HIGHLIGHTS

Following are the top stories at 12:30 PM: NATIONAL: DEL18 VACCINE-PM PM launches India's vaccination drive against COVID-19 New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday launched India's COVID-19 vaccination drive and asserted that the made-in-India vaccines being rolled out will ensure a ''decisive victory'' for the country over the coronavirus pandemic.

DEL9 VIRUS-LD CASES India records 15,158 fresh COVID-19 cases, 175 more deaths New Delhi: India's COVID-19 caseload climbed to 1,05,42,841 on Saturday with 15,158 more people testing positive for the disease while recoveries surged to 1,01,79,715, according to the Union health ministry data.

DEL24 DL-VACCINE-LAUNCH Sanitation worker in AIIMS first person in Delhi to get COVID-19 vaccination New Delhi: Manish Kumar, a sanitation worker, became the first person in the Indian capital to be administered a COVID-19 vaccine during the launch of the nationwide vaccination programme at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in the presence of Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan.

DEL10 AVI-DL AIRPORT-DELAY 50 plus flights delayed at Delhi airport due to dense fog New Delhi: More than 50 flights were delayed on Saturday morning due to dense fog at the Delhi airport, officials said.

CAL2 WB-VACCINE COVID-19 vaccination begins in West Bengal; great day for humankind, says first recipient Kolkata: The COVID-19 vaccination drive began in West Bengal on Saturday morning, with a doctor of a private hospital receiving the first shot, officials said.

BOM4 MH-BIRD FLU-CULLING Bird flu: Over 2,000 birds to be culled in 2 districts in Maha Aurangabad: Samples of dead hens found in two villages in Parbhani and Beed districts, both in Marathwada region, of Maharashtra have tested positive for bird flu, following which culling of over 2,000 birds is being carried out on Saturday, officials said.

LEGAL: LGD1 SC-BAR-POLLS-RESIGNATION All 3 members of poll panel for Supreme Court bar association's election resign New Delhi: All the three members of the election committee, set up to conduct the polls for the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) this year, have resigned.

FOREIGN: FGN6 VIRUS-UN-GUTERRES 'Vaccinationalism' is self-defeating, says UN chief as global COVID deaths cross 2 million United Nations: As the world crossed a ''heart-wrenching milestone'' of two million deaths from COVID-19, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres lamented that the deadly impact of the pandemic has worsened due to the absence of a global coordinated effort and said that ''vaccinationalism'' by governments is ''self-defeating'' that will delay a global recovery. By Yoshita Singh FGN13 BIDEN-NEC-LD FAZILI Biden names Indian-American Sameera Fazili as Deputy Director of National Economic Council Washington: US President-elect Joe Biden has appointed Indian-American community and economic development expert Sameera Fazili to a key White House position. By Lalit K Jha.