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• Russia formally contested a four-year ban from major sporting events over doping violations that President Vladimir Putin has condemned as "unjust," the head of its RUSADA anti-doping agency said.


• "In accordance with established procedure, today we have sent a package of documents to the World Anti-Doping Agency," RUSADA director general Yury Ganus told reporters in Moscow.


• "The package contains a notice about disagreement with WADA sanctions." Ganus, who has long argued for a major crackdown by Russia against doping cheats, warned that the legal challenge could backfire, however.

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• ISIS released a video purporting to show its militants beheading 10 Christian men in Nigeria, saying it was part of a campaign to avenge the deaths of its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and its spokesman.


• The terrorist group posted the footage on its online Telegram news channel on Thursday, the day after Christmas, with Arabic captions but no audio.


• The video showed men in beige uniforms and black masks lining up behind blindfolded captives then beheading 10 of them and shooting the 11th man.

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• The UN General Assembly approved a resolution strongly condemning human rights abuses against Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims and other minorities, including arbitrary arrests, torture, rape and deaths in detention.


• The 193-member world body voted 134-9 with 28 abstentions in favor of the resolution which also calls on Myanmar’s government to take urgent measures to combat incitement of hatred against the Rohingya and other minorities in Rakhine, Kachin and Shan states.


• General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding but they do reflect world opinion.

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• The first red phone booth installed in 1924 in Piccadilly that became a prototype for thousands across London and elsewhere was listed as a Grade II* structure, which ensures special protection measures to retain its iconic status.


• The world has moved on since the booth was installed outside the Royal Academy. The red phone booths may be objects of curiosity and attraction for tourists in the digital age but are as much a British icon as the Queen, Big Ben, and Shakespeare.

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• Authorities in Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya have extended prohibitory orders banning the assembly of more than four people in the district till February 25, 2020, in view of anti-Citizenship Amendment Act.


• Ayodhya’s district magistrate Anuj Kumar Jha said that Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) has been extended as a precautionary measure amid violence across the state over the amended citizenship act.

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• Overseas Citizenship of India cardholders, in certain age groups, can travel to India even if they have not re-registered it after the issuance of their new passports, as the Home Ministry has relaxed travel conditions till June 30, 2020, an official said.


• An Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholder is required to re-register each time a new passport is issued till 20 years of age and once after 50 years of age, the ministry spokesperson said on Twitter.


• This is not mandatory in the age group of 21-50 years, she said.

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• Even as restrictions under section 144 of the CrPC are being imposed in several parts of the country, several protests have been planned against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act at Delhi's Jamia University, Shaheen Bagh, India Gate and Zakir Nagar.


• Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is also expected to pay a day-long visit to Assam today to extend the party's solidarity to the people protesting against the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

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• Nepal has banned vehicles with Indian number plates from running in the tourist hub of Pokhara ahead of the new year, a move that has sparked an uproar among tourism entrepreneurs.


• Nepal aims to attract two million tourists, mostly Indians, by 2020 and Pokhara is one of the most visited tourist destinations in the country on Christmas and the new year.


• The decision to ban Indian vehicles was taken by Pokhara Tourism Council in consultation with the district administration of Kaski to ease traffic congestion during celebrations, officials said.

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• A 19-year-old Hyderabad girl has bagged ‘Change the World’ scholarship worth around Rs 60 lakh awarded by the University of Wollongong, Australia.


• Srashta Vani Kolli, who has recently published her first poetry book titled “Wild Wings” said that she was selected for the prestigious scholarship after submitting a video application.


• “For this scholarship, I had started process in March 2019. I had submitted a video application to the University on the topic ‘How I will change the world’.


• In my video, I had mentioned that I will change through my writing. One of my poetry books was released in 2018 and the writing has helped me a lot.

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• The Central Board of Secondary Education has declared the result of Central Teachers’ Eligibility Test (CTET) December 2019 examination.


• CTET 2019 was held in 110 cities across India on December 8 in which approximately 24 lakh, five thousand and 145 candidates appeared.


• A total of 5 lakh 42 thousand 285 candidates have been declared qualified.


• A total of 22.55% of candidates have qualified.


• According to the official press release, a total of 3.12 lakh females and 2.2 lakh male candidates have passed the exam.

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• The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has announced Deputy Central Intelligence Officer (DCIO) recruitment.


• A total of 27 vacancies are available under Intelligence Bureau, Ministry of Home Affairs. A DCIO would be required to supervise operation and maintenance of communication network/ equipment, facilitate maintenance & operation of Cyber Security/forensics equipment, among other duties. The post carries all India transfer liability.

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• The health of scheduled urban cooperative banks (SUCBs) worsened in the second quarter with a fall in capital adequacy and a rise in gross non-performing assets (NPAs), the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in a report.


• As on September 2019, the capital adequacy ratio of SUCBs fell 9.8 percent, down from 13.5 percent in the quarter that ended in March. Also, the gross NPA ratio rose to 10.5 percent, down from 6.4 percent in the same period, the RBI said in the Financial Stability Report that it released on December 27.

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• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday cautioned that the asset quality of scheduled commercial banks (SCB) may worsen next year owing to changes in the macroeconomic scenario.


• In its latest Financial Stability Report, the central bank also warned that there remains an inherent risk of “froth”—conditions that precede a market bubble—building up in the system due to excess liquidity.

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• Doubles coach Flandy Limpele said that the men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty "have the capability" to win India's first-ever doubles Olympic medal.


• This year, the duo won their maiden Super 500 title at Thailand Open and finished second at the French Open Super 750. They were also nominated for 'Most Improved Player of the Year' award.

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• Australia captain Tim Paine blasted cricket's Decision Review System (DRS), saying it left him "disappointed and angry" after he was dismissed controversially in the second Test against New Zealand.


• DRS drama take place at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) after Mitchell Santner survived a contentious caught-out review during the New Zealand innings.


• The ball appeared to make contact with sweat band of Santner's right glove, which is considered part of the bat under the Laws of Cricket, however, third umpire Aleem Dar stuck with on-field umpire Marais Erasmus' original decision of not out.

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• Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Narendra Singh Tomar, presented the Best Performing Award for Rural Self Employment Training Institutes (RSETI) (2nd rank) to Andhra Bank for the financial year 2018-19.


• The Award was received by Executive Director of Andhra Bank, Kul Bhushan Jain.