In a first of its kind international venture, youth icons Ananya Panday and international songwriter and guitarist from The Vamps band - James McVey - are all set to come together on the former’s ‘So Positive’ platform to raise awareness about social media bullying. The live session will be hosted on 8th May 2020 at 7 pm.

James McVey, the lead guitarist, and songwriter of the internationally renowned British band The Vamps, is known globally for spreading social media positivity. The coming together of the two, Panday and McVey, marks a collaboration that goes beyond the confines of language and geography to attain more awareness on the issue. The statistics are proof of how teenagers and children are the most affected in this digital era. The number of platforms accessible to the population across the world are increasing with every passing day. This collaboration would be extremely insightful in terms of shedding light on this issue and help individuals dealing with social media bullying.

Sharing his experience James McVey said, “During this difficult time we find ourselves using social media more than ever. When I was at the receiving end of bullying I felt isolated and alone. Regardless of where you live or your background, it’s important to remember that you are never alone. Millions of others are going through the same traumatic experience and I believe together we further the conversation and join the fight to end bullying. I’m looking forward to speaking with Ananya on ‘So Positive’ to learn more about her experiences.”

Ananya Panday shares, "Social media bullying is an evil that people face every day on the numerous platforms that they use in their daily lives. I’m glad that James McVey and I will be fighting this evil together in our own small way. The world is going through a difficult time, currently and it is even more important than ever to be kind to everyone around and spread positivity. So Positive has been creating awareness through different ways and our aim continues to be to negate the spread of social media bullying by spreading positivity all across. I’m really looking forward to this insightful exchange with James”.

So Positive is a cause taken up by Ananya which is backed with substantial data, research, and behavioural statistics. The initiative aims at creating and spreading awareness about social media bullying. Its prime focus is to make people aware of the fact that this issue exists and stays very prevalent in society. Also, the steps that can be taken by the recipients of this destructive criticism in order to deal with this.

ALSO READ: Ananya Panday says Vijay Deverakonda is humble and grounded despite being a huge star

More BTS music is coming our way! The South Korean septet released the highly awaited 'Map Of The Soul: 7' album back on February 21, 2020. They are releasing their fourth Japanese album 'Map Of The Soul: 7 - The Journey' on July 15, 2020.

As per new details released on Thursday, May 7, the Japanese album will have Japanese versions of some of their previous album songs including four new tracks - 'Intro: Calling', 'Stay Gold', 'Your Eyes Tell', and 'Outro: Journey'.

Tracklist:

1. INTRO: Calling
2. Stay Gold
3. Boy With Luv -Japanese ver.-
4. Make It Right -Japanese ver.-
5. Dionysus -Japanese ver.-
6. IDOL -Japanese ver.-
7. Airplane pt.2 -Japanese ver.-
8. FAKE LOVE -Japanese ver.-
9. Black Swan -Japanese ver.-
10. ON -Japanese ver.-
11. Lights
12. Your eyes tell
13. OUTRO: The Journey

This will include the 'Stay Gold' music video. The track will also serve as Original Sound Track for Japanese drama, Spiral Labyrinth – DNA Forensic Investigation (literal translation). Tanaka Kei will headline the drama which is based on a manga of the same name. Jungkook has participated in the composition of 'Your Eyes Tell'.

4th Japanese Studio Album "MAP OF THE SOUL 7 - THE JOURNEY -" out July 15! pic.twitter.com/UvWuwPsiLM

— BTS Charts (@btschartdata) May 7, 2020

'Stay Gold' will be the first Japanese release since last year's 'Lights/Boy With Luv'.

ALSO READ: Troye Sivan reveals interesting details about co-writing 'Louder Than Bombs' for BTS' 'Map Of The Soul: 7

<strong>EXPECTATIONS</strong> One expects situational soundtrack for <em>Panga</em>, considering the fact that it is a slice of life film with sports as the core theme. Though Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and Javed Akhtar come together to create half a dozen songs for the film, one doesn't quite expect a chartbuster outing here since there has hardly been any promotion either for the music as the focus has been on the film. <img class="aligncenter wp-image-1068031 size-full" title="Music Review: Panga" src="https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Music-Review-Panga.jpg" alt="Music Review: Panga" width="720" height="450" /> <strong>MUSIC</strong> Harshdeep Kaur, Divya Kumar and Siddharth Mahadevan come together to create the title song <strong><em>'Panga'</em></strong> which has a good hook to it. A feel good number with a catchy rhythm, this one has certain nicety to it, courtesy the manner in which the singers come together to croon this one. This one has an anthem feel to it and could have covered some distance with good promotion. Jassie Gill, the leading man of <em>Panga</em>, takes charge as a singer for <strong><em>'Dil Ne Kaha</em></strong>', which has the kind of sound that one associates with Salman Khan's Dabangg franchise. Reminding one of <strong><em>'Tere Mast</em></strong> <strong><em>Mast Do Nain'</em></strong> with a bit of 'Brathless' feel to it in the manner in which it begins, <strong><em>'Dil Ne Kaha'</em></strong> is a romantic track that comes in two versions with Jassie Gill and then Shahid Mallya taking charge. Asees Kaur is the common factor in both the songs and she does well as she has been over a period of time now. Next to arrive is <strong><em>'Bibby Song'</em></strong> and this one tries to be all funny. However, at best this one is a situational track with no real appeal outside the film. Annu Kapoor comes behind the mike for this one alongside Sherry and you don't really get hooked on it. As a matter of fact you move on to the next in line soon enough to check out what rest of the soundtrack has to offer. Shankar Mahadevan makes a belated entry as a singer with <strong><em>'Jugnu'</em></strong> and he has Sunny for company. Though he does well as a singer all over again due to his characteristic voice, overall the music - with a Sufi touch to it - stays on to be situational at best. A montage number which is about dreams and aspirations, it goes with the theme of the film but that's about it. Last to arrive is <strong><em>'Wahi Hai Raste'</em></strong> which has Mohan Kannan taking charge. This one brings with it the mood and feel which one associates with the kind that was heard in the non-mainstream films of the 70s. A little later in the album, Asees Kaur's voice is heard. With Bengali folk music base to it, <strong><em>'Wahi Hai</em></strong> <strong><em>Raste'</em></strong> is just about okay and doesn't quite warrant repeat hearing. <strong>OVERALL</strong> The music of <em>Panga</em> is largely situational with a couple of songs at the beginning making some sort of an impression. <strong>OUR PICK(S)</strong> <em>'Panga', 'Dil Ne Kaha'</em>

Six Indian companies are working on a vaccine for COVID-19, joining global efforts to find a quick preventive for the deadly infection spreading rapidly across the world, says a top Indian scientist. Nearly 70 'vaccine candidates' are being tested and at least three have moved to the human clinical trial stage, but a vaccine for the novel coronavirus is unlikely to be ready for mass use before 2021. As COVID-19 infects more than 1.9 million in the world and claims 1,26,000 lives, Indian scientists are also part of the global fight against the disease.

"While Zydus Cadila is working on two vaccines, Serum Institute, Biological E, Bharat Biotech, Indian Immunologicals, and Mynvax are developing one vaccine each," Gagandeep Kang, executive director of the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute, Faridabad, told PTI. Kang is also vice chair of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), which noted in a recent study that the "global vaccine R&D effort in response to the COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented in terms of scale and speed".

But it is a complicated process with many stages of testing and many challenges, explained experts. A vaccine for the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, may not take 10 years that other vaccines do but it could be at least a year before it is proven safe, effective, and made widely available, they said. "Vaccine development is a lengthy process which often takes years, with many challenges," said E. Sreekumar, chief scientific officer at the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (RGCB) in Kerala.

"Generally, vaccines take several months to pass the different stages of testing, and then approvals also take time. For COVID-19, we don't expect a vaccine to come in this year," agreed Rakesh Mishra, director of the CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) in Hyderabad. Vaccine testing typically begins with animal and lab testing before going on to different stages of human testing.

"The human testing phase is composed of many phases," Sreekumar told PTI. "Phase one trials are small-scale, usually involving few participants, to assess whether the vaccine is safe for humans. Phase two trials often involve several hundred subjects, and mainly evaluate the efficacy of the vaccine against the disease," he said.
The final phase involves thousands of people to further assess the efficacy of the vaccine over a defined period of time, and can last several months, Sreekumar said.
"That is why we don't see a vaccine coming in at least a year from now."

Even after the vaccine is ready, he explained, there are a lot of challenges, including whether the vaccine is effective in all populations, and if it can be used for different strains of the novel coronavirus, which might start mutating as time passes. "There are lots of vaccines which are being tested for COVID-19, some of which are in the stage 1 clinical trial," Mishra added.

"But we still don't know how fast they will proceed towards a vaccine and they can take several months to reach any point," he said. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), three vaccine candidates are in the clinical testing phase, meaning they are able to be tested on humans, while nearly 70 are in the preclinical phase -- either in lab testing, or animal studies. Though Kang named six companies, the WHO has listed only Zydus Cadila and Serum Institute from India as among the global firms working on a COVID-19 vaccine.

As of April 8, 2020, said CEPI, the global COVID-19 vaccine R&D landscape includes 115 vaccine candidates, of which 78 are confirmed as active and 37 are unconfirmed.
Of the 78 confirmed active projects, 73 are currently at exploratory or preclinical stages, noted the CEPI team in an analysis published in the journal Nature reviews drug Discovery last week.

The most advanced candidates have recently moved into clinical development, including mRNA-1273 from US-based biotechnology company Moderna, Ad5-nCoV from Chinese biopharma company CanSino Biologicals, and INO-4800 from American pharmaceuticals company Inovio. Others in this list include LV-SMENP-DC and pathogen-specific aAPC from Shenzhen Geno-Immune Medical Institute in China.

Numerous other vaccine developers have indicated plans to initiate human testing in 2020, the CEPI scientists said. Experts believe the genome sequencing of the new coronavirus provided by scientists in China shows it shares 79 per cent of the same genetic material as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and 50 per cent of the same material as Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), a species of coronavirus which infects humans, bats, and camels.

This allows developers to use groundwork already created in research for vaccines for those viruses. Australia's national science agency CSIRO announced earlier this month that it has begun preclinical tests of a vaccine developed by Oxford University in the UK. A striking feature of the vaccine development landscape for COVID-19 is the range of technology platforms being evaluated, including nucleic acid (DNA and RNA), virus-like particle, live weakened virus, and inactivated virus approaches.

The CEPI noted that many of these platforms are not currently the basis for licensed vaccines, but experience in fields such as oncology is encouraging developers to exploit the opportunities that next-generation approaches offer for increased speed of development and manufacture.

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As the deadly coronavirus infection spreads fast in India and elsewhere, even faster is the spread of fake news regarding the pandemic and experts warn this 'infodemic' can have huge economic costs for companies across the world in addition to health concerns for the public at large. While authorities have announced severe penal actions for those spreading fake news regarding this pandemic, which has already caused nearly 2 lakh deaths globally with more than 28 lakh infections since its outbreak in China last December, widespread misinformation surrounding the disease has seen people drinking disinfectants and industrial alcohol while trying various rumoured treatments.

False claims and fake news, mostly forwarded through social media platforms, have also led to several cases of religion-based attacks, hate speeches and other discriminatory activities, while cyber frauds are also on the rise with scamsters seeking to take advantage of the crisis situation. In addition to the damages caused to public health and societal behaviour, experts warn the undeterred wave of fake news poses a huge risk to corporates, for whom it becomes difficult at times to filter out the right information that is crucial for them to ensure success of their business continuity, especially when almost the entire world is locked down.

Farah Lalani, who is a community creator for media, entertainment and information industries at the Geneva-based World Economic Forum (WEF), said businesses need to be proactive about calling out misinformation that is spreading about their brand, directing customers to official channels and making sure there is always clear and up to date information on all their social accounts. "While bad actors, fraudsters, and uninformed users can spread fabricated or misleading information, if businesses collaborate closely with the entire media ecosystem and regulatory bodies, they can start to work together to solve this very challenging problem," she told PTI.

In India, some organisations including industry bodies and advocacy groups have begun compiling official and credible information about the COVID-19 fight and the ongoing lockdown to help companies in their preparedness for tackling the crisis. Leading advocacy group Chase India, which was among the first to start this practice right from the initial days of the COVID-19 crisis emerging as a major threat in the country, has been sending across multiple daily updates to its clients, including on the latest actions taken by the central and state governments and also on initiatives being taken by various corporates.

Experts said the correct information is necessary for companies to help them understand, analyse and then implement various new guidelines being issued by the central and state governments. "In today's circumstances, besides the current public health crisis of COVID-19 and socio-economic impact related to climate change, one of the biggest concerns is legitimate and timely sourcing of information," Chase India's co-founder and Executive Vice President Manash K Neog said.

"As a public policy consultancy, our key challenge during the pre-lockdown phase was to mitigate frenzy around rumours of lockdown for our clients as it was creating panic for the operational teams of clients. "Further to that, we have institutionalised mechanisms such as our hourly and daily COVID-19 advisory trackers for the central and state governments to support clients with timely and authentic information basis which they are able to better plan their business continuity strategies," he added.

According to experts, companies are working hard to ensure timely access to right information as costs could be too high for them if they fall for some misinformation and in such a situation the role of media is also very important. Releasing a new survey recently, which found that just about one-fourth of the consumers in India currently pay for news but nearly two-thirds are willing to pay, the WEF said the current coronavirus challenge further emphasises the indispensable role that the media plays in society today.

With social media becoming the main platform for spread of false claims, giants like Facebook and Twitter have also begun deleting such posts and taking other actions. Some of the posts deleted on such grounds include those of public figures as well, the most famous being posts shared by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro in which he had claimed anti-malaria prescription drug hydroxychloroquine was an effective treatment for COVID-19.

Twitter had also deleted a post by Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro in which he had apparently endorsed a "brew" for eliminating infectious genes. Various social media platforms have also imposed several restrictions on advertisements claiming various cures for COVID-19, while hate content regarding the pandemic is also being dealt with sternly. However, all these steps have not been able to totally eradicate the fake news flow, which the World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described as 'infodemic' in the context of the novel coronavirus.

"We are not just fighting an epidemic, we are fighting an infodemic," he said, referring to fake news as something that "spreads faster and more easily than this virus". United Nations' chief Antonio Guterres too said last month that an "infodemic of misinformation" was also an enemy that we all need to fight while battling COVID-19.

"To overcome the coronavirus, we need to urgently promote 'facts and science' and 'hope and solidarity' over despair and division," he said.

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The COVID-19 epidemic has caused shock and grief to Pune Police after a 58-year-old cop lost his life in the battle against the novel coronavirus. Taking to Twitter, the Pune Police handle, which is known for its witty tweets and informative posts, on Monday announced the sad news to its followers.

ASI Shri Dilip Popat Londhe (57) from Faraaskhana Police Station lost his life this afternoon, battling Coronavirus.
Pune Police prays for his his soul to rest in peace and offers its condolences to the bereaved family. pic.twitter.com/XuGFTjqkIG

— PUNE POLICE (@PuneCityPolice) May 4, 2020

In its tweet, the official handle of Pune Police said that they lost ASI Dilip Popat Londhe from Faraaskhana Police Station due to the COVID-19 crisis. While paying tribute to the cop, the Pune Police also offered condolences to the deceased's family.

फरासà¤Â–ाना पà¥Â‹लà¥Â€स सà¥Âà¤ÂŸà¥Â‡शनà¤Âšà¥Â‡ सहायà¤Â• पà¥Â‹लà¥Â€स फà¥ÂŒà¤Âœदार शà¥Âरà¥Â€ दिलà¥Â€प पà¥Â‹पà¤ÂŸ लà¥Â‹à¤Â‚ढà¥Â‡ हà¥Â‡ à¤Â•रà¥Â‹ना रà¥Â‹à¤Â—ाशà¥Â€ बाधित à¤Â…सलà¥Âयानà¥Â‡ à¤Â‰पà¤Âšार à¤Â˜à¥Â‡त à¤Â…सताना à¤Â†à¤Âœ रà¥Â‹à¤Âœà¥Â€ तà¥Âयाà¤Â‚ना वà¥Â€रमरण पà¥Âरापà¥Âत à¤Âालà¥Â‡ à¤Â†हà¥Â‡.
भावपà¥Â‚रà¥Âण शà¥Âरदà¥Âधाà¤Â‚à¤Âœलà¥Â€ 🙏 Our Prayers pic.twitter.com/7oNIOY14fq

— CP Pune City (@CPPuneCity) May 4, 2020

As per the tweet by Pune Police, ASI Dilip Londhe, who had been fighting the novel coronavirus for the past few days succumbed to the deadly virus on Monday afternoon. While speaking to ANI, Dr. Jitendra Oswal, Deputy Medical Director of Bharati Hospital, where the cop was admitted said, "He was on the ventilator for the last 12 days. He was suffering from hypertension and obesity."

To date, Pune has reported 2,051 positive cases of the COVID-19 infection. Amid the lockdown being extended till May 17, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has identified 69 containment zones where all shops carrying essential services shall remain open between 10 am and 2 pm.

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Another gas leakage from LG Polymers in Visakhapatnam late Thursday triggered panic in areas near the plant and forced people to move to safe places.

Fumes were seen billowing out of the chemical plant, where the gas leakage in the early hours of the day claimed 11 lives and affected over 300 others.

People from Gopalpatnam, Simhachalam and Pinagadi areas, which are four km away from the plant, were seen moving to safe places.

The gas smell sent panic in certain areas late Thursday night. Many people rushed out of their houses and were seen heading to safer places by their vehicles.

Local police at few places advised people to move to safe places as a precautionary measure.

Officials, however, said the gas emission was continuing since the major leakage around 3.45 a.m. on Thursday.

Visakhapatnam Police Commissioner R K Meena said there was no need for panic. "Efforts are going on to neutralize the gas leak. There is no danger," he said.

The police commissioner hoped that the work to plug the emissions will be completed in a couple of hours.

About 12,000 people from RR Venkatapuram and four other villages were evacuated after the leakage early Thursday.

Visakhapatnam District Fire Officer Sandeep Anand said 10 fire engines and two foam fighters were kept ready in the plant. He said some ambulances were also on standby as a precautionary measure.

Meanwhile, a cargo flight carrying a team of experts and PTBC inhibitor, an antidote for styrene, landed in Visakhapatnam late Thursday.

The experts in chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) disaster are likely to begin the operation to plug the emissions after assessing the situation at the plant.

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New Delhi: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Friday issued notices to LG Polymers, Union Environment Ministry, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and others regarding the Vizag gas leak incident.

The NGT has directed LG Polymers, India, at whose plant the gas leakage occurred, to forthwith deposit an initial amount of Rs 50 crore taking note of damages caused due to the incident.

Further hearing in the matter is scheduled for May 18.

On Thursday, a styrene gas leak at the plant of LG Polymers in RR Venkatapuram village in Visakhapatnam district of Andhra Pradesh had claimed 11 lives.

NGT's principal bench headed by its Chairperson AK Goel also issued notice to Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (PCB) and District Magistrate of Vishakhapatnam.

The Tribunal has also sought a report from a 5-member committee comprising former Judge of Andhra Pradesh High Court, Justice B Seshasayana Reddy, Former Vice-Chancellor of Andhra University, Professor Ch V Rama Chandra Murthy, Head of Chemical Engineering Department of Andhra University, Professor Pulipati King, CPCB Member Secretary and Director of CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology.

NGT said that the committee may visit and inspect the site at the earliest and give its report before the next date via email and site visit may be initially conducted by members available locally in consideration with outside members online.

It said that the committee may specifically report on the sequence of events, causes of failure, the extent of damage to life, human and environment, steps to be taken for compensation of victims and restitution of the damaged property among others.

The bench has directed the District Magistrate of Vishakhapatnam and Regional Office of Andhra Pradesh PCB to provide logistic support to the Committee to enable their fact-finding and reporting.

It took suo-motu cognisance on the basis of media reports on the leakage of hazardous gas, Styrene from a chemical factory owned by the South Korean company LG Polymers. The incident has caused damage to the environment and habitat.

Styrene gas is a hazardous chemical and as per rules, it requires on-site and off-site emergency plans to ensure prevention of damage.

NGT noted that there appears to be a failure to comply with the rules and other statutory provisions and leakage of hazardous gas at such a scale adversely affecting public health and environment clearly attracts the principle of 'Strict Liability' against the enterprise engaged in a hazardous or inherently dangerous industry.

"Such an entity is liable to restore the damage caused under the Environment Law, apart from other statutory liability. The statutory authorities responsible for authorizing and regulating such activities may also be accountable for their lapses, if any, in dealing with the matter," the NGT said.

Stressing that it is necessary to ascertain the facts relating to the extent of damage, the extent of the failure and consider remedial measures, the bench listed the matter for May 18 for further hearing.

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A chance to act with Leo and De Niro

Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro are giving fans the chance to appear in their upcoming film, Martin Scorsese’s adaptation of Killers of the Flower Moon. DiCaprio and De Niro are using the upcoming production to raise funds for the All-In Challenge, an online initiative that gives stars from all corners of the entertainment industry a chance to offer donation initiatives to benefit America’s Food Fund, as per reports. They explained that those who make a donation will have a chance to win a walk-on role in the production.

Ellie helps those in lockdown

Singer Ellie Goulding has helped source 400 mobile phones, which will be given to homeless people to help them through the lockdown. The distribution of the phones began on April 15. The phones will go towards people that the organisation, Crisis, supports, as well as those who are staying in hotels across London.

Tom Hardy to read bed-time stories

Tom Hardy will read night-time tales on the long-running series Bedtime Stories. The episodes of the BBC Children’s channel CBeebies will run from April 27 through May 1. The episodes were shot in Hardy’s garden, following social distancing guidelines. He will be joined by his French bulldog named Blue for some of the bedtime stories. The development, the channel alludes, is a step further in providing engaging content relevant to the situation. 

Ben, Matt play poker

Ben Affleck, Matt Damon and other stars raised $1.75mn through poker, for an online celebrity poker tournament, All In For America’s Charity. They raised $1.75 million for Feeding America, a non-profit organisation that distributes food to those in need amid  the outbreak, as per reports. Celebrities such as Tom Brady, Adam Sandler and Bryan Cranston bought in for $10,000 each at the food bank fundraiser.

Off screen superhero Krasinski to play one on screen?

Actor John Krasinski, who has been lifting spirits amid the pandemic with his series, Some Good News, has reportedly met with Marvel Studios for an unspecified project. Although details about the project are awaited, it is reported that Marvel has been holding “virtual meetings” with actors, directors and writers lately, and Krasinski was one of them. It also indicated that Krasinski might be in talks for a role in Young Avengers. Another possibility that the site mentioned is a Fantastic Four reboot. Neither Marvel nor Krasinski has confirmed the development.

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Extreme weight gain and sudden weight loss have always been matters of concern for everyone, especially actors who have to stay in front of the cameras and in the limelight for half of their lives. One such star who has worried his fans with his sudden and surprising weight loss is the Black Panther actor, Chadwick Boseman.

It all started when he took to his Instagram account to share a video but all that people and fans noticed was how much weight he lost. But it seems he wasn't happy with the fact that he was constantly being asked the same question so he took it down. He uploaded another post where he spoke about his donation that he named Operation 42. This was for the African-American community that he wants to help amid the Coronavirus pandemic. This was a great initiative and all his fans lauded him for the same.

Have a look at the post right here:

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

Throwing it back to the ultimate game changer. Thank you to my friend Thomas Tull for launching #Operation42 to celebrate #JackieRobinsonDay and deliver 4.2M dollars in masks and vital personal protective equipment to hospitals in African American communities devastated by #Covid19.

A post shared by Chadwick Boseman (@chadwickboseman) onApr 16, 2020 at 9:33am PDT

But at the same time, as we stated above, they couldn't help but raise questions and concerns about the amount of weight he suddenly lost. A user wrote- "You okay chief? You looked rather odd on the other post." Another fan wrote- "I guess he got tired of people asking is he sick. He took the video down."

Well, fans are likely to get worried as they all love him, but his weight loss could also be for a potential role! Let's not be quick to judge!

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The Panchgani police have booked a Mumbai based adventure firm for negligence after a 45-year-old South Korean national died when his glider crashed during an event near Panchgani in Satara district. The police identified the deceased as Sang Teak Oh, a professional paraglider.

Superintendent of Police, Satara, Pankaj Deshmukh said Oh's last rites will be performed in Wai as his family members have given their consent. Oh came to India on a tourist visa and landed in Wai on February 10.

Assistant Police Inspector Trupti Sonawane said, "On Tuesday evening, Oh took off from Rajpuri near Panchgani, but strayed off the course and descended into forest area. He was rescued by the team present at the event, but had been seriously injured by then."

She added, "He succumbed to his injuries at the hospital in Wai. We have registered a case against the event firm and arrested its event manager under IPC section 304 (A) (causing death by negligence). Oh's body was handed over to the Korean embassy after a postmortem."

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The monetary reward for the person providing solid leads about the two wanted suspects in Comrade Govind Pansare's murder case has been increased by a whopping Rs 40 lakh by the state home department.

The Communist Party of India (CPI) leader was killed in February 2015, with one team each in every district of Maharashtra probing the case. Police teams on Saturday began pasting posters declaring the hike in reward money at all major public places.

Also Read: Govind Pansare case: Main accused Virendra Tawde gets bail

The initial prize amount declared by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) for the informant was R5 lakh which was increased to R10 lakh in February 2016 and has now been revised to Rs 50 lakh, according to the SIT's orders dated Saturday.

Comrade Pansare and his wife Uma were returning from their morning walk in Sagar Mahal, Kolhapur, when two bike-borne persons fired five rounds at Pansare on February 16, 2015.

Also Read: Activist Govind Pansare killing: Bombay HC continues stay on trial against 2 accused

Police teams have begun pasting the announcement posters at public places across the state

The communist was airlifted and rushed to Mumbai for treatment where he died four days later, on February 20. While suspects Sameer Gaikwad, Amol Kale and Mumbai-based ENT specialist Dr Virendrasinh Tawade have been arrested by the police, Vinay Baburao Pawar and Sarang Deelip Akolkar alias Kulkarni are absconding.

After the SIT, investigating the Pansare murder case, issued the orders for increasing the informant's prize amount last month, the Maharashtra police prepared posters declaring this in English, Hindi and Marathi. The whereabouts of the informant will be kept secret, the SIT has assured.

A senior officer who is part of the investigating team said, “The reward is Rs 25 lakh each for information about Pawar and Akolkar. We had received some clues in the past too but those did not lead to anything while probe on those lines is still on too.”

Pansare's daughter-in-law Megha, however, wasn't too impressed with the hike in prize money. “It is too late now but there is some hope. The Bombay High Court too was amused and sceptical of a cash prize leading to clues,” she said. “Do you think people will take you to the accused. For all you know, they might be getting paid more to keep quiet,” the court had remarked at the last case hearing.

Wanted in Dabholkar case too

Pawar and Akolkar, who are associated with the Sanatan Sanstha, are also wanted in connection with the murder of rationalist Dr Dabholkar. Akolkar, who hails from Pune, is an electronic engineer and has been on the run since his name cropped up during the Goa blast case being probed by the National Investigation Agency.

The NIA had even secured an Interpol Red Corner Notice against him in 2012. Pawar, a resident of Miraj in Sangli district of western Maharashtra, was last located in Umbaraj in Karad taluka of Satara district. He has been untraceable ever since.

Also Read: HC: Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare killings are linked

February 16, 2015

Day Pansare was shot dead in Kolhapur

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For many of us, this lock-down is turning out to be the longest break we've ever taken, from going out, or going anywhere for that matter. And for actors, it is a break with no 'work from home' which they are spending with family and loved ones. Taapsee Pannu is also making the most of it in her Mumbai house, along with sister Shagun Pannu.

Speaking to a leading daily, Taapsee opened up on how actors work so hard to have a house of their own but would barely have any time to spend there as they were always traveling for work. She added that she was reveling in her uninterrupted free time and would just sit at her favourite corners of the house.

Several cities including Mumbai and Taapsee's hometown Delhi, where her parents live, come under the red zone. However, the actor says she is relieved that her parents do not live around the hotspot zones, since they both are above 60 years in age and needed to be careful. She went on to add that her parents, one retired and another a house wife, did not go out much and hence weren't very severely affected by the lock-down.

Taapsee will be next seen in Akshay Kumar starrer Rashmi Rocket and Aanand L Rai's Haseen Dillruba.

Bepannaah is one of the few Indian television serials that have left a mark on its audience. It has been a year and a half since the show went off-air and it still seems to be making rounds in the news. Starring Harshad Chopda, Jennifer Winget, Sehban Azim, Namita Dubey, Rajesh Khattar, Shehzad Shaikh, Anchal Goswami, Parineeta Borthakur and more, this show will always have a special place in its audience’s hearts. The star cast still shares a special bond with each other and make sure to get together whenever possible.

Rajesh Khattar, who played Harshwardhan Hooda on the show, has recently had a baby boy named Vanraj. Taking to his Instagram, Rajesh has revealed the first picture of baby Vanraj Khattar and the internet couldn’t stop gushing over the little cutie! He also shared pictures of Harshad Chopda and Shehzad Shaikh meeting Vanraj for the first time. The caption reads, “#throwback Reel one’s awed by Real One ♥️♥️ @harshad_chopda @shehzadss #vanrajkhattar”

Take a look at the pictures and they are going to leave you in awe of this trio, too!

 

View this post on Instagram

 

#throwback Reel one’s awed by Real One ♥️♥️ @harshad_chopda @shehzadss #vanrajkhattar

A post shared by Rajesh Khattar (@rajesh_khattar) on May 7, 2020 at 7:58am PDT

Also Read: HOT ALERT! Harshad Chopda’s SHIRTLESS picture will drive your midweek blues away!

Around 40% of EU energy consumption and 36 % of its CO2 emissions come from buildings. EU-funded researchers have developed easy-to-install eco-panels to place on the outside of the buildings to dramatically cut both.

Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero has been using some of his spare time in lockdown to teach British kids how to speak Spanish.

The Argentina international has been signed up by the BBC as part of its home-schooling initiative while educational establishments are closed during the coronavirus pandemic. Aguero is teaching kids how to count in Spanish. His lessons became available on a day kids in Britain would have usually returned to school after the Easter holidays.

Aguero says it's a tough time for children at the moment, and also for parents trying to keep them focused on their education from home. Aguero hasn't played a competitive match since March 8 because soccer is shut down in England and across most of the world during the outbreak.

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A chance to play with him, have lunch and watch a game of football from the owners box. David Beckham, part owner of the Major League Soccer club Inter Miami, is auctioning off all that stuff. Former England captain and Manchester United legend Beckham is doing this as part of the league's participation in the All In Challenge, which raises money for organisations that are helping feed the hungry during the coronavirus pandemic, including Meals on Wheels, No Kid Hungry, America's Food Fund, World Central Kitchen and Feeding America.

The MLS season is suspended from March 12 with the deadly virus causing havoc in the United States. Earlier this month, Beckham had expressed gratitude towards all the frontline workers who are risking their lives in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, saying it was "another week of hard work". Beckham had taken to Instagram to post a video story in which he was seen clapping along with his family.

"Managed to set the phone up this week to get the whole family showing our appreciation for all the frontline workers and our brilliant NHS. Thank you for another week of hard work. #ClapForOurCarers," Beckham had written in his Instagram story.

The entire world has come to a standstill amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. Sports activities have also taken a big hit and almost all the events have been postponed or cancelled, including the Olympics.

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Consider yourself a big La Liga fan? Check out this list of expressions that no true La Liga lover should be unfamiliar with.

1. “Croqueta”
A ‘croqueta’ is a way of quickly shifting the ball between a player’s feet, especially when tempting a defender into making a challenge by first slowing down and then sprinting away. The signature move of former Barcelona captain and nine-time LaLiga winner Andres Iniesta, the word literally means ‘croquette,’ that famous staple of Spanish tapa bars and granny’s cooking.

2. “Sombrero”
In Spanish Sombrero is a hat, but in Spanish football it is where a player lifts the ball over his opponent’s head and controls it as it drops to the floor, leaving his rival confused and out of the play. A famous example would be Neymar’s goal for Barcelona against Villarreal in LaLiga in 2016, which was nominated for that year’s FIFA Puskas award.

3. “Chilena”
When a player pushes himself into the air with one foot, then acrobatically volleys it with the other, often lifting his boot well over head height. Similar to a ‘bicycle kick’ in English. Although a ‘Chilena’ literally refers to someone from Chile, its most famous exponent was Mexico international Hugo Sanchez. Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale have more recently scored screamers like this.

4. “Colgarse del larguero”
Literally meaning ‘hang from the goalposts,’ the expression is used when a team brings all their players back to defend inside their own penalty area. Similar to the English phrase ‘Park the bus,’ the tactic is often used by a team defending a narrow lead or facing a much more powerful opponent and used to criticise them by managers whose team cannot find a way through.

5. “Hacer la cama”
A team thought to not be making 100% effort in games can be said to be ‘making the bed’ for their coach, which means trying – consciously or not – to get their boss fired!

6. “Zamorana”
The patented signature move of legendary 1920s and 30s Spanish goalkeeper Ricardo Zamora was to fake catch a ball, then double his arm, flex his elbow and propel the ball far up the pitch with surprising power. Besides clearing danger from his own box, the ‘Zamorana’ often helped start counter-attacks and had a highly demoralising effect on shocked opposition strikers, too.

7. “Tirarse en la piscina”
To ‘throw yourself into the swimming pool’ is a nicely poetic Spanish way of saying a player dived, or threw himself to the ground without any contact from a defender, to deceive the referee into whistling for a foul. Sometimes also described as ‘simulación’ which is closer to the English ‘simulation.’

8. “Tener flor”
A player, or more often a coach, who ‘has a flower’ is thought to have good fortune, similar to being 'charmed’ in English. The expression is also often used by defeated opposition fans or pundits as a way to avoid praising tactical or technical excellence in an opposition team.

9. “Rabona”
When a player plants one foot in front of the ball, and then sweeps his other leg around behind to spectacularly strike the ball, you have a ‘Rabona.’ One-time Barcelona winger Ricardo Quaresma is an expert, while former Villarreal midfielder Pablo Fornals scored a superb rabona against Huesca in 2019.

10. “Pase de la Muerte”
The ‘pass of death’ has a specific meaning in Spanish football. It refers to a through ball which breaks an offside trap to leave a teammate clear in front of goal. Quite a few of Barça captain Lionel Messi’s 12 LaLiga assists this season have met this description. Deadly, and very hard to defend against.

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Argentine football legend Diego Maradona has asked the "Hand of God" to deliver the world from COVID-19 pandemic and allow normal life to resume. The World Cup winner referred to his hand-assisted goal in the 1986 World Cup after Argentine football chiefs voted to end the current season as well as suspend relegation, saving Diego-managed bottom club Gimnasia from the drop.

"Today this happened to us and many people say it is a new Hand of God," said Diego, alluding to his infamous goal against England. "But today I'm asking for that hand to end this pandemic so people can go back to living their lives, healthy and happy." Then-Argentine captain Diego responded to the controversy over his goal at the World Cup in Mexico by saying "it was the Hand of God!"

Argentina went on to beat England 2-1 in the quarter-final. On being thrown a lifeline by the suspension of the season, he told Argentine daily Clarin: "It's not the ending we had wanted, we were convinced we could save ourselves on the pitch."

Argentina has been in lockdown since March 20 against the Coronavirus, which by early Wednesday had infected 4,114 people with 207 deaths.

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Masala comedy films are here to stay and still have a loyal fan following. Surprisingly, there are very few directors at present that can do justice to such kind of movies. Anees Bazmee is one of those who have entertained audiences with plenty of mainstream comic capers over the years. And now he’s back with PAGALPANTI and as the name suggests, it promises loads of madness. So does PAGALPANTI stay true to its title and give a rocking time to the viewers? Or does it fail to entertain? Let’s analyse. <img class="aligncenter wp-image-1044049 size-full" title="Movie Review: Pagalpanti" src="https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Movie-Review-Pagalpanti.jpg" alt="Movie Review: Pagalpanti" width="720" height="450" /> PAGALPANTI is the story of three unlucky men who wreak havoc in the underworld. Raj Kishore (John Abraham) is astrologically very unlucky. Wherever he goes, destruction follows. He joins Public Mercantile Bank in India and on his first day at job, it comes to light that Niraj Modi (Inaamulhaq) has run away from the country after stealing Rs. 32,000 crores from the bank. Raj loses his job as a result. He then comes to London where he befriends two brothers, Junky (Arshad Warsi) and Chandu (Pulkit Samrat). He convinces the duo to put money and set up a fireworks shop. Again, due to Raj’s bad luck, the shop goes up in flames on the first day itself. Raj then woos Sanjana (Ileana DCruz). He then cons her and her maternal uncle (Brijendra Kala) of a lot of money to start a delivery company with Junky and Chandu. As they are about to make their first delivery, an expensive car, Sanjana, who finds out the truth, arrives with an army of goons to nab Raj. Raj, Junky and Chandu run away in the delivery truck itself and after a nail-biting chase and jumping from a flyover, they escape from the clutches of the goons. They then reach the place of delivery, the palatial residence of Raja Sahab (Saurabh Shukla). It’s his daughter Janvi’s (Kriti Kharbanda) birthday and the expensive car is her gift. Unfortunately, when the car is unloaded from the track, it is found to be extensively damaged due to their reckless driving while escaping from the goons. The car is worth Rs. 7 crores and to recover this amount from the trio, Raja Sahab’s brother-in-law WiFi Bhai (Anil Kapoor) offers them a job where they’ll be paid Rs. 10 lakhs each. Of course, they won’t get the money but their salary will go in recovering the Rs. 7 crore cost of the car. Raj, Junky and Chandu happily take up the job, not realizing that their work can prove fatal. Junky and Chandu are given the job of being the food tasters, to ensure that there’s no poison in Raja Sahab’s meal. Raj is asked to sit in Raja Sahab’s car so that if anyone tries to attack, the former will bear the brunt. The trio learn that these precautions are being taken because of Raja Sahab’s enemies, the brothers named Tulli (Zakir Hussain) and Bulli (Ashok Samarth). Realizing that this enmity has gone too far, Baba Jani (Mukesh Tiwari), a mentor for Raja Sahab and Tulli-Bulli, arranges a meeting with all of them. He advises them to shake hands and also presents to them none other than Niraj Modi. Niraj gives Rs. 700 crores to Raja Sahab and tells him to invest and double this money. Raj’s bad luck plays spoilsport here in two ways. Firstly, Raj, Junky and Chandu, not knowing that Raja Sahab is now friends with Tulli and Bulli, goes ahead and attack Bulli, injuring him grievously. Next, Raj accidentally sets fire to the library which is in Raja Sahab’s house. The fire spreads to the strongroom, where Niraj Modi’s money is stored. All the money worth Rs. 700 crores hence goes up in flames. Realizing that Raj, Junky and Chandu are epitomes of bad luck, Raja Sahab and WiFi kick them out of the house. The same day, Raja Sahab is stopped from going to bet on a derby race due to threat from Tulli and Bulli. WiFi too chickens out and with no other option, they send Raj, Junky and Chandu to put money on their favourite horse, Lucky. However, Raj is advised by a derby expert to bet on the other horse, Johnny instead. Suddenly, Sanjana and her maternal uncle reach the spot to take back their money. Raj advises them to put their money on Johnny as well, suggesting that if they win, their money problems will be solved. As luck would have it, Johnny loses the race while Lucky wins! The trio are too scared to go back to face Raja Sahab and WiFi and hence, they decide to run away to Scotland. What happens next forms the rest of the film! Anees Bazmee, Rajiv Kaul and Praful Parekh's story is full of madness and also quite clichéd. Still, it could have made for a good film if the script was upto the mark. Anees Bazmee, Rajiv Kaul and Praful Parekh's screenplay sadly is disappointing. The writing is plain lazy as in the first half, it’s repetitive. To see Raj spreading bad luck every now and then gets too much. And in the second half, it is a bhel puri of various such films in the past. Anees Bazmee's dialogues are quite funny but in the absence of a tight script, these one-liners also don’t make the desired impact. Anees Bazmee's direction is weak. He has done a much better job in the past and his work in PAGALPANTI is nowhere close. The script is not that funny but still the film could have been slightly more entertaining if he had remained true to the genre. But sadly, he forced a lot of elements in the film. In one crucial scene, the characters suddenly become patriotic and it’s embarrassing to see it unfold. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>PAGALPANTI – When Pagals Get Together | The MADDEST Interview Ever | John | Arshad | Ileana | Pulkit</strong></span> <iframe id="jwiframe" class="playerFrame" src="https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/videos/celeb-interviews/pagalpanti-when-pagals-get-together-the-maddest-interview-ever-john-arshad-ileana-pulkit/?jwembed=1" width="800" height="340" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> One doesn’t expect anything else but mindless comedy from a film titled PAGALPANTI. And sure enough, the beginning scenes give a fair indication that the film is riddled with maddening scenes. There’s nothing wrong with that but the jokes are not that funny either. A few scenes do raise laughs like Junky and Chandu being compelled to taste food and Raj finding out the reason why he’s driving in Raja Sahab’s car and not Raja Sahab himself. The entry of Niraj Modi is menacing. The intermission point too gives a promise that hopefully, the second half is where the film’s brilliance would come out. Shockingly, the opposite happens. The scene where the trio escape in a truck filled with glue is still fine. But then, the writers and makers add a horror touch that backfires. It seemed like the team got impressed with the success of horror comedies like GOLMAAL AGAIN [2017] and STREE [2018] and hence decided to cash in on it. The finale meanwhile gives a déjà vu of Anees Bazmee’s earlier film WELCOME [2007] and many other Priyadarshan comedies. Not just that, they even straightaway lift a crucial scene and dialogue from the classic comic caper ANDAZ APNA APNA [1994] and that’s where the film goes completely downhill. John Abraham is decent but it’s nowhere close to the great work he’s doing off late. It’s nice that he’s trying his hand at comedy for a change but then he should have opted for a film that would have given him a chance to excel. Arshad Warsi is as usual quite entertaining. Pulkit Samrat tries his best but doesn’t succeed in giving the performance that his character demanded. Anil Kapoor gets his share of funny scenes but the writing lets him down. Saurabh Shukla is quite superb. Same goes for Brijendra Kala and it’s nice to see that he even got a chance to shake a leg! From the heroines, Kriti Kharbanda gets to play an interesting character and she does justice. Ileana DCruz is strictly okay. Urvashi Rautela enters quite late and is hardly there. Talking about the supporting cast, Inaamulhaq is too good and the role suits him to the T. Jameel Khan (Panditji) has an important role and is dependable. Mukesh Tiwari, Zakir Hussain and Ashok Samarth are over the top. Jiten Mukhi (Mehul Chowksi), Naresh Sharma (Raja Sahab's butlet) and Raja Sahab's driver (Kanchan Pagare) are okay. Music is decent. <em>'Tum Par Hum Hai Atke'</em> comes all of a sudden but is foot-tapping. <em>'Walla Walla'</em> is well picturized but the song is nothing great. <em>'Bimar Dil'</em> is from where the film really gets bad. <em>'Thumka'</em> is forced. Title track is played in the background mainly. Sajid-Wajid's background score is better. The theme of Niraj Modi works well. Sunil Patel's cinematography is appropriate. Durgaprasad Mahapatra's production design is appealing. Pradyuman Kumar Swain's action is not so memorable. Anushka Tugnait, Sanam Ratansi, Kshitij Kankaria Shamanaz Parakh, Rahil Raja and Himanshi Nijhawan's costumes are very glamorous and sexy, especially the ones worn by the girls. N Y VFXWaala and Final Post's VFX is tacky, particularly in the lion scene. Prashant Singh Rathore's editing is not upto the mark. On the whole, PAGALPANTI fails to raise the desired amount of laughs due to lazy writing and recycled jokes. This movie is strictly for the audience who love brainless entertainers.

The year 2019 has seen the release of big-budget period action films and all of them have been well received by the audiences, like MANIKARNIKA – THE QUEEN OF JHANSI, KESARI and SYE RAA NARASIMHA REDDY. Now the final 2019 film in this league, PANIPAT, is all set to release, and it promises to be a grand and entertaining affair. So does PANIPAT manage to give the audiences a great time? Or does it fail? Let’s analyse. <img class="aligncenter wp-image-1048659 size-full" title="Movie Review: Panipat" src="https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Panipat-4-5.jpg" alt="Movie Review: Panipat" width="720" height="450" /> PANIPAT is the story of one of the most important chapters of history. The year is 1760. The Marathas under Sadashivrao Bhau (Arjun Kapoor) finally annexe the Udgiri Fort in present-day southern Maharashtra and thereby finish the Nizamshahi rule for good. The Marathas have now occupied most of India. Nana Saheb Peshwa (Mohnish Bahl) is very happy with the developments and especially with Sadashiv. Nana Saheb's wife Gopika Bai (Padmini Kolhapure) however feels insecure with her hubby’s fondness for Sadashiv. At her insistence, Sadashiv is given the responsibility of handling the treasury. Sadashiv is shocked at this development as he has always been a warrior. Nevertheless he accepts this change of duty. He also gets to spend time with Parvati Bai (Kriti Sanon), a physician. Both fall in love and get married. Meanwhile, while checking the finances, Sadashiv realises that the kingdoms up North are not paying the dues to the Marathas, as they had promised. A message is then sent to all these kings, including Mughal empeor Alamgir II (S M Zaheer). Najib-Ud-Daula (Mantra) is a part of the Mughal court and he’s asked to leave. He’s so frustrated with the high handedness of the Marathas that he decides to defeat them once and for all. To do so, he knocks on the doors of Ahmed Shah Abdali (Sanjay Dutt), the Afghan ruler of Kandahar. At first, Abdali declines since he realises that Najib-Ud-Daula is seeking his help for his selfish gains. But then he also realises that if he manages to capture a large part of India, it would add to his prowess. Hence he sets off to India. The Marathas find out about Abdali's plans and that he is approaching with 1 lakh soldiers. Sadashiv however feels that despite having lesser number of soldiers, the Marathas can still defeat Abdali. Nana Saheb gives Sadashiv the responsibility of going up North to stop Abdali with 40,000 soldiers. On the way, Sadashiv seeks help from various kingdoms and forges alliances. Most of them agree to be on his side and provide armymen. Shuja-Ud-Daula (Kunal R Kapoor) is the Wazir of Awadh and Sadashiv asks for his help as well. In return, he agrees to make him the Wazir of Delhi once Abdali is defeated. Shuja-Ud-Daula asks for this agreement in writing. The Marathas agree to do so and said that they’ll return in a few days with the written assurance. In the interim, Abdali’s men meet Shuja-Ud-Daula. They too make the same offer that he’ll be made Delhi’s Wazir and what’s more, they get the written agreement with them. Shuja-Ud-Daula hence joins Abdali. This serves a blow for Sadashiv since Shuja-Ud-Daula’s alliance would have helped him immensely. Nevertheless, he agrees to fight, come what may. What happens next forms the rest of the film. Chandrashekhar Dhavalikar, Ranjeet Bahadur, Aditya Rawal and Ashutosh Gowariker's story is close to reality. It is praiseworthy that Gowariker and his team chose this topic as it’s one of the significant battles of Indian history. Also, many viewers would not be aware that the Marathas at one point were so strong in India. Hence, it turns out to be an entertaining as well as enlightening experience for them. Chandrashekhar Dhavalikar, Ranjeet Bahadur, Aditya Rawal and Ashutosh Gowariker's screenplay is fine for most parts but is not consistent. A few scenes don’t pack a punch and hence, bring the impact down. A few scenes however are exceptionally written. Ashok Chakradhar's dialogues are nothing great. Ashutosh Gowariker's direction is neat and uncomplicated for most parts. He’s in form after a long time. He very beautifully presents the Maratha Empire in all its glory. The battle scenes in the second half keep the interest going. Also noteworthy is the scene of the truce between Sadashiv and Abdali. But the politics and the problems faced by Marathas in getting help in battling Abdali ought to have been better explained. Also, the film could have been more commercial and massy as there were several scenes that had that kind of appeal. The length is another issue. At 2.53 hours, the film is quite long, especially in the first half. Another big problem with the film is that the tagline is ‘The Great Betrayal’. This bit comes out in a crucial scene in the climax. But the build up to it is very weak. Hence, audiences don’t really get a shock when the man who does the ‘great betrayal’ shows his true intentions. Hence, the impact gets diluted. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>“I disagree that Abdali was a VILLAINOUS character…”: Sanjay Dutt | Arjun | Kriti | Ashutosh | Panipat</strong></span> <iframe id="jwiframe" class="playerFrame" src="https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/videos/celeb-interviews/i-disagree-that-abdali-was-a-villainous-character-sanjay-dutt-arjun-kriti-ashutosh-panipat/?jwembed=1" width="800" height="340" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> PANIPAT begins on a fair note with the scene of the Udgiri Fort annexation. The film then falls a bit as the focus shifts to the politics happening within Shaniwar Wada, Pune. Also, the romantic track of Sadashiv-Parvati Bai is decent but nothing extraordinary. The entry of Abdali is quite interesting and it enhances interest. The film dips once again and the interest then only rises during the intermission point. This is an excellent sequence, when Sadashiv and Abdali come face to face and it sets the mood of the second half. The post interval portion starts off well as Sadashiv comes up with a great plan of capturing Delhi’s Red Fort. This sequence is quite significant, also because viewers might not be aware of this chapter of history. Ashutosh Gowariker however reserves the best for the finale. The truce sequence followed by the 30-minute-long climax engrosses viewers. The betrayal bit however could have been better explained. The final scene of Abdali is fine and it is a great way to end the film. Arjun Kapoor gives his hundred per cent. His physique comes in handy for this character and he indeed looks like a ferocious warrior who can induce fear in enemies. In non-action scenes too, he is quite good. But in a few scenes, he’s a bit off. This is especially in the romantic portions. Sanjay Dutt too tries his best to be menacing but succeeds partly. A fine effort, nevertheless! Kriti Sanon is quite confident and gives an impressive performance. She is not there in the film for the heck of it. She has a very important part and her action scene would be loved! Mohnish Bahl is dependable but he’s hardly there in the second half. Sahil Salathia (Shamsher Bahadur; Bajirao and Mastani’s son) leaves a tremendous mark and it’s great to see that he got such an important part. Same goes for Nawab Shah (Ibrahim Khan Gardi). Mantra understands his character and brings the require jealousy and immaturity. Zeenat Aman (Sakina Begum) is excellent in the cameo and her scene with Kriti Sanon is one of the highpoints of the film. The other actors who do a good job are Padmini Kolhapure, Kunal R Kapoor, S M Zaheer, Milind Gunaji (Dattaji Shinde) Abhishek Nigam (Vishwas Rao), Ravindra Mahajani (Malhar Rao Holkar) and Suhasini Mulay (Sadashiv’s grandmother; presumably Radha Bai). Ajay-Atul's music is a big letdown. None of the songs are memorable. <em>'Mard Maratha'</em> is shot well but the song is very dull. Same goes for <em>'Mann Mein Shiva'</em>. <em>'Sapna Hai Sach Hai'</em> lacks soul. Ajay-Atul's background score is way better and exhilarating. Muraleedharan C K's cinematography is spectacular and captures the battle and other scenes effectively. Raju Khan's choreography is worth appreciating in <em>'Mann Mein Shiva'</em>. Nitin Chandrakant Desai's production design, as expected, is grand and visually stunning. However, some sets seem too similar to that of JODHAA AKBAR [2008] and PREM RATAN DHAN PAYO [2015]. Neeta Lulla's costumes are quite authentic and in sync with the bygone era. Vikram Gaikwad's makeup and hair design is very detailed. Abbas Ali Moghul's action makes for a great watch and is sans gore or too much of bloodshed. VFX is done by Ashutosh Gowariker’s company (AGPPL VFX) and is fine in most scenes. The slow-motion shots in climax fight adds to the impact. Steven Bernard's editing could have been tighter. On the whole, PANIPAT throws light on an important chapter of Indian history with the battle scenes as its USP. At the box office, it will need a strong word of mouth since it faces competition in the form of PATI PATNI AUR WOH.

A small track in Priyanka Chopra-starrer MARY KOM [2014] dealt with the protagonist returning back to boxing after motherhood. It gave a nice insight of what women go through when they make a comeback in sports after giving birth and how it’s tough for them not just physically but more so, mentally. Now Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari, of NIL BATTEY SANNATA [2016] and BAREILLY KI BARFI [2017] fame, takes this aspect as a central idea for her next film, PANGA, starring Kangana Ranaut in the leading role. So does PANGA manage to touch as well as entertain? Or does it fail to entice? Let’s analyse. <img class="aligncenter wp-image-1066622 size-full" title="Movie Review: Panga" src="https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Movie-Review-Panga-2.jpg" alt="Movie Review: Panga" width="720" height="450" /> PANGA is the story of a mother trying to fulfil her dreams. Jaya Nigam (Kangana Ranaut) is a pro at Kabaddi. She slowly rises and also becomes the captain of the Indian Kabaddi team. She is meanwhile married to Prashant (Jassie Gill) and gets pregnant just before she is to go for a major tournament. She still assures her seniors that she’ll be back soon. However, her son is born prematurely and with a very weak immune system. The doctor informs that they’ll have to take care of the baby tremendously and only then will he have a normal growth. Jaya hence gives up her dream. She takes up a job in the railways and divides her time between her work and raising her son Adi (Yagya Bhasin). 7 years pass. Jaya is finding it difficult to fulfil the responsibilities expected from her. Moreover, she meets Meenu (Richa Chadha), who was in Jaya's team and still plays Kabaddi. One day, Adi suggests that his mother should make a comeback in Kabaddi. He persuades Prashant and both begin nag Jaya. Jaya is unsure as she feels she has grown old and is not that fit. Prashant suggests that Jaya should pretend to make comeback and a month later, she can claim that she didn’t get selected. Jaya hence begins her practice. At first, it’s difficult for her but soon, she gets enthusiastic about the whole process. After a long time, she realises she is finally living her life. Two months pass and one day, she tells Prashant that she wants to continue practicing and try to get into the Indian team. What happens next forms the rest of the film. Divya Rao's research and concept is fairly nice and simple. The story has a lot of potential and also it’s a bit unique. We have had sports films in the past but a film on a mother making a comeback hasn’t been tackled as a main plot. Nikhil Mehrotra and Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari's screenplay (additional screenplay by Nitesh Tiwari) also retains the simplicity and relatability. The writing is peppered with some entertaining moments that keep the interest going. On the flipside, it could have been tighter, especially towards the second half. Also, the film gives a heavy déjà vu of DANGAL [2016]. Nikhil Mehrotra and Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari's dialogues (additional dialogues by Nitesh Tiwari) are one of the highpoints. Some of the one-liners, especially the ones uttered by the child actor, will bring the house down. Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari's direction is good. It’s evident that her own personal experiences have also seeped in the film. A few sequences are very deftly handled. The finale especially is too good and would be greeted with claps and whistles. The beauty of it is that you know what’s going to happen and yet, you can’t help but feel exhilarated when it unfolds. Also, to see the way Jaya gets the support of her husband, her son, her mother, her bestie and even her neighbour is quite heartwarming and would be loved by female audiences especially. On the flipside, except for the ending, the predictability of the script does affect the impact along with the long length. Jaya’s flashback doesn’t really make it clear that she had achieved such heights of stardom. Also, Prashant seemed sad when Jaya announces her plan to do a comeback but it wasn’t the case, as revealed later on. This bit was bewildering and could have been done away with or handled better. <img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1066623" src="https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Movie-Review-Panga-1.jpg" alt="" width="720" height="450" /> PANGA has a fine commencement showing the small town life with the focus on Jaya's family and their day to day activities. A lot happens in the first half – Meenu coming back into her life, Jaya missing the sports day, Jaya getting reprimanded by Adi, Jaya's flashback and Jaya’s practise session. The first half surprisingly is just 51 minutes long. The post interval portion, however, is almost 1 hour 18 minutes in duration and could have been shorter. It’s touching to see how Jaya balances between her passion and her family and also the politics that happens over the selection of the team. But the pace of the film is slow here and also, the training session is stretched. Jaya not getting to play for most of the matches also gets a bit repetitive. Thankfully, the climax is powerful which helps the film end on a high note. PANGA rests on Kangana Ranaut majorly, though others also do well. The actress, as always, delivers a smashing performance and not even for a single second, does she go off character. As Jaya the mother, she’s quite adorable and convincing. And even as Jaya the player, she is effortless. Jassie Gill lends able support and his character will be loved. But he grins a bit too much, especially in the flashback portions, and it makes him look a bit of a caricature. Yagya Bhasin is a rockstar. He gets to play a great part and he uplifts the mood of the film in many places. Richa Chadha is credited as a special appearance part but she has a major role to play. She too contributes a lot to the film, not just in terms of comedy, but also in terms of much-needed moral support to Jaya. Megha Burman (Nisha Das) has a late entry but leaves a huge mark. Neena Gupta (Jaya’s mother) is passable. Rajesh Tailang (Indian national coach) is good and is an actor to watch out for. Smita Dwivedi (Smita Tambe, team captain), Kusum Shastri (Jaya’s neighbour), Sudhanva Deshpande (Indian Railway coach) and Shantanu Das (Eastern Railway coach) are decent. Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy's music is soulful but is not memorable at all. <em>'Bibby Song'</em>, the title track and <em>'Jugnu'</em> are okay while <em>'Dil Ne Kaha'</em> and <em>'Wahi Hain Raste'</em> are forgettable. Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara's background score is subtle but rightfully loud in the scene where Adi tells Prashant that Jaya should make a comeback. Jai I Patel's cinematography is fine in the crucial Kabaddi scenes but in a few scenes, its quite in-the-face. Sandeep Meher's production design is straight out of life. Rushi Sharma, Manoshi Nath and Bhagyashree Rajurkar's costumes also add to the authenticity. Special mention should also go to Sunita Vishwas Rao (Kabaddi co-ordinator), Gauri Wadekar (Kabaddi Coach and choreographer) and Abdul Salam Ansari (Kabaddi action director) for making the Kabaddi scenes look so rich and real. Ballu Saluja's editing should have been slick. On the whole, PANGA is a progressive and touching sports drama that works thanks to its plot, execution, some fine moments and of course the superlative performance of Kangana Ranaut. At the box office, it faces tough competition from STREET DANCER 3D and also the holdover release TANHAJI: THE UNSUNG WARRIOR and hence it’ll need a strong word of mouth to succeed.

During the COVID-19 lockdown, individuals are losing patience -- moving freely and not following the necessary social distancing. This lack of civic sense and maturity on their part is weakening our fight against the deadly contagion pathogen.

The capital markets, as a result, also has witnessed intense volatility and bears are running lose. Certain sections of investors, however, have shown tremendous maturity during these challenging times.

At a time when Foreign Portfolio Investors (FIIs) have net sold or dumped Indian equities (owing to markets worldwide falling sharply and margin calls being hit), domestic fund managers are looking for value-buying opportunities in the carnage of the markets.

It is also heartening to see retail and High Net-worth Individuals (HNIs) buying into various equity-oriented mutual funds in a lump sum as well as the SIP (Systematic Investment Plan) mode. Monthly SIP inflows have touched a record high in March 2020 and the SIP folios, too, surged to 3.12 crore.

However, in debt-oriented schemes, investors seem to be pressing the panic button. The mutual fund industry recorded a net outflow of Rs 1.95 trillion in March 2020. Barring Overnight Funds and Gilt Funds, all other sub-categories of debt mutual funds have reported an outflow in March 2020.

Advance tax payment obligations, deterioration in asset quality, potential risk of defaults in the COVID-19 lockdown, and heightened volatility in the Indian debt market are some of the key reasons for outflows from debt-oriented mutual schemes.

[Read: Why Investors Pulled Out Money from Debt Mutual Fund Schemes in March]

The massive outflows were also seen from the Liquid Funds and Arbitrage Funds.

Table 1: Action in March 2020

Unprecedented redemptions in the Arbitrage Funds and Liquid Funds, as well as the net inflows recorded by the overnight funds, suggest that investors preferred safety over returns. As you know, liquidity is a key concern as the world continues to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

Some arbitrage schemes such as Tata Arbitrage Fund and ICICI Prudential Equity-Arbitrage Fund had stopped taking in fresh subscriptions in the third week of March 2020 for the lack of arbitrage opportunities as markets faced broad-based selling.

But now markets are finding some sort of stability and bouncing back -- rallied over 20% from March lows - although the bears continue to run loose.

So, is it a time to consider arbitrage funds again?

Yes, I think so.

Arbitrage Funds aims to exploit the price differential in two different segments (spot and futures or cash and derivatives) of the equity market. They buy stocks in the spot market and sell in the future market simultaneously thereby making gains with the price differential (called the spread).

The differential usually is in sync with the prevailing interest rates in the economy; but depending on the market volatility, it could sometimes be higher as well. That being said, these are short-term opportunities that spring up due to lack of information to a set of market participants in one of the markets.

The capital market regulator's mutual fund categorisation and rationalisation mandates that an Arbitrage Fund must strictly follow the arbitrage strategy and invest at least 65% of its total assets in equity & equity related instruments.

Since the transactions are in either direction, the positions are completely hedged. And the remaining 35% of the total asset is deployed in debt and money market instruments.

In March 2020, when the stock futures started quoting at a discount to the spot prices in the cash market, it was a concern. But now that we have seen some sharp up-moves in the Indian equity markets as the government has done relatively well in containing the spread of the deadly virus (compared to other nations) and thanks to the prompt fiscal measures also have been taken -- both by the Ministry of Finance (the Rs 1.75 trillion package) and the Reserve Bank of India (by reducing policy rates sharply, keeping monetary policy stance 'accommodative as long as it is necessary', and ensuring enough liquidity in the system) -- in my view, it would be perceived positively by the markets in times to come and enough arbitrage opportunities would be available. It is possible that Arbitrage Funds may even perform a tad better vis-a-vis Liquid Funds.

Table 2: Report Card of Arbitrage Fund, Liquid Funds and Short Duration Funds

Over the last one year, the returns generated by Arbitrage Funds have been quite satisfactory. In fact, these funds have outperformed those clocked by Liquid Funds. The 3-month returns clocked by Arbitrage Funds have been almost at par with Liquid Funds.

Do note that an Arbitrage Fund carries low risk and the returns depend on the market conditions and fund manager's ability to reap rewards from arbitrage opportunities.

Short-Term Capital Gains (i.e. realised profits within a year) on arbitrage funds are taxed at 15%, while the Long-Term Capital Gains (i.e. gains made after staying invested for more than a year) are taxed at 10% for gains above Rs 1 lakh in a financial year.

To park money for the short-term for an investment time horizon up to 1-year, you may consider investing in an Arbitrage Fund.

And if you have an extreme short-term time horizon (of 3 to 6 months), consider a Liquid Fund with high-quality debt papers, which does not have high exposure to Commercial Papers (issued by private entities).

Alternatively, if you wish to park in a much safer category, you would be better off investing in an Overnight Funds.

Happy Investing!

PS: If you wish to select worthy mutual fund schemes, I recommend you to subscribe to PersonalFN's unbiased premium research service, FundSelect.

Additionally, as a bonus, you get access to PersonalFN's popular debt mutual fund service, DebtSelect.

Each fund recommended under FundSelect goes through our stringent process, where they are tested on both quantitative as well as qualitative parameters.

Every month, PersonalFN's FundSelect service will provide you with insightful and practical guidance on equity mutual funds and debt schemes - the ones to Buy, Hold, or Sell.

If you are serious about investing in a rewarding mutual fund scheme, Subscribe now!

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Author: Rounaq Neroy

This article first appeared on PersonalFN here.

PersonalFN is a Mumbai based personal finance firm offering Financial Planning and Mutual Fund Research services.

Disclaimer:
The views mentioned above are of the author only. Data and charts, if used, in the article have been sourced from available information and have not been authenticated by any statutory authority. The author and Equitymaster do not claim it to be accurate nor accept any responsibility for the same. The views constitute only the opinions and do not constitute any guidelines or recommendation on any course of action to be followed by the reader. Please read the detailed Terms of Use of the web site.

Unnerving movements for debt mutual funds investors!

Just last week my colleague, Divya explained the fiasco at Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund, which took a decision to abruptly wind down six debt mutual fund schemes, namely:

• Franklin India Low Duration Fund
• Franklin India Dynamic Accrual Fund
• Franklin India Credit Risk Fund
• Franklin India Short Term Income Plan
• Franklin India Ultra Short Bond Fund
• Franklin India Income Opportunities Fund

In all, the above debt mutual fund schemes had an AUM of Rs 30,854 crore as of March 31, 2020.

The fund house cited, "severe market dislocation and illiquidity in the fixed income space" caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, as the reason behind the decision.

Investors in these schemes are now left in the lurch: they cannot sell (nor buy) these funds and will have to rely on the fund house to get back their hard-earned money. Investors will have to hold their investments in these schemes until liquidity is available to the mutual fund house by either selling securities in the fund's portfolio or receiving maturity proceeds.

Currently, a fact is, not just Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund, but debt mutual fund schemes of many other fund houses are have a remarkable exposure to stressed assets.

According to portfolios disclosed on March 31, 2020, mutual funds collectively held Rs 1.38 trillion of exposure to debt securities issued by Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs). Approximately Rs 51,000 crore of the exposure in debt securities has a maturity profile of less than 3 months; and now, mutual funds fear that there will be defaults.

NBFCs and other corporate borrowers claim that they do not have enough liquidity to fulfil their obligations and have requested for additional time. Given that, rating downgrades from rating agencies look likely.

However, some companies are playing smart: they are approaching the Courts to prevent a rating downgrade, plus seeking a stay on sale of pledged shares. Of course, they are well within their right to approach the judicial authority or Courts and contest.

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But the capital market regulator, seems to be in no mood in offering them any leeway. On the contrary, the regulator is asking the mutual fund industry to act against the issuer of securities who are possibly carrying high credit risk; facing asset quality problems.

Delays in repayments would mean the creation of more side-pockets by mutual funds. And in my view, more the losses investors suffer, more frustrating it will be for mutual fund houses and their investors. Eventually retail and High Net-worth Individuals, particularly, will lose confidence and may not be keen to invest in debt funds.

If you are wondering what has gone wrong, here's everything you may like to know about liquidity, credit risk and the exposure of mutual funds to corporate debt in the present scenario.

If you remember, the capital market regulator had mandated large corporations to source at least 25% of their borrowings from the bond markets from the beginning of FY 2019. This move was expected to deepen Indian bond markets and reduces the stress on banks. Just a year later, the same move is proving fatal for companies that went to the bond markets to raise money.

Now that the COVID-19 lockdown has forced many business units to shut off temporarily or operate much below their optimal operational capacity with a skeletal staff, companies, including the large organisations that relied heavily on debt markets, are finding it difficult to honour maturity claims on Commercial Papers (CPs), Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs), and Bonds.

They were hoping for an 'at-par treatment' with Banks when the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) offered a moratorium period to borrowers. But the RBI circular came to them as a shocker. The devil was in the details.

On March 27, 2020, the RBI issued a notification allowing a three-month moratorium on all outstanding term loans and working capital facilities on account of disruptions caused by the outbreak of coronavirus. This circular did not cover around 10 thousand NBFCs, who mainly depend on CPs, NCDs, and Bonds for their funding requirements.

As far as NBFCs are concerned, the RBI has already provided them with a liquidity facility through the banking channel. The RBI directed banks to utilise funds infused under Targeted Long Term Repo Operations (TLTRO) facility to invest in 'investment-grade' CPs, NCDs, and Bonds issued by NBFCs. Also, RBI mandated banks to allocate 50% of Rs 50,000 crore of liquidity introduced by way of TLTRO 2.0 to small and mid-size NBFCs and small finance banks.

But NBFCs seemed not too happy with just liquidity and many of them are now approaching courts to prevent rating downgrades. This is not a best practice for the industry, although fund houses may be well within their rights to contest.

Recently, Indiabulls Housing Finance was successful in receiving the interim order from Delhi High Court, throttling any coercive action against the housing finance company for its inability to repay its bondholders. The Delhi High Court will hear the case further on May 19, 2020.

This has added to the worries of mutual fund houses that now fear other NBFCs will follow the same path.

The capital market regulator, only recently (a few days ago) following the three moratorium by RBI (due to disruptions caused by COVID-19 pandemic) has relaxed the valuation norms for debt and money market instrument held by mutual funds vide a circular dated April 23, 2020, wherein it states as under:

• Based on assessment, if the valuation agencies appointed by AMFI are of the view that the delay in payment of interest/principal or extension of the maturity of a security by the issuer has arisen solely due to COVID-19 pandemic lockdown and/or in light of the moratorium permitted by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) (vide notification no. RBI/2019-20/186, dated March 27, 2020) creating temporary operational challenges in servicing debt, then valuation agencies may not consider the same as a default for the purpose of valuation of money market or debt securities held by Mutual Funds.
  
  However, in the scenario, as stated above, if there is any difference in the valuation of securities provided by two valuation agencies, the conservative valuation shall be accepted.

But then what is the point of coming up with these valuation norms as an afterthought, and not in close synchronisation when the RBI came with its notification a month ago?

The damage now is already done and companies are anyways approaching the Courts to prevent a rating downgrade.

Let's say shares of a company are pledged and to recover the proceeds -- if they cannot be sold due to a court order -- then such lending would be as good as unsecured lending.

Also, why should that not be construed as an instance of deviation from the stated fundamental attributes of a debt mutual fund scheme? After all, mutual fund investors invest in debt fund schemes taking into account a certain level of risk. Change in the risk profile of a scheme is a change in the fundamental attribute/s.

According to India Ratings, NBFCs having the asset base of Rs 500 crore to 5,000 crore, largely fall between "A" and "BBB" rating categories.

The mid-path could be a decision on payment or deferring the payment in consultation with all stakeholders, including debenture trustees. The industry will require a blanket resolution because a case-to-case resolution approach is cumbersome and may create more chaos.

Unless the RBI takes a clear stance on NBFCs and other financial institutions, mutual fund houses are likely to feel the heat of redemptions. Suppose, there's no further statement issued by the banking sector regulator; mutual funds will have to be prepared to handle large-scale defaults, which might look inevitable. After all, a majority of NBFCs' customers are retail borrowers and they enjoy a moratorium on the EMI payment for 3-months. This has been the trickiest part for NBFCs.

While COVID-19 outbreak has been the genuine reason for the potential defaults this time, asset-liability mismatches of NBFCs are well-known. Many NBFCs have gone overboard with cheap credit available during stable market conditions. Their credit underwriting has been questioned widely. The industry has also witnessed belly-up instances such as IL&FS and DHFL. Many mutual fund houses have burned their fingers badly in such defaults.

At the time of writing this piece, to ease the liquidity pressure on mutual funds, the RBI today decided to provide a special liquidity facility of Rs 50,000 crore for mutual funds. Under this facility, the RBI will conduct repo operations of 90 days tenor at the fixed repo rate. This will be on-tap and open-ended, and banks can submit their bids to avail funding on any day from Monday to Friday (excluding holidays). The scheme is available from today i.e., April 27, 2020, till May 11, 2020, or up to utilization of the allocated amount, whichever is earlier. The Reserve Bank will review the timeline and amount, depending upon market conditions.

The RBI has stated further that the liquidity support availed under the Special Liquidity Facility for Mutual Funds shall be used by banks exclusively for meeting the liquidity requirements of mutual funds by, 1) extending loans; and (2) undertaking outright purchase of and/or repos against the collateral of investment-grade corporate bonds, CPs, debentures and certificates of Deposit (CDs) held by mutual funds.

Having taken this measure, keep in mind that it does not make investing in debt mutual funds risk-free. Considering the prevailing investment environment, you should stay away from mutual fund schemes whose portfolio characteristic appears compromised. Also, avoid credit risk funds and corporate bond funds as they are likely to be more vulnerable amidst the financial crisis followed by COVID-19 pandemic.

As a thumb rule: Choose mutual fund schemes from fund houses that follow prudent judicious investment processes and stringent risk-management systems.

In these uncertain times, it would be wise sticking to liquid funds and overnight funds while considering debt funds.

Our friends at Quantum Mutual Fund have highlighted the secret behind their debt management strategy which has helped them provide safety and liquidity to investors when it comes to investing in quantum funds. Don't Worry, Quantum Liquid Fund always aims for Safety and Liquidity.

As with all financial matters, better be safe than sorry!

PS: If you wish to select worthy mutual fund schemes, I recommend you to subscribe to PersonalFN's unbiased premium research service, FundSelect.

Additionally, as a bonus, you get access to PersonalFN's popular debt mutual fund service, DebtSelect.

Each fund recommended under FundSelect goes through our stringent process, where they are tested on both quantitative as well as qualitative parameters.

Every month, PersonalFN's FundSelect service will provide you with insightful and practical guidance on equity mutual funds and debt schemes - the ones to Buy, Hold, or Sell.

If you are serious about investing in a rewarding mutual fund scheme, Subscribe now!

Join Now: PersonalFN is now on Telegram. Join FREE Today to get 'Daily Wealth Letter' and Exclusive Updates on Mutual Funds

Author: Rounaq Neroy

This article first appeared on PersonalFN here.

PersonalFN is a Mumbai based personal finance firm offering Financial Planning and Mutual Fund Research services.

Disclaimer:
The views mentioned above are of the author only. Data and charts, if used, in the article have been sourced from available information and have not been authenticated by any statutory authority. The author and Equitymaster do not claim it to be accurate nor accept any responsibility for the same. The views constitute only the opinions and do not constitute any guidelines or recommendation on any course of action to be followed by the reader. Please read the detailed Terms of Use of the web site.

The tennis club where Novak Djokovic broke confinement rules in Spain has said it mistakenly allowed the top-ranked Serb to practice and apologized for the error. Djokovic published a video of him training on Monday in apparent violation of Spain's current rules amid the coronavirus pandemic. The video posted on Instagram showed Djokovic exchanging shots with another man at the club in the coastal city of Marbella, where the Serb has been staying for the past several weeks.

Djokovic filmed the video while hitting shots and wrote he was "so happy to play on clay .. well, just for a bit with my phone in the hands. Spain has eased some of the lockdown measures that had been in place since mid-March, allowing professional athletes to return to practice, but most training centers and sports facilities must remain closed until next week. We are sorry that our interpretation of the regulation could have been erroneous, and this could have inconvenienced Mr. Djokovic or any other citizen acting in good faith," the Puente Romano Marbella Tennis Club said in a statement.

The statement, which was relayed by Djokovic's management team, said the club received a request from the player to practice and gave him the go-ahead with the "understanding that from May 4 all professional sports players were authorized to train." The club said it therefore believed he was "permitted to train in our facilities." It said it later received a "clarification" from the Spanish tennis federation and "both parties have agreed that training should resume" only next week.

Rafael Nadal said he also went to train on a court this week, but he did it on private property because the rules weren't fully clear to him. Soccer players were among the exceptions who could start training inside sports facilities beginning this week.

Spain has been one of the countries most affected by the pandemic but it started loosening some of its restrictions on movement as the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 started to go down recently. The nation went into a lockdown on March 14.

Djokovic recently said he was against taking a vaccine for the coronavirus if it became mandatory to travel once the pandemic subsides, though he later said he was open to changing his mind.

Catch up on all the latest sports news and updates here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates.

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Shawna Pandya

While the world is already counting Dr Shawna Pandya in the league of Kalpana Chawla and Sunita Williams, the lady in question feels it's all "a bit premature".

Canadian scientist and astronaut, Dr Pandya, is known for her work as part of Citizen Science Astronaut (CSA) candidate with project PoSSUM (Polar Suborbital Science in the Upper Mesosphere) and PHEnOM (Physiology, Health and Environmental Observations and Microgravity) that she has been pursuing for two years now to understand several aspects of outer space, ranging from cloud formation to physiology and microgravity. She was one of the two candidates to be shortlisted from 3,200 people enrolled in the CSA programme.

While she has been working extensively in the field of outer space, and has in the past even worked with NASA, she clarifies that there has been "no announcement, flight assignment or selection of missions" [scheduled to take flight] yet. They will soon head off to a Mars simulation for two weeks though, that will help them prepare better for the mission, as and when it happens.

In a telephonic interview from Canada, where Dr Pandya is based, she tells us, "We are still developing our science and our mission. Our programme has done a phenomenal job of recruiting great candidates regardless of gender, ethnicity and country of origin. In fact, India has better representation in PoSSUM now. It is interesting that there is so much international representation in space programmes. It's not a competition to say, 'I will be the first such and such...' It's only about working with the passion and excitement."

Pandya is now part of a show on Sony BBC Earth titled Astronauts — Toughest Job In The Universe. Ask her what makes her job the toughest and she says, "I think everyone is serious and passionate about their job and consider it the toughest in the universe. This job, however, requires a tremendous amount of dedication and time. It's team-based and there is much risk involved. You cannot afford to let anyone down and that really raises the stakes."

Ever since she was a child, Pandya had been fascinated by space. "I remember when I was in grade seven, I'd read books on astronomy and the universe. I think that's where it all began for me," says the 33-year-old, who works as a general physician. When it comes to the areas that she has dabbled in, it's an extensive laundry list. From a black belt in Taekwondo to baseball, to motivational speaking, to walking the ramp and crooning as an opera singer, Pandya seems to have done it all. Ask her how does she pack in so much, and she says, "When I am asked this, I tell people, 'relax, I'm not doing all this in the same 24-hour period'. The trick is to prioritise what you do with your time, line up goals, set deadlines for yourself and act accordingly."

Pandya shares a deep connect with Mumbai and tries to visit the city once every five years. The last time she was here was last February. "I have most of my extended family here, my uncles, cousins and up until recently, my grandmother. There's no other city in the world like Mumbai, for me. There's so much going on here all the time but there's always something that comes out of the constant commotion. This city is always home away from home for me."

Also Read: Virender Sehwag Pays Heartwarming Tribute To Astronaut Kaplana Chawla

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Russian and Japanese government representatives met in Tokyo on March 27 to begin negotiations on updating their double tax agreement.

The governments of Japan and Russia on April 28 announced they have agreed the text of a new double tax agreement that would replace the 1986 pact between Japan and the former USSR.

The governments of Japan and Russia signed a new convention on the elimination of double taxation on September 7.

In a letter dated August 8, 2019, the Russian Federal Tax Service amended the rules for non-resident holding companies to be considered as the beneficial owner of Russia-sourced income.

Can I Open account with zero brokerage company for share buy/sell.Whether it is safe? Please clarify..

Coronavirus fears have spooked the investors worldwide with BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty falling over 25% this month, in line with many other global indices.

After sharp corrections in three trading sessions on March 9, March 12, and March 16 by 5.1%, 8.1% and 7.9% respectively, the Sensex crashed by an overall 22% this month.

Let's dive a bit deeper and look at how the impact has been on individual sectors...

1. While all sectoral indices are in a sea of red since the outbreak of coronavirus, here's a look at the worst hit sectors since coronavirus outbreak:

   Sector	Since 1 March (%)	Since 1 Jan (%)
   BSE Metal	-30%	-45%
   BSE Bankex	-31%	-37%
   BSE Oil & Gas	-24%	-36%
   BSE Auto	-24%	-36%
   BSE Finance	-30%	-36%
   BSE Realty	-31%	-36%
   BSE Capital Goods	-25%	-33%
   BSE Power	-22%	-32%
   BSE Basic Material	-26%	-32%
   BSE Consumer Discretionary	-24%	-28%
   BSE IT	-25%	-27%
   BSE FMCG	-18%	-22%
   BSE Consumer Durables	-24%	-20%
   BSE Healthcare	-15%	-15%
   BSE Telecom	-18%	-14%

   *Note that prices are as on 19 March 2020
2. As you can see in the table above, metal sector has been hit the worst on year-to-date (YTD) basis. Note that, the sector has been witnessing selling pressure since last two years. The coronavirus situation has only exacerbated the situation.
3. Another sector that is largely impacted is banking and NBFCs. After being the most preferred in the Indian equity indices for over half a decade, things have changed for stocks in the financial sector. In India it is a double blow for financial sector in the form of YES Bank fallout and prolonged slowdown which increased the chances of credit quality deterioration.
4. To put things into context, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were heavily positioned in the Indian financial space, and stocks in the sector witnessed maximum inflows during good times. Downward spiral for financial sector began since IL&FS crisis.
   
   Both, BSE Bankex and BSE Finance Index have plunged over 30% since the beginning of the month.
5. Shares of most hotel, leisure and airline firms have tumbled over 60% year-to-date, as the coronavirus outbreak across the world has forced people to cancel vacation plans. India also stand to lose foreign tourists due to the entry restrictions that have been put in place. And this has meant things getting worse for hotels and airlines sector.
6. Out of the 90 stocks listed on BSE from tourism, hospitality and film distribution segments, only 15 have given positive returns YTD.
7. Another sector that's facing the brunt is the automobile sector. Coronavirus couldn't have come at a worse time for India's auto sector that is battling a prolonged slump in demand. The virus outbreak has added to the pain, hitting production and lowering the demand even further as consumer spending is unusually low. Reportedly, the correction in the auto index is now close to what was seen during the 2008 global financial crisis. BSE Auto Index is down 36% on a YTD basis.
8. The fall in other indices like FMCG, consumer durables, capital goods and IT is relatively moderate as they do not have any direct impact of the pandemic. However, they too have been witnessing selling amid the sharp correction in Indian share markets.
9. Interestingly, Indian pharma has been doing much better than the overall index. Since the beginning of March 2020, the Sensex is down by 26% while the BSE Healthcare index is down only by 15% (till 19 March 2020).
   • One factor is the rupee weakness which has weakened well beyond the Rs 75/$ mark. A weak rupee helps exporters and pharma obviously benefits.
   • Another factor is the spread of the novel coronavirus has led global investors to rush for pharmaceutical stocks recently, on back of a rise in demand for generics and branded generics leading to shortages and over-pricing for drugs.
10. However, as the markets took a breather on Friday, the sectors that rallied the most were BSE FMCG, BSE IT and BSE Oil & Gas indices, gaining over 8% each.

What do you think will be the long-term impact for these sectors? Well, you can let us know by dropping your views in the comments section below.

While most sectors have been falling, our co-head of research, Tanushree Banerjee believes in long term, Indian auto ancillaries, textiles, chemical companies, Pharma R&D contract manufacturers, will all be the major beneficiaries of what she calls the Rebirth of India megatrend.

Also, in times like these, our special report, How to Trade the Coronavirus Crash, will help you get a grip on the current market situation...and figure out ways to profit from it.

This is the most comprehensive report on how to trade the coronavirus, both from a short-term and long-term perspective. I strongly recommend you read it now. Claim your FREE copy here...

Happy Investing!

India cricketer Hardik Pandya is not just an entertainer on the cricket field but off it too.

On Tuesday, a video of Hardik Pandya surfaced on Instagram where he is seen entertaining his social media followers alongside fiancee Natasa Stankovic.

In the video that went viral, Hardik Pandya asks Natasa Stankovic, "Baby, main kya hoon tera? [who am I to you]." The Serbian model-actor hesitates for a bit before replying: "Jigar ka tukda [a piece of my heart]" after which both burst out laughing at her accent. Take a look at the video below.

 

 

 

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@hardikpandya93 blood💥💯#hardikpandya #nature #nature #naturalhairstyles #naturephotography #photo #photographer #photography #photooftheday #photoshoot #photographylovers #photoshop

A post shared by hardikpandya_93 🔵 (@hardikpandya_93_blood) onApr 12, 2020 at 7:15pm PDT

Hardik Pandya and Natasa Stankovic's dating rumours began in early 2019. Hardik Pandya shocked the world when he announced that he proposed to Natasa Stankovic on New Year's Day 2020 confirming that they were engaged.

Natasa Stankovic has appeared in many reality shows, most notable ones being, Bigg Boss 8 and Nach Baliye 9.  

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Indian pacer Mohammed Shami on Wednesday hailed Rishabh Pant saying that the wicket-keeper batsman has an amazing talent.

Shami joined former cricketer Irfan Pathan on an Instagram live session where both discussed a range of topics.

"Rishabh's talent is amazing and it is not like he is my friend that is why I am saying. It is just about confidence, the day he got that confidence, he will be very dangerous," Shami said during the session.

Shami also praised KL Rahul saying that the batsman is in his 'best form' and playing well in every position he is batting on while Pathan termed Rahul's form as 'unbelievable'.

"He smashes a lot. His current form is I think his career's best form. Wherever he is coming to bat, he is playing well. Hope his career continue to proceed like this," Shami said.

"His (Rahul) current form is unbelievable," Pathan said.

Shami also lauded Hardik Pandya calling him the "best all-rounder".

"If anyone wants to become an all-rounder, be like Hardik Pandya. He is the best all-rounder," Shami said.

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Reminiscing the old days, Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya on Monday shared a classic throwback picture with brother Krunal.

In the 2011 photo, the duo are smiling while posing for the camera with a 'desi swag.'

 

 

 

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Throwback to 2011 😅 How time changes @krunalpandya_official Swag mera desi hai

A post shared by Hardik Pandya (@hardikpandya93) onApr 20, 2020 at 6:42am PDT

"Throwback to 2011, How time changes @krunalpandya_official, Swag Mera desi hai," Hardik captioned the post on Instagram.

The flamboyant all-rounder, who was out of the Indian team due to back injury, made a comeback during the South Africa tour of India.

The first match of the series got washed out due to rain, and the series was eventually postponed following the outbreak of coronavirus.

Pandya made his ODI debut against New Zealand at Dharamsala in October 2016.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all sporting action across the world has been stopped including the 13th edition of the IPL.

On April 16, the IPL 2020 was suspended till further notice due to 'evolving global health concerns'.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has not just made cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar realise the importance of freedom to do simple things in life. It has also left the record-breaking Indian batsman a bit worried about the impact it will have on his beloved sport.

In an interaction with mid-day over the phone on the eve of his 47th birthday on Thursday, the former India captain said he is expecting the sport to change where the dynamics of shining the ball is concerned. He also felt it will be strange to see matches being played before empty stands when action resumes.

Edited excerpts from the interview:

How do you see cricket when normalcy comes around?

Time will tell. You can't put saliva on the ball so how are you going to shine the ball as much? Those landing marks leave dry patches on the ball. How do you cover that all the time with sweat instead of saliva and still maintain the shine? If you are not going to shine the ball frequently then how will the ball swing? All these elements will come into play, which nobody is familiar with. So the game could change.

To get the ball to reverse [swing], you keep one side dry and then you keep shining the other side. So, how shiny would that other side be will also determine how much the ball is going to swing or reverse. As you keep shining one side, the other side gets automatically lighter.

Cricket boards are contemplating hosting matches in front of empty stands…

It's going to be strange because you are used to having crowds around and that noise, that buzz inside the stadium. When you hit a boundary or a six or pick a wicket, the crowd also becomes a big part of your celebration. You draw energy from the crowd when you hit a boundary. So, all that won't be there and it's going to be strange. It's like watching Wimbledon with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal playing but there are no spectators. It's going to look strange and feel different for sure.

Would you recommend closed-door matches?

This is the government's call, especially the health ministry. We have to follow their guidelines. Whatever they feel is safe should be done. I've tried to do the same things with whatever directives have been given. We have also tried to spread the message on our social media platforms. There are a lot of rumours floating around. It's important to convey the right message to everyone and show them the complete picture because rumours can sometimes disrupt your thought process and make you think otherwise.

How would you have handled this situation in your playing days and what's your advice to youngsters who are eager to be on the park again?

I would continue my training and I'm sure all players are continuing their physical preparations. But sometimes, it's good to give yourself a break after a reasonable long season. So it's good to get that break for a while and then come back to action. There are two elements—batting and bowling. One has to prepare yourself by practising various drills. The other would be to practise mentally by doing visualisation and mental drills. Both these elements coming together from a good combination for preparation. I fully understand that nothing beats being on the field, hitting the ball again. If someone who is thinking otherwise—that this is a period where I can't do much except sit back and relax—those guys will be caught napping.

What has the lockdown made you realise?

The freedom we have to do simple things in life. Like, the last time I met any outsider—that includes my friends—was March 15. So, it's a long time. The most important thing is freedom, the freedom to be what you like and go out, do certain things which you are not able to do now. These are different kind of circumstances, completely unprecedented. I cannot instruct elderly people, so my friendly message to them would be: You wished well for me for such a long time and prayed that I don't get out and stay at the crease. So, my wish for you is, not to get out too—from your homes. That way, you will be safe and secure. So, follow the government's guidelines and let's stay safe.

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India cricketer Krunal Pandya, 29, Instagrammed a fun video, enjoying of a unique version of table tennis with his brother, Hardik in their room.

With their double bed forming a table and a rolled up blanket playing the role of a net, the two brothers are seen using their hands as racquets as they play TT with a soft ball (screengrab above). "#PandyaBros in action in a different sport. @hardikpandya93 and I are always competitive with each other. Who do you think won this round?," Krunal captioned his post that got nearly 40,000 views within a few hours.

 

 

 

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#PandyaBros in action in a different sport 😏 @hardikpandya93 and I are always competitive with each other 🤪 Who do you think won this round?

A post shared by Krunal Pandya (@krunalpandya_official) onApr 23, 2020 at 5:00am PDT

Interestingly, former India pacer Munaf Patel replied with a cheeky comment: "No cheating, KP please."

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India all-rounder Hardik Pandya has joked that a cup of coffee proved too costly for him and he now drinks green tea instead in an Instagram live chat with wicket-keeper Dinesh Karthik. Pandya was referring to the controversy he landed in due to his comments on the television show Koffee With Karan in early 2019.

"I don't drink coffee, I drink green tea instead. I drank coffee only once and proved to be too expensive for me. I can bet that Starbucks would not have such an expensive coffee. Since then I stay away from coffee," he said in the live chat which also featured his brother and fellow all-rounder Krunal.

Pandya was caught in a maelstrom of controversy in early 2019 due to his remarks on the chat show in which he had appeared with teammate KL Rahul. It led to both being briefly suspended from the Indian team.

Pandya has since got engaged and while his return to the Indian team has been hampered by injuries and the ongoing coronavirus lockdown, he is expected to play for the team at the T20 World Cup later in the year should it go through.

He also said that he would be okay with the 2020 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) being played behind closed doors. The season has been postponed after the Indian government extended the ongoing lockdown in the country to May 3 amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"It will be different. We are used to playing in front of them as the feeling of competition comes with the crowd," said Pandya in an Instagram live chat with Dinesh Karthik.

"I've played in the Ranji Trophy without crowds, and it feels different. To be honest, if that [IPL behind closed doors] happens, it will be a smarter option. At least people will be entertained at home," he said.

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Calling MS Dhoni his mentor, wicketkeeper batsman Rishabh Pant said the World Cup-winning skipper has his own way of helping the younger crop as he never provides a full solution to a problem, encouraging them to look for answers. Pant, was heir apparent to Dhoni until KL Rahul emerged as a wicketkeeper-batsman in the limited overs format, making the southpaw no more a certainty in the playing XI.

Mentor MSD

"He [Dhoni] has been like a mentor to me, on and off the field. I can approach him freely with any problem I may be facing, and he will never give me the entire solution for it," Pant said in an Instagram live session with his IPL team Delhi Capitals. "This is so that I don't become entirely dependent on him, he gives me hints only that helps me solve the issue myself. He's also one of my favourite batting partners, though we don't bat together often.

Perfect planning

"If Mahi bhai is at the crease, you know things are sorted. He's got a plan in his head, and all you need to do is follow it!" Dhoni, who has not played competitive cricket since July, was supposed to make a much awaited comeback with the IPL, which has now been postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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BCCI president Sourav Ganguly is deeply saddened and intimidated by the devastation caused because of the COVID-19 pandemic and has equated the unprecedented crisis to playing a Test match on a dangerous wicket. The decorated former player opened up on life under lockdown due to the novel coronavirus pandemic that has claimed over 2.40 lakh lives across the world while infecting more than 34 lakh people. "This situation is a Test match on a very dangerous wicket. The ball is seaming and spinning as well - the batsman has very little margin of error," Ganguly said while speaking on '100 Hours 100 Stars', an initiative started by Fever Network.

"So, the batsman has to score runs and keep his wicket safe with this little margin of error, and win this Test match," he added. A winner of innumerable fierce battles during his playing days when there was no dearth of fearsome fast bowlers and quality spinners, Ganguly was tempted to draw a parallel between the tough moments in the sport and the health crisis. "This is very difficult, but we hope that we will win this match together," he added. Ganguly expressed his sadness at the number of lives lost in the pandemic and the irreparable damage that it has caused. "I am really upset seeing the current situation, because so many people are suffering outside. We are still struggling to understand how to stop this pandemic," he said. "This atmosphere all over the world has really bothered me. We don't know how, when and where it came from - we all were unprepared for this," he added. Not just upset, Ganguly conceded he cannot help feeling a big scared of what's unfolding because of the disease. "People are being affected by this so much. There have been so many deaths. This situation upsets me, and I also feel scared," he said.

"People come to my house to deliver groceries, food, so I feel a little scared as well. So it's a mixed feeling. I just want this to end as quickly as possible," he added, He said cricket has taught him to face tough situations in life and the importance of staying alert at all times. Asked how he keeps himself positive, the former captain said: "Cricket has taught me a lot. I faced real life, high-pressure situations. You have to make runs and there is just one ball left. "If you make one wrong move, one wrong footwork, you will not get another chance. These kind of situations make you alert and aware about real life situations," he said. The BCCI chief, though, also added that he is getting to spend a lot of time with his family after a long time. "It's been a month into the lockdown. I didn't mind it earlier. Earlier, I wouldn't get time at home like this. My lifestyle involved travelling for work everyday. "For the past 30-32 days, I have been at home with my family, spending time with my wife, daughter, my mother and my brother. "I have got a time like this after long, so I am enjoying myself," he said.

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Virat Kohli's Indian team still has a long way to go before it is spoken of in the same breath as Australia of 2000s, feels former India pacer Ashish Nehra. Under Kohli's leadership, India earned its maiden series victory in Australia in 2018-19, achieving the feat after trying for seven decades. However, it can't be discounted that absence of Steve Smith and David Warner due to ball tampering ban turned out to be an important factor.

"This Indian team has to still cover a lot of distance in order to match up with that Australia team (led by Steve Waugh and then Ricky Ponting)," Nehra said during an interaction with ex-player Aakash Chopra on his show 'Aakash Vani'. "You are talking about an Australian team which won three consecutive World Cups and before that reached the final in 1996, won 18-19 Test matches in home and away conditions," Nehra added. He also did not appreciate the fact that every now and then team combination is being tinkered with. "It's not like this Indian team can not reach there but I believe the core group is very important. A person gets confused after watching many dishes on the table and so it's important to have fewer but better dishes," Nehra made his displeasure clear. He the went on to cite how team management had handled Rishabh Pant's career so far.

"KL Rahul is playing on the fifth position and Pant, the person you were preparing to succeed M.S. Dhoni, is serving drinks," the left-arm fast bowler, known for his straight forward views, said. Thanks to his inconsistency, Pant had lost his place in the Indian team in white-ball cricket to Rahul. "I know he (Pant) has missed his chances and there is no doubt about it but then you have kept him in the team because you saw the potential in him at 22-23 years," Nehra said.

Ashish Nehra

"There are a lot of talented players but they should be backed for a longer duration. Today also when we talk about the number five and six slots in Indian ODI side, then we are not sure about it," Nehra said. Nehra, who played 17 Tests, 120 ODIs and 27 T20 Internationals, feels Kohli's captaincy is still a work in progress. "Virat Kohli as a player needs no recognition as his career graph tells the entire story. Kohli as a player has done amazingly well. In captaincy, I still feel he is a work in progress. I can say he is a little bit of an impulsive captain," said the 41-year-old.

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Nations around the world reacted with alarm Wednesday after President Donald Trump announced a halt to the sizable funding the US sends to the World Health Organisation. Health experts warned the move could jeopardize global efforts to stop the Coronavirus pandemic.

Trump said he was instructing his administration to halt funding for WHO pending a review of its role "in severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of the coronavirus." The United States is WHO's largest single donor, contributing between $400 million and $500 million annually to the Geneva-based agency in recent years. He has repeatedly labelled COVID-19 the "Chinese virus" and criticised the UN health agency for being too lenient on China, where the novel virus first emerged late last year.

EU 'deeply regrets' move
An investigation by The Associated Press has found that s ix days of delays between when Chinese officials k new about the virus and when they warned the public allowed the pandemic to bloom into an enormous public health disaster. The European Union said Trump has "no reason" to freeze WHO funding at this critical stage and called for measures to promote unity instead of division. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the bloc "deeply" regrets the suspension of funds and added that the WHO is now "needed more than ever" to combat the pandemic.

Stand with WHO: Oz
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he sympathised with some of Trump's criticisms of WHO and China but that Australia would continue to fund the UN health agency. Germany's foreign minister, Heiko Maas, pushed back at Trump's announcement. Devi Sridhar, chair of global public health at the University of Edinburgh, called said. "This is the agency that's looking out for other countries and leading efforts to stop the pandemic. This is exactly the time when they need more funding, not less. Trump is angry, but his anger is being directed in a way that is going to ultimately hurt US interests."

A selfish decision: Russia
Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told state news agency TASS, "I's a sign of the very selfish approach of the US authorities to what is happening in the world." Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said the country is "seriously concerned" about the US government's decision to suspend funding and hinted at stepping up its monetary contribution to WHO. The WHO did not respond to repeated requests from The Associated Press for comment, but its but Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus tweeted, "There is no time to waste".

Now, Trump says states to decide on reopening economy

A day after claiming "total authority" in decision-making, Donald Trump on Tuesday said he would leave it to individual governors to decide on the reopening of the economy in their respective states, which in some cases could be even before May 1. COVID-19 has so far infected over two million people worldwide. In the US, over 25,000 have lost their lives and more than 6 lakhs have tested positive. Over 95 per cent of the 330 million population in the US are under stay-at-home order.

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After enduring extended trade disputes and worker shortages, US hog farmers were poised to finally hit it big this year with expectations of climbing prices amid soaring domestic and foreign demand. Instead, restaurant closures due to the coronavirus have contributed to an estimated USD 5 billion in losses for the industry, and almost overnight millions of hogs stacking up on farms now have little value. Some farmers have resorted to killing piglets because plunging sales mean there is no room to hold additional animals in increasingly cramped conditions. "One producer described it to me the other day as a snowball rolling downhill, and every additional disruption that we have just kind of adds to that and how fast and how big it's going to be when it finally hits," said Mike Paustian, who farms 2,400 acres of corn and soybeans and sells 28,000 pigs a year near the small eastern Iowa community of Walcott.

COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, has created problems for all meat producers, but pork farmers have been hit especially hard. They entered this spring in shaky financial condition because tariffs had drastically reduced sales to China and Mexico. Many operations have struggled to get enough workers, in part due to federal immigration policies. Then demand plunged because the virus forced the closure of restaurants, hotels and other businesses that buy about 25 per cent of pork, including nearly three-quarters of bacon produced in the US. The biggest problem could be getting worse as additional giant slaughterhouses that can process more than 20,000 hogs a day have had to close at least temporarily as the virus spreads among workers. The industry slaughters from 10 million to 12 million pigs a month. Whereas poultry producers can slow production by not hatching baby chicks and ranchers can keep cattle on pastures longer, pork farmers don't have good options. Hogs are raised inside barns with limited space, and it takes time to stop the birthing cycle for pigs.

"We are in crisis and need immediate government intervention to sustain a farm sector essential to the nation's food supply," said Howard Roth, a pig farmer from Wauzeka, Wisconsin, and president of the National Pork Producers Council, an industry trade group. The group has asked the federal government to buy USD 1 billion worth of pork in cold storage that had been destined for restaurants and instead give it to food banks, which have been besieged by people who have lost their jobs as much of the economy has shut down. On Friday, the US Department of Agriculture announced it would spend USD 3 billion to buy fresh produce, dairy and meat that will be sent to food banks. Roth said the purchase will hopefully help move a backed up supply of pork and help raises hog prices. The USDA also said it planned USD 1.6 billion in direct payments to pork farmers with limits of USD 250,000 per individual. Roth said the aid was appreciated but wasn't enough to meet their problems. Farmers have also received emergency waivers from the government to increase the number of pigs they can keep in barns beyond normally allowed limits. Still, farmers without extra space are faced with the prospect of killing baby pigs they can't afford to feed.

"Sadly it's true that euthanising is a question that's going to come up on farms," Roth said. Paustian, the eastern Iowa farmer, said the most frustrating part has been the uncertainty of scheduling deliveries of hogs to meat producers that fall through. Even as the majority of slaughterhouses have continued to operate, most plants are large and their closure is a severe hardship for hog farmers who operate in the region, he said. Because a plant has closed about 40 miles away in Columbus Junction, Iowa, Paustian said farmers in his area are sending hogs to other plants in the state and Indiana. "Producers are on pins and needles every day right now, and nobody knows if they're going to get loads out. They get loads scheduled then they get canceled. It's kind of a roller coaster of emotion for producers right now," Paustian said.

Producers he knows have been able to sell about half of the pigs they'd normally send to market. It's enough to get by for a few weeks, but it's not sustainable, Paustian said. For many pork producers, the coronavirus pandemic may be the final straw, said Nick Giordano, a vice president at the National Pork Producers Council. "We are hearing from lots of producers. They're hanging on for dear life," Giordano said. Besides seeking the purchases for food banks and direct payments to producers, the group wants to make agricultural businesses eligible for a federal economic injury disaster loan program.

While not denying the industry's problems, some people who raise pigs independently say the coronavirus has revealed that the the industry is too reliant on a few large international corporations that oversee everything ' from raising hogs to processing plants and even marketing and sales. Chris Petersen, a northern Iowa farmer, raises Berkshire pigs 'the old fashioned way' ' in individual A-frame houses instead of large confinement buildings. He laments the loss of the independent farmers who marketed pigs to nearby buying stations that delivered the animals to smaller packing plants much closer to the farms. "It's a very fragile system because everything has to work just right," Petersen said.

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We may have all heard that miracles do happen, but sadly not all of us have the chance to witness them in our daily lives, especially during a pandemic today which brings the world to a standstill. Citing a similar story of survival, The Olive Press, a Spain-based English newspaper, reported that it was 1918, when Ana del Valle, a kid then, suffered and recovered from the Spanish Flu - an unusually deadly influenza pandemic which lasting for almost 36 months (from January 1918 to December 1920) and it infected as many as 500 million people - about a third of the world's population at the time. And now, 102 years later, the old grandmother has miraculously beaten the coronavirus pandemic to the joy of her family in Ronda.

The media reported that Valle lived at a nursing home in Alcala del Valle, where she contracted the virus along with 60 other residents. She was then transferred to a hospital in La Linea and was discharged a few days ago, as she had overcome the contagion. Ana was born in October 1913 and in less than six months she will turn 107. That makes her the oldest survivor of the pandemic outbreaks in Spain, along with one of the oldest worldwide, behind the likes of 107-year-old Dutch survivor, Cornelia Ras. Her daughter-in-law, Paqui Sanchez was further quoted by Malaga Hoy, another local media source, that her family was very grateful for everything the hospital staff had done. But, she said that authorities were taking it slow and being cautious with her mother-in-law's health, due to her old age.

"Her doctors tell us that she has very good results, but you have to be very careful," she told the Malaga-based news paper. "She eats alone, some days more and other days less" "She also goes on short walks with her walker," she said further. According to other media reports, two other 101-year-old women have also recovered from disease in Spain. There have been a total of 22,524 official Covid-19-related fatalities since the pandemic hit Spain, while 92,355 patients have recovered from the illness and have been discharged from hospital. However, the health ministry reported on Friday that the tally of daily Covid-19- related deaths was registered at 367, which is the lowest number since March 21, when there were 324 fatalities. As per the data cited by US-based Johns Hopkins University, more than 195,000 people have died due to the pandemic, with 2.7 million infected globally, out of whom almost some 781,000 have recovered.

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India is projected to record the highest number of births in the 9 months since COVID-19 was declared a pandemic in March, with more than 20 million babies expected to be born in the country between March and December, according to top UN body. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) warned that pregnant mothers and babies born during the pandemic across the world were threatened by strained health systems and disruptions in services. An estimated 116 million babies will be born under the shadow of COVID-19 pandemic, UNICEF said on Wednesday, ahead of Mother's Day, observed on May 10.

These babies are projected to be born up to 40 weeks after COVID-19 was recognised as a pandemic on March 11. The highest numbers of births in the 9 months since the pandemic was declared are expected to occur in India, where 20.1 million babies are projected to be born between March 11 and December 16. Other countries with the expected highest numbers of births during this period are China (13.5 million), Nigeria (6.4 million), Pakistan (5 million) and Indonesia (4 million), it said. "Most of these countries had high neonatal mortality rates even before the pandemic and may see these levels increase with COVID-19 conditions," UNICEF said.

It is estimated that there will be 24.1 million births in India for the January-December 2020 period. UNICEF warned that COVID-19 containment measures can disrupt life-saving health services such as childbirth care, putting millions of pregnant mothers and their babies at great risk. Even wealthier countries are affected by this crisis. In the US, the sixth highest country in terms of expected number of births, over 3.3 million babies are projected to be born between March 11 and December 16.
"New mothers and newborns will be greeted by harsh realities," UNICEF said, adding they include global containment measures such as lockdowns and curfews; health centres overwhelmed with response efforts; supply and equipment shortages; and a lack of sufficient skilled birth attendants as health workers, including midwives, are redeployed to treat COVID-19 patients.

"Millions of mothers all over the world embarked on a journey of parenthood in the world as it was. They now must prepare to bring a life into the world as it has become ¿ a world where expecting mothers are afraid to go to health centres for fear of getting infected, or missing out on emergency care due to strained health services and lockdowns," UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore said. "It is hard to imagine how much the coronavirus pandemic has recast motherhood" Fore said.
UNICEF said its analysis was based on data from World Population Prospects 2019 of the UN Population Division.

An average full-term pregnancy typically lasts a complete 9 months, or 39 to 40 weeks. For the purposes of this estimate, the number of births for a 40-week period in 2020 was calculated. The 40-week period of March 11 to December 16 is used in this estimate based upon the WHO's March 11 assessment that COVID-19 can be characterised as a pandemic. UNICEF warned that although evidence suggests that pregnant mothers are not more affected by COVID-19 than others, countries need to ensure they still have access to antenatal, delivery and postnatal services.

Similarly, sick newborns need emergency services as they are at high risk of death. New families require support to start breastfeeding, and to get medicines, vaccines and nutrition to keep their babies healthy, it said. "This is a particularly poignant Mother's Day, as many families have been forced apart during the coronavirus pandemic, but it is also a time for unity, a time to bring everyone together in solidarity. We can help save lives by making sure that every pregnant mother receives the support she needs to give birth safely in the months to come," Fore said.

Issuing an urgent appeal to governments and health care providers to save lives in the coming months, UNICEF said efforts must be made to help pregnant women receive antenatal checkups, skilled delivery care, postnatal care services, and care related to COVID-19 as needed. Ensure health workers are provided with the necessary personal protective equipment and get priority testing and vaccination once a COVID-19 vaccine becomes available so that can deliver high quality care to all pregnant women and newborn babies during the pandemic, it said.

While it is not yet known whether the virus is transmitted from a mother to her baby during pregnancy and delivery, UNICEF advised all pregnant women to follow precautions to protect themselves from exposure to the virus. Closely monitor themselves for symptoms of COVID-19 and seek advice from the nearest designated facility if they have concerns or experience symptoms. Pregnant women should also take the same precautions to avoid COVID -19 infection as other people: practice physical distancing, avoid physical gatherings and use online health services, it said.

UNICEF said even before COVID-19 pandemic, an estimated 2.8 million pregnant women and newborns died every year, or 1 every 11 seconds, mostly of preventable causes.
The agency called for immediate investment in health workers with the right training, who are equipped with the right medicines to ensure every mother and newborn is cared for by a safe pair of hands to prevent and treat complications during pregnancy, delivery and birth.

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