Sonu Nigam, Shaan to share hotseat on ‘KBC 13’

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Sonu Nigam, Shaan to share hotseat on ‘KBC 13’

Bollywood singers Sonu Nigam and Shaan are set to appear as special guests on the ‘Shaandaar Shukravaar’ episode of ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati 13’ this Friday (October 22).

They’ll sing popular tracks such as ‘Dus Bahane’, ‘All is Well’, ‘My Dil Goes’, ‘Main Agar Kahoon’, and more. The singers will be seen on the hotseat and will be playing the game along with the popular reality show’s celebrity host, Amitabh Bachchan.

They will be seen not only playing the game, but also sharing personal anecdotes and cherished moments from their time in the industry. Big B will be seen laying down a rule for the guests requiring them to sing a song whenever they complete a ‘padav’.

Amping up the entertainment quotient of the show, Sonu Nigam and Shaan will also be seen playing ‘antakshari’ with Amitabh Bachchan and singing ghazals as well.

(The ‘Shaandaar Shukravaar’ episode of ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati 13’ will air on Sony Entertainment Television.)

NASA’s new Lucy asteroid spacecraft faces solar panel glitch

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NASA’s new Lucy asteroid spacecraft faces solar panel glitch

NASA’s newly launched Lucy spacecraft, the US space agency’s first-ever mission to explore distant asteroids and seek out the origin of our solar system, has faced some issues with one of it solar panels, the agency has said.

Lucy successfully lifted off on October 16)from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida in the US. But on Sunday, NASA announced that one of Lucy’s 24-foot-wide solar panels may not be working well.

While the 12-year asteroid mission is safe and healthy, one of the two solar array is not be fully latched, NASA said in a statement.

“NASA’s #LucyMission is safe & stable. The two solar arrays have deployed, but one may not be fully latched. The team is analysing data to determine next steps,” Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at the agency’s Headquarters in Washington, D.C., wrote on Twitter.

NASA said the mission team is working on analysing the problem and will come up with next steps in the days ahead.

“Lucy spacecraft systems show the spacecraft is operating well and is stable,” NASA added in a blogpost.

Meanwhile, it said all other system is working well and both of the solar arrays are producing power and charging the battery .

“All other subsystems are normal. In the current spacecraft attitude, Lucy can continue to operate with no threat to its health and safety. The team is analysing spacecraft data to understand the situation and determine next steps to achieve full deployment of the solar array,” the blogpost said.

Lucy’s solar panels are a crucial part of the spacecraft’s ambitious mission to get scientists their first-ever up-close look at asteroids that orbit in the same path as Jupiter, called the Trojans.

Lucy will explore the Trojan asteroids with a suite of remote sensing instruments. Additionally, the navigation cameras will be used to determine the shapes of the Trojan asteroids.

Jupiter’s Trojan Asteroids are small bodies that are remnants of our early solar system, now trapped in stable orbits associated with, but not close to, the giant planet Jupiter.

These primitive bodies hold vital clues to deciphering the history of the solar system.

Moreover, when Lucy is making its flybys, it will break the record for the farthest from the sun a spacecraft has run exclusively on solar power.

The mission takes its name from the fossilised human ancestor (called “Lucy” by her discoverers) whose skeleton provided unique insight into humanity’s evolution.

Bank gross NPAs to rise to 8-9%, stressed assets to touch 10-11%: Report

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Bank gross NPAs to rise to 8-9%, stressed assets to touch 10-11%: Report

Gross non-performing assets (NPAs) of banks will rise to 8-9 per cent this fiscal, well below the peak of 11.2 per cent seen at the end of fiscal, ratings agency Crisil said in a report.

The Covid-19 relief measures such as the restructuring dispensation, and the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) will help limit the rise, the report added.

With 2 per cent of bank credit expected under restructuring by the end of this fiscal, stressed assets-comprising gross NPAs and loan book under restructuring-should touch 10-11 per cent.

Krishnan Sitaraman, Senior Director and Deputy Chief Ratings Officer, CRISIL Ratings, said: “The retail and MSME segments, which together form 40 per cent of bank credit, are expected to see higher accretion of NPAs and stressed assets this time around. Stressed assets in these segments are seen rising to 4-5 per cent and 17-18 per cent, respectively, by this fiscal end. The numbers would have trended even higher but for write-offs, primarily in the unsecured segment.”

The retail segment, which had a relatively stable run over the past decade, has been singed by the pandemic, with salaried and self-employed borrowers alike facing significant income challenges and higher medical expenses, especially in the second wave.

Thus, in a first-of-its-kind move, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) introduced loan restructuring for retail borrowers to help them tide over the situation. This followed a six-month moratorium permitted by lenders last fiscal.

Despite the measures, CRISIL Ratings believes stressed assets in the retail segment will rise to 4-5 per cent by the end of this fiscal from 3 per cent last fiscal. While home loans, the largest segment, will be the least impacted, unsecured loans are expected to bear the brunt of the pandemic.

The MSME segment, despite benefiting from ECLGS and the recent limit enhancement and tenure extension, is likely to see asset quality deteriorate and will require restructuring to manage cash-flow challenges. In fact, restructuring is expected to be the highest for this segment, at 4-5 per cent of the loan book, leading to a jump in stressed assets to 17-18 per cent by this fiscal end from 14 per cent last fiscal, Crisil said.

The corporate segment, though, is expected to be far more resilient. A large part of the stress in the corporate portfolio had already been recognised during the asset quality review initiated five years ago. That, coupled with the secular deleveraging trend, has strengthened the balance sheets of corporates, and enabled them to tide over the pandemic relatively unscathed compared with retail and MSME borrowers. This is evident from restructuring of only 1 per cent in the segment. Consequently, corporate stressed assets are expected to remain range-bound at 9-10 per cent this fiscal.

The rural segment, which was hit harder during the second wave of the pandemic, has also seen a strong recovery. Therefore, stressed assets in the agriculture segment are expected to remain relatively stable.

Subha Sri Narayanan, Director, CRISIL Ratings, said: “While the performance of the restructured portfolio will definitely need close monitoring, the slippages from the restructured book are expected to be lower this time. Restructuring under various schemes in the past focussed on larger exposures and primarily involved extension of maturity without any material haircuts, resulting in high subsequent slippages. This time, the entry barriers for restructuring are more stringent. Also, recent trends indicate that a reasonable proportion of borrowers, primarily on the retail side, have started making additional payments as their cash flows improve, despite having availed of restructuring. MSMEs, however, may take longer to stabilise and we remain watchful.”

The estimates of CRISIL Ratings are predicated on a base-case scenario of 9.5 per cent GDP growth this fiscal and continued improvement in corporate credit quality.

A virulent third wave and significant deceleration in demand growth could pose significant downside risks to these estimates. On the other hand, operationalisation of the National Asset Reconstruction Company Ltd by the end of this fiscal and the expected first-round sale of Rs 90,000 crore NPAs could lead to lower reported gross NPAs.

Daily 1st time creators more than doubled on YouTube Shorts

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Daily 1st time creators more than doubled on YouTube Shorts

Google-owned YouTube has announced that the daily first-time creators more than doubled on its short-video app called ‘Shorts’ in one year.

YouTube Shorts was first launched in India during 2020 and has since been expanded to more than 100 countries.

“We launched YouTube Shorts to empower the next generation of mobile-first creators. We’re still at the beginning of our journey, but since we first launched our Shorts creation tools in September 2020, the average number of daily first-time creators more than doubled (from September 2020 to September 2021),” the company said in a statement.

The firm has expanded its Shorts Fund into 30 plus more countries globally as it continues to start rewarding creators.

YouTube Shorts is receiving 3.5 billion daily views on the global level, and India is among the countries leading the figures.

According to the latest data from management consulting firm Bain & Company, three in four Internet users — or 600 to 650 million Indians — will consume short-form videos by 2025, with active users spending up to 55 to 60 minutes of such content per day.

More than 200 million Indians watched short-form videos at least once in 2020, with daily active users spending up to 45 minutes a day on these platforms.

As the video consumption grows, there lies a greater responsibility on platforms like YouTube to make sure people are watching responsible creator content.

To ensure this, YouTube has launched #CreateWithCare, its latest initiative in India that partners with leading creators to preserve and promote a diverse and inclusive community on YouTube that can drive responsible growth.

“#CreateWithCare aligns with our mission to empower creators from all backgrounds, communities, languages and genders, including many that may be under-represented, to find their voice an audience and cultivate a sense of belonging,” Satya Raghavan, Director of YouTube Content Partnerships, India, told IANS recently.

“We make sure that our creators understand how best to use the platform and how to grow, and for this we already have a set of community guidelines. These guidelines actually focus on how to create content in a responsible manner,” he added.

YouTube has on boarded about 25 of top creators to take a pledge to create content more responsibly. At the ‘Creator Camp’ virtual event this week, Rekha Sharma, Chairperson, National Commission of Women in India, also encouraged the YouTube creator community to create content responsibly and inclusively.

Telugu OTT platform to rope in Samantha for next venture

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Telugu OTT platform to rope in Samantha for next venture

Samantha Ruth Prabhu is in demand. After signing up for two films, she is said to be in talks with the Telugu OTT platform Aha for an upcoming venture.

Earlier, Aha had Samantha host a celebrity talk show titled ‘Sam Jam’, where the actress engaged with her celebrity guests in conversations that became instant hits. Reports now suggest that is planning a bigger association with Samantha.

The plan is to roll out a web series with the actress playing a central role in it. She was last seen playing Tamil Eelam militant in the popular web series, The Family Man 2, where she impressed audiences with both her acting skills and her action sequences.

Samantha’s upcoming movies include a love story under Shantharuban’s direction. She has also signed for another movie to be made by director duo Hari and Harish. And now, if the makers of Aha’s untitled web series get a nod from Samantha, they propose to start shooting as early as possible.

The actress, meanwhile, has wrapped up shooting for the talkie part of Gunasekhar’s mythological magnum opus, ‘Shaakunthalam’. The dubbing of the film has been wrapped up and the makers are now busy with the post-production formalities.

B’desh can ill-afford another shocking loss as they take on Oman

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B’desh can ill-afford another shocking loss as they take on Oman

Bangladesh skipper Mahmudullah has hinted at some surprise changes for the First Round Group B ICC T20 World Cup game against Oman later on Tuesday, following the shock six-run defeat to Scotland on October 17.

In a low-scoring match, Bangladesh, chasing 140, could manage only 134 giving the newcomers Scotland a surprise win.

“Our batting is a concern. We have to bat better. We have to play aggressive cricket, regardless of the situation. We have a deep batting line-up, with Mohammad Saifuddin at No.9. We may need to think over some changes,” said Mahmudullah.

Bangladesh were found wanting on a number of counts against Scotland as their boundaries dried up and they chewed up dot balls both in Powerplay and death overs. In fact, they were just 25/2 in the Powerplay — a period that is proving to be the key in matches in the region in recent weeks.

Hosts Oman will be wary of the wounded Bangladesh pride, despite the co-hosts riding high after a 10-wicket win against Papua New Guinea (PNG). They have also given Sri Lanka the jitters in the warm-up games, and will be hoping to use all their knowledge of the game and the home ground to put it past Bangladesh.

If they manage to surprise Bangladesh, they will find themselves on two wins and in an excellent position to go through to the ‘Super 12’, though a loss will not end their campaign.

Bangladesh would be hoping their bowlers do a good job again — they had reduced Scotland to 53/6 on October 17 and spinners Mahedi Hasan and Shakib Al Hasan were especially effective in drying up the runs. However, Bangladesh might have to do some juggling with their batting.

For Oman, opener Jatinder Singh who top-scored for his side with an unbeaten 73 off 42 balls against PNG, will hold the key.

Oman captain Zeeshan Maqsood said, “We have to look at our fielding, and minimise our mistakes. Our catching is alright, but ground fielding has to be better, (we struggled) due to nerves. We can’t take it easy and we need to correct our mistakes.”

Possible Bangladesh XI:

Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah (c), Afif Hossain, Nurul Hasan (wk), Mahedi Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman.

Possible Oman XI:

Zeeshan Maqsood (c), Aqib Ilyas, Jatinder Singh, Khawar Ali, Kashyap Prajapati, Naseem Khushi (wk), Mohammad Nadeem, Ayaan Khan, Sandeep Goud, Kaleemullah, Bilal Khan.

‘Ratnan Prapancha’: First big Kannada OTT release is set on Oct 22.

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‘Ratnan Prapancha’: First big Kannada OTT release is set on Oct 22.

Kannada film ‘Ratnan Prapancha’ is ready to release on October 22 in Amazon Prime Video by makers.

As a first kannada movie on OTT platforms, it is going to release, it has ‘Daali’ Dhananjay playing the lead character. In the movie He has played the insurence agent. The story is rounding about mother’s efforts to get him marrage.

The movie was directed by Rohit Padaki, stars multi-lingual actress Reba Monica John, Shruthi, UmashreeAnu ,Panju,Prabhakar and Achyut Kumar.

Commenting about the movie on socialmedia platform, Ramya, who is Sandalwood actress, said she had hertfully lauging when she watched the trailer of the film.

England to play first-ever T20I series, three Tests in the Caribbean in 2022

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England to play first-ever T20I series, three Tests in the Caribbean in 2022

Cricket West Indies (CWI) and the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have announced the match schedule and venues for England Men’s T20 Internationals and Test tours of the West Indies in January and March 2022.

England will arrive in the Caribbean to play the first-ever five-match T20I series between the two teams. All five matches in Barbados will be played across a nine-day period from January 22 to 30, 2022, including two consecutive weekends of back-to-back T20 cricket.

Following West Indies’ white-ball tour of India in February 2022, the West Indies will welcome England back to the region for a three-match Test Series to compete for the newly created Richards-Botham Trophy. This new trophy honours two legends of cricket, Ian Botham and Vivian Richards, whose friendship and on-field heroics became synonymous with some of their respective teams greatest Test match moments.

The Test series will start at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Ground (SVRCG) in Antigua on March 8, 2022 before moving to the Kensington Oval in Barbados for the second Test starting on March 16. The third match will commence on March 24 in Grenada at the National Cricket Stadium.

CWI will welcome fully-vaccinated England fans throughout the tour.

Schedule: West Indies v England T20I series, all played at the Kensington Oval, Barbados

Saturday January 22 – 1st T20I; Sunday January 23 – 2nd T20I; Wednesday January 26 – 3rd T20I; January 29 – 4th T20I; Sunday January 30 – 5th T20I.

Test series:

March 1-4: Four-day warm-up match at Coolidge Cricket Ground, Antigua

March 8-12: 1st Test at Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Ground, Antigua

March 16-20: 2nd Test West Indies v England at Kensington Oval, Barbados

March 24-28: 3rd Test West Indies v England at National Cricket Stadium, Grenada

Prez Kovind, PM Modi convey Eid greetings to nation

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Prez Kovind, PM Modi convey Eid greetings to nation

President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday greeted the country on the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad celebrated as Eid-Milad-un-Nabi.

President Kovind said, “Good wishes to all fellow citizens, especially to our Muslim brothers and sisters on Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi, the birthday of Prophet Muhammad. Let us take inspiration from Prophet’s life and ideals and work for the prosperity of society and promotion of peace and harmony in the country.”

Prime Minister Modi, too, greeted the country on Milad-un-Nabi. “Let there be peace and prosperity all around. May the virtues of kindness and brotherhood always prevail. Eid Mubarak!”

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi wished the people of the country on the ocassion of Eid. “My best wishes on the occasion of Milad-un-Nabi. May we be guided by the spirit of compassion, peace and brotherhood.”

Muslims across the country celebrate the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad which falls on 12th day of Islamic Hijri month of Rabi’ al-Awwal.

India logs 13,058 new Covid cases, 164 deaths

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India logs 13,058 new Covid cases, 164 deaths

India reported 13,058 new Covid cases on Tuesday, the lowest in 231 days, and 164 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to Union Health Ministry data.

With the new fatalities, the overall death toll has increased to 4,52,454.

The recovery of 19,470 patients in the same period has increased the cumulative tally of recovered patients to 3,34,58,801.

India’s recovery rate stands at 98.14 per cent, currently at its highest peak since March 2020.

The active caseload presently is 1,83,118, lowest since March 2020, which constitute 0.54 per cent of the country’s total positive cases.

The testing capacity across the country continues to be expanded. In the last 24 hours, a total of 11,81,314 tests were conducted. India has conducted over 59.31 crore cumulative tests so far.

While the testing capacity has been enhanced across the country, the weekly positivity rate at 1.36 per cent remains less than 3 per cent for the last 116 days.

The daily positivity rate has been reported to be 1.11 per cent. It has remained below 3 per cent in the past 50 days and below 5 per cent in the last 133 days.

With the administration of 87,41,160 vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, India’s Covid-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 98.67 crore as per provisional reports.

This has been achieved through 97,44,653 sessions.

According to the Health Ministry, more than 10.42 crore Covid-19 vaccine doses are still available with the States/UTs to be administered.

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