Here are the top 5 news updates of January 24, 2022:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today urged recipients of the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar to support the 'Vocal for Local' campaign and said the youth is at the centre of all policies being framed by government. During an online interaction with the awardees, Modi also talked about the unveiling of the hologram statue of freedom fighter Subhash Chandra Bose and said the "biggest inspiration we get from Netaji is of duty and of nation first, and you have to proceed on your path of duty for the country". The PM awarded the Bal Puraskar recipients certificates digitally using block chain technology. Twenty-nine children, including 14 girls, were awarded in six fields -- innovation, scholastic achievements, sports, arts and culture, social service and bravery.
A day after Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's comments on Hindutva, senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis today hit back at former ally Shiv Sena, saying its Hindutva is merely on paper and doesn't go beyond speeches. Fadnavis said under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a Ram temple is being built in Ayodhya. Modi also developed the Kashi Vishwanath temple corridor, the former Maharashtra CM said addressing a press conference. On the other hand, the Sena (which is in power in Maharashtra) could not even rename Aurangabad as Sambhajinagar, and Osmanabad as Dharashiv. But, Allahabad was renamed as Prayagraj (under the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh), while the Sena kept merely mincing words, he said.
The Omicron variant has moved the Covid-19 pandemic into a new phase and could bring it to an end in Europe, the WHO Europe director said. "It's plausible that the region is moving towards a kind of pandemic endgame," Hans Kluge told news agency AFP in an interview, adding that Omicron could infect 60 percent of Europeans by March. Once the current surge of Omicron currently sweeping across Europe subsides, "there will be for quite some weeks and months a global immunity, either thanks to the vaccine or because people have immunity due to the infection, and also lowering seasonality." "We anticipate that there will be a period of quiet before Covid-19 may come back towards the end of the year, but not necessarily the pandemic coming back," Kluge said.
India's swashbuckling opener Smriti Mandhana was today named the ICC Women's Cricketer of the Year for the second time for her stellar run of form across all formats in 2021. Mandhana, who also made it to the ICC T20 women's Team of the Year, pipped fellow nominees Tammy Beaumont of England, Lizelle Lee of South Africa and Gaby Lewis of Ireland for the top award -- the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, the ICC said in a statement. The Southpaw had won the award in 2018 as well when she was also named the women's ODI Cricketer of the Year, making her only the second women's player to win the highest individual distinction in the overall category.
Equity benchmark Sensex today crashed about 1,546 points to sink below the 58,000-level due to across-the-board selloff tracking sluggish global markets. Besides, persistent foreign capital outflows continued to affect the market sentiment, traders said. Benchmark indices started the session on a weaker note and the selling intensified during afternoon trade, with almost all sectoral indices ending in the red. The 30-share BSE Sensex ended 1,545.67 points or 2.62 per cent lower at 57,491.51. Similarly, the NSE Nifty slumped 468.05 points or 2.66 per cent to 17,149.10.
