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Over 26,000 people rescued from flood-hit states: NDRF

More than 26,000 people have so far been rescued by the the NDRF (National Disaster Response Force) from the flood-ravaged areas in Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and other states.

The NDRF has fanned out 56 rescue and relief teams to help people hit by heavy rains in various States and tasked two Deputy Inspector-General rank officers in Bihar and UP with monitoring the situation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has promised total support to these flood-hit states in the conduct of rescue and relief operations.

Jammu and Kashmir unrest cannot be dealt with by courts: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court said on Monday that the Jammu and Kashmir unrest cannot be dealt with by the courts.

"We must appreciate that certain dimensions of the issue cannot be readdressed in court. The situation in the state keeps changing by the hour for which there is no judicial remedy," the court said.

Chief Justice TS Thakur's observations came while the court was hearing a public interest litigation filed by Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP) seeking protection of civil liberties of citizens in the state and imposition of governor's rule in Jammu and Kashmir due to the unrest.

The Jammu and Kashmir high court is also hearing a similar plea on alleged excessive use of force against citizens by security personnel.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on 22 August that there had to be a dialogue to find a "permanent and lasting solution" to the problem within the framework of the Constitution.

OP Jaisha calls for inquiry into marathon row

Olympic marathon runner OP Jaisha, who has been in the eye of the storm after she alleged that she was not provided water during the race, has asked for an inquiry into the matter.

Her comments came a ay after officials from the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) claimed that Jaisha refused the drinks that were offered to her.

"There are cameras everywhere now, they should check the cameras and they will get the answer. Why would I say such a huge lie, when I have never complained even once in my entire sports career?" Jaisha said.

Karachi likely to be run from prison

Pakistan's largest and most populous city Karachi is likely to be run from jail since its new mayor has been in prison on charges of instigating riots and providing medicines to some of the most dreaded terrorists. Having spent more than a month in Karachi's central prison, Waseem Akhtar is all set to take over as the mayor and the likelihood of him being released remains unlikely.

Akhtar was named as the mayor candidate by Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) - a party that has controlled Karachi's politics for decades. MQM named Akhtar as its candidate in December 2015 and the party's iron grip over the Karachi Metropolitan Council gives him an edge over others.

However, the likelihood of the Pakistani Army releasing Akhtar anytime soon seem unlikely and under these circumstances, the Mayor will have to assume his position in prison. MQM and Akhtar had been at loggerheads with the Army which even led to the party's founder Altaf Hussain living in self-exile in north of London.

Hussain claims to be a crusader of the rights of mujahirs and Urdu-speaking community who migrated to Pakistan during India's partition. However, his entire politics has been shrouded ion controversy and his critics have accused him of using violent means to capture power.

Chikanguniya cases on a rise in New Delhi

There has been a sudden increase in chikanguniya cases in the national capital, with 188 blood samples testing positive for this mosquito-borne disease in the last one and a half months at the AIIMS itself.

Health experts have attributed the rise to a possible "evolution" in the virus that carries this disease and change in weather factors like humidity. "The disease is caused by the same aedes aegypti mosquito which causes dengue but the difference is that dengue virus had four strains while chikanguniya has only one," National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCP) Director, A C Dhariwal, told reporters.

"From July 1 to August 10, we tested 325 blood samples in our labs, out of which 188 were found positive for chikanguniya," an AIIMS doctor said.

Dhariwal says the rise in the cases this year could be because of chikanguniya virus showing some evolution compared to last year and weather conditions proving conducive to its growth.

11-year-old from Odisha heads to Bayern Munich Academy

An 11-year-old football prodigy from Bhubaneswar has been selected to train at Germany's Bayern Munich football club.

Chandan Nayak, who lives in the Sabar Sahi slum of the city, has been chosen for an all-expenses-paid junior football camp to Bayern.

"When he was selected in Odisha, he was the youngest (11). The selection criteria says that the age should be between 14 to 16 and being an 11-year-old kid he was not allowed but we asked them to give him a chance, he surprised everyone," his coach told reporters.

No of Britons willing to immigrate to New Zealand increased substantially post Brexit

Ever since the British voted in favour of leaving the European Union, 10,500 Briton have inquired about immigrating to New Zealand. This was revealed by country's leading newspaper New Zealand Herald that claimed the numbers have doubled as compared to the same period last year.

According to the newspapers, 10,647 Britons have registered with the country's immigration department since Brexit. In 2015, 4599 British citizens had applied for immigration.

The report reveals that a day after the Brexit vote, New Zealand's immigration desk received 998 applications which was 10 times the number on the previous day. While registering with the immigration website, the applicants have to check whether there are skills are in demand in the country. And the skills that are demand in the country include poultry farmers, bakers, ski instructors, dentists, upholsters, among others.

Among many reasons, the paper cited "a rugby team that plays rugby"and "affordable houses and no traffic" as the primary ones to immigrate.

Malian fighter pleads guilty in Timbuktu artefacts destruction case

A Malian fighter has pleaded guilty at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague, in what is the first ever case of a suspect charged with war crimes against a World Heritage site.

Ahmas al-Faqi al-Mahdi is accused of intentionally attacking nine mausoleums and the Sidi Yahi mosque within Timbuktu. He said he had been misled by the al-Qaeda and Ansar Dine groups, adding that he would never repeat the crime.

Antarctica may soon lose yet another major ice shelf

Scientists have reported the progression of a large crack on Larsen C the fourth largest Antarctic ice shelf.

The crack in Larsen C grew around 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) in length between 2011 and 2015. And as it grew, also became wider - by 2015, yawning some 200 meters in length, The Washington Post reported.

The daily reported that report researchers from Project MIDAS were alarmed to see that the rift had grown another 22 kilometers (13.67 miles) since it was last observed in March 2016, and has widened to about 350 meters. The full length of the rift is now 130 km, or over 80 miles.

What this means is that it may be only a matter of time before we see the loss of an enormous chunk of Larsen C, the Post reported, adding the amount of ice that could be lost would be around 6,000 square kilometers, or 2,316 square miles.