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Nepalis in Britain protest Modi’s London visit over blockade

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KATHMANDU : Dozens of Nepalis living in British Capital and other parts of the country on Thursday protested visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to London, accusing the latter of imposing an unofficial blockade on Nepal. The protesters clad in traditional Nepali dresses including the Dhaka Topi resorted to street protests, holding Nepali national flags and placards with anti-India and anti-Modi messages and slogans. The agitators accused India of imposing an blockade on Nepal to express its dissatisfaction over the newly promulgated Constitution. They claimed it was against Nepal’s transport rights as a land-locked nation and related international trade laws and treaties. They had gathered in front of the British Prime Minister’s Office at 10 Downing Street from the early afternoon. Various organisations of Nepali diaspora had led the demonstration. Modi embarked on the three-day official visit to Britain on Thursday.

Amazon takes on UK supermarkets with ‘Pantry’ offer

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LONDON:  Online retailer Amazon has stepped up the pressure on Britain’s traditional supermarkets with the nationwide launch on Friday of a packaged groceries offer for Amazon Prime members. The move is the ecommerce giant’s most ambitious foray into Britain’s growing online grocery market but stops short of replicating its broader US Amazon Fresh service, which offers about 20,000 chilled, frozen and perishable products and items from local shops. Retail analysts have speculated the US company is gearing up for a launch of Amazon Fresh in Britain next year. The new “Amazon Pantry” service offers Amazon Prime members, who pay an annual fee of 79 pounds ($120), the choice of more than 4,000 “everyday essentials, in everyday sizes”, including major brands of food and drink, household supplies, baby, child and pet care, health and beauty. Members can fill up as much of a 20 kg Amazon Pantry box as they wish for one-day delivery, with a 2.99 pound fee for the first box and 99 ...

As tensions play out at home, powerful Pakistani general heads to US for talks

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ISLAMABAD:  Days before Pakistan’s powerful army chief was due to visit Washington for talks on regional stability and fighting militancy, General Raheel Sharif engaged in thinly veiled criticism of the nuclear-armed country’s civilian government. A terse statement from the army’s PR wing underlined the tension between Pakistan’s military and its civilian government, just as the United States prepares to receive Sharif weeks after the prime minister held talks there. After top generals met to review a major crackdown on extremists, the Pakistani military said it would be “undermined” if the government did not take “matching governance initiatives”. That was taken to mean police reform, action on militant financing and better governance of restive tribal areas. “He (Sharif) is foreign minister, prime minister, president and army chief all rolled into one,” said a Pakistani newspaper editor, while also questioning the military’s motives. “His greatest achievement is that h...

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PhotopressBelfast.co.uk Arrested: Teen from Ballymena, County Antrim who was arrested in connection with the Talk Talk 'Hack' This is the babyface suspected hacker arrested in connection with an alleged data theft from TalkTalk. The boy, 15, was seized after a raid at his family home in the wake of the cyber-attack – one of the biggest to have hit the UK. It has emerged that the teenager wanted to be a professional video gamer. Neighbours in Ballymena, Co Antrim, said six police vehicles swooped on Monday afternoon. One, who did not want to be named, said: “It is just mad. I knew nothing about it until I came home and saw all the police just before 5pm. Getty Cyber-attack: The headquarters for the Talk Talk telecommunications company “They were there for ages.  They seemed to be giving the place a good going over  . Then they left with bags of equipment.” Friends said the teenager was “quiet and shy” and was often seen with a skateboard. Kathy Haveron, 39, ...

Why Pakistani Hindus leave their homes for India

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Pakistani Hindus, who have arrived in the Indian capital in recent months, tell BBC Hindi's Zubair Ahmed that they fled their homes to escape discrimination and religious persecution. Mala Das can just about write her name. At 16, this has been her greatest achievement. "When I came here I was completely unlettered. Today I can write my name," she says. But Mala is still unsure about numbers - when asked about the year she came to India, she draws a blank. Her family and neighbours say they arrived in 2011 from the Pakistani city of Hyderabad to escape "religious and cultural persecution and government apathy". Image caption Rajwanti, 13, alleges that Hindu boys and girls are made to read the Quran in Pakistani schools About 1,200 people, who have migrated from Pakistan in the past five years, are housed in three camps in Delhi and many say one of the biggest problems they faced back home was that they were unable to educate their children. Bhagwan...

Fraud suspects hunted in Australia mother-daughter murder case

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SA Police Image caption The body of Karlie Jade Pearce-Stevenson was discovered in Belanglo forest in 2010. Her daughter Khandalyce's body was found in a suitcase by the side of the road five years later, 1100km (685 miles) from where her mother was buried Australian police say they are hunting for fraud suspects linked to the murder of a young mother and her daughter. On Tuesday authorities revealed that Karlie Jade Pearce-Stevenson's bank account had been accessed hundreds of times after she was killed. Police also said an impersonator called her family and convinced them to deposit more money into her account. The details come as her family placed a tribute to her in a local newspaper. "The sun doesn't shine as bright as it did but the night is now lit with a few more stars," Ms Pearce-Stevenson's father and brother wrote in the piece published in the classified section of  the NT News. "No more looking to see is that girl is you as we saw ...

Sydney college mis-sold diplomas to vulnerable students, watchdog says

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Thinkstock Image caption Only a tiny fraction of the college's students graduated in the second half of last year A private college in Sydney has been accused by Australia's consumer watchdog of mis-selling diploma courses to vulnerable students, earning itself millions of dollars in federal loans. The watchdog says Unique International College misled students about loan repayments and the cost of courses, calling its conduct "unconscionable". Media reports say it will ask the college to repay A$57m (40.6m; £26.6m) in government funding. The college has not yet commented. A claim against the college has been filed in the federal court following an investigation by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and New South Wales Fair Trading. According to  a statement on the ACCC's website , the college enrolled more than 3,600 students in diploma courses during the 2014-15 financial year, which earned it A$57m in government funding. But f...