Bharatiya janata party

(NYTIMES) - No one in Ms Deena Al Mahbuba's family has met her daughter, Aara. She was born at the end of 2019, extremely premature. By the time Aara left the hospital for her home outside Boston in mid-June, the world was already months into Covid-19 lockdowns. Ms Mahbuba's close relatives, along with her husband's, all live in Bangladesh. The couple moved from there in 2013. Family members have done their best to stay connected, but Ms Mahbuba, a graduate student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, wishes her relatives were nearby. Her elder siblings could help her soothe Aara when she is sleepless. Or they could show her how they introduced foods to their babies. Aara, now 15 months old, struggles with new foods after having been tube-fed in her early life. Ms Mahbuba also hopes Aara will learn to speak Bengali, but worries she needs exposure to the language from people besides her parents. "Sometimes, I feel really sad," she said. "I feel like there is ... » Learn More about Bonding with a child born during pandemic times

SINGAPORE - Ms Jayme Tan received the "best Mother's Day present" last Wednesday (May 6): her husband back home. Mr Xie Jiahao was finally reunited with his wife and children after 51 days away battling Covid-19 - all because of a good deed. On March 16, the 37-year-old decided to comfort his bereaved friend, who had just lost his wife, by staying over at his home for a week. His friend, who had just returned from Britain, tested positive for Covid-19 on March 22. Mr Xie, an assistant vice-president of digital marketing, was immediately quarantined and tested positive on March 30. He was moved to D'Resort NTUC in Pasir Ris on April 5 as his mild symptoms had subsided. It took another month before he finally scored two consecutive negative swab tests and was discharged - fortuitously, on his mother's birthday and two days after his own. After coping on her own with two pre-schoolers, Ms Tan, who is 14 weeks pregnant with her third child, says: "I'm overwhelmed by happiness. ... » Learn More about Managing the home while hubby battles Covid-19: 3 mums and the challenges they face

Come with creative investment proposals on tourism products and services to make Putrajaya an iconic ecotourism draw. That is the message from Federal Territories Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa to the private sector, as a way to increase the number of visitors to the administrative capital. “As Putrajaya is already a planned city with iconic buildings and complete facilities, private companies can readily utilise them, ” he said during a press conference to announce a glamping project in Putrajaya Wetlands Park. “This means they will not need big capital expenditure but just add value and run promotion programmes to draw attention to their tourism products and services. “We will be open and transparent so that these companies can help make Putrajaya a major recreational city that is eco-friendly and family-oriented, ” he said during the event held in Precinct 3. Annuar noted that Putrajaya was lacking in pull factor, which explained why the 25-year-old administrative capital ... » Learn More about Putrajaya keen to attract ecotourism projects

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is clearly not seen as a “strategic environmental partner on climate action” by the United States, said Democratic Action Party's secretary-general Lim Guan Eng on Thursday (Apr 8). This came after environment minister Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man explained that Malaysia is not involved in a US-led virtual leaders summit for climate change as it is not among top greenhouse gas emitters and those most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. In a statement, Mr Lim said: “Tuan Ibrahim’s explanation why Malaysia was not invited has shown him to be no different from former US President Donald Trump’s lack of knowledge and enthusiasm for climate change activism." Mr Lim stated that the reasoning by the minister was unacceptable. “Tuan Ibrahim’s rationale for Malaysia’s exclusion is that Malaysia is not climate-vulnerable like Vietnam and Indonesia, as well as not a big country contributor to 80 per cent of greenhouse gases (GHG) to limit global warming to 1.5 ... » Learn More about Malaysia not seen as ‘strategic environmental partner’ by US, says DAP leader on climate summit snub

Key figure: Deby at a Sahel summit in the French city of Pau in January last year N'DJAMENA - Chad headed into presidential elections on Sunday in which Idriss Deby Itno, the country's ruler for the last three decades, looks assured of a sixth term. A key ally in the West's anti-jihadist campaign in the Sahel, Deby, 68, is frontrunner in a six-candidate race without major rivals after a campaign in which demonstrations were banned or dispersed. Chad has struggled with poverty and instability since gaining independence from France in 1960. Its leader, Deby, is a former rebel and career soldier who seized power in a coup in 1990 and has twice, with French help, thwarted attempts to oust him. Other candidates include Albert Pahimi Padacke, 55, a former prime minister under Deby, and Felix Nialbe Romadoumngar, 64 -- officially "leader of the opposition" as his URD party has eight seats in the National Assembly. Lydie Beassemda, 54, a former minister of agricultural production, ... » Learn More about Chad votes with 30-year ruler Deby poised for sixth win

Despite public outcry and criticism of some of his policies, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has maintained a high approval rating, a public opinion survey has found. In recent months, Jokowi has been under fire for some controversies including the recent fiasco over the citizenship of Arcandra Tahar, the former energy and mineral resources minister. Jokowi’s tax amnesty program has also been under scrutiny. But all of this has not apparently impacted Jokowi’s popularity or his perceived acceptability. A recent study by the Jakarta-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) found that a majority of Indonesians approve of him and his performance in government. Of the 1,000 respondents that the CSIS interviewed for the survey, 66.5 percent said they were satisfied with the work of Jokowi’s administration. The survey recorded an 10.1 percent increase in popularity from what the administration achieved last year. The study found that Jokowi’s strongest approval ... » Learn More about Jokowi remains very popular: CSIS

A political expert has warned a large coalition supporting President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s administration will weaken the system of checks and balances within the government as political parties in such a coalition tend to neglect public concerns and instead fight for the sake of their own interests. “The presence of opposition parties is needed to ensure the system of checks and balances in the current government runs well,” Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) executive director Philips J. Vermonte said on Tuesday. He made the statement in response to the result of a recent CSIS survey that found 71 percent of 1,000 respondents believed Jokowi would be able to manage his supporting coalition, specifically after Indonesia’s second-biggest party, the Golkar Party, and the National Mandate Party (PAN) decided to support the government. With Golkar and PAN’s support, Jokowi has stronger support at the House of Representatives, with 386 out of 560 lawmakers ... » Learn More about Large coalition weakens checks and balances: Expert