Venezuela to ration power four hours a day for 40 days

Recession-hit Venezuela will turn off the electricity supply in its 10 most populous states for four hours a day for 40 days to deal with a severe power shortage, the government said Thursday. It is the latest drastic measure to alleviate a severe electricity crisis which President Nicolas Maduro and his government blame on a drought caused by the El Nino weather phenomenon. Maduro is under growing pressure from the center-right opposition, which vowed to oust him when it took control of the leg