Cabinet Approves BioE3 Policy To Foster High-Performance Biomanufacturing

The Union Cabinet on Saturday approved the 'BioE3 (Biotechnology for Economy, Environment and Employment) Policy for fostering High-Performance Biomanufacturing'.

Briefing the media after a meeting of the Union Cabinet, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the policy will provide innovation-driven support to research and development and entrepreneurship across thematic sectors.

The cabinet meeting was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Mr Vaishanaw said that the new policy will lead to the acceleration of technology development and commercialization by establishing biomanufacturing and Bio-Al hubs and Biofoundry.

The policy will help prioritize regenerative bioeconomy models of green growth and facilitate expansion of India's skilled workforce besides providing a surge in the creation of jobs.

The benefits include strengthening the government's initiatives such as 'Net Zero' carbon economy and 'Lifestyle for Environment', steering India on the path of accelerated 'Green Growth' by promoting 'Circular Bioeconomy' and fostering and advancing future that is more sustainable, innovative, and responsive to global challenges.

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Minor's Rapist, Now Survivor's Husband, Sentenced To 20-Year Jail

A POCSO court in Bundi on Friday convicted a man for raping a minor although he married her when she attained adulthood.

The couple now has a one-year-old child. The court also slapped a fine of Rs 80,000 and ordered the convict to pay Rs 4 lakh for the survivor's livelihood for the time he stays in jail and completes his term.

POCSO Court I of Bundi city convicted Shetan Meena (24), a resident of Mal Ki Jhopndiyan in Lakheri police station in Bundi district, to 20 years imprisonment for kidnapping and raping a 17-year-old girl in June 2022, public prosecutor at POCSO Court I, Rakesh Thakur, said.

The father of the minor survivor lodged a missing report in Lakheri police station on June 2, 2022. He suspected Shetan to be the accused in the matter.

Following this, the police carried out a search operation and rescued the minor girl after around a month. They arrested Shetan who was later released on bail, the public prosecutor said.

Shetan married the survivor in Gurugram a year after the crime in 2023 when she became an adult. The couple now has a child.

However, the court took note of the under-aged status of the girl and held Shetan guilty of abduction and repeated rape under the relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) Act, 2012.

The court awarded 20 years of imprisonment to Shetan. It also imposed a fine of Rs 80,000 upon the convict and ordered him to pay Rs 4 lakh to the survivor for her livelihood for the time his term completes in jail, he added.

Statements of 12 witnesses were recorded during the trial and 29 documents were produced before the court, Mr Thakur added.

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Top Employee Of This Bank Accused Of Sexual Harassment, Court Issues Notice

The Delhi High Court on Thursday issued a notice regarding a public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the appointment of Pankaj Dwivedi as the Executive Director of Union Bank of India.

The PIL, filed by a woman who has accused Pankaj Dwivedi of sexual harassment, questions his appointment, which was made on March 27 for a three-year term.

The notice was issued by a division bench consisting of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, representing the woman, argued that Pankaj Dwivedi's appointment as Executive Director of Union Bank of India violated regulations due to the lack of vigilance clearance.

He emphasised that this contravenes the appointment norms for public sector undertakings like banks. Mr Bhushan also noted that a chargesheet had been filed against Pankaj Dwivedi in a sexual harassment case.

It was also argued by the petitioner that Pankaj Dwivedi was previously a General Manager at Punjab & Sind Bank before joining Union Bank of India. In 2020, the Supreme Court annulled the transfer of the woman who filed the plea against Pankaj Dwivedi. She had reported irregularities and corruption involving Pankaj Dwivedi at her branch and alleged that he sexually harassed her in 2018.

The woman had raised concerns about account maintenance for liquor contractors and corruption allegations against Pankaj Dwivedi.

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"Wasn't Aware Until...": Principal Of School Where 6 Students Were Harassed

Following the arrest of a teacher for the alleged harassment of students in Akola, the Principal of the school, Ravindra Samdur on Wednesday said that they were not aware of the incident until the teachers met the students after a programme of the school was over.

He said that four to five girls said they were harassed. The development comes just days after Badlapur sexual abuse case.

"There was a program in the school yesterday...After the program was over the teacher went to meet the students of class 7-8. Some 4-5 girls said that they were harassed, then we came to know about this, until then we were not aware of any such thing," the Principal of the school said.

Earlier today the police said that a school teacher was arrested in Maharashtra's Akola district on charges of harassment following complaints from six school girls.

The incident came to light after schoolgirls filed a complaint about the teacher who has been identified as Pramod Manohar Sardar. Police have recorded the statements of the victim girls.

The accused was arrested on Tuesday evening.

Superintendent of Police Akolka Bachchan Singh told ANI, "Akola Police received a complaint of molestation of six school girls by Pramod Manohar Sardar, a teacher of the Zilla Parishad School in Kajikhed. Police immediately arrested the accused teacher and recorded the statements of the victim girls."

"Cases under sections 74 and 75 of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita and POCSO Act were registered," SP Singh added.

Further investigation into the case is underway, he said.

The incident comes amid nationwide protests over the murder and alleged sexual assault of a female trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in West Bengal City of Kolkata on August 9.

In a similar incident but at Maharashtra's Badlapur, two minor girls were allegedly sexually assaulted at a school, sparking violent protests and subsequent reported police action on the protesters who had gathered on the streets demanding justice for the victims.

Maharashtra Police has arrested more than 40 people and registered an FIR against 300 people following the massive protest over the incident that led to stone-pelting, disruption of train services and lathi- -charges on Tuesday.

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Indian Man Visits Harvard, Finds 'Made in Pakistan' Jacket Worth Rs 12,000

An Indian man has shared his surprise after discovering “Made in Pakistan” merchandise at Harvard University in the USA. Content creator Ishan Sharma, who has been documenting his trip to the United States on social media, mentioned that he visited the Ivy League institution to purchase some merchandise.

Upon arriving at The Harvard Shop, the official student-run merchandise store at Harvard, Sharma was first taken aback by the price and then by the label indicating where the clothing was manufactured.

The Indian YouTuber posted photos of himself wearing a Harvard jacket in the school's signature crimson and black colours. One photo clearly shows the label on the jacket, which reads "Made in Pakistan."

"Came to Harvard to buy merch. This one's Rs. 12,000! But Made in Pakistan?!" Mr Sharma wrote on X.

See the post here:

Came to Harvard to buy merch.

This one's is Rs. 12,000!

But Made in Pakistan?! pic.twitter.com/ik6IUPASSu

— Ishan Sharma (@Ishansharma7390) August 19, 2024

As Sharma's post gained attention on social media, many users advised him against buying the product, arguing that it wasn't worth the price. A user wrote, "Quality is really bad. I picked a few last year and 2-3 washes and they all are now good to mop the floor. Official merch."

Another user wrote, "Don't buy that stuff, it's worst. I got one with the same stuff and same design, it got lint on it after wearing the first time."

Some X users also pointed out that the Rs 12,000 was the brand price, not the manufacturing cost.

"Why do we always want to convert everything into INR. It's just around 145$. When you get hired in the US you'll demand like $100,000 a year, at that moment you won't convert it to INR. Btw! iPhone is around 150-200$ and made in China. You're paying brand value, not manufacturing price," a user wrote. 

In a separate post, Mr Sharma described his visit to Harvard University as "epic." "I visited the libraries, the John Harvard statue, the Harvard Shop, the Harvard Yard and Square, and even interacted with a few students there. Love the vibe of the whole place. It's like a little town of all red buildings!" he said, adding that it was a dream college for him as a 17-year-old watching documentaries and films such as The Social Network.

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Senior Bank Staffer Falls Prey To Sextortion, Loses Rs 2.5 Lakh: Cops

A 26-year-old senior executive of a private bank, who is also the son of a police personnel, coughed up Rs 2.5 lakh after he was caught in sextortion, police said on Monday.

The complainant lost the money in the early hours of Thursday (August 15) when he was at his home in Mumbai's Prabhadevi area.

In his complaint, the bank executive said he received a friend request from a woman, who identified herself as Kriti Sharma, on Instagram around 1 am. He accepted the request and the two started chatting, said an official citing the FIR.

The complainant shared his mobile number with the woman, who then made a WhatsApp video call to him. The woman on the other side was naked and she urged him to take off his clothes, as per the FIR.

The bank executive told police he later learnt that the woman had recorded the video call without his knowledge.

Around 1.20 am, he received his video from the same number, with the woman threatening to share it with his Instagram contacts and on social media if he didn't pay her money.

The woman promised to delete the video if the complainant paid Rs 1 lakh. After he complied, she made more demands, eventually extracting Rs 2.5 lakh through five UPI transactions, the official said.

Realising that he was trapped and duped, the bank executive approached the Dadar police and filed a complaint, the official said.

Police have registered a case under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Information Technology Act, the official said, adding that a probe is underway.

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Mom-To-Be Deepika Padukone, Dressed In Traditional Best, Spotted In Mumbai

Deepika Padukone, who is soon to become a mother, was spotted in Mumbai tonight. The Padmaavat actor was dressed in a salwar suit. She kept her hair tied in a bun. Deepika was pictured leaving a venue and getting into her car with her security personnel by her side. Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh are expecting their first child together. The baby is due in September. Earlier this month, Deepika Padukone stepped out for dinner. She wore an easy breezy green outfit. Take a look at the video here:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Varinder Chawla (@varindertchawla)

ICYMI, these are the pictures we are talking about:

Buggi Spotted!! She knew we missed her!!! ????♾️✨ #DeepikaPadukone pic.twitter.com/M0k2QYqsIf

— Rimmi • #TeamTwins??✨ (@BedaTarrJaye) August 8, 2024

Deepika Padukone announced her pregnancy in February. She simply used baby emojis and the caption accompanying it read, "September 2024." Take a look:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by दीपिका पादुकोण (@deepikapadukone)

Deepika Padukone was last seen in Kalki 2898 AD. Soon after the release of the film, Deepika Padukone shared a reel on Instagram capturing Ranveer's reaction to the film alongside fans' responses. In the video, Ranveer can be heard saying, "It's really trippy to see a movie where her character is pregnant, and she's pregnant in real life. What's happening?" Deepika smiled and responded, "The real review will come once we're home." She added, "I'm overwhelmed with emotions. I don't know what to feel." Captioning the video, she wrote, "What was your favourite part? Comment below. Have you watched it yet? (sic)" Take a look:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by दीपिका पादुकोण (@deepikapadukone)

Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh got married on November 14, 2018. They exchanged wedding vows after dating for nearly five years.  They worked in films like Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela, Padmaavat, 83.

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