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spaceskam · 3 years

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retrouvailles

Summary: Kyle and Michael pick Alex up at the airport.

Tags: reunions, post season 2, fluff, POV Kyle Valenti

for @caitlesshea !! happy birthday, I hope you enjoy it!

ao3

“What if I set off a sensor or something?”

Kyle stopped, pulling Michael to a stop with a firm grip on his arm. Michael looked at him with wide eyes as if he didn’t understand why he stopped him.

“Do you have something on you that’ll set off a sensor?” Kyle asked.

“No, but what if, like, my organs do it?” Michael said. Kyle let go of him and sighed.

“Isobel has been on a plane before and she was fine,” Kyle said, walking through the entrance of the airport, “Besides, I’ve done a lot of tests and as far as I can tell, none of you have any metal that’ll set off metal detectors in your blood. You’re fine.”

“Okay,” Michael said, taking a deep breath before following.

They walked further into the building, Michael trailing him and very clearly uncomfortable. Which. Fair. The only reason Kyle was even here was because Michael was very clearly uncomfortable with this whole thing trip. Kyle was just kind enough to be his friend through it‒and also because Alex asked him to.

Twenty-eight days ago, Alex had to leave for some special secret military thing that he couldn’t talk about for special secret military reasons, but he promised it wasn’t a full deployment. It was just a short, month long trip because he was needed at the US embassy in Qatar. No explanation further than that, but, from Kyle’s research, it didn’t seem to be the worst place to travel, so he tried not to stress. Maybe he was training someone. Or something.

That didn’t stop Michael from being an absolutely hellish person to be around since Alex was gone. They’d apparently just got on good terms, a romantic prelude of sorts, when Alex found out he had to go and politely asked Kyle to keep an eye on Michael. They’d been speaking and Michael was staying sober and busy, but Michael was keeping busy by annoying the shit out of everyone else. Kyle was thankful Michael would have someone else to call at 3AM when he had some sort of scientific breakthrough and needed someone stat. Liz had started turning her phone off, but Kyle felt too guilty to do so.

“How many people a year go missing in airports?” Michael asked as they headed towards the waiting area. They didn’t have to go through any metal detectors to wait out here and so that seemed like the safest place to be, all things considered.

“Excuse me?”

“I’m just saying, I feel like a prime target here. There’s so many fucking cops and military people. How many people do you think go missing from airports that aren’t even reported because they’re just kidnapped by the cops and the military?” Michael asked. Kyle closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

“Your boyfriend is in the military and your brother is a cop,” Kyle said slowly.

“Yeah, exactly how I know how fucked up it can be. And I’m‒you know. They could have heat sensors on me and know, ” Michael said. Kyle resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He knew Michael was just exaggerating as a way to release actual tension. He was nervous. But Alex was almost here and he was going to take over soon enough.

“It’s fine. Anyone tries to take you and Alex will literally kill them, just relax,” Kyle said. Michael furrowed his eyebrows and frowned like he was annoyed that he wasn’t being indulged which, to Kyle, meant Alex had been doing a great job at talking to him despite the miles between them.

Michael tapped his foot as they sat and watched the screen that displayed projected landing and take off times. Alex’s was on time, thankfully, and he should be landing any minute. Then Kyle wouldn’t have to babysit anymore.

“This is the sixth time Alex has come home and this is the first time I’m here to meet him at the airport,” Michael said. Kyle blinked and looked over at him, almost shocked with the honesty. More than almost. That being said, he kept his mouth shut and listened. “That’s a lot of times, you know?”

“I mean, yeah, but you’re here now. You guys were at a different place then,” Kyle tried. Michael took a deep breath and looked up. “Look, you’re just stressing yourself out because you’re nervous.”

“I don’t think I should’ve come. I don’t think he wants me here.”

“What? How the hell did you draw that conclusion?” Kyle asked, trying not to be too harsh about it. If there was one thing he learned from Michael and Alex, it’s that they were both fucking impossible. “Didn’t he say he wanted you here?”

“No,” Michael said, “He said I could come if I wanted, but no pressure. Sounds like he doesn’t want me here.”

Kyle’s eyes drifted to the monitor and saw Alex’s flight had turned green to announce that it’d landed. He just had to hold Michael out for a few more minutes and then Alex could do whatever Alex did to de-escalate his brain.

“I think he does want you here and he’s just so busy feeling the exact way you’re feeling to tell you that,” Kyle pointed out. Michael shrugged and stared at the screen that displayed all the plane landing times. His hands tightened where they rested over his knees. “Look, Alex is getting better with telling you what he wants, but no one is perfect and no one can heal super fast. He wants you here. It’s been a long time.”

“He’s been gone longer.”

“Yeah, he has. But something tells me this time is a little different,” Kyle said.

That something was Alex himself who Kyle imagined to be spinning around in an office chair as he waxed poetic about how good things were going between them. Better than ever before, namely because they were actually speaking while he was gone and they’d gotten a proper goodbye instead of Alex fleeing into the night while he was asleep. They had spoken about how, when Alex got back, they were going to start dating. They were going to be the annoying couple that is concerningly attached at the hip.

And, honestly, Kyle couldn’t fucking wait.

“What if he’s changed his mind?” Michael wondered.

“Then, knowing Alex, he’ll be honest and tell you to your face.”

Michael, groaning, sunk into the chair even further. Kyle rolled his eyes and reached over to pat him on the shoulder. He knew it was just pent up emotions. Alex would be walking out any moment now and all of his fears would be gone. He almost felt bad that Alex was by himself because he was probably going through the same mini freak out.

One day, hopefully, there wouldn’t be any hesitancy and he’d get to gag freely as they excitedly mauled each other in the middle of an airport. One day.

Time passed slowly as they waited for Alex to appear. Occasionally, Michael would say something off the wall, just to get some sort of reaction or response, and Kyle would entertain him and tug him back to reality. All things considered, this was the same version of him that called people at ridiculous times of day and night, just a little more anxiety-induced (as if that version wasn’t already anxiety-induced). Nothing Kyle couldn’t handle.

Something Alex would probably enjoy handling.

They had lapsed into silence for only a few seconds whenever a throat was cleared behind them. Kyle very casually looked over his shoulder while Michael quickly jumped up and turned to face him as if he’d just been caught doing something he shouldn’t. Kyle almost rolled his eyes, but he was too busy being thankful that Alex was stood there.

He looked tired, but he was in civvies and had his bag already and his hair was starting to grow out a bit again. His eyes were trained on Michael, clearly waiting with baited breath to see what to do now that they were face to face again after a month apart. Kyle would’ve felt like he was intruding if the situation was any different. But they were still figuring it out and they were both a little anxious and they definitely needed some kind of crutch. Kyle was happy to be it.

“Hey,” Kyle said, speaking first.

“Hi,” Alex said, glancing over at Kyle and giving him a nod with a smile before looking back to Michael.

“Hey,” Michael jumped in, his fists clenching and unclenching like he wasn’t sure what to do with his hands before deciding to shove them in his pocket because he had nothing better to do. “Um, how was your flight?”

“Fine. Long. Had a layover in Dallas, lasted too long. Got coffee though,” Alex said, shrugging and smiling at him, “How was the ride here? Where’d you guys park?”

“Not too far,” Michael said quickly, “Waited to get an up close parking spot so you didn’t have to walk too far. I figured it’d be uncomfortable since you’ve had your prosthetic on the whole flight and stuff.”

“Yeah, thanks,” Alex said.

“Good to see you back,” Kyle said to spark more conversation. As soon as they just got a good hug out, they could just go to the car and leave and then Michael could drop them off at Alex’s house and they could do whatever they did in private with Kyle having done his job.

“Yeah, it’s good to be back. I like the work, it’s just challenging enough, but it’s good to be, uh, home, I guess,” Alex told him, though the word sounded a bit unsure as if he had a different word in mind.

“I bet.”

“Hey, um, I watered your plants,” Michael jumped in, still looking a little out of sorts. Alex smiled wider. “None of them died.”

“Thank you,” Alex said sincerely. Michael smiled.

Then they just stood there awkwardly like two teenagers before a dance. Kyle felt like he was supposed to shove them together to take pictures. Instead of doing that, he kicked Michael’s shin and gave him a look whenever Michael turned his head to him with a glare. His jaw clenched and he took a deep breath before looking back at Alex.

“I missed you,” Michael said slowly as if it was rehearsed and practiced. Kyle had to resist the urge to roll his eyes as he looked away, giving them some semblance of privacy. “Like. A lot.”

“I missed you too,” Alex said, “And I was thinking that maybe we could‒”

And then Alex’s voice was muffled and, when Kyle looked over, they were very occupied with each other’s lips. Kyle huffed a laugh and pushed himself onto his feet and decided saying ‘ finally’ would ruin the mood.

“I’ll wait at the car, don’t stay too long or you might get security called on you,” he told them. Alex pulled out of the kiss long enough to laugh. His hands gripped Michael’s biceps and he squeezed.

“Come on, let’s just go home so we don’t have to stop again,” Alex said. Kyle scrunched up his nose, but he decided not to say anything more.

The drive home was pretty casual. Michael drove (for an alien, he was way too susceptible to car sickness) and Kyle rendered the passenger seat to Alex who shared the stories he could from his time in Qatar. He had developed a software for their embassay’s security a few years prior and they needed some updates as well as training their IT team how to work the updates, he’d said, and it gave him an opportunity to freshen up his Arabic. He’d spent most of his days at a computer.

If Michael and Alex held hands the whole time and bounced back and forth between who’s lap they belonged to, Kyle said nothing.

When they got to Alex’s, Kyle gave him a hug and they promised to go get lunch the next day. Then he gave Michael a nod before taking back the driver’s seat of his own damn car and started heading home, a smile finding his lips as he thought about it. Alex was happy. And not only that, but he and Michael were on good terms. Which was good.

Of course, he’d never admit it, but he kind of liked hanging out and working with the two of them.

It wasn’t until he got home, though, that he realized he had a text.

Michael Guerin: Thanks. You’re not as bad as you could be.

Kyle snorted and dropped his phone on the couch as he headed to the kitchen.

He was so glad Alex was back.

#malex #malex fic #michael guerin #alex manes #kyle valenti #roswell new mexico #my fic #HAPPY BIRTHDAYYYYY

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bangkokjacknews · 3 years

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Phuket’s Sandbox Reopening Falls FLAT

Thailand’s planned Sandbox reopening scheme for the resort island of Phuket next month for vaccinated tourists has, unsurprisingly, had a muted response.

The Phuket Sandbox scheme that is scheduled to commence on July 1st will enable free movement of tourists on the island without self-isolation. After 14 days the vaccinated tourists will be allowed to travel to other provinces in Thailand. Thai Airways, with direct flights from six European cities to Phuket starting July, expects only a fraction of the seats to be occupied, with less than 100 passengers in the first week, one of the airline’s representatives said. Many industry professionals complain that uncertainty and constant rule changes discourage bookings. Furthermore the Phuket Sandbox plan won’t be finalized until the end of this month. “This is going to be a slow process. Neither of us expect 100% occupancy by July 2nd,” said Anthony Lark, president of the Phuket Hotels Association. To an economy dependent on tourism for jobs and consumption, the newcomers will not bring immediate relief, though the lifting of the costly two-week quarantine regime that put tourists off for more than a year offers some hope. “We are already seeing strong interest, particularly from the Middle East, UK, Europe and Scandinavia, to gradually return to Phuket,” said Lark. https://bangkokjack.com/2021/06/13/no-point-phuket-reopening/ Phuket has been hard hit Thailand lost around $ 50 billion in tourism revenue last year as overseas arrivals fell 83% to 6.7 million, from a record 39.9 million in 2019. The slump was on global travel restrictions and Thailand’s severe Entry requirements returned. Phuket has been particularly hard hit by job losses and business closings. The government hopes the Phuket Sandbox will draw 129,000 visitors to the country in the third quarter – a far cry from the average 3.3 million monthly arrivals in Thailand in 2019. Typically a quarter of Thai visitors go to Phuket. Thailand had only 28,701 visitors in the first four months of this year. A Phuket hotel owner said the sandbox initiative was “a bunch of cops” that would make little difference, in part because much of the target audience – middle class and wealthy Asians – must be quarantined upon their return home. “More than 50% of Phuket tourism comes from China,” said the hotelier, who refused to be named. “It will be difficult without this market.” The island’s hotel association is forecasting a gradual increase in occupancy to 30-40% by the end of the year, from 10-20% in July-October, including local bookings. Several major airlines support the plan and offer direct flights, including Emirates, El Al, Air France, Qatar Airways, British Airways and Cathay Pacific according to the Thai Tourism Authority. https://bangkokjack.com/2021/06/14/phuket-under-these-conditions/ Visitors banned from high-risk countries Singapore Airlines told Reuters that its flights to Phuket will be increased from two a week to seven from July after piquing customer interest. However, some barriers remain, as some key markets such as China, Japan and Malaysia have restricted exit restrictions while Thai health authorities have banned visitors from some high-risk countries such as India. Critics also lament onerous conditions such as mandatory swab tests, insurance coverage of at least $ 100,000 for COVID-19 treatment, and use of a tracking application. For its part, Phuket is trying to vaccinate 70% of its residents – a requirement to reopen – with 60% having received an initial dose so far, a rate well above that of the capital, Bangkok, the epicenter of Thailand’s worst outbreak to date. https://bangkokjack.com/2021/06/18/nobody-believes-prayuts-pledge/ Thailand to reopen to visitors within 120 days Phuket has had single-digit cases on most days since May when it introduced negative test requirements for domestic arrivals. Bangkok, on the other hand, saw hundreds of new cases every day for the past month. Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said Thursday that Thailand would reopen to visitors within 120 days, calling it a calculated but necessary risk. If the sandbox program goes smoothly, authorities plan to replicate it in destinations like Krabi and Koh Samui. “It’s a completely new situation. You are trying to reopen the country to tourism to help the economy, but at the same time you have to be careful, “said Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya, Deputy Governor of TAT. Coverage by Panu Wongcha-um, with additional coverage by Orathai Sriring and Chayut Setboonsarng; Editing by Martin Petty and Tom Hogue. - Reuters Read the full article

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whitelippedviper · 7 years

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Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin. Fuck war, love comics.

So I’m making my way through Yoshikazu Yasuhiko’s Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin and like I’ve seen Yaz’s work before. I have the first volume of Venus Wars--but it just didn’t click for me. MSG: The Origin tho is goddamn sorcery on the page. You need to know this first off, you don’t need to know anything about Gundam to read this. The whole thing is this is the book retelling the story that started it all but like Yaz’s from the heart version. And two volumes in, which is like...1000 pages of comics, and this is a masterpiece.

I’m mostly going to talk about the art, but story wise, military stuff is generally not my bag. Unfortunately, it’s a genre that is grossly popular in American comics, not just in straightforward military stories, but superhero comics as well. Too often these heroes have design updates that are all too happily to enlist heroes whose past models leaned more heavily into daredevil circus performers or wrestlers. You know the look. When your favorite hero goes from tights and a cape look to body armor looking shit everywhere. War on crime right? And then these companies on their film side have all kinds of connections to the military industrial complex--hell these companies often employ ex-military, or in some notable cases ex-CIA to write the damn books. And when you couple that with how interested the military has always been with warping people’s brains to keep the war machine humming(they once put acid in a whole town’s water supply just to see what would happen!) it’s quite unnerving! So besides being extremely anti-war in practice, I’m also pretty tin foil hat when it comes to seeing the edges of the military in pop culture, particularly when the message is like “look how cool this is!”

Which as a sidebar is one of the things that makes the Aubrey Sitterson GI Joe thing complicated to me, because like...I don’t think GI Joe is a good thing, and I don’t believe leftists should be getting their pay pushing paper for something that could not BE more military industrial. Like let's make kids think how cool being a soldier and going to war is--and then those kids grow up, and what a surprise we are in like ten wars that we know about, and will be for forever--and you get this kind of brainwashing that turns Kapernick trying to say “hey, maybe cops should stop shooting black men” into a debate about “respecting the flag” because the NFL is in bed with the military….agh. I hate it. I hate it all. From Operation Condor, the firebombings of dresden, hiroshima and nagasaki, the genocide of the american indian, fallujah, Abu Ghraib, our complicity in Saudi atrocities in Yemen and Qatar...we are not the good guys of history! We kill for empire, but our empire isn’t colonies, it’s more war. Our chief export is war. And I would love to expatriate to a country that doesn’t have these values, but I don’t know if even then I could shake that shit from my stomach. And even more insidious than our war is our financial arm, our banks and investors who have killed as many people with pens as any soldiers with guns. We are an empire of atrocity!

So when I see military comics, or cop comics, it just reminds me that I live in the most warlike country of the last 100 years, and all of those innocent people that are caught up in our bombs, and the way we turn whole regions into chaos to serve our ends and make more money--my relative prosperity as an American is built on the bodies and bloodshed of innocents the world over. I mean why is America what America is? It’s because WW2 basically moved europe's wealth to the US, and then we spent it on more bombs and we stepped in not because of any real moral thing--we stepped in because england owed us too much for us to let them go down. We as a country became a world superpower, the world superpower, through war profiteering and slavery. That’s a huge aside, but I’m saying, I fucking hate war. And maybe find ways to not contribute to more of those sort of comics? But more than that in an aesthetic sense, the codes for military in American comics are so bland and it seems half the time to justify not having to do interesting character designs. So surely there is a better fit for someone like Sitterson who has the politics I do, I think, than writing war comics to a patriotic pro-military audience, so I wish him the best, but fuck GI Joe. (And as an aside aside, if it were Frank Miller and not Aubrey Sitterson with the controversial opinion that book isn’t getting dropped--these companies only do these things as financial calculations, and if you are a big enough cash cow you can say or do whatever you want in comics for the most part but if you aren’t--you better protect your neck because these companies don’t have your interests in mind. And we live in stupid times) So I can fuck with Gundam because 1) it hates war as much as I do. And 2) they’re not trying to make everything look like utilitarian military shit. They’re about looking goood while they are hating war. The story is really rich, background characters positively radiate and each have their own character which comes to the fore at different parts. In some respects, Amuro Ray haunts this comic like death, because he’s the end of so many terrific characters that you really grow to love, and the Federation cause is somewhat murky at best, as is their exploitation of kids like Amuro. I kind of think Yaz does my favorite faces in all of comics, unseating Jose Munoz:

This kind of caricaturing is really lovely for a story this rich and dense, because you get so much just from how a character looks and the faces they make, and it’s quite appealing to look at I think. There are characters you fall in love with just because you want to see Yaz draw their face again. The range of expressions he has in the toolkit is amazing to me. Yaz’s style in general to me is like magic. Lines don’t connect, and it’s like he can just shift around these minimal set of lines and accomplish anything on the page. It’s like he has a set number of lines that he’s working with on every page, and he just dips his brush into the page and waves it around and those lines bend and contort into perfection. He’s one like Kirby where he kind of just sits down at a page and the images come out of his brain.

It’s not overly rendered, but it still is textural and inky. I think this also has my favorite lettering in comics. I don’t know who was responsible for it in english, but I love the obvious care that went into varying the lettering, and just how gentle and elegant it is. It probably was just a font in a computer--but it doesn’t FEEL like that, which is cool. Oh also Yaz watercolors various pages in the book, and they are almost all stunning. I’m planning to read his Joan of Arc book which is all watercolored, so that should be interesting. But I think what comes across more than anything reading these books, because of not only the comic, but the production value of the books themselves--the hard cover, the essays at the back, the slick pages, the thoughtful lettering--what comes across from stem to stern is that these books are a labor of love and passion in a way that you would not expect from the retelling of a decades old giant anime franchise!

Hideaki Anno said in his essay in the first book: “And I sense a certain good grace. He decides to draw Gundam--well known to the masses as a premier franchise of the plastic model and anime industries--not from weariness, not as expiation, nor to return to his roots, but in earnest as a work of his own” and I think he’s absolutely correct. There’s a love and attention to every inch of these books that is really inspiring to behold whether as an artist or in whatever you do to fill out your days--seeing something, anything, done by a master, with care and concern is a special thing to behold. I mean I don’t know for sure that Yaz actually gives a shit about this book--but that’s what comes across on the page. It comes across that he cares about these lines, about these stories, vividly, and even more surprising, the people whose charge is getting the work out to others, they seem to care just as much, so what you get is a very very special book.

In some ways, these dueling masters, Char and Amuro Ray, also express this concern and care. At one point Char loudly criticizes Amuro Ray for his lack of style. And while Char’s vanity, his secrecy, his romantic rogue ideal is extremely alluring, and any scene he’s in, I’m pretty glued to the page--he’s like Harlock or Queen Emeraldas. We don’t have these kind of artist villains in American comics for some reason. The closest I’ve seen was Ron Wimberly’s Prince of Cats which has characters who besides their bloody monstrous ideas, consider style to be important.

But even with all of that going on with Char, I’m surprisingly drawn to Amuro Ray--who is a character even without watching the original Gundam series(something I’m planning to rectify this winter--trying to finally knock out all the Gundam I’ve put off for years) that you just kind of know even without ever knowing why. He’s a legend. Like Luke Skywalker. Even his name when you say it, you feel like you are speaking the name of a god. But he’s a punk kid who has been dragged into this war against his will, and is desperately trying to balance doing the right thing, and keeping his identity. I love that sometime he just refuses to go out in the Gundam which puts Ltg Bright in these particular binds(Bright might lo key be my favorite character in the series weirdly, for how he kind of morphs through being a snotty prick, to being in over his head, to being someone capable of real genius creativity. I’ve been watching Iron Blooded Orphans which is a Gundam series about child soldiers and is really brutal and depressing, and Orga is kind of like Bright mixed with Char.) His mercurial nature speaks to the nature of his art versus Char. Amuro Ray belongs to the fickleness of inspiration, so because of that he’s not really reliable, but when he shows up he’s capable of things Char isn’t, moments of improvisation and grouchy genius that are the linchpins of the romantic appeal of the series.

Versions of this character archetype I feel usually are supposed to be incompetent or dumb to those around them, but their conviction carries them, they have the most will--but in Amuro Ray’s case, he’s just an asshole. The despair of it all, which is never lost on Amuro is that whether he does something, or doesn’t do something, people are going to die and it’s going to hurt. And knowing that, that in the end horror is inescapable, and that death is undefeated--like what do you do? How do you function? What do you choose when there are no good choices? Char is a little different, because his aim is revenge. Which that side of Char that he hides behind his rogue’s grin, and devilish acts is really stunning when it first comes out in these early books. He’s so careful to let that out, and when it does, you’re like “oh man, Char isn’t playing the same game the rest of you are”. Agh. It’s soo good. Comics like these keep the fires going. There’s an infinity of them out there to be sure, but nothing makes me happier than a truly great comic. Those comics that years after you remember the experience of reading them, where you were, what music was playing. A great comic is a great lover. It won’t last forever, though there’s a LOT of this book still for me to read--and I get in this mode where I both want to just inhale the whole comic as fast possible, and I don’t want this experience to end. This is that sort of thing. Which should be evident, since I bothered to write about it, haha. I could never just review comics. I’m like Amuro Ray with comics criticism, I need the right situation to be compelled to climb in and do it. I don’t fundamentally love writing comics criticism--but when I experience something great, I have to talk about it and write about it. Comics like these affirm everything about being involved with comics for me. Check it out, see if you feel the same way.

If you liked this essay, and want to see more like it, subscribe to Sarah Horrocks’s Patreon. For as little as a dollar a month you can help a comic topic in need get the coverage it deserves.

#My Writing #Sarah Horrocks #Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin

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vignaniasacademy · 4 years

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08-05-2020 Current affairs & Daily News Analysis

Vande Bharat Mission: Students and migrant workers account for 64% of qualified registrations In one of the largest evacuation exercises named Vande Bharat Mission, the government will operate 64 flights between 7th and 13th of May to bring home nearly 14,800 Indian nationals stranded abroad due to the Corona virus lockdown.

About: The 64 flights which will be operated include ten flights from UAE, seven each from Bangladesh, Malaysia, United Kingdom and United States, five each from Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Philippines and Kuwait along with two each from Qatar, Bahrain and Oman. Out of the total, fifteen flights will bring back people to Kerala followed by eleven flights to Tamil Nadu and Delhi. Seven flights will be flying back people to Maharashtra and Telangana whereas five flights are slated for Gujarat. Source : All India Radio ( International ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from IAS Study Circle in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy THE RESISTANCE FRONT (TRF) A little-known outfit, The Resistance Front (TRF), had claimed responsibility for the April 5 attack on the security forces along the Line of Control in the Kupwara sector, where five Army personnel were killed. TRF is becoming the new face of Kashmir terror.

View of Indian Security forces: The Resistance Front (TRF) is a front organization of the Pakistan-backed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). It was promoted by Pakistan and created in August 2019 following the withdrawal of Article 370. All attacks carried out by the Pakistan-backed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) are being pinned on the newly formed “seasonal” group in the Kashmir Valley in order to escape scrutiny by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and avoid further sanctions. The global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog is to review Pakistan’s performance in acting against terror funding at its next meeting in Beijing in June. Pakistan wants to project Kashmiri terrorism as a resistance movement by Kashmiris. So far Hizbul and LeT have come under TRF’s umbrella. Source : The Hindu ( Defence & Security ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from IAS Study Circle in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy Visakhapatnam gas leak: What is styrene gas? A gas leak has claimed at least eight lives and affected thousands of residents in Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. The source of the leak was a styrene plant owned by South Korean electronics giant LG, located at RRV Puram near Gopalapatnam, about 15 kms from the coast city.

About: Styrene is a flammable liquid that is used in the manufacturing of polystyrene plastics, fiberglass, rubber, and latex. Styrene is also found in vehicle exhaust, cigarette smoke, and in natural foods like fruits and vegetables. Short-term exposure to styrene can result in respiratory problems, irritation in the eyes, irritation in the mucous membrane, and gastrointestinal issues. Long-term exposure could drastically affect the central nervous system and lead to other related problems like peripheral neuropathy. It could also lead to cancer and depression in some cases. Symptoms include headache, hearing loss, fatigue, weakness, difficulty in concentrating etc. Source : Indian Express ( Science & Technology ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from IAS Study Circle in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy What is African Swine Fever reported in India for the first time? Since February 2020, over 2,900 pigs have died in the Assam due to African Swine Fever (ASF). This is the first time that an ASF outbreak has been reported in India.

About: What is it? African swine fever is a highly infectious viral disease that affects pigs, warthogs, bush pigs, European wild boar and American wild pigs. Cause: It is caused by African swine fever virus, member of the Asfarviridae family. Transmission: Transmission can occur either directly contact of sick and healthy animals, and indirectly through contaminated feed, or on contaminated clothing, vehicles or as other fomites. Geographical Distribution: ASF is present in wild and/or domestic pigs in regions of Asia, Europe and Africa. ASF Virus is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa. It has been seen in South America and the Caribbean but has been eradicated. Symptoms: The infected animals get high haemorrhagic fever, lose of appetite, diarrhoea, reddening of the skin at extremities, chest and abdomen and die in 2-10 days. Prevention: There is no effective vaccine to protect pigs from the virus. No vaccine exists and culling (Slaughtering) is often the only effective way. Impact on Humans: Unlike the H1N1 virus that causes swine flu, the ASF virus doesn’t infect humans. Important Info : African Swine Fever (ASF) vs Swine Flu? Swine influenza or swine flu is a respiratory disease of pigs, which is caused by type A influenza virus that regularly causes outbreaks of influenza in pig populations.While the swine flu causing virus leads to a high number of infections in pig herds, the disease is not as fatal and causes few deaths.Specific swine influenza vaccines are available for pigs.Further, while swine flu viruses don’t typically infect humans, cases have been reported in the past, most commonly when humans have contact with infected pigs. Source : Indian Express ( Health ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from IAS Study Circle in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy IIT-Delhi startup launches reusable antimicrobial mask NSafe An IIT Delhi startup ‘Nanosafe Solutions’ has launched an antimicrobial and washable face mask ‘NSafe’, which is reusable up to 50 launderings, thus greatly cutting down the cost of use.

About: NSafe mask has 99.2% bacterial filtration efficiency (at 3 microns) and complies with ASTM standards of breathability and splash resistance. It is believed to be the first fabric based antimicrobial face mask launched in India. NSafe mask enhances protection to the wearer through three different mechanisms: mechanical filtration, antimicrobial decontamination and repulsion of aerosol droplets. Source : Times of India ( Health ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from IAS Study Circle in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy R.K.Singh releases 'Impact of energy efficiency measures 2018-19' report The Union Minister of Power released a Report on “Impact of energy efficiency measures for the year 2018-19.”

About: With energy efficiency initiatives, India has already reduced the energy intensity of economy by 20% compared to 2005 levels. In COP-21, India pledged to bring down energy intensity of economy by 33 to 35% compared to 2005 levels by 2030. Implementation of various energy efficiency schemes have led to total electricity savings to the tune of 113.16 Billion Units in 2018-19, which is 9.39% of the net electricity consumption. The total energy savings achieved in 2018-19 is 23.73 Mtoe (million Tonne of Oil Equivalent), which is 2.69% of the total primary energy supply (estimated to be 879.23 Mtoe in India) during 2018-19. This includes both Supply Side and Demand Side sectors of the economy. These efforts have also contributed in reducing 151.74 Million Tonnes of CO2 emissions, whereas last year this number was 108 MTCO2. Source : PIB ( Economy ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from IAS Study Circle in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy NATIONAL LAND MANAGEMENT CORPORATION The task force on National Infrastructure Pipeline has recommended setting up a National Land Management Corporation, which would help in monetising state-owned surplus land assets in a systematic way.

Recommendations: Such a corporation should be set up under Companies Act to function as the facilitator for land monetisation and an asset manager for lands owned by government of India and Central Public Sector Enterprises. A chief executive officer (CEO) and a technical team should be hired at market-linked compensation to carry out land monetisation. Apart from a CEO and technical team, the Corporation should have representation from the Finance Ministry, Department of Public Enterprises, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs as well as independent directors from finance and real estate industry. The Corporation can raise capital from the equity market, based on the value of its leased assets. The panel recommended the Corporation consider development or co-development of land belonging to defence or railways as well. It can also take up co-development of private land parcels adjoining government lands to maximise revenue. Source : Indian Express ( Economy ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from IAS Study Circle in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy

‘Darbar Move’ burdens exchequer: J&K HC

The Jammu and Kashmir High Court asked the Centre and the Union Territory (UT) administration of J&K to take a final call on the continuation of the ‘Darbar Move.’

About: What is it? Darbar move is the name for the bi-annual shift of the secretariat and all other government offices in J&K from Srinagar (state’s summer capital) to Jammu (state’s winter capital). When is it done? The secretariat is located in Srinagar from May to October and in Jammu from November to April. Along with the secretariat, the J&K High Court also moves. Who started the Darbar Move? The practice was startedby Dogra King Maharaja Ranbir Singh in 1872 to escape extreme weather conditions in these places. It was a compulsion in the past because of poor means of transportation and communication. Important Info : Debate: Arguments against Darbar move: The Practice is inconvenient and a waste of time and money. Every year, over 7,000 employees along with thousands of files of the civil secretariat are ferried between Jammu and Srinagar in buses and trucks on the 300-km-long route .The move costs the State over Rs. 40 crore.Arguments in favour of it:Abolishing the “Darbar Move” may increase the feeling of alienation between Jammu (which is predominantly Hindu) and Kashmir (which is predominantly Muslim).J&K is not the only exception to have two capital cities. Recently, Andhra Pradesh has proposed three capital cities. Source : The Hindu ( Polity & Governance ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from IAS Study Circle in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy Some coronavirus patients who should be unconscious from lack of oxygen can appear totally fine. Doctors call it 'silent hypoxia.' Medical practitioners have reported a condition called ‘silent’ or ‘happy’ hypoxia, in which patients have extremely low blood oxygen levels, yet do not show signs of breathlessness. They are now advocating for its early detection as a means to avoid a fatal illness called Covid pneumonia.

About: Hypoxia is a condition wherein there is not enough oxygen available to the blood and body tissues. Hypoxia can either be generalised, affecting the whole body, or local, affecting a region of the body. According to researchers, Covid pneumonia — a serious medical condition found in severe Covid-19 patients — is preceded by ‘silent hypoxia’, a form of oxygen deprivation that is harder to detect than regular hypoxia. In ‘silent’ or ‘happy’ hypoxia, patients appear to be less in distress. Many Covid-19 patients, despite having oxygen levels below 80 per cent, look fairly at ease and alert. This phenomenon has puzzled several medical practitioners. Source : Indian Express ( Health ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from IAS Study Circle in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy RUSSIA-NORTH KOREA RELATIONS Russian President Vladimir Putin has awarded Kim Jong-un a commemorative war medal marking the 75th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany. The medal was awarded to Mr. Kim for his role in preserving the memory of Soviet soldiers who died on North Korean territory.

Background: Soviet troops helped drive Japanese forces out of the Korean peninsula in the final stages of WWII. The Soviet Union also played the main role in installing Kim Jong Un's grandfather, Kim Il Sung, as the first leader of the nascent Communist state in 1948. Alongside China, it supported North Korea during the 1950s Korean War, which never officially ended despite the 1953 armistice. Important Info : The ceremony came days after Kim ended mounting speculation over his health when North Korean media published photos of him smiling at a ribbon-cutting ceremony at a fertiliser plant.His re-emergence came as a blow to the credibility of some high-profile defectors from the North who had speculated he was suffering from a grave illness or could even be dead. Source : The Hindu ( International ) Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from IAS Study Circle in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy Read UPSC Current affairs and Daily News Analysis from Top IAS Academy in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy Daily Current affairs and News Analysis Best IAS Coaching institutes in Bangalore Vignan IAS Academy Contact Vignan IAS Academy Enroll For IAS Foundation Course from Best IFS Academy in Bangalore Read the full article

#BestIASAcademyinBangalore #bestupsccoachinginbangalore #topiascoachinginbangalore #TopIASAcademyinBangalore

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lollipoplollipopoh · 6 years

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🛢️ Qatar's break-up with OPEC | Counting the Cost by Al Jazeera English After nearly six decades of membership, Qatar, the world's largest supplier of liquefied natural gas is leaving the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The Gulf state is the first Middle East nation to quit the oil cartel, saying it wants to concentrate on gas production and that the move is not political. Qatar's decision comes at a time when questions are being raised about who's really setting global oil policy. There's a feeling that non-OPEC countries Russia and the United States are calling the shots. Non-OPEC's power over oil markets was made very clear when OPEC oil ministers met in Vienna this week. That meeting was all about lobbying Russia to agree to any production targets. Oil heavyweight Russia isn't even a member of the cartel but it has been co-operating on production as part of the OPEC plus group. Meanwhile, oil producers have been hit by a 30 percent plunge in crude prices since October. As Iran sanctions haven't taken as much oil off the market as expected, oversupply fears are back with a vengeance. The US is now the world's biggest crude producer and is pumping at a much better than expected rate. Fears that Qatar's pullout may encourage other countries to leave OPEC are unfounded, according to Johannes Benigni, chairman of JBC Energy Group. "It's very difficult to understand the rationale for countries to be either in or not in the organisation. Of course there's a concentration of power for bigger players, they have something to say and their decisions of a huge impact." "Overall, there may be many reasons [to be part of OPEC], whether it's influencing the price of oil, whether it's influencing the supply, whether it's influencing the political landscape in your domestic home country or just to have access to research." As with OPEC's reaching out to non-OPEC countries, Benigni says that OPEC realised it cannot control the world's oil policy alone, "so they have lobbied a wider group, OPEC plus, and Russia's playing an intrumental role. Of course those countries have a big say and they can remove volume in the market, but what we've seen is when the price is high enough, you see a lot of response from the US. The US shale supply right now is probably the most pressing issue." COP 24 and the cost of coal UN Climate talks, known as COP 24, got underway this week in the coal mining town of Katowice, Poland. Its chosen location, right on top of Europe's biggest reserves of the fuel, wasn't an accident. Delegates have to breathe polluted air as they made their way to the venue. Their task is to create the rules to change the world's energy supply and save the planet. Naturalist David Attenborough had this to say when he addressed the opening session on behalf of the world's people: "Right now, we are facing a man-made disaster of global scale, our greatest threat in thousands of years - climate change. If we don't take action, the collapse of our civilisations and the extinction of much of the natural world is on the horizon." The conference is supposed to signpost the death of coal. Globally, coal use accounts for 40 percent of Co2 emissions, so why is the coal industry still very much alive? And who will pay for saving the planet? Also on this episode of Counting the Cost: France's 'yellow vests' protests: The French government has backed down on a planned diesel tax hike after the worst riots in central Paris for 50 years. The so-called yellow vests movement began as a group of unhappy motorists, but has grown into a nation-wide revolt against what is viewed as an unfair tax system and an out-of-touch president, as David Chater reports from Paris. Veronique Nguyen, of HEC Paris, told Al Jazeera's Adrian Finighan that the French government's concession comes "too late and it is too small of a concession. If it had been done three weeks earlier, they would've been able to diffuse the protests, but now the balance of power is in favour of the streets." "The government seems to have lost control, the police seems to be overwhelmed, and the people that make up the bulk of French society, the silent majority, they're starting to realise that they have a lot of power, they have a lot of clout and they can influence the decisions. So all of their frustrations that have been simmering for years, have now been unleashed in the public space," says Nguyen. Trade wars and the Huawei affair: Meng Wanzhou, a top Chinese telecommunications executive facing possible extradition to the US, has appeared in court as she sought bail in a case that has rattled markets and raised doubts about a fragile trade war truce between Washington and Beijing. - Subscribe to our channel: https://ift.tt/291RaQr - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://ift.tt/1iHo6G4 - Check our website: https://ift.tt/2lOp4tL

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khalilhumam · 4 years

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Al Jazeera, Malaysiakini, and Code Blue news websites probed for critical reporting in Malaysia

New Post has been published on http://khalilhumam.com/al-jazeera-malaysiakini-and-code-blue-news-websites-probed-for-critical-reporting-in-malaysia/

Al Jazeera, Malaysiakini, and Code Blue news websites probed for critical reporting in Malaysia

Civil society has issued a robust response to the crackdown

Collage from the news websites of Al Jazeera, Malaysiakini, and Code Blue, plus the cover of a banned book in Malaysia.

News groups, editors, and journalists continue to face charges and investigations in Malaysia for fulfilling their duty to inform. On June 12, Global Voices reported how Malaysia’s new government, which only came to power in March 2019, has already initiated cases against several journalists, bloggers, civil society leaders, opposition politicians, and other critics of Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin. Since then, there has been a surge cases filed against critical journalists. Here are some of the major cases in the past month:

Al Jazeera faces probe over documentary

Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera released on July 3 a documentary that tackled Malaysia’s alleged crackdown on undocumented migrants and refugees during the COVID-19 pandemic. Malaysian officials quickly condemned the report as false and malicious, and insisted that migrants were treated well in detention centers. The immigration office also published in response the personal information of a Bangladeshi worker who was interviewed in the documentary. Al Jazeera is now under investigation under section 500 of the Penal Code, section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) as well as section 4(1) of the Sedition Act. Zaid Malek, coordinator for Lawyers for Liberty, saw nothing illegal in the content of the documentary:

…there is nothing there that warrants any criminal investigation by the authorities. Nothing highlighted in the documentary is in fact new; it merely echoes criticisms already brought forth by various NGOs If there truly was anything that was misreported, the government could simply release their own statements to refute any inaccuracies.

A total of 35 civil society groups and 17 individuals have signed a statement expressing support for Al Jazeera. They also criticized officials for exposing the Bangladeshi worker to potential harm:

The government should not be complicit in human rights abuses against migrant workers, such as doxxing and threats, by promoting hatred or discrimination in their messaging.

Contempt charges for Malaysiakini over comments by readers

News website Malaysiakini and its editor-in-chief Steven Gan face contempt of court proceedings based on a case filed by Attorney-General Idrus Harun over comments left on the website by readers. Idrus claimed that five comments in the Malaysiakini article titled ‘CJ (Chief Justice) orders all courts to be fully operational from July 1′ accused the judiciary of corruption. Idrus said these comments “threaten public confidence in the judiciary and are clearly aimed at tarnishing the administration of justice by the judiciary.” Gan said Malaysiakini already removed the “contemptuous” comments:

We have removed the allegedly contemptuous comments from our website not long after the news report on the reopening of the courts was uploaded.

Malaysiakini filed a court petition to set aside the case but this was dismissed. The contempt hearing is now scheduled for July 13. Human rights group Suara Rakyat Malaysia warned about the impact of the ruling on the work of other news organizations:

…the finding of the Federal Court thus far would undoubtedly have a chilling effect on free speech as a media organization may be liable for commentaries by its readers. …the finding of the court suggests that individuals can conduct organized posting of contemptuous material on any moderated media website or social media comment sections to incriminate the said platform.

Police investigating Code Blue editor over hospital fire report

In March 2020, health news website CodeBlue published four articles highlighting the declassified findings of an independent inquiry into a 2016 fire at the Hospital Sultanah Aminah (HSA) which claimed the lives of six patients. This triggered a police investigation for possible violation of Section 203A of the Penal Code which criminalizes the disclosure of information. The Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism issued a statement deploring the police action:

The act of writing about and disclosing the findings related to the fire was done to safeguard public interest and therefore should be protected and not be treated as a crime.

CodeBlue editor Boo Su-Lyn asserts that the case has broader repercussions:

Cops took my phone. It was a rather gruelling session, but I managed to stick to my ethos. This case isn't about me; it's about upholding transparency and accountability in governance. Health care providers must uphold patient safety. Learn from the fatal HSA fire; don't hide it. — Boo Su-Lyn (@boosulyn) June 26, 2020

Journalist Tashny Sukumaran summoned over a book contribution

Tashny Sukumaran, a correspondent of Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post, tweeted that she was summoned to give her statement to the police about the book ‘Rebirth: Reformasi, Resistance And Hope in New Malaysia’.

I have been called to Bukit Aman this Friday so the police can take my statement regarding the banned book Rebirth: Reformasi, Resistance and Hope in New Malaysia. A lawyer will be accompanying me. — Tashny Sukumaran (@tashny) July 8, 2020

Released earlier this year, the book features commentaries about the 2018 election which toppled the party that ruled the country since the 1950s. Malaysia’s new prime minister said he is willing to work with the leaders of the former ruling party. Tashny Sukumaran contributed an article in the book. The book suddenly became controversial and was eventually banned by the new government after complaints were filed against its cover, which allegedly disrespected the national coat of arms. Artists and activists said the book cover is based on a work of art that has been featured in art galleries since 2014. In a Twitter thread on the summons, Sukumaran castigated the government for harassing critics instead of focusing on addressing the COVID-19 crisis:

In the face of a global pandemic and a looming recession, it is absolutely unconscionable and irresponsible that such undue focus be placed on harassing and intimidating media personnel, activists and migrants. The government of the day should be working to earn the confidence and trust of voters, particularly given how it came to power this March. Creating a culture of fear and wielding state apparatus in a repressive manner to silence citizens is not the way to do this. Obviously.

As cases continue to pile up against dissenters and journalists, civil society groups have reiterated their demand to the government:

Enact a right to information law and repeal or amend repressive laws such as the Printing Presses and Publications Act, the Official Secrets Act, the Sedition Act and Section 233 of the CMA, so that these laws are not utilised arbitrarily to stifle all manner of speech.

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brajeshupadhyay · 4 years

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00:01 (IST) Coronavirus in Spain Latest Updates Spain allows visitors to fly to Balearic Islands Spain put its tourism industry to the test Monday by allowing thousands of Germans to fly to its Balearic Islands without a 14-day quarantine. Officials said the pilot program will help authorities gauge what’s needed to guard against possible virus flare-ups. Martin Hofman was delighted to board a flight from Dusseldorf to the island of Mallorca because he said his vacation couldn’t be postponed. “To stay in Germany was not an option for us,” Hofman said. “We are totally happy that we can get out.” (AP) 23:43 (IST) Coronavirus in Telangana Latest Updates 3 TRS MLAs have tested COVID-19 positive so far Three TRS (Telangana Rashtra Samithi) MLAs in Telangana have tested positive for COVID19, till now, ANI reported. Their contacts are being identified and tests will be conducted accordingly, the state health department was quoted as saying. 23:34 (IST) Coronavirus in Gujarat Latest Updates 514 new COVID-19 cases in Gujarat today Gujarat health department said that 514 new cases of coronavirus were reported in the state on Monday, taking the total number of cases to 24,104, while the toll rose to 1,506 as 28 patients succumbed to the infection. 23:25 (IST) Coronavirus in Europe Latest Updates Europe reopens, Beijing outbreak revives need for vigilance European countries reopened borders Monday after a three-month coronavirus shutdown, although international visitors are still being kept away and there was uncertainty over whether many Europeans will quickly embrace travel outside their home countries. The virus is far from being wiped out, and the need for constant vigilance came into sharp focus again as China, where COVID-19 first emerged last year, rushed to contain an outbreak in the capital of Beijing. Germany and France dropped border checks nearly two weeks after Italy opened its frontiers. Greece welcomed visitors Monday with passengers on flights from other European countries not having to undergo compulsory coronavirus tests. The European Union’s 27 nations and a number of other European states aren’t expected to start reopening to visitors from outside the continent until at least the beginning of July and possibly later. (AP) 23:18 (IST) Coronavirus in Telangana Latest Updates Telangana reports 219 new COVID-19 cases today 219 new COVID-19 cases reported in Telangana today, taking the total number of cases in the state to 5,193: State Health Department 23:12 (IST) Coronavirus in US Latest Updates US FDA revokes emergency use for HCQ The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday revoked the emergency use authorisation for malaria drug hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) as a treatment for COVID-19, the use of which has been championed by US President Donald Trump. The FDA said based on new evidence, it was no longer reasonable to believe that oral formulations of hydroxychloroquine and the related drug chloroquine may be effective in treating the respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus. The move comes after several studies of the drug suggested it was not effective, including a widely anticipated trial earlier this month showed it failed to prevent infection in people who have been exposed to the virus. In March, Trump said hydroxychloroquine used in combination with the antibiotic azithromycin had "a real chance to be one of the biggest game changers in the history of medicine", with little evidence to back up that claim. (Reuters) 23:04 (IST) Coronavirus in Bangladesh Latest Updates Bangladesh begins zoning system as COVID-19 cases rise "Bangladesh unveiled a three colour zoning system based on the severity of the COVID-19 cases, as the country reported 38 deaths and 3,099 infections in the last 24 hours. The Cabinet Division order for the first time introduced a zoning system identifying areas as "red, yellow and green"zones based on coronavirus prevalence. It said that offices in particular spots of red zones would remain under general holiday until June 30," News18 reported. 22:50 (IST) Coronavirus in West Bengal Latest Updates 407 new COVID-19 cases in Bengal today The West Bengal health department on Monday said that the COVID-19 toll in the state rose to 485 with 10 more casualties, while 407 new coronavirus cases took total to 11,494. 22:40 (IST) Coronavirus in Jharkhand Latest Updates 30 new COVID-19 cases in Jharkhand today 30 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Jharkhand on Monday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 1793 including 784 active cases and 1000 recovered, the state health department said. 22:29 (IST) Coronavirus in Maharashtra Latest Updates COVID-19 containment zones in Mumbai are 828 The BMC said that the total number of containment zones in Mumbai stands at 828. 22:21 (IST) Coronavirus in Maharashtra Latest Updates 178 COVID-19 deaths in Maharashtra today The highest single-day spike of 178 deaths was reported in Maharashtra on Monday, along with 2,786 new coroavirus cases. Total number of cases in the state is now at 1,10,744, including 56,049 discharged and 4,128 deaths. 22:08 (IST) Coronavirus in Nepal Latest Updates 500 students protest against Nepal govt's COVID-19 response Around 500 students in Kathmandu held a protest against corruption and the government's handling of COVID-19 pandemic on Monday, ANI reported. Nepal: Around 500 students in Kathmandu held a protest against corruption and the government's handling of COVID19 pandemic, earlier today. pic.twitter.com/EG89vcM0FF — ANI (@ANI) June 15, 2020 22:04 (IST) Coronavirus in Maharashtra Latest Updates 1,066 new COVID-19 cases in Mumbai today The BMC said that 1,066 COVID-19 cases and 58 deaths were reported in Mumbai on Monday. Total number of cases in the city is now at 59,201, including 30,125 recovered/discharged, 26828 active patients and 2,248 deaths. 21:54 (IST) Coronavirus in India Latest Updates Centre appoints nodal officers to distribute COVID-19 facilities to districts The Union health ministry on Monday appointed nodal officers to disseminate district-wise details of COVID-19 facilities in states, PTI reported. 21:50 (IST) Coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh Latest Updates 76 new COVID-19 cases in Gautam Buddh Nagar Reports said that 76 people tested positive for COVID-19 in Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar, taking the total number of cases in the district to 1,011, officials said. The district, adjoining Delhi, has recorded 12 deaths so far, while the number of active patients stood at 489, the officials said. 21:44 (IST) Coronavirus in US Latest Updates FDA revokes emergency authorisation of HCQ The US' Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday revoked the emergency authorisation of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, saying they are “unlikely to be effective”, The New York Times reported. 21:40 (IST) Coronavirus in Madhya Pradesh Latest Updates 133 new COVID-19 cases in MP today The Madhya Pradesh health department said that 133 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the state on Monday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 10,935. 21:34 (IST) Coronavirus in India Latest Updates DGCA says gave permission to 870 flights to ferry 2 lakh passengers internationally The DGCA on Monday said that in addition to facilitating the Vande Bharat Mission, it also granted permission to around 870 chartered flights, transporting around 2 lakh passengers, both inbound and outbound. "Several airlines helped in the humanitarian mission of taking stranded people to their destinations," the statement said. "Major airlines including Qatar Airways-81, KLM Dutch-68, Kuwait Air-41, British Airways-39, FlyDubai-38, Air France-32, Jazeera-30, Air Arabia-20, Gulf Air-19, Sri Lankan-19, Biman Bangladesh-15, Korean Air-14, Delta-13, Saudia-13 and Air Nippon-12 took part in the operations. "Additionally, airlines like Air New Zealand-12, Thai Air Asia-11, United Airlines-11, Iraqi Airways-11, Oman Air-10, Ural Airlines-9, Lufthansa-8, Somon Air-8, Condour-8, Emirates-5, Etihad-5, Aeroflot-4 & Virgin Atlantic-4 also took part in the chartered operations," the statement added. 21:24 (IST) Coronavirus in Karnataka Latest Updates Karnataka govt allows shooting of TV shows, films The Karnataka government on Monday allowed the shooting of and production of films and television programmes in the state, News18 reported. "In a clarification, Principal Secretary Revenue N Manjunath Prasad said, shooting and production of all films and television programmes that were stopped in between due to lockdown can be allowed," the report said. 21:10 (IST) Coronavirus in Delhi Latest Updates Delhi reports 1,647 new COVID-19 cases The Delhi health department said that 73 deaths and 1,647 new cases were reported in the National Capital on Monday, taking the total number of cases to 42,829, toll to 1400. 21:01 (IST) Coronavirus in Uttarakhand Latest Updates Uttarakhand allocates Rs 110 crore to each district for migrant workers' welfare The Uttarakhand government on Monday allocated Rs 110 crore to each district to aid in the self-employment of migrant workers in the state, News18 reported. 20:51 (IST) Coronavirus in Maharashtra Latest Updates Recovery rate in Maharashtra stands at 47.2%, says govt Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said that 5,071 coronavirus patients were discharged, taking the recovery rate in the state to 47.2 percent. He was quoted by India Today as saying, "So far, 56,049 patients have recovered." 20:44 (IST) Coronavirus in India Latest Updates 156 Indians flown back from Sri Lanka today Around 156 Indians stranded in Sri Lanka were flown back on Monday under the third phase of Vande Bharat Mission, PTI reported. Over 1,000 Indians have been repatriated from Sri Lanka so far in various flights and the Indian Navy Ship INS Jalashwa since the first phase of the evacuation mission was launched on 7 May, the report said. 20:41 (IST) Coronavirus in Maharashtra Latest Updates 227 Maharashtra Police cops test COVID-19 positive in 72 hours 227 police personnel tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 72 hours in Maharashtra, a government bulletin said. The total number of active cases among police personnel in the state is now at 1388, including 40 deaths. 20:25 (IST) Coronavirus in Delhi Latest Updates Amit Shah says held 'comprehensive discussion' with LNJP hospital officials Visited LNJP Hospital in Delhi and held comprehensive discussion with the doctors and officials on the COVID-19 situation. Also reviewed hospital's preparedness. I thank and salute all Corona warriors who are serving the country round the clock in these difficult times. pic.twitter.com/oMkqNSHwNZ — Amit Shah (@AmitShah) June 15, 2020 20:20 (IST) Coronavirus in Maharashtra Latest Updates People travelling to Karnataka from Maharashtra to be in quarantine for 7 days The Karnataka government said that people arriving in the state from Maharashtra will be placed in seven-day institutional quarantine followed by seven-day home quarantine. "People coming from Delhi and Tamil Nadu to be placed under three-day institutional quarantine and a further 11-day home quarantine. People coming from states other than Maharashtra, Delhi and Tamil Nadu to be placed under 14-day home quarantine," the statement added. 20:13 (IST) Coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh Latest Updates IITR Lucknow develops disinfection machine for PPE kits The Indian Institute of Toxicology Research with Major Technology in Lucknow, a startup, developed a disinfection machine for N95 masks and PPE kits, ANI reported. "It has been successfully tested in AIIMS Jodhpur and SGPGI. With this, N95 masks and PPE kits will be reusable and economically viable," the reported quoted the IITR director as saying. Lucknow: Indian Institute of Toxicology Research with Major Technology, a startup develops disinfection machine for N95 masks&PPE kits. "It has been successfully tested in AIIMS Jodhpur&SGPGI. With this, N95 masks&PPE kits will be reusable&economically viable,"says IITR Director. pic.twitter.com/LZb8MLMO9w — ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) June 15, 2020 20:08 (IST) Coronavirus in Manipur Latest Updates 32 new COVID-19 cases in Manipur The Manipur health department said that 32 more COVID-19 cases were reported in the state on Monday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 490. Number of active cases stands at 339. 19:54 (IST) Coronavirus in India Latest Updates MoHFW issues guidelines on use of Railway isolation coaches The Ministry of Family and Health Welfare on Monday released 'Guidance Document on appropriate management of suspect/confirmed cases of COVID-19-Railway Coaches-COVlD-19 care centers'. Ministry of Family and Health Welfare has released 'Guidance Document on appropriate management of suspect/confirmed cases of #COVID19- #Railway Coaches-COVlD care centers'. pic.twitter.com/MSUm582qgX — ANI (@ANI) June 15, 2020 19:47 (IST) Coronavirus in Maharashtra Latest Updates Centre allows Maharashtra govt to operate 100 flights per day, says report The Ministry of Civil Aviation on Monday allowed the Maharashtra government to operate 100 flights per day, The Indian Express reported. The report added that Maharashtra government had been allowed only 50 flights (25 arrivals and 25 departures) daily initially. 19:39 (IST) Coronavirus in Madhya Pradesh Latest Updates Man fined Rs 2,000 for not wearing mask in Indore, says report A groom was fined Rs 2,000 in Madhya Pradesh's Indore for not wearing a mask, News18 reported. The report said that he sat in a vehicle with "12 others who were part of his marriage party, none of them wearing masks". "Indore Municipal Corporation Health Officer Vivek Gangrade said Dharmendra Nirale was fined while department officials were on a routine round to see if social distancing norms were being followed in view of the outbreak," the report said. 19:29 (IST) Coronavirus in Tamil Nadu Latest Updates 1,843 new COVID-19 cases in Tamil Nadu today The Tamil Nadu health ministry said that 1,843 coronavirus cases and 44 deaths were reported in the state on Monday. Total number of cases in the state is now at 46,504, including 25,344 discharged, 20,678 active cases and 479 deaths. 19:13 (IST) Coronavirus in Delhi Latest Updates Delhi banquet halls converted to quarantine facilities Two banquet halls in Peeragarhi have been turned into quarantine facilities by the government in view of rise in COVID-19 cases. Delhi: Two banquet halls in Peeragarhi have been turned into quarantine facilities by the government in view of rise in #COVID19 cases. pic.twitter.com/98LRWNbJid — ANI (@ANI) June 15, 2020 19:06 (IST) Coronavirus in Delhi Latest Updates Amit Shah tells Delhi govt to install CCTV cameras in COVID-19 wards of all hospitals The MHA said that Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday directed Delhi chief secretary to install CCTV cameras in COVID-19 wards of every COVID-19 hospital in the National Capital, "so that there is proper monitoring and problems of patients can also be resolved". "He also directed the Delhi chief secretary to establish back-ups for canteens supplying food, in case there is an infection in one canteen, patients can continue to get food without disruption. He also said that psycho-social counselling of doctors and nurses engaged in the treatment of COVID-19 patients should be done. This will ensure that not only are they physically but also psychologically fit to fight the pandemic," the statement added. 18:57 (IST) Coronavirus in Karnataka Latest Updates Karnataka may ask private hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients Karnataka medical education minister Dr K Sudhakar said that that the state government will make a decision on "roping in private hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients". He added that the cost of testing and treatment will be fixed by the government. 18:51 (IST) Coronavirus in Karnataka Latest Updates 213 new COVID-19 cases in Karnataka Karnataka on Monday reported 213 new coronavirus cases and two deaths, reports said. 18:50 (IST) Coronavirus in Karnataka Latest Updates BS Yediyurappa says people from Chennai, Delhi to be in quarantine for 3 days Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa on Monday said that people coming to the state from Chennai and Delhi will be put under institutional quarantine for three days and home quarantine for 11 days. 18:40 (IST) Coronavirus in Delhi Latest Updates Delhi govt panel says increase mortuary capacity in city hospitals Increase mortuary capacity in Delhi hospitals, install refrigerated containers to store bodies, on Monday said a Delhi government panel on the COVID-19 situation in the National Capital. 18:26 (IST) Coronavirus in Kerala Latest Updates Kerala reports 82 new COVID-19 cases The Kerala government said that 82 people tested COVID-19 in the state on Monday. There are 1,348 active cases and 1174 recovered cases in the state. 18:20 (IST) Coronavirus in India Latest Updates Railway says most migrant workers sent back home Railway Board Chairman Vinod Kumar Yadav on Monday said that "most" migrant workers have reached their home destinations. "We continue to coordinate with the state governments to send back remaining migrant workers," he added. 18:12 (IST) Coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh Latest Updates 476 new COVID-19 cases in UP today The Uttar Pradesh health department on Monday said that 476 fresh cases of coronavirus and 18 deaths were recorded in the state, taking total number of cases to 14091 and toll to 417. Number of active cases stands at 5,064. 18:02 (IST) Coronavirus in India Latest Updates Number of COVID-19 testing labs rises to 901, says Centre The Centre said that the number of government labs for COVID-19 testing has been increased to 653 and private labs increased to 248 (a total of 901). 17:49 (IST) Coronavirus in India Latest Updates Centre claims 'more than half' of total COVID-19 patients have recovered The Centre said that in the last 24 hours, 7,419 COVID-19 patients have recovered, which takes the total number of recovered patients to 1,69,797 patients so far. While the total number of cases according to the Centre's 8 am update is 3,32,424, the statement added, "The recovery rate rises to 51.08 percent which is indicative of the fact that more than half of positive cases have recovered from the disease." 17:36 (IST) Coronavirus in India Latest Updates Railways says 4,450 Shramik Special trains operated so far The Railways on Monday said that 4,450 Shramik trains have been run so far. Railways said that 250 trains were run till 26 May on an average and that on 3 June, 171 trains were asked for by state governments. 17:17 (IST) Coronavirus in Maharashtra Latest Updates Maharashtra govt says schools to start online classes today, no SOPs issued The Maharashtra CMO on Monday said that Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray "has agreed upon starting the academic year for students through digital and online platforms on a pilot project basis". "The decision was taken in a video conference meeting with the state education minister. He has also agreed upon reopening schools in areas away from the cities that are COVID-19 free after taking adequate precautionary measures," the statement added. However, no guidelines were issued by the government so far. He has also agreed upon reopening schools in areas away from the cities that are COVID-19 free after taking adequate precautionary measures.#MissionBeginAgain — CMO Maharashtra (@CMOMaharashtra) June 15, 2020 17:13 (IST) Coronavirus in Pakistan Latest Updates Pakistan's Punjab becomes first province with 1,000 COVID-19 deaths Pakistan's Punjab has become the country's first province to record over 1,000 coronavirus deaths after 62 more people succumbed to the novel coronavirus-19 on Monday. According to the national database for the coronavirus, Punjab reported 1,537 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, taking the provincial tally to 53,721. (PTI) 17:11 (IST) Coronavirus in Maharashtra Latest Updates 25 new COVID-19 cases in Dharavi today The BMC said that 25 fresh cases of coronavirus were recorded in Mumbai's Dharavi on Monday, taking the total number of cases to 2,068. A total of 77 people have succumbed to the disease in the area so far. 16:58 (IST) Coronavirus in Delhi Latest Updates AAP says Delhi govt will conduct 18,000 tests daily from 20 June AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh on Monday attended an all-party meeting on the coronavirus situation in Delhi, which was also attended by Home Minister Amit Shah. After the meeting, Singh said that decision to ''appointment of IAS officers to monitor Central, state and private hospitals'' was also discussed in the all-party meeting. "He confirmed that the Delhi government will start conducting 18,000 COVID-19 tests per day by 20 June," NDTV reported. 16:43 (IST) Coronavirus in Maharashtra Latest Updates Ashish Shelar says Maharashtra govt didn't follow Kerala's example Maharashtra BJP leader Ashish Shelar on Monday blamed the state government's "mismanagement for the rise in COVID-19 cases in the state", News18 reported. He was quoted by the report as saying, "The situation would have been different and far better if the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government had followed the steps implemented by Kerala to contain the novel oronavirus outbreak." 16:39 (IST) Coronavirus in Karnataka Latest Updates KSRTC likely to begin inter-state operations The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is likely to start inter-state operations "in a phased manner with services to Andhra Pradesh from 17 June", News18 reported. "The transport corporation said it would run the buses without air-conditioners in view of the COVID-19 spread," the report said. Coronavirus Outbreak LATEST Updates: The MHA said that Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday directed Delhi chief secretary to install CCTV cameras in COVID-19 wards of every COVID-19 hospital in the National Capital, "so that there is proper monitoring and problems of patients can also be resolved". "He also directed the Delhi chief secretary to establish back-ups for canteens supplying food, in case there is an infection in one canteen, patients can continue to get food without disruption. He also said that psycho-social counselling of doctors and nurses engaged in the treatment of COVID-19 patients should be done. This will ensure that not only are they physically but also psychologically fit to fight the pandemic," the statement added. Karnataka medical education minister Dr K Sudhakar said that that the state government will make a decision on "roping in private hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients". He added that the cost of testing and treatment will be fixed by the government. The Centre said that in the last 24 hours, 7,419 COVID-19 patients have recovered, which takes the total number of recovered patients to 1,69,797 patients so far. While the total number of cases according to the Centre's 8 am update is 3,32,424, the statement added, "The recovery rate rises to 51.08 percent which is indicative of the fact that more than half of positive cases have recovered from the disease." AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh on Monday attended an all-party meeting on the coronavirus situation in Delhi, which was also attended by Home Minister Amit Shah. After the meeting, Singh said that decision to ''appointment of IAS officers to monitor Central, state and private hospitals'' was also discussed in the all-party meeting. "He confirmed that the Delhi government will start conducting 18,000 COVID-19 tests per day by 20 June," NDTV reported. Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday announced a 'maximized restricted lockdown' from 19 to 30 June in areas of Chennai, Kanchipuram, Chengalpattu and Tiruvallur districts which come under Metropolitan Chennai Police limits. The ruling AIADMK on Monday tweeted that the Tamil Nadu government will impose a "full lockdown" in the Chennai, Thiruvallur, Chengalpet, and Kanchipuram districts of the state from 19 June, in view of the rising cases of coronavirus. The move came after health experts recommend the tightening of lockdown restrictions in Chennai earlier on Monday, in a meeting with Chief Minister Edappadi K Palanisaamy. The Delhi government issues an order to private and government laboratories, asking them to work with their full capacity and increase their coronavirus testing capacity, ANI reports. According to the order, private labs will have to give results within 48 hours. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal says no plans of another lockdown in the National Capital, reports ANI. Home minister Amit Shah assured at an all-party meet that a new testing policy will be implemented to ensure everyone has the right to testing. A proposal has been made to increase the capacities of hospitals run by the Delhi government and Centre by 1,900 and 2,000 beds respectively. The Delhi government will ramp up coronavirus testing and start conducting 18,000 tests per day by 20 June, home minister Amit Shah decided during a meeting he held with leaders of all the political parties in Delhi. 29 new COVID-19 positive cases reported in CRPF, taking the total number of positive cases to 620, of which 189 are active and 427 have recovered. The toll is now at 4, according to Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). An all-party meeting called by Home Minister Amit Shah begins. Shah had called a meeting of all political parties of Delhi to discuss the COVID-19 situation in the national capital amid a recent spurt in coronavirus cases, an official said. The BJP, Congress, AAP and BSP have been invited for the meeting. A total of 1,15,519 samples have been tested in the last 24 hours, says the Indian Council of Medical Research. So far, India has tested 57,74,133 samples. India's COVID-19 recovery rate on Monday crosses 51 percent, improves to 51.08% as on 15 June, 2020. The COVID-19 tally climbed by over 10,000 and breached the 40,000 mark in just six days in Delhi with an average of over 1,600 new cases on a daily basis, a sharp spike from the 79 days it took to reach the 10,000 mark, according to an analysis. It took eight days for the number of cases to rise from 20,000 to 30,000 in Delhi, while it took 13 days for the tally to progress from 10,000 to 20,000. With 1,07,958 confirmed cases of COVID-19 so far, Maharashtra remains the worst-affected state in the country, followed by Tamil Nadu (44,661) and Delhi (41,182). India reports 11,502 new cases and 325 deaths, according to Union health ministry. The total number of cases has now gone up to 3,32,424, and the toll is at 9,520. India is now the fourth most-affected country in the world. Indian Railway has suspended all train services from Monday at Delhi's important Anand Vihar railway station. The decision comes following a decision by the Centre to provide Delhi government with 500 railway coaches, turned into isolation wards, to augment the shortage of beds in view of the rising number of coronavirus cases in the city, reports Prasad Bharati The peak stage of COVID-19 pandemic in India has been delayed by the eight-week lockdown along with strengthened public health measures and it may now arrive around mid-November during which there could be a paucity of isolation and ICU beds, and ventilators, according to a study. The Western and Central Railways have decided to start local train services in Mumbai for essential services staff identified by the state government from Monday. While the Western Railways will run 60 pairs of trains, the Central Railways will operate 100 pairs. Entry at stations will be given only on the basis of ID cards. The general public will not be allowed to travel on these trains India saw its highest single-day spike of 11,929 novel coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, taking the number of infections to over 3.20 lakh on Sunday, while the toll crossed the 9,000 mark with 311 more deaths, the Union Health Ministry said. This is the third day in a row there were more than 10,000 cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in India, which is the fourth worst-hit nation by the pandemic. With 9,195 fatalities till Sunday, India is the ninth worst-hit nation in terms of COVID-19 deaths in the world. According to the Union health ministry data, the country recorded 311 new deaths in the 24-hour period till Sunday morning while the recovery rate rose to above 50 percent with 1,62,378 patients cured so far, leaving 1,49,348 cases active. A total of 8,049 COVID-19 patients have been cured till Sunday 8 am taking the recovery rate to 50.60 percent, the health ministry said. The Johns Hopkins University, which has been compiling COVID-19 data from all over the world, put India in the ninth position in terms of toll and fourth in terms of the total caseload. State-wise cases and deaths As many as 113 out of the 311 deaths in the past 24 hours were from Maharashtra, followed by 57 in Delhi, 33 in Gujarat and 30 in Tamil Nadu. There were 20 more fatalities in Uttar Pradesh, 12 in West Bengal and 10 in Rajasthan. Haryana and Telangana registered eight more coronavirus deaths each, followed by seven in Madhya Pradesh, three in Bihar. Andhra Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Punjab and Uttarakhand reported two deaths each. Of the total 9,195 deaths, Maharashtra tops the tally with 3,830 fatalities, followed 1,448 by Gujarat and 1,271 in Delhi. The toll from the pandemic rose to 463 in West Bengal, 447 in Madhya Pradesh, 397 in Tamil Nadu and 385 in Uttar Pradesh. There have been 282 COVID-19 deaths in Rajasthan and 182 in Telangana. The number of fatalities reached 82 in Andhra Pradesh, 81 in Karnataka, 78 in Haryana and 65 in Punjab. Jammu and Kashmir has reported 55 COVID-19 deaths, followed by 39 in Bihar, 23 in Uttarakhand and 19 in Kerala. Odisha registered 10 deaths so far, followed by eight each in Jharkhand and Assam, and six each in Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh. Five people have succumbed to the contagion in Chandigarh, followed by two in Puducherry, and one each in Meghalaya, Tripura and Ladakh, the ministry said. More than 70 per cent of the deaths have happened due to comorbidities, it added. The maximum number of cases are from Maharashtra with 1,04,568 infections, followed by 42,687 Tamil Nadu, 38,958 in Delhi and 23,038 in Gujarat. The tally rose to 13,118 in Uttar Pradesh, 12,401 in Rajasthan and 10,698 in West Bengal. The number of COVID-19 cases has gone up to 10,641 in Madhya Pradesh, 6,824 in Karnataka, 6,749 in Haryana and 6,290 in Bihar. As many as 5,965 people have contracted the deadly disease in Andhra Pradesh, followed by 4,878 in Jammu and Kashmir, 4,737 in Telangana, 3,723 in Odisha and 3,718 in Assam. There are 3,063 cases in Punjab and 2,407 in Kerala, while 1,785 people have been infected in Uttarakhand and 1,711 in Jharkhand. A total of 1,512 people are afflicted with the disease in Chhattisgarh, followed by 1,046 in Tripura, 523 in Goa and 502 in Himachal Pradesh. The number of coronavirus cases rose to 449 in Manipur, 437 in Ladakh and 345 in Chandigarh. Puducherry has registered 176 COVID-19 cases so far, followed by 163 in Nagaland, 107 in Mizoram and 87 in Arunachal Pradesh. Sikkim has 63 COVID-19 cases, while there are 44 infections in Meghalaya and 38 in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Dadar and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu have registered 35 COVID-19 cases so far. The figures are being reconciled with the Indian Council of Medical Research, the ministry said, adding that 7,436 cases were being reassigned to states. Statewise distribution is subject to further verification and reconciliation, it added. Shah calls for meeting of Delhi political parties tomorrow Union Home Minister Amit Shah has called a meeting of all political parties of Delhi on Monday to discuss the COVID-19 situation in the national capital amid a recent spurt in coronavirus cases, an official said. The BJP, Congress, AAP and BSP have been invited for the meeting. The COVID-19 case tally has reached nearly 39,000 and the virus has claimed more than 1,200 lives in the capital. A home ministry official said Shah will discuss measures for management of COVID-19 with the political parties. On Sunday, the home minister held two high-level meetings with Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, mayors and commissioners of Delhi's three municipal corporations to strengthen the strategy to fight the pandemic. Announcing a slew of measures to check the spread of the virus after the meeting with Baijal and Kejriwal, the Union home minister announced that COVID-19 testing will be doubled in Delhi in the next two days and subsequently increased by three times. Use of Remdesivir advised on 'limited evidence', says health ministry The Union health ministry issued a clarification that the use of Remdesivir under emergency use may be considered in patients with moderate disease (those on oxygen) but with no specified contraindications. "An updated Clinical Management Protocol for COVID-19 has been released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on 13th June, 2020 in which the drug Remdesivir has been included as an “investigational therapy” only for restricted emergency use purposes along with off label use of Tocilizumab and Convalescent Plasma.The statement said the protocol also clearly mentions that the use of these therapies is based on limited available evidence and limited availability at present," it said. The ministry also said that the emergency use of the drug is subject to conditions like written informed consent of each patient, submission of results of additional clinical trials and active surveillance data of all treated patients, risk management plan along with active post marketing surveillance and reporting of serious adverse events also to be submitted. With inputs from PTI

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October 31, 2019 at 06:33AM

In the storied career of America’s most famous mayor, the last five weeks have been quite a chapter. During a shouting match on CNN on Sept. 19, Rudy Giuliani denied and then, 30 seconds later, admitted to playing a central role in President Donald Trump’s efforts to get a foreign country to investigate his top 2020 rival, Joe Biden. Five days later, Giuliani went nuclear on a radio host during a joint TV appearance, shouting, “Shut up, moron, shut up!” as he tried to drown out accusations that he was making things up. Trump’s personal lawyer capped it off on Oct. 16 by pocket–dialing a reporter for NBC News and inadvertently leaving a lengthy message as he talked to an unidentified partner about potentially lucrative business in Turkey and Bahrain.

Some people were worried. Giuliani’s longtime associate Bernard Kerik says he keeps getting asked, “Is he O.K.?” Walter Mack, who ran an organized–crime unit for Giuliani back when they were prosecutors in Manhattan in the 1980s, says he wonders the same. Mack says if he saw him now, “I would talk to him as a friend and a fellow prosecutor, and just be certain he was getting good advice and that he was not losing sight of his own standards and morals.” Kerik, who was Giuliani’s top cop in New York and later served three years in federal prison for tax fraud and other crimes, talks regularly with his old friend. Giuliani, he says, is just “vocal” now that he doesn’t have to worry about “running for office.”

Photograph by Spencer Heyfron—Redux

But it’s a bewildering turn of events for a person who at one point in his career had been among the most admired public figures in the country. Giuliani was always colorful. As mayor, he was a New York archetype come to life: the fast-talking, Bronx-accented wheeler-dealer, complete with mistresses, sharp suits and primo seats at Yankee Stadium. And many loved him for being an iconoclast. He was the law-and-order mayor who cleaned up Times Square, a Republican who believed in gun control and gay rights, a self–described pro-choice Republican as at home at the city’s glimmering galas as at the televised perp walk of a criminal. With exuberant F-you energy, he seemed to embody the city itself. And for the brief post-9/11 moment when Americans were all New Yorkers, the whole country became Giuliani’s constituents too.

His latest brush with history is revealing a darker side, something that suggests not just Giuliani unbound, but untethered from the values he once espoused. And as the House impeachment inquiry accelerates, and witness after witness describes Giuliani as the prime enabler behind what Democrats say are impeachable offenses committed by Trump, Giuliani’s behavior may end up having historic consequences.

So what is going on with him? Interviews with those close to the former mayor, and those who have crossed paths with him in his work for Trump, say Giuliani’s transformation has a simple source: over the past 18 months, he has violated that unwritten rule of American public life that you can pursue money or political power, but not both at once.

There’s nothing particularly exceptional about riding the revolving door from having power to making money and back again, and for years Giuliani has pursued both with relish. After leaving the mayoralty, Giuliani cashed in with book deals; high-priced speaking engagements; and a lucrative, if murky, consulting business that counted Qatar, Purdue Pharma and a range of controversial foreign personalities as top clients. After a brief and failed attempt to get back into power as a candidate for President in 2008, he returned to the money game. By 2018, he was making between $5 million and $10 million a year.

Drew Angerer—Getty ImagesTrump and Giuliani walk out of Trump’s golf club in Bedminster, N.J. on Nov. 20, 2016

What’s different now is that Giuliani is doing both at the same time. In the 18 months since Trump hired him as his personal lawyer in April 2018, Giuliani has become a kind of shadow Secretary of State even as he has maintained his foreign consulting business. He has often been treated as a de facto envoy of the U.S. government while abroad, at the same time receiving lucrative consulting and speaking fees from foreign officials and businessmen.

His quest has been enabled by Trump, who entrusted Giuliani with Cabinet-level influence. When Energy Secretary Rick Perry pushed Trump in May to meet with Ukraine’s new President, for example, Trump told him to “visit with Rudy,” according to an interview Perry gave the Wall Street Journal. And an aide to former National Security Adviser John Bolton told congressional impeachment investigators that Giuliani was running a parallel foreign policy, outside the normal channels of U.S. diplomacy. Meanwhile, as Trump’s cable-news defender and then his personal lawyer, Giuliani remained technically a private citizen, unencumbered by long-standing ethics rules designed to prevent officials from using public service for personal gain.

And gain he did: where the salary of the actual Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, was $210,700 last year, until the past few years Giuliani seemed to enjoy a lavish, approximately $230,000-a-month lifestyle that includes six homes, access to private jets and 11 country-club memberships, according to his recent divorce–court filings published by the New York Times.

Giuliani says there’s nothing wrong with continuing his consulting for foreign clients while at the same time representing the President. “Of course I don’t mix the two things,” he told TIME in a phone interview. He said people pay him as a lawyer and security expert, and because he has “done some remarkable things that nobody else has ever done.” “Everything I’m doing now is similar to what I did in the past,” Giuliani says.

Pat Carroll—New York Daily News Archive/Getty ImagesAs the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, Giuliani oversaw big cases, and took credit for them

His critics say that is exactly the problem. As he jetted around mixing his access to Trump with his personal business, they began asking, Whose interests was he serving? America’s? Trump’s? His own? Much of the work that Giuliani has done remains undisclosed—few know which foreign interests are paying him, how much they’re paying or what exactly they’re getting in return.

But amid the many self-dealing scandals besetting the Trump Administration, Giuliani’s adventures went largely ignored, at first. And he might have happily continued his money power play but for one thing: Ukraine.

Things began going wrong around April, when special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe was drawing to a close. Fighting Mueller had been job one for Giuliani and had brought him closer than ever to the President. Serendipitously, Giuliani now says, he had uncovered another scandal. This one involved a series of conspiracy theories in Ukraine, including a search for dirt on Joe Biden’s son Hunter, who had been paid to sit on the board of a Ukrainian energy company when Biden was Vice President. This new scandal would come to obsess the President as he prepared to run for re-election.

It was while working to substantiate these conspiracy theories that Giuliani appears to have gotten himself into trouble. In August 2018, he had gone into business with two Soviet-born émigrés who have since been arrested on charges that they illegally funneled foreign money to political campaigns in the U.S. Their lawyer resisted a request for documents from the House impeachment inquiry in part on the grounds they have assisted Giuliani in other work for Trump.

Now Giuliani’s successors in the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan are looking into his own business dealings in Ukraine, including meetings he held with government officials there, according to reports in the New York Times and Wall Street Journal.

Aram Roston—ReutersGiuliani and his client Lev Parnas on Sept. 20 at the Trump hotel in D.C.

How much damage will come from Giuliani’s 18-month romp through the swamps of money and power is now the question of the Trump presidency. Current and former senior Administration officials worry that he has been putting unsubstantiated Ukrainian conspiracy theories into Trump’s head and that Trump doesn’t know or understand that Giuliani has business interests that may be served by some of the advice he is giving the President. Most of all, they blame Giuliani for Trump’s push during a July 25 phone call to get the Ukrainian President to investigate Biden, a 2020 political rival.

But Giuliani is confident Trump won’t turn on him: “He’s 100% in my corner and loyal to me as I am to him.” And for now, Trump doesn’t seem to be aware of, or at least worried about, what Giuliani’s murky mix of business and diplomacy may have gotten him into. “Rudy Giuliani’s a great crime fighter,” Trump said on Oct. 28 in response to a question from TIME. “He’s always looking for corruption, which is what more people should be doing. He’s a good man.”

At some point soon, Trump may face the reality of a trial in the Senate over charges he abused his office. Some of those allegations will be linked to Giuliani’s efforts in Ukraine. Giuliani’s increasingly erratic behavior suggests that his gravy train of easy deals tied to political power may come to an ugly end. The question is what else will come to an end with it.

No one believed him. It was October 2018, and Giuliani had just stepped out of a three-car motorcade into a light drizzle in the Armenian capital of Yerevan. An eager gaggle of government officials in dark suits deferentially escorted him as he walked toward a memorial to the Armenian genocide, while reporters live-streaming his visit asked questions about U.S. foreign policy. “I am not here in my capacity as a private lawyer to President Trump,” Giuliani said, “I am here as a private citizen.”

It was clear that no one intended to treat him like one, and that was just fine with Giuliani. Although he was there to speak about cyber–security at a Russian-led trade conference, his trip had all the trappings of an official visit. Armenia’s Defense Minister briefed him in private, and the government released a formal readout of the meeting. News reports identifying Giuliani as a White House envoy scrutinized his answers on whether the U.S. would formally recognize the Armenian genocide. Sharing the stage with Sergey Glazyev, a longtime adviser of President Vladimir Putin who has been under U.S. sanctions since Russia’s 2014 invasion of Ukraine, Giuliani dangled potential U.S. cooperation on cybersecurity with a Russian–led trade bloc. One Armenian who met with the former mayor said, “He may be the contact person between Yerevan and Washington.”

Giuliani told TIME his paid speech was “perfectly appropriate” and one of “over 1,000 speeches” he has given for a fee, but refused to discuss details. Giuliani has been known to charge as much as $200,000 for a public speech and up to $175,000 a month to be retained for security consulting.

Giuliani’s foray in Armenia is just one of his many gigs. Around the same time that he traveled to Yerevan, he was paid by a global consulting firm to send a letter calling for changes to Romania’s anti-corruption program, a position that contradicted the U.S. State Department’s stance. He attended an event by Congolese lobbyists that left them with the impression he would work with them on the Trump Administration’s position on sanctions on the country. His firm secured a $1.6 million deal to do security work in a Brazilian province in the Amazon.

After joining Trump’s inner circle, his dealings became more freewheeling. He regularly conducted business on his cell phone while holding court at upscale cigar clubs in New York and Washington, and after nearly two decades of work abroad, foreign officials, businessmen and journalists knew where to reach him.

But even as he has become an increasingly ubiquitous public figure, much of his work remains undisclosed. Even top government officials are often grasping for signs. White House officials were surprised, for example, when Trump seemed receptive to the possible extradition of Fethullah Gulen, a Turkish cleric who lives in the U.S. and is a political opponent of the current Turkish leadership, according to the Washington Post and New York Times. Giuliani told TIME he spoke to Administration officials about Gulen, but in relation to a client in a separate matter.

Giuliani says that the questions about his business dealings are “insulting.” He maintains that he is paid only for his expertise—not for representing foreigners or lobbying the Trump Administration, which would force him to register as a foreign agent. He left his law firm Greenberg Traurig in May 2018, and touted that he was working for the President for free out of patriotic duty.

Friends defend his business endeavors. “He’s always wanted to make money since he left as mayor, so what?” says Jon Sale, a former Watergate prosecutor who knew Giuliani when they both worked as federal prosecutors in Manhattan. “In a lot of circles, Rudy’s stature is not what it was. But I’ve been with him in some places and some parts of the country where people still continue to revere him. People come up to take a picture with him and for autographs and say, ‘Thank you Mr. Mayor for what you’ve done.’”

After winning election as mayor in 1993, Giuliani cracked down on crime, using often controversial tactics to “clean up” the largest city in America. But it was his response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks that made him an international celebrity. The destruction of the World Trade Centers terrified America, and his reassuring presence on the streets of the city made him an icon of resilience. In 2001, TIME named the “mayor of the world” the Person of the Year.

But if a successful political career had led him to the peak of power in his hometown, a lifetime of government salaries hadn’t made him rich. In June 2001, his divorce lawyer famously declared from the steps of a Manhattan courthouse that the then mayor had only $7,000 to his name.

After he left office, he cashed in on his fame. First he wrote a best-selling book, Leadership, and lined up hundreds of high-priced speaking engagements. In one period from 2006 to 2007, Giuliani made more than $16 million, $10 million of which came from delivering 108 paid speeches around the globe about leadership and security.

Giuliani also went to work for a variety of high-paying but controversial clients both as a lawyer and as a security consultant. His consulting firm signed a contract with Qatar around 2005 at a time when the Gulf state’s security forces were under scrutiny for letting the Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed slip away from the FBI in 1996.

Buoyed by the wave of goodwill and his celebrity, he launched a bid for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination. He quickly cemented himself as the early front runner, with 34% of likely Republican voters saying they would vote for him in a March 2007 poll. But his run imploded in the wake of questions about his foreign lobbying and liberal positions on social issues. His abrasive style and fixation on terrorism didn’t help, leading Biden to deliver the now famous line that there were only three things Giuliani ever mentioned in a sentence: “A noun, a verb and 9/11.”

After his run for the ultimate position of power failed, he seemed to fade from the headlines and turned back to making money. In his business as an international security consultant, he again took on controversial clients, including a Turkish gold trader accused of laundering Iranian money. He took several trips to Russia and former Soviet countries through TriGlobal Strategic Ventures, a secretive international consulting company that has provided image consulting to Russian oligarchs and others close to the Kremlin.

Having failed to win the White House himself, Giuliani may have been as surprised as anyone when his old friend Donald Trump’s unexpected election offered him proximity to Oval Office. Giuliani and Trump knew each other for decades. Both were raised in the outer boroughs of New York City, made their names in Manhattan, sought the limelight early in their careers and became regulars in New York’s gossip pages.

In 2000, at the Inner Circle dinner, a rollicking convention of big names and comedians, Giuliani wore a lavender dress and blond wig for a spoof video in which Trump leers at Giuliani and says, “You know, you’re really beautiful.” When Giuliani sprays perfume on his chest, Trump rubs his face in it. “Oh you dirty boy,” Giuliani says in a high-pitched voice, and slaps him.

Giuliani did not publicly endorse Trump until two weeks before the New York State Republican primary. But when he did, he was all in. It was Giuliani who went on all five Sunday-morning shows to defend Trump after the Oct. 7, 2016, release of a recording of Trump talking about grabbing women by their genitals.

Ironically his current position as unofficial envoy of the President came about only when he didn’t get the Administration job he had hoped for. After Trump’s election, Giuliani turned down top spots at the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security, hoping instead to be named Trump’s Secretary of State. Giuliani lobbied hard for the position, touting as credentials his 150 foreign trips to more than 80 countries as a globe-trotting consultant. But Trump and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, were concerned that Giuliani’s celebrity would make him unmanageable at State. When it became clear Giuliani wasn’t going to get the job, he withdrew from consideration, saying he “could play a better role being on the outside and continuing to be his close friend and adviser.”

That role was a boon for Giuliani financially, but he still had the itch for real power. He saw an opportunity in Trump’s frustration with his legal team’s failure to protect him in the Russia investigation. For more than a year, Trump had been fuming, “I don’t have a lawyer,” invoking the memory of Roy Cohn, the notoriously ruthless New York attorney and power broker, according to the Mueller report. Trump said he wanted “someone who got things done.” In Giuliani, who had taken to television news shows to repeatedly attack Mueller, he found his Roy Cohn.

For months, Giuliani had a good run under Trump. Even while many close to the President warned that relying on Giuliani could be his downfall, the former mayor was able to carry out both his freewheeling deals and Trump’s wishes without restraints. As White House advisers came and went in a steady stream of firings and resignations, Giuliani endured. But it was ultimately his full-throttle pursuit of the thinly sourced Ukraine scandal that may have historic consequences for him, the President and the country.

In August 2018, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, a pair of Soviet émigrés based in Florida, entered Giuliani’s life. Parnas paid Giuliani a $500,000 retainer for what he said was legal and business advice for his fraud–prevention firm. Up until then, Parnas and Fruman had been unknown and unconnected. But soon enough, they were able to get access to prominent Republican circles, in part by flaunting their association with Giuliani.

They posted photos of themselves enjoying dinner at the White House, including photos with Trump. They shared photos of their breakfast with Trump’s son Don Jr. and drinks “celebrating” after the conclusion of the Mueller probe with the White House legal team. As they jetted around the world, they boasted of political connections that could open doors. “They told us they would bring Mayor Giuliani to the dinner with them if we honored them,” Farley Weiss, the president of the National Council of Young Israel, an umbrella group for a network of Orthodox synagogues, told TIME in an email. The group honored the two with an award in March.

Their lucky streak didn’t last for long. In early October, Parnas and Fruman were arrested at Dulles airport outside Washington after they bought one-way tickets to Vienna. They were charged with the federal crime of scheming to buy U.S. political influence by funneling foreign donations to politicians. Court filings alleged they distributed $675,500 in campaign contributions to at least 14 Republican candidates.

Unfortunately for Giuliani, the pair’s arrest shone a spotlight on their other dealings with him as well. Parnas and Fruman had been serving as middlemen between Giuliani and Ukrainian officials in Giuliani’s quest to dig up politically damaging information on Democrats for Trump. Prosecutors said they had lobbied then Texas Representative Pete Sessions to push for the ouster of the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, whom Giuliani considered an obstacle to investigating the Bidens. When the former mayor had to cancel his trip to Ukraine in May amid accusations of political meddling, Parnas reportedly went to Kiev presenting himself as a representative of Giuliani to seek out information about the Bidens.

And then there’s the question of the half million dollars Giuliani received from Parnas’ fraud-prevention firm. He has claimed he knows “exactly” where it came from. “I’ve seen the wires,” he told the Washington Post. (The money was reportedly briefly in Fruman’s account.) But it’s unclear how Parnas and Fruman had access to those kinds of funds. A TIME review of Florida court filings show that since the mid-2000s, they left a trail of bankruptcies, failed businesses, evictions and lawsuits for failing to pay back loans.

All this has put Giuliani in the sights of the same prosecutor’s office he once led. An investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s office in the Southern District of New York has been scrutinizing his connection to Parnas and Fruman, as well as his bank records and meetings with Ukrainian officials, according to the Wall Street Journal. Giuliani has denied any wrongdoing and said that prosecutors “can look at my Ukraine business all they want.” Giuliani insisted to TIME he is not in any legal jeopardy.

“I have to presume they’re innocent,” he told the New York Times about Parnas and Fruman. “None of those facts that I see there make any sense to me, so I don’t know what they mean.”

How consequential this particular aspect of the multifaceted Ukraine scandal will prove remains unclear. Testimony by multiple nonpartisan Trump Administration officials has shown that Giuliani was the main driver behind Trump’s efforts to force Ukraine to investigate the Bidens. To strengthen the case for doing so, Giuliani has touted an affidavit from a former Ukrainian prosecutor alleging he was fired in March 2016 for investigating the gas firm that employed Biden’s son. That document, TIME reported in October, was produced by the legal team for a Ukrainian billionaire currently living in Vienna who is fighting extradition to the U.S. This summer, his American lawyers hired Parnas as their translator.

One thing that’s clear is that Giuliani is already feeling the financial consequences of the Ukraine scandal. And he’s not happy about it. In his accidental voicemail to NBC News, Giuliani can be heard saying, “The problem is we need some money.” After a pause, he says, “We need a few hundred thousand.” The intense scrutiny of the House investigation has forced Giuliani to pull out of lucrative opportunities. He had been planning to return to Armenia this year for the same Kremlin-backed trade conference he had attended with great fanfare in October 2018.

But when word leaked out about his travel plans just days after the whistleblower complaint implicated him in pressuring Ukraine, it caused a public backlash. Just hours after confirming the paid speech, he reversed himself and announced he wouldn’t be going back to Yerevan after all. —With reporting by Tara Law and Sanya Mansoor/New York; Simon Shuster/Kiev; and Molly Ball, Tessa Berenson and Abby Vesoulis/-Washington □

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