Author: Mike Harrison

Mr.Rajapaksa had held talks with the leaders of the agitating trade unions on Monday and the decision was conveyed to them, a release from his office said. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa’s office said on Monday that the Sri Lankan government has decided to run the Colombo Port’s Eastern Container Terminal (ECT) as a fully-owned operation of the state-run ports authority, succumbing to pressure from the trade unions who opposed a joint venture involving India and Japan to develop the strategic cargo terminal.Mr.Rajapaksa had held talks with the leaders of the agitating trade unions on Monday and the decision was conveyed…

The National League for Democracy released a statement on the Facebook page of its party head, Suu Kyi, saying the military’s actions were unjustified and went against the constitution and the will of voters. Aung San Suu Kyi’s political party is urging Myanmar’s people to oppose Monday’s “coup” and any return to “military dictatorship.”The National League for Democracy released a statement on the Facebook page of its party head, Suu Kyi, saying the military’s actions were unjustified and went against the constitution and the will of voters.It was not possible to confirm who posted the message as NLD members were…

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is delivering her third Budget in Lok Sabha at around 11 a.m. on Monday, February 1.The ninth budget under Modi government is expected to provide relief to the pandemic-hit common man as well as focus more on driving the economic recovery through higher spending on healthcare, infrastructure and defence amid rising tensions with neighbours.Likely measures include a hike in infrastructure spending and tax cuts to boost the economy, while deferring debt cut plans. The Finance Minister is expected to increase spending by more than 15% year-on-year in 2021-22 with an emphasis on infrastructure and healthcare,…

Political activities of Chief Minister and his deputy are wrong; their government is driven by selfishness, says DMK leader DMK president M.K. Stalin on Sunday said the upcoming Assembly election would not only put an end to the AIADMK regime but also to the political career of Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami.“I am criticising the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister not out of personal vendetta. Their political activities are wrong and their government is driven by selfishness,” he said while taking part in ‘Ungal Thoguthiyil Stalin’ (Stalin in your constituency) at Nazarathpet in the Avadi constituency, Tiruvallur district.Reacting…

Ronald Koeman’s Barca side saw out the game to record a fifth straight Liga victory. Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann fired Barcelona to a 2-1 win at home to Athletic Bilbao in La Liga on Sunday, avenging their recent defeat to the Basque side in the Spanish Super Cup final.Messi curled in a free kick after 20 minutes for his 650th Barca goal on the day the club pledged to sue Spanish newspaper El Mundo for publishing the full details of the Argentine’s contract.The hosts missed several more opportunities before Athletic levelled in the 49th through a Jordi Alba own…

Under the new ecosystem, the minister said, the mandis are not affected. NCP president Sharad Pawar said on Sunday that Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar is not bringing out “correct facts” on the three farm bills.His reaction came after Mr. Tomar expressed dismay over Mr. Pawar’s tweets criticising the farm laws, saying they were a mix of “ignorance and misinformation”, and hoped that the veteran leader will change his stand after knowing the “facts”.In a series of late night tweets in Hindi, Mr. Pawar said, “@nstomar ji is not bringing out correct facts before people. He has been assuring that…

“It is crucial to prepare for the appearance of such variants,” Von der Leyen said in a statement. AstraZeneca will deliver nine million more doses of its COVID-19 vaccine to the European Union in the first quarter of this year, making a total of 40 million for the period, and will start deliveries one week earlier than expected, the president of the European Commission said on Sunday.The Anglo-Swedish company unexpectedly announced earlier this month that it would cut supplies to the EU of its vaccine candidate in the first quarter, sparking a row over supplies.“AstraZeneca will deliver 9 million additional…

The Centre is on track to push the 2021 Census to 2022 on account of the country’s continuing preoccupation with COVID-19, a senior government official has told The Hindu.A military coup was taking place in Myanmar early Monday and State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi was detained under house arrest, reports said, as communications were cut to the capital.The Budget session of the Rajya Sabha has been rescheduled and will conclude two days before schedule. The decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of Rajya Sabha Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu with the floor leaders of all the parties…

“I wanted to update everybody that today … my father was admitted to hospital,” his daughter, Hannah, said on Twitter. British centenarian Captain Tom Moore, who raised millions of pounds for the health service by walking laps of his garden in last year’s lockdown, has been admitted to hospital after testing positive for coronavirus, his daughter said on Sunday.The World War Two veteran caught the public’s imagination in April with his laps in the run-up to his 100th birthday during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, raising more than £30 million for Britain’s National Health Service.He broke two Guinness…

In a video that went viral, the elderly people were seen sitting dejected on the side of a road. Their belongings bagged in rags were also seen scattered around. Indore District Magistrate Manish Singh on Sunday said he has apologised to God for the local administration’s action of dumping homeless people outside the city amid the cold weather, which had led to a massive public outrage.Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had also criticised the administration’s action, terming it a “blot on humanity”. Actor Sonu Sood, who came into the spotlight for helping migrants return to their homes amid the…