Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences after lightning strikes and thunderstorms in Bihar killed 83 people, injured many and caused widespread damage to property in the last two days.
The state disaster management department said 23 districts of the state were gravely affected with Gopalganj accounting for the maximum number of casualties at 13. Uttar Pradesh has also been affected by the thunderstorms and has reported casualties.
PM Modi expressed his anguish at the loss of lives and said the state governments are working towards relief and rehabilitation.
“Received tragic news about death of several people in some districts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar due to heavy rains and lightening. The state governments are engaged in relief work with promptness,” he tweeted in Hindi.
Reports from districts said more than 20 people were injured and admitted to hospital. Lightning strikes has also caused widespread damage to houses and properties of the residents.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has announced a compensation of Rs 4 lakh for the families of the victims.
Mr Kumar has also appealed to everyone to remain alert and stay indoors as much as possible during the storms.
Home Minister Amit Shah also expressed grief on the tragedy.
“I am extremely saddened by the death of many people in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar due to heavy rain and lightning. Relief work is going on fast in both the states. I express my condolences to the families of those who have lost their lives in this disaster and wish the injured to be well soon,” he tweeted in Hindi.
Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also extended her condolences to the victims’ families.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also tweeted his condolences.
“I am shocked to hear the news of 83 people dying due to lightning in Bihar. May God grant strength to their loved ones to bear this sorrow,” he said in a tweet in Hindi.
“I appeal to the Congress workers to extend all possible help to the families of the victims,” he added.
The weather office has predicted thunderstorms in all the 38 districts of the state over the next few days along with “heavy to very heavy rainfall” in the northern, flood-prone districts, bordering Nepal.
Call of Duty Mobile, which is the smartphone version of the popular game Call of Duty, was released on 1 October 2019, immediately breaking all records by raking up 150 million downloads in the first month itself.
Now, according to new estimates by Sensor Tower, Call of Duty Mobile has surpassed 250 million-plus downloads. This includes installs of all of the game’s versions across the world. Which means that since the October launch, Call of Duty Mobile has surpassed 250 million downloads.
Call of Duty Mobile most popular in the US
In terms of popularity, Call of Duty Mobile has been most popular in United States, where it has seen nearly 45 million downloads, or close to 18 percent the total number. India is the No 2 country for downloads, with Brazil coming in at 3.
“Till date, COD: mobile has raked around 327 million USD in player spending, this is 78 percent more than the amount generated by PUBG Mobile worldwide during the same period, after it began monetising in April 2018, and about 83 percent of what was spent in the iOS version of Fortnite in the same duration post-launch,” — Sensor Tower
Call of Duty Mobile is available to download on both Android and iOS devices for free. The game offers different maps and modes, including a 100-player battle royale battleground, fast 5v5 team death matches and sniper vs sniper battles. The game is is developed by TiMi Studios, and published by Activision.
“COD: Mobile saw its second-highest revenue of 53 million USD in May which is 62 percent more than its revenue in Jan and only second to its launch month of October where it earned around 55 million USD.The U.S.A is leading with $134 million revenue from player spending or 41 percent of the total revenue. Japan ranks No. 2 for revenue, while Brazil is No. 3 by this metric,” Sensor Tower added.
Call of Duty: Mobile World Championship 2020 Tournament was also announced back in April, as was a partnership between Activision Blizzard and Sony Mobile Communications. The event features more than $1 million in total prize money, which includes both cash and in-game rewards.
This is, however, far lesser than what PUBG Mobile announced for its 2020 equivalent, which is 5 million USD. PUBG Mobile has also regularly been creating hype by hosting tournaments with massive prize pools, even at the regional level. It remains to be seen how long it takes before Call of Duty Mobile comes close to these prize numbers as well.
Barely four days after the Upper House of Nepal`s parliament endorsed a new political map for the country incorporating Indian territories, Nepal has once again contested its international border with India and this time the area of contention happens to be Nepal border with Bihar.
Barely four days after the Upper House of Nepal’s parliament endorsed a new political map for the country incorporating Indian territories, Nepal has once again contested its international border with India and this time the area of contention happens to be Nepal border with Bihar.
In a surprising turn of events, Nepalese authorities stop the officials of Water Resources Department (WRD) of Bihar government from carrying out embankment-related work on the border, claiming the area as part of its territory.
The officials of Bihar government said that they were not allowed by Nepalese authorities from carrying out fortification of an embankment on Lal Bakey River in Bihar’s East Chamaparn district. Bihar government officials said that they were susprised to see the objection of Nepalise authorities as the embankment was constructed over the river many years ago.
According to reports, the WRD authorities tried to sort out the issue at the local level, but the Nepalese failed to listen to their point of view. The Bihar government has now reported the matter to Union Home Ministry, and the Indian Embassy in Nepal.
The new map passed by Nepal’s National Assembly shows Indian territories such as Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura in Uttarakhand as part of Nepalese territory
On June 13, India had reacted strongly after lower house of Nepal Parliament had passed the bill to redraw the political map of the country showing Indian territories as its own. Responding to the development, India had said that “this artificial enlargement of claims is not tenable.”
“We have noted that the House of Representatives of Nepal has passed a constitution amendment bill for changing the map of Nepal to include parts of Indian territory. We have already made our position clear on this matter,” India’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava had said.
India set to witness an annular solar eclipse on Sunday, wherein the Sun will appear like a “ring of fire”. This is a rare celestial event when the moon comes in between the earth and the sun, leaving the sun’s visible outer edges to form a “ring of fire” or annulus around the moon.
Solar Eclipse myths busted: No harm in cooking and eating food
By- Martin
India set to witness an annular solar eclipse on Sunday, wherein the Sun will appear like a “ring of fire”. This is a rare celestial event when the moon comes in between the earth and the sun, leaving the sun’s visible outer edges to form a “ring of fire” or annulus around the moon
Representational Image
People who are living along the path annular eclipse passing through Anupgarh, Suratgarh, Sirsa, Jakhal, Kurukshetra, Yamunanagar, Dehradun, Tapowan and Joshimath will be able to see the annular phase. However, people living in the rest of India can witness a partial eclipse.
But, mention of solar eclipse can’t be complete without a mention of the various myths associated with it. Some of which are associated with the food that we eat during the eclipse. However, cientists have busted the myths.
@Martin_photography
Professor M N Vahia, Dean School of Mathematical Sciences, NMIMS said there is no religious text that claims that eclipses are dangerous. They are mere superstitions created by people who are scared of the eclipses. “On the contrary we can even see how eclipses have been beautifully discussed in ancient literature”, he added.
“No scriptures recommend hiding away during its occurrence. One should have more faith and understanding about the working of the universes and not be carried away by superstitions”.
We are not that important.
Unlike the common belief, the sun does not send any special radiation during the eclipse. Even though we call it a Solar Eclipse, the sun is completely unaware of its occurrence. The sun is too big to be bothered about where the moon’s shadow falls.
“We are exaggerating our own sense of importance in the universe. Eclipse is a small drama and to the Universe it is an irrelevant phenomenon,” he said rejecting the false claims about impacts of eclipses on human life.
He also mentioned that we do not get to see many eclipses in our lifetime and hence one should not miss this rare opportunity that occurs every 18 years. We should not waste it by hiding in the house and staying hungry fearing myths being imposed on us.
“Eclipses are fantastic to see but it is not worth losing your eyes”, he cautioned about seeing the eclipse with naked eyes. The safest way of looking at the eclipse is through a pinhole cardboard by getting it projected it on the screen.
Myths!
Eclipses have been a source of anxiety for people everywhere and have even scared them. It may be common to feel anxious when you first observe an eclipse tomorrow, to see the sun disappear and that too not because of clouds.
What did Eclipse mean to different cultures?
Most cultures viewed it as a period during which the sun or the moon is being attacked by an animal or a demon.
Vikings, Koreans, Vietnamese, Chinese and many others imagined an animal eating the sun and excreting the sun from the other end. They used to think that there is a great animal in the sky. To threaten the animal, people even pelted stones at animals on earth, made noises, used drums to scare the demons run away.
Eskimos turned their utensils upside down to prevent bad influences from falling into their cooking. West Africans gathered in open spaces to urge the shadow to leave the sun.
American Indians thought the sun lost some of its power and hence sent burning arrows in the direction of the sun to rekindle it.
In Egypt, the King, a representative of the Sun made rounds of the city to assure people. Babylonians, Greeks, Romans considered it an omen and the month of eclipse was considered important. Armenians thought the sun was invaded by a black planet.
Japanese lit fires and displayed shiny jewels to compensate for the dulling of the sun.
A few, like Maoris of Assam considered eclipse as a good omen, means an imminent victory over their enemies, while most people around the world believed it a bad omen.
There are also evidences that at around 585 BC, an eclipse predicted earlier, occurred during a war between the Medians and the Lydians. They called off the war and declared peace.
Indian myths:
In Mahabharata’s Kurukshetra war, there are references of two eclipses Solar and Lunar that occurred within a gap of 13 days between each other – solar followed by lunar. One may find it unique but the fact is not. There are evidences that such event occurs every 800 years i.e Solar and Lunar eclipse succeeding each other within days.
Kolam tribes of India consider solar eclipse is the time when debt collectors come to collect the debts from the sun. The debt collector insists the Sun to pay off the debts since too many sins have occurred on earth. If the sun is completely covered, they feel happy, because the total solar eclipse means the debts have been completely paid off. If the eclipse covers only the top part of the sun then it is a bad omen for humans and if it covers only bottom part of the sun then it is bad sign for animals because their part of debt is not paid for.
Korku Tribe in Central India also thinks the eclipse occurs when the human sins overflow. There is a unique practice where they take a shaft used for grinding food, and place it vertically in a plate with water. As long as the eclipse is on, the rod remains vertical on its own, they say.
Later, eclipses have been used by people to collect donations to help the gods to fight the demons. There are records of huge donations made by rich people in earlier days which are actually a blessing to track the occurrence of eclipses centuries ago. These have been carved in stones, temple pillars, etc as records.
The oldest record of eclipse comes in Rig Veda. It describes how great Sage Arti saved the Sun from the Svarbhanu who tried to destroy him.
The notable change in colour of the solar disc during the entire process of the eclipse has been beautifully described in a passage in the Pancavimsa-Brahmana. It explains as Arti repelled its darkness, first the sun became a black sheep, then a silvery sheep, then a reddish one and with the arrow with which he set free its original appearance that was a white sheep.
This is nothing but the notable feature is the change in colour of the eclipse. One will find this pattern while witnessing the eclipse – first black, and since our eyes get used to the dullness it will start appearing silvery and bright, and as our eyes get set it appears reddish and eventually it regains its original colour.
Conventional Indian Myths:
The occurrence of eclipse is mentioned in Samudra Manthan – the churning of ocean by the Gods and the asuras. It occurred when the Gods and the Asuras wanted to be immortal by consuming nectar that is available under the sea, the sea had to be churned. Since neither of them had the power they came together to churn the sea.
However, when the nectar finally comes out the gods cheat, by sending a beautiful woman Mohini to distract the Asuras. Mohini distributes the Amrit among the gods, but one Asura, Rahu realises the trickery joins the gods and drinks the nectar. But before he consumed it, the sun and the moon realised and cut his head. As it was not quick enough – the head and body of the Rahu survived. Now people believe that forever revengeful Rahu tries to eat them up but since he is disembodied it comes through the other end as he gulps them down on eclipses.
It was in 499 AD Aryabhata realised that eclipse is all shadow and that there are no demons involved. He reinvented the idea that Rahu and Ketu are just points in the sky and hence they are two dark planets that cause eclipse.
Varahamihira converted Rahu and Ketu from mere myths to celestial bodies thus making it dark points in the sky. They are no more Asuras and are being worshipped as Navagrahas.
Studies show that the Earth, which used to take 400 days to complete rotation, has been slowed down by eclipses. Ancient record of eclipse helps to know about the movement of the sun, rotation of the earth and how it is slowing down over years and its impact.
Eclipses have always fascinated people from an earlier period. It may be just the shadow of the moon on earth but it is a remarkable experience to witness it.
“Eclipses are one of the spectacular events you can witness in your life time and therefore don’t miss the opportunity due to superstitions”.
Xiaomi has reported on its official forum that the update and distribution of MIUI 12 firmware for all Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones will be temporarily suspended. This time, the case is not because of the Android OS, or with any holes in the firmware itself.
Everything is much simpler. The work on MIUI 12 is suspended due to the holiday – the traditional Chinese Dragon Boat Festival. It will be on June 25. But work-related to MIUI 12 will stop for a week – from June 26 to July 3.
It is worth to mention that recently, Xiaomi rolled out MIUI 12 development version 6.15 update for some users. Sometime after the update, the Xiaomi community forums were filled with complaints of reduction in the speaker volume level after installing the firmware. According to some users, the speaker volume on their phones is lower in comparison to when the smartphones were running version 5.24.
Xiaomi quickly started an investigation to solve the issue. After all, the whole purpose of development builds is to provide feedback. And the company should respond quickly to this feedback. The MIUI engineers contacted the complainants and even paid them a scheduled visit at home to compare the loudness of the affected models with a similar smartphone running the previous version. Curiously, the volumes still the same. The engineers further took the phones to the company’s anechoic room and the results were still the same.
MIUI 12 problems
The company measured the level of each volume block. The two firmware versions were basically identical on the 15th volume levels. The frequency response of the speaker at level 12, 8, and 5 was also measured. As a result, the response curves of the two versions were ascertained to be the same. The MIUI team disclosed that the audio tuning configuration of the development version has not changed since April. For now, these complaints may be just fruit of the user’s perspective/impression of the volume level.
It’s interesting to see this level of software support coming from users. Other companies usually offer a good level of support for hardware issues. However, it’s not common to see the same treatment when the issue involves the software. Of course, Xiaomi isn’t perfect as the issues with Android 10 update for Mi A3, and no update at all for Mi Mix 3 5G are there plaguing owners of these smartphones. Moreover, there is a strange schedule for updating smartphones to recent Android 10 versions. The low-end Redmi 7A just got another Android 10 beta update. While several smartphones that came months later are still rocking Android 9 Pie. Despite these issues, on the whole, the company is still doing a good job by providing software support to MIUI users.
Sushant Singh Rajput’s death has deeply impacted all the fans and followers and the entire nation mourned his untimely demise. Social media has been taken by storm after it was discovered that he was suffering from clinical depression. Also, people are slamming Bollywood to contribute to his suicide. The whole “nepotism” debate is back on table and the ‘blame-game’ is on. But amidst all this, police are interrogating the ‘professional rivalry’ angle.
Recently, rumoured girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty was summoned for 9 hours by police as she was living with Sushant at his rented Bandra penthouse. She was accompanied by her father. A source revealed some important inside information from this interrogation session with Rhea to Pinkvilla. The source said, “In the last few months, the person who was the closest to Sushant was Rhea and they were together almost all the time. Police decided to call her first today.”
Rhea and Sushant had grown close towards each other in this lockdown, but days before the actor took this drastic step, Rhea moved out from the house with her bags which indicated their breakup following some problems in the relationship. The source by Pinkvilla suggested, “Rhea was asked to show all the text messages exchanged between the two. Her entire phone was scanned, including all their pictures and videos together. Rhea spoke about living in with Sushant and also revealed that they were planning to buy a property as well, as revealed by their broker previously. She admitted that they did plan to get married by the end of 2020.”
Before Sushant decided to end his life, he called Rhea a night before but she didn’t pick the calls. He also called his Pavitra Rishta co-star Mahesh Shetty, who also didn’t pick the call. The call records suggested, “Rhea happens to be the last person Sushant dialed before going to sleep. The actor called Mahesh Shetty first who didn’t answer and then called Rhea who also didn’t pick up the call. He went to sleep, woke up and saw Mahesh had returned the call. He called him back but it didn’t get connected.”
In the last few months, Sushant was diagnosed with clinical depression and Rhea was the only one to be with him. According to the same report, “Police asked her about his behavioural changes that she noticed. She not only spoke about it but apparently showed proof that proved how he was undergoing treatment for clinical depression. Sushant had turned towards meditation and yoga to maintain his well-being. She also told police that there would be days when he would feel extremely low and upset. She also shared that he would refuse to take his medication and she tried to coax him to take them but to no avail.”
There were some reports doing rounds that before Sushant’s demise, Mahesh Bhatt asked Rhea to vacate the house and leave Sushant when she told him that Sushant was behaving weird as he was talking to himself and hearing voices. But it’s unknown if this particular point was addressed in the interrogation. Although Rhea was accompanied by her father to the police station, her father was not allowed to be in the interrogation session with Rhea. The same report suggested, “The police questioned her about everything and her father wasn’t allowed to be present while she was being interrogated.”
Police are now analysing Rhea’s statement and their investigation is still going on and they are planning to make some more calls to those people who were close to Sushant.
These apps have the ability to bombard users with unwanted ads
Google has removed over 30 popular apps, including the ones that add beauty filters to your photos, from the Play Store after these were discovered to have malicious malware. These apps will not be available for download from the Play Store for new users, but the 20 million users who have already downloaded them need to make sure they uninstall the apps from their phones to avoid security mishaps. Among the 30+ apps, it’s the third-party selfie apps that have found to be most fraudulent. As per security researchers WhiteOps, the apps have the ability to bombard users with unwanted ads and redirect them to websites without ever clicking on a link. It should also be noted that in some cases, it was nearly “impossible” for users to delete these apps once downloaded.
Here are the apps, published by WhiteOps, that have been removed from Google Play Store. If you have them installed, get rid of them as soon as possible.
The aforementioned apps have collectively amassed more than 20 million downloads. WhiteOps explained in its websites that these apps render fraudulent advertising in users’ devices. “What these apps all have in common – besides their fraudulent tactics – is their focus on beauty. Most purport to be selfie apps that add beauty filters to users’ pictures, while at the same time showing ads out of context and making it nearly impossible to remove the apps themselves.”
In the time since that first app was published, the fraudsters published a new app every 11 days on average. Notably, most of these apps were available for a duration of around 17 days each before they were pulled down. “But even with an average of less than three weeks of time on the Play Store, the apps found an audience: the average number of installs for the apps we analysed was 565,833,” the research reads.
If you’re wondering how these apps avoid detection in the first place? Well, the White Ops paper notes that most of these apps use “packers” that are hidden in the APK in the form of extra DEX files. “Historically, packing binaries is a common technique malware developers use to avoid being detected by security software like antivirus. Packed files in Android are not new and can’t be assumed to be malicious, as some developers use packing to protect their intellectual property and try to avoid piracy,” the research paper added.
Apart from this, the developers also use Arabic characters, reducing readability for people, in various places of the apps’ source code to avoid detection. “These numbers tell a story of a cat and mouse game, in which the Play Store hunts down the fraudster and keeps them in check by removing fraudulent apps as quickly as they’re discovered. The fraudster likely developed a more robust mechanism to avoid detection and removal. A batch of 15 apps, all published after September 2019, had a much slower removal rate using those new techniques.”
Chennai Super Kings on Wednesday said it has suspended the service of team doctor, Dr. Madhu Thottappillil over his remarks on the death of Indian soldiers in Galwan Valley, Ladakh.
20 Indian Army personnel, including a Commanding Officer, lost their lives in what is termed as one of the worst clashes between the Indian Army and Chinese troops in over 5 decades. Government sources said the Chinese side too suffered ‘proportionate casualties’ but chose not to speculate on the number.
Reacting to the news of the violent scuffle, CSK’s team doctor, Madhu Thottappil had put out a ‘distasteful’ tweet that received quite a bit of flak on social media on Tuesday.
“Just curious if the Coffins will come back with a “PM CARES” sticker on them?” Madhu had said.
Chennai Super Kings said the Indian Premier League franchise regrets the tweet after swiftly taking action over the controversial tweet.
“The Chennai Super Kings Management was not aware of the personal tweet of Dr. Madhu Thottappillil. He has been suspended from his position as the Team Doctor,” the IPL franchise said in a social media post.
“Chennai Super Kings regrets his tweet which was without the knowledge of the Management and in bad taste.”
Earlier in the day, several India cricketers, including captain Virat Kohli, mourned the death of the Indian Army personnel in the bloody lash which has soared the ongoing tension between India and China.
Reactions started pouring in on social media as news of the violent scuffle, that resulted in the deaths of 20 Indian soldiers, broke. The bloody clash which has soared the ongoing tension between India and China has left many in shock.
“Salute and deepest respect to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect our country in the Galwan Valley. NO one is more selfless and brave than a soldier. Sincere condolences to the families. I hope they find peace through our prayers at this difficult time,” Virat Kohli tweeted.
Yuvraj Singh also took to social media to salute the brave Indian soldiers.
“I salute the courage of our Indian soldiers who have been martyred at #GalwanValley. All these atrocities must stop and hope we can have a peaceful world where human life is valued. My thoughts are with the bereaved families, I pray for their strength,” Yuvraj tweeted.
If you are looking to start a new profitable business, then you must consider dairy products business. As per various reports of government and non-government agencies, there is huge demand for dairy products in the country. Thus, it is a business that has little chance of failure. Interestingly, the best part of this profitable business is that you can start it from only Rs 5 lakh and earn up to Rs 70,000 every month. The government help is also provided to start Dairy Products Business.
Dairy Products Business: A Profitable Business Idea
Modi Government Help under Mudra Loan
There will be a capital arrangement to start the Dairy Products Business under the Prime Minister Mudra Loan. Under the Mudra scheme, the government will not only help with money, but will give you information about the entire project. But, it is important that you prepare beforehand for this business.
To start a dairy products business, it is important to know the cost of the project. You can make and sell flavored milk, curd, butter milk and ghee in it. According to the project profile prepared from the Prime Minister’s Mudra Scheme, a project can be prepared from about Rs 16 lakh 50 thousand. Here, you will have to arrange around Rs 5 lakh, in which the bank will give 70% of the money under the Mudra scheme. From the bank, you will get Rs 7.5 lakh as a term loan and Rs 4 lakh as a working capital loan.
Dairy Products Business: Spend on raw material
As per the project report, you have to take about 12 thousand 500 liters of raw milk in a month, while buying 1000 kg of sugar. Similarly, you will also have to arrange 200 kg flavor and 625 kg spice and salt. You will spend about Rs 4 lakh every month on these things.
How much will be the turnover in Dairy Products Business?
As per the project profile of the PM Mudra Scheme, if you do this profitable business, then you can sell about 75,000 liters of flavored milk in a year. Apart from this, about 36,000 liters of curd, 90,000 liters of butter milk and 4500 kg of ghee can be made by selling. Thus by this, you can do a turnover of about Rs 82 lakh 50 thousand.
Among the four seasons of India, the one that shows signs of sweltering heat is the Summer Season. Summer Season in India falls between the months of March till May. During this season, most parts of the country face hot winds and beating heat from the Sun. Many parts of the country face Water Scarcity during this season. The temperature easily varies between 35°C to 45°C. The best way to keep ourselves feel better is to keep drinking water frequently throughout the day. Taking fruits like Watermelon, eating light food and drinking tender coconut are effective ways to protect ourselves from getting dehydrated easily.
Summer Season in India starts in the month of March and ends in the month of May. Sometimes, the season prevails till the second week of June before Rainy Season in India. Summer Season in India is tolerable during the month of March. But slowly, as the season continues till the month of May and June, we can experience the roasting sun hitting our places every day from 8 am or 10 am. We can hardly experience a pleasant environment around us.
It is important to keep ourselves from dehydration. Best suggestions to follow during summer season are:
Drinking lots of water everyday minimum 3 liter
Eating lots of fruits with water content (Eg Water Melon)
Drinking Tender Coconut frequently
Avoiding going out unless and until it is very important (to keep yourself from prickly heat and sunburns)
Wearing light clothes to avoid sweating easily and to feel better
Many parts of India suffer due to water scarcity during this season. The temperature shoots up to 45°C which cannot be tolerated by many people. People in many states even die because of the burning summer season. We cannot control nature and its adverse effects, but we can right actions to meet them and keep ourselves safe. We should take initiatives to save water throughout the year for use during times of scarcity in Summer Season. Generally, tourists from other countries do not visit India during Summer Season; it is not advisable too.
International Journal of Research (IJR) 