London Mayor condemns plans to hold anti-India march over Kashmir on Diwali

He said that his City Hall office would be working with Scotland Yard to ensure a “robust” policing plan was in place for such a march

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has condemned plans to hold an anti-India march here on the Kashmir issue on Diwali next Sunday, saying it would deepen divisions in the UK capital and called on the organisers and prospective participants to cancel the protest rally. According to Met Police details on the permissions sought for the proposed march, an estimated 5,000-10,000 protesters plan to commence their march from Richmond Terrace near Downing Street and converge outside the Indian High Commission in London.

In response to a letter by Indian-origin London Assembly member Navin Shah, Mayor Saqib Khan said, “I absolutely condemn the plans for a protest march to take place on the auspicious day of Diwali, in the vicinity of the Indian High Commission in London.” “This march will only deepen divisions at a time when Londoners need to come together. That is why I am calling on those organising the march and all those considering taking part in it to think again and cancel their plans,” said the Pakistan-origin London Mayor in the letter dated October 18. He said that his City Hall office would be working with Scotland Yard to ensure a “robust” policing plan was in place for such a march.

In response to Shah’s request to consider seeking permission to ban the protest due to public disorder fears, he added: “As you know, the power to ban marches of this nature lies solely with the Home Secretary, not with me as the Mayor of London. I am copying this letter to both the Home Secretary, Priti Patel, and the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Cressida Dick, so they can clearly see the extent of my concerns about this march.” Shah, in his letter, recalled the violent clashes outside the Indian mission on August 15 between diaspora groups marking Independence Day and British Pakistani and separatist groups…

Delhi’s air toxic, but these 5 Indian cities are even worse: WHO report

In May, the World Health Organisation said Delhi was the sixth-most polluted city in the country

That time of year when Delhi makes the news for its severely polluted air is back with a vengeance. On November 8, the day after Diwali, pollution in the city reached the “severe-plus emergency” category because of the widespread use of firecrackers. And while people in Delhi can testify to just how bad it gets, what’s even more surprising is that there are five other Indian cities that fare even worse when it comes to PM 2.5 levels.

PM 10 refers to particulate matter with a diameter below 10 μm; PM 2.5 refers to that with a diameter below 2.5 μm. PM 2.5 is generally considered more harmful since its smaller size enables it to enter the lungs and cause more damage than larger particles can.|Delhi Air Pollution 

According to a report released by the World Health Organisation in May this year, Kanpur, Faridabad, Varanasi, [BS]Gaya and Patna are even more polluted than Delhi. In the list of the 15 most polluted cities in the world, 14 are in India. Almost all of them lie in the northern states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana and Bihar.

While Kanpur ranked at one in the WHO’s list, a Reuters report pointed out that the city has a hard time tracking air quality. “Every week a lung cancer patient walks in; earlier we would get one in three months,” Prem Singh, head of the department of medicine in Kanpur’s Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Memorial Medical College, told Reuters.|Business Standard 

Make a simple outfit shine using jewellery, make-up

With the festive season in full swing, picking the perfect ensemble with jewellery and make-up that accentuates the outfit is they key to stand out.

Raminder Singh, Principal Jewellery designer, BlueStone gives some tips on how to make your outfit shine with the appropriate jewellery.

* Pair busy patterns with subdued jewellery: If the outfit has a busy print or textures, ensure that it is paired with simple jewellery. Solid watches, earrings and bracelets go a long way. The focus should be on simplicity – a small pendant, diamond studs, and a simple bracelet is enough to make an outfit look complete.

* Highlight your face with statement earrings: Match your earrings to your face shape and put on a pair of statement earrings to bring out your best facial features. For example, women with heart-shaped faces should consider earrings that are wider at the bottom for a balanced look. If your face has an oval shape, triangular earrings and studs will showcase your cheekbones.

Beauty Tips

* Illuminate your skin tone with jewellery that complements it: Gold tones go well with darker hair, while silver illuminates most natural tones. White gold and gems that are purple, blue and red pair nicely with cooler skin tones. Warmer skin tones go well with orange, yellow and green gemstones, as well as with yellow metals.

* Colour coordination: For a complete look, it is imperative to coordinate the colour of the jewellery pieces based on the outfit. White pearls match well with blue and green outfits. Purple clothes should be paired with green emeralds or gold-toned jewellery. Diamonds can be coordinated with any look, and black jewellery makes a neutral outfit look spectacular.

Business Standard OR BS

Choked morning in Delhi-NCR as air quality goes from bad to worse

In Delhi, the overall PM2.5 (particles in the air with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometres) was recorded at 264 against the safe limit of 60

Latest News: Delhi was “gasping for breath” on Monday when air pollution dipped to “very poor”, prompting residents to tweet that it’s time to flee the city. The air quality index (AQI) in the morning was recorded at 374, which falls in the ‘very poor’ category, according to System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR).

In Delhi, the overall PM2.5 (particles in the air with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometres) was recorded at 264 against the safe limit of 60. The PM2.5 also called “fine particulates,” can be a matter of more serious health concern than PM10.

Delhi Air Pollution

The PM10 level in Delhi stood at 374 against the safe limit of 100, as per SAFAR. An AQI of 0-100 is considered ‘Good+Satisfactory’, 101 to 200 ‘moderate’, 201 to 300 ‘poor’, 301 to 400 ‘very poor’ and 401 to 500 ‘severe’, as per SAFAR. “If significant stubble burning continues on Sunday and Monday in the NW (northwest) region of India then its impact is very likely over Delhi and AQI may reach the upper end of the very poor category.

“The northwest wind direction may bring the influence of biomass fire on Tuesday and Wednesday,” the IITM said. An official with the Centre-run System of Air Quality Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) said despite moderate wind speed, the pollution in Delhi rose due to stubble burning from the neighbouring states.

Business Standard OR BS

Diwali: Cracker ban goes up in smoke as Delhi air quality turns 'very poor'

A 'very poor' air quality index essentially means that people may suffer from respiratory illnesses on a prolonged exposure to such air

 

The festive fervour gripped the nation on Thursday as people celebrated Diwali, often referred to as 'the festival of lights by lighting diyas (earthen lamps), paying obeisance to Goddess Lakshmi, distributing sweets. However, a quiet and promising evening gave way to thick haze and noise as Delhi celebrated Diwali, dashing the hopes of cracker-free festivities, following a Supreme Court ban on the sale of firecrackers in the National Capital Region (NCR).

ALSO READ: From PM Modi in Kashmir to Yogi in Ayodhya: How leaders celebrated Diwali

The cracker-bursting was relatively subdued as compared to previous years. However, the revelers in the adjoining townships of Delhi such as Noida, Gurgaon and Faridabad paid little heed to the apex court's writ and environmentalists' concerns.

Real-time pollution data alarming

The online indicators of the pollution monitoring stations in the city glowed red, indicating a 'very poor' air quality as the volume of ultrafine particulates PM 2.5 and PM 10, which enter the respiratory system and manage to reach the bloodstream, sharply rose from around 7 pm.

At 10 pm, in Mandir Marg in Delhi, the PM 2.5 concentration was 390 units against the prescribed 60 units, while PM 10 was 480 against the prescribed 100...Read More

Like bursting crackers on Diwali? Know the extent to which they pollute air

SC banned sale of firecrackers across NCR ahead of Diwali over concerns of growing air pollution in what is now the world's 11th most polluted city, according to WHO

 

Popular firecrackers, such as fuljhadis (sparklers), snake tablet, anar (flower-pot), pul pul (string sparkler), ladi or laad (strings of 1,000 crackers) and chakri (spinning firecracker) emit particulate matter (PM) 2.5 in levels 200 to 2,000 times the safety limit recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), IndiaSpend reported on October 29, 2016.

The ban generated opposition, as this tweet from writer Chetan Bhagat illustrated.
Diwali is 1 day, 0.27% of year. pollution comes from 99.6% days of poor planning and regulation. Fix that. Not make 1 religion feel guilty. 

— Chetan Bhagat (@chetan_bhagat) October 9, 2017 

Some saw it an issue of religious freedom, as this tweet from Tripura Governor Tathagata Roy indicated. 

कभी दही हांडी,आज पटाखा ,कल को हो सकता है प्रदूषण का हवाला देकर मोमबत्ती और अवार्ड वापसी गैंग हिंदुओ की चिता जलाने पर भी याचिका डाल दे ! 

— Tathagata Roy (@tathagata2) October 10, 2017 

(First Dahi handi and now firecrackers, maybe next time the ‘candle marching’ and ‘awards wapsi’ gang will cite the excuse of pollution and file a petition against lighting of pyre by Hindus.) 

Some ridiculed the narrative to make it about preserving religious customs, as this tweet from Abhijeet showed. 

Tweet from 1818: "Sati burning is part of our culture. Why are these ppl, with the help of outsiders are destroying our Hindu religion?" 

— Abhijeet (@abhic4ever) October 10, 2017 

Others, such as Puducherry lieutenant governor Kiran Bedi welcomed the ban.

Feeling very relieved for a noise and smoke free Diwali. 

No doubt hurts business of crackers but good health does not come without a price 

— Kiran Bedi (@thekiranbedi) October 9, 2017 

The Supreme Court Firecracker ban was pronounced on October 8, 2017, across the national capital region ahead of Diwali (until October 31, 2017) over concerns of growing air pollution in what is now the world’s 11th-most polluted city, according to the WHO....read more

Richard Thaler of US wins 2017 Nobel Economics Prize: All you need to know

He won the prize for his pioneering work to bridge the gap between economics and psychology

US economist Richard Thaler won the 2017 Nobel Economics Prize for his contributions in the field of behavioural economics, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said on Monday.

"In total, Richard Thaler's contributions have built a bridge between the economic and psychological analyses of individual decision-making," the award-giving body said on announcing the 9 million Swedish crown ($1.1 million) prize.

"His empirical findings and theoretical insights have been instrumental in creating the new and rapidly expanding field of behavioural economics, which has had a profound impact on many areas of economic research and policy."(economy today)

"By exploring the consequences of limited rationality, social preferences, and lack of self-control, he has shown how these human traits systematically affect individual decisions as well as market outcomes," the Nobel jury said in a statement.

The economics prize, officially called the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, was established in 1968. It was not part of the original group of awards set out in dynamite tycoon Nobel's 1895 will.

Who is Richard Thaler

Thaler is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a Fellow of the American Finance Association and the Econometrics Society, and in 2015 served as the President of the American Economic Association.....READ MORE

No firecrackers in Delhi-NCR this Diwali as SC bans sale until Nov 1

The bench said they wanted to see the impact of a cracker-free festivity at least in one Diwali

The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that there will be no sale of firecrackers during Diwali, as it restored a November 2016 order banning the sale of firecrackers and stocking of firecrackers in Delhi and National Capital Region.

A bench headed by Justice A K Sikri, while restoring the order, said: “We should see at least in one Diwali the impact of a cracker-free festivity.”

However, the court said that the September 12, 2017 order lifting the ban on the sale and stocking of firecrackers in Delhi NCR will be back into effect from November 1.