A major fire in eastern Spain has been blazing for three days. Dry summerlike conditions are making extinguishing the fire a challenge. Hundreds of firefighters were trying to bring a major forest fire in eastern Spain under control on Saturday, officials said. More than 500 firefighters have been deployed as the fire — which began Thursday — raged in Spain's eastern Castellon province. Around 20 helicopters and firefighting planes have also been deployed. Emergency services said the fire had intensified near the village of Villanueva de Viver, forcing more than 1,500 residents to flee their homes since the fire began. They described the fire as being a "highly complex blaze taking place in weather conditions similar to those of the summer." With a perimeter of about 35 kilometers (22 miles), the blaze has burned more than 4,000 hectares (9,900 acres) of forest. What's the latest? The fire is not spreading to other areas, but has yet to be extinguished, Ximo Puig, leader of the Valencia region, which incorporates Castellon, told reporters. While the cause of the fire was not yet known, the fire was still "very early in the spring, very voracious from the beginning," Puig explained on Friday.  Puig added the effects of climate change "are undeniable, so the perspective of firefighting must be considered on an annual basis." Extreme heat and drought have made wildfires even more challenging — some 785,000 hectares were destroyed last year in Europe.  The figure represents more than double the annual average for the past 16 years, according to statistics from the European Commission. In Spain, 493 fires destroyed a record 307,000 hectares of land, according to the Commission's European Forest Fire information system.

Netflix, Amazon and other video streamers are betting big on India, tantalized by the huge growth potential offered by its more than 1.3 billion people. Netflix slashed prices by up to 60%. Its popular mobile-only plan now costs 149 rupees ($2) per month, down from 199 rupees On December 14. A basic subscription that allows a user to watch content on any device has been cut to 199 rupees from 499 rupees. Its veryexpensive plan, which allows for simultaneous viewing on up to four devices, has been reduced to 649 rupees from 799 rupees.   But the reductions might not have gone far enough. The Los Gatos, California-based entertainment giant does not offer annual subscriptions, unlike cheaper rivals Amazon Prime Video and Walt Disney's Disney+Hotstar, which sell yearly plans for 1,499 rupees to access top services in these platforms that offer access to all content. Amazon subscribers also enjoy faster and free deliveries through the conglomerate's e-commerce platform, among other benefits.   SonyLIV dangles an even cheaper annual plan in front of India's highly price-conscious consumers, 999 rupees, while ZEE5 currently sells 12-month packages for 499 rupees. Analysts say Netflix is trying to reach a wider audience with its price cuts as the premium service's pace of subscriber growth has been unimpressive.   "Netflix has to up the ante! It was more expensive than Amazon and Disney and is falling behind in the subscription numbers," Vineeta Dwivedi, head of digital communications at the Mumbai-based S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research, told Nikkei Asia. "Everyone is acing the content game, but the prices have to be comparable. Ultimately, it's about the numbers, and India remains a price-sensitive market which offers a huge and growing user base."   Tapobrati Das Samaddar -- founder of Wordloom Creative Ventures, a company that deals with media, education and performing arts -- concurs. "No matter how much they loved [the content on Netflix], the general public might have thought twice or thrice before investing into its [basic 499-rupee monthly plan] because other platforms were providing far more affordable options," she told Nikkei. "Netfllix's premium pricing was not helping it grow its viewership." Source: NIKKEL ASIS

Attorney General Mahbubey Alam lost battle to coronavirus at last. He breathed his last at 7:25 pm on Sunday while undergoing treatment at Combined Military Hospital (CMH), Inna Lillahi Wa Inna Ilaihi Rajiun. His son Suman Mahbub confirmed the information to the media. Earlier, about physical condition of the Attorney General, his son in law and lawyer of the Supreme Court Sheikh Md. Riazul Haque said that the Attorney General was kept under ventilation support at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of CMH. On the September 3 night Attorney General Mahbubey Alam felt fever. Then he was undergone corona test and the report came positive. On that day he was admitted to CMH following direction of the Prime Minister. As his condition deteriorated he was shifted to ICU of the hospital on September 18 and on Sunday he breathed his last. Mahbubey Alam was a senior Supreme Court lawyer and Advocate. He was appointed for the post of Attorney General on January 13, 2009. Earlier, from November 15, 1998 to October 4, 2001 he performed his responsibility as the additional attorney general. Mahbubey Alam was born on February 1, 1949 at Mouchhamondra village under Lauhajang upazila in Munshiganj district. He completed his BA(hons) in Political Science and MA in Public Administration from Dhaka University. After obtaining his BA in Law, he began to practice law at High Court in 1975 and became Appellate Division lawyer in 1980. He was listed as a senior lawyer of the Supreme Court in 1999. He was elected as member of Bar Council in 2004. He was elected Bar Council president for the tenure of 2005-2006. He also performed his responsibility as the general secretary of Bar Council for the term of 1993-1994.   AH