Hyderabad

Auto driver grows moving garden atop auto-rickshaw in Mahabubabad

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An advocate of greener planet, MP Santosh Kumar, took to X (formerly Twitter) to share photographs of  Anji, the auto driver who installed a mini garden on top of his auto rickshaw.

Published Date – 31 January 2024, 03:18 PM


Auto driver grows moving garden atop auto-rickshaw in Mahabubabad

Auto-driver Anji

Mahabubabad: An auto-rickshaw driver from Mahabubabad caught the attention of BRS Rajya Sabha MP J Santosh Kumar with a unique addition to his auto – a garden with flowering plants.

An advocate of greener planet, MP Santosh Kumar, took to X (formerly Twitter) to share photographs of  Anji, the auto driver who installed a mini garden on top of his auto rickshaw. The auto driver has also decorated his vehicle in a unique way as he replaced the seat covers with artificial grass.

Calling Anji an “eco-inspiration”, the MP posted: “Hats off to the amazing auto driver#Anji from Mahaboobabad turning his ride into a cool green oasis in this scorching summer heat! Growing plants atop his auto, he’s tackling urban heat in style, he’s not just a ride provider but an eco-inspiration! Can’t wait to meet this eco-warrior & express my admiration in person. #GreenRide #EcoHero #GreenIndiaChallenge. (sic.)”

Sports

Vishnu Saravanan clinches India’s first Paris 2024 sailing quota

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In the one-person dinghy event at the Adelaide Sailing Club, Saravanan earned 125 nett points over six days, securing the 26th position on the overall leaderboard.

Published Date – 31 January 2024, 03:00 PM


Vishnu Saravanan clinches India’s first Paris 2024 sailing quota


New Delhi: Indian sailor Vishnu Saravanan secured the country’s first Paris 2024 Olympics quota in sailing at the ILCA World Championship 2024 in Adelaide, Australia.

Competing in the one person dinghy event at the Adelaide Sailing Club, Saravanan accumulated 125 nett points over six days and secured the 26th position on the overall leaderboard. Notably, he claimed the fifth spot among eligible sailors to secure quota place for the Paris Olympics.

“Vishnu Saravanan has secured India’s 1st #ParisOlympics quota in Sailing at the ILCA 7 World Championship, held in Adelaide.

“Clinching one of the 7 Olympic quotas available at the event, #TOPScheme Athlete Vishnu outsailed many Asian sailors to finish 26th overall and secure the Paris berth,” Sports Authority of India shared the post on X.

In the 2023 World Sailing Championships held last year, Saravanan narrowly missed securing a spot for the Paris Olympics. Finishing 23rd in the overall race standings, he fell just seven places short of obtaining one of the 16 Paris quota places available.

The ILCA 7 Men’s World Championship served as a qualifying event for Paris 2024 with seven quotas on offer for countries which had not qualified for the Olympics earlier.

The other six quotas on offer at the Adelaide meet went to Guatemala, Montenegro, Chile, Denmark, Turkey and Sweden.

Last year, the 24-year-old won the bronze medal at the Asian Games in Hangzhou in the same sailing category.

Saravanan, who is a U21 World Championships bronze medallist from 2019, also represented India at Tokyo 2020, where he finished 20th in a field of 35.

In the Tokyo Olympics India had 4 representatives in sailing — Varun Thakkar, Nethra Kumanan, Saravanan K.C. Ganapathy.

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Probe Agency Officials At Hemant Soren's Ranchi Home, Day After "Missing" Drama

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Probe Agency Officials At Hemant Soren's Ranchi Home, Day After 'Missing' Drama

Ranchi:

An Enforcement Directorate team reached Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren‘s Ranchi home this morning, to question him in connection with a money laundering scam, over 48 hours after the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha leader went “missing” from his Delhi residence and “resurfaced” in his state.

Visuals from outside his home showed a large convoy of vehicles, some with security personnel inside, driving up to the main gate and being stopped by armed security personnel from Mr Soren’s side, including those in suits.

There appeared to be some commotion as the men in suits (presumably his personal security) spoke to those in the first car. Seconds later the vehicle, it appears to be a Toyota Fortuner, drives through the gates, followed by the others.

The probe agency’s officials are likely to find Mr Soren flanked by MLAs from his JMM, news agency PTI has said; Agriculture Minister, Badal Patralekh, said the party stands “behind the Chief Minister”.

Mr Soren, 48, had earlier been questioned on January 20, after which the agency issued a second summons for this week. Sources told ANI said the agency offered him two dates – January 29 or 31.

The agency, sources within which said the first interrogation had not been completed, said it would take action on its own if no date was selected. Last week the Jharkhand leader said he would be available at his Ranchi home 1 pm on January 31.

However, before that there was drama and controversy, with Mr Soren flying into Delhi Saturday in a private plane, and then disappearing from his home in the national capital by Sunday night.

He reportedly took a secretive nearly 1,300-km road trip back home.

READ | Hemant Soren’s 1,300 km Delhi-Ranchi Car Journey, Evading Probe Agency

The ED, meanwhile, turned up at in Delhi home early Monday (January 29), didn’t find him, and searched the building, allegedly finding Rs 36 lakh in cash, which was seized, as was his luxury SUV.

READ | Plane In Delhi, BMW Seized, ‘Missing’ Hemant Soren Pops Up In Ranchi

Mr Soren is being questioned as part of an investigation into a “huge racket of illegal change of ownership of land by the mafia” in Jharkhand, ED officials have said. Fourteen people have been arrested in this case so far.

Amid speculation Mr Soren could be the 15th, the Chief Minister’s wife was spotted at a meeting of party legislators in Ranchi Tuesday evening, leading to talk she might be installed in the top job should her husband be jailed.

READ | Hemant Soren’s Wife May Be Named Chief Minister If He’s Arrested

The JMM has said it will back Ms Soren, but there are legal hurdles since she is not a member of the Assembly and there is no time for a bypoll.

With input from agencies

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World

US troops in Iraq reportedly to support Zionists war on Gaza

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Referring to a January US Air Force personnel memo, The Intercept reported that the US troops have been ordered to be on standby to be forward deployed in case of US military ground involvement in the Gaza war.

The memo did not indicate that such an involvement is forthcoming; however, it is the latest intimation of the Pentagon’s preparations to support Israel’s genocidal war in the wake of Palestinian Resistance movement Hamas’s October 7 operation into the occupied territories, the report suggested.

The document revealed that around 2,000 US military personnel were deployed to Iraq last year days after Hamas carried out the surprise operation against Tel Aviv, adding that since then, they have been put on prepare-to-deploy orders for potential support to the Israeli regime.

The latest development comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration has stressed that its support for Israel in the Gaza war would not include boots on the ground.

The Israeli regime waged the war on Gaza on October 7 after Hamas carried out the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the occupying entity in response to the Israeli regime’s atrocities against Palestinians.

More than 26,700 Palestinians, some 70 percent of whom are women, children, and adolescents, have been killed in the brutal onslaught so far.

The United States has been providing Israel with unbridled military and political support in its onslaught against Gaza, arming Tel Aviv with more than 10,000 tons of military hardware. The US has also torpedoed the prospect of cessation of the Israeli aggression by stonewalling ratification of all United Nations Security Council resolutions that have been calling for a permanent ceasefire in the Israeli aggression.

MP/PR

India

Delhi police apprehend culprit involved in making pro-Khalistani graffiti

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In a similar incident in August last year, the Delhi Police Special Cell detained two persons from Punjab in connection with pro-Khalistan graffiti and slogans painted at more than five metro stations in Delhi on August 27, 2023.

Published Date – 31 January 2024, 12:45 PM


Delhi police apprehend culprit involved in making pro-Khalistani graffiti


New Delhi: The culprit who was involved in making pro-Khalistani graffiti in Delhi’s Tilak Nagar area has been arrested by Delhi police, said an official on Wednesday. The apprehended accused had made graffiti saying “Delhi Banega Khalistan” (Delhi will become Khalistan). Further details into the matter are still awaited. In a similar incident in August last year, the Delhi Police Special Cell detained two persons from Punjab in connection with pro-Khalistan graffiti and slogans painted at more than five metro stations in Delhi on August 27, 2023. The Delhi Police released CCTV footage in connection with pro-Khalistan graffiti and slogans painted at more than 5 metro stations in Delhi.

A case was registered after the walls of several metro stations across Delhi were found defaced with pro-Khalistan slogans ahead of the G20 Summit hosted in the national capital under India’s presidency. According to the Delhi Police official, the case was registered under Section 153 A, Section 505 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and the Defacement Act. “We received information about slogans at Nangloi PS at 11 am. A case has been registered, and an investigation has been initiated. (Slogans) have been written at 4 metro stations. A case registered under sections 153 A, 505, and the Defacement Act,” Commissioner of Police (Metro) G Ram Gopal Naik told ANI.

Section 153A criminalises and punishes making statements, speeches, or acts that have the effect of disturbing public tranquilly or law and order by promoting enmity or creating fear or alarm between classes of people on the basis of differences in religion, caste, language, or place of birth. Section 505, on the other hand, criminalises making statements, reports, or rumours that encourage members of the armed forces or a police officer to refuse to perform their duty, encourage a person to commit offences against the state or disturb public tranquilly, and incite persons to disturb public tranquilly. In pictures shared by Delhi Police, slogans were seen inscribed on the walls of Metro stations, reading “Delhi Banega Khalistan” and “Khalistan Zindabad”.

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Will Nitish Kumar's U-Turn Help NDA In Polls? What Bihar Survey Says

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Nitish Kumar quit the Opposition alliance Sunday and returned to NDA

New Delhi:

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s latest volte-face may have exposed him to a fresh wave of criticism over his string of flip-flops, but has improved the BJP’s prospects months before the Lok Sabha polls, an NDTV Prashnam survey has found.

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The survey, conducted on a sample size of nearly 4,000 people, suggests that the Bihar reversal is likely to translate into an advantage for the BJP in the general election. About 53 per cent of the people participating in the survey said they would vote for the BJP-JDU alliance in the upcoming polls. About 23 per cent said they would back the RJD-Congress bloc. The remaining were divided between supporters of other parties and those who were still undecided.

Latest and Breaking News on NDTV

Asked what would have been their choice if the Mahagathbandhan of JDU, RJD and Congress was still intact, 35 per cent of those in the survey said they would have backed the Opposition bloc. This was matched by those who said they would back the NDA anyway.

This suggests that Mr Kumar’s flip-flop may have turned the poll fight from a neck and neck contest to the NDA’s advantage.

About 73 per cent of NDA voters said they would back the BJP-JDU alliance after the Bihar reversal, indicating that BJP voters have largely accepted Mr Kumar’s return to the NDA fold.

Not just the Lok Sabha polls, Mr Kumar’s switch may bring dividends to the BJP in the Assembly polls next year too, the survey found. 

About 54 per cent of those part of the survey said they would back the BJP0-JDU alliance in the state polls. Twenty-seven per cent opted for the RJD-Congress team.

In contrast, 41 per cent said that they would have voted for the Mahagathbandhan in 2025 if it remained intact. About 38 per cent said they would side with NDA anyway.

The survey also tried to decode if Mr Kumar, who has gone from being a ‘sushashan babu’ to being the flagbearer of flip-flops, still enjoys popular support.

About 36 per cent of the Opposition alliance voters said they would back the nine-time Chief Minister anyway in the Lok Sabha polls. For the assembly polls, this went up to 46 per cent. Seventy per cent of those in the survey said they would support the BJP-JDU alliance in 2025 now that Mr Kumar had switched over.

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Aamir Khan to visit Japan for son Junaid’s upcoming film

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The film captures the picturesque landscapes of Sapporo, a location that has never been showcased on the silver screen before.

Published Date – 31 January 2024, 02:41 PM


Aamir Khan to visit Japan for son Junaid’s upcoming film


Mumbai: Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan is set to visit Japan to gauge the progress of his elder son, Junaid Khan’s second film which is yet-to-be-titled. As per a well placed source, after wrapping a shoot schedule in Mumbai, the production unit has moved to Japan to shoot the next schedule.

The film captures the picturesque landscapes of Sapporo, a location that has never been showcased on the silver screen before. It is considered the cultural, economic, and political center of Hokkaido.

A source close to the project shared: “While Aamir sir is in Mumbai, he is in constant touch with the team to take updates on how everything is progressing on the film. He is extremely gung ho about this film and is also planning a quick trip to Japan to see how it’s all shaping up.”

The film is being produced by Aamir Khan Productions. Meanwhile, Junaid, who has worked in theatre for over seven years, is set to make his Hindi film debut with ‘Maharaj’. ‘Maharaj’ is a period epic directed by Siddharth P. Malhotra, and produced by Aditya Chopra.

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Furious farmers continue EU protests against falling incomes, rising imports

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Widespread discontent among farmers across Europe has exploded into angry protests and blockages of ports and roads in recent weeks against low prices, European Union (EU) agricultural regulations, and unfair competition from cheap imports.

On Tuesday, French farmers, protesting for more than two weeks, blocked major highways with their tractors near Paris while partly blocking access to Toulouse airport, for not being paid enough and being choked by the EU’s excessive regulation on environmental protection.

Producers in the rest of the EU also share the same grievances.

Italian farmers gathered for the third day in a row with their tractors at a motorway exit near Rome on Tuesday, to protest in defense of Italy’s agricultural sector.

They protested EU agricultural policies, increased production costs, higher taxation and lower incomes, and reduced diesel benefits.

“Agriculture is failing,” said Antonio Monfeli, one of the protest organizers, stressing that they are ready to drive their tractors into Rome if they are not listened to.

“Why are farmers the last in line that cannot have a decent life? This is due to Europe, of course, but we cannot talk to Europe; we have to talk to our government, to our national authorities, who instead of protecting us, put in the budget the possibility of feeding us cricket flour or other rubbish that I don’t even want to list,” Monfeli said.

Protesting farmers continued to block roads with tractors in Belgium on Tuesday vowing to keep protesting if their demands aren’t met by their government.

The Belgian farmers closed the main roads into the port of Zeebrugge, the country’s second-largest port, saying the blockade will go on for at least 36 hours.

Many say protesters aim to block Brussels on Thursday — the day EU leaders gather in the capital for a pre-planned summit.

Barbed wire and barriers were erected around the European Parliament in Brussels as protesting farmers held a rally.

Spanish farmers said they would join the movement and organize protests in February.

Earlier this month Berlin was brought to a near standstill as one of its central avenues filled with trucks and tractors.

Why are European farmers protesting?

The farmers argue that a push by governments and retailers to bring down food inflation has left many producers unable to cover high costs for energy, fertilizer, and transport.

A government plan to phase out a tax break for farmers on diesel fuel, as part of a wider energy transition policy, was also a flashpoint.

Another issue that has fanned discontent about unfair competition in sugar, grain, and meat is large imports from Ukraine.

The EU has waived quotas and duties since Russia began its special military campaign in Ukraine and renewed negotiations to conclude a trade deal between the EU and South American bloc Mercosur.

Angry farmers say while the imports pressure the European prices, they do not meet environmental standards imposed on EU farmers.

They blame their earnings squeeze partly on green policies including pesticide bans and nitrogen emissions curbs.