Simple functions mark Gandhi Jayanti in Karnataka

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Simple functions mark Gandhi Jayanti in Karnataka

Karnataka joined the nation on the 151st birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi on Friday in a simple manner due to COVID-induced restrictions on large gatherings or functions in public.

Governor Vajubhai Vala, Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, opposition Congress leader Siddaramaiah, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president D.K. Shivakumar and others paid floral tributes to the Father of the Nation and recalled his service and sacrifice in freeing the country from British Raj.

Vala garlanded Gandhi’s statue installed years ago on the sprawling Raj Bhavan lawns in the city center and paid tributes to him.

“Yediyurappa also garlanded the statue of Gandhi and paid homage to him at Vidhana Soudha (state secretariat) in the city center,” an official said here.

In a tweet in Kannada, Yediyurappa urged the people to celebrate Gandhi’s triumph over the British, marking the country’s independence from colonial rule on August 15, 1947.

“Many of our government programs are inspired by Gandhiji’s thoughts on Sarvodaya, poverty alleviation, the welfare of the downtrodden, farmers, promotion of cottage industries, and environmental conservation,” said Yediyurappa.

The Chief Minister also garlanded the statue of former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri at Soudha and recalled his services to the nation. Shastri’s birth anniversary also falls on October 2.

State cabinet ministers, legislators, and ruling BJP leaders and cadres were present on the occasion, wearing masks and observing physical distancing.

Remembering Shastri for his honest and value-based leadership as the Prime Minister, Yediyurappa said the former gave the country a “Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan’ slogan, underscoring the priorities. He worked towards making agriculture and food production self-sustainable.

“Let us pay our respects to Shastriji on his birth anniversary. He was the embodiment of honesty and patriotism. His valuable public life, doctrine, and achievements were exemplary,” said Yediyurappa.

Former state Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Janata Dal (Secular) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy also paid homage to the Mahatma and Shastri.

The Congress organized a program at its party office in the city center where the party’s Rajya Sabha member Mallikarjun Kharge, former Union minister K.H. Muniyappa, party leader Ramalinga Reddy and scores of others were present.

The ruling BJP and JD-S also organized events to pay tribute to Gandhi and Shastri.

“Happy birthday to Mahatma Gandhi, who demonstrated the power of non-violence in liberating India from the colonial rulers. Tributes to Shastri who led a simple life and protected the country in the 1965 war with Pakistan,” said Kumaraswamy in Kannada.

Customs questions, lets off LDF councillor in gold smuggling case

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Customs questions, lets off LDF councillor in gold smuggling case

Customs officials on Friday afternoon let off Karat Faizal, a high-profile Left Democratic Front councilor, after questioning him for over 30 hours in the Kerala gold smuggling case but told him to appear for questioning whenever called again.

Faizal, a member of Koduvally Municipality near Kozhikode, was taken into custody after a raid at his residence in the wee hours of Thursday.

Faizal was on the Customs radar ever since the gold smuggling case surfaced in July.

He was taken into custody after the wife of accused Sandip Nair told the Customs about the alleged relations between Nair and Faizal.

When Faizal was brought here from Kozhikode and questioned since Thursday afternoon, an NIA probe team also visited the Customs House.

Faizal won the local body polls in 2015 as a Left Front-supported Independent candidate. He also has links with Left Front independent legislator Karat Razak and his close relative PTA Rahim, also a legislator, whose Indian National League is an ally of the ruling Left.

Faizal came into the media limelight a few years ago when state CPI-M Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan traveled in his luxury car during a party rally in Kozhikode district.

J’khand allows reopening of religious sites; permits Durga Puja with curbs

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J’khand allows reopening of religious sites; permits Durga Puja with curbs

People of Jharkhand heaved a sigh of relief as the state government finally announced reopening of all religious places from October 8 and also paved the way for the public celebration of Durga Puja, albeit strictly adhering to Covid-19 guidelines.

A statement of the Jharkhand government said: “After a thorough review of the prevailing pandemic situation it has been decided to allow Durga Puja celebration in the state, keeping in mind that there are no congregations which could trigger the spread of the infection. Therefore, the lockdown related curbs currently within the containment zones will be extended until October 31.”

It said that all the religious sites outside the containment zones are permitted to open from October 8 in compliance with protocols that shall be issued separately.

The state government has also allowed interstate public bus travel which shall comply with the SOPs on preventive measures laid down by the Department of Transport and Civil Aviation in this regard.

As per the order issued by the Home Prison and Disaster Management Department, SOPs have also been laid down for all the Durga Puja organizers.

The guidelines say that Durga Puja may be performed in small pandals where it has been done traditionally only with the objective of performance of rituals without public participation for which the Puja pandals shall be covered on all sides in a way to prevent any public view of the idols. Moreover, these pandals would not be constructed on any themes.

The order said that there will be no decoration in the area around the Puja pandal nor welcome gates in and around the vicinity.

The order stated that the size of the idols shall be less than 4 feet and there will be no use of a public address system, nor any food stalls in and around the pandal.

There will be no Ravan ‘dehan’ this year and no musical or cultural program will be organized during Durga Puja. Face masks will be mandatory. Only seven people will be allowed to visit the Puja pandal at a time, the guidelines added.

Kerala BJP leaders still miffed with poor representation in Team Nadda

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Kerala BJP leaders still miffed with poor representation in Team Nadda

Even a week after Team Nadda was constituted, the anger over the poor representation of veteran BJP leaders from Kerala still persists in the saffron party here.

Former organizing secretary and popular senior leader of the BJP in Kerala P.P. Mukundan said it was most unfortunate that party leaders who have been slogging for years have been ignored in the rejig.

“Those who came to the party in recent times are being preferred to those who have sweated out in the party for long. This does not augur well as numerous leaders who have served jail terms for the party are there and they did it with utmost commitment. These are people who came to the party with no pre-conditions and hence such people should not be ignored,” said Mukundan, who had left the party in 2006 but returned a few years later.

One BJP leader whose inclusion in Team Nadda has raised eyebrows is former CPI-M Lok Sabha member and former Congress legislator A.P. Abdulla Kutty, who has been given the post of national vice-president.

Fifty-three-year-old Abdulla Kutty began his political career with the CPI-M’s student wing.

He achieved prominence by defeating present Kerala Congress chief Mullapally Ramachandran twice – in 1999 and 2004 – from the Kannur Lok Sabha constituency.

In 2009, the CPI-M sacked him from the party amid mounting differences and also because he praised Modi’s Gujarat development model.

He won the Kannur Assembly by-election in 2009 as a Congress candidate and repeated his victory in 2011, but in 2016, lost the polls from the Thalassery seat and after that, he went into limbo in Congress politics. In 2019 he joined the BJP.

Soon he was made the vice-president of the Kerala unit and on Saturday got elevated as a national vice-president.

Among the other Keralites who got posts is Tom Vadakkan, a former Congress spokesperson who hails from Kerala but is based in Delhi and businessman turned Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka, Rajeev Chandrasekhar.

In Kerala, the BJP is caught between the factions of Union Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan and P.K. Krishna Das and at times their differences come out in the open, which has been a cause of displeasure of the national leadership of the BJP.

The reshuffle has come as a setback for Kerala based senior leaders including former Mizoram Governor and former Kerala BJP president Kummanam Rajasekharan and P.K. Krishna Das respectively.

Sobha Surendran is another leader to have missed out and as a protest, she has practically gone silent.

She was expecting a big post as she is one of the top BJP women leaders in the state and is known for her razor-sharp tongue.

Another senior Kerala BJP leader who has occupied crucial posts at the national level, but missed out is R Balashankar, a former editor of the RSS journal Organiser.

Banashankari is known for his close ties with various social groups in Kerala and also the Church. On a few occasions in the past, his name was doing the rounds for the state president’s post, but for some reason, he always lost out at the last minute.

Playing down the discontent was Central minister from Kerala, Muraleedharan, who said that there were no issues and all leaders, including Shoba, were active in the party.

State general secretary M.T. Ramesh also said that when there is a national rejig it is done at the national level and the state units accept it.

Meanwhile, sources in the BJP said there could be another reshuffle and a few leaders who had missed out are likely to be included.

BCCI conducts 7-week CPD seminars for women coaches

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BCCI conducts 7-week CPD seminars for women coaches

The National Cricket Academy (NCA) very recently concluded a seven-week series of CPD (Continuous Professional Development) seminars for women coaches across the country, the BCCI said in a media release on Friday.

The initiative was conducted by the coach education department of the NCA, led by Sujith Somasundar and supported by Atul Gaikwad, Apurva Desai, and Rajib Dutta.

Twenty-four BCCI Level 2 certified coaches and former India cricketers with BCCI level 1 certifications were part of the seminar. Some of the topics covered included, skill acquisition, modern coaching concepts, the art and science of fast bowling, designing effective learning environments, etc.

Rahul Dravid, Head of Cricket at NCA said, “Women’s cricket has been growing at a very fast pace and one of the aims of the BCCI is to continue supporting our women coaches in their development.”

“Although the (Covid-19) pandemic has posed certain challenges, I believe the last seven weeks have still been used well by our education department to connect with some of the women coaches, work with them and support them in their pursuit of constant development,” he added.

BCCI President Sourav Ganguly said: “Women’s cricket is on the rise in India and our women’s team has performed exceptionally well in the last couple of ICC tournaments. India is seeing a great deal of young talent coming up from all parts of the country.”

BCCI Secretary Jay Shah stated: “The lockdown has forced us to remain indoors and the BCCI has utilized this time in skill development through online seminars through its National Cricket Academy (NCA).”

Bhumi Pednekar: I have to use my voice to educate people about climate change

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Bhumi Pednekar: I have to use my voice to educate people about climate change

Actress Bhumi Pednekar, who has taken up the cause of climate conservation to raise awareness among fellow Indians, says she wants to use her voice to bring about positive change.

“I always had this fear,” she claimed, recalling how concerned she always was about the environment, even as a child. “It started in my childhood. ‘What would happen to this world when the water dries up?’ That was the first question in my head. So, I started reading up on climate change,” she recalled.

“I have always been conscious, and I tried to have a sustainable style of living, especially since I became an adult. But then I realized I wasn’t really doing enough and that’s when I started Climate Warrior,” she declared.

Bhumi’s online and offline initiative Climate Warrior is an initiative to mobilize citizens of India to contribute towards protecting the environment. The initiative has turned a year old.

She wants to use her fame to educate people about climate change.

“I have become an actor. I have the power to reach out to so many people and I have always tried doing that through my cinema. I have to use my voice, my social media platforms to bring about positive change in the world and educate people about climate change,” she said.

Bhumi feels every individual must participate in raising community awareness about environmental protection.

“When we speak about love for our family, when we speak about love for our nation, do we actually mean all this because we should be doing more to protect our families and our nation and our future generations. These were all the looming questions in my head and that’s when I realized I should start Climate Warrior,” she said.

Google creates $2mn startup fund for Black founders in Europe

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Google creates $2mn startup fund for Black founders in Europe

Google has created a $2 million fund to help Black-founded startups in Europe as part of its commitment to building a more equitable future for everyone.

This “Black Founders Fund” will provide up to $100,000 in equity-free cash awards to selected European startups, paired with up to $220,000 per startup in Google Ad Grants and Cloud credits and support from an experienced Startup Partner Manager, Google said on Thursday.

“We have a chance to help build a more equitable future, where successful entrepreneurs come from all backgrounds, and their communities can benefit from the long-term job creation and generational wealth that they bring,” Marta Krupinska, Head of Google for Startups UK, said in a statement.

The move comes at a time when the Black Lives Matter movement has gained momentum in several parts of the world.

Today, with less than 0.5 percent of venture capital (VC) funding going to Black-led startups, and Black people making up less than three percent of the VC community, Black founders in Europe disproportionately lack access to the networks and capital needed to grow their businesses.

“If we want to solve the inequities we see around us, we all need to do the work and understand our role in the system, empathize with those who are marginalized, and take action to help,” Krupinska said.

“Google has the resources to co-create viable, scalable solutions with those most impacted, and we have made the commitment to play our part and continue to learn.”

Goa man batters daughter to death with stump over affair, held

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Goa man batters daughter to death with stump over affair, held

A Goa resident battered his 20-year-old daughter to death with a cricket stump over her relationship with a youth he did not approve, police said on Friday. Accused Sunilkumar Rajan, 46, a resident of Sanquelim in North Goa, has been arrested.

“The accused was angry that his daughter had entered into a relationship. He hit her with a cricket stump on her head several times on Thursday afternoon, injuring her seriously. He later took her to a local hospital, where she died” Bicholim police station SHO Mahesh Gadekar said on Friday.

Police added provisions of culpable homicide to the case on Friday after the victim succumbed to her injuries.

David Hemp named Pakistan women’s head coach

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David Hemp named Pakistan women’s head coach

David Hemp, former Bermuda captain, has been appointed as the head coach of the Pakistan women’s cricket team. He takes over from Iqbal Imam.

The 49-year-old, based in Australia, played 22 ODIs for Bermuda along with 271 first-class games for Glamorgan, Free State, and Warwickshire. He is also a qualified UK level four coach and has previously coached the Melbourne Stars’ and Victorian women’s cricket teams in the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) between 2015 and 2020.

“David has worked for five years in Australia with the Melbourne and Victoria women’s sides and he is a perfect fit for the role we were looking for as he will be able to use that experience and knowledge to translate into our system that will ultimately benefit Pakistan women’s cricket,” said Urooj Mumtaz, Acting Head of Pakistan Women’s Wing and Chair of women’s selection committees, as per a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) media release.

“I am sure our players will make optimum use of David’s expertise and strict work ethics, while I am sure David will have an enjoyable time when he relocates to Pakistan to join the elite company of illustrious coaching staff of Atiq-uz-Zaman, Grant Bradburn, Mohammad Yousuf, Mohammad Zahid, and Saqlain Mushtaq at our National High-Performance Centre,” she added.

Aahana Kumra digs Bengali food and Kolkata culture

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Aahana Kumra digs Bengali food and Kolkata culture

Actress Aahana Kumra loves Bengali food and the culture of Kolkata. Aahana, who spent a lot of time in Kolkata, says she misses both.

“I spend a lot of time in Kolkata and I am surrounded by Bengalis. My brother-in-law is a Bengali. My first director Ribhu Dasgupta (of the TV series ‘Yudh’) is Bengali. Since I actively perform in theatre, I often go to Rabindra Sadan for performances. Bengali food, culture — everything — is so familiar that I am kind of home with it!” Aahana told IANS.

Aahana recently worked with director Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury in the film “Rules Of The Games”. Roy Chowdhury, known to pan-Indian audiences for his critically and commercially successful Bollywood film “Pink”, is among the pioneers of the new-age Bengali cinema.

“When it comes to Toni Da (as is known among friends and colleagues)], I think he spoilt all of us and now we want to go back to his set! After our first meeting for the film, he invited us to his home and served mouthwatering Bengali food. Just to have such a meal, I can do another film with him! After the wrap, Prasoon, our casting director who is also a Bengali, invited us to his place. We had some more insane food there. There is something about Bengali food — the spicing, the freshness – it makes you crave for more!” Aahana said.

Roy Chowdhury added, laughing: “I have to share a secret with you. It may sound weird but the fact is I cannot trust people who do not love food. period. You could have a small portion like you can have one piece of bhetki macher paturi, but if you do not love food, how can I trust you with my creative idea?”

He explained: “For me, creativity flows when the environment is conducive. After a good meal, good music, and a good conversation, the mind works wonders, right? Even food has its story — where it came from, the society, the culture.”

“Rules Of The Games” also features Chandan Roy Sanyal, and streams on Zee5.

Researchers find potential treatment for Covid-19

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Researchers find potential treatment for Covid-19

By examining pre-existing research for other conditions, researchers have found a potential treatment that could be applied to Covid-19.

The findings, published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, established that a lipid found in the human body could be used to prevent or treat infections with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

That lipid, called sphingosine, is a natural element taken from the body and is important in the lipid metabolism of all cells and the local immune defense in epithelial cells, a type of cell that lines the surfaces of the body including the skin, blood vessels, urinary tract, and organs.

They serve as a barrier between the inside and outside of your body and protect it from viruses.

“We investigated whether a specific lipid is able to interfere with the binding of SARS-CoV-2 to human epithelial cells,” said study author Erich Gulbins from the University of Cincinnati in the US.

According to the researchers, sphingosine has been shown in past studies to prevent and eliminate bacterial infections of the respiratory tract, but it is unknown if it can be used to prevent viral infections.

The coronavirus needs to bind to specific molecules on the surface of human cells as a prerequisite to infect them, they said.

“We show that the lipid sphingosine binds into the cellular ‘lock,’ the receptor ACE2, for SARS-CoV-2 and thereby prevents binding of the virus to and infection of human cells,” Gulbins said.

Researchers in this study analyzed the use of this lipid in regulating infection in cultured human cells with SARS-CoV-2 particles added.

“We showed that sphingosine prevented cellular infection in these cultures, and pretreatment of cultured cells or freshly obtained human nasal epithelial cells with low concentrations of sphingosine prevented adhesion of and infection with the virus,” said Gulbins.

“These findings indicate that sphingosine prevents at least some viral infection by interfering with the interaction of the virus with its receptor; it could be used as a nasal spray to prevent or treat infections with SARS-CoV-2,” he added.

“The nasal spray must be developed, but sphingosine is a natural product. More research is needed to see if this could be a treatment for Covid-19,” the researchers wrote.

We have to do everything we can to win medal in Tokyo, says Monika

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We have to do everything we can to win medal in Tokyo, says Monika

Indian women’s hockey team midfielder Monika believes the team is slowly getting back into the groove by carrying out their sports activities during the national camp as part of their preparations for the Tokyo Olympics which has now been scheduled for next year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We are slowly getting back into the groove by carrying out our sports activities. It was imperative for us that we focused on our fitness when we were away from the pitch during the lockdown,” said Monika.

“It has definitely helped us immensely to raise our intensity once we were back on the field for our preparations for the Olympics,” she added.

The midfielder, who has played 150 matches for India, has been part of many important moments for the Indian team such as the gold medal victory at the Women’s Series Finals Hiroshima 2019 and the silver medal-winning campaign at the Asian Games in 2018. However, the 26-year-old has always set her eyes on winning an Olympic medal as her ultimate target.

“We have done well in many competitions in the last few years, but the Olympics has always been the biggest stage for me. We have to do everything we can to win a medal for India,” Monika said.

“We are very lucky that Hockey India and SAI have taken care of all the precautions that need to be taken during this time so that we can focus on our ultimate target with nothing else on our minds,” she added.

The 26-year-old further said that the members of the Indian team have grown closer to each other since they have spent a lot of time in the SAI campus.

“Winning at the Olympic stage will not only happen through great skill, but the players need to have great camaraderie as well. All of us have always had great coordination on the pitch during matches, but I think after spending so much time together at the SAI campus, we have grown much closer to each other which will definitely help us to have a much better camaraderie on the field going forward,” she said.

“We have all kept each other motivated during this difficult period and ensured that we are focussing on our goal of winning an Olympic medal,” added Monika.

Nearly 20,000 Amazon workers in US got Covid-19

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Nearly 20,000 Amazon workers in US got Covid-19

Shedding some inhibitions about sharing data related to the impact of Covid-19 on its warehouse workers, Amazon has said that 19,816 front-line employees in the US have tested positive or been presumed positive for the disease.

Amazon had earlier tried to play down the importance of sharing data on how the pandemic affected workers, despite criticism from current and former employees over the protection measures put in place by the e-commerce giant.

However, Amazon on Thursday said that it has done a thorough analysis of data on all 1.37 million Amazon and Whole Foods Market front-line employees across the US employed at any time from March 1 to September 19.

“We compared COVID-19 case rates to the general population, as reported by Johns Hopkins University for the same period, accounting for geography and the age composition of our employees to make the data as accurate as possible,” Amazon said in a blog post.

“Based on this analysis, if the rate among Amazon and Whole Foods Market employees were the same as it is for the general population rate, we estimate that we would have seen 33,952 cases among our workforce,” it added.

Amazon said that in reality, the number of employees who have tested positive or been presumed positive for Covid-19 is 42 percent lower than the expected number.

You can see a full state-by-state chart of case rates among our front-line employees, along with additional details about our methodology and data sources, here.

“We’ve already launched and are ramping quickly, conducting thousands of tests a day and growing to 50,000 tests a day across 650 sites by November as part of our effort to keep our front-line employees safe,” Amazon said.

And because we’ve built this testing capacity ourselves, we’re adding to the total number of tests available –not taking supply from others,” it added.

Amazon said it is investing “hundreds of millions of dollars” in testing initiative, besides other safety measures for its front-line employees.

Trump awaits Covid-19 test results after aide infected

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Trump awaits Covid-19 test results after aide infected

US President Donald Trump has said that he was tested for Covid-19 and was awaiting the results after one of his closest White House aide contracted the virus, according to media reports.

White House adviser Hope Hicks, one of the closest to Trump, has tested positive for Covid-19, an informed source told The Hill news website on Thursday.

She had travelled with the President on Air Force One earlier this week, the source added.

In a Fox News interview late Thursday night, Trump appeared unsure about what his top aide’s positive test meant for him.

“I just went out with a test and the First Lady just went out with a test also,” he said.

“So whether we quarantine or whether we have it, I don’t know.”

Taking to Twitter after the interview, the President said: “Hope Hicks, who has been working so hard without even taking a small break, has just tested positive for Covid 19. Terrible.

“The First Lady and I are waiting for our test results. In the meantime, we will begin our quarantine process.”

Also in a statement, a White House official said contact tracing has been done, “and the appropriate notifications and recommendations have been made”, The Hill news website reported

It was not immediately clear if Trump planned to self-quarantine out of an abundance of caution.

He has events scheduled for Friday in Florida and Saturday in Wisconsin.

Hicks is the latest White House aide to test positive for the virus which has so far infected 7,277,352 people in the US and killed 207,791 others, making it the worst-hit country in the world.

National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien had tested positive, as well as a White House valet who serves the President.

Katie Miller, the Vice President’s communications director and the wife of Trump senior adviser Stephen Miller, were also infected.

Facebook sues 2 firms for illegal data collection

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Facebook sues 2 firms for illegal data collection

Facebook has filed a lawsuit against two companies that scraped data from its main app, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and Amazon to sell “marketing intelligence” and other services in a global operation.

Scraping is a form of data collection that relies on unauthorised automation for the purpose of extracting data from a website or app.

“The actions of BrandTotal Ltd, an Israeli-based company, and Unimania Inc, incorporated in Delaware, violate our Terms of Service and we are pursuing legal action to protect our users,” Facebook said in a statement on Thursday.

These companies exploited users’ access to Facebook service through a set of browser extensions called “UpVoice” and “Ads Feed” designed to access and collect data.

When people installed the extensions and visited websites, the browser extensions used automated programmes to scrape their name, user ID, gender, date of birth, relationship status, location information, and other information related to their accounts.

“The defendants’ extensions sent the scraped data to a server shared by BrandTotal and Unimania,” the social network informed.

This is not the first time Facebook has taken legal action against data scrapers.

In June, Facebook filed lawsuits on two continents against companies and individuals providing automation software services that enabled scraping and fake engagement.

In March 2019, it took legal action against two Ukranian developers who were harvesting data using quiz apps and browser extensions to scrape profile information and people’s friends lists on Facebook.

A Court in California recently recommended a judgment in Facebook’s favour on that case.

“In a separate case, another Court in California also ruled in favour of our practices against scraping in 2019”.

Delhi’s air quality to turn ‘poor’ as stubble burning increases

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Delhi’s air quality to turn ‘poor’ as stubble burning increases

The System of Air Quality Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), under the Ministry of Science and Technology, on Thursday flagged an increase in stubble burning fires around Punjab, Haryana, and as well as areas surrounding Delhi, which, every year, severely affects the air quality in the national capital.

According to the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, burning of one tonne of rice crop residue releases about 13 kg of particulate matter, 60 kg of carbon monoxide and 1,460 kg of carbon dioxide and other harmful gases.

As per the forecasting system, the air quality of the national capital is deteriorating day-by day, with the particulate matter with diameters of 2.5 and 10 microns, which are too small to be filtered out of the body, increasing to 157 and 55 micrograms per cubic metre, respectively. Coarse dust particles are the lead pollutant.

The air quality index of the national capital is likely to deteriorate and reach the lower end of the poor category on October 3 and 4. It will cross the 200-mark on October 3.

“An increase in stubble burning fires was observed yesterday (Wednesday) around Punjab, Haryana, and neighbouring border regions,” the SAFAR reported.

Burning of stubble in these two agricultural states marks the beginning of a highly-polluted period which goes on to last for about three months. The farmers harvest rice in October, which leaves them about three weeks before the next round of wheat sowing is to begin.

With cheap labour no longer available, and machinery to extract the crop residue or stubble expensive or unavailable, the farmers resort to the easiest possible option which is to burn the stubble to prepare the fields.

US space agency National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Fire Information for Resource Management System has also shown that the farmers have started burning the crop residue in parts of Punjab and Haryana.

“Stubble burning has started in Punjab and Haryana like every year. Due to this, people will face breathing issues. At this time, both the Central and state government should find a solution,” said Vikrant Tongad, environment conservationist and founder of Social Action for Forest and Environment (SAFE).

“Rather than burning the stubble, it should be used for other purposes. Farmers should not be punished, but should be provided with technology, knowledge and incentives so that they do not burn it.”

BharatPe aims Rs 1,000cr in loan disbursement in rest of FY21

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BharatPe aims Rs 1,000cr in loan disbursement in rest of FY21

Aiming to disburse loans worth Rs 1,000 crore in the rest of the financial year 2021, merchant payment network BharatPe on Thursday said it disbursed loans worth over Rs 80 crore in September alone, making it one of the largest fintech lenders for merchants during the pandemic.

The company facilitated loan disbursals to the tune of Rs 150 crore through its partners in the current quarter and aims to increase the number of loan disbursals by seven times this year.

“Our proprietary algorithm designed to assess merchant creditworthiness, combined with a multi-modal collection mechanism, is the backbone of our lending product. BharatPe intends to be the fintech partner of choice for the Indian merchants,” said Nishit Sharma, Chief Revenue Officer, BharatPe.

The company has already facilitated disbursement of over Rs 400 crore to its merchants since launch.

BharatLoan allows merchants to avail loans in the range of Rs 20,000 to Rs 7 lakh for up to 15 months tenure at low interest rates and with minimal paperwork.

The merchants can repay the loan in the form of small daily or weekly instalments.

The company said its ‘BharatLoan’ product has received good response that allows creditworthy merchants to avail loans via a 100 per cent digital and automated process.

The merchants also have the option to go for a hybrid repayment model with a combination of daily QR/POS collection and weekly payments made directly from the bank account.

Currently serving over 50 lakh merchants across 35 cities, the company has grown business 30 times in 2019, having processed over 5 crore UPI transactions a month.

BharatPe has raised $142.5 million to date. The company’s list of investors includes Beenext, Sequoia, SteadView Capital, Ribbit Capital, Coatue Management LLC, Insight Partners, and Amplo.

Punjab lifts night curfew, Sunday lockdown as Covid cases dip

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Punjab lifts night curfew, Sunday lockdown as Covid cases dip

Amid declining Covid cases and deaths, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Thursday ordered a slew of relaxations, including lifting of night curfew and an end to the Sunday lockdown, while directing the DGP to strictly enforce wearing of masks and other safety norms.

Among the relaxations announced are increasing the limit for marriage functions and funerals to 100 in the state, in line with the Centre’s guidelines, as well as easing the limit of three persons in a car and 50 per cent capacity in buses, subject to the condition of windows being open.

Amarinder Singh, however, has directed DGP Dinkar Gupta to ensure strict adherence to Covid protocols, with immediate action against those violating the mandatory masks condition.

There should be no laxity, especially in view of the ongoing paddy procurement operations and the forthcoming festival season, he said.

On the issue of reopening of schools and educational institutions, which the Centre had left to the states to decide post-October 15 under Unlock 5.0, the final decision will be announced after due deliberations between the Home Secretary and the Education Department, he said.

During a virtual meeting to review the Covid situation in the state, the Chief Minister took note of the decline in the rising cases and deaths trend and said the restrictions imposed earlier by the state government had helped.

However, he expressed concern over the increase in cases in rural areas, even though numbers in cities/towns were going down.

Amarinder Singh also directed Chief Secretary Vini Mahajan to look into arranging for provision of vitamins etc to poor Covid patients discharged from hospitals.

In a brief presentation earlier, the state’s expert health committee head, K.K. Talwar, said the positivity rate in the state had come down from 10.85 per cent on September 14 to 5.12 per cent on September 28.

The number of deaths and patients on ventilators had also shown a decline during this period, he said.

The state’s Covid death rate currently stands at 2.9 per cent, with deaths per million at 112.5. The recovery rate has gone up to 82.1 per cent.

Health Minister Balbir Sidhu underlined the need for motivation of doctors and other medical staff to keep the situation under control.

Rahul Dev says his latest ‘Raat Baaki Hai’ is an interesting film with tight plot

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Rahul Dev says his latest ‘Raat Baaki Hai’ is an interesting film with tight plot

Actor Rahul Dev says his upcoming digital film, Raat Baaki Hai, is all about thrill, drama and a tight plot.

“It’s an interesting film with a tight plot. People would like it for the elements of thrill and drama. I have an able director in Avinash Das who gives his actors space to perform, hence the creativity is truly collaborative. (I am) enjoying myself on set and I can’t speak too much at this point except that the character holds a few surprises in store,” Rahul said.

“Raat Baaki Hai” also stars Paoli Dam and Annup Soni.

The film is a story of love, deceit and revenge and is based on Atul Satya’s popular play “Ballygunge-1990”. The film takes place when two estranged lovers meet after 12 years.

Samsung launches new collaboration tools for businesses in India

TB Team
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Samsung launches new collaboration tools for businesses in India

Samsung on Wednesday announced new updates for its outdoor displays and video conferencing solutions to help businesses resume normal operations and work smartly as part of its ‘Back to Business’ solutions in India.

The intelligent outdoor display and signage boards can be now used by businesses for crowd monitoring, body temperature measurement, and mask detection as well as for displaying offers of the day and corporate messages, ensuring all social distancing protocols are followed.

“Our innovative solutions are designed to enhance productivity, increase collaboration and help businesses connect with their consumers even as they practice caution. Our new display solution line up reinvents our offerings as businesses resume operations,” Puneet Sethi, Vice President, Consumer Electronics Enterprise Business, Samsung India, said in a statement.

To ensure seamless online interaction and to work efficiently from any location, Samsung has collaborated with CISCO Webex and Logitech to provide a meeting room and video conferencing solutions, thereby bringing the company’s visual display technology and video conferencing offerings together to address remote working requirements.

This partnership aims to bring together the industry’s most comprehensive display lineup including digital signage and desktop monitors, with a wide variety of video conferencing solutions offered by CISCO Webex and Logitech.

Samsung’s collaboration with Logitech would allow Logitech’s USB-compatible conference cams such as MeetUp and Rally, and webcams such as Logitech Brio, C930e, C925e to pair with Samsung displays and transform any location into an integrated workspace, the company said.

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