9:44 AMNew Zealand welcomes back first cruise ship since COVID hit
New Zealand on Friday welcomed the first cruise ship to return since the coronavirus pandemic began, signaling a long-sought return to normalcy for the nation's tourism industry.
New Zealand closed its borders in early 2020 as it sought at first to eliminate COVID-19 entirely and then later to control its spread. Although the country reopened its borders to most tourists arriving by plane in May, it wasn't until two weeks ago that it lifted all remaining restrictions, including those on maritime arrivals.
Many in the cruise industry question why it took so long.
The end of restrictions allowed Carnival Australia's Pacific Explorer cruise ship to dock in Auckland with about 2,000 passengers and crew Friday morning as part of a 12-day return trip to Fiji that left from Sydney.
9:26 AMLinkedIn rolls out new tools for better user engagement
Professional networking platform LinkedIn has announced that it is rolling out new toolsAto make it easier for users to create visual content that helps them stand out and inspire their professional community.
The company revealed a 20 per cent increase year-on-year (YoY) among users adding visual content in their posts on the platform.
Among the new tools, the company said users can now add a clickable link to images or videos.
9:21 AMFIFA moves World Cup start in Qatar up 1 day to Nov. 20
FIFA has formally moved the World Cup start up by one day to give host nation Qatar an exclusive Sunday evening slot with a global audience.
Qatar will now play Ecuador in Doha on Nov. 20 just 101 days after FIFA's decision Thursday stretching the World Cup to 29 days from the 28 agreed seven years ago when a June-July tournament was pushed back to avoid the searing desert heat in midsummer.
The surprise late switch was signed off by a FIFA committee comprising its president Gianni Infantino and presidents of the six continental soccer bodies. FIFA said the vote was unanimous.
The plan was revealed Wednesday after several rounds of ticket sales to fans worldwide since last year.
9:20 AMYamuna water level likely to cross danger mark in Delhi Saturday morning
The Yamuna is flowing precariously close to the warning level of 204.5 metres in Delhi after heavy rain in upper catchment areas and is likely to cross the danger level of 205.33 metres on Saturday morning, authorities said.
A flood alert is declared when the Yamuna crosses the warning level, and people living near the floodplains and in flood-prone areas are evacuated.
The administration and the irrigation and flood control department have deployed 34 boats and mobile pumps in anticipation of flooding in low-lying areas.
9:07 AMAmit Shah to inaugurate National Conference of Rural Cooperative Banks today
Union Home Minister Amit Shah will inaugurate a one-day National Conference of Rural Cooperative Banks organized by the Ministry of Cooperation and the National Federation of State Cooperative Banks (NAFSCOB) on Friday.
Union Minister of State for Cooperation BL Verma will address the valedictory session of the conference.
Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation Gyanesh Kumar, NAFSCOB Chairman Konduru Ravinder Rao and NAFSCOB Managing Director Bhima Subrahmanyam shall also be present.
9:06 AMIndia expresses concern over reports of shelling near Ukraine's nuclear power plant
India has expressed concern over reports of shelling near the spent fuel storage facility of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine and called for mutual restraint to ensure that the safety and security of nuclear facilities are not endangered.
"We continue to carefully follow developments regarding the safety and security of Ukraine's nuclear power reactors and facilities. India attaches high importance to ensuring the safety and security of these facilities, as any accident involving nuclear facilities could potentially have severe consequences for public health and the environment," India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj, said on Thursday.
Speaking at the UN Security Council (UNSC) briefing on Ukraine, Kamboj said India expresses its concern over the reports of shelling near the spent fuel storage facility of the Zaporizhzhia NPP.
"We call for mutual restraint so as not to endanger the safety and security of nuclear facilities," she said at the open meeting in the security council on the situation at the Zaporizhzhia NPP.
8:58 AMUkrainian Prez urges world to react on Russian-controlled nuclear plant
Zelenskyy urges world to react on Russian-controlled nuclear plant
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged the international community to force the Russian army to leave the occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant after multiple strikes hit the compound.
"The entire world must react immediately to chase out the occupiers from Zaporizhzhia. Only the Russians' full withdrawal... would guarantee nuclear safety for all of Europe," Zelenskyy said in his daily video address.
This statement came after Ukraine accused Russia of shelling the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) again on Thursday, Al Jazeera reported.
8:56 AMTrump premises searched for papers related to nuclear weapons
The FBI agents were looking for documents relating to nuclear weapons, among others, in the unprecedented search they conducted of the premises of former US President Donald Trump earlier this week in Florida, according to a stunning news report.
Neither the US Justice Department, which oversees the FBI, nor the investigating agency denied or confirmed the Thursday evening report by The Washington Post.
The newspaper sourced the report to multiple officials "all unidentified" involved in the investigation of the case that caused the search but gave no further details of the kind of nuclear weapons' documents sought by the agents.
8:56 AMHar Ghar Tiranga: Department of Posts sells over 1 crore national flags in 10 days
Within a short span of ten days, India Post has sold more than 1 crore national flags, through its 1.5 lakh post offices as well as online, to citizens, informed the Ministry of Communications on Thursday.
"Department of Posts (DoP) with its omnipresent network of 1.5 lakh post offices, has taken the 'Har Ghar Tiranga' programme to every citizen of the country. Within a short span of 10 days, India Post has sold more than 1 crore national flags, through post offices as well as online, to citizens," the statement said.
These Flags have been sold by the Department at a very economical price of Rs 25.
8:56 AMShinde visits his village for first time since becoming Maharashtra CM
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday visited Dare, his village in Satara district, for the first time since occupying the top post of the state.
He was accorded a warm welcome by the villagers. "I have come to my native village for the first time after taking charge as chief minister. I am overwhelmed by the affection showered on me by the people of the village," he said. There is a big scope for tourism in this western Maharashtra region and the state government will take steps to promote tourism in the area, Shinde said.
8:54 AMOmicron 20-30% more infectious: INSACOG to review data of Covid variants
Amid rising COVID cases in the national capital and other States, the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) will review the data of genomic surveillance of COVID-19 variants on Friday, said sources.
The different strains of Omicron are circulating all over including the national capital, these strains are 20-30 per cent more infectious than the original Omicron virus.
"The current strains that are doing rounds all over are 20-30 per cent more infectious than Omicron sub-variants, but hospitalisation and deaths are still low," said Dr NK Arora, Chairperson of COVID working group National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI).
"These sub-variants are BA.4, BA.5, BA.2.75, BA.2.38, however, any surge in hospitalization or any disease severity has not been observed so far," said Dr Arora.
8:53 AMEx-Sri Lankan President Gotabaya arrives in Thailand from Singapore
Former Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksa arrived in Thailand Thursday evening following his departure from Singapore.
Rajapaksa was granted entry into Thailand following a request from the Sri Lankan government, NewsWire reported.
He left Singapore on Thursday after nearly a month's stay in Singapore. The former president was issued a 14-day visit pass when he arrived at the Changi Airport in Singapore from the Maldives last month and he was allowed to stay there for two weeks.
Meanwhile, Thailand has denied reports that the former Sri Lankan President has sought asylum in the country. The Thailand Foreign Ministry said it received a request from Rajapaksa to visit the country with no intention of seeking political asylum.
8:53 AMMaha CM Eknath Shinde snubs Uddhav again, drops Shiv Sena from BAC meet
In a fresh snub to ex-CM Uddhav Thackeray, his Shiv Sena faction in the Maharashtra Assembly was dropped from the crucial Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meet to prepare for the upcoming Monsoon Session of the Legislature.
Thackeray faction leader and chief whip Ajay Chaudhari had written to Speaker Rahul Narvekar seeking representation to the BAC, but it was rejected.
However, now two ministers from the faction headed by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde have been included in the BAC -- Dada Bhuse and Uday Samant.
8:52 AMMigrant labourer shot dead by terrorists in J-K's Bandipora
A labourer from Bihar was fired upon by terrorists at Soadnara Sumbal in Jammu and Kashmir's Bandipora district on the intervening night of Thursday and Friday, following which he succumbed to his injuries, police said.
The deceased labourer was identified as Mohd Amrez, hailing from Bihar's Madhepura.
Soon after being shot, he was shifted to the hospital for treatment where he died.
8:52 AMDelhi govt refuses to honour CWG22 winner Divya Kakran with reward as she represents UP
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj on Thursday said the Delhi government cannot give cash rewards to Commonwealth Games bronze medal winner Divya Kakran as she represents Uttar Pradesh.
His statement came after Indian wrestler Kakran, accused the Delhi government of not giving any kind of help because of which she was forced to move to Uttar Pradesh.
"Player lives in Delhi but has only played for the state till 2016-17. As for respect, CM called her in 2018 respectfully. We can't give her cash rewards as she represents UP but we have always respected her," said AAP MLA over allegations by Divya.
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