My precise view

Actor-turned-activist Deep Sidhu, who has been booked in connection with the religious flag incident at Red Fort, has said he needs some time to bring out the truth and then will join the investigation. The 36-year-old Sidhu is in the eye of a storm for being among the protesters who put up a religious flag atop the Red Fort on Republic Day.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that the coming decade is vital for India’s progress and that "we have to remember the vision and dreams of the greats who fought for our nation’s freedom". He said that "a golden opportunity has come before the nation to fulfill the dreams seen by the freedom fighters".

The Rajasthan government has reduces VAT on diesel and petrol by 2 per cent each. After the reduction, 36 per cent VAT applicable on petrol and 26 per cent on diesel.

Novavax Inc. said Thursday that its COVID-19 vaccine appears 89% effective based on early findings from a British study and that it also seems to work — though not as well — against new mutated versions of the virus circulating in that country and South Africa.

The crucial Budget session of Parliament is set for a stormy start. The session will start with the President Ram Nath Kovind's address to a joint sitting of both Houses. 

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will table the Economic Survey 2020-21 in Parliament today, two days before the Union Budget is presented during the budget session of Parliament. The Budget Session will begin today with an address by President Ram Nath Kovind to the joint sitting of two houses of Parliament.

Calling for India to play a major role in global vaccination campaign, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday termed the vaccine production capacity of India as the "best asset" that the world has today.

The Delhi Traffic Police on Friday tweeted that the Ghazipur border on NH-24 is closed for vehicular movement in view of the farmer protest. Traffic has been diverted from NH 24, NH 9, Road no 56, 57 A, Kondli, Paper market, Telco T point, EDM Mall, Akshardham and Nizammudin Khatta. Also, traffic is very heavy in the area and Vikas marg, the Delhi Traffic Police said.

Delhi remained enveloped in a layer of fog on Friday morning whereas the low visibility hindered the traffic movement in the national capital. At least 27 trains are running late on January 29, due to low visibility and other operational reasons, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO), Northern Railway (NR) informed. 

All five MLAs of Asaduddin Owaisi's AIMIM in Bihar on Thursday met Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in Patna but dismissed speculations of political realignment. They took a jibe at the ruling JD(U)-BJP combines in Bihar, likening it to a family in which the members lacked compatibility but were unwilling to part ways.

Shares of Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC), a dedicated financing arm of the Indian Railways, will be listed on BSE and NSE on Friday. According to multiple reports, IRFC is losing sheen in grey market, as the premium has since fizzled out. The IRFC listing price will not go beyond Rs 30-31. Dealers are blaming sour sentiments in broader market and uncertainty ahead of the budget for this. 

 North Delhi Mayor Jai Prakash on Thursday said the NDMC has introduced two property tax amnesty schemes for people including one for those living in 544 unauthorised colonies that were regularised.

As many as 18 opposition parties, led by the Congress will be boycotting the President's address to the joint sitting of Parliament in solidarity with the farmers protesting against the new farm laws. Besides Congress, the 15 other parties are NCP, Shiv Sena, AITC, DMK, JKNC, SP, RJD, CPI(M),  CPI, IUML, RSP, PDP, MDMK, Kerala Congress and AIUDF.

Hundreds of Bharatiya Kisan Union members stayed put on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway early on Friday, notwithstanding the Ghaziabad administration’s ultimatum to vacate the UP Gate protest site. A confrontation was building up at the UP Gate in Ghazipur even as frequent power cuts were witnessed in the evening at the protest site, where BKU members, led by Rakesh Tikait, are staying put since November 28.

The White House has expressed “outrage” over the Pakistan Supreme Court’s decision acquitting those involved in the sensational kidnapping and murder of Daniel Pearl in 2002 and said that the judgement is an "affront" to terrorism victims everywhere. Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in Pakistan investigating a story in 2002 on the links between the country's powerful spy agency ISI and al-Qaeda.

The Delhi Police has issued lookout notices against the farmer leaders against whom FIRs have been filed in connection with Republic Day violence. The notices were issued by the police at the behest of the Ministry of Home Affairs to prevent these leaders from fleeing the country. 

Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Delhi Police Commissioner SN Srivastava will visit two hospitals here to see policemen who are currently undergoing treatment after Republic Day violence in the national capital. Shah and Srivastava will visit two hospitals -- Shushrut Trauma Centre and Teerath Ram Hospital -- to enquire about the health of the injured personnel. Both the hospitals are located in Civil Lines.

Punjabi actor Deep Sidhu has threatened to expose farmer leaders after he came under fire from unions following unprecedented violence on Delhi roads on Republic Day. In a fresh video which is doing the round on the internet, Sidhu said, "If I start exposing the farmers' leaders, they will not be able to escape from Delhi."

The Ghazipur-Delhi border on the NH-24, one of the protest sites of farmers against the agri laws, was quiet on Wednesday night following fissures emerged among the farm groups. According to reports, almost 50 per cent of the farmers have returned from the border. 

A low-intensity earthquake of 2.8 magnitudes on the Richter scale struck west Delhi on Thursday morning, said National Centre for Seismology (NCS). No casualties or damage to properties have been reported so far.