Drunk labourers attempt to break into ICICI ATM near Victoria Memorial Metro station (Photo: Twitter)
Hyderabad: Two labourers in an inebriated state attempted to break into an ATM in Chaitaniyapuri limits on Tuesday night. However, their attempt was foiled.
The drunk labourers attempted to break into the ICICI ATM located near Victoria Memorial metro station and damaged the machine before their plan was foiled by locals who caught them red-handed. The duo fled the scene soon after.
On enquiry, the inspector of Chaitaniyapuri police stated that the two were mere labourers and were not trained professionals who carried out the act when they were drunk. He added that they have been identified and will soon be arrested.
Lahore: Protests broke out in major Pakistani cities on Tuesday at the call of PTI Chairman Imran Khan as police and party workers continued to clash outside his Zaman Park residence in Lahore, the media reported.
Protests broke out in Islamabad, Peshawar and Karachi after Imran called on his supporters to “come out” following police’s use of tear gas and a water cannon on supporters outside Zaman Park, the Dawn reported.
Videos shared by the PTI’s Karachi chapter showed workers gathered at Qayyumabad Chowrangi, I.I. Chundrigar, Hassan Square and Sohrab Goth.
In Peshawar, a large number of PTI supporters demonstrated outside the press club.
After demonstrating at the press club, PTI workers blocked Sher Shah Suri road and started marching towards the Governor House, Dawn reported.
PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Tuesday called on his supporters to “come out” as party workers and police officials clashed outside his Zaman Park residence in Lahore, Dawn reported.
In a video message on Twitter, Imran said police had arrived to arrest him. “They think that after I am arrested, the nation will fall asleep. You have to prove them wrong.”
“If something happens to me and I am sent to jail or if I am killed, you have to prove that you will struggle without Imran Khan and not accept the slavery of these thieves and of the one person who has been making decisions for the country,” he said, Dawn reported.
PTI’s Fawad Chaudhry also asked the party supporters to gather in the streets in a peaceful protest in a show of solidarity with Imran.
Armoured police vehicles had arrived outside Zaman Park with the intention of arresting Imran but a senior Islamabad police official, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) (Operations) Shahzad Bukhari, had refrained from commenting on the case in which officials were acting against the PTI chairman.
However, almost an hour later, police used a water cannon and tear gas against PTI supporters that had gathered outside Zaman Park in droves.
Footage broadcast on television showed police slowly inching toward the residence behind an armoured vehicle that was dispersing PTI supporters with a water cannon. Supporters could also be seen pelting stones at the policemen, Dawn reported.
Footage also showed PTI supporters being tear-gassed as police arrived close to the main gate of Zaman Park. The workers, who had covered their faces with pieces of cloth and were carrying bottles of water, continued to pelt stones at officials.
Watch Video: Usman Khan Smashes 36-ball Century in PSL to Break Record
Pakistan’s Usman Khan smashes fastest PSL century in 36 balls, breaks Rilee Rossouw’s record within 24 hours
Multan Sultans opener Usman Khan has smashed the record for the fastest century scored in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), which was earlier set by South African batter Rilee Rossouw, just a day before. Playing against his former team the Quetta Gladiators, Usman started very slow but then took the game to the opponents, smashing 52 runs against Qais Ahmad and reaching his ton in just 36 balls.
Multan Sultans’ Usman Khan smashed the fastest century in Pakistan Super League (PSL) in an match against Quetta Gladiators at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Saturday.
Khan, playing just his second game of the 2023 Pakistan Super League, became the latest man to reach three figures at Rawalpindi, doing so five balls quicker than his Multan Sultans teammate managed yesterday. The 27-year-old was eventually dismissed for 120 off 43 balls when he was stumped off a wide.
Multan Sultans ended with 262 for three in its 20 overs, registering the highest team total in PSL history. The record was previously held by Islamabad United, which had scored 247 for two against Peshawar Zalmi in 2021.
Fastest centuries in Pakistan Super League:
Batter
Balls
Team
Opponent
Venue
Date
Usman Khan
36
Multan Sultans
Quetta Gladiators
Rawalpindi
March 11, 2023
Rilee Rossouw
41
Multan Sultans
Peshawar Zalmi
Rawalpindi
March 10, 2023
Rilee Rossouw
43
Multan Sultans
Quetta Gladiators
Multan
February 29, 2020
Jason Roy
44
Quetta Gladiators
Peshawar Zalmi
Rawalpindi
March 8, 2023
Harry Brook
48
Lahore Qalandars
Islamabad United
Lahore
February 19, 2022
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Mumbai: Rapper MC Stan is being discussed everywhere on social media platforms nowadays as he has amassed a huge fan following after he emerged as the winner of the Bigg Boss 16 season. Stan is currently one of the top popular musicians in the country and has been making waves in the Indian music industry with his unique sound and socially conscious lyrics.
He is currently on the ‘India Tour’ which will end on the 7th of May. He started his tour to visit 10 Indian cities in March this year. He had left the audience spellbound with his electrifying performances in various cities he visited including Hyderabad.
However, with Ramzan beginning on March 23 and ending on April 23, there will be no shows during this period. Fans can look forward to catching MC Stan in action after Ramzan.
Yes, Altaf Shaikh aka MC Stan will take a break from music during Ramzan. His last concert before the onset of the holy month is on March 19 in Pune. After Pune, he will hiatus till April 28 of this year. He will again start his musical tour from Ahmedabad after Eid-ul-Fitr.
The Basti ka Hasti fame will entertain his fans till May 7. He performed in Hyderabad on March 10, where more than 15 thousand of his fans attended the event. He had recently during an interview revealed that he is also planning to join Jamaat after his India Tour and also expressed his wish to perform Haj with his parents this year.
Check out the date of his concerts in different cities below
“There will be no decisions without the Ukrainians,” Scholz said, saying Putin had clearly misjudged “the strength of Ukraine” as well as the “unity” of “all the friends of Ukraine” in challenging the Russian invasion, which began in February 2022.
He added: “It is very difficult to judge what will be the next things to happen in Ukraine, but there is something which is absolutely clear: We will continue to support Ukraine with financial, humanitarian aid but also with weapons.”
Speaking to Zakaria, Scholz also spoke well of President Joe Biden and his leadership during the current international crisis.
“He is very informed about international relations,” Scholz said. “I think he’s one of the most skilled presidents knowing how things are running in the world, which is important in times that are becoming more dangerous.”
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer was noncommittal when asked Tuesday about Garcetti. But the coming hearing before the Foreign Relations Committee has brought a sudden uptick in confidence among Garcetti allies inside and out of the administration who have spent more than a year trying to build support for him in the chamber.
“I think we have to take a vote, I think he has the votes. I think there will be senators that use all of their rights to delay the nomination but my sense is he’s going to get confirmed,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) told POLITICO. “He’s been actively working, the White House and State Department have been working. We just had other priorities.”
Garcetti’s uncertain fate signals the beginning of a rare rough patch between Biden and the Democratic-run Senate chamber. So far, in his presidency, the White House has only seen a handful of nominees withdrawn. But other picks are sparking controversy, with some Democrats concerned over a current Biden circuit court pick due to his handling of a school sexual assault case. And the president’s pick to lead the Federal Aviation Administration is up in the air after Sen. Ted Cruz demanded that the chamber hold off on considering him.
None of those nominees, however, have been as high profile or gone on as long as Garcetti. He once seemed destined for a plum gig in the Biden administration after representing one of the 2020 campaign’s most prominent supporters. Allegations that he was aware of sexual assault and harassment accusations made by some on his staff against his former top political adviser, Rick Jacobs, have complicated that glide path.
While Garcetti has repeatedly denied knowledge of those allegations, some Republicans led by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) concluded that he was aware — or should have been aware — of them. Meanwhile, Garcetti has spent considerable sums of money on lobbyists to rally support for his cause and push back against critics of his nomination who have been in touch frequently with senators urging them to reject him.
“Any support in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for this nominee is a bitter pill to swallow for all those who believe that enabling and covering up sexual harassment and abuse should be disqualifying for public office in America,” said Libby Liu, the chief executive of Whistleblower Aid. “The evidence is clear that he is unfit to represent our country anywhere in the world, and especially to the world’s largest democracy with a deeply troubled record on gender-based violence.”
Garcetti himself has been meeting with key officials and focusing on locking up support from Republican senators. His parents have hired a lobbyist to help shepherd the nomination. And the blitz seems to be making inroads with some in that audience.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said she had “an excellent meeting” with Garcetti on Monday. “He clearly is very knowledgeable about India and we talked about the allegations that he was not sufficiently attentive to the sexual harassment allegations against one of his employees,” she said, adding that she wants to look at the Grassley report before making a final decision.
“I don’t think applying the standard of ‘should have known’ is fair,” Collins said. “If there’s evidence that he did know then that’s different. And that’s what I need to sort out. But I was impressed with him.”
Biden officials and Garcetti himself have been leaning into the argument that the U.S. has gone far too long without a top diplomat in India. But it’s unclear how far that pitch will go.
“We know it’s an important post, we need another nominee,” said Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), who had previously raised issues with the nomination. “It’s not just Republicans, there are Democrats too who are wavering on their support for Garcetti because of past actions in the office.”
Indeed, Democrats and others close to the process said they anticipate resistance and some nominal opposition to Garcetti’s nomination from within his party should it come to the floor. Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) said he’s read through Grassley’s report and remains concerned about Garcetti, adding that he has not spoken to the White House about it. Kelly, who has rebuffed Democratic powerbrokers’ attempts to influence his decision, is not expected to support the nomination.
Other Democrats declined to say where they stood should he come to the floor, with several contending they were still researching the matter.
“Some of the issues I want to go over and see how much culpability or responsibility is with him in regards to the sexual harassment,” said Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
But Garcetti’s pick has dragged on so long that some senators — including at least one who for months had made her concerns known — conceded in interviews that they simply wanted it all to be over with.
“I’m ready to move on,” said Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), who will back Garcetti. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) also indicated Tuesday that she’ll support Garcetti.
In addition to Garcetti, Republicans have also made former New Hampshire Attorney General Michael Delaney’s nomination to the First Circuit Court of Appeals a primary focus. Specifically, they have criticized Delaney’s representation of St. Paul’s School in a school sexual assault case and his decision to file a motion that would have only allowed the plaintiff, who was a minor, to remain anonymous if she agreed not to speak about the case publicly.
Delaney maintains staunch support from his home-state Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, as well as the White House. His backers cite support from trial attorneys who have represented plaintiffs of sexual and violent crimes, as well as endorsements from former President Barack Obama’s director of the office on violence against women and the former director of New Hampshire’s attorney general’s office of victim/witness assistance.
Still, Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he’s reviewing Delaney’s record. And Sen. Richard Blumenthal
(D-Conn.), a member of the committee, said he hasn’t reached a decision yet on whether he’ll support Delaney, adding that he’s waiting for the nominee’s answers to written questions.
“I have concerns about the questions that have been raised about his tactics during one of the litigations and other potential issues,” the Connecticut Democrat said.
The White House reiterated in a statement that Delaney has a strong track record of upholding the rule of law, including taking action to protect vulnerable victims.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
It was 20 years ago, during the 2003 cricket World Cup that Pakistan’s legendary fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar bowled the fastest ball ever in the history of cricket. Bowling to Nick Knight of England, he sent down a thunderbolt which was timed at an incredible speed of 161.3 kilometers per hour. The delivery did not get him a wicket but he did create a long-lasting speed record. “After I touched 161.3 kmph, I thought I could bowl even quicker. But then I started getting pains in my back and in my hamstring. I thought I would break down so I left it at that,” explained Shoaib later.
After the introduction of speed measuring devices in 1998, it was established beyond doubt who was the world’s fastest bowlers. After Shoaib is Shaun Tait of Australia (161.1 kmph), Brett Lee of Australia (160.8), Jeff Thomson of Australia (160.6) and, Mitchell Starc of Australia (160.4). All these bowlers have crossed the magic figure of 160. It would be pertinent to mention the name of Andy Roberts is also on this list. His fastest speed is just a fraction less at 159.5 kmph.
But what is important to note is that all these legendary speed demons of cricket are now middle-aged or old. Shoaib Akhtar is now 47 years old, Shaun Tait is 40, Brett Lee is 46 and Mitchell Starc is still relatively young at 33 while the fiery Andy Roberts is now a grey-hairedred old man of 72 and so is aging Jeff Thomson, once a terror of the cricket fields but now a frail person.
All these greats of the past have received many accolades for their feats. But all of them have also suffered from the wear and tear of their playing careers. Shoaib had to undergo knee surgeries even when he was a player and after retiring too. His only consolation is the fact that his speed record still stands. For a fast bowler that is a matter of great pride.
But the million-dollar question is: Why no bowler has been unable to break Shoaib’s record? Do the present generation of fast bowlers lack the passion and technique of their predecessors? This issue must be examined by the experts who are always devising better methods of coaching and getting better results from the players.
One of the possible reasons that could be looked into is natural limitations. It is possible that the human body has limitations in terms of how fast a pace bowler can consistently bowl. The combination of strength, technique and fitness required to reach those speeds may be difficult for many bowlers to achieve.
Secondly, now there are different priorities. The increasing popularity of T20 cricket has given an advantage to the batsmen. Rules have been tweaked in such a manner that the batsmen have got the upper hand. Bowlers have limited scope to perform. So bowlers are no longer going in for great speeds. Accuracy and variations in pace and length are more important now. As a result, bowlers may not be as motivated to break the speed record as they once were.
Then, batters are better equipped now. Heavier bats, shorter boundaries and other factors make it easy for the batters but more difficult for the bowlers. Even the great Barry Richards, of South Africa, himself a batsman who created several records in his time, once remarked that cricket should be an even contest between the bat and the ball. He admitted that bowlers nowadays are finding the going more difficult.
So it remains an established fact that breaking Shoaib Akhtar’s speed record will require a combination of natural talent, hard work and favorable conditions. Although it has stood for two decades, it is possible that the record may be broken in the future. But for now, it remains one of the most impressive achievements in the sport of cricket.
Europe is on track to kick its addiction to Russian fossil fuels, but can’t seem to replicate that success with nuclear energy a year into the Ukraine war.
The EU’s economic sanctions on Russian coal and oil permanently reshaped trade and left Moscow in a “much diminished position,” according to the International Energy Agency. Coal imports have dropped to zero, and it is illegal for Russian crude to be imported by ship; only four countries still receive it by pipeline.
That’s compared to the bloc getting 54 percent of its hard coal imports and one-quarter of its oil from Russia in 2020.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to turn off the gas taps while the EU turned increasingly to liquefied natural gas deliveries from elsewhere caused the reliance on Moscow to tumble from 40 percent of the bloc’s gas supply before the war to less than 10 percent now.
But nuclear energy has proved a trickier knot for EU countries to untie — for both historical and practical reasons.
As competition in the global nuclear sector atrophied following the Cold War, Soviet-built reactors in the EU remained locked into tailor-made fuel from Russia, leaving Moscow to play an outsized role.
In 2021, Russia’s state-owned atomic giant Rosatom supplied the bloc’s reactors with 20 percent of their natural uranium, handled a quarter of their conversion services and provided a third of their enrichment services, according to the EU’s Euratom Supply Agency (ESA).
That same year, EU countries paid Russia €210 million for raw uranium exports, compared to the €88 billion the bloc paid Moscow for oil.
The value of imports of Russia-related nuclear technology and fuel worldwide rose to more than $1 billion (€940 billion) last year, according to research from the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). In the EU, the value of Russia’s nuclear exports fell in some countries like Bulgaria and the Czech Republic but rose in others, including Slovakia, Hungary and Finland, RUSI data shared with POLITICO showed.
“While it is difficult to draw definitive conclusions from what is ultimately a time-limited and incomplete dataset, it does clearly show that there are still dependencies on, and a market for, Russian nuclear fuel,” said Darya Dolzikova, a research fellow at RUSI.
Although uranium from Russia could be replaced by imports from elsewhere within a year — and most nuclear plants have at least one-year extra reserves, according to ESA head Agnieszka Kaźmierczak — countries with Russian-built VVER reactors rely onfuel made by Moscow.
“There are 18 Russian-designed nuclear power plants in [the EU] and all of them would be affected by sanctions,” said Mark Hibbs, a senior fellow at Carnegie’s Nuclear Policy Program. “This remains a deeply divided issue in the European Union.”
That’s why the bloc has struggled over the past year to target Russia’s nuclear industry — despite repeated calls from Ukraine and some EU countries to hit Rosatom for its role in overseeing the occupied Ukrainian Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, and possibly supplying equipment to the Russian arms industry.
“The whole question of sanctioning the nuclear sector … was basically killed before there was ever a meaningful discussion,” said a diplomat from one EU country who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The most vocal opponent has been Hungary, one of five countries — along with Slovakia, Bulgaria, Finland and the Czech Republic — to have Russian-built reactors for which there is no alternative fuel so far.
Bulgaria and the Czech Republic have signed contractswith U.S. firm Westinghouse to replace the Russian fuel, according to ESA chief Kaźmierczak, but the process could take “three years” as national regulators also need to analyze and license the new fuel.
The “bigger problem” across the board is enrichment and conversion, she added, due to chronic under-capacity worldwide. It could take “seven to 10 years” to replace Rosatom — and that timeline is conditional on significant investments in the sector.
While Finland last year scrapped a deal to build a Russian-made nuclear plant on the country’s west coast — prompting a lawsuit from Rosatom — others aren’t changing tack.
Slovakia’s new Mochovce-3 Soviet VVER-design reactor came online earlier this month, which Russia will supply with fuel until at least 2026.
Russia’s nuclear energy was not initially included in EU sanctions over Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine | Eric Piermont/AFP via Getty Images
Hungary, meanwhile, deepened ties with Moscow by giving the go-ahead to the construction of two more reactors at its Paks plant last summer, underwritten by a €10 billion Russian loan.
“Even if [they] were to come into existence, nuclear sanctions would be filled with exemptions because we are dependent on Russian nuclear fuel,” said a diplomat from a second EU country.
This article has been updated with charts depicting Russia’s nuclear exports.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.eu )
Minister for Minorities Affairs Smriti Irani (File Photo)
After billionaire investor George Soros foretold that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would “have to answer questions” as a result of Indian business tycoon Gautam Adani’s recent stock market woes, Union Minister Smriti Irani urged Indians to stand as one against “foreign powers who try to intervene in India’s democratic processes.”
“The man who broke the Bank of England, and is designated by the nation an economic war criminal, has now pronounced his desire to break Indian democracy. George Soros, an international entrepreneur, has declared his ill-intention to intervene in democratic processes of India,” the fiery BJP leader said.
George Soros wants a govt that is pliable to his needs is more than evident from his statement. That he has announced funding of over a billion dollars to target leaders like PM Modi is significant. Every 5 yrs we elect a democratic govt: Smriti Irani, BJP pic.twitter.com/TATWcjmp4a
The earliest and most complete Hebrew Bible ever discovered – a “vital touchstone of human history” that dates back more than 1,100 years – is to be sold at auction.
The ninth-century volume, referred to as the Codex Sassoon, is a critical link between the Dead Sea scrolls and the Bible of today. It is being offered by Sotheby’s with an estimate of $30m-$50m (£25m-£42m), making it the most valuable historical document or manuscript to appear at auction.
Composed of 24 books divided into three parts – the Pentateuch, the Prophets and the Writings – the Hebrew Bible is the foundation of Judaism and other Abrahamic faiths. In Christianity, the texts are referred to as the Old Testament and are incorporated into the biblical canon. Islam also holds the stories of the Hebrew Bible in special regard, with many of them included in the Qur’an and other significant works of Islamic literature.
“The Hebrew Bible is the sacred, foundational text for peoples across the globe,” said Sharon Mintz, Sotheby’s senior Judaica specialist. “For thousands of years, the faithful have closely studied, analysed, mediated on and delved into the holy scriptures – it is the first book of the people of the Book – to acquire wisdom and attain spiritual enlightenment.
“In Codex Sassoon, a monumental transformation in the history of the Hebrew Bible is revealed, bringing to light the full story of the Hebrew Bible that had previously never been presented in book form. [It] marks a critical turning point in how we perceive the history of the divine word across thousands of years, and is a transformative witness to how the Hebrew Bible has influenced the pillars of civilisation – art, culture, law, politics – for centuries.”
Before the first codices (manuscripts in book form) of the Hebrew Bible, there existed only portions or sections of biblical texts in scroll form. Known as the Dead Sea scrolls, they date to the third century BC – but they were copied without punctuation or vocalisation and contained no verses or chapters. This meant the correct reading of the scrolls was not easily apparent; instead Jews in antiquity relied on inherited oral traditions to understand, preserve and transmit the words of the Hebrew Bible.
The Codex Sassoon is named after its prominent modern owner, David Solomon Sassoon (1880-1942), who assembled the most significant private collection of Jewish artefacts and Hebrew manuscripts in the world.
It comes to auction from the collection of Jacqui Safra and will be sold in New York this May. The record for the most valuable historical text and manuscript sold at auction is held by the first printing of the US constitution, which sold for $43m in November 2021.
While Codex Sassoon has been recognised for its importance by scholars for generations, it has remained virtually out of public view for centuries and will be exhibited for the first time in 40 years next week at Sotheby’s London before a worldwide tour.
The manuscript also includes annotations from several owners throughout the centuries, including an entry dating to the early 11th century referencing a sale by Khalaf ben Abraham, assumed to be a near eastern businessman active in Israel and Syria, to Isaac ben Ezekiel al-Attar.
In the 13th century or later, the codex was dedicated to the synagogue of Makisin (present-day Markada in north-east Syria). When the town of Makisin was destroyed, perhaps by the Mongols in the 13th century or by Tamerlane’s troops in 1400, the codex was entrusted to the care of a community member, Salama bin Abi al-Fakhr. Sassoon ultimately acquired the codex in 1929.
Richard Austin, Sotheby’s global head of books and manuscripts, said Codex Sassoon was “undeniably one of the most important and singular texts in human history”.
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( With inputs from : www.theguardian.com )
