The Asian Star December 4 2021 by The Asian Star Newspaper

www.theasianstar.com Vol 20 - Issue 42 By Umendra Singh

Saturday, December 4, 2021

Canada’s No Farmer, No Food rallies force Modi to withdraw controversial farm laws

anadians may have played a major role in forcing Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP government to withdraw the controversial farm laws that saw protests all over the world. The Farm Laws Repeal Bill 2021 was passed by both the Houses of Indian Parliament on November 29, the first day of the Winter Session days after Prime Minister Narendra

Another Indian takes charge of major global tech giant Parag Agrawal is the new CEO of Twitter

Parag Agrawal, an alumnus of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, was appointed as Twitter CTO on March 8, 2018. Parag Agrawal, the Chief Technology Officer of Twitter, (pictured) is now taking over from Jack Dorsey as the Chief Executive Officer. Dorsey will step down from his role, and the company’s board has been preparing for his departure since last year, according to news agency Reuters. Agrawal, an alumnus of Indian Continued on page 6

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the withdrawal of farmers’ protests. This is the fastest withdrawal of any laws or government initiative in India’s history. And this from a right wing Hindu government that never backs away from anything. Why? Neither

Modi, speaking on Gurpurab (November 19) assured the protesting farmers of rollback of the laws. With the Presidential assent, the bills have become history paving the way for

Modi nor his government have given a clear explanation for this unconditional surrender. There are two important state level elections pending in the states of Punjab and Uttar Pradesh but elections have never stopped BJP initiatives before. And the government and its strident cadre have been uncharacteristically silent as to Continued on page 8

India pushes renewed trade talks in aftermath of Canada-China tensions Canada and India are quietly setting the stage to reboot formal free-trade talks as the Trudeau government seeks economic alternatives to China following the dispute over the Meng Wanzhou-two Michaels affair. Trade negotiators from both countries have held four “consultative meetings” in the last year via video, and the most recent one in October saw the two sides trade preliminary proposals,

said Anshuman Gaur, India’s deputy high commissioner to Canada. “They talked about the approaches and the possible path forward,” he said in an interview this past week. The renewed engagement is a result of India’s aggressive new trade policy, dubbed “early harvest,” which has seen the country attempt to make incremental steps toward full-scale free-trade deals with Britain, the European Union, Australia, the

Continued on page 6

International students and offshore banking flagged in Canadian real estate money laundering In August 2012, a 19-year-old student from Guangdong arrived from the Dominican Republic to Montreal with $23,800 in euros and U.S. dollars stuffed into his backpack. Four months later, Zhang Guanqun purchased an 8,500-square-foot mansion in Coquitlam, B.C., for $2.1 million.

United Arab Emirates and now Canada. It also comes as the federal government emerges from the aftermath of its three-year diplomatic deep freeze with China after Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig were recently returned safely to Canada. They spent more than 1,000 days in Chinese prisons in what is widely viewed as retaliation for the RCMP’s arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou on an

It was only one of Zhang’s many multimillion-dollar transactions while attending Coquitlam College. From about 2012 to 2015, Zhang would funnel at least $33.75 million in electronic funds and cash through Canadian and Hong Kong bank accounts. Continued on page 7

Thousands of chickens, cows, pigs and likely bees died in Fraser Valley amid recent rains and floods Farmers in Fraser Valley continue to face challenges to repair and restore their properties and livestock during recent rains and floods. Agricultural Minister Lana Popham said at a media briefing on Thursday with the drier weather and receding floodwaters, it will be critical for the removal of carcasses of animals who died in the flooding. “We know at this point there are 628,000 poultry reported dead, 420 dairy cattle deceased and approximately 12,000 hogs,” she said. “And also of note, there (are) 110 beehives that have been submerged.” It is not yet known how many bees could have died in the flooding.

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Saturday, December 4, 2021

Heavy rains caused incredible damage to British Columbia’s infrastructure The Pacific Northwest has been getting pummeled by storms that have dropped months of rainfall all at once. The torrential rainstorms have caused so much damage that at one point Vancouver was cut off from the rest of Canada. A river even carved out a new channel that goes straight through a city. Let’s look at what’s going on. Historic levels of rain fell on British Columbia, Canada and western Washington State on November 14. Meteorologists called it an Atmospheric River, a weather feature that the Weather Channel describes as both a blessing and a curse. An Atmospheric River is a column of moisture that travels from the tropics into higher latitudes. Western Washington State and British Columbia have experienced three of these

events in the past few weeks and more rain is on the way. The first Atmospheric River brought as much rain in one weekend as the region gets in just one month. CBC News reports that 24 communities in British Columbia received more than 4 inches of rain that weekend, with the town of Hope topping the chart at a whopping ten inches. On one hand, Atmospheric River events are essential. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says that up to 50 percent of the west coast’s precipitation comes from Atmospheric Rivers and they add to the water. However, when the Atmospheric River events are severe, they can cause a lot of heartache and damage.

Over 60 per cent of BC opposes NDP efforts to charge for information: Poll Three-out-of-five people polled said they didn’t agree with the NDP’s decision to introduce a fee in order to file a request for information for government records or other data that should be available to the public. Another 13 per cent were undecided. Critics said that the government was seeking to charge fees for information already paid for through taxes. “The public has paid for (the information) already,” said Jason Woywada, executive director of FIPA B.C. , a non-profit group that promotes freedom of information and privacy . “They should have access to that information. “This is entirely double-dipping,” he added. The changes follow a spike in freedom of information (FOI) requests filed by opposition parties since the NDP came to power, according to a Postmedia News analysis of FOI requests filed in B.C. from 2010 to 2021. Premier Horgan acknowledged that the bill was at least in part a response to the glut of FOI requests filed by opposition parties, saying in a news conference in late October that his government has seen “an extraordinary proliferation” of requests from the opposition. While opposition FOIs may have jumped since the NDP took power, FOIs filed by nonpolitical groups, including think-tanks, the media, researchers and others, fell during the same period. Toby Mendel, president of the Centre for Law and Democracy, said he was surprised by the “very high volume of requests from political parties,” noting that FOI requests were something that opposition parties “could weaponize.” But he called Canadian’s access to information part of the “right to freedom of expression.” “The public sector has to pay for and deliver human rights as they do in other areas, no matter how expensive it is,” he said of FOI laws. Roughly half of Canadian provinces (including B.C. for now) don’t charge anything for filing a FOI request.

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BC shatters temperature records as atmospheric river delivers warm, moist air British Columbia set 30 temperature records over two days as the third in a series of atmospheric rivers drenched the coast in unseasonably warm rain. Nine daily temperature records fell on Tuesday, and another 21 on Wednesday, including a high of 22.5 C recorded in Penticton. That balmy reading is now the warmest December day in B.C. on record, and tied the all-time Canadian high for December, set in Hamilton, Ont., in 1982. Among the notable record highs for Dec. 1 were Summerland, at 20.7 C, Osoyoos at 18.1 C, Salmon Arm at 17.9 C and Vernon at 17.5 C. Many of the highs were 10-20 degrees above the seasonal average, according to Global BC meteorologist Kristi Gordon.

“The atmospheric river drove in the heat with the moisture,” Gordon said. “That’s one of dangerous aspects of an atmospheric river: it can melt significant snow on the ground with its heavy, mild rain and all that snow melt adds to the amount of water in the rivers and on the ground.” While B.C. can see between 20 and 30 atmospheric rivers per season, Gordon said 2021 has been exceptional with eight such systems rolling in already this fall. “Early-season atmospheric rivers can have the greatest impact on the rivers because the snowpack is still relatively thin,” she said. “Therefore, the warm air temperatures and warm rain can easily melt the snow.”

OPINION By Kris Sims, B.C. director Canadians Taxpayers Federation

Carbon taxes are an expensive failure when it comes to reducing emissions Emissions in British Columbia are going up despite the province having the highest carbon taxes in North America. Think you’ve read this before? That’s because this keeps happening. If the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over again while expecting a different result, then British

Saturday, December 4, 2021 span, the numbers for light-duty and heavy-duty diesel transport trucks are up 39 and 15 per cent, respectively. Emissions from railways are up 25 per cent and air transportation has seen an 18 per cent increase. Put plainly: carbon taxes are an expensive failure in B.C. Families are paying close to $20 extra in carbon taxes every time they fill up their minivans. The carbon tax on home heating bills often costs more than the natural gas being used. What was the government’s solution to the rising emissions and the failed carbon taxes? Higher carbon taxes! After the data was posted, the B.C. government announced it would plough ahead with meeting or beating Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s planned carbon tax hike up to $170 per tonne within the next nine years. That will get more expensive, fast. Right now, the first B.C. carbon tax is 10 cents per litre of gasoline. The second carbon tax is a fuel standard regulation that increases the cost of gas by another 16 cents per litre. By the year 2030, those two combined carbon taxes will cost B.C. drivers more than 50 cents per litre of gasoline. At that rate, people will pay $39 extra to fill up their minivans and about $58 more to fill up their pick-up trucks due to the carbon taxes. A commuter family in Metro Vancouver area using their minivan and their pick-up truck would pay about $3,458 annually in the carbon taxes. That’s serious money. That’s about three months’ worth of groceries for a family of four. That’s just for vehicles and doesn’t include the tax on home heating and the increased cost of trucked food and supplies. The provincial government takes about $1.9 billion per year through the carbon tax, and middle-income people don’t get any rebates in B.C. When the carbon tax was first introduced in 2008, British Columbians were told they would get their money back. At first, there was a corresponding income tax cut making it technically revenue neutral. But, by 2012, the B.C. Liberal government was inserting pre-existing and unrelated tax credits into the equation, making it balance out to zero only on paper. Now, any pretence of revenue neutrality is gone. Meanwhile, emissions are higher now than they were back in 2000. Back then, ‘N Sync was topping the Billboard charts and Alta Vista was the most popular internet search engine.

BC emissions going up despite carbon tax Columbians are being driven crazy by carbon taxes. The B.C government posted its 2019 emissions data last month and the results aren’t good. Emissions have risen 10 per cent since 2015 and they’ve gone up in five of the last seven years. Emissions are going up while carbon taxes keep going up, too. Emissions from SUVs are up six per cent over three years. Over the same

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LOCAL

Saturday, December 4, 2021

Abbotsford sets all-time rainfall record for November with 540 mm of rain The City of Abbotsford set an all-time weather record this November as three atmospheric rivers pummeled the province. Mayor Henry Braun said Wednesday that 60 millimetres of rain fell over the last two days in the city.In the month of November, the city recorded 540 millimetres total, Braun said. That means one-third of the city’s average annual rainfall fell in November alone. Braun said for those who think in feet, as he does, that translates to just under two feet of water layered over the entire city. “I look forward to a time when we no longer have atmospheric rivers included in our projections,” he said. An evacuation order for the Huntingdon Village area was downgraded to an evacuation alert on Wednesday evening. Evacuation alerts also remain in place for Lower Sumas Mountain Road and Florence Drive. The hope is that the weather continues

to cooperate over the next few days, now that the third atmospheric river in a week has passed, and the city can start lifting evacuation orders and alerts, Braun added.There is still a lot of rainwater and snowmelt making its way down from Baker, Vedder and Sumas mountains so water levels are still expected to rise, Braun explained. Meanwhile, rising tides on the Fraser River meant the city had to close the Barrowtown Flood Gates, so water in the Sumas River will rise, but Braun said this is normal and should not be a cause for concern. “It’s designed that way,” he said. Models are showing stabilization over the next few days, the Nooksack River in Washington state has crested, and a breach in the dike system is not expected, Braun added. Overnight patrols will continue along the Sumas Dike and in the Huntingdon Village area, Braun said, and Highway 1 along North Parallel Road at the Whatcom exit remained flooded Wednesday.

Uber driver caught speeding, then tried to blame it on the passengers An Uber driver who was caught speeding in Vancouver tried to blame his passengers, a police officer has said. Vancouver Police Department’s Sergeant Mark Christensen caught the driver travelling at 114 km/h, which he said was 54 km/h over the speed limit. in his post on Twitter, he said the driver received a $368 fine and had their vehicle sent to an impound for seven days. In October, Vancouver police were

alerted to another incident on the city’s roads as the driver of a Tesla appeared to be asleep at the wheel during rush hour. It happened on the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge and the person who recorded the video said they were in “disbelief that anybody would actually commute in their car on the highway over a very busy bridge completely asleep.”

TransLink to integrate Interac Debit into Tap to Pay ransLink customers will soon be able to use Interac Debit to hop on transit. TransLink, Interac Corp., and Cubic Transportation Systems are working together to integrate Interac Debit onto the system to give customers more contactless payment options. By the end of 2022, all 5,000 Compass Card readers across our system will be updated to enable our customers to pay with Interac Debit contactless payments. This puts TransLink on pace to be the first transit agency in Canada to fully integrate Interac Debit contactless payments across a regional transit system. Tap to Pay offers casual transit riders and tourists a convenient way to pay; allowing users to pay with Interac Debit directly to ride without pre-purchasing a Compass Card and without having to use an in-station Compass Vending Machine. The addition of Interac Debit will make transit even more accessible to both regular users and visitors alike.

TransLink, Interac, and Cubic Transportation Systems – the company that designed and built TransLink’s Compass system – are working to upgrade the readers over the next year. Once the upgrades are complete, Interac Debit will join Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay Wallet as available contactless pay options. TransLink reminds customers to please tap their card or smartphone when paying for transit and not their wallet, to avoid card clash when paying. “Integrating Interac Debit contactless payments across our system in Metro Vancouver is another way we’re making it easier for customers to take transit. TransLink was the first transit agency in Canada to commercially launch contactless credit card and mobile payments, and it’s important that we continue to be innovative to make transit an even more attractive transportation option.”

BC local governments need help with flood control Premier Horgan After this summer’s wildfires, B.C. Premier John Horgan pledged to restructure the province’s spending to put more at the front end of the season to reduce forest fuels around communities before they face the threat of evacuation. With the staggering damage of recent flooding across southern B.C., he says a more fundamental shift is needed, after nearly 20 years of leaving local governments in charge of flood control, competing for grants to advance the work. Horgan called it a “bad call” by the Gordon Campbell B.C. Liberal government in 2003. “One of the issues previous governments had done is devolved responsibility for diking to municipalities,” Horgan said after a tour and meetings with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Nov. 26. “The intent was to give local control

and autonomy, and I support that in principle, but the consequence of that is that local rate payers have been asked to take on an extraordinary burden that historically had been handled by the two other orders of government.” Trudeau made no specific commitments, after touring the devastation in the Abbotsford area by air. “I was pleased to be able to see the situation in Abbotsford and the Sumas Prairie but I know that there’s lots more work to be done,” Trudeau said. “The federal government will be there and I will be there, as is right to do.” Horgan and Trudeau agreed only to form a joint committee on the issue, and for each level of government to match public donations to the Canadian Red Cross flood relief fund to provide immediate aid.

Saturday, December 4, 2021

India pushes renewed trade talks in aftermath of Canada-China tensions

From page 1

American extradition warrant in 2018. Canada is seeking to lessen its economic dependence on China and diversify into new Asian markets. It recently launched formal trade talks with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations — known as ASEAN — a 10-country bloc that includes the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand. The Liberal government’s Nov. 23 throne speech acknowledged that priority when it said: “A changing world requires adapting and expanding diplomatic engagement. Canada will continue working with key allies and partners, while making deliberate efforts to deepen partnerships in the Indo-Pacific and across the Arctic.” U.S. admiral warns of China threat and urges allies to work and train more closely International Trade Minister Mary Ng discussed

the possible deal with her Indian counterpart, Piyush Goyal, this past summer in Rome at a meeting of the G20. “India and Canada, absolutely, I think have opportunities to deepen our commercial and trade relationship,” Ng said in an interview. Canada began trade talks with India more than a decade ago under the Conservative government of Stephen Harper. The on-off process stopped again in 2018, when Canada was in the middle of its intense renegotiation of the North American Free Trade agreement with the United States and Mexico that was instigated by former U.S. president Donald Trump. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a controversial visit to India in February 2018, where he and his family faced sharp criticism

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back home for dressing up in traditional Indian clothing. None of that, he said, diminishes India’s interest in doing business with Canada in an attempt to boost the $12.8 billion in annual bilateral trade between the two countries. That has made Canada one of the priority countries in India’s “early harvest” trade strategy, which is a veritable stepping-stone approach to speeding up progress toward broader freetrade deals. It involves pursuing partial progress in bringing down tariffs on some goods and services, while leaving more difficult issues unresolved for later, more comprehensive free-trade agreements. “We try to formalize agreement on those areas where the differences are the least, and we continue discussing on some

of the areas on which have greater divergence,” Gaur said. India’s pursuit of trade deals comes as many countries, Canada included, are taking stock of their position with China amid growing concerns about human rights. Like China’s leader, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been widely criticized for perpetuating human rights abuses — including in a September Human Rights Watch report that accused his government of subjecting its critics to surveillance, politically motivated prosecutions, harassment, online trolling, tax raids and the shutting down of activist groups. Gaur suggested Canada and India can build on a common trait that neither share with China: their common-law legal heritage inherited from Britain.

BC reports 368 new cases, five more deaths BC reported 368 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, along with five more deaths. The update lowered B.C.’s seven-day average for new cases to 345, and left the province with 3,020 active cases. Of the new cases, 90 were in the Fraser Health region, 48 were in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 101 were in the Interior Health region, 40 were in the Northern Health region, 88 were in the Island Health region and one was someone who lives outside of Canada. More than 4.23 million British Columbians, accounting for 85 per cent of those eligible and 82.2 per cent of B.C.’s population, have had at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. of them, more than 4.07 million people,

From page 1

accounting for 81.8 per cent of those eligible and 79.1 per cent of B.C.’s population have had two doses. The province says people who weren’t fully vaccinated accounted for 57.9 per cent of new cases over the past week and 68.1 per cent of hospitalizations over the past two weeks. Since the start of the pandemic, B.C. has reported 219,180 total cases, while 2,345 people who tested positive for the virus have died. Click to play video: ‘B.C.’s top doctor urges people to talk about vaccination ahead of holiday gatherings’ 2:17 B.C.’s top doctor urges people to talk about vaccination ahead of holiday gatherings

Another Indian takes charge of major global tech giant

Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, was appointed Twitter CTO on March 8, 2018. He succeeded Adam Messinger, who left the company in December 2016. Agrawal’s appointment was announced internally in October 2017. As CTO, Agrawal has been responsible for the company’s technical strategy, while overseeing machine learning and AI. Since joining Twitter ten years ago, he has led efforts on scaling Twitter Ads systems, as well as re-accelerating user growth by improving home timeline relevance. Agrawal joined Twitter in October 2011 as a Distinguished Software Engineer after completing his PhD in Computer Science from Stanford University. While studying at Stanford, he worked as a research intern for Microsoft, Yahoo!, and AT&T Labs. Prior to joining Twitter, he was involved with research in large-scale data management with collaborators at Microsoft Research, Yahoo! Research, and AT&T Labs. Agrawal

holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Stanford University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and Engineering from IITBombay, from where he graduated in 2005. Taking to Twitter, Agrawal thanked Dorsey for his continued mentorship and friendship. Further, he thanked the entire team for their trust and support. “Our purpose has never been more important. Our people and culture are unlike anything in the world. There is no limit to what we can do together,” Agrawal wrote in a note shared on his Twitter handle. He added that “at the all-hands tomorrow we’ll have lots of time for Q&A and discussion”. “The world is watching us right now, even more than they have before. Lots of people are going to have lots of different views and opinions about today’s news. It is because they care about Twitter and our future, and it’s a signal that the work we do here matters. Let’s show the world Twitter’s full potential,” Agrawal said.

Saturday, December 4, 2021

From page 1

International students and offshore banking flagged in Canadian real estate money laundering

As it turned out, however, the Canada Border Services Agency and Fintrac, Canada’s antimoney laundering watchdog, had long been monitoring Zhang’s movements. They watched his parents, too. While living in Markham, Ont., they were wanted in China for allegedly defrauding 60,000 investors of about $200 million in a pyramid scheme, according to filings in a Federal Court case involving a refugee claim by the parents. The filings by CBSA and Fintrac, whose accusations were not ruled on by the court, reveal details of the complex investigation. Zhang, now 28, successfully fought a deportation case based on CBSA accusations that he was involved in money laundering schemes and transnational organized crime. “The amount of funds that Zhang has been involved in receiving and transferring wire transfers is truly astonishing,” an October 2015 forensic accounting report filed with the court in CBSA’s case states. Over 600 pages in the CBSA filing mostly focus on Zhang and related cases against his parents, Wang Zhenhua and Yan Chungxiang. The couple arrived in Canada six months after Zhang landed in Vancouver, and right away, according to Fintrac records also filed in the Federal Court proceedings, they appeared to be using real estate, shell companies and foreign citizens in elaborate steps of money laundering. “The following activity raises red flags for layering (a type of money laundering) and potential tax evasion because of a high volume of wire transfers from a foreign jurisdiction and from different individuals were received,” one Fintrac report on Wang and Yan said. CBSA and Fintrac also found it suspicious that Yan Chungxiang and Wang Zhenhua — who also went by the Dominican name of “Antonio” — used a number of aliases. CBSA’s files names dozens of people in China, Canadian law firms, a prominent federal Liberal Party organizer and even a Dominican Republic official in the country’s visa renewal department. They also outline a much broader concern of capital flight from China and secretive offshore banking routes through Hong Kong and Caribbean tax havens, which allow corruption suspects to spirit their gains abroad, buy passports of convenience, and hide dirty money in Canadian real estate. The CBSA files provide a rare glimpse into an opaque business model increasingly cited in examinations of Canadian real estate, in which relatives use foreign students as fronts to funnel wealth into condos and mansions. Evidence in B.C.’s current inquiry into money laundering, the Cullen Commission, asserts the occupation of “student” is often used to buy luxury real-estate in B.C. In one example, commission lawyers found that a landowner in China accused of bribery — now facing deportation hearings in Vancouver — had transferred at least $114 million from a Chinese province into British Columbia through Hong Kong currency exchanges with links to organized crime. The man and his family members — whose identities were redacted

in Cullen Commission documents — bought at least $30-million worth of B.C. property, and the corruption suspect’s daughter bought a $14-million Vancouver mansion, listing her occupation on the land title as “student.” A leaked June 2008 Bank of China report, cited by the Cullen Commission, draws the same conclusion. A study on “Methods of Transferring Assets Outside of China by Chinese Corruptors” suggests that offenders ask relatives, especially their children, to study or work in the places where they live. They also use students to buy “immovable assets” including homes. (Critics have noted assertions on corruption from Chinese state-owned entities and regulators sometimes need to be viewed with caution, because the Chinese state often uses its justice system for political objectives.)

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Saturday, December 4, 2021

From page 1

Canada’s No Farmer, No Food rallies force Modi to withdraw controversial farm laws

why the government surrendered to the protesters. A clue to the reason for the withdrawal of the farm laws came in Canada Parliament - at the time that Modi was announcing the withdrawal, the Canadian media was reporting that the Liberal government of Justin Trudeau was creating a new Indo- Pacific strategy, focussed on India, moving away from its previous Asia- Pacific strategy focussed on China. Also news leaked out that India and Canada have ramped up talks on a new trade agreement. Canada’s International Trade Minister, Mary No, and her Indian counterpart, Piyush Goyal, met in Rome during the recent G20 meeting and the Prime Ministers of the two countries briefly met as well. The Canadian side made it clear that it did not want to interfere in the internal affairs of India but getting a major trade deal done would be difficult when there are protests on street corners in Canada against the Indian Farm Laws. A lot of Canadians from

Kindergarten kids to seniors were involved in multi level protests with the slogan “No Farmer, No Food.” The No Farmer, No Food rallying cry brought not only people of Indian origin but other Canadians to protest against the farm laws. The Liberal government of Justin Trudeau did not want this rallying cry and protest to be turned against it in Canada if it signed a deal with India - unless the laws were withdrawn. Modi had a choice - surrender the Farm Laws or surrender the dream of a mega trade deal with Canada and other major western nations which would immensely grow India’s economy and image internationally. Maybe. The man who has sworn never to surrender to anyone or any countries quietly gave up to the “No Farmer, No Food” cry from Canada. Thank you Canada. Meanwhile. Indian Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has appealed to the agitating farmers to return home, assuring to address the issues related to MSP, crop diversification and zero-budget farming through a committee the PM earlier

announced. The government has initiated the process of constitution of the panel which, Tomar said, will have the representatives of farm unions. The ball is now in the court of Samyukta Kisan Morcha which will announce its next move on December 4. The Presidential assent repeals The Farmers Empowerment and Protection Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act 2020; The Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce Promotion and Facilitation Act 2020 and The Essential Commodities Amendment Act 2020. The Essential Commodities Amendment Act empowered the government to regulate under extraordinary circumstances (war, famine, extraordinary price rise, and natural calamity of grave nature) the supply of cereals, pulses, potato, onions, edible oilseeds, and oils. The government while repealing the laws defended the laws and said it was unable to convince some farmers of the benefit of the move. The statement of reasons for The Farm Law Repeal Bill 2021 passed by Parliament

on Monday read, “Even though only a small group of farmers are protesting against these laws, the government tried hard to sensitize the farmers on the importance of the laws through several meetings. Without taking away the existing mechanisms available to the farmers, new avenues were provided for trade of their produce. Besides, farmers were free to select avenues of their choice where they could get more prices for their produce without any compulsion”..The Repeal Bill said extensive consultations were held with various stakeholders before bringing the laws. “The operation of the laws has been stayed by the Supreme Court. During Covid period, the farmers have worked hard to increase production and fulfill the needs of the nation. As we celebrate the 75th year of Independence— Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav—the need of the hour is to take everyone together on the path of inclusive growth and development. In view of the above the farm laws are proposed to be repealed,” Agriculture Minister Tomar said about the Bill.

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Saturday, December 4, 2021 IHIT deploys to Surrey after man dies following Monday morning shooting Homicide investigators were deployed Wednesday to a home in Surrey where a man was critically injured in a shooting on Monday. Surrey RCMP was called to the home in the 9600 block of 135 Street around 3 a.m., and the victim was rushed to hospital. Three hospitalized after separate shootings in Surrey. Mounties said said the 45-year-old died

on Tuesday. The shooting is believed to have been targeted. The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team has taken conduct of the case, and will work with the Surrey RCMP’s Major Crime Section. Anyone with information is asked to call the IHIT tip line at 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or contact police by email at ihitinfo@rcmpgrc.gc.ca.

Three hospitalized after three separate shootings in Surrey Two men and one woman were hospitalized in Surrey, B.C. after three separate shootings between Nov. 27 and Monday morning. One of them has life-threatening injuries, Surrey RCMP said in a press release. “While it is too early to conclusively determine a motive, all three shootings appear to be targeted, and investigators are exploring links to criminal activity and the drug trade,”

the Mounties said Monday. The first shooting took place on Saturday around 5 p.m. in 13300 block of 95A Avenue. Police said a 58-year-old woman was shot in the driveway and taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. “The shooting appears to be targeted, however the victim is not believed to be the intended target of the shooting,” said the news release.

Saturday, December 4, 2021 Majority of Canadians unwilling to let unvaccinated friend, family member into their home: poll

With Christmas fast approaching, and family dinners and workplace parties, a majority of Canadians are unwilling to let an unvaccinated friend or family member into their home, according to new polling from Leger-ACS. While the overwhelming majority of Canadians are vaccinated, with 75 per cent of the total population fully vaccinated, the poll says threequarters of Canadians do know someone who’s unvaccinated. Fifty-seven per cent say they wouldn’t invite an unvaccinated person into their home, a rate that’s highest in British Columbia at 70 per cent, and lowest in Atlantic Canada at 50 per cent. Fifty-five per cent of Ontarians and Quebecers wouldn’t do so, nor would 59 per cent of those in Saskatchewan and Manitoba and 58 per cent of Albertans.English

speakers (58 per cent) are more likely to say no to the unvaccinated than French speakers (54 per cent). “The takeaway is that it’s going to be challenging for a lot of people when they’re interacting over the holidays,” said Jack Jedwab, president of the Association for Canadian Studies. The polling, Jedwab says, reflects some of the tension within society about what vaccinated versus unvaccinated people are allowed to do or should be doing, and how individuals are negotiating these issues. “There’s certainly — at least from what I’m observing right now, which the poll reflects in some ways — a lot of tension out there when it comes to social interaction between people who are unvaccinated and people who are vaccinated, which will play itself out, I think, more so as we approach the holidays.”

Masks must be worn at in-person worship services in BCDr. Henry says With the new Omicron variant detected in the province, B.C.’s public health officer is amending a COVID-19 mask order for religious and worship services. A person returning to B.C. from Nigeria was confirmed to be infected with Omicron variant, officials revealed at a provincial COVID-19 briefing today, Nov. 30. With the winter and holiday season approaching, public health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said the mask edict would be adjusted. “I am amending the mask order to include a requirement that participants attending worship services, including choirs, must wear a face covering, a mask, during services,” Henry said. “These masks can be removed for eating or drinking, to allow for ceremony activities, and readers and celebrants can remove them

if distancing is in place during the celebration of the ceremony.” Henry is also requiring that worship services be limited to 50 per cent seating capacity, unless all of the participants are vaccinated, in which case full capacity will be allowed. She said religious denominations can use the proof of vaccination cards, available through the province, but will “allow flexibility for [faith leaders] and congregations to work with congregants to provide proof of vaccination by other means,” something already being done at many faith services. “Many faith leaders are working with their own communities to make sure that we have these measures in place to protect people over this period of time,” said Henry. In-person worship services continue to be on pause in Northern Health, although drivethru options are allowed.

Surrey council rejects staff’s ‘negative’ report on city’s housing needs Surrey’s low and moderate-income households have less access to secure, affordable housing in comparison with their counterparts in other Metro Vancouver cities and municipalities, a report on Surrey’s housing needs reveals. While some civic politicians reluctantly embraced its findings, others found it fell short of singing Surrey’s praises. Four members of the Safe Surrey Coalition on council – Mayor Doug McCallum and Councillors Allison Patton, Mandeep Nagra and Laurie Guerra – bounced the 246-page screed back to staff for a re-working, finding its contents to be too negative. Councillors Doug Elford, Brenda Locke and Linda Annis opposed this move at council’s Nov. 22 meeting, which Councillors Steven Pettigrew and Jack Hundial did not attend. The report indicates Surrey will need to build 41,200 new homes over the next decade to keep up with population growth and has an “immediate need” for at least 15,000 below-market units or subsidies in the private market. Its findings were based on online survey of 1,722 residents as well as nine focus groups with 73 organizations representing. “Targeted social media was used to encourage the participation of population groups that tend to have lower response rates to online surveys, including younger residents, renters, and residents in lower-income neighbourhoods,” the report indicates. Among its findings were the “urgent need for more deeply affordable housing and supportive housing options.”

“Surrey is under-served when it comes to housing and supports for the homeless,” it states. According to the report, Surrey needs at least 1,880 units of “deeply affordable” rental housing for Indigenous people. The actual number of units delivered between 2018 and 2021 was only 72. As for the statistics, Surrey grew by 31 per cent between 2006 and 2016, during which time the regional average that time was 16 per cent. The city’ population in 2021 is estimated to be 601,900 and is projected to grow to 714,300 by 2031. Thirty six per cent of its residents immigrated to Surrey after 1980 and four per cent came as refugees.Very few of Surrey’s rental units are large enough for families, the report states, while affordability continues to be a challenge. Between 2010 and 2019 Surrey’s stock of purpose-built rental housing grew by only eight per cent, but this is changing as 1,023 units came under construction in 2021. Affordability continues to be a challenge. Per capita, Surrey has fewer non-market rental units –one for every 48 households – compared to one for every 23 households in the region. “This means that low and moderate income households – including priority population such as Indigenous households, seniors, single parent families and others – have less access to secure, affordable housing in Surrey as compared to those in other Metro Vancouver communities,” the report states. The four politicians found it unpalatable and ordered a revision. The city is required by legislation to submit a housing needs report by April 2022.

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Saturday, December 4, 2021 Just over one per cent B.C. government employees — 432 people — will be placed on unpaid leave after failing to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or declining to disclose their vaccination status as required. All those employed by the B.C. Just over one per cent of B.C. government employees — 432 people — will be placed on unpaid leave after failing to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or declining to disclose their vaccination status as required. All those employed by the B.C. Public Service were required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Nov. 22.

432 BC govt employees sent home without pay indifinitely for not being fully vaccinated Unvaccinated employees are not allowed to use vacation or banked time in lieu of the unpaid leave, which is for an initial three months. At the end of that period, employees who remain unvaccinated or refuse to disclose their status could be terminated, the B.C. Public Service Agency said Tuesday. Of the more than 98 per cent of employees — 38,240 people — who showed proof of vaccination by the deadline, 97 per cent

Ottawa to require test, quarantine for all non-U.S. arrivals, in wake of Omicron The federal government will introduce a series of new restrictions at Canada’s borders in response to the Omicron variant, including requiring that all air travellers coming into Canada from outside of the U.S. be tested and isolate upon arrival. Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos announced on Tuesday that all air travellers arriving in Canada from all countries except the U.S. will have to be tested for COVID-19 upon arrival, regardless of whether they are vaccinated. Travellers will then have to quarantine until they receive a negative test result. Previously, travellers were required to provide a negative PCR test up to 72-hours before departing for Canada. That requirement will still be in place, in addition to the new testing requirement upon arrival in Canada. The reintroduction of travel restrictions comes shortly after Canada confirmed its first cases of the Omicron variant. The first two infections were recorded in Ottawa on Sunday. As of Tuesday afternoon,

LOCAL / NATIONAL

cases of the new variant had been reported in Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and B.C. The government also announced on Tuesday that it is adding three countries to the previous list of African nations facing a travel ban. Canada will now bar entry to foreign nationals who have travelled through Egypt, Malawi and Nigeria, expanding the number of countries facing such a ban to 10. The government first banned the entry of foreign nationals who had travelled from Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe on Friday. Duclos also said the federal government will meet with provincial and territorial ministers later today to prepare for a possible extension of the testing and quarantine requirements on air and land travel from the U.S. Concerns about the Omicron variant, which was first reported in South Africa on Nov. 24, have led to a reintroduction of travel restrictions around the world. The World Health Organization said Friday that the variant has

were fully vaccinated, and 1.15 per cent were partially vaccinated, the agency said. Those who only have one shot of a two-dose COVID vaccine have 35 days from the date of their first dose to become fully vaccinated, the agency said. Fewer than one per cent, or 274 employees, have requested an accommodation based on a medical condition or other protected grounds. “These requests are being reviewed

on a case-by-case basis,” said the agency. Employees currently on leave are required to provide proof of vaccination when they return to work. The proof of vaccination requirement applies to employees of any board, commission, agency or organization to which the Public Service Act applies, or whose employees are hired in accordance with the Public Service Act. Agencies, boards and commissions were not, however, required to report their data to the B.C. Public Service Agency.

Man boasting about not being vaccinated says he’s stranded after airport kicked him out A Canadian vaccine skeptic activist has claimed he is now stranded in Toronto after reportedly being denied entry onto an airplane. Patrick King of Red Deer, Alberta, had been in Ontario to attend a vaccineskeptic demonstration in burger restaurant Peterburgers in Peterborough, according to Toronto news site BlogTO. The burger joint had recently challenged public health orders around vaccine requirements being needed to eat at restaurants and visit bars among other facilities. But, on his return to Toronto Pearson International Airport, King said he had been denied entry onto his flight home. In a November 30 Facebook live video, King said: “Well, here it is guys, there’s your proof—I cannot get on an airline. I am stuck, officially stuck, in Toronto— even with the PCR test, even with the vax [vaccine] control program. All of it.” “I have just been denied service that I have paid for. I have paid for this service to get onto this plane, and now I’m being denied.” King claimed to be exempt from needing

to be vaccinated and that they did not accept the PCR test done before the flight. He added: “They did not follow that I have a control group saying that I cannot be vaccinated. They’re done. WestJet is about to get the biggest f***ing lawsuit in the whole f***ing world. “And I’m done. You poked the wrong f***ing bear.” King previously gained fame among vaccine skeptics and anti-lockdown advocates after he claimed Alberta authorities had no evidence COVID-19 exists when challenging a fine related to a breach of COVID-19 restrictions. His claims were debunked and King was ultimately found guilty of breaching COVID-19 restrictions in Alberta. A WestJet spokesperson told Newsweek: “As of November 30, 2021, in line with the Government of Canada’s Federal mandate, guests 12 years and four months or older, are required to provide proof of vaccination to travel with the WestJet Group, with narrow exceptions. “While there are allowances for medical and religious exemptions that meet the Government’s prescribed criteria, these requests are required to be submitted a minimum of two

Star & Style

Saturday, December 4, 2021

Ranveer & Deepika unveil new poster Just a couple of days back, the teaser of Ranveer Singh’s ‘’83’ came out, and its trailer be released soon. Amid all this, Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone have once again grabbed the attention of all, by sharing a new poster of the movie. This new poster shows Ranveer Singh as the captain of the team Kapil Dev right in the center. In one hand he holds his bat, in the other he carries his helmet, and he can be seen running with the joy of victory in his eyes. Further, behind him, his whole team can

be seen running in excitement, and their smiles speak for their c ont e nt m e nt . Further, both Ranveer and Deepika Padukone, who will be seen as an on-screen husband wife in the movie, used a captivating c a p t i o n while sharing the poster.

Stunning Sunny Loenne to start shooting ‘Madhuban’ soon Sunny Leone will soon start shooting for her music video titled ‘Madhuban’ for which she has reunited with ‘Baby Doll’ singer Kanika Kapoor. The two have delivered hit dance numbers in the past and have been hailed as a great actor-singer duo. What makes this song special is that the male singer of the track, Arindam Chakraborty was chosen after he won a contest #ReelyFamous hosted on Instagram by music label Saregama. The second winner, Shivika Pratap Singh, will be seen next to

Sunny Leone grooving to the song. The song will be choreographed by Ganesh Acharya, who has worked with Sunny earlier on the sensational number ‘Trippy Trippy’. Talking about her new outing, the actress said, “I am thrilled to be teaming up with Kanika and Ganesh and and I am thoroughly enjoying the experience. Kanika and I have done so many chartbuster numbers together; Ganesh master has choreographed me a lot. But this song has a special place in my heart. It is already a hit on reels and we have created a cracker of a dancer number together.”

Kareena reveals who is the messy eater among two kids Kareena has her hands full with her two kids Taimur Ali Khan and Jehangir Ali Khan. The actress recently shared details about her daily routine with her munchkins. Calling Taimur and Jeh’s mealtimes the messiest, Kareena revealed that Jeh has just started eating and he has food literally all over him, right from his hair till his toes. According to Bebo, her toddler is quite hyper when he is eating. As far as Taimur is concerned, Kareena added that he is very active and does not sit still in one place. He is always jumping from one place to another. From climbing trees to running around,

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Taimur doesn’t even sit for a minute. Bebo says she is always telling Taimur to chill a little. In another interview, Kareena had revealed that is always concerned about Taimur’s bedtime. According to her, it is something that she is not ready to push as much. The actress also added that she gets annoyed because Saif sometimes insists on Tim being up a little more at night so that he gets to spend time with him and watch movies with him. However, owing to his online school in the morning, Kareena makes sure he goes to bed on time.

Star & Style

Saturday, December 4, 2021

Kriti Sanon goes ‘oops!’

Katrina Kaif and Vicky Kaushal set to tie the knot Although Katrian and Vicky Kaushal have been discreetly dating for over a year now, have kept mum over the wedding rumors, sources close to the two have confirmed that festivities are indeed in the cards. According to media reports, Vicky went ‘all out’ to pop in the big question a few months ago with a box of brownies. Vicky is romantic at heart and totally smitten by Katrina’s charm. Even their common friends are bit shocked on how obsessed these two are with each other. The pandemic and lockdown, in fact, got

them closer and made their bond stronger. So when it came to popping the big wedding question, Vicky went all-out in true filmy style,” says source close to the couple. Vicky ensured to get Katrina box of brownies from her favourite place. Not knowing the surprise inside, the Sooryavanshi star opened the box to find a note and a ring that said, “Will you marry me?” Katrina was stunned for a moment before she said yes!

Kriti Sanon’s song ‘Param Sundari’ from her last film, ‘Mimi’ has received immense love from the audience. However, one of her fans became the butt of jokes amongst his friend circle ever since the song has released. The Twitter user, who goes by the name, ‘Param Chhaya’, took to his micro-blogging site and wrote, ‘As a kid nothing ever bothered me in school. I wasn’t angry on anyone who teased my last name or my name itself. Since the time Kriti Sanon’s Param Sundri dropped, I have been bullied by the song atleast

1000 times already. Why did you do this @kritisanon ? After dropping some laughing emojis, Kriti replied to the tweet saying, ‘Oops sorry’. The fan Tweeted back saying, ‘This may minimise the damage. Thanks for being so good about this. Appreciate it.’ Sanon is celebrity endorser for many brands and products. including Titan Watches’ Raga Collection, Parachute, U r b a n C l a p , among others. Sanon launched Tissot’s QuicksterFootballwatchinmultiplecitiesinIndia.

Kajol and Shah Rukh reveal many hilarious stories about their songs

GURMAT SCHOOL | GOBIND SARVAR SCHOOL Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol have worked together on a number of films. They were, in fact, one of the most famous and lovable leading pairs of Bollywood. And just like that, the two are also great friends. When Shah Rukh Khan-Kajol struggled through a acene in song “Jaati Hoon Main” In another interview during the promotions of ‘Dilwale’ SRK and Kajol had referenced the song again saying, “We had never done a song like this. Both of us were the most awkward.” Kajol added, “I can’t tell you how much we laughed.”

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SRK and Kajol have many such hilarious stories together, including their song from ‘Baazigar’ where Kajol was expected to let out a sensuous gasp, but she was unable to make it as exaggerated as the makers wanted. So he was advised to give her a pinch, and she got the shot right. “For one moment, I’ve worked with her enough, but for that one moment I felt, is she going to think I’m that kind of hero, taking advantage and pinching her?” Yet all said and done, their chemistry oozes superbly on screen and their fans are waiting for them to recreate their magic again. The duo last worked with each other in Dilwale.

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LOCAL / NATIONAL Trans Mountain company optimistic it can restart gas supply in a few days

Trans Mountain is providing some good news as many parts of B.C. continue to grapple with reduced gas supply and rationing following the devastating flooding. The company said in a statement that so far, no new areas of concern have been discovered following the recent weather conditions. “Where work has been done to shore-up banks, we are making improvements such as berm fortification to ensure the work already done is holding,” the company said. More than 44,000 cubic metres of rock and gravel has been brought in to several sites and several hundred sandbags have been used in flooded areas, it continued. “Crews are utilizing 30 sets of pumps and hoses to manage water accumulation

and have set up 15 separate light-stands with generators to allow monitoring and work to continue around the clock.” Provided there are no additional setbacks due to the weather conditions, the company said it is likely a “few days away” from restarting at a reduced capacity. More than 470 people, six helicopters and some 100 pieces of heavy equipment, including three pieces of snow maintenance equipment and three sidebooms, are in the Coquihalla and Coldwater regions to support getting the pipeline restarted. The pipeline has been completely shut down since Nov. 14, when the first of three atmospheric rivers hit the province.

Vancouver police find stash of stolen high-end bikes on Gastown rooftop A stash of stolen high-end bikes that were being stored on the roof of a Gastown building have been recovered. In a prepared statement, Vancouver Police Department spokesman Sgt. Steve Addison said beat patrol officers heard rumours based on an initial social media post suggesting someone was storing stolen bikes atop a Gastown building. The social media post, on Reddit, showed the bikes on the rooftop corner of a building that appeared

to be at the corner of Cambie and Corodova streets – opposite the Woodwards Building. “Officers in the Downtown Eastside rely on their strong community connections to solve crimes and keep people safe,” Addison said. “Because people came forward to report suspicious activity, our officers were able to launch a criminal investigation and are now working on getting these bikes back to their owners.”

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Saturday, December 4, 2021 911 operators can now hang up on callers waiting for ambulances The people who answer 911 calls in B.C. can disconnect the line if their callers are waiting on the line for an ambulance, according to new changes by the province’s largest 911 dispatcher. Allowing 911 operators to hang up will allow them to take more calls altogether, including urgent police and fire requests, E-Comm said in a Wednesday press release. Call-takers were previously required to wait on the line until their caller was connected to BCEHS, the police or fire department — a process that has contributed to complaints of delays in recent months. “The extended wait times are continuing to result in significant delays for British Columbians calling 9-1-1, which is also difficult for our call takers who are tied up and therefore helpless to assist others,” said

E-Comm CEO Oliver Grüter-Andrew in the release. “We believe this change will take some pressure off the emergency communication system that will allow our staff to potentially help save more lives.” The union representing more than 500 of E-Comm’s 911 operators, IT and support professionals, however, promptly said it was “stunned” by the move. Operators are often the only ones who can relay information to BCEHS if a caller loses consciousness or becomes unable to respond while waiting for an ambulance, so it’s important they stay on the line, said CUPE Local 8911. “This decision goes against everything we’ve been trained to do, and every common-sense approach to 9-1-1 service delivery,” explained union president Donald Grant in a news release.

New group of African Canadian senators created to amplify Black voices Seven senators have announced the launch of the African Canadian Senate Group, created to ensure Black voices are heard in the upper chamber. The coalition is chaired by Sen. Rosemary Moodie, and includes senators Bernadette Clement, Amina Gerba, Mobina Jaffer, Marie-Francoise Megie, and Mohamed-Iqbal Ravalia. The group says in a statement released Thursday that it is devoted to fighting racism and discrimination, and engaging with Canadians while advocating for their priorities. Jaffer says it is important for African Canadian senators to have this

space in an institution with a history of not always considering the unique needs and lived experiences of Black people in Canada. Moodie says their “voices, contributions and priorities” have been ignored by democratic institutions, and the group is dedicated to reversing this trend. The group’s priorities for Canada’s 44th Parliament will include seeking a “more inclusive committee process” in the Senate, and working together with community members for progress on issues of “justice, health, and economic fairness.” This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 2, 2021.

LOCAL / NATIONAL

Saturday, December 4, 2021 Unvaccinated travellers will no longer be able to travel within Canada by plane or train Everyone aged twelve and up travelling within Canada on a plane or train must be fully vaccinated in order to board from November 30th. In October, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced these new vaccination mandates for travelling within Canada. In his press conference, Trudeau outlined the federal plan to make vaccines required for plane and train travel within the country. In his announcement, Trudeau outlined how everyone twelve and up travelling on a plane or train would have to be fully vaccinated by the end of October in order to travel with Canada. Trudeau acknowledged there would be a short time where those not vaccinated would be in the process of doing so, therefore a negative COVID-19 test would

be accepted prior to boarding a plane or train. However, this would not be accepted forever, as proof of full vaccination would become a requirement in order to board by the end of November. Providing a negative COVID-19 test will no longer be an option. Both Air Canada and WestJet confirmed they will ask for proof from everyone boarding within Canada. The travel changes come after the discovery of the new variant which prompted border closures and heavier screening in Canada. For more information regarding vaccination and other requirements in order to travel within Canada, visit the federal government’s Travel, Testing and Borders website.

Opposition leaders deride Liberal government’s throne speech in official replies Party leaders sounded like they were still on the campaign trail Tuesday as they delivered speeches in response to last week’s throne speech. Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh took turns pointing out the Canadians they said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is ignoring as he embarks on his third mandate. But Trudeau hit back in his own speech later Tuesday, repeatedly needling O’Toole over his lack of leadership and his refusal to insist that all Conservative MPs be vaccinated against COVID-19. Speaking in the House of Commons, O’Toole and Singh presented themselves

as the voices for those who they said have been forgotten by Trudeau’s government. O’Toole accused the Liberals of fuelling inflation with reckless spending during the pandemic. He suggested Trudeau doesn’t understand the pressures average Canadians are under as the price of “everything” goes up because “he’s never had to face pressures in his life.” He accused Trudeau of setting “a tone of corruption” from the moment he took office in 2015 and of presiding over the “steepest decline in Canada-U.S. relations in the modern era” — pointing to a series of trade disputes, including last week’s doubling of American

Glover defends allegation of irregularities in Manitoba Tory leadership vote Unsuccessful Manitoba Progressive Conservative leadership candidate Shelly Glover has defended her allegations that there were irregularities in the vote won by her rival for the premier’s chair and has doubled down on her belief that the final tally was incorrect. “It’s unfathomable for me to think of how we got to that number,” Glover said during crossexamination of her affidavit in Court of Queen’s Bench on Tuesday. Glover, who narrowly lost to Heather Stefanson on Oct. 30, wants a judge to order a new vote. She said she doesn’t believe the count total by party election officials, which found she received 49% of the vote. When the final results were announced, the ballots totalled 16,546. Stefanson won 51% to become Tory

leader and premier, replacing Brian Pallister who resigned in September. Glover and her team have pointed to a spreadsheet they received earlier that morning as proof that the number of votes was lower. Glover told court the sheet included the names of 16,045 people who voted. A former member of Parliament, Glover said she did not observe votes being counted. But since the election, she said, she has recounted the total and believes the spreadsheet contains the right number. “I believe it’s correct.” Party leadership has said that the vote was fair. Party president Tom Wiebe told court Monday that campaign leaders were aware the spreadsheet was never intended to be the final tally. During crossexamination of his affidavit, Wiebe defended the

Ottawa to require test, quarantine for all non-US arrivals in wake of Omicron varient The federal government will introduce a series of new restrictions at Canada’s borders in response to the Omicron variant, including requiring that all air travellers coming into Canada from outside of the U.S. be tested and isolate upon arrival. Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos announced on Tuesday that all air travellers arriving in Canada from all countries except the U.S. will have to be tested for COVID-19 upon arrival, regardless of whether they are vaccinated. Travellers will then have to quarantine until they receive a negative test result. Previously, travellers were required to provide a negative PCR test up to 72-hours before departing for Canada. That requirement will still be in place, in addition to the new testing requirement upon arrival in Canada.

The reintroduction of travel restrictions comes shortly after Canada confirmed its first cases of the Omicron variant. The first two infections were recorded in Ottawa on Sunday. As of Tuesday afternoon, cases of the new variant had been reported in Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and B.C. The government also announced on Tuesday that it is adding three countries to the previous list of African nations facing a travel ban. Canada will now bar entry to foreign nationals who have travelled through Egypt, Malawi and Nigeria, expanding the number of countries facing such a ban to 10. The government first banned the entry of foreign nationals who had travelled from Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe on Friday.

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Excellent 3 level 1700SF home sits on 7900SF rectangular flat lot in the most demanding Panorama Ridge area of Surrey. Frontage 60'.House has total 4 bedrooms,2 bath, spacious living room, dining room & kitchen with new roof,24'X12' Patio,24'X19' detached garage. Lots of Parking. Easy access to all major routes. Live, rent or build your dream home. Check with City of Surrey for future potential. Easy to show .A must see.

Welcome home! Situated in a family-friendly area of Grandview Heights in South Surrey. This 5 bedroom, 4 bathroom home features mountain views, offering a fully finished walk out basement with 2 bedroom suite and separate entry. The main floor has high ceilings, open concept layout, office, natural light, and sundeck out back with mountain views. Custom closet organizers, air conditioning, pantry. Upstairs has 3 generously sized bedrooms that include a Master ensuite with mountain views, walk in closet. Fenced yard, double garage and extra parking space. Excellent location on a quiet street, easily walkable to shopping, recreation, parks, schools and quick HWY access. Down the street Sunnyside Elementary, New Grandview Heights Secondary school catchment.

A TRUE STUNNER! Rarely offered, this spectacularly landscaped home offers tons of privacy & tranquility. Located in the coveted subdivision of Chimney Hills, this 3 bed / 2.5 bath home is located on a HUGE 13,982 sq. foot lot. Highlights include NEWLY painted exterior, HARDWOOD floor & carpet on main, lots of NATURAL LIGHT, traditional layout with sunken living & family room, renovated kitchen with granite countertops & a nook overlooking the backyard, ONE YEAR OLD FURNACE & A/C plus Hotwater On Demand. Upstairs offers 3 bedrooms including a large master with a WI closet & ensuite fitted with a soaker tub. The beauty of this home is ac

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Truly delightful huge basement entry app. 7200 sqft. home sits on rectangular 9965 sqft. lot. House features 11 bedrooms & 10 washrooms build by good reputation builders. Main floor has 5 bedrooms & 4 bath with huge family room,living room,kitchen,& spice kitchen.Ground level basement has 27'x15' media room with bar & washroom for upstairs use.House has 3 spacious ground level basement suites (3 bed.+3 bed & bachelor suite).Total rent of the suites is $3500/month.Very nice tenants.Easy access to Pattulo bridge, Port Mann bridge & shopping center.Motivated sellers.Easy to show.

$1,779,000

Truly delightful fully renovated 6 bedroom basement entry home sits on rectangular 7920 sf flat lot in most demanding area Aldergrove Langley.Main floor features 3 bed ,2 bath with new kitchen /island ,new flooring,new tiles , new woodwork,new fixtures,splash back,granite counters,new tiles,new cabinet, new windows,new zebra drapes,4 new washrooms & much more .Newly built 3 bedroom unauthorized basement suite with rear separate entry.Excellent renovated covered 333 sf Patio & deck.Landscape front & fully fenced back yard. Storage shed.Walking distance to both schools,shopping,community center with pools,water Park,ice arena,playing fields& to all major routes. A must see to appreciate.

This 4 bed / 4 bath executive style home on the bluff has outstanding 2nd floor views all the way to the North Shore. Above garage reno added in 2001 and larger reno in 2014 including solarium, upstairs bathroom, master bedroom with spa like ensuite. No expense spared with 2 way see through fireplace with jetted Chromotherapy/ Aromatherapy tub. Large walk in shower with rain head and body sprays. Enjoy the outdoor view in a private back yard with mature Palm and bamboo trees while you lounge around the concrete pool with attached hot tub. Pool is solar heated as well as gas and the yard is

$920,000

$1,635,000

5843 180 STREET, CLOVERDALE 14030 GROSVENOR RD., NORTH SURREY

$912,500

Solid family home on almost 10,000 square foot rectangular lot in Cloverdale with loads of potential. Large open lot offers plenty of space for a pool, playground & trampoline; or use the extra space to build your dream home. Great central location close to shopping, transit & schools. Same owners since 1987. Three bedrooms up, one down in partially finished basement (just needs a closet). Walkout basement with its own entrance offers potential for two bedroom suite. Large covered patio off the living area overlooks the private, sunny backyard. Transform it into a modern, functional family home

$955,000

This well-maintained family home w/3-beds up, suite-potential down and a detached workshop/garage has everything you and your family needs, all located centrally. It's a 5 -10min drive to Guildford Town Centre & Hwy 1; only a 3min drive to Gateway Skytrain Station. The 2level home has a brand-new furnace, dishwasher & washing machine +plenty of other extras including a mobile accessible alarm system and a cozy living room gas fireplace for winter nights. The back deck located off the dining room is perfect for summer barbecues! In addition to the carport and the driveway that fits up to 4-5 vehicles, the 10,200sf lot (60x170) has a massive 1100sf detached workshop that will hold 3 cars, an RV or boat, and meet all of your storage needs.

Saturday, December 4, 2021

here are some exciting new technologies that will take center stage as 5G rolls out over the next few years. This is one of the reasons partners like TELUS are investing heavily in 5G technology to ensure that as consumer demand for internet connected devices increases exponentially, they can continue to provide a dependable network to help consumers navigate their connected lives wherever they may be. What you might not know is that some of the more interesting advancements will take place largely behind the scenes, like improvements to processes, efficiencies in supply chains and the development of fully connected cities aimed at improving the day-to-day lives of residents. 5G Driving Efficiencies Behind The Scenes: But what will enable these improvements and shifts in the way we navigate the world? Three current mobile network technologies are becoming superpowered with the uptake of 5G, and will enable all the behind the scenes processes and efficiencies that will create a more personalized and connected experience for consumers. Speed: Perhaps the biggest (and earliest) impact by 5G felt by the vast majority of consumers and businesses alike will be overall speed. Tech experts are predicting that 5G may have the ability to reach 10Gb/s which would be approximately 100-times better than 4G currently allows. If we look at the example of downloading an HD movie, with 4G this would likely take 7-10 minutes while 5G will allow you to do the same thing in 4-40 seconds - a remarkable improvement. Capacity: Capacity refers to the number of devices connected within a certain mobile tower vicinity, and the network degradation that can occur when there are too many people connected in that area. For example, imagine a busy urban neighborhood where thousands of people are all using connected devices such as smart watches, digital home assistants, gaming devices, smart fridges, medical sensors and phones all in a concentrated area. With current capacity,

Discovering new business efficiencies through 5G technology depending on the number of people accessing the network, there is potential for people using these devices to experience issues with speed or quality as a direct result of reaching the capacity of the network in a given area. As more and more people switch to digital devices that are directly dependent on these networks, 5G will provide a much higher headroom for capacity and will be able to scale based on need and use. Latency: A key measure of mobile network health is latency, which stands to be drastically enhanced by 5G. Latency is essentially the time it takes from when someone presses “Enter” in a search field to the time the results are displayed on their screen which is referred to more generally as overall responsiveness. The folks at Digital Trends looked at how latency will change with 5G and how this will likely be the driving reason for wider adoption. Currently 4G latency sits at around 50 milliseconds between when a user issues a command and when they get a response. 5G will reduce this to be about a one millisecond delay for task-critical applications (think of your smartwatch or other similar Internet of Things [IoT] use cases) and approximately four milliseconds for mobile broadband networks - a 10x improvement. What do speed, capacity, and latency mean for business processes? Let’s look at a few examples where 5G’s improvements to speed, capacity, and latency will have a massive impact behind the scenes. Healthcare: During the pandemic, there were significant impacts to key industries like the medical profession. Due to safety concerns, doctors, nurses and surgeons suddenly had to radically change their operating model in order to accommodate the ongoing needs of their patients while strictly adhering to safety protocols to ensure both patients and front line workers remained safe. With improved 5G connectivity across the board coupled with a new level of technology adoption with patients, there is now the opportunity to fully capitalize on the

benefits that virtual care can bring without losing the relationship between patient and doctor that is so essential to holistic healthcare. With the continuation of virtual care comes many benefits

such as reduced exposure risk and wait times. Behind the scenes you will see a faster, more reliable and secure network connection overall, which will result in a variety of better, safer, more convenient experiences: tEPDUPST TFFJOH QBUJFOUT GSPN UIF DPNGPSU PG their homes tSFEVDFE XBJU UJNFT tQBUJFOUT NJTTJOH MFTT UJNF BU XPSL tCPPLJOH TQFDJBMJTU BQQPJOUNFOUT XJUIPVU IBWJOH UP USBWFM UP NBKPS DFOUFST tBO PWFSBMM decreased chance of exposure to other sick patients The communication between specialists and family doctors will also be directly impacted as large files such as digital imaging and comprehensive test results sent back and forth digitally will take much less time and have a much smaller impact on the office bandwidth. There are also significant benefits to healthcare professionals, such as reduced no-shows to appointments and cancellations, the ability to see more patients throughout the day and a reduction in overall costs of running their office. Emergency care: The improvements do not just affect the behind-the-scenes activities of a doctor’s office, but also other key touch points such as EMT teams - and 5G technology will drive life-saving changes to emergency response care. Ambulances will be fully-connected

vehicles providing video technology in the ambulances themselves to communicate in realtime with specialized doctors who can aid EMTs providing in-transit care. The same can be said for body cameras to help assess patient needs in-field and provide doctor-guided life-saving care as they travel to hospitals. This could have a significant impact on patient outcomes overall. Manufacturing: Manufacturing will also see significant improvements in overall processes and functionality as a direct result of 5G. Aside from significant improvements to tracking and IoT functionality, it’s interesting to look at some of the day to day improvements and efficiencies that you may not think about as part of warehouse automation. The self-logging screwdriver: The team at Ericsson recently published a report looking at the more nuanced efficiencies to be found in a 5G connected warehouse. Let’s take for example a connected screwdriver. Currently, there are a number of machines that require regular manual maintenance, like tightening key machine components on a scheduled basis. Up until now, employees must keep track of these daily or weekly maintenance tasks, such as tightening connections due to vibrations, by logging them onto sheets placed near the machines. This information is then entered by another employee into master log sheets that track maintenance across the warehouse. 5G will now accommodate smart tools such as screwdrivers that digitally record this regular maintenance and compile the digital records of this work centrally - a vast improvement in the efficiency of the process. “The high-precision tools were fitted with real-time motion sensors that were attached to NB-IoT modules. The data runs via a cellular IoT network over the company’s private cloud and back-end systems, which make automatic calculations and intelligent analyses of the collected data.” The team at Ericsson predicts that this will likely result in cutting the amount of manual work by up to 50 per cent. Continued on page 19

Saturday, December 4, 2021

Giving back to connect Canadians in need. Staying connected has never been more important. That’s why we’re continuously expanding our programs to help more Canadians stay connected to the help, support, and resources they need. Our Mobility for Good® program provides free phones and plans to youth leaving foster care. And our Internet for Good® program helps connect lowincome families and people with disabilities with low-cost internet helping them stay connected to what matters most. Let’s make the future friendly on the network that gives back.

telus.com/GivesBack

Saturday, December 4, 2021

Discovering new business efficiencies through 5G technology

From page 17 Retail: We have certainly all read about the big consumer-facing changes coming to retail as a direct result of 5G connectivity, such as improved personalization, virtual try-on capabilities and the ability to implement contactless checkout processes using handheld point of sale devices. But there will also be big changes to some of the behind-the-scenes processes which will have a huge impact on cost reduction measures and overall efficiency, particularly as it relates to stock. Managing inventory: The team at Deloitte recently published an article outlining some of the behind the scenes changes directly impacted by the improved connectivity of 5G technology. They cite the use case of retailers using smart cameras and sensors to provide realtime inventory and out-of-stock information to help retailers manage inventory across their brick-and-mortar stores. By leveraging edge computing capabilities through which data is processed by the device or local computer itself, as opposed to being transmitted to a central data center, retail teams can find improved efficiencies such as planogram design and compliance across all of their stores, or roll out associate training with virtual reality (VR) and AR tools. Ultimately this means a fantastic in-store experience for both customers and retail store teams alike. This technology and the use of tools like RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tags and instore sensors will allow centralized inventory management teams to track real-time out-of-

stocks and sales across their stores that will directly impact shelf replenishment. The other key benefit afforded by these tags and tracking units individually is reducing shrink and loss at the store and inventory level. Retail has always been an evolving industry, but consumers and industry experts will be looking to innovators in the space who are willing to take advantage of the huge opportunities presented by 5G connectivity to take the lead and develop the case studies needed to convince other retailers to follow. The pandemic has certainly escalated the need for innovation in this space due to consumer demand for these improvements, and those retailers embracing, experimenting and innovating will undoubtedly be rewarded by consumer loyalty. Smart Cities: Another key area where we will see a huge impact is how 5G will transform cities into “smart cities” using several key technologies to drive efficiency and improved resident experiences. The city of Mississauga is currently piloting a multiple touchpoint smart city plan that will bring significant improvements across a number of key areas. Perhaps the most important and significant is that 5G will allow the city to provide reliable, fast WiFi to all residents. With the onset of virtual learning models, virtual work and heavier reliance on home and public space WiFi for everything from gaming and entertainment to checking public transport schedules, this will be a huge benefit to all residents of Mississauga.

Smart waste management: Behind the scenes there will also be important improvements that may not be seen by residents but will certainly have a direct impact on their daily lives. The city is piloting programs like smart waste management, in which receptacles have sensors that send notifications to city staff to let them know when they are full and need changing. Over time, this can provide important information about resident use and the need for more receptacles to ensure the city remains clean and enjoyable for all residents using their outdoor spaces. Smart traffic: City drivers will also reap the benefits of such programs as connected traffic lights that provide noticeable improvements in travel time and reduce overall emissions. This technology also extends to intelligent parking and contactless payment through a city-run app. Smart light posts have the ability to measure air quality, provide outlets for electric vehicles and send notifications to emergency response teams in real-time. 5G enabled technology will also allow for the creation and deployment of real-time traffic strategies that adapt and provide insights, like rush hour traffic patterns, congestion information and help to ease construction frustration by providing real time detour and avoidance information for residents. By positioning themselves as innovators and early adopters of this technology, Mississauga is making itself an attractive location for likeminded organizations to set up shop and create

employment opportunities and revenue sources for the city. Looking forward: 5G will certainly bring about several obvious changes in our day-to-day lives, but it is these advancements in the behindthe-scenes technology that will create the most sweeping changes. Consumers and industry analysts will be watching these emerging trends carefully and looking to industry innovators to set the standards for the future. As Canadian consumers and businesses increase their use and dependency of IoT devices, AR/VR technology and mobile phone applications, providers like Telus will be working hard to ensure that they can continue to count on dependable connectivity to fuel these evolutions. Whether it is a virtual visit to the doctor, improved processes and deep efficiencies in our factories and warehouses, a trip to your favourite retailer or simply the joy of easily parking in a smart city, it is exciting to see these innovations that 5G will escalate in our daily lives. *Jen - no need to include these - here for reference sake Speed Sources https://www.thalesgroup.com/ en/worldwide-digital-identity-and-security/ mobile/magazine/5g-vs-4g-whats-difference https://www.thalesgroup.com/en/markets/ d i g i t a l - i d e nt i t y - a n d - s e c u r i t y / m o b i l e / inspired/5G https://w w w.hig hsp eedinter net.com/ resources/4g-vs-5g

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Saturday, December 4, 2021

Indian Army deploys new Heron drones along LAC The Indian Army has procured a set of new surveillance drones that allow the ground controller to communicate through a satellite. These have been deployed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh. These are an advanced version of the Heron procured from Israel. Last winter, the Indian Navy had leased high performance ‘Predator’ drones from the US and these were used extensively. The existing version of the Heron drones

with the Army was without satellite communication and allowed only line of sight communication. This restricted operations in mountains of Ladakh. The drone could fly to a maximum 28,000 feet, couldn’t operate in winter and its effective vision was limited to 7-8 km. Also, the Army had to fly two drones in tandem, one that ‘looked across’ and the other to act as relay for communication to ground controller.

Indian Parliament votes to repeal controversial farm laws India’s Parliament voted to scrap agricultural reform laws that sparked a year of protests by the farmers. Tens of thousands of farmers have been camped out on the outskirts of the capital New Delhi for more than a year one of the biggest challenges to Modi’s nationalist government since he came to power in 2014. The Farm Laws Repeal Bill 2021 was passed by both the Houses of Parliament on November 29, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, speaking on Gurupurab assured the farmers of rollback of farmer’s laws.

GDP expands at 8.4% as growth picks up pace India recorded economic growth of 8.4 per cent in the second quarter of 2021-22, thus remaining on course as the fastest growing major economy in the world. The GDP expansion in the second quarter was the fourth consecutive quarter of positive growth, which showed that the economy remained on the recovery trajectory.

The GDP at constant (2011-12) prices in the second quarter is estimated at Rs 35.73 lakh crore, as against Rs 32.97 lakh crore in the same period last fiscal, thus showing a growth of 8.4 per cent as compared to 7.4 per cent contraction in Q2 2020-21. Cumulatively, GDP for the first six months of the current fiscal is estimated at Rs 68.11 lakh crore as against Rs 59.92

Can’t wait any longer for Mallya’s extradition: Supreme Court Noting that it can’t wait any further for fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya’s extradition from the UK, the Supreme Court today decided to go ahead with the proceedings to decide the quantum of punishment to be awarded to him for contempt of court. “We cannot wait anymore now. Proceedings for extradition have attained finality and the respondent no. 3 (Mallya) has exhausted all

avenues of appeal in the United Kingdom… The matter (sentencing in contempt case) shall be dealt with finally on January 18, 2022,” a Bench led by Justice UU Lalit said. It appointed senior advocate Jaideep Gupta as amicus curiae to assist it in the case. Mallya, an accused in a bank loan default case of over Rs 9,000 crores.

India’s first two cases of Omicron found in Karnataka India reported its first two cases of the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 from Karnataka including what could well be the first case of local transmission of Omicron in India, officials in the Union Health Ministry and state administrationsaid on Thursday, adding that both were males of age 66 years and 46 years. One of them came from South

Africa – the first country to report Omicron last month – whereas the second individual is a Bengaluru doctor without any travel history, whose Omicronpositive status raises the possibility of local transmission of the new variant that has been described as a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organisation. Both were fully vaccinated.

India beats Belgium 1-0 to enter semifinals to defend Junior Hockey World Cup title Defending champions India beat European giants Belgium by a solitary goal to progress to the semifinals and keep alive their title hopes in the FIH Junior Men’s Hockey World Cup at the Kalinga Stadium here on Wednesday. India, who beat Belgium 2-1 in the final en

route to their title triumph in the last edition in Lucknow in 2016, continued their domination over the European side in junior hockey. Shardananad Tiwari’s penalty corner conversion in the 21th minute was enough for India to seal their place in the last four.

Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal joins growing power club of Indian-origin executives helming global giants With his elevation as the CEO of Twitter, Parag Agrawal, in whom co-founder of the microblogging giant Jack Dorsey has “bone-deep” trust, joins the growing power club of Indian-origin executives helming US-based global multinationals. Twitter’s outgoing CEO Dorsey announced on Monday that 37-year old Agrawal, an IIT

Mumbai and Stanford University alumnus, will be the company’s new chief executive as he stepped down after 16 years at the company that he co-founded and helmed. A report in The New York Times said Agrawal will receive an annual salary of USD 1 million, in addition to bonuses, restricted stock units and performance-based stock units.

Maharashtra govt suspends Param Bir Singh, initiates disciplinary proceedings Maharashtra Government on Thursday suspended former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh and initiated disciplinary proceedings against him over “certain irregularities and lapses”, an official said. The suspension order was approved the day Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was discharged from a private hospital here after

undergoing a spine surgery on November 12. The lapses include unauthorised absence from duty, an official said. Singh did not show up in the past six months after being appointed Maharashtra Home Guard chief, sources said. The leave granted to him on health grounds was till August 29, but even after that he failed to join duty, they added.

Saturday, December 4, 2021 .

FIJI

Punjab Cotton prices drop in Malwa as farmers blame private buyers

Farmers staged protest at the grain market in Bathinda, alleging private players had decreased the prices of cotton produce in mandis, coercing them to sell the crop on low rates. Cotton farmers in Mansa district

have not even been getting MSP in some mandis. The growers alleged citing poor quality, private players were quoting a low price (below MSP) for the produce. This at a time when cotton in the Malwa region

Former CM Amarinder Singh & Badals are 2 sides of same coin - Chief Minister Lashing out at former Chief Minister, Punjab Capt Amarinder Singh and Shiromani Akali Dal leader Sukhbir Singh Badal, Chief Minister Charanjit Channi said they were both two sides of the same coin. He was addressing a public gathering at Badhni Kalan village in Moga district on Wednesday. Both helping Prime Minister - Earlier, the Badals helped PM Modi to bring in ordinances on the three farm laws, and now Amarinder is helping him form the BJP govt

in the state. Charanjit Singh Channi, CM Earlier, the Badals helped PM Modi to bring in ordinances on the three farm laws, and now Amarinder is helping him form the BJP govt in the state. Charanjit Singh Channi, CM “Both the Badals and Amarinder have no sense of right and wrong. Earlier, the Badals helped PM Narendra Modi to bring in ordinances on the three controversial farm laws and now Amarinder is helping the PM in bringing the BJP government

Border Security Force seizes 3.6-kg heroin dropped by Pak drone Border Security Force (BSF) personnel claimed to have seized 3.66-kg heroin that was dropped by a drone which came from Pakistani side. Troops of 183 Battalion, BSF, deployed on the border heard the hum of a suspected drone coming from the Pak side and entering the Indian territory in the Amritsar sector. Suspecting smuggling, the BSF troops

fired in the direction of the drone. Immediately, the area was cordoned off and the police were also informed. During an extensive search of the area, one bag with a ring attached to a sling was found in a field on the Indian side of the fence. Four packets of contraband, suspected to be heroin (3.660 kg), were recovered from the bag.

Arrest warrants issued against MLA and his aides in rape case The Court of Judicial Magistrate Harsimranjit Kaur again ordered the issuance of non-bailable warrants of arrest against Lok Insaaf Party chief Simarjit Singh Bains, MLA from Atam Nagar constituency, and six others in a rape case registered on the complaint of a 44-year-old for December 10. During the last hearing too, the court had issued arrest warrants, which came back with the report that the accused could not be arrested as

he was not found at home. Harish Rai Dhanda, counsel for the complainant, appeared before the court and raised questions about the functioning of the local police. He alleged that MLA Bains was publicly holding political rallies and the police were making false reports about his non-availabilty. The FIR was registered on the orders of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Harsimranjit Singh in July 2021. But none of the accused has been arrested.

Pakistan Pakistan elected head of G77 at United Nations Pakistan has been elected the next chair of the ‘Group of 77’, which is the largest intergovernmental grouping of developing countries in the United Nations. The development comes during the

45th ministerial meeting of Group of 77 and China, held in a virtual format on Tuesday, the Foreign Office said in a statement.

Govt issues visa to 136 Indian pilgrims for visiting Hindu shrine in Sindh Govt issued visas to 136 Indians to visit Pakistan for the birth anniversary celebrations of saint Shiv Avtari Satguru Sant Shadaram Sahib in Sindh. “Pakistan High Commission in Delhi issued 136 visas to Indian Hindu pilgrims,” an official of Pakistan high commission said. “They are visiting Pakistan to participate

in 313th birth anniversary celebrations of Shiv Avtari Satguru Sant Shadaram Sahib at Shadani Darbar in Sindh from December 4 -15,” Last year, the high commission said 44 Indian pilgrims visited Pakistan to participate in celebrations marking the birth anniversary of Shadaram Sahib from December 15 to December 21.

Model apologises after barehead photoshoot at Kartarpur Sahib Sauleha, a model started controversary with her “barehead” photoshoot at Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur that has hurt the sentiments of the Sikh community. The model, Sauleha, later deleted the photos and posted an apology on her Instagram page.

A clothing brand, Mannat Clothing posted pictures of Sauleha, shot at Kartarpur Sahib, on their Instagram page. Shiromani Akali Dal spokesperson Manjinder Singh Sirsa and other users shared the photos pointing that the model was bareheaded.

Roti-making girl now chopping potatoes got her video viral with over 1 million views The 15-year-old hazeleyed girl, Aamina Reyaz, who went viral for her rotimaking videos few months ago is in news again with new video of her cutting potatoes, and guess what, the video has over one million views. Aamina Reyaz lives near the outskirts of Karachi. However, it is not Aamina who uploads the videos on Instagram. A teenager

boy from her neighbourhood shared these videos online. The girl, whose infectious smile and beautiful eyes were the talking point on social media went viral for her roti making videos. In the latest video, she is seen cutting potatoes. The video was posted on Instagram account named Ekiya5 and has over 1.5 million views. The clip was posted on September 10.

Fiji reopens to foreign tourists for first time in nearly two years Fiji reopened its border to international travellers for the first time in nearly two years on Wednesday, as the Pacific Island country seeks to revive its dominant tourism industry. Fiji shut its border to all foreign nationals in March 2020 to curb the spread of COVID-19 in a desperate bid to stop its limited medical facilities being overrun. With about 90% of all Fijian adults now fully vaccinated, the Pacific Island reopened its border to tourists from a small number of countries - much to

the relief of tourism operators. “To see the Fiji Airways plane full up and for us to welcome those tourists today was so amazing. It was a great, great feeling and I’m glad to have been there personally,” James Sowane, director of the Fiji tourism company, Tewaka, told Reuters. Tourists arriving will have to stay three nights in an approved resort and undergo rapid testing. They can move around designated areas, including bars and restaurants within the hotels, while they can embark on some day trips and activities.

Large crowd gathers to support “No Jab, No Job” case A large crowd gathered outside the Suva Court this afternoon to support former Fiji Revenue and Customs Service Senior Investigator, Vasiti Toga who filed a judicial review against the “No Jab, No Job” policy. Toga is taking Minister for Employment, the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, and the Attorney General to court.

The matter was called today to check on the affidavit in opposition and whether it has been filed. The respondents were given 21 days to file the same. However, they have been given further time to file the affidavit and Toga’s lawyer Aman Ravindra Singh has been given time to reply. The matter has been adjourned to the 16 of this month to fix a hearing date.

Police say suicide, family claims foul play in girl’s death Police have classified the death of 21-yearold medical student Zalika Nisha as suicide, after conducting an autopsy on Tuesday. Police spokesperson Ana Naisoro confirmed that the results of the autopsy showed it was suicide. Ms Nisha’s body was found in the Thurston Gardens public toilet on Sunday by a Suva City Council cleaner. While police have concluded their findings, family members in Fiji and abroad believe that her death was a result of foul play. Ms Nisha’s brother-in-law, Alim Masnoon,

speaking from Australia, said he and his wife would speak to Ms Nisha on a daily basis. He said they spoke to her last Friday before she went to sit for her exams. He said Ms Nisha did not answer her phone Friday night. He added that they were told by Ms Nisha’s boyfriend that she had spent the night at his place, but left early Saturday morning. Mr Masnoon said Ms Nisha’s flatmate had told them that she met with Ms Nisha on Saturday morning and did not meet with her after that.

22 Press release

Saturday, December 4, 2021

NDP moves quickly to put

The NDP have acted swiftly to keep public information hidden and have already started charging the public for Freedom of Information (FOI) requests. “It appears Minister Lisa Beare misled the House when she insisted they were listening and it would be some time before cabinet would eventually determine the fee for filing an FOI request,” said Bruce Banman, Opposition Critic for Citizens’ Services. “The fact this $10 fee has been put in place hours after the legislation was passed — before the ink is even dry — shows the NDP made up its mind well before that. The Minister knew what the fee would be the entire time, despite suggesting otherwise.” The move also speaks to the NDP

government’s misguided priorities. “From the impacts of COVID-19 to the devastating fires and floods B.C. has endured, the Opposition has spent the entire session pushing this government to respond more quickly to emergencies and get support into the hands of those who need it,” said Todd Stone, Opposition Critic for Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation. “All they have done is dither and delay — yet when it comes to slapping a fee on FOI requests, suddenly the NDP is capable of acting swiftly. It’s a slap in the face to those British Columbians who continue to wonder where they will live and how they will support themselves this winter and beyond.”

Press release

Parents’ anger grows as NDP adjourns Legislature

While the NDP has adjourned the Legislature until February, the frustration of parents of children with autism who have been negatively impacted by NDP policy changes, is growing as the government’s information sessions provide zero consultation or comfort about the future of their children. “We’re hearing from parents in every corner of the province, terrified about their children’s futures, and frustrated with the NDP government’s lack of consultation on these sweeping changes and plans to eliminate individualized funding for children with autism,” said Interim Leader of the Official Opposition Shirley Bond. “This callous decision by the NDP, as well as their lack of commitment to listening or consulting with parents and service providers, is deeply concerning. This government is taking away the ability for parents to decide on what’s right when it comes to the care of their children. It’s unacceptable.” More than 21,000 people have signed an online petition calling for the government

to develop a fair and transparent plan, and to keep the individualized autism funding program in place. Despite the Legislature adjourning, The BC Liberals are keeping up the pressure and reinforcing their calls for the NDP government to reverse its decision to end direct funding for children with autism and commit to full consultation with parents and service providers in the autism community. “Families are scared for their future and angry with this NDP government which is ignoring the voices of people with direct experience in autism care,” added MLA Karin Kirkpatrick, BC Liberal Critic for Children, Family Development and Childcare. “The NDP needs to show some respect to B.C. families and carry out proper consultation. Phasing out individualized funding will only create another waitlist, making families compete against one another for resources and services in a system that many are already struggling to navigate. It’s just plain wrong.”

Saturday, December 4, 2021

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