From the Newsroom: Indian economy may contract 7.7% in 2020-21; Farmers conducts tractor-march from protest sites in Delhi

In your evening news brief, From The Newsroom, advanced estimates of economy show contraction in all sectors except agriculture; US congress certifies Joe Biden as the next American president; Karnataka minister urges people to use products made of cow dung and urine and farmers conduct tractor rally.

Here is the top news of January 7, 2021:

Farmers gathered at a major highway in Delhi today and made it clear that their protest would not stop until the new agriculture laws were repealed. The farming unions said that this rally was a dry-run for a much bigger tractor parade on January 26.

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The latest advanced estimates released by the National Statistical Office don’t paint a rosy picture of the economy.

The estimates said that there was contraction in almost all sectors with the exception of agriculture and the economy is estimated to contract 7.7% in 2020-21 compared to 4.2% growth in the previous fiscal, mainly on account of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Karnataka Animal Husbandry Minister Prabhu Chauhan has urged citizens to use soaps, shampoos, incense sticks and other products made of cow dung and urine. This, he said, will help protect the cow.

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The US Congress formally certified Joe Biden as the next US president today, dealing a hammer blow to Donald Trump whose supporters stormed the Capitol hours earlier, triggering unprecedented scenes of mayhem at the Capitol. Lawmakers in the Senate and House of Representatives successfully beat back Republican efforts to deny Biden the electoral votes needed to win, prompting loud cheers when the certification was announced.

Source: DHNS/ PTI/ AFP

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That is it today, From the Newsroom. Tune in tomorrow morning for our feature show, The Lead.

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