Google faces protests over censored China search engine 'Project Dragonfly'

Several Google employees citing a lack of corporate transparency in the wake of the censored search engine project.

 

International News: Google's offices in the US, UK, Canada, India, Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Sweden, Switzerland, and Denmark witnessed renewed protests by human rights groups over its plan to re-enter China through a censored search application code-named "Project Dragonfly".
The demonstrations were organised by a coalition of Chinese, Tibetan, Uighur, and human rights groups outside the tech giant's offices. The Tibetan advocacy groups that were protesting included Free Tibet and the International Tibet Network.
"They fear that a censored search engine would lead to further oppression of the Tibetans, as filtered searches would erase terms such as 'Tibet' and 'Tiananmen Square' in line with the official narrative of the Chinese Communist Party," the Business Insider reported late on Friday.
The same concerns apply to the Chinese citizens, including other oppressed minorities such as Uighur Muslims and Southern Mongolian people, the report added.
The Internet giant designed a censored version for China search engine to blacklist information about human rights, democracy, peaceful protest, and religion in accordance with strict rules on censorship in the country that are enforced by its Communist Party government.

↓ Read the full news here ↓

Google shuts down Project Dragonfly

Paramount, the movie studio behind The Godfather, is fighting for its life

After decades of nearly slapstick mismanagement - spinning off TV and missing the internet - the studio behind The Godfather is fighting for its life.

 

International News: It was a legendary Hollywood battle, one filled with so much back-stabbing and subterfuge that Vanity Fair likened it to a horror movie: “Wall Street as directed by Hitchcock."
For months starting in the fall of 1993, two media titans, Sumner M Redstone and Barry Diller, fought each other for what was then the entertainment industry's ultimate prize: Paramount Pictures, the 62-acre studio behind classic films like The Godfather and Chinatown and contemporary blockbusters like Top Gun and Beverly Hills Cop.
The home entertainment boom was showering Hollywood with cash. But Paramount was more than a money machine. Legacy studios like Paramount — founded in the 1910s, operating sumptuous sound-stage complexes and controlling vast film libraries — rarely came up for sale. Owning one made you a permanent power player, a certified member of the cultural elite.
With a bid of $9.75 billion, or $17 billion in today’s money, Redstone’s Viacom took the spoils. “Don’t tell me I don’t buy you anything for your birthday,” he told his then-wife, Phyllis, as they celebrated with lawyers at the 21 Club in New York.
Flash forward 25 years, and Paramount once again finds itself at the center of a battle. Only this time the historic studio is not the belle of the Hollywood ball, not even remotely. Today, Paramount is fighting for its very existence.

↓ Read the full news here ↓

Paramount is fighting for its life

Ram Rahim get life imprisonment for journalist's murder 16 years ago

The Dera Sacha Sauda chief and the three others convicted last Friday in the case appeared before the court through video conferencing.

Latest News: A special CBI court in Panchkula Thursday sentenced self-styled godman Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and three others to life imprisonment for the murder of a journalist over 16 years ago.

The Dera Sacha Sauda chief and the three others convicted last Friday in the case appeared before the court through video conferencing.

On January 11, special CBI Court judge Jagdeep Singh had convicted the four men for the murder of journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati in 2002.

All the four were convicted under section 302 (murder) and 120 B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code. Ram Rahim appeared through video conferencing from Sunaria jail in Rohtak, where he is already serving a 20-year-sentence in a rape case.

The three others - Nirmal Singh, Kuldeep Singh and Krishan Lal - appeared from Ambala jail.

The journalist was killed in Haryana's Sirsa in October 2002 after his newspaper published an anonymous letter alleging sexual exploitation of women by the godman at the Dera headquarters in the same town.

Read full News here → Gurmeet Ram Rahim Convicted

Explainer: What is an interim budget? What FM Jaitley can and cannot do

This will be the last Budget of the current BJP-led NDA government before the 2019 General Elections.

Interim Budget 2019: With just a few months left before the Narendra Modi government formally completes its tenure, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will present NDA regime's first interim budget on February 1, 2019.

As this will be the ruling BJP government’s last budget before the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, here's an explanation of what an interim budget actually means.

What is an interim budget?

An interim budget is presented by a government which is going through a transition period or is in its last year in office ahead of the general elections. Traditionally, an incumbent government cannot present a full-fledged Union Budget in the election year. Instead, the Finance Minister presents an interim budget during the joint sitting of Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha in the Parliament, the livemint reported.

With an interim budget, the incumbent government seeks a vote of approval from the Parliament to draw money from the Consolidated Fund of India to meet its budget expenses before the end of the financial year, i.e; March 31st, 2019. It is a traditional practice which takes place in the run-up to every general election, according to an India Today report.

The full-fledged Union Budget is presented by the newly-elected government after Lok Sabha polls. In recent times, interim budgets have been instrumental for the incumbent governments to list out their achievements to draw voters' support.

Read full news here → Union Budget 2019

Budget 2019: FinMin starts 'Know Your Budget' series to educate people on Twitter

The 'Know Your Budget' series, which explains the importance of Union Budget and its making, would continue for about a fortnight.

Interim Budget 2019: Seeking to educate general public about the budgetary process, the finance ministry Tuesday started a series on Twitter providing definitions of various terms used in the budget.

The 'Know Your Budget' series, which explains the importance of Union Budget and its making, would continue for about a fortnight.

The government on February 1 would unveil the interim Budget for 2019-20 as the general elections are due in the next couple of months. The Union Budget 2019 for the next fiscal would be presented by the new government.

The series which began on the ministry's Twitter handle on Tuesday explained what is Union Budget and Vote on Account.

The Budget, the ministry explains, "is the most comprehensive report of the government's finances in which revenues from all sources and outlays for all activities are consolidated.

Read full news here → Budget 2019

From the civil war to 9/11: A brief history of national emergencies in United States

Here are some notable examples of national emergency declarations in the United States.

International News:  If President Donald Trump declares a national emergency to build a wall on the southern border of the US it would be an extraordinary action sure to draw lawsuits and consternation on both sides of the aisle.

Yet it would be far from the first time a president has declared a national emergency in support of domestic objectives. Among the most famous was President Abraham Lincoln’s decision in 1861 to suspend habeas corpus, citing the demands of the Civil War.

Since then, emergencies have been declared during crises large (the Great Depression, the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terror attacks) and small (remember the 1970 postal strike?).

Trump, eager to bypass a Congress that has refused to appropriate funds for the wall -- precipitating a partial government shutdown that has stretched into its 18th day -- is considering invoking emergency powers that allow the Department of Defense to shift military construction funds during a crisis.

Read the full timeline here → National Emergencies in US

Bluefin tuna sells for record $3 million in a Tokyo fish auction

The giant fish was purchased by Kiyoshi Kimura, who owns the Sushizanmai sushi restaurant chain.

International News:  A 613-pound bluefin tuna sold for more than $3 million at an action in Tokyo’s new fish market, setting a record, Reuters reports.

The giant fish was purchased by Kiyoshi Kimura, who owns the Sushizanmai sushi restaurant chain.

“The tuna looks so tasty and very fresh, but I think I did too much,” Kimura reportedly said outside the market after his purchase.

“I expected it would be between 30 million ($277,213) and 50 million yen ($462,022), or 60 million yen ($554,426) at the highest, but it ended up five times more,” he said, according to Reuters.

The restaurateur had previously held the record for “”top price paid for a single fish at the new year’s auction” for six consecutive years years until 2017, when another restaurateur bested him.

Read full news here → Bluefin Tuna Fish Auction

China passes law to have own version of Islam, make it conform to socialism

The other four religion of China are Taoism, Buddhism, Catholicism, and Protestantism.

International News: China has passed a law that seeks to "Sinicize" Islam within five years and might do that with other four religions in the country, according to the state media.

Under the all-powerful Chinese President Xi Jinping, China has heavily cracked down on religion, especially Islam practised by most Uighurs in the country's Xinjiang province who Beijing suspects of having separatist and extremist tendencies.

"China passed a five-year plan to Sinicize Islam at a meeting on Saturday with representatives from China's eight Islamic associations," said a report in the Global Times.

There are over 20 million Muslims in the country. Islam is one of the five officially recognised religions in atheist China. The other four are Taoism, Buddhism, Catholicism, and Protestantism.

The top officials in the Chinese government have often likened the religion to "mental disease" that "needs to be cured."

Read full news → Islam Law in China

Netflix pulls 'Patriot Act' episode criticizing Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince

In the episode, Minhaj blames Mohammed bin Salman for Khashoggi's murder, calling it the "biggest tragedy of the MBS era".

International News: Netflix has removed an episode of Hasan Minhaj-facilitated "Patriot Act" in Saudi Arabia, which included a section censuring the nation's Crown Prince Mohammed receptacle Salman's supposed association in columnist Jamal Khashoggi.
The scene won't air in Saudi Arabia however is accessible somewhere else.

In the scene, Minhaj points the finger at Mohammed receptacle Salman for Khashoggi's homicide, considering it the "greatest catastrophe of the MBS period", as per The Hollywood Reporter.

Also Read: Hasan Minhaj responds to Netflix pulling out 'Patriot Act' episode in Saudi Arabia

Minhaj likewise talked about how American organizations wanted to keep their business ties unblemished with Saudi Arabia.

Netflix, on its part said they got a legitimate demand from the Saudi government to expel the scene from its stage, however the scene stays accessible on YouTube.

"We firmly support creative opportunity and removed this scene just in Saudi Arabia after we had gotten a legitimate lawful request - and to comply to local law," Netflix US said in an statement.

↓↓↓ Watch the controversial episode here ↓↓↓

Patriot Act

China tries to indoctrinate 12 million Muslims through forced labor

China has defied an international outcry against the vast internment program in Xinjiang, which holds Muslims and forces them to renounce religious piety and pledge loyalty to the party.

International News: Muslim inmates from internment camps in far western China hunched over sewing machines, in row after row. They were among hundreds of thousands who had been detained and spent month after month renouncing their religious convictions. Now the government was showing them on television as models of repentance, earning good pay — and political salvation — as factory workers.

China’s ruling Communist Party has said in a surge of upbeat propaganda that a sprawling network of camps in the Xinjiang region is providing job training and putting detainees on production lines for their own good, offering an escape from poverty, backwardness and the temptations of radical Islam.

But mounting evidence suggests a system of forced labor is emerging from the camps, a development likely to intensify international condemnation of China’s drastic efforts to control and indoctrinate a Muslim ethnic minority population of more than 12 million in Xinjiang.

Accounts from the region, satellite images and previously unreported official documents indicate that growing numbers of detainees are being sent to new factories, built inside or near the camps, where inmates have little choice but to accept jobs and follow orders.


Read the full news here → China indoctrinate Muslims through forced labor

“Zero Tolerance For Tampering”, Responds Zomato To Viral Video Of Delivery Man

Zomato takes the delivery man off the platform in Madurai after a video of delivery breach goes viral.

BoomLive News: Food delivery company Zomato has reacted to a video circulated around the social media that showed one of its delivery agents eating food meant for a customer.

In the video, a man wearing a Zomato T-shirt is seen sitting on a bike and eating from two of the containers, repacking them, at that point placing them in a polythene sack and sealing it to make it appear as directly delivered from a restaurant.

The video was shared broadly on every one of the stages where natives condemned Zomato for its inability to keep a mind its conveyance work force.

But there were voices of sensitivity too for the conveyance man on social media. A few clients said that the man ought to be excused as he may have been hungry.

↓↓↓Watch the Full Video here ↓↓↓

Zomato Viral Video

Pakistan says Asia Bibi still in country, reports of her leaving fake news

Chief Justice Saqib Nisar overturned the conviction by the Lahore High Court that had sentenced Asia Bibi, a mother of four, to death in 2010.

International News: Pakistani authorities on Thursday rejected as "fake news" reports that a Christian woman who was released from a jail a week after the Supreme Court overturned her conviction and death sentence for blasphemy has left for the Netherlands.

Asia Bibi, 47, acquitted in the blasphemy case was released, amid nationwide anger, from the jail in Multan on Wednesday midnight.

It was reported in local media that she was taken to Noor Khan Airbase Rawalpindi, from where she would be shifted to the Netherlands.

Asia Bibi Case

"Asia Bibi was released from New Jail for Women Multan (some 350 kilometres from Lahore) on Wednesday midnight. She is taken to Noor Khan Airbase Rawalpindi where a chartered plane will take her to the Netherlands," 24News reported on Thursday.

Some other news channels also reported the release of Asia Bibi and her departure for the Netherlands.

However, Foreign Office spokesman Dr Mohammad Faisal dismissed reports that the mother of five had left the country.

Read full news on → Pakistan Blasphemy Case

JioPhone 2 sale today: Sale details, Paytm cashback offer & more

Priced at Rs 2,999, the JioPhone 2 is a 4G LTE-enabled feature phone that runs on KaiOS, which now supports popular social media and instant messaging apps

Technology News: Priced at Rs 2,999, the JioPhone 2 is a 4G LTE-enabled feature phone that runs on KaiOS, an operating system for feature phones that supports popular social media and instant messaging apps.

The phone will go on sale today at 12 noon on Jio online portal (jio.com). The sale is a part of Jio festive sale, which starts from today and continue until November 12. In partnership with Paytm, Jio is also offering a flat cashback of Rs 200, which brings down the effective cost of JioPhone 2 to Rs 2,799.

JioPhone 2 Features

The JioPhone 2 sports a 2.4-inch screen horizontal screen, making it convenient for watching multimedia content. It features a full QWERTY keyboard with 4-way navigation key and a dedicated key for voice commands. The phone boots KaiOS with support for apps such as Facebook, YouTube, Google Maps and WhatsApp.
The 4G LTE-enable feature phone supports VoLTE call feature, which allows voice calls using data packets. It also supports voice command feature, which allows hands free operations to make voice calls, messages, music and video playback, etc.

Get full Sale Details here: JioPhone 2 Sale

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News Source: BS & Business Standard

Chinese brands sold Rs 500 bn worth of smartphones in India in FY18

As per Counterpoint Research's latest analysis on the important Indian smartphone market, the premium smartphone segment (>Rs. 30,000) shipments reached an all-time third quarter peak

 

Business News: Chinese smartphone brands account for over Rs 500 billion worth of purchases in the Indian market in FY18 so far, double of the figure that they logged last year according to a Counterpoint report quoted by the Economic Times.

Indian smartphone market, the premium smartphone segment (>Rs. 30,000) shipments reached an all-time third-quarter peak during Q3 2018 as attractive offers pushed down the cost of ownership for a premium smartphone in India in the recent past.

Typical offers include trade-ins and buybacks, monthly 0% EMI (monthly instalment plans) and instant cashbacks.

These offers strongly appeal to large sections of the population, especially the youth, that are gaining their footing financially and growing into power smartphone users. Furthermore, the features in premium segment smartphones such as full-screen displays, biometric security, dual-cameras, faster processor and support for artificial intelligence have acted as a catalyst for consumers looking to upgrade from a mid-range smartphone.

Smartphone sales in India grew five per cent to an all-time high of 44 million units in the September quarter, driven by strong shipments by handset vendors ahead of the festive season, according to a report by Counterpoint Research.

In the reported quarter, smartphone segment contributed to half of the total handset market (88 million) with brands like Xiaomi, Samsung, Vivo and Oppo recording their individual highest-ever shipments in a single quarter, it said. The shipments grew 24 per cent on sequential basis.

↓↓↓ Read the full Report here ↓↓↓

Smartphone Sales in India

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News Source: BS & Business Standard

Aadhaar is Constitutional but conditions apply: Here's the citizen's verdict

Aadhaar is Constitutional but conditions apply: Here's the citizen's verdict

Multimedia News: The Supreme Court on September 26 ruled Aadhaar Constitutional, but did away with the requirement to have Aadhaar for opening bank accounts and getting a mobile connections.

However, the unique identity number would still be a must for filing I-T returns.

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News Source: BS & Business Standard

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How the the verdict change things for the common man?

Business Standard spoke to people in New Delhi to get their views on the judgment. After Supreme Court struck down Section 57 of the Aadhaar Act, which deals with private entities, and read down a few others, stating that they were unconstitutional.

↓↓↓ Here is the Video Link ↓↓↓

Aadhaar Verdict

Rafale deal very important to me as it is a strategic coalition: Emmanuel Macron

Rafale deal very important to me as it is a strategic coalition: Emmanuel Macron

Multimedia News: French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday cleared his stand on the controversy surrounding the Rafale deal, involving his country and India.

Speaking on the topic, President Macron said, "It was a government to government discussion.

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News Source: BS & Business Standard

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I just want to refer to what Prime Minister Narendra Modi very clearly said a few days ago. I was not in-charge at that time.

I know that we have very clear rules. This contract is part of a board of framework, which is a mediatory and defence coalition between India and France.

It is very important to me because it is a strategic coalition."

↓↓↓ Here is the Video Link ↓↓↓

Politics over Rafale Deal

Woman given triple talaq over phone in Barmer (Rajasthan)

Woman given triple talaq over phone in Barmer, seeks justice

Multimedia News: A woman was allegedly given triple talaq over phone 23 years after marriage in Rajasthan's Barmer.

She said that her husband demanded dowry from her and when she was unable to give the money, he thrashed her and finally gave her triple talaq.

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News Source: BS & Business Standard

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While telling her story, the victim said, "For many years my husband was beating me and giving me continuous pain. He was demanding money and I did not have so much money.

My father has also died so I could not arrange money. He ousted me from his home and gave me triple Talaq."

↓↓↓ Here is the Video Link ↓↓↓

Triple Talaq Case Rajasthan

'Cricket is a captain's game, coach must take back seat'

Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly said that a coach should take a back seat in cricket as it is a captain's game, unlike football.

Asia Games 2018: "I think the coach has to take a back seat in cricket. It's not like football. A lot of the current cricket coaches start to believe that I'm going to run a cricket team like a football team. Cricket is a captain's game and the coach has to take a back seat," the 46-year-old said at an event here on Monday.

Furthermore, Ganguly quipped that if given a chance, he would like to ask the Indian cricket team's head coach, Ravi Shastri who picks the team, him or Rohit Sharma.

Ganguly also said that he would like to ask the head coach how he changes the current Indian team to perform in a similar manner away from the subcontinent.

Reflecting on the nature of a team's head coach, Ganguly said that man management is one of the key qualities a coach should possess, adding that hardly few have those skills.

The former Indian skipper was in Symbiosis International (Deemed University) for the launch of his book- 'A Century is not Enough', co-authored with senior sports writer Gautam Bhattacharya.

↓↓↓ Read more on ↓↓↓

Sourav Ganguly on Cricket

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News Source: BS & Business Standard

Anushka Sharma applauds Virat Kohli as he receives Khel Ratna Award

Anushka Sharma applauds Virat Kohli as he receives Khel Ratna Award

Multimedia News: Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli on Tuesday presented with the country's highest sporting honour, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, by President of India Ram Nath Kovind.

During the award function, Virat was cheered by his wife Anushka Sharma.

In the video, Anushka can be seen cheering and clapping for the cricketer as he proudly walks to the president to receive his honor.

↓↓↓ Here is the Video Link ↓↓↓

National Sports Awards 2018

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News Source: BS & Business Standard

BJP calls statewide bandh to protest against killing of 2 students in Islampur

BJP calls statewide bandh to protest against killing of 2 students in Islampur.

Multimedia News: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) called a statewide shutdown in West Bengal to protest against the killing of two students in Islampur clash.

Protestors vandalised government buses and burnt tyres in Midnapore.

Drivers of government buses wore helmets in Cooch Behar after vandalising incidents.

Police in large numbers are deployed to control the situation.
Two students were allegedly killed in police firing in North Dinajpur's Islampur.

↓↓↓ Here is the Video Link ↓↓↓

BJP calls Statewide Bandh

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News Source: BS & Business Standard