HIGHLIGHTS

Following are the top stories at 2100 hours:

NATION:

DEL103 PM-SUMMIT India won't waste time now, will surge ahead with confidence: PM Modi

New Delhi: While the previous governments had hesitated to touch the country's taxation system, the current dispensation was making it more citizen centric, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday, urging people to pay their dues for the development of India.

DEL100 LD NRC MHA asserts NRC data safe; Wipro says authorities didn't renew service contract

New Delhi: The Centre on Wednesday sought to allay concerns over data of the contentious Assam NRC going offline, asserting that the dossier is safe though there are some technical issues while IT major Wipro said its service contract for the project was not renewed after it expired last October.

DEL105 DEF-BOEING Boeing considering offering F-15EX jet to India

New Delhi: US defence major Boeing is considering to offer its F-15EX fighter jets to the Indian Air Force and has sought a licence from the US authorities for its possible export to India.

DEL98 DL-LDALL KEJRIWAL Kejriwal to take oath as Delhi CM for 3rd time on Feb 16; likely to retain his old team

New Delhi: AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal, who spearheaded the party's landslide victory in the Delhi Assembly polls, will take oath as the chief minister for the third consecutive time in a grand public ceremony on February 16 at the Ramlila Maidan here, amid indications all the outgoing ministers will be retained in the seven-member Cabinet.

DEL83 ENV-AIR POLLUTION REPORT Air pollution from fossil fuels costs India USD 150 billion annually: Report

New Delhi: Air pollution from burning fossil fuels cost India an estimated USD 150 billion annually, the third highest worldwide, a report said on Wednesday.

DEL101 RS-BUD PRODUCTIVITY RS clocks 96 pc productivity in first phase of Budget session; 155 MPs speak in house

New Delhi: Rajya Sabha recorded 96 per cent productivity during the first phase of the Budget session with 155 members speaking during the nine days of sitting from January 31 to February 11.

DEL82 GOVT-JK-MINISTERS Union ministers submit reports to PMO on implementation of welfare schemes in J&K

New Delhi: More than 30 Union ministers, who visited Jammu and Kashmir last month, have submitted their feedback to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on the implementation of various development schemes there, officials said on Wednesday.

DEL80 CIVIL SERVICES-EXAM No upper age relaxation for JK applicants in UPSC civil services exam this year

New Delhi: Unlike last year, there will be no upper-age relaxation for applicants taking the civil services examination 2020 who are domicile of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir between 1980 and 1989, according to a notification issued on Wednesday.

DEL76 BJP-MADHAV-DELHI Good leadership an ingredient for winning state polls: Madhav

New Delhi: A day after its debacle in the Delhi assembly polls, BJP general secretary Ram Madhav on Wednesday said one of the things which people look in state elections is a "leader who can deliver".

DEL74 UP-NIRBHAYA-KIN-CMO Ballia DM orders probe as video on spat between CMO and Nirbhaya's grandpa goes viral

Ballia: The Ballia district administration has launched a probe into allegations that the chief medical officer here misbehaved with the grandfather of the December 2012 Delhi gangrape-cum-murder victim Nirbhaya.

MDS10 KL-LD CAG Rifles, cartridges found missing in SAPB Battlion: CAG report

Thiruvananthapuram: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has found shortage of 5.56 mm INSAS rifles and 12,061 live cartridges in the Special Armed Police Battalion (SAPB) here and has come down on state police chief DGP Loknath Behera for purchasing bullet proof vehicles for VVIP security, violating guidelines.

BOM19 GA-LD RODRICKS Award-winning fashion designer Wendell Rodricks dies in Goa

Panaji: Renowned fashion designer Wendell Rodricks died at his residence in Colvale village in Goa on Wednesday, a police official said.

CAL14 OD-BJD-SELF IMMOLATION Woman BJD leader performs self-immolation outside SP office over son's arrest

Berhampur (Odisha): A woman leader of ruling BJD in Odisha was seriously injured after she performed self-immolation outside the Berhampur SP's office in Ganjam district on Wednesday protesting the arrest of her son, police said.

LEGAL:

LGD42 SC-PLEA MOLESTATION Plea in SC for court-monitored CBI probe into alleged molestation of DU college students

New Delhi: A petition was filed on Wednesday in the Supreme Court seeking a CBI probe monitored by it into alleged molestation of students by a group of men who had gate-crashed a cultural fest at the all-women Gargi College of the Delhi University.

LGD40 DL-COURT-LD NIRBHAYA MOTHER I too have some rights, cries Nirbhaya's mother

New Delhi: Nirbhaya's mother Asha Devi broke down in a Delhi court Wednesday requesting a fresh date to execute the four death row convicts for the gang rape and murder of her daughter and later sat on a protest outside the court premises.

LGM2 TN-HC-RAHMAN Service Tax:HC stays GST notice on AR Rahman till March 4

Chennai, Feb 12 (PTI) In a relief to music composer A R Rahman, the Madras High Court on Wednesday stayed the operation of a notice issued by Goods and Services Tax authorities demanding service tax for permanent transfer of copyrights of his musical works to producers of such movies.

BUSINESS:

DEL72 BIZ-INDIA-US-TRADE DEAL India, US engaged in hectic parleys on trade deal

New Delhi: Officials of India and the US are engaged in hectic parleys for a proposed trade deal between the countries ahead of the visit of US President Donald Trump here later this month, an official said.

DEL85 BIZ-LD INFLATION-RETAIL Retail inflation jumps to nearly six-year high of 7.59 pc in Jan on high food prices

New Delhi: Retail inflation jumped to over five-and-a-half-year high of 7.59 per cent in January on persistently high prices of vegetables, pulses and protein-rich meat and fish, government data showed on Wednesday.

FOREIGN:

FGN42 CHINA-LDALL VIRUS Calls for freedom of speech on rise in China as coronavirus death toll soars to over 1,100

Beijing/Wuhan: The coronavirus outbreak in China has led to rare open calls for freedom of speech in the Communist nation amid growing public discontent over the handling of the epidemic, as the death toll continued to climb which prompted the government on Wednesday to announce fresh restrictions in top cities.

FGN39 JAPAN-VIRUS-INDIANS Two Indian crew on board cruise ship off Japanese coast test positive for coronavirus

Tokyo: Two Indian crew on board a cruise ship off the Japanese coast have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the Indian Embassy in Japan said on Wednesday as authorities confirmed that 174 people have been infected with the deadly disease.

SPORTS:

SPD4 SPO-CRI-WOM-EDULJI Indian women will have to learn from mistakes to win elusive ICC trophy: Diana Edulji

New Delhi: Former captain Diana Edulji feels the Indian women's team will have to learn from the repeated mistakes it is making at the moment to end its ICC title drought in the upcoming T20 World Cup.