Land mutation goes online in 38 tehsils
Bhubaneswar: The state government Friday launched an online facility for the mutation of land in 38 tehsils of 25 districts. Revenue and disaster management minister Maheswar Mohanty inaugurated the service called Direct Web-based Information System of Tahasil (DWIST) along with the project monitoring unit (PMU) . “DWIST will have all the updated information of the tehsils. This system will have all the detailed information on disposal and pending revenue cases which can be accessed by the general public,” Mohanty said. He said that the online facility will be extended to 100 tehsils in another fortnight and to all the 317 tehsils of the state by March 2018.
DGP tried to bribe me:?Kunduli rape victim
Cuttack: The Kunduli rape victim Friday alleged that senior police officers, including DGP R P Sharma, tried to influence her to withdraw the case. The DGP, however, has denied the charge. The 14-year-old girl told local TV reporters that the DGP had met her in November at the SCB Medical College and Hospital, and offered her `90,000 to sign a blank paper. The teenager had last month attempted suicide by
consuming nine iron tablets and was admitted to the hospital in a critical condition. She said torture and mental harassment by police officers forced her to take the extreme step.
Free PIO–OCI card change ends Dec 31
New Delhi: The scheme allowing conversion of Person of Indian Origin (PIO) cards to Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cards free of cost will come to an end Sunday, a home ministry official said Friday. The official said the government has decided to not give further extension beyond the deadline of December 31. However, the conversion would continue beyond the date on payment of fees, the official said requesting anonymity. “As of now, there is no proposal to extend the deadline further as the bulk of people — about 30 lakh — have already converted their PIO cards into OCI cards,” the official said. The home ministry had extended the deadline on four earlier occasions. The PIO card was first implemented in 2002 as a benefit to foreign nationals who could establish at least a third generation tie to Indian origin. The PIO card was valid for travel, work, and residence in India for 15 years. The OCI card was implemented in 2005, carried more expansive benefits than the PIO card, and was valid for the holder’s lifetime.
47 ridley carcasses found in two months
Berhampur: Carcasses of 47 olive ridley sea turtles, including 25 females, have been found near Rushikulya river mouth in Ganjam district here in the past two months, officials said. The forest department suspects that the turtles might have perished in the deep sea and their carcasses had been washed ashore, they said. The officials did not rule out the possibility that the animals could have died due to illegal movement of mechanised fishing trawlers near the Rushikulya river mouth. “We have taken measures to restrict movement of mechanised trawlers near the coast. This affects the breeding of turtles,” said Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Berhampur, Ashish Kumar Behera.
App to locate people beyond cell phone coverage
London: Scientists have developed a smartphone application that can be used in emergencies arising from earthquakes, floods or forest fires, where mobile phone infrastructure is often rendered useless. The system created by researchers at the Universidad de Alicante (UA) in Spain makes it possible to locate people who have suffered an accident in remote locations without a phone signal and where a speedy rescue is essential to save lives. “We have designed an application (app) that can be incorporated in any smartphone and that, without a signal, emits a Wi-Fi signal which in turn acts as a distress beacon over a distance of several kilometres,” said Jose Angel Berna, creator of the technology and professor at UA. This signal contains the location (coordinates) of the person who has suffered the accident or disappeared and is using the smartphone emitter, along with a short message that can be altered depending on the situation, with examples such as “I am injured,” “I am disorientated,” or “I need help,” said Berna. To detect the distress signal, the researchers have also created a light, portable receptor device that rescue teams or mountain shelters could use. This device has a small antenna and connects to the smartphone of the search party.
Stallone spends $400K on statue of himself
Los Angeles: Veteran actor Sylvester Stallone has splashed out over $4,00,000 on his replica Rocky statue from ‘Rocky III’. The “Expendables” star handed over the hefty amount for the replica after making an anonymous bid at it in an auction, TMZ has reported. The statue is nine foot tall, weighs 1800 pounds (over 816 kgs) and was purchased by Stallone for $4,03,657, before being shipped to Los Angeles. It was made by the artist, A Thomas Schomberg, and the original, which was used in the movie, has been put on display in Philadelphia. This one had been displayed in the San Diego Hall of Champions but it had to be sold off after the place closed down.
SoftBank seals deal for large Uber stake
Washington: Uber and SoftBank announced a deal allowing the Japanese tech titan to take a large stake in the US ridesharing giant, making a hefty cut in the valuation of the biggest venture-backed startup. SoftBank will acquire 15 per cent of Uber’s equity at a discount of 30 per cent from its most recent value, according to a source familiar with the terms of the deal. The new investment, which will be finalised in January, is part of an effort by Uber to move past a series of scandals and missteps and reform its board structure as it gears up for a 2019 public share offering. A source familiar with the deal said SoftBank had reached agreements with investors to achieve its target of a 15 per cent share. The two firms did not provide details of the valuation but the source said the investment was based on Uber’s worth of $48 billion, down from $71 billion earlier this year.
Apple apologises, offers batteries at discount
San Francisco: Apple Friday apologised to its customers for slowing down performance of older iPhone models and said it would discount replacement batteries for some of its handsets. The move by Apple follows an uproar from iPhone users — and a series of lawsuits — after news of the battery problems stoked concerns the company was unfairly nudging consumers to upgrade. “We know that some of you feel Apple has let you down. We apologise,” Apple said in a message to customers on its website. “We’ve always wanted our customers to be able to use their iPhones as long as possible. We’re proud that Apple products are known for their durability, and for holding their value longer than our competitors’ devices.” Apple said it was reducing the price of an out-of-warranty iPhone battery replacement from $79 to $29 for anyone with an iPhone 6 or later whose battery needs to be replaced, starting in late January through December 2018. The company said it also would issue a software update to make it easier for customers to see if an ageing battery is affecting performance.
ISS team to experience New Year’s Eve 16 times
Washington: Six astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) will experience New Year’s Eve 16 times as they orbit the Earth once every 90 minutes, NASA said. That is 16 sunrise and sunsets 402 kilometres above Earth, the US space agency said in a blog post. Three US astronauts, two Russian cosmonauts and a Japanese astronaut will go into the last weekend of 2017 with light duty and family conferences before taking New Year’s Day off. Ahead of the New Year, the astronauts are researching life science studies to help mission doctors keep astronauts healthier and stronger while living in outer space.
