Heena Sharma Blog

  An Australian state government on Friday declared an emergency due to a COVID-19 outbreak in Sydney. The New South Wales state government reported one fatality and 136 new infections in the latest 24-hour period, the biggest daily tally of new cases since the outbreak began in mid June. State Premier Gladys Berejiklian called on the federal government to provide more vaccines for the worst-effected suburbs in Sydney's west and south. Sydney has been locked down for a month. The delta variant cluster has spread from Sydney to Victoria and South Australia states which are also locked down. Half Australia's population of 26 million is currently locked down. Only 15% of adult Australians are fully vaccinated. While there are ample supplies of locally-manufactured AstraZeneca, many are concerned about the slight risk of blood clots associated with that vaccine and a demanding Pfizer, the only alternative registered in Australia. Read More

  Australia’s government said Google and Facebook Inc . are nearing agreements to pay domestic media companies for news, in a sign a regulatory standoff may be softening. Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg held talks with Facebook Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg and Google counterpart Sundar Pichai over the weekend. “We’re very close to some very significant commercial deals,” Frydenberg told the Australian Broadcasting on Monday, according to a transcript sent by his office. “We have made great progress.” Alphabet Inc-owned Google and Facebook oppose planned Australian legislation forcing them to pay media companies for news, and Google has threatened to shut down its search engine if the law is enacted. Parliament will consider the legislation from this week, giving the internet giants an incentive to agree compensation terms for news companies before the law is passed. Facebook declined to comment on any specific talks. “We’ve been engaging with the Australian g...

Michael Hussey feels that Mahendra Singh Dhoni does not have "too many weaknesses" but even if he has, the Chennai Super Kings batting coach wouldn't share them with in-form Australia ahead of their World Cup clash on Sunday. Having crushed Afghanistan and put up an inspirational performance against a rampaging West Indies, Australia are expected to be more than a handful for India when the two teams square off at the Oval. Hussey has played alongside Dhoni at CSK and as coach, watched him from close quarters in the franchise. So, will Hussey share his insights on Dhoni with the Australian coaching team? "No chance. There aren't too many weaknesses there anyway," the former Australia batsman let out a chuckle as he spoke to PTI in an exclusive interview. However, Hussey is confident that Australia will have their plans in place for the former India captain. "All the teams do very thorough analysis on all the players so I am sure that t...

Aaron Finch believes that Australia's experience of winning the World Cup in the previous editions would be a big advantage for his team when they begin their title defence in England and Wales. "I think it's a big advantage, just to know what it takes to win a World Cup and what it takes to manage your way through a campaign which can be difficult," Finch was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. "You have to be at your best at the business end but you can't afford to let anything slip at the start. Six guys who have been there and done that will give a lot of experience to the others of what to expect, what to feel walking out there because it is different," he added. A few months ago, Australia were not counted among the favourites for the tournament but have been in good form recently. The series win in India, then against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates and the return of Steve Smith and David Warner have boosted the side and the Men in ...

Each evening, the sun sets more than 90 minutes later in western India than in the east of the country, yet the entire country follows the same time zone. Later sunset means people stay awake longer, which induces sleep deprivation among children and negatively affects their study efforts, a new study by a research scholar at Cornell University has found. As a result of sleeping late, children are less likely to complete primary and middle school, and this effect is most pronounced among poor households, says the study, ‘Poor Sleep: Sunset Time and Human Capital Production’, which analysed the consequences India faces by operating under a single time zone. “ Back-of-the-envelope estimates suggest that India incurs annual human capital costs of roughly $4.1 billion (nearly Rs 29,000 crore) or 0.2% of nominal GDP [gross domestic product] due to the existing policy regulating time zone boundaries,” Maulik Jagnani, the author of the study, told IndiaSpend in an email interview. ...

While it's well-established that eating fruits and vegetables can benefit physical health. A recent study suggests that it may also benefit psychological well-being. The research showed a positive association between the quantity of fruit and vegetables consumed and people's self-reported mental well-being. Specifically, the findings indicate that eating just one extra portion of fruits and vegetables a day could have an equivalent effect on mental well-being as around 8 extra days of walking a month (for at least 10 minutes at a time). Findings of the study were published in the Journal of Social Science & Medicine. "It's well-established that eating fruit and vegetables can benefit physical health . Recently, newer studies have suggested that it may also benefit psychological well-being," said Peter Howley, lead author of the study. Explaining the study, Howley said, "Our research builds on previous work in Australia and New Zealand by ...

The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the ODI and Test team and a few other awards for the year 2018 and to no one's surprise, Indian captain Virat Kohli swept all of them. Virat Kohli was named ICC ODI captain of the year, ICC Test Captain of the year, ICC Test player of the year, ICC ODI player of the year. He also won the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year. Three player of the year awards, captain of teams in both formats. He has become the first player in the history to bag all three awards. The flurry of awards reflects the kind of year Virat Kohli had in 2018. It won't be surprising if he now goes on to win the Wisden Player of the Year award as well. Virat Kohli amassed 1,322 runs in 13 tests and 1,202 runs in 14 ODIs in 2018. India won the T20 series in England, however, lost both ODI and Test series. As a batsman, England was probably the last frontier for Kohli to conquer; something he did. While India failed to win t...

India batsman Rohit Sharma will miss the fourth Test against Australia in Sydney to be with his wife, who gave birth to a baby girl in Mumbai on Sunday. Rohit has flown back from Melbourne and will rejoin the squad on January 8 ahead of the three-match ODI series beginning January 12 in Sydney. "India batsman Rohit Sharma left for Mumbai on the 30th of December to attend to his wife who has delivered a baby girl. The BCCI congratulates Rohit on the beginning of a new chapter in his life," the BCCI said in a statement. The Indian Cricket Board (BCCI), however, has not named any replacement for Rohit for the final Test beginning on January 3. India lead the four-match Test series 2-1 after winning the Melbourne Test by 137 runs. Read More Business Standard

Surgeons in Australia on Friday began a complex operation to separate 15-month-old Bhutanese conjoined twins Nima and Dawa Pelden . The girls are joined at the torso and share a liver and possibly a bowel, their doctor said, adding "our challenge will be to reconstruct their abdominal walls to close it over", the BBC reported. "What we will be looking for is simply what bits actually connect the two girls together," lead surgeon Joe Crameri told reporters on Friday. He said they would separate the liver, but there was one "unknown" --whether the girls shared a bowel. If it was, it would also be divided, he said. Nima and Dawa face each other, and cannot sit down together. They can stand if they do so at the same time, the BBC said. About 18 specialists in two teams, one for each girl, are taking part in the procedure at Melbourne's Royal Children's Hospital. The surgery is expected to last at least six hours. Read Complete Art...