Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Indian politician toilet video goes viral

AN Indian ruling party politician has been left red-faced after a video of him urinating in public went viral on World Toilet Day, despite government efforts to stop people relieving themselves in the open.

Ram Shinde, a minister for water conservation in the western state of Maharashtra, was filmed answering the call of nature in a field by the side of a road Saturday.


The clip spread online the following day. November 19 marks the United Nations' official World Toilet Day, which aims to raise awareness about the health risks caused by a lack of lavatories.

Shinde, a member of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, defended his actions with an excuse familiar to many, effectively saying: "When you've got to go, you've got to go".

"I have been travelling continuously for the last one month reviewing the Jalyukta Shivar scheme," he told an international news source, referring to drought-prone Maharashtra's water conservation programme.

"Continuous travelling in high temperatures and dust made me ill. I was suffering from fever and when I couldn't find a toilet while travelling, I had to relieve myself in the open."

India is notorious for its lack of toilets. Some 70 percent of Indian households do not have them while around 600 million people, nearly half the population, defecate in the open, according to UNICEF.

Three years ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged to build toilets for everyone by 2019.

The government has so far helped install more than 50 million lavatories across the country of 1.25 billion people and has been encouraging citizens to break old habits and use them.

International news outlets said the incident occurred on a stretch of road between the cities of Barshi and Solapur in the south west of Maharashtra, of which Mumbai is the state capital.

(AFP)

More For You

Sir Sajid Javid leads commission 'tackling social divisions'

Sir Sajid Javid (Photo by Tom Nicholson-WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Sir Sajid Javid leads commission 'tackling social divisions'

A cross-party group has been formed to tackle the deep divisions that sparked last summer's riots across England. The new commission will be led by former Tory minister Sir Sajid Javid and ex-Labour MP Jon Cruddas.

The Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion has backing from both prime minister Sir Keir Starmer and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch. It brings together 19 experts from different political parties and walks of life.

Keep ReadingShow less
​Masum

Masum was seen on CCTV trying to steer the pram away and, when she refused to go with him, stabbed her multiple times before walking away and boarding a bus. (Photo: West Yorkshire Police)

West Yorkshire Police

Habibur Masum convicted of murdering estranged wife in front of baby

A MAN who stabbed his estranged wife to death in Bradford in front of their baby has been convicted of murder.

Habibur Masum, 26, attacked 27-year-old Kulsuma Akter in broad daylight on April 6, 2024, stabbing her more than 25 times while she pushed their seven-month-old son in a pram. The baby was not harmed.

Keep ReadingShow less
Air India flight crash
Air India's Boeing 787-8 aircraft, operating flight AI-171 to London Gatwick, crashed into a medical hostel complex shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad on June 12.
Getty Images

India declines UN investigator’s participation in Air India crash probe: Report

INDIA has declined a request from the United Nations aviation agency to allow one of its investigators to observe the probe into the Air India crash that killed 260 people in Ahmedabad on June 12, Reuters reported, citing two senior sources familiar with the matter.

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) had offered to provide assistance by sending one of its investigators, following the crash of the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner earlier this month. It was an unusual move, as ICAO typically deploys investigators only upon request from the country leading the investigation.

Keep ReadingShow less
Anna Wintour

Wintour’s style of leadership earned her the nickname “Nuclear Wintour”

Getty Images

Anna Wintour steps down as editor of US Vogue after 37 years

Key points

  • Anna Wintour steps down as editor of US Vogue after 37 years
  • She will remain Vogue’s global editorial director and hold senior roles at Condé Nast
  • Wintour transformed US Vogue into a global fashion authority
  • The 75-year-old has received numerous honours, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom

End of an era at US Vogue

Anna Wintour has stepped down as the editor of US Vogue, bringing to a close a 37-year tenure that redefined the publication and saw her become one of the most influential figures in global fashion.

The announcement was made on Thursday (26 June) during a staff meeting in New York. Wintour, 75, will no longer oversee the day-to-day editorial operations of Vogue’s US edition. However, she will continue to serve as Vogue’s global editorial director and Condé Nast’s chief content officer, maintaining senior leadership roles across the company.

Keep ReadingShow less
Post Office scandal trials 'unlikely before 2028'

FILE PHOTO: A Post Office van parked outside the venue for the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry at Aldwych House on January 11, 2024 in London. (Photo: Getty Images)

Post Office scandal trials 'unlikely before 2028'

THE people responsible for the Post Office Horizon scandal may not face trial until 2028, according to the senior police officer leading the investigation.

Commander Stephen Clayman has said that the process is taking longer because police are now looking at a wider group of people, not just those directly involved in decisions about the faulty Horizon computer system, reported the Telegraph.

Keep ReadingShow less