The city of Minneapolis on Friday (March 12) agreed to pay $27 million to settle a lawsuit by the family of George Floyd over his death in police custody, a case that stirred national protests over racial injustice and police brutality.

Minneapolis to pay $27 mln to settle George Floyd's family civil lawsuit over deadly arrest

U.S. President Joe Biden met leaders of Australia, India and Japan on Friday (March 12), a group central to his efforts to counter China's growing military and economic power, and said a free and open Indo-Pacific region was essential to all of their futures.

Biden says free Indo-Pacific essential as he meets India, Japan, Australia leaders

Rasool Rezaie who despite being deported from Russia reinvents himself as a mushroom farmer. Rezaie starts cultivating Mushrooms in one room at his home, now takes 30 kg of oyster mushrooms to the market every day. WION brings the report.

Rasool Rezaie reinvents himself as a mushroom farmer in Kabul

Odisha is home to some of the pristine beaches on India's east coast. We bring you the best ones on 'Discovering Odisha: India's Best Kept Secret' today at 06:30 PM. On the show today, we will travel throughout Odisha, visit the most iconic beaches, and try out some of the many activities available for the fearless adventurers.

Discovering Odisha: Exploring Odisha's pristine beaches

India and China have agreed to stabilize and control the situation on the ground, near border areas to avoid relapsing both countries held another meeting. 21st meeting of the working mechanism for consultation and coordination on India-China border affairs was held to discuss the border standoff. During the meeting, both sides agreed to convene the 11th round of the meeting

India engages with China ahead of Quad summit

It’s one of those experiences you can’t Not have when visiting Amritsar. Even if you haven’t heard of the Beating-the-Retreat ceremony (and I suppose most foreigners haven’t) you will definitely wonder what the fuss is about because every tuk-tuk driver on the streets of the city will offer to take you to Wagah—a drive of half-an-hour from Amritsar at the India-Pakistan border—and bring you back, for varying sums of money.

The ceremony that involves lowering of flags and a spirited display by soldiers of India and Pakistan, was instituted in 1959, and takes place before sunset every day. It’s quite the highlight for visitors to Amritsar and was certainly on my itinerary.

I left the Golden Temple filled with a sense of peace…a strange calm, not sure how to articulate it. I think a kind of quiet confidence comes close to describing how I felt.

<img alt="Alyson Le Grange Wion foreign anchor" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="fc8f523c-2c47-4031-b97a-0a01aead2828" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/alyson%20le%20grange.JPG" />

Hubris creeps up on you when you aren’t careful, and then, something happens that brings you back to mother Earth…my thoughts were interrupted by yet another gentleman offering to take me to the border. He seemed quite expensive but I was too exhausted to scout for a better deal and I felt that I really wanted to travel in comfort especially after the tough time I had been having and after being on my feet for hours at the Golden Temple—this was during the north-Indian summer with the mercury soaring well over 40 degrees Celsius—I decided to give myself a break. The prospect of having an entire ‘air-conditioned car’ to myself, seemed too good to resist.

Not only that, but the man also kindly threw in a visit to a temple and a lunch at a famous ‘dhaba’—roadside eatery—in the package before dropping me back to the hotel.

This sounded good.&nbsp;

I felt like I had managed to arrange another wonderful experience, I felt like things were flowing, like maybe I must have tapped into something during my Golden Temple experience.

A friend of mine once remarked that I have very ‘strange luck’, and, now that I think about it, I think that she meant that the big picture, when it reveals itself to me, finally helps me make sense of events that did not seem particularly fun when they occurred. I suppose that's the same for most of us. On this occasion, things were going well enough until Ash, my driver, who'd asked me to wait while he pulled the car out, disappeared. My Hindi was basic at that point and Ash’s English, well, was worse than my Hindi. I was waiting for a while and just when I began wondering if I had, in fact, been conned, that a vehicle came sputtering along in my direction.

Now, this wasn’t exactly the fancy ride I’d been expecting; it was a jeep all right but looked a bit like the original article—the very first jeep ever produced. Just when I was hoping this wasn’t my ride Ash leaned out of the window and gestured that I should hop in. At this point, I had serious reservations, but Ash looked so eager and excited that I didn’t want to pour cold water on his plans. So it was, in an ancient jalopy, which looked like it might fall apart any minute and in fact the cubby hole fell off and landed on my leg, that the two of us began our journey to the Wagah border.

Our first stop was at a temple in a place called Mahindra Colony. Beautifully ornate, and decorated with stone carvings of deities, it was a great start and had me feeling somewhat mollified with the way things were going.

But I was hungry; it was already late afternoon and I’m not ashamed to admit that I get notoriously grumpy on an empty stomach.

Ash noticed my impatience and indicated that our next stop was for lunch, which was a relief. Just when I was thinking about the delicious Punjabi food I’d order when, exactly what I’d been afraid of happened: our venerable ride, decided it had had enough, sputtered, wheezed, and died.

I looked over at Ash as he guided the freewheeling vehicle to a stop by the curb; he looked somewhat bewildered, as if confused about what had just happened. I couldn’t understand what he was trying to explain to me (in Hindi, or Punjabi I’m not sure) but I was quite certain that the argument had no merit. This was not good.

We looked at each other blankly for a while before he motioned for me to disembark from the car and led me to a room-sized metal box on the roadside masquerading as a shop. &nbsp;

There were boxes of sweets, packets of cigarettes, and a tiny fridge stocked with fizzy drinks. The proprietor was lounging a little way away; Ash roused him and asked, presumably, if I could use the solitary chair facing a small fan to wait.

So, here I was, A South African girl, with little knowledge of India, no communication skills in the native tongue, sitting on a chair, in a small shop that was located on the side of the highway pretty much in the middle of nowhere in the hinterland of Punjab. For a moment I nearly gave in to panic but something kept me together. Maybe it was the epiphany I’d had at the Golden Temple, the inner peace I felt had not left me and I began to consider my situation rationally. I reached for my phone to call for help and realised, to my despair, that it had zero connectivity. I looked over at Ash, who pulled out his phone (that appeared to be the same vintage as our jeep) and shrugged—his phone was of no use either.

This was the point that the edifice started crumbling. In spite of my best efforts, panic began to set in. I began walking up and down, holding my phone in the air as high as I could to get some signal.&nbsp;I could no longer see my driver; Ash had disappeared, presumably to get help, he hadn’t said a word to me and as I sat on that little chair, I felt at a complete loss. Unsure of what to do next, unsure of what lay in store.

It was at this moment that the universe took pity on me. From the corner of my eye I noticed curious little faces peering at me from around the corner of a wall. &nbsp;These children, obviously fascinated by this unexpected visitor slowly overcame their fear and inched closer to me. I suppose they must have been between five-to-twelve years old, and they looked so sweet and inquisitive that I momentarily forgot my predicament and gave them a big smile.&nbsp;I could imagine how strange I must have looked to them: a white woman, wearing traditional Indian wear, headscarf and big glasses, blonde hair sticking out from beneath the scarf. Encouraged by my smile, they grew brave, came right over, and said hello.

<img alt="Alyson Le Grange Wion foreign anchor" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="ca24ed77-e5e9-4a58-a40d-aae8cd60fbc1" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/alyson.JPG" />

They had obviously seen me prancing up and down vainly seeking mobile connectivity. One little boy in a red turban whipped out his phone and came up to me with both hands outstretched, his phone in one hand and I handed him mine.&nbsp;He quickly linked my phone to his mobile hotspot and returned it to me. &nbsp;

I was back! &nbsp;Connected to the world at large! &nbsp;

My phone started buzzing off the hook and I quickly called Naresh, Ash’s boss, and told him what had happened. It turned out that Ash had already been there and was on his way back to me in a new vehicle. I was so relieved I could have cried.

The children and I spent the next 20 minutes or so, taking selfies. There was a little girl named Khushi (which I was told later means happiness) and that kind kind little boy who had been my knight in shining armor. I offered him some money for his help that I regretted immediately as he shyly recoiled from the offer. I bought all the sweets in the shop for the children and that’s when Ash rolled in—this time driving a shiny new jeep.

I got in, and my heart grew heavy as I waved goodbye to the children who waved and chased the car for as long as they could, as we resumed our journey.

I don’t think they realised that they’d saved me, re-instated my faith in the inherent goodness of humanity as it were. That little boy’s actions not only allowed me to get in touch with who I needed to but restored my belief that the human connection—one that transcends language, countries, and cultures,—is the one connection that we can always count on. That moment I felt, even in such a foreign place, that I was not alone. And that feeling was worth everything.

Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/opinions-blogs/blog-langar-satnam-and-sikhism-my-eat-pray-and-love-moment-at-golden-temple-366462">Blog: Langar, Satnam and Sikhism — My eat, pray and love moment at Golden temple</a>

With these thoughts running in my head, I barely noticed as we rolled into the ‘Lahore Dhaba’ for lunch. My hunger pangs which had subsided in the wake of my predicament came rushing back with a vengeance. Now I don’t have to tell you, dear reader, just how delicious Punjabi food, especially in Amritsar, can be, but at that moment, it was, by far, the most delectable meal I’ve ever had. Feeling full and refreshed, I continued on my journey.

(Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)

It’s one of those experiences you can’t Not have when visiting Amritsar. Even if you haven’t heard of the Beating-the-Retreat ceremony (and I suppose most foreigners haven’t) you will definitely wonder what the fuss is about because every tuk-tuk driver on the streets of the city will offer to take you to Wagah—a drive of half-an-hour from Amritsar at the India-Pakistan border—and bring you back, for varying sums of money.

It’s one of those experiences you can’t Not have when visiting Amritsar. Even if you haven’t heard of the Beating-the-Retreat ceremony (and I suppose most foreigners haven’t) you will definitely wonder what the fuss is about because every tuk-tuk driver on the streets of the city will offer to take you to Wagah—a drive of half-an-hour from Amritsar at the India-Pakistan border—and bring you back, for varying sums of money. The ceremony that involves lowering of flags and a spirited display by soldiers of India and Pakistan, was instituted in 1959, and takes place before sunset every day. It’s quite the highlight for visitors to Amritsar and was certainly on my itinerary. I left the Golden Temple filled with a sense of peace…a strange calm, not sure how to articulate it. I think a kind of quiet confidence comes close to describing how I felt. Hubris creeps up on you when you aren’t careful, and then, something happens that brings you back to mother Earth…my thoughts were interrupted by yet another gentleman offering to take me to the border. He seemed quite expensive but I was too exhausted to scout for a better deal and I felt that I really wanted to travel in comfort especially after the tough time I had been having and after being on my feet for hours at the Golden Temple—this was during the north-Indian summer with the mercury soaring well over 40 degrees Celsius—I decided to give myself a break. The prospect of having an entire ‘air-conditioned car’ to myself, seemed too good to resist. Not only that, but the man also kindly threw in a visit to a temple and a lunch at a famous ‘dhaba’—roadside eatery—in the package before dropping me back to the hotel. This sounded good. I felt like I had managed to arrange another wonderful experience, I felt like things were flowing, like maybe I must have tapped into something during my Golden Temple experience. A friend of mine once remarked that I have very ‘strange luck’, and, now that I think about it, I think that she meant that the big picture, when it reveals itself to me, finally helps me make sense of events that did not seem particularly fun when they occurred. I suppose that's the same for most of us. On this occasion, things were going well enough until Ash, my driver, who'd asked me to wait while he pulled the car out, disappeared. My Hindi was basic at that point and Ash’s English, well, was worse than my Hindi. I was waiting for a while and just when I began wondering if I had, in fact, been conned, that a vehicle came sputtering along in my direction. Now, this wasn’t exactly the fancy ride I’d been expecting; it was a jeep all right but looked a bit like the original article—the very first jeep ever produced. Just when I was hoping this wasn’t my ride Ash leaned out of the window and gestured that I should hop in. At this point, I had serious reservations, but Ash looked so eager and excited that I didn’t want to pour cold water on his plans. So it was, in an ancient jalopy, which looked like it might fall apart any minute and in fact the cubby hole fell off and landed on my leg, that the two of us began our journey to the Wagah border. Our first stop was at a temple in a place called Mahindra Colony. Beautifully ornate, and decorated with stone carvings of deities, it was a great start and had me feeling somewhat mollified with the way things were going. But I was hungry; it was already late afternoon and I’m not ashamed to admit that I get notoriously grumpy on an empty stomach. Ash noticed my impatience and indicated that our next stop was for lunch, which was a relief. Just when I was thinking about the delicious Punjabi food I’d order when, exactly what I’d been afraid of happened: our venerable ride, decided it had had enough, sputtered, wheezed, and died. I looked over at Ash as he guided the freewheeling vehicle to a stop by the curb; he looked somewhat bewildered, as if confused about what had just happened. I couldn’t understand what he was trying to explain to me (in Hindi, or Punjabi I’m not sure) but I was quite certain that the argument had no merit. This was not good. We looked at each other blankly for a while before he motioned for me to disembark from the car and led me to a room-sized metal box on the roadside masquerading as a shop. There were boxes of sweets, packets of cigarettes, and a tiny fridge stocked with fizzy drinks. The proprietor was lounging a little way away; Ash roused him and asked, presumably, if I could use the solitary chair facing a small fan to wait. So, here I was, A South African girl, with little knowledge of India, no communication skills in the native tongue, sitting on a chair, in a small shop that was located on the side of the highway pretty much in the middle of nowhere in the hinterland of Punjab. For a moment I nearly gave in to panic but something kept me together. Maybe it was the epiphany I’d had at the Golden Temple, the inner peace I felt had not left me and I began to consider my situation rationally. I reached for my phone to call for help and realised, to my despair, that it had zero connectivity. I looked over at Ash, who pulled out his phone (that appeared to be the same vintage as our jeep) and shrugged—his phone was of no use either. This was the point that the edifice started crumbling. In spite of my best efforts, panic began to set in. I began walking up and down, holding my phone in the air as high as I could to get some signal. I could no longer see my driver; Ash had disappeared, presumably to get help, he hadn’t said a word to me and as I sat on that little chair, I felt at a complete loss. Unsure of what to do next, unsure of what lay in store. It was at this moment that the universe took pity on me. From the corner of my eye I noticed curious little faces peering at me from around the corner of a wall. These children, obviously fascinated by this unexpected visitor slowly overcame their fear and inched closer to me. I suppose they must have been between five-to-twelve years old, and they looked so sweet and inquisitive that I momentarily forgot my predicament and gave them a big smile. I could imagine how strange I must have looked to them: a white woman, wearing traditional Indian wear, headscarf and big glasses, blonde hair sticking out from beneath the scarf. Encouraged by my smile, they grew brave, came right over, and said hello. They had obviously seen me prancing up and down vainly seeking mobile connectivity. One little boy in a red turban whipped out his phone and came up to me with both hands outstretched, his phone in one hand and I handed him mine. He quickly linked my phone to his mobile hotspot and returned it to me. I was back! Connected to the world at large! My phone started buzzing off the hook and I quickly called Naresh, Ash’s boss, and told him what had happened. It turned out that Ash had already been there and was on his way back to me in a new vehicle. I was so relieved I could have cried. The children and I spent the next 20 minutes or so, taking selfies. There was a little girl named Khushi (which I was told later means happiness) and that kind kind little boy who had been my knight in shining armor. I offered him some money for his help that I regretted immediately as he shyly recoiled from the offer. I bought all the sweets in the shop for the children and that’s when Ash rolled in—this time driving a shiny new jeep. I got in, and my heart grew heavy as I waved goodbye to the children who waved and chased the car for as long as they could, as we resumed our journey. I don’t think they realised that they’d saved me, re-instated my faith in the inherent goodness of humanity as it were. That little boy’s actions not only allowed me to get in touch with who I needed to but restored my belief that the human connection—one that transcends language, countries, and cultures,—is the one connection that we can always count on. That moment I felt, even in such a foreign place, that I was not alone. And that feeling was worth everything. Also Read | Blog: Langar, Satnam and Sikhism — My eat, pray and love moment at Golden temple With these thoughts running in my head, I barely noticed as we rolled into the ‘Lahore Dhaba’ for lunch. My hunger pangs which had subsided in the wake of my predicament came rushing back with a vengeance. Now I don’t have to tell you, dear reader, just how delicious Punjabi food, especially in Amritsar, can be, but at that moment, it was, by far, the most delectable meal I’ve ever had. Feeling full and refreshed, I continued on my journey. (Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)

Discovering India with Alyson Le Grange: The boy in the red turban

We have heard about military drills on land and high seas and in the air, but this one about military drills in space. Recently France launches its first military exercise in space, code name 'Asterx'. Excercise based on 18 simulated events. France says space is being militarised and they need to prepare.

France launches its first military excercise in space

COVID-19 pandemic took hold of the world, people relied on little joys of life to keep going like pets. The UK which is still battling the pandemic is now witnessing rising cases of dognapping, activist says that cases have tripled amid the pandemic.

Is dog theft growing into a big business in UK?

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison joined with the leaders of the United States, Japan and India at a virtual summit on Saturday morning (March 13), pledging to work closely on COVID-19 vaccine distribution, climate issues and security.

'Quad' countries pledge cooperation on COVID, climate and security

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo again insisted on Friday (March 12) he would not resign while allegations of his sexual misconduct are investigated, pushing back against a chorus of fellow Democrats, including more than a dozen U.S. Representatives, who have said he should step down.

Cuomo rejects more calls for his resignation as 7th woman accuses him of misconduct

Most of Italy, including its capital Rome and its financial centre Milan, will have curbs on business and movement intensified from Monday as the government ramps up its efforts to stem a steady rise in coronavirus cases.

Italy toughens COVID restrictions, imposes Easter lockdown

People's Republic of China has approved the changes to the new electoral system of Hong Kong while the United States condemns Beijing's move to which it says China is continuing its assault on democracy.

China approves Hong Kong's revamped electoral process while US condemns

PM Modi, in his opening remarks, said the four countries were united by their democratic values and that the Quad would remain an important pillar of stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

Quad praises India's vaccine diplomacy

The United Nations is now condemned that the Myanmar military is one crackdown against the anti-coup demonstrators as eight more people reportedly shot dead during one of the protests.

United Nations condemns military's violent crackdown in Myanmar

'We will work together closely as ever before for advancing shared values & promoting secular, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,' PM Modi said.

'Quad will be important pillar of stability', says PM Modi

Several global powers blame china for the pandemic or at least believed that it was china that mishandled the break of the infection in the early days before it spread globally and become a pandemic. Asian-Americans are being targeted specifically and unfairly and there is a significant rise in the number of hate crimes that this community subjected to.

United States: Big rise in hate crimes against Asian-Americans

United States President Joe Biden has signed into law a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill that will provide direct payments to millions of Americans. Republicans called it 'the worst legislation ever'.

United States: President Joe Biden signs $1.9 Trillion aid bill into law

US President Joe Biden to commemorate the anniversary of the COVID-19 shutdown. During his first prime time address to Americans, Joe Biden has claimed that all adults of the country will be eligible to get anti-COVID shots by May 01.

United States: President Joe Biden marks anniversary of COVID-19 induced shutdowns

The first-ever virtual quad summit will be held on Friday with quad nations' leaders US President Joe Biden, PM Narendra Modi, Australian PM Scott Morrison, and Japanese PM Yoshihide Suga to discuss the Indo-Pacific region's challenges.

First Quad Summit: Quad leaders' virtual summit to discuss Indo-Pacific region's challenges

First ever Quad summit begins, leaders of the alliance meet virtually

In a video message from London, the PML-N chief said that they (military establishment) have threatened to "smash" Maryam if she does not stop (speaking) against them (the military).

'If anything happens to Maryam', Nawaz Sharif targets army, Imran Khan

The Quad, or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, is an informal strategic forum, featuring semi-regular summits, information exchanges and military drills.

China calls Quad an attempt to curb its ambitions

The Quad is a four-nation alliance of India, Australia, US and Japan which was established in 2007.

WION Dispatch: Is Quad, Biden's plan to contain China?

The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) virtual meeting 2021 will take place later today. Leaders from India, Japan, Australia and US to participate in the meet and likely to discuss Corona vaccine, the growing dominance of China and strengthening Indo-Pacific region specifically. But the question here is whether the Quad is ready to add one more member to its group? Will UK's presence would further strengthen the Quad? UK shows its interest of joining Quad recently and that could further lead to give more muscles to this group.

Will UK's presence would further strengthen the Quad?

Europe: Germany has recorded 14,356 new cases in the last 24 hours. This sharp surge in covid cases is considered as a result of the easing of lockdown curbs last week.

Germany records 14,356 new cases in last 24 hours

Should China be worried over Quad meet?

Quad meeting 2021: Focus on vaccines, securing Indo-Pacific on agenda

'There is currently no indication that the vaccination has caused these conditions, which are not listed as side effects with this vaccine', says European Medicines Agency

European Medical Agencies backs AstraZeneca vaccine after suspensions

United Nations has condemned the Myanmar military's violent crackdown against the anti-coup demonstrators as 8 more people were shot dead in protest.

United Nations condemns Myanmar military's violent crackdown

The event is set for today, where it is also the first time when the leaders have to meet. Agenda for the Australian PM, Scott Morison will remain climate change and Indo pacific region where this region also becomes the agenda for the entire meet between the quad.

Quad Summit 2021: 2 hours summit to discuss efforts to contain COVID-19

In Pakistan, the opposition has found some secret cameras reportedly installed near the polling booth. However, the Pakistan government alleges that cameras were installed by the opposition itself.

Pakistan Senate Chairmanship: Opposition finds 'secret cameras'

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