My Scribles

A Catholic priest and nun have been sentenced to life in prison for the killing of another member of their convent in India nearly 30 years ago. Father Thomas Kottoor and Sister Sephy were convicted on Tuesday of murdering 21-year-old Sister Abhaya in 1992, and destroying evidence of the killing. The pair killed her after she came across them engaged in illicit sexual activity. Local police originally thought the young nun had taken her own life. But further investigations were launched following suspicions about her death from family and campaigners. Sephy, 55, has not publicly commented on the ruling, but Kottoor, 69, insisted he was innocent. "I have done no wrong. God is with me," he told local media outside court on Wednesday, when he was sentenced. A third priest, Fr Jose Poothrikkayil, was accused by prosecutors of also having an illicit relationship with Sephy. He was arrested and charged over the murder in 2008 but later acquitted due to a lack of evidence. Sr Abhaya

While that image perfectly encapsulates how many of us feel about 2020, it doesn’t capture the details and drama of the incredible stories that unfolded this year. We truly are living in interesting times! Yes, COVID-19 loomed large over everything: our health and mortality, the economy, politics, education, sports, entertainment … well, everything. But within each of those categories, there are amazing stories of triumph and sorrow, of the human will to survive and carry on. Many of us are ready to put this year behind us and move on to a hopefully brighter year. I understand that sentiment completely, but I believe there is always value in looking back to remember what we’ve lost, what we’ve gained and what we’ve hopefully learned.  Year in Review recaps the major stories that shaped our lives: the pandemic, Black Lives Matter movement, elections, economy and climate change. We explore the big themes in categories like tech, business, sports and entertainment. We remember those we lo

The  2020 United States presidential election  was the 59th quadrennial  presidential election , held nominally on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. The  Democratic  ticket of former  vice president   Joe Biden  and incumbent  U.S. senator  from California  Kamala Harris  defeated the  Republican  ticket of incumbent president  Donald Trump  and vice president  Mike Pence . Trump became the first U.S. president since  1992  and the eleventh incumbent in the country's history to fail to win re-election to a second term, and Biden won the largest share of the popular vote against an incumbent since  1932 . [6] [7] [8]  The election saw the highest  voter turnout  since  1900 , [9]  with each ticket receiving more than 74 million votes, surpassing  Barack Obama 's record of 69.5 million votes from  2008 . Biden and Harris received more than 80 million votes, [10]  the most votes ever  cast for a candidate in a U.S. presidential election . [11]  The votes of the  Electoral College  for  p

Primary efficacy analysis demonstrates BNT162b2 to be 95% effective against COVID-19 beginning 28 days after the first dose; 170 confirmed cases of COVID-19 were evaluated, with 162 observed in the placebo group versus 8 in the vaccine group Efficacy was consistent across age, gender, race and ethnicity demographics; observed efficacy in adults over 65 years of age was over 94% Safety data milestone required by U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) has been achieved Data demonstrate vaccine was well tolerated across all populations with over 43,000 participants enrolled; no serious safety concerns observed; the only Grade 3 adverse event greater than 2% in frequency was fatigue at 3.8% and headache at 2.0% Companies plan to submit within days to the FDA for EUA and share data with other regulatory agencies around the globe The companies expect to produce globally up to 50 million vaccine doses in 2020 and up to 1.3 billion doses by the end of 202

The United Kingdom has become the first Western nation to approve a Covid-19 vaccine, a landmark moment in the coronavirus pandemic that paves the way for the first doses to be rolled out across the country next week. "Help is on the way," Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced Wednesday morning, after UK regulators granted emergency authorization for a vaccine made by US pharma giant Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech. A final analysis of the Phase 3 trial of the vaccine shows it was 95% effective in preventing infections, even in older adults, and caused no serious safety concerns, Pfizer said last month.

A new tourist destination to understand the old cultural aspect of the dubai.  Half of the Al seef is constructed  to epic the old age construction,  business etc along the bank of the Diera creek.  Lot of shop selling perfumes,  UAE traditional clothes , museum  , restaurants  serving both fast food , normal Arabic,  Indian,  western etc.  In the far end we have modern building  which house the wharf for the dows and cruise ship and also have lot of Dubai RTA water Taxi . A nice place for a evening walk out 

Gold smuggle by diplomatic channel has being hot topic for the malayalam channel for last 3 months. Custom and ED have arrested the main culprit but the media was not yet satisfied. According to the main malayalam media it is act of the govt  led lobby to smuggle gold to kerala . Custom and ED had carried out several round of questioning  of the secretary to the CM and higher education minister for days .   As political boss pressure increased the ED Decided to arrest the additonal secretary to CM after 125 days of incident happening. Amazing thing is that there is no physical evidence /proof any sort of bride or unwanted income. This gold smuggle happens on regular basis in India. Even after the incident also gold smuggle.  Why do people in India smuggle gold which is question I don't understand.  To believe that a govt machinery working in purpose is  matter of doubt. However there are lot of suspicious  raised by the action of certain official in the UAE consulate general office

Rohit Sharma led from the front while Trent Boult starred with the ball as Mumbai Indians (MI) beat Delhi Capitals (DC) by five wickets in the Dream11 Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 final in Dubai on Tuesday and clinched their fifth IPL title. Needing 157 runs to win the final, MI were off to a flying start as Rohit, who completed 4000 IPL runs for MI, and Quinton de Kock attacked from the word go, taking MI to 45/0 after 4 overs. However, their partnership was broken after de Kock was dismissed by Marcus Stoinis. Suryakumar Yadav replaced de Kock in the middle  announced his arrival in style, creaming a four and a six on the first two balls he faced before MI marched to 61/1 after the end of powerplay. While DC bowled two tight overs, Rohit went after Pravin Dubey in the ninth over, hitting the leg-spinner for two sixes. The MI skipper then completed 3000 IPL runs as captain as MI moved closer to 90 at the halfway stage of the chase. MI though lost Surya in the 11th over following a

“Something had to go wrong… this wasn’t normal.” These words of an Indian pilot with flying experience through the Karipur airport describes the tragic plane crash of Friday night succinctly. An Air India Express Boeing 737 flight, IX-344, with 190 on board skidded off the Karipur runway in to a gorge and split in two, killing 18 including the pilot and co-pilot. Air India Express Flight 1344 was a scheduled international flight on 7 August 2020 from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, to Kozhikode, India, landing at Calicut International Airport. The flight was part of the Vande Bharat Mission to repatriate Indian nationals stranded due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The flight crew aborted two landing attempts because of heavy rain and tailwind. On the third landing attempt, the aircraft touched down on runway 10, but skidded off the end of the Tabletop runway and fell into a 9–10.5 m (30–35 ft) slope, killing 18 passengers and both pilots. The four cabin crew members and

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored a superb goal and netted the winning penalty in a shootout as Arsenal beat Premier League champions Liverpool in the Community Shield at an empty Wembley Stadium. Liverpool striker Rhian Brewster, brought on in stoppage time, hit the crossbar with his penalty - the only one not converted in the shootout. Aubameyang's curling strike gave FA Cup winners Arsenal the lead in the first half before Liverpool substitute Takumi Minamino equalised after the break. Minamino's flicked pass to Mohamed Salah bounced back kindly for him to slot home from close range. There was a quick VAR check for handball by Salah but the replay showed no clear contact. It is the second year in a row Liverpool have lost on penalties after Manchester City's victory in 2019.

Nearly 23 years after Sukhoi aircraft were imported, a fleet of five French-manufactured Rafale multi-role combat jets touched down in India, giving the country’s air power a strategic edge over its adversaries in the neighbourhood. The aircraft, having an undisputed track record and considered one of the most potent combat jets globally, landed at the Ambala Air Force base after covering a distance of 7,000 km from the Merignac airbase in French port city of Bordeaux. The Rafales were escorted by two Sukhoi 30 MKIs after they entered the Indian air space. “The Birds have landed safely in Ambala,” Defence Minister Rajnath Singh tweeted. Singh said “the touch down of Rafale combat aircraft in India marks the beginning of a new era in our Military History. These multirole aircraft will revolutionise the capabilities of the IAF”. The NDA government had inked a ₹59,000-crore deal on September 23, 2016 to procure 36 Rafale jets from French aerospace major Dassault Aviation after a nearly se

The World Health Organization is in discussions with Russia to obtain more information about its experimental Covid-19 vaccine – named Sputnik V - even as Russia plans to give it to some 40,000 people next week for further testing. Last week, Russia became the first country in the world to license a coronavirus vaccine when the president, Vladimir Putin, announced its approval ahead of conventional phase 3 testing

Minutes after former India captain MS Dhoni announced his international retirement on Instagram, Raina followed suit with an announcement of his own. Raina was an indispensable part of Dhoni's white-ball sides for a major part of his career, winning the 2011 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy under him. Honorary Secretary of the BCCI, Jay Shah, paid tribute to the batsman in a statement in which he praised not only Raina's batting but also his energy and enthusiasm in the field. “Suresh Raina has been arguably one of the finest T20 batsmen," Shah said. "A live wire on the field, Raina’s prowess as a left-handed batsman was exhibited throughout his cricketing career. A big match player, Raina’s cameo against Australia in the quarterfinal in the 2011 World Cup was a testimony to his glittering career that followed. I wish him all the very best in the second innings of his career." Raina, who made his international debut against Sri La

MS Dhoni, the former captain of the Indian cricket team, has announced his retirement from international cricket, bringing down curtains on a near 16-year-long storied career of one of the country’s greatest limited-overs cricketers. Dhoni retires as India’s most successful captain in limited-over internationals, having won three ICC trophies - 2007 T20 World Cup, 50-over World Cup in 2011 and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy - the only captain to do so. Having retired from Test cricket in December of 2014 with 4876 runs from 90 matches, Dhoni carried on playing ODIs and T20Is. With 10,733 runs, Dhoni is fifth in the list of India’s all-time run-scorers in ODI behind Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid. His overall Indian numbers are staggering: 538 matches, 17,266 runs, 16 centuries, 108 fifties, 359 sixes, 829 dismissals. “Thanks a lot for ur love and support throughout.from 1929 hrs consider me as Retired,” the former India captain wrote. While Dhoni posted t

Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta hailed his side's FA Cup victory over Chelsea as the greatest moment of his career - and vowed to build his side around two-goal hero Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The Gunners won the FA Cup for a record 14th time by beating  Chelsea 2-1 at Wembley , while they also became the first club to beat a specific opponent in as many as three finals in the competition.

Covaxin is being developed in partnership with Hyderabad-based company Bharat Biotech India. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said that indigenous Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin will likely be launched by August 15 and has asked clinical trials to be put on fast-track. Covaxin is being developed in partnership with Hyderabad-based company Bharat Biotech India (BBIL) which recently got a nod for phase I and II clinical trials so far. In an official statement, ICMR Director General, Dr Balram Bhargava, had stated that ICMR envisages the launch of the indigenous Covid-19 vaccine by August 15, reported The Indian Express. The ICMR statement stated: "BBIL is working expeditiously to meet the target, however, the final outcome will depend on the cooperation of all clinical trial sites involved in this project. This is the first indigenous vaccine being developed by lndia and is one of the top priority projects which is being monitored at the topmost level of the Government."

Zydus vaccine for Covid-19 (ZyCoV-D) has successfully completed pre-clinical development and received permission to initiate human clinical trials. The vaccine is found to be immunogenic in multiple animal species. Antibodies produced in animal studies are able to completely neutralize the wild type virus, a company statement said. Preclinical toxicity studies find the vaccine to be well tolerated, safe and immunogenic and the company plans to start the human clinical trials in July 2020. Zydus, a global pharmaceutical company, announced that it's plasmid DNA vaccine candidate for Covid-19 (ZyCoV-D) developed indigenously at its Vaccine Technology Centre in Ahmedabad has successfully completed the preclinical phase and has now received permission from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) -- Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) -- to initiate Phase I/II human clinical trials in India. In animal studies the vaccine was found to elicit a strong immune response in

Expanded testing allows for early identification of Covid-19 cases as well as those who have come in contact with positive cases. As part of the relentless efforts to contain the Covid-19 pandemic, Dubai authorities are continuing to increase provision of Covid-19 testing across government and private hospitals and drive-through centres. The emirate's various testing facilities have completed a total of over 612,000 Covid-19 tests as of June 19, according to the Covid-19 Command and Control Centre. Ensuring the widespread availability Covid-19 testing is part of an integrated plan to further curb the spread of the virus and offer immediate medical care to infected people at hospitals, accredited facilities and quarantine centres. Comprehensive measures undertaken by the emirate to fight Covid-19 and the concerted efforts of the public and private sector and the community over the past few months have helped Dubai achieve marked progress in curbing the spread of the virus. Dr. Hanan

At least 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a clash with Chinese forces in a disputed Himalayan border area, Indian officials say. The incident follows rising tensions, and is the first deadly clash in the border area in at least 45 years. The Indian army initially said three of its soldiers had been killed, adding that both sides suffered casualties. But later on Tuesday, officials said a number of critically injured soldiers had died of their wounds. India's external affairs ministry accused China of breaking an agreement struck the previous week to respect the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Galwan Valley. BBC diplomatic correspondent James Robbins says violence between two armies high up in the Himalayas is very serious, and pressure will grow on the two nuclear powers not to allow a slide into full-scale conflict. What have both sides said about the incident? Early on Tuesday the Indian army said three of its soldiers, including an officer, had died in a clash in Ladakh, in

Mollywood filmmaker and scriptwriter Sachy, who was admitted to Thrissur Jubilee Mission Hospital on June 16 after having suffered a cardiac arrest, passed away on June 18 Sachy was admitted to a private hospital in Thrissur on Tuesday following cardiac-related complications after undergoing a hip-replacement surgery at another hospital in Vadakkanchery. He was in a critical condition and on ventilator for the past two days. Leaving behind a career in law, Sachy entered the Malayalam film industry as a screenwriter. Along with writer Sethu, he penned movies like Chocolate, Robin Hood, Makeup Man, Seniors and Doubles. He, however, parted ways with Sethunath in 2011. Sachy then went solo and penned movies like Run Baby Run, Chettayees, Ramaleela, Sherlock Toms and Driving License. He also wrote and directed Anarkali and Ayyappanum Koshiyum

Birdwatchers in the UAE were pleasantly surprised to spot a very rare bird species in Dubai on May 29. Known as the Basra Reed-warbler, the sparrow-sized bird has been listed as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). This is the second time that the rare bird was spotted in the UAE. The first time it was seen in the UAE was on April 26 in 2010.

When we arise from Covid crisis,  we need this transformation in every  aspect of our life.    Transformation in way we care for others, way we care environment,  way we transform our faith and believes and 100% transformation  in  our outlook to the world.

 Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) aircraft has crashed in a residential area near Karachi airport. PIA spokesperson Abdul Sattar confirmed the crash and added that the flight, A-320, was carrying 99 people on board, including cabin crew, and was flying from Lahore to Karachi. CAA sources said that its communication with the plane one minute before its landing was cut off.  PIA spokesperson said that the plane crashed at 2.37pm Pakistan Standard Time, just one minute before the landing. The PIA flight PK-8303 took off from Lahore for Karachi and crashed in a residential area in Karachi, a senior PIA official told Gulf News from Karachi. He said that PIA's emergency and rescue team has been activated. A statement by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said Army Quick Reaction Force and Sindh Pakistan Rangers reached the site for relief and rescue efforts, alongside civil administration. Minister of Health & Population Welfare has declared emergency in all major hospitals

Super Cyclonic Storm Amphan was a very powerful and deadly tropical cyclone that caused widespread damage over East India and Bangladesh in May 2020. It was the strongest tropical cyclone to strike the Ganges Delta since Sidr of the 2007 season and the first super cyclonic storm to occur in the Bay of Bengal since the 1999 Odisha cyclone.[1][2] Causing over US$13 billion of damage, Amphan is also the costliest cyclone ever recorded in the North Indian Ocean, shattering the record held by Nargis. Amphan -- the fiercest in 283 years -- had pounded the North and South 24 Parganas and state capital Kolkata for more than four hours on Wednesday during landfall, uprooting trees, knocking down electricity poles, damaging buildings and killing 80 people. The cyclone also caused widespread devastation in neighbouring Odisha, damaging power and telecom infrastructure in several coastal districts. Officials of the Odisha government estimated that it has affected around 44.8 lakh people in the sta

Oxford University said on Friday it is recruiting thousands of volunteers for the next phase in human trials of a coronavirus vaccine that it says are "progressing very well". Up to 10,260 adults and children will be enrolled as it expands the age range of people given the specimen vaccine and involves a number of partner institutions across Britain. The university, in south central England, began initial trials in April, administering more than 1,000 immunisations, with follow-up currently ongoing, it added. "The clinical studies are progressing very well," Andrew Pollard, head of the Oxford Vaccine Group, said in a statement. "We are now initiating studies to evaluate how well the vaccine induces immune responses in older adults, and to test whether it can provide protection in the wider population." However, Pollard told BBC radio it was "not possible to predict" when the potential vaccine might be ready for the wider population. "It is a

RTA has signed an agreement with Mashreq bank to rename Ex-Sharaf DG Metro Station as the Mashreq Metro Station. Image Credit Dubai: Names of three metro stations in Dubai have been changed, Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) announced on Monday. Ex- Sharaf DG Metro Station has been renamed as Mashreq Metro Station while Palm Deira and Nakheel Harbour and Tower Metro Stations have been renamed as Gold Souq and Jabel Ali respectively. RTA has signed an agreement granting Mashreq Bank the naming rights of the ex-Sharaf DG Metro Station and has renamed it as Mashreq Metro Station. Abdul Mohsen Ibrahim Younes, CEO of Rail Agency signed the agreement on behalf of RTA, and Subroto Som, Senior Executive Vice President & Head of Retail Banking Group signed on behalf Mashreq Bank.

The ‘Vande Bharat Mission’ to evacuate Indian citizens is expected to cover Russia, Ukraine, Germany, Spain and east Europe in the third week of May, informed sources said here on Friday. The process of repatriation, which is focused on the Gulf and the South Asian regions, began on Thursday and is expected to involve 64 flights, bringing back 15,000 nationals from different parts of the world through 14 Indian airports. “As of now, 67,833 requests for repatriation have been registered. The Ministry of External Affairs has developed a dynamic online platform on which requests received by Indian Missions from Indian nationals wishing to return are regularly being uploaded,” said a source with knowledge of the operation scheduled from May 7 to 15. The operation is officially named ‘Vande Bharat Mission’. Following arrival, all Indian citizens will have to spend the mandatory quarantine period in a government facility to avoid spread of COVID-19. Russia and Ukraine have flown out a substa

While multiple research groups are developing potential vaccines, Italian scientists have claimed to develop a vaccine that has successfully generated antibodies in mice that work on human cells. The vaccine has been tested in the Spallanzani Hospital hospital in Rome. It is said to be one of the most advanced stages of testing of a potential vaccine in the country as the vaccine neutralizes the SARS-CoV-2 in the human cells. After a single vaccination, the mice developed antibodies that can block the virus from infecting human cells. The researchers selected the two best candidates after observing that the five vaccine candidates generated a large number of antibodies.