India's net direct tax collection grew 16 per cent to about Rs 16.90 trillion during April 1-January 12, according to government data. HCLTech net profit rose 5.5 per cent to Rs 4,591 crore in Q3. Revenue was up 5 per cent. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Monday praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his efforts in bridging the gap between "Dil (heart) and Delhi" and holding assembly polls in the Union Territory and exuded confidence that the statehood restoration promise would soon be fulfilled. Addressing a gathering after the prime minister inaugurated the 6.5-km Z-Morh tunnel renamed 'Sonamarg Tunnel' in the Ganderbal district, the chief minister began his speech by paying tributes to the seven people who died in a terrorist attack near the tunnel site on October 20 last year. India’s retail inflation rate, measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), for December stood at 5.22 per cent. Inflation rates for rural and urban are 5.76 per cent and 4.58 per cent, respectively. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the strategically important Sonamarg Tunnel in Jammu and Kashmir's Ganderbal district today. The 6.5-kilometre-long tunne will provide all-weather connectivity between Srinagar and Sonamarg, enabling the development of Sonamarg resort as a winter sports destination.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has held three more persons in the alleged Chhattisgarh Public Service Commission (CGPSC) recruitment scam, a lawyer representing two of them said. Sahil Sonwani has been nabbed from Darjeeling in West Bengal, while Shashank Goyal and his wife Bhumika Katiyar have been apprehended from New Delhi, the couple's lawyer, Faisal Rizvi, said on Sunday. "The three were brought to Chhattisgarh on Sunday. The court of Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) Kriti Kujur remanded them in the CBI's custody till January 13," Rizvi said. Sahil Sonwani, who was selected as deputy superintendent of police, is the son of the elder brother of retired IAS officer and former CGPSC Chairman Taman Singh Sonwani.
Shashank and Bhumika, selected as deputy collectors, are the son and daughter-in-law of Raipur-based director of Bajrang Power and Ispat Limited Shravan Kumar Goyal.
Dense fog conditions are very likely in the Delhi/NCR region and an orange alert was issued regarding the same. Air quality monitoring stations in Delhi have reported concerning pollution levels across the city. According to CPCB data, the AQI of the national capital recorded 285. As per recent data, the air quality index (AQI) at Jahangirpuri recorded a high of 346, while Nehru Nagar registered an alarming 345. Patparganj reported an AQI of 344, closely followed by North Campus, Delhi University, at 314.
 "UPDATES: Net direct tax collection grows 16% to Rs 16.90 trn during April 1-January 12")
