Quick Reads
News Dabba for 27 January 2025: Five stories for a balanced news diet
Here are the daily updates that the internet is talking about through various news websites.
Indie Journal brings you the daily updates that the internet is talking about through various news websites. Here's a glance through some of the National and International news updates, from the JPC clearing Waqf Bill, UCC being rolled out in Uttarakhand, to Palestinians returning to northern Gaza.
Uttarakhand rolls out Uniform Civil Code, launches UCC portal: Indian Express
Indian Express reports that the Uttarakhand government on Monday rolled out the Uniform Civil Code. The rules manual for the UCC and a portal for applications under the new rules were inaugurated by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami at the CM’s camp office in Dehradun. The Cabinet had approved the rules manual on January 20. On January 13, the Uttarakhand government began training its officials to help familiarise them with the UCC portal, the report adds. Read the full report here.
NDTV on Waqf Amendment Bill cleared by Joint Parliamentary Committee
A Joint Parliamentary Committee cleared the Waqf Amendment Bill Monday afternoon with 14 changes to the draft tabled in the House in August last year, NDTV reports. Opposition MPs on the committee led by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's Jagadambika Pal had proposed 44 amendments, all of which were rejected. Voting on the 14 proposed changes will take place on January 29, and the final report will be submitted by January 31, NDTV reported as per its sources. Read the full report here.
The Straits Times: Trump slaps tariffs, tariff bans on Colombia
US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he will impose sweeping retaliatory measures on Colombia, including tariffs and sanctions, The Straits Times reports, after the South American country turned away two US military aircraft with migrants being deported as part of the new US administration’s immigration crackdown. Colombia, America’s third largest trading partner in Latin America, responded swiftly. Writing on X, Colombian President Gustavo Petro initially said he would impose 50 percent tariffs on US goods. But he later deleted the post and announced that he had instructed his minister for external trade “to raise tariffs on imports from the US to 25 percent”, the report says. Trump’s punitive action appeared aimed at making an example of Colombia, the second case of a Latin American nation refusing US military deportation flights. Read the full report here.
Noida boy, 14, picked by NASA to name asteroid he ‘discovered’, Hindustan Times
Daksh Malik, a Class 9 student of Noida's Shiv Nadar School, has been recognised by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for a ‘provisional asteroid discovery’. Hindustan Times reports that this means that the boy will get to pick a permanent name for the asteroid. The asteroid is currently named ‘2023 OG40,’ with 2023 being the year of its discovery. Under the IASC, a citizen science programme affiliated to NASA, people – including students – from around the world can ‘discover’ asteroids for the US space agency, the report adds. Read the full report here.
Thousands of Palestinians return to north Gaza after deal reached, BBC reports
Thousands of Palestinians are returning to north Gaza after Israel and Hamas reached a deal to free six hostages this week, BBC reports. The Palestinians had been due to return north of the Netzarim Corridor, a strip of land controlled by Israel, on Saturday. But they were held up by a row over an Israeli hostage, Arbel Yehud, the report adds. Hamas released four soldiers on Saturday, but not Yehud, a civilian - leading Israel to accuse Hamas of breaching the Gaza ceasefire deal. Read the full report here.
