Page 5 - Christmas

Christmas Eve shooting at northwest England pub leaves 1 dead, 3 wounded

A Christmas Eve shooting at a pub in northwest England killed a young woman and wounded three men, police said on Sunday. The Merseyside Police force said it was investigating the 11:50 pm on Saturday shooting at the Lighthouse pub in the town of Wallasey as a murder case. Police have not detained any suspects. This investigation is in the very early stages, and we understand that this is a truly shocking and devastating incident that has happened just before Christmas Day in a busy venue full of young people," Detective Superintendent David McCaughrean said. The woman died at a hospital with an injury consistent with a gunshot wound, the police force said in a statement. Along with the three men wounded, several people were injured, according to the statement. Investigators were seeking witnesses as well as cellphone video and closed circuit television footage to figure out what happened, McCaughrean said. We believe that the gunman left the pub car park in a dark colored vehicle

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PM Modi, Congress president Kharge extend Christmas greetings to nation

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress Party President Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday greeted the nation on the occasion of Christmas

The economics behind Christmas & New Year

Traditional plum cake, gifts wrapped in bright colours, and warm lights—that's what a usual Christmas looks like. But all of this involves vast sums of money. Watch the video to know the economics behind it.

Noida cops tell mall, bar operators to step up security for X-mas, New Year

The Noida Police on Friday held a meeting with operators of shopping malls and bars to review security arrangements ahead of Christmas and New Year and asked them to ramp up preparations during the festive season. The police warned that they would take strict action in cases of drunk driving but also said this time in a novel initiative they would be arranging hired cabs with verified drivers to help tipplers reach home safe. According to industry estimates, nearly two lakh revellers are expected on New Year's eve and January 1 at shopping malls in Sector 18, the biggest market and revenue generator of Noida. The review meeting was held at the NEA Bhawan in Sector 6 in the presence of DCP Noida Harish Chander, Additional DCP Ashutosh Dwivedi and ACP Rajneesh Verma with representatives of malls like Gardens Galleria, DLF Mall of India, Radisson Blu, and bar operators in attendance. The meeting came a day after Police Commissioner Laxmi Singh visited the busy markets and malls in the

Thousands in US's Texas off power amid freezing temp due to Arctic blast

Thousands of people were without power as the Arctic blast rushed into the south-central US state of Texas, bringing freezing temperatures expected to last through Christmas

Zimbabwe to have dark Christmas this year amid power cuts, high prices

To brighten the festive season, the mayor of Zimbabwe's capital, Harare, recently switched on Christmas lights in the city centre. But for many, the event was just a reminder of two things they crave but can't get: electricity and a happy holiday spirit. Not even Mayor Jacob Mafume seemed confident that the capital city will see a sparkling Christmas. We do hope the electricity will remain during the time of the festive season," he said at the lighting ceremony, which in past years has been marked by a cheery atmosphere. "At least today we have it (power) and we hope that as we go forward the lights will not go out. With the threat from COVID-19 receding, Zimbabwe has loosened restrictions on travel and gatherings. But a buoyant holiday mood is not lifting the country which is also coping with the world's highest food inflation. Globally, food prices have spiked as a result of the war in Ukraine and Zimbabweans are hard hit. The southern African nation of 15 million people has the

Over 2,000 flights cancelled in US due to heavy snow, freezing temperatures

Ahead of Christmas holidays, more than 2,270 US flights were cancelled on Thursday (local time) due to heavy snow and freezing temperatures

After 2 years of Covid lull, Delhi restaurants decked for X'mas, New Year

Business closures, slashed menus, empty seats, furloughed staff -- restaurant and cafe owners in Delhi wish to put these unpleasant memories behind them as they prepare to welcome guests for Christmas and New Year after a two-year lull due to coronavirus. The hospitality industry was one of the worst-hit sectors as multiple waves of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic in the last three years had broken its back, forcing many restaurants to shut down permanently or let go many of their staff. However, owners of several restaurants and cafes and their associations feel, the "worst is behind them", hoping that their businesses will once again thrive as "it is beginning to look a lot like Christmas again". Some owners said although there has been a bit of a scare after coronavirus cases were reported in some countries, as far as bookings for Christmas and New Year were concerned, they were back to pre-Covid numbers. The Centre has urged all states and Union Territories to gear up the whole ..

What does economic research tell us about festival gifting and alcohol?

The Chinese managed to wrest a large part of the $200 bn Christmas gift market but failed to make a dent in the biggest gift segment, alcohol

Arctic air likely to blast much of Southern US just before Christmas

Forecasters are warning of treacherous holiday travel and life-threatening cold for much of the nation as an arctic air mass blows into the already-frigid southern United States. We're looking at much-below normal temperatures, potentially record-low temperatures leading up to the Christmas holiday, said Zack Taylor, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. The polar air arrives as an earlier storm system gradually winds down in the northeastern U.S. after burying parts of the region under two feet (61 centimeters) of snow. More than 80,000 customers in New England were still without power on Sunday morning, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks outages across the country. The incoming artic front brings extreme and prolonged freezing conditions for southern Mississippi and southeast Louisiana, the National Weather Service in a special weather statement Sunday. By Thursday night, temperatures will plunge as low as 13 degrees (minus 10.6 Celsius) in Jackson, Mississipp

Hotels, resorts sold out on high demand for Christmas-New Year celebrations

The domestic hospitality industry is gearing up to make the most of full-fledged Christmas and New Year celebrations this time around after two years of washout by the pandemic, with rooms at many hotels and resorts already sold out. As people seek to make up for the winter holidays lost to COVID-19, destinations like Karjat, Lonavala, Vizag, Dharamshala, Udaipur, Manali and Gir are witnessing good demand, apart from traditional popular places like Goa, Kerala and Shimla. "The year-end festive season looks very positive and this year appears to be one of the best years so far for the hospitality sector," Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels Ltd Managing Director, Vijay Dewan told PTI in an e-mailed response. He further said, "All our hotels are gearing up for sold out spaces along with high occupancy in rooms. This year we have lined up some great events during Christmas and New Year's which the guests missed out during the last 2 years due to the pandemic." Mahindra Holidays & Resorts ..

No shine in Surat diamond industry this Christmas, thanks to bad US economy

Festive orders, sales in December down by 15-20% over last year

Spain starts new code for manufacturers to avoid sexism in ads for toys

Spain said Wednesday it's enacting a new ethics code to discourage toy manufacturers from using sexist stereotypes such as dolls for girls and action figures for boys in advertisements as the Christmas season kicks off. A government statement said the new self-regulatory code urges companies to run adverts that engender an image of pluralism and equality, free from stereotypes. The characterisation of girls with sexual connotations will be prohibited and the exclusive association of toys with roles such as caring, domestic work or beauty with them (girls), and action, physical activity or technology with boys will be avoided, the statement said. The idea is that companies will no longer use colours such as blue or pink to indicate products intended for boys or girls, the government said. The code follows an agreement between the Consumer Affairs Ministry, toy manufacturers and publicity companies in April. The code, which updates another from 2005, goes into effect Thursday. It's

Year-end fares go through the roof as airlines fly on low capacity

More than 75 planes are grounded; Goa to see 11% fewer flights in December

Germany urges citizens to avoid Christmas lights in view of energy crisis

Germany should forgo its tradition of Christmas lighting in cities and private households this year due to the energy crisis, an environment advocacy group said

TikTok emerges as most downloaded app globally on Christmas 2021: Report

Popular short video-sharing platform Tiktok has topped the chart of downloads on Christmas Day this year.

Spain records highest-ever 14-day incidence of Covid after Christmas break

Spain on Monday evening said that the 14-day incidence of the coronavirus rose by 294 points in the four days from December 23 to 1,206.21 cases per 100,000 people after the Christmas holiday weekend

Need to bring back Covid curbs in Kolkata in light of X-Mas crowds: Experts

Health experts and doctors cautioned the state government against allowing more such gatherings especially during the New Year festivities

Bulgaria coronavirus update: 1,033 new cases reported on Christmas

733,139 are the total confirmed cases of coronavirus in Bulgaria. This is shown by data from the National Information System