1.Lakhs of devotees visited Srimandir here to seek blessings of the sibling deities – Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath – on New Year’s Day Wednesday, an official said.

2.Crime cases in the Capital city went northward, while they declined in neighbouring Cuttack last year compared to 2023. 21,613 cases were registered in the twin cities in 2024 as against 19,410 in 2023.

3.Women beneficiaries of the state will receive health insurance cover of 10 lakh per annum under the implement Ayushman Bharat - Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana in the state by the end of February 2025, while male beneficiaries can avail cashless treatment at empanelled hospitals up to 5 lakh.

4.The state government has set a target for 1.5 lakh appointments in the public sector over the next five years. Of these, 65,000 government posts will be filled up in two years.

5.The state government has set January 15 deadline for completing Aadhaar-based e-KYC verification of ration cards in circulation, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra said Wednesday.

6.The State Level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA) approved 25 projects across various sectors with a combined investment of Rs 4,222.24 crore, Wednesday.

7.The Union Cabinet Wednesday extended a one-time package to subsidise key fertiliser DAP at the cost of up to `3,850 crore and approved a one-year extension of two crop insurance schemes, decisions that Prime Minister Narendra Modi said were dedicated to farmers.

8.India's total greenhouse gas emissions in 2020 fell by 7.93 percent compared to 2019, while the emission intensity of its GDP declined 36 per cent between 2005 and 2020, according to data submitted to the UN climate change office.

9.Russian gas exports via Soviet-era pipelines running through Ukraine came to a halt on New Year’s Day, marking the end of decades of Moscow’s dominance over Europe’s energy markets.

10.Benchmark Sensex and Nifty started the New Year on a high note with the key indices closing higher in a see-saw trade Wednesday on buying in blue-chip stocks.

11.The Reserve Bank Wednesday said 98.12 per cent of the `2000 banknotes have been returned to the banking system, and only `6,691 crore worth such notes are still with the public,

12.Punjab government Wednesday continued with its efforts to persuade farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal to take medical aid, with former additional DGP Jaskaran Singh saying discussions in this regard were also held with farmer leaders.

13.AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal has written a letter to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, alleging distribution of money and deletion of names of Purvanchali and Dalit voters by the BJP ahead of the Delhi Assembly polls.

14.Decades after it was closed over communal violence in Moradabad, a temple in the Daulatabagh area has been reopened by local administration and authorities, according to officials.

15.Three decades after it was constructed, one of the oldest security bunkers in Srinagar city has been dismantled -- underlining the improvement in the Kashmir valley’s security situation.