10 must-reads for today

Regular commandos boarding the RSAF C-130 for a trial jump before static line parachute training resumed on Tuesday.
Regular commandos boarding the RSAF C-130 for a trial jump before static line parachute training resumed on Tuesday. PHOTO: SINGAPORE ARMY/FACEBOOK

1 Safer parachute training

After a four-month suspension due to a training incident, the Singapore Armed Forces resumed parachute jump training involving cords on Tuesday, but with new safety measures. The measures were reviewed by the Army Safety Board and validated through trial jumps conducted by regular commando soldiers, including the Chief Commando Officer.

2 Singapore telcos win 5G bid

More than half of Singapore will have 5G mobile network coverage by end-2022, offering surfing speeds more than 20 times what the current 4G networks offer, after Singtel and a joint venture between StarHub and M1 won the rights to build the Republic's two nationwide networks yesterday.

3 Toll: Virus v Vietnam War

The number of deaths from the coronavirus in the United States has surpassed the toll of Americans killed in the Vietnam War. As of Tuesday, 58,605 have died of Covid-19 in the country, according to a Reuters tally, eclipsing in a few months the total number of Americans killed during 16 years of US military involvement in Vietnam.

4 China hits back at Australia

China has accused Australia of "petty tricks" in an intensifying dispute over Canberra's push for an international inquiry into how the coronavirus developed and spread. "The Embassy of China doesn't play petty tricks, this is not our tradition. But if others do, we have to reciprocate," a Chinese embassy spokesman said.

5 China sets Parliament date

China's Parliament will hold its annual session on May 22 after being delayed because of the coronavirus outbreak, signalling the Chinese leadership's growing confidence in taming the virus. The Beijing authorities also said it would lower the city's emergency response level from the highest to the next level from midnight today.

6 Spotlight on workers' dorms

Covid-19 has brought to the fore foreign workers and their living conditions. It is time to rethink how we treat this group, who are our guests and to whom we owe a duty of care, says Yuen Sin.

7 6,600 calls to care hotline

More than 6,600 calls have been made to the National Care Hotline since its launch on April 10, said Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee. Some of them were related to Covid-19 and support measures, while others were about financial issues or anxiety.

8 Construction sector woes

Singapore's construction sector is poised to take a hard hit from the coronavirus pandemic in the short term, and is now expected to contract sharply by 10.3 per cent this year in real terms, according to Fitch Solutions. This will make Singapore the worst-hit market in the Asia-Pacific region.

9 SPL imports think of home

Brunei DPMM's English coach Adrian Pennock and Hougang United's Croatian striker Stipe Plazibat both have loved ones working on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. But the Singapore Premier League (SPL) duo are separated from their family members because they are based in Brunei and Singapore respectively.

Patrick Stewart (left) and Jonathan Frakes in Star Trek: Picard. PHOTO: CBS INTERACTIVE

10 Darker Picard for Star Trek

Star Trek: Picard is the eighth Star Trek show since 1966. Set two decades after the character was last seen in the film Star Trek: Nemesis (2002), it presents a darker and more melancholic Picard than Trekkies have ever seen. It was this new take that convinced actor Patrick Stewart to set aside his misgivings about reprising the role.


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Guide to online nightlife

Here are some livestreams of DJ sets and cocktail mixing to bring the nightlife into your home - whether you are partying alone or with friends online. str.sg/blurb345

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No plain vanilla deals

KOP co-founder and chief executive Leny Suparman holds her own in the male-dominated world of property development. She is setting the bar even higher with the world's largest integrated indoor ski resort. str.sg/blurb346

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on April 30, 2020, with the headline 10 must-reads for today. Subscribe