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Tag: India

  • Nigeria to cooperate with India on ICT – Minister

    The Minister of Communications, Adebayo Shittu, has assured of Nigeria’s readiness to forge closer cooperation with India to achieve meaningful growth in the ICT sector.

    Adebayo made this known in Abuja while briefing newsmen about the proposed 4th edition of the Indo-Africa ICT conference and expo organised by Indian High Commission.

    The event marked this year’s edition in the series scheduled to hold from May 22 to May 23 in Lagos.

    According to the Minister, this expo is very important because it was organised at a time Nigeria had made investment in its ICT at the front burner.

    Adebayo said “Nigeria being the fastest growing ICT market and with a young population that have capacity and innovative mind, we stand to partner and learn from India.

    “The Federal Government’s campaign on encouragement of the patronage of locally produced goods and services is on course.

    “Government also put the spotlight on local manufacturers when, via three strategic executive orders, it compelled MDA’s to channel at least 40 per cents of procurement to locally-made goods and services.

    “This expo will enable Nigeria’s start-ups, entrepreneurs and businesses to form partnerships with their foreign counterpart and pitch innovative creations for public/commercial acceptance.

    “Government is more than ever before prepared to patronise made-in Nigeria goods, instead of buying foreign products, to grow faster and stimulate economic growth.”

    Adebayo urged Indian investors to key into the numerous untapped resources and huge potential market in the country, to promote business cooperation between the two countries.

    He described Nigeria to be among the fastest growing markets in African and by extension the world that had improved in macroeconomic indicator, comfortable business environment and population.

    He, however, reiterated that the nation’s policy thrust is to step with reality of digital and fourth revolution, create viable environment for investment in network infrastructure.

    Earlier, the High Commissioner of India to Nigeria, Mr Shri Reddy, said that the Third edition of the event took place in Lagos in September 2017

    According to him, the holding of the 4th edition of the expo is reflective of commitment of India to engage with African countries, to promote use of ICTs in national economic development.

    Reddy said “the choice of Lagos for this event for a second time is a recognition of the vast potentials that exists in Nigeria.

    “It is also because of the nation’s importance as gateway to the West-Africa and other parts of the continent.”

    He said that India and Africa would forge closer cooperation in efforts to accelerate growth in ICT with the view to boost economies through the use of advanced technologies and services.

    He said that ICT would provide business opportunity for local entrepreneurs to pitch their solutions and products to over 50 Indian companies expected to attend the forthcoming event.

    The expo was an initiative of Telecom Equipment and Services Export Promotion Council (TECP), an organisation set-up by government of India, to promote telecom services.

     

  • Bizzare! Thunder fires 12 persons to death in Northern India

    Bizzare! Thunder fires 12 persons to death in Northern India

    At least 12 people have died in a thunderstorm in the Northern Indian State of Uttar Pradesh in the past 24 hours, officials said Thursday.

    “While four people died in Etawah district, three were killed in Mathura, two in Firozabad and one each in Agra, Aligarh and Kanpur districts.

    “Some people died after lightning struck them, some were killed as trees and power poles fell on them,’’ a disaster management official said.

    “Officials are assessing the damage in these districts,’’ he added.

    India had earlier this week put as many as 13 of its states, including Uttar Pradesh and two central government-territories on high storm alert for 48 hours.

    Last week, more than 125 people died and over 300 others were injured in fierce dust storms in northern and western India.

    The storms also brought down electricity poles, uprooted trees, destroyed houses and killed livestock in five states, including Uttar Pradesh.

     

  • Panic as stray dogs kill 6 children

    Panic as stray dogs kill 6 children

    Police on Monday said packs of stray dogs have mauled six children to death in Northern India in recent days, sparking panic among villagers, who are afraid to go their farms and are keeping their children at home.

    District police chief Anand Kulkarni said by phone that the victims, aged between five and 12 years, were killed in and around Sitapur district in Uttar Pradesh state in the last four days, with a 10-year-old boy being critically injured in the latest attack on Sunday.

    “These ferocious dogs which roam in packs comprising seven to eight canines have been targeting children.

    “At least 12 kids were killed since November with the attacks peaking,’’ Kulkarni said.

    The attacks occurred at farms and isolated areas in the district, when children were either grazing their cattle or using outhouse toilets.

    Street dogs have long posed a menace in India’s towns and cities, and civic authorities have reported a huge number of complaints of dog bites.

    Incidents of feral dogs killing children and women in other regions in India also occurred once every few months, but this is perhaps the first time that a high number of fatal dog attacks has been reported from one area.

     

  • 6 wedding guests electrocuted in eastern India – Police

    6 wedding guests electrocuted in eastern India – Police

    Police said six wedding guests were electrocuted when a live high-tension power wire fell on top of a bus conveying them to a wedding in the eastern Indian state of Bihar.

    “The freak incident took place in Chennari area of the state’s Rohtas district late Tuesday night when a live high-tension power wire fell on a group of people sitting on top of a bus,” a police
    official said.

    The official said the bus was ferrying people to a marriage function when the mishap happened.

    He said the victims have been admitted to a local hospital, where the condition of two are said to be serious.

    “The bus driver has been booked for allowing people to sit on the roof of the vehicle and carrying more than its loaded capacity,” the official said.

    He said a probe has been ordered into the incident.

  • 24 injured in cylinder explosion

    Police said 24 people have been injured in a cylinder explosion at a crowded labour colony in the northern Indian state of Punjab Thursday, police said.

    “The explosion took place when some laborers were cooking in one of the makeshift houses in New Smart Colony in the Giaspura area of Ludhiana city,” a police official said.

    “The gas cylinder had first caught fire and exploded when the laborers tried to put it out using water,” he said.

    Onlookers who had gathered near the house sustained injuries following the explosion, he said, adding that the condition of five are said to be serious.

    “A probe has been ordered into the incident,” the official added.

     

  • Indian Court sentence spiritual guru to life imprisonment for raping teenager

    An Indian spiritual guru with millions of followers around the globe was sentenced to life imprisonment on Wednesday for raping a young female devotee.

    Judge Madhusudan Sharma found Asaram Bapu, 77, guilty of raping the 16-year-old girl at his ashram near the northern city of Jodhpur in 2013, lawyers linked with the case said.

    The judge pronounced the verdict inside a city jail. Heavy security had been deployed in the region amid fears of violence by his followers.

    “The court has handed Asaram life in prison till death. He will have to spend the remainder of his natural life behind bars,” the victim’s lawyer, Utsav Bains, told dpa.

    He explained it was the maximum punishment for the crime under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POSCO) Act.

    “Although the judgement is a ray of hope for many such victims in the country, the trial also shows how our criminal justice system is tilted in favour of the powerful and against the poor and helpless,” Bains said.

    “Today’s victory is solely because of the brave girl and her father. They faced threats to life, were not provided security even as witnesses were being shot, but they were not deterred. They fought a lonely battle.”

    The verdict came amid rising public anger in India over cases of rape of young girls in recent days.

    India’s government last week approved stringent punishments for sexual violence against children, including death penalty for those convicted of raping girls below the age of 12 years.

    Vikas Pahwa, a lawyer for Asaram, who denied the rape, said they would challenge the verdict in a higher court.

    Asaram was arrested in 2013 after a case of sexual assault was filed by the parents of the girl, both Asaram’s followers.

    The girl, who was taking spiritual lessons at one of his ashrams, was taken to Asaram, on the pretext that she was possessed by evil spirits and needed to be exorcised.

    The guru and his son are also facing trial in another rape case in which two sisters have accused the men of rape.

    Asaram, who has a long flowing white beard and dresses in white robes, has 400 ashrams that teach meditation and yoga. He wields considerable political clout and has millions of followers around the world.

    Four northern Indian states that have a large number of Asaram’s followers were on high alert amid fears of violence. Security was also tightened at the home of the young woman.

    India has numerous so-called godmen, several of whom have run into trouble with the law, including sexual assault.

    Last year, another popular guru, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping two disciples.

    Followers of Singh had gone on a rampage and the resulting violence claimed 38 lives and left more than 250 injured.

    dpa

  • 21 wedding guests killed in India road accident – Police

    Police on Wednesday said 21 members of a group travelling to a wedding in central India were killed when the small truck in which they were travelling fell off a bridge into a dry river bed.

    Senior administration official Dilip Kumar said at least 29 others were injured in the accident late Tuesday in Madhya Pradesh state’s Sidhi district.

    Kumar said the victims, mostly family and friends of the groom, were travelling to the wedding in Pamaria village when their mini-truck swerved off the Jogdaha bridge and fell about 50 to 60 feet down into the Sone river bed.

    Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Chouhan has announced aid of 200,000 rupees (about 3,044 dollars) each for the kin of the deceased and 50,000 rupees each to the injured.

    Tens of thousands of people are killed in road crashes in India every year.

    The accidents are mostly blamed on poorly maintained roads and vehicles or negligent driving.

     

  • Crude bomb blast at Indian government relief office in Nepal

    A crude bomb went off outside an Indian government relief office in Nepal causing minor damage but no injuries, officials said on Tuesday, in what appeared to be a rare gesture of Nepali anger toward its giant neighbor to the south.

    The blast happened in Biratnagar town, near the Indian border, 200 km (125 miles) southeast of the capital, Kathmandu, late on Monday, police official Tilak Shrestha told Reuters.

    A wall of the Indian compound, set up to coordinate movement of vehicles in the border area after widespread floods in 2008 closed the main road, was damaged, said Seshnarayan Paudel, a senior district official.

    “The incident took place at night and there was no one inside the office,” Paudel said.

    No one claimed responsibility and the motive was not known, he said.

    Army spokesman Colonel Vijay Thapa said the blast was caused by a crude bomb made in a pressure cooker.

    India is Nepal’s largest trade partner and the supplier of the bulk of its consumer goods and India’s pervasive economic and diplomatic influence is at times a source of resentment in Nepal.

    Nepal has in recent years criticized what it sees as Indian interference in agitation by some ethnic minority people in Nepal campaigning for greater political and economic rights.

    An Indian embassy official confirmed that there were no injuries in the blast but gave no more details.

    Reuters

  • Google appeals Indian antitrust watchdog’s ‘search bias’ verdict: sources

    Online search giant Google has filed an appeal at the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal against a judgment from India’s competition watchdog that found it guilty of search bias, official sources told media on Tuesday.

    The appeal was filed on Monday, one of the sources said.

    In February, the Competition Commission of India imposed a 1.36 billion rupees (20.95 million dollars) fine on Google, saying it was abusing its dominance in online web search and online search advertising markets.

    Google, the core unit of U.S. firm Alphabet Inc did not immediately respond to a media request for comment.

    A CCI official said that its judgment was robust and that the competition watchdog plans to defend its verdict at the NCLAT.

    Google was found to be indulging in practices of search bias and by doing so, it causes harm to its competitors as well as to users, the CCI said in its 190-page judgment.

    The Indian watchdog’s judgment is the latest antitrust setback for the world’s most popular search engine.

    Last year, The European Commission imposed a record 2.4 billion euro (three billion dollars) fine on the company for favoring its shopping service and demoting rival offerings.

    Google has appealed against the verdict.

    In India, the Commission found that Google, through its search design, had placed its commercial flight search function at a prominent position on the search results page to the disadvantage of businesses trying to gain market access.

    The CCI ruling brought to an end a probe first started by the watchdog in 2012 on complaints filed by matchmaking website Bharat Matrimony and a not-for-profit organisation, Consumer Unity and Trust Society (CUTS).

     

  • Journalist shot inside residence near Indian capital

    A journalist was shot and wounded critically inside his residence near the Indian capital city New Delhi, police said Monday.

    The TV journalist Anuj Chaudhary working with a Hindi news channel was shot Sunday evening in Ghaziabad (Uttar Pradesh) on the outskirts of New Delhi.

    “Last evening two assailants came on a motorcycle and barged inside the house of Anuj Chaudhary, where they fired
    upon him in the stomach and right hand,” a police official quoting family members said.

    “Chaudhary was immediately removed to hospital where he is being treated.”

    Chaudhary is associated with Sahara Samay, a Hindi TV news channel.

    “We are investigating the case from all angles to unmask the assailants,” the police official said.

    Chaudhary’s wife is a local politician associated with India’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), a party that has
    support base in Uttar Pradesh and following among millions of low-caste Dalits.

    NAN