Feb 13 News Live: My ‘power-sharing’ offer has become a political bomb in TN: Vijay

Aviation safety watchdog DGCA has imposed a fine of Rs 1 crore on Tata Group-owned Air India for operating an Airbus A320 neo plane without the requisite airworthiness certification on at least eight routes last year, according to sources.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), on December 2 last year, said it was probing the incident of Air India operating an A320 neo plane without having a requisite airworthiness certification on at least eight routes.

The sources on Friday (February 13) said the regulator has slapped Rs 1 crore fine on Air India for the violations.

"Air India acknowledges the receipt of a DGCA order in relation to an incident that was voluntarily reported back in 2025. All identified gaps have since been satisfactorily addressed and shared with the authority," the airline said in a statement.

On November 26, 2025, the airline informed the DGCA about the flying of the A320 aircraft with the expired airworthiness review certificate (ARC) on eight revenue sectors.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday (February 13) imposed monetary penalties on Bank of Maharashtra, DCB Bank and CSB Bank for non-compliance with directions.

The central bank imposed Rs 32.50 lakh fine on Bank of Maharashtra, Rs 29.60 lakh on DCB Bank, and Rs 63.60 lakh on CSB Bank, RBI said in a release.

The RBI also penalised Navi Finserv with Rs 3.80 lakh, and slapped a Rs 5.30 lakh fine on IIFL Finance, the release added.

The monetary penalty on the Bank of Maharashtra was imposed, as the lender did not report Self Help Group member-level data to credit information companies and did not identify beneficial owners in certain accounts.

CSB Bank was penalised as it entered into an arrangement with business correspondents for undertaking activities outside the scope of activities that can be undertaken by them, and levying charges in certain savings bank accounts without ensuring that customers were made aware of such charges upfront, the RBI said.

In the case of DCB Bank, the RBI found that it failed to maintain the prescribed loan-to-value (LTV) ratio in certain non-agricultural gold loan accounts during the tenure of such loans, which resulted in the penalty.

Non-bank lender IIFL Finance failed to classify certain accounts as 'non-performing assets' on restructuring, and Navi Finserv contacted customers at odd hours for recovery of overdue loans and did not follow the due protocol while sending messages to customers, which resulted in it getting penalised by the central bank.

Seven-year-old Thane boy Reyaansh Khamkar has entered the World Book of Records London for being the youngest Indian to complete 30 km solo swim in the Arabian Sea, the city Mayor's office said on Friday (February 13).

Reyaansh completed the 30 km solo swim in the Arabian Sea from Malape Jetty to Vijaydurg in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district in 7 hours, 30 minutes and 11 seconds on November 15, 2025, the Thane Mayor's office said in a release, quoting from the certificate awarded to him.

He has become the youngest Indian to achieve the feat, according to the certificate awarded to the boy by the World Book of Records London.

Reyaansh trains under coach Kailas Akhade of the Starfish Sports Foundation.

In 2024, Reyaansh, then aged 6, became the youngest swimmer to complete a challenging 15-kilometer stretch in the sea, from Malape Jetty to Waghotan Jetty, in three hours. The feat was recognised by the India Book of Records, the release said.

A student of Saraswati English Medium School at Naupada, the young swimmer has won 13 medals in the past year - five gold, five silver and three bronze - across state, national and international competitions.

He represented India after being selected among 15 swimmers by the Maharashtra Aquatic Association and delivered notable performances at the Asian Open Schools Swimming Championship held in Bangkok in August 2024, winning multiple medals across freestyle, breaststroke and relay events, said the release.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Friday (February 13) announced a surprise credit of Rs 5,000 to 1.31 crore women beneficiaries under the Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thittam, merging three months’ regular Rs 1,000 entitlement with a Rs 2,000 “summer special allowance”. This, plus his promise to raise the monthly payout to Rs 2,000 if re-elected, have intensified accusations of populist imitation from opposition ranks.

While the DMK portrays the move as a shield against alleged Central interference, critics across parties and analysts are calling it a desperate election tactic that borrows heavily from cash-transfer models successfully deployed by BJP-led governments, notably in Bihar.

Read the full story here

TVK chief Vijay on Friday (February 13) claimed that his party, all alone, has grown into Tamil Nadu's primary force within two years of its founding and that its support base among the people has crossed 30 per cent.

He asserted that he would demonstrate that good governance is possible to those who love the people. Vijay dared leaders in rival parties to start a party on their own and secure one per cent votes at the least.

Addressing a rally at Salem, he said the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) was neither founded to eliminate any party nor did he have any personal malice or anger against anyone.

"We came into politics to repay our debt of gratitude to the people; we are not here for hate politics," the actor-politician said.

Rivals who dub TVK as some party's "B-Team" were merely trying to hide their incompetence. To those who target TVK as inexperienced, he asked, "beyond looting people's money using power, do they have any other extraordinary experience." All that is needed for good governance is "the good quality of loving the people," and armed by that quality, "we can give a really superb, excellent governance," he said.

He asserted: "In order to give good governance, one does not necessarily have to be highly educated. Like Kamarajar (former CM, iconic Congress leader, renowned freedom fighter) and MGR, with the support of people's power, with the support of good officers who care for the people, I can give excellent governance. I will do it."

Precious metals prices declined more than 5 per cent in the national capital on Friday (February 13), with silver declining to Rs 2.55 lakh per kilogram, while gold dropped to Rs 1.58 lakh per 10 grams amid subdued demand in the local market.

According to the All India Sarafa Association, the white metal slumped Rs 13,500, or 5.03 per cent, to Rs 2,55,000 per kilogram (inclusive of all taxes). It ended flat at Rs 2,68,500 per kg on Thursday.

Gold of 99.9 per cent purity also dived Rs 2,400, or 1.5 per cent, to Rs 1,58,500 per 10 grams (inclusive of all taxes) from the previous close of Rs 1,60,900 per 10 grams.

"Gold and silver fell sharply on Friday amid a broader market sell-off and remained under pressure on Friday, as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of the highly anticipated US consumer inflation data," Saumil Gandhi, Senior Analyst, Commodities at HDFC Securities, said.

In the international market, spot silver gained USD 2.01, or 3 per cent, to USD 77.30 per ounce, while gold was trading nearly 1 per cent higher at USD 4,968.40 per ounce.

"Silver has rebounded to trade near USD 79 per ounce, while gold has also recovered to USD 4,990 per ounce as markets turn their focus to upcoming US Consumer Price Index (CPI) data," Kaynat Chainwala, AVP Commodity Research, Kotak Securities, said.

As Puducherry gears up for the 2026 Assembly polls, statehood, Centre-Union Territory tensions and shifting alliance equations are back at the forefront. Congress leader and former Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy positions the Congress-DMK alliance as the right alternative to the AINRC-BJP government led by N Rangaswamy.

In this exclusive interview with The Federal, Narayanasamy reflects on his 2021 absence from the electoral fray, his clashes with former Puducherry Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi, the UT's long-pending statehood demand, alliance dynamics with the DMK, and the emergence of actor-turned-politician Vijay.

"When Rangaswamy broke away from the Congress, and from 2011 to 2016, when he was the Chief Minister, he made a lot of promises to the people. Statehood was the main focus of his government. To get statehood for Puducherry, he promised the people that he would join hands with the BJP. But nothing has happened so far."

Read the full interview here

Junaid Siddique's five-wicket haul was complemented by Aryansh Sharma's half-century as the United Arab Emirates defeated Canada by five wickets in their ICC Men's T20 World Cup match in New Delhi on Friday (February 13).

Senior pacer Siddique headlined a disciplined bowling effort, returning with figures of 5/35 to help UAE restrict Canada to a below-par 150 for 7. Aryansh then struck an unbeaten 74 off 53 balls laced with six fours and three sixes, while Sohaib Khan also played a very useful knock of 51 off just 29 balls to guide UAE over the line with two balls to spare.

Chasing the modest total, UAE struggled to build momentum and lost wickets at regular intervals even as Aryansh held firm at one end. Left-arm spinner Saad Bin Zafar (3/14) dented the chase with three key strikes. But just when the chase appeared to be slipping away, Aryansh found support in Sohaib, who smashed four sixes and as many fours. The pair stitched together a crucial 83-run stand for the fifth wicket, bringing the equation down to 26 off 12 balls.

Aryansh showed nerves of steel, smashing back-to-back boundaries before adding a third off a free hit in the penultimate over. Needing 8 off the last over, he hit a a towering six to ease off the pressure. While Canada added to the drama by taking a wicket, it was a little too late with new man Muhammad Arfan finding the rope for a memorable win.

India's forex reserves dropped by USD 6.711 billion to USD 717.064 billion during the week ended February 6, the RBI said on Friday (February 13).

In the previous reporting week, the kitty had jumped by USD 14.361 billion to an all-time high of USD 723.774 billion.

During the week ended February 6, foreign currency assets, a major component of the reserves, increased by USD 7.661 billion to USD 570.053 billion, the data released by the central bank showed.

Expressed in dollar terms, the foreign currency assets include the effects of appreciation or depreciation of non-US units, such as the euro, pound, and yen, held in the foreign exchange reserves.

Value of the gold reserves dropped by USD 14.208 billion to USD 123.476 billion during the week, the RBI said.

The Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) were down by USD 132 million to USD 18.821 billion, the apex bank said.

India's reserve position with the IMF was also down by USD 32 million to USD 4.715 billion in the reporting week, according to the apex bank's data.