Top 10 Headlines: Winter Session 2021; Uttarakhand Polls, COVID-19 booster shots and more

Winter Session 2021: Farm Laws repeal, power, crypto in focus; Centre to table 26 Bills

Setting a packed agenda for the Winter session, Centre has listed 26 bills for consideration and passage in this session. Key bills to be tabled are Farm Laws Repeal Bill, Electricity (Amendment) Bill, Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill and Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill. The Parliament's Winter session will last from November 29 to December 23. 

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AAP taunts Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Dhami over Devasthanam Board issue: 'Kuch Kar Dhami'

Heating up the political battle for the hilly state, AAP's CM face for Uttarakhand Col Ajay Singh Kothiyal on Sunday, coined 'Kuch Kar Dhami' for the CM Pushkar Dhami. Addressing a rally in Gopeshwar, Kothiyal lamented at the govt's inaction over the Devasthanam board law, land mafia, unemployment, women empowerment, electricity and water bills. Uttarakhand, along with Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Manipur, Goa will go to polls in February 2022.

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WHO: evidence 'insufficient' to declare if COVID variant Omicron more dangerous than Delta

As recommended by the WHO’s Technical Advisory Group on Virus Evolution (TAG-VE), and evidence presented to the TAG-VE, the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Sunday declared that the data is “insufficient” for the global health body to establish whether the variant of concern B.1.1.529 named Omicron is more transmissible than Delta. "It is not yet clear whether Omicron is more transmissible (e.g., more easily spread from person to person) compared to other variants, including Delta. The number of people testing positive has risen in areas of South Africa affected by this variant, but epidemiologic studies are underway to understand if it is because of Omicron or other factors," the WHO said in a statement.

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Punjab CM Channi gives free helicopter ride to local kids amid Congress political turmoil

Amid the heavy political infighting in Punjab, CM Charanjit Singh Channi on Sunday, shared a photo with some local children whom had taken on a free helicopter spin. Taking to Twitter, Channi explained that he had found the kids playing near his helicopter while visiting Morinda. Stating that it was a childhood dream of his to fly in a helicopter, he offered the ride to the children. Punjab goes to polls in February 2022.

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Mehul Choksi claims plot to kidnap him to Guyana; 'can't travel due to medical treatment'

Speaking to the media from his house in Antigua on Monday, PNB fraud case accused Mehul Choksi warned of an attempt to kidnap him to Guyana on this occasion. Asserting that his health has deteriorated a lot in the last 4 years, the fugitive said that he is yet to recover from the "shock" of his previous kidnapping. Maintaining that he wants to contest all charges against me, Choksi claimed that he was unable to return to India owing to his health issues. Earlier this month, he had moved the Bombay High Court seeking a stay on the proceedings initiated by the ED of declaring him as a ‘fugitive economic offender'. 

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As Parliament's Winter Session 2021 dawns, LS & RS business advisory committees to meet

A meeting of the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) of the Lok Sabha will be held at 10.30 am on Monday, November 29, before the Parliament's Winter Session begins. A meeting of the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) of Rajya Sabha is also set to take place at 10 am. A total of 26 bills are slated to be tabled in the month-long Parliament session. Business Advisory Committee of both Houses recommend the time that should be allocated for the discussion of the stage of Government Bills and other business as the Chairman in consultation with the Leader of the House may direct for being referred to the Committee.

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Abhishek Banerjee hails TMC's Tripura Civic Polls result as Party wins 1 seat To BJP's 329

Member of Parliament Abhishek Banerjee, the General Secretary of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), praised his party's result in the Tripura civic body elections on Sunday, saying it was unique for TMC to emerge as the state's main opposition despite having a tiny presence there at the outset. "It is exceptional for a party beginning with negligible presence to successfully contest municipal elections and emerge as the PRINCIPAL OPPOSITION in the state with more than 20% vote share (1/2)," said Banerjee in his tweet. He praised the party's Tripura section for its election efforts, stating that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had "left no stone unturned to butcher democracy in Tripura."

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COVID-19 Booster dose policy to be unveiled in a week: Maharashtra Task Force member

Amid concerns over the Omicron variant, India is likely to unveil a COVID-19 booster dose policy within a week's time, Maharashtra COVID Task Force member Dr. Shashank Joshi told Republic TV on November 28. The Mumbai-based endocrinologist revealed that the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation in India (NTAGI) will make an announcement in this regard. According to him, the Centre was awaiting specific data after which it shall officially permit certain categories of people to take the third dose of the novel coronavirus vaccine.

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Dhanush bags Best Actor Award for his performance in 'Asuran' at BRICS Film Festival

South star Dhanush's Asuran just added another feather to his cap. After a massive win at the National Film Awards, the actor's film also bagged him the Best Actor Award at the BRICS Film Festival. The actor is currently celebrating another massive win for the movie and penned it was an absolute honour for him to receive the award.

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Omicron: 'Definitive info' on new COVID strain may take up to 2 weeks, US experts to Biden

United States’ top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci has told US President Joe Biden that it may about two weeks to have definitive information on the new variant of concern of novel coronavirus ‘Omicron’ as the financial market riles up, global air travel grounds, and countries globe wide scramble to impose set of bans, including sealing borders to the South African nations. As the US President returned from Washington after his Thanksgiving holiday weekend, he was briefed by the White House's COVID Response Team Sunday afternoon about the new Omicron variant that they expect will soon reach the United States. 

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