HIGHLIGHTS

Following are the top stories at 9 pm. NATION DEL78 DL-FARMERS-LETTER-LD GOVT Stop holding parallel talks with other farmer bodies: Protesting farmer unions to govt New Delhi: An umbrella body of 40 farmer unions protesting against the new agri laws at several Delhi border points on Wednesday asked the Centre to stop holding ''parallel talks'' with other farmer bodies over the contentious legislations.

DEL74 2NDLD INDOUK UK Foreign Secy calls on Modi; Discusses ties post-Brexit, new 'vaccines hub' to be set up to help in shared fight against coronavirus New Delhi: British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday and discussed the vast potential of the India-UK partnership in the post-Brexit world, and launching of a 'vaccines hub' which will share best practice for clinical trials and foster innovation besides helping in shared fight against coronavirus. DEL52 LD VIJAY DIWAS PM lights 'Swarnim Vijay Mashaal' to start 50th anniversary year celebrations of 1971 war win New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday lit the ''Swarnim Vijay Mashaal'' from the eternal flame of the National War Memorial here, marking the beginning of the 50th anniversary year celebrations of India's victory over Pakistan in the 1971 war that led to the birth of Bangladesh. DEL69 UNDP-INDIA-HDI India ranks 131 in UN's human development index New Delhi: India dropped one spot to 131 among 189 countries in the 2020 human development index, according to a report released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

DEL62 MOE-JEE-LD MAINS JEE-Mains to be held four times a year starting 2021, first round in Feb New Delhi: The JEE-Mains exam for admission to engineering colleges will be held four times a year starting 2021 to offer flexibility to students and a chance to improve their scores, Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank announced on Wednesday. MDS15 KL-2ND LD POLLS Kerala local body polls: Ruling LDF surges ahead, BJP on way to better its 2015 show Thiruvananthapuram: The ruling CPI(M)-led LDF in Kerala on Wednesday appeared to make a sweep of the local body polls in the state, while the BJP seemed to have made some gains, leading in Pandalam, the centre of protests against women's entry into Sabarimala, among others.

CAL10 WB-SUVENDU-LD RESIGN Suvendu Adhikari resigns as TMC MLA,BJP welcomes his decision Kolkata: Ending weeks of speculations, TMC heavyweight Suvendu Adhikari resigned as an MLA of the state assembly Wednesday further fuelling the theory of him switching over to the saffron camp. DEL44 UP-LD AMU-PM PM Modi to attend Aligarh Muslim University's centenary celebrations Aligarh (UP): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the chief guest at the centenary celebrations of the Aligarh Muslim University via video link on December 22, an official statement said.

DEL13 VIRUS-LD CASES COVID-19: India records 26,382 new infections, 387 more fatalities New Delhi: India's COVID-19 caseload rose to 99.32 lakh with 26,382 infections being reported in a day, while the number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 94.56 lakh, according to data updated by the Union Health Ministry on Wednesday. LEGAL LGD26 SC-FARMERS-2NDLD PROTEST Farmers protest: SC indicates constituting a committee to resolve deadlock New Delhi: The Supreme Court Wednesday indicated that it may form a committee having representatives of the government and farmer unions across the country to resolve the deadlock over farmers protesting at several roads near Delhi borders against the three new agri laws saying ''it may become a national issue''.

BUSINESS DEL76 BIZ-LDALL SEBI Sebi tweaks norms for insolvency cos; stricter rules for mutual funds New Delhi: Continuing efforts to boost the capital market, Sebi on Wednesday decided to tweak the 25 per cent minimum public shareholding requirement for companies undergoing insolvency process, segregate assets as well as liabilities of mutual funds, and ease norms governing promoter participation in follow-on public offers. DEL66 BIZ-CAB-2NDLD-SPECTRUM Cabinet approves auction of spectrum worth Rs 3.92 lakh cr New Delhi: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a proposal for the auction of 2,251.25 megahertz of spectrum worth Rs 3.92 lakh crore at the base price.

DEL48 BIZ-CCEA-LD-SUGAR Cabinet okays Rs 3,500 cr sugar export subsidy New Delhi: The government on Wednesday approved a subsidy of Rs 3,500 crore to sugar mills for the export of 60 lakh tonnes of sweetener during the ongoing marketing year 2020-21 as part of its efforts to help them clear outstanding dues to sugarcane farmers. FOREIGN FGN9 US-NDAA-INDIA US Congress passes defence policy bill that calls out Chinese aggression against India Washington: The US Congress has officially passed the USD 740 billion defence policy bill, which among other things include calling out Chinese aggression against India along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). By Lalit K Jha FGN3 US-GANDHI-STATUE Desecration of Mahatma Gandhi's statue appalling: White House Press Secy Washington: White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany has described as ''appalling'' the desecration of Mahatma Gandhi's statue outside the Indian embassy here and said his reputation should be respected, especially in the US capital. By Lalit K Jha.