Bollywood actor Vidya Balan who was recently enjoying her holiday in Palampur, took up the task of cleaning the vicinity while on vacation.
The ‘Kahaani’ star is currently enjoying a family vacation with producer husband Siddharth Roy Kapur celebrating their wedding anniversary in the mountains.
The ‘Shakuntala Devi’ actor has always been vocal about social issues and makes it a point to contribute towards the betterment of the environment. Recently while on her break, Balan shared videos and pictures on Instagram Stories wherein she cleared bottles off the mountains, as well as expressed her pleasure for being able to earn ‘good karma’ on her vacation.
The ‘Begum Jaan’ star took off to Himachal in order to celebrate her wedding anniversary, later the actor visited Palampur where she participated in the cleanliness drive.
On the work front, Vidya Balan was last seen in the biopic of ‘Shakuntala Devi’ earlier this year and the star is currently shooting for her next ‘Sherni’. (ANI)
Two of the US top LGBTQ+ advocacy groups celebrated after President-elect Joe Biden announced that he was nominating Pete Buttigieg as the US Secretary of Transportation.
According to The Hill, if Buttigieg is confirmed to the post, he would become the first openly gay Cabinet secretary confirmed by the US Senate. Rick Grenell, who served as the acting director of national intelligence from February to May, was the first openly LGBTQ Cabinet secretary.
“Let’s celebrate this step toward greater LGBTQ visibility and continue to strive for more representation of our diverse community at all levels of the administration,” tweeted the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s leading LGBTQ advocacy group, as quoted by The Hill.
Annise Parker, president of LGBTQ Victory Institute said that the nomination is a new milestone that members of the queer community are represented throughout the US government adding that the impact will reverberate well-beyond the department he will lead.
“It distances our nation from a troubled legacy of barring out LGBTQ people from government positions and moves us closer to the President-elect’s vision of a government that reflects America. As an out LGBTQ person, Pete will bring a unique perspective that will inform and influence policy throughout the federal government. Most important, however, is that Pete will bring his intellect and energy to the Department of Transportation and our nation will be better off because of it,” Parker said.
Buttigieg came out as gay in a 2015 essay for the South Bend Tribune while serving as mayor and later that year, Buttigieg won reelection, CNN said.
He had endorsed Biden for the presidency during the Presidential election campaign, telling a crowd in Dallas that the former Vice President is the right candidate to “bring back dignity to the White House.”
Buttigieg had dropped out of the Democratic presidential bid following Biden’s victory in the South Carolina primary. Buttigieg officially launched his campaign in April with an event in his hometown South Bend, Indiana.
He was the first openly gay candidate to earn presidential primary delegates for a major party’s nomination.
Biden called the nominee a patriot and a problem-solver “who speaks to the best of who we are as a nation.”
“I am nominating him for Secretary of Transportation because this position stands at the nexus of so many of the interlocking challenges and opportunities ahead of us,” the President-elect said in a statement.
On Monday, Biden bagged 306 Electoral College votes and Trump received 232. The electoral votes will be sent to the US Congress for verification at a joint session, the final stage of the election, which is scheduled for January 6.
Biden will be sworn in as the 46th US president on January 20. (ANI)
Farmer
Harpreet Singh Mattu, 50, from Mehakpur
in Jalandhar, Punjab, tells LokMarg
whey he set up a 24×7 langar, with assistance from his brother Balwinder Singh in
California, US, to feed protesters at Delhi-Singhu border
I feel these protests are a landmark moment
in our lives and it is our contribution towards the life of future generations,
so that can have an easier life than us. With the introduction of these three
farm bills, the government has shown us that there is no need to build
consensus before bringing in a new law.
Sahi
kahoon to inhone loktantra se lok hi khatm kar diya (The truth is that the BJP has taken away people’s will out of
democracy). If the farm bills are, as the government says, beneficial to the
farmers, then why didn’t they bring it to the table before; people would have
breathed easy.
Mattu (left) at the kitchen set up near Singhu border protest site
Apart from registering my voice at the
protests, I am also doing sewa of
other farmers by organising a langar.
My brother, Balwinder Singh, who
lives in California, US, called me before the protests started and said, “Let’s
do it for our brothers. Let’s start a langar
so that no one goes hungry in this biting cold during the protests.”
My brother is the pradhan at Gurudwara Sahib
Riverside, California, which had orgnaised largescale langar (food distribution) in their area during pandemic to people
who had been isolating. Since the idea originally took root in his mind, we
kept the logo of California Gurudwara at our langar sewa.
I believe human hearts are all the same
everywhere. The pandemic has shown us that we are all in this together and thus
we have to help each other in times of need. Providing langar to people is a sacred duty. Even during the pandemic the
Sikhs ensured that no one went hungry.
Mattu with his teammates at the protest site
Slowly more people have started joining us.
In the beginning I brought along three trucks (my own) full of food, utensils
etc. About a dozen halwais (cooks) and
four assistants accompanied us so that we could work in shifts and get ample
rest.
We can’t do sewa of some people at the cost of others. We take full precautions
for coronavirus and keep sanitising the kitchen. Cleanliness is a way of life
for the Sikhs, as you must have seen all Gurudwaras are spotlessly clean and no
one thinks cleaning is beyond them. A lot of people volunteer for us and we
have managed to feed thousands of people since December 2, when I first went to
Delhi.
Here, we make sure that the food is always
served hot and that there is variety too. I must really thank the farmers from
Haryana who give us fresh vegetables and milk for the langar. Also, people
behave in a disciplined manner and ensure that everything is disposed of
properly.
I wake up at 4 am to get things started. The first thing to go up on the fire is tea and we make nearly 13 huge containers of tea every day so that our farmer brothers can start their day with a warm cuppa. From 4 in the morning I work non-stop till 9 am. After that I take a small break and get back to work at 10:30 am, only work till 8 pm when I call it a day. Then I go to sleep. That is my routine here.
With his son early in the day at kitchen
I did take a day break to visit my hometown to attend the funeral of a fellow farmer’s father and also to check up on my own father who has not been keeping well. That was the only time I missed the sewa here. We have to manage both family and country and farmers are really good at multitasking.
I now wish to bring mobile washrooms to the protests site in Delhi. I have customised another truck of mine into mobile washrooms. It is important to take care of hygiene any way but more so in times of a pandemic. I hope the government also sees and understands what the farmers are trying to say and take away these bills in the interest of the nation.
China, which has arrested several journalists for their coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, is the world’s worst jailer for the second year in a row, according to a report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent press freedom advocacy organisation.
According to its annual global survey, at least 274 journalists have been jailed on December 1, exceeding the high of 272 in 2016.
“China, which arrested several journalists for their coverage of the pandemic, was the world’s worst jailer for the second year in a row. It was followed by Turkey, which continues to try journalists free on parole and arrest new ones; Egypt, which went to great lengths to keep custody of journalists not convicted of any crime; and Saudi Arabia,” the report highlighted.
The CPJ has pointed out that many of 47 prisoners in China are serving long sentences or are jailed in the Xinjiang “without any charge disclosed”.
It further noted that at a time when the coronavirus rampaged Wuhan, Beijing arrested several journalists for coverage that went against the official narrative.
“The three still jailed on December 1 include independent video journalist Zhang Zhan, who began posting reports from Wuhan on Twitter and YouTube in early February and was arrested on May 14. Her videos include interviews with local business owners and workers on the impact of COVID-19 and the government’s response to it,” the CPJ said.
Zhang Zhan was one of several journalists in CPJ’s global census who relied heavily on social media as all other media outlets are heavily censored or controlled by the state.
“Her videos are likely still available to a global audience because they are hosted by companies outside China. But CPJ found that similar content produced by others who were later jailed had been taken down for reasons that were not clear, hindering research and underscoring longstanding concerns about transparency by global tech giants like Google, Twitter, and Facebook,” the CPJ said.
The report further stated that in China, diplomatic spats appeared putting the foreign media in increased peril. During this year, over a dozen journalists working for the US publications in China were expelled.
“Australian citizen Cheng Lei, a business news anchor for state-run broadcaster China Global Television Network, was arrested in August for allegedly endangering national security amid tension between China and Australia, making her the second Australian journalist in custody after blogger Yang Hengjun, who has been held on espionage charges since January 2019,” the report highlighted.
It further said that the countries where the number of jailed journalists rose significantly include Belarus, where mass anti-government protests ensued due to the disputed re-election of the long-time president, and Ethiopia, where political unrest has degenerated into armed conflict. (ANI)
Four out of every five persons in Pakistan view that the country is headed in the wrong direction, according to the latest survey by research company IPSOS.
Citing the report that was released on Tuesday, The News International reported that only 23 per cent people believe that the country is moving towards the right direction and 77 per cent believe otherwise.
More than 1,000 people from all over the country participated in the survey which was conducted between December 1 and December 6, 2020.
Last year, in the fourth quarter, 21 per cent people believed that the country was headed on the right track, while 79 per cent had a contrasting opinion.
This year, 36 per cent people said that their current personal financial situation is weak, 13 per cent characterised it as strong and 51 per cent said it is neither strong nor weak, The News International said.
Meanwhile, the last year’s data show that 38 per cent believed that their financial situation is weak, 5 per cent viewed it as strong and 57 per cent put it in between.
Meanwhile, on province-wise assessment, the report found that a “poor financial situation” featured in almost all the provinces and inflation ranked number 1 among the list of top 4 contributors to the desperate situation.
“In Sindh, the second-highest contributor was viewed to be unemployment (20 per cent), followed by COVID-19 (17 per cent) and poverty (16 per cent). In Punjab, 23 per cent people felt the province’s poor financial situation stems from unemployment, 8 per cent thought it was due to COVID-19 and 14 per cent believed poverty has a role,” The News International said.
Meanwhile, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa about 18 per cent believed unemployment, 12 per cent viewed coronavirus and 8 per cent called poverty as the reason behind the province’s financial situation.
Similarly, in Balochistan about 25 per cent responded by blaming unemployment, a mere 2 per cent felt COVID-19 played a role, and 25 per cent felt it was poverty that has led to the province’s dismal state of financial affairs, said Pakistani media outlet citing the research report. (ANI)
American actor-singer Jennifer Lopez recently opened up about the coronavirus quarantine and coming face-to-face with all of the challenges presented by the year 2020.
According to Fox News, the 51-year-old star told CBS, “I think all of us during the quarantine was a little bit afraid of the kids just sitting in front of their electronics all day.”
The ‘Hustlers’ star is mother to 12-year-old twins Emme and Max, whom she shares with ex-husband Marc Anthony.
As per Fox News, to keep everyone occupied, Lopez and her kiddos would spend time outdoors, playing Wiffle ball or holding painting parties.
Like many, however, the multihyphenate appreciated spending extra time with her family.
“For quarantine and being inside the house, it was just spending time together and doing movie time and having dinner together every night, which we don’t get to do all the time, and I think a lot of families don’t get to do that as much as they want,” she shared.
Between the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and more, the stress- year 2020 wore on everyone, Lopez included; the actor has a strategy for keeping her spirits up, however.
“For me, when I’m in pain or things are tough, I feel like the more of a positive mindset that I can keep and an attitude of gratitude is key to realizing life is going to be OK,” the ‘Money Train’ star told CBS.
She added: “Just being grateful for the things we do have and keeping ourselves on track in that way.”
Lopez has managed to keep herself rather busy during the lockdown.
In September, she released ‘Pa Ti,’ a collaboration with Maluma, followed by the release of ‘In the Morning’ last month.
She also recently performed at the American Music Awards and announced the upcoming launch of a beauty line. (ANI)
Boko Haram on Tuesday (local time) claimed responsibility for the abduction of over 330 Nigerian students.
A man claiming to be a leader of Boko Haram said the terror group was responsible for kidnapping scores of schoolboys in northwestern Nigeria on Friday, according to a short audio message shared with Nigerian media and reviewed by CNN.
“I am Abubakar Shekau and our brothers are behind the kidnapping in Katsina,” said the man.Abubakar Shekau is both the spiritual head and supreme commander of the terror group.While CNN has not been able to independently verify the authenticity of the message, a state government spokesman has informed that about 337 students are still unaccounted for after an attack on the Government Science Secondary School Kankara.
“The message claimed that Boko Haram had targeted the school because of the group’s long-held aim to stop “western” education in northern Nigeria, but a government official told CNN on Monday that the kidnappers had been in touch with a teacher of the school, raising the prospect of a ransom negotiation,” CNN said.
Boko Haram operates in the western and central African region. It is known to oppose western civilisation model of education and seeks the introduction of sharia law in Nigeria.
The Boko Haram insurgency began in 2009 when the terrorists staged an armed rebellion against the Nigerian government. (ANI)
The nurses union of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi on Tuesday called off their strike following several hours of meeting with AIIMS administration.
As many as 5000 nurses went on an “indefinite strike” on Monday over redressal of their demands, including those with regard to the 6th Central Pay Commission.
“AIIMS nurses union has called off their strike and will resume their work. AIIMS administration held a meeting with the nurses union and all their demands were heard,” Dr Randeep Guleria, Director of AIIMS told ANI.
Earlier, in the day the Delhi High Court had stayed the indefinite strike called by the AIIMS nurses and asked them to resume work.
Also, the AIIMS administration in the day also issued a letter to the protesting nursing staff stating that they should report for duty with immediate effect or will be marked as absent.
On Monday evening, Dr Guleria appealed to the agitating nurses not to go on the strike stating that “a real nurse will really never abandon her patients.”
“It however seems inappropriate when a country is fighting a pandemic, it is unfortunate at this point in time the nurses union have gone on a strike,” he said.
Harish Kajla, President of AIIMS nurses union before going on strike said: “The government had failed to consider our long pending demands which included the 6th Central Pay Commission and the government has turned down our demands.”
“It is also shocking to us that AIIMS administration decided to recruit nursing officers on a contractual basis immediately, which is against our strike demands,” said Kajla.
Guleria further informed that the nurses union had actually put in 23 demands. He claimed that almost all of the demands have been met by the AIIMS administration and by the government.
AIIMS director further mentioned that interpretation done by the nurses union is not correct and this is beyond the provision of the gazette notification but because the nurses union were asking for a hike in the salary, the government was sympathetically looking at this as the fresh demand and asked the department of expenditure to consider this. (ANI)
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Tuesday lashed out at his former ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the farmers’ protest against the three agricultural sector laws.
He also accused the ruling central government of being the “real tukde-tukde gang” and attempting to destroy national unity by maliciously “pushing patriotic Punjab into communal flames” for political gain.
“BJP is the real tukde-tukde gang in the country. It has smashed national unity to pieces, shamelessly inciting Hindus against Muslims and now desperate setting peace loving Punjabi Hindus against their Sikh brethren especially farmers,” he posted on Twitter.
“They (BJP) are pushing patriotic Punjab into communal flames,” he added.
Akali Dal leader and former chief minister of Punjab Parkash Singh Badal had returned his Padma Vibhushan in support of farmers’ protest against the agricultural sector laws.
Earlier Harsimrat Kaur Badal, SAD leader, resigned from Union Ministry in protest against new farm laws passed in Parliament earlier in September. SAD has been the oldest ally pulled out of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance coalition at the Centre. (ANI)
Amid continuing protest by farmers on Delhi borders over new farm laws, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said on Tuesday that the government is willing to continue dialogue with genuine farm unions and find a solution with an open mind.
The minister, who met members of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Kisan) from Uttar Pradesh at Krishi Bhavan, said that MSP is an administrative decision and will continue.
He said that the farm laws have been welcomed in various states across the country.
“The farmers who met me today have supported the three farm laws. They said that they are with the laws and government. As some farmers are spreading misconception so they were also misled. When I spoke to them they clearly supported the bills,” he said.
An Agriculture Ministry release said that leaders of the union welcomed the farm Acts and said that these will be beneficial for farmers.
They submitted a memorandum to the Minister with suggestions regarding the farm laws and Minimum Support Price (MSP).
The release said that the minister thanked the union leaders for coming out in support of the farm laws.
“He added that the government is willing to continue dialogue with genuine farm unions and is willing to find a solution with an open mind,” it said.
The said Bharatiya Kisan Union (Kisan) leaders suggested that farmers be given the option of going to civil courts in case of a dispute.
They also suggested that the panchayat head should be accorded the same importance as the head of the mandi to safeguard the rights of the farmers in small towns and villages.
They said that Essential Commodities Act should prevent hoarding and black marketing.
The union leaders also suggested that electricity rates for irrigation should be reduced and electricity should be available for longer hours in Uttar Pradesh.
They said standards for crops should be decided at the procurement centres so that farmers do not face any problem in selling the produce.
The meeting comes amid protest by farmers on borders of Delhi for the repeal of three farm laws enacted recently by the government. They have been on protest since November 26. The farmer unions have held five round of talks with the Centre and attended a meeting called by Home Minister Amit Shah. They have rejected proposals of the Centre for amendments in the farm laws.
They are protesting against Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.
On Monday, ten organisations from various states such as Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Bihar and Haryana associated with All India Kisan Coordination Committee had met Tomar and extended their support on the three farm laws. (ANI)
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