Indian-American writer Akhil Sharma has won the second annual Folio prize for fiction for a novel which charts an emigrant family’s heart-wrenching search for the “American dream”, said a media report. Sharma said after winning the 40,000-pound (nearly $60,000) prize that writing the novel, which took 13 years to complete, was a frustrating and difficult […]
Tokyo’s Shibuya ward on Tuesday approved the recognition of same-sex unions, making it the first in Japan to take a step toward legal marriage equality. The ordinance in this regard, approved by the local assembly, will take effect on Wednesday and will permit the district to issue certificates to same-sex couples, an important step in […]
In a suspected racial attack, police in Britain have come across footage posted online in which a Sikh man is seen being brutally beaten up in Birmingham city Broad Street, a media report said on Tuesday. “We are aware of a video posted on the internet which appears to show a man being assaulted on […]
Islamic State (IS) militants have slain 30 civilians, among them women and children, in horrific executions in central Syria, a Britain-based watchdog said on Tuesday. The civilians were shot, burned or beheaded, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights’ director Rami Abdel Rahman. The victims included Alawite Sunni and Ismaili Shia Muslims and the […]
An auction house in Uruguay’s capital Montevideo hopes to get at least $40,000 for an iPad used by Pope Francis, with the proceeds to be donated to a Catholic high school in the northwestern city of Paysandu. “There is interest not only in our country,” auctioneer Juan Castells said. “Recently, we received calls from around […]
A blogger was hacked to death on Monday in Bangladesh’s capital city of Dhaka, police said. Three people attacked Oyasiqur Rahman Babu using sharp weapons around 9.45 a.m. in Tejgaon industrial area soon after the online activist stepped out of his house, bdnews24.com quoted Tejgaon zone’s Deputy Police Commissioner Biplob Kumar Sarkar as saying. He […]
Mr Srinivasan says 50-over tournament can attract and inspire a new generation of followers to the game The Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC), Mr Narayanaswami Srinivasan, has hailed the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 as “the most popular in history” and he believes that the 50-over game is in good health following […]
Dozens of grieving relatives of Germanwings plane crash victims arrived in the French Alps on Thursday, brought in on special flights and buses to pay tribute to the 150 lives lost in the tragedy. Two charter planes carrying family members landed in the French city of Marseille early Thursday, where seven buses — many with […]
A court in Dubai has sentenced two Pakistani workers to jail for raping an Indian man after serving him food spiked with liquor, according to a media report. The Dubai Court of First Instance on Wednesday convicted Pakistani workers, identified only as S.N. and M.S., of raping the 20-year-old Indian victim in September last year, […]
The nightmare of being the mother of a 27-year-old, looking at a relationship through the lens of virtual reality and a journey through Nepal are some of the hand-picked gems IANS is treating its readers to this weekend. Take a look. 1. Book: Simi’s Mum’s Diary: The Daughter of All Battles; Author: Rupa Gulab; Publisher: […]