LIVE updates: Top news headlines of today – 31 Jan 2025

New Delhi: India is expected to record GDP growth of 6.3-6.8 per cent in the financial year 2025-26 on the back of strong fundamentals, calibrated fiscal consolidation and stable private consumption, said the Economic Survey tabled in Parliament on Friday.

Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hinted at new initiatives for the poor and middle class as well as women as he laid out his government's vision a day before the Union Budget is presented in Parliament.

Modi began his customary pre-session remarks to the media by invoking Lakshmi, the goddess associated with wealth and prosperity, and said he prayed for special blessings for the poor and middle class.

President Droupadi Murmu in her address to the joint sitting of Parliament also underscored the Central government's focus on the poor and middle class.

"Today, the nation is witnessing major decisions and policies being implemented at an extraordinary speed, with the highest priority given to the poor, middleclass, youth, women and farmers," she said

In another development, AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal submitted his reply to the Election Commission (EC) regarding his allegation that the BJP government in Haryana has mixed "poison" in the Yamuna water supplied to Delhi, saying his remarks were in context of the "unprecedented high levels of ammonia in the raw water".

In his six-page written reply addressed to the chief election commissioner (CEC), Kejriwal also accused Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini of hatching a "conspiracy" to "influence" the February 5 Delhi Assembly polls by sending highly-polluted waters to the national capital.

Follow this LIVE page for the other important developments.

Jan 31, 2025 16:51 IST
Poison in Yamuna: Saini accuses Kejriwal of trying to commit mass genocide
Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini on Friday alleged that Kejriwal's remarks about mass genocide were irresponsible, holding him solely responsible for any such catastrophic scenario. Saini demanded an apology from Kejriwal to the people of both Delhi and Haryana for his failure over the past decade to address the pollution effectively. Read more...



Jan 31, 2025 15:18 IST
Economic Survey cautions against 'meaningful' stock market correction
Sounding a note of caution on the elevated stock market valuation, the Economic Survey on Friday said any correction in the US markets could have a cascading effect in India, which has witnessed increased participation from young investors post-Covid. Read more...



Jan 31, 2025 11:01 IST
First budget in 10 years without a foreign narrative: PM Modi
Ahead of Parliament's Budget session, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday that it is the first time since 2014 when no attempt from abroad was made to stoke trouble in India before the start of a session.
 
"This is probably the first Parliament session since 2014 when attempts to stoke fire from abroad have not been made. I have been seeing it since 2014 that people would be ready to create mischief ahead of every session. And there is no dearth of people here to fuel such troubles," he said, in a swipe at opposition parties. Read more...



Jan 31, 2025 10:59 IST
Economic Survey likely to project 6.3-6.8% GDP growth in FY'26
The Economic Survey is likely to project a 6.3-6.8 per cent GDP growth for the next fiscal year, sources said.
 
The Survey 2024-25, authored by Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageshwaran and his team, will be tabled in Parliament this afternoon. Read more...



Jan 31, 2025 09:41 IST
27 illegal Bangladeshis arrested Kerala's Kochi
The Bangladeshi nationals were working at various locations in the guise of migrant workers from West Bengal. The arrests were part of an ongoing special operation, 'Operation Clean,' launched by Ernakulam Rural District Police Chief Vaibhav Saxena after the arrest of 28-year-old Thaslima Begum two weeks ago. Read more...



Jan 31, 2025 09:39 IST
Poison in Yamuna: Kejriwal to visit EC office, submit reply to notice
AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal will visit the Election Commission office here on Friday to furnish his reply to the poll body over its notice to him on his "poison mixed" in Yamuna water remark.
 
Kejriwal, who will be accompanied by Delhi Chief Minister Atishi and his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann, will visit the EC office at 11 am, the party said. Read more...



Jan 31, 2025 08:12 IST
Trump blames Biden’s DEI hires for deadliest plane crash in recent US history
After officials scrutinised the actions of the military pilot and reported that control tower staffing was “not normal” at the time of the country's worst aviation disaster in a generation, President Donald Trump lashed out at the Biden administration and diversity efforts at the Federal Aviation Administration, saying they had led to slipping standards — even as he acknowledged that the cause of the crash was unknown.
 
One air traffic controller was doing work normally assigned to two people in the tower at Reagan National when the collision happened, according to a report by the Federal Aviation Administration obtained by The Associated Press.
 
“The position configuration was not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic,” the report said.
 
A midair collision between an Army helicopter and an American Airlines flight killed all 67 people aboard the two aircraft, officials said Thursday, as they scrutinised the actions of the military pilot and reported that control tower staffing was “not normal” at the time of the country's worst aviation disaster in a generation.
 
Trump blamed air traffic controllers, the helicopter pilots and Democratic policies at federal agencies. He claimed the FAA was “actively recruiting workers who suffer severe intellectual disabilities, psychiatric problems, and other mental and physical conditions under a diversity and inclusion hiring initiative." Read more...
 



Jan 31, 2025 07:09 IST
Tariffs on Canada, Mexico coming on Saturday, says Trump, weighs including oil to list
US President Donald Trump has announced plans to impose on Saturday a 25 per cent tariff on Canada and Mexico, its two neighbouring countries, and is also in the process of considering a similar measure against China.
 
Trump said he would make a decision on Thursday night about whether to include oil in the list of tariffed items.



Jan 31, 2025 06:56 IST
Vehicle of person who fails to pay challan within 90 days will be detained: Gurugram Police
During re-checking of vehicles, if the challan payment is found outstanding after 90 days, the vehicle can be detained under Section 167(8) of the Motor Vehicle Act. The last date for payment of all past outstanding challans has been set as 10.02.2025. Therefore, people are advised to clear their outstanding challans before 10.02.2025," said Gurugram DCP Traffic Virender Vij. Read more...



Jan 31, 2025 06:44 IST
US court says banning gun sales to young adults under 21 unconstitutional
A US appeals court on Thursday ruled against a federal law requiring young adults to be 21 to buy handguns, finding it violated the Second Amendment.
 
The ruling, handed down by a panel of three judges on the conservative 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans, comes amid major shifts in the national firearm legal landscape following a landmark US Supreme Court decision that expanded gun rights in 2022.
 
The court found that people aged 18-to-20 should not be prohibited from buying guns.