Armenian parliament votes in favor of joining ICC despite Russia's warning


Armenian lawmakers attend the session of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia in Yerevan, Armenia, on October 3, 2023. (Photo via AP)

Armenia’s parliament has ratified the founding Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, subjecting the country to the jurisdiction of The Hague-based ICC amid strained ties with Russia.

According to a spokeswoman for parliament, 60 deputies voted in favor of ratifying the founding treaty of the ICC, and to adopt a statement on retroactive recognition of ICC jurisdiction during the Tuesday session.

Twenty-two mainly opposition lawmakers voted against joining the ICC which has issued an arrest warrant for Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin over alleged war crimes during the war in Ukraine. Moscow has consistently described the arrest warrant as outrageous and legally void.

Last week, the Kremlin had warned that Armenia’s plans to sign up to the International Criminal Court would worsen a growing rift with Moscow.

Speaking to reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that in light of the ICC warrant for Putin’s arrest on war crimes charges, joining the international legal pact would be seen as “extremely hostile” toward Russia.

“Armenia knows very well that we are not parties to the [Rome Statute], and Armenia is well aware of the difficult decision adopted on the basis of this statute,” he cautioned.

Relations between Russia and Armenia have been badly strained over the war in Ukraine. Yerevan also says Moscow failed Armenia by not providing more assistance to avert the crisis over Karabakh.

Armenia’s neighbor Azerbaijan took full control of the breakaway region last month following a 24-hour military operation against pro-Armenian forces. Azerbaijan cited “systematic” shelling, “reconnaissance activities,” fortification of defensive positions, and “high-level of combat readiness” by Armenian-backed troops for its operation.

Karabakh, acknowledged as a part of Azerbaijan by the international community but populated by Armenians since 1992 when a separatist war broke out, has been at the center of a dispute between Baku and Yerevan for more than three decades.

KTR assures major beverage unit in Jagtial

IT Minister KT Rama Rao said on Tuesday that a unit of either PepsiCo or Coca-Cola would be established in Jagtial to help mango farmers if Dr Sanjay Kumar MLA was re-elected with a thumping majority.

Published Date – 05:30 PM, Tue – 3 October 23


KTR assures major beverage unit in Jagtial



Jagtial: IT Minister KT Rama Rao said on Tuesday that a unit of either PepsiCo or Coca-Cola would be established in Jagtial to help mango farmers if Dr Sanjay Kumar MLA was re-elected with a thumping majority.

The Minister, who handed over double bedroom houses to beneficiaries apart from inaugurating the District Police Office and the Integrated veg and meat market, said he would take the initiative to set up a soft drink manufacturing unit of either of the two companies since mango crop was being produced in a big way in the district.

Addressing a public meeting in Jagtial later, Rama Rao praised local legislature Sanjay Kumar for striving hard for the development of Jagtial constituency. Responding positively to requests made by the MLA, the Minister assured to prepare a Jagtial town master plan without any losses for farmers and also to lay an underground drainage network in the town. Though Jagtial was made a municipality in 1956, the condition of the town was in bad shape due to negligence of Congress leaders, he said.

Paddy was being cultivated in a big way in the district and it was routine practice to get water from SRSP canal by arranging motors. During the Congress regime, electricity officials used to cut off electric wires and throw motors into the canal leaving farmers in distress. Now, the situation has changed. The SRSP canal in the district was like a perennial river with reverse pumping of water from the Kaleshwaram project made possible by spending Rs.1,000 crore.

Stating that Jagtial was developed on all fronts, Rama Rao said there were earlier incidents of people waging agitations for junior and degree colleges. Now, besides sanctioning a separate district, a medical college was also sanctioned to Jagtial.

As senior Congress leader T Jeevan Reddy failed to develop the constituency, local people had elected Sanjay Kumar as the MLA, Rama Rao said, assuring more development if the legislator was reelected.

Trio win physics Nobel for illuminating electrons

The Nobel Academy said their studies had given humanity new tools for exploring the movement of electrons inside atoms, where changes occur in a few tenths of an attosecond – a unit so short that there are as many attoseconds in one second as there have been seconds since the birth of the universe.

The prize, which was raised this year to 11 million Swedish crowns (about $1 million), is awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

“The ability to generate attosecond pulses of light has opened the door on a tiny, extremely tiny, time scale and it’s also opened the door to the world of electrons,” said Eva Olsson, member of the Nobel Prize in Physics Selection Committee.

It was once thought that these changes in electrons could not be seen, but the use of attosecond pulses has changed this, Reuters quoted her as citing.

In an example of possible applications, the field held promise in areas such as a new in-vitro diagnostic technique to detect characteristic molecular traces of diseases in blood samples, the academy said.

MP/PR

Tough test awaits Bajrang Punia; Aman, Antim strong contenders for medals

First, it was Bajrang who sat on a dharna against the WFI chief and then witnessed sit-in protests organised against him in the villages of Haryana when he accepted exemption from the selection trials.

Published Date – 06:07 PM, Tue – 3 October 23


Tough test awaits Bajrang Punia; Aman, Antim strong contenders for medals



Hangzhou: Entering the Asian Games after copping widespread opprobrium for accepting a direct entry, Bajrang Punia‘s mental fortitude will be put to a stern test when he jumps straight to a high-level competition without real ‘mat-time’ in the last one year.

First, it was Bajrang who sat on a dharna against the WFI chief and then witnessed sit-in protests organised against him in the villages of Haryana when he accepted exemption from the selection trials.

The family of Vishal Kaliraman, who won the 65kg Asian Games trial, and the several panchayats were of the opinion that Bajrang should not go without competing in the trials.

Now that he has chosen to enter the Games without accepting the challenge of Kaliraman, the pride of the 2018 champion will be at stake.

More than that, the fact that he has not competed since the 2022 World Championships in Belgrade in September, Bajrang is terribly short of quality mat time. Competitions are crucial in testing fitness, skills and endurance and Bajrang would enter the Games without any real assessment.

His leg defence was already a ‘work in progress’ and it remains to be seen if the 18-day training stint in Kyrgyzstan in the run up to the Hangzhou Games has readied him enough for his title defence.

He will begin with a bout against Philippines’ Ronil Tubog and if he gets past him, Bajrang is expected to meet Bahrain’s Alibeg Alibegov in pre-quarters.

Bajrang’s category has quality performers, including the reigning Asian Champion and 2022 World champion Rahman Amouzadkhalili from Iran, against whom he is likely to meet in the semifinals.

“We worked hard in Kyrgyzstan. We practised with the national team of Kyrgyzstan. But nothing can replace the competition experience, so it will be a tough competition,” Sujeet Mann, Bajrang’s personal coach, told PTI.

“There are at least 4-5 wrestlers who are in top-8 in the world. Also the fact that smaller nations have now imported strong wrestlers and most of the wrestlers now train in Russia, the competition in wrestling has become really tough,” he added.

While Bajrang will be under pressure, Deepak Punia, who barely managed to win the trials, will also be watched keenly in the 86kg competition. He has also not done much after winning the 2022 CWG gold.

Aman Sehrawat will be a genuine medal contender in the 57kg category. His rise has been phenomenal in the last two years. He became the first Indian U23 world champion and is reigning Asian champion.

The wrestling competition begins from Wednesday with Greco Roman style, where India have not won a medal since the 2010 edition.

Ravinder Singh and Sunil Rana were the last Indian Greco Roman wrestlers to have climbed the podium in the premier continental event.

India can expect a good show from the women’s wrestlers. Led by Antim Panghal, the women’s squad is packed with strong contenders.

Panghal has been in red-hot form. After winning back-to-back U20 world championships, the 20-year-old from Hisar has already locked Paris Olympics quota after winning a bronze at the senior world championship.

Poja Gehlot and Mansi Ahlawat had also impressed in the selection trials. In the 2018 edition, India had won 2 gold through Bajrang and Vinesh Phogat while Divya Kakran had won a bronze.

Indian’s squads:

Greco Roman: Gyanender (60kg), Neeraj (67kg), Vikash (77kg), Sunil Kumar (87kg), Narinder Cheema (97kg) and Naveen (130kg).

Women’s freestyle: Pooja Gehlot (50kg), Antim Panghal (53kg), Mansi Ahlawat (57kg) Sonam Malik (62kg) Radhika (68kg) and Kiran (76kg).

Men’s freestyle: Aman Sehrawat (57kg), Bajrang Punia (65kg), Yash (74kg), Deepak Punia (86kg) Vicky (97kg) and Sumit (125kg).

Rain Washes Out India's Second ODI World Cup 2023 Warm-Up Match

India vs Netherlands: Rain Washes Out Indias Second Cricket World Cup 2023 Warm-Up Match

A view of Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram.© Twitter

India’s second World Cup warm up match against Netherland was washed out due to incessant rain at Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday. The game was abandoned without a ball being bowled. The hosts’ first warm up game against England also met with a similar fate in Guwahati last week. India is thus the only team that heads to the World Cup without batting or bowling in the warm up matches. India will open their campaign against Australia in Chennai on Sunday.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Topics mentioned in this article

Sri Laxminarasimha Swamy Lift Irrigation Scheme becomes reality

The much-awaited Sri Laxminarasimha Swamy Lift Irrigation Project l or the 2th package of the ambitious Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project, is all set to be inaugurated by Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister KT Rama Rao on Wednesday.

Updated On – 05:52 PM, Tue – 3 October 23


Sri Laxminarasimha Swamy Lift Irrigation Scheme becomes reality

The much-awaited Sri Laxminarasimha Swamy Lift Irrigation Project l or the 2th package of the ambitious Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project, is all set to be inaugurated by Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister KT Rama Rao on Wednesday.

Nirmal: There were days when agriculture fields in Nirmal remained dry even when the Godavari River was flowing through the district. Farmers were forced to dig bore wells spending huge amounts, courtesy the apathy of previous governments. However, with the BRS government laying special focus on improving irrigation facilities, things have changed in Nirmal now.

The much-awaited Sri Laxminarasimha Swamy Lift Irrigation Project l or the 2th package of the ambitious Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project, is all set to be inaugurated by Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister KT Rama Rao on Wednesday. The Rs.714 crore-facility can irrigate 50,000 acres in 99 villages of Nirmal Assembly constituency.

The work on the lift irrigation project began in 2008, but dragged on for over 10 years due to lack of funds. However, Chief Minister K Chadrashekhar Rao and Forest Minister Allola Indrakaran Reddy took special interest in the facility, expediting the work.

As a result, the project became a reality. The completion of the facility cheered farmers in Dilawarpur, Laxmanchanda, Soan and Mamada mandals. Under the first unit of this irrigation project, backwater of Sri Ram Sagar Project is lifted and is pumped to a delivery system at Madegaon in Dilawarpur mandal. Then, 140 cusecs of water is supplied from the delivery system to agriculture fields through a 29.50 kilometre-left plank canal of 140 cusecs. About 100 cusecs of water will be provided to farms by a 13.5 km right canal.

A second pump house, built as part of the second unit at the delivery system, can irrigate 5,000 acres situated on hillocks with the help of two canals. Another pump house constructed under the third unit will help lift water in a reservoir at Medipalli in Soan mandal. A 17.5 km left canal and 1.9 km right canal will be able to irrigate 13,000 acres in Nirmal Rural and Mamada mandals.

4.7 magnitude earthquake hits Afghanistan’s Fayzabad

The earthquake occurred at 16:29:08 (IST) on Tuesday. According to NCS, the earthquake struck at a depth of 10 kilometres

Published Date – 05:43 PM, Tue – 3 October 23


4.7 magnitude earthquake hits Afghanistan’s Fayzabad



Kabul: An earthquake of magnitude 4.7 on the Richter Scale jolted Afghanistan’s Fayzabad on Tuesday, the National Centre for Seismology (NCS) said.

The earthquake occurred at 16:29:08 (IST) on Tuesday. According to NCS, the earthquake struck at a depth of 10 kilometres.

Earthquake of Magnitude:4.7, Occurred on 03-10-2023, 16:29:08 IST, Lat: 36.54 & Long: 71.20, Depth: 10 Km ,Location: 85km SE of Fayzabad, Afghanistan, posted NCS on X.

Earlier, on September 16, an earthquake of magnitude 4.3 on the Richter Scale jolted Afghanistan’s Fayzabad, the National Center for Seismology (NCS) said.

The earthquake occurred at 10:58:08 (IST) on Saturday. According to NCS, the earthquake struck at a depth of 90 kilometres.

“Earthquake of Magnitude: 4.3, Occurred on 16-09-2023, 10:58:08 IST, Lat: 36.63 & Long: 71.67, Depth: 90 km , Location: 112 km ESE of Fayzabad, Afghanistan,” NCS had posted on X.

The National Center for Seismology (NCS) is the nodal agency of the Government of India for monitoring earthquake activity in the country. NCS maintains a National Seismological Network of 155 stations each having state-of-the-art equipment.

How Razorpay Magic Checkout Helped Shark Tank India Brands Boost Business

How Razorpay Magic Checkout Helped Shark Tank India Brands Boost Business

Razorpay Magic Checkout simplifies the final checkout process of online shopping

New Delhi:

When visiting an e-commerce website or an online store, a customer expects a hassle-free process to view, choose, add items to the cart and finally complete the checkout process to place the order. As the last step in the purchase journey, checkout is a crucial part of online shopping, and if it becomes cumbersome, the customer doesn’t hesitate to switch to some other site, which often results in low order conversion rates and high return to origin (RTO) rates of the online store. In fact, more than 70% of customers drop-off during the checkout process!

This is where Razorpay Magic Checkout comes into play.

It offers seamless and 5X faster checkout experience to shoppers by prefilling all their required contact, shipping & payment information from across the Razorpay network of 300Mn+ shoppers. The easy checkout process not only saves time and effort for the customers but has taken sales up for several businesses. Brands like VS Mani Co., Isak Fragrance, TagZ, Skippi, Hobby India, Sneakare, Recode and Barosi and many others, which featured on the Sony TV show Shark Tank India, saw their business grow by over 25%-35% after they opted for Razorpay Magic Checkout.

How does Razorpay Magic Checkout work?

Magic Checkout simply obviates the need for shoppers to fill lengthy forms, create store accounts and enter passwords over and over, making the process significantly less time consuming and easier. Customers can save their personal data and payment information safely with Razorpay once while checking out and forget about filling it in again the next time while shopping, on any brand!

It allows users to complete all steps such as applying coupons and selecting saved shipping addresses and payment methods including cash on delivery (COD).

How Razorpay Magic Checkout helped Shark Tank India brands

Barosi, a direct-to-consumer brand with an extensive range of ghee, honey, white butter, cold-pressed oils, and other products, was determined to take their products to households across India. However, there were several obstacles. Barosi struggled with high RTO and low net order conversion rates. After adopting Razorpay Magic Checkout, the order-completion process became 5x faster, and RTO rates went down, as did the operational hassles and logistical challenges. The cash flow and customer satisfaction improved significantly.

South Indian packaged food maker VS Mani & Co. is another brand that witnessed tremendous growth in its order conversion rate after upgrading to Magic Checkout last September. The checkout process on VS Mani & Co.’s website used to take anywhere between 1.5 to 3 minutes causing customers to abandon their carts. Magic Checkout drastically brought this time down and made the whole checkout process five times faster. This helped VS Mani & Co. take their order conversion rate 27% higher than before.

Perfume-maker Isak Fragrances ensured that their products were top quality but still faced RTO rates as high as 25% on COD orders. This was eating up their profits. The RTO Intelligence algorithm of Razorpay examined each order received by Isak Fragrances and offered suggestions. It even disabled the COD option for high-risk orders based on shoppers’ historic RTO patterns and successfully reduced the RTO from 25% to 10%.

National conference on Thalassemia in Hyderabad on Saturday, October 7

The national conference will feature experts, patients, caregivers, and doctors dedicated to combat Thalassemia and will be graced by two distinguished international speakers.

Published Date – 05:09 PM, Tue – 3 October 23


National conference on Thalassemia in Hyderabad on Saturday, October 7



Hyderabad: Thalassemia and Sickle Cell Society (TSCS) Hyderabad is organizing its 2nd National Conference to Combat Thalassemia on Saturday, October 7 with the theme “Aware, Share, Care, and Cure for Thalassemia”.

The national conference will feature experts, patients, caregivers, and doctors dedicated to combat Thalassemia and will be graced by two distinguished international speakers including Dr. Dimitrios Farmakis, Associate Professor, University of Cyprus Medical School, Greece and Dr. Lawrence Faulkner, BMT Specialist, Cure2children Foundation, Italy along with the management and staff of TSCS, the press release said.

The national conference on Thalassemia will also feature diverse sessions by industry experts, including informative panel discussions which will include topics like advancements in medical research and treatment to patient care and support systems.

Watch: Devastation, Cracks In Buildings In Nepal After 6.2 Earthquake

Two earthquakes, measuring 5.3 and 6.3 on the Richter scale, hit western Nepal this afternoon

New Delhi:

The 6.2 intensity earthquake that hit Nepal this afternoon has left behind a trail of massive destruction, bringing back horrifying flashbacks of the 7.8-magnitude quake that hit capital city Kathmandu in 2015.

Several buildings in the Bajhang district, in west Nepal close to Uttarakhand, have suffered major damages. Homes have collapsed, parts of buildings have crumbled and several more developed dangerous cracks fom the impact of the quake that struck at a depth of just five km. Massive cracks exposed the structural frames of several buildings.

Two successive earthquakes, measuring 5.3 and 6.3, hit western Nepal this afternoon. There are no reports of casualties so far.

According to a report in the Kathmandu Post, the first earthquake measuring 5.3 magnitude was recorded at 2:40 pm, which was followed by another of 6.3 magnitude at 3:06 pm in the Bajhang district.

Tremors from the quakes were felt not just in the country but also in Delhi and its adjoining areas. People were seen running out of buildings in the national capital, Gurgaon and in Noida.

Nepal falls in one of the most active tectonic zones of the world, making it extremely vulnerable to earthquakes. In 2015, a devastating 7.8 magnitude quake hit Nepal, killing nearly 9,000 people and wounding another 22,000. Over 800,000 houses and school buildings were damaged.