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ib77 The cash-strapped Chandigarh municipal corporation (MC), which was hoping for an immediate financial relief, did not receive any special grant from Punjab governor and UT administrator Gulab Chand Kataria during the MC House meeting on Saturday. Mayor Kuldeep Kumar Dhalor had invited the administrator to the meeting in hopes of securing assistance to help the civic body tide over its ongoing financial crisis. However, while addressing the meeting, Kataria only assured that he will take up the matter with the central government to increase the annual grant for MC, in line with its growing expenditures, without announcing any immediate relief. Instead Kataria directed MC officials and councillors to focus on improving the corporation’s own revenue generation by rationalising manpower, recovering pending arrears, detecting leakages, increasing taxes on those who can afford them and ensuring third-party inspections before clearing contractor payments. For months, MC has been grappling with a severe financial crunch, forcing it to halt all development works since May and even putting long-pending road carpeting projects on hold. Such is the crisis that the corporation may not be able to even pay out staff salaries in the coming months. To resume the development works, the mayor has been requesting the administrator for an immediate special grant of ₹ 200 crore. “Chandigarh MC will have to work on improving its own revenue to be self-sustained. But I am making every possible effort and thinking out ways to provide additional financial help to MC. I will take up the matter with the Centre to increase the annual grant-in-aid for MC in line with MC’s increasing expenditure. Since salaries and committed liabilities of MC are increasing every year, we must also increase our grants,” Kataria said. Detect leakages, increase taxes: UT administrator While suggesting ways to improve MC’s financial condition, Kataria said, “MC’s major revenue source is property tax and hence, its arrears should be recovered and taxes should be gradually increased for those who can afford (commercial properties), without putting any burden on the poor.” The administrator also suggested roping in brilliant retired officials and experts to discuss such matters and utilise their expertise in finding solutions. “MC’s own revenue and capital expenditure is decreasing every year due to leakages. To cut down on your expenses, do third party inspection and verification on all MC projects, before clearing out payments of contractors,” Kataria added. Councillors voice their demands During the meeting, AAP councillor Yogesh Dhingra requested the UT administrator to mark an inquiry into MC’s expenditure on solid waste management and allow open hand voting for mayoral polls. BJP councillor Saurabh Joshi also sought an inquiry into MC’s recruitment to check ghost employees and a third-party audit of on all Smart City projects. Congress councillor Gurpreet Singh Gabi said, “We are taking steps to increase revenue but immediate relief is required to resume development works. UT should also transfer revenue-generating departments like RLA to MC.” Nominated councillor Satinder Sidhu advocated forming a land pooling policy to ensure revenue generation. After Guv’s rap, MC to audit all recruitments Following the administrator’s directions to rationalise MC’s manpower and amid city councillors’ objections on increasing recruitments, municipal commissioner Amit Kumar announced a detailed check on total recruitments and its criteria in the previous years. The city councillors raised objections after MC officials, while giving a presentation to the administrator, released figures related to MC’s staff strength over the past five years. As per official figures, MC’s total staff strength increased from 8,587 employees in 2023-24 to 9,748 in 2024-25, reflecting that MC hired 1,161 employees (mostly on contractual basis) in just seven months. The figures came as a surprise for councillors from all parties and mayor Kuldeep Kumar Dhalor, who said, “Who are these employees and where are they working?” AAP councillor Ram Chander Yadav said, “In my ward, I have listed out over 15 employees who were recently recruited, even when no such posts have been sanctioned by MC. I have already submitted a written complaint against a junior engineer for hiring his own brother as a supervisor. A detailed inquiry should be marked on recruitments done in MC.” Even the administrator noted, “In 2019-20, only 3,072 outsourced employees were working in MC and now, the number has increased to 6,965. Why is contractual recruitment increasing when regular posts are lying vacant? MC should do department-wise analysis of manpower and gradually shunt out excessive employees.” To this, MC commissioner Amit Kumar said, “Not just for this fiscal, but now a detailed check will be done on recruitments done in all previous years. Also, we will rationalise manpower by checking their eligibility criteria. It is learnt that even employees above the age of 60 are also working with MC.” House suspended amid BJP’s uproar over vendor issues Mayor Dhalor suspended the MC House following heated arguments by BJP councillors over Town Vending Committee’s proposal to convert the licences of 385 non-essential service providers vendors into essential service providers. Though the House had rejected this proposal in October, BJP councillors demanded voting to approve it on Saturday. Amid the melee, leader of Opposition Kanwarjeet Singh Rana reportedly removed MC secretary Gurinder Sodhi’s microphone and agenda copy to restrict him from moving on to the next agenda. The pandemonium escalated when the BJP councillors questioned how could the mayor, who held no power to withdraw an MC agenda, revoke MC’s proposal of increasing electricity cess. As arguments flew thick and fast, the mayor suspected the House. MP Tewari skips meeting Resident bodies noted MP Manish Tewari’s absence from the meeting. Some took to social media, questioning, “If the administrator can attend the MC House, the MP should have also been present to take up city’s crucial issues.”S. Korea political upheaval shows global democracy's fragility - and resilienceHampton University’s 28-point lead evaporates in season-closing loss at Albany

Journo backs Tottenham to make use of January transfer window ‘opportunity’; potential over experience to persistWork and pensions minister Sir Stephen Timms said the move aims to drive “real improvements” for disabled people, whom the ministers will be encouraged to engage with on a regular basis. He told the Commons: “I am very pleased to be able to announce today the appointment of new lead ministers for disability in each Government department, they will represent the interests of disabled people, champion disability inclusion and accessibility within their departments. “I’m going to chair regular meetings with them and will encourage them to engage directly with disabled people and their representative organisations, as they take forward their departmental priorities. “And I look forward to this new group of lead ministers for disability together driving real improvements across Government for disabled people.” This came during an adjournment debate on International Day of Persons with Disabilities, where Liberal Democrat MP Steve Darling raised concerns about “floating bus stops”, which have a cycle lane between the stop and the pavement. Intervening, the MP for Torbay, who is registered blind, said: “The Government needs to ban floating bus stops.” Sir Stephen said: “I do think this issue about floating bus stops is an important issue which we need to work across Government to reflect on.” Labour MP Debbie Abrahams, who led the debate, had earlier criticised the lack of accessibility for disabled people on trains. The Oldham East and Saddleworth MP said: “Our train network does not have level access, and we heard Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson from the other place make this plea back in the summer, absolutely outrageous what she was put through. “But I was absolutely shocked to find, when I had a presentation of the TransPennine route upgrade, that the rolling stock yet to be commissioned is not going to provide that level access. “It’s absolute nonsense, it’s not even in the design of that procurement, so we must do better than this.”

Charleston Southern’s disappointing football season ended on Saturday as the Bucs lost at Florida State, 41-7. CSU finishes the season with a 1-11 record, losing their final 10 games after a win over Furman in week two of the regular season. The Bucs hung tough early, trailing only 3-0 with five minutes left in the first half. The Seminoles, however, scored two touchdowns in the final 4:05 of the second quarter to take a 17-0 lead at the break. Charleston Southern wraps up season at Florida State “Really proud of the way our guys competed. The moment was not too big for them,” CSU coach Gabe Giardina said. “I thought we showed the right kind of character and I was impressed with how we competed. “It’s been a season of near misses, losing five games by five points or less, but this team has been a joy to coach because of how they came to work every day.” CSU’s lone touchdown came with 57 seconds left in the game when Kaleb Jackson and tight end Landon Sauers combined on a seven-yard pass. CSU loses in overtime to Eastern Illinois; fall to 1-10 Jackson finished the game with 221 passing yards, completing 22-of-32 passes. Chris Rhone had 60 yards on three receptions. The Bucs totaled 275 yards in offense for the game as the Seminoles limited CSU to only 57 yards rushing. Davion Williams led CSU’s defensive effort with eight tackles, a sack, and two tackles for loss. No-surrender Buccaneers face final 2 games on road “We gave up some big plays in the second half but I thought we competed at a high level defensively in the first half,” Giardina said. “Our guys fought their butts off, just like they have all season.”LOS ANGELES (AP) — Snoop Dogg and Simone Biles turned their Olympic bond from this summer’s Paris Games into a new challenge: The superstar tandem will team up on NBC’s “The Voice.” Biles will join Snoop for an episode on the reality competition television series, airing Monday. As a coach on the show, the rap star enlisted Biles as a mentor in the playoff round to help advise five vocalists who are vying for a spot in the live shows. For Snoop and Biles, their pairing was a superb match for the sports and music icons — who carried their effortless chemistry from the Olympics to the TV set of “The Voice.” “We were able to riff off each other and give the artists the best insight going into the next round,” Biles told The Associated Press in a recent interview with Snoop after both finished filming the episode in Los Angeles. “It was pretty easy, simple,” added Biles, the most decorated gymnast of all-time who won four medals — three of them gold — at the recent Olympics. “We’re both very mellow. But if we need to bring that energy up, then we can. For us, it was about instilling confidence going into the next week.” Biles might be famous for her athletic prowess, but she was able to relate to the music contestants — from one competitor to another. “These are the learning steps: Learn, process, go back in and work,” she said. “They all have the vocal talent. It’s about harnessing that, knowing when to bring it out and which songs to sing and which genre you fit in. And what you want your legacy to be. This is truly a special show as well as the judging. They don’t get to see the physical appearance first. It’s all off of ears, listening and putting their craft together as well.” Despite having different career paths, Snoop and Biles share a mutual respect for each other’s ability to shine on the biggest stages. “We have such diverse careers. But the things that we dealt with, they’re dealing with now,” said Snoop, the ultra-smooth entertainer who took on a starring role as a special correspondent in NBC’s record-breaking coverage . He’s a coach on “The Voice” along with Michael Bublé , Reba McEntire and Gwen Stefani , with each attempting to discover and coach the next singing phenomenon. Snoop said they felt the need to instill wisdom and confidence in each participant. “We have the best experience and knowledge to give to these performers,” he said. “She’s a performer. I’m a performer. We’ve performed under extreme conditions. We always do our best. But sometimes things happen behind closed doors that you don’t know about. So, we’re able to speak to those things and give them real reassurance.” During the Olympics, Biles and Snoop had a few viral moments. Both caught up with each other to cheer on Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone during her 400-meter hurdles race; he gifted Biles’ father, Ronald Biles, with a Death Row Records gold necklace for his 75th birthday; and he was spotted dancing in the crowd during the women’s gymnastics qualifying round as Biles and her teammate Jordan Chiles joined in. While on set, Biles was often all smiles while watching Snoop in his charismatic element. “I knew Snoop would stay true and authentic to himself here on ‘The Voice.’” she said. “It’s nice that you don’t have to fit a mold. There’s a space for everyone.” Snoop said it made sense for both to work together on the episode. “This is family. It feels good,” Snoop said. “(Biles) can do anything she wants to do. She picks and chooses what she wants to do. We’re at that point of our careers right now. It has to feel good. It can’t be forced or I’m not doing it. Period, point, blank.” Related From Our PartnerHow to Get Followers on BlueSky: 6 Tips That Work

Chad Chronister, Donald Trump’s pick to run the DEA, withdraws name from consideration

Baltimore (7-4) at Los Angeles Chargers (7-3) Monday, 8:15 p.m. EST, ESPN/ABC BetMGM NFL odds: Ravens by 3. Against the spread: Ravens 5-5-1; Chargers 7-3. Series record: Ravens lead 9-5. Last meeting: Ravens beat Chargers 20-10 in Inglewood, Calif., on Nov. 26, 2023. Last week: Ravens lost to Pittsburgh 18-16; Chargers beat Cincinnati 34-27. Ravens offense: overall (1), rush (2), pass (3), scoring (2). Ravens defense: overall (3), rush (26), pass (2), scoring (23). Chargers offense: overall (18), rush (12), pass (19), scoring (18). Chargers defense: overall (11), rush (11), pass (12), scoring (1). Turnover differential: Ravens plus-2; Chargers plus-8. K Justin Tucker missed two field goals last week and is under pressure after spending most of his career beyond reproach. He’s missed six field goals on the season and is 4 for 12 from 50-plus yards since the start of last season. WR Ladd McConkey had a career-high 123 yards on six receptions against Cincinnati. The rookie came up with clutch catches of 28 and 27 yards to set up the game-winning touchdown. Chargers RB J.K. Dobbins vs. Ravens’ run defense. Dobbins showed promise during his time in Baltimore, but he never was able to live up to that potential because of injuries. Now in Los Angeles on a one-year “prove it” contract, Dobbins has nearly matched his most productive season as a professional with 726 yards and eight touchdowns in 10 games. After seeing Pittsburgh run the ball 34 times last week, the Chargers will be glad to copy that bruising approach with Dobbins. The Ravens are allowing 77.5 rushing yards per game, but even the sturdiest defense can buckle against that volume of work, so getting off the field will be critical. Baltimore’s defense has one significant injury concern, with LB Roquan Smith (hamstring) questionable to go this week after he was hurt against the Steelers. The good news is S Kyle Hamilton does not have an injury designation. He has been nursing an ankle problem, although he played against Pittsburgh. ... Chargers OLB Khalil Mack (groin) is questionable after the veteran pass rusher didn’t play against Cincinnati. ... McConkey is also questionable because of a shoulder injury. The Ravens have won four straight over the Chargers in the regular season, but Los Angeles did earn a 23-17 AFC wild-card round upset in January 2019. ... Baltimore cruised to a 34-6 win over the Chargers in its first visit to SoFi Stadium on Oct. 17, 2021. Ravens RB Derrick Henry leads the NFL with 1,185 yards rushing and 15 total TDs (13 rushing and two receiving). He’s also run for a league-high 52 first downs. ... Henry is one rushing TD shy of the Ravens’ single-season record, set by Jamal Lewis in 2003. ... Baltimore QB Lamar Jackson is 6-2 on “Monday Night Football” with 20 TD passes and no interceptions. ... Henry is one of four players in the Super Bowl era to score a TD in each of the first 11 games of a season. The others are O.J. Simpson (1975), John Riggins (1983) and Jerry Rice (1987). ... The Ravens have scored touchdowns on a league-best 77.8% of their red zone trips. ... Jackson needs 124 yards passing and 16 yards rushing for a second consecutive season with 3,000 passing and 600 rushing. Since the AFL-NFL merger, only Randall Cunningham (1988-1990), Cam Newton (2011-12), Josh Allen (2021-22) and Jalen Hurts (2021-23) have accomplished that feat. ... Dobbins ran for two touchdowns against Cincinnati, giving him multiple scores in two of his past three games. He did it twice in 24 games as a Raven. ... OLB Tuli Tuipulotu had 1 1/2 sacks of Bengals QB Joe Burrow, his third straight game with more than one. All seven of Tuipulotu’s sacks this season have come in the past four games, and six of his eight tackles for loss have come in that span. ... The Chargers allowed a season-worst 27 points to Cincinnati after holding each of their previous nine opponents to 20 points or fewer. ... QB Justin Herbert has thrown one interception in 277 attempts this season. That lone pick came in Week 2 at Carolina. ... The Chargers lost their fifth turnover of the season when Herbert fumbled to start the fourth quarter. It was their first turnover at home. ... Los Angeles does not have a takeaway in its past two games. Herbert has heated up after a slow start in terms of fantasy production, having thrown for multiple touchdowns in three of his past four games. He is likely to keep that success going this week. Baltimore has allowed 22 scores through the air, which is tied with Houston for second most in the league, and Herbert should have plenty of chances to add to that total in what could be another high-scoring matchup. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Get local news delivered to your inbox!

Google Street View | PACE vans help seniors make it to their medical appointments. Access to senior care in the most rural areas of the Central Valley has long been a challenge. Transportation, managing doctor and specialist visits or struggling to find in-home care options, many seniors in the Valley are left with a “what about me?” feeling. For Tulare and Kings counties, help is on the way at the new PACE Center. Opened this past summer, the center fills a much-needed role for senior care in an underserved region. But how did senior health care get so difficult to access in the Valley, and what does PACE (Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly) hope to bring to the community? It’s well known that the region has trouble recruiting health care professionals. That’s exacerbated by the sheer demand as the population ages. Rural areas have it the worst. Anshuman Srivastava, a Visalia physician, said that nationwide, 57 million Americans reside in rural areas. The Central Valley has historically fallen behind urban regions in senior care access. “Because of this the health disparity has gotten worse compared to the urban areas,” Srivastava said. “If you compare the data...we have around a 21,000-health-professional shortage in rural areas compared to only a 900-shortage in urban areas.” Srivastava said the issue often stems from prioritization of other essential needs over health — not due to lack of concern, but lack of awareness. “I’m not going to blame any people, patients or populations about it,” Srivastava said. “It’s more because health was never a priority for them.” Grady Dodson, the Visalia PACE Program Director at Family Healthcare Network, agreed that a lack of health care professional incentives also have caused the Valley to fall behind. The opening of a new PACE Center, providing senior care to residents in Tulare and Kings counties, hopes to change the narrative for senior care. PACE stands for Programs of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly and aims to provide just that — a continuum of well-rounded, holistic care for seniors, comprising many of the various specialties the community requires under one roof. Founded by Dr. William Gee and social worker Marie-Louise Ansak in San Francisco in 1971, the program keeps senior citizens out of hospitals and nursing homes, focusing on improving the quality of life for communities’ most health-vulnerable populations. “We want to see seniors age in place, remain in their communities,” Dodson said. “We know the quality of life for them is much higher there than it is, per say, going into a skilled nursing home.” The PACE Center in Visalia is funded by Medicare and functions as its members’ primary care provider, along with offering specialist services and partnering with local specialists to fill the gaps not directly provided by PACE itself. The 25,000 square-foot center, located at 500 E. School Ave. in Visalia, also boasts its own facilities including a day center for recreational therapy activities. Programming is meant to combat depression and loneliness — something that is elevated in the senior community. At the PACE center, members receive a hot lunch, engage in games and activities and also have access to a quiet room, as well as bathroom facilities with showers for members in need of hygiene assistance. “It’s really a holistic approach to their care,” he said. “The PACE Program also helps with taking care of their medications.” PACE’s system has patients working closely with an interdisciplinary team (IDT) to determine their individual needs. “Each member of the IDT, they all do their assessments — they spend a great amount of time with the participant,” Dodson said, evaluating their diets, social needs and other health concerns. “Each new participant gets that thoroughness to individualize their care plan.” Dodson added that each patient also has their own voice, granted the ability to advocate for themselves. Families also have the ability to voice their concerns. “It really becomes personal because there’s not a ‘cookie cutter,’ unlike other health care models that are out there,” he said. “PACE is guided by that principle.” Dodson said that through PACE’s work, MediCal has saved $131 million in health care costs through finding correct services for patients, preventing overlap of services and improving general day-to-day life through continuous care. In addition to the personalized services offered at PACE, the center also offers transportation — a key need for many senior residents in more rural communities. “Many of our seniors suffer from health issues simply because of a lack of transportation,” Dodson said. “If you have parents and loved ones, aunts and uncles, grandparents — some of them are not getting there because you’re busy at work and they can’t get to their next appointment.” An employee in the health care field for 17 years, Dodson, a Valley native, said that he has seen many different medical models, but said that PACE’s holistic approach and access to care is second-to-none in the health care industry. The center’s treatment of its members differs from the standard health care industry’s technique of “for service” visits. “Similar to Costco, they’re a member,” Dodson said. “You don’t treat members the same way you treat a customer; a customer’s going to be a one-time shopper...that’s the current model we have in health care now.” WelbeHealth company recently announced plans to build a second Visalia PACE center — 17,000 square feet at 1150 S. Ben Maddox Way in a complex that already includes a Kaweah Health clinic and DaVita Dialysis, reported the Sun-Gazette newspaper. WelbeHealth is a physician-led public benefit company founded in 2015 that provides comprehensive health care services for seniors. There are 99 PACE Centers and Alternative Care Sites in 27 counties serving 22,000 participants annually throughout California. Tulare and Kings county residents interested in PACE must be 55 years or older, live in the region served by a local PACE Center, be certified in the State of California as requiring nursing home-level care and be able to live safely in the community with PACE assistance. The Tulare/Kings County PACE Center can be reached at (877) 326-PACE (7223) or by email at pace@fhcn.org. Visitors are also welcome to stop by for more information at the PACE Center in Visalia, located at 500 E. School Ave. Access to senior care in the most rural areas of In a competitive real estate business that is constantly changing, On Tuesday, Dec. 10, The Business Journal hosted its 11th Access Plus Capital, a nonprofit community development financial institution that

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Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach found themselves in the odd position of having to aggressively deny their own creativity tonight: The husband-and-wife team (who co-wrote the script for Gerwig’s massive 2023 blockbuster Barbie ) are denying that they’ve cooked up an idea they’re happy with for a sequel to the bright pink pop satire, and have pitched it to Warner Bros. Warner Bros. is also denying the scurrilous allegations, published in The Hollywood Reporter , that they’d very much like to make a sequel to a movie that made $1.4 billion off an IP that had previously been relegated pretty much exclusively to direct-to-DVD shovelware. “There is no legitimacy to this reporting,” Gerwig and Baumbach’s rep said in response to baseless accusations of a good idea, and early talks about getting a movie made. Warner Bros. seemed outraged by the very idea. All of which sounds pretty much like the kind of language people use when there’s no deal in place yet , but that just might be the money of it all talking: After all, it’s hard to imagine there won’t be a Barbie 2 sometime . It’s just the nature of modern Hollywood, where they don’t let you make that much money with a film without pushing, hard, to generate a sequel. And while you can fight back against the process—arguably, what Todd Phillips did by making a Joker sequel specifically designed to piss off everybody who liked his first movie—it doesn’t feel like Gerwig is necessarily the type. (Although an obvious indie darling, Gerwig has never been afraid of studio fare; she’s talked in interviews about her interest in working with the studio machine to tell stories, rather than railing against it, and is in pre-production right now on her Netflix Narnia movie.) If Gerwig and Baumbach did have an idea for a Barbie 2 , we’d normally greet it with at least a bit of the skepticism traditionally reserved for kneejerk sequels. But Gerwig has earned a fair amount of benefit of the doubt over the last several years; the films leading up to the billion dollar explosion were pretty uniformly great, and Barbie itself threaded the needle between goofball comedy and social satire well enough that we’re convinced she and Baumbach will probably found something to say with a sequel that’s slightly more profound than “We’d like another billion dollars, please.” If they had an idea they’re happy with, which, they want you to know, they don’t.Steelers Players Lamenting Losses And Accusing Teammate Of Playing 'Hero Ball' Instead Of Doing Their Job

No, the president cannot change Social SecuritySarawak Sukma singles champion Ling Ching quits BAMFO-ŠAN, Čína , 13. prosince 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Peter Guan , viceprezident společnosti Midea Group a prezident společnosti Midea Building Technologies, se v nedávném exkluzivním rozhovoru pro časopis JARN, přední japonské periodikum zabývající se systémy vytápění, ventilace a klimatizace, podělil o své poznatky ohledně vývoje globálního trhu s tepelnými čerpadly. Guan vyjádřil optimismus ohledně růstu evropského trhu tepelných čerpadel vzduch-voda a upozornil na příležitosti v Severní Americe a Austrálii. Tepelná čerpadla: Průlomová technologie pro udržitelnost Technologie tepelných čerpadel, kterou časopis MIT Technology Review označil za jednu z 10 průlomových technologií roku 2024 , je klíčovou inovací při snižování globální závislosti na fosilních palivech a prosazování uhlíkové neutrality. Peter Guan očekává v příštích dvou letech silné oživení trhu, které bude podpořeno technologickým pokrokem, podpůrnými politikami a rostoucím povědomím spotřebitelů. Spolčenost MBT je v rámci skupiny Midea klíčovým segmentem specializujícím se na systémy vytápění, ventilace a klimatizace. Stojí v čele celosvětového rozvoje tepelných čerpadel, zejména v Evropě. Společnost již několik let aktivně rozšiřuje své působení na trhu tepelných čerpadel vzduch-voda v celém regionu. Evropa: Prosperující centrum vývoje tepelných čerpadel Evropská unie zavedla důrazné politiky na podporu zavádění tepelných čerpadel. Díky iniciativám, jako je Akt o průmyslu pro bilančně nulové emise (Net Zero Industry Act), se zjednodušilo schvalování, získávání finanční podpory i školení pracovních sil. Hlavní trhy včetně Německa, Francie a Polska rozšířily dotační rámce, což podle Petera Guana podpoří oživení a růst trhu. Kromě toho si Evropská asociace tepelných čerpadel (European Heat Pump Association) v rámci svého akceleračního programu klade za cíl do roku 2029 uvést do provozu téměř 10 milionů tepelných čerpadel, z čehož by více než polovinu měla tvořit tepelná čerpadla vzduch-voda. Předpokládá se, že trh s tepelnými čerpadly pro komerční účely poroste složenou roční mírou růstu (CAGR) 12 % a do roku 2028 dosáhne 1,15 miliardy eur. Strategie pro vedoucí postavení na trhu S cílem využít růstový potenciál Evropy zavedla společnost MBT řadu strategických opatření k posílení lokalizovaných operací. Založením evropského výzkumného a vývojového centra se společnost MBT zaměřuje na vývoj produktů přizpůsobených místním potřebám, čímž reaguje na měnící se požadavky trhu. Spolupráce s distributory posílila online i offline marketingové kampaně a zvýšila povědomí spotřebitelů o výhodách tepelných čerpadel v obytných i komerčních sférách. Za poslední dva roky bylo v obchodech modernizováno více než 700 stojanů s tepelnými čerpadly. Účast na oborových akcích dále posílila vliv společnosti MBT na trhu. Na veletrhu Chillventa 2024 představila společnost MBT ve spolupráci s francouzskou společností Trace Software softwarový nástroj Super Advisor pro systém řízení spotřeby energie iEasyEnergy, který propojuje fotovoltaické systémy, domácí akumulační baterie a tepelná čerpadla a dosahuje působivé míry energetické soběstačnosti 80–90 %. Software výrazně zvyšuje přesnost a nákladovou efektivitu řešení energetického managementu domácností. Společnost MBT se také zaměřuje na rozvoj pracovních sil a provozuje 32 školicích středisek v evropských zemích, jako je Itálie, Německo, Maďarsko a Polsko, kde školí kvalifikované montéry tepelných čerpadel. Společnost MBT také prostřednictvím akvizic (například akvizice společnosti Clivet v roce 2016) posílila svůj průmyslový řetězec a v poslední době investovala více než 60 milionů eur do nových výrobních a výzkumných zařízení, aby podpořila budoucí růst. Rozšiřování působnosti v Severní Americe a Austrálii Kromě Evropy působí společnost MBT také v Severní Americe a Austrálii. Podle Mezinárodní agentury pro energii se očekává, že severoamerický trh s tepelnými čerpadly vzroste do roku 2030 o více než 50 %, přičemž v USA dojde do roku 2023 k 25% nárůstu dodávek. Předpokládá se, že v Austrálii do roku 2030 vzroste využívání tepelných čerpadel o 40 %, a to díky vládním iniciativám, jako je Národní rámec pro přizpůsobení se změně klimatu (National Climate Change Adaptation Framework). Společnost MBT přizpůsobila svou nabídku těmto trhům a uvedla na trh vysoce výkonná tepelná čerpadla a ohřívače vody, které splňují regionální požadavky. Důrazem na technologii, diferenciaci služeb a poprodejní podporu chce společnost MBT upevnit svou globální konkurenceschopnost. Snaha o inovace a udržitelnost Společnost MBT vyčleňuje 5 % svých ročních tržeb z prodeje na výzkum a vývoj, čímž zajišťuje trvale vedoucí postavení svých produktů. Společnost provozuje šest výzkumných a vývojových středisek a 93 školicích středisek po celém světě, což umožňuje rychlou reakci na požadavky trhu a udržuje služby na špičkové úrovni. „Celosvětový průmysl tepelných čerpadel díky technologickému pokroku a příznivým politikám rychle roste," uvedl Peter Guan . „Vzhledem k tomu, že spotřebitelé stále více upřednostňují udržitelnost, nabízí toto odvětví významné příležitosti. Naše strategické zaměření na Evropu i na další oblasti nás staví do pozice hybné síly transformačního růstu tohoto důležitého odvětví." Více informací naleznete na webu: https://mbt.midea.com/global Foto - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2579715/Midea_Nature_ATW_Heat_Pump.jpg Foto - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2579716/Midea_R290_Commercial_Heat_Pump.jpg

Chad Chronister, Donald Trump’s pick to run the DEA, withdraws name from considerationVideo montages from Minnesota United’s social media accounts this week shared receipts of national pundits’ low predictions for the Loons in 2024. ADVERTISEMENT Since MNUFC has advanced to Sunday’s Western Conference semifinals, the club took the opportunity to blast its doubters. That’s a thick glossing over of recent history. The actions of the Loons’ ownership group and front office in late 2023 and early 2024 — after the firing manager Adrian Heath — didn’t scream of a club’s urgency to win at a high level this season. Actions speak louder than words. CEO Shari Ballard was willing to wait for new chief soccer officer Khaled El-Ahmad to wrap up his job at English club Barnsley before coming to Minnesota. After missing the MLS Cup playoffs in 2023, Ballard said last November: “We’re not building this by January,” a reference to the start of preseason. ADVERTISEMENT El-Ahmad, in turn, showed patience in his head coach hire, and Eric Ramsay didn’t arrive until the 2024 regular season was three games old. Into late April, the club took zero big swings on new player additions via the primary transfer window. When MLS All-Star midfielder Emanuel Reynoso returned to Minnesota in May after yet another AWOL stint in Argentina, El-Ahmad wasn’t willing to fast track the playmaker back onto the field. El-Ahmad soon transferred Reynoso to Club Tijuana in Mexico for a discounted fee, and in the process, proved a bigger point that club culture is more important than having Reynoso help stack three points in matches. Then the Loons’ summer slide down the standings put their record at 8-10-6 on July 17. There was nothing but patience expressed from Ramsay and El-Ahmad, who pointed to the abundance of player absences for international duties and injuries. Their lack of stress belied a 1.29 points-per-game pace that would have been lucky to sneak into the ninth and final place in the playoff field. There was no win-now directive to feel as if they had fallen behind. MNUFC’s 6-1-1 finish to the regular season and eventual sixth seed in the West — followed by the two wins in penalty kicks to beat third-seeded Real Salt Lake in the first round of the playoffs — had been boosted by El-Ahmad making a handful of additions in the summer transfer window and Ramsay’s ability to implement his tactics and get buy-in from players. ADVERTISEMENT But making the final eight playoff teams in MLS? “There is, of course, a level of satisfaction, but I think it’s difficult to do that until you know how everything pans out,” Ramsay said days before the Loons play at second-seeded Los Angeles Galaxy on Sunday night. “I’ve tried not to think too much beyond the upcoming game and sort of take the balance of the season as a whole once that’s done. But I don’t think anyone can deny that relative to the circumstances and the expectations that we’ve had a really good year and sort of anything from this point onwards set against what was talked about prior to the season would, of course, be a bonus.” ADVERTISEMENT Even if the Loons lose Sunday, the 2024 season can still be chalked up as a success. That’s primarily true because this wasn’t supposed to be the year. It might not even be the year before the year. El-Ahmad’s attempted maneuvering before the close of the summer transfer window showed he wanted to bring in a defensive midfielder, but in the end was unable or unwilling to make it happen at that point. Again, no urgency in this being a make-or-break season. The Loons have been successful this season despite not spending very much. MNUFC has the 25th largest salary spend ($14.7 million) out of 29 teams in the league. Underperforming forward Teemu Pukki is the club’s highest-paid player at $3.5 million, and that 25 percent of the salary budget is expected to come off the books within the next year. This will allow El-Ahmad future opportunities to improve the roster, and the ownership should give him the latitude beyond reinvesting just that amount that money. Defensive midfielder appears to be a primary target again this winter. ADVERTISEMENT The ongoing roster remake has made the Loons more youthful, with players heading into their prime years. Striker Kelvin Yeboah was the biggest summer addition, and the 24-year-old Designated Player hit the ground running with seven goals in 709 minutes to finish the regular season. Another reason this season is already a success is MNUFC has formed a clear identity to carry into 2025. Since his first day on the job, Ramsay has instilled a defensive focus, which produced a club-record shutout streak to end the regular season. Ramsay has gotten players to be willing to switch positions when needs are a must and attackers have bought in to help defend. ADVERTISEMENT While Ramsay can see the overall success when he takes a step back, he’s pushing forward into Sunday’s match. “That’s not to say that I don’t feel nor expect us to go another step beyond because, if I look at our form at the moment, I do feel we’re a good matchup for anyone in the league,” Ramsay said Tuesday. “There’s absolutely no way that we’re going into this game feeling as though it’s David against Goliath, and we’re huge underdogs, and you’ve got a 20 percent chance of winning the game. That’s just not how we look at it. So I’m trying to, again, balance those two perspectives.” ______________________________________________________ This story was written by one of our partner news agencies. 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Children shot dead after joining pot-banging protests in Mozambique Anthony Irungu / BBC The mourners at a cemetery in crisis-hit Mozambique's capital, Maputo, were strikingly young - children shedding tears as they bade farewell to a 16-year-old friend, who was shot dead while banging pots and pans in an opposition-organised protest against the outcome of last month's presidential election. "Antonio was shot in the mouth, and the bullet went through the back of his head," his uncle, Manuel Samuel, told the BBC. "We saw CCTV footage from nearby shops of police shooting at protesters," he added. Antonio Juaqim's killing is a tragic reminder of the volatile political climate in the southern African state since Frelimo - the former liberation movement in power since independence 49 years ago - was declared the winner of the poll. The electoral commission said Frelimo's presidential candidate, Daniel Chapo, won with a whopping 71% of the vote, compared to the 20% of his closest rival, Venâncio Mondlane. An evangelical pastor who contested the presidency as an independent after breaking away from the main opposition Renamo party, Mondlane rejected the declaration, alleging the poll was rigged. This was denied by the electoral commission, but Mondlane - who fled the country, fearing arrest - has rallied his supporters via social media to protest against the result. Every night at 21:00 local time (19:00 GMT), people have been banging pots and pans in their homes, as they heed Mondlane's call to send a loud message that they reject an extension of Frelimo's 49-year rule. Supporters of Venâncio Mondlane want a change of government Mr Samuel said the protest was first held on the night of 15 November when huge numbers of people took to the streets to bang pots, pans and bottles or to blow whistles.... Ian Wafula2024: A Milestone Year for Democracy in J&K, First Popular Government Established in UT.