Ukraine’s cyberpolice blocks 1,500 Russian resources

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Ukraine’s cyberpolice blocks 1,500 Russian resources

Ukraine’s cyberpolice, a law enforcement agency within the Ministry of Internal Affairs, said it has blocked 1,500 Russian resources which had an audience of about 15 million people, in an attempt to stop propaganda information on Moscow’s ongoing war on Kiev.

In a statement issued on Friday, the agency said: “Citizens are actively helping law enforcement to counter the Russian occupiers on the information front. With the help of chatbots in the Telegram, users report hostile actions on the territory of our state, as well as detected propaganda and misinformation.”

On February 26, the cyber police had created the Telegram channel ‘StopRussiaChannel | MRIYA’ and Telegram bot, https://t.me/stopdrugsbot, which “helped counter pro-Russian propaganda and disinformation by sending complaints about dangerous content on social networks”.

“Almost 150,000 participants have joined the channel since its inception. They sent more than 3,200,000 complaints about various information resources of the occupiers,” the agency statement said.

“A total of 1,500 aggressor resources were blocked. The blocked channels had about 15 million audiences. Also, 3,178 publications justifying war crimes and the death of civilians in Ukraine were blocked separately.”

According to the cyberpolice, there is another special bot called the ‘People’s Avenger’ on Telegram, where users can report the movement of the Russian forces, detect equipment, cases of looting, as well as the location of unexploded ordnance.

As of Thursday, more than 44,000 messages were received through the bot.

Global Covid caseload tops 467.6 mn

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Global Covid caseload tops 467.6 mn

The global coronavirus caseload has topped 467.6 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 6.07 million and vaccinations to over 10.77 billion, according to Johns Hopkins University.

In its latest update on Saturday morning, the University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload and the death toll stood at 467,671,421 and 6,070,281, respectively, while the total number of vaccine doses administered has increased to 10,772,862,375.

The US continues to be the worst-hit country with the world’s highest number of cases and deaths at 79,717,219 and 970,804, according to the CSSE.

The second worst-hit country in terms of cases is India (43,004,005 infections and 516,281 deaths), followed by Brazil (29,584,800 infections and 657,098 deaths).

The other countries with over 10 million cases are France (24,143,852), the UK (20,243,664), Germany (18,412,185), Russia (17,264,828), Turkey (14,663,508), Italy (13,724,411) and Spain (11,324,637), the CSSE figures showed.

The nations with a death toll of over 100,000 are Russia (356,327), Mexico (321,806), Peru (211,691), the UK (164,099), Italy (157,607), Indonesia (153,411), France (141,869), Iran (139,478), Colombia (139,415), Argentina (127,439), Germany (126,686), Poland (114,087), Ukraine (112,459) and Spain (101,703).

Tough taskmaster: How Rajamouli showed no mercy to Jr NTR, Ram Charan

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Tough taskmaster: How Rajamouli showed no mercy to Jr NTR, Ram Charan

In one of the recent promotional videos of ‘RRR’, whose release is a week away, S.S. Rajamouli, the film’s director, Ram Charan, and Jr NTR are seen having a casual chat, where the two stars admit that they were upset by the helmsman’s lack of empathy while on the sets.

The actors complained that they had to deal with the tough demands of Rajamouli, who is known to be a no-nonsense man, on the sets of the movie.

“Rajamouli does not show any empathy while on the sets. Even if Charan or I had small issues, he would make us join the shoot, and complete the task,” NTR complained.

In response, Rajamouli said: “I have to control myself not to show empathy. If I start showing empathy and stop the show even for one day, it will cause huge damage to the production house.”

Ram Charan, on his part, admitted that there was a time when he got irked by Rajamouli’s behaviour.

“I was not feeling well and Rajamouli still wanted me to come down and start shooting. He said that a thousand people have come down to work on the sets, so it will be a waste of money if I didn’t show up,” Ram Charan recalled.

US delegation to hold senior-level consultations with India during South Asia trip

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US delegation to hold senior-level consultations with India during South Asia trip

A senior-level US mission is starting a visit to South Asia on Saturday during which it will hold consultations with Indian officials as the war rages in Ukraine and Washington is rallying international support against the Russian invasion.

According to the State Department, the interagency delegation headed by Under Secretary for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland will visit India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka to “underscore US commitment to, and cooperation with, Indo-Pacific partners”.

The three countries abstained on the UN General Assembly resolution condemning the Russian invasion, but the Department made no mention of the Ukraine situation in the delegation’s agenda.

India, which is an elected member of the Security Council, has also abstained on Ukraine-related votes there.

The US delegation that includes Assistant Secretary for South Asia Donald Lu and Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Amanda Dory will participate in the regular Foreign Office Consultations in New Delhi during the trip, according to the Department.

The consultations traditionally review the entire range of cooperation between the two countries under the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership, including political, economic, commercial, regional, and international cooperation.

The annual ministerial-level meeting of the foreign affairs and defense heads known as the 2+2 Dialogue for last year did not take place.

That meeting between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, and Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken that was expected to take place last December in Washington was postponed because Russian President Vladimir Putin came to New Delhi around that time when a 2+2 meeting was held with Russia.

On each of the stops in South Asia, “Nuland and the delegation will meet with civil society and business leaders to strengthen economic partnerships and deepen ties in the pursuit of peace, prosperity, and security in the Indo-Pacific region”, the Department said.

Pakistan does not figure out the delegation’s South Asia itinerary.

Delhi reports 140 fresh Covid cases, no death

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Delhi reports 140 fresh Covid cases, no death

Delhi on Friday reported 140 fresh Covid cases, but there was no new death, the Health Department bulletin said.

The daily Covid positivity rate in the city stands at 0.43 percent, while the number of active cases has declined to 602. With the recovery rate climbing to 98.57 percent, the death rate stands at 1.40 percent.

With 148 patients recovering in the last 24 hours, the total number of recoveries has gone to 18,36,866. A total of 432 Covid patients are being treated in home isolation.

The number of Covid containment zones has also declined to 3238 in the city.

The new cases have taken the tally to 18,63,633, while the toll remains 26,145.

Meanwhile, a total of 32,444 new tests — 27,026 RT-PCR and 5,418 Rapid Antigen – were conducted in the last 24 hours, taking the total to 3,70,60,601.

Out of 17,382 vaccines administered in the last 24 hours, 5,810 were first doses and 9,873 were second doses. Meanwhile, 1,699 precaution doses were also administered in the last 24 hours. The total number of cumulative beneficiaries vaccinated so far stands at 3,18,69,726 according to the health bulletin.

YSRCP seeks probe into Mamata’s allegation against TDP

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YSRCP seeks probe into Mamata’s allegation against TDP

Andhra Pradesh’s ruling YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) on Friday demanded a probe into West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s allegation that the previous TDP government in the state had purchased spyware from Pegasus.

YSRCP spokesman and MLA Ambati Rambabu said the true colors of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) were exposed after Banerjee spilled the beans on Pegasus software. He demanded the Central and state governments probe the matter.

Banerjee categorically stated that Chandrababu Naidu-led government was in possession of the software, Rambabu told the media here on Friday.

He said the West Bengal Chief Minister revealed in the Assembly that the Andhra government had Pegasus software during Naidu’s regime. Rambabu pointed out that she was neither a friend to the YSRCP nor an enemy to Naidu and in fact, they both were together as the Grand Alliance in the 2019 elections.

The MLA said though the YSRCP didn’t make any allegations on the TDP with regard to Pegasus software, the TDP was scared and reacted aggressively, raising doubts.

He said Naidu should condemn the statement of Mamata Banerjee and file a defamation suit against her. “If he doesn’t file the suit, this will amount to confessing that the TDP government purchased Pegasus software,” he said.

The MLA expressed doubt that Naidu might have bought spyware software through private entities rather than government institutions and alleged that he always indulged in unethical politics managing the institutions. He said the YSRCP had been saying that the TDP was tapping phones when it was in power and its proof has now come to light.

TDP General Secretary Nara Lokesh had said on Thursday that the TDP government had rejected the offer of Pegasus to sell its spyware to the state.

Lokesh, who was Minister for Information Technology in the TDP cabinet headed by his father Naidu, clarified that the TDP government did not purchase any spyware.

“Yes, Pegasus offered to sell its spyware to the AP government as well but we rejected it,” he had told reporters.

He was reacting to Banerjee’s purported claim that the Naidu government purchased the Pegasus spyware. “She was misinformed. If we had resorted to such things, Jagan Mohan Reddy would not have come to power in 2019,” he said.

Poster announces acting debut of Jr NTR’s brother-in-law

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Poster announces acting debut of Jr NTR’s brother-in-law

‘RRR’ actor Jr NTR’s brother-in-law, Narne Nithiin, has made an entry into movies with the family drama ‘Sri Sri Sri Raja Vaaru’ directed by Satish Vegesna.

The first-look poster of the debutant is out, showing him in a checked full-hand shirt, jeans, and sports shoes. Narne Nithiin is the brother of NTR’s wife Pranathi.

Going by the flamboyant first-look poster, it is apparent that Nithiin will be seen in a mass role in the movie, whose details have been kept under wraps. Shooting for the film is expected to start soon.

Produced by Sri Vedhakshara Movies, ‘Sri Sri Sri Raja Vaaru’ will feature the music of the Malayalam composer Kailas Menon.

Mixed views on TN Budget 2022-23

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Mixed views on TN Budget 2022-23

Mixed views were voiced by politicians, economists, and others on the 2022-23 budget for Tamil Nadu that was presented by Finance Minister Palanivel Thiagarajan in the Assembly on Friday.

This was Thiagarajan’s second budget and also the second paperless budget for the state.

Reacting to the budget proposals, former Chief Minister and AIADMK Coordinator O. Panneerselvam said the budget lacks foresight and will not help the common man to improve his life.

Panneerselvam said the budget does not have provisions for fulfilling various poll promises made by the DMK party like increasing old-age pension, financial assistance to the women heads of families, increasing the revenue from mining and other sources.

Panneerselvam who had handled the finance portfolio when the AIADMK was in power said the budget does not have anything on increasing the state’s revenues or cutting down costs.

“Social safety net, data-driven governance, environmental sustainability, and inter-generational equity, were among the key focus areas of this year’s budget. Although the impact of the pandemic posed serious challenges to the economic growth of Tamil Nadu, the situation has been improving in the past months,” Economist Gowri Ramachandran told in an interview.

“So, reform measures to boost the state’s revenue by plugging leakages, to tap the revenue collection from key departments like commercial taxes, mining, sale of liquor/excise to the fullest possible extent, guidelines for toning up the functioning of State Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs), and steps to reduce the debt burden are among the big expectations for this budget and all these were addressed,” she said.

Lauding the minister for bringing down the revenue deficit by about Rs 7,000 cr and fiscal deficit well within the approved line of four percent Ramachandran said the priority will be for revenue resources and exploring possible measures to improve it.

The government has allocated Rs 50 crore for emerging sector seed funds in the budget. Additionally, Rs 30 crore has been allocated towards TANSIM (Tamil Nadu Startup and Innovation Mission) for promoting start-ups in Tamil Nadu which in turn would encourage talented startups, Ramachandran said.

President of Manitheneya Makkal Katchi, M.H. Jawahirullah said the budget is growth-oriented and inclusive.

He said while new tax announcements were expected, the Finance Minister has presented a tax-free growth-oriented budget.

PMK Founder S.Ramadoss welcomed some of the budget proposals and said there are no special schemes to take the state on the forward path.

He said the increasing debt burden-expected to be about Rs 6.53 lakh crore by March 31, 2023, is a worrying factor.

The President of the Tamil Nadu BJP, K. Annamalai said the state government has announced schemes by naming the central government schemes and the budget is silent on the DMK party’s poll promises.

In a tweet, Annamalai said the budget lacks long-term vision and is a daydreamer’s budget.

Tamil Nadu’s budget for 2022-23 is a disappointment for the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) as it is similar to that of the Union Budget supporting ‘doing well’ industries, said K.E.Raghunathan, Convenor, Consortium of Indian Associations.

“The budget is not addressing the core needs of MSMEs today. Sorry Finance Minister. We expected more from you for uplifting the suffocating MSMEs. But our pain continues and the struggle goes on,” Raghunathan said.

BJP fields Agnimitra Paul from Asansol LS seat against Shatrughan Sinha

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BJP fields Agnimitra Paul from Asansol LS seat against Shatrughan Sinha

The BJP on Friday announced four candidates for the biennial elections to the Rajya Sabha from different states and for the by-polls for the Lok Sabha and the assemblies from West Bengal, Bihar, and Maharashtra. The BJP has fielded Agnimitra Paul for the Lok Sabha by-polls from Asansol in West Bengal against TMC candidate and former union minister Shatrughan Sinha. Paul is the MLA from Asansol South assembly constituency and general secretary of the West Bengal BJP.

The BJP has fielded Keya Ghosh from the Ballygunge assembly constituency for the by-polls against former union minister Babul Supriyo. For the Rajya Sabha biennial polls, the BJP has given tickets to Pabitra Margherita from Assam, Dr. Sikandra Kumar from Himachal Pradesh, S. Phangnon Konyak from Nagaland, and Dr. Manik Saha from Tripura.

In a statement, BJP national general secretary Arun Singh said, “The BJP Central Election Committee has approved the following names for biennial polls of Rajya Sabha.”

From the Bochahan assembly constituency in Bihar, the BJP has given the ticket to Baby Kumari for the by-polls. From the Kolhapur North assembly seat, the BJP has nominated Satyajit (Nana) Shivajirao Kadam as its party candidate.

Polling for the Rajya Sabha biennial polls will be held on March 31 and counting of votes will take place after the end of voting on the same day. Polling will be held on April 12 for one parliamentary constituency Asansol and one assembly constituency each in West Bengal (Ballygunge), Chhattisgarh (Khairagarh), Bihar (Bochahan), and Maharashtra (Kolhapur North), and counting of votes will take place on April 16.

IPL 2022: One bad season isn’t going to change me as a player, says Pooran

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IPL 2022: One bad season isn’t going to change me as a player, says Pooran

West Indies batter Nicholas Pooran has said that one bad IPL season is not going to change the player in him and he is now keen to give his 100 percent for his franchise, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the upcoming 2022 season of the cash-rich league.

The 26-year-old had a disappointing IPL 2021, where he averaged just 7.75 with the bat for Punjab Kings. However, SRH still showed faith in the attacking batter and bought him for Rs 10.75 crore in the mega auction.

“…just because I had one bad season, it’s not going to change the player I am. I am doing pretty well in international cricket and everyone sees that. For me it’s about giving back to my team — the Sunrisers have invested a lot in me and so I just want to give my all for them — to me, it’s about being the best version of myself,” Pooran was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

Pooran also mentioned that he has learned a lot from the last IPL season and is a better player now.

“Things like this happen; everyone goes through patches in their career. First game last year, I got a first-ball duck, then the next game, I got a second-ball duck. Eventually, I went out to bat and didn’t even face a ball, got run out (laughs). I’m not dwelling on it too much, I believe I am a much better player now, and I learned a lot from that IPL season,” he said.

The left-hander was the most expensive West Indian player at this year’s IPL auction.

When asked about the pressure of the big price, he admitted it, adding that as a professional cricketer it’s their job to perform for the team under any circumstances.

“As a professional player, sometimes I guess it does, especially when you’re not doing well, the media targets you, a lot of fans criticise you, so it [the fee] definitely does play a part. But as a professional it’s your job to put that noise behind you and just try to perform for the team,” he added.

The wicket-keeper batter believes that every player has technical flaws, but for him, it’s more about the mental thinking and clarity in his game.

“Every player has technical flaws, but to me it’s more mental, having that clarity in my game. Once I can get into that clear space, I think I’ll be all right. As you can see in my last few T20 games, the last three international series, I’ve started to get into that mindset, knowing exactly what I want to do. So hopefully it continues and people can stop saying I need to keep proving myself,” he opined.

Pooran is also looking forward to working with fellow Trinidadian Brian Lara, who is the batting coach of the SRH.

“Yeah, we have had a couple of conversations in the recent past. He’s simply superb, amazing when it comes to batting and how he views the game. So yeah, looking forward to that opportunity to work with him,” he said.

The Kane Williamson-led Sunrisers Hyderabad will open their IPL 2022 campaign against Rajasthan Royals on March 29 at the MCA Stadium in Pune.

‘RRR’ buzz Will Ram Charan, NTR watch the first show in disguise with fans

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‘RRR’ buzz Will Ram Charan, NTR watch the first show in disguise with fans

Ram Charan and NTR, who admit that they have missed watching their own movies on the first day along with their fans, have heeded the advice of the film’s helmer S.S. Rajamouli’s son.

Karthikeya, Rajamouli’s son and an important member of the ‘RRR’ production team, seems to have come up with a fun plan for the duo to watch the movie along with their fans.

Ram Charan and NTR have been advised by Karthikeya to wear prosthetic makeup and appear in disguise so that no one identifies them during ‘RRR’ first-day-first-show.

Though the casual conversation seems to be a fun part of the extended promotion of the much-awaited film, if the actors decide to watch the movie with their fans, the theatre they choose for their appearance will have a crowd surge on its hands. This may result in a stampede or some other law-and-order complications, so the stars may finally abandon the idea.

Nonetheless, the buzz about their secret appearance has only pumped up curiosity about the movie. ‘RRR’ will hit the screens on March 25 in multiple languages across the world.

Body of K’taka student killed in Ukraine to arrive on Sunday

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Body of K’taka student killed in Ukraine to arrive on Sunday

Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Friday said that the body of Naveen Shekarappa Gyanagoudar will arrive at the Bengaluru international airport from Ukraine on Sunday.

Naveen, a student from Karnataka’s Haveri district, who was studying medicine in Ukraine, was killed during Russian shelling in the war-torn Kharkiv city on March 1.

Bommai said that his body will arrive at 3 a.m. The state government has given financial aid of Rs 25 lakh to the deceased’s family.

Naveen’s father, Shekarappa, who was comforted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi after his son’s demise, had requested the Prime Minister to safely bring back students stuck in Ukraine at the earliest, as they are assets to the country.

He had also raised concerns about the expensive medical education in India and the inability of meritorious students to secure medical seats within the country.

Meanwhile, the Opposition Congress and JD(S) have demanded to scrap the NEET entrance test alleging that it encourages tuition mafia in the country.

After state chiefs, Congress state in charges to face axe too?

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After state chiefs, Congress state in charges to face axe too?

After Congress chief Sonia Gandhi asked for the resignation of the party chiefs in the five states where Assembly polls were held following the party’s electoral debacle, sources say that states in charge are likely to face the same fate as she is upset with their performance.

The issue has also been raised by ‘G-23’ leaders, who have sought that those involved in the election process should be shown the exit doors.

The in-charges — Harish Chaudhary (Punjab), Dinesh Gundu Rao (Goa), Devendra Yadav (Uttarakhand), B.C. Das (Manipur) — had reportedly told the high command that the party is returning to power but could not get enough seats which could have saved party prestige.

During the Punjab MPs meeting with Sonia Gandhi, she was given the feedback that the party lost due to mismanagement, particularly by in charge of the party. In Uttar Pradesh, the party did not have high expectations but was confident of respectful performance.

The G-23 leaders had also expressed surprise that no state in charge offered to quit which was a normal procedure in the party before 2014.

The Congress is likely to sack these leaders and appoint new persons to reorganize and restrategise the Congress in the states.

Gandhi on Wednesday appointed five senior leaders to assess the post-poll situation in these states, and suggest organizational changes after interacting with MLA candidates and important leaders.

Rajya Sabha MP Rajani Patil will oversee Goa, Jairam Ramesh Manipur, Ajay Maken Punjab, Jitender Singh Uttar Pradesh, and Avinash Pandey Uttarakhand.

Before this decision, party state chiefs – Navjot Sidhu (Punjab), Ganesh Godiyal (Uttarakhand), Nameirakpam Loken Singh (Manipur), Ajay Kumar Lallu (UP), and Girish Chodankar (Goa) – had been asked to step down..

Pakistan-Australia T20I, ODI matches shifted from Rawalpindi to Lahore: Pak minister

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Pakistan-Australia T20I, ODI matches shifted from Rawalpindi to Lahore: Pak minister

The three One-day Internationals and a Twenty20 match scheduled to be played in Rawalpindi as part of the ongoing Pakistan-Australia series have been shifted to Lahore, Pakistan’s interior minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad confirmed on Friday.

Rasheed Ahmad said that the decision was taken in view of the heightened political tensions between the country’s Prime Minister Imran Khan and the rest of the opposition.

The minister said that Pakistan’s white-ball home series against Australia, slated to start on March 29, will now be hosted at Lahore’s Gaddafi stadium, reports cricketpakistan.com.pk

“All the four white-ball matches will be shifted to Gaddafi Stadium where teams are set to play the final Test of the series starting from March 21, in case the political situation in Islamabad stays the same till March 20,” a PCB official was quoted as saying by the website.

Both teams are currently in Lahore to play the series-deciding third and final Test at the Gaddafi Stadium.

Pakistan media had earlier reported that the changing political scenario and chances of a conflict-like situation in Islamabad has forced the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to prepare a contingency plan.

Pakistan has played two Tests against the touring team so far in the historic home series — the first visit by Australia after the attack on the Sri Lanka cricket team in March 2009. The first Test was played in Rawalpindi and the second in Karachi, and both ended in draws.

Women’s World Cup: Nigar Sultana rues lack of batting partnerships from Bangladesh against WI

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Women’s World Cup: Nigar Sultana rues lack of batting partnerships from Bangladesh against WI

Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana on Friday rued the lack of batting partnerships from her team in their narrow four-run loss to the West Indies at Bay Oval. After being impressive in restricting West Indies to 140, Bangladesh had four partnerships equal to or more than 25.

But none were big enough to take them to their second successive win in the tournament. In terms of individual performance, none of the batters could make more than 25, the highest score in Bangladesh’s chase made by Sultana and an unbeaten Nahida Akter.

“We have seen the last two matches here. So, we saw that the spinners are dominating here and we were just planning to do the same thing. The bowlers did really well today to keep the West Indies batters in a decent total, which is incredible. If we could build up the partnerships in batting, it could have been different,” said Sultana in the post-match virtual press conference.

Sultana further pointed out consuming a lot of dot balls and losing wickets in a cluster (losing three wickets on 60 runs and two wickets on 85 runs) as other factors which played a hand in Bangladesh’s loss. “I know the openers gave us the best start from the last three matches. Shamima (Sultana) fell down today but the back-to-back wickets, it cost us very much and I think if we could build up to two partnerships, at least 20-run partnerships, the result might have been different.”

“We need to work on our strike rotation. We took a lot of balls to start off the innings and even in the middle of the overs when we needed to take singles or rotating strike, it wasn’t there.”

Sultana also believed that letting West Indies score 70 runs in the last 15 overs proved costly for Bangladesh. “I guess in a cricket match that somehow maybe teams give up and sometimes they build a partnership. It happened, but I think from the beginning we put up pressure on them. They put up a very good score in the last 15 overs. We need to work on that. I guess even though they didn’t get any chance actually, but still, we bowled very few bad balls.”

Bangladesh’s next match in the World Cup will be against India on Tuesday at Seddon Park in Hamilton.

Watch skies as ‘Worm Moon’ reaches peak on Friday

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Watch skies as ‘Worm Moon’ reaches peak on Friday

Skygazers living in the Northern Hemisphere are in for a treat as the last full Moon of winter 2022, also known as Worm Moon, will shine bright on Friday.

The Full Moon of March will reach its peak on Friday, just two days before the arrival of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, Space.com reported. There are a plethora of other possible monikers in the US, among them the Storm or Hunger Moon, according to Almanac.com.

While the Moon will reach its peak at 3.18 a.m. EDT (12.48 p.m. IST) on Friday, it will still look approximately full till Saturday morning, according to NASA. With the spring equinox coming on Sunday (March 20), this is the last full moon of winter this year, the report said.

Equinox comes from the Latin words equi, which means “equal” and nox, which means “night”. The astronomical event is caused by Earth’s tilt on its axis and its motion in orbit around the Sun.

The phenomenon — the spring and fall equinoxes — happens twice in Earth’s year-long trip around the Sun.

While on these days, the Sun shines almost equally on the Northern and Southern hemispheres, the rest of the year it shines unevenly over the two regions. That’s because Earth’s axis is tilted with respect to the Sun-Earth plane.

Spring twilight at the North Pole begins a few weeks before the vernal, or spring, equinox in March, when the Sun rises above the horizon again, NASA said.

SL to prioritise tourism for gas, fuel distribution

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SL to prioritise tourism for gas, fuel distribution

Sri Lanka’s Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga has informed the Energy Ministry to prioritize the tourism sector when distributing gas and fuel as the country faced a shortage in both commodities due to a foreign exchange crisis, an official said on Friday.

An official from the Tourism Ministry told Xinhua news agency that Ranatunga held discussions with the Energy Minister this week so that the tourism sector could continue operations without any setbacks.

According to official figures, nearly 235,000 tourists have arrived in the country so far this year and nearly 50,000 tourists were currently in the country.

During discussions, Ranatunga pointed out that it was in the national interest to provide assistance to the tourism industry as the sector was one of the largest foreign exchange-earners.

Sri Lanka has in recent months been facing a foreign exchange shortage, which has led to a fuel, gas, and power crisis.

In a televised speech on Wednesday, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa urged people to remain patient while the government was in discussions with friendly nations and the International Monetary Fund to come out of this shortage.

TN budget 2022: School education gets highest allocation

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TN budget 2022: School education gets highest allocation

The school education department received the highest allocation in the Tamil Nadu budget for the financial year 2022-23 presented by Finance Minister P.T.R Palanivel Thiaga Rajan in the state Assembly on Friday.

The Finance minister allocated an amount of Rs 36,895.89 crore which is the highest amount allocated in the budget. The state school education department received Rs 34,181 crore for the financial year 2021-22.

While presenting the budget, he said that in the next five years all government schools will be modernized with all the necessary infrastructure.

Thiaga Rajan said that 18,000 new classrooms will be built and smart classrooms equipped with essential technologies will come up. The minister said that for the development of smart classrooms with essential technologies an amount of Rs 7,000 crore will be spent in the next five years.

Book fairs would be held across all districts of the state and a high-level committee has been constituted for reviving libraries across the state, he stated.

Teenager Alcaraz sets up Indian Wells semifinal against Nadal

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Teenager Alcaraz sets up Indian Wells semifinal against Nadal

World No. 19 Carlos Alcaraz secured a high-quality and intense 6-4, 6-3 victory over Cameron Norrie of the United Kingdom to set up an all-Spanish semifinal against Rafael Nadal for the first time in the history of BNP Paribas Open on Friday (IST).

This will be Alcaraz’s second career meeting with world No. 4 and winner of 21 Grand Slams Nadal.

Already the youngest BNP Paribas Open men’s quarterfinalist since a 17-year-old Michael Chang in 1989, Alcaraz is now the second-youngest semifinalist in tournament history behind only American Andre Agassi, also 17, in 1988, according to atptour.com.

Alcaraz, seeded 18th here, hit 31 winners to just 14 unforced errors to knock off the in-form Briton.

“It’s so special to be able to play my first semifinal in a Masters1000 here in Indian Wells, in Tennis Paradise,” Alcaraz said. “I’m enjoying every single second. I have no words to describe my feelings right now.”

Nadal overcame a gritty comeback attempt from Australian Nick Kyrgios 7-6(0), 5-7, 6-4 to secure a last-four berth. Nadal has extended his perfect season to 19-0 and improved his ATP head-to-head record against Kyrgios to 6-3, including wins in their past three meetings. A three-time champion in Indian Wells, Nadal returns to the semifinals for the 11th time.

Alcaraz, 18, said he feels ready to give the 36-time Masters 1000 champion Nadal a tough challenge in the semis.

“I think this time I trained with him a couple of times, I know more how to play against him. I think now it’s going to be a little bit different this match. Obviously, he can destroy me again, but I don’t know what is going to happen,” said Alcaraz elaborating on their previous meeting where Nadal won 6-1, 6-2 in Madrid last spring.

Alcaraz and Nadal are a combined 31-1 in 2022, with Alcaraz at 12-1 and Nadal a perfect 19-0. The younger Spaniard won the Rio de Janeiro title in February, while Nadal has won three tour-level titles, including the Australian Open.

Alcaraz and Nadal are the first Spanish pair to reach the Indian Wells semifinals in the event’s 46-year history.

“It’s tough to play against Rafa but at the same time I will enjoy the moment, I will enjoy the match,” Alcaraz said. “It’s not every day you play against your idol. I’m going to be happy even if I lose that match. But I am focused right now to play my best against Rafa and be able to take my chances.”

Grand swearing-in ceremony for Yogi next week

TB Team
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Grand swearing-in ceremony for Yogi next week

The Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) is planning a grand swearing-in ceremony for Yogi Adityanath, who will take over as chief minister for a second consecutive term next week.

Official sources said that the swearing-in ceremony is likely to be held in the Ekana stadium with the list of invitees running into several thousand.

The party is preparing a list of invitees for the event and the guests will include beneficiaries of various government schemes – known as ‘labharti’- who have played a crucial role in voting the BJP back to power.

Arrangements are also being made for around 200 VVIPs at the stadium.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP national president J.P Nadda, Union Ministers Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, and others, chief ministers of BJP-ruled states and some prominent leaders, including from the opposition, will be invited.

Officials supervising the preparations said that the ceremony would be ‘unmatched’ in style and grandeur.

The BJP has retained power for the second consecutive term in Uttar Pradesh, winning 255 seats in the 403-member Legislative Assembly.

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