PILOT PROGRAM LAUNCHES IN BRAMPTON

The City of Brampton, in partnership with Neuron Mobility, Bird Canada and Scooty Mobility, is launching Brampton’s first-ever E-scooter program. Up to 750 E-scooters will be available for public use across the City of Brampton. Users can approach a locked E-scooter, scan the QR code, download the app and follow the vendor’s instructions to unlock it and ride, connecting residents with another sustainable active transportation option. E-scooters can be used on roads with a speed limit of 50 km/h or less, bicycle lanes, and multi-use paths and will travel up to 20 km/h, with geo-fencing reducing maximum speed to 15 km/h in certain locations. They are not for use on sidewalks. If an E-scooter is taken into a designated no-riding zone, the vehicle shuts off smoothly and the user gets a notification that they should proceed to a permitted area.

The City of Brampton is prioritizing active transportation programs and plans in an effort to build more connected communities, creating a wholesome active transportation network integrated with complete streets.

In January 2021, the province began a five-year electric kick-scooter pilot project allowing municipalities to regulate the use of E-scooters. As an active transportation pillar, the E-scooter program will connect residents to communities, services and businesses throughout the downtown core and neighbourhoods across Brampton.

Active Transportation presents one of the greatest untapped opportunities for reducing single occupant vehicle trips, and for addressing a host of community design and public health issues. The E-scooter program is one way the City of Brampton is working to build a comprehensive Active Transportation Network.

The Active Transportation Master Plan (ATMP) provides the network plan, policies, and programs to support Brampton’s 2040 Vision for a mosaic of safe, integrated transportation choices and new modes, contributing to civic sustainability and emphasizing walking, cycling, and transit. The City will monitor citizen feedback through escooters@brampton.ca. For more information, visit www.brampton.ca/escooters.

Toronto Police Release Image Of Woman Wanted For Allegedly Attacking Another Woman On Ttc Subway Station

The Toronto Police Service is requesting the public’s assistance in identifying a woman wanted in an Assault investigation:

On Wednesday, December 28, 2022, at 2:40 p.m., police attended a call for an assault with a weapon at Bayview Subway Station in the Bayview Avenue and Sheppard Avenue West area.

It is reported that: a woman walking in the station was approached by the suspect the suspect became angry and struck the woman with a shopping bag the suspect then pulled the woman’s hair and punched her in the head The suspect is described as, 40 to 50 years old, with shoulder-length dark hair and glasses. She was seen wearing a dark grey, thigh-length winter coat, blue jeans and moccasin-style shoes. She was carrying a shopping bag with the word “California” printed all over it. Images of the suspect have been released. Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-3200, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), or at www.222tips.com.

PAKISTAN WARNS OF SERIOUS REPERCUSSIONS OF UK MINISTER BRAVERMAN’S REMARKS AGAINST PAKISTANI MEN

Condemning UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman’s “discriminatory and xenophobic” remarks against Pakistani men, the Pakistan Foreign Office (FO) has warned of the serious repercussions of such comments, media reports said.

The British minister has been accused of “peddling extremist far-right lies” about Pakistanis after she singled out British Pakistani men over concerns about grooming gangs as she accused authorities of turning a “blind eye” to signs of abuse involving young people, Geo News reported.

In a recent interview with Sky News, the UK minister said that the “systematic and institutional failure to safeguard the welfare of children when it comes to sexual abuse” was one of the biggest scandals in British history.

“What’s clear is that what we’ve seen is a practice whereby vulnerable white English girls, sometimes in care, sometimes who are in challenging circumstances, being pursued and raped and drugged and harmed by gangs of British-Pakistani men who’ve worked in child abuse rings or networks,” she had stated.

FO spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, in a press briefing, warned that such comments would give “rise to dangerous trends”.

US POLICE TO SEEK EXTRADITION OF INDIAN MAN, WIFE AFTER MINOR FEARED DEAD

Braverman had also been warned by the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) that sexual predators do not just come from “one background” and that a focus solely on race could create new “blind spots” when tackling child abuse, Geo News reported. The NSPCC had criticised the UK Home Secretary and expressed its shock at her hatred towards Pakistanis and for singling out Pakistanis.

TORONTO POLICE SEEKING PUBLIC’S ASSISTANCE TO IDENTIFY SUSPECTS WHO ALLEGEDLY SPIT ON, THREW LARGE JUICE CONTAINER AT 2 WOMEN IN SUBWAY STATION

The Toronto Police Service is requesting the public’s assistance in identifying suspects wanted in an Assault with a Weapon investigation:

On Friday, March 24, 2023, at approximately 9:45 p.m., police responded to a call for an assault with a weapon at the North York Centre Subway Station in the area of Yonge Street and Park Home Avenue.

It was reported that:

Two women were walking up the stairwell from the southbound track.

The suspects were walking down the stairwell and an argument ensued.

The suspects spit on the women and threw a large plastic juice container at them.

The suspects are described as;

Suspect 1: male, with light complexion, 6' tall, with braided hair, black sweatpants and dark hoodie.

Suspect 2: female, White, 5’2" tall, thin build, wearing purple or blue velvet sweatpants and jacket.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-3200, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), or at www.222tips.com.

INDIA SHOULD BE PRAGMATIC IN ITS POLITICAL INTERACTIONS: UKRAINE MINISTER

Visiting Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister EmineDzhaparova on Monday said that India should be pragmatic while diversifying its political interactions and energy resources. The Minister's comments have come in the light of the fact that India has repeatedly abstained from voting against Russia at all international fora against Moscow's ongoing invasion of Kiev. Dzhaparova, who arrived on Sunday on a four-day visit to India, met Secretary-West Sanjay Verma at the External Affairs Ministry earlier on Monday. "India should be pragmatic in diversifying its energy resources, military contracts and political interactions. Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi's policy of democracy, dialogue and diversity and 'no era of war' and strategic application is really important," she told reporters after the meeting. It is the first official visit by a Ukraine Minister to India since Russia launched the full scale invasion on February 24, 2022. During the visit, Dzhaparova will also call on Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi and meet Deputy National Security Adviser Vikram Misri, official sources said

The FBI and other US federal agencies are working to extradite a couple who fled to India after arrest warrants were issued against them for abandoning/endangering a child, who is now feared dead, police said. Six year-old Noel Rodriguez-Alvarez, who has special needs, was last seen in late October or early November last year shortly after his twin sisters were born, Everman Police Chief CW Spencer said during a press conference. The police have active felony warrants for the arrest of the couple, which “is a second-degree felony”, he said. “We want these fugitives arrested and extradited to the US so that we can seek answers for the disappearance of Noel.” Noel was one of the 10 children born to Cindy Rodriguez-Singh. Three siblings lived with their grandparents, while Noel and the others lived with their mother in a shed in Everman, a suburb of Fort Worth. Spencer said that Indian-step father Arshdeep Singh, Cindy, and six other

VACCINES FOR CANCER, HEART DISEASE TO BE READY BY END OF DECADE

Millions of lives could be saved by a groundbreaking set of new vaccines for a range of conditions including cancer, experts have said. A leading pharmaceutical firm said it is confident that jabs for cancer, cardiovascular and autoimmune diseases, and other conditions will be ready by 2030, the Guardian reported. Studies into these vaccinations are also showing “tremendous promise”, with some researchers saying 15 years’ worth of progress has been “unspooled” in 12 to 18 months thanks to the success of the Covid jab. Paul Burton, the chief medical officer of pharmaceutical company Moderna, said he believes the firm will be able to offer such treatments for “all sorts of disease areas” in as little as five years. The firm, which created a leading coronavirus vaccine, is developing cancer vaccines that target different tumour types, the Guardian reported. Burton said: “We will have that vaccine and it will be highly effective, and it will save many hundreds of thousands, if not millions of lives. I think we will be able to offer personalised cancer vaccines against multiple different tumour types to people around the world.” He also said that multiple respiratory infections could be covered by a single injection — allowing vulnerable people to be protected against Covid, flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) — while mRNA therapies could be available for rare diseases for which there are currently no drugs, the Guardian reported. Therapies based on mRNA work by teaching cells how to make a protein that triggers the body’s immune response against disease.

PAKISTAN INCREASES POLICY RATE BY 100 BASIS POINTS TO 21%

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has increased the policy rate by 100 basis points to 21 per cent to contain inflation, the central bank said in a statement. The monetary policy committee (MPC) of the bank noted that inflation in March 2023 rose to 35.4 per cent, and is expected to remain high in the near term, the statement added on Tuesday. “The MPC views today’s decision as an important step towards anchoring inflation expectations around the medium-term target, which is critical for achieving the objective of price stability,” said the SBP. The committee further observed that Pakistan’s financial sector remains broadly resilient, while economic activity continues to moderate, it added. Earlier in March, the SBP increased the interest rate by 300 basis points to 20 per cent, and according to Tuesday’s statement, the current account deficit has narrowed considerably since then, Xinhua news agency reported.

PIZZA DELIVERY SCAM: TWO MEN WANTED IN FRAUD INVESTIGATION IN TORONTO

The Toronto Police Service would like to make the public aware of a Fraud investigation.

It is reported that: on Friday, April 7, 2023, a woman was in the area of Yonge Street and Finch Avenue East when she was approached by two men driving a purple Honda SUV the passenger exited the vehicle and explained the driver was a pizza delivery person that he was trying to pay but he would not accept cash he asks that the woman pay for the pizza using her debit card and he will compensate her with $20 in cash that he shows to her

The woman’s debit card was switched with another card there have been similar reported accounts in this area in the last few days

The two men are described as:

20 to 25 years-old, with a beard (driver)

20 to 25 years-old, 5’4”, white, curly light brown hair, black jacket (passenger)

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-8083200, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), or at www.222tips.com.