Indian Sub-continent

Kanpur: Not only medicines but doctors in the Neurology department of the Ganesh Shanker Vidyarthi Medical College here are not conveniently available.

Prof RK Mauraya, SIC, Lala Lajpat Rai & Associated Hospitals, said, " Purchase of medicines for epilepsy has not been procured owing to its exclusion from rate contract list. There has been sent a letter for initiation of fresh tender. The order shall be placed after obtaining permission."

Reportedly, it was pointed out that the doctors were prescribing medicines of different companies.

NEW DELHI, Feb. 11 (Xinhua) -- India's federal power minister R K Singh said Friday the country will replace diesel with renewable energy to achieve zero diesel use in the agricultural sector by 2024.

Singh chaired a virtual meeting with state government officials to discuss the energy transition goals of the country. The minister laid emphasis on the need for a state-specific agency dedicated to energy conservation and efficiency.

QALA-E-NAW, Afghanistan, Feb. 11 (Xinhua) -- One person has been confirmed dead and 14 others were injured after an explosive device went off in front of the main mosque in western Afghanistan, the provincial health chief Mohammad Asif Qanet said Friday.

Qanet said the dead and the 14 wounded, with one in critical condition, have been taken to hospital following the blast that took place at the main gate of the mosque in Qala-e-Naw city, capital of western Afghanistan's Badghis province.

Four children were among the injured, the official added.

Itanagar, Feb 11 (PTI) A POCSO court in West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh has sentenced a 35-year-old man from Assam to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for repeatedly raping his 14-year-old stepdaughter.

West Kameng POCSO Special Judge Tageng Padoh on Thursday also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on Bhawani Chetry, a native of Assam's Biswanath district.

New Delhi, Feb 10 (PTI) India has about 21 judges per million people, Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday.

In a written reply, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said to calculate the judge-population ratio for per million population in a particular year, the Department of Justice in the ministry uses the population as per Census 2011 and as per available information regarding sanctioned strength of judges in Supreme Court, the high court and district and subordinate courts in the particular year.

Kapurthala (Punjab), Feb 10 (PTI) A fast track court here on Thursday awarded death sentence to a man for raping a seven-year-old girl.

Judge Rajwinder Kaur of Additional District and Sessions Court, which is the special Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) court, also directed the district legal services authority (DLSA) to give a compensation of Rs 8 lakh to the victim's family.

Patna, Feb 10 (PTI) Lalu Prasad's RJD on Thursday highlighted the need for a "political front" to take on the BJP, which it accused of pursuing a divisive agenda and remaining oblivious to the need for social and economic progress.

A resolution to the effect was passed here by the party at the meeting of its national executive which took place in presence of Prasad, the founding president, who had flown down from Delhi despite old age and poor health.

Lucknow, Feb 10 (PTI) Over 60 per cent voter turnout was recorded in the first phase of polling held on Thursday across 58 assembly constituencies in 11 districts of Uttar Pradesh.

Polling closed at 6 pm following a one-hour extension because of COVID-19 protocols. The day passed off peacefully with minor technical snags in EVMs at some places, election officials said.

Additional Chief Election Officer (ACEO) B D Ram Tiwari said, "There were reports of a technical error in EVMs at some places." Those EVMs were being replaced as the reports came in, he added.

Lohardaga, Feb 11 (PTI) Two CoBRA jawans suffered serious injuries in an IED blast in Jharkhand's Lohardaga district and were airlifted to Ranchi, a police officer said on Friday.

The blast occurred in extremist-hit Bulbul-Peshrar area when a joint team of the CRPF -- of which CoBRA is a special operation unit -- and the Jharkhand Police were engaged in an operation against Maoists.

New Delhi, Feb 11 (PTI) An appeal has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the direction of the Karnataka High Court that has asked students not to insist on wearing any cloth on campuses of educational institutions which can instigate people, till the matter is resolved.

The plea filed by a student has sought a stay on the direction of the high court, which is hearing the hijab issue, as well as the proceedings going on before the three judge bench.