Severe winter storm prompts emergency declarations, federal resource prepositioning, and utility contingency activation to protect public safety.
State executives issued emergency declarations and urged residents to stay home, enabling mobilisation of state resources for road treatment, closures and public-safety measures. The federal government prepositioned search-and-rescue teams and supplies to support state and local response. Electric utilities activated contingency plans and brought in crews to mitigate ice-related outages given high reliance on electric heating in many jurisdictions.

Rozgar Mela issues over 11 lakh appointment letters under mission-mode recruitment to strengthen public service capacity and inclusion.
The Rozgar Mela implements a concentrated recruitment drive under which over 11 lakh appointment letters have been issued nationwide, using mission-mode recruitment to place recruits across central services, paramilitary forces, banks and ministries to strengthen administrative capacity and convert recruitment policy into operational appointments that further inclusive growth objectives.

Tripura agarwood trade sees export caps raised and digitised approvals to scale economy to Rs 2,000 crore.
The policy changes raise agarwood export limits (chips from 25,000 to 1.50 lakh; oil from 1,500 kg to 75,000 kg), introduce digitised export approvals, permit traders to carry samples abroad, and support an Rs 80 crore cluster alongside BIS certification, GI tagging, and a 25 lakh tree planting target to expand Tripura's agarwood economy.

Pakistani human rights lawyer and husband sentenced 17 years each for social media posts under electronic crimes law.
Two lawyers were convicted under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act for social media posts and reposts and each sentenced to 17 years, with the court finding the prosecution's case proven across multiple statutory offences after cancelling interim bail and issuing arrest warrants for repeated non-appearances; the accused boycotted proceedings amid complaints about media exclusion and alleged mistreatment, and bar associations responded with strikes and public condemnations.

Chitrotpala Film City and Tribal Cultural Convention Centre to be developed under PPP with central funding and private investment expected.
Development of Chitrotpala Film City and a Tribal and Cultural Convention Centre will be implemented under the Union Ministry of Tourism's Special Assistance to States scheme with specified central grants, executed on a Public-Private Partnership basis, supplemented by anticipated private investment, targeted for completion within a defined timeframe on an approximately 100-acre site.

Cuba seeks deeper economic engagement with India in biotech, renewable energy, tourism and investment facilitation.
Cuba seeks deeper economic engagement with India across agro-industry, biotechnology, healthcare, IT, renewable energy, sports and tourism. The mission emphasised biopharma export capacity and a transition to renewable energy, and identified investment facilitation measures-permission to use land for business and an electronic visa facility-as tools to attract cooperation. Cuba offered its tourism infrastructure for joint development and urged identifying specific collaborative areas to convert diplomatic intent into tangible projects and strengthen people-to-people ties.

Government recruitment reforms cleared 20 lakh promotions and expanded appointments while introducing digitalised processes and inclusion measures.
Administrative reforms increased central hiring, cleared long pending promotions, expanded reserved category appointments, and implemented digital recruitment measures including SSC portal features, UPSC unified registration and guaranteed examination centre allotment for candidates with disabilities, alongside the Pratibha Setu linkage for qualified candidates without appointments.

Uttar Pradesh urged to back BJP as double-engine government claims to have transformed development, governance, and livelihoods.
The document asserts that coordinated central and state BJP governance transformed Uttar Pradesh from a historically backward state into one with improved law and order, expanded infrastructure, and active development policy. It highlights welfare and livelihood programmes - including interest-free loans, the One District One Product initiative, extended electricity, and investment mobilisation - and makes an explicit electoral appeal urging voters to reject dynastic politics and support the BJP to continue this development path toward full state development by 2047.

Astroyogi offers free astrology consultations worth Rs. 250 crore to users via its app till end of January.
Astroyogi announces a 25th-anniversary offer of free astrology consultations worth Rs. 250 crore, redeemable via its mobile app through the end of January. The press release identifies the offer as a user-accessibility initiative available on Google Play and the Apple App Store and places it in the context of Astroyogi's growth into a multi-service Astrologers' Marketplace working with over 5,000 astrologers and serving over 2 crore users in 150+ countries.

PayU launches 'Startup Republic' to showcase DPIIT-recognised entrepreneurs and support startups nationwide through an MoU with Startup India.
PayU launched 'Startup Republic' to showcase DPIIT-registered founders from every state and union territory and to promote inclusive entrepreneurship through a film series; under a memorandum of understanding with the national startup programme PayU will deliver tailored payment solutions, mentorship, community access and fundraising opportunities to recognised startups while its regulated payment and fintech services support merchant growth.

High courts must act as sentinels, expand access to justice, and promote mediation and digital access over direct bypass.
High courts must act as primary sentinels of the rule of law by proactively addressing systemic failures and converting access to justice into a state-guaranteed service. Courts should promote alternative dispute resolution-mediation, reconciliation, arbitration-to reduce delay and costs and focus judicial energy on cases needing authoritative adjudication. Judges must foster ADR, adapt to digital processes to improve access, and resist privileged litigants bypassing high courts for direct access to the final forum; adequate judicial funding and protection of civil liberties are integral to these obligations.

NSE investor awareness pavilion at Kolkata Book Fair promotes financial literacy, market education and grievance redressal services.
The National Stock Exchange opened an investor awareness pavilion at the Kolkata Book Fair with interactive education, workshops and a grievance redressal helpdesk to promote informed market participation. The release notes West Bengal's investor registration figures and that SEBI expects to grant the NOC for the NSE's IPO once the bourse addresses regulatory and governance-related requirements.

Seafarer abandonment surged in 2025: 6,223 abandoned, FOC vessels prominent, calls for stronger maritime accountability.
Record seafarer abandonment in 2025: 6,223 seafarers abandoned on 410 vessels; Indians comprised 1,125 cases. Abandonment includes failure to fund repatriation, withholding necessary maintenance/support, or unilateral severance with at least two months' unpaid wages. $25.8 million was owed, $16.5 million recovered. Flags of convenience featured in 82% of abandoned vessels. Middle East and Europe worst affected; Tu rkiye and UAE had highest incidents. The ITF calls for stronger industry accountability, national blacklisting measures, and enhanced international coordination to secure repatriation, wage payment, and crew welfare.

West Bengal kept revenue spending growth low but saw a sharp 35.1% contraction in capital expenditure in FY'26 to date.
West Bengal restrained growth in revenue expenditure in April-November FY'26 to 3.8% year on year, representing 6.2% of aggregate revenue expenditure among 22 states and avoiding classification as fiscally worrisome. Conversely, capital expenditure contracted 35.1% year on year in the same period, a steeper decline than the prior year, with the state contributing 2.1% of aggregate capex and joining other states showing negative capex growth in both FY'25 and FY'26 to date.

Air India cancels New York and Newark flights for Jan 25 and 26 due to a severe winter storm forecast.
Air India cancelled all flights to and from New York and Newark for 25 and 26 January, including daily Delhi-New York and Delhi-Newark services and Mumbai-New York/Newark services that run on scheduled days; the airline cited a forecasted severe winter storm expected to significantly impact flight operations and said the decision was made for the safety, well being and convenience of passengers and crew, announcing the suspension via a public social media post.

Karnataka secures Rs 13,070 crore in investment commitments for renewables, data centres, manufacturing and R&D.
Karnataka secured Rs 13,070 crore in investment commitments across renewable energy, advanced manufacturing, aerospace, food processing, data centres and R&D following targeted engagements at the World Economic Forum. The State obtained MoUs and expressions of interest from multinational corporations and domestic conglomerates for renewable energy projects, manufacturing of wind and solar components, data centres, GCCs and phased research centres, aimed at accelerating ongoing projects and expanding digital and industrial infrastructure beyond Bengaluru.

Child marriage rescue: five booked under Prohibition of Child Marriage Act after fake Aadhaar used to marry a 14-year-old girl.
A 14-year-old girl married to a 27-year-old was rescued after her kin submitted a falsified Aadhaar showing age 19; the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit counselled her, recorded her statement, and five persons were booked under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, with further investigation underway to examine the fraudulent identity documentation and related responsibilities.

IIM Udaipur's faculty development programme equips educators with AI tools for teaching, research, assessment and regional capacity building.
IIM Udaipur concluded a five-day Faculty Development Programme to enable educators to integrate Artificial Intelligence into teaching, learning, and research, featuring expert-led sessions and hands-on training in generative AI, AI-enabled Excel tools and Power Query, AI-enhanced course design, learning analytics, assessment methods, and AI applications in quantitative and qualitative research, with dedicated discussion on ethical AI use and academic integrity to support academic capacity building and regional development.

Road safety initiative promotes helmet use and Motor Third Party insurance awareness to reduce highway fatalities.
ICICI Lombard combines mass helmet distribution, rider training, community engagement, rehabilitation support and vision screening with insurer led education on Motor Third Party insurance to promote personal safety and financial responsibility, and implements corridor level interventions and infrastructure corrections as part of designated Zero Fatality Corridors on high risk highways.

HeartWorks 2026 art exhibition sold works, including a participatory mural, to raise funds for women-led NGOs.
HeartWorks 2026 is a charitable art initiative under My Open Muse that sold artworks-including the participatory installation New Dawn II composed of 3,500+ children's drawings-to raise funds. Proceeds supported eleven women-led NGOs across social and environmental causes. Remaining works remain available for purchase via the My Open Muse website, maintaining the exhibition's fundraising mechanism through art sales and partnerships among artists, patrons and beneficiary organisations.