Delhi

New Delhi, Dec 18 (PTI) Delhi is likely to record another "severe" cold day on Friday as frosty winds from snow-covered Western Himalayas continue to sweep the national capital, the India Meteorological Department said.

The city had recorded a "severe" cold day on Thursday as the maximum temperature dropped to 15.2 degrees Celsius, seven notches below normal and the lowest this season so far.

On Friday, the Safdarjung Observatory, which provides representative data for the city, recorded a minimum temperature of 4.4 degrees Celsius.

New Delhi/Kolkata, Dec 17 (PTI) The government will press ahead with the sale of public sector companies that have been approved by the Cabinet, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Thursday.

Highlighting that FDI flow into India is much higher compared to other emerging economies, she said India's strong macroeconomic fundamentals, ability to do reforms and a stable government help attract long-term foreign funds into Indian businesses.

New Delhi, Dec 17 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi may flag off the country's first driverless metro train later this month in the national capital, official sources said on Thursday.

The train will be flagged off on the Magenta Line (Janakpuri West- Botanical Garden) of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), they said.

"A proposal has been sent to the Prime Minister's Office to flag off the driverless train around December 25," a source said.

Kolkata, Dec 18 (PTI) Home Minister Amit Shah will arrive in Kolkata on Friday night on a two-day visit to take stock of the BJP's affairs in the state as the assembly elections draw near, amid a rebellion within the ruling Trinamool Congress.

Speculations are rife that heavyweight Suvendu Adhikari, who quit the Trinamool Congress and gave up cabinet portfolios in the Mamata Banerjee government, may join BJP during Shah's visit along with a slew of disgruntled TMC leaders, including some MLAs such as Silbhadra Dutta and Jitendra Tiwari.

New Delhi, Dec 16 (PTI) The government on Wednesday approved a subsidy of Rs 3,500 crore to sugar mills for the export of 60 lakh tonnes of sweetener during the ongoing marketing year 2020-21 as part of its efforts to help them clear outstanding dues to sugarcane farmers.

Briefing media after the meeting, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar said the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved a subsidy of Rs 3,500 crore on exports of 60 lakh tonnes of sweetener and the subsidy amount will directly be given to farmers.

New Delhi, Dec 16 (PTI) Facebook's India head Ajit Mohan deposed before a parliamentary panel on Wednesday and was questioned about a recent report that the social media giant is reluctant to ban the Bajrang Dal due to concerns over the security of its staff.

Mohan deposed before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology, chaired by Congress leader Shashi Tharoor. The panel had called him on the issue of the citizens' data safety.

New Delhi, Dec 15 (PTI) The Nurses Union of Delhi AIIMS called off their strike on Tuesday night after a meeting with the hospital administration, hours after the Delhi High Court restrained it from continuing its agitation.

On Monday, around 5,000 nurses of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here went on a strike over their long pending demands, including those with regard to the Sixth Central Pay Commission (CPC).

"They (nurses) have called off their strike and have joined their duties," AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria told PTI.

New Delhi, Dec 15 (PTI) The protest against the Centre's new farm laws looks set to intensify further as more farmers are expected to join the ongoing agitation at Delhi's border points to press for their demands.

Over 2,000 women from the families of those protesting at the Singhu border here are likely to join the demonstration in the coming days.

New Delhi, Dec 14 (PTI) Salt-to-software conglomerate Tata Group and US-based fund Interups Inc were among "multiple" entities that on Monday put in preliminary bids for buying loss-making carrier Air India.

A group of 219 Air India employees submitted an expression of interest (EoI) for the carrier in partnership with Interups at the close of the deadline on Monday.

New Delhi, Dec 14 (PTI) The AIIMS Nurses Union went on an indefinite strike from Monday over their long pending demands, including those with regard to the Sixth Central Pay Commission and against contractual appointments, even as AIIMS director appealed them to call off their agitation and return to work.