Indian Sub-continent

MAIDAN SHAR, Afghanistan, Jun 18 (NNN-ANA) – One person was killed, as a mine left over from past wars, went off, in Afghanistan’s eastern Wardak province yesterday, a provincial police officer said, today.

Yesterday afternoon, an Afghan street worker was collecting garbage, on the streets of Maidan Shar city, capital of Wardak province, when an explosive device hidden among the trash exploded, killing the man on the spot, the official said.

A similar accident claimed the life of a child and injured two others in Afghanistan’s western Ghor province, last Monday.

COLOMBO, June 18 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe on Sunday cautioned against premature speculation regarding domestic debt optimization, emphasizing that a strategy for optimization has not yet been finalized.

Speaking to media in Colombo, Semasinghe stressed the government's commitment to ensuring the stability of the banking and financial sector.

He urged responsible and diligent discussions on the matter, as premature speculations could potentially undermine market confidence.

NEW DELHI, June 18 (Xinhua) -- The death toll in India's northern state Uttar Pradesh and its adjoining state Bihar due to the prevailing extreme heatwave conditions rose to 98 over the past three days, local officials said Sunday.

While 54 people have died in Uttar Pradesh, 44 people died in Bihar due to the hot weather. Most patients were aged above 60 years, according to the officials.

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday declared a national day of mourning for citizens who died when the fishing trawler packed with migrants they were in sank off the Greek coast.

As many as 750 men, women and children from Syria, Egypt, the Palestinian territories and Pakistan were on board the vessel, trying to reach relatives in Europe. The Greek coast guard has defended its response to the tragedy that left more than 500 migrants presumed drowned. The vessel sank on Wednesday.

London, Jun 18 (PTI) A 38-year-old Indian-origin man has been stabbed to death in London, just two days after shocking incidents of knife attacks in the UK which saw the deaths of a British Indian teen and a student from Hyderabad.

Aravind Sasikumar was found with knife injuries on June 16 after officers were called to a residential property on Southampton Way, Camberwell, the Metropolitan Police said.

He died at the scene at 1.31 am on Friday, the police said in a statement.

Islamabad, Jun 18 (PTI) Pakistan's Senate has passed a bill to ensure no parliamentarian is disqualified for a lifetime, a move termed by the Opposition as an attempt to clear the way for former premier Nawaz Sharif’s return to the country and his participation in the upcoming elections.

Nawaz Sharif was disqualified in 2017 by a five-member bench of the Supreme Court. In 2018, he became ineligible to hold public office for life after a Supreme Court verdict.

Noida, Jun 18 (PTI) Eighty-six per cent of the households in Noida and 94 per cent in Uttar Pradesh have experienced daily power outages in the ongoing month of June, according to a survey by a social media platform.

The findings are based on responses from over 14,000 respondents located in 56 of the 75 districts of the state, the survey conducted by LocalCircles said.

According to the survey, 94 per cent of households in Uttar Pradesh surveyed say they have been facing power outages daily in June.

Patna, Jun 18 (PTI) The Congress in Bihar would extend a "historic" welcome to Rahul Gandhi when he visits the state later this week, for the first time since making waves with 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', the party's state president Akhilesh Prasad Singh said on Sunday.

Ballia (UP), Jun 18 (PTI) Fifty-four people admitted at a district hospital in this Uttar Pradesh district have died in the last three days, health officials said on Sunday.

Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Jayant Kumar said two people have died due to heat stroke in Ballia district till Sunday.

New Delhi, Jun 18 (PTI) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said the national capital would have been the safest place had law and order been under the AAP dispensation instead of the Lt Governor.

His comments, however, drew a sharp reaction from Union Minister Meenakashi Lekhi, who claimed that Kejriwal does not understand the law.

Kejriwal's remarks came after two women were allegedly shot dead by unidentified assailants in RK Puram in southwest Delhi on Sunday morning.