Hollwyood star Denzel Washington, gymnastics star Simone Biles, and the late tech visionary Steve Jobs have been named as recipients of America's highest civilian honor, the White House said Friday.

President Joe Biden designated 17 Americans to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, three of them posthumous.

According to the White House said the medal recognizes "exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavors."

Among the recipients is Megan Rapinoe, the Olympic gold medalist soccer star, two-time Women's World Cup champion and outspoken advocate on equality, race and LGBTQ issues.

Ahead of a ceremony on July 7, the White House said those honored had "overcome significant obstacles... and acted with bravery to drive change in their communities -- and across the world -- while blazing trails for generations to come."

One posthumous recipient this year is John McCain, a one-time Republican presidential nominee, long-time senator from Arizona, and Vietnam War veteran who won a Purple Heart.

Basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Motown singer Diana Ross and the actor Robert De Niro were the previous winners of the presidential medal.

Quetta: Re-polling of local government elections in thirteen wards of eight districts of Balochistan is underway.

According to a notification of Provincial Election Commissioner Office Balochistan, polling will continue till 5:00 pm without any break.

Election Commission of Pakistan has established a Central Control Room in Islamabad and Provincial Election Commissioner’s office in Quetta for monitoring and registering complaints related to re-polling of local government elections.  

Re-polling will be held in eight districts including Dakki, Qila Abdullah, Ziarat, Loralai, Panjgor, Sibbi, Noshki and Kech.

Local government elections were postponed in the aforementioned districts on May 29, 2022, due to law and order and other incidents.   

New Delhi: India has imposed a ban on single-use plastics on items ranging from straws to cigarette packets to combat worsening pollution in country whose streets are strewn with waste.

Announcing the ban, the Indian government dismissed the demands of food, beverage and consumer goods companies to hold off the restriction to avoid disruptions.

Plastic waste has become a significant source of pollution in India, the world's second most populous country.

Rapid economic growth has fuelled demand for goods that come with single-use plastic products, such as straws and disposable cutlery.

But India, which uses about 14 million tonnes of plastic annually, lacks an organised system for managing plastic waste, leading to widespread littering.

Streets across towns are littered with used plastic goods that eventually choke drains, rivers and oceans and also kill animals.

India's ban on single-use plastic items includes straws, cutlery, ear buds, packaging films, plastic sticks for balloons, candy and ice-cream, and cigarette packets, among other products, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government said in a statement.

PepsiCo (PEP.O), Coca-Cola Co (KO.N), India's Parle Agro, Dabur (DABU.NS) and Amul had lobbied for straws to be exempted from the ban. 

In a relief to consumers, the government has for now exempted plastic bags but it has asked manufacturers and importers to raise the thickness to promote reuse.

Other than the food and beverage and consumer goods companies, plastic manufacturers have also complained about the ban that they say did not give them adequate time to prepare for the restriction.

Some experts believe that enforcing the ban might be difficult. The government has decided to set up control rooms to check any illegal use, sale and distribution of single-use plastic products.

According to the United Nations, plastic waste is at epidemic proportions in the world's oceans, with an estimated 100 million tonnes dumped there. 

Scientists have found large amounts of micro plastic in the intestines of deep-dwelling ocean mammals like whales.

SOURCE: REUTERS