Singer Sidhu Moose Wala Murder: Suspect, Hiding Among Pilgrims, Detained

 A suspect in the murder of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala has been detained in Uttarakhand, police sources have said today. The suspect had been hiding among pilgrims who are part of the Hemkund Sahib yatra in the mountains when a joint Punjab and Uttarakhand police team detained him, they said, adding the suspect is being taken to Punjab now.

The suspect detained from Dehradun today is a member of Lawrence Bishnoi gang, who has claimed responsibility for the singer's killing, sources have said.

Five more suspects have been detained from Uttarakhand. All of them are being taken to Punjab.

Sidhu Moose Wala was shot dead while he was driving his SUV in Punjab's Mansa yesterday.

The singer, who had also contested the Punjab elections earlier this year on a Congress ticket, was shot 30 times with an automatic assault rifle, the police said.

Punjab Police chief VK Bhawra has said the killing seemed to be the result of an inter-gang rivalry. "This incident seems to be a case of an inter gang rivalry," he told reporters, adding the name of the singer's manager, Shagunpreet, had figured in the murder of a youth Akali leader, Vicky Middukhera, last year. Shagunpreet had then fled to Australia.

Sidhu Moose Wala's murder appears to be in retaliation to Middukhera's killing, the police chief said.

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Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold4 to feature less prominent foldable screen crease

South Korean giant Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold3 foldable smartphone which was unveiled last August is expected to get a successor this year dubbed Galaxy Z Fold4.

According to GSM Arena, some info for the smartphone has already leaked and it suggests that its foldable screen will have a less prominent crease. A tipster has said that the Galaxy Fold4's screen looks smoother than Fold3's. 

It will be interesting to see what improvements Samsung has made to the hinge design for reducing the hinge gap when the main screen is folded. 

As per GSM Arena, last year's Galaxy Z Fold3 had a visible crease that was noticeable to touch, but was not an issue when one was engaged with screen.

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Elon Musk, Pune Software Developer And Their Twitter Banter

 Tesla CEO Elon Musk is highly active on Twitter these days, also it seems that he is fond of replying regularly to a Pune-based Indian Software developer, Pranay Pathole, who is working for Tata Consultancy Services.

On Monday, in a tweet Mr Musk said that he is not running Mr Pathole's Twitter account. Mr Pathole tweeted, "Many people think that @elonmusk runs my Twitter account. And it's TRUE. He's a super busy guy, building rockets, making life multiplanetary, building futuristic electric vehicles, digging tunnels. And somehow he finds time to run multiple Twitter account. YES ".

In response to the tweet, Mr Musk replied, "Haha I don't even have a burner Twitter account! I do have a cheesy secret Instagram account, so I can click on links that friends send me."

Mr Pathole has more than 1.6 lakh followers on Twitter. Mr Musk and Mr Pathole are friends on Twitter.

Mr Musk is often spotted replying to Mr Pathole's tweets.

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5 Pics: Huge Delhi Storm = Flooded Roads, Traffic Jams

 Several parts of Delhi witnessed heavy rain with thunderstorm early this morning, which affected flight operations at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport, and caused power blackouts as well.

The airport authorities have requested the passengers to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information.

"Due to bad weather, flight operations at Delhi airport are affected. Passengers are requested to get in touch with the airline concerned for updated flight information," Delhi Airport tweeted.

Parts of the city were affected by waterlogging and several trees were uprooted as well due to the strong winds and heavy downpour. The India Meteorological Department has predicted the rain and thunderstorm to continue in Delhi NCR for the next two hours.

"Today, just from 5:40 am till 7 am, the temperature fell by 11 degrees Celsius, from 29 degrees Celsius to 18 degrees Celsius," the India Meteorological Department said.

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GMR Aviation Academy bags ‘Best Aviation Skills and Training Agency’ award at Wings India 2022

Minister of Civil Aviation, Jyotiraditya Scindia bestowed the award of ‘Best Aviation Skills and Training Agency’ to GMR Aviation Academy at a function at Wings India 2022. The event was organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) in Hyderabad.

“GMRAA is a leader in the Aviation-based courses in the country and region, and our vision is to be a world-class training organisation. We are imparting world-class training to students, and developing them into global aviation professionals who can support various stakeholders of the industry. GMRAA networks with the best-in-class aviation academies and professional bodies around the world to learn from collective wisdom and meet expectations of customers and stakeholders. This award is a testimony to our contributions to the industry and the nation,” said Ashwani Lohani, CEO, GMR Services Business.

GMR Aviation Academy (GMRAA), the education and training arm of GMR Airports Ltd, was established in 2009 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad. GMRAA is accredited by national and international bodies and has collaborated with various government bodies and regulators for Aviation-related Training and Education Programmes. It has emerged as a global gateway for aviation learning in India.

The academy has been conferred with ICAO’s ‘Regional Training Centre of Excellence’ stature and the ‘Global Training Hub’ by the ACI. It is also an Authorized Training Centre and Accredited Training School of International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The academy, with two full-fledged centres in Delhi and Hyderabad, conducts training programmes accredited by Airport Council International (ACI), International Air Transport Association (IATA), International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) with focus on the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and African regions.

GMRAA imparts quality education through highly skilled faculty members possessing experience in Airports, Airlines, Fire & Rescue, Cargo, Safety and Security, Corporate Aviation, etc. The high-quality programmes conducted by the academy are unique as they are reinforced with On-the-Job Training (OJT) at the world’s best airports in Delhi or Hyderabad. The academy has its highly skilled faculty members and subject matter experts in their respective disciplines to conduct the programmes.

Post-training GMRAA facilitates placement assistance, with most of the alumni placed with major Airports (Indian and abroad), Airlines, Aviation Management Companies and Hospitality Companies, including Air India SATS, Celebi, Indigo, SpiceJet, Air Vistara, Sky Chef, Go Air, TruJet, DB Schenker, 7 Hills, GHIAL, DIAL, GMR Cargo, Qatar Airforce, DNATA etc.

With a focus on next generation training, GMR Aviation Academy along with its partner Information Sharing & Analysis Centre (ISAC) has launched short programmes in Cyber Security in Aviation. The programmes are set to transform workforce as Cyber-shields against Cyber-attacks in the current post-pandemic era where Cyber-invasions are on the rise.

The academy along with GMR Aero Technic (the MRO arm of GMR Airports Limited) is set to commission and operate the GMR School of Aviation, which has on offer a 4 year licensing program on 147 Aircraft Maintenance with in-house On-Job-Training at the MRO Campus. 

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Chinese passenger jet may have been deliberately brought down: Report

Investigators probing the crash of a China Eastern Airlines jet are examining whether it was due to intentional action taken on the flight deck, with no evidence so far of a technical malfunction, two people briefed on the matter said.

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier Tuesday that flight data from one the Boeing 737-800's black boxes indicated that someone in the cockpit intentionally crashed the plane, citing people familiar with U.S. officials' preliminary assessment.

Boeing Co, the maker of the jet, and the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) declined to comment and referred questions to Chinese regulators.

The Boeing 737-800, en route from Kunming to Guangzhou, crashed on March 21 in the mountains of Guangxi, after a sudden plunge from cruising altitude, killing all 123 passengers and nine crew members aboard.

It was mainland China's deadliest aviation disaster in 28 years.

The pilots did not respond to repeated calls from air traffic controllers and nearby planes during the rapid descent, authorities have said. One source told Reuters investigators were looking at whether the crash was a "voluntary" act.

Screenshots of the Wall Street Journal story appeared to be censored both on China's Twitter-like platform Weibo and messaging app Wechat on Wednesday morning. The hashtag topics "China Eastern" and "China Eastern black boxes" are banned on Weibo, which cited a breach of relevant laws, and users are unable to share the story in group chats on Wechat.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China said on April 11 in response to rumours on the internet of a deliberate crash that the speculation had "gravely misled the public" and "interfered with the accident investigation work."

China Eastern did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday. The Wall Street Journal said the airline had said in a statement that no evidence had emerged that could determine whether or not there were any problems with the accident aircraft. The Chinese Embassy declined to comment.

The 737-800 is a widely flown predecessor to Boeing's 737 MAX but does not have the systems that have been linked to fatal 737-MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 that led to a lengthy grounding of the MAX.

China Eastern grounded its entire fleet of 737-800 planes after the crash, but resumed flights in mid-April in a move widely seen at the time as ruling out any immediate new safety concern over Boeing's previous and still most widely used model.

In a summary of an unpublished preliminary crash report last month, Chinese regulators did not point to any technical recommendations on the 737-800, which has been in service since 1997 with a strong safety record, according to experts.

NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said in a May 10 Reuters interview that board investigators and Boeing had traveled to China to assist the Chinese investigation. She noted that the investigation to date had not found any safety issues that would require any urgent actions.

Homendy said if the board has any safety concerns it will "issue urgent safety recommendations."

The NTSB assisted Chinese investigators with the review of black boxes at its U.S. lab in Washington.

Shares of Boeing closed up 6.5%.

A final report into the causes could take two years or more to compile, Chinese officials have said. Analysts say most crashes are caused by a cocktail of human and technical factors.

Deliberate crashes are exceptionally rare. Experts noted the latest hypothesis left open whether the action stemmed from one pilot acting alone or the result of a struggle or intrusion but sources stressed nothing has been confirmed.

In March 2015, a Germanwings co-pilot deliberately flew an Airbus A320 into a French mountainside, killing all 150 on board.

French investigators found the 27-year-old was suffering from a suspected "psychotic depressive episode," concealed from his employer. They later called for better mental health guidelines and stronger peer support groups for pilots.

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Against the grain: Farmers may still be able to export some wheat

The May 13, 2022, order of the ministry of commerce to completely ban wheat exports came as a surprise to most observers, even though indications were available that the Centre was already discouraging exports by restricting the rail movement to ports from wheat-surplus states; however, senior functionaries were still giving statements that exports would continue. This assured the trade and farmers that a complete ban is not to be expected in the next 2-3 months. It seems to have persuaded many traders to enter into contracts with exporters for supplying wheat, but with the sudden ban, some of them may have to book losses.

However, trade should not lose faith yet. India has been meeting part of its neighbours’ food security requirements, especially Bangladesh, by exporting wheat and rice in large quantities. We think these exports will continue this year too. In fact, India is also likely to come to the help of Sri Lanka in partially meeting its food requirements. Exports to some African and Asian countries on a diplomatic basis are also predicted. Once allowed, it is not yet known if the government will allow the exports via its state trading enterprises as in the past, or allow private traders to export to honour the commitments. As per media reports, it seems that about 4.5 million metric tons (mmt) of wheat has already been contracted for export in FY23, out of which about a third has already been exported in April 2022. We think that through its recent move, the Centre will be able to restrict total wheat exports which, as per our assessment, are still likely to reach about 10 mmt this year.

A day after the export ban was notified, wholesale prices of wheat in all major markets, barring Punjab, Rajasthan, and UP, fell. On May 14, 2022, the highest one-day fall was observed in Madhya Pradesh mandis, where wheat prices fell by about Rs 94/quintal (from Rs 2,133 on May 13 to Rs 2,039/quintal on May 14). Even prices in Haryana fell by about Rs 53/quintal. Interestingly, prices in Rajasthan rose by Rs 31/quintal.

Despite this moderation in prices, we assess that wheat inflation is likely to continue this year mainly on account of, among other things, a smaller domestic crop and lower global supplies of wheat. Compared to about 109.6 mmt last year and an expectation of about 111.3 mmt this year, the crop may well be lower than 100 mmt. FCI’s wheat stocks on April 1, 2022, were about 18.9 mmt. India requires about 106.5 mmt (99 mmt of wheat consumption and 7.5 mmt for meeting buffer stock norms) annually. With tight domestic supplies, prices would inevitably stay high this year. As per April 2022 CPI data, wheat inflation was about 9.6%. Globally, inter alia, two phenomena are shrinking wheat supplies—the Ukraine crisis, which has shrunk about 28% of global exports, and the prediction of lower wheat crops in the coming months. Globally, wheat crop is likely to come to the market from the US in June, the EU, Russia and Ukraine in July, Canada in August and Australia in late-October.

Due to high temperatures and dry conditions, wheat crops in the EU, and spring wheat sowing in the US are understood to have suffered. Argentina’s crop has already suffered due to dry weather. There could be some respite if Russia’s bumper wheat crop enters the market by July. However, expectations of deficit supplies are already built into the global wheat markets. Going forward, in addition to the wheat markets, the Centre will do well in focusing on the upcoming kharif season. Even though the IMD has predicted a normal monsoon, threats of a skewed geographic spread, and possibility of long dry spells appear real.

Plus, any serious shortfall in availability of fertilisers may adversely impact the kharif crops of cotton, rice, soybean, and tur. The Centre should revisit and update contingency plans and prepare to make best possible use of the monsoon. Lakhs of water tanks have been dug in villages across India. They need to be desilted and prepared to conserve rainwater. In addition, the Centre has to aggressively encourage adoption of drought-tolerant varieties of crops in at least the drought-prone areas.

On the sidelines, a lesson for states like Punjab and Haryana is noteworthy. In the accompanying graphic, we see that wheat farmers in all other states, barring Punjab (and Haryana, to some extent), benefitted from the rising price rally (till May 14, 2022). It appears that higher transaction costs in Punjab (about 8.5%) prevented private trade from buying in the state, keeping the prices only marginally higher than the MSP but lowest among other states. The state may learn lessons from Madhya Pradesh, and possibly moderate transaction costs, to help their farmers gain from building price dynamics.

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