18 April 2023_

FORD GOVERNMENT CONFIRMS PLANS TO MOVE THE ONTARIO SCIENCE CENTRE TORONTO - The Ontario government released new details about its exciting vision for the redevelopment of Ontario Place into a worldclass, year-round destination, complete with expanded parkland, beaches, waterfront access and family-friendly entertainment.

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CANADA'S ANNUAL INFLATION RATE FELL TO 4.3 % IN MARCH, LOWEST SINCE AUGUST 2021 The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 4.3% year over year in March, following a 5.2% increase in February. This was the smallest increase since August 2021 (+4.1%). On a year-over-year basis, Canadians paid more in mortgage interest costs, which was offset by a decline in energy prices. I CONTD. ON PAGE 7

YOU CAN WATCH THIS EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW ONLY ON CHANNEL Y AND Y PLUS, BELL 828, TELUS 2418, ROGERS 857, IGNITE 707. FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT OUR WEBSITES, SOUTHASIANDAILY.COM AND YMEDIAPLUS.COM. FOLLOW US ON OUR TWITTER AND FACEBOOK PAGES: Y MEDIA, TO STAY UPDATED WITH THE LATEST EVENTS. READ OUR 'MIDWEEK' NEWSPAPER PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY, TO KNOW WHAT IS HAPPENING IN CANADA AND WORLDWIDE.

ATIQ AHMED, BROTHER GUNNED DOWN IN FRONT OF POLICE, MEDIA PRAYAGRAJ (UP), (IANS) In a shocking incident, gangster-turnedpolitician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were shot dead in Prayagraj on Saturday night, in the presence of the police and in full glare of the media. Atiq and his brother were shot when they were taken for a medical test to the Colvin hospital here. Both died on the spot.

According to reports, Atiq was shot in the head from point-blank range when the mediapersons were talking to him. Both the brothers were handcuffed when the incident took place.

All the three shooters have been arrested by the UP Police. They have been identified as Lavlesh Tiwari, Arun Maurya and Sunny.

The incident took place on the day Atiq's son Asad was laid to rest in Prayagraj after being shot dead in an encounter in Jhansi on Thursday.

According to reports, the three youths had joined a group of journalists who were talking to Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf after the two stepped out of the hospital.

Even before Atiq could complete his answer, one of the assailants pointed a pistol at Atiq's head and shot him while the other two opened fire at the brother. After the brothers slumped to the ground, the assailants raised their hands and surrendered. Chief minister Yogi Adityanath has summoned DGP R.K. Vishwakarma and other top police officials for an emergency meeting. Meanwhile, tension prevailed in Prayagraj as the news of the twin murders spread. Additional forces are being rushed to the district where security has been beefed up. Samajwadi Par ty chief Akhilesh Yadav said that the incident is the height of lawlessness in Uttar Pradesh. "If someone can be killed in police custody, then what about the common man," he asked in a tweet.

Y MEDIA EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH SAM PITRODA

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Y MEDIA EXCLUSIVE: PIERRE POILIEVRE CALLS FOR A DIRECT FLIGHT BETWEEN CANADA AND AMRITSAR Y MEDIA EXCLUSIVE: VAISAKHI CELEBRATION AT IHOP BRAMPTON

I DON'T WANT TO LIVE IN A COUNTRY WHERE DICTATORS RULE: SAM PITRODA UNDERSTAND THE ESSENCE OF DEMOCRACY: SAM PITRODA YOU NEED FAIR, BALANCED, INDEPENDENT MEDIA IN A DEMOCRACY: SAM PITRODA DEMOCRACY IS NOT ABOUT ELECTION: SAM PITRODA DEMOCRACY IS BEING PARALYSED, WE CAN GIVE YOU LOTS OF PROOF

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ROXHAMROADDEAL'CHALLENGING'TOENFORCE, WILL COST MORE THAN $60M: DOCUMENT The agreement restricting entry of asylum claimants into Canada from the U.S., effectively closing Roxham Road in Quebec, will be challenging for law enforcement to implement and could lead asylum seekers to face increased dangers, according to a government analysis.

PARMVEER TOOR, 22, WANTED ON CANADA-WIDE WARRANT The Ontario Provincial Police say they are searching for a federal offender who allegedly breached his full parole. The OPP’s repeat offender parole enforcement squad said a Canada-wide warrant has been issued for 22-year-old Parmveer Toor. He is known to frequent the Greater Toronto Area, police said. Toor is described as six feet tall, around 150 pounds with black hair and brown eyes.

VAISAKHI CELEBRATIONS AT IKEA ETOBICOKE

OSLER FOUNDATION’S HOLI GALA RAISES ALMOST $4 MILLION FOR LOCAL HOSPITALS

I DETAILS ON PAGE 33

TWITTER LABELS CBC ACCOUNT AS 'GOVERNMENT-FUNDED MEDIA'

Y MEDIA TEAM LIVE AT IKEA ETOBICOKE ON QUEENSWAY (1475 THE QUEENSWAY, ETOBICOKE).

I DETAILS ON PAGE 6

Twitter has put more 'government-funded media' labels on the accounts of global news outlets like Australian Broadcasting Company (ABC Australia), Australia's Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), New Zealand's public broadcaster RNZ, Sweden's SR Ekot and SVT, and Catalonia's TV3.cat. The microblogging platform earlier placed the 'publicly-funded' label to the BBC account and applied the 'government-funded' label to US-based NPR. ABC News said in a tweet that it is a publicly funded broadcaster, "governed by the ABC Charter which is enshrined in legislation".

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CIRCULATED THROUGH : TORONTO, MARKHAM, SCARBOROUGH, RICHMOND HILL, VAUGHAN, WOODBRIDGE, ETOBICOKE, NORTH YORK, MALTON, REXDALE, BRAMPTON, MISSISSAUGA, OAKVILLE, HAMILTON, MILTON, STONEY CREEK, BURLINGTON

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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

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MidWeek 3 Y MEDIA EXCLUSIVE: VAISAKHI CELEBRATIONS AT IHOP BRAMPTON

04 Y MEDIA TEAM AT 'MILLETS MADE WITH LOVE' IN-PERSON RECIPE CONTEST TO CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF MILLETS 2023

11 TASTE OF ASIA 2023: MARKHAM'S ANNUAL ASIAN CULTURE AND FOOD FESTIVAL RETURNS FOR THE 21ST YEAR

11 Y MEDIA TEAM AT THE ANNUAL OSLER HOLI GALA

Y MEDIA EXCLUSIVE: PIERRE POILIEVRE CALLS FOR A DIRECT FLIGHT BETWEEN CANADA AND AMRITSAR

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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

SPECIAL REPORT

MidWeek 7 SANTOS TAKES ON LOUD VEHICLES AND NOISY LAWN MAINTENANCE EQUIPMENT

TEN YEARS IN REGULATING THE PRACTICE OF THE TCM PROFESSION CTCMPAO 10TH ANNIVERSARY The College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of Ontario (CTCMPAO) announced the 10th Anniversary of the College, marking a decade of contributions to TCM regulation.

Our Accomplishments The College began regulating the TCM profession on April 1, 2013. Since then, significant progress has been made to establish registration, quality assurance, and complaints process to effectively regulate the profession.

"I believe as we commemorate the 10th Anniversary of the College, we have risen to the occasion as a 'College striving for excellence in governance and in regulating the practice of the TCM profession.' I am proud of this Council, staff, and members!"Council President, CTCMPAO, Joanne Pritchard-Sobhani said.

As of 2023, the College has registered over 2800 Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists and maintains a quality assurance program to promote continuous quality improvement.

The College ensures that only qualified individuals are eligible to practise.

The College has established a complaints process that provides confidence to patients that the College is dedicated to its mandate to regulate the profession in the public interest. The College addresses each complaint in a transparent and objective manner.

"I am delighted to celebrate the College's tenth anniversary and share this occasion with all stakeholders. The foundation of strong regulatory and operational practices that we have built, and the efforts of many, have allowed the College to overcome challenges and continue serving the public of Ontario." Ann Zeng Registrar and CEO, CTCMPAO said.

Looking Forward The College Council recently approved a new 5-year strategic plan with the strategic directions of effective right-touch regulation, continuous quality improvement, informed and interactive stakeholders, and modernized governance. The College will be carrying out strategic projects in each category over the next 5 years to enhance the regulation of TCM in Ontario.

College Information Tel: 416-238-7359 www.ctcmpao.on.ca Media requiring further information, interviews or images, please contact: Ann Zeng registrar@ctcmpao.on.ca

Ontario Launches Plan to Boost Math, Writing and Reading Skills TORONTO — The Ontario government is investing more than $180 million in targeted supports in the classroom and at home to help students build the math and reading skills and knowledge they need to succeed in the workforce. This investment will support nearly 1000 more educators to help students develop these important skills.

“We are getting back to the basics, because that’s what matters most when it comes to students’ skills with reading, writing and math,” said Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education. “I am proud to unveil Ontario’s plan to boost literacy and math skills, designed to deliver better schools, jobs and outcomes for students. This plan will up our game and send a signal across the province: we will do better to improve the skills that actually matter to the success of your child, from the classroom to the workforce. Ontario’s plan will help ensure students graduate with a competitive advantage that will lead them to a good-paying job, a home and a life of opportunity.”

Ontario is investing more than $71 million in 2023-24 in a new math plan, supported by the recently introduced modernized math curriculum that mandates financial literacy and coding in every grade.

The province’s plan to boost math skills will: Support more than 300 educators to support student learning in math Double the number of school math coaches in classrooms to provide direct support to teachers and students Introduce one math lead per board to spearhead math curriculum implementation and standardize training, and provide additional supports for math coaches in the classrooms Expand access to digital math tools that students and parents can access anytime Continue live teacher-led virtual tutoring services focused on math Enhance skills of new teachers through dedicated training and covering costs of additional math qualification courses to enhance math fluency and competency.

To further support students facing challenges with math, the government is deploying Math Action Teams to school boards or schools to raise standards, training and student outcomes. Teams will work with school boards to identify and recommend targeted, evidence-based responses to improve math achievement for Ontario students.

To help more young students build stronger reading skills, the province is investing $109 million in 2023-24 to boost literacy rates, which will: Introduce new, Canada-leading, early reading screening requirements for all students in Year 2 of Kindergar ten to Grade 2, along with a standardized and fully funded screening tool and training for educators, to ensure students receive the necessary foundational skills and early interventions in reading that are critical to future success Fund additional specialist teachers who can work one-on-one or in small groups to help students who need additional support in reading Invest in almost 700 educators to support development and excellence in literacy for Ontario students Introduce an overhauled language curriculum in September of 2023 with an emphasis on ensuring students at an early age can master basic literacy.

“This investment is an investment in our kids’ futures. Supporting them to develop strong, life-long skills in important areas like reading, writing and math will set our kids up for success in the long run,” said Patrice Barnes, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Education. “I am proud this government is providing our kids with the opportunity to achieve success today, tomorrow and in the jobs of the future.”

These initiatives complement previous actions including a revamped math curriculum introduced in 2020 which goes back to the basics; destreaming of Grade 9 math and science; the restoration of merit-based hiring of educators and a one-of-a-kind, publicly funded tutoring program designed to empower students with proven learning strategies and techniques.

CANADA'S ANNUAL INFLATION RATE FELL TO 4.3 % IN MARCH, LOWEST SINCE AUGUST 2021 CONTD. FROM PAGE 1 As a result of the steep monthly increase in prices in March 2022 (+1.4%), base-year effects, notably gasoline prices, continued to have a strong downward impact on consumer inflation, contributing to the year-over-year deceleration in March 2023.

Excluding food and energy, prices were up 4.5% year over year in March, following a 4.8% gain in February, while the all-items CPI excluding mortgage interest cost rose 3.6%, after increasing 4.7% in February. On a monthly basis, the CPI was up 0.5% in March, following a 0.4% gain in February. Travel tours (+36.7%) contributed the most to the headline month-over-month movement, largely driven by increased seasonal demand during the March break. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, the CPI rose 0.1%.

While headline inflation has slowed in recent months, having increased 1.7% in March compared with 6 months ago, prices remain elevated.

Compared with 18 months ago, for example, inflation has increased 8.7%.

CHINA OFFERS TO FACILITATE ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN PEACE TALKS China’s foreign minister told his Israeli and Palestinian counterparts that his country is ready to help facilitate peace talks between the two sides, in its latest effort at mediation in the region.

In separate phone calls to the two officials on Monday, Qin Gang expressed China’s concern over intensifying tensions between Israel and Palestinians and its support for a resumption of peace talks, the Foreign Ministry said in statements issued late Monday.

It was a dramatic moment of diplomacy for China that Beijing touted as evidence of its ability to be a diplomatic player in the Middle East.

Qin stressed in his talks with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen that Saudi Arabia and Iran have set a good example of overcoming differences through dialogue, a statement about that phone call said.

With the spring season comes the sounds of singing birds and kids playing in the backyard. It is also the season of loud cars and lawn maintenance equipment disturbing our neighborhoods. In a new motion championed by Councillor Santos at Committee of Council on April 12th, excessive noise affecting public health, safety, and welfare is being tackled.

Findings from a recent report from the United Nations Environment Program shows that cars are the number one source of noise pollution in cities. Neighbouring municipalities have already updated their noise by-laws in response to complaints about excessive vehicular noise which have significantly increased since the start of the pandemic. The motion from Councillor Santos was passed by Committee of Council. The motion will update the city’s noise by-law and also calls for staff to report back on opportunities to amend licensing requirements for auto-shops that modify vehicles causing excessive noise.

“With Spring in the air comes not only speeding issues but also noise from modified cars”, commented Santos. “Working with the Clerks Office and the Legislative Services Team we realized our noise by-law needs a refresh to tackle the nuisance of noise in our community.” This refresh will improve the City’s ability to enforce excessive noise and capture better data on noise complaints. It compliments Peel Police’s Project Noisemaker that starts in May and runs through until October. The motion also asks staff to look at updating licensing requirements for auto-shops based on the amended Highway Traffic Act which now makes it illegal to install equipment on vehicles in order to modify sound beyond regulated levels. “As our city grows, so does the need to update our by-laws to reflect the changing needs and concerns of our residents. Noise pollution has become a significant issue, and it’s our responsibility to take action to protect the health, safety, and well-being of our citizens, ” said Santos, and added “The proposed updates to the noise by-law include the inclusion of data categories specific to excessive vehicular noise and lawn maintenance equipment.

These are important steps towards addressing this problem and creating a more livable city for all.”

FREE CONFIDENTIAL PAPER SHREDDING RETURNS TO PEEL BRAMPTON, ON – Peel is offering residents free confidential paper shredding at three Community Recycling Centres (CRCs) on the following dates: April 29 – Fewster CRC May 13 – Bolton CRC June 3 – Heart Lake CRC Paper shredding on these dates will be available during regular business hours of 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Residents can bring unbound paper documents such as taxes, bills, income statements and personal information.

Along with your papers, we encourage residents to bring nonperishable food items to donate for a local food bank.

Regular fees apply to all other items brought to the CRC for disposal.

FORD GOVERNMENT CONFIRMS PLANS TO MOVE THE ONTARIO SCIENCE CENTRE CONTD. FROM PAGE 1 "We're bringing more to Ontario Place with more beaches, more greenspace, more trails and more fun with the Ontario Science Centre, a year-round Live Nation concert venue and expanded food and beverage offerings so families can enjoy a meal together," said Premier Doug Ford. "Together with our partners, we're building a world class, year-round destination that's fun for families, students and tourists to enjoy for generations to come."

The Ontario Science Centre will find its new home in a custombuilt, state-of-the-ar t facility, as well as in the preserved and upgraded iconic Cinesphere and Pod complex. It will bring exciting science-based educational programming to the heart of Ontario Place, sparking curiosity and innovation for a new generation of visitors, while inspiring young people towards the jobs of the future.

The province is also finalizing an agreement with Live Nation that will create a new, year-round concert venue attraction. Building on 25 years of memories, the brand-new amphitheatre will welcome 20,000 fans to an all-season venue, increasing its capacity, while also protecting its beloved grassy amphitheatre. "Our government has a mandate to bring Ontario Place back to life," said Kinga Surma, Minister of Infrastructure. "With today's announcement, we are continuing to make progress on our vision to create a cultural and recreational landmark that will, once again, be fun for everyone.

TWITTER LABELS CBC ACCOUNT AS 'GOVERNMENT-FUNDED MEDIA' CONTD. FROM PAGE 1 "For more than 90 years, the ABC has always been and remains an independent media organisation, free from political and commercial interests," it argued.

SBS said the label might lead Twitter users to believe that the outlet is editorially controlled by the government.

"While we appreciate Twitter's motivations with regard to transparency on its platform, we believe a 'Publicly-funded media' label better reflects the hybrid public-commercial nature of our funding model and the fact that SBS retains full independence from government in our news editorial and content decision making," a company spokesperson said in a statement.

CBC/Radio-Canada tweeted that "our journalism is impartial and independent". "To suggest otherwise is untrue. That is why we are pausing our activities on @Twitter," it added.

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OPINION

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

'THINK 20' MUST WORK FOR BOTH INDIA'S ECONOMIC GROWTH AND SECURITY D.C. PATHAK All nations endeavour to safeguard their security and economic interests - in that order - and this is what foreign policy is all about. Foreign policy, by definition, is a product of national security and economic concerns, and diplomacy provides the means for implementing it.

In today's world, diplomacy goes beyond 'hospitality and smiles' to demand 'ideation' that provides the intellectual strength to create a convergence in the face of differing stands and safeguard mutual interests in bilateral relations while handling the world affairs.

Think 20 (or T20), the forum of country's top Think Tanks, is the prime instrument of India's G20 Presidency for deliberating on ways and means of promoting the country's growth as part of the world economy, enhancing India's national security and elevating the country's position as a major power in a multipolar world.

India is rightly taking up the issues of the South during its G20 Presidency.

The situation in South Asia deserves a closer examination for the reason that in this India-centric region, the security environ has an overriding impact on its geopolitics.

While the focus no doubt remains on economic cooperation, the challenge in the region is to effectively counter the dangerous forces threatening not only India's security but the security of the democratic world at large.

The rise of faith-based militancy, primarily in the Pak-Afghan belt, has affected India the most as it is used by Pakistan for cross border terrorism against this country. What adds to India's concerns is the fact that Sino-Pak axis - an alliance of a Marxist dictatorship and a fundamentalist regime - is working against India and has struck an unwritten pact with the Kabul Emirate led by Taliban-Al Qaeda combine.

Faith-based militancy graduating into a force behind the call for Jehad on one hand and the Chinese aggressiveness on land and the marine front, on the other, have created a serious threat to the security of the countries spread across the vast stretch from West Asia to Indo-Pacific.

Terrorism is classically defined as resort to 'covert' violence for a perceived political 'cause'. The 'cause' builds the motivation which may be 'ideological' as was the case with Naxalism or Maoism or could arise from assertion of ethnic identity as was witnessed in the insurgencies of the North East but the new global terror exploits the motivation of faith which in the case of Islam can be strong indeed.

Forces behind this terror are able to exploit the 'supremacist' content and the pull of 'exclusivism' for turning the minds of their potential followers not only from among the Madrasa products but even those with resources as well.

They can whip up a call for avenging the alleged mistreatment of Muslim minorities or just raise the war cry of 'Islam in danger' to justify recourse to Jehad.

In the Indian context, the threat of cross-border terrorism was pushed to a new pitch when Pakistan flush from the success of the anti-Soviet armed campaign in Afghanistan for which it got all the credit from the US-led West,

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planned to replicate the Afghan Jehad in Kashmir by not only doubling up the infiltration of Islamic militants of Hizbul Mujahideen and Jaishe Mohammad raised by it, besides the Saudi-funded LashkareToiba - who all had led the anti-Soviet Jehad in Afghanistan but additionally also inducting Taliban Mujahideen into the 'proxy war' against India.

Pakistan had used the Taliban for installing the Emirate at Kabul in 1996 and in spite of its felicitous role in the direct combat between Islamic radicals of Taliban-Al Qaeda and the US during the subsequent 'war on terror' that started in Afghanistan, it managed to retain the goodwill of US by projecting itself as a mediator between Taliban and US for Doha talks and at the same time reinstall the Kabul Emirate of Taliban.

For India, the threat of terrorism has multiplied because of the new found capability of Pak ISI to set upon this country militants from across the Islamic spectrum- ranging from Hanafi HuM and the LeT of Ahle Hadis to the radical Wahabis of Taliban, Al Qaeda and ISIS - the Al Qaeda's equivalent rising from the second theatre of 'war on terror' in Iraq-Syria belt. India's security strategy has to take care of this aggravated threat.

India is seeing a new level of hostility from the Sino-Pak axis following the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution by the Indian Parliament and designation of Ladakh and Jammu & Kashmir as two Union Territories. There is complete collusion between these two hostile neighbours in conducting 'covert' offensives against India including use of drones in Kashmir and Punjab and stepping up criticism of India's Kashmir policy internationally.

India, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has kept up the initiative of building economic relationship with all other neighbours and the countries beyond and achieved a remarkable consolidation of Indo-US friendship on one hand, and maintained strong bonds with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the other - notwithstanding the confrontation of the US with Russia on Ukraine.

Prime Minister Modi has emerged as a global leader whose counsel on issues of war and peace as also on economic advancement of the world commands respect. This will go a long way in helping India to achieve the mission of G20 Presidency on various fronts.

T20 has a major role in this - internationally and at home. It should give enough attention to the task of facilitating formulation of a comprehensive strategy of taking India economically forward in the face of serious security threats arising from its neighbourhood.

Pakistan has, in its National Security Policy announced a year ago, declared India as its principal adversary and gone on record to allege that Muslim minority in India felt unprotected under the present regime. Pakistan also took the question of Kashmir to the Saudi-led OIC as a 'Muslim issue'. During this period Pak ISI has intensified the use of social media for creating terror modules and spreading radicalisation which coincides with the trend of civil society groups of vested interests in cohort with anti-India lobbies floating narratives about condition of minorities and human rights in this country.

Pakistan's attempts to cast Indo-Pak relationship in a Hindu-Muslim

framework have to be countered through a campaign to highlight the intrinsically secular character of the Indian state demonstrated by 'one man one vote', equal opportunities, protection of law for all citizens, and the fact of the elected political executive of India ruling the country without a denominational stamp. This is in contrast to an Islamic Republic that does not treat all citizens on an equal footing. In an electoral democracy, different communities may have different numbers but so long as there is adult franchise and equality of rights, the regime cannot be falsely charged with practising 'majoritarianism' just because the largest community may return more representatives to the legislature. Also in India, law and order and the police are under autonomous control of the state government and any individual case of failure to prevent public violence has to be squarely blamed on the latter, and not held against the Centre for political reasons.

In the prevailing geopolitical scenario, India's national security is threatened more than anything else, by external forces trying to cause internal instability here by fishing in our troubled waters at home.

The experience of India's partition on grounds of religion should have made it the first responsibility of all citizens of India to accept nationalism as the basic uniting factor in this country with total freedom of worship being granted to every body. The sense of nationalism is a cultural concept that revolves round shared feelings of pride in secured boundaries, common view of the country's friends and adversaries and partnership in carrying the nation forward towards a bright future. Politics in India first led the rulers to deemphasise the fact of the new born nation being a Hindu majority country and then pushed them in the direction of implicitly placing Muslim minority on a special footing on a realisation that in a situation of political divides in the majority, the minority support could turn out to be a 'match winner' in elections.

Communal politics was sustained by vested interests - Ulema and the communally-minded elite in the main - and this made it possible for outside forces to instigate communal militancy that would graduate into faith-based terror - as was illustrated by the emergence of Indian Mujahideen out of Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) in the North in the past, and the rise of the militant Islamic outfit called Popular Front of India (PFI) from Kerala in the South more recently.

Both SIMI and PFI were banned after an exhaustive investigation.

It needs to be mentioned that the average Muslim in India is, like members of other communities, preoccupied with livelihood issues and family welfare matters, and appreciated the pro-people measures of the government, but the politics of the Minority community was traditionally hijacked by certain leaders for personal interest.

Disclaimer:The writer is a former Director of Intelligence Bureau. The opinions expressed within this article are the personal ideas of the author.

The facts and conclusions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of Y Media and Midweek Newspaper, and Y Media does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

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CANADA

ARREST MADE AFTER THREAT TO BRAMPTON HIGH SCHOOL

CONNECT WITH OSLER LEADERS AT UPCOMING TELEPHONE TOWN HALL LEARN ABOUT THE LATEST UPDATES FROM THE HOSPITAL, INCLUDING THE TRANSFORMATION OF PEEL MEMORIAL, OSLER’S VISITOR POLICY AND MORE BRAMPTON/ETOBICOKE – William Osler Health System (Osler) is inviting community members to participate in its next Telephone Town Hall from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 2. Residents will hear about exciting developments for health care in our communities, including the transformation of Peel Memorial Centre for Integrated Health and Wellness into Brampton’s new hospital, comprehensive cancer care and much more.

As always, residents are encouraged to provide feedback and ask questions of Osler’s senior leaders on the call, and to submit questions through Osler’s website both before and during the event.

Hosted by Dr. Frank Martino, Osler’s President and CEO, this live event will be moderated by Gurjit Kaur Bains, a representative on Osler’s Patient and Family Advisory Council (PFAC) and member of the Brampton community. They will be joined by Osler leaders including: Stuart Johnston, Osler Board Director and Chair of the Governance & Human Resources Committee; Kiki Ferrari, Chief Operating Officer; Ann Ford, Executive Vice President, Corporate Services and Integrated Health Systems; Mary Jane McNally, Chief Patient Experience Officer; and Ken Mayhew, President and CEO, William Osler Health System Foundation.

“This is an exciting, transformational time for Osler and having the

opportunity to share our updates and hear directly from the communities we serve is important,” said Dr. Frank Martino. “Telephone Town Halls are a wonderful way for residents of Brampton, Etobicoke and surrounding areas to connect with their local Osler hospitals, and I encourage residents to join the conversation on health care in our community.”

“Providing the community with an opportunity to engage in meaningful two-way communication with Osler’s leaders is important to me, other PFAC members and our community, and I am proud to see this commitment continue,” said Gurjit Kaur Bains. “I really enjoy moderating Osler’s Telephone Town Halls and being par t of these impor tant conversations.”

How to participate: On Tuesday, May 2, starting at 6:50 p.m., Osler will be phoning residents’ landlines to connect them directly to Osler’s Telephone Town Hall. Those interested in participating in the Telephone Town Hall can also pre-register and submit questions online at www.williamoslerhs.ca/townhall or by leaving a voicemail with their name and phone number at (416) or (905) 494-2120 ext. 50200 before 12:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 2, 2023. Please note that the audio from the event will be recorded for promotional and archival purposes.

Spring Maintenance and Clean-up Work Begins in Mississauga Milder weather means the City’s annual spring maintenance and cleanup work can begin. Residents will see City crews busy filling potholes, performing minor repairs to roadway infrastructure, clearing litter and preparing for street sweeping.

The City’s annual spring maintenance and clean-up program includes: * Pothole and roadway damage repair on City roads, including residential streets and bike lanes * Sidewalk inspection and repair * Sod damage repair caused by snow-clearing operations * Litter cleanup on roadways, catch basins and drains * Street sweeping and hard surface flushing on curb-facing sidewalks, traffic islands, hard-surfaced boulevards, roads, curbside gutters and on-street bike lanes The City maintains 5,700 lane kilometres of roads, 2,420 kilometres of sidewalks, 51,000 catch basins, 1,000 pedestrian crossings and other infrastructure that residents rely on like multi-use trails and cycling infrastr ucture. Winter weather can be par ticularly damaging to infrastructure, resulting in the need for a routine repair this time of year.

Potholes & Roadway Damage Repair Potholes and cracks on roadways typically occur or become more visible in the winter. Freezing and thawing can cause water under the asphalt to expand and contract. While the majority of potholes are fixed throughout the spring, City crews repair potholes year-round when temperatures are warmer and the weather allows for it. Filling potholes regularly is more efficient, cost-effective and helps keep roads in a state of good repair.

This winter season, crews have already used 60 tonnes of asphalt cold patch to fill potholes.

How you can help: Report potholes and damaged sidewalks, curbs and sod by calling 311 (905-615-4311 outside City limits) or submitting an online service request.

Report cracked, damaged or debris-covered catch basins by calling 311 or using the online service request.

Street Sweeping & Hard Surface Flushing Around mid to late April, weather permitting, the City begins sweeping streets and flushing hard surfaces to clear litter and debris left behind from the winter. Street sweeping prevents pollutants from entering Mississauga’s stormwater system and local waterways.

How you can help: Avoid raking yard waste and grass clippings onto the road. Place leaves, tree trimmings, branches and other yard waste in yard waste bags for collection by the Region of Region.

Grass clippings will not be collected from the curb. After you mow, leave the clippings on your lawn. This process, known as grasscycling, is better for your lawn and saves you time and effort.

Park Cleanup & Maintenance This time of year, staff will also be working hard to get parks, greenspaces, natural areas and trails ready for the busy spring and summer season.

This work includes litter cleanup, preparing plant beds for planting, cleanup of trails and turf areas and preparing and maintaining sports fields for the upcoming season. Parks and Forestry staff will also suppor t spring

REGION OF PEEL - Investigators from the 22 Division Criminal Investigation Bureau arrested and charged an 18-year-old male concerning a threat to a Brampton high school.

On Wednesday, April 12, 2023, investigators were made aware of an online threat on social media. The threat indicated that on Thursday, April 13, 2023, at 11:00 a.m., a shooting would occur at Jean Augustine Secondary School located in the Mississauga Road and Bovaird Drive area in Brampton.

On Thursday, April 13, 2023, investigators identified the suspect as Ahmadi Rohullah, an 18-year-old male from Brampton.

A search warrant was executed at a residence in Brampton, where he was arrested and charged with Uttering Threats. He was held for a bail hearing and will appear at the Ontario Court of Justice in Brampton. Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact investigators with the 22 Division Criminal Investigation Bureau at 905-453-2121 extension 2233. Anonymous information may also be submitted by calling Peel Crime Stoppers at 1-800222-TIPS (8477) or visiting peelcrimestoppers.ca.

For media inquiries, please contact the on-duty Public and Media Relations Officer at 905-453-2121, extension 4027.

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FEDERALGOVERNMENT O INVESTS IN VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUTH Volunteering oppor tunities, for youth in par ticular, can build valuable leadership skills, help grow personal and professional networks, and provide valuable life experience. That is why the Government of Canada invests in volunteer oppor tunities for youth through the Canada Service Corps.

During National Volunteer Week, which runs from April 16 to 22, Canadians will take time to celebrate volunteers of all ages and recognize the significant contributions they make in communities across the country.

To help celebrate National Volunteer Week, the Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth, Marci Ien, is pleased to announce up to $4.6 million in Canada Service Corps (CSC) funding to four organizations, creating close to 500 youth-led volunteer opportunities. Chantiers jeunesse, TakingITGlobal, the Association of Volunteer Centres and Volunteer Engaging Organizations of Alber ta, and Ocean Wise will receive funding under the CSC's Accelerator Micro-grants stream. All four organizations will continue to ensure the success of youth across Canada by empowering civic engagement. CSC's Accelerator Micro-grants provide up to $5,000 to youth who have previously completed a CSC service opportunity. With this funding, youth will expand their longer-term youth-led service and civic engagement projects. For example, through Ocean Wise's Eco-Action Accelerator project, youth will be able to pursue their service projects related to protecting the earth's oceans while accessing resources such as workshops, mentorship, and expert guidance.

Young people between the ages of 15 and 30 can apply for a wide range of volunteer service opportunities that are currently available through the CSC program at Canada.ca/CanadaServiceCorps.

Opportunities will continue to be added to the CSC website as they become available throughout the year.

maintenance crews with trimming trees, hedges and bushes away from roadways and sidewalks. Weather permitting, residents will also begin to see work happening on trees, including burlap removal, minor pruning, replacing tree stakes and reforming mulch saucers.

How you can help: Residents can help maintain the health and cleanliness of Mississauga’s parks and greenspaces by reporting litter or dumping, damaged trees, dead or unhealthy trees and trees in need of pruning.

When visiting a park or greenspace, remember to do your part by throwing out your litter, dog waste and recycling in the proper containers.

Join the Volunteer Litter Cleanup General Accounting & Bookkeeping Program and help clean up litter in your community.

Keeping Everyone Safe As spring maintenance and road construction season begins, take the following actions to keep yourself and others safe: Drive according to road and weather conditions.

Be aler t and slow down in work areas, and give crews and equipment lots of space.

Respect and follow any barricades and signage at work sites.

Be patient and expect delays on the road during repairs.

For more information about street and road maintenance, visit mississauga.ca/roads.

10 MidWeek

COMMUNITY

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

RESIDENTS INVITED TO PROVIDE INPUT ON PARKS, RECREATION AND LIBRARY NEEDS

ONTARIO HEALTH COALITION PROVINCE-WIDE COMMUNITY REFERENDUM TO STOP FORD GOVERNMENT’S PRIVATIZATION OF OUR PUBLIC HOSPITALS Health Coalitions across Ontario launched a major fightback to stop the privatization of our public hospitals today.

The Coalition is mounting a community-run referendum. Health Coalitions are organizing voting stations outside grocery stores, local corner stores, coffee shops, at Legions and community centres and in every busy part of our communities that we can.

On Friday May 26 and Saturday May 27 we will hold the referendum. More than a thousand voting stations will be open across Ontario. Leading in, throughout the month of May, online voting will be available on the main website PublicHospitalVote.ca and workplace votes will take place.

The Ford government has now announced it is moving forward with plans to “significantly” [their words] expand privatization of surgeries and diagnostics and private hospitals and clinics to for-profit clinics and hospitals. They have brought in new legislation to facilitate this plan. They have used their majority to vote down all amendments to the legislation, and Bill 60, which is in Third Reading debate in the Legislature, is expected to pass this week. They will use their majority to pass the bill, even though Ontarians have never had any say over this plan to privatize our hospitals.

In fact, the Ford government said that they would NOT do this in the lead in to the election, then two months after the election, they announced they were moving forward with the privatization of our core public hospitals' services. · The government has already called for bids for three new private day hospitals to do 14,000 cataract surgeries initially as well as diagnostics. · They have given repeated boosts of tens of millions in new to expand existing private clinics to cover care for “thousands of patients”. · They are expanding the number of private clinics and intend to further expand the volumes as well as to expand the types of surgeries they privatize.

They plan to have private hip and knee surgeries up and running by 2024. · At the same time the government has underspent the health care budget

and the COVID budget every year by billions of dollars. The most recent figures show that while we are underspent on health care by $1.25 billion, the Ontario government has increased funding massively for the private forprofit clinics and hospitals. It is a big transfer of money from our public health care services to for-profits.

Practially every public hospital in Ontario has operating rooms that shut down at 4 p.m. and on weekends, or are closed for weeks or even permanently, due to lack of funding and staffing. We do not need new operating rooms -only now they would be owned by for-profit companies. We need our government to support our local public hospitals which have the lowest funding in Canada. Our assessment is that this is very serious and extremely urgent. The premier told media that 50% of the surgeries currently done in hospitals are “easy” [and thus could be transferred out of public hospitals].

Surgeries, MRIs and CTs are core public hospital services.

This is not an add on, it is the privatization of our core public hospital services.

The loss of these surgeries – and the staff and funding that go with them -would be devastating to all local public hospitals and would gut the services that remain in many of the medium and small hospitals.

While paying lip service to the idea that Ontarians will” pay with their OHIP card not their credit card”, in Bill 60, the Ford government expressly allows the for-profit clinics to sell an increasing array of medically unnecessary add-ons to needed surgeries and diagnostics. The Canada Health Act, which bans user fees and extra charges for patients for access to physicians, surgeries and diagnostic tests, is being ignored by the government. Patients are increasingly reporting exorbitant charges for their needed health care including access to doctors, tests and surgeries -- things for which no patient in Canada should ever be charged. There is little question that the Premier is playing both sides, claiming you will always “pay with your OHIP card” and expanding two-tier charges for patients as it privatizes a whole array of services.

OAKVILLE: The Town of Oakville is looking to better understand how the community uses parks, recreation and culture facilities and libraries and is developing a Parks, Recreation, and Library Facilities Master Plan to guide the current and future direction of these spaces.

Over the next few months, the town is engaging the community and gathering demographic data and growth forecasts, participation and usage levels and trends and best practices to help shape the master plan. The town recognizes these community parks, recreation and culture facilities and libraries will need to continuously evolve over the next 30 years so it can continue to provide quality services that Oakville residents value.

Online survey opens today The community is invited to take the town’s online survey now open until May 31, 2023 to share what programs and services are important to them and what they envision the town providing when it comes to community parks, recreation and culture facilities and libraries into the future. The survey, which will take about 15 minutes to complete, will also ask community members to share how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted how often and the way they par ticipate in recreation and culture and library programs and services.

Residents can also share their feedback at the following open house oppor tunities online and in-person in May to hear from the community: Wednesday, May 3 • Virtual open house session from 7 to 9 p.m. Please pre-register for the online meeting by visiting the Parks, Recreation and Library Facilities Master Plan page.

Tuesday, May 9 • Sixteen Mile Spor ts Complex, Community Room 1, 3170 Neyagawa Blvd., drop-in anytime between 10 a.m. and noon.

Wednesday, May 10 • Virtual open house session from 10 a.m. to noon. Please preregister for the online meeting by visiting the Parks, Recreation and Library Facilities Master Plan page.

• Queen Elizabeth Park Community and Cultural Centre, MultiPurpose Room 1 and 2, 2302 Bridge Rd., drop-in anytime between 7 and 9 p.m.

Thursday, May 11 • Town Hall, South Atrium, 1225 Trafalgar Rd., drop-in anytime between 10 a.m. and noon • Town Hall, South Atrium, 1225 Trafalgar Rd., drop-in anytime between 7 and 9 p.m.

Residents are encouraged to choose the best date, location and time that will work with their schedule. Pre-registration for the inperson oppor tunities isn’t required, however pre-registration is required for the online option to receive the meeting link.

Visit the Parks, Recreation, and Library Facilities Master Plan page to learn more and follow the town on social media (Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter) for updates.

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

MidWeek 11

12 MidWeek

INDIA

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

DELHI COURT GRANTS 7-DAY CUSTODY OF LAWRENCE BISHNOI TO NIA IN TERROR FUNDING CASE

TIQ AHMED MURDER CASE UPDATES: 5 COPS SUSPENDED AFTER COURT GRANTS 4 DAYS POLICE CUSTODY OF SHOOTERS A senior Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) officer on Wednesday will seek remand of the three assailants who shot dead gangster-politician Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf, and added all the questions regarding the killing will be answered. "The murder of Atiq-Ashraf was committed in front of the media. The three shooters are under arrest. We will take them in police remand and all the questions regarding the killing will be answered," DIG, STF, Anand Dev Tiwari told reporters on Tuesday. He said whether there was a syndicate, persons or those having enmity with them, from where they got the arms -- all these questions and the real motive behind the killing will be answered when the three will be taken on remand by the police. Notably, Ahmad (60) and Ashraf were shot dead at point-blank range by three men posing as journalists on Saturday night while police personnel were escorting them to a medical college in Prayagraj for a check-up. The three assailants -- Mohit alias Sunny (23)

of Hamirpur, Lavlesh Tiwari (22) of Banda and Arun Maurya (18) of Kasganj -- are presently in Pratapgarh jail. When asked about the Umesh Pal murder case accused Ahmad's wife Shaista Praveen and Guddu Muslim, who are absconding, the officer said that they will be arrested soon. "We have limitations but they have a number of means to evade arrest. As far as Guddu Muslim is concerned he is known as Guddu 'bombaaz' and is expert in evading arrest while Praveen remains as 'pardanashin' (in veil). But we will be arresting them soon," Tiwari said. Apart from Ahmad and Ashraf, four others named in the Umesh Pal murder case FIR -- Asad, Arbaaz, Vijay Chaudhary alias Usman and Ghulam -have also been killed. Umesh Pal was a key witness in the 2005 BSP MLA Raju Pal murder case, in which Ahmad was also an accused. The FIR in the Umesh Pal murder case was lodged under relevant sections of IPC, including 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder), and under the Explosive Substances Act by his wife Jaya Pal on February 25.

COVID-19: INDIA REPORTS 10,542 FRESH CASES IN LAST 24 HOURS, ACTIVE TALLY RISES TO 63,562 India has logged 10,542 new coronavirus infections, while the active cases have increased to 63,562, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Wednesday (April 19). The death toll has increased to 5,31,190 with 38 deaths, which includes 11 reconciled by Kerala.

The Covid case tally was recorded at 4.47 crore (4,48,45,401) The daily positivity rate was recorded at 4.39 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was pegged at 5.1 per cent.

Active case tally: The active cases now comprise 0.14 per cent of the total infections and the national COVID-19 recovery rate has been recorded at 98.67 per cent, the ministry said. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,42,50,649, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.18 per cent.

Vaccination data: According to the ministry's website, 220.66 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive.

'SIMPLY APPALLED AT...': JAISHANKAR LAMBASTS EX-KARNATAKA CM SIDDARAMAIAH FOR 'POLITICIZING' SUDAN VIOLENCE New Delhi: Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday hit out at senior Congress leader and former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for "politicizing" the situation in Sudan, which is affected by army-paramilitary clashes.

The Union Minister asked the Congress leader not to do politics stating there are lives at stake. "Simply appalled at your tweet! There are lives at stake; don’t do politics. Since the fighting started on April 14th, the Embassy of India in Khartoum has been continuously in touch with most Indian Nationals and PIOs in Sudan," Jaishankar wrote on Twitter.

Jaishankar's statements came after Siddaramaiah claimed that 31 people from Karnataka belonging to the Hakki Pikki tribe, are stranded in Sudan which is troubled by civil war. He also urged the central government as well as Karnataka government to immediately intervene to ensure their safe return.

What Siddaramaiah said?

"Hakki Pikki in Sudan are left stranded without food since the last few days and the government is yet to initiate action to bring them back. BJP government should open diplomatic discussions and reach out to international agencies to ensure the well-being of Hakki-Pikkis," he posted.

Slamming Karnataka's former Chief Minister, the External Affairs Minister said their (Indians stranded in Sudan) details and locations cannot be made public for security reasons. Their movement is constrained by fierce fighting that is ongoing.

He further stated that the Embassy is in constant touch with the Ministry in that regard. "Plans regarding them have to take into account a very complicated security scenario. It is grossly irresponsible of you to politicize

their situation. No electoral goal justifies endangering Indians abroad," Jaishankar wrote in a series of tweets.

Sudan violence: Indian embassy issues fresh advisory Meanwhile, the Indian embassy in Khartoum on Tuesday advised all citizens not to venture out and ration their supplies amid intensified fighting in Sudan. In an advisory to Indians there, the embassy said "We have come across many instances of looting. All Indian nationals are advised please not to venture out. Please ration your supplies. The situation may continue for a few more days. Please try to take help from your neighbours. Please stay at home and remain safe."

This is the third advisory issued by the Indian embassy since April 15 after violence escalated in the African nation. On April 15, the Indian embassy had urged all citizens to stay indoors, take utmost precautions and stop venturing out with immediate effect.

2020 RIOTS: ANOTHER DELHI HC JUDGE RECUSES FROM HEARING ASIF IQBAL TANHA'S PLEA NEW DELHI, (IANS) A Delhi High Court judge on Wednesday recused from hearing a petition filed by Asif Iqbal Tanha, an accused in the Delhi Riots, asking for a direction to the media to withhold sensitive and confidential material about its investigation that was allegedly leaked by the Delhi Police.

Justice Amit Sharma is the second judge to recuse from hearing the matter, first being Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani, who had, on Tuesday, recused from hearing the case after the National Broadcasters and Digital Association (NBDA) filed an intervention application.

The application was filed after Justice Bhambhani had heard the matter for several days.

During the hearing, Justice Sharma ordered it to be placed before another bench.

"List this matter before another bench on April 24, subject to obtaining the orders of the Chief Justice," Justice Sharma ordered.

Following media reports about Asif's "disclosure statement" to the Delhi Police, the plea was submitted in August 2020.

According to the plea, Zee News broadcasted the charge sheet for his case six weeks before it was submitted to the court.

Tanha conceded that the riots were the result of a planned conspiracy and that Umar Khalid, a former JNU student, had asked that he organise a "chakka jam" with the help of other members of the Jamia Coordination Committee, according to the reports.

Then, he filed a petition with the court, arguing that the material was leaked by the Delhi Police and that a probe into the official's misbehaviour should be carried out as a result of the leak to media outlets like OpIndia, Zee Media, Facebook, and YouTube.

He claimed that because they clouded the judge's and the public's mind, such leaks were detrimental to a fair trial.

Tanha asserted that the information that was leaked has no value as evidence and accused the Delhi Police of having malicious intentions.

A court in Delhi sent gangster Lawrence Bishnoi to a week-long custody of National Investigation Agency (NIA) for interrogation in connection to an alleged terror funding to Khalistan supporters, a source said. Special Judge Shailendra Malik passed the order in an 'in-chamber proceeding' on an application moved by the NIA, the court source said.

In its application, the agency sought Bishnoi’s custody for seven days, claiming that he was required to be confronted with an arrested co-accused Deepak Ranga in the matter.

The court has also allowed Bishnoi's lawyers to meet him during his custody and directed jail authorities to ensure his safety and security, noting that he was a high-risk accused.

The NIA had lodged the case under sections related to waging war against the State, conspiracy and other offences punishable under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).

Bishnoi is also an accused in the case related to the alleged killing of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala.

ED ATTACHES ASSETS WORTH RS 21.3 CR OF BIZMAN NARESH JAIN NEW DELHI, (IANS) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached five immovable properties in Indore (MP), Greater Noida (UP), Solan (HP) and Gandhi Nagar (Gujarat) in the form of land and residential flats worth Rs 21.31 crore belonging to one Naresh Jain. "Proceedings under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 was initiated by the ED by recording an ECIR against Naresh Jain and others on the basis of an FIR registered by Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police for commission of offences punishable under various sections of the Indian Penal Code," said the ED. The probe agency learnt that Jain and others conducted international Hawala operation and domestic operation of providing accommodation entries to co-conspirators i.e. the beneficiaries in lieu of his commission.

Jain, along with his accomplices, confidants, employees and others, established structure of shell entities by incorporating companies or forming other business entities like firm or individual proprietorship, it stated. "Investigation revealed that Jain incorporated and operated 450 Indian and 104 foreign entities.

These entities were incorporated by using original identity proofs and documents of dummy shareholders and directors as well by fabricating identity proofs and documents of these shareholders and directors," said the official. The official said that these shell companies were used to open and operate bank accounts for facilitating bogus impor t and expor t transactions, providing desired accommodation entries to known and unknown beneficiaries by layering of funds through web of these shell companies in order to cause undue benefit to the parties involved and loss to the exchequer and banks in lieu of commission.

CBI ARRESTS BIZMAN AMANDEEP SINGH DHAL IN DELHI EXCISE POLICY CASE NEW DELHI, (IANS) The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested liquor businessman Amandeep Singh Dhal, the director of Brindco Sales Pvt Ltd., in connection to the Delhi excise policy scam case. According to information, Dhal was placed under arrest on Tuesday. He was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 1 and his questioning had led the arrest of Arun Pillai. Dhal os presently lodged at the Tihar Jail.

A CBI source said that the central probe agency may need to grill him in the matter.

"Dhal played a major role in the formulation, conspiracy and kickbacks paid by the South Group. He received a draft copy of the liquor policy before it was released. Dhal shared the draft copy with Binoy Babu. He also made arrangements of meeting between South Group persons and Vijay Nair," said the source.

The CBI has filed a charge sheet in the matter and are trying to make a watertight supplementary charge sheet in the matter.

ANDHRA PRADESH ADMINISTRATION TO SHIFT TO VIZAG IN SEPTEMBER: JAGAN VISAKHAPATNAM, (IANS) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday announced that the state government will star t functioning from Visakhapatnam from September this year. He said he would be shif ting to Visakhaptanam and would be staying there. He made the announcement while addressing a public meeting at Naupada in Srikakulam district. The chief minister said he would be moving from Amaravati to Visakhapatnam as part of the decentralisation of power. This is the first time that Jagan Mohan Reddy has specified a time period for shifting the administrative capital to the port city. Last month, during the Global Investors Summit 2023 in Visakhapatnam, he had declared that he would shortly move over to the city. At the curtain raiser event in Delhi on January 31, the chief minister had announced that Visakhapatnam will soon be the state capital. Subsequently, Finance Minister B. Rajendranath Reddy had stated at another cur tain raiser in Bengaluru that the YSRCP government decided on Visakhapatnam as the next capital of Andhra Pradesh. He had reportedly remarked that the state will not have three capitals. This had triggered speculations in political circles that the Jagan Mohan Reddy-led government had given up the plan of three state capitals.

It was on December 17, 2019 that Jagan Mohan Reddy had announced in the state Assembly that three state capitals will be developed reversing the decision of the previous TDP government to develop Amaravati as the state capital. The YSRCP government mooted Visakhapatnam as administrative capital, Kurnool as judicial capital and Amaravati as legislative capital.

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

INDIA

MidWeek 13 SAME SEX MARRIAGE IN INDIA: CENTRE URGES SUPREME COURT TO MAKE STATES, UTS AS PARTY IN FRESH AFFIDAVIT

INDIA SURPASSES CHINA TO BECOME WORLD'S MOST POPULOUS NATION WITH 142.86 CRORE PEOPLE: UN India has surpassed China to become the world's most populous nation with 142.86 crore people, UN data showed, reported PTI on Wednesday.

China has a population of 142.57 crore, according to the UN world population dashboard. The United States is a distant third, with an estimated population of 340 million, the data showed. According to a new UNFPA report, 25 per cent of India's population is in the age group of 0-14 years, 18 per cent in the 10 to 19 age group, 26 per cent in the age bracket of 10 to 24 years, 68 per cent in 15 to 64 years age group, and 7 per cent above 65 years. Estimates by different agencies have suggested that India's population is expected to keep rising for nearly three decades before it peaks at 165 crore and then start declining. The population demographics of India vary from state to state. Kerala and Punjab have an ageing population while Bihar and Uttar Pradesh have a young population, experts have said. Andrea Wojnar, the representative for United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) India and the country director for Bhutan, said that ''India's 1.4 billion people must be seen as 1.4 billion opportunities''. ''As the country with the largest youth cohort -- its 254 million youth (1524 years) -- can be a source of innovation, new thinking and lasting solutions. ''The trajectory can leapfrog forward if women and girls, in par ticular, are equipped with equal educational and skill building

opportunities, access to technology and digital innovations, and most importantly with information and power to fully exercise their reproductive rights and choices,'' she said.

Wojnar said that ensuring gender equality, empowerment and advancing greater bodily autonomy for women and girls are the key determinants for a sustainable future. Individual rights and choices should be respected, and all should be able to decide when to have children, if any, and how many, she said. ''Women and girls should be at the centre of sexual and reproductive policies and programmes. When rights, choices and equal value of all people are truly respected and held, only then can we unlock a future of infinite possibilities,'' the UN official added.

Although India and China will account for more than one-third of the estimated global population of 8.045 billion, the population growth in both Asian giants has been slowing, at a much faster pace in China than in India. Last year, China’s population fell for the first time in six decades, a historic turn that is expected to mark the start of a long period of decline in its citizen numbers with profound implications for its economy and the world.

India's annual population growth has averaged 1.2% since 2011, compared with 1.7% in the 10 years previously, according to government data.

The Centre has filed a fresh affidavit today (April 19) in various petitions seeking legal recognition of same-sex marriage and urged the Supreme Court to make states and Union Territories as a party in the matter. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta apprised the top court about the Centre's fresh affidavit. A five-judge Constitution Bench headed by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud begins hearing a batch of petitions seeking legal recognition of same-sex marriage. CJI DY Chandrachud remarked that the Centre has now informed the state that the matter is going on. That's excellent! So now it's not that the states are unaware, the court said. Centre apprised the SC that the Union of India, has issued a letter dated April 18 2023 to all States inviting comments and views on the seminal issue raised in the present batch of petitions. Centre, in a fresh affidavit, submitted that the said issue goes to the root of the present matter and has far-reaching implications.Centre requested that all States and Union Territories be made a party to the present proceedings and their respective stance be taken on record and in the alternative, allow the Union of India, to finish the consultative process with the States, obtains their views/apprehensions, compile the same and place it on record before the Court, and only thereafter adjudicate on the present issue.

MEHRAULI MURDER: DELHI HC RESTRAINS NEWS CHANNELS FROM AIRING CHARGE SHEET CONTENT

INDIAN YOUTH CONGRESS ASSAM CHIEF ANGKITA DUTTA ACCUSES SRINIVAS BV OF HARASSMENT, NCW TAKES NOTE Indian Youth Congress (IYC) Assam chief Angkita Dutta has accused youth wing's national president Srinivas BV of harassment and has made repeated appeals to Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi for action. The youth leader, who is also the daughter of former Assam minister Anjan Dutta has alleged that despite multiple tweets the Congress top bosses have not taken any cognisance.

Meanwhile, National Commission for Women (NCW) has taken up the matter. Accusing Srinivas BV & his IYC secretary in-charge Vardhan Yadav of harassment, Dutta said till now no enquiry committee has been initiated against them. "For the past 6 months, Indian Youth Congress (IYC) president Srinivas BV & his IYC secretary in-charge Vardhan Yadav have been harassing me continuously. I've complained about this to the leadership but till now no enquiry committee has been initiated against them," says Angkita Dutta, IYC president, Assam.

"When previous IYC President Keshav Kumar had sexually harassed and because of #MeToo came out. He was removed. Now despite being mentally harassed and discriminated by Srinivas BV for 6 months. I have been told to keep mum and no enquiry is initiated," Dutta said. She also tagged Rahul Gandhi in her tweet. "I am a four generations congressmen.

I have contest internal organisation twice, make booth committee, beaten by police. My education from Pol Sc to LLB in Delhi Uni, to PhD in Guwahati University. We keep quiet for the sake of the party. But harassment doesn’t stop by Srinivas," she added.

DRUG MAFIA-POLICE NEXUS: BHAGWANT MANN'S SWEEPING DIRECTIONS TO PUNJAB DGP TO EXAMINE ROLE OF ALL OFFICERS OF ANY RANK 'SHIELDING' TAINTED COP INDERJIT Chandigarh: Widening the ambit of drug mafia-police, Punjab government has passed sweeping orders asking DGP Gaurav Yadav to examine role of any other officer, however, highly placed he may be, for helping dismissed cop Inderjit Singh directly or indirectly. DGP Gaurav Yadav has deputed ADGP RK Jaiswal to inquire.

The orders of the government have asked the DGP to inquire into the role of top ranking officials also. As per government orders issued through Special Secretary Home, the DGP is asked to nominate AIG Raj Jit Singh in the June 12 , 2017, FIR against Inderjit lodged by then ADGP Harpreet Singh Sidhu led STF on drugs.

The DGP is also asked to depute a senior IPS officer to conduct investigation into the FIR registered at Police Station, Special Task Force in SAS Nagar.

While conducting the investigation, all the three reports of SIT should be taken into account. The Investigating Officer has been asked to examine the role of all concerned Police officers, howsoever highly placed they may be, who have directly or indirectly helped in drug trafficking/ smuggling. The Investigating Officer has been directed to conclude the investigation within a month and submit the report.

The orders specifically said that it is not possible for a low-rank ORP Inspector to run such a huge network of extortion and drug trafficking alone. Action should be taken against the Senior Officers who approved transfers/promotions/grant of Local Rank to Inderjit Singh (Dismissed

ORP Inspector) on the recommendations of Raj Jit Singh PPS. For identification of such Senior Officers relevant files should be sent to the Government by 4.00 pm tomorrow.

The Home Secretary also said that it appears from the investigation conducted by SIT that Inderjit Singh (dismissed ORP Inspector) was favourite of many police officers. Therefore, report within 3 days as to whether any other SSP/IPS officer had requested for posting of Inderjit Singh with him. This is being issued with the approval of the Chief Minister.

JAISHANKAR TO VISIT NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA TO BOOST BILATERAL TIES NEW DELHI, (IANS) External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will visit North and South America for the first time since assuming office in 2019, in a bid to boost bilateral ties.

According to official sources, Jaishankar will be paying an official visit to Guyana between April 21-23, Panama (April 24-25), Colombia (April 25-27) and Dominican Republic (April 27-29).

In Guyana, he will call on the leadership and interact with several ministers.

Jaishankar will also co-chair a joint commission meeting with his counterpart Hugh Hilton Todd, during which discussions would be held on the whole gamut of issues between the two countries.

The visit to Guyana will also be an opportunity for a meeting of Foreign Ministers in the India-COFCOR (Council on Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR), a group of 15-member Caribbean Community (CARICOM)) format and hold bilateral meetings with participating ministers.

In Panama, Jaishankar will be hosted by his counterpart Janaina Tewaney Mencomo.

During the visit, the India-SICA foreign ministerial meeting will also be convened wherein he would meet representatives of the eight-country Central American Integration System (SICA). Jaishankar's Colombia visit would be a first foreign ministerial level visit to the country.

He is scheduled to meet several top representatives of the government, business and civil society.

Foreign Minister of Colombia Alvaro Leyva Duran and Jaishankar will review bilateral ties. The visit to the Dominican Republic is the highest level visit from India since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1999. Jaishankar's visit takes place after the establishment of India's resident Embassy in Santo Domingo in 2022, an official statement said.

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday restrained all news channels and all other media organisations from displaying or publishing content of the charge sheet filed in the Shraddha Walkar murder case. On Monday, Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Manisha Khurana Kakkar of the Saket Court Complex had granted the Delhi Police liberty to approach a higher court for pursuing the remedy requested in their application for restraining news channels from airing or publishing any content related to the FIR registered in the case. While Justice Rajnish Bhatnagar passed the order on Delhi Police’s plea on Wednesday, he said restraining would include the audio of the narco test and CCTV footages. The court said that no media channel or organisation having access to the charge sheet shall display this material on their channel. The judge also directed the Centre to esnure that no channel displays any such material and listed it for hearing on August 3. “The publication of the said document, especially the CCTV footage, can severely prejudice the right of fair trial of the accused as enshrined under Article 21 (protection to life and personal liberty) of the Constitution of India, and the channel cannot be allowed to telecast the content of the same so as to conduct a media trial," ASJ Kakkar had said.

DELHI BJP DEMANDS CAG AUDIT OF DISCOMS OVER POWER SUBSIDIES PAID BY KEJRIWAL GOVERNMENT The Delhi BJP on Wednesday termed as a ”sham” the AAP government’s order to conduct a special audit of discoms over power subsidies released to them.

Speaking at a press conference, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva demanded an audit of power subsidy by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG). ”We do not accept the audit of power subsidy by CAG empanelled audit. The government and discoms can easily influence such an audit,” Sachdeva alleged.

No immediate reaction was available from the Delhi government or the discoms over the issue.

Has any private auditor ever given a report against their client in an audit report, Sachdeva asked.

The Delhi government on Tuesday issued a direction to power regulator DERC to conduct a special audit of discoms over power subsidies released to them from 2016 to 2022 to identify any irregularities and ensure transparency.

RAJASTHAN CONG SUBMITS DETAILED REPORTS ON PILOT'S STATEMENTS TO RANDHAWA (LD) JAIPUR, (IANS) Rajasthan Congress has prepared a report on the statements of former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot and Minister Rajendra Gudha and submitted it to the state in-charge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa.

Congress leaders confirmed that Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and PCC president Govind Singh Dotasra discussed the statements of Pilot and Gudha with Randhawa during the feedback meetings held at the Congress war room with the MLAs. Along with this, a complete file of media reports related to it was submitted. The state Congress report also includes the statement of Pilot saying 'Main virodh karta hoon to dhuan nikal deta hoon( When I oppose something, I don't give up till I achieve my goal)'.

Reportedly, the state Congress has prepared a report on the speech and statements given by Sachin Pilot in the meeting of Khetri.

Some of the MLAs who attended the feedback meetings claimed to have seen documents containing Pilot's statements.

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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

UN VOICES CONCERN OVER US TAPPING OF SECRETARY-GENERAL'S COMMUNICATIONS

CRACKS WITHIN PAKISTAN’S RULING PDM AS COALITION DISAGREES WITH PPP, BILAWAL OVER TALKS WITH PTI The ruling Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) coalition composed of three major par ties - Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) (PML-(N)), Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) have developed a split over the issue of dialogue with Pakistan Tehreeke-Insaf (PTI). Pakistan foreign minister and PTI leader Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said his party is against closing the door for talks but JUI-(F) rejected Bilawal’s opinion and said that it isn’t in the coalition’s interests to hold talks with the PTI chief and former prime minister Imran Khan who was ousted last year through a vote of no-confidence. “It is the need of the hour that the path of dialogue be adopted and the country taken out of the crisis,” Bilawal said. The meeting of the three major parties and the other member-par ties of the coalition on Tuesday ended without a consensus. The PDM coalition consists of 13 parties and representatives of all of these parties met in Islamabad after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif convened a meeting to discuss the political situation. Last week,

the Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) chief Sirajul Haq launched a ‘consensus offensive’ and met with former prime minister Imran Khan and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to discuss the political situation in the country.

It was decided after the meeting that the ruling coalition led by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) may hold indirect dialogue moderated by the JI. Some parties also pointed out that Imran Khan cannot be trusted despite some sections of the coalition, including Bilawal’s PPP, insisting that political forces should not shut channels for dialogue. Interior minister Rana Sanaullah tried to put up a strong face in front of the media and blamed Imran Khan for causing the stalemate in the dialogue process and said that the former prime minister rejected their offer for dialogue in the past.

“Parties may have different opinions, but our decisions are made with consensus,” information minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said.

GOVT IN TALKS WITH NATIONS TO ENSURE SAFETY OF INDIANS IN SUDAN, JAISHANKAR SPEAKS TO SAUDI, UAE COUNTERPARTS Sudan has been witnessing deadly fighting between the country’s army and a paramilitary group for the last six days that has killed nearly 200.

The MEA has already set up a 24X7 dedicated Control Room in New Delhi to provide information and assistance in view of the current situation in Sudan. “We are in continuous touch with our Embassy in Khartoum and are getting regular reports of the status of the Indian community. The Embassy in turn is in touch with the community and individuals through multiple methods including Whatsapp groups,” the sources said.

“The situation on the street is very tense and movement is very risky at this stage. Our priority is safety of movement and well-being of individuals wherever they are located,” they added.

A weeks-long power struggle erupted into battles on Saturday between the forces of two generals who seized power in a 2021 coup: army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).Since then, international calls have mounted for an end to hostilities that have spawned increasing lawlessness, death and damage.

PAKISTAN SC WARNS GOVT OF SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES IF POLL FUNDS NOT RELEASED ISLAMABAD, (IANS) The Pakistan Supreme Court on Wednesday warned the government of "serious consequences" if it failed to release the funds required for conducting polls in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, media reports said.

The top court issued the warning while hearing the Defence Ministry's request to hold general elections across Pakistan simultaneously upon completion of the terms of the national as well as Sindh and Balochistan Assemblies, Dawn reported.

A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, and Justice Munib Akhtar heard the petition.

A day earlier, the Defence Ministry filed an application in the SC, requesting the top court to recall its April 4 order that had fixed May 14 as the election date for the Punjab Assembly.

It asked the apex court to issue directives that general elections to the national and all provincial assemblies be held on the same date, Dawn reported. Along with the application, the Defence Ministry also issued a report in court, laid before the SC in compliance with its directives to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and other departments to furnish reports after releasing Rs 21 billion to the ECP for holding elections to the Punjab and KP Assemblies.

In its report, the ministry highlighted the need of holding the elections on the same day in view of the heightened security situation in the country.

It also said that the armed forces would be able to carry out election duties by early October, Dawn reported.

ELON MUSK SEEKS TO REASSURE ADVERTISERS WITH TWITTER'S NEW CONTENT MODERATION POLICY Twitter head Elon Musk on Tuesday attempted to reassure wary advertisers by hyping up the site’s newly introduced content moderation policy against hateful material.

Speaking at a meeting in Florida, the controversial billionaire outlined new rules, first announced Monday, to limit the reach of tweets that do not conform to the platform’s guidelines.

“If somebody has something hateful to say, it doesn’t mean he should have a microphone," the self-described free-speech absolutist told gathered journalists. “He still should be able to say it, but it needs to be not them pushing it on people," he added.

Under the new policy, unveiled in a blog post titled “Freedom of Speech, Not Reach," Twitter will soon begin tagging posts whose visibility has been limited. The labels will “bring a new level of transparency to enforcement actions," the blog post said.

“Tweets with these labels will be made less discoverable on the platform. Additionally, we will not place ads adjacent to content that we label."

Since purchasing the so-called bird app in a rollercoaster $44 billion deal last year, Musk has sharply reined in content moderation on the platform, allowing the return of many users who had been banned for posting tweets that incite hate or spread misinformation.

ISRAEL MINISTER BARKAT WANTS BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT WITH INDIA TO EXPAND BEYOND FTA Israel minister for economy and industry Nir Barkat said Israel wants to take business and trade ties with India to the next step and not limit it to a free trade agreement (FTA).

“I’m here to propose and to see how we could take it to the next step, not just free trade agreement, but actually do a lot of business development together,” Barkat told CNN-News18 and pointed out that Israel’s innovation in agrotech, food-tech and creating food from the sea are well known.

“I’m here to also look at how we can focus on training and get more and more people involved in future jobs versus older jobs,” he said, referring to the challenge traditional jobs are facing from new-age technologies. Israel witnessed protests over the past few weeks as civil society groups protested against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposed judicial reforms. The government has halted the reforms following weeks of protests and strikes, forcing the government to put the reforms agenda on the back burner. The protests have affected the business friendly image of the country and global rating agency Moody’s downgraded Israel’s ratings in the aftermath of the protests. “Israel is an amazing democracy, and I’m very proud of our democracy”, says Barkat, a former mayor of Jerusalem. “The fact that people are willing to go out to the streets because they care about democracy. So the potential is not going to change, anybody and everyone who invested in Israel in the past gained a lot. And I strongly recommend people to look at Israel as one of the best investments people can make in the world,” Barkat said, while comparing the recent wave of protests to the ongoing protests against pension reforms in France or the 2016 Brexit protests. Barkat also said that the growth Israel has with India, the US and the UAE, is more compared to the growth it witnessed with other countries. Israel, India, the US and the UAE are part of the I2U2 group. The I2U2 group of nations aim to enhance trade cooperation and investment among the group members.

The UN has formally expressed its “concern" to the United States after press repor ts revealed surveillance of Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s communications, his spokesman said Tuesday, denouncing actions “inconsistent with (US) obligations."

“The UN officially expressed… its concern regarding recent reports that the communications of the Secretary-General and other senior UN officials have been the subject of surveillance and interference by the US government," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

Such actions, Dujarric said, “are inconsistent with the (US) obligations… enumerated in the UN charter and the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations." The United States has intercepted at least four of Guterres’ conversations with other UN officials, including on Ukraine, according to the Washington Post, citing confidential Pentagon documents. US prosecutors last week lodged charges against a 21-year-old airman for allegedly leaking hundreds of secret US documents on the war in Ukraine as well as intelligence assessments on other parts of the world.

KING CHARLES' CORONATION: OVER HALF OF BRITONS OPPOSE TAXPAYER FUNDING FOR ROYAL CEREMONY

More than half of British people do not want the upcoming coronation of King Charles III to be funded by taxpayers, a new poll conducted and published on Tuesday found.

The YouGov poll found 51 percent of respondents believe the May 6 ceremony to crown Charles and Camilla should not be paid for by the government.

Nearly a third, 32 percent, said it should, while around 18 percent did not know.

It comes with the UK in the grip of a cost-of-living crisis and wideranging strikes by employees across the public and private sectors, as decades-high inflation eats away at earnings.

The situation is seen as factoring into the muted enthusiasm seen so far for the long weekend of celebrations.

The government is yet to disclose how much it will all cost, with a Westminster Abbey ceremony on Saturday May 6 and Windsor Castle concert on Sunday May 7 among the set-piece events.

'STILL A LOT OF PEOPLE DYING': WHO WARNS COVID PANDEMIC STILL VOLATILE

The World Health Organization on Tuesday warned the Covid pandemic was still volatile, saying there could be further trouble before the virus settles into a predictable pattern.

In the last 28 days, more than 23,000 deaths and three million new cases have been reported to the WHO, in the context of muchreduced testing.

While the numbers are decreasing, “that’s still a lot of people dying and that’s still a lot of people getting sick", WHO emergencies director Michael Ryan told a press conference.

He said respiratory viruses do not pass from a pandemic to an endemic phase, but instead move to low levels of activity with potentially seasonal epidemic peaks.

“We don’t turn off a pandemic switch," said Ryan.

“It’s much more likely that we’re going to see… a bumpy road to a more predictable pattern."

The WHO’s emergency committee on Covid-19 meets every three months and is due to assemble in early May. As at its previous meetings, it will decide whether the virus still constitutes a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) — the highest level of alert that the UN health agency can sound. The WHO declared Covid-19 a PHEIC on January 30, 2020, when there were fewer than 100 cases and no deaths outside China. But it was not until WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described the situation as a pandemic in March 2020 that the world jolted into action.

Ryan said the virus would not be eliminated and would, like influenza, still cause significant respiratory disease in vulnerable people. Some countries still have large populations of highly vulnerable people who are unvaccinated, he said, while in others Covid is no longer an emergency event.

The Covid-19 committee presents its advice to Tedros — who has the final say — on whether the virus still constitutes a PHEIC.

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

AYUSHMANN KHURRANA TO UNVEIL HIS FIRST LOOK FROM DREAM GIRL 2 ON EID?

DREAM GIRL 2 FANS HAVE BEEN ANTICIPATING THE ARRIVAL OF THE SEQUEL TO THE SUPERHIT BOLLYWOOD FILM DREAM GIRL. THE BUZZ SURROUNDING THE FILM IS ONLY RISING AS RUMOURS REGARDING THE UPCOMING PROMOTIONAL VIDEO, WHICH IS SLATED TO BE UNVEILED ON EID CONTINUE TO SPREAD. ONE OF THE MOST PRESSING DOUBTS IS WHETHER AYUSHMANN KHURRANA'S CHARACTER, POOJA, WILL ULTIMATELY SHOW HER FACE IN THE VIDEO. THE CHARACTER, KNOWN FOR HER EXCEPTIONAL VOICE-MIMICKING ABILITIES, HAS BECOME A FAN FAVOURITE, AND FANS ARE EAGER TO SEE THE PERSON BEHIND THE SOUND. POOJA RECEIVED CALLS FROM CELEBRITIES SUCH AS PATHAAN ON VALENTINE'S DAY AND ROCKSTAR ON HOLI IN THE PREVIOUS TWO VIDEOS. AND NOW, AS THE EID HOLIDAYS APPROACHING, SPECULATION OVER WHO WILL BE NEXT IN LINE IS HEATING UP. SOME ADMIRERS BELIEVE IT WILL BE BHAIJAAN HIMSELF. BHAIJAAN, WITH HIS LARGER-THAN-LIFE PRESENCE AND MASSIVE FAN BASE, WOULD UNDOUBTEDLY BE AN INTRIGUING ADDITION TO THE DREAM GIRL 2 VIDEOS. FANS WILL HAVE TO KEEP SPECULATING UNTIL THE NEXT PROMOTIONAL VIDEO IS RELEASED. BALAJI TELEFILMS LIMITED’S DREAM GIRL 2 IS ONE OF THE HIGHLY ANTICIPATED BOLLYWOOD MOVIES OF THE YEAR, AND WITH EACH PASSING DAY, THE EXCITEMENT ONLY CONTINUES TO GROW. WILL POOJA FINALLY REVEAL HER FACE?

SONAM KAPOOR TALKS ABOUT EMBRACING POST-PREGNANCY BODY, SAYS ‘NOT IN HURRY TO LOSE WEIGHT'

Sonam Kapoor discussed her attitude to health and fitness following the bir th of her son Vayu. The new mother stated that she is not in any hurry to return to her pre-pregnancy body. Sonam, on the other hand, indicated that her primary concern is her health. Sonam Kapoor has been a mother for seven months. She stated that, while she exercises for health, she is not on a "crazy diet" to reduce pregnancy weight.

Sonam stated that she is currently breastfeeding and hopes to do so for "at least a year," adding that her body requires "food, rest, and energy." In an interview with Grazia India, Sonam Kapoor revealed her thoughts on the female body's expectations and how it changes throughout pregnancy as it grows life. The Veere The Wedding actress went on to say that body image concerns begin to emerge after motherhood.

PARINEETI CHOPRA REACTS TO ENGAGEMENT RUMOURS WITH RAGHAV CHADHA: 'I WILL CLARIFY IF...'

PALAK TIWARI FELT INTIMIDATED BY NIKKI TAMBOLI SLIPS INTO A ILEANA D'CRUZ IS PREGNANT; SALMAN KHAN ON THE SETS OF 'KISI TIGHT BODYSUIT, FLAUNTS HER ACTRESS IS EXPECTING HER KA BHAI KISI KI JAAN'? SHE REACTS CURVES IN NEW PHOTOS 1ST BABY; NETIZENS ASK There were speculations that the actress will be rokafied when her cousin sister Priyanka Chopra arrived in India with her family. Days 'WHO IS THE FATHER?' after the same, Parineeti Chopra was clicked with a silver band on her ring finger. Parineeti did not announce that she is engaged but said that she will clarify if something needs to be clarified. Recently, the actress was asked what she thinks about her personal life being discussed openly. She said that there is a little difference between the media discussing her life and sometimes crossing the line by being too personal or disrespectful. She explained that she will clarify things if they need to be clarified about her personal life.

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22 PALAK TIWARI, WHO IS SET TO MAKE HER BOLLYWOOD DEBUT WITH SALMAN KHAN'S 'KISI KA BHAI KISI KI JAAN', SHARED HER EXPERIENCE OF WORKING WITH THE SUPERSTAR.

21 NIKKI TAMBOLI RAISED TEMPERATURES WITH HER LATEST PHOTO SHOOT.

19 BOLLYWOOD ACTRESS ILEANA D’CRUZ ON TUESDAY ANNOUNCED HER PREGNANCY ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

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LUCKNOW SUPER GIANTS HOLD RAJASTHAN ROYALS AT THEIR HOME, BEAT TABLE TOPPERS BY 10 RUNS 10:00 AM

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AVESH KHAN AND NICHOLAS POORAN BREAK INTO A DANCE AFTER LUCKNOW SUPER GIANTS' WIN.

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MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

B O L LY W O O D

MidWeek 19 ‘HAD A HUGE CRUSH ON TWINKLE KHANNA; EVEN USED TO CHASE HER’: SHAHID KAPOOR

ILEANA D'CRUZ IS PREGNANT; ACTRESS IS EXPECTING HER 1ST BABY; NETIZENS ASK 'WHO IS THE FATHER?' Bollywood actress Ileana D’Cruz on Tuesday announced her pregnancy on social media. The actress is expecting her first baby. Ileana decided to keep the identity of her baby’s father a secret.

The actress took to her Instagram account to make the happy announcement. She shared a monochrome photo of a onesie and a personalised pendant which had “MAMA" initials on it. Ileana’s post took the internet by storm, with netizens wondering about her relationship status.

While her well-wishers and fans showered her with love and congratulatory messages in the comment section, a section of the internet was curious to know about the baby’s father. One user wrote, “Are you married? Who is the father?" Another one commented, “Father kaun?" A third user said, “Can you please share the details?"

Notably, Ileana D’Cruz was in a relationship with Andrew Kneebone a few years back. The actress had even referred to Kneebone as “best hubby ever" once on an Instagram post while it was still not clear

whether the two were married or not.

She apparently broke up with him in 2019. Months after her break-up, she spoke to Pinkvilla on her separation with Kneebone. “I don’t get upset. When you are going through a situation like this, you understand the value of your family and friends. It’s the same that happened for me. I had my family and closest friends supporting me right through it," she said.

Of late, it has been reported that Ileana is dating Katrina Kaif’s brother, Sebastian Laurent Michel. On one of the episodes of Koffee With Karan season 7, Karan Johar seemingly confirmed their relationship.

Last year, Katrina Kaif had shared a bunch of photos from her bir thday celebrations in the Maldives. Those in attendance included Katrina’s husband Vicky Kaushal, sister Isabelle Kaif, brother Sebastian Laurent Michel, friends Sharvari Wagh, Sunny Kaushal, Mini Mathur and others. Also par t of the par ty was Ileana D’Cruz and her presence confused many.

PARINEETI CHOPRA SAYS 'JALDI SHAYAD' AS SHE TALKS ABOUT MARRIAGE, KIDS IN VIRAL VIDEO Parineeti Chopra’s rumoured relationship with Aam Aadmi Par ty (AAP) leader Raghav Chadha is currently the talk of the town. The couple is expected to tie the sacred knot this year. While they have been tight lipped about their love affair, their casual lunch and dinner dates hint towards their rumoured relationship. Now an old video of Parineeti talking about ‘marriage and kids’ is going viral on social media.

Back in 2019, Parineeti along with Sania Mirza made an appearance for Farah Khan’s talk show where the Ishqzaade actress joked about having kids and getting married, much like she affirmed it. After a series of games, Farah asked Parineeti about her wedding, to which she said, “Abhi nahi, Jaldi shayad,” she paused, laughed and added, “Bilkul bhi nahi, Meri shaadi nahi hone wali.”

This year, in February, Parineeti once again opened up about getting married and having children in one of her interviews. The Hasee Toh Phasee actress had told Hindustan Times, “All you have to do is find me a boy then my personal life will be sor ted. If you have any recommendations, I am listening. The day I find my person and I fall in love with my person, I will want to marry him.” She further added, “In terms of my personal life, I would love to get married and I would love to have children in my life. That is also important. I want to have a great balanced career which is full of highs and lows. I welcome both equally. I want to be healthy, I want to be happy with my family

and my friends.” Raghav too had earlier addressed the romance rumours. He was asked about the actress and their frequent meetings.

“Aap mujhse raajneeti ke sawaal kariye, Parineeti ke sawaal na kariye (Please ask me questions about politics, not Parineeti),” the AAP politician said. When prodded fur ther about their r umoured relationship, Raghav blushed and replied, “Denge jawaab.”

During an episode of Koffee With Karan, popular Bollywood actor Shahid Kapoor revealed that he had a huge crush on actress Twinkle Khanna and once even chased her while she was shooting for a film.

He revealed that Twinkle Khanna was shooting for a film named Itihaas in 1997. Shahid Kapoor’s mother, Neelima Azim, was also a part of the film, so Shahid got the opportunity to be on the set. He said that he used to be there with a friend, and they used to wait for hours just to get a glimpse of her. He used to look at her from a distance and follow her whenever he saw her.

However, he revealed that he could never muster the courage to talk to her and just liked looking at her.

Twinkle Khanna’s wit and good looks have always kept her in the news. The daughter of Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia has now left acting and has become a writer. Mrs Funnybones is married to Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar. The couple tied the knot in 2001 and have two children named Aarav and Nitara. She made her debut in the Hindi film industry with the 1995 film Barsaat and has done some popular films like Itihaas, Baadshah, International Khiladi, Mela, etc.

DIVYANKA TRIPATHI LOOKS DROP-DEAD GORGEOUS IN PINK CO-ORD SET. SEE

Divyanka Tripathi Dahiya is a well-known actress in the TV industry with a large fan base due to her acting career. She has appeared in a number of popular shows up to this point. The actress has always maintained an active presence on her social media accounts, where she frequently shares photos and videos. She enjoys staying in touch with her admirers, and her followers suppor t her wholehear tedly. The actress is highly expressive on social media, frequently sharing breathtaking photos from photoshoots in stunning ensembles. Divyanka took to Instagram and shared jaw-dropping pictures from her latest shoot in a neon pink co-ord set. In the images, the Yeh Hai Mohabbatein actress looks very stunning in an all-pink co-ord ensemble. Divyanka looked stunning in a plunging neckline pink shirt that she topped with a pink jacket and pants. The diva wore high heels, a golden sling bag that complemented her appearance, and white pearl earrings. Her hair is styled open, and her makeup is immaculate. Divyanka captioned these lovely photographs, "Spicing it up with Pink Paprika."

Divyanka Tripathi and Vivek Dahiya are prominent celebrity couples in the TV industry. They met while working on the hit programme Yeh Hai Mohabbatein and fell in love during their time together. The couple then exchanged rings on January 16, 2016, before getting married on July 8, 2016, in Bhopal.

KAREENA KAPOOR KHAN IS ALL PRAISE FOR DILJIT DOSANJH'S PERFORMANCE AT COACHELLA; CALLS HIM 'OG'

SHEHNAAZ GILL WISHES TO BE SALMAN KHAN'S HEROINE SOMEDAY; SAYS 'MERI CHEMISTRY TO...'

Diljit Dosanjh made waves as the first Punjabi singer to perform at the Coachella Music Festival. The singer and actor, dressed in a traditional Punjabi outfit, made the audience dance to some of his famous Punjabi songs. Now, Kareena Kapoor Khan has commented on his performance on social media. On Sunday, the actress took to her Instagram account and lauded her Udta Punjab co-star, Diljit Dosanjh, for his Coachella performance. Bebo shared a video of his performance and wrote, "The OG, uff." Soon, Diljit re-shared it on his Instagram account along with a folded hands emoji. Coachella and the singer shared the video in a collaboration post. In the clip, Diljit Dosanjh looked dapper clad in a black kur ta-pyjama and turban. He performed several of his hit songs and gave the audience an evening to remember. The caption of the post read, "@diljitdosanjh got Sahara shining."

Netizens reaction Diljit's performance received a lot of love on the internet. One user wrote, "Historic night in California and proud, inspiring, moment for Punjab and the entire diaspora worldwide." Another user commented, "History my brother! So proud of you and the entire team on and off stage. Represent." A third user wrote, "My brother, on behalf of the entire diaspora- the haters the lovers and everyone in between, THANK YOU! You have broken a very important barrier for all Punjabi artists." Meanwhile, on the work front, Kareena Kapoor has star ted filming for "The Crew." In the film, she will share screen space with Tabu and Kriti Sanon. Helmed by Rajesh Krishnan, the film is the story of three women. It is touted as a laugh-riot, set against the backdrop of the struggling airline industry. However, their destinies lead to some unwarranted situations and they get caught in a web of lies. Besides this, Kareena will also appear in Hansal Mehta's upcoming film, which she and Ekta co-produced, as well as the upcoming film "The Devotion Of Suspect X."

Shehnaaz Gill rose to prominence after her stint on Bigg Boss 13. The reality show hosted by Salman Khan garnered her enormous fame. Now, she is gearing up for her big Bollywood debut with Salman Khan's Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan. The film also stars Pooja Hegde, Palak Tiwari, Siddharth Nigam, Raghav Juyal, Bhumika Chawla and Venkatesh Daggubati in key roles.

In a recent interview, Shehnaaz spoke about her wish to star opposite Bhaijaan in a film. In an interview with Connect FM Canada, Shehnaaz was quizzed on whether she would be seen in a movie opposite the superstar.

The actress chuckled and responded that she knew nothing about it. For the uninitiated, Shehnaaz is not the lead opposite Salman Khan in KKBKKJ, and she is pleased to be collaborating with him there. The Punjabi modelactress said, "Mereko nahi pata, casting directors ya Salman sir ko hi pata hoga. Meri chemistry to sabke sath hi achi lagti hai. I hope Salman sir ye sapna bhi pura kar dein ki main unke opposite aa jaun. Par main isme hi bohot khushi hu ki unke sath nahi to unke peeche khade hokar kaam karne me bhi mera sapna pura ho gaya. (I don’t know when that will happen, only Salman sir or the casting director would know that. I hope he fulfills this wish of mine; to be his heroine. But even working under him has been an unforgettable experience)."

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WHEN SHAH RUKH KHAN SAID HE CAN ALWAYS COUNT ON SALMAN KHAN: 'MAIN AGAR TROUBLE ME HOON..'

'THREATENED TO KILL ME': SHERLYN CHOPRA FILES MOLESTATION CASE AGAINST INVESTOR

Bollywood actress Sherlyn Chopra registered a molestation case against a Mumbai-based financier at Juhu Police Station on April 14 and claimed that the accused also threatened to kill her. According to the Red Swastik actress, her complaint mentioned that the financier tricked her into thinking that he wants to feature her in a music video and was also ready to give money to Sherlyn for the same. Recounting what happened, Sherlyn revealed after she returned from Dubai to Mumbai on April 12, her manager informed her that an investor had expressed his desire to meet Sherlyn as he was eager to feature her in a music video. The actress agreed to be a part of the video and the song was recorded successfully in the evening, ahead of which Sherlyn’s manager took her to meet the investor at a hotel. Sherlyn shared that the name of the investor was Sunil Parasmani Lodha.

Upon meeting the B-town actress, he claimed himself to be a huge admirer of Sherlyn. The investor opened up about wanting to invest money in songs featuring the actress and presumably, to prove his eagerness, paid a sum of money to Sherlyn’s manager on the spot

itself. This raised doubt in Sherlyn’s mind who opined that it was impossible to record a music video with the amount that the financier had paid. Sherlyn shared that he advised Sunil that for a good music video, an amount of at least Rs 15 to 20 lakh is required. Surprisingly, he agreed to pay the said amount as well. After the meeting, Sherlyn decided to give Sunil a lift in her car as the latter did not bring one. But when the driver reached Sherlyn’s residence, Sunil wished to see her house. This time too the actress welcomed him to her house and prepared dinner. But what followed, stunned Sherlyn. After dining together, both the actress and the financier engaged in a small conversation, during which Sunil tried to molest her, trying to touch her inappropriately. Although Sherlyn shared that she opposed Sunil’s advances repeatedly, the investor cited that he was unable to restrict himself as he was so smitten by her. That’s when the actress complained the molester. The Mumbai Police have assured Sherlyn that their investigation is underway. “Case registered against the accused under sections 354, 506, 509 of IPC,” they said.

WHEN PRIYANKA CHOPRA CONFIRMED SHAHID KAPOOR WAS AT HER HOME DURING THE I-T RAID Actress Priyanka Chopra is known for her talent and persona. Priyanka was in the limelight in 2011 when the Income Tax (IT) Depar tment raided her house. What caught the attention of the people was the news that Shahid Kapoor had come to open the door of the house in a towel when the IT officials visited. Recently, an old interview of Priyanka related to this incident has re-emerged on social media. In the clip, she surprised everyone with her response when asked about the veracity of the claim about Shahid’s presence during the IT raid.

According to reports, Priyanka Chopra conceded that Shahid was at her home during that time as he resided only 3 minutes away from her home. Priyanka had made fun of the media by asking if they were with the IT officials who came for the raid, since they were writing that Shahid Kapoor came out to open the gate in a towel.

Priyanka Chopra said that people may be laughing about it, but it is really a silly thing to write something like this about a woman. She had clearly stated that she used to live with her family and talking like this can truly hur t somebody. Reportedly, she dated Shahid Kapoor for some time, but the relationship did not last long. Priyanka Chopra tied the knot to American singeractor Nick Jonas. The duo has a daughter named Malti Marrie Chopra Jonas. She will be seen next in the series Citadel, alongside Richard Madden. The television show is created by David Weil for Amazon Prime Video, with the Russo brothers acting as executive producers.

RAGHAV JUYAL: WHEN SALMAN KHAN PRAISES SOMEONE IT'S NOT SCRIPTED Dancer-actor Raghav Juyal will soon be seen on the big screen with Salman Khan and Pooja Hegde in action film 'Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi ki Jaan'. He is over the moon to receive a word of praise from the Bollywood superstar.

In a recent press conference, Salman mentioned that the first time he noticed Raghav was at a stage show.

Impressed by Raghav's performance, Salman made up his mind that he was going to work with him. For Raghav, the compliment was humbling and emotional.

Raghav says, "It was kind of him to say those words just for the fact that he didn't have to be this nice to me. I know when Salman bhai praises someone it's not scripted or anything that comes straight from his heart and he means it." "When I used to per form on stage, I met many celebrities who gave compliments on my style, but bhai is one of the few who remembered me.

It’s like a Bollywood bromance that just won’t quit! Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan’s friendship has been through thick and thin, but it’s still going strong. During Aryan Khan’s brush in with the Narcotics Control Bureau, Salman showed up at his doorstep in the middle of the night like a true brother. Even Salman’s sister stopped by to lend some support. Talk about #friendshipgoals!

Fans were not taken aback by this as Shah Rukh had previously expressed on record that Salman Khan is his constant support through all the ups and downs. In a video that is now going viral, from the grand finale episode of the third season of Dus Ka Dum, Shah Rukh can be seen getting emotional as he speaks about the genuine care and concern that Salman has for him and his loved ones. In the old clip, Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukerji are seen as contestants on the show, with Salman Khan as the host. During the game, when Salman asks Shah Rukh “Apka hai koi thick and thin mein (Do you have a person who stands with you in thick and thin)?” Shah Rukh Khan responds, “Salman yaar, mai agar kabhi trouble me hoon, actually, mujhse zyada agar meri family kabhi trouble me hai to tum ho. (If I am ever in trouble, actually, if my family is ever in trouble, you are there).”

Salman then goes on to hug his “brother" Shah Rukh. On October 2, the NCB conducted a raid on the Cordelia Cruise ship, suspected of hosting a drug-infused gathering en route to Goa. Among the eight individuals detained by the NCB for questioning was Aryan Khan, in relation to the drug seizure on board the ship. Following the investigation, Aryan spent 25 days at the Arthur Road jail in Mumbai. It’s interesting to note that senior advocate Satish Maneshinde, who had earlier secured bail for Salman in the 2002 drinking-and-driving case, was appointed by Shah Rukh Khan to represent his son in the case. At the recent NMACC opening, Salman posed with Gauri Khan, Aryan Khan and Suhana Khan while SRK routed his entry through a VIP door.

SAMANTHA RUTH PRABHU'S CAREER IS OVER; SHE'S DOING 'CHEAP' ACTS, PRODUCER MAKES SHOCKING CLAIM

In a shocking turn of events, veteran producer-director Chittibabu has claimed that Samantha Ruth Prabhu’s movie career is “finished". Notably, Samantha’s latest release Shaakuntalam has not lived up to its expectations and failed to make a mark at the box office.

In a recent interview with Filmy Looks, the producer slammed Samantha, claiming that her career as “star heroine" has ended and that she is now using “cheap tactics" to promote her movies. “Samantha did Oo Antava item song in Pushpa The Rise after her divorce. She did it for her livelihood. After losing the status of a star heroine, she is doing whatever offers she is getting. Her career as the heroine is finished and she cannot get back to stardom again. She should continue her journey doing the offers she gets,” he was quoted as saying by Siasat.com.

“During Yashoda promotions, she shed tears in promotions and tried to score a hit. Now ahead of Shaakuntalam, she did the same trying to get sympathy saying she planned to do the role before she dies and went on record that she was unable to speak as she couldn’t get her voice out of her throat,” Babu added.

RAM KAPOOR UNLEASHED INNER PUNJABI FOR 'JUBILEE'

Actor Ram Kapoor, who plays a film producer - Shamsher Singh Walia, in the recently released streaming series 'Jubilee', shared that to essay the part he unleashed the inner Punjabi in him and played it to the gallery because he fully trusted director Vikramaditya Motwane's instincts as the two go long way back, having worked in Motwane's directorial debut 'Udaan' which was released in 2010. Shamsher Singh Walia always addresses Madan Kumar (played

by Aparshakti Khurana) as, "Madan Kumar, Bhe****d" whenever something goes south for him. This has now become a catchphrase, with fans using it to express their own frustrations and exasperations in memes. On his transformation journey, Ram Kapoor shared, "For Shamsher Singh Walia, I realised that I must bring that Punjabi inside me out. I must be as Punjabi as I can in terms of body language, with my abuses, my obnoxiousness, everything. And that is what I did, I just enhanced my inner obnoxious side to the absolute maximum".

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MidWeek 21 KARTIK AARYAN WAS ALWAYS GRAND EVEN BEFORE HE BECAME STAR, RECALLS CASTING DIRECTOR KAVISH

NIKKI TAMBOLI SLIPS INTO A TIGHT BODYSUIT, FLAUNTS HER CURVES IN NEW PHOTOS Nikki Tamboli set Instagram on fire with her latest photoshoot. The actress, who became a household name with her appearance in Bigg Boss 14 and Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi 11, took to Instagram and shared hot pictures from her recent sexy photo shoot. In the pictures, Nikki was seen wearing a black bodysuit and a pair of ripped pants.

However, the actress was seen lowering her pants and posing for the cameras. She had a sensual expression while she posed for the cameras.

She shared these gorgeous photos with black heart emojis. The comments section was filled with comments from fans. While many called the shoot ‘hot’, a few dropped compliments such as ‘gorgeous’, ‘so sexy’ and ‘awesome’.

Nikki had previously shared a picture from the same shoot along with a warning for her fans. “Parental warning, look at me at your own risk," she

wrote, sharing a solo picture from the shoot. Nikki often raises temperatures with her sultry posts. Fans shower her with love every time. She also often experiments with her fashion choices, trying different kinds of outfits. Meanwhile, last year, Nikki Tamboli’s name cropped up during a probe into the Rs 200-crore extortion case involving conman Sukesh Chandrasekhar. In September 2022, a Delhi Police team took Nikki and one more actress inside the Tihar jail to “recreate" their alleged meeting with conman Sukesh as part of a probe into the extortion case.

Nikki reportedly met Sukesh through Pinky Irani, who according to the Mumbai police was a close aide and friend of the conman. According to Nikki’s statement, Pinky introduced her to Sukesh as ‘Shekhar’ and mentioned him as a South Indian producer. Nikki reportedly met Sukesh on two occasions inside the Tihar Jail, in Delhi.

AFTER JR NTR, JANHVI KAPOOR TO SHARE SCREEN WITH RRR STAR RAM CHARAN FOR HER SECOND TELUGU MOVIE

Here is an interesting and unofficial update about Bollywood actress Janhvi Kapoor and Mega Power Star Ram Charan. The two are likely to share the screen space soon in a new Pan-India movie with a Kabaddi sports backdrop. Sana Buchhi Babu, who rose to fame with the Telugu movie ‘Uppena’, is going to direct the movie and Oscar award winner AR Rahman is going to score music for the much-awaited movie.

Once the update is officially confirmed by the filmmakers, the above said is going to be Janhvi Kapoor’s second movie in Tollywood as well as South India. It is learned that the makers went through several names to pair opposite Ram Charan in the movie but finally decided to go ahead with Janhvi Kapoor. According to the insiders, Ram Charan is going to play a dual role in the movie whereas Janhvi Kapoor will be seen as a lady love to one character of his characters. ‘Sita Ramam’ fame Mrunalini Thakur will also act beside another character of RRR star in the movie. However, it should be noted that the official announcement regarding the film or its cast has been made as of now. Meanwhile, Janhvi Kapoor has also been working with RRR fame NTR’s 30th movie under the direction of ‘Srimanthudu’ fame Koratala Shiva.

SAIF ALI KHAN BEGINS SHOOTING WITH NTR JR FOR 'NTR 30' Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan has officially joined the team of NTR 30. Saif has begun filming alongside movie's lead actor NTR Jr. which marks the first collaboration between the two actors.

'NTR 30' is a highly anticipated Telugu-language action-drama film that will see Saif playing a pivotal role alongside NTR Jr. The film, helmed by Koratala Siva is billed to be a visual extravaganza, with an exciting storyline and a talented cast.

Sharing the picture on social media from what looks like the set of 'NTR 30', the makers officially welcomed the actor to the team.

"Team #NTR30 welcomes #SaifAliKhan on board."

'NTR 30' went on the floor last month after a grand muharat ceremony in Hyderabad. This film will also mark Janhvi Kapoor debut in the Telugu industry.

Produced by Yuvasudha Ar ts and presented by Nandamuri Kalyan Ram under the banner of NTR Arts, the movie is scheduled to have a pan-India release on April 5, 2024.

Having star ted his career with Yash Raj Films under the able guidance and leadership of ace casting director Shanoo Sharma, Kavish Sinha began his own casting company, On My Kayroll, about seven years back. Over the years, he has been a part of popular films and web shows like Indoo Ki Jawaani (2020), Tribhanga, The Empire (both 2021) and Rudra: The Edge Of Darkness (2022), among others. His latest works include Mrs Chatterjee VS Norway and the second season of Rocket Boys.

The casting director has also been a star-maker and been behind some of the biggest names in showbiz today. In an exclusive chat with News18, he talks about finding a star in actor Kar tik Aaryan way before he became a sensation and young hear t-throb by belting out hits like Sonu Ki Titu Ki Sweety (2018), Luka Chuppi (2019) and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 (2022).

Speaking about casting him in a shor t film titled Silvat (2016), Kavish recalls, “I happened to cast Kartik Aaryan in a beautiful shor t film before he became this grand star – but Kartik was always grand. I never had a shadow of a doubt on his resilience and dedication towards work and look, it’s all here for the world to see.” Yet another find by him includes actor Ishwak Singh, who shot to fame with Rocket Boys. After playing small parts in films like Tamasha (2015) and Veere Di Wedding (2019), Ishwak caught the attention of the film fraternity and the audience with his performance in the web series where he played legendary physicist, Dr Vikram Sarabhai. “I have known Ishwak for years now. The moment I saw Dr Vikram Sarabhai’s picture, I ensured that Ishwak be auditioned. However, this kind of éclat and admiration was never expected. There’s not a day when I don’t get a call or message commending the fabulous casting on Rocket Boys. I’m so grateful,” elaborates Kavish. In Mrs Chatterjee VS Nor way, he was instrumental in finding the likes of acclaimed Bengali artists who ably supported actor Rani Mukerji. “I think it’s safe to say that casting MCVN was one of the biggest challenges of my career,” he states. Prod him further and he explains, “One, you have to find actors who can match Rani Mukerji’s calibre and second, you have to stick to the authenticity of characters – their language, their looks etc. And all this in the middle of the second wave of the pandemic. However, we found some phenomenal actors from Bengal, seniors and the younger lot and auditioned them vir tually over zoom and self-tapes.”

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KATRINA KAIF ‘CRIED A LOT’ AFTER JOHN ABRAHAM ‘REMOVED’ HER FROM FILM; SUSHMITA SEN RESUMES AARYA 3 SHOOT

PALAK TIWARI FELT INTIMIDATED BY SALMAN KHAN ON THE SETS OF 'KISI KA BHAI KISI KI JAAN'? SHE REACTS Palak Tiwari, daughter of Shweta Tiwari, who is making her Bollywood debut with 'Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan', considers herself lucky to have received an oppor tunity of sharing screen space with superstar Bollywood superstar Salman Khan. Before this, Salman and Palak worked together in Mahesh Manjrekar's Antim: The Final Truth (2021), where the latter was assisting the former and the filmmaker. Now, in an interview, the aspiring actress opened up about her experience working with Salman and if his seniority 'intimidated her.' Talking about working with Tiger actor, Palak Tiwari told ANI, "Working with Salman Khan Sir was my dream come true moment. I have been his fan since childhood...so 'Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan' will always remain special. He would come on set, crack a joke and make all of us feel comfor table. His seniority did not intimidate us ...he always helped us. We all used to sit together and have food with him. I will always cherish the time spent with sir on the sets." Recently, Palak Tiwari stirred waves on the internet with her statement where she mentioned

a cardinal rule that Salman Khan had made in regard to women on the sets of his films. Shweta Tiwari's daughter stated that Salman Khan has a rule that girls should not be wearing 'low neckline on the sets'.

While speaking to Siddarth Kannan, Palak had shared, "When I was AD-ing with Salman sir on Antim, I don’t think many people know this, Salman Sir had a rule ‘Ki koi bhi ladki mere set pe, neckline should be here (for every girl on my set, the neckline should be here), all the girls should be covered, like good proper girls’. So my mom saw me (going to set) in proper shirt, jogger and covered and all. She was like, ‘Where are you going? How are you dressed so well?’ I said I am going to Salman Sir’s set. 'Wow, very wonderful,' she exclaimed." When asked why such regulations existed for women, Palak referred to Salman as a "traditionalist... Of course, he says, "Jo pehenna hai pehno (wear whatever you want)," but he also says, "My girls should always be protected." If there are males around she doesn't know, it's not his own space where he doesn't trust everyone; he's like, 'the female should be safe, always'."

MISCHA BARTON JOINS NEW SEASON OF 'NEIGHBOURS' AS GUEST STAR Actress Mischa Bar ton is joining the new season of the iconic Australian soap ‘Neighbours'.

Barton will guest star in the role of Reece, an American new to Erinsborough who's not quite who she appears to be, repor ts 'Deadline'.

Freevee rescued the series following its cancellation in 2021. The daily series had bowed out on Network 10 in Australia and long-time British home Channel 5 after 37 years, after the Paramountowned UK network pulled its funding from the show.

Original series cast Stefan Dennis, Alan Fletcher, Ryan Moloney and Jackie Woodburne are reprising their roles in the new chapter.

'Neighbours' ran for nearly 9,000 episodes, and became a cult hit in the UK, where it initially aired on the BBC before switching to Channel 5, since its launch in 1985. The show acted as the launchpad for several global stars, including singer Minogue, Memento and L.A. Confidential's Pearce and Wolf of Wall Street and Tonya star Margot Robbie.

AReddit user found an old video of Salman Khan recalling the time when Katrina Kaif claimed that John Abraham had her replaced from a film that they were both working on and that she was part of that project only because Salman Khan had advised her to follow it up. In the viral clip, Salman shared how Katrina told him, ‘My whole career is destroyed’ after she was replaced by Tara Sharma in Anurag Basu’s 2003 supernatural fantasy romantic thriller Saaya. Sushmita Sen has finally resumed shooting for the upcoming season of her superhit web series Aarya. The Bollywood diva landed in Jaipur on Saturday afternoon when she went live on her Instagram handle and shared the same with her fans and followers. Sushmita talked about the ‘warm welcome’ she received at the airport and mentioned that she is back after ‘a lot of healing and exercising’. For the unversed, Aarya 3 shoot was halted in Jaipur last month after Sushmita Sen suffered a heart attack. Amid rumours that Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan stars Shehnaaz Gill and Raghav Juyal are living together, an old video of the former’s father has surfaced online in which he can be heard saying that his daughter has lost interest in marriage after Sidharth Shukla’s death. Santokh Singh Sukh mentioned that Shehnaaz is keeping herself busy with work so that she does not keep thinking about sad things. In February this year, Shehnaaz was talking to Bhuvan Bam on her show ‘Desi Vibes’ when she also revealed that she does not believe in marriage as of now. John Abraham has reportedly backed out of Sajid Khan’s 100%. As reported by Pinkvilla, John has changed his mind is now ‘not in the mood’ to do comedy films.

Reportedly, it is because of Pathaan’s success that John has backed out of 100%. Not just this, but the actor, who was also in talks for Awara Pagal Deewana 2, has now taken a back seat as far as discussions regarding the same are concerned. Reportedly, John is now looking for good scripts in the action-thriller genre. If reports are to be believed, the current season of The Kapil Sharma Show is likely to go off-air soon. As reported by TellyChakkar, the last episode of the ongoing season will be aired in the month of June. The entertainment portal also claimed that it is not yet confirmed whether TKSS will return on screens after a break or not. It should also be noted that neither Kapil nor his team has issued any official statement so far regarding the show going off-air.

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MidWeek 23 CASTING DIRECTOR-ACTRESS AARTI MITTAL ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY RUNNING A SEX RACKET

ESHA GUPTA SETS THE TEMPERATURE SOARING IN BEIGE COLOUR BIKINI Bollywood actress Esha Gupta is setting the internet on fire with her sensuous picture in a bikini. She never fails to impress her fans with her bold avatar. Today, also it was not different when she shared another bold picture flaunting her perfect curves. Her latest picture in beachwear left her fans gasping for air. Esha, who was the latest entrant in ‘Ek Badnaam… Aashram Season 3’ co-starring Bobby, took to her Instagram and shared the picture with the caption ‘Summer again.” In the picture, the actress is seen wearing a beige colour bikini and is posing for the camera. Her hair is left open with minimalistic makeup. Four days back, she shared a series of pictures that went viral on social media. Esha donned a black mesh top, black leather pants, and a black oversized blazer for her overall look. The top had a plunging neckline. The leather pants accentuated her figure, while the blazer rounded off her look. To complete her look, she wore

black ankle-high boots, along with gold earrings and a gold neck chain. Talking about her role in Aashram series, Esha told The Free Press Journal, “I think I manifested it unknowingly when I saw ‘Aashram’ during the lockdown and I wished to be a par t of the show.

Getting this series was more of a gift from the universe.”

Talking about Aashram, the series is directed by Prakash Jha. The story revolves around a godman, whose followers have blind faith in him and will do anything that he asks of them. But in reality, he is a conman who ensures that his devotees devote their wealth to him and stay attached to his ashram for life. On the work front, Esha Gupta is all set to star in the web series ‘Invisible Woman’ where she will be seen opposite Suniel Shetty. The series is set to make its debut in the OTT segment. ‘Invisible Woman’ is a noir action thriller produced by Yoodlee Films with Tamil filmmaker Rajesh M. Selva at the helm.

PRIYANKA CHOPRA REUNITES WITH SISTER-IN-LAW SOPHIE TURNER AT JONAS BROTHERS' LONDON CONCERT Priyanka Chopra and Sophie Turner enjoyed watching their husbands perform together at the Jonas Brothers concer t that was held in the Royal Albert Hall of London on Friday night. Visuals from the musical gig took social media abuzz quickly. Now, a photo of Chopra who is married to Nick Jonas alongside Turner who is wedded to Nick’s brother Joe has begun circulating online. While the Citadel actress displayed her keen fashion sense in a chic yet dramatic outfit that featured patterns of brown and cream stripes all over it.

She layered the look with a furry jacket styling her dark tresses in loose curls pinned to one side. Meanwhile, the GOT’s Queen in the North chose a floral pattern top paired with matching pants to attend the event. With highlighted cheeks, Turner left her sleek mid-parted hair open to complete her look. In the picture, the sisters-in-law can be seen smiling as they get clicked together backstage.

Just a day ago, Priyanka Chopra shared a series of photos and videos from her husband’s musical gig. Several still sees her posing alongside Nick Jonas who looks dapper in a black casual suit. In one photo, Nick also holds their baby daughter Malti Marie on stage, another features Priyanka helping out her mom to get ready for the occasion.

A video that summed up her post, captures the crowd at the sold-out arena enjoying and swaying to Jonas Brothers’ music.

Last time, the Jonas family publicly appeared together when the brothers got their stars included in the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It was also the debut appearance of Malti Marie, wherein Chopra and Nick posed with their toddler daughter without hiding her face. The Jonas Brothers and their wives also lined up for a happy photograph which was shared online by Sophie Turner. “To see the hard work and love and light you boys bring to your music… it’s an honor just to watch from the sidelines. After almost 20 years of hard work, you boys are so deserving of this. I’m so lucky to count you as family. I’m

proud of you every day," she wrote alongside the post. Priyanka Chopra is currently gearing up for the release of her much-anticipated web show Citadel alongside Richard Madden. Meanwhile, Turner will play the lead role in the television series Joan.

RANBIR KAPOOR TO BREAK HIS OATH AND RETURN TO KWK SEASON 8 WITH ALIA BHATT? Koffee With Karan is back for another season of juicy gossip and celebrity revelations! Season 7 ended on a high note, with the announcement of another season, and fans have been eagerly waiting to hear who will be on the guest list for Koffee With Karan 8. Rumour mills are abuzz that Karan Johar is eager to kick off the season with Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor on the couch.

According to a repor t by Mid Day, the eighth season of Koffee With Karan is expected to star t streaming in late June. Insider sources have revealed to the publication that the show’s regular guests, such as Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Varun Dhawan, and Sidhar th Malhotra, will likely make an appearance in the upcoming season. Additionally, Karan Johar is reportedly eager to kick off the new season with Alia and Ranbir.

The source suggests that Karan is particularly interested in having the couple on the first episode to delve into their married life and parenthood, knowing that viewers are curious to learn more about them.

Bollywood casting director Aarti Mittal was arrested by Unit 11 of Mumbai Police’s Crime Branch on April 17. Aarti has been accused of running a sex racket inside the film industr y.

According to reports, Aarti used to supply models to customers by luring them with money. Two models fell into the trap after Aar ti promised to pay them Rs 15,000 each. Upon learning about the incident, two members of the crime branch unit disguised as undercover customers and arrived at a hotel in Mumbai’s Goregaon, from where the models were later recused. Currently, they are at a rehabilitation centre.

According to Zoom Entertainment, Aar ti, a resident of Oshiwara tricked models to get into prostitution, whom she met while working on specific projects. After interacting with them, Aarti lured them with a hefty amount, which the models usually did not deny. The information about the sex racket first reached Police Inspector Manoj Sutar. To trick the trickster, Manoj contacted Aar ti, identifying himself as a customer. He urged her to send two girls for two of his friends. The Police Inspector claimed that the 27-year-old casting director demanded a sum of Rs 60,000 for sending the girls before forwarding their pictures on Manoj’s cellphone. As per a repor t by Mid-day, Aar ti informed Manoj she will send the two models either to a Juhu-based hotel or a Goregaon one. Accordingly, Manoj chose Goregaon and booked two rooms for his two dummy customers from the crime branch who arrived at the location. As soon as Aarti reached the premises with the two women, she handed the undercover inspectors contraceptives. All of this was recorded as proof.

KAPIL SHARMA FINALLY REACTS TO RUMOUR ABOUT KAPIL SHARMA SHOW GOING OFF-AIR, SAYS 'WE HAVE TO GO...'

Kapil Sharma has finally broken his silence on repor ts about his popular chat show The Kapil Sharma Show going off-air.

Recently a report in Tellychakkar suggested that the last episode of the ongoing season of TKSS will be aired in the month of June. The repor t fur ther stated that it is not yet confirmed whether or not TKSS will return on screens after a break. Now, Kapil has reacted to the speculations about his show going to end soon. ETimes reached out to Kapil Sharma for his reaction about the repor ts. The comedian said that there is no confirmation about it right now. However, he revealed, “We have to go to the USA for our live tour in July and we will see what to do around time time. Having said that, even that’s too far." The Kapil Sharma Show returned with a new season in September 2022. “What I am today, I owe it completely to my audience who have continued to suppor t me in all my endeavours these years. I have always enjoyed making my viewers laugh and during the period that I was away, it gave me a lot of time to introspect on what new things I can bring this time around for them," the comedian had said as he announced the four th season of TKSS. Besides Kapil, his comedy show also includes Kiku Sharda, Sumona Chakravarti and Archana Puran Singh. Gaurav Dubey, Ishtiyak Khan, Sidharth Sagar and Srikant G Maski are also part of the ongoing season.

Meanwhile, earlier this month, it was also reported that Krushna Abhishek is likely to reunite with Kapil Sharma soon. A report by Pinkvilla claimed that Krushna is in talks with the makers of TKSS and is keen on collaborating with them once again.

SALMAN KHAN FLAUNTS SIX-PACK ABS IN LATEST GYM PHOTO

ABDU ROZIK'S NINE-CITY INDIA TOUR TO BE LAUNCHED BY A.R. RAHMAN IN PUNE Abdu Rozik, who appeared in Bigg Boss season 16, became one of the most loved contestants on the show ever. The Tajikstani singer gained huge renown and fresh recognition in India, with people adoring his adorable looks and sensibility. Abdu is now gearing up to leave for an exciting nine-city tour of India that will begin on April 30.

Abdu's much-awaited music tour will begin with a concert alongside the legend of the Indian music industry, A.R. Rahman in Pune, followed by performances in Hyderabad, Kerala, Chennai, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Rajasthan, and Delhi. Furthermore, during the concert tour, chances will be given to up-and-coming ar tists to perform with Abdu and display their skills.

Speaking about working with the maestro of Indian music, A.R. Rahman, he said, "I have been so blessed to have the chance to even perform with such a huge legend and icon of the music industry, AR Rahman, his management and his amazing family have suppor ted me from day one, giving me encouragement and guidance. I will be forever grateful." The singer went on to say that he hopes that this initiative would give other talented musicians a chance to showcase their abilities on stage. "This is why now with my management, I want to also give others a chance who are like me and just need the right person somewhere to notice them. I will never forget where I came from and there is still a long way till I make it but I'm grateful for the chance and prayers that someone took on me," said Abdu.

Salman Khan's upcoming film, Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, is set to be released soon. It will be released in theatres on April 21.

Prior to that, the Bollywood superstar was very active on social media. He broke the internet again by uploading gym photographs of himself flaunting his six-pack abs!

Salman Khan is seen showcasing his six-pack abs in a new photo shared on his Instagram account. He's dressed in a blue shirt. Salman is covered in perspiration after a strenuous gym session. While posing for the camera, he looks to the left.

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B O L LY W O O D

MOVIE REVIEW

RAGHAV JUYAL BREAKS SILENCE ON DATING SHEHNAAZ GILL: 'SACH HAI YA JHOOTH...'

STARRING: RADHIKA APTE, SUMEET VYAS, RAJESH SHARMA, SAHEB CHATTERJEE, ROY ANGANA DIRECTOR: ANUSHREE MEHTA RATING: 2/5

RADHIKA APTE FILM BORROWS HEAVILY FROM RAAZI, FAMILY MAN BUT STILL FALLS FLAT Spy stories have witnessed a massive surge in the Indian content space in the last few years. It wouldn’t perhaps be wrong to state that such narratives have hit the point of saturation. But filmmakers, unfazed, continue to make spy dramas and thrillers galore. The latest to join the espionage bandwagon is debut director Anushree Mehta’s Mrs Undercover starring Radhika Apte in the title character. The fact that its story is laced with feel-good humour could have set it apar t from the other spy films. But unfortunately, it doesn’t land quite well and fizzles out too soon. Mrs Undercover revolves around the life of Durga. Much like a regular middle-class homemaker, she spends her days taking care of everyone in her family comprising of her sexist and unappreciative husband, mother-in-law, father-in-law and schoolgoing son. She wakes up in the morning to prepare breakfast for the whole family, drops her son off to school, goes to the local market to pick up vegetables and fish, cooks lunch, makes sure that her inlaws are being fed and give medicines on time, brings her son back home and helps him with his homework, cooks lunch, waters the plants and is the last member in the family to go off to sleep after wrapping up everything. But underneath this subservient homemaker is a special force agent, who had to go undercover years back and get married into a family she didn’t want to, which may remind you of Raazi. But living this life for so many years caused her to brush ‘agent 091’ under the rug. And then one day, the chief of Special Forces, Kolkata, decide to assign her to a case to find out ‘The Common Man’ who has been ruthlessly murdering strong, independent and empowered women in the city. With rusty skills and a whole lot of reluctance, she re-enters the world of an undercover spy. What works for the film is its one-liner concept – a homemaker who turns into a spy. On the surface, this might seem similar to Manoj Bajpayee’s critically acclaimed series, The Family Man. Much like Shrikant Tiwari, Durga straddles both the worlds, that of a family and an espionage system. They not only take care of their families but are also on the run to chase down the most notorious criminals. They are unassuming and simple people and are dealing with spouses who may or may not have cheated on them. But it is the treatment of Mrs Undercover that makes it fall flat. Homemakers are change-makers and it is no doubt that they are still looked down upon and are taken for granted. Anushree tries to reinforce the same throughout the course of the film. The word ‘homemaker’ is used so many times that most of the dialogues seem to be rehashed versions of the same line of thought.

With the world being a misogynistic and sexist space to live in, conversations on feminism and women’s empowerment are per tinent and should continue to remain so unless we create a place that screams equality. And kudos to Anushree, who is also the writer and the producer of the film, for weaving a story that salutes women, who go unnoticed every single day. But she takes it too far. She makes use of one stereotype to defy another stereotype and that defends the entire purpose of having a story of a woman told by a woman through the lens of feminism. The comparison of the protagonist Durga with

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

the goddess Durga only makes her an aspirational being. Anushree puts her on a pedestal and deifies her to such an extent that it rids her of all the qualities that make her humane. To further make a statement on how women are indeed earthly and tangible forms of the divine, many scenes are shot in Kumartuli, a potter’s quarter tucked away in the northern part of Kolkata, against the backdrop of numerous clay idols. Yes, the Kahaani template spills over in this film as well. In Mrs Undercover, almost all the men are demonised. That men and women are equal might have been the core intent of the story but it defies every notion pertaining to equality. Durga’s husband is ungrateful and thinks of her as ‘just a homemaker’. He doesn’t ‘allow’ her to go to work and justifies his mistakes by saying ‘I’m a man’. The Common Man, on the other hand, is obsessed with killing modern, liberal, and unyielding women but we never really come to know the reason for his hatred towards them. Mrs Undercover might have had potential on paper but it is largely undercooked. There’s no greater joy than watching a female star engage in combat sequences and bring down bad guys with her physical prowess. But here, even the fight sequences are jerky, amateurish, and lack a seamless finish. Yes, is it truly mesmerising to watch a saree-clad woman fight a man but there’s no explanation as to how she has her saree still impeccably draped with her hair per fectly pinned and jewellery completely in place. Mrs Undercover is also largely predictable and even unintentionally funny in par ts. The story lacks the finesse that can keep you engaged.

Unfortunately, the actors don’t get the chance to lift the film up with their performances because their characters are under-baked and have no arcs to play around with. An ar tist of the caliber and stature of Radhika doesn’t get to bring her true potential to the table. Having said that, her subdued and straight-faced humour does crack you up but those scenes are far and few in between. If you really want to watch her play out comic scenes with a rare rawness, you should instead revisit Lust Stories and Monica O My Darling.

Sumeet Vyas seems too unconvincing as a serial killer. We don’t get a glimpse into his life that has made him the villain that he is.

Establishing what drives his dark psyche would have gone a long way in making ‘The Common Man’ a realistic character. Yet another actor who’s wasted is Rajesh Sharma. His character suffers because the line between comedy and frivolousness gets blurred.

Mrs Undercover is a good attempt gone wrong. Though most statements on man-woman equality go awry and are lopsided, Anushree deserves applause for redefining the quintessential undercover agent. Here, Radhika’s Durga is not made to fit into the mould of a stylish and chic spy draped in a latex black bodysuit. She’s clumsy, fearful of stepping out at night to stalk an offender, take her mother-in-law to crack a case, and prioritises her son’s unit test over an assignment. But these bits of novelty don’t really create an impact due to the writing that lacks spark and gumption. In short, Radhika deserves a better film.

Mrs Undercover is now streaming on Zee5.

Raghav Juyal is currently gearing up for the release of his upcoming film, Salman Khan's Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan. The film also stars Pooja Hegde, Jassie Gill, Siddhar th Nigam, Venkatesh Daggubatti, Bhumika Chawla, Jagapathi Babu, Palak Tiwari, Shehnaaz Gill, Abhimanyu Singh and Vijender Singh. Ahead of the release, Raghav Juyal and Shehnaaz Gill are making headlines about their alleged romance. Now, the actor-dancer has clarified the speculations. For the unversed, at the trailer launch event for Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, during a fun banter among the stars, Salman Khan asked Shehnaaz to move on and hinted about a chemistry that he noticed on the sets of the film without taking any names. He said, "Main keh raha hoon move on kar jao", to which Shenaaz replied, "Kar gayi hoon (I have moved on)". Salman fur ther added, "And Shehnaaz, I want you to move on. Kyuki mujhe aise lag raha hai… And I notice all these things. If I can notice this about me, then I can notice this about all of you also… Actually, I shouldn’t say much." Salman Khan's hint took the internet by storm, fueling speculation that the two had a romantic connection. Now, in an interview with DNA, Raghav reacted to the rumours, saying, "Jo internet ki cheezein hai, woh mere tak nahi aa paati. Mujhe nahi pata ki woh sach hai ya jhooth...jab tak main woh dekh na loon ya sunn na loon (These internet rumours don't reach me. I don't know whether they're true or false, and until I see and hear it myself)."

MANOJ BAJPAYEE LOST CONSCIOUSNESS ON 1ST INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT AFTER CONSUMING FREE ALCOHOL

Manoj Bajpayee is one of the most celebrated actors in Tinsel town. Over the years, he has always impressed the audience with his superb performances and endearing demeanour. The actor is currently making headlines for an amusing reason.

He recounted a humorous episode in which he lost consciousness on his first flight abroad.

The Family Man actor recently discussed candidly in an interview a comical incident that happened on his first flight abroad. The actor claimed that he had never taken a flight across foreign borders before. He had once travelled to France for a theatrical event, and he consumed an excessive amount of alcohol on the journey back to India and passed out.

The actor admitted that he didn't drink anything on the flight because he didn't have any money. But he quickly found out that it was free of charge. He consumed copious amounts of alcohol on the way home and ultimately got unconscious.

Bajpayee told Curly Tales, "When I was doing theatre, I had gone to Paris, that was my first international trip. While on the flight, I didn’t take alcohol at all, because I thought they would charge me for it and I didn’t have money! Because of theater I was going there as par t of an exchange program. So after going there I found out that they serve it for free. While coming back, I drank so much that I fell unconscious! I drank so much."

PRINCE NARULA IS NOT SUPPORTING RHEA CHAKRABORTY IN ROADIES, SAYS 'I AM HERE FOR...'

ADITI RAO HYDARI'S BIRTHDAY WISH FOR RUMOURED BOYFRIEND SIDDHARTH IS FULL OF LOVE; CALLS HIM 'MANICORN'

Rhea Chakrabor ty is all set to make her comeback with Roadies, three years after Sushant Singh Rajput’s death. While everyone is waiting eagerly for the show, Prince Narula, who will also be a gang leader in Roadies, has now said that he is not supporting anyone.

Recently, Prince took to his Instagram stories and mentioned that he has been misquoted by several media por tals. He claimed that he is not ‘suppor ting or disrespecting’ anyone in Roadies and is rather here for the audience only.

“Hi everyone, some newspapers and por tals are writing headlines about me that Prince Narula is suppor ting someone. I am not here to support anyone. I am only doing my work and I believe in being professional. I have come for Roadies and not to suppor t anybody’s comeback. I believe you all are smart enough to suppor t whom you all want to. These portals are writing twisted headlines, I want to clarify I am not supporting anyone or disrespecting anyone. I am here for the audience and their suppor t and nothing else," he wrote.

This comes days after Prince talked about Rhea’s comeback while talking to DNA and opined that the show will give her a perfect platform for giving out a message.

“Everyone has a different perception towards it, but one needs the guts to come back on the stage and face people. Our audiences are sensible and they’ll support whom they want to. If they will like Rhea more than me, then they will watch the show for her. If they didn’t like me, they will ignore my presence. So, I want that she should give her 100% to the show," he said.

“If she wishes to convey something, she should use the platform to express it. Roadies is one of the favourite shows of the youth, so if she wants to send out a message, there cannot be a better platform for her than this show,” the actor added.

Prior to this, Rhea also talked about being a par t of Roadies and told IANS, “I am thrilled to be a part of MTV Roadies Season 19. Working with MTV feels like a homecoming. I look forward to working with Sonu Sood and my fellow Gang Leaders, as I get to showcase my resolute and fearless side during this thrilling journey. I hope to receive love and suppor t from fans for this incredible new adventure!”

Aditi Rao Hydari and actor Siddharth have been rumoured to be dating for a long time now. The alleged couple has been spotted together on several occasions, but they have yet to confirm their relationship status. Aditi recently responded to rumours linking her to Siddhar th. However, the actress has neither acknowledged nor rejected the rumours. On Monday, as Siddharth turned a year wiser, Aditi penned a heartfelt note for him along with a quirky video. Her note read, "Happy bir thday manicorn To happiness always! movies, love, music,to always having the strongest purest hear t, to magic,truckloads of laughter and to never never never growing up! Be magical, be you Happiest siddu day (sic)." Last year, on the actress' bir thday, Siddharth shared an adorable picture of the two and wrote a lovely note, which read, "Happy HappyHappy Bir thday Princess of Hear t @aditiraohydari I pray all your dreams.The big ones, the small ones and the ones yet unseen always come true, always for you. Have the best trip around the sun yet. P.S- growing up is for squares. Don't."

SACHIN TENDULKAR PENS EMOTIONAL NOTE FOR ARJUN TENDULKAR AFTER HIS IPL DEBUT

LUCKNOW SUPER GIANTS HOLD RAJASTHAN ROYALS AT THEIR HOME, BEAT TABLE TOPPERS BY 10 RUNS KL Rahul's Lucknow Super Giants held Sanju Samson's Rajasthan Royals at the latter's home in Jaipur to win the 26th match of IPL 2023 by 10 runs. The game went down the wire but LSG emerged victorious with their regular scalps as their pacers starred in the defence of the 155-run at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur.

LSG pacers Avesh Khan and Marcus Stoinis shared five wickets between each other. The former was tasked to bowl the final over of the game with RR sensing a comeback. But he got two wickets in the over and denied RR a win at their homecoming. This is also the lowest total defended in this season of IPL so far.

Jaiswal and Buttler provide a solid start, but LSG pull things back It was another solid start from the RR openers as Yashasvi Jaiswal and Jos Buttler batted smar tly. They helped RR go to 47/0 in the powerplay. As they were racing away at the halfway stage, LSg applied breaks to their chase. Marcus Stoinis first sent back Jaiswal on 44 before Samson got run out and Buttler fell in the 14th. It was not Hetmyer's day either as he went back for 2 off 5 balls.

Padikkal, Parag threatened LSG In the death overs, Parag and Padikkal threatened to take the game away from LSG. A 13-run 18th over and a 10-run 19th over kept them in the hunt with 19 required off the final 6. They hit Stoinis for 13 and then amassed 10 from the most economical bowler Naveen-ul-Haq. Parag hit a four off the first ball of the 20th over but Avesh got the wickets of Padikkal and Dhruv Jurel to leave RR with a 10-run loss.

LSG's 1st innings Lucknow Super Giants posted a total of 154 in the first innings. Kyle Mayers hit his third fifty in the tournament. KL Rahul and Mayers star ted steadily before the duo looked to attack. Meanwhile, Rahul was sent back by Jason Holder in the 11th over, when LSG were at 82.

Ayush Badoni was promoted up the order but he could not leave an impact and was bowled on 1. Mayers was also outdone by Ashwin as he produced a brilliant over, where he got Hooda and Mayers in the 14th over. Pooran and Stoinis joined hands and played smar tly to first eye in and then take the attack to the bowlers.

Legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar's son Arjun Tendulkar finally made his much-awaited debut in the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Sunday for Mumbai Indians against Kolkata Knight Riders.

Arjun got his cap from skipper Rohit Sharma and much to the delight of the fans, the left-arm pacer was handed the new ball and bowled a couple of overs upfront. Though he didn't get a wicket, Arjun generated some early swing and also almost got N Jagadeesan LBW only for the ball to miss the stumps on height.

His spell seemed a perfect one before Venkatesh Iyer slammed a six and a four to end his second over. All this while, his father Sachin Tendulkar, who is also the mentor of MI, was watching the action unfold from the dressing room while his sister Sara Tendulkar was rooting for her little brother from the stands. While Arjun didn't play any further role with the ball, he didn't get to bat with MI chasing down the score with five wickets in hand. After the match, Sachin took to Twitter to share an emotional post for his son. He noted that his son has taken an impor tant step in his journey as a cricketer and is confident that Arjun will respect the game just like how he did during his 24-year illustrious career.

HETMYER SNATCHES WIN FROM GUJARAT TITANS JAW, IT'S REDEMPTION FOR RAJASTHAN ROYALS

MUMBAI DISPLAY ALL-ROUND SHOW AS ROHIT SHARMA'S SIDE REGISTER THIRD WIN Mumbai Indians displayed an all-round show in their fifth match of IPL 2023 to bag their third win on the trot against Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Defending a total of 192, Mumbai bowled their opponents out for 178 as fast-bowlers starred on a tricky pitch of Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. The batters first led the charge with Cameron Green smashing a fifty.Sunrisers were asked to chase 193 at their home and they were very much in the chase with Mayank Agarwal returning to scoring ways and anchoring the chase. Even though the wickets fell, he held one end and scored 48 from 41 balls to keep his team in the hunt. Heinrich Klaasen provided fire in the middle overs but he was overpowered as SRH fell in a hole. Marco Jansen and Abdul Samad joined before the death overs approached and the required rate reading around 12. The Proteas star looked to free his hands but was soon outdone by Meredith as Mumbai implemented greater control. In the final few overs, SRH kept losing wickets. Arjun Tendulkar took his first IPL wickets as he closed the deal in the final over to bowl SRH out for 148.

Earlier, Cameron Green's architect knock powered Mumbai Indians to finish at 192/5 in the 20 overs. MI started well with Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan giving a decent start. But the former soon fell prey to Natarajan. Kishan and Green took the baton but the Southpaw was

outdone by Marco Jansen. Hyderabad soon sent Suryakumar Yadav back too as Mumbai were under the pump. But the youngster Tilak Varma and the Aussie International Green provided Mumbai with much-needed power in the middle overs and then in the death overs.

After being 95/3 in 11.5 overs, Varma displayed his powerful play as he hit a 17-ball 37. Meanwhile, Green then launched an attack in the latter stages to take MI to an over-par score on a slightly slow pitch.

AFTER DELHI CAPITALS LOSE 5 GAMES IN A ROW, SOURAV GANGULY SAYS 'WE CAN WIN REMAINING 9 GAMES' Delhi Capitals Director of Cricket Sourav Ganguly has insisted that his side can still win the remaining nine games in IPL 2023 campaign after their disastrous star t to the season wherein they have lost all five matches so far.

The Capitals suffered their fifth consecutive defeat on Saturday as Royal Challengers Bangalore prevailed by 23 runs at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium and as a consequence, David Warner’s side are languishing at the bottom of the IPL 2023 standings.

Despite the low mood in the camp, Ganguly tried his best to uplift the spirits in the dressing room in a video shared by the franchise on their Twitter handle. “We need to put this behind. Back the captain, back each other together and we’ll come back fresh next game. We can’t get worse than this; we can only get better. Still nine games to go and we can win 9 out of 9," said Ganguly.

“It doesn’t matter if we qualify or don’t qualify, it doesn’t matter so much for us at this stage. But let’s look inside, play for ourselves,

play for our pride, and see if we can get there," the former Indian skipper and ex-BCCI president added.

Rajasthan Royals registered win in the 23rd match of IPL 2023 on Sunday. They got redemption after breaking the jinx of not winning against Gujarat Titans in IPL as the Sanju Samson-led team won by 3 wickets. Interestingly, both teams faced each other in the final of 2022 season of the tournament when Hardik Pandya-led team won the trophy. However, RR bounced back in this edition to remain the table-toppers. In the match, Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson won the toss and decided to bowl first. Gujarat Titans gave Rajasthan Royals a target of 178 runs . In response, Rajasthan chased the target in just 19.2 overs with 3 wickets in hand. Shimron Hetmyer and captain Sanju Samson played impressive innings to guide their team to victory in a nail-biting thriller. Chasing the big target, the performance of RR openers was underwhelming. Yashasvi Jaiswal scored just 1 run and Jos Buttler returned back to the hut without opening the account. After this, Devdutt Paddikkal and Sanju Samson made a good partnership and stabilized the innings. The momentum which was on Gujarat's side shifted in the 13th over when RR skipper Sanju smashed three back-to-back sixes in Rashid Khan's over. Sanju scored 60 runs in 32 balls before getting dismissed by GT debutant Noor Ahmad. While Devdutt contributed 26 runs, Riyan Parag managed to score 5 runs. However, in the end, Shimron Hetmyer and Dhruv Jurel played fiery innings and the game became nothing less than a thriller. Shimron Hetmyer played an innings of 56 runs including the 6 to end the game in style. Jurel 18 (10) and Ravichandran Ashwin 10 (3) made impactful cameos. Mohammed Shami got 3 wickets for Gujarat Titans. Rashid Khan got 2 wickets in his account and conceded 46 runs in his four overs. Noor Ahmad and Hardik Pandya picked 1 wicket each. Alzarri Joseph, on the other hand, could not get a single wicket.

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SPORTS

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

LIONEL MESSI REACHES NEW MILESTONE, SURPASSES 100 CAREER GOALS FOR ARGENTINA Legendary footballer Lionel Messi registered a unique milestone by surpassing 100 career goals for Argentina on Tuesday. In an international friendly game against Curacao, Messi scored a hat-trick as the World Cup winners thrashed the Caribbean side 7-0 in their second match since bagging the trophy in December.

The 35-year-old is third on the list of players to score most goals for national teams in official matches. The Argentina captain Messi opened the scoring against Curacao in the 20th minute with a right-foot shot from the edge of the box to reach the 100-goal milestone. He then scored his next goal i.e his 101st goal for Argentina in the 33rd minute with a crossed shot to the right of the goalkeeper and his 102nd in the 37th.

Messi trails only two players on the list of most goals scored for national teams. The list of the top three goal scorers for their national teams is as follows: Cristiano Ronaldo - 122 goals for Portugal Ali Daei - 109 goals for Iran Lionel Messi - 102 goals for Argentina

ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE SUFFER LOSS IN HIGH-VOLTAGE MATCH The 24th match of IPL 2023 was played between Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. In the match, RCB captain Faf du Plessis decided to bowl first after winning the toss. Coming to bat first, the Chennai batters gave RCB a target of 227 runs to win, which RCB could not chase and lost the match by 8 runs.

RCB's star batter Virat Kohli got out after scoring only 6 runs. He was followed by Mahipal Lomror. After the fall of 2 wickets, RCB captain Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell stabilized the innings as they smashed boundaries all over the ground. Faf du Plessis scored 62 runs and, Maxwell got out after scoring 76 runs. After the dismissal of both these players, RCB's batting got scattered. Dinesh Karthik scored 28 runs and Impact player Suyash Prabhudesai contributed 19 runs.

Shahbaz Ahmad, on the other hand, was able to score only 12 runs.

Tushar Deshpande of Chennai Super Kings took 3 wickets. Akash Singh dismissed Virat Kohli. Matisha Pathirana took 2 wickets and Moeen Ali got a wicket. RCB's team needed 18 runs in the last over. Matisha Pathirana bowled an impressive over as he conceded 10 runs in the over and also got the wicket of Suyash Prabhudesai on the last ball. The Chennai Super Kings team did not have a good start. When Ruturaj Gaikwad returned to the pavilion after scoring just 3 runs. After this, Devon Conway and Ajinkya Rahane registered a good par tnership.

Rahane got out after scoring 37 runs off 20 balls. Then Shivam Dube played an innings of 52 runs off 27 balls. Devon Conway could not complete his century but he scored 83 runs off 45 balls. Ambati Rayudu contributed 14 runs. All the batters guided CSK to a total of 226 runs.

VIRAT KOHLI FINED 10% OF MATCH FEE BY BCCI FOR BREACHING IPL CODE OF CONDUCT Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) went down to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Southern Derby by 8 runs in the 24th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Monday. It was a high-scoring thriller as RCB, at one stage, even threatened to chase down 227 runs at the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bengaluru. After the match, RCB batter Virat Kohli was dealt with a blow as he was fined 10% of his match fee for breaching the IPL code of conduct during the match.

Apparently, Virat Kohli had celebrated Shivam Dube's dismissal pretty aggressively and that led to the match referree taking action against him. The former RCB skipper admitted to the offence as well. "Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) batter Virat Kohli has been fined 10 percent of his match fee for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct during the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 match against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. "Mr. Kohli admitted to the Level 1 offence under Article 2.2 of the IPL Code of Conduct. For Level 1 breaches of the Code of Conduct, the Match Referee’s decision is final and binding," the statement from IPL read. Virat Kohli didn't have a great game with the bat either getting out for just six runs in the first over of the innings itself in a mammoth chase of 227 runs. Despite the loss of early wickets though RCB, courtesy of Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell, got close to the target and ended within touching distance. While Du Plessis scored 62 runs off 33 balls, it was a special knock from Maxwell on the evening. He lit up the Chinnaswamy stadium with his batting smashing 76 runs off 36 balls with three fours and 8 sixes to his name. Dinesh Karthik also played his role scoring 28 runs at a strike rate of 200 but RCB couldn't close out the game with CSK holding nerves at crucial junctures.

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SOURAV GANGULY UNFOLLOWS VIRAT KOHLI ON INSTAGRAM AFTER LATTER'S ACTION ON SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM The two superstars of Indian cricket seem to be at the loggerheads at the moment without even meeting a eye to each other. The clash between RCB and DC at the Chinnaswamy over the weekend wasn't that fiery on the field. But the actions of Sourav Ganguly, Director of Cricket at DC, and former RCB captain Virat Kohli has set the social media on fire with multiple videos going viral. It all star ted with both of them avoiding a handshake after the match and then it was pointed out later how both ignored each other at various points of the game.

THERE HASN'T BEEN A CAPTAIN LIKE MS DHONI AND WILL NEVER BE ONE: GAVASKAR Former India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has lavished praises on Chennai Super Kings (CSK) skipper MS Dhoni and also named him the best captain in the history of Indian Premier League (IPL). Dhoni led CSK for record 200th time in the game against Rajasthan Royals but the team lost by three runs in the thrilling encounter. CSK have now lost two out of four matches in IPL so far and will have to pull up their socks in order to make it to the top four this season. But Gavaskar is not worried much about the four-time champions as he feels the Men in Yellow know how to come out of tough situations due to their skipper. "CSK know how to get out of tough situations. This has been possible only under MS Dhoni's captaincy. Captaining 200 matches is very difficult. Captaining so many matches is a burden and it could have affected his per formance as well. "But Mahi is different. He is a different captain. There hasn't been a captain like him and there will never be one like him in the future," Gavaskar said in a release from IPL broadcasters. MS Dhoni's record as CSK skipper has been exceptional winning a whopping 120 matches while losing 79 with one match ending in no result.

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

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CITADEL PREMIERE: PRIYANKA CHOPRA LOOKS STRAIGHT OUT OF DREAMSCAPE PORTIMAO VICTORY FOR TOYOTA GAZOO RACING

FANS ARE EXCITED TO SEE PRIYANKA CHOPRA AND RICHARD MADDEN TOGETHER IN THE NEW PRIME VIDEO SERIES CITADEL. THE RUSSO BROTHERS ARE IN CHARGE OF PRODUCTION. THE CHEMISTRY BETWEEN THE TWO IN THE TEASERS AND MEDIA ADVERTISING IS ALREADY MAKING HEADLINES. CITADEL WILL BE AVAILABLE ON PRIME VIDEO ON APRIL 28. PRIOR TO IT, THE PRODUCERS ORGANISED A LAVISH GLOBAL PREMIERE EVENT FOR THE ESPIONAGE THRILLER IN LONDON ON APRIL 18. IT WAS ATTENDED BY PRIYANKA CHOPRA AND RICHARD MADDEN, AS WELL AS OTHER CELEBRITIES. 'DESI GIRL' PRIYANKA CHOPRA. ONE OF THE BEST THINGS ABOUT HER IS THAT SHE IS CONSTANTLY WILLING TO EXPERIMENT AND DOES NOT HESITATE TO PUT ON NEW STYLES IN QUEST OF WHAT WILL PROPERLY COMPLEMENT HER VIBE. PRIYANKA'S LOOK FROM THE SPECTACULAR LONDON PREMIERE, ON THE OTHER HAND, WAS SUBTLE YET STUNNING.

LUXURY SALES EXPECTED TO CLIMB IN THE SECOND QUARTER AS PENT-UP DEMAND BUOYS REAL ESTATE ACTIVITY IN MOST MAJOR MARKETS ACROSS CANADA, SAYS RE/MAX® CANADA Growing demand for residential properties has trickled into the upper-end of the Canadian real estate market, with luxury sales posting gains in the first quarter of 2023 over the fourth quarter of 2022 in most major Canadian markets, according to the 2023 Spotlight on Luxury Report released today by RE/MAX Canada.

RE/MAX Canada examined 15 Canadian housing markets from coast to coast -- including Greater Vancouver, Fraser Valley, Kelowna, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, HamiltonBurlington, London-St. Thomas, Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Ottawa, Island of Montreal, Halifax-Dartmouth, Moncton and St. John's - and found rapid depletion in housing stock is placing upward pressure on values at lower price points and sparking an uptick in demand in the luxury segment. While upper-end sales in the first quarter of 2023 have fallen short of peak levels reached in Q1 2022, activity is on par or ahead of Q4 2022 figures in 10 of the 15 markets surveyed. The ascending pattern is expected to continue in the upcoming quarter, as both sales and temperatures heat up. Saskatoon, underpinned by strong economic fundamentals, bucked the national trend, with luxury home sales exceeding Q1 2022 levels in Q1 2023.

"Much of the activity in the market can be attributed to pent-up demand, which has been building since mid-2022," says Christopher Alexander,

MALAIKA ARORA

President of RE/MAX Canada. "Bolstered by lower fixed-term mortgage rates and attractive housing values, buyers are taking advantage of this window of opportunity to secure home ownership. Listings, however, are few and far between in most areas of the country and finding the right home has proved challenging." Sidelined buyers jumped back into the market in Q1, as anticipated inventory failed to materialize and housing values stabilized, according to the RE/MAX Canada 2023 Spotlight on Luxury Report. Supply levels are now tighter than they were during the pandemic in some markets. In the Fraser Valley, for example, listings recently hit a 30-year low and, in St. John's, Newfoundland, a property recently listed for sale at the $800,000 price point experienced 15 showings and three offers and sold on its first day on the market. "Inventory continues to be the lynchpin of the Canadian housing market," explains Alexander. "The pattern of heating and cooling housing markets emerges time and time again, and it is directly linked to our issues with supply and the inability of governments at all three levels to get shovels in the ground across our nation, which is now approaching 40 million people in population. We welcome the news that our country is growing, but with one million new Canadians added in 2022, we also need to be certain that adequate housing, not to mention vital infrastructure, is in place to support the influx of newcomers."

ANANYA PANDAY

URVASHI RAUTELA

TORONTO: TOYOTA GAZOO Racing maintained its winning start to the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) with victory in a dramatic 6 Hours of Portimão. Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa, the reigning World Champions and 2022 Le Mans winners in the #8 GR010 HYBRID, delivered a faultless performance in Portugal to dominate the race and win by a lap from the #50 Ferrari and the #6 Porsche.

However, there were contrasting emotions for Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López in the #7 GR010 HYBRID. After winning the seasonopener at Sebring four weeks ago, they took a ninth-place finish, after losing 11 minutes when race officials ordered a mandatory sensor to be replaced.

A fourth consecutive Hypercar win means TOYOTA GAZOO Racing extends its World Championship advantage to 18 points over Ferrari with five rounds remaining. Sébastien, Brendon and Ryo move to the top of the drivers’ standings and hold an 11-point lead over the #50 Ferrari crew.

I CONTD. ON PAGE 31

EXERCISE IMPROVES BRAIN HEALTH WITH CHEMICAL SIGNALS

WASHINGTON: Physical activity is frequently mentioned as a way to improve both physical and mental health. Researchers at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology discovered that it may also directly improve brain health. They investigated how the chemical signals released by muscles during exercise promote neuronal development in the brain. Their work appears in the journal Neuroscience.

When muscles contract during exercise, like a bicep working to lift a heavy weight, they release a variety of compounds into the bloodstream.

These compounds can travel to different parts of the body, including the brain.

The researchers were particularly interested in how exercise could benefit a particular part of the brain called the hippocampus. "The hippocampus is a crucial area for learning and memory, and therefore cognitive health," said Ki Yun Lee, a Ph.D. student in mechanical science and engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the study's lead author.

SUNNY LEONE

NORA FATEHI

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LIV WHERE YOU ALWAYS WANTED FROM LAKESIDE HOMES IN GRAVENHURST AND SEVERN, TO BEAUTIFUL MODERN URBAN TOWNS IN BRAMPTON LIV Communities has several premier-communities with new launches coming this May. Last year the "Live Near The Lake" joint initiative in partnership with Bosseini Living, brought you three gorgeous collections of single-family homes and towns by the water in Ontario's cottage country: The Cedars at Brydon Bay in Gravenhurst, and Paradise By The Lake and Serenity Bay both in Severn.

After a quick sell-out at Paradise by the Lake, construction is well underway with closings beginning this spring.

In just a few weeks on Sunday, May 7th, we will be launching our final releases at the Cedars at Brydon Bay and Serenity Bay so don't miss out!

Serenity Bay's 49' and 59' single-family homes and wide 30' townhomes are located just north of Orillia off Highway 11 at Grayshott and Turnbull Drive. Residents will have boardwalk access to a one-acre private club on the shores of Lake Couchiching, with private trails, picnic areas, kayak, paddleboard, and canoe rentals. These homes, with contemporary architecture and stunning customizable features, are surrounded by forests and conservation lands.

The Cedars at Brydon Bay is a community of over 100 single family homes on extra deep lots. Located at Wellington Street and Evans Avenue just off the shores of Lake Muskoka, it's also minutes away from Gravenhurst's town centre. Here, in the most famous par t of Ontario's cottage country, you'll be able to enjoy a wide variety of year-round festivals, markets, and eateries, while the rocky waterways and pristine forests offer plenty of activities such as hiking, cross country skiing, boating, fishing, snowmobiling, and golfing.

Both communities offer mid to late 2025 closings with one-year deposit structures available. For more information, contact one of our two sales centres in Toronto (416.386.0222; 1 Duncan Mills Road, North York) or Severn (705.703.9252; 9361 Highway 11, Cumberland Beach).

Get ready for the Grand Opening on Sunday, May 7th, in the masterplanned community of Nature's Grand in Brantford. Nestled next to the Grand River and surrounded by over 100 acres of conservation lands, this stunning collection of single-family homes is idyllically located just 3 minutes off Highway 403 and under 10 minutes to all major amenities and downtown.

In the GTA, there are oppor tunities still available at Maya Urban Towns, a unique collection of walk-up and stacked townhomes at Mayfield Road and Bramalea Road in Brampton. All models feature three bedrooms with modern designs and spacious layouts. They also back onto greenspace, giving you quickviews and access to the natural landscapes and trails of the area. Plus, you'll have access to plenty of urban amenities within walking distancefrom shopping to dining to enter tainment - and a full range of schools, parks and healthcare offerings just a shor t drive away.

Maya is a sure investment in an area that is one of the fastest growing in the country. Visit our website livhere.ca to schedule an appointment or to learn more.

This is your opportunity to find the home you always wanted, built by a trusted family-owned company, in some of the most beautiful locations across southern Ontario. Don't miss your chance!

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

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MidWeek 31 DOES AGITATION OR MOODINESS CLASSIFY AS A SEVERE MENTAL DISORDER?

THE FUTURE OF WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY Self-driving cars, the Internet of Things, and augmented and vir tual reality have all revolutionised a variety of industries in recent years.

Wearable technology has been the most remarkable advancement in the market, despite there being many other noteworthy developments.

Surprisingly, the two challenging years of seclusion have increased our awareness of technology and our health. We became aware of the value of a strong immune system and the capacity to critically analyse the Internet during the epidemic. People used screens to interact with their loved ones and keep tabs on their Covid statuses.

People are spending more money on nutrition and fitness than ever in the post-pandemic period. We can link to biometric and movementtracking sensors - thanks to wearable technology. Numerous methods have been used to verify the invention. This explains why the concept is being backed by so many companies.

The future of wearable technology Technology is constantly evolving. We are exposed to new innovations every minute. In this competitive environment, wearable technology might not be a phenomenon in a few years. Smartwatches shall also endure future ups and downs. In a short period, visual elements shall evolve and may become as common as clothing and footwear.

Energy harvesting, i.e., running devices on solar power or converting body heat and movement into raw power, can change the world of wearable technology. That is the future!

Contribution to the healthcare industry The healthcare industry has a plethora of futuristic aspirations and wearable technology implementations. Medical devices that monitor

real-time biometrics have seized a significant portion of the market.

This is a compelling argument for advancing technology for the benefit of health. Businesses and investors are already working globally to develop and market devices that can monitor, diagnose, and provide remedies for individuals. In addition, efforts have been made to create a device that can be implanted beneath the skin to monitor drugs, blood-oxygen levels, and other critical signs. This is a remarkable achievement in aiding and supporting persons with chronic diseases.

Authentication Similar to tech giants such as WhatsApp and Tesla they prioritise safety and security by requiring two-factor authentication and digital keys rather than physical keys for user identification and authentication.

Wearable technology in the coming years can make use of the user's biometrics to authenticate the account instead of adding details and going through a set of information for the same.

Wrapping up!

Everything that operates on the digital radar is the future. Some of us still live in traditional ways, but at the end of the day, we are all tied to technology in some way. It has changed the way we manage our daily routines over time. Our daily activities have been a piece of cake, from ordering groceries online to scheduling medical tests. While the aforementioned talks are eagerly anticipated by the industry, some forecasts about wearable technology may turn out to be muted. They must be as practical as feasible according to designers. Over time, we expect to notice noticeable improvements in our charming wrist doctors!

YOGA AND NATUROPATHIC RITUALS FOR SOUND SLEEP Sufficient sleep is a fundamental aspect of good health. However, over 30 per cent of people suffer from insomnia, and this figure increases to 40 to 60 per cent for those over 60 years old.

In India, sleep disorders are prevalent, with the country ranking as the second most sleep-deprived nation in the world.

According to a Lancet study, approximately 5.4 per cent of Indians aged 3069, or around 28.8 million people, are at moderate or severe risk of sleep apnea, which is a prevalent sleep disorder.

Inadequate sleep has been linked to several health problems, including obesity, heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, depression, a suppressed immune system, and endocrine disorders. Studies have also shown a correlation between lack of sleep and premature ageing, as well as the exacerbation of chronic diseases such as Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, and kidney disease. Sleep specialists caution that individuals with insomnia should avoid becoming reliant on medication and instead consider lifestyle adjustments and rule out underlying conditions such as depression, which may be the root cause of their sleeplessness.

Incorporate therapies and relaxation rituals to promote better sleep, this is where yoga and naturopathy can come in handy: Early and Light Dinner: For optimal sleep, it is recommended to consume dinner at least two-three hours prior to bedtime and to include easily digestible foods. Consuming a heavy meal close to bedtime can diminish sleep quality and hinder digestion.

Research also suggests that having an early breakfast is beneficial, as eating late increases the risk of acid reflux and acidity. It is advisable to avoid or significantly limit alcohol intake in the evening, as excessive consumption can cause significant sleep disturbances, despite its initial calming effects.

Acupuncture: Acupuncture is a technique that involves inserting a small needle through the skin at a specific point on the body. This process can help alleviate stress, depression, and pain, and is commonly used to treat insomnia.

Acupuncture is considered one of the safest methods for treating insomnia. In a small study conducted in 2017, researchers administered traditional acupuncture or sham acupuncture (where needles are not inserted as deeply) to 72 individuals with primary insomnia. Participants received treatment three times a week for four weeks.

The results showed that acupuncture was more effective at improving

insomnia symptoms, sleep efficiency and total sleep time during treatment.

Sleep awakenings and self-rated anxiety also significantly improved two and four weeks after treatment.

Massage Therapy: Massage therapy is a well-known stress-reducing technique that can help release the tension we accumulate throughout the day. This therapy can improve blood circulation and significantly alleviate bodily pain, which can prevent individuals from achieving a restful night's sleep.

Moreover, it can also unblock and release negative energy, which may contribute to overall discomfort. The calming effect of massage on the body and mind can make it easier for people to switch off and fall asleep. A massage performed in the late evening, in particular, can promote a good night's sleep.

Yoga: Yoga and meditation are powerful tools that can help address the underlying causes of sleep issues, such as stress, anxiety, and depression, without any negative side effects. These ancient practices serve as relaxation techniques, helping to quiet the mind and calm the body, leading individuals toward a state of inner peace.

Practicing pranayama and meditation before bedtime can help address the root causes of sleep issues. In fact, a study reported that 55 per cent of yoga practitioners experienced improved sleep, with over 85 per cent reporting decreased levels of stress. Furthermore, there are multiple studies that have demonstrated the positive impact of yoga on sleep for individuals from various backgrounds.

PORTIMAO VICTORY FOR TOYOTA GAZOO RACING CONTD. FROM PAGE 29 Mike, Kamui and José are a further two behind in third.

On the warmest day of the event, the on-track action was equally hot and a close race between the GR010 HYBRIDs began from the very start. At the first corner, Mike squeezed ahead of pole-sitting Sébastien, who dropped to third when the #51 Ferrari also got through. However, Sébastien got his revenge with a brave overtake on lap four to reclaim second place. Mike led by five seconds at that point but soon came across lapped traffic and Sébastien gradually reduced the gap. The two GR010 HYBRIDs swapped positions on lap 33, shortly before the first round of pit stops, which saw the #8 maintain its lead. The race took a dramatic turn after 80 minutes when the team was instructed to change a rear-left driveshaft sensor on the #7 GR010 HYBRID. According to Hypercar regulations, performance is monitored by standardised torque sensors on the driveshafts, which must function at all times. Mechanics from both car #7 and #8 worked in tandem to change the complete rear-left corner of the car in an impressive 11 minutes, allowing José to resume the race in 34th, seven laps down but with still with hope of scoring points. That left Sébastien with a half-minute lead over the #50 Ferrari which he maintained through to the two-hour mark, when he handed over to Ryo. Ryo had further extended his advantage by half distance, and the next round of pit stops, while José had fought up to 22nd. Brendon took over the lead with two hours remaining as Kamui moved back into the Hypercar points to continue the #7 car’s recovery. Brendon kept up the pace at the front and lapped the second-placed Ferrari late in the fifth hour, earning a valuable cushion in the event of a safety car. That proved timely when the Vanwall crashed a few minutes later and a safety car compressed the field. When racing resumed after a 12-minute pause, Brendon was able to immediately make his final pit stop for fuel without losing the lead and he safely navigated the closing stages to take the chequered flag after 222 laps for the team’s 41st win in its 78th WEC race. Mike, who set the fastest lap of the race in the early stages, completed the last stint at the wheel of the #7 car.

The WEC season resumes in just two weeks with the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps on Saturday 29 April, the final round before the centenary edition of the Le Mans 24 Hours on 10-11 June.

Everybody experiences occasional restlessness, agitation, or moodiness. Nonetheless, some people take advantage of anxiousness, a more intense form of unease that results in less concentration. Agitation can be exceedingly painful and upsetting.

It also inter feres with social connections and professional performance, and in some cases, it raises the likelihood that someone would damage himself or others. "People who suffer from mood problems may be more likely to become agitated.

Bipolar illness and depression are examples of mood disorders that can be treated medically and cause changes in cognition, energy, and behaviour. Anyone can be affected by them, regardless of age, ethnicity, or social standing," says Kanchan Rai, an emotional and mental well-being coach. "A period of agitation is characterised by insignificant motions, such as trembling hands. Additional signs include hostility, a lack of selfcontrol, stress, and aggressive or disruptive behaviour. Even though it frequently coexists with stress, clinicians typically designate the term 'moodiness' to identify serious mental activity that stems from emotional discomfort. These outward habits act as an expression of the person's emotions. Agitation is a sign of a medical ailment, such as a mood disorder or feeling nervous. When a person's treatment for depression or bipolar disorder isn't functioning as effectively as it should, they frequently become agitated. It can also be brought on by traumatic or extremely stressful circumstances.

A person may at first come across as caustic. If the stress intensifies, they may begin to pace, lash out vocally, clench their fists, or even act in a threatening or confrontational manner."

SUMMER DRINKS TO BEAT THE HEAT

In order to beat the heat as we embrace summer, let's rehydrate and restore our bodies with some of the best summer drinks.

Here's a selection of summer time beverages that you simply must try.

AAM PANNA A cool summer beverage composed of raw mango pulp, cumin, and mint leaves. Aam Panna is a popular Indian drink that is both energising and refreshing. It aids in resisting the sweltering heat and quickly hydrates you.

Ingredients Green mangoes 500 gm Sugar 1/2 cup Salt 2 tsp Kala namak (black rock salt) 2 tsp Roasted and powdered cumin seeds 2 tsp Finely chopped mint leaves 2 Tbsp Water 2 cups Method Boil the mangoes till they become soft inside, and the skin gets discoloured. When cool enough to handle, remove the skin and squeeze the pulp out of the mangoes. Mix all the ingredients together, blend, and add 2 cups of water. Put some ice in the glasses and pour the Panna over them.

ICED JALJEERA An energising beverage filled with flavour. Serve cold to instantly cool you off!

Ingredients: Tamarind Pulp 125 Gram Mint Leaves 3 tbsp Ground Cumin 1/2 tsp Ground Cumin, roasted 3/4 tsp Grated Jaggery 50 gram Black Salt 4 tsp Ginger Salt (Gourmet Flavoured Salt), Grated 1 tbsp Lemon Juice 3-4 tbsp A pinch of Chilli powder (Kashmiri mirch) Garam Masala 1/2 tsp Water 1/2 litre Method For the Jaljeera, add all the ingredients in a food processor and blend it together. Chill overnight. Then strain and freeze it. Garnish the drink with some Boondis and serve.

SATTU SHARBAT This delicious summer time treat, Sattu Sharbat from Bihar is well-known for its cooling qualities. It has its own variations in states like Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh and is well-liked nationwide.

Ingredients: Chana Sattu, fourth cup Chilled water 4 cups Lemon juice 2 teaspoons Roasted cumin powder, half teaspoon Mint leaves, 2 teaspoons (chopped) Black salt to taste Green chilli, 1 (chopped) Raw mango, 2 teaspoons (grated) Method: Add all ingredients to a jug and mix well. Serve in glasses along with some ice cubes. Garnish with more mint leaves.

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10 WAYS TO REMOVE A SUMMER TAN

CLASSIC PEANUT BRITTLE - A TASTY TREAT TO CELEBRATE EID! An old-fashioned family favourite, this peanut brittle is bound to become a tradition in your household. This recipe makes homemade candy simple; just be sure to watch the pot and be organized, as it can go from perfect to burnt quickly. * Prep time: 5 minutes * Cooking time: Approximately 10 minutes * Makes: 12 servings Ingredients Peanut Brittle ¾ tsp (4 mL) baking soda ½ tsp (2 mL) water ½ tsp (2 mL) vanilla ¾ cup (175 mL granulated sugar ½ cup (125 mL) water ½ cup (125 mL) light corn syrup 2 cups (500 mL) peanuts 2 tbsp (30 mL) butter Directions In a small bwol, stir baking soda with ½ tsp (2 mL) water and vanilla.

Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, stir sugar with ½ cup (125 mL) water and corn syrup. Set over medium heat, stirring occasionally until mixture turns a light golden colour and reaches 240°F (120°C) on a candy thermometer, about 7 minutes once boiling.

Stir in peanuts and butter. Continue to cook, stirring continuously until mixture turns a deeper golden colour, reaching 300°F (140°C) on a candy thermometer, about 2 to 4 minutes once boiling.

Remove from heat and immediately stir in baking soda mixture until light and foamy. Then quickly turn onto a lightly-buttered baking sheet, spreading as thinly as possible. Let stand until hardened, about 1 hour. Break into large pieces.

Stir 1 tsp (5 mL) of either Chinese five-spice, hot or sweet paprika, or garam masala into baking soda mixture for a sweet and spicy version.

Tip: If you don't have a candy thermometer, you can use a small bowl of very cold water to test as you go: * Before starting your peanut brittle, fill a small bowl with very cold water and add an ice cube. Refrigerate until ready to use. * To test if temperature has reached 240°F (120°C), spoon about ½ tsp (2 mL) of brittle mixture into your bowl of cold water. Using your fingers, gather mixture. It should squish together to form a soft ball. If not, cook a bit longer, watching carefully, then test again. * To test if temperature has reached 300°F (140°C), spoon about ½ tsp (2 mL) of brittle mixture into the ice water. It will crack into hard threads.

Nutrition Per serving: 270 calories, 14 g fat (3 g saturated fat, 0.1 g trans fat), 5 mg cholesterol, 6 g protein, 29 g carbohydrate, 2 g fibre, 25 g sugars, 90 mg sodium.

APPLE DATE CRUMBLE BARS Add flavour to tea time or put a delicious surprise in someone's day with these moist and tender treats. They're easy to make and packed with warm spices, sweet fruit filling, and topped with a classic brown sugar crumble for a homey touch.

YIELD: 15 bars PREP TIME: 20 minutes BAKE TIME: 30 to 40 minutes INGREDIENTS: For the base and topping: 1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour 1 cup (88 g) large flaked oats 2/3 cup (145 g) Redpath® Dark Brown Sugar, packed 1 tsp (5 g) baking powder 1 tsp (3 g) ground cinnamon ½ tsp (3 g) salt 2/3 cup (151 g) butter, melted and cooled 1 egg, lightly beaten For the date filling: 2 cups (310 g) pitted dates, roughly chopped 1 cup (250 ml) unsweetened apple cider (or unsweetened apple juice) 2 tbsp (28 g) butter, cubed 2 tbsp (27 g) Redpath® Dark Brown Sugar, packed ½ tsp (1 g) ground cardamom (or 3 to 4 green cardamom pods; see Chef's Tips) ¼ tsp (2 g) salt 2 tsp (10 ml) pure vanilla extract ½ tsp (2 g) baking soda For the apple filling: 2 cups (252 g) Granny Smith and/or Honeycrisp apples, peeled, cored, and cubed (between ¼- to ½-inch pieces) 1 tbsp (15 ml) lemon juice 2 tbsp (27 g) Redpath® Dark Brown Sugar, packed 2 tbsp (16 g) all-purpose flour ½ tsp (2 g) ground cinnamon ¼ tsp (2 g) salt EQUIPMENT: 8-inch square baking pan (preferably metal) Parchment paper Scale OR dry measuring cups Liquid measuring cup Measuring spoons Large bowl x 2 Whisk Handheld mixer OR large spatula OR wooden spoon Medium heavy-bottomed saucepan Heatproof spatula Small bowl Fork OR small whisk Offset spatula OR spoon Wire cooling rack Cutting board Serrated knife OR chef's knife INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly grease and line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two facing sides of the pan for easy unmoulding.

For the base and topping: 1. In a large bowl, add flour, oats, the Redpath® Dark Brown Sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Whisk to combine thoroughly.

2. Add in the melted butter and lightly beaten egg. With a handheld mixer (or with a spatula/wooden spoon), mix on low speed until it forms a moist but crumbly dough. The dough should look like wet, clumpy sand.

3. Place ? of the dough (about 420 grams) into the bottom of the prepared pan. Press firmly to create the base of the bars.

For the date filling: 1. In a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, add the chopped dates, unsweetened apple cider/juice, butter, the Redpath® Dark Brown Sugar, cardamom, and salt. Place over medium-high heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.

2. Stir in vanilla extract and baking soda.

Reduce heat to medium-low, simmer, and stir until the dates have fallen apart and mixture is quite thick; 5 minutes.

3. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.

For the apple filling: 1. In a large bowl, toss the cubed apples with lemon juice to coat them.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the Redpath® Dark Brown Sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt until well combined.

3. Sprinkle the dry ingredients over the apples. Toss to coat the apples with the mixture evenly.

To assemble: 1. Evenly spread the date filling over the base using an offset spatula or the back of a spoon.

2. Sprinkle the apples over the date filling. Gently pat down to form an even layer. Squeeze the remaining dough into clumps, breaking any larger clumps apart, and scatter the clumps evenly over the apples to create the crumble topping. Place into the preheated oven and bake for 10 minutes.

3. Rotate pan and reduce heat to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 20 to 25 minutes or until the top is a deep golden brown colour. Remove and place on a wire rack to cool completely.

4. Using the parchment paper overhang, lift the cooled bars from the pan to a cutting board. With a sharp serrated knife or chef's knife, cut into 15 bars.

5. Store leftovers layered between parchment in an air tight container for up to 5 days or in the fridge for up to a week.

CHEF'S TIPS: *Ensure all ingredients are at room temperature before proceeding with the recipe. *With a mor tar and pestle, crush cardamom pods. Remove and discard the green husks. Finely crush the cardamom seeds.

Alternatively, place cardamom pods on a cutting board and crush with the bottom of a heavy pot or skillet. Remove and discard the green husks. Finely crush the cardamom seeds by grinding the seeds with the bottom of the pot. *When cutting the apples, ensure they are all about the same size to encourage even cooking. *Water, orange juice, coffee, or a combination of a non-alcoholic liquid and a liquor (e.g. brandy, rum, whisky) can be used in place of the unsweetened apple cider or apple juice. *Redpath® Golden Yellow Sugar can be substituted for the Redpath® Dark Brown Sugar. The resulting bars may be slightly lighter in colour and have a more subtle caramel under tone. *Serve warm as is or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

Summers are here in full splendour, and all those who love sunshine and adventures in the Sun, also have a fear of tanning. Sometimes this affects you physically and affects your confidence and self-esteem.

Is the fear of getting tanned forcing you to avoid going out? Tanning is unavoidable, but you can easily remove sun tan at home with some simple ingredients. Try these simple ayurvedic ways to get rid of tanning at home outlined by Shreedha Singh, Co-Founder of T.A.C - The Ayurveda Co. Ayurvedic body mask: This ayurvedic body mask requires two teaspoons of triphala churna, a pinch of turmeric, one teaspoon of besan, and a few drops of rose water. Apply this combination to the affected tanned area and rinse after 15 minutes.

Coffee body scrub: Add one or two teaspoons of almond or coconut oil, half a spoonful of sugar, and a few drops of lemon juice to one tablespoon of filter coffee (dry powder or filtrate). After thoroughly blending the ingredients, gently massage your tanned body parts. Rinse it off after some time, then pat it dry. The finest results come from using this twice each week.

Papaya mask: Papaya is one of the best ingredients for skin care. The fruit contains enzymes that help whiten and detan the skin. Additionally, it helps treat skin ulcers and can be beneficial for removing tan from the body. Combine one tablespoon of honey and half-ripe papaya pulp in a bowl. Next, apply it gently to the tanned areas and massage it for ten minutes. Allow it to rest for another 20 minutes. After washing with cold water, apply a mild moisturizer. Use this mask at least twice a week for quick results.

Nalpamaradithailam: Regular body oiling with the Ayurvedic "NalpamaradiThailam" lightening and brightening oil aids in detan and keeping the body supple and nourished.

Turmeric and besan pack: Mix two teaspoons of besan, one teaspoon of milk or curd, and one teaspoon of turmeric powder to make a thick pack. Apply the paste to your sun-affected skin gently and uniformly for 30 minutes, and wash it off with warm water.

Banana and honey mask: Mash some overripe bananas with a spoonful of honey, a few drops of milk, and malai. This mixture lightened the skin when applied to tanned body parts and rinsed off after 15 minutes.

Coconut milk: This de-tanner is all-natural and easily accessible.

Vitamin C and lactic acid are abundant in coconut milk, which helps to eliminate tanning from the skin effectively. Additionally, it is very moisturising and nourishing, which also keeps your skin hydrated. To use: Drench a cotton pad in fresh organic coconut milk.

Apply it evenly to the face and neck and let it absorb in the skin for 15 minutes.

Wash it off with normal water.

Masoor dal, aloe vera, and tomato pack: Make a paste using aloe vera puree, tomato paste, and lentils. Spread the paste to the tanned areas of your body, let it sit for thirty minutes, and then rinse. Apply this mask at least twice a week for optimum results.

Rice flour body scrub: Take 1-2 tablespoons of rice flour and combine it with some raw milk. Apply the mixture by blending and gently massaging it with your fingertips on the face, neck, and other tanningprone body regions. After leaving it on for twenty minutes, rinse it off with normal water. Apply this homemade scrub twice or thrice a week to get rid of the tan naturally.

Apply sunscreen: Maintain your skin care regimen because tanning takes around a month or two to remove. To prevent further tanning, apply sunscreen frequently to your body.

ELEVATE YOUR BATHING RITUAL

Slipping into a relaxing shower after a long day is an adored practice and a rejuvenating experience. Of course, you may take a longer bath occasionally and pamper yourself with additional skincare rituals, but have you ever taken a royal bath? It may sound like an extravagant suggestion but can help you achieve the effortless and radiant beauty that has long been the hallmark of Indian queens and princesses.

Veteran actor and Vivel VedVidya Brand Ambassador, Sharmila Tagore said: "In today's world, we are inundated with information on various complex beauty regimens that promise to give us beautiful, vibrant skin. However, my mother and grandmother had kept things very simple and used concoctions made of natural ingredients, recipes of which were passed down. Drawing inspiration from them, one of my go-to ingredients is incorporating sandalwood-as a skincare essential."

Indian royalty has been admired all over the world for their flawless beauty which is associated with the beauty secrets passed down to them by their ancestors. These beauty secrets usually consist of elaborate rituals and practices using various ancient ingredients like flowers, herbs, roots, and oils, that improved skin health while leaving it nourished from within and is a complete sensorial experience.

Here is a list of natural ingredients that will make your bathing experience royal and luxurious. Nargis Flowers: The essential oil of the fragrant Nargis flower is incredibly rare and highly valuable. Nargis, commonly known as daffodils, have been used for their calming effects and delicate aroma. The flower oil tones the skin while also keeping it hydrated at the same time. This remarkable flower works like a magic remedy for boosting skin health and curing a variety of skin diseases.

KumkumadiTailam: KumkumadiTailam is a traditional Ayurvedic oil blend with numerous benefits for the skin. It is usually a mix of Saffron, Sandalwood, Vetiver, Sesame oil, Turmeric extracts, Rose oil, Manisha, and Almond oil, and is used for promoting youthful and healthy-looking skin. This ingredient has been used to resolve uneven skin and to provide radiance. In addition to this, Kumkumadi also has anti-ageing and hydrating properties. It can help in brightening and evening out the complexion while also improving skin elasticity and firmness.

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

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OSLER FOUNDATION’S HOLI GALA RAISES ALMOST $4 MILLION FOR LOCAL HOSPITALS

BRAMPTON/ETOBICOKE – William Osler Health System Foundation (Osler Foundation) marked a historic milestone, commemorating the 10th annual Holi Gala – Festival of Colours, presented by BVD Group, last Saturday, April 15. With a sold-out attendance of 900 guests, this year’s celebration brought together supporters from the local community and beyond, united in their commitment to raising funds for William Osler Health System (Osler).

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the event, Osler Foundation set a goal to raise $1 million to fund the purchase of critical new technology and to support vital redevelopment projects across Osler; in an incredible show of support, that goal was surpassed thanks to the extraordinary generosity of sponsors and guests.

This was the most successful Holi Gala in the event’s history, raising $3.9 million for Osler’s Brampton Civic Hospital, Etobicoke General Hospital, and Peel Memorial Centre for Integrated Health and Wellness.

Included among the evening’s generous supporters were Sukhdeep and Surjit Kang of Armour Insurance Brokers Ltd., True North Freight Solutions Inc., and SSP Group of Companies Inc. who each stepped up with a $1 million commitment to Osler Foundation. In addition, Mr. Tarlochan Singh Gill and family matched all contributions up to $100,000 made during the event’s Fund A Need donation rally.

“We have never seen this level of giving at any event of this kind—it is unprecedented,” said Ken Mayhew, President and CEO, Osler Foundation. “Witnessing our community’s commitment to Osler’s physicians, staff, and volunteers is humbling and we are thrilled to see our donors recognize and suppor t their tireless efforts. Led by our passionate and devoted community, it was a night to remember.”

“BVD Group is thrilled to once again serve as the presenting sponsor of the highly anticipated Holi Gala,” said Bikram Dhillon, President, BVD Group. “As a company that operates within the communities served

by Osler’s hospitals, we feel deeply connected to their mission. We believe the funds raised through Holi Gala will play a pivotal role in bolstering health care services in Brampton and Etobicoke, and we are happy to suppor t the positive impact it will have on the lives of those in the community.”

The festivities included an electrifying performance by one of the most talked about names in Punjabi music, Sharry Maan, and a fabulous auction with prizes, including cour tside tickets to see the Toronto Raptors, one-year tuition from Mentor College, and a one-year lease on a 2023 Mercedes-Benz SUV. The Holi Gala was made possible through sponsor generosity. In addition to presenting sponsor BVD Group, the event attracted generous suppor t from Platinum Sponsors: IFS and In ‘N Out Car Wash and Detailing Centre; Entertainment Sponsor: Orangeville Medical Imaging; Ruby Sponsors: Dr. Nalin & Vandana Ahluwalia Medicine Professional Corporation, Air & Oceanland Inc., Armour Insurance Brokers, Autobahn Freight Lines Ltd., Bell, BioJAMP, CIBC, Fleetex Transpor t Ltd., Hunter Express, International Multimedia Company Inc., Jessie Mann Insurance & Financial Services – Co-operators, Mentor College, Nanda and Associate Lawyers, New Millenium Tire Centre, Pfizer, Rx Connect Specialty Pharmacy, SBS Expedited Services Ltd., Sheridan, Sofina Foods Inc., SSP Group of Companies Inc., TD Commercial Bank, True Nor th Freight Solutions Inc., and Toronto Metropolitan University.

To donate to William Osler Health System Foundation, please visit oslerfoundation.org

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LIFESTYLE

TORONTO-BASED INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS UNIVERSITY ACHIEVES TWO SIGNIFICANT MILESTONES IN ITS QUEST TO BE THE MOST INNOVATIVE BUSINESS UNIVERSITY IN CANADA

TORONTO- International Business University (IBU), with a vision to create global leaders who anticipate and drive change, has achieved two significant milestones in the last two weeks that position it to grow rapidly with a dynamic faculty, a diverse body of students, and new programs that are aligned tightly with industry.

First significant milestone: IBU announced in March that it met all of Ontario's International Student Program (ISP) requirements to be recognized and approved as a Designated Learning Institution (DLI) by the Canadian Government (DLI# O282326631372).

IBU is Toronto's first independent, not-for-profit university to provide this opportunity to international students.DLI accreditation is awarded to educational institutions that meet the strict requirements of ISP regulations for granting a study permit. This reflects the university's commitment to providing international students with a world-class education and workforce development oppor tunities.

"The attainment of DLI designation is a significant achievement for our university," said Joanne Shoveller, President, and ViceChancellor. "This recognition reflects our unwavering commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive learning environment that prepares students for success in a globalized world. It also underscores the infrastructure and suppor t provided through our programs and services."

Achieving DLI accreditation is an important milestone for IBU because it opens new oppor tunities for international students who want to study and work in Canada. It also allows international students to gain valuable work experience in the country, enhancing their career prospects, and enabling them to contribute to a highly skilled and diverse workforce in Canada.

Second significant milestone: Today IBU announces the approval of the MBA Program in Technology, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship.

Designed to create leaders who have a global entrepreneurial mindset and the ability to develop integrated technology solutions for businesses, this MBA

program focuses on the cross-section of technology, innovation, entrepreneurship, and sustainability to equip students with the skills and knowledge to become agile and resilient leaders.

"Real-life business cases, guest lectures from successful star t-up founders, Fortune 500 executives, and highly acclaimed members of academia with knowledge on a truly global scale - from Armenia to France, from India to the US - will build on the rock-solid foundation for our diverse and eager students," shared Dr. Ar tie Ng, IBU Dean.

"When it comes to sustainable business management, green energy and tech, digitization, and future-ready innovation concepts, IBU MBA students will be well-prepared to become global pioneers."

Key program features include highly experienced faculty for quality graduate education, a global network through extracurricular activities, in-person course delivery alongside state-of-the-ar t online learning technologies, and executive insight workshops on current business topics delivered by our Professors of Practice and Distinguished Visiting Professors.

Endorsed and supported by IBU's Board of Governors and Program Advisory Council the MBA will focus on the context of business, trends shaping the environment, the conceptualization of research problems, effective communication, solution formulation, legal and ethical considerations, and understanding a complex business environment.

The IBU MBA program is optimized for 12 months of classes plus four months of capstone projects totaling 16 months. International students who graduate from the IBU MBA in Technology, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship will be eligible to apply for a three-year post-graduation work permit.

To learn more about Inter national Business University, its MBA program, learning outcomes, faculty, and par tners, please visit www.ibu.ca.

For media inquiries, please contact Yasemin Mutlu, Director of Communications, at ymutlu@ibu.ca; 647) 631 1971.

STAY FIT WHILE INDULGING INTO FOOD BLOGGING There is no doubt that in today's world, with creative brains and technology, you can dine in or out, or even host guests at the convenience of consumers, resulting in a market swamped with new restaurants. Hand-in-hand, there is a huge demand for people who can write genuine reviews about these restaurants, their food, and their experience.

As a result, several food bloggers who have made a reputation for themselves and have a large number of followers on social media are invited numerous times per week or sometimes multiple times per day.

But have you ever considered what overeating or an unhealthy diet plan can lead to?

Speaking on how to remain healthy while food blogging or vlogging, Neetika Ligga, a food content creator at Moj, says: "As a food enthusiast, I revel in the art of cooking and restaurant reviewing almost every week. However, indulging in outside food regularly can take a toll on one's health. While I don't follow any diet trend, I prioritize portion control both when cooking and reviewing restaurants.

"Typically, when I review a restaurant or food vendor, or cook, I am in the company of friends and family, which means I am not solely responsible for consuming all the food. In the rare instance that I am alone, I request smaller portions from the restaurant or food vendor to prevent waste and overindulgence.

"Additionally, I make sure to incorporate high-intensity workouts or at least go for a walk to maintain an active lifestyle. Finding the right balance is crucial for enjoying our favourite foods and indulgences while still practicing portion control and savouring every bite without any guilt. " Mehezabin Dordi, Clinical Psychologist at Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital, recommends some additional guidelines for staying healthy when making food content on social media: Plan your own meals in advance: Planning your meals in advance can help you make healthier choices and avoid the temptation to snack on unhealthy foods while creating content.

Being mindful of your consumption: being aware of your food and being mindful is a very impor tant component of wellness.

Try to Incorporate healthy ingredients: When creating recipes, try to incorporate healthy ingredients to have more balance in the food you eat. Practice por tion control: Be mindful of portion sizes when creating and serving food content. Even the best food eaten in excess can be harmful. Avoid overeating or indulging in excess amounts of sugary or processed foods.

STAY HYDRATED WITH TENDER COCONUT WATER In India, heat waves are a frequent occurrence. To inform people of the severe weather conditions and advise them to take the appropriate measures, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) issues heatwave warnings. A heatwave is defined as a period of time when the highest temperature is between 40 degrees Celsius and 45 degrees Celsius, with some locations experiencing temperatures that are higher.

It is essential to take the necessary measures during a heatwave to prevent dehydration and heat exhaustion. Staying inside during the hottest part of the day is one of them, as is dressing in airy, loose clothing, and consuming plenty of water, coconut water, and other fluids to stay hydrated.

Varun Khurana, Founder and CEO of Agritech start-up Otipy shares some of the benefits of coconut water to stay hydrated and cool during these prevailing conditions including: Electrolytes: Coconut water is an excellent source of electrolytes like potassium, sodium, and magnesium. These minerals help to maintain fluid balance in the body, which is essential for hydration.

Hydration: Coconut water is a natural source of hydration, and it can help to replenish lost fluids due to sweating. It is an excellent alternative to sugary or high-calorie drinks, which can contribute to dehydration.

Cooling properties: Coconut water has natural cooling properties that can help regulate body temperature and reduce heat stress.

Nutrients: Coconut water is rich in nutrients like calcium, iron, and vitamin C, which can help to boost the immune system and reduce inflammation in the body. This can be par ticularly important during a heatwave, as the body may be more susceptible to illness and infection due to the stress of the heat. Low in calories: Coconut water is a low-calorie drink, making it an excellent alternative to sugary or high-calorie drinks that can contribute to dehydration. Overall, coconut water is a pleasant and nutritious substitute for other beverages and offers a host of advantages for general health and well-being.

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023

5 MUST-HAVE TECH TOOLS FOR WOMEN TO STAY SAFE FROM CYBER HARASSMENT

Cyber harassment is a menace that can present itself in all shapes and forms. For women, this issue can even extend outside of chatrooms and social media apps. While we are far from having cyber harassment completely eliminated from digital platforms, technology can prove to be a brilliant assistance for women to safeguard themselves, and help those who want to protect their identity and their personal information. Here are six tech tools that can help to stay safer when using their digital platforms and devices.

Anti - Spyware Software An anti-spy software helps to detect and remove spyware that may be installed on your device. By regularly scanning your device for spyware, you can ensure that your sensitive information, such as passwords and personal data, remains protected. In addition to antispy software, other tech tools such as virtual private networks, encrypted messaging apps, and password managers can also be used to increase online safety and protect against cyber harassment.

Malware Removal Malware can be put to task to track a person's activity, and in some instances, can even be used to spy on women using their inbuilt cameras or microphones, and leak their personal information on third-party websites or the dark web. By installing a malware removal tool, women can detect, remove and protect against malicious software, such as viruses, Trojans, and ransomware. It is important to download appropriate malware software and scan the device once a week to ensure that the systems are not compromised in any way.

Caller Identification App It is important for women to use a call identification app that can safeguard them from unwanted calls and text messages. These apps can help create a safety net for women to screen calls and avoid answering potentially threatening or harassing calls from unknown numbers and even block and report them if need be. Moreover, these apps can also protect women's privacy by filtering out spam calls and blocking unwanted calls, ensuring that their personal information and phone numbers remain safe and secure.

Security Analytics Platform Security analytics platforms use advanced algorithms and machine learning techniques to analyze network traffic and detect anomalies or suspicious activity, including phishing attacks, malware infections, and account takeovers. Downloadable security analytics tools can help combat specific types of online harassment by detecting and blocking attempts to leak or distribute private information. Furthermore, they can also be used to monitor social media activity and identify fake accounts or trolls that harass women online.

Encrypted File Transfer (to share sensitive files) If there is ever a need to share sensitive or personal data over mail or over a virtual platform, it is important to use encrypted file transfer platforms. By doing so, one can ensure that any sensitive information shared over the internet is protected from unauthorised access or theft during transmission. These platforms use encryption to scramble the data being transferred, making it unreadable to anyone who intercepts it. The prevalence of cyber harassment and increasing cases across the globe highlight the importance of taking proactive measures to protect oneself online. Tech companies must also work in conjunction with local authorities and law enforcement to ensure that there are adequate laws, policies, and infrastructure in place to tackle cyber harassment effectively. By working together, we can create a safer and more inclusive digital environment for everyone.

DISCOVER WHY TEA IS A SKINREJUVENATING ELIXIR Did you know that consuming tea can give your skin a radiant look?

Tea is an indispensable part of Indian households. You have a headache; you drink a cup of tea. If you have a sore throat or cold; again a cup of ginger tea is your go-to option for instant relief. The list is endless. What if you are told that tea helps in rejuvenating your skin too? Yes, you read it right. Many teas effectively reduce the stress lines from the face, thereby generating radiating skin.

Green tea Anti-inflammatory qualities are found in green tea. It moisturises parched skin, hydrates it, and lessens the affects of sunburn. It also aids in reducing skin irritation, redness, breakouts, and swelling.

Many skin specialists also advise applying green tea to the face due to its many advantages. It also aids in treating minor wounds. Green tea is also a popular refreshment among those trying to lose weight.

Green tea and lemongrass are an ideal combination for skin care because lemongrass has purifying qualities. Due to its antibacterial and antifungal qualities, lemongrass is also a common ingredient in skincare products.

Black tea Black tea, which is high in polyphenols and antioxidants, is well known for preventing premature ageing of the face. When compared to other kinds of tea, it is significantly more effective at reducing wrinkles, according to numerous studies. Black tea's skin-clearing and antioxidant qualities aid in the removal of toxins that lead to skin blemishes. For improved skin results, one can also use a cotton ball to apply it straight to the face when it is cold.

Amla herbal tea Your tea's amla extracts can do miracles for your skin. Amla juice increases vitamin C levels and aids in boosting the skin's collagen formation when consumed regularly. Skin that is soft and young is the outcome. Tea made from amla decreases acne scarring, fine lines, and breakouts. It soothes away the effects of acne because it is a natural blood purifier.

Ginger and turmeric tea When we think of ginger, we immediately think of its strong, spicy scent. Natural ginger oil, or gingerols, which aid in decreasing inflammation and pain, is the cause of this. The anti-inflammatory qualities of gingerols can help soothe inflamed skin. Curcumin, the active component of turmeric, and ginger are foods that have been shown to enhance the look and healing capacity of the skin. So ginger and turmeric tea is perfect for maintaining the health of your epidermis.

MIDWEEK NEWS NEWS WEEKLY WEEKLY TUESDAY, AUGUST TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 28, 2012 2023

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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2023