Author: Mike Harrison

The number is back down to the levels of before Thanksgiving and Christmas, when holiday travel and gatherings in defiance of safety warnings were blamed for spreading the virus further in the U.S. The United States recorded fewer than 40,000 new cases of COVID-19 in one day for the first time in five months on March 4, according to the Johns Hopkins University pandemic tracker.This number peaked at nearly 300,000 new cases on January 8 in the country hardest hit by the pandemic, with more than half a million fatalities.But now it is back down to the levels of before…

Nearly 260,000 people have died of Covid-19 in Brazil, the second-highest pandemic death toll in the world after the United States. President Jair Bolsonaro on Thursday urged Brazilians to “stop whining” about Covid-19 and renewed his attacks on stay-at-home measures to contain the pandemic, amid a surge of cases that is pushing hospitals to the brink.The latest controversial comments from the far-right leader, who regularly flouts expert advice on fighting the new coronavirus despite having contracted it himself last year, came after Brazil registered its second daily record of Covid-19 deaths in as many days, leading some cities and states…

Britain, the former colonial power in Myanmar, has repeatedly condemned repression and rights abuses by the junta after leading generals swiftly ended a decade-long experiment with democracy. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Thursday he was “horrified” by the escalation of violence in Myanmar and called for an end to military repression in the country.“We stand with the people of Myanmar in calling for an immediate end to military repression, the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and others, and the restoration of democracy,” Johnson said on Twitter, referring to Myanmar’s de-facto leader who was detained in a February…

Three Indians had crossed over to the Nepal side where they had a confrontation with the Nepal armed force on some matter, said police. An Indian citizen who was among three persons who had gone to Nepal was killed after allegedly being shot by the Nepal police, a police officer in Uttar Pradesh said. The other two are still missing.Three Indians had crossed over to the Nepal side where they had a confrontation with the Nepal armed force on some matter, said police in Pilibhit district of UP which has a border with the Himalayan nation.The three belonged to Hajaara…

The CPI (M) is working for the defeat of the BJP-AIADMK alliance in Tamil Nadu, its general secretary Sitaram Yechury told journalists in Coimbatore on Thursday. Mr. Yechury charged the AIADMK government with actively supporting every single measure the BJP had taken in Parliament, including the farm bills and the industrial policy. Tamil Nadu had a legacy of fighting for the rights of the States and for the principle of federalism. But the AIADMK government supported every move of the BJP, he said. “We are working for the defeat of the BJP-AIADMK alliance. We will co-operate with all the forces…

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Thursday summoned the Delhi government’s Urban Development Secretary for not submitting proof of payment of ₹10 lakh as relief to the mother of a man who died cleaning a sewer in 2018.The NHRC asked the official to appear before it with the relevant reports on May 3, it said in a statement. The incident happened in Vaishali Extension, Dabri on September 14, 2018. “The Commission, issuing the conditional summons, has observed that there has already been an inordinate delay in the matter as no response has been received from the Government of NCT…

OPCW investigators have accused Assad’s regime of sarin gas and chlorine attacks in Syria in 2017. The new US envoy to the United Nations on Thursday accused Russia of seeking to stymie efforts to hold the government of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad accountable for its use of chemical weapons during its long civil war.“We all know the Assad regime has repeatedly used chemical weapons. So why hasn’t the Syrian government been held accountable?” the ambassador, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, told a Security Council meeting via videoconference.“The answer is sadly simple: the Assad regime has tried to avoid accountability by obstructing independent investigations…

Industrial development and private investment will be hit, ‘ultimately hurt the interests of the State’ Warning that its move to reserve private sector jobs for locals “spells disaster” for industrial development and private investment in Haryana, the India Inc. has asked the State to “re-look” the legislation, highlighting the lack of adequate availability of skilled manpower.Industry sources cautioned that this may force a rework of their expansion plans in the State, adding that it could also provide a shield to some firms indulging in unethical practices to retrench the existing workforce.The Haryana Governor earlier this week approved a Bill that…

It was a single engine, originally, that was broadened to include all kinds of multi-role fighters, says Klas Molin. Klas Molin, Sweden’s Ambassador to India, says there have been many highlights in the bilateral relationship between the two countries. He highlights the work of Swedish manufacturing companies that have been here for decades and the new service-oriented operations that are in place. Excerpts:When Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Stefan Löfven met in Stockholm in April 2018, in the Joint Action Plan (JAP) there was a sharp focus on initiatives in trade and investment, including conversations with major Swedish companies with…

Ruling Trinamool may announce candidates for all 294 seats. All the major political parties in West Bengal are likely to announce candidates for the Assembly polls on Friday. The ruling Trinamool Congress may announce candidates for all the 294 Assembly seats, while the Left-Congress alliance could announce nominees for the first two phases,when 60 seats go to the polls. The BJP is also likely to announce candidates for the first two phases. Left-Congress-ISF alliance sealed After days of discussions the Left parties and the Congress on Thursday came to an agreement on seat-sharing with Furfura peer Abbas Siddique’s Indian Secular…