TAPOVAN (AFP) – A whistle turned into a roar of water that trapped a dozen men in a Himalayan tunnel after a glacier burst in northern India, but Mr Rajesh Kumar lived to tell the tale. Eighteen people were confirmed dead on Monday (Feb 8) and at least 200 others missing after the glacier broke […]
SINGAPORE – American electric-car maker Tesla has secured approval to start selling its cars here, which observers reckon could be priced from $145,000 – or less than a petrol-driven Toyota Camry. A 377kW Tesla Model 3 Performance and 239kW Model 3 Standard Range appeared on the Land Transport Authority’s fuel economy comparison site last week. […]
CANBERRA (REUTERS) – Myanmar authorities should immediately release Dr Sean Turnell, an economist and adviser to deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi, following his weekend arrest, Australia’s Foreign Minister Marise Payne said on Monday (Feb 8). Dr Turnell said on Saturday he was being detained, the first known arrest of a foreign national since the […]
SINGAPORE – A man who tried to stir ill will between racial groups during the general election period last year was sentenced to two weeks’ jail and a fine of $7,000. Sirajudeen Abdul Majeed, 52, pleaded guilty on Monday (Feb 8) to one charge each of deliberately intending to wound racial feelings and promoting enmity […]
CANBERRA (REUTERS) – Australia on Monday (Feb 8) moved to reassure its citizens over the efficacy of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine after South Africa suspended use of the shot because data showed it offered limited protection against a new strain of the virus. Citing data that showed the AstraZeneca vaccine reduced mild-to-moderate Covid-19 by 22 per […]
SINGAPORE – Over 110,000 jobseekers were hired under the Jobs Growth Incentive in September and October, the first two months of the scheme’s implementation. This was double the number that were hired in its inaugural month in September alone, said the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on Monday (Feb 8). The workers were hired by around 26,000 […]
LUCKNOW, INDIA (REUTERS) – Hundreds of military personnel were deployed in the Indian Himalayas on Monday (Feb 8) to help find at least 125 people unaccounted for after a part of a glacier broke away, setting off a torrent of water, rock and dust down a mountain valley. Sunday’s violent surge swept away a small […]
UNGASAN, INDONESIA (REUTERS) – Dwarfed by a 21-storey-tall statue of the Hindu god Vishnu riding the mythical eagle Garuda, a tour guide on the Indonesian resort island of Bali said he was staring at a dismal Lunar New Year season as the coronavirus wreaks havoc on tourism. “In the last 10 months, there’s been no […]
SINGAPORE – Migrant workers here have more rights and access to social services, such as healthcare, than in places like Thailand and Kuwait, where the workers are largely employed in low-skilled jobs. However, these rights and protections are less comprehensive when compared with places like New Zealand and Hong Kong, which have supposedly higher skill […]
People marched through Monywa, in the heart of Myanmar, and Mawlamyine, on the eastern coast, demanding an end to military rule. They refused to disperse in the casino town of Myawaddy, even when the police fired warning shots. In Sagaing Division, in the foothills of the Himalayas, a man from the Naga ethnic group wearing […]