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Bhopal, Dec 26 (PTI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and senior Congress leader Kamal Nath were among several leaders from the state who condoled the death of former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Thursday. Dr Singh died in AIIMS Delhi late evening. He was 92. Asserting that he was fortunate enough to work with the renowned economist, Nath in a post on X said, "Dr. Manmohan Singh is a respected economist of the world and one of the Prime Ministers of India who focused on public welfare. Many achievements are recorded to his credit like loan waiver for farmers, right to education for children, right to information, and forest rights law for tribals etc. His demise has caused irreparable loss to the entire nation." Dr Singh's demise is an irreparable loss for the political world, CM Yadav said. "While performing the duties of RBI Governor, Finance Minister and Prime Minister, he participated in the efforts for the economic prosperity of the country with his efficient and farsighted policies and faced various challenges boldly. He will always be remembered for his contribution to the economic development of the country. I offer my deepest condolences to the bereaved family in this hour of grief," the CM said on X. Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Digvijaya Singh, in a post on X, said Dr Singh, as a true son of this country and democracy, not only served his term as Prime Minister very well but also brought the falling economy back on track with his wisdom in the 90s. "His formula of economic liberalization gave dreams to the youth of the country and the country started walking in step with the world with a new identity. Manmohan Singh added to the dignity of every post he held. He will always be remembered as a true statesman," Singh said. Madhya Pradesh BJP president Vishnu Dutt Sharma said Dr Singh's death was a big loss for the political world. (This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)NEW YORK — I’ll get you, my pretty! And your little pygmy hippo, too! Forgive us the shameless attempt to link the fantasy hit “Wicked” to the delightful Moo Deng . But, hear us out — there’s something the two have in common as the year draws to a close. Escapism. Whether we found it on the yellow brick road, or in videos from a Thailand zoo, or perhaps in unlikely Olympic heroes , we gravitated toward fantasy and feel-good pop culture moments this year. There were new trends, as always. “Brat summer” became a thing, as did “demure, mindful.” And for some inexplicable reason, we became obsessed with celebrity lookalike contests. There were breakups — Bennifer is, again, a thing of the past — and reunions: Oasis, please try to stay together for the tour. Yet some things stayed, remarkably, the same: Taylor Swift and Beyoncé kept on breaking records and making history. So, after a year where much changed but some things held steady, here’s our annual, very selective trip down pop culture memory lane: Lily Gladstone poses in the press room Jan. 7 with the award for best performance by an actress in a motion picture, drama for "Killers of the Flower Moon" at the 81st Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif. It starts as a cheery tweet from a beloved “Sesame Street” figure: “ ELMO is just checking in! How is everybody doing?” The answers hint at something deeper and more worrisome. “Not great, Elmo. Not great,” says one milder reply. Doing much better is the viral phenomenon called “BARBENHEIMER,” which makes its awards season debut at the GOLDEN GLOBES . But perhaps the most poignant moment comes from neither film: LILY GLADSTONE , first Indigenous winner of best actress in a drama for “Killers of the Flower Moon,” begins her remarks in the language of her tribe, Blackfeet Nation. Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) kisses Taylor Swift on Feb. 11 after the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers in overtime during the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game in Las Vegas. Valentine’s Day — a perfect time to settle into a sweet love saga via TikTok. Only that’s not quite what we get with “Who TF Did I Marry?,” REESA TEESA ’s depressing, fascinating, 50-part account of her disastrous marriage with a man who lied about absolutely everything. Meanwhile, if you're looking for a single week that encapsulates peak SWIFT cultural dominance , try this: she begins with the Grammys in Los Angeles (becoming the first artist to win album of the year four times AND announcing a new album), then heads to Tokyo for four tour dates, then jets back just in time for the Super Bowl in Las Vegas — where she shares a passionate smooch with boyfriend TRAVIS KELCE on the field of victory. Ryan Gosling performs the song "I'm Just Ken" from the movie "Barbie" on March 10 during the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. “What was I made for?” BILLIE EILISH sings at the OSCARS, channeling BARBIE . And what was KEN made for? Not entirely clear — but it's clear RYAN GOSLING was made to play him. His singalong version of “I’m Just Ken” is one of the most entertaining Oscar musical moments in years. Still, Christopher Nolan's “OPPENHEIMER” prevails, a rare case of the top prize going to a blockbuster studio film. Will it happen again in 2025? CYNTHIA ERIVO and ARIANA GRANDE sure hope so; as presenters, they make a sly reference to their upcoming juggernaut, “WICKED.” Speaking of marketing, people are obsessed with that bizarre “DUNE” popcorn bucket. Beyonce And BEYONCÉ carves her space in country music with “Act II: Cowboy Carter,” which will make her the first Black woman to top the Billboard country chart. Taylor Swift performs June 21 at Wembley Stadium in London as part of her Eras Tour. Tennis, anyone? The game’s been around for centuries, but it’s having a cultural moment right now, helped mightily by “CHALLENGERS,” the sweaty romance triangle starring ZENDAYA, MIKE FAIST and JOSH O'CONNOR (40-love? More like 40-sex.) Elsewhere, a new era dawns: At midnight, SWIFT drops “THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT," then drops another 15 songs two hours later. The fascinating and disturbing “BABY REINDEER,” the story of a struggling comedian’s extended encounter with a stalker, debuts on Netflix. Ben Affleck, left, and Jennifer Lopez arrive Feb. 13 at the premiere of "This Is Me ... Now: A Love Story" at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. It’s MET GALA time — or as it's known in 2024, another early marketing moment for “WICKED.” ERIVO and GRANDE make fashion waves on the carpet and then musical ones at dinner, with a soulful performance of “When You Believe.” If the “Wicked” tour is in full force, another one stops in its tracks: JENNIFER LOPEZ cancels her summer tour amid reports of both poor ticket sales and trouble in her marriage to BEN AFFLECK . It’s been an eventful year for J.Lo, who's released an album and movie called “THIS IS ME ... NOW" — both reflections on her renewed love with Affleck. Welcome to BRAT SUMMER ! CHARLI XCX releases her hit “Brat” album , with its lime green cover, and launches a thousand memes. Collins Dictionary defines “brat,” its word of the year, as “characterized by a confident, independent, and hedonistic attitude.” At the celeb-heavy SWIFT shows in London, we see PRINCE WILLIAM shaking it off, which is either charming or cringe, you decide. Even better: KELCE dons a top hat and tux and performs for one night. At another stadium across the pond, METS infielder JOSE IGLESIAS delights the crowd with his cheery number “OMG.” Stephen Nedoroscik is introduced June 29 at the United States Gymnastics Olympic Trials in Minneapolis. Bonjour, it’s OLYMPICS time! In Paris! An audacious opening ceremony along the Seine is punctuated by a fabulous CELINE DION , perched on the EIFFEL TOWER , singing her heart out — in the rain, too. Controversy swirls over a scene critics feel mocks Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” (organizers say it does not). Olympic stars are born — including French swimming superstar LEON MARCHAND , rugby player ILONA MAHER , and bespectacled “Pommel Horse Guy” gymnast STEPHEN NEDOROSCIK , who nets two bronze medals and comparisons to Clark Kent. Baby pigmy hippo Moo Deng plays with a zookeeper Sept. 19 in the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi province, Thailand. Also capturing hearts: yep, MOO DENG , born this month. Her name means “bouncy pork.” Australia's Rachael Gunn, known as B-Girl Raygun, competes Aug. 9 during the Round Robin Battle at the breaking competition at La Concorde Urban Park at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. This is them ... now: BENNIFER is no more. After two decades, two engagements and two weddings, J.Lo files for divorce. One union dissolves, another returns: OASIS announces a reunion tour. Everyone seems to want to get in on TikToker JOOLS LEBRON 's “ DEMURE, MINDFUL ” act — even the WHITE HOUSE press team. Back at the Olympics, in the new sport of breaking, we meet Australia’s RAYGUN , arguably neither demure nor mindful with her “kangaroo” move. Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani brings his dog Decoy to the mound Aug. 28 before Decoy delivered the ceremonial first pitch prior to a baseball game between the Dodgers and the Baltimore Orioles in Los Angeles. Cute animal alert: SHOHEI OHTANI ’s perky pooch DECOY does a great “first pitch” in his Major League Baseball debut. Chappell Roan performs "Good Luck, Babe" on Sept. 11 during the MTV Video Music Awards at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y. One of the year’s biggest breakout artists, CHAPPELL ROAN , withdraws from a music festival after speaking out about frightening fan interactions. And more on the price of fame: In an excruciating moment, “Bachelorette” JENN TRAN , the franchise’s first Asian American lead, is forced to sit through a painful viewing of her proposal to her chosen suitor, after tearfully explaining how he’d later dumped her over the phone. Tran is keeping busy though — she’s announced as part of the new “Dancing with the Stars” lineup. Also on the list: rugby player Maher, and Pommel Horse Guy! Also, ANNA SOROKIN , dancing with an ankle monitor. Online fandom, meanwhile, is shaken when X is temporarily suspended in Brazil and celebrity stan accounts post tearful farewells, revealing to many across the globe that their favorite accounts are run by Brazilians. Miles Mitchell, 21, wins of the Timothee Chalamet lookalike contest Oct. 27 near Washington Square Park in New York. “Dune” Chalamets! “Wonka” Chalamets! Thousands gather in Manhattan for a TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET lookalike contest, and things really get interesting when Chalamet himself shows up. He doesn’t enter the contest, though, and with his mustache, he may not even have won. The trend continues with contests for JEREMY ALLEN WHITE, ZAYN MALIK and — in a very Washington version — Kennedy scion JACK SCHLOSSBERG , who's been gathering a following with some interesting social media posts. New York Liberty Kennedy Burke dances with the mascot, Ellie the Elephant, during an Oct. 24 ceremony after a parade in honor of the Liberty's WNBA basketball championship at City Hall in New York. Turning to basketball, who’s that dancing with USHER ? Why it’s ELLIE THE ELEPHANT , the now-viral NEW YORK LIBERTY mascot. Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, appears Nov. 2 with Maya Rudolph on NBC's "Saturday Night Live" in New York. MAYA RUDOLPH does a pretty good KAMALA HARRIS laugh on “Saturday Night Live,” but you know who does it better? HARRIS herself. The Democratic candidate makes a surprise cameo three days before the U.S. presidential election, following in the footsteps of HILLARY CLINTON , SARAH PALIN and others. Elsewhere in television, Bravo announces that “VANDERPUMP RULES,” the Emmy-nominated reality show that has lived through countless scandals, is entirely recasting its 12th season — apart from namesake LISA VANDERPUMP . As for MOO DENG , she doesn't have her own TV series yet, but our favorite pygmy hippo is generating plenty of merch . And THAT brings us back to ... Ariana Grande, left, and Cynthia Erivo pose for photographers Nov. 11 prior to the premiere of "Wicked" at Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City. “WICKED” ! Director JON M. CHU ’s emerald-hued fantasy remains very very popular, to quote one of its buzzy show tunes, dancing through life and defying gravity at the multiplex. Moviegoers also come for “GLADIATOR II” and, in a veritable tidal wave, Disney's “MOANA 2,” which beckons us back to the seas of Oceania. Once again, 2024 seems to be telling us: Give people some whimsy, a place to escape, maybe some catchy tunes — and no one knows how far they’ll go. The stories and images that defined 2024. Searching for something? From queries about U.S. politics to cricket in India, Wikipedia has become a source of information for millions of people across the globe. From the Paris Olympics to the Super Bowl. From Simone Biles to Shohei Ohtani. And, of course, Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift. These are the sp... AP photographers assembled a visual catalog of our civilization as life in 2024 hurtled directly at us at every speed and in every imaginable ... In 2024, photographers captured glimpses of humanity, ranging from a deeply divisive presidential election, to hurricanes and fires that ravag... Associated Press photographers captured voters with raw emotions of joy, excitement, contemplation or sorrow. See entertainment's biggest moments in 2024, through the lens of Associated Press photographers. It beat five other finalists: demure, slop, dynamic pricing, romantasy and lore. News anchors, politicians and other public figures in the U.S. struggled with these words the most this year. Is it any surprise Merriam-Webster's word of the year is "polarization"? Here are the other words that rounded out the top 10 for 2024. Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly!
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India is reviewing a decade-old $30 billion programme requiring coal-fired power plants to install equipment to cut sulphur emissions after government-backed studies showed they had little impact on curbing pollution, according to a document reviewed by Reuters. Nearly 540 power plant units were required by 2026 to install flue-gas desulphurization (FGD) systems that remove sulphur from the plants' exhaust gases but only about 8 percent have done so, including those run by state-run NTPC and privately held JSW Power. The government previously said expensive foreign technology and manpower were some of the hurdles in achieving the target. But with cities like New Delhi and Kanpur some of the most polluted in the world, India's government is under pressure to reduce the impact of the sectors' emissions. Instead of FGDs, government officials have proposed deploying locally made electrostatic precipitators that remove fine particles such as dust and smoke from emissions and are one-fifth of the cost of an FGD system, according to a document from the Office of the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Indian government summarising a Nov. 13 meeting between the Office and the ministries of power, coal and the environment. Representatives of the ministries and Ajay Kumar Sood, the principal scientific adviser to the government who chaired the meeting, did not immediately respond to requests seeking comment. The document showed several of the attendees agreed Indian power plants would be better off focusing on cutting emissions of tiny particulate matter that can lodge deep in the lungs rather than on sulphur reductions. "This is due to the predominance of other pollution sources in urban areas and the very low sulphur content of Indian coal coupled with the effective dispersion of (sulphur dioxide) generated from thermal power plants due to the tall stacks and the climactic conditions in India," the document cited R. Srikanth, the head of the engineering school at India's National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), as saying. Srikanth did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The document cited a NIAS study that said Indian coal, which is used to generate 92 percent of the country's thermal power, has a sulphur content of only 0.5 percent. The range globally is 0.5 percent to 5 percent. The study said the coal's high ash content was a bigger problem for power plants, and high-efficiency electrostatic precipitators would be better at curbing that pollution. The document also cited government-backed studies by the NIAS, Indian Institute Of Technology (IIT) Delhi and National Environmental Engineering Research Institute that showed power plants with the FGD systems showed negligible improvement in air quality. A FGD system costs 12 million rupees ($141,000) per megawatt of capacity. Insisting on FGDs could hamper India's goal of increasing coal-fired capacity by 37 percent by 2032 to meet surging power demand, it said. A decision will be made based on further consultations, the document showed. India's government policy think tank, NITI Aayog, earlier this year proposed halting FGD installations. The document also showed that while the government is working on its decision, the power ministry last month asked the environment ministry to extend the deadline for FGD installation by another three years beyond 2026. The original deadline was 2017. Environmental groups say coal-fired plants account for about 80 percent of industrial emissions of sulphur and nitrogen oxides in India, which cause lung disease and acid rain. According to a 2019 Greenpeace report, India was the world's largest emitter of sulphur dioxide, with most coming from coal-fired power plants. IIT Delhi said in its report that in the longer term, the focus should be on cleaner-energy sources and India should phase out older and less efficient coal-based plants. "The installation of FGD systems and carbon capture technologies should not be used as a smokescreen to justify the continued power generation from these unsustainable, CO2-intensive sources," it said in its report, which was reviewed by Reuters. India is reviewing a decade-old $30 billion programme requiring coal-fired power plants to install equipment to cut sulphur emissions after government-backed studies showed they had little impact on curbing pollution, according to a document reviewed by Reuters. Nearly 540 power plant units were required by 2026 to install flue-gas desulphurization (FGD) systems that remove sulphur from the plants' exhaust gases but only about 8 percent have done so, including those run by state-run NTPC and privately held JSW Power. The government previously said expensive foreign technology and manpower were some of the hurdles in achieving the target. But with cities like New Delhi and Kanpur some of the most polluted in the world, India's government is under pressure to reduce the impact of the sectors' emissions. Instead of FGDs, government officials have proposed deploying locally made electrostatic precipitators that remove fine particles such as dust and smoke from emissions and are one-fifth of the cost of an FGD system, according to a document from the Office of the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Indian government summarising a Nov. 13 meeting between the Office and the ministries of power, coal and the environment. Representatives of the ministries and Ajay Kumar Sood, the principal scientific adviser to the government who chaired the meeting, did not immediately respond to requests seeking comment. The document showed several of the attendees agreed Indian power plants would be better off focusing on cutting emissions of tiny particulate matter that can lodge deep in the lungs rather than on sulphur reductions. "This is due to the predominance of other pollution sources in urban areas and the very low sulphur content of Indian coal coupled with the effective dispersion of (sulphur dioxide) generated from thermal power plants due to the tall stacks and the climactic conditions in India," the document cited R. Srikanth, the head of the engineering school at India's National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), as saying. Srikanth did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The document cited a NIAS study that said Indian coal, which is used to generate 92 percent of the country's thermal power, has a sulphur content of only 0.5 percent. The range globally is 0.5 percent to 5 percent. The study said the coal's high ash content was a bigger problem for power plants, and high-efficiency electrostatic precipitators would be better at curbing that pollution. The document also cited government-backed studies by the NIAS, Indian Institute Of Technology (IIT) Delhi and National Environmental Engineering Research Institute that showed power plants with the FGD systems showed negligible improvement in air quality. A FGD system costs 12 million rupees ($141,000) per megawatt of capacity. Insisting on FGDs could hamper India's goal of increasing coal-fired capacity by 37 percent by 2032 to meet surging power demand, it said. A decision will be made based on further consultations, the document showed. India's government policy think tank, NITI Aayog, earlier this year proposed halting FGD installations. The document also showed that while the government is working on its decision, the power ministry last month asked the environment ministry to extend the deadline for FGD installation by another three years beyond 2026. The original deadline was 2017. Environmental groups say coal-fired plants account for about 80 percent of industrial emissions of sulphur and nitrogen oxides in India, which cause lung disease and acid rain. According to a 2019 Greenpeace report, India was the world's largest emitter of sulphur dioxide, with most coming from coal-fired power plants. IIT Delhi said in its report that in the longer term, the focus should be on cleaner-energy sources and India should phase out older and less efficient coal-based plants. "The installation of FGD systems and carbon capture technologies should not be used as a smokescreen to justify the continued power generation from these unsustainable, CO2-intensive sources," it said in its report, which was reviewed by Reuters.By Katheryn Houghton and Arielle Zionts, KFF Health News (TNS) Tescha Hawley learned that hospital bills from her son’s birth had been sent to debt collectors only when she checked her credit score while attending a home-buying class. The new mom’s plans to buy a house stalled. Hawley said she didn’t owe those thousands of dollars in debts. The federal government did. Hawley, a citizen of the Gros Ventre Tribe, lives on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation in Montana. The Indian Health Service is a federal agency that provides free health care to Native Americans, but its services are limited by a chronic shortage of funding and staff. Hawley’s local Indian Health Service hospital wasn’t equipped to deliver babies. But she said staff there agreed that the agency would pay for her care at a privately owned hospital more than an hour away. That arrangement came through the Purchased/Referred Care program, which pays for services Native Americans can’t get through an agency-funded clinic or hospital. Federal law stresses that patients approved for the program aren’t responsible for any of the costs. But tribal leaders, health officials, and a new federal report say patients are routinely billed anyway as a result of backlogs or mistakes from the Indian Health Service, financial middlemen, hospitals, and clinics. The financial consequences for patients can last years. Those sent to collections can face damaged credit scores, which can prevent them from securing loans or require them to pay higher interest rates. The December report , by the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, found these long-standing problems contribute to people in Native American-majority communities being nearly twice as likely to have medical debt in collections compared with the national average. And their amount of medical debt is significantly higher. The report found the program is often late to pay bills. In some cases, hospitals or collection agencies hound tribal citizens for more money after bills are paid. Hawley’s son was born in 2003. She had to wait another year to buy a home, as she struggled to pay off the debt. It took seven years for it to drop from her credit report. “I don’t think a person ever recovers from debt,” Hawley said. Hawley, a cancer survivor, still must navigate the referral program. In 2024 alone, she received two notices from clinics about overdue bills. Frank White Clay, chairman of the Crow Tribe in Montana, testified about the impact of wrongful billing during a U.S. House committee hearing in April. He shared stories of veterans rejected for home loans, elders whose Social Security benefits were reduced, and students denied college loans and federal aid. “Some of the most vulnerable people are being harassed daily by debt collectors,” White Clay said. No one is immune from the risk. A high-ranking Indian Health Service official learned during her job’s background check that her credit report contained referred-care debt, the federal report found. Native Americans face disproportionately high rates of poverty and disease , which researchers link to limited access to health care and the ongoing impact of racist federal policies . White Clay is among many who say problems with the referred-care program are an example of the U.S. government violating treaties that promised to provide for the health and welfare of tribes in return for their land. The chairman’s testimony came during a hearing on the Purchased and Referred Care Improvement Act, which would require the Indian Health Service to create a reimbursement process for patients who were wrongfully billed. Committee members approved the bill in November and sent it for consideration by the full House. A second federal bill, the Protecting Native Americans’ Credit Act , would prevent debt like Hawley’s from affecting patients’ credit scores. The bipartisan bill hadn’t had a hearing by mid-December. The exact number of people wrongfully billed isn’t clear, but the Indian Health Service has acknowledged it has work to do. The agency is developing a dashboard to help workers track referrals and to speed up bill processing, spokesperson Brendan White said. It’s also trying to hire more referred-care staff, to address vacancy rates of more than 30%. Officials say problems with the program also stem from outside health providers that don’t follow the rules. Melanie Egorin, an assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said at the hearing that the proposed legislation doesn’t include consequences for “bad actors” — health facilities that repeatedly bill patients when they shouldn’t. “The lack of enforcement is definitely a challenge,” she said. But tribal leaders warned that penalties could backfire. Related Articles Health | How America lost control of the bird flu, setting the stage for another pandemic Health | How to kick back, relax and embrace a less-than-perfect holiday Health | New childhood leukemia protocol is ‘tremendous win’ Health | For some FSA dollars, it’s use it or lose it at year’s end Health | Norovirus is rampant. Blame oysters, cruise ships and holiday travel White Clay told lawmakers that some clinics already refuse to see patients if the Indian Health Service hasn’t paid for their previous appointments. He’s worried the threat of penalties would lead to more refusals. If that happens, White Clay said, Crow tribal members who already travel hours to access specialty treatment would have to go even farther. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau report found clinics are already refusing to see any referred-care patients due to the program’s payment problems. The bureau and the Indian Health Service also recently published a letter urging health care providers and debt collectors not to hold patients accountable for program-approved care. White, the Indian Health Service spokesperson, said the agency recently updated the referred-care forms sent to outside hospitals and clinics to include billing instructions and to stress that patients aren’t liable for any out-of-pocket costs. And he said the staff can help patients get reimbursed if they have already paid for services that were supposed to be covered. Joe Bryant, an Indian Health Service official who oversees efforts to improve the referral program, said patients can ask credit bureaus to remove debt from their reports if the agency should have covered their bills. Leaders with the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation in Washington state helped shape the proposed legislation after their citizens were repeatedly harmed by wrongful billing. Tribal Chairman Jarred-Michael Erickson said problems began in 2017, when a regional Indian Health Service office took over the referred-care program from local staff. It “created a domino effect of negative outcomes,” Erickson wrote in a letter to Congress. He said some tribal members whose finances were damaged stopped using the Indian Health Service. Others avoided health care altogether. Responsibility for the Colville Reservation program transferred back to local staff in 2022. Staffers found the billing process hadn’t been completed for thousands of cases, worth an estimated $24 million in medical care, Erickson told lawmakers . Workers are making progress on the backlog and they have explained the rules to outside hospitals and clinics, Erickson said. But he said there are still cases of wrongful billing, such as a tribal member who was sent to collections after receiving a $17,000 bill for chemotherapy that the agency was supposed to pay for. Erickson said the tribe is in the process of taking over its health care facilities instead of having the Indian Health Service run them. He and others who work in Native American health said tribally managed units — which are still funded by the federal agency — tend to have fewer problems with their referred-care programs. For example, they have more oversight over staff and flexibility to create their own payment tracking systems. But some Native Americans oppose tribal management because they feel it releases the federal government from its obligations. Beyond wrongful billing, access to the referred-care program is limited because of underfunding from Congress. The $1 billion budget this year is $9 billion short of the need, according to a committee report by tribal health and government leaders. Donald Warne, a physician and member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, called the proposed legislation a “band-aid.” He said the ultimate solution is for Congress to fully fund the Indian Health Service, which would reduce the need for the referred-care program. Back in Montana, Hawley said she braces for a fight each time she gets a bill that the referral program was supposed to cover. “I’ve learned not to trust the process,” Hawley said. ©2024 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
WASHINGTON — Only about 2 in 10 Americans approve of President Joe Biden's decision to pardon his son Hunter after earlier promising he would do no such thing, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. That displeasure tracks with the bipartisan uproar in Washington that ignited over the president's about-face. The survey found that a relatively small share of Americans "strongly" or "somewhat" approve of the pardon, which came after the younger Biden was convicted on gun and tax charges. About half said they "strongly" or "somewhat" disapprove, and about 2 in 10 neither approve nor disapprove. The Democratic president said repeatedly that he would not use his pardon power for the benefit of his family, and the White House continued to insist, even after Republican Donald Trump's election win in November, that Biden's position had not changed — until it suddenly did. People are also reading... 2 Statesville men face murder charges in 2011 shooting death of Joey Brewer Iredell County deputies charge 7 people in drug trafficking investigation 3 men face arson charges in Statesville house fire that severely burned woman Iredell-Statesville Schools OK $3.3 million in stadium upgrades at Lake Norman High School Woman charged with stabbing car dealership employee on test drive in Mooresville Hear the songs, see Santa at Sunday's Statesville Christmas Parade Families prepare for mass deportations: 'A sad and painful time' Get to know Mooresville basketball player Cadence Lane Top vote-getter Houpe: Why am I not chairman of Iredell board of commissioners? 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In issuing a pardon Dec. 1, Biden argued that the Justice Department had presided over a "miscarriage of justice" in prosecuting his son. The president used some of the same kind of language that Trump does to describe the criminal cases against him and his other legal predicaments. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said it was a decision that Biden struggled with but came to shortly before he made the announcement, "because of how politically infected these cases were" as well as "what his political opponents were trying to do." The poll found that about 4 in 10 Democrats approve of the pardon, while about 3 in 10 disapprove and about one-quarter did not have an opinion or did not know enough to say. The vast majority of Republicans and about half of independents had a negative opinion. President Joe Biden and son Hunter Biden walk Nov. 29 in downtown Nantucket Mass. For some, it was easy to see family taking priority over politics. "Do you have kids?" asked Robert Jenkins, a 63-year-old Democrat who runs a lumber yard and gas station in Gallipolis, Ohio. "You're gonna leave office and not pardon your kid? I mean, it's a no-brainer to me." But Prestia, who is semiretired from working for a digital marketing conglomerate, said Biden would have been better off not making promises. "He does have that right to pardon anybody he wants. But he just should have kept his mouth shut, and he did it because it was before the election, so it's just a bold-faced lie," Prestia said. Despite the unpopularity of his decision, the president's approval rating has not shifted meaningfully since before his party lost the White House to Trump. About 4 in 10 Americans "somewhat" or "strongly" approve of the way Biden is handling his job as president, which is about where his approval rating stood in AP-NORC polls since January 2022. Still, the pardon keeps creating political shock waves, with Republicans, and even some top Democrats, decrying it. Older adults are more likely than younger ones to approve of Biden's pardoning his son, according to the poll, though their support is not especially strong. About one-third of those ages 60 and older approve, compared with about 2 in 10 adults under 60. The age divide is driven partially by the fact that younger adults are more likely than older ones to say they neither approve nor disapprove of the pardon or that they do not know enough to say. President Joe Biden walks with his son Hunter Biden on July 26 as he heads toward Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington. About 6 in 10 white adults disapprove of the pardon, compared with slightly less than half of Hispanic adults and about 3 in 10 Black adults. Relatively large shares of Black and Hispanic Americans — about 3 in 10 — were neutral, the poll found. "Don't say you're gonna do something and then fall back," said Trinell Champ, 43, a Democrat from Nederland, Texas, who works in the home health industry and said she disapproved of the pardon. "At the end of the day, all you have is your word." Champ, who is Black, voted for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris over Trump. "I just had my hopes up for her, but I wasn't 100% positive," she said. Champ also said she does not approve of Biden's handling of the presidency and thinks the country is on the wrong track. "While he was in office, I felt like I really didn't see a lot of changes," she said. "I just felt like everything just kind of stayed the same," Champ said. Overall, though, the pardon did not appear to be a driving factor in many Americans' assessment of Biden's job performance. The share of Black Americans who approve of the way he is handling his job as president did fall slightly since October, but it is hard to assess what role the pardon may have played. Photos: Joe Biden through the years Joe Biden, 1972 Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) carries both of his sons, Joseph R. III, left, and Robert H., during an appearance at the Democratic state convention last summer, 1972. At center is his wife Neilia Biden, who was killed in an auto crash, Dec. 20, 1972. With them are Governor-elect Sherman W. Tribbitt and his wife, Jeanne. (AP Photo) Joe Biden, 1972 Joseph Biden, the newly-elected Democratic Senator from Delaware, is shown in Washington, Dec. 12, 1972. (AP Photo/Henry Griffin) Joe Biden, 1972 1972 - Is first elected to the Senate at age 29, defeating Republican Senator J. Caleb Boggs. Wins re-election in 1978, 1984, 1990, 1996 and 2002. The newly-elected Democratic senator from Delaware, Joe Biden, is shown, Dec. 13, 1972. Joe Biden, 1972 Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) kisses the cheek of an unidentified friend who offered consoling words after a memorial service in Wilmington, Del., Dec. 22, 1972, for Biden's wife Neilia, their 13-month-old daughter Naomi Christina, who perished in a car-truck crash. Biden's two sons were hospitalized with serious injuries. (AP Photo/Bill Ingraham) Joe Biden, 1973 December 18, 1972 - While Christmas shopping, Biden's first wife, Neilia Hunter Biden, and daughter, Naomi Biden, are killed in a car accident. His sons are badly injured, but survive. January 5, 1973 - Is sworn in as US senator of Delaware at son Beau Biden's bedside in the hospital. In this Jan. 5, 1973 file photo, four-year-old Beau Biden, foreground, plays near his father, Joe Biden, center, being sworn in as the U.S. senator from Delaware, by Senate Secretary Frank Valeo, left, in ceremonies in a Wilmington hospital. Beau was injured in an accident that killed his mother and sister in December 1972. Biden's father, Robert Hunter, holds the Bible. (AP Photo/File) Joe Biden, 1987 1987-1995 - Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, rubs his temples while speaking during confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Robert H. Bork, Sept. 17, 1987, on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/John Duricka) Joe Biden, 1987 June 9, 1987 - Enters the 1988 presidential race, but drops out three months later following reports of plagiarism and false claims about his academic record. Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) waves from his train as he leaves Wilmington, Del., after announcing his candidacy for president, June 9, 1987. At right, son Beau carries daughter; to Biden's right is his wife Jill and son Hunter. (AP Photo/George Widman) Joe Biden, 1988 February 1988 - Undergoes surgery to repair an aneurysm in an artery that supplies blood to the brain. Sen. Joseph Biden (D-Del.), wearing a University of Delaware baseball cap, leaves Walter Reed Army Hospital accompanied by his son Hunter Biden, Thursday, March 24, 1988, Washington, D.C. Biden had been in the hospital for 11 days so that surgeons could implant a small umbrella-like filter in a vein to prevent blood clots from reaching his lungs. (AP Photo/Adele Starr) Joe Biden, 1991 In this Oct. 12, 1991 file photo Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Joe Biden, D-Del., points angrily at Clarence Thomas during comments at the end of hearings on Thomas' nomination to the Supreme Court on Capitol Hill. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass. looks on at right. (AP Photo/Greg Gibson, File) Joe Biden, 1993 January 20, 1990 - Introduces a bill that becomes the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). The act addresses sexual assault and domestic violence. It is signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1994. Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), left, stands behind a flag as Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), second from right, along with other congresswomen meet reporters on Capitol Hill, Feb. 24, 1993, to discuss the Violence Against Women Act. From left are: Sen. Biden; Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.); Rep. Pat Schroeder (D-Colo); Sen. Boxer; and Rep. Constance Morella of Maryland. (AP Photo/Barry Thumma) Joe Biden, 1993 In this April 9, 1993, file photo Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del. stands in front of a Danish armored personnel carrier at the UN-controlled Sarajevo Airport, making a statement about his trip to the besieged Bosnian capital. (AP Photo/Michael Stravato, File) Joe Biden, 2003 Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, meets reporters on Capitol Hill Thursday, Oct. 16, 2003 to discuss the United Nations-Iraq vote. (AP Photo/Terry Ashe) Joe Biden, 2007 Democratic presidential hopeful, and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., presides over a hearing of the committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 1, 2007 to discuss the remaining options in Iraq. (AP Photo/Dennis Cook) Joe Biden, 2007 Democratic presidential hopeful U.S. Sen. Joseph Biden D-Del., smiles during the Iowa Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO Presidential Forum Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2007, in Waterloo, Iowa. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green) Joe Biden, 2007 January 31, 2007 - Files a statement of candidacy with the Federal Elections Commission to run for president. August 1, 2007 - His memoir, "Promises to Keep: On Life and Politics," is published. Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., left, listens as Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., responds to a question during the first Democratic presidential primary debate of the 2008 election hosted by the South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, SC., Thursday, April 26, 2007. At right is Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-NY. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Joe Biden, 2008 Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., speaks at a Caucus night rally in Des Moines, Iowa, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008. Biden abandoned his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination Thursday after a poor showing in the state's caucuses. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) Joe Biden, 2008 In this Jan. 3, 2008, file photo, Democratic presidential hopeful, Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., rests his head on the shoulder of his wife, Jill, as they stand in a hallway awaiting his introductions for a rally at the UAW Hall in Dubuque, Iowa on the day of the Iowa caucus in Dubuque, Iowa. (AP Photo/Mark Hirsch, File) Joe Biden, 2008 August 23, 2008 - Is named the vice-presidential running mate of Barack Obama. In this Aug. 23, 2008 file photo, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama D-Ill., and his vice presidential running mate Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., appear together in Springfield, Ill. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green, file) Joe Biden, 2008 In this Sept. 16, 2008 file photo, then Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del. arrives by Amtrak in Wilmington, Del., (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File) Joe Biden, 2008 In this Oct. 2,2008 file photo, Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., left, and Republican vice presidential candidate Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin face off during the vice presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Tom Gannam, File) Joe Biden, 2008 November 4, 2008 - Is elected vice president of the United States. President-elect Barack Obama, left, and Vice President-elect Joe Biden wave to the crowd after Obama's acceptance speech at his election night party at Grant Park in Chicago before giving his acceptance speech Tuesday night, Nov. 4, 2008. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) Joe Biden, 2009 January 20, 2009 - Is sworn in as vice president of the United States. Vice President Joe Biden, left, with his wife Jill at his side, taking the oath of office from Justice John Paul Stevens at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) Joe Biden, 2009 February 7, 2009 - Delivers his first major speech as vice president at a security conference in Germany. US Vice President Joe Biden addresses the participants of the International Conference on Security Policy, Sicherheitskonferenz, at the hotel "Bayerischer Hof" in Munich, southern Germany, on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2009. Joe Biden, 2010 September 1, 2010 - Presides over a ceremony in Iraq to formally mark the end of the US combat mission in Iraq. US Vice President Joe Biden, left, US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, center, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Mike Mullen, right, stand while the US National Anthem is played during the United States Forces-Iraq change of command ceremony in Baghdad on Wednesday Sept. 1, 2010, as a new US military mission in Iraq was launched ending seven years of combat. (AP Photo/Jim Watson Pool) Joe Biden, 2012 November 6, 2012 - Obama and Biden are reelected, defeating Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan. Vice President Joe Biden exits with his wife Jill Biden after voting at Alexis I. duPont High School, Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2012, in Greenville, Del. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke) Joe Biden, 2013 Vice President Joe Biden, with his wife Jill Biden, center, holding the Biden Family Bible, shakes hands with Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor after taking the oath of office during an official ceremony at the Naval Observatory, Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) Joe Biden, 2014 October 2, 2014 - Speaking at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, Biden tells attendees that ISIS has been inadvertently strengthened by actions taken by Turkey, the UAE and other Middle Eastern allies to help opposition groups fighting against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. In this Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014 file photo, Vice President Joe Biden speaks to students, faculty and staff at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass. Biden is due to headline a Democratic campaign rally in Las Vegas, with a downtown appearance Monday, Oct. 6, 2014, to talk about raising the minimum wage. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson,File) Joe Biden, 2015 May 30, 2015 - Biden's eldest son, Beau Biden, passes away from brain cancer at age 46. In this June 6, 2015 file photo, Vice President Joe Biden, accompanied by his family, holds his hand over his heart as he watches an honor guard carry a casket containing the remains of his son, former Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden, into St. Anthony of Padua Roman Catholic Church in Wilmington, Del. for funeral services. Beau Biden died of brain cancer May 30 at age 46. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) Joe Biden, 2015 October 21, 2015 - Says he will not seek the presidency, announcing that the window for a successful campaign "has closed." December 6, 2016 - Doesn't rule out running for president in 2020, saying "I'm not committing not to run. I'm not committing to anything. I learned a long time ago fate has a strange way of intervening." President Barack Obama hugs Vice President Joe Biden as Biden waves at the end Biden's announcement in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2015, that he will not run for the presidential nomination. Jill Biden is at right. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) Joe Biden, 2017 Vice President Joe Biden pauses between mock swearing in ceremonies in the Old Senate Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017, as the 115th Congress begins. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) Joe Biden, 2017 January 12, 2017 - Obama surprises Biden by presenting him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, during a White House ceremony. President Barack Obama presents Vice President Joe Biden with the Presidential Medal of Freedom during a ceremony in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 12, 2017. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) Joe Biden, 2017 February 1, 2017 - Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, launch the Biden Foundation, an organization that will work on seven issues: foreign policy; Biden's cancer initiative; community colleges and military families; protecting children; equality; ending violence against women; and strengthening the middle class. February 7, 2017 - Is named the Benjamin Franklin presidential practice professor at the University of Pennsylvania, where he will lead the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement. He will also serve as the founding chair of the University of Delaware's Biden Institute, the university announces. March 1, 2017 - Biden receives the Congressional Patriot Award from the Bipartisan Policy Center. He receives the honor in recognition of his work crafting bipartisan legislation with Republicans and Democrats. Former Vice President Joe Biden tucks notes into his jacket after speaking at an event to formally launch the Biden Institute, a research and policy center focused on domestic issues at the University of Delaware, in Newark, Del., Monday, March 13, 2017. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) Joe Biden, 2019 In this March 26, 2019, file photo, former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at the Biden Courage Awards in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File) Joe Biden, 2019 April 25, 2019 - Announces he is running for president in a campaign video posted to social media. Hours later, the Biden Foundation board chair, Ted Kaufman, announces the immediate suspension of all the organization's operations. Former Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden arrives at the Wilmington train station Thursday April 25, 2019 in Wilmington, Delaware. Biden announced his candidacy for president via video on Thursday morning. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) Joe Biden, 2019 In this June 6, 2019, file photo, Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during the "I Will Vote" fundraising gala in Atlanta. Biden shifted to oppose longstanding restrictions on federal funding of abortion during his remarks. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File) Joe Biden, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, former Vice President Joe Biden signs a copy of his book "Promise Me, Dad" at a campaign rally at Modern Woodmen Park, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2020, in Davenport, Iowa. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Joe Biden, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at a primary night election rally in Columbia, S.C., Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020 after winning the South Carolina primary. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) Joe Biden, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at a primary night election rally in Columbia, S.C., Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020, after winning the South Carolina primary. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke) Joe Biden, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at a primary election night campaign rally Tuesday, March 3, 2020, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) Joe Biden, 2020 August 20, 2020: Joe Biden accepts the Democratic nomination for president Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during the fourth day of the Democratic National Convention, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2020, at the Chase Center in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Joe Biden, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden, with Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., raise their arms up as fireworks go off in the background during the fourth day of the Democratic National Convention, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2020, at the Chase Center in Wilmington, Del. Looking on are Jill Biden, far left, and Harris' husband Doug Emhoff, far right. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Joe Biden, 2020 President Donald Trump, left, and Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden, right, with moderator Chris Wallace, center, of Fox News during the first presidential debate Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020, at Case Western University and Cleveland Clinic, in Cleveland, Ohio. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) Joe Biden, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden, right, and former President Barack Obama greet each other with an air elbow bump, at the conclusion of rally at Northwestern High School in Flint, Mich., Saturday, Oct. 31, 2020. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Joe Biden, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden arrives to speak at a rally at Belle Isle Casino in Detroit, Mich., Saturday, Oct. 31, 2020, which former President Barack Obama also attended. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Joe Biden, 2020 President-elect Joe Biden gestures on stage after speaking, Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020, in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, Pool) Joe Biden, 2020 FILE - In this Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020, file photo, from left, Doug Emhoff, husband of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Harris, President-elect Joe Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, stand on stage together, in Wilmington, Del. The theme for Biden’s inauguration will be “America United." Unity is an issue that’s long been a central focus for Biden but one that’s taken on added weight in the wake of the violence at the U.S. Capitol. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, Pool, File) Joe Biden, 2020 President-elect Joe Biden announces his climate and energy team nominees and appointees at The Queen Theater in Wilmington Del., Saturday, Dec. 19, 2020. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) Joe Biden, 2021 President Joe Biden speaks about his domestic agenda from the East Room of the White House in Washington on Oct. 28, 2021. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) Joe Biden, 2021 U.S. President Joe Biden, left, shakes hands with Pope Francis as they meet at the Vatican on Oct. 29, 2021. (Vatican Media via AP) Joe Biden, 2021 President Joe Biden removes his face mask as he arrives in the East Room of the White House to speak about the evacuation of American citizens, their families, special immigrant visa applicants and vulnerable Afghans on Aug. 20, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) Joe Biden, 2022 Cherelle Griner, wife of WNBA star Brittney Griner, speaks after President Joe Biden announced Brittney Griner's release in a prisoner swap with Russia on Dec. 8, 2022, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. Also attending are Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, and Vice President Kamala Harris. Joe Biden, 2022 President Joe Biden holds the microphone to Chocolate, the national Thanksgiving turkey, during a pardoning ceremony Nov. 21, 2022, at the White House in Washington. Joe Biden, 2022 President Joe Biden holds an Atlanta Braves jersey during an event celebrating the Major League Baseball 2021 World Series champion Atlanta Braves in the East Room of the White House on Sept. 26, 2022, in Washington. Joe Biden, 2022 President Joe Biden receives his COVID-19 booster from a member of the White House medical unit during an event in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus on Oct. 25, 2022, in Washington. Joe Biden, 2022 U.S. President Joe Biden, left, talks with Indonesian President Joko Widodo during their bilateral meeting ahead of the G20 Summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, on Nov. 14, 2022. Joe Biden, 2023 President Joe Biden speaks from the Oval Office of the White House on Oct. 19, 2023, in Washington, about the war in Israel and Ukraine. Joe Biden, 2023 President Joe Biden arrives to speak at the Amtrak Bear Maintenance Facility on Nov. 6, 2023, in Bear, Del. Joe Biden, 2023 President Joe Biden, accompanied by Office of Management and Budget director Shalanda Young, left, and Women's Alzheimer's Movement founder Maria Shriver, right, gives first lady Jill Biden a kiss after giving her the pen he used to sign a presidential memorandum that will establish the first-ever White House Initiative on Women's Health Research in the Oval Office of the White House on Nov. 13, 2023, in Washington. Joe Biden, 2023 President Joe Biden pauses as he speaks to reporters in Nantucket, Mass. on Nov. 26, 2023, about hostages freed by Hamas in a third set of releases under a four-day cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas. Joe Biden, 2023 President Joe Biden shakes hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as they meet in the Oval Office of the White House on Dec. 12, 2023, in Washington. Joe Biden, 2023 President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy depart a news conference in the Indian Treaty Room in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House Campus on Dec. 12, 2023, in Washington. Joe Biden, 2023 President Joe Biden speaks during a funeral service for retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor at the Washington National Cathedral on Dec. 19, 2023, in Washington. O'Connor, an Arizona native and the first woman to serve on the nation's highest court, died Dec. 1, 2023, at age 93. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden arrives to deliver remarks on the economy on June 28, 2023, at the Old Post Office in Chicago. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden, right, stands as an Army carry team moves the transfer case containing the remains of U.S. Army Sgt. Kennedy Ladon Sanders, 24, of Waycross, Ga., at Dover Air Force Base, Del., on Feb. 2, 2024. Sanders was killed in a drone attack in Jordan on Jan. 28, 2024. Joe Biden, 2024 Vice President Kamala Harris embraces President Joe Biden after a speech on health care in Raleigh, N.C., on March. 26, 2024. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden greets Zion Schrode, 8 months, of Marin County, Calif., as he is held by his mother Erin Schrode during a Jewish American Heritage Month event, on May 20, 2024, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington. Joe Biden, 2024 Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid, left, and CEO Clark Hunt, right, watch as President Joe Biden, center, puts on a Chiefs helmet during an event with the Super Bowl-champion Kansas City Chiefs on the South Lawn of the White House, on May 31, 2024, to celebrate their championship season and victory in Super Bowl LVIII. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event with former President Barack Obama moderated by Jimmy Kimmel at the Peacock Theater on June 15, 2024, in Los Angeles. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden, right, and Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump, left, participate in a presidential debate hosted by CNN on June 27, 2024, in Atlanta. Joe Biden, 2024 First lady Jill Biden, President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and second gentleman Douglas Emhoff view the Independence Day firework display over the National Mall from the balcony of the White House, on July 4, 2024, in Washington. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden, right, and the Rev. Dr. J. Louis Felton pray at a church service at Mt. Airy Church of God in Christ on July 7, 2024, in Philadelphia. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden pauses as he speaks at the Biden campaign headquarters in Wilmington, Del., on Feb. 3, 2024. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden walks on stage to speak during the NAACP national convention July 16, 2024, in Las Vegas. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden walks between tombstones as he arrives to attend a mass at St. Joseph on the Brandywine Catholic Church in Wilmington, Del., on July 6, 2024. Joe Biden, 2022 President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrive to give treats to trick-or-treaters on the South Lawn of the White House, on Halloween on Oct. 31, 2022, in Washington. Joe Biden, 2022 U.S. President Joe Biden, right, and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands before a meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit meeting Nov. 14, 2022, in Bali, Indonesia. Joe Biden, 2023 President Joe Biden is greeted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after arriving at Ben Gurion International Airport on Oct. 18, 2023, in Tel Aviv. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden speaks during the State of the Union address on Capitol Hill on March 7, 2024, in Washington, as Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Mike Johnson listen. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden walk in the Normandy American Cemetery following a ceremony to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day, on June 6, 2024, in Normandy. Joe Biden, 2024 U.S. President Joe Biden, right, greets Pope Francis ahead of a working session on Artificial Intelligence (AI), Energy, Africa-Mediterranean, on day two of the 50th G7 summit at Borgo Egnazia, southern Italy, on June 14, 2024. Joe Biden, 2024 President Joe Biden addresses the nation from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on July 14, 2024, about the assassination attempt of Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. The poll of 1,251 adults was conducted Dec. 5-9, 2024, using a sample drawn from NORC's probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.7 percentage points. Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.CHICAGO (AP) — The Seattle Seahawks placed running back Kenneth Walker III on injured reserve prior to their game against the Chicago Bears on Thursday because of an ankle injury. Walker hurt his ankle in last week's loss to Minnesota and left that game after sitting out the previous two because of a calf problem. He also missed two weeks in September with an oblique issue. Walker has run for 573 yards and seven touchdowns on 153 carries. A second-round draft pick by Seattle in 2022, he has 2,528 yards rushing and 24 TDs in his career. Walker could, in theory, return if the Seahawks win two playoff games, though their postseason hopes were slim entering the game against Chicago. Seattle (8-7) trailed the NFC West-leading Los Angeles Rams (9-6) by one game with two to play. The Seahawks' best path to the postseason was to win the final two regular-season games and have Los Angeles lose to Arizona on Saturday. Seattle visits the Rams to close the regular season. With Walker out, Seattle signed rookie running back George Holani off the practice squad. ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
John Marshall all-state swimmer Julia Ogren commits to University of Louisville
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MANCHESTER, NH – The long-awaited Phase Two of the Manchester School District’s Long Term Facilities Plan is set to be discussed at the Manchester Board of School Committee’s meeting on Monday Dec. 9. In this new phase, all of Manchester’s 12 existing public elementary schools will receive updates – excluding for Beech Street Elementary School, which was proposed to be rebuilt across the street from its current location as part of the first phase of the facilities plan. That proposal is dependent on a land swap which stalled out two weeks ago after the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted 8-7 to “pause” the project. In addition to Beech Street, there will be new buildings at Bakersville, Gossler Park, Jewett Street, Smyth Road and Webster Elementary Schools. Weston, Northwest, McDonough, Parker-Varney, Highland-Goffes Falls, and Green Acres will receive renovations. The schools will be rebuilt or renovated in four phases: Gossler Park, Jewett Street and Smyth Road in the first group (2026-2032), Bakersville, McDonough and Webster in the second group (2033-2039), Highland-Goffe’s Falls, Northwest, Weston in the third group (2040-2046) and Green Acres and Parker Varney in the final group (2047-2053). With the first phase of the facilities plan finalizing the transition of fifth grade public school classes into the city’s four public middle schools, there are no further plans for the middle schools in Phase Two. However, the city’s public high schools will receive a complete update. Manchester West, Central and Memorial High Schools will remain at their existing locations, with Career and Technical studies offered at the Manchester School of Technology distributed among Central and Memorial, with a Magnet School for the Arts joining the general studies program at West. Central in particular will be completely rebuilt, either on its current campus or at an alternative location not mentioned in the agenda materials for next week’s Board of School Committee meeting. Plans for both potential rebuilt Central High Schools are projected at five stories tall, with the option remaining at the current campus removing existing underground parking. Memorial would also be rebuilt on its current campus along the edge of Weston Road, with parking and athletic fields placed at the current location of the school building. Central’s design and construction would take place from 2026 to 2033, followed by Memorial (2033-2040) and West (2040-2047). The current Manchester School of Technology building would be transformed into potential central offices for the district, a special needs school for Grades 5-12, transportation offices, adult education services. This transformation would take place only after conclusion of the Central and Memorial plans. Costs for the elementary school proposals in Phase 2 range from $852 to $894 million. The high school cost will range from $1.365 to $1.433 billion. Manchester School District Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Chmiel released the following statement on the information set to be presented at next week’s meeting. “We are looking forward to bringing our roadmap for the long-term facilities planning to the Board of School Committee on Monday, December 9th. This roadmap is the result of months of work between the district, community and our expert consultants, SMMA. We have approached this work with a respect for studies of the past along with changes in educational practices to better align the district with 21st Century learning. The recommendations contained within this long-term roadmap can serve as a guide to help both current and future city leaders plan for and invest in our District school buildings, which benefits our city as a whole. This is not an “everything right now” plan, rather it is a staggered 25-30 year guide for our school facilities, serving multiple generations and ensuring we are constantly moving forward while investing in our facilities. We fully understand the ongoing need to work to identify funding options and strategies for this roadmap to ensure the level of affordability needed for the greater community. Our primary focus at this time continues to be the Priority One projects – specifically the previously approved additions and renovations of the four middle schools and construction of the new Beech Street elementary school.” A full copy of the presentation can be found below.Native American patients are sent to collections for debts the government owesNYC committees back modified CoY planNative American patients are sent to collections for debts the government owes
A group of volunteers in Manchester was working Tuesday to make sure every child has a great Christmas. Volunteer Karen Noke said she knows what it's like to need a helping hand around the holidays. "My husband lost his job. None of us were working," she said. "Without me even knowing about it, they brought bikes out of the car and all sorts of Christmas presents." She now volunteers with Recycled Percussion to make sure every child has something special under the tree. The group's store, Chaos and Kindness, hands out thousands of free gifts each year. >> Download the free WMUR app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play Ghanaian Boxer Bukom Banku Denies Allegations of Public Brawl with Woman
New Delhi, Nov 24 (IANS) : Some industry experts are skeptical whether Elon Musk’s unconventional methods and Donald Trump’s leadership will ultimately benefit AI regulation and the market at large, according to a new report. Trump has been re-elected as President of the US with Musk appointed to lead the newly established Department of Efficiency. Musk’s role focuses on streamlining government processes and integrating advanced technologies, a development that marks a significant shift in the regulatory landscape for artificial intelligence (AI) and other emerging technologies. However, some industry experts remain skeptical, said GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company. According to forecasts, the global AI market is set to reach over $1 trillion by 2030, up from $103 billion in 2023, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 39 per cent over the period. Kamilla Kan, senior data scientist, Medical Devices team at GlobalData, said that with the increasing adoption of AI across sectors, the need for robust, forward-thinking regulations is more critical than ever. “AI technologies are becoming integral to a range of industries, and we expect this trend to accelerate globally in the coming years. However, it remains uncertain whether Musk’s approach will truly enable the responsible growth of AI or if it may inadvertently create regulatory gaps that could hinder the technology’s safe and ethical integration,” Kan emphasised. Musk’s efficiency-focused mandate includes developing frameworks aimed at streamlining AI compliance while fostering innovation, though there is uncertainty about how effective his approach will be in practice. His appointment reflects the government’s intention to strengthen the US position in AI and technology, which are now viewed as critical for economic growth and national security. Musk’s Department of Efficiency is expected to provide some regulatory consistency and clear guidelines to help businesses harness AI responsibly. However, concerns remain about whether this approach will adequately balance public trust with the rapid demands of technological advancement, said the report.
Ange Postecoglou explains angry exchange with Tottenham fans after Bournemouth defeat: 'I'm a human being'
6,000 inmates escape from a high-security prison as post-election violence roils MozambiqueADDISON, Texas, Dec. 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CECO Environmental Corp. (Nasdaq: CECO) (together with its consolidated subsidiaries and affiliates, "CECO”), a leading environmentally focused, diversified industrial company whose solutions protect people, the environment and industrial equipment, announced today that the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended ("HSR”), applicable to CECO's tender offer for Profire Energy, Inc. (Nasdaq: PFIE) ("PFIE”) expired at 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on November 15, 2024. The expiration of the HSR waiting period satisfies one of the conditions to consummate the tender offer. Other conditions remain to be satisfied, including, among others, a minimum tender of shares of common stock of PFIE representing a majority of the total number of outstanding shares of common stock of PFIE. Unless the tender offer is extended, the offer and withdrawal rights will expire at one minute after 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on December 31, 2024. ABOUT CECO ENVIRONMENTAL CECO Environmental is a leading environmentally focused, diversified industrial company, serving a broad landscape of industrial air, industrial water, and energy transition markets across the globe through its key business segments: Engineered Systems and Industrial Process Solutions. Providing innovative technology and application expertise, CECO helps companies grow their business with safe, clean, and more efficient solutions that help protect people, the environment and industrial equipment. In regions around the world, CECO works to improve air quality, optimize the energy value chain, and provide custom solutions for applications including power generation, petrochemical processing, general industrial, refining, midstream oil and gas, electric vehicle production, polysilicon fabrication, battery recycling, beverage can, and water/wastewater treatment along with a wide range of other applications. CECO is listed on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "CECO.” Incorporated in 1966, CECO's global headquarters is in Addison, Texas. For more information, please visit www.cecoenviro.com . SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT Certain statements in this communication are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, both as amended, which are intended to be covered by the safe harbor for "forward-looking statements” provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any statements contained in this communication, other than statements of historical fact, including statements about management's beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements and should be evaluated as such. These statements are made on the basis of management's views and assumptions regarding future events and business performance. We use words such as "believe,” "expect,” "anticipate,” "intends,” "estimate,” "forecast,” "project,” "will,” "plan,” "should” and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Potential risks and uncertainties, among others, that could cause actual results to differ materially are discussed under "Item 1A. Risk Factors” of CECO's Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and in CECO's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, and include, but are not limited to: Important Additional Information Will be Filed with the SEC This press release is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell common stock of PFIE or any other securities. This communication is for informational purposes only. The tender offer transaction commenced by a subsidiary of CECO is being made pursuant to a tender offer statement on Schedule TO (including the Offer to Purchase, a related Letter of Transmittal and other offer materials) filed by such affiliates of CECO with the SEC. In addition, PFIE will file a solicitation/recommendation statement on Schedule 14D-9 with the SEC related to the tender offer. The offer to purchase shares of PFIE' common stock is only being made pursuant to the Offer to Purchase, the Letter of Transmittal and related offer materials filed as a part of the tender offer statement on Schedule TO, in each case as amended from time to time. THE TENDER OFFER MATERIALS (INCLUDING THE OFFER TO PURCHASE, THE RELATED LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL AND OTHER MATERIALS) AND THE SOLICITATION/RECOMMENDATION STATEMENT ON SCHEDULE 14D-9 CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. PRIOR TO MAKING ANY DECISION REGARDING THE TENDER OFFER, PFIE STOCKHOLDERS ARE STRONGLY ADVISED TO CAREFULLY READ THESE DOCUMENTS, AS FILED AND AS THEY MAY BE AMENDED FROM TIME TO TIME, WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE. PFIE stockholders will be able to obtain the tender offer statement on Schedule TO (including the Offer to Purchase, a related Letter of Transmittal and other offer materials) and the related solicitation/recommendation statement on Schedule 14D-9 at no charge on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. In addition, the tender offer statement on Schedule TO (including the Offer to Purchase, a related Letter of Transmittal and other offer materials) and the related solicitation/recommendation statement on Schedule 14D-9 may be obtained free of charge from D.F. King & Co., Inc. 48 Wall Street, 22nd Floor New York, New York 10005, Telephone Number (866) 342-4881. Company Contact: Peter Johansson Chief Financial and Strategy Officer 888-990-6670 Investor Relations Contact: Steven Hooser and Jean Marie Young Three Part Advisors 214-872-2710 [email protected]Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save NEW ORLEANS — A scruffy little fugitive is on the lam again in New Orleans, gaining fame as he outwits a tenacious band of citizens armed with night-vision binoculars, nets and a tranquilizer rifle. Scrim, a 17-pound mutt that's mostly terrier, has become a folk hero, inspiring tattoos, T-shirts and even a ballad as he eludes capture from the posse of volunteers. And like any antihero, Scrim has a backstory: Rescued from semi-feral life at a trailer park and adopted from a shelter, the dog broke loose in April and scurried around the city until he was cornered in October and brought to a new home. Weeks later, he'd had enough. Scrim leaped out of a second-story window, a desperate act recorded in a now-viral video. Since then, despite a stream of daily sightings, he's roamed free. People are also reading... OSU football: A prediction gone badly wrong Philomath driver suspected of DUII in Corvallis pileup As I See It: Six reasons why Trump won again Corvallis police seek grinches who stole Christmas OSU men's basketball: Beavers hope blowout wins pave the way for bigger things Corvallis Samaritan hospital has new CEO 2025 to bring rate increases, new fee for hauling Corvallis waste Graduate employees reach deal with OSU to end strike The real reason Corvallis' Pastega Lights moved to Linn County Why did Trump win? Election debrief hosted by Corvallis group Graduate strike at OSU continues. What's the holdup? OSU football: Beavers add 18 players as signing period opens Corvallis woman cuts hair for homeless: 'The Lord gave me a calling' Albany man pleads to numerous sex crimes Molestation victim’s mother tampered with court case The dog’s fans include Myra and Steve Foster, who wrote “Ode to Scrim” to the tune of Ricky Nelson’s 1961 hit, “I’m a Travelin’ Man.” Michelle Cheramie, founder of Zeus' Rescues, at her office in New Orleans on Dec. 9 with a whiteboard index of sheltered cats and dogs and a Scrim look-alike recuperating in the background. Leading the recapture effort is Michelle Cheramie, a 55-year-old former information technology professional. She lost everything — home, car, possessions — in Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and in the aftermath, found her calling rescuing pets. “I was like, ‘This is what I should be doing,’” Cheramie said. “I was born to rescue.” She launched Zeus’ Rescues, a nonprofit shelter that now averages 600 cat and dog adoptions a year and offers free pet food to anyone who needs it. She helped Scrim find the home he first escaped from. It was Cheramie's window Scrim leaped from in November. She's resumed her relentless mission since then, posting flyers on telephone poles and logging social media updates on his reported whereabouts. She's invested thousands of dollars on wildlife cameras, thermal sensors and other gear. She took a course offered by the San Diego Zoo on the finer points of tranquilizing animals. And she's developed a network of volunteers — the kind of neighbors who are willing to grid-search a city at 3 a.m. Scrim on Oct. 24 at the Metairie Small Animal Hospital in Metairie, La. People like writer David W. Brown, who manages a crowd-sourced Google Map of all known Scrim sightings. He says the search galvanized residents from all walks of life to come together. As they search for Scrim, they hand out supplies to people in need. “Being a member of the community is seeing problems and doing what you can to make life a little better for the people around here and the animals around you,” Brown said. Neighbor Tammy Murray had to close her furniture store and lost her father to Parkinson's disease. This search, she says, got her mojo back. “Literally, for months, I’ve done nothing but hunt this dog,” said Murray, 53. “I feel like Wile E. Coyote on a daily basis with him.” Murray drives the Zeus' Rescues van toward reported Scrim sightings. She also handles a tactical net launcher, which looks like an oversized flashlight and once misfired, shattering the van's window as Scrim sped away. After realizing Scrim came to recognize the sound of the van's diesel engine, Murray switched to a Vespa scooter for stealth. Michelle Cheramie, director of Zeus' Rescues, left, walks with Scrim on Oct. 24 at the Metairie Small Animal Hospital in Metairie, La. Near-misses have been tantalizing. The search party spotted Scrim napping beneath an elevated house, and wrapped construction netting around the perimeter, but an over-eager volunteer broke ranks and dashed forward, leaving an opening Scrim slipped through. Scrim's repeated escapades prompted near-daily local media coverage and a devoted online following. Cheramie can relate. “We’re all running from something or to something," she said. "He's doing that, too.” Cheramie's team dreams of placing the pooch in a safe and loving environment. But a social media chorus growing under the hashtag #FreeScrim has other ideas — they say the runaway should be allowed a life of self-determination. The animal rescue volunteers consider that misguided. “The streets of New Orleans are not the place for a dog to be free,” Cheramie said. “It’s too dangerous.” Scrim rests in a kennel Oct. 24 at the Metairie Small Animal Hospital in Metairie, La. Scrim was a mess when Cheramie briefly recaptured him in October, with matted fur, missing teeth and a tattered ear. His trembling body was scraped and bruised, and punctured by projectiles. A vet removed one, but decided against operating to take out a possible bullet. The dog initially appeared content indoors, sitting in Cheramie's lap or napping beside her bed. Then while she was out one day, Scrim chewed through a mesh screen, dropped 13 feet to the ground and squeezed through a gap in the fence, trotting away. Murray said Cheramie's four cats probably spooked him. Cheramie thinks they may have gotten territorial. Devastated but undeterred, the pair is reassessing where Scrim might fit best — maybe a secure animal sanctuary with big outdoor spaces where other dogs can keep him company. Somewhere, Murray says, “where he can just breathe and be.” A fugitive gains fame in New Orleans eluding dart guns and nets Scrim sits in the arms of Zoey Ponder on Oct. 24 at Metairie Small Animal Hospital in Metairie. A Scrim sticker for sale Dec. 9 at Zeus' Rescues office to raise money for the shelter in New Orleans. A homemade portrait of Scrim hangs Dec. 9 in the Zeus' Rescues shelter in New Orleans. Scrim at the Terrebonne Parish Animal Shelter in Louisiana. Scrim spends some time outside Oct. 24 with Michelle Cheramie, director of Zeus' Rescues, in a fenced-in area at Metairie Small Animal Hospital in Metairie. Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly!
China's reported decision to build Three Gorges like mega hydel project on the Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra in India) is not just a strong reminder on the piling security costs attached to the delay in commencing work on the Upper Siang Hydroelectric Project in Arunachal Pradesh, but also a wake-up call on the need to treat water infrastructure building along the Himalayan rivers as a strategic imperative. ET Year-end Special Reads Corporate Kalesh: Top family disputes of India Inc in 2024 The world of business lost these eminent people in 2024 Fast, faster, fastest: How 2024 put more speed into your shopping Hydel projects are just as important as border roads. It took India decades to realise that its policy of not building roads along the China border was counterproductive. By the time New Delhi got a grip of reality, Beijing had built all weather blacktop roads on the other side of the Line of Actual Control. As India countered, standoffs and skirmishes increased. Now, when India and China have just completed a troop disengagement process after a four-year close-contact forward deployment, Beijing's move on Yarlung Tsangpo only raises more doubts on its overall political intent. Not to forget, resuming river water conversation is one of the items on the agenda of normalisation of relations. But clearly, China appears to be drawing its line on the Brahmaputra river even as it talks de-escalation on LAC. The over 10,000 MW Upper Siang project provides an answer, but in this case India is up against domestic political compulsions. The status of the project is that the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation needs to do some drilling work to carry out geological studies, important to the process of finalising the site. However, this has not happened because of local protests. 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View Program Data Science SQL for Data Science along with Data Analytics and Data Visualization By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) AI and Analytics based Business Strategy By - Tanusree De, Managing Director- Accenture Technology Lead, Trustworthy AI Center of Excellence: ATCI View Program Web Development A Comprehensive ASP.NET Core MVC 6 Project Guide for 2024 By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Marketing Digital Marketing Masterclass by Pam Moore By - Pam Moore, Digital Transformation and Social Media Expert View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) AI-Powered Python Mastery with Tabnine: Boost Your Coding Skills By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Office Productivity Mastering Microsoft Office: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and 365 By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Marketing Digital marketing - Wordpress Website Development By - Shraddha Somani, Digital Marketing Trainer, Consultant, Strategiest and Subject Matter expert View Program Office Productivity Mastering Google Sheets: Unleash the Power of Excel and Advance Analysis By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Web Development Mastering Full Stack Development: From Frontend to Backend Excellence By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Finance Financial Literacy i.e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code By - CA Rahul Gupta, CA with 10+ years of experience and Accounting Educator View Program Data Science SQL Server Bootcamp 2024: Transform from Beginner to Pro By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program The facts are that China's project is likely to be in Namcha Barwa on the Great Bend, where Yarlung Tsangpo makes almost a U-turn to enter India. Any divergence of water will adversely impact the flow of Brahmaputra during the non-monsoon months. This could stretch to four-to-five months a year. Thereafter, the river benefits and enlarges from the Indian monsoon rain. A large storage, as envisaged in the Upper Siang project, will cover for these months and help the local population against the possibility of China weaponising the Yarlung Tsangpo before it enters India. This political communication has, thus far, not succeeded locally, also complicated by the fact that one of the towns likely to be submerged is Yingkiong, which is the constituency of former Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Gegong Apang. Similar delays on the 850 MW Ratle project on River Chenab allowed Pakistan the space to lobby with the US as well as the World Bank and drag India to a bizarre arbitration, where two parallel processes are going on simultaneously. India now wants a complete relook at the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty and has sent four notices to Pakistan. India is an upper riparian country with Pakistan and a lower riparian with China. So, the situation is not fully comparable. But the solution to problems on both fronts is similar: Build efficiently, build fast. The reason is that trust stands eroded with both countries. The last agreement India had with China on sharing of hydrological data for Brahmaputra and Sutlej has expired. The Indus Waters Treaty was a more robust affair, which allowed Pakistan legal options to hold up even run-of-the-river projects on the tributaries of Indus in India. In other words, India seems to have had a rough deal with legal instruments with both countries. While it has none to tie down China as a lower riparian country, it has to contend with a strong treaty with Pakistan as an upper riparian. The way through this conundrum is just like with border roads, India has no option but to build hydel projects with strategic urgency, keeping in mind that it's on the receiving end of what China is doing - be it environmental like glacial lake outburst flood (Glof) or water security like the Yarlung Tsangpo plans. (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel )The Competition Bureau wants to know what Canadians think of its proposed guidelines to ensure companies are truthful about environment and climate claims for their products. On Dec. 23, the bureau opened consultations on its greenwashing guidelines. Interested parties can submit feedback to the Competition Bureau by email until Feb. 28, 2025, and submissions will be posted publicly. The Competition Act is a law designed to prevent anti-competitive practices like price-fixing, false marketing and other deceptions. The law was amended in June to specifically address greenwashing. There was swift and strong pushback from oil and gas industry players and some politicians. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith took to social media, describing the greenwashing rules in omnibus Bill C-59 as “illegal” and “draconian.” Former Alberta energy minister Sonya Savage likened the changes to “green-hushing” at a Sept. carbon capture conference. In a panel discussion with Savage, Lisa Baiton, president and CEO of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), said the new rules silence “very lively public policy debate” with too much leeway for those opposed to fossil fuels. The Pathways Alliance, a coalition of Canada’s six largest fossil fuel producers, quickly wiped its net-zero emissions goal and proposal for a carbon capture network from its website and replaced it with a statement that new changes to the act create uncertainty. Now, some of the scrubbed information is back on the Pathways Alliance website. The net-zero goals remain absent, but some information about the giant carbon capture and storage hub (the group’s flagship project) is back up. The bureau said it won’t hold anyone liable for a breach that happened before the new law came into force. It said it would also consider the circumstances of each case when exercising its enforcement discretion. The rules apply to all companies — not just oil and gas. Companies are free to make environmental claims for promotional purposes, as long as they are not false or misleading, and can be proven by the company. The Competition Bureau already has several greenwashing investigations underway. It is probing whether the Pathways Alliance’s net-zero claims in one of its ad campaigns are false or misleading. Enbridge is also being investigated for allegedly misleading customers about the role of natural gas in the energy transition by calling it “clean energy” and “low carbon.” The Canadian Gas Association is under scrutiny for similar messaging. In a Sept. 5 submission to the Competition Bureau, CAPP said the “fundamentally flawed” amendments should be repealed and argued that not-for-profit and advocacy groups should be held to the same evidentiary standards as businesses. CAPP’s request for the legislation to also apply to environmental groups was ridiculed by NDP MP Charlie Angus, who described CAPP’s position as “ludicrous.” “These greenwashing rules deal with corporate claims because people are making money. That’s pretty straightforward,” Angus told Canada’s National Observer in September. Anyone who suspects a company or individual is making deceptive marketing claims is strongly encouraged by the Competition Bureau to report it. — With files from the Canadian Press