Helicopter Carrying India’s Chief Of Defence Staff Crashes In Tamil Nadu

NEW DELHI, Dec 8 (NNN-PTI) – A helicopter, carrying India’s Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Bipin Rawat, and other officials, crashed today, in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, officials said. The helicopter crashed at the Coonoor area of Nilgiris district, about 538 km south-west of Chennai, the capital…

Australian Fertility Rate Falls To All-Time Low

CANBERRA, Dec 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Australia’s fertility rate has fallen to the lowest level on record, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. According to data, published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today, there were 294,369 babies born in Australia in 2020, a 3.7 percent decrease from 2019. As a result,…

Sri Lankan Leading Apparel Manufacturer Calls For Investment In Textile, Fabric Production

COLOMBO, Dec 8 (NNN-XINHUA) – A leading Sri Lankan apparel manufacturer, called for greater investment in textile and fabric production, in order to strengthen domestic value addition and improve lead times, local media reported here today. Aroon Hirdaramani, Group Director of Hirdaramani, which is one of Sri Lanka’s largest apparel…

S.Korea’s Daily COVID-19 Cases Hit Record High At 7,175

SEOUL, Dec 8 (NNN-YONHAP) – South Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases hit a record high, due to the surging infections in the greater Seoul area, the health authorities said today. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), the country reported 7,175 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight,…

Japan’s Current Account Surplus In Oct Contracts 39 Percent

TOKYO, Dec 8 (NNN-NHK) – Japan’s current account surplus in Oct, contracted a year-on-year 39.4 percent to 1.2 trillion yen (10 billion U.S. dollars), down for the third consecutive month, the Finance Ministry said today. The current account balance marked black ink for 16 consecutive months, buoyed by solid primary…

India’s COVID-19 Tally Rises To 34,656,822

NEW DELHI, Dec 8 (NNN-PTI) – India’s COVID-19 tally rose to 34,656,822 today, as 8,439 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours across the country, showed the federal health ministry’s latest data. Besides, 195 deaths from the pandemic since yesterday morning took the total death toll to 473,952.…

Cambodia’s Late Prince Ranariddh Cremated In Phnom Penh Today

PHNOM PENH, Dec 8 (NNN-AKP) – The body of Cambodia’s Prince Norodom Ranariddh was cremated today, in an elaborate Buddhist ceremony, at a park next to the Royal Palace in the capital, Phnom Penh. Ranariddh, president of Funcinpec Party and chairman of the Supreme Privy Advisory Council to the King,…

Israel Announces Completion Of High-Tech Barrier Around Gaza

JERUSALEM, Dec 8 (NNN-PNN) – Israel announced yesterday, the completion of a high-tech underground wall around the Gaza Strip, aimed at preventing militants from entering the country. The barrier includes hundreds of cameras, radars and other sensors, command centres and control rooms, the defence ministry said in a statement. It…

Egyptian University Hosts Symposium On Similarities Between Egyptian, Chinese Noted Writers

CAIRO, Dec 8 (NNN-MENA) – Helwan University held a symposium yesterday, to mark the birth anniversaries of Egypt’s late Nobel laureate, novelist Naguib Mahfouz, and China’s noted writer Ba Jin, focusing on the similarities between the lives and works of the two literary giants. Held at the university’s faculty of…

Jump In Cases In Aussie State Renews Fears Amid Omicron Clusters

SYDNEY, Dec 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) – As health authorities in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) flagged a number of Omicron clusters, fears have been renewed as the state’s daily COVID-19 cases jumped by more than 50 percent. NSW reported 403 new cases of COVID-19 and one related death…