Hyderabad: Secunderabad division’s Railway Protection Force (RPF) has rescued 525 children from railway stations in the year 2022.
The rescue operations were taken up in coordination with NGOs where the children were shifted to rescue homes after saving them.
Senior divisional security commissioner, RPF Secunderabad, Debashmita C Banerjee said, “As part of women and child safety, 13 Anti-Human Trafficking Teams are working and initiating action. Compared to previous years there is an increase of 230 cases of detection.”
In addition to this, the RPF Secunderabad also retrieved passenger luggage valuables items under ‘Operation Amanat’ on 1039 occasions.
Valuables like laptops, cash, luggage bag and mobile phones total worth Rs 2.28 crore were restored to the rightful owners by the Force.
Likewise, the RPF successfully seized ganja worth a quantity of 1,218 kg valued at Rs 7.84 crore and handed it over to the authorities concerned.
“An additional 33 percent increase in recovery of illegally smuggled items have been recorded with the RPF’s effort in 2022 when compared to those recovered in 2021,” added the security commissioner.
Mumbai: After giving an impactful performance in ‘KGF – Chapter 2’, actor Sanjay Dutt is all set to share the screen space with Thalapathy Vijay in director Lokesh Kanagaraj’s upcoming untitled Tamil film.
Taking to Twitter, the makers of the film, on Wednesday shared a poster which they captioned, “We feel esteemed to welcome @duttsanjay sir to Tamil Cinema and we are happy to announce that he is a part of #Thalapathy67.”
In the poster, Sanjay could be seen in a menacing avatar and his thoughts about joining the film are also shared. The note reads, “When I heard the one-liner of Thalapathy 67, I knew in that exact moment that I had to be a part of this film and I am thrilled to start this journey.”
Tentatively titled ‘Thalapathy 67’, the film also stars Trisha Krishnan, Arjun Sarja and Gautham Menon are also a part of the film.
Trisha and Vijay will be sharing the screen space after 14 years.
On Wednesday, the makers of the film shared a poster of Trisha which they captioned, “Extremely happy to welcome @trishtrashers mam onboard for #Thalapathy67.”
In the poster, Trisha shared her thoughts which reads, “Grateful to be a part of this iconic project featuring some of my favourite people and an immensely talented team. Exciting times ahead.”
‘Thalalathy 67’ marks the third collaboration of Thalapathy Vijay and 7 Screen Studio after giving two blockbusters, ‘Master’ and ‘Varisu’.
The official release date of the film is still awaited.
Apart from this, Sanjay Dutt will also be seen in a sci-fi horror comedy ‘The Virgin Tree’, which also stars Sunny Singh, Mouni Roy, and Palak Tiwari in lead roles, as well as an untitled comedy alongside actor Arshad Warsi.
Mumbai: Television actor Aamir Ali took to Twitter to clear the air on his dating rumour with Shamita Shetty. The actor posted a video claiming they are “just very very close friends.”
In the video, Aamir said, “Hi! I don’t know what to say. My mom has always taught me to be a gentleman. If someone comes home, I generally drop them at the door, whoever that is. A friend of mine was there and I escorted her to her car. I was just being a friend and it became something else. Guys, we are single. I am single, she is single. We are just very very close friends and that’s about it. That’s about it.”
Aamir added, “Ek cheeze khaali. Shah Rukh Khan sir bhi, main suna hun, jab mehmaan aate hai toh darwaaze tak chorne jaate hai. Toh woh theek hai, maine karliya toh, just saying (One more thing. I have heard that when a guest comes over to meet Shah Rukh Khan even he escorts them to the door. That is fine, but when I did, just saying).” He captioned the video, “Just saying…”
On Tuesday, Shilpa Shetty’s sister Shamita took to Twitter saying, “I’m baffled by society and its convenient prudish mindset all across. Why is every action and every person subjected to scrutiny or snap judgement with no reality check? There are possibilities beyond the narrow-minded assumptions of the NETIZENS.”
“It’s high time we open our minds to it! Single n happy .. let’s focus on more important issues in this country,” Shamita added.
Shamita and Aamir were recently spotted at a party together. Moreover, Aamir was seen escorting Shamita to her car and planting a kiss on her cheek in one of the videos, captured by a paparazzo. This whole incident sparked their dating rumours.
Aamir was earlier married to actor Sanjeeda Sheikh. They tied the knot in March 2012 and divorced in 2021. They are parents to a daughter, Ayra Ali.
Shamita dated Raqesh Bapat last year after they met on Bigg Boss OTT. After a brief period, they broke up last year.
Bengaluru: Karnataka’s Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah on Wednesday termed the Union budget 2023-24 as a continuation of the policy of “ameer ke saath, gareeb ka vinash” (supporting the rich, destroying the poor) followed by the central “trouble” engine government.
About sanction of Rs 5,300 crores for Upper Bhadra Project, he said the project needs Rs 23,000 crores for completion, and the Central government has agreed to give only a quarter of it. “If 40 per cent commission is taken off, the project will only get less than Rs 3,000 crore. It is not shown whether the sanctioned amount is for the period of one year or five years,” he said.
He said Finance Minister Niramala Sitharaman, though elected from Karnataka, has completely neglected the state. Despite mentioning the name of Karnataka while presenting the budget she had not announced any new schemes or projects, Siddaramaiah said.
“The state government, which is acting as a slave to the central government, has totally failed to get attention towards the needs of the state. It is custom that, before a budget, the CM along with MPs would discuss and present needs before the Union government. But, this time the tradition was broken,” he added.
The 25 MPs who got elected from the state and six Rajya Sabha members have not raised their voices regarding the demands of the state and the injustices, he stated.
Siddaramaiah said that due to mismanagement of the Union government and Corona, the economy of the country is doomed, and the farmers’ life made miserable as the agriculture sector which creates 54 per cent of employment and contributes hugely to the economy has been totally neglected.
“When compared to the 2022-23 budget, the funds to the farm sector have been reduced by Rs 8, 468.21 crore. The slogan of doubling farmers’ income has fallen flat. The expectation on waiving loans of small farmers has also not been considered. The Central government has reserved Rs 2 lakh crore to be given as loan to farmers. Instead of lifting them from the debt trap, it is giving signals that they should take new loans to clear older ones,” he claimed.
A smiling Siddique Kappan walks out of the Lucknow jail for the first time in two years
After spending two years in Lucknow jail, Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan finally walked out free on Thursday. The sessions court had ordered his bail the previous day.
“I will continue my fight against draconian laws. They kept me in jail even after I got bail. I don’t know who’s benefiting from me being in jail. These two years were very tough, but I was never afraid,” he told NDTV after his release.
Kappan was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police in October 2020 while on his way to Hathras district where a Dalit woman had died after being allegedly gang raped. A case was lodged under the draconian UAPA (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act).
He was arrested by the Mathura police for having links with the Popular Front of India and being a part of a “conspiracy” to instigate violence.
However, after the Supreme Court of India granted bail to the journalist in the UAPA on September 9 and Allahabad High Court also granted the same in the PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act), Kappan’s release was marred by difficulties in finding two local sureties.
A surety is a person that assures the defendant will attend his or her court hearing after being granted bail.
In 2020, a Dalit woman was allegedly gang-raped in the Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh. Her body was cremated by the police and village administration without the knowledge of her family members leading to widespread protests and condemnation.
Auckland: Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has welcomed the announcement that Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal, Princess Anne, will visit New Zealand this month.
“Princess Anne is travelling to Aotearoa at the request of the NZ Army’s Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals, of which she is Colonel in Chief, to attend its 100th Anniversary celebrations at Linton Military Camp in Palmerston North,” Chris Hipkins said.
“It’s terrific that Her Royal Highness will be able to connect with past and present members of the Corps and acknowledge the importance of signallers within New Zealand Defence Force operations over the last 100 years.”
Her Royal Highness will be accompanied by her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence (Retired).
“The Princess Royal will undertake other engagements during her visit, including attending an Act of Remembrance (wreath laying) at Pukeahu National War Memorial in Wellington. Her Royal Highness will also rededicate the War Memorial at Cathedral Square in Christchurch.”
“The Princess Royal last visited New Zealand in 2010. I look forward to welcoming Princess Anne back to Aotearoa,” Chris Hipkins said.
New Delhi: A day after deciding not to go-ahead with the fully subscribed Follow-on Public Offer (FPO), Adani Enterprises Ltd chairman Gautam Adani on Thursday said it would not be “morally correct” to go ahead with the Rs 20,000-crore share in the current market condition.
“After a fully subscribed FPO, yesterday’s decision of its withdrawal would have surprised many. But considering the volatility of the market seen yesterday, the board strongly felt that it would not be morally correct to proceed with the FPO,” Adani said in his address to investors after withdrawal of the fully subscribed FPO.
Adani said in his humble journey of over four decades as an entrepreneur, “I have been blessed to receive overwhelming support from all stakeholders, particularly the investor community. It is important for me to confess that whatever little I have achieved in life is due to the faith and trust reposed by them. I owe all my success to them.”
“For me, the interest of my investors is paramount and everything is secondary. Hence to insulate the investors from potential losses we have withdrawn the FPO,” he said.
This decision, he said “will not have any impact on our existing operations and future plans. We will continue to focus on timely execution and delivery of projects.”
“The fundamentals of our company are strong. Our balance sheet is healthy and assets, robust. Our EBIDTA levels and cash flows have been very strong and we have an impeccable track record of fulfilling our debt obligations. We will continue to focus on long term value creation and growth will be managed by internal accruals,” Adani said.
“Once the market stabilizes, we will review our capital market strategy,” he said.
“We have a strong focus on ESG and every business of ours will continue to create value in a responsible way. The strongest validation of our governance principles, comes from several international partnerships we have built across our different entities,” Adani said.
“I take this opportunity to thank our investment bankers, institutional investors and shareholders from within and outside the country for giving unflinching support to the FPO.”
Thanking investors, he said, “Despite the volatility in the stock over the last week your faith and belief in the company, its business and its management has been extremely reassuring and humbling.”
Shares of Adani Enterprises nosedived sharply on Wednesday, a day after its follow-on public offer closed for the subscription. The shares of Adani Group flagship company closed at Rs 2,179.75 with a sharp decline of 26.70 per cent. Its intraday low was Rs 1,941.2, over 30 per cent lower than Tuesday’s settlement price. On Tuesday, the last day for subscription, the follow-on public offer (FPO) issued by Adani Enterprises was fully subscribed.
A follow-on public offering (FPO) is the issuance of shares to investors by a company listed on a stock exchange after its initial public offerings.
Data showed the demand for the FPO was led by non-institutional investors, and they subscribed to the shares 3.26 times. The portion for institutional investors was also oversubscribed.
On Monday, an Abu Dhabi-based diversified conglomerate International Holding Company announced that it will invest about USD 400 million (AED 1.4 billion) into the Adani Enterprises’ follow-on public offer (FPO) through its subsidiary Green Transmission Investment Holding RSC Limited.
Adani Enterprises had filed a red herring prospectus with the markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for the Rs 20,000 crore follow-on public offer (FPO), the largest ever in India. There were concerns that the FPO may not receive a strong response from investors amid a report by a US-based Hindenburg Research that surfaced on January 24, which claimed the Adani Group of having weak business fundamentals among others.
The US-based firm, in its report, raised concerns about shares of Adani group companies having a possibility of declining from their current levels, owing to high valuations. In response, Adani Group on Sunday said the recent report by Hindenburg Research was not an attack on any specific company but a “calculated attack” on India, its growth story, and ambitions. It added the report was “nothing but a lie”.
Bengaluru: The Federation of Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) President B.V. Gopala Reddy on Wednesday dubbed Union Budget 2023-24 as an overall developmental and infrastructure-oriented Budget.
FKCCI welcomes several initiatives expressed by the Finance Minister in the areas of millets, health sector, tourism industry, ease of doing business, and the income tax slabs, he said.
He mentioned about the credit guarantee scheme for the MSME support earlier also the scheme was there but there was a delay in reaching the beneficiary.
This time, an additional corpus of Rs 9,000 crore has been announced for MSME credit guarantee, but we have to wait and see how fast it will reach the beneficiary.
The government has given support to millet-based products which exclusively benefits Karnataka with the Central assistance of Rs 5,300 crore to Upper Bhadra Project.
In addition to that, ancillary industries in millet-based products should be supported, he said.
The support given to the Tourism Industry is commendable like 50 tourism destinations being selected through challenge mode, setting up of unity mall in the state capital or tourist destination, setting up of tourism centres in border villages FKCCI welcomes this move, he said.
The FKCCI president suggested an exclusive port connectivity for Karnataka. Till now, the state is using either Krishnapatnam Port in Andhra Pradesh and Chennai Port from Tamil Nadu, he said.
“The certain compliances being removed in Ease of Doing Business is most welcome by FKCCI. These series of measures will unleash the potential of our economy,” he added.
Washington: Indian-American Republican leader Nikki Haley is expected to announce her bid for the 2024 US election run as she sent out invitations for a ‘special announcement’.
Taking to Twitter, Haley wrote, “My family and I have a big announcement to share with you on February 15th! And yes, it’s definitely going to be a Great Day in South Carolina!”
She has sent out invitations for a “special announcement” on February 15 when she is expected to declare her 2024 US presidential run.
Earlier, Fox News reported that Haley feels that she could be the ‘new leader’ to take the country in a new direction and that Joe Biden may not get a second term as US President.
The former South Carolina governor and US ambassador to the United Nations said she plans to run for the presidency in an interview with Fox News on Thursday.
“Well, when you’re looking at a run for president, you look at two things. Your first look at, ‘does the current situation push for new?’ The second question is, ‘am I that person that could be that new leader?’ You know, on the first question, you can look all across the board, domestic, and foreign policy. You can look at, you know, inflation going up, the economy shrinking, government getting bigger, you know, small business owners not being able to pay their rent. Big businesses getting these bailouts, all of these things warrant that, yes, we need to go in a new direction,” said Haley.
“So do I think I could be that leader? Yes, But we are still working through things and we’ll figure it out. I’ve never lost a race. I said that then I still say that now. I’m not going to lose now,” she added.
Haley, 51, then listed her accomplishments in her career, saying that as governor, she took on a state that was hurting and made it “the beast of the Southeast.” Then, she said, as ambassador to the United Nations, she “took on the world when they tried to disrespect us.”
Haley served as ambassador to the UN under President Donald Trump for the first two years of his presidency, from 2017 through 2018.
If she launches a presidential bid, Haley will face her former boss in the GOP primary. Trump, the only president impeached twice, announced a third presidential campaign in November.
Haley, who resigned from the Trump administration in October 2018, said she had done a great job as governor and ambassador.
Haley, the second Indian-origin governor of Louisiana after fellow Republican Bobby Jindal, said it was time for new leadership in the Republican Party. During the interview, Haley also emphasized that President Biden, a Democrat, should not be given a second term. The next US presidential election will be held on November 5, 2024.
Before serving in the federal government, Haley was the governor of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017. She had previously served as a member of the state House of Representatives.
