Incoming Acting Secretary of Defense Mark T. Esper greets his predecessor, outgoing @ActingSecDef Pat Shanahan, during a ceremonial clap out today as he departs the Pentagon. pic.twitter.com/TLYhNGQaUV
— U.S. Dept of Defense (@DeptofDefense) June 21, 2019
* Mark Esper will be nominated by Trump to be the next defense secretary * The announcement comes after Patrick Shanahan withdrew from consideration after reports of domestic violence incidents * Esper, 55, is a Bronze Star Army veteran who served in the first Iraq War * He also holds degrees from West Point and Harvard, but his past work as a Washington defense contractor has made him a target for criticism * Esper's nomination comes as America's relationship with Iran reaches boiling point and the Pentagon battles with a number of other diplomatic concerns
President Donald Trump says he will nominate Mark Esper to be the next defense secretary.
Esper, who is currently Army Secretary, is scheduled to take over as Acting Defense Secretary on Sunday.
His predecessor as Acting Secretary, Patrick Shanahan, left the Pentagon on Friday.
Shanahan had only been in the role since January 1 of this year, and was expected to be formally nominated into the role.
However, he unexpectedly withdrew his nomination on Tuesday amid reports of a past domestic violence incident.
US military preparing to evacuate hundreds of staff working at an Iraqi military base, mentioning "potential security threats" as the reason pic.twitter.com/QisiN0n1y6
US President Donald Trump has ordered border agents to begin a mass roundup as early as Sunday of some 2,000 migrant families that have received deportation orders https://t.co/A7cg5omBCv
US weapons manufacturer Raytheon and Northrop Grumman are developing a hypersonic missile that can travel at 4,600mph with an engine made by a 3D printer (artist's impression)
A new technological competition has begun, one in which America's rivals, particularly Russia and China, may be ahead. This is the race to build and put in the field super-fast or hypersonic weapons and vehicles. The military defines a hypersonic weapon as one that travels at least Mach 5 or five times the speed of sound. In comparison, commercial aircraft fly at around Mach 1 while some military jets can push themselves to around Mach 3, but only for a short time.
Moscow hopes Caracas will pay off its debts and be an enduring geostrategic location for Russian influence.
As Venezuela descends deeper into crisis and America and European Union continue to condemn the dictatorship, Russia remains firmly in the pro-Nicolás Maduro camp. With inflation at over 300,000 percent and domestic instability at its breaking point, Venezuela is not a likely bet for international investors. Despite grim prospects, the Russo-Venezuelan partnership is, for some reason, enduring. This is because, for Russia, Venezuela is not a risky investment but a strategic ongoing deal with the promise of long-term gains.
WNU editor: I have been hearing for years the same line from Kremlin officials and Russian foreign policy experts that Venezuela will recover, and that everything will improve. But with each passing year the situation worsens, and Venezuela's debt to Russia grows .... a debt that is now only second to what Venezuela owes China. For Venezuela to recover it will need to reverse years of socialist economic policies and government intervention .... and to promote entrepreneurs, businesses, and foreign investment. But it is not going to happen with Venezuelan President Maduro and his gang. They are committed with the current system, and they are more than happy to mortgage their country's future to Russia and China knowing too well that they can never pay them back. As to when will the Kremlin figure this all out. My money is on the next Russian President dumping this turkey.
Russia, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Iran and the US are also seen as less likely to use their influence for good than they were 10 years ago.
The United States has joined Russia, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Iran in a rogue's gallery of countries perceived as likely to use their influence for bad. All five countries are also seen as less likely to use their influence for good than they were 10 years ago.
The findings showing that Canada, Germany and the UN are seen as mostly likely to use their international influence for good. The findings are being published to accompany a major speech by the former British foreign secretary David Miliband who argues that international relations are now governed by a new age of impunity in which war crimes and attacks on humanitarian workers are typically left unpunished.
WNU Editor: Can't find the polling metrics or the polling samples that were used for this poll. Living in Canada I found the Canadian ranking odd. In all of my international travels over the years I never found people viewing Canada in such a manner.
"Sometimes it happens in life that someone, somewhere, has to do something. Whether they want to or not."
When he left his wife and two children on May 7, 1986 and went to work, Jaan Krinal didn't know he would be one of those people.
The 32-year-old was working on a state-owned farm in Soviet-occupied Estonia.
Because he'd been forced to complete the Soviet military's retraining a year before, he was confused when officers surprised him at work and said he'd been called up again — immediately.
Jaan and 200 other men were taken to a nearby school. Once they'd walked through the door, no-one was allowed to leave.
The incident between the USS Chancellorsville (CG-62) and the Russian frigate Admiral Vinogradov is another indicator of rapidly increasing tension between the United States and Russia. This incident is not the first case of Russia conducting "unsafe and unprofessional" maneuvers and operations against U.S. and Allied forces in international waters. Some of the more recent incidents include:
From YouTube: Belorussia, summer 1942. The war has moved on, far off to the east. The life of a small town where the German authorities of the region have set themselves up is getting back to "normal". The Germans study Russian, flirt with the local girls, the women wash their clothes and feed them. They have to carry on somehow... But suddenly the teenage son of the film's heroine decides to run away to the partisans and blows up a German train so that they could accept him. He gets caught and the Germans have to execute him in order "to teach others a lesson". That's the order and it can't be disobeyed. The Germans know that this execution will bring an end to their peaceful lives. The local commandant understands this better than anyone as he is already involved in a close relationship with the boy's mother. But he can't ignore an order from his commanders.
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Was it all a bluff? After news leaked that President Donald Trump approved and then called off U.S. airstrikes on Iran last night, it emerged he'd warned Tehran about an imminent attack while insisting he was against a war.
Today, as airlines began re-routing flights away from the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's Foreign Ministry called in the Swiss ambassador, who also represents U.S. interests, for talks.
Was the outreach why Trump abandoned the strikes? Or was this the latest example of the whipsaw approach from a president who's twice attacked Syria but also backed away from using force after lashing out at Iran and North Korea?
* Trump tweeted that the U.S. military were within 10 minutes of hitting three targets in Iran when he called off airstrikes * He said that he was told there would be 150 deaths which he said was not proportionate to the loss of the $180 million U.S. Navy spy drone * Iran said that Trump asked for talks with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei * It also said it could have downed a Navy Poseidon P-8 spy plane flying with the drone and claimed it would have killed 35 Americans, but chose not to * White House confirmed that Trump overruled 'unanimous' advisors including Mike Pompeo and John Bolton when he called off strikes * It was denounced as an 'unprovoked attack' in international air space by the US * Iran and the U.S. are at odds over whether the drone was in international or Iranian air space when it was downed by surface-to-air missile * Prince of oil went up Friday over the growing tensions despite Trump refusing to attack; he also said sanctions were being imposed on Iran * United Airlines, Qantas, Nritish Airways, Air France and KLM have changed flight routes in the Gulf
President Trump says that he had not given the final go ahead for an Iranian attack when he called off a strike on Thursday night.
He told NBC's Chuck Todd in a Friday interview that airs in full on Sunday morning on 'Meet the Press' that the planes were still on the ground when he called the whole thing off.
'Nothing is greenlighted until the very end, because things change,' Trump said. 'We had something ready to go, subject to my approval.'
An unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile launches during an operational test May 1 at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. The weapon comprises the land-launched leg of the U.S. nuclear triad that also includes assets fired from the air and sea. U.S. Air Force/Staff Sergeant Brittany E. N. Murphy
House Democrats don't want to fund variable-yield nukes. The new chairman just explained why.
A week after beating back a Republican effort to restore funding for a new low-yield nuclear warhead, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee said he doesn't buy the Pentagon's notion that having a smaller nuke would help avoid defeat in certain war scenarios.
"We are not trying to figure out how to manage a nuclear war," Rep. Adam Smith, D-Washington, said Wednesday at National Defense University's Countering WMD conference.
US joint chiefs of staff posted then removed paper that suggests nuclear weapons could 'create conditions for decisive results'
The Pentagon believes using nuclear weapons could "create conditions for decisive results and the restoration of strategic stability", according to a new nuclear doctrine adopted by the US joint chiefs of staff last week.
The document, entitled Nuclear Operations, was published on 11 June, and was the first such doctrine paper for 14 years. Arms control experts say it marks a shift in US military thinking towards the idea of fighting and winning a nuclear war – which they believe is a highly dangerous mindset.
After a day of criticism from many 2020 presidential opponents, former Vice President Joe Biden is not apologizing for comments he made about finding consensus with Southern Democrats with opposing views while serving in the Senate -- including those who supported segregation.
But Biden went even one step further late Wednesday, saying Sen. Cory Booker should apologize for his own criticism.
The controversy began at a fundraiser in New York City Tuesday night when Biden spoke about the need for consensus to fix the "broken" political system, and recalled his time in the Senate serving alongside former Sens. James O. Eastland, of Mississippi, and Herman Talmadge, of Georgia. Eastland served as chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee when Biden arrived in the Senate and both Eastland and Talmadge were deeply opposed to desegregation.
WNU Editor: Regular readers of this blog know that I have doubts that Joe Biden will be the Presidential candidate for the US Democrat Party in the 2020 election. His business interests in Ukraine. His family business affairs in China. And his family and personal history are stories that would sink any Presidential aspiration. What surprises me is that I did not expect some in the main stream media to start pushing these stories now. They have known who and what Joe Biden is for years, and they have kept it under wrap for years, especially during President Obama's administration. Flash forward to today, and that "protection" is clearly gone. I expect more stories to come out in the coming weeks, and this is going to be brought up during the debates.
More News On The Media Coverage Of U.S. Presidential Democrat Primary Candidate Joe Biden
Turkey has sent a second ship to search for oil and natural gas in maritime waters that Cyprus claims as its own. The move is set to draw a sharp EU rebuke, though Cyprus has already acted against the first vessel.
Turkey sent a second drilling ship on Thursday into disputed waters off the coast of Cyprus to search for natural gas and oil, a move expected to escalate tension with the European Union.
Turkish Energy Minister Fatih Donmez launched the ship Yavuz from the port of Dilovasi, in the northwest of the country. It was headed to Cyprus' Karpas peninsula, where it will operate a borehole some 3,300 meters (10,827 feet) deep in an area thought to be rich with natural gas.
Gen. Jack Keane said on Friday that U.S. military action against Iran was on the table, then called off after last minute intel confirmed President Trump's instinct that Iran's drone strike down was a "mistake."
"The president planned to conduct a strike – directed that strike — and it was largely against the means that delivered the blow to knock down our drone. In other words, radar missile commander control, etc. But they received additional information that followed the president's instincts," he told FOX Business' Stuart Varney.
WNU Editor: Gen. Jack Keane's video is here .... Gen. Keane on Trump aborting Iran strike. What's my take? No one in the U.S. really knows what happened in that Iranian command centre. All that we know is that a decision was made on this Iranian base to launch anti-aircraft missiles at this U.S. drone.
Since 9/11, the U.S. has spent trillions of dollars and thousands of American lives trying to remake the Middle East in our image. It's sad to say it out loud, but we have to: It hasn't worked. Many of us thought it would, but it hasn't.
By every measure, our foreign wars have ended in dismal failure for the United States -- however noble their intentions, and some did have noble intentions. Donald Trump was one of the rare Republican politicians honest enough to admit this. He said it out loud three years ago, and promised not to repeat the same mistakes if elected president. And partly because he said that, he was elected president.
....proportionate to shooting down an unmanned drone. I am in no hurry, our Military is rebuilt, new, and ready to go, by far the best in the world. Sanctions are biting & more added last night. Iran can NEVER have Nuclear Weapons, not against the USA, and not against the WORLD!
President Donald Trump on Friday reacted on Twitter to reports that he ordered a military strike on Iran for shooting down an American drone, but then reversed his decision after the plan was underway, saying he called off the attack with just 10 minutes to spare because he was concerned about potential casualties.
In a series of tweets he said, "We were cocked & loaded to retaliate last night on 3 different sights when I asked, how many will die. 150 people, sir, was the answer from a General. 10 minutes before the strike I stopped it, not.... proportionate to shooting down an unmanned drone. I am in no hurry, our Military is rebuilt, new, and ready to go, by far the best in the world. Sanctions are biting & more added last night. Iran can NEVER have Nuclear Weapons, not against the USA, and not against the WORLD!"
WNU Editor: From what I have read so far .... almost everyone within the administration (and many outside) were pushing for a military strike. The only ones who advised against it were the Generals and senior officials from the Pentagon. Are hundreds of casualties (and many more) justifiable for the downing of a robot drone? President Trump made the decision that it was not .... and in my opinion it was the right one. If this attack was launched, we would definitely be experiencing a very different news day today. But the crisis is still on going, and who knows what Iran may do next.
U.S. President Donald Trump listens to questions from reporters during a meeting with Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., June 20, 2019. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
* Trump said he wanted no war but rather dialogue -Iranians * Response to Trump is up to Supreme Leader Khamenei - Iranian * Trump cleared strike on Iran, then called it off -NY Times * War fears rise after Iran shoots down U.S. military drone * U.S. regulator bans airlines from some Iranian airspace
DUBAI, June 21 (Reuters) - Iranian officials told Reuters on Friday that Tehran had received a message from U.S. President Donald Trump warning that a U.S. attack on Iran was imminent but saying he was against war and wanted talks on a range of issues.
News of the message, delivered through Oman overnight, came shortly after the New York Times said Trump had approved military strikes against Iran on Friday over the downing of a U.S. surveillance drone, but called them off at the last minute.
"In his message, Trump said he was against any war with Iran and wanted to talk to Tehran about various issues," one of the officials told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"He gave a short period of time to get our response but Iran's immediate response was that it is up to Supreme Leader (Ayatollah Ali) Khamenei to decide about this issue," the source said.
A second Iranian official said: "We made it clear that the leader is against any talks, but the message will be conveyed to him to make a decision.
WNU Editor: Iran's Supreme Leader made it very clear when he met the Japanese Prime Minister last week that he was not interested in having talks with President Trump. Has what happened in the past few days changed his mind? We shall see, but IMHO he will not change.
Cleaning up my computer hard-drive right now. Was hit with virus, and needed to purge everything. My back-up computer was also infected. I should be back to blogging within the hour.
Three more U.S. senators received a classified Pentagon briefing on Wednesday about a series of reported encounters by the Navy with unidentified aircraft, according to congressional and military officials — part of a growing number of requests from members of key oversight committees.
One of them was Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, whose office confirmed the briefing to POLITICO.
"If naval pilots are running into unexplained interference in the air, that's a safety concern Senator Warner believes we need to get to the bottom of," his spokesperson, Rachel Cohen, said in a statement.
SCOTLAND Yard detectives probing Madeleine McCann's disappearance have held high-level talks with the Portuguese police team investigating a new suspect.
ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ, a Democratic Congresswoman, has been attacked by Polish politician Dominik Tarczynski for comments made on an Instagram live post.
IRAN has been warned to "change its ways" in order to avoid an "imminent" US military attack by Fred Fleitz, formerly a senior Trump administration figure.
California has been hit by a Big One mega-quake warning, after scientists revealed more than 1,000 small earthquakes in a so-called Swarmageddon had struck the US state over the past three weeks.
THE US has issued a shock ban on flights over Iranian airspace amid concerns that the military strikes Trump cancelled last night could go ahead in the next 72 hours.
IRAN is set to "up the ante" as an expert warns that "more attacks are coming" while hostilities between the Islamic Republic and the US continue to ratchet up towards full-blown military conflict.
DONALD TRUMP ramped up tensions with Iran yesterday, claiming the US was "cocked and loaded" to strike the Middle East. Here is a full history of US-Iran tensions.
(NEW YORK) — A former supervisor at Kennedy Airport admitted Friday that she took bribes to allow Qatar and other countries to park their planes overnight during the United Nations General Assembly. Marlene Mizzi pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of official misconduct and receiving unlawful gratuities. She was sentenced to community service.
Mizzi, 55, granted an overnight parking exception to a Qatari diplomatic flight in 2014 without proper approval. In return, prosecutors said, she received free limousine rides, meals and gifts from the Qatari mission. “Mizzi broke the law and defiled the public’s trust when she granted favors to foreign governments in exchange for bribes, gifts and rewards,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a news release.
Mizzi’s defense attorney, Joseph Conway, said Mizzi was not involved in a “quid pro quo” but received improper “thank-you gifts” after the fact for helping Qatar. “It’s a violation of the rules, no question about it,” Conway said. “But this was more of a rules violation than a crime. She wasn’t someone who had her hand out” looking for bribes. Mizzi also admitted receiving gifts from other foreign countries during her tenure at John F. Kennedy International Airport. Prosecutors did not disclose the names of the other countries.
State prosecutors also charged Joseph Jourieh, who is accused of giving gifts to Mizzi while working as a travel coordinator to the Qatari mission. Jourieh has pleaded not guilty.
Foreign aircraft are not allowed to park overnight at JFK during the heightened security of the U.N. General Assembly. Port Authority rules require foreign state aircraft to depart from JFK within two hours of arriving during the annual conference. Mizzi, who served as an assistant airport duty supervisor, was in charge of explaining these rules to foreign diplomats at a pre-assembly conference, prosecutors said.
Mizzi worked for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates New York-area airports, for 35 years. Conway said Mizzi will receive her pension despite her conviction.
As lawmakers around the world debate how best to fight climate change, one goal is rapidly becoming standard: net-zero emissions by 2050.
That means that greenhouse gases would be dramatically reduced — most likely by using a combination of switching from coal and gas to wind and solar, becoming more energy-efficient and putting taxes or fees on carbon — and whatever remains would be offset by planting trees or using budding technology to pull carbon dioxide out of the air.
Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom have agreed to work toward the net zero goal by the middle of the century. New York state passed a bill this week requiring the state to hit net zero by 2050. Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee called for net zero emissions by 2045 in his presidential campaign — after signing a related bill in his home state — while rivals Joe Biden, Beto O’Rourke, Michael Bennet and John Delaney are pushing for net zero by 2050.
The European Union, meantime, has said it would move toward zero emissions, though it disappointed environmentalists by not setting a deadline.
The newfound attention to the net zero target represents a significant development in the push to decarbonize the global economy along the lines scientists suggest is necessary to stave off the worst effects of global warming. But two key problems remain: the worst polluters, including the United States, haven’t yet signed on, and most places still need to figure out the details of how they will reach their goal.
“We are in a very dangerous position now where action could go forward or backward,” Climate Analytics CEO Bill Hare told reporters Wednesday. “The next 12 months or so will really tell.”
The goal didn’t come out of the blue. Scientists have known for years that achieving that target by the middle of the century is essential to limiting temperature rise. Research from Climate Analytics released in early 2015, for example, suggested that global greenhouse emissions would need to hit zero by 2100 at the latest to have a good chance of keeping temperatures from rising more than 2°C by the end of the century.
Last fall, climate activism received a jolt of energy when a landmark report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned that time is running out if the planet is to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, including everything from the loss of the world’s coral reefs to the impoverishment of hundreds of millions of people. Scientists behind the report lay many different potential pathways to stem warming, but no matter which pathway countries choose to follow urgent steps to eliminate net emissions by mid-century are crucial, they say.
With that reminder, countries around the globe — as well as some cities and states — have pushed toward enacting a net zero goal. The list is long and includes a range of countries of varying geographies, resources and politics, from New Zealand to Ireland, Chile to Fiji.
The net-zero commitments mean different things in different places. In some countries, such as Iceland, the net zero target is an “aim” while in others, like the U.K., leaders want the target to be legally binding. Obviously, a legally binding target is more stringent than a mere commitment, but it still only represents a start. In most cases, countries will need to follow up with a range of rules, regulations and laws to make the goal a reality, a process bound to be just as controversial as actually setting a target. And, in some cases, countries could make a bold commitment while kicking some of the hard work in actually cutting emissions down the road.
“Ambitious plans are very good but not enough,” says Niklas Höhne, a founding partner of NewClimate Institute. “They need to be cast in stone with laws and regulation.”
There’s an even bigger elephant in the room: such bold climate proposals are not on the table for the world’s three biggest emitters, the U.S., China and India. Global emissions rose last year at the fastest rate in years thanks in large part to a spike in those countries even as emissions fell in the European Union, Japan and elsewhere.
Prior to Donald Trump’s election, the U.S. federal government had suggested the country could implement policies to reduce emissions 80% by 2050, which would have been a significant move in direction of a net-zero target. Trump has not only done away with long-term thinking to reduce the country’s emissions but targeted a slew of environmental rules for rollback. Carbon emissions rose last year more than 3% even as cities and states continued their own pushes to reduce emissions.
China and India, both developing countries concerned with catching up with Western development standards, were never expected to hit net zero emissions by 2050. Even still, conditions on the ground, particularly in China, have raised concerns that their emissions growth could derail efforts to stem temperature rise. China has reversed a ban on the construction of new coal-fired power plants while India is projected to continue to grow its use of that fossil fuel. Others including Brazil and Australia are also backtracking on their climate change commitments.
Even with limited leadership from these three countries, global climate policy experts expect to see a slew of new climate change commitments from countries in the coming months ahead of the U.N. Secretary General’s climate summit held in September. And, following close behind that conference, most countries are expected to have new plans to share by next year in accordance with a provision under the Paris Agreement that calls on them to enhance commitments on a regular basis.
“September is an impulse in that direction,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres told TIME last month, “and a mobilization of more and more countries.”
As former U.K. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson appears increasingly likely to become Britain’s next Prime Minister, the husband of a British-Iranian charity worker who accuses Johnson of helping Iranian officials justify his wife’s controversial imprisonment is on his seventh day of a hunger strike outside the Iranian embassy in London.
“She’s utterly desperate,” says Richard Ratcliffe of his wife, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who he says is also on a hunger strike while in prison.
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was imprisoned three years ago on charges of “membership of an illegal group,” though human rights activists have called the accusations made-up.Ratcliffe started his hunger strike on June 11, pitching a tent outside the Iranian embassy and consuming only water and tea. The couple decided to go on their joint hunger strike after their daughter Gabriella turned five, Ratcliffe tells TIME.
“It’s been over three years, we’ve pushed hard and now I’m sleeping on the pavement,” Richard Ratcliffe says while sitting in a camping chair outside the embassy. Next to him stands a framed photo of his wife and daughter. “We have to end this.”
Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Airport in April 2016 after visiting family in Iran with her then-infant daughter. She was sentenced to five years in prison in September of the same year. Amnesty International said she has committed no crime and is a “prisoner of conscience.” “It should never have come to this,” an Amnesty International statement said of the couple’s hunger strike.
Richard Ratcliffe has accused Johnson, the current frontrunner in the race to become Britain’s next prime minister, of making misleading statements that afforded cover to the Iranian government. Johnson, then Foreign Secretary, said in 2017 that Zaghari-Ratcliffe had been “teaching people journalism” in Iran. Three days later, Iranian officials cited his comments as proof that she was engaged in “propaganda against Tehran’s government.” Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s relatives and employer, the Thomson Reuters Foundation, say she was not working in Iran, but was on holiday to see family.
For his part, Johnson, said his comments didn’t “make any difference” to Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s sentence. “If you point the finger at the U.K., all you are doing is exculpating those who are truly responsible which is the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and that is reality and people should realize what this regime is up to, and that is where the responsibility lies,” Johnson said on June 18 during a BBC leadership debate.
Some experts disagree. “International attention on prisoners wrongfully jailed by repressive regimes is usually a good thing,” says Brian Dooley, senior advisor at Human Rights First. “But not when a senior government official blunders in unprepared, unthinking and unhelpful. This sort of careless talk can cost people their freedom.”
Iran’s ambassador to the U.K., Hamid Baeidinejad, has said that pro-Ratcliffe demonstrators were blocking the entrance to the embassy, which Richard Ratcliffe denies. Embassy officials have set up metal barriers next to him, onto which visitors have stuck post-it notes with messages of support, like “Free Nazanin now!” and “Hope your family can be united soon.”
Ratcliffe hasn’t seen his wife since her trip to Iran. The couple are allowed three calls a week, lasting a maximum of eight minutes each. “But it hasn’t always been like that,” says Ratcliffe. For the first eight and a half months of Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s detainment, she was kept in solitary confinement and denied access to a lawyer or any of her relatives. Gabriella, the couple’s daughter, now lives in Tehran with Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s parents. She’s able to visit her mother three times a week. But Richard Ratcliffe hasn’t been able to get an Iranian visa despite multiple applications. “I never get a response,” he says.
Ratcliffe says that when he spoke to his wife on Monday, she was “really stressed.” “Yesterday she sounded calmer, but said that the physical effects of not eating have started to set in,” he says.
High-level diplomatic attempts to secure Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s release have so far been futile. U.K. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt granted her diplomatic protection in March, but Iranian officials refuse to recognize her dual nationality. On Saturday, Hunt tweeted a message of support, urging the Iranian government to “do the right thing, show the world your humanity & let this innocent woman home.”
Boris Johnson is all but certain to become Britain’s next Prime Minister next month, following the resignation of Theresa May.
The race to succeed May as leader of the ruling Conservative Party is ongoing, but Johnson is the clear frontrunner and has only one remaining opponent, Jeremy Hunt. The winner of that race will be decided in a ballot of the 124,000 or so card-carrying Conservative Party members. They are significantly more right-wing, more pro-Brexit and more white than the average British citizen. And Boris Johnson is their darling.
So, barring a catastrophic collapse in support, Johnson is likely to be Britain’s next PM. Here’s what to know about him.
Who is Boris Johnson?
Johnson is a Conservative lawmaker and former journalist. He is known for being a former Mayor of London and a leading figure on the “leave” side of the 2016 Brexit referendum. Following his side’s success, he was installed as Foreign Secretary. After a tenure characterized by gaffes, he stepped down in July 2018 over May’s Brexit negotiating strategy. Now he is a so-called “backbench” lawmaker who doesn’t hold government office, but is still seen as a leading Brexiter.
What’s Boris Johnson’s background?
The son of British politician Stanley Johnson, Boris was born Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson and can trace his family line back to King George II.
Johnson went to Eton, the most prestigious private school in the U.K., where he was “a fully fledged school celebrity,” according to Just Boris, a biography of Johnson written by Sonia Purnell. But even as a teenager he was already being reprimanded for what his modern critics still today argue are his failings, including a lack of organization and attention to detail.
He also went to Oxford University, where he was a friend of David Cameron, who would go on to become British Prime Minister. There, they were both members of the so-called “Bullingdon Club” of exclusively male students, which was known for trashing restaurants and being made up largely of scions of the aristocracy.
How did Boris Johnson get into politics?
Johnson started his professional life not as a politician but a journalist. It was in the newsroom that he developed his understanding of the British electorate. But he was fired from his first job, at the Times of London, after he made up a quote.
After being sacked, Johnson moved to the Daily Telegraph. (He was friends with its editor-in-chief at the time, Max Hastings, who also went to Oxford.) He eventually became the newspaper’s Brussels correspondent. His dispatches from the European Union’s headquarters there were seminal in increasing anti-E.U. sentiment in Britain. He is credited with being the originator of “euromyth” journalism, a genre which strengthened readers’ perceptions of the bloc as an overbearing bureaucracy by feeding them (largely false) stories about nonsensical regulations. Reporting on a nonexistent E.U. ban on straight bananas became the touchstone of that genre.
Johnson has said of his time at the Telegraph: “Everything I wrote from Brussels was having this amazing, explosive effect on the Tory party, and it really gave me this, I suppose, rather weird sense of power.” He quickly became a lodestar of the “eurosceptic” wing of the Conservative Party, which at the time was a fringe group.
In 2001, Johnson was elected as a Member of Parliament for a safe Conservative seat. He made regular appearances as a guest on the BBC comedy panel show “Have I Got News For You,” which exposed the wider public for the first time to the bumbling yet toffishly eloquent personality that he had cultivated at Eton.
What did Boris Johnson do as Mayor of London?
Johnson became London’s Mayor in 2008, after facing off against Ken Livingstone, a two-term incumbent. He victory came largely through winning votes from London’s more affluent outer boroughs at the expense of the poorer, more ethnically diverse inner city.
In the job, he would “frequently [seek] to assert his superiority over employees or visitors by thrashing them in games of ping-pong over the Mayoral desk,” according to Purnell’s biography of Johnson.
In his eight years in the post, he presided over the 2011 London riots, the 2012 London Olympics (which were not organized by his office) and the introduction of public bicycles that have come to be popularly known as “Boris bikes” despite the scheme being the work of his predecessor.
What is Boris Johnson’s stance on Brexit?
Ahead of the 2016 Brexit referendum, despite all the time he spent bashing the E.U. as a Brussels correspondent, Johnson couldn’t decide which side to support.
On one hand, his own party was leading the U.K. government at the time, and its official line was that leaving the E.U. would be damaging for Britain’s economy and its place in the world. On the other, he had always been critical of the E.U. as an institution, and it looked like the “leave” side was going to lose — what harm would it be to increase his public profile a little by campaigning for the underdogs?
To help him decide, Johnson wrote two newspaper articles, one in favor of “leave” and one in favor of “remain.” He chose the former, and became one of the leading figures in the official Vote Leave campaign, careering around the country on a large red bus plastered with a slogan: “We send the E.U. £350 million a week. Let’s fund our NHS [National Health Service] instead.”
The figure was intentionally misleading — the U.K. receives a substantial amount of that money back in the form of a “rebate” on its membership fees. But Johnson didn’t care. His campaign’s underlying message was that Brexit would make Britain great again. Five months later, Donald Trump would use a similar message to carry himself to victory in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Why did Boris Johnson resign as foreign secretary?
Johnson received the biggest promotion of his life so far under Theresa May, who unexpectedly made him her Foreign Secretary when she became Prime Minister in 2016 after David Cameron stepped down following the Brexit referendum.
Johnson’s time at the Foreign Office was characterized by gaffes, including most severely the time he said that British-Iranian citizen Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, imprisoned in Iran and accused of spying, had been “training journalists” in the country, when her family insisted she was just on holiday. Critics have accused Johnson of giving the Iranian regime further reason to keep her imprisoned. She is still incarcerated.
Johnson resigned from May’s cabinet in July 2018 over his disagreement with her Brexit negotiating strategy. But in March, he voted to ratify her deal with the E.U. in a Parliamentary vote. However, he later backtracked on his support.
What are the biggest controversies surrounding Boris Johnson?
Johnson has been accused of racism. As a columnist for the Telegraph, he has referred to Africans as “piccaninnies” with “watermelon smiles.” He also once suggested that President Barack Obama had an “ancestral dislike” for the U.K. because he was part Kenyan.
In August 2018, Johnson compared Muslim women who wear the burqa to “bank robbers” and “letterboxes,” drawing accusations of Islamophobia and pandering to the far-right.
As editor of the Spectator, a right-wing magazine, Johnson attracted furore when he allowed an article to be published which argued that race and intelligence were connected. “Orientals … have larger brains and higher IQ scores,” the story, not authored by Johnson, said. “Blacks are at the other pole.”
Johnson has also been accused of homophobia; he once called gay men “tank-topped bumboys” in a newspaper column.
His love life is a subject of great interest too. He has had numerous affairs, and divorced his second wife last September. He has at least five children, including one with a woman with whom he had an affair while married. His new girlfriend, Carrie Symonds, is a Conservative Party staffer 23 years his junior who is now reportedly masterminding his leadership campaign.
United Airlines has canceled some direct flights after the Federal Aviation Administration banned U.S. carriers from Iranian airspace following Iran’s shoot-down of a high-altitude U.S. drone in the area.
Other airlines around the world are following suit and avoiding the area.
The FAA order comes after Iran shot down an unarmed RQ-4 Global Hawk surveillance drone on Thursday that was “operating in the vicinity of civil air routes above the Gulf of Oman,” according to the FAA’s guidance. Iran said it struck down the aircraft over Iranian airspace. The U.S. said the drone was in international airspace over the Strait of Hormuz.
The Strait, which links the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman and sees much of the world’s oil supply pass through it, has been a source of conflict recently, following a series of attacks on oil tankers and escalating tensions over Iran’s nuclear program. The U.S. took steps toward a military strike against Iran in retaliation for the downed drone, but President Donald Trump said he called off the operation Thursday night.
The increased military activity and political tensions in the region pose an “indvertent risk to U.S. civil aviation operations and potential for miscalculation or mis-identification,” the FAA wrote in its guidance. The ban applies to all U.S. carriers and commercial operators.
#FAA issued #NOTAM warning pilots that flights are not permitted in the overwater area of the Tehran Flight Information Region until further notice, due to heightened military activities and increased political tensions. https://t.co/BQ2GOeFSEnpic.twitter.com/4t1OWEzkYZ
While the ban from the FAA does not extend to foreign air carriers, airlines around the world have followed the guidance. OPSGROUP, which offers guidance to global air carriers, recommended avoiding Iran’s airspace and the Strait of Hormuz area in a new notice.
“Misidentification of an aircraft is possible,” OPSGROUP wrote. “Civil aircraft were very close to the site of this incident.”
Passenger jets have previously been caught in the crossfire of military standoffs, with deadly results. After flight Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 was show down over Ukraine in 2014, killing 298 people, all countries have followed advice from the U.S., United Kingdom, France and Germany regarding airspace risk, OPSGROUP said, according to Reuters.
In 1988, the American warship the USS Vincennes shot down Iran Air Flight 655 over the Strait of Hormuz, killing all 290 people on board. Iran eventually sued the U.S., and reached a $131.8 million settlement. Later on, the U.S. awarded USS Vincennes Capt. William C. Rogers the Legion of Merit award, sparking Iran’s anger.
Here’s what to know about the effects of the FAA’s ban.
United Airlines suspends flights
Among U.S. carriers, United Airlines said it suspended its direct flight from Newark to Mumbai because it passes through Iranian airspace. Customers flying to Newark from Mumbai will be accommodated on different flights back to the U.S., a United spokesperson told TIME.
“Given current events in Iran, United has conducted a thorough safety and security review of our India service through Iranian airspace and decided to suspend our service between New York/Newark and India (Mumbai) beginning this evening,” the airline said in a statement.
American Airlines and Delta said they do not fly over Iran.
Global air carriers reroute flights to avoid Iranian airspace
British Airways, Lufthansa, Malaysia Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Qantas, and Dutch carrier KLM said they will reroute their flights to avoid the area, the Associated Press reports.
German airline Lufthansa said it would avoid the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman, but keep its flights to Tehran on schedule.
Quantas, an Australian carrier, said it would reroute its London flights to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman.
Eihad Airways, based in Abu Dhabi, said it had “contingency plans” and would decide “what further action is required” after reviewing the FAA guidance, the AP reports.
Dubai’s Emirates airline said it was rerouting flights away from “areas of possible conflict,” according to the AP. FlyDubai, Emirates’ sister airline, said it adjusted some of its existing flight paths as a precaution.
A day of mostly peaceful protests in Hong Kong turned ugly Friday as crowds laid siege to the city’s police headquarters, barricading officers inside, plastering the building with slogans and pelting it with eggs and other objects as they demanded that officials apologize for the force’s handling of a demonstration last week.
During the late morning, thousands of black-clad demonstrators marched on the building and encircled it, setting up barricades across adjoining roads. Police appeared to be taken by surprise and retreated into the headquarters complex after attempts at negotiations failed.
By nightfall, hundreds of protesters, many in protective gear, began to surge forward as if making to storm the building, defying police warnings and appeals from legislators to remain calm.
The blockade follows a day in which protesters occupied major thoroughfares, government offices and law courts, forcing their closure.
Protesters are furious with the police over what Amnesty International alleged was “unlawful use of force by police against peaceful protesters” in a June 12 crackdown, during which police fired tear gas and rubber bullets. The clashes left more than 80 wounded. The crowds outside the headquarters complex are demanding an investigation into the police’s handling of the disturbances as well as the release of all those arrested.
That protest, and two massive marches on June 9 and June 16, were held to voice opposition to a controversial bill that for the first time would allow extradition to mainland China—a law that Hongkongers fear would allow Beijing to apprehend its many critics and political opponents in the former British colony.
But the demonstrations have since morphed into a broader push for political freedom and a direct challenge to China’s sovereignty. Protesters carry banners reading “Hong Kong is not China” and wave the Union Jack alongside Hong Kong’s old colonial flag.
By 9:00 p.m. local time, the crowd outside the headquarters complex had swelled considerably and chanted “Dead cops,” “Apologize!” and “No extradition to China!”
Local media reported that riot police were assembling in neighboring locations and ready to move in to clear the streets. But demonstrators appeared undeterred. One waved the colonial flag from atop a barricade as others passed ironing boards to the front for their comrades to use as shields.
Well-known democracy activist Joshua Wong, who was only released from prison two days previously, called for a minute’s silence for Marco Leung—a 35-year-old who died on June 16 after hanging a protest banner from the side of a shopping mall.
Popular legislator Roy Kwong then appealed for calm, saying “We just contacted Marco Leung’s parents. No matter how many times I say it, I still want to cry. His father hopes everyone can return home safely. If there’s any danger, we’ll leave and we can come back. I really don’t want anyone to get hurt.”
—With reporting by Laignee Barron, Aria Hangyu Chen, Abhishyant Kidangoor, Hillary Leung and Feliz Solomon / Hong Kong
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump said Friday the U.S. was “cocked and loaded” to retaliate against Iran for downing an unmanned American surveillance drone, but he canceled the strikes 10 minutes before they were to be launched after being told 150 people could die.
Trump’s tweeted statement raised several questions, including how he could have learned about casualties only minutes before the operation when that information typically would be provided much earlier. His tweet was the latest indication that he does not want to escalate the U.S. clash with Tehran, though he didn’t rule out future strikes.
He said U.S. economic sanctions are crippling the Iranian economy, more are being added and he insisted anew that the U.S. would never allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon
After days of harsh words against the United States, Iran also seemed to be tamping down its rhetoric.
Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the head of the Revolutionary Guard’s aerospace division, told reporters on Friday that a U.S. spy plane with around 35 crew members was flying close to the unmanned U.S. Navy RQ-4A Global Hawk that was shot down, but that Iran chose not to target the manned aircraft. Separately, he told Iranian state TV that Iran warned the drone several times before downing it with a missile.
Late Thursday, the Federal Aviation Administration barred American-registered aircraft from flying over parts of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, and several major airlines from around the world on Friday began rerouting their flights, including British Airways, Australia’s Qantas, Germany’s Lufthansa and the Dutch carrier KLM.
In a lengthy tweet, Trump defended his stance on Iran amid criticism from Democrats who accuse him of having no strategy. He said he pulled out of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which gave Tehran sanctions relief in exchange for pledges to rein in its nuclear program, because the agreement only temporarily blocked Iran from having nuclear weapons. Trump said the nuclear deal also did not stem Iran’s support of militant groups or restrain its ballistic missile program.
He said his exit from the deal and the re-imposition of sanctions on Iran has crippled its economy.
“Now they are Bust!” Trump tweeted and then outlined his reasons for canceling the strikes.
“We were cocked & loaded to retaliate last night on 3 different sights when I asked, how many will die. 150 people, sir, was the answer from a General. 10 minutes before the strike I stopped it.”
He added that those deaths would not be a proportionate response to the downing of an unmanned drone.
“I am in no hurry,” he said. “Sanctions are biting & more added last night. Iran can NEVER have Nuclear Weapons, not against the USA, and not against the WORLD!”
The overnight events, however, were a stark reminder of the serious risk of military conflict between U.S. and Iranian forces as the Trump administration combines its “maximum pressure” campaign of economic sanctions with a buildup of American troops in the region. As tensions have mounted in recent weeks, there have been growing fears that either side could make a dire miscalculation leading to war.
The U.S. military operation was called off around 7:30 p.m. Washington time, after Trump had spent most of Thursday discussing Iran strategy with top national security advisers and congressional leaders.
The downing of the U.S. drone — a huge, unmanned aircraft — over the Strait of Hormuz prompted accusations from the U.S. and Iran about who was the aggressor. Iran insisted the drone violated Iranian airspace; Washington said it had been flying over international waters.
Trump’s initial comments on the attack were succinct. He declared in a tweet on Thursday that “Iran made a very big mistake!” But he also suggested that shooting down the drone — which has a wingspan wider than a Boeing 737 — was a foolish error rather than an intentional escalation, suggesting he was looking for some way to avoid a crisis.
“I find it hard to believe it was intentional, if you want to know the truth,” Trump said at the White House. “I think that it could have been somebody who was loose and stupid that did it.”
Trump, who has said he wants to avoid war and negotiate with Iran over its nuclear ambitions, cast the shootdown as “a new wrinkle … a new fly in the ointment.” Yet he also said “this country will not stand for it, that I can tell you.”
But fears of open conflict shadowed much of the discourse in Washington. As the day wore on, Trump summoned his top national security advisers and congressional leaders to the White House for an hour-long briefing in the Situation Room. Attendees included Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, national security adviser John Bolton, CIA Director Gina Haspel, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford, acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan and Army Secretary Mark Esper, whom Trump has said he’ll nominate as Pentagon chief.
“The president was very clear of what he wants to achieve with Iran — to never allow them to have a nuclear weapon,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told “Fox and Friends” Friday.
“He was very clear that there will be action,” said McCarthy, who was in the meeting.
“He has a long-term game plan here and it doesn’t mean that you have to act within the few hours. … He’s just not overreacting. It’s going to be measured. And it’s going to achieve a goal.”
Pompeo and Bolton have advocated hardline policies against Iran, but Rep. Adam Schiff, the Democratic chairman of the House intelligence committee, said “the president certainly was listening” when congressional leaders at the meeting urged him to be cautious and not escalate the already tense situation.
On Capitol Hill, some lawmakers insisted the White House must consult with Congress before taking any actions.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said no specific options for a U.S. response were presented at Thursday’s meeting. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said, “The administration is engaged in what I would call measured responses.” And late Thursday, House Republicans on the Foreign Affairs, intelligence and Armed Services committees issued a statement using the same word, saying, “There must be a measured response to these actions.”
The Trump administration has been putting increasing economic pressure on Iran for more than a year. It reinstated punishing sanctions following Trump’s decision to pull the U.S. out of an international agreement intended to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for relief from earlier sanctions.
Citing Iranian threats, the U.S. recently sent an aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf region and deployed additional troops alongside the tens of thousands already there. All this has raised fears that a miscalculation or further rise in tensions could push the U.S. and Iran into an open conflict 40 years after Tehran’s Islamic Revolution.
….On Monday they shot down an unmanned drone flying in International Waters. We were cocked & loaded to retaliate last night on 3 different sights when I asked, how many will die. 150 people, sir, was the answer from a General. 10 minutes before the strike I stopped it, not….
….proportionate to shooting down an unmanned drone. I am in no hurry, our Military is rebuilt, new, and ready to go, by far the best in the world. Sanctions are biting & more added last night. Iran can NEVER have Nuclear Weapons, not against the USA, and not against the WORLD!
A video showing a U.K. Member of Parliament aggressively grabbing a female climate protester by the neck and marching her out of a banquet dinner is dividing the country.
The footage, filmed by TV news cameras on Thursday night and widely shared on social media, shows Mark Field, who is also a minister in the Foreign Office, pushing the woman against a pillar, grabbing her by the back of the neck and forcing her out of the room.
The activist, Janet Barker, was one of dozens Greenpeace activists who interrupted a black-tie dinner for London’s banking elite to draw attention to the climate crisis. They were dressed in suits, red dresses and sashes with “climate emergency” on them.
Following the release of the video, Field was suspended as a minister in the Conservative party and apologized to the activist. In a statement released on Friday, before he was suspended, he said he reacted “instinctively” and said he was worried the woman may have been armed.
Barker told the BBC that Field’s actions were “over the top” and that he “should go to anger management classes.” However, she said she will not press charges with the police.
A spokesperson for Prime Minister Theresa May said she had seen the footage and “found it very concerning.” Greenpeace has accused Field of assault and May’s spokesperson said, “The police have said they are looking into reports over this matter.”
Field was widely criticized, with thousands signing a petition demanding he be fired from the government, but others have defended him.
Peter Bottomley, a Conservative MP, congratulated Field. “Not intervening often has a cost and if it becomes a fashion there will be casualties,” he told the BBC.
Many others chimed in on social media to say that Field should be given a medal.
Perhaps something damning will emerge that changes things, but on the face of it to me that footage makes Mark Field look like a hero. He took the initiative when others were befuddled & he risked his life (she cld easily hv had a gun or knife) to protect others. Give him a medal
The incident took place at Mansion House, the official residence of the mayor of London, where U.K. Chancellor Philip Hammond made his annual speech about the state of the U.K. economy to an audience of bankers and politicians.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan tweeted on Friday morning: “It is truly shocking to see this kind of behavior from an MP. Violence against women is endemic in our society and this behavior is unacceptable. He should consider his position.”
It is truly shocking to see this kind of behaviour from an MP.
Violence against women is endemic in our society and this behaviour is unacceptable. He should consider his position.
I welcome the fact the City of London Police are looking into this incident. https://t.co/fPGXCuKe0z
Even now, five years on, René Redzepi’s face still lights up when he recalls the April night his restaurant Noma was named best restaurant in the world for the fourth time. After a difficult 2013, whose nadir came when the Copenhagen restaurant dropped one position on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, reclaiming the title the following year felt like redemption. “We had been wondering is this it? Is it the beginning of the end?” Redzepi, 41, said with a smile as he surveyed the crowd at a recent outdoor party in Copenhagen’s meatpacking district. “ So when we won, it was like “Oh, you still like us.” It was even better than the first time.”
On June 25, when the 18th edition of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants’ lavish award ceremony takes place in Singapore, he may well get the chance to repeat the sensation. After closing the original Noma in 2016 and re-opening it in 2018 in a new location and with a new menu tied more closely to the seasons, Redzepi and his team are again among the favorites to cinch first place on the prestigious list. But as of this year, no other chefs — at least apart from any who have also rebuilt their restaurants from the ground up — will have the same opportunity. In January, the organizers of World’s 50 Best announced that any restaurant that takes or has previously taken the top spot on the list is disqualified from subsequent editions and moved instead to a Hall of Fame-like collection called The Best of the Best. That includes 2018’s #1, Osteria Francescana, as well as five other revered restaurants.
It might seem a small matter, but coupled with other recent changes, the new rule — which came as a shock to many in the restaurant industry — reveals a tremendous amount about the relationship between chefs and an institution that for nearly two decades has played an outsized role in determining which restaurants receive the lion’s share of bookings, accolades, and media attention. And it raises a question that only a few years ago would have been unthinkable: in this age of social media, can any conventional system for evaluating restaurants, including World’s 50 Best, remain relevant?
Ander Gillenea— AFP/Getty ImagesItalian chef Massimo Bottura talks with the press after receiving the Best Restaurant award for his restaurant L´Osteria Francescana during the World’s 50 Best Restaurants awards in Bilbao on June 19, 2018.
Launched in 2002 by editors at the U.K.-based Restaurant magazine, the World’s 50 Best Restaurants ranking quickly became one of the most influential forces in modern gastronomy. A restaurant that earns a spot on the list routinely sees a bump in reservations, and those that make the top 10 can expect a bombardment from eager diners and media alike. “Within 24 hours of the ceremony, we got 2 million booking requests,” says Catalan chef Joan Roca, whose restaurant El Celler de Can Roca, took number one in 2013 and 2015. “We’re still feeling the impact.”
Beyond the publicity frenzy, the list also gained influence by tapping into the very human need for approval and belonging. Unlike the Michelin Guide, which is judged by a small group of anonymous inspectors, the 50 Best ranking is today decided by more than a thousand mostly well-known chefs, food writers, and gourmands — a composition that gratifies chefs whose restaurants make the list with the knowledge they have the respect of their peers. “To know that the people you so admire return the affection is a beautiful feeling,” explains Roca.
Yet for all its success, the ranking has always been plagued by controversy. There is no prohibition against lobbying, nor are voters required to pay for their meals, so some countries’ tourist boards — and even some individual restaurants — have subsidized expensive junkets to bring jurors to their tables. The list has also had difficulties achieving regional and gender diversity. Only 16 — a historic high — of the restaurants on 2018’s list are located outside of Europe or the United States. Five of them (also a record high) are led by women, although three of the women (at Arzak in San Sebastian, Cosme in New York, and Central in Lima) share their restaurant’s head position with a man, and another (at Nahm in Bangkok) assumed the role from its former male head chef too late in the year to have been considered.
Giuseppe Cacace—AFP/Getty ImagesA picture taken on July 7, 2016 shows employees working in the kitchen of the “Osteria Francescana” restaurant in Modena.
While some individuals gripe about “forcing” women onto the panel, the restaurant industry as a whole has become widely alert to its need to reduce its long-entrenched sexism, especially in the wake of #MeToo, which revealed harassment and abuse at a number of formerly well-regarded restaurants . So far,the measure has not been met with significant resistance.
More controversial, however, is the decision to remove previous number #1s from subsequent competitions. The organization presented the move as part of its efforts to diversify the list’s upper echelons. “There was some stagnation in the top 10,” says Pietrini. “We don’t want to artificially skew it, but we think it’s a healthy decision to make sure we’ve got a new dynamic every year.”
Yet although World’s 50 Best decided to create The Best of the Best itself, TIME reporting found that the rule change to withdraw winning restaurants from subsequent competition did not come from the organization itself. It was actually proposed — some would say imposed — by half a dozen or so highly ranked chefs, some of them former #1s, some of them close to the top..
Massimo Bottura, whose Modena restaurant Osteria Francescana took the top slot in 2016 and regained it last year, was one of them. “In the last several years it’s been us, the Rocas, and René Redzepi as at least two of the three best restaurants in the world,” he says of their motives. “I think it’s time for others to be there, especially from the younger generation.”
Bottura says he first heard of the idea years ago from Gaston Acurio, whose Lima restaurant Astrid y Gaston is currently #39 on the list. “When I accepted the award [in 2013] for best restaurant in Latin America, I said to the audience that I hoped to see someone new in my place the following year,” Acurio says, adding that he later mentioned the idea to the organization’s administration. “I believe the 50 Best shouldn’t be a tool for competition but a union that promotes excellence, diversity, and talent.”
But according to a source with knowledge of the process who asked for anonymity because he did not have permission to speak publicly on the subject, the core group that began pressing in earnest for the change last year was driven not only or even primarily by an attempt to unclog the top, but also by an effort to avoid the decline in reputation that some notable chefs have suffered once they fell from first place. Daniel Humm, whose restaurant Eleven Madison Park in New York won the top spot in 2017, acknowledges the impact of a drop was a factor in the group’s proposal. “We’ve seen restaurants fall down the list even though they were getting better and better,” he says. ”There have been a few chefs in the past who started to feel more pissed off and mistreated, and they started to not show up [to the ceremony], and that was hurting the whole thing, because the spirit of 50 Best is community.”
Casper Christoffersen—AFP/Getty ImagesPeople enter the Noma restaurant in Copenhagen, on April 27, 2010 the day after Noma was chosen for the world’s best restaurant, according to the Worlds 50 Best Restaurants Award, which was awarded in London.
For a handful of chefs to upend the rules of the game in order to avoid the perception of diminishment gives a sense of just how influential the ranking has become. Some highly-regarded chefs tell TIME they have experienced depression for failing to make the list, while others, like Christopher Kostow of Napa Valley’s Meadowood, have lambasted it for skewing toward the new and “hot” rather than rewarding the kind of excellence that comes only with years of practicing a craft. “It’s an assassin list,” agrees Ferran Adrià, whose restaurant elBulli held the title five times before it closed in 2011. He, like Redzepi, only learned of the new rule once it was publicly announced. “Once you fall, you disappear not only from the list, but from the [industry’s] whole little world.”
Yet, by removing winners from subsequent consideration, the new rule may well undermine 50 Best’s own influence. In the past, the sustained presence of a restaurant like elBulli or Noma in the top slot helped turn their respective countries into gastronomic powerhouses. “If a chef in Seoul won four times in a row, Korea would become an international culinary destination,” says Adrià. “If she wins only once, it’s nice for her, but it won’t have the same effect.”
And of course, the ranking itself runs the risk of losing credibility since it no longer represents all of the best restaurants. “That’s exactly the kind of question we asked ourselves,” Pietrini admits of the administration’s deliberations. “It was not a quick decision. I know there are rumors that we were pressured into it. I will only say that at the end of the day, the decision was ours alone. And we would not have made that decision without a long-term plan.”
As part of that long-term plan, the organization appears to recognize that its future may not lie with the ranking. Later this year, it will launch a global database, called 50 Best Discovery, that tracks restaurants that garnered votes but not enough to make the ranking, and will also include bars from its sister list. “We want to take 50 Best from a listmaker to a media platform, and as I like to say internally, a progressive force,” she says. “Our objective is not to be more influential.”
Of course, they may not have much choice in the matter. Other awards, rankings, and guidebooks have emerged in recent years, and although none has yet attained the prominence of 50 Best, they have eroded the perception of the list as the newest, most plugged-in kid on the block.
Andrew Eaves—AFP/Getty ImagesAna Ros of the Hisa Franko restaurant in Kobarid, Slovenia, cooks one of the most surprising meals of the weekend at Exquisite Corpse, in New York City’s Chelsea district, September 24, 2011, thrusting her tiny country into New York’s limelight.
And the impact on bookings and attention that 50 Best enjoyed now been far surpassed by the wildly influential Netflix show Chef’s Table. Ana Ros, of Slovenia’s Hisa Franko, goes so far as to say the show, on which she appeared in 2016, saved her business. “We went from having empty tables several months of the year to having a permanent waitlist,” she says. “Although we assume being on the list has had an impact (Hisa Franko entered the top 50 last year, at #48), we don’t know for sure. It hasn’t been as noticeable”.
Even more challenging has been the rise of social media; to a significant degree, millennials make their decisions about where to eat based on what they see on Instagram, rather than on conventional reviews or rankings. That’s part of the reason why, after nearly a century of independence, the storied Michelin guide, which saw its own influence wane with the rise of World’s 50 Best, now accepts commissions from countries or regions eager for its coverage; Austria, for example, recently paid 600,000 euros to revive its defunct red guide.
One test of World’s 50 Best’s continued relevance at this year’s ceremony in Singapore will have less to do with who steps onto the stage to receive its top award than with who is applauding from the audience. In the past, the ceremony drew nearly every name on the list, along with dozens of other chefs who came for the party and the chance to see friends from all over the world. But increasingly, even chefs who have been recognized by it — like Christian Puglisi of Copenhagen’s Relæ, who won the organization’s sustainable restaurant award in 2015 and 2016 (#56 on this year’s list) and Dominique Crenn, who in 2016 won the organization’s controversial Best Female Chef award — are speaking out against the kind of publicity, networking, and deep pockets that the list is perceived as rewarding. And this year, some heavy hitters, including Grant Achatz of Alinea (#34 in 2018) and — even though Noma is a contender for #1 — Redzepi won’t be there.
Redzepi is staying home because the ceremony conflicts with the opening of a new menu at Noma. But he is also opposed to the rule change, and wonders if it will ultimately reduce World’s 50 Best’s influence. “If a chef manages to create a restaurant that defines the zeitgeist for more than one year, shouldn’t the list reflect that?” he asks. That criticism is shared by Ros in Slovenia, even though her restaurant stands to benefit from the change. “I think it’s a faux pax that may hurt them,” she says. “I’m an ex-athlete, so I don’t understand how you can tell someone they can’t compete.”
As a former professional cyclist himself, Daniel Humm understands the sentiment. Although he says that he is “at total peace” with the fact that Eleven Madison Park is no longer eligible for the list, he’ll be attending the Singapore ceremony with mixed feelings. “I’ve got competition in my blood, so I’ve always liked going into that room,” he says of the hall where the world’s best chefs gather to learn of their ranking. “It’s like in basketball when it goes down to buzzer and there’s a guy taking a three point shot. I always want to be the guy with the ball.”
At first, it seemed sweet. Natalie Curtis’s boyfriend called her dozens of times a day, keen to hear every detail of what she was doing in her daily life: what she ate for lunch, who she saw at work.
But she says the longer she spent with him, and particularly after they married in 2016, four years after meeting, the more his behavior became intimidating. He made comments about what she ate. He picked fights when she went out with her friends. He threw her things around their house. He berated her while out shopping. One night, she says, he even threatened to kill her. “It’s such a drip effect, each event gets a bit worse and a bit worse,” Curtis says, speaking softly from her home in Essex, southeast England. “And then someone has control over you.”
“Coercive control” is the label domestic abuse experts give to the experience that Curtis, a 38-year-old safety specialist on the U.K.’s railways, endured. It encompasses a series of non-physical behaviors — including threats, humiliation, monitoring and isolation from friends and family — that they say can be just as damaging as physical violence, often causing severe depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. In 2015, England and Wales became the first nations in the world to criminalize such controlling behavior within relationships, making coercive control punishable by up to five years in jail. Women make up 95% of those who experience coercive control and 74% of perpetrators are men, according to a study by one U.K. police force.
Curtis began taking notes about the abuse, saving text messages, phone records and even filming her husband’s outbursts. She left him last June, and in October, he was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to a charge of coercive control. Her case marks an early victory for England and Wales’ legislation.
For decades, law enforcement agencies worldwide have seen domestic abuse almost exclusively in physical terms, measuring its severity in individual beatings and injuries. The 1994 federal Violence Against Women Act in the U.S., for example, criminalizes only“felony or misdemeanor crimes of violence” in domestic contexts.
In this corner of the world, though, policymakers are trying something new. Ireland and Scotland followed England and Wales with their own coercive control laws in January and April of this year. By criminalizing behaviors many previously considered merely unpleasant, domestic abuse advocates hope these laws will transform how society views acceptable power dynamics in relationships and how we tackle abuse. “We’re beginning to understand that it isn’t about one-off incidents. Abuse is a pattern, a war of attrition that wears a person down,” says Laura Richards, a British criminal psychologist who helped pass the 2015 law after nearly two decades working in the domestic abuse sector. “Coercive control is the very heart of it.”
Yui Mok – PA Images via Getty ImagesSally Challen with her son David, during a press conference in central London after she left the Old Bailey where she was told that she will not face a retrial over the death of her husband Richard Challen in 2010.
Nearly four years after the law came into force, coercive control is back in British headlines because of the case of Sally Challen. Challen, now 65, beat her husband to death with a hammer and was convicted of murder in 2011, spending the past eight years in prison. But on June 7 she walked free. Judges quashed the conviction on the grounds that Challen was suffering a psychological “adjustment disorder,” which the defense argued was the result of decades of coercive control by her husband. The prosecution accepted Challen’s new plea to the lesser charge of manslaughter, meaning she would be immediately released because she has already served more than the average manslaughter sentence.
Women’s rights activists see Challen’s case as a test of how seriously the English legal system takes coercive control – a relatively new concept for judges and legal professionals. Though judges who overturned Challen’s conviction in February emphasized that their decision was based only on her mental state, their ruling may suggest coercive control can cause a version of battered women’s syndrome – a psychological condition experienced by victims of domestic violence that is sometimes used in legal defenses of women who hurt their abusive partners.
The turn in Challen’s case became a sensation in British media, with outlets recasting her as a victim of domestic abuse, rather than a cold-blooded killer – in much the same way as a recent Amazon documentary series reconsidered the case of Lorena Bobbitt, who cut off her husband’s penis in 1993 after years of abuse and rape in their marriage. The shift reflected a wider re-evaluation of women’s past experience amid shifting legal and cultural norms around power and abuse in the present, partly prompted by the #MeToo movement. Writing in The Guardian, Challen’s son David, who has campaigned for his mother’s release, said the outcome would correct a “false narrative of our father’s death that depicted our mother as a controlling lover who planned to kill our father,” as was propagated by the media during the 2011 trial. “Nothing could have been further from the truth.”
One of the witnesses called by Challen’s defense at her February retrial was American forensic social worker Evan Stark, whose influential 2007 book, Coercive Control: How Men Entrap Women in Personal Life, influenced English and Welsh policymakers and is cited in the government guidelines on the 2015 law. Stark popularized the term after working in the domestic violence field for more than three decades. Back in 1977, he founded one of the U.S.’s first battered women’s shelters in New Haven, Connecticut, just as a national movement to stop violence against women was gathering force — eventually culminating in the 1994 Violence Against Women Act. He believes the movement “dropped the ball” after tackling the physical side of abuse. “From the first woman we had in our shelter, they were telling us violence wasn’t the worst part, but all we could think to say was, ‘Tell people about the violence’ [to get legal protection],” he says. “It took us 30 years to realize there was another way.”
Consolidated News Pictures—Getty ImagesLorena Bobbitt listens to a lawyer during her trial, Manassas, Virginia, January 1994. Bobbitt was on trial for cutting off her husband’s penis; she was acquitted by reason of temporary insanity.
Domestic violence advocates in the U.K. say the 2015 law not only gives legal recourse to sufferers of psychological abuse, but will also make it easier to hold perpetrators of physical violence accountable, by fundamentally changing the way authorities approach domestic abuse. Since many sufferers of physical violence also experience coercive control (a 2014 study by a London-based charity found 95 out of 100 domestic abuse survivors interviewed had experienced it, either in conjunction with physical abuse or on its own), Stark says the criminalization of controlling behavior will encourage the justice system to recognize individual acts of violence as part of a broader pattern of abuse, making them harder to dismiss and easier to prosecute.
Some of the behaviors included in the England and Wales law – like constantly calling someone, or sending malicious comments – could be criminal outside of a relationship, under the U.K.’s anti-stalking law. In a relationship though, such behavior was largely considered unpleasant or unhealthy – not criminal. “The 2015 [legislation] closes a big gap in the law,” Richards, the criminal psychologist says.
The abuse suffered by Rachel Williams fell into that gap. Williams, from Newport in Wales, met her husband in 1993, and married him in 2005. Like Curtis, she says he initially seemed sensitive, even shy, despite being a physically imposing bodybuilder. But she says he became intensely controlling, calling her constantly, demanding that she keep her hair short, wear certain colors of lipstick, and avoid men in the salon where she worked. “Every aspect of your life gets taken from you, but so slowly that you don’t realize,” she says. “It becomes your normal.” If she didn’t do as he said, she says he would scream at her, or grab her by the throat, and hit her. She says he regularly threatened to kill her if she left. But when she said she was planing to leave, he would bombard her with apologies and intense declarations of love – a strategy some psychologists call “love bombing.”
In July 2011, after a violent argument, Williams left her husband. “The fear of staying with him for the rest of my life became greater than the fear of leaving,” she tells TIME, sitting on the couch in her living room in Newport. She filed for divorce (though he refused to sign) and moved out. She went to police and gave a detailed statement about the physical violence and threats, leading them to arrest her husband and charge him with assault. Though a court date was set for October that year, Williams says the response was “a shambles” and that she dealt with 36 police officers over six weeks. Her husband was released on bail and on August 18, a magistrate lifted restrictions on his movements. The next day he came to Williams’s salon with a shotgun (police later found a stash of weapons in the house where he was staying; Williams claims he was involved in local organized crime). She fought him, trying to grab the gun, and he ended up shooting her in the leg. He died by suicide later that day. Their 16-year-old son also died by suicide six weeks later.
Williams believes if she was suffering the same abuse today, in 2019, she might have had the legal remedy, and the support from law enforcement, to prosecute her husband before the worst of his abuse took place. After his death, Williams made a complaint against the police. The U.K.’s Independent Police Complaints Commission strongly criticized the local force’s response to her reports of abuse. But Williams later began working with them to help officers understand harassment and coercive control. “They’re really getting ahead of this now,” she says. “But it’s not the case everywhere.”
The number of coercive control cases brought by police and prosecutors varies dramatically from place to place. Twelve of England’s 29 police forces have brought fewer than one charge of controlling and coercive behavior for every 100,000 people under their jurisdiction, according to the London-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism. Forces told the Bureau that coercive control charges are “hard to achieve” and “challenging to prove.” Nationwide, only 16% of the 7,034 arrests made for coercive control between January 2016 and July 2018 have led to charges being brought.
In both public services and broader society, many still don’t grasp how controlling behavior can keep women trapped in abusive relationships. “The question still comes up all the time: Why doesn’t she just leave?” says Sian Hawkins, former head of public affairs & campaigns for Women’s Aid, a U.K. women’s rights charity. “There’s still a fundamental lack of understanding about just how hard it is to do that and the emotionally, psychological barriers that the perpetrator will have put in place.” Curtis says that after she had gone to the police, she went to a doctor, who asked why she hadn’t left. “I was so glad they weren’t the first person I’d disclosed it to, because I wouldn’t have [disclosed it again].”
A 2018 survey by the Avon Foundation for Women, the charitable arm of the company, Avon, found that only 56% of British women trust the legal system to treat psychological abuse as a crime — far lower than the percentage that trust the system to treat physical violence as a crime: 79%. Curtis says part of the problem is a fear of not being believed. “So much of it sounds so silly on its own,” she says, “and people think, ‘How am I ever going to prove what’s going on in my marriage?’”
Yui Mok – PA Images/ Getty ImagesSally Challen, with lawyer Harriet Wistrich, leaving the Old Bailey after hearing she will not face a retrial over the death of her husband Richard Challen in 2010.
The government guidelines on coercive control for law enforcement list a range of potential sources of evidence — phone records, social media accounts, emails, as well as testimony from friends, family members, neighbors, work colleagues, bosses, teachers — to help build that picture of what’s going on in an individual’s life and corroborate their allegations of abuse. During Sally Challen’s appeal against her murder conviction, for example, her friends and family (as well as her husband’s own relatives) contributed testimony regarding his controlling and manipulative behavior. But Hawkins says police generally rely too much on victims’ own testimony of their abuse, which tends to mean the evidence is deemed less persuasive at trial.
Most domestic violence advocates say a lack of consistent training for police is a major hurdle in implementing the law properly. “They created this [crime of coercive control], but the police have almost no idea how to use it,” Stark, the American social worker, says. Richards, who runs sessions on coercive control for law enforcement, agrees that understanding of victims’ experience is patchy. When a police officer goes out on call to a domestic violence incident, “women who are experiencing coercion often won’t speak up,” she says, because they are under their abuser’s control. Officers need to be able to spot signs of coercive control, such as physical signs of fear or stress, but also subtle ways in which a house is arranged. She recalls one officer who said he had once seen a large dog cage in a woman’s house and asked where the dog was, “She said, “We don’t have a dog. That’s for me,’” Richards says. “If you don’t ask the right questions, you’re not going to find the answers.”
Advocates say Scotland’s implementation of its own coercive control law, which came into force in April, has tried to avoid some of the teething problems suffered by England and Wales. Scotland ran training for police officers to tackle misconceptions around abuse before the law came into force, and allocated special funds for dealing with coercive control to Scottish Women’s Aid. The Scottish law also includes provisions for police to charge perpetrators of physical and psychological abuse together under a single crime, reflecting the growing understanding of domestic abuse as a pattern, rather than a series of single incidents. Stark calls it the “gold standard” and says it provides a better blueprint to other countries considering an overhaul of their domestic abuse legislation.
It may be some time, though, before policymakers beyond this small area of Western Europe consider criminalizing coercive control. In the U.S., where the Violence Against Women Act focuses only on individual incidents of physical assault, small campaigns in New York, Texas and California have begun trying to convince lawmakers to introduce local legislation against coercive control. But they remain in their very early stages.
In fact the Trump Administration has removed elements of coercive control that had previously been included, under the Obama Administration, in the definition of domestic abuse that appears on the Office for Violence Against Women’s website. The OVW website’s definition, which is widely used by advocacy groups and may well be the first definition that victims of abuse see if they Google domestic abuse, now cites only VAWA’s wording of “felony or misdemeanor crimes of violence.”
Natalie Nanasi, a law professor focusing on violence against women who flagged the change in an article for Slate in January, says it’s too soon to tell if it will have a real-world impact. “But I do worry that there’s a subtle shift that might happen in the information [the government is] providing, saying the focus should really only be on people that get hit and then go to the police,” she says. “We seem to be moving backwards, not forwards.”
For now, Richards says, the world of arts and culture could help open minds about how domestic abuse really works, through depictions of non-physical abuse such as the L.A. Times podcast and Bravo seriesDirty John. “We need cultural references for what this behavior looks like, so that people know when they see it in real life.”
Back in Essex, Curtis agrees that greater public awareness of coercive control could protect many women from abusers by helping them to spot the kinds of red flags she saw at the beginning of her relationship. “There is a lot of education that needs to be done, both of [authorities] and women,” she says. “A community of us are working on that.” Between working through her divorce process and going through trauma counselling – authorities granted her an indefinite restraining order against her husband – Curtis is speaking out about her experience. “I never want someone else to go through what I went through. It shouldn’t get to that level. Ever.”
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AIIMS PG Results 2019 – The All India Institute of Medical Sciences has released AIIMS PG Result 2019 on 19th June 2019 for July session which will make the Students eligible to get admission in post graduation courses in different AIIMS across the country. Medical students who were keeping their crossed to get admission in best colleges for PG courses can check the results at the official website of AIIMS. Here on this page, we have provided a direct link to check and download your AIIMS PG Results 2019. Also, Students can check their PG Results from the Official website i.e, www.aiimsexams.org.
AIIMS PG Exam Results 2019
The result which has been declared in PDF format contains the list of candidates who are now eligible to appear for online counseling. The AIIMS 2019 PG result contains the list of candidates who are eligible to appear for online counseling. The AIIMS PG Result 2019 contains the candidates roll number, category, institute allocated, category rank, overall rank and percentile secured by the candidate. To check the AIIMS PG Result 2019 candidates need to search for their roll number in the result PDF given on the website. Here on this page Students can check their results by using the direct link provided below in the table.
AIIMS PG Result 2019- Details
Description
Details
Organization Name
All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi
The AIIMS PG result has been announced via online mode. The result has been announced in 19th June 2019 (July session) for MD/MS/MCh (6yrs)/DM (6yrs) courses. As per reports, the mock round for online counseling is expected to begin from 25th June 2019. Students can get all the details regarding the same at its official website soon. The premier medical institute AIIMS had conducted the exam on 05th May 2019 for students who were seeking admission in MD, MS, and MDS programs offered across AIIMs, New Delhi, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Jodhpur, Patna, Raipur, and Rishikesh.
AIIMS PG Result 2019 – Rank-wise @ aiimsexams.org
The result is available in the form of overall rank-wise merit list, with candidates who qualify in the exam eligible to appear in counseling and seat allotment round. AIIMS PG 2019 result has been released in the form of the merit list displaying the name of candidates who will qualify in the examination and are eligible for the counseling process. Individual rank letters for AIIMS PG result 2019 are also likely to be released. Only those candidates who have scored 50th percentile or above are considered as qualified in AIIMS PG 2019 July session.
The process of counseling for AIIMS PG 2019 for July session will be held in the online mode. The authority will conduct three rounds of AIIMS PG counseling 2019 and if there will be any seats left vacant, then the spot counseling will be organized. Aspirants who will qualify AIIMS PG 2019 exam will be eligible to participate for the counseling process. The dates and information brochure of AIIMS PG 2019 counseling will be released after the announcement of result.
Steps to check AIIMS PG Exam Results 2019
Visit the AIIMS Exams official site i.e. aiimsexams.org
Click on AIIMS PG Result link from the Important Announcements tab
AIIMS PG Results 2019 will be open with a pdf file
Students can verify the results with Roll number
Download or take a print out of the file for further reference
EPFO Admit Card 2019 – Candidates who have applied for EPFO Prelims Examination get ready to download your EPFO Admit Card from the below link. Thus, the Employees Provident Fund Organization has conducted the recruitment process for 280 Assistants posts. So, those who submitted their application have to clear the prelims and mains exam conducted by the board. Moreover, now the Organization will release the admit card on the official website soon.
EPFO Assistant Admit Card 2019
The Organization will intimate the applicants through E-mail/ SMS when the admit card gets released. At that time refer to the Official Website to download the admit card. For the Candidate’s convenience, we provide you the direct link to download the EPFO Hall Ticket 2019. Moreover, Aspirants should have valid Mobile Number and Email ID on which the intimation will be sent for downloading the Call Letter.
Hence, the board will release the admit card for the Prelims and Mains exam separately. The expectation for the release date of Admit Card will be from 20th July to 30th July 2019.
Prelims Exam admit card is yet to release. Hence, the EPFO Hall Ticket will be released one week before the examination date. However, Admit Card link given below will be activated soon. So, Candidates concentrate on your exam preparation. Use the EPFO Syllabus link given below to get high scoring in the exam and to get placed as Assistants in Employees Provident Fund Organization.
Name of the Applicant.
Exam Date, Time & Centre.
Post Applied for.
Application or Registration Number
Father Name and
Important Instructions.
EPFO Assistant Exam 2019
The board has decided to conduct the exam on 30th July and 31st July 2019. Hence, download the EPFO Exam Pattern to get a clear view of the examination. Moreover, for the preliminary exam, there will be less syllabus to cover. So, make your study easy by reading the syllabus given in this section. There is a lot of time to prepare for the exam. So, make use of the time to prepare well for the exams.
Phase I: Preliminary Exam
Name of test
Question
Marks
Language
English
30
30
English
Reasoning
35
35
Bilingual
Numerical Ability
35
35
Bilingual
Total
100
100
Phase –I is qualifying in nature and marks will not be reckoned for final merit.
For each wrong answer, there will be a negative marking of one-fourth of the mark assigned to that question.
The candidates will be shortlisted for Phase-II in the ratio of 1:10 i.e. about 10 times the number of vacancies in each category on the basis of their performance in Phase – I.
If the examination is held in more than one session, the scores across various sessions will be equated following standard practice to adjust for slight differences in the difficulty level of different test batteries used across sessions.
Required things to Download EPFO Assistant Admit Card 2019
Candidates can download the EPFO Admit Card if it released. Hence, Candidates should carry any one of the Identity Card from the below list. Original ID proof is a very important factor to enter the exam hall.
Aadhar Card
College ID
Ration Card
Driving License
PAN Card
Voter ID
Any Valid ID Proof Issued By Gazetted Officer
Bank Passbook
Passport
How to Download EPFO Hall Ticket 2019?
Click on “EPFO Admit Card” Link.
Enter the Registration Number and DOB.
Enter the Captcha given.
Now Login to get the admit card.
An Admit Card page will be available on the screen.
Fill all the mandatory details.
Click on to the download option and download the admit card.
Take a print out and carry for the exam.
Direct Links to download EPFO Assistant Call Letter 2019
Indian Overseas Bank Result 2019 Declared – Indian Overseas Bank has been announced the result for the Post of Specialist Officers ((Manager & Sr Manager) on 18th June 2019. Those candidates who have been appeared for this Indian Overseas Bank Recruitment can check their result from the official website i.e, www.iob.in. The Applicants have been selected from the Wait List according to the Merit List. Here we have provided a direct link to check your Final Result of the IOB SO Recruitment 2018-19.
IOB Result | Indian Overseas Bank SO Result
Indian Overseas Bank has been declared the result for the aspirants those who have done their Indian Overseas Bank SO Examination. The list of Registration Numbers / Candidates who are selected in WAITLIST, in order of merit, is furnished under in the Result. IOB has finally published the Results for the Specialist Officers Post from the Waiting List. Applicants everyone can check their result from the IOB online portal. Here are some steps that the candidates need to follow to get the results. Candidates can check and download their result by using the direct link provided below in the table.
Aspirants if you are searching for the Indian Overseas Specialist Officer Result then you landed in the correct place. As we know that everyone will be waiting for the Final Result of the Specialist Officer Post. Currently, IOB has announced the Final result from the Wait List and which is decided by the Merit List. For the selected candidates in the WAITLIST, the details of appointment (Date and Place of reporting, Documents to be submitted and other relevant details) will be advised through registered e-mail.
After the declaration of the Results, the officials will announce the IOB SO Merit List 2019. Applicants those who have been secured high marks in the Entrance Examination will get a place in the Merit List. Mainly, the IOB SO Merit List 2019 contains the list of candidate names who had secured the top marks in the exam. Besides, the candidates in the IOB SO Merit List 2019 will have some advantage during the next stage of the Admission Process.
Indian Overseas SO Final Merit List 2019
The applicants those who have been secured the high Cut Off Marks will place in the Merit List. The IOB Cut Off Marks, Merit List has been already released. Currently, the Final Result has been published for the Specialist Officer in Indian Overseas Bank. In the Waitlist, they have mentioned only the Candidates Registration number and Post Name. And, the details of appointment (Date and Place of reporting, Documents to be submitted and other relevant details) will be advised through registered e-mail.
Steps to check the Indian Overseas Bank Specialist Officer Exam Result 2019
Visit the official website of the Indian Overseas Bank i.e, www.iob.in
Click on the Careers link from the bottom of the home page
A new page will be open with a number of links
In that click on the Recruitment of Specialist Officers for Information Security and Information System Audit in MMG Scale-II & MMG Scale III – 2018-19 – Waitlist
Indian Overseas Bank Specialist Officer Exam Result pdf file will be open
Download or take a print out of the file for further reference.
Important links to download Indian Overseas Bank SO Result 2019
MP Bhoj Admit Card 2019 – MP Bhoj Admit Card 2019 is available now. Madhya Pradesh Bhoj Admit Card has been released for the candidates who are going to attend the MP Bhoj UG Final Term End Exam 2019. Aspirants who are eligible to attend the exam can now download the MP Bhoj Hall Ticket 2019. The hall ticket has been released in the month of June 2019. Get the Final Term End exam time table in the below section. Hence, candidates check to the admit card instructions, appear for the exam according to the time table.
MP Bhoj Hall Ticket 2019
MP Bhoj admit card has been downloaded by providing the Enroll Number and Date of Birth. Moreover, Aspirants who are interested to attend the exam can get the admit card link in the below section. Thus, Applicants are not allowed for the examination without the MP Bhoj admit card. Those students who are going to attend BA/B.Com/B.Sc Exam, they may download their MPBOU Exam Hall Ticket from here.
Required things to Check-in MP Bhoj Call Letter 2019
Madhya Pradesh Bhoj University has issued the Call Letter for the Examiners of MPBOU. Hence, Madhya Pradesh University is the entry pass to attend the exam. Do check with the printed details in the Admit Card. Moreover, Candidates must download the MP Bhoj University Admit Card before the last date. Because if the last date ends, the admit card link will be deactivated.
Name of the Applicant.
Exam Date, Time & Centre.
Post Applied for.
Application or Registration Number
Father Name and
Important Instructions.
MP Bhoj Final Term End Exam 2019
Madhya Pradesh Bhoj will conduct the examination from 20th June to 30th July 2019. Hence, all the candidates should download the Time Table of Final Term End Exam from the below section. Moreover, Aspirants should appear for the exam according to the time table. Prepare well for your examination by using the syllabus given by the board. Get all the previous year question papers to get brief information about the Question Paper.
Required things to Download MP Bhoj University Admit Card
Hence, Applicants who are going to appear for the exam download the MP Bhoj Hall Ticket from below provided link. Carry the Identity Card along with the Admit Card to attend the examination. Download it prior to the exam. Verify all the details in the admit card once it is downloaded. However, the exam details have been mentioned in the Hall Ticket itself.
Aadhar Card
College ID
Ration Card
Driving License
PAN Card
Voter ID
Any Valid ID Proof Issued By Gazetted Officer
Bank Passbook
Passport
How to Download Bhoj Admit Card 2019-20?
Click on “MP Bhoj Admit Card” Link.
Enter the Roll number and Date of Birth.
Select the Year in the admit card.
Select the Status.
Then tap on ” Select” option.
An Admit Card page will be available on the screen.
Fill all the mandatory details.
Click on to the download option and download the admit card.
Take a print out and carry for the exam.
Direct Links to download MP Online Bhoj Admit Card 2019
NIIFT Mohali Result 2019 – Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (NIIFT) officials had announced the NIIFT Mohali Entrance Exam Result 2019 on 20th June 2019. The result has been declared on the official website of the institute i.e. niiftindia.com. A huge number of applicants has been applied and appeared for the NIIFT Mohali Entrance Examination. Those all candidates may eagerly wait for the Result now, they can download and check their NIIFT Mohali Result 2019 from the official website. Moreover, here we have provided a direct link to download your NIIFT Result.
NIIFT Result | NIIFT Mohali Result
Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology has conducted the Entrance Test for UG & PG Course Admission on 2nd June 2019. All the candidates who had participated in the Entrance Exams must check the NIIFT Mohali Result 2019. The result has been declared on the official website and the candidates can check it from here as well as on the official website. Here are some steps that the candidates need to follow to get the results. Candidates can check and download their result by using the direct link provided below in the table.
NIIFT Mohali Result 2019 – Overview
Description
Details
Organization Name
Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (NIIFT)
The candidates will be granted admission on the basis of the score they have got in the exam. The admission will be given to various UG and PG courses offered by NIIFT Mohali. The candidates who qualify the exam will be called for the interview and then for the counseling process. The candidates who are declared qualified in the interview session will be called for the counseling session. The interview has been scheduled for 25th June 2019. Here we have also furnished the details of NIIFT Mohali Cut Off Marks 2019 & NIIFT Mohali Merit List 2019.
After the declaration of the Results, the officials will announce the NIIFT Mohali Merit List 2019. Applicants those who have been secured high marks in the Entrance Examination will get a place in the Merit List. Mainly, the NIIFT Mohali Merit List 2019 contains the list of candidate names who had secured the top marks in the exam. All the candidates can check the NIIFT Mohali Merit List 2019 from the official portal. Besides, the candidates in the NIIFT Mohali Merit List 2019 will have some advantage during the next stage of the Admission Process.
NIIFT Mohali Cut Off Marks 2019 | Counseling Process
NIIFT Mohali Cut Off Marks 2019 is the minimum marks that a candidate can score. Besides, the NIIFT Mohali Cut Off Marks 2019 depends on the Candidates Category. Also, the Merit List will be declared based on the NIIFT Mohali Cut Off Marks 2019. So all the candidates must check the NIIFT Mohali Cut Off Marks 2019. The percentage of reservation for each of the categories shall be asunder. Those who have been got High Cut off & Merit list will be called for the Counseling Process. Students are advised to refer the official website to get updated information regarding the Counseling.
Scheduled Castes/ Scheduled Tribes: 25%
Backward Classes: 5%
Border Areas/Backward Areas (2% each): 4%
Children/Grand Children of Freedom Fighters: 1%
Disabled Persons: 3%
Sports Persons 2%
Deaf & Dumb: 1%
Blind: 1%
Other Handicapped: 1%
Steps to check NIIFT Mohali Result 2019
Visit the official site of the Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (NIIFT) @ niiftindia.com.
Select the Admissions and choose the Admission Information.
Now, Search for the NIIFT Mohali Result 2019 link.
Click on the link and enter the Roll Number, Name, and Date of Birth.
Hit on Submit, Check your NIIFT Mohali Entrance Exam Result 2019.
Download or take a print out of the result for further reference
Important links to download NIIFT Mohali Result 2019
ESIC Recruitment 2019 released for the 23 Senior Resident Post according to the Department wise. The Job Notification for ESIC Bangalore 2019 recruits candidates through Walk-In Interview process. This Interview is to engage Senior Residents on Contractual Basis under “Three years Senior Residents Scheme”. This recruitment is purely based on Contract Basis where scheduled to be conducted on 25th June 2019 and 26th June 2019. The Interview Dates will vary according to the Department wise. Scroll down to get the complete details about the ESIC Bangalore Jobs 2019 Notification.
ESIC Recruitment 2019 Overview
Name of the Board
Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), Bangalore
Candidates should have completed with PG Degree in concerned speciality (MS/ MD) except for the Department of Dentistry.
Qualification of SR for Dentistry Department is MDS in either Prosthodontic or Endodontic with minimum 03 years of experience in both Prosthodontic and Endodontic in ant Dental College of Hospital.
Age Limit:
Age shall not exceed 37 years as on date of Walk-In Interview.
Age Relaxation:
Ex-Servicemen Candidates – 10 years
OBC Candidates – 03 years
Pay Scale:
The Senior Resident will be paid in the pay band – Rs. 67,700/- (Level 11) + other allowances as applicable under Government of India.
Selection Process:
Walk-In Interview
Application Fee:
For All Categories – NIL
How to Apply for ESIC Recruitment 2019?
Interested candidates check out the Eligibility Criteria. If you are eligible then you can attend the Walk-In Interview on 25th June 2019 and 26th June 2019 from 9.30 AM – 11 AM. The Interview dates will vary according to the Department Wise. The Interview will be held on the below listed venue address. Candidates those who reach the Office after 9.30 AM will not be allowed to attend the Interview. So aspirants make sure that you are on correct timing to the venue address.
Venue:
Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) 6th Floor of Dean’s Office (in the Council Hall) Rajajinagar, Bangalore – 560 010
Important Dates for Employees State Insurance Corporation Notification 2019
ESIC Recruitment 2019 – Apply Offline for 59 Sr/ Jr Resident & Tutor & Other Posts – Notification released by Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), Haryana for 59 candidates. Interested candidates can register for the respected posts through Offline Proces. The registration has started for the Vacancies in ESIC. The last date to apply for the post is 26th June 2019. Check the Official Notification to know the terms and conditions regarding the 59 vacancies. Aspirants those who wish to get employed in the Haryana Government Jobs can use this opportunity.
ESIC Recruitment 2019 Overview
Name of the Board
Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), Haryana
ESIC Recruitment 2019 – Apply Online for 154 Senior Resident Posts – Notification released by Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), Hyderabad for 154 candidates. Interested candidates can register for the respected posts through Online Proces and appear for the Walk-In Interview Process. The recruitment was released in the month of June 2019. Last Date to apply is 24th June 2019. Check the Official Notification to know the terms and conditions regarding the 154 Senior Resident Vacancies.
ESIC Recruitment 2019 Overview
Name of the Board
Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), Hyderabad
Senior Residents (For Medical College Hospital & Super Speciality Hospital) – 54
Anaesthesia
07
09th July 2019
Paediatrics
03
01st July 2019
Ophthalmology
01
16th July 2019
Orthopaedics
03
05th July 2019
OBGY
05
27th June 2019
Radiology
07
02nd August 2019
General Medicine
02
02nd July 2019
General Surgery
03
03rd July 2019
Neurology
05
06th July 2019
Endocrinology
01
13th July 2019
Gastroenterology
01
15th July 2019
Oncology (Medical)
01
20th July 2019
ICU/MICU (Med)
03
02nd July 2019
Neonatology/ NICU (Paed.)
03
01st July 2019
Cardiology
02
03rd August 2019
Paediatric Surgery
02
26th July 2019
Urology
01
22nd July 2019
Neuro Surgery
02
29th July 2019
Paediatric Critical Care
01
26th July 2019
Nephrology
01
30th July 2019
Super Specialist (Non-Teaching)/ Full Time/ Part Time Specialist – 12
Cardiology
03
03rd August 2019
CTVS/ Vascular Surgery/ Transplant Surgery
02
31st July 2019
Neurology
01
06th July 2019
Endocrinology
01
13th July 2019
Gastroenterology
01
15th July 2019
Haematology/ Hematooncology
01
29th June 2019
Paediatric Surgery
02
26th July 2019
Specialist (Non Teaching)/ Full Time/ Part Time – 03
Pathology
01
28th June 2019
Radiology
01
02nd August 2019
Psychiatry/ Neuro Psychology
01
04th July 2019
Junior Resident – 38
General Medicine
08
02nd July 2019
General Surgery
08
03rd July 2019
TB/Chest
01
08th July 2019
Dermatology
01
27th July 2019
Psychiatry
01
04th July 2019
Paediatrics
04
01st July 2019
Orthopaedics
04
05th July 2019
Ophthalmology
01
16th July 2019
ENT
01
10th July 2019
OBGY
04
27th July 2019
Anaesthesia
04
09th July 2019
Dentistry
01
01st August 2019
Tutor – 23
Physiology
03
11th July 2019
Biochemistry
03
18th July 2019
Anatomy
03
17th July 2019
Community Medicine
03
12th July 2019
Microbiology
03
19th July 2019
Pharmacology
02
24th July 2019
Forensic Medicine
02
25th July 2019
Pathology
04
28th July 2019
Grand Total
154
–
NOTE –These Vacancies are provisional and may increase or decrease depending upon the actual requirement of the Patient Care.
Eligibility Criteria for ESIC Careers 2019
Educational Qualification:
For Senior Resident – Qualification and Experience will be based on the Teachers Eligibility Criteria. As per MCI guidelines for the Teaching Faculty.
Name of the Post
Educational Qualification
Senior Residents (Broad Speciality)
Qualifications and experience as per Teachers Eligibility Criteria (MEDICAL COUNCIL OF INDIA AMENDMENT NOTIFICATION New Delhi, MCI-12 (2)/2018-Med.Misc./142810 dated 31 Oct 2018 available in MCI website and Recruitment and Regulations of ESIC Headquarters, New Delhi.
Should have registration with MCI and State Medical Council.
Junior Residents/ Tutor
For Clinical specialities:
MBBS degree from MCI recognized Medical College.
Should have registration with State Medical Council.
For Non-Clinical specialities (Tutors):
MBBS degree from MCI recognized Medical College/M.Sc in the respective speciality.
Super Speciality Specialist (Non-teaching)/ Full Time/ Part Time Specialist
A recognised MBBS degree qualification.
Post Graduate Degree in the concerned super speciality.
Five years experience in the concerned super-speciality after obtaining the First Postgraduate degree.
Senior Resident (Super speciality Department)
PG in respective speciality or PG Diploma (in the respective speciality with 1 (one) year experience.
DM/M.Ch is desirable for the posts.
Specialist (Non- Teaching)
PG degree or diploma in the concerned speciality. Three years’ experience in the concerned speciality after obtaining the first Post Graduate degree or five years’ experience after the Postgraduate Diploma.
Statistician
M.Sc. Statistics. (As per MCI norms)
Age Limit:
Age Limit As on the Closing Date of Application is as follows;
Faculty – 69 Years.
Senior Residents/ Tutor – 37 years.
Junior Residents – 30 years
Super Speciality Specialist & Specialist – 66 years.
Pay Scale:
Name of the Post
Pay Scale
Professor
Rs. 1,77,000
Associate Professor
Rs. 1,16,000
Assistant Professor
Rs. 1,01,000
Super Specialist (Non- Teaching) (Full Time)
Rs. 1,75,000
Super Specialist (Non- Teaching) (Part-Time)
Rs. 82,000 (4 hrs/ per day & 4 days week .+ Rs. 20,000 for visiting charges in case of emergency call)
Specialist (Non Teaching) (Full Time)
Rs. 1,01,000
Specialist (Non Teaching) (Part-Time)
Rs. 60,000 (4 hrs/per day & 4 days week. + Rs. 12,000 for visiting charges in case of emergency call)
Senior Resident (3 Years Contract)
7th CPC salary at Level-ll(In addition to the basic pay other allowances like DA, NPA & HRA etc would be paid according to rules in force)
ESIC Recruitment 2019 – Employees State Insurance Corporation is now recruiting candidates under the Junior Resident Vacancy. The Employees State Insurance Board recruit aspirants for the MBBS Doctors in ESI Hospital, Basaidarapur and IG ESI Hospital, Jhilmil. Around 28 Junior Residents are wanted to fill the Vacancy. The Recruitment process is through Walk-In Interview. The Vacancy in ESIC will be for a period of six months on tenure basis extendable for another six months based on the performance of the aspirants. Eligible can attend the Walk-In-Interview on 24th June 2019 from 9.00 AM to 11.00 AM from the below mentioned Venue address.
ESIC Recruitment 2019 Overview
Name of the Board
Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), Basaidarapur
Candidates should have Registered with the Delhi Medical Council.
The candidates who have completed an internship before 31.05.2019 only can appear.
The candidates who have already done more than six months of Junior Residency need not appear.
Age Limit:
Age Limit – Not Exceeding 30 years as on 31-05-2019.
Age Relaxation:
As per the rule of OBC/SC/ST/PWD candidates and all other age relaxations as per Central Govt. rules.
OBC candidates are required to submit the latest OBC Certificate as per Central Govt. Proforma (not more than one year old at the time of the interview).
Pay Scale:
In the pay Level 10 as per 7th CPC plus other allowances as admissible under the rules.
Selection Process:
Walk-In Interview
Application Fee:
Category
Amount in Rs.
Demand Draft in Favour of
Unreserved, EWS & OBC
100/-
ESI Saving Fund Account No. 2
SC & ST
25/-
ESI Saving Fund Account No. 2
PWD & Women Candidates
No Fee
NIL
Walk-In Interview for ESIC Recruitment 2019
All the eligible candidates can attend the Walk-In-Interview along with asked testimonials in original and their one self-attested photocopy as per schedule. Candidates can attend the Interview on 24th June 2019 from 9.00 AM to 11.00 AM.
Venue:
Dean Office 5th Floor, Academic Block, MS Office Building
Documents required
Matriculation certificate for Age proof.
MBBS degree and mark sheets.
DMC registration Certificate.
Caste Certificate (ST/SC/OBC), if applicable
Income and Asset Certificate from issuing Authority as per DOPT letter no. 36039/1/2019- Estt.(Res) Dated 31.01.2019 must be submitted for reservation for EWS Category.
Internship Completion Certificate
Demand draft as per S. No. B
Important Dates for Employees State Insurance Corporation Notification 2019
About Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC)
The promulgation of Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948(ESI Act), by the Parliament was the first major legislation on social Security for workers in independent India. It was a time when the industry was still in a nascent stage and the country was heavily dependent on an assortment of imported goods from the developed or fast developing countries. The deployment of manpower in manufacturing processes was limited to a few select industries such as jute, textile, chemicals etc. The legislation on creation and development of a foolproof multi-dimensional Social Security system, when the country's economy was in a very fledgeling state was obviously a remarkable gesture towards the socio-economic amelioration of a workforce though limited in number and geographic distribution. India, notwithstanding, thus, took the lead in providing organized social protection to the working class through statutory provisions.
The ESI Act 1948, encompasses certain health-related eventualities that the workers are generally exposed to; such as sickness, maternity, temporary or permanent disablement, Occupational disease or death due to employment injury, resulting in loss of wages or earning capacity-total or partial. Social security provision made in the Act to counterbalance or negate the resulting physical or financial distress in such contingencies are thus, aimed at upholding human dignity in times of crises through protection from deprivation, destitution and social degradation while enabling the society the retention and continuity of socially useful and productive manpower.
UPSC CMS Previous Papers is available here. Candidates who are preparing for the Combined Medical Services Exam (CMS) under the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) can get here the complete UPSC CMS Question Papers pdf. So, candidates can directly download UPSC CMS Solved question papers from the free downloading links that exist in the below section. Also, get an overview of the exam pattern, syllabus & all other details that are needed for the examination.
UPSC Medical Officer Previous Papers – www.upsc.gov.in
Description
Details
Name of the Organization
Union Public Service Commission (UPSC)
Exam Name
Combined Medical Services Exam (CMS).
Post Name
Assist Divisional Medical Officer, Assist Medial Officer & Other
UPSC Combined Medical Services Exam (CMS) will be selecting the candidates based on the Written Test and Personality Test. So, candidates can download UPSC Medical Officer Previous Question Papers Pdf from the below sections. Before downloading go through the below UPSC CMS Exam pattern to get an overview of the examination. However, the UPSC CMS Medical Officer examination will be on 21st July 2019.
UPSC CMS Last 5 Years Question Paper Download Links
In this section, aspirants can find the UPSC Medical Officer Previous Papers here. The UPSC CMS Medical Officer Question Papers help you to score good marks in the Combined Medical Services Exam. Also, by referring to the Union Public Service Commission CMS Old Papers, you will know the exam pattern. Hence, candidates use them for practicing and to attain good marks in the exam. If you require more UPSC CMS Medical Officer Old Papers pdf, visit the official website www.upsc.gov.in.
Delhi Police Previous Year Question Papers for Constable and other is available here. Candidates who are going to appear for the Delhi Police Examination can find the Test Paper on our page. The Delhi Police Exam Papers on our page are free to download.
Delhi Police Previous Year Paper
Delhi Police Previous Year Paper on our page can be downloaded by a single click. As the previous papers help the applicants in the preparation. To help the applicants in preparation we provided the exam old question paper pdf in Hindi below. Hence, but before going to the Delhi police previous papers here are some of the important details regarding the police examination.
Delhi Police Recruitment board recruits the candidates for various posts like Constable, SI, ASI, HC & Other every year. Whatever may be the vacancy, the applicants of Delhi Police have to undergo a written examination. Applicants who clear written are eligible for further rounds. Hence, download the Delhi Police Exam Paper given in the article below and start your preparation. Check an overview of Delhi police recruitment details 2019.
Candidates who applied for the Delhi Police jobs will be having a huge competition this year. where many job seekers who are looking for police jobs have been applied for the vacancies from various states. However, here is the Delhi Police Exam Syllabus and Test Pattern details in the section below.
Delhi Police Syllabus and Exam Pattern Details
Applicants have to attend the written test as part of the selection process. where candidates are given questions on General Knowledge, Numerical Ability and Reasoning. The Questions will be matriculation level, as the qualification for the Delhi Police vacancies will be 10th, 12th Pass.
However, the Delhi Police written test pattern is given in the tabular form below. Go through the details and prepare a plan for preparation. List our the sections to concentrate more to score more marks in the written examination.
Delhi Police Constable Exam Pattern 2019
Sections
Questions
Marks
Reasoning
35
35
General Knowledge/Current Affairs
50
50
Numerical Ability
15
15
Total
100
100
Objective type MCQ’s will be given.
Questions will be given in both English & Hindi languages.
Check the complete topic wise syllabus in Delhi Police Constable Syllabus page.
Delhi Police Constable Exam Paper Download
Finally, we are in the section where aspirants can find the direct download links for Delhi Police Constable Exam Paper. The Constable Exam Paper given below is free to download and are only for reference purpose. The Applicant of constable vacancies can click on the links and download Pdf.
Job Seekers who applied for other vacancies can also refer to the Delhi Police Paper given. To help the applicants with there preparation we have given some study material along with the Delhi Police Constable Exam Paper. Hence, get the Pdf below and start your preparation for the written exam today.
Delhi Police Constable Previous Year Question Paper pdf
NRHM Rajasthan Admit Card 2019 – Latest news updated by the National Rural Health Mission, Rajasthan is that they released the Admit Card for the recruitment exam. The Board has issued the Call Letter for the Community Health Officers. Candidates who had submitted their application while in the recruitment process can download the NRHM Rajasthan Admit Card 2019. Here, you can get the direct link of the to admit card is given for 2500 CHO’s.
NRHM Rajasthan Admit Card 2019
As Examination Dates are out now so for downloading their CHO admit card candidates need to refresh the portal timely. By providing their valid credentials, candidates will be able to download their Admit Card. Check your application status in the web portal. Candidates need to take the printout of their Admit Card and along with their required documents (Photograph & ID Proof). Candidates need to register their presence on the examination venue. It is important to maintain the examination hall decorum.
Required things to Check in NHM Rajasthan Hall Ticket 2019
The admit card has been released on 20th June 2019. As the candidates came to know about the exam details such as Exam date, exam timing, and Venue are clearly mentioned in the NRHM Rajasthan Hall Ticket. Moreover, the starting, reporting time and ending time of the examination will be listed in the Admit Card. Candidates do follow the rules and regulations in the Hall Ticket at the exam hall.
Name of the Applicant.
Exam Date, Time & Centre.
Post Applied for.
Application or Registration Number
Father Name and
Important Instructions.
NRHM Rajasthan CHO Exam 2019
The Community Health Officers Exam has been scheduled on 22nd June 2019. Candidates have to prepare well for the examination to get the eligible and maximum scoring in the NHM Rajasthan CHO Exam. Get your NRHM Rajasthan Syllabus to learn more about the exam. National Health Mission will conduct the examination at various exam centers across Rajasthan. So, candidates make sure of your Exam Center from the Hall Ticket.
Required things to Download NRHM Rajasthan Admit Card 2019
The Board has released the admit card in the Official Website. Thus, the direct link to the admit card has been in the below section. Up to the exam date only, the Candidates are allowed to download their admit Card otherwise they will miss the Opportunity to attend the Exam on the recommenced Exam Date by not having their National Health Mission CHO Admit Card 2019 on the Candidates hand. So, download the admit card in a proper way by filling the valid credentials. Below mentioned ID Proofs are mandatory for the NRHM Rajasthan CHO Exam 2019. Anyone of the ID Proof is enough for the verification process.
Aadhar Card
College ID
Ration Card
Driving License
PAN Card
Voter ID
Any Valid ID Proof Issued By Gazetted Officer
Bank Passbook
Passport
How to Download NRHM Rajasthan Hall Ticket 2019-20?
Click on “NRHM Rajasthan Admit Card” Link.
Enter the Digital Identity Number and password.
Enter the Captcha given.
Now Login to get the admit card.
An Admit Card page will be available on the screen.
Fill all the mandatory details.
Click on to the download option and download the admit card.
Take a print out and carry for the exam.
Direct Links to download NRHM Rajasthan Call Letter 2019
HSSC Clerk Syllabus 2019 is available now for the posts of Clerk. Candidates can now get here the Haryana Clerk Syllabus & Exam Pattern in detail. We are providing HSSC Clerk Syllabus & HSSC Clerk Exam Pattern for the guidance of candidates. The Haryana Clerk Syllabus pdf is also available for download from the link given below. Candidates can check for the complete Syllabus & Exam Pattern to start their preparation from the below sections.
HSSC Clerk Syllabus 2019 Pdf
The Haryana Staff Selection Commission has recently released a notification regarding recruitment of efficient candidates into Clerk posts in Haryana Government. There are various vacancies according to the notification. Many candidates have applied to these posts in online mode. The HSSC Clerk Exam Dates will be updated soon on our website. Candidates can visit our recruitment guru website for more updates regarding HSSC Clerk Recruitment 2019 Syllabus, HSSC Clerk Exam Important Dates & Exam Pattern, HSSC Clerk Previous Papers, HSSC Clerk Admit Cards 2019, etc.
Haryana Staff Selection Commission is an authorized organization working under the Central Government of India. HSSC is a regional office under the Staff Selection Commission in Haryana. It does all the required procedures for the recruitment of capable and skilled candidates into various posts in different departments. The HSSC releases notifications every year for filling various posts in the Government of Haryana. Candidates will be selected based upon their performance in the exams conducted by Haryana SSC.
Eligible candidates who are interested in Government Jobs of Haryana or Central Government Jobs can apply to these posts in online mode after the release of notification. Applicants can visit the authorized website for further details. Candidates applying for the posts of Clerk can get here the HSSC HC Clerk Syllabus details and will be selected based on the following criteria-
Selection Process
Written Examination
Socio-Economic Criteria & Experience
HSSC Clerk Exam Paper Pattern 2019
The subject wise exam pattern details are given under this section. Candidates searching for updated exam pattern & syllabus details can check out this section. Use the details given and start preparing for the exam to get selected for the post.
Haryana SSC Clerk Exam Pattern 2019
Name of the Subjects
Weightage
Total Marks
General Awareness, Reasoning, Maths, Science, Computer, English, Hindi & Relevant Subject
75%
90
History, Current Affairs, Literature, Geography, Civics, Environment, Culture, etc.
25%
The questions will Objective type questions.
The written exam is for 90 marks and the rest 10 marks for Socio-Economic Criteria & Experience.
Download Haryana SSC Clerk syllabus 2019 Pdf
Aspirants who are searching for Haryana Clerk syllabus pdf can get it under this section. Here we have updated syllabus subject wise. So, candidates will be able to prepare for the exam subject wise.
The Haryana Clerk Exam consists of the following subjects:
General Awareness.
General Knowledge.
Mathematics.
Science.
English.
General Intelligence.
HSSC Clerk Syllabus for General Knowledge
Current Events – National & International.
Culture & Heritage – India & Haryana.
Geography – India & Haryana.
General Polity.
History – India & Haryana.
Science & Technology.
Economy – India.
Environmental Studies.
Current Affairs – National & International.
HSSC Clerk Recruitment 2019 Syllabus for Mathematics
'Mitron…', the endearing salutation that Prime Minister Narendra Modi used before dropping the cash ban bombshell in an address to the nation on November 8, 2016, later become a metaphor for unpleasant surprises. All through Modi's remaining tenure, speculation was rife that the next time Modi utters 'mitron', he will send the newly-introduced Rs 2,000 currency notes out of circulation.As the new government sets sail, one prominent market analyst on Friday speculated that Modi would go for some hard decisions early into his second innings and the demonetisation equivalent this time around could be a major crackdown on indiscipline in tax payment.A Finance Ministry action earlier this week against over a dozen income-tax officials for alleged corruption and professional misconduct has given rise to conjectures and theorisations that a crackdown against tax evasion is in the offing."I am pretty sure this is happening. We are going to see a major tax crackdown, especially on GST, and to some extent, on the direct taxes side as well," Saurabh Mukherjea, Dalal Street veteran and founder of Marcellus Investment Managers, said in an interview with ETNOW.The government dismissed 12 senior income-tax officers on charges of corruption and professional misconduct on June 10 and followed it up with another round of clean-up on June 18, when 15 senior income-tax officers, accused of corruption, were made to compulsorily retire.Those sacked included officials in the ranks of principal commissioners, commissioners, additional commissioners, deputy commissioners, joint commissioners and assistant commissioners.Some of them were allegedly extorting businessmen, while others were found to have acquired mammoth movable and immovable assets in the name of self and family members. The retirement was ordered under Rule 56 (j) of the General Financial Rules of Central Government Services.The action came within days of the Modi government kicking off its second term. "The first interesting thing I am seeing over the past two-three weeks is regular news flow about senior tax officials being asked to retire or leave. That is suggestive of a major tax crackdown, and I had anticipated this before the election," Mukherjea said.Government watchers say the move sent out a strong signal about the Modi regime's intent of cleaning up the system at a time when sluggish tax revenue growth has tied government hands in pushing its agenda for growth."By invoking a rule that has seldom been used, the Centre has sent out a stern warning to tax sleuths of zero tolerance towards graft. The root cause of corruption the misuse of arbitrary powers bestowed on the tax administration. That must go," Economic Times said in an editorial commentary.The cash ban did not achieve the government's desired objective of digging out black money, though it offered several fringe benefits. The move was repeatedly cited for some of the political setbacks that Modi's party suffered in state elections. But a thumping win in the general elections erased it all.Mukherjea says the political mandate that the government got is unprecedented in 20-30 years, and it has got to make the most of it in the first 90 days. "If this monsoon session we do not see major action on the problem points of the economy, I would really worry," he said.In its first term, the government brought about a major policy change for lateral entry of domain experts into the bureaucracy. The govt hired nine joint secretary-ranked officials from the private sector; including a partner in KPMG.
By: Arghya BhattacharyaIndia has responded to Trump tariffs. Tariffs on aluminium and steel imposed last year and the Donald Trump government's ultimatum to India to cease import of crude oil from Iran have the potential of hurting India's economic interests. After keeping negotiations open for almost a year, it is the US' withdrawal of duty-free access to Indian exporters under the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) that has acted as the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back.When a big bully throws a punch at you, what do you do? Do nothing, or stand your ground and resist? By imposing tariffs on 28 items originating from the US, India has resisted Washington's unilateral escalation of trade impediments. From a purely political standpoint, it makes sense. But what about the economic implications of a potential tariff war for a relatively smaller economy like India?One of the key drivers of trade is the concept of comparative advantage — the home country (India) would import products relatively easier (and cost-effective) to produce in a foreign country (US), and export those items relatively easier to produce domestically. The reverse is true for the foreign country.In his seminal 1953 paper, 'Optimum Tariffs and Retaliation', Harry G Johnson concluded that a country will win a tariff war if its relative monopoly power in world trade is sufficiently large — that is, the odds are greatly in favour of the bigger economy.Using a different economic framework, in 2002, Constantinos Syropoulos concluded that if the bigger economy exceeds a certain relative threshold size, then it would prefer a world with tariff war than a world with free trade, to the detriment of the smaller economy. However, these results of Johnson and Syropoulos hold only in a static environment — when at least one government is impatient, cares only about short-run gains and doesn't plan for longer horizons.In a 2010 paper, Marcus M Opp studies tariffs and retaliation in both static and dynamic settings. His conclusions in the short-run setting are very similar to Syropoulos', but his framework also yields an interesting result. As the degree of comparative advantage of the smaller economy (India) increases, across goods, the relative threshold size beyond which the bigger economy (the US) would prefer tariff war also increases.This means, with continued economic growth, if India undergoes structural and economic reforms that will allow its industries to produce more efficiently, then the US will have to be a lot bigger than what it is to want to engage in a tariff war.This is easier said than done and will require some years to achieve. However, such long-term planning on India's part will make it immune to unilateral hikes in tariffs on its products by foreign countries in the future.But what would the imposition of tariffs by India on these 28 US items achieve? In the short run, not much really beyond being a political gesture. It shows the world, especially Washington, that India is no pushover.However, economically, the harmful side effects of India's tariffs on US items (through a drop in US exports) will be more or less offset by US' better relative production capacity, and the short-term gains it will reap by restricting India's exports.International trade is not a zerosum game and there is always complex dynamics at play. However, these tariffs could possibly achieve one important thing: bring Washington back to the negotiating table.Senator Dianne Feinstein has expressed concern over the tariffs' impact on California almond growers. It is unlikely that a Democrat like Feinstein will have any persuasive power over the current federal government.However, if tariffs are imposed selectively such that Republican constituencies are adversely affected, then that might rally enough Republican senators to persuade Washington to adopt a more far-sighted approach and sort out differences at the negotiating table.Perhaps this is a far-fetched thought, but an option that could be explored. In a dynamic setting, with governments that plan for longer-time horizons, the long-run benefit of cooperation exceeds the short-run gains from a tariff war.The writer is assistant professor, economics, Ashoka University, Sonepat, Haryana
By: Lionel LaurentCentral banks and financial regulators have been on high alert since the launch of Facebook Inc.'s proposed cryptocurrency, Libra. It's still at the conceptual stage, but the prospect of a tech giant with 2.6 billion users shuffling digital money around and backing it with piles of dollars, euros and pounds is a potential heart attack in the making for those trying to keep the financial system stable, governable and predictable. That means setting the rules now, before Libra's born.One idea as to how officials might keep CEO Mark Zuckerberg's dreams grounded in reality is to get under the hood of what goes into the digital currency in the first place. Given Libra wants to back every digital cent with a mix of real-world reserve currencies, that might be the best place to start. Bank of England boss Mark Carney hinted at this in his Mansion House speech on Thursday, proposing that tech firms and other non-banks be allowed to hold funds directly at the central bank.You can see why this idea would appeal. If central banks start to hold deposits for the likes of Facebook and other Libra backers, officials will get a first-hand view of the assets held in reserve (though they'll have to coordinate for a complete picture). And for the tech companies, having the central bank's blessing is the ultimate seal of approval and trust — something Zuckerberg could benefit from. It would all require a fair bit of readjustment in terms of what a central bank does and how it does it, but it makes sense.While this will all seem like a specific issue of financial plumbing off the back of a crypto project, there's a much bigger point here about finance and tech in general — and not all of it comforting for bankers.Carney's push for new tech companies to be embedded more deeply in the financial system will raise competitive pressure on incumbent banks. The regulatory barriers to entry in finance are already high — think of the billions spent on compliance — and it's a reason why Silicon Valley hasn't yet posed an extinction threat for banks. But officials want more firms to clear those barriers, "leveling the playing field between old and new," Carney says. Hence, he also talked up the central bank's payments system overhaul, with a view to plugging in tech firms. Libra could just be a face that launches a thousand ships of new payments ideas – the crypto bit might never take off, but other ideas will.Banks have done a decent job of fending off fintech over the past decade: 35 percent of British consumers have had the same account for at least two decades, according to UBS. But that's partly because their opponents have been pretty under-powered: No amount of glitzy tech conferences featuring entrepreneurs kitted out in lederhosen can disguise that. Start-ups have been forced down a risky path to grow fast in a market that's highly regulated and concentrated.Facebook, as well as Apple Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and Alphabet Inc. are different. They have size: Apple is in "a billion pockets," as Oprah Winfrey put it. They have money: Alphabet's revenue in a single quarter could cover the market cap of Deutsche Bank several times over. And they have data: Amazon has our credit card details, and indeed its own card. With their main businesses drawing tough criticism over monopoly concerns, more diversification — even into a very regulated sector — is investor-friendly.Libra specifically may well be a pipe dream that may never be implemented in its current form. But Facebook's size means that central banks already have to take it seriously — or they face being unprepared to ensure financial stability. Bankers themselves aren't powerless to respond to the tech threat, and they have the financial firepower to develop services and products. But as after dinner speeches go, this was a sobering one.
KOLKATA: Most Indians can buy an air-conditioner Or, they can buy a television. Not both in the same season — or so it seems. And, with the temperature having shot close to or past the 40 degrees Celsius mark, folks have picked up ACs, leaving little left over for TVs, despite such obvious attractions as the ICC World Cup.For the first time, TV sales have not shown the usual spike during a World Cup, following the rise in spending on ACs in April and May amid a heatwave. AC sales grew by a record 18-20% in the last two months, a trend that continued into the first week of June, compared with low business in 2018 and 2017, when sales had dropped.Despite the tournament being well under way and the Indian team having done well thus far, TV sales have only risen by an incremental 5-8%.Industry StumpedThis is a huge slump compared with the usual 80-90% surge, five leading consumer electronics retailers said. That's despite the increase in the number of World Cup viewers in India. As a result, retailers are saddled with excess inventory."Consumer buying power has certainly reduced and it seems people are extremely cautious to spend few thousand rupees after buying an AC in the last two months," said Avneet Singh Marwah, CEO of Super Plastronics, the maker of online-focussed Thomson and Kodak TV sets.Much of the industry is mystified by the poor demand. Some say it's because of too much international cricket, while others are blaming the extended duration of the tournament this year. Still others blame the match timings, which mostly run from 3 pm to 11pm. That means people are watching on their phones during office hours or later on in sports bars. To be sure, the growth slump has put a dampener on consumption but cricket and televisions have always been considered an irresistible combination in India.69899225 Great Eastern Retail director Pulkit Baid said the TV category as a whole has been struggling since last Diwali. "While TV sales has still grown by 20% over May, sales are much lower than June last year, which had FIFA fever," he said, referring to the soccer 2018 World Cup held in Russia.Mumbai's leading chain Kohinoor Electronics' director Vishal Mewani said sales during the football World Cup were better despite cricket having more broadcast viewers.Southern India retail chain Girias director Nitesh Giria said it might even be difficult to match last year's June sales for TVs. "We are at a complete loss why the craze has not happened," he said.Chains such as Vijay Sales, Great Eastern and Kohinoor Electronics said the big brands have not done enough promotion this year. They also have a mixed product portfolio with older unsold models mixed in with a newer line-up."For instance, in the last two World Cups there were cricketers endorsing brands and more marketing push," said Nilesh Gupta, director at Vijay Sales, which runs 101 stores.Retailers said large screens of 55 inches and above are selling, having grown 20-25% this World Cup. However, the 26, 32 and 43 inch televisions, which account for almost 90% of the market, are laggards.Sony India head of television business Sachin Rai said the company has more than doubled sales of sets with screens of 55 inches and above this World Cup over last year. LG and Samsung did not respond to queries.The ecommerce channel has also seen subdued sales, brands said. Amazon-exclusive BPL India COO Manmohan Ganesh said the marketplaces did not run any major World Cup promotions this year.The industry is hopeful of a late surge if the Indian cricket team progresses to the knockout stage.Since India is likely to proceed further, interest is bound to rise and that may eventually translate into higher TV sales, said Brian Bade, CEO of Reliance Digital, India's largest electronics retailer.
KOLKATA: Most Indians can buy an air-conditioner Or, they can buy a television. Not both in the same season — or so it seems. And, with the temperature having shot close to or past the 40 degrees Celsius mark, folks have picked up ACs, leaving little left over for TVs, despite such obvious attractions as the ICC World Cup.For the first time, TV sales have not shown the usual spike during a World Cup, following the rise in spending on ACs in April and May amid a heatwave. AC sales grew by a record 18-20% in the last two months, a trend that continued into the first week of June, compared with low business in 2018 and 2017, when sales had dropped.Despite the tournament being well under way and the Indian team having done well thus far, TV sales have only risen by an incremental 5-8%.Industry StumpedThis is a huge slump compared with the usual 80-90% surge, five leading consumer electronics retailers said. That's despite the increase in the number of World Cup viewers in India. As a result, retailers are saddled with excess inventory."Consumer buying power has certainly reduced and it seems people are extremely cautious to spend few thousand rupees after buying an AC in the last two months," said Avneet Singh Marwah, CEO of Super Plastronics, the maker of online-focussed Thomson and Kodak TV sets.Much of the industry is mystified by the poor demand. Some say it's because of too much international cricket, while others are blaming the extended duration of the tournament this year. Still others blame the match timings, which mostly run from 3 pm to 11pm. That means people are watching on their phones during office hours or later on in sports bars. To be sure, the growth slump has put a dampener on consumption but cricket and televisions have always been considered an irresistible combination in India.69899225 Great Eastern Retail director Pulkit Baid said the TV category as a whole has been struggling since last Diwali. "While TV sales has still grown by 20% over May, sales are much lower than June last year, which had FIFA fever," he said, referring to the soccer 2018 World Cup held in Russia.Mumbai's leading chain Kohinoor Electronics' director Vishal Mewani said sales during the football World Cup were better despite cricket having more broadcast viewers.Southern India retail chain Girias director Nitesh Giria said it might even be difficult to match last year's June sales for TVs. "We are at a complete loss why the craze has not happened," he said.Chains such as Vijay Sales, Great Eastern and Kohinoor Electronics said the big brands have not done enough promotion this year. They also have a mixed product portfolio with older unsold models mixed in with a newer line-up."For instance, in the last two World Cups there were cricketers endorsing brands and more marketing push," said Nilesh Gupta, director at Vijay Sales, which runs 101 stores.Retailers said large screens of 55 inches and above are selling, having grown 20-25% this World Cup. However, the 26, 32 and 43 inch televisions, which account for almost 90% of the market, are laggards.Sony India head of television business Sachin Rai said the company has more than doubled sales of sets with screens of 55 inches and above this World Cup over last year. LG and Samsung did not respond to queries.The ecommerce channel has also seen subdued sales, brands said. Amazon-exclusive BPL India COO Manmohan Ganesh said the marketplaces did not run any major World Cup promotions this year.The industry is hopeful of a late surge if the Indian cricket team progresses to the knockout stage.Since India is likely to proceed further, interest is bound to rise and that may eventually translate into higher TV sales, said Brian Bade, CEO of Reliance Digital, India's largest electronics retailer.
NEW DELHI: India's oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan expressed concerns about rising crude oil prices to his Saudi Arabian counterpart, Khalid al-Falih, on Friday amid worsening U.S.-Iranian tensions, a government statement said.Global oil prices rose sharply on fears of a U.S. military attack on Iran that would disrupt flows from the Middle East, which provides more than a fifth of the world's oil output.Pradhan told Falih by telephone that he wanted Saudi Arabia to play an active role within OPEC and OPEC+ to keep oil prices at a reasonable level.
By Conor SenPoliticians and pundits spend lots of time talking about how to generate faster economic growth in the U.S. But the Federal Reserve's actions this week and the past six months show that it is quietly responding to global concerns instead. Central bankers know that the world can't handle a stronger U.S. economy, and at the moment it's more in the world's interest to focus on weakness elsewhere rather than worry about the potential of domestic overheating.Think back years to when the Federal Reserve started on its path to exiting some of the unconventional monetary policy put in place during the financial crisis. In 2013, the Fed signaled its intention to begin "tapering" its purchase of financial securities as it looked to start winding down its quantitative easing program, leading to a "taper tantrum" in fixed-income markets with yields on Treasuries shooting higher as market participants started pricing in future interest-rate hikes.As the US economy continued to strengthen in 2014, the timing of those interest-rate increases drew nearer, and in response the dollar started appreciating against foreign currencies. Between the middle of 2014 and early 2015, the Bloomberg dollar spot index increased by 20%. This coincided with a plunge in the price of oil and other commodities.This created strains on emerging-market economies, which were suddenly battling declines in the price of key commodity exports and declines in the value of their currencies. To stave off capital flight required raising interest rates to match the hawkishness of the Federal Reserve, with that tightening of monetary policy creating more negative ripple effects for already weak economies.Investment in commodity exploration and production plunged in response to falling prices. Industrial companies that made equipment for commodity producers saw drops in orders. Emerging-market currencies weakened against the dollar, and credit spreads widened as nervous investors worried about the prospect of defaults. As spillover effects came back to the U.S., it turned out to be the largest decline in year-over-year industrial production in history that did not coincide with a recession.This global cycle hit bottom in early 2016, leading to a rebound that lasted through 2018 and the early part of President Donald Trump's first term. The tailwind from that cyclical rebound, perhaps combined with improved business sentiment following his election and the prospect of tax cuts, gave the Federal Reserve the confidence to ramp up interest rate hikes in 2017 and 2018, with the Fed increasing the overnight funds rate by 1.75% over the course of those two years.But as the rebound began to flatten in early 2018, the continuing increases in interest rates from the Federal Reserve started putting upward pressure on the dollar again, once again straining economic growth in the rest of the world.The Fed's abrupt course change over the past six months can be seen as bowing to those global pressures. Global data is weak, business confidence in the U.S. has turned down, and tariff uncertainty persists – but the U.S. consumer remains strong. It's not clear how much the global weakness and negative business sentiment will ultimately mean for growth domestically.This whole dynamic raises an uncomfortable question for those trying to engineer faster growth in the U.S. If the result of faster growth in the U.S. is somewhat higher inflation, a stronger dollar and higher interest rates, the rest of the world, which is trapped using the dollar as a funding currency given that it's the global reserve currency, would probably find this an unwelcome development. That long-awaited "Infrastructure Week" in the U.S. could lead to an economic crisis in Latin America.The Fed is fortunate in a way to have been unable to generate above-target inflation, and to have a sclerotic Congress unable to implement much in the way of fiscal stimulus to generate faster growth. That has given U.S. central bankers the breathing room to defer to global jitters. In a world where there's both above-target inflation domestically and global problems resulting from the world's reliance on the dollar, the Fed may be forced to focus on its domestic mandate at the expense of global financial stability.(This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of economictimes.com, Bloomberg LP and its owners)
By Chandan TapariaThe Nifty50 index failed to continue its positive momentum of last session and corrected towards 11,700 level on Friday. It formed a Bearish Belt Hold candle and a Harami pattern on the daily chart, as it traded inside the trading range of last session amid sustained selling pressure for most part.The index recently took multiple support near its 50-DEMA at 11,650, but absence of buying interest was also visible at 11,850 level. The index formed a bearish candle on the daily as well as weekly charts, which indicated that the bears restricted the upside momentum.Now, it has to cross and hold above 11,761 to extend its move towards 11,850 and then 11,929 levels, while a hold below 11,650 level can negate the short-term consolidation for a decline towards 11,600 and then 11,550 levels.On the options front, maximum Put open interest stood at 11,700 followed by 11,500 while maximum Call OI was at 12,000 followed by 11,800 levels. There was meaningful Call writing at 12,000 followed by 11,800 levels while minor Put writing was seen at 11,650 followed by 11,500 levels. Option data suggested a shift in the immediate trading range between 11,600 and 11,900 levels.India VIX moved up 4.36 per cent to 14.61 level.Bank Nifty formed a Doji candle with a long lower shadow on the weekly scale and a bearish candle on the daily scale, which indicated that every declines got bought into but the absence of followup buying interest was missing at higher levels. Now the index has to hold above 30,600 to extend its move towards 31,000 level while on the downside multiple supports are seen at 30,250.Nifty futures closed in the negative at 11,754 level with a loss of 0.80 per cent. Long buildup was seen in Indiabulls Housing Finance, MRPL, UPL, BEML and Hexaware while shorts were seen in Ujjivan, PVR, RBL Bank and Chola Finance.(Chandan Taparia is Technical & Derivative Analyst at MOFSL. Investors are advised to consult financial advisers before taking an investment calls based on these observations)
Mindtree - where Larsen & Toubro is in the midst of acquiring majority stake - has exuded confidence that it will deliver a low-teen growth rate in FY20, and promised that the "best of Mindtree is yet to come". The Bengaluru-based company described construction major L&T's unsolicited bid to acquire majority holding in the IT firm as "unusual situation" and said it is fully committed to "handling this issue in a manner that maximises value for all our stakeholders". Chairman Krishnakumar Natarajan and CEO Rostow Ravanan, in their message to shareholders in the company's annual report filed with BSE on Friday, noted that the L&T matter was pending regulatory approvals at the time of penning the message. The two top officials said the company is focussed on capitalising on the opportunities and maintaining high-growth trajectory, growing faster than the industry. "Although the external environment presents a slightly worrisome picture - global trade wars, increasing risk of terrorism disrupting people's lives, slowing economic growth, and political uncertainty - we are confident that we are better prepared to handle these uncertainties than ever before. "We estimate that we will deliver a low-teen growth rate in FY20, along with a margin expansion of 100-120 bps," they said. In March, L&T had said it will buy 20.32 per cent stake in Mindtree from V G Siddhartha and his coffee enterprise for over Rs 3,000 crore - marking India's first-ever hostile takeover bid in the IT space. Since then, L&T has steadily increased its holding in the Bengaluru-based tech firm to about 30 per cent. It is currently in the process of an open offer to buy an additional 31 per cent stake. In all, the infrastructure major is eyeing about 66 per cent stake in Mindtree for over Rs 10,700 crore. The open offer - with an offer price of Rs 980 per share - opened on June 17 and is slated to close on June 28. If the offer is subscribed fully, the engineering behemoth will end up with a 66.32 per cent holding in Mindtree. L&T has secured three board positions at the IT services firm, giving the former a firm control over the company. Mindtree has been in the spotlight since early part of this year due to the takeover saga, and more recently when its Board in mid-April proposed to pay a special dividend to shareholders, including promoters, that along with regular dividend and tax components would strip the mid-sized IT firm of about Rs 530 crore. In the latest annual report, Natarajan and Ravanan stressed on the importance of rigorous governance standards as essential ingredient to deliver sustainable financial performance. "You have our unequivocal commitment to uphold the highest standards of transparency and governance in Mindtree," they said. They also admitted that some aspects needed improvement and two such high-priority areas included improving current margin levels which are currently below its expectations, and enhancing gender pay parity.
The first Times Techies report that was carried on Tuesday spoke about artificial intelligence (AI) being one of the biggest opportunities today. India will need a lot more talent in the space. "Only 1-2% of India's workforce in the tech and financial sectors have AI/ ML (machine learning) and data science knowledge," says Santanu Paul, CEO of Hyderabad-based edtech player TalentSprint, which launched an executive programme in AI/ML in association with IIIT-H last year.LinkedIn said last year that seven out of 10 emerging jobs in India are tech-focused roles hinged on AI/ML, with ML engineer being the top job in the list.Nasscom says emerging job roles in AI include that of data architect, applied scientist, ML speech vision, analyst BI, and DevOps Engineer. Ajay Shah, head of recruitment services at HR solutions provider Teamlease, says the average hike being commanded by AI professionals while switching jobs would be 40-50%, compared to 20-30% for other skills.Paul said he is seeing more techies with 7-15 years of work experience going for the programme."When we started, we thought the course would get working professionals with 5-7 years of experience, as they are early in their career. But surprisingly, the average is much higher. Sometimes we think that people who will want something are the people who have the most to gain, but actually people who want something are the ones who have the most to lose. These people have resources, but also have mortgages, children in schools/colleges and cannot afford to lose the lifestyle they have built over the years," he says.Hari Krishnan Nair, co founder of training provider Great Learning, agrees. He says the rising interest from senior professionals looking to understand more about AI and its applications across industries has persuaded them to work on crafting a programme specifically for them. He says a lot of professionals are enrolling for such programmes because there are significant projects happening in their organisations around AI and they want to be a part of them.Another trend, Nair says, is the increase in enquiries for programmes in AI from school and college students. "While their numbers aren't significant, they are clearly aware of AI playing a big role in their careers and want to be prepared," he says.V Rajanna, global head of the technology business unit in TCS, says technological advancements have historically reshaped skill requirements, but the pace at which today's next-generation technologies are developing and disrupting the global talent market is unprecedented."Continuous competency enhancement at scale and speed is more paramount than ever before and has become a key success factor in this digital age," he says.
Mumbai: 15 suffer from suffocation as fire breaks out at Wadala A blaze erupted on the first floor of the 21- storey building located near Barkal Ali Naka in Kamla Ram Nagar in Wadala east. Fire brigade tankers rushed to the spot and the fire doused within a half an hour.
Mumbai's water stock hits a new low, cuts likely soon The BMC officials are expected to take a review of the existing water supply situation by June end and decide on further water cuts.
'Plant' experts, make Tree Authority a think tank, civic body appealed Time again, it has been alleged that the Tree Authority has shifted its goalposts to become a panel that only works to clear proposals for cutting and felling of trees in the city.
Mumbai: Tussle over trees The beginning of the new season has brought in fears for the residents of Oshiwara Park in Jogeshwari as the society has many old trees that haven't been pruned.
'Mumbai needs money, machine and experts keep its trees healthy' In the past four years, trees in Mumbai, especially those on public spaces have begun to spread terror among the citizens by beginning to collapse at the slightest windy conditions.
Mumbai misses trunk call City's malnourished and poorly anchored trees will continue to claim lives and limbs unless the BMC comes up with a sustainable plan to facilitate maintenance of those standing on corporation land as well as private properties
Treated every religion with equal importance: Gujarat Pavitra Yatradham Board Said Pavitra Yatradham Board refuting charges that it promoted only Hindu shrines
Kolkata: Teenager found dead inside school toilet The student was found in a pool of blood with a wrist slit and face covered with plastic by her friends.
Don't fight over rice to poor, Supreme Court tells Puducherry L-G Kiran Bedi POWER TUSSLE: State restrained from implementing cabinet decisions with financial implications
Mob pelts stones at police, RAF in West Bengal; many hurt West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has ordered DGP Virendra to rush to Bhatpara immediately to bring the situation under control.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman asks states to work in cohesion with Centre The Centre has the responsibility of setting the direction of the economic growth while it's the responsibility of the states to implement in the field, says Sitharaman
Pick-up van falls into canal in Uttar Pradesh, bodies of 7 kids recovered The vehicle was returning from a wedding function in Barabanki district when it suddenly lost control and fell into the Indira canal in Nagram area on the outskirts of Lucknow city around 3 AM on Thursday.
