Mexican navy’s largest-ever ship launched
Mexico City: A navy logistic support ship that is the largest military vessel ever built in Mexico was launched at the Pacific port of Salina Cruz.
The Montes Azules, which can accommodate 89 sailors, including up to 18 women, is 99.8 meters long and 15.2 meters wide with a displacement of 3,666 metric tonnes and maximum velocity of 12 knots, the navy Secretariat said in a statement.
Adm. Mariano Francisco Saynez, the navy secretary, said at Tuesday’s launch ceremony that the ship is part of a plan to modernize Mexico’s naval fleet and expressed satisfaction that “the workforce and the ship’s design are distinctly national”.
The ship features “modern equipment that will allow reliable navigation” and has facilities exclusively for women, the official said.
The navy secretary’s wife, Maria del Carmen Ruiz Duran de Saynez, served as the ship’s godmother.
During the ceremony, the keel was laid for a similar logistic support vessel that is to be built at the Salina Cruz shipyards.
Logistic support ships assist the civilian population in disaster zones and transport and disembark vehicles, provisions and personnel at beaches or docks, the secretariat said. (IANS)
Pakistani bureaucrat taken for a ride
Islamabad: A Pakistani bureaucrat fell for a scam when he was told that he had won a new car which he would get after paying a token amount of Rs.300,000. He paid, but the car never came.
The bureaucrat has now approached the Federal Investigation Agency.
“The bureaucrat said tricksters called on his mobile phone number, informing him of a bumper prize of a car he won in a lucky draw,” an official told Dawn.
The bureaucrat paid up Rs.300,000.
“We are probing the matter and hopefully it will be resolved. But it is a concern that people like him despite being highly educated fall for such frauds,” the official was qouted as saying.
The FIA`s National Response Centre for Cyber Crimes has warned people against fake text messages promising Rs.1,000 or more. “We are probing a number of complaints,” the official said. (IANS)
British hospitals ban caesareans in cost-cutting move
London: A number of British hospitals would only conduct a caesarean section if the mother’s health is at risk by a natural birth, a media report said on Sunday.
The restrictions have been put in place by primary care trusts in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Herefordshire, Bristol, South Staffordshire, County Durham, Dorset, Derbyshire, Bournemouth and Poole.
They have launched the crackdown on women who are “too posh to push” – saying it wastes millions of pounds of NHS (National Health Service) money every year, Daily Mail reported.
Some mothers have criticised the restrictions, saying it should be a woman’s right to choose how her baby is born.
One quarter of all births in Britain are now by caesarean section, up from just nine percent in 1980, despite a campaign by the World Health Organisation, which believes there is no justification for any country having a rate exceeding 15 percent, the Mail said.
A planned caesarean is 800 pounds more expensive than a natural birth – taking money from strained NHS budgets away from other priorities such as heart disease and cancer.
Economists estimate that a drop of one percent in the proportion of women having the surgery would save the NHS an estimated 5.6 million a year, according to the Mail. (IANS)
Labour spent government fund to teach officials drums
London: The former Labour government in Britain spent 38,000 pounds (around $62,000) in five years to teach officials of the Foreign Office how to play drums, a media report said Tuesday.
In the two-hour drum-playing sessions, the officials played using everything, including dustbins, broom handles, plastic tubs and African tribal drums, The Sun reported.
From 2006 to 2010, the Foreign Office paid 38,000 pounds to event organisers Poisson Rouge.
The highest amount spent in a year was was 26,245 pounds in 2008-09, when David Miliband was foreign secretary.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs officials also learnt drum playing.
Tory MP Charlie Elphicke, who uncovered the details, said: “It’s no surprise Labour maxed out the nation’s credit card when they allowed wasteful spending like this.” (IANS)
Surgeon removes wrong part of patient’s brain
London: A surgeon in Britain removed the wrong part of his patient’s brain during a botched operation which was not even needed, a media report said Tuesday.
John Tunney, from Sutton Coldfield, underwent a biopsy on a pituitary tumour, but the blundering surgeon sliced off healthy brain tissue that led to a serious haemorrhage, Daily Mail reported.
Afterwards they found the tumour was benign, meaning that it could have been treated with tablets, it said.
Tunney has been left with permanent brain injuries, including memory loss and partial loss of sight, leaving him incapable of dealing with his own affairs. He also cannot walk without the aid of a stick.
University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust has now admitted liability for the mistakes, paving the way for Tunney to receive financial compensation for lifelong medical support, the newspaper said.
Tunney, now aged 63, had worked for the NHS for 23 years. He was based at West Midlands Ambulance Service’s Small Health ambulance station but his brain injury, April 29, 2008, left him unable to work.
His solicitor Timothy Deeming called for the General Medical Council to probe the conduct of the surgeon responsible.
“John’s brain injury has had devastating effects on him. Prior to the surgery he was a very easy going person who was always active and on the go,” the Mail quoted his wife Pamela, 64, as saying. (IANS)
China launches first book on marine life
Beijing: China Tuesday published its first “systematic” textbook on marine life, a media report said.
The book was launched in Qingdao coastal city in eastern Shandong province, Xinhua reported.
The book will be adopted in all primary schools in Qingdao, making it the first city in China to launch a marine education course.
The textbook focuses on many topics, including ocean resources, marine ecosystems, oceanic economy, and marine rights and interests. (IANS)China launches first book on marine life
Beijing: China Tuesday published its first “systematic” textbook on marine life, a media report said.
The book was launched in Qingdao coastal city in eastern Shandong province, Xinhua reported.
The book will be adopted in all primary schools in Qingdao, making it the first city in China to launch a marine education course.
The textbook focuses on many topics, including ocean resources, marine ecosystems, oceanic economy, and marine rights and interests. (IANS)
Town mints own money to fight austerity
ROME – A small town in central Italy is trying to go independent and mint its own money in protest at government austerity cuts. Filettino, set in rugged hill country around 100 km (65 miles) east of Rome, is rebelling against a proposal to merge the governments of towns with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants to save money. (Reuters)