Google Search brings AR dinosaurs to living room

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Google Search brings AR dinosaurs to living room

Google Search is allowing users to bring 10 dinosaurs from the franchise film, Jurassic World, with the help of augmented reality (AR).

The search engine giant has partnered with Universal Brand Development, Amblin Entertainment, and Ludia to bring the dinosaurs to Google Search, Archana Kannan, Group Product Manager, AR Experiences at Google said in a blog post on Tuesday.

“Jurassic World” dinosaurs that are viewable in AR include Tyrannosaurus Rex, Velociraptor, Triceratops, Spinosaurus, Stegosaurus, Brachiosaurus, Ankylosaurus, Dilophosaurus, Pteranodon, and Parasaurolophus.

Here’s how to access the feature.

On Android, search for “dinosaur” or one of the 10 dinosaurs on the Google app or any Android browser and tap “View in 3D.” You can see 3D content on devices running with Android 7 and above and you can see AR content on ARCore-enabled devices.

One can easily explore all dinosaurs using the carousel format.

On iOS, search for “dinosaur” or one of the 10 dinosaurs on the Google app or on Google.com with Chrome or Safari.

Google said that the 3D and AR content is available on devices running iOS 11 and above.

“You can also create AR videos –or recreate your favorite scenes from the “Jurassic World” movies — with the recording option,” Kannan said.

Rahul assures nurses to raise compensation issue before govt

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Rahul assures nurses to raise compensation issue before govt

Former Congress Chief Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday assured the nurses working as the frontline fighters against the COVID-19 pandemic that he will take up their issues with the government. He told them that he will write on their behalf to the government to compensate the families of the nurses who died while performing their duties.

As part of the series of interactions, Rahul Gandhi held a conversation with nurses on the Doctor’s day.

While interacting with the former Congress Chief, Vipin Krishnan, a nurse working at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi, who along with his wife, has been infected with corona, informed him that two nurses in the national capital died due to COVID pandemic. “Rahul ji I would like to bring something to your attention. Two nurses have died in Delhi, they were from South India. However, they are yet to receive the compensation of Rs one crore announced by the Delhi government,” Krishnan told the Congress MP from Kerala’s Wayanad. Krishnan further said that the government should do something for them. “I want to bring this to your notice since you are the opposition leader,” he said.

Responding to the AIIMS staff, Rahul Gandhi said, “I’ll write a letter and see if we can expedite that.” Krishnan to a question of the Rahul Gandhi over the condition of the medical facilities in Delhi and India said, “I would like to highlight some statistics. We have 1.2 million registered allopathic doctors in India. We have around 3.7 million registered nurses in India. When we are coming to the ratio, it is 1:1500 for doctors and 1.7:1000 nurses in India. The WHO recommended ratio is 1:1000 doctors and 3:1000 nurses when coming to the recommendations of the WHO.

“Running short in the scenario of human resources, but still we are fighting hard. But in our country, the scenario is entirely different. There is a sea of difference between government hospitals and private hospitals in India,” Krishnan said.

To this, Rahul Gandhi asked Krishnan, what difference does he see. Krishnan said, “When we look into the private sector, there is a lot of discrimination. Private nurses are saying that their salaries are being cut. How will they care for their families during this pandemic? In such a situation, I think the government must help them and pay their entire salaries.”

Rahul Gandhi also asked about testing not being allowed in many hospitals in Delhi to which the AIIMS nurse said, “This is indeed a sad state of affairs. I want to inform you about some statistics. On May 27, the infection rate in Delhi was 13.7 percent we were doing 7,000 tests per day. By June 12-13, our infection rate had crossed 30 percent and we are doing under 5,000 tests per day.

“This is surprising given that our deaths and infection rates are increasing, but we have reduced testing. I don’t understand what is happening,” Krishnan said.

The Congress leader then said that a doctor from a private hospital had told him that it becomes impossible for them to work if they cannot test Covid-19 patients.

Slamming the government, Rahul Gandhi said, “I think a little bit is that the governments are trying to manage the perception, they are trying to give a sense that the problem is not as bad as it is.

“But I believe that we have to face the problem, so we should accept the problem, define the problem accurately, and then fight the problem. I don’t know how you react to that,” he said. To this, the AIIMS staffer said, “You are absolutely correct. We have a pandemic situation and AIIMS Director (Randeep Guleria) has said that we will peak in June-mid July.

“Even the Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has stated that they are expecting 5.5 lakh cases. We are having 10,000 beds in Delhi. Can you imagine the depth of the situation where 5.5 lakh people are coming, of course, they won’t come at the same time, but average one lakh patients a day. I can’t imagine the depth of the situation. What will he do?” Krishnan questioned.

In earlier interactions, Rahul Gandhi had conversations with former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, Nobel Laureate Abhijeet Banerji, epidemiologist Johan Geseicke and industrialist Rajiv Bajaj.

Carlyle to acquire 25% stake in Airtel’s Nxtra for $235 mn

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Carlyle to acquire 25% stake in Airtel’s Nxtra for $235 mn

The Carlyle Group will acquire around 25 percent stake in Airtel’s data center business ‘Nxtra’ for $235 million.

The post-money enterprise valuation of Nxtra is around $1.2 billion and Carlyle will hold a stake of approximately 25 percent in the business upon completion of the transaction, with Airtel continuing to hold the remaining stake of around 75 percent, Airtel said in a statement.

“Bharti Airtel and Comfort Investments II, an affiliated entity of CAP V Mauritius Limited, an investment fund managed and advised by affiliated entities of The Carlyle Group today announced an agreement under which Comfort Investments II will invest $235 million in Nxtra Data Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Airtel engaged in the data center business,” it said.

The transaction is subject to the necessary regulatory approvals, including approval from the Competition Commission of India.

Headquartered in New Delhi, Nxtra from Airtel offers secure data center services to leading Indian and global enterprises, hyperscalers, start-ups, SMEs, and governments.

Nxtra’s nation-wide portfolio of 10 large data centers and more than 120 edge data centers provide customers with co-location services, cloud infrastructure, managed hosting, data backup, disaster recovery, and remote infrastructure management.

Extra is building multiple large data centers across the country to capture the significant growth opportunities in India. Last year, the Company commissioned a state of the art datacenter in Pune and is building more across Chennai, Mumbai, and Kolkata. Extra will use the proceeds from this transaction to continue scaling up its infrastructure and offerings across the country.

Gopal Vittal, MD & CEO (India and South Asia), Bharti Airtel, commented: “At Airtel, we have built a robust data center portfolio that is future-ready and scalable. For us, the security and data privacy requirements of our customers are our top priorities, which we have established as a key differentiator for our data center offerings.”

He added that rapid digitization has opened up a massive growth opportunity for data centers in India and we plan to accelerate our investments to become a major player in this segment.

“We are delighted to have Carlyle as a strategic partner in this exciting journey, particularly given their experience in this industry, and look forward to working with them,” Vittal added.

Neeraj Bharadwaj, Managing Director of the Carlyle Asia Partners advisory team, commented: “India is set to become one of the largest markets in the world for digital services. Airtel, with its proven track record of solid execution and customer focus, is well-positioned to leverage the potential growth of data centers in India. We look forward to collaborating with Airtel to unlock the full potential of Extra.”

Jameela Jamil: Lockdown made me less ignorant

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Jameela Jamil: Lockdown made me less ignorant

Actress Jameela Jamil feels the COVID-19 lockdown has helped her become a less ignorant person.

In an interview with Grazia magazine, Jameela spoke about how the ongoing pandemic changed her perspective about life, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

“For the last couple of years, I’ve been so busy I haven’t had time to learn and I think that contributed to a lot of the mistakes I’ve made. This has given me space to really investigate, learn, read, and educate myself. I was so busy (before), I didn’t have time to really know what I was talking about all the time and I feel very grateful for this pause in being able to, hopefully, become a less problematic, less ignorant person,” Jameela said.

She added: “I think I’ll come out of this a more calm, thoughtful, and careful person, more aware of the damage of having a 280-character Twitter word count. Now I have the podcast and YouTube channel. I don’t have to compact all of my thoughts and that’s amazing. Now I have time and space for nuance and context.”

Pak death row convict released after 21 years

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Pak death row convict released after 21 years

A Pakistani man, who spent the last 21 years on death row for a crime he was convicted of committing when he was a juvenile, has been released, according to a non-profit.

According to the Justice Project Pakistan (JPP), the non-profit, human rights law firm, Muhammad Iqbal was only 17 years old in 1998 when he was arrested and consequently sentenced to death a year later, Dawn news reported on Wednesday.

In 2000, Pakistan passed the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance (JJSO), making it illegal for juveniles to be handed the death sentence.

A presidential notification of 2001 subsequently provided remission to all juveniles sentenced prior to the ordinance.

However, Iqbal continued to languish on death row despite his proven juvenility, the JPP said in a statement on Tuesday.

A letter, it added, was written by the Punjab government to the Lahore High Court in 2003, listing Iqbal as one of the prisoners entitled to remission.

Several human rights groups and US special rapporteurs sent a letter to the Pakistani government in March seeking leniency, asking that Iqbal’s death sentence be commuted. The letter stated that he was charged with murder and robbery when he was just 17m Dawn news quoted the non-profit as saying.

“Two decades later, the Lahore High Court had finally acknowledged that Iqbal was wronged and did not deserve to be on death row,” it said.

His death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment in February 2020 and Iqbal was released from jail on Tuesday after it was established that he has already served a life term.

Mexican flag carrier files for bankruptcy

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Mexican flag carrier files for bankruptcy

Mexican flag carrier, Aeromexico announced that it has filed for bankruptcy in the UnS due to the financial crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We have initiated a voluntary procedure to implement financial restructuring under the Chapter 11 process in the US,” Xinhua news agency quoted the airline, one of the largest in Latin America, as saying in a statement on Tuesday.

“The legal process will not disrupt the airline’s operations,” it said.

Chapter 11 is a form of bankruptcy in which the carrier can maintain operation while reorganizing its business affairs, debts, and assets.

Citing economic impact from the COVID-19 pandemic, the airline’s Chief Executive Officer Andres Conesa said that “our industry faces unprecedented challenges due to significant declines in demand for air transportation globally”.

The Mexican carrier is the latest Latin American airline to seek reorganization amid the pandemic.

The region’s two other largest airlines — Santiago-based LATAM Airlines and Colombia’s Avianca — also filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in the US in May.

HK marks 23 yrs under China with new security law (Ld)

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HK marks 23 yrs under China with new security law (Ld)

Hong Kong on Wednesday commemorated the 23rd anniversary of its handover by the UK to China, with the controversial national security law for the city drawn up by Beijing already in effect.

In an address, Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam described the law, whose content was only released once it had been enacted, as “constitutional, lawful, sensible and reasonable”, reports Efe news

She added that “the enactment of the National Security Law in Hong Kong is a turning point to take Hong Kong out of the current impasse and to restore stability and order from the chaos,” although a large part of the local population, as well as journalists, activists, and lawyers, fear that the new legislation will undermine the freedoms enjoyed by the city.

The full draft of the controversial legislation, in six chapters consisting of 66 articles, was released late Tuesday night after it became effective in the city amid widespread concerns about its implications, despite official reassurances that only a small minority would be targeted, said the South China Morning Post newspaper.

It lists four categories of offenses – secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion with a foreign country or external elements to endanger national security.

The maximum penalty for each crime is life imprisonment, although the suggested sentence for some minor offenses is less than three years’ imprisonment.

Suspects can be extradited to mainland China in cases that involve “complicated situations” of interference by foreign forces; cases in which the local government cannot effectively enforce the law and ones where national security is under “serious and realistic threats”.

Moreover, any person convicted under the law will not be allowed to stand as a candidate in the elections for Hong Kong’s Legislative Council.

The next elections to elect the members of this body are scheduled in September.

In November 2019, the pro-Democracy candidates won a landslide victory against pro-Beijing candidates in the district council elections.

Meanwhile, the Hong Kong police pledged to “resolutely enforce the law,” against which a demonstration has been planned at around 7 p.m. on Wednesday.

“In response to the various criminal acts that endanger national security, the Hong Kong Police Force will conduct arrests and take other law enforcement actions in accordance with the National Security Law and the Laws of Hong Kong to protect the life and property of Hong Kong citizens and the basic rights and freedoms they enjoy under the law,” the police said in a statement on Tuesday.

Several pro-democracy groups in Hong Kong announced their dissolution on Tuesday, fearing that the new law would put their members at risk.

The 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration, which articulated Hong Kong’s handover from British to Chinese hands in 1997, established a legally binding treaty whereby Hong Kong’s freedoms and autonomy had to be safeguarded for at least 50 years from that date.

The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said on numerous occasions that the clauses of the treaty were fulfilled at the time.

iPhone users on iOS 13 can ‘hide’ themselves on WhatsApp

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iPhone users on iOS 13 can ‘hide’ themselves on WhatsApp

If you do not want your friends or colleagues to find out when you last checked WhatsApp, there is a trick for Apple users who are using the latest update iOS 13.

While there’s no official tool to hide when you’re online, there’s a sneaky workaround for the iPhone users.

Wait for a message to arrive on your iPhone so a notification appears in your lock screen. Press down on the notification, and the full text will appear and you can scroll down to see the message in full.

While you will have read the message, it won’t trigger the blue ticks or show that you were online, reports Mirror.co.uk.

Currently, WhatsApp’s default settings mean your contacts automatically know if you have read their messages and when you were last active on the app.

In privacy settings, you can tap ‘Last Seen’ and then Nobody to avoid this, and you can also turn off Read Receipts by pressing the toggle.

At the moment, the only official way not to appear ‘online’ or ‘typing’ is to activate Airplane Mode.

This WhatsApp trick works on any device that can upgrade to iOS 13.

Ayodhya seers getting restless over delay in ‘Bhumi Pujan’

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Ayodhya seers getting restless over delay in ‘Bhumi Pujan’

Saints in Ayodhya are apparently upset over the indefinite postponement of the ‘bhumi puja’ of the proposed Ram temple.

The saints want that the work on the Ram temple should start without further delay in the month of ‘Saawan’ which begins on July 6 and will end on August 3.

Mahant Kamal Nayan Das, designated as successor to Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, said, “We have requested the Prime Minister to attend the ‘bhumi puja’. Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, who is also the president of the Shri Ram Janambhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, is sending a formal letter in this regard. We want the construction to begin during the month of ‘Saawan’.”

The Mahant said the saints were looking forward to the physical presence of the Prime Minister, rather than his virtual presence.

The saints want the temple to be ready for inauguration on ‘Ram Navami’ in 2022.

Incidentally, this will be the same time when Assembly elections will be held in Uttar Pradesh.

Mahant Raju Das of Hanuman Garhi said that all the saints were keen on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s presence when the ‘bhumi puja’ is done.

Acharya Satyendra Das, the chief priest of the Ram temple, said that every saint was looking forward to the presence of the Prime Minister.

“The temple construction should start without delay because people are waiting to see the deity in a grand temple,” he added.

UP MLA Aman Mani Tripathi weds again

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UP MLA Aman Mani Tripathi weds again

Aman Mani Tripathi, an independent legislator from the Nautanwa Assembly seat, got married for the second time on Tuesday night at a hotel.

Aman Mani married Oshin Pandey of Madhya Pradesh and the wedding was a small private affair.

The legislator’s sisters and other relatives attended the wedding.

His parents, Amar Mani Tripathi and Madhu Mani Tripathi are serving a life term for the murder of a poetess Madhumita Shukla and are in jail.

Aman Mani Tripathi had earlier married Sara Singh and the latter was killed in an accident in July 2015. Aman Mani, accused of murder, is facing a CBI trial in the case. He is currently out on bail.

He had earlier been arrested for the alleged kidnapping of a businessman in Lucknow.

More recently, he hit the headlines during lockdown when he traveled to Uttarakhand, claiming that he had been assigned the task of offering prayers for the deceased father of UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Badrinath-the shrine was closed at that time.

The Yogi Adityanath government issued a denial in the matter and Aman Mani and his six friends were quarantined for a fortnight in the hill state and a case was also registered against them.

In a first, no giant idol for Lalbaugcha Raja this year

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In a first, no giant idol for Lalbaugcha Raja this year

The first time in its long history, the famed and iconic Lalbaugcha Raja will not be installed during the upcoming 11-day Ganeshotsav, official sources said here on Wednesday.

It will be replaced by a small idol of around 3-4 feet for the traditional ‘puja’ and other ceremonies.

This will be in adherence to an appeal by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to celebrate Ganeshotsav 2020 with more devotion and less pomp in the wake of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

In view of Thackeray’s plea, all Ganeshotsav Mandals in the state, especially those which are renowned for the giant-sized idols, took a voluntary decision to restrict the height of Ganesha to less than four feet.

The normal imposing, 15-feet plus tall idol of Lalbaugcha Raja and other mega-idols in Mumbai, Pune, and other cities will be conspicuous by their absence in the Maharashtra Ganeshotsav celebration starting August 22.

Facebook bans anti-US network Boogaloo, fears backlash

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Facebook bans anti-US network Boogaloo, fears backlash

Facebook has removed a network of accounts, Groups, and Pages related to a US-based anti-government network called Boogaloo.

Calling it a violent organization, the social network said it has banned the network from its platform and will remove content praising, supporting, or representing it.

The company removed 220 Facebook accounts, 95 Instagram Accounts, 28 Pages, and 106 groups that were associated with the network.

“We have also removed over 400 additional groups and over 100 other Pages for violating our Dangerous Individuals and Organizations policy as they hosted similar content as the violent network we disrupted but were maintained by accounts outside of it,” Facebook said in a statement late Tuesday.

This network uses the term Boogaloo but is distinct from the broader and loosely-affiliated Boogaloo movement because it actively seeks to commit violence.

“This network appears to be based across various locations in the US, and the people within it engage with one another on our platform. It is actively promoting violence against civilians, law enforcement and government officials and institutions,” informed Facebook.

Members of this network seek to recruit others within the broader Boogaloo movement, sharing the same content online and adopting the same offline appearance as others in the movement to do so.

The term Boogaloo has been adopted by a range of anti-government activists who generally believe the civil conflict in the US is inevitable.

Some people who participated in the Gun Rights Rally that took place in Richmond, Virginia, on January 20 this year wore the outfit now typical for Boogaloo adherents.

“We expect to see adversarial behavior from this network including people trying to return to using our platform and adopting new terminology. We are committed to reviewing accounts, Groups, and Pages, including ones currently on Facebook, against our Dangerous Individuals and Organizations policy,” said Facebook.

The company said it has removed over 800 posts for violating its Violence and Incitement policy over the last two months.

US stocks rise as tech shares lead

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US stocks rise as tech shares lead

US equities ended higher as a noticeable rally in tech shares boosted the market.

On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 217.88 points, or 0.85 percent, to 25,812.88. The S&P 500 was up 47.05 points, or 1.54 percent, to 3,100.29. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 184.61 points, or 1.87 percent, to 10,058.77, Xinhua news agency reported.

Shares of US tech giants, the FAANG group of Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Google-parent Alphabet, all closed higher.

The S&P 500 technology sector gained 1.92 percent, among the best-performing groups.

Investors digested testimony from US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell.

The sooner-than-expected reopening of the US economy has brought “new challenges” for the country, evidenced by recent increases in COVID-19 cases across the nation, Powell has warned.

“We have entered an important new phase and have done so sooner than expected. While this bounceback in economic activity is welcome, it also presents new challenges-notably, the need to keep the virus in check,” he said in prepared remarks before a hearing held by the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday.

More than 2.6 million confirmed COVID-19 cases have been reported in the United States, with over 127,000 deaths, as of Tuesday afternoon, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

For the quarter, the Dow rose 17.8 percent, notching its biggest quarterly rally since 1987. The S&P 500 advanced nearly 20 percent and the Nasdaq soared 30.6 percent this quarter.

Thailand to lift ban on int’l flights

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Thailand to lift ban on int’l flights

The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) announced that a ban on international flights will be lifted on Wednesday, but some travel restrictions will remain to prevent any chance of the spread of COVID-19.

“The CAAT has decided to allow international flights to resume after the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) rolled out guidelines of the types of inbound travelers allowed to enter Thailand from July 1,” Chula Sukmanop, director-general of the CAAT, said on Tuesday.

Thailand to lift ban on int'l flights
The CCSA announced earlier that business travelers, foreigners with Thai spouses, work permit holders, Thai permanent residents, foreigners seeking medical treatment, foreign teachers and students returning to Thailand, can all enter Thailand from July 1 onwards.

However, all inbound travelers will be subject to a mandatory 14-day quarantine on their own expenses.

Other groups allowed entry include diplomatic missions, international organizations, and foreign government agencies working in Thailand as well as their spouses and children.

These people will need approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs before they book a flight to Thailand.

Centre asks telcos, ISPs to block access to banned Chinese apps

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Centre asks telcos, ISPs to block access to banned Chinese apps

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has directed telecom operators and internet service providers to block access to all the 59 Chinese apps banned by the government with immediate effect, sources said.

DoT has asked all the service players to comply with the order and submit compliance reports.

The development comes after the Centre on Monday banned 59 Chinese apps including TikTok, WeChat, and UC Browser and Xiaomi’s Mi Community over national security concerns as India-China bilateral relations remain strained after the death of 20 Indian soldiers in the Galway Valley clash with Chinese PLA troops in eastern Ladakh.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued a list of 59 Chinese apps that are now banned in the country.

The ministry said that the step has been taken “since there is credible information that these apps are engaged in activities which are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defense of India, the security of the state and public order”.

Chinese short-video making app TikTok on Tuesday said it is in the process of complying with the Indian government order to ban 59 Chinese apps.

Centre asks telcos, ISPs to block access to banned Chinese apps

“The government of India has issued an interim order for the blocking of 59 apps, including TikTok and we are in the process of complying with it,” Nikhil Gandhi, Head of TikTok India, said in a statement, adding that the company has been invited to meet with concerned government stakeholders for an opportunity to respond and submit clarifications.

Global COVID-19 cases top 10.4mn: Johns Hopkins University

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Global COVID-19 cases top 10.4mn: Johns Hopkins University

The overall number of global COVID-19 cases has increased to over 10.4 million, while the deaths have soared to more than 509,000, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

As of Wednesday morning, the total number of cases increased to 10,434,835, while the fatalities stood at 509,779, the University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed in its latest update.

The US accounted for the world’s highest number of infections and fatalities with 2,629,372 and 127,322, respectively, according to the CSSE.

Brazil came in second place with 1,402,041 infections and 59,594 deaths.

In terms of cases, Russia ranks third (646,929), and is followed by India (566,840), the UK (314,160), Peru (285,213), Chile (279,393), Spain (249,271), Italy (240,578), Iran (227,662), Mexico (220,657), Pakistan (209,337), France (202,063), Turkey (199,906), Germany (195,418), Saudi Arabia (190,823), South Africa (151,209), Bangladesh (145,483) and Canada (106,097), the CSSE figures showed.

The other countries with over 10,000 deaths are the UK (43,815), Italy (34,767), France (29,846), Spain (28,355), Mexico (27,121), India (16,893) and Iran (10,670).

A revealing look into the soul of a tormented Palestinian girl

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A revealing look into the soul of a tormented Palestinian girl

Susan Abulhawa was born to refugees of the Six-Day War of 1967, when her family’s land was seized and Israel captured what remained of Palestine, including Jerusalem. Now, this Palestinian American writer and activist have come out with a powerful, furious, beautiful book on sex, power, persecution, violation, survival, and resistance.

“Against The Loveless World” (Bloomsbury), which has been shortlisted for the Palestine Book Award, is about Nahr, who has been confined an Israeli prison named the Cube: nine square meters of glossy grey cinderblock, devoid of time, its patterns of light and dark nothing to do with day and night.

Journalists visit her but get nowhere; because Nahr is not going to share her story with them. The world outside calls Nahr a terrorist, and a whore; some might call her a revolutionary, or a hero. But the truth is, Nahr has always been many things and had many names.

She was named for the river her pregnant mother crossed when she fled from Palestine, but her feckless father called her Yaqoot, Ruby. For a time when she came of age, she was Almas, Diamond, a girl who went to hidden parties in Kuwait with powerful men, who sold off parts of herself to keep her family together.

She was a girl who learned, early and painfully, that when you are a second class citizen love is a kind of desperation; she learned, above all else, to survive.

She was a girl who went to Palestine in the wrong shoes, and without looking for it found what she had always lacked in the basement of a battered beauty parlor: purpose, politics, friends. She found a dark-eyed man called Bilal, who taught her to resist; who tried to save her when it was already too late.

Nahr sits on the Cube and tells her story to Bilal. Bilal, who isn’t there; Bilal, who may not even be alive, but who is her only reason to get out.

It’s a revealing, albeit surrealistic, journey into the mind of a lost and tormented soul.

Abulhawa moved to the US as a teenager, graduated in biomedical science, and established a career in medical science. In July 2001, she founded Playgrounds for Palestine, a children’s organization dedicated to upholding The Right to Play for Palestinian children, and her essays and political commentaries have appeared in print and international news media.

She is the author of two novels, “Mornings in Jenin”, which was an international bestseller, and “The Blue Between Sky and Water”, and a book of poems. She lives in Pennsylvania with her daughter.

Renu Desai is set to return to the silver screen

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Renu Desai is set to return to the silver screen

The other day some media reports came that actress Renu Desai is set to return to the silverscreen and she has reportedly signed a film under Mahesh Babu’s production ‘Major.’ But neither the team nor Renu has spoken about so far and here comes the clarification.

Renu revealed that there is no truth in those reports and has no clue from where they started making headlines. “I haven’t signed any film but have been receiving a lot of calls that I’m being approached for a role in the film ‘Major.’ I would like to make it clear there are absolutely false,” said Renu.

On her comeback, Renu further said ‘If I sign any film, I would reveal all the things all by my own and it’s true that I want to act in films. Hope this settles the dust now’.Coming to ‘Major,’ the film stars Adivi Sesh, Shobita and is being directed by Sashi Kiran Tikka.

China was concerned about the Indian govt blocking 59 Chinese apps

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China was concerned about the Indian govt blocking 59 Chinese apps

China said today that it was concerned about the Indian government blocking 59 mostly Chinese apps including TikTok and WeChat and was “verifying” the situation.

“China is strongly concerned,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian was quoted by ANI as saying. He also told reporters during a daily briefing that India has a responsibility to uphold the rights of Chinese businesses, according to Reuters.

Besides Bytedance’s wildly popular video-sharing app TikTok and Tencent’s WeChat, the apps blocked by the government last evening include Alibaba’s UC Browser and two of Xiaomi’s apps.

The apps are “prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order,” said the ministry of Information Technology. Google and Apple have removed these apps from playstore and app store.

The companies have been invited to offer clarifications before a government panel, which will decide whether the ban can be removed or will stay.

TikTok said it was in the process of complying with the government order and “continued to comply with data privacy and security requirements under Indian law”.

In a statement this morning, it also said it had not shared any information of users in India with “any foreign government, including the Chinese government” and “if we are requested to in the future we would not do so”.

The decision to disallow certain apps “is a targeted move to ensure safety and sovereignty of Indian cyberspace,” said the Ministry of Information Technology. The ministry said it had received complaints alleging theft of user data and violations of user privacy.

India is the biggest driver of the TikTok app and the ban is expected to be a big stumbling block for its owner Bytedance, which had plans to invest $1 billion in the country.

Anti-China sentiment has been simmering in India since the June 15 clash in Ladakh in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed in the line of duty. There have been calls for banning Chinese businesses, which reportedly export goods worth nearly $60 billion to India.

Anxiety among the public on the issues Modi would be addressing in his speech

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Anxiety among the public on the issues Modi would be addressing in his speech

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the nation again at 4 pm on Tuesday. There is anxiety among the public on the issues he would be addressing in his speech. Modi is expected to give some insight into the increasing number of Coronavirus cases post-Unlock 1.0 and at the same time, detail on the guidelines of Unlock 2.0 scheduled to begin from July 1.

He is also likely to speak about the India-China clashes at Galway Valley and the subsequent banning of nearly 59 Chinese mobile apps.

The Unlock 1.0 comes to an end today and the Union Home Ministry had already issued guidelines for Unlock 2.0 scheduled to begin from Wednesday. Meanwhile, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu have declared lockdown till July 31 in the wake of the increasing caseload in both the states. Telangana and other states are also likely to announce lockdown in a couple of days.

In the wake of these developments, Modi’s address has gained significance. Modi had addressed the nation five times since lockdown was imposed in the country to check the spread of Coronavirus.

There is information that Modi is likely to detail the public about the measures taken at the India-China border as this is the first time that he is addressing the nation after the clashes broke out at the India-China border.

He also is likely to call upon the young entrepreneurs heading digital organizations to utilize the opportunity and develop indigenous apps as 59 apps designed by China have been banned. In the same way, he is likely to again stress on ‘Self-reliant India’ (Atma Nirbhar Bharat) of which he made mention during his last speech.

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