HIGHLIGHTS

Following are the top stories at 12:30 pm:

DEL20 BUD-ECONOMY Fundamentals of economy strong, inflation well contained: Sitharaman

New Delhi, Feb 1 (PTI) Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said fundamentals of the economy are strong and inflation has been well contained, while banks cleaned up accumulated loans.

DEL26 PREZ-LD MERCY Prez rejects clemency petition of another Nirbhaya gangrape convict Vinay Kumar Sharma

New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind has rejected the clemency plea of Vinay Kumar Sharma, one of the four men facing the gallows in the 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case, Home Ministry officials said on Saturday.

DEL15 AVI-CORONAVIRUS-4THLD FLIGHT Coronavirus: 324 Indians evacuated from Wuhan in Air India plane, another flight to leave Delhi

New Delhi: A special Air India plane landed here on Saturday morning after evacuating 324 Indian nationals from the novel coronavirus-hit Wuhan and another flight of the airline would leave the national capital for the Chinese city in the afternoon, officials said.

DEL11 CONG-BUDGET Cong hopes Union Budget will provide relief to salaried class, invest in rural India

New Delhi: The Congress on Saturday expressed hope that the Union Budget would provide relief to the salaried class through tax cuts and invest in rural India besides providing a healing touch to the common man and industry facing "hardship" since demonetisation.

DEL35 BUD-EDUCATION Govt to bring new education policy; allocates Rs 99,300 cr for sector in FY21

New Delhi: The Centre will soon announce a new education policy and the government has received over 2 lakh suggestions on it, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.

DEL37 BUD-AIRPORTS 100 more airports to be developed by 2025 to support UDAN scheme: FM

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said 100 more airports will be developed by 2025 to support the UDAN scheme.

DEL34 CITIZENSHIP-PRASAD-PROTESTERS Govt ready to talk to Shaheen Bagh protesters but in a structured form: Law minister Prasad

New Delhi: Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Saturday said the government is ready to talk to the protesters at Shaheen Bagh to clear their doubts over the amended Citizenship law, but it should be in a "structured form".

DEL33 BUD-KISAN TRAIN FM proposes Kisan Rail in PPP mode for cold supply chain to transport perishable goods

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday proposed to set up Kisan Rail in public-private-partnership (PPP) mode for cold supply chain to transport perishable goods.

DEL25 UP-KAFEEL-LD CUSTODY Kafeel Khan remanded to judicial custody, transferred to Mathura jail

Aligarh (UP): Child specialist Kafeel Khan, who was accused of making an inflammatory speech at AMU, was remanded to 14 days' judicial custody and later transferred to Mathura jail, officials said on Saturday.

DEL28 JK-MILITANTS-AMMUNITION JeM terrorists carried ready-to-use IED, ammunition capable of piercing bulletproof vehicles

Jammu: Three JeM terrorists, killed in a gunfight near a toll plaza here, had left an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) under a hoarding on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway which another member of the module was to use to target security forces, police said on Saturday.

BUSINESS

DEL23 BUD-ECONOMY SIZE

India now 5th largest economy globally: Sitharaman New Delhi: India is now the fifth largest economy in the world and the Central government debt has reduced to 48.7 per cent of GDP from 52.2 per cent in March 2014, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.

DEL31 BUD-AGRI CREDIT

Govt sets agri credit target at Rs 15 lakh cr for FY21: Sitharaman New Delhi: The government has pegged the agricultural credit target at Rs 15 lakh crore for fiscal 2020-21, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.

FOREIGN

FGN6 EU-LD BREXIT

Brexit done: UK leaves EU as Boris Johnson hails new dawn London: The UK's divorce from the European Union (EU) came into force on Friday night as it became the first country to exit the economic bloc after 47 years of membership following the vote in favour of Brexit in June 2016.

FGN10 US-TRUMP-2NDLD IMPEACHMENT

Senate rejects motion calling for new witnesses in impeachment trial, sets stage for Trump acquittal Washington: The Republican Party-controlled US Senate on Friday narrowly rejected the opposition Democrats' motion to call new witnesses and documents for the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump. By Lalit K Jha

FGN11 CHINA-VIRUS-2NDLD TOLL

Coronavirus: Death toll rises to 259 in China, infections surge to nearly 12000 Beijing: The death toll from the novel coronavirus outbreak in China has risen to 259 with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, the epicentre of the virus, officials said on Saturday. By K J M Varma

FGN9 IMF-INDIA

Indian economy experienced abrupt slowdown in 2019, but it's not in a recession: IMF MD Washington: The Indian economy experienced some abrupt slowdown in 2019 due to turbulence in non-banking financial institutions and major reform measures such as GST and demonetisation, but it is not in a recession, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva has said. By Lalit K Jha.