1. UP to build world's longest Expressway: Yogi Adityanath

• The Uttar Pradesh cabinet met at Prayagraj, the venue of the Kumbh and cleared the decks to construct what is being touted as the world's longest highway -- the Ganga Expressway between Meerut and Prayagraj.
• The proposed Ganga Expressway will weave through Meerut-Amroha-Bulandshahr-Budaun-Shahjahanpur-Kannauj-Unnao-Rae Bareli-Pratapgarh and end at Prayagraj, earlier known as Allahabad.
• The cabinet also decided to make tax free the Bollywood film "Uri", based on the Indian Army's surgical strike on terror bases in Pakistan.

2. India bags Award of Excellence for 'Best in Show' at New York Times Travel Show 2019

• India received the Award of Excellence for 'Best in Show' at the recently concluded New York Times Travel Show 2019.
• It is the largest travel show in North America which is held from January 25 to January 27 in New York.
• India was honored during the closing bell ceremony at the New York Stock Exchange.

3. George Fernandes, former Union minister, dies at 88

• George Fernandes, former Union minister, and nine-time Lok Sabha MP passed away at the age of 88 following a prolonged illness.
• Fernandes was born in Mangalore in Karnataka in 1930. An anti-Emergency crusader, Fernandes was a fiery socialist and arch-enemy of Indira Gandhi.
• During his term, he took on American multinational companies like IBM and Coca-Cola, making them leave the country.

4. Dilip Sadarangani Appointed Part Time Chairman of Federal Bank

• Dilip Sadarangani has been appointed as Part Time Chairman of Federal Bank. The Bank obtained approval of Reserve Bank of India in this regard.
• He has been in the board of Federal Bank since 2013. Shri. Dilip Sadarangani is a renowned banker with experience in various facets of banking, particularly technology, in different countries.
• He has played key roles in setting up of IT infrastructure in different banks in India, Australia, and Kuwait.

5. Jayant Kaikini's 'No Presents Please' wins prestigious DSC Prize

• Kannada poet and short story writer Jayant Kaikini was named the winner of the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature for his translated work "No Presents Please."
• Jayant beat internationally-acclaimed writers including Kamila Shamsie and Mohsin Hamid to win the prize and the generous purse of $25,000.
• The announcement was made at the Tata Steel Kolkata Literary Meet at the iconic Victoria Memorial Hall in Kolkata. This marks the first time a translated work has won the prestigious prize.

6. GST on Haj reduced from 18% to 5%

• Union Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas  Naqvi said that GST on Haj has been reduced from 18 percent to 5 percent and this will significantly lower the airfare thus saving Haj pilgrims’  113 crore rupees this year.
• He was speaking at the inauguration ceremony of a new conference hall and passport section at the Haj House in Mumbai.
• Mr. Naqvi said this for the first time since the independence that 2,340 women from India will go on 2019 Haj without Mehram.

7. FDI grew 18% in FY18 to Rs 28.25 lakh crore: RBI data

• Reserve Bank of India released a data on “Census on Foreign Liabilities and Assets of Indian Direct Investment Companies, 2017-18” which shows that the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has been increased 18 percent to Rs. 28.25 lakh crore.
• The RBI said as many as 23,065 companies responded to the latest round of the census, of which, 20,732 firms had FDI or ODI in their balance sheet in March 2018.
• Singapore was the top destination followed by Netherlands, Mauritius and United States of America in case of Overseas investment by Indian companies.