Analysis: 'Hell yes, I'm tough enough to be PM'

Summary: Hell yes, I'm tough enough.

By Ross HawkinsPolitical correspondent, BBC News Ed Miliband might just have acquired a catchphrase. The Labour leader who Jeremy Paxman dubbed a "north London geek" borrowed the argot of a Wild West gunslinger when he came out to confront questions about his character during the first of the leaders' TV specials. When Paxman - the grand alpha-male of political interviewing - leaned in, so too did Miliband. "That's why Cameron didn't want to debate him," one Labour aide declared, at volume, as he entered the post-show spin room. Labour think Miliband has been caricatured and if the public sees more of the real man they will be impressed. Political image The question is: will the tough guy image convince the public? Miliband faced hostile questions from the voters in the studio audience, some of whom looked pretty unconvinced by the answers. They picked, once again, over his relationship with the brother he beat to the leadership. It's healing, apparently. But then despite this not being a head-to-head debate, and certainly not the event the broadcasters originally wanted, it wasn't an easy night for either leader. David Cameron came under sustained fire from Paxman, accepting that he had failed to meet his commitment on net migration. Could you live on a zero-hours contract he was asked, time and time again. Cameron mentioned a government ban on exclusivity in those contracts, but he squirmed a little all the same. Westminster spin There was an on the record commitment from him to serve every day of a second term, while committing not to serve a third. Just how would that work? A question the PM's aides say is for another day. There were interesting hints from the other side about their future plans - Ed Miliband said overall spending would probably fall under Labour. But really - this was all about the theatre. It was pretty good telly, but then this is written in the spin room half an hour after the show's end credits. Everyone here, now, seems excited - spinners, journalists and politicians. The Westminster village has come to west London to play its favourite games. Just how it will actually go down in the country at large, and just how much attention voters will give to 90 minutes of politics on a Thursday night several weeks before the election, won't be revealed amid the dirty coffee cups of a post-programme spin room.

नरक हाँ, मैं काफी कठोर हूँ।


Pakistan's battle against Balochistan separatists sparks anger and suspicion

Summary: Pakistan says it is winning the battle against separatist insurgents in the restive province of Balochistan. But Baloch activists say abductions, torture and killings by the army are deepening hostility for Pakistan.

By Shahzeb JillaniBBC News, Turbat On a hot sunny day, a group of aspiring young men and women are attending classes at a small university in Turbat. Established two years ago in rented accommodation, it's the city's first public university. "Just look at our campus," says Hani Abdur Rasheed, an outspoken student doing a Master's in commerce. "You could hardly call it a university." For a region with a strong sense of grievance against the central government, it's a rudimentary start. The university, which has about 500 students, is attracting enrolment from remote areas of southern Balochistan. "Lack of education has been the biggest obstacle for us. And it's all due to decades of official neglect. The government spends more on soldiers than schools and colleges," says Ms Rasheed. The army has fought separatist Baloch militants on and off during much of Pakistan's existence. The latest wave of insurgency was triggered after the army bombed and killed an elderly Baloch tribal chief, Nawab Akbar Bugti, in 2006. Nine years on, the army says the militants - or "the miscreants" as it likes to call them - are either on the run or increasingly laying down their arms. The government has encouraged that in an offer for a general "amnesty". The scheme involves financial rewards for fighters who agree to renounce violence against the state. Pictures and news footage of tribesmen publicly surrendering their weapons before government officials have been running prominently on the Pakistani media. But Ghani Parwaaz, a respected Baloch poet and writer in the city of Turbat, dismisses the campaign as farcical. "Everyone knows it's a part of an official propaganda," he says. "Hardly any one of those shown surrendering on television news channels is a known fighter. In fact, many of them are reportedly extortionists linked to the army-backed politicians in the government." Balochistan is a sparsely populated region, rich in gas and coal reserves, as well as copper and gold. Yet it has remained Pakistan's most impoverished province. Baloch nationalists have long accused the central government of exploitation and denying the province its due rights. The region has been under renewed spotlight after Pakistan and China announced plans to build a multi-billion dollar economic corridor, linking Gwadar Port in Balochistan to the city of Kashgar in the western Chinese province of Xinjiang. Over the years, the army and its subsidiary security force, the Frontier Corps, has captured and killed hundreds of suspected separatists. To this end, the forces were accused of employing "death squads", gangs of criminals allowed to unleash a reign of terror against those deemed enemies of the state. From a military standpoint, the approach may have yielded some results. But in the longer run, it has further tarnished the army's image as a ruthless force on a killing spree of its own citizens. Separatist militants say they are fighting for a free Balochistan. The insurgents operate from their bases in remote mountains, but they also enjoy considerable support and sympathy among ordinary Balochs. Last April, a group of gunmen shot dead 20 labourers at a construction of a bridge over a flood drain in Turbat. Baloch separatist militants were blamed for the massacre as they consider anyone employed by the government or army-sponsored projects fair game. Most Pakistani politicians see Balochistan as a political problem and favour a peaceful solution through negotiations. However, successive civilian governments have been too weak to lead such an effort, allowing the military to press on with trying to crush the separatists by force. As a result, the Baloch insurgency has weakened and, increasingly, appears fragmented. But it has come at a huge human cost. Critics accept that security has improved in the provincial capital, Quetta, and some other areas. But they say the situation has worsened in other districts in the east and south of the province. Rights activists accuse the military of bombing entire villages in its attempt to hunt down alleged Baloch militant leaders. One such military operation was conducted in Awaran district on 18 July, when much of Pakistan was on Eid holiday at the end of Ramadan. The target for the aerial bombardment was Dr Allah Nazar, the chief of the Balochistan Liberation Front separatist group. The military believes he was killed in the attack. "The operation was unannounced and indiscriminate," points out Bibi Gul, a Baloch human rights activist. "Women and children were killed and thousands left the area. The army cordoned off the entire area. "For nearly a month, people weren't allowed to go there to pick up the dead bodies." And so, in Balochistan, the Pakistani army still inspires fear and resentment. In Turbat, public hatred of the army is best expressed in graffiti on walls denouncing Pakistan, its security forces and their alleged "kill-and-dump" approach. The only Pakistani flags you see here are on security checkposts or on their vehicles. The head of the provincial government, Dr Abdul Malik, says Balochistan is a conflict zone and in war, sometimes innocent people die. "When the army is attacked, it will hit back," he says. "But the biggest sufferers of this conflict are the Baloch people. They have been left behind by poverty and lack of education. But we are trying to change that. We are trying to improve the security environment." These days, the army still faces regular attacks, but it seems clear that the security forces have gained the upper hand in many parts of the province. Dr Malik says the security forces have been persuaded to exercise restraint and conduct more intelligence-based operations. It has meant curtailing the role of the notorious death squads and avoiding the use of excessive force where possible, he says. But without a political solution to bring an end to the long running conflict, security will remain a daunting challenge. Controlling the narrative Pakistan has a vibrant and thriving news media. But there's been a virtual blackout of alleged abuses on privately-owned national news channels, say Baloch rights activists. Journalists say they are under intense pressure to promote a positive image of the army and its chief, General Raheel Sharif - they believe it's part of a public relations offensive to present the army as a saviour of the nation, while discrediting the political class. Foreign reporters are not allowed to travel to Balochistan without the army's approval. Over the years, scores of local reporters have been shot dead. Those who survive live under constant fear of upsetting one side or the other. Earlier this month, a journalist colleague reporting on Balochistan was taken to a safe house in Quetta's military garrison where he was lectured on the virtues of being a patriotic citizen. Army officers questioned him extensively about his sources and his political views. The officials told him they knew about his family, where his kids went to school and how much money he had in his bank. And then he was informed: "Yes, we are killing the anti-state elements. And we will continue to go after them. At the end of the day, we decide who's a patriot and who's not."

पाकिस्तान का कहना है कि वह अशांत प्रांत बलूचिस्तान में अलगाववादी विद्रोहियों के खिलाफ लड़ाई जीत रहा है। लेकिन बलूच कार्यकर्ताओं का कहना है कि सेना द्वारा अपहरण, यातना और हत्याएं पाकिस्तान के लिए शत्रुता को गहरा कर रही हैं।


Ashoke Sen: India's million-dollar scientist

Summary: Indian scientist Ashoke Sen became a millionaire overnight when he won the $3m (£1.9m) Fundamental Physics Prize, the world's most lucrative academic award, recently. Science writer Pallava Bagla speaks to the physicist.

Ashoke Sen is a shy, reclusive Indian particle physicist working from a non-descript laboratory in the Harish-Chandra Research Institute in the not-so-happening town of Allahabad in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Yet, today he is one of the richest professors in the world, having been conferred the award which has prize money almost three times that of a Nobel Prize in Physics. At his current monthly salary of about 150,000 rupees ($2,721; £1,742), it would have taken him about 83 years of continuous work to earn as much as that. The new prize was set up by the Russian internet entrepreneur, Yuri Milner - some are calling it the "Russian Nobel Prize". In its inaugural year, it has also been awarded to eight others and Prof Sen is the only Indian to bag the award along with scientists working in the US and Russia. Prof Sen works in an esoteric branch of physics called "string theory", which he has been refining for the last two decades. It is a complex mathematical theory that hopes to explain almost everything we know about the matter and energy in the universe. He describes the string theory as being based "on the idea that the elementary constituents of matter are not point particles, but one dimensional objects or strings. This theory automatically combines quantum mechanics, and general relativity - Einstein's theory of gravity. It also has the potential for explaining the other known forces of nature - strong, weak and electromagnetic forces". The mathematical theory itself still cannot be proved or disproved since atom smashers like those at Cern in Geneva have still not attained the enormous energies needed to test the string theory. 'Windfall' Prof Sen says he was "surprised" on being given the award since he had not heard about it until he received a phone call from Mr Milner. But his bank balance has suddenly swollen thanks to the phone call. He is relishing the moment and has not thought of retiring just yet. "It is wonderful that we have an Indian physicist getting recognised in a big way for fundamental research. This is great news for science in India," said the prime minister's science adviser CNR Rao. Prof Sen's wife Sumathi Rao is also a physicist who works at the same institute with him and they have no children. The professor, who is fond of walking, says he has no hobby other than cooking and he likes to make tasty fried fish for his friends and family. For somebody working on the frontiers of knowledge, Prof Sen admits he has "absolutely no religious inclinations", though he respects all faiths. On more earthly matters, Mr Sen says he has not thought about what he is going to do with this windfall. But unless he or his parent institution, the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), applies for a tax exemption from the government, he could end up losing as much as $1m (£638,000) of the prize money in taxes. Ratan Kumar Sinha, a nuclear engineer and head of the DAE, says "since this is a rare recognition, we can make an attempt to get a special waiver of taxes for this award". Ashoke Sen though says he "is happy to pay the tax that is due". 'Bright future' Prof Sen, son of a physics teacher, was educated in the University of Calcutta before proceeding to the Stony Brook University in America. Unlike many others, he chose to return and work in India. So has he faced any disadvantages of working in India? "In theoretical physics one can in principle work from any place as long as one has a computer and internet connection. So I do not find any disadvantage of being in Allahabad," he says. His batchmate from Stony Brook and well-known theoretical physicist Rohini Godbole says she "feels on top of the world", more so because Prof Sen recently said "there are no excuses for theoretical physicists not to perform and deliver". Ms Godbole says that Ashoke Sen has "delivered" and it proves that the particle physics community in India has really come of age. Ashoke Sen echoes the feelings - "Indian science has a bright future," he says. Pallava Bagla is a correspondent for Science and Science Editor for New Delhi Television

भारतीय वैज्ञानिक अशोक सेन रातोंरात करोड़पति बन गए जब उन्होंने हाल ही में दुनिया के सबसे आकर्षक शैक्षणिक पुरस्कार, $3 मिलियन (£1.9 मिलियन) मौलिक भौतिकी पुरस्कार जीता। विज्ञान लेखक पल्लव बागला ने भौतिक विज्ञानी से बात की।


Shoreham air crash: The victims

Summary: Eleven people died in the Shoreham air crash when a vintage jet crashed on to traffic on 22 August. Footballers, cyclists, air show enthusiasts and motorists were among the victims. This is what we know about them.

Matthew Grimstone Parents Sue and Phil and brothers David and Paul paid an emotional tribute to the footballer, who played for Worthing United. They said: "The family are in total shock at losing our dearest son Matthew so tragically at 23 years old. "He was the kindest person you could ever meet, with a great wit. "In his 23 years, we can honestly say he never lost his temper." The family went on to say that football was his passion in life and he loved working at Brighton & Hove Albion as well as playing for Worthing United. He had also been a referee. "Matt has been taken from us at just 23 and we still think he is going to walk through the front door any minute now." Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club say he was on his way to play for Worthing United against Loxwood in the Southern Combination Premier Division at Lyons Way at the time of the air crash, along with his Mavericks teammate Jacob Schilt. Mr Grimstone, 23, worked at the club for the past seven years - starting with the Albion as part of the match day event team at Withdean. Chief executive Paul Barber said: "Matt's been a very popular member of our ground staff team and has proved to be an absolute credit to the club and his boss Steve Winterburn." Worthing United FC released a statement, saying: "Grimbles was our first team goalkeeper, 23 years of age and a huge talent, quiet and reserved but a brilliant player with a huge potential to go further in the game." Jacob Schilt Seagulls supporter Mr Schilt was travelling with his Mavericks teammate Matthew Grimstone when their vehicle was hit by the aircraft. Alongside Mr Grimstone, Mr Schilt was part of Worthing United's Sussex County League Division Two championship-winning side last season, and also played for an Albion supporters' team in this year's Robert Eaton Memorial Fund (REMF) match against Crystal Palace at Lewes in April. Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club paid tribute to him, with chairman Tony Bloom saying: "The thoughts and prayers of everybody at the club are with Matt and Jacob's family and friends at this shocking time. Our thoughts are also with all the people who have lost loved ones in this horrendous accident." Chief executive Paul Barber added: "I got to know Jacob as one of the REMF squad, during the coaching sessions we held leading up to this year's charity match against Crystal Palace. As well as being a very good footballer, Jacob is a popular and impressive young man." Worthing United FC released a statement, saying: "Jacob, who was 23 years of age, small in stature and a tenacious midfielder, was very skilful with an eye for goal." "At this point we don't know how or if we will cope with this. Worthing Utd is a family, part of the football family, we have been moved by the number of tributes to them that we have received form our fellow clubs and from the public." Mr Schilt and Mr Grimstone attended the same secondary school, Varndean, leaving in 2008. The school said in a statement: "It is with great sadness that we remember former students Matt Grimstone and Jacob Schilt who died tragically at the weekend in the Shoreham Airshow crash. "Jacob's father, Bob Schilt, was a teacher at the school from 1989 to 2009 and is remembered affectionately by staff who knew him." Matt Jones Matt Jones, 24, a personal trainer, was named on Facebook by his sister Becky Jones as one of the dead. She wrote: "Thank you to everyone who has messaged me. We are devastated to say Matt Jones was one of the fatalities." Maurice Abrahams Chauffeur Maurice Abrahams, 76, from Brighton, was driving his "beloved Daimler" when the plane crashed. It has been widely reported that he was on his way to pick up a bride for her wedding. His family issued a statement through Sussex Police: "Maurice is a well-respected and loved father and husband. He enjoyed his work chauffeuring his beloved Daimler car and he enjoyed gardening. "He was proud to have served in the Grenadier Guards and the Parachute Regiment. He served in Cyprus and Bahrain with the UN. In his 30s he served as a police officer with Hampshire Police." Mark Reeves The family of Mark Reeves, 53, said he died while combining two of his favourite hobbies, riding his cherished Honda motorbike to photograph planes at an air show. He was a computer-aided design technician in west London who fundraised for cancer charities by parachuting and abseiling. His family said in a statement: "Mark Reeves - motorbiker, golfer, photographer, fund-raiser - but above all else, son, brother, husband, father and grandfather. "As many times before, he had travelled to an air show and parked up on the outskirts to grab the best photos, but he had never been to the Shoreham air show before. 'Family man' "We will remember him as a gentle, loving, incredibly giving family man, husband to Wendy, father to Luke, granddad to three beautiful grand-daughters, brother to Denise and loving son of Ann and Kenneth. "With his family he moved to Seaford nine years ago, drawn by our love of the sea and for Mark in particular, love of the sun. "He was a sun worshipper and an enthusiastic holidaymaker, travelling to Fuerteventura and Madeira in recent years and would often be seen relaxing with a cocktail in hand. "We thank everyone who has sent their love, condolences and prayers and while we appreciate that many others will be experiencing similar unspeakable grief in such tragic and public circumstances, that we now be allowed to grieve ourselves in private and in peace." Tony Brightwell The family of Tony Brightwell, 53, from Hove, said he was enjoying his passion of watching planes and cycling before he died. Outside of being a health care manager for Sussex Partnership NHS and Brighton and Hove City Council, he was an aircraft enthusiast and had learnt to fly at Shoreham airfield. With his pilot's licence, he had attended the airfield many times and was hoping to fly again one day. His fiancee Lara said she is heartbroken that their "plans to spend their lives in the sun will now never happen". "I watched him cycle off into the sun on his treasured ridgeback bike to watch the air show at Shoreham for a couple of hours, but he never came home," she said. Daniele Polito Daniele Polito was in the same car as Matt Jones, when the Hawker Hunter plane crashed and exploded on the A27 in West Sussex. Posting on Facebook, his sister Marina said: "I miss you loads already little (big) bro! Keep making people smile." Ms Polito said that many people loved her brother and would "miss him loads". "I would just like to say a massive thank you to every one who has supported my family over the last few painful days. "I am overwhelmed by the kindness you have all shown. I know many people loved him and will miss him loads, "As long as we keep him in our hearts and memories, he will never really leave us." Mark Trussler Window cleaner and builder Mark Trussler is thought to have been riding his motorbike on the A27 when the plane crashed on Saturday. His fiancee Giovanna Chirico posted a message on Facebook saying that her worst fears had been confirmed. She wrote: "Yesterday my worst fears were confirmed and I lost not just my fiance but my best friend, soul mate and sidekick. "No words can describe how much all ur family and friends r going to miss u. "So glad I got to spend the last 12 years of my life with u an love u always and eternally." Dylan Archer Dylan Archer was on a cycle ride with his friend Richard Smith when he died in the crash. Mr Archer, an IT company director, was raised in the Midlands and came to live in Brighton in 1991. He leaves a partner, Alice, and their two sons aged 15 and 12. The family said in a statement: "Dylan was a kind and loving father, partner, brother, grandson and friend. His dry humour and generous nature will be greatly missed by all who knew him. "The family are very touched by all the tributes, and thank everyone for their kindness and generosity." Richard Smith Richard Smith, 26, from Hove, was brought up in Buckinghamshire before going to university in Birmingham. His family moved to Hampshire in 2008 and he worked in a cycle shop in Cosham. He moved to Hove two years ago where he worked in marketing and web development. His family said: "Richard's passions in life were for his family, friends and his beloved bikes. His boundless enthusiasm was infectious. He was a truly wonderful, caring and loving person. He will be so sorely missed by all who knew him." He leaves a partner Victoria, parents Julie and Jonathan, and brothers William and Edward. Graham Mallinson Retired engineer, Graham Mallinson, 72, had been hoping to capture shots of the Vulcan bomber which was making one of its last appearances at Shoreham Airshow when he was killed. The keen photographer from Newick, East Sussex, was described as being "at the right place at the wrong time, doing what he loved best on a beautiful summer's day," when the jet crashed. In a statement, his family said: "He was the kindest and most generous man, who regularly gave his time to help others. Always loyal and reliable, he was a private and loving family man with a great sense of humour. "A very caring husband and father who was dearly loved, he will be very sorely missed by all his family and the wide circle of friends who had the good fortune to know him."

22 अगस्त को शोरहैम हवाई दुर्घटना में ग्यारह लोगों की मौत हो गई जब एक पुराना जेट यातायात पर दुर्घटनाग्रस्त हो गया। पीड़ितों में फुटबॉलर, साइकिल चालक, एयर शो के शौकीन और मोटर चालक शामिल थे। हम उनके बारे में यही जानते हैं।


The family feud rocking Indian politics

Summary: As India's largest state - Uttar Pradesh - prepares to go to the polls early next year, its largest political dynasty - the Yadavs, whose Samajwadi Party heads the state government - is in disarray.

By Kanchan ChandraPolitical scientist The Yadav family, reported to have 20 members and counting in politics, dominates the Samajwadi Party (SP) at all levels. Its founder and patriarch, Mulayam Singh Yadav, is the national president of the party. His elder son Akhilesh Yadav is the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh. Mulayam Singh Yadav's brother Shivpal Yadav is a minister in the state government. All SP members of the lower house of the Indian parliament are from the Yadav family. Other members occupy local and regional offices. Old tensions Even though political families now dominate, or are found burrowed within most major political parties in India, no other political family has the sheer numbers and sprawl across political offices at all levels of Indian politics that the Yadav family does. Is India's politics becoming less dynastic? But last month, old tensions among the Yadavs broke out into open conflict. Akhilesh Yadav moved against his uncle Shivpal by sacking ministers and bureaucrats believed to be loyal to him. Mulayam Singh Yadav backed his brother, removing his son from the position of state president of the Samajwadi Party and appointing Shivpal Yadav to the position instead. For the past month, son and uncle and their respective factions have been fighting it out, with the patriarch playing mediator. The drama is still unfolding. As of today, several of Akhilesh Yadav's loyalists, including family members Ram Gopal Yadav and Udaiveer Yadav, have been expelled from the party, while Shivpal Yadav and his loyalists have been sacked from the cabinet. It is also not clear who the party's chief ministerial candidate is: although the SP had on 17 October named Akhilesh Yadav as its candidate for chief minister, the Shivpal Yadav faction is now proposing Mulayam Singh Yadav's name for the position. In the meantime, the SP's election campaign has come to a standstill. Political families The Yadavs are only one of several families in charge of India's regional governments. According to data I collected after India's most recent round of regional elections this year, the chief ministers of 14 of India's 31 regional governments, encompassing 53% of India's population, come from political families - that is, they have family members who either preceded or followed them into politics. Some chief ministers such as Parkash Singh Badal of the Akali Dal in northern state of Punjab belong to families that head their parties. Others like Chief Minister Raman Singh of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the central state of Chhattisgarh have families that occupy subordinate positions within larger political parties. Still others, such as the chief minister of the northern state of Rajasthan, Vasundhara Raje Scindia of the BJP, are from old political families with multiple prominent members in politics. Others, such as north-eastern Meghalaya state Chief Minister Mukul Sangma of the Congress party and West Bengal state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of the Trinamool Congress, have only recently been joined by one or two family members who are still relatively unknown. Regardless, it is clear that we cannot understand the dynamics of regional government in India now, without understanding the dynamics of dynastic politics. That is why the Yadav family feud is worth paying attention to. One of the major advantages of dynastic politics is that it acts as a glue to keep the party together - or at least it produces a lower likelihood of dissension than the alternatives. This is not because political families do not have feuds. They have plenty. The Yadav family feud is simply the most recent of a long line of such others, including the rift between former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her daughter-in-law Maneka Gandhi in the Nehru-Gandhi family, or between the brothers MK Stalin and MK Azhagiri of the Karunanidhi family in southern Tamil Nadu state, the Scindias in central Madhya Pradesh state, or the Thackerays in western Maharashtra state. Exit option But dynasties usually hold parties together, notwithstanding such feuds, because the loser does not have a good exit option. Losers who leave the parent party rarely obtain a comparable position elsewhere: they are not trustworthy enough for a rival party. The case of the Scindias who occupy senior positions in both the Congress and the BJP, is relatively rare. Those family members who form their own party are sooner or later wiped out. Because the dynastic mantle can logically fall on only one successor, there is usually only one party left standing when the dust settles. When Chandrababu Naidu won the struggle of succession in the Telugu Desam after NT Rama Rao's (NTR) death, for example NTR's widow Laxmi Parvathi formed a party of her own, the NTR-TDP. But the new party soon fell by the wayside. The history of other family feuds suggests that the Samajwadi Party feud may resolve in one of two ways: either warring family members, will end up remaining, albeit rancorously, within the same party, or, if there is a split, one of the two branches may end up becoming the dominant one over time. Regardless, it is likely to be unusually damaging to the party's electoral prospects for one main reason - this is a feud across rather than within generations. Dynastic ties, have often in the past, served to smooth succession crises: it is easier for members of the older generation to cede their positions to members of their own family. But an inter-generational feud, in which members of two different generations are fighting over the same position is less common. Youth icon An intergenerational feud is especially damaging to the SP because of the large population of young people in Uttar Pradesh. India is a very young country to start with: half of its 1.25 billion people are under 27, while almost two-thirds are younger than 35. But the population of Uttar Pradesh is even younger: with a median age of 20, Uttar Pradesh is one of two Indian states with the youngest population in the country. When Akhilesh Yadav became chief minister for the first time in 2012, he became the state's youngest-ever chief minister. He quickly became an icon for the young, who are poorly represented in higher-level institutions in India. Now, at 43, he is still the youngest contender for the position of chief minister in the field: his father Mulayam Singh Yadav is just short of 77, the Bahujan Samaj Party's Mayawati is 60, and the Congress nominee, Sheila Dixit, is almost 80. The undermining of Akhilesh Yadav, then, regardless of whether or not it splits the Samajwadi Party as an organisation, will damage the party's capacity to attract the new generations that populate UP's electorate. Kanchan Chandra is Professor, Wilf Family Department of Politics at New York University. Her most recent book is Democratic Dynasties (Cambridge University Press 2016), an edited collection of essays and data on India's political families

जैसा कि भारत का सबसे बड़ा राज्य-उत्तर प्रदेश-अगले साल की शुरुआत में चुनाव की तैयारी कर रहा है, इसका सबसे बड़ा राजनीतिक वंश-यादव, जिनकी समाजवादी पार्टी राज्य सरकार का नेतृत्व करती है-अव्यवस्था में है।


Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe: The five years separated from her family

Summary: It's more than 1,800 days since Richard Ratcliffe waved goodbye to his wife Nazanin at the departure gate at London's Gatwick Airport, worrying only about how their young daughter would cope with the long flight to Tehran.

By Caroline HawleyDiplomatic Correspondent Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe had taken Gabriella to spend time with her Iranian grandparents three times before. And Richard had no reason in the world to think he wouldn't be back at the airport a fortnight later to pick them up. "It was a slightly rushed goodbye," he recalls. "Gabriella, at the time, was one and three quarters and a bit of handful. So I was just really wishing her good luck with the flight." That was the last time he saw his wife in person. Nazanin was arrested by members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard at Tehran Airport as she prepared to fly home. Since then, she's endured eight months of solitary confinement, blindfolded interrogations, hunger strikes to press for medical treatment, false promises of release, and almost five years of separation from her family. "At the beginning, I just thought that this was so profoundly unfair that if we just shouted it from the rooftops, the right people would intervene and it would get sorted," Mr Ratcliffe told me. "Never in my imagination did I think this would take five years or more." He adds: "Now the end of her actual sentence - which was once the worst-case scenario - looks like a good outcome, at this point." At a secret trial in 2016, Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe was sentenced to five years in jail for "membership of organisations working against the Iranian state" - a reference, her husband says, to her work for the charities BBC Media Action and the Thomson Reuters Foundation. And no, she wasn't training journalists at the time of her arrest. Sunday 7 March is the official date of her release - her lawyer has seen it marked in the computer of the Iranian judiciary. She's been counting down the weeks on a calendar at her parents' home, where she is now under house arrest with an ankle tag. But her husband - who has fought an extraordinary, high-profile campaign for her release - doubts that she will be allowed to fly home. He describes his wife as a hostage - used as a bargaining chip over a long-standing debt that Britain owes Iran for a tank deal that was never fulfilled. "The Revolutionary Guard have been completely consistent over the past five years - that they arrested Nazanin as leverage for the tank debt," says Mr Ratcliffe. "They've held her all the time that it's not being paid. And I think that if the tank debt is not paid, not only will Nazanin and other dual nationals continue to be held but more collateral will be taken." Her case may also be caught up in negotiations over Iran's nuclear deal, the JCPOA, which the UK is working with European allies to revive. "There's the potential for this to drag on and on," says Mr Ratcliffe. "It's perfectly possible that Nazanin gets a new court case thrown at her. "The family have never seen a copy of the charges on which she was sentenced. There is no written documentation on anything. So they preserve the space to make it up as they go along at every stage." He worries about the impact that any prolongation of the family's separation will have on both his wife and Gabriella, now six, who has also been counting down the days until her mother's release - on a calendar she made herself. She returned to the UK to live with her father and start school in October 2019, hoping that her mother would soon follow behind. "Gabriella has been promised so many times that 'Mummy is coming home soon,'" says her father. The darkest period for Nazanin herself came in 2016, when she was held alone in a dark room, incommunicado. Her interrogators told her, wrongly, that Richard was having affairs and that they had photographic evidence. "I don't think I can possibly understand what she's gone through," Mr Ratcliffe says. "It's a very practised technique of really breaking someone. That fear and abuse led her to feel suicidal. She said to me: 'It would be better if I just died and you could get on with your lives.'" In her first letter from jail to her husband, Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe wrote in despair: "Every day and every second I would submerge more and more in an ocean of doubt, fear, threat, loneliness... my wails would go unheard in that tiny, dingy, cold, grey cell." Being parted from her daughter for so long has been a source of agony and guilt. She apologised to her daughter from jail, saying: "Forgive me for all the nights I was not by your side to hold your warm, little hand till you fall asleep. "Forgive me for all those moments you missed the bosom of your mother, for all those teething fever nights that I was not there for you; forgive me." Separated by thousands of miles, the family now speaks twice a day over Skype. Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who is now 42, watches Gabriella draw and they play games together. Gabriella looks forward to swimming with her mother, and going to a toy shop - one day. The couple hope to have another child, but fear that time may now be against them. Late last month, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, phoned Ms Zahari-Ratcliffe in Tehran, reassuring her that the government is doing all it can to bring her home, but managing expectations of an imminent release. The Foreign Office says that she and other dual British-Iranian nationals are "arbitrarily detained" by the Iranian government. It adds: "We do not accept Iran detaining dual nationals as diplomatic leverage." But Mr Ratcliffe has been critical of the UK government's approach. "Not to do anything that's going to rock the boat means there's no cost whatsoever to the hostage takers to continue the practice and to continue to wait," he says. "And so both sides can wait each other out because they're not the ones bearing the cost of the waiting - whereas the victim and the family certainly are." As for what might happen on Sunday and over the next few months, Richard says, stoically: "Fate will deal us the hand it deals us. But one day the sun will come."

रिचर्ड रैटक्लिफ ने लंदन के गैटविक हवाई अड्डे पर प्रस्थान द्वार पर अपनी पत्नी नाज़नीन को अलविदा कहते हुए 1,800 से अधिक दिन हो गए हैं, केवल इस बात की चिंता करते हुए कि उनकी छोटी बेटी तेहरान के लिए लंबी उड़ान का सामना कैसे करेगी।


Rescue of two men in Guernsey sparked by high tide

Summary: Two men were rescued from Guernsey's north-west coast after being trapped by the high tide.

The pair, believed to have been fishing, became stranded on rocks near Ladies Bay at about 09:30 BST. A member of the public alerted the coastguard, after which the Ambulance and Rescue inshore lifeboat was launched and the men returned to land. Jason Garnham, coxswain on the boat, said he thought the pair had been stranded for several hours.

ज्वार में फंसने के बाद ग्वेर्नसे के उत्तर-पश्चिम तट से दो लोगों को बचाया गया।


Whale washes up near Scrabster entangled in fishing gear

Summary: A humpback whale entangled in fishing gear has washed up on the north Caithness coast.

The dead whale was spotted on Wednesday before its body came ashore close to Scrabster, near Thurso, on Thursday morning. The Inverness-based Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme said it was preparing to investigate the animal's death. It is the latest incident of its kind in about a month. A minke whale was found dead in Barra earlier this month, and humpback in Fife in April. Both were tangled in rope.

उत्तरी कैथनेस तट पर मछली पकड़ने के उपकरण में फंसी एक हंपबैक व्हेल बह गई है।


#WhyIDidntReport: The hashtag supporting Christine Blasey Ford

Summary: President Trump inadvertently spawned a new and trending hashtag after questioning why Professor Christine Blasey Ford did not report her alleged sexual assault by his Supreme Court nominee when it happened 36 years ago.

In one of a series of tweets on Friday, he said: "I have no doubt. that, if the attack on Dr Ford was as bad as she says, charges would have been immediately filed..." There was a swift response. Under the hashtag #WhyIDidntReport, thousands of women began recounting why it took them many years to talk about their attacks. By Sunday, there had been 675,000 tweets. Many spoke of feeling ashamed or powerless, of reporting their attacker but not being believed, of years of trauma trying to process what had happened to them or trying to forget about it. Celebrities also recounted their experiences. "I was sexually assaulted twice. Once as a teenager. I never filed a police report and it took me 30 years to tell my parents," actress and activist Alyssa Milano tweeted in response to Mr Trump. Ms Milano later wrote in a first person piece in Vox: "For me, speaking up meant reliving one of the worst moments of my life. It meant recognising my attacker's existence when I wanted nothing more than to forget that he was allowed to walk on this earth at all. "This is what every survivor goes through. Telling our stories means being vulnerable to public attacks and ridicule when our only "crime" was to be assaulted in the first place." Patti Davis, the daughter of Ronald and Nancy Reagan, wrote a piece in the Washington Post to explain why victims of sexual assault do not always remember the finer details. She remembered the music executive's office she was in 40 years ago, she remembered the sky turning dark, what he was wearing, and what his breath smelled like when he raped her. "I don't remember what month it was. I don't remember whether his assistant was still there when I arrived. I don't remember whether we said anything to each other when I left his office," she said. She defended Prof Ford's lack of recall for some of the events of the night in 1982 when she says Brett Kavanaugh, then aged 17, attempted to rape her, aged 15, at a party in Maryland - a claim he has strenuously denied. "That's what happens," Patti Davis wrote. "Your memory snaps photos of the details that will haunt you forever, that will change your life and live under your skin. It blacks out other parts of the story that really don't matter much. Author Deborah Copaken also defended Prof Ford in the Atlantic, and pointed out that the power Brett Kavanaugh would have as a Supreme Court judge meant it was vital that her allegations were taken seriously. She described how she had been able to forgive her rapist after he showed deep remorse when she confronted him about it 30 years later. "But you know what? If he were being confirmed for the Supreme Court; if his decision over what would happen to my daughter's body, should she become inadvertently pregnant, would tip the scales away from Roe; if one of the key aspects of his job as a judge would be to show and to have shown good judgment over the course of his life, you better believe that I, like Ford, would come forward and tell the committee," she wrote. "Even if it meant going into hiding, as she's had to do. Even if it meant getting death threats, as she's received." All eyes on Thursday's hearing Prof Ford has agreed to testify next Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is considering whether to confirm Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court. Many will see her as brave, telling the world about an alleged event she has spent her life trying to forget amid public vilification and death threats. But she will also face great scepticism, not least from some of the Republican members of the judiciary committee who will question her on Thursday. One of them, Lindsey Graham, told Fox News Sunday he did not expect her testimony to change his mind. "What am I supposed to do? Go ahead and ruin this guy's life based on an accusation?" he said. "Unless there's something more, no I'm not going to ruin Judge Kavanaugh's life over this."

राष्ट्रपति ट्रम्प ने अनजाने में यह सवाल करने के बाद एक नया और ट्रेंडिंग हैशटैग बनाया कि प्रोफेसर क्रिस्टीन ब्लेसी फोर्ड ने अपने सर्वोच्च न्यायालय के नामांकित व्यक्ति द्वारा कथित यौन उत्पीड़न की रिपोर्ट क्यों नहीं की, जब यह 36 साल पहले हुआ था।


What Mrs Trump's hometown tells us about the next first lady

Summary: The President Burger is presented with a flourish - on a wooden board, surrounded by circular "dollar fries" and topped with a yellow crust of cheese "hair" which looks as if it might fly away at any moment.

By Guy De LauneyThe World Tonight, BBC Radio 4 As tributes to the US President-elect go, it may not be the most respectful. But it is offered with the affection and gentle humour which it soon becomes apparent is a hallmark of Sevnica, a Slovenian town which just happens to be the place where Donald Trump's first-lady-to-be, Melania, spent most of her childhood. "We formed the burger so it would resemble Trump a little bit," chuckles Bruno Vidmar, the chef-proprietor of Rondo, a restaurant in the newer part of Sevnica. "It has hot peppers, because Trump's statements are hot - and it comes with dollar fries because he's a successful entrepreneur." The presidential tie-in seems to be serving Rondo well: on a weekday morning, the place is buzzing with an early lunch crowd from the nearby furniture and textile factories. Meanwhile a table full of smartly-dressed young women order another of Bruno's culinary creations dreamt up with Sevnica's most famous daughter in mind. "The 'Melanija' dessert is made out of sponge, then there's a layer of mascarpone and strawberries. It's light enough for a model - and we have it on good authority that Melania loves strawberries." Sevnica is a small place - so Bruno probably did not have to search long to find an authority on what Melania likes for pudding. Or, at least, what she did like when she was growing up as Melanija Knavs in this town of fewer than 5,000 people. Bar the addition of a branch of Lidl on the outskirts, little seems to have changed since she left for Slovenia's capital, Ljubljana, as a teenager. The old castle - parts of which date back to the 12th Century - still overlooks Sevnica from its hilltop perch. The town itself is a tidy place with new and old sections, sitting alongside the River Sava and surrounded by forested hills. The Slovenian Tourist Board suggests that Sevnica is "an excellent destination for those who enjoy picnics and outings, hiking, cycling or fishing". If the roads had been less icy, it would certainly have been an enjoyable ride through the trees to Gostišče Ob Ribniku, a restaurant and guesthouse next to a small lake. Inside the traditional wooden chalet, you can chat to one of the people who can shed some light on the future first lady's early years. "We were next door neighbours - and we used to go the same way to school," says Mateja Zalezina, who runs Gostišče Ob Ribniku with her husband, Dejan. "In the afternoon when we came back we used to hang out in front of the apartment block. Even then she was quite busy, because her mother was a fashion designer and Melania was one of the models for the Jutranjka company that did fashion for kids." Mateja laughs at the idea that she could have spotted that her neighbour would go a long way from Sevnica - never mind all the way to the White House. But she says that Melania could not help but stand out. "She was really good at school. She and her sister Ines were studying really hard. After school, we played a game called 'gumi-twist', an elastic band game, and she was really good at that. She had the figure of a model - really long legs - and she always won!" The restaurant is offering a three-course "Melanija Menu" in honour of Mateja's former playmate. But, like Rondo's eponymous offering, this does not feel like a culinary cash-in, just a low-key tribute, delivered with affection. "I'm really happy for her - she's achieved the maximum," says Dejan. "I hope everyone in Sevnica will watch the inauguration. We will be here at the restaurant with friends and will raise a glass to them both." Back in the old town, beneath the castle, Sevnica's mayor Srecko Ocvirk is not planning any special events to mark the start of the Trump era. But he hopes the publicity will bring the town's charms to the attention of tourists. "The first visitors who came were journalists like you," he admits. "But we're now seeing there are rising numbers of tourists. We're also expecting more organised tour groups after the inauguration. Sevnica and the region will become better known because of this." At the town's primary school, one of the staff has certainly achieved a degree of local celebrity. Art teacher Nena Bedek was best friends with Melania until the future Mrs Trump left to finish her schooling in Slovenia's capital, Ljubljana. Now Nena fields questions from her students about her friendship with Sevnica's most famous former resident - and marvels at the different paths their lives have taken. "It's a 'wow' effect for us and for me," she says. "She was a reliable girl and a very good friend. But she never wished to stand out - even though she was beautiful and hard-working. She loved to read and draw. She was brought up in a very artistic manner - she knew what was beautiful - due to her mother's job as a fashion designer. I have very fond memories and keep her very close in my heart." As for the town's various tributes - which include wine, slippers and honey as well as the culinary offerings - Nena believes they are in keeping with the Sevnica spirit. "They are very sympathetic and sweet - none of them are bad things - and it's also funny. I think it's still within limits - all in all it's sweet and nice." Rather like Sevnica itself, perhaps. You can hear Guy De Launey's report from BBC Radio 4's World Tonight via BBC iPlayer.

प्रेसीडेंट बर्गर को लकड़ी के बोर्ड पर एक फूल भेंट किया जाता है, जो गोलाकार "डॉलर फ्राइज़" से घिरा होता है और शीर्ष पर पनीर "बाल" की एक पीली परत होती है जो ऐसा लगता है कि यह किसी भी समय उड़ सकता है।


Carmarthenshire council to abolish child burial fees

Summary: Carmarthenshire council has agreed to do away with burial fees for children.

Councillors unanimously voted on Monday to abolish fees for stillborn babies and children up to and including the age of 18 to lessen the financial strain on grieving families. The decision is in line with many other councils in Wales following a campaign by Swansea East MP Carolyn Harris. Carmarthenshire council is responsible for the management of Ammanford Public Cemetery.

कार्मार्थेनशायर परिषद ने बच्चों के लिए दफन शुल्क को समाप्त करने पर सहमति व्यक्त की है।


How can we make universities better at teaching?

Summary: How can you foster changes in a sector where being part of an unchanged, old institution is taken as a badge of honour? That is the fundamental problem that faces the new universities minister. In no other area of public life is it so profitable a strategy to market your product as essentially unchanged for centuries.

Chris CookPolicy editor, Newsnight Jo Johnson, the Universities Minister, has clearly identified that teaching quality is his biggest worry: even at leading universities, students can often feel they have a bad deal. I've written before about how arts students, in particular, sometimes feel they are cross-subsidising the education of their less cultured science-studying contemporaries after the 2012 fee rise (disclaimer: I studied modern history). He said his aim is to "build a culture where teaching has equal status with research, with great teachers enjoying the same professional recognition and opportunities for career and pay progression as great researchers". That is a serious concern: there really ought to be more professorships and cash for people who devote themselves to high-level teaching. The academy undervalues that skill and worries too much about research. The Teaching Excellence Framework To drive that change, Johnson confirmed in a speech to UUK, the university sector umbrella body, that he wants a "a teaching excellence framework that creates incentives for universities to devote as much attention to the quality of teaching as fee-paying students and prospective employers have a right to expect". This was a Conservative manifesto commitment. That sounds vague, but ears prick up at the words "Teaching Excellence Framework". That is because there is already something called a "Research Excellence Framework": a gigantic beauty parade in which universities show off how good their research work actually is. It is a vast enterprise: the last round took place last year involving submissions from 52,061 academics. The previous round was in 2008. There is a lot of debate about some of the measures used by the REF to gauge how good work is and what impact research has, but universities play ball. That is because the REF determines how much of around a £1bn a year of "quality-related" research funding universities get. This money is prized, because it comes with no strings attached, and can be used for blue-sky research. The TEF idea is at its early stages: vice-chancellors are quite pleased that Mr Johnson is taking quite a consultative approach to the sector. But the term "TEF" may be ill-chosen: the minister had to clarify: "I have no intention of replicating the individual and institutional burdens of the REF. I am clear that any external review must be proportionate and light touch, not big, bossy and bureaucratic." More market The final product, unlike the REF, may not use the promise of teaching grants money as a lure. It may work through reputation. I suspect institutions are heading for a super-charged version of the KIS - the Key Information Sets - data that universities have to publish for students to judge them by. You can imagine a situation where students know how much previous students earn three years out, five years out and 10 years out, Feedback on how much they enjoyed the course and what the workload really entails. Maybe we will get that with a gentle Ofsted system for universities on top, where weak provision will be highlighted by external assessors. Perhaps the system could have input from employers and other academics who have recruited widely, too, on whether they think the course prepares people well for work or further study. This need not be positive: I am aware of two economics courses whose curricula mean some leading universities will not ever take their undergraduates (more on that another day). Mr Johnson said his plans are a continuation of the previous pro-market reforms - not a change in direction. If these reforms mean more information for students to behave as consumers and rely on, in effect, replacing historic reputations with real information about what they offer, I think that would be a fair summary. This might lead you to scepticism: after all, we have heard this before. But even if the TEF has no money attached, there's another, subtle way that they could have an effect. Remember that Mr Johnson's audience today was vice-chancellors, the leaders of the universities. The REF is useful to them because it gives them a structure for managing their research staff. If the TEF is structured well, it could do the same for teaching. Given their concern about institutional prestige and student recruitment, it could give institutions a structure by which they can take teaching more seriously. We will have to wait and see. A lot is going to depend on how the detail is framed. Raising teaching quality and telling prospective students what they need to know are surprisingly tough issues. They require ministers to find a way to make sure state-subsidised courses are high quality while preserving universities' academic liberty.

आप ऐसे क्षेत्र में बदलाव को कैसे बढ़ावा दे सकते हैं जहां एक अपरिवर्तित, पुराने संस्थान का हिस्सा होने के नाते इसे सम्मान का प्रतीक माना जाता है? यह मूल समस्या है जिसका सामना नए विश्वविद्यालय मंत्री करते हैं। सार्वजनिक जीवन के किसी भी अन्य क्षेत्र में अपने उत्पाद को सदियों से अपरिवर्तित के रूप में विपणन करना इतनी लाभदायक रणनीति नहीं है।


Boxing Day Family Puzzler 2017

Summary: Celebrating 10 years of festive bemusement, bafflement and bewilderment, it is time once again for my Boxing Day Family Puzzler. As regular readers will know, this is the quiz where no-one is expected to know any of the answers.

Mark EastonHome editor@BBCMarkEastonon Twitter The questions relate to events in 2017 and all the solutions are numbers. Contestants must simply use wisdom and judgement to get as close to the right figure as they can. There are 20 questions and, to make it fair, each player/team should write their guesses down before revealing them. One mark for the closest answer and three if by coincidence or brilliance, you get it spot on. Time-sensitive answers are correct as of 23 December. Good luck. Answers at the bottom 1) Blue Planet II was the most watched TV programme of 2017, attracting 14.1 million viewers. According to the production team, how many hours did crews spend underwater for each hour-long episode? 2) How many times has Donald Trump tweeted about "fake news" since he became President? 3) The average British worker got an annual bonus of £1,600 in the past financial year. You didn't? Nor did almost any health workers. But it was a prosperous year for bankers. How much did the average City type receive as a bonus? 4) Ed Sheeran's latest album, ÷ (Divide), broke records in 2017. In March, all 16 of its tracks were in the official UK top 20 singles chart. How many times has his album been streamed on Spotify? 5) This year has seen a focus on the continuing gender pay gap. The average working man in Britain earns 18% more per hour than a working woman. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), what is the difference in West Somerset? 6) The most densely populated part of the UK is inner London, where the population has risen by half a million since 2000 and is now officially estimated to be 3.2 million. What was its population in 1901? 7) New research published this year asked 11-15-year-olds in England if they'd ever had an alcoholic drink. What proportion said they'd never had more than a sip? 8) Paul Pogba is now the highest paid footballer in the Premier League. Dividing his wages by playing time in competitive matches, how much has he cost per minute this season? 9) There's been debate about "shrinkflation" this year - companies shrinking the size of their product but charging the same. In the 1960s, a standard KitKat weighed 35g (1.2oz). What does it weigh today? 10) The 2017 general election returned the highest number of women MPs ever recorded. What proportion of the House of Commons is now female? 11) The world record for the most people riding a single motorbike was broken last month by soldiers from the Indian Army Service Corps (above). The 500cc Royal Enfield cycle was ridden for 1.2km (0.7 miles). How many were aboard? 12) The median average price paid for a house in Knightsbridge, in Westminster, this year was £2.56m. What was the average price paid in the village of Horden, Durham? 13) Sir Bruce Forsyth died this year, aged 89, after a showbiz career spanning 78 years. To some, Brucie will be best remembered as the face of the BBC's Generation Game programme. Including specials, how many editions of the show did he present? 14) A survey this year asked British people if they belonged to any particular religion. What proportion of 18-24 year-olds said Church of England or Anglican? 15) Earlier this month, Donald Trump tried to rebuke the Prime Minister in a tweet but sent it to the wrong Theresa May. Theresa Scrivener (@theresamay) had just six followers when the president sent his message. How many did she have a week later? 16) The Paradise Papers revealed a surprising number of private jets registered in the Isle of Man. How many island residents are there for each PJ? 17) Children in Need raised another record total this year, with over £50m being raised on the night. How much was raised as a result of the first Children in Need broadcast in 1980? 18) The craze of 2017 was the fidget spinner - a toy the restless user can spin in their fingers. A standard model usually retails for just over £1. But the "Caviar Spinner Full Gold" from Russia was more expensive. How much would one of these cost (£)? 19) In 2015, 73% of UK adults used a computer at home. What is the figure now? 20) The US city of Detroit failed to set a new ugly Christmas sweater record this month. Fifteen hundred people gathered at Beacon Park wearing sweaters "clearly displaying Christmas or Hanukkah themes" but Guinness World Record officials said it wasn't enough. How many were needed to break the current record? Answers: 1) 857 2) 168 (as of 22 December) 3) £14,770 4) 3.1 billion 5) 12% less 6) 4.5 million 7) 56% 8) £5,876 (as of 22 December) 9) 45g 10) 32% 11) 58 12) £29,000 13) 208 14) 3% 15) 1,365 16) 84 17) £1,000,587 18) £12,560 19) 66% 20) 3,474

10 साल के उत्सव, उलझन और विस्मय का जश्न मनाते हुए, यह एक बार फिर मेरे बॉक्सिंग डे फैमिली पजलर के लिए समय है। जैसा कि नियमित पाठकों को पता होगा, यह वह प्रश्नोत्तरी है जिसमें किसी से भी किसी भी उत्तर के बारे में जानने की उम्मीद नहीं की जाती है।


Everton Women stadium fire: Police launch investigation

Summary: A fire at Everton Women's stadium that badly damaged a stand is being investigated as a suspected arson attack.

Fire crews were called to the 2,200-capacity Walton Hall Park ground in Liverpool at about 18:30 GMT on Friday. They found scaffolding and plastic netting alight and extinguished the blaze in about 30 minutes. Merseyside Police said it was carrying out a joint investigation with the fire service. The club said it was assessing the damage but hoped Wednesday's game with Chelsea Women would still go ahead. Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk Related Internet Links Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service

एवर्टन महिला स्टेडियम में आग लगने से एक स्टैंड बुरी तरह से क्षतिग्रस्त हो गया था जिसकी संदिग्ध आगजनी हमले के रूप में जांच की जा रही है।


How France is disposing of its nuclear waste

Summary: Half a kilometre below ground in the Champagne-Ardenne region of eastern France, near the village of Bure, a network of tunnels and galleries is being hacked out of the 160 million-year-old compacted clay rocks.

By Rob BroombyBritish Affairs Correspondent, BBC World Service The dusty subterranean science laboratory built by the French nuclear waste agency Andra is designed to find out whether this could be the final resting place for most of France's highly radioactive waste, the deadly remains of more than half a century of nuclear energy. Emerging from the industrial lift there are a series of passageways about the size of an underground rail tunnel. The walls are reinforced with steel ribs and sprayed with grey concrete and there are huge bore holes drilled 100m into the rock walls which would hold the capsules of radioactive waste. If the scheme gets the final approval, the first waste could be inserted here in around 10 years. France generates around three quarters of its electricity from nuclear power but despite decades of activity it is no nearer a solution to the perils of nuclear waste. Many countries agree the hazardous material - some of it at temperatures of 90C - has to be disposed of deep below ground where it can be isolated from all living things for tens of thousands of years whilst the radiation slowly reduces. Despite advanced schemes in Finland, not a single country worldwide has an operational underground repository. "What we did first was to demonstrate that safety can be achieved through a repository in this clay formation," says Gerald Ouzounian, the head of international affairs for Andra, told Costing the Earth on BBC Radio 4. Technical test Since 2006, they have been developing experiments to prove they can do it technically. Equipment has been set up to simulate the heat the waste will generate and to monitor the impact on the clay. "There are still risks of water ingress especially from the shafts and the top," says Mr Ouzounian, so they are testing ways to seal the waste using a bentonite clay plug. French law requires companies to build a retrievable scheme, meaning that for the first few hundred years at least, they can remove the waste again should future generations find a better way to get rid of it. But it is above ground that the real battle is taking place. Repository plans have foundered in Britain and America due to local democratic opposition. Britain copied the Scandinavian model based on voluntarism which allowed local communities to opt in but also built confidence by giving them a right to say no. The British scheme was set to explore an underground laboratory in Cumbria near the Sellafield nuclear site. The local district council approved the scheme but the strategic authority - the council in Carlisle - blocked it in January 2013, sending the nuclear planners back to the drawing board. A UK Government white paper to be published in the summer is widely expected to tweak the approval process to curb a county council's influence. The hunt is now on for a new location. In France, the cash was the answer. They are already spending £50m ($80m / 60m euros) every year to support local community projects and massage consent in what is a sparsely populated and neglected area. They even arranged the underground laboratory to ensure its two entrances were in different communities so they could pay them both off and ensure wider approval. "I supported the laboratory from the start and I won't go back on that now," says the local mayor Francois Henri. But he admits that if his community had wanted to block the project there would be little they could do to stop it. "It is a project which is of national interest. Nobody has the power to stop or to block it," says Gerald Ouzounian. Resistance movement He says the nation as a whole has benefited from nuclear power and all the stakeholders will help the government make the final decision. Local resistance is muted and comes mainly from the pressure group "Bure Zone Libre". Its members who gave me their view but not their names said it had been largely ignored. "The voice of the people is nothing, they make public debates after decisions," one protestor tells me. "First stop nuclear energy and after we can talk about the waste." French law required a national consultation or debate on the waste dump to take place but it was troubled from the start; meetings were disrupted forcing it to conduct its deliberations online. When the debate finally concluded recently, it recommended slowing down the repository scheme to allow for more scientific tests. "Having a six-month debate on a project that will last 100,000 years sounds a bit ridiculous," says Ariane Metais, one of a team of facilitators who run the engagement process around the policy. "For a project with such environmental and ethical consequences, 'it is just not enough'." If Britain were to copy the French and opt for a deep repository in clay for the vast quantities of UK waste it wouldn't be hard to find, chuckles Gerald Ouzounian. "You have a lot of suitable (rock) formations in the south east of England," he says. "The name of the clay is Callovo-Oxfordian which comes from Oxford." As to whether it would be easy politically to sell a nuclear dump to the citizens of Oxford, he says, is another matter.

पूर्वी फ्रांस के शैम्पेन-आर्डेन क्षेत्र में जमीन से आधा किलोमीटर नीचे, बुरे गांव के पास, 16 करोड़ साल पुरानी सघन मिट्टी की चट्टानों में से सुरंगों और दीर्घाओं के एक नेटवर्क को हैक किया जा रहा है।


Brexit: Martin McGuinness says government making up policy

Summary: Northern Ireland's Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness has accused the Westminster government of making up Brexit policy as it goes along.

By Gareth GordonBBC News NI Political Correspondent He was speaking after the first meeting of a new committee made up of the devolved administrations, chaired by Brexit Secretary David Davis. He said could not understand why more information was not being shared with Stormont, Edinburgh and Cardiff. First Minister Arlene Foster said it was a first meeting in a long process. Northern Ireland Secretary of State James Brokenshire denied the government was holding anything back and described it as a constructive meeting. The committee will meet again in London next month.

उत्तरी आयरलैंड के उप प्रथम मंत्री मार्टिन मैकगिनेस ने वेस्टमिंस्टर सरकार पर ब्रेक्सिट नीति बनाने का आरोप लगाया है।


M1 delays after lorry carrying glass bottles overturns

Summary: Part of the M1 was closed for several hours after a lorry carrying 44 tonnes of glass bottles overturned.

Highways England said the northbound carriageway reopened at about 11:00 BST following the crash between junction 38 and 39. The lorry overturned after it collided with a car between the junctions for Haigh and Durkar in West Yorkshire in the early hours. Police said the male driver of the car sustained minor injuries. Highways England tweeted that drivers faced delays and diversions were in place. It said there had been a substantial fuel spillage across the carriageway, with crews working through the night to clear the road. Related Internet Links Highways England

44 टन कांच की बोतलों को ले जा रहे एक लॉरी के पलट जाने के बाद एम1 का एक हिस्सा कई घंटों के लिए बंद कर दिया गया था।


Stolen bubble gum recovered from lorry off M40 near Oxford

Summary: Hundreds of boxes of stolen Hubba Bubba and chewing gum have been recovered from a lorry following a tip-off.

West Midlands Police told the Thames Valley force the lorry was "heading south" into the area on Monday following a theft from another vehicle. Roads policing officers found the lorry, which had false plates, at a petrol station off the M40 near Oxford. The driver was arrested on suspicion of drug-driving, theft and having no insurance or MOT. The passenger was arrested on suspicion of theft and possession of cannabis. The case has been handed back to the West Midlands force. A "few hundred" boxes of the gum were found in the back, police said.

एक गुप्त सूचना के बाद एक लॉरी से चोरी किए गए हुब्बा बुब्बा और च्यूइंग गम के सैकड़ों डिब्बे बरामद किए गए हैं।


At-a-glance: Guide to Conservative 2016 conference agenda

Summary: The Conservative Party is gathering in Birmingham for its annual autumn conference, which will be Theresa May's first as leader and prime minister. Here's a guide to what's happening and some of the highlights.

Sunday 2 October 09:00: Andrew Marr: Prime Minister Theresa May is expected to appear on the BBC show and other media outlets during the morning 14:00: Conference opening: The conference will officially be opened by Conservative Party chairman Patrick McLoughlin and the party's West Midlands mayoral candidate, Andy Street Global Britain: Making a success of Brexit: Theresa May will make her first speech to the conference, on Britain's exit from the European Union. Speeches will also be made by: 16.45: An opportunity for party members to meet the chairman, Patrick McLoughlin Monday 3 October 10.30: Economy: Chancellor Philip Hammond will make his keynote speech to the conference. Also due to speak: 14.30: Economy: Speeches from Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Karen Bradley, Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary Andrea Leadsom and International Trade Secretary Liam Fox 16.30: Preparation for 2017 elections: A campaigning session focusing on next year's local and mayoral elections in England, Scotland and Wales. Tuesday 4 October 10.30: Celebrating the union: Speeches from 11.00: Speeches from Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, Justice Secretary Liz Truss and Home Secretary Amber Rudd 14.30: Speeches from Work and Pensions Secretary Damian Green, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt and Education Secretary Justine Greening 16.30: Party members discuss why they joined the Conservative Party Wednesday 5 October 10.00: A party that works for everyone: Contributions from Conservative MPs 10.30: Speeches from House of Lords leader Baroness Evans and Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson Speech by Prime Minister Theresa May

कंजर्वेटिव पार्टी अपने वार्षिक शरद सम्मेलन के लिए बर्मिंघम में इकट्ठा हो रही है, जो नेता और प्रधान मंत्री के रूप में थेरेसा मे की पहली बैठक होगी। यहाँ क्या हो रहा है और कुछ मुख्य आकर्षण के लिए एक गाइड है।


Libby Squire murder: Pawel Relowicz's path from peeping Tom to killer

Summary: Pawel Relowicz has been convicted of raping and murdering student Libby Squire. But she was not the first woman he targeted. In the months before her death, he prowled the streets of Hull committing a string of increasingly serious sex crimes. His first known victim has described her encounter with the peeping Tom who became a killer.

By Pritti MistryBBC News Sarah (not her real name) was sharing an intimate moment with her boyfriend. It was a July evening in 2017, and the window of her downstairs bedroom at the front of a shared student house was opened slightly. Suddenly, the room brightened with the light from an outside street lamp, and she looked up to see the "terrifying" sight of a man's hands and face poking through the curtains. Seconds later, Sarah's then partner also turned to look at the window. This startled the unwanted spectator, who fled. Three hours later, at about 04:00 BST, her housemate returned home from a shift at a local bar to find a used condom and a pair of worn, black lacy knickers hanging on the front door handle. The man, she now knows, was Pawel Relowicz. This episode of voyeurism was the first in a catalogue of escalating sexual crimes he committed in the 18 months leading up to the disappearance of Libby Squire. His trial at Sheffield Crown Court heard he had stolen sex toys and underwear from student houses and masturbated in front of women in public. A used condom and a pair of knickers - described as a "calling card" by prosecutors - were left at more than one crime scene. In one case, they were discovered beside a toy belonging to a victim's child. But, in the earlier stages of his offending, it seemed that few took the potential threat seriously. Sarah, whose name has been changed for legal reasons, said the reaction from those around her to what had happened initially led her to feel as though she was "blowing it out of proportion". "I don't think my boyfriend took it very seriously, my housemates didn't take it seriously. I think they just thought it was funny… but I didn't find it funny at all," she says. "Everyone else had played it down... [but] I knew something was very wrong. "I always had a feeling that this was going to be somebody who wasn't going to do it just the once." The police response when she first reported the issue further compounded the feeling. She was "unimpressed" when officers arrived a day later to take fingerprints only after her mum - herself a former policewoman - nudged them. Sarah's experience was perhaps unsurprising, according to criminology professor David Wilson. Traditionally, voyeurism is not viewed as a serious crime but as the subject of mirth and merriment, he says. "It wasn't so long ago that peeping Toms would feature on so-called humorous postcards that you would send to family and friends when you are visiting the seaside. Culturally we've not taken the behaviour of voyeurism seriously for a very long period of time. There's a tendency to think of the peeping Tom almost as an insignificant joke-like character, whereas in fact they cause a great deal of harm and hurt. "They are predatory sexual offenders and should be treated as such." Sarah was haunted by Relowicz's crime against her. Within days, she had the locks changed and a small CCTV camera installed with help from her parents. But that did not stop her from feeling "absolutely petrified", particularly when she was alone in the house. At one point, she recalls keeping a set of gardening shears under her bed "just in case". "I'd lock my bedroom door at night and I wouldn't even leave to go to the toilet. I had a summer job and I ended up quitting and going back to my family home because I couldn't be in that house. And then when I went back in September that's when it started up again. It became this massive fear." Sarah says she remained "very, very frightened for nearly a year". She recalls several times experiencing a sudden "intense burst of fear" when walking at night. As she tried to leave behind the nightmare of Relowicz's voyeuristic episode, he continued to offend undetected. He watched through the blinds of a woman's home as she came out of the shower, spied on another as she got dressed and watched on as one danced around her living room in leggings and a bra. The same victim also reported seeing Relowicz's hands coming through her letterbox less than a month later. Voyeurism turned into burglary and, in one case, he stole three sex toys from a house, ignoring high-value items such as laptops. In January 2019, weeks before Ms Squire's disappearance, he was seen masturbating in the street on two separate occasions. The women who witnessed it said he appeared untroubled at being spotted. Up to now, the crimes were not being linked. But Sarah, and others, would be hit with another bombshell a year and a half after she first encountered Relowicz. News that a University of Hull philosophy undergraduate had been reported missing on 1 February 2019 sparked a huge search around the city for Libby Squire. Seven days after the student, from High Wycombe, was last seen in a drunken and vulnerable state, Polish national Pawel Relowicz, a married father of two, was arrested on suspicion of her abduction. Details of his previous crimes soon began to emerge. Sarah says she had an initial reaction of "disbelief" when she learned of Relowicz's arrest but wasn't surprised there were other victims of his serial offending, including those he followed home and stared at through windows while they were either naked or in their underwear. She took some small comfort in knowing she "wasn't just neurotic and making something up", but "felt sick reading about him". On 20 March 2019, the worst was confirmed. Libby Squire's body was found in the Humber Estuary. "I was disturbed by how quickly it seemed to escalate," Sarah says. "Things like masturbating in front of people, following them home, I mean that stuff's terrifying. That's far worse than what he did at mine. I just felt terrible for these women. It was just gradually getting worse." Relowicz was jailed in August 2019 for eight charges including voyeurism, outraging public decency and burglary. The 26-year-old was already serving a five years and eight-month jail term for these offences as he faced trial for Ms Squire's murder. The judge who jailed Relowicz said he was a potentially dangerous individual motivated by "perverted sexual deviancy". At his murder trial, Relowicz would tell the jury of five men and seven women he was not the "phantom killer in tight trousers" portrayed by prosecutors, but a hard-working family man whose crimes were the result of a fetish driven by problematic sexual urges. But according to Prof Wilson, Relowicz's description "trivialises what he's done". The criminologist believes he showed signs of "predatory behaviours of a sexual offender" and a more accurate term would be paraphilia - a condition characterised by perverted or irregular sexual desires. He says Relowicz's actions were about having power over his targets. "It's not about him trying to express himself sexually because he's got some kind of fetish," he says. "He wants to be powerful and he gets off, as it were, simply when he sees the reaction of people watching him behaving in the way that's been described [in court]. He wants somebody to be shocked and annoyed and scared because that ultimately makes him feel more than he actually is." Prof Wilson says the problem "didn't just start last month or six months ago". "This problem has been in Relowicz's background for years and it has been allowed to go untreated," he says. He says there are interventions to tackle the kinds of behaviours mentioned during the case, but it is "something that needs to be dealt with very, very quickly", preferably during puberty. Sarah's experience still plays on her mind. "I get these thoughts - should I have done something, should I have gone after him? Could we have made the police take it more seriously? All these things go through your head. But you know ultimately there's nothing you could've done really." "That makes me think: 'How many people were either embarrassed or blamed themselves and never actually reported it?'" Anthea Sully, chief executive of White Ribbon UK, says people should "call out behaviour that they think is wrong". The charity, which works to prevent violence against women, encourages people to report apparent low-level behaviour, and wants to raise awareness of the mechanisms for doing so. "We know that people will often dismiss it as not being important and people don't recognise that it's harmful, but it's also something that can escalate," she says. "So it's absolutely essential that we take these things seriously." It is important to remember, says Prof Wilson, that "sexual offenders are upstanding members of the public as much as they are the so-called dirty old man in a raincoat." "If we could identify a sexual offender because they had horns on their head and a long pointed tail it would be much easier to identify a sexual predator, but unfortunately they don't," he adds. Humberside Police said there were very few opportunities to link Relowicz's earlier crimes until his arrest as there was "no clear pattern of offending" and a large gap between offences. With regard to Sarah's complaint, the force said it was satisfied "a proportionate investigation with the information available at the time" took place and it had treated her report "with the appropriate level of seriousness". Det Supt Martin Smalley said different crime scenes yielded different types of evidence and it was "not possible to compare and match one against the other". "In some cases it was fingerprints, in another, it was a footprint and in others it was DNA," he says. "Despite a number of offences being committed, officers were unable to connect these to each other or to Pawel Relowicz until a much later date." The force added that "officers acted quickly" to identify, locate and apprehend Relowicz within days of Ms Squire's disappearance. Sarah had no idea what Relowicz would go on to do. She describes learning about Libby Squire as "a wake-up call". "This poor woman who'd struggled throughout her teens, managed to get to uni, had friends, had a good life and it was just snuffed out prematurely. I just found it deeply upsetting. I went out for a walk and I just cried, I just felt so sorry for her and her family and everyone and it's just horrible," she says. "And to think this man two years earlier, maybe months earlier..." With Relowicz convicted, Sarah's feelings about her own experience are complicated, and she says thoughts of forgiveness are made harder by knowing that he physically harmed another woman. "I do hope he gets the support he needs but at the same time... there was no excuse for what he did," she says. "It's damaged people… he's scared people in their own homes and no matter what the extent of his problem, that's unacceptable."

पावेल रिलोविक्ज़ को छात्रा लिब्बी स्क्वायर के बलात्कार और हत्या का दोषी ठहराया गया है। लेकिन वह पहली महिला नहीं थी जिसे उसने निशाना बनाया था। उसकी मृत्यु से पहले के महीनों में, वह हल की सड़कों पर तेजी से गंभीर यौन अपराधों को अंजाम देता था। उसकी पहली ज्ञात पीड़ित ने झाँकते हुए टॉम के साथ अपनी मुठभेड़ का वर्णन किया है जो एक हत्यारा बन गया था।


Coronavirus: Couple holds 'socially distant' wedding

Summary: Small weddings were given the go-ahead to start again last week in certain circumstances in Wales, but what is the reality of a getting married now? One couple from Cardiff organised their wedding on Saturday in just a few days.

As she stood huddled in the rain and wind outside the church in her wedding dress, it was not exactly the arrival at her big day Elizabeth Facer had dreamed of. The minister about to preside over her wedding was delivering a health and safety briefing to her and her fiance Ian Choi, which they had to listen to before they entered the building. Also standing 2m away were Elizabeth's parents and a registrar - the only other people allowed to attend the tiny wedding held in Penrhyndeudraeth, near Porthmadog, Gwynedd, on Saturday. Around the corner, her brother, sister, her sister's fiance and their son were ready to watch the ceremony broadcast on the internet. Theirs was one of the first nuptials held in Wales since the restrictions over weddings were eased last week. For Elizabeth, 22, and Ian, 23, it was a victory - even though their original wedding on 20 June was due to have 300 guests. The couple started a petition urging the Welsh Government to allow small weddings to go ahead as restrictions around the pandemic eased. "Once we realised it was going to have to be a socially distant wedding I went through all of the stuff in my head of like, it's not going to be all of us at my parents' house, it's not going to be how I had imagined it," said Elizabeth. "And I focused on the positive things." Elizabeth, who is doing an MA at Cardiff University, spoke to the register office in Gwynedd, as well as the minister who would marry them and managed to book the wedding for the following weekend. "It almost didn't happen," she said. "Right at the last minute they almost stopped it because they hadn't had any official guidelines even though the regulations allowed it." Some local authorities in Wales said they would start registering church weddings again, while others were waiting for further guidance from the Welsh and UK governments about resuming register office weddings. Anywhere not a register office or place or worship - such as hotels, castles and stadiums still - cannot host weddings despite having a licence. Because attending a wedding is listed as a "reasonable excuse" for travelling more than five miles from home, Elizabeth and Ian were still able to have their wedding at her home church in north Wales - Capel Fron. Ian's parents live in Hong Kong and had planned to fly over for the original wedding, but there was no way of them being there this time. And the couple's reunion with Elizabeth's family was also difficult. "I could tell it was really hard for my mum not to be able to hug us," said Elizabeth. "It was really hard to try to stay composed and not encourage her to hug." Elizabeth's parents, who live close to the church, decorated it for the couple before Wednesday, because it had to be empty for 72 hours before the wedding to ensure it was sterile and safe for the big day. And because they wanted to keep to tradition by staying apart the night before the wedding, Elizabeth stayed in a friend's house, which was empty, while Ian ended up sleeping in her parents' outhouse. On the morning of the wedding, there were no hairdresser or make-up appointments for Elizabeth - instead she got ready alone. "When I was getting ready, I was still thinking about the positives of it," she said. Social distancing meant the couple drove to church together, with Elizabeth's parents and sister all in separate cars. Just six people were allowed in the ceremony - Elizabeth's parents as witnesses, the minister and the registrar. It also meant Elizabeth had to enter the church through the fire exit in the toilets, while trying to keep 2m from her father who was walking her down the aisle. Ian said: "It was really special just seeing her come down the aisle after all this. It was quite surreal. "I still can't quite believe that it happened, because for such a long time we weren't even allowed to think about when we were going to do it, it just all happened so quickly the process of it being allowed, and getting everything up and running in less than a week. "It was like a massive, massive relief." With no best man, Ian had their rings, and his parents did readings via webcam from Hong Kong. And because they were not allowed to sing due to the virus, recorded hymns were played on a laptop. After the registrar carried out the legal part of the ceremony, she left, and a photographer took her place. As they left the church they were greeted by the rest of Elizabeth's family, who had been watching from a nearby railway station. The family went in separate cars to drive to a nearby industrial estate for the wedding "reception" - a picnic in which they all sat in their car boots as it was raining. The newly-weds then drove straight back to Cardiff where they had a microwave lasagne and garlic bread as their wedding night meal. As for the honeymoon, that is off the cards for now. Where can weddings take place in Wales? There have been two weddings in Gwynedd since the easing of restrictions, with the first set to take place in Rhondda Cynon Taff and Flintshire later this week. They can also take place in religious buildings in the Vale of Glamorgan, with the first scheduled for Anglesey later this month. Services have not yet restarted in Monmouthshire, Conwy, Bridgend, Cardiff, Pembrokeshire, Caerphilly, Swansea or Denbighshire.

वेल्स में कुछ परिस्थितियों में पिछले सप्ताह छोटी शादियों को फिर से शुरू करने की अनुमति दी गई थी, लेकिन अब शादी करने की वास्तविकता क्या है? कार्डिफ के एक जोड़े ने कुछ ही दिनों में शनिवार को अपनी शादी का आयोजन किया।


'Jihadi John' death at centre of dispute

Summary: Mohammed Emwazi, the British jihadist who featured in beheading videos by so-called Islamic State and became known as "Jihadi John", is dead, according to, amongst others, Barack Obama and IS's own publication.

Martin RosenbaumFreedom of information specialist On the other hand, maybe he isn't dead, according to the University of Westminster in London, where he was a student, and the Information Commissioner's Office. This question is at the heart of a freedom of information (FOI) dispute between the university and the BBC. The Information Commissioner has now backed the university. After this was reported, the commissioner's office issued further justification for its stance, arguing that there is no definite proof that the Mohammed Emwazi who attended the university is the same one identified as "Jihadi John". This stems from an FOI request made in February by my BBC colleague Chris Vallance, a Radio 4 reporter, who asked the university for all the electronic records it had about Emwazi. He wanted to see whether they would shed light on his past character, any contact with the authorities, and how and why he became radicalised. 'Deeply inflammatory' It has been widely reported that Emwazi studied computer science at Westminster from 2006 to 2009. Part of his academic file had already been leaked and published in the media. The university sent Chris copies of some emails from their vice-chancellor's office referring to the discovery that "Jihadi John" had been one of their students, and the resulting "intensive global media interest" and "deeply inflammatory external environment". But they refused to disclose his personal records on the grounds that he could still be alive, despite the fact that the US military said it had killed Emwazi in a drone strike in the Syrian city of Raqqa in November 2015. Emwazi featured prominently in several gruesome recordings of beheadings of captured Western hostages. He was not a significant military commander within the IS group, but his role in the propaganda videos made him an important symbolic target. In December, President Obama named Emwazi as one of a number of leaders of the IS group or operatives that the US had been "taking out" and "removed". Obituary The American assertion has been backed by UK-based Syrian human rights activists who said they were in contact with sources in Raqqa. And in January 2016, the IS group itself apparently confirmed his death, publishing an obituary of Emwazi in their online magazine, Dabiq. However, all this evidence was considered insufficient by the university management, who maintained: "To date, no authoritative confirmation or evidence has been given to the university, or made public, that the student known to the University of Westminster as Mohammed Emwazi is now dead. "Without any firm evidence or authoritative official confirmation that Mohammed Emwazi is definitely deceased, the university maintains that the information requested remains bound by data protection restrictions." Under the Data Protection Act, personal information can be disclosed only where this would be processing it "fairly", but the law applies to "living individuals" only. The Information Commissioner's official guidance stresses that it cannot be used to limit the publication of information about the deceased. 'Distress and upset' Following an appeal by the BBC, the university's stance has now been backed by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). It has issued a decision stating that "the commissioner agrees with the university's approach". The ICO initially refused to clarify the reasons for its ruling, but later released additional material which it had kept secret in a confidential annex to its published decision. This states: "There is no way of the university knowing for absolute definite that the Mohammed Emwazi it may hold records for is the same Mohammed Emwazi named in the request and the same person responsible for the crimes reported." The suggestion that they are the same person has been generally accepted and widely reported in the media by the BBC and others. An ICO spokesperson said: "The FOI Act is designed to promote transparency and openness, but is also balanced to avoid the inappropriate release of personal information. Anyone who is not happy with a decision can appeal to the information rights tribunal." A University of Westminster spokesperson said: "We are complying with our legal obligations and the ICO decision confirms that this is the correct approach." The university responded to the revelation last year that "Jihadi John" had been a former student by commissioning an independent report that examined how it tackled Islamic extremism within the student population. The university has since instituted a new policy on external speakers, and created a programme of extended pastoral care and enhanced staff training.

बराक ओबामा और आईएस के अपने प्रकाशन के अनुसार, ब्रिटिश जिहादी मोहम्मद एमवाज़ी, जिसे तथाकथित इस्लामिक स्टेट द्वारा सिर कलम करने वाले वीडियो में दिखाया गया था और जिसे "जिहादी जॉन" के नाम से जाना जाने लगा, मर चुका है।


David Cameron on welfare: An unusual sort of speech

Summary: It's an unusual sort of speech.

Nick RobinsonPolitical editor This morning David Cameron says, in effect: "I'm in charge of the country. I have already promised radical welfare cuts which have yet to be implemented or examined for their impact but here's the sort of thing I'd want to do in three years time if you re-elect me without the need to rely on those pesky Liberals - but don't push me on the details yet." So, why is he doing it? There will be many theories, but here's just a few. It cheers up Tories in the week they're being asked to stomach Lib Dem plans to reform the Lords without a referendum; it gives Conservatives a way to highlight what they'd do if only they could; it helps get the Tory press back on side after the so-called omnishambles Budget and it poses real problems for Labour just as the housing benefit cap did. There is, though, one reason above all others which the Westminster village too easily forgets and is the key to all the rest - it's popular. A recent YouGov poll for Prospect magazine suggested a startling 74% of the public - including 59% of Labour voters and 51% of those on the lowest incomes (below £10,000) - thought that welfare payments should be cut. The most popular cuts are for, you guessed it, the unemployed and never-married single parents. The least popular cuts are for the elderly. The prime minister is using his position to spark a debate which he already knows he's won. Asked about the specifics he will, no doubt, do as Iain Duncan Smith did this morning and say "these are the details... that's the challenge... we'll have to be careful ...etc" One important note. David Cameron was careful to say - in the advance text we've seen so far - that he'd keep his promise to pensioners not to means-test their benefits, but Iain Duncan Smith made it absolutely clear that that promise lasts just for this Parliament - in other words not for the period the speech is talking about.

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