⚠️ Contaminated fentanyl in Argentina: 76 fatalities

The health crisis due to the use of contaminated fentanyl continues to grow in Argentina. Federal Judge Ernesto Kreplak confirmed that 76 people have died after receiving doses of this powerful painkiller adulterated with dangerous bacteria.

🧪 What happened?

• Two batches of the drug, produced by HLB Pharma and Ramallo S.A., were contaminated with Klebsiella pneumoniae and Ralstonia pickettii, highly resistant bacteria.
• An estimated 154,000 vials were distributed, of which 42,000 were applied to patients before the health alert was issued.
• Another 64,000 doses were recovered, and 48,000 are isolated as judicial evidence.

🏥 Where did it happen?

• The case began at the Italian Hospital in La Plata, but spread to more than 200 hospitals throughout the country.
• The reporting system is voluntary, which makes it difficult to identify all affected cases.

⚖️ Ongoing research

• There are 24 people under suspicion, with seized assets, but no one arrested so far.
• Searches were carried out  in the laboratories involved.
• The judge warned that the number of victims could continue to rise as clinical data is cross-referenced and more cases are identified.

🗣️ Testimonies

Relatives of victims, such as Leonel (32 years old), recounted how their loved ones died of sepsis and organ failure after receiving the contaminated drug. Many found out months later that they had been given ampoules of the adulterated batch.

Speech by the president of the Rural: Zero Withholdings and Plan to Double Production

Nicolás Pino reiterated the historical demands of the Argentine countryside with a conciliatory tone towards the Milei government, although he clarified that the sector "is not a partisan ally, but exclusively of Argentina."

The Central Claim: Elimination of Withholdings

In his speech to national authorities, Pino described the withholdings as "a scourge for the common good" that slows down the development of the country. Since 2002, the countryside has contributed more than 200,000 million dollars to the State through this tax, with rates that reach 33% of the international price.

"They are discriminatory, confiscatory and discourage production. Not even the officials of the current government deny in private that they are disastrous," the ruralist leader emphasized.

Eight Conditions for Doubling Production

Pino presented a comprehensive plan that, according to his projections, would make it possible to achieve:

• 200 million tonnes of cereals and oilseeds
• 8 million tons of meat
• 14,000 million liters of milk
• 2 million hectares of forest
• Total value: $60 billion (vs. $40 billion today)

The proposed conditions:

1. Reducing the tax burden - Eliminating withholding tax as a priority
2. Judicial Reform - Eliminate the "Trial Industry" and Reduce Legal Costs
3. Accessible Credit - Long-term financing without financial speculation
4. Rural Security - Special Prosecutor's Offices against cattle rustling and rural crimes
5. Essential Services - Improved Access to Health and Education in Rural Areas
6. Critical Infrastructure - Roads, Railways and Waterway Maintenance
7. Territorial occupation - Demographic redistribution to take advantage of productive land
8. Development of Rural SMEs - As an Engine of Growth and Poverty Reduction

Three Key Institutional Reforms

INTA: It must maintain its role in research and biotechnology, incorporating artificial intelligence and robotics, with dynamic professional management.

SENASA: Requires urgent reorganization to eliminate bureaucracy and ineptitude, providing it with international technical excellence.

Health status: Aspiration to achieve the status of a country free of foot-and-mouth disease without vaccination, following the Patagonian model.

Political and Economic Message

Pino supported the policies of the current government, highlighting fiscal consolidation, the clean-up of the Central Bank and the elimination of the exchange clamp. However, he made critical references to the previous administration, alluding to "the conviction of a former president" and "disastrous cases such as the expropriation of YPF."

The rural leader emphasized that the countryside is not looking for privileges but for equitable conditions: "If we produce more and create more employment, poverty goes down. Enough of superficial policies and cheap lies."

The speech was given at the opening of the 137th Rural Exhibition, with a large official presence including President Milei and most of his cabinet.

Milei Announces Permanent Reduction of Withholdings in La Rural

The president confirmed significant declines in the main agricultural products, with reductions of 20% for grains and 26% for meat. Villarruel's absence marked a new episode of internal tension.

The new rates announced

Milei confirmed "permanent" reductions in withholdings, calling them "the great scourge that should never have existed":

Projected Economic Impact

The president stressed that the measures represent:

• 20% reduction in withholdings for grain chains
• 26% reduction for livestock and meat chains
• Comprehensive benefit for the interior of the country

"From veterinarians to silo builders, everyone benefits when the profitability of the private sector stays in the private sector instead of being extirpated by the damn state," Milei emphasized.

Fiscal Sustainability as a Condition

The president directly linked the reductions to the macroeconomic balance achieved:

"This is only thanks to the fiscal surplus we have achieved, which we take care of like water in the desert in the face of the systematic onslaught of the political caste."

The Casa Rosada later issued an official statement describing the measure as the beginning of "a new era marked by the growth and unleashing of the full potential of the countryside."

Political Tension: Villarruel's Absence

Vice President Victoria Villarruel did not attend the event after confirming her presence. Sources close to him denounced that Casa Rosada Protocol denied him access for his staff and did not inform him of his location at the event.

Milei took the opportunity to indirectly criticize her by referring to the bills that the Senate sent to the Executive for veto: "They say that an expenditure of 17,000 million dollars per year can be financed with a cut of 30 million in the SIDE," alluding to Villarruel's statements about the intelligence budget.

Political Context of the Announcement

The measure came at a time of high expectations from the agricultural sector, which had been demanding concrete gestures after months of waiting. The event was also attended by Jorge Macri, in the midst of negotiations on a possible electoral alliance between PRO and La Libertad Avanza for October.

"The countryside is a strategic sector for Argentina and an engine of growth," said the head of the Buenos Aires government, sitting in the front row next to his wife.

Commitment to the future

Milei reaffirmed his commitment to the total elimination of withholdings: "These reductions are permanent and there will be no turning back while I am in government. Eliminating withholdings is an obsession for our management."

The announcement is part of the government's strategy to position the countryside as the "backbone of the economy" and reverse decades of policies that the ruling party describes as "systematic theft of the fruit of other people's labor."

The measure came into force immediately and adds to the deregulation and trade opening policies implemented since December 2023.

AySA's privatization advances: the Government enables the sale of shares and cuts for non-payment

DNU 493/2025 opens the door to the privatization of the AMBA water and sanitation company and authorizes the suspension of the service in the event of default. Water, an essential right, is up for debate.

The national government formalized a new step towards the privatization of Agua y Saneamientos Argentinos S.A. (AySA) by enabling the sale of shares in the state-owned company, allowing the entry of private capital and authorizing water service cuts for non-payment.

This measure is part of a comprehensive reform of the regulatory framework for the provision of public drinking water and sewage services in the Metropolitan Area of Buenos Aires (AMBA), established by the Decree of Necessity and Urgency (DNU) 493/2025, published this Tuesday in the Official Gazette.

Changes in the shareholder structure

The regulation modifies Article 2 of Decree No. 304/06, which established that 90% of AySA's capital stock belongs to the National State and provided that these shares were "non-transferable" and that this proportion "could not be reduced as a result of any corporate operation."

With the new regulation, it was determined that "the National State may totally or partially dispose of its shareholding," officially enabling the total or partial privatization of the company that provides water and sewerage services in the AMBA.

New management powers

The decree incorporates a series of additional authorizations for the concessionaire company, the most controversial being the possibility of interrupting the supply in the event of user debts. The main built-in powers include:

• Service cut off due to delay: The company will be able to suspend the supply in case of non-payment, a measure that was not allowed for almost two decades.
• Broad audit powers: It will have extended powers to review and technically audit all the works executed within the regulated area.
• Financial guarantees: It may constitute as guarantees the funds from the exploitation of the concession contract to support the financing intended for the provision of the public service.
• Tariff revisions: The new framework allows for ordinary and extraordinary tariff revisions, with automatic adjustments in periods not exceeding three months.

Strategic Improvement Master Plan

The reform entrusts the Planning Agency (APLA) with the creation of a Master Plan for Strategic Improvement that must establish the guidelines and technical strategies for the development of basic infrastructure works that enable the expansion and extension of the public service, including project schedules, sources of financing and executing agencies.

The decree establishes that the concession contract may provide for a transitional regime to allow an orderly and progressive implementation of the new provisions for a maximum period of five years once the privatization is formalized, with the aim of maintaining the balance of the economic-financial equation of the contract.

Government justification

In the official text, the Government argues the changes by arguing that "the design of the current regime does not adjust to the current needs of expansion, sustainability and efficiency that the provision of the service requires, having been conceived for a state management model that does not adequately contemplate the necessary conditions to promote new investments and expand coverage".

Likewise, the administration justifies the measure in the "context of deep economic crisis" that "severely limits the capacity of the State to sustain and expand the provision of public service." This critical situation, according to the decree, "is evidenced by the growing operational and financial deterioration of AySA, whose current structure is insufficient to respond to the growing demands for coverage, quality and sustainability."

Presidential spokesman Manuel Adorni announced Monday that President Javier Milei signed a decree that eliminates the National Highway Directorate and other agencies in the area, after the confirmation of Cristina Kirchner's conviction for acts of corruption in the construction of roads.

"This body was created to simplify corruption," Adorni said at a press conference at the Government House.

In this context, he pointed out that Milei "ordered the  definitive closure of the National Highway Directorate and also of the National Commission of Traffic and Road Safety and the National Road Safety Agency."

"In this way, the National Commission for Transport Regulation, known as the CNRT, will be reorganized, which will be renamed the Agency for Control and Concessions of Public Transport Services and will be the enforcement authority in terms of rules and administrative acts related to the inspection of road concessions," he explained.

In this context, he anticipated that the Government will begin the bidding process for 9120 kilometers of roads that "after decades of waste and corruption were degraded as never before in history."

"Corruption in public works has its death certificate signed today and has just been signed by the president," remarked the spokesman and clarified that the closure of the agencies occurs within the framework of the powers delegated by  the Congress of the nation to the Executive Branch.

Adorni, in addition to highlighting the use that the libertarian government gave to these powers, stressed that Milei did not extend their validity, as did other presidents who preceded him.

"It starts with a symbol, it ends with a symbol. It begins with INADI which, as Manuel said, is for us the clearest representation of the political use of the State and to use the State to impose an ideological vision on Argentines, and ends with Vialidad, which is the icon of Kirchnerist corruption," added the Minister of Deregulation and Transformation of the State, Federico Sturzenegger.  responsible for changes.

What do the changes in Roads imply?

"The National Highway Commission, an organization that incredibly controlled itself, that's why we had the Vialidad case. The National Road Safety  Agency was eliminated, which could not control traffic without the support of the security forces, now the task is carried out by the Gendarmerie, which controls 2.5 million cars per year, at 80,000 checkpoints," Adorni explained.

Federico Sturzenegger said that Javier Milei will entertain on Wednesday some 200 officials responsible for the deregulation of the State

He also said that the CNRT had been left "practically without competences with the deregulation of Transport" and that the functions of control of trains and public services will pass under the orbit of the new agency created.

Ads linked to the Health area

Adorni also announced that the administrative, financial and legal management of five national hospitals was unified: Sommer, Posadas, Carrillo, Bonaparte and Inareps, constituting the National Administration of Health Establishments.

He also reported that the federal health delegations were eliminated; the power of the national Executive Branch to create new hospitals under the figure of the Comprehensive Medical Care Service for the Community (SAMIC) was annulled; the National Cancer Institute was transformed  into an organizational unit of the Ministry of Health, and functions were reorganized at the ANLIS Malbrán.

The National Institute of Tropical Medicine and the Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases were dissolved; and the Agency of the National Hemp and Medical Cannabis Industry, which said that the latter is "the example of agencies that are created with the sole purpose of making money".

Other announcements

Among the announcements made on Monday by the presidential spokesman, he explained that the National Institute of Family, Peasant and Indigenous Agriculture; the National Institute of Seeds; Inadi; the Juan Domingo Perón Institute and the Permanent Commission in Tribute to General Juan Domingo Perón, among other organizations, were dissolved.

He also reported that national institutes such as the Sanmartiniano, Theater and Viticulture, INTI and Tecnópolis, among others, were transformed into organizational units; and the National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA); the National Bank of Genetic Data, among others, and that the Museum of the former ESMA and the National Archive of Memory were merged into the International Center for the Promotion of Human Rights.

In addition, the National Electricity Regulatory Entity (ENRE) and the National Gas Regulatory Entity (Enargas) merged, constituting the National Gas and Electricity Regulatory Entity; the Transport Safety Board changed its functions and its name to the Aviation Accident and Incident Investigation Agency.

In the case of the Financial Information Unit (FIU), he said that "it was adapted to the standards required by the Financial Action Task Force, known to you as the FATF."

With regard to Anses, he announced that "credits were eliminated" so that "the State does not give away retirees' money at ridiculous rates for political purposes."

In that process, he mentioned:

• The automotive transport of cargoes was deregulated, including the RUTA
• The request for free debt to sanitary works was eliminated.
• Removed builder registration.
• The auto parts market was simplified.
• Unnecessary procedures that limited competition in digital services were eliminated.
• The mandatory "Educating in Equality" days were eliminated.
• The National Fund for the Construction of Military Service Housing was eliminated.
• The Mint was transformed.
• The privatization of Intercargo, Corredores Viales and Energía Argentina Sociedad Anónima was authorized.
• Layers of programs, training, registrations and promotions of the SME Law were eliminated.
• Imports for science and technology were liberalized.
• The regimes for the promotion of sheep farming, llamas, silkworms, goat activity, cattle farming in arid and semi-arid areas, water buffaloes and cotton production were repealed.
• The import of batteries was deregulated.
• The market for bottles was deregulated and imports were liberalized.
• 29 trust funds were dissolved.
• The National Entity of Water Works of Sanitation was dissolved.
• It merged by absorption of the construction of housing for the Navy by Playas Ferroviarias de Buenos Aires Sociedad Anónima.
• Energy laws 24,076 and 24,065 were modified so that any private party can contract electricity with the supplier of their choice.
• Private initiative was freed up for the expansions of the electricity grid to promote the expansion of the grid.
• Tourism Law 25,997 was amended in order to eliminate state interventions that distort the market and national competencies in the field of regional tourism, such as the social hotels of Chapadmalal and Embalse.

"This has been the result of this first stage of the chainsaw plan that, as you know and we have said it a thousand times, this chainsaw as far as we are concerned is infinite," Adorni concluded.

Argentina under polar wave

The polar wave in argentina is a meteorological phenomenon characterized by a sudden and significant drop in temperatures, due to the entry of a mass of cold air from the Antarctic continent or the south of the country. These polar waves tend to especially affect the central, southern and eastern regions of Argentina, although they can sometimes extend northwards.

Explanation of the phenomenon

Polar waves occur when a high-pressure system pushes very cold air from Antarctica towards Argentine territory. This can happen due to:

• Advance of a cold front associated with a low pressure system.
• Influence of the polar wind, which carries frigid air to lower latitudes.
• Loss of cloudiness, which favors nighttime cooling (frost).

Duration

A polar wave in Argentina usually lasts between 3 and 7 days, although in extreme cases it can persist longer, especially in Patagonia. The lowest temperatures are usually recorded during the early morning and early hours of the morning.

Geographical scope

The most affected regions are:

• Patagonia (Chubut, Santa Cruz, Tierra del Fuego): temperatures below zero, snowfall and intense winds.
• Center of the country (Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Córdoba, south of Santa Fe): intense frosts, minimums close to 0°C or below.
• Cuyo and northern Argentina (in extreme cases): notable decline, although less intense than in the south.

Impact

• Agriculture: Damage to crops due to frost.
• Energy: Increase in electricity consumption due to heating.
• Health: Risk of hypothermia and respiratory diseases.
• Transportation: Possible road closures due to snow or ice (especially in Patagonia).

Example:

In June 2024, a polar wave affected much of Argentina, with temperatures of -12°C in Bariloche and -5°C in Buenos Aires, accompanied by unusual snowfall in low-lying areas.

NASA and CSA to assign astronauts for Artemis II

NASA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) will announce the four astronauts who will venture to the Moon's surroundings. The announcement will be made during an event to be held at 11 a.m. EDT (10 a.m. CDT) on Monday, April 3, at NASA's Johnson Space Center's Ellington Field in Houston.

Artemis II is the first crewed flight test in the Agency's plan to establish a long-term scientific and human presence on the lunar surface.

NASA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) will announce the four astronauts who will venture to the Moon's surroundings. The announcement will be made during an event to be held at 11 a.m. EDT (10 a.m. CDT) on Monday, April 3, at NASA's Johnson Space Center's Ellington Field in Houston. The astronauts will travel aboard NASA's Orion spacecraft during the Artemis II mission, the first crewed flight test in the agency's plan to establish both a long-term scientific and human presence on the lunar surface.

The event will air on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the  agency's website.

Media are invited to attend the event and talk to astronauts about their assignments. Other experts working on Artemis missions, including Spanish speakers, will also be available. On Tuesday, April 4, there will be more opportunities to remotely interview crew and other experts.

International media wishing to attend should contact NASA by 5 p.m. CDT on Friday, March 17. U.S. media should contact NASA by 5 p.m. CDT on Monday, March 27. Media can RSVP to the Johnson Center Newsroom by calling +1 281-483-5111 or emailing: jsccommu@mail.nasa.gov.

Artemis II is the first crewed mission aboard NASA's critical infrastructure for deep space exploration with humans: the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, the Orion spacecraft and the ground systems needed for its launch. The mission, which lasts approximately 10 days, will test the life support systems of the Orion spacecraft to demonstrate the capabilities and techniques necessary to live and work in deep space in a way that only humans can.

The crew will include three NASA astronauts and one CSA astronaut, highlighting the agency's strong international partnerships and global alliance exploring deep space for the benefit of humanity under Artemis. Artemis II builds on the successful Artemis I flight test, which launched an uncrewed Orion spacecraft, mounted on the SLS rocket, on a journey of about 2.25 million kilometers (1.4 million miles) beyond the Moon to test the systems before astronauts fly aboard the systems on a mission to the Moon.

Thousands of Faithful Bid Farewell to Pope Francis

Pope Francis, who died on Monday at the age of 88, is being held in St. Peter's Basilica where thousands of faithful come to pay their respects before his funeral, scheduled for Saturday.

The pontiff's body was transferred from Casa Santa Marta to the Basilica in a solemn procession led by the College of Cardinals. More than 20,000 people gathered in St. Peter's Square received the coffin with applause as it was carried down the steps of the Basilica.

During the opening ceremony, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, led a brief prayer thanking "the innumerable gifts he bestowed on the Christian people through his servant, Pope Francis" during his 12-year pontificate.

The funeral Mass will take place on Saturday, April 26 at 10:00 a.m. in St. Peter's Square, presided over by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals. Some 200,000 faithful and more than 150 international delegations are expected to attend, including numerous heads of state and government.

Although Pope Francis introduced some changes to traditional funeral protocol, mainly related to the coffin, the ceremony will maintain the characteristic solemnity with strict diplomatic and liturgical protocol.

After Mass, the late Pope's body will be transferred from St. Peter's Basilica to the Basilica of St. Mary Major for burial.

Jorge Mario Bergoglio, born in Buenos Aires in 1936, was elected pope on March 13, 2013, becoming the first Latin American pontiff in history.

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