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☆ Regulators Seize Republic First, a Troubled Philadelphia Bank
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Kashmir Hill | More About Kashmir Hill | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Regulators late Friday seized Republic First Bancorp, a troubled Philadelphia lender, in the first U.S. bank failure this year. Republic First Bancorp, known as Republic Bank, had about $4 billion in deposits at the end of January and assets worth $6 billion, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation said in a statement. said, with Republic First’s 32 branches in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York reopening as soon as Saturday as Fulton Bank branches. Founded in 1988, Republic First was smaller than the midsize banks that collapsed last year — including First Republic Bank and Silicon Valley Bank, whose assets each topped $200 billion. expects the cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund to be $667 million.

Organizations: First Bancorp, Republic First Bancorp, Republic Bank, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Fulton Bank of Lancaster, Fulton Bank, First Republic Bank, Silicon Valley Bank, Deposit Insurance Fund Locations: Philadelphia, U.S, Republic, Pa, Pennsylvania , New Jersey, New York

☆ How G.M. Tricked Millions of Drivers Into Being Spied On (Including Me)
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Kashmir Hill | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Automakers have been selling data about the driving behavior of millions of people to the insurance industry. In the case of General Motors, affected drivers weren’t informed, and the tracking led insurance companies to charge some of them more for premiums. This month, my husband received his “consumer disclosure files” from LexisNexis Risk Solutions and Verisk, two data brokers that work with the insurance industry and that G.M. I had requested my own LexisNexis file while reporting, but it didn’t have driving data on it. Though both of our names are on the car’s title, the data from our Bolt accrued to my husband alone because the G.M.

Persons: Bolt, heeding Organizations: General Motors, LexisNexis Risk, LexisNexis

☆ Ladakh: Herders on the front line of India-China border dispute say they’re losing grazing land – and a way of life
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-16 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | Aishwarya S Iyer | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

For years, Lopzang Dadul herded his yaks, sheep and goats across the vast, vertiginous landscape near India’s contested border with China, following the seasons to find grazing land. All these areas are winter grazing areas of Chushul village. He says 60 of the 113 households in his village used to be nomadic; now only 10 are maintaining the tradition due to those factors and lost grazing lands. New Delhi says two sites remain contested along the Ladakh border after disengagement at other contested zones following the 2020 clash. Reduced patrolling led to an ultimate loss of control over such areas, where China grabs land “inch-by-inch,” the report said.

Persons: Lopzang Dadul, Dadul, ”, Mohd Arhaan Archer, Sushant Singh, Aksai Chin, Manoj Joshi, Singh, Rezeng, Stanzin, Phobrang, Sonam Dorje China, Sonam Wangchuk, Wangchuk, Sonam Dorje, India’s, won’t, “, Phunchok Stanzin, Namgail Phonchok, ” Phonchok, Narendra Modi –, Joshi, ‘, ’, China’s People’s, Modi’s, – Organizations: CNN, “, Getty, Policy Research, Observer Research Foundation, Gurung, Army, ” CNN, India’s Ministry of Defense, Mutual, Equal, China’s Defense Ministry, Protesters, Foreign Ministry, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, ‘, LAC, ”, Observers, ’ New, China’s People’s Liberation Army, PLA, Indian Army, Hindustan Times, Indian, Centre for Policy Research, Yale University Locations: China, Ladakh, India’s, India, Phobrang, AFP, Delhi, Ladakh’s Chushul, Chushul, Ladakh –, Leh, Jammu, Kashmir, Pakistan, New Delhi, Leh’s, Friends, Galwan, ” Beijing, Waseem

☆ Narendra Modi: India’s popular but controversial leader seeking a transformative third term
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-15 | by ( Rhea Mogul | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +26 min

Varanasi and New Delhi CNN —Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi once famously made a simple election promise: “good days are coming”. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses his supporters during an election campaign rally in Pushkar on April 6, 2024. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaking during a rally in Sydney, Australia, on May 23, 2023. Kalpit Bhachech/Getty Images Narendra Modi, then BJP secretary is welcomed at Ahmedabad Railway Station by the party's followers on January 31, 1992. Brent Lewin/Bloomberg/Getty Images India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses Congress at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on June 22, 2023.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Modi, Himanshu Sharma, Getty Images Modi, –, ”, Saba Naqvi, “, Vajpayee, Naqvi, Dileep Patel, John Mees, Akash Jaiswal, “ We’ve, ” Jaiswal, isn’t, Matthew Abbott, Hiraben, Damodardas, Dipam Bhachech, Lal Krishna Advani, Subhas Chandra Bose, Kalpit Bhachech, Kalpit, Negi Yasbant, Amit Dave, Ajit Solanki, Kevin Frayer, Saurabh Das, AP Modi, Manish Swarup, Lucas Jackson, Barack Obama, Adrien Helou, Reuters Modi, Adnan Abidi, Stringer, Mark Zuckerberg, David Paul Morris, Marco Longari, Angela Merkel, Tobias Schwarz, Emmanuel Macron, Charles Platiau, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, India's, Jair Bolsonaro, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Amit Shah, Money Sharma, Boris Johnson, Phil Noble, Anthony Albanese, Brent Lewin, Pedro Ugarte, Joe Biden, Doug Mills, Paul Mashatile, Jacoline, Imtiyaz Khan, Amr Alfiky, Patel, India’s, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv, Rahul Gandhi, Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, “ Narendra Modi, ” Mukhopadhyay, Mukhopadhyay, ” Modi, Keshav Baliram, “ Modi, BJP Modi, Lord Ram, ” Naqvi, Critics, Christophe Jaffrelot, Karan Thapar, ” Jaffrelot, Modi’s, it’s, —, Raj, India Narendra Modi, Kenny Hoston, Ram, ” Raniva, That’s Organizations: New Delhi CNN, Indian, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, India's, Getty Images, Pew, CNN, World Health Organization, New York Times, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Getty, Modi, Hospital, Narendra, India Today, Indian National Congress, AP, Madison, Garden, Reuters, Washington , D.C, French National Space Agency, of Yoga, Meta, Facebook, Bloomberg, European, Saudi Arabia's Crown, Rashtrapati Bhavan, Kyodo, British, Summit, Qudos Bank, White, Anadolu Agency, Anadolu, United, United Arab Emirates, Cambridge, today’s Congress Party, Harvard, The Times, Muslim, Australia Locations: Varanasi, New Delhi, Gujarat, Pushkar, India, “ India, United States, Brazil, “, Sydney, Australia, Ahmedabad, Ahmadabad, Washington, Washington ,, Toulouse, France, Xian, AFP, Menlo Park , California, U.S, Pretoria, South Africa, China, Berlin, Paris, Rashtrapati, Russian, Brasilia, Glasgow, Red, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, Abu Dhabi, United Arab, Oxford, Vadnagar, Babri, Kadi, Kashmir, United Kingdom, Russia, Ukraine, Israel, Ghaziabad, Meerut, Jama

☆ Photos challenge misconceptions about what it means to be an American Muslim
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Leah Dolan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

These are some of the faces featured in “Muslims in America,” an ongoing photography series by British artist Mahtab Hussain. Mahtab HussainSo far, Hussain has documented subjects living in New York, LA, Baltimore and Toronto, Canada. I’ve met people from all over the world in the US who are Muslim: Palestinians, people from all over Africa. Not only do Hussain’s photographs visually challenge the way American Muslims have been portrayed, he has also offered space for his subjects to share their experiences. Mahtab HussainMany members of Dearborn’s Arab American and Muslim American communities have openly rejected Biden for his handling of the Israel-Hamas war.

Persons: Julo, Adbul, Candace, Mahtab Hussain, “, ” Hussain, Hussain, Arslan, ”, Riz Ahmed, creatives, I’ve, ” Julo Cisse, Mahtab Hussain Syeda Monique Legette, he’s, ” Itar Mechmechia, ” Dayana Aziz, Abdullah Hammoud, Joe Biden’s, Biden, Netanyahu, Candace Ashley, that’s, Adbul Warsame, Mahtab Hussain Ahmed Mohamed Organizations: CNN, Nike Air Jordans, Pew Research Center, USC, Initiative, USC Annenberg, British Pakistani Muslim, American, The New York Times, Hamas Locations: United States, America, British, New York, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Glasgow, Kashmir, Pakistan, LA, Balitmore, Baltimore, Toronto, Canada, British Pakistani, Africa, Britain, New York City, Dearborn , Michigan, Gaza, American, Israel, Michigan

☆ China slams the U.S. for interfering in Arunachal Pradesh border dispute with India
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-21 | by ( Shreyashi Sanyal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A tableau of Arunachal Pradesh state during the Republic Day parade along Kartavya Path in New Delhi, India, on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. China slammed the United States for interfering in its border dispute with India, after Washington said it recognized the disputed Arunachal Pradesh as a part of Indian territory. China, which refers to the territory as Zangnan, claims Arunachal Pradesh is part of southern Tibet. India rejects those claims, stating Arunachal Pradesh has always been a part of India. Kugelman pointed out that the U.S. typically refrains from commenting on some Indian border disputes, such as the one with Pakistan over Kashmir.

Persons: Washington, Lin Jian, China's, Narendra Modi, Vedant Patel, Zangnan, Lin, Michael Kugelman, Kugelman Organizations: India's, Foreign Ministry, U.S . State Department, United, LAC, South Asia Institute, Wilson Center, CNBC Locations: Arunachal Pradesh, New Delhi, India, China, United States, Beijing, Indian, Tibet, U.S, Pakistan, Kashmir, Washington

Listen and follow The DailyApple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon MusicAs cars become ever more sophisticated pieces of technology, they’ve begun sharing information about their drivers, sometimes with unnerving consequences. Kashmir Hill, a features writer for The Times, explains what information cars can log and what that can mean for their owners.

Persons: they’ve Organizations: Spotify, The Times Locations: Kashmir

☆ Florida Man Sues G.M. and LexisNexis Over Sale of His Cadillac Data
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Kashmir Hill | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

According to a federal complaint filed this week seeking class-action status, it was because his 2021 Cadillac XT6 had been spying on him. When Mr. Chicco requested his LexisNexis file, it contained details about 258 trips he had taken in his Cadillac over the past six months. The data had been provided by General Motors — the manufacturer of his Cadillac. In a complaint against General Motors and LexisNexis Risk Solutions filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Mr. Chicco accused the companies of violation of privacy and consumer protection laws. LexisNexis Risk Solutions, and another data broker called Verisk, claim to have real-world driving behavior from millions of cars.

Persons: Romeo Chicco, XT6, Chicco, General Motors Organizations: Liberty Mutual, LexisNexis, General, General Motors, Southern, Southern District of, The New York Times, Solutions Locations: U.S, Southern District, Southern District of Florida

☆ Automakers Are Sharing Consumers’ Driving Behavior With Insurance Companies
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Kashmir Hill | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

So Mr. Dahl, 65, was surprised in 2022 when the cost of his car insurance jumped by 21 percent. One insurance agent told him his LexisNexis report was a factor. Upon Mr. Dahl’s request, LexisNexis sent him a 258-page “consumer disclosure report,” which it must provide per the Fair Credit Reporting Act. What it contained stunned him: more than 130 pages detailing each time he or his wife had driven the Bolt over the previous six months. The only thing it didn’t have is where they had driven the car.

Persons: Kenn Dahl, He’s, Dahl, Dahl’s Organizations: Chevrolet, LexisNexis Locations: Seattle, New York

☆ Runaway train in India travels more than 40 miles without driver
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Aishwarya S. Iyer | Manveena Suri | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New Delhi CNN —A runaway freight train in northern India traveled nearly 45 miles without a driver on Sunday, reaching speeds of up to 46 miles per hour, before it was brought to a stop, according to railway officials. No one was injured by the runaway train and it was eventually stopped using emergency brakes and by placing stones on the track, preventing a major accident. In April 2018, a runaway train carrying up to 1,000 passengers rolled for several miles before being brought to an emergency stop. None of the estimated 1,000 passengers was injured in the incident and the train reached its final destination two hours behind schedule. Today, it runs about 11,000 trains every day over 67,000 miles of tracks in the world’s most populous nation.

Persons: New Delhi CNN —, Prateek Srivastava, “, ”, Srivastava Organizations: New, New Delhi CNN, Ministry of Railways, CNN Locations: New Delhi, India, Kathua, Jammu, Kashmir, Hoshiarpur district, Punjab, Gujarat, Odisha

☆ Gulmarg: Snow has returned to Asia’s highest ski resort. Here’s what visitors going there now can expect
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Ramaa Reddy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —In early January, anyone who visited the ski resort village of Gulmarg in Indian-administered Kashmir with hopes of actually skiing was out of luck. A severe snow shortage, blamed on dry weather, threatened to derail the entire winter season, leaving both travelers and tourism operators disappointed. Regardless of whether you’re a full-time athlete or someone who enjoys skiing and snowboarding for fun, Gulmarg offers a winter experience like no other. Today, travelers headed for Asia’s highest ski resort can enjoy over 1,330 vertical meters (4,363 feet) of skiable terrain, with lifts offering access to four separate skiing zones on Mount Apharwat. Many of those visitors don’t ski but just ride up the gondola to play in the snow and take in the views at the top.

Persons: Mukhtar Ahmad, Nanga Parbat, ”, Brian Newman, Newman, “, ” Mehmood Ahmad Lone, –, nans, Kababs, Rogan Josh, Kati, It’s, Mount Apharwat, Colonel Mirza Zahid Baig, Gulmarg, Javedh Ahmad Reshi Organizations: CNN, El, El Nino, Adventure, Hindustan Times, Newman’s, US Department of State, Warfare, USA Locations: Gulmarg, Kashmir, India, Mount Apharwat, British, Apharwat, Nanga, Colorado, Europe, North America, Pakistan, Khyber, Highland, Hilltop, Kashmir’s, Srinagar, Mount

☆ Twin mosque demolitions in India underscore deep religious polarization months before nationwide election
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Rhea Mogul | Aishwarya S Iyer | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The demolitions drew incensed residents onto the streets and at least six people have been killed in clashes with police. The image of India that Modi wants to project is one of a confident, vibrant, and modern superpower. In India, a country of diverse faiths, religious groups follow their own laws for matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance. Mohammad Zakir Hussain has said he barely slept since the demolition of his mosque, the madrasa, and his home in India’s capital Delhi. “(The government) rationalizes everything by blaming Mughal emperors,” he said, referring to India’s ancient Islamic rulers.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Modi, Ram, ”, Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, Imtiyaz Khan, Asaduddin, “, Mukhopadhyay, Mohammed Zakir Hussain, Mohammad Zakir Hussain, Aishwarya Iyer, Sanjay Katyal, Rana Safvi, ” Safvi, ” Mohammad Aman, Mohammad Arif, what’s, Mohammad Aman Organizations: New, New Delhi CNN, CNN, Authorities, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Indian, Anadolu, Getty, Amnesty International, Delhi Development Authority, –, Court Locations: New Delhi, India, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Uttarakhand’s Haldwani, Haldwani, AFP, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, India’s, Jammu, Kashmir, BJP, Delhi’s Mehrauli, Akhondji

☆ Done with diamonds? Gemstone engagement rings are capturing hearts and market share
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Courtney Reagan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

"We're seeing a shift in much larger center stone engagement rings, primarily as a result of lab-grown diamonds, and sapphires and rubies tend to be very hot," Daga said. A decade ago, about 5% of engagement rings were colored gemstones, according to Daga. watch nowIndustry giant Signet Jewelers is seeing the same gemstone trend in the wedding category as well as in fashion pieces. Beyond engagement rings, Signet said amethyst and ruby are always popular stones for the Valentine's season. Solidcolours | Istock | Getty ImagesWholesale prices for sapphire gemstones are up 12% per year over the past three years, Daga said.

Persons: Craig Hastings, Ankur Daga, Daga, Jared, Kay, Signet, Beth Gerstein, Gerstein, Boonyakiat, Tourmalines Organizations: Industry, Signet, Getty, Istock, Rolex Locations: London, Madagascar, Angara, Kashmir, Sri Lanka, Zambia, Colombian

☆ Modi’s ‘divine India’ vision threatens to marginalize millions
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Rhea Mogul | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

“(Today) is the beginning of a new time cycle,” Modi said at the new temple honoring Hindu deity Lord Ram. “After centuries of waiting, our Ram has arrived.”Modi’s vision of a “divine India” is a far cry from the ideas of the modern country’s founding fathers. “India becomes a de facto Hindu nation, where the task of building national Hindu religious symbols falls to the state. And he reiterated his party’s desire to build the Ram Temple on the contested holy site. Hindu groups have for decades claimed the Mughals destroyed Hindu temples, building mosques and other monuments in their place.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Modi, ” Modi, Lord Ram, “, Ram, ”, Gilles Verniers, officiates, ‘, Sachin Tendulkar, Mukesh Ambani, Modi’s, ” Modi fasted, ” Narendra Modi, Prakash Singh, Pratishtha ”, –, Sunita Viswanath, “ Modi, tramples what’s, Ravi Agrawal, it’s, Babar, Douglas E, Curran, ” Agrawal, Ritesh Shukla, Aurangzeb, “ Aurangzeb, Policy’s Agrawal, Gilles Organizations: CNN, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Centre for Policy Research, Bloomberg, Getty, Indian, Human Rights, India’s, Ram Locations: Ayodhya, “, India, New Delhi, Babri, Delhi, India’s, Jammu, Kashmir, South Asia, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Varanasi

☆ A pigeon detained for 8 months on suspicion of spying for China has finally been set free
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A pigeon detained in India for eight months was released on Tuesday after police cleared it of suspicions that it was a spy bird for China, the news agency Press Trust of India reported. It was taken to the Bai Sakarbai Dinshaw Petit Hospital for Animals because police suspected it was used for spying, per the outlet. Bombay Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to AnimalsPETA contacted police and obtained a certificate for the bird's release, the organization said. The pigeon was later discovered to be a racing bird from Taiwan that escaped and flew to India, according to the AP. Bombay Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to AnimalsIndian authorities have detained other pigeons on similar suspicions before.

Persons: Dinshaw, Narendra Modi Organizations: Press Trust of, Associated Press, Hospital for Animals, People, Animals, PETA, Bombay Society for, AP, Pigeon Racing, Taiwan News Locations: India, China, Press Trust of India, Mumbai, Taiwan, Taipei, Kashmir, Pakistan

NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian police cleared a suspected Chinese spy pigeon after eight months' detention and released it into the wild Tuesday, news agency Press Trust of India reported. Police suspected it was involved in espionage and took it in, later sending it to Mumbai's Bai Sakarbai Dinshaw Petit Hospital for Animals. Eventually, it turned out the pigeon was an open-water racing bird from Taiwan that had escaped and made its way to India. It is not the first time a bird has come under police suspicion in India. In 2016, another pigeon was taken into custody after it was found with a note that threatened Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Persons: Mumbai's Bai Sakarbai Dinshaw, Narendra Modi Organizations: DELHI, Press Trust of, Police, Hospital for Animals, Bombay Society for, Indian Locations: Press Trust of India, Mumbai, Taiwan, India, Kashmir

☆ A Practical Guide to Quitting Your Smartphone
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Kashmir Hill | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Last May, Fabuwood, a kitchen cabinet manufacturer in Newark, instituted a new company policy: No phones allowed during meetings. To enforce it, the company installed “device shelves” outside each of its six glass-walled conference rooms. On a recent Wednesday morning, there were animated meetings in three of the conference rooms, and the shelves outside were full of smartphones, tablets and ’90s-style flip phones. The 1,200-person company pays the cost of a flip phone for employees who give up their smartphone, and 80 people have acted on the offer. Fabuwood’s founder and chief executive, Joel Epstein, was motivated by his personal belief that smartphones are “destroying our personal and professional lives.”

Persons: Rena Stoff, ”, Joel Epstein Locations: Fabuwood, Newark

☆ Modi's Party Set to Bring Contentious Common Civil Laws in India Through States
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

Framing a national common law has been one of the three core, decades-old promises of Modi's Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP). The northern state of Uttarakhand, nestled in the Himalayan foothills, is expected to unveil a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) bill next week, officials said. A committee set up in Uttarakhand in 2022 to draft the code will submit its work to the state government on Friday. "Several state governments across India are looking at whether a uniform civil code could be implemented," Nalin Kohli, a national BJP spokesperson said. Personal laws can be legislated by both federal and state governments, and other BJP-ruled states have said they could use the Uttarakhand UCC draft as a template.

Persons: Krishn Kaushik, Rupam Jain, Saurabh Sharma, Narendra Modi's, Modi's, Asaduddin Owaisi, Nalin Kohli, Pushkar Singh Dhami, Ram, Biswa Sarma, Keshav Prasad Maurya, Sumit Khanna, Jatindra, Lincoln Organizations: Saurabh Sharma NEW DELHI, Janta Party, BJP, UCC, Kashmir, Uttarakhand UCC, Reuters Locations: Indian, Jammu, Kashmir, Uttarakhand, India, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, New Delhi, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Bhubaneshwar

☆ Pakistan accuses India of extrajudicial killings on its territory
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Sophia Saifi | Rhea Mogul | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A top Pakistan official on Thursday accused India of killing two Pakistani nationals on its soil, citing what he called “a pattern” of alleged Indian assassination plots overseas and raising tensions between the two nuclear-armed rivals. India has long accused Pakistan of harboring terrorists, particularly in the disputed and heavily militarized region of Kashmir, which both countries claim in its entirety. Qazi on Thursday compared the alleged killings in Pakistan to other purported recent Indian assassination plots in North America. India and many other countries have publicly warned Pakistan cautioning that it would be consumed by its own culture of terror and violence,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. The Indian government has denied involvement in the American and Canadian cases and has set up a high-level committee to investigate the accusations in the US.

Persons: Muhammad Syrus Sajjad Qazi, Muhammad Riaz, Shahid Latif, ” Qazi, –, Qazi, “, Randhir Jaiswal, Justin Trudeau Organizations: CNN, Pakistan, India’s, External Affairs, Canadian, American Locations: Islamabad, Pakistan, Kashmir, Sialkot, New Delhi, India, North America, Canada, United States, American

☆ Religious trips will fuel India’s tourism boom — airlines are gearing up with record aircraft orders
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

India's tourism sector is set for a boom as more travelers take trips around the country for religious purposes. "Religious tourism is still the biggest segment of tourism in India … the creation of a new religious tourist centre (Ayodhya) with improved connectivity and infrastructure can create a meaningfully large economic impact," Jefferies highlighted. Indian media reported that around half a million people visited the Ram temple on its opening day which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The YouTube broadcast of the opening ceremony on Modi's channel alone received more than 11 million views. If it continues develop tourist destination including religious tourism, chances are that more and more people will come to visit India and it will even benefit on the foreign exchange side," said Nilesh Shah, managing director at Kotak Mahindra Asset Management.

Persons: Jefferies, —, Narendra Modi, Nilesh Shah Organizations: YouTube, Mahindra Asset Management Locations: Ayodhya, India, Rome's Vatican, Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, Temple, Jammu, Kashmir

ISLAMABAD (AP) — This week's airstrikes between Iran and Pakistan that killed at least 11 people marks a significant escalation in fraught relations between the neighbors. Pakistan said its strikes in Iran on Thursday were aimed at hideouts of the Baluchistan Liberation Army and the Baluchistan Liberation Front. The drill will include live fire from aircraft, drones and air defense systems. Separately, Iran relies on radar and air defense systems in the case of potential strikes by its main enemy, the United States. However, the airstrikes could backfire on Pakistan because the Baluch Liberation Army said it will avenge the killings and wage war on the state.

Persons: Iran's, ”, Abdullah Khan Organizations: Adl, Baluch Liberation Army, Baluchistan Liberation Army, Pakistan Institute for Conflict, Security Studies Locations: ISLAMABAD, Iran, Pakistan, Baluchistan, Afghanistan, Kashmir, Delhi, Tehran, Islamabad, Chabahar, Iraq, India, United States, IRAN, PAKISTAN, Israel, U.S

☆ It’s January at a Big Himalayan Resort. Where’s the Snow?
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Showkat Nanda | Sameer Yasir | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Every morning, Ishfaaq Ahmad Malik, a ski instructor in Indian-controlled Kashmir, opens his bedroom window and, like many others in the region, wonders: Where is the snow? “This has never happened before in January. Not in my lifetime,” said Mr. Malik, 65. “Definitely not in Gulmarg.”Each winter, Gulmarg, one of Asia’s largest and highest ski resort towns, attracts thousands of skiers, many from as far away as Europe and the Americas, drawn by perfect powder, cheap hotels and breathtaking views of the Himalayas. At 8,500 feet, this scrappy ski town’s miles of slopes are usually blanketed by snow from December to March and packed with snowboarders and skiers.

Persons: Ishfaaq Ahmad Malik, ”, Malik, “ Locations: Kashmir, Gulmarg, Europe, Americas

But as with many popular winter ski destinations right now, this resort town in Indian-administered Kashmir is facing a snow shortage due to unseasonably dry weather, disappointing both travelers and tourism operators. Tauseef Mustafa/AFP/Getty ImagesDespite the lack of snow, a staff member of the Gulmarg Ski Resort reached by phone who did not wish to be named told CNN Travel their hotels have been experiencing very high occupancy rates in recent days. This is definitely affecting the tourism sector.”Tourists learn to ski on a gentle Gulmarg slope in February 2021. “What would they do here without the snow?”‘The demand is still there’Tourists visit the Gulmarg Ski Resort on January 10, 2024. So the loss of snow (will also be) compensated.”Yaqoob notes that the snowfall season in Gulmarg is traditionally from November to February-March.

Persons: Tauseef Mustafa, Asif Ahmad Bhat, “, ”, ’ Bhat, Sahil Ahmed Lone, Yawar Nazir, he’s, Lone, they’ve, Nasir Kachroo, Gulmarg –, Raja, it’s Organizations: CNN, CNN Travel, ”, El Nino Locations: Gulmarg, Indian, Kashmir, Srinagar, India, Pakistan, AFP, “, Leh, Ladakh, Uttarakhand

☆ How Your Child’s Online Mistake Can Ruin Your Digital Life
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( Kashmir Hill | More About Kashmir Hill | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The New York Times has documented other episodes in which parents’ digital lives were upended by naked photos and videos of their children that Google’s A.I. systems flagged and that human reviewers determined to be illicit. Her account would eventually be deleted, a Google login page informed her, but she could appeal the decision. Children’s advocates and lawmakers around the world have pushed technology companies to stop the online spread of abusive imagery by monitoring for such material on their platforms. Many communications providers now scan the photos and videos saved and shared by their users to look for known images of abuse that had been reported to the authorities.

Persons: Watkins, “, Children’s Organizations: New York Times, Google Locations: New South Wales, Australia

SYDNEY, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Australia's top civil servant in its interior ministry was sacked on Monday after an inquiry found he breached impartiality rules. Michael Pezzullo, the powerful head of the department responsible for internal security, stepped aside in September while the investigation was conducted. It was not immediately possible to reach Pezzullo for comment. The inquiry followed a joint investigation by two Australian newspapers and a TV programme that alleged Pezzullo had intervened in politics to promote favoured politicians, attack opponents and push for media censorship. Reporting by Alasdair Pal in Sydney; Editing by Lincoln FeastOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Michael Pezzullo, Anthony Albanese, Pezzullo, Alasdair Pal, Lincoln Organizations: SYDNEY, Australian Public Service, Liberal Party, Thomson Locations: Sydney

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