www.theasianstar.com Vol 20 - Issue 6
Daylight saving time returns this weekend It’s that time of year again. British Columbians should be prepared to lose an hour of sleep as the province is scheduled to “spring forward” in recognition of daylight saving time this weekend. On Sunday, March 14, clocks will move forward one hour at 2 a.m. The change will see evenings brighter for longer, though mornings will be darker in the early hours. While the majority of British Columbians are opposed to the annual time change, daylight saving time is not expected to end any time soon. In 2019, the B.C. government passed legislation to allow the province to observe permanent daylight saving time, after more than 200,000 British Columbians overwhelmingly supported ending the annual time change in an online survey. Continued on page 6
Daylight saving 2021
Saturday, March 13, 2021
Tel:604-591-5423
Experts say Canada ‘tripped’ in race to get people vaccinated for Covid-19 As of 10:32 a.m. Friday, 2,225,238 doses of a Covid-19 vaccine had been delivered into the arms of Canadians. That’s almost as many needles as are getting stuck into American’s arms every day. In the global vaccination arms race, Canada has fallen behind most of the developed and much of the developing world. With 5.5 per cent of our population vaccinated, as of Friday we are the 42nd ranked country in
the world. According to Covid19Tracker.ca, Nova Scotia ranked last among Canadian provinces and territories with 3.8 per cent of our population vaccinated. If we were a country we would sit at number 50 in the world, between Azerbaijan and Latvia. So what happened and does it matter if, as Premier Iain Rankin suggested this week, we’ll all have the Continued on page 3
Jagmeet Singh’s brother-in-law in altercation under police probe as South-Asian Canadian factions clash over India unrest The unrest sparked by massive farmer protests in India appears to be spilling over into Canada and its south-Asian community, with a close relative of NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh at the centre of one recent confrontation. A widely viewed video appears to show Singh’s brotherin-law pushing a pro-India demonstrator to
the ground at an Ontario rally, an incident now under police investigation. The man is also related to Liberal MP Ruby Sahota. A separate encounter at the same event has already led to an assault charge against another man. Continued on page 7
10 million girls at risk of child marriage due to Covid-19: UNICEF A new analysis from the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) suggests that 10 million additional child marriages may occur globally before the end of the decade because of Covid-19. The analysis, released on March 8 for International Women’s Day, warns that school
closures, economic stress, service disruptions, pregnancy, and parental deaths due to the pandemic are putting girls at increased risk of child marriage. “Covid-19 has made an already difficult situation for millions of girls even worse.
India really stands out in terms of its vaccine policy, says IMF chief economist Gita Gopinath
On Sunday, March 14, move your clocks 1 hour forward as daylight saving begins.
India has been at the forefront in fighting the coronavirus pandemic and “really stands out in terms of its vaccine policy, Chief Economist of the IMF Gita Gopinath said on Monday, as she hailed the country for playing a very important role during the crisis by manufacturing and shipping the
COVID-19 vaccines to several nations. Gopinath made the comments in an interactive session during the Inaugural Dr. Hansa Mehta Lecture organised on occasion of International Women’s Day. I also want to mention that India really stands out in terms of its vaccine policy.
41-year-old South Asian unemployed Oxford graduate sues parents, demands ‘Lifelong Financial Support’ While it may be quite common for parents to financially help their kids in India, the rest of the world doesn’t function quite similarly. It isn’t assumed that your parents’ money is yours or vice-versa. In an attempt to get financial help from his parents, a 41-year-old in England has sued his parents and asked for “lifelong financial support”. The shocking event is made
even more surprising as the plaintiff is an Oxford graduate but is currently jobless. Faiz Siddiqui, who is taking his parents to court, claims he is entitled to this demand. The parents, Rakshanda (69) and Javed (71) are currently living in
Dubai and according to Siddiqui, are quite “wealthy.” He says he is a “vulnerable” grown-up child due to his health issues and therefore, his parents owe him the money. He has formerly worked in a number of law firms and claims if his parents deny him this rightful compensation, it would be a violation of human rights.