Bengaluru, May 11 (SocialNews.XYZ) In phase 3 of the general elections to 14 Lok Sabha seats, 72.96 per cent of males and 70.73 per cent of females exercised their franchise on May 7 in Karnataka, according to statistics released by the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Saturday.

The ECI released the statistics on gender-based voter turnout. In Karnataka, the election was held for 14 Lok Sabha seats in the second phase of voting. The first phase of polling was held on April 26.

The ECI said that 21.03 per cent of persons belonging to the ‘other category’ have cast their vote. The voting percentage of Karnataka stood at 71.84 per cent in the second phase.

In the Bidar Lok Sabha seat, female voters’ turnout (65.78 per cent) exceeded male voters’ turnout (65.19 per cent). High profile Shivamogga parliamentary seat also saw the highest turnout of female voters (77.79 per cent) among 14 seats.

Another high-profile Kalaburagi Lok Sabha seat recorded the lowest turnout of female voters (61.38 per cent).

The percentage of the voters in the 'other category' in Bagalkot was 26.73 per cent. Belagavi (21.05), Ballary (33.46), Bidar (12.62), Bijapur (15.24), Chikkodi (37.50), Davanagere (26.28), Dharwad (26.00), Kalaburagi (10.99), Haveri (28.92), Koppal (29.63), Raichur (7.36), Shivamogga (37.14) and Uttara Kannada (31.25).

Source: IANS

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Abu Dhabi, May 6 (SocialNews.XYZ) Scotland captain Kathryn Bryce said she doesn’t know what words have to be used to express the feeling of helping her side qualify for their first-ever ICC Women's T20 World Cup.

Scotland defeated Ireland by eight wickets in the semifinals of the Qualifier event in Abu Dhabi on Sunday and have joined Sri Lanka as the last two teams to seal their spots for the Women's T20 World Cup, happening in Bangladesh from October 3-20.

Kathryn was named the Player of the Match for her all-round exploits in Scotland’s semifinal win over Ireland, taking 4-8 with the ball and following it up with 35 not out.

"It is really special. It hasn't really sunk in yet, the emotion hasn't really come in yet because out in the middle for so long batting and just trying to ignore what was at the end of the line and just making sure we kept going and kept focusing.

"To see everyone running on and all the messages we have received so far, I don’t really know how to put it into words right now," said Kathryn to Cricket Scotland after achieving a historic moment for women’s team.

It marks a great occasion for Scotland to have finally made it into a Women’s T20 World Cup after falling agonisingly short in previous Qualifier campaigns in 2015, 2018, 2019 and 2022.

"There have been so many people play before us and there was so many different people playing at that first qualifier we played at in Thailand. We have had a couple of good Qualifiers, but when we have made it to the semi-finals (in 2015 and 2018) there has been not really much chance of us getting through."

"It has been a tough day or so thinking about it knowing you have the ability to get there as we have the squad to do it and it almost makes it a bit harder to keep the emotions in check and to get through," added Kathryn.

Kathryn and her younger sister Sarah were at the crease when the former hit the winning runs off Ireland spinner Eimear Richardson in the 17th over of the semi-final, with their mother in attendance to see history being scripted by Scotland women’s team.

"It is crazy to think we had our first Qualifier back in 2015 for each of us and the first one for Scotland was in 2008. Scotland was created as a women's team in 2000 and here we are in 2024 finally having gotten over the line."

"And I think I saw on Twitter (X) that we are only the 12th women’s team to make it to the T20 World Cup it is just unbelievable. What a journey it has been. I feel so lucky to have done it alongside you as my sister. To experience a lot of lows and to finally have a crazy massive high," concluded Sarah.

Scotland will now be aiming to finish the Qualifier tournament on a high when they face Sri Lanka in the final of the event on Tuesday.

Source: IANS

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New Delhi, April 26 (SocialNews.XYZ) Rejecting a batch of petitions seeking mandatory cross-verification of the votes cast with Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips, the Supreme Court on Friday said that raising repeated and persistent doubts on Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), even without supporting evidence, can have the contrarian impact of creating distrust and can reduce citizen participation and confidence in elections.

In his verdict, Justice Sanjiv Khanna said, “The suspicion that the EVMs can be configured or manipulated for repeated or wrong recording of vote(s) to favour a particular candidate should be rejected.”

“We acknowledge the right of voters to question the working of EVMs, which are but an electronic device that has a direct impact on election results. However, it is also necessary to exercise care and caution when we raise aspersions on the integrity of the electoral process.

“Repeated and persistent doubts and despair, even without supporting evidence, can have the contrarian impact of creating distrust. This can reduce citizen participation and confidence in elections, essential for a healthy and robust democracy.”

He added that the credibility of the Election Commission of India (ECI) and integrity of the electoral process earned over the years cannot be chaffed and over-ridden by baroque contemplations and speculation.

Further, Justice Khanna took note of the statement made by ECI officials that the symbol loading process – where a bitmap file of the serial number, name of the candidate and the symbol is uploaded – cannot be equated with the uploading of the software.

“The symbol loading process undertaken by using the symbol loading unit cannot alter or modify the programme/firmware in the VVPAT which has been burnt/loaded in the memory,” he said.

The apex court said that while it acknowledge the fundamental right of voters to ensure their vote is accurately recorded and counted, the same cannot be equated with the right to 100 per cent counting of VVPAT slips, or a right to physical access to the VVPAT slips, which the voter should be permitted to put in the drop box.

It added that giving physical access to VVPAT slips to voters is “problematic and impractical”, and will lead to misuse, malpractices and disputes.

Saying that the weakness of the ballot paper system is well-known and documented, it rejected the submission to return to the ballot paper system as “foible and unsound.”

“We would be undoing electoral reforms by directing reintroduction of the ballot papers. EVMs offer significant advantages. They have effectively eliminated booth capturing by restricting the rate of vote casting to four votes per minute, thereby prolonging the time needed and thus check insertion of bogus votes.

“EVMs have eliminated invalid votes, which were a major issue with paper ballots and had often sparked disputes during the counting process. Furthermore, EVMs reduce paper usage and alleviate logistical challenges.

“Finally, they provide administrative convenience by expediting the counting process and minimising errors,” the SC said.

Association for Democratic Reforms, one of the petitioners, sought directions to return to the paper ballot system, or that the VVPAT slip be given to the voter to verify and put in the ballot box for counting, and/or there should be 100 per cent counting of the VVPAT slips in addition to electronic counting by the control unit.

The PIL litigants contended that there exists a possibility of manipulating the EVMs and, therefore, the apex court should step in to instill confidence in the voters as they have the right to know that their franchise has been correctly recorded and counted.

Justice Dipankar Datta – who authored a separate opinion, but “whole-heartedly” concurred with Justice Khanna’s verdict – said that the prayer to revert to the “paper ballot system” reveals the real intention of the petitioning association to discredit the system of voting through the EVMs and thereby derail the electoral process that is underway, by creating unnecessary doubts in the minds of the electorate.

“I have serious doubts as regards the bona fides of the petitioning association when it seeks a reversion to the old order. Irrespective of the fact that in the past efforts of the petitioning association in bringing about electoral reforms have borne fruit, the suggestion put forth appeared inexplicable,” Justice Datta said.

Further, he said that in recent years, a trend has been fast developing of certain vested interest groups endeavouring to undermine the achievements and accomplishments of the nation, earned through the hard work and dedication of its sincere workforce, adding that “there seems to be a concerted effort to discredit, diminish, and weaken the progress of this great nation on every possible frontier.”

In conclusion, Justice Datta said that the petitioners’ apprehensions were misplaced and they have neither been able to demonstrate how the use of EVMs in elections violates the principle of free and fair elections nor have they been able to establish a fundamental right to 100 per cent VVPAT slips tallying with the votes cast.

In April 2019, the Supreme Court ordered the ECI to increase the VVPAT slips from one EVM per Assembly constituency to five.

It had issued guidelines for mandatory verification of VVPAT slips, out of five randomly-selected polling stations, after completing the final round of counting votes recorded in EVMs.

The latest verdict declined to modify the aforesaid directions to increase the number of VVPAT undergoing slip counting for several reasons.

“First, it will increase the time for counting and delay the declaration of results. The manpower required would have to be doubled. Manual counting is prone to human errors and may lead to deliberate mischief. Manual intervention in counting can also create multiple charges of manipulation of results. Further, the data and the results do not indicate any need to increase the number of VVPAT units subjected to manual counting,” the apex court reasoned.

Justice Khanna passed two directions not because the top court had any doubt, but to only further strengthen the integrity of the election process.

First, all Symbol Loading Units (SLUs) will be sealed on or after May 1 on completion of the symbol loading process and will be kept in the strong room at least for 45 days post declaration of results.

“The candidates or representatives shall sign the seal. The containers containing SLUs shall be kept in strong rooms, along with EVMs, at least for a period of 45 days post declaration of results. They shall be opened, examined and dealt with as in the case of EVMs,” the apex court said.

Second, the burnt memory or microcontroller in 5 per cent of the EVMs per Assembly segment of a parliamentary constituency will be checked and verified by a team of engineers from EVM manufacturers post announcement of results on a written request made by candidates securing second and third-highest votes.

“All candidates or their representatives shall have the option to remain present at the time of verification. Such a request should be made within a period of seven days from the date of the declaration of results…The actual cost or expenses for the said verification will be notified by the ECI and the candidates making the said request will make payment of said expenses. Expenses will be refunded in case EVM is found to be tampered,” ordered the Supreme Court.

It said that the district Election Officer in consultation with the team of engineers will certify the authenticity and intactness of the burnt memory or the microcontroller.

Source: IANS

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New Delhi, April 26 (SocialNews.XYZ) Sift Kaur Samra stole a march over her four rivals in the Olympic Selection Trial (OST) in the women’s 50M Rifle 3 Positions (3P), winning back-to-back trials here at the Dr. Karni Singh Shooting range in the national capital. Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, also entered the OST winners' circle, winning the men’s 3P T2 final in a classic 0.22 scrap to the finish line.

Sift, the reigning Asian Games champion, world record holder and the undisputed India number one in women’s 3P for some time now, shot 465.1 in the OST T2 final, to leave Ashi Choksey 2.4 behind in second. Anjum Moudgil was third, after coming second-best in a shoot-off with Ashi. Shriyanka Sadangi and Nishchal came in fourth and fifth.

On Wednesday, Sift Kaur also won the women’s 3P OST T1 at the same venue. As things stand, one more good performance in Bhopal, where the OSTs 3&4 are scheduled next month, should see Sift through to Paris.

The men’s 3P OST T2 final saw yet another India number one and deemed Paris quota holder Aishwary Tomar emerge victorious in a nail-biting climax. Heading into the final shot, Aishwary was 0.1 behind Akhil Sheoran. He fired a 10.6 to Akhil’s 9.9 to seize the win with a final score of 463.6.

Air Rifle, Air Pistol T2

Day 8 of the ongoing OSTs also saw the qualification round of the men’s and women’s 10M Air Rifle and Air Pistol T2 qualification.

Nancy continued her excellent current form to top the Women’s Air Rifle with a score of 633.1. Sandeep Singh was best in the men’s event with an equally solid 632.6.

In the Women’s Air Pistol, Rhythm Sangwan was on top of the leaderboard with a score of 584 while Sarabjot Singh topped the men’s air pistol qualification with 581. All the four finals are slated for the concluding day on Saturday.

Source: IANS

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Hyderabad, April 25 (SocialNews.XYZ) Rajat Patidar and Virat Kohli struck half-centuries in contrasting fashion as Royal Challengers Bengaluru posted 206/7 in 20 overs despite a three-fer by Sunrisers Hyderabad's Jaydev Unadkat in his 100th match, in Match 41 of India Premier League (IPL) 2024 at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium here on Thursday.

Kohli scored his fifty off 37 balls while Patidar hammered his half-century off just 19 balls as RCB posted another 200-plus score after skipper Faf du Plessis opted to bat first on a dual-paced pitch on which the slower one was quite effective.

Patidar blasted four sixes in an over off Mayank Markande to shore up the RCB scoring rate after Kohli struggled to break free. Unadkat applied the brakes on the free-scoring RCB innings by claiming the key wickets of Patidar, Kohli and Mahipal Lomror for a fine haul of 3-30 off four overs in his 100th outing in IPL.

Cameron Green (37 off 20) and Impact Player Swapnil Singh (12 off 6 balls) unleashed some big shots in the death overs as RCB crossed the 200-run mark again in IPL 2024. Swapnil hammered a four and six off the first two deliveries of the final over as RCB ended on a strong note.

Earlier, Kohli and du Plessis struck a couple of fours each as they raced to 48 in the fourth over before the skipper departed.

Skipper du Plessis struck Bhuvneshwar Kumar for three boundaries in the second over, the pick of them being a four crashed through the covers off a fullish delivery outside the off stump.

In the next over, he welcomed Pat Cummins with a superb six, scooping behind a delivery picked from around off-stump and planting him over the leg-side for the first six of this match. But the introduction of T. Natarajan brought his downfall when he holed out near the deep cover boundary trying to maintain the RCB scoring tempo in Power-play.

Though he was out for 25, RCB raced to 61/1 in Power-play and though Kohli's scoring rate went down, Rajat Patidar made for that with some brilliant strokes. RCB were going strong despite losing Will Jacks cheaply for six after he played over a slower one from spinner Mayank Markande to make it 65/2.

Kohli, who started with a four off Abhishek Sharma's first delivery, struck back-to-back fours off Pat Cummins and struck a four and six off Natarajan in between singles. He went on to complete a slow half-century off 37 deliveries, hitting four boundaries and one six. This was his fourth successive half-century at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium.

Rajat Patidar more than made up for the slow going from Kohli with a blazing half-century off 19 deliveries. The highlight of Patidar's sensational knock was the four sixes he blasted off successive deliveries against Markande, lofting, clobbering and pulling the leg-spinner as the over cost SRH 27 runs.

Kohli and Patidar raised 65 runs for the third wicket partnership with the latter doing the bulk of scoring. The half-century of their partnership came in 23 balls with Patidar scoring 45 off them.

However, SRH pulled things back a bit after Patidar fell by the sword, trying to play another big one but managed to flick the slow full toss from Jaydev Unadkat into the hands of Abdul Samad at deep square leg. Patidar's 20-ball 50 was studded with two boundaries and five maximums.

Kohli completed his half-century off 37 balls, but Unadkat got him in the next over, getting him to hole out to Samad as the former RCB skipper failed to break free from the shackles. Mahipal Lomror was out cheaply but Cameron Green played a fine cameo and with the help of Dinesh Karthik (11 off 6) helped RCB reach a defendable total.

Green struck his Australia skipper Cummins for a couple of fours in the 15th over and repeated the same in the 19th over while Swapnil Singh landed a couple of lusty blows in the final over to prop up RCB.

Brief scores:

Royal Challengers Bengaluru 206/7 in 20 overs (Virat Kohli 51, Rajat Patidar 50, Cameron Green 37 not out; Jaydev Unadkat 3-30, T.Natarajan 2-39) against Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Source: IANS

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New Delhi, April 19 (SocialNews.XYZ) Golfers Shubhankar Sharma and Diksha Dagar will get substantial assistance from the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in the run-up to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

In its meeting on Thursday, the Mission Olympic Cell (MOC) also decided to move Shubhankar Sharma, ranked 46th in the men’s Olympic Golf Ranking (OGR), from the TOPS Development Group to the Core Group.

Asian Games silver medallist and 11-time Asian Tour champion Gaganjeet Bhullar was directly inducted into the TOPS Core group due to his recent form. He is currently ranked 52nd in the OGR.

The 27-year-old Shubhankar Sharma, the highest-ranked Indian professional golfer, has also approved his request for financial assistance for nine international tournaments and two Majors, the US Open and the British Open. It will enable coach Jesse Grewal to be with him at five events besides helping him engage a physiotherapist and dietician.

Similarly, financial assistance will be extended to Diksha Dagar, who is ranked 39th in the women’s Olympic Golf Ranking, for nine international tournaments on the Ladies European Tour besides a training stint in Le Golf National, the venue for the Olympic Games competition. Diksha is set to join Hangzhou Asian Games silver medallist Aditi Ashok in the French capital.

The MOC approved support to race walker Priyanka Goswami for foreign training camps as part of preparation for Paris 2024. She will train for 11 days in Turkey, 11 days in Poland and 15 days in Portugal. She will also undertake 30 days of high-altitude training in Switzerland besides 17 days of sea-level training in France before the Games.

Famed paddler Achanta Sharath Kamal’s proposal to hire a nutritionist till the Paris Games besides equipment, shoes and supplements has also been approved.

The top woman paddler Manika Batra’s request to include sparring partner Kiryl Barabanov for participation in WTT Saudi Smash from May 1 to 11 in Jeddah was cleared by MOC. Similarly, Sreeja Akula’s request to include personal coach Somnath Ghosh for the Saudi meet was approved.

The MOC also cleared swimmer Srihari Nataraj’s request for financial assistance towards participation in the Malaysia Invitational Age Group Championships 2024 in Kuala Lumpur from April 21 to 29, training camps and recovery facilities till Paris 2024.

Besides, proposals from para-archer Rakesh Kumar to acquire an active wheelchair and para-athlete Dilip M Gavit’s expenses towards engaging experts to prepare for the Paralympic Games were also approved by MOC.

Source: IANS

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Chandigarh, March 25 (SocialNews.XYZ) Crowds of devotees converged in the holy town Anandpur Sahib in Punjab on Monday to offer prayers at Gurdwara Keshgarh Sahib during Hola Mohalla celebrations that coincide with Holi festival.

Anandpur Sahib is home to the second most important Sikh shrine after Harmandar Sahib, popularly known as Golden Temple in Amritsar.

Wearing traditional dresses, carrying weapons and riding horses, hundreds of Nihang Sikhs performed the Gatka martial art, a major attraction for the visitors. The three-day celebrations coincide with the Hindu festival Holi.

Located about 85 km from Chandigarh, Anandpur Sahib town and shrine is the place where Guru Gobind Singh in 1699 baptized five men and founded the Khalsa Panth, which is the modern day Sikh religion.

Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit extended warm greetings on Holi.

In his message, the Governor said, “The festival of Holi marks the arrival of spring and symbolizes the victory of good over evil. As the onset of spring fills the environment with mystic charm and fragrance, may this vibrant festival of colour transcend across all social barriers and strengthen social harmony, bring joy, delight, hope and happiness in the lives of people of Punjab and Chandigarh.”

Governor Purohit appealed to the people to celebrate the festival of Holi in a true spirit of amity, goodwill and brotherhood.

Source: IANS

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Chennai, March 3 (SocialNews.XYZ) Ahmedabad Defenders surged to the top of the table in the third season of the Prime Volleyball League (PVL) with a 15-9, 6-15, 15-11, 15-7 win over Kochi Blue Spikers at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, Chennai on Sunday.

Reception errors from Kochi gave Ahmedabad an early push. But Athos led a three-man block to counter Player of the Match Nandhagopal and Kochi entered into the contest.

Max Senica's attacks helped the Defenders, but Erin Varghese's spikes kept the game levelled. Shikhar Singh justified selection with solid blocks and Nandha moved the game in Ahmedabad's Favour with aggressive serving.

Aman Kumar and Jibin Sebastian provided attacking options to Kochi while Ahmedabad kept the attack going from the Defenders. Ahmedabad's defence left a lot to be desired and the Blues found themselves in a good position to level things up. A series of miscommunications among Ahmedabad players cost them a super point and Kochi gained momentum. Athos did not allow Nandha or Max to get away with their shots. Jibin's fiery spikes helped Kochi till Shon T John found his groove and turned the game on its head with an all-around display.

Coach Dragan Mihailovic's strategy to place a cross-court block on Jibin left the Kochi attacker without room to play his shots. Shon T's clever spikes kept Ahmedabad afloat, and Santhosh closed out the game with thunderous serves to help his side get the crucial win.

Source: IANS

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Ranchi, Feb 25 (SocialNews.XYZ) India need 192 runs to seal the series after Ravichandran Ashwin’s 35th five-wicket haul in Tests skittled out England for 145 in 53.5 overs in their second innings on the third day of the fourth Test here on Sunday.

Though India managed to keep the target below 200, it won’t be an easy task considering the pitch is tricky to bat on and England have tall spinners to extract more turn and bounce. Supporting Ashwin in his 5-51 was Kuldeep Yadav, who took 4-22, while Ravindra Jadeja had a lone scalp to his name.

Post tea, England lost five wickets for 25 runs in 21 overs. Jonny Bairstow was dismissed on the first ball of the final session of the day, pushing at a Jadeja delivery which turned and spooned to short cover. Kuldeep came in to have Tom Hartley caught at mid-on and trapped Ollie Robinson LBW with one that turned in to hit the pad past the willow.

Robinson tried to change the decision but couldn’t do so as umpire’s call came on the ball hitting leg-stump. Ben Foakes survived an under-edge off Ashwin, but the off-spinner slipped in a carrom ball, which the batter couldn’t read and gave a return catch to the bowler.

Ashwin completed his five-fer when James Anderson went for the reverse sweep and missed it. The ball ricocheted off the bat and Dhruv Jurel stuck out his right glove to take a sharp catch.

Earlier, with a first innings lead of 46, Ben Duckett began by smashing a four each off Ashwin and Jadeja. But Ashwin removed him and Ollie Pope on consecutive balls in the fifth over to rattle England’s second innings early on.

While Duckett was caught at forward short leg, Pope was trapped lbw when the ball straightened and hit his back pad right in front of leg-stump. It gave Ashwin scalps number 350 and 351, thus surpassing Anil Kumble to become India’s leading Test wicket-taker on home soil.

Crawley launched a counterattack by using his reach to good effect and getting to the pitch of the ball to drive on both sides of the wicket with ease. But Ashwin got his third wicket in the 17th over when he found a turn to beat Joe Root’s inside edge and trap him LBW for 11.

Crawley marched forward to bring up his 13th fifty in Tests and third of the ongoing series, coming off 72 balls. But Kuldeep removed him for 61 off 90 balls after beating the batter for a turn and rattling the middle stump.

Ben Stokes survived an lbw call on the umpire’s call off Jadeja but was castled by a Kuldeep delivery which kept low and turned to hit the back pad and rolled onto the stumps. Post tea, the procession continued for England to be 145 all out, giving India a chance to win the series at Ranchi.

Brief scores:

England 353 & 145 all out in 53.5 overs (Zak Crawley 60, Jonny Bairstow 30; Ravichandran Ashwin 5-51, Kuldeep Yadav 4-22) lead India 307 all out in 103.2 overs (Dhruv Jurel 90, Yashasvi Jaiswal 73; Shoaib Bashir 5-119, Tom Hartley 3-68) by 192 runs

Source: IANS

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Bengaluru, Feb 16 (SocialNews.XYZ) It was an experience worth cherishing for the 60 budding players who got to pick the brains of some of the top tennis stars participating in the Bengaluru Open 2024 here during a special clinic organised by the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association here on Friday.

India’s Davis Cup member Saketh Myneni, Oriol Roco Batalla of Spain and Frenchman Constantin B. Kouzmine along with the coaches of the players in action this week in Bengaluru, had a hit with these players and shared tips on how to improve their game with a focus on how to up their game.

“It’s always fun to interact with so many kids and I am very happy to see so many young kids come out and play tennis,” said Myneni.

Harshini N, a top-ranked Under-18 player from Karnataka who is also playing on the ITF circuit, was understandably elated to get a chance to play with the top players. “I got to ask them a few questions. It was a wonderful experience,” she added.

The Bengaluru Open is being organised by the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA). The ATP Challenger event began on February 12 and will conclude on February 18.

Source: IANS

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Los Angeles, Feb 16 (SocialNews.XYZ) Hollywood star Brad Pitt is said to be living with his girlfriend Ines de Ramon. The ‘Fight Club’ actor, 60, was first linked to the jewellery executive, 34, in 2022.

Multiple sources have now said that the pair have taken the huge step in their relationship, reports Female First UK.

An insider close to Ines told People magazine: “It’s pretty recent. They are going very strong, and she is happier than ever.” The source added Anita Ko vice-president Ines did not give up her own home when she moved in with Brad.

As per Female First UK, Brad and Ines first sparked dating rumours in November 2022 when they were spotted looking intimate at a Bono concert in Los Angeles.

In December they were seen together at Brad’s 59th birthday and they saw in the New Year together on holiday in Cabo San Lucas. Then in August 2023, Ines was spotted wearing a necklace with a ‘B’ pendant, and Brad is said to now introduce her to people as his “girlfriend”.

Their romance came amid Brad’s bitter legal battle with his ex-wife Angelina Jolie, 48, over the French vineyard they once jointly owned. It also started two months after Ines announced her split from ‘The Vampire Diaries’ actor Paul Wesley, 41, to whom she was married for three years.

An insider close to the couple has also confirmed to People they are “serious” about each other, adding: “This is Brad’s first proper relationship since the divorce. He introduces (Ines) as his girlfriend. It’s great to see him in a good place”.

Source: IANS

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Rajkot, Feb 15 (SocialNews.XYZ) Captain Rohit Sharma and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja smashed centuries each, while Sarfaraz Khan sparkled on his Test debut with 62 off 66 balls as India reached 326/5 in 86 overs at stumps on Day One of the third Test against England at the Niranjan Shah Stadium here on Thursday.

While Rohit made 131, Jadeja was unbeaten on 110, as the duo added 204 runs for the fourth wicket, after India were reduced to 33/3 in the first 45 minutes on a pitch which flattened out as the day progressed.

After the Rohit-Jadeja partnership, also India’s first century stand of the current series ended, Sarfaraz played immaculately against the England spinners, making a 48-ball fifty on Test debut.

But he was run out after a huge mix-up with Jadeja, who was on 99. Jadeja eventually got his century to be undefeated at the end of day one’s play, which sets up the game well for India to make a grand total in their first innings.

The early morning moisture on the Rajkot pitch benefitted Mark Wood, who came into England’s playing eleven in place of spinner Shoaib Bashir. He drew first blood when he angled across a delivery which caught Yashasvi Jaiswal at the crease and the left-hander could only edge behind to first slip. In his next over, Wood had an uncomfortable Shubman Gill nicking behind a good length delivery which nipped away to wicketkeeper Ben Foakes.

England had their third wicket in the ninth over when Hartley got a delivery to jump off a length, which gripped and turned very sharply to take Rajat Patidar’s edge towards cover. After being hit on the helmet grille by Wood in a short-ball play, with three fielders stationed deep in the leg-side, Rohit tried to unsettle Hartley with cut and sweep for boundaries.

He even got a life at 27 in the same over when Joe Root dropped his catch at first slip on an attempted slog. Luck continued to favour Rohit when survived a close lbw shout while dancing down the pitch against Anderson.

Rohit then brought out his good-looking punch, loft down the pitch, pulls and sweeps to reach his fifty in 71 balls. From the other end, Jadeja, promoted to No.5, remained rock-solid, driving and punching Root for a brace of fours to be an ideal partner for Rohit in leading the recovery act for India.

After lunch, Rohit and Jadeja were in control of their approach, rotating the strike well and putting the bad balls away to get runs easily as the pitch began to flatten out. Jadeja edged a four off Wood while Rohit danced down the pitch to loft Hartley over long-on for six, before glancing Anderson for a boundary, as the duo continued their recovery act for India.

Shortly after India got its first century-plus stand of the series through the Rohit-Jadeja stand, boundaries continued to flow as Jadeja got his fifty off 97 balls, with England not finding much help off the pitch to test the batters.

Rohit then greeted Root with a swing over long-on for six and whipped Ahmed wide over mid-on for a boundary. Jadeja then drove Root powerfully past mid-on for four and pulled him over mid-wicket for six to get the second session in India’s favour -– 92 runs for no wicket -- with more hard work under the sun awaiting England.

After tea, Rohit reached his 11th Test century with a brace off Ahmed and England lost a review against him in desperation. The runs continued to flow for the duo as 50 runs came in the first 11 overs of the session, till Wood was rewarded for his persistence when Rohit miscued a pull to mid-wicket.

Sarfaraz had a few nervous moments, especially with Wood bowling short balls, before settling himself in nicely against the spinners. He showed good footwork, used the depth of the crease well, and was fine in picking the lengths and playing with soft hands to manoeuvre against the spinners while taking calculated risks.

It meant that Sarfaraz was flawless with his lofts down the ground, pulls and sweeps to reach his first Test fifty with seven fours and a six in front of his father and wife. Sarfaraz would dazzle with boundaries off Anderson and Hartley, even as Jadeja slowed down and survived on 93 when England chose not to take a review off Hartley, with replays later showing he would have been out lbw.

Sarfaraz was then sold down the river by Jadeja in pursuit of taking a single for the century, as Wood aimed a direct hit from mid-on at the non-striker’s end, ending the debutant’s innings. That run-out of Sarfaraz brought out an angry reaction from Rohit, who threw his cap in anger in the dressing room.

A ball later, Jadeja would reach his fourth Test hundred and brought out the sword-like celebration, but it was subdued. He would collect two more boundaries before stumps arrived on a fruitful day for India, who would need Jadeja and nightwatchman Kuldeep Yadav to go big on day two, with debutant Dhruv Jurel still there to bat.

Brief scores:

India 326/5 in 86 overs (Rohit Sharma 131, Ravindra Jadeja 110 not out, Sarfaraz Khan 62; Mark Wood 3-69, Tom Hartley 1-81) against England.

Source: IANS

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Mumbai, Feb 14 (SocialNews.XYZ) Bollywood actor Emraan Hashmi, who plays a producer in his upcoming webseries ‘Showtime’, has shared one thing that he dislikes about producers in the Hindi film industry.

The actor spoke to producer-director Karan Johar at the show’s trailer launch when KJo asked him about the one thing that he dislikes about his community of producers.

The actor shared that he doesn’t align with thought-process of a producer whose single point focus is the return on investment and not producing quality content.

Emraan Hashmi told KJo: “Barring you, this is for some of the producers I’ve worked with. I think some producers are purely driven by the commerce in films, and I think that's a bit of thing that doesn’t align with my thinking because they look at film only as a proposal and people, who work in the film, only as commodities.”

He further mentioned: “I’m a creative person, and by the way, I’m terrible at commerce, that's why I never became a producer. I’m driven by the emotions and passion in films. Any producer, who is passionate, I align with them , that's my concern with a producer.”

Created by Sumit Roy, ‘Showtime’, is co-directed by Mihir Desai and Archit Kumar and is produced by Karan Johar’s Dharmatic, the digital arm of Dharma Productions.

The show is set to drop on Disney+ Hotstar on March 8.

Source: IANS

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Los Angeles, Jan 30 (SocialNews.XYZ) Pop icon Britney Spears has apologised to Justin Timberlake for the claims she made in her book and said she loves her ex-boyfriend's new music.

The 42-year-old singer took to Instagram to say she is "deeply sorry" if she offended any of the people she cares about in her bombshell memoir ‘The Woman In Me’, reports Mirror.co.uk.

In the book, Britney accused Justin - whom she dated from 1999 until 2002 - of forcing her to get an abortion and also claimed he cheated on her multiple times.

She wrote: "I loved Justin so much. I always expected us to have a family together one day. He said we weren't ready to have a baby in our lives, that we were way too young.”

As per Mirror.co.uk, she also wrote he made her look like a "harlot who'd broken the heart of America's golden boy" when they broke up.

But on Sunday, Britney posted a clip of Justin from his recent appearance on ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’ to apologise for the claims and also praise Justin's two new songs, ‘Selfish’ and ‘Sanctified’.

Britney wrote: "I wanna apologise for some of the things I wrote about in my book. If I offended any of the people I genuinely care about I am deeply sorry.”

She added: "I also wanted to say I am in love with Justin Timberlake’s new song 'Selfish'. It is soo good and how come every time I see Justin and Jimmy together I laugh so hard ??? Ps 'Sanctified' is wow too."

Earlier this month, Justin appeared to have deleted or archived every single post from his account, and only started posting again two weeks ago. The 42-year-old had been using the social media platform up until the end of 2023, with his wife Jessica Biel also sharing posts of them to her own account.

Source: IANS

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Seoul, Jan 28 (SocialNews.XYZ) Days after Pyongyang test-fired new strategic cruise missiles from the west coast, North Korea has fired several cruise missiles from its east coast on Sunday, the South Korean military said.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the North's launch took place around 8 a.m. in waters off Shinpo Port, but did not elaborate, citing an ongoing analysis, Yonhap news agency reported.

"While strengthening our monitoring and vigilance, our military has been closely coordinating with the US to monitor additional signs of North Korea's provocations," the JCS said in a text message to reporters.

Experts said the Pulhwasal-3-31 appears to be a nuclear-capable cruise missile, considering that the number in its name is identical to that of the Hwasan-31, a tactical nuclear warhead that North Korea first unveiled in March 2023.

The North first test-fired the Hawsal-1 cruise missile in September 2021 and launched several Hwasal-1 and -2 cruise missiles presumed to be capable of carrying tactical nuclear weapons last year.

The launch of a cruise missile is not a direct violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions banning the North's use of ballistic missile technology. But it could pose a serious threat to South Korea's security as nuclear warheads can be mounted on such missiles.

North Korea has dialed up tensions on the Korean Peninsula with weapons tests and harsh rhetoric in an election year for South Korea and the United States.

North launched a solid-fuel hypersonic missile into the East Sea on Jan. 14 in its first missile firing this year.

Pyongyang also claimed it had tested an underwater nuclear attack drone in protest of the latest joint military drills among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan earlier this month.

Source: IANS

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New Delhi, Jan 10 (SocialNews.XYZ) Online food delivery platform Zomato on Wednesday introduced a new feature called "daily payouts" to support emerging restaurant partners.

Currently, the feature will be available for restaurant partners who receive 100 or fewer orders a month, according to the company.

"Our discussions with various restaurant partners highlighted the financial challenges smaller eateries face, using the traditional weekly payout system. This feature is designed to address this critical need for more frequent access to earnings," Zomato said in a blogpost.

The key features of daily payouts include -- no extra cost, improved cash flow, and flexibility in management.

The 'no extra cost' will allow you to switch from weekly to daily payouts without any additional fees; the 'improved cash flow' will let you do daily settlement of transactions, based on sales from three days prior; and the 'flexibility in management' will provide seamless switch between daily and weekly payouts through the Zomato Restaurant Partner App.

Interested restaurant partners can access the daily payout option through the Payout section of the Zomato Restaurant Partner App.

Meanwhile, Zomato has increased its mandatory platform fee to Rs 4 from Rs 3 per order across key markets. The new rates were effective from January 1.

New Year’s Eve saw Zomato temporarily increasing its platform fee as high as Rs 9 per order in certain markets.

Source: IANS

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Mumbai, Jan 6 (SocialNews.XYZ) Reigning champions Jaipur Pink Panthers continued their rich vein of form as they rode on skipper Arjun Deshwal’s Super 10 to defeat U Mumba 41-31 in the Pro Kabaddi League Season 10 match here on Saturday.

Deshwal (17 raid points), Ankush (6 tackle points) and U Mumba’s Guman Singh (13 raid points) were the star performers of the game at the DOME by NSCI in Mumbai.

U Mumba, the home side, struggled to get going in the first half and relied heavily on Guman’s superb raids. He scored 10 of U Mumba’s 13 points in the first 20 minutes as the defence managed just 1 tackle point.

Jaipur Pink Panthers were also shaky in defence but their 3-man raiding unit of Arjun, V Ajith and Bhavani Rajput came to their rescue.

A multi-point raid from Deshwal produced the first All-Out of the game as Jaipur Pink Panthers took a 12-5 lead in the 7th minute.

A few minutes later, Ajith struck, and Jaipur Pink Panthers had twice as many points as their opponents did at 18-9.

Guman, U Mumba’s main hope, brought up his Super 10 in the 16th minute and also crossed the 300 raid points mark, but his side continued to trail by nine points at the break.

Yet another multi-point raid from Deshwal early in the second half saw him reach a Super 10 and become the first raider to cross 100 raid points this season. It took Jaipur Pink Panthers eight minutes into the second half to inflict an All-Out as Arjun’s two-point raid and Reza Mirbagheri’s tackle put them in the driver’s seat. They led 33-19 with 12 minutes left on the clock.

U Mumba mounted a late fightback, courtesy of big raids from Jai Bhagwan and Alireza Mirzaeian, but it was too little too late for them to catch up to Jaipur Pink Panthers' ever-increasing lead. Ankush, last season’s best defender, completed his High 5 as Jaipur Pink Panthers handed U Mumba their first loss of their home leg.

Source: IANS

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Mumbai, Jan 1 (SocialNews.XYZ) Actress Rakul Preet Singh and actor-producer Jackky Bhagnani are set to tie the knot in February. The couple will get married in Goa in an intimate ceremony.

The couple made it official on Instagram back in October 2021. Earlier this year, Jackky Bhagnani shared a reel featuring the moments he and Rakul have spent together so far, wishing the actress on her birthday. The reel features glimpses of their vacation diaries, dinner dates, red carpet walks as well as on stage performances.

Jackky also penned a special note for his girlfriend, as he wrote: "On your special day, I want to express my admiration for the one who always leaves me in awe. With you, every day feels like an incredible journey, and there's never a dull moment.”

He further mentioned: “You're more than just my companion; you're my confidant, my partner-in-crime, and the one who fills my life with love and laughter. On your big day, I wish you everything you have ever dreamt of, and more. May all your dreams come true because you only and only deserve the absolute best in life. Happy Birthday to the one who makes every day extraordinary.”

As per media reports, both Rakul and Jackky are currently enjoying their time on vacation, and plan to relax a bit before going all out in terms of festivities. An official announcement from the couple with regards to their wedding plans is awaited.

Source: IANS

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Los Angeles, Dec 30 (SocialNews.XYZ) Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger has shared a photo on his Instagram posing with his ‘Twins’ co-star Danny DeVito, 79, and DeVito's daughter Lucy DeVito, 40, on the set of their Broadway play ‘I Need That’.

"My brother! It was fantastic to see Danny on Broadway in ‘I Need That’," Schwarzenegger wrote in a caption to the photo, reports People magazine.

Arnold further mentioned: “He and Lucy and everybody involved kept the audience entertained, laughing and loving every minute - one of the best plays I’ve ever seen, a true spectacle with heart!! I can’t wait to work together again.”

Schwarzenegger and DeVito famously co-starred in 1988's ‘Twins’, a buddy comedy that centred around the pair as genetically engineered fraternal twins separated at birth.

The movie grossed $111 million at the domestic box office upon its release and was the fifth highest-grossing film released that year, per Box Office Mojo.

As per People, the pair have a forthcoming sequel to the movie titled ‘Triplets’ in the works, though the project was delayed after the original movie's director Ivan Reitman died at 75 in February 2022. Reitman was set to return for the sequel, which would involve the brothers discovering they are triplets.

Eddie Murphy was reportedly attached to join the sequel's cast, with Tracy Morgan more recently reportedly set to take the new part.

In May, Schwarzenegger told The Hollywood Reporter that the Twins sequel project was no longer happening and that Reitman's son Jason Reitman "literally stopped the project when his father died.”

At the time, the movie star and former California governor said he and DeVito were developing a separate project instead, telling the outlet that his two-time c-ostar (they also collaborated with Ivan Reitman on 1994's ‘Junior’) is, "so much fun to work with and so talented."

Source: IANS

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Washington, Dec 10 (SocialNews.XYZ) A former US defense official suggested in a recent article that the October 7 terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel may not have taken place on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s birthday, October 7, by sheer coincidence.

It constituted “a major diversion of Western attention and resources from Russia’s war on Ukraine that Putin surely welcomes,” Joseph Bosco, the former official wrote in an opinion piece in The Hill titled “Hamas’s Oct. 7 birthday gift to Putin”. He went on to warn lawmakers to pay “heed”.

This is not some conspiracy theory emanating from some online wingnuts. A European diplomat made exactly the same supposition to Politico just days after the attack “This was probably the best birthday gift for Putin. The attack against Israel will divide attention, given the natural US focus on Israel,” said the diplomat.

A group of Hamas leaders visited Moscow in November and met Putin, which may have buttressed authors of the birthday gift theory.

The US-led western support of Ukraine has enjoyed the unflinching backing of the American strategic community, which is watching warily the diversion of resources to Israel especially at times when American interest in Ukraine’s war is flagging specially among Republicans and Republican-leaning voters.

Many Republicans have questioned the open-ended plan of the Biden administration, which, in the president’s words, has been encapsulated in five words: “As long as it takes.”

The US strategic community is completely aligned with the Biden administration’s resolve to foil Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, seeing it as a threat not only to Ukraine but to Europe at large and, indeed, the world.

"Continued US support for Ukraine in this war is both the morally correct position and serves key national interests of the United States,” Steven Pifer, an affiliate of Stanford’s Center for International Security and Cooperation and a retired foreign service officer, wrote for the Atlantic Council, a leading US think tank, last year.

But as the war has dragged, now close to two years, American interest has been flagging, according to multiple polls. Although the strategic community remains committed to stopping Putin, there is talk now of drawing up a timeline for US support for Ukraine, especially after the notable failure of the Ukrainian counteroffensive.

Russia remains in control of an estimated 17 per cent of Ukraine; Kyiv took back only 200 square miles of its territory the whole year, including the period of the much delayed counteroffensive starting in June.

Michael E O’Hanlon, a security expert with the Strobe Talbott Center for Security, strategy and Technology, has called for a Plan B at the end of the 18 more months of the present US strategy.

“The United States should fund the Ukraine effort at Biden’s requested level of just over $60 billion and provide virtually all the types of weaponry Ukraine may request over the next 18 months, in the hope that Ukraine can break the stalemate sometime in 2024 or early 2025,” he wrote in a recent article.

“But by the winter/spring of 2025, a newly elected American president should ask his or her national security team to conduct a thorough review of Ukraine policy -- and if the war still remains largely stalemated at that point, the United States should seriously consider a Plan B while encouraging its allies and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine to do the same.”

Source: IANS

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Mumbai, Nov 22 (SocialNews.XYZ) Bollywood superstar Salman Khan, who is receiving a lot of positive response to his recently released film ‘Tiger 3’, said that while milestones may be special but the feeling of creating characters that stay in the hearts of audiences forever is truly unparalleled.

The film, which takes the spy-universe arc further, also stars Katrina Kaif, and Emraan Hashmi as the antagonistic force to Salman’s titular character of ‘Tiger 3’.

The film has so far collected Rs 400 crore at the global box-office, as per the makers

Reacting to the appreciation by the audience for the film, Salman said in a statement: “It is quite amazing that two of my most loved characters Prem and Tiger have entertained people so much on Diwali. As an actor, I have only looked to create memories for people through my brand of cinema and I’m fortunate that they have loved me back.”

The actor added: “Milestones are always special but what’s even more amazing is creating characters that stay in the hearts of audiences forever. I’m hoping people will always cherish Prem and Tiger equally because for me both these characters have given me unanimous appreciation. So, I can’t choose one over the other. I’m glad Prem and Tiger have made Diwali special for families and audiences across all age groups.”

‘Tiger 3’ is produced by Aditya Chopra of YRF and directed by Maneesh Sharma.

The film is currently playing in cinemas.

Source: IANS

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Nairobi, Nov 20 (SocialNews.XYZ) The third session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment, concluded here on Monday, with agreement on a starting point for negotiations at the fourth session. More than 1,900 delegates participated in the session, representing 161 members, including the European Union and over 318 observer organizations -- UN entities, intergovernmental organizations, and non-governmental organizations.

Over the course of negotiations, members discussed the Chair’s zero draft, went through a compilation of text to include all views of members, prepared a validated, co-facilitator merged text, and found a way forward on issues not discussed as yet. “I am encouraged by the forward motion of the negotiations towards a treaty that ends plastic pollution. I thank the Chair, Ambassador Meza-Cuadra, and the members of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for their determination to get to the finish line and put us on course for a world where plastic pollution is a problem of the past,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). “Continue to be ambitious, innovative, inclusive, and bold. And use these negotiations to hone a sharp and effective instrument that we can use to carve out a better future, free from plastic pollution.”

Officially closing the session, outgoing Chair of the INC, Gustavo Adolfo Meza-Cuadra Velasquez thanked the government of Kenya and the UN in Nairobi for hosting the session, as well as the member states, observers, co-facilitators and support staff of the discussions. “These past 10 days have been a significant step forward towards the achievement of our objective to develop an international legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution. But it has also recalled us that much remains to be done both in narrowing down our differences and in developing technical work to inform our negotiations,” he said.

“I am pleased to see that the Nairobi spirit of collaboration, compromise and commitment has been in full force during our session in the city that birthed the INC process. We saw this during our preparatory meeting on November 11, which set the stage for the positive momentum we achieved at this session, and in the constructive and cooperative manner in which you all engaged throughout this week,” said Jyoti Mathur-Filipp, Executive Secretary of the INC Secretariat.

Source: IANS

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Ahmedabad, Nov 19 (SocialNews.XYZ) Travis Head gets emotional after playing an 'unexpected' century as Australia beat India by six wickets in the final of the ICC ODI World Cup 2023, at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Head slammed a match-winning 120-ball 137 in Australia's successful chase of 241 against India.

He also became only the third Australian batter after Ricky Ponting (in 2003) and Adam Gilchrist (in 2007) to hit a hundred at the biggest of all stages, a World Cup final.

"Never expected this, not in a million years, truly an exceptional day. A lot better than sitting on the couch at home. Really glad to contribute," Travis Head said after winning the Player of the Match award in the big final.

Head added a 192-run partnership with Marnus Labuschagne for the fourth wicket after early reduced them to 47/3. Labuschagne on the other hand played a solid knock of 58 off 110 deliveries making sure one end was blocked and India bowlers did not make any further inroads.

"Really glad to contribute, the first twenty balls I played gave me a lot of confidence and yea I was able to carry through. The way Mitch Marsh came out and took the game on, he set the tone. That was the energy we wanted and we knew the wicket may get tough.

"It was a great decision to bowl first after winning the toss. I felt the wicket got better as the day went on. It took a little bit of spin, it paid dividends. Nice to be a part of it, nice to play a role in all of that," Head added.

Head also took a game-changing catch as he ended Rohit Sharma's innings of 47 runs with a sensational diving effort.

Expressing delight at the elite list that he was able to join with the heroes in the final, Head said, "Definitely third on that list, it's a nice one to join, nice to be here and nice to contribute. I'll just tell the boys that I'm looking forward to the reunion."

Source: IANS

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Sydney, Nov 15 (SocialNews.XYZ) Waiting for two minutes or longer to clamp the umbilical cord of a premature baby soon after birth could help reduce the risk of death by more than half, compared with immediately clamping the umbilical cord, or waiting a shorter time before doing so, according to two new studies published in the journal The Lancet.

For the new findings more than 100 international researchers examined clinical trial data and outcomes of thousands of premature babies, detailed in over 60 studies involving more than 9,000 babies.

Delaying clamping of the umbilical cord allows blood to flow from the placenta to the baby whilst the baby’s lungs fill with air. This is thought to help ease the transition to breathing in the infant.

“Worldwide, almost 13 million babies are born prematurely each year and, sadly, close to 1 million die shortly after birth. Our new findings are the best evidence to date that waiting to clamp the umbilical cord can help save the lives of some premature babies,” said Dr Anna Lene Seidler at the NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney in Australia.

Delayed cord clamping is now recommended routine practice for babies born at full term. However, whilst previous research showed potential benefit for premature babies, best practice for this vulnerable group remained uncertain. Until recently, clinicians generally cut the cord of preterm babies immediately so urgent medical care could be given.

The first paper using data from 3,292 infants across 20 studies found delayed clamping of the umbilical cord, clamped 30 seconds or more after birth, likely reduced the risk of death in premature babies by a third compared to those whose umbilical cord was clamped immediately after birth.

In a subgroup of premature babies where infants were born before 32 weeks of pregnancy, 44.9 per cent of the babies with immediate cord clamping experienced hypothermia after birth, compared to 51.2 per cent of those with delayed clamping. The average difference in temperature between the deferred clamping group and the immediate clamping group was -0.13 °C.

The second paper analysed data from 47 clinical trials, which involved 6,094 babies, and found waiting at least two minutes before clamping the cord of a premature baby may reduce the risk of death compared with waiting less time to clamp the cord.

In comparing different timings, waiting two or more minutes to clamp the cord had a 91 percent probability of being the best treatment to prevent death shortly after birth.

Immediate clamping had a very low (below 1 per cent) probability of being the best treatment for preventing death.

However, the researchers highlight situations where more research is needed on cord clamping. This includes when there are babies requiring immediate resuscitation, unless the hospital is able to provide safe initial breathing help with the cord intact, or in a low-income setting with limited medical resources.

Source: IANS

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Mumbai, Nov 9 (SocialNews.XYZ) In the upcoming episode of ‘Bigg Boss 17’, Ankita Lokhande and KhanZaadi among many other housemates will be channeling their inner Manjulika to take out other housemates from the “power ki race”.

In the promo shared by the channel on Instagram, a video shows Ankita dressed up in the look of the character of Manjulika from the film ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa’. 

Bigg Boss’s voice is heard saying: “Aaj is mohalle main ek bhatakti aatma hai. Jin teen sadasya ko aap power ki race se baahar nikaalna chahati hai un par gulaal lagaye.”

Ankita is seen dancing and then says Aishwarya abhi power lene ke kaabil nahi hai. 

The actress then says: “Mannara ke paas power aa bhi jaati hai toh uska dimaag waale hi uska use karengay.” 

To which, Mannara replies: “Mere paas dimaag hai.”

Source: IANS

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Los Angeles, Nov 6 (SocialNews.XYZ) Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger has been caught kissing a woman amid his brewing romance with his girlfriend Heather Milligan.

The ‘Terminator: Dark Fate’ actor appeared to have packed on the PDA with an unidentified woman during a recent outing in California.

The 76-year-old actor on November 5 was spotted out and about with the seemingly much younger woman in Santa Monica. In pictures making their rounds online, he appeared to have kissed the woman as she placed one of her hands on his shoulder. 

At that time, the two were standing next to his black car before they went separate ways, reports aceshowbiz.com,

While actor was later seen getting into the car and driving away, the woman was photographed riding a black bike. In one of the photos, the woman could be seen flashing a big smile to photographers. 

She was pictured wearing a long-sleeved black top, a pair of long leopard pattern pants, black sunglasses, matching sneakers, a matching backpack and wrist watch. Her long blonde hair was let loose and parted in the middle.

At one point during their morning outing, Arnold and the unidentified woman were spotted leaving a building while they were walking next to each other. 

The former California's 38th governor from 2003 to 2011, who sported a short-sleeved dark gray tee and a pair of long black sweatpants, was holding what appeared to be a cup of drink in one of his hands while she was carrying a book.

The new sighting came amid Arnold's romance with his longtime girlfriend Heather. He met the Los Angeles-based physical therapist for the first time back in 2012. About their first meeting, he recalled his conversation with his surgeon to PEOPLE, "I said, 'I got to go do this movie, and I bring a lot of punches and I have fights with (Sylvester Stallone) and I want to have my act together.' "

"And so he says, 'There's only one (person), it's Heather, any athlete, I always send them to her, because she's the only one that really knows what they’re talking about.' So I went to her, and then after my therapy was finished, after I was finished with the movie, I called her back and took her out for lunch to say thank you. And then one thing led to the next," he explained.

The star and 48-year-old Heather have been together for more than ten years. He was previously married to Maria Shriver from 1986 to 2021. She filed for divorce in 2011. The former couple shares Katherine, Christina, Patrick and Christopher together.

Source: IANS

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New Delhi, November 1 (SocialNews.XYZ) The seventh edition of the Kerala Literature Festival (KLF) is all set to begin from 11–14 January, 2024 on the beaches of Kozhikode. With a half-million-footfall, KLF has become Asia’s Largest Literature Festival today.

Organised by DC Kizhakemuri Foundation and co-promoted by DC Books, KLF 2024 will feature Nobel laureates, Booker Prize winners, literary luminaries, media personalities, and celebrities. Renowned Writer, Prof. K. Satchidanandan is the Festival Director.

Kozhikode, the venue of choice for the Kerala Literature Festival was named the 'City of Literature' by the Unesco Creative Cities Network (UCCN), making it the first such city in India. Spanning four days, in six venues at the Kozhikode beach, the festival will feature 400+ global speakers and will be inaugurated by the state Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan.

This edition of KLF will feature Turkey as the guest country of honor, featuring its literature and art forms. The UK, Wales, Spain, Japan, USA, Malaysia, Spain, and France will be the other participating countries. 

The initial list of speakers includes Arundhati Roy, Mallika Sarabhai, Shashi Tharoor, Piyush Pandey, Prahlad Kakkar, William Dalrymple, Gurucharan Das, Mani Shankar Aiyer, Catherine Ann Jones, Monika Halan, Durjoy Dutta, Manu S Pillai. The Festival will also host concerts by TM Krishna and Vikku Vinayakram; Surbahar and Sitar concert by Padmabhushan Pandit Budhaditya Mukherjee.

Source: IANS

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Mumbai, Oct 25 (SocialNews.XYZ) Actor Kartik Aaryan recently bumped into Afghanistan Cricket Team’s spinner Rashid Khan at a gym recently which immediately gained the traction of both Bollywood, as well as cricket fans.

The cricketer posted the picture of their meet-up on Instagram where he wrote: "Great bumping into you @kartikaaryan."

Standing side by side in the gym together, both the stars were seen smiling as Kartik Aaryan was just among the millions of cricket fans in India who celebrated Afghanistan’s victory over Pakistan.

The cricket match between Afghanistan and Pakistan happened on October 23, where the former beat the latter by a substantial margin. This victory led to joyous celebrations in Kabul, while at the same being a great disappointment for Islamabad.

Rashid Khan, along with the entire Afghanistan team, had dedicated this victory to both his country, as well as to the Afghans who are living outside of the country.

Rashid Khan was seen dancing with Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan to celebrate Afghanistan’s victory, something that greatly bothered the Pakistan team.

While Pakistan did not take this very well, in India the dance video became an internet sensation as fans expressed their best wishes to the cricketer as well as to his entire nation.

Kartik Aaryan, on the other hand, is running on a very hectic schedule as he has been busy preparing for his film ‘Chandu Champion’, which is directed by Kabir Khan. Before that, the ‘Freddy’ star was seen in the romance drama film ‘Satyaprem Ki Katha’.

Source: IANS

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Mumbai, Oct 21 (SocialNews.XYZ) Actor Ansh Duggal is all set to make his Bollywood debut with an entertaining romantic comedy ‘Nakhrewaalii’, and he is thrilled for this incredible journey, calling it a dream come true.

Jio Studios and Aanand L. Rai's production house, Colour Yellow Productions are all set for their latest project ‘Nakhrewaalii’ featuring Ansh in the lead role. Known for providing opportunities to emerging talent in the world of cinema, Colour Yellow Productions has chosen Ansh as the leading star of this exciting adventure. 

Expressing his excitement about the project, Ansh said: “I am absolutely thrilled and honoured to be making my acting debut with Anand sir and our director Rahul Shanklya.”

“It is truly a dream come true and I’m very much looking forward to this incredible journey. Today is the beginning of an exciting chapter in my life. With utmost gratitude, I’m ready to give it my all,” he added.

This introductory teaser promises to be a complete entertainer, offering a plethora of emotions that will strike a chord with audiences across India. A glimpse of the film's theme can be seen in the video, which is sure to pique your interest in this romantic comedy. 

Directed by Rahul Shanklya, the film went on the floors today. The movie will be produced by Jyoti Deshpande, Aanand L. Rai and Himanshu Sharma. 

This film also marks the second collaboration between Aanand L. Rai's Colour Yellow Productions and Jio Studios, following their recent announcement of the Marathi franchise ‘Jhimma 2’. 

Aanand Rai is known for projects like ‘Tanu Weds Manu’, ‘Raanjhanaa’, ‘Zero’, ‘Atrangi Re’, ‘Good Luck Jerry’ and ‘Raksha Bandhan’.

His last outing was the 2022 family drama ‘Raksha Bandhan’, starring Akshay Kumar, Bhumi Pednekar, Sadia Khateeb, Sahejmeen Kaur, Smrithi Srikanth and Deepika Khanna in the lead roles.

Source: IANS

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New Delhi, Oct 18 (SocialNews.XYZ) Actress Kriti Sanon, who is currently riding high on her big win at the 'National Awards', has opened up on her upcoming flick 'Ganapath', and shared how she was badly hurt while performing the action sequences in the movie.

On Tuesday, Kriti was bestowed with the National Award for the 'Best Actress' at the 69th National Awards held in New Delhi, for her performance in ‘Mimi’.

The actress was in the national capital on Wednesday for the promotion of 'Ganapath', along with the lead star Tiger Shroff. She looked gorgeous in a white short-sleeved dress, and completed the look with matching thigh high boots. 

Kriti left her short hair open, and opted for a minimal makeup look - glossy lips and kohl-rimmed eyes. 

Talking about her preparations for her role, Kriti said: "Nothing is really easy when you are doing it for the first time. I have never done action before this film. My first film was with Tiger, so I wished to do action films in life."

"My character Jassi uses nunchucks, which I don't think anyone has done here. So to learn that, you have to make it a part of your body, so I started learning nine months before the shoot. It was not easy. I had ripped and hurt myself alot on my head and elbow everywhere," said Kriti.

She further said: "But it's nice to be finally practicing until you really get it, and then you see it on the screen come alive. So I would really love to do a lot more action. We shot in Ladakh, where the oxygen level was so low. So doing action scenes there is actually tougher than even doing it normally anywhere. But it's all worth it."

The premise for ‘Ganapath’ is something very different from traditional Bollywood as it sees Hindi cinema step into the realm of cyberpunk styled sci-fi films. The concept of a chosen one liberating people from an oppressor is an age-old story, though setting it in a dystopian ‘Blade Runner’ style feature with a bleak texture while retaining Hindi cinema’s colourful aesthetic is something new.

This concept and the trailer have generated a lot of excitement among fans, with both the action and the romantic aspect garnering much praise.

The movie also stars Amitabh Bachchan, and Elli AvrRam.

Directed by Vikas Bahl, ‘Ganapath’ will hit theatres on October 20, in multiple languages which include Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam.

Source: IANS

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New Delhi, Oct 9 (SocialNews.XYZ) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday inaugurated the country's largest construction and demolition (C&D) waste recycling plant at Jahangirpuri with a recycling capacity of 2000 tons.

It is the fourth of its kind, while the remaining three are at Ranikhera, Shastri Park and Bakkarwala.

"These four plants have a recycling capacity of 5,000 tonnes, which doesn't meet the requirements of 6,500 tonnes of debris produced daily. We have a plan to construct a new C&D plant at Okhla with a recycling capacity of 1000 tonnes, and the capacity of four plants will be increased slightly," Kejriwal said.

"Waste from construction and demolition will be recycled into tiles, bricks, and other products for reuse. In MCD, everyone now receives salaries on time, and corruption has decreased because of the honest governance of the AAP government," he added.

The Delhi Chief Minister further said that previously, employees "often didn't receive salaries for several months, and the MCD was notorious for corruption".

Kejriwal also appealed to Delhiites to ensure their participation in making the city clean and green.

The plant is based on one of the "most advanced technologies in the world and causes no air pollution".

It has zero discharge technology and a low sound level. The plant is based on green technology with 90-95 per cent water recycling and zero discharge of wastewater.

Source: IANS

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