The Asian Star July 4 2020

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Vol 19 - Issue 23

Saturday, August 4, 2020

‘No half measures or exceptions’ in fight against COVID-19 as BC announces 24 new cases, 3 more deaths Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced three new deaths and 24 new cases of COVID-19 in the province at her daily briefing Thursday. The numbers are the first update since Tuesday, after officials took the day off on Canada Day. There were fifteen cases between the Tuesday and Wednesday reporting period, and nine more yesterday. A total of 2,940 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in B.C. to date, including 177 people who have died. There are 160 active cases of the virus in the province.

Seventeen people are in hospital, including two in intensive care.

But Mayor won’t take a call

Henry reiterated the need for continued physical distancing and the use of measures like non-medical masks and 14day quarantine for incoming travellers as the province unfolds the third phase of its restart plan.

Continued on page 6

Ismaili business woman is Canada’s first Muslim lieutenant governor A community advocate and business owner will be the first Muslim lieutenant governor in Alberta’s and Canada’s history.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Salma Lakhani as Alberta’s 19th lieutenant governor on Tuesday. As an immigrant to Canada from her home country of Uganda, Lakhani’s family was expelled in 1972, according to a biography on the Government of Canada website. After moving

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South Asian murder victim’s mom wants RCMP to stay in Surrey

to Edmonton, Lakhani took on a mentorship role with young students who did not speak English as their first language.

She’s also done work to advance women’s rights, health care, education and championed new immigrants, the government said in a statement.

“As Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, I know she will serve the people of her province and our

Continued on page 7

A Surrey mom whose son, an innocent bystander, was murdered in the Surrey Six slayings, wants the city to pump the brakes on the transition to a municipal police force. But even as one of the city’s most prominent victim’s advocates says she can’t get the mayor to return her calls.

Chris Mohan was just a 22-yearold student when he was shot dead alongside five other victims in one of the Lower Mainland’s most notorious episodes of gangland violence. In the ensuing years, as Eileen Mohan sought justice for her son, she watched as three RCMP officers pleaded guilty to criminal charges related

to the investigation. Despite that misconduct, Mohan says her dealings with the RCMP have been largely positive. “The only people I knew who lifted me up was the RCMP,” she said. “They became my second family. They treated me with so much care, so much respect.” Thirteen years after Chris Mohan became an innocent victim in the Surrey Six massacre, the city is pushing ahead with a transition to a municipal police force, led by Mayor Doug McCallum, who is eager to see it through as quickly as possible. Mohan, an outspoken advocate for victims since her son’s death, would like to speak to

Pulitzer winner Siddhartha Mukherjee & Prof Raj Chetty among ‘2020 Great Immigrants’ Two renowned Indian-Americans who have contributed towards the efforts in mitigating the Covid-19 health crisis are among the 38 immigrants honoured by a prestigious American foundation ahead of US Independence Day commemoration this year.

Pulitzer Prize-winning author and oncologist Siddhartha Mukherjee, and Professor of Economics at Harvard University Raj Chetty

Continued on page 8

Calgary bans popular South Asian food trucks after complaints Two trucks selling Indian & Pakistani food by popular northeast park for the last three years have suddenly been told by City of Calgary that their trucks are now banned from the area. The city says the truck owners didn’t break any bylaws or rules, but that officials had to act over a recent spike in complaints related to traffic, parking, noise and litter in the area around 80th Avenue N.E. and Taradale Drive N.E.

Canadian govt seals borders, stranding NRIs & students In view of Covid-19 pandemic, Canadian govt has decided to keep its borders sealed till at least the end of July and has extended its ban on travellers. As such students and NRIs, who were hoping to return to India, will remain stranded in Canada for longer. Conversely, all those who had come to India in January and February taking leave from work or their educational

institutions are also stuck in India. Joga Singh of Tut Kalan village, Jalandhar, says, “My wife and I were scheduled to fly to Canada on July 27 to attend the marriage of our only son, Mandeep Singh, on August 14. Earlier, we were unable to get a ticket because of the lockdown and now there are no options left. We will have to postpone the marriage.” An NRI, Amanpreet Kaur, said

she had returned to her village in the Doaba region in February to attend a family function and was scheduled to return on March 29 but she was still stuck in Punjab. “I desperately want to return home to my children and grandchildren. I appeal both governments to ensure safe travel soon,” she said. Joban

Continued on page 6

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Vol 19 - Issue 22

Saturday, June 27, 2020

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B.C. Lottery Corpporation reveals secret behind $700K fine for money laundering fumbles The B.C. Lottery Corporation has finally given up a decade-long fight to keep a secret. In 2010, BCLC was hit with a $700,000 fine by FINTRAC, the country’s money laundering watchdog, for undisclosed violations of the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act. It was the largest penalty ever levelled against a provincial gaming corporation — until FINTRAC eventually withdrew its case after a long and complicated legal battle.

But BCLC still fought to keep the facts of the case from the public. Now the lottery corporation has voluntarily released documents that detail its past failings, relenting after a nine year freedom of information battle with CBC News.

The move comes after B.C. Attorney General David Eby spoke with BCLC’s new board of directors earlier this year. “I think the release of these documents...is long overdue,” Eby said in February.

Mike Larsen, president of the B.C. Freedom of Information and Privacy Association, agrees.

“Access delayed is access denied,” says Larsen. “And it is about time that we have this information.” The documents show FINTRAC found BCLC’s oversight of the province’s casinos

packed with bundles of $20 bills, the currency of street drugs. The CBC reported extensively on the flow of suspected “dirty money” as far back as 2008. Internal letters between BCLC and FINTRAC reveal the lottery corporation insisted it was making changes to its “high risk measures,” and blamed some of the deficiencies

on technical glitches and human error. The lottery corporation begged FINTRAC to drop the $700,000 fine and keep its deficiencies secret from the public— arguing disclosure of its failings would tip off money launderers to its weaknesses.

Continued on page 8

to be deficient in seven major “high risk” areas between 2009 and 2010. FINTRAC required the lottery corporation to report on large and suspicious cash transactions — possible proceeds of crime being laundered through casinos. But after a major audit, it found casino staff were conducting “little to no verification” of high risk client betting, that BCLC had failed to adequately report large cash transactions over $10,000, and that casinos were allowing high rollers to simply identify themselves as “self-employed” or “business owners.”

Recent investigations have shown criminals were able to launder up to $1 billion in dirty money through the province’s casinos for over a decade — often bringing in bags and suitcases

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OPINION

By Sylvain Charlebois, Professor Dalhousie University

Statistics Canada has confirmed what most of us knew already: Canada is becoming a hungrier place.

According to a survey conducted by the federal agency in May, almost one in seven (14.6 per cent) Canadians indicated they lived in a household where there was food insecurity in the past month. In 2017-18, a similar survey

Saturday, August 4, 2020

Canada’s rising food insecurity problem showed 10.5 per cent of households in Canada felt food insecure. There are about 12.5 million households in Canada. This means more than 512,000 more households in Canada are experiencing food insecurity compared to just two years ago. That’s more than the number of households in the city of Ottawa.

StatsCan results were consistent with a survey conducted by the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at

Dalhousie University at about the same time. In it, 61.0 per cent of Canadians surveyed felt they had enough of the food they wanted and didn’t consider access to food an issue. That sentiment was at 72.6 per cent last year, so we’ve seen a drop of more than 11 per cent.

Alberta saw the largest drop between the two periods, at 21.2 per cent.

That means an additional 4.1 million Canadians now see access to affordable food for survival as a challenge over a year ago. That’s massive. And the situation may well be worse by the time the COVID-19 pandemic is over.

Surveys are likely to continue to point to a changing Canadian food security landscape. The fall should give us a better picture of the number of Canadian households that will feel food insecure.

The growing food insecurity is largely because many Canadians have lost their jobs and most of us face a future overflowing with uncertainty.

More than eight million Canadians applied for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), but the program will eventually end. More than $52 billion has been paid out to Canadians so far. That’s equivalent to a third of the province of Ontario’s entire annual budget.

Rising food prices will likely make matters worse. The food inflation rate is at 3.4 per cent and could reach 4.0 per cent by year’s end. Typical food inflation is anywhere from 1.5 to 2.5 per cent. Costs to produce, process and distribute food are all increasing. Physical distancing, personnel turnover, training, additional shifts, the use of personal protective gear, equipment modifications and an increase in automation all contribute to higher costs. To get food to market, companies across the supply chain need to charge more. Grocers may be reluctant to pass on these extra costs to consumers but eventually they won’t have much choice.

The broader backdrop shows deflationary pressures affecting many other aspects of our economy. Many things are getting cheaper.

StatsCan notes that our general inflation rate is at -0.4 per cent, a drop of -0.2 per cent from the month before. Clothes, footwear, education and transportation are among the components of the consumer price index that are dropping.

Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is senior director of the agri-food analytics lab and a professor in food distribution and policy at Dalhousie University.

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Saturday, August 4, 2020

‘Queue-jumpers’ not welcome in B.C. as COVID-19 cases rise in US: Horgan Premier John Horgan says Americans travelling through British Columbia on their way to Alaska or returning home should not stop in the province while COVID-19 cases continue rising in the United States.

Horgan said Thursday he’s heard concerns that Americans have stopped at Vancouver hotels and in stores on Vancouver Island instead of heading straight to their destination, putting local residents at risk.

He said licence plates from Texas and California have been spotted in Port Renfrew, which is not on the way to Alaska.

Horgan said he has spoken with Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland about the need for her to discuss the issue with American officials. B.C. has kept its infection rates low and the province’s progress should not be lost to “queue jumpers” as outbreaks of COVID-19 have increased in many states, he said.

“Outbreaks in Washington state, California, Arizona, Texas are absolutely unacceptable. We have to maintain our border security so we can protect the progress we’ve made here in British Columbia,” Horgan said.

“We do not want to make it more difficult for people to get home but if you’re going home you should go straight home.

You shouldn’t be stopping along the way to enjoy the sights and sounds of British Columbia.

That’s not part of the plan.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in midJune that the federal government is looking into reports of U.S. tourists flouting measures around the border shutdown.

Top Kelowna cop ‘very sorry’ for way student arrested in wellness check The behaviour of a Kelowna police officer during the arrest of a distressed university student under the Mental Health Act is of “deep concern” to the region’s top Mountie.

Const. Lacey Browning has been placed on desk duty while an outside police force decides whether to recommend to Crown counsel that she be charged for the way she arrested Mona Wang. A surveillance video taken inside Wang’s apartment building shows the apparently unresponsive woman being dragged down a hallway before Browning briefly steps on her head in the lobby.

“I can tell you that when I first saw the video, I was deeply concerned, and I’m very sorry to Ms. Wang for what occurred,” District commander Chief Supt. Brad Haugli, who oversees the RCMP in Southeastern B.C., said Thursday.

“If that was my family member of friend, I would have deep concern and want answers as well,” Haugli said during a news conference.

Browning’s actions are being investigated by the Abbotsford police force and a report will likely be sent to Crown counsel by late July on whether she should be charged for assault, Haugli said. The Independent Investigations Office of B.C., which normally reviews incidents where civilians may have been injured as a result of police actions, wasn’t notified by Kelowna police of the matter. Beyond commenting on the way in which the Jan. 30 arrest of Wang was conducted, Haugli said police have responded to a greatly increasing number of mental-health calls, with such reports spiking particularly during the continuing coronavirus pandemic.

The federal government extended the mandatory quarantine order for most people entering Canada until the end of August to help curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. The order made under the Quarantine Act, which first came into effect in late March, was set to expire at midnight Tuesday, but will now remain in effect until Aug. 31. Horgan said he has maintained during 15 consecutive weeks of meetings with the other premiers, Trudeau and Freeland that the border needs to remain closed until the U.S. demonstrates it has “a handle on this pandemic.” Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said those coming into the province

should recognize that British Columbians have a vested interest in making sure visitors follow “our travel manners.”

“We’ve done a lot here and it has been a sacrifice for everybody in this province and so there are concerns there are people coming in from jurisdictions that are still very much at risk,” she told a news conference in Victoria.

Henry said she supports closing the border to non-essential travel, adding that the situation in Washington state and the broader United States is “challenging.” “They have been actively working for, as we know, a long time to control the outbreak,” she said. “I think it really speaks to once you get a level of transmission in the community with this virus, it is so, so challenging to get ahead of it and that is one of the things that we’ve been able to do here in B.C. early on with the testing that we had, and here in Canada. We seem to be managing it but

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Saturday, August 4, 2020 From page 1

‘No half measures or exceptions’ in fight against COVID-19 as BC announces 24 new cases, 3 more deaths

“There can be no half measures or exceptions when it comes to COVID-19,� Henry said.

Dix responded to concerns around air travel, “Like every aspect of our restart plan, we have especially following news that passengers on to move slowly.� Health Minister Adrian four recent flights into Vancouver International

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Airport could have been exposed to COVID-19. Both Air Canada and WestJet ended their in-flight distancing policies as of July 1, something Dix expressed concern about earlier this week.

Dix said if physical distancing is not possible, passengers need to be extra vigilant about all other safety measures, like wearing a mask, washing hands frequently, and not touching your face. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Everybody that goes on an airplane should be conscientious about following all the other rules,â&#x20AC;? he said. Henry

said airlines and passengers have to be fastidious about not allowing people with symptoms on aircraft, and airlines should work more closely

with public health officials to make sure contact tracing is done quickly and efficiently.

Calgary bans popular South Asian food From page 1

But the truck owners say the complaints to the city only surfaced in recent weeks after UCP MLA Devinder Toor got involved in pushing a petition to have them moved, which they say was driven by a small number of residents who live near the park in the community of Taralake that didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t like them being there.

Late night food trucks stir up fight in northeast Calgary The Lahori BBQ Hut and Indian Bistro trucks parked up most nights until 11 p.m. without incident, serving Pakistani and Indian meals to people using the busy green space and lake, which are surrounded by apartments and family homes backing onto the park.

But some residents say the trucks were responsible for attracting gangs of rowdy youths in loud cars who stay late into the night, increasing traffic volume in the area and bringing other problems like jaywalking and noise pollution from the trucks themselves.

The truck owners allege that on May 30 they were visited by Calgary-Falconridge

MLA Devinder Toor along with a group of men, whom they describe as a mob. They said the group threatened them with closure, spoke to them aggressively and demanded they move away from the area for good. The owners both say it was a confrontation that felt more like a threat than a conversation. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Devinder Toor showed up with a group, about 15 of them, and demanded my wife move the truck. I told them I have a right to be here, but Toor told us he is an MLA and he can make new rules so we canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t park here anymore,â&#x20AC;? said Talat Ejaz, owner of the Lahori BBQ Hut truck, said earlier this month. In an interview at the time, Toor gave a different account of approaching the truck owners and denied threatening to have them removed or using his position to change parking regulations.

A few weeks later, the truck owners say Toor and local residents got exactly what they had promised with the city declaring the area a prohibited zone for food trucks.

There is no option for the trucks to appeal the decision.

Canadian Armed Forces member arrested after gaining access to Rideau Hall grounds Police have arrested a Canadian Armed Forces member who they say was armed and had gained access to the grounds at Rideau Hall early Thursday morning.The man â&#x20AC;&#x153;breached the main pedestrian entranceâ&#x20AC;? at 1 Sussex Drive at around 6:30 a.m. ET with his vehicle, the RCMP said in a statement. When the impact disabled his vehicle, the man headed to the Rideau Hall greenhouse, where he was â&#x20AC;&#x153;rapidly containedâ&#x20AC;?

by RCMP members on patrol, the force said. He was apprehended shortly before 8:30 a.m. without incident and taken into custody for questioning.

The Rangers are a component of the Canadian Army Reserve that serves in the remote and coastal regions, typically offering help with national security and public safety operations.

Someone who answered the phone at the Hurren household in Manitoba on Thursday evening confirmed heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d been arrested but said she didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to speak further about the dayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s events.

Hurren is described in promotional material for his business as a veteran who recently rejoined the military as a Canadian Ranger. (Facebook) Hurren ran a business called GrindHouse Fine Foods, which makes meat products. In promotional material for his business, Hurren is described as a Royal Canadian Artillery veteran who recently rejoined the military as a Canadian Ranger.

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Saturday, August 4, 2020

Canadian govt seals borders, stranding NRIs & students From page 1 resident, who was planning to shift to Canada in March said, “We have already cancelled our plan to go to Canada. We are now planning to travel in September or October if the situation allows us.” Recently, a 89-year-old Canadian citizen had committed suicide in Jalandhar because he was not able to get a ticket to travel home. Immigration experts say over one lakh students from Punjab and Chandigarh opt for

popular education destinations such as the US, UK, Canada and Australia each year. Director of an international education consultancy, Jatin Wadhwa, said, “There are thousands of students from Chandigarh and Punjab who are waiting to fly to Canada. We are hopeful that from August the situation will

California regulators sue Cisco over discrimination against Dalit employee California regulators have sued Cisco Systems, saying an engineer faced discrimination at the company’s Silicon Valley headquarters because he is a Dalit Indian.India’s caste system long placed Dalits at the bottom of a social hierarchy, once terming them “untouchables.” Inequities and violence against Dalits have persisted for decades after India banned caste discrimination.

The engineer worked on a team at Cisco’s San Jose headquarters with Indians who all immigrated to the US as adults, and all of whom were of high caste, according to the lawsuit filed on Tuesday by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. The “higher caste supervisors and co-workers imported the discriminatory system’s practices into their team and Cisco’s workplace,” the lawsuit says. It says Cisco’s treatment of the employee, who is not named, violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act. The Civil Rights Act bans employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin.

The lawsuit notes the employee is Dalit Indian,

and that he is darker-complexioned than nonDalit Indians. “It is unacceptable for workplace conditions and opportunities to be determined by a hereditary social status determined by birth,” said DFEH Director Kevin Kish.Two men who were Cisco supervisors and higher-caste Indians, Sundar Iyer and Ramana Kompella, are named in the suit for discriminating and harassing the employee. The employee received less pay and fewer opportunities, and when he opposed “unlawful practices, contrary to the traditional order between the Dalit and higher castes, Defendants retaliated against him,” the lawsuit says. Cisco did not step to prevent this discrimination, the suit says.The suit says that Iyer told other workers that the employee was Dalit and enrolled at India’s prestigious Indian Institute of Technology through affirmative action.

The employee contacted Cisco human relations, wanting to file a discrimination complaint against Iyer, and then Iyer took away his responsibilities and made other changes that reduced the employee’s role and made him feel isolated from his coworkers. The suit says Iyer disparaged the employee to coworkers and said they should avoid him.

From page 1

Ismaili business woman is Canada’s first Muslim lieutenant governor

country well, and continue to be a source of inspiration for all Canadians,” said Trudeau.

Lakhani was one of the first mentors of a program that provided guidance to ESL students at NorQuest College in Edmonton.

She currently sits on the advisory committee for the college’s 1000 Women: A Million Possibilities movement, which has raised millions for students with financial

barriers.

She will replace outgoing Lt. Gov. Lois Mitchell, who has served in the role since June 2015.

Lieutenant governors are appointed by Canada’s governor general and serve as representatives of Queen Elizabeth II in their provinces, granting Royal Assent to provincial legislation.

South Asian murder victim’s mom wants RCMP to stay in Surrey McCallum about the transition, but says he won’t return her calls. “I want an appointment.

Nothing. No response. So I’m thinking this man doesn’t want to talk to anybody,” Mohan said.

A frustrated Mohan wrote a letter to the premier and B.C.’s solicitor general, asking them to step in, because she feels people opposed to the change are not being heard at city hall. Coun.

Linda Annis, also an RCMP supporter, wants the province to order a referendum on the issue. “When you have victims of crime whose families have been so tragically impacted by this speaking out, saying they want to keep the RCMP, I think the mayor needs to be listening and I think the province needs to be listening,” said Annis.

Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth has resisted calls for the province to intervene.

“We appreciate concerns regarding the Surrey policing transition.

However, the law in B.C. is clear: municipalities with populations over 5,000 people are responsible for police services in their communities. In 2018, Surrey City Council voted unanimously to terminate their agreement with the RCMP and move to a municipal police department,” the Ministry of Public Safety and the Solicitor General said in a statement.

The statement went on to say the province’s director of police services will be responsible for oversight of Surrey’s new police force, including during the transition from the existing RCMP.

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Saturday, August 4, 2020

B.C. Lottery Corp. finally reveals secret behind $700K fine for money laundering fumbles

“Publication ... would indicate to the patrons of casinos that it is possible to avoid the necessary identification, recording and reporting [of large and suspicious cash transactions], which is a message BCLC does not wish to have made,” wrote former BCLC president and CEO Michael Graydon in a fax to FINTRAC dated June 30, 2010. “The public notice will detract from the very considerable efforts BCLC is making to appropriately comply,” insisted Graydon. “It will encourage inappropriate behaviour.” NBut Larsen says that argument never made any sense. “There were no trade secrets about how to money launder that could have really been gleaned from the information that has been finally released,” says the freedom of information advocate.

“So I find that argument hard to believe.”

News of $700K fine leaked, source sought In a subsequent fax one month later in August 2010, BCLC’s CEO appeared angry that

news of the $700,000 fine had been leaked to the press — and the search was on to find the whistleblower.

“Active inquiries have been made at BCLC and it has not been possible to identify the source,” wrote Graydon. “Damage has been caused as a consequence of the premature public disclosure of the ... notice of violation.”

Michael Graydon was president and CEO of the B.C. Lottery Corporation until 2014, when he left to build and operate the Parq casino beside Vancouver’s B.C. Place stadium.

(Samantha Garvey/CBC) Despite the leak and Graydon’s departure in 2014, the lottery corporation continued to fight CBC’s request for details of its deficiencies — in battles before the courts and B.C.’s information and privacy commission.

BCLC also appealed the $700,000 fine, and the Federal Court issued confidentiality orders barring the release of the records.

In 2017, FINTRAC withdrew its case against BCLC and the penalty was set aside by the court.

In 2018, the CBC refiled a request for the 2010 records — to BCLC and the Ministry of the Attorney General.

The ministry released some documents, but key information was redacted.

When Eby was asked in February about

his own ministry blocking full release, the attorney general said “British Columbians deserve to see this information.”

The stack that started it all: CBC obtained its first 3,000 records relating to criminal activity in BC casinos in 2008, under freedom of information legislation. (CBC) The B.C. Lottery Corporation says it began the process to release the long-secret information around the time of Eby’s statement in February — as part of its participation in the current provincial inquiry into money laundering in B.C. In mid-June, the court loosened the confidentiality order and BCLC finally gave the records to the CBC. The lottery corporation says in FINTRAC’s last examination in 2018, the watchdog agency acknowledged the lottery corporation “had made significant progress in improving its anti-money laundering program.”

But Larsen says BCLC should have come clean about its shortcomings back in 2010.

“You end up in the end looking like you’re being unnecessarily and perhaps conspiratorially secretive,” says Larsen.

“That absolutely erodes trust, for sure.”

Pulitzer winner Siddhartha Mukherjee, Prof Raj Chetty among ‘2020 Great Immigrants’ honourees From page 1

have been named by the Carnegie Corporation of New York as ‘2020 Great Immigrants’ honourees, the Corporation said in a statement on Wednesday. Born in New Delhi, Mukherjee is a noted biologist, oncologist and the author of several acclaimed books, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning ‘The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer’. Since 2009, he has served on the faculty of Columbia University, where he is associate professor of medicine and a practising physician at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. In 2014, Mukherjee was awarded the Padma Shri, one of India’s highest civilian honours.

The Carnegie Corporation said that during the Covid-19 pandemic, Mukherjee has used his “gifts as a science communicator” to educate the public about the virus through essays, in media interviews, at public forums, as well as through his social media accounts.

Mukherjee has stressed the importance of following guidelines to social distance, wear masks and to self-isolate when necessary, it said.

In May, he was selected by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to serve on a 15-member Blue-Ribbon Commission focusing on improving tele-health and broadband access in response to the Covid-19 health crisis.

Raj Chetty, who was born in New Delhi, has been one of the youngest professors to be granted tenure in Harvard’s history.

In addition to his position as the William A Ackman Professor of Economics at Harvard University, Chetty directs Opportunity Insights, a research lab that aims to identify barriers to economic and social mobility and develop scalable policy solutions to overcome them, the Corporation said.

He helped launch a resource to monitor the real-time economic impact of Covid-19 on people, businesses and communities across the United States.

This tool enables policymakers to make evidence-based decisions that balance vital public health priorities with the economic needs of their communities, it said.

“Chetty is optimistic about the potential of big data to inform policy and revive the American dream for the next generation, including immigrants - like his own family - who have long pinned their hopes on its promise,” the corporation said.

Saturday, August 4, 2020

All community COVID-19 outbreaks declared over in BC B.C. health officials have declared the province’s only community COVID-19 outbreak over, at an Abbotsford tool manufacturer where follow-up testing has not found any further infection.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said July 2 that the all-clear at New World Technologies means all B.C. community outbreaks are over, after poultry processing, greenhouse and other facilities were affected along with health care centres. There are still five active outbreaks in the health care system, four of them in long-term care facilities in the Vancouver Coastal Health region.

Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix reported that general case counts remained low over the Canada Day period, with 15 new positive tests in the 24 hours up to July 1 and nine more up to July 2. There are 17 people in hospital, two in critical care, and three more people died of coronavirus-related conditions over the two days.

“It is something we should always remember,”

Dix said. “We acknowledge them in their grief and we join them in their sorrow.”

Dix said June 29 marked a milestone for the B.C. health ministry, with more than 6,000 emergency room visits recorded for the first time since the beginning of March. It’s the latest indication that people are no longer reluctant to seek medical treatment since the pandemic began.

B.C.’s scheduled surgeries are also rising, after an estimated 30,000 were cancelled or postponed to divert resources to a potential wave of COVID-19 cases.

Henry acknowledged that while most people infected with the novel coronavirus in B.C. have recovered, there have been long-term effects in some cases, including blood clotting, small strokes, confusion and scarring of lungs.

“What we really hear of most is profound fatigue that takes a long time to get over,” Henry said.

Conservatives ask auditor general to probe ‘outsourcing’ of $900M student The federal Conservatives are calling for an investigation into the Liberal government’s decision to have an international charity administer a $900-million program designed to help students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The request is contained in a letter sent to Auditor General Karen Hogan on Sunday in which the Tories argue that “outsourcing” the Canada Student Service Grant to WE Charity undermines Parliament’s ability to monitor the aid program.

The Conservatives also noted the “well documented” connections between WE and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as they underscored the importance of transparency, accountability and value for money in Ottawa’s COVID-19 spending.

“By outsourcing this program to a third party, the proper channels for Opposition scrutiny, the very bedrock of our parliamentary democracy, have been circumvented,” reads the letter signed

by Conservative MPs Pierre Poilievre, Dan Albas and Raquel Dancho.

“Indeed, it is your office that will provide the most legitimate and transparent examination of this program.” The auditor general’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Sunday. Student volunteer program to help 20,000 young people The Liberal government announced the Canada Student Service Grant last week as part of a broader suite of support for students and young people struggling to find internships, job placements and other workrelated experience during COVID-19.

Eligible students can earn up to $5,000 for volunteer work with non-profit organizations that are helping to cushion the impact of the pandemic. The program is supposed to place up to 20,000 students in volunteer positions between now and October.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke with reporters from the Big Rig Brewery in the Ottawa suburb of Kanata. 0:48 Trudeau defended employing WE to administer the program after conflict-of-interest concerns were raised last week. The prime minister attended several WE events in the past and his wife, Sophie Gregoire Trudeau, hosts one of its podcasts. The prime minister said the decision to use WE was made by the non-partisan public service, not by him. Delivery of the grant program demanded an organization able to reach the tens of thousands of students, he said.

The Conservatives want Hogan to incorporate her study of WE and the student aid program into her larger review of the government’s pandemicrelated spending, which is expected to be tabled in Parliament later this year.

Direct federal spending on emergency aid measures now stands at $174 billion, the government announced Friday, driven by a jump in the estimated cost of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit to $80 billion. Trudeau defends decision to have charity with ties to family administer student volunteer programThat is up from the previously revised $60 billion and more than double the original $35-billion estimate, as demand rises and recipients get ready to receive eight extra weeks of payments.

Statistics Canada’s latest jobs report showed that returning post-secondary students, aged 20 to 24, had a record-high unemployment rate in May of 42.1 per cent, and about one-third had seen summer placements disappear because of COVID-19. Data released Friday by the agency also found that youths in the so-called Internet generation were the most likely to formally volunteer. They contributed on average 82 unpaid hours to charities in 2018 and had a volunteer rate of 52 per cent.

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New tower at Richmond Hospital will be larger than previously announced A new larger and “more ambitious” than previously announced acute-care tower is on the way for Richmond Hospital.

Premier John Horgan and Minister of Health Adrian Dix made the announcement Thursday in Richmond.

The new nine-floor tower will have an additional 220 beds for a total of 350 beds in the hospital, as well as a new emergency room, pharmacy, another intensive care unit, a medical imaging department, and expanded pediatric, surgical, and mental health services, Horgan said.

The premier said the new tower will be “far larger, far grander and more ambitious” than the plan announced by the government two years ago.

The budget is still to be determined, but Horgan expected it to be “several hundreds of millions” more in cost than the previous plan, which was initially estimated at just under $300 million.

The business plan will come at the end of Septemberwithanewfundingmodel,andofficials hope to have the project completed in 2024 The new concept plan also includes renovations to the existing South Tower to create new in-patient psychiatry and psychiatric emergency units.

“People have been calling for a new tower at Richmond Hospital, and our government took decisive action to make it happen,” said Horgan.

“That’s why we’re proud to give the green light for a bigger, bolder plan for Richmond Hospital that will bring the facility into the 21st century and deliver the care Richmond needs, while creating thousands of jobs to help get our economy back on solid ground.”

Dix said during the business planning stage, it became clear that the fast-growing community of Richmond needs a bigger patient care tower with more services.

The initial concept plan for the acute care tower was approved in March 2018.

Following Thursday’s announcement, Richmond Liberal MLA Jas Johal said while he welcomes the much-needed expansion for Richmond Hospital, he was skeptical that the NDP government would follow through, given the deficits that will result from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This has not been approved yet by the government,” said Johal, who added that there is no sense of how bad the revenue situation will be for government post-COVID. Johal said 10 to 15 per cent of small businesses are expected to go under by the end of 2021, causing a significant loss in tax revenue.

“While the announcement today is welcome, I think with all large infrastructure projects that are announced, you have to be skeptical, and you have to hold that government to account on those announcements because the revenue is not going to be there in the short to medium term,” he said.

“It’s a wonderful announcement but it’s premature.”

Richmond Hospital opened in 1966 and has 240 beds, serving Richmond, South Vancouver and Delta, as well as people using Vancouver International Airport and B.C. Ferries.

The original six-storey North Tower has 108 beds and is home to surgical suites, in-patient units, a mammography clinic, cancer care, medical imaging and a pharmacy, as well as administrative, academic and support services.

At the news conference Thursday, Dr. Richard Chan, an emergency room doctor at Richmond Hospital, said the emergency room has seen a 40 per cent increase in the last decade, and often operates at more than 100 per cent capacity.

New national security law passed for Hong Kong raises concern in Vancouver Those in Vancouver gripped by scenes in Hong Kong of police sweeping in China’s new national security law with hundreds of arrests, worry it can also be used to curtail what they can say and do in Vancouver, if they want to continue travelling easily to Hong Kong.

It’s a new kind of concern in Vancouver, which has long been a place of exodus for those in or from Hong Kong wanting to keep their rights, freedoms and way of life, but also with the convenience of being able to see family, do business in and enjoy Hong Kong.

A day after Beijing brought in the new law, Vancouver East MP Jenny Kwan attended a rally against it in Vancouver on Wednesday, along with hundreds of others.

The new law allows Beijing to act against secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign interference in Hong Kong as it defines these. It says this is necessary for ensuring social and financial stability in Hong Kong, which has been disrupted by both large, peaceful protests as well as violent ones.

The new law “for people in Hong Kong is in itself a major concern, but its application for people (outside) of Hong Kong is also serious,” said Kwan.

“As a Canadian, if I travelled back to Hong Kong, I could arbitrarily be detained and jailed, under this law, for participating in a rally and speaking in support of people in Hong Kong (from Vancouver).”

Kwan said some “community leaders, who normally would have,” didn’t attend this time because they are “worried about the invocation of the (law in Hong Kong) and what it might mean for them and their families (there).”

“Most of (us) are not afraid, as we are protected by our Charter of Rights,” said Mabel Tung of the Vancouver Society in Support of Democratic Movement, which was part of the rally.

“I think for those people who still have

ties with Hong Kong — for example, their parents are still in Hong Kong or they need to go back and forth — they may stop coming to rallies and leave some social media groups.”

She said some members have talked about not returning to Hong Kong while others feel they can safely conceal their identity at rallies in Vancouver by wearing a mask or hat.

“It’s forcing a lot of people to choose between self-preservation and doing what you think is right,” said Benjamin Cheung, a lecturer in psychology at the University of B.C. who has tweeted about watching Hong Kong change from afar as someone who used to live there.

“Hong Kong diaspora have privilege in that we are not in the territory and so we should be using our privilege to support those in Hong Kong who have less privilege. …

People are balancing all of this for themselves.”

There will need to be scrutiny in Canada over the part of the new national security law that applies to activities outside of Hong Kong and where it intersects with details in Canada’s extradition agreement with Hong Kong, said Margaret McCuaig-Johnston, senior fellow at the University of Alberta’s China Institute.

“It would take a group of lawyers to go through (the two) to see where there might be overlap and where Hong Kong authorities could argue that some of these crimes under the extradition agreement would also fall under the new national security laws.”

The extradition agreement came into effect in 1993, long before the 1997 handover of Hong Kong from British to Chinese rule, and in an era different to the one now faced by Hong Kong, China and Canada, said McCuaig-Johnston. Canada does not have an extradition agreement with China.

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Khalsa Business Centre

128th Street, 84th Ave., Surrey, BC

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Canada extends mandatory quarantine order for most people entering Canada until August 31 The federal government has extended the mandatory quarantine order for most people entering Canada until the end of August to help curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Any travellers entering the country – by land, air or sea – will have to isolate for 14 days, whether or not they are showing any symptoms of COVID-19.

The order made under the Quarantine Act,

which first came into effect in late March, was set to expire at midnight Tuesday, but will now remain in effect until Aug. 31.

It carries penalties that include six months in prison or a fine of up to $750,000, which could go up to $1-million if the person caused death or bodily harm by wilfully and recklessly breaking the rules.

Canadians wary of COVID-19 spikes in neighboring USA A spike in COVID-19 cases in the United States has become a hot topic for Canadians, who unfurled their maple-leaf flags to celebrate Canada Day this week just days ahead of 4th of July celebrations south of the border.

The spread of the novel coronavirus has slowed steadily in Canada over the past eight weeks, but outbreaks are worsening in many U.S. states, with Florida shattering records on Thursday by reporting more than 10,000 new cases in one day.

The two countries share the world’s longest demilitarized land border and their economies are closely linked, with 75% of all Canada’s goods exports heading to the United States. Most Canadians have family and friends living across the border.

Shelly Reid, a 44-year-old schoolteacher in Calgary, said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau set “a great example … right from Day 1,” and Canadians took his message on staying home, distancing, and handwashing seriously Florida shatters record with more than 10,000 new coronavirus cases in single day “The numbers themselves show how well we’ve done,” Reid said as she celebrated Canada Day with friends in Ottawa. “The United States is such a leader on the global stage,

I thought they would have set an example by their actions. Clearly, they’ve shown otherwise.”

In March, Canada and the United States agreed to close the border to all but non-essential travel. Those measures are due to expire on July 21, and Trudeau has said discussions are taking place about what to do next.

According to a poll by Abacus Data, 88% of Canadians want the border to remain closed.

“Canadians pay huge attention to what is happening in the United States, and they are very concerned,” said Frank Graves, president of polling company EKOS Research. “What’s clearly been a disastrous reopening (in parts of the United States) has caused a rebound of prudence in Canadians.”

Canada Day celebrations, which usually include live fireworks and concerts, were entirely online for the first time ever this year.

Eric Sladic, a 51-year-old delivery driver in Ottawa, says the two countries are not only neighbors, but “brothers.”

The way Trudeau’s Liberal government and provincial leaders, who often are members of rival parties, worked together during the pandemic was “spectacular,” Sladic said, and stood in stark contrast to the polarized politics of the United States.

The updated version of the order also clarifies that travellers must wear non-medical masks while they are entering the country or are in transit to the place where they will isolate, unless they are travelling in private vehicles.

The order does not apply to people who cross the border regularly to ensure goods and services continue to flow, or anyone entering to provide essential services.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he doesn’t want to see the United States border reopened on July 21, considering the resurgence in COVID-19 cases in many states. The Canadian Press Sign up for the Coronavirus Update newsletter to read the day’s essential coronavirus news, features and explainers written by Globe reporters and editors.

3 flights to Vancouver International Airport possibly exposed to COVID-19 Health officials are warning passengers on three flights that recently landed at Vancouver International Airport YVR to monitor for symptoms of COVID-19.

The B.C. Centre for Disease Control is not sharing which seats on the planes were affected. As a result, everyone who was on the flights is asked to self-isolate for two weeks from the day they landed in Vancouver.

These are the affected flights AirCanadaflight217fromSaskatoononJune16.

Air Canada flight 557 from Los Angeles on June 18. Flair Airlines flight 8102 from Toronto on June 21. Travellers on the flights won’t be contacted directly, as health officials stopped that practice back in March. All airline passengers are encouraged to check the BCCDC website regularly for two weeks after they arrive back in B.C. to ensure their flight has not been exposed to the virus.

Tories ask procurement watchdog to review contracts between Ottawa, WE Charity The Conservatives are asking the federal procurementwatchdogtoreviewthecircumstances around several sole-sourced contracts between the Liberal government and WE Charity.

That includes an arrangement that will see the Toronto-based youth organization manage a $900-million federal program for student volunteers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

That sole-source contract has prompted questions about a potential conflict of interest, as both Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau have connections to WE. The Conservatives referenced those ties

in their letter to procurement ombudsman Alexander Jeglic today, listing five other solesourced contracts between the charity and Ottawa.

The amounts for those other contracts range from $13,000 to $40,000 — small enough they were not required to be advertised for competitive bids.

Trudeau has said the non-partisan public service concluded the WE organization was the only group in Canada capable of running the volunteer program.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 2, 2020.

Saturday, August 4, 2020

Heavy rains & flooding on Hwy 1 near Revelstoke Highway 1 has been closed in both directions 15 kilometres west of Revelstoke due to flooding.

According to DriveBC, an assessment is underway and there is currently no estimated time of reopening.

Earlier, British Columbia’s River Forecast Centre issued a high streamflow advisory for the southeast region of the province.

Over the past 24 hours, the Upper Columbia has received five to 20 millimetres of precipitation, and a further 30 to 50 millimetres is expected through Friday.

The forecast centre says a high streamflow advisory means river levels are rising or could

rise rapidly, but no major flooding is expected.

It says its modelling forecasts the Upper Columbia rivers reaching five- to 20year flows in response to the wet weather.

The public is advised to stay clear of the fast-flowing rivers and potentially unstable riverbanks during the high-streamflow period.

Not so sweet season for B.C. farmers, cherry pickers due to weather and COVID-19 The centre has posted flood warnings for the upper and middle Fraser River basins, including the Quesnel River, while lower-level flood watches are in place for the Chilcotin and Thompson rivers.

British Columbians to get boost in climate tax credit this month Most British Columbians will get a boost to their provincial climate tax credit this month.

The provincial government says 80 per cent of B.C. families and individuals will automatically receive the one-time increase to the Climate Action Tax Credit as part of the province’s COVID-19 Action Plan.

Find out if you’re eligible for the credit here.

“Many British Columbians are still worried about how they can cover costs such as transportation so they can return to work, pay for groceries and find day camps for their children,” said B.C. Finance Minister Carole James in a statement Thursday.

“The enhanced climate action tax credit puts extra money in the pockets of British Columbians for their household expenses and to spend at local businesses. This is a needed

boost as we work together to restart the economy.”

Eligible B.C. residents will receive up to $218, children will receive up to $64 and a family of four will receive up to $564 total for the credit in July.

The increase represents a monthly boost of $174.50 for individuals, $51.25 for children and $451.50 for a family of four.

Without the COVID-19 Action Plan increase, the scheduled July payment was up to $43.50 per adult, $12.75 per child, and up to $112.50 for a family of four.

British Columbians will receive the increased climate tax credit with their federal GST/HST returns.

Those who are eligible for the enhanced benefit will automatically receive it if they have completed their B.C. 2019 income tax return.

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Supreme Court dismisses appeal over Trans Mountain pipeline The Supreme Court of Canada will not hear a new appeal from British Columbia First Nations over the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

The court on Thursday dismissed the appeal from the Squamish Nation, Tsleil-Waututh

Nation, the Ts’elxwéyeqw Tribes and Coldwater Indian Band, effectively ending the yearslong legal battle over the project.

As is customary, the court did not give reasons for its decision.

First Nations leaders were planning

a news conference later Thursday to respond to the court’s decision.

The Trans Mountain project was first approved in 2016, but stopped by the Federal Court of Appeal two years later after First Nations and environmental groups successfully argued the approval process was flawed.

Ottawa approved the project a second time in June 2019 after undergoing additional consultation

with the affected communities, but the bands still felt the government did not fulfil its duty to consult and again appealed the decision.

The Federal Court of Appeal ruled in February the approval would stand, saying the government had made a genuine effort to hear and accommodate concerns raised. But the First Nations disagreed and asked the Supreme Court to hear the case.

COVID-19 warning issued to travellers aboard four flights to Vancouver Another warning has been issued for passengers on four flights arriving at Vancouver International Airport last month of possible exposure to COVID-19.

The warning comes as federal NDP health critic and VancouverKingsway MP Don Davies demands Transport Canada immediately impose mandatory physical distancing rules on all passenger flights.

“It’s been voluntary up until now. The airlines have indicated they’re not going to follow the voluntary guidelines.

When you’re seeing policy by government violate what our public health officers are saying, that’s a pretty good indication that the federal government is wrong and we’ve got to get on this right away and change it before people get sick,” he said.

The B.C. Centre for Disease Control is asking anyone on the following trips to selfisolate for two weeks and watch for symptoms: Delta flight 3898 from Seattle on June 3; AirCanadaflight217fromSaskatoononJune16; Air Canada flight 557 from Los Angeles on June 18;

And Flair Airlines flight 8102 from Toronto on June 21.

Earlier this week, B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix said that airlines need to ensure flying remains safe after they relaxed seating

restrictions. “I think this is important to remember, including in the discussion, whether you are traveling on an airplane from Toronto or anywhere else, that physical distancing remains essential and important to our efforts. And it will be our expectation, as we are doing in B.C., as we are doing in provincial jurisdiction, that the federal government will do the same in terms of ensuring that people are safe and employing physical distancing as required,

White Rock boosts parking enforcement budget In a move to address ongoing parking concerns in the city, White Rock council has endorsed an increase in equipment operating costs, and requested a preliminary report on the possibility of a city-wide parking review as part of strategic planning discussions.

In a unanimous vote on Monday (June 29), council approved the recommendations of a report from financial services director Colleen Ponzini, who is also responsible for parking and enforcement.

The recommendations include an additional $10,000 in operating costs, which will come from the city’s operating contingency budget.

Ponzini told council that while current ticketing figures show enforcement is taking place at 2018 and 2019 levels, continuing complaints show that increased enforcement is necessary in the short-term, particularly in light of recent COVID-19 changes to parking on the waterfront and developmentrelated parking issues in the uptown area.

Using budgeted temporary staff, she said, the increase will enable the city’s parking enforcement division to have two more officers to schedule over the next three months.

“There are currently two parking officers on at one time who perform all parking-related functions throughout the city,” she noted.

“The additional staff will require some equipment to perform their role .

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BC paramedics responded to 131 overdoses on June 26, ‘the most recorded in a single day’ Paramedics in B.C. responded to 131 overdose calls Friday, “the most recorded in a single day.”

B.C. Emergency Health Services tweeted the alarming number Monday afternoon.

“Overdoses were across B.C., from Chilliwack to Cowichan,” the agency said in its tweet.

“When paramedics respond to an overdose a patient has a 99 per cent chance of survival.”

Spokesperson Shannon Miller said in an email the number is the highest “since the overdose crisis began and BCEHS began closely monitoring overdose calls.”

Miller said the coroner’s service, not emergency health, is in charge of reporting deaths as a result of overdoses but she was not aware of any deaths from Friday’s calls.

She reiterated the vast number of overdose patients attended to by paramedics — over 99 per cent — survive.

B.C. is in the middle of two concurrent public health emergencies: COVID-19 and the overdose crisis.

As of Monday morning, 174 people in

Surrey School’s entrepreneurship program expands Two Surrey high schools are now offering an entrepreneurship program.

Youth Entrepreneurship and Leadership Launchpad has expanded into a second school for the upcoming school year, according to a release from the school district.

It is now being offered at Queen Elizabeth and Semiahmoo secondary schools.

Students entering grades 10 to 12 can apply for YELL. Classes are two-and-a-half hours on Wednesday evenings, running from September 2020 to May 2021.

The district said the course is delivered in partnership with YELL Canada, which is “based on top-quality university entrepreneurship programs, as well

as best practices from Silicon Valley.”

It’s geared toward students interested in business, innovation and “seeing original ideas brought to fruition.”

The district added that through the program, students will “learn to develop and evaluate a business, build personal network of business contacts, hone creative and critical thinking, use teamwork and put presentation skills to the test.”

Students who complete the course, according to the district, will get a credit for Entrepreneurship 12.

Students in grades 11 and 12 will be considered first for the program.

Cloverdale students make puzzles for care home residents Students from Sunrise Ridge Elementary went bike riding with a cause in June.

On their first ever biking field trip, Grade 5 students students Yurim Lee, Ava Demuynck, and Shia Sumra rode around with teacher Stephanie Norris and student-teacher Maria Fawcett to deliver gifts to residents of Zion Park Manor and firefighters at Hall No. 15. Those deliveries included puzzles for the residents of Zion Park and thank you notes for the firefighters.

The brainchild of Fawcett, the field trip started at Zion Park and ended at the fire hall.

Norris said because they only had a few in-class students, a biking field trip was easy to organize.

“The Grade 5’s were glad they waited until (June 18),” said Norris. “They wanted good weather if they were going to make the deliveries by bike.”

When brainstorming about what kind of projects they could get the students to do, both Norris and Fawcett had originally thought, “What could be done that would encourage student participation and yet keep everything at a social distance? What could 22 students do that could make a difference?”

So they asked all the students, the four in-class kids and the 18 onlineonly kids, to become photographers.

“Each student chose their top two photos and then submitted these online,” explained Norris. “The kids were really proud of their photos and Maria (Fawcett) was so incredible, she taught them all the basics of photography.”

Norris said Fawcett recently won UBC’s Emily Longworth scholarship. The purpose of the scholarship is to promote positive change in a community. So Fawcett decided to use the money from that scholarship to make a difference in Cloverdale.

“The funds from the Emily Longworth scholarship were used to turn the photos into puzzles,” explained Norris. “ It has been proven that puzzles are good for improving short-term memory and they also improve

mental speed and thought processes.”

Norris said her students felt puzzles would be a great gift for the residents of Zion Park because, along with the health benefits, it was something they could continue to use over and over.

“On the last leg of our journey, we biked to Fire Hall No. 15 to drop off letters of appreciation to the firefighters,” added Norris. “The students worked diligently on these letters and they understand the role firefighters have in their community.”

B.C. have died of COVID-19, while 554 have died of illicit drug overdoses as of May 31.

The B.C. Coroners Service said that in May alone, 170 British Columbians died of an illicit drug overdose. That was the highest total ever recorded for a single month in the province’s history.

‘The drug seems to be stronger’ Miller said Friday’s number broke

the previous record of 130 calls set in April 2017 and matched in July 2018.

“We’ve had nothing close to this at all for the last couple of years,” Miller said. “[Friday] was exceptionally high.”

Miller said she was unable to say why there was a spike Friday but noted last week was a social assistance cheque week.

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NATIONAL

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New North American trade deal launches under cloud of disputes & Coronavirus A modernized U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade pact took effect on Wednesday, ensuring continuity for manufacturers and agriculture, but the threat of disputes is exposing cracks in what was meant to be a stronger North American fortress of competitiveness. As the deal kicks in, the Trump administration

is threatening Canada with new aluminum tariffs, and a prominent Mexican labor activist has been jailed, underscoring concerns about crucial labor reforms in the replacement for the 26-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement.

The US - Mexico - Canada Agreement includes tighter North American

Military member arrested after truck rammed gate near Trudeau residence: sources A member of the Canadian Armed Forces is in custody after someone rammed a truck through the gates of Rideau Hall and drove up the path toward the official residences that house Gov. Gen. Julie Payette and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau before being stopped by police.

The RCMP has not identified the man, who was arrested shortly after a vehicle broke through the gates around 6:40 a.m. local time Thursday.

A police robot is shown near a pickup truck inside the grounds of Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Thursday, July 2, 2020. The RCMP say they have safely resolved an “incident” at Rideau Hall, where Gov. Gen. Julie Payette and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau live.

The Department of National Defence confirmed in a statement Thursday the individual arrested near Rideau Hall is a member of the military.

“The Canadian Armed Forces is collaborating closely with the RCMP,” said the statement.

BC Liberals hear concerns of strata residents as NDP fails to offer relief for insurance crisis Press release

BC Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson and MLA Todd Stone, Critic for Municipal Affairs & Housing, held a virtual town hall today with over 100 condo and townhome owners frustrated by soaring strata insurance costs and lack of concrete action by the NDP to help stop the crisis.

“We heard directly from over a hundred people who won’t be able to hold out much longer if the NDP don’t do something immediately to stop the strata insurance crisis,” said Wilkinson. “Strata residents need to see solutions that will keep money in their pockets and a roof over their heads, not further consultations or changes that will take years to make a difference. People need to see real action from this government, now.”

Wilkinson and Stone were joined on the townhall this afternoon by more than 100 strata residents who shared their concerns and experiences, including a strata complex in Pentiction that saw an 800 per cent increase in their insurance premiums, a BC Housing subsidized housing society who saw a 1000 per cent increase to their premiums, and a seniors housing development that was told their deductible had increase by $100,000 overnight.

“When the NDP introduced their longoverdue strata legislation last week, we had hoped that it meant that British Columbians facing financial hardship as a result of the strata insurance crisis would finally see some relief but unfortunately the bill ignores their major concerns,” added Stone. “As premium rates skyrocket and condos and townhomes become more unaffordable, it’s obvious that much more needs to be done urgently to tackle this crisis head-on, especially while people all across B.C. are facing economic uncertainty as a result of COVID-19.”

“As the RCMP is the lead investigative body for this matter, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time.”

The man was armed at the time, according to the Mounties. He was arrested “without any incident” and was subsequently being interviewed, the force said in a tweet. The RCMP did not provide a motive, but did say that neither Payette nor Trudeau were present at the time.

content rules for autos, new protections for intellectual property, prohibitions against currency manipulation and new rules on digital commerce that did not exist when NAFTA launched in 1994.

Trump had lambasted NAFTA as the “worst trade deal ever made”

and repeatedly threatened to end it.

USMCA launches as the coronavirus has all three countries mired in a deep recession, cutting their April goods trade flows - normally about $1.2 trillion annually - to the lowest monthly level in a decade.

Canada’s 5 big banks to stop buying ads on Facebook over hate concerns All five of Canada’s biggest banks are joining an international boycott of Facebook over concerns that the platform is complicit in promoting racism, violence and misinformation.

Scotiabank, RBC, CIBC, BMO and TD have pledged to stop purchasing ads on the site for the month, aligning themselves with brands such as Lululemon Athletica and MEC in signing onto the #StopHateForProfit campaign.

The initiative, spearheaded by organizations such as the NAACP and the Anti-Defamation League, began in response to growing antiSemitic and anti-Black rhetoric found on the social media platform. Participating brands will suspend all advertising on the platform for the month of July.

Scotiabank announced its intentions on Tuesday, while the four others confirmed on Wednesday that they would follow suit.

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If elected, bolstering ties with ‘natural partner’ India will be high priority: Joe Biden Democratic presidential candidate and former US vice-president Joe Biden has said that if he wins the November elections, strengthening relationship with India which is America’s “natural partner”, will be a high priority for his administration.

“India needs to be a partner in the region for our safety’s sake and quite frankly for theirs,” he said in response to a question on India-

US relationship during a virtual fund raiser event on Wednesday.

At the fund raiser hosted by Chairman and CEO of Beacon Capital Partners Alan Leventhal, the former vice president said that India and the United States were natural partners.

“That partnership, a strategic

Drug controller approves Phase 1, 2 trials of India’s first COVID-19 vaccine candidate India’s first COVID-19 Vaccine—COVAXIN, developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research, on Tuesday received the approval for phase one and two human clinical trials from the Drug Controller General of India.

Bharat Biotech has developed COVAXIN in association with ICMR’s National Institute of Virology (NIV) Pune.

The SARS-CoV-2 strain was isolated at NIV, Pune and transferred to Bharat Biotech.

The indigenous, inactivated vaccine developed and manufactured in Bharat Biotech’s Bio-Safety Level-3 High Containment

facility located in Genome Valley, Hyderabad.

The Drug Controller General of India granted permission to initiate Phase I & II Human clinical trials after the company submitted results generated from preclinical studies, demonstrating safety and immune response.

Expedited through national regulatory protocols, the company accelerated its objective in completing the comprehensive pre-clinical studies.

Results from these studies have been promising and show extensive safety and effective immune responses.

Over 3.59 lakh Covid-19 cases so far, tally crosses 6.06 lakh, total deaths 17,852 India on Thursday saw the daily Covid-19 tally climb past 19,000 again after a short-lived dip in the last two days with 19,148 fresh cases and 434 deaths in the last 24 hours. The country now has 6,04,641 positive cases, including 2,26,947 active cases and 17834 deaths. ICMR has tested nearly 2.3 lakh samples tested in the last 24 hours taking the total tests to over 90 lakh. Globally, the US notched more than 52,000 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours. In the worst seven days since the start of the crisis, WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the number of new cases had topped “160,000 on every single day”.

Stay tuned for more updates. Till now, 90,56,173 tests conducted through a diagnostic testing network. There are now 1065 testing labs in the country-768 in public sector & 297 pvt labs.

Yesterday, as many as 2,29,588 people got tested for Covid-19, said theGovernment of India.

The total no. of people being tested for Covid19tests in the country will soon touch one crore. This has been possible due to removal of all bottlenecks by GoI. Various steps taken

by Central Government have paved the way for enhanced testing for Covid-19, it said.

partnership, is necessary and important in our security,” Biden said when asked by an attendee whether India is critical to the US’ national security.

Referring to his eight years as the vice president, he said, “In our administration I was proud to

play a role more than a decade ago in securing Congressional approval for the US-India Civil Nuclear Agreement, which is a big deal”.

“Helping open the door to great progress in our relationship and strengthening our strategic partnership with India was a high priority in the Obama-Biden administration and will be a high priority if I’m elected president,” Biden said.

India’s ban on Chinese apps will result in whopping $6 Billion loss to Tik-Tok’s parent ByteDance: Report Modi govt’s retaliatory ban on 59 Chinese app in response to the latter’s unprovoked aggression along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) would potentially cause a loss of $6 billion to ByteDance - the parent company of TikTok. This claim has been made by China’s English language mouthpiece Global Times.

It claimed that ByteDance has in recent years invested over $1 billion in the Indian market and the ban imposed on TikTok, Vigo Video and Helo would cause a loss up to $6 billion.

“A source close to ByteDance said that in the past few years, the company had invested more than $1 billion in the Indian market, and the ban could virtually halt ByteDance’s business there, causing a loss as high as $6 billion. That figure would exceed the potential losses of all the other apps combined”, the report quotes Global Times as saying.

The Indian government had recently banned 59 Chinese apps following an intel which suggested unlawful data-mining for elements outside India which posed a national security risk.

Scheme for free food to 80 crore people extended till November: PM Modi Prime Minister Narendra Modi while addressing the nation, on Tuesday, said the crucial Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) will be extended till November-end to include the festive seasons during which Hindu festivals Diwali and Chhat Puja are celebrated.

The scheme, which was launched earlier this year, has enabled as many as 80 crore people to get free food rations during the crucial lockdown months. The Centre has now extended the same to cover almost the entire year. The PMGKAY scheme entails the distribution of 5 kgs of wheat or rice and 1 kg of chana to members

of poor families every month. The scheme will cost Rs 90,000 crore to the exchequer.

“If the expenditure of last three months is added to it, the total expenditure the state comes to about Rs 1.5 lakh crore,” Modi said.

“It means that every member of the family was given 5-kilogram wheat or rice, free of cost. Additionally, every family got onekilogram pulse per month, free of cost. In a way, over 2.5 times the population of the United States, 12 times the population of the United Kingdom and double the population of the European Union was given free ration by our government,” PM Modi said during his address.

PUNJAB

Saturday, August 4, 2020 Punjab reports 3 more deaths & 120 new COVID-19 cases Punjab reports three deaths and 120 COVID-19 positive cases on Thursday, taking the state’s death toll to 152. A death was reported in Amritsar, Bathinda and Sangrur each.

In the last 24 hours, Ludhiana recorded 39 infections while Jalandhar reported 16 COVID-19 cases.

Over 155 patients were cured and discharged in the state. However, Kapurthala recorded 9 infections, while Patiala, Bathinda, and SAS Nagar reported six cases each.

The source of infection of 18 cases was out of Punjab.

Sikhs For Justice’s Pannu among 9 declared terrorists India declared nine individuals, including Gurpatwant Singh Pannu, US-based key member of banned outfit Sikhs for Justice, as terrorists under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The Sikhs for Justice is the brain behind the “Khalistan 2020 referendum”.

Pannu has been seen actively running a campaign against India and motivating Sikh youth from Punjab to join militancy.

Among others designated terrorists by the Ministry of Home Affairs are Paramjit Singh of Babbar Khalsa International, Hardeep

Singh Nijjar of Khalistan Tiger Force and Gurmit Singh Bagga of Khalistan Zindabad Force.Following an amendment in the UAPA, the government had first designated four individuals as terrorists: Maulana Masood Azhar, Hafiz Saeed, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Dawood Ibrahim. With today’s listing, the total number of people declared terrorists is 13.

“These individuals are involved in various acts of terrorism from foreign soil.

They have been trying to revive militancy in Punjab,” the MHA said in a statement.

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NRIs can exercise right to repossess property only once The Punjab & Haryana High Court made it clear that the right to recover immediate possession of a building was available to a non-resident Indian (NRI) once in his lifetime for only one building of “each category”. After exercising the right for only a part of a larger building, he could not avail the special benefit for the remaining portion.

“The intention of the legislature was to restrict the right to recover immediate possession only to one building which may be only a part of a larger building. Hence, the landowner would be deemed to have foregone

the right to seek eviction under Section 13-B of the East Punjab Urban Rent Restriction Act, 1949, with respect to remaining part of the building,” Justice Anil Kshetarpal asserted.

The judgment came on a bunch of petitions by Balvir Chand and other tenants though counsel Pankaj Jain. The matter was placed before Justice Kshetarpal after the rent controller ordered eviction of tenants.

Jain submitted it was admitted before the rent controller that NRI Narinder Singh, one of the co-owners, had previously filed a petition under Section 13-B of the 1949 Act,

Punjab surpasses national food distribution target The Punjab Government has surpassed food distribution at the national level, both in terms of reaching out to the needy and quantity of food disbursal during the lockdown imposed in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had

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extended the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY) till November.

Almost 60% of the state’s population has received benefit of Centre’s two food distribution schemes — the PMGKAY and the Atmanirbhar Bharat.

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Saturday, August 4, 2020

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Saturday, August 4, 2020

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Saturday, August 4, 2020