The Asian Star September 11 2021 by The Asian Star Newspaper

www.theasianstar.com Vol 20 - Issue 31

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Punjab youth murdered in Nova Scotia in suspected hate crime A 23-year-old youth hailing from Moga district, village Bukkanwala, Punjab was brutally murdered with sharp-edged weapons in Truro town, Nova Scotia. The Deputy Chief of Truro Police Service Robert Hearn confirmed to the local media that a 23-year-old Indian youth of Punjabi-origin was found dead Continued on page 7

Vernon City mourns passing away of Councillor Dalvir Nahal Hearts are heavy in and at the City of Vernon. Dalvir Nahal dies at the of age 45 from cancer. She was in second term on city council. Councillor Dalvir Nahal, 45, died at Vernon Jubilee Hospital on Sunday, September 5, after a decade-long battle with cancer. “It is with profound sadness that we announce Councillor Nahal’s Continued on page 7

Tel:604-591-5423

Liberal candidate says housing tax is coming on primary residences Jason Hickey, the Liberal candidate in New Brunswick Southwest, says, taxes will have to be paid on home sales

The Trudeau Liberals have some explaining to do on a hot-button issue after one of their candidates said the party will be taxing people who sell their homes. The Conservatives have been claiming the Liberals will, if re-elected, bring in a tax on the sale of primary residences

— something not currently done in Canada. The Liberals though say the Conservatives are being selective in their use of video clips and have issued another showing the candidate saying that policy would not be brought in. If it’s leaving you Continued on page 6

First group of 37 Afghan refugees arrive in Vancouver “Let’s go home, Dad,” he will say, according to his father, Mohammad. Just in time for back to school (knock on wood), life hacks for working mothers The pair are among the newest guests at three Vancouver hotels housing 37 Afghan refugees, among the first to arrive in Canada after fleeing the Taliban resurgence. Others who worked as interpreters alongside the Canadian government or diplomats arrived in the country with no belongings to show of their former life. Some came to the country completely alone. “We are the lucky ones,” said Mohammad, a

former worker at the Canadian embassy in Kabul. He spoke on the condition that his family’s real names not use, fearing reprisal. Although the refugees have been set up with social insurance numbers, vaccinations and bank accounts, a majority of them still cannot speak English. Mohammad is the only member of his family who is fluent. “This is just the beginning of Afghans arriving in B.C.,” said COO Chris Friesen of the Immigrant Services Society of B.C., a government-funded agency responsible for the refugee resettlement.

Extremely deadly Nipah virus spreading in India The state government of Kerala who were infected. The disease is far in India is currently scrambling to less contagious than COVID-19 — fight an outbreak of the extremely which is still infecting about 41,000 deadly Nipah virus after it killed people in India every day — but a 12-year-old boy on Sunday. with a 45-day incubation period, no The Nipah virus is considered cure or vaccine, a roughly 20 percent to be one of the deadliest to ever infect humans, chance of long-term neurological symptoms CBS News reports. The last time there was a Nipah among survivors, and an approximately outbreak in India, it killed 17 of the 18 patients 75 percent mortality rate in the first place, Continued on page 8

Election 2021 Dave Hayer, Candidate for Fleetwood-Tynehead riding Harvinder Sandhu

Dave Hayer is a former MLA for Fleetwood-Tynehead area with the provincial government Liberal. After a hiatus from politics, Dave Hayer is returning to politics in the federal conservative party for the Fleetwood-Port Kells riding. The Asian Star asked him a few questions from residents of the riding. What are the concerns of residents in the riding he is running for? “I have been talking to people when door knocking since beginning on August 5th. People are worried about their

jobs – the security of their jobs. We are the only G7 country that is not experiencing an economic growth like UK or USA. Opioid crisis in Metro Vancouver is rising. My son and daughter-inlaw are both paramedics, with over 12 year work history, they say opioid deaths and mental health cases have doubled and tripled in Surrey/ Langley area, and that mental health and addictions do not discriminate to who has it. People of all religions, cultures, and income level are hurting. Continued on page 17

Saturday, September 11, 2021

NDP uses Singh’s appeal, social media to attract younger environmental voters

BC records another 5 deaths from COVID-19 along with 774 cases BC has recorded another 774 cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours and five more people have died. That brings the total case number to 172,338 and the total number of people who have died to 1,847. Of the new cases, 223 were in Fraser Health, 123 in Vancouver Coastal Health, 253 in Interior Health, 98 in Northern Health, 65 cases in Island Health and two new cases from people who reside outside of Canada. One more person has been admitted to the hospital, bringing that total to 262 and one more person is in the ICU, bringing that total to 130. Health Minister Adrian Dix said Thursday of the 130 people in intensive care, 111 have not

been vaccinated, or about 85 per cent, while another 10 have only had one dose. There are now 5,594 active cases of the virus in the province. As of Thursday, 85.3 per cent (3,955,624) of eligible people 12 and older in B.C. have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine and 77.8 per cent (3,608,067) received their second dose. In addition, 85.9 per cent (3,716,975) of all eligible adults in B.C. have received their first dose and 78.8 per cent (3,406,522) received their second dose.

The 20-somethings squeal and jump as the door opens and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh emerges. They are among the cheering crowd of 200, mostly party volunteers, who jostle for a selfie and a moment with their leader during a quick stop in a riding the NDP believes is theirs to take back from the Green incumbent. “Young voters feel disenfranchised and they need someone to inspire them, and I think that’s what Jagmeet brings,” says Semple. “He tells us ‘we can do this’ and ‘we can make change.’ He is spreading that message through the channels that young people use.” These women represent the young voters the party is trying to court through social media channels and through candidates and platforms that highlight millennials’ concerns, including climate change. But some political observers caution that while the party may need young voters, it must also retain its traditional union support. “They’ve always had to do a bit of a dance with labour,” said Gerald Baier, a University of B.C. political science professor.

That labour support is not guaranteed. Although the Canadian Labour Congress and the B.C.

Federation of Labour have endorsed the NDP in this election, union leaders like Geoff Dawe, the president of Local 2 of the Public and Private Workers of Canada, said that doesn’t mean union members will automatically vote NDP. “In the past, our national group backed the NDP, and we do have a Jack Layton poster in our local office right now,” said Dawe, whose local represents 600 workers at the pulp mill in Crofton, on Vancouver Island. “But we were expecting a little more attention to the state of the workforce in Canada and in B.C. None of the parties are talking about labour issues.

Woman pleads guilty after $150,000 went missing from two Metro Vancouver medical offices

GURMAT SCHOOL | GOBIND SARVAR SCHOOL

REGISTRATION OPEN

2021/2022 Programs: KG - Gr. 10

GOBIND SARVAR SCHOOL offers best Basketball, Hockey, Soccer & more Sports Activities

Registration Started for Gurmat School Ů +ORNGOGPVKPI VJG WRFCVGF JGCNVJ CPF UCHGV[ RTQVQEQNU Ů 'PUWTKPI MKFU YJQ TGSWKTG GZVTC UWRRQTV CTG RTKQTKVK\GF CPF JCXG VJG UGTXKEGU VJG[ PGGF Ů 0GY 5EKGPEG .CD

8820 168 St., Surrey, BC V4N 6G7

For more Updates, Visit our Website

Ů 5WRRQTVKPI VJG OGPVCN JGCNVJ CPF YGNNPGUU QH UVWFGPVU YJQ OC[DG GZRGTKGPEKPI CFFKVKQPCN EJCNNGPIGU DGECWUG QH VJG RCPFGOKE Ů #TTCPIGOGPVU HQT *[IKGPG CPF *CPF 9CUJKPI Ů .GCTP 5KMJ DGNKGHU 5KMJ *KUVQT[

Contact the School Ofﬁce for Admissions

604 930 2122

A three-year investigation into thousands of dollars that went missing from a New Westminster medical office has ended with a woman pleading guilty to fraud charges. On August 9, Sabina Khan pleaded guilty to three counts of fraud exceeding $5,000, said police. The investigation started in September 2018 after the New Westminster Police Department received a report of suspected fraud connected to a medical office. The victim said cash had gone missing from the office, and suspicious large withdrawals were made from the bank account connected to the business. When investigators looked into the case, they linked it to another investigation also involving large withdrawals from another medical office in Vancouver. In total, about $130,000 was stolen through both offices. “Fraud is an invasive crime that can create significant problems for both businesses and individuals,” said New Westminster police spokesman Sgt. Sanjay Kumar in a statement. “We encourage everyone to periodically check their credit card reports, bank and credit card statements and report any irregularities.” Khan, who has previous convictions for fraud and using a forged document in Richmond and Vancouver dating back to 1999, was also charged with using a forged document, theft, and unauthorized use of a credit card.

info@gobindsarvar.ca www.gobindsarvar.ca SCHOOL BUS SERVICE AVAILABLE

www.theasianstar.com

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Allow vaccine passport exemptions or face legal challenge, Calgary group warns BC government A Calgary-based legal foundation has threatened to take the B.C. government to court if officials refuse to allow medical and religious exemptions to the province’s COVID-19 vaccine passport system. The Canadian Constitution Foundation, which previously supported a failed legal challenge of the province’s public health-care system, announced this week that it’s preparing litigation on behalf of individuals who will be temporarily excluded from non-essential activities such as dining in restaurants and going to the gym when the passport system takes effect later this month. In an open letter sent to B.C. Premier John Horgan, Health Minister Adrian Dix and Attorney General David Eby on Tuesday, the group described the impact the system will have on unvaccinated individuals as “unwarranted and extreme.” “The vaccine passport policy prevents people who are unable to get vaccinated for medical reasons or reasons of religion or conscience from participating in public life,” it reads. “A failure to create an exemption or accommodation for these individuals is a violation of their Section 15

Charter-protected right not to be discriminated against on the basis of disability or religion.” The foundation, which is a registered charity in Canada and named as a partner of the U.S.based Atlas Network, which supports hundreds of right-leaning think tanks around the world, also suggested the government should exempt everyone with a non-religious but “sincerely held” belief that prevents them from getting the vaccine. It’s unclear how a passport system would function if those individuals were to be exempted as well. Christine Van Geyn, the group’s litigation director, told CTV News the foundation hasn’t decided what relief it will be seeking from the courts, and might request that the passport system be struck down entirely. If the litigation does go forward, she said the CCF will likely be focusing on medical exemptions. “Our preference is not to litigate. We would like to see the government make accommodations to people,” Van Geyn added, pointing to medical exemptions already being promised in other provinces. “If Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia can do it, why can’t B.C.?”

Man died in tragic drive-thru accident in Vancouver Vancouver Police are investigating a fatal accident that took place at a McDonald’s drive-thru in Vancouver on Wednesday, September 8. According to police, a man was at the Main Street and Terminal Avenue drivethru location when, after paying for his food, he dropped his bank card. However, when he went to reach for his

card, the tragic incident unfolded. “His car continued to roll, pinning him between the car and the door jamb. He died on scene,” Vancouver Police Constable Tania Visintin said in an email to Narcity. Officials said Vancouver Police’s Collision Investigation Unit and the coroner are now investigating.

OPINION

Neils Christensen

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Expect more deficit spending in Canada no matter who is Prime Minster

On Sept. 20, Canadian voters will be heading to the polls to elect a new government, and with the Conservative and Liberal parties in roughly a statistical tie, it appears that market analysts are not expecting to see any major surprises ahead. Canadian markets have been fairly blasé

about the election, with the TSX Index trading at record highs. The Canadian gold market is also not seeing any signs of investor angst, with prices trading in a fairly narrow range of C$2,260 and $2,290 an ounce. Although Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was enjoying strong

approval ratings this summer, his stature has declined in recent weeks as many Canadians see the current election as unnecessary, especially as the country sees a new wave of COVID-19 infections due to the Delta variant. According to poll tracking with 338Canada, the Conservative Party is leading in the election race at 34.1%. Liberals are tracking around 31.9%; however, the margin of error is plus or minus 4.5%. Although Eric O’Toole’s Conservatives have a slight advantage, Stephen Brown, senior Canada economist at Capital Economics said that their victory is not a major game-changer for the nation. “The costed election platform released by the Conservatives this week suggests that, if they were to form a government after this month’s election, they would run a similar fiscal policy to the Liberal Party,” he said in a report Thursday. Capital Economics noted that the Liberals propose to increase spending to $80 billion over the next five years. Meanwhile, the Conservatives look to increase spending to $50 billion and front load the increased activity in the first two years. “The Conservatives would aim for a smaller budget deficit than the Liberals next fiscal year, but their proposals are still consistent with a larger deficit than under the [Parliamentary Budget Officer’s] August baseline,” said Brown. With the current polls pointing to another minority government, Brown added that it would be difficult to pass any budget that didn’t have some increased spending that would be in line with the Liberals or the New Democratic Party proposals. In a recent report, CIBC analysts said that a majority Liberal government would be negative for Canada’s oil and gas industry as they would look to introduce higher carbon taxes and other efforts to focus on fighting climate change. Neils Christensen For Kitco News nchristensen@kitco.com

www.theasianstar.com # 202 - 8388, 128 St., Surrey, BC V3W 4G2 Ph: 604-591-5423 Fax: 604-591-8615 E-mail: editor@theasianstar.com Editor: Umendra Singh Associate Editor: Chhavi Disawar Marketing and Sales: Ravi Cheema......................604-715-3847 Shamir Doshi....................604-649-7827 Harminder Kaur...............778-708-0481 Parminder Dhillon..........604-902-2858 Pre-Press: Iftikhar Ahmed

Design: Avee J Waseer Contributing writers: Jag Dhatt, Akash Sablok, Kamila Singh, Jay Bains, Hardam S. Mann Publication Mail Agreement No 428336012 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to Circulation Dept.

New address: # 202 - 8388, 128 St., Surrey, BC V3W 4G2 All advertising in The Asian Star is subject to the publishers’ approval and the advertiser agrees to indemnify the publishers against claims arising from publication of any advertisement submitted by the advertiser.

LOCAL

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Tories say platform costing shows deficit elimination in 10 years, without cuts The Conservative party released the costing for its election platform on Wednesday, just hours before Erin O’Toole was to take part in the first of two official leaders’ debates. The party said the costing demonstrates that a Conservative government could eliminate the deficit within 10 years without cutting programs or services, as O’Toole has promised. But the costing, based on the parliamentary budget officer’s election platform costing baseline, actually covers only five years. And it doesn’t count as cuts Conservative promises to scrap some Liberal programs, such as the $30-billion national child-care plan. It refers to those as budget “reallocations” since the Conservatives would replace the Liberal programs with alternative programs of their own. The costing document was released just two hours before the French-language leaders’ debate amid mounting criticism from Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau over O’Toole’s failure

to produce detailed costing of his plan. Trudeau has accused O’Toole of “magically” hoping to eliminate the federal deficit. The Conservatives rolled out their platform on Aug. 16 — the second day of the election campaign. The Liberals released their platform, with costing, on Sept. 1, the day before the French-language debate organized by Quebec network TVA. The NDP released a platformstyle list of promises before the campaign began, but has not yet published its cost estimates. According to the document, O’Toole’s platform promises would add $30 billion to this fiscal year’s forecasted budget deficit of $138.2 billion. The deficit would then fall substantially each year thereafter, to $24.7 billion in 2025-26. The Conservatives said that shows they’d be well on the way to balancing the books by the end of the decade.

Allow vaccine passport exemptions or face legal challenge, group warns BC government A Calgary-based legal foundation has threatened to take the B.C. government to court if officials refuse to allow medical and religious exemptions to the province’s COVID-19 vaccine passport system. The Canadian Constitution Foundation, which previously supported a failed legal challenge of the province’s public health-care system, announced this week that it’s preparing litigation on behalf of individuals who will be temporarily excluded from non-essential activities such as dining in restaurants and going to the gym when the passport system takes effect later this month. In an open letter sent to B.C. Premier John Horgan, Health Minister Adrian Dix and Attorney General David Eby on Tuesday, the group described the impact the system will have on unvaccinated individuals as “unwarranted and extreme.” “The vaccine

passport policy prevents people who are unable to get vaccinated for medical reasons or reasons of religion or conscience from participating in public life,” it reads. “A failure to create an exemption or accommodation for these individuals is a violation of their Section 15 Charter-protected right not to be discriminated against on the basis of disability or religion.” The foundation, which is a registered charity in Canada and named as a partner of the U.S.based Atlas Network, which supports hundreds of right-leaning think tanks around the world, also suggested the government should exempt everyone with a non-religious but “sincerely held” belief that prevents them from getting the vaccine. It’s unclear how a passport system would function if those individuals were to be exempted as well. Christine Van Geyn, the group’s litigation director, told CTV News the foundation hasn’t decided what relief it will be seeking from the courts, and might request that

Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum says he was run over by vehicle Mayor says he is ‘doing OK’, police confirm they are investigating a dispute. Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum says he was verbally assaulted and run over by a vehicle on Saturday, according to a statement sent to CBC News. In the statement, McCallum says the incident happened while he was out grocery shopping. “It is now under police investigation and I am doing OK,” said the statement. The statement did not say where the incident happened or why McCallum was verbally assaulted. On Monday, a spokesperson from Surrey RCMP said they could not confirm the identities of anyone involved, but said officers were investigating a dispute between parties who knew each other, and in which one person stated their foot was run over by a vehicle. Ivan Scott said he was at the supermarket where the alleged incident

happened — the South Point Save-on-Foods — collecting signatures for his “Keep the RCMP in Surrey” campaign. While he says he did not witness the exact incident, he said the mayor had approached their table to get them to stop canvassing. He said the mayor’s claims he was run over by a car were “ridiculous.” “It’s the most stupid thing I’ve ever come across in my life,” Scott said. “If you’re walking toward me and somebody had ridden over your foot, you would be in pain and you would be hobbling, and you’re not doing that, because I saw you walking toward me and you showed nothing of that.” McCallum is up for reelection next year, and has faced criticism over the course of his term for the city’s transition from RCMP to an independent police force.

Saturday, September 11, 2021 From page 1

Housing tax is coming on primary residences

it’s leaving you confused, consider the poor Liberal candidate, Jason Hickey, who made both contradictory statements moments apart. Hickey was asked about the issue of the government applying a capital gains tax on the sale of primary residences and he seemed to indicate it was something that would be done. “But of course, anyone selling their primary residence, if you do make money on that,

unfortunately you will have to pay tax on that. I wouldn’t agree to that either, but it’s what we have to do,” Hickey said during the online chat with residents of his New Brunswick Southwest riding. Moments later, he was asked again about the issue of taxing home sales and this time Hickey said no. “I don’t believe we plan on bringing that forth — I don’t think we do that,” Hickey said.

SAFE JUST BECAME

SAFER Our residents and staff are being vaccinated and life is gradually returning to normal. Don’t wait to beneﬁt from a lifestyle that is safe, social and supportive, making your life better right now.

SHARMA

Academy of Studies

CHALLENGE EXAMS FOR PLUMBING & ELECTRICAL Red Seal will be mandatory to work in BC from the next year FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CALL:

Learn more with our complimentary consultation which includes: 4 A virtual, phone or in-person discussion of your situation 4 An exclusive guide to help in your research 4 An information package about the retirement residence

SUITES AVAILABLE! CHARTWELL CARLTON 4110 Norfolk Street, Burnaby

CHARTWELL CEDARBROOKE 32331 - 7th Avenue, Mission

CHARTWELL CARRINGTON HOUSE 32679 - 6th Avenue, Mission

CHARTWELL IMPERIAL PLACE 13853 102nd Avenue, Surrey

Call us today! | 1-844-727-8679 | chartwell.com

PH:778-708-0369 swarnshar@gmail.com #204 8363 128th St. Surrey, BC V3W 4G1

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Punjab youth murdered in Nova Scotia in suspected hate crime From page 1 at a Robie Street apartment building in the Truro town. “The investigation is ongoing and there is no risk to the general public at this time,” Hearn said. However, he did not release the victim’s name, nor provided information on any suspects. However, the local people and family members in Bukkanwala village here confirmed that a village youth identified as Prabhjot Singh Katri was murdered in Canada. He migrated to Canada from here in 2017 on a study visa. Prabhjot was staying there at the house of his sister Rajvir Kaur and her husband for the past 4 years. “He was an innocent guy. He was coming back from his job when he was killed by some unidentified persons outside his apartment. He was working as a taxi driver,” Jatinder Kumar Deep Singh, one of his friends, told the local police.

Vernon City mourns passing away of Councillor Dalvir Nahal From page 1 said Mayor Victor Cumming. “On behalf of the city, we extend our deepest condolences to her family, friends and loved ones. Our thoughts are with you during this difficult time.” Nahal was in her second term as a councillor. She was first elected in 2014, finishing fifth out 14 hopefuls for the six seats with 3,919 votes. Nahal was re-elected in 2018, finishing third in the voting with 3,891 votes, just 13 checkmarks ahead of longtime friend Kari Gares. “It is with a heavy heart that I say goodbye to Dalvir – my teammate…my friend…my soul sister,” wrote Gares on her Facebook page. “She was brighter than any light in the night sky. Her smile lit up a room with such intensity that you knew she was there without speaking a word. “I have so much to say but I’m at a loss for words. What can you say about this beautiful person that most don’t already know? Her smile was infectious. No matter the pain, sorrow or mental fatigue she ensures she always put a smile on. I absolutely loved that part about her. She was so strong – stronger than she knew herself to be. She got up every day and went to work no matter how difficult or challenging. And she did so with love in her heart. Love for her family, for her friends and for this community. She was the bravest woman I ever knew.” Something Nahal didn’t know about Gares was how much she inspired the rookie councillor. “I looked up to her and she would laugh at me saying how much she looked up to me,” said Gares through tears. “She was my mentor. She gave me purpose and she gave me confidence. She had a mission and I told her I would do everything I can to fulfill her mission.”

Mandeep Randhawa

T 604 449 7500 TF 1 888 449 7573

F 604 449 7501 E info@rmlawyers.ca

205 - 7134 - King George Boulevard, Surrey, BC V3W 5A3

Saturday, September 11, 2021 From page 1

Extremely deadly Nipah virus spreading in India

even small outbreaks pose serious public health threat. Officials in the area are taking the new outbreak extremely seriously. As of Monday, they’ve identified, quarantined, and tested at least 188 people who came into contact with the boy, according to CBS. They also sealed off the entire area within about two miles from the boy’s home in an attempt to physically contain the outbreak in case contact tracing measures fail. So far, two healthcare workers who treated the young boy are showing symptoms of Nipah infection, according to CBS, which also reports that other infections have been confirmed. Both healthcare workers a

have been hospitalized and are currently waiting for the results of their blood tests. Last September, White House Chief Medical Advisor Anthony Fauci warned that humanity has entered a “pandemic” era in which outbreaks of viruses including Nipah will only grow increasingly common. Specifically, Nipah keeps coming back in southeast Asia because ongoing environmental destruction has destroyed wildlife habitats and put animals — including the bat species believed to harbor it — in closer proximity to human communities than ever before. As such, officials in Kerala are now warning residents to steer clear of any bats and to trash any fruit that shows signs of bats taking a nibble.

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Patient at Royal Inland Hospital waits nine hours to be seen A Kamloops resident who spent nine hours in the emergency room on Tuesday afternoon and evening waiting to be seen by staff said something needs to be done to improve the situation at Royal Inland Hospital. The resident’s marathon wait was alongside dozens of other patients and occurred just before a 70-year-old woman died while waiting for treatment in the ER’s waiting room. “But the nurses were phenomenal,” said the resident, who asked that their name not be published. “I do not blame them whatsoever. It’s their system and

whatever else they’ve got going.” The resident arrived at the ER at about 1 p.m. on Tuesday and was finally discharged at about 10 p.m., shortly after being seen for a respiratory issue. It took about an hour to get through the triage system and be assessed, after which the resident was sent to Zone 4, near where the gift shop was previously located. “Through the whole day, I sat in the chair closest to the door and people were getting called — there was people with cut fingers that were sitting there for, like, six hours waiting to be seen,” the resident said.

Visit our Website

www.theasianstar.com

10 The B.C. Vaccine Card system is set to begin Sept. 13, requiring proof of at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine in order to enter restaurants, movies, ticketed sporting events and many other non-essential venues. How do I get the B.C. Vaccine card and how does it work? You can register for the B.C. vaccine card online at gov.bc.ca/vaccinecard. You’ll need to enter your personal health number, date of birth and the date of your

Saturday, September 11, 2021

BC’s vaccine passport is here and this is how it works vaccination (either your first or second dose). The digital card will display: your name; your vaccination status; the date the card was issued; and a QR code containing your vaccination information. According to the government’s online instructions, you should be able to either save the card to your phone or print out a paper copy but, as of Sept. 8, those options don’t appear to be working.

For the moment, the only way to save the card is to take a screenshot of it and store the image in your phone’s photo folder for quick access. Those with iPhones running iOS 15 beta can scan the QR code and store their COVID-19 vaccination information (including the QR code) in the device’s Health app. iOS 15 is expected to be officially released to the masses in the

days following Apple’s Sept. 14 launch party. Those who can’t access their digital B.C. Vaccine Card can call 1-833-838-2323 to receive a copy in the mail or print a copy at a Service B.C. office (Service B.C. offices in Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey do not offer printed copies). When does this all go into effect? Starting Sept. 13, British Columbians will need to provide proof of at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine in order to enter restaurants, movies, ticketed sporting events and many other non-essential venues. By Oct. 24, only fully vaccinated people will be able to access those same services and venue. British Columbians will still be able to use the paper card they received at vaccination sites until Sept. 26. After that, however, the B.C. Vaccine Card will be the only acceptable form of proof of vaccination. The requirement will be time limited through to Jan. 31, 2022, subject to possible extension. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry say the proof-ofvaccination requirement is temporary measure that is set to expire Jan. 31, 2022, although an extension is possible. Children under 12 are the only people exempt from providing proof of vaccination. There are no medical exemptions. Proof of vaccination will be required for entry into these types of non-essential events and businesses. Proof of vaccination will be required for entry into these types of non-essential events and businesses. How will the card be used? When you arrive at a business that requires proof of vaccination, you will need to present your vaccine card — either a digital or paper copy — to the vendor. Vendors will be able to visually approve the vaccine card or scan its QR code with a smartphone or tablet using the B.C. Vaccine Card Verifier app, which will be released Sept. 13. Patrons over 18 will also be required to present one piece of government identification along with their B.C. Vaccine Card. Youth will not be required to show ID. Out-of-province visitors will also be required to show proof of vaccination from their province or country along with a piece of government identification or passport.

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Drug users’ group files decriminalization lawsuit in BC Supreme Court A group representing drug users has filed a lawsuit against the federal government in B.C. Supreme Court seeking to decriminalize the possession of illicit drugs, arguing criminalization during the overdose crisis violates charter rights. The statement of claim filed Tuesday by the Canadian Association of People Who Use Drugs and four individual plaintiffs says drug dependence is well recognized as a medical condition, but criminalization means the toxic illicit market is the only source of most drugs. It says the illicit drug supply has become increasingly contaminated with the powerful opioid fentanyl and related substances since 2016, fuelling the drug poisoning and overdose crisis that’s killing thousands of Canadians every year. The lawsuit argues criminalization has also created a high degree of stigma, leading many people to use drugs alone and in secret, heightening the risk of overdose. A statement of defence has not been filed in the court’s online search system. Health Canada spokesman Mark Johnson said Justice Canada is reviewing the claim. “Tragically, the COVID-19 pandemic has compounded the ongoing overdose crisis, with

many jurisdictions having reported record high rates of harms, including deaths, throughout 2020 and into 2021,” he wrote in an email to The Canadian Press. The lawsuit challenges drug possession offences in the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, asserting that they breach charter rights to life, liberty and security of the person, equality rights and the right not to be subjected to cruel and unusual treatment. The civil claim, among other things, asks the court to strike down all drug possession offences, as well as certain drug trafficking offences related to subsistence. More than 21,000 people died of drug overdose in Canada between 2016 and 2020, the lawsuit says. It asserts that many of the deaths could have been prevented with a combination of decriminalization, a safe drug supply and harm-reduction services. The City of Vancouver has requested an exception to federal law to decriminalize the possession of particular amounts of certain drugs for personal use, but Health Canada has yet to approve the request. The City of Toronto and the B.C. government have also backed decriminalization, while the lawsuit seeks an end to prohibition across the country.

Matrimonial Seeking a match for Canadian citizen, 29year,beautiful girl, slim, 5’6”, professionally working in beauty salon, Ramgarhia sikh family. Boy must be in Canada, working, non veg, caste no bar. Call: 604- 723- 0284

This September, teachers welcome back their students for a new school year.

Teachers want to work with parents to protect our students and provide healthy learning conditions for all our students. Masks are recommended for K-3, and required for Grades 4 to 12.

A message from the Surrey Teachers’ Association

LOCAL / NATIONAL

Star & Style

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Ranbir, Alia Bhatt love affair We can vouch that all of you couples will relate with the ‘clothes borrowing’ traditions that unofficially exist in every relationship. Girls definitely love wearing their boyfriends’ oversized sweatshirts and t-shirts and we have to admit, it’s quite adorable too. Keeping up with this unsaid tradition, Alia Bhatt just shared a couple of pictures on social media and it’s all because she’s missing Ranbir Kapoor. Ranbir is currently shooting Luv Ranjan’s next film with Shraddha Kapoor is a big fan of caps and we’ve seen how big his collection is. Stealing one of his caps that read, “Higher than your expectation”, Alia took selfies and posted it with a cute caption, “when you miss him so you steal

his belongings & make sure you take many selfies.” We’ve earlier seen her wearing this cap once before when and Ranbir’s been

spotted wearing it during one of his flights. Aren’t these two just the mushiest couple on social media?

NOW ORDER ONLINE:

Mon-Fri - 12:00 - 9:30 Sat-Sun - 12:00 - 10:00

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Sunny Leone scorches up with her latest picture from Maldives Sunny Leone and hubby Daniel Weber were recently seen holidaying in Islands of Maldives with their kids Noah, Asher and Nisha. She was seen sharing adorable pictures with her kids on social media. The family recently returned to Mumbai but it looks like Sunny is still in the Maldives mentally. Recently, She took to Instagram and shared steamy picture of herself from her Maldives trip. In the picture, she can be seen

sporting a blue striped bikini with a matching pair of sunnies. With a beautiful backdrop, the picture looks dreamy and how! Sharing the picture with her fans, Sunny wrote, “Just another day in paradise!!” Have a look: On the work front, Sunny recently wrapped up the shoot of her film titled ‘Shero’. Directed by Sreejith Vijayan, the psychological thriller will release in Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil and Hindi.

When Emraan recommended his films over Shah Rukh’s for lessons in ‘ladki patana’ Emraan Hashmi once said that people should watch his films over Shah Rukh Khan’s to learn how to woo women. Emraan reasoned that Shah Rukh gets the woman only at the end of his films, while he gets them in the first scene. Emraan Hashmi, during an appearance on The Kapil Sharma Show in 2019, joked that people should watch his films instead of Shah Rukh Khan’s if they want to learn how to woo a woman. Shah Rukh Khan is considered by many as the ‘king of romance’ and is known for his roles in romantic films such as Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai

and Veer-Zaara. Emraan Hashmi joked that Shah Rukh has to make a lot of effort and gets the woman only at the end of the film, whereas he gets the woman in the beginning itself. Kapil Sharma teased Emraan about ‘not wasting any time’ and getting straight to the point. Kapil cited the lyrics of Emraan’s song Bheege Honth Tere as an example - “Kabhi mere saath koi raat guzaar, tujhe subah tak main karoon pyaar (Spend the night with me, I will give you love till morning).” Emraan replied, “Jahaan tak aapne boli time waste nahi karne ki baat, main

Star & Style

LOCAL / NATIONAL

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Royal Columbian Hospital in New Westminster to use Covid-19 rapid tests on patients needing urgent surgeries A Metro Vancouver hospital is now the first in BC to use Covid-19 rapid tests on patients needing urgent, unscheduled surgery. Royal Columbian Hospital in New Westminster is using the 15-minute tests after a trial on more than 1,000 asymptomatic patients earlier this year detected two positive cases of the disease.

A statement from Fraser Health says those patients went on to develop COVID-19 while recovering from surgery but were already being treated on a COVID ward protecting staff and other patients. The health authority says a follow up study also found the rapid tests increase the sense of workplace safety, improve morale, and reduce worry associated with COVID-19.

Canadian hospitals spend $23,000 on typical COVID-19 patient, report finds The average cost per hospitalization of a COVID-19 patient in Canada is estimated to be $23,000, according to new data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information. That price tag goes for both ICU and nonICU patients. By comparison, it is three times higher than the average cost of someone hospitalized for a heart attack, $8,000, and almost as costly as it is to hospitalize a kidney transplant patient, $27,000. The nearly $1 billion spent on hospitalized COVID-19 patients excludes Quebec hospitalizations, according to the data. The data shows that Canadians who were

hospitalized with COVID-19 were on average in hospital for 15 days. The average hospital stay for a patient with pneumonia, by contrast, is seven days, the press release said. “COVID-19 patients tend to be sicker and to have longer hospital stays. The data reinforces that the virus can cause a serious illness and not simply a bad flu. Almost 1 in 4 hospitalized COVID-19 patients are admitted to the ICU and 1 in 5 die in the facility,” Nathalie Robertson, manager of financial standards and information with the Canadian Institute for Health Information, said in a press release.

BC opens consultation on anti-racism legislation as groups praise data collection The British Columbia government is asking residents to provide input on proposed anti-racism legislation as members of marginalized communities say the collection of data will help groups flourish. Rachna Singh, the parliamentary secretary for anti-racism initiatives, says the public feedback will help better identify systemic racism in existing government programs.

B.C. residents can share their thoughts through an online government portal until Nov. 30. Singh says systemic racism has led to a mistrust in government programs by marginalized groups. Dr. June Francis, an assistant professor at Simon Fraser University, says the lack of data on systemic racism has helped society ignore the problems marginalized and racialized people face.

ELECTION 2021

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Liberals ‘vulnerable on both flanks’ in BC Liberal leader Justin Trudeau has made four public appearances in BC in recent weeks. The federal Liberals face more of a three-way race in B.C. than in any other province, experts say, and polls suggest the party leader’s popularity had dropped in the West since calling the election. The Liberals’ strategy in B.C. is “all about the Lower Mainland,” because the Conservatives will be expected to win rural parts of the province while the NDP does well on Vancouver Island, said Richard Johnston, professor emeritus in the University of B.C.’s department of political science. That has included big pledges on housing and transit in Metro Vancouver in recent weeks, before and after the election was called. More British Columbians reported their opinion of Trudeau had worsened over the past week, compared with Conservative leader Erin O’Toole or the NDP’s Jagmeet Singh, according to a poll last week by Leger. Singh appeared particularly popular in B.C., where

polling showed him gaining popularity more quickly than anywhere else in the country “The peculiar B.C. thing, though, is the strength of the NDP,” Johnston said. The NDP’s relative strength in B.C. makes it harder for the Liberals to portray themselves as “the sole party of enlightenment” standing between progressive voters and a socially conservative government, he said, so “they’re vulnerable on both flanks here.” The Liberals are still popular in B.C., and many ridings, especially in Metro Vancouver, are considered safe territory for them. But while the Liberals’ strategy in much of the country will rely — as it often has in the past — on appealing to urban and suburban voters by portraying the Conservatives as “scary,” that approach will be more challenging in B.C. where the NDP is more of a viable alternative than elsewhere, said an Ottawa-based political theorist and author, David Moscrop.

Canadian Indigenous community Co-Chair resigns over questions about her ancestry A Canadian indigenous community cochair leader has been forced to resign from her position due to new revelations regarding her ancestry as an indigenous woman. On Wednesday, Suzy Kies, who served as the co-chair for the Indigenous People’s

Commission of the Liberal Party of Canada resigned from her position after questions regarding her indigenous origins arose from a 2019 book-burning project where Kies was involved. Kies resigned via an official statement that was obtained by CBC.

Trudeau criticized at debate for calling Canadian election The leaders of Canada’s opposition parties have used the second debate of the campaign to criticize Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for calling parliamentary elections during a pandemic. Trudeau called the vote last month hoping to win a majority of seats in Parliament, but polls indicate his Liberal party could lose power to the Conservatives in the Sept 20 election. Conservative leader Erin O’Toole

asked Trudeau during the French-language debate Wednesday night why he forced elections amid the coronavirus pandemic. Leftist New Democrat leader Jagmeet Singh accused Trudeau of being selfish, saying the election is nothing but an attempt to grab more power. Trudeau defended his efforts, noting Canada is one of the most fully vaccinated nations in the world.

Bloc Quebecois leader says party won’t take part in a coalition federal government Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet is rejecting the idea of being part of a coalition federal government after the Sept. 20 election. Blanchet says he would refuse any scenario that would see his party prop up a Liberal or Conservative minority government for any length of time in the House of Commons. He says he would instead support a minority government that would survive a full four-year mandate. Blanchet says forming a coalition

would unduly tie down his party even if it would hold the balance of power. He says he would prefer for a minority government to propose policies in the best interests of Quebec in order to receive support from the Bloc. In 2008, the Bloc led by Gilles Duceppe had entered into an ill-fated agreement with the Liberals and NDP to form a coalition government to prevent the Conservatives under Stephen Harper from governing.

One-month extension of Canada Recovery Benefit to cost $2 billion: Report That what’s Ottawa’s extension of the temporary relief cheques known as the Canada Recovery Benefit for the jobless is expected to cost, according to Blacklock’s Reporter. Weekly cheques of $300 were set to run out five days after Election Day on Sept. 25 but Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland approved cabinet extending the payments for another month, to Oct. 23. The finance department said the cost of the one-month extension was $2,133,000,000. “These extra measures will help ensure our recovery is strong, swift and robust,” Freeland told reporters. “It is essential to do everything we can to be sure the country’s economic recovery is fast and robust and that no one is left behind.” In a Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement, the finance department acknowledged the

benefits extension would see some jobless “choosing, for example, to stay home.” “It is assumed the availability of these extended eligibility windows will result in some workers delaying their return to work,” wrote staff. “Choosing for example to stay home and collect income support rather than going to work while sick with COVID-19, to stay home and care for their children when schools are closed, or to stay with grandparents who may be more susceptible to the severe symptoms of COVID-19. These decisions are assumed to result in significant health benefits.” The program replaced the Canada Emergency Response Benefit program that paid $2,000 a month after critics said it failed to verify claims that rose from $24 billion to $81.6 billion.

7832 120 ST #106 - 7565 132 St. SURREY BC Surrey, BC BUS:604.572.3005 604-572-3005

18966 64 ST., Cloverdale 15837 WILLS BROOK WAY

7583 150A STREET

Rancher with a Detached Double Garage. Substantially updated home, ready to move in. The home features 3 bedrooms, 2 full baths, all on one level. Recent updates includes, fresh paint throughout and newer flooring. Nice home with 2 gas fireplaces, stainless steel appliances, quartz counter tops, white shaker cabinets, tile back splash. Spacious rooms, great floor plan with a south facing private back yard. Large, fenced yard with privacy and lots of parking for vehicles and RV on a lane access. Close to all amenities including schools, parks, recreation, shopping and transit. You won't be disappointed, set up your viewing today.

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

$1,030,000

$1,570,000

$1,475,000

14103 110 AVE., N.SURREY

26964 28 AVE., LANGLEY

10520 128 ST., SURREY

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.

Absolutely gorgeous family-home with TWO mortgage helper suites and plenty of room on the main floor with 4 large bedrooms, master bedroom with a walk-in closet and ensuite bathroom, multiple living areas with 2 fireplaces, and a spacious kitchen. Kitchen lets out to a large covered sun-deck to enjoy a cup of coffee in the summer or host a BBQ. Large backyard with a brand new fully-surrounded fence with plenty of room for children or pets. Entire property is beautifully landscaped with a large decorative palm tree and multiple fruit trees including fig, apple, pear and cherry trees.

$920,000

$1,448,880

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, September 11, 2021

Election 2021

Saturday, September 11, 2021 From page 1 This a big issue and needs to be dealt with. People are also worried about the housing crisis. People can’t afford houses now – the price is so high. For this, we are putting in place policies that will help bot new home ownership and existing owner.” For housing crisis, one policy the Conservative party is proposing is eliminating stress test for existing homeowners who are renewing their mortgage. “For those people who have not defaulted on their mortgage payments, they should be able to go to the existing bank or any other bank/credit union to renew their mortgage without the stress-test. It’s ridiculous that existing mortgage holders with good payment history have to go through these high stress-tests,” stated Mr Hayer. Another thing Conservative party is looking at is lack of competition for the banks and credit unions, and for these service providers to offer better choices – maybe a 7-year term. We are working on this. There are online banks that can give these big banks competition and we are looking into that as well.” The Conservative party is also concerned about seniors and the needs of seniors with the rising cost of food and medicine going forward. Other concerns cited by Mr Hayer is from small businesses. “Many small businesses are failing because of Covid and because of the CERB. Now that the economy is picking up, small business owners are complaining that Trudeau’s CERB is keeping workers at home. When the employers call their workers, the workers are saying ‘I want to wait till the CERB runs out and then I’ll come back to work”. They, ‘workers’ rather sit at home and collect the $2000.00 monthly. That is borrowed money by Trudeau at the cost of millions in interest that our grandchildren’s grandchildren will be straddled with. We have to stop this.” Seniors are worried as well. Food costs has gone up, but the fixed benefits are not going up to reflect the costs of food and medicine. Rising housing costs is not sustainable, according to the Conservative party. “We know there is money coming from illegal enterprises pushing housing costs higher and higher. We are putting a moratorium on housing ownership by foreigners. You cannot buy a house as a foreigner unless you are going to live in it. Housing is a federal, provincial, and city level problem and we all need to work together to make it affordable for future generations.” The other area Conservatives want to put energy in is foreign credential recognition. “A Conservative government will look into this thoroughly and work with all levels of government and institutions that regulate professions. From the medical to the engineering sectors, and all in-between regulated industries – we want to help the trained and educated new immigrant land a job in the field they have spent money and time

Dave Hayer, Candidate for Fleetwood-Tynehead riding studying and working in. We are also going to see how we can have collaboration from these institutions with overseas universities – give them the courses we need for them to have if they want to work here. There are ways to help,

and we are working on helping everyone.” Conservative party will also investigate the alleged ‘price-fixing’ of many products, concerns that people have told me, “We are going to look into all this and fix it.”

Buy 1, get 1

Mr Hayer concluded with this, “If elected I promise to listen to my constituents, identify challenges they face and work with them to help remedy the challenges.”

Free

Limited supply, only selected models some conditions may apply, see store for more details

Best deal

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Press release

Gobind Sarvar School is all set to welcome its students to new 2021-2022 academic year

On the first day, led by Dr. Rishi Singh, the Principal, teachers at the school got together for the Orientation Day. Not only did the teachers get the opportunity to introduce themselves to each other but they also had a session on policies governing the school by Mr. Jasbir Singh

Bhatia, Director of Education of the School. On the second day, teachers had a threehour session on Introduction to Restorative Justice in Education Professional, led by Zofia Switkowski, who serves as Community Justice Initiatives Association’s Restorative action program coordinator. The session touched

upon restorative practices and how they differ from the usual punishment-discipline model, how a shift is required in the way we view conflict and harm, and what questions we need to ask ourselves and others when dispute arises. After the session, the teachers gave a positive feedback and will consider applying restorative approach to foster a safe, more connected

environment for learning and growth. Gobind Sarvar School’s staff is looking forward towards a great 2021-2022 academic year ahead! DR. RISHI SINGH, Principal - Ph: 604-930-2122 GOBIND SARVAR SCHOOL 8820 168 St., Surrey, BC Canada V4N 6G7

Get a head start on Spring this year! OUR STAFF WILL BE HAPPY TO TAKE YOUR CALL

4391 King George Blvd. Surrey, BC V3Z 1G6

604-596-9201

Ladies Fashion & Jewelry

Flowering Plants

The Garden Spot

Hot Sauce

Succulents

Bath & Body

Giftware & Decor

West Coast Seeds

Financing Option Available 1899

.99

Art Knapp Surrey location onlly

CENTAURI FOLDING 36V 300W

‘Wall of Flame’

www.armadascooters.com BUY NOW and PAY LATER FINANCING

"No Gas, License or Registration Required"

IAL SPEC N IO EDIT

MANTIS SUPREME 72V

AVENGER 60V ELECTRIC

BATTALION III 60V 1000W

Larry Mah 604.765.3589

PREDATOR ELECTRIC MOTO 72V

INVADER II ELECTRIC

COMBATANT II 72V 500W

armadascooters@gmail.com

ION 60V 500W ELECTRIC

RETALIATOR 72V 500W

14333 - 104th Ave., Surrey, BC

INDIA

Saturday, September 11, 2021

PGI Chandigarh second-best medical college after Delhi’s AIIMS, says Ministry of Education’s annual ranking The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras retained its top spot among institutes while the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, ranked the best among research institutions in the country, according to the sixth edition of the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) announced by Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The PGIMER, Chandigarh, ranked second in the category of Medical Education and Panjab University, Chandigarh, which bagged the second place in the Pharmacy category, ranked 38th in the ‘Overall’ list of 100 institutions in the country. According to NIRF ranking, AIIMS, Delhi, got the top spot in Medical category. In the University category, Panjab University got the 23rd rank among the 100 on the list. In the university category, Patiala-based Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology ranked 26, University of Kashmir (48), Chandigarh University (52), Guru Nanak Dev University (53), Lovely Professional University (62), University of Jammu (66), Maharshi Dayanand University (78), Central University of Punjab (84), Guru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology (88), Solan based-Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences (89), Ashoka University (95), Dehradun-based Graphic Era University (98) and University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (100). Among the B-Schools, IIM-Ahmedabad topped the list while Jamia Hamdard emerged the top institution for pharmacy studies. In

the colleges category, Miranda House in Delhi bagged the first rank, followed by Lady Sri Ram College for Women, Delhi, and Loyola College, Chennai. Otherwise too, colleges in Delhi dominated ranking with as many as five making to the top 10. Pradhan said a robust and a role model ranking framework will serve as India’s contribution to the global learning landscape “We must ensure that our ranking framework emerges as a benchmark not only in the country, but also globally, especially for the developing economies”, he said while urging for regional ranking frameworks. “NEP provides us with an opportunity to internationalise our education system. We must work collectively to bring more and more institutions under our rankings framework and also establish India as a preferred global study destination,” Pradhan said. As many as 4,030 unique institutions offered themselves for ranking under “overall”, category-specific and / or domainspecific rankings for India Rankings 2021, according to the ministry. In all, 6272 applications for ranking were made by these 4030 unique applicant institutions under various categories / domains including 1657 in Overall Category, 1143 in Engineering, 659 in Management, 351 in Pharmacy, 120 in Law, 111 in Medical, 78 in Architecture and 1802 in General Degree Colleges. Highlights *IIT Madras retained 1st position in Overall Category as well as in Engineering for the third consecutive year.

Rajnath, Gadkari inaugurate emergency landing strip for IAF planes on national highway in Barmer in front of the two ministers. An-32 military transport aircraft and Mi-17v5 helicopter of the IAF also landed at the ELF, showing its complete operational readiness to act as an auxiliary military airbase. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has developed the 3-km section of Satta-Gandhav stretch of NH925 as an ELF for the IAF. In October 2017, fighter jets and transport planes of the IAF had conducted mock landings on the Lucknow-Agra Expressway to show that such highways can be used by the IAF planes for landing in case of an emergency. The Lucknow-Agra Expressway, which is not a national highway, comes under the Uttar Pradesh government.

Union Ministers Rajnath Singh and Nitin Gadkari inaugurated an emergency landing strip at Satta-Gandhav stretch on National Highway 925 in Barmer, Rajasthan on Thursday for Indian Air Force (IAF) planes. A Hercules C-130J plane of the IAF, carrying the two Ministers and Chief of Defence Staff Bipin Rawat, conducted a mock emergency landing on the national highway on Thursday. NH-925 is India’s first national highway to be used for emergency landing of IAF aircraft. The two Ministers also witnessed multiple aircraft operations on the emergency landing facility (ELF) of NH-295 on Thursday. Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jet also conducted a mock emergency landing at the ELF

Cannot order for use of traditional remedies like ‘Red Ant Chutney’ as cure for Covid-19: Supreme Court Supreme Court of India said that it cannot direct for use of traditional knowledge or home remedies as a cure of COVID-19 for whole of country and dismissed a plea seeking direction for use of ‘Red Ant Chutney’ as cure for the deadly virus. “You see there is a lot of traditional knowledge, even in our homes we have traditional knowledge. These remedies you can have for your own consumption facing the consequence, if any on yourself but we cannot ask for applying this traditional knowledge across the country,” a bench of Justices DY Chandrachud,

Vikram Nath and Hima Kohli said. Asking petitioner Nayadhar Padhial, a member of tribal community of Odisha to get vaccinated for Covid, the bench dismissed the plea. Advocate Anirudha Sanganeria, appearing for the petitioner, said that the Orissa High Court dismissed the plea and they have challenged the order. The bench said, “The problem started with the High Court directing the director general of Ayush ministry and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)

Rahul offers prayers at Mata Vaishno Devi shrine Congress leader Rahul Gandhi arrived in Jammu on a two-day visit and paid obeisance at the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine on Thursday. Immediately after his arrival at the Jammu airport, he headed for the shrine located in Reasi district, where he walked bare footed on the staircase and attended an ‘Attka Aarti’. He refused to make any statement saying, “I have come here to offer prayers to the Mata. I don’t want to make any political comments.”

Congress leader Salman Nizami said the people of Jammu greeted the leader with an open heart and offered a warm welcome. “There were joyous scenes here as Mr. Gandhi connects to one and all.” Mr. Gandhi is scheduled to meet party leaders on Friday. This is his second visit of the Union Territory. He attended his party event in Srinagar on August 9 and 10.

Biggest Selection, Unbeatable Prices. Shop Paragon for all your Restaurant Equipment and Supplies at the Lowest Prices — Guaranteed!*

43,263 new Covid-19 cases, 338 more fatalities The death toll climbed to 4,41,749 with 338 latest fatalities. India recorded 43,263 new Covid-19 infections taking the total tally of 3,31,39,981, while the active cases increased to 3,93,614, according to Health Ministry data updated on September 9. The death toll climbed to 4,41,749 with 338 fresh fatalities, according to the data updated at 8 am. The active cases comprise 1.19% of the total infections and the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 97.48%, the ministry said. An increase of 2,358 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. Less than 50,000 daily cases have been reported for 74 consecutive days. As many as 18,17,639 tests were conducted on September 8 taking the total cumulative tests conducted so far for detection of COVID-19 in the country to 53,68,17,243. The daily positivity rate was recorded as 2.38%. It has been less than 3% for last 10 days The weekly positivity rate was recorded at 2.43%. It has been below 3%for the last 76 days, according to the ministry. The

number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 3,23,04,618, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.33%. The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive has exceeded 71.65 crore. India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16. It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19. India crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23. The 338 new fatalities include 181 from Kerala, and 65 from Maharashtra. A total of 4,41,749 deaths have been reported so far in the country including 1,37,962 from Maharashtra, 37,458 from Karnataka, 35,073 from Tamil Nadu, 25,083 from Delhi, 22,863 from Uttar Pradesh, 22,001 from Kerala and 18,531 from West Bengal.

ON SALE THIS MONTH See our website for more deals!

*See website for Price Match terms and conditions.

Prices in effect until October 1, 2021, while quantities last.

Visit us online for more great deals!

paragondirect.ca (604) 255-9991 760 East Hastings Street, Vancouver

INDIA

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Ford Motor to shut down both its manufacturing plants in India US auto maker Ford Motor Company will shut down its two manufacturing plants in India and will sell only imported vehicles in the country as part of a restructuring exercise, according to people aware of the development. The company, which invested about USD 2.5 billion at its Chennai (Tamil Nadu) and Sanand (Gujarat) plants, will stop selling vehicles such as the EcoSport, Figo and

Aspire which are produced from these plants. Going ahead, it would only sell imported vehicles like Mustang in the country. “This is a restructuring decision, where the company will shift to imported vehicles,” said a person in the know of the development. A formal announcement by the company is expected soon. Ford has been struggling for years to make a mark in India’s automotive market.

India’’s fintech market to triple to Rs 6.2 lakh cr by 2025: MoS Finance Karad The government’’s various initiatives have led to fast growth in the fintech sector, which is likely to triple to Rs 6,20,700 crore in value terms by 2025, Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat K Karad said on Wednesday. Highlighting that India is a leader in adopting financial technology among emerging markets, he said, the country had an adoption rate of 87 per cent in March 2020, as compared to the global average of 64 per cent. “In 2019 India’’s fintech market was valued at Rs 1,920 billion. By 2025, it is expected to grow into a Rs 6,207 billion market. Skilled workforce and technological enormity in India makes it a great destination to develop financial technology,”

he said while addressing a virtual event organised by Assocham. He further said that India has been ranked number one in terms of digital transactions and the total digital transactions have crossed 25 billion. India provides a great ecosystem for Fintech development like access to bank accounts under the PM Jandhan Yojana, digilockers and scalable platforms including UPI. “The government is making efforts to build a strong and safe technology ecosystem and we are confident that the public private partners will increase financial inclusion and provide modern financial services for all Indians,” he said.

BRICS summit for preventing attempts to use Afghanistan as ‘safe haven’ Under pressure from the world community to deliver on its promises, the Taliban relented by permitting evacuation from Kabul airport even as the BRICS virtual summit hosted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday called for preventing attempts by terrorist organisations to use its territory as sanctuary to carry out attacks against other countries. A joint statement endorsed by Russian President Vlaidmir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping as also Presidents of

South Africa and Brazil, expressed concern over the drug trade and emphasised the need to uphold human rights, including those of women, children and minorities. The BRICS joint statement released did not mention Taliban but strongly condemned terrorism “in all its forms and manifestations” and spoke of combating cross-border movement of terrorists, and terrorism financing networks and safe havens.

Indian-American led research team finds portable MRI devices can provide life-saving information Indian-American professor Kevin Sheth and his team of researchers at the Yale University have found that a portable Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) device can help identify critical medical symptoms, particularly in stroke patients, that can provide life-saving information. When patients exhibit stroke symptoms, doctors are left with no time to make a life or death decision, Sheth said, explaining the need for fast diagnosis in such complicated cases, adding that some cases may warrant blood thinners to ease a clot in the brain while some may require surgery in case of bleeding in the brain. “This decision can be a game changer with the help of a portable MRI

device that can help identify such intracranial hemorrhages; potentially life-saving information, particularly in areas or scenarios where access to sophisticated brain imaging scans are not readily available,” Sheth, professor of neurology and neurosurgery at Yale School of Medicine said. For the study, the Yale team examined the efficacy of a device known as the ‘’Portable Point-of-Care MRI system’’, which can be wheeled down a hospital hallway and costs a fraction of the traditional MRI technologies. Identified as co-corresponding author of the research, Sheth said: “There is no question this device can help save lives in resource-limited settings, such as rural hospitals or developing countries.”

With Vodafone on life support, Indian telco market craters On August 5, Kumarmangalam Birla, the head of the Aditya Birla Group who has a 28% equity stake in Vodafone India, threw in the towel. He submitted his resignation from the role of Vodafone India non-executive chairman of the board. Prospects are so bad for his company, riddled with an unimaginable amount of debt, that he is also content to hand over his stake to any entity -- government or otherwise --

that can keep the struggling company afloat. To absorb how other-worldly that is, and the extent of its implications, not just for Indian telcos but for Indian business as a whole, consider the fact that Vodafone is not just any old struggler that is unable to manage strategy or pay its bills. It was not so long ago that Vodafone was the largest telco in India. It now sits in third place, with 270 million subscribers -- although waves of them have decamped for competitors recently.

Punjab and Haryana in sugarcane price war In the ongoing sugarcane price war between Punjab and Haryana in the wake of farmers’ against three farm laws, the latter had the last laugh on Thursday with the BJP-JJP government announcing a price of Rs 362 per quintal, a marginal hike of Rs 2 over neighbouring Punjab. In a clear case of one-upmanship against Punjab, Haryana announced a hike of 12 per quintal over its existing price of Rs 350 (for early variety) to make it Rs 362, highest in the country. With an eye on next year’s assembly elections, the Capt Amarinder Singh Government recently

announced a massive hike of Rs 50 per quintal taking state’s sugarcane price to Rs 360 per quintal. Since then, the Khattar Government was at its end about the quantum of increase in the sugarcane prices as the state was already paying highest price of Rs 350 per quintal in the country (before Punjab increased in to Rs 360). In fact, Agriculture Minister JP Dalal tried to score some brownie points over its neighbouring state regarding sugarcane price. “The sugarcane price has been stable at Rs 310 per quintal in Punjab since last four years.

Govt extends tax returns filing deadline for individuals to December 31 The government on Thursday extended the deadline till December 31 for filing of income tax returns by individuals for the financial year 2021, amid the coronavirus pandemic and technical glitches in the IT portal. Earlier, the deadline was extended to September 30, 2021. Usually, the last date for filing the ITR (Income Tax Returns) for the individual taxpayers is July 31. “On consideration of difficulties reported by the taxpayers and other stakeholders in

filing of Income Tax Returns and various reports of audit for the Assessment Year 202122 under the Income-tax Act, 1961, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has decided to further extend the due dates for filing of Income Tax Returns and various reports of audit for the Assessment Year 2021-22,” the finance ministry said in a statement. The CBDT has also extended the ITR filing deadline for companies till February 15, 2022 from November 30, 2021.

96.6 pc protection from death after 1 Covid shot; 97.5 pc after both: ICMR Two Covid-19 doses have been found to offer near total protection from death in India and even one dose has been more than 96 per cent effective in averting fatalities, the first government analysis of vaccine efficacy among the inoculated segments has shown. Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Balram Bhargava, who led the vaccine effectiveness study, said on Thursday that vaccines have proved life savers in India where the national drive depends

on local shots Covaxin and Covishield. “We synergised the data from several sources including CoWIN and found vaccine effectiveness in preventing mortality with one dose to be 96.6 per cent and with two doses 97.5 per cent. The data was analysed between April 18 And August 15 this year,” ICMR chief said. The analysis tracked vaccine protection rates of inoculated persons through the ferocious second wave of the pandemic was also studied.

All 68 people isolated are stable: Kerala Minister amid Nipah scare Kerala Health Minister Veena George on Wednesday said 68 people are currently under isolation at the Government Medical College in Kozhikode amid the Nipah virus

concerns. She said all of them are stable. Of the total samples collected after the death of a 12-year-old boy from the virus, 30 people have tested negative so far, George added

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Punjab Centre rubbing salt into farmers’ wounds: CM Amarinder Singh Terming the Union Cabinet’s measly wheat MSP hike as pathetic, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Wednesday slammed the central government for “rubbing salt into the wounds of the beleaguered farmers”, who have been out on the roads agitating against the farm laws for the past 10 months. At a time when India’s agriculture

sector is passing through a distress phase and the farmers are agitating for a remunerative MSP, the BJP-led Government of India has played a cruel joke on the ‘annadatas’, said the Chief Minister. Demanding an MSP of wheat to be fixed at Rs 2,830 per quintal (as against Rs 2,015/ quintal announced today), Capt Amarinder said the farmers should not be forced to subsidise the consumers, which they have been doing since long.

FIJI President’s statement ‘Not true in practice’ - Mahendra Chaudhry Fiji Labour Party leader and former prime minister Mahendra Pal Chaudhry says the statement by President Jioji Konrote that the Fijian Constitution “enshrines civil and political rights” is not true in practice. The former prime minister said the recent arrests of Members of Parliament for speaking out against Bill 17 raised questions about the right to freedom of speech. “The FijiFirst government has been lauding

the Bill of Rights provisions in the imposed 2013 Constitution as being progressive,” he said. “But the truth is that several key provisions in the Bill of Rights have been completely derogated by harsh decrees that continue in force despite the new Constitution, rendering them ‘paper’ provisions only.” Mr Chaudhry said that key provisions of the Constitution undermined universally-accepted norms on human rights and good governance.

Ignorance key to Fiji Covid-19 crisis - NGO Shiromani Akali Dal swaps two seats with ally BSP The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Wednesday decided to take back Amritsar (North) and Sujanpur seats from its alliance partner — Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) — and give it Sham Chaurasi and Kapurthala Assembly seats. Former BJP leaders who joined the SAD recently will be fielded from the swapped seats. Though some rebel BSP leaders were

lobbying for Phillaur, Adampur seats in Doaba, where the party has a strong base, the two parties agreed on Sham Chaurasi and Kapurthala. SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal announced the decision today. Last month, the SAD declared its candidates from Amritsar (North) and Sujanpur constituencies. At that time, Badal had said the decision was taken with the consent of the BSP.

Chief Minister to launch employment training centre in Tarn Taran Punjab minister Charanjit Channi on Wednesday said that CM Captain Amarinder Singh will inaugurate the Centre for Training and Employment of Punjab Youth (C-PYTE), in Tarn Taran. “Free food and accommodation

will be provided,” he added. Channi added that the second scheme the CM would launch is free online coaching for Punjab’s youth for government (state/central) jobs.

Pakistan Pakistan suggests inviting Taliban-run Afghanistan to regional forum of six countries Pakistan suggested inviting Taliban-run Afghanistan to a regional forum of six countries to help avert a humanitarian and economic crisis in Afghanistan. The Taliban on Tuesday announced a new government and named Mullah Hasan Akhund, an associate of the movement’s late founder Mullah Omar, as the head of the interim set-up,

with Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, head of the movement’s political office, as one of the two deputies. Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood, speaking at a virtual conference that brought together neighbours Pakistan, China, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Iran and Turkmenistan to discuss Afghan strategy.

Army appoints Lt General Azhar Abbas next Chief of General Staff In a major reshuffle in Pakistan army, Lt General Azhar Abbas has been appointed as next Chief of General Staff (CGS). Lt. General Abbas appointee would be the 35th CGS of the army, which is considered as the most influential position within the Pak army after the army chief, Dawn newspaper reported. Gen Abbas replaces Lt Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza. According to media reports, the post

is assigned operational and intelligence matters at the General Headquarters with directorates of Military Operations and Military Intelligence falling under his ambit. The new appointee is from the Baloch Regiment, an infantry regiment of the Pakistan Army. Previously, Lt Genearl Abbas served as commandant of the Infantry School, Quetta.

Pakistan logs over 4,000 daily COVID-19 infections for the first time Over 4,000 people tested positive for Covid-19 in last 24 hours, for the first time in seven days, National Command and Operation Center’s data showed on Thursdayg. The country’s daily coronavirus cases

have mostly been hovering between the 3,000-4,000 range for close to a month. According to the latest official data, as many as 63,161 coronavirus tests were conducted across the country in the last 24 hours, out of which 4,062 came back positive.

PML-N’s worker claims ‘Nawaz Sharif to return this year, will become PM for 4th time’ Javed Latif appeared before Accountability Bureau (NAB) in assets beyond income case. According to details, a three-member investigation team interrogated PML-N ‘s Javed Latif and sought details of his properties. It is to be mentioned here that Javed Latif ’s mother

declared assets worth Rs100 million but according to the evidence obtained by NAB, her assets were worth billions of rupees. Outside the court, he said ‘Nawaz Sharif will return to Pakistan this year and will become prime minister for the fourth time.

Court issues arrest warrants of ‘Hindi Medium’ star Saba Qamar A local court on Wednesday issued arrest warrants of ‘Hindi Medium’ star Saba Qamar in a case registered against her and others for shooting a ‘dance video’ at a historical mosque in Lahore. Lahore’s magisterial court issued the bailable warrants for Qamar and singer Bilal

Saeed for constantly avoiding the court hearings. The court adjourned the hearing till October 6. Lahore police last year registered a case against Qamar and Saeed under section 295 of the Pakistan Penal Code for alleged ‘desecration’ of Masjid Wazir Khan in the old city of Lahore.

Sulique Waqa, of the Haus of Khameleon, believes the reluctance of Fijians to ‘admit mistakes or accept the scientific findings’ that have proven to save lives ‘need to be addressed holistically by the populace’. Waqa said majority of the Fijian people

were ‘deeply unwilling to change their minds’ about the pandemic including vaccination. “It’s playing out during the pandemic among the many people in Fiji who refuse to be vaccinated, wear masks or practise social distancing.

Baby among 3 dead by Covid-19, new 240 cases confirmed The government also confirmed 240 new cases for the 24 hours on Wednesday. That was compared with 160 cases and five deaths announced on Tuesday. The child was among three deaths reported in the last 24 hours, and all of the victims were from the central division. Health Secretary James Fong said the infant presented to a health centre in mild respiratory distress on 1 September. “He was medically assessed and stabilised by the attending medical officer and then

transferred to the Colonial War Memorial Hospital in Suva for specialist care on the same day,” Fong said. “As per protocol upon admission, he was tested for Covid-19 and returned a positive result. “His mother reported that he had a cough and was noted to be irritable two days before presentation at the health centre. “He had developed a fever on the night before his presentation (31/08/2021).

Saturday, September 11, 2021

Federal Election 2021 Candidates dialouge, debate was organized by Surrey Board of Trade in coordination with South Asian Business Association of BC and Fraser Valley Real Estate Board in Surrey last week.

Bank of Canada plans to raise key rate before winding down bond buying program, Macklem says The Bank of Canada released guidance for the first time on how it plans to eventually reduce monetary stimulus, saying it will first raise interest rates before curbing its holdings of government bonds. In a speech Thursday a day after a standpat decision, Governor Tiff Macklem provided details on what he called the central bank’s “monetary policy for the recovery.” Macklem reiterated the bank intends to bring its bond purchases to a roughly neutral pace where holdings and stimulus levels remain stable, and keep it there for a “period of time” before it begins withdrawing extraordinary support from the economy. And when policy makers start paring back that stimulus, the first move will be to increase the central bank’s policy interest rate rather than reducing bond holdings, Macklem said. “When we need to reduce the amount of monetary stimulus, you can expect us to begin by raising our policy interest rate,” Macklem said in remarks prepared for a virtual speech to the Quebec chamber of commerce. “What this all means is it is reasonable to expect that when we reach the reinvestment phase, we will remain there for a period of time, at least until we raise the policy interest rate.”’The Bank of Canada has been using two major tools to keep borrowing costs low: maintaining its main overnight policy rate near zero and buying up hundreds of billions of government bonds from investors to keep longer-term borrowing costs in check. The central bank has already bought about $336 billion (US$266 billion) in Canadian government bonds under its asset purchase program, also known as quantitative easing. It started buying $5 billion a week initially but has since tapered those purchases three times to bring it to the current target of $2 billion a week. Raising interest rates while shrinking bond holdings at the same time threatens to be too strong of a stimulus withdrawal.“It matters because typically we have seen other central banks stop purchases and allow the balance sheet to begin rolling off during rate hikes,” Ian Pollick, head of fixed income, currency and commodity research at Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, said by email. “It is almost like you are doubling down on stimulus withdrawal.”

Saturday, September 11, 2021