Let us begin your Sunday with an overview of what has happened in the past 24 hours. 

Society

-- According to a detailed plan on modernizing the north-south railway system which was submitted by the Vietnam Railway Authority to the Ministry of Transport, the railway route will undergo upgrades to have its average speed increase to 80-90kph for passenger trains and 50-60kph for cargo trains.

-- A thundershower accompanied by overwhelming gusts wreaked its havoc on Hanoi around 5:00 pm on Saturday. The downpour uprooted around 500 trees, many of which crumpled onto – and caused serious damage to – some hundred bikes and cars. Two riders perished being crushed by the fallen boughs and 10 others got injured.   

-- On Saturday Nguyen Van Phu, owner and captain of a fishing boat in Binh Son District, located in the central province of Quang Ngai, recounted that around 4:00 pm on Wednesday, his boat was attacked by four Chinese vessels while Phu and his crew of 10 members were fishing off Bom Bay Island, of Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago. The damage Phu’s boat sustained was estimated to cost around VND750 million (US$34,451). Earlier, two other fishermen, who were rushed back to the mainland for emergency medical attention, were said to fall victim to another assault by a Chinese vessel which happened on June 7, while the Vietnamese boat was fishing some four nautical miles from Bom Bay Island.

Business

-- Many hotels in Vietnam have enthusiastically embraced the recent appeal by the Vietnam Tourism Association for them to help consume local fruits by offering them free of charge to each guest room and decorating their halls and premises with the richly-colored, delectable produce.

Lifestyle

-- The Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, secluded in the central province of Quang Binh and home to the high-profile Son Doong Cave, which is the world’s largest, is poised to be recognized by the UNESCO for the second time for its stunning biological diversity and resplendent landscape. The park first earned the coveted recognition in 2003 for its astounding geological and geomorphologic values.

-- An eight-episode television program titled “Reza Spice Prince – Vietnam,” is slated to air on Asean Food Channel, which is available on HTVC and K+, starting 8:00 pm on Tuesday. The show, hosted by Indian chef Reza Mahammad, will treat TV viewers around the world to stunning landscapes and mouth-watering culinary delights across Vietnam.