DURBAN, South Africa – A South African couple awakened in the middle of the night by what they thought was the howling wind was stunned to find a highly venomous spitting cobra slithering among their bathroom toiletries. The incident took place at a home in the city of Durban on the country’s eastern coast on Nov. 14. The footage shows South African snake expert Jason Arnold catching the Mozambique spitting cobra (Naja mossambica) from under the couple’s fridge after a lengthy stand-off. Arnold said he received a call from the frightened couple after they were awoken by hissing sounds and…
Author: zenger.news
FRASER ISLAND, Australia— A massive bushfire quickly spread throughout scenic Frasier Island, off Australia’s eastern coast, on Nov. 17. The island, a World Heritage site, is the biggest sand island in the world, roughly 76 miles in length. Bushfires are a natural part of the Australian landscape, as many native plants are fire-prone. Multiple firefighting aircraft have been operating in the area during the past two days, including a Large Air Tanker (LAT), a specialized tanker, used to control the blaze and help prevent the fire from advancing. Video posted on Facebook by Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) shows…
Kolkata, India — Residents of a small floating village in the world’s largest democracy — India — were granted voting rights for the first time in 30 years on Nov. 11. Champu Khangpok, in Loktak lake, the largest freshwater lake in the region, in the northeastern state of Manipur, was struck from the electoral records in the mid-1980s. “We came to know there were residents who are eligible for enrollment in this particular village. After getting the reports, a police station was rationalized for them and the report was forwarded to the election commissioner,” said Ramananda Nongmeikapam, the joint chief…
Tamil Nadu — While a number of global investors are striking deals with distressed firms in India, major obstacles, including legal and regulatory issues, delays, and lack of information, have caused many of the purchases to fall through. Several large international firms, including KKR, Apollo Global Management, Oaktree Capital Management, and Liberty House Group, have bid for distressed firms in India since the country introduced its Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code in 2016, but not many deals have succeeded. The IBC itself has faced several roadblocks, prompting lawmakers to weigh a number of amendments aimed at faster resolution of cases. “The…
Islamabad — Pakistan for years has been accused of providing a safe harbor for terrorists, but it is now raising similar allegations against its neighbor India. The two countries have had a contentious relationship since their independence. Top Pakistani government and military officials have released a dossier with what they claim is “irrefutable” evidence of India sponsoring terrorist activities in Pakistan. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Maj. Gen. Babar Iftikhar released the dossier on Nov 14. India has rejected all of the accusations. “The state boasting about being the world’s biggest democracy [India] is becoming a rogue state,” said…
Tamil Nadu — A Biden presidency in the United States and India’s weight on the Emerging Markets Index could have a positive impact on Indian markets, which currently have got over $17 billion in foreign funds this financial year. “We expect Biden’s government to focus on health care and other things instead of the capital markets, which would result in the weakening of the dollar,” said Nasser Salim, managing partner at Flexi Capital, a New Delhi-based financial management company. “This will weaken the dollar and money will move to emerging markets. Salim also expects the Biden administration to come up…
Goa — For the past six months, India’s smallest state, Goa, has become the epicenter of a nationwide movement against the country’s Environment Ministry. Hundreds and thousands of Goans are protesting against three development projects cutting through dense forests of Bhagwan Mahaveer and Mollem national parks. Support has poured in from across India, as well as from other countries. The three projects are the expansion of National Highway 4-A, construction of a new transmission line, and the doubling of a railway line. It is projected that around 100,000 trees in 170 hectares of forest land will fall due to these…
Guwahati, Assam — An Indian Border Security Force official has been arrested for his alleged role in a multimillion-dollar ring accused of smuggling cows across the border into Bangladesh from West Bengal. Satish Kumar, then commandant of 36 Battalion of the Border Security Force, faces corruption charges for allegedly accepting bribes and facilitating the illegal movement of cattle across the border. He was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation on Nov. 17. His son, other unnamed officials and three unnamed traders who allegedly bribed Kumar, are also accused in the operation. The protection of cows, considered sacred by India’s…
RHENEN, Netherlands — A cute panda cub made its debut at a Dutch zoo, causing great excitement among visitors. The male cub named Fan Xing took his first steps at the Ouwehands Zoo in the Dutch city of Rhenen on Nov. 19. He was born in May, but spent his first few months sequestered with his mother. Most pandas live in forests in the mountains of southwest China, subsisting primarily on bamboo. They can eat up to 84 pounds daily and can weigh 330 pounds. In the wild, they can live 15 to 20 years, but longer in captivity — an…
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — In an effort to reduce Abu Dhabi’s carbon footprint, the city is planting mangrove forests.By December, UAE-built drones will plant 4,000 mangrove seeds near global energy company ENGIE’s Mirfa power plant in Abu Dhabi, as well as monitor their growth over the next year. This is the first phase of the Blue Carbon Environmental and Social Responsibility project from Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD). It encourages the growth of coastal ecosystems, including seagrasses, mangroves and salt marshes, that absorb carbon at a much faster rate — and can continue to do so for millions…