Special flight carrying 218 Indian nationals from Bucharest lands in Delhi

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Special flight carrying 218 Indian nationals from Bucharest lands in Delhi

Another special flight carrying 218 Indian nationals from Ukraine – evacuated via Bucharest – under the ‘Operation Ganga’ landed at Delhi airport on Wednesday morning.

This is the ninth flight of ‘Operation Ganga’ that evacuated stranded Indian citizens from Ukraine.

Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh received the Indian nationals at the airport. While interacting with media, he said: “About 220 students arrived via Istanbul. I asked a girl where she is from, like state-wise, but she replied, “I’m from India.” They still can’t believe that they are back in India due to stress. We ensured they spoke with their parents”.

Another flight carrying the Indian nationals is also expected to land soon at the airport. Meanwhile, two Indian Air Force aircraft took off for Romania and Hungary from the Hindon airbase this morning to bring back stranded Indians.

According to an estimate, a total of 18,000 students were stranded in war-torn Ukraine.

However, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Tuesday that of the 12,000 have been brought back.

Chaitanya’s maiden series sparks curiosity among folks

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Chaitanya’s maiden series sparks curiosity among folks

Naga Chaitanya kick-started working for his maiden web series titled ‘Dootha’.

As he shares a monochrome picture from his sets, he hints at dialogue from the series, creating much anticipation among folks.

Chaitanya, who took to his Instagram to post the BTS (Between the shots) picture, wrote: “To a new start”, which makes his upcoming project official now.

The picture features Naga Chaitanya’s first day on the sets, as he is seen gearing up with his script. The picture is a beautiful monochrome that has Chay’s spectacles, his watch, and a pen, which might be a hint at the kind of role he is going to take up, for ‘Dootha’.

The monochrome pic shows WH Auden’s curious quote, typed on Naga Chaitanya’s script book.

“I and the public know. What all schoolchildren learn, Those to whom evil is done. Do evil in return- W.H. AUDEN,” the dialogue from the first episode of ‘Dootha’ reads.

Naga Chaitanya, who was last seen on the big screen in the film ‘Bangarraju’, will be next seen in Vikram Kumar’s much-hyped movie ‘Thank You.

The ‘Love Story’ actor collaborates with Vikram Kumar for his maiden OTT project, which has been titled ‘Dootha’, which means ‘The messenger’.

The shooting for the upcoming Amazon Prime Video original series is reportedly a supernatural/horror thriller.

Insta makes encrypted direct messaging available in Ukraine, Russia

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Insta makes encrypted direct messaging available in Ukraine, Russia

Meta has announced that it is making encrypted one-to-one chats in photo-sharing service Instagram available to users in both Ukraine and Russia.

Users on Instagram will be alerted to the option via a notification that will appear at the top of their direct message inbox.

The notification will inform the users to switch over to an encrypted conversation if they wish to.

Messenger and WhatsApp already offer end-to-end encryption to billions of users.

“We want people in Russia to continue to be able to hear from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and others in Ukraine,” said Clegg, Meta’s president of global affairs.

In addition to restricting access to RT and Sputnik across the EU, Meta is also globally demoting content from Facebook Pages and Instagram accounts from Russian state-controlled media outlets and making them harder to find across its platforms.

“We have also begun to demote posts that contain links to Russian state-controlled media websites on Facebook,” said Meta.

The company already labels Facebook Pages and Instagram accounts from Russian state-controlled media outlets so people know where this information comes from.

“By providing this additional transparency, we aim to give people more context if they want to share direct links to Russian state-controlled media websites or when others see someone’s post that contains a link to one of these sites,” it added.

EU leader says conflict must end before discussion for Ukraine accession

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EU leader says conflict must end before discussion for Ukraine accession

Conflict should end before Ukraine’s application to join the European Union (EU) is discussed, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said here.

“Today, the European Union and Ukraine are already closer than ever before. There is still a long path ahead. We have to end this war. And we should talk about the next steps,” von der Leyen said while addressing the European Parliament plenary on Tuesday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday signed an official appeal for the EU, asking for the accession of Ukraine via a new special procedure, Xinhua news agency reported.

During the plenary on Tuesday, Zelensky, who was invited to make a speech from Kiev via video link, expressed his gratitude that the EU countries were unified in supporting Ukraine but regretted that it came after a high price was paid.

European Council President Charles Michel responded by pledging to look at the “symbolic, political and legitimate request” seriously while admitting the process will be difficult.

Members of the European Parliament on Tuesday adopted a resolution that called on the EU institutions to work toward granting Ukraine EU candidate status and stated that such procedure should be in line with proper EU terms.

The resolution was approved by 637 votes in favor, 13 against with 26 abstentions.

WhatsApp bans over 1.8 mn bad accounts in India in Jan

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WhatsApp bans over 1.8 mn bad accounts in India in Jan

Meta-owned WhatsApp on Tuesday said that it banned 1,858,000 bad accounts in India in the month of January in compliance with the new IT Rules, 2021.

The company said that it also received 495 grievance reports in the same month from the country and took action on 24 of those in January.

“In accordance with the IT Rules 2021, we’ve published our eighth monthly report for the month of January 2022,” a WhatsApp spokesperson said in a statement.

“As captured in the latest Monthly Report, WhatsApp banned over 1.8 million accounts in the month of January,” the spokesperson added.

The company said that data shared highlights the number of Indian accounts banned by WhatsApp between January 1 to January 31 using the abuse detection approach, which also includes action taken in furtherance to negative feedback received from users via its “Report” feature.

“WhatsApp is an industry leader in preventing abuse, among end-to-end encrypted messaging services,” the spokesperson said.

“Over the years, we have consistently invested in Artificial Intelligence and another state of the art technology, data scientists and experts, and in processes, in order to keep our users safe on our platform,” the company added.

Meta (formerly Facebook) also took down over 11.6 million pieces of content across 13 policies for Facebook and over 3.2 million pieces of content across 12 policies for Instagram in the month of January.

Under the new IT rules 2021, big digital and social media platforms — with more than 5 million users — have to publish monthly compliance reports.

Will take the huge win against Australia with a grain of salt: White Ferns skipper Devine

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Will take the huge win against Australia with a grain of salt: White Ferns skipper Devine

New Zealand Women’s cricket team skipper Sophie Devine has said she would take the massive victory against Australia in the warm-up game ahead of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, beginning on March 4, with a “grain of salt”.

Devine played a stellar role in the game on Tuesday at the Bert Sutcliffe Oval, smashing a 117-ball unbeaten 161 with the help of 23 boundaries and four maximums as the White Ferns overhauled Australia’s mammoth total of 321 for the loss of just one wicket with nearly seven overs to spare.

The win over six-time ICC world champions Australia, couple with the White Ferns’ 4-1 series win against India recently, would have boosted the morale of the home team, which won their maiden ICC World Cup in 2000. Besides Devine, Amelia Kerr finished unbeaten on 92 off 75 balls, and Suzie Bates made a knock of 63 off 68 balls.

While their batting display was admirable, it was their bowling attack that shone as well with the White Ferns snaring all 10 Australian wickets in the first innings.

“Yeah look, it was certainly nice to put a performance like that up,” Devine said on SENZ Breakfast on Wednesday. “I think we probably need to take it with a grain of salt, it was a warm-up game but I guess we certainly want to acknowledge the way we played against the world’s best at the moment.”

The skipper was proud of the way her team performed with the steep target in mind.

“I think that was probably one of the real strengths of the chase, was how calm we stayed. We knew the wicket was flat, the outfield was true and you got real value for shot. So as long as we kept the run rate in check, which we managed to do throughout the whole chase, we knew we were in with a good shout,” the all-rounder said.

“Even when Suz (Bates) left, the way Melie (Kerr) came in and batted, it was a very smart and mature inning from her to take calculated risks. It was just smart cricket, which is something that is really pleasing.”

Devine said her 161-run knock will give her confidence heading into the World Cup opener against the West Indies on March 4.

“It was just a real pleasure to spend a bit of time out there,” said the 32-year-old. “I’ve been getting a bit jealous watching everyone else chew through the runs, and been disappointed I haven’t been able to contribute more. I know that if I work hard on simple things, the outcome will look after itself. It was just a timely reminder for me of what’s capable for me when I stay focused and disciplined.”

FB to demote Russian state media across its entire platform

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FB to demote Russian state media across its entire platform

Meta-owned Facebook, which has already blocked access to RT and Sputnik within the European Union and Ukraine, now said it will demote all Russian state media across Facebook and Instagram around the world.

According to Engadget, Meta’s president of Global Affairs Nick Clegg said the company was making Russian state media “harder to find” on Facebook and Instagram.

“We are demoting content from Facebook Pages and Instagram accounts for Russian state-controlled media outlets,” Clegg was quoted as saying during a call with reporters.

“We have also begun to demote posts that contain links to Russian state-controlled media websites on Facebook over the past few days,” Clegg added.

On the call, Clegg called the move “unprecedented,” and noted that Meta has received requests from a number of governments to suppress Russian state media.

So far, the company has only blocked the pages entirely in the European Union — following a ban from lawmakers — and inside of Ukraine.

In addition to demoting content, Clegg said Facebook will also add labels to all links to Russian state media websites that are shared on its platforms to “provide more information to people before they share them or to let them know that they lead to state-controlled media websites”.

Facebook Pages and Instagram accounts controlled by state media will also have labels, the report said.

The labels, which are expected to roll out in the coming days, will appear on any link to Russian state media and will warn that Facebook believes the publisher is “partially or wholly under the editorial control of the Russian government”.

Facebook’s head of Security Policy Nathaniel Gleicher added that the company will be on the lookout for new websites or links created to evade the policy.

Facebook’s latest update comes after several days of crackdowns on Russian state media from major tech companies.

Nagaland student arrives in Delhi, 2 nuns from Mizoram still in Ukraine

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Nagaland student arrives in Delhi, 2 nuns from Mizoram still in Ukraine

A large number of students from various parts of India, including from the Northeastern states are still stranded in war-hit Ukraine.

One medical student from Nagaland arrived here on Wednesday at the Indira Gandhi International airport here in a special aircraft.

The girl student hails from Dimapur in Nagaland and is a daughter of a medico.

“I walked for two days to reach Poland along with other Indian friends,” the visibly relieved student told this journalist.

She requested anonymity.

“It’s good to be home,” she said, adding that it’s a challenging time for all, but all Indian students are putting up a brave fight.

The special aircraft arrived here at around 1000 hours on Wednesday and the student was received at the airport by Nagaland Government officials led by Senior Public Relations Officer (PRO) Koulie Mere.

Deputy Resident Commissioner Wennyei Konyak accorded her a warm welcome at the Nagaland House, 29 Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Road.

The Nagaland government is organizing her flight to Dimapur Thursday (March 3).

Meanwhile, from Mizoram two nuns working with Missionaries of Charity Rosela Nuthangu and Ann Feda are still stranded in Ukraine, sources said.

Naveen Shekharappa Gyanagoudar, 21, a medical student from Karnataka died due to the shelling in Kharkiv, in eastern Ukraine on Tuesday, the Indian government confirmed.

“With profound sorrow, we confirm that an Indian student lost his life in shelling in Kharkiv this morning. The Ministry is in touch with his family. We convey our deepest condolences to the family,” tweeted Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.

Around 20,000 Indians, including a large number of students chiefly in medical institutions, resided in Ukraine before the commencement of the military conflict on February 24.

Nearly 60 percent of them, that is around 12,000, have left Ukraine and over 2,000 have been brought to India,” officials said.

India’s Foreign Secretary Harsh V. Shringla said: “Of the remaining 40 percent of Indians in Ukraine, roughly half remain in the conflict zone in Kharkiv, Sumy area and the other half have either have reached the western borders of Ukraine or are heading towards the western part of Ukraine. “…They are generally out of conflict areas,” the Foreign Secretary said.

More than 9,000 Indian nationals have been brought out of Ukraine while a considerable number are now in safer areas

Of the two nuns, Sister Feda has been working in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine.

Sister Ann Feda reportedly took her first oath in 1998 to become a nun to join the Missionaries of Charity order and was sent to Ukraine in 2015, according to her elder brother Dengdailova, also a chairman of the St Mary’s Parish church in Aizawl.

A senior Mizoram state government Home ministry official also said there was no information of any other Mizos being in Ukraine.

There are a good number of medical students studying in Ukraine from Tripura and other Northeastern states as well, sources said.

(Nirendra Dev is a senior journalist and author of books ‘The Talking Guns: North East India’ and ‘Godhra – Journey of a Prime Minister’.)

11 more Telangana students return from Ukraine

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11 more Telangana students return from Ukraine

Eleven more students from Telangana have returned to India from war-torn Ukraine, officials said on Tuesday.

Ten students reached Delhi by flight 6E-9451 from Bucharest. Another student returned by flight 6E-8386.

With this, the number of students and others from Telangana who have returned home from Ukraine rose to 67.

They were evacuated along with other Indian citizens from countries neighboring Ukraine. They reached by nine flights from Bucharest since February 26. Two of these flights had landed in Mumbai while the remaining landed in Delhi.

The Telangana government made arrangements to receive all returnees at Delhi and Mumbai airports. The state government also booked air tickets for them from Delhi and Mumbai to Hyderabad.

The government shall continue to liaise with the government of India to bring back Telangana residents from Ukraine safely, said an official statement.

Russian military warns to hit facilities in Kiev, asks civilians to leave

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Russian military warns to hit facilities in Kiev, asks civilians to leave

The Russian military said on Tuesday that it will carry out strikes against facilities in Ukraine’s capital Kiev, warning civilians living in nearby areas to leave, CNN reported.

The Russians will target the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the 72nd Main Centre for Information and Psychological Operations (PSO) in Kiev, the Russian defense ministry said in a statement.

“In order to suppress information attacks against Russia, the technological facilities of the SBU and the 72nd main PSO centre in Kyiv will be hit with high-precision weapons,” the statement said.

“We call on Ukrainian citizens attracted by Ukrainian nationalists to carry out provocations against Russia, as well as residents of Kiev living near relay nodes to leave their homes,” it added.

A massive 40-mile long Russian military convoy — made up of armored vehicles, tanks, towed artillery, and other logistical vehicles — has reached the outskirts of Kiev, according to satellite images from Maxar Technologies, CNN reported.

Russia has repeatedly claimed it is not hitting civilian infrastructure in Ukraine. But social media videos, photos and satellite images analyzed and geolocated by CNN confirm that on several occasions, densely populated areas have been hit by Russian forces.

In the past two days, accelerated strikes on the second-largest city of Kharkiv that have struck civilians suggest that Russia is shifting toward a far less-restrained bombing campaign, in contrast with its earlier attacks that were more focused on military targets.

Telugu states celebrate Maha Shivratri with gaiety

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Telugu states celebrate Maha Shivratri with gaiety

Telangana and Andhra Pradesh celebrated Maha Shivaratri with fervor and gaiety on Tuesday.

Devotees thronged Shiva temples in both the Telugu states since morning. They offered Rudrabhishekha and participated in the special puja. They also took holy dips in rivers and ponds.

A large number of devotees paid obeisance at Vemulawada Rajarajeshwara Swamy temple in Telangana’s Rajanna Sircilla district. Minister for Endowments Indrakaran Reddy and Minister for Backward Classes Welfare Gangula Kamalakar offered silk clothes to the deity on behalf of the state government.

Devotees lined up at Komuravelli Mallanna temple in Siddipet district since the early hours of the day. A procession was also taken out on the occasion. Maha Shivaratri celebrations were also held at Keesara temple in Medchal Malkajgiri.

In Andhra Pradesh, the biggest celebration was held at Srisailam temple in Kurnool district. Thousands of devotees were lined up at the hill shrine since early Tuesday.

Devotees stood in long queues for darshan at Mallikarjuna Swamy temple. For free darshan, the devotees had to wait for six hours while special darshan was taking two hours. Devotees took holy dip at Patala Ganga.

Maha Shivaratri celebrations were also held with gaiety at Srikalahasti, which houses one of the famous Shiva temples in the country.

Special pujas were held at Amaralingeshwara Swamy temple in Amaravati, Durga Nageshwaraswamy in Krishna district, and other Shiva temples across the state.

Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, his Andhra Pradesh counterpart Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, and her Andhra Pradesh counterpart Biswa Bhusan Harichandan greeted the people on the occasion of Maha Shivratri.

The Telangana Chief Minister stated in his message that Hindus observe Maha Sivaratri with fasting and waking up the night as a symbol of commitment, and faith. He prayed to Lord Shiva to bless people in Telangana state and in the country with longevity, peace, and happiness.

Top actresses release wedding song ‘Siragai’ from Brinda’s ‘Hey Sinamika’

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Top actresses release wedding song ‘Siragai’ from Brinda’s ‘Hey Sinamika’

Top actresses Trisha, Sai Pallavi, Tamannaah, Rakul Preet Singh, Manju Warrier, and Keerthy Suresh on Tuesday released ‘Siragai’, a wedding song from director Brinda’s upcoming film ‘Hey Sinamika’, featuring actors Dulquer Salmaan, Kajal Aggarwal, and Aditi Rao Hydari in the lead.

The north Indian classical music-based wedding song, featuring both Kajal and Aditi, has been penned by Madhan Karky and is set to music by Govind Vasantha. It has been rendered by Keerthana Vaidyanathan and Sai Prabha.

Sources close to the unit say that Brinda Master was looking for a set to shoot a grand song that needed the lavish feel and decor of a north Indian wedding sangeet celebration. The song location needed a north Indian flavor, but a big crew could not travel because of Covid restrictions.

Sources say that the team scouted several locations in Mumbai and Hyderabad. However, nothing was to the director’s satisfaction.

Finally, it was art directors Murthy and Senthil who came to the rescue. They suggested a set in Chennai itself and finally settled down on a rundown set, famously known as ‘Aranmanai’.

At first look, the location could pass for a haunted house but Murthy and Senthil magically transformed it into a stunning palace set for the wedding-themed song in just five days, sources said and added that the ethereal lighting by cinematographer Preetha Jayaraman took the entire look of the set up several notches.

Talking about the number, director Brinda says, “This song ‘Siragai Siragai’ comes at a crucial juncture in the film when the two leading ladies set eyes on each other for the first time and what follows is an elaborately choreographed dance number performed beautifully by Kajal and Aditi. I wanted to have the perfect backdrop for this key moment in the film. Having searched for locations all across, art directors Murthy and Senthil helped us find an apt place in Chennai itself. The set looks very striking, further complimented by my cinematographer Preetha’s lighting.”

Brinda further adds, “If this set spoke aloud of the skill of the art director, the rest of the sets in the film blended into the story and never looked out of the place extravagant, which is a true hallmark of the art director.”

‘Hey Sinamika’, which marks the directorial debut of ace-choreographer Brinda master, is all set to hit screens on March 3.

Uber ‘Explore’ to help users buy concert tickets, book restaurants

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Uber ‘Explore’ to help users buy concert tickets, book restaurants

Ride-hailing app Uber on Tuesday introduced a new feature called ‘Explore’ that will allow customers to browse and book experiences, including dinner reservations, live events, and other fun activities.

When opening the Explore tab in the Uber app, riders will see places recommended to them based on categories including food and drink, art and culture, nightlife, music and shows, and more.

The feature is now live in 14 US cities and Mexico City.

“We plan to expand Explore to more cities in the coming weeks and months, along with more event opportunities and experiences offerings,” the company said in a statement.

The company has selected some of the best places to explore, and for the top restaurants & bars, you’ll get 15 percent off your rides up to $10 for now. The deals will always be changing based on what’s popular in your area.

“It will be easy to purchase tickets to events and experiences because you can pay conveniently with your Uber Wallet & Payment profile,” it added.

The restaurant reservations are handled through a Yelp integration in the app.

Uber will feature that company’s five-star ratings for restaurants in Explore.

“We’ve built Uber Explore to take our customers beyond the ride,” said Adib Roumani, product lead for Uber Explore.

IND vs SL: Having crowds, not in our control, team focussed on winning, says Bumrah on Kohli’s 100th Test

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IND vs SL: Having crowds, not in our control, team focussed on winning, says Bumrah on Kohli’s 100th Test

India vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah on Tuesday said that the team is not thinking about the lack of crowd for the first Test against Sri Lanka because it’s not in their control and they are rather focusing on winning the series opener.

The first Test starting on March 4 here will be Virat Kohli’s 100th match in the longest format of the game. However, the match will be played without spectators and a section of fans are expressing their disappointment on social media over the issue. Notably, the Punjab Cricket Association confirmed last week that the 1st Test in Mohali will be played without spectators due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The pacer admitted that the crowd does bring energy to the contest but the players can only focus on the controllable.

“See, right now we are in the frame of mind, where we are focussing on what we can control. (If) the crowds come, it is good for the energy, but that is something that we cannot control, we don’t have any power regarding that, we don’t decide the rules,” vice-captain Bumrah said in a virtual press conference.

“So, for us what we can control is our energy, so we are trying to focus on that, and that is the basic thing in everybody’s mind right now, that is how do we prepare. We are in the best frame of mind, even if crowds are not there, so how do we keep that energy up. And with that, obviously, as I said, it is a big, big day, a big match for Virat Kohli,” he added

Kohli will become the 12th Indian to play 100 Tests after Sachin Tendulkar (200), Rahul Dravid (163), VVS Laxman (134), Anil Kumble (132), Kapil Dev (131), Sunil Gavaskar (125), Dilip Vengsarkar (116), Sourav Ganguly (113), Ishant Sharma (105), Harbhajan Singh (103), and Virender Sehwag (103).

The 28-year-old Bumrah praised his former captain on the special milestone, saying that 100 Test matches are a testament to Kohli’s hard work over the years.

“It is always a special achievement for a player. You know it is a testimony to his hard work, dedication. Playing 100 Test matches for your country is a great occasion and he has contributed a lot to the success of the Indian team and will contribute a lot more in the future as well,” said Bumrah.

“It is another feather in his (Kohli’s) cap. I just wish him the best and congratulate him for the achievement,” he added.

Asked if he would like to gift Kohli something special on the occasion, the pacer said, “If the Indian team wins, then there is no best (better) present than that. But he (Kohli) as a cricketer would like to give his best.”

“Whichever match we play, whether it is his 100th Test, yes obviously, (it is) a big achievement, but India’s main focus is on the series.”

The series will also be a special moment for Rohit Sharma, who will lead India for the first time in Test cricket as he was named the replacement for Kohli, who quit from the top job in January.

Union Minister Rai drives bullock cart on Shivratri

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Union Minister Rai drives bullock cart on Shivratri

Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai, on Tuesday, drove a bullock cart in Bihar’s Hajipur as part of a tradition on Maha Shivratri.

There is an age-old tradition of taking out a procession in Hajipur on the occasion of the Maha Shivratri festival, which is being celebrated with usual fervor and gaiety across the country.

At first, Rai reached the ancient temple Pataleshwar Nath in Hajipur in the morning and offered prayers. After that, he joined the procession and drove a bullock cart.

The Union Minister also met people and congratulated them on the occasion of Maha Shivratri. He said people from different parts of the Vaishali district come here to offer prayers during the festival.

He said he prayed to God to keep blessing Prime Minister Narendra Modi “as, under his leadership, India will again become a Vishwa Guru (World Leader)”. He hoped Lord Shiva will make the Prime Minister successful and fill the lives of all devotees with happiness.

Several BJP leaders and a large number of devotees were present on the occasion and chanted ‘Har Har Mahadev’ in praise of the deity.

The procession from Pataleshwar temple passes through various parts of the city and ends at Akshaywat Rai Stadium, where the best performing tableau will be rewarded. This year more than 100 tableaux are participating in this procession.

Google removes over 1 lakh pieces of bad content in India in Jan

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Google removes over 1 lakh pieces of bad content in India in Jan

Google removed 104,285 pieces of bad content based on user complaints in January this year — an increase from 94,173 pieces of bad content it removed in December, the tech giant said in its monthly report in compliance with the new India IT Rules 2021.

The tech giant received 33,995 complaints from users in India in January. These complaints were related to third-party content that is believed to violate local laws or personal rights on various Google platforms.

“The complaints consist of various categories. Some requests may allege infringement of intellectual property rights, while others claim violation of local laws prohibiting types of content on grounds such as defamation,” Google said in a statement.

The 104,285 pieces of content were removed under various categories like Copyright, Trademark, Court Order, Graphic Sexual Content, Circumvention, and others.

Google said that it also removed 401,374 pieces of content as part of automated detection in the above-mentioned period.

“In addition to reports from our users, we invest heavily in fighting harmful content online and use technology to detect and remove it from our platforms,” it said in its monthly compliance report.

“This includes using automated detection processes for some of our products to prevent the dissemination of harmful content such as child sexual abuse material and violent extremist content,” it added.

In accordance with the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (IT Rules), Google, along with other social media platforms, is mandated to publish monthly transparency reports with details of complaints received from users in India and the actions taken, as well as removal actions taken as a result of automated detection.

Under the new IT rules 2021, big digital and social media platforms — with more than 5 million users — have to publish monthly compliance reports.

“We evaluate content reported to us under our Community Guidelines, content policies, and/or legal policies,” said Google.

13 new Covid-19 cases reported, says Premier League

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13 new Covid-19 cases reported, says Premier League

The Premier League on Tuesday confirmed that 13 new Covid-19 cases have been reported in different clubs.

“The Premier League can confirm that between Monday 21 February and Sunday 27 February, 3,016 players and club staff were tested for Covid-19. Of these, there were 13 new positive tests,” the League said.

The Premier League is providing this aggregated information for the purposes of competition integrity and transparency.

“No specific details as to clubs or individuals will be provided by the League and results will be made public on a weekly basis,” the statement said.

Throughout the pandemic, the Premier League has adapted its guidance in response to the wider public health situation. The guidance was last updated in December in response to the emergence of the Omicron variant.

“The League’s postponement rules and guidance are designed to protect the wellbeing of players and staff while maintaining the sporting integrity of the competition and the quality of squads playing League matches,” League said.

The premier league also recommended that fans bring a face covering with them and wear it while indoors or in crowded areas, including on public transport if this is how you travel to matches.

Rashmika Mandanna: ‘I don’t want to be categorised as an actor’

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Rashmika Mandanna: ‘I don’t want to be categorised as an actor’

Actress Rashmika Mandanna, who will next appear in the movie ‘Aadavallu Meeku Johaarlu’, stated that she doesn’t want to get categorized as a North or South actress, but only wants to do content-rich movies.

The ‘Sarileru Neekevvaru’ actress, who spoke to the media said, “I don’t want to be categorized in any industry like North or the South. I want to be an actor with a pan-India appeal.”

The actress who has two big-ticket Hindi flicks, ‘Mission Majnu’ and ‘Good Bye’, starring Amitabh Bachchan, said that she is open to acting in any good movies, without considering the language barriers.

Rashmika, though, subscribes to the fact that her appearance in South Indian movies like ‘Pushpa’ and ‘Geetha Govindam’ has given her great visibility in Hindi.

“People call me Srivalli (from Pushpa) or Geetha (from Geetha Govindam), etc. So the audiences remember my characters, which means they are watching all our content,” she says.

As Rashmika gears up for her next release titled ‘Aadavallu Meeku Johaarlu’, she said she learned to conduct herself by seeing senior actresses working on the sets of the Sharwanand-starrer.

“To see women like Radikaa, Khushbu, and Urvashi on the sets, knowing that they are such great actors, taught me how to conduct myself on the sets and how to treat others on the team,” Rashmika said.

Rashmika Mandanna and Sharwanand will be seen together in Kishore Tirumala’s upcoming family entertainer.

‘Aadavallu Meeku Johaarlu’ will hit the screens on March 4.

‘Ramarao On Duty’ teaser depicts Ravi Teja as a powerful, ambidextrous man

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‘Ramarao On Duty’ teaser depicts Ravi Teja as a powerful, ambidextrous man

Ravi Teja’s upcoming movie ‘Ramarao On Duty’s teaser was launched on the occasion of Mahashivratri.

Much to the delight of the masses, the teaser has plentiful action blocks, introducing Ravi Teja as a duty-minded Deputy Collector, who doesn’t spare anyone who goes against the law.

Also, establishing the other side of Ramarao’s character as a do-gooder for the needy, the teaser hints at the fact that Ravi Teja is an ambidextrous man in the movie. Ravi Teja appears in an intense look all through, with a glimpse of the heroines in the movie as well.

Billed as an action thriller, ‘Ramarao On Duty’ is directed by debutant Sarath Mandava under Sudhakar Cherukuri’s SLV Cinemas LLP and RT Teamworks.

The movie is currently in the last stages of production, except for two songs, the film’s entire shooting part was already wrapped up.

Divyasha Kaushik, Rajisha Vijayan, Venu Thottempudi, Nasser, Sr Naresh, Pavitra Lokesh, ‘Sarpatta’ John Vijay, Chaitanya Krishna, Tanikella Bharani, Rahul Rama Krishna, Eerojullo Sree, Madhu Sudan Rao, Surekha Vani, and others will be seen in lead roles.

FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup: It does not matter against which opponent we start our campaign, says Sushila Chanu

TB Team
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FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup: It does not matter against which opponent we start our campaign, says Sushila Chanu

India Women’s Hockey Team will open their campaign against England on July 3 in the Pool B match of the FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup 2022 in Spain and Netherlands scheduled to begin from July 1.

India will next face off against China on July 5 and New Zealand on July 7.

India Women’s Team halfback Sushila Chanu addressed the media at a virtual press conference and said that the order of the matches does not change how the team will be preparing for the tournament.

“It does not matter against which opponents we start our campaign. We are not afraid of which team we are facing first as our mentality and our mindset is to take each game as it comes and try and win every match,” Sushila Chanu said.

“We have faced China recently in Muscat, Oman, in the Women’s Hockey Asia Cup 2022, and in the FIH Hockey Pro League 2021/22. and so it will be an advantage for us. We will be playing the FIH Hockey Pro League 2021/22 matches against England next month. We had last played New Zealand in 2020. So we know about all these teams quite well and we know how we have to prepare for the upcoming challenges,” the veteran hockey player added.

India competed against the Spain Women’s Hockey Team at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar over the past weekend in a two-legged affair. While India won the first match 2-1, Spain won the second match 4-3. India forward Navneet Kaur also spoke on how the team has gained confidence in the past couple of years because of constantly facing higher-ranked opponents.

“Around 2-3 years ago, there used to be a concern in the team before facing stronger opponents. But now, there is no fear in our team and we feel we are ready to face every challenge. Even if an opponent scores the first goal, we know we have the capability and skills to get things back in our favor,” Navneet said.

“Our team has developed a fighting spirit over the past couple of years. This has worked really well for us,” she added.

India will next play a double-header against Germany in FIH Hockey Pro League 2021/22 on March 12 and March 13. Asked about the preparation for the upcoming games, Navneet said, “We have faced off against Germany last year. So, we will definitely take a look back at videos of those matches to recognize what are our stronger areas, and what areas we have to improve upon when we face them again.”

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