www.theasianstar.com Vol 19 - Issue 47 Meet the woman who runs the 5,500acre Jullundur Farms in Australia Gurjit Sondhu, the owneroperator of 5,500-acre Jullundur Farms in Western Victoria, came to Australia from India in 1976. 62-year-old Gurjit Sondhu is a passionate farmer who has been involved in different types of agribusiness at Wombelano, in the Wimmera region of western Victoria. She is the owner-operator of the 5500-acre Jullundur Farms [after the name of Jalandhar – a city in Punjab] where she manages various crops including canola, wheat and barley, in addition to trading in sheep and cattle. Ms Sondhu moved to Continued on page 7
Trump presents Legion of Merit to Indian PM Modi India’s Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, accepted the award on behalf of the prime minister from the US National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien at the White House. President Trump “presented the Legion of Merit to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his leadership in elevating the US-India strategic partnership,” O’Brien said in a tweet. Modi was presented with the highest degree Chief Commander of the Legion of Merit which is given only to the Head of State or Government. Continued on page 7
444 new cases of Covid-19 BC reporting 444 new cases of COVID-19, including five epi-linked cases, for a total of 47,510 cases in British Columbia. “There are 9,481 active cases of COVID-19 in the province. There are 357 individuals currently hospitalized with COVID-19, 84 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation. “A total of 36,094 people who tested positive have recovered, said Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health health officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Healthfollowing joint statement.
Saturday, December 26, 2020
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Canada halts flights from UK and South Africa as fast-spreading variants of COVID-19 emerge Highly contagious variants of COVID-19 have emerged in Britain, parts of Europe and South Africa, prompting a surge in infections and a wave of travel bans, including in Canada. On Sunday, several European countries, including France, Italy and Ireland, suspended all flights to and from Britain for up to two weeks. Germany also put restrictions on travellers from Britain and South Africa while Israel banned travellers from Britain, South Africa and Denmark. Further steps
could come on Monday when European Union leaders hold an emergency meeting to discuss an EU-wide response to new variants of the virus. “There are a great many questions about this new mutation,” said Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo. Also on Sunday, Ottawa announced a 72-hour suspension of flights from Britain beginning at midnight, Eastern time, on Sunday night. The suspension does not affect cargo flights or overflights where passengers are not disembarking in Canada. Continued on page 8
Pakistani human rights activist ‘murdered’ in Toronto A Pakistani human rights activist living in Canada who went missing over the weekend has been found dead, Toronto Police said on Tuesday, adding they believed her death to be a non-criminal matter. Karima Mehrab, (pictured) a refugee from Pakistan’s south western province of Balochistan, She was also known as Karima Baloch, went missing on Sunday in Toronto’s downtown waterfront area. Police said her body was found on Monday. Mehrab was a prominent student organizer who campaigned for Balochistan’s separation from Pakistan,
and later fled to Canada amid threats. She was named one of the BBC’s 100 inspirational and influential women of 2016. Toronto police offered few details about her death. Mike Butt, a detective, said by phone: “It has been deemed a non-criminal incident.” Amnesty International South Asia tweeted that her death was shocking and should be “effectively investigated,” while the Human Rights Council of Balochistan called for the Canadian government to look into the matter. Continued on page 8