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Breaking News Live Updates, December 18, 2025: The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the VB G Ram G Bill, a new rural employment law set to replace the two-decade-old MGNREGA, amid loud protests from the Opposition. Several MPs tore copies of the Bill in the House. The legislation will now go to the Rajya Sabha. It guarantees 125 days of wage work for rural households and shifts 40 per cent of costs to states.
If approved, the law will expand the annual employment guarantee from 100 to 125 days for rural families seeking unskilled manual work, marking a significant shift in India’s flagship rural jobs programme.
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The Enforcement Directorate has found several high end luxury cars during a search at the residence of YouTuber Anurag Dwivedi, who allegedly made large sums of money through online betting and gambling apps. Dwivedi, a resident of Unnao in Uttar Pradesh, is known for running a popular YouTube channel. Officials said the search led to the recovery of four premium vehicles, including a Lamborghini Urus, a BMW Z4 and a Mercedes Benz. The probe is part of a wider investigation into illegal betting and gambling activities.
Income tax officials on Tuesday carried out searches at actor Shilpa Shetty Kundra’s residence in connection with a case linked to her restaurant chain, Bastian. Shetty is a co owner of the brand, which was founded in 2014. Officials said the action was part of an ongoing probe, and related searches were also conducted at certain premises in Bengaluru. Further details are awaited as the investigation continues.
Fifteen people from Assam’s Nagaon district who were declared foreigners by tribunals between 1990 and 2021 have been ordered to leave India within 24 hours. The directive was issued under the Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act, 1950. Officials said the move follows long pending tribunal rulings and is part of action being taken against individuals identified as illegal migrants.
A Parliamentary Standing Committee has warned that political shifts in Bangladesh pose a long term strategic challenge for India. The panel cited weakening political legitimacy, the return of Islamist forces, and growing Chinese and Pakistani influence as key concerns.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin said the tariffs have triggered a major crisis for the state’s economy, which plays a crucial role in India’s export sector. He warned that the situation demands urgent attention as losses faced by exporters are mounting rapidly.
Home Minister Dr G Parameshwara informed the Legislative Council that 88 police personnel in Karnataka were involved in criminal cases over the past three years. The disclosure, made during the Belagavi winter session, triggered concern across party lines and renewed questions over internal discipline within the police force.
Union minister Giriraj Singh on Tuesday reiterated his defence of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar amid the hijab controversy, saying the chief minister had done nothing wrong. Singh, who has emerged as a vocal supporter of Kumar, said identity verification is a routine part of processes such as employment and voting.
His remarks came after he criticised the woman involved in the row for refusing to show her face, a stance that has continued to draw political reactions.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been awarded the First Class of the Order of Oman, the country’s highest civilian honour. The award has earlier been conferred on global leaders including Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Máxima, Emperor Akihito, Nelson Mandela and King Abdullah of Jordan. This marks the 29th international honour received by Prime Minister Modi, underlining his growing global recognition and diplomatic outreach.
Republic Day 2026 is set to be diplomatically significant, with top European Union leaders expected to attend as chief guests. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa are likely to visit New Delhi, alongside an India–EU Summit.
The visit is expected to focus on strengthening strategic ties and advancing talks on the long pending India–EU free trade agreement.
A 48 year old woman was allegedly killed by her tenants when she went to their flat to collect rent, police said on Thursday. The deceased was identified as Deepshikha Sharma. According to Assistant Commissioner of Police Nandgram Upasna Pandey, the incident took place around 11 pm at Aura Chimera Society. Police said an investigation is under way and further details are being verified.
In the Red Fort blast case, accused Yasir Ahmad Dar was produced before the special NIA court at Patiala House in Delhi on Tuesday. The court remanded him to NIA custody until 26 December. Dar was arrested in connection with the Delhi blast case, and investigators are expected to question him further as part of the ongoing probe.
The Lok Sabha passed the VB G RAM G rural jobs Bill amid Opposition protests, with MPs raising slogans and tearing copies of the legislation. The Bill now awaits consideration in the Rajya Sabha.
A gold crown was allegedly stolen from the revered Thawe temple in Bihar's Gopalganj district in the early hours of Thursday, police said. CCTV footage showed some persons decamping with the gold crown of the idol, they said, adding that it weighed around 500 gram.
Three tourists from Uttar Pradesh were killed and two others injured when their car fell into a gorge in Uttarakhand’s Nainital district on Thursday, police said. The accident occurred near Niglat on the Bhowali–Almora National Highway, they said. On receiving information, police and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams rushed to the spot and launched a rescue and relief operation.
Odisha Congress on Thursday demanded Rs 5 lakh compensation and government job for a family member of the alleged gangrape victim at Dhauli on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar. A 17-year-old college student was allegedly raped by some men near Dhauli hills on the evening of December 10.
Lok Sabha passes G Ram G Bill amid Opposition ruckus
Mahatma Gandhi's name was added to NREGA with an eye on 2009 elections: Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan
A 19 year old Rohingya man was stabbed to death allegedly by another Rohingya following a drunken brawl here, police said on Thursday. The victim was attacked by a knife by the suspect who stabbed him 19 times at their camp in Balapur at around 1.30 AM on December 17 resulting in his instant death, they said. A police team reached the spot after getting information.
Rajya Sabha LoP and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge says, "This is not about renaming MGNREGA, this is about right to work. They are snatching away the right that was given by us...They are snatching away the rights of people. This is a big issue, and it is very difficult for the poor. So, we will fight for this till the end. We will fight on the streets and in every district of every state there will be a movement."
AI Express flight from Jeddah to Calicut makes emergency landing at Cochin airport due to technical issue: CIAL
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that he has approved a USD35 billion natural gas export deal to Egypt, the biggest gas deal in Israeli history. The agreement could also help repair relations between the two countries strained during the two-year war in the Gaza Strip. The gas will be delivered to Egypt over the next 15 years by US energy giant Chevron, a key owner of the gas field off Israel's coast in the Mediterranean Sea. Half of the proceeds are expected to go to Israel's state coffers.
A passenger says, "I am going to Kota. My train was about to arrive at 8 am, but since it's late, it will arrive at 11 am. There’s so much cold here. We are having lots of problems here."
Peter Arnett, the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter who spent decades dodging bullets and bombs to bring the world eyewitness accounts of war from the rice paddies of Vietnam to the deserts of Iraq, has died at 91. Arnett, who won the 1966 Pulitzer Prize for international reporting for his Vietnam War coverage for The Associated Press, died Wednesday in Newport Beach and was surrounded by friends and family, said his son Andrew Arnett. He had entered hospice on Saturday while suffering from prostate cancer.
In an address to the Nation, US President Donald Trump says, "Tonight, I am also proud to announce that more than 1,450,000 military service members will receive a special warrior dividend before Christmas. In honour of our nation's founding in 1776, we are sending every soldier 1,776 dollars."
In an address to the Nation, US President Donald Trump says, "I restored American strength, settled 8 wars in 10 months, destroyed the Iran nuclear threat and ended the war in Gaza - bringing for the first time in 3000 years peace to the Middle East and secured the release of the hostages, both living and the dead..."
After the fourth T20I between India and South Africa was called off on Wednesday owing to poor visibility after a dense layer of smog engulfed the Ekana Stadium, the Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday said that Lucknow's air quality index (AQI) stood at 174, indicating a moderate level of air quality. It also cautioned the public against relying on misleading figures circulated on social media and other platforms based on private air quality applications.
Air quality in Dehradun has deteriorated over the past two days, slipping into the ‘poor’ category and raising concerns. Professor Vijay Sridhar, head of the pollution monitoring centre at Doon University, said the city’s real-time Air Quality Index (AQI) on Wednesday stood at 267, while the average AQI touched 291. "The AQI shows some improvement during the day due to air movement, but at night it crosses 300," he said.
Israeli troops fired a mortar shell over the ceasefire line into a Palestinian residential area in the Gaza Strip, in the latest incident to rock the tenuous ceasefire with Hamas. Health officials said at least 10 people were wounded, and the army said it was investigating. The military said the mortar was fired during an operation in the area of the “Yellow Line,” which was drawn in the ceasefire agreement and divides the Israeli-held majority of Gaza from the rest of the territory.
FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said Wednesday that he will resign from the bureau next month, ending a brief and tumultuous tenure in which he clashed with the Justice Department over the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files and was forced to reconcile the realities of his law enforcement job with provocative claims he made in his prior role as a popular podcast host. The departure, which had been expected, would be among the highest-profile resignations of the Trump administration. It comes as FBI leadership has been buffeted by criticism over Director Kash Patel's use of a government plane for personal purposes and social media posts about active investigations.
President Donald Trump demanded Wednesday that Venezuela return assets that it seized from US oil companies years ago, justifying anew his announcement of a “blockade” against oil tankers travelling to or from the South American country that face American sanctions. Trump cited the lost US investments in Venezuela when asked about his newest tactic in a monthslong pressure campaign against leader Nicolás Maduro, suggesting his administration's moves to confront leaders in Caracas are at least somewhat motivated by disputes over oil investments, along with accusations of drug trafficking. Some sanctioned tankers already are diverting away from Venezuela.
