Month: July 2022

Kerala police on Tuesday registered a case in connection with an alleged incident in which a student was asked to remove her innerwear before appearing for the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) in the state’s Kollam district.

A case was registered under sections 354 and 509 of the Indian Penal Code at the Chadayamangalam police station under the Kollam Rural police district.
The incident came to light after a student filed a complaint with the Superintendent of Police at Kollam after the NEET exam for undergraduate medical courses on July 18,

In her complaint, the student alleged that she was asked to remove her innerwear before entering the examination hall.

Reportedly, the parent of the student alleged that girls were forced to remove their innerwear before being permitted to sit for the exam and they had to give the exam along with other students who were boys as well as male invigilators, which made the girls uncomfortable affected them mentally.

“My daughter has been preparing for the NEET exam since 8th grade. We were confident that she would achieve a good rank on the test but due to this issue she was unable to concentrate and couldn’t properly write the exam,” a student’s father told ANI.

Citing the National Testing Agency’s guidelines, the parent also highlighted that according to the norms mandated by the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts NEET had not mentioned any ban on any form of brassiere (bra) and hooks’.

“They were very uncomfortable. The guideline issued by NTA had not mentioned any ban on bras and hooks. We were following all guidelines. But the staff did not allow them to enter the classroom without removing inner-wear,” he added.

Meanwhile, the NTA an autonomous and self-sustained testing organization for conducting entrance examinations in a statement said that the exam centre’s superintendent, the independent observer, as well as city coordinator (NEET) of the Kollam district, did not find any such incident happening at the examination centre.

“Centre Superintendent and Independent Observer as well as City Coordinator, Kollam district have stated that they did not find any such incident happening in the NEET examination centre (Mar Thoma Institute of Information Technology, Kollam). The candidate did take the exam,” said NTA officials.

The NTA further stated that no complaint was registered during or immediately after the examination.

“There was no complaint to anyone during or immediately after the examination. As far as NTA’s Dress Code for NEET is concerned it does not permit any such activity alleged by the parent of the candidate,” it added.

Kerala higher education minister R Bindu has written to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan expressing “dismay and shock” at the news of “naked assault on the dignity and honour of the girl students” and sought strong action against the agency which forced girls to remove their undergarment before entering the test centre near Kollam.

The state’s women’s commission has also registered a suo moto case over the incident. (ANI)

China on Monday firmly opposed US arms sales to Taiwan and urged the United States to revoke the arms sales plan, days after the State Department approved a sale of up to USD 108 million worth of military-technical support to Taipei.

This latest deal is the US’ fourth arms sale to the island of Taiwan in 2022 and the fifth under the Biden administration, according to Chinese state media.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the US arms sales to China’s Taiwan region seriously violate the One-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques, particularly the August 17 communique, and gravely undermine China’s sovereignty and security interests.

He added that this deal severely harms China-US relations and peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

“China firmly opposes and strongly condemns this, and has lodged solemn representations with the U.S. side,” Wang was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency.

China urges the US side to abide by the One-China principle and the China-US joint communique, revoke the arms sales plan to Taiwan, and stop arms sales to and military ties with Taiwan, Wang said.

“China will continue to take resolute and strong measures to firmly defend its sovereignty and security interests,” he added.

Last week, the Pentagon informed that the United States has approved the potential sale of military-technical assistance to Taiwan worth an estimated USD 108 million.

The US Defence Department said this proposed sale serves US national, economic, and security interests by supporting Taiwan’s continuing efforts to modernize its armed forces and to maintain a credible defensive capability.

According to the Pentagon, the proposed sale will help improve the security of the recipient and assist in maintaining political stability, military balance, economic and progress in the region.

China, which regards Taiwan as its province despite decades of separate governance, has earlier strongly opposed military cooperation between Washington and Taipei.

This defence agreement between the US and Taiwan come a few days after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the One-China principle is what underpins stability across the Taiwan Strait and warned of “ferocious storms” across the region if the principle is “arbitrarily challenged or even sabotaged.”

Wang made the remarks when asked about the root cause of the current tensions across the Taiwan Strait as he made a policy speech at the ASEAN Secretariat, Xinhua news agency reported.

Wang said history and practice have repeatedly proved that when the One-China principle is fully recognized and thoroughly followed, the Taiwan Strait would remain calm and the two sides enjoy peaceful development. However, when the One-China principle is arbitrarily challenged or even sabotaged, there would be dark clouds or even ferocious storms across the Taiwan Strait. (ANI)

A film based on the life of yesteryear actor Madhubala is soon going to take off, as the veteran actor’s youngest sister Madhur Brij Bhushan has now collaborated with the ‘Shaktimaan’ producers to make this biopic.

Taking to Twitter, senior Bollywood critic and trade analyst, Taran Aadarsh shared a post, to which he captioned, “MADHUBALA BIOPIC ALL SET TO TAKE OFF… Legendary actress #Madhubala’s youngest sister #MadhurBrijBhushan has teamed up with #Shaktimaan producers #BrewingThoughtsPLtd [headed by ex-film journalist #PrashantSingh, #MadhuryaVinay] for #Madhubala biopic.”

“It has been my long-standing dream to do something for my beloved sister, who lived a very short yet momentous life. All my sisters and I have joined hands to make this dream come true. With God’s blessings, and dedication of my partners – Arvindji, Prashant and Vinay, I am confident that this biopic will be made successfully on a grand level. We need everyone’s blessings to put together this project beautifully,” says Bhushan.

The talks about the biopic are in the advanced stages and soon a leading production house will be roped in for this biographical Hindi feature film in association with Madhubala Ventures Private Limited (established by Bhushan and her partners – Arvind Kumar Malviya, Prashant Singh, Madhurya Vinay and Vinay Malviya)

The leading lady of the film is still not announced.

Born on February 14, 1933, veteran actor Madhubala was considered among the most beautiful and talented actors in the industry. She made her Bollywood debut at the age of 9 with a romantic musical film ‘Basant’ in 1942.

In a career span from the early 1940s to the mid-1960s, she worked in 73 films and her role as ‘Anarkali’ in director K.Asif’s ‘Mughal-e-Azam’ is still considered the greatest performance in the history of Indian cinema. (ANI)

The EU Council has agreed to allocate the fifth tranche of military assistance to Ukraine worth 500 million euros, European Council President Charles Michel said on Monday.

“I welcome @EUCouncil political agreement on the fifth tranche to #Ukraine under #EPF. #EU support in military equipment to Ukraine Armed Forces now at 2,5 billion EUR. Europe stands with Ukraine,” Michel tweeted.
Since the start of the “Russian military operation” in February in Ukraine, the EU has adopted six packages of sanctions against Moscow.

“Our measures already now target nearly 1,200 individuals and almost 100 entities in Russia as well as a significant number of sectors of the Russian economy. These sanctions were adopted in close coordination with the G7 member, and the fact that over forty other countries, including traditionally neutral countries, have also adopted them or taken similar measures enhances their effectiveness,” said Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission on July 16.

As the war drags on and the cost of energy rises, people in Europe and elsewhere ask whether these sanctions are working and whether the side effects are too great, Borrell said.

“Without underestimating different problems that could occur, including attempts made to bypass them, sanctions remain an important instrument of political action. But for sure we need to use them in a well-targeted manner, and, above all, they require strategic patience because it may take a long time for them to have the desired effect,” he added.

Josep Borrell said one of the main sanctions adopted is to stop buying 90 per cent of EU oil supplies from Russia by the end of 2022, depriving Moscow of corresponding revenues.

“Yes, Russia is able to sell its oil to other markets, however, this benefit is limited by the fact that Russia is forced to give high discounts on each barrel. In addition, and this is perhaps the most important point, this gradual oil embargo and the scaling back of the import of gas, liberates Europe from its energy dependence on Russia,” he added. (ANI)

In yet another instance of corruption and mismanagement, the fund allotted for the first cancer hospital in Balochistan was spent somewhere else.

The government of Balochistan had reserved a big fund in the budget of 2006 for the first cancer hospital in the province but at the end of every year, the fund was used for some other purpose, reported Pakistan’s vernacular media.
Former Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan inaugurated the cancer section in Shaikh Zaid Hospital. The building was completed but it had some defects in its layout which were not corrected so far.

He had promised to build a cancer hospital which was a long-standing demand of people to ensure healthcare facilities to them.

Necessary machinery was never installed in the first cancer hospital because places were not available for installation of the machinery and the problem is not solved till now, added the local media.

Due to delays in the instalment of necessary medical equipment, people have to go to Karachi, Islamabad or Lahore for treatment which is very costly for poor people.

The Balochis urged the Pakistan government to complete the hospital and install machinery on a war footing and open the hospital to the public.

It should be noted that the treatment of cancer, liver and kidney transplantation is the most expensive and requires millions of rupees.

The government of Pakistan has been dealing with animosity among the tribes of Balochistan since the time the country came into existence in 1947.

The causes of the conflict with Balochistan include a ripe ethnic nationalism along with feelings of economic and political exclusion.

Balochistan is located in the South West of Pakistan and constitutes half of the country’s territory. Demographically though it constitutes a mere 3.6 per cent of the total population of Pakistan. The province is home to over 13 million people, mostly Balochis.

Balochistan is Pakistan’s largest, but least developed province. It is one of the most important provinces of Pakistan because of the high concentration of natural resources including gas, oil, copper and gold.

However, despite the richness in natural resources, Balochistan continues to remain the poorest province of Pakistan. (ANI)

After India reported two monkeypox cases, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Monday reviewed the functioning of health screening of international travellers arriving in India at airports and ports.

The meeting was attended by Airport and Port Health Officers (APHOs/PHOs) and Regional Directors from Regional Offices of Health & Family Welfare.
All the officials were advised to ensure strict health screening of all arriving international travellers which can minimize the risk of importation of monkeypox cases into the country.

They were advised and re-oriented in the clinical presentation of monkeypox disease as per MoHFW’s ‘Guidelines for Management of Monkeypox Disease’.

They were also advised to coordinate with other stakeholder agencies like Immigration at international ports and airports to streamline health screening processes besides ensuring suitable linkages with hospital facilities earmarked to each port of entry for timely referral and isolation.

The meeting was also attended by senior officials from International Health Division, and Disaster Management Cell.

On Monday, India reported the second confirmed monkeypox case from Kerala’s Kannur district.

As per the Kerala Health Minister’s office, a 31-year-old male has been infected with the virus. He is undergoing treatment in Pariyaram Medical College, Kannur.

Earlier on July 14, India had reported the first monkeypox case of a UAE traveller from Kerala. (ANI)

Ahead of the release of ‘Shamshera’, actor Ranbir Kapoor took a stroll down memory lane and shared his experience shooting the film in Ladakh.

“When you do films like Shamshera you really have to be in a certain zone and Ladakh really gives you that period landscape. It was the first time that I visited Ladakh in my life and it was beautiful. We shot a song there; we shot an action sequence and we shot Shamshera’s introduction there,” he said.
It’s not easy to shoot in extreme weather conditions in Nubra Valley, Ladakh.

“When you take 200-300 people to an outdoor location, of course you have to face these challenges but it’s how you tackle them,” Ranbir added.

Director Karan Malhotra, too, opened up about experience filming in Ladakh.

“Nubra just took my breath away and it’s a place that I had explored in my life for the first time. We went there for a recce and it’s a magical place to be in. Nubra is that place which has a desert, a water body, greens and snow all in one spot that is what Nubra is. However, not a lot was in our control. When we are in films, we all pretend to be in control but a lot of things go out of control. Nubra Valley gave Shamshera exactly what it needed in terms of look and feel and Shamshera is going to be special in terms of its visuals and terrains, it’s going to be because of Nubra Valley,” Karan shared.

Shamshera is set in the fictitious city of Kaza, where a warrior tribe is imprisoned, enslaved and tortured by a ruthless authoritarian general Shuddh Singh (played by Sanjay Dutt). This is the story of a man who became a slave, a slave who became a leader and then a legend for his tribe. He relentlessly fights for his tribe’s freedom and dignity. His name is Shamshera (essayed by Ranbir).

The film also stars Vaani Kapoor and is all set to release on July 22. (ANI)