Srinagar, Apr 10: Union Minister for Roads, Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said that projects worth Rs 1,25,000 Crore are being proposed for Jammu and Kashmir and in the next ten years, UT’s road network will match with that of the United States.
Talking to reporters on the side-lines of a press conference in Srinagar, Gadkari, as per news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said that in J & J&K, projects worth Rs 1, 25,000 Crore are being proposed that includes tunnels, roads, and highways. “In next ten years, J&K’s road network will match with the United States,” Gadkari said.
He said from Khanabal to Chandwari in Pahalgam, two lane roads will be constructed to facilitate Yatris while as from Panjtarni to Cave shrine of Amarnath, a tunnel will also be constructed with all pilgrim protection facilities.
The Union Minister said that on Mughal road, a two-lane road will be constructed and at the Peer Ki Gali, a tunnel will also come up to make the road an all weather road—(KNO)
New Delhi: Data storage leader Western Digital said on Monday that cyber-criminals exfiltrated data from its systems during a “network security incident”.
On March 26, Western Digital had identified a network security incident involving its systems.
In connection with the ongoing incident, an unauthorised third party gained access to a number of the company’s systems. Upon discovery of the incident, the company implemented response efforts and initiated an investigation with the assistance of leading outside security and forensic experts.
“This investigation is in its early stages and Western Digital is coordinating with the law enforcement authorities,” it said in a statement.
The company said it is implementing proactive measures to secure its business operations, including taking systems and services offline, and will continue taking additional steps as appropriate.
As part of its remediation efforts, Western Digital is actively working to restore impacted infrastructure and services.
“While Western Digital is focused on remediating this security incident, it has caused and may continue to cause disruption to parts of the company’s business operations,” it said.
San Francisco: Amazon has made its low-bandwidth, long-range wireless network Sidewalk accessible to outside developers, which powers some of its own devices such as Ring doorbells and Echo speakers.
By using the Sidewalk test kit, developers can now check their local signal strength on a map to determine whether their devices will connect to the network before developing a product, reports TechCrunch.
Amazon Sidewalk is a shared network that helps devices work better at home and beyond the front door, designed to connect low-power, long-range, low-data devices to the Internet.
This means Sidewalk can connect devices that aren’t within Bluetooth or Wi-Fi range.
“We’ve rapidly built out a long-range, low-bandwidth network that now covers more than 90 per cent of the US population, and this is an open invitation for developers to put it to the test,” Dave Limp, senior vice president of Amazon Devices & Services, was quoted as saying.
“Many types of connected devices have been limited by the range of Wi-Fi and the cost of cellular technology, which has hindered the ability to connect devices like environmental sensors, leak detectors and smart locks. Sidewalk is designed to provide a secure, low-cost way to invent and connect a whole new range of devices, and we can’t wait to see what developers build,” he added.
Meanwhile, Amazon will be shutting down its go-to camera reviews website “DPReview” in the near future after nearly 25 years of operation.
“The site will remain active until April 10, and the editorial team is still working on reviews and looking forward to delivering some of our best-ever content,” said Scott Everett, General Manager of DPReview.com.
New Delhi: The NIA on Tuesday claimed to have busted a multi-state hawala network funding the Popular Front of India’s terror activities with the arrest of five members of the banned outfit in Karnataka and Kerala.
The agency said despite the ban imposed on it on September 27 last year, PFI leaders and members continued to propagate the ideology of violent extremism and were also arranging arms and ammunition to commit crimes.
“NIA teams have been carrying out extensive searches in Kasargod (Kerala) and Dakshin Kannada, Karnataka, since Sunday. Searches were conducted at eight locations leading to the seizure of multiple digital devices and incriminating documents containing details of transactions running into several crores of rupees,” a spokesperson of the agency said.
The official said Popular Front of India (PFI) members Mahammad Sinan, Sarfraz Nawaz, Iqbal and Abdul Rafeek M of Karnataka and Abid K M of Kerala have been arrested.
The arrest followed tracing and tracking of funds being moved by the PFI across the country, especially in Kerala, Karnataka and Bihar, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) spokesperson said, adding that the agency’s investigations into the Phulwarisharif PFI case of Bihar have led to the unearthing of a large network of hawala operatives in south India.
“A PFI funding-by-hawala module operating out of Bihar and Karnataka with roots in the UAE has been busted with the arrests of the five operatives,” the official said.
“PFI cadres in Phulwarisharif and Motihari had vowed to continue PFI activities in a clandestine manner in Bihar and had also arranged a firearm and ammunition recently to eliminate a youth of a particular community in Bihar’s East Champaran district. Three operatives of the module had been arrested on February 5,” the spokesperson said.
The official said people arrested from Karnataka and Kerala have been found to be actively involved in PFI’s criminal conspiracy to move and channelise illicit funds procured from outside India for distribution among leaders and members of the banned group.
Earlier, seven accused persons had been arrested when they had gathered in the Phulwarisharif area of Bihar’s Patna in July last year for training and to carry out acts of terror and violence, the spokesperson said.
Pursuing leads since July last year, the official said the NIA team found that despite the ban on its activities in September last year, the PFI continued to propagate the ideology of violent extremism and were also arranging arms and ammunition to commit crimes.
Following the leads, the official said, the NIA investigators reached Nawaz and Sinan, who had been found making deposits in the bank accounts of accused and suspects in the PFI case.
“Dogged pursuit of the money trail and connecting the dots, the NIA managed to unravel the international conspiracy and linkages to the funds while investigating Iqbal and other associates who had collected illegally generated funds from Dubai and Abu Dhabi and handed them over to Sinan, Nawaz, Rafeek and Abid in India,” the spokesperson said.
“Investigations have shown that Sarfaraz, Sinan and Rafeek deposited this money in different bank accounts of the accused and the suspects,” the official said.
The NIA said further investigations are on to track to trace and choke international as well domestic illicit funding channels of the PFI.
The five accused will be produced in the NIA Special Court Patna, the spokesperson said.
The documents prompted outrage from top Democrats in Washington, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.). It has also sparked discussions within Democratic circles about icing out the network. The White House, for its part, sidestepped having Biden sit down with Fox for an interview around the Super Bowl — breaking with tradition that the host network of the game get a one-on-one with the president.
Fox confirmed O’Brien’s departure in a statement.
“FOX is currently interviewing for our Head of Government Relations role and speaking with internal and external candidates,” spokesman Brian Nick said. “We would like to thank Danny for his years of outstanding service to our Company and wish him the best of luck on his next endeavor.”
O’Brien joined Fox in 2018 as head of its Washington office, where he led the company’s legislative, regulatory and policy agenda and its government relations team. Before that, he served as a global government affairs and policy executive for what is now GE Transportation.
But it’s his past roles in the public sector that have made O’Brien’s placed of employment especially intriguing.
O’Brien worked on Democratic campaigns for years, before moving to the Hill to work for former Sen. Robert Torricelli (D-N.J.). He then served as chief of staff in Biden’s Senate office from 2003 to 2006, and later held the same role with Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), in addition to becoming staff director on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. When Biden ran for president in 2008, O’Brien was tapped as his policy director.
At Fox, O’Brien had built up an in-house lobbying shop that employed more Democrats (3) than Republicans (1). In 2019, he hired veteran broadcast lobbyist Jamie Gillespie away from the National Association of Broadcasters, and last year O’Brien recruited a staffer straight from Biden’s West Wing, Carissa Joy.
O’Brien is not the first Democrat to lead Fox’s D.C. office — his predecessor, Chip Smith, helped lead former Vice President Al Gore’s 2000 White House bid.
And ahead of last year’s midterms, Fox said its corporate PAC gave roughly evenly to Republicans and Democrats, including maximum donations to each party’s national committee and House and Senate campaign arms. Democratic recipients of Fox’s campaign cash included some of Fox News’ favorite punching bags, such as Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), and several of each party’s most vulnerable incumbents.
In his new role at QCells, O’Brien will almost assuredly be working on the implementation of one of Biden’s legacy legislative achievements as president, the climate and tax spending bill passed last year.
Last month the company and Biden announced a $2.5 billion dollar investment for an existing QCells solar manufacturing plant in Georgia that was attributed specifically to the Inflation Reduction Act. QCells also recently announced a partnership with Microsoft, and said that O’Brien will lead its policy, communications and sustainability teams as QCells “expands across the clean energy value chain in the United States.”
Daniel Lippman contributed to this report.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
New Delhi: Bharti Airtel on Monday said that it has crossed 10 million unique customers on its 5G network.
By the end of March 2024, the company plans to offer its Airtel 5G services in every town and key rural areas.
“Airtel will continue to stay true to its commitment to build a more connected, equitable and sustainable network,” Randeep Sekhon, Chief Technology Officer, Bharti Airtel, said in a statement.
“With cutting-edge 5G infrastructure, a fantastic partner ecosystem and a dedicated workforce that is customer-obsessed, we believe we are on the right path to win and deliver a world-class 5G Plus experience to customers across the length and breadth of the country,” Sekhon added.
Airtel 5G Plus uses a technology “that has the widest acceptance in the world with the most developed ecosystem,” the company said.
This makes sure that all 5G smartphones in the country seamlessly work on the Airtel network.
The company also guarantees to deliver the best experience by providing customers “between 20 to 30 times higher speeds than today coupled with brilliant voice experience and superfast call connect”.
“In November 2022, Airtel became the first and only operator to have one million unique customers on its network within 30 days of its commercial launch,” it added.
Last week, the company also created 5G experience zones across all its retail stores in the country where customers can experience Airtel 5G Plus.
SRINAGAR: In a landmark development Kashmir Angel Network (KAN) secured investment commitments for three startups who pitched their business ideas to a galaxy of investors today at a local hotel at Srinagar. The first of its kind investor-startup summit organised by KAN also marked the beginning of new era of Alternate Investment Funding available for homegrown business.
Kashmir Angel Network team with the start-ups and the investors at the networks maiden pitch session in Srinagar on February 25, 2023. KL Image by Shuaib Wani
Commenting on the the development, Shabir A Handoo, CEO KAN said today was a historical moment for the Startup ecosystem in Kashmir and with this beginning many a glass ceilings were breached.
The three startups who received undisclosed amount of funding from a number of local Angel Investors are from diverse sectors of the economy. One of the startups that received instant investment commitments, Cred Agro, is an agritech company that uses integrated agriculture systems for utilisation of fallow lands.
Another startup, Lieper Books, that generated a lot interest among the Angel investor community present in the event is a social media networking platform for book lovers. Another Startup, Kashmir Origin is an e-commerce platform with a B2B and B2C business model. The startup founders were upbeat about their pitches being well-received by the investors.
The year-old Kashmir Angel Network in its maiden pitch session managed investment in three Kashmir startup’s
KAN, a local network which hosted the maiden event is an initiative of a few professionals, working towards the creation of an enabling environment for Startups in Kashmir. The year old company aims to build a Network of Angel Investors who are willing to invest in early-stage businesses besides providing them mentorship and hand-holding support. CEO KAN in his opening remarks said that KAN has a vision to act as a multiplier in the efforts of the government in creating a thriving private sector in the region by way of mentoring, financing and incubating starups’. he said that such summits shall be regularly organised by KAN so that more and more startups get an opportunity to raise funds in their home turf.
Irtif Loan conducted the Pitch Session of the event and said that KAN is evolving as a platform where startups and investors meet, exchange ideas and create businesses. Commenting on today’s event said that the event is a first in the series of events planned by KAN to leverage resources, networks and Government-led initiatives to be a part of the growth story scripted by startups across.
In the pitch session the four startups from Kashmir region that presented their business ideas to the investors were Cred Agro, Lieper Books, and Kashmir Origin. Cred Agro is an agro-tech company using integrated agriculture systems for utilisation of fallow lands. Lieper Books is a social media networking platform for book lovers. Kashmir Origin is an e-commerce platform with a B2B and B2C business model. The pitches were well-received by the investors. The presentations generated a lot of interest and discussions around the strategies pitched by the startups. The higlight of the event was that all the three start ups pitched for investment got the investment committments right during the event.
Art Pope, the former chair of Americans for Prosperity and a Raleigh, N.C.-based Republican donor, said that the decision by the group to endorse a Trump rival “was not intended to benefit one particular candidate at this time.” Instead, he said, the goal was “to find the best candidate, and more importantly, to be the best president of the United States on the issues that Americans for Prosperity champions.”
Pope, who attended the weekend Koch confab earlier this month in Palm Springs, Calif., said he personally believed Pence was “the best one that meets those criteria.” But he said that the organization will go through an open process to choose a candidate.
A spokesman for the network declined to comment, referring POLITICO to the memo. But according to two Republican consultants close to the network, who were granted anonymity to discuss internal politics, whether Pence will be the Koch candidate remains an open question.
The efforts by Pence donors to secure the Koch network’s backing underscores both the degree to which the 2024 cycle’s shadow primary is raging and the hurdles the former VP faces as he prepares to jump into a potentially crowded field. Few prospective 2024 Republican candidates can boast closer ties to the Koch network than Pence, which could make an inability to secure its support a setback for him and other candidates who have maintained close ties.
“If the vice president were to decide to run, he would welcome the support of organizations like the Koch network that are ideologically aligned with him on issues such as taxes, freedom of speech, and personal liberties,” a Pence adviser said.
But Pence is no longer the one of the most visible paragons of the conservative movement. Instead, he finds himself among a crowded field of the philosophically like-minded. And as the Koch network weighs which non-Trump candidate to endorse and bestow its resources upon, it has a bevy of potential options.
Though Pence has support among some Koch factions, others inside the network favor candidates ranging from former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley to Wichita, Kan.’s own Mike Pompeo, the former secretary of state who hails from the same town where the Koch oil-and-gas conglomerate is headquartered, and who received their backing during his congressional campaigns. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is also said to enjoy a wellspring of good will among Koch-aligned donors.
“I don’t know if [the decision to endorse] totally helps [Pence],” a national Republican consultant familiar with the Koch network, granted anonymity to discuss their knowledge of political deliberations. “I don’t think it helps one person. I think it’s going to be very difficult for Pence to win. I think it helps everyone who is not Trump.” This person added: “Don’t forget there’s a guy named Mike Pompeo who is very close to the Kochs and is from Wichita. There’s not one lead dog right now.”
The efforts by Pence donors to secure the Koch network’s backing underscores the degree to which the 2024 cycle’s shadow primary is raging and the hurdles the former VP faces as he prepares to jump into a potentially crowded field.
For more than a decade, Pence has cultivated a deep relationship with the Kansas-based, free-market network—one that spans longer than almost any other potential Republican candidate. Among likely contenders, Pence is the only one who spoke at the Koch-backed Tea Party rally on the National Mall on Sept. 12, 2009, a scene he relays in his political memoir So Help Me God.
As Indiana governor, Pence pushed for the kind of tax cuts favored by the network. He went on to employ staffers connected to the Koch world, including his top adviser Marc Short, who left the Koch’s Freedom Partners group where he was president to work on the Marco Rubio presidential campaign. Short still maintains close ties to the network.
In his 2012 gubernatorial bid, Pence received $200,000 in contributions from billionaire David Koch and another $5,000 from Koch Industries. As vice president, Pence huddled with Koch donors in Manhattan in 2018 ahead of that year’s midterm cycle to help them plot strategy.
During the 2016 cycle, before Pence opted against a presidential bid that year in favor of defending his gubernatorial seat, the Koch network had all but anointed him as their favored candidate. Last year, Pence headlined an event for Americans for Prosperity during which he rolled back the price of gas to $2.38 at a Hobart, Ind. gas station.
Pence has been hopscotching the country on his book tour in recent weeks, including a stop earlier this week in Houston, Texas, in advance of a possible presidential campaign — one that if it happens is likely still “months” away, according to an adviser. He is also embroiled in a classified documents scandal and has been subpoenaed by a grand jury in connection with Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation of former President Donald Trump’s push to overturn the 2020 election.
But there is a sense within GOP circles that avenues exist for a Trump opponent to secure the party’s presidential nomination. And that’s partly because some of the main donor networks and advocacy arms, like the Kochs’, have expressed interest in moving on from the 45th president.
“They’re going to prioritize the candidate who values free markets, free speech, and free trade,” said Ken Spain, a partner at Narrative Strategies who led corporate communications at Koch Industries. “The Koch network has typically supported candidates that reflect their worldview. Trump was the antithesis of that.”
Spain pointed to Pence and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott as possible winners of the Koch primary. In recent years, Charles Koch has expressed interest in criminal justice and policing reform, a move that some Republicans believe could point them to Scott, who is making calls about a potential presidential campaign and is leading the charge in the GOP Senate on police reform measures. Scott has done several events with Koch-related endeavors, but a person close to him said he wasn’t aware of any recent backchannel efforts between Americans for Prosperity and the senator regarding a 2024 bid.
“Pence and Scott have cleared the bar with the network in the past,” Spain said. “They align from a free market and free speech standpoint. The question is: Where does the network stand today and could they get behind [Ron] DeSantis’ brand of conservatism?”
Winning the Koch network’s nod would be a boon for any candidate: A spokesperson said the network’s imprimatur would include massive grassroots infrastructure, highly targeted door-knocking, phone calls, mail and advertising generated by their vaunted data operation i360. The network spent almost $500 million backing candidates and free-market causes during 2020, and nearly $80 million in the 2022 midterms. That’s not to mention the brick-and-mortar operations in 36 states..
The emerging Koch primary and Pence’s uncertain standing despite years of loyalty and ideological alignment points to the network’s shifting priorities and a realpolitik desire to back a candidate who can win a Republican primary. As Americans for Prosperity Action CEO Emily Seidel wrote in a memo, the group is “prepared to support a candidate in the Republican presidential primary who can lead our country forward, and who can win.”
Natalie Allison contributed to this report
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
Former President Donald Trump is the only candidate from a major party to announce a 2024 run so far, though a cast of potential Republican challengers have publicly teased potential campaigns. | Alex Brandon/AP Photo
Americans for Prosperity, a fundraising organization established by powerful conservatives Charles and David Koch, is not endorsing former President Donald Trump in the 2024 Republican primary, the organization implied in a memo Sunday.
“The best thing for the country would be to have a president in 2025 who represents a new chapter,” a letter from the organization’s CEO, Emily Seidel, said. But the memo didn’t mention Trump by name, leaving open the possibility of an endorsement further down the road.
The move could mark trouble for Trump, if it leads the AFP’s base of wealthy conservative donors away from his campaign. He is the only candidate from a major party to announce a 2024 run so far, though a cast of potential Republican challengers have publicly teased potential campaigns.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
“Russia’s desperate attempts to utilize proxies to circumvent U.S. sanctions demonstrate that sanctions have made it much harder and costlier for Russia’s military-industrial complex to re-supply Putin’s war machine,” Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said. | Nathan Howard/AP Photo
The Treasury announced sanctions on Wednesday against 22 people it says have helped Russia obtain weapons and evade sanctions imposed on the Kremlin and its allies since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine almost a year ago.
The sanctions target the network’s leader, Russian arms dealer Igor Zimenkov, as well as his son and several members of their network, for supplying Russia with “high-technology devices.” Zimenkov and his associates have “been involved in multiple deals for Russian cybersecurity and helicopter sales” and maintain close relationships with the Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport, according to the Treasury.
“Russia’s desperate attempts to utilize proxies to circumvent U.S. sanctions demonstrate that sanctions have made it much harder and costlier for Russia’s military-industrial complex to re-supply Putin’s war machine,” Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said in a statement. “Targeting proxies is one of many steps that Treasury and our coalition of partners have taken, and continue to take, to tighten sanctions enforcement against Russia’s defense sector, its benefactors, and its supporters.”
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
