WORLD
Mekong countries say 'thank you India' as China tries to dominate region
Co-chairing the 11th Mekong Ganga Cooperation (MGC) Ministerial Meeting along with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn on Wednesday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that the Mekong region remains of great importance to New Delhi as it seeks multi-dimensional engagement with the Mekong countries.
China floods set alarm bells ringing for dams in fragile Himalayas
On Tuesday evening, the media reports stated that the relentless downpour had caused a 20-metre breach in Yihetan dam in Luoyang, about 140 km away from Zhengzhow. The People's Liberation Army had warned that the dam "may collapse at any time". It was breached on Tuesday night by the army to release floodwaters, which in turn, flooded the highly populated downstream areas.
Why Delta Covid variant is spreading rapidly
Researchers at the Guangdong Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention in China found that viral load -- a measure of the density of viral particles in the body -- is roughly 1,000 times higher in people infected with the Delta variant than those infected with the original coronavirus strain, Nature reported.
'No way': China on WHO's plans to revisit Covid lab leak theory
The WHO had, in March, concluded in a report that a laboratory leak was "extremely unlikely". Undermining the report, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, last week, stated that it was premature on the global health body's part to rule out a potential link between the Covid pandemic and a laboratory leak. He asked China to be more transparent on the issue of data sharing.
US city declares racism public health crisis
"Not only are we publicly acknowledging the existence of a grave inequity that many in our community have known and experienced for so long, we are also committing ourselves to the creation of policies and ordinances that are anti-racist," Mendenhall said. The declaration came a day after Mendenhall adopted a joint resolution with the city council on Tuesday night, reports Xinhua news agency.
Texas won't impose new mask mandate amid resurgence
Abbott said at a press conference on Wednesday that Texas is "past the time of government mandates" and "into the time for personal responsibility", reports Xinhua news agency. The Governor expressed the same idea one day earlier while being interviewed by the local TV station KPRC. "There will be no mask mandate imposed, and the reasons for that are very clear," Abbott said.
Joe Biden believes kids under 12 will be able to get Covid jabs soon
"Soon, in the sense that I do not tell any scientists what they should do. I do not interfere. So, they are doing the examinations now, the testing now, and making the decision now," he said, adding that scientists will make a decision "when they are ready" and have "done all the science that needs to be done" to determine the appropriate vaccination for different age groups.
Republican picks from panel probing US Capitol riot dropped
"Unless Speaker Pelosi reverses course and seats all five Republican nominees, Republicans will not be party to their sham process and will instead pursue our own investigation of the facts," McCarthy said in a statement issued on Wednesday. "No, you have our statement," Pelosi's spokesman Drew Hammill quickly shot down the possibility that the Speaker might withdraw her decision, reports Xinhua news agency.
US govt could breach debt limit in Oct or Nov
Currently, there is no statutory limit on the issuance of new federal debt because the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2019, enacted in August 2019, suspended the limit through July 31, 2021, the CBO report released on Wednesday said. On August 1, the debt limit will be reset to the previous ceiling of $22 trillion, plus the cumulative borrowing that occurred during the period of suspension, the report said.
Oregon wildfire burns over 390K acres, 32% contained
The blaze, which erupted on July 6 due to lightning, has burnt a total of 394,407 acres after merging with the nearby Log Fire, reports Xinhua news agency. "It's shaping up to be another difficult wildfire season. And unfortunately, we're responding to new fires as we continue to recover from last year's devastating fire season," Oregon Governor Kate Brown said in a briefing.
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