Syrian war: UN to expand aid amid partial truce
United Nations, Feb 29 (IANS) The United Nations plans to deliver aid to about 150,000 Syrians in besieged areas over the next five days amid a partial truce in the country’s civil war, the UN…
International
No official memorial for MH370 this year: Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur, Feb 29 (IANS) Malaysian Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai on Monday announced that the country will not hold a memorial service for the missing Malaysia Airlines’ flight MH370, the search for which still…
US lawmakers’ letter to PM ‘unfortunate’: India
New Delhi, Feb 29 (IANS) The government on Monday described as “unfortunate” a letter written by 34 US lawmakers to Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing concern over violence against religious minorities in India. “It is…
US student detained in North Korea confesses to theft
Seoul, Feb 29 (IANS) An American student detained in North Korea confessed at a press conference in Pyongyang on Monday that he tried to steal a political banner from the hotel he was staying in….
Brain stimulation technique can boost pilots’ skills
New York, Feb 29 (IANS) Neurostimulation, a brain stimulation technique originally developed to help patients with brain injuries such as strokes and depression, can also be used to improve learning and skill retention in pilots,…
Novel method can improve mental ability in schizophrenia patients
New York, Feb 29 (IANS) Targeted suppression of inflammation in the body along with standard therapy can improve cognitive problems of patients with schizophrenia, according to US researchers. Brian J Miller from Medical College of…
Japan, China hold high level talks on North Korea
Tokyo, Feb 29 (IANS) Top diplomats from Japan and China met in Tokyo on Monday to discuss possible responses to North Korea in the wake of the recent nuclear and missile tests carried out by…
South Korea to spend $603 mn on space programme
Seoul, Feb 29 (IANS) South Korea is set to spend a total of 746 billion won ($603 million) on its space programme this year, as part of efforts to realise its long-cherished goal of reaching…
Australian man jailed for ‘attempted murder’ of corpse
Canberra, Feb 29 (IANS) An Australian man was sentenced to jail for eight years for attempting to murder a dead man, in a case lawyers believe may be the world’s first. Daniel James Darrington, 39,…
Facebook to reveal people’s sleeping habits soon
London, Feb 29 (IANS) The social networking website Facebook can be used to track people’s sleeping habits by building up a database of when your friends were seen last online busy chatting or “liking” posts…
Former executives charged over Fukushima accident
Tokyo, Feb 29 (IANS) Japanese prosecutors on Monday charged three former directors of Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) — that operates the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant — in the first criminal trial linked to the…
China to fire 1.8 mn people in coal, steel sector
Beijing, Feb 29 (IANS) China is planning to lay off 1.8 million workers from the coal and steel sector owing to industrial overcapacity, Minister of Human Resource and Social Security Yin Weimin announced on Monday….
Sea levels rise behind high climatic damage costs: Study
London, Feb 29 (IANS) With the rise in sea levels, costs of climatic damages like floods are also increasing constantly at a higher rate, impacting the coastal regions of the world, says a study. “When…
Police deployed to demolish Jakarta’s red light district
Jakarta, Feb 29 (IANS) The Indonesian government on Monday deployed 5,000 police personnel to demolish hundreds of buildings in north Jakarta’s red light district of Kalijodo after residents were evicted from the area last week….
Two Indo-Canadians to be tried for murder
Toronto, Feb 29 (IANS) The trial of two Indo-Canadians, who were charged with first-degree murder and manslaughter, would start on March 1, a media report said. Gurjinder “Gary” Dhaliwal was charged with first-degree murder of…
Stop using term ‘Asian’ to describe Rotherham gang: Sikh group
London, Feb 29 (IANS) A Sikh group in Britain has urged the media and politicians to stop describing the Rotherham grooming gang, which was handed combined sentence of more than 100 years for sexual assault…
New Zealand to fund joint research centres with China
Wellington, Feb 29 (IANS) New Zealand on Monday announced funding of three New Zealand-China Research Collaboration Centres to boost bilateral science cooperation, the media reported. Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce said $2 million was…
Indo-Canadian policeman charged with drunken driving
Toronto, Feb 29 (IANS) An Indo-Canadian Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officer from the Canadian city of Burnaby has been charged with two counts of impaired driving, a media report said. Burnaby RCMP detachment said…
Driest place on Earth gives clue to life on Mars
Washington, Feb 29 (IANS) A Mars-like laboratory in the “driest place on Earth” is helping NASA scientists study the limits of life and test drilling and life-detection technologies that might be sent to Red Planet…
Chinese company explores Pakistan power market
Beijing, Feb 29 (IANS) China’s state-owned Harbin Electric Corporation said it has signed a contract with Pakistan Siddiqsons Energy to build a coal-fired power plant. The new power station, with installed capacity of 350 MW,…