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By Sakshi Dayal, Reuters New measures to combat the worsening air quality in New Delhi come into effect from Friday. Photo: AFP India's government banned non-essential construction in New Delhi, the world's most polluted capital, and urged residents to avoid burning coal for heating, to combat worsening air quality that has disrupted flights and obscured the Taj Mahal. The new measures, which included sprinkling water with dust suppressants on roads, as well as mechanised sweeping that would help settle dust, would come into effect from Friday morning. Delhi's chief minister Atishi, who uses only one name, also directed all primary schools to shift to online classes. They also included a ban on non-essential construction and an appeal to citizens to use more public transport and avoi...

By Stephanie Kelly, Reuters Robert F. Kennedy Junior ran for president before dropping and endorsing Trump. Photo: Olivier Touron / AFP The incoming US president Donald Trump announced he has selected Robert F. Kennedy Junior, an environmental activist who has spread misinformation on vaccines, to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, the United States' top health agency. Kennedy ran for president in this year's election as an independent before dropping out in August and endorsing Trump in exchange for a role in the Republican's administration. "The Safety and Health of all Americans is the most important role of any Administration, and HHS will play a big role in helping ensure that everybody will be protected from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutic...

Alex Jones claimed that the Sandy Hook school killings were staged with actors as part of a government plot to seize Americans' guns. Photo: AP/ David J Phillip By Hadas Gold, CNN Satirical news site The Onion wins the auction to acquire conspiracy theorist Alex Jones' Infowars, which was sold off as part of a defamation settlement after he falsely called the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre a hoax. The Onion's bid was backed by the families of eight victims of school shooting and one first responder. It also will have an exclusive advertising deal with the gun control group Everytown for Gun Safety. CNN was first to report the humor web site had entered the bidding. Jones was previously ordered to pay $1.5 billion to families of the Sandy Hook shooting victims. But he had dragged ...

By David Shepardson, Reuters New York City's congestion pricing program is the first of its kind in the US. Photo: Edi Chen New York plans to revive a $9 congestion mitigation charge for driving in Manhattan starting in January that the state indefinitely put on hold earlier this year, governor Kathy Hochul said Thursday. New York City's congestion pricing program, the first of its kind in the United States, was initially to have charged a toll of $15 during daytime hours for passenger vehicles driving in Manhattan south of 60th Street starting June 30 before Hochul put it on hold indefinitely. Hochul said the new base charge for passenger vehicles would be $9 -- 40% less than initially announced -- and was crucial to make new investment in subways and buses in New York. She said the...

The suspension of Parliament following a haka during debate on the Treaty Principles Bill on Thursday has garnered international attention. Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke was suspended from Parliament and "named" after leading the haka. Labour MP Willie Jackson was also ejected from Parliament during the debate. BBC said the Treaty values had been "woven" into New Zealand laws "in an effort to redress the wrong done to Māori during colonisation". "The country is often considered a leader in indigenous rights, but opponents of the bill fear those same rights are being put at risk by this bill." Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipa-Clarke in Parliament during debate on the Treaty Principles Bill. Photo: RNZ/ Samuel Rillstone The Guardian said there had been "significant publ...