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The Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology 2022 is awarded to Svante Paabo for his discoveries concerning the genomes of extinct hominins and human evolution, announced the award-giving organization on Monday.  "The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet has today decided to award the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine to Svante Paabo for his discoveries concerning the genomes of extinct hominins and human evolution," read the Nobel Prize statement. The 2022 Nobel Prize laureate Paabo found that gene transfer had occurred from the now extinct hominins to Homo sapiens. This ancient flow of genes to present-day humans has physiological relevance today, for example affecting how our immune system reacts to infections, the statement said.  Paabo has established an entirely new scientific discipline, paleogenomics. By revealing genetic differences that distinguish all living humans from extinct hominins, his discoveries provide the basis for exploring what makes us uniquely human.  Through his pioneering research, Paabo accomplished something seemingly impossible: sequencing the genome of the Neanderthal, an extinct relative of present-day humans. He also made the sensational discovery of a previously unknown hominin, Denisova, entirely from genome data retrieved from a small finger bone specimen.  Importantly, Paabo also found that gene transfer had occurred from these now extinct hominins to Homo sapiens following the migration from Africa around 70,000 years ago, the statement read.  Paabo is a Swedish geneticist specializing in the field of evolutionary genetics who was recruited to the University of Munich in 1990, where, as a newly appointed Professor, he continued his work on archaic DNA. Earlier in 2020, David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian jointly won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for their discoveries of receptors for temperature and touch. David Julius utilized capsaicin, a pungent compound from chili peppers that induces a burning sensation, to identify a sensor in the nerve endings of the skin that responds to heat.  Ardem Patapoutian used pressure-sensitive cells to discover a novel class of sensors that respond to mechanical stimuli in the skin and internal organs.  These breakthrough discoveries launched intense research activities leading to a rapid increase in the understanding of how the nervous system senses heat, cold, and mechanical stimuli. (ANI)

Around 20,000 local and foreign election observers are going to be deployed for the upcoming House of Representatives and Provincial Assembly elections to be held on November 20. Kamal Bhattarai, Joint-Spokesperson of the Commission informed that according to the figures submitted by 43 national organizations, there will be around 20,000 observers. On the foreign side, two organizations have received permission for the observation so far. He said that some organizations are working to deploy observers not only in urban and convenient areas but also in remote polling stations. The commission has also requested the chief election commissioners of India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka and the heads of foreign diplomatic missions in Nepal to observe the polling day.

The Islamabad High Court on Monday dismissed a contempt case against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief and former Prime Minister Imran Khan after he agreed to apologize for his controversial remarks against a female judge at a rally.  A five-member bench, headed by IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah, said it was satisfied by Imran Khan's apology over the remarks against Additional District and Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry, Dawn reported.  During the court proceedings, the chief justice noted that prima facie this was a contempt of court case but it was being dismissed due to Imran Khan's conduct.  "We have read your affidavit. Is there anything else you would like to add?" Justice Minallah asked Imran Khan. "We take a lot of care in contempt of court cases," Justice Minallah added. He said the IHC was "discharging" the notice issued to Imran Khan, effectively ending contempt proceedings against the PTI chief, the report said. "This is the unanimous decision of the larger bench," Justice Minallah said. Imran Khan had submitted an affidavit in the IHC, assuring the court he would never do anything in future that would hurt the dignity of any court and the judiciary, especially the lower judiciary, The Express Tribune reported.  "I am ready to apologize if the judges think I have crossed a red line," he had said. On Sunday, IHC approved the pre-arrest bail of Imran Khan and directed him to appear before the court concerned before October 7 after he filed a petition with the Islamabad High Court through his counsel Babar Awan.  In the plea, Imran Khan said a terrorism case was initially filed against him, however, he added that the charges were later struck down by the high court and the case was transferred. Earlier, an arrest warrant was issued for the former premier in connection with the case.  Imran Khan had made some controversial remarks against Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry and other officials at a rally on August 20 in Islamabad. The PTI chief had criticized the female judge after she had approved an extension in the physical remand of his close aide Shahbaz Gill in a sedition case.  The PTI chief was booked in a terrorism case on the complaint of Islamabad Sadar Magistrate Ali Javed for threatening the female judge. The terrorism case was registered against Imran Khan in Margalla police station for allegedly using derogatory language and threatening the judge. (ANI)

Real Madrid surrendered the leadership of La Liga to Barcelona after being held to a 1-1 draw at home by Osasuna on Sunday evening. Carlo Ancelotti's side slipped to second in LaLiga behind archrivals Barcelona on goal difference. Karim Benzema was back in the starting 11, while Andriy Lunin replaced Thibaut Courtois in goal after the Belgian had to drop out with a back injury. Madrid took the lead with a stroke of fortune and a dose of controversy in the 42nd minute when Vinicius Jr's cross went in at the far post. Osasuna players claimed offside as VAR rejected the visitors' appeals. Kike Garcia's second-half header gave Osasuna a deserved equalizer but Madrid should have won when they were given a 78th-minute penalty after David Garcia's push on Benzema. Benzema sent the spot kick against the bar and Osasuna clung on bravely until the end to take a point and end Madrid's 100 percent start to the season. (Xinhua)

In a major boost to the Indian Air Force's combat prowess, the first batch of indigenously-developed Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) will be inducted into the IAF inventory at a ceremony in Rajasthan's Jodhpur today.  The indigenous choppers will be inducted into IAF in the presence of Defense Minister Rajnath Singh. "The induction of these helicopters will be a big boost to the IAF's combat prowess," Defense Minister Rajnath Singh tweeted. The new chopper getting inducted into the force is capable of aerial combat and will help the force combat slow-moving aircraft, drones and armored columns during conflicts.  The induction ceremony will be led by Rajnath Singh who has played a crucial role in progressing cases for buying indigenous platforms for forces. He was also present in the Cabinet Committee on Security which cleared the purchase of 15 of these LCHs for the air force and the army.  Of the 15 limited series production helicopters approved, 10 are for the IAF and five for the army. It can land and take off from an altitude of 5,000 meters with weapons and fuel, the officials said. The choppers have been flown extensively in Ladakh and the desert sector to meet the requirements of the armed forces.  The IAF has inducted multiple helicopters to its fleet in the last three-four years with the induction of the Chinooks, Apache attack helicopters and now the LCHs. The IAF is now also deploying women pilots in Chinook choppers carrying routine supply missions to the northern and eastern borders. CCS met under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 30, 2022, in New Delhi.  The CCS has approved the procurement of 15 Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) Limited Series Production at the cost of Rs. 3,887 Cr along with Infrastructure sanctions worth Rs 377 crore. Light Combat Helicopter Limited Series Production (LSP) is an indigenously designed, developed and manufactured state-of-the-art modern combat helicopter containing approx.  45 pc indigenous content by value which will progressively increase to more than 55 pc for SP Version.  "This helicopter is equipped with requisite agility, maneuverability, extended range, high altitude performance and around-the-clock, all-weather combat capability to perform roles of Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR), Destruction of Enemy Air Defense (DEAD), Counter Insurgency (CI) operations, against slow-moving aircraft and Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPAs), high altitude bunker busting operations, Counter Insurgency operations in jungle and urban environments and support to ground forces and would be a potent platform to meet the operational requirements of Indian Air Force and Indian Army," said the Ministry of Defense.  State-of-the-art technologies and systems compatible with stealth features such as reduced Visual, Aural, Radar and IR signatures and crashworthiness features for better survivability have been integrated in LCH for deployment in combat roles catering to emerging needs for the next 3 to 4 decades. Several key aviation technologies like Glass Cockpit and composite airframe structures have been indigenised. The future Series Production version will consist of further modern & indigenous systems. Under the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan, India is continuously growing in its capability to indigenously design, develop and manufacture advanced cutting-edge technologies and systems in the Defence Sector.  The manufacturing of LCH by HAL will give a further push to the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative and boost the indigenisation of defense production and the defense industry in the country. LCH will reduce import dependence for the Combat helicopters in the country.  Light Combat Helicopters are already on the import embargo list. With its versatile features built-in for combat missions, LCH has the export capability. (ANI)

Ahead of the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), President Xi Jinping is pushing for a "new era" discourse to strengthen his personal power.  Hugo Jones, writing in The Diplomat said that the "new era"—connoting a fundamental historical shift—has been systematically fused with the persona of Xi in Chinese official discourse. Significantly, Xi calls Mao Zedong's time the 'revolution period,' Deng Xiaoping's the 'building period,' Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao's the 'reform period' while calling his term a 'whole new era.'  For the past five years, the term "new era" has appeared with increasing frequency in China's white papers, propaganda, official speeches, and public diplomacy.  From early on in his premiership, it was clear that Xi Jinping sought historical significance greater than that of his two immediate predecessors, Hu Jintao and Jiang Zemin. This was also encouraged by growing Chinese nationalism, which predates Xi, reported The Diplomat. For Xi, while the "new era" is scalable from the local to the international context, it is ultimately all about China, "It will be an era that sees China moving closer to center stage and making greater contributions to mankind."  The discourse of a "new era" serves three functions. First, it bolsters the CCP's legitimacy in a domestic context. The "new era" is also used to provide the context for sensitive issues such as Tibet, Xinjiang, and Taiwan, said Jones.  Second, the discourse of a "new era" is used to empower the CCP and challenge norms internationally. The strongest example was on February 4, when Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin released a joint statement on "International Relations Entering a New Era," a major foreign policy declaration that aligned China with Russia weeks before the invasion of Ukraine.  The discourse of a "new era" is also used to challenge the US, NATO, and Western countries that belong to the "old," unipolar era of global politics. The "new era" is presented by China as the just temporality of a multipolar, post-imperial world.  Third, the discourse of a "new era" serves to reinforce the idea that the government of China, and the governance of Xi, are always thinking in the long term, operating on fundamentally different time scales to the Western world. This reinforces certain orientalist tropes that China is inherently "better" at grand strategy, reported The Diplomat.  However, despite its popularity, this narrative disguises the reality that Xi and the CCP are often as short-sighted as other regimes—the chaotic "zero-COVID" policy is just one example. This reminds us that we should take the narrative of a "new era" with a fair degree of skepticism, said Jones. (ANI)

The death toll from a suicide bombing at the Kaaj Educational Center in Afghanistan's capital Kabul has gone up to 43.  The casualty figures in Friday's college bombing in the Hazara neighbourhood are likely to rise further, as per the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). Till now 43 persons have been killed and around 83 are wounded with girls and young women as the main victims. "Human toll from Friday's college bombing in Hazara neighborhood of Afghan capital continues to rise. 43 killed. 83 wounded. Girls & young women are the main victims.  Casualty figures likely to rise further. Verification process continues by UNAMA human rights teams in Kabul," tweeted UNAMA.  Earlier, on Friday the blast occurred in the 13th security area of Kabul, Taliban spokesperson Abdul Nafee Takour was quoted as saying by TOLO news.  There are multiple media reports claiming that about 100 students of the institute have been killed in the attack, however, the UNAMA said that its human rights teams in Kabul are helping to establish an accurate record of the college attack in the Hazara neighborhood. Earlier, a number of women from Afghanistan's minority Hazara community on Saturday protested in Kabul against the terror attack at the Kaaj Educational Center. The women protestors dressed in black chanted slogans against the genocide of minorities and demanded their rights, Pajhwok Afghan News reported.  This explosion comes a few days after a blast was reported near the Wazir Akbar Khan area of Kabul that sparked a global outcry. The recent blast outside the Russian Embassy in Kabul was also condemned in the strongest terms.  This series of blasts come as the Taliban completed one year of its rule in Afghanistan following the ouster of the US-backed civilian government last year. Rights groups said the Taliban had broken multiple pledges to respect human and women's rights. Meanwhile, the Taliban on Monday shot into the crowd of young girls who were peacefully protesting in Herat to demand their right to go to school.  "Young girls were peacefully protesting in Herat today to demand their right to go to school & the Taliban began shooting into the crowd. Don't abandon the women of Afghanistan. Be their voice. Innocent lives are being lost because we choose to be silent," tweeted Shabnam Nasimi, Policy Special Advisor to former UK Minister for Afghan Resettlement and Minister for Refugees.  After capturing Kabul in August last year, the Islamic authorities imposed severe restrictions on women's and girls' rights, suppressed the media, and arbitrarily detained, tortured, and summarily executed critics and perceived opponents.  Rights groups say that the Taliban's human rights abuses have brought widespread condemnation and imperiled international efforts to address the country's dire humanitarian situation. (ANI)

Two persons who died in a bus accident in Hetauda have been identified. Tek Bahadur Karki, spokesperson of District Police Office Makwanpur informed that the deceased are 60-year-old Dilli  Bahadur Darzi, who lives near Damak-5 Model Campus in Jhapa, and 51-year-old Kalpana Rajwanshi, who lives in Belbari Municipality-8 of Morang. The bus number Na 7 Kha 2032, which was going from Kathmandu to Damak, got out of control and had an accident last night at Hetauda sub-metropolis-15 section of Makwanpur. 36 people on the bus were injured in the accident. 30 of the injured have been discharged after treatment. District Police Office Makwanpur said that two injured persons have been sent to Kathmandu and three persons to Bharatpur for further treatment. One person is being treated in Hetauda.