Former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh died on Thursday. He was 92.

Singh was admitted to the emergency ward of Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at around 8 p.m. In April, the veteran Congress leader retired from the Rajya Sabha after a 33-year stint in the Upper House.

The Indian economy is expected to grow nearly 6.5 per cent in the current fiscal year 2024-25 (FY25), closer to the lower end of the 6.5-7 per cent projection, against 8.2 per cent a year before, due to global uncertainties and triggers posing a dampening threat. The Finance Ministry expects a gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 6.5 per cent in FY25 after the economy slowed to 5.4 per cent in the July-September quarter.

“We expect the economy to grow at around 6.5 per cent in real terms in the financial year 2024-25,” said the Finance Ministry's Department of Economic Affairs in its monthly economic report for November. The estimate aligns with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s revised 6.6 per cent growth forecast for FY25. The July Economic Survey projected GDP growth at 6.5- 7 per cent.

In the 67th National Shooting Championship, Ganemat Sekhon of Punjab clinched her second consecutive national title in the women’s skeet competition in Delhi. In the individual women’s final, she hit 50 out of 60 targets, comfortably defeating her state-mate Asees Chhina, who managed 46 hits to take silver.

Olympian Raiza Dhillon secured bronze. This was Sekhon’s second gold of the competition. She had earlier won the women’s team event with teammates Parinaaz Dhaliwal and Jasmeen Kaur.

In men’s skeet, Bhavtegh Singh Gill, fresh from his triumph at the World University Championships, claimed his first senior national title with an impressive 54 hits in the final. Fatehbir Singh Shergill of Air India secured silver with 51 hits, while Olympian Mairaj Ahmad Khan of Uttar Pradesh took bronze with 43 hits out of the first 50 targets.

Justice G.S. Sandhawalia was on Monday (December 23, 2024) appointed as the Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court while Justice Narender G. was appointed as the head of the Uttarakhand High Court, the Law Ministry said.

While Justice Sandhawalia is at present a judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Justice Narendar G. is a judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court.

Justice Narendar G.'s name was recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium on September 24.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday (December 25, 2024) laid the foundation stone for the Ken-Betwa river-linking project in Madhya Pradesh’s Khajuraho, aimed at solving the water woes of the Bundelkhand region, spread across parts of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. The project is estimated to cost around ₹45,000 crore.

Speaking at the event, Mr. Modi credited Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s vision for India’s major river valley projects, and accused the Congress of not giving due recognition to the architect of the Constitution.

“The major river valley projects of India were based on the vision of Babasaheb Ambedkar. The Central Water Commission exists today because of the efforts of Dr. Ambedkar, but the Congress never gave him credit for his water-conservation efforts. No one was even allowed to know about it,” said Mr. Modi, amid the ongoing controversy over Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks on Dr. Ambedkar. The Congress had staged protests seeking the Home Minister’s resignation over the issue.

In weightlifting, Parv Chaudhary secured two bronze medals in the 96 kg category to continue India’s domination at the Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships in Doha, Qatar, today. Chaudhary clinched the medals in the clean and jerk and total sections. He registered a total lift of 303 kilograms. With this win, India’s medal tally surged to 12 medals, including three gold, four silver, and five bronze.

Maia Sandu today assumed office as president of the Republic of Moldova for a second term. She won the Moldovan presidential elections in 2020 and was re-elected in a runoff in November, this year.

Ms. Sandu outlined her policy priorities as European integration, national security, and economic growth, calling for active involvement from all citizens to achieve these goals.

Doha, Dec 25 (PTI) Indian lifter Martina Devi clinched a silver medal in the women's junior 87kg category at the Asian Junior Weightlifting Championships here on Wednesday.

The 18-year-old from Manipur lifted a total of 225kg (96kg 129kg) to finish second in the three-lifter field. She also won a silver medal for her clean and jerk effort and a bronze for her snatch.

The performance was, however, far from Devi's personal best. The teenager had lifted a national junior record-breaking 101kg in snatch and 136kg in clean and jerk at the junior world championships earlier this year.

Medals are awarded separately for snatch, clean and jerk, and total lift in continental, World Cups and World Championships.

Jammu and Kashmir Bank Ltd. on Wednesday appointed Amitava Chatterjee as the new managing director and chief executive officer. This makes him the second MD and CEO of the bank.

Chatterjee is currently working as Deputy Managing Director of State Bank of India. He is set to replace Baldev Prakash, whose term will end on Dec. 29.

The board of directors approved the Chatterjee's appointment for a period of three years. He will be taking charge from Dec. 30, the bank said in an exchange filing.

This comes after the government of Jammu and Kashmir appointed Amitava Chatterjee as the government nominee director of the bank.

Chatterjee, in his banking career spanning over more than three decades in diverse geographical locations and strategic positions, also served as MD and CEO of SBI CAPS.

His diverse experience includes heading the SBI's operation as CGM New Delhi, Circle, and Jaipur Circle with high-end clientele like PSUs, NBFCs, and DISCOMs.

In a major government reshuffle, Indian President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday (Dec 24) appointed the governors of five states—Odisha, Mizoram, Kerala, Bihar, and Manipur.

Former Union home secretary of the country, Ajay Kumar Bhalla, has been appointed as the governor of Manipur. Bhalla's appointment is crucial at this time since Manipur has been reeling under ethnic violence that has rocked the state since May 2023.

According to a statement released by the President's Secretariat, the new appointments would take effect from the dates the governors would assume charge of their respective offices.