Month: April 2020

Viral

Sushmita Sen Got Her Winning Gown Stitched From A Local Tailor

HT News

Sushmita Sen’s winning gown was stitched by a local tailor in Sarojini Nagar, Delhi. The former Miss Indian 1994 made this stunning revelation during a conversation with late actor Farooq Shaikh in a talk show Jeena Isi Ka Naam Hai.

Old video of Sushmita Sen

The video of the talk show is trending on social media after 26 years the actress won the title. She was talking to Farooq Shaikh and she minced no words in speaking up to her mind. She said that her Miss India winning gown was made by a local tailor who used to work from a makeshift shop in a garage.

She said that she needed four different designer outfits for the contest but she couldn’t because of her middleclass family background. She said that her family didn’t had the money needed to buy designer dresses. But her mother encouraged her by saying that the audiences wanted to see Sushmita Sen and not the dress. Her mother even helped her in designing her dresses.

Winning gown of Sushmita Sen

The fabric for the gown was bought from Sarojini Nagar market known for its affordability. The mother-daughter duo approached a local tailor who used to stitch petticoats for gown and the tailor did a … Read the rest

News & Politics Today's Special

Sunder Pichai Sends Memo To His Employees

HT News

Google parent Alphabet Inc. has decided to slow hiring for the remaining part of the year. Its Chief Executive Officer Sunder Pichai updated its employees through an email.

Google closed its offices due to COVID-19

It has been over two months that Google closed its offices in Asia for fear of novel coronavirus spread. Mr. Pichai said that the company couldn’t had imagined then how much the world could change for people around the world. Also, the company’s thoughts remain with those who have lost their loved ones and those that are presently battling the disease.

Google helping in the battle against COVID-19

The company has made many teams to focus on helping government agencies in slowing down the spread of the virus. They provide data based that helps in measuring the impact of social distancing measures on the public. Also, Google has announced a joint effort with Apple to strengthen contact tracing but with strong privacy protections. Also, Google has invested on testing kits, production of PPE and other lifesaving medical devices.

Google facing financial crisis

Mr. Pichai said that world economy had been hurt just like it did in 2008. And that Google wasn’t immune to the global crisis. He said that the company would take lesson from the 2008 crisis. Preparing early was the key to success and continue on a long-term growth.

He said that he wanted to share his plans on what he thought was the best way forward. He said that the company was evaluating its pace of investment plans for the remainder of 2020.

Source: https://bit.ly/3clJlR4

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Technology

iPhone SE (2020): Price, Specifications And Availability

HT News

iPhone SE (2020), the most affordable iPhone model by Apple, has been launched on Wednesday. Called new iPhone SE or iPhone SE 2nd generation, the phone sports a 4.7-inch screen that was a common feature of regular iPhone models except the Plus ones.

iPhone SE (2020) specifications

Display: It is a 4.7-inch Retina HD IPS LCD display with 750×1334 pixels resolution. Also, it features True Tone tech that allows adjusting white balance. Its peak brightness is 625 nits. It supports Dolby Vision and HDR10. Also, it has Haptic Touch support seen in newer iPhone models.

Platform: The phone packs A13 Bionic chip found in iPhone 11 models. Available in 64GB, 125GB and 256GB models, the phone is protected by a sapphire crystal. It offers a Touch ID button instead of the Face ID support. But it lacks 3.5mm headphone jack.

Camera: It comes with a single 12-MP camera sensor with f/1.8 aperture + OIS at the rear. LED True Tone flash with Slow Sync is also provided for better experience. It can record 4K video at up to 60fps. Additionally, it has Smart HDR for photos. But the single camera has amazing features like Portrait mode. The front camera is a 7-MP shutter with an f/2.2 aperture for selfies and video chat.

iPhone SE (2020) cost

In India, the price will start at Rs. 42,500 for 64GB variant and go up to Rs. 47,800 for 128GB storage variant, and Rs. 58,300 for the 256GB storage variant. But the company is silent on India availability of the phones.

Source: https://bit.ly/2VrIhUM

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News & Politics Technology Viral

Critics Point To Security Lapses In Arogya Setu App

HT News

Survey of India has made public a trove of maps related to the Arogya Setu App that helps in tracing COVID-19 patients. The officials associated with the project said that it would improve geospatial data as well as develop maps customized to different COVID-19 related applications like healthcare facilities, infection clusters and disaster management.

Advantage of Arogya Setu App

The maps released by Survey of India, the apex map making body of India, wouldn’t be directly useful for general public as they are aimed to help government agencies in getting geospatial information related to COVID-19 spread.

The app is developed with the aim to strengthen the public health delivery system of state and central governments by facilitating geospatial information related to health, socio-economic distress and livelihood challenges. The PM in his address to the nation on April 14 urged people to download the Arogya Setu App in their mobiles.

Users need to keep the Bluetooth and location history “on” as much as possible. The app will alert the users if they are in the vicinity of a COVID-19 patient. The app will also help in tracking those quarantined and helping in executing quarantine.

Critical reception of the application

According to critics, the Arogya Setu App and other apps related to it like Sahyog could compromise on the privacy of the users. They said that there was no clarity on how the data would be shared and used. The pointed that transferring data from Arogya Setu App to others could be a problem.

Source: https://bit.ly/3bnAM84

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News & Politics

Lockdown To Continue Till May 3 But Restrictions Could Be Eased After April 20

HT News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced extension of lockdown till May 3 but hinted possible relaxations in areas that show restraint to the spread of COVID-19 after April 20. PM Modi took the decision of extension to extend lockdown after consulting chief ministers of 13 states through video conferencing on Saturday.

Highlights of PM Modi’s speech

• PM said that the country should ensure that new hotspots didn’t spring up. The lockdown measures will be enhanced at hotspot areas till April 20.

• Each district in each state will be closely monitored to check whether the lockdown is followed. The decision on relaxations will be determined on the results of lockdown.

• The PM said that easing difficulty of poor was his top priority.

• He said that the country had benefitted from lockdown and social distancing. Also, he admitted that the people had to pay a price.

• India didn’t wait for the crisis to aggravate and took early steps to contain the virus.

• He said that he was aware of the challenges the people faced during lockdown period.

• He said that people’s resolve to fight the pandemic was the true tribute to Baba Saheb Ambedkar.

He asked for seven things

  1. Take care of the vulnerable in the family
  2. Follow the lockdown rules and practice social distancing
  3. Follow guidelines by Ayush Ministry to boost immunity
  4. Download Arogya Setu app
  5. Show empathy towards employees
  6. Respect those at the frontline of the battle
  7. Help poor in arranging food and other necessities

Source: https://bit.ly/3b9gXBz

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Technology

Watch Online Launch Of OnePlus 8 Pro And OnePlus 8

HT News

OnePlus8 Pro and OnePlus 8 phones will be launched in a global online event on April 14. The company will host the event where it will divulge details including price, availability and specification of the new phones.

Phone specs leaked

The leaked pictures of the phones show OnePlus 8 Pro having a quad camera setup at the rear while the OnePlus 8 has triple rear cameras. According to leaks, the phones will be powered by the Snapdragon 865 SoC and they will support 5G. Also, the company has confirmed 120Hz display refresh rate on the two phones.

Live stream link and expected price

The launch of phones will begin at 8:30pm IST today and the event will be live streamed on the official website of OnePlus. Also, it will be available on YouTube.

OnePlus 8 Pro is available in 8GB RAM + 128GB storage and 12GB RAM + 256 GB storage. The cost of these phones will be EUR 919 and EUR 929 (roughly Rs. 76,000-76,900) and EUR 1,009 and EUR 1,019 (roughly Rs. 83,500-84,400) respectively.

OnePlus 8 is also available in 8GB and 12 GB configurations. And the price will be EUR 719 and EUR 729 (roughly Rs. 59,500-60,400) and EUR 819 and EUR 829 (roughly Rs. 67,800-68,700) respectively.

OnePlus CEO Pete Lau said in an interview that these phones won’t cost more than $1,000 (roughly Rs. 76,400). He indicated that most expensive OnePlus phone would be cheaper than the base variant of Samsung Galaxy S20 5G that starts at $999.99 (roughly Rs. 76,400).

Source: https://bit.ly/2RC6Opf

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Devotional Today's Special

How People Of India Celebrate Baisakhi?

HT News

Baisakhi 2020 will be celebrated in the lockdown state but it won’t be different from earlier times. In normal days, people used to celebrate Baisakhi with family members and friends. Today, they will celebrate the festival at home and use latest communication technology to feel togetherness.

Origin of Baisakhi

Taken from the word Baisakh, Baisakhi is the biggest festival in Punjab and Haryana. It marks end of the harvest season. On this day, melas are organized where people sing and dance to the tune of rural songs. Bhangra, the folk dance of Punjab, is quite popular in the Baisakhi dance.

Baisakhi in Kerala

In Kerala, it is called “Vishu”. And the festival starts with decoration of flowers, fruits, cereals and clothes and gold etc. The first thing the people do this day is to see the decoration. It is believed that seeing decoration will bring happiness and prosperity to their homes.

Baisakhi in Uttarakhand

In Uttarakhand, Baisakhi is celebrated as “BikhotiMahotsava”. The day starts with taking a dip in holy rivers. Also, in some parts of the state, there is a tradition to stone the symbols of demons.

Baisakhi in Assam

In Assam, people celebrate Baisakhi as “Bohag Bihu” or “Rangali Bihu”. Also, the Assamese new year starts with Baisakhi. According to traditions, it is the celebration of Vishu Sankranti (Aries Sankranti) in Baisakh month. Locally the “Bohg” festival continues for 7 days.

Baisakhi in Orissa

In Orissa, Baisakhi is known as “Mahavishuva Sankranti”. Also, it is the start of the new calendar in Orissa. The festival is celebrated by depiction of culture and civilization through folk arts.

Source:https://bit.ly/2yOHzcD

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Today's Special

PM Narendra Modi Remembers The Valor Of Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs

HT News

On Baisakhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared a picture of his earlier visit to Jallianwala Bagh memorial to commemorate departed souls of those people that laid their lives in 1919 on the day of Baisakhi.

PM Modi paid tributes to martyrs

While paying his tributes to the martyrs of Jallianwala Bagh, the PM said that the valor of those people would inspire Indians for years to come. He said in a tweet that he bowed to those martyrs that were killed mercilessly in Jallianwala Bagh on April 13. The country would never forget their courage and sacrifice.

The Jallianwala Bagh massacre

A troop of British Indian Army under the command of Colonel Reginald Dyer ordered firing on group of unarmed protestors and pilgrims who had gathered at Jallianwala Bagh on the event of Baisakhi on April 13, 1919. The crowd were protesting peacefully the arrest of two national leaders – Satya Pal and Saifuddin Kitchlew.

Colonel Dyer arrived at the Jallianwala Bagh with his troop and ordered firing at the peaceful assembly. The troops fired innumerable bullets at the crowd from a narrow alley that was the only exit from the Jallianwala Bagh.

In the crowd, there were men, women and children. Many people jumped into the well in the Jallianwala Bagh to escape the bullets while others were shot dead by the British troop. According to British records, a total of 379 people were killed and 1,200 people were wounded. But other sources put the number of dead people at 1,000.

Source:- https://bit.ly/2RzNJUv

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International Media & Entertainment

White House Follows Narendra Modi On Twitter

HT News

The only world leader, White House follows on Twitter is Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. White House is official residence of President of US and a major power center in the world.

World leaders followed by White House

The White House boasts of having 21 million followers on Twitter but it follows only 19 people and 16 of those are Americans. And the exception remaining three includes PM Narendra Modi. It proves that US gives priority to India over other countries.

In addition to PM Modi, the White House also follows President Ramnath Kovind and Prime Minister’s Office. It also follows Indian Embassy in USA and Indians in USA.

Modi Trump bonhomie

Both the leaders share a good rapport. They have met several times on different occasions. Also, they have jointly addressed two massive informal gatherings – first in the US and the second in India.

Earlier this week, President Trump said that he would be surprised, if the PM Modi stood firm on his ban on the export of hydroxychloroquine that is an anti-malaria drug but considered useful for treating COVID-19 patients.

Trump threatened Modi of retaliation

US President Donald Trump was speaking to media persons at White House when he indirectly threatened India of retaliation, if his demand for drugs wasn’t fulfilled. He said that he talked to PM Modi and that Modi assured him of help.

Hours after the press briefing, India lifted the ban from hydroxychloroquine and allowed its export to USA and other countries. The US President said that he bought more than 29 million tablets.

Source: https://bit.ly/34tbVND

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