New Delhi, Dec 31 (ANI): While addressing a press conference, Manish Sisodia, Delhi Deputy CM informed that Pragati Maidan metro station will be renamed as Supreme Court metro station. "Mukarba Chowk will be named as Shahid Vikram Batra Chowk. Metro station near Supreme Court that was called Pragati Maidan, will now be called Supreme Court Metro Station. Badarpur-Mehrauli Road will be named as Acharya Shri Mahapragya Marg," said Manish Sisodia.
Mumbai, Dec 31 (ANI): Salman Khan's sister Arpita got discharged from hospital after giving birth to a baby girl on December 27. Aayush and Arpita were spotted outside the hospital with their newborn and 3-year-old son Ahil. Family members and friends visited hospital to meet the new member of the family. Couple has named the baby girl Ayat.
Sydney (Australia), Dec 31 (ANI): Australia's Sydney celebrated New Year 2020 in a grand way. City of Sydney was lit up on the occasion of New Year. Fireworks display was observed near the Opera House.
Jammu, Dec 31 (ANI): While addressing a press conference in Jammu on December 31, the Principal Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir Rohit Kansal said, "The SMS service will be restored in the Kashmir valley from midnight on Tuesday (December 31)." All network and landline connections were suspended across Jammu and Kashmir on August 05, in view of security concerns in the region following centre's decision to abrogate article 370 that granted special powers to the region. Back on October 14, postpaid mobile services were restored in the remaining parts of JandK. The central government had abrogated article 370 and also bifurcated the former state into Union Territories (UTs) of JandK and Ladakh. The new UTs came into being October 31.
New Delhi, Dec 31 (ANI): Army Chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane said on December 31 that abrogation of Article 370 is a step towards bringing peace and prosperity in Jammu and Kashmir. "Post the abrogation of Article 370, there has been definite improvement in the situation on the ground. Incidents of violence have seen a marked decline, this augurs very well for population of Jammu and Kashmir. It's a step forward towards bringing peace and prosperity to the region," said new Army Chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane while talking to ANI.
New Delhi, Dec 31 (ANI): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's Office tweeted in reply of Congress General Secretary in Uttar Pradesh Priyanka Gandhi Vadra jibes (saffron clad saint). The tweet said, "Those who inherited politics and engaged in politics of appeasement, forgetting about the nation, would hardly understand the meaning of public service." While speaking to media in the national capital on December 31, the veteran leader of Congress party Mallikarjun Kharge said, "Naturally, he is a 'swami' and 'tyagi'. Being a saint he should treat everyone equally. Why does he hate Muslims, Minorities people and Dalits? Why there are reports of lynching in his state and why rapes are increased in his state?" "In UP, these people are realising that Priyanka Gandhi is becoming more popular and she is taking people's cause and redressing their grievances," he added. "They don't like all this as they know that they will be exposed," Kharge further stated.
New Delhi, Dec31 (ANI): Actor Parineeti Chopra took to her Instagram and shared a picture of her posing in Austria. She captioned, "Didn't find a chiffon saree in my bag but I played some Yash ji songs in my head". The actor will be next seen in the biographical drama 'Saina'.
Mumbai, Dec 31 (ANI): Bollywood celebrities wished New Year to their fans in advance. Ananya Panday, Bhumi Pednekar, Esha Gupta, Jackie Shroff wished their fans ahead of the coming year. Jackie Shroff also suggested fans not to drink and drive on the New Year eve. Bollywood actors, Shahid Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinha and Taapsee Pannu also greeted their fans.
Hyderabad, Dec 31 (ANI): A major fire broke out in a car at a petrol pump in Hyderabad on December 31. The fire broke out in the vehicle while filling fuel in it. Firefighters rushed to the petrol pump to douse the flames. No injuries have been reported so far. Further investigation is underway.
New Delhi, Dec 31 (ANI): Equity benchmark indices closed in the red on December 31 as lacklustre trading amid mixed global cues pushed investors towards profit booking on the last trading day of calendar year 2019. The BSE SandP Sensex closed 304 points or 0.7 per cent lower at 41,254 while the Nifty 50 slipped by 87 points at 12,168. Experts said the market is likely to remain range-bound in the absence of any major triggers. Except for Nifty metal and realty, all sectoral indices at the National Stock Exchange were in the negative zone with Nifty media tumbling by 1.46 per cent, private bank by 0.65 per cent and IT by 0.78 per cent. Among stocks, Zee Entertainment was the top loser with a fall of 3.57 per cent to Rs 292 per share.
New Delhi, Dec 31 (ANI): The newly appointed Army Chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane spoke to ANI on terrorism and neighbouring countries. "Terrorism is a worldwide problem, India has been at the receiving end of terrorism for a long time. It is only now that the entire world and many countries affected with terrorism are coming to realise what a threat is," said Army Chief. "As far as our neighbour is concerned, they are trying to use terrorism as tool of state policy, as a way of carrying out proxy war against us. However, this state can't last long, as they say you can't fool all the people, all the time," Army Chief added. General Manoj Mukund Naravane took charge as 28th Chief of Indian Army on Dec 31.
Jammu, Dec 31 (ANI): The holy shrine of Vaishno Devi is witnessing heavy rush of pilgrims. Large numbers of devotees reached at Vaishno Devi to offer prayers ahead of New Year. Pilgrims were seen standing in long queues to get glimpse of Mata Vaishno Devi. Hill shrine witnesses heavy rush every year during December end despite cold weather.
New Delhi, December 31 (ANI): To felicitate the staff of PCR who had performed their duty with good faith, Joint Commissioner of Police, K Jegadesan distributed commendation certificates. 100 police personnel of various ranks were given commendation certificates in a ceremony organized at Ghalib auditorium. The rewards were distributed to PCR personnel who had performed excellent work in apprehending the criminals and also displayed their humane side. The staff of PCR was highly motivated and vouched in unison to continue and increase the action against criminals in days to come.
Puri (Odisha), Dec 31 (ANI): The Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan visited Shree Jagannath Temple on December 31. He will offer prayers to Lord Jagannath in Odisha's Puri. Preparations are underway at Lord Jagannath Temple ahead of expected footfall of devotees for New Year.
Goa, Dec 31 (ANI): Goa has always been on top of the list of tourists when it comes to New Year celebrations. India's famous vacation destination is jam-packed with tourists. Coastal serene union territory will host tourists on grand New Year evening of 2019. Casinos are lit up in attractive colours, expecting visitors to try their luck as the glorious decade comes to an end. While North India reels under cold wave, tourists can be seen sun basking on clean beaches of Goa. Tourism industry booms in Goa during this season as there is no dearth of vacationers, who lighten their wallets to enjoy the experience. Music and parties will be organised in every nook and corner of Goa to give tourists a hint of Goan culture.
Bundi (Rajasthan), Dec 31 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party's MLA from Rajasthan, Madan Dilawar sparked controversy while speaking on Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). "Those who are burning the country and killing police over Citizenship Amendment Act, and those who are supporting them, are enemies of the country, be it Sonia Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi or Rahul Gandhi," said MLA Dilawar "They do not have the right to live in this country. If they love Pakistan they should go there, if they love Bangladesh they should go there, and if both the countries don't want them, they can drown in the Indian Ocean," he added. He also hits out Chief Minister of Rajasthan Ashok Gehlot and other Congress leaders for opposing the CAA.
New Delhi, Dec 31 (ANI): While speaking to ANI in the national capital on December 31, the Public Relation Officer (PRO) of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Vivek Pandey said, "There is unusual change in weather this year due to which we have put multiple rescue teams on standby to deal with any situation. In border areas the temperature is -35 degrees Celsius." "We have also made sufficient arrangements so that Jawans deployed in -35 degrees Celsius don't face any problem due to extreme weather conditions," he added.
Jammu, Dec 31 (ANI): Jammu and Kashmir's Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbag Singh said on December 31, that number of youth joining terrorist organisations has gone down this year. "Number of youths joining terrorist organisations has gone down, 218 joined in 2018, this year it was 139," said DGP Dilbag Singh while addressing a press conference in Jammu. He further added, "As per our record around 130 people managed to infiltrate this year, compared to last year's figure of 143."
New Delhi, Dec 31 (ANI): While addressing a press conference in the national capital on December 31, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, "In line with announcement made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day 2019 speech, to make infrastructure investment worth Rs 100 lakh crore for the next five years, a task force was formed to identify projects." "Today, the task force has identified Rs 102 lakh crore worth of projects, after conducting 70 stakeholder consultations in a short period of four months," she added.
Auckland (New Zealand), Dec 31 (ANI): New Zealand celebrated New Year 2020 in a grand way. Sky Tower in Auckland was lit up on the occasion of New Year. Fireworks display was observed in the sky.