www.theasianstar.com VOL 23 - ISSUE 13
India launch spices probe after Hong Kong, Singapore pull products from shelves over cancer-causing pesticide
Indian authorities have reportedly launched an investigation after some spice products were found to contain a cancer-causing pesticide and removed from shelves in Hong Kong and Singapore. Continued at Page 10...
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Surrey Police will cost $750M more than RCMP over 10 years - Mayor says The City of Surrey is claiming the B.C. government knows the transition to the Surrey Police Service as the police of jurisdiction will cost $750 million more over 10 years than if the city stays with the RCMP. The claims come Wednesday, with the city saying B.C. commissioned a report from Deloitte, which “reveals” the details. The City of Surrey has directed to the BC Supreme Court registry for the document. “This report confirms that the Province has been hiding titanic level costs from Surrey taxpayers,” said Mayor Locke in a statement. “The Premier and Solicitor General said they had no idea where the City of Surrey was getting our cost estimates from
when they were sitting on a report that showed the true cost to be hundreds of millions more than we had even imagined.” The city says it received the report as part of information shared in upcoming legal proceedings between the municipality and province. It adds it first requested the report from the province a “year ago, but that request was denied.” “As recently as November 2023, the Solicitor General told media that the report confirmed the Province’s cost estimates. Submissions from the SPS clearly show plans for an anticipated staffing level of 958 officers shortly after becoming police of jurisdiction, and to move to a two-person vehicle deployment model,” the city claimed. Continued at Page 10...
Belgian acquitted of drunk driving because his body creates alcohol
Hundreds of thousands gather in Surrey for annual Vaisakhi celebration
A Belgian man was acquitted of drunk driving on Monday because he suffers from auto-brewery syndrome (ABS), a rare condition whereby the body produces alcohol, his lawyer said. Anse Ghesquiere told Reuters that in “another unfortunate coincidence” her client works at a brewery, but three doctors who independently examined him confirmed he suffered from ABS. Belgian media said that in the verdict, the judge emphasized that the defendant, who was not named in line with local judicial custom, did not experience symptoms of intoxication. The Bruges police court, which acquitted the man, did not immediately reply to an email from Reuters. Lisa Florin, clinical biologist with Belgian hospital AZ Sint-Lucas, explained that people with the condition produce the same type of alcohol as the one in alcoholic drinks but that they generally feel less of its effects. She added that people are not born with ABS but can get it when they already suffer from another intestine-related condition.
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Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Surrey’s Newton neighbourhood Saturday for the annual Vaisakhi celebration and parade. Vaisakhi is seen as a spring harvest celebration, primarily in Punjab and Northern India, but the tradition has travelled across the world. In addition to being a traditional harvest festival, Vaisakhi is also a religious event, holding immense significance for the Sikh community. Surrey’s annual Vaisakhi parade is considered the world’s largest outside of India. During Saturday’s parade, the streets were filled with colourful floats, the vibrant colors of traditional attire, and the aroma of traditional langar. Continued at Page 10...