News Dabba for 18 October 2023: Five stories for a balanced news diet

Indie Journal brings you the daily updates that the internet is talking about through various news websites. Here's a glance through some of the National and International news updates, from Biden's visit to Israel, a hike in dearness allowance, to justice for journalist Soumya Vishwanathan.

Centre hikes dearness allowance by 4 percent, The Hindu reports

The Union Cabinet has approved an increase in the dearness allowance (DA) for over one crore Central government employees and pensioners by four percentage points to 46 percent from the existing 42 percnt, The Hindu reports as per a statement by Union Minister Anurag Thakur. The Cabinet has also approved providing a 78-day salary as a bonus equivalent to non-gazetted Railway employees. As many as 11.07 lakh employees are likely to benefit by this action, the report says. Presently, over one crore central government employees and pensioners are getting a 42 percent dearness allowance. The report mentions that the DA is provided to employees and pensioners to compensate them for rising prices. Read the full report here.

UK says ethnic cleansing committed in Sudan's Darfur, BBC reports

The BBC reports that it has seen new evidence of the brutal ethnic violence that has swept western Sudan since fighting broke out between two rival military factions in April. Analysis of satellite and social media data reveals at least 68 villages in Darfur have been set on fire by armed militias since the civil war began, it says. Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who leads one side in the conflict - the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) - told the BBC he would co-operate with the International Criminal Court (ICC) to bring those guilty to justice. The RSF has repeatedly denied any involvement in the violence in the region. It is the first time the British government has used the term to describe what is happening in Sudan. Read the full report here.

Indian Express: IIT-Kharagpur student found dead, suicide suspected

A fourth-year Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Kharagpur student was found dead in the students’ hostel on Tuesday night in a suspected case of suicide, Indian Express reports. While the institute said the student “chose the path of self-harm”, the police said they are investigating the matter. The deceased was identified as K Kiran Chandra, 21, a resident of Telangana, who was a student in the electrical engineering department. The report adds that the police have registered a case of unnatural death. Read the full report here.

Reuters on Biden, in Israel, says hospital blast caused by militants

US President Joe Biden arrived in Israel on Wednesday pledged solidarity in its war against Hamas, Reuters reports, and backed its account that a blast that killed huge numbers of Palestinians at a Gaza hospital had been caused by militants. The fireball that engulfed the Al-Ahli al-Arabi hospital delivered some of the most harrowing images yet from a 12-day war. Reuters adds that it wrecked White House plans for Biden's emergency diplomatic mission to the Middle East, with Arab leaders calling off their planned summit with the US president. Palestinian officials have said that an Israeli air strike caused the blast. Read the full report here.

Justice for journalist Soumya Vishwanathan after 15 years, India Today

India Today reports that all five accused in the 2008 murder of Delhi journalist Soumya Vishwanathan have been convicted by a Delhi court on Wednesday. This comes almost fifteen years after the crime that took place in the national capital. Vishwanathan, who was a journalist with the Headlines Today news channel, was shot and killed in her car while driving home from office in September 2008, the report says. The Saket court today convicted the accused Ravi Kapoor, Amit Shukla, Ajay Kumar, Baljeet Malik and Ajay Sethi for the 2008 murder of journalist Soumya Vishwanathan. Read the full report here.