A look at the top headlines right now:

  1. India fighting another Covid wave with ‘full alertness’, says PM Modi at World Economic Forum: The prime minister said this was the best time to invest in India.
  2. Delhi reports 12,527 new Covid cases with low testing, Mumbai has 5,956 fresh cases: Mumbai also reported less testing over the weekend. Meanwhile, the Telangana High Court asked the state to conduct 1 lakh RT-PCR tests daily, and the Centre told the Supreme Court that a vaccination certificate not mandatory for any purpose. India recorded 2.58 lakh new cases on Monday, and the positivity rate climbed to 19.65%.
  3. Vaccines for children in 12-14 age group likely from March, says Covid-19 task force chief: The government will take a decision once the inoculation of the 15-18 age group is covered.
  4. Two Indians among three killed in suspected drone attack in Abu Dhabi: Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group claimed responsibility for the attack.
  5. Yati Narsinghanand Giri booked for hate speech in Haridwar, say police: On Saturday, the police had said that the seer was arrested for making derogatory comments against women.
  6. Punjab Assembly elections postponed to February 20, says poll panel: Political parties had sought to defer the elections because of Guru Ravidas Jayanti.
  7. Kathak legend Birju Maharaj dies at 83, tributes pour in: The dance veteran suffered a heart attack on Sunday.
  8. ‘Deeply disappointed’ by Centre rejecting Tamil Nadu’s tableau for Republic Day, says MK Stalin: The chief minister sought Prime Minister Modi’s intervention, saying the move will hurt the ‘patriotic feelings’ of the people of the state.
  9. Rajasthan government to hand over inquiry into alleged rape of minor in Alwar to CBI: The family of the girl had demanded that the central agency investigates the case, alleging that the police have changed their stance to say she was not raped.
  10. Income of 84% Indian households fell in 2021 while 40 new billionaires emerged: Oxfam report: The non-profit group said that while the wealth of Indian billionaires rose by Rs 30 lakh crore during pandemic, over 4.6 crore people fell to extreme poverty.