Morning digest: January 25, 2022

During the upcoming Budget Session, Parliament will function in two shifts, with Rajya Sabha functioning from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Lok Sabha from 4 p.m. till 9 p.m. At least two Parliament sessions in last two years have been held this way as part of the COVID-19 protocol. According to sources, the proposal was sent to the Ministry of External Affairs from the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi on behalf of the Pakistan Hindu Council chief patron Ramesh Vankwani, asking that two chartered flights of Pakistan International Airlines carrying pilgrims be allowed to fly from Lahore and Karachi to destinations in India this Saturday. Releasing its list of 30 star campaigners for the first phase of the Assembly election in Utar Pradesh, the Congress on Monday named former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, former party chief Rahul Gandhi, new entrant Kanhaiya Kumar and some of the G-23 leaders. NATO allies have put forces on standby and sent ships and fighter jets to bolster Europe’s eastern defences as tensions soar over Russia’s military buildup around Ukraine, the alliance said Monday. Mutinous troops in restive Burkina Faso arrested President Roch Marc Christian Kabore on Monday and detained him in army barracks a day after staging an uprising, security sources said.