UN General Assembly to decide on rival COVID-19 resolutions

United Nations: How should the UN General Assembly and its 193 member states respond to the coronavirus pandemic? Members have been sent two rival resolutions for consideration and under new voting rules instituted because the global body isn’t holding meetings, if a single country objects a resolution is defeated. One resolution, which has more than […]

Prominent Indian-origin virologist in South Africa dies from coronavirus

Johannesburg: World-renowned virologist Gita Ramjee has become the first Indian-origin South African to have died after contracting the novel coronavirus that has killed five people in the country. Ramjee, a stellar vaccine scientist and an HIV prevention research leader, had returned from London a week ago but reportedly showed no symptoms of COVID-19. Ramjee, 64, was […]

GoI defines domicile for J&K

Srinagar: After abrogation of Article 370, which gave special status to the residents of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state, the government of India has now spelled out the rules for domicile rights in J&K. An official gazette issued in this regard said that a person who has resided in Jammu and Kashmir for a […]

US headed for ‘tough’, ‘painful’ two weeks: Trump

Washington: The US is headed for a “tough two weeks”, President Donald Trump has warned, advising people to be prepared for the “hard days” ahead, as the country fights the fast-spreading coronavirus pandemic that the White House projects could claim one to two lakh lives during the next fortnight. Trump’s remarks came as Deborah Bix, a […]

UN Security Council urges cease-fire in Afghanistan

United Nations: The UN Security Council urged Afghanistan’s warring parties on Tuesday to heed the UN secretary-general’s call for an immediate cease-fire to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and ensure delivery of humanitarian aid throughout the country. The council issued a press statement after a closed briefing by UN deputy special representative Ingrid Hayden who said […]

US virus deaths pass 4,000: Johns Hopkins

Washington: The total US death toll from the coronavirus pandemic topped 4,000 early Wednesday, more than double the number from three days earlier, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. The number of deaths was 4,076 — more than twice the 2,010 recorded late Saturday. More than 40 percent of recorded deaths nationally were in […]

COVID19 pandemic most challenging crisis since World War II: UN chief

United Nations:The coronavirus pandemic is the most challenging crisis the world has faced since World War II, one that is killing people and will also lead to an economic recession without any parallel in the recent past, according to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. According to the estimates by the Johns Hopkins University, there are […]

Ensure safety of Indians stranded abroad due to COVID-19: J&K HC tells MEA

Jammu: The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has directed the Ministry of External Affairs to look into the various aspects of evacuation of Indians who are stranded abroad due to COVID-19 pandemic and need to be evacuated to India. In a hearing conducted through video conferencing on Monday, a division bench headed by Chief Justice Gita […]

Police detain 33 labourers trying to enter J-K’s Bhadarwah

Bhadarwah/Jammu:The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Tuesday detained 33 labourers and sent them to a hospital for check-up after they were found trying to enter Doda district despite a country-wide lockdown, officials said. Two groups of lobourers were trying to sneak into the the  Bhadarwah town from Punjab and Himachal Pradesh, through snow covered Chattergalla […]

Special CBI court rejects bail plea of Hilal Rather in J&K Bank fraud case

New Delhi: A special CBI court in Jammu on Tuesday refused to grant interim bail to Hilal Rather, son of a former Jammu and Kashmir minister, in the Rs 177 crore bank fraud case rejecting his fears of contracting COVID-19 and noting that he is more at risk outside the prison. While rejecting the application, […]