Month: April 2021

In view of the surge of COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport has decided to impose a fine of Rs 1,000 for COVID-19 guidelines violators.

“Basis the directive issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) will levy a fine on any individual found violating the mandatory Covid-19 safety protocols at the airport with effect from April 1,” read the release by the airport.
“A fine of Rs 1,000 will be issued to individuals who refuse to comply with COVID safety norms such as wearing face masks that cover the nose and mouth and maintaining social distancing amongst others at the airport,” it said.

Meanwhile, the passengers arriving at the Mumbai airport will now have to pay just Rs 600 for the RT-PCR test as against the earlier rate of Rs 850.

Maharashtra reported 49,447 new COVID-19 cases, 37,821 recoveries, and 277 deaths in the last 24 hours, as per the State Health Department on Saturday.

As many as 9,090 fresh infections were recorded in Mumbai today. The city reported 5,322 recoveries and 27 deaths in the last 24 hours. (ANI)

A new study by researchers of Purdue University shows that couples often decreased their speed when walking together. Speed further decreased if they were holding hands.

The study looked at walking times and gait speeds of 141 individuals from 72 couples. The participants ranged from age 25-79 and were in numerous settings, including clear or obstacle-filled pathways, walking together, walking together holding hands and walking individually.

“In our study, we focused on couples because partners in committed relationships often provide essential support to promote one another’s healthy lifestyle behaviors, including exercise,” says Melissa Franks, associate professor of human development and family studies.

Libby Richards, associate professor of nursing, says, “We were hoping that there would not be a reduction in speed where partners walked together. We hoped that slower partners would speed up to match the faster partner, but that was not the case. However, it’s important to note that any physical activity or walking — regardless of speed — is better than none.”

Richards says it is common for people to walk or exercise with a spouse, partner or friend, as it increases one’s likelihood to be active, especially as Americans are encouraged to meet a goal of 150 minutes of moderate activity every week.

“If someone substantially slows down when they are walking with someone else, that could negate some of the health benefits recognized if they walked alone at a faster pace,” Richards says.

Shirley Rietdyk, professor of health and kinesiology who specializes in biomechanics, says there are many reasons to measure gait speed.

“Gait speed is important to measure because it is related to overall health. Typical gait speed is predictive of fall risk, functional ability, disability recovery and mortality,” Rietdyk says.

“Common exercise interventions, including strength, coordination and multimodal training, are all effective in increasing gait speed. These interventions can also delay the onset of slower gait speed and help slow the loss of gait speed. No one type of training is better than the other, so do the activity you are most likely to stick with.”

While walking is one of the easiest activities, people tend to walk slower as they get older and may have to find other fitness routines to stay active.

“Older adults who are more active tend to maintain their gait speed,” Rietdyk says. “In other words, slower gait speed is not an inevitable aspect of ageing. Older adults who walk slower tend to have poorer health and lower functional status.” (ANI)

Bollywood actor Shraddha Kapoor, on Friday announced her next project titled ‘Chaalbaaz In London’, which will be a reboot of the 1989 rom-com classic ‘Chaalbaaz’ directed by Pankaj Parashar, who helmed the original flick starring late legendary star Sridevi.

The actor took to Instagram to make an announcement about the flick. She posted a short clip as the first teaser of the movie which also hears the iconic song ‘Na Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai’s jingle in the background.

Taking it to the captions she wrote, “CHAALBAAZ in London!!! SO excited for this! Directed by the one & only Pankaj Parashar and produced by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Ahmed Khan and Shaira Khan #CHAALBAAZinLondon”.

Meanwhile, confirming that the ‘Stree’ star will be seen reprising the double role of Sridevi in the film, film critic and movie trade analyst tweeted, “SHRADDHA KAPOOR’S FIRST DOUBLE ROLE… #ShraddhaKapoor will be essaying a double role… The film – titled #ChaalbaazInLondon – is directed by Pankaj Parashar, who directed #Chaalbaaz [starring #Sridevi]… Produced by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Ahmed Khan and Shaira Khan.”

The original movie ‘Chaalbaaz’ starred Sridevi, Sunny Deol and Rajinikanth. Anupam Kher, Shakti Kapoor, Rohini Hattangadi and Anu Kapoor were also featured in supporting roles.

Based on the 1973 film ‘Seeta Aur Geeta’, which featured Hema Malini, Dharmendra and Sanjeev Kapoor, the film revolves around separated twins– Anju and Manju, who have grown up in different circumstances, accidentally switch places. While a shy Anju starts living a rustic life, bold Manju takes revenge from their evil uncle, defying the odds and challenging the patriarchal society.

The film was well-received by critics and audiences upon release and went on to become a blockbuster hit, becoming the fifth-highest-grossing film of 1989. Among the elements of the movie that were highly praised included the film’s story, music and Sridevi’s performance in the dual role, which is considered to be one of her finest performances in Bollywood. (ANI)

Amid lack of progress on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), subtle signs of unease have emerged between the two countries over the future direction and funding of mega projects, under increasing scrutiny of media and the public.

According to a report published in Modern Diplomacy, the outcome of recent meetings between the two countries reveals significant scaling down of Pakistan’s expectations regarding the inclusion of more projects under CPEC phase II.
Fabien Baussart in an opinion piece for Modern Diplomacy said “While the country has for long portrayed USD 6.8 billion Main Line-I project to be the main artery of the Pakistan Railways and tried to convince China for financing the project, the Chinese side has tried to avoid any commitment for funding.”

Pakistan has unable to secure any favourable consideration including the concessionary loan at an interest rate of one per cent, said Baussart while adding that China is only willing to offer a mix of commercial and concessional loans to fund the rail project backed by suitable guarantees by Pakistan.

“Although it is the largest among the lot, ML-1 is not the only project facing significant delays. According to Pak CPEC Authority, so far, 17 projects worth USD 13 billion have been completed while another 21 projects having an estimated cost of USD 12 billion are under implementation,” the report said.

Baussart further argued that despite high publicity, hardly any Chinese investors are showing interest in setting up of units in the Special Economic Zones being established as part of industrial cooperation under CPEC.

The report further said the hype created by Islamabad through projecting CPEC as a panacea for all problems is losing steam.

“The project not only lacks clear direction to steer through but continues to struggle due to absence of coordination among various executing agencies. The realization is gradually dawning upon various government agencies that Pakistan’s economy has failed to achieve any real benefit from the CPEC,” the report said.

Adding to that, the Senate Special Committee on CPEC informed the upper house of parliament earlier this month that the Pakistan planning, development and special initiatives ministry does not have the capacity to coordinate and manage projects like CPEC.

The committee stated in a report that the ministry clearly lacks vision and critical thinking as an institution, adding that several lapses in the project due to mismanagement and lack of strategic planning were pointed out in the last two-and-a-half years, The Express Tribune reported.

In 2015, China announced an economic project in Pakistan worth USD 46 billion. With the CPEC, Beijing aims to expand its influence in Pakistan and across Central and South Asia in order to counter the influence of the United States and India.

The CPEC would link Pakistan’s southern Gwadar port (626 kilometres west of Karachi) in Balochistan on the Arabian Sea to China’s western Xinjiang region. It also includes plans to create road, rail, and oil pipeline links to improve connectivity between China and the Middle East. (ANI)

A day after his convoy was allegedly attacked in Rajasthan’s Alwar, Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) chief Rakesh Tikait on Saturday said the “youth wing” of BJP is responsible for the attack.

“The Centre is responsible, who else can it be? It’s their (BJP’s) youth wing. They were saying, “Rakesh Tikait, Go Back”. Where should I go? They hurled stones, used lathis,” said Tikait. “Why are they fighting us, we’re farmers, we are not a political party,” he added.

When asked about the possibility of a dialogue between farmers and the Centre, the BKU leader said, “If the government was run by a party, then dialogue would have concluded by now. This government is run by companies (Corporates). They only look at their business and profit. They don’t care about anyone. They will profit more if there are more hungry people in the country.”

The convoy of Tikait was allegedly attacked at Tatarpur Chowk in Alwar on Friday. According to police, four persons have been detained in connection with the incident.

After the incident, Tikait said that goons of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) tried to attack him. He tweeted in Hindi, “Tatarpur intersection of Alwar district of Rajasthan near Bansur road — attacked by BJP goons –killing our democracy.”

Following the attack, the BKU chief’s supporters blocked National Highway 9 at the Ghazipur border. The Highway was opened for traffic movement later on.

Farmers have been protesting at the different borders of Delhi since November last year against the three farm laws — 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. (ANI)

India reported 89,129 new COVID-19 cases and 714 coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours, informed the union health ministry on Saturday.

With these additional cases, the total number of COVID-19 cases in the country has reached 1,23,92,260.
With 714 new deaths, the death toll in India has gone up to 1,64,110. There are 6,58,909 active cases in the nation as of now. Furthermore, 44,202 people were discharged after recovery on Friday, taking the nationwide recovery tally to 1,15,69,241.

As per the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), 10,46,605 samples were tested on Friday. A total of 24,69,59,192 samples have been tested so far.

Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, a total of 7,30,54,295 people have been vaccinated across the country till now.

From Friday, the government started vaccinating all people above 45 years. India started its vaccination drive on January 16 with priority given to all healthcare and frontline workers in the first phase. The second phase started on March 1 where doses were administered to people above the age of 60 and those between 45 and 59 years with specific comorbidities. (ANI)

With de-escalation of militaries of both India and China is yet to take place in Ladakh, top Indian Army brass would discuss security challenges along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China and address the remaining issues with Pakistan.

At the Army Commanders’ Conference scheduled to be held from April 26 to 30, the issue of the ongoing ceasefire with Pakistan along the Line of Control (LoC) and the overall internal security situation in the Kashmir valley will be also discussed.
“The security issues with China and the future security challenges along the China border would be discussed at the conference,” a government source told ANI.

In the eastern Ladakh sector, the two sides have already disengaged from the most important Pangong lake sector but are still maintaining a high level of forces at forward permanent locations as de-escalation is yet to happen.

The Indian side is also hoping for an early disengagement at the remaining friction points in the Gogra heights, Hot Springs and CNC Junction area.

The Indian Army has also now started rebalancing its troop deployment towards the China border and turning its focus towards China from the Pakistan front.

The top commanders are also expected to discuss the ceasefire with Pakistan along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir where big guns from both sides have remained totally silent in the month of March following the agreement in February between the Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs) of the two countries on strict observance of ceasefire.

Army chief Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane had told ANI that the infiltration attempts had not been made from across the LoC in March.

This would also be the first commanders’ conference meeting for the commander-in-chiefs of the south-western and central Army commands. The meeting will also review the recent acquisitions done by the force to prepare itself for a wartime situation as the emergency acquisition timeframe is over. (ANI)

Bollywood actor Parineeti Chopra, who is on a roll, recently revealed that going forward she will only look to ‘shock and awe’ people with her film choices that will allow her to showcase her acting skills effectively.

She is currently basking in the success of her three back-to-back releases ‘The Girl On The Train’, ‘Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar’, and the recently released ‘Saina’.

Parineeti is currently over the moon and the reason for her happiness is the rave reviews she has been receiving after her captivating performances in the direct to digital release ‘The Girl On The Train’ (TGOTT) and the recently theatrical releases ‘Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar’, and ‘Saina’.

The actor said, “I’m currently over the moon with the reviews that I have got for TGOTT, SAPF and Saina and I realised that what audiences and critics loved was my decision to pick versatile roles that helped me shine as a performer. Going forward too, my film choices will be instinctive, bold and hopefully I will be able to shock and awe people like I have done with these three back to back films.”

Indeed, for the 32-year-old star, 2021 has started on a good note and she intends to capitalise on this positive momentum.

She said, “They have been praising my work and saying things like Parineeti 2.0, return of Parineeti, the power-packed hattrick of Parineeti Chopra, it feels very special and rare as no actor has achieved this feat of releasing 3 films in one month and I cannot believe it. It’s been a good start to my year because people have really liked what I have tried to do on screen.”

She added, “Their love is a big validation that I should always get out of my comfort zone and shake things up for myself. It’s a big lesson that I have learnt and I’m going to ensure that I apply this when it comes to my film choices going forward.”

Apart from the recently-released films, the actor has an interesting lineup of films like ‘Bhuj: The Pride Of India’ starring Ajay Devgn and Sonakshi Sinha, and Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s ‘Animal’ in which she will be featuring alongside Ranbir Kapoor, Anil Kapoor, and Bobby Deol. (ANI)

A day after Election Commission barred BJP leader Himanta Biswa Sarma from campaigning in the ongoing Assam assembly elections, Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala on Saturday said the EC should also ban Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and JP Nadda from campaigning to ensure free and fair elections in the state.

“EC barring Himanta Biswa Sarma from campaigning for 48 hours proves that BJP has lost polls and is resorting to tactics to influence polls. But, they are not going to get successful in their conspiracy. We urge that though notices have been given to newspaper which ran the advertisements, it should also bar Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, Sarbananda Sonowal and JP Nadda too who were shown in ads in Assam’s newspapers, for free and fair polls,” Surjewala told ANI.
The Congress leader also urged the EC to investigate the matter of “stolen EVMs that were found from the car of BJP candidate” in Assam. “The arrest orders of BJP workers should be issued. Only then a fair election can be ensured,” he said.

Surjewala further exuded confidence that Congress is going to win the Assam assembly polls with a three-fourth majority but added that “till the time there is no legal action against Sarma and others BJP leaders, the fairness of election cannot be established”.

The Election Commission on Friday barred Sarma from campaigning for ongoing Assam elections for 48 hours for his remark against Bodoland People’s Front Chairperson Hagrama Mohilary.

Sarma, who had switched from the Congress ahead of the 2016 assembly elections, is contesting from Jalukbari.

The second phase that took place on Thursday saw a voter turnout of 74.76 per cent. Polling for the third and final phase will be held on April 6 and the counting of votes will take place on May 2. (ANI)