News Dabba for 29 January 2026: Five stories for a balanced news diet

Indie Journal brings you the daily updates that the internet is talking about through various news websites. Here's a glance through some of the National and International news updates, from 3-member team to probe Ajit Pawar plane crash, Supreme Court stay on new UGC rules, to Nipah virus fears in Asia.

Hindustan Times on 3-member team formed to probe Ajit Pawar plane crash

A three-member team has been constituted by the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) to probe the plane crash in Baramati that killed Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and four others on January 28, Hindustan Times reports. In a statement, the Ministry said the AAIB team, along with another three-member team from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Mumbai Regional Office, reached the crash site on the day of the accident itself. The Director General of AAIB also visited the site of the Learjet 45 crash to oversee the investigation, the report says. Read the full report here.

Supreme Court stays 2026 UGC regulations on caste-based discrimination, Indian Express

The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the 2026 UGC regulations on what amounts to caste-based discrimination. The University Grants Commission (UGC), the regulatory body for higher education in the country, had notified the regulations to deal with discrimination, including based on caste, in higher education institutions. Indian Express reports that the new UGC regulations notified earlier this month had mandated all higher education institutions to form ‘equity committees’ to look into discrimination complaints. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi issued notices to the Centre and the UGC on the pleas challenging the regulation. Read the full report here.

Heavy gunfire and blasts heard near airport in Niger's capital, BBC reports

Sustained heavy gunfire and loud explosions have been heard in Niger near the international airport outside the capital, Niamey, BBC reports. Multiple eyewitness accounts and videos showed air defence systems apparently engaging unidentified projectiles in the early hours of Thursday. The report says that the situation later calmed down, reports say, with an official reportedly saying the situation was now under control, without elaborating. It is not clear what caused the blasts, or if there were any casualties, the report adds. Read the full report here.

India's textile exporters pin hopes on EU deal after US tariff blow, NDTV reports

India's textile and apparel exporters, hit by 50 percent US tariffs imposed late in August, are banking on this week's trade agreement with the European Union to offset part of the damage, NDTV reports, while urging New Delhi to secure a quick deal with Washington. Under the pact, which will be implemented in about a year, the EU will immediately remove duties on 90 per cent of Indian goods, including the roughly 12 per cent tariff on textiles and apparel. US shipments fell more than 50 per cent in October-December from July-September for nearly one-quarter of textile exporters, the report says. Read the full report here.

The Straits Times: Nipah virus fears trigger airport checks across Asia after India confirms two cases

Two cases of the deadly Nipah virus in India have prompted the authorities in Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia, among other Asian countries, to step up airport screening in an effort to prevent the infection from spreading, The Straits Times reports. The virus, which is carried by fruit bats and animals such as pigs, can cause fever and brain inflammation and has a fatality rate of between 40 percent and 75 percent, the report says. Although it can spread from person to person, transmission is not easy and typically requires prolonged contact with an infected individual. Read the full report here.