A global forest study says Canadian wildfires last year were "entirely" to blame for a worldwide surge in tree losses. The study released by researchers at the University of Maryland on the Global Forest Watch website says tree cover loss in 2023 reached 28.3 million hectares globally, a 24 per cent jump driven by Canada's loss of 8.6 million hectares last year. Without taking Canada's losses into account, global tree loss would have decreased by four per cent in 2023, the report says. The report says more than 90 per cent of Canada's tree losses last year were due to fires that razed 7.76 mil

Former Chief Minister of Punjab Charanjit Singh Channi paid obeisance at Shri Ram Temple in Ayodhya today. Charanjit Singh Channi was also his religious wife during this time. At the same time, Parneet Kaur, Member of Parliament from Patiala, after being announced as the BJP candidate for the Lok Sabha elections, today also visited the Shri Ram Temple at the birthplace of Lord Ram in Ayodhya. Praneet Kaur also paid obeisance at Gurdwara Sri Nazarbagh Sahib, where Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji and Tenth Guru Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji stayed during their pilgrimage to Ayodhya. Praneet Kaur, meanwhile,

BC Hydro is looking for more clean power to add to its grids as electricity demands are expected to increase by 15 per cent in the next six years. The Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation says the Crown power utility has issued its first call in 15 years and is looking to acquire about 3,000 gigawatt hours per year. The ministry says in a statement that it would add about five per cent to its current supply, which would provide clean electricity to 270,000 homes or about a million electric vehicles per year. The added need is due to population growth, housing construction, indus

It has been made mandatory for the Shiromani Committee employees serving at Sri Harmandir Sahib to wear a dress code and an identification code around their neck. This order was given by SGPC President Advocate Harjinder Singh Dhami. With this, the employees on duty in Gurdwara Sahib and Saravans can be identified easily. Rules regarding dress code were applicable earlier too but now they have been instructed to follow them completely. Earlier in 2020, the then Shiromani Committee President Bibi Jagir Kaur had also implemented a dress code for the employees of Sri Harmandir Sahib.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says a new $1.5-billion housing fund will help non-profit organizations acquire more rental units across Canada and make sure they remain affordable. The new Canada Rental Protection Fund will be included in the upcoming federal budget, to be tabled on April 16. Trudeau says the fund will provide $1 billion in loans and $470 million in contributions to non-profits and other partners to help them acquire affordable rental units. Today's announcement is the latest in a series of new housing measures unveiled by the Liberal government in its campaign-style pre-budget

In Quebec, heavy snow and winds led to the cancellation of many schools in the western part of the province today, while about 280,000 homes were without power as of 8 a.m., according to Hydro-Québec. The regions of Laurentian, Montreal and Monterrey were the worst affected by the bad weather. The Meteorological Department predicted up to 20 centimeters of snow in Montreal in the morning. Montreal typically receives about 13 cm of snowfall during this month. On 9 April 2000, the city recorded its heaviest snowfall in a single day which was 33.9 cm.

Rescuers searched for dozens of people out of contact Thursday a day after Taiwan'sstrongest earthquakein a quarter century damaged buildings, caused multiple rockslides and killed nine people. In the eastern coastal city of Hualien near the epicenter, workers used an excavator to put construction materials around the base of a damaged building to stabilize it and prevent a collapse. Mayor Hsu Chen-wei previously said 48 residential buildings were damaged. Some of the damaged buildings tilted at precarious angles with their ground floors crushed. More than 1,000 people were injured inthe quake

Canadian airlines say travellers won't see their flight times affected by Monday's total solar eclipse, though passengers should protect their eyes during the astronomical event. Air Canada says there won't be any operational impacts when the moon casts a shadow over the sun in parts of Eastern Canada on Monday afternoon, though it did issue a reminder to staff not to look directly at the eclipse as it's happening. WestJet says it's taken unspecified safety precautions, and passengers hoping to catch a glimpse of the shadowed sun out the window should bring their own protective gear to prevent

The country's intelligence agency ISI in the cases related to the former Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan. There are accusations of putting pressure on the judges. In a letter written by six High Court judges to the Supreme Court, the judges have accused the judges of abducting their family members, installing cameras in their bedrooms and using the ISI. Allegations of receiving threats from In one case, the judges said they were forced to hear an appeal against Imran Khan, even though the judges had decided by a majority that it was not meritorious. It has been alleged that a judge's b