hi INDiA |December 16, 2022 | The Community First

‘Enough is enough’: UK PM announces crackdown on illegal immigration Joe Biden signs gay marriage law

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US Senate passes bill to bar federal employees from using TikTok on government-owned devices

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The US Senate late on Wednesday passed by voice vote a bill to bar federal employees from using Chinese-owned short videosharing app TikTok on governmentowned devices.

The bill must still be approved by the US House of Representatives before going to President Joe Biden for approval. The House of Representatives would need to pass the Senate bill before the current congressional session ends, which is expected next week.

The vote is the latest action on the part of US lawmakers to crackdown on Chinese companies amid national security fears that Beijing could use them to spy on Americans. The Senate action comes after North Dakota and Iowa this week joined a growing number of US states in

US winter storm barrels east with millions under weather warnings

destroyed by a tornado.

The huge storm also brought blizzardlike conditions to the Midwest, with roads and schools closed and some areas reporting 4ft (1.2m) of snow.

Around 3,300 flights have been delayed and over 150 more cancelled.

Some 500,000 people across four states - Nebraska, Wyoming, South Dakota and Minnesota - are under blizzard warnings, with powerful winds and heavy snowfall making travel difficult.

At least three people have died as a powerful winter storm moves east across the US, spawning tornadoes in southern states and coating others in snow.

A young boy and his mother were killed in Louisiana when their home was

US

says report

Millions more around the country are under less severe winter weather alerts.

Severe storms are forecast along the Gulf coast, including in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and parts of Florida. There are also tornado warnings in parts of Louisiana and Mississippi.

The United States is planning to send electronic equipment to Ukraine that converts unguided aerial munitions into smart bombs, allowing a high degree of accurate targeting, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday, citing US officials familiar with the matter.

banning TikTok, owned by ByteDance, from state-owned devices amid concerns that data could be passed on to the Chinese government. During the last Congress, the Senate in August 2020 unanimously approved legislation to bar TikTok from government devices. The bill’s sponsor, Republican Senator Josh Hawley, reintroduced in legislation in 2021. Many federal agencies including the Defense, Homeland Security and State departments already ban TikTok from government-owned devices. “TikTok is a major security risk to the United States, and it has no place on government devices,” Hawley said previously. North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum and Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds issued directives prohibiting executive branch agencies from downloading the app on any government-issued equipment.

Joe Biden signs gay marriage law, calls it ‘a blow against hate’

said on the South Lawn of the White House. “And that’s why this law matters to every single American.”

Singers Sam Smith and Cyndi Lauper performed. Vice President Kamala Harris recalled officiating at a lesbian wedding in San Francisco.

A celebratory crowd of thousands bundled up on a raw Tuesday afternoon to watch US President Joe Biden sign gay marriage legislation into law, a joyful ceremony that was tempered by the backdrop of an ongoing conservative backlash over gender issues.

“This law and the love it defends strike a blow against hate in all its forms,” Biden

Indian American Neurosurgeon took $3.3 millions in bribe; Gets 5 years in Prison

Tantuwaya accepted money from Drobot in exchange for performing spinal surgeries at the hospital.

and has been in federal custody since May 2021 after he was found to have violated the terms of his pretrial release.

The owner of the hospital, Michael Drobot, was also imprisoned for committing a massive workers’ compensation system scam, according to the Department of Justice press release.

And the White House played a recording of Biden’s television interview from a decade ago, when he caused a political furore by unexpectedly disclosing his support for gay marriage. Biden was vice president at the time, and President Barack Obama had not yet endorsed the idea.

“I got in trouble,” Biden joked of that moment. Three days later, Obama himself publicly endorsed gay marriage.

16-year-old Indian American Jumps off Golden Gate Bridge; Dies

Zofeen Maqsood

Indian American neurosurgeon from San Diego, by the name Lokesh S. Tantuwaya, has been sentenced to five years in federal prison. The neurosurgeon accepted approximately $3.3 million in bribes for performing spinal surgeries at a now-defunct hospital in Long Beach, California. Tantuwaya pleaded guilty in September

Tantuwaya accepted money from Drobot in exchange for performing spinal surgeries at the hospital. Drobot conspired with doctors, chiropractors and marketers to pay bribes in return for the referral of thousands of patients to Pacific Hospital.

In total, Tantuwaya received approximately $3.3 million in illegal payments. In his plea agreement, Tantuwaya admitted that he knew or deliberately was ignorant that the payments were being given to him in exchange for bringing his patient surgeries to the hospital.

In a shocking incident, a 16-year-old boy committed suicide by jumping off the iconic golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. The news has been confirmed by his parents and US Coast Guard officials.

A two-hour search and rescue mission was carried off soon as it was known that someone jumped off the bridge. The teenager left behind his bicycle, phone and bag before he jumped off the bridge. During last year alone, 25 people committed suicide by jumping off the famous tourist structure according to non-profit organization, Bridge Rail Project. Work is also on to build an iron mesh on both sides of the bridge. The task undertaken by the state government in 2018 is behind schedule.

Zofeen Maqsood

The vote is the latest action on the part of US lawmakers to crackdown on Chinese companies amid national security fears that Beijing could use them to spy on Americans.

planning to send smart-bomb kits to Ukraine,

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India slams Pakistan for raking up Kashmir issue in UN

‘Enough is enough’: UK PM announces crackdown on illegal immigration

Britain on Tuesday said it planned to bring in new legislation to prevent migrants who cross the English Channel from remaining in the country, as the government tries to control a surge in people arriving in small boats on its southern coast.

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where migrants are blamed for making it harder to find work and stretching public services.

India strongly hit back at Pakistan on Wednesday after it raised the Kashmir issue in the UN Security Council, asserting that a country that hosted slain al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and attacked a neighbouring Parliament does not have the credentials to “sermonize” in the power UN organ.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the credibility of the UN depends on its effective response to the key challenges of our times, be it pandemics, climate change, conflicts or terrorism. “We are obviously focused today on the urgency of reforming multilateralism. We will naturally have our particular views, but there is a growing convergence at least that this cannot be delayed any further,” said Jaishankar, who is chairing India’s signature event on reformed multilateralism.

China ‘removes’ 6 diplomats from UK

The number of people arriving in England across the Channel has more than doubled in the last two years, with government figures showing Albanians account for the highest number of people arriving by this route.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced a new five-point strategy for dealing with illegal immigration, including plans to fast-track the return of Albanian asylum seekers, and clearing the initial backlog of almost 150,000 asylum cases by the end of next year by doubling the number of caseworkers.

“If you enter the UK illegally you should not be able to remain here,” Sunak told parliament. “Instead, you will be detained and swiftly returned either to your home country or to a safe country where your asylum claim will be considered.”

Migrants arriving on small boats has become a major political issue for the Conservative government, particularly in working-class areas in the north and central England,

Sunak said a new unit would be created to tackle crossings, and that in future migrants would be housed in disused holiday parks, former student accommodation and surplus military sites rather than hotels.

Britain’s interior minister, Home Secretary Suella Braverman, recently called the wave of arrivals an “invasion” and described many of the migrants as “criminals”, leading to an angry response from Albanian prime minister Edi Rama.

Sunak said that over the coming months thousands of Albanians would be returned home.

Successive British governments have promised to stop the arrival of small boats. Despite that, a record 44,867 people have crossed the Channel on small boats to enter Britain this year.

The number of people arriving in England across the Channel has more than doubled in the last two years, with government figures showing Albanians account for the highest number of people arriving by this route.

EU agrees €20 bln boost for energy funding to

Season’s coldest weather grips S.Korea

The Chinese government on Wednesday “removed” a Consul General and five other diplomats involved in an incident in which a pro-democracy Hong Kong protester was beaten up inside China’s Consulate in Manchester, UK’s Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said. Cleverly said the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) had set a deadline of December 14 to the Chinese government for the six officials to have their diplomatic immunity waived so they could be questioned by British police in relation to the incident.

It followed a request from Greater Manchester Police investigating the assault. “In response to our request, the Chinese government has now removed from the UK those officials, including the consul general himself,” he said.

“This demonstrates that our adherence to the rule of law, the seriousness with which we take these incidents, has had an effect, and we will continue on the world stage and domestically to abide by the rule of law, and we expect others to do likewise,” he said.

The European Union will raise an extra 20 billion euros from its carbon market for investments to help end more swiftly the bloc’s reliance on Russian fossil fuels, under a political deal reached on Wednesday. Negotiators from EU countries and the European Parliament agreed in the early hours of Wednesday to raise 60% of the grants from an EU Innovation Fund – an existing pot of carbon market revenue that is currently spent on breakthrough green technologies. The other 40% would come from proceeds from CO2 permit sales held earlier than planned.

Seoul: (IANS) South Korea came under the grip of the season’s coldest weather on Wednesday, with the morning lows dipping to minus 15 degrees Celsius in some inland areas, the state weather agency said. The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said the freezing temperatures were accompanied by strong wind, with the wind velocity reaching up to 16 meters per second in some coastal areas, reports Yonhap News Agency. In Seoul, morning lows plummeted to minus 11 degrees Celsius and an apparent temperature of nearly minus 20 degrees Celsius as of 7 a.m., the KMA said.

Iran jails Belgian aid worker for 28 years - family

Iran has sentenced a Belgian aid worker to 28 years in prison on unknown charges, his family has said.

Olivier Vandecasteele, 41, was arrested during a brief visit to Tehran in February and accused of espionage.

On Wednesday, his family said they had been informed of his sentence at a meeting with Belgium’s prime minister. There was no confirmation from Iran, but the news comes days after Belgium’s constitutional court halted a controversial prisoner exchange treaty. Iran wants to swap Mr Vandecasteele

for its alleged top intelligence official in Europe, Assadollah Assadi.

He was given a 20-year jail sentence in Belgium last year for plotting to bomb an exiled Iranian opposition group’s rally.

Mr Vandecasteele worked for six years in Iran for the Norwegian Refugee Council and other aid agencies. He left the country last year, but returned in February against Belgian government advice in order to close down his apartment in Tehran.

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quit Russian gas

Olivier Vandecasteele

Rajya Sabha adjourned twice over Opposition ruckus

‘China was building up airbase, infrastructure near the LAC for last 2 years’

Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) was trying to get access to a 17,000 feet high peak in Arunachal Pradesh from October this year, and since then, has doubled its troops along its side of the LAC, an Indian Army source said on Wednesday.

Rajya Sabha proceedings were disrupted thrice during the first hour on Thursday as opposition members created an uproar after the chair disallowed adjournment notices given by them on several issues, including alleged misuse of probe agencies by the government.

The House witnessed two back-toback adjournments of 15 minutes each and then again for two minutes during the Zero Hour as opposition members raised slogans demanding that their notices be admitted for a discussion. Soon after laying of papers, Deputy Chairman Harivansh said notices given by seven members were not allowed.

Opposition members sought clarifications on why their adjournment notices were not taken up and demanded discussions on various issues.

Bones recovered from Mehrauli forest match with DNA of victim’s father

New Delhi: (IANS) Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) was trying to get access to a 17,000 feet high peak in Arunachal Pradesh from October this year, and since then, has doubled its troops along its side of the LAC, an Indian Army source said on Wednesday.

China was not active just from October only but they were creating an infrastructure alongside the LAC in Arunachal Pradesh since 2020. China built an airbases too at their side,

US reports 50% increase of weekly child Covid cases

near the LAC in Arunachal Pradesh, the source said. According to the sources, the building up of Chinese infrastructure, started just before the Communist Party of China commenced its 20th Congress.

After increasing its strength, the PLA on December 9 tried to get access to the strategically-important Arunachal peak but India had also matched the numbers and resisted them.

Fully prepared and aware Indian Army troops defeated the Chinese in their attempt, and in this clash, a total of 34 Indian and more than 40 Chinese soldiers got injuries, the army source said. Six of the Indian Soldier who got injuries during the clash were admitted to the military hospital at Guwahati, but there is no reports of any serious injury. The clash between Indian army and Chinese PLA on December 9 occurred along the section of the LAC at Yangtse, some 35 km north- east of Tawang in the western part of Arunachal Pradesh.

India Records 200 New Covid Cases, 2 Deaths

New Delhi: Police have finally got some major material evidence in the murder case of Shraddha Walkar — a DNA test has confirmed that the bones that alleged killer Aaftab Poonawala led the cops to, in a jungle in Delhi’s Mehrauli area, are indeed hers. The test report — carried out using DNA samples from her father — came in today, over a month after her boyfriend Aaftab Poonawala was arrested for having killer her in May. He had chopped up her body into 35 pieces that he kept in a fridge and later dumped in the jungle near their rented flat in South Delhi’s Mehrauli over 18 days.

So far, on the evidence list, police had some of the knives allegedly used by Aaftab Poonwala, besides his “confession” that is not directly valid evidence. However, materials recovered through such a confession — for which police also conducted lie-detection tests in him — can be presented as evidence to rebuild the sequence of events before and after the murder.

Washington: (IANS) About 41,000 child Covid-19 cases were reported in the US in the week ending December 8, an increase of about 50 per cent over the weekly average in the previous eight weeks, according to the latest report by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Children’s Hospital Association.

Almost 15.1 million children in the country have tested positive for Covid-19 since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020, reports Xinhua news agency. About 127,000 of these cases have been added in the past four weeks, according to the report.

New Delhi: India saw a single-day rise of 200 new coronavirus infections, while the active cases declined to 3,767, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Thursday. The total tally of Covid cases in the country stands at 4.46 crore (4,46,75,447). The overall death count has risen to 5,30,663 with five fatalities – three reconciled by Kerala, and one each reported from Karnataka and Maharashtra in the last 24 hours, the data updated at 8 am stated. Active cases comprise 0.01 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has increased to 98.80 per cent, according to the health ministry website.

Says Nitish

Over Toxic Liquor Deaths

‘Pathaan’: Protest in Indore

2016.

Over 30 people have died in Saran district in the most recent tragedy,

and the JDU-RJD government has been facing protests by the BJP in the assembly and outside over alleged laxity in implementing prohibition.

“Jo sharaab peeyega, wo toh marega hi na... Udaharan saamne hai — peeyoge toh maroge. (Those who drunk liquor will obviously die. We have an example in this case),” Mr Kumar said in Hindi in response to a question in Patna, referring to demands of compensation in earlier cases:

Activists of an outfit on Wednesday staged a protest against the upcoming Bollywood film “Pathaan” and its song “Besharam Rang” in Indore city of Madhya Pradesh. The activists of “Veer Shivaji Group” gathered at a road intersection and set effigies of actors Deepika Padukone and Shah Rukh Khan on fire. They demanded to ban the film, set to hit the screens in January next year, alleging the Hindu community is feeling offended by the content of the “Besharam Rang” song.

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“If You Drink, You’ll Die,”

Kumar, Slammed

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today rejected the possibility of giving compensation to the families of those killed by spurious liquor, and said people should be “more vigilant” when the state anyway has prohibition since

On deaths in Saran, Bihar Chief Minister defends prohibition, says grief be expressed, and then people be made aware of how liquor “only kills”

Shraddha Walkar Murder Case

Breif

India Stops China Attempt At Land Grab In Arunachal

Proceedings in parliament were adjourned soon after they began today as the Opposition kept insisting that the border clash issued by discussed at once

Chinese transgressions continue, Centre mute spectator:

Kharge

New Delhi: (IANS) Leader of opposition, Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday accused the Centre of being a mute spectator on the Chinese transgressions. He was speaking in the Rajya Sabha and demanded a statement from the Prime Minister. He said, “The valour of our Armed Forces in Galwan Valley, Ladakh is well-known. But China has brazenly transgressed into our territory since April 2020. The illegal and unprovoked Chinese transgressions up to Y junction in Depsang Plains continue till date.” He said the Chinese transgressions into Gogra and Hot Springs area in Eastern Ladakh, Chinese buildup next to Pangong Tso Lake area, including building of PLA’s divisional headquarters, army garrison, weapon shelters for artillery, anti- aircraft guns and armoured carriers, was being continuously ignored by the government.

India “Strongly Condemns” Islamic Nations’ Group Head’s PoK Visit

New Delhi: Indian soldiers repulsed an attempt by Chinese forces to “unilaterally change the status quo” in Arunachal Pradesh by transgressing the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Tawang last week, the government said in parliament today. In a statement in both houses, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the Indian soldiers prevented the Chinese from making a landgrab in Arunachal Pradesh and “compelled the Chinese troops to return to their posts”.

No soldier was killed or seriously injured in the clash between Indian and Chinese troops on December 9, said Mr Singh. The government, he said, had spoken to China through diplomatic channels

soon after the border clash. “Our forces are ready to meet any challenge on the border,” he stressed.

The minister said the Army had “bravely prevented” the PLA from transgressing into our territory and “compelled them to return to their posts”. “The scuffle led to injuries to a few personnel on both sides. I wish to share with this House that there are no fatalities or serious

casualties on our side,” he said. Rajnath Singh’s statement did not silence the opposition parties, who walked out in protest. The Opposition said it was not satisfied with just a statement and wanted a discussion on the crucial border issue. Congress MP Shaktisinh Gohil told NDTV that the “attitude” of the government to avoid a discussion is not right.

One Can Capture Inch Of Land Till Modi Government In Power”: Amit Shah

New Delhi: No one can capture even one inch of land till the Narendra Modi government is in power, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said today as the opposition demanded a discussion on clashes between Indian and Chinese forces along the LAC in Arunachal Pradesh.

Addressing reporters outside Parliament House, Amit Shah also said the Congress had raised the border issue in Parliament to avoid questions on the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation’s FCRA [Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act] cancellation. The Rajiv Gandhi Foundation (RGF), he alleged, had got ₹ 1.35 crore from the Chinese Embassy. Its registration was cancelled as this was not according to FCRA rules, he said.

Elon Musk’s Attacks On Biden’s Covid Advisor Fauci Is “Disgusting”: White House

Congress Leader Arrested For

“Be Ready To Kill

Modi” Remark

New Delhi: India on Tuesday strongly condemned the visit of the secretary general of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and for his comments on Jammu and Kashmir, asserting that the grouping has no locus standi in matters related to the region.

In a sharp reaction to OIC Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha’s trip to PoK, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said “Any attempt of interference and meddling in India’s internal affairs by OIC and its secretary general is completely unacceptable.” He said the OIC has already lost its “credibility” by taking a “blatantly communal, partisan and factually incorrect approach” to the issues.

Washington: The White House on Monday condemned billionaire Elon Musk’s call for Anthony Fauci, the US infectious disease expert who is a hate figure for many on the right, to be prosecuted over his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“These are incredibly dangerous, these personal attacks that we are seeing,” said White House spokeswoman Karine JeanPierre, in response to the weekend tweet by Musk that subsequently went viral.

“They are disgusting and they are divorced from reality,” she said.

Musk, the owner of Twitter, took to the site Sunday to urge punishment for Fauci,

who led the government’s approach to the pandemic when it hit the country in early 2020.

“My pronouns are Prosecute/Fauci,” Musk said, tauntingly playing on the growing practice for people to indicate their preferred gender pronouns.

Musk also posted a meme showing Fauci telling US President Joe Biden, “Just one more lockdown, my king,” in apparent criticism of the coronavirus mitigation measures initially taken in parts of the country in the first year of the pandemic.

Conservatives including former president Donald Trump have made Fauci a focus of their criticisms of the government campaign to battle Covid, and he has faced death threats and had a security team assigned to protect him.

Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Congress leader Raja Pateria was arrested today for his controversial “be ready to kill” PM Narendra Modi remarks. Mr Pateria triggered outrage on Monday when a video of him surfaced in which he was heard goading a group of people to “kill” PM Modi in order to “save” the Constitution.

Mr Pateria, at a gathering of party workers, said, “Modi will end elections, Modi will divide on the basis of religion, caste, language; the lives of Dalits, tribals, and minorities are in danger. If the constitution is to be saved, then be ready to kill Modi.”

Following his remarks, the Madhya Pradesh government ordered a police case against Mr Pateria.

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The White House has condemned social media attacks against Anthony Fauci after Twitter owner Elon Musk posted a tweet mocking Biden’s Covid advisor Anthony Fauci.

“No

TN proposes new medical college for fireworks workers at Sivakasi

BJP ‘keen’ for patch up between OPS and EPS in TN

Telangana govt issues Shishu Aadhar for newborns at public hospitals

Chennai: (IANS) The Tamil Nadu government is proposing a second medical college in Virudhunagar district to cater to the 56,000 workers in the fireworks industry of Sivakasi, it was announced on Tuesday.

Sivakasi is the capital of the fireworks industry in the country.

The medical college will be set up under the ESIC and the estimated cost of setting it up is around Rs 150 crore. The state Labour Minister’s office, in a statement, said that the government has already forwarded the proposal to the Central government.

The district administration of Virudhanagar has already communicated to the government that it has found 16 acres of land required for setting up a medical college in Sivakasi.

The medical college will be catering exclusively for the treatment of the victims of fireworks accidents in Sivakasi.

The statement also said that the hospital will have all the facilities required for treating injuries related to fireworks accidents.

Chennai: (IANS) The presence of deposed AIADMK leader O. Panneerselvam (OPS) in the swearingin ceremony of Gujarat Chief Minister, Bhupendra Yadav following the invitation sent by the central BJP leadership indicates the saffron party’s willingness for a patch-up in the AIADMK which is its partner in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Panneerselvam, a former Chief Minister, is in political wilderness after his expulsion from the AIADMK, and the rival group of present interim general secretary, Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) has gained an upperhand. However, OPS has a huge strength in his fiefdom of South Tamil Nadu and his Thevar community, who have been an ardent vote bank for the AIADMK. The elders of Thevar community had even taken up the matter entry of OPS

Japanese firm Taikisha to invest Rs 126 crore in Hyderabad

and former interim general secretary V.K. Sasikala (also from Thevar community) to the AIADMK with the party’s central leadership. The nephew of Sasikala and general secretary of the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK), T.T.V. Dhinakaran is also a force to reckon with in South Tamil Nadu.

R. Pandyan, Director of Social Action Movement Tamil Nadu and based out of Tirunelveli, while speaking to IANS, said, “The Thevar community of South Tamil Nadu has always been a back bone of the AIADMK and the community won’t forgive the party leadership for expelling OPS who has been a leader who have come up from the rank and file. The combination of OPS, Sasikala, and Dhinakaran can be made use for the BJP and the AIADMK in the next Lok Sabha polls and it seems that the central BJP leadership has this point in mind.”

Hyderabad: The Telangana government has started issuing Shishu Aadhar cards to newborn babies at government hospitals. The initiative is aimed at helping create an identity for infants.

The medical superintendent of Golconda Area Hospital, Dr Mohammad Mazharullah said, “The Telangana government is issuing Shishu Aadhar cards for newborn babies in Telangana. It is being done by the Government Commission of family welfare under Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and Health Minister Harish Rao. The newborns are being enrolled for the Shishu Aadhar card.” He said the Aadhar card and Aadhar number of the mother are mandatory for this. If not, the father’s Aadhar card can also be used.

“We issue this within 24 hours of the birth of a child. This has been launched for the first time in Telangana. I thank Telangana government, CM and the Health minister and the commissioner for family welfare,” he added.

Sai Baba, DEO of Golconda Area Hospital, said, “The CM has launched the the ‘Shishu Aadhar card’ initiative.

Government schools in Telangana get sports grant

Hyderabad: Nicomac Taikisha Cleanrooms will set up its third manufacturing facility in Hyderabad with an investment of Rs 126.2 crore. The announcement was made in the presence of IT and Industries Minister KT Rama Rao on Tuesday.

Taikisha is a 110-year-old Japanbased engineering company and it has acquired Nicomac Cleanrooms.

Taikisha is a pioneer in setting up cleanrooms and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning for electronic devices, lithium-ion battery manufacturing, food industry and hydroponic farming. It manufactures and constructs cleanroom facilities for pharmaceutical and vaccines in sterile industries. The company’s cleanrooms are installed in major pharmaceutical industries

in India and abroad. The company is presently operating two manufacturing units at IDA Bollaram in Hyderabad.

It is proposing to set up a third manufacturing facility to expand its cleanroom production and to start producing HVAC systems by transferring technology from Japan. For this purpose, the company has planned to invest Rs 126.22 crore. The production output from the new manufacturing facility will cater to Indian, Japanese and Asian markets.

Nicomac Taikisha will also explore the possibilities of creating a major manufacturing base for their entire product range in Telangana to meet the demand of the Indian as well as the export market.

Hyderabad: In a move to promote sports and games among the school children besides ensuring their physical health fitness, the School Education department has released sports grant for the sports grant and local body schools across the State.

In a proceeding recently issued by the department, a total of Rs.16.52 crore sports grant was released for the 25,039 with 17,042 primary, 3,134 upper primary and 4,863 high schools under different managements.

Depending on the level of the school, the grant will be distributed. Each primary school has been provided Rs.5,000, while each of the upper primary and high schools will be given Rs.10,000.

As for the primary classes, citing the Ministry of Education guidelines, the department suggested the schools to purchase 20 shortlisted equipment. The suggested equipment for Class 1-5 included plastic cricket bat, wooden cricket bat, soft ball, tennis ball, plastic balls, basketball, Frisbee, multi coloured hula hoops, saucer cone and bean bags. Likewise, for upper primary students, shot put, skipping rope, wooden cricket bat, tennis ball, throw-ball, agility ladder, foot pump and first aid kit were suggested. In addition to equipment advised for upper primary schools, high schools can purchase badminton rackets, badminton shuttle, rugby ballsenior, and football along with the goal post.

Apart from the sports grant, the department has released 100 per cent of the composite school grant totaling Rs.74.16 crore with 50 per cent in the first phase and remaining Rs.37.08 crore recently to 26,337 schools.

These grants sanctioned to schools on the basis of enrollment are put to use for provision of stationery i.e. chalk pieces, white papers, register and conducting exams. They can also be used for paying the electricity and internet bills besides repairing computers, projector, K-Yan or TV.

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2 Indian-Americans in Money magazine’s top 50 changemakers

New York: (IANS) Two IndianAmericans are among Money magazine’s 50 influential figures from entertainment, media, business, investing, politics, etc, who are shaping Americans’ finances.

Rohit Chopra, head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and Gaurav Sharma of New Yorkbased fintech firm Capitalize, have been recognised for offering “unique perspective on the gaps within our financial systems - and how they’re working to improve the future for everyday consumers”.

As the director of the government’s CFPB, Chopra, 40, is tasked with protecting families from deceptive and abusive financial practices.

Appointed by US President Joe Biden in 2021, “Chopra has already made an outsized impact on the wallets of Americans by helping overhaul how medical debt affects our credit, reduce ‘junk fees’ charged by banks, and more,” says Money.

Aus biz operator fined $30k for not paying Indian worker

As Director, Chopra is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Financial Stability Oversight Council. “As far as financial regulators go, 40-yearold Chopra is young, though he’s certainly

not inexperienced. In fact, he’s a bit of a financial Forrest Gump,” the Money said. During his tenure at the Federal Trade Commission starting 2018, Chopra successfully worked to strengthen sanctions against repeat offenders,

to reverse the agency’s reliance on no-money, no-fault settlements in fraud cases, and to halt abuses of small businesses. Prior to his government service, Chopra worked at McKinsey & Company, the global management consultancy, where he worked in the financial services, health care, and consumer technology sectors.

Chopra holds a BA from Harvard University and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.An Australian by birth, Sharma is the CEO and Co-Founder of Capitalize -- a venture-backed fintech company in New York focused on the retirement savings market. Before founding Capitalize, Sharma worked for JP Morgan, UBS, Morgan Stanley, and Greenlight Capital. After seeing how hard it is for most people to understand their retirement accounts, he decided to build a company that makes it easier.

“Really honored to be recognized by @ Money as one of 50 Changemakers for 2023 - and flattered to be alongside some amazing innovators,” Sharma tweeted.

Initially, Sharma wanted Capitalize just to solve the problem of finding an old account and getting the money easily into an individual retirement account.

Looking forward, though, “our bigger mission is helping the issue of saving for retirement,” Sharma told Money.

Indian-American doctor, mother of 5, dies in Houston car crash

New York: (IANS) An Indian-American doctor, dancer, and a mother of five children died on the spot after her car was hit by a speeding motorcycle in Houston city of Texas, media reports said.

Melbourne: (IANS) A vehicle repair business operator in Australia has been fined AU$30,000 for not paying backpay entitlements to a worker from India, the court said.

The Federal Circuit and Family Court imposed the penalty against Bhangu Pty Ltd., which operates a business trading as Rehaan Automotive Care, based in Archerfield, a suburb in the city of Brisbane.

The penalty was imposed last week in response to Bhangu Pty Ltd. failing to comply with a compliance notice by Australian regulatory authority Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO).

The FWO notice required the company to calculate and back-pay entitlements to a visa-holder worker from India, who was employed as a full-time motor mechanic between February 2017 and February 2018. Fair Work Ombudsman Sandra Parker said in a statement that business operators that fail to act on compliance notices need to be aware they can face penalties in court on top of having to back-pay workers.

“When compliance notices are not followed, we are prepared to take legal action to ensure workers receive their lawful entitlements,” Parker added.

“Employers should also be aware that taking action to protect vulnerable employees, such as migrant workers, is a priority for the agency. Any employees with concerns about their pay or entitlements should contact us for free advice and assistance,” she said in an FWO statement.

Mini Vettical, 52, a native of Ramamangalam in Kerala, was on her way home from work when she died in a crash in southeast Houston at around 4 pm on December 7, KHOU 11, a Houston-based TV channel, reported. She was a faculty member at Baylor University and worked primarily at Harris Health clinics.

“Dr Vettical was devoted to caring for the underprivileged and underserved in Harris County at multiple health centers. The Baylor Family Medicine community is in shock and disbelief. Her beloved personality will be tremendously missed

Sikh youth shot dead in latest homicide killing in Canada

Toronto: (IANS) The death of 24 yearold Sanraj Singh due to gunshot wounds in Alberta province comes latest in the series of Sikhs killings in Canada.

Police said they responded to reports of gunshots in the area of 51 Street and 13 Avenue of Edmonton, capital of Alberta, at approximately 8:40 p.m. on December 3. Upon arrival, they located a male sitting in a vehicle in medical distress.

Singh was given CPR by the police until paramedics arrived and declared him dead.

The Edmonton Medical Examiner on December 7 completed an autopsy on the deceased, and identified him as Sanraj Singh, 24.

Vettical

by faculty and staff. She leaves a gap that is hard to fill among her colleagues and patients,” a Baylor University statement read.

In addition to medically helping underserved populations throughout

Houston, Vettical was actively involved in organisations like Pratham Houston and the Houston Area Women’s Center. She was also a class volunteer and involved in the church and dancing theatre.

Vettical is survived by her husband and five children.

Pooja Vettical, the eldest of the five kids, told KHOU 11 that no matter how much Vettical had on her plate, “she always made time for her most important job of all - being a mom”.

According to her obituary posted on the Dignity Memorial website, Vettical was born in Kuwait in 1970, and received her medical degree from the University of Texas. She specialised in Internal Medicine.

Her funeral was held on Monday at Houston’s St Anne Catholic Church.

Canadian-Sikh arrested for running police car off the road

Toronto: (IANS) Police in Canada have charged and arrested a Sikh man after he “intentionally” ran a police cruiser off the roadway in a stolen vehicle in the city of Brampton.

In July 2021, Gauravdeep Singh was seen operating a stolen vehicle around Hurontario Street and County Court Boulevard in Brampton, the Peel

Regional Police said. Singh made “intentional contact with a police cruiser, causing it to leave the roadway and make good on his escape”. Following the incident, an arrest warrant was issued for Singh, and he was arrested late last month. Singh has been charged with 12 offences, including theft of a motor vehicle, possession of stolen property and flight from a police officer.

“It is a miracle that there were no serious injuries in this incident as this individual attempted to harm our officers, who accept the inherent risks associated with their jobs to keep our community safe,” Peel Regional Police Deputy Chief, Marc Andrews, said in a statement.

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Rohit Chopra and Gaurav Sharma

Mini

Zofeen Maqsood

Pramukh Swami Shatabdi Mohotsav started with scripture ceremony Narendra Modi performed puja-archana

LAC clash: US closely monitoring situation

The US has said that it encourages India and China to utilise existing bilateral channels to discuss their disputed boundaries, even as it strongly opposed any “unilateral attempts” to advance territorial claims across the border at the established Line of Actual Control.

“We are glad to hear that both sides appear to have quickly disengaged from the clashes. We are closely monitoring the situation,” White House Press Secretary Karine JeanPierre told reporters at her daily news conference on Tuesday. She was responding to questions on clashes between Indian and Chinese troops on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) on December 9. “We encourage India and China to utilise existing bilateral channels to discuss disputed boundaries. We are glad to see that there has been some disengagement on the clashes at this time,” she said.

The centenary festival of Sant Pujya Shri Pramuchswami is starting from today i.e. 14th December at Oganaj, Ahmedabad. Swaminarayananagar has been built on 600 acres of land on the banks of SP Ring Road between Science City-Oganaj for this festival.

Today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Mahantaswamy Maharaj,have inaugurated the birth centenary festival of Pramuch Swami Maharaj with a scriptural ceremony.

Along with Narendra Modi, Chief

Minister Bhupendra Patel and Governor Devvrat Acharya are also present. More than 1 lakh people have arrived at PM Modi’s meeting in Pramukhswami Shatabdi Mohotsav.

Newly elected MLAs have also arrived. In which Hardik Patel, Jitu Vaghani, Mayor of Ahmedabad Kirit Parmar, Amit P. Shah, Kaushik Jain, Pankaj Desai and Amit Thacker. Also former minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama, former MP Ratilal Verma, former minister Rajni Patel have also come to the place. Apart from this, Jethalal i.e. Dilip Joshi of Tarak Mehta Ka Oolta Chashma has

US: Scientists achieve N-fusion breakthrough

also arrived.

After inaugurating the centenary festival, the PM will visit the entire town and then address a large gathering. Different seating arrangements have been made for the people coming to the meeting. First row seating has been arranged for VIPs and Saints. While it has been planned for Haribhaktas to sit on chairs along with rugs. Food packets have been arranged for all the devotees who have come to PM’s meeting. 1 lakh to 25 thousand food packets have been made. A medical team has also been kept near each seating arrangement.

Opposition Shows Rare Unity, Yet Government Cagey On China

The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China on Tuesday claimed that the border clash in Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang on December 9 was triggered by Indian troops “who illegally crossed the Line of Actual Control”. In a statement, the PLA’s Western Theatre Command spokesperson said: “On December 9, border troops of Western Theatre Command organised a routine patrol on Chinese side of Line of Actual Control in Dongzhang area, eastern section of China-India boundary. (They) were impeded by Indian troops who illegally crossed LAC.

“The Chinese side responded in professional, standard and effective manner, controlled and stabilised situation on the ground. Two sides have disengaged. We urge the Indian side to strictly restrain its frontline troops and work with Chinese side to maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas.”

A major breakthrough has been announced by US scientists in the race to recreate nuclear fusion. Physicists have pursued the technology for decades

as it promises a potential source of near-limitless clean energy. On Tuesday researchers confirmed they have overcome a major barrier - producing more energy from a fusion experiment than was put in. But experts say there is still some way to go before fusion powers homes. The experiment took place at the National Ignition Facility at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in California. LLNL director Dr Kim Budil said: “This is a historic achievement… over the past 60 years thousands of people have contributed to this endeavour and it took real vision to get us here.” Nuclear fusion is described as the “holy grail” of energy production. It is the process that powers the Sun and other stars.

New Delhi: Over a dozen Opposition parties attend strategy meeting called by the Rajya Sabha Opposition leader, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge; and later walked out in sync over the government’s refusal to discuss the India-China clashes. Opposition unity in Parliament was on display again as the Aam Aadmi Party and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi

a strategy meet called by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, on how to compel the government to discuss the recent clashes.

35% of ministers in new Gujarat govt have not studied beyond Class 12: Report

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The minister with the lowest assets (Rs 92.85 lakh) is Bachubhai Khabad. Handling the portfolio of MoS Agriculture and Panchayats, Khabad has studied only up to Class 10 and is among the six ministers who have not studied beyond Class 12.

Similarly, Bhikhu Parmar—the minister for food and civil supplies—and Mulu Bera, the Cabinet Minister for Tourism, Environment, Forests and Climate

Change, have also studied only till Class 10. Cooperation and Salt Industries minister Jagdish Vishwakarma and Minister for water resources and water supply, Mukesh Patel, also have not

studied beyond Class 10. Harsh Sanghavi who has studied till Class 8 is the minister with the least educational qualification.

Sanghavi, the Minister of State for Home, has assets valued at Rs 17 crore. About 47 percent of the ministers in the new council of ministers in Gujarat are graduates.

Nearly 24 per cent of the ministers also have declared criminal cases against them.

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Beijing quiet, PLA blames Indians

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joined

The interior of the target chamber at LLNL, where nuclear fusion takes place

It is an event that calls for grandeur and glory. One of the world’s celebrated spiritual leaders, his holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s 100th year of birth celebrations were marked in India as well as North America.

Regarded as the guide and guru by many who were touched by his blessings, Swamiji’s centennial celebrations inspired by Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s successor, His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj, will be held in Ahmedabad, Gujarat from December 15, 2022 to January 15, 2023. A vast 200-acre festival ground in Ahmedabad will be the festival site and feature events, exhibits, presentations, interactive displays and conferences. The highlight of the event would remain spreading moral and inspirational values as visitors from across the globe including

dignitaries and world leaders.

Events of Global Significance

To mark this event of esteem importance an opening ceremony will be held on Dec.14 followed by an international convention the next day. Other events such as International Human Solidarity Day: Celebrating Inter-Faith Harmony; Education Day; Family Unity Day; Vicharan Day: Celebrating Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s Spiritual Travels along with events of global assimilation such as BAPS Gulf Countries Day; BAPS North America Day; BAPS UK & Europe Day and BAPS Africa Day will be part of the month-long celebrations. Women’s Day: Celebrating Women Empowerment will be amongst other most awaited events of the celebrations.

Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s Celebrations Across

133 events across North America, over 160,000 attendees and immense love and respect of millions across the globe marked the 100th birth year of Pramukh Swami Maharaj

An Attraction to Behold

For attendees this event will be a both spiritual as well as visual treat. Rare decorative finesse will be seen as seven cultural gates will be guiding the visitors to different zones in the festival campus. The sight will be a moment to pause and admire as the 280 feet long and 51 feet high main gate will house scared images of revered Hindu sages. The other gates will reflect the life and work of Swami Maharaj. There is more to come as the visitors can then witness a Maha Murti of Pramukh Swami Maharaj. A 30 feet high murti of Swami Maharaj perched on a pedestal depicting Swami Maharaj’s legacy is another awe-inspiring feature at the event. A light and sound show will come alive every night with engaging performances. For those who have seen the grandeur of Swaminarayan Akshardham in New Delhi, a replica of the same astounding structure with murtis of Bhagwan Swaminarayan and Hindu deities will be seen enshrined in the 67 feet high structure. Visitors will be able to have darshan and offer prayers in this architectural marvel. Apart from these stunning arrangements there will also be a Bal Nagri or children’s Cultural Land. Spread over 17 acres of land the mini wonderland for kids would host fun exhibitions, educational shows and

At Ahmedabad in Gujarat, India, events legacy will take place from December

Maharaj’s Centennial Across Continents

events marking Swami Maharaj’s life and December 15, 2022 to January 15, 2023.

The North America Chapter

Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s Centenary was celebrated with great adulation across North America. World leaders sent messages to mark the event. Cultural programs were held across BAPS centers commemorating his guidance towards ‘Param Shanti’ or everlasting peace. Volunteers worked tirelessly to celebrate the life and works of Swamiji who served as the spiritual leader of BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha for over 65 years. Audio clips of Swami Maharaj’s travels, historical footage marked the events.

During the event held at Toronto, Canada PM Justin Trudeau delivered a video message. He said, “Today we are celebrating the rich life of His Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj and everything he did to build and grow BAPS. Throughout his life, His Holiness left a mark in Canada and around the world he spread his lifelong message, “In the joy of others, lies our own.”

The culmination of the program was at an event in the United Nations in New York entitled, ‘The World is one Family,’ which was attended by prominent speakers and representatives.

Similar celebrations were held in cities around the world across Asia, Africa, Europe and Australia as well as Middle-East and New Zealand.

interactive games to keep children of all ages entertained.

Food, Talent Show, Marquees & more

The event would also host five immersive shows comprising films and live performances along with music and dance talent shows, talks with renowned speakers along with a scenic glow garden

with illuminated figures portraying inspirational teachings will be for the attendees to soak in too. Not to mention a lip-smacking vegetarian spread will be served at food court.

The month-long Pramukh Swami Maharaj Centenary Festival will be hosted on a 600acre site called ‘Pramukh Swami Nagar’ along the SP Ring Road, near Ognaj Circle, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India.

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Cultural Gates

Pramukh Swami Maharaj Maha-Murti

The 30 feet high murti of Pramukh Swami Maharaj, perched on a 15 feet high pedestal, is encircled by 24 recesses, each having extraordinary depictions of Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s incredible life and work.

festival

Maharaj.

AAPI Share The Warmth Program Brings Comfort To The Needy Across The USA

CHICAGO, IL- “As the wintry weather is upon us, we at AAPI want to continue the tradition of providing comfort and warmth to those that need the help most during this holiday season,” said Dr. Ravi Kolli, President of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI). “Therefore, we are renewing the tradition under the `Share the Warmth AAPI 2022 Blanket Drive` and request your support to make this initiative a success and impactful.”

For several years, AAPI at the national level and various local chapters at the state level have been jointly leading efforts to bring warmth and cheer into the lives of the needy across the United States. This program was started in 2019 and it has now become an annual tradition of giving by AAPI to local communities. AAPI’s “Share the Warmth” project has donated thousands of blankets to the poor and the needy in several homeless shelters across the nation.

“I am very happy to inform you that AAPI with local chapters Share a Blanket program going extremely well and I am proud to say that more than 30 Chapters have come ahead to join the program, said Dr. Raghu Lolabhattu, Vice Chair AAPI Board of Trustees and Chair, Share A Blanket program.

“The goal of the program is for AAPI

As the wintry weather is upon us, we at AAPI want to continue the tradition of providing comfort and warmth to those that need the help most during this holiday season,” said Dr. Ravi Kolli, President of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI). “Therefore, we are renewing the tradition under the `Share the Warmth AAPI 2022 Blanket Drive` and request your support to make this initiative a success and impactful

to work with as many local chapters throughout the nation and function as one entity which is working very well. I request every one of you to make a generous donation to this fund and your contribution would surely give great comfort to the needy and bring a

San Diego World Affairs Council Honors Legacy Of Prof. Madhvan

to recognize and support a community college student in the San Diego area. Madhavan remarked of his award, ” I am grateful to my close friends and my sons who contributed to this endowment.”

big smile to their faces. Anything would help. Every dollar you donate would make a difference for someone.” “We at AAPI are extremely grateful for the opportunities we have been blessed with to serve the communities we live in and work in,” said Dr. V. Ranga,

Chair of APPI BOT. “ As a token of our appreciation and gratitude, we believe we need to give back and serve the less fortunate in our society in times of their need. Please contribute generously of any amount and each $15 dollars you donate can provide a blanket to the person in need.”

Dr. Kolli, while expressing gratitude and appreciation to the numerous AAPI chapters for organizing the blanket drives around the nation said, “Realizing how this initiative benefits several needy in the community, gives us the motivation to organize many such events and give back to the local community. We strongly feel that we can accomplish much more with support and participation from all our generous AAPI physicians. So, please click this link https://aapiusa. org/blanket-program/ to donate and your contributions are being matched up to the first $10,000 by the generous sponsor ATG Tours”

AAPI launched the “Share-A-Blanket” project during the holiday season in 2019 during the presidency of Dr. Suresh Reddy to bring warmth to the needy and Dr. Binod Sinha, founder President of NJ AAPI in New Jersey organized and conducted it successfully that year and since then it has been held annually by AAPI and local patron chapters of AAPI.

Indian-Origin Prof Was ‘Blacklisted’ On Twitter For Covid Info: Report

Covid lockdowns would harm children.

Twitter secretly placed him on a “Trends Blacklist”, which prevented his tweets from trending,” Weiss wrote on Twitter.

SAND DIEGO, CA- Professor M.C.Madhvan was recognized by the San Diego World Affairs Council (SDWAC0 at a special ceremony for his lifetime of contribution to the San Diego based organization. Madhavan, a professor of Economics and Asian Studies Emeritus at san Diego State Unifersity, served as the president of the Tamilnadu Foundation and is a founding member and advisor to the Mingei International Museum. Due to his distinguished legacy of support and community work in the international sphere. the Dr. M.C.Madhavan San Diego World Affairs Council Scholarship Endowment was sset up in his honor. It will be used annually

A five Fulbright Awards recipient, Madhavan has held visiting professor appointments at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras; the National Institute of Bank Management, Poona; THE Madras School of Economics, Chennai; the University Putra Malaysia; and for the Harvard University’s Fulbright Teaching Program in Ho Chi Minh City and the University of Law and Economics, Phnom Penh. He is also the recipient of numerous awards, including, Gandhi, King, Ikeda Award and Peace Medal by Morehouse College and Margin Luther King International Chapel and KPBS Television-Union Bnk Local HEro Award.

Madhvan has held positions in numerous civic organizations, including the Forum of the Arts (San Diego) and the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on Asia Pacific Islanders. He was a visiting scholar at the International Monetary Fund and at the University of Taipei, Taiwan and at Guangzhou Normal University, China.

Madhavan joined SDWAC, a chapter of the national World Affairs Councils of America, as a member in March 1970 and has served in various capacities there over the years.

New York, Dec 10 (IANS) Jay Bhattacharya, an Indian-origin Stanford University professor, who had said that Covid lockdowns would harm children, was placed on a “Trends Blacklist”, internal Twitter documents have revealed

The second installment of “Twitter Files” released by journalist Bari Weiss on her social media platform took the lid off cases where the microblogging website prevented the tweets from trending.

Weiss shares a screenshot on her Twitter, which shows Bhattacharya’s account marked as having a “recent abuse strike” and as being on a “trends blacklist”. “…Take, for example, Stanford’s Dr Jay Bhattacharya who argued that

Weiss said that the “investigation reveals that teams of Twitter employees build blacklists, prevent disfavoured tweets from trending, and actively limit the visibility of entire accounts or even trending topics — all in secret, without informing users”.

“This secret group included the Head of Legal, Policy, and Trust (Vijaya Gadde), the Global Head of Trust & Safety (Yoel Roth), subsequent CEOs Jack Dorsey and Parag Agrawal, and others,” she mentioned in a tweet thread.

Twitter always denied that it did such things.

In 2018, Gadde and Kayvon Beykpour, Head of Product, said: “We do not shadow ban. And we certainly don’t shadow ban based on political viewpoints or ideology.”

After Weiss’ revelations, Bhattacharya took to his Twitter to say: “Still trying to process my emotions on learning that @ twitter blacklisted me. The thought that will keep me up tonight: censorship of scientific discussion permitted policies like school closures & a generation of children were hurt.”

“I’m curious about what role the government played in Twitter’s suppression of covid policy discussion. We will see with time, I suppose,” Bhattacharya said in an earlier tweet.

(L-R) US diplomat, Ambassador Reno Harnish, former President of SDWAC Dave Edick, Prof Madhavan & Presiddent of SDWAC Christine Sheckler

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Jay Bhattacharya, an Indian-origin Stanford University professor

Border Patrol Rescues Family From Potentially Disastrous Circumstance

walking barefoot when they were rescued. Dry clothing was provided to the group at the Burke Border Patrol Station. “Attempting to cross the border illegally carries with it many consequences, not just administrative and criminal actions against the violator. This event could have turned tragic. I commend the agents on quickly assessing the situation and taking immediate action to preserve life. Furthermore, our appreciation goes out to the resident who provided shelter and called the appropriate authorities” said Burke Station’s Patrol Agent in Charge, Richard Parker.

Burglars Targeting Elderly Residents On Northwest Side Chicago

CHURUBUSCO, NY. – On December 2, U.S. Border Patrol was made aware of a group of people in danger in the forests of Churubusco, New York. Following a vehicle stop of a suspected human smuggler near the International Border between the United States and Canada, Border Patrol Agents learned – through roadside interviews – that the group in question, which included a family and their three children (aged between one and eight years old) were attempting to navigate a heavily wooded area in near-freezing temperatures.

Fearing the group would become victims of the inclement weather, Agents contacted a member of the group by cellular telephone to guide them to the nearest Agent. During these communications, the group members, all citizens of Mexico, conveyed they were cold, disoriented, and scared.

As the search was ongoing, the group in question was discovered by a local resident, who sheltered them and contacted Border Patrol. Agents later learned through interviews with the group that some of them, including the children, had lost or abandoned their wet shoes and were

Congressman Krishnamoorthi Denounces China’s Violation Of Indian Territory

In a separate incident on December 3, Border Patrol Agents rescued an individual in North Troy, Vermont. The individual was found by Border Patrol agents unconscious and was rushed to the hospital and diagnosed with hypothermia. In both instances, the subjects had become disoriented due to weather-related trauma as they illegally crossed into the United States from Canada.

Hypothermia is a life-threatening condition of temperature loss from the body at a rate faster than it is produced. Low body temperature impacts brain function, which can cause disorientation and difficulty moving. Hypothermia is especially dangerous because a person may not know that it is happening and may further be incapacitated to do anything about it. Although associated with “freezing” temperatures, hypothermia can occur even at cool temperatures (above 40 degrees Fahrenheit) if a person becomes chilled from rain, sweat, or submersion in water.

The Swanton Sector is responsible for securing the land border between ports of entry in Vermont, New Hampshire, and northeastern New York. Citizens reporting suspicious activity is invaluable to the Border Patrol’s mission and we welcome community members’ information to help keep our nation’s borders safe. To report suspicious activity in Swanton Sector, please call 1-800-689-3362.

GOPIO Central Jersey Held Women Leadership & Networking In NJ

CHICAGO, IL – Chicago police are warning residents of the Northwest Side that burglars are tricking elderly residents and stealing from their homes.

Chicago police said that the robbery team has struck four times in Portage Park and Irving Park. One distracts the victim with a conversation about home repairs or problems with their water while the other enters their home and steals jewelry.

The robberies have happened on: Portage Park, West Patterson Ave. in Portage Park, West Patterson Ave, and North Kilbourn Ave. in Irving Park.

The suspects are described as a white man, about 35, 5’11” to 6’ wearing a dark baseball cap and yellow construction vest; and a Hispanic man, 20 to 25 years old, 5’5” to 5’9’, 180 to 200lbs, wearing a dark baseball cap.

NJ Sailboat Traveling To FL Missing With 2 Aboard

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi issued the following statement in response to a new report of a clash last week between Indian and People’s Republic of China (PRC) forces near the contested frontier of the two nations resulting from the PRC forces encroaching on Indian territory near the Yangtze river: “I’m disturbed to learn of the latest show of aggression by the Chinese Communist Party through its violation of Indian territory with its armed forces. While I’m grateful that this clash led to no serious casualties to Indian forces, it serves as another reminder of the growing belligerence of the Chinese Communist Party and the need for the United States to continue to work with India and all our security partners in the region to counter Beijing’s aggression.”

EAST BRUNSWICK, NJ- On Sunday, December 11, 2022, GOPIO CJ held Women Leadership & Networking event in East Brunswick, New Jersey which was attended by more than 60 people. Edison Township Mayor Sam Joshi provided his proclamation to the event to show his support. The keynote speaker was Mrs. Seema Jagtiani, a renowned business entrepreneur who shared her life story and obstacles and successes in her personal and professional life.

The portfolio of panelists made up of an illustrious batch of six women who are amongst the who’s who of South Asian Women professionals across a variety of industries and careers. The panelists were, Mrs. Kirti Mehta- Finance IT Program Manager, Mrs. Aparna Nadendla-Classical Dance Instructor, Dr. Lakshmi Nathi- practicing dentist, Mrs. Rucha Shah-HR Specialist, Dr. Mamta Shah – practicing dentist and Mrs. Blisse Vakkalagadda – Healthcare Practitioner.

The panel discussion included building awareness of capabilities and innovation that accelerate women’s empowerment and have a real impact on the quality of

women’s lives, enable an opportunity to create an environment where women can talk about issues that affect them and share their ideas for improvement, and avail speakers and audience members to one other in an effort to build a networking community which continues to evolve over time. Several important topics related to women, in the workplace and beyond, were addressed via a selection of discussion questions supporting Break through the “Glass Ceiling”, Managing Harassment (of all kinds), Carving a niche across industries, Balancing work, life, family, friends, etc. and navigating through women/men pay inequalities.

The event was kicked off by a recital of the Pledge of Allegiance by Kavya Mehta, followed by a Bharatnatyam performance by Shravya Rachakonda, comments from Mr. Shatrughan Dawani – President of the Indian American Club and Mrs. Ritu Chopra – Founder and President of Everest Consulting LLC, and concluded with a song dedicated to women performed by Aruhi & Anusha Vakkalagadda. A networking event was held post the panelist discussions.

CAPE MAY, NJ- A sailboat the left New Jersey with two men aboard headed for Florida has been reported overdue and the Coast Guard is seeking help locating the missing vessel, which was last seen nine days ago.

Kevin Hyde, 64, and Joe DiTommasso, 76, departed Cape May on the “Atrevida II,” a 30-foot Catalina sailboat, to travel to Marathon, Florida, the Coast Guard said Monday in an alert seeking assistance locating the men. The hometowns for the two men were not immediately available, but the vessel is registered in New Jersey (NJ 7033HN).

The sailboat was last seen Dec. 3 when it left Oregon Inlet, North Carolina on its way to a stop in Jupiter, Florida, the Coast Guard said. The Atrevida II may have also stopped in Morehead City, North Carolina, the Coast Guard said.

The vessel has a bluish-purple hull with a white superstructure and white sails, the Coast Guard said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Coast Guard Atlantic Area Command Center at 757-398-6700.

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NRIs Volunteer At Gujarat Assembly Elections To Support BJP

Theft, Robbery At Jersey City’s India Square Leave Shopkeepers Worried

CHICAGO, IL- Many local community members traveled to India and took active part in Bhartiya Janata Party’s campaign during the just concluded Gujarat State Assembly election-2022.

Hailing from Gujarat, local Chicago businessmen Hasmukh Patel, Dr. Indrajit Patel, Dr. Amit Desai, Vasudev Patel, Dipak Patel, Bhaichand Panchal and many other friends were in India and showed great enthusiasm as they campaigned for BJP for three weeks in parts of Gujarat.

The NRIs thanked the voters of Gujarat who put their trust in the leadership of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The local entrepreneurs also praised the wise decision of the masses to vote for BJP candidates. The community members in a statement also extended Congratulations to Chief Minister C.M.Bhupendra Patel, BJP. President C.R.Patil and all elected 156, BJP MLAs. The Indian American community is hopeful that under strong leadership, India will continue scaling newer heights.

Indian May Face 2 Years Jail Term For Illegally Re-Entering US

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New York: (IANS) An Indian national may face up to two years of imprisonment for illegally re-entering the US after he was deported from the country two years ago.

Ashok Kumar Prahladbhai Patel, 40, appeared before US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers on November 24, last year at the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport in St Croix for preboarding inspection for his flight to Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

During his inspection, Patel presented a fraudulent Florida driver’s license, according to court documents.

CBP officers then conducted a database inquiry which revealed that on August 17, 2019, Patel was apprehended and detained by the CBP in Tecate, California, and was processed for expedited removal, a Department of Justice statement said.

Patel was subsequently removed from the US to India on November 21, 2019. After his removal, he did not obtain express consent of the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security to re-enter the country.

JERSEY CITY, NJ- A man smashed the front glass door of the Big Bazar supermarket, at Newark Avenue in Jersey City’s India Square neighborhood and crawled inside to steal whatever cash he could find.

The incident, captured on surveillance video, is one of what people in the city’s Indian community say is a growing trend in India Square, a neighborhood wedged between Kennedy Boulevard and Route 1&9 near the Tonnelle Circle.

Talking to The Jersey Journal, Bharat Garate, a supervisor at Big Bazar, said, “They do the robbery, they do the stealing from the shop, everything like this.”

Big Bazar (Indian) supermarket, at Newark Avenue in Jersey City Other shopkeepers in India Square say they’ve also seen an increase in crime ranging from over-the-counter theft, early morning break-ins or armed smash-and-grab robbery that happened at the Sara Jewelry store just 12 hours after the market was burglarized.

Yogesh Patel, who runs a small walk-in store, experienced a petty theft on Tuesday when a person stole a carton of cigarettes over the counter and fled on a bicycle.

Jersey City spokeswoman Kimberly Wallace-Scalcione said there have been two such incidents reported in the area since Nov. — the jewelry store smash-and-grab and the supermarket break-in, and that it “hardly demonstrate(s) a crime wave.”

However, for Waheed Akbary, owner of the robbed Sara jewelry store, the incident was very damaging. Five men robbed the shop and made off with more than half-a-million dollars in jewelry and cash. While Akbary is grateful his workers were not seriously hurt, but without insurance they faced a tough time. Akbary believes that the reason the Indian Square community is being targeted is because they are an “easy target.” The recent incidents have also prompted calls from Councilman Rich Boggiano to post more cops in the area.

Sushmita Shukla Named First VP Of Federal Reserve Bank Of New York

USCIS Issues A Fiscal Year 2022 Progress Report

CHICAGO, IL- My take from the USCIS publication is that the USCIS has made numerous efforts to reduce the back log of all kind or cases that are pending or in process using some of the innovations, applying every workforce, policy and operational tools at its option.

Stating that 62% of reduction in backlogs of Naturalization (Citizenship) applications from 2021 to Fiscal Year 2022. ( according to agency it welcomed more than 1 million new U.S. Citizens)

New York: (IANS) The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has appointed Indianorigin insurance veteran Sushmita Shukla as First Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

As First Vice President, Shukla, 54, will be the institution’s second ranking officer. Her appointment was approved by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the New York Fed said in a statement on Thursday.

“I am honored to have the opportunity to work for a mission-driven organisation like the New York Fed,” Shukla said in a statement. “I look forward to applying all that I’ve learned in my career, including my technology, operations, and riskfocused experiences, to furthering the key activities and supporting the dedicated leadership of this critical institution,” she added.

Together with the Bank’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Shukla will establish, communicate, and execute the strategic direction of the organisation.

She will also serve as an alternate voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee. “Sushmita is a dynamic, inspiring, and highly effective leader who brings extensive experience leading large-scale enterprises and transformation initiatives to the Bank,” said John C Williams, President and Chief Executive Officer of the New York Fed.

“She has an in-depth knowledge of technology and agile innovation methods and is passionate about creating a truly diverse and inclusive culture,” he added. Shukla has served in leadership roles in the insurance industry for nearly 20 years, primarily leading operations, technology, and enterprise-wide transformation efforts.

For the past five years, she has been Senior Vice President and Chief Operations Officer for International Accident & Health at Chubb — the world’s largest publicly traded property and casualty insurance company.

Immigration that it will utilize all available employment-based immigrant visas. In the final quarter, USCIS worked cases 7 days a week to effectively address pending applications.

“FISCAL YEAR 2022 PROGRESS

REPORT USCIS is committed to eliminating unnecessary barriers, restoring faith in the immigration system, and improving transparency, efficiency, and the customer experience USCIS acknowledges “while waiting for their renewal EAD applications to be processed, USCIS published in May 2022, that extended the EAD validity period for over 400,000 noncitizens and immediately restored the ability to work for tens of thousands of noncitizens whose EADs had expired through no fault of their own”. USCIS plans to Initiating the expansion of premium processing, while adhering to the congressional requirement that such services must not cause an increase in processing times for regular immigration benefit requests.

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USCIS Updates Policy To Automatically Extend Green Cards For Naturalization Applicants

WASHINGTON, DC- Effective Dec. 12, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is updating the USCIS Policy Manual to allow USCIS to automatically extend the validity of Permanent Resident Cards (commonly called Green Cards) for lawful permanent residents who have applied for naturalization.

This update (PDF, 307.54 KB) is expected to help naturalization applicants who experience longer processing times, because they will receive an extension of lawful permanent resident (LPR) status and may not need to file Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card (Green Card). LPRs who properly file Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, may receive this extension without regard to whether they filed Form I-90. USCIS will update the language on Form N-400 receipt notices to extend Green Cards for up to 24 months for these applicants. The receipt notice can be presented with the expired Green Card as evidence of continued status as well as identity and employment authorization under List A

of Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9), if presented before the expiration of the 24-month extension period provided in the notice.

Prior to this change, under USCIS policy, naturalization applicants who did not apply for naturalization at least six months before their Green Card expiration date needed to file Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card (Green Card), to maintain proper documentation of their lawful status. Applicants who applied for naturalization at least six

months prior to their Green Card expiration were eligible to receive an Alien Documentation, Identification, and Telecommunications (ADIT) stamp in their passport, which served as temporary evidence of their LPR status. This policy was based on the processing goal of 180 days or six months for Form N-400s, which would make filing Form I-90 unnecessary for applicants who filed at least six months before their Green Card expiration date. This policy update recognizes USCIS’ current processing times, while improving

White House Supports Eagle Act To End Green Card Country Cap US Universities Add Policies Banning Caste Discrimination

flexibility and efficiency by reducing the number of ADIT stamp appointments in field offices and the number of Form I-90s filed, which allows for these resources to be focused on other immigration benefit adjudications.

The extension will apply to all applicants who file Form N-400 on or after Dec. 12, 2022. LPRs who filed for naturalization prior to Dec. 12 will not receive a Form N-400 receipt notice with the extension. If their Green Card expires, they generally must still file Form I-90 or receive an ADIT stamp in their passport, in order to maintain valid evidence of their lawful permanent resident status.

Lawful permanent residents who lose their Green Card generally must still file Form I-90, even if they have applied for naturalization and received the automatic extension under this updated policy. This is because noncitizens must carry within their personal possession proof of registration, such as the Green Card and any evidence of extensions or may be subject to criminal prosecution under INA 264(e). Applicants who require an ADIT stamp may request an appointment at a USCIS Field Office by contacting the USCIS Contact Center.

Cook County Clerk’s Office Kicks Off

WASHINGTON, DC- In great news for many Indians currently stuck in a green card wait, the White House has come out in support of the legislation to phase out the 7% per country cap on employment-based immigrant visas or green cards.

The US House of Representatives are set to vote on the ‘EAGLE Act,’ which is Equal Access to Green Cards for Legal Employment Act that aims to raise the 7% per country limit on family-sponsored green cards to 15%.

The Executive Office of the President stated in a Statement of Administration Policy on Dec 6, ““The Administration supports efforts to improve our immigrant visa system and ease the harsh effects of the immigrant visa backlog. Accordingly, the Administration supports House passage of HR 3648, the Equal Access to Green Cards for Legal Employment (EAGLE) Act, and its goal of allowing US employers to focus on hiring immigrants based on merit, not their birthplace, by eliminating the ‘per country’ limitation on employmentbased immigrant visas (green cards).”

New York: (IANS) The Ivy League Brown University has become the latest US institution of higher education to take action against caste discrimination, joining California State, Harvard and other universities that have targeted the practice. Brown University announced this month that it was explicitly adding caste to categories like religion, sexual orientation and colour in its institutionwide non-discrimination policy.

The University’s Vice President for Institutional Equity and Diversity, Sylvia Carey-Butler, asserted that as the South Asian population in the US increases, caste discrimination is a growing issue on college and university campuses.

“Our nondiscrimination policies exist to ensure we’re protecting people and to ensure the University environment is free of hurt and harm,” she said.

A group of students who helped research the issue said that the addition of caste to the policy “provides a framework for reporting incidents” of discrimination, according to the university.

Brown University avoided any mention of

Hinduism or India and its statement only mentions caste as a practice in South Asia. Carey-Butler said that Brown, with an enrolment of about 10,000 in Providence, Rhode Island State, is the first Ivy League university to specifically ban caste discrimination across the board. Last year, Harvard University’s contract with the Graduate Students Union added caste as a “protected category”, meaning that its members cannot be discriminated against based on caste status, but it is not a university-wide policy. Brandeis, a highly regarded university which originated in the Jewish community’s struggle against discrimination, likely became in 2019 the first major US university to add caste to its anti-discrimination policy. In January, the CSU System with 23 institutions added caste to its nondiscrimination policy under the “race or ethnicity” category and that has been challenged in a federal court by two professors of Indian origin who asserted that anti-discrimination policy itself amounts to discrimination against Indian origin and Hindu staff and students.

CHICAGO, IL- More than 700 candidates from 145 suburban school districts are expected to file paperwork to run for seats on local school boards as the Cook County Clerk’s Office kicks off candidate filing on Monday, December 12, for the April 2023 Consolidated Election.

Suburban School Board candidates must file their paperwork with the Clerk’s Office between December 12 and December 19 to place their names on the 2023 ballot for the April 4 election. Filing will take place at the Clerk’s downtown Chicago office, as well as at the Clerk’s Elections Operations Center in Cicero. In addition, on the first day of filing , the Clerk’s Office will conduct candidate filing at suburban locations in Orland Park and Mount Prospect. Regardless of the location where they file the paperwork, all candidates who are in line by 8 a.m. on December 12th will have their papers time stamped and will be entered into a lottery to win top placement on the ballot. Candidates for the same office who file between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. on December 19, the last day of filing, will also be included in a ballot lottery for the last spot on the ballot. Anyone who files between 8:01 a.m. on December 12 and 3:59 p.m. on December 19 will be on the ballot in the order in which they turned in their nomination paperwork.

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The extension will apply to all applicants who file Form N-400 on or after Dec. 12, 2022. LPRs who filed for naturalization prior to Dec. 12 will not receive a Form N-400 receipt notice with the extension.

Actors Who Charge Rs 100 Crore As Fee Harm Films

Nawazuddin Siddiqui said that actors, directors and scripts don’t flop, it is the film’s budget that bombs. He also said actors charging Rs 100 cr per film are harming the film.

Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui has opined about how actors should not even talk about box-office collections and ticket sales because he views it as ‘corruption of craft’ and said that it is the producer’s responsibility. The actor also said that it is the film’s budget that makes a movie a hit or flop and also called out actors who charge Rs. 100 crore for a single film. In an interview with Etimes, Nawazuddin said that the actors who charge Rs. 100 crores per film are the ones who have ended up harming the film. The actor stated that whenever a film’s

Actor Nora Fatehi files defamation lawsuit against Jacqueline Fernandez

budget is beyond the limits of viability, it will be a flop.

“Actors, directors, storytellers don’t flop. It’s the film’s budget that makes it a hit or flop,” he added. When asked about what was important for cinema–big budget or big ideas, the actor said that historically money has always chased good ideas and passion. “I could have a trillion dollars but if I don’t have the ability to think of one decent idea, it’s almost a certainty that my trillion dollars will get reduced into pocket change,” he said.

100 years of Dilip Kumar

An

archetypal

performer who created his own school of acting

Phenomenon, instinctually natural performer, polyglot, and one who could harmonise mind, voice and body on screen — this is how colleagues, film historians and cinema enthusiasts remember Dilip Kumar, whose birth centenary falls on Sunday.

Kumar was not only suave and soft, elegant and enchanting, but his performing skills continue to be respectfully emulated by leading actors and thespians of Indian cinema. He never studied the art and craft of acting in any drama or film school, but his presence on screen had a

According to Fatehi, Fernandez

to criminally defame her in order to destroy her career to further her own interests, since they are both working in the same industry and have similar backgrounds, amongst other reasons.

On December 2, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had questioned Fatehi regarding conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar’s Rs 200 crore money laundering case.

‘Direction tougher job than acting’: Randeep Hooda

Drishyam 2 box office collection

Ajay Devgn’s Drishyam 2 featuring Tabu brought the much-needed relief for the Bollywood industry. The film, which crossed Rs 200 crore at the ticket windows, had a memorable fourth weekend as the action-thriller earned Rs 12.50 crore, which is second only to KGF 2 in the post-pandemic world. KGF 2 had earned over Rs 13.50 crore during its fourth weekend. Drishyam 2 is the third Hindi film this year to cross Rs 200 crore after Brahmastra and The Kashmir Files. The total collection of Drishyam 2 now stands at Rs 204 crore and its fourth week collection is expected to be in the top 5 films in 2022. It remains to be seen if the film carries the same momentum after James Cameron’s visual extravaganza Avatar: Way of Water releases on Friday.

When narrating a true story, staying authentic to the subject is one of the director’s biggest responsibilities. For first-time director Balwinder Singh, the responsibility was only compounded as he told the story of Punjab in the ’80s and ’90s that was threatened by insurgency and drugs. Fortunately, he found a like-minded artiste in Randeep Hooda. As they present the Netflix

series, ‘CAT’, the actor-director duo give us a low-down on the challenges of tackling a real-life subject.

Hooda: I am from Haryana, which used to be Punjab till 1964. I have a deep connection with my land that I never lost, in spite of being in glitzy Mumbai for 22 years. So, that was part of the appeal. Besides that, it was an intriguing script that pans two timelines. The two big problems faced by Punjab since the Partition have been insurgency and drugs. To have these dramatic fictional characters against that backdrop was interesting.

Singh: I think I am a born director. This is my second film as a director. If you are a writer-director, it [becomes] easier. Even when you write, you keep the direction in mind. The thing I find fascinating as a director is the opportunity to set the tone of the show, to create the same mood that I discovered during writing.

Dilip Kumar’s performing skills continue to be respectfully emulated by leading actors and thespians of Indian cinema.

certain rhythm, poise and movement derived from his own method of acting. As the film industry and cinema lovers across generations mark the birth centenary of the silver screen icon, film historian Amrit Gangar believes it is interesting that the celebrations coincide with times when “we are talking not just about Hindi cinema but the pluralistic Indian cinema as a whole. Dilip Kumar sahab was a polyglot reflecting India’s polyphonic character as a nation. He knew or spoke fluently, besides his own mother tongue

Hindko, Urdu, Hindi, Pashto, Punjabi, Marathi, English, Bengali, Gujarati, Persian, Bhojpuri and Awadhi… His birth centenary marks Indian cinema with an extraordinary poise and economy in today’s cacophonic environment,” Gangar told PTI. “Dilip Kumar is a phenomenon in the world of cinema and society. He was not only a superstar for five decades but also a very profound man,” Ghai told PTI. Though a people’s person, Kumar remained away from the spotlight in the later years of his life. He spent most of his time with his wife, veteran actor Saira Banu, and met a few colleagues, who were frequent to his house till his passing away last year.

New Delhi: (IANS) Bollywood actor Nora Fatehi has filed a defamation case against actor Jacqueline Fernandez, alleging that the latter made defamatory allegations against her for malicious reasons.

sought

Dharmendra’s 87th birthday celebration with Hema Malini and daughters Ahana and Esha Deol

Guneet Monga weds Sunny Kapoor in an intimate ceremony

FINA World Swimming Championships: Siva Sridhar breaks national record in 200m medley

Swimming Championships (25m) 2022, here on Tuesday.

Siva clocked 1:59.80s to finish first in heat 1 at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre. However, he was a distant 30th across five heats, which had 38 competitors. Notably, only the top eight made the cut for the final.

South Africa’s Matthew Sates won the championship in 1:50.15s with USA’s Carson Foster (1:50.96) and Canada’s Finlay Knox (1:51.04) winning silver and bronze, respectively.

India’s previous national record in the 200m individual medley was 2:02.42s, also achieved by Siva. Earlier in June, he won the bronze medal at Singapore National Swimming Championships in the 200m individual medley with a timing of 02:06.69s.

The Tamil Nadu-born swimmer will also compete in the 100m individual medley on Thursday, an olympics.com report said.

On the other hand, Chahat Arora will participate in the women’s 100m and 50m breaststroke events on Wednesday and Saturday, respectively. She holds India’s national record in both events.

The FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) 2022, which is the 16th edition of the competition, will conclude on Sunday.

Kane Williamson steps down as New Zealand Test captain

France end fairytale run of Morocco, reach final

Argentina defeat Croatia 3-0, punch tickets to World Cup final

Kane Williamson will step down as captain of the New Zealand Test side, a New Zealand Cricket release said on Wednesday night. Pacer Tim Southee will take up the leadership mantle, the release stated. However, Williamson will continue to lead the Kiwis in ODI and T20I cricket and has reiterated his desire to play all three formats internationally. “Captaining New Zealand in Test cricket has been an incredibly special honour,” Williamson said. “For me, Test cricket is the pinnacle of the game and I’ve enjoyed the challenges of leading the side in the format. Captaincy comes with an increased workload on and off the field and at this stage of my career I feel the time is right for this decision.

Andrew Flintoff Injured In Top Gear Accident

Doha,: (IANS) Reigning world champions France scored once in each half to overcome a spirited challenge of Morocco on Wednesday night at Al Bayt Stadium to set up a FIFA World Cup final showdown with Argentina on Sunday.

The Les Bleus took the lead through Theo Hernandez’s scrambled fifth minute goal.

Randal Kolo Muani wrapped up matters in the 79th, less than a minute after coming on, after a fine solo from Kylian Mbappe. France ended the fairytale run of the Atlas Lions in the tournament, with Dider Deschamps side bidding to become the first team in 60 years to win back-to-back titles. Only Italy in 1938 and Brazil in 1962 have clinched back-toback titles.

Iga Swiatek Wins Maiden WTA Player Of The Year Award

Doha: (IANS) Lionel Messi kept his World Cup dream on track as he scored one and set up another as Argentina romped home into the final of the FIFA World Cup with an emphatic 3-0 win over 2018 finalists Croatia at Lusail Stadium on Tuesday night.

At the end of half time La Albiceleste led 2-0 as Messi converted a spot kick in the 34th minute to give them the lead and Julian Alvarez struck with a sublime solo effort to give the South American side a comfortable 2-0 lead going into the half time break.

Argentina kept the scoring tempo to add a third one in the 69th minute with Alvarez netting his second of the match. The Argentina captain, who will be playing his second World Cup final on Sunday, having finished as runner-up in the 2014 final to Germany, will be keen to hold aloft the trophy on December 18 at the Lusail Stadium.

Lionel Messi Says FIFA World Cup Final Will Be His Last Game For Argentina: Report

English cricket legend Andrew Flintoff has been taken to hospital after an accident while filming for popular BBC television show “Top Gear”, British media reports said. The 45-year-old was given medical care at the scene before being transferred to hospital, the BBC news website said, adding that his injuries are not thought to be life-threatening. The incident happened on Tuesday at the programme’s test track at Dunsfold Park Aerodrome, south of London.

Tennis star Iga Swiatek was chosen for the player of the year award by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) for the first time after her incredible run in 2022 that also saw her get to the summit of women’s singles ranking. Swiatek, who was named Newcomer of the Year in 2020, had an exceptional season in 2022, leading the way in terms of finals appearances, awards won and matches won. She was crowned winner at eight tournaments, including six in a row and a 37-match winning

streak. Among the eight championships were two Grand Slams, at Roland Garros and the US Open, as well as WTA 1000 titles at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open (Doha), the BNP Paribas Open (Indian Wells), the Miami Open presented by Ita, Internazionali BNL d’Italia (Rome), and the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix (Stuttgart). Swiatek won 67 matches this season in total as per the WTA Tour website. David Witt was awarded the WTA coach of the year. Jessica Pegula’s current coach has been acknowledged for his players’ success on the court this season, as well as for being a fantastic ambassador for the sport and bringing coaching to the forefront of the game.

defeated Croatia 3-0 in the first semifinal on Wednesday. Messi, who has scored five goal in the tournament so far, also became Argentina’s leading goalscorer in World Cups, surpassing Gabriel Batistuta (10) in the list. The 35-year-old 11 World Cup goals to his name so far.

“I feel very happy to be able to achieve this, to finish my World Cup journey by playing my last game in a final,” Messi reportedly told Argentine media outlet Diario Deportivo Ole.

“It’s many years for the next one and I don’t think I’ll be able to do it. And to finish like this, it’s the best,” he added.

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Melbourne:(IANS) Indian swimmer Siva Sridhar broke the national record in the mens 200m individual medley but failed to qualify for the events final at the FINA World

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Lionel Messi confirmed that the 2022 FIFA World Cup final will be his last game for Argentina. Lionel Messi was on target from the penlaty spot, and also set up the third goal as Argentina

Tennis star Iga Swiatek was chosen for the player of the year award by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) for the first time following her incredible run in 2022.

Read these books to help boost your emotional intelligence

The Book of Moods, Lauren Martin

Backed with research, stories, and self-realisation, this book helps you comprehend your emotions and stops them from developing into life hindrances.

The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz

Based on ancient Toltec wisdom, this book breaks self-limiting beliefs and offers a powerful code of conduct that can rapidly transform our lives into a new experience of freedom, true happiness, and love.

Aries

Ganesha says that this week will be mixed in every respect. The middle of the week will be sensitive for you. It will now be easy for you to get information about the issues which were troubling you for the last several days. An unknown dissatisfaction will be troubling you this whole week.

Taurus

Ganesha says that you should keep yourself a little organized this week. Keep your bills organized, clear out your cabinets and create a budget for yourself. Whatever you do to plan or organize an event, it will be completed very smoothly and you will enjoy the benefits of it in the days to come

Gemini

Ganesha says that this week is going to be special for you, especially in financial matters. You will feel happy and relieved and may also get some good news regarding the money that has been stuck for many days.

Cancer

Ganesha that you will be satisfied with the way every aspect of life is showing improvement thisweek. An important deal will finally get approved and you will make good profits. A stalled matter will be resolved. This will give you some relief from the recent stress. Most of you are hardworking and get a lot of work done in less time.

Leo

Ganeshasays that it will be difficult

LIFESTYLE

Mehndi Designs To Modernise The Traditional Paisley

How We Can Deal With Our Insecurities

Half and Half

If the all-over pattern isn’t your thing, this elegant half-and-half symmetrical design is just right for you.

Gradient Vines

To add depth to your designs, play with dimension, gradient, and line width. A mehndi design with a gradient adds so much more definition.

Coming to terms with mortality is a very important thing. If you don’t come to terms with mortality, you are living in a fancy world, which is unreal

Life is insecure. There is no security about life because no matter young and healthy we are, we are going to die one day. We can either die joyfully or die crying. It is up to us. the fear that ‘I don’t want to die’ will make us not live and at the same time it will not prevent us from dying either. “Coming to terms with mortality is a very important thing. If you don’t come to terms with mortality, you are living in a fancy world, which is unreal.

The Floral Squares

Isn’t symmetry key for some of us? If that’s you. The floral squares are the perfectly balanced mehndi design you can sport.

Inter-Laced Leaves

Who wouldn’t adore a clean, floral mehndi design that is easy to make and saves up on time?

The reality is that we come and go. Many people have come and gone before us. The soil we are walking upon, we don’t know how many people are buried underneath. If we come to terms with mortality all the insecurities and fear will go away. We will realise that we are in this world for only a certain period of time. It is all about how profound our experience is in this life. So, don’t make a fuss about it, security can only happen in death. “Let everything happen to you. We are here to experience life and not to avoid it. All the dimensions of life are worth experiencing. If we are alive and avoid life it will only make it miserable

jealous of other people’s achievements. It would be better if you abandon negative thinking, recognize your strength and stay focused on achieving your goals. Your planets are showing that this week you can also make some mistakes at the workplace. Bring positivity to your thoughts and stay calm. Everything will be better than before.

2nd December to 8th December 2022

By Astro Friend Chirag – Son of Astrologer Bejan Daruwalla

for you to spend time with your loved ones this week due to additional responsibilities at the workplace. You will have to postpone an already scheduled trip as you will have to attend an important conference related to work.

Virgo

Ganesha says that this week you will be protected from all calamities, especially from those adversaries who want to harm you. You don’t need to do anything adverse to them. You may have to struggle a little at the beginning of the week, but it is only for a few days.

Libra

Ganesha says that this week you will successfully solve the problems in your personal life. These troubles are temporary and don’t let them affect you. You can get relief from your worries by taking a short family trip. Some exciting new developments are expected in personal matters this week.

Scorpio

Ganesha says that this week there is a possibility that you will find yourself surrounded by many problems suddenly. But do not panic, with the help and cooperation of your family members, you will be able to deal with these problems.

Sagittarius

Ganesha says that this week you will find yourself caught between the responsibilities of home and work. Due to misunderstanding someone special, you can get mentally disturbed. Your loved ones are always with you.

Capricorn

Ganesha says that if you are doing any deal related to property, then do not tell to anyone. Talking to anyone in this context can create problems. This week you will not be able to understand the difference between friends and enemies..

Aquarius

Ganesha says thatthis week you will be surrounded by insecurities and will be

Pisces

Ganesha says that this week is going to be mixed for you. Due to some problems at home, you will not feel like working. Due to this, you will be trapped in worry. But don’t worry, this time will soon pass. Your expenses may increase. That’s why it will be better if you do not spend money on unnecessary things. Romantically, this week is expected to be very good. This week is going to be very special for newly married people who are about to start their new married life.

Author Bio:

Celebrity Astrologer Chirag Daruwalla is the son of famous astrologer Bejan Daruwalla. He is known for his detailed astrological predictions on career, health, love, finance, and business. You can visit their website bejandaruwalla.com for guidance on problems related to your life and solve your problem with the help of expert astrologer Chirag Daruwalla. For guidance on problems related to your life you can talk to Astrologer Chirag Daruwalla on Call/Whatsapp: +91 9825470377 or also mail on: info@ bejandaruwalla.com

Can you be overweight and still be fit? Just watch your cholesterol

This is a common complaint we have heard over the years, especially from those who exercise regularly. This also leads to the question of can you be fat and fit?

Let us look at what science tells us, and do bear in mind, that the term “fat” is not used derogatorily, but to simply denote those individuals whose body mass index is over the normal range. What do studies show? A seminal study, done at the Cooper Clinic in Dallas, measured the body fat percentage and fitness level on a treadmill test in 22,000 men and followed them for a period of eight years. It looked at the association between fitness, body composition (fat percentage) and mortality from all causes. As expected, they found that those who were fit and had normal body fat, had the best outcomes. But they also found that unfit lean men had double the risk of all-cause mortality as compared to fit, lean men. And what was most surprising was the finding that those who had a higher body fat percentage, but were fit had a lower risk of death than those who were unfit, with normal body fat.

In other words, in this particular study, it was better to be “fat and fit, than thin and unfit.” There have been other large studies, which have also shown that fitness offers strong protection, even if you are a few kilos overweight.

Stubborn fat? Watch what you are eating after exercise

The above data should not be interpreted as a licence to binge and not worry about weight, as long as you are fit. On the contrary, you need to make every effort to get your weight with the normal range, since the detrimental effects of obesity are well documented. Being fit and normal weight is clearly the best bracket to belong to, but the data should give comfort to those who are exercising regularly, but it’s not reflected in their weight.

I routinely caution my patients on not allowing their weighing scale, to be their

If you are exercising regularly and being careful about what you eat, do not get overly disappointed if you are a few kilos overweight. If you can keep your parameters within normal range, you can reap the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, says Dr Aashish Contractor, Director, Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine, Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital, Mumbai

“judge and jury.” Exercise will give you tremendous physical, metabolic and mental health benefits, but it’s not a great calorie burner, or at least it’s not as great as we would all like it to be.

As a rule of thumb, one mile of walking burns 100 calories for an average weight person. A few years ago, some friends of mine took up walking in order to lose weight. They would walk a round of the Race Course in Mumbai, which is about 1.5 miles. They would then go across to the Willingdon Club and have a large glass of fresh orange juice, to reward themselves.

They were perplexed when, after a month of exercise, they did not see their weight dropping. Their walk probably burned off 150 calories, after which they treated themselves to a tall glass of orange juice, which was made up

Miraculous superfood kacchi haldi

“Turmeric has shown to have antiinflammatory properties that could prevent chronic inflammation and therefore, such diseases,” said Nikhil Chaudhary, a nutritionist

Winters make us susceptible to many seasonal ailments like colds, coughs, and flu, and also worsen certain conditions like hypothyroidism. To keep all these health niggles at bay, it is extremely essential to take care of our health

4 mistakes you make while eating fruit

of 3-4 oranges, with added sugar, and was about 200 calories. The net effect of their ‘healthy’ evening out was a 50calorie weight gain! Before this puts you off exercise, I must hasten to add that the benefits of exercise should not be viewed through the narrow prism of weight loss alone.

What’s the take-home message?

If you are exercising regularly and being careful about what you eat, do not get overly disappointed if you are a few kilos overweight. Consult with your doctor, and get your metabolic parameters such as blood sugar and cholesterol checked regularly and if they are within normal range, rest assured that you will reap the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.

by eating healthy and nutritious foods. And one such food that experts recommend during the chilly season is kacchi haldi. A powerhouse of antioxidants, not only does raw turmeric keep you safe from seasonal illnesses but it is also good for the skin.

“Winter is here and so is golden root (raw haldi). It’s time to make the best use of this miraculous superfood. There are so many ways you can use it,” Juhi Kapoor captioned an Instagram post, in which she also shared the “best way” to use this wonder ingredient.

Why should you have raw turmeric?

According to nutritionist Nikhil Chaudhary, raw turmeric:

*Helps facilitate smoother digestion through the tracts. *May also help treat stomach

ulcers and irritation.

*Also helps in reducing inflammation in the body. “Inflammation, a short-term process, is an important function of the immune system to fight infections. However, when the inflammation becomes chronic, it leads to various health problems including cancers. Turmeric has shown to have anti-inflammatory properties that could prevent chronic inflammation and therefore, such diseases,” said Chaudhary.

Dr Priyanka Rohatgi, chief clinical dietician, Apollo Hospitals, Bangalore added that it is equally great for digestive health. “It helps to metabolise fat efficiently by the liver. It helps relieve joint pains, memory issues, skin ailments, purifies blood, improves blood sugars, reduces inflammation, and is good for fatty liver,” she told.

Fruit is great for weight loss because it is low calorie, high fibre, and water content. Fruit is nature’s quick snack and is a great source of vitamins and other elements that help maintain a healthy diet.

Fruit has vitamins and minerals that the body needs in abundance. According to Dr. Archana Batra, a dietician and a certified diabetes educator, “Many people consume fruit wrongly, which might cause more harm than benefit if not corrected.” She also shares a list of mistakes one makes when eating fruit.

Combining fruit with anything else- Fruit breaks down faster than any other food. When combined with other foods, it can cause the formation of toxins in the body known as ama. This is due to the fact that food pairing can slow down digestion. Fruit must stay in the stomach for as long as the heaviest food takes to digest, making nutrient absorption difficult. It begins to ferment in the digestive juices, which is usually toxic and may raise the possibility of illness and other health conditions. It is therefore preferable to consume it separately.

Fruit at nighttime- It is best to avoid anything 2-3 hours before going to bed because it interferes with the digestive system. This holds true for fruit as well. Fruit consumption right before bed has a high chance of disrupting sleep because it releases a lot of sugar, which spikes energy levels when the body should be resting. At night, our ability to absorb and assimilate nutrients is significantly reduced. In addition, eating fruits late at night may cause acidity symptoms. Fruit should be consumed as an evening snack and no later than that. Drink water immediatelyNot only children but also adults, are frequently observed drinking water immediately after eating fruit. Drinking water after eating fruit can cause the pH level of the digestive system to become unbalanced, especially consuming fruit with a high water content like watermelon, muskmelon, cucumber, orange, and strawberry. This is because fruit with a lot of water in it can change the pH balance by reducing the acidity of your stomach. Experts warn that doing so can result in serious illnesses such as diarrhoea or cholera. You are not eating the skin- When it comes to vitamins and antioxidants, the peel is frequently the best part. Apple peels, for example, are high in fibre, vitamin C, and A. Eating the skin may even be the key to lowering your risk of obesity and cancer, according to research.