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1,500 Indian Mansarovar pilgrims stranded in Nepal

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Over 1,500 Indian nationals returning after pilgrimage at the Kailash Mansarovar in Tibet are stranded in Simikot in Nepal’s Humla district due to heavy rain and bad weather.

“Bad weather is hampering the rescue operations. Some of the pilgrims are stranded in Hilsa, close to Nepal-Tibet border, while some are stranded in Simikot,” said Pranav Ganesh, First Secretary at the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu.

The Embassy said there were 525 pilgrims stranded in Simikot, 550 in Hilsa and another 500 more in Tibet.

It said the situation was continuously being monitored and as soon as the weather got better, the pilgrims would be rescued through helicopters and brought to Nepalgunj.

“As of July 3 morning, the weather situation remains inclement and there is very little chance of operating evacuation flights,” said the Indian Embassy.

Weather conditions across Nepal have worsened since Monday due to perpetual downpour in which at least a dozen people were killed.

The Embassy said it has placed its representatives in Nepalganj and Simikot to ensure proper food and lodging facilities for the pilgrims. The police have been asked to take care of those stranded, it added.

In Simikot, Indian officials are providing medical help to the elderly pilgrims. The Indian government has also set up hotlines for the stranded people to contact their families.

The Indian mission has asked all tour operators in the region to try hold pilgrims back in Tibet as far as possible since the medical and civic facilities on Nepal side were inadequate.

The Embassy is also trying to use Nepal Army helicopters for evacuation.

Former Malaysian PM Najib arrested on graft charges

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Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was arrested on Tuesday by anti-corruption authorities in relation to state development fund 1MDB graft scandal.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) said in a statement that Najib was arrested at around 2.35 p.m. (local time) from his private house over investigation linked to SRC International, a former unit of 1MDB, the BBC reported.

Najib has been accused of pocketing $700 million from the fund, set up by him in 2009. Billions of dollars are unaccounted for from the fund, authorities say.

MACC said Najib will be charged at the Kuala Lumpur court on Wednesday.

He has been under investigation since his shock election loss in May to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. Najib denies wrongdoing.

Last week police said they had seized $225 million in luxury handbags, jewellery, cash and goods from six properties linked to the former leader as part of the investigation into the 1MDB scandal. He has been banned from leaving Malaysia.

Longest total lunar eclipse of 21st century on July 27

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The longest total lunar eclipse of the 21st century would occur on July 27, with the celestial spectacle visible in its entirety from all parts of India.

The eclipse will last for 1 hour and 43 mi

nutes, giving viewers a wonderful opportunity to experience the happening, according to Debiprosad Duari, Director, Research & Academic, M.P. Birla Planetarium, Kolkata.

It will be preceded and followed by partial eclipses lasting more than one hour.

The eclipse will be visible in parts of South America, much of Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia. For viewers in India, the eclipse, both partial and the total, will be visible in its entirety from all parts of the country.

The partial eclipse of the moon will start around 11.54 p.m. Indian Standard Time, with the total eclipse begining at 1 a.m. on July 28.

“The greatest eclipse, when moon will look the darkest, will be at around 01:52 a.m. and the totality will continue at 02:43 a.m. after this period the moon will remain partially eclipsed till 03:49 a.m. of July 28,” Duari said in a media release.

Earlier this year, there was a total lunar eclipse on January 31.

For a total lunar eclipse of a long duration to occur, the moon has to pass through the central part of the Earth’s shadow.

The previous total lunar eclipse on January 31, lasted 1 hour and 16 minutes when the moon passed to the south of shadow’s centre; and the next total lunar eclipse on January 21, 2019 will be only for 1 hour and 2 minutes because it’ll pass to the north of the shadow’s centre.

Late at night on July 27, the full moon will be near its apogee, the farthest point from Earth in its orbit around Earth, and it will be the smallest full moon of the year.

“This smaller and slower-moving full moon takes more time to cross the Earth’s shadow than does a full moon that’s closer to Earth and moving faster in orbit. That’s why a full moon at or near lunar apogee adds to the duration of a total lunar eclipse,” Duari said

The full moon will plunge deeply into the Earth’s shadow on the night of July 27-28. The distance of the Moon from Earth just before the eclipse will be around 406,223 km.

Depending on atmospheric conditions, this could be an especially dark total lunar Eclipse. The longest possible total lunar eclipse is 1 hour and 47 minutes. In this case, the centre of the lunar disk aligned almost perfectly with the centre of the Earth’s shadow.

During a total lunar eclipse, the moon’s disk can take on a dramatically colourful appearance from bright orange to blood red and more rarely dark brown to very dark gray depending upon the part of the Eartha¿s shadow it will be passing through.

Lunar eclipses are completely safe to view with the naked eye.

“No special filters are required to protect your eyes like those used for solar eclipses. One does not need a telescope to watch the eclipse, although a good pair of binoculars will enhance the experience,” Duarisaid.

An eclipse of the moon takes place only at full moon. Whenever the sun, earth and moon come in a perfect straight line, as the sun’s rays falls on the earth, its shadow falls onto a patch of space, and only when, moon enters that patch of shadow can we see a lunar eclipse.

The shadow is actually composed of two cone-shaped parts, one nested inside the other. The outer shadow or penumbra is a zone where the earth’s shadow is partial and blocks some, but not all of the sun’s rays.

In contrast, the inner shadow or umbra is a region where the earth blocks all direct sunlight from reaching the moon. When only part of the moon passes through the umbra, a partial lunar eclipse is seen. If the entire Moon passes through the umbral shadow, then a total eclipse of the moon occurs.

Cauvery authority directs Karnataka to release 31 tmcft water to TN

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The Cauvery Water Management Authority, which held its first meeting on Monday amidst reports of Karntaka planning to appeal in the Supreme Court against its formation, directed Karnataka to release about 31 tmcft water to Tamil Nadu in July.

“The quantum of water which has been in the tribunal award after adjusting whatever has been the surplus in the month of June that would be released by Karnataka,” Central Water Commission (CWC) and CWMA Chairman S. Masood Husain told reporters after the meeting.

As per the tribunal’s order, the tentative monthly deliveries during a normal year indicate 34 tmcft water to be released to Tamil Nadu in July. Officials at CWC inform that the excess water received by Tamil Nadu in June due to good monsoon was excess by more than 3 tmcft.

Husain said the first meeting of the authority was held in a “cordial atmosphere” and it marked a historic moment after a long period of litigation. The meeting was attended by all four party states — Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry.

In the nine-member CWMA chaired by CWC Chairman, Karnataka is represented by its Principal Secretary, Water Resources, Rakesh Singh and Tamil Nadu government by Principal Secretary, Public Works Department, S.K. Prabakar. Kerala Water Resources Secretary Tinku Biswal and Puducherry Development Commissioner-cum-PWD Secretary A. Anbarasu were also present.

On whether Karnataka will follow the CWMA’s direction, Husain said he is hopeful that all party states will cooperate in the implementation of the tribunal award. Going by the deliberation at the meeting on Monday, he said he is fully confident about the award’s implementation.

“This is the decision of the authority and as the monsoon has been normal, we hope the reservoirs in Karnataka would be receiving the normal inflow and we hope that Karnataka would be able to release this amount. I do not see any lack of cooperation from any side,” he said.

The meeting discussed rules of business, required staff and structure, infrastructure like offices, format for maintaining data like inflow, outflow, withdrawals, cropping pattern, implementation status of the tribunal’s award for June and realisation at Biligundlu site on inter-state border.

“The authority directed Karnataka to ensure the balance quantity for July 2018 at Biligundlu adjusting the excess quantity of water realised by Tamil Nadu at Biligundlu in June 2018 subject to the assessment and recommendation by the regulation committee.” the Chairman said.

In case of Puducherry, the authority directed that the existing arrangement for the supply of water to Puducherry by Tamil Nadu will continue. The authority unanimously decided to request CWC for a proposal to set up the communication network to assess hydrological conditions.

While the authority is yet to decide the date for its next meeting, the Cauvery Water Regulation Commitee (CWRC) will meet on Thursday (July 5) to look into whatever the mandate it has been assigned and the issues referred to the committee by the authority.

Husain said that as per the gazette notification, the office of the authority will be establised in Delhi and for this the authroity has planned to approach the Union Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Ministry for a separate office for the authority.

“This was the first meeting and we were more focussed on making the rules of business. Considering the states’ spirit of cooperation at the meeting, I believe a new era of water cooperation has started in the country,” he said.

Telugu film critic arrested for hurting religious sentiments

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Hyderabad police have arrested Telugu film critic Kathi Mahesh for making derogatory comments against Lord Rama and Sita.

Banjara Hills police took him into custody late on Monday. He would be produced before a magistrate later on Tuesday.

Mahesh, who also acted in a few films, was booked by the police two days ago on a complaint lodged by leaders of Hindu Janasakthi alleging that he made the offensive comments during a debate on a television channel.

A case was registered against him for hurting religious sentiments and promoting enmity and hatred.

Angry over Mahesh’s remarks, activists of some right-wing Hindu organisations on Saturday tried to attack him when he was at the office of a news channel in Banjara Hills.

Mumbai bridge crash: Railway Minister orders probe

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Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday ordered an inquiry soon after a portion of a foot overbridge crashed on the Western Railway tracks in Mumbai, injuring three persons.

“Part of road overbridge has fallen on tracks near Andheri Station impacting rail traffic. Directed officials to speed up repair work and rapidly restore traffic in close coordination with other departments.

“I have also ordered an inquiry by Commissioner of Rail Safety,” Goyal tweeted.

A portion of the Gokhale Bridge, on S.V. Road, which connects Andheri East and Andheri West crashed on at 7.30 a.m following heavy overnight rains.

The crash has affected Mumbai’s lifeline — the suburban train services.

Mumbai bridge crashes on rail tracks, 5 injured

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A section of a foot overbridge here caved in over the Western Railway (WR) tracks during Tuesday morning’s peak hours following incessant rain, leaving five persons injured, and creating a scare among the commuters, an official said.

The crash has affected Mumbai’s lifeline — the suburban train services, which ferries around eight million commuters daily.

The injured, who include one woman, have been admitted to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s R.N. Cooper Hospital in Vile Parle, a BMC official said. One of them is critical.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal has ordered an inquiry into the incident.

Heavy overnight rains and waterlogging in many areas is suspected to be the cause of the crash of the structure, known as the Gokhale Bridge, on S.V. Road, which connects Andheri East and Andheri West.

There were no immediate confirmation whether the injured were commuters or pedestrians. Rescue operations continued to save those believed to be trapped under the debris.

Work was also on to remove the debris from the WR tracks which blocked services in both directions, hitting hard the Mumbai commuters bound for their offices.

According to WR spokesperson C.N.K. David, the portion of the bridge crashed at around 7.30 a.m. on the the southern-end of the Andheri platform numbers 7-8.

The falling bridge damaged a portion of the platform roof, blocked the railway lines and damaged the high-tension electric wires and overhead power equipments, he added.

“The restoration work is in full swing and we hope to resume normal train services in the next few hours,” David said.

The WR said trains were being operated between Goregaon-Virar on the northern side and Bandra-Churchgate in the southern direction, besides Harbour Line from Bandra-CST, and several long-distance trains were rescheduled.

The Commissioner of Railway Safety will investigate the incident which has triggered a blame-game between the WR and the BMC.

While the WR said the bridge belongs to the BMC, the latter said the crash took place on the railway portion which was the WR’s responsibility for repairs and maintenance.

With several lakhs of commuters stranded all over the network, the civic transport body BEST deployed 40 additional bus services between Goregaon-Bandra to clear the rush.

The cascading effect was also seen on the Western Express Highway, the main S.V. Road, Link Road and other arterial roads with traffic jams all over.

As a precautionary measure, Mumbai police have stopped all traffic above and below the bridge till the green signal from the railway authorities.

Mumbai’s Dabbawalas have suspended all their tiffin box deliveries on Tuesday on the Western Railway routes but would continue on other routes.

US aims to reduce Iran’s oil revenue to zero

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The US State Department has spelled out a campaign of “maximum economic and diplomatic pressure” to drive Iran towards negotiating a “better” deal to replace the Iran nuclear deal.

State Department Director of Policy Planning Brian Hook told reporters on Monday that Iran is not a “normal” country and must meet 12 demands in order to be relieved of US sanctions.

“Normal countries don’t terrorize other nations, proliferate missiles and impoverish their own people,” Hook said.

“This new strategy is not about changing the regime, it is about changing the behavior of the leadership in Iran to comport with what the Iranian people really want them to do,” he said.

The State Department said new sanctions, which it described as “snap back” sanctions, will begin on August 4, targeting Iran’s automotive sector and its trade in gold and other key metals.

The second set of sanctions will snap back on November 6. This set will target Iran’s energy sector, focusing on petroleum-related transactions, plus transactions with the central bank of Iran.

The move comes two months after US President Donald Trump announced US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.

International pressure
US officials called on countries to cut all imports of Iranian oil when it re-imposes sanctions on Tehran.

It called on allies in Europe, Asia and the Middle East to adhere to the sanctions with the aim of pressuring Iran into negotiating a new agreement.

Hook said he planned to meet with European allies Britain, France and Germany at the end of the week to discuss Iran. He also said he and senior Treasury Department officials would visit Gulf states “in the coming days.”

Hook told reporters that the goal of the United States was to get as many countries as possible down to zero Iranian oil imports.

“Our goal is to increase pressure on the Iranian regime by reducing to zero its revenue on crude oil sales,” Hook said.

“We are working to minimize disruptions to the global market but we are confident there is sufficient global spare oil capacity.”

Hook said more than 50 international firms have already announced their intention to leave the Iranian market, especially in the energy and financial sectors.

“We have been clear with countries and companies around the world that we are bringing severe economic pressure on Iran until the regime changes its destabilizing policies,” Hook said.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman promised Trump at the weekend that he would raise oil production if needed and that the country has 2 million barrels per day of spare capacity to boost output, the White House said.

In a tweet on Saturday, Trump said the extra Saudi oil would help offset a decline in supply from Iran.

He was not specific on whether the additional two million barrels was a per-day figure – but worldwide daily demand is nearing 100 million bpd.

Tharoor moves anticipatory bail plea

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Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who is an accused in the suicide case of his wife Sunanda Pushkar, on Tuesday moved an anticipatory bail plea in a sessions court here.

Additional Sessions Judge Arvind Kumar listed the matter for further hearing on Wednesday.

The court has also sought response of the Delhi Police on Tharoor’s plea.

On June 5, the court took cognisance of the charge-sheet filed by the police in the case.

The 62-year-old parliamentarian from Thiruvananthapuram has been asked to appear before Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Samar Vishal on July 7, the next date fixed for hearing in the case.

Pushkar, 51, died under mysterious circumstances in a hotel room in south Delhi on January 17, 2014, days after she alleged that her husband was having an affair with a Pakistani journalist.

INX case: HC extends Chidambaram’s interim protection from arrest

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The Delhi High Court on Tuesday extended interim protection from arrest to senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram in the INX Media case till August 1.

Justice A.K. Pathak directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) not to take any coercive action against Chidambaram till August 1, the next date fixed for the hearing.

Meanwhile, the CBI sought more time to file a response on Chidambaram’s anticipatory bail plea as they may require to conduct the custodial interrogation of the accused.

On May 31, Delhi High Court granted interim protection from arrest to Chidambaram in the INX Media case till July 3.

His son Karti was arrested on February 28 for allegedly taking money to facilitate Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to INX Media in 2007 when his father was the Union Finance Minister in the UPA government. Later, Karti was granted bail.

On May 30, a special court granted interim protection to Chidambaram from arrest till June 5 in the Aircel-Maxis deal case.

Earlier, the court granted interim protection to Karti Chidambaram from arrest till July 10 in the Aircel-Maxis deal case.

The CBI and ED are investigating how Karti Chidambaram managed to get a clearance from the FIPB in the Aircel-Maxis deal when his father P. Chidambaram was the Finance Minister in 2006.

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