Indian Sub-continent

India: UP Man gets 10 years' jail for raping 15-year-old niece

Muzaffarnagar, Dec 4 (PTI) A Special POCSO Court has sentenced a man to 10 years of imprisonment for raping his 15-year-old niece, court officials said here on Saturday.

Special Judge Sanjiv Kumar Tiwari also imposed a fine of Rs 27,000 on the accused, Jitendra, convicting him under section 363, 366 and 376 of the Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

India: AAP will soon become a clone of BJP: Chidambaram

New Delhi, Dec 4 (PTI) Congress leader P Chidambaram on Saturday said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will soon become a clone of the BJP as it is imitating the saffron party.

"Imitation is the best form of flattery. The more the AAP imitates the BJP, the less relevant it will become. Soon, the AAP will become a clone of the BJP," he said on Twitter.

The former Union minister also hit out at the BJP for changing three chief ministers in Uttarakhand in five years.

India: Man held for raping, murdering girl in UP

Agra, Dec 4 (PTI) A man was arrested for allegedly raping and killing a girl here, police said on Saturday.

The accused has been identified as Sanjay, SSP Sudhir Kumar Singh said.

During the course of investigation, the police became suspicious of the man and started inquiring about him.

He was arrested on Friday night, the SSP added.

India: Mamata condoles death of veteran journalist Vinod Dua

Kolkata, Dec 5 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday condoled the death of veteran journalist Vinod Dua.

Sixty-seven-year-old Dua died in a hospital in Delhi on Saturday, his daughter Mallika Dua had said.

"I deeply mourn the death of prominent journalist Vinod Dua. He had made imprints of success for a long time. He was one of the torchbearers in news reading on television," Banerjee said in a statement in Bengali.

India: COVID-19 vaccination now compulsory in Puducherry

Puducherry, Dec 5 (PTI) The Union Territory of Puducherry has made it mandatory for all persons to get the COVID-19 vaccine with an aim to achieve cent per cent coverage and said those skipping it would face penal action under law.

The Director of Health and Family Welfare Services G.Sriramulu stated this in an order on Saturday night and said it woud come into immediate effect.

The government has invoked the provisions of the Puducherry Public Health Act 1973 to implement compulsory vaccination.

Delhi reports first case of Omicron variant

New Delhi, Dec 5 (PTI) A 37-year-old man who arrived in Delhi from Tanzania has tested positive for Omicron, making it the first case of the new COVID-19 variant in the national capital and the fifth in the country.

The patient, currently admitted to the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) Hospital, has mild symptoms, hospital officials said.

India to supply 20% more power to Bangladesh

Agartala, Dec 5 (PTI) India will supply 20 per cent more power to Bangladesh as the two countries renewed the contract for another five years, officials said on Sunday.

Tripura State Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL) will supply 192 mw power to Bangladesh, an increase from the earlier 160 mw it supplied, as per the renewed agreement.

Pakistan PM reassures president over Sri Lankan’s lynching

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s prime minister told Sri Lanka’s president that more than 100 people have been detained in the lynching of a Sri Lankan factory manager and suspects will be “prosecuted with the full severity of the law.”

Imran Khan said in an overnight tweet that he spoke to Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa by phone to convey the country’s anger and shame and assure him that justice would be done for Friday’s “vigilante killing” of Priyantha Kumara.

India: Citizens must remain cautious of new variant Omicron

Kanpur: A mild third wave of new variant Omicron of Covidvirus-19 is likely to peak in India between January and February next year, claimed Professor Manindra Agrawal of IIT here.

This will be around the Assembly elections in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur respectively.

Cautioning the citizens he said that they must remain careful.

In contrast to a South African research study, Manindra Agrawal said that Omicron does not seem to be bypassing natural immunity from Covid in any significant way.

Pakistan to host OIC FMs’ moot on Dec 19; humanitarian assistance, resource mobilization for Afghanistan on agenda

LAHORE, Dec 4 (APP): Pakistan on Saturday announced to host an extraordinary session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the OIC countries on December 19, with core objectives of highlighting the need for urgent assistance and mobilization of resources to avert a humanitarian crisis and economic collapse in war-torn Afghanistan.

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