Indian-American to run as Democrat
New York, Sep 25: An Indian-American city council member from the US state of Tennessee has announced her run as a Democrat to represent District 90 in the state’s House of Representatives. Varanasi-born Seema Singh will bid for the seat held by Representative Gloria Johnson, a fellow Democrat, who is running for the US Senate seat held by Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn. She was elected and sworn-in as Knoxville city councilwoman for the third District in 2017 and again in 2021, becoming the first Indian-American to be elected to any public office in East Tennessee. She serves as the Executive Director of the Healing the Home, a nonprofit agency serving families to address the abuse and trauma that are the result of generational domestic and intimate partner violence. Her platform issues will be the funding of healthcare and education, defending women’s reproductive rights and economic issues. “I will try to bring up the points of view that I think are important and push ahead for a lot of people who are not being represented or listened to,” Singh told Knoxville News Sentinel, a Tennessee-based newspaper. (IANS)
Bangla dengue death toll goes beyond 900
Dhaka, Sep 25: More than 900 people have died of dengue fever, out of 187,725 cases reported in Bangladesh so far this year, health department figures revealed. According to data released by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) under the Ministry of Health, the 909 deaths in total included 316 in September, 342 in August and 204 in July, reports Xinhua news agency. According to the DGHS, 63,917 dengue cases were recorded so far in September, after 71,976 in August and 43,854 in July. The South Asian country recorded 16 more deaths and 3,008 more dengue infections in the last 24 hours. The total number of recovered patients so far this year in the country stood at 176,346, said the DGHS. The June-September monsoon period is the season of dengue fever in Bangladesh, which is considered a high-risk country prone to the mosquito-borne disease. (IANS)
Reward offered in Indian-origin man’s death
London, Sep 25: Scotland Yard on Monday announced a GBP 20,000 reward for anyone with information that helps detectives track down those behind the road collision death of an 80-year-old Indian-origin man last year. Bhagwanji Rughani died after being struck by a white van in the car park of a supermarket in Barnet, north London, on September 24, 2022. As part of a one-year appeal, the Metropolitan Police said the independent crime fighting charity Crimestoppers is offering the award to help track down those guilty of the fatal crash. “It is now one-year since this tragic incident and Rughani’s family and friends remain shattered by his death,” said Detective Constable Jonathan Stokes from the Met Police’s Road and Transport Policing Command, who is leading the investigation. “A reward of GBP 20,000 is available for anyone who can provide information to Crimestoppers (freephone 0800 555 111) that leads to the arrest of the actual culprit,” he said. (PTI).