PTI
NEW DELHI, May 22: India on Friday successfully test-fired short-range ballistic missile âAgni-1â from the integrated test range at Odishaâs Chandipur, the defence ministry said. The launch validated all operational and technical parameters, it said.âThe test was carried out under the aegis of the Strategic Forces Command,â the ministry said.The Agni 1 to 4 missiles have ranges from 700 km to 3,500 km and they have already been deployed.
From Our Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI, May 22: Delhiites looking for authentic cuisine amid local vibes from the Northeast have finally got a choice with the Meghalaya-themed cafĂ© and community space O’Shillong being launched here on Friday with streams of people from the region already making a beeline for it.
The cafĂ©’s home-inspired Dukan Ja (diner) floor comes with a feeling of classic coziness, no matter what the season. The cafĂ©’s ground floor is marked by a hill-station styled Tyndur (bakery) that nods to all baked goods representing traditions around tea-time back in Meghalaya.
The four-storied cafĂ© in a posh locality in Safdarjung has a high concentration of people from the region. The cafĂ© also comes with a well-thought-out O’Shillong Studio and Co-Work that will provide a conducive atmosphere to creative professionals and artists from the region. Cha Dukan (cafe) at the terrace offers a close-up view of the Safdarjung neighbourhood stories.
Tipriti Kharbangar performs during the cafĂ©’s opening in New Delhi. (ST)
The opening was headlined by Shillong’s rockstar Lil Mama Tips (Tipriti Kharbangar). Garo band Skubo Project played a great supporting act in the celebrations, giving the guests a diverse Meghalayan flavour of music.
The Shillong star also launched the cafĂ©’s studio with an interesting chat on The Riniki Podcast. Rinki, a poetess, emphasised the importance of using her voice to advance environmental causes, with a special mention about her forest campaign in her Malki neighbourhood. She declared her happiness at the launch of O’Shillong.
“So happy to be part of the culture and community of O’Shillong, where the taste, traditions and tales of Shillong, our beautiful abode, find a home in the big city!” she said.
“We are a community where our people can engage, contribute and represent Meghalaya with pride and professionalism,” another partner of the cafĂ© said. (Contd on P-7)
PTI
NEW DELHI, May 22: The Supreme Court on Friday granted interim bail to two Delhi riots accused Abdul Khalid Saifi and Tasleem Ahmad while justifying denial of bail to activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam earlier this year, saying it was done not because Article 21 was considered subordinate but because, upon an accused-specific evaluation, the material did not justify overriding the statutory embargo.
A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and P B Varale granted interim bail of six months to Saifi and Ahmad, and imposed certain conditions on them, including that they will not speak to media or make social media posts about the case.
âBail was declined to two appellants not because Article 21 was treated as subordinate to Section 43D(5), but because, upon an accused-specific evaluation, the court found that their role, the prima facie material attributed to them, and the attendant concerns of trial integrity did not, at that stage, justify overriding the statutory embargo.
âEven in respect of those two appellants, liberty was reserved to renew the prayer for bail upon completion of examination of protected witnesses or upon expiry of one year, whichever was earlier.â
âThat course itself shows that the judgment treated Article 21 as a continuing constitutional check and not as a spent or excluded consideration,â the top court said about the January 5 verdict, denying bail to Khalid and Imam.
Justifying the verdict, it said the decision in Gulfisha Fatima case requires to be understood as it proceeded on the very premise that the KA Najeeb case of the 2021 verdict binds all benches of lesser strength as it is an authoritative pronouncement of a three-judge bench of this court.
âIt expressly recognised that Article 21 occupies a central place in the constitutional scheme; that the right to speedy trial is a facet of personal liberty; and that pre-trial incarceration can- not, by mere passage of time, assume the character of punishment.
It further recognised the KA Najeeb case as a constitutional safeguard against unconscionable detention and recorded that there can be no second opinion on the proposition that statutory restrictions must yield in an appropriate case,â it said.
The bench said the ratio of the KA Najeeb case, therefore, is neither a charter for indefinite incarceration under the cover of Section 43D(5) nor a mathematical command that the mere pas- sage of time, divorced from all surrounding circumstances, must automatically result in bail.
The bench headed by Justice Kumar, whose January 5 judgment denying bail to Khalid and Imam in the 2020 Delhi riots larger conspiracy case came under severe criticism by another bench earlier this week, said that the question of law on whether prolonged incarceration and delay in trial can override the statutory restrictions on bail needs an authoritative pronouncement.
âThe controversy raises a broader question concerning the manner in which constitutional courts are to approach bail where prolonged incarceration is asserted in prosecutions governed by special statutes imposing restrictive bail conditions.
âIn this background, it would be imperative or, in other words, necessary for the appropriate bench that may be constituted by the Chief Justice of India to clarify or expound the position of law laid down in the KA Najeebâs case.
Particularly in the back- drop of the rigour of 43D(5) which imposes restriction consciously and has received the assent of Parliament, which obviously was brought in keeping in mind the valuable right enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution of India,â the bench ordered.
(PTI)
JABALPUR/BHOPAL, May 22: Jabalpur police on Friday took into their custody Samarth Singh, an accused in the alleged dowry death case of his wife Twisha Sharma, after he reached the district court here to surrender, his lawyer said.
He was taken to the nearby Omti police station and would be handed over to Bhopal police, his lawyer Jaydeep Kaurav said.
Samarth Singh reached the district court in the evening with the intention of surrendering after withdrawing his pre-arrest bail application filed in the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
Singh, who is a lawyer by profession, was evading arrest since an FIR was registered against him and his mother, former district judge Giribala Singh, following Twisha Sharma’s death on May 12.Members of Twisha’s family and their lawyers were also present outside the court.
Model-turned-actor Twisha Sharma (33) was found hanging at her matrimonial home in Bhopal’s Katara Hills area on May 12. Her family accused her in-laws of dowry harassment and abetment to suicide.Police had announced a reward of Rs 30,000 for information leading to Samarth Singh’s arrest. Twisha’s family, meanwhile, on Friday demanded a comprehensive and independent probe into a series of phone calls allegedly made by Giribala Singh to influential public figures and CCTV technicians immediately following her death.
The family issued a statement the day after Giribala Singh informed the First Class Judicial Magistrate that eight CCTVs installed at her premises were being managed by a private company. She also informed that the gadgets were not being maintained properly, as a result of which the footage showed a difference of two days, two hours and 20 minutes. Giribala Singh had said in her application on Thursday that the wrong date was creating confusion among the general public.
PTI
A couple allegedly killed their two minor children before committing suicide over a family dispute at their home on Friday.Govind Sahu (45) and his wife Chanchal (40) were found hanging from the ceiling, while their daughter Drishna (13) and son Yashant (11) were lying dead on a bed in their house. The deaths came to light late in the morning when the family did not come out of its room, and Govind’s mother peeped inside, saw the scene and alerted the police, he said. According to the police, a note, purportedly written by Chanchal, was recovered from the scene, in which she mentioned disputes with her husband.Prima facie, it appears that the couple killed the children before hanging themselves, an official said, adding that investigations are underway to ascertain the exact circumstances behind the deaths.
(PTI)
CHANDRAPUR, May 22: Four women collecting tendu leaves were mauled to death by a tiger in Maharashtra’s Chandrapur district on Friday morning, a forest official said. A group of women had gone to a forested patch to collect tendu leaves, which are predominantly used as the natural wrapper for ‘bidis’ (hand-rolled cigarettes). As they were busy collecting the leaves, a tiger killed four of them, said officials.
The deceased women have been identified as Kawadabai Mohurle (45), Anitabai Mohurle (40), Sunita Mohurle (38) and Sangita Chaudhary (50). After being alerted, a team of forest officials reached the area, said Chief Conservator of Forests (Chandrapur Circle) R M Ramanujan, adding that more details would emerge after the ‘panchnama’.
NEW DELHI, May 22: West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on Friday.
This was Adhikariâs first meeting with the prime minister in the national capital after being sworn-in as the chief minister on May 9.âChief Minister of West Bengal, Shri @SuvenduWB met Prime Minister @narendramodi,â the Prime Ministerâs Office said in a post on X.
Modi had attended Adhikariâs swearing-in ceremony in Kolkata after the BJPâs landslide victory in the recently-held West Bengal Assembly polls.
Adhikari said it was an honour and privilege to meet the prime minister in New Delhi.
âThis marks my first official meeting with Honâble PM since assuming the responsibility of serving the people of West Bengal as the Chief Minister. I extend my deepest gratitude to Honâble PM for his warm wishes and above all, for his unwavering commitment to the progress of our state,â he said in a post on X.
The CM said during the âfruitful discussionâ, the prime minister reemphasised his vision of âSabka Saath, Sabka Vikasâ and reiterated that West Bengalâs development is a top priority for the Centre. (PTI)
(The Conversation)
It may sound too bizarre to be true but the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa), a fish that inhabits rivers, lakes and swamps in Mexico and Texas, exists over much of its range in populations that are 100% female.
In 1932, the Amazon molly became the first known verte brate to reproduce by cloning itself, producing all-female populations. A new genetic study has given scientists in sights into the longstand ing mystery about how and why this happens.
The proportion of fe males in the human popu lation is roughly 50%. A few countries such as Maldives (38% female) and Moldova (54% fe male) diverge from this, but these differences can largely be explained due to male immigration and emigration.
However, much more dramatic sex ratios are found in the animal king dom. Kentish plover bird populations, where males care for offspring, com prise only 14% female, and sea turtle popula tions, where sex is determined by temperature often exceed 75% female.
Most animal species repro duce sexually. This involves the fusion of two gametes, the sperm and egg, that develops into an embryo. A process, known as recombination, ran domly shuffles the genetic material from the mother and father.
This produces increased variability in the offspring, and new combinations of traits. The genetic diversity improves the chances of survival for the species if its environment changes.
But the Amazon molly re produces asexually, where there is no mixing of genetic material. This reduces genetic diversity, making populations vulnerable to extinction ĂąâŹâ if one Amazon molly is suscepti ble to a disease, they all are.
And there is another prob lem to being identical. Asexual species are more likely to ac cumulate harmful mutations.
This phenomenon, known as Muller’s ratchet, predicts that clones should go extinct within 10,000 years.
Yet, the Amazon molly, a hybrid that arose through sexual reproduction between a female Atlantic molly (P. mexi cana) and a male sailfin molly (P. latipinna) has survived for over 100,000 years.
So, what is the secret to their sustained existence? Gene conversion is a process where one version of a gene is replaced by another. In most species, such as humans, it is used to repair damaged DNA. However, in the Amazon molly, gene conversion has slowed Muller’s ratchet.
The new study found that gene conversion appears to play the same role as recombi nation. This essentially enables the fish to purge harmful muta tions and preserve beneficial ones.
Indeed, despite reproducing asexually, the Amazon molly shows differences in body shape between populations, demonstrating evolution in response to its local environ ment.
The Amazon molly repro duces via a process called parthenogenesis, also known as “virgin birth”, where young are produced from an unfertilised gamete.
This allows rapid growth of successful genotypes, the ge netic blueprints of organisms, as all of the Amazon mollies can reproduce without finding a mate.
As such, animals created via virgin births can colonise habitats quickly.
Parthenogenesis can be ob ligative, like in the Amazon molly, where it is the only means of reproduction. But, it can also be facultative, where species can switch between sexual and asexual reproduc tion.
For example, the marbled crayfish, reproduce sexually in their native range but rapidly establish themselves in new habitats asexually, often from a single female.
The Amazon molly has a type of parthenogenesis known as gynogenesis where sperm is required to stimulate develop ment of the unfertilised egg.
So, the Amazon molly still needs to “mate” each time she reproduces, but the sperm is of their own species see the males with an Amazon molly, they are more likely to mate with them.
Parthenogenesis is common in invertebrate animals, includ ing ants, bees and wasps. It is less common in vertebrates but has been found in other fish, amphibians, reptiles includ ing the Komodo dragon, birds such as Californian condors and sharks for example ham merheads.
Other all-female parthe nogenic vertebrates include the whiptail lizards, where almost a third of species are comprised solely of females. The New Mexico whiptail liz ard has even become a queer icon.
Unlike the Amazon molly, these “lesbian lizards” do not need sperm from a male to stimulate egg development. They just need to engage in mating behaviour to stimulate ovulation, bypassing males completely.
Some blue-spotted salaman ders have reproduced sexu ally for several million years. Although the all-female popu lations of the salamanders re produce in a similar way to the molly fish, requiring sperm to stimulate development, they are kleptogenic.
This means that they replace a portion of the mother’s DNA with a portion of DNA from the male’s sperm, incorporat ing a small amount of his genetic material into the offspring.
This facilitates the ge netic diversity that has enabled the salamanders to survive for so long.
Like the Amazon mol ly, the Brahminy blind snake, also known as the flowerpot snake due to its habit of burrowing in potted plants, is the only other known vertebrate that breeds exclusively via parthenogenesis.
The snakes have three copies of each chromosome, rather than the usual two, probably due to an error in cell division at some point in the evolutionary history of the species.
Increased numbers of chro mosomes have been found in many species, including salmon with four copies, and sturgeon fish with eight cop ies.
Increased numbers of chro mosomes generates increased genetic diversity, which prob ably explains how the blind snake clones have survived for so long.
There could be more all female animals out there yet to be discovered. After all, up until a few years ago we didn’t know that female snakes have two clitorises.
(IANS)
Actor-politician Kamal Haasan has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to convene a national summit of all Chief Ministers to address the economic impact of the ongoing US-Israel-Iran conflict on India. In a video message on X, he warned that disrupted sea trade routes and rising energy costs are affecting households, with fuel, oil, and fertiliser prices increasing globally.
Haasan supported Modi’s appeal for energy conservation, saying national responsibility should rise above politics during crises. He argued that governments must also share the burden on citizens and proposed immediate steps to ease inflationary pressure, including reducing state VAT on petrol and diesel and lowering metro and train fares to encourage public transport use.
He said global instability has led many countries to adopt energy-saving measures and stressed that India must respond collectively. Citing past national crises such as the 1962 and 1965 wars, he highlighted historical examples of public sacrifice and unity.
Haasan also praised the Modi government’s expansion of renewable energy, noting growth in solar and wind capacity, and emphasised the need to further reduce dependence on imported oil and gas through clean and nuclear energy. He concluded that coordinated action could help India withstand the crisis and emerge stronger.
