India’s lower house of parliament on Wednesday passed a bill that would more than double the number of women lawmakers in its ranks, following several failed attempts over the past decades to enact the measure.
Lower house votes to reserve third of seats for women
The proposed law would reserve one in three seats in India’s lower house and state assemblies for women once it takes effect, which could take until the end of the 2020s.
It would not take effect before national elections next year but will be a further fillip to the already commanding position of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party ahead of that poll.
A total of 454 lawmakers voted for the bill, with only two against.
Modi invites Biden to 2024 Republic Day celebrations
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has invited United States President Joe Biden to the Republic Day celebrations on Jan 26, 2024.
This was revealed by US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti on Wednesday, news agency ANI reported.
Rapper Shubh’s India tour cancelled
Canada-based Punjabi singer and rapper Shubhneet Singh, popularly known by his stage name Shubh, has drawn flak over his alleged support for Khalistan.
BookMyShow announced on X that the artist’s Still Rollin India Tour has been cancelled and a refund of the tickets will be done within 10 days.
Earlier in the day, the ticket-booking app faced a boycott call on social media for hosting a singer who is allegedly a Khalistani sympathiser.
Akasa Air cuts flights as pilots quit
Indian budget carrier Akasa Air has been forced to cut flights for now after many of its pilots quit abruptly, sparking a legal dispute in court where the company has warned that further resignations may even force it to shut down.
A small group of pilots “abandoned their duties” and left without serving their mandatory contractual notice period, causing a disruption of flights, but the airline is on course to invest in growing its operations and ordering more planes, CEO Vinay Dube told employees in an e-mail on Tuesday – the same day the airline’s counsel told a Delhi court that Akasa was in “crisis” and may shut down after the abrupt resignations.
Akasa told the court it cancelled 600 flights in August and would be forced to cancel up to 700 more in September if the resignations continue.
Class 9 student dies of heart attack in class
Atif Siddiqui, 14, a class 9 student of City Montessori School in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, fainted and died of a suspected heart attack while in the classroom on Wednesday.
He was rushed to a nearby hospital but was declared dead on arrival.
Man hiding in trunk exposed by phone call
A man in Bihar’s West Champaran, who was wanted by the police, hid himself in a big trunk to evade arrest in Baithania village, but a phone call gave away his location and he was subsequently arrested.
The police had asked Santosh Yadav to go to the police station, but he refused. A team from Majholia police station raided his house but family members said he did not live there.
One of the police personnelofficers then tried to call Yadav on the phone.
Yadav, while hiding in the boxtrunk in the house, answered and said: “Sir, I made a mistake and I will not repeat it. Please don’t arrest me. I will go to the police station tomorrow.”
The police personnel immediately opened the boxtrunk and took him into custody.
Impostor ‘treats’ patients at maternity hospital for 3 days
A man posing as a doctor “treated” patients at Srinagar’s premier maternity hospital for three days before he was arrested on Wednesday
Medical Superintendent Muzaffar Sherwani said the man was found in the hospital’s labour room, where he was conducting rounds and examining patients.
When confronted, he said he was a doctor from Anantnag’s Dialgam area and claimed to be a cardiologist.
“When we asked him for documents to prove his qualifications, he was unable to do so,” said Dr Sherwani. “We called the police and he was arrested.”
Kerala lottery is the best in India, says minister
Kerala’s Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal on Wednesday said the state’s lottery is the best in the country as it includes the maximum number of prizes in a single draw.
After taking part in the Onam Bumper lottery draw on Wednesday, which had a record Rs25 crore ($4 million) as the first prize for a ticket of Rs500, he said: “For this draw, more than 75 lakhs tickets were sold and 5.5 lakh ticket holders will win a prize.
“There are 1 lakh agents who sell tickets and eke out a living. The state government receives around 3 per cent to its kitty and most of the proceeds from this goes to funding the treatment expenses of the poor.”
Rare reptiles seized from house in Lucknow
Several rare wild reptiles, including five sugar gliders, were rescued from a house in Gomti Nagar, Lukcnow, during a raid by the forest department on Wednesday.
The action came after a tip-off about illegal trade of wild animals. The animals were kept in cages and plastic boxes.
The owner of the house has been arrested.
Football coach sticks by his ‘heroes’ despite China drubbing
India’s football coach Igor Stimac said his second-string men’s team “ran out of gas” in the second-half against China but hailed the players as “heroes” despite a 5-1 drubbing in their Asian Games opener on Tuesday.
With most local clubs refusing to release key players, citing domestic and Asian competitions, India fielded an unfamiliar line-up under captain Sunil Chhetri after arriving in China late on Monday.
After a fairly even first-half at the Huanglong Sports Centre Stadium, they wilted in difficult conditions in the second period, conceding four goals.
Stimac said India would have given China a “huge problem” had they fielded their best team. “Still, these players are heroes to me,” he added.
India needed a vastly improved performance in their next two group games, against Bangladesh and Myanmar, if they were to advance.
India revs up for maiden MotoGP at circuit where F1 stalled
India hosts its maiden MotoGP on Sunday as the premier motorcycling championship looks to tap a potentially lucrative new fan base and succeed on a track outside New Delhi where Formula One stalled.
But the lead-up to the race has seen concerns raised about the safety of the Buddh International Circuit, with particular fears about walls that are too close to the asphalt.
Some MotoGP personnel and riders also had problems getting visas for India, but the organisers on Tuesday blamed a technical glitch and said the issue was on the way to being resolved.
