for the project in August last year, citing «national interest». The Forest Advisory Committee of the Union Environment Ministry had also granted in-principle approval during its meeting on August 27 last year.

Joe Biden will likely talk with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu soon, his national security adviser said on Sunday, as U.S. officials race to reach a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal before Biden leaves office on Jan. 20. Jake Sullivan told CNN's «State of the Union» program that the parties were «very, very close» to reaching a deal to halt the fighting in the enclave and free the remaining 98 hostages held there, but still had to get it across the finish line. Biden was getting daily updates on the talks in Doha, where Israeli and Palestinian officials have said since Thursday that some progress has been made in the indirect talks between Israel and militant group Hamas, Sullivan said.

Maha Kumbh mela in Prayagraj. An official statement said 3,134 special trains will be run in 2025 which is around 4.5 times more than those operational during the Prayagraj Ardh Kumbh held in 2019. These special services will supplement the 10,000 regular trains operational on this route. Kumbh Mela is a major Hindu pilgrimage and festival. It has the distinction of being the largest peaceful gathering in the world, drawing crores of devotees who come to bathe in India's sacred rivers. This year, there will be 1,869 short distance mela special trains to cater to requirements of passengers coming from within Uttar Pradesh and nearby areas. Another 706 trains long distance and 559 ring trains will also function. No ring rail services were plying during the 2019 Kumbh. This circular railway network runs parallel to a ring road, catering to very short distance journeys where there is regular passenger demand.

Prayagraj, where the 45-day Maha Kumbh will commence Monday on the auspicious occasion of 'Paush Purnima' in the Sangam area, the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and the mystical Saraswati rivers. A day before the first major bathing ritual or 'Shahi Snan', PTI on Sunday took stock of the preparations made for the devotees at the Sangam and other ghats. Apart from the Sangam banks, many changing rooms have been built along the rivers where the boatmen have been given life jackets for the devotees. A board fixing the rates for boat rides has also been put up for the convenience of the devotees. Vishnu Nishad, a local boatman, sounded excited about the large number of devotees expected to come here for 'Shahi Snan' over the next one-and-a-half months.

Senior advocate Iqbal Chagla, one of India's leading lawyers, passed away on Sunday here, family sources said. He was 85. Iqbal Chagla, son of former Bombay High Court Chief Justice M C Chagla, was unwell for a few days. He was the father of the sitting judge of the Bombay HC Justice R I Chagla. As per the sources, his last rites will be performed on Monday at the Worli crematorium.

underperforming stores and an e-commerce fulfillment center. These changes will take effect by mid-2025.

It will be his first visit to Spain as the external affairs minister. «During the visit, the external affairs minister will meet the leadership of Spain and hold discussions with his counterpart, Foreign Minister Manuel Albares, on the entire gamut of bilateral relations and regional and global matters of mutual interest,» the MEA said.

The comment, which Trudeau described during a recent MSNBC appearance on Thursday, was clearly meant to defuse the tension. However, Trump didn’t seem to find it humorous. In fact, according to Trudeau, the conversation quickly shifted to a more concerning topic: Trump's plan to impose steep tariffs on Canadian goods, a move that could escalate trade tensions between the two countries.

Scott’s $16 billion (around Rs 1,36,000 crore) donation spree over the past five years has made headlines, but Musk isn’t entirely sold on her approach. In a recent social media post, Musk raised concerns about Scott’s focus on causes like racial equity and LGBTQ rights, suggesting that her efforts may be missing the mark on the world’s most urgent issues.

«It is not a product that is going away. Many of the top airlines are building their next generation first class products. We are not the only ones doing it. We do feel that there are some opportunities in our network where that product will work well,» he said at a media briefing earlier this week. The fleet size of Air India now is 202 planes, including 67 wide body ones. Among them, 27 are B777s, and 40 are B787s.

If you're struggling with today’s challenge—Wordle #1303 for January 12, 2025—don’t worry, we’ve got all the hints and the solution you need. Read on for a breakdown that helps you solve today’s puzzle without spoiling the fun.

Rajeev Shukla on Sunday said that the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will begin on March 23. He made the announcement after the BCCI Special General Meeting in Mumbai on Sunday. Further, the BCCI has announced the appointment of a new commissioner for IPL for a one-year term. The next meeting is scheduled for January 18-19 and will finalise the squad for the upcoming Champions Trophy.

Designed as a quicker, more accessible version of the New York Times’ iconic Crossword, the Mini has carved out a devoted following over the years. For those who want to solve today’s Mini puzzle and are seeking assistance, we’ve compiled all the hints and answers for January 12, 2025.

call connection issues after the latest software upgrade, online platform LocalCircles said in its latest report. According to the survey, 60 per cent of iPhone users and 40 per cent of Android users in the country have shared that they are experiencing problems in their services after the latest software upgrade. Call failure is the biggest problem that iPhone users are facing, be it a normal call or app-based calls, while freezing of apps is the biggest issue for Android users. The report noted that «6 in 10 apple iPhone users surveyed who have upgraded to iOS 18 or higher are having difficulties. 28 per cent of the respondents stated that most/some of voice and OTT calls don't connect or drop. 12 per cent stated screen of the phone goes dark; 12 per cent stated apps are hanging.»