The National Investigation Agency (NIA) carried out searches at several places in Delhi and questioned few people in connection with its probe into the new Islamic State module of Harkat-ul-Harb-e-Islam.

A senior NIA official said that the agency carried out searches at few places in east Delhi's Jafarabad area on Sunday. The official said that the agency also questioned few suspects.

The counter-terror probe agency's action comes four days after it arrested 10 people including the group head Mufti Mohammad Suhail as they were allegedly planning terror attacks targeting some political personalities and security establishments as well as crowded places in Delhi and the national capital region.

The NIA had on December 26 carried out searches at over 17 places in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh's Amroha, Lucknow, Meerut and Hapur.

It had recovered a country-made rocket launcher, 12 pistols, 112 alarm clocks, 100 mobile phones, 135 SIM cards, many laptops and various electronic gadgets, besides recovering 150 rounds of ammunition during the searches.

The NIA had also seized 25 kg of explosive material, such as potassium nitrate, ammonium nitrate, sulphur, sugar material paste, mobile phone circuits, batteries, 51 pipes, remote control car triggering switch, wireless digital doorbell for remote switch, steel containers, electric wires, knife, sword, IS-related literature and 7.5 lakh rupees in cash.

Besides Suhail, the NIA arrested Saeed, 28, Raees Ahmed, Saqib Iftekar, 26 and Mohammad Irshad from Amroha.

Among the other accused are Anas Yunus, 24, a B Tech student of a Noida university, Rashid Zafar Raq, 23, Zubair Malik, 20 and his brother Zaid Malik, 22 and Mohammad Azam, 35, from Delhi's Jafarabad area.

The contentious triple talaq bill seeking to criminalise instant divorce is set to be tabled in the Rajya Sabha even as the Congress said it will not allow the passage of the proposed legislation in its present form.

Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad will table the bill in the Upper House after it was cleared by the Lok Sabha on December 27 amid a walkout by the Opposition. The bill was passed by the Lower House with 245 voting in favour and 11 opposing it.

Prasad had on Friday claimed that the bill will find support in Rajya Sabha, where the BJP-led NDA lacks numbers. It is listed in the Rajya Sabha's legislative agenda for Monday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday renamed three islands in Andaman & Nicobar. The three islands — Ross Island, Neil Island and Havelock Island — will now be called Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Island, Shaheed Dweep and Swaraj Dweep, respectively, said Modi at a public function in Port Blair. He also hoisted a 150-feet-high national flag at Port Blair to mark the 75th anniversary of freedom fighter Subhash Chandra Bose’s declaration of the formation of the Azad Hind government in 1943.

Earlier in the day, PM Modi addressed the public in Car Nicobar and congratulated them for overcoming the impact of the tsunami which had struck the island in 2004 and assured to provide better facilities to the people in Andamans. “Along with the security of people at Car Nicobar, the government is making efforts to ensure employment for youth, education for children, medical care for the aged and facilities for the farmers,” Modi said. Modi also paid homage to the 2014 Tsunami victims at the Tsunami Memorial in Car Nicobar and visited Cellular Jail in Port Blair.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid foundation stone of a medical college at Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh today. He also released a commemorative postal stamp on Maharaja Suheldev.

Addressing a public meeting this afternoon, the Prime Minister said, during his visit to the state today, several important steps are being taken to transform Purvanchal into a big medical hub, an agro research centre and to strengthen the small industries of UP.

The Prime Minister said, the NDA government has initiated a number of measures to ensure a dignified life to the last person in the social strata. 
Later, Mr Modi will go to his parliamentary constituency Varanasi where he will inaugurate and lay foundation stone of several development projects for Varanasi.

Mr Modi will reach Varanasi in a short while from now and will remain in his constituency for almost 4 hours. During his stay PM Modi will inaugurate 15 projects worth more than rupees 180 crores.

He will dedicate to the nation the 6th International Rice Research Institute South Asia Regional Centre campus in Varanasi which will serve as a hub for rice research and training in South Asia and SAARC region.

The institute will help farmers of the region to develop varieties of paddy which will grow in minimum water and also the sugar free and high nutrition value rice.

The legend of Pankaj Advani grew bigger and had no competition in 2018 when India’s finest cueist completed a grand double by winning the world billiards crown in the point and time format, extending his tally to a staggering 21. The 33-year-old kept churning out world titles, proving that his game was getting better with age and there was a long way to go before his hunger for trophies could be satiated.

The duo was down 0-2 in the final before pulling off a sensational victory. The Bengaluru-based cueist was expectedly pleased with his performance in another productive year. “Considering I didn’t play in too many tournaments this year, 2018 was superb especially in billiards – winning the nationals, Asian and World (point as well as time format) – making it a clean sweep,” Advani told PTI.

“In snooker, lifting the World Team Cup along with Manan was special as it was my first major team trophy. And then the Asian Tour victory in China was a new addition to my trophy cabinet,” he added. An ardent fan of tennis great Roger Federer, Advani has no plans to retire and remains as motivated as ever.

President Ramnath Kovind today said Yoga exemplifies India's soft power to the world. Addressing the commemoration event of the Mumbai-based Yoga Institute, Kovind said togetherness is another name of Yoga, adding that it interconnects cultures from across the world. 

Stressing on the need to strengthen the yoga institutes in the country, President Kovind said that there is a need to train teachers to take forward the yoga. 

Saying that yoga has earned huge respect from various countries in the world, he said the Central government to has been contributing a lot to spread and promote yoga in the country. 

President Kovind also applauded Maharashtra and other states for incorporating a subject on yoga in their syllabus. 

Narrating an anecdote of his interaction with the President and first lady of Cuba, Kovind said the first lady told him that they were practising Yoga daily.  Mr. Kovind further quoted the Cuban president as saying Yoga is the "valuable gift" which India has given to mankind. 

Sharing another anecdote about Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian who travelled in space, President Kovind said that Sharma had shared his experience on how he dealt with space sickness by practising yoga in the spacecraft. He added that not on the land but also in space the yoga has proven to be beneficial. 

Maharashtra governor Ch. Vidyasagar Rao, Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, union Ayush minister Shripad Naik and other yoga gurus were present on the occasion.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch several of infrastructure projects in Andaman and Nicobar Islands on Sunday. He will reach Port Blair Saturday evening and will visit the Tsunami Memorial at Car Nicobar the following day.

 The prime minister will lay a wreath at the memorial and light a candle at the Wall of Lost Souls, a statement from his office said.

He will then inaugurate an industrial training institute at Arong and lay the foundation stone for some infrastructure projects. The prime minister will also address a public meeting, it said.

Later in the day, Prime Minister Modi will lay a wreath at the Martyrs Column at Port Blair and will visit the Cellular Jail in the city. Modi will hoist the high mast flag at South Point, Port Blair.

Public sector banks have approved more than 1.12 lakh loan applications of MSMEs worth of 37,412 crore rupees under the '59 minutes' loan scheme launched by the government last month.

GST-registered Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) can take loan up to one crore in just 59 minutes through 'psbloansin59minutes.com' portal.

In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha, Union Minister of State for Finance Shiv Pratap Shukla said that as on 25th of this month, out of over 1.31 lakh applications, the state-owned banks have accorded in-principal approval to 1.12 lakh applicants.

He also said that sanctions have been made in respect of 40,669 cases totalling over 14 thousand crore rupees.

Mr Shukla said the government and the Reserve Bank have taken several steps to ensure access of credit to MSME sector.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Varanasi and Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh and Varanasi today (December 29) where he is expected to inaugurate developmental projects. PM's second visit to his Lok Sabha constituency in the last two months comes at a time when the BJP faces pressure from its allies demanding a better share of the pie ahead of the General Elections 2019.   

During the visit, Modi will inaugurate the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and South Asia Regional Centre (ISARC) in Varanasi and attend the 'One District, One Product Regional Summit' at Deendayal Hastakala Sankul in the holy city. He will also launch developmental projects worth Rs 508 crore. Later, he will also launch a commemorative postal stamp on the Maharaja Suheldeo in Ghazipur where he will also address a public rally.

IRRI and ISARC at campus of National Seed Research and Training Center (NSRTC) in Varanasi will serve as hub for rice research and training in South Asia and SAARC region. 

‘One District One Product’ is government scheme aimed at enhancing the skills of local people and increasing the reach of the  indigenous trades, crafts and products from small towns and small districts in the state.