Wednesday, June 07, 2023

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Imran Khan fears he will be arrested again

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Friday reiterated his fears that he would be arrested once again

"There is a fear that I will be arrested again as soon as I leave the High Court," Khan told media persons at Islamabad High Court, where he was produced by law enforcement agencies in Al-Qadir Trust billion of rupees corruption case.

For what reason Imran Khan's defender angry at the Pakistan Army?

 

A 34-second video shot on May 9 in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore first shows a group, including a woman, entering a mansion.

They waved sticks, chanted slogans and hoisted flags of the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) party, led by former Prime Minister Imran Khan.

"People broke through the gate and entered the corps commander's residence," the man who made the video said, citing military leaders by name.

Then he approached a soldier standing in the corner of a large lawn, saw a crowd entering the compound, and said, "Sir, we told you not to touch Imran Khan." I was.

The mansion was not only the residence of Lahore's high-ranking military generals, but also had historical significance. Named the Jinnah House after its founding father, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, parts of the imposing building were later set on fire by protesters.

Brain dead UP woman's organs give life to three

The family of a 43-year-old woman, declared brain dead, has given a new lease of life to three people by donating her organs.

The woman's liver was transplanted into a 52-year-old man suffering from liver cirrhosis and was on dialysis while her kidney was given to another 46-year-old woman suffering from Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) for the past five years.

Both the transplants were done at Apollomedics Hospital.

The remaining kidney has been sent to SGPGI for a third transplant.

Artifact's new feature to take on Twitter by letting you follow writers

Artifact, the AI-powered news app from Instagram co-founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, has announced a new feature that allows users to follow individual writers, making it even more of a news-focused social media app.

According to The Verge, articles from those writers will be prioritised in users' feeds, and they can choose to receive notifications when those writers post.

Writers can also claim a verified checkmark on their profile beside their name in searches and comments on Artifact.

In addition, writers can also receive notifications about how many people read their articles on the app and when other publications link to their work.

Moreover, the report mentioned, while many people use platforms such as Twitter to discuss current events, the platform has lost its appeal.

In contrast, Artifact is emerging as a more engaging platform for news enthusiasts to connect with one another and discuss the latest happenings.

In February, Instagram co-founders launched 'Artifact', which is also named a text-based version of TikTok which uses machine learning to understand users' interests.

S.Korea, Japan to hold working-level meeting on Fukushima inspection

South Korea and Japan plan to hold working-level consultations this week to discuss details of Seoul's inspection of Tokyo's plan to discharge contaminated water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant, the Foreign Ministry here said on Thursday.

The director-general-level meeting will be held in Seoul on Friday, with the South Korean side headed by Yun Hyun-soo, head of the ministry's bureau for climate change, energy, environment and scientific affairs, and the Japanese side led by Atsushi Kaifu, director-general of the Japanese foreign ministry's disarmament, non-proliferation and science department.

UP teacher booked for forging Covid report to evade poll duty

An assistant teacher, who submitted a fake Covid-19 positive medical certificate to get exemption from polling duty in the municipal elections, has been booked.

The action was taken against her after the block education officer, Vijay Virendra Singh, filed a complaint at the Pilibhit Kotwali police station following written orders of the district's basic shiksha adhikari Devendra Swaroop.

27 people injured in bridge collapse near Helsinki

At least 27 people, most of them children, were injured on Thursday when a pedestrian bridge collapsed in Espoo, west of Finland's capital Helsinki, local rescue officials said.

The Helsinki region health district (HUS) told the media that 15 people have been taken to hospital.

NIA searches 6 places in 2021 Naupada fake currency case, suspects D-Company link

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has recovered incriminating material during searches at half-a-dozen locations in Mumbai in the 2021 Naupada case relating to seizure of high quality fake Indian currency notes (FICN), that points out the role of the D-Company.

The recovery included sharp-edged weapons, digital devices and documents, which is a strong corroboration of NIA's earlier probe findings that established a direct connection with the D-Company in the fake currency racket. Thus the role of the D-Company has been prima facie established in the circulation of FICN in India during the NIA investigation into the case.

Men's ODI Rankings: Australia back at top after annual update; Pak at 2nd spot, India are third

An annual update that drops results from the 2019-20 season has resulted in Australia regaining their position at the top of the ICC Men's ODI Team Rankings as the change now reflects all matches completed since May 2020.

Pakistan are in the second spot with India just a point away as the three teams look set to go into the year-end's ODI World Cup in India with a lot to play for.

Australia are two rating points clear of Pakistan at 118 points after the update, which weighs matches completed before May 2022 at 50 per cent and subsequent matches at 100 per cent.

ISRO tests semicryogenic engine at new facility

The Indian space agency has conducted the first integrated test of an intermediate configuration of its semicryogenic engine at a new test facility.

According to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the test was carried out on the 2,000 kilo Newton semicryogenic engine at the newly commissioned test facility at the ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC), Mahendragiri.

The intermediate configuration, designated as Power Head Test Article (PHTA), comprises all the engine systems except the thrust chamber, ISRO said.

The test is the first of a series of tests planned to validate the design of the propellant feed system, including the low-pressure and high-pressure turbo-pumps, the gas generator, and control components.

The Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) of ISRO has undertaken the design and development of a semicryogenic engine with 2000 kN thrust with Indian industry participation, and will power the booster stages of future launch vehicles and works on Liquid Oxygen (LOX)-kerosene propellant combination.

ISRO said the test that was done on May 10, 2023, is a major milestone before integrating the complete engine and its qualification.

This test demonstrated the complex chill-down operations spanning about 15 hours duration that was conducted successfully, meeting all the required conditions for engine start.

Vast outburst in Milan leaves dozens of cars on fire

Firefighters said an explosion erupted in central Milan, in northern Italy, on Thursday, setting several vehicles on fire and injuring one person. No deaths were reported.

The explosion was suspected to have originated in a van transporting oxygen gas canisters.

Footage from Milan's Porta Romana neighborhood, showing high plumes of black smoke and firefighters on the scene.

Karnataka Elections 2023 Live: Highest voter turnout till 11am in Udupi. “…will be a big blow for BJP,” analysts say

After a high-voltage campaign, Karnataka is set for the mega battle of ballots. The voting for 224 assembly constituencies in Karnataka started from 7 am and will continue till 6 pm. A total of 5,31,33,054 electors are eligible to cast their votes in 58,545 polling stations across the state. The major political parties in contention are the BJP, Congress, and JD(S) The majority mark to form the government is 113 seats.

4 posing as CBI officials duped jeweller of Rs 40L in Delhi, held

The Crime Branch of Delhi Police has arrested four men, including the kingpin who was inspired by Bollywood flick 'Special-26', for impersonating as CBI official and cheating a jeweller to the tune of Rs 40 lakh in the national capital, an official said on Wednesday.

The accused were identified as Sandeep Bhatnagar (54), Pawan Gupta (47), Yogesh Kumar (58) and Himanshu alias Dinesh (35), all residents of Delhi.

Special Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Ravindra Singh Yadav said that the complainant Harpreet Singh, who is running his jewellry shop at the ground floor of his residence in Delhi's Farsh Bazaar area, reported on April 17 that six individuals including one woman entered his shop, introducing themselves as CBI officials.

Court seeks Delhi Police's status report on sexual harassment case against WFI chief

A court here on Wednesday sought from the Delhi Police a status report pertaining to the sexual harassment case against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

Since April 23, prominent Indian wrestlers such as Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik, and Vinesh Phogat, who have achieved Olympic and World Championships recognition, have been staging a protest at Jantar Mantar against WFI chief.

Farmers have also extended their support to wrestlers and had arrived from Haryana and Punjab on Monday to join the wrestlers' protest.

During the hearing, the judge issued notice to Police on protesting wrestlers' plea seeking monitoring of the investigation and recording of the statement of the alleged victims before the court.

The court then directed the police to file the report by May 12, also the next date of hearing.

On Tuesday, Delhi Commission for Women also issued summons to Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Pranav Tayal for failing to arrest the accused in the matter of sexual harassment with women wrestlers.

Man stabbed to death by minor in North Delhi

A man was stabbed to death by a minor in North Delhi's Timarpur area following past altercation and sudden provocation, an official said on Wednesday.

The deceased was identified as Kunal, a resident of Timarpur.

Jharsuguda bypoll: 20.38% polling till 11 a.m

Voting for by-election to Odisha's Jharsuguda Assembly constituency began on Wednesday morning amid tight security with 20.38 per cent voter turnout recorded till 11 a.m.

The voting will continue till 6 p.m.

Polling commenced at sharp 7 a.m. in all 253 booths in the constituency.

Earlier, during a mock polling, some EVMs and VVPATs were found to be defunct. So, those were immediately changed, said Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Odisha, Nikunja Bihari Dhal.

Later, the VVPATs were replaced in another two booths. Till 11 a.m., 20.38 per cent voter turnout recorded in the bypoll, he said.

iPhone sales set new March quarter record at $51.3 bn: Tim Cook

Apple sold iPhones worth $51.3 billion in its March quarter, a record for the company, and iPhone 14 and 14 plus continued to delight users with their long lasting battery and advanced camera, the company's CEO Tim Cook has said.

According to him, iPhone 14 Pro users continue to rave about the most powerful camera system ever in an iPhone.

"This March, we were excited to expand emergency SOS via satellite to six new countries, bringing this important safety feature to even more users. We now offer this vital service in 12 countries, and I'm grateful for every note I've received from around the world about the life saving impact of our safety features," Cook told analysts during the company's Q2 2023 earnings call late on Thursday.

Apple Services also set an all-time record with $20.9 billion in revenue for the March quarter.

"We achieved all time revenue records across App Store, Apple Music, iCloud and payment services. And now, with more than 975 million paid subscriptions, we're reaching even more people with our lineup of services," Cook informed.

Apple Mac recorded $7.2 billion in revenue for the March quarter in line with the company's expectations and iPad revenue was $6.7 billion.

Nick Jonas says his wife Priyanka is a 'boss', praises 'Citadel' team

American pop star Nick Jonas cannot stop gushing about his wife Priyanka Chopra Jonas as he calls her "boss" after seeing her performance in the series 'Citadel'.

Nick took to Instagram Stories to share a poster of Citadel featuring Priyanka with her co-stars and fellow spies Richard Madden and Stanley Tucci. It had 'Citadel, no. 1 title on Prime Video' written on it.

Captioning the poster, he wrote: "My wife is a boss. Congrats to the entire Citadel and Prime Video family."

Kangana Ranaut reveals the most challenging thing about directing a film

Sharing the challenges of directing a film, Bollywood actress-filmmaker Kangana Ranaut says a director is faced with a "minimum of 400-500 questions" every day.

Kangana took to Instagram story, where she shared an interview of American film director Martin Scorsese who is talking about framing and blocking a scene.

The actress, who ventured into directing films in 2019 with 'Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi' wrote alongside the post: "Most challenging things about direction is....A director is faced with minimum of 400-500 questions every day from all departments, camera, art, actors, make up, production and of course the direction department..."

She added: "Trust me what you want to do as a director is easier to do than to explain ... limiting your vision to words is rather agonising that's why best teams are those who read emotions and energy and doesn't get entangled in words ... and best directors are those who let those emotions lead them not ambition."

Her next directorial is 'Emergency', where she will be seen playing the former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. It also stars Anupam Kher, Mahima Chaudhry, Vishak Nair, Satish Kaushik, Milind Soman and Shreyas Talpade in prominent roles.

E-prescriptions in health utilities to help Bengal govt to preserve patient data

The West Bengal health department's decision to introduce E- prescriptions in all the state-run health utilities in the state from this year is expected to bring about a permanent solution to the teething problem of preserving the patient-data and their case histories.

State health department sources said that the state-run health centers where the E-prescription will be introduced from this year will include all state-run medical colleges & hospitals, district hospitals and primary health centers. "The state government will, in the interim period, arrange for the proper training of the staff concerned associated with these health units to make the system fully operational by July this year," a state health department official said.

UP reports 2 Covid deaths in a day

Two Covid positive patients died in Uttar Pradesh's Ballia district in the past 24 hours, while 261 more people have tested positive for the infection in the state.

According to the health department data, the total number of deaths in the state stood at 23,692. In all, 471 patients recovered during the day.

IPL 2023: KKR register thrilling five-run win over SRH, keep their hopes live

Spinner Varun Chakravarthy held his nerve to defend nine run in the final over as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) registered a thrilling 5-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in an IPL 2023 match at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, here on Thursday.

Riding on Nitish Rana's 42 off 31 and Rinku Singh's 46 off 35, KKR posted 171/9 on the board in front of SRH clinical bowling display. In reply, SRH seemed to be struggling to execute their plans as they lost the rhythm after middle overs and suffered a loss in another game at home.

Actor Vaarun Bhagat: 'Undekhi' has been my biggest project so far

Actor Vaarun Bhagat is over-the-moon as the makers of the crime thriller series 'Undekhi' have announced its new season. The actor said that they were supposed to shoot the show five months before, but as it has done so well, the writers were taking their time and writing a phenomenal story.

Vaarun plays Lucky, a complex character who is both charming and dangerous, and the actor has managed to capture his essence perfectly, becoming a fan favourite of critics and audiences alike. And now, much to the delight of fans, Applause Entertainment has announced that they are coming back with a third season.

Covid was 4th leading cause of death among Americans in 2022: US CDC

Covid-19 was the fourth leading cause of death among Americans in 2022, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

More than 3.2 million persons died in the US during January to December 2022.

Heart disease (699,659) remained the top reason for death, followed by cancer (607,790), unintentional injuries (218,064) -- which includes drug overdoses and car accidents -- and Covid (186,702).

Two soldiers killed in gunfight with terrorists in J&K's Rajouri (Ld)

Two soldiers were killed and four others injured in an encounter between terrorists and security forces in the Kandi area in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district, officials said on Friday.

"On specific information about the presence of terrorists in the Kandi Forest in Rajouri Sector, a joint operation was launched on 03 May 2023. At about 0730 hours on 05 May 2023, a search team established contact with a group of terrorists well entrenched in a cave. The area is thickly vegetated with rocky and steep cliffs," the Army said in a statement.

The Birth of Gujarat and Maharashtra: A Tale of Leadership, Negotiation, and Unity ~ Harshit Narang

In the early 1950s, India was undergoing a momentous transformation. The country had achieved independence from British rule, and the people were clamoring for greater autonomy and self-governance. One of the most significant issues during this time was the need to create new states that reflected the linguistic and cultural diversity of India.

The task of creating these new states fell to a commission headed by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, a charismatic leader known for his unwavering commitment to India's unity and integrity. Patel and his team worked tirelessly to draw up the boundaries of the proposed states, taking into account the interests and aspirations of various communities.

However, the creation of these new states was not without its challenges. One of the most contentious issues was the status of Mumbai, a bustling city that was the economic and cultural hub of the region. Both Gujarat and Maharashtra laid claim to Mumbai, with each state insisting that the city rightfully belonged to them.

German food retailers record largest drop in turnover since 1994

Retail food sales in Germany in March were down by 10.3 per cent in real terms, recording the sharpest year-on-year decline since the record keeping began in 1994, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said.

"The further significant increase in food prices is likely to be a reason for this," Destatis said.

US reports over 10,000 weekly child Covid cases

More than 10,000 child Covid-19 cases were reported in the US in the week ending on April 27, according to the latest report by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Children's Hospital Association.

Almost 15.6 million children have been reported to have tested positive for the virus since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020.

Over the past seven months, weekly reported child cases have plateaued at an average of about 27,000 cases, while in the past four weeks the average reported weekly cases have dropped further to about 10,000, according to the report.

Reported cases are likely a "substantial undercount" of Covid-19 cases among children, it added.

There is a need to collect more age-specific data to assess the severity of illness related to new variants as well as potential longer-term effects, said the report.

It is important to recognise there are immediate effects of the pandemic on children's health, but importantly there is the need to identify and address the long-lasting impacts on the physical, mental, and social well-being of this generation of children and youth, said the AAP.

AMU faculty makes breakthrough in cancer prevention

In a major breakthrough in the field of cancer prevention, a common mechanism has been discovered that activates disruption of a single RNA binding protein, MSI-2 binding to mRNAs of the cancer-causing proteins and significantly reduces the synthesis and accumulation of these proteins, reducing HCV infection and proliferation.

Hifzur Rahman Siddique of Department of Zoology, Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), in coordination with Dr. Keigo Machida, University of South California have discovered the mechanism.

UP students to be encouraged to take up vocational courses

With less than 1 per cent of total students registering for vocational courses in class 10 and class 12 exams of UP Board, officials of the state's Secondary Education Department have now issued orders for efforts to be made to encourage more and more students to take them up.

The board spends lakhs of rupees in getting question papers of these subjects made annually. The officials concede that the situation needs to be redressed as the entire focus of the central and state governments is on skill development and providing employment-oriented education to students.

Mahendra Dev, the director of secondary education, has sent a letter to all district inspectors of schools (DIOSs) instructing them to register the maximum number of students possible for these vocational courses.

Pak saw slight increase in terror attacks in April

Pakistan witnessed a slight increase in the number of terror attacks in April with a total of 48 incidents, which led to 68 deaths and 55 injuries, according to a new report.

In its report released on Tuesday, the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies said the new figures were higher than the 39 militant attacks recorded in March, resulting in 58 deaths and 73 injuries.

US will end Covid vax requirements for federal employees, int'l travellers

The US administration announced it will end Covid-19 vaccination requirements for federal employees, international air travellers and contractors on May 11 -- the same day that the public health emergency implemented for the pandemic will also end.

In a statement on Monday, the White House said the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also separately announced that they will start the process to end their vaccination requirements for head start educators, CMS-certified healthcare facilities, and certain non-citizens at the land border.

Iran, Belgium exchange prisoner swap requests

 

Iran and Belgium have exchanged requests for a prisoner swap between the two countries, the Foreign Ministry in Tehran announced.

Iran has submitted a request for the transfer of its national Assadollah Assadi and Belgium also sent a request for the repatriation of its citizen Olivier Vandecasteele.

In February 2021, a Belgian court sentenced Assadi, an Iranian diplomat, to 20 years in prison after accusing him of "planning an attack" against the Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization, which Tehran brands as a terrorist organisation.

'Chatrapathi' trailer sets stage for official Hindi remake of Rajamouli original

The trailer of the upcoming film 'Chatrapathi' was unveiled on Tuesday. The film is the official Hindi remake of S. S. Rajamouli's Telugu blockbuster of the same name. The trailer gives audiences a sneak-peak into the high octane action and heady dose of entertainment with the leading pair of Sreenivas Bellamkonda and Nushrratt Bharuccha.

The film marks the Hindi debut of Bellamkonda, and has been directed by VV Vinayak with a script written by S. S. Rajamouli's father and veteran writer V. Vijayendra Prasad

Talking about the film, Sreenivas Bellamkonda said, "'Chatrapathi' is a special film to me in so many ways. VV Vinayak directed me in my Telugu debut and he is also the director of my Bollywood debut, which makes this collaboration even more significant. 'Chatrapathi' ticks all the boxes of a commercial potboiler and we can't wait to bring it to audiences."

Vishal Bhardwaj's series 'Charlie Chopra and The Mystery Of Solang Valley' production concludes

Filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj has concluded the production of his upcoming web series 'Charlie Chopra & The Mystery Of Solang Valley'.

Bhardwaj took to Instagram, where he shared a picture along with the cast and crew of the series, which marks his debut in the OTT long-format story-telling.

"Charlie Chopra wrapped!! Unbelievable!!! We did it :)" he wrote.

Palestinian boy mauled to death by lion in Gaza zoo

A six-year-old Palestinian boy was mauled to death by a lion at a private zoo in the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-run police force in the besieged enclave.

The boy Hamada Iqtiet, from the city of Khan Yunis, climbed the fence and reached an opening in the cage before being hit on the head by a lion.
The police announced a temporary seal-off of the zoo after the incident.

Shehnaaz Gill on life: 'Agar Positivity nahi rakhungi, fir toh main barbaad ho jaungi'

Actress Shehnaaz Gill, who exudes positivity from every inch despite having gone through so much in life, said: "Agar positivity nahi rakhungi, fir toh main barbaad ho jaungi".

She said: "Positivity nahi rakhungi fir toh main barbaad ho jaungi na. Main na bahut emotional type insaan hun. Agar main positive nahi rahi, toh I think main toot sakti hun. (If I will not keep positivity in life, I will be ruined as I am an emotional person)."

"Toh mujhe apne aap ko positive rakhna hi padhta hai. Zaroori hai life main. (So I have to keep myself positive. It is important for life)," she added.

Two held with ganja in Goa

Goa Crime branch police on Tuesday arrested two persons for allegedly possessing 1.5 kg of ganja worth Rs 1,05,000.

Superintendent of police (Crime branch) Nidhin Valsan told reporters here that the police team conducted a raid in Anjuna-North Goa and caught red-handed accused -- Vikram Uppar (21) from Uttar Kannada, Karnataka and Sahil Ujjaniya (26) native Matunga-Mumbai-Maharashtra.

Man hides inside bank to rob it in J&K's Poonch

A man hid himself overnight inside a bank to rob it in Jammu and kashmir's Poonch district.

Officials said Tuesday, "A man was arrested for hiding himself inside a bank in an attempt to rob it overnight in the Mendhar area of Poonch district.

"The man hid himself inside the bank for hours and tried to transfer money from bank's system during late night hours.

Punjab offices switch to new timings to save power

In a first-of-its-kind initiative to save electricity during the peak summer season, government offices across Punjab started working on Tuesday from 7.30 a.m. and to 2 p.m. with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann reaching the office two minutes in advance of the office work schedule.

The new office timing will remain applicable till July 15. The timings have been changed in all government offices situated in the state and Chandigarh.

Mann told the media on reaching the office that this initiative will help save 350 MW electricity on an average per day as a major chunk is consumed in the government offices. "If this experiment of change of office timing is successful and gets good response from the employee, it can be extended," he said.

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