Anti-H1B posters have come up in local metro stations and commuter trains in San Francisco and California, ahead of the work visa, which is popular among Indian IT professionals, filing season beginning in April.

The Progressives for Immigration Reform which has bought advertisements worth $80,000 for the San Francisco&#39;s Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) stations and trains, argues that their purpose is to create awareness about the misuse and abuse of the H-1B visa.

&quot;This is to get exposure to the H-1B programme. And with that attention, with that visibility, begin conversations on the abuses of the programmes what it was intended to be and what it has become,&quot; Kevin Lynn, director of the Washington Dc-based Progressive for Information Reform told.

The campaign started on March 15, and would last till April 1, he said, adding that he has been receiving &quot;amazingly positive&quot; response from the users of BART.

&quot;Your companies think you are expensive, undeserving &amp; expendable,&quot; the advertisement said.

&quot;Congress, fix H-1B law so companies must seek &amp; hire US workers!&quot; it said.

These advertisements have been placed primarily at San Francisco&#39;s Civic Center Station and Oakland&#39;s 19th Street Stations with smaller numbers in other stations and in trains, BART said.

Lynn insisted that this is not about against H-1B visa, but to create awareness about the abuses of the programme and then fix those.

&quot;The responses receiving are amazingly positive,&quot; he said, adding that there was some negative responses, wherein people mistakenly thought that this was anti-immigrant.

&quot;That all pretty much ended by Friday as news started to come out and people began to realise that this is a programme that is bringing attention to the abuses of the programme,&quot; he said.

&quot;In fact, I would say the positive responses are half and half between people who are who are foreign and people who are US citizens. Because there are two groups being abused here and exploited. One are foreign nationals who are working for companies that they have no protection, no labour laws in America are protecting the H1B worker. If company decides to fire them, they go back to whatever country they came from,&quot; Lynn said.

&quot;At the same time, companies are using H-1B workers to displace or not even think of seeking to hire an American worker who&#39;s qualified to do the job,&quot; he asserted.

He said the solution is that, a company should be made to seek and hire American workers first.

&quot;Two, when we work through a programme like this, should not be for people with ordinary skills, but only the exceptionally talented. That was the intention in 1990s. It was called the genius visa,&quot; Lynn said.

Most of the H-1B visa holders hold a bachelor&#39;s degree from a foreign university and 26 per cent of those have only an associate&#39;s degree, he said.

&quot;So, we&#39;re not seeing the very talented people coming to the country, but we&#39;re seeing people brought over to displace American workers,&quot; he alleged.

The intention of the programme initially was to bring the best and the brightest, he said.

Lynn said this publicity is &quot;already expanding&quot; into other cities.

The nature of campaign differs from city to city.

&quot;There are reasons that a campaign like this will work well in San Francisco and maybe not well in Boston. We would use other (campaign). The purpose of this campaign is to bring attention and then to organise tech workers to create a movement that will generate a political solution to this,&quot; Lynn said.

However, despite Lynn&#39;s insistence that this is not an anti-H-1B campaign, Indian-American groups have slammed Progressives for Immigration Reform and described these posters on BART stations in San Francisco as deeply problematic.

&quot;The anti-H-1B ads currently running on BART trains throughout the San Francisco Bay Area are deeply problematic and oversimplify the H-1B issue,&quot; Samir Kalra, San Francisco Bay Area based managing director of the Hindu American Foundation said.

&quot;While there have certainly been instances of abuse of the H-1B visa programme by large staffing companies that should be addressed, H-1B workers and immigrants have been a great benefit to our country. They&#39;ve helped spur innovation and have made tremendous contributions to our economy and broader society,&quot; he said.

&quot;More importantly, these ads further contribute to the growing anti-immigrant sentiment and unnecessarily demonize H-1B workers, many of whom face obstacles in obtaining visas and are forced to wait decades to receive green cards and build a secure life in this country,&quot; Kalra said.

BART has insisted that the display of these ads does not mean its endorsement.

&quot;This campaign complies with free speech laws that allow advertisers to express a point of view without regard to the viewpoint. BART must post these ads to comply with the law. Court rulings reinforce the fact that we can&#39;t deny the ads,&quot; a BART statement said.

&quot;BART does not endorse these ads. In fact, our Board of Directors passed a Safe Transit Policy in 2017 to send a clear message to the public and our riders that BART is a safe and welcoming system for all people,&quot; it said.&nbsp;

The campaign started on March 15, and would last till April 1

Anti-H1B posters have come up in local metro stations and commuter trains in San Francisco and California, ahead of the work visa, which is popular among Indian IT professionals, filing season beginning in April. The Progressives for Immigration Reform which has bought advertisements worth $80,000 for the San Francisco's Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) stations and trains, argues that their purpose is to create awareness about the misuse and abuse of the H-1B visa. "This is to get exposure to the H-1B programme. And with that attention, with that visibility, begin conversations on the abuses of the programmes what it was intended to be and what it has become," Kevin Lynn, director of the Washington Dc-based Progressive for Information Reform told. The campaign started on March 15, and would last till April 1, he said, adding that he has been receiving "amazingly positive" response from the users of BART. "Your companies think you are expensive, undeserving & expendable," the advertisement said. "Congress, fix H-1B law so companies must seek & hire US workers!" it said. These advertisements have been placed primarily at San Francisco's Civic Center Station and Oakland's 19th Street Stations with smaller numbers in other stations and in trains, BART said. Lynn insisted that this is not about against H-1B visa, but to create awareness about the abuses of the programme and then fix those. "The responses receiving are amazingly positive," he said, adding that there was some negative responses, wherein people mistakenly thought that this was anti-immigrant. "That all pretty much ended by Friday as news started to come out and people began to realise that this is a programme that is bringing attention to the abuses of the programme," he said. "In fact, I would say the positive responses are half and half between people who are who are foreign and people who are US citizens. Because there are two groups being abused here and exploited. One are foreign nationals who are working for companies that they have no protection, no labour laws in America are protecting the H1B worker. If company decides to fire them, they go back to whatever country they came from," Lynn said. "At the same time, companies are using H-1B workers to displace or not even think of seeking to hire an American worker who's qualified to do the job," he asserted. He said the solution is that, a company should be made to seek and hire American workers first. "Two, when we work through a programme like this, should not be for people with ordinary skills, but only the exceptionally talented. That was the intention in 1990s. It was called the genius visa," Lynn said. Most of the H-1B visa holders hold a bachelor's degree from a foreign university and 26 per cent of those have only an associate's degree, he said. "So, we're not seeing the very talented people coming to the country, but we're seeing people brought over to displace American workers," he alleged. The intention of the programme initially was to bring the best and the brightest, he said. Lynn said this publicity is "already expanding" into other cities. The nature of campaign differs from city to city. "There are reasons that a campaign like this will work well in San Francisco and maybe not well in Boston. We would use other (campaign). The purpose of this campaign is to bring attention and then to organise tech workers to create a movement that will generate a political solution to this," Lynn said. However, despite Lynn's insistence that this is not an anti-H-1B campaign, Indian-American groups have slammed Progressives for Immigration Reform and described these posters on BART stations in San Francisco as deeply problematic. "The anti-H-1B ads currently running on BART trains throughout the San Francisco Bay Area are deeply problematic and oversimplify the H-1B issue," Samir Kalra, San Francisco Bay Area based managing director of the Hindu American Foundation said. "While there have certainly been instances of abuse of the H-1B visa programme by large staffing companies that should be addressed, H-1B workers and immigrants have been a great benefit to our country. They've helped spur innovation and have made tremendous contributions to our economy and broader society," he said. "More importantly, these ads further contribute to the growing anti-immigrant sentiment and unnecessarily demonize H-1B workers, many of whom face obstacles in obtaining visas and are forced to wait decades to receive green cards and build a secure life in this country," Kalra said. BART has insisted that the display of these ads does not mean its endorsement. "This campaign complies with free speech laws that allow advertisers to express a point of view without regard to the viewpoint. BART must post these ads to comply with the law. Court rulings reinforce the fact that we can't deny the ads," a BART statement said. "BART does not endorse these ads. In fact, our Board of Directors passed a Safe Transit Policy in 2017 to send a clear message to the public and our riders that BART is a safe and welcoming system for all people," it said.

Anti H-1B posters come up in San Francisco metro stations

Establishing itself as a box-office record-breaker, Sanjay Leela Bhansali&#39;s epic film Padmaavat&nbsp;has already earned Rs 114 crores&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/entertainment-padmaavat-earns-rs-114-crores-within-the-first-four-days-of-its-release-31092" target="_blank">within the first four days of its release in India</a>&nbsp;while <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/entertainment-padmaavat-is-a-hit-in-the-us-running-houseful-in-theatres-31122" target="_blank">running&nbsp;to its full capacity in several theatres across the United States</a> in both standard formats as well as IMAX 3D.&nbsp;

A hit among the desi crowd as well as foreigners in the US, the glorification of Rajput culture&nbsp;has struck a chord with people who identify with Indian culture and its heritage.&nbsp;

Trade analyst Komal Nahta on January 30 shared a video where Indian&nbsp;families came to watch Padmaavat dressed in Rajput finery. In the video, women can be seen decked up as Rani Sa Deepika Padukone in lehengas and jewellery while also doing the Ghoomar dance before the show began.&nbsp;

Nahta tweeted and captioned it: &quot;San Francisco Bay Area families bought a whole show of the movie theatre (in Sunnyvale, California) to see Padmaavat and there was a dress code &ndash; &ldquo;Everyone should dress like Padmavati. And before the show, there was this dancing&rdquo;.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
San Francisco Bay Area families bought a whole show of the movie theater (in Sunnyvale, California) to see Padmaavat and there was a dress code - &quot;Every one should dress like Padmavati.&quot; And before the show there was this dancing ???????? <a href="https://t.co/PKkEdbLXGx">pic.twitter.com/PKkEdbLXGx</a>
&mdash; Komal Nahta (@KomalNahta) <a href="https://twitter.com/KomalNahta/status/958360109272444928?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

The film was the highest single-day grosser in North America earning 1.8 million dollars on Saturday i.e. January 27th. It is also doing well in Australia and New Zealand.

On January 28, during the halftime of an NBA game,<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/padmaavat-reaches-nba-cheerleaders-dance-to-ghoomar-during-half-time-31293" target="_blank"> cheerleaders performed on the Ghoomar song to a cheering crowd</a>. The video of their dance gone viral and the audience can be seen cheering the dancers. The match was&nbsp; 
between Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat.

Watch the song video here:&nbsp;

<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="480" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6cKErCWrb44" width="970"></iframe>

Trade analyst Komal Nahta tweeted a video of San Francisco where women came dressed in Rajput attire to watch the film

Establishing itself as a box-office record-breaker, Sanjay Leela Bhansali's epic film Padmaavat has already earned Rs 114 crores within the first four days of its release in India while running to its full capacity in several theatres across the United States in both standard formats as well as IMAX 3D. A hit among the desi crowd as well as foreigners in the US, the glorification of Rajput culture has struck a chord with people who identify with Indian culture and its heritage. Trade analyst Komal Nahta on January 30 shared a video where Indian families came to watch Padmaavat dressed in Rajput finery. In the video, women can be seen decked up as Rani Sa Deepika Padukone in lehengas and jewellery while also doing the Ghoomar dance before the show began. Nahta tweeted and captioned it: "San Francisco Bay Area families bought a whole show of the movie theatre (in Sunnyvale, California) to see Padmaavat and there was a dress code – “Everyone should dress like Padmavati. And before the show, there was this dancing”. San Francisco Bay Area families bought a whole show of the movie theater (in Sunnyvale, California) to see Padmaavat and there was a dress code - "Every one should dress like Padmavati." And before the show there was this dancing ???????? pic.twitter.com/PKkEdbLXGx — Komal Nahta (@KomalNahta) January 30, 2018 × The film was the highest single-day grosser in North America earning 1.8 million dollars on Saturday i.e. January 27th. It is also doing well in Australia and New Zealand. On January 28, during the halftime of an NBA game, cheerleaders performed on the Ghoomar song to a cheering crowd. The video of their dance gone viral and the audience can be seen cheering the dancers. The match was between Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat. Watch the song video here:

Watch: 'Padmaavat' fever strikes San Francisco as women watch film dressed as Rani Sa

In the wake of Apple&#39;s shuttle buses being repeatedly attacked in San Francisco, the tech giant has decided to reroute its shuttle bus service.

Google is also reported to have joined the move.&nbsp;

According to reports, Apple&#39;s employee-transit buses were being repeatedly attacked -- with an unidentifiable object, possibly pellet guns -- after which the company, in a mail marked to its employees, decided to reroute the bus service.&nbsp;

The responsibility of the attacks has not been claimed so far.&nbsp;

According to the official email obtained by Mashable, Apple&#39;s buses were being attacked near highway 280 in California.

The mail mentioned that the officials are currently investigating the matter with an aim to zero down on the person or the party responsible for the attacks.&nbsp;

Apple also noted that the safety of its employees is of the utmost concern and while rerouting may translate into extra commute of around 30-40 minutes for the employees, it is being done only in the interest of the employees.

At least five Apple buses have been reported damaged with no person injured so far.&nbsp;

The Silicon Valley is subject to witnessing protests by the locals over skyrocketing property prices.

Many people attribute Apple&#39;s bus damage incidents to similar protests against tech giants in the Silicon Valley. 
&nbsp;

The responsibility of the attacks has not been claimed so far

In the wake of Apple's shuttle buses being repeatedly attacked in San Francisco, the tech giant has decided to reroute its shuttle bus service. Google is also reported to have joined the move. According to reports, Apple's employee-transit buses were being repeatedly attacked -- with an unidentifiable object, possibly pellet guns -- after which the company, in a mail marked to its employees, decided to reroute the bus service. The responsibility of the attacks has not been claimed so far. According to the official email obtained by Mashable, Apple's buses were being attacked near highway 280 in California. The mail mentioned that the officials are currently investigating the matter with an aim to zero down on the person or the party responsible for the attacks. Apple also noted that the safety of its employees is of the utmost concern and while rerouting may translate into extra commute of around 30-40 minutes for the employees, it is being done only in the interest of the employees. At least five Apple buses have been reported damaged with no person injured so far. The Silicon Valley is subject to witnessing protests by the locals over skyrocketing property prices. Many people attribute Apple's bus damage incidents to similar protests against tech giants in the Silicon Valley.

Apple buses repeatedly attacked in San Francisco

The former security chief of Uber Technologies Inc. swore in a closed legal proceeding that he knew of no attempts to steal trade secrets from anyone, including Alphabet Inc&#39;s &lt;GOOGL.O&gt; self-driving unit Waymo, and would be &quot;shocked&quot; if that had occurred.

In a deposition taken in mid-December near San Francisco, Joe Sullivan, Uber&#39;s security chief from 2015 to 2017, said that the most explosive claims made by another former Uber employee of unethical and illegal behavior by members of his security team&nbsp;were false.

The testimony, described to Reuters by people familiar with it, came in connection with a lawsuit brought by<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/uber-must-return-stolen-waymo-files-can-continue-self-driving-work-us-judge-15625" target="_blank"> Waymo </a>which accuses arch rival Uber of stealing <a href="http://www.wionews.com/science-tech/uber-says-never-used-waymo-files-on-self-driving-14312" target="_blank">trade secrets</a>.

Sullivan&#39;s testimony has not been made public. He has not spoken in open court or spoken publicly since leaving Uber in November, when he was fired following an investigation.

The previously unreported testimony from the onetime senior Uber official, as well as interviews conducted by Reuters with five current and former Uber employees, rebuts statements&nbsp;made in an explosive 37-page letter last year that triggered the internal probe and drew the attention of federal prosecutors, who are still investigating.

The letter was written by an attorney for Richard Jacobs, a security analyst who worked at Uber from 2016 to 2017 and&nbsp;was about to be fired, Jacobs has acknowledged.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/comprehensive-letter-reveals-ubers-corporate-spy-strategies-26916" target="_blank">Comprehensive letter reveals Uber&#39;s corporate spy strategies</a>

Jacobs&#39; lawyer wrote that Uber&#39;s security apparatus was engaged in stealing trade secrets, spying on rival executives and wiretapping, among other questionable behavior.

Uber&#39;s internal probe of Jacobs&#39; claims also uncovered something new, which was not mentioned in Jacobs&#39; letter: an undisclosed 2016 data breach and a $100,000 payout to a hacker in Florida. This discovery led to Uber firing Sullivan and legal deputy Craig Clark for failing to have the company disclose the breach to customers and regulators.

Waymo seized on the&nbsp;claims made by Jacobs&nbsp;because they explicitly mentioned that Uber had stolen Waymo trade secrets, and Waymo was already suing Uber in a federal court for theft of trade secrets.

Sullivan&#39;s testimony and the Reuters interviews put into question Uber&#39;s decision to pay Jacobs a $7.5 million settlement and offer him a consulting contract in connection with his threats to expose Uber&#39;s alleged wrongdoing.

An Uber spokesman did not comment on the implication of Sullivan&#39;s testimony, but said that Uber had already substantiated some of Jacobs&#39; claims, although nothing related to Waymo. He added that the company is &quot;changing the way we do business, putting integrity at the core of everything we do.&quot; A spokeswoman for Waymo declined to comment.

Jacobs&#39; attorney in the Waymo case,&nbsp;Martha Boersch,&nbsp;who did not write the 37-page-letter, did not respond to requests for comment.&nbsp;Jacobs did not respond to a request for comment.

Attorneys for Waymo have said in court that over the nearly year-long case they have amassed a file of evidence against&nbsp;Uber&nbsp;and were ready to go to trial before the revelation of the Jacobs letter, which came days before the original trial date.&nbsp;On Friday, Waymo filed a court document that said it had corroborated some of Jacobs&#39; claims about Uber&#39;s data-gathering efforts against rivals, but the specifics were redacted.

In interviews with Reuters, three current Uber executives repeated Sullivan&#39;s rejection of Jacobs&#39; claims and said they were unaware any of the lawbreaking allegations by Jacobs. They called false Jacobs&#39;&nbsp;statements that the security unit had misused attorney-client privilege or encouraged the use of ephemeral messaging services in order to cover up improper behavior.

Uber received the letter from Jacobs in May 2017, but it was not publicly disclosed until November, when federal prosecutors shared the letter with the judge overseeing the Uber-Waymo lawsuit.&nbsp;The judge delayed the trial to allow Waymo attorneys to&nbsp;question Sullivan and other Uber employees about the letter.

In his own recent&nbsp;court appearance in the Waymo case, Jacobs stood by his claims that Uber&#39;s security team spied on and stole from competitors and tried covered its tracks. But he admitted he was not aware of Uber stealing anything from Waymo, contradicting part of his letter. He attributed the contradiction to a miscommunication with the attorney who wrote it on his behalf.

In a deposition taken in mid-December near San Francisco, Joe Sullivan, Uber's security chief from 2015 to 2017, said that the most explosive claims made by another former Uber employee of unethical and illegal behavior by members of his security team were false

The former security chief of Uber Technologies Inc. swore in a closed legal proceeding that he knew of no attempts to steal trade secrets from anyone, including Alphabet Inc's <GOOGL.O> self-driving unit Waymo, and would be "shocked" if that had occurred. In a deposition taken in mid-December near San Francisco, Joe Sullivan, Uber's security chief from 2015 to 2017, said that the most explosive claims made by another former Uber employee of unethical and illegal behavior by members of his security team were false. The testimony, described to Reuters by people familiar with it, came in connection with a lawsuit brought by Waymo which accuses arch rival Uber of stealing trade secrets. Sullivan's testimony has not been made public. He has not spoken in open court or spoken publicly since leaving Uber in November, when he was fired following an investigation. The previously unreported testimony from the onetime senior Uber official, as well as interviews conducted by Reuters with five current and former Uber employees, rebuts statements made in an explosive 37-page letter last year that triggered the internal probe and drew the attention of federal prosecutors, who are still investigating. The letter was written by an attorney for Richard Jacobs, a security analyst who worked at Uber from 2016 to 2017 and was about to be fired, Jacobs has acknowledged. Also read: Comprehensive letter reveals Uber's corporate spy strategies Jacobs' lawyer wrote that Uber's security apparatus was engaged in stealing trade secrets, spying on rival executives and wiretapping, among other questionable behavior. Uber's internal probe of Jacobs' claims also uncovered something new, which was not mentioned in Jacobs' letter: an undisclosed 2016 data breach and a $100,000 payout to a hacker in Florida. This discovery led to Uber firing Sullivan and legal deputy Craig Clark for failing to have the company disclose the breach to customers and regulators. Waymo seized on the claims made by Jacobs because they explicitly mentioned that Uber had stolen Waymo trade secrets, and Waymo was already suing Uber in a federal court for theft of trade secrets. Sullivan's testimony and the Reuters interviews put into question Uber's decision to pay Jacobs a $7.5 million settlement and offer him a consulting contract in connection with his threats to expose Uber's alleged wrongdoing. An Uber spokesman did not comment on the implication of Sullivan's testimony, but said that Uber had already substantiated some of Jacobs' claims, although nothing related to Waymo. He added that the company is "changing the way we do business, putting integrity at the core of everything we do." A spokeswoman for Waymo declined to comment. Jacobs' attorney in the Waymo case, Martha Boersch, who did not write the 37-page-letter, did not respond to requests for comment. Jacobs did not respond to a request for comment. Attorneys for Waymo have said in court that over the nearly year-long case they have amassed a file of evidence against Uber and were ready to go to trial before the revelation of the Jacobs letter, which came days before the original trial date. On Friday, Waymo filed a court document that said it had corroborated some of Jacobs' claims about Uber's data-gathering efforts against rivals, but the specifics were redacted. In interviews with Reuters, three current Uber executives repeated Sullivan's rejection of Jacobs' claims and said they were unaware any of the lawbreaking allegations by Jacobs. They called false Jacobs' statements that the security unit had misused attorney-client privilege or encouraged the use of ephemeral messaging services in order to cover up improper behavior. Uber received the letter from Jacobs in May 2017, but it was not publicly disclosed until November, when federal prosecutors shared the letter with the judge overseeing the Uber-Waymo lawsuit. The judge delayed the trial to allow Waymo attorneys to question Sullivan and other Uber employees about the letter. In his own recent court appearance in the Waymo case, Jacobs stood by his claims that Uber's security team spied on and stole from competitors and tried covered its tracks. But he admitted he was not aware of Uber stealing anything from Waymo, contradicting part of his letter. He attributed the contradiction to a miscommunication with the attorney who wrote it on his behalf.

Current and former Uber security staffers cast doubt on spying claims

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/un-imposes-new-sanctions-against-north-korea-trump-hails-decision-27503">UN imposes new sanctions against North Korea, Trump hails decision</a>

The UN Security Council today imposed new sanctions on North Korea seeking to ban refined petroleum product export after its ICBM missile test last month.

 
<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/us-threats-against-pakistan-can-negatively-affect-relations-ispr-chief-major-general-ghafoor-27505">US threats against Pakistan can &#39;negatively&#39; affect relations: ISPR chief Major General Ghafoor</a>

Ghafoor&#39;s statement comes after US vice president Mike Pence on a surprise visit to Afghanistan on Friday said President Trump had put Pakistan on notice.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/man-held-over-christmas-attack-plot-in-san-francisco-fbi-27499">Man held over Christmas attack plot in San Francisco: FBI</a>

US Federal agents arrested a former US Marine on Friday for allegedly plotting a Christmas attack in San Francisco inspired by the Islamic State jihadist group.

 
<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/watch-spacex-successfully-deploys-10-satellites-into-low-earth-orbit-27507">Watch: SpaceX successfully deploys 10 satellites into low-earth orbit</a>

EIon&nbsp;Musk-led SpaceX broke new ground in space with the launch of rocket Falcon 9 which successfully deployed 10 satellites into earth&#39;s orbit.

 
<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/34-trains-late-15-cancelled-due-to-low-visibility-in-delhi-27506">34 trains late, 15 cancelled due to low visibility in Delhi</a>

According to reports, most trains running on Amritsar/Ludhiana to New Delhi route were running late or had to be rescheduled.

According to reports, most trains running on Amritsar/Ludhiana to New Delhi route were running late or had to be rescheduled.

UN imposes new sanctions against North Korea, Trump hails decision The UN Security Council today imposed new sanctions on North Korea seeking to ban refined petroleum product export after its ICBM missile test last month. US threats against Pakistan can 'negatively' affect relations: ISPR chief Major General Ghafoor Ghafoor's statement comes after US vice president Mike Pence on a surprise visit to Afghanistan on Friday said President Trump had put Pakistan on notice. Man held over Christmas attack plot in San Francisco: FBI US Federal agents arrested a former US Marine on Friday for allegedly plotting a Christmas attack in San Francisco inspired by the Islamic State jihadist group. Watch: SpaceX successfully deploys 10 satellites into low-earth orbit EIon Musk-led SpaceX broke new ground in space with the launch of rocket Falcon 9 which successfully deployed 10 satellites into earth's orbit. 34 trains late, 15 cancelled due to low visibility in Delhi According to reports, most trains running on Amritsar/Ludhiana to New Delhi route were running late or had to be rescheduled.

WION morning news brief, December 23, 2017

The University of California, San Francisco on Tuesday laid off 49 information technology (IT) employees and outsourced their work to a company based in India, ending a year-long process that has brought the public university under fire.

The university announced the plan last July as a way to save $30 million over five years.

The University of California system, which includes health care and research-focused UCSF, has been struggling to raise revenue and cut expenses.

Globalisation and outsourcing have become hot-button political issues in the United States, as more employers cut costs by farming out work to low-cost workers in far-flung parts of the world.

President Donald Trump campaigned on promises to restore lost US&nbsp;jobs and to penalise companies that move factories overseas.&nbsp;

This was the University of California&#39;s first outsourcing, said a spokeswoman who added that the layoffs were necessary due to rising costs of technology.

In addition to the 49 staff layoffs, another 48 positions that were vacant or filled by contractors were eliminated.

California senator Dianne Feinstein last year said the university had a responsibility to keep jobs in the United States and pledged to seek reforms to stop domestic jobs being outsourced.

Kurt Ho, 58, a laid off systems administrator, carried a box of his personal items with an American flag draped over it, and said the university&#39;s decision will hurt service for a medical staff that relies on a smoothly running and secure computer network.&nbsp;

&quot;It&#39;s a downgrading of services and a slap in the face for the customers,&quot; said Ho, who has worked in IT in the Bay Area for 25 years.

He said he plans to look for a job but worries that outsourcing of IT services is a growing trend.&nbsp;

Last year UCSF entered into a $50 million contract over five years with India-based HCL Technologies Ltd to do the work.

(Reuters)

The University of California announced the plan last July as a way to save $30 million over five years

The University of California, San Francisco on Tuesday laid off 49 information technology (IT) employees and outsourced their work to a company based in India, ending a year-long process that has brought the public university under fire. The university announced the plan last July as a way to save $30 million over five years. The University of California system, which includes health care and research-focused UCSF, has been struggling to raise revenue and cut expenses. Globalisation and outsourcing have become hot-button political issues in the United States, as more employers cut costs by farming out work to low-cost workers in far-flung parts of the world. President Donald Trump campaigned on promises to restore lost US jobs and to penalise companies that move factories overseas. This was the University of California's first outsourcing, said a spokeswoman who added that the layoffs were necessary due to rising costs of technology. In addition to the 49 staff layoffs, another 48 positions that were vacant or filled by contractors were eliminated. California senator Dianne Feinstein last year said the university had a responsibility to keep jobs in the United States and pledged to seek reforms to stop domestic jobs being outsourced. Kurt Ho, 58, a laid off systems administrator, carried a box of his personal items with an American flag draped over it, and said the university's decision will hurt service for a medical staff that relies on a smoothly running and secure computer network. "It's a downgrading of services and a slap in the face for the customers," said Ho, who has worked in IT in the Bay Area for 25 years. He said he plans to look for a job but worries that outsourcing of IT services is a growing trend. Last year UCSF entered into a $50 million contract over five years with India-based HCL Technologies Ltd to do the work. (Reuters)

San Francisco university lays off IT workers, outsources work to India

A solar-powered airplane left the United States today, taking off from New York City to fly across Atlantic for its historic bid to circle the globe. 
 
The spindly, single-seat experimental aircraft, dubbed as Solar Impulse 2, left New York&#39;s John F. Kennedy International Airport at about 2:30 am local time (0630 GMT) &nbsp;today. 
 
The flight is expected to take approximately 90 to 110 hours before landing in Seville Airport, Spain, said&nbsp;the project team. 
 
The Swiss team flying the aircraft in a campaign to build support for clean energy technologies hopes eventually to complete its circumnavigation in Abu Dhabi, where the journey began in March 2015. 
 
The solar craft&#39;s cruising speed, akin to that of a car, required pilots to take up meditation and hypnosis in training to stay alert for long periods. 
 
Andre Borschberg alternates with fellow pilot Bertrand Piccard at the controls for each segment of what they hope will be the first round-the-world solar-powered flight. 
 
On April 24, Piccard landed in San Francisco, completing a trans-Pacific crossing after a nearly three-day trip that began in Hawaii. The flight took more than three times the 18 hours for Amelia Earhart to fly solo from Hawaii to California in the 1930s. 
 
The propeller-driven Solar Impulse flies without a drop of fuel and its four engines are powered solely by energy collected from more than 17,000 solar cells built into its wings. 
 
Surplus power is stored in four batteries during the day, to keep the plane aloft on extreme long-distance flights. 
 
The carbon-fiber plane, with a wingspan exceeding that of a Boeing 747 and the weight of a family car, is unlikely to set speed or altitude records. It can climb to 28,000 feet (8,500 m), and cruise at 34 to 62 mph (55 to 100 kph). 
 
In a precursor of their globe-circling quest, the two men completed a multi-flight crossing of the United States with an earlier version of the solar plane in 2013. 
(Reuters)

The solar craft's cruising speed, akin to that of a car, required pilots to take up meditation and hypnosis in training to stay alert

A solar-powered airplane left the United States today, taking off from New York City to fly across Atlantic for its historic bid to circle the globe. The spindly, single-seat experimental aircraft, dubbed as Solar Impulse 2, left New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport at about 2:30 am local time (0630 GMT) today. The flight is expected to take approximately 90 to 110 hours before landing in Seville Airport, Spain, said the project team. The Swiss team flying the aircraft in a campaign to build support for clean energy technologies hopes eventually to complete its circumnavigation in Abu Dhabi, where the journey began in March 2015. The solar craft's cruising speed, akin to that of a car, required pilots to take up meditation and hypnosis in training to stay alert for long periods. Andre Borschberg alternates with fellow pilot Bertrand Piccard at the controls for each segment of what they hope will be the first round-the-world solar-powered flight. On April 24, Piccard landed in San Francisco, completing a trans-Pacific crossing after a nearly three-day trip that began in Hawaii. The flight took more than three times the 18 hours for Amelia Earhart to fly solo from Hawaii to California in the 1930s. The propeller-driven Solar Impulse flies without a drop of fuel and its four engines are powered solely by energy collected from more than 17,000 solar cells built into its wings. Surplus power is stored in four batteries during the day, to keep the plane aloft on extreme long-distance flights. The carbon-fiber plane, with a wingspan exceeding that of a Boeing 747 and the weight of a family car, is unlikely to set speed or altitude records. It can climb to 28,000 feet (8,500 m), and cruise at 34 to 62 mph (55 to 100 kph). In a precursor of their globe-circling quest, the two men completed a multi-flight crossing of the United States with an earlier version of the solar plane in 2013. (Reuters)

Solar-powered plane takes on Atlantic as part of round-the-world bid

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