Voting begins for 51 seats in 5th phase of 17th Lok Sabha elections
Voting for the fifth phase of the 17th Lok Sabha elections has begun today. The phase covers 51 Lok Sabha constituencies across seven states including Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and J&K. Over 96,088 polling booths are in place for smooth conduct of polls, while 8.76 crore registered voters will decide the fate of 674 candidates.
Death toll in Russian passenger plane fire rises to 41
Forty-one people on board a Russian Aeroflot passenger plane were killed on Sunday, including two children, after the aircraft caught fire as it made an emergency landing at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport. Aeroflot said the aircraft’s engines caught fire after the emergency landing. “The crew did everything to rescue passengers…Unfortunately, it was not possible to save everyone,” it added.
As a mother, I had to be strong: Soni on Shaheen’s depression
Actress Soni Razdan, while speaking about her daughter Shaheen Bhatt who suffered from depression, said as a mother she had to be strong to “take the right action to help Shaheen and to heal her”. “Whether it is Alia or Shaheen, at any point in time, if they are suffering, I am the one who gets affected badly,” she added.
No change in poll timings during Ramzan, says Election Commission
The Election Commission has rejected a plea seeking rescheduling of the commencement of voting from 7 am to 4:30 am/5 am during the month of Ramzan, calling the move “infeasible”. On Thursday, a Supreme Court bench had asked EC to decide on the plea seeking change in poll timings for the fifth, sixth, and seventh phase of Lok Sabha elections.
SRH 1st team to reach IPL playoffs with 12 points as MI beat KKR
Mumbai Indians defeated Kolkata Knight Riders by nine wickets on Sunday to finish the league stage of an IPL edition on top of the points table for the third time. With the defeat, Kolkata Knight Riders got eliminated from IPL 2019, while SunRisers Hyderabad became the first ever team to advance to playoffs in an IPL edition with 12 points.
Afridi may be 36, 37 years old, but he is 16 mentally: Gambhir
Cricketer-turned-politician Gautam Gambhir has said ex-Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi may be 36, 37 years old but he is 16 mentally. Further, reacting to Afridi’s remarks that he doesn’t have any great records, Gambhir said, “My records are in open. People will decide what I’ve done for India.” Earlier, Gambhir had said he would take Afridi to a psychiatrist in India.
US farming startup starts selling vegetables grown by robot
Iron Ox has said it has started selling lettuce and basil grown by its robots at a nearby California-based store. The startup, which launched last October, said robot farms can be located nearer to customers and save transportation cost because of their smaller physical footprint. Iron Ox uses AI-powered robot arms to tend crops, however, seeds are sown by humans.
Malicious lies: Anil Ambani’s Reliance on Rahul Gandhi’s claims
The Reliance Group has accused Rahul Gandhi of engaging in “calumny, disinformation, distortion and malicious lies”, after the Congress President called Anil Ambani a “crony capitalist”. The group added it got over ₹1 lakh crore of contracts during the Congress-led UPA regime from 2004 to 2014. “[Was Rahul’s] government, for 10 long years…supporting an alleged crony capitalist,” it stated.
No new taxes on the middle class to finance NYAY, says ex-PM Singh
On being asked how Congress will fund its NYAY scheme if elected, ex-PM Manmohan Singh said India’s GDP will increase from ₹210 trillion to ₹400 trillion in five years. NYAY will cost just 1.5% of GDP to cover five crore poor families and any new taxes on the middle class to finance NYAY won’t be needed, the ex-Finance Minister said.
Rajasthan man returns home after spending 6 years in Pakistan jail
A man named Jugraj Bheel returned to his home in Bundi district in Rajasthan six years after he mistakingly crossed the international border along with Pakistan. He got lost in a jungle bordering Pakistan and was arrested after he crossed the international border. Since early June last year, there was no information about his whereabouts.
ONGC cash reserves shrink to ₹167 cr from ₹9,511 cr in 1.5 yrs
India’s largest oil producer ONGC’s cash reserves stood at ₹167 crore as of September 2018, down 98% from ₹9,511 crore in March 2017. This comes amid the government urging state-run firms to give more dividends or announce share buybacks to meet fiscal deficit targets. ONGC acquired Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) last year, as part of government’s efforts to meet disinvestment targets.
PM Modi’s rule most traumatic for youth, farmers: Ex-PM Singh
Former PM Manmohan Singh on Sunday said that PM Narendra Modi’s rule was the “most traumatic and devastating” for India’s youth, farmers, traders and every democratic institution. He added that BJP’s search for new narratives every day reflects its “bankruptcy” of national security vision. Singh said that the government that doesn’t believe in inclusive growth should be shown “exit door”.
Not here for vendetta politics, but to serve people: Sunny Deol
Actor and BJP candidate from Punjab’s Gurdaspur parliamentary constituency Sunny Deol on Sunday said that he has joined politics to serve the people and not for vendetta politics. He added that he wouldn’t give any importance to settling scores but to developmental issues. The 62-year-old further said that his focus will be to usher in multi-faceted development of the constituency.
Kedar Jadhav likely to miss remainder of IPL 2019
Chennai Super Kings all-rounder Kedar Jadhav is likely to miss the rest of the IPL 2019 due to a shoulder injury he picked up in the side’s match against Kings XI Punjab. “He’s getting an X-Ray and a scan tomorrow, so we’re hopeful for him. I don’t think we’ll see him again in this tournament,” CSK coach Stephen Fleming said.
Cong suspends Shakeel Ahmad for contesting polls independently
The Congress on Sunday suspended its ex-MP Shakeel Ahmad from the party for contesting independently from Bihar’s Madhubani parliamentary constituency. Ahmad had filed his nomination in two sets as a Congress candidate and an independent and withdrew the former after the party declined his request for allotting its symbol. The Congress also suspended Benipatti MLA Bhavana Jha from the party.
Country’s security ‘supreme priority’ for BJP: Amit Shah
Addressing a rally in Haryana’s Panipat, BJP President Amit Shah said the country’s security will remain the saffron party’s “supreme priority”. Terming infiltrators as “termites”, Shah added that the BJP government was committed to “throw out” all infiltrators. He further said that the BJP-led government will make Haryana “number one state” in North India in ease of doing business.
We picked Ishant based on his tremendous Test form: Kaif
Delhi Capitals’ assistant coach Mohammad Kaif said that pacer Ishant Sharma has been a ‘big’ factor in the side’s success this year and that he was picked based on his ‘tremendous’ Test form for India. Sharma had gone unsold last season after having managed to pick a total of seven wickets in his last four IPL seasons.
Diaz scores brace for Real Madrid in win vs Villarreal
Mariano Diaz scored a brace in Real Madrid’s 3-2 win over Villarreal in the La Liga on Sunday. The match also witnessed Jesus Vallejo score his first goal for Real Madrid, who were playing without Karim Benzema. Real Madrid have now registered five wins in a row at their home stadium.
Chelsea reach third spot with win over Watford
Chelsea reached the third spot in the Premier League table after beating Watford 3-0 at the Stamford Bridge on Sunday. The win came after goals from Ruben Loftus-Cheek, David Luiz, and Gonzalo Higuain, with assists for the first two goals coming from Eden Hazard. Chelsea are a place and point above Tottenham Hotspur.
Failed sapphire glass supplier for iPhone charged with fraud
GT Advanced Technologies and its ex-CEO Thomas Gutierrez were charged with misleading investors about the company’s ability to supply “sapphire glass” for Apple’s iPhones and misclassifying over $300 million-debt to Apple. In 2013, Apple agreed to give GT $578 million in four instalments for sapphire glass that met certain standards. In 2014, GT filed for bankruptcy and later exited it.
Grofers records ₹2,500 crore sales in FY19, aims for IPO in 3 yrs
Gurugram-based grocery delivery startup Grofers plans to double its sales to ₹5,000 crore in current fiscal from ₹2,500 crore recorded in financial year 2018-19 and targets an IPO in three years. “At the company level, we will start making profits by 2020-21,” Grofers Co-founder and CEO Albinder Dhindsa told PTI. Founded in 2013, Grofers is backed by investors including SoftBank.
Delhi co-working startup Awfis revenue triples to ₹158 crore
New Delhi-based Awfis’ Founder Amit Ramani said the co-working space startup is targeting to go public in 2022, PTI reported. Awfis, which reportedly turned profitable at entity level last year, has recorded a nearly three-fold jump in revenue during last fiscal at ₹158 crore from ₹56 crore before that. Founded in 2015, Awfis is backed by Sequoia Capital, others.
IMF official replaces fired Pak central bank Guv amid rescue talks
Pakistan on Sunday named International Monetary Fund (IMF) economist Reza Baqir as the Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan. Tariq Bajwa, who had previously held the post, was fired along with the head of the tax collection body on Friday, owing to their “performance”. The appointment comes amid Pakistan’s bailout negotiations with the IMF.
Endgame fastest movie to gross $2 billion, achieves feat in 11 days
Avengers: Endgame’ has become the fastest film to gross $2 billion, taking just 11 days to achieve the feat. The previous record was set by ‘Avatar’, which surpassed the $2-billion mark in 47 days from its release. Overall, ‘Avengers: Endgame’ is the fifth film to gross $2 billion after ‘Avatar’, ‘Avengers: Infinity War’, ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ and ‘Titanic’.
Stop it, you don’t need to explain: Kher to Akshay on citizenship row
Following Akshay Kumar’s tweet wherein he wrote he has never hidden the fact that he holds a Canadian passport, actor Anupam Kher supported the actor and wrote, “Stop it!…You are a doer. You don’t need to explain to anybody.” “Their real profession is to make people like you & me feel defensive for talking in favour of India,” he added.
BCCI responsible for the situation: Sachin on ‘conflict of interest’
Sachin Tendulkar has rejected BCCI’s observation that his alleged conflict of interest falls under “tractable category”, saying the board is “responsible for the current situation”. Sachin requested BCCI Ethics Officer to call CoA chief and BCCI CEO to “clarify their position”. Sachin added it was unfortunate he had to clarify questions regarding his role as CAC member and MI mentor.
Feminists can say what they want: Afridi on no cricket for daughters
Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi, in his book, said that he has given permission to his four daughters to play any sport as long as they are indoors. “Cricket is not for my girls,” he added. “The feminists can say what they want; as a conservative Pakistani father, I have made my decision,” he further said.
Facebook bans breast cancer fundraising ads over nudity, criticized
Facebook was criticised after it banned Breast Cancer Network Australia’s fundraising ads featuring topless cancer survivors covering themselves with baked goods, citing nudity rules. Facebook said it rejected the ads because they didn’t contain messages like educating people about the disease. “It’s not nudity…it’s a reality for so many…I will never be ashamed of my scars,” said a survivor.
165 arrested from rave party in Coimbatore; ganja, hashish seized
As many as 165 youngsters were arrested for using drugs at a rave party which took place at a resort near Pollachi in Tamil Nadu’s Coimbatore district. The police confiscated ganja, MDMA, cocaine, hashish and banned sedative tablets from the venue. The police revealed the party had been convened over social media and was pitched as a 24-hour weekend celebration.
