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AWS picks 24 Indian startups for space accelerator programme

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New Delhi, June 28 2024-

Amazon Web Services (AWS) on Friday announced its first-ever space accelerator programme in India, selecting 24 startups from the country, providing a big boost to the space startup sector.

The selected startups operate in a range of space segments such as spacecraft propulsion, orbital and launch vehicles, satellite imagery, geospatial applications, weather analysis, and space tourism, among others.

These include a launch vehicle and sustainable satellite startup from Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu; an advanced geospatial analysis startup from Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands; and a satellite technology-based precision farming startup from Ahmedabad, Gujarat, among others.

“This is the fourth consecutive year that AWS has run a Space Accelerator programme, but the first one we’ve tied to one specific country”, Clint Crosier, Director of the Aerospace and Satellite business at AWS

The programme is part of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) agreement signed between AWS and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) in 2023.

Crosier said AWS chose India for the accelerator programme “because of extraordinary growth opportunities in the Indian space sector.” Besides a “record number of new Indian space startups forming, there is strong support from the government,” Crosier added.

The 14-week programme will provide startups with dedicated technical expertise, specialised AWS training, and mentoring from space domain and technical experts.

In addition, the shortlisted startups will also receive up to $100,000 cumulatively in AWS credits and support to build and scale their solutions. (Agency)

EU leaders reach agreement on top jobs

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Brussels, June 28 2024-

The European Council summit has agreed to formally nominate Germany’s Ursula von der Leyen for a second term as president of the European Commission.

European Council President Charles Michel confirmed the nomination on social media platform X.

In addition to von der Leyen’s nomination, EU leaders agreed to elect former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa as President of the European Council, while nominating Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas as the EU’s foreign policy chief, Xinhua news agency reported.

“It is with a strong sense of mission that I will take up the responsibility of being the next President of the European Council,” Costa stated on X. He added that he is fully committed to promoting unity among all 27 member states and focused on implementing the strategic agenda for the next five years approved at the summit.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni voted against Costa and Kallas while she abstained on von der Leyen’s re-appointment. Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban voted against von der Leyen, in favour of Costa and abstained on Kallas, Euronews reported, citing diplomatic sources. (Agency)

India gives UN $1.16 million for promotion of Hindi

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United Nations, June 28 2024-

India has contributed $1.16 million to the world organisation for the promotion of Hindi.

R. Ravindra, the charge d’affaires of India’s Permanent Mission, gave the cheque on Thursday to Ian Phillips, the director of the News and Media Division of the UN’s Department of Global Communications (DGC).

The contribution is a special payment made in addition to the assessments for the UN’s regular and the peacekeeping budgets “to mainstream and consolidate news and multimedia content of DGC in the Hindi language”, the mission said.

India has partnered with the DGC since 2018 when the Hindi @ UN project was launched “to enhance the public outreach of the United Nations in the Hindi language, and to spread greater awareness about global issues among millions of Hindi-speaking people around the world”, according to the mission.

The UN produces an audio Hindi news bulletin every week on matters relating to the world organisation.

The UN also maintains X, Instagram and Facebook social media accounts in Hindi, in addition to a news website.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken at the UN in Hindi, with simultaneous translation provided by India.

The late Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the first to speak in Hindi at the UN when he addressed the General Assembly as External Affairs Minister in 1977.

The UN started with five official languages, English, French, Chinese, Russian, and Spanish, in which simultaneous interpretations of meetings are made, and official documents produced and, starting in 1973, Arabic was added.

There has been a push to add to the UN’s range of multilingualism, but the main constraint is finance, and that is why India is paying for the Hindi initiative.

German-speaking Austria and Germany (at that time comprising East and West Germanies) undertook to cover the expenses for a translation service covering documents of some UN bodies.

The DGC has increased the use of Kiswahili and Portuguese, languages used in Africa, in social media and in radio and TV programmes.

It also started producing important announcements and officials’ messages in Persian, Bangla and Urdu. (Agency)

India leads global AI research, Bengaluru 7th best AI Hub: Report

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New Delhi, June 28 2024-

Bengaluru is now ranked seventh on the top 10 list of artificial intelligence (AI) Hubs worldwide, a report showed on Friday, adding that India (tied with Germany) has the highest number of AI research institutions globally.

Bengaluru, with 759 AI startups has an aggregate score of 4.64, according to Linkee.ai which conducted research to identify the top 10 leading AI Hubs in 2024.

When it comes to AI research institutions, India (Bengaluru) and Germany (Berlin) topped the chart, with nine such research facilities each.

China with 518 AI startups has just six AI research institutions, the report mentioned.

The Berlin Institute for the Foundations of Learning and Data (BIFOLD) is one of the prominent AI research institutions.

AI Hubs are the cities most invested in AI, where there are several AI-related jobs, AI specialists, data scientists, and machine learning specialists get highly paid along with a huge number of AI institutions.

“Similar to Berlin, Bengaluru has the highest number of AI research institutions on the list, as well as the highest number of available AI jobs in the city,” said the report.

Boston in the US leads the list as the top AI Hubs in 2024, with a score of 6.26.

Singapore ranks second on the list of the best AI Hubs in the world, generating an aggregate score of 5.92.

Tel Aviv, Israel is the third-leading AI Hub in 2024, owing to its total score of 5.62.

Zurich, Switzerland holds the fourth position on the list and Toronto, Canada ranks fifth.

Five out of the 10 listed leading AI Hubs are Asian cities, according to the report. (Agency)

18-year-old girl gang-raped in Gurugram; accused absconding

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Gurugram, June 27 2024-

An 18-year-old girl has been allegedly gang-raped in Gurugram’s Sohna area by five persons after she was abducted by them from her house, the police said on Thursday.

According to the police, the incident occurred on the intervening nights of Wednesday and Thursday.

The girl, a student of Class 9, was abducted from her house, following which the accused took turns to rape her. She eventually fell unconscious.

After committing the crime, the accused dumped the girl at a place near her locality and threatened her with dire consequences if she disclosed the matter to anyone.

On Thursday morning, local residents informed the victim’s family when she was spotted lying on a street.

Later, the girl narrated her ordeal to her family members, following which her father approached the police and registered a complaint.

The Sohna Police have registered a case under relevant sections of the IPC.

Inspector Jagjit Singh said the victim had suggested one of the accused’s names as Imran.

“The suspects are still absconding, and they will be arrested soon,” the police officer said. (Agency)

Heavy rains flood key junctions in Gurugram

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Gurugram, June 28 2024-

A heavy spell of pre-monsoon rain turned Gurugram’s major roads, sectors and colonies into a river on Friday morning.

As per the data from the district administration Gurugram City recorded 30 mm of rain between 4.00 am and 8.00 am on Friday. The data also showed that Sohna saw the maximum rainfall of 82 mm and Wazirabad saw 55 mm.

Waterlogging was reported at several key junctions, including Sector-4, 5, 30, 22, 10-A, 9, 31, 40, 48, Police line, Bus Stand Road, Sheetla Mata Road, Narsinghpur service road, Hero Honda Chowk, Basai Chowk, Khandsa, Sanjay Gram Road, Sohna Road and Subhash Chowk, which resulted in heavy water logging and traffic snarls.

Internal sectors and colonies such as sectors 7, 6, 12A, 29, 39, 47, Palam Vihar, Sheetla Colony and Rajiv Nagar also had flooded streets.

In some areas, even on the expressway Pedestrians had to wade through knee-deep water at some places.

“Nothing has changed. The Gurugram authorities are fooling people. They just do planning and noting on the ground. There is waterlogging after rain at the same spots. After rain we can not walk on the sector roads,” said Mohit Yadav, a resident of Sector 40.

As the rainwater failed to recede during the morning hours, the entire stretch from village Jharsa to Sector 30 and Narsinghpur service road on the national highway was turned into a river.

“In our sector, stormwater drains are damaged or not cleaned. Several written complaints have been given to MCG to construct them but in vain. The sector was developed years ago but the basic infrastructure is yet to be upgraded,” said a representative of Sector-47 RWA.

“There was heavy congestion at Narsinghpur Chowk due to waterlogging. It seems that the city’s infrastructure is not meant to handle heavy rainfall,” said a resident of Narsinghpur village.

The district administration recently identified 112 waterlogging-prone spots. Municipal corporation officials, however, informed that teams have been formed by the civic agency to monitor waterlogging points and take swift rectification measures.

GMDA, MCG and the irrigation department have also decided to install more high-power pumps at waterlogging points along the Delhi-Jaipur Expressway, including at Narsinghpur.

But these steps have failed to resolve the waterlogging problem at Narsinghpur, which has emerged as one of the biggest choke points on the Expressway whenever it rains.

“1,000 plus traffic personnel have been deployed at key junctions for traffic management, Traffic police were already on the spot facilitating traffic movement. We also coordinated with the civic authorities to drain out the water for smooth traffic movement,” said Virender Vij, DCP (traffic).

Meanwhile, GMDA officials said the heavy rain caused flooding in some places, but it started receding once rainfall stopped. (Agency)

Centre to conduct thorough check of airports, says Civil Aviation Minister

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New Delhi, June 28 2024-

Following the canopy collapse at Terminal-1 of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport on Friday, the Centre will conduct a thorough check of all the airports in the country.

Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu, who visited the Terminal-1 site soon after the incident, said, “We will conduct a thorough check on all the airports that come under our purview…we will make the necessary report and see if there is a requirement for an independent body for this.”

At least one person died and four others were injured when a canopy at Terminal 1 collapsed on Friday amid heavy rain.

After inspecting the spot, the Minister said, “We have asked the Delhi International Airport Limited to do a verification and inspection from their side. But we are not leaving it up to them. From the Ministry, we have the DGCA, which underlooks the safety aspect, which will be supervising this inspection and will submit its report.”

“From the ministry side, I can assure you that this is taken as a serious issue, not just in this airport but all across the country, with similar structures,” the Minister said.

While giving details of the incident, the Minister said, “Today morning at 5, a very unfortunate incident happened at IGI Airport Terminal-1, when a section of the canopy outside of the Airport building collapsed due to heavy rain since night. I express my condolences to the life that has been lost in this tragic incident, and along with that, we are taking care of the four people who are injured. As soon as the incident came to our notice, we reacted immediately, we sent the emergency response team, safety team, CISF and NDRF teams for a thorough inspection to ensure no other casualties were there.”

The Minister further said, “…we have informed the airlines that passengers should not face any inconvenience…The passengers will get full refunds and other than that if they want to travel from the alternative routes, they will be assisted.” (Agency)

Sher-e-Punjab T-20 Cup: Blasters win the title, Trident Stallions runners-up

Mohali, June 27, 2024 (Yes Punjab News)

Trident Stallions played brilliantly in the Sher-e-Punjab T20 Cup Season-2, but they missed the victory in the last over. Defending champions BLV Blasters captured the cup for the second consecutive time.

Trident batted first and scored 204 runs losing 5 wickets in 20 overs. In response, BLV Blasters achieved the target losing 6 wickets in 19.4 overs.

In the final played at IS Bindra Stadium, Trident Stallions won the toss and decided to bat. Prabhsimran Singh played a captaincy innings and scored 50 runs off 31 balls.

Supporting him, Aditya returned after scoring 25 runs, but Salil Arora played a brilliant innings. He scored an unbeaten 78 off 33 balls to take the score to 204/5.

His innings with a strike rate of 236.36 included 6 fours and 5 sixes. Ramandeep Singh contributed 22 runs. Aradhya Shukla and Simranjeet Singh took 2-2 wickets for the Blasters.

In reply, opener Harnoor Pannu scored 83 runs and Anmol Malhotra contributed 58 runs for BLV Blasters. Both took the victory away from Trident and in the last over Harpreet Brar hit two sixes to seal the victory for the team.

Blasters scored 205/6 in 19.4 overs. Gurwinder Bhullar took 3 wickets for Trident, while Gurnoor Brar took 2 wickets. Ramandeep got one success.

Elon Musk’s mother wishes him b’day, says ‘Thank you for 53 yrs of joy & excitement’

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New Delhi, June 28 2024-

Elon Musk’s mother Maye Musk on Friday wished the tech billionaire a happy birthday and thanked him for bringing “53 years of joy and excitement” into her life.

“Happy Birthday @elonmusk. Thank you for 53 years of joy and excitement,” she wrote on X.

Along with the post, she shared a picture of the Tesla CEO from his childhood celebrating his birthday.

“Hoping you smile today as much as you did on your 4th birthday, after seeing the cake your Aunt Lynne made for you. Proud of you,” Maye Musk mentioned.

Steve Jurvetson, Co-founder of Future Ventures, also wished the tech billionaire on his birthday.

“Happy Birthday Elon Musk. And 30 years ago, dreaming the American Dream,” Jurvetson wrote.

A lot of users also wished Musk on his birthday in the comment section.

“Happy Birthday Elon sir. Have the best day and enjoy every great thing that is happening in your life. To many more,” a user wrote.

“Happy Birthday to Elon! Wishing him all happiness in the world,” another user said.

One more user stated, “Happy Birthday Elon and blessings to you Maye for sharing him with the world. He has saved us”. (Agency)

13 killed in Karnataka road accident, 8 women & 2 children included

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Haveri, (Karnataka) June 28 2024-

At least 13 people were killed, including eight women and two children, after a tempo traveller rammed into a parked truck in Haveri district of Karnataka on Friday.

The incident took place near Gundenahalli Cross on the Bengaluru-Pune National Highway.

The deceased were identified as Parashuram (45), Bhagya (40), Nagesha (50), Vishalakshi (50), Subhadra Bai (65), Punya (50), Manjula Bai (57), Adarsh (23), Manasa (24), Rupa (40), and Manjula (50).

Two children, aged four and six years, also died in the incident. Four other persons are in serious condition and are being treated at the hospital.

Police said that the deceased hailed from Emmehatti village near Bhadravathi town in Shivamogga district.

One of the deceased, Adarsh, had purchased a tempo traveller vehicle, and his family, relatives, and friends had gone to Tiwari Lakshmi Temple in Maharashtra and performed a special worship ceremony for the new vehicle. They later visited Tulja Bhavani Temple and then the famous Renuka Yellamma Temple in Saundatti Yellamma, Belagavi district of Karnataka.

The incident occurred while they were returning to their native place from Belagavi.

The initial investigation suspects that the driver could not see the parked truck on the side of the road due to mist and rammed into it. The police also suspect that the driver may have dozed off.

Haveri SP Anshu Kumar said that there were over 15 persons in the tempo traveller vehicle and the accident took place while they were returning to their home.

“The bodies have been shifted to the Haveri District Hospital mortuary. The incident took place within the Byadagi police station limits,” Haveri SP said. (Agency)