acegame 888
Artificial intelligence-enabled voice cloning tools have made it easier for criminals to mimic strangers' voices and dupe victims into handing over large sums of money. For example, a scammer might target a victim posing as their grandchild and claiming they require cash — fast. Older people who might not be as familiar with new technologies such as AI can be particularly susceptible to these types of scams, particularly when the caller on the other line sounds identical to a loved one. Phone numbers also can be spoofed to mimic those of callers known to the target of voice cloning scams. In 2023, senior citizens were conned out of roughly $3.4 billion in a range of financial crimes, according to the FBI data . The agency recently warned that AI has increased the "believability" or criminal scams given that they "assist with content creation and can correct for human errors that might otherwise serve as warning signs of fraud." Also commonly known as "grandparent scams," a fraudster will impersonate an individual's loved one and claim they are in trouble, or need cash immediately for some sort of emergency. "So much of it is based on psychology and hacking the limbic system," Chuck Herrin, field chief information security officer for F5, a security and fraud prevention firm, told CBS MoneyWatch. "They say things that trigger a fear-based emotional response because they know when humans get afraid, we get stupid and don't exercise the best judgment." How to create a family safe word The good news? Cybersecurity experts and law enforcement officials have a simple, but effective, recommendation for avoiding getting victimized by such scams: creating a family "safe word," along with a protocol for verifying a family member or loved one's identity. That means choosing a word or phrase that can't be easily guessed. Obvious identifiers like a street name, alma mater or other information that may be readily available online are ill-advised, experts say. "It needs to be unique and should be something that's difficult to guess," Scobey said. "It shouldn't be something that can be researched online about you or your family. Avoid street names, towns, phone numbers and individual names as part of a pass phrase." A safe phrase, consisting of at least four words, offers a greater degree of security, he added. Verify the caller's identity Following a basic routine that includes using a safe word is a good first line of defense against scammers. "This is a mass operation, they don't care about you, they just care about bad security. They are churning though thousands of people they found on the dark web," Herrin of F5 told CBS MoneyWatch. "If you have a reasonable security posture, you'll probably be fine. But if you leave the window open, you'll lose your TV," he said, comparing cybersecurity threats to physical vulnerabilities. Any time you are asked for financial assistance, require that the caller verify his or her identity. The key: Always ask for the safe word before transferring any money. "Family safe words can be a really useful tool if they are used properly," Eva Velasquez, said CEO of the Identity Theft Resource Center, a nonprofit focused on ID security. Velasquez gave the example of a phony grandchild calling a grandparent and saying something like, "I am in jail and need help, and I am so distraught I can't remember our password." In a tense or emotional moment, the victim could be inclined to offer it up to the person in distress, putting themselves in jeopardy. "I do think they can be a very useful tool, but you have to explain to the family how it works so you don't volunteer it," she said. "We have had a couple incidents where the victim will say the safe word first instead of letting the other person say it." Megan Cerullo is a New York-based reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering small business, workplace, health care, consumer spending and personal finance topics. She regularly appears on CBS News 24/7 to discuss her reporting.
East Carolina cornerback Shavon Revel Jr., a potential first-round pick, declared for the 2025 NFL Draft on Friday. Revel, who sustained a torn left ACL in practice in September, had one season of eligibility remaining. "After an incredible journey at East Carolina, I am officially declaring for the 2025 NFL Draft," the senior posted on social media. "... Pirates nation, thank you for your unwavering energy and support every game. Representing ECU is an honor, and I look forward to continuing to do so on Sundays!" Revel recorded two interceptions in three games this season, returning one 50 yards for a touchdown on Sept. 14 against Appalachian State. Over three seasons with the Pirates, Revel had three interceptions, 15 passes defensed and 70 tackles in 24 games. He was a second-team All-American Athletic Conference selection last season. ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. ranked Revel as the No. 2 cornerback and No. 23 overall prospect in the 2025 draft class. --Field Level Media
Abandoned mines in the US pose dangers to people and property when land gives wayOcean Power Technologies Announces Financial Results for Second Quarter Fiscal 2025Congress’ 53,000 Job Claim Disputed: Credit Belongs to Previous BRS Government
Ben Fordham left stunned as top professor exposes what Australia got wrong during Covid
The Reds ultimately left St James’ Park with only a point after Fabian Schar snatched a 3-3 draw at the end of a pulsating encounter, but Salah’s double – his 14th and 15th goals of the season – transformed a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead before the Switzerland defender’s late intervention. The 32-year-old Egypt international’s future at Anfield remains a topic of debate with his current contract running down. Asked about Salah’s future, Slot said: “It’s difficult for me to predict the long-term future, but the only thing I can expect or predict is that he is in a very good place at the moment. Two goals and an assist for Mo tonight 👏 pic.twitter.com/tMXidgeA0P — Liverpool FC (@LFC) December 4, 2024 “He plays in a very good team that provides him with good opportunities and then he is able to do special things. “And what makes him for me even more special is that in the first hour or before we scored to make it 1-1, you thought, ‘He’s not playing his best game today’, and to then come up with a half-hour or 45 minutes – I don’t know how long it was – afterwards with an assist, two goals, having a shot on the bar, being a constant threat, that is something not many players can do if they’ve played the first hour like he did. “That is also what makes him special. If you just look at the goals, his finish is so clinical. He’s a special player, but that’s what we all know.” Salah did indeed endure a quiet opening 45 minutes by his standards and it was the Magpies who went in at the break a goal to the good after Alexander Isak’s stunning 35th-minute finish. Slot said: “The shot from Isak, I don’t even know if Caoimh (keeper Caoimhin Kelleher) saw that ball, as hard as it was.” Salah set up Curtis Jones to level five minutes into the second half and after Anthony Gordon has restored the hosts’ lead, levelled himself from substitute Trent Alexander-Arnold’s 68th-minute cross. He looked to have won it with a fine turn and finish – his ninth goal in seven league games – seven minutes from time, only for Schar to pounce from a tight angle in the 90th minute. Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe was delighted with the way his team took the game to the Reds four days after their disappointing 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace. Howe, who admitted his surprise that VAR official Stuart Attwell had not taken a dimmer view of a Virgil van Dijk shoulder barge on Gordon, said: “It’s mixed emotions. “Part of me feels we should have won it – a big part of me – but part of me is pleased we didn’t lose either because it was such a late goal for us. “Generally, I’m just pleased with the performance. There was much more attacking output, a much better feel about the team. “There was much better energy, and it was a really good performance against, for me, the best team we’ve played so far this season in the Premier League, so it was a big jump forward for us.”
Two men, including a Natick resident, were charged by federal authorities in Massachusetts related to a drone attack that killed American soldiers earlier this year, United States Attorney Joshua Levy announced during a press conference on Monday. “Earlier today, two men located nearly 4,000 miles apart, one here in Massachusetts and one in Milan, Italy, were arrested on federal charges filed in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts,” Levy said. “These two men, Muhammad Mahdi Sadeghi and Muhammad Abedini, have been charged in a 36-page criminal complaint.” The complaint charges Mahdi Mohammad Sadeghi and Mohammad Abedininajafabadi with conspiring to violate United States export laws designed to protect sensitive technologies. Abedininajafabadi was also charged with two counts of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization resulting in death. “We often cite hypothetical risk when we talk about the dangers of American technologies getting into dangerous hands. Unfortunately in this situation, we are not speculating,” Levy said. The complaint stems from an incident on Jan. 28, when in the northeast corner of Jordan, along the border with Syria, a U.S. military base called Tower 22 faced a drone attack that killed three American soldiers and injured over 40 more , Levy said. The Army Reserve soldiers killed in the attack were Sgt. William Jerome Rivers of Carrollton, Georgia; Spc. Kennedy Ladon Sanders of Waycross, Georgia; and Spc. Breonna Alexsondria Moffett of Savannah, Georgia. “The FBI’s Terrorist Explosive Device Analytical Center was able to recover the drone that was used in that attack and, through their forensic work, they were able to trace the sophisticated navigation equipment in that drone used in the attack to Mr. Abedini’s company located in Iran,” Levy said. The federal government is seeking Abedininajafabadi’s extradition from Italy, with charges filed against him in Massachusetts, Levy continued. He and Sadeghi were charged with conspiring to violate and evade U.S. export laws, known as the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. This law is designed to keep sensitive American technologies out of the hands of foreign powers that may cause harm to the United States. The two men violated IEEPA and other export laws between 2016 and 2024, Levy said, by unlawfully exporting technologies to Iran. Sadeghi, of Natick, works for a semiconductor company in Massachusetts, while Abedininajafabadi is from Tehran, Iran, and has connections with the Iranian government and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization associated with Hezbollah and Hamas. Sadeghi introduced Abedininajafabadi to his employer in Massachusetts, with Abedininajafabadi establishing a front company in Switzerland as a cover to “procure American technologies from Mr. Sadeghi’s employer to Mr. Abedini [to be] transmitted [to] his company in Iran,” Levy said. Items sent to the front company included unmanned aerial devices, including drones, Levy continued. The company was directly involved in the deadly drone attack on Tower 22, he added. “These charges today underscore that the Department of Justice will not cease in its effort to seek justice for service members who are killed and harmed overseas,” Levy said. “I commend the skilled investigators at the FBI and the Department of Commerce for their dogged work on this case... As a son of a combat veteran, I humbly hope that today’s charges bring some measure of justice and accountability to those families.” Speaking with reporters, Levy and FBI Boston Special Agent in Charge Jodi Cohen said investigators searched Sadeghi’s home in Natick following his arrest. Local police and FBI agents were seen outside a home in Natick Monday afternoon. MassLive reporter Hadley Barndollar contributed to the reporting of this story. More local crime storiesLittler, who won the Grand Slam of Darts last week, hit checkouts of 170, 164 and 136 as he threatened to overturn an early deficit, but Humphries held his nerve to win the last three legs. “I’m really, really proud of that one to be honest,” Humphries told Sky Sports. FOR THE SECOND TIME 🏆🏆 Luke Humphries retains his 2024 Ladbrokes Players Championship Finals title, beating Luke Littler 11-7 in the final. pic.twitter.com/QUhxvSbGeu — PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) November 24, 2024 “I didn’t feel myself this week playing-wise, I felt like I was a dart behind in a lot of the scenarios but there’s something that Luke does to you. He really drives me, makes me want to be a better player and I enjoy playing him. “He let me in really early in that first session to go 4-1 up, I never looked back and I’m proud that I didn’t take my foot off the gas. These big games are what I live for. “Luke is a special talent and he was right – I said to him I’ve got to get these (titles) early before he wins them all. “I’d love to be up here and hitting 105 averages like Luke is all the time but he’s a different calibre, he’s probably the best player in the world right now but there’s something about me that never gives up. “This is a great way to go into the worlds.” HUMPHRIES GOES BACK-TO-BACK! 🏆 Luke Humphries retains his Players Championship Finals title! Cool Hand puts on an absolute clinic to defeat Luke Littler 11-7 in an epic final! 📺 https://t.co/AmuG0PMn18 #PCF2024 | Final pic.twitter.com/nZDWPUVjWE — PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) November 24, 2024 Littler, who lost the world championship final to Humphries last year, said: “It was tough, missed a few doubles and if you don’t take chances early on, it’s a lot to come back. “I hit the 170 and the 164 but just didn’t have enough in the end. “It’s been a good past two weeks. I just can’t wait to go home, chill out, obviously practice at home for the worlds. That’s it now, leading up to the big one.”
With just two trading days left before 2024 comes to a close, it's fair to say this will be another successful year for Wall Street and everyday investors. The ageless Dow Jones Industrial Average ( ^DJI -0.77% ) , benchmark S&P 500 ( ^GSPC -1.11% ) , and growth stock-inspired Nasdaq Composite ( ^IXIC -1.49% ) have all reached multiple all-time highs this year and gained 15%, 27%, and 33% on a year-to-date basis, as of the closing bell on Dec. 24. Numerous catalysts are responsible for lifting Wall Street's tide, including: Artificial intelligence (AI) Stock-split euphoria. President-elect Donald Trump's victory in November . Better-than-anticipated corporate earnings. Aggressive share repurchase activity by the market's most influential companies. However, Wall Street is a forward-looking entity, and the shift to a new calendar year brings forth the age-old question: "Will stocks move higher in 2025?" Although bull market rallies tend to stick around considerably longer than downturns, two historically flawless indicators foreshadow trouble for the stock market in the new year. This valuation tool has forecast stock market declines of 20% to 89% over the last 154 years Among the various forecasting tools and predictive metrics that point to potential trouble for Wall Street, arguably none is more worrisome than the S&P 500's Shiller price-to-earnings (P/E) Ratio, which is also commonly referred to as the cyclically adjusted P/E Ratio ( CAPE Ratio ). The most rudimentary of all valuation tools is the P/E ratio, which is calculated by dividing a company's share price into its trailing-12-month earnings per share (EPS). This traditional valuation metric works great on time-tested companies but can be easily thrown off by economic shocks and growth stocks. In comparison, the S&P 500's Shiller P/E is based on average inflation-adjusted earnings over the previous 10 years. Accounting for a decade of EPS history ensures that a shock event, such as lockdowns during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, won't render this valuation metric ineffective. S&P 500 Shiller CAPE Ratio data by YCharts . On Dec. 24, the S&P 500's Shiller P/E Ratio closed at 38.35, which is within striking distance of its yearly high of almost 39. For added context, this is more than double its average reading of 17.19 over the last 154 years and represents the third-highest reading during a continuous bull market since January 1871 . Here's where things get interesting: There have been only six occurrences of the Shiller P/E surpassing 30 during a bull market rally in 154 years, including the present, and all five prior instances saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and/or Nasdaq Composite eventually lose between 20% and 89% of their value. Although the Shiller P/E doesn't tell investors when these declines will take place, it does have a flawless track record of being a harbinger of eventual big-time downside. In other words, it pretty clearly shows that outsized stock valuations aren't well-tolerated over extended periods . U.S. money supply hadn't done this since the Great Depression -- and it (historically) spells trouble However, the Shiller P/E Ratio isn't the only indicator that has a historically flawless track record of forecasting significant downside in the stock market. A move we haven't witnessed in 90 years in U.S. money supply is an ominous warning, as well. Though there are five measures of money supply , the two given the most credence are M1 and M2. The former factors in cash and coins in circulation, along with demand deposits in a checking account. Meanwhile, M2 takes everything into account from M1 and adds in savings accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit (CD) below $100,000. It's this latter money-supply measure, M2, which has raised red flags. US M2 Money Supply data by YCharts . In April 2022, U.S. M2 money supply peaked at $21.723 trillion. As of October 2024 (the latest reading at the time of this writing), M2 had retraced by $412 billion to $21.311 trillion, or 1.89%. But on a peak-to-trough basis, it fell by a maximum of 4.74% between April 2022 and October 2023. This marked the first time since the Great Depression that M2 declined by at least 2% on a year-over-year basis. Normally, M2 money supply moves up and to right -- so much so that economists rarely pay it much attention. A growing economy requires more capital available to facilitate transactions, which led to 90 years without a notable year-over-year decline in M2. There have been five instances since the start of 1870 where M2 slipped by at least 2% from the prior-year period: 1878, 1893, 1921, 1931-1933, and 2023. The four prior occurrences correlate with periods of economic depression and double-digit unemployment rates in the U.S. If there's a silver lining here, it's that the tools available to the central bank and federal government make it highly unlikely that the U.S. would endure a modern-day depression. Likewise, M2 has reversed course and climbed since October 2023. Nevertheless, M2 being close to 2% below its all-time high signals that consumers are likely to pass on some discretionary purchases. This is a recipe for economic weakness, which would be expected to spill over onto Wall Street in 2025. The view beyond 2025 is brighter than ever for Wall Street Based on these two indicators, which have a perfect track record of foreshadowing significant downside in the stock market when back-tested more than 150 years, a crash is a possibility for 2025. While this may not be what investors want to hear following another stellar year for the Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite, it's simply what history tells us to expect. But the interesting thing about history is that it tends to favor optimists far more than pessimists . For instance, history tells us that recessions are a normal and unavoidable part of the economic cycle. No amount of fiscal or monetary policy maneuvering can stop economic downturns from taking shape every so often. Yet there's a big difference between the length of economic downturns and upswings . Among the 12 U.S. recessions to have taken place since the end of World War II in September 1945, nine were resolved in less than a year. Of the remaining three, none surpassed 18 months in length. Compare this to the last one dozen economic expansions, two of which stuck around for more than 10 years. To quote billionaire investor Warren Buffett, "Never bet against America." Along these same lines, betting against the U.S. stock market has been a poor decision over long periods. The data set above was posted on social media platform X by Bespoke Investment Group in June 2023, shortly after the S&P 500 was confirmed to be in a new bull market following its October 2022 bear market low. It shows the calendar-day length of every S&P 500 bear and bull market since the Great Depression began in September 1929. Over this roughly 94-year period, there were 27 separate bear and bull markets for the S&P 500. The average bear market lasted only 9.5 months, or 286 calendar days . Comparatively, the typical bull market (as of June 8, 2023) endured for 1,011 calendar days, or approximately 3.5 times as long. If this data set were extrapolated to the present day, the current bull market would be lengthier than the longest S&P 500 bear market over the last 95 years (630 calendar days). In fact, more than half (14 out of 27) of S&P 500 bull markets since September 1929 have lasted longer than 630 calendar days. Even with two historically flawless indicators foreshadowing a possible crash for the stock market in 2025, the long-term outlook for stocks remains bright.
ATHENS, N.Y. (AP) — Federal engineers will begin the process of preserving a functioning 150-year-old lighthouse that sits precariously on a mudflat in the middle of the Hudson River in New York, officials announced Monday. U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer and the Army Corps of Engineers said that $50,000 has been allocated to study how to protect the Hudson-Athens Lighthouse , which began operating in 1874 and was this year placed on the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s list of the country’s 11 most endangered historic places. Schumer, a New York Democrat, said he believes the development is the next step to securing all the money needed to save the structure, which is only years away from starting to crumble into the river due to ongoing erosion, according to preliminary studies by a historic preservation group. “This is a landmark, it’s sort of like the Statue of Liberty in a certain sense, of the Hudson River,” Schumer told The Associated Press by phone after announcing the new funding at a riverfront park in Athens, New York, which has a view of the lighthouse. “When people see the lighthouse and learn its history, they learn the history of the country.” The Corps of Engineers will now meet with the Hudson-Athens Lighthouse Preservation Society, which owns the building and maintains it as a museum, and agree on a plan to fix the property, Schumer said. RELATED COVERAGE US agencies should use advanced technology to identify mysterious drones, Schumer says Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people Manchin, Sinema prevent Democrats from locking in majority on labor board through 2026 He said the millions of dollars needed to ultimately rebuild the small island and preserve it are “virtually certain” because it has been listed as a top priority for preservation. The lighthouse was built in the river 100 miles (161 kilometers) north of Manhattan to keep boats from running aground on mud flats between Athens, on the west side of the Hudson River, and the city of Hudson, on the east side. The lighthouse is still in use, though now with an automated LED beacon. It sits on roughly 200 wood pilings packed in mud beneath the water. Turbulence from passing commercial ships is washing away that mud and exposing the pilings to river water, accelerating decay. The society has proposed expanding the foundation the lighthouse is built on so that events can be held there and more visitors can walk on the island at once. It has been raising money to build a ring of corrugated steel designed to shield the structure from river turbulence. There were around 1,500 lighthouses in the U.S. at the beginning of the 20th century and only about 800 of them remain, according to the U.S. Lighthouse Society.Afghanistan's Taliban forces targeted "several points" in Pakistan on Saturday, Taliban said, days after Pakistaircraft carried out aerial bombardments inside the country, as per Al Jazeera. ET Year-end Special Reads Take That: The gamechanger weapon's India acquired in 2024 10 big-bang policy moves Modi government made in 2024 How governments tried to rein in the social media beast The statement, which was released by Taliban did not directly specify that Pakistan was hit, but said the attacks were conducted "beyond the "hypothetical line" - an expression used by Afghan authorities to refer to a border with Pakistan which has been in dispute since long. "Several points beyond the hypothetical line, serving as centres and hideouts for malicious elements and their supporters who organised and coordinated attacks in Afghanistan, were targeted in retaliation from the southeastern direction of the country," Al Jazeera quoted Taliban as saying. Asked whether the statement referred to Pakistan, Taliban spokesperson Enayatullah Khowarazmi said, "We do not consider it to be the territory of Pakistan, therefore, we cannot confirm the territory, but it was on the other side of the hypothetical line." Afghanistan has rejected the Durand Line, a border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, which was drawn by the Britishers in the 19th century, as per Al Jazeera. The Taliban sees it as a divisive line between Pashtuns on both sides of the border. Artificial Intelligence(AI) Java Programming with ChatGPT: Learn using Generative AI By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) Basics of Generative AI: Unveiling Tomorrows Innovations By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) Generative AI for Dynamic Java Web Applications with ChatGPT By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) Mastering C++ Fundamentals with Generative AI: A Hands-On By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) Master in Python Language Quickly Using the ChatGPT Open AI By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Marketing Performance Marketing for eCommerce Brands By - Zafer Mukeri, Founder- Inara Marketers View Program Office Productivity Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide 2024 By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Finance A2Z Of Money By - elearnmarkets, Financial Education by StockEdge View Program Marketing Modern Marketing Masterclass by Seth Godin By - Seth Godin, Former dot com Business Executive and Best Selling Author View Program Astrology Vastu Shastra Course By - Sachenkumar Rai, Vastu Shashtri View Program Strategy Succession Planning Masterclass By - Nigel Penny, Global Strategy Advisor: NSP Strategy Facilitation Ltd. 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 "Clarity! Several points on the other side of the virtual line "Durand" in the south-eastern direction of the country were targeted, which were hideouts and centers for evil elements and their supporters, who were organizing attacks in Afghanistan," Taliban said in a post on X. There are no reports of casualties from either side, Al Jazeera reported. Afghanistan has a complicated history with Pakistan. While Pakistan welcomed the Taliban in Kabul as a natural ally, the Taliban government is proving to be less cooperative than Pakistan had hoped. The current Talibani regime is trying to align itself with the nation's rhetoric as they are trying to form a 'government' as a metamorphosis from a fighting group. The regime is also trying to forge relations beyond heavy reliance on Pakistan, as per Al Jazeera. (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel )
Will the planets align in 2025?Hyderabad: Hyderabad Disaster Response Assets Monitoring and Protection Agency (HYDRAA) commissioner AV Ranganath, on Saturday, December 28, announced that from 2025, the agency will use “Digital Elevation Models” (DEM) to demarcate the full-tank level (FTL) of various lakes under its jurisdiction. Addressing the media at Buddha Bhavan in Hyderabad during the presentation of HYDRAA’s achievements in 2024 and its road map for 2025, Ranganath said that a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was entered between HYDRAA and the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) to identify the contours of various lakes in the city. The HYDRAA commissioner said that satellite images with one-metre resolution were being sought from the period 2000 to 2014 from NRSC, in addition to aerial/drone images obtained from the period 2006 to 2023. The data will be compared to ascertain if any changes were made to the contours at any given point of time. By using the DEM, Digital Terrain Models (DTM), and Bathymetric survey, the HYDRAA commissioner informed that data on how a lake’s contours changed over the years could be ascertained. Cadastral maps, sethwars , 1956 khasra pahanis , lake memoirs, survey of India toposheets, and other documents will also be used to ascertain the FTL, the HYDRAA commissioner said. To demarcate the boundaries of nalas , Ranganath said that the surveys done by Kirloskar and Voyants in the past will be taken as the base, in addition to the village maps. The HYDRAA commissioner announced that geo-fencing of parks and government lands was completed in 2005, and efforts are underway to identify landfilling sites for debris disposal in hollow areas. Ranganath also said that HYDRAA has requested the director general of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) to provide an additional doppler weather radar station. A request for funds has been proposed to the state government, he said. “Presently we have 154-odd automatic weather stations (AWS) which give us weather forecasts in an area of 2×2 km. We want to achieve 1×1 km accuracy,” he said, adding, “The proposal to increase the number of AWS has been proposed before the state government,” he informed. He said HYDRAA will hire a dedicated weather data evaluation team with scientists and was also contemplating setting up a weather FM channel of its own or leasing the work out to some channel. “Once the FTL demarcation of all 1,025 water bodies identified by HYDRAA is completed, the encroachments that came up after July 19, 2024 (when HYDRAA was formed) will be removed/demolished, and if any permissions were given for constructions after that date, action will be initiated against the erring officials,” Ranganathan said. HYDRAA has acted on eight parks, 12 lakes, and four government lands, reclaiming 200 acres of land to date, as part of the assets protection and removal of encroachments. He said that HYDRAA has prepared detail project reports (DPR) for the rejuvenation of 12 lakes which were awaiting approval from the state government. Ranganath said that since its inception, HYDRAA has responded to and cleared 3,428 tree falls, 912 water stagnations, addressed 199 rescue calls, and 133 fire accidents in the last five months. “The agency presently has 30 disaster response teams, which will soon expand to 72 teams from January 2025. We will also upgrade the disaster response force training center in Nagole and establish HYDRAA police stations,” Ranganathan informed. He reiterated that only residential houses with permissions granted before July 19, 2024, will be recognized, while illegal commercial constructions built before that date will face strict action. “Complaints from residential welfare associations will be given first priority while taking action,” he said.