President gives assent to CAB, 5 states refuse to implement it

• West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee to hold mega rally in Kolkata, Amit Shah cancels his visit to Shillong
• More than 20 columns of the Army and Assam Rifles have been deployed across Assam

Productive winter session ends on controversial note

• Lok Sabha registers productivity of 116%, Rajya Sabha at 99%; 15 bills cleared by both
• Lok Sabha chairman Om Birla’s concluding remarks was cut short by protesting members

IBC amendment applicable if homebuyers' applications were not admitted in NCLT

• The Bill was tabled in Lok Sabha on December 12 but was not passed as the opposition had raised objections
• As the amendments are prospective, applications filed by single homebuyers that were admitted in the NCLT would continue

TDP moves privilege motion against Andhra Chief Minister

• TDP and YSRCP have been involved in a bitter verbal spat since Thursday after TDP supremo N. Chandrababu Naidu was not allowed to enter the Assembly premises by the chief marshal
• Naidu and his son Lokesh carried a black flag and went to the Assembly on Friday

Aluminium association suggests raising import duty on all products

• The association suggested raising import duty across all aluminium products in a range of 2.5-5%
• Aluminium imports witnessed huge surge in recent years primarily from China

North Karnataka hoping for better representation in Yediyurappa’s cabinet

• The two previous governments had continued the practice of favouring the south in their respective cabinets
• The northern districts have some of the lowest human development indices compared not just to other parts of the state but also the country

Rajya Sabha passes International Financial Services Centres Authority Bill, 2019

• Apart from regulating all financial services and products, the authority can also recommend any other financial products to the central government
• The Lok Sabha passed Bill on Wednesday and will become a law after the President’s assent

62.6% voter turnout in third phase of Jharkhand polls

• Amid tight security, 62.60% of 56,18,267 voters exercised their franchise in the 17 seats across eight districts, they said
• Fourth-phase polling for 15 seats is scheduled on December 16 and the last phase for 16 seats will be held on December 20

TRS braces for tough fight in civic polls as welfare funds dry up

• In his letter to Sitharaman, KCR said that Telangana had only received about half of their tax devolution
• While presenting a revised budget, KCR cut the state’s total expenditure for 2019-20 to ₹1.46 lakh crore from projected ₹1.82 lakh crore projected in February, citing economic slowdown

Will study and decide, Uddhav Thackeray tells Branson on Hyperloop project

• The meeting took place at `Matoshree', the Thackeray family residence in suburban Bandra
• Branson's Virgin Hyperloop One had stunned all by announcing the project when Fadnavis was chief minister, and promised to get the project going by 2020

Govt to sell 100% stake in Air India, says Hardeep Singh Puri

• Air India's net loss in 2018-19 is provisionally estimated to be ₹8,556.35 crore
• The national carrier, which has a debt burden of more than ₹50,000 crore

Maharashtra government: Shiv Sena gets Home, NCP Finance, Congress revenue, PWD

• NCP gets finance, housing, public health, co-operation ministries in Maharashtra government
• Shiv Sena gets Home, Urban Development ministries in Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government

CAG raises concerns about diversion of cooking fuel and benefits under Ujjwala

• CAG pointed out instances wherein bank account of others were linked with the Ujjwala scheme beneficiaries
• This led to the transfer of subsidy in the bank accounts of others rather than the intended beneficiary

Stones pelted at house of Assam CM in Dibrugarh amidst protests against CAB

• Dibrugarh Deputy Commissioner Pallav Gopal Jha said stones were thrown at the house of the chief minister in the Lakhinagar area
• The anti-CAB protesters also vandalised the houses of BJP MLA Prasanta Phukan and party leader Subhash Dutta, officials said

Abstained from voting as govt didn't give satisfactory answers: Shiv Sena MP

• The Shiv Sena is in alliance with the ideologically opposite Congress and NCP, both of whom voted against the bill
• The change in the stance comes a day after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi expressed displeasure over the Shiv Sena backing the bill in Lok Sabha

CAB passage marks victory of bigoted forces: Sonia Gandhi

• The Bill was tabled for discussion in the Upper House by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The CAB was passed in the Lok Sabha on Monday
• Sonia Gandhi also took a dig at the government over passing the Bill in the 150th birth anniversary year of Mahatma Gandhi

Cabinet allows ₹5,300 crore capital infusion in IIFCL via recap bonds

• The Cabinet also approved for increasing the authorized capital of IIFCL from ₹6,000 crore to ₹25,000 crore
• IIFCL was set up in 2006 for providing long-term finance to viable infrastructure projects across various sectors

Tweaks to non-banks liquidity scheme, IBC get cabinet’s approval

• NBFCs and HFCs came under stress after the breakdown of IL&FS in September, 2018
• Special mention account (SMA) was introduced by the banking regulator to identify the loans that have the potential to turn bad and show signs of stress

Cabinet nod to ring-fence firms undergoing insolvency

• The amendments also make it difficult for small creditors to drag companies to courts over small delays or over non-payment of small amounts
• This will prevent unnecessary clogging of the bankruptcy courts

CAG report raises concerns about Ujjwala scheme

• The government is of the view that Ujjwala is part of the ambitious agenda for behavioural change that will help India transit to a $5 trillion economy by 2024
• This comes in the backdrop of the Ujjwala scheme that provides free cooking gas connections to poor families