Time magazine named German Chancellor Angela Merkel as its "Person of the Year 2015."
Time named Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of the Islamic State extremist group, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, America`s Black Lives Matter activists campaigning against inequality against African Americans and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani as its runners up.
German Cabinet Approves Identity Card for Refugees
Germany`s cabinet agreed to introduce an identity card for refugees as it tries to better control the wave of migrants arriving from Syria, Afghanistan and other trouble spots.
Around one million refugees are expected to arrive in Germany this year and local authorities have struggled to cope with scale and pace of the influx.
The cards will include information on refugees` date and place of birth, nationality and gender, as well as a photo and details on height and eye colour. Registration centres will also take fingerprints.
The government hopes to start handing the cards out by mid February, once the ID cards have been approved by parliament.
India has been ranked fourth in the world for the outflow of black money by an American think-tank, with $51 billion being siphoned out of the country annually between 2004-2013.
A record $1.1 trillion flowed illegally out of developing economies in 2013 alone.
According to an annual report released by Washington-based Global Financial Integrity, China topped the list with a $139 billion average black money outflow per annum, followed by Russia with an average of $104 billion per annum and Mexico with an average of $52.8 billion per annum.
Real Estate Bill Approved
The government reached out to the Opposition including the Congress by agreeing to incorporate in the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill 2015, a provision requiring real estate developers to deposit 70 percent of the project cost in a separate escrow account.
This provision was specifically demanded by the opposition to be included in the proposed Bill.
Union Cabinet approved several amendments to the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill, 2015 aimed to protect the interests of buyers while at the same time promoting investments in the sector.
Japan's "Akatsuki" probe had successfully entered into orbit around Venus after an initial attempt at reaching the second planet from the sun failed five years ago.
This is the first time that a Japanese space probe has entered into the orbit of another planet.
Akatsuki, meaning dawn, blasted off in 2010 in a mission to observe the toxic atmosphere and super-hot volcanic surface of Venus.