Month: November 2020

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-Top News Asia News Australia

Australia seeks apology over ‘repugnant’ Tweet by China

‘China should be “utterly ashamed” for posting the “repugnant” image.It is utterly outrageous and cannot be justified on any basis’ said Morrison…reports Asian Lite News

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has condemned posting of a fake picture by Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman in twitter that depicted an Australian soldier murdering an Afghan child. The prime minister called it “truly repugnant” and demanded the post be removed, the BBC reported.

The image was posted on Monday on the verified account of China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, depicting a grinning Australian soldier holding a blood-stained knife to the throat of an Afghan child. Australia has requested Twitter to remove the post, describing it as “disinformation”.

Mr Morrison stated that China should be “utterly ashamed” for posting the “repugnant” image. “It is utterly outrageous and cannot be justified on any basis’’ the BBC quoted Mr Morrison as saying.

Australia told 13 Special Forces soldiers they face dismissal in relation to an independent report on alleged unlawful murders in Afghanistan. There have also been allegations that Australian soldiers used knives to murder two 14-year-old Afghan boys.

Last week, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has called for senior defence officers to be held accountable for war crimes allegedly committed by soldiers in Afghanistan.

The government on November 19 released the findings of a landmark four-year war crimes inquiry, which found “credible evidence” that Australian soldiers murdered 39 prisoners and civilians in Afghanistan between 2005 and 2016, recommending criminal proceedings against the soldiers, reports Xinhua news agency.

Morrison revealed that he has advised that senior officers face disciplinary action for allowing the “warrior culture” identified by the inquiry to develop in the special forces.

“In each case, it’s important that not only is there accountability in the defence forces for individual alleged acts, but also in the chain of command about those who had responsibilities and accountabilities in that chain of command,” he said.

“That’s what I expect to be done. That’s what I’ve made very clear through the Defence Minister, who has made that point to both the Chief of the Defence Force as well as the oversight panel,” the Prime Minister added.

Morrison’s comments came as Army Chief Rick Burr confirmed that 13 soldiers who were “accessories” or “witnesses” of alleged murders have been issued show cause notices, giving them 14 days to show why they should not be dismissed from the Australian Defence Force.

“This whole process will take time, and we will do this work methodically, deliberately, and in accordance with established process,” Burr told reporters.

Also read:Australia’s oldest museum to reopen

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-Top News USA

US tops 100k new Covid-19 cases

In its latest update on Monday, the University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the country’s overall caseload and death toll stood at 13,384,650 and 266,875, respectively…reports Asian Lite News

The US, currently the worst-hit country in the world due to the Covid-19 pandemic, has reported more than 100,000 new confirmed cases for the 27th consecutive day, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

In its latest update on Monday, the University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the country’s overall caseload and death toll stood at 13,384,650 and 266,875, respectively.

The two tallies currently account for the world’s highest.

Meanwhile, over 5 million Covid-19 patients have recovered across the US since the onset of the pandemic earlier this year.

The hospitalization number infected patients reached a record high of over 93,000 on Sunday, more than Saturday’s record-breaking figure of 91,635, according to the COVID Tracking Project.

Also read:Kushner set to mediate Saudi-Qatar Discussions

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-Top News Africa News Arab News

UN condemn the killing of Nigerian farmers

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres (Xinhua/Xu Jinquan/IANS)

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condemned the deadly attack against rice farmers carried out by suspected Boko Haram militants in Borno state.

Through a statement attributable to his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, the UN chief on Sunday condemned “in the strongest terms the horrific attack on rice farm workers in Koshobe village, near the Borno state capital of Maiduguri by suspected militants on November 28, in which scores were reportedly killed and many others injured or abducted, including women,” reports Xinhua news agency.

Suspected members of the Islamic militant group Boko Haram reportedly killed at least 40 rice farmers.

The farmers were reportedly rounded up and summarily killed by armed insurgents in retaliation for a failed extortion attempt.

Antonio Guterres

The Secretary-General extended his deepest condolences to the families of the deceased and to the people of Nigeria, wished a swift recovery to the injured, and called for immediate and safe returns of the abductees and those still reported missing.

“He hoped those responsible for these heinous crimes will be quickly brought to justice,” said the statement.

Guterres reaffirmed the UN’s commitment to supporting the Nigerian government in its fight against terrorism and violent extremism and in its response to pressing humanitarian needs in the northeast of the country, the statement added.

Boko Haram has been trying to establish an Islamist state in northeastern Nigeria since 2009, extending its attacks to countries in the Lake Chad Basin.

Also Read: EU urges swift establishment of Afghan Peace Council

Also Read: Yemen launches polio drive for 4mn kids

Categories
Business Economy India News

Positive trends expected to boost equity markets

Faster-than-anticipated economic recovery along with likely continuation of accommodative monetary stance will support the domestic indices’ expected northward trajectory during the week ahead.

However, spurts of likely profit bookings coupled with expensive propositions as well as any delay in anti-Covid vaccine rollout might arrest the potential up move.

“Equity markets could open higher on Tuesday, reflecting the positivity of the Q2 GDP numbers. Nifty continues to consolidate after reaching a high on Novmeber 25,” said Deepak Jasani- Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities.

“An upward breach of 13,146 is necessary to expect more upsides while a downward breach of 12,833 could bring in more downsides and mean that a temporary top has been made on November 25.”

Last Friday, official data showed that India’s gross domestic product (GDP) contracted 7.5 per cent in the July-September period, as the economy rebounded from a record slump of 23.9 per cent in the previous quarter due to slowdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

This figure was higher than anticipated by the market.

Among sectors, automobile industry will be in focus during the holiday-shortened week, as the industry will divulge its sales performance during November.

Growth chart. (File Photo: IANS)

The main festive season of 2020 ended last month and investors expect healthy sales performance from the sector.

“Going ahead, the overall structure of the market remains positive, but intermittent profit booking cannot be ruled out, given the sharp rally in the past few weeks,” said Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services.

“Auto companies will be in focus as November sales data will start coming from Tuesday, while banks or financials will be in focus as the RBI’s Monetary Policy is scheduled for Friday.”

The Reserve Bank’s MPC is scheduled to announce the last review for the calendar year 2020.

“The present liquidity glut, and the low-interest rates, will lead to improvements in the cost of funds for corporates and thereby their performance to a significant extent,” said Joseph Thomas, Head of Research – Emkay Wealth Management.

Market watchers opined that the RBI will maintain both repo rate and accommodative stance.

According to Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services: “Markets are awaiting outcome major events like RBI policy meeting, release of Manufacturing and Service PMI and banking business data which will be decisive factors driving the market in the upcoming week.”

The India’s benchmark equity indices, will be closed on Monday to mark Guru Nanak Dev’s birth anniversary.

Also Read: Indian Cinema Carving Worldwide OTT Space

Also Read: India’s Q2 FDI inflows touch $28.10 Bn

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Business UK News

No Huawei 5G Equipment In UK from Sep 2021

Huawei (File Photo)

The UK government announced on Monday that the Chinese telecom giant Huawei will not be able to install its 5G equipments in the country from September 2021.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport said that as per its earlier decision, the UK carriers will no longer be able to install Huawei equipment beginning September 2021.

The UK government has laid out a roadmap for removing all telecoms equipment made by “high risk vendors,” including Huawei, from the country’s 5G network by 2027, reports CNET.

In July this year, the UK government had announced a ban on the purchase of new Huawei kits for 5G from next year and said that the Chinese telecom giant’s equipment will be completely removed from 5G networks by the end of 2027.

The telecoms operators have seven years to remove its existing technology from their 5G infrastructure at an expected cost of 2 billion pounds.

The decision came following new advice produced by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) on the impact of US sanctions against the telecommunications vendor.

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) designated Chinese telecom companies, Huawei and ZTE, as national security risks to America’s communications networks.

In a U-turn, the UK government that earlier allowed Huawei to sell its 5G technology in the country, signalled a tougher stand against the Chinese telecom giant.

Huawei called the decision “bad news for anyone in the UK with a mobile phone”.

Struggling to keep its consumer business afloat in the wake of the US sanctions, Huawei this month announced to sell off its Honor smartphone business assets to China-based Shenzhen Zhixin New Information Technology Co Ltd.

The company said that the sale — which could be around $15 billion according to multiple reports — will help Honor’s channel sellers and suppliers make it through this difficult time.

Honor smartphones have been hit by US sanctions that prevent Huawei from doing business with the US companies.

Also Read: UK To Face Harsh Covid Restrictions

Also Read: Nadhim Zahawi is UK’s vaccine Minister

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Arts & Culture Bollywood Lite Blogs

‘There are a lot of barriers to be broken’

https://www.facebook.com/cnainsider/videos/1372739832748690

When it comes to stand-up comedy, there are a lot of barriers to be broken for women, says Singaporean comedian Sharul Channa.

“It has changed, but I don’t think it has changed enough,” Channa told IANS when asked about evolving comedy space.

“If I may be honest, I think that at least in Singapore I would say I’m the only fulltime female stand up comedian. There are a few more who are trying and we try to encourage as much as possible. I think it’s a function of our culture, and a function of a lot of things that still need to be broken, and a lot of barriers to be broken. I think it’s not a career that women look forward to,” she added.

The comedian, whose roots trace back to India, continued: “In Asia, we have more female comedians coming up, especially in India. If you ask ‘who is the one famous comedian who has blown up and become world famous from Asia’, considering that the scenes have been around for 10 years, I can’t really name someone who has become super famous.”

She feels Indian comedian Aditi Mittal is making huge strides.

“We also have few people who do Hindi stand-up in India. But I don’t see that happening so much. And I don’t think that’s because they’re not good enough. The groundwork for having female comedians sort of blow up and do really well from Asia will take a bit of time,” she said, asserting that it will take “time for the groundwork to be laid down”.

“Then one day a female comedian is going to become internationally famous. I mean, it could be Aditi Mittal. She’s doing really well for herself. But I think that there’s still some time to go before that happens. I really hope more and more women jump on to the team,” added the comedian, who will be connecting with Indian comedian Varun Thakur in an episode of “My Singapore Connect”.

“I was born in India and my entire life is from the country while my father is from Singapore. So, I have a very close connection to India and its people. You feel you want to work with an artiste from India, which is a huge market. It is always nice to be in touch with artistes, have conversations with them, exchange notes, and discuss what the comedy scenes in each country is and how the trends are changing,” said the comedian.

“My Singapore Connect” will be released on the streaming platform BookMyShow Online, on November 28, November 29, December 5 and December 6. The four-part web series is a result of partnership between the Singapore Tourism Board and BookMyShow.

Also Read-Indian Cinema Carving Worldwide OTT Space

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Bollywood Films Lite Blogs

Remo feels compassionate towards struggling artistes

Choreographer Remo D’Souza says he feels compassionate towards struggling artistes because he has been there and faced everything in the initial part of his career.

“I feel more compassionate for budding talents and strugglers because I have been there, know exactly how it feels as a talented youngster without the right opportunity or a series of rejections. With years of hard work and appreciation I have created my space, so I am quite focused on giving chance to new talent. I started doing that with dancers but then I realised that songs are an integral part of our dance, and budding singers also face the same struggle as dancers and choreographers,” Remo told IANS.

Remo D’souza had ‘amazing, very safe shoot’ with Geeta Kapur, Terence Lewis.

He recently appeared in the music video of the song, Log kya kahenge, and he says his effort in front of the camera is all about promoting budding singers.

“I want to encourage singers now. The song in the video ‘Log kya kahenge’ is a result of that,” he said, adding: “Abhinav (Shekhar) is a very talented singer and rapper. This was the first time I was appearing in a dance video before the camera as a dancer because usually I am a choreographer all my life and I make people dance!”

The song is written and sung by Abhinav Shekhar who also appeared in the video.

So, how was the shift, from behind the camera to facing it? “Initially it was weird. Rahul Shetty worked on it, and I followed his instruction on dance. Rahul has trained under me and now he is choreographing for me. It is a proud moment for me as a mentor. Eventually, I also want to work with new actors,” Remo signed off.

Also Read-Indian Cinema Carving Worldwide OTT Space

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Lifestyle Lite Blogs Woman

Covid, Pollution And Preterm Birth

Most pregnancies last 40 weeks; a baby is known as a premature or pre-term when her or she is born before the completion of 37th week. Based on the gestational age, pre-term babies are sub-categorised as extremely preterm (less than 28 weeks), very preterm (28 to 32 weeks), moderate to late preterm (32 to 37 weeks)…Siddhi Jain.

“Advances in the field of medicine have meant that more than 9 out of 10 premature babies survive, and most go on to develop normally,” says Dr Archana Dhawan Bajaj, Gynaecologist and Obstetrician and IVF expert, Nurture IVF Centre.

There are several reasons for preterm births, while most happen spontaneously some are due to early induction of labour or caesarean birth, whether for medical or non-medical reasons, she says. “Some of the common causes include multiple pregnancies, infections and chronic conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure; however, often no cause is identified.”

Dr Bajaj explains risk of premature or preterm birth has been associated with exposure to air pollution during pregnancy by increasing toxic chemicals in the blood and causing immune system stress, which can weaken the placenta surrounding the fetus and lead to preterm birth. This, in turn, raises risk of health complications for the baby, both in the short and long term.

“As per estimates, more than 3 percent of all premature births in the US are attributable to air pollution. Furthermore, findings suggest that considerable health and economic benefits can be gained through reductions in outdoor air pollution exposure during pregnancy.

“Several studies have found air pollution as one of the risk factors for preterm birth. Air pollution is associated with an unfavourable vaginal microbiota suggesting a relationship between environmental and biological risk factors that may further substantiate the risk of pre-mature birth in pregnant women. US Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Centre and the University of Cincinnati carried out studies and identified a 19 percent increased risk, with the greatest risk when exposed to air pollution during the third trimester of pregnancy.”

Another study has found an association with exposure to high levels of small particulate matter with an increased risk of premature birth, she points out. One of the professors in the US said that decreasing the amount of particulate matter in the air below the US Environmental Protection Agency’s standard threshold could decrease preterm birth in women exposed to high levels of small particulates by about 17 percent, which corresponds to a 2.22 percent decrease in the preterm birth rate in the population as a whole,’ Dr Bajaj says.

COVID 19 has been spreading far and wide across the globe with devastating effects across majority of population. While it’s the aging population which is at a major risk of developing complications from the disease, pregnant women also have a reason to worry as they may face an elevated risk for delivering their babies prematurely, according to new studies from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Additionally, they may also be at greater risk of losing the pregnancy or having a stillbirth, says the doctor.

“While none of the data indicate that pregnant women are more susceptible to severe COVID-19 infection, nor have studies suggested an increased risk of miscarriage, congenital anomalies, or early pregnancy loss in pregnant patients, however, studies have described an increased risk of preterm birth.

“Similar results have been found with another study conducted in Korea which further stresses the point that COVID-19 can be associated with premature birth and sometimes severe outcomes for mother and baby, including death.

Several other researchers in various parts of the globe have studied the effects of the novel coronavirus on pregnant women and its outcome on the new born. They share the same views of pregnant women experiencing a higher rate of preterm deliveries than expected and a British study noted a population-wide uptick in stillbirths during the pandemic.

Summary
Pregnancy is a time filled with joy and happiness for every woman and it is the responsibility of one and all to ensure a healthy outcome for pregnant women and their infants.

While there are several other reasons that can cause preterm births including air pollution and COVID 19 infection, proactive clinical management and dedicated support coupled with adequate safety measures must be adopted to help protect those who are pregnant and their newborns.

Also Read-Indian Cinema Carving Worldwide OTT Space

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Bollywood Celebrity Lite Blogs

Mithila Have Hopeful Plans For 2021

‘Karwaan’ actress Mithila Palkar, who is also a trained Kathak dancer, says she is thankful that time in the lockdown allowed her to get back to her dancing, after she had to take a break from it due to work and an irregular schedule…Mithila speaks with Siddhi Jain.

Palkar, who features in the Netflix series ‘Little Things’, has been trained in the discipline for three years.

“(I) did decently in my exams. Later because of work and irregular schedule, I had to take a break from it. Thanks to the lockdown, I was able to get back to my dancing and my disciplines. Again, now that the work has begun I had to discontinue my classes because I cannot be regular. But, I am very happy that it is a discipline that I have learned because I always feel like classical dancing/music forms the basis of all the dances and music you eventually learn in your life. It’s like learning alphabets to be able to form sentences. It gives you a good foundation,” Palkar told IANSlife in an interview.

The 27-year-old actress also shares why she took up the dance form: “Kathak for me was a dance form that I always enjoyed watching; I thought it was extremely expressive, beautiful, flowy, pretty and very royal in its own way. So, it was something that I really wanted to learn and had set my heart on it. Obviously, a little bit of that is also because Madhuri Dixit is a Kathak dancer, our generation has grown up watching her and my admiration for her as an actor and a dancer was a contributing factor on my inclination towards learning Kathak.”

Asked how classical dance has helped her acting on camera, Palkar said that – “I feel like having a certain sense of discipline helps the method you eventually follow, take shape and form.”

Talking about her plans for the upcoming year, she said that: “I have very hopeful plans that 2021 opens up places, borders and doors and we all get to travel within India and around the world. I really miss travelling and if my Instagram posts are not enough evidence for that then I don’t know what else is.”

The travel enthusiast and foodie also added, “I can’t say it enough how much I miss travelling and eating food from all around the world and across India. We often talk about food on the sets of something very exciting that I am currently shooting for as it somehow always binds all of us together. How just within the realm of India there’s so much deliciousness in the form of different things, not just food but languages, culture and traditions. There’s so much to go, see, learn, and experience that this is just kind of holding you back from doing all these amazing things. All this is on a very personal level.”

“In terms of work, there are things in the pipeline. I have auditioned for a few projects and I am also reading scripts but you know when they happen is only when they happen. I will tell you about it once I am ready to!”

Also Read-Indian Cinema Carving Worldwide OTT Space

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Bollywood Films Lite Blogs

Alia Finds Best Way To Indulge In Sustainable Fashion

Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt believes switching up your fashion choices can contribute a lot towards sustainable fashion. She advocates passing on of clothes rather than throwing them out as the first step towards the right direction…writes Puja Gupta.

“You just have to switch up your choices, it’s as simple as that. You need to pass on your clothes to people instead of throwing them out. That is the most basic way to contribute. I never throw away my clothes at all. I pass them on,” Alia tells IANSlife.

“This is the best way you can indulge in sustainable fashion,” she adds. “Buying sustainable clothing is also an option, but sustaining that clothing and actually passing it on to people instead of throwing it away is probably the first step we have to do. These small choices contribute to a lifestyle change.”

Alia says she has passing on her clothes to her friends since she was young. She recalls: “When I used to grow out of certain clothes, I used to pass them on to my friends. I remember one day I was hanging out with my best friend, her cooks walks into the room wearing a t-shirt which I gave to her some three years ago. So, she passed my t-shirt on to her cook. I was so amazed with it. The memory still stays with me. Something you don’t use can be of extremely useful to somebody else.”

The ‘Highway’ actress recently launched her sustainable clothing line for called kids Ed-a-Mamma’. Commenting on her new venture, she tells IANSlife: “Ed-a-mama is a brand that cares about two things in particular — children and our planet.”

How did all start? Alia replies: “I was wanting to do something in this space. One day when we were all sitting together and I was enquiring about how I can start my own fashion label; I really don’t know anything about business but I realised that there’s no dearth of fashion labels for people of my age or above. I asked if there was a gap in the market and we noted that there’s a real need for a world class children’s clothing brand; a brand which is made in India. It immediately caught my attention.”

The label offers a range of apparel for both boys and girls and is made of plant-based, biodegradable natural fibres like cotton and linen. The brand uses scrap fabrics to make hair ties and potlis.

“I was working on a series of stories about a little girl and her dog, having different adventures, saving the planet from any ecological harm. The reason I was making those stories was to nurture in children a love for nature. If you start extremely young, then it becomes a part of their DNA, their personality and they go a long way in making the right choices in the future to not harm our environment. And then we decided to extend that into the universe,” Alia explains.
Adding: “Ed-a-mama is a universe. Our first offering is conscious clothing brands and we are going to extend this to stories, video series. So, it is constantly nurturing in children a love for nature; that is the brand’s story.”

“Also, every garment comes with little seed balls, waiting to be planted. It’s an activity for the child and parent to do together. The brand cares about children and the planet. It’s a playwear brand,” Alia informs.

Bhatt shares she is also part of the creative and designing team of the brand. “We are a start-up and everybody’s sort of doubling up and playing multiple roles.”

Also Read-Indian Cinema Carving Worldwide OTT Space