NEWS

Parents 'struggling to feed children as prices rise'

2012-02-15T16:24:00.000+08:00

A year of record food prices has forced millions of parents in the developing world to cut back on food for their children, says aid agency Save the Children.

The agency surveyed families in India, Bangladesh, Peru, Pakistan and Nigeria.
One parent in six said their children were abandoning school to help out by working for food.
The agency said the price hikes had worsened child malnutrition and could hit progress reducing child deaths.
It warned that if no action was taken, half a billion children would be physically and mentally stunted over the next 15 years.
The survey was carried out in the five countries - where, Save the Children says, half the world's malnourished children live - by international polling agency Globescan.
It found nearly a quarter of a billion parents had cut back on food for the family in the past year. A third of parents surveyed said their children complained about not having enough to eat, the agency said.
One in six said their children were missing school in order to work to buy food, the agency revealed in its report A Life Free From Hunger: Tackling Child Malnutrition.
"The world has made dramatic progress in reducing child deaths, down from 12 to 7.6 million, but this momentum will stall if we fail to tackle malnutrition," said Save the Children chief executive Justin Forsyth.
The agency wants the UK to lead the way in reducing hunger and protecting children from food price rises - starting with a Hunger Summit when world leaders are in London for the Olympics.

Payout of £600,000 after child witness put at risk

2012-02-15T16:20:00.000+08:00

The Crown Prosecution Service and Met Police paid a family more than £600,000 in damages and costs after a child witness was put at risk.

The 16-year-old boy had been promised anonymity to give evidence about a violent gang attack, but details were inadvertently passed to gang members.

The family of three was moved for its protection. The 2008 payout is thought to be one of the largest of its kind.
Prosecutors said the service's actions "fell below our accepted standard".
The family was threatened after details of the boy's identity were disclosed, and had to be relocated as part of a witness protection scheme.
In a statement, the boy, his mother and her partner told BBC News they had been left with "no option" but to leave their homes, careers, families and friends "without even being able to say goodbye".
They said other children in the family also had to leave.
"The children were uprooted from their schools and whisked away without an opportunity to explain: The trauma and upset this caused is beyond words."
'Lost trust'

The family blamed the mistake on the Crown Prosecution Service and the Metropolitan Police and launched legal action against them for psychiatric damage, lost earnings and disruption to their lives.

The CPS and the Met eventually paid damages of more than £550,000, with the CPS paying almost two-thirds, £350,000.
As part of the settlement, the CPS and the Met also had to pay £50,000 legal costs between them as well as apologise to the family.
The family said that, for the young witness, "no sum of compensation would have given him back his youth".
"He will never recover from this experience, he has lost trust in the police and if he were to witness a similar crime tomorrow - he would simply look away."
Fiona Murphy, the solicitor representing the family involved, said that it was the largest known payment of compensation for a violation of the right to private and family life brought against state agencies.
The case was settled in December 2008, but the details were never made public.
Information withheld In December 2010, the CPS revealed - following a Freedom of Information Act request by the BBC about civil claims - that it had made a payment of £350,000 but refused to provide further information.
The BBC appealed to the Information Commissioner and was told by the CPS in December 2011 that the claim related to a "failed request for anonymity at a trial". No other information was given.
It was only after a further request to senior prosecution officials that the CPS agreed to provide fuller details about the case.
The CPS said: "This payment relates to a case dating from four years ago where information was passed to the defence which led to concerns about the safety of a young witness and their family, so that they had to be provided with protective measures.
"The CPS recognised that its actions in this case fell below our accepted standard and, together with the Metropolitan Police Service, reached an agreed settlement of damages and an apology, with the parties concerned.
"We regret that on this occasion we did not provide the support which is normally available to witnesses."
A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said the force always aimed to provide victims and witnesses with the support they required.
She added: "When we get it wrong we acknowledge it with those involved and if appropriate provide compensation."
Last week, the CPS was criticised over the way it treated young victims and witnesses in a joint inspection report by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and the Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate.
Inspectors said young people in England and Wales were being "left to flounder in an imperfect system" and warned that their interests "must be taken seriously".
The report found that young people were not consulted on how they were to testify in court and that some cases were delayed or adjourned for several months.

Greece has made 'superhuman' sacrifices, says minister

2012-02-15T16:18:00.002+08:00

Greece's public order minister has said the government has made "superhuman" efforts to comply with austerity demands made by the eurozone.

Christos Papoutsis said Europe should act responsibly, after it was announced that a meeting in Brussels on the bailout had been cancelled.
Eurogroup president Jean-Claude Juncker said face-to-face talks would be replaced by a conference call.
He said Greece had not showed that it was committed to the austerity plan.
Ministers have demanded Greece find an extra 325m euros of savings, in return for 130bn-euro bailout ($170bn, £109bn) bailout package.
Athens needs the rescue deal to avoid defaulting on its debt next month.
Deputies expelled "Greece has made all the efforts that it needed to do, and the people cannot take any more,'' Mr Papoutsis said after a Cabinet meeting.
"The government is making superhuman efforts and we have reached the limits of the social and economic system. From now on, Europe has to take the responsibility.''
On Tuesday, Mr Juncker said the talks, due to take place on Wednesday, would be replaced by a conference call, saying technical work with Greece was still needed "in a number of areas".
Finance ministers had not received assurances from leaders of Greek political parties on a programme of proposed cuts, Mr Juncker was quoted by Reuters as saying.
As well as 17 ministers from nations that use the euro, the president of the European Central Bank Mario Draghi and the Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs, Olli Rehn, had also been due to attend the meeting.
The latest bailout was agreed in principle by EU leaders in October, conditional on Greece adopting further measures to cut its deficit and restructure its economy.
On Sunday, Greek MPs approved extra cutbacks, but parties had to expel more than 40 deputies for failing to back the bill.
Thousands protested in Athens, where there were widespread clashes and buildings were set on fire. Violent protests were reported in cities across the country.
On Tuesday, an official report showed that the decline of the Greek economy accelerated in the final three months of 2011.
The estimate showed that, compared with a year earlier, Greek GDP contracted by 7% in the fourth quarter of 2011.
That is an acceleration from the 5% contraction in the third quarter.
The report also shows that the Greek economy shrank 6% last year, an increase on earlier estimates and the fifth year of recession.

China Vice-President Xi Jinping in US visit

2012-02-15T16:17:00.002+08:00

China's leader-in-waiting, Xi Jinping, has defended his country's human rights record, during a visit to Washington.

At a State Department lunch, the Chinese vice-president admitted that there was "room for improvement" on human rights.
Separately, Mr Xi and US President Barack Obama discussed trade and currency issues, as well as China's stance on Syria, officials said.
Mr Obama said a strong relationship between the two nations was "vital".
Mr Xi, meanwhile, said he hoped his visit would deepen mutual understanding and friendship between the two powers.
The 58-year-old is expected to succeed China's President Hu Jintao, who must retire as head of the Communist Party later this year and from the presidency in 2013.
'Same rules'

Xi Jinping: Purpose of visit to build relationship "based on mutual respect"

The US and China have been at odds over trade, currency and human rights. Last month, China's vetoing of a UN Security Council resolution on Syria also angered US officials.
Mr Xi, who is in the US all week, said he had had a "candid exchange" regarding human rights with his US counterpart, Joe Biden, and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
"I stressed that China has made tremendous and well-recognised achievements in the field of human rights over the past 30-plus years, since reform and opening up," he said.

"Of course, there is always room for improvement when it comes to human rights," he added.

His comments were similar to those made by President Hu during a trip to Washington a year ago.
But his visit comes amid concerns over a clampdown by Beijing on protests in Tibet, and outside the White House, human rights activists staged protests as Mr Xi arrived.
Some waved Tibetan flags or held signs proclaiming, "Xi Jinping: Tibet will be free."
In the Oval Office, Mr Obama was warm but firm, the BBC's Kim Ghattas in Washington says.
Washington also put pressure on Beijing over what it sees as unfair trade practices, as well as the value of its currency.
Mr Obama said he "welcomed China's peaceful rise", but added: "We want to work with China to make sure that everybody is working by the same rules of the road when it comes to the world economic system."
"That includes ensuring that there is a balanced trading flow not only between the United States and China but around the world."

Pro-Tibet demonstrators held a rally outside the White House

Mr Xi hailed further economic co-operation with the US, saying that any issues should be resolved through dialogue, "not protectionism".
Meanwhile, Mr Obama privately told Mr Xi he was disappointed with China's veto of the UN Syria effort, according to unnamed US officials.
'Critical issues' Later, the Chinese vice-president met Defence Secretary Leon Panetta at the Pentagon and was received with a full honour guard.
Mr Xi and Mr Panetta made short remarks at the beginning of the meeting but did not take reporters' questions.
Mr Xi is making the trip as the guest of US Vice-President Joe Biden, who made a high-profile visit to China late last year.
On Wednesday, he is due to travel to Iowa to meet his hosts during his first visit to the US in 1985 when he was a county official.
Those who had hosted him in the small farming community in Muscatine, where he toured to learn about crop and livestock practices, said they were surprised he had fitted a visit there into his US trip.
"I'm flabbergasted that he would take time out of his busy schedule and come back to Muscatine,'' said Eleanor Dvorchak, whose family hosted him for two nights.
Mr Xi will then fly to Los Angeles, California, to meet business leaders and reportedly attend an LA Lakers basketball game on Friday.
After the US trip, Mr Xi is also scheduled to visit Ireland and Turkey.

Valentine's Day

2012-02-14T09:55:00.001+08:00

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Four injured in embassy car blast in Delhi, Israel blames Iran

2012-02-14T01:34:00.000+08:00

Israel accused arch-enemies Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah of being behind twin bomb attacks that targeted embassy staff in India and Georgia on Monday, wounding four people.
Tehran denied involvement in the strike, which has amplified tensions between two countries at
loggerheads over Iran's contested nuclear programme. Hezbollah, the powerful Shi'ite Muslim movement in neighbouring Lebanon, declined comment.

Police in the New Delhi said a bomb wrecked a car carrying the wife of the Israeli defence attache as she was going to pick up her children from school. She needed surgery to remove shrapnel but her life was not in danger, officials said.

Three others suffered lesser injuries in the same blast. Israeli officials said an attempt to bomb an embassy car in the Georgian capital Tbilisi had failed and the device was defused.

Israel had put its foreign missions on high alert ahead of the anniversary of the Feb. 12, 2008 assassination in Syria of the military mastermind of Hezbollah, Imad Moughniyeh -- an attack blamed on the Jewish state.

Israel is also believed to be locked in a wider covert war with Iran, whose nuclear programme has been beset by sabotage, including the unclaimed killings of several Iranian nuclear scientists, most recently in January.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quick to blame both Iran and Hezbollah, accusing them of responsibility for a string of recent attempted attacks in countries as far apart as Thailand and Azerbaijan.

"Iran and its proxy Hezbollah are behind each of these attacks," said Netanyahu. "We will continue to take strong and systematic, yet patient, action against the international terrorism that originates in Iran."

Iran's ambassador to India denied that his government had anything to do with the attack on the New Delhi embassy.

"Any terrorist attack is condemned (by Iran) and we strongly reject the untrue comments by an Israeli official," Mehdi Nabizadeh was quoted as saying by IRNA. "These accusations are untrue and sheer lies, like previous times."

Israeli officials have long made veiled threats to retaliate in Lebanon for any Hezbollah attack on their interests abroad, arguing that as the militia sits in the government in Beirut, its actions reflect national policy.

MOTORCYCLE ATTACK

The New Delhi blast took place some 500 metres from the official residence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. BK Gupta, the New Delhi police commissioner, said an eyewitness had seen a motorcyclist stick a device to the back of the car, which had diplomatic plates.

"The eyewitness ... says it (was) some kind of magnetic device. As soon as the motorcycle moved away a good distance from the car, the car blew up and it caught fire," said Gupta.

The Iranian scientist killed in Tehran last month died in a similar such attack. No one has claimed responsibility for this.

Israel named the injured woman as Talya Yehoshua Koren. "She was able to drag herself from the car and is now at the American hospital (in New Delhi), where two Israeli doctors are treating her," said a defence ministry spokesman.
Thailand said last month its police had arrested a Lebanese man linked to Hezbollah and he later led them to a warehouse stocked with bomb-making materials.
Also last month, authorities in Azerbaijan arrested two people suspected of plotting to attack Israel's ambassador and a local rabbi.

In a Jan. 24 speech, Israel's military chief of staff, Lieutenant-General Benny Gantz, accused Hezbollah of trying to carry out proxy attacks while avoiding direct confrontation. Israel and Hezbollah fought an inconclusive and costly war in 2006.

"During this period of time, when our enemies in the north avoid carrying out attacks, fearing a harsh response, we are witnesses to the ongoing attempts by Hezbollah and other hostile entities to execute vicious terror attacks at locations far away from the state of Israel," Gantz said.

"I suggest that no one test our resolve."

Microsoft's India store hacked, usernames & passwords stolen

2012-02-13T17:01:00.000+08:00

NEW DELHI: Hackers, allegedly belonging to a Chinese group called Evil Shadow Team, struck at www.microsoftstore.co.in on Sunday night, stealing login ids and passwords of people who had used the website for shopping Microsoftproducts.

While it is troublesome that hackers were able to breach security at a website owned by one of the biggest IT companies in the world, it is more alarming that user details - login ids and passwords - were reportedly stored in plain text file, without any encryption.

Following the hack, the members of Evil Shadow Team, posted a message on the Microsoft website saying "unsafe system will be baptized". The story was first reported by www.wpsauce.com.

Later, the website seemed to have been taken offline by Microsoft. We advise the users at Microsoft India Store to change the password as soon the website comes online. Also, if they have used the same password or login id on any other web service, they should change it immediately.

Last year, hacker groups like Lulzsec had carried out several-profile high profile break-ins, putting focus on the security measures companies put in place. Sony allegedly suffered several security breaches and hackers stole user ids and passwords of customers from its network.

In a message posted on a website called Pastebin, Lulzsec claimed the group was bringing attention to the web security. "Do you think every hacker announces everything they've hacked? We certainly haven't, and we're damn sure others are playing the silent game. Do you feel safe with your Facebook accounts, your Google Mail accounts, your Skype accounts? What makes you think a hacker isn't silently sitting inside all of these right now," the group wrote.

But the incident at Microsoft Store on Sunday hints that lessons have not been learnt. Just like Sony, which later revealed that user ids and passwords were not encrypted at the time of security breach, Microsoft too seemed to have been casual about handling the user details by storing them in a plain text file. We have contacted Microsoft but company has so far not acknowledged or commented on the security breach.

LIVE CRICKET

2012-02-12T15:07:00.000+08:00

australia v india live cricket streaming

Now, Sebi catches social networking fever

2012-02-12T14:52:00.002+08:00

Market watchdog Sebi seems to be the latest to catch the fancy of social networks like Twitter,
Facebook and blogs for spreading its message to investors as also to snoop on discussions at these platforms as part of its investigation and oversight activities.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is hiring specialist IT officers, whose role would include keeping track of social media platforms like Twitter and blogs for all market-related information, comments and discussions.

Sebi is also toying with the idea of having its ownofficial presence on Twitter and other social networks to strengthen its information dissemination process for investors and other market participants, a senior official said.

Another financial sector regulator, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is also considering a presence on social networking platforms like Twitter.

Late last year, RBI conducted a survey to know whether it should make its web interface more interactive with features like discussion forum, live chat and blogs on its website, and by having a Twitter presence for information dissemination.

Recently, the Prime Minister's Office also debuted on Twitter and is said to be exploring the idea of having a presence on Facebook as well.

A number of organisations globally, including regulators and government departments, are increasingly using Twitter and other such platforms for fast dissemination of information and collating the public views.

Even the US President Barack Obama and his official residence and workplace, the White House, have a presence on Twitter and various other online platforms such as blogs.

In India also, some ministries and many corporates are present on Twitter, while a number of public figures are active members of this micro-blogging site.

Experts say that social media platforms have become a very effective place to spread the information fast, but at the same time, they are also being used by various scrupulous elements, including those in the stock market.

There are numerous blogs where members discuss stock market trends and in many cases stock tips are also exchanged.

Leading social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter are also full of such discussions and it is feared that
scrupulous elements could be using such forums for their
market manipulation activities.

On many occasions, Sebi has warned investors against websites offering stock tips.

In one such warning, Sebi has said the investors expose themselves to undue risk in using unconfirmed information available on such websites and blogs.

Sebi recently put in place software tools to analyse social networking discussions to strengthen its probe and oversight on stock market transactions.

'Best cancer doctor' treating Yuvraj in US

2012-02-12T14:51:00.000+08:00

While the entire country hopes and prays for India cricket stalwart Yuvraj Singh's recovery, it is satisfying to hear from a reputed medical personality that the star cricketer is being treated by the best in business.Dr J G Lalmalani, considered one of India's leading urologists, said, "I have had some patients treated by Dr Lawrence Einhorn. The results of chemotherapy are excellent life long. The downside is the many side effects."

"Finally the hair has gone," Yuvraj Singh posted on his Twitter page yesterday. Hair loss (alopecia) due to chemotherapy is one of the most distressing side effects of chemo treatments. Hair loss happens because the chemotherapy affects all cells in the body, not just the cancer cells.

However, Dr Lalmalani said: "Usually the tumour starts from the testicles and spreads to the lymph nodes, lungs and needs removal of the testicle, chemotherapy and sometimes also surgery and radiation for the lymph nodes."

"If this is part of the testicular cancer causing metastasis in the lungs, Dr Einhorn is the best guy," Dr Lalmalani added. It can be noted that on October 2, 1996, then aged 25, Lance Armstrong, the former American professional road racing cyclist, who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, was diagnosed as having developed Stage Three testicular cancer (Embryonal carcinoma). The cancer spread to his lungs, abdomen and brain.

Interestingly, Dr Lalmalani's few patients have been cured by Dr Einhorn, who was in the medical team that successfully treated Armstrong. Dr Einhorn has created a major program in clinical investigation and is credited with major advances in the curative treatment of this cancer, most notably in the clinical use of platinum-based chemotherapy. "The drug is called cisplatinum and is very effective," Dr Lalmalani confirmed.

I am not dating anyone: Sonakshi

2012-02-12T14:49:00.002+08:00

Actress Sonakshi Sinha has rubbished reports that she is dating her 'Lootera' co-star Ranveer Singh, saying that she is not dating anyone.
The 24-year-old, who made her Bollywood debut with actor Salman Khan starrer 'Dabangg', also said that she absolutely loathes Valentine's Day.

"I know it makes a good sensational copy to link co-stars and makes for great gossip, but I just want to confirm that I am not dating or in a romantic relationship with anyone.

"Oh ya - AND sorry to burst your bubble but I absolutely loathe valentines day, so for me to fuss around it, would be most unlikely! (sic)," Sinha wrote on her Twitter page.

Intex Avatar 3D touch mobile phone comes to India

2012-02-12T11:28:00.000+08:00

The Intex Avatar 3D touch mobile phone recently hit the shores of India. The highlight of this handset is that it allows users to convert 2D images and videos into 3D with a simple touch.
This newly released Intex mobile device is accompanied by a free pair of 3D glasses for users to view the converted content in 3D. It also comes along with a 4GB multimedia card which contains 10 pre-installed 3D films and lets owners watch 3D videos at the rate of 30 frames per second.

Sanjay Kumar, GM, Mobile Business, Intex Technologies India, stated, “At Intex, we believe in addressing consumer needs by constantly innovating and developing feature-rich mobile handsets. India has evolved in adoption of 3D technology. Keeping consumer needs in mind we have introduced this novel feature. Intex is poised to provide unique offerings to all the technology enthusiasts with products such as ‘Intex Avatar’ that provide an enriched experience to long standing customers in India and abroad.”

Incorporated with the dual SIM function, the Intex Avatar possesses a 2MP main camera featuring flash. It is fitted with a 2.8-inch multi-touch display and offers an expandable memory of up to 16GB. Furthermore, a bunch of popular games such as Fruit Ninjia, Pentachess, Call of Atlantis, Yumsters and Crazy Birds can be found pre-loaded in this handset.
The Intex Avatar 3D touch mobile phone price reads at Rs. 3,690 and it is now available at 70 Intex retail stores and about more than 15,000 reseller outlets and distributors across India.

Pravin stabbing: Is the UK safe for Indian students anymore?

2012-02-12T11:14:00.000+08:00

London: Yet another Indian student has come under attack in Britain. Pravin Reddy, from Hyderabad, was a student of MBA at the London Business School. On Friday night, he was stabbed several times at a party he was attending in Newham, London, the Scotland Yard said. The boy is currently recuperating at the London Royal Hospital.
Pravin suffered severe abdomen and chest injuries and is currently said to be in a critical condition.
While the police has arrested 11 people in connection with the crime, the attack has once again raised the all-important question - Is Britain really safe for Indian students anymore?

The British High Commissioner insists it is. "We want to tell you that the UK is a safe country," he says. "We are establishing the facts and working closely with the MEA. We will do everything so that the family can go and see their son. We are taking up the matter seriously," he adds.
In Hyderabad, meanwhile, a distraught father is praying for his son. Sudhakar Reddy, a relative, says, "Around 9:40 in the morning we spoke with him (Pravin). Around 11 pm, we got a call about this incident. We were told he is in a serious condition."
Pravin was expected to arrive in Hyderabad next week to attend a family wedding. However, now, his family is praying for his life.

‘India should have reacted strongly, must seek probe’

2012-02-12T11:11:00.000+08:00

A day after he met the special Indian envoy sent by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, deposed Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed told The Sunday Express that New Delhi should demand an independent inquiry into the “coup” and said he was disappointed that India did not make the correct judgement on the matter.
“There is a strong need for an inquiry into the circumstances that led to the coup. I think India should make this point,” Nasheed said even as his successor announced that he would order an independent probe.
Nasheed, who said on Friday that he “understood” New Delhi’s political compulsions and was not disappointed with its reaction, changed his position on Saturday after meeting special envoy M Ganapati. He was more critical of India’s stand, but refrained from taking a very strong position.
“(We believed) that India would have had a very proper understanding of the issue as they have all information as well as intelligence (inputs) to make the right judgement. It is disappointing when you find it is not so,” Nasheed said.
The former president has protested over what he terms as a bloodless coup that “illegally” removed him from office. He has demanded an international scrutiny into the circumstances that led to his ouster on Tuesday.
Nasheed, who was close to the Indian leadership, said his party expected a “more robust, more strong” reaction by India, adding that New Delhi should have made its voice heard during the crisis. He said that there is still scope for India to change its stance of welcoming and supporting the new government under President Mohamed Waheed.
“In the first flash (of reaction) there was a bit of a misunderstanding. US had the same stand but they backtracked a bit. India should also not hesitate to do this. It has not made the best start but changes can be made,” Nasheed said.
While Nasheed had refrained from commenting on India’s role so far, his change of stance is being seen as a sign that New Delhi has made its position clear that it believes in the legitimacy of the present government.
New Delhi is of the opinion that the change of power was conducted in a politically conducive manner and within the framework of the Maldivian government. Nasheed, however, said on Saturday that his removal took place almost at gunpoint and that his life was threatened before he handed in his resignation.
Sources said India, however, has made its position clear that the change in leadership is part of the political process and was, in fact, inevitable as Nasheed’s government had lost power in Parliament. The Indian view has been that Nasheed’s Maldivian Democratic Party was on its way out and a legitimate opposition group, led by Waheed, came to power.

Will soon unveil nuclear progress: Ahmadinejad

2012-02-12T11:06:00.002+08:00

Iran will soon unveil “big new” nuclear achievements, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Saturday while reiterating Tehran’s readiness to revive talks with the West over its controversial nuclear program.
Ahmadinejad spoke in Tehran as tens of thousands marked the 33rd anniversary of the Islamic Revolution that toppled the pro-Western monarchy and brought Islamic clerics to power.
Ahmadinejad did not elaborate on the upcoming announcement but insisted Iran would never give up its uranium enrichment. The West suspects the nuclear program is aimed at producing atomic weapons, a charge Tehran denies, insisting it’s geared for peaceful purposes only, such as energy production.
Four rounds of UN sanctions and recent tough financial penalties by the US and the EU have failed to get Iran to halt aspects of its atomic work that could provide a pathway to weapons production.
“Within the next few days the world will witness the inauguration of several big new achievements in the nuclear field,” Ahmadinejad said.
Iran has said it is forced to manufacture nuclear fuel rods since international sanctions ban it from buying them on foreign markets. Apart from progress on the rods, the upcoming announcement could pertain to Iran’s underground enrichment facility at Fordo or upgraded centrifuges, which are expected to be installed at the facility in Natanz. Iran has also said it would inaugurate the Russian-built nuclear power plant in the southern port of Bushehr in 2012.
“Iran is ready for talks within the framework of equality and justice,” Ahmadinejad repeated on said Saturday but warned that Tehran “will never enter talks if enemies behave arrogantly.”

Canadian authorities contact CBI on Air India ‘bribery’ case

2012-02-12T11:05:00.000+08:00

While Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh categorically stated that no inquiry would be conducted on the basis of allegations published in Canada about bribes changing hands in an aborted $ 100-million Air India deal in 2007, the Central Bureau of Investigation is already conducting what is being described as a “discreet inquiry” in the case.
The Canadian authorities, through a diplomatic process, briefed the CBI about the allegations, probably even before they were published in The Globe and Mail. Following a personal interaction with Canadian officials, the CBI has been “actively” inquiring into the 2007 deal for purchase of facial recognition biometric systems from a Canadian firm named CryptoMetrics. A few days ago, the CBI asked Canadian authorities for a written statement of Indo-Canadian businessman Nazir Karigar, whom the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is planning to prosecute under the newly-legislated Foreign Public Officials Act.
Heavy Industries Minister and former civil aviation minister Praful Patel was named by the newspaper as an intended beneficiary of a $ 250,000 bribe supposed to have been given by Karigar. Calling the allegations in the report “baseless and false”, Patel sent a letter to the Prime Minister requesting him to get all the documents related to the aborted contract examined by any agency and then convey the factual position to the authorities in Canada to avoid any “embarrassment to the Government of India or to me personally”.
According to the news report, Karigar used his acquaintance with former Mumbai police chief Hassan Gafoor, who was then with Air India, to push his case — a claim Gafoor has denied.
The CBI has already inquired into the facts of the pitch made by CryptoMetrics for the sale of the systems to Air India and learnt that the deal fell through due to internal objections raised by officials in Air India and the Civil Aviation Ministry itself. The agency would only at a later stage decide whether the case was a fit one for registering either a Preliminary Enquiry (PE) or a Regular Case (RC) or whether it should be left unregistered.

While Anna fights Govt, Culture Ministry lists him for Gandhi Prize

2012-02-12T10:59:00.000+08:00

Two months after Anna Hazare brought the UPA government to its knees, the Ministry of Culture included his name in the list of probables for the 2011 Gandhi Peace Prize. But the Prime Minister’s Office has withheld the list and has sought more names.
“The list of nominees has not been sent to the jury as the PMO is unhappy with the present nominations and wants more names,” said a government official. Culture Minister Kumari Selja recently wrote to jury members seeking nominations for the prize.

This is the first time that the jury is being asked to send their choices as the code of procedure for the award says that former members of the jury, among others, were competent to send nominations.
Sushma Swaraj, a jury member because of her position as the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, confirmed that she received the letter last week. “I got a letter from Selja saying that they have not received my nomination and that I should send it,” she said.
She was unaware of any list from the ministry or the fact that she was a jury member. “In that case, my sending a name would be a conflict of interest. I would be sending a name and deciding on it,” she said.
Shyam Benegal, noted filmmaker and Rajya Sabha MP, expressed similar consternation. “I have not been informed (of being a jury member). Selja’s note also came to me but I have no clue as to who should be nominated. I, really, am incapable of doing it considering it is given to world leaders. I can’t think of anybody of that stature.”
Interestingly, the ministry’s list, culled from nominations, had more than a dozen illustrious names besides Kisan Bapat Baburao Hazare, better known as Anna Hazare. It includes Nobel Peace prize winner Aung
San Suu Kyi, Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina, former President APJ Abdul Kalam, Rajya Sabha member Karan Singh, agriculture scientist M S Swaminathan and the late singer Bhupen Hazarika, among others.
Selja and Culture Secretary Jawahar Sircar were not available for comment.
The official said that the proposal has been languishing in the PMO since end-October when it was sent by the ministry. The award is usually announced in November and conferred in January.
Other ‘competent persons’ who can suggest names are the past awardees, Members of Parliament, Nobel laureates, heads of international peace bodies, presidents, governors, vice chancellors and heads of Indian missions abroad, among others.
Once cleared, it goes to the jury which, this year, comprises Benegal and Infosys mentor N R Narayana Murthy besides three ex-officio permanent members — the Prime Minister, Chief Justice of India and the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.
The International Gandhi Peace Prize, named after Mahatma Gandhi, was awarded annually until 2005. Launched in 1995 on the occasion of the 125th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, it is given to individuals and institutions for their contributions towards social, economic and political transformation through non-violence and other Gandhian The award carries Rs 1 crore in cash, a plaque and a citation.

Surgery successful, Big B likely to return home today

2012-02-12T10:55:00.002+08:00

Given his history of ailments, Amitabh Bachchan’s latest abdominal surgery, though minor, was a matter of concern for his fans. The 69-year-old actor has been suffering from various stomach-related illnesses since his near-fatal accident in 1982 while shooting for the film Coolie .
Soon after the procedure, the veteran actor’s star son Abhishek Bachchan stepped out of the lobby of Seven Hills Hospital in Andheri East, where the actor was admitted, and told reporters that his father is recovering well. He also tweeted, “Thank you all for your wishes and prayers. The surgery went off well and dad is now in the room resting.”
The actor was admitted to the hospital around 9 am on Saturday, following a check-up on Friday. The procedure lasted around two hours and was successful.
Dr Ashok Asthana, vice-president (Operations) at the hospital confirmed that there were no complications during the surgery. “All vital parameters of Mr Bachchan are normal. He was cheerful when wheeled into the operation theatre and before going for the operation, he visited a temple on the hospital premises,” he said.
Abhishek confirmed that his father will be discharged from hospital on Sunday.

Oppn raises pitch, wants PM to sack Khurshid

2012-02-12T10:51:00.000+08:00

New Delhi: Hours after Election Commissioner wrote a letter to President Pratibha Patil against Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid, the BJP on Saturday said the minister had no right to continue in the government. The main Opposition said an 'unprecedented situation had been created' with the poll body constrained to seek intervention of the highest constitutional authority over Khurshid's repeated violation of the model code of conduct.
"We demand his immediate sacking from the Union Cabinet and ask the Prime Minister to clarify the stand of the government," said BJP vice president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi who had earlier complained to the EC against Khurshid's defiance despite his censure by the poll body.
The Election Commission on Saturday sought the 'immediate and decisive' intervention of President after it charged Khurshid with 'improper and unlawful' defiance of its orders under which he was censured for promising sub-quota for minorities.

The move comes after Khurshid had dared the Election Commission to act against him over his comment on Muslim sub-quota. Khurshid had said, "They can hang me if they want, but I will continue to ask for reservations for pasmanda Muslims."
The Election Commission said that it was shocked that Khurshid chose to be defiant and aggressive.
Sources said that the President has forwarded the Election Commission's letter to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) for appropriate action.
Sources in the Election Commission said that the commission even considered countermanding elections in Khurshid's wife's constituency Farrukhabad.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) reacting to the Election Commission's letter said, "Law Minister is trying to demolish the structure of the democracy."
BJP leader Sushma Swaraj on social networking site twitter said, "We request the President to withdraw her pleasure and dismiss Shri Salman Khurshid as a Minister of the Union Cabinet for acting against EC."
In a not-so-veiled attempt, Khurshid earlier took on the Election Commission in Farrukhabad.
"I don't have permission to talk about the rights of minorities. I was attacked for promising them their rights. They can hang me for standing up for the minorities," said the Congress leader.
BJP spokesperson Balbir Punj hit out at Khurshid saying it was unfortunate that a minister was undermining the authority of a constitutional body.
"It is really unfortunate that of all the people, the Law Minister of the country, Mr Salman Khurshid, is not only challenging the authority of the Election Commission of India but also undermining its authority," said Punj.
In its letter, Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi wrote, "The Commission is approaching you with serious dismay and a deep sense of urgency that requires your kind intervention in the midst of the poll process in the state of Uttar Pradesh. The Union Minister for Law and Justice and Minority Affairs, Salman Khurshid, who is also a leader of the Indian National Congress Party, had made certain statements and announcements during the course of his campaign in the state. One of them was to the effect that the Congress would provide a quota of 9 per cent reservation to the minorities within the existing quota of 27 per cent for OBCs. He also indicated that Muslims having a sizeable population will be benefited from this move. Following complaints received from a political party that such announcement was a violation of the Model Code of Conduct, the Commission, after due notice and hearing, passed an order on February, 9, 2012 that Khurshid had indeed violated the MCC. The full Commission hence deliberated on the matter in an emergency meeting, this afternoon, while being concerned about the fact that Khurshid’s action could vitiate free and fair poll in Uttar Pradesh."
Never before has the Election Commission sought Presidential intervention to rein in a Union Minister in the middle of a crucial election and the Election Commission's decision is bound to embarrass the government and the Congress.
Khurshid, while campaigning for his wife Louise, who is a Congress candidate from Farrukhabad Assembly constituency in Uttar Pradesh, had promised the electorate last month that the party would increase the sub-quota for minorities to nine per cent, out of the 27 per cent Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservation.

Pop music queen Whitney Houston dies; cause of death unknown

2012-02-12T10:44:00.000+08:00

Whitney Houston, who reigned as pop music's queen until her majestic voice and regal image were ravaged by drug use, erratic behavior and a tumultuous marriage to singer Bobby Brown, has died. She was 48.

Publicist Kristen Foster said that the singer had died, but the cause and the location of her death were unknown.

At her peak, Houston was the golden girl of the music industry. From the middle 1980s to the late 1990s, she was one of the world's best-selling artists. She wowed audiences with effortless, powerful, and peerless vocals that were rooted in the black church but made palatable to the masses with a pop sheen.

Her success carried her beyond music to movies, where she starred in hits like "The Bodyguard" and "Waiting to Exhale." She had the perfect voice and the perfect image: a gorgeous singer who had sex appeal but was never overtly sexual, who maintained perfect poise.

She influenced a generation of younger singers, from Christina Aguilera to Mariah Carey, who when she first came out sounded so much like Houston that many thought it was Houston.

But by the end of her career, Houston became a stunning cautionary tale of the toll of drug use. Her album sales plummeted and the hits stopped coming; her once serene image was shattered by a wild demeanor and bizarre public appearances. She confessed to abusing cocaine, marijuana and pills, and her once pristine voice became raspy and hoarse, unable to hit the high notes as she had during her prime.

"The biggest devil is me. I'm either my best friend or my worst enemy," Houston told ABC's Diane Sawyer in an infamous 2002 interview with then-husband Brown by her side.

It was a tragic fall for a superstar who was one of the top-selling artists in pop music history, with more than 55 million records sold in the United States alone.

2012-02-10T20:54:00.001+08:00

2012-02-10T20:52:00.001+08:00

2012-02-10T20:49:00.001+08:00

LOVE FAILURE 2012

2012-02-10T20:48:00.001+08:00

Buddhist monk detained in Burma

2012-02-10T20:43:00.002+08:00

A prominent Buddhist monk who was one of hundreds of political prisoners freed in Burma last month has been detained after a pre-dawn raid by authorities.
Shin Gambira was one of the leaders of the 'saffron revolution', a 2007 anti-government uprising against the then ruling junta. He was detained after the uprising and released on 13 January as part of a mass release of political prisoners that has been hailed as a sign of Burma's new government's willingness to make reforms.
The news of Gambira's detention, however, had echoes of the previous administration, which was known for whisking away its critics in the middle of the night.
An official from the home ministry said Gambira was taken from the Rangoon monastery where he was staying and brought for "questioning in relation to an incident that happened after his release".
The official said Gambira and other monks had illegally entered monasteries that had been shut after the 2007 uprising.
It was not immediately clear how long Gambira would be detained.
Gambira had also publicly voiced scepticism about the new government's commitment to democratic reforms.
His detention comes amid widespread international attention on Burma, where the new, nominally civilian government has drawn cautious praise.
The US and European Union have welcomed recent progress but say they will be closely watching an April byelection before deciding whether to lift sanctions imposed during military rule.

Report: Blasts rock army bases in Syria's Aleppo, civilians killed

2012-02-10T20:40:00.000+08:00

At least 25 killed in blast Syrian TV says targets installations country's second largest city; activists report resumed activity by Assad's army near rebel city of Homs.

The so-called "terrorist explosions" shook Aleppo, Syria's second largest city, only a day after the city's first wave of anti-government demonstrations was reported.
Opposition officials claimed the Syrian regime orchestrated the attack in order to damage the image of anti-Assad forces.
State television showed blood, bodies and shattered concrete strewn across a street outside one of the apparent targets of the blasts, a military security building in the northern city.
The so-called "terrorist explosions" shook Aleppo, Syria's second largest city, only a day after the city's first wave of anti-government demonstrations was reported.
Opposition officials claimed the Syrian regime orchestrated the attack in order to damage the image of anti-Assad forces.
State television showed blood, bodies and shattered concrete strewn across a street outside one of the apparent targets of the blasts, a military security building in the northern city.
The explosions follow three suicide bombings in the capital Damascus in December and January which killed at least 70 people. Syria's government, blaming al-Qaida for at least some of those attacks, vowed an "iron-fist response".
Aleppo had been spared most of the unrest roiling Syria since anti-Assad protests erupted in March, but it has seen increasing protests and violence in recent weeks.
Syria's private Addounia Television said initial information showed 11 civilians and security force members were killed in an explosion at a military security building and six more at a base for security forces.
A reporter on state television, in a live broadcast from outside the military security complex, said the blast had been audible 20 km away.
The damage shown in the footage suggested the bomb may have detonated on the road outside the five-storey building. A concrete wall around it was badly damaged and its windows were blown out. At least one car appeared blackened and destroyed, and several more were damaged.
Lifting blankets and plastic sheets which had been laid over corpses on the pavement, the reporter showed a body with its head blown off and other bloodied human remains including a limbless torso and a blown off foot.
"We apologize for showing these pictures, but this is the terrorism which is targeting us," the reporter said, at times choking with emotion.
He said children were among the dead, showing a single rollerblade left on the pavement.
"Is this the freedom of Hamad and Erdogan?" one man shouted, referring to Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim and Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, who have led the chorus of regional criticism against Assad. "Hamad, you dog," he said.
Syrian television showed similar bloody scenes at the second site, hit by what the reporter said was a car bomb. The blast had gouged a crater several meters (yards) wide, blown a truck onto its side and hurled chunks of concrete over a wide area.
The television showed people pulling body parts out of a black refuse bin for the camera.
The opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights earlier quoted Aleppo residents as saying three blasts occurred, including one near a security building. They also reported hearing gunfire.
A resident contacted by Reuters said an area around a military intelligence complex in the New Aleppo district had been sealed off after the explosions.
Also Friday, Syrian activists reported continued intensive military activities in the rebel city of Homs, with residents saying tanks and hundreds of soldiers were surrounding the city's Sunni neighborhoods.
Activists estimate these latest measurers precede another day of battle in the beleaguered city, geared at suppressing opposition forces.
Reports of resumed violence in Homs came after on Thursday opposition sources said military forces loyal to President Bashar Assad has begun stockpiling chemical weapons and equipping its soldiers with gas masks near the rebel town.
Opposition activists said they had received reports that the Syrian army had transferred a significant quantity of grenades and mortars containing chemical agents to a school building in Homs.

The opposition also reported that gas masks were being distributed to soldiers at roadblocks.
Homs has become the focal point of violent confrontations between insurgents and the country's military in recent days, and opposition figures are concerned that the moves could signal the regime's intention to use chemical weapons against its citizens.
News agencies reported over 130 killed in Syria on Thursday, as Assad's government intensified its crackdown on an expanding uprising against his regime.

Syria unrest: Maps and videos of Homs fighting

2012-02-10T20:38:00.000+08:00

The continued crackdown by Syrian security forces on anti-government protesters and armed rebel groups has seen the central city of Homs come under intense bombardment in the past week and troops on the move in other parts of the country.

Opposition and human rights activists say more than 400 people have been killed in Homs since rockets and mortars began hitting homes in the city's opposition-dominated districts on 4 February. Tanks and troops are now said to be massed on the outskirts, poised to launch a ground assault on protest centres such as Baba Amr.
Homs has been a focus of anti-government unrest since demonstrations against President Bashar al-Assad erupted in March 2011. Activists say more than 7,000 people have been killed by security forces across the country. The government says at least 2,000 security forces personnel have died combating "armed criminal gangs and terrorists".

Will Rahul Gandhi dent a confident BSP?

2012-02-10T11:10:00.000+08:00

Karnataka Advocate General issue: Karuna slams BJP

2012-02-10T11:06:00.000+08:00

Chennai: DMK president M Karunanidhi on Thursday slammed BJP for trying to "help" Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa to come out of the disproportionate wealth case being heard in a Bangalore court by exerting pressure on Karnataka's Advocate General and the Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) BV Acharya.
In a statement issued here, Karunanidhi said the BJP and the Karnataka government were trying to remove Acharya from the SPP post to help Jayalalithaa.
Citing Acharya's comments to the media, Karunanidhi said the BJP and the Karnataka government acted in support of Jayalalithaa and the former preferred to resign as Advocate General than quitting as SPP in the case against Jayalalithaa.

Karuna said the BJP and the Karnataka government were trying to remove Acharya from the Special Public Prosecutor post to help Jayalalithaa.

Referring to Acharya's comments to the media, Karunanidhi said the former has said that he resigned as Advocate General as he was pressurised to quit as SPP.
Karunanidhi recalled BJP's senior leader LK Advani's recent address in a function here that AIADMK is a "natural ally of BJP" in support of his views.
On Wednesday, Acharya resigned as Karnataka's Advocate General saying that he was pressurised to quit the SPP post on the ground that he cannot hold two positions - Advocate General and SPP.

Delhi: 12-year-old boy dies imitating TV suicide scene

2012-02-10T11:03:00.000+08:00

New Delhi: A 12-year-old boy died in New Delhi when he reportedly tried to imitate a suicide scene he had seen in a movie, police said on Thursday.
The Class 5 student of a Sarvodaya school, Suhail, was found hanging from a ceiling fan at his Jafrabad home in east Delhi on Tuesday. His mother made the shocking discovery.
The incident took place when the boy's parents Mohammad Salim and Isha had gone to express condolences over a family friend's death.

The boy was rushed to Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital where he was declared dead. He was the only child of his parents.
"A few days ago Suhail had watched a suicide scene in a movie on TV. Curious, he had asked his mother questions about the act and reasons for committing suicide. However, she scolded him," said a police officer.
"After the scolding by his mother, Suhail had started remaining quiet and appeared to be upset. In my wildest dreams, I cannot imagine that he would commit suicide," said a police official quoting Salim.
"She scolded him. It is possible that while imitating the act of suicide, he accidentally hung himself," said a police officer quoting the distraught mother Isha.

Deepika didn't even apologise after quitting Race 2, says angry Taurani

2012-02-10T11:01:00.000+08:00

Filmmaker Ramesh Taurani is upset with actress Deepika Padukone for opting out of his Race 2 at the last moment following an offer for a Hollywood project and rues that she didn't even apologise for her hasty retreat.

"I went to her shooting. We tried to reason it out with her. But she refused to even listen. Forget about anything else, she did not even apologise for her action. She seems to have no remorse" Taurani said in a statement.

The filmmaker says he is facing such crisis for the first time.

"I have been part of the Hindi cinema industry for 25 years. I have made several blockbusters. But I have never faced a situation like this before. Our directors and other actors are extremely annoyed with her," Taurani said in a statement.

"Tips as a company in its last 25 years has never had a dispute with anyone. There is no single case in the association which involves us, it will be very sad and uncalled for if the matter goes to that level," he added.

The actress, who had shot for a week for the film, is said to have backed out after being approached for a Hollywood project. Taurani was left fuming after learning that he was among the last to know about her decision.

"On January 27 people kept calling me asking whether Deepika was out of Race 2. I was clueless. I called her and asked her. She simply said that she would come to my office by 5 p.m. with her new manager to work out everything. At around 3 p.m., she called to say that she wouldn't be able to keep the appointment. However, her manager would be present on her behalf," said Taurani.

"Finally, when the manager arrived, he simply told me that Deepika wouldn't be able to do our film. And that's because she is doing a major Hollywood project," he added.

Earlier, Sonakshi Sinha had walked out of the multi-starrer film and was replaced by Jaqueline Fernandes. The star cast of the film also includes Saif Ali Khan, John Abraham, Anil Kapoor and Ameesha Patel.

Amid buzz of ‘closure’, Zakia Jafri seeks copy of SIT report on Modi

2012-02-10T10:58:00.000+08:00

Gujarat riots victim Ahsan Jafri’s widow Zakia and two civil rights groups Thursday filed two separate applications seeking copies of the report that the special investigation team (SIT) investigating the alleged involvement of Chief Minister Narendra Modi in the violence submitted in a magisterial court here on Wednesday.
Metropolitan magistrate M S Bhatt issued notice to the SIT and posted the matter for hearing on February 13. The SIT’s report, filed to the court in a sealed cover, has been surmised to be a closure report, granting Modi relief.
Zakia has accused Modi and 62 others of having failed to discharge their duties during the riots, leading to the killings of innocent people. Her husband, Congress leader and former MP Ahsan Jafri, was killed in the Gulberg Society massacre of February 28, 2002.
Zakia filed her application today along with activist Teesta Setalvad — who was also a complainant — on the SIT’s alleged non-compliance with the Supreme Court order of September 12, 2011. The other application was filed by Jan Sangharsh Manch led by advocate Mukul Sinha.
The filing of the SIT report yesterday coincided with the Gujarat High Court’s severe rap to the Modi government for failing to control the riots despite having an intelligence collection mechanism in place, thus leading to anarchy. The court delivered an order on a petition seeking rebuilding of some 600 religious structures that were destroyed in the riots.
Sources told The Indian Express that SIT officials huddled with their legal adviser R S Jamuvar, a Delhi-based former lawyer for the CBI, in Gandhinagar on Wednesday discussing the possibility of filing either a ‘C’ or an ‘A’ summary in the case. Both are closure summaries.
A ‘C’ summary is filed for a complaint that is “neither true nor false” or “false but not maliciously false”; an ‘A’ summary is for a complaint that is true but there is no evidence.
The SIT has been under intense pressure since yesterday after civil rights groups and Gujarat Congress chief Arjun Modhwadia reacted sharply to the speculation that a closure report had been filed.
Zakia told The Indian Express, “We don’t know what findings the SIT has given to the court. We have full faith in the Almighty. If we don’t get justice in this world we will definitely get justice in His court.”
Her son Tanveer said, “The SIT submitted the report at the last minute, before the court closed for the day, so we did not get any time. We are waiting to get the report to decide our further course of action. As per the directions of the Supreme Court, the SIT should submit its closure report along with the report of amicus curiae Raju Ramchandran.”
In a related development, retired DGP R B Sreekumar shot off another letter to SIT chief Raghavan on Thursday, seeking his statement on the evidence against Modi to be recorded under Section 164 of the CrPC, thus giving it a legal basis. He listed the evidence he has given to the SIT against Modi.
Sreekumar, who was intelligence chief in 2002, told The Indian Express, “Modi never once confronted me on the reports I had sent, first on April 24, then June 15 and August 28, all in 2002, on how Muslims were losing faith and that the police was colluding with rioters.”
His letter to Raghavan said, “In my view, your act of exonerating Shri Narendra Modi and his collaborators in the anti-minority carnage will be celebrated by all enemies of our motherland, particularly Hindu and Muslim extremists...”

Warrant issued for former Maldives president

2012-02-10T10:51:00.000+08:00

MALE, Maldives (AP) – A court in the Maldives issued an arrest warrant Thursday for former president Mohamed Nasheed, one day after his supporters rampaged in the capital and his claim of being ousted in a coup left unclear the stability of the fledgling Indian Ocean democracy.

Police spokesman Abdul Mannan Yusuf refused to disclose the grounds for the criminal court's warrant, or say when Nasheed — who is living at his Male home, surrounded by supporters — would be arrested. Later, Police Commissioner Abdullah Riaz said it was not clear if the warrant was constitutional. He declined to provide details, but said the warrant's legality was still being examined.

Nasheed had announced he was voluntarily resigning Tuesday after months of protests against his rule and fading support from the police and the army. But the next day, as former vice president Mohammed Waheed Hassan was forming a government, Nasheed suddenly announced he had actually been pushed from power at gunpoint.

Thousands of his supporters swept into the streets. They clashed with security forces in Male, the capital, and attacked police stations in remote parts of this 1,200-island archipelago nation off southern India. The new government insists there was no coup.

Late on Thursday, Nasheed demanded his successor step down and called for new presidential elections, now scheduled for September 2013.

"We want an election as soon as possible," he told hundreds of cheering supporters gathered at a conference hall in Male, predicting his Maldivian Democratic Party will emerge victorious from the vote. "Forty-eight hours out of power and we have over 500 people in jail without any charges," he said. The number of people arrested could not be immediately verified.

The dispute threatens the crucial tourism industry of this mostly Muslim nation of 300,000 people, which relies on dozens of high-end resorts that cater to the rich and famous. The developments also raise questions about the future of a democracy that shed a 30-year, one-man rule only with the 2008 multiparty elections that brought Nasheed to power.

Britain advised this week against all but essential travel to Male Island because of protests in the capital, but it noted the international airport and resort areas were operating normally. The United States is advising travelers to exercise caution, avoid protests and not engage in political activity while in the Maldives.

In nearby Sri Lanka, travel agents said they had seen no immediate drop in business, but predicted that would change if the crisis continued.

Rizmi Riyaz, of the firm Travel Global, said he was worried that tourists would soon "think twice (about going to the Maldives) as they are concerned about the situation."

The city of Male was calm but tense Thursday, with the streets crowded with commuters. Police said the violence in outlying islands had stopped.

Maldives police commissioner Abdullah Riyaz said 18 police stations on several islands, along with an undetermined number of court houses and police vehicles, were destroyed in the violence. Police said they detained 49 people after the Male rioting.

The new defense minister vowed to punish those responsible for Wednesday's violence, calling the destruction "acts of terrorism."

"The Maldives national defense force remains vigilant in enforcing the law and order and upholding the constitution of the Maldives," Mohammed Nazin told reporters Thursday, barely 12 hours into his new job.

Nasheed's party insisted his ouster was engineered by rogue elements of the police and supporters of the country's former autocratic leader, whom Nasheed defeated in 2008. Others blamed Islamic extremists.

Hassan, who was Nasheed's vice president, has denied claims of a plot to oust Nasheed and called for a unity coalition to be formed to help it recover.

The military also denied that it forced Nasheed to resign at gunpoint. "There is no officer in the military that would point a gun toward the president," Brig. Gen. Ibrahim Didi said. "The military did not call for his resignation, he resigned voluntarily."

Hassan, who had promised to protect Nasheed from retribution, said his predecessor was not under any restriction and was free to leave the country. However, he said he would not interfere with any police or court action against Nasheed.

Nasheed's wife arrived Wednesday afternoon in nearby Sri Lanka, according to Bandula Jayasekara, the Sri Lankan presidential spokesman.

Nasheed's resignation marked a stunning fall for the former human rights campaigner who had been jailed for his activism under the 30-year rule of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. Nasheed also became an environmental celebrity for urging global action against climate change, warning that rising sea levels would inundate his archipelago nation.

Over the past year, Nasheed was battered by protests over soaring prices and demands for more religiously conservative policies. Last month, Nasheed's government arrested the nation's top criminal court judge for freeing a government critic and refused to release him as protests grew.

Sania upsets Morita at Pattaya Open

2012-02-09T17:30:00.002+08:00

India’s tennis star Sania Mirza continued her recent good form when she shocked World No. 64 Ayumi Morita of Japan 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 in the first round of the Pattaya Open championship on Tuesday, according to information received here.

The 25-year-old Sania, who played a key role last week to help India come back into the Group I of the Fed Cup championship, is currently ranked world No. 111 in women’s singles and World No. 7 in women’s doubles.

It was a day of mixed emotion for the Mirza family as Sania's husband and former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik was dropped from the Pakistan one-day squad today.

Sania will now face World No. 16 and second seed Dominika Cibulkova in the next round.

Fabio Capello resigns as England manager with Harry Redknapp cleared to succeed him

2012-02-09T17:29:00.000+08:00

Fabio Capello last night sensationally resigned as England manager, capping an extraordinary day on which Harry Redknapp was acquitted of tax evasion charges, clearing the way for him to succeed the Italian.

Capello’s resignation came after an hour-long meeting with Football Association chairman David Bernstein in which it became clear that the manager felt the decision to strip John Terry of the captaincy had rendered his position untenable.

Capello was furious at what he felt was the undermining of his position, and a restriction on his ability to shape the team as he saw fit. Bernstein had excluded Capello from deliberations over Terry’s role, placing the FA’s wider role as regulator above the short-term interests of the coach. Last night it left them without a manager and a captain four months before the start of Euro 2012.

Capello said: “I leave England and I will not say anything else.” When asked about the quotes attributed to him by an Italian news agency, he said they were “false”.

The FA is expected to ask under-21 coach Stuart Pearce to take charge as caretaker for the friendly against Holland on Feb 29, before beginning a considered search for a replacement. A press conference has been arranged for noon today at Wembley.

There was already a clamour for Redknapp last night. Wayne Rooney tweeted: “Gutted Capello has quit. Good guy and top coach. Got to be English to replace him. Harry Redknapp for me.” Sunderland manager Martin O’Neill said: “Harry is obviously the favourite and I think he should be. He deserves the opportunity, he should be the one.”
Capello’s position had been in jeopardy since he gave an interview to Italian state television Rai on Sunday protesting at Bernstein’s decision to remove Terry. The interview posed a direct challenge to the FA chairman’s authority, which had been bolstered by his move against Terry following the adjournment of the Chelsea captain’s trial on charges of racially abusing Anton Ferdinand until after Euro 2012. Having taken that decision, and with the full support of the board to deal with Capello as he saw fit, Bernstein was not minded to back down, leaving a parting of the ways inevitable.

We will rotate the openers, says Sehwag

2012-02-09T17:26:00.000+08:00

Perth: India opener Virender Sehwag said Tuesday the team will be rotating opening batsmen and in Wednesday`s second ODI against Sri Lanka he would be replacing Sachin Tendulkar or Gautam Gambhir. Sehwag said the rotation policy is designed to give youngsters more opportunity, keeping in mind the 2015 World Cup.

Sehwag, who was rested in the first ODI against Australia, will be taking the field Wednesday and is likely to replace Gambhir.

"They will decide on it (opening combination) tomorrow. We want to give a break to the top three batsmen, either Gautam (Gambhir) or Tendulkar will take a break and maybe I can play," he said.

Sehwag said the rotation policy is designed to give the youngsters an opportunity keeping in mind the 2015 World Cup, which will be jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand.

"The break is good. You are playing Tests, then Twenty20s and now ODIs. The body can be fatigued and a mental break is also good. So, top three can get a break and all the youngsters can play and they need to because they have just arrived. We want to give chance to youngsters. The next World Cup is here. All the youngsters this way can play and get used to the conditions here," Sehwag said.

Sehwag said it is very important for the youngsters to play 70-80 ODIs before the World Cup.

"It`s important; the youngsters have to play a lot more ODIs, especially when the World Cup comes, they should have played 70-80 ODIs. Our aim is to give more chances to youngsters," he said.

Sehwag said he would be back to his usual attacking mode in the ongoing tri-series here.

"I tried to play a little differently in Perth Test because the ball was doing something. It didn`t work, so I went back to my own style. I will do so in ODIs as there are only 50 overs and you want to give a good start to the team," Sehwag said.

"My style of playing is to give little respect to new ball and then go after the bowling, depending on who`s bowling. If someone is bowling well, you have got to give him respect," he added.

Sehwag said India may play three or even four fast bowlers against Sri Lanka.

"We are clear about one thing from Day One - we would play with two spinners if the pitch is dry. Maybe Perth is different; we can play three or even four fast bowlers here. It`s a strategy which the captain and coach decided, especially in big grounds such as the MCG, where the wicket was dry and the ball was stopping and coming on to the bat. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn`t."

"In India it`s difficult for spinners to bowl in powerplays. But then (Ravichandran) Ashwin and Harbhajan (Singh) played together against Australia in the quarter-finals," he said.

Schumacher tells Mercedes to learn from the past as he sets fastest time in Jerez

2012-02-09T17:24:00.000+08:00

Michael Schumacher is hoping Mercedes have learned their lessons of the past even though they head into the new Formula One seemingly on the backfoot.
Unlike all of their major rivals who have unveiled their new cars over the past few days, and are being put through their paces this week in the first pre-season test in Jerez, Mercedes are running last year's model.
Primarily it has been to evaluate the new generation of Pirelli tyres, with the new-spec car not being unveiled until the first day of the second test in Barcelona on February 21.

Setting the pace: Michael Schumacher was the fastest around the track in Jerez

According to team principal Ross Brawn, the additional build time is vital for his team to hit the ground running this season.
The theory, however, is Mercedes have something up their sleeve they are eager to hide from the opposition.
Whatever car rolls out at the Circuit de Catalunya in 13 days' time, Schumacher is naturally expecting improvements.
After setting the fastest time in testing so far over the past two days with a lap of one minute 18.561secs and completing 132 laps, the seven-times champion was appreciably subjective given the car he had beneath him.
'We had a productive day. We did a lot of mileage, not just cruising around,' said the 43-year-old Schumacher.

Leading the way: Schumacher on the track ahead of Ferrari's Felipe Massa

'We did some very good work with the new tyres that we have to face this year. That was the main focus for us.
'We used the old car and know what the difference is between this year's and last year's car, trying to understand a programme.
'The tyres have changed quite a bit. Certainly they are more consistent and a lot closer to a Formula One tyre as you would expect, and what you would wish to have.
'Therefore I'm quite happy for Pirelli to have developed this well. I had a good day yesterday and today, and for a race driver that is important."
But asked as to his concerns at being four days behind the other teams, for Schumacher the main point is that Mercedes have at least eradicated the issues that have previously blighted them.

Old car: Schumacher is in last season's Mercedes car with new tyres

'The main point is the reliability factor," said Schumacher.
'If the car has a certain performance it will be reasonably quick, unless you have unexpected circumstances, which we have had in the past.
'We hope not to have these again, to have learned our lesson, with our programme done in a way that we believe in it."
However, when it came to assessing his title prospects, Schumacher is downplaying his chances
'Realistically, I don't think we can achieve a championship car from where we started last year,' said Schumacher.
'We have to build our way there, and I'm confident we can do that in the future, but let's take it step by step.'

Lessons leant? Schumacher hopes Mercedes have moved on from past seasons

Schumacher was further reminded of the fact no driver over 40 has won the F1 title since Jack Brabham in 1966.
Defiantly, he said: "Well, I'm still around to fight for the championship.
'Whether we can or cannot do it, that is something that will be proven this year, or whenever.'
Of the 2012 cars, Red Bull's Mark Webber led the way with a lap of 1:19.184secs, half a second up on the best of yesterday posted by the returning Kimi Raikkonen in his Lotus who was fifth today.
In between were Toro Rosso's Daniel Ricciardo and Force India test driver Jules Bianchi, with Paul di Resta sixth after taking over in the afternoon and completing another 69 reliable laps.
Ferrari's Felipe Massa was seventh quickest, followed by McLaren's Jenson Button, who was 1.5secs adrift of Webber, but again it was another productive day for the Briton as he clocked up 85 laps.
Team manager David Redding said: "Despite the cold and windy conditions, Jenson was able to log further mileage with the car.
'It's still early days, and this was very much an exploratory day, but we were able to get a useful understanding of how the car behaves and reacts out on the track.
'It's satisfying Jenson's been able to complete more than 600km of trouble-free running over the past two days which puts us in a good position for the rest of the week.'
Button now hands over the reins of the MP4-27 to Lewis Hamilton for the remaining two days of the test.

Battle over 'Mehrunissa's female lead continues

2012-02-09T17:22:00.002+08:00

Mumbai: Apparently a disagreement over who to cast as the female lead has cost UTV a film. Producer Nikhil Advani has gone ahead and collaborated with DAR Motion Pictures for co-producing Sudhir Mishra's magnum opus 'Mehrunissa' starring Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor. UTV was earlier supposed to produce this film.
Has there been a fallout between Nikhil and UTV? Our source says, "Though we don't know the real reason but there is definitely no fallout.
Nikhil is producing another film with them." The source however adds, "There was a divided opinion on who to cast as 'Mehrunnisa'. UTV was insisting to cast Katrina Kaif but Nikhil and Sudhir were not convinced. We wonder if that is the reason for Nikhil opting out and collaborating with other producer because he wanted more creative freedom." The source also says that the buzz about Sudhir's muse Chitrangada Singh playing the lead character is untrue.

The film marks a comeback of the legendary actors Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor together after 28 years. The source adds, "'Mehrunissa' is a much classier version of 'Bade Miyan Chhote Miyan' with the same humour but a lot of nawabi romance thrown into it."
Nikhil Advani, confirms, "'Mehrunissa' is very close to our hearts. Being one of the most interesting and challenging films coming out of our banner this year meant that it was essential that our partner's sensibilities, vision, values, etc.
were completely in sync with Sudhir and us. Our decision to partner with DAR was in this very spirit." But Nikhil chose to be silent when asked about why it didn't work out with UTV.
About the film
The epic love story, which was kept on the backburner for 15 years is set during the 1947 Partition. The film is about a girl who drives a wedge in the 50-year-old friendship between two friends essayed by Big B and Rishi Kapoor.

Amitabh Bachchan to undergo stomach surgery

2012-02-09T17:20:00.002+08:00

Amitabh Bachchan, who has been suffering stomach ailments from quite a long time, says he will be undergoing a minor surgery on February 11.

The 69-year-old actor will undergo a CT Scan tomorrow and the day after, he will be taken for the surgery.

'My stomach which has already been the bed of many complicated battles in the past, shall have to entertain this as well. It's a war zone, my body, and one which has been through a great deal and still does.

'A surgery that I shall be undergoing on the 11th morning and the surgery they say is not too complicated, but then all doctors say the same as you end up on the operating table, and before long the details and the subsequent anxieties begin to rise,' Bachchan posted on his blog.

Bachchan, who is currently shooting a cameo in Bhojpuri film Gangadevi with wife Jaya, blames his late night appearances behind the stomach problem.

'The doc who looks after me was furious at my late night appearances... but what does one do... it is this time of the night or the day when there is freedom and solitude to assuage what I must convey or not. But I do understand his concern and shall abide by it,' he added.

Turkey Pushes for New Action on Syria

2012-02-09T17:19:00.000+08:00

ISTANBUL—As Syrian forces pounded the city of Homs with tank shells and rockets, adding dozens of fatalities to the siege's five-day toll, Turkey pushed to the lead of countries trying to halt President Bashar al-Assad's crackdown on his enemies.
Turkey called for an international summit "as soon as possible" to coordinate Syria policy between Middle East and world powers and press Mr. Assad to step aside. "We won't leave Syria to its own destiny," Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said in an interview with Turkey's NTV television. "We are determined to form a platform for broad international consensus."

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov calls on countries with influence over the Syrian opposition to press them to enter a dialogue with embattled President Bashar al-Assad. (Video: Reuters/Photo: Getty Images)

Enlarge Image

A Syrian living in Jordan protested Tuesday against Russia's support of the Syrian regime, in front of Russian embassy in Amman.

The Turkish move comes after Russia and China vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution pressing Mr. Assad to step aside. On Sunday, the day after the veto, the U.S. raised a call for a "friends of democratic Syria" that would ramp up efforts to push Mr. Assad from power.
Such a coalition could provide a platform outside the U.N. to boost diplomatic pressure on Damascus. The U.N.'s latest stalemate came after efforts by the Arab League of nations also failed to stem Syria's violence, which began nearly a year ago with harsh government clampdowns on predominantly peaceful protests and has since brought the country to the edge of civil war.
For Turkey, the moves cement a dramatic reversal during the past year in its alliance with Damascus. They also underline Ankara's coalescence with Washington on regional policy, following a recent strain that saw Turkey moving closer to Iran and engaging in rhetorical sparring with a top U.S. ally in the region, Israel.
Turkey and the U.S. are likely to be joined by countries in Europe and the Arab world that have also called for Mr. Assad to step aside. Separately, senior European Union officials said Wednesday the body is considering new sanctions on Syria.
As international lines against Mr. Assad deepened, one of his allies stood firm. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad pledged Iran's support following a meeting Wednesday with Syria's top cleric.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian met with Syria's foreign minister in Damascus and said afterward that Iran remained "confident that the Syrian leadership and people will be able to overcome the current events," according to Syria's state-run Sana news agency.

Opposition activists in Syria say dozens of civilians have been killed in Homs as the military offensive in the city advances. (Video: Reuters)

The Turkish bid to form an international platform is reminiscent of the Libya Contact Group, an informal group of countries that met several times, including in Istanbul, to harmonize policy during the uprising against Moammar Gadhafi. Mr. Davutoglu said that in recent days he had laid the groundwork for such a meeting, discussing Syria with his counterparts in Italy and Qatar.
Any Libya parallels are likely to be greeted coolly by Russia and China, which have characterized international efforts in Libya as cover for forcing regime change. Mr. Davutoglu didn't say whether Russia and China would take part but said Turkey wanted the group to be "as wide as possible."
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev took a flurry of telephone calls from world capitals over the veto, with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan both conveying on Wednesday that Mr. Assad has lost legitimacy and must step aside, according to their offices.
Mr. Medvedev countered that foreign interference is "not an option," the Kremlin said. Mr. Medvedev instead said that a search to end bloodshed in Syria should continue, including at the U.N. Security Council, according to the Kremlin.
Meanwhile, Syrian forces mounted their fifth consecutive day of attacks on Homs, a city north of Damascus along the Lebanese border, striking with artillery, tank shells, rockets and mortars.
The city, a melting pot of ethnicities that mirror Syria's own ethnic and religious diversity, has been the heart of the 11-month uprising. It has also been a base for rebel fighters thanks in part to the smuggling routes from Lebanon through which activists and locals say opposition fighters are obtaining weapons.

WSJ's Greg White checks in on Mean Street with the latest on pressure on Russia to help end violence in Syria. Photo: AP.

Regional Upheaval

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Amateur videos shot by Homs residents and posted to YouTube by opposition activists showed what were characterized as Wednesday attacks, with shells striking residential buildings and by pillars of smoke rising into the sky. One video appeared to show a resident standing by the corpse of a child, holding a piece of rocket shrapnel that he said had struck the child's home. "What is the U.N. waiting for?" he said in the video. "Are these animals that are dying?"
Another showed a column of Syrian army trucks, including tanks and armored vehicles, rolling along an otherwise deserted road. Activists said it was evidence of the Syrian army's buildup in and around the city.
The images couldn't be corroborated but broadly match accounts from residents reached by telephone throughout the week. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a U.K.-based opposition group, said between 53 and 60 people died in Homs on Wednesday. The group and other activists said late Tuesday night members of a pro-Assad militia known as the Shabiha had murdered 20 members of three entire opposition families. Elsewhere in Syria, activists reported an additional 17 people killed by pro-regime forces, while rebels killed four Syrian soldiers in Zabadani, a suburb of the capital Damascus. Another opposition group put the death toll in Zabadani and the nearby town of Madaya at 18 deaths, saying that phone and power had been cut to the towns, which "are facing a humanitarian crisis."
The regime has blamed terrorist gangs and criminals for the violence in Homs. The state-controlled Syrian news agency on Wednesday reported that rebel-fired mortars struck a nearby oil refinery in Homs, setting two oil storage tanks ablaze.

Russia's foreign minister met with Syrian President Assad and said his message of the need to step up efforts to end the violence in Syria "has been heard." Jeff Grocott has details on The News Hub. Photo: AP

Nottinghamshire couple in £45m EuroMillions win

2012-02-09T17:16:00.003+08:00

A young couple from Nottinghamshire have won £45m in the EuroMillions lottery, Camelot has revealed.

The lottery operator said the couple won £45,160,170.50 in Tuesday's rollover draw.
It is the second major EuroMillions jackpot in the county in a month. Gareth and Catherine Bull, from Mansfield, won £40.6m on 24 January.
Camelot said the identities of the latest winners would be revealed at a press conference later.
Nine countries - the UK, the Republic of Ireland, Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Austria - participate in EuroMillions.

Maldives court 'arrest warrant' for Mohamed Nasheed

2012-02-09T17:16:00.000+08:00

A criminal court in the Maldives has issued an arrest warrant for former President Mohamed Nasheed, officials from his party say.

The report comes a day after Mr Nasheed was among dozens injured in Male when riot police used tear gas against protesters as unrest intensified.
Mr Nasheed resigned on Tuesday amid protests over his rule. He says he was forced to resign by security forces.
It is unclear what the charges against the former president might be.
But the new Maldives police chief told the AFP news agency that he was "not aware" of any arrest warrant.
Senior officials in Mr Nasheed's Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) say there is a warrant for the arrest his former defence minister too.
There are also reports that the family of Mr Nasheed have fled to neighbouring Sri Lanka. A spokesman for the Sri Lankan president told AFP that Mr Nasheed's wife and daughter had arrived in Colombo.

Clean chit to Modi in Zakiya Jafri case: sources; petitioners file fresh plea

2012-02-09T17:15:00.000+08:00

Ahmedabad: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up by the Supreme Court to investigate the 2002 Gujarat riots cases, has submitted its final report on a complaint against Chief Minister Narendra Modi filed by riot victim Zakiya Jafri. Sources say the report gives Mr Modi a clean chit.

The SIT, sources say, has found no "prosecutable evidence" against Mr Modi and 62 other senior politicians and cops accused by Ms Jafri of ensuring that assistance was not provided to her husband, former Congress MP Ehsaan Jafri, and 68 others who were attacked and killed by a rioting mob at Ahmedabad's Gulbarg Housing Society, where the Jafris lived, in February 2002. Mr Jafri was allegedly burnt alive by rioters when he stepped out to plead for the lives of women and children to be spared. Ms Jafri says her husband had made desperate calls to the police and Mr Modi's office for help, but to no avail. She has been fighting a legal battle for many years now.

The SIT submitted its report in a sealed cover yesterday to a Gujarat magistrate's court, as ordered by the Supreme Court. Zakiya Jafri has asked for a copy of the SIT report and filed a fresh application this morning asking if the report is "comprehensive, final, conclusive and in compliance with Supreme Court guidelines." The trial court will hear Ms Jafri's plea at 3 pm on Monday, February 13.

The court will now decide whether to accept the SIT report after it goes through the several thousand pages and evaluates it. It will then conclude whether further investigations are needed in the case.

There is a long legal process ahead, but Mr Modi's party, the BJP would like to score political points right now. Party president Nitin Gadkari said today, "Delhi is conspiring against Gujarat. The CBI is misused and regular attempts are made to tarnish the image of the Gujarat government. This is done with politics in mind; the centre should now stop the mischief against the state government." A more circumspect Arun Jaitley said if mediia reports on the SIT findings were true then three investigations had now found no merit in the allegations against Mr Modi and so these should now be dropped.

Sources say the latest SIT report also notes that no substantial evidence has been found to support suspended IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt's allegation that Chief Minister Modi had, at a meeting on February 28, 2002, ordered that rioters be given a free hand. The SIT, say sources, states in its report that seven officials present at that meeting had denied that Mr Bhatt was even there. The meeting was called to discuss law and order after the Godhra train burning incident that sparked the Gujarat riots.

Last year, the Supreme Court had refused to take a position on the merits of Zakiya Jafri's case and had, instead, directed the SIT to submit a final report to a Gujarat trial court after studying the charges against Mr Modi and the evidence in the case. The Supreme Court's order was immediately hailed by the Chief Minister, as also by the BJP, as a vindication of sorts. Mr Modi, in fact, had tweeted "God is Great" soon after the order.

Zakiya Jafri's family, however, chose to interpret the Supreme Court order quite differently and now says that the reported SIT clean chit for the Chief Minister is not conclusive. Ms Jafri's son, Tanvir Jafri, said today, "The Supreme Court's directive that they will conduct an enquiry in itself is a big victory... if that wasn't there we wouldn't have reached this stage today... a closure report is given by an investigation officer, not the court... It's the investigation officer who is of the opinion that there shouldn't be any case on Chief Minister or his colleague... if the investigation officer himself was a judge then why would we need to go to a judge or magistrate."

Ms Jafri had in 2006 written to the Gujarat Director General of Police, A.K Bhargava, asking that a case be registered against Chief Minister Modi, alleging that he was behind a larger conspiracy that led to the post-Godhra riots. When she did not get a reply, she approached the Gujarat High Court, which rejected her plea. This was in 2007. In 2008, she moved the Supreme Court, which set up the SIT in 2009 and directed it to look into Ms Jafri's complaint. The SIT had also questioned Mr Modi twice and had submitted a report in 2010 stating that it found no "prosecutable evidence" against Mr Modi.

The Supreme Court had then directed an amicus curiae, Raju Ramchandran, to file a separate report in the Jafri case. Mr Ramchandran reportedly differed on various points with the SIT's findings. The Supreme Court then referred the Zakiya Jafri petition to the Gujarat trial court in September 2011.

Greece bailout: Coalition fails to agree cuts

2012-02-09T11:34:00.002+08:00

Greek PM Lucas Papademos has failed to secure the support of his coalition for a raft of new austerity measures, after more than seven hours of talks.

He had met officials from three parties to try to secure a deal leading to a fresh bailout package.
The main stumbling block in the crunch talks was proposed pension cuts, reports said.
Mr Papademos was said to be going directly to discuss the problem with EU and IMF officials.
They are representing the so-called "troika" of bailout creditors - the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund - who had earlier agreed the draft proposals with the prime minister.
They are thought to include a 20% minimum wage reduction, pension cuts and the sacking of 15,000 public sector workers - and have prompted further mass protests.
Officials from Pasok, New Democracy and the far-right Laos party only received the 50-page text on Wednesday morning, reports said, after Mr Papademos agreed the deal with the troika on Tuesday night.

Chongqing policeman Wang Lijun 'holiday' sparks rumours

2012-02-09T11:32:00.000+08:00

A top Chinese policeman - in charge of a major crackdown on organised crime - has gone on leave, amid rumours that he is under investigation for corruption.

Wang Lijun is receiving what his employers describe as "holiday-style medical treatment".
He shot to national fame several years ago after spearheading a popular crackdown on crime in the city of Chongqing.
It would be a major embarrassment if he was found to have broken the law.
The drama began late last week when Chongqing city government announced that "comrade" Wang would no longer be head of the police department.
He kept his post as deputy mayor with new responsibilities, leaving some to speculate that he had not been demoted.
But in his new role, the local authority said Mr Wang would be in charge of areas that included landscape gardening and historical records, which naturally led to rumours that he had fallen from grace.
Then on Wednesday the city government's news department said on its micro-blog site that Mr Wang had gone on leave.

"It is understood that Vice-Mayor Wang Lijun, who has suffered overwork and immense mental stress for a long time, is seriously physically indisposed. After agreement, he is currently taking holiday-style medical treatment," read the message.

Some rumours suggest Mr Wang had sought asylum at the US consulate in Chengdu, a city near Chongqing.
The US state department confirmed on Wednesday that Mr Wang had sought and attended a meeting at the consulate.
But a spokeswoman refused to comment on rumours that he had sought asylum, adding that he had left the consulate "of his own volition".
Discussions on the internet suggest Mr Wang might be under investigation for corruption.
"Of course he needs to take a holiday. He is eating and taking too much. This man needs a rest," read one posting.
A scandal involving Mr Wang could be politically damaging for his boss in Chongqing, Bo Xilai, who hopes to become one of China's senior leaders in a reshuffle at the top later this year.
Mr Bo himself gained much praise for the crackdown on crime in the city he runs.

India ministers in Karnataka quit amid pornography row

2012-02-09T11:30:00.002+08:00

Two ministers in the Indian state of Karnataka have resigned after they were accused of watching pornography in the state assembly.

Footage showed Laxman Savadi apparently watching a clip on a phone and sharing it with his colleague, CC Patil, the minister for women and children.
Another minister, Krishna Palemar, the phone's reported owner, also quit.
The pair denied watching porn but said they quit to prevent embarrassment to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
There was public outrage after news channels ran the story on Tuesday evening, and opposition parties demanded the resignation of the ministers.
"I have resigned to prevent any embarrassment to the party. All three of us will prove our innocence," Mr Savadi said.
An inquiry has been ordered.
'Rave party debate' The footage of the ministers was captured by news channels positioned in the media galleries during a debate in the state assembly.
It shows Mr Savadi, the minister for co-operation, watching a clip on a mobile phone and then showing it to Mr Patil.
The clip appeared to show a woman dancing, undressing and then having sex.

The incident generated protests in Bangalore against the politicians

"Why should I resign?" Mr Savadi asked on Tuesday. "The video I watched was of a woman being raped by four people. It was not porn."
He said he was watching the footage to "prepare for a discussion [in the assembly] on the ill-effects of a rave party" in the state recently.
Mr Patil told reporters: "We are not so uncivilised as to watch porn films."
Mr Palemar, the state minister for ports and environment, said his innocence would be proved by the inquiry.
Correspondents say the incident has come as a major embarrassment for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party government.
The government has already been rocked by corruption scandals, leading to the resignation of former Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa last year.

VALLENTINES DAY

2012-02-08T19:42:00.000+08:00

TIRUMALA SPECIAL

2012-02-08T19:37:00.000+08:00

Bomb Blast in Delhi

2012-02-08T19:34:00.002+08:00

Obama approval soars to 50 percent on jobs figures

2012-02-08T10:43:00.002+08:00

Boosted by rising US jobs figures, President Barack Obama's approval rating has hit the magical
50-per cent mark and he has opened up a double-digit lead over his likely Republican opponent in November, a poll showed on Monday. The poll by the Washington Post and ABC television found Obama reaching the 50 percent barrier, seen as a critical threshold for an incumbent seeking reelection, for the first time since Osama bin Laden was killed last May.

USA President Barack Obama

Pollsters said Obama's ascent comes as the US economic recovery appears to be finally taking hold, with voters appearing more confident and comfortable with his policies. The latest US figures released last week found that the unemployment rate has fallen to 8.3 per cent, the fifth straight monthly decline since August, when it was 9.1 per cent.

The US president now holds a solid 11 percentage point lead over the frontrunner for the Republican nomination, Mitt Romney, in a hypothetical general election match-up, according to the survey. Obama leads Romney 52 to 43 per cent among all Americans, and a narrower 51 to 45 per cent among registered voters, his first time topping 50 per cent in a head-to-head match-up with Romney since July, the pollsters said. But the president still has substantial work to do: Among the all-important independent voters likely to determine the outcome of the election, 47 per cent approve and 50 per cent disapprove of the way he is handling his job.

His approval numbers are much better than they had been a few months ago however, they had been as low as 34 per cent among swing voters. As the Republican nomination battle grows more bitter and divisive, the public's view of Romney, seen as the clear frontrunner after back-to-back wins in Florida and Nevada, has soured, the poll found. Fifty-five per cent of those who are closely following the campaign said they disapprove of what the Republican candidates have been saying.

Assailants paid Rs 40,000 to throw acid on girl

2012-02-08T10:39:00.000+08:00

Perpetrators, who had been contracted by a mother-son duo to disfigure a 22-year-old woman, arrested

Representative pic

With two more arrests, Crime Branch claims to have cracked the recent acid attack case in which a 22-year-old woman was injured at Goregaon station. Police had earlier nabbed Nasir Shaikh alias Pintu and his mother Manju Anwar Ali Shaikh, on whose orders the offence had been carried out. Yesterday, Unit X of Crime Branch apprehended the two accused identified as Firoz Memon alias Papa (23) and Firoz Zuber Sheikh alias Mannu (20). The mother-son duo had given the contract to Sheikh and Memon to disfigure the victim, Nallasopara resident Aarti Thakur.

According to the police, the mother-son duo had planned the crime because they had lent Rs 10 lakh to Aarti's father and the latter was not returning the money.

Manju had already paid Rs 40,000 to the attackers and would have paid more after the contract was fulfilled. Cops revealed that Pintu loved Aarti and wanted to marry her. But she was not interested. This also became a motive for the crime.

Try, try, try again
Aarti was first attacked in November last year when she was walking in Malwani area. The second attack happened in December. Both times, she was struck on her face with a small knife. No case was registered then. On the third occasion, she suffered 10-15 per cent burns from the acid attack. Her eyebrows, chin, chest and forearms were partially burnt.

According to the police, they had used several informers to crack the case as it had become a challenge for them. Cops say that since the first two hits failed to yield satisfactory results, Manju promised the perpetrators more money if Aarti was attacked with acid.

"We have arrested the accused and now the motive behind the attack is clear. The two miscreants arrested on Monday had played an active role in assaulting the victim," said Assistant Police Inspector Rauf Shaikh of Crime Branch Unit X. The mother-son duo has been booked under Sections 307 (attempt to murder) and 120 (B) (punishment of criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.

Acid attack
Aarti, an HSC pass-out from SNDT College, has been working as a telephone operator in a private firm at Goregaon for the past one year.

During the last attack which took place at at Goregaon station, Aarti was walking to the ticket-punching machine when her assailants threw acid on her face.

2012-02-08T10:31:00.000+08:00

Rahul Gandhi may have been projected as the Gandhi scion wanting to follow in his grandmother's footsteps to become the Prime Minister of India, but it's sister Priyanka Gandhi who's giving us the chills by looking eerily similar to Indira. Photo: PTI

Priyanka, who normally sports western styles while hobnobbing with socialities and the political class in Delhi, has been seen in only cotton or khadi saris all during Congress rallies across UP. Photo: PTI

The similarities are uncanny. Both Indira and Priyanka seem to have a fondness for similar colours (vibrant hues like orange, purple and green), part their hair the same way and even Priyanka doesn't seem to mind that her gray hair is showing.

Priyanka, who has always maintained that her children are her priority, recently told reporters that she will do anything to help her big brother Rahul win the elections. In fact, the Uttar Pradesh campaigning even saw her husband Robert Vadra claiming that he was ready to join politics too. So will this be Priyanka first step into the political wilderness? Photo: PTI

If Priyanka does join politics, comparisons between her and her grandmother are bound to crop up. She, like her grandmother, has the gift of the gab and has always been seen has the smarter of the two Gandhi siblings. Might Rahul just have to make way for India's second female prime minister? Photo: PTI

Barack Obama says he deserves another term

2012-02-08T10:26:00.000+08:00

Buoyed by the signs of improvement in the American economy, US President Barack Obama has said that he deserves another term.

"I deserve a second term," Obama, who is seeking re-election in the November presidential polls, told NBC news in an interview.

A portion of interview was aired during the Super Bowl on Monday and full interview would be telecast on Tuesday. Obama was responding to a question on his remarks during an interview before the 2009 Super Bowl in which he had said that he will be a one-term president if the economy does not improve by then.

"If I don't have this done in three years, then it's going to be a one-term proposition," he had then said. In his interview, Obama referred to latest figures which reflected there is improvement in the economy.

"We've got to boost up American manufacturing, so that all our manufacturing is building again and selling overseas. We've got to make sure that we're pushing American energy... and we've got to make sure the skills of American workers are the best in the world," Obama said.

"We've made progress, and the thing right now is to just make sure we don't starting turning in a new direction that could throw that progress off," said the US President.

Barack Obama says he deserves another term

2012-02-08T10:25:00.001+08:00

Buoyed by the signs of improvement in the American economy, US President Barack Obama has said that he deserves another term.

Britney Spears + Nicki Minaj at Nassau Coliseum

2012-02-06T19:54:00.000+08:00

Much of Britney's stage set seemed designed to have places for her to take a load off while her backup dancers did the WORK.

A Thing or Two About Twins

2012-02-06T19:45:00.000+08:00

They have the same piercing eyes. The same color hair. One may be shy, while the other loves meeting new people. Discovering why identical twins differ—despite having the same DNA—could reveal a great deal about all of us.

The 15-year-old si

The 15-year-old sisters want to go to the same university and become opera singers. They both like to draw as well but have a different approach to their art. Marta depicts finely detailed faces, while Emma prefers more expansive images: the sky, the rain, objects in motion.

Cops don't want Wi-Fi on flyovers

2012-02-06T18:53:00.000+08:00

MMRDA planned to install WiFi-enabled Internet connectivity on flyovers, but police fear that they can be used by anti-national elements to spread terror
It seems that the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority's (MMRDA) ambitious plans to install WiFi-enabled BTS on flyovers, skywalks, FOBs (foot over-bridges) and subways in Mumbai have gone for a toss, as the Mumbai police have objected strongly to the project. Confirming the development, an MMRDA official said, "We had plans to install WiFi-enabled BTS equipment at several locations across Mumbai, so that motorists and Mumbaikars could have access to seamless Internet connectivity while commuting. We had planned this project keeping in mind the fact that Mumbaikars are always on the move, made evident by the sheer number of vehicles on Mumbai roads at any given point in the day. We had planned this project in order to help them."

In the month of July last year, the planning authority had announced that it would be floating tenders for the project. A pre-bid meeting too had been held on August 19, 2011.

"However, when the MMRDA approached the Mumbai police for clearance on the project and the related no-objection certificate, they objected to it, citing security reasons," confirmed the official, requesting anonymity.

An independent study conducted by consultant KPMG and released in 2010 had revealed that 60 per cent of the business wireless networks and 48 per cent of the home wireless networks in Mumbai have either no or limited protection, and are vulnerable to misuse by anti-nationals.

As per the MMRDA's plans, WiFi-enabled BTS equipment was to be installed on poles on the MMRDA's 10 flyovers, 12 subways and 16 FOBs on the Eastern and Western Express Highways, and 36 skywalks in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, for a contract period of five years.

The motorists driving on some of the flyovers on the WEH and EEH have been facing problems because of the lack of network coverage, as their phones often lose Internet connectivity at some points on the flyovers. In August last year, MiD DAY had reported that police officials have questioned the MMRDA's plan to install WiFi-enabled BTS on the flyovers, skywalks, FOBs and subways in Mumbai. 'MMRDA Wi-Fi project could be a security threat, August 18, 2011).

Expertspeak
Transport experts also opined that installation of WiFi would amount to nothing but a waste of public money. Speaking to MiD DAY, transport expert Jitendra Gupta concurred, "Rather than wasting money on installing WiFi-based BTS systems, the MMRDA should install CCTV cameras on the flyovers and skywalks, which are the need of the hour. They will be really helpful during emergencies, and the authority can also keep tabs on who is using the flyovers. Any vehicle using a flyover will have access to it for a maximum of two to three minutes, and using Internet for such a short period of time is impractical. Who is going to park the car on the flyover and use the Internet? The MMRDA's plan appears to be a waste of money."

Citizen speak
"Mobile service providers these days offer GPRS and WAP services to their customers at cheap rates, so where is the need to install WiFi on flyovers? Rather, the MMRDA should install CCTVs on skywalks, as this will help keep tabs on the activities of anti-social elements. Having WiFi availability on the flyovers is risky, as anyone can use them to send fake threat mails," said Andheri resident Hitendra Pachkale.

Threats and Wi-Fi
There have been several instances in the past, wherein anti-national elements have misused unsecured Wi-Fi connections in parts of Mumbai to send terror mails. One such incident occurred in July 2008, when the wireless network connection of US national Ken Haywood was used by members of the terror outfit Indian Mujahideen to send emails to media houses, just minutes before terror attacks in Ahmedabad and Surat.

In another incident, an email sent minutes after the September 2008 serial blasts in Delhi was traced to a private company in Chembur, Mumbai. It is said that this email was also sent by hacking an unsecured Wi-Fi network.

Man throws girl out of train after rape attempt

2012-02-06T18:29:00.000+08:00

Police in Chhattisgarh's Korba district launched a search Monday for a man who threw out a minor girl from a running train after a failed rape attempt. "The accused has been identified as Ramdayal Kevat, aged 35 years. He knew the 13-year-old girl's family. Late Sunday, he took her to a train and tried to rape her. He pushed her out when he failed," officials at the police headquarters said.
The incident took place in a passenger train between Korba and Gevra railway stations.
The girl's father was reportedly known to the accused. The girl sustained serious injuries on her head and other parts of her body. Local people took her to a hospital where her condition was stated to be stable.

Egypt: fifth day of clashes between protesters and police

2012-02-06T18:26:00.002+08:00

In a fifth consecutive day of violence in Cairo, police fired tear gas at protesters angry about football riots that killed 74 fans at a match on Wednesday.

Protesters hurled stones and debris at security forces who responded with tear gas in skirmishes close to Egypt's interior ministry building.

The violence continued after a deadly football riot last week that has fuelled public anger over lawlessness and collapsing security a year after Egypt's uprising.

Egypt's army-backed government said it was preparing to move ousted President Hosni Mubarak to a Cairo prison hospital in an apparent attempt to calm protests.

At least 12 people were killed in the nationwide unrest that followed the violent stampede after Wednesday's football game between Cairo's Al-Ahly football club and rival team Al-Masry in which 74 people died.

The youth activist movement is calling for the army to speed up the handover to a civilian government of the powers it assumed when ex-President Hosni Mubarak was forced from office a year ago.

Gain and pain too

2012-02-06T18:24:00.000+08:00

Gadgets may speed up our day-to-day work and communication. But, do we realise they could pose a health hazard, asks Geeta Padmanabhan

This story appeared in TODAY.com. A Swedish couple has moved to a stretch of forests and frozen lakes so they could live outside the reach of all cellular towers and wireless signals. Electromagnetic waves, they say, give them headaches, rashes, nausea and fatigue. In medical terms, they are “electrosensitive”.

E-sensitivity is not recognised as a medical diagnosis. But there is a move in Europe to ban cellphones and Wi-Fi in schools, the Telegraph reported. Research is on to see if long-term e-radiation could lead to skin irritation, brain cancer, leukaemia and neurological diseases.

Computer Vision Syndrome

The buzz of modern life — the jingle of cell phones, the hum of laptops, the cloud of Wi-Fi — is enough to give anyone a headache. But when we dig into the inbox and tweak the spreadsheet all day, we aren't being kind to our eyes. “Eight-to-ten hours a day at the computer bring on symptoms of Computer Vision Syndrome, a widespread medical condition common in these high-tech times,” says eye surgeon Dr. Mohan Rajan. “Staring at the computer reduces your blinking reflex and consequently, eye fluid generation. The result is dryness, red eyes, fatigue, head/brow ache.” Home doesn't bring relief if you plonk yourself in front of the LED/Plasma TV and reach for the remote.

Count the ergonomic problems of living in a plugged-in world, says Dr. Sunder, MD (www.premergonomics.in) who visits software companies to talk about pain syndromes. Laptops, he says, are the prime suspects for severe pain in the young. “Laptops offer the facility of working from wherever you are — at the airport or in your bedroom. This inherent advantage could be detrimental to your health because there is no fixed posture at which one works on the laptop.” How you bend over the laptop or notebooks is different from the way you sit at the PC, he says. In a PC, the keyboard and the monitor are separate and can be placed at different levels. In a laptop/notebook they are attached. You place the gadget at a lower level, and hunch over it. If you're tall, you bend that much more. You can place the monitor at eye-level, but then reaching the keyboard is uncomfortable. You work on and straighten up with a sharp backache.

You don't walk to the bank, shop, stand in a queue to withdraw money or stroll to the post-office, he says. “Your computer has invaded all these domains and threatens to occupy your leisure hours too.” You watch movies, surf the Net, socialise — all these adding to the computer work in the office. Fast repetitive actions such as typing are superimposed on an immobile body causing newer syndromes. One is repetitive strain injury (RSI). “The medical field is coming to terms with the large number of cases relating to RSI,” he says.

Office ergonomics

Take care, say the doctors. “There are many reasons for neck and back pain. It's best to adopt a lifestyle that includes good office ergonomics, dietary habits, comfortable travel options and, last but not the least, exercise involving the rest of the body,” says Dr. Sunder. Buy ergonomic accessories such as a modified or an external keyboard. Have exercise breaks; half your waking hours are spent on e-gadgets.

“Keep your monitor below eye level, 15 cm away,” says Dr. Rajan. The closer mode will make you blink. Don't put your workstation against the wall. Make sure there's something to look at beyond the wall to take your eyes off the screen. Turn off overhead lights and face your screen away from direct sunlight to avoid glare, he advises.

Try these as well. “Bias lighting” that creates a soft white glow around your screen reduces eye fatigue by “increasing perceived image clarity”. A polarising filter, the kind you'll find on a professional photographer's lens. An anti-glare filter that snaps on your monitor. A matte screen or an “anti-glare” screen, as in the MacBook Pro laptops.

Also, keep your monitor or laptop lid at a 90-degree angle to reduce glare from nearby light sources. Lower the brightness level and see if it feels better. Check. Is your computer/laptop well-calibrated? Do the images have clear colours, contrast and brightness? Find calibrator assistance in the Settings menu.

And oh, take a break. Follow the “20-20-20 rule” — every 20 minutes look at an object 20 feet away for 20 seconds. Take short, frequent breaks from your screen. Set a recurring alarm on your phone to remind you to get away from the computer. Take a stroll; wash your face. Your back, neck and eyes will thank you.

WHAT TO DO

* On a Mac, access a built-in tool called Display Calibrator Assistant.

* Open System Preferences > Displays > Color tab >Calibrate.

* On other computers, it's a web tool — Screen Check.

* Explore the settings to decide what looks right for you.

2012-02-06T18:22:00.002+08:00

Film director Rumi Jafry says his films are steeped in realism

It's difficult for a creative mind to not react to the realities around. So, writer-director Rumy Jafry, who has penned movies like Mujhse Shaadi Karogi, Chalte Chalte, Golmaal Returns, Yamla Pagla Deewana and others in the past, tries to nail the issue of corruption in his latest project Gali Gali Chor Hai. The film released last week and features Akshaye Khanna, Shriya Saran and Mugdha Godse.

The director held a special screening of the film for Anna Hazare at his native place Ralegan Siddhi. Jafry, who had also come to Delhi to promote the film, took some questions on it. Excerpts from the interview:

On handling such a serious topic in a fun way

The film is based on a journey of a common man. We have shown when a common man gets trapped in the system how difficult it gets for him to come out of it. You can actually connect yourself with the idea portrayed here. When you watch it, you might recall any such incident that you, your friends, neighbours must have witnessed. This is every man's story. The serious topic of corruption is dealt in a humorous way but one also receives a provoking message.

On what triggered the idea

Writers are often inspired by what happens around them. All my movies are inspired by some real-life incidents and happenings. The story of my first directorial venture God Tussi Great Ho came from a few people in my life. They were not happy with what they had in their life and they wanted more of good luck. My second movie Life Partner which was based on relationships was rooted in what's happening in our society now. Similarly, the issue of corruption has been bothering me from quite some time.

Why do you think Anna Hazare stood against corruption and millions of people joined him, because everybody is disturbed and frustrated by red tapism. I knew I had to make a film on the subject.

On the treatment given to the subject

We show how an innocent person becomes the culprit. You will laugh throughout this movie but you also will sense the person's pain.

On his style of filmmaking

I am a director and would love to make a different type of movies. I like making movies that come from my heart. It was a wonderful experience directing this movie. I have put my heart and soul into this movie. The shooting was done in my city Bhopal, where I grew up. I had a lot of my theatre friends in Bhopal and my friends from Mumbai, who have acted in this movie. I have also done theatre with Satish Kaushik and Annu Kapoor.

Kiran to expand his Cabinet again

2012-02-06T18:11:00.002+08:00

This would be the second expansion of the Cabinet undertaken by Mr. Kiran Kumar Reddy in less than three weeks. He had included two legislators of the erstwhile Praja Rajyam into his Council of Ministers on January 19.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy will expand his Cabinet again, inducting three Ministers on Monday evening. The new Ministers will be administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor E. S. L. Narasimhan at a swearing-in-ceremony at 6.28 p.m. at the Raj Bhavan.

This would be the second expansion of the Cabinet undertaken by Mr. Kiran Kumar Reddy in less than three weeks. He had included two legislators of the erstwhile Praja Rajyam – C. Ramachandraiah and Mr. G. Srinivasa Rao – into his Council of Ministers on January 19. Their inclusion was in fulfillment of the Congress party’s promise to film star-turned-politician K. Chiranjeevi to accommodate his party-men in return for the latter's support to the Government during the confidence vote last year.

Official sources said that the MLAs to be sworn-in today will solely be those elected from the Telangana region. The MLAs are Mr. N. Uttam Kumar Reddy, Mr. Kondru Murali and Mr. Prasad Kumar.

This exercise is primarily aimed at setting right the regional imbalance in the Council of Ministers, caused by the resignation of two Ministers and dismissal of another, all from Telangana, and the recent inclusion of two Ministers from the Seemandhra region.

The Chief Minister had pressed his party high command for permission to thoroughly overhaul his Cabinet during his two-day visit to New Delhi on February 4 and 5. The AICC leadership, however, gave him the limited mandate to induct only Ministers from Telangana, lest the exercise leads to dissension in the Congress ahead of Assembly by-elections in the State. The sources said that Mr. Kiran Kumar Reddy was unlikely to re-shuffle the Ministers’ portfolios as the budget session of the Assembly is scheduled to begin next week.

Don't pursue this with me: Kasturirangan

2012-02-06T18:05:00.000+08:00

Former chiefs of the Indian Space Research Organisation have chosen to keep mum on the findings of the two reports, based on which punitive action has been taken against four space scientists in the Antrix-Devas deal.

“... I am shutting myself from this. I am not saying anything. Don't pursue this with me,” the former ISRO Chairman, K. Kasturirangan told PTI here on Sunday.

Another former ISRO chief, U.R. Rao, also declined to comment on the reports.

The Department of Space on Saturday night made public the report of the High-Power Review Committee, made up of B.K. Chaturvedi and Roddam Narasimha, and the conclusions and recommendations of the five-member high-level team headed by the former Chief Vigilance Commissioner, Pratyush Sinha.

It was India's vote against Assad's prevarication on reforms

2012-02-06T18:04:00.000+08:00

By going along with the vetoed United Nations Security Council resolution on Syria, India primarily expressed its disappointment with the continued prevarication by the Assad government in implementing the political package of reforms it promised late last year and over several incidents of armed assault on peaceful protesting congregations since discontent engulfed the country last year.

The pre-vote statement by India's Permanent Representative in the U.N., Hardeep Puri, read with his explanation of vote (EOV), showed that New Delhi was upset at the winding up of the Arab League's observer mission in Syria but it differed widely from the AL's prescriptions, reflected in the draft resolution. Unlike the AL and the draft resolution, India did not ask for multiparty elections in a time frame or the freedom of movement sought all over the country for a wide range of actors from AL observers to the international media and humanitarian organisations.

Mr. Puri's pre-vote statement provided a more detailed explanation of India rupturing its four decades-long association with the ruling Assad family and aligning itself with virtually all AL demands. But as opposed to the draft resolution midwifed by the western bloc advocating the AL's demand for multiparty elections, India's public statements remained confined to seeking concurrence among all sides for a solution that manages to “address the grievances of the Syrian people.” India added a further caveat to its support for dialogue, pointing out that the outcome must not be “pre-judged.”

Stress on direct talks

India pointed out that the problem was political and economic and within this formulation laid great stress on direct talks between the warring sides which must further fine-tune the political reforms package announced by the Assad government. This was the closest India came to expressing its disapproval of the political reforms announced by the Syrian government.

On the security side of the problem, Indian statements were even-handed, criticising both the government and the armed groups in the opposition for perpetuating the cycle of violence. But it condemned “violations of human rights and rights of expression and peaceful assembly.” The EOV added the rider that peaceful assemblies must be mindful of the stability and security of society.

On both the political and security aspects, India's public statements gave no hint of the wide variety of demands put forward in the resolution including giving the AL, many of whose members have been active in backing Syrian protesters, virtual powers to run a parallel enquiry commission. For instance, the struck-down resolution wanted not only full and unhindered access and freedom of movement to AL observers but also their empowerment to “freely” question whoever they wanted. Nor did the Indian statements mention the timelines contained in the resolution.

Uninor to bid for 2G spectrum

2012-02-06T18:03:00.000+08:00

New operator Uninor, a joint venture between Telenor of Norway and Unitech, today said the company will participate in 2G spectrum auction but did not rule out exit option from the Indian market.

“In principle we will go for auction but I am not saying that whether we will win everything ... So, the option of exit cannot be ruled out,” Uninor Managing Director and Telenor’s Asia head Sigve Brekke told reporters here.

He also said that company would finalise its strategy after looking at the base price and the reserve price for the spectrum.

The licence of Uninor, along with other new operators, has been cancelled after the Supreme Court’s judgement last week on the basis that all 122 2G licences were issued illegally in January 2008 by former telecom minister A. Raja.

The apex court has asked the government to seek fresh recommendations from regulator TRAI to distribute licences and spectrum through auction and complete the process within four months.

Asked whether the company would bid for all the circles, he said “at this time it is difficult to say whether we will bid or not or for how many circles ... we have to see the base price first.”

He, however, asserted that the auction should be among the new operators like it was in 2008 and incumbent players, who already have spectrum, should not be allowed to participate.

At one point of time he also indicated that the company was here for long time and not closing down operations.

Meanwhile, TRAI has initiated the process to give recommendations on the auction process and has sought views from the industry and other stakeholders.

Uninor had earlier ruled out laying off employees in the wake of Supreme Court’s cancellation of 122 2G licences that has hit the company badly.

“Uninor services are continuing. This means we will continue to serve our 36 million customers, work with our 22,000 partners and keep building our presence in the market. It is the Uninor team that has made the company by far the most successful new operator and it is this team that will continue to do so in the months to come,” a company spokesperson said.

The Uninor MD, however, alleged that competitors are following “unethical” trade practices to poach their subscribers and that the company has filed a complaint with the GSM lobby COAI against this.

“We will come out with advertisement for our customers assuring that we are very much here,” Mr. Sigve said.

Uninor is a joint venture between real estate major Unitech and Telenor of Norway. Telenor now holds 67.25 per cent ownership share in the company.

Uninor claims to have invested over Rs. 14,000 crore in Indian operations and has a subscriber base of nearly 40 million as of now.

Hazare failed to recognise workers’ contribution:

2012-02-06T18:02:00.000+08:00

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on Sunday slammed social activist Anna Hazare for failing to acknowledge that its workers had played an “active role” in his nationwide crusade against corruption last year, though the Sangh itself was not part of the civil society agitation.

“It is a fact that the Sangh workers in individual capacity did play an active role in the anti-corruption crusade by the civil society headed by Hazare... It baffles me as to why the former did not acknowledge the fact,” RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat told reporters.

Though the RSS had not directed its workers to join the civil society’s crusade on corruption, a large number of them did take an active part in the agitation throughout the country on their own volition, he said.

However, it baffled him when the Gandhian did not acknowledge the role of the Sangh workers in his anti-corruption movement when the Congress attacked Mr. Hazare for soliciting RSS support on corruption issue, Mr. Bhagwat said.

Mr. Bhagwat, however, clarified that the RSS was not part of the civil society agitation on the corruption issue even as it shared similar views and had adopted a resolution on the issue in March last year.

The RSS leader said that corruption in the political system could not be addressed merely by taking stringent action against corrupt public servants.

Other remedies like electoral reforms and making the system transparent and accountable should also be considered to usher in good governance in the country.

Mr. Bhagwat clarified that it was not the RSS’ decision to make Nitin Gadkari the BJP national president but it had merely played the role of a facilitator when senior BJP leaders had met him to find a replacement for Rajnath Singh after the debacle in the 2009 General Election.

“Some senior BJP leaders had called me to discuss the future of the party leadership following the debacle in the 2009 parliamentary polls... The names of a number of leaders were discussed for the BJP president’s post with Gadkari being among the names,” the RSS chief told reporters.

“It was the BJP leaders’ call to select Gadkari as the BJP president,” he said adding the Sangh had merely played the role of a facilitator.

The RSS flayed people giving communal colour to those accused being tried in terror cases and said that comments should be made only after charges against such persons could be proved in the courts first.

“There is no such thing as Hindu militants... prove the charges first before giving communal colour to terror cases accused,” the RSS Sarsanghchalak said.

He was responding to a question eliciting his stand on the accusations being made by critics linking the Samjhauta Express and Malegaon blast cases accused to upsurge of Hindu militancy.

Report hints at ‘collusive behaviour' in Antrix-Devas deal

2012-02-06T18:00:00.002+08:00

In their stinging indictments, two government-appointed committees, set up to scrutinise the Antrix-Devas agreement, have highlighted serious procedural lapses on the part of, and policy violations by, senior scientists of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), all of which benefited a private company.

The deal reflects “not only serious administrative and procedural lapses but also a suggestion of collusive behaviour on the part of certain individuals,” says the report of the high-level team, headed by the former Central Vigilance Commissioner, Pratyush Sinha, submitted to the government in September last. The second team, a high-power review committee comprising B.K. Chaturvedi and Roddam Narasimha, submitted its report in March last.

Under the January 2005 agreement between the Antrix Corporation, marketing wing of ISRO, and the Bangalore-based Devas Multimedia Private Limited, Devas was allowed unrestricted use of 70 MHz of the scarce S-band spectrum from two exclusive satellites.

The former ISRO Chairman, Madhavan Nair, the former Scientific Secretary at ISRO, K Baskaranarayana, and the former managing director of Antrix Corporation, K.R. Sridharamurthi, were “mainly responsible for leading the Department of Space and Antrix into this arrangement,” says the Pratyush Sinha report.

K.N. Shankara, former director of the ISRO satellite centre, who headed the committee to examine the proposal, is “guilty of not considering all the implications of the agreement he was recommending.”

The Pratyush Sinha report lists another four bureaucrats “found responsible for the acts of omission:” the former Member (Finance), Space Commission, S.S. Meenakshisundaram; and three former Additional Secretaries of the Department of Space, Veena S. Rao, G. Balachandhran and R.G. Nadadur.

The reports cite examples of how information was concealed, facts were obfuscated, and cost calculations even “dissimulated.”

For example, the Cabinet and the Space Commission were kept in the dark about the deal, and the approval process was “riddled with incomplete and inaccurate information,” says the Pratyush Sinha report.

Facebook files compliance report before court

2012-02-06T18:00:00.000+08:00

Facebook India today filed its compliance report before the Delhi court which had ordered it and 21 other websites to remove objectionable content from their websites.

Google India also told the court that it has removed certain web pages from the Internet on which objections were raised by the petitioners.

Meanwhile, Facebook, Yahoo and Microsoft told the court that they have no role to play in the case and there is no cause of action against them in the matter.

Additional Civil Judge Praveen Singh also posed a query to the counsel appearing for petitioner Mufti Aijaz Arshad Qasmi, as to whether the blog service-providing companies can be made a party to the case for any content posted by the users on the blogs.

The court, which will further hear the matter in the afternoon, also asked Google Inc as to why it was not coming up “properly” with a reply and brushed aside its contention that it had received the copy of the judgement and other documents related to case only on last Friday.

“Why are you (Google Inc) not coming properly with your reply?” the court said.

“Don’t tell me you have been served only on Friday. After all this hullabaloo that has been created in the last few months you should have been prepared,” it stated.

The court also asked the petitioner to supply the copies of all the documents relied upon, to all the opposite parties.

The court had on December 20 last year, in a ex-parte order issued summons to 22 social networking websites asking them to remove “anti-religious” or “anti-social” content in the form of photographs, videos or text which might hurt religious sentiments.

It had on December 24 set February 6 as deadline for the websites for the same.

At least 19 peacocks die of poisoning in UP’s Hathras area

2012-02-06T11:38:00.000+08:00

At least 19 peacocks have been found dead in an open area near a village in Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh.
The dead birds were found lying scattered near agricultural fields where wheat and other grains had been raised.
After preliminary investigations, forest officials said birds had been poisoned.
“The peacocks have died due to insecticide. The farmers that are cutting their harvest and then sowing new crop, and they are using insecticides. Similar incident happened one and a half year ago at …So the peacocks go to the fields for grazing to eat grains like wheat, but they may eat insecticides,” said Gulveer Singh, a forest official.
Singh said a case would be registered under the Wildlife Protection Act (under Section 9 and 51) in connection with the incident since peacock is a national bird and protected under the Act.
“If someone has deliberately killed them for personal gains then an FIR (First Information Report) will be registered against that person. But if all the people are using these insecticides then after proper investigation we will definitely register an FIR,” added Singh.
He added that an assessment would be done by the forest officials to find out if the use of a specific insecticide is leading to peacock deaths.
Meanwhile, parts of the carcasses would be sent for medical examination to determine the exact cause of the death.

Green tea drinkers show less disability with age:study

2012-02-06T11:32:00.000+08:00

Elderly adults who regularly drink green tea may stay more agile and independent than their peers over time, according to a Japanese study that covered thousands of people.Green tea contains antioxidant chemicals that may help ward off the cell damage that can lead to disease. Researchers have been studying green tea's effect on everything from cholesterol to the risk of certain cancers, with mixed results so far.
For the new study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers decided to examine the question of whether green tea drinkers have a lower risk of frailty and disability as they grow older.
Yasutake Tomata of the Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine and his colleagues followed nearly 14,000 adults aged 65 or older for three years.
They found those who drank the most green tea were the least likely to develop "functional disability", or problems with daily activities or basic needs, such as dressing or bathing.
Specifically, almost 13 percent of adults who drank less than a cup of green tea per day became functionally disabled, compared with just over 7 percent of people who drank at least five cups a day.
"Green tea consumption is significantly associated with a lower risk of incident functional disability, even after adjustment for possible confounding factors," Tomata and his colleagues wrote.
The study did not prove that green tea alone kept people spry as they grew older.
Green-tea lovers generally had healthier diets, including more fish, vegetables and fruit, as well as more education, lower smoking rates, fewer heart attacks and strokes, and greater mental sharpness.
They also tended to be more socially active and have more friends and family to rely on.
But even with those factors accounted for, green tea itself was tied to a lower disability risk, the researchers said.
People who drank at least five cups a day were one-third less likely to develop disabilities than those who had less than a cup per day. Those people who averaged three or four cups a day had a 25 percent lower risk.
Although it's not clear how green tea might offer a buffer against disability, Tomata's team did note that one recent study found green tea extracts seem to boost leg muscle strength in older women.
While green tea and its extracts are considered safe in small amounts, they do contain caffeine and small amounts of vitamin K, which means it could interfere with drugs that prevent blood clotting.

Blast kills husband of missing Utah woman, 2 boys

2012-02-06T11:23:00.002+08:00

Josh Powell's note was simple and short, a farewell to the world after two years of being scrutinized in the media, hammered by police and questioned by judges, prosecutors and social workers, living his life under a microscope since the day his wife vanished.
"I'm sorry, goodbye," Powell wrote in an email to his attorney just minutes before authorities say he blew up his home, killing himself and his two young sons days after he was denied custody and ordered to undergo a psycho-sexual evaluation.

The explosion Sunday brought yet another twist in the very public disintegration of a family that began when Susan Powell vanished in 2009. The case had since spiraled into a salacious saga of finger-pointing and accusations of sex and lies — and now the unthinkable loss of two young lives caught in the crossfire.
A social worker brought the two boys to Josh Powell's home Sunday for what was to be a supervised visit, and Powell let his sons inside — but then blocked the social worker from entering, Graham Fire and Rescue Chief Gary Franz told The Associated Press.
The social worker called her supervisors to report that she could smell gas. Moments later, the home exploded.
Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Ed Troyer said it appeared some sort of accelerant was used to make the house burn faster.
He said emails Powell sent to authorities just prior to the explosion seemed to confirm that Powell planned the deadly blast. Troyer didn't elaborate on the content of the emails.
Jeffrey Bassett, who represented Powell in the custody case, said he received an ominous email from his client just minutes before the blast.
"I'm sorry, goodbye," it read.
Susan Powell, a pretty 28-year-old mother of two, was reported missing Dec. 7, 2009, after she failed to show up for her stockbroker job in Utah.
Authorities in the couple's hometown of West Valley City, about 10 miles outside Salt Lake City, quickly turned their attention to Josh Powell. He's been the only "person of interest" in the case, but had repeatedly denied any involvement in her disappearance.
"I would never even hurt her," a tearful, red-eyed Josh Powell told CBS' Early Show in August. "People who know me know that I could never hurt Susan."
About a month later, police spent 12 days in the remote central Utah desert looking for clues, and Josh Powell and his father, Steven, quickly disappeared from the limelight. The search area around Topaz Mountain, a popular spot for rock and gem hunters, was about 30 miles south of where Josh told police he went camping with his two children in the hours before his wife's disappearance — his steadfast alibi.
On Sunday, the lawyer for Susan Powell's parents, Chuck and Judy Cox, told the AP the children had started talking to their grandparents about things they remembered from the night their mother vanished.
"They were beginning to verbalize more," said attorney Steve Downing, whose clients had custody of the children. "The oldest boy talked about that they went camping and that Mommy was in the trunk. Mom and Dad got out of the car and Mom disappeared."
Police turned up no clues in their desert search, but a day before ending it, Steven Powell, 61, was arrested at his Washington state home and accused of secretly videotaping his daughter-in-law, other women, and young girls taking baths and sitting on the toilet in neighborhood homes.
The elder Powell is now jailed and facing child porn and voyeurism charges. He claimed in previous television interviews that he and Susan Powell were falling in love and even implied a sexual relationship had occurred.
"Susan was very sexual with me," Steven Powell said in one interview at the time. "We interacted in a lot of sexual ways because Susan enjoys doing that."
Susan's father denied the allegations and said Steven Powell had been initiating unwanted sexual advances, and that his daughter had no interest in her father-in-law.
The children, 5-year-old Braden and 7-year-old Charles, were ordered by a judge to then go live with Susan's parents as the parallel cases were investigated.
The custody matter got so heated that at one point a court commissioner in Washington state ordered Chuck Cox and Josh Powell to keep 500 feet apart.
Custody hearings continued, with the latest on Wednesday, during which Josh Powell pleaded with a judge to return his children to him.
"For over four months already, my interactions with my sons and many other aspects of my character have been investigated and documented by" social services, he wrote in an affidavit to the court. "I have proven myself as a fit and loving father who provides a stable home even in the face of great adversity. ... It is time for my sons to come home."
But the judge ruled against him, ordering the children to remain with Susan Powell's parents, at least until Josh Powell underwent a psycho-sexual evaluation in light of the explicit material found on computers inside Steven Powell's home that led to his arrest.
Sherry Hill, a spokeswoman for the Washington state Department of Social and Health Services, said the social worker who was with the children Sunday was not a Child Protective Services employee but a contract worker with a private agency that supervises visits for the state.
"The visit supervisor for this particular agency had taken the children to the home. When she does that, she sits through the visit and might take notes on her observations," Hill said. "She pulled up in the car, and the kids ran out ahead of her. He closed the door and locked it. She wasn't able to get in, and that's when she smelled gas."
Downing called it "the most horrifying thing you can imagine happening ...The Coxes are absolutely devastated. They were always very fearful of him doing something like this, and he did it."
Bassett said he represented Powell free of charge because "every parent deserves the right to an attorney." Powell called or emailed him at least once a day, and often more than that, and in their conversations "he never once admitted doing anything regarding Susan. In fact, he denied it."
Sgt. Mike Powell of the West Valley City Police Department in Utah said it was too soon to say how Josh Powell's death may impact their probe.
"Quite frankly, this has obviously quickly unfolded up in Washington and we're obviously just working through the details ourselves here," said Powell, who is not related to the family.
Kirk Graves, 39, of West Jordan, Utah, whose wife is Josh Powell's brother-in-law, said they were stunned by the news.
"We never contemplated the idea he would do something like this. You just don't expect it from a father," he said. "His world was falling apart around him and he was going to lose his boys and get arrested for Susan's disappearance. He's a narcissist and he has no love for anyone but himself."

Pix: Ash makes 1st post-baby appearance at Riteish-Genelia's reception

2012-02-06T01:59:00.000+08:00

Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia D’Souza’s wedding reception was a well-attended affair with a sizeable chunk of Bollywood packing into the confines of the hotel where it was held.
The indoor ambience was completely decorated in red, with red roses everywhere and the tables, chairs and drinking glasses set in red. The bash went on till well past midnight after which the newly married couple left for Riteish’s family home.
It was Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan’s (R) first public appearance since the birth of her daughter and she came in with her in-laws, Amitabh (L) and Jaya Bachchan (2R).

Made for each other: Genelia and Riteish Deshmukh pose for a picture

Contrasting styles: Kiran Rao and Aamir Khan

Meeting up: Rekha with Imran Khan and Avantika Malik
Life’s great: Sushmita Sen

Oh, to be wedded!: Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor

As i was saying...: Bipasha Basu

PMship not on Rahul's mind, says Priyanka

2012-02-06T01:49:00.000+08:00

Becoming Prime Minister was not the “central focus” of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s politics, his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said on Sunday, adding that PM Manmohan Singh was “extremely good” and the question of change of guard did not arise at the moment.

Priyanka also said she would be happier if Rahul Gandhi led a “normal life”.

“I am not interested in his becoming Prime Minister. I will be happy if he lives a normal life,” said Priyanka while replying to a question from Hindustan Times in Amethi. “We also keep hearing he will take over as party president. He is bringing in democracy in the Congress youth organisation. This will have an impact on the politics of the nation. Rahul is just doing his work,” she said.
Senior ministers in UPA 1 and UPA 2 had expressed the view that Rahul Gandhi will make a good PM.
Asked whether she would join active politics, Priyanka said, “If I ever decide to join politics, you will know.”
Priyanka also praised Manmohan Singh. “We are fortunate to have an honest PM.”
Priyanka stopped for a while to speak to mediapersons before addressing a public rally at Simrauta here.
She addressed about 20 public meetings on the third day of her election campaign, covering nearly 150 km and making about 70 stops to reach the remote corners of the Tiloi assembly segment of Amethi, the Lok Sabha constituency of Rahul Gandhi.
Priyanka also defended Union home minister P Chidambaram, saying, “He has an onerous responsibility towards the country. I feel sad that he had to waste time on such issues (2G).”

games

2012-02-06T01:34:00.000+08:00

JNTU HYD B.Pharmacy 1,2,3,4 Years-I II Sem R09,R07,NR,OR Regular Supple Exams Nov Dec 2011 Results | JNTU H B.Pharmacy 1,2,3,4 Years-I II Sem R09,R07,NR,OR Regular Supple Exams Nov Dec 2011 Results

2012-02-06T01:31:00.001+08:00

Paramedical Jobs APPMB in AP 2012

2012-02-06T01:20:00.000+08:00

APPMB Paramedical Jobs in AP 2012 Government of Andhra Pradesh is gearing up to recruit candidates for 9717 posts of doctors are lying vacant in the AP Para - Medical Board. (Www.appmb.org) Department of Medical Education, AP communication is likely to release the notification of the application in February 2012 for the post of Multipurpose Health Assistant (MPHA), lab technicians. , pharmacist and nursing staff. The Department has released no less than the qualifications and other eligibility requirements for the posts. The following is a list of job vacancies and application procedures.

1) Multi - Purpose Health Assistant (MPHS - female): 2476 posts.
2) Multi - Purpose Health Assistant (MPHA - Male): 5444 posts.
3) technical lab: 873 posts.
4) Pharmacists: 728 posts.
5) medical staff: 185 posts.
6) Ophthalmic Medical Assistant: 11 posts.

Government of Andhra Pradesh are likely to be relied upon to fill the vacancy APPMB all the fun of being a doctor is APPSC recruitments in 2012, the Commission will conduct a written examination at the Medical Post. Selection will be based completely on the ranking in the written test. Andhra Pradesh Para Medical Board (APPMB) has announced a program to write the test, along with reminders to apply APPMB also published the idea of a commercial question with a question and answer will be. For aspirants for the final decision will be the end of January 2012, and an alert may be issued in the second week of February 2012 guidelines for the written test will be concluded soon.

Syria unrest: West deplores UN veto by Russia and China

2012-02-05T17:46:00.000+08:00

Western nations have deplored the vetoing by Russia and China of a UN resolution condemning the crackdown in Syria on anti-government protests.

The US said the veto was "shameful", while Britain said it "lets the Syrian people down". France also condemned the block at the UN Security Council.
Russia and China said the proposed draft was "unbalanced".
The document was rejected just hours after activists accused Syrian troops of killing at least 55 people in Homs.
The BBC's Paul Wood, who entered the Syrian city with rebels after the vote, says gun and shell fire can be heard there.
On Sunday, opponents of the Syrian government ransacked the country's embassy in the Australian capital, Canberra.

Police said a group of at least 40 men smashed through the front door, broke some of the furniture and stole computers.

The attack follows a number of similar incidents at Syrian embassies in the Middle East and Europe.
'Disgusted' American UN envoy Susan Rice described the veto on Saturday as "shameful", saying Russia and China aimed to "sell out the Syrian people and shield a craven tyrant".
"Any further bloodshed that flows will be on their hands," she said.
She later wrote on Twitter: "Disgusted that Russia and China prevented the UN Security Council from fulfilling its sole purpose."
Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague said in a statement that the approach by Moscow and Beijing "lets the Syrian people down, and will only encourage President [Bashar] Assad's brutal regime to increase the killing".
In Paris, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said in a statement that he "strongly deplores" the veto but promised to carry on seeking a solution.
Mohammed Loulichki, Morocco's ambassador to the UN and the sole Arab member of the current council, voiced "great regret and disappointment" that Moscow and Beijing had struck it down.
The Arab draft resolution had adopted an Arab League call for a "Syrian-led political transition to a democratic, plural political system".
However, Russia said it singled out the government and did not contain measures against armed opposition groups.
Russia's UN envoy Vitaly Churkin said the draft had lacked balance.
"Some influential members of the international community unfortunately... have been undermining the opportunity for political settlement, calling for a regime change, pushing the oppositionists to power," he said.
Beijing's UN ambassador Li Baodong said putting pressure on the Syrian government or "imposing a solution" would not help to resolve the issue.
Pro-Assad residents in the Syrian capital Damascus welcomed the Sino-Russian stance.
"I believe there are more important issues for the Security Council to take care of... such as the starvation in Somalia, and Gaza," one told BBC News.
'Hysterical campaign' Early accounts of the casualties in Homs on Saturday talked of as many as 200 deaths, but one of the main activist groups later revised its confirmed toll down to 55.

The BBC's Paul Wood says he and his cameraman heard heavy machine-gun fire and explosions when they entered Homs on Saturday afternoon.
He says Homs appears to have come under a pretty relentless bombardment and parts of the city that oppose the regime have been cut off.
Homs was one of the first cities to join anti-Assad protests, and became one of the focal points of dissent after government forces fired on crowds in April last year. Many army defectors have sought refuge in the city.
State media dismissed the Homs casualty reports as a "hysterical campaign of incitement" by armed gangs designed to influence the UN.
International media outlets are restricted in Syria, making it difficult to verify the claims of either side.
Syria has been gripped by nationwide protests against Mr Assad's government for almost a year, in a struggle that has claimed at least 5,400 lives, according to the UN.

Vasan hails special court judgement

2012-02-05T17:29:00.000+08:00

Case against Home Minister P Chidambaram dismissed

Swamy’s plea alleging Raja-Chidambaram conspiracy “without any merit”, says Special Court. Court cautions against using all evidence against every accused, says Chidambaram’s decisions were not illegal

Arpit Parashar
New Delhi

The special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Court handling the 2G Spectrum scam on Saturday dismissed the plea by Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy for making Home Minister P Chidambaram a co-accused in the case terming it “without any merit”. Special Judge OP Saini said in his judgment that he “did not find any sufficient ground for proceeding against” Chidambaram.

“…neither are there any allegations nor is evidence against Mr P Chidambaram to the effect that he played any role in the subversion of the process of issuance of letters of intent (LOI), UAS Licences and allocation of spectrum in the years 2007-08,” judge Saini said in the order.

On Swamy’s allegations that Chidambaram was as culpable in the case as ex-Telecom Minister A Raja due to his complicity in fixing the price of the spectrum at 2001 level and permitting the companies Swan and Unitech to get licences, Saini said both the acts were not “illegal or violative of any law”. “…there is no material on record to show that Mr P Chidambaram was acting malafide in fixing the price of spectrum at the 2001 level or in permitting dilution of equity by the two companies. These two acts are not per se illegal and there is no further material on record to show any other incriminating act on the part of Mr P Chidambaram,” judge Saini said.

“There is no material record to suggest that Mr Chidambaram was acting with such corrupt or illegal motives (as alleged by Swamy) or was in abuse of his official position, while consenting to the two decisions. There is no evidence that he obtained any pecuniary advantage without any public interest,” the Court added.

The Court sought to draw a distinction between the charges against Raja and against Chidambaram of “conniving” with him. “A decision taken by a public servant does not become criminal for simple reason that it has caused loss to the public exchequer or resulted in pecuniary advantage to others,” it said. “In case of a criminal conspiracy, the Court has to see whether (the) two persons are independently pursuing the same end or they are acting together in pursuit of an unlawful act. One may be acting innocently and other may be actuated by criminal intention,” judge Saini commented in the order.

In a significant observation that could be used by other accused in the case in the future during their arguments, Judge Saini cautioned against considering the entire mass of evidence against every accused in the case and commented that “there has to be cogent and convincing evidence against each one of the accused charged with the offence of conspiracy” to trace the precise contribution of each member.

The Court pointed out that while there is enough evidence for criminal cases against the other accused persons who are facing trial in the case there is no evidence to suggest that there was an agreement between Chidambaram and Raja to subvert the telecom policy before the 2G licences were allotted on 10 January, 2008. Rejecting the nearly 2000 pages of evidence presented by Swamy in the Court, judge Saini said, “A bit of evidence here and a bit there does not constitute prima facie evidence for showing prima facie existence of a criminal conspiracy (between Raja and Chidambaram). Anybody and everybody associated with a decision in any degree cannot be roped as an accused.”

“Innocent and innocuous acts done in association with others do not make one a partner in crime unless there is material to indicate otherwise, which is lacking in this case,” he added.

Swamy and advocate Tarun Gombhar, who was assisting Swamy, were the only people allowed into the court room before the judgment was delivered. Journalists who waited outside the court room were allowed only when the verdict was delivered.

Commenting on the order, Swamy said outside the Court that he was ‘disappointed’ with the order and would approach the higher courts to push his case. Tarun Gombhar said that the evidence Swamy had produced before the Court “was sufficient to make a prima facie case against Chidambaram” and that he will “approach the (Delhi) High Court”.

“Well we need to get up and fight again as before,” Swamy posted on social networking site Twitter after the Court order.

The trial court will commence the hearing on the other complaint filed by Swamy in which he has made more allegations against A Raja from 17 March.

ISRO report does not bring out the facts: Madhavan Nair

2012-02-05T17:22:00.000+08:00

Former Indian Space Research Organisation chief Madhavan Nair on Sunday said that the ISRO report on the Antrix-Devas deal is one-sided and claimed that the report does not bring out the facts.
"They have looked only at the papers and the answers to the questions. If they had seen some omissions, they should have sought clarifications. I will ask for the full report," he said while speaking exclusively to CNN-IBN.
"Speaking is not inquiry. The committee has not met many times to make the report. The report does not bring out the facts. The people who have made the report seems have not understood the issues and mechanism. Sad that bits and pieces of report are being put out like this and not the whole report," he added.
A committee set up by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Saturday night indicted former ISRO chief G Madhavan Nair and three other senior scientists, who were barred from holding any government posts, for acts of commission in Antrix-Devas deal.
The report prepared by a committee headed by Pratyush Sinha, former Chief Vigilance Commissioner, said Antrix-Devas deal lacked transparency and recommended that action needs to be taken against Nair, A Bhaskaranarayana, KR Sridhara Murthi and K N Shankara all of whom have retired.
Nair said, "The committee does not understand space business. I'll wait and then decide what needs to be done. The statements in public domain are highly distortrd. The full reports should be out to make any conclusion. what is in public domain shows the report is one sided. There is no such statement that speaks of specific violations."
The former ISRO chief also said that the deal was not to profit Devas. "The return to government was a respectable business. Our responsibility was to get a new technology in the country. We were in the regime of embargo at the time of the deal. At that time this was the only group left to move forward on the agreement. It was a declared policy of the government to go out and expand in the field of space," he added.
The Antrix is the commercial arm of ISRO and Devas is a private firm. The five-member high level team, which was set up to examine the deal and identify the acts of omission and commission by government officials, said in its report made that "...there have not only been serious administrative and procedural lapses but also suggestion of collusive behaviour on the part of certain individuals and accordingly, responsibilities have to be fixed for taking action".
The Pratyush Sinha committee, set up on May 31 last year to examine the deal and identify the acts of omission and commission by government officials, said choosing Devas for the deal "seems to be lacking in transparency and due diligence".
It said "the approval process (for the deal) was riddled with incomplete and inaccurate information given to the union cabinet and the Space Commission". While the Antrix-Devas agreement was signed on January, 28, 2005, "this fact was not disclosed to the Space Commission or in the Cabinet note dated November 27, 2005, in which approval was sought for the launch of GSAT 6, one of the satellites to be build under the agreement".
The report said the terms of Antrix-Devas contract "were heavily loaded in favour of Devas". It pointed out that terms of the agreement entail that while in the case of the failure of the satellite, the risk was entirely that of Department of Space, the success of of the satellite would commit the latter to substantial expenditure".
Secondly, it said "it is surprising that for the purpose of arbitration Devas has been considered an international customer even though its registered address in the contract is shown as in Bangalore".
The report also noted that no clearance was obtained from the legal cells of the Department of Space and the Finance Ministry for Antrix-Devas deal, as is mandatory for any international agreement by any department of Indian government. The report also said GSAT capacity was earmarked for Devas without consulting INSAT Corporation Committee (ICC), which recommends use of satellite capacities by non-government users authorized to provide telecom services, which is a "clear violation of the government policy".
The committee report said "there is evidence to suggest that the Antrix-Devas agreement was not disclosed to Technical Advisory Group (TAG) at the time of considering the experimental trials".
There is no indication of any attempt to identify other possible partners for providing the same service even though similar services were available in some other countries, said the report.
"Although SATCOM policy and ICC guidelines allow leasing of satellite capacity on first-come-first-served basis, this did not prevent Antrix-ISRO from following a transparent process of adequately publicising its intent of supporting such services..." it said.
"In the absence of such a declaration of intent, choosing Devas seems to be lacking in transparency and due diligence", added the report.

Yuvraj diagnosed with cancer, undergoing chemotherapy

2012-02-05T17:15:00.000+08:00

The 30-year-old left-harden has been in the US since last month, being treated for a malignant tumour and is currently undergoing chemotherapy in the Cancer Research Institute in Boston.

Yuvraj Singh, who played a stellar role in India’s ODI World Cup triumph last year, has been diagnosed with cancer and is undergoing chemotherapy in the United States.

The 30-year-old left-hander has been in US since last month being treated for what was earlier claimed to be a tumour in the lungs by his family. But it has now been diagnosed as malignant and Yuvraj is currently undergoing chemotherapy in the Cancer Research Institute in Boston.

His physiotherapist Dr Jatin Chaudhary, however, assured that the ailment is curable and the batsman would be fit to resume cricket in May. His mother Shabnam Singh could not be reached for her comments.

“It is a rare tumour and is cancerous but it has been detected in Stage One itself. Doctors had to decide whether to continue medication or go for chemotherapy but since parts of the tumour are just above the artery of his heart, there was a danger that while running it could burst. But it is 100 per cent curable,” Dr Chaudhary said.

“The doctors decided that he would have to undergo chemotherapy and he travelled to the US on January 26. End of March, he would undergo a CT scan and should recover by then. After that it is just some rehabilitation in April before he is fit to be back on the field in May,” he added.

Yuvraj, who was Player of the Tournament in the World Cup last year with 362 runs, 15 wickets and four Man-of-the-Match awards, has also been taking ayurvedic medicines to battle the disease.

“After ayurvedic treatment only three cycles of chemotherapy are required. Initially when the cancer was diagnosed after a biopsy in October end, doctors feared that the treatment would be six cycles of chemotherapy,” Dr Chaudhary said.

“Thankfully no surgery is required, he is already a lot better than what he was and can’t wait to be back on the cricket field,” he said.

Dr Chaudhary said the detection of cancer was delayed by wrong diagnosis by an Indian hospital.

“His first biopsy report was stolen from his car and the second from a hospital, I don’t want to name, did not give the correct diagnosis. It was a Russian doctor who detected the cancer and after consultations with doctors in US, it was decided that Yuvraj would undergo chemotherapy,” he said.

Yuvraj has played 37 Tests, scoring 1775 runs at an average of 34.80. He has 8051 runs at an average of 37.62 from his 274 match ODI career, the highlight of which was his stellar role in India’s World Cup triumph last year. In 23 Twenty20s, Yuvraj has scored 567 runs at 31.50.

2012-02-04T11:09:00.000+08:00

No strictures against Manmohan: Pawar

2012-02-04T10:43:00.001+08:00

Defending the Centre, Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Friday said the Supreme Court had not indicted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh or the government in the 2G spectrum scam case in its Thursday order cancelling 122 licences.

Responding to questions at a press conference here, Mr. Pawar said he had only just got a copy of the judgment and a cursory glance through the pages showed that Dr. Singh had written to the then Telecom Minister A. Raja on November 2, 2007, urging fairness and transparency in the 2G spectrum allocation.

The judges noted that the former Minister did not bother to accept the Prime Minister's suggestion on allocation. This clearly indicated that there were no strictures on the Prime Minister, and the judges felt he had done his job, Mr. Pawar said. “I don't think the blame falls on the PM,” Mr. Pawar said, in response to questions on collective responsibility and if Dr. Singh was responsible for the scam. The allocation was not a Cabinet decision but that of an individual Ministry, he said, adding that the government would require some time to apply its mind after the order.

Following the court order, Mr. Pawar felt, the allotment system in the agro sector needed to be scrapped and a committee could be appointed for major decisions. The verdict also indicated that the government had to take a cautious approach before taking any decisions which, on the flipside, might delay the process, he said.

Both internationally and nationally, within the investor community, the order would be debated and the possibility of repercussions on investments could not be ruled out, Mr. Pawar said.

The Minister admitted that a wrong decision indeed brought disrepute to the government. Asked about the impact of the latest judgment on the ongoing Assembly elections, he said the situation appeared to be in favour of the Congress in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. If the Samajwadi Party came on top, a government could be formed with the Congress and Ajit Singh's party (Rashtriya Lok Dal), he said. In Manipur and Goa, where the Nationalist Congress Party was contesting, there would be no impact. He said the UPA constituents would increase its numbers in these elections.

However, he cautioned that the public could not be predicted so easily. “They are smarter than us.”

‘Substantiate charges'

Regarding the allegations of corruption against Ministers in the NCP, Mr. Pawar sought proof to back up the claims. Assailing the press for injudicious reportage, Mr. Pawar said that while he was all for democratic freedom, there must be some decorum and limit. Regarding allegations against the former Union Civil Aviation Minister, Praful Patel, Mr. Pawar said he had read the article in a Canadian daily, which had mentioned that there was no evidence to support the allegations. In addition, Mr. Patel had also written to the Prime Minister on the issue, and the deal, which was mentioned in the paper, did not come through in any case.

Mr. Pawar said he had contested 14 elections and people had supported him but he would not contest the 2014 general elections. That did not mean he was moving out of public life. He was giving advance notice of his intentions to prepare the ground for another competent contestant. To a question whether he was keen on the Rajya Sabha, he said the party would decide.

Addressing the press earlier, Mr. Pawar appealed to his party members to desist from mudslinging. In the background of a war of words between State Industries Minister Narayan Rane and the Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, Mr. Sharad Pawar called on the NCP to work unitedly to ensure victory in the elections to 10 municipal corporations, 27 nagar parishads and over 300 panchayat samitis in the State. After all the Congress and NCP, even if they were contesting against each other in some places, were still running the government.

$3-billion treasure found

2012-02-04T10:41:00.000+08:00

U.S. treasure hunters said they found the sunken remains of a British steamer torpedoed during World War II carrying platinum now valued at $3 billion, the Boston Globe reported Wednesday.

The Sub Sea Research, a company based in the north-eastern U.S. State of Maine, found the British ship SS Port Nicholson on the ocean floor some 50 km off Provincetown, Massachusetts, the newspaper reported.

The Port Nicholson was sailing from Halifax in Canada to New York when it was torpedoed and sank in 1942. Four people died when the ship went down and 87 were rescued.

The Sub Sea Research team discovered the sunken treasure in August 2008 with help from a remote control machine tethered to their ship, the Sea Hunter, the paper said.

The cargo, valued in 1942 at about $53 million, was a lend-lease payment to the United States from the Soviet Union.

The treasure hunters said that there are at least 30 boxes scattered around the shipwreck, and they believe the crates contain platinum ingots.

“There's a good possibility there are about 10 tonnes of gold down there, too, and maybe some industrial diamonds,” Greg Brooks, a partner in the Sub Sea company, told The Globe.

Putin ready for run-off

2012-02-04T10:38:00.000+08:00

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin acknowledged that it could take him two rounds of voting to win the March presidential elections, but warned the runoff could spark instability.

This is Mr. Putin's third presidential campaign: two previous elections in 2000 and 2004 he won outright in the first round.

“I understand that a second round runoff is possible, as per the current legislation,” said Mr. Putin, adding that a second round could lead to “a certain destabilisation of the political situation”. “But there's nothing scary about it. I am ready for that, to work in the second round, if need be,” he said at a meeting on Wednesday with Russian election observers.

As Mr. Putin was speaking, opposition activists put up a huge banner opposite the Kremlin that said “Putin — Go Away” and showed his face crossed out.

Protests

Mr. Putin is facing an unprecedented wave of protests against his return to the Kremlin. Tens of thousands of Russians took to the streets in December to protest alleged rigging of parliamentary elections by Mr. Putin's party, United Russia, and Mr. Putin's plans to reclaim presidency. More mass protests are scheduled for Saturday in Moscow and other cities. Organisers said the protesters would call on Russians not to vote for Mr. Putin.

Recent polls showed unusually low election ratings for Mr. Putin, with less than 50 per cent of voters ready to support him in the first round.

Nevertheless, he maintains a formidable lead over the other four contesters, with the nearest contender — Communist party leader Gennady Zyuganov, scoring between eight and 11 per cent of the vote. This gave pollsters grounds to predict that Mr. Putin would win the March 4 election in the first round, though with reduced margins.

Is Mitt Romney the Nevada front-runner? Yes, but . . .

2012-02-04T10:31:00.000+08:00

Mitt Romney is the heavy favorite to win Saturday’s Nevada caucuses, in case you hadn’t noticed. The most recent Bling State – excuse me, Silver State – polls have Mr. Romney far ahead.
A Public Policy Polling survey released Friday has Newt Gingrich eating Romney’s desert dust, for example. Romney gets the nod of 50 percent of likely GOP caucus-goers, according to PPP. Mr. Gingrich comes in second at only 25 percent. Ron Paul is third at 15 percent and Rick Santorum fourth at 8 percent.
“The bad news for Gingrich isn’t just that he’s headed for a distant second-place finish. Nevada Republicans actively dislike him, with only 41 percent holding a favorable opinion of him to 49 percent with a negative one,” writes PPP analyst Tom Jenson. “That’s an indication that GOP voters might be starting to sour on him again, sending his numbers back to pre-South Carolina levels.”
How much do you know about Mitt Romney? A quiz.
It doesn’t look good for the former speaker, does it? New York Times polling analyst Nate Silver puts the chances of Romney winning Nevada at 100 percent.
But there are several caveats we should mention. There haven’t been many recent statewide polls of Nevada, so the data sample here is small. Plus, the vote in caucus states is notoriously hard to predict. Who will show up? Who will stick around if the speeches are boring? Who will bolt for home when the nachos run out?
Slate political blogger David Weigel points out that in 2008, final polls predicted that Mr. Paul would finish fourth with 7.3 percent of the vote. He actually finished second with 13.7 percent of the vote. Clearly Paul voters are hardened against lack of snacks.
Should Romney be worried? Well, not really. But now that he’s supposed to win a blowout, reporters might treat anything less as slippage. You know how devious we journalists are – always playing an expectations game with rules we control by ourselves.
“If this winds up being at all close, [Romney] may have some explaining to do,” writes the Washington Post’s Aaron Blake Friday on the paper’s political blog The Fix.
The biggest danger for Gingrich is that he won’t even finish second. A third or even fourth-place showing might make it much tougher for Newt to slog through until Southern states vote in March’s Super Tuesday. Rick Santorum is going all-in to try and displace Gingrich as the anti-Romney in Nevada. He’s released a brutal radio ad, for instance, that mocks Gingrich’s proposed US colony on the moon.
“Gingrich’s idea is fiscal insanity, and another reason why true conservatives are uniting around Rick Santorum,” says the radio spot.
Then there is Paul. Nevada is a test case of the libertarian’s caucus-first strategy, in which he focuses on states where organization and enthusiasm count for a lot. Nevada’s 28 delegates will be allocated proportionally and the caucus results are binding, so if Paul supporters can stack the house in a few counties their guy could do better than expected.
Paul’s made a play for the Nevada vote by releasing a state-specific economic plan that among other things proposes that tip income be tax-free. That might play well in a state where (according to the Paul campaign) 20 percent of workers have jobs that involve tip money.

2012-02-04T10:22:00.000+08:00

AP TET RESULTS 2012

Jackie makes cameo appearance in Rajinikanth's Kochadaiyyan

2012-02-03T22:05:00.000+08:00

Anything for Rajinikanth, says Bollywood actor Jackie Shroff, who has made a cameo appearance in the legendary Tamil actor's new film Kochadaiyyan.

"Rajiniji's daughter Soundarya is directing the film with her dad in the lead. So sweet! She asked me to make a cameo appearance in the film with her father. I immediately flew down to Chennai. When it comes to anything to do with Rajinikanth, one doesn't ask questions. One just does the needful," said Jackie.

"It's an interesting cameo which Soundarya insisted only I could play. I believe the film is in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi. But even if it was in Swahili, I'd run and do it for Rajinikanth," added the actor who turned 52 Wednesday.

He had to rush to Chennai for the shoot and said, "My birthday is generally a very quiet affair. As always my rakhi-sister Anna Singh came home. Then we went to Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia D'Souza's sangeet. That's where I brought in my birthday. I flew into Chennai for Rajiniji's film early next morning. I can't think of a better way to spend my birthday."

Getting a little philosophical, Jackie said: "Honestly a birthday is no big deal. I am just beginning to understand life. My first 40 years went into growing up. Now I am finally getting to know what this whole business of living is all about."

Jackie and Rajini go back a long way.

"He was one of the few people at my wedding with Ayesha when we got married in 1989. Rajiniji and I were shooting for Subhash Ghai's Uttar Dakshin, in which he played my younger stepbrother. It was so much fun. I was the North Indian, he was my South Indian brother. During the lunch break Ayesha and I decided to get married. Just the two of us and those close to us. There was Rajiniji, Subhash Ghai, Dimple Kapadia, Anupam Kher and a few of my other friends, that's it. So you see, I've very fond memories of Rajnikanth and would never say no to anything to do with him or his family," said the actor.

Genelia D'Souza weds Riteish Deshmukh

2012-02-03T20:24:00.000+08:00

In true band baaja baarat style, Bollywood couple Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia D'Souza tied the knot today according to Marathi traditions in the presence of Bollywood and political biggies.
The marriage came at the end of an eight-year-long courtship with Riteish (32) and Genelia (24) taking their vows around a sacred fire at the suburban Grand Hyatt hotel.
The groom, wearing a white sherwani and red 'feta' (turban), entered the hotel riding a white 'ghodi'. Genelia wore a red and gold lehenga designed by Ritu Kumar.
The 'baaraat' started from the grounds near Grand Hyatt. Amidst the singing and dancing, Riteish, with his face covered with a 'sehra' (flower veil), waved excitedly while sitting on the horse.
The actor's Congress minister father Vilasrao Deshmukh was dressed in a brown sherwani.
Sharad Pawar, Praful Patel, Subodh Kant Sahay, Sunil Tatkare and Johny Joseph were among the political figures present at the wedding.
B-town guests present included Shah Rukh Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Kajol and Ajay Devgn, Akshay Kumar, Sajid Khan, Karan Johar, Shahid Kapoor, Ashutosh Gowariker, Sajid Nadiadwala, Satish Shah, Asin, Jacky Bhagnani, Vashu Bhagnani, Ramesh Taurani, Nishka and Neeta Lulla.
Riteish took to Twitter last night, saying, "Saw the Last sunset as a Bachelor."
And soon after the wedding, the actor took to Twitter to post a photo of him and Genelia, with the caption, "MR & MRS DESHMUKH".
The wedding capped three days of festivities that included sangeet, haldi, mehndi ceremonies and a traditional bachelorette party for Genelia. The reception will take place tomorrow at the same hotel.
Riteish and Genelia have been seeing each other since their Bollywood debut, 'Tujhe Meri Kasam' in 2003 but they chose to be secretive about it. They finally opened up about their relationship last year.
The couple will be seen romancing in their forthcoming film 'Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya' that will hit the theatres on February 24.

Soni justifies Govt seeking 2nd AG opinion on army chief's age

2012-02-03T20:22:00.000+08:00

Justifying government action in seeking second legal opinion from the Attorney General on Army Chief General V K Singh's age row, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni today said it was done in view of fresh material and points coming up on the issue. "As far as we know, his (AGs) legal advice was sought again as some new things had come up on the issue and placed before him.... When an opinion is sought for the second time, naturally fresh material and points are put forth the Attorney General. In view of that a second opinion is often sought, which must have been done," said Soni.
Soni's justification comes in the wake of the Supreme Court questioning the government's action of seeking the Attorney General's opinion the second time on the issue. The Court has deferred the hearing in the case pertaining to the Army Chief's age row to February 10.
Soni maintained that the Attorney General is the highest legal authority to give legal opinion to the government and appealed to the political class to adopt restraint while commenting on the issue and not involve the forces in settling political scores.
"My appeal to political colleagues across the board is that we all have high esteem for the armed forces without exception... And, I think at this stage also, we political people must also bring some restraint on our reaction so that we don't involve the armed forces in our political scuffle...," said Soni.
She said that the armed forces have always played a role which has been admired, appreciated and held in high regard by people of this country, even as traditionally, as a matter of principle, the armed forces have kept themselves totally away from any kind of political opinion or bias.

Ind vs Aus: India taste first victory Down Under, thrash Australia by 8 wickets

2012-02-03T20:19:00.000+08:00

NEW DELHI: Fine batting by Gautam Gambhir (56*) and Virat Kohli (31) guided India to a comfortable eight-wicket victory over Australia in the second Twenty20 international at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday.

With this victory, India not only levelled the two-match Twenty20 international series 1-1 but also registered their maiden victory on the current Australian tour after being whitewashed 0-4 in the recently concluded Test series.

Ravindra Jadeja was named man-of-the-match for his outstanding fielding effort of two run outs and a caught and bowled in Australia's innings.

Australia were dismissed for 131 with two balls left after winning the toss and India reached that target with 135 for two off 19.4 overs.

Gambhir remained unbeaten on 56 off 60 balls while skipper MS Dhoni, who promoted himself in the batting order to number four, was not out 21 off 18 balls.

Gambhir slammed a quickfire 54-ball fifty that included 3 boundaries. Gambhir and Kohli, who added 54 runs for the second wicket, steadied Indian run chase after losing Virender Sehwag.

Mitchell Marsh dismissed Virat Kohli to give Australia second breakthrough against India

Chasing 132, India lost their second wicket at the score of 97. India, who reached the score of 100 runs in 85 balls, were 71 after the end of 10 overs.

Left-arm spinner Brad Hogg gave Australia first breakthrough as he got rid of dangerous Virender Sehwag in the second T20 international. Sehwag gave an easy catch to Shaun Marsh straight at extra cover that too on a full toss.

Sehwag and Gambhir, who gave India steady start against Australia, added 43 runs for the first wicket in the second Twenty20 international.

Earlier, an agile India gave a good account of themselves in the field as they effected four run-outs to dismiss Australia for a modest 131 in the second Twenty20 international.

Aaron Finch was the top scorer for Australia with 36 while Matthew Wade made 32. Pacer Praveen Kumar and leg-spinner Rahul Sharma picked up two wickets each.

Australia, who kept losing their wickets at regular intervals, lost half of their side inside 95 runs in the second T20I.

All five frontline bowlers, Praveen Kumar (2 for 21), Vinay Kumar (2 for 25), Ravinder Jadeja (1 for 16), Rahul Sharma (2 for 29) and Ravichandran Ashwin (1 for 23) bowled well.

Matthew Wade, hero of the first Twenty20 game, came to bat at number six, made 32 before being the third batsman to be run out for 32.

Aaron Finch (36 off 23 balls), opening in place of Wade this time, made a strokeful knock before being run out at a critical time.

India bowled and fielded with enthusiasm and it all started after Praveen picked up two wickets in his second over.

Indian skipper MS Dhoni also rose to the occasion as he was quite electrifying behind the stumps and instrumental in few stumpings and catches behind the wickets.

Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja, who exhibited his fine fielding skills, struck with the ball as he caught and bowled Australia's David Hussey to give India crucial breakthrough in the second T20 international.

Rahul Sharma got rid of Mitchell Marsh with the help of brilliant work done behind the stumps by Indian skipper MS Dhoni.

Ravindra Jadeja's brilliant work on the field sent Australia's Aaron Finch and George Bailey back to the pavillion in the second Twenty20 international at the MCG.

Australia got off to a poor start as they lost David Warner and Shaun Marsh cheaply after skipper George Bailey won the toss and showed no hesitation in deciding to bat first against the beleaguered visitors.

Paceman Praveen Kumar dismissed David Warner and Shaun Marsh in the span of four deliveries to give Aussies early blows.

Australia made three changes in their playing eleven as Travis Birt, Dan Christian and James Faulkner made the way for Aaron Finch, Shaun Marsh and Clint McKay.

India, on the other hand, retained the same team that lost the first Twenty20 match in Sydney on Wednesday.

Russians in provinces support Vladimir Putin but not his party

2012-02-03T11:38:00.000+08:00

Reporting from Yaroslavl, Russia—

With his stocky frame, broad face, blue overalls and red helmet, Andrei Smirnov looks as though he just stepped from a Soviet-style postcard of the ideal working-class figure.

The 45-year-old factory worker came to the Yaroslavl Engine Plant as a young man, getting a job at the same foundry where his father and mother worked, and where he and his younger sister continue the family tradition today. There was a time when the four of them worked together and he was happy, as he is happy now.

But that has not always been the case. With a shudder, Smirnov remembers the deprivation of the early post-Soviet years in his industrial home town 150 miles northeast of Moscow, and he credits one man with changing the country's course in those dark days: Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Anti-Putin protests in Moscow may be grabbing international headlines, with another planned for Saturday, but the quiet workaday routines of Russia's provinces tell a far different story. Even as they abandon his ruling party, many outside the capital cling to Putin as the one who brought them stability, and that's good news for Russia's once and possibly future president a month before national elections.

"We understand that Putin is not a saint and that corruption in the country is horrible, but we don't want revolutions," said Smirnov's wife, Yelena Smirnova. "All we want is stability, and Putin gives us that stability every day."

As they have their evening tea with chocolates and pastries in their nicely remodeled kitchen in a comfortable family apartment with paintings of flowers on the walls and elegantly arranged lace curtains on the windows, the couple recall a horrible New Year's Eve in the early '90s. They realized that they didn't have a penny except for their privatization vouchers, which every Russian citizen received from Boris Yeltsin's government as part of the much-criticized national wealth redistribution program.

They sold their vouchers that day to buy one thing: a family New Year's dinner.

"We sat there looking at the festively laid table and didn't know whether we should enjoy and have fun or cry our eyes out over our stinging poverty," said Smirnova, now a kindergarten manager but then a nursery school instructor. "My wages were miserable and my husband went months without getting his paycheck … when one day Putin appeared on television and our lives soon radically changed.

"We couldn't even dream of decent furniture, a nice television, but the worst thing was that we couldn't afford another baby, so poor we were," Smirnov said with a sigh. "I bought my first car [a Russian-manufactured Lada sedan] only in 2001, when Putin was already in power and life was fast changing for the better."

Since then, the family has traded in the auto for a Japanese make and vacationed three times at the seaside in Turkey and Egypt, trips they couldn't have dreamed of before.

Smirnov and his wife attribute all their life successes to Putin, who they believe personally saved the Yaroslavl Engine Plant amid the 2008 global economic crisis. They remember how he visited the facility during a trip to Yaroslavl and ordered a major state bank to unleash a $190-million loan program to keep the plant afloat and even build a top-notch production line for engines for trucks, buses, tractors and armored personnel carriers.

That move stopped a wave of layoffs at the plant, whose workforce had fast shrunk from 18,000 to about 7,000, and helped reverse a catastrophic fall in production.

By 7 a.m., in a routine little changed throughout the last 26 years, Smirnov is hurrying to work along the snow-covered streets. He doesn't turn his face away from the chilling wind but eagerly breathes in the icy air, because he knows that for the next eight hours he will be taming liquid metal that flows like streams of fire, to be subdued and molded into carcasses of new diesel engines, a shower of blindingly bright sparks saluting his every move.

Most of the workers at the plant said they are going to support the Russian leader in the presidential vote, citing reasons such as: "He raised the country from its knees;" "he drowned terrorists in the toilet as promised;" "he knows two foreign languages;" "he is fit and charismatic;" "he is a real man;" "he taught the West to respect Russia again as a superpower;" and "horses are not changed midstream."

"I am going to vote for Putin with both hands," said Nikolay Belyakov, a 56-year-old machine operator.

"I love everything about him, especially the way he can speak for hours on end without reading from a paper," said Yekaterina Veryugina, a 53-year-old lathe operator, referring to Putin's once- or twice-yearly call-in TV shows, the most recent of which lasted more than 41/2 hours.

The workers condemned the recent mass protests in Moscow and expressed suspicion that those rallies could have been organized from abroad.

"Moscow is not Russia; it is another planet altogether, with different prices, salaries and interests," said Alexander Ivanov, a 37-year-old metal craftsman who as a soldier took part in the bloody suppression of the 1993 Communist-encouraged riots in Moscow. "Should the authorities ask for help in dispersing the opposition rallies, I will go there and do my best to help crush them."

A paradox of the workers' support for Putin is their lack of allegiance to his United Russia party. In December's parliamentary elections, which saw the once-dominant party suffer its most humiliating defeat in years, the result in Yaroslavl was the worst among all the big cities in the country.
The canny Putin managed to distance himself from the party well before the parliamentary poll, perhaps aware that workers traditionally hate bureaucracy on all levels, suspecting corruption. The party is still languishing in such shock and confusion that its Yaroslavl branch didn't even nominate a candidate for the mayoral election to be held simultaneously with the presidential election, local politicians and experts said.

Even Putin's staunch backers understand that the ruling party is all but dead and gone, said Yevgeny Urlashov, a lawyer and mayoral candidate who reportedly commands 30% of local voter support.

Also

"It is amazing how these people seem to miss any connection between the party and its leader," Urlashov said, adding that despite United Russia's worse-than-expected showing, support for Putin is still high enough, especially among the working class and rural dwellers, to most likely ensure his victory in March.

"Putin will obviously win this time, but to keep his job he will be obligated to radically change his policy, to change the constitution and laws to give people back the democratic freedoms and rights taken away from them over these years," Urlashov said. "In the new situation when the sacred image of the Kremlin has been dealt such a humiliating blow, Putin can only stay in power if he unleashes truly democratic reforms."

About 50 miles northwest of Yaroslavl in the depression-hit defense and nuclear industry town of Rybinsk, a woman sat bent over an antiquated metal vise in a dark hall of a spare-parts production plant. Most workers had been sent home for the day because of a prolonged power outage.

But Svetlana Yershova, 46, didn't need electricity to manually clip out inch-long metal parts for $10 a day in the winter daylight dying fast behind the soiled window.

She said she believed that the result of the presidential poll had already been decided, that nothing would depend on her vote and that she might as well stay home.

"But if I change my mind and vote, I will cast my vote for Putin," she said, raising her head and smiling, lighting up the room with her gold front tooth. "You see, Putin doesn't have this alterni … alturni.... What do you call that?"

"Alternative?"

"Exactly," she said. "Something he doesn't have."

Papua New Guinea ferry: Fears grow for 120 missing

2012-02-03T11:33:00.000+08:00

Ships and helicopters are continuing to search for more than 120 people missing after a ferry sank off Papua New Guinea's north coast on Thursday.

More than 230 people rescued in a joint Australian-PNG operation have reached the eastern PNG town of Lae, officials said on Friday.
The search for the missing - mostly university students - resumed at daylight.
An official said there were fears people had been trapped in the ferry.
The MV Rabaul Queen, a vessel owned by PNG-based Rabaul Shipping, sank east of Lae some 10 miles (16km) from shore. The company said in a statement that there were 350 passengers and 12 crew onboard.
"We acknowledge that this has caused tremendous suffering. Our condolences go to the loved ones of those affected," said Rabaul Shipping managing director Peter Sharp.
Relatives of the passengers, angered by a lack of information, threw rocks at the company's office in Kimbe on Thursday, Australian media reported. Local police said it had to move the staff to an undisclosed location.
So far a total of 238 people have been plucked from the water. Most of the survivors who have returned to Lae were taken to the local hospital.

"None of them had sustained any real injuries. They were pretty cold and miserable," Lae Chamber of Commerce president Alan McLay told Australian media.
Nurur Rahman, acting chief of Papua New Guinea's maritime authority, said he was hopeful of finding more people alive in the tropical waters.
"People have survived for up to two days,'' he told the Associated Press news agency. As of Thursday night, no bodies had been found, he said.
'Cause unclear' Survivors told rescue officials that the ferry was hit by huge waves before it rolled and sank. Some had to cling onto debris in the water before they were picked up by the six merchant vessels alerted by Australian authorities to head to the scene.
"We found a number of (opened life-raft) capsules with no people in them," Rony Naigu, a rescue official from Papua New Guinea's maritime safety authority, told Reuters.
The company that operates the ferry said the cause of the disaster remained unclear. It was believed that the Rabaul Queen maintained radio contact with another vessel just before it sank and gave no indication of distress.
The company also said it alerted AMSA after the ferry disappeared on a satellite tracking system.
The ferry was travelling on a ''routine route'' between Kimbe and Lae, which it had done weekly for 11 years without any accident, the company added in a statement.
The Japanese-built vessel had undergone a dry dock service in November 2011.
"While we are trying to comprehend the terrible nature of the accident, we are also staying focused on helping authorities as the search and rescue operation unfolds," said Mr Sharp.
Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O'Neill said everything would be done to establish the cause of the accident.
"We will leave no stone unturned," he said. "We cannot afford to continue to lose our people's lives. Sea transport is one of the most important forms of transportation in the country."

Jayalalithaa's former aide Sasikala's brother arrested

2012-02-03T11:27:00.000+08:00

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa's former aide Sasikala's brother Diwakaran was today arrested in Tiruvarur district for allegedly demolishing a woman's house in Rishiyur village. The Madras High Court has dismissed his anticipatory bail.

Diwakaran's arrest comes days after the Chief Minister expelled Sasikala Natarajan and 11 of her relatives from her party, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK). No reason was officially given for the drastic step. The move was, however, seen by many as an attempt by Jayalalithaa to nip in the bud reported moves by Sasikala's family to dominate her party and influence the AIADMK government. Those who were handed the pink slip included Sasikala's husband, Natarajan and her nephew and former MP T T V Dinakaran.

Sasikala has for long served as Jayalalithaa's companion. She is also one of the main accused in a case that alleges that the Chief Minister misused her office from 1991-1996 to collect assets worth 66 crores that cannot be accounted for. That case is being tried by a Bangalore court to ensure a fair trial. Jayalalithaa objected to being summoned by that court, but was ordered by the Supreme Court to appear in person to answer questions. Sasikala travelled with her for those hearings in a special plane from Chennai.

For three decades, Sasikala was acknowledged as a power centre in the AIADMK because of her proximity to Jayalalithaa. Insiders say that her opinions counted towards the selection of ministers and party candidates.

In 1996, when Jayalalithaa was beleaguered by a slew of corruption charges, she had a brief falling out with Sasikala, who belongs to the strong Thevar community, traditionally AIADMK loyalists.

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