Owner of ashram arrested for sexual harassment

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July 10, 2020

The owner of an ashram in Shukertal allegedly sexually harassed four children and forced them to work as laborers.

Swami Bhakti Bhushan Govind Maharaj was arrested when he was trying to escape from his ashram.

A case has been registered against him under IPC sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 377 (unnatural offenses), 504 ( intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), and sections 5/6 of the Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences Act, said Additional District Magistrate Amit Kumar.

He has denied all the charges against him claiming that he was falsely implicated in this case.

A team from the childcare helpline and the police rescued 8 children followed by another two on 7 July, 2020.

The children were from Tripura, Mizoram, and Assam and aged between 7 to 10 years.

A medical examination confirmed that four of the children were sexually harassed.

When the district authorities informed the parents of the victims about the alleged sexual harassment by the ashram’s owner, they claimed that he even forced them to lay bricks as part of manual labor.

Source: PTI

Gujarat’s Morbi looks to conquer China’s toy market the ‘Atmanirbhar’ way

By

Vaibavi Jayakumar

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July 10, 2020

In response to Prime Minister Modi’s call for an ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’, over 150 firms in Morbi, Gujarat, have come together to create local products that have been imported from China so far. This province is a hub for ceramic tiles and the famous Ajanta clocks, and is now aspiring to conquer China’s toy market. The electronic and clock manufacturers in the town are in talks with firms that source parts or finished products from China for the Indian market.

The manufacturers also believe that more than 25000 skilled laborers will be given employment because of this and that with the necessary infrastructure, they would be equipped enough to replace the Chinese market.

The MD of the world’s largest wall-clock maker- Ajanta-Oreva Group, Jaysukh Patel, said that due to the decrease in demands since the Covid-19 outbreak, Morbi has been operating at barely 20% capacity. He added that they will be engaging with toy and gift articles makers and also consumer durable firms such as Hitachi, Samsung, and LG for new business. He also affirmed that the replacements will be cost-efficient, and of better quality.

Morbi is a primary industrial hub in Gujarat and over 80% of India’s vitrified ceramic tiles come from this place. China is the biggest exporter of ceramic products in Asia to Europe, the United States, and other Western countries. Now that other world countries are at loggerheads with China, it is believed that they will now look to Indian tile manufacturers for their imports.

This weird shipping address on a parcel caused a laughing riot on the internet today

By

Vaibavi Jayakumar

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July 10, 2020

The shipping address of a parcel shipped by the mailing company ‘Shoptimize’ had the internet in splits. It denoted an address in Rajasthan, but said, “Mandir ke samne aate hi phone laaga lena mein aa jaunga” (translates to call me after you reach the temple I will be there). This was posted by the company’s CEO Mangesh Panditrao, and left netizens crying with laughter, and immediately became viral. In a subsequent tweet, CEO Panditrao explained that it was “just another day in the life of logistics”.

E-commerce companies usually request for the landmarks from the customers to be able to make the delivery hassle-free. This person, in particular, was trying to make the delivery person’s life even easier, by requesting them to call him once they reached the landmark, so he could pick it up by himself.

https://twitter.com/irohan_gupta/status/1280830826809380864

This immediately sparked comments like “what’s the point of address when the shipping will be cancelled” and “just find the landlord and hand it over” were spotted on parcels in India. A lot of the Twitterati also stated other similar incidents, primarily in case of parcels delivered by the Indian Postal Service.

Spotify has stopped working for many users across the world

By

Preetika Parashuraman

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July 10, 2020

Spotify users complain that the music streaming app kept crashing.

There seems to be a problem in Facebook’s software developer kit for iOS which is usually responsible for letting people login to other apps using their Facebook accounts.

The apps are crashing because when they launch they are trying to reach Facebook’s servers to authenticate any logins, even if the user isn’t logging in with their Facebook account.

The company says that uninstalling and installing it back would not work.

Some have tried to launch the app in airplane mode with WiFi off. However, the app crashes again when it is turned off.

The underlying services of these apps are still working. Users can play Spotify music by visiting its website using a web browser rather than the app.

Users say that it works fine in Android versions of the app.

The surge in complaints centered in western Europe.

The complaints started increasing the same day Juice World’s new posthumous album got released. Many users say that due to overwhelming interest, the app might have crashed. However, there is no confirmation on this.

Along with Spotify, other apps such as Tinder and Pinterest are crashing for users across the globe.

Retired US Marine garners praise after ‘catching’ a falling child from a burning building

By

Vaibavi Jayakumar

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July 10, 2020

Philip Blanks, a retired US marine won hearts all over the world after he rescued a falling child from a burning building. An apartment in Phoenix, Arizona, had gotten caught on fire, and the kid had jumped from the balcony of the blazing building. Blanks, who had been in the complex to visit a friend for an early-morning workout, when he had heard screaming.

Without hesitation, this former high school football player dove to catch the child who had dropped from the third floor, who, he said, was “twirling like a helicopter” as he fell.

“People were screaming ‘there are kids up there’ and to throw the kids down,” Blanks said. “I saw another guy was standing there ready to catch the boy, but he didn’t look like he was going to do it, so I stepped in front of him. The way I caught him, I fell on my side, and of course damaged his foot, but the most important thing is that his head was safe.”

This was caught on tape by a bystander, and became viral on social media, garnering praise for Blanks. The kid, Jameson, 3, was apparently thrown from the balcony by his mother in an attempt to save him from the fire. His sister Roxxie was saved by the rescue force, but sadly, their mother didn’t make it out of the fire.

Monitor lizard spotted in Delhi goes viral; Adds to the list of bizarre events in 2020

By

Vaibavi Jayakumar

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July 10, 2020

2020 has been the most eventful year thus far, with the pandemic and various other unusual spottings. In the light of this, a monitor lizard was recently spotted in the Chhatarpur area in Delhi. This picture of the lizard, which was shared by IPS officer HGS Dhaliwal, quickly became viral, and garnered close to 4.9k likes and more than 1,000 reshares on Twitter. Many have even termed this house the ‘Jurassic Niwas’, amongst other comments.

Some people even suggested that this could possibly be someone’s pet, after an ostrich spotting was posted shortly after the lizard’s picture started trending.

Definitely someone's pet like this guy at Firozshah Road pic.twitter.com/ikkXStERxF

— Lion A.K.A Sher (@Terriiblr) July 9, 2020

Earlier this week, a video of a monitor lizard bravely confronting and trying to fend off a relentless attack from two dogs had gone viral. The incident happened in Pauri district in Uttarakhand. The confrontation lasted for about three minutes after which the people filming the video drove the dogs away. Monitor lizards have long necks and powerful tails. These are generally carnivorous and eat eggs, smaller reptiles, birds, insects, and fish among other things. The carnivorous creatures are native to Africa, Asia and Oceania but are considered to be non-poisonous.

Such wildlife spotting pictures have been on the rounds ever since the beginning of the lockdown, and are giving people cold chills during this ‘staying home period’.

PM Modi dedicates Asia’s largest solar project to the nation

By

Preetika Parashuraman

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July 10, 2020

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a massive 750 megawatt (MW) solar power plant in Madhya Pradesh.

He highlighted that this is testament to India’s self-reliant approach.

Union Power Minister RK Singh said that Chinese firms have been dumping cheap solar equipment into India at a meeting on 4 July, 2020. On the same day, the centre announced India would no longer import power equipment from China and Pakistan amid tension along the Line of Actual Control.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation has a vast urban train network that highly depends on reliable electricity.

It will be the project’s first customer in Rewa of north-east Madhya Pradesh.

An amount of ₹4,500 crore was invested to build it.

Madhya Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel from Lucknow and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan from Bhopal were virtually present at the launch of the solar-project.

The project has three solar power generating units of 250 MW each on 500 hectare, taking the total output to 750 MW on 1,500 hectare.

Madhya Pradesh will get 76% electricity from the Rewa solar plant and 24% to Delhi Metro.

“We must work towards reducing our import dependency on solar panels and related equipment. We need to speed up our production capacity of solar modules… and solar batteries should be made in India. We need to speed up all work in these areas,” PM Modi said at the virtual launch of the project.

UN chief Antonio Guterres praised India as a “good example” of pursuing clean energy.

Brazil ban Amazon fires to placate investors

By

Preetika Parashuraman

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July 10, 2020

Deforestation in Amazon has hit the roof in the last couple of years under the government of Jair Bolsanaro who recently was tested positive for COVID-19.

Facing backlash over the brazen environmental destruction, the Jair Bolsanaro government has put forward a four-month ban on fires in the Amazon and Pantanal regions.

The Environment Ministry will draft the decree.

In 2019, the government banned fires for 60 days followed by another 60 days.

The government has been receiving criticism from international investors urging to take strict action against the deteriorating conditions of Amazon forest.

In response to the criticism, they hope to use the moratorium to prove that they are against the destruction of the environment.

On Tuesday, a group of companies such as pulp maker Suzano SA, meatpacker Marfrig Global Foods SA, and agribusiness giant Cargill Inc. expressed that the negative perceptions are damaging the name of their business prospects via a letter which was sent to the authorities.

Environment Minister Ricardo Salles urged Bolsonaro to take advantage of global leaders’ Covid-19 blinders to simplify regulations.

In early June, Amazon Environmental Research Institute, known as Ipam, warned that an area 11 times the size of New York City could be incinerated in the dry season.

National Institute for Space Research data showed that the first month of the dry season, fires in this biome rose to a 13-year high.

In Pantanal, the world’s largest wetland area, the number of fires in June this year is more than double of those recorded last year.

Source: Bloomberg

India makes it clear to China: Invites Australia to take part in the Malabar exercise

By

Vaibavi Jayakumar

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July 10, 2020

The Indian government is to invite Australia to take part in the Malabar Naval exercise an exercise that has so far included just Japan and the U.S. This has been done despite the possibility of facing strong objections from China. This decision comes after the recent escalation of border tensions with China, and will be the first time that the Quad – which is the term denoting these regional members – are convening for a military drill. A formal invitation is expected to be extended from India’s side to the Australian government next week, following final government clearance and consultations with the U.S. and Japan.

The Quad was revived in 2017, which was formed in 2004 in the aftermath of tsunami, to help the nations in the Indo-Pacific region combat its after-effects.

“The timing of India potentially letting Australia into Malabar would be especially significant at this juncture,” said Derek Grossman, a researcher at the Washington-based RAND Corporation who worked in the U.S. intelligence community for more than a decade. “It would send a significant message to China that the Quad — U.S., Australia, Japan, and India — are de facto conducting joint naval exercises, even if not technically conducted under the auspices of a Quad event.”

In a video conference between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australian PM Scott Morrison in June, the long-pending Mutual Logistics Support Agreement was signed and also elevated their partnership to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

Source: Economic Times

You can now speak to Alexa without pressing the blue button

By

The Commune

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July 10, 2020

A new Amazon feature now lets you go hands-free in the Alexa app. Whether you are on the go, or at home but not near to your Amazon Echo, you can still access Alexa on your speaker with just your voice.

Users of the Alexa Companion App on iOS and Android are in for a different experience as Amazon is making a small change to the app and as a result. Now, the user is not required to tap the blue Alexa button on the screen anymore to say a voice command.

However, the new hands-free feature will work only if the user launches the app and continuously keeps it open on their phone, the Verge reported. iOS users will only be able to use Alexa on their iPhone after unlocking and launching it first.

Users who want to use Alexa as a voice assistant, can opt for Amazon’s co-branded “Alexa-Built In” smartphones where partners it with Android manufacturers like OnePlus, Motorola, and Sony.

On Windows computers, Alexa has been hands-free since last year. Amazon’s Music App has also had a hands-free mode since 2017, allowing the user to ask Alexa to play music with their voice.

Source: ANI, Verge

The Commune

Owner of ashram arrested for sexual harassment

Gujarat’s Morbi looks to conquer China’s toy market the ‘Atmanirbhar’ way

This weird shipping address on a parcel caused a laughing riot on the internet today

Spotify has stopped working for many users across the world

Retired US Marine garners praise after ‘catching’ a falling child from a burning building

Monitor lizard spotted in Delhi goes viral; Adds to the list of bizarre events in 2020

PM Modi dedicates Asia’s largest solar project to the nation

Brazil ban Amazon fires to placate investors

India makes it clear to China: Invites Australia to take part in the Malabar exercise

You can now speak to Alexa without pressing the blue button

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