B.C. sees 294 cases of COVID-19 over weekend, four additional deaths

The Punjab government has introduced a new policy requiring village sarpanches and panchayat members to obtain official approval before travelling abroad. The Rural Development and Panchayats Department has circulated instructions to all District Development and Panchayat Officers as well as Additional Deputy Commissioners across the state to ensure implementation. According to the directive, many elected representatives from panchayati raj institutions often travel overseas for personal reasons, which can delay or disrupt ongoing development work in villages. To prevent such administrative sl

A 16-year-old youth was taken into custody Tuesday night after police responded to reports of a person with a firearm near Columbia SkyTrain Station in New Westminster. According to police, a 9-1-1 caller reported seeing the youth pick up what appeared to be a gun and tuck it into his waistband around 8:45 p.m. Officers quickly arrived at the scene and located a suspect matching the description. The youth was arrested without incident. Investigators later determined the firearm was a replica. The New Westminster Police Department said the case remains under active investigation. Sergeant Andre

Vancouver police are investigating after an eight-year-old girl died following a fall from a balcony in the city’s Yaletown neighbourhood. Authorities say emergency crews were called to a residential building around 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, after reports that the child had fallen from an upper floor. Despite efforts by first responders, police confirmed the girl was pronounced dead at the scene. Detectives from the department’s major crime section have taken over the investigation to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident. Police have not released further details, citing the sen

President Donald Trump has signed a long-delayed government funding bill, formally ending the United States’ record 43-day shutdown that left hundreds of thousands of federal employees without pay and disrupted key public services. The bill cleared the U.S. House of Representatives late Thursday by a narrow 222–209 vote, largely along party lines. Democrats had pressed to include an extension of an enhanced tax credit that reduces health insurance costs under the Affordable Care Act. Republicans rejected that demand, arguing the issue should be debated separately, allowing the spending mea

Prime Minister Mark Carney is set to announce a new group of large-scale industrial and energy developments being referred to Ottawa’s Major Projects Office for potential fast-track approval. The announcement will take place Thursday in Terrace, British Columbia. According to senior government sources, the list includes Ontario’s Crawford Nickel Project — a major mining development linked to the province’s critical minerals strategy — and a proposed hydroelectric project in Iqaluit aimed at reducing Nunavut’s dependence on diesel-generated electricity. Ontario Premier Doug Ford wel