Bing search engine rebranded as ‘Microsoft Bing’

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Bing search engine rebranded as ‘Microsoft Bing’

The tech giant has rebranded its search engine as Microsoft Bing and the users will see a shift in the product which reflects the continued integration of its search experiences across the Microsoft family.

The new brand and logo ‘Microsoft Bing’ appear to have made their way to the Bing homepage too.

It makes sense as Microsoft is a much bigger brand than just Bing. The tech giant has also renamed its Office 365 offering as Microsoft 365.

The company has also rebranded Windows Defender to Microsoft Defender.

“Since launch, we’ve been working hard to expand the breadth of the program.

“Give with Bing is an extension of Microsoft Rewards – Microsoft Rewards lets you earn points simply by searching on Microsoft Bing, and Give with Bing lets you automatically donate those points to causes you care about,” said Jordi Ribas, CVP, Microsoft Bing Engineering.

Currently, Google dominates the search engine market. In June, Google had nearly 84 percent market share while Bing had only 6 percent (according to data from NetMarketShare).

Microsoft has also updated the Outlook for Android app to add Bing search integration to the long-press menu.

Some users who have Microsoft Outlook installed on their Android devices have noticed seeing a new option to perform a Bing search when selecting text.
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Kanika Dhillon asks how long will Rhea Chakraborty still have to be in jail

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Kanika Dhillon asks how long will Rhea Chakraborty still have to be in jail

Author-screenwriter Kanika Dhillon on Monday expressed concern over actress Rhea Chakraborty still being in jail.

“While d conspiracy theories r being mulled over- A young woman is still in Jail #rheachakroborty @Tweet2Rhea CBI has clearly stated no foul play… how long n under what charges can she be kept in jail- And denied bail?? @NCWIndia can anyone give some answers pls?!” tweeted Kanika, tagging the official account of the National Commission for Women.

Kanika’s tweet comes at a time when the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) forensic team has stated that Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput had committed suicide, ruling out murder.

Late Sushant Singh Rajput’s girlfriend Rhea and her brother Showik Chakraborty are among the 20 persons who have been arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) as part of the probe surrounding the drugs angle linked with Sushant’s death case. The siblings are currently in judicial custody till October 6.

Covid tests for ‘Naagin 5’ stars after co-actor Sharad Malhotra tests positive

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Covid tests for ‘Naagin 5’ stars after co-actor Sharad Malhotra tests positive

The shoot of the popular television show Naagin 5 has been stalled after actor Sharad Malhotra tested COVID positive.

His co-stars Surbhi Chandna, Mohit Sehgal, and Suchit Vikram Singh have undergone coronavirus tests. Mohit and Surbhi subsequently shared that they have tested negative.

Sharing a health update, Mohit wrote on Instagram about himself and his wife, actress Sanaya Irani: “I and @sanayairani both have been tested negative bit still to be sure of it. We will be performing the tests again by Tuesday or Wednesday. They say usually after 5 days of getting in contact with the COVID positive person the virus starts to spread in our body if it has to. I Will update soon.”

He urged fans to be “extra careful”.

“Stop pulling ur mask down and stop saying u won’t get it because u know what u r no different. Most of us are getting it. Please be ultra careful and take all the precautions,” he wrote.

Surbhi express relief, too. “It was important for me to keep my mind stable and sane because these few hours have been mentally exhausting especially the big stress was for the parents. Thank you and big love for the strength. #TestedNegative,” she wrote on Instagram Story.

Such shared a picture getting tested for the virus. ” ‘Naagin 5’ shoot has been stalled for a few days after some people found positive on our set,” Suchit wrote.

Centre: Panel made proposals for Sudarshan News, need to give it final opportunity

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Centre: Panel made proposals for Sudarshan News, need to give it final opportunity

The Centre on Monday informed the Supreme Court that the Inter-Ministerial Committee has given a recommendation and certain additional recommendations in connection with the Sudarshan Tv News program “UPSC Jihad”. The Centre said it is duty-bound to give one more opportunity to the news channel to make a representation in accordance with these recommendations.

A letter seeking adjournment was circulated by the Centre and a bench comprising Justices D Y Chandrachud, Indu Malhotra, and Indira Banerjee allowed it.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, contended before the bench that a show cause has been issued to the news channel on Monday based on the recommendations by the committee, and hearing on it would take place on Tuesday.

“The respondent Union of India respectfully submits that the said process is on-going and is at an advanced stage. It is stated that it is only after giving Sudarshan Tv News channel a final opportunity of hearing, the Central Government would be in a position to pass an order under sub-section (3) of Section 20 of the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995 “, said the letter.

The Centre emphasized that it is duty-bound to give one more opportunity to Sudarshan News, to make its representation on the recommendation given by the Inter-Ministerial Committee in general and in particular with respect to the additional recommendations made by the Inter-Ministerial Committee for future programs. “The said process is necessary to be complied with by the Central Government before passing its order so as to ensure complete compliance of natural justice”, said the letter.

The Centre informed the court that a reply was received by it from the news channel before the returnable date, and it was sent to the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) for its views and recommendation. “It is respectfully submitted that in pursuance of the said response the Inter-Ministerial Committee conducted its proceedings, wherein, the respondent Sudarshan Tv News channel was given full opportunity to represent his case by filing written submissions as well as by making oral arguments”, said the letter.

The IMC after hearing the representatives of the news channel gave its recommendation on October 4 to the Centre.

During the hearing, senior advocate Sanjay Hegde asked if the old bench would be back or the matter will need to be argued all over again. Earlier, Justice KM Joseph was part of the bench. Mehta objected to the lawyer’s questioning the composition of the bench. After a brief in the matter, the bench adjourned the matter to October 26.

On September 23, the Centre had informed the Supreme Court it has prima facie found that the news channel program with the title “UPSC Jihad” has violated the Programme Code. As a result, a detailed show-cause notice has been issued to the channel to explain why action should not be taken against it. The top court had on September 15 passed on order injuncting the remaining episodes of the TV show, and the stay continues to remain in operation.

Amit Mishra ruled of the 13th IPL with hand injury

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Amit Mishra ruled of the 13th IPL with hand injury

Delhi Capitals’ experienced leg-spinner Amit Mishra has been ruled out for the rest of the IPL season due to an injury to his bowling hand.

The veteran cricketer, who has played in all 13 seasons and has a tally of 160 wickets, the second-highest in league history, sustained a flexor tendon injury to the right finger of his right hand while attempting to take a return catch of Kolkata Knight Riders’ Nitish Rana on Saturday.

Mishra, who has three hat-tricks in IPL, has played three games this season, picking up three wickets. He could bowl just two overs in the game against KKR due to the injury.

Cong govt should procure foodgrains at MSP, Akali Dal to Rahul

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Cong govt should procure foodgrains at MSP, Akali Dal to Rahul

The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Monday asked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to commit that the Congress government would take complete responsibility for the farmers by acceding to the demand of former minister Navjot Singh Sidhu to start procurement of foodgrains on the state’s behalf as per the minimum support price (MSP).

In a statement here, senior party leader Maheshinder Singh Grewal said that it was widely believed that Sidhu was the mascot of Rahul Gandhi in Punjab.

“The Gandhi family even deputed Congress general secretary Harish Rawat to mollify Sidhu and ensure his presence in the ongoing flop tractor rally being undertaken in the state. It is only fair to assume that Rahul Gandhi will accede to Sidhu’s demand to safeguard the rights of the farmers by ensuring 100 percent procurement of wheat and paddy by the state.

“This is also in consonance with the directive of the Congress President asking all the Chief Ministers of Congress-ruled states to formulate their own laws under Article 254 of the Constitution to bypass the farm laws enacted by the Centre,” Grewal said.

Asking Rahul Gandhi to come up with solutions instead of resorting to ‘tamashas’ and photo ops in tractors fitted with luxury style sofa chairs, Grewal said the former Congress president was in the habit of visiting states going to the polls to befool the farmers.

He said this was seen in the case of Madhya Pradesh where Rahul Gandhi visited a suicide victim’s family in the run-up to the Assembly polls there.

“However, Rahul Gandhi did not deign it fit to visit Punjab during the last few years despite hundreds of farmers’ suicides because his government failed to fulfill the complete loan waiver promise made to the farmers,” the SAD leader said.

Grewal further said that Rahul Gandhi did not utter a single word to Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh even during his ongoing visit to address the grievances of the state’s farmers.

He said Rahul Gandhi seemed to have forgotten that his party had promised ‘Ghar Ghar naukari’ to Punjabis and an unemployment allowance of Rs 2,500 per month to the youth.

“Forget implementing any of these promises, Rahul Gandhi did not even direct Chief Minister Amarinder Singh to release Rs 450 crore due to the sugarcane farmers of the state from the government and cooperative sugar mills,” he added.

GMR arm extends teaching support to govt students in Hyderabad

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GMR arm extends teaching support to govt students in Hyderabad

GMR Varalakshmi Foundation, the corporate social responsibility arm of GMR Group, has extended online and offline teaching support to government school students in the vicinity of Hyderabad airport in Shamshabad, at a time when the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted their education.

“While online classes have been started for 10th class students in a few government schools from villages around the Hyderabad international airport, the offline mode has taken off through the study circle program to teach the students for lower classes and those needing most attention,” said a statement.

The foundation formed a group of Vidya volunteers, trained to assist the students in learning, who will later also pick up some senior students from government schools to teach juniors as well in the study circles.

For online classes, the foundation has teamed up with ConveGenius (CG), a Delhi-based tech startup to conduct classes for 10th standard students.

“Online classes started in the month of August. These classes are helping more than 100 students who were shortlisted with the help of Vidya volunteers from Zilla Parishad Girls High School, Shamshabad, Zilla Parishad Boys High School, and Zilla Parishad High School Mamidipally in Telangana,” said the statement.

CG developed an app for 10th standard students for online learning.

Cat Que Virus incapable of triggering epidemic: ICMR-NIV Director

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Cat Que Virus incapable of triggering epidemic: ICMR-NIV Director

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) published a study a few days ago wherein the world got to know about a virus that was reported in China and Vietnam in the past, and was found in India as well.

However, the media sensationalized it as another virus from China that could unleash an epidemic, fanning fear among the people who are trying to come to terms with the coronavirus pandemic.

The scientists of the ICMR-National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, came on record and told IANS that the Cat Que Virus (CQV) cannot trigger an epidemic.

The most it could do is cause “sporadic infections in rural areas”. They also concluded that CQV could not be perceived as a major public health threat at the present moment.

“Our conclusion is that it can cause sporadic infections in rural areas where culicine vectors (a breed of mosquitoes) are found to breed. This virus doesn’t have the capabilities to cause an epidemic or pandemic,” said DT Mourya, Director of Virology, NIV.

The CQV is not new to India. Mourya told IANS that scientists had first isolated CQV long back in 1961 in the Sagar district in Karnataka.

“It belongs to ‘Bunyaviridae’, which is one of the largest families of animal viruses. It houses 350 viruses, most of which are arthropod-borne. In the past, many viruses from this family have been isolated and reported from India such as the Kaisodi virus, the Umbre virus, the Oya virus, the Chittoor virus, Thottapalayam virus, Kaikalur virus, Thimiri virus, Sathuperi virus, Ganjam virus, etc. Many closely related viruses from this group have been isolated from mosquitos, humans, birds, and pigs across a vast geographic region,” Mourya said.

Cases of CQV were first reported in 2004 when it was isolated from mosquitoes during surveillance in Vietnam and later in Uganda, scientists informed.

The study published by ICMR detected CQV antibodies in two out of 883 human serum samples tested against the virus. These samples were collected from various Indian states during 2014-2017.

Both the samples tested returned positive for the anti-CQV IgG antibody, indicating that they were infected with the virus at some point. The study showed that Indian mosquito breeds such as Ae. aegypti, Cx. quinquefasciatus and Cx. Tritaeniorhynchus were susceptible to the virus. Besides, pigs and birds like Jungle Myna may also act as a host to the virus.

The study also showed that the virus could be transmitted when a person is bitten by a mosquito. This virus is known to cause encephalitis-like symptoms similar to Japanese encephalitis (JE).

“Cat Que virus is a rare infection and is known to be transmitted by certain culicine mosquito species that are also known to transmit JE virus. The natural cycle of this virus looks similar to the JE virus. These viruses can cause acute, self-limiting febrile illness that generally gets clubbed into a viral fever and can be misdiagnosed due to similarity to many existing infections like dengue, chikungunya, malaria, etc.,” Mourya explained.

Considering these isolations from the neighboring countries — CQV in Culex mosquitoes in China and pigs of Vietnam — and assuming the spread of vector mosquitoes in India, ICMR-NIV attempted to develop diagnostic assays for rapid detection of this virus.

Pragya D Yadav, a scientist at NIV and one of the researchers of the study, said that the research conducted is a part of exploratory studies of the institute and people should perceive it as a major health threat.

“The entire work is part of the exploratory research studies conducted by NIV as part of its research activity for developing proactive preparedness for new viruses. At the present moment, the Cat Que virus is not at all perceived as a major public health threat and does not merit enhanced attention,” said Yadav.

“Active infection by CQV has been detected in India. The antibodies have been found in only two persons in the last seven years, and even those two people never developed any symptoms of the disease. It is very less likely that the infection by this particular virus can spread in humans. We need to screen more samples to understand its prevalence.

“However, all should take precautions and follow safety measures which include prevention of water collection in plants, water coolers, and nearby surroundings,” said Guduru Narayana Prudhvi Raj, Senior Consultant and General Physician at Apollo TeleHealth.

Nitish govt misusing old phone number to defame Tejashwi: RJD

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Nitish govt misusing old phone number to defame Tejashwi: RJD

With its top party leaders Tejashwi Yadav and Tej Pratap Yadav facing murder charges, the RJD on Monday accused Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi of engaging in a criminal conspiracy against Tejashwi Yadav.

Rashtriya Janata Dal’s Rajya Sabha member Manoj Jha cited a phone number which was allegedly used to demand money from aspiring party candidates for allotment of the ticket in the coming Assembly elections but was not registered with anyone as per the state-run telecom company.

“The phone number 0612-2217222 belongs to Patna circle of BSNL and was used by unknown persons for random calls to aspiring candidates of the RJD. Interestingly, when you call back on it, the name of Tejashwi Yadav emerges on Truecaller,” he told media persons here.

Jha said that this phone number was registered in the name of former Chief Minister Rabri Devi but it was disconnected on November 21, 2016. After this, it was allotted to the Forest Department office in Patna, but they also gave it up on March 18, 2019, and as per inquiries with BSNL, it has not been registered with anyone since then.

“On September 19, a missed call from this number went to an RJD aspirant in Sitamarhi. Since Tejashwi Yadav’s name emerged on Truecaller, when he called back on that number, he was instructed to come to Patna with Rs 25 lakh via Lalganj town to get a ticket. Another candidate for Muzaffarpur was also approached in a similar fashion. I have a long list of calls which were made from it to demand money from candidates,” he said, waving a bunch of documents.

“If that phone number is not registered with any person, then who is misusing it in the name of Tejashwi Yadav? I firmly believe that a conspiracy of such magnitude cannot be possible without the connivance of the ruling party. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, and their close ministers are involved in a conspiracy against Tejashwi Yadav to win this election,” he added.

Jha also hit out at BSNL for allowing this conspiracy to take place, saying that it has put a question mark on the reputation of the institution.

Noting Tejashwi Yadav has raised questions on unemployment, migrant labor, flood situation, law and order, a crime against women, and the ’10 lakh jobs’ promise, he alleged that the ruling party leaders have no answer to those points. “Hence, CM Nitish Kumar, Sushil Kumar Modi, and other leaders of NDA are taken the politics of Bihar to such a low standard. They are using the conspiracy method to win this election,” Jha said, demanding a fair investigation into the matter.

Taking a dig at the Bihar Police, he said that its former DGP “used the government post to build his own political career”. “It is enough to understand how Bihar Police is working under Nitish Kumar,” he said.

“Does the ruling party have any answer on whether the decisions taken by ex-DGP Gupteshwar Pandey during his tenure were fair?” he asked.

Tejashwi Yadav and Tej Pratap Yadav are embroiled in controversy after RJD’s Dalit leader Shakti Malik was murdered by three unidentified men in the state’s Purnea district on Sunday. Malik’s wife has alleged that Tejashwi Yadav demanded Rs 50 lakh for the ticket, and when her husband was unable to give money, Tejashwi abused him. She also leveled murder charges on him and Tej Pratap Yadav.

Offerings in Tirumala bounce back on Sunday after Covid lull

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Offerings in Tirumala bounce back on Sunday after Covid lull

The Tirumala temple income has bounced back on Sunday, the highest in the recent past, after a slight downfall during the coronavirus lockdown.

“On Sunday, 20,228 devotees visited the temple, offering Rs 2.14 crore while 6,556 underwent tonsuring and offered their hair to the deity,” said a Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) official.

Incidentally, the Sunday offerings were the highest in the recent past.

In the light of Navaratri Brahmostavams scheduled from October 16 to 24, the temple officials are expecting a surge in offerings.

“Following COVID guidelines, we will have processions in three streets. The number of devotees is expected to rise, resulting in more hundi (offering box) offerings,” said the official.

Tirumala temple is one of the richest religious places in the world.

3 win Nobel Prize in medicine for Hepatitis C virus discovery

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3 win Nobel Prize in medicine for Hepatitis C virus discovery

The Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine 2020 was on Monday awarded jointly to Americans Harvey J Alter and Charles M. Rice and British scientist Michael Houghton for the discovery of the Hepatitis C virus.

Alter, Houghton, and Rice made seminal discoveries that led to the identification of the Hepatitis C virus, the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet said.

Prior to their work, the discovery of Hepatitis A and B viruses had been critical steps forward, but the majority of blood-borne hepatitis cases remained unexplained.

The discovery of the Hepatitis C virus revealed the cause of the remaining cases of chronic hepatitis and made possible blood tests and new medicines that have saved millions of lives.

Thanks to their discovery, highly sensitive blood tests for the virus are now available and these have essentially eliminated post-transfusion hepatitis in many parts of the world, greatly improving global health.

Their discovery also allowed the rapid development of antiviral drugs directed at Hepatitis C.

For the first time in history, the disease can now be cured, raising hopes of eradicating the Hepatitis C virus from the world population.

The WHO estimates there are over 70 million cases of hepatitis globally leading to 400,000 deaths every year.

Alter is associated with the US National Institutes of Health, Rice with Rockefeller University, while Houghton, who was born in Britain is associated with the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada.

Karnataka BJP bets on winning Assembly bypolls

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Karnataka BJP bets on winning Assembly bypolls

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the ruling BJP in Karnataka is betting on winning the November 3 Assembly polls in RR Nagar in south Bengaluru and Sira in Tumukuru district, a senior party official said on Monday.

“We are confident of winning both the assembly by-elections in the state though both the segments are considered a bastion of the opposition Congress and Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) for various factors,” newly appointed BJP national general secretary C.T. Ravi told IANS in an interview here.

Ravi, 53, a four-time legislator from Chikkamagaluru, submitted his resignation as Minister for Tourism and Kannada and Culture to Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa on Saturday in compliance with the ‘one man one post’ norm in the BJP.

BJP’s national president J.P. Nadda appointed Ravi as one of the five national general secretaries on September 26 as part of a major reshuffle in the party’s organizational posts.

“A ruling party has an advantage of winning by-elections because the people consider voting for its candidate beneficial in getting development funds for their constituency,” said Ravi.

The by-election in RR Nagar has been necessitated by the resignation of Congress MLA Munirathna, who jumped ship to the BJP in 2019. The bypoll in Sira has been necessitated by the death of JD-S legislator B. Satyanarayana on August 5 after a prolonged illness.

The twin bypolls will be notified on October 9, while the last date for submitting nominations is October 16, scrutiny on October 17, and withdrawal on October 19. The results will be on November 10.

Bypoll in RR Nagar could not be held on December 5, 2019, along with by-elections in 15 assembly segments across the state, as its result in the May 2018 assembly polls was challenged in the Karnataka High Court by its BJP runner-up Muniraju Gowda on alleged electoral malpractice by Munirathna.

With the court disposing of the case in favor of Munirathana in February, the poll panel has decided to conduct the by-election in RR Nagar along with Sira on November 3.

In the December 5 by-elections, of the 15 seats, the BJP won 12, the Congress 2, and one seat was won by an Independent candidate. The JD-S drew a blank in all the three seats it had won in the 2018 assembly elections.

“We have proved our popularity by winning a dozen seats in the December 5 by-elections from the constituencies, which were won by the Congress and the JD-S in the 2018 Assembly elections,” Ravi said.

The December 5 by-elections were necessitated by the resignation of 14 Congress and 3 JD-S rebels from their assembly segments in July 2019, which led to the fall of the 14-month-old JD-S-Congress coalition government on July 23, 2019, after it’s Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy lost the confidence motion he had moved in the Lower House.

“Of the 12 Assembly seats our party won in December, most of them have been the stronghold of the Congress and JD-S, especially in Chikkaballapur and K.R. Pete in Mandya district,” Ravi pointed out.

Though the next Assembly elections in the state are due in April-May 2023, the BJP is preparing in advance to get the majority rather than depending on Independents or other party legislators to form the next government, Ravi said.

The BJP came to power on its own for the first time in South India in the 2008 Assembly elections but struggled to get a simple majority as it fell 5 short-off the halfway mark (113) in the 225-member House, including one nominated.

Yediyurappa’s dramatic resignation in July 2011 after he was indicted by the anti-graft watchdog Lokayukta (Ombudsman) in the multi-crore mining scam and forming a regional outfit (Karnataka Janata Party) dealt a body blow to the BJP as it lost power in the May 2013 Assembly elections.

Even in the May 2018 Assembly polls, the party fell 9 short of the halfway mark for a simple majority, as it won 104 seats under Yediyurappa’s leadership.

As a result, he resigned on May 19, 2018, as the Chief Minister for the third time, 3 days after he formed the government.

In the 225-member Karnataka Assembly, two more seats are vacant — Muski in Raichur district and Basavakalyan in Bidar district.

As in case of RR Nagar, by-election in Muski could not be held on December 5, as its May 2018 Assembly poll results in favour of then Congress rebel Pratapgouda Patil was challenged by BJP runner-up Basanagouda Turvihal over the alleged electoral malpractices by the latter.

In November 2019, Patil resigned from the Assembly seat and joined the BJP along with 16 other defectors from the Congress and the JD-S.

The Basavakalyan seat fell vacant following the death of Congress legislator B. Narayan Rao, who succumbed to Covid-19 on September 24.

UP power employees go on indefinite strike

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UP power employees go on indefinite strike

The employees in the power department of the Uttar Pradesh government began an indefinite complete work boycott from Monday in response to a call given by the UP Vidyut Karmachari Sanyukt Sangharsh Samiti to protest against the proposed privatization of the Varanasi discom.

The government said it has made all the preparations to deal with the agitation.

The UP Power Corporation Ltd (UPPCL) management had held talks with the Sangharsh Samiti leaders to persuade them to withdraw the work boycott call, but talks failed after the management rejected their proposal for effecting reforms in the energy sector without privatizing it.

“After the UPPCL management turned down our reform proposal, we have asked all the power personnel to begin the full day work boycott from Monday as per the pre-declared plan,” said Shailendra Dubey, chairman of the All-India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF).

He accused the management of misleading the government and appealed to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to intervene in the matter to stem the growing unrest in the power sector.

UP Power Officers Association president, K.B. Ram and acting president, Avadhesh Kumar Verma on Monday met state BJP president Swatantra Dev Singh, state Congress president Ajay Kumar Lallu and BSP leader Satish Chandra Mishra and submitted a memorandum to them seeking their support to stop privatization.

“Essential services like hospitals have been exempted from the work boycott of the staff,” Verma said.

On the other hand, the state government has hardened its stand on the issue and has warned of strict action against protestors if they tried to disrupt the power supply.

Chief secretary Rajendra Kumar Tiwari held a video conference with divisional commissioners, district magistrates as well as senior police officers and issued directions to deal with the situation that may arise from the power staff’s proposed work boycott from Monday.

He asked them to ensure that the power supply was not disrupted in the state.

A government spokesman said all preparations were in place to deal with the protestors.

“The government has identified critical power stations for beefing up security around them and also chalked out an action plan to hand over power transmission and distribution system to alternative staff if needed.

Nearly 16K Covid-19 cases missed in UK daily figures

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Nearly 16K Covid-19 cases missed in UK daily figures

Nearly 16,000 daily coronavirus cases went unreported in the UK due to a technical glitch, leading to delayed efforts to trace contacts of people who tested positive, Public Health England (PHE) said on Monday.

In a statement, PHE said that 15,841 cases between September 25 and October 2 were left out of the country’s single-day case figures, the BBC reported.

They were then added in to reach the October 3 figure of 12,872 new cases and the following day’s 22,961.

The glitch, which occurred on October 2 has since been resolved, also meant that the daily count reported on the government’s coronavirus dashboard over the past week was lower than the actual number.

In the statement, PHE’s interim chief executive Michael Brodie said the glitch was caused by some data files reporting positive test results exceeding the maximum file size.

He said they worked with NHS Test and Trace to “quickly resolve the issue and transferred all outstanding cases immediately into the NHS Test and Trace contact tracing system”.

“We fully understand the concern this may cause and further robust measures have been put in place as a result,” the BBC quoted Brodie as saying.

Slamming the development, Labour’s shadow Health Secretary Jonathan Ashworth said it was “shambolic and people across the country will be understandably alarmed”.

Bridget Phillipson, shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury told the BBC on Monday morning that she wanted to know whether it had had “any impact on government decision making around local restrictions”.

As of Monday, there were 505,619 COVID-29 cases and 42,440 deaths reported in the UK.

ESA’s exoplanet observer reveals strange ‘ultra-hot Jupiter’

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ESA’s exoplanet observer reveals strange ‘ultra-hot Jupiter’

European Space Agency’s new exoplanet mission called Cheops has found one of the hottest and most extreme extra-solar planets ever discovered.

This so-called “ultra-hot Jupiter” named WASP-189 b sits around 20 times closer to its star than Earth does to the Sun, and completes a full orbit in just 2.7 days, according to a paper accepted for publication by the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.

Hot Jupiters, as the name suggests, are giant gas planets a bit like Jupiter in our own Solar System; however, they orbit far, far closer to their host star, and so are heated to extreme temperatures.

The researchers determined that the planet is extremely hot, at about 3,200 degrees Celsius.

At such temperatures, even metals such as iron melt and turn to gas, making the planet a clearly uninhabitable one.

“Only a handful of planets are known to exist around stars this hot, and this system is by far the brightest,” said lead author of the new study Monika Lendl of the University of Geneva, Switzerland.

“WASP-189b is also the brightest hot Jupiter that we can observe as it passes in front of or behind its star, making the whole system really intriguing.”

The finding demonstrates Cheops’ ability to shed light on the universe around us by revealing the secrets of these alien worlds.

Launched in December 2019, Cheops (the Characterising Exoplanet Satellite) is designed to observe nearby stars known to host planets.

By precisely measuring changes in the levels of light coming from these systems as the planets orbit their stars, Cheops can initially characterise these planets — and, in turn, increase understanding of how they form and evolve.

The researchers used Cheops to observe WASP-189 b as it passed behind its host star — an occultation.

“As the planet is so bright, there is actually a noticeable dip in the light we see coming from the system as it briefly slips out of view,” explained Lendl.

“We used this to measure the planet’s brightness and constrain its temperature to a scorching 3200 degrees C.”

This makes WASP-189 bone of the hottest and most extreme planets, and entirely unlike any of the planets of the solar system.

50% aspirants skip UPSC exam in Lucknow due to covid fear

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50% aspirants skip UPSC exam in Lucknow due to covid fear

Nearly 50 percent of the candidates opted out of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) preliminary examination 2020 for selection to Indian Administrative and Allied Services in Lucknow.

The exam was conducted on Sunday.

According to sources, as many as 43,921 candidates were registered for the examination at various centers in the city. About 21,790 (49.6 percent) registered candidates appeared in the first shift for the “general studies” paper.

The number dropped further to 21,607 (49.2 percent) in the second shift for “optional subject”.

This was a sharp drop as compared to the 15-20 percent average dropout seen in previous years.

The majority of the students, who had dropped out of the examination, cited the Covid-19 pandemic as the main reason for the high number of absentees.

The candidates said that apart from the fear of catching an infection, many of them could not prepare for the test because of restrictions on coaching classes, group studies, library sessions, and mentorship programs in the past six months.

“Besides lack of preparedness, there was a risk of catching Covid-19 infection, which made many of my batchmates skip the examination,” said Niharika Rastogi, a candidate.

India sees China digging in for winter in eastern Ladakh: IAF Chief

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India sees China digging in for winter in eastern Ladakh: IAF Chief

India sees China digging in for the winter along the disputed border in eastern Ladakh, the Indian Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria said on Monday.

The Air Force chief said that the next three months will depend on how talks between Indian and China progress. “Current progress is slow, what we see is [an] effort to dig in for the winter. We are taking action accordingly. Our further action will depend on the ground realities,” Bhadauria said.

He also said that India realized in May that the border situation was unlike normal times. Chinese troops generally exercise at this time of the year. “We never expected them to move towards the border. But both the Indian Army and the IAF responded quickly and in record time,” he said.

The chief further pointed out that there is no question that China can get the better of India in any conflict scenario. He also said that the force is fully prepared to take on any adversary.

“We have deployed strongly in Eastern Ladakh. Under no circumstances can the Chinese get the better of us,” he said during the annual press conference in Delhi.

Bhadauria also said that there was no moment where the force came close to an airstrike in the last five months of the stand-off with China. He, however, said the force was fully prepared.

He said that the force’s immediate offensive deployment of combat-ready units in response to the stand-off along the LAC in the North is indicative of the operational state today. “We are determined to handle any contingency – undoubtedly our capability and intent would deter,” said Bhadauria adding, “Our airlift capability was also brought into focus as we supported the Indian Army in the rapid mobilization of troops and equipment to the operational area at a pace which our adversary didn’t expect.”

Bhadauria also pointed out that so far there is no indication of any collusive threat from China and Pakistan.

In response to American deployment in the South China Sea, “We will have to fight our own wars. No one else will fight it for us.”

Talking about threats, Bhadauria said that the IAF is transforming at a rapid pace and over the years and has grown from being a tactical force to a strategic one with trans-oceanic reach.

Bhadauria said that the matrix of threat is complex, ranging from aspirational adversaries with huge investments in the military arsenal to those collusively fronted by non-state actors, apart from sub-conventional threats emanating from terrorism and cyberspace.

“Disruptive technologies and low-cost options like drones are making the threat picture even more complex, particularly in the sub-conventional domain,” he said.

He pointed out that the emerging security scenario in the neighborhood and beyond mandates a need to have a robust capability to fight across the entire spectrum of warfare.

Nokia to launch new Smart TVs in India on Oct 6

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Nokia to launch new Smart TVs in India on Oct 6

The official Nokia India site has revealed that a new range of Smart TVs will arrive in the country on October 6.

The new TVs are expected to be a 32-inch model and a 50-inch model.

The two TVs are reported to have been certified by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) back in early August, reports NokiaPowerUser.

The upcoming TVs are said to come with Android 9.0 out of the box and a preloaded set of apps like Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+Hotstar.

The 32-inch model is said to come with Full HD resolution and is expected to be priced under Rs 25,000.

The 50-inch TV, on the other hand, could be priced between Rs 35,000 to Rs 40,000.

The report claimed that the new TVs will not feature JBL speakers like the previous model, but Onkyo speakers instead.

Onkyo is a Japanese acoustic engineering company that makes audio devices.

Apple continues to rule pre-owned phone market in India

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Apple continues to rule pre-owned phone market in India

Apple continues to rule among aspirational India’s non-metros when it comes to demand and supply of pre-owned phones, a new study revealed on Monday.

While in the new smartphone market, Apple’s market share is minimal in India, the opposite holds true for the pre-owned market.

The iPhone contributes to 25 percent of the demand and 21 percent of supply on OLX.

“The iPhone is followed closely by behemoths in the android ecosystem with Xiaomi generating 22 percent of the demand and 18 percent of the supply,” according to OLX ‘Pre-Owned Smartphone’ study.

South Korean brand Samsung controls 15 percent of the demand and 17 percent of the supply.

OnePlus, Vivo, Oppo, and Realme are extremely popular with consumers, especially across the budget, mid-segment, and premium (One plus) price categories.

All the four brands generate about 30 percent of the demand and supply for pre-owned phones on OLX, the study mentioned.

The overall demand for pre-owned phones has jumped by 61 percent and supply has increased by 76 percent during the period of lockdown 1 and post the unlock while demand has jumped by 44 percent post unlock vs pre-COVID-19 lockdown period.

With over 500 million internet and smartphone users, India now has about half the population accessing the internet. With 700 million users yet to be connected, smartphones, especially pre-owned ones will play an important role in driving India’s internet population to over a billion in the coming years.

“Covid-19 has accelerated the growth curve for pre-owned smartphones especially as financial constraints and uncertainty in the economy drive more people to come online in search of better livelihood opportunities, consuming content and staying connected,” the study noted.

Ajinkya Rahane signed as brand ambassador of Hudle

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Ajinkya Rahane signed as brand ambassador of Hudle

Indian batsman Ajinkya Rahane has been appointed as the brand ambassador and advisor of Hudle, a Delhi-based sports tech & events startup.

Apart from being the face of the brand, he will also be able to guide the team with strategic inputs through his wealth of experience in professional sport.

“I strongly believe that sport should be a way of life and people of all ages and skill levels should play. It is one of the most engaging and fun ways of keeping fit,” said Rahane.

“Easy access to facilities, events, and coaching that Hudle provides will encourage more adults to play. I am really excited to work with team Hudle and be a part of their journey,” he added.

“We are thrilled to have Ajinkya on board. His association with Hudle will be instrumental in spreading the idea of playing sports to a wider audience. He will also help us in identifying and unlocking new opportunities as a strategic partner,” said Suhail Narain, founder, and CEO, Hudle.

Rahane is currently in the United Arab Emirates with the Delhi Capitals for the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) edition.

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