US to push for $15 bn fighter jet deal with India

US to push for $15 bn fighter jet deal with India

New Delhi, June 5: Hardly a week since Modi government took over for second term, a top US functionary will be arriving here on Wednesday and is likely to interact with new External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar and others to discuss defence partnership and also take steps for "furthering opportunities for American industry" and push for $15 billion fighter jet deal.

"Talks will focus on supporting India's role as a major defence partner, expanding our security cooperation, and furthering opportunities for American industry," an US statement has said here disclosing about the three-nation crucial tour of Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs R. Clarke Cooper to India, Singapore and Sri Lanka.

"In India, Assistant Secretary Cooper will hold talks on defense cooperation and peacekeeping, two key areas of the rapidly growing US-India partnership as envisioned in the Administration's Indo-Pacific Strategy. The US-India bilateral defence trade has risen from virtually zero in 2008 to $15 billion today," the statement said.

According to sources, the visiting US dignitary is likely to meet Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and also Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday. Cooper's visit is also seen as an 'important prelude' for the much talked trip of the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is likely to visit India in June prior to the two-day G20 Summit to be held in Japan.It has been given to understand that the Indian Air Force is in urgent need of upgraded fighter jets but the Modi government had laid emphasis earlier to 'procure' the jets under its 'Make in India' initiative. But such strategies will be time-consuming only.

The Donald Trump administration is hopeful that the deal will prove to be "favourable" for the US. The US has reacted positively to the appointment of S Jaishankar, a known hand in dealing with Indo-US ties, as India's new foreign minister.

Ken Juster, US envoy to India, had tweeted on June 2, - "Congratulations to Dr S Jaishankar on your appointment as Minister of External Affairs of India. You have been a key architect of the US-India strategic partnership, and we look forward to continuing to strengthen our relationship. US-India-Dosti".

The official statement from the US government also said: "In Sri Lanka, Assistant Secretary Cooper will meet with government officials and think tank experts to discuss security, peacekeeping, clearance of landmines and unexploded ordnance, counter terrorism, and other areas of mutual interest". UNI

Hrithik Roshan's Bihari Accent In Super 30 Trailer Grabs The Attention Of Trollers

Hrithik Roshan's Bihari Accent In Super 30 Trailer Grabs The Attention Of Trollers

The trailer of Hrithik Roshan starrer Super 30 dropped a few hours ago after a long wait. Hrithik can be seen talking in Bihari accent in the film as he is playing a Bihari teacher who teaches economically week students for free. The film is based on the real-life story of Anand Kumar whose maximum students crack IIT entrance exam.

Anand Kumar, under the banner of Ramanujan School of Mathematics, started a program called Super 30 in 2002. Under this program, he would select 30 meritorious but poor students and prepare them for the engineering entrance exams.

However, people are not liking Hrithik's role as he doesn't seem to fit in the character. Twitterians are making fun his Bihari accent.

RBI enters top-10 list in gold reserves

RBI enters top-10 list in gold reserves

Data published by the World Gold Council shows the RBI bought 12.1 tonnes of gold from the open market from January this year.

Chennai: Having increased its gold holdings by 3.7 tonnes in March, the Reserve Bank of India has entered the top-10 list of central banks with the highest yellow metal reserves.

Data published by the World Gold Council shows the RBI bought 12.1 tonnes of gold from the open market from January this year. It had purchased 6.5 tonnes in January, 1.9 tonnes in February and 3.7 tonnes in March. Till February, India stood at the 11th position in terms of gold reserves with 608. 8 tonnes.

After buying 3.7 tonnes in March it has pushed the Netherlands to 11th to secure a slot in the top-10 list.

As on May 30, RBI has 612.6 tonnes of gold holdings and the Netherlands central bank, 612.5 tonnes.

US tops the list with 8,133.5 tonnes and gold accounts for 74.6 per cent of the total reserves of its central bank. Germany with 3,367 tonnes has 69.9 per cent of reserves in the form of gold and Italy with 2,451 tonnes has 65.5 per cent gold reserves. France, Russia, China, Japan and Switzerland too are in the top 10 list.

India had increased its gold holdings in 2018 also by 42.3 tonnes. India has been buying gold in trickles from the open market since Q3 2017. After buying 200 tonnes in November 2009, the reserves were stagnant at 557.7 tonnes for a long time.

However, even after adding 3.7 tonnes in March, the share of gold in the total reserves of RBI slipped to 6.1 per cent against 6.2 per cent earlier. The total reserves of RBI have moved up to $415,780 million in Q1 2019 against $399,116 million in Q4 2018, bringing down the share of gold.

In the first quarter of 2019, the value of the gold holdings went up to $25,512 million against $24,690 million in the fourth quarter of 2018.

IAF aircraft still missing as Navy, ISRO join search

IAF aircraft still missing as Navy, ISRO join search

The AN-32, which took off from Assam's Jorhat on Monday at around 12.30 pm, was scheduled to land at the Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground in Arunachal Pradesh's newly-formed district Shi Yomi at approximately 1.30 pm.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) AN-32 aircraft, which went missing with 13 people on board over Arunachal Pradesh on Monday, was still not found a day later even as massive search operations were underway for the Soviet-designed aircraft, officials said Tuesday evening.

The AN-32, which took off from Assam's Jorhat on Monday at around 12.30 pm, was scheduled to land at the Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground in Arunachal Pradesh's newly-formed district Shi Yomi at approximately 1.30 pm. The aircraft's last contact with ground staff was at 1 pm.

Shi Yomi borders China to the north and is one of the remotest locations in the Himalayan state.

An Indian Navy aircraft and ISRO satellites joined the search for the missing AN-32 on Tuesday, while the Army, the ITBP and the district police continued the hunt on the ground.

The official Twitter account of the IAF posted, '#SearchAndRescue Ops: #IAF continues extensive efforts to locate the missing #AN32. P-8 I of #IndianNavy, satellites like RISAT and aircraft equipped with multiple sensors have joined the concerted efforts to locate the missing aircraft. Continuous coordination is being carried out with Indian Army & various govt & civil agencies.'

Meanwhile, the Indian Navy tweeted, 'Long Range Maritime Reconnaisance aircraft P8i takes off from INS Rajali, Arakonam, Tamil Nadu at 1300h and heads for joining the Search & Rescue operation launched by @IAF_MCC to locate the missing #AN32 between Jorhat & Mechuka. Aircraft to reach in area shortly. The aircraft shall carry out search with Electro Optical and Infra Red (EO & IR) sensors in thickly forested areas. The P8i aircraft has a very powerful Synthetic Aperture Radar which shall be utilised during the SAR sweeps to locate the missing.'

IAF public relations officer Wing Commander Ratnakar Singh said the search and rescue operation resumed as the weather cleared on Tuesday morning, with two Mi17s and one ALH helicopter assisting the Army and ITBP jawans. Singh later told The Indian Express, 'Search and rescue operation is still on. No wreckage found.'

He said that the Navy's P8i finished the search and rescue operation and recce mission at 6.45 pm, while the IAF's SU-30 carried out the search and rescue operation in the afternoon.

Singh added, 'CARTOSAT AND RISAT satellites of ISRO are also taking images of the area. Post sunset, search by helicopters have ceased for the day. However, search by all sensors with night capability and the ground party will continue throughout the night. All possible assistance is being provided by Indian Army, Indian Navy, Police and State administration. The families of all air-warriors on board the aircraft have been informed and are being regularly updated on the progress of search for the missing aircraft.'

The Indian Express has learned from district administration officials and state police officials that search operations are intense in Arunachal's Siang district. 'It is not confirmed but it is quite possible that the plane crashed in our district and hence search operations are on in full swing,' a police officer in Siang said.

Pitch invader steals the show at UEFA Champions League final; see video

Pitch invader steals the show at UEFA Champions League final

The woman ran from the Liverpool end and made it as far as the halfway line in the 18th minute.

Mumbai: A female pitch invader interrupted the first half of the UEFA Champions League final between Liverpool and Tottenham at the Wanda Metropolitano.

The woman ran from the Liverpool end and made it as far as the halfway line in the 18th minute. The game had to be stopped for a minute due to this incident.

The streaker was later identified as a Russian swimsuit model Kinsey Wolanski, who is an Instagram model and her handle is @kinsey_sue.

Inside pictures of Shah Rukh's son AbRam's birthday party

Inside pictures of Shah Rukh's son AbRam's birthday party

New Delhi, News24 Bureau, June 2: Shah Rukh Khan's little munchkin AbRam Khan turned a year older recently and King Khan hosted a grand party for his darling son. AbRam turned six on May 27, 2019 and Shah Rukh hosted an Avengers-themed birthday party for his little one. AbRam's birthday pics are going viral on the internet. Interestingly, AbRam's sibblings Suhana and Aryan were also present at the grand birthday celebration.
Undoubtedly, AbRam is one of the cutest star-kids in the tinsel town and his loved ones including father Shah Rukh, mom Gauri, sister Suhana Khan and brother Aryan Khan keep sharing love-dovey pics and videos of their lovely moments spend together on social media platforms.
Gauri keep sharing pics of her kids AbRam, Suhana and Aryan on her Instagram account and they are simply too adorable to be missed.

Recently, on the occasion of filmmaker and producer Karan Johar's birthday, Gauri wished him in a special way by sharing pic of AbRam along with KJo's son Yash and Roohi. In the pic, AbRam, Yash and Roohi can be seen having gala time in a pool and playing together. Meanwhile, Gauri can also be seen in the pic and she is enjoying with all three kids.

IIT postgraduate held for running fake website offering free laptops

IIT postgraduate held for running fake website offering free laptops

New Delhi | An IIT postgraduate was held for allegedly running a fake website carrying pictures of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and duping people in the name of "Free Laptop Government Scheme on the Occasion of Re-election of New Government", police said Sunday.
Rakesh Jangid (23), IIT postgraduate of 2019 batch, was arrested from his hometown Pundlota in Rajasthan's Nagaur district, they said.
Over 15 lakh people were exposed to the con job within two days. The fake website offering the bogus scheme was promoted using instant messaging apps and became viral on Whatsapp, police said.
According to the police, the accused used fake promotional multimedia message using 'Make in India' logo and picture of the prime minister on the website to lure people to register themselves for getting free laptops.
He also intended to capture personal data of millions of citizens in the name of registration and use that for illegal monetary gains.
The Cyber Crime Unit of Delhi Police - CyPAD received information that someone had created and hosted a website by the domain name www.modi-laptop.wishguruji.com which was promising distribution of millions of free laptops on the occasion of the formation of Modi's new government, a senior police officer said.
A criminal case under the IT Act was registered and an investigation was taken up using technical assistance from labs of CyPAD, he said.
During interrogation, the accused disclosed that he had created the website to earn web advertising revenue from increased website traffic. He was aiming to capture personal data of millions of people which could be later traded to various cyber criminals to cheat the victims and extort money from them on various pretexts, the senior officer said.
The accused had cleverly used Google Adsense, a program that allows bloggers and website owners to make money by displaying Google ads, he said.
Jangid was offered a job in a private company in Hyderabad. However, he took to crime to make easy money, the officer said.
Investigation of the case is in progress, police said, adding efforts are being made to identify the involvement of others in the scam.

Jaishankar makes China smile

Jaishankar makes China smile

Beijing, June 1: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has congratulated Indian's new External Minister S. Jaishankar and said New Delhi's former envoy to Beijing has done good to Sino-India ties.

In a late Friday night statement to IANS, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said Wang had sent a congratulatory message to Jaishankar who was surprisingly inducted as the Foreign Minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's new government.

Jaishankar has also served as India's Foreign Secretary, the country's top diplomatic post.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said as India's top diplomat and envoy to China, Jaishankar "made positive contributions to the development of Sino-Indian relations".

"China is willing to work with India to implement the consensus of the leaders of the two countries and promote new progress in China-India relations and pragmatic cooperation in various fields to better serve the two peoples."

Mandarin speaker, Jaishankar served as India's envoy to Beijing from 2009 to 2013.

He is said to have played an instrumental role in resolving the military stand-off between both the countries in Doklam in 2017.

Here is what happened when Deepika Padukone caught Ranbir Kapoor red-handed

Here is what happened when  Deepika Padukone caught Ranbir Kapoor red-handed

Deepika Padukone and Ranbir Kapoor's alleged love story and their ugly break-up left fans shocked as the ex-couple was going to get engaged soon. The couple met in 2007 and reportedly fell in love on the sets of Bachna Ae Haseeno in 2008.

Now, Deepika and Ranbir are a perfect example of ex-lovers turning friends as they are currently working in movies too unlike other ex-couples.

Their relationship was short-lived as Deepika admitted to having caught Ranbir cheating on her, and Ranbir soon was paired with Katrina Kaif.

In an interview with a leading magazine, Deepika opened up about the reason for their break up.

The actress said, "For me, sex is not just about physicality; there are emotions involved. I have never cheated or strayed when I'm in a relationship. If I'm going to be fooling around, why would I be in a relationship? It's better to be single and have fun. But not everyone thinks like that. Maybe that's why I've been hurt in the past. I was foolish enough to give him a second chance because he begged and pleaded, despite the fact that everyone around me said he was still straying. Then I actually caught him red-handed. It took me a while to get out. But having done that, nothing can make me go back. That ship has sailed."

Deepika also talked about Ranbir Kapoor's infidelity in the interview. Deepika said, "The first time he cheated on me, I thought there was something wrong with the relationship, or me." She further said, "But when someone makes a habit of it, you know the problem lies with him. I give a lot in relationships and don't really expect much in return."

According to Deepika infidelity is a deal breaker. "But, infidelity is the deal breaker. Once it comes in, respect goes away, trust goes away and these are the pillars of a relationship you can't f*ck around with it," the 'Piku' actress said. 

Deepika is currently married to Ranveer Singh. On the other hand, Ranbir Kapoor is allegedly dating Alia Bhatt and have been making headlines whenever they are seen in public together.

Chinese Woman Gives Birth to Twins From Different Fathers; Here's the Science Behind This Rare Occurrence

Chinese Woman Gives Birth to Twins From Different Fathers; Here's the Science Behind This Rare Occurrence

In an extremely rare case, a woman gave birth to a pair of twins from two different fathers. The woman from Xiamen City, China, reportedly given birth to twins from separate fathers, one of which is her husband and the other one was her one-night stand partner. According to Chinese news sites, Ms Zhang, director of the Fujian Zhengtai Forensic Identification Centre, checked the paternity test results for the twins and revealed that in a very rare case the woman had given birth to actually twins from different fathers each. The woman's husband had a doubt in his head when he noticed the twins looked very different at birth.

While one of the two babies looked exactly like him, the other one looked completely different and that made him request a DNA test. Reportedly the woman later accepted that she had a one-night stand with another man. The couple later went to register the birth of the twins at a local police station for which they needed a paternity test. After this, the whole story went public, as per reports. The woman reportedly also try to cover up for her actions by accusing her husband of distorting the test results.

Science Behind Giving Birth to Twins with Different Fathers

A condition wherein a woman gives birth to twins from two different fathers is biologically extremely rare. Such a phenomenon is called heteropaternal superfecundation wherein either a woman has sex with two separate partners in an extremely short timespan, or if the woman releases two eggs in a difference of just a few days in the same reproductive cycle. In the second case, the occurrence only takes place if the woman has sex with different partners in the same reproductive cycle. During superfecundation, the fertilization of two or more ova by sperm from two different acts of sexual intercourse, from the same cycle can lead to twin babies from two separate biological fathers.

In the case of triplets, however, there is a possibility of having triplets could have identical twins from the same egg and a third child from an entirely different egg and sperm. However, the occurrence is extremely rare and usually, the average changes are about 2 percent.

NASA hires three companies to send equipment to Moon from 2020

NASA hires three companies to send equipment to Moon from 2020

The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration announced on Friday that it is planning to send equipment to the lunar surface in 2020 and 2021. The equipment will be used to carry out scientific investigations and demonstrate advanced technologies so that astronauts can land on the Moon by 2024, the space agency added.

The agency has selected three American companies - Astrobotic, Intuitive Machines, and Orbit Beyond - to send the equipment to the Moon as part of the Artemis lunar exploration programme.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said the selection of the three commercial landing service providers was a huge step forward for the lunar exploration plans.

Next year, our initial science and technology research will be on the lunar surface, which will help support sending the first woman and the next man to the Moon in five years," he added.

NASA said each of the landing service providers would carry specific instruments to the Moon. The potential payload will include instruments for conducting new lunar science, analyse what impact lander and astronaut activity has on the Moon, and help with navigation precision, among other things.

Pittsburg-based Astrobotic will take payloads to Lacus Mortis, a large crater on the near side of the Moon, by July 2021. Orbit Beyond will reach Mare Imbrium, a lava plain in a crater, by September 2020 while Intuitive Machines will land by July 2021 on Oceanous Procellarum, a dark spot on the Moon. SpaceX's Falcon 9 rockets will launch both Orbit Beyond and Intuitive Machines but Astrobotic is yet to settle on a delivery rocket, NASA said.

The three companies have been given $77 million (Rs 535 crore) to $97 million (Rs 674 crore) each to develop their landers. "Investing in these commercial landing services also is another strong step to build a commercial space economy beyond low-Earth orbit," Bridenstine said.

President Donald Trump's administration has been pushing to send humans to the Moon. In May, the government declared that American astronauts would be back on the Moon in five years, four years ahead of the former target of 2028, The New York Times reported. On May 13,that his administration would update the budget to "include an additional $1.6 billion so that we can return to Space in a BIG WAY!"

NASA has often sent lunar probes into the orbit, but only two missions are active as of now, AFP reported. China has landed twice on the Moon, once in 2013 and once in January on the far side.

US President Trump backs Boris Johnson as next British prime minister

US President Trump backs Boris Johnson as next British prime minister

US President Trump has said former British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson would be an "excellent" choice as the next prime minister of the UK. He also suggested that the American wife of Prince Harry was "nasty."US President Donald Trump has once more waded into British domestic politics, giving his opinion on who he thinks would be a good successor to current Prime Minister Theresa May, who is set to resign on June 7. "I have actually studied it very hard.

I know the different players," he told The Sun tabloid in an interview published late on Friday. "But I think Boris would do a good job," he said, referring to New York-born former London Mayor Boris Johnson, who also served as British foreign secretary. "I think he would be excellent." Who is Boris Johnson, Brexit champion and wannabe British PM? Prized endorsements Trump told the newspaper that his endorsement had also been sought by other candidates for the position and that his good opinion would vastly raise any candidate's chance of being chosen.

"I don't want to say who but other people have asked me for endorsements, yes," he said. "I could help anybody if I endorse them. I mean, we've had endorsements where they have gone up for forty, fifty points at a shot." As in an interview before his first official visit to Britain last year, the US leader once more criticized the present prime minister, saying May had failed to assert British interests enough in negotiations to leave the European Union. "I think that the UK allowed the European Union to have all the cards.

And it is very hard to play well when one side has all the advantages," he said. May's resignation has come about because of her failure to produce any deal to bring Britain out of the EU that was acceptable to a parliamentary majority. The scheduled date of departure, initially March 29, has now been delayed to October 31. Lese-noblesse?

Trump also had harsh words to say about the wife of British Prince Harry, American former actress Meghan Markle, who had criticized the ex-reality show host during his 2016 presidential campaign. "What can I say? I didn't know that she was nasty," he said of the now Duchess of Sussex, adding, however, that she would do "excellently" in her royal role. Markle made comments on TV in 2016 in which she called Trump misogynistic and divisive, and even said she would move to Canada if he became president.

During his three-day visit to Britain starting Monday, the president will be meeting with other members of the royal family, including Queen Elizabeth II and Harry's father, Prince Charles, but no meeting with the duchess is planned. The US president went on to express confidence that he would receive a warm welcome in Britain, despite the protests that are expected to accompany his visit. "I think I am really - I hope - I am really loved in the UK," he said. Tracing Meghan Markle's 'German roots' tj/jm (AFP, dpa) Every evening, DW sends out a selection of the day's news and features. Sign up here.

Parthasarathy and Sankaran ran IL&FS as personal fiefdom

Parthasarathy and Sankaran ran IL&FS as personal fiefdom

New Delhi, June 1 (IANS) Did political patronage allow the IL&FS secret society to indulge in abashed and shameful abuse of power for years and years is a question that now has some answers. The damning Ministry of Corporate Affairs action expected to be taken report submitted (May 29, 2019) to SFIO on the basis of their overarching investigation is not just damning but extremely damaging for it reveals the extent of the all pervading malfeasance. More than that the IANS investigative series which alluded to widespread cronyism and wilful abuse of power has been confirmed with great detailing and to the last minutiae.Validating the hypothesis that the closed user group openly curried favour in a brazen case of cronyism, the report goes on to say that the management led by Ravi Parthasarathy and Hari Sankaran ran the shadow bank like a personal fiefdom -- "It is revealed that Ravi Parthasarathy and Hari Sankaran took hospitality from maverick businessmen and owner of Sterling Group C.  
Sivasankaran and used IL&FS group as their personal fiefdom to provide these wrongful gains to Sivasankaran illegally and by violating all the norms and policies of RBI and the company itself.The probe also revealed that IFIN (IL&FS Financial) being an NBFC was regulated by the guidelines and directions of the RBI. The lendings to group entities was governed by the credit concentration norms for the group entities and also the computation of net owned fund (NOF) wherein it was stipulated that if the exposure to a group entity is in excess of 10 per cent of NOF then the same was required to be deducted from NOF computation.However, investigation revealed that the lending of WIN to its groupcompanies increased significantly from the Financial Year 2012-13 onwards, with the lending percentage crossing double digits to 15 per cent of total loans and advances in the year.
In the subsequent years, it continued increasing and more than doubled to around Rs 5,200 crore, i.e. 37 per cent of total loans and advances in FY 2017-18.Furthermore the probe revealed that loans were approved by management of the IFIN (A2-A9) for Siva Group of Companies. It is revealed that the saidlending to Siva Group was approved fraudulently in furtherance ofthe connivance with C. Sivasankaran (A13), who was the controlling willand mind of all his group entities/Siva Group and he had close relationship with Ravi Parthasarathy (Accused 2) and Hari Sankaran (A3).Investigation revealed that the management of IFIN abused theirposition by giving the loans to Siva Group of Companies as some of thecompanies of Siva Group had failed to repay the earlier loans grantedto them by WIN. In the said process, interest of the IFIN was injuredas wrongful loss was caused to the Company and loan amount to the SivaGroup could not be recovered. It also caused wrongful gain to C.Sivasankaran 

'Rename MHA as Ministry of Providing Clean Chits', Karnataka Minister Attacks Home Minister Shah; BJP Retorts

'Rename MHA as Ministry of Providing Clean Chits', Karnataka Minister Attacks Home Minister Shah; BJP Retorts

New Delhi: As Amit Shah took charge as the country's Home Minister on Saturday, Priyank Kharge, Karnataka Minister and son of senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge suggested renaming the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) as 'Ministry of Providing Clean Chits'.

'Now that we have a new Home Minister, I think it is better to rename the Ministry of Home Affairs as Ministry of Providing Clean Chits,' Priyank tweeted. (Also Read: What Awaits Amit Shah in the Home Ministry and What Awaits the Nation)

Priyank Kharge

✔@PriyankKharge

Now that we have a new Home Minister, I think it is better to rename the Ministry of Home Affairs as Ministry of Providing Clean Chits.

218

9:20 AM - Jun 1, 2019

Twitter Ads info and privacy

215 people are talking about this

Reacting sharply to Priyank's comments, Bharatiya Janata Party leader BS Yeddyurappa said,'Because of Priyank Kharge, Mallikarjun Kharge lost over 1 Lakh votes.

He's speaking nonsense without any base. I condemn the statement.'

Earlier in the day, he was received at the North Block office of the home ministry by Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba and other senior officials. The home minister is also holding a meeting with the officials to familiarise with the issues concerning the ministry, an official said. Two newly appointed Ministers of state for home - G K Reddy and Nityananda Rai - also took charge Saturday.

Shah, the incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president makes his debut at the Centre being given the crucial Home Ministry, a portfolio he has handled as a state minister in Gujarat under the then CM Modi. Shah has succeeded Rajnath Singh, who is the new Defence Minister in Modi sarkar.

Team India trolled for 'fun day out in the woods'

Team India trolled for 'fun day out in the woods'

Team India trolled forLondon, June 1 (IANS) The Board of Control for Cricket in India tweeted images of the Indian team enjoying some quality time away from the nets before their 2019 World Cup campaign starts. The pictures were posted with a caption, "Snapshots from #TeamIndia's fun day out in the woods (sic.)"Immediately, there were hundreds of responses and most of them were from fans raising their concern over why the team was not spending time in the nets.

While some of the users simply asked, "Practice kaun karega? (who will practice)" others were a bit more colourful with their criticism of how the players were spending their time in England. A user attempted to remind them that they were there to play a World Cup and not to "enjoy picnic". One even said that it was okay if India did not win the World Cup but warned against losing any match to Pakistan.There were similar responses to the players' individual posts, as well.

Hardik Pandya in particular posted an image of the day on Instagram with the caption, "Real life PUBG." Replies to his post were mostly around fans wondering why he cropped out Jasprit Bumrah from the picture. It was not all brickbats though, with several responses to the critics stating that the team needs the downtime and that focussing too much on practice might put more pressure on the players. India will be facing South Africa in their opening game of the tournament on June 5. South Africa have already played one game -- the tournament opener against hosts England -- and they lost that match by 104 runs. --IANSrkm/in

(This story was auto-published from a syndicated feed. No part of the story has been edited by The Quint.)

ખેડૂતોને મોદી સરકારની મોટી ભેટ, 6 હજારની યોજનામાં કર્યા આ ફેરફાર

ખેડૂતોને મોદી સરકારની મોટી ભેટ, 6 હજારની યોજનામાં કર્યા આ ફેરફાર

મોદી સરકારની આજે પ્રથમ કેબિનેટ બેઠક યોજાઈ હતી. સૂત્રોના જણાવ્યા અનુસાર સરકારના પ્રથમ નિર્ણયમાં ખેડૂતોને મોટી ભેટ મળી છે. પ્રધાનમંત્રી કિસાન સમ્માન નિધિ (પીએમ-કિસાન) યોજનાનો વ્યાપ વધારી દેશના તમામ કિસાનોને આર્થિક સહાય આપવા અંગે મંજૂરી આપી છે. ખેડૂતોને અનુલક્ષીને બે મહત્વની જાહેરાત કરવામાં આવી છે.

આ યોજના હેઠળ અત્યાર સુધીમાં કુલ 12.5 કરોડ ખેડૂતો લાભ આપવામાં આવ્યો છે. જ્યારે આ યોજના હેઠળ બે હેક્ટર ધરાવતા માલીકોનો પણ નિયમ હટાવી દેવામાં આવતા તે લોકોને પણ આ યોજનાનો લાભ મળી શકશે. આજના નિર્ણય બાદ વધુ બે કરોડ ખેડૂતોને આ યોજનાનો લાભ મળશે. દર વર્ષે આ યોજના પાછળ કુલ 75,000 કરોડ રૂપિયાનો ખર્ચ થતો હતો, જે યોજનાનો વ્યાપ વધારાતા હવે તે ખર્ચ વધીને 87,000 કરોડ રૂપિયા થશે.


જમીન વિનાના ખેડૂતોને પણ આ યોજનામાં લાભ મળી શકે છે. આ ઉપરાંત 60 વર્ષથી વધુની ઉંમરના નાના અને મધ્યમ ખેડૂતોને પેન્શન આપવાનો નિર્ણય પણ લેવામાં આવી શકે છે. આ યોજનાની જાહેરાત સરકારે ગત વર્ષે તેના અંતિમ બજેટમાં કરી હતી. જેને લાગુ પણ કરી દેવામાં આવી છે અને પ્રથમ રાઉન્ડમાં 2.25 કરોડથી વધુ કિસાનોને આ યોજના હેઠળ નાણાં પુરા પડાયા છે. વાર્ષિક 3 ભાગમાં ખેડૂતોને રૂપિયા 6,000ની ચુકવણી કરવાશે. અત્યાર સુધી આ યોજનામાં બે હેક્ટર ધરાવતા જમીનના માલીક નાના અને મધ્યમ ખેડૂતોને જ સામેલ કરવામાં આવ્યા હતા, જેમાંથી બે હેક્ટર ધરાવતા જમીનના માલિકનો નિયમ હટાવી દેવામાં આવ્યો છે.

ચૂંટણી સંકલ્પ પત્રમાં ભાજપે દેશના તમામ ખેડૂતોને આ યોજનામાં સામેલ કરવાની જાહેરાત કરી હતી. સરકારે પ્રધાનમંત્રી કિસાન સમ્માન નિધિ યોજના માટે 75,000 કરોડ રૂપિયાની ફાળવણી કરી હતી. 2015ના ખેડૂતોની વસ્તી ગણતરી અનુસાર દેશમાં લગભગ 12.6 કરોડ નાના અને મધ્યમવર્ગના ખેડૂતો છે. પ્રધાનમંત્રી નરેન્દ્ર મોદીએ ચૂંટણી પ્રચાર દરમિયાન આ યોજનાનો વ્યાપ વધારીને તમામ ખેડૂતો સુધી પહોંચાડવાનું વચન આપ્યું હતું.

કેબિનેટની પ્રથમ પ્રેસ કોન્ફરમાં પ્રકાશ તાવડેકરે જણાવ્યું હતું કે, પશુઓના આરોગ્ય, બિમારી અને તેમના સ્વાસ્થ્ય માટે કેન્દ્ર સરકાર તરફથી રાજ્યોને કુલ 13,000 કરોડ રૂપિયા ફાળવવાનો પણ નિર્ણય કરવામાં આવ્યો છે. તો નાના વેપારીઓ અને દુકાનદારોને પણ ધ્યાને રાખી તે લોકોને પણ આગામી ત્રણ વર્ષમાં વિવિધ સહાયક યોજનાનો લાભ મળી શકે છે.

Spotboye Bollywood PIL Filed Against Salman Khan And Katrina Kaif's Bharat Title 31 May 2019, 4:38 pm Ahead of its release, Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif starrer Bharat is again making headlines and this time, its legally. It is reported that a petition has been filed against the film in Delhi High Court for hurting patriotic sentiments. From Priyanka Chopra's exit to Salman Khan getting miffed with PC, the film is making a lot of noise since the very beginning. According to a leading daily, the petition has been moved to Delhi High Court against Salman and Katrina's film Bharat title change. As per the petitioner, the name of the film is against Section 3 of the Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act. As per this act, the word 'Bharat' cannot be used for any professional and commercial purposes. The PIL doesn't end at the change in the title of Salman's film.

SpotboyeBollywood

PIL Filed Against Salman Khan And Katrina Kaif's Bharat Title

31 May 2019, 4:38 pm

Ahead of its release, Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif starrer Bharat is again making headlines and this time, its legally. It is reported that a petition has been filed against the film in Delhi High Court for hurting patriotic sentiments. From Priyanka Chopra's exit to Salman Khan getting miffed with PC, the film is making a lot of noise since the very beginning.

According to a leading daily, the petition has been moved to Delhi High Court against Salman and Katrina's film Bharat title change. As per the petitioner, the name of the film is against Section 3 of the Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act.

As per this act, the word 'Bharat' cannot be used for any professional and commercial purposes. The PIL doesn't end at the change in the title of Salman's film.