Nasheman

India's largest selling Urdu weekly, now also in English

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Zuckerberg seeks more time to fix Facebook

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As countries over the world including India face elections amid the spread of fake news and political interference on social media platforms, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has asked for some more time to fix his network that has over two billion users.

In a post on Friday, Zuckerberg said that Facebook started on the platform sanitising project in 2017 and “even this work will extend through 2019, I do expect us to end this year on a significantly better trajectory than when we entered it”.

“My personal challenge for 2018 has been to fix the most important issues facing Facebook — whether that’s defending against election interference by nation states, protecting our community from abuse and harm, or making sure people have control of their information,” the Facebook founder wrote.

After his grilling in the US Congress in April over the Cambridge Analytica data scandal and the Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election, COO Sheryl Sandberg again testified at the US Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on election security on September 5.

Along with Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, she faced the committee which is probing the Russian interference from an angle to publicly hold Facebook and Twitter accountable for allowing Russian operatives on their platforms.

“I’m spending a lot of time on these issues, and as the year winds down I’m going to write a series of notes outlining how I’m thinking about them and the steps we’re taking to address them,” said Zuckerberg.

The first note will be about the steps Facebook is taking to prevent election interference on Facebook, which is timely with the US mid-terms and Brazilian presidential elections approaching.

“I’ll write about privacy, encryption and business models, and then about content governance and enforcement as well in the coming months,” he added.

Vajpayee’s ashes immersed in Yamuna at native village

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Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday immersed the ashes of late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in the Yamuna river in his native village of Bateshwar, Agra.

Adityanath reached Bateshwar in a chopper and later drove to the Rani Ghat where the district administration had made elaborate arrangements.

He first prayed at the temples on the banks of the river and then immersed the ashes.

Ranjan Bhattacharya, Vajpayee’s son-in-law, was also present along with the state’s Medical Education minister Ashutosh Tandon.

Adityanath also visited the house where Vajpayee spent his childhood, a district official said.

The 60 square yard house is likely to be converted into a memorial and museum.

A small tourist circuit is also likely to be created here which will include a ‘yagyashala’, park, the series of temples and the Janglat Kothi where the Bharatiya Janata Party stalwart, as a child, had raised the banner of revolt against the British empire, the official added.

(IANS)

Bengaluru to host Aero India air show in February

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The Defence Ministry on Saturday announced that the next edition of the biennial Aero India air show would be held here from February 20 to 24, 2019.

“The government has decided to hold the Aero India 2019 in Bengaluru from February 20 to 24, 2019,” said the ministry in a statement from New Delhi.

The five-day event will be held at the Yelahanka base of the Indian Air Force (IAF) on the city’s northern outskirts amid tight security.

“The trade event will showcase technologies and products of global and Indian aerospace and defence firms, with static and flying display of military and civil aircraft, including fighters, jets, helicopters and air weapons.

“Besides global leaders and investors in the aerospace industry, think-tanks from the world over will participate in the show, providing an opportunity to exchange information, ideas and new developments in the industry,” said the statement.

“The air show will also give fillip to the domestic aviation and further the cause of ‘Make in India’. The defence production department is committed to ensure a result-oriented air show,” added the statement.

(IANS)

Beware of fake bodybuilding supplements

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During this last decade there has been a huge surge in the demand for bodybuilding supplements in the country. However, a study by Assocham and business management consultant RNCOS indicates that as much as 60-70 per cent of the dietary supplement being peddled across India is counterfeit.

Not only are the manufacturers of these fake supplements duping their customers, but using various unapproved and potentially harmful chemicals in their fake offerings and putting the youngsters of our nation in harm’s way.

Another study found that nearly 80 percent of the youth who are into bodybuilding consume one or the other form of dietary supplement. Assocham estimates that the market for dietary supplements is set to double from the current $2 billion to $4 billion by 2020. Why? Well, most Indian diets are vegetarian-heavy and lack the fast-acting proteins necessary for quick muscle recovery. Health supplements bridge this gap which, in turn, aids in muscle growth.

However, most of the high-quality health supplement brands available in the market today are imported which is on the expensive side (taxes, customs and overheads on imports) especially for young adults who form a sizeable chunk of the target market which is also completely clueless on how health supplements work thus making the perfect market for fake products.

How to identify fake supplements

One has to really look closely to figure out whether or not the supplement in question is a fake or not. Here are a few ways to tell the genuine ones from the fake:

* Check the hologram: One of the best ways to tell a fake product from the genuine one is to look for the brand’s hologram. Because most of the fake supplements in India are made in extremely low-quality facilities, the technology to properly replicate the hologram doesn’t exist

* Check the barcode: Most smartphones today support apps that can read barcodes and QR codes. Just do a quick scan; the scan of an original brand should ideally lead you to its website

* Check the packaging: This can be a bit tricky. Watch out for spelling mistakes, bizarre fonts, wrong logos and even wrong nutritional information

* Check the seal: If the seal of the product looks weird or of bad quality, chances are that it has been tampered with

* Dissolve a spoonful in water: Add a spoonful of the supplement to water at room temperature and stir for a few seconds. The original supplement will dissolve easily whereas the fake products usually leave behind clumps of the powder as residue in the glass

* Look for FSSAI approval on the packaging: The Food Safety and Standards Association of India or FSSAI is the regulatory body responsible for health supplements

India has a long way to go as far as the health and fitness of its citizens is concerned. The only way to achieve this is by empowering the youth with the right knowledge so that they really understand the science behind it.

A boost to the local manufacturers under the ‘Make In India’ initiative will give the youth access to high-quality supplements at affordable prices. Only when the youth start making informed choices will the black market of fake supplements die a well-deserved death.

15 killed in Afghanistan accident

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At least 15 people were killed and 25 others injured when a passenger bus collided with a truck on Saturday in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province.

According to the police, the accident took place at around 6 a.m. in Hawoz village of Zhari district, reports Tolo News.

The victims include women and children with a number of the injured in critical condition, health officials said.

(IANS)

NASA launches rocket to test parachute for Mars lander

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NASA has launched a sounding rocket from the agency’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia to test a supersonic parachute for landing its next rover on Mars.

The rocket launched on Friday carried the Advanced Supersonic Parachute Inflation Research Experiment (ASPIRE) from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California.

The payload descended by parachute and splashed-down in the Atlantic Ocean 28 miles from Wallops Island, NASA said.

The parachute was successfully recovered and returned to Wallops for data retrieval and inspection.

The suborbital launch was designed to mimic conditions that the parachute might experience during a Mars landing, Space.com reported.

“This is really a strength test of that Mars 2020 (rover) design,” Jeremy Hill, a mechanical engineer at JPL, was quoted as saying during a webcast of the launch.

“We want to get as close to the Martian environment as we can.”

The payload is a bullet-nosed, cylindrical structure holding a supersonic parachute, the parachute’s deployment mechanism, and the test’s high-definition instrumentation — including cameras — to record data.

The Mars 2020 rover mission is scheduled to launch in July/August 2020 when Earth and Mars are in good positions relative to each other for landing on Mars.

The mission takes the next step in addressing questions about potential for life on Mars by not only seeking signs of habitable conditions on Mars in the ancient past, but also searching for signs of past microbial life itself.

(IANS)

BJP MLA Ram Kadam tweets condolences to Sonali Bendre, trolled on social media

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BJP MLA Ram Kadam, under fire over his “will kidnap girl” remarks, was caught on the wrong foot again Friday after he tweeted that Bollywood actor Sonali Bendre was no more, only to retract it after realising that the news was not true and facing massive backlash.

Bendre is currently undergoing treatment for cancer in the US.

Kadam tweeted in Marathi that “Bollywood and Marathi diva” Sonali Bendre “has passed away in America” and condoled her demise.

After he was trolled for believing a baseless rumour, he deleted the message.

He posted another tweet, saying, “About Sonali Bendre ji, it was rumour for the last two days. I pray to god for her good health and speedy recovery.”

Bendre revealed in July that she has been diagnosed with a “high-grade cancer” and is undergoing treatment in the US.

On Monday, Kadam sparked off a storm of protest with his remarks at a Dahi Handi (Janmashtami) celebration in Mumbai. A video clip showed him saying that youngsters often seek his help after girls reject their proposals. “Come with your parents. What will I do if your parents approve? I will kidnap the girl and hand her over to you,” he was heard telling the crowd.

(PTI)

‘Namaste England’ revisits Vipul Shah’s old-world romance

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The first ‘Namaste in Namaste London came ten years back. It was an honest sweet gentle film about a NRI London-bred girl Katrina Kaif’s attempts to adjust in marriage to a Punjabi rustic man Akshay Kumar who adores her to death. Director Vipul Shah wanted to make the sequel with the same pair but things didnt work out.

Shah’s long-standing association with Akshay Kumar ended abruptly. It is a setback that he doesn’t talk about at all.

It took the producer-director ten years to direct another film.

He is happy with the way “Namaste England” has shaped up. Looking at the trailer, so are we. It seems to take us into a quaint universe where the dramatic complexities are created by cultural rather than emotional conflict between the lead pair.

This time it is Arjun Kapoor and Parineeti Chopra, who made their joint debut in Habib Faisal’s “Ishaqzaade” violent brutal interpretation of Romeo and Juliet rooted in the fiercely internecine caste and communal system. This time in “Namaste England” there is little opposition or tension in their relationship from the outside.

Says Vipul, “I wanted to make a gentle romantic film where the conflicts are very basic, very relatable. I think I’ve succeeded in doing that.”

Vipul took ill recently and had to be hospitalized. But the film didn’t suffer on account of his health. “I had finished all my work on the film when I took ill.So there has been no setback due to my health.We are ready to release on 19 October.”

The trailer shows Parineeti’s Jasmeet fleeing to London to escape the stifling patriarchal bastion of Punjab. Arjun Kapoor playing the devoted duty-bound husband follows her to London to bring her back. But the lady has other plans.

While reveling in the rites of a traditional rural Punjabi family the film seems to suggest that the female population of rural India desperately needs to find its voice. A supportive spouse helps. This is not the first time that Arjun Kapoor plays a caring empathetic husband willing to relinquish the traditional role in a marriage to let his spouse take the lead. But this is the first time that Arjun plays a husband with a hygiene problem.

On two occasions in the trailer he is heard talking about his lack care for basic hygiene. Maybe it’s just joke. Then again maybe it’s not. Either way we don’t want kids telling their mothers, “Why should we brush our teeth when Arjun Uncle doesn’t.”

(IANS)

England opt to bat against India in 5th Test

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England captain Joe Root won the toss and opted to bat in the fifth and final cricket Test against India at the Oval here on Friday.

England, who have already won the series 3-1, have picked the same 11 who won the fourth Test in Southampton by 60 runs.

India have made two changes to their playing 11. India have handed Andhra Pradesh batsman Hanuma Vihari his international debut, replacing all-rounder Hardik Pandya as the visitors decided to go with an extra batter. Experienced left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja has come in place of injured off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.

Teams:

England: Alastair Cook, Keaton Jennings, Joe Root (Captain), Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler (WK), Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Adil Rashid, Stuart Broad, James Anderson.

India: Shikhar Dhawan, Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (Captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.

(IANS)

Kerala Congress, Left call for shutdown against rising oil prices

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The ruling Left and the Congress-led opposition have called for a state-wide shutdown on September 10 to protest against the rising oil prices, “which the BJP-led Union government has failed to curb”.

A day earlier, the national leadership of the Congress party called for a nation-wide protest and on Friday, the state Congress President M.M. Hassan told reporters here that they have decided to hold it in Kerala from dawn to dusk.

“We have instructed all our party members that it should hold a peaceful protest and at no cost should anyone attempt to take law into their own hands,” said Hassan.

On Friday the state leadership of the CPI-M met here and said they have decided to see that even while observing a shutdown in the state, the relief operations in flood-affected areas will go on unaffected and exempted all essential services form the shutdown.

(IANS)

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