Whatsapp launches new feature

With much pomp and pageantry, China launched its third aircraft carrier this month. The Type 003, now named Fujian, is China’s biggest, most modern and most powerful aircraft carrier. At 80,000 tons and 318 meters, the Fujian outstrips all but America’s supercarriers, the new USS Gerald R. Ford-class. The vessel is named Fujian, after the Chinese province that sits across from Taiwan. This is China’s third aircraft carrier and second indigenously produced carrier after Liaoning and Shandong. The prior was purchased from Ukraine and commissioned in 2012, while the latter was manufactured in Dalian Shipyard and commissioned with the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) in 2019. Besides power projections in the near seas (Yellow Sea, East China Sea and the South China Sea), both Liaoning and Shandong are essentially classified as training ships and are intended to allow the Chinese Navy to experiment, train and gain familiarity with aircraft carrier operations — a relatively new domain … [Read more...] about What Does China’s New Aircraft Carrier Say About Its Technology and Strategy

BANGKOK, June 27 (The Nation Thailand/ANN): LGBTQ+ couples now have the right to Thailand's Government Housing Bank (GH Bank) loans, the bank said on Monday. GH Bank said the move to promote equality was in line with its mission to help Thais improve their life quality by owning their homes. The bank is issuing a new loan called "My Pride" targeted at LGBTQ+ homebuyers. Annual interest for the first three years is set at the minimum retail rate minus 2.4 per cent. The bank’s standard interest rates apply from the fourth year until the end of the contract, which can last up to 40 years. "This loan is being granted to customers who want to purchase a house, condominium or the bank's NPA land," the announcement said. "Instalment payments can be made for up to 40 years." My Pride loans are available until December 30 this year at GH Bank branches nationwide, the call centre at (02) 645 9000, www.ghbank.co.th, @ghbank Facebook page or the GHB ALL application. In another … [Read more...] about Thailand govt bank launches housing loans for LGBTQ+ couples

Beijing: China has activated new intermediate and long-range missiles capable of precision strikes on medium and large warships, official media here reported. The domestically developed missiles, which were recently used by a missile brigade of the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) rocket force, is capable of nuclear counterattacks and marks a further development of Chinese artillery's combat capabilities, state-run China Central Television (CCTV) reported. It is capable of precision strikes on medium and large targets on land, and similar sized warships at sea, official tabloid Global Times quoted the CCTV report as saying. "This breakthrough means that the missile's reaction time is quicker, and its station-keeping ability is more precise," Zhang Junshe, a senior research fellow at the PLA Naval Military Studies Research Institute, told the daily. In recent years, the PLA Rocket Force, which is created as part of the reforms initiated by President Xi Jinping has been focusing … [Read more...] about China Activates New Precision Intermediate, Long-range Missiles: Report

BharatPe co founder and former managing director Ashneer Grover has come into the spotlight again, but this time it is not the feud that he is famous for. Grover has recently expressed his interest in launching a new venture of his own following his bitter exit from BharatPe that saw a months-long exchanges between him and other administrators of the company. He said that this time he will not go back to investors and will make the new company profitable. Ashneer Grover was speaking at TiECon-2022, which is an entrepreneurial event that was held in Chandigath lately, The Tribune newspaper reported. “I don’t want to go to the investors again,” he was quoted as saying by the media house. He called is own feud with the board of BharatPe as a badly fought corporate battle. “It’s a badly fought corporate battle,” Grover said while refusing to be drawn into the alleged misconduct with shareholders that had put him in the limelight. On being asked about the viral audio clip that … [Read more...] about Ashneer Grover to Start New Venture With Own Money; Know Why He Won’t Go Back to Investors

Torchy’s Tacos , the wildly popular Austin-based fast-casual chain, opened a 5,000-square-foot location, at 63 North Quebec Street, in Denver’s Lowry neighborhood, on June 22. It is the company’s seventh restaurant in Denver and its tenth overall in Colorado, according to a statement. The other three are in Colorado Springs, Boulder and Fort Collins. “Colorado has some of the most loyal, die-hard taco junkies in the country, and it’s because of them that we’ve seen such incredible growth in the state since we opened our first Denver restaurant in 2016,” Torchy’s founder and CEO Mike Rypka said in a statement. Torchy’s is known for its oversized fusion tacos that include everything from breakfast tacos made with brisket; green chile pork tacos with cotija cheese; and fried chicken tacos with poblano sauce. Torchy’s was founded 15 years ago and now has 100 locations in Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Kansas, Indiana, North Carolina, Tennessee and … [Read more...] about Torchy’s Tacos, Smashburger and Bonchon open new Denver-area locations

Homebuyers who booked flats in housing projects in the Noida-Greater Noida property market are worst affected, with over 1.65 lakh flats worth ₹1.18 lakh crore currently stalled or significantly delayed in these two cities, according to property consultant Anarock. In its research, the consultant has taken only those housing projects that were launched in 2014 or before, across seven big property markets -- Delhi-NCR, Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune. Expressing concern over the plight of customers whose investments are at stake, Forum for People's Collective Efforts' (FPCE), an apex body of homebuyers, president Abhay Upadhyay told PTI that the cause of the delay of each project should be ascertained and solutions must be found. He also sought stern action against defaulting builders. According to the Anarock data, 4,79,940 units worth ₹4,48,129 crore are "stalled or heavily delayed" across these seven cities as of May 31, … [Read more...] about Homebuyers in Noida-Greater Noida worst hit; 1.65 lakh units of ₹1.18 lakh crore stalled

New Delhi, Jun 26: Homebuyers who booked flats in housing projects in the Noida-Greater Noida property market are worst affected, with over 1.65 lakh flats worth Rs 1.18 lakh crore currently stalled or significantly delayed in these two cities, according to property consultant Anarock. In its research, the consultant has taken only those housing projects that were launched in 2014 or before, across seven big property markets — Delhi-NCR, Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune. Expressing concern over the plight of customers whose investments are at stake, Forum for People’s Collective Efforts’ (FPCE), an apex body of homebuyers, President Abhay Upadhyay told PTI that the cause of the delay of each project should be ascertained and solutions must be found. He also sought stern action against defaulting builders. According to the Anarock data, 4,79,940 units worth Rs 4,48,129 crore are “stalled or heavily delayed” across these seven … [Read more...] about Homebuyers in Noida-Greater Noida Worst Hit; 1.65 Lakh Units of Rs 1.18 Lakh Cr Stalled

Arizona Republican Senate candidate Blake Masters has made no secret of his connections to his longtime business partner and biggest political benefactor, billionaire tech investor Peter Thiel. But new reporting shows that Masters can’t seem to quit promoting Thiel businesses on the campaign trail—and that Thiel or Masters can’t seem to stop making questionable in-kind contributions. Masters announced last month that he had left his top positions at two organizations named after Thiel, who has poured more than $10 million of support into the Senate bid. But a Daily Beast review of business, campaign, and tax records reveals that Masters appears still far from severing his shared interests with his mentor. Brendan Fischer, deputy executive director at Documented, told The Daily Beast that the facts demonstrate an inextricable connection. “This further underscores how Masters’ candidacy is almost inseparable from its billionaire backer,” Fischer said. “Thiel helped launch … [Read more...] about The Epic Back-Scratching Fest Between Blake Master and a Trumpy Billionaire

Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch testified for hours on Friday about being removed from her post and attacks on her from President Donald Trump as part of the House Democrats' ongoing impeachment inquiry. Yovanovitch appeared before the House Intelligence Committee for a public hearing and was the third witness to testify to Congress this week about the Ukraine controversy. On Wednesday, diplomat William Taylor and State Department official George Kent gave damning testimony against the president. Yovanovitch was appointed ambassador under several different presidents, both Republican and Democrat, and began serving in Ukraine in August 2016. In May 2019, she was abruptly removed from her post even though, she says, her bosses assured her she'd done nothing wrong. The reasoning behind her dismissal has become a major focus of the House investigation of the president's conduct toward Ukraine. Yovanovitch told Congress that Trump and his personal attorney Rudy … [Read more...] about Five highlights from former Ukraine ambassador Marie Yovanovitch’s testimony at Day 2 impeachment hearing

As the Centre has decided to ban the use of single-use plastic from July 1, the hill State of Himachal Pradesh is all set to kick-start a buy-back scheme in schools and colleges to purchase the single-use plastic items from students in a bid to instill a sense of environment preservation by ‘catching them young’. Under the novel scheme, the students would be encouraged to bring single-use plastic items from their home and deposit it with the school, for which they will be paid ₹ 75 a kg by the government — the aim to inculcate a habit among the youngsters towards environment conservation. “Across the State, we have 3,000 Eco-clubs in schools and in 100 colleges under the National Green Corps programme — these Eco-clubs are an association of student-teachers that work to inculcate environmental awareness and protection. As a pilot project, we will start the buy-back scheme in 100 schools from July 1. Later, we will scale it up and implement the scheme in all the schools and colleges … [Read more...] about Come July 1, Himachal Pradesh govt. to start buying single-use plastic items from students of 100 schools