With the re-release of her much-anticipated album `Fearless`, American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, on Saturday topped the UK`s Official Albums Chart, beating a long-held record by the English rock band `The Beatles`. According to TMZ, the album hit number 1 in the UK, and with that Taylor has racked up 3, number-1 albums- `Fearless`, `Folklore`, and `Evermore` in 259 days. This has beaten `The Beatles` record who took 364 days to get number 1 rank with 3 albums in a row. `The Beatles` maintained the record for 54 years until Taylor broke the same on Saturday. The Grammy-award winning songstress extended gratitude to her fans by penning a note of thanks on Twitter that read, “WELL WELL WELL you all really went out and left my greatest expectations in shambles this week. Word on the street is you made Fearless (my version) the biggest country album 1st week of the last 6 years & the top release of 2021 so far. Honestly?? How?? Did I get this lucky??”
Tag: Facebook
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Dharma Productions considering Rajkummar Rao for Dostana 2?
The past few days in the film industry have been quite dramatic. Kartik Aaryan was ousted from Dharma Productions’ film Dostana 2 which stars Janhvi Kapoor and is a launchpad for Television actor Lakshya in movies. The project kicked off in 2019 but due to the pandemic, the production came to a halt in 2020. As the shooting began, creative differences between Karan Johar and Kartik Aaryan led to this conclusion. Now, that the lead actor’s role is once again available, the makers are going back to their first choice.
A source revealed Bollywood Hungama, “Dharma Productions is considering to bring Rajkummar Rao on board for Dostana 2. He was their first choice when the project was being made but at the time, he couldn’t do the film due to his dates. Now, that makers are keen on enlisting someone, they are once again thinking of Rao who was fit for the role. Interestingly, Rao and Janhvi Kapoor recently worked together in horror-comedy Roohi and have a great work rapport.”
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Sonakshi’s fans stunned at physical transformation, call her ‘duplicate Sona’
Sonakshi Sinha’s fans and followers are stunned by her physical transformation. The actor on Thursday, April 22, shared pictures of her ‘workout from home’ routine.
She captioned her post, “When #WFH for you means Workout from home. #gharperaho (stay at home).” In the pictures, she was seen posing in sportswear, working out in her apartment. Several people wrote in to tell her how impressed they were.
“Unbelievable! Your looking like a different person!!” Dharma Productions CEO Apoorva Mehta commented. Another person called her a ‘duplicate Sona’, while trainer Namrata Purohit called her a ‘Pilates girl’ and actor Priyaank Sharma wrote, “Ufff.” Others dropped fire and heart emojis. Sonakshi has often spoken about being body shamed in the past. In an interview with Cosmopolitan, she admitted that she used to weigh 95 kgs as a schoolkid, and was bullied for it. “I never took the bullying to heart. And I didn’t let it bring me down because I’ve always known there’s much more to me than my weight or my size,” she said.
Sonakshi lost 30 kgs for her first film, the Salman Khan-starrer Dabangg. “It was a huge achievement for me. And I was so proud of myself. But people were still talking about how much I weighed and how I looked!” Sonakshi had said. In 2019, she had put out a video talking about the hurtful comments she receives about her weight, on social media. “Trolls. That’s what they call themselves. Those people who just wanna kill your vibe? The people who have all the time to judge others and no work to do! So they say anything. Sometimes we feel angry, hurt or numb but now we just laugh it off because that’s what these people are — a joke,” she said.
Sonakshi will soon be seen in a new Amazon Prime Video series directed by Reema Kagti and Ruchika Oberoi, in which she plays a cop. The show also stars Vijay Varma, Gulshan Devaiah and Sohum Shah. Source: HT
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Serum Institute fixes Covishield price at Rs 600/dose for private hospitals, Rs 400 for state govts
New Delhi (TIP): The Serum Institute of India (SII) has announced that it will price its Covishield vaccine at Rs 600 per dose for private hospitals and Rs 400 per dose for state governments.
In a statement, SII has said, “For the next two months, we will address the limited capacity by scaling up the vaccine production. Going ahead, 50% of our capacities will be served to the Government of India’s vaccination program, and the remaining 50% of the capacity will be for the state governments and private hospitals.”
Comparing the prices with the other vaccines in the world, SII has stated that while American vaccines are priced at Rs 1,500, Russian and Chinese vaccines would cost Rs 750 per dose, making Covishield a cheaper option.
However, the vaccine price will remain at Rs 150 per dose for the Centre.
In an order earlier this week, the Centre said all above 18 years of age are eligible for vaccination from May 1. As it liberalised the vaccination drive, the government allowed states, private hospitals and industrial establishments to procure the vaccine doses directly from manufacturers.
Of the 12.76 crore vaccine doses administered so far, the Covishield comprises over 90% of the vaccine doses, according to government data on Wednesday. Of this, 15 states and union territories have only given Covishield.
Sonia demands uniform price
Congress president Sonia Gandhi wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, April 22, questioning how the government could allow “brazen profiteering from people’s misery” as she demanded a re-evaluation of the Centre’s modified vaccination policy and a uniform price for vaccines.
Gandhi questioned how the same vaccine manufactured by SII could have three different prices. She added there was no rationale or justification to this “arbitrary distinction”.
“At a time when medical resources are scarce, hospital beds are unavailable, oxygen supply and availability of essential medicine is dwindling rapidly, why is your Government allowing a policy that reeks of such insensitivity,” she said.
Gandhi accused the government of abdicating its responsibility of providing free vaccination to people in the age group of 18 to 45. “This is [a] complete abandonment of the Government’s responsibility towards our youth.” She reiterated the allocation to state governments should be “transparent and equitable, in line with the spirit of cooperative federalism”.
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Second wave will not affect big reform push, says Sitharaman
New Delhi (TIP): Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Thursday, April 22, said the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic will not affect the institutional reforms, including the disinvestment plans outlined in the Budget, although the focus right now was to take steps towards meeting the “immediate requirement of saving lives”. Speaking at the first of a series of online, agenda-setting debates organised by The Indian Express and Financial Times, the Finance Minister said the situation in 2020 (when a nationwide lockdown was announced) and the situation now are very different. “Micro containment zones would be the way forward (now),” she said. “Even that said, there are numbers and the surge in certain pockets that is so significant — as in Delhi — we have gone in for a week-long lockdown, which affects the movement of goods. Also, industry suffers because the movement of raw materials gets affected. I think it’s a bit too early for me to think, and this is what I have also got as an impression from industry, that this is going to affect us beyond this week or further. We will have to wait and watch a bit and then we will take a call. But at the moment activity is all happening, industry is still on it recovery mode. And therefore I will not rush to think that this will hurt us if we are able to coordinate better, as much as people would have us believe,” the Finance Minister said.
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UAE, Singapore shut out fliers from India
New Delhi (TIP): At least nine jurisdictions — the United States, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, France, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Oman — have imposed fresh restrictions on travel to and from India on account of the surge in Covid-19 cases.
Experts watching the sector closely said India currently poses the “biggest risk” of exporting new variants of the coronavirus to countries around the world, and that they expected more borders to be closed for travel from India.
The UAE on Thursday, April 22, became the latest country to close its borders for travellers from India, after Singapore imposed a travel ban and Australia announced it will reduce the number of its citizens who would be able to return from India and other red-zone countries.
According to airline sources, UAE authorities on Thursday banned all flights from India for a period of 10 days from Sunday. The suspension is subject to a review after 10 days.
In a travel advisory, Dubai-based airline Emirates said: “Effective 24 April 2021 Saturday, 2359 local time Dubai and for the next 10 days, Emirates flights from India to the UAE will be suspended. Furthermore, passengers who have transited through India in the last 14 days will not be accepted to travel from any other point to the UAE.”
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India has administered over 135 million vaccine doses
India had administered over 135 million coronavirus vaccine doses by Thursday, April 22, evening even as the country registered a new single-day record, forcing the Supreme Court to call it a “national emergency”. In all, 135,346,729 vaccine doses have been given in the country till now, Thursday. This includes 9,241,384 healthcare workers who have had their first dose and 5,903,368 who have got their second dose as well. As many as 11,727,708 frontline workers have had their first dose while 6,073,622 have got their second dose too. In the 45-59-year age group, 45,510,426 people have got their first dose and another 1,891,160 have had their second dose as well. In the 60+ category, 48,501,906 people have been administered their first dose while 6,497,155 have had their second dose as well. As many as 3,016,085 vaccine doses were given on Thursday till 8pm, as per the provisional report. Of this, 1,435,858 beneficiaries were vaccinated with the first dose and 685,184 beneficiaries received their second dose as well. On Friday, India reported over 300,000 cases again, clocking 332,730 cases in the last 24 hours. With this, India’s trend of registering the world’s highest daily tally continues, pushing the country’s total infection count to 16,263,695 cases.
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13 Covid patients in ICU killed in Maharashtra hospital fire
Virar (TIP): Thirteen coronavirus patients who were in the ICU have died in a fire at a hospital in Maharashtra’s Virar, about 70 km from state capital Mumbai. The fire broke out at around 3 am on April 23 in the ICU on the second floor of the four-storeyed Vijay Vallabh Hospital, an official said. “Around 90 patients were admitted to the hospital at the time of the incident,” Dilip Shah, CEO, Vijay Vallabh Hospital, told reporters. Distressing visuals showed people mourning their loved ones. Chaos unfolded soon after the incident as friends and family members gathered outside the hospital, waiting for an update about the patients. The incident comes as Maharashtra battles the second wave of coronavirus and an unprecedented surge in Covid infections. Over 67,000 fresh cases have been reported since yesterday. With a total caseload of over 40 lakh infections, Maharashtra is the worst-hit state in the country by the pandemic. Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the deaths in Palghar district’s Virar “tragic”. “Condolences to those who lost their loved ones. May the injured recover soon,” his office quoted him as saying in a tweet.
In a statement, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s office said he “has expressed sorrow” over the deaths. “He has directed that other patients undergoing treatment should not be harmed and should be relocated immediately. After learning about the fire, the Chief Minister himself has spoken to the concerned officials and asked them to first of all give priority to extinguishing the fire completely and ensure that treatment on other patients continues,” the official statement read. “The cause of the fire should be properly investigated. He also directed the administration to immediately inquire whether the fire safety was adequate and whether it was a private hospital,” it added. Speaking to reporters this morning, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope said: “In today’s meeting with the Prime Minister, we will talk about oxygen, Remdesivir, adequate quantity of vaccines for the state…also the Virar fire incident, it is not national news.”
After he was interrupted by the reporter on the number of deaths in the fire, he said: “The state government will provide all financial assistance to all those affected.”
24 Covid patients ead as tanker leak disrupts oxygen supply in Nasik
Twenty-four COVID-19 patients died in Maharashtra’s Nashik on April 21 after an oxygen tanker leaked outside a hospital, disrupting supply to patients for around 30 minutes.
“As per current information, 24 people have died due to the interrupted supply of oxygen at the Zakir Hussain municipal hospital,” district collector Suraj Mandhare told NDTV.
All the victims were on ventilators and in need of constant oxygen supply. Zakir Hussain Hospital is a Covid-dedicated facility. Around 150 patients were either oxygen-dependent or on ventilators.
Visuals showed gas leaking from the tanker outside the hospital and dense white fumes covering the area rapidly.
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope promised the government will look into the matter and conduct a thorough probe. “As per the information available with us, patients who were on ventilators at the hospital in Nashik have died. The leakage was spotted at the oxygen tank which was supplying oxygen to these patients. The interrupted supply could be linked to the deaths of the patients in the hospital,” Tope said.
Panic struck patients and their family members as the oxygen supply was stopped. Heart wrenching visuals showed families trying to help the patients as they gasped for breath.
Fire trucks were rushed to the spot to stop the leak. Videos showed water sprayed to control the leak; the firefighting team also wore protective gear.
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Ready for jabs, but unwilling to abandon stir: Farmer leaders
Farmers on April 21 marched in large numbers from three Punjab borders towards Delhi’s Tikri border despite Covid curbs being in place.
Claiming that the farmers were fighting both against Covid-19 and the government, farmer leaders said they understood their responsibility during the pandemic, but had no choice but to protest. They appealed to all attending dharnas to get vaccinated. Farmers also reiterated that the dharnas were not causing any obstruction to emergency services.
Shingara Singh Mann, president of BKU (Ugrahan)’s Bathinda unit and also vice president of the union, led a convoy from Bathinda-Dabwali road along with thousands of farmers.
He said, “I am 61 years old and I have got myself vaccinated. My second dose is due in the second week of May. No doubt corona is a disease, but not as deadly as being projected. However, our union’s entire state committee has got the first jab and we will be getting the second dose next month. Our president had tested positive for Covid last month and we do understand our responsibilities.”
The farmer leader added: “If the Haryana government will organise any vaccination camp in Bahadurgarh area, we will appeal to our members to get themselves vaccinated. The government put us all at risk after passing farm laws in September. Instead of managing Covid, they forced us to come out on roads. Otherwise, villagers were busy giving thikri pehras in villages to get lockdown implemented.”
Jagseer Singh, district committee member of BKU (Ugrahan) from Bathinda, said, “I have also got the first jab and in fact hundreds of us have got the first dose. It is up to a person as to whether to get themselves vaccinated or not. However, we do appeal to people coming to dharna because the government has forced us to sit on roads. So, we should get ourselves vaccinated at least as we cannot avoid dharnas till our demands are met.”
So far, first dose of the vaccine has been administered to Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan, general secretary of BKU (Ugrahan), Joginder Singh Ugrahan, president of the union, Roop Singh Chhana, union’ vice president and Jhanda Singh Jethuke, the union’s senior vice president apart from a few other state committee members.
On Wednesday, Ugrahan led farmers on the Khanauri-Jind highway.
‘Op Shakti to courter eviction plans’
Kokrikalan said, ”As an answer to the Union government’s plans of ‘Operation Clean Up’, we organised ‘Operation Shakti’ and went in large numbers to Tikri despite the fact that farmers are busy with harvesting these days. In Punjab, our pakka dharnas are going on at 40 different places. We are facing problems in procurement of wheat as well in Punjab but still, our batches will continue to go to Delhi borders.”
Source: Indian Express
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Hectic activity at Singhu as farmers renew protest call amid Covid crisis
It has been over 200 days that farmers have been blocking the Singhu border and other areas just outside Delhi to protest the three contentious farm laws. But even as they continue the fight to get the government back to the negotiation table, a more pressing challenge confronts them now in the form of a second and more potent Covid-19 wave.
While India, and especially the Capital, is seeing unimaginable losses owing to the second wave, farmers’ unions at the Delhi border have refused to vacate the protest sites and are determined to continue the path of confrontation. In fact, one of the largest farmers’ organisations of Punjab, BKU (Ekta Ugrahan), has called for more people to join the protests starting this week.
What satellite images show us
The entire stretch along the Singhu border has turned into a township of sorts extending up to 4 kilometres in length. Hundreds of tents and makeshift accommodations have been set up to house protesters. This location is just on the other side of the Delhi border.
The entire 4-kilometre stretch imagery is an exclusive image shared by @detresfa_ to India Today, made available by Maxar Technologies and Google Maps.
Covid concerns
Growing concerns of a Covid spread in protest sites have often been discounted by protesters by comparing the congregations at Kumbh Mela and in election rallies across different states.
The protest sites have the potential of becoming a new Covid epicentre. In January 2021, the Supreme Court criticised the Centre for not ensuring strict enforcement of Covid protocols in protest sites. The civil surgeon’s office had offered to set up testing units at the protest sites, but farmers’ unions refused to cooperate.
BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) general secretary Sukhdev Singh spoke to journalists over concerns regarding the second Covid wave. He agreed there are concerns about the safety of protesting farmers and their families, but this was not the time to call off the protests. He opined that unless the government repealed the farm laws, they cannot afford to lose the gathered momentum.
Many of the farmers also cited the example of Shaheen Bagh, which used to be the epicentre of anti-CAA protests. The site was forcibly vacated because of Covid, and since then, the movement has lost all the gained momentum.
Singh, however, assured that they are taking necessary precautions and ensuring that everyone wears a mask and cooperates with officials at Covid testing centres set up near the protest sites.
Highway blockades and diversions
It is noteworthy that farmers have been protesting since October 2020 and as per the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), these highway blockages have resulted in losses amounting to over Rs 600 crore owing to the non-functioning of toll plazas.
Farmers, on the other hand, claim over 300 of their brethren have lost lives during the protests. The governments of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh have enhanced pressure on farmers’ unions to vacate the protest sites on Delhi’s borders, namely Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur.
The Union Home Ministry is working with the two BJP governments, along with the Congress government in Punjab, to make farmers’ unions understand the severity of the second wave. All three state governments have started conducting aerial surveillance of the protest sites and setting up makeshift testing centres for protesters.
Singhu and Tikri are two of the most important border points between Delhi and Haryana, and these continue to remain closed as of today. The Ghazipur crossing connecting Delhi and UP, however, is open for those travelling to Ghaziabad from Delhi, despite the other elevated highway continuing to remain blocked. Commuters have been asked to take routes passing through Anand Vihar, Loni DND and Apsara borders, and all carriageways connecting the Delhi-Noida Chilla borders are open right now.
There have also been accusations of protesters blocking the transport of liquid oxygen cylinders for medical use. Farmers’ unions, however, have denied this. The Samyukt Kisan Morcha, a representative body of several protesting farmers’ unions, said on April 21 that they have kept a way open for emergency services since Day One of their agitation.
Source: India Today
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As they queue up to vote, Covid woes on their lips
Kolkata (TIP): Waiting for her turn to vote in the violence-hit Titagarh town of West Bengal, Gauri Kumari like everyone else outside a polling booth was wearing masks. Though the town has seen regular gang wars, bomb blasts and political murders ahead of the Assembly elections, her mind is shrouded by the surging Covid-19 pandemic. “I am not bothered who wins in this election because every political party is the same. My mother Saraswati Devi is above 60 years old. We took her for (Covid) vaccination on April 14, but were told to come back some other day as there was no vaccine. Since then, there has been no communication. There was a shortage of vaccine and only the first 100 people were given the dose,” said Gauri.
“I am here to vote because that’s the only thing I can do,” she added. In the same queue at Titagarh Municipality polling station, Prashansha Shaw, a first-time voter, was livid.
“Our country is suffering from lack of beds, oxygen, but our Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) attends a conference in Bangladesh and give them vaccines. The violence and anti-social activities here were in my mind a few months ago but not anymore. I feel sad when I read and watch videos of doctors, nurses and healthcare staff who are fighting all alone with the pandemic. This is such a big failure of the government. They chose elections over people’s life,” said Shaw, who is preparing for the medical entrance exam.
Titagarh is at the centre of the 200sq-km Barrackpore industrial belt, which has witnessed clashes of all types — from political to communal — in the last four years.
The town had hit headlines last October when a close aide of local BJP MP Arjun Singh was shot dead by bike-borne assailants. Political violence has become an integral part of Barrackpore politics, and its surroundings which have always been a safe haven for goons and illegal trades. But as the country and West Bengal witness a surge in coronavirus cases and stretching the healthcare system to its breaking point, the pandemic seems to have taken the voters’ mind space here. At Titagarh Arya Vidyalaya, another polling station, of the 45-odd people standing in the queue for voting, only four had received both the shots of Covid vaccine, while 15 said that they were waiting for the second dose. “Me, you (media) and all political parties should be held responsible for where we are today. We had started celebrating when there was a visible chance of the coming second wave. Political parties added to the complacency by holding large gatherings without masks. When vaccines were available, even then people were hesitant to take them. I still feel that the shortage of vaccines is not true, and it could be a political game,” said 68-year-old Shiv Kumar Shaw.
“I think no murders, no violence matter to me now. I am worried about my life and the lives of crores of people in our country. We have invited the second wave of the pandemic. There was no need of holding such big rallies this time. We haven’t been able to vaccinate our elderly. Several of them have received only one shot and we have already relaxed the age criterion for vaccination. Covid and the situation we are currently in will definitely be on my mind when I press the button today,” said a young filmmaker, Abhishek Pandey.
Source: Indian Express
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Police firing, stray violence in 6th phase polling; 79% turnout
Kolkata (TIP): Isolated incidents of violence, including police firing, were reported in the sixth phase of polling in 43 assembly constituencies of West Bengal, which recorded 79.09 per cent voter turnout on Thursday, April 22, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Aariz Aftab said. Seven persons, including two policemen, were injured in two incidents of violence in Bagdah and Barrackpore constituencies in North 24 Parganas district.
”Polling was peaceful today other than two-three incidents of violence,” the CEO said. The police fired three rounds after about 250 people attacked and injured two policemen near a booth in the Bagdah seat. The police went there after the sector officer was attacked, Aftab said.
The police personnel, including the officer-in-charge (OC) of Bagda police station, were admitted to a hospital. Two other persons, of whom one has bullet injuries, were also hospitalised, the CEO said. ”The police had to fire three rounds in Bagdah where the sector officer was attacked. After getting this news, OC Bagdah and his team reached the spot outside booth number 35 and 36 in Ranaghat pre-primary school,” he said.
”The OC tried to talk to them but it led to an altercation. The mob attacked them and their vehicle. To save themselves and save the property, the police had to fire three rounds,” ADG and IGP (Law and Order) Jag Mohan said. The OC and a constable suffered cut injuries in the attack and both were hospitalised, he said.
In another incident, three persons were injured when bombs were thrown outside a booth at Khardaha in Barrackpore constituency, Aftab said. ”They are undergoing treatment at a nearby hospital.
Two persons have been arrested in this connection, the CEO said. The Election Commission earlier in the day dismissed allegations by the Trinamool Congress that two of its activists were injured in firing by central forces in Ashok Nagar constituency in North 24 Parganas district, an official said.
Aftab said that at least 79.09 per cent of more than one crore voters exercised their franchise till 5 pm in the sixth phase. Polling was held between 7 am and 6.30 pm at 14,480 polling stations in 17 assembly constituencies in North 24 Parganas district, nine each in Nadia and Uttar Dinajpur districts and eight in Purba Bardhaman district.
Among the four districts, Nadia registered the highest voter turnout of 82.67 per cent, followed by Purba Bardhaman (82.15 per cent), Uttar Dinajpur (77.76 per cent) and North 24 Parganas (75.94 per cent), Aftab added. The Election Commission has deployed 1,071 companies of central forces for the sixth phase.
The state will witness two more phases of polling on April 26 and 29. Votes will be counted on May 2.
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EU set for legal war against AstraZeneca over shortfall
The European Commission, led by president Ursula von der Leyen, is working on legal proceedings against AstraZeneca after the drugmaker cut Covid vaccine deliveries to the European Union, sources familiar with the matter said. The move would mark a further step in an EU plan to sever ties with the Anglo-Swedish company after it repeatedly cut supplies to the bloc, contributing to major delays in Europe’s vaccine rollout. An EU official involved in talks with drugmakers confirmed authorities in Brussels were preparing to sue the company. The matter was discussed on Wednesday at a meeting with EU diplomats, where most EU states supported the legal action, two diplomats said. However its largest, Germany and France, asked for more time to think about the possible move, the diplomats said. A spokesman for AstraZeneca said the company was not aware of any legal proceedings “and continues to hold regular discussions on supply with the commission and member states”. Brussels in March sent a legal letter to the company in the first step of potential court proceedings. When the deadline for a reply expired this month, a spokesman for the commission said the matter was discussed in a meeting with AstraZeneca but the EU was still seeking further clarification from the company on “a number of outstanding points”.
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Over 200 mn Covid shots administered in US
Washington (TIP): More than 200 million shots of Covid-19 vaccines have been administered in the United States, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
US President Joe Biden also announced on Wednesday, April 21, that the country has hit 200 million Covid-19 shots, a target he had set out to meet by the end of April, Xinhua news agency reported. Biden said the country is entering a new phase in its vaccination efforts as it starts to shift the focus from getting the vaccine to those most at risk to the general population.
“The time is now to open up a new phase of this historic vaccination effort,” Biden said. “To put it simply, if you’ve been waiting for your turn, wait no longer. Now’s the time for everyone over 16 years of age to get vaccinated.”
About 215 million Covid-19 vaccine shots have been administered by Wednesday, while more than 277 million Covid-19 vaccine doses have been distributed across the country, CDC data showed.
Currently there are about 87 million Americans fully vaccinated, accounting for 26.4 per cent of the US population, according to CDC data. About 134 million Americans received at lease one Covid-19 shot, accounting for 40.5 per cent of the population.
Among the fully vaccinated, 35 million are people 65 years of age or older, accounting for 65.6 per cent, CDC data showed.
The United States has been ramping up vaccine rollout since last December. There are three COVID-19 vaccines authorized for emergency use in the country.
The US Food and Drug Administration authorized the one developed by American drugmaker Pfizer in partnership with German company BioNTech, and another by American drugmaker Moderna, in December last year.
Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine was approved for emergency use on February 27, but it was halted for use last week after rare blood clotting cases emerged in six recipients.
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Global Covid-19 caseload tops 144.3mn
Washington (TIP): The overall global Covid-19 caseload has topped 144.3 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 3.06 million, according to the Johns Hopkins University.
In its latest update on Friday, April 23, morning, the University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload and death toll stood at 144,385,217 and 3,069,293, respectively. The US is the worst-hit country with the world’s highest number of cases and deaths at 31,927,052 and 570,312, respectively, according to the CSSE.
In terms of infections, India follows in the second place with 15,930,965 cases.
The other countries with more than two million confirmed coronavirus cases are Brazil (14,167,973), France (5,469,674), Russia (4,682,573), Turkey (4,501,382), the UK (4,413,834), Italy (3,920,945), Spain (3,456,886), Germany (3,238,127), Argentina (2,796,768), Poland (2,731,256), Colombia (2,720,619), Iran (2,335,905) and Mexico (2,319,596), the CSSE figures showed.
In terms of deaths, Brazil comes second with 383,502 fatalities.
Nations with a death toll of over 50,000 are Mexico (214,079), India (184,657), the UK (127,597), Italy (118,357), Russia (105,328), France (102,323), Germany (81,030), Spain (77,496), Colombia (70,026), Iran (68,366), Poland (64,168), Argentina (60,620), Peru (58,604) and South Africa (53,995). Source: IANS
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Prosecute Modifor COVID Deaths in India
By Dave Makkar In last one year, rather than deploying resources in healthcare & vaccines; Prime Minister of India was busy in promoting himself, superstitions, quackery and mythology for Covid treatment like ringing of bells, banging of plates, clapping, lighting earthen lamps (diya) or candle, using Cow urine, Cow Dung, Quack Ramdev’s Coronil, his own minister Arjun Ram Meghwal’s Bhabhiji Pappad,and showering flower petals from helicopters on healthcare workers.
On April 21, 2021 India become number 1 country in the world for highest covid infections with 314,644 cases https://www.google.com/search?q=covid+infections+in+India+on+4-21-21&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS879US879&oq=covid+infections+in+India+on+4-21-21&aqs=chrome..69i57.26014j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
AND 2,104deaths https://www.google.com/search?q=total+covid+deaths+on+Jan+8%2C+2021+in+USA&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS879US879&oq=total+covid+deaths+on+Jan+8%2C+2021+in+USA&aqs=chrome..69i57j33i22i29i30.17870j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8, beating USA with 300,669 infections & 3,895 deaths on Jan. 8, 2020 in a single day. On April 21,2021 Covid infections in USA haddropped to 64,853&879deaths for a single day.
300,000 plus covid positive cases on April 21, 2021. 
2,000 plus deaths on April 21, 2021. Trump lost elections because of his initial sloppy handling of Covid and rising Covid infections & deaths. Voters punished himfor that despite his administration worked on a war footing to get/develop vaccines by different Pharma companies for the entire world.Under Operation Warp Speed initiated in April-May 2020, billions of dollars were given to Pharma companies in USA, UK & EU countries for rapid development of a Vaccine. His administration totally revamped the healthcare infrastructure from testing tomedical supplies manufactured in USA, to availability of additional beds.
On Sep. 18, 2020, USA had 48,887 infections with 949 deaths and on that day, Indiahad peaked with 93,337 infections and 1,290 deaths. Think about it, India got almost a year. So did America. The second wave is hitting in America too, and the entire world. Entire universe knew about it that there will be a second and third wave. The only way humanity can be saved is rapid vaccination. Still Modi had no clear vision or plan or will or honesty on vaccinating Indians.
In USA, as of April 20, 2021 an average of 3.5 million shots are administered each day and nearly 1 in 4 adults are now fully vaccinated. According to CDC about 130 million or 50.4 % of the adult population have been vaccinated, 86.2 million or 33.5% of the adult population from 18 & above had been fully vaccinated. Vaccine doesn’t mean second wave won’t infect. Many have been infected despite being vaccinated. But the good of the bad, for which the second wave has not yet taken the form of an epidemic in America is the vaccine preparedness of this country. Today, America has 600 million Moderna and Pfizer vaccines in the special warehouses for its 340 million people. On top of that USA’s Fiscal response to Covid is $5.3 Trillion for 340 Million people with $12,900.00 direct cash payment to a family of 4 making less than $75,000.00 plus weekly Unemployment and Covid allowance. Modi’sfiscal response is $90 Billion (IMF data) for 1,400 Million people with no direct cash payment or unemployment to its citizens not even to poorest of the poor.
In May 2020, a European-led fund-raising effort brought $8 billion in pledges from the world’s governments, philanthropists and leaders for coronavirus vaccine research.By Aug 2020, US, UK & EU with a combined population of 800 million had placed orders for 850 million doses of vaccine. In contrast, India with 1,400 million population under Modi, placed its first order of 16.5 million doses in Jan. 2021 and later, 100 million to the domestic producer Serum Institute of India. A control-freak instinct took over Modi and he announced only Center would buy the vaccines. There will not be any private buying. Non-BJP ruled states like Punjab, Kerala, Maharashtra and Delhi have accused the Centre of not supplying enough vaccines. Modi “Nationalized” India’s private vaccine industry and now Indians are paying with their lives.
Since Modi had no clear vision or plan or will or honesty on vaccinating Indians; instead of vaccinating 1400 million Indians in the country, sent vaccines and medical supplies to 23 countries to assure India’s victory is all around! Knowingly that India is only 1 % fully vaccinated and 7 % has got one shot! Since Dec 2020 rate of infections was rapidly increasing and Modi ignored it, now when Covid has become epidemic, Modi is asking for Moderna and Pfizer vaccines from America! I mean Modi is forced!! The search for popularity is really a staircase to go down. Modi must understand that the procession of dead bodies cannot be stopped by promoting WhatsApp University. When the dead bodies will talk, can hisfans of WhatsApp University then stop this?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visionary steps. In last one year, rather than deploying resources in healthcare & vaccines; Prime Minister of India was busy in promoting himself, superstitions, quackery and mythology for Covid treatment like ringing of bells, banging of plates, clapping, lighting earthenlamps (diya) or candle, using Cow urine, Cow Dung, Quack Ramdev’s Coronil,his own minister Arjun Ram Meghwal’s Bhabhiji Pappad and showering flower petalsfrom helicopters on healthcare workers.
Asia’s richest person Mukesh Ambani & his family were seen banging bells made of gold to scare Covid to go away on the call of Modi!
Unfortunately, Modi is surrounded by “Yes Men” although some of them are highly educated,not uneducated like Modi, but they also believe in superstitions, quackery, and mythology. Modi takes credit for every work including work done by previous administrations even going back to Nehru, and his own ministers. People around him worship him like a Deity, once his minister now Vice President Naidu said,“Modi is a gift to the nation from God”. Recently, Modi, to look taller than one of the founding fathers,Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, replaced Patel’s name with his at the biggest Stadium in India. Since Dec. 2020 the number of daily infections was going up. A spokesmanof Modi, citing that reason, announced that the Kumbh Mela will not start on Makar Sankrantion Jan 14, 2021 but on March 11 and will end on April 10, 2021. It was not that Modi cared about people getting infected and dying; he was more concerned about 5 state assembly elections and influencing Hindu voters with Kumbh Mela. In January 2021, the rate of infections was much higher, still in Feb 2021, BJP declared Victory on Covid under the able leadership of Modi by passing a resolution.
BJP declared Victory on Covid under the able leadership of Modi in a resolution, February,2021 That ebullient mood was communicated across the country. It is not that they wanted to get the economy going but wanted to get back to campaigning.
CEC, ignoring the infection numbers in Feb & partial March 2021 declared the election dates for 5 State assembly elections starting from March 27 and ending on April 29. The worst hit was West Bengal with voting in 8 phases from March 27 to April 29, followed by Assam in 3 phases and Kerala, Tamil Nadu & Puducherry on April 6 in a single phase.
An 8-phase election in Bengal for whole 1 monthand a 3 phase in Assam gave to BJP an edge to play Hindu-Muslim card. It also gave Virus a chance to skyrocketagain because of mega election rallies of BJP, being the 2nd super spreader after the Kumbh Mela that was attracting 1 million devotees a day with a total of 100 million celebrants in a month -long festivitieswith no mask andno social distancing!BJP gave a full-page advertisement in local and national newspapers with Modi’s picture to invite people for Kumbh Mela and election rallies. All of this was done when the country was already grappling with a COVID-19 exponential surge on day-to-day basis.
BJP gave a full-page advertisement in local and national newspapers with Modi’s picture to invite people for Kumbh Mela. (Image : Courtesy TheHindu, March 31,2021) 
Amit Shah at a road show in Bengal, April 21,2021
No mask, no social distancing!.. Compare this with a strict lockdown when India had just over 500 cases.Since 2014, there is a Hindu vs minority, including lower castes, Hindus and especially Muslims, narrative being promoted in India. It is a narrative to turn Indians against each other; to turn fellow countrymen against each other that they must hate each other based on their religion and caste. This is a sloppy, lazy and promiscuous argument that has been spreading in India since Modi took power in 2014. After the infections crossed 100,000 in a single day on April 6, 2021, Serum Institute asked for Rs 3,000 crore grant from the government so they can increase production. On April 21,2021, CEO of Serum Institute of India Adar Poonawalla told CNBC-TV18 on a question of price of vaccine. He said that GOI had only contracted for 100 million doses. Once the supplies were completed,SII revised the price. The new prices are Rs150 for the Center, Rs 400 for states and Rs 600 for Private Hospitals.
What Corona did last year –the first wave in India- that was just a trailer of a Tsunami. Because the first wave virus strain came from abroad. The basic immunity level of Indians is a little higher because 70-80% have been living in poor hygienic conditions, breathing foul air and drinking contaminatedwater. These are some of the benefitsof growing up in an immature country!
Modi ignored the warnings of epidemiologists who insisted that India would see a deadly second wave of Covid.The second wave has three major strains – they are so indigenous that they have mutated Indians in their immune system like in non-home ground adventure. It means, the Second Wave with domestic viruses ismuch more aggressive and much more infectious” and was now predominately affecting young people. Now it is people in their 20s and 30s who are having very severe symptoms and themortality rate among the young people is high. There is a shortage of beds, shortage of oxygen, shortage of drugs, shortage of vaccines, shortage of testing. Some have died waiting in the hospitals for want of oxygen. Some others died at the hospital entrances waiting to be admitted for necessary treatment.
India’s health scenario: 3 on a bed in a hospital. 
A Covid patient waits in a car for admittance to the hospital in Ahmedabad. India is going to have catastrophic loss of human lives in the coming months and Modi is responsible for all lives lost till now and the ones that will be lost. Modi’s incompetence to deal with the fearful situation can no longer be hidden. It speaks loud in his lack of any vision or plan to deal with the crisis, his criminal negligence of the urgent health care needs of the people in preference for his favorite sport-electioneering- and the mad desire to win elections. He should be held responsible forculpable homicide of thousands upon thousands of children, young men and young women,old men and old women of India. Will justice be done?
(Compiled & Edited by Dave Makkar)
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Millions face hunger as Myanmar crisis worsens
Myanmar (TIP): Food insecurity is rising sharply in Myanmar in the wake of the military coup and deepening financial crisis with millions more people expected to go hungry in coming months, the United Nations said on Thursday. Up to 3.4 million more people will struggle to afford food in the next three to six months with urban areas worst affected as job losses mount in manufacturing, construction and services and food prices rise, a World Food Program (WFP) analysis shows.
“More and more poor people have lost their jobs and are unable to afford food,” country director Stephen Anderson said in a statement.
“A concerted response is required now to alleviate immediate suffering, and to prevent an alarming deterioration in food security.”
The WFP said market prices of rice and cooking oil had risen by 5 per cent and 18 per cent, respectively, since the end of February, with signs that families in the commercial capital of Yangon were skipping meals, eating less nutritious food, and going into debt. The agency plans to expand operations, tripling to 3.3 million the number of people it assists, and is appealing for $106 million, it said.
A Myanmar junta spokesman did not immediately answer phone calls to seek comment. Myanmar’s army seized power from the democratically elected civilian government on Feb.1, plunging the Southeast Asian nation into turmoil and cracking down on mass protests and a nationwide civil disobedience movement with brutal force, killing more than 700 people, a monitoring group said. (Reuters)
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Nepal govt introduces new mountaineering rules
Kathmandu (TIP): The Nepal government has introduced new regulations for mountaineers planning to scale Mt Everest, in a bid to prevent overcrowding at the base camps and climbing trails. As per the new rules, expedition groups which first receive permission to climb will get the first chance to climb the mountain. The first-come-first-ascent rule will ensure that mountaineering groups that have already acquired permission to climb can make their attempt for summit in the first positive weather window. Now, expedition organisers are allowed to arrange climbing trips with maximum of 170 climbers in each positive weather window.
Further, the new rules state that climbers must provide COVID-19 negative test reports in between climbing of different peaks in the country. In its notice, the Department of Tourism said the new rules would ensure proper management of mountaineering route and climbers. PTI
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Bangladesh arrests hardline cleric of Islamist group after violent protests
Dhaka (TIP): An influential hardline cleric of an Islamist group was on Sunday arrested in Bangladesh on charges of instigating deadly violence in the Muslim-majority country.
According to officials, a joint team of police and detectives raided an Islamic seminary in Mohammadpur on Sunday and arrested Hefazat-e-Islam Joint Secretary General Mamunul Haque, who has been in the limelight due to some recent controversies, Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Joint Commissioner (Detective Branch) Mahbub Alam said that 47-year-old Haque was arrested around 12:30 pm.
Teachers and students of the seminary initially staged protest and tried to obstruct the raid. However, Haque was detained from a room on the first floor of the building, officials said.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Deputy Commissioner Harun-ur-Rashid said that Haque and other Hefazat leaders had been accused in several cases, including attacks on law enforcers and police stations and vandalism. These cases are being investigated. He had been watched for some time now, said the senior officer.
The Hefazat leader has been sued in several cases filed over violence in Baitul Mukarram National Mosque in Dhaka and following his confinement with a woman at the Sonargaon resort.
DB officials said Haque is also an accused in a number of cases.
Earlier, the Hefazat leader made the headlines by his controversial remarks regarding sculptures. He is also accused of threatening the government in the past.
In November last year, he demanded an immediate halt to the installation of a sculpture of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in the capital’s Dholaipar.
Meanwhile, a local court in Dhaka on Sunday placed Hefazat-e-Islam Dhaka city president Junayed Al Habib and its assistant secretary general Jalal Uddin on seven-day remand each in a case lodged over the group’s 2013 violence in the capital.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Shahinur Rahman passed the order as police produced them before the court and pleaded to place them on 10-day remand in the case lodged with the capital’s Paltan police station.
Separate units of police arrested Junayed from the capital’s Baridhara area and Jalal from the Mohammadpur area on Saturday.
During the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Bangladesh last month, members of the Hefazat-e-Islam staged protests, attacked government structures and clashed with security forces leaving dozens injured. Some protesters were also killed in violent protests. PTI
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After talks with govt, Pak Islamist party releases 11 cops from captivity
Lahore (TIP): The banned radical Islamist party Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) on Monday released 11 police hostages after the first round of talks with the Imran Khan government, which buckled under the pressure of the terror outfit over its demand to expel the French ambassador over a blasphemous caricature published in France last year.
After declaring the TLP a proscribed outfit under terrorism laws and freezing its leadership’s bank accounts last week, the Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government had announced there would be no talks with the terror outfit as the state would not allow it to challenge its writ.
However, after Sunday’s clash between the law enforcement agencies and the TLP workers in Lahore in which 11 policemen and Rangers were taken hostage by the radicals, the government held talks with the outfit leadership on Monday.
Pakistan Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed in a video message said, “Talks have started with the TLP. It has released 11 policemen who were taken hostage and kept at its headquarters in Lahore. The first round of talks with the TLP went well and the second will take place in the evening.” The minister hoped the rest of the matters would be resolved with the TLP in the second round of talks.
Meanwhile, business centres, markets and public transport in Lahore, Karachi and some other parts of the country remained closed on Monday on the call of senior cleric Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman to condemn the “brutal” police action at the TLP headquarters in Lahore on Sunday that left three Islamists dead and several injured.
The TLP has announced a protest march to Islamabad on Tuesday if the government does not expel the French envoy.
In Monday’s talks with the government, TLP leaders presented four demands — expel the French ambassador, release its party chief Saad Rizvi, revoke the ban on TLP, and release all its activists (over 3,000) and withdraw FIRs against them. The party warned that if their demands were not met, they would go ahead with their march to Islamabad.
“On the assurance that Prime Minister Khan will review TLP demands and there will be no further police action against those camping in Lahore, the Islamists freed the hostages,” said a senior police officer. Thousands of Islamists are camping on the Multan Road outside the TLP headquarters.
After the release of the 11 law enforcers, their pictures were released to the media. As per the pictures, most of them had head injuries. PTI
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Russia arrests over 1,700 at rallies for hunger-striking Navalny
Moscow (TIP): Police rounded up more than 1,700 protesters on Wednesday as Russians in dozens of cities took part in rallies organised by allies of hunger-striking Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny over his failing health in jail. His spokeswoman was jailed for 10 days, and another close ally detained, on the same day that President Vladimir Putin delivered a state-of-the-nation speech warning the West not to cross Russia’s “red lines” and pointedly made no mention of Navalny.
“This is one of the last gasps of a free Russia, as many are saying. We came out for Alexei … against a war in Ukraine and the wild propaganda,” said Marina, a student at the Moscow protest.
OVD-Info, a group that monitors protests and detentions, said 1,782 people had been arrested, including 804 in St. Petersburg and 119 in the Urals city of Ufa. Protesters in central Moscow chanted, “Freedom to Navalny!” and “Let the doctors in!”. Navalny’s wife Yulia joined the rally in the capital, where demonstrators chanted her name. The opposition had hoped the rallies would be the biggest in modern Russian history, and presented them as an attempt to save Navalny’s life by persuading the authorities to allow his own doctors to treat him. But turnout looked smaller than during protests earlier this year before Navalny was jailed for 2-1/2 years for parole violations related to what he said were politically motivated charges of embezzlement.
Police said 6,000 people protested illegally in Moscow, while Navalny’s YouTube channel said turnout in the capital was up to 10 times higher. Alexey Venediktov, a veteran journalist and head of the Ekho Moskvy radio station, said 10,000-15,000 people had rallied in Moscow and 7,000-9,000 in St Petersburg.
The 44-year-old Navalny, who last year survived a nerve agent attack that Russian authorities denied carrying out, is thin and weak after starving himself for three weeks, and his allies say he risks kidney failure or cardiac arrest. The United States has warned Russia it will face “consequences” if he dies.
The state human rights commissioner, Tatyana Moskalkova, said four doctors from outside the federal prison agency had visited Navalny on Tuesday and found no serious health problems.
Russia says he has been treated as would any other prisoner.
The confrontation over Navalny’s fate is a flashpoint in Moscow’s dire relations with the West, already aggravated by economic sanctions, diplomatic expulsions and a Russian military buildup near Ukraine.
U.N. human rights experts urged Moscow to let Navalny be medically evaluated abroad. They said they believed his life was in danger as he was being held in “conditions that could amount to torture”.
CALL TO ‘FIGHT THIS DARKNESS’
Navalny’s spokeswoman, Kira Yarmysh, and an ally, Lyubov Sobol, were detained near their Moscow homes hours before the rally in the capital. European Council President Charles Michel, who chairs European Union summits, called their arrests “deplorable”.
Yarmysh was later jailed for 10 days at a hearing for inciting people to protest. Sobol was released ahead of a hearing on Thursday. Navalny aide Ruslan Shaveddinov tweeted: “This is repression. This cannot be accepted. We need to fight this darkness.”
Dozens of police vans were deployed to the centre of Moscow. The square where activists had hoped to gather was cordoned off with metal barriers, as was Red Square.
Up to about 300 people protested in Vladivostok, some toting banners saying “Freedom for political prisoners” and “No war, repressions and torture!” Reuters
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De-coupling from China would be the wrong way to go, warns Germany
Berlin (TIP): The European Union needs to engage with China despite many differences instead of opting for a more isolationist approach, Germany said on Wednesday. “In the EU, we have been describing China as a partner, competitor and systemic rival at the same time,” German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said ahead of a virtual meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.
“In all these three dimensions we need strong, sustainable communication channels with Beijing. De-coupling is the wrong way to go.” Berlin’s warning against de-coupling is in line with Beijing’s long-held position against disengagement among nations, including with China, despite mutual differences. Last month, China was hit by a round of coordinated sanctions from the United States, European Union, Britain and Canada over reports of forced labour in the far western Chinese region of Xinjiang, accusations that Beijing rejects. Ties between China and Germany have generally remained stable since last year, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said later in his meeting with Mass. Wang also said major economies like China and Germany should jointly resist any de-coupling, and instead seek to uphold the stability of global industrial and supply chains, according to a statement from the Chinese foreign ministry. At the same time, China does not approve of any re-drawing of ideological lines, and is even more opposed to engaging in “small cliques”, and even arbitrarily imposing unilateral sanctions based on false information, Wang said.
Last week, U.S. President Joe Biden met with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga in his first face-to-face White House summit since taking office, where both leaders said they shared serious concerns about the human rights situation in Hong Kong and Xinjiang.
In a show of economic cooperation to the exclusion of China, Biden said Japan and the United States would jointly invest in the tech sector including semiconductor supply chains. Reuters
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Russia orders troops to return post Crimea drill
Moscow (TIP): Russia’s Defence Minister on Thursday ordered troops back to their permanent bases following massive drills in Crimea that involved dozens of navy ships, hundreds of warplanes and thousands of troops in a show of force amid tensions with Ukraine.
After watching the drills, Russian Defense Minister Shoigu declared the maneuvers over. “I consider the goals of the snap check of readiness fulfilled,” Shoigu said. — Agencies
Cathay Pacific to close pilot base in Canada; proposes shutting Australia, New Zealand
Vancover (TIP): Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd will close its Canadian pilot base and has proposed to also shut its pilot bases in Australia and New Zealand, the airline said on Thursday.
No decisions have been made on the fate of its pilots based in Europe and the United States, the airline said in a statement that noted all passenger fleet pilots on overseas bases had been stood down since May 2020.
The decision to close the Canadian base is final, while Australia and New Zealand is a proposal at this stage and will involve a good-faith consultation process with employees, Cathay said.
In Australia and New Zealand, employers must consult with staff before redundancies as part of union agreements but it is rare for publicly announced decisions to be reversed.
Qantas Airways Ltd and Air New Zealand Ltd made similar announcements last year about consultations before proceeding with their planned staff cuts.
Cathay’s proposed closures were first reported by the South China Morning Post.
Cathay had already closed overseas cabin crew bases and shut its regional airline Cathay Dragon to help it conserve cash during the pandemic, resulting in the loss of more than 5,900 jobs.
The remaining Hong Kong-based pilots and cabin crew had to agree to permanent pay cuts to keep their jobs.
Cathay, which lacks a domestic market at a time when international borders are largely shut, last month reported a record annual loss of HK$21.65 billion ($2.8 billion).
It has been burning through as much as HK$1.9 billion of cash a month, though the carrier said last week that figure would begin to reduce slightly due to an easing of cargo crew quarantine requirements. Reuters
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WWI martyrs: Britain apologises for racism
London (TIP): Entrenched prejudices, preconceptions and pervasive racism of contemporary imperial attitudes meant that nearly 50,000 Indian soldiers who died fighting for the British Empire during the World War I (WWI) were not commemorated the same way as other martyrs, finds a new review released on Thursday. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) found that an estimated 45,000-54,000 casualties, predominantly Indian, African, Egyptian and Somali personnel, were commemorated unequally. A further 1,16,000 casualties were not commemorated by name or possibly not commemorated at all. UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace made an apology on behalf of the government in the House of Commons. — PTI
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Syrian missile explodes in area near Israeli nuclear reactor, Israel retaliates
Jerusalem (TIP): A Syrian missile exploded in southern Israel on Thursday, the Israeli military said, in an incident that triggered warning sirens near the secretive Dimona nuclear reactor and an Israeli strike in Syria. An Israeli military spokesman identified the projectile as an SA-5 surface-to-air missile fired by Syrian forces against Israeli aircraft. He said it overflew its target to reach the Dimona area, 200 km (125 miles) south of the Syrian border.
The missile did not hit the reactor, landing some 30 km (19 miles) away, the spokesman added.
In a further statement, the military said a preliminary investigation showed that Israel’s anti-missile systems had not carried out an interception of the projectile. Israeli security sources said the missile exploded in mid-air. In response, Israel launched further overnight attacks inside Syria, the military spokesman said, targeting several missile batteries, including the one that fired the SA-5.
The sirens that sounded in the dead of night in the Dimona area followed weeks of heightened tension between Israel and Iran, a close ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, amid renewed negotiations surrounding Tehran’s nuclear programme.
For weeks, Israeli media have said air defences around the Dimona reactor and the Red Sea port of Eilat were being strengthened in anticipation of a possible long-range missile or drone attack by Iranian-backed forces, perhaps from as far away as Yemen.
Syria’s state news agency said the country’s air defence system intercepted an Israeli strike in the suburbs of Damascus. “Air defences intercepted the rockets and downed most of them,” it said. Four soldiers were injured in the attack and there was some material damage, the report added.
A Syrian military defector said the Israeli strikes targeted locations near the town of Dumair, some 40 km (25 miles) northeast of Damascus, where Iranian-backed militias have a presence. It is an area hit repeatedly in past Israeli attacks. Addressing the likelihood of a Syrian anti-aircraft missile overshooting its target and flying a long distance into Israel, Uzi Rubin, an Israeli missile expert, said the scenario was “consistent with the characteristics” of an SA-5.
“The trajectory of a stray anti-aircraft missile on an unintended descent is very tricky to track,” he told Reuters. “Israel’s air defence systems are in theory capable of carrying out such an interception with proper preparation, but it would be at the edge of the capability envelope.” Had the Syrians wanted to attack Dimona, he said, they could have used bigger weapons in their arsenal, such as Scud missiles. “In 1991, Saddam Hussein tried to attack Dimona with a Scud, and that was from 600 km away,” he said, or a distance of 373 miles.
Early on Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition battling Yemen’s Houthis intercepted a drone attack by the Iran-aligned movement on the southern Saudi city of Khamis Mushait, state media said. Reuters
