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Comedian Raju Srivastava passed away in Delhi on Wednesday morning, confirmed his family. He was 58. Raju Srivastava was admitted to AIIMS, Delhi on August 10, after he suffered a heart attack. Raju Srivastava was on ventilator support for 15 days, after which he regained consciousness. However, on September 1, after he ran a fever as high as 100 degrees, he was out on ventilator support again. Raju Srivastava's chief advisor Ajit Saxena said that despite best efforts by the doctors, the comedian could not be saved. Raju Srivastava was the entertainment industry since the 1980s. He shot to fame after participating in the first season of the reality stand-up comedy show "The Great Indian Laughter Challenge" in 2005. He was also the chairman of the Film Development Council Uttar Pradesh.

The price of gold has dropped by Rs 500 per tola in the domestic market on Wednesday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the yellow bullion is being traded at Rs 91, 300 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 91, 800 per tola on Tuesday. Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 90, 800 per tola today. Similarly, the price of silver is being traded at Rs 1, 170 per tola.

The ruling coalition said that President Bidya Devi Bhandari has grossly insulted and underestimated the Federal Parliament, which was elected by the people, by not authenticating the Citizenship Bill. Issuing a joint statement after a meeting held in Baluwatar this morning, the ruling coalition said that the President, who is supposed to follow and protect the constitution, has attacked the constitutional system. The statement was signed by Nepali Congress President and Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal, CPN (Unified Socialist) Chairman Madhav Nepal and Janata Samajbadi Party Chairman Upendra Yadav. “The President has violated the Constitution by not authenticating the bill, endorsed by both the houses—House of Representatives and National Assembly—within the 15-day time frame,” the statement read, “President Bhandari’s this unconstitutional move has grossly insulted and undervalued the Federal Parliament.” The alliance has concluded that the children of Nepali mother-father, who have already got the Nepali citizenship, have been deprived of their constitutional right to obtain Nepali citizenship by the recent move of the President. Similarly, the coalition has said that the move has attacked the constitutional supremacy and democratic governance established by the people.

The Embassy of Nepal in Islamabad organized a program today to celebrate the Constitution Day and the National Day of Nepal. Welcoming the guests to the event, Tapas Adhikari, Ambassador of Nepal to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, highlighted the importance of the day in Nepal's history and its role in national unity in a country of diversity like Nepal, read a statement issued by the Embassy of Nepal in Islamabad. The Ambassador further said that the Constitution embodies the federal system of governance and democratic norms and values as well as principles of human rights and human dignity. After several years of the promulgation of the Constitution, "the foundation the Constitution laid is gaining even stronger towards fulfilling the long-cherished aspirations of Nepali people for progress and prosperity", he added. Speaking on Nepal-Pakistan relations, the Ambassador said that the two countries enjoy excellent bilateral relations marked by cordiality, friendship and cooperation. He also highlighted the importance to further expand and diversify the relations to their potentials for mutual benefits. On the occasion, Ambassador Adhikari expressed his condolences to the Government and people of Pakistan for the damage caused by the recent massive monsoon floods in Pakistan. He also said that Nepal and Pakistan have been working closely to support each other during the times of such crisis, the statement read. Highlighting Nepal's natural and cultural| attractions, Ambassador Adhikari invited all to visit Nepal to experience the land of beauty and discovery. Speaking as Chief Guest, Khurram Dastgir Khan, Minister for Energy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, expressed congratulations and best wishes on behalf of the Government of Pakistan. The Chief Guest also highlighted the excellent state of bilateral relations between Nepal and Pakistan. The event was attended by Nawabzada Shazain Bugti, Federal Minister for Narcotics Control, members of parliaments, Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, Chairman Senate Defence Committee, former ministers, high civilian and military officials of the Government of Pakistan and former ambassadors of Pakistan to Nepal; Ambassadors/High Commissioners to Pakistan as well as representatives of diplomatic missions and international organizations; friends of Nepal, business and mediapersons and Nepali community members and the Embassy family members. Earlier in the morning, the Ambassador hoisted the national flag of Nepal in the Embassy premises.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari has refused to authenticate the Citizenship Bill. President Bhandari has refused to certify the bill for the second time, which has a deadline till Tuesday midnight. Earlier on August 14, the President had sent the bill approved by the House of Representatives for the first time back to the Parliament with a 15-point suggestion for reconsideration. Later, both the houses endorsed the Bill for the second time without making any changes. On September 5, Speaker Agni Prasad Sapkota sent bill to the President’s office for authentication. But, the President did not certify the bill within the given time frame. In the meantime, she held consultations with various experts and stakeholders on the bill. President Bhandari had held discussions with former chiefs of Nepal Army, legal experts and senior leaders of all the political parties. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba had also urged the President to authenticate the bill. Senior leaders of the ruling coalition had also piled pressure on President Bhandari to certify the bill.

United States authorities charged 48 people in Minnesota with conspiracy and other counts in what they said Tuesday was the largest pandemic-related fraud scheme yet, stealing $250 million from a federal program that provides meals to low-income children, Associated Press reported.

Federal prosecutors say the defendants created companies that claimed to be offering food to tens of thousands of children across Minnesota, then sought reimbursement for those meals through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s food nutrition programs. Prosecutors say few meals were actually served, and the defendants used the money to buy luxury cars, property and jewelry.

“This $250 million is the floor,” Andy Luger, the U.S. attorney for Minnesota, said at a news conference. “Our investigation continues.”

Many of the companies that claimed to be serving food were sponsored by a nonprofit called Feeding Our Future, which submitted the companies’ claims for reimbursement. Feeding Our Future’s founder and executive director, Aimee Bock, was among those indicted, and authorities say she and others in her organization submitted the fraudulent claims for reimbursement and received kickbacks.

In interviews after law enforcement searched multiple sites in January, including Bock’s home and offices, Bock denied stealing moneyand said she never saw evidence of fraud.

Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Justice made prosecuting pandemic-related fraud a priority. The department has already taken enforcement actions related to more than $8 billion in suspected pandemic fraud, including bringing charges in more than 1,000 criminal cases involving losses in excess of $1.1 billion.

Federal officials repeatedly described the alleged fraud as “brazen,” and decried that it involved a program intended to feed children who needed help during the pandemic. Michael Paul, special agent in charge of the Minneapolis FBI office, called it “an astonishing display of deceit.”

Luger said the government was billed for more than 125 million fake meals, with some defendants making up names for children by using an online random name generator. He displayed one form for reimbursement that claimed a site served exactly 2,500 meals each day Monday through Friday — with no children ever getting sick or otherwise missing from the program, according to Associated Press.

“These children were simply invented,” Luger said.

He said the government has so far recovered $50 million in money and property and expects to recover more.

The defendants in Minnesota face multiple counts, including conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering and bribery. Luger said some of them were arrested Tuesday morning. Authorities announced 47 indictments at the news conference. A 48th person, who according to a criminal complaint was scheduled to board a one-way flight to Ethiopia on Tuesday evening, was arrested sometime after the prosecutors’ press conference.

According to court documents, the alleged scheme targeted the USDA’s federal child nutrition programs, which provide food to low-income children and adults. In Minnesota, the funds are administered by the state Department of Education, and meals have historically been provided to kids through educational programs, such as schools or day care centers.

The sites that serve the food are sponsored by public or nonprofit groups, such as Feeding Our Future. The sponsoring agency keeps 10% to 15% of the reimbursement funds as an administrative fee in exchange for submitting claims, sponsoring the sites and disbursing the funds, Associated Press reported.

But during the pandemic, some of the standard requirements for sites to participate in the federal food nutrition programs were waived. The USDA allowed for-profit restaurants to participate, and allowed food to be distributed outside educational programs. The charging documents say the defendants exploited such changes “to enrich themselves.”

The world’s problems seized the spotlight Tuesday as the UN General Assembly’s yearly meeting of world leaders opened with dire assessments of a planet beset by escalating crises and conflicts that an aging international order seems increasingly ill-equipped to tackle, Associated Press reported.

After two years when many leaders weighed in by video because of the coronavirus pandemic, now presidents, premiers, monarchs and foreign ministers have gathered almost entirely in person for diplomacy’s premier global event.

But the tone is far from celebratory. Instead, it’s the blare of a tense and worried world.

“We are gridlocked in colossal global dysfunction,” Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, adding that “our world is in peril — and paralyzed.”

He and others pointed to conflicts ranging from Russia’s six-month-old war in Ukraine to the decades-long dispute between Israel and the Palestinians. Speakers worried about a changing climate, spiking fuel prices, food shortages, economic inequality, migration, disinformation, discrimination, hate speech, public health and more.

Priorities varied, as did prescriptions for curing the humanity’s ills. But in a forum dedicated to the idea of bringing the world together, many leaders sounded a common theme: The globe needs cooperation, dialogue and trust, now more than ever.

“We live in an era of uncertainty and shocks,” Chilean President Gabriel Boric said. “It is clear nowadays that no country, large or small, humble or powerful, can save itself on its own.”

Or, as Guterres put it, “Let’s work as one, as a coalition of the world, as united nations.”

It’s rarely that easy. As Guterres himself noted, geopolitical divisions are undermining the work of the U.N. Security Council, international law, people’s trust in democratic institutions, and most forms of international cooperation.

“The divergence between developed and developing countries, between North and South, between the privileged and the rest, is becoming more dangerous by the day,” the secretary-general said. “It is at the root of the geopolitical tensions and lack of trust that poison every area of global cooperation, from vaccines to sanctions to trade.”

While appeals to preserve large-scale international cooperation — or multilateralism, in diplomatic parlance — abound, so do different ideas about the balance between working together and standing up for oneself, and about whether an “international order” set up after World War II needs reordering, according to Associated Press.

“We want a multilateralism that is open and respectful of our differences,” Senegalese President Macky Sall said. He added that the U.N. can win all countries’ support only “on the basis of shared ideals, and not local values erected as universal norms.”

After the pandemic forced an entirely virtual meeting in 2020 and a hybrid one last year, delegates reflecting the world’s countries and cultures are once again filling the halls of the United Nations headquarters this week. Before the meeting began, leaders and ministers wearing masks wandered the assembly hall, chatting individually and in groups.

It was a sign that that despite the fragmented state of the international community, the United Nations remains the key gathering place for global leaders. Nearly 150 heads of state and government have signed on to speak during the nearly weeklong “General Debate,” a high number that illustrates the gathering’s distinction as a place to deliver their views and meet privately to discuss various challenges -- and, they hope, make some progress.

Guterres made sure to start out by sounding a note of hope. He showed a photo of the first U.N.-chartered ship carrying grain from Ukraine — part of a deal between Ukraine and Russia that the U.N. and Turkey helped broker — to the Horn of Africa, where millions of people are on the edge of famine It is, he said, an example of promise “in a world teeming with turmoil.”

Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine topped the agenda for many speakers.

The conflict has become the largest war in Europe since World War II and has opened fissures among major powers in a way not seen since the Cold War. It also has raised fears of a nuclear catastrophe at a large power plant in Ukraine’s now Russia-occupied southeast, Associated Press reported.

The returning Alex Hales hit 53 and debutant Luke Wood took 3-24 as England claimed a six-wicket Twenty20 win over Pakistan in their first game in the country for 17 years, BBC reported.