Page 85 - Human Interest
Thanga Darlong gets Vajpayee life-term achievement award
Tripura Deputy Chief Minister Jishnu Dev Varma here on Thursday presented the first Atal Bihari Vajpayee Life-Term Achievement Award to nonagenarian folk musician Thanga Darlong.
Edward Nixon, brother of President Richard Nixon, dies at 88
Edward Nixon, the youngest brother of former President Richard Nixon who staunchly defended his sibling's White House legacy, died Wednesday. He was 88. The Richard Nixon Foundation announced that Nixon died at a nursing facility in Bothell, Washington, a Seattle suburb. A geologist and Navy veteran, Nixon worked on his brother's 1968 and 1972 presidential campaigns and served as co-chairman of the Nixon re-election committee in 1972. In a statement released by the foundation, Richard Nixon's daughters, Tricia Nixon Cox and Julie Nixon Eisenhower, called their uncle "our family's rock" since the former president died in 1994. They also called him a "source of strength." Richard Nixon was 17 years old and getting ready to start college when his youngest brother was born on May 3, 1930, in Whittier, California. Edward Calvert Nixon was the fifth son of Frank and Hannah Nixon and had been the last surviving brother of the former president. Because of their age difference, Edward Nixon ...
Pakistan conveys reservations to OIC over invite to Sushma Swaraj
Pakistan on Thursday said it has conveyed reservations over Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj's presence at the upcoming Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting in the UAE in the wake of rising tensions between the two neighbours.
Body of newly born baby found near Ambala Cantt railway station
The body of a newly born male baby was found near the Ambala Cantt railway station here Thursday, police said. Passersby noticed the body of the newborn at a dumping ground near the railway station and informed the Railway Police, they said. Ram Bachan, in-charge of the Railway police station, said the infant appeared to be around six to seven days old. The body was sent to a civil hospital, he said, adding that an investigation was underway.
Booker Prize finds new sponsor in Silicon Valley billionaire
The Booker Prize Thursday found a new financial backer in venture capitalist and author Michael Moritz, a month after its previous sponsor the Man Group ended its 18-year association with the Britain's most prestigious literary prize. The annual award for novels, which has been known as the Man Booker since 2002, will be paid for the next five years by Crankstart, the charity run by 64-year-old Moritz and his wife Harriet Heyman. Founded in 1969, the 50,000-pound Booker Prize was originally open to writers from Britain, Ireland and the Commonwealth. The US authors became eligible in 2014. Welsh-born Moritz, who is based in San Francisco, is worth USD 3.4 billlionaire, according to Forbes magazine. He will also support The International Booker Prize for translated works. "Neither of us can imagine a day where we don't spend time reading a book. The Booker Prizes are ways of spreading the word about the insights, discoveries, pleasures and joy that spring from great fiction," Moritz ...
Chennai woman on 56-day-long bike expedition seeking re-election of Modi
A woman from Chennai in Tamil Nadu has undertaken a 56-day-long bike expedition seeking a second term for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Marathi poet Vasant Abaji Dahake gets 'Janasthan' award
Veteran Marathi poet and writer Vasant Abaji Dahake has been honoured with the prestigious 'Janasthan' award. The award, instituted by Kusumagraj Pratishthan, was presented to Dahake by noted Marathi writer Madhu Mangesh Karnik at Kalidas Kala Mandir here on Wednesday night. The award, which carries a cash prize of Rs one lakh, a bronze memento and a citation, was given on the occasion of the birth anniversary of celebrated Marathi poet and playwright late V V Shirvadkar, popularly known as Kusumagraj. In 2009, Dahake was given the Sahitya Akademi Award for his collection of poems 'Chitralipi'. He is also known as a playwright, short story writer and critic. He was associated with the little magazine movement in Marathi during the mid-1950s and the 1960s. Dahake was the president of the Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan held at Chandrapur in 2012. In the past, several noted writers, including Vijay Tendulkar, Mangesh Padgaonkar, Narayan Surve, Mahesh Elkunchwar ...
Pete Davidson gets heckler evicted for making joke on Mac Miller
Comedian Pete Davidson got a man evicted from his show in New Jersey after he tried to make fun of rapper Mac Miller's death. Davidson was dating singer Ariana Grande when Miller, her ex-boyfriend, died of an accidental drug overdose. The comedian broke up with Grande soon after the tragedy. During his performance at the South Orange Performing Arts Centre, Davidson joked, "My friend died in my apartment", to which the man tried to heckle the comedian by taking Miller's name. In audio from the show obtained by TMZ, Davidson immediately halted his performance and asked the security to identify the audience member in question and told them to remove him. "I'll wait," he told the crowd, calling the heckler a "f**face". "I will not continue until that kid's gone... I'll leave, so if you want the show to continue, call out the person who did it... I'm not gonna deal with that s**t at my show," he said. The comedian also insisted that the club give the man his money back. After the man was .
Booker Prize finds new sponsor
The Booker Prize will soon be sponsored by Silicon Valley billionaire and author Michael Moritz and his wife Harriet Heyman's charitable foundation "Crankstart", The Guardian reported.
UP: 500 buses to parade on 3.2-km stretch for Guinness record
India is all set to break the records of the United Arab Emirates and make its way into the Guinness Records by parading 500 Kumbh Mela special buses non-stop here, later in the day.Abu Dhabi has a record of running 390 buses in a parade.The Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) has decided to run a fleet of 500 shuttle buses on a stretch of 3.2 kilometres between Sahson toll and Nawabganj toll plaza.The UPSRTC had issued directions to all the 18 regions of the state to send the buses along with manpower in the city by February 27.A couple of observers from the Guinness Book of World Records will witness the record-making attempt on the route on which buses will run.
Novel 'upcycling' process to give plastic second life
Scientists have developed a recycling process that transforms single-use plastic bottles, and fabrics made from a common polyester material into more valuable products with a longer lifespan. Their research, published in the journal Joule, could help protect oceans from plastic waste by boosting the recycled plastics market. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is strong but lightweight, resistant to water, and shatterproof -- properties that make it extremely popular among manufacturers. Although PET is recyclable, most of the 26 million tonnes produced every year ends up in landfills or elsewhere in the environment, where it takes hundreds of years to biodegrade. However, even when it is recycled, the process is far from perfect. Reclaimed PET has a lower value than the original and can only be repurposed once or twice. "Standard PET recycling today is essentially 'downcycling'," said Gregg Beckham, a Senior Research Fellow at US Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy ...
Defying poverty, Tripura tribal artist gets Padma Shri for promoting rare musical instrument
Poverty has not stopped nonagenarian Thanga Darlong -- all of 91 years -- from playing the rosem, a flute-like tribal musical instrument made of bamboo. This labour of love saw him nominated for the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian award, in the Republic Day honours list.
Ed Sheeran marries Cherry Seaborn: Reports
Singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran has reportedly tied the knot with his fiancee Cherry Seaborn. According to EOnline, Sheeran, 28, and Seaborn, 26, got married in a low-key ceremony at their home in December in Suffolk, England. The wedding was attended by close friends and family members of the "Shape of You" hitmaker. The couple had announced their engagement in December 2017. "Got myself a fiancee just before new year. We are very happy and in love, and our cats are chuffed as well," Sheeran had shared on Instagram along side an adorable picture of him and Seaborn. The couple were childhood friends who attended school together in Suffolk, but only became romantically involved years later.
UP eyes new Guinness record by 500 bus parade
The Uttar Pradesh government has set its eyes at a new record in the Guinness World Records by rolling out a fleet of 500 buses here on Thursday, officials said.
Thank you for having the courage to begin telling the truth: Stormy to Cohen
Stormy Daniels on Wednesday (local time) thanked US President Donald Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen for "having the courage" to "begin telling the truth".The adult star's remark came after Cohen, in his now-concluded public testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, claimed that Trump directed him to pay Daniels "illegal hush money" - USD 1,30,000 - during the 2016 Presidential elections.Cohen noted that he was reimbursed for the payment and presented a copy of the cheque before the House Committee to prove it during Wednesday's hearing."Michael, I'm proud of you for finally beginning to tell the truth about what you did, and trying to repair some of the harm you have caused. I can hear the pain and regret you feel for betraying your family and your country. My heart goes out to you and your family," Daniels wrote in the statement posted on Twitter."You spoke about how the president and his attorney put you and your family in danger by calling you a liar and .
Hope history judges Narasimha Rao better than it has so far: Mukherjee, Singh
Former president Pranab Mukherjee and former prime minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday hoped that history will judge P V Narasimha Rao in a better manner than it has done till now. The two leaders were speaking at a function to award the first "P V Narasimha Rao National leadership and lifetime achievement award" to Singh at Teen Murti Bhawan. Mukherjee presented the award to Singh. In his speech, Singh recalled how he did not take very seriously Rao's offer to be inducted in his cabinet as finance minister and said when he called him up, he told him that politicians make many promises and all promises do not fructify. "I do feel I am honoured to participate in this award programme as it reminds the memory and contribution of that great son of India, P V Narasimha Rao ji, and I am quite sure that history will judge him in much better manner than we have done so in the contemporary period," said Mukherjee. Singh too said, "I do sincerely believe that Narasimha Rao ji was a great son of ..
Lata Mangeshkar announces Rs 1 crore help to Indian Army
Legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar will donate Rs one crore to the Indian army to honour the soldiers who were martyred in Pulwama terror attack, her brother Hridaynath said in a statement. Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Smruti Pratishthan Charitable Trust will also donate Rs five lakh, he announced. "We salute the sacrifice of those who stand at the borders for our welfare. This is our humble contribution," Hridaynath said. The cheque will be given at the Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Smruti Pratishthan Awards ceremony at the Shanmukhananda Hall, Mumbai on April 24. Forty CRPF soldiers were killed and five others critically injured when a suicide bomber rammed a vehicle laden with explosives into their bus on February 14. The Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) has claimed responsibility for the attack on the convoy of 78 vehicles that was on its way from Jammu to Srinagar.
Women cricketers to get recognition on Lord's honours board
Women cricketers will finally feature on the Lord's honour board as the 135-year-old Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) has decided to recognise centuries and five-wicket hauls in ODI cricket too.Earlier, only centuries and five-wicket hauls in Test matches were mentioned on the boards at home and away dressing rooms at Lord's.The change is a part of MCC's refurbishment drive at the "Home of Cricket" ahead of 2019 season."We are delighted to now be able to recognise the same achievements for One-Day Internationals as we have done for Test Matches for many years. This is a landmark moment for Lord's, with women's cricket now documented in the dressing rooms for the first time," ESPNcricinfo quoted MCC chief executive and secretary Guy Lavender, as saying."The Honours Boards are amongst the most popular attractions for the many visitors to the Home of Cricket. There is a huge amount of prestige for players to see their name inscribed in history, so it is appropriate for a new installation of
Priyanka Chopra wishes brother and sister-in-law in heartfelt post
Priyanka Chopra recently flew down to Delhi with her husband Nick Jonas for her brother Siddharth Chopra's roka ceremony.An excited Priyanka shared beautiful pictures from the roka ceremony and also congratulated the couple. She also welcomed her to-be sister-in-law to the family.Priyanka posted a series of pictures on her Instagram account from the ceremony along with a heart-warming caption that read, "So proud of my baby brother. Ishita welcome to the family.. you r so beautiful together.. I wish you both the best for the future ! Happy Roka!! @ishittaakumar @siddharthchopra89."In one picture, Siddharth can be seen with his fiancee Ishita Kumar in a puja and in another photo the two can be seen posing in a garden as a happy couple.Reportedly, the roka ceremony took place on Wednesday in New Delhi's Taj Palace Hotel.Priyanka and Nick flew down to Delhi recently and she even shared a picture on her Instagram account. She had captioned the post, "Best travel buddy ever..hello Delhi..
World's smallest baby boy weighing 268 grams sent home healthy
A baby weighing just 268 grams at birth, touted as the "smallest boy" in the world, has been released from hospital here, after growing to a weight of 3,238 grams in an advance that offers hope to babies with very low birth weight.