Current Final

Category: Lifestyle

  • 150 still missing after glacial burst in Kolkata

    At least 42 people have reportedly died after flash floods swamped following a glacial lake burst its banks in the Indian Himalayas in Kolkata this week.

    150 missing people are still missing.

    On Wednesday, a cloudburst led to severe rain, causing Lhonak Lake to overflow and a consequential avalanche resulting in the flooding of Teesta river.

    It is said to be one of the worst calamities in the region in more than 50 years.

    Accoeiding to authorities in Sikkim, 22,000 people have been affected.

    “We got calls from people that river levels could rise at 3am and we ran for our lives,” Reuters quotes Javed Ahmed Ansari, 44, a resident of Teesta valley, who owns a river rafting business.

    “We ran towards the hill in the jungle … We saw houses getting swept away. I can now only see the first floor of our house which is filled with sand, everything is submerged.”

    According to Reuters, officials involved in the project said that scientists and government authorities had beenbworking on an early warning system for glacial floods at Lhonak Lake which could have given people more time to evacuate if it was fully operational.

  • Russian woman lived with needle in brain for 80 years

    Russian woman lived with needle in brain for 80 years

    Doctors in Russia have found an inch-long needle in the brain of an 80-year-old woman, most likely inserted when she an infant.

    According to a post on Telegram by the Ministry of Health in Sakhalin, radiologists found the three-centimeter long needle during an x-ray scan, embedded in the woman’s left parietal lobe

    The woman’s name has not been disclosed and the discovery is said to have occurred in 2023. She is said to have born around the year 1943, making her at least 80.

    Officials claim that the needle has been in her brain since infancy, and doctors believe her parents tried to kill her when she was a baby.

    The ministry explained that during wars, “some desperate parents would insert a needle into a soft spot of a newborn’s head, where bones in the skull hadn’t yet come together.

    “That spot — the fontanelle — would then close and obscure the needle, though the infant would die.”
    Such cases were not uncommon during the famine years, the ministry added.

    Even though she pulled through the attempted infanticide, she never suffered headaches because of the needle.
    Doctors have decided against the removal of the needle because a surgery can worsen her condition, the ministry highlighted.

    The woman is currently being monitored by a physician, and her health is not in danger.

    According to Insider, Sakhalin is an island with a population of around 500,000 in the Sea of Okhotsk in north of Japan’s Hokkaido.

    Sakhalin was divided amongst the Soviet Union and the Japanese Empire in the early 20th century and was later fully seized by Moscow during World War II.

  • Jailed Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi wins Nobel Prize

    Jailed Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi wins Nobel Prize

    A jailed Iranian women’s rights advocate, Narges Mohammadi, is the winner of the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for her fight against the oppression of women and advocacy for social reform.

    She was awarded the prestigious prize on Friday, while she is till behind bars, for her efforts to promote human rights and freedom for all”, as stated by the Norwegian Nobel Committee.

    “Her brave struggle has come with tremendous personal costs. Altogether, the regime has arrested her 13 times, convicted her five times, and sentenced her to a total of 31 years in prison and 154 lashes,” head of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Berit Reiss-Andersen, said in Oslo during the announcement.

    51-year-old Mohammadi is an Iranian human rights activist who has played a leading role in the campaign for women’s rights and the abolition of the death penalty in the country.

    She is currently serving a number of sentences in Tehran’s Evin prison, adding up to about 12 years of jail, including charges of spreading anti-state propaganda.

    Mohammadi is the deputy head of the Defenders of Human Rights Center, a non-governmental organisation led by Shirin Ebadi, the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

    The New York Times approached her after she was named the winner. “I will continue to fight against the relentless discrimination, tyranny and gender-based oppression by the oppressive religious government until the liberation of women,” she stated.

    “I also hope this recognition makes Iranians protesting for change stronger and more organised. Victory is near.”
    On the contrary, Tehran has accused the Nobel committee of politicising the issue of human rights.

    “The action of the Nobel Peace Committee is political move in line with the interventionist and anti-Iranian policies of some European governments,” Nasser Kanaani, a spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, said.

    “The Nobel Peace committee has awarded a prize to a person convicted of repeated law violations and criminal acts, and we condemn this as biased and politically motivated,” he added in a statement carried by state media.

  • 100 killed in drone strike at Syrian military academy passing-out ceremony

    100 killed in drone strike at Syrian military academy passing-out ceremony

    100 people were killed and 240 injured in a drone attack on a military academy in the Syrian city of Homs on Thursday.

    According to Arab media, the drone attack was carried out during the passing-out parade ceremony at the military academy.

    Among the killed and wounded in the attack are military officers, personnel and Syrian civilians.

    The Syrian defense minister left the ceremony shortly before the attack.

    No militant group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

  • Prisoner sells paintings to support sister’s wedding, mother’s umrah

    Prisoner sells paintings to support sister’s wedding, mother’s umrah

    Imprisoned for kidnapping for ransom, a man contributed financially to his sister’s marriage by making paintings in jail. From the sales, he earned enough for his mother to perform Umrah too.

    While Ijaz was imprisoned in the Central Jail Karachi, he painted 23 works of art, some of which were displayed in the Arts Council.

    Ijaz is serving a 25-year sentence but has been able to manage to earn Rs 13 lacs from the sale of art pieces. Ijaz gave one million rupees to his mother and three lakh to his sister.

    Courtesy: Geo News
  • Four Pakistani beggars went to Saudi Arabia under guise of Umrah

    Four Pakistani beggars went to Saudi Arabia under guise of Umrah

    The Anti-Human Trafficking Circle Lahore of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested four suspects who went to Saudi Arabia to beg under the guise of Umrah.

    Among the four suspects were two women and two men.

    According to the spokesperson of FIA, the accused were offloaded by FIA Immigration at Lahore Airport. They had reportedly gone to Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq several times to beg, and were to be received by Pakistani agents on arrival in Saudi Arabia.

    Half of the money earned through begging was to be given to the agent.

    So far, a case against the accused and the agents has been registered while investigations are underway.

  • 13-year-old Rizwana stands up three months after being tortured

    13-year-old Rizwana stands up three months after being tortured

    13-year-old Rizwana, a domestic violence victim who had been under treatment in the General Hospital in Lahore since three months, has taken her first steps after the ordeal.

    While talking to Geo, the head of the medical board treating Rizwana, Prof. Jodet Saleem, said that 90% of Rizwana’s treatment has been completed and she has started walking now.

    Rizwana’s injuries have also healed, but she still needs an arm surgery as the Orthopaedic is yet to confirm a date.

    Prof. Saleem further said that Rizwana is likely to be discharged from the hospital soon, but she will likely stay in Lahore.

    According to the medico-legal certificate (MLC) issued in July, the extent of Rizwana’s injuries was concerning. The report revealed lacerations on her head, face, and body, including broken teeth, bruises, and signs of strangulation. The girl’s harrowing ordeal came to light when her father, a laborer, filed a complaint with the Humak police station.

    In August, plastic surgery was also performed on the girl.

    Rizwana had been allegedly tortured and abused while working at a civil judge’s home in Islamabad, after she was accused of stealing jewellery. Rizwana’s family revealed that the girl was not paid a single penny by the family for the extensive workload she was doing and was instead subjected to violence.

  • Pakistan’s Namira Saleem set to launch into space

    Pakistan’s Namira Saleem set to launch into space

    The Galactic 04 spaceflight will take off today carrying three passengers, including a Pakistani, Namira Salim.

    On Tuesday, Virgin Galactic announced a day’s delay in the space tourism mission to Friday, October 6.

    “The slip will give our team an additional day to complete vehicle prep and checks,” they wrote on their X account. “We look forward to taking to the skies (on Friday)!”

    Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar ul Haq Kakar congratulated Namira Salim for becoming the first woman from Pakistan to go into space.

    “By proving their mettle as trailblazers in multiple fields, Pakistani women are making the whole nation proud,” Kakar had written on his X account, wishing her luck.

    Namira Salim is a Pakistani polar adventurer and artist based in Monaco and Dubai.

    The other two passengers are British advertising executive Trevor Beattie and Ameri­can astronomy educator Ron Rosano.

    Virgin Galactic’s carrier plane VMS Eve will be piloted by Pakistani-Canadian Jameel Janjua alongside Kelly Latimer and CJ Sturckow

    Galactic 04

    Galactic 04 will take off from Spaceport America in New Mexico, carrying the passengers to suborbital space and back. In simpler words, suborbital flight is a short journey into space where a spaceship goes up but does not stay in space. It leaves the earth’s atmosphere for a brief time and comes back right after. It is a quick trip to experience weightlessness and witness space. Unlike an orbital spaceflight, it does not circle the earth.

    Space.com explains that the space tourists will be carried by Virgin’s VSS Unity space plane taken into the sky by a carrier craft named VMS Eve. Eve will drop Unity at an altitude of about 50,000 feet (15,000 meters); the space plane will then fire up its rocket motor to get to suborbital space.

    “VSS Unity passengers get to experience a few minutes of weightlessness and see Earth against the blackness of space. A ticket to ride the space plane currently costs $450,000”.

  • Pending missing persons cases is ’embarrassing’, says court

    Pending missing persons cases is ’embarrassing’, says court

    While hearing almost a dozen applications related to cases of missing persons, Chief Justice of Islamabad High Court, Amir Farooq, said that the court is ashamed of the matter that has been pending since the past several years.

    According to Dawn, the remarks were passed during a hearing of a case related to the disappearance of journalist Mudassar Naro, who went missing during a visit to the northern regions.

    Sadaf, Naru’s wife, filed a case in the Islamabad High Court almost five years ago. While waiting for her husband to come back, she too passed away.

    Mudassar Naru’s young son, Sachal, who was only a few months old when his father disappeared, is usually present in court during case proceedings.

    On Thursday, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Aamir Farooq and Justice Mian Gul Hasan Aurangzeb stated that cases of enforced disappearances are tarnishing Pakistan’s identity.

    The Attorney General of Pakistan was asked for help in solving the long-standing problem.

    Justice Gul Hasan Aurangzeb pointed out that a former prime minister had also spoken in court on the issue of enforced disappearances but he had not taken any action to stop it.

    Additional Attorney General Barrister Munoor Iqbal Dagal said that the government is serious about this issue and a committee has also been formed in this regard.

  • Three-year gap a must between two births: Punjab Minister for Population Welfare

    Three-year gap a must between two births: Punjab Minister for Population Welfare

    Punjab Minister for Population Welfare, Dr Jamal Nasir, has asserted that a three-year gap must be ensured between two child births for the health and safety of both the mother and the baby.

    While addressing a seminar on population welfare on Tuesday, Dr. Nasir added that under-nourishment and anaemia has resulted in women suffering from poor health.

    A policy is also being developed in which only employees with three or less than three children will be allowed to work in the Population Welfare Department.

    The caretaker government has reportedly promoted about 45,000 lady health workers in the province as part of its efforts towards improving mother and child healthcare and promoting population welfare.

    Dr Jamal Nasir pointed out that population control had never been seriously prioritised in Pakistan for sustainable development of the country, highlighting Iran and Bangladesh as role models pertaining to family planning.