1) CBSE Class XII Pass Percentage Dips, Noida Girl Tops With 99.6%
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) announced the results of Class XII examination on Sunday.
Raksha Gopal, from Amity International School, Noida, topped the exams with 99.6 percent marks. Bhumi Sawant came in second with 99.4 percent, followed by Aditya Jain and Mannat Luthra, with 99.2 percent.
The all-India pass percentage has gone down from 83.05 percent to 82 percent this year, a senior CBSE official said.
The board has launched a helpline with toll-free number 18000118004 for psychological counselling post the Class XII board results.“65 counsellors will talk to students and parents on the helpline between 8 am to 10 pm,” the official said.
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2) 14 Men Molest Two Women in UP's Rampur
One man has been arrested in Uttar Pradesh’s Rampur for allegedly molesting two women in broad daylight.
The video of the incident has gone viral. In the video, around 12 to 14 men can be seen molesting the two girls. While the girls beg to be spared, the boys can be heard making jokes and filming the incident for social media. A police probe is underway in the matter.
Reacting to news of the incident, Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan told ANI that girls should avoid going to such areas. After the Bulandshahr incident, men should keep their women indoors, he said.
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3) Need Innovative Ways to Fight: Army Chief on Human Shield Incident
Army Chief Bipin Rawat, on 28 May, defended the incident where a Kashmiri man, Farooq Dar, was tied to an Army jeep and used as a human-shield during the 9 April Srinagar by-elections.
Troops need innovative ways to fight against the "dirty war" in Kashmir, said Rawat.
When people are throwing stones and petrol bombs at us, I cannot tell my men just wait and die. I would have been happy if the protesters were firing weapons at the armed forces instead of throwing stones. Kashmir needs a composite solution, everybody will have to get involved.
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4) Tech-Savvy Militant Is New Hizbul Commander in Kashmir
A day after the killing of Sabzar Bhat, Hizbul Mujahideen identified Riyaz Naikoo, at 29 the oldest surviving militant of the outfit, as its new commander in Kashmir, sources said on Sunday.
Tech-savvy Naikoo is considered a moderate among the hardline Hizbul militants, and speaks contrary to the deposed Hizb commander Zakir Musa. He favours a secular society in the valley.
Intelligence sources said Hizbul is likely to nominate Naikoo as its new chief to counter the narrative of deposed commander Zakir Musa that militants in Kashmir were fighting for an Islamic Caliphate and imposition of Shariat.
Pakistan-based Hizbul leadership, according to intelligence agencies, is under tremendous pressure from ISI after deposed Hizb commander Zakir Musa last week spoke about establishing a Caliphate in the Valley, besides threatening separatists against terming Kashmir's struggle as political fight.
(Source: Times of India)
5) Man Objects to Two Men Urinating on the Roadside, Beaten to Death
When Ravinder Kumar, 32, noticed two young men urinating on the roadside in north Delhi’s GTB Nagar on Saturday afternoon, he used his usual method to embarrass them.
He offered to pay them Rs 2 each, the cost of using a public toilet just a few steps away. But the harmless practice of ensuring cleanliness around the spot where he operates his e-rickshaw led to his death.
The two youths argued before leaving the spot with threats to return soon and “disfigure his face”. They returned a few hours later with 15-20 friends and beat him to death with knuckles and stones wrapped in a towel.
Ravinder was very particular about cleanliness. “He never allowed anyone from our family to urinate in public,” said his mother, Susheela.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
6) WHO Reports First 3 Cases of Zika Virus in India, All From Gujarat
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported the first three “laboratory-confirmed cases of Zika virus disease” in India — all from Bapunagar area of Ahmedabad. While the latest case is of a pregnant woman who tested positive in January this year, the first sample dates back to February last year. A WHO report dated 26 May reads:
On 15 May 2017, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, reported three laboratory-confirmed cases of Zika virus disease in Bapunagar area, Ahmedabad district, Gujarat
When contacted, Dr DT Mourya, Director, National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, said the virus was first WHO confirms first three cases of Zika virus in India, all from Gujarat confirmed in one sample from Ahmedabad on 4 January this year, and two other cases were confirmed in the second week of January.
(Source: Indian Express)
7) Cattle Trade Rules Go Against 1960 Law
Restrictions placed by the new rules of the Environment Ministry on the sale of cattle in a livestock market for purposes of slaughter and religious animal sacrifices contravene the very law — Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act of 1960 — under which it has been notified.
The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules of 2017 permit the sale of cattle in markets only to verified “agriculturists,” who have to give an undertaking to authorities that cattle will not be sold or slaughtered for meat. Nor shall the animal be used for sacrifices. The animal will be used only for farming.
The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, enacted on 26 December 1960, however, does not impose any such restriction. It does not ban a cattle owner to sell the carcass of his animals for leather.
(Source: The Hindu)
8) Tejas Express: Railways to Provide Rs 30 Headphones After 337 Stolen
A total of 337 headphones distributed to passengers for the entertainment systems on-board the Mumbai-Goa Tejas Express were stolen in just four round trips after it debuted last Monday, a railway source said.
For its fifth trip on Saturday from CST, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) provided low-cost headphones. The IRCTC spokesperson did not confirm the number of missing headphones, but said that it had bought 1,000 headphones, each costing Rs 30.
The Indian Railway had introduced the systems to provide a flight-like travel experience for passengers.
However, after the first trip itself, the train came back with fewer headphones, damaged infotainment screens and waste strewn all over. “Many passengers do not return the headphones before alighting and take those with them thinking that its cost was included in their ticket fare,” a train attendant said.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
9) Rahul Gandhi Condemns Kerala Youth Cong Activist Who Killed a Calf
On Sunday, the Kerala government suggested it could bring in a law to counter the central ban on sale of cattle for slaughter, as the political slugfest over the issue intensified fuelled by a row over a Youth Congress activist butchering a calf in full public view.
Kerala BJP president Kummanam Rajasekharan, who posted the video of the the gory incident on Twitter. CPI(M) MP MB Rajesh said the illogical form of protest should have been avoided and it would only help the Sangh Parivar.
Police booked some Youth Congress activists as the incident drew flak from various quarters.
An embarrassed Congress sought to distance itself, saying the party will not support anyone who has violated the law, but a Youth Congress activist who led the protest said he had no regrets.
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