Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Indian Science Congress today in Jalandhar. During the five-day-long ISC, around 100 plus conferences and events of scientific and technological origin will be held, where scientists, senior officials from DRDO, ISRO, Department of Science and Technology, AIIMS, UGC, AICTE, and many elite universities of the US, UK, India and other countries will participate. The theme for ISC-2019 is ‘Future India-Science and Technology’.
Leading 2-1 in the four-match Test series, India remain firm favourites to make it 3-1 at the Sydney Cricket Ground in the fourth and final Test starting today. Australia have hosted India since 1947-48, and barring three occasions — which were drawn — the visitors have lost the Test series seven times. India will retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy irrespective of the result. Kohli will join Ganguly as the only Indian captain to have achieved this feat in Australia.
The Supreme Court will hear a plea seeking urgent steps to rescue 15 miners trapped inside an illegal coal mine in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills district since December 13. The rat-hole mine, located on top of a hillock fully covered with trees in East Jaintia Hills district, had got flooded when water from the nearby Lytein river gushed into it, trapping the miners. The multi-agency operation to rescue the miners has been hindered after high-powered pumps encountered technical snags on Tuesday.
In the US, Democrats take over the House of Representatives in the 2019-2020 Congress on Thursday. The Democrats have planned a vote on a funding package to end the 10-day-old partial US government shutdown without providing the $5 billion President Donald Trump has demanded for a US-Mexico border wall. But its prospects are grim in the Republican-led Senate, which previously approved similar measures on the floor or in committee but has since fallen in line with Trump's demands.
CAIT will hold a city-wide agitation in Delhi, seeking relief from the ongoing sealing drive. CAIT has prepared a charter for the agitation which seeks de-sealing of shops that have been sealed and to stop any further sealing drive in Delhi. It maintains that the Union government should either bring a legislation in this regard in the current session of Parliament or an ordinance immediately after the session.