New Delhi — The Indian government has amended its rules to bring streaming platforms and digital news outlets under the purview of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, which already regulates television programs and movie, raising concerns about the potential for censorship. Under the new notification, issued on Nov. 9, online streaming platforms will be regulated by the ministry, while user-generated content on social media platforms such as Facebook and YouTube will still be overseen by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. The cabinet has now moved films, audio-visual programmes, news and current affairs available online from the technology…
Author: zenger.news
Kolkata, India. — India and Maldives have strengthened ties in the strategic Indian Ocean region with the signing of two agreements, with India granting the Maldives $100 million for a major infrastructure project, as well as a $400 million line of credit for the project. In addition to helping to boost the Maldives economy, the pacts also aim to counter China’s growing influence in the region. The Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) were two of four signed by India’s Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla and his Maldivian counterpart Abdul Ghafoor Mohamed during Shringla’s visit to Malé this week. India granted $100…
ANTOFAGASTA, Chile—At least 17 mutilated shark carcasses have been found along with tires, rubble and urban waste at a large illegal dump on a Chilean beach. The clandestine dumpsite was discovered at the port city of Antofagasta, which included the dead shortfin mako sharks (Isurus oxyrinchus). They were both headless and tailless. Antofagasta Environmental Regional Ministerial Secretary Rafael Castro announced the findings in a statement Nov. 8. Video of the discovery shows Castro and Antofagasta University Professor Carlos Bustamente examining the shark remains scattered on a beach. The sharks have value in markets, so Bustamente is confused as to why…
MORON De La FRONTERA, Spain—Police in Spain have arrested five people after discovering a state-of-the-art cannabis laboratory hidden underneath tennis courts. More than 551 pounds of marijuana were recently seized from the 2,153-square-foot, underground plantation in Moron de la Frontera, the National Police shared on social media on Nov. 3. The marijuana plantation spanned 2,153 square feet underneath the tennis courts. (Newsflash)Police began investigating the location after receiving a tip and accessed the covert lab through a small building connected to the tennis courts. Once inside, officers found the facility was using lighting, air conditioning and extractors to create the…
Colombo — In the latest incident involving Indian fishermen encroaching on Sri Lankan waters, a group of fishermen claimed they were attacked by the Sri Lankan Navy, with stones hurled at them, late last month. The fishermen, who were bottom trawling in the Indian Ocean, were reportedly trespassing in Sri Lanka’s territorial waters. In addition to illegally fishing in the Palk Bay region, the fishermen’s method — bottom trawling — is banned in Sri Lanka. Bottom Trawling is a destructive technique that uses nets dragged across the sea floor to catch fish. As iron chains attached to the nets are…
New Delhi — While fans of fantasy sports in India have boosted the industry’s growth exponentially in the past four years, critics are calling for a ban on online games, which players can bet on. A number of factors have contributed to the growth and popularity of the games, including the high penetration of internet services, low-priced smartphones, and isolation during the pandemic. In fantasy sports, players assemble virtual teams of actual professional athletes and may place bets based on the athletes’ performance in real-life matches. The number of fantasy sports operators in India has boomed from 10 in 2016…
BASQUE COUNTRY, Spain—Unique 27,000-year-old cave engravings found in Spain are being compared to the works of Pablo Picasso, the country’s most famous painter. The “expressionist style” engravings were first discovered in September 2015 in three caves in the Aitzbitarte mountains in the autonomous community of Basque Country. Researchers recently completed an analysis of the carvings, and the results were published Oct. 28. The engravings depict bison, horses and birds and demonstrate an artistic style never before recorded during the time period on the Iberian Peninsula, Diego Garate, head of research at the International Institute of Prehistoric Investigations of Cantabria, told…
New Delhi — India’s antitrust body has ordered an investigation into allegations that Google abused its dominant market position in promoting its payment app and in requiring developers to use its in-app billing system. The Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) announcement on Nov. 9 was in response to claims filed by an informant on Feb. 21 that Google violated various provisions of Section 4 of India’s Competition Act of 2002. The informant was not named. “The Informant has alleged that [Android maker] Google, through its control over the Play Store and Android Operating System (OS), is favoring Google Pay over…
Tamil Nadu — Changes to the country’s insolvency code to speed up resolution of cases and provide special arrangements for small and medium businesses are likely to be taken up by India’s parliament in its winter session next month. Legislators may take up pre-packaged insolvency resolution — a bankruptcy procedure in which a company’s creditors and investors work out a restructuring plan for resolution of the debt before initiating the insolvency process. Similar provisions are in use in bankruptcy cases in the United States and the UK. The amendment is proposed to reduce the amount of litigation and the time…
Kolkata, India — In a country where inter-faith and inter-caste marriages are frowned upon or strictly forbidden, three Indian journalists have started an Instagram account called India Love Project to celebrate couples whose love stories have surmounted such obstacles. Journalists Samar Halarnkar, Priya Ramani and Niloufer Venkatraman launched the project to highlight love stories that have broken “the shackles of faith, caste, ethnicity, and gender,” in the days following controversy over an Indian jewelry advertisement that featured a Hindu woman’s baby shower hosted by her Muslim in-laws. Inter-marriage is typically discouraged in Indian families, and love and relationships outside of…