Fortnite: A fortnight in my 40s in Battle Royale

Summary: I leap from the battle bus and land in the middle of what appears to be a deserted island, carrying only a pickaxe as a weapon. As I start running, I hear the sound of gunshots in the distance. Almost immediately I'm dodging bullets and suddenly I'm dead - shot by one of the other 99 players on the island.

By Perveen AkhtarTechnology reporter I'm playing Fortnite, the video game phenomenon. According to developer Epic Games, more than 125 million other players are also in its grip. It's the first time I've properly dedicated myself to a game since Tomb Raider in the 1990s, when I was a 20-something rather than the 40-something I am today. Battle Royale is Fortnite's most popular mode. One hundred of us collect weapons, build defences and track each other down until there is only one person left alive. And every few minutes, the map shrinks. I launched straight into my first game with little preparation, on a smartphone. At first, I found it hard to work out what I was supposed to be doing and my not-so-great eyesight struggled with the small screen. After a few minutes, I gave up and downloaded the game on my iPad and later on my PC. Although the bigger displays helped, I did not last long. During my first few attempts, players would appear out of nowhere and kill me in an instant - leaving me frustrated that I hadn't even noticed them approaching. After a few games on the tablet, I worked out that I had to hunt for better weapons - and I needed to collect materials to build forts to protect myself. It wasn't until I played on a console belonging to a friend's teen son that I really felt like I got into my stride. Using the Xbox controller, I could more easily pick up the weapons I found on the map, which I had often missed while playing on the tablet. On the large TV screen, I could also get a better sense of where the other players were - and what they were doing. And I was given some expert coaching from 14-year-old Archie, the son of another friend. "It's easier for me to navigate having a [console] controller than using a PC mouse or keyboard," he told me. Although he added that Ninja - Fortnite's top Twitch streamer - played on PC. Even as I collected better weapons, I was lucky if I managed to survive beyond the final 60 before being eliminated by a more experienced player with better skills and weapons. But it was easy to understand Fortnite's appeal. I felt compelled to try to improve on my position and survive for longer. I found myself picking up the tablet while watching TV, to launch into a quick game. Before I knew it, I had spent an hour playing. Once you're eliminated, you can choose to watch the person who beat you, to see how they progress in the rest of the game. Many of the players have spent money on in-app purchases such as "skins" that change the appearance of a character and "emotes" that let characters perform ridiculous dance routines. When I was killed by a jester who then danced a jig, I was less than impressed. I'm not ashamed to say I'm a hider. My player strategy consisted of trying to avoid other players. If I saw someone nearby, I would run and hide in one of the many bushes or buildings. My sophisticated strategy is unlikely to lead me to victory - I have never survived beyond the final 17 players. Archie said he had won 10 games out of about 200 and played against his school friends online. "You get a real buzz with a Victory Royale," he told me. I certainly don't think I'm ever going to be good enough to win. But I keep dipping into the game to try to beat my record of 17th place. Each time I'm eliminated by some stealthy player who catches me unaware and shoots me in the back, I find myself shouting in frustration. I just do not see them coming and each time my reaction is the same - a groan. 'Addictive' I've already lost count of how many games I've played so far. Some parents think their children are addicted to the game and would happily spend all their time playing it. Ruth Kieran told me her two sons, aged 11 and nine, played online when they got home from school. "They would spend 24/7 playing Fortnite if they were allowed to," she said. "We try and limit our boys to just one hour in the evening after school and a couple of hours at the weekend. "But it is really hard when they are playing against friends [whose] parents are not as restrictive." I'm not sure Mrs Kieran would be too impressed with how quickly I've managed to succumb to the game - and I'm not even playing against anybody I know. I'm literally just trying to beat my last position. Some experts say parents do need to take more responsibility. "There are some parents out there who use screen time as a babysitting aid," said Prof Mark Griffiths, a psychologist and director of the International Gaming Research Unit. However, he added that computer games were not necessarily bad news. "When parents contact me complaining about their children spending too much time playing computer games, I ask them, 'Has gaming interfered with their education or chores or are they not being physically active?' "When they answer, 'No,' I tell them that it is normal and they need to stop worrying." Archie suggested playing Fortnite was "like a virtual play date". "Parents don't need to worry where their kids are, because they are at home playing online with their friends," he said. As my two-week experiment of playing Fortnite was about to end, I spoke to my 10-year-old nephew. He had downloaded the game to his tablet the night before, to his mother's dismay. She said he had come home from school pleading to be allowed to play Fortnite, because all of his friends were playing it too, despite it not being recommended for under-12s. I definitely scored a few "cool auntie" points when I told him about my experiences on the island. But when my "sensible adult" mode kicked in and I warned him not to spend his money on in-app purchases to customise his avatar, he said all his friends had skins. I don't think I'll be getting into any Fortnite battles with my nephew or any of the other school-age children of any of my friends, who found the idea of me playing Fortnite highly amusing. But to be honest, it is likely I will go home this evening and play another game or two. Fortnite in numbers Beginner's tips By Chris Fox, technology reporter

मैं युद्ध बस से छलांग लगाता हूं और एक सुनसान द्वीप के बीच में उतरता हूं, जिसमें हथियार के रूप में केवल एक पिकैक्स होता है। जैसे ही मैं दौड़ना शुरू करता हूं, मुझे दूर से गोलियों की आवाज सुनाई देती है। लगभग तुरंत मैं गोलियों को चकमा दे रहा हूं और अचानक मैं मर जाता हूं-द्वीप के अन्य 99 खिलाड़ियों में से एक द्वारा गोली मार दी गई।


Man admits killing woman, 96, in Old Hutton crash

Summary: A man who admitted causing the death by careless driving of a 96-year-old woman has been warned he could be jailed.

Shaun Ferguson's Renault Scenic collided with a car in which Eileen Lamb was a passenger at Old Hutton, Cumbria in April 2015. Miss Lamb, from Endmoor, died 12 days later as a result of her injuries. Ferguson, 22, of Ridge Square, Lancaster, was bailed and will return to Carlisle Crown Court for sentencing on 16 December. Adjourning the case for background reports Mr Justice Davis told Ferguson he would be sentenced by a different judge. He said: "There are options open to him that could see you conceivably go to prison." Related Internet Links HM Courts Service

96 वर्षीय महिला की लापरवाही से गाड़ी चलाकर मौत की बात स्वीकार करने वाले एक व्यक्ति को चेतावनी दी गई है कि उसे जेल हो सकती है।


What next for buildings with flammable cladding?

Summary: The government is conducting a new series of tests to try to establish how worried it ought to be about cladding on tall buildings and their vulnerability to fire. These tests are very important - and might lead to a smaller number of buildings being deemed to be unsafe than the recent reports seem to suggest. Maybe not, though. We do not know.

Chris CookPolicy editor, Newsnight These new tests are going to be big: scientists will monitor what happens to a large-scale mock-up of the cladding used on the Grenfell Tower wall, and five other configurations of cladding. There were surely wide-ranging problems at Grenfell, but the exterior of buildings remain a major concern for officials: the fire in Kensington moved swiftly across the outside of the building. To date, the government has sought to identify other buildings clad in a layer of aluminium composite panels that have a polyethylene (plastic) core - the type of outer skin that was installed at Grenfell. They are also concerned about buildings installed with panels that are merely "fire retardant" - a similar, but slightly more fire-resistant, category of panel. To be deemed safe by the government's tests, the cladding should be of "limited combustibility", meeting a fire safety standard known in the jargon as "A2". So the tests so far have focussed on working out which buildings have which types of aluminium panels. And, so far, they have identified 181 buildings whose aluminium panels do not meet the A2 standard. But it is still not clear how we should interpret those results. Not all of those buildings will be dangerous. That is because the fire resistance of buildings' exteriors will not just be a function of the outer skin. For example, it also matters how developers install fire breaks and whether the material immediately underneath the skin was combustible. That's why we need these big tests. Looking under the skin At Grenfell, the aluminium sat above a layer of Celotex RS 5000 insulation, which is combustible. That surely contributed to the heat and spread: there is a lot more combustible material in any given layer of insulation than in the aluminium panels. It is possible that if the same aluminium panels had been installed on top of A2 insulation, things might have turned out differently. For example, there was a major fire in Camden in 2012 in a high-rise where polyethylene-core cladding was installed. In that case, the fire did not move and the fact that the insulation there was non-combustible may have been what stopped the fire becoming more serious. So we really need to establish how worried we should be about which parts of the wall systems. Hence, the Department of Communities and Local Government has commissioned these new tests, which will entail rigging up a nine-metre-tall demonstration wall with "a complete cladding system - including panels and insulation - fixed to it, and then subjecting it to a fire that replicates a severe fire in a flat breaking out of a window and whether it then spread up the outside wall". This does not mean they are going to commission such a test for each building. Instead they will do six tests to cover a range of scenarios. They will use the three common types of aluminium composite material panels: non-combustible panels, fire retardant panels and panels with a polyethylene core. And each one will be tested twice - once with non-combustible insulation and once with combustible. They may end up doing more: for example, there are several types of combustible material which may behave differently, and it really matters how the insulation is installed. The size of the insulation layer, for example, matters, as does the firebreaking (barriers within buildings that fire cannot cross). But the ambition is to start working out how safe or unsafe these configurations are. You might well wonder how it can be that, weeks after a major fire, we do not know how many tall buildings have unsafe cladding. To understand why, though, it is worth going back a step. How buildings get approved There are, in effect, three big routes to get sign-off on cladding that matter. One of the problems we have already explained is that third route. The so-called "desktop studies" can sometimes rely on very dissimilar test types. We have revealed cases where aluminium panels had been signed off based on tests using ceramic tiles - a very different sort of material. So some combustible cladding may have been installed without ever being tested. The studies appear to be routinely commissioned by the companies who make the materials under assessment, and are only released by those sponsors when they want to release them. The fact that they are confidential means that the scale of the problems posed by these studies is unclear. But they are clearly of far greater significance and scale than had been previously appreciated. Newsnight has revealed how one of the bodies that supplies building inspectors issued guidance stating they would sign off B-grade insulation paired with B-grade panelling without even a desktop study. This body, the NHBC, justified it based on the volume of fire tests and desktop studies that they had seen which argued such a combination would be safe. (They have now withdrawn that guidance.) What happens now? The government's large-scale tests will have practical effects on any cladding systems which are not entirely composed of A2 components. They may reveal that some of the cladding systems using combustible materials are actually safe, because they will have been installed in a manner which means that fire cannot spread. They will, in effect, prove that the judgments in the desktop studies were right. Conversely, the tests may reveal that a large number of buildings must be stripped rapidly of both insulation and exterior cladding. The government is doing the tests because we do not know. One curiosity of these tests, however, is worth noting. If any combination of materials fail the tests, it will automatically invalidate any desktop studies which have drawn the opposite conclusion on similar configurations of material. There are variations, and I paraphrase, but the desktop studies we have seen include language to the effect of the following: "If contradictory evidence becomes available to the test authors, the assessment will be unconditionally withdrawn and the company commissioning the study will be notified in writing. The assessment is invalidated if the assessed construction is subsequently tested because actual test data is deemed to take precedence over an expressed opinion." So these tests could leave building owners in possession of cladding systems that do not meet fire safety standards - and may find themselves, for example, unable to get them insured. There has been nervousness about whether the government should compel private companies to test cladding on their buildings. But the knock-on effects of these fire tests, via the insurers, could force buildings of all sorts to undergo testing - and dramatic remodelling - on their own.

सरकार यह स्थापित करने की कोशिश करने के लिए परीक्षणों की एक नई श्रृंखला आयोजित कर रही है कि ऊँची इमारतों पर आवरण और आग लगने की उनकी संवेदनशीलता के बारे में कितना चिंतित होना चाहिए। ये परीक्षण बहुत महत्वपूर्ण हैं-और हाल की रिपोर्टों की तुलना में कम संख्या में इमारतों को असुरक्षित माना जा सकता है। शायद नहीं, हालांकि। हम नहीं जानते।


WW2 re-enactors hurt in English Heritage 'unexpected' explosion, report finds

Summary: An explosion at a stately home that left two World War Two re-enactors with leg injuries was caused when a device "unexpectedly discharged", an investigation has concluded.

The accident happened at Audley End House, Essex, on 28 August. English Heritage said the two men taken to hospital were "recovering well". Its report said the "final pyrotechnic unexpectedly discharged, outside of the planned sequence", but it was still investigating why that happened. A spokesman for the charity, which manages the Jacobean mansion and its gardens, said. "The display was managed by a specialist contractor who has provided displays of this nature for English Heritage for the past seven years and has an exemplary safety record. "English Heritage is commissioning an independent specialist to try to ascertain why the pyrotechnic unexpectedly discharged. "However, the investigation has concluded that no members of the public were at risk at any time."

एक शानदार घर में एक विस्फोट, जिसमें द्वितीय विश्व युद्ध के दो पुनः प्रेरक पैर में चोटिल हो गए थे, एक उपकरण के "अप्रत्याशित रूप से डिस्चार्ज" होने पर हुआ था, एक जांच ने निष्कर्ष निकाला है।


Par Beach bathers told sea is safe from pollution

Summary: Bathers have been given the all-clear to swim at a Cornwall beach after a pollution scare.

Signs were put up at Par Beach last week after a number of fish were reported to have been killed by a pollutant in the River Par. Cornwall Council said it had removed warning signs because there had been no further reports of pollution. It also said heavy rainfall would have diluted and washed out any pollutant from the river and beach. The Environment Agency is continuing its investigations into the cause of the pollution. Related Internet Links Cornwall Council Environment Agency

प्रदूषण के डर के बाद कॉर्नवाल समुद्र तट पर नहाने वालों को तैरने की पूरी मंजूरी दे दी गई है।


Vatican embarrassment as Pope's butler goes on trial

Summary: Pope Benedict's 46-year-old former butler, Paolo Gabriele, goes on trial in a small and rarely used courtroom inside Vatican City before a panel of three judges, on charges of stealing an "enormous" quantity of secret and confidential documents from the pontiff's desk.

By David WilleyBBC News, Rome The theft marks the biggest breach of security in the Vatican in modern times. An Italian computer technician who used to work in the equivalent of the Papal Cabinet Office, the Secretariat of State, is also charged with aiding and abetting Mr Gabriele. If found guilty, the butler could face up to four years' imprisonment in an Italian jail, as Vatican City - the world's smallest state - has no long-term detention facilities on its territory. The technician, Claudio Sciarpelletti, faces up to a year in prison if found guilty. Mr Gabriele has admitted his guilt to investigators but has not yet entered a plea in court. The formal charge is "aggravated theft" because of where the alleged crime took place - inside what was supposed to be the most secure area of the Pope's domain right in the centre of Rome, the papal penthouse apartment on the top floor of the Apostolic Palace. Mr Gabriele is alleged to have handed photocopies of many of the stolen documents to an Italian journalist who published facsimile copies of them in a book earlier this year, cataloguing corruption and petty rivalry among top-level Vatican administrators. The Vatican says he also gave another set of copies to an Italian priest - described as his "spiritual adviser" - who decided to burn them. The unnamed priest told Mr Gabriele to confess only to the Pope himself what he had done. Trusted employee Mr Gabriele, a trusted employee who is married with three children, held the keys to the Pope's apartments. A fervent Catholic used to attending the Pope's private Mass celebrated each morning, he has spent his entire working life so far in the service of the Vatican. He used to ride up front next to the chauffeur in Pope Benedict's Popemobile, and served the pontiff's meals at table in the Apostolic Palace. He has already confessed to Vatican investigators that he took the papers, although he initially denied having done so when confronted last May by Pope Benedict's private secretary, Monsignor Georg Gaenswein. He has written a letter of apology to the Pope and has already asked for a pardon. The Vatican City's criminal and civil judiciary is staffed by Italians, many of whom have other jobs in Rome. The Vatican criminal code is based closely on Italian legal practice. Last year the court heard some 220 cases, mainly involving petty crimes such as pickpocketing committed by a tiny fraction of the 18 million people who enter Saint Peter's Basilica or the Vatican Museums each year. The court normally meets only on Saturdays. No witness list has been issued nor is it even certain whether Mr Gabriele and Mr Sciarpelletti will be present in person for the opening of their trial. They have the option not to attend. Vatican reporters have drawn lots for the privilege of attending the court proceedings. Only eight reporters are being allowed inside, and TV cameras have been banned. Journalists will have to hand in their mobile phones to Vatican security staff to prevent them tweeting or communicating with the outside world until the morning session has ended and they have briefed the numerous members of the Vatican Press Corps waiting for information at the Press Centre. None of the hundreds of priests, bishops and cardinals who work inside the Holy See, the central administration of the Roman Catholic Church, have been charged in connection with this very serious breach of security. 'Evil and corruption' A committee of cardinals set up by Pope Benedict to investigate the circumstances of what has become known as the "Vatileaks" scandal has reported back to the pontiff, but their findings are still secret as internal enquiries are still going on to try to determine whether Mr Gabrieli and Mr Sciarpelletti acted alone or were part of a conspiracy involving senior aides to the Pope. Mr Gabriele told investigators that his motive in stealing documents from the Pope's desk was to try to save the Church from the "evil and corruption" that he saw around him. He said he believed Pope Benedict was not being correctly informed by his staff and that in making certain documents known to the media he would deliver a "salutary shock" which would set the Church back on its right tracks. He was doing all this as "the agent of the Holy Spirit". Vatican investigators had Mr Gabriele assessed by two psychiatrists to ascertain whether he had mental problems. One reported back that he had a "fragile personality" and another that he had "grandiose" ideas coupled with a need for constant reassurance that he was being appreciated in his work. But neither found him unable to understand the consequences of his acts. More than 200 Catholic Bishops from around the world are due to arrive in Rome shortly for a three-week conference on how to check the falling away from the faith of millions of European Catholics and how to inspire a new evangelisation. It will be in the Vatican's interest to ensure a rapid conclusion to the "Vatileaks" trial which has become the source for considerable embarrassment in the higher echelons of the Roman Catholic Church.

पोप बेनेडिक्ट के 46 वर्षीय पूर्व बटलर, पाओलो गैब्रिएल, वेटिकन सिटी के अंदर एक छोटे से और शायद ही कभी उपयोग किए जाने वाले अदालत कक्ष में तीन न्यायाधीशों के एक पैनल के सामने मुकदमा चल रहा है, जिस पर पोप की मेज से "भारी" मात्रा में गुप्त और गोपनीय दस्तावेज चुराने का आरोप है।


Cyclist dies in crash involving car in Portadown

Summary: A man has died after a crash on the Gilford Road in Portadown, County Armagh, on Wednesday night.

Police said an incident involving a Hyundai Tuscon car and a cyclist was reported shortly after 21:35 GMT. The cyclist was treated at the scene but died as a result of his injuries. The Gilford Road was closed but has since been reopened and police are appealing to anyone with information or dashcam footage to contact them.

बुधवार की रात काउंटी अरमाघ के पोर्टाडाउन में गिलफोर्ड रोड पर एक दुर्घटना में एक व्यक्ति की मौत हो गई है।


Armagh family build a bull from snow

Summary: We have had countless snowmen and women, igloos too, but a County Armagh family have used the recent snow to build something 'udderly' original, a life-size replica of a Charolais bull.

By Johnny CaldwellBBC News The impressive artwork took several hours to complete in a field on the Cavanakill Road outside Newtownhamilton. "It's a Charolais bull which are white anyway, " said Nadene Bailie. Nadene's two daughters, her husband and two brothers-in-law were all involved. "It took them about five hours to build it. It looked absolutely brilliant, a real masterpiece," she said. 'Considerabull' "Unfortunately though as soon as they had finished it, it started to collapse. "We got some great pics, but it's a real shame it didn't last longer given all the work that went into it." Would the artwork fetch a 'considerabull' amount of money on the open market? "As a joke, one of the boys Andy tried to sell it online," said Nadene. "He described it as being from the Coolontheknees herd, calling the bull Coolontheknees Stormzy."

हमारे पास अनगिनत हिममानव और महिलाएँ, इग्लू भी हैं, लेकिन एक काउंटी अरमाघ परिवार ने हाल की बर्फ का उपयोग कुछ 'मूल' बनाने के लिए किया है, जो एक चारोलाइस बैल की आदमकद प्रतिकृति है।


China's stock market fall hits small investors

Summary: Shanghai's old town - with its narrow alleys, pungent street food and tiny single room homes - may be being swept away by new development, but enough of it remains to sustain a vibrant community.

By John SudworthBBC News, Shanghai And in the early part of this year, much of the gossip among the shop owners and stall holders centred on the goings on, and the money to be made, not far away on the other side of the dirty old Huangpu River, at the Shanghai Stock Exchange. "I hadn't done any stock market investments before," Lin Jinxia tells me, "but I was influenced by all the talk." Ms Lin lives at the top of seven flights of stairs, the landings of which are littered with dusty old bicycles, in a tiny apartment with her husband and her four-year-old son. They're migrant workers who arrived from Fujian Province five years ago and, through hard graft in their shop selling buttons to a bustling garment industry, they've saved themselves a tidy fortune. Then in May this year they ploughed a large chunk of it into the stock market, investing more than 200,000 RMB ($32,000: £20,000) into four separate stocks. It seemed a sensible enough spread with picks from the electronics, fashion and car-sales industries. But the timing was terrible. They all tanked, collectively standing now at just half of their original purchase price, amounting to a combined loss for Ms Lin and her husband of 100,000 RMB. "I've lost so much of the money that I've worked so hard for," she says. "Now I'm having to save and cut down on my spending. We don't earn much, it was all money from our hard work." In China, unlike in the European or US markets, individuals make up around 80% of the investors. Many of them are new and inexperienced, often following whim and rumour to make decisions and so the market is arguably more vulnerable to quick turnarounds in herd behaviour. Having been marching share prices up the hill for well over a year, on 12 June the crowd suddenly veered back down again and three weeks later almost a third of the value - $3.2 trillion - had been wiped away in three short weeks. 'I knew there were risks' Chen Zhihui's small tailors shop can be found - although not that easily - down a passageway close to Lin Jinxia's home. And like his neighbour, he too acted on the advice of all those who had, until recently, been making nice fat paper profits, not realising he was entering the fray at the worst possible moment. "To me, personally, I knew there were risks," he tells me from his tiny workspace with his sewing machine whirring away beside us. He bought just one company, 10,000 RMB's worth of a Chinese steel-maker, only to find his shares suddenly trading at around half their original value. And while his losses are relatively small, Mr Chen is well aware that in almost every other shop and home in this district and beyond, there are others in a similar predicament, or fearing that they soon might be. "If everyone lost 5,000 RMB it could add up to a big amount," he says. For many analysts that explains why the Chinese government has been so keen to stop the market sliding any further. Economic impact Once it saw a buoyant stock market as a key part of its strategic shift to a consumer society with rapidly increasing share ownership having the twin benefits of both recapitalising the country's big debt-laden firms and, at the same time, making the small punter feel richer. Now the Communist party faces the frightening prospect of the very opposite effect; as savings vanish into thin air, millions of investors are simultaneously tightening their belts with potentially chilling impacts for the Chinese economy and beyond. For now, it is only the late arrivals to China's stock market binge that have been burned, with the recent, sharp depreciation in value still comfortably outweighed by longer term gains going back a year and more. But the slew of measures the authorities have unleashed in the past few days are part of an attempt - perhaps futile - to stop things getting any worse. It has been criticised by outside observers, of course, as dangerous political meddling in the workings of the markets and their ability to put a proper price on risk. But then, it could be argued, that exact same charge could be levelled at the attempts to pump up the markets in the first place. Politics not economics Some analysts dismiss the fear that a full blown stock market collapse could precipitate a wider economic shock. "The stock market is too small, too tiny, completely irrelevant," Chen Long, China economist at Gavekal Dragonomics tells me. "It accounts for just 5% of Chinese household wealth and anyway the market is still up on where it was last year." Much more could yet be wiped off the value of Chinese shares, it would follow, before anyone needs to panic, least of all the government. So perhaps, if this view is correct, Beijing's actions are motivated by the need to contain the political fallout, rather than the economic. In the middle of an already tricky slowdown in GDP growth the last thing it needs is hordes of mom and pop stock traders taking to the streets. And so far, at least, that part of the strategy might be working with little sign of any anger. Despite her already heavy losses, Lin Jinxia's plan is to hang onto her massively devalued stock in the hope it rises again. "I believe the government will come up with the right strategies," she tells me. Confident investor Liu Changrong is a restaurateur, selling noodles, pork chops and sticky rice a block or so's walk from Mr Chen the tailor. He is either canny or lucky, or both. "You just need to buy at the right point," he tells me. He did exactly that, buying 200,000 RMB worth of shares in a large Chinese conglomerate last year and then selling them all in May, just below their peak. He made a very nice profit indeed, coming out more than 50%. You might think that would be a good place to call it a day. But despite the cautionary tales of his neighbours all around him he's still confident the government will turn things around. "When the market improves, I'll get back in again," he tells me as he puts a big pan of water on to boil.

शंघाई का पुराना शहर-अपनी संकीर्ण गलियों, तीखे सड़क भोजन और छोटे एकल कमरे के घरों के साथ-हो सकता है कि नए विकास से बह गया हो, लेकिन इसका पर्याप्त हिस्सा एक जीवंत समुदाय को बनाए रखने के लिए बना हुआ है।


Newtonmore museum to hold its first Outlander Day

Summary: A museum where scenes for the Outlander TV series were shot is to hold its first day dedicated to the show and the books it is based on.

The programme was filmed in a reconstruction of a 1700s township at the Highland Folk Museum in Newtonmore. The museum's Outlander Day on 5 September will hold demonstrations of weaving, cooking and wood turning as well as talks about the period. There will also be a reconstruction of a British Army red coats' camp. US author Diana Gabaldon writes the best-selling Outlander books, which have been adapted for TV and involve a nurse from 1946 travelling back in time to 18th Century Scotland.

एक संग्रहालय जहाँ आउटलैंडर टीवी श्रृंखला के दृश्यों को शूट किया गया था, उसका पहला दिन शो और उन पुस्तकों को समर्पित है जिन पर यह आधारित है।


Coronavirus: The US clothing firms now making gowns and gloves

Summary: In a normal year Michael Rubin's athletic apparel factory in Pennsylvania would be ramping up for the start of baseball season, churning out team uniforms and clothing to sell to fans. Instead his company, Fanatics, has remade itself into a gown and mask manufacturer for hospitals facing shortages of protective gear as they fight the coronavirus.

By Natalie ShermanBusiness reporter, New York Fanatics isn't alone. Thousands of companies across the US have responded to pleas for help from hospitals facing shortages of critical health supplies. Clothing companies like Gap and Hanes are making gowns and scrubs. Ford and General Motors are repurposing fans and batteries, typically used in cars, to make ventilators. Boeing and Apple are making face shields. Luxury brands, distilleries - even state prisoners - are producing hand sanitiser. "We felt it was our responsibility to help pitch in," says Mr Rubin. Firms responding in what he calls this "dire time of need" aren't necessarily going to profit from the enterprise but they are proving a point: The private sector is famously good at responding nimbly and quickly to changing demands. 'Supply chain 101' The shortages in the US are are not unique, nor is the response from the private sector. In the UK, engineering firm Dyson has designed a new ventilator; in France, Chanel is contributing masks; in Germany, Volkswagen and other firms are manufacturing protective equipment. But the White House has been notably hands-off when it comes to establishing any co-ordinated, centralised response, says Nada Sanders, professor of supply chain management at Northeastern University. This has led to a free-for-all, as local governments and hospitals competed to buy products or find donations, scam artists emerged, and prices skyrocketed. The US has allowed "pure capitalism to serve as an incentive" says Dr Sanders. "Companies want to step up to the plate and so many are. I really applaud them, but I also find it even more frustrating because I see the chaos." In the European Union, the shortages were caused by inadequate reserves of equipment, as coronavirus cases surged and shipments from overseas were delayed. But in the US, which has a national stockpile of supplies, including badly-needed ventilators, a slow federal response has added to the problem, says Prashant Yadav, a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development and a professor at INSEAD. "Outcomes are pretty bad in both [Europe and America], but in one place they don't have large resources in a stockpile. They didn't have a large manufacturing base," he says. "Our decision-making wasn't working right or our coordinating mechanisms weren't working right." Converting factories to make basic products like sanitiser or masks isn't necessarily that difficult or expensive. Mr Rubin's factory shipped its first masks within three days and now produces about 10,000 daily. But getting companies to start making machines like ventilators - which have dozens of parts sourced globally - is far more complex and requires government intervention, says Dr Sanders. While some states, including California, have voluntarily sent existing ventilators to virus hotspots like New York, Dr Sanders says a national response is needed, to ensure there is a clear inventory of what's on hand and the ability to shift resources to the places that need it most. "This is supply chain 101 ... it's not like it's really that hard," she says. "The lack of coordinated national response is really infuriating." 'A national system' Under pressure to act, President Donald Trump has targeted some companies with orders to produce items in high demand and banned exports of medical supplies. Federal health officials also announced a $50m deal with General Motors to produce 30,000 ventilators. But for weeks Mr Trump resisted using the full extent of his authority to compel firms to produce equipment and prioritise deliveries. "We're a country not based on nationalising our business," he said last month. "Call a person over in Venezuela. Ask them, how did nationalisation of their businesses work out? Not too well. The concept of nationalising our business is not a good concept." New York Senator Chuck Schumer, a leading Democrat, last week called on the president to appoint a national 'czar' to oversee distribution and production. "The hunting and pecking isn't working," he told reporters. It is not clear that the president will change tack. Luckily in some places the private sector efforts are coming through. St Luke's University Health Network, which worked with Fanatics to design its masks, now has about 30 days worth of protective gear on hand, says vice president Chad Brisendine. Contributions from non-traditional suppliers account for "a quarter or more" of that. "Between the external, local, non-traditional suppliers, plus the donations, that really helped us," Mr Brisendine says. But the Pennsylvania hospital system has still been forced to introduce new cleaning procedures so it can reuse masks and other equipment more intensively, he adds. Mr Brisendine says he's worried the wider needs are so great, even a stronger federal response wouldn't resolve the problems his health network now faces. "I just wonder how fast they can move," he says. "When you need it, you needed it yesterday."

एक सामान्य वर्ष में पेनसिल्वेनिया में माइकल रुबिन का एथलेटिक परिधान कारखाना बेसबॉल सीज़न की शुरुआत के लिए बढ़ रहा होगा, प्रशंसकों को बेचने के लिए टीम की वर्दी और कपड़ों का मंथन करेगा। इसके बजाय उनकी कंपनी, फैनेटिक्स ने खुद को एक गाउन और मास्क निर्माता के रूप में बनाया है जो अस्पतालों के लिए सुरक्षात्मक गियर की कमी का सामना कर रहे हैं क्योंकि वे कोरोनावायरस से लड़ रहे हैं।


Fuel poverty: An anatomy of a cold home

Summary: In the year 2000, Parliament agreed to end fuel poverty by 2016. But 16 years on, more than a million working families still cannot afford to heat their homes. One family - Hayley, her partner Dan, and two children - are struggling.

By Datshiane NavanayagamBBC Panorama Hayley and Dan's Bedroom It's 03:00. Hayley and Dan need to be up in a few hours for work but neither of them is asleep. They've both been woken up by the cold. It's a familiar battle. They live in a draughty two-storey, semi-detached house in Hastings that's hard to keep warm. It means that with even a slight dip in the temperature outside, their bedroom soon feels like an icebox. Hayley estimates they spend £15 to £20 on electricity and £15 on gas per week. They can't afford to keep the heating on during the night and so almost every night in winter is a fractured sleep. "It does feel like we're outside, especially with no insulation in the walls and the wind coming through the windows," says Dan. Hayley's also worried about the effect the cold nights are having on her 12-month-old son. "It's absolutely freezing. It's horrible being woken up with the cold because obviously if you're woken up as an adult then you worry about what your kids are going through." Although he's bundled up in pyjamas and blankets, she brings the baby into bed with her and Dan in the early mornings when it's coldest, to keep him warm. Before he turned one, he was rushed to hospital with croup - a respiratory infection - and has had several doses of antibiotics By 05:00, they give up on sleep and Dan gets up to put the heating on. Their entire home is poorly insulated and so it takes a few hours for it to warm up. Until then the warmest place for everyone is Hayley and Dan's bed. Ava, Hayley's nine-year-old daughter, often joins them too. Toys are put out on the bed for the baby and everyone huddles together. It means the whole family is confined to the small double bed until they can start moving. "It's lovely to have family time and have everybody in the bed but it's also quite annoying because family time isn't meant to be spent on the bed for a good hour to get into the flow of life," says Hayley. "You're meant to get up and go downstairs and have breakfast and stuff and we just couldn't do it this morning. It was too cold. Way too cold." Now it's off to work and school. Hayley and Dan are not alone. Officially there are more than one million working families in fuel poverty - it means they can't afford to heat their home. Ava's Bedroom Ava's room is painted bright pink and covered in teddies. On the surface, it doesn't look any different to the thousands of little girls' bedrooms across the country. However, cold houses are often damp houses. Every room in the family's home has damp but Ava's room is the worst. Mould grows along her window. The little trinkets she lines her window sill with have to be frequently scrubbed to get rid of the black spots. Hayley says she's constantly disinfecting areas of Ava's room with bleach and has to throw out some of Ava's favourite toys because they've become too mouldy. "From literally the minute we come into the winter I have to be on it. I have to go round, check all the windows, wipe them all down, go round all the window sills, then go round all the walls and scrub them down. I've done that every year including when I was pregnant." Even still, the mould upsets Ava. The only place where they can fit her bed is under a large patch of mould on the ceiling. She says it upsets her every night before she goes to sleep. "I keep thinking that every time when I go to bed the roof is going to fall down. And then I wish it wasn't there because then I wouldn't be thinking that. I really want it to go away." Find out more The Panorama programme, Too Poor to Stay Warm is broadcast on BBC One on Monday 21 March at 20:30 GMT. Catch up on BBC iPlayer. The cold and damp mean Ava's bedding is often wet to the touch. She has two duvets on her bed so that her mum can swap them round when the one next to her skin gets damp. Going to sleep means putting on lots of layers so the cold doesn't wake her in the night - onesies, pyjamas, jumpers. But it doesn't always work. "When it's cold, it feels like the whole house has turned into a big block of ice. It feels like someone is rubbing ice on my nose," she says. Being cold at home and the broken sleep is starting to affect Ava's work at school. "It makes me really tired at school if I don't sleep well and then I can't concentrate," she says. "In winter, I get really poorly and I'm up all night coughing. I'd like to move to a house that doesn't have any mould in the bedrooms or anywhere. That would be better really." Bathroom Every morning there's the daily battle to use the bathroom before work and school. The elderly boiler also lives here. Hayley jokes that it's older than her but switching it on every day is a constant worry. "It sounds like it's going to take off. It's racketeering around and you have to smack it to make it work." The boiler no longer works efficiently, even when it does come on. It can't heat the water and heat the house at the same time so every morning Hayley and Dan have to make the decision whether they and the kids have a hot shower or turn on the central heating. They're worried that it will pack up at any moment. Living Room The living room gets used the most. It's cheaper and easier to try and keep just one room warm and ultimately this means that in the evenings everyone piles into the living room. It's not a large space but it has to accommodate everyone's needs. For the baby this means learning to walk while Ava also has to do her homework there because her room is just too cold to work in. She says it's difficult to concentrate when the baby is crying which she says is all the time. Cramming everyone into one room at the end of the day just so they can keep warm makes it harder to unwind and sometimes tensions run high. They've had to learn through trial and error where to put their furniture to avoid the worst of the damp and mould. Hayley says that the first winter the sitting room was originally the other way round. "I had the sofa up against the wall over there and everything that was up against the wall… a buggy, laptop bag and a few other items, all had to be thrown in the bin due to white mould just being all over it. The back of the sofa, thankfully, was leather so I could wipe it off." Cold houses aren't just uncomfortable to live in. Low temperatures in your home make you more prone to illnesses. It's a constant physical stress on everyone but there's also a hidden emotional drain. "The kids getting ill is one of my biggest worries. The situation has had me in tears several times," says Hayley. The emotional stress is also affecting Ava. "I worry that I'm going to wake up one day and my mum's not going to be here because she's really ill and she's going to be in hospital. That's why every time I go to bed I want her to go to bed after me so I know that she's in bed." For people living in a cold home like this the impact can stay with you for years. "When you're a kid you sit there and you think, 'When I grow up I'm going to have this big house and it's going to be great,'" says Hayley. "Your home's your safe place, your warm place, your comfort. But I just don't want to be in this house. I just exist here, that's it really, no more than that." Panorama - Too Poor to Stay Warm is broadcast on BBC One on Monday 21 March at 20:30 GMT. Catch up on BBC iPlayer Subscribe to the BBC News Magazine's email newsletter to get articles sent to your inbox.

वर्ष 2000 में, संसद ने 2016 तक गरीबी को समाप्त करने पर सहमति व्यक्त की। लेकिन 16 साल बाद भी, दस लाख से अधिक कामकाजी परिवार अभी भी अपने घरों को गर्म करने का खर्च नहीं उठा पा रहे हैं। एक परिवार-हेले, उनके साथी डैन और दो बच्चे-संघर्ष कर रहे हैं।


Trump Jr meeting controversy: The key players

Summary: It is the meeting everyone is talking about: Donald Trump Junior, his brother-in-law and the chairman of Donald Trump Senior's election campaign talking to a Russian lawyer who had allegedly offered damaging material about Hillary Clinton.

It was an encounter proposed by a British music publicist and allegedly arranged by an Azerbaijani-Russian businessman, whose pop star son once featured Mr Trump Sr in a music video. Feeling lost? Here are the key players explained. Donald Trump Jr The centre piece of it all is Donald Trump's eldest son from his first marriage to Ivana, who is now executive vice-president of the Trump Organization. Here is how it unfolded: he received an email from British music publicist Rob Goldstone promising documents from Russia that would incriminate Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. The meeting with the Russian lawyer, Natalia Veselnitskaya, was allegedly arranged by Azerbaijani-Russian billionaire Aras Agalarov, whose son Emin is a pop star who was managed for a time by Mr Goldstone (more on all of them later). One email from Mr Goldstone said the information they had been promised was "obviously very high-level and sensitive information but is part of Russia and its government's support for Mr Trump". Mr Trump Jr's response to it was: "If it's what you say I love it". The meeting took place in June 2016 at Trump Tower in New York. When news of it emerged, he denied that the meeting had anything to do with the campaign (we explain what he said below). He then told Fox News Ms Veselnitskaya had provided them with nothing of use and it had only lasted 20 minutes. Full Trump Jr emails Four explosive lines in emails Timeline of denials Jared Kushner, Mr Trump's son-in-law and White House adviser The husband of Ivanka, the president's eldest daughter, and a long-time adviser to Mr Trump, who played a key role in his campaign. Despite having no diplomatic credentials, he has found power with Mr Trump at the White House, being tasked with resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He also serves as the president's lead adviser on relations with China, Mexico and Canada. He has yet to comment on the case. Who is who in the Trump clan Paul Manafort, Trump ex-campaign chairman At the time of the meeting, he was a newcomer to the Trump team, brought in to professionalise the campaign. He quit in August, under fire for his ties to Russian interests and a former Ukrainian president. He has also not commented on the case. But Politico website, citing an unidentified source close to him, said that Mr Manafort had not read the email exchanges to the end on his phone and that he had not even known who was going to be in the meeting. Natalia Veselnitskaya, Russian lawyer Known for her campaign against the Magnitsky Act, which enables the US to withhold visas and freeze financial assets of Russian officials thought to have been involved with human rights violations. In reaction to this controversial act, Russia barred Americans from adopting Russian orphans. Mr Trump Jr had initially said the discussion of this ban was the subject of their meeting. That was before his email exchange with Mr Goldstone was revealed. Ms Veselnitskaya was married to a former deputy transportation minister of the Moscow region, the New York Times says. Her clients included state-owned companies and a senior government official's son, whose company was under investigation in the US when the meeting took place. Her work and connections had drawn the FBI's attention, an unnamed former senior law enforcement official was quoted by the Times as saying. She told the paper: "Nothing at all was discussed about the presidential campaign... I have never acted on behalf of the Russian government and have never discussed any of these matters with any representative of the Russian government." Trump-Russia inquiry: How did we get here? Russian cloud hangs over White House Rob Goldstone, publicist The man who set up the meeting. The publicist has worked closely with world-renowned stars such as Michael Jackson, BB King and Richard Branson. But, despite all of those big names, he was little known to the world until now. Mr Goldstone's posts on social media suggest he has spent several days in Russia and Azerbaijan on different trips in recent years, including in the months before last year's US presidential election. Media outlets report that shortly after Mr Trump's win, he posted a picture on his Instagram account in which he wore a T-shirt with "Russia" in big letters on it. The account was made private after the reports emerged. He is a former journalist - media reports say he used to work in tabloids. Most recently, he managed pop star Emin Agalarov. He has not commented. Why is this British guy emailing Trump Jr? Aras Agalarov, billionaire Often called the "Donald Trump of Russia", with an estimated fortune of about $1.9bn (£1.4bn), according to Forbes. Born in Baku, Azerbaijan, he is the owner of Crocus Group, a major Russian property development company, and was Mr Trump's business partner in taking the Miss Universe competition to Moscow in 2013. He was also working to partner with Mr Trump in bringing Trump Tower to Russia, a project that never materialised. Crocus, meanwhile, is currently building two stadiums in preparation for the 2018 World Cup hosted by Russia. Reacting to the news, the billionaire denied any intention to damage Mrs Clinton. "These are just fantasies! I do not know who invents them and what Hillary Clinton has to do with it. I do not know, I don't even properly know Rob Goldstone. He worked with Emin, probably, as a manager for a certain period of time, or he may have promoted something in the USA, I don't know." Emin Agalarov, singer The Baku-born singer is a music star in Russia and Azerbaijan. In 2013, Mr Trump featured in one of his music videos with that year's Miss Universe contestants - the clip has been watched almost 2m times on YouTube. In 2006, he married Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev's daughter, Leyla. The couple had two boys and adopted a girl, but have since divorced. Mr Goldstone said in the emails that the meeting was set up at the request of the singer. Emin Agalarov has not commented.

यह वह बैठक है जिसके बारे में हर कोई बात कर रहा हैः डोनाल्ड ट्रम्प जूनियर, उनके बहनोई और डोनाल्ड ट्रम्प सीनियर के चुनाव अभियान के अध्यक्ष एक रूसी वकील से बात कर रहे हैं जिसने कथित तौर पर हिलेरी क्लिंटन के बारे में हानिकारक सामग्री की पेशकश की थी।


Jack Mitchell death: Man denies murdering teenage son

Summary: A man has denied murdering his teenage son who died as a result of injuries he allegedly suffered as a baby.

Jack Mitchell, 15, from Harwich in Essex, died on 13 March 2016 from a pulmonary infection and pneumonia. John Doak, of Delgate Avenue, Spalding, Lincolnshire, appeared at the Old Bailey by video link from Oxford Crown Court and pleaded not guilty to a single charge of murder. Mr Justice Edis set a four-week trial for 22 June at Chelmsford Crown Court. Mr Doak was granted continued conditional bail.

एक व्यक्ति ने अपने किशोर बेटे की हत्या से इनकार किया है, जिसकी मौत कथित रूप से एक बच्चे के रूप में लगी चोटों के परिणामस्वरूप हुई थी।


Theatre Royal in Dumfries seeks urgent repairs funding

Summary: A survey of Scotland's oldest working theatre has found urgent repairs and maintenance must be carried out to safeguard its future.

Councillors are being asked to back a set of improvements at the Theatre Royal in Dumfries costing £225,000. Earlier this month the Nithsdale area committee approved £30,000 to prevent deterioration of the site. Now it is being asked to release extra funds to keep it wind and watertight and extend its life by about 10 years. If backed, a recommendation would then be made for the full council to release the cash as part of a wider programme to create a venue that would meet the needs of future generations.

स्कॉटलैंड के सबसे पुराने कार्यशील थिएटर के एक सर्वेक्षण में पाया गया है कि इसके भविष्य की सुरक्षा के लिए तत्काल मरम्मत और रखरखाव किया जाना चाहिए।


Why is EU struggling with migrants and asylum?

Summary: Europe is experiencing one of the most significant influxes of migrants and refugees in its history. Pushed by civil war and terror and pulled by the promise of a better life, huge numbers of people have fled the Middle East and Africa, risking their lives along the way.

More than a million migrants and refugees crossed into Europe in 2015, compared with just 280,000 the year before. The scale of the crisis continues, with more than 135,000 people arriving in the first two months of 2016. Among the forces driving people to make the dangerous journey are the conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. The vast majority - more than 80% - of those who reached Europe by boat in 2015 came from those three countries. Poverty, human rights abuses and deteriorating security are also prompting people to set out from countries such as Eritrea, Pakistan, Morocco, Iran and Somalia in the hope of a new life in somewhere like Germany, Sweden or the UK. But as European countries struggle with the mass movement of people, some have tightened border controls. This has left tens of thousands of migrants stranded in Greece, raising fears of a humanitarian crisis. As leaders grasp for a solution, they have increasingly looked to Turkey, hoping to slow the number of people setting off for European shores. What routes are people using? The most direct routes are fraught with danger. In 2015 more than 3,770 people drowned or went missing crossing the Mediterranean to Greece or Italy in flimsy dinghies or unsafe fishing boats. Most of those heading for Greece take the relatively short voyage from Turkey to the islands of Kos, Chios, Lesbos and Samos. There is very little infrastructure on these small Greek islands to cope with the thousands of people arriving, leaving overburdened authorities struggling to provide vital assistance. Others migrants continue to travel by boat from Libya to Italy, a longer and more hazardous journey. Some of the worse tragedies in 2015 included: Survivors often report violence and abuse by people traffickers, who charge thousands of dollars per person for their services. The chaos in Libya in particular has given traffickers freedom to exploit migrants and refugees desperate to reach Europe. Where are they going next? Many attempting to reach Germany and other northern EU countries go via the perilous Western Balkans route, running the gauntlet of brutal people traffickers and robbers. Faced with a huge influx of people, Hungary was the first to try to block their route with a razor-wire fence. The 175km (110-mile) barrier was widely condemned when it went up along the Serbia border, but other countries such as Slovenia and Bulgaria have erected similar obstacles. Austria has placed a cap on the number of people allowed into its borders. And several Balkan countries, including Macedonia, have also decided only to allow Syrian and Iraqi migrants across their frontiers. As a result, thousands of migrants have been stranded in makeshift camps in cash-strapped Greece, which has asked the European Commission for nearly €500m in humanitarian aid. Under an EU rule known as the Dublin regulation, refugees are required to claim asylum in the member state in which they first arrive. But some EU countries, such as Greece, Italy, and Croatia, have been allowing people to pass through - often via the passport-free Schengen zone - to countries further north. And those countries are often failing to send migrants back. Germany received more than 1.1 million asylum seekers 2015 - by far the highest number in the EU. Hundreds of thousands of people are somewhere along the route, in Hungary, Croatia, Austria, Serbia, and elsewhere. Meanwhile between 2,000 and 5,000 migrants are camped at the French port of Calais in the hope of crossing over to the UK. Are EU countries doing their fair share? Germany has been critical of other EU countries - including France and the UK -over their relatively meagre commitments to take people in. In September, EU interior ministers approved a controversial plan to relocate 120,000 migrants across the continent over the next two years, with binding quotas. Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary opposed the scheme. Despite some efforts to ease the burden on Italy and Greece, only small groups of migrants have been relocated so far and several states in Central and Eastern Europe have refused to accept them. For years the EU has been struggling to harmonise asylum policy. That is difficult with 28 member states, each with their own police force and judiciary. Championing the rights of poor migrants is difficult as the economic climate is still gloomy, many Europeans are unemployed and wary of foreign workers, and EU countries are divided over how to share the refugee burden. More detailed joint rules have been brought in with the Common European Asylum System - but rules are one thing, putting them into practice EU-wide is another challenge. EU leaders now hope Turkey can help to reduce the number of migrants arriving in EU nations. In February the bloc approved €3bn ($3.3bn; £2.2bn) in funding for the country to help it cope with record numbers of Syrian migrants it is already hosting. European Council President Donald Tusk says it is up to Turkey to decide how to reduce the flow to Europe, but that it could be time to turn back migrant boats trying to reach Greece. A note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.

यूरोप अपने इतिहास में प्रवासियों और शरणार्थियों की सबसे महत्वपूर्ण आमद का सामना कर रहा है। गृहयुद्ध और आतंक से प्रेरित होकर और बेहतर जीवन के वादे से खींचा गया, बड़ी संख्या में लोग मध्य पूर्व और अफ्रीका से भाग गए हैं, रास्ते में अपनी जान जोखिम में डालते हुए।


Uttarakhand dam disaster: 'The most difficult seven hours of my life'

Summary: On Sunday, Basant Bahadur and 11 others were trapped for hours in a tunnel in north India, hanging from iron bars in the roof while some sat on a mechanical digger above icy cold water, waiting for help to arrive.

What the 12 did not know at the time was that a piece of a Himalayan glacier was suspected of shearing off into a river and triggering a huge flood. It sent a deluge of water and debris their way. It blocked two tunnels connected to the Tapovan Vishnugad hydro power project in the state of Uttarakhand. Basant Bahadur and his group were pulled out from the smaller tunnel. Emergency teams are now focused on rescuing 35 people believed to be trapped in the longer one, which is 8.3km (5.1 miles) long. Here, the survivors tell BBC Hindi what happened in those terrifying hours trapped in complete darkness. 'It was the most difficult seven hours of my life' Basant Bahadur and several others were working about 300 metres (about 900 feet) inside the 3.8km-long tunnel when the deluge hit. At first they thought that a gas cylinder had exploded leading to a larger blast which caused the tunnel to cave in. They thought that if they tried to get out of the tunnel, they could risk getting electrocuted - they could see thick smoke rising up. Their ears had become numb from the loud noises. "Suddenly a big surge of water came rushing towards us in the dark tunnel. We were petrified," Mr Bahadur said. The workers ran towards a JCB (a mechanical digger) and climbed it to stay above the water that had flowed in. "It was the most difficult seven hours of my life. But we did not lose hope. We kept encouraging ourselves." Luckily, Mr Bahadur had his mobile phone with him. The mobile network in the blocked tunnel was patchy. Finally, they managed to make contact with emergency teams who pulled them out using ropes. 'The water came gushing into the tunnel' Among those rescued was geologist Srinivas Reddy. He was working in the tunnel, some 350m inside. A worker came running into the tunnel shouting for everyone to come out because the water in the nearby river was rapidly rising. But Mr Reddy and the workers didn't get enough time to escape. "The water came gushing into the tunnel straight at us. We grabbed iron bars installed on the ceiling of the tunnel and pulled ourselves up and waited for the water level to recede." They survived by hanging onto the iron bars. After a while, when they saw that the water level had stopped rising, they made their way towards the entrance. They were moving in complete darkness because the deluge of debris and water had cut the power supply to the tunnel. Some of the trapped workers were feeling breathless. "We were in cold water. Our feet were freezing. Water and debris had filled our boots, which were weighing us down. Our feet started swelling," Mr Reddy said. To keep spirits high, he said he started singing as they waited in the dark. "I started singing and started reciting poetry to keep everyone cheered up. Every now and then, we all did a few exercises," he said. "I wanted everyone to remain active and alert so that we could make our way out of the tunnel." The workers kept trying to contact rescue teams outside the tunnel but couldn't get a mobile signal. Finally, they managed to get a call out and were pulled to safety. 'The water hit us - the power went out' Virender Kumar Gautam was one of the last to be rescued. A video of him raising his hands in the air in triumph, exclaiming with joy after being pulled out by emergency workers has gone viral. He was in the tunnel when the water came. "As soon as the water hit us, the power went out. In the distance we could hear loud noises." Plunged into darkness, the tunnel looked terrifying as the water level rose. Mr Gautam though that perhaps a cloud burst had caused the flash flood. For 15 minutes, the water levels kept rising. Then it stopped. "When the water flow started slowing down, we knew that the worst had passed. I told all my colleagues to be patient and that we would escape the tunnel," he told BBC Hindi. They all held on to iron bars on the side of the tunnel and slowly made their way towards the entrance. The workers tried to make contact with rescue teams but like the others they struggled to get mobile connectivity. They kept trying, however, and after a long wait, they were able to make contact.

रविवार को, बसंत बहादुर और 11 अन्य लोग उत्तर भारत में एक सुरंग में घंटों तक फंसे रहे, छत में लोहे की छड़ से लटके हुए थे, जबकि कुछ लोग बर्फीले ठंडे पानी के ऊपर एक यांत्रिक खुदाई करने वाले पर बैठे थे, जो मदद के आने का इंतजार कर रहे थे।


Could one man cause a stockmarket crash?

Summary: Exactly five years after the "flash crash" suddenly wiped nearly a trillion dollars from the markets, the US authorities are largely pointing at one man - a 36-year-old trader from Hounslow in west London.

By Andrew VerityBBC Economics correspondent But could one man really be responsible for the single biggest upheaval to trading in a decade? Becoming a financial master of the universe, manipulating markets across the globe, wiping a trillion dollars off US stock markets and making yourself millions, may seem a tall order. But according to allegations from no less an authority than the FBI, you don't have to travel to the City in a pinstripe suit at 6am and slick your hair back like Michael Douglas. You can stay at home in your parents' suburban semi in Hounslow, even in your mid-thirties; wear a worn-out grey jogging top and bottoms; hang out in your bedroom and tinker on a computer. You can get up at noon and crash out at 4am. Get yourself a seat on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange - there's no need to travel to Chicago: it's all done remotely. Place bets on which way the S&P 500 index of shares in leading US companies is going to go - by trading contracts based on the future value of the index. If you want the market to go down, place orders to sell stuff you don't actually own and never intend to sell. Your object is to influence the market - without actually trading. Contracts change hands when the price at which they are offered is the cheapest on the market. To make sure your trades never go through, you make sure the price you offer to sell at is just a little bit above the cheapest price on the market. Other traders, looking at the market's order book, see far more sell orders than buy orders. Fearing that the selling pressure will drag down the price, they sell - or their automated trading software does - and the price falls. When it does so, you can make money, for example by placing a real order to buy. Financial panic According to the FBI's allegations, Navinder Singh Sarao, known as Nav to his friends and neighbours, did this on such a scale and to such lucrative effect that over four years he made $40m (£27m). And humiliatingly for the regulatory authorities, the Chicago Futures Trading Commission in the US and the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK, he was allegedly able to evade any regulation and bat off regulators' inquiries for more than five years. In late April 2010, Navinder Singh Sarao established a new company on the Caribbean island of Nevis, Nav Sarao Milking Markets Limited - though it had little to do with the dairy industry. The FBI claims it was part of a tax avoidance strategy. On May 6 2010, exactly five years ago, argues the FBI, Mr Sarao used a computer programme or algorithm to create a huge number of sell orders between 11.17am and 1.40pm. The FBI claims his sell orders were equivalent to the entire amount of "buy" orders placed by every other market participant. Minutes later came financial panic. Between 1.41pm and 1.44pm the S&P plunged 3% then in just 15 seconds it dropped another 1.7%. Within minutes the S&P dropped 6%, far quicker than during previous crashes, before bouncing back up. 'Very bright, very diligent' The above, however, is only the FBI's view. Beyond what has been said in court by his lawyers - that his arrest was a "bolt from the blue" - we still know very little of his side of the story. Mr Sarao has been bailed on condition he places £5m as security. So far he hasn't come up with it. He is contesting the US attempt to extradite him. Fellow traders find the FBI's allegations hard to believe. If his computer programme or algorithm was switched off at 1.40pm on May 6, how come the big falls on the market took place after that point? Could just one man at home really cause such havoc in the markets? Before setting up his own trading company at his parents' house, Mr Sarao graduated from Brunel University and worked for five years at the Woking offices of the commodities and futures traders, Futex. Futex says there were no incidents of any impropriety during his time with the firm. It also says he never used an algorithm to trade, instead using old-style "point and click". According to Futex boss Paulo Rossi, he was "very bright, very diligent, willing to take on risk - and he did take on risk." But he can't credit the idea that Mr Sarao could manipulate the whole Chicago futures market and cause an international financial panic. "He was unusual in that he wasn't interested in money in order to spend the money. He was interested in purely focusing on growing his trading account," Mr Rossi told Bloomberg. Bouts of illiquidity Experts on the "flash crash" originally blamed the Kansas-based investment fund Waddell and Read, for trying to offload $4.1bn of futures contracts - a sell order so large it swamped the available buyers and allowed prices to go into free-fall. Professor Maureen O'Hara at Cornell University, who was on the Flash Crash Commission that investigated the incident, resists the new alternative theory that blames it on one man. "You can get a world where at the moment you have 100 sellers and you don't have 100 buyers. That price will fall off a cliff not because the underlying asset is worth less but because there is temporarily illiquidity. "What you don't want to happen in a market is for prices to fall just because of that temporary imbalance." She says that, far from being the work of one man, those temporary bouts of illiquidity are behind the flash crash of 2010 - and several "mini flash crashes" since. You also get a different picture if you talk to people who know Mr Sarao. One boyhood companion and neighbour, Anil Puri, describes him as "a nice guy, fun to be with, sociable". But he's also surprised he could be accused of anything like manipulating markets in Chicago. Another family friend, Rupinder Kesar told the BBC she was so shocked she hadn't been able to go to work the following day and was still trying to understand what has happened. Automated trading In fairness, the US authorities don't quite blame Mr Sarao alone for the flash crash, which briefly wiped a trillion dollars off US markets on 6 May. But they do allege he contributed to it, by creating a big imbalance in the market between buy and sell orders. And they claim that on that one day he made $879,000 (£582,000). They also quote an email where Mr Sarao asserts that he made the majority of his money in just 20 days of trading. If he behaved as the FBI alleges, then Mr Sarao may have evaded detection for years with embarrassing ease. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange told him on the day of the crash that "all orders…are expected to be entered into in good faith for the purpose of executing bona fide transactions". After the crash he was allowed to continue trading. On 29 May 2014 he was asked about his sell orders and cancellations by the Financial Conduct Authority but told the regulator he was "an old school point-and-click prop trader". And he was still trading just a month ago. The real importance of the FBI's allegations is less what they may say about Nav Sarao, and more what this says about how open to possible manipulation, in this age of automated trading software, the futures market has become.

"आकस्मिक दुर्घटना" के अचानक बाजारों से लगभग एक खरब डॉलर का सफाया होने के ठीक पांच साल बाद, अमेरिकी अधिकारी बड़े पैमाने पर एक व्यक्ति की ओर इशारा कर रहे हैं-पश्चिम लंदन के हौंस्लो के एक 36 वर्षीय व्यापारी।


Rough sleeping hits hard on local high streets

Summary: Rough sleeping in England has reached record levels - with figures published on Thursday showing an annual rise of 15% , representing a 169% increase since 2010. It's no longer confined to London and the big cities - three quarters are outside the capital - and rough sleepers have been appearing in tents and shop doorways in towns where it seems unexpected and out of place.

By Sean CoughlanBBC News education and family correspondent Tony, a 72-year-old former railway worker, is living in a small blue tent in a concrete underpass. It gives him some shelter from the bitingly cold January wind blowing along Midsummer Boulevard, not far from families shopping in Milton Keynes. It's not the kind of town where you'd expect to see clusters of homeless people, their tents and mattresses a few yards away from Costa coffee and Marks and Spencer. It's the classic new town, a model of modern post-War optimism, laid out as neatly as a circuit board. There aren't any books called Down and Out in Milton Keynes. But homelessness seems to be coming closer to home. There are lines of tents in the underpasses, and a hut made of wood and bits of plastic is wedged under a road bridge. Expensive rent Tony, one of an estimated 130 rough sleepers in the middle of Milton Keynes, has been homeless for almost a year, saying he lost his flat after a problem over rent and benefits, which ended with the bailiffs on his doorstep. He says that he can afford to eat, but has no chance of being able to afford private rent. "What can I do?" he says. He is not self-pitying and doesn't blame anyone else, but sits in his hat and coat beside the one-man tent that now holds all his possessions. He says his family could call him if they wanted to get in touch. "Every time I wake up, it's a bonus," he says. As the problem has become more visible, there have been innovative and creative acts of generosity. Robbie Williams's old bus Tom Davis, who was once homeless himself, founded a charity to convert a bus into temporary accommodation - a "bus shelter". The coach being turned into bunk beds for 16 homeless people was once a touring bus for Robbie Williams and his road crew. As well as providing a safe bed for the night, the bus will provide an address, allowing people to sign up for GPs and health services. Tom says it will also help with one of the big unacknowledged problems for rough sleepers, the intense loneliness. Among the new homeless in Milton Keynes are people who are working. Some of these are caught in the unreliable incomes of zero-hour contracts. But others, such as Isaac, are working full-time. This project manager for Deloitte has found himself temporarily part of the town's homeless population, staying in a winter shelter. He says that being presentable, not being on drugs and not appearing vulnerable, has made it even harder to get help. 'Shocking' to local people This rise in rough sleeping has shocked local people. Pam Williams, who chairs the bus shelter project, says she got involved because she was so upset when she saw homeless people appearing outside the train station. A local street cleaner goes by, who says he was once part of the less visible homeless population - spending days and nights with his wife in late-night fast food restaurants. Who are the rough sleepers? Rough sleepers in England per 10,000 households Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government Map built with Carto. Can't see the map? Click here. The reasons for this increase are as varied as the stories of the rough sleepers. It might relate to benefits changes, unaffordable housing, low incomes, addiction, relationship breakdowns, mental health problems, debt, bereavement. There are former servicemen and ex-prisoners - and there are people who do not fit into any of these stereotypes. Under attack Homelessness, once associated with the big cities, is snaking across the country. The train line north from London goes through Milton Keynes and then to Crewe, where rough sleeping now lives alongside quiet red-brick terraces. A homeless man's tent is floodlit by the windows of a leisure centre, where families are hurrying inside from the cold. A short distance away is a small indoor car park. In the far corner, behind the rows of family saloons, there's a flag of Saint George hanging over a tangle of mattresses and bedding. Ian and Will are living there, dressed in layers and ready for more than the elements. They say that local youngsters regularly attack them when they're sleeping, throwing bricks at them or assaulting them. Homeless in your home town Ian says they can't even defend themselves because they think they will get the blame if they try to tackle the teenagers circling nearby. He might be described as "homeless", but Crewe is Ian's home town. The streets where he now sleeps rough were the same streets he walked to school. "It's embarrassing seeing people you grew up with," he says. Will, shaking and unsteady, has Huntington's disease and says he has returned to the streets after a long spell in hospital. "It could be worse," says Ian. "Not much," says Will. But since talking to the rough sleepers in Crewe last week, Cheshire East council has found Will accommodation. Severe weather shelter It's apparent how much help depends on volunteers and charities. Will and Ian say they are able to survive only because of help from Bernard Potter, a retired accountant who helped to set up Looking After the Homeless (LATH), a group of volunteers who provide food, advice and a drop-in centre. It's such unsung people, a no-nonsense pensioner in a flat cap, who are keeping people alive. When there's severe weather, the local YMCA in Crewe lets people stay inside. There are already more than 60 regular residents - and on top of this another seven camp beds are set up for the night. Chris, who has one of the beds, talks openly about his troubles with crack and heroin. He's also homeless in his own home town. When he was sleeping rough, he saw people he knew from school. "They've got houses, they've got family. We've got nothing... except a camp bed," he says. "It destroys your head sometimes." Toes lost to frostbite Being inside for the night means warmth and safety from the threat of being beaten up by bored teenagers. "You wake up shivering, the rain battering down on you and you've nowhere else to go," Chris says. Across the room is a middle-aged Polish man. He has a gentle manner, but speaks almost no English. Using Google Translate, he says he was a farm worker but was never paid wages and lost both his work and accommodation after he had been in hospital for an operation. He has ended up on a camp bed in the YMCA, wearing a Christmas jumper. It's hard to imagine anyone looking more stuck and isolated. Joel Lewis, a manager at the YMCA, says he's seen the levels of homelessness getting worse, with demand in Crewe up by almost 40% compared with the previous year. He says he's worried such rising numbers will mean that shelters will become like "warehouses", unable to offer the support so sorely needed. His colleague Matt Coles says he has seen people arriving who have lost fingers and toes to frostbite. With numbers rising to record levels across the country, it could be a long winter for those sleeping rough and those trying to help them. Video and additional reporting Michael Buchanan, Camilla Horrox and Jonathan Sumberg. Map created by William Dahlgreen.

इंग्लैंड में खराब नींद रिकॉर्ड स्तर पर पहुंच गई है-गुरुवार को प्रकाशित आंकड़ों के साथ 15 प्रतिशत की वार्षिक वृद्धि दिखाई दे रही है, जो 2010 के बाद से 169% वृद्धि का प्रतिनिधित्व करती है। यह अब लंदन और बड़े शहरों तक ही सीमित नहीं है-तीन चौथाई राजधानी के बाहर हैं-और शहरों में तंबू और दुकान के दरवाजों में खराब स्लीपर दिखाई दे रहे हैं जहां यह अप्रत्याशित और जगह से बाहर लगता है।


Special educational needs and disabilities: The 'forgotten' children

Summary: Most children are back at school after lockdown, but some with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) have either not returned or are at schools their parents say do not meet their needs. What is life like for these families?

By Phil ShepkaBBC News When Ofsted inspectors published their report into SEND provision in Central Bedfordshire earlier this year, it did not make pretty reading. They found systemic weaknesses, poor quality care plans and reforms that were taking too long in the service, run by Central Bedfordshire Council and the NHS. It prompted an "extensive improvement plan", but hundreds of parents of SEND children are still not satisfied. They have signed a petition calling for the sacking of councillors they claim have "failed to understand the depth of the crisis". 'If we were to send him to the wrong school it would break him' At the start of September, 13-year-old Thomas saw his brothers go back to school. But he did not. Thomas has not been in full-time education since October 2019, for reasons including medication issues and exclusions. Up to then, Thomas, who has "very complex needs", including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and dyslexia, had been in a mainstream school. His mother Joanna, from Leighton Buzzard, said: "Being in the wrong provision for the past four years has ruined him. "He hates school, hates learning and he's not been given the skills or strategies to make his own way in the world, which is why we are now fighting. Every child in this country is entitled to an education." His parents have now taken out bank loans of up to £15,000 in their "fight" to get "adequate provision". They have instructed a solicitor and are taking the council to a tribunal next month. She said they were "not alone" and had heard "some horrendous stories" from those in similar situations, including people who had remortgaged their homes. Thomas has been offered a place in a school with an autism unit, an hour and a half away from home. Joanna said his complex needs made it "completely unsuitable". "I feel like we've been forgotten," she said. "I have a 13-year-old son that has no confidence; he's got no self-esteem, no friends; he's seen his other brothers go back to school and... he told me and my husband he was depressed. "He said he desperately wants to go to school, but if we were to send him to the wrong school it would break him." 'I'm never off the phone' Inspectors found major issues in Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCP) for children in Central Bedfordshire, describing them as "inconsistent and often of poor quality". The plans are supposed to outline any special educational needs a child has, and the provision a local authority must put in place to help them. Lisa, from Stotfold, said her 11-year-old son with ADHD and autism was in a mainstream school with an EHCP that was "extremely vague and very difficult to put into practice". "He's gone back to school and he is refusing to do any work, breaking [coronavirus] bubbles; [has] threatened teachers and teachers' property," she said. You might also be interested in: While his behaviour might sound "absolutely dreadful", she said: "He's not doing it because he's an undisciplined child - he's doing it because he has no understanding of his situation. "This is a child who is incredibly anxious about school; is frightened about being in school, who doesn't understand why things have changed and why he has to behave in a certain way in school. "And there's nothing in his EHCP that can give him any help towards this." The council said "a full and independent review of every EHCP is under way to ensure that our EHCP plans will be much more specific than at present". Lisa quit her job as a school science technician in 2018 as "the stress of holding down a job and trying to fight for the help of my child was just too much". She now spends her time attending workshops, parenting courses, and talking to the professionals helping her son. "I'm never off the phone," she said. "I feel for the children whose families who, for whatever reason... cannot fight this fight, because those children are missing out on support to be able to grow and develop into the people that they should be, and it's all because of the brick walls put up by the council." 'It's exhausting and stressful' Rebecca's 13-year-old son Lucas has a learning disability that means he is currently working to a Year One - aged five and six - level. Depite being on the SEND register for six years, he only got an EHCP last September. However, Rebecca, from Houghton Regis, said: "We've spent the past year fighting to actually make it worth the paper it's written on." The plan was "not specific in any way at all - [it's] open to interpretation," she said. "It doesn't say anyone has to do anything; it's all 'would benefit from', 'should have access to' and stuff like that. "It's just ridiculous. You fight for so many years to get the plan in the first place and then you think everything will be better, then it isn't and you just fight again and again. "It's exhausting and stressful." Parents have come together to form the Central Bedfordshire SEND Action Group, and a petition calls for the dismissal of the executive and deputy executive members for children's services, Conservative councillors Sue Clark and Amanda Dodwell. Rebecca said she had signed it as she felt "frustrated". "I just keep hearing people say 'it's going to be better', but it's just not what I'm seeing. It seems to be the same old stuff - they're just saying it's going to be better and none of it's actually happening." 'We are very sorry that they feel let down' In response to the petition, Ms Clark said: "Amanda Dodwell and I are very aware that from the 7,500 young people in Central Bedfordshire with forms of special educational needs and disabilities, there are families who continue to have concerns about the services and support they need. "We are very sorry that they feel let down by our service. "Together with our NHS partners, we are working hard to deliver lasting improvements and are 100% committed to developing a service we can all be proud of. "Improvements of this nature can take time, but we are determined to make swift and significant progress and have every intention of seeing this work through until we're giving our children and families the best possible service." Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk

अधिकांश बच्चे तालाबंदी के बाद स्कूल वापस आ गए हैं, लेकिन कुछ विशेष शैक्षिक आवश्यकताओं और विकलांगों (एस. ई. एन. डी.) के साथ या तो वापस नहीं आए हैं या स्कूलों में हैं, उनके माता-पिता कहते हैं कि वे उनकी जरूरतों को पूरा नहीं करते हैं। इन परिवारों के लिए जीवन कैसा है?


Isle of Wight festival's 50th anniversary headliners announced

Summary: Depeche Mode, The Killers, Kasabian and Liam Gallagher will headline next year's Isle of Wight Festival as it celebrates its 50th anniversary, organisers have announced.

The Script, Van Morrison, Blossoms and James Bay will also perform. The festival, which was first held in 1968, will take place from 21-24 June. John Giddings, of Isle of Wight Festival, said: "This year's line-up brings together the best bands of the moment." Rockers Kasabian and The Script will perform at the festival, which is held at Seaclose Park, Newport, on 22 June. Depeche Mode, former Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher, James Bay and Blossoms take to the stage on 23 June, with The Killers and Van Morrison bringing the event to a close on 24 June. The festival has previously hosted artists such as The Doors, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones, Coldplay and Fleetwood Mac.

आयोजकों ने घोषणा की है कि डेपेच मोड, द किलर्स, कसाबियन और लियाम गलाघेर अगले साल के आइल ऑफ वाइट फेस्टिवल में शिरकत करेंगे क्योंकि यह अपनी 50वीं वर्षगांठ मना रहा है।


The housing and homeless crisis facing Leo Varadkar

Summary: The Dáil (Irish parliament) may not be back until later this month but housing and the homeless crisis is one of the major issues facing the new taoiseach (Irish prime minister) and his minority Fine Gael-led government.

By Shane HarrisonBBC NI Dublin correspondent Leo Varadkar has a lot on his plate at the moment. That includes Brexit, the absence of devolution in Northern Ireland, a malfunctioning health service and a budget in a few weeks. But if you ask people what they think the big issue is, most would probably say housing. Eoghan Murphy, the Irish housing minister, has said funding will not be a problem in the Irish government's efforts to tackle the crisis. And it is a crisis. In the last week or so three homeless people in different parts of the Republic of Ireland have died, two of whom had been living rough. The number of homeless people - many living in hotels paid for by public money - now exceeds 8,000. Many of those are children who have used the anonymity of radio to tell their stories about telling school friends that they are homeless. Mr Murphy has been meeting local authority chief executives in an attempt to deal with the issue. There is a consensus that more social housing and affordable homes need to be built and that existing vacant council accommodation that needs repairing should be. But it will be some time before people are in a position to move in. On Friday, speaking after a housing summit, Eoghan Murphy pledged to build an extra 800 social homes next year bringing the total to 3,800. He also promised that his department will deliver 200 extra emergency beds for homeless people in Dublin by December. High rents The meeting with local authority bosses also agreed that a further €10m will be provided for special family emergency accommodation units called Hubs. Homeless families in Dublin wanting to move to other parts of the country will be assisted under the first part of this new housing strategy announced on Friday. House prices in some areas are almost back to pre-crisis levels and rents are even higher than then in some areas. And that is not good news either for young people struggling to find affordable homes or for a government wanting to attract talented people leaving the UK because of Brexit. Opposition parties have called on the government to act and not involve itself in PR exercises on an issue that worries so many people.

डेल (आयरिश संसद) इस महीने के अंत तक वापस नहीं आ सकती है, लेकिन आवास और बेघर संकट नए ताओसीच (आयरिश प्रधान मंत्री) और उनकी अल्पसंख्यक फाइन गेल के नेतृत्व वाली सरकार के सामने प्रमुख मुद्दों में से एक है।


Where can Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir go now?

Summary: Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir managed to leave an African Union summit in South Africa without being arrested. This was despite a court order requiring him to stay until a decision was made over whether he should be handed over to the International Criminal Court. So what has this changed? Where can President Bashir go?

The 2009 International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant for the president can be applied in any United Nations member state as the case was referred to the court by the UN Security Council. So in theory he should not be able to travel anywhere, but in practice he has to make a calculation about the probability of being arrested - and that is more likely in a country like South Africa which, as one of the 123 states signed up to the ICC, is obliged to carry out its decisions. President Bashir has visited other countries including China, Iran, Ethiopia and Nigeria. But in Nigeria in 2013, in parallels with the South African case, he had to leave earlier than scheduled after a rights group went to court to compel the authorities to arrest him. In 2012 an African Union summit was moved from Malawi after it blocked the attendance of President Bashir. So will he ever be arrested? Being forced to leave the African Union summit early is embarrassing for Mr Bashir but "it is also a severe set-back for the ICC", argues international law expert Marc Weller, as South Africa has been seen as an important backer of the court. South Africa did ask the ICC last week if it was exempt as the African Union decided in 2013 that no sitting head of state should appear before an international court. South Africa argued that Mr Bashir was visiting under an AU invitation. But that request was rejected by the court saying that South Africa was under an "obligation to immediately arrest and surrender" the president as soon as he touched down in the country. Nevertheless, he was not arrested and the actions of South Africa, a country which has a reputation for having a high regard for the rule of law, could embolden other countries to follow its example. Are sitting heads of state immune from prosecution? In principle a sitting head of state has full immunity from prosecution, but this can be overridden by the UN Security Council or the ICC, Mr Weller says. The ICC was set up, according to a statement on its website, to "help end impunity for the perpetrators of the most serious crimes" including genocide. So it is "the very essence of the ICC that it has the authority to arrest heads of state providing it has the jurisdiction", Mr Weller adds. But without its own police force, the ICC needs to rely on the cooperation of countries to carry out its wishes. Most African governments will remain reluctant to arrest Mr Bashir - they accuse the ICC of bias and only targeting Africans - but human rights groups, and now the courts, on the continent are certainly increasing the pressure on him.

सूडान के राष्ट्रपति उमर अल-बशीर दक्षिण अफ्रीका में अफ्रीकी संघ के शिखर सम्मेलन को बिना गिरफ्तार किए छोड़ने में कामयाब रहे। यह अदालती आदेश के बावजूद था जिसमें उन्हें तब तक रुकने की आवश्यकता थी जब तक कि इस पर निर्णय नहीं लिया जाता कि उन्हें अंतर्राष्ट्रीय आपराधिक न्यायालय को सौंप दिया जाना चाहिए या नहीं। तो यह क्या बदल गया है? राष्ट्रपति बशीर कहाँ जा सकते हैं?