With the Air Quality Index (AQI) exceeding 400 in several parts of the capital, the Delhi government has ordered the suspension of outdoor sports activities in schools until December. Various measures have been in place since mid-October due to worsening pollution, a problem that resurfaces in the autumn.
Pakistan lacks the infrastructure needed to dispose of its ever-increasing waste, which includes an estimated 270,000 tonnes of textile waste produced each year. Poverty and inflation are pushing millions of Pakistanis to rely on second-hand clothing. In 2021, the EU exported about 1.4 million tonnes of used textiles or unwanted clothing worldwide.
Scandals in Kyiv are increasingly intertwined with frequent discussions about Zelensky's departure from power. Justice, transparency, “purity”, and the punishment of the guilty appear to be the priorities under the mounting rubble of war.
Alarm bells are ringing in South Korea after tensions rose between China and Japan following Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's statements regarding possible military action in the event of a Chinese attack on Taiwan. Seoul fears being dragged into a geopolitical confrontation between its two neighbours. At the same time, it is trying to keep a fragile balance between the United States (which is demanding a more active role on the Taiwan issue) and China, which remains its largest trading partner and a key player in managing the North Korean threat.
Today's news: The death toll from floods in Vietnam has risen to 55. Myanmar’s military junta reportedly arrested a thousand foreigners in its latest raids on scam centres. Indian counterterrorism units searched the offices of the Kashmir Times. Amnesty International has called on Pakistan to explain the enforced disappearances of six Pashtun activists.
Leo XIV authorised the promulgation of the decree recognising the Australian missionary as venerable, the first step toward beatification. In 1920, she obtained a special papal dispensation to overcome a canonical rule that prevented nuns from practising medicine. She also founded the Catholic Health Association of India in 1947, which now serves 21 million patients annually in its facilities.
