1 Genome India Project completed, will help in treating infectious diseases
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday announced the completion of the Genome India project and released genome sequencing data of 10,000 Indian citizens . The Prime Minister termed it a milestone in the field of biotechnology research. The national database contains the country’s extraordinary genetic landscape. It will facilitate progress in the treatment of genetic and infectious diseases. It will also promote the development of new drugs and precision medicine technology and enable research into the lifestyle and habits of diverse communities. The project was launched in January 2020. Genome India data represents genetic diversity in the country. Prime Minister Modi said that more than 20 renowned research institutes like IITs, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and Biotechnology Research and Innovation Center (BRIC) have played an important role in this research. This data will now be available to researchers of the Indian Biological Data Center (IBDC).
2 India’s economy projected to grow at 6.6 percent in 2025: UN’s major economic report
The UN ‘s flagship economic report projects India’s economy to grow at 6.6 per cent in 2025, driven mainly by private consumption and investment, after an estimated growth rate of 6.9 per cent in 2024. The UN’s World Economic Situation and Prospects 2025 report attributes India’s economic activity to growth in the services sector and exports of certain manufactured goods. In contrast, China’s economy is projected to grow by 4.8 per cent in 2025, compared to an estimated growth of 4.9 per cent in 2024. The UN report projects global growth to be 2.8 per cent in 2025, unchanged from 2024. In the report’s foreword, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for global cooperation for 2025, stressing the need to move towards a prosperous and sustainable future.
3 Canada: Indian-origin MP Chandra Arya announced his candidacy for the post of Prime Minister after the resignation of Justin Trudeau
In Canada , Indian-origin MP Chandra Arya has announced his candidacy for the post of Prime Minister after the resignation of Justin Trudeau . He is a Liberal Party MP from Ottawa . Mr. Arya has promised that if he becomes Prime Minister, he will abolish the consumer carbon tax and take initiative to make Canada a republic. Mr. Arya is from Dwarlu village in Tumkur district of Karnataka . He settled in Canada since 2006. He was elected MP for Nepean in the 2015 Canadian federal elections. At the same time, he won again in the 2019 and 2021 elections. He is currently serving as a member of the Standing Committee on International Trade.
4 Madhya Pradesh government launched Parth Yojana
To reduce unemployment in the state, the Madhya Pradesh government launched the Police, Army Recruitment Training and Hunar (Parth) scheme on January 8. The Chief Minister launched this scheme at the closing ceremony of the State Youth Festival-2025 at TT Nagar Stadium. Under the scheme, the state government is going to open Parth centers at 10 division-wise places in the state through the Sports and Youth Welfare Department . At these centers, physical and mental training will be provided to the youth willing to join the Central Police Force, Central Paramilitary Force and Indian Army. These Parth centers will be set up in those campuses of the department where there are athletics tracks. Currently, only a course of 3 months has been prepared. For this, the trainee youth will have to pay a fee of between one to one and a half thousand rupees. After this, short term, medium term and long term courses will also be prepared.
5 Union Coal and Mines Minister inaugurated ‘5G Use Case Test Lab’ at CMPDI, Ranchi
Union Minister for Coal and Mines Shri G. Kishan Reddy inaugurated the ‘ 5G Use Case Test Lab ‘ at Central Mine Planning & Design Institute (CMPDI) in Ranchi . This state-of-the-art facility aims to advance the digital transformation and technological landscape of the coal sector . The 5G Use Case Test Lab serves as a test bed for development, testing and assembly of various 5G-based applications designed to meet the needs of the coal industry. Ministry of Coal has designated CMPDI as a Centre of Excellence (CoE) for setting up of 5G Use Case Test Lab for coal industry to effectively leverage 5G technology.
6 Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) and NALSAR University sign MoU in Hyderabad to train animal welfare representatives
The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI), a statutory body of the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying signed a Memorandum of Understanding with NALSAR University of Law in Hyderabad . The MoU formalized a strategic partnership aimed at providing high-quality professional legal training to civil society members supporting District Societies for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCAs) and State Animal Welfare Boards to aid animals . This collaboration between AWBI and NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad will help in providing specialized training and education to applicants of Honorary Animal Welfare Representatives (HAWRs) with AWBI, equipping participants with the necessary knowledge in animal welfare laws, procedures, investigation techniques and related topics.
7 5 films from India including Veer Savarkar in the race for Oscar-2025
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences released the list of films found eligible for Oscars 2025 on January 8. The 5 films in the race for ‘Oscars 2025’ include Prithviraj Sukumaran’s ‘Aadujeevitham: The Goat Life’ , Surya’s ‘Kanguva’ , Randeep Hooda’s ‘Swatantrya Veer Savarkar’ , Payal Kapadia’s ‘All We Imagine As Light’ and Ali Fazal and Richa Chadha ‘s production ‘ Girls Will Be Girls ‘. Voting will be done among all the 232 films found eligible, after which they will get the final nomination in Oscars 2025. Voting will continue till January 12, then on January 17, the Academy of Motion Pictures will release the final list of nominated films.
8 Famous journalist, writer, filmmaker and former Rajya Sabha MP Pritish Nandy passes away
Famous journalist, writer, filmmaker and former Rajya Sabha MP Pritish Nandy died of cardiac arrest at his residence in Mumbai. He was 73 years old. Pritish Nandy is known for his English writing. He also translated Bengali, Urdu poems into English language. He was awarded Padma Shri in 1977 for his contribution to literature. In 1990, he did The Pritish Nandy Show on Doordarshan, in which many famous people were interviewed. He produced 24 films like ‘ Chameli ‘, ‘ Sur ‘ and ‘ Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi ‘. He was the editor of ‘ The Illustrated Weekly of India ‘.
9 Famous playback singer P. Jayachandran dies in Thrissur
Famous playback singer P. Jayachandran died in a hospital in Thrissur. He was 80 years old. He sang more than 16 thousand songs in Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Hindi and Kannada languages in his career spanning more than six decades. P. Jayachandran was awarded many honours including National Film Award , Kerala State Film Award , Kalaimamani Award of Tamil Nadu and JC Daniel Award .
10 Former soldier Baldev Singh who fought four wars passes away
Former soldier Havildar Baldev Singh, who fought four wars with Pakistan and China , died on Tuesday at his residence in Rajouri district. Working as a child soldier under the leadership of Brigadier Usman, he played an important role in giving a tough fight to the Pakistani army and tribesmen in 1947-48 . After this, he joined the army and served in the 1962 war with China, 1965 war against Pakistan and even after retirement in 1971. For his service and bravery to the country throughout his life, he has been honored by many big leaders of the country including the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former Vice President Hamid Ansari .
