Voice of India

Chennai gets into act to relay roads with plastic wastes

2012-02-19T23:05:00.000-08:00

Come Wednesday, the Chennai Corporation has its task cut out –collection of plastic wastes from the residents, which could be reused for relayingmain and interior roads.

Taking forward of Dr Vasudevan, Dean ECA & Prof. Departmentof Chemistry of Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai’s inventionof ‘plastic road technology’, the corporation has announced Wednesdays being 'PlasticCollection Day' in the city starting from February 22.

Road relayed using plastic wastes

Every Wednesday conservancy staff on tricycles, would come door-to-doorand collect garbage, will specifically ask for plastic waste, especially thincarry bags and covers in which commodities such as pulses and condiments arepackaged, for use in laying roads.

Roads using plastic mixed with bitumen are not only stronger anddurable, but also cost-effective and environment friendly.

“We have also made arrangements to collect plastics from studentsof Chennai Schools and private schools. A few private schools, includingVelammal group and Alpha group have already agreed to create awareness amongtheir students and ask them to bring plastics that civic body conservancy staffwould collect on Wednesdays. We want 100 tonnes of plastic every week,” said asenior official told Hindu.

Since January 5, when the laying of plastic-coated bituminous roads began,the civic body has been urging residents to hand over segregated plastic wasteto conservancy workers at their doorstep. Special bins, particularly forplastic waste, were installed in all 200 wards.

"We are getting more plastic than we did a few weeks earlier, but werequire a lot more," said commissioner P W C Davidar. The commissionerstressed the need for good quality, thin plastic. "We need plastic that is40 microns thick, which in layman's terms means carry bags," he said.

S.Alfred Devaprasad, president, Alpha Group of Institutions said,“School and college students are going to be a part of this. We are coiningslogans and be putting up posters in our institutions. After eight weeks prizeswould be given to classes that collect the largest quantity of plastic.”

MVM Velmurugan, CEO of Velammal Educational Trust said, “Childrenwould come forward willingly to participate and bring in plastic waste in largeamounts if the purpose is explained properly to them. It is in the interest ofthe environment and the society. Our trust's 10 schools would take theresponsibility of collecting plastics from 30 neighbouring schools.”

Having set a target of 800 tonnes of plastic material to lay 370km of roads at a cost of Rs 110 crore, the Corporation is looking at variousoptions, including collecting plastic waste from manufacturers. Around 8-10 percent of shredded plastic is blended with the bitumen to lay roads.

Of the 78 km of bus route roads and 292 km of interior roads, theCorporation has so far laid 6 km of BRR and 11 km of interior roads due tounavailability of plastic. Though thecivic body had floated tenders for plastic wastes, sources said that it was nothappy with the response.

The civic body has been buying plastic at 20 per kg from privatemanufacturers. “Each time the participating companies seem to be quoting higherrates for shredded plastics. So instead we are trying to make the residentsgive plastic waste that they usually throw away. We are getting shredders forevery zone so that the plastic could be made into pellets at the zonal levelitself,” the official said.

Residents who have large amount of plastics can also send emailto plasticwaste@chennaicorporation.gov.in.The civic body is also taking across the message through electronic media andother means of communication.

India's industrial production to grow by 7.4% in FY13

2012-02-19T22:20:00.000-08:00

Mumbai: The country's industrial production is expected to grow by 7.4percent in fiscal 2013 as against the forecast of 5.1 percent for 2012, Centrefor Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) said in its monthly review. The industrialproduction growth stood at 8.2 percent in 2011.

The manufacturing sector is expected to witness a healthy growth of 6.5percent in fiscal 2013, against forecast of 4.9% in FY 12, CMIE said, reportsPTI, adding, this growth would be driven by over 10 percent rise in productionof motor vehicles and other transport equipment, machinery, basic metals andwearing apparels India GDP growth.

Rising corporate salaries, increase in rural income, softening ofinterest rates, improvement in availability of finance, new models andexpansion of dealers network could boost passenger cars production by 13.1percent in FY 13, the report added.

Production of MUVs, two-wheelers and three-wheelers is also expected togrow by around 10 percent. This will lead to higher demand and production inauto ancillary category.

Huge capacity additions in the industrial and infrastructuralconstruction segment and increase in production of automobiles and machinery isalso expected to generate higher demand for basic metals in FY 13, CMIE said ina statement.

The mining industry, which saw a stagnation in FY 12, is expected to growby a healthy 5.6 percent next year.

Thailand looks for its share in Indian retail sector

2012-02-19T22:09:00.000-08:00

India’s burgeoning retail sector and government’sdecision to open up overseas investment to augment further growth has made manyeconomies, developed and developing, tovie for their pie in the US$ 550 billion market. ASEAN member Thailand too is looking at various opportunities to invest in India.

According Adul Chotinisakorn,executive director of the Thai Trade Center in Mumbai, Thai companies shouldinvest in single-brand retail businesses and construction in India whilesourcing raw materials for seafood and jewellery industries.

“As India recently approved 100% FDIin single-brand retail businesses, Thai operators such as the Black Canyoncafe{aac} chain and Naraya, the manufacturer and distributor of NaRaYa fabricbags and accessories, could reap full benefits from investing in India,” hesays. However, New Delhi has not yet granted the same privilege to multi-brandretail businesses.

ASEAN and Indian markets are boomingdue to trade and investment potential. Apart from its sheer size of 1.2 billionpeople, the India market is an ideal sources of several raw materials.

For instance, southern India cansupply squid for the Thai seafood industry while there are also abundantsupplies of precious stones there. As well, Surat in the western Gujarat Stateis one of the world's diamond-cutting centres, Bangkok Post quoting Adul as saying.

The Indian government plans toinvest $45 billion on infrastructure development over the next five years,opening up numerous opportunities for Thai construction companies to work inIndia. Currently, Italian-Thai Development Plc has presence in the country.

About 200 million Indians have highpurchasing power and real estate developments are now popular in the country,creating opportunities for Thai developers. Pruksa Real Estate Development Plchas already entered the market.

But for Thai consumer products, thepotential might not be as strong because low-income Indians tend to buy cheaperlocally made goods. For instance, Thai instant noodle is priced at 26 rupeeseach, compared with five for local brands. Similarly, Thai fruit juiceproducers cannot compete with the giant multinational Tropicana which has afactory in India.

Thailand has set a target for 10%growth in exports to India to US$6.2 billion this year. Two-way trade was $8.19billion last year, up 23.29% from 2010. Thai exports increased 17.93% to $5.18billion while imports rose 33.73% to $3.01 billion in 2011.

Srirat Rastapana, director-generalof Trade Negotiations Department, says talks on the bilateral free trade areaagreement with India have reached common grounds on rules of origin and customsprocedures were concluded.

Both sides agreed on the economiccooperation on creative economy, tourism, science and technology,infrastructure development and construction. They would also help each other inupgrading small and medium-sized enterprises and health care.

Show helmet and fill petrol in Bihar

2012-01-31T01:25:00.000-08:00

Riding a two-wheeler without helmet is a common site in manycities in India. As per government records, more than 70 percent of the fatalroad accidents involving two wheelers are due to head injuries. And most of them die due to non-wearing of helmet.As few state governments made it mandatory to wear headgear, Bihar has justjoined the bandwagon to reduce the fatality on city roads.

In a unique order, the Nitish Kumar government has asked thepetrol pump owners to deny petrol to bikers who do not wear helmet. Police inthe past had launched a special drive against those not wearing helmet. Ranchipolice early this month had also started garlanding such riders.

Petrol pump owners have also been asked to set up CCTVcameras. They have also asked to note down the number of a two-wheeler if itsrider is without a helmet and tries to get petrol by force.

But will it make bikers adhere road-safety rule? There arepeople who carry helmet for academic purpose tied in the helmet lock, to justget away from the preying cops. In Chennai, when the DMK government imposedstrictures on the bikers to wear helmet, very many protested and opposition madea statement that the move was to fill the coffers of helmet companies close toministers.

Women in particular, have argued that wearing helmet would disturbtheir hair style, trigger hair fall etc. In Chandigarh, when the rule was firstimplemented, the government first exempted ‘sardars’from wearing helmet. Later, after a series of protests from women organisations,the police relaxed rule further for fairer sex. All these show that the administrations are not able to implement therule, even if it is beneficial for the people, because the latter’sparticipation is nill.

The bikers can wear helmet before entering the pumpingstation and once fill their tank, they can tie the helmet again in the lock andride away. No one can stop them filling their vehicles’ tank. If the government wants to implement rules onroad safety, it should also come simultaneously from the society. People shouldoverwhelmingly follow traffic rules. Also, those who do not want to follow the rulesfor trivial reasons should be dealt with seriously. Apart from fines and otherregular punishments, the habitual offenders’ license should be cancelledpermanently.

SEBI to reform IPO process

2012-01-13T01:43:00.000-08:00

Capital markets regulator SEBI said today that it will reform the initial public offer (IPO) process and ensure that disclosure norms are made effective as the Indian financial markets undergo radical reforms to become globally competitive.

“We are looking at every aspect. The basic aim is to curb volatility, particularly on the day of listing,” said Rajeev Agarwal, whole-time member of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) while addressing an ASSOCHAM conference.

“We will follow strict disclosure norms to protect investors’ interests, create enabling environment so that financial firms become global and vigorously enforce corporate governance norms.”

He said the industry should make efforts to channelise more savings into capital markets to fund capital requirements of various sectors. Only 4.6 per cent of national savings are invested in capital markets.

The country needs investments of one trillion dollars to build infrastructure in the next five years. Agarwal said even pension funds can be invested as new products evolve and regulations are harmonised so that GDP growth of nine per cent can be maintained, the industrial body said in a statement.

Meanwhile, CS Mohapatra, director (secondary markets and UTI) at the finance ministry’s Department of Economic Affairs, said the government will remove regulatory overlaps to bring financial stability and take measures to boost corporate bond market.

However, industry leaders must take lead in reducing intermediation costs by introducing new technology and improving human infrastructure. “There is no reason to be pessimistic as India is showing second highest growth rates amid global economic gloom. There is need for next generation of reforms to increase inflows from foreign institutional investors.”

Nanda Kumar, senior vice-president of the National Stock Exchange, said the current global uncertainties pose challenges and opportunities for the Indian financial sector. The industry requires innovation, efficiencies, transparency and safety to bring back investors’ confidence.

RN Dhoot, president elect of The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), said watershed structural reforms have taken place in the banking sector during 20 years of pro-active reforms.

“The time has come for consolidated efforts by all stakeholders for inclusive growth,” he said adding financial sector reforms can add significantly to economic growth and also make a significant contribution to the sustainability of this growth.

ASSOCHAM secretary general DS Rawat said the financial system’s ability to efficiently intermediate domestic and foreign capital into productive investment and to provide financial services to a vast majority of households will influence economic as well as social stability.

Rashesh Shah, chairman of ASSOCHAM National Council for Capital Markets, said Indian yearly savings total 500 billion dollars. The India growth story is in tact, he said, but four trends are worrisome. High inflation, rising interest rates, burgeoning fiscal deficit and the currency under pressure have led many to conclude that economic reforms are stuck for the moment.

Others present during the conference were Anil Agarwal, past president of ASSOCHAM, S.C. Agarwal, co-chairperson of ASSOCHAM National Council for Capital Markets, and Manish Kedia, director and head of debt practices at Resurgent India.

Disturbed Neighbours Make Us Disturbed

2012-01-12T04:50:00.000-08:00

A weak and troubled neighbor is always hindrance to a country’s progress and peace. India, for instance, has such neighbours facing perennial internal strife. Be it Pakistan, Nepal or Sri Lanka, the problems in these countries have always had its impact on India. We lost a national leader to the internal squabbles of Sri Lanka; we lost a part of Kashmir and few thousands of lives due to Pakistan’s support to militancy in Kashmir; and about Nepal and Bangladesh, the influx of illegal immigrants causing social-economic problems besides posing serious threat to the safety and security of India.

Now, reports emanating from Pakistan suggest that the Islamic nation is moving towards a military coup. Pakistan's government looks dangerously isolated in a fresh confrontation with the country's powerful military that analysts say could, at the very least, end in early elections.

The army erupted in fury on Wednesday over criticism from Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani concerning a commission probing the "Memogate" scandal -- the bizarre and highly controversial case of an unsigned memo sent to the US military to seek its help in weakening Pakistan's military.
The memo has pitted the army against President Asif Ali Zardari's weak civilian administration, and the Supreme Court is now tasked with deciding if the government endorsed the note, and if so, if it can remain in power.

Possibly as a last nail in the coffin, the government on Wednesday sacked the defence secretary Naeem Khalid Lodhi -- considered more loyal to the military (head) than to the civil leadership. The move has brought the fore the fear of yet another coup. Pakistan has been under military dictatorships for about half its history since independence in 1947, its civilian leaders thrown out in three coups.

The government has been cornered ever since the ‘mamogate’ surfaced and with Pakistan’s strong military and Supreme Court taking on the government separately, the survival of the Gilani’s civil government seems to be bleak. With political instability in Pakistan, India should be extra cautious as any military coup would make the military more powerful and bring their hands close to the weapons of mass destructions.

Tribal dance to shame!

2012-01-11T04:04:00.001-08:00

Suddenly the sleepy and often discarded Indian island has come alive on Indian television channels, albeit for wrong reasons. Looking for meaty and glamorous issues, these TRP-hungry channels happily grabbed it with both hands.

Confused? The hot issue of the day is nothing but the reports published by print media and repeatedly aired and discussed by leading television channels about dancing of half-naked women and children to “entertain” the visiting tourists at the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Piqued by the development, the Indian government on Wednesday asked the Andaman and Nicobar administration to explain how it allowed such ‘unsocial’ event to happen?

Terming the incident as "obnoxious and disgusting", tribal affairs minister KP Singh Deo said, "It ... cannot be pardoned. It deserves exemplary punishment.” Another minister cried for strict action against those responsible for the event.

The Guardian has posted on its website footage filmed by a tourist showing half-naked Jarawa women being told to dance for tourists by an off-camera police officer.

The website said the Jarawa tribe has lived in peace in the Andaman Islands for thousands of years but tour companies are now running safaris through their jungle. Wealthy tourists pay police to make the women - usually naked - dance for their amusement.

It’s bizarre to the core. The incident has exposed the local government, which has failed to stop such acts being happening under its nose for quite some time. It’s now that when media has highlighted the issue that everyone creating hue and cry of the incident. For long, these tribal people have been living in acute penury and lack of basic infrastructure, which the government has failed to provide as per the constitutional norms. They have been denied the basic needs and several places in the Islands have, till date, not received the compensation announced for the 2004 tsunami victims and damages.

Probably the acute penury might have forced the locals to agree to the tourists’ bizarre amusement needs. Instead of discussing at length on various platforms these tribal people should be rehabilitated and provided basic needs such as education, employment, food and shelter.

According to a Wikipedia update, Jarawa tribes are one of the adivasi indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands. Their present numbers are estimated at between 250-350 individuals. Since they have largely shunned interactions with outsiders, many particulars of their society, culture and traditions are poorly understood. Along with other indigenous Andamanese peoples, they have inhabited the islands for at least several thousand years.

There is some indication that the Jarawa community regarded the now-extinct Jangil tribe as a parent tribe from which they split centuries or millennia ago, even though the Jarawa outnumbered (and eventually out-survived) the Jangil. The Jangil (also called the Rutland Island Aka Bea) were presumed extinct by 1931.

So, the facts show that the community is on the verge of getting extinct. We already lost one tribal reference from the history and another one is in the offing. Hope for some light for these hapless people after this hullabaloo.

In Ooty These Gods have No Visitors

2009-09-22T02:26:00.000-07:00

Recently I had been to Ooty (Uthagamandalam). Apart from the normal places which we visited for two days, our friend took us to three religious places which tourists to the Queen of Hills couldn’t find it in any of the travel itineraries.

Our Hindu friend, who married to an amputated Christian girl after a stiff resistance from both the sides of families, took us first to a very old church, locally called “Kurusady” Church (St. Stephen's) in Kaandal area.

He told us that according to a local belief the church has a holy cross kept in a case which is believed to be made from a piece of wood used for crucification of Jesus Christ. Such pious atmosphere the Church has, the local populous come to this place and offer prayers. There is a belief that true prayers are generally answered by the Lord.

Our friend told his own love story, that how his fiancee lost her leg in an accident and the ordeals the couple had to undergo in fighting against the social acceptability from both the communities, to get married. The Church indeed was a major source of moral (he calls it divine) booster for the couple to get united.

From the main bus stand, one can get buses or autos to Kaandal and anyone would guide to this church from the bus stop. From the road one has to trek down in a narrow lane for one km to reach this beautiful church of historic relevance.

Another place which we visited was a temple situated just near to this church. It is a century-old Shiva temple. Legend goes that the temple, whose presiding deities are Kasi Vishwanath and Visalakshi was built by a temple sculptor after five generation of a local family failed to get “Shivalingam” sculpted for the temple. According to the temple priest, Shiva temples are generally built by rulers. Since the local family had no royal lineage, they faced a lot of divine hurdles to build the temple though they had enough funds to do so.

As the family members died one after another without accomplishing the task, the last one from the family, a woman saint, gave the responsibility to a temple sculptor before she passed away in 1884. Though reluctant, the sculptor, went to Kancheepuram to meet the then Shankaracharya.

He told the pontiff that he would acquire sin if he construct the temple as he was not from the royal family and if he did not do so, he would again get sin for failing to fulfill the vow he had taken up to build the temple. The pontiff asked the sculptor to go the Varanasi to have a holly dip in River Ganga to ward off any sin he inherits in this life. When the sculptor immersed himself at the Ganges he saw a Shivalingam beneath the water. When he took it to the Shankaracharya, the later asked him to keep it at the temple site and build a temple for Kasi Vishwanath.

The temple has a prayer hall which houses five shivalingams depicting the names of five of the family who were unsuccessful in building this temple. The place is apt for meditation.

The temple has not much visitors coming even during festival seasons, so no revenue, revealed the head priest, whose two sons are also working in this temple. Lack of funds forced the temple administration to postpone the consecration ceremony. My friend informed me that he married his (Christian) wife in this temple with the help of some true friends.

The third place, I can call it one of the wonders in Ooty apart from the scenic beauties, is a twin Ganesha temple. Like other two places, this place too wants public attention, and hence not much devotes flocking this temple. Only local people visit this temple during the festival seasons.

This temple is situated just 500 m from the main bus stand on the main road itself.

Save Water Today or be Sorry Tomorrow

2009-09-22T02:24:00.000-07:00

As India celebrates her 63rd Independence Day on Saturday, the country, which boasts of one billion head count, still lacks the basic needs for people like Water, Power, Food etc. Since Water plays a major role in linking most of the basic amenities a man needs, due to short-sightedness of our successive governments, political unsteadiness, lack of political will to nationalize all major rivers and excessive usage of underground water many states are reeling under acute water shortage.

The words of famous Tamil patriotic poet Subramanya Bharati who once said, "Irrigate central land with rain water getting wasted in Bay of Bangal" are still relevant in the present day context. But who bothers? We conveniently forgot Bharati and his golden words too.

On one side, some states have faced flood situation in the months of May and June while other states cry for a drop of rain water. The funny side of the story is that while one part of Gujarat and Maharashtra had witnessed worst flood in the month of July, people from the respective states had to stand in queues for hours for a bucket-full of water.

The situation is not all the very different in states like Bihar, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Punjab and Haryana.

While the Centre has decided to declare the 2009-10 seasonal year as drought-hit year, the question which comes to the mind of a common man is, what has happened to the excessive water which made people suffer in states like Maharashtra, Assam, Gujarat, et al and why these water had not been used to irrigate the fields and quench the thirst of people in the respective states?

When Chief Ministers are busy in opening up statues, they hardly find time to think about the problems of the common man. Take for example Uttar Pradesh. Chief Minister Mahawati has decided to declare more than half of the districts of UP as drought hit and asked the centre a draught relief millions of rupees. Now many states will follow the suit and centre too will dutifully dispatch the relief funds from its central pool, which is of course tax payers’ money.

Instead of finding a long lasting solution to the perennial problems like floods and drought, the governments give relief materials and money to the affected people year after year. All most every year parts of Tamil Nadu, face flood situation during the months of November and December. Every time the government provides essential commodities to the poor and also money to the worst hit families. Once the water recedes people would start colonizing the same area. No arrangements had been made to displace them or take measures to prevent flooding in a particular area year after year.

Had they spent the money to strengthen the infrastructure like construction of storage dams, diverting water which was going waste to the sea to the irrigating fields and generate more hydro-electric power plants near the dam sites etc, life wouldn’t have been difficult for the people.

Still the time is not lost. We shall make this happen in five years time provided the government amend rules to interconnect all major rivers in the country, speedy disposal of all water-related disputes pending in the designated courts across the country, make an expert panel comprising of intellectuals of respective fields to over see the equal water distribution to various terrains from North to South and West to East part of the country. Am I expecting too much folks?

Dying for Leaders - Height of Madness!

2009-09-22T02:22:00.000-07:00

K Ramanathan Iyer

It's very sad that Congress has lost one of its mass leaders. What is more pathetic and regrettable is that about 150 families had lost their dearest ones – fathers, mothers, brothers or plainly bread winners.

Yes, I am talking about the untimely demise of Andhra Chief Minster Y S Rajashekara Reddy and deaths of over 150 of his followers. One of those followers, who had committed suicide, has written in his note that since YSR has dedicated his life for the masses, he was dedicating his life for YSR before consuming pesticide. Height of madness, indeed?

In Tamil Nadu too, when matinee idol and former CM MG Ramachandran died in US , followers back home went on a rampage torching and attacking vehicles and homes of opposition party followers and leaders and several people in the rural areas had even committed suicide to show their "love" to their leader. Not long ago, we have seen a spurt in suicides over Sri Lankan issues.

What happened to those families who had lost their breadwinners? None of the political parties/leaders had ever turned back at them and I am sure these families would be languishing in penury.

What is Vaiko doing and where is VCK leader Thiruma? The latter even rode on the sympathy wave and became an MP. Did he do anything for the families whose main members had committed suicide for "his" (personal) cause?

You love a leader and you follow his principle. Nothing wrong in it. But when the love becomes obsession, madness creeps in and family comes last for these people.

Idol worshipping is a big political gamble down south. Be it in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka or Andhra, people just follow what their silverscreen heroes order them to do. They would do anything for their 'Thalaiver (leader)'. They would even die for them. Will they die for their own mother or father? They won't. Because they are not good orators, they don't know how to make them live in a dream world or virtual world and they don’t help them to do wrong things.

If 67 people died for YSR, some six lakh people should have died for Mahatma Gandhi? If one wants to show respect to his/her leader, he or she should follow the path shown by him. By committing suicide would no way help anyone, at the same time, this would put unnecessary pressure on the family. Did any one think about how their spouses are going to raise their children?

To think on this line, education is paramount. Most of those killed themselves for the sake of their leader, are poor and uneducated who got scared of their existence in the absence of YSR who dolled out several pro-poor developmental schemes for them.

To stop such unnecessary deaths in the event of a leader's sudden demise, parties concerned should assure all support and assistance to people in the absence of any leader. No leader should be considered taller than the party.

There should always be a political successor in a party. Take a cue from DMK in Tamil Nadu. Everyone knows for sure that after DMK patriarch’s time, there will be a smooth transformation of power to his son MK Stalin (since trouble maker son MK Azagiri has got a central ministry). But this is not the case with AIADMK where the party will go for a spin in the absence of Jayalalithaa.

Jobs Cut, Melt-down, Who Cares? We Fleece Parents

2009-01-21T01:58:00.000-08:00

K Ramanathan Iyer

At this time of economic meltdown when jobs are being shed and salary cut becomes the norm of the day, educational institutions in and around Chennai are making merry by steeply increasing the admission and term fees from 20-30 per cent.

While the state government turning a deaf ear to the public outcry over the unprecedented rise in school fees, parents are feeling the pressure. As Chennai is known for its dubious distinction of being one of the costliest cities in India, education, health care and hospitality sectors were considered to be the best bargain among all cities. But things have changed over the past two years now, thanks to the IT boom in this southern metropolis.

Coming back to the education alone, school managements of various leading schools have increased the fees thinking that education is an "essential" one and people have to pay if they want 'quality" education. What kind of quality they are talking about in imparting the knowledge to the kids is something to be debated.

For example, in Chainmaya Vidyalaya, the chain of schools run by the Chinmaya Mission based in Mumbai, an across the board increase of 33 in term fees has been announced for the next academic session. My son is studying in the school and I know their standard of education.

To my surprise, the trust has asked the parents seeking admission for their wards in LKG a donation of Rs 25,000 this year. They have also changed the policy of giving admission to the sibling though the management denied that there was any such policy shift. But I myself was the victim last year as my second son was denied admission in the first standard though my elder son was studying in sixth.
This year too around 25 parents were denied admission for their wards in LKG though their siblings were studying in the same school. My friend, who is working in a leading news paper in Chennai, was fuming that when the management told him that his son was not selected as he did poorly in the interview. His daughter is studying in 1st standard in the same school. What ridiculous? According to SC ruling no kindergarten children should be subjected to interview but these schools are freely floating the rules and fleecing the gullible parents.

In Velammal School where my sister is teaching told me this stunner. When the management was asked by the teachers about the proposed fee hike citing the increasing job cuts in IT and other sectors, the reaction was shocking. “As ours is the essential one, people will have no option but to pay the fee we quote,” was the answer given by the management.

The school has A-Z section for KG alone and has now expanded the sections to A1, A2 etc with each class having the student strength of 40. It’s a huge money making business for these institutions in the name of imparting knowledge.

The school is proposed to have a 30 per cent hike in school fee. To meet the increased kids strength, the school is plying buses in all directions and even picking up children even 15 km away. What a pity? An LKG kid has to travel for about one hour to reach his/her school? According the CBSE norm schools should serve the kids in and around 5 km radius. Again a clear case of floating of rules by the school. Another popular school DAV in Anna Nagar has announced an increase of 20 % hike in fee for the next session.

As KVs becoming out of reach for commoners due to preference being given to defence and government personnel only, general public look for private schools for their kids admission and these schools using their haplessness to their full favour.

If you argue that the recession and price rise have also affected these schools and how would they pay salaries and meet the running cost? It’s better to ask the teachers themselves. Their salaries are pathetic, they are forced to sit after school hours by the management for preparing charts and other school events, no proper pay revision and exploitation to the hilt and basic amenities that these schools provide to students are far from adequate.

With high-fly international schools like Sheram Academy, Pon Vidyashram, newly started Chennai Public School and Sparten (all CBSE) schools charging not less than Rs 50,000 as admission fees for LKG, parents in Chennai are now caught up between the devil and the deep sea.

As Terror Strikes, No More Weekend Shopping Please!

2008-09-22T03:27:00.000-07:00

K Ramanathan Iyer

After Jaipur, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Delhi blasts, terrorists have achieved one thing for sure, the TERROR in the minds of people. Whoever I met talks only about terror and wants to avoid going to market places, particularly during the weekend.

As festival seasons are already on and Hindu’s major festival Deewali is round the corner, their predicaments are understandable seeing the inadequate security arrangements in vulnerable areas.

As most of the time the blasts occur on weekends, it’s advisable to finish Deewali shopping in the weekdays itself, no matter bunking the office for a day or two. After all, life is precious of all. Isn’t it?

The tentacles of terror have spread so effectively in India that home-grown terrorists can plant bombs anywhere at their own sweat will. Can’t we stop these killings? We can, but we need an effective intelligence and anti-terror law.

With POTA being ruled out by the central leadership fearing that the law will be misused by MODI, it seems the UPA government wants that a few more lives should be lost before amending an anti-terror law. Is it not ridiculous?

The UPA government’s inefficiency in dealing with the terror has proved costly for the country. Several attacks in the last few months have killed hordes of innocent people. The government has failed in all counts. The country’s economy is all time low now and the unprecedented price rise of essential commodities has breathed down the middle-class and poor people.

Terrorism is on the high and people are no longer feeling safe on streets. Once a government is formed for five years in India people have no right to impeach the government on any ground. If we had the provision, this government would have long gone for sure. But sadly, we have to watch the government ruining our country helplessly.

A few tips before you step out to a crowded market place for Deewali shopping:

1. Make sure that you have the best insurance cover for you and your family, even though you don’t have bullet proof covers.
2. Avoid shopping during the weekends as most of the terror attacks target weekend shoppers.
3. Keep your mobile phone fully charged and identity card of yours in your pocket or bag. You can inform the health or security services in case of emergency using your phone.
4. Try to finish the shopping as fast as possible. Don’t do the shop-hopping in the name of best bargain. Remember, your life is precious of all.
5. Try to buy all items in one single shop like supper mall etc. This will save your time and cut short your stay in the vulnerable market areas.
6. Always be alert. If you find someone is moving suspiciously, alert the security agency and quit the place fast. Same thing applies if you find an unattended bag or any suspicious thing.
7. Be aware of the number of exit points in the shopping area in case of emergency.
Don’t be panic in case of bomb blast near you as this may create confusion and stampede leading to more causality.
8. Keep your blood group card with you. This may help you in case of need or you may save a life in case of emergency.

Happy and safe shopping.

Happy Deewali Folks!

Land 'grabbing' in Sriperumbudur: Take Cue from Singur

2008-09-22T03:22:00.000-07:00

K Ramanathan Iyer

Kudos to Singur villagers! One must admire their courage and gusto to extract fatty compensation for their farm lands much higher than the market prices from the government.

Farmers from other states should take a cue from Singur counterparts. Take the case of the villagers in and around Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu, some 50 km from Chennai on the Bengalore Highway.

Thousands of acres of farm land have already been taken away by the state government-run SIPCOT to be distributed to the industrial giants from within and outside India. Several Korean, German and Japanese industrial majors have already got allotted lands at much cheaper rate, while farmers and villagers were given only peanuts in the name of compensation for their acquired land. Did anyone hear a murmur from these villagers or land owners against the land acquisition? No way.

Some of the land-owners who had bought their housing plots from land developers for their future purpose or for their old-age settlement in a pollution-free environ a decade ago, are now ruing their fate as their lands had been taken away by the SIPCOT with a meager compensation package.

I am sure that some of our Sulekha members too from Mumbai, Delhi or elsewhere must have bought land in Sriperumbudur. One must contact the SIPCOT office in Sriperumbudur or Egmore in Chennai immediately quoting the survey number and name of the village mentioned in their sale deed to find out the fate of their land. If one’s land is not under the purview of SIPCOT his or her one ground plot (of 2400 sq ft) will fetch Rs 10 lakh or even more.

If the land survey number falls (unfortunately) under SIPCOT’s acquisition map, one will get a compensation of Rs 1.5-2 lakh only depending upon the proximity of land to the main road. To reach the compensation, one may have to wait up to two years or more!

Several acres of orchids have been slashed to make way for this maddening industrialization being executed by the state government without increasing the basic infrastructure for these industries. As the state has already been reeling under acute power crisis due to heavy distribution of power to IT sector, the onset of industries in Sriperumbudur near Chennai will only add to the woes of the power-starved state.

When I was in Chandigarh three years back, I was told by my journalist colleagues that even Punjab and Haryana buy electricity from Tamil Nadu. I wonder, what has happened to the state, which had surplus electricity only three years back to impose 3-6 hours forced power cut now on people?

Friends! Those who have land in Tamil Nadu, particularly in Sriperumbudur, should raise their voice against this forceful acquisition and those who are attached to judiciary should file a suit in an appropriate court of justice to claim rightful compensation. You can also visit this link to find more details about the latest acquisition by SIPCOT and compensation details.

http://www.sriperumbudur.in/forum/property-related-developments-and-other-recent-updates/updates-for-plot-owners-at-sriperumpudur-t-41.html

or

http://www.sipcot.com/

India allows foreign news magazines to have Indian editions

2008-09-18T04:57:00.000-07:00

New Delhi, Sep 18: In a further liberalisation of its media policy, the Indian government on Thursday allowed foreign news magazines to have Indian editions.

The cabinet notification said that such editions would be granted only to those Indian companies registered under the Indian Companies Act, 1956.

The publishers of such editions would be eligible for 26 percent foreign direct investment.

The notification said the decision would provide Indian readers access to foreign magazines at cheaper rates in comparison to the same magazines imported at much higher rates.

Pak court suspends ban on fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar

2008-07-04T04:24:00.000-07:00

LAHORE, Pakistan:(AP) A judge says an 18-month playing ban imposed by Pakistan's Cricket Board on fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar for disciplinary violations has been suspended.

Lahore High Court judge Sayed Zahid Hussain said in his ruling Friday that the ban was suspended until after the summer break when the court resumes hearing the case. That is expected to be in September.

Initially, court secretary Jamshed Akhtar told reporters the ban had been "lifted," but the judge's written ruling made clear a final decision is yet to come.

A PCB tribunal had originally banned Akhtar for five years and imposed a 7 million rupee (US$102,900) fine. The ban was reduced to 18 months on appeal.

Rizvi said Akhtar still had to pay the fine.

When Mahatma comes down to convince Communists

2008-06-27T00:24:00.000-07:00

By K Ramanathan Iyer

Now Kalam has said it. ‘Please sign nuclear deal, it's good for India’, etc etc. Mind it, this has come from a great scientist, a great statesman (Some people in this group may disagree), a great thinker and finally a great human being.

Will Left parties heed to this great soul of India? I really do not know the pros and cons of the nuclear deal, whether it is good or bad for India, but what I know is that the deal has been conceived by great people who have knowledge on the subject. I also do not want to buy an argument that this deal will make India kneel down to US or stop india's freedom towards technological advancement.

As Kalam is regarded highly by Congress, BJP and left parties alike, will his words fall on right ears? I believe not.

Left parties, being (mis)guided by Chinese ideologues, will not even listen to, even if Mahatma Gandhi comes down on earth to ask them to sign the treaty. First of all they have least regard to the Father of the Nation, secondly they may question his very presence after his "expiry date" had been lapsed.

I had written in one of my previous blogs comparing Left parties to a dog tied near a heap of fodder. Neither it eat nor will it allow a cattle to feed on it. Left parties in coalition or in power never allow the government to implement developmental works. They have always something to say against the schemes and put a spoke in the wheel of development. This is a fact. Take for example: Kerala and West Bengal, the two predominantly Left-ruled states since Independence. And see its state now. People are being forced to go out of the state for jobs. Given a chance, these people would love to settle in their own motherland, provided they get a decent living.

Coming back to the signing of the Nuclear treaty, these Left parties are even ready to withdraw support to the government much to the disappointment to the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. As a spineless PM, he keeps on giving veiled threat of his resignation, which the Left never took it seriously.

So, who will bell the cat? Who has got the convincing ability to tame the Left tigers? None, in India. Only Chinese have got that magic wand to change the mindset of these Left parties. Is it not dangerous? India's security decision is being controlled by Chinese, our potential enemy.

Then a question comes to our mind on patriotism. West Bengal, which had produced great freedom fighters, is supporting a party which has pledged the national security to foreign hands. They may argue that by signing the Nuclear Deal, India's compromising her security concern. I am not an expert to comment on it nor do they have any competent authority on board to pass on such comment.

But one thing is certain. When Kalam , nuclear experts and some of the leaders in the opposition want India to sign the deal, I have less doubts about their intention.

If the Left parties say that Kalam has ulterior motives on signing the deal, then our country is going towards disaster having on board people like Prakash Karat , Sitaram Yechury, D. Raja, A.B. Bardhan and the great Surjeet.

Long live India.

A mango tree that flowers 300 varieties

2008-06-24T04:23:00.000-07:00

HAJI KALIMULLAH Khan recently won a Padma Sri for growing more than 300 varieties of mangoes of different shapes, sizes and hues on one tree. This rare technique of his has made him popular as ’mango man’ in Malihabad.

Listening to Khan talk about the variety of mangoes grown by him in his orchads, the expression and delight on his face puts across as if he is fiondly referring to his family members.

Khan’s prized tree is about 100 years old, on which he started work in 1987 to develop the craft of growing different varieties on one tree. He named these mangoes as namesakes on his family members who were also mango growers.

After 50 years of incessant efforts, Khan has lately developed five new varieties of mangoes.

He is, however, excited about a ’most delicate’ and ’graceful’ looking latest variety, which he has named as ’Aishwarya’ as it reminds him of Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai.

"It were the children in the family who on seeing the new variety remarked that it resembles the actress in its colour and grace," Khan said.

Among his most precious creations is a tree in the Mughal Garden at the Rashtrapati Bhawan flowering 54 varieties. The tree is 10 feet tall with six-foot-long root and was dug not with axe or spade but by water currents and transported from the prchid to Delhi in five quintiles of mud in 1999 as a present to the then President, said Khan.

The craft developed by him has become a mystery for researchers and agriculturists from the country and abroad who have been left baffled by his work.

The sexagenarian who also finds mention in Limca Book of records for growing the rare tree has the support of his sons in keeping the tradition alive.

Among his regular visitors is the Uttar Pradesh governor, T V Rajeswar who had in 2006 named three of his varieties as Nayantara, Nargis and Jahanara, his son Nazimullah Khan said.

Khan has also cultivated a new variety of all season flowering guava, which on ripening grows as red as apple.

Source: Merinews

Rs 8,000-cr premium realty projects face delay

2008-06-23T22:39:00.000-07:00

On June 20, 2005, India's largest real estate company DLF bought the 17.5 acre Mumbai Textile Mills land for Rs 702 crore from the National Textile Coporation (NTC) and announced a futuristic retail-cum-entertainment centre in Lower Parel. The project, which was earlier expected to be completed this year, is unlikely to be over before 2010.

The same year, Shiv Sena leader Manohar Joshi's Kohinoor Group and Raj Thackeray's Matoshree Realtors bought the Kohinoor Mills land in Dadar from NTC for Rs 421 crore. The land was expected to be converted into a plush retail mall, but the property was put up for sale following disagreements between the retailers and the developers over rentals. So far, no one has bought the land.

Ashok Piramal Group's Peninsula Land acquired the erstwhile Dawn Mills in Lower Parel from the Ruias for nearly Rs 120 crore and planned to set up a 1.1 million sq ft Peninsula Business Park by July 2009. The company now expects the project to be over only in the first quarter of 2010.

These are just three examples of high-end luxury realty projects announced by the country's biggest property giants that are behind schedule. According to industry estimates, around Rs 8,000 crore of real estate projects covering over 40 million square feet are facing delays.

Analysts said the construction cost for large commercial projects was Rs 2,000 per square foot, on average.

In the process, developers are facing huge cost overruns. According to analysts, construction cost is growing 20 per cent every year and the developers are carrying a compounded interest burden of 30 to 40 per cent after three years.

Real estate observers believe that cost of the projects has doubled in the last three or four years owing to the rise in input and construction costs, and increase in interest rates. Steel and cement prices, which are the main components in property projects apart from labour, have risen nearly 50 per cent since December 2005.

The reasons for the delays are varied: tardy government approvals, stop-work notices from the municipality, construction delays, labour unavailability and so on.

"All the developers who bought land from NTC had to pay upfront and raised huge sums from the market. Even if they raised money at 10 per cent, the interest rate comes to 40 to 50 per cent compounded after four years," said Akshaya Kumar, managing director of Park Lane Property Advisors.

Anuj Puri, chairman of property consultancy Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj, said developers had not been able to take advantage of the property boom in the last three years due to these delays.

"In the coming days, when new supply hits market, prices could soften," he said.

By 2008-end, Mumbai and its suburbs will add 15.4 million square feet of office space, which analysts said will have a sobering impact on property prices. Office rentals in Mumbai's central business district such as Nariman Point have increased 50 per cent in the last three years and places such as Worli and Lower Parel saw a 30 to 40 per cent increase in this period.

Though developers maintain that their projects are on schedule, in private they blame the delay in getting government approvals.

"In Mumbai, developers need to obtain 56 approvals from environment and forest department, pollution control board and others. It takes over a year to get these approvals," said a leading developer who is setting up a large project in Central Mumbai.

Adds Pranay Vakil, chairman of property consultancy Knight Frank: "There was a lack of clarity on approvals in the mill land case. Some of the approvals were revoked with retrospective effect which caused delays. Shift in policy stands also resulted some delays," he said.

For instance, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)'s stop-work notices in October 2007 to the developers of mill lands for violation of development control (DC) rules and subsequent revoking of notices in early 2008 caused much delay in the development of mill lands. The DC rule allowed mill owners to redevelop or sell their land provided the owner would hand over one-third of the open land on the premises to the BMC and MHADA each.

When asked about delays, a DLF spokesperson said: "Our Lower Parel project is on time and proceeding smoothly. We are not in a hurry to complete the development and we can take our own time to finish the project. We cannot specify any reasons for the delay," the spokesperson said.

A Matoshree Realtors executive said: "We have decided to sell the land but not finalised the buyers. We received good offers for the land so we did not want to go ahead with development," she said.

Rajesh Jaggi, managing director of Peninsula Land said: "Due to stop-work notice, our project was delayed three or four months. Beyond that there is no delay."

Source: Rediff

Aarushi case: CBI gets 4-day custody of Krishna

2008-06-23T22:32:00.000-07:00

Dr Rajesh Talwar's compounder-cum-receptionist Krishna has been sent for another 4 days in CBI remand.

Earlier, Krishna, the prime accused in Aarushi case was produced in the Court by CBI on Monday. Krishna broke down in the court and told the Judge that he is innocent and is being pressurized.

''They keep beating me. I haven't done anything. I was sleeping at home on the night of the murders,'' said Krishna.

The CBI has so far claimed that the receptionist from Dr Talwar's clinic has not been cooperating during interrogation.

Last week, the CBI had also said that he was involved in the double murders, but did not divulge any further details.

The CBI also quizzed Nupur Talwar again on Sunday in connection with the May 15 murders of Aarushi Talwar and Hemraj, but officials refused to comment on the nature of the queries.

Source: NDTV

Should Gorkhaland statehood be granted?

2008-06-19T03:23:00.000-07:00

By K Ramanathan Iyer/Chennai

India is a land of agitations. Agitating for any issue is our democratic right. We agitate for anything; being for more quota in educational instututions/ jobs or for a separate statehood, the recent one being the Gokhaland.

After a few years of lull, the issue of Gorkhaland has again come to the fore with renewed vigor, thanks to the inefficiency of WB government, centre leadership and yes, the local council body to resolve the decade- old issue.

Now the echoes of Gorkhas' demand for separate statehood have reached Delhi and the state government has conveniently showed its finger towards the centre to take a decision on the vexed issue, the ball is now in the UPA government's court.

Congress, which has a history of wait-and-watch policy, thereby aggravating any issue affecting people, may again put the separate state demand in the backburner and thus leaving the issue to the next government to resolve. As elections are around the corner, the party may not take any decision which will go against the party's interest in the coming elections.

Another issue is if separate statehood is awarded to Darjeeling council, then many a few areas across India will start demanding separate statehood for them also, with Telungana sitting pretty first to grab such an offer. Already the country has been successfully divided by caste, religion, languages, etc, by our great politicians and thinkers, having more fragrant states will further add chaos to the already chaotic region. Yes, this will facilitate more wealth to local politicians and babus and thumbs down to the local area development.

Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, which is spearheading the agitation under the leadership of Bimal Gurung, has decided to go to Delhi with representatives from 13 outfits including Congress, BJP and Left parties, to talk to the centre over the separate land issue.

But unfortunately, the tourism industry in the beautiful hill station has been the worst hit due to the ongoing agitation by the parties concerned. Several tourists were caught unaware due to the sudden turn of events and stranded for several hours. Travelling to Darjeeling for vocation will not be an enjoyable experience anymore. But again, who cares?

As both West Bengal government and Centre have their own issues to ponder upon, the hilly region will once again turn into a battle ground for justice.

Epileptics who don't take their medicines at higher death risk

2008-06-19T03:21:00.000-07:00

Washington, June 19: Epileptics who don't take their seizure medication regularly are three times more likely to die, according to a new study.

Researchers came to this conclusion after examining insurance records from three US Medicaid programmes over eight-and-a-half years. The records were of 33,658 epileptics who have at least two drug prescriptions.

The study found that those who took their medication less than 80 percent of the time over three months appeared to be three times more likely to die compared to people who took medication regularly.

The study showed that hospital visits went up by 86 percent and emergency room visits increased by 50 percent during the time when people did not take their medication regularly.

There also appeared to be a significantly higher incidence of car accidents and bone fractures. Only head injuries were less common during periods of non-compliance with epilepsy drugs.

"These results are of concern since some studies show about 30 to 50 percent of people with epilepsy do not take their medication regularly," said study author Edward Faught of the University of Alabama.

"There are many reasons epileptic patients fail to take their seizure medications - including cost, side-effects and pregnancy. But this study suggests that none of those reasons overshadow the threat of death or other problems related to uncontrolled seizures," he noted.

The findings of the study were published Wednesday in the online issue of Neurology, the journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Source: Sulekhanews

Vitamin D helps colon cancer patients stay alive

2008-06-19T03:17:00.000-07:00

Washington, June 19: Colon cancer patients having enough vitamin D were less likely to die during a follow-up period than those who lacked the vitamin, a new study has found.

The authors of the study have pointed out that previous research has shown that higher levels of vitamin D reduces the risk of developing colon and rectal cancer by about 50 percent, but the effect on outcomes wasn't known.

Investigators, led by Kimmie Ng and Charles Fuchs of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, analysed data from two long-running epidemiological studies where participants gave blood samples and whose health has been monitored for many years.

They identified 304 participants who were diagnosed with colorectal cancer between 1991 and 2002.

All of them had their vitamin D levels measured in blood samples given at least two years prior to their diagnosis.

Each patient's vitamin D measurement was ranked by "quartiles" - the top 25 percent, the next 25 percent, and so on. Those whose levels were in the lowest quartile were considered deficient in vitamin D.

The researchers followed the 304 patients until they died or until 2005, whichever occurred first. During that period, 123 patients died, with 96 of them dying from colon or rectal cancer.

The researchers then looked for associations between the patients' previously measured vitamin D blood levels and whether they had died or survived.

The results showed that individuals with the vitamin D levels in the highest quartile were 48 percent less likely to die (from any cause, including colon cancer) than those with the lowest vitamin D measurements.

The odds of dying from colon cancer specifically were 39 percent lower, the scientists found.

The findings - the first to examine the effect of vitamin D among colorectal cancer patients - merit further research, but it is too early to recommend supplements as a part of treatment, said the investigators.

These findings are slated to be published in the forthcoming issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Source: Sulekhanews

Cell phones: The cause for lethal ailments?

2008-06-19T03:08:00.000-07:00

WE ARE living in an advanced technological world, where our needs are fulfilled by gadgets and machines that are a result of scientific advancement. Though these inventions have made our lives more luxurious, a lot of unwanted hazards are in the offing, as these machines and gadgets cannot be considered as unmixed blessings. In all likelihood, the advent of cell phone has its own bag full of negative consequences. Right since the invention of cell phones, there has been an ongoing debate over the harmful consequences that it has on the users. Unfortunately, there hasn’t been any clear cut evidence of the ill effects, especially over the long term.

In the first ever initiative from the government on the issue of health hazards of cell phones, the ministry of Telecommunication has warned people about the harmful effects of radiation from the phones. According to the ministry’s recent guidelines, the electromagnetic waves emitted from mobile phones can seriously damage the tissues of the users’ brain, leading to fatal consequences. The draft guidelines suggested measures like curtailing of mobile usage by children, pregnant women, and people suffering from heart ailments.

Since the mobile phones are usually kept closer to the ear, which is very near to the brain, giving rise to damage to some brain tissues, it has been suggested that people should switch to hands-free if longer use is unavoidable. The guidelines also strongly recommends that children below age of 16 should be discouraged from using cell phones as the tissues of children are tender and are more vulnerable to get affected. Women and Child Development minister, Renuka Chaudhary, has also urged to keep children and pregnant women away from cell phones. The government has even issued advice to service providers and manufacturers of cell phones to avoid promotional advertisements showing vulnerable segments like children and pregnant women using cell phones.

Right since the intrusion of cell phones in human life, the implications of it on health has been the topic of debate. Many studies have been carried out and are still in progress to reach a clear-cut conclusion regarding the ailments, which could occur due to the electromagnetic waves that the cell phones emits. It has been reported in scientific papers that electromagnetic waves from mobile phones may significantly increase risk of conditions such as cancer. Individuals developing such conditions rarely feel anything before the condition goes out of control.

Scientists have found that mobile signals can activate cell division even at very low power levels. Some studies have predicted an increase in blood pressure along with deviation in EEG and EKG readings as a result of mobile phone radiation. British expert professor, Lawrie Challis even believes that the mobile phones could turn out to the 21st century health equivalent of cigarettes.

In India, the growth of mobile phones is very high and the number is increasing every day. People feel proud to attach it with style statement and oblige their kids with the same, and it is quite likely that a large chunk of the users in India are children below 16. Large epidemiological studies are the need of the hour to unearth the lethal components of mobile phones that could lead to the development of ailments in the users. It deems a prompt response and diligent handling because the minutest of risk may have a larger implication for public health, as the use of mobile phones and the exposure is going north, rapidly.

Source: Merinews

Confronting with Mobile Woes

2008-06-17T04:48:00.000-07:00

By K Ramanathan Iyer

I never thought that having a mobile phone would create such a ruckus in my life. To have efficient and cheaper communication we (I and my better half) had gone for two connections from the same service provider and to certain extent it proved to be a beneficial option for us.

But along with the connection there comes ‘head-aches’ like unsolicited calls and SMSs. At least we both get 20 SMSs a day each, both from the company and private people. Sometime we even get calls/SMSs offering a particular ring tone after midnight.

We get calls from banks as well asking for personal loans, credit cards, car loans or house loans. Most of the time the callers would belong to fairer sex (with sweet voice), but being a happily married and having the first name of Raja Dasrath’s elder son, these things hardly matter to me, but the persistent unwanted calls and SMSs really put me off.

Piqued by this I approached the company and enquired whether there was any way that I could stop these irritants. The officials from the company promptly diverted me towards their website and asked me to register in their ‘do not disturb’ section.

Thinking that our ordeal would see an end, we promptly visited the site and after a few minutes search, we located the said section of the website. I was asked to register our numbers, that we promptly did and pressed the “enter” button fast. Alas, a message poped out informing us that our request would be processed in 45 days time telling us indirectly that till then you would be getting these messages.

One month passed since then, but the unwanted calls and SMSs are unabated into my mobile set and we do not know what to do. From our friends, who have connections from different providers, we came to know that they too get a daily dose of such irritants regularly.

I do not know that whether it’s a shear coincidence or a planned strategy of the company, from the day on, the frequency of SMSs has increased. Sometime, we get it from the company itself informing their various schemes and sometime from some private parties informing about tuitions, English speaking course, etc.

If this not enough, one I reach office, I am being bombarded with phone calls from private banks asking me to take up their credit cards free of cost or a sweet voice pleading me to take up an insurance-cum-investment plan.

The funny part is that we both get messages almost simultaneously. So, we have adopted a policy to compare both the messages before opening it. If both are from the same person, we simply press the delete button. Same with the case of the calls we get.

But jokes apart, these unsolicited messages make one sick. This is nothing but invasion into one’s personal space. Though legal provisions are there to tackle such problems, companies fleece subscribers even if they opt to block such messages and calls.

I really wonder who provide these numbers to banks and insurance companies. Surely, there may be a nexus between the banks/insurance companies with the mobile service providers. That means our data has not been kept confidential by them. It’s nothing but a breach of trust.

Once I asked the caller, that from where they get numbers. A young innocent voice replied that they have all numbers stored in their “date base”.

Can any one give solution to lessen my agony?

Though I do not want to name the mobile company directly, I can give you a clue that the company belongs to a sibling of one of the world’s richest person and son of the great business tycoon of India.

Yes, you guessed it.

Australia develops bird flu vaccine

2008-06-16T23:46:00.000-07:00

AUSTRALIA has developed a human vaccine for bird flu.

"The first ever Australian-made vaccine to protect humans from future bird flu pandemics has been granted approval for use in the event, of course, of an avian influenza outbreak," federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon said today.

The vaccine, developed by CSL, would protect humans against the H5N1 strain of influenza responsible for outbreaks of bird flu in Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa, Ms Roxon said.

"We know, of course, that if there is an outbreak that affects Australians, we need to make sure that we are properly prepared," she said.

"What we now have, courtesy of the work done by CSL ... is an Australian-made and able to be manufactured in Australia vaccine which will be able to respond to any new strain of a virus.

"We are very pleased that now that approvals have been granted that if we are in a situation which, of course, we hope we won't be, of a human-to-human virus taking hold in Australia, we will be able to quickly respond."

In that event, there would be no need to go through the approvals process, Ms Roxon said.

She said the safety of the vaccine had been assessed for adults aged 18-64 and those aged over 65.

The vaccine would be used only once an influenza pandemic had been officially declared by the World Health Organisation (WHO), Ms Roxon said.

"We hope we are not in a situation that this occurs but it does pay for us to be ready."

More than $160 million had been provided in this year's federal Budget to replenish Australia's vaccine stockpile.

"For Australia, it shows that when we invest in research, where we have very good medical researchers, we have manufacturers onshore, we can actually provide something which will give Australians more security and I think some sense of relief that we will be able to respond quickly if we are in the situation where a new strain of the virus is on our shores," Ms Roxon said.

Source: Sulekhanews

Japanese scientists create diesel-producing algae

2008-06-16T23:40:00.000-07:00

Under the gleam of blinding lamps, engulfed by banks of angrily frothing flasks, Makoto Watanabe is plotting a slimy, lurid-green revolution. He has spent his life in search of a species of algae that efficiently “sweats” crude oil, and has finally found it.

Now, exploiting the previously unrecognised power of pondlife, Professor Watanabe dreams of transforming Japan from a voracious energy importer into an oil-exporting nation to rival any member of Opec.

The professor has given himself a decade to effect this seemingly implausible conversion: Japan’s export-led economics have always been shaped by their near 100 per cent dependence on foreign energy. In the present world economic climate, those economics are looking especially fragile.

“I believe I can change Japan within five years,” the Professor told The Times from his laboratory in Tsukuba University. “A couple of years after that, we start changing the world.”

The algae, he believes, will spearhead enormous changes to the way that energy is produced and to the explosive geopolitics that have developed around the global thirst for fossil fuels. They could also overturn the current debate on corn and sugar-based biofuels. It is madness, he says, for humanity to pursue sources of energy that compete with its own stomachs when there is a far purer source that does not sitting in a test tube in his laboratory.

Professor Watanabe’s vision arises from the extraordinary properties of the Botryococcus braunii algae: give the microscopic green strands enough light – and plenty of carbon dioxide – and they excrete oil. The tiny globules of oil that form on the surface of the algae can be easily harvested and then refined using the same “cracking” technologies with which the oil industry now converts crude into everything from jet fuel to plastics.

The Japanese Government has supplied him with hefty grants to work on ways of industrialising the algae cultures. The professor admits that there is much work to be done to bring the financial and environmental costs of creating algae oilfields down to reasonable levels: to meet Japan’s current oil needs would require an algae-filled paddyfield the size of Yorkshire.

But – in laboratory conditions at least – the powers of Botryococcus braunii are astonishing. A field of corn, when converted into biofuel ethanol, may produce about 0.2 tonnes of oil equivalent per hectare. Rapeseed may generate around 1.2 tonnes. Micro algae can theoretically produce between 50 and 140 tonnes using the same plot of land.

The discovery of Botryococcus braunii and its precious excretions has taken years. The oil-producing properties of Botryococcus algae have been known for decades, but the volume and quality varies between species.

There remain, however, substantial obstacles before cars and aircraft are all running on algae. Although field tests have proved that there is little technical difficulty in breeding or harvesting the algae, the sums do not add up. A prospective algae-breeding oil concern would either have to invest billions of dollars in expensive breeder tanks – at a cost of around three times what the oil would sell for on the international market over the lifetime of the tanks – or find an enormous expanse of well-irrigated land in a country where labour can be bought very cheaply. It is for this reason that Professor Watanabe believes the world’s first algae farms will be constructed in countries such as Indonesia or Vietnam.

Related Link: Scientists find bugs that eat waste and excrete petrol

Source: timesonline

Coffee drinkers safe from early death

2008-06-16T23:17:00.000-07:00

Previous studies have given a mixed picture of health effects from coffee, finding a variety of benefits and some drawbacks from the popular drink. The new study looked at people who drank caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee.

Researchers led by Esther Lopez-Garcia of Universidad Autonoma de Madrid in Spain followed 84,214 US women from 1980 to 2004 and 41,736 US men from 1986 to 2004.

They found that regular coffee drinking - up to six cups a day - was not associated with increased deaths among the study's middle-aged participants. In fact, the coffee drinkers, particularly the women, experienced a small decline in death rates from heart disease.

The study found no association between coffee consumption and cancer deaths.

"Our study indicates that coffee consumption does not have a detrimental effect," Ms Lopez-Garcia, whose research appears in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, she said. "It seems like long-term coffee consumption may have some beneficial effects."

There has been a debate among scientists about the health effects of drinking coffee, which typically contains the stimulant caffeine and a number of other important compounds.

The people who took part in the research completed questionnaires on how frequently they drank coffee, other diet habits, smoking and medical conditions. The researchers then studied the mortality risk over the period of the study among people with different coffee-drinking habits.

The study found that women who reported drinking two to three cups of caffeinated coffee per day had a 25 per cent lower risk of death from heart disease than women who did not drink coffee. The researchers saw a smaller decreased risk for men but it was not statistically significant.

Drinking decaffeinated coffee was associated with a small reduction in overall mortality risk, the researchers said.

The people in the study had no history of cardiovascular disease or cancer when they entered it. The women were nurses and the men doctors, dentists and other health professionals.

Some studies have indicated coffee is a great source of antioxidants, substances that may protect against the effects of molecules called free radicals that can damage cells and may play a role in heart disease, cancer and other ailments.

Recent studies have offered a mixed picture on the health effects of coffee.

A study that came out in January found that pregnant women who drink two or more cups of coffee a day had twice the risk of miscarriage as those who avoid caffeine. Another study appearing in January found that drinking caffeinated coffee lowered a woman's risk of ovarian cancer.

Source: NEWS.COM.AU

Dasavathaaram: Kamal Haasan Disappoints

2008-06-16T00:09:00.000-07:00

Shobha Warrier

There are two actors in India whose films I find very difficult to judge objectively; they are Kamal Haasan and Mohanlal. Despite my very conscious efforts to find loopholes in their films, I end up enjoying the fine nuances of their superior performances laying aside my critical microscope.

Like Mohanlal has been letting me down of late with his inane films and indifferent and bored acting, Kamal Haasan has also been disappointing me with his predictable and repetitive expressions and actions. But no film of his has disappointed me as much as "Dasavathaaram" did. Not even "Mumbai Express".

In fact, it is very easy to dislike the film and get dissatisfied with the much hyped ten performances.

But first, let me talk about the 11th role that Kamal Haasan has performed; that of the script writer, which he has failed miserably. Perhaps the idea was to write a script akin to Babel or Crash where the story bounced from one place to another with the basic thread connecting all of them remaining intact. But in Dasavathaaram, there is no solid story and there is nothing to connect the various characters that popped up with plaster of paris pasted on their faces.

The biggest failure of Dasavathaaram is the lack of a proper story, a tight screenplay and well connected characters. One gets the feeling that because Kamal Haasan wanted to make history by portraying ten different characters, he created them. Otherwise, one cannot think of any justification in him appearing all sorts of get-ups.

Yes, the film starts amazingly well; the 12th century sets, Kamal Haasan as the temple priest and above all Ravi Varman's stunning cinematography raise your expectation levels. As the film progresses, you tend to feel trifle let down and by the time the film ends, the only feeling you have left is that of disappointment.

Of the much hyped ten avatars of Kamal Haasan, except for two -- Rangaraja Nambi, the 12th century priest and the investigative officer Balram Naidu -- the rest looked as if they were participating in a school fancy dress competition. You go to a Kamal Haasan movie to watch his subtle performance but in this one, in his over eagerness to disguise himself, he has denied the viewers a chance to view his face and the expressions. The thick layers of opaque make-up on his face hid all the expressions. The eyes were so sunken below the mask that you could not see any feeling in them.

Okay, had it been a fancy dress competition, Kamal Haasan as George Bush and the Punjabi pop singer would have won consolation prizes, but definitely not any prize for Christian Fletcher, who looked more like a mannequin than a menacing villain. The Japanese martial arts expert was more wooden than human, the tall Afghan, Kalifulla Khan was pathetically synthetic and the worst was the 100 year old paatti. She would be disqualified for the most atrocious make up.

One nostalgically thought of the four different characters Kamal had done exceedingly well in Michael Madana Kama Rajan; mind you, without the aid of any mask. But what a performance it was, especially the Palghat Brhamin! True, he was aided by an excellent script.

Now, to the much talked about tsunami scenes. Agreed, Brian Jennings and his team worked hard to recreate the fury of the sea. Were they successful in their efforts? I don't think so. Those who have seen the ferocious tsunami and its aftermath will shudder at the casualness with which the disaster has been picturised. The scenes which are supposed to shock you do not even touch you mildly.

No other actor in India can be as good a lover on screen as Kamal Haasan. His films have been loved for the electrifying chemistry he exhibits with his leading ladies whether it was with Srividya in Apoorva Raagangal or Sridevi in Moondram Pirai or Madhavi in Raja Parvai or Amala in Pushpak, but for the first time, you see him so detached from his leading lady. There is absolutely no chemistry between the leading pair; in fact, he also looked far too old to be paired with a much younger Asin.

Lastly, what was the filmmaker trying to achieve by throwing a gem like this; that the 'bullet flew away with the cancer from the pop singer's throat? A dig at the 'superstar', perhaps?

In Dasavathaaram, I did not see the Kamal Haasan who moved me to tears like he did in Mahanadi, who made me laugh uncontrollably in Pushpak or Michael Madana Kama Rajan, or stumped me like he did in Nayagan or bowled me over with his intellectual innocence as he did in Sagara Sangamam.

Souurce: Rediff

New weapon against TB: Free cell minutes for patients who take medicine

2008-06-14T09:49:00.000-07:00

CAMBRIDGE (AP): Researchers believe they've discovered a new weapon in the battle against tuberculosis.

For years, doctors have struggled to get some TB patients to take all their medication, which generally involves a six-month regimen of multiple drugs.

Now a student-led group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has developed a way to use cell phones to let patients test themselves. And if the tests show patients are following doctor's orders, they get rewarded with free minutes.

``We're piggybacking on one of the bigger rollouts of infrastructure out there, which is wireless technology and telecom technology,'' said Jose Gomez-Marquez, one of the project's leaders.

The system works like this: Patients test their urine using a strip that reveals a numeric code if it detects TB medicine. They then text message the code to their health care provider and get credit toward incentives such as free minutes.

The in-home tests also eliminate the need for health care workers to make several patient-monitoring visits a week, a routine that is often impractical in remote places, Gomez-Marquez said.

Mobile phones are good tools for the project because they are common in the developing world, where it's often cheaper to erect cell towers than miles of poles and wires, Gomez-Marquez said.

Dr. Mario Raviglione, director of a World Health Organization program to fight TB, called the MIT idea ``creative.'' But he said personal visits must continue because systems that depend heavily on patient self-reporting have often failed.

``I would think it's a dangerous game to rely only on incentives,'' he said.

In 2006, the most recent year statistics are available, 9.2 million people worldwide were diagnosed with tuberculosis and 1.7 million died.

The disease can be cured with a steady regimen of drugs. But many patients start feeling better and stop taking the medicine too soon. Others abandon the drugs because of side effects such as nausea, fever and rashes.

If the drugs are taken only sporadically, the bacteria build up resistance. The WHO estimates that 5 to 10 percent of TB deaths are patients who stop taking medication properly.

The MIT group _ which originally included five students _ took on the TB problem in 2007 as part of the university's annual ``IDEAS competition,'' which challenges participants to solve various world problems.

Courtsy: HINDU

'Dasavathaaram' - 10 Kamals Too Much - Movie Review

2008-06-14T09:42:00.000-07:00

Film: 'Dasavathaaram'; Actors: Kamal Haasan, Asin, Mallika Sherawat, Santana Bharati; Director: K.S. Ravi Kumar; Music: Himesh Reshammiya.

Apart from 10 different avatars (incarnations) of Kamal Haasan, the only thing worth writing home about 'Dasavathaaram' is its technical brilliance.
The roles are myriad.

Kamal plays US President George Bush, a bumbling RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) operative, a selfless scientist, an old hag, terrorist, Dalit activist, a medieval Vishnu devotee, a cancer-stricken Punjabi pop singer, Kung-fu martial arts expert and a 10-ft tall Muslim - not necessarily in that order.

Starting with the drowning punishment of a Vishnu devotee, 'Dasavathaaram', for no apparent reason, morphs into an action extravaganza - full of chases over a deadly virus involving a scientist and assisted and hindered in turn by the other characters - all played by Kamal.

Asin plays a double role in the film that is a part-comedy-part-tragedy mishmash. Mallika Sherawat flits across the screen in skimpy costumes and ends up dead.

While the cinematography by Ravi Varma, background score by Devi Sri Prasad and Kamal's acting are the film's highlights, the Himesh Reshammiya numbers have as much Tamil nativity as George Bush.

Dramatic incidents galore are actually one of the minus points of the film, of which there are one too many.

Kamal is in every frame of the movie and knowing his methods, director Ravi Kumar's role in the film seems to be seriously limited.

The unsolved puzzle as to why there are 10 Kamals when one would have been more than enough remains an unpleasant hangover long after the movie.

In all, 'Dasavathaaram' is a movie that every Kamal fan would want to watch.

As for the rest of the audience, it is the case of a Kamal-overkill.

Courtsy: IANS

Many barriers for South Asian women in US

2008-06-14T09:34:00.000-07:00

New York: Testifying before the New Jersey governor's panel on immigrant policy, a South Asian women's rights organisation has said linguistic and cultural barriers as well as the lack of information prevent many South Asians from accessing critical social services such as healthcare and law enforcement.

Manavi, a New Jersey-based body that works to end violence against South Asian women living in the US, also pointed out that the anti-immigrant sentiment coupled with the fear of deportation resulting from official directives such as on undocumented women reporting incidents of abuse, has forced many South Asian women to stay in abusive situations.

Maneesha Kelkar, director of Manavi, spoke Wednesday to the Governor's Blue Ribbon Panel on Immigrant Policy, which hosted a public hearing welcoming comments and suggestions from community organisations and members of the public in order to better integrate the growing immigrant population in New Jersey.

The recommendations Kelkar made to the panel include introducing a state-wide initiative to address issues around domestic violence, especially as they affect immigrants, improving language access to social services by increasing the availability and quality of trained and supervised language interpreters, and improving cultural access to services through cultural competency training about South Asian communities.

She also suggested revisiting ordinances that adversely impact a section of the immigrant population and encouraging feedback from community leaders and practitioners in their respective areas of expertise, as well as from immigrants who have faced the impact of various policies.

Manavi runs a wide variety of programmes to ensure that women of South Asian descent in the US can exercise their fundamental right to live a life of dignity that is safe and free from violence. Its services include individual counselling, legal clinics and referrals, support groups, court and medical accompaniments, and transitional housing.

Manavi serves some 300 abused South Asian women each year with a variety of culturally competent and linguistically appropriate services, besides training mainstream agencies in cultural competency.

Curtsy: IANS

Singh is King: Akshay apologises to Sikhs

2008-06-14T09:28:00.000-07:00

Mumbai: Akshay Kumar's latest film Singh is King is wading through troubled waters as the Sikh community hold their objections to Akshay's looks in the film.

Producer Vipul Shah held a press conference to clear the air of controversy surrounding the film which he says has no intentions of offending any person or community.

"If I've made a mistake, lord forgive me and I will try to rectify my mistake," says an apologetic Akshay.

The objection was towards Akshay's look and some scenes in the film. The mega star flew down from South Africa to re-shoot some parts of the film and attended a press conference on Friday evening in Mumbai to clear the air.

"We wanted to make sure that the community is happy with the film, that is why we went up to them and showed the film to them. There are some changes they expected us to make and we have done that," says filmmaker Vipul.

"Lot of changes are done but thing which have been already shot cannot reset again," explains Akshay.

While members of the community who have been authorized by the censor board to view the film have finally given it a thumbs up though they feel the damage is done.

"At least in the future, whosoever wants to portray Sikhs or Punjabis in their films should be sensitive towards the community and come to us before hand, after damaging it's only damage control that can be done," says Sardar Manmohan Singh of Sri Guru Singh Sabha in Dadar.

Hopefully they won't complain once the film hits theatres and Akshay wins their hearts.

Source: CNNIBN

PCB reduces Shoaib's five-year ban to 18 months

2008-06-14T08:35:00.000-07:00

Karachi, June 14: Temperamental fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar's five-year ban was reduced to 18-months, but a fine of Rs. 7 million slapped on him by the Pakistan Cricket Board's (PCB) tribunal here Saturday.

'The tribunal has taken the decision with a clear conscience and under no pressure from either the board or anyone else,' tribunal chief Aftab Farrukh told reporters here, adding that the three-member tribunal unanimously felt the original sentence was too harsh on the player.

In April, Shoaib was banned for five years for repeatedly violating the code of conduct.

'We also took into consideration the past record of Shoaib and his publicly apology for his behaviour and past deeds,' Farrukh said.

'He has promised to reform himself and we have also recommended to the board that he should be given proper counselling.'

The fast bowler's lawyer Abid Hasan Minto said the player had the right to pursue an appeal against the 18-month ban.

'But we will take a decision after going through the long and detailed order of the tribunal,' Minto said.

Source: IANS

Want a few bucks? You may get fleeced

2008-06-13T02:33:00.000-07:00

As the inflation becoming a global phenomenon and price rise on essential commodities eating away one's monthly budget, earning a few extra bucks will not be a bad idea. But how and what should one do to earn genuine extra income?

If you take any paper, advertisements to woo people to earn extra money, would fill in an entire section. If you search for online jobs or home-based jobs on the net, there are a lakh websites offering online/home-based jobs. Some promise 'no selling, no target' jobs, while some offer 'writing' jobs. Are they offering genuine jobs? Will anyone ever get paid through these offers? The answer is a million dollar question.

Don't ever relay on sites which offer online jobs with a premium. They may be fake. Check their credentials first before move further.

The latest to fleece the public is googlecashcow.com. From the name of it, anyone will assume that this site has connection with Google.com. You are absolutely wrong. They have no connection with Google. The phone number given in their site is fake.

They offer the job with a premium pay of Rs 1300 or $30 dollars pay through credit card. Ironically, if one pays the money, and gets their kit (which is a zip file), then the truth unfolds. If you are not a techie, you would find it difficult to unzip the file itself as it's password protected.

Their offer is nothing but a guidance to have a google's adsense account!

If one has a gmail or any other account, google offers a webspace 'free of cost' where one can have google's advertisements on it and get paid for every click the site generates.

But surprisingly, google runs googlecashcow.com's ads in their web pages also. So, be careful while going through the googlecashcow pages. Do not fall pray to their tricks. You can read the details from their site, which is very useful, then switch over to google.com and get more information from the horse mouth itself.

Yahoo, Google announce online ad alliance

2008-06-12T23:10:00.000-07:00

SAN FRANCISCO: Fresh from a failed courtship with Microsoft, Yahoo on Thursday rushed into Google's arms in the hope an alliance will improve its sagging fortunes and quell a rebellion by stockholders.

Yahoo and Google announced a deal to put the Internet search king's expertise to work pumping money from advertising posted next to Yahoo Internet search results.

Google and Yahoo began discussing an alliance in early February, shortly after Microsoft offered to buy Yahoo, said Google chief executive Eric Schmidt.

"The most entertaining conversations were those that took place in buildings that Yahoo owns in unknown and unfindable locations," Schmidt said during a conference call with analysts and reporters.

Google co-founder Larry Page and other executives arrived on bicycles for clandestine meetings in covert locations, Schmidt added.

Schmidt said it was during the past few weeks that he and Yahoo chief executive Jerry Yang had "serious conversations" and teams spent sleepless nights pulling together a deal inked on Thursday.

Google co-founder Serge Brin said it is "very exciting" to be working with Yahoo and its founders David Filo and Yang, whose time as students at Stanford University overlapped that of Brin and Page.

"We share quite a history and culture," Brin said. "It was David Filo and Jerry Yang that encouraged us to start a company that, in turn, became Google."

Brin said a priority is ensuring that Yahoo remains "a strong independent company."

Yahoo hopes the alliance will appease stockholders angry that board members rejected Microsoft's bid, which offered an attractive premium on the market value.

Billionaire corporate raider Carl Icahn has been amassing Yahoo shares in a campaign to overthrow the Yahoo board for rejecting a Microsoft takeover.

"This agreement provides a source of funds to both deliver financial value to stockholders from search monetization and to invest in our broader strategy," said Yahoo president Sue Decker said.

More details at TOI

Dasavathaaram Wins Court Battle, to Hit Theatres

2008-06-12T23:06:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: Actor-director Kamal Haasan's much anticipated film, Dasavathaaram will be releasing on Friday as per schedule after the Supreme Court on Thursday declined to stay the screening of the film.

Earlier in May, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad had approached the Madras High Court demanding the removal of scenes that portrayed clashes between Shaivites and Vaishnavites set in the 16th century in the film.

According to them, these were controversial, and hurt the sentiments of Hindus.

However, following the accusations, the film's producer Venu Ravichandran announced that the film doesn't contain such scenes and went on to file an affidavit in the Supreme Court.

Source: CNN-IBN

India Beat Bangladesh, to Meet Pak in Finals

2008-06-12T23:02:00.000-07:00

DHAKA, Bangladesh: Opener Gautam Gambhir smashed an unbeaten 107 to guide India to a seven-wicket victory over Bangladesh in a tri-series limited-overs international Thursday, setting up a weekend final against Pakistan.

Gambhir's fifth ODI century took India to 223-3 in just 35.1 overs, replying to Bangladesh's 222 all out.

India beat Pakistan by 140 runs in the league round and will face its arch rival against in Saturday's final. Pakistan beat Bangladesh by 70 runs in the series-opener and finished 1-1.

Gambhir hit 13 boundaries and one six in his 101-ball innings and shared an 85-run partnership with Virendra Sehwag (59).

Sehwag struck seven boundaries and two sixes in his 32-ball knock before being caught by Tamim Iqbal off Dolar Mahmud.

Rohit Sharma (26) fell to spinner Abdur Razzak and Yuvraj (26) was bowled by Farhad Reza.

Earlier, Roqibul Hassan scored 89 from 117 balls and shared a vital middle-order partnership with Mohammad Ashraful to help salvage Bangladesh's innings after it slumped to 17 for two.

Hassan's patient innings, the highest ever by a Bangladeshi in a one-day international against India, contained only five boundaries. It ended after he hurt his hamstring and was out to R.P. Singh.

Hassan's 76-run third wicket stand with captain Ashraful (36) came after Bangladesh, winning the toss and electing to bat first, lost two early wickets just for 17.

Ashraful was also cautious, his 36 coming off 67 balls.

India's first breakthrough was provided by in-form paceman Praveen Kumar, who removed openers Tamim Iqbal — caught behind for a duck — and Shahriar Nafees (9) to return 3-46 in his 10 overs.

Irfan Pathan claimed 2-48, while his brother Yusuf Pathan celebrated his first ever international wicket by removing Ashraful as India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni used seven bowlers.

Source: Sulekhanews

Miraculous Cancer Cure in Manipur's Saikot Village

2008-06-12T02:47:00.000-07:00

CHAWILIEN CANCER Medicine Research Agency, Saikot in Manipur’s Churachandpur district, has become the talk of the town. People are now making a beeline to Saikot to see for themselves, how cancer patients – even in their advanced stage – are getting cured. People say Pa-Chawilien possesses special healing power and there has been a sudden rush of cancer patients to Saikot for treatment.

Pa-Chawilien himself was a cancer patient. It was found that people, mostly patients, took part in a prayer session with the healer, who would then prepare the magical dose from his green plant… which in local Hmar dialect is called Damdwai. Large number of patients come all the way with hope of a miraculous cure. Unlike other times, when he prays alone, Chawilien chants some healing prayer and then distributes his green medicine to the patients… without charging a penny. Inside his small hut… a boy who could hardly stand by himself, after the healing session of prayer and medicine… took everyone by surprise and began to walk. Chawilien revealed and claimed that two years ago, god revealed to him that he should drink the ’Damdwai’ plant extract.

Chawilien said he gave his medicine to patients only after getting an inspiration or indication from god. Outside Chawilien’s house, people queue up to take part in Pa-Chawilien’s prayer and healing session. The crowd comprised of patients of all hues… cancer, asthma, piles, etc. Chawilien’s healing power is claimed to have cured even HIV/AIDS. Saikot has invited even curious researchers. Laiton-jam Warjeet, an organic chemistry reader, is guiding a team of researchers to investigate the organic and curative components of the plant. According to Warjeet, the Damdwai plant is a rare plant having high content of alkaloids, steroids, saponins and other components, which are generally considered anti-cancer.

Although five to 10 thousand people throng Chawilien Cancer Medicine Research Agency everyday, it has failed to move the attention of the state health department. According to the preliminary studies of the plant, because of its alkaloid and steroid components, it is inadvisable for children as well as pregnant women. “Loose motion, indigestion, and some corrosive side-effects on the skin are also noticed,” said Manipur University organic chemistry reader, Laitonjam Warjeet. Warjeet feels that ascertaining the components are very important to avoid health complications.

For the crowd waiting outside, the research or its outcome is immaterial to them. To them, all that matters is – Chawilien, his green medicine and the healing session. One lady firmly believes her breast cancer was cured after consuming Chawilien’s medicine. Everyday, 20 sacks of Damdwai plant leaves are needed to prepare the medicine for the day’s requirement. After the leaves are cleaned and twigs separated, these are chopped into bits for pounding. The liquid extract is then filtered and readied for consumption. Many people have volunteered to work for healer… with one purpose… to help the sick.

The medicines are for free at the Chawilien Cancer Medicine Research Agency. Only the donations help meet some of the expenses.Within a span of two months, the once small and quite village has now been transformed into a township. While Chawilien seeks only donation to meet his daily expenses, the rows and rows of stalls, which have sprung up in Saikot, are selling the green medicine for some hefty sum. For many families, this has turned out to be a good livelihood.

Faith has moved mountains. Chawilien’s mantra of prayer and what he calls god-given medicine has turned out to be a huge crowd puller of patients, who otherwise will have to spend lakhs for treatment.

Source: Merinews

Highly infectious polio strain re-appears in Uttar Pradesh

2008-06-12T02:38:00.000-07:00

Lucknow, June 12: The oral polio vaccination drive has been advanced by the Uttar Pradesh government after a girl in the state's Badaun district was infected with a highly infectious polio strain, a senior official said Thursday.

'After a gap of nearly eight months, the P1 polio virus has resurfaced in UP. After the detection of the highly virulent P1 virus, we have decided to advance the vaccination drive,' regional team leader of the World Health Organisation's National Polio Surveillance Project, S.K. Parthyarch told IANS.

He said the vaccination drive that was slated for July 6 will now take place June 29.

Health department officials suspect that the P1 polio virus strain, which is more infectious than the P3 strain, arrived from Bihar. A 12-year-old girl in Badaun district was infected by it.

Journalism or business?

2008-06-12T02:36:00.000-07:00

WHAT IS media? Is media industry all just about covering the Page3 parties and all the stardoms of the tinsel town or is it struggling and visiting all parts of the country for the scoops and clues?

Media is an industry, which is at its boom today, seven out of 10 teenagers want to join this industry but is it all worth it? A nation with more then 60 news channels working 24 hours and getting all the news for the viewers, but what is the actual role of media? Is it to bring out news from various corners of the nation or is it just to cover the high profile cases and stretch those for months, investigate those cases, set panels for those and avoid those low level cases that are of equal disaster to the society?

Media has helped solving many murder cases and uncover scams. But most of these cases were high profile cases such as Jessica Lal murder Case, Nitish Katara and the most recent Aarushi murder case. Aarushi murder case started on May 16 when body of a 13 years old girl was found brutally killed at her own residence. And from there on, there is a breaking news everyday on the news channels regarding this case. Its been almost a month on this case and the viewers are just getting all the personal and case related information about Aarushi, all the reporters have turned into investigators and no the other issue is being highlighted. CEO of a news channel said on this, “Today, the consumer demands the four Cs, namely cricket, cinema, comedy and crime….” But is media industry here only for business? Where has the hard core journalism gone? Why media coverage to cases such as hit and run accidents, high inflation rate and employee exploitation is not being given? Just because such cases do not get them business? Or is it because people don’t want to see them?

Isn’t it the duty of media to use its power in correct way and help the lower section of the society who are already struggling with their lives and are getting suppressed by other external problems. Many people die on roads, many are being exploited, but who is there to point this out? All the media industry is busy investigating the high profile cases. A life is a life after all, whether a poor man dies or a rich man dies. It is all about a life. Then why this discrimination? A single murder is made the centre of attraction of the nation, ignoring those four or five people who died of poverty or inflation.

It’s high time. Now media should realise its duties and work, not only for the business but also for the human rights. Media power is too huge, if used correctly, it can bring big changes in the society. But if not, then it can even destroy many innocent lives.

Source: Merinews

Euro '08: Turkey Beat Swiss 2-1

2008-06-11T22:55:00.000-07:00

BASEL, AFP: Arda Turan ended Switzerland's interest in Euro 2008 in heartbreaking fashion as a last-minute breakaway goal gave Turkey a 2-1 win here on Wednesday.

Just as it seemed the co-hosts had done enough to stay alive in the competition, the midfielder broke clear on the left, cut inside and beat goalkeeper Diego Benaglio from the edge of the area with the help of a cruel deflection off the boot of centreback Patrick Muller.

It was harsh on the Swiss but they had only themselves to blame having squandered the chances to kill off the Turks long before the dramatic denouement.

Hakan Yakin, one of three players in the Swiss side with family roots in Turkey, had given Jakob Kuhn's side a first-half lead in treacherous conditions.

Source: TOI

Euro 2008: Portugal Beat Czech by 3-1

2008-06-11T22:50:00.000-07:00

GENEVA: Cristiano Ronaldo, tipped by many to become Euro 2008's player of the tournament, scored one goal and made another to give Portugal a 3-1 win over Czech Republic in Group A on Wednesday.

The victory at the Stade de Geneve put Portugal firmly on top of the group with six points and within touching distance of a quarter-final berth.

With the game level at 1-1, Ronaldo struck in the 63rd minute with a firm shot from a pass by Deco and then set up Ricardo Quaresma to add the third in stoppage time.

Source: TOI

Camel Milk, an Answer to Diabetes?

2008-06-11T22:44:00.000-07:00

By Gopalkrishanan

Much hue and cry is made over the reducing population of Tigers and Lions in
India. While this is a matter of concern, another concern is happening in the north west region of India silently on which none utters a word.

Yes. The reducing population of Camel in India. The population that counted around 5 million 20 years back, is now is less than half a million.

The bhakia community that bred the camel so long are uninterested in breeding them more. Agriculture, their main profession is not attracting them and they are turning towards the urban area for jobs.

The returns from the agriculture is also less for them. During monsoon, they sow and during summer, they make the camel go around and use the waste of camel as manure.

But now, they do not do so. They smuggle the camel to Bangladesh or Pakistan for meat for a meagre amount of Rs 2000 to 5000. Such is the state of this community and the ships of our deserts.

Interesting point is in a survey recently conducted by Indian medical association, Bhakia community is totally immuned to diabetes. The reason is they drink camel milk.

Unfortunately, we are losing camels that is a good medicine for diabetes fastly and none utters a word.

Wife Mortgaged to Loan Shark

2008-06-11T22:41:00.000-07:00

BEHRAMPORE: You could call it Bengal’s heart of darkness. Unable to repay a loan he had taken for his wedding, a Murshidabad man ‘mortgaged’ his wife and vanished. For two years, the woman was allegedly raped and kept confined in the moneylender’s house.

When she went to police, they allegedly did nothing. Every time she sought help, they ignored her, she says.

The shocking incident took place at Jhikra village in Murshidabad’s Bharatpur area. When the woman married tailor Toton Sheikh five years ago, he borrowed some money from Rahamani Sheikh, a rich businessman from neighbouring Surpara village. The couple was finding it difficult to pay back the Rs 5,000 (at a hefty interest) when they had to borrow money again for their son’s birth.

Toton could pay back only Rs 3,000. Rahamani started pressuring him and a desperate Toton decided to quit tailoring and go to Delhi with a mason’s job. When Rahamani learnt of this, he confronted Toton and demanded that he leave something as mortgage.

“We are very poor and my husband had nothing to mortgage. So he decided to let Rahamani keep me till he came back from Delhi. I refused to go but as my husband kept pleading, I gave in. He said he would be back in six months, but two years have passed and I’ve not heard from him,” said Toton’s wife. “The moneylender forced me to have sex with him. After six months, I tried to return home, but he locked me up.”

About a year ago, she managed to sneak out to Bharatpur police station to lodge a complaint against the moneylender. But police refused to act, she said. “On June 7, I complained to the police again, but they again refused. Rahamani pays them a bribe every month.”

Rahamani left for a relative’s home a week back, allegedly threatening to kill her if she tried to flee. Toton’s father Sadu Sheikh pleaded ignorance. “My son works in Delhi. I don’t know where my daughter-in-law is as I have broken all ties with her since Toton left,” he said.

Murshidabad SP Basab Dasgupta promised to take action if police were found guilty. A circle inspector will probe the matter immediately.

Source: TOI

On India Day, National Anthem Overlooked in US

2008-06-11T22:36:00.000-07:00

By Lalit K Jha

India's National Anthem ''Jana Gana Mana'' was stopped from playing three times at the Indian consulate in New York by the organizers of the India Day Parade-the annual flagship event of the Indian American community in the United States of America.

This was done so that the US national song could be played first, instead of ''Jana Gana Mana''. As per convention, since the premises of Indian Consulate is considered to be just like an Indian territory the Indian national anthem is played first followed by US national song.

But the organizers of the Indian Day Parade, the Federation of Indian Associations (FIA) wanted to have the other way round this time.

The occasion was to kick-off the India Day Parade in the New York City on August 17, wherein it was announced that the latest Bollywood star, Deepika Padukone, would be the grand marshal of the parade.

Traditionally the kick-off function is held at the Indian Consulate as a gesture from the Indian Government and its support to the mega event of the Indian American community held in New York every year to celebrate India's independence.

It all started at the beginning of the function when a senior FIA official requested all the invitees to stand up for the national anthem. As per convention, the ''Jana Gana Mana'' started playing on the acoustic system. The FIA official who was anchoring the show immediately shouted. ''Stop it. (Play the) US national song first.''

It was stopped immediately, at the end of the first line of ''Jana Gana Mana adhinyaka jaya h.'' As the individual handling the music system tried to play the US national song, she pushed the wrong button and Indian national anthem started playing for the second time. Again came the loud voice from organizers C ''stop! Stop. Play the US national song.''

India's national anthem was stopped again. But as the individual handling the music system became nervous, she pressed the wrong button again. This time there was more than one voice from FIA officials to stop ''Jana Gana Mana''. One of the FIA officials rushed to the back of the hall where all the music systems were placed on makeshift tables. This time it was made sure that the US national song was given preference, following which ''Jana Gana Mana'' was played.

An infuriated Consul General of India, New York Consulate, Neelam Deo, who was sitting quietly all this while in the front row preferred not to create an ugly scene at the spur of the moment.

However, soon after as both the national songs were over, Deo raised strong objection about this major insulting lapse on India's national anthem with organizers. Deo was seen telling the FIA president, Yash Paul Soi, that such an insulting attitude towards India's national anthem could not be tolerated.

It is the Indian Consulate which provides all its support to the community and India Day Parade.

Source:NDTV

Tigers May be the First to Vanish: World Bank

2008-06-11T05:41:00.000-07:00

New Delhi, June 11: Tigers are likely to be the first species of large predator to vanish in historic times if their population continues to decline, according to the World Bank.
"To secure the future of tiger in the wild and save it from poachers, financial and material resources and a strong policy commitment is needed," it said while listing poaching, prey depletion, forest degradation and habitat loss as main reasons for the declining population.

Its existing wild populations inhabit fragmented and isolated patches of land, constituting a meager seven per cent of their historic range, it said.

"If current trends persist, tigers are likely to be the first species of large predator to vanish in historic times," the World Bank said in a statement after joining a worldwide alliance of conservationists, scientists and celebrities.

Tiger numbers have declined from over 100,000 a century ago to just 4,000 today with 3,000 of them in India. Saying that the animals have become an enforcement dependent species, the Bank said the tiger population health is an indicator of biodiversity and a barometer of sustainability.

The Bank and its partners plan to assess financing needs and work with governments and the private sector for tiger conservation.

"Since tigers are at the top of the food chain, the conservation of wild tigers also means preservation of the habitats in which they live and the prey populations that support them," it said in a statement.

International Tiger Coalition spokesperson Grace Ge Gabriel said nothing short of global action will bring back wild tigers.

The Tiger Conservation Initiative will start with a series of dialogues in tiger range countries to find out what has worked locally to protect the tigers.

"Tigers occupy only seven per cent of their historical range and about 40 per cent less than they did just a decade ago," said John Seidensticker, Head of the Conservation Ecology Center at Smithsonian's National Zoo. "A business-as-usual approach is not sustaining wild tigers today."

Source: Expressindia

Who will be the Euro Cup champ?

2008-06-10T22:42:00.000-07:00

By K Ramanathan Iyer

Europe is being boiled to the brim now as the second Mecca of the soccer event ‘Euro cup soccer 2008’ is underway in Austria and Switzerland.

This time too, there is no clue about the most favorite teams to win the championship. Though last time world champions Italy and equally strong contenders such as Germany, France, Romania and Portugal vying to get the coveted trophy, the match is wide open this time, as even unpredictable teams link Netherlands or Poland may upset a few big names in the championship.

So it's a wait and watch for the screaming supporters of the world's famous sports – football worldover. In India there is not much hullabaloo as Cricket takes the centre stage and football the back seat here. There are a few pockets in India like West Bengal, Goa and Kerala, where the sport has been played with huge passion. But due to lack of support and infrastructures like world class stadium, sports equipment and finally no back up from media and corporate world, sports events have become a dull-dull affair in India.

With the opening four matches at Euro 2008, going in favour of favourite teams with Czech Republic beating Switzerland and Portugal overcoming Turkey on Saturday while Croatia downed Austria and Germany overcame Poland, the match has entered into an interesting phase.

Who will win the Euro 2008 title, is a 'million dollar' question.

CBI Says Aaruhi's Murder Was Planned

2008-06-10T22:38:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI: In another revelation in the Aarushi Talwar murder case, the CBI claimed on Tuesday the crime was pre-meditated and planned well in advance.

The agency sources said the air conditioners at the Talwar residence were tampered with. Someone had increased the volume of the air conditioners to muffle the screams of Aarushi and Hemraj at the time of the murder, they said, adding that the CBI had found some fingerprints on the air conditioners.
Meanwhile, CBI director Vijay Shanker said, “The breakthrough is going to come soon.”

His statement came after Krishna, the compounder of Dr Rajesh Talwar, was given another lie detector test after the CBI felt he was hiding a lot of information from them.

“He has been giving us misleading statements and we are unable to understand why is he doing that?” said a senior official of CBI. The officer said on the basis of the information given by Krishna, the agency has conducted searches on the banks of Hindon river, which flows through Ghaziabad.

A five-member team along with Krishna had visited the Talwar residence in sector 25 of Noida on Monday night to confirm the facts revealed by him. Amongst the people who were questioned by the visiting CBI tem were Aarushi’s mother Nupur, her two uncles and Anita Durani. Aarushi’s grandparents were also present in the house at the time of questioning.

Forensic experts working on the case have found that the same weapon was used for both the murders. The experts indicated that Hemraj was attacked from behind as his skull was smashed on the backside of his head, while Aarushi was hit on the face.

Source: DNA

Euro '08: Spain beat Russia 4-1

2008-06-10T20:51:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI, June 10: Spain's fame strike force live upto their reputation as they beat Russia by four goals to one in the Euro 2008 Group D match at Tivoli Neu Stadium, Innsbruck on Tuesday.

Coach Luis Aragones decision to field a two-man strike force featuring Fernando Torres and David Villa turned out to be a fruitful one as Villa scored a clinical hat-trick in the match.

Russian striker Roman Pavlyuchenko scored a consolation goal in the 86th minutes to salvage the day, which was dominated by Spanish team. But Spain increased their margin in the 91st minutes to win the match 4-1.

Squads

Spain: 1-Iker Casillas; 15-Sergio Ramos, 5-Carles Puyol, 4-Carlos Marchena, 11-Joan Capdevila; 19-Marcos Senna; 6-Andres Iniesta, 8-Xavi, 21-David Silva; 7-David Villa, 9-Fernando Torres

Russia: 1-Igor Akinfeyev; 22-Alexander Anyukov, 8-Denis Kolodin, 14-Roman Shirokov, 18-Yuri Zhirkov; 11-Sergei Semak, 17-Konstantin Zyryanov, 20-Igor Semshov, 15-Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, 21-Dmitry Sychev; 19-Roman Pavlyuchenko

Referee: Konrad Plautz (Austria).

Source: TOI

Probe ordered into police firing in Karnataka

2008-06-10T20:36:00.000-07:00

BANGALORE: Karnataka Government on Tuesday ordered an inquiry into the police firing in Karnataka's Haveri town which left a person dead and four others injured.

A compensation of Rs two lakh to the family of the farmer who was killed, Rs 50,000 to those injured seriously and Rs 25,000 to those who suffered minor injuries was also announced by Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa.

"Belgaum Division Regional Commissioner Amita Prasad will conduct a probe into the incident and submit a report to the government within ten days," Yeddyurappa told reporters after reviewing the situation at a high level meeting here.

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'Intensive glucose control protects against diabetics'

2008-06-10T03:28:00.000-07:00

Sydney, June 10: The world's largest study of diabetes treatments has concluded that intensive blood glucose control protects against complications.

The therapy, using modified release of gliclazide, reduces the risk of kidney disease by a fifth and shows that the intensive strategy can potentially benefit millions of diabetics worldwide.

Diabetes mellitus afflicts 250 million people and is likely to shoot up to 380 million in 2025, according to the results of ADVANCE (Action in Diabetes and Vascular disease).

'We are facing a global epidemic of diabetes... we have now shown that reducing the haemoglobin A1c level (blood glucose control marker) to 6.5 per cent is a safe and effective way to reduce serious complications, particularly the risk of kidney disease, said Stephen MacMahon, director George Institute, Australia.'

Source: IANS

These findings appeared on Tuesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Gujjar-Raj govt talks stalled

2008-06-10T01:22:00.000-07:00

BHARATPUR: Efforts by Rajasthan government to end the 18-day-old Gujjar stir on Tuesday ran into rough weather with the community leadership making fresh demands of release of arrested women activists and withdrawal of murder charges against 20 protestors as pre-condition for further talks.

Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla, who had termed the first round of parleys yesterday as a "good beginning", has made the two demands a pre-condition for the talks which were to be held in Jaipur, a senior state government official said.

He said that the written commitment given by 70-year-old Bainsla in Bayana on Monday about holding of the next round of talks has been retracted.

"However we are making all efforts from our side" to revive the dialogue process, the official said on phone from Gujjar stronghold of Bayana in this district.

Souce: DNA

Sensex slide continues; IT worst hit

2008-06-10T01:19:00.000-07:00

MUMBAI: Key indices slipped back to initial lows after briefly trading in the green weighed down by negative global cues and as fears of an interest rate hike in the midst of slowing economic growth worried investors. Also bothering the market is the rise in crude oil prices which stokes inflation. Lack of interest from foreign institutions only added to the woes.

"On Monday, the market closed sharply lower on weak global cues and record high crude oil prices. The Nifty broke the 4,500 mark for the first time this year, making a new year low of 4,448.05 intra day, and ended at a new yearly closing low of 4,500.95. Nifty is expected to be bearish in short term; technical charts indicate more downside. The supports are at 4448, 4324 and 4200. Resistance is faced at 4560, 4600, 4731, 4780 and 4817,” Suresh Kumar Iyer, technical analyst at Asit C Mehta Investment Interrmediates.

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Noida Murders: Rajesh Talwar's bail plea rejected

2008-06-10T01:13:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI: The bail application of Rajesh Talwar, the suspect in the Aarushi murder case, was rejected on Tuesday by the Ghaziabad court.

Earlier, a team of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and forensic experts conducted a fresh search late Monday night in the house of Rajesh Talwar to find more clues into the murder of his daughter Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj.

The team, accompanied by Talwar's compounder Krishna, reached his Noida residence at around 11.45 p.m.

CBI Joint Director Arun Kumar led the team. Earlier, the CBI had put compounder Krishna through a six-hour lie detector test.

The agency claimed to have obtained some "incriminating clues" against him from the room of Hemraj, the slain domestic help.

During investigations it was found that three people were present in Hemraj's room and consumed alcohol on May 15 night, when Aarushi's murder took place. One of them was Krishna, the identity of the third person is not yet known, said CBI sources.

On June 1, the CBI registered Aarushi's murder case against "unknown persons". The Noida police arrested Aarushi's dentist father Rajesh Talwar as the prime accused but the CBI is treating him only as a "suspect".

CBI Director Vijay Shanker has said, "The breakthrough is going to come soon."

Aarushi, 14, was found killed in her Noida home May 16 with her throat slit. The Noida police initially named domestic help Hemraj and even sent teams to trace him, but backtracked after his body was found a day later on the terrace of the Talwars' house.
The police arrested Talwar on May 23, accusing him of killing his daughter in a fit of rage as he objected to her being close to Hemraj. The police had said at the time that Talwar first killed Hemraj and then his daughter.

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Bangla Tri-series: India to Take on Pak Today

2008-06-10T01:10:00.000-07:00

DHAKA: With the IPL euphoria settled, MS Dhoni and his team will have to quickly get back into ODI mode to snap Pakistan’s 12-match winning streak when the traditional rivals face off in the tri-series on Monday.

Pakistan routed Bangladesh by 70 runs in the tri-series opener last night to extend their unbeaten streak to 12 matches and it could be a tough task for Dhoni’s young Indian side to halt the arch-rivals.

Source: TOI

Euro 2008: Devastating Dutch Sweep Italy Aside

2008-06-10T01:04:00.000-07:00

Berne (Switzerland), June 10: The Netherlands put themselves in a strong position in the so-called 'group of death' when they swept to a 3-0 victory over world champions Italy in their Euro 2008 match in Berne Monday.

It was a first Dutch victory over Italy for 30 years, leaving the Azzurri looking a pale shadow of the side which won the World Cup two years ago.

First-half goals from Ruud van Nistelrooy (26th) and Wesley Sneijder (31st) put the Dutch firmly in the driving seat and Giovanni van Bronckhorst completed a remarkable night for Marco van Basten's side with a third 11 minutes from time.

'I am very proud of the team,' van Basten said.

'It was a really nice game from us and also an historic game. We hadn't beaten Italy for 30 years. To win 3-0 against a team like Italy with so much experience is something we really didn't expect.

The spirit in the team is really good and with the ability we have we can have some nice dreams.'

Italy went into the Group C game with the statistics firmly on their side, having lost only twice to the Dutch in 15 internationals and having beaten them on penalties the only other time they met at the Euro finals.

But there were signs that age may be catching up with the Azzurri who were run ragged at times by a Dutch side, and untypically were twice punished by classic counter-attacks.

Italy coach Robert Donadoni said: 'We conceded goals in a naive way. I don't want to debate the first goal. I think it was pretty clearly offside.'

The next challenge for Italy comes Friday in Zurich when they will have to overcome Romania, who drew 0-0 earlier in the evening with France. On the same day, the Dutch play the French in Berne.

'We have to accept this defeat. We have another two games and now we have to think of these,' Donadoni said.

A capacity 30,777 crowd, most of them clad in orange and supporting the Dutch, saw their side in devastating form in the first half and fully deserving of their two-goal half-time lead.

The Oranjes were unlucky not to take the lead in the 19th minute after Ruud van Nistelrooy could have earned his side a penalty after being set up by Dirk Kuyt.

However, in a show of sportsmanship, the Real Madrid player did not go down when Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon touched him with his foot after the striker had pushed the ball past.

Van Nistelrooy was rewarded for his honesty just seven minutes later when Buffon managed to clear a Kuyt cross, but the ball fell to Wesley Sneijder.

The Real Madrid midfielder played a cross into the Italian six yard box, where an unmarked van Nistelrooy, played onside by Christian Panucci, who was lying behind the goalline after having crashed into his own goalkeeper, had a simple task of tapping in.

On the half-hour Sneijder, who was celebrating his 24th birthday, added another for the Dutch when he managed to score a spectacular goal from an acute angle after running on to a Kuyt cross.

A brilliant defence-splitting Rafael van der Vaart pass nearly gave Van Nistelrooy his second of the game two minutes from the break but Buffon was quickly off his line to block the shot.

Italy, who had never lost an opening match at their six European Championships, struggled at the back without injured captain Fabio Cannavaro.

Man-of-the-match Sneijder, van der Vaart and the towering Orlando Engelaar were also sharper in midfield despite the probings of Andrea Pirlo, while Luca Toni up front had little change from Dutch defenders Joris Mathijsen and Andre Ooijer.

Fabio Grosso came close for the Italians in the 78th minute and a minute later Edwin van der Sar saved brilliantly from an Andrea Pirlo free kick, but every time Italy had a chance the Dutch hit back.

From van der Sar's save the Dutch broke immediately and scored their third as Kuyt's cross at the end of a swift move found Giovanni van Bronckhorst whose header was pushed over the line by Gianluca Zambrotta.

The result sees Italy under tremendous pressure to avoid a similar fate as they did in two of the last three Euro finals, where they were knocked out in the first round.

The Dutch will meanwhile advance to the quarter-finals if they beat France Friday.

Van Basten said: 'They are a very difficult team for us. And we also lost against Romania in the qualification so it won't be easy.

Source: Sulekhanews

My son has brought a lot of changes in me: Malaika

2008-06-10T00:59:00.000-07:00

New Delhi, June 10: Model-anchor-item girl Malaika Arora thanks her five-year-old son Arhaan for whatever she is today.

'Arhaan is the best thing that happened to me. For anyone it's the greatest joy to have a child and for every mother her child is her weakness. And, yes, he is my weakness,' said Malaika, best remembered as the 'Chhaiya Chhaiya' girl.

Malaika, who was here to launch a store last week, has been married to actor Arbaaz Khan for 10 years and says of her son: 'Arhaan brought a lot of changes in me in terms of the person that I am and to my temperament as well. I really thank him for making me the way I am today.'

The 34-year-old is all geared up for her first full-length role as an actress opposite Arjun Rampal in Suniel Shetty's 'EMI'.

'I am really excited about 'EMI'. I play Arjun's love interest in the film. The film talks about easy monthly instalments (EMI) and how people who take such loans are not able to repay them,' Malaika told IANS.

On being asked if there are any films with Arbaaz in the pipeline, Malaika said: 'There's no film as of now, but there is a song that I am doing with him. I have done a song with him earlier (for Shubha Mudgal's album 'Dholna'), but this is the first time I am pairing up with him for a film song.'

The couple will soon be seen grooving to a number in Indrajith Lankesh's 'Shaadi Ke After Effects'.

Apart from her stint on television as MTV's popular video jockey, Malaika has played judge on reality dance show 'Nach Baliye' and also hosted NDTV Imagine's music show 'Dhoom Macha De'.

Now, brother-in-law Salman Khan has also turned to the small screen as the host of reality game show 'Dus Ka Dum'.

'I have seen the promos of the show. They are really cool and I am sure Salman bhai would do a great job. I wish him all the best,' she said.

Source: Sulekhanews

Marathi actor Vihang Nayak dies in road accident

2008-06-09T05:57:00.000-07:00

Mumbai, June 9: Veteran Marathi film and television actor Vihang Nayak died when his car overturned after hitting a divider on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway Monday. He was 58. His driver was killed as well.

The fatal mishap took place at around 7 a.m. near Kalamboli on the expressway, police said. The actor was going to Baramati in Pune district to shoot for leading Marathi film director Sanjay Surkar's still untitled film.

Both Naik and his 29-year-old driver were rushed to hospital where they were declared dead.

A familiar father-figure in millions of Marathi households through his popular ongoing TV serial 'Awaghachi Sansar', Nayak was also actively involved in Mumbai's English theatre. He was doing a major role in Bharat Dabholkar's upcoming 'Hinglish' play 'Ugly aur Pagli'.

A civil engineer working for a private firm till recently, Nayak made his foray into acting with his role in Govind Nihalani's 'Aakrosh' (1980). 'God Only Knows' (2004) was another film in which he had played a memorable role.
Source: Sulekhanews

Hindu group moves SC against Dasavatharam

2008-06-07T09:49:00.000-07:00

The June 13 release of Kamal Haasan-starrer movie Dasavatharam may have to wait for the outcome of a petition filed in the Supreme Court on Thursday objecting to the title of the film as well as certain scenes in it on religious grounds.

Apprehending such a move by the petitioner, International Sri Vaishnava Dharma Samrakshak Society, which lost its case in the Madras HC, the director and producer of the film had on Wednesday filed caveats to prevent the group from obtaining any ex-parte order from the apex court against the release of the movie.

On May 29, a HC bench comprising Justices K Venkataraman and M Satyanarayana dismissed the petitions filed by the society and 'Kalyana Suba Samiti' seeking change of title of the movie and deletion of certain scenes in it.

Terming the apprehensions of the petitioner as mere presumptions as they had not viewed the movie, the bench had said: "Freedom of expression guaranteed under the Constitution cannot be curtailed on mere assumption of the petitioners that the said film contains certain scenes which will hurt the sentiments of the Hindus, more so the Vaishnavites."

Rejecting the plea that Hindus had a copyright over the title Dasavatharam , the HC had said: "Admittedly, there is no copyright over the word Dasavatharam ."

Source: Sulekhanews

Aarushi murder: Rajesh Talwar's bail plea deferred

2008-06-07T09:45:00.000-07:00

NOIDA: The bail application of dentist Rajesh Talwar, who has been arrested as a suspect for the murder of his daughter Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj, has been deferred till Tuesday by the court of special magistrate for Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) cases, a lawyer said Saturday.

"The special magistrate who handles CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) cases is visiting jails on Saturday. Hence the case was listed for Tuesday," said Talwar's lawyer Satish Tamta.

"The original bail application filed in the chief judicial magistrate's court at Noida has been withdrawn and a fresh application was filed Friday before the special magistrate for CBI cases at Ghaziabad," he added.

He said that in the bail application, "we have just focussed on the fact that Talwar is innocent since CBI has no evidence against him."

Aarushi, 14, was found dead in her Noida apartment with her throat slit May 16. The police initially named domestic help Hemraj as the main accused, but backtracked after his body was found on the terrace of the apartment a day later.

Police arrested Talwar May 23, accusing him of killing his daughter. The Noida police had said at that time that he first killed Hemraj and then his daughter, though the CBI - which has taken over the case - has a different view.

Source: Sulekhanews

Ivanovic Beats Safina for French Open Title

2008-06-07T09:36:00.000-07:00

Paris, June 7: Ana Ivanovic of Serbia defeated Russian Dinara Safina 6-4, 6-3 to win the women's French Open title Saturday.

The second-seeded Ivanovic, 20, won her first career Grand Slam trophy on her third attempt in a final. She took 1 hour 38 minutes to defeat Safina, who was the 13 seed playing in her first final at the majors.

Ivanovic will also be the new top ranked women when the next WTA rankings are released on Monday, dethroning Russian Maria Sharapova.

Source: Sulekhanews

Watch French open photos here

16 illegal Indian workers arrested in Britain

2008-06-07T09:34:00.000-07:00

London: Sixteen Indian citizens who did not have the right to work in Britain have been arrested after they were found working in a farm in Evesham in south-west England, official sources said.

The group included 12 women and four men. A citizen of Iran was also arrested during the intelligence-led operation by the UK Border Agency.

Officials said steps will now be taken to remove the immigration offenders from Britain.

Officers who carried out the raid on May 28 checked identity documents to establish whether the employees were working legally but found that none of those arrested had any right to work in the UK and some were failed asylum seekers.

The manager of the recruitment agency who supplied the illegal workers was issued with an on-the-spot notice and was warned that he faced a fine of 170,000 pounds.

The arrested Indians had been transported by bus from Birmingham and the Wrst Midlands to plant, pick and prepare salad onions.

Gail Adams, regional director of the UK Border Agency Midlands, told newspersons: "The UK Border Agency is determined to put a stop to illegal working in the Vale of Evesham. We have teams visiting businesses across the county to make sure they are not breaking the law.

"Anyone found to be working illegally should know that we will seek to remove them from the country. Many employers work with us to ensure that they only employ legal workers.

"Our message to employers who do not take this issue seriously is simple - if you employ illegal workers you could be named and shamed, face criminal charges and a hefty fine."

New study offers hope to India's diabetes patients

2008-06-07T08:51:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: Intensive haemoglobin glucose control to the tune of 6.5 percent can reduce diabetes complications like kidney failure and cardiovascular diseases in a major way, shows a new study conducted across 20 countries including India.

The ADVANCE (Action in Diabetes and Vascular Diseases) study - carried out by the George Institute, Australia, with its findings released in the US Saturday - has said that with diabetes becoming a global epidemic the risk of both economic and human loss will be huge.

"The ADVANCE results go beyond existing evidence as we have now shown that reducing the haemoglobin A1c level (a marker of blood glucose control) to 6.5 percent is a safe and effective way to reduce serious complications, particularly the risk of kidney disease, one of the most serious and disabling consequences of diabetes, leading to death in one in five people with diabetes," Stephen MacMahon, principal director of the George Institute, said in a statement.

D. Prabhakaran, a cardiologist who was part of the experts group, said the study surveyed 11,140 patients including 415 Indians with Type-2 diabetes.

"The study took into account 415 Indians from Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad and Nagpur. The patients were at least 30 years of age and have some major complications like hypertension and cardiovascular problems," Prabhakaran told IANS.

These samples were followed up for a period of five years before the results were announced.

"Generally the haemoglobin A1c level in a diabetes patient goes up to nine grams per 100 ml of blood,' Prabhakaran added. 'The study has found that the level needs to be reduced to at least 6.5 percent to reduce the major risks.

"This will save people from kidney damage or cardiovascular diseases."

India is home to nearly 41 million diabetes patients and globally 250 million people are living with the condition.

The worldwide figure is estimated to rise to 380 million in 2025 with the largest increases in diabetes prevalence expected to take place in developing countries.

Nikhil Tandon, the national coordinator for ADVANCE at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here, said: "The study has provided vital information to India about the effects of managing blood glucose levels in diabetes.

"This is important as India is estimated to have over 40 million persons with diabetes - the highest population of diabetics in the world."

The haemoglobin A1c level to the tune of 6.5 percent reduces kidney complications by 21 percent and effects 30 percent reduction in the development of proteinurea, an established marker of increased cardiovascular risk.

Britain's first state-funded Hindu school launched

2008-06-07T08:46:00.000-07:00

London, June 7: Secular Britain's first state-funded Hindu school was launched Saturday with its head promising to promote religious harmony.

'We recognise and take our duty seriously in ensuring that we promote community cohesion, inclusion and value inter-cultural and religious diversity," promised head teacher Naina Parmar of the Krishna-Avanti Primary School Edgware, a northwest London suburb with a large ethnic Indian population.

'We will ensure our pupils are equipped with life-long skills and attitudes essential to enable them to make outstanding contributions to all aspects of contemporary British society,' Parmar added.

The school attracted criticism last year when it said it would give priority to children whose parents followed what it described as the Hindu teachings of vegetarianism and teetotalism.

Its admission policy now has a list of nine criteria, the first six of which include children from practising Hindu families and those from "Hindu families who are broadly following the tenets of Hinduism'.

The school is also supported by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Iskcon), and 10 places are reserved for children from a large temple, the Bhaktivedanta Manor, that is run by the movement.

The government funding of religious schools is a controversial issue in Britain, with critics claiming the practice encourages exclusion rather than inclusion of children in a secular and multi-cultural country.

British campaigners for humanism and atheism - led by scientist Richard Dawkins - say children should not be forced into any religion before the age of 15, so that they can choose whether or not they want to follow a faith.

The British government says it is committed to providing faith schools where there is demand from parents.

The vast majority of the 6,850 faith schools in Britain are either Protestant or Catholic Christian schools. Of the rest 37 are Jewish, seven Muslim, two Sikh and one each of Greek Orthodox and Seventh Day Adventist schools.

In total, these schools have 1.7 million pupils.

With the Hindu Bhoomi Puja concluded Saturday, the Krishna-Avanti Primary School will open its doors to the first reception class in September, but children will spend a year in temporary classrooms while new buildings are constructed.

The 10 million pound primary school will have 236 places, providing a faith school for some of the 40,000 Hindus living in the London Borough of Harrow, which is close to Edgware.

The school says that it will promote 'holistic health through the provision of a safe, caring environment, a balanced vegetarian diet and opportunities to practise yoga, meditation and the arts'.

The idea of state-funded Hindu schools, including the one in Harrow, has been promoted by a charity called I-Foundation, which also wants similar schools in the London neighbourhood of Barnet and the city of Leicester.

The charity, run by a group of Hindu financial experts, says it works on "sustainable projects that promote Vedic culture and philosophy".

Source: Sulekhanews

Man Held for Selling Fake US Degrees in Chennai

2008-06-07T08:40:00.000-07:00

Chennai: A man has been arrested for fraud after he allegedly fleeced over 100 people by selling them fake doctorate degrees, police said here Saturday.

According to police sources, the suspect M. Richard, arrested Friday, claimed to represent a non-existent 'America West University' and would charge between Rs.60,000 ($1500) to Rs.100,000 for issuing 'doctorate' degrees to them.

The scam came to light when an industrialist crosschecked the veracity of his 'degree' through a non-resident-Indian friend, found it was fake and complained to the police.

The suspect has reportedly admitted that he had been running the racket for over 12 years since quitting a white-collar job at a cultural academy in the city that felicitated successful industrialists in return for money. The police said Richard made nearly Rs.8 million from the scam.

Source: Sulekhanews

Gujjar stir: 27 trains cancelled, several diverted

2008-06-06T01:26:00.000-07:00

New Delhi, June 6: Northern Railways on Friday cancelled 27 trains passing through Rajasthan and diverted several others in the wake of the ongoing agitation by the Gujjar community in the state, causing acute hardship to commuters.
Train services have been stopped due to the agitation by Gujjar Samaj Mahapanchayat Samiti and large-scale public disturbance between Gangapur City-Bayana section in Kota Division, a Northern Railway statement said.

Railway officials said the trains have been cancelled in the interest of passengers' safety.

The trains that have been cancelled are Dehradun Express, Delhi-Nimach Link Express, Nizamuddin-Udaipur Intercity, August Kranti Rajdhani, Mumbai Janta Express, Bandra Garibrath, Gujarat Sampark Kranti, Jammu-Bandra Special, Bandra-Amritsar Special, Gorakhpur-Bandra Awadh Express and Ahmedabad Rajdhani.

Source: Expressindia

N-deal OK if no ban on Pokhran III: Advani

2008-06-06T01:20:00.000-07:00

Pune, June 5: Senior BJP leader and party's Prime Ministerial candidate L K Advani on Thursday said he would have no objection to the signing of the much-debated nuclear deal with the US if it was renegotiated to allow the option of further nuclear testing.

"We have no problem with supply of nuclear fuel from America for our reactors and for generation of atomic energy. But we have to ponder over at what cost we are going to get it," Advani, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha remarked at a book release function in Pune.

Criticising Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for rejecting the BJP demand to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Pokhran II, the 1998 atomic explosions by India conducted by the NDA government that made the country a nuclear power, Advani said his party attached similar importance to Pokhran I, that happened in 1974 under the rule of Indira Gandhi.

Source: Expressindia

Rs 2.5 crore house for Pathans

2008-06-06T01:17:00.000-07:00

VADODARA: All those towering sixes from Yusuf Pathan's blade that clinched the IPL crown for Team Jaipur and brother Irfan's wily outswingers that took Yuvraj Singh's Team Mohali to the semis counted for a lot.

The Pathans will soon move into a palatial Rs 2.5 crore bungalow in Vadodara, the design for which is now ready.

The Pathans' new address in Tandalja is a plush five-bedroom home spread over 15,000 square feet complete with lush green lawns and state-of-the-art interiors. It will also boast a gymnasium, a swimming pool and parking space large enought for a couple of big cars.

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UK court sentences 3 NRI businessmen to 25 years in jail

2008-06-06T01:16:00.000-07:00

LONDON: Three Indian-origin businessmen who swindled banks in Britain and the United States of more than 300 million pounds by pretending to run a worldwide metal trading empire have been sentenced to nearly 25 years in jail.

Virendra Rastogi (39), Anand Jain (43) and Gautam Majumdar (57), ex-directors of metal trading business RBG Resources, were convicted at London's Southwark Crown Court of conspiracy to defraud on 23 April.

Pronouncing the sentence on Thursday, Judge James Wadsworth said: "They created a very impressive front that fooled banks, the metal exchanges in both countries, (UK and USA), and well respected accountancy firms".

"They were involved in years of calculated dishonesty." During the trial, he noted that "they had shown no shadow of regret or remorse or repentance."

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Preity Zinta upset with Yuvraj Singh

2008-06-06T01:13:00.000-07:00

The captain of her IPL team left the party Ness Wadia hosted to celebrate their semi-final entry, saying he needed to rest before the big game the following day.

But the next morning, Zinta learnt that Yuvi had been partying all night at Prive.. and had returned to his hotel room only at the crack of dawn.

So obviously, he couldn't make it to the practice session. And we all know how that all-important match against the Chennai Super Kings ended.

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Barack Obama meets Hillary Clinton amid VP talk

2008-06-06T01:07:00.000-07:00

Washington: Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama met Hillary Clinton hours after his vanquished rival disavowed a campaign by her supporters to make her his vice presidential running mate.

Reporters came to know of the surprise meeting at Clinton's home in Washington, D.C. Thursday night when they learned that Obama was not aboard his press plane, with aides saying staff 'scheduled him some meetings' in the capital, CNN reported.

There was no immediate word on what transpired at the meeting between the two rivals who have fought a long bitter fight for the party nomination.

Clinton, who has not conceded the race so far, plans to announce her 'strong support' to Obama in his White House bid at a Washington event Saturday to thank her supporters. But she may still stop short of endorsing his candidature as a bargaining chip for the number two spot.

The former first lady plans to suspend her campaign within days, her campaign said. By suspending instead of dropping out altogether, Clinton would technically remain a candidate, entitled to keep state-wide pledged delegates and district-level delegates.

Earlier, in a statement issued by Clinton's campaign, she said the supporters were acting on their own, and that the choice of a running mate was 'Senator Obama's, and his alone.'

The statement came after two days in which a number of her key supporters had pushed the idea of an Obama-Clinton 'dream' ticket, saying it would salve wounds in the Democratic Party and assure a Democratic victory in the November presidential election.

And Clinton had made no obvious effort to discourage the effort, telling New York lawmakers in a private conference call earlier this week that she was open to serving as Obama's running-mate.

Obama, formally opening his general election campaign in Bristol, Virginia Thursday, complimented Clinton as he began to exert control over the Democratic Party and to focus its efforts on the race against the presumptive Republican nominee Senator John McCain.

'I know I'm a better candidate because I ran against her,' Obama said, speaking over the applause of several hundred supporters. 'She's tough. She is just an outstanding candidate, and a great public servant.'

Clinton did not rule out accepting the position if it is offered, even as she said she had not authorised the campaign on her behalf.

'While Senator Clinton has made clear throughout this process that she will do whatever she can to elect a Democrat to the White House, she is not seeking the vice presidency, and no one speaks for her but her,' Howard Wolfson, one of the Clinton campaign's chief strategists, said in a statement provided to the New York Times.

'The choice here is Senator Obama's, and his alone.'

Obama said Thursday he's in no rush to pick a vice presidential candidate, telling CNN 'everybody needs to settle down' and let the vetting process run its course.

It's not in his best interest, or in the interest of his former rival Hillary Clinton, to make a hasty decision about who will serve as his running mate, he said.

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Petrol Price Up by Rs 5, LPG by Rs 50

2008-06-04T02:28:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI: The government on Wednesday hiked petrol and diesel prices by Rs 5 and 3 a litre and that of LPG by Rs 50 a cylinder, while sparing poor man's cooking medium kerosene from any increase. ( Watch )

The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh took a slew of measures to offset the surging global oil prices that had put the national oil companies under acute pressure. The increase in prices would be effective from Wednesday midnight, Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said.

The price hike would help oil companies to earn Rs 21,123 crore more.

As part of measures, the government decided to take a burden of Rs 94,601 crore for which it will issue oil bonds to state-run BPCL, HPCL and IOC which were reporting a daily loss of over Rs 720 crore.

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Barack Obama Wins Democratic Nomination

2008-06-04T02:24:00.000-07:00

Washington: Barack Obama has secured the Democratic presidential nomination to make history as the first black to lead a major party ticket in America, but vanquished rival Hillary Clinton still has not called it quits.

A split verdict in the final primaries in Montana and South Dakota coupled with a last-minute rush of Democratic super delegates Tuesday pushed Obama over the threshold of 2,118 delegates needed to clinch the nomination at the party's convention in Denver this August.

'You chose to listen not to your doubts or your fears, but to your greatest hopes and highest aspirations,' said Obama, the son of a black Kenyan father and white American mother, at a rally in St. Paul, Minnesota, to claim the Democratic nomination.

'Tonight, we mark the end of one historic journey with the beginning of another - a journey that will bring a new and better day to America. Because of you, tonight, I can stand before you and say that I will be the Democratic nominee for president of the United States.'

Obama needed 41 delegates to effectively claim the nomination as the polling began in the two states Tuesday. But just as the polls began to close, super delegates, who hold the balance of power in a tight race as they are not bound by the primary results, started rallying behind Obama.

Among those endorsing Obama Tuesday was former president Jimmy Carter who like other senior party officials had been patiently waiting in the wings for the primaries to end.

For the record, Clinton did win the primary in South Dakota by a double-digit margin, while Obama did so in Montana to proportionately share the 31 delegates from the two states.

Clinton, who hoped to become the first woman president, acknowledged at a rally of her own in New York that she had finally run into a dead end after five months of a fierce and bitter struggle, but she still did not leave the race.

'This has been a long campaign and I will be making no decisions tonight,' Clinton said amid reports that she would be open to becoming Obama's vice presidential running mate if an offer came her way. She said she would be speaking with party officials about her next move.

In a combative speech, she again presented her case that she was the stronger candidate and argued that she had won the popular vote, a notion disputed by the Obama campaign. 'I want the 18 million Americans who voted for me to be respected,' she said to loud cheers.

At the same time Clinton acknowledged the incredible run of Obama, who served as an Illinois state senator just four years ago saying: 'It has been an honour to contest the primaries with him, just as it has been an honour to call him my friend.'

Under the US system, the party nominees are not picked up by the popular vote. It's the delegates elected in the name of a particular candidate at the primaries who choose the candidate at the party convention.

Meanwhile, on a conference call Tuesday with Democratic lawmakers from New York, Clinton was asked whether she would be open to joining a ticket with Obama. She replied that she would do whatever she could - including a vice presidential bid - to help Democrats win the White House.

Nydia M. Velasquez, a member of the US House of Representatives asked Clinton whether she would consider teaming up with Obama. 'She said that if it's offered, she would take it,' Velasquez said.

'If Senator Obama asked her to be the vice president, she certainly would accept that,' said another Democratic representative Carolyn McCarthy. 'She has obviously given some thought to this.'

Clinton said she would do 'anything to make sure a Democrat would win', according to several participants on the call.

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Six-year-old Raped in Jaipur

2008-06-02T23:07:00.000-07:00

JAIPUR: A six-year-old child was raped when she was out to play in a neighbourhood at Shekawati Nagar, Sikar Road on Sunday evening. The child was admitted to Kanwatia government hospital in Shastri Nagar. No arrest has been made so far.

Infuriated by the incident, local residents staged a protest march in front of Vishwakarma police station on Monday morning and blocked the Sikar Road demanding the arrest of the culprit. They also forced many shopkeepers to shut their shops.

The incident took place when the child along with her friend Nitu (7) went out to play in a nearby temple in the afternoon. "A person came there and gave them ten rupees. He asked them to come along and took them to a nearby deserted plot of land. While Nitu, sensing that something was wrong, escaped from there, her friend became the victim," said Murilpura SHO Bhupendra Singh Shekhawat.

Source: TOI

Cricketer Mohammad Asif held in Dubai with drugs

2008-06-02T22:50:00.000-07:00

Dubai, June 3: Pakistani cricketer Mohammad Asif has been held in custody at Dubai airport since Monday morning on a charge of carrying drugs, officials said here Tuesday.

Asif was returning to Pakistan from Mumbai via Dubai when he was held, the officials said. There were unconfirmed reports that he was allegedly carrying hashish.

The fast bowler, in the Delhi Daredevils team during the just-concluded Indian premier League (IPL), was in Mumbai for the semi-final match against Rajasthan Royals Friday.

Source: Sulekha News

Gujjar Women Block Rail Routes Across North India

2008-06-02T22:43:00.000-07:00

Protesting Gujjar women have blocked the Delhi-Jaipur and Delhi-Agra rail routes, leaving almost 40,000 passengers stranded.

More than 20 trains on that route have been cancelled and this stand-off could continue for the next 24 hours.

The Rajasthan government is refraining from taking any action against the protesters, as there are signs of the stand-off with Gujjars winding down.

Railway tracks at Bandikuian near Dausa are occupied and all trains from Ahmedabad to Delhi have been cancelled. This rail route via Jaipur is the main link between North India, Rajasthan and Gujarat.

''We have a huge force squatting on the tracks and they have put their women in front, nobody wants to use force against them as this may complicate and aggravate the situation. Twenty trains are not running, even major trains like Rajdhani and Shatabdi and losses of Rs 1 crore in Jaipur itself,'' said Jayant Singh, Senior Divisional Commercial Manager, Jaipur.

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JK: Six militants killed; blast on Amarnath route

2008-06-02T22:39:00.000-07:00

Six militants were killed across Kashmir in separate incidents on Monday. The police said that two militants of the Harkatul Mujaheedin were killed in a fierce encounter with troops of 57 Rashtriya Rifles and the police at Vijhara village in Bandipore district on Monday evening.

The encounter started this afternoon, when RR troops and police surrounded the village, after receiving a tip-off about the presence of militants.

Four Lashkar-e-Toiba militants were killed in two separate encounters in the Wattergam and Chuntipora villages of north Kashmir today. Local residents at Wattergam held a protest demonstration in the village.

Some militants also threw a hand grenade at a police vehicle on the strategic north Kashmir Amarnath Cave Shrine route on Monday evening.

The police said that militants targeted a passing police vehicle in Kangan town, 38 kms from Srinagar [Images], in the evening.

The grenade, which missed the target, exploded in the main market.

Kangan is located in north Kashmir's Ganderbal district, on the route to the Amarnath cave shrine. The annual pilgrimage is scheduled to begin on June 18.

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Karnataka Poll Result a Setback: Rahul Gandhi

2008-06-02T22:35:00.000-07:00

Amethi/New Delhi: Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi on Monday acknowledged that the party's poll debacle in Karnataka was a setback even as efforts are on to firm up a committee that would suggest ways to revitalise the party.

"Definitely, the defeat in Karnataka is a setback for the party," Gandhi told reporters at Fursatganj airport before winding up his day-long visit to Amethi.

He did not elaborate but his comments came as the party was in the process of deciding on a committee of leaders that will suggest ways and means to revitalise it.

The committee will present its report to party President Sonia Gandhi within 15 days of its formation.

The Congress Working Committee held a brain storming session on Saturday to review the party's electoral performance in Karnataka, where BJP formed the Government.

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Nepal is now world's youngest republic

2008-05-29T05:25:00.000-07:00

Kathmandu: Nepal entered a new epoch minutes before Wednesday midnight with its newly elected constituent assembly voting overwhelmingly in favour of a motion to end the nation's 239-year-old monarchy and transform it into a federal, democratic and secular republic.

Of the 564 members present at the first historic meeting of the assembly, only four voted against the proposal to strip embattled King Gyanendra of his title and few remaining vestiges of power and ask him to vacate the royal palace within 15 days.

Along with the king, all other members of the royal family have now been stripped of their titles, privileges and responsibilities, becoming ordinary citizens of the country.

The assembly also ordered the government to turn the Narayanhity royal palace - the seat of Nepal kings for generations - into a national museum and use it for the benefit of the nation.
The king's place as head of state will be assumed by a constitutional president, who is to be elected by the constituent assembly.

The president will also be the official head of the army, as the king had been, and like him, would have the power to declare a state of emergency or revoke it on the advice of the council of ministers.

May 28 will be celebrated as Republic Day every year.

Immediately after the much-awaited proclamation, fireworks started and lamps began to be lit to celebrate the end of the country's 239-year-old dynasty of Shah kings, who were held responsible for the miseries of the people for centuries.

Defying the late hour and the ban on rallies, thousands of people poured out onto the streets, clapping, singing and dancing in joy.

While some waved the flags of the ruling parties, some waved banners that hailed the dawn of a new republic and new era.

The proclamation, scheduled to have been made at 11 a.m., came almost 12 hours late as the ruling parties were unable to reach a consensus on several major issues despite repeated rounds of negotiations.

The disagreements prevented the assembly from getting full shape as the parties could not nominate the additional 26 members.

However, constitutional expert Daman Nath Dhungana said the nominations could be made later and would not create a constitutional hurdle.

The long delay over the proclamation of a republic saw tension building up in the capital with three bombs going off in crowded public places.

A bomb went off in a park in the capital, injuring a woman, while two more exploded in the vicinity of the Birendra International Convention Centre where the constituent assembly held its first meeting.

Om Bikram Rana, chief of Nepal Police, said a man had been arrested in connection with the bombs and was under investigation.

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Twist to Aarushi Murder:Talwars’ Ex-servant Also Died

2008-05-29T05:22:00.000-07:00

In yet another twist to the Arushi murder case, it has come to light that a man servant formerly working for the Talwar family was found dead by the roadside by the police who dismissed it as an accident case.

The body of Nim Raj Kaushal alias Raju, who was reportedly working at the Talwars’ Jalvayu Vihar residence early this year to fill in for Hemraj, who was away in Nepal on vacation, was recovered by the police along with his motorcycle on April 15 from a roadside drain in Pandav Nagar area of east Delhi.

A case was registered under FIR No. 125 in Pandav Nagar police station, with the police theorising that it was a case of road accident. "The motorcycle must have skidded off the road since there is a steep curve at the spot," SHO Ashwini Jaiswal said.

"The motorycle (registration number KL 11 U 8629) was impounded and no one came to claim the body of the deceased," he said.

According to some sources, Raju may, however, have stopped to buy cigarettes when a vehicle hit him, causing his death, since a cigarette packet was reportedly found clutched in his hand.

The SHO insisted it was not true. "No, the cigarette packet was recovered from his pocket and he died due to negligent driving and not in an accident," he said.

Source: Asian Age

'Nearly 12% of Students in South Delhi Schools Carry Weapons'

2008-05-29T05:15:00.000-07:00

Fearing injury to themselves, nearly 12 per cent school children in south Delhi schools and colleges carry weapons with them to school, a study conducted here has claimed.

This finding is a result of the study conducted by the department of community medicine, Safdarjung Hospital, which conducted an in-depth analysis of the reasons for violent behaviours amongst school and college-going adolescents.

"A higher proportion of males (15.7 per cent) than females (3.9 per cent) were carrying a weapon since the past one year and involvement in violence was more amongst males than females," said Rahul Sharma, professor, department of community medicine at the hospital, who conducted the study.

According to the study, nearly 13.5 per cent had threatened or injured someone with a weapon in the past 12 months, a majority of them being males.

Almost one in two boys was found to be involved in a physical fight in past 12 months.

The choice of weapon included either a knife, a gun, a stick, a club, a hunter and a sword.

The study was conducted in three schools and two colleges in South Delhi and 550 adolescents aged between 14-19 years participated. Sharma was helped by Vijay Grover, Department of Community Medicine, MIMS, Ambala, in Haryana and Sanjay Chaturvedi, Department of Community Medicine, UCMS & GTB Hospital.

Katara Murder: Vikas, Vishal Yadav Held Guilty

2008-05-28T05:29:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Wednesday convicted Vikas and his cousin Vishal Yadav in the sensational six-year-old Nitish Katara murder case.

Additional Sessions Judge Ravinder Kaur held Vikas, son of Uttar Pradesh politician D P Yadav, and his cousin Vishal guilty of murder, abduction and destruction of evidence in the case. The sentence is expected to be pronounced on May 30.

The court rejected a plea of Vikas that the pronouncement of verdict be stayed as the Delhi High Court is likely to hear his application seeking a stay on trial court proceedings on Wednesday.

The judge then posed a query to defence counsel G K Bharti as to whether the High Court had stayed the proceedings in this court.

Finding the reply in negative, the court straight away pronounced the verdict, saying, "I hold Vikas Yadav and Vishal Yadav guilty under Section 302, 364, 201 and 34 of the IPC."

Vikas and his cousin were then taken away to the lock-up.

Vikas had on Tuesday moved the High Court after the Additional Sessions Judge dismissed his fresh application seeking to re-examine key witness Ajay Katara and others in the light of a CD, allegedly pointing towards a nexus between the witness and Nitish's mother, Neelam Katara, who is the complainant in the case.

The High Court was to hear the matter on Wednesday. Reacting sharply to the turn of events, counsel for Vikas, G K Bharti said, "It seems that the trial court has given this verdict under some pressures from some quarter."

Neelam Katara, who had been fighting the legal battle for the last six years, said, "My faith in judiciary has been strengthened with the verdict."

She also extended her thanks to the media, saying, "You people have supported me for a just cause and I believe this will ensure that no other son of any mother has to meet such a fate."

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Gujjar protests spread to Delhi, minister's son held

2008-05-28T05:23:00.001-07:00

Gurgaon/Jaipur, May 28: The Gujjar agitation for ST status on Wednesday spread to the national capital region (NCR) with protesters blocking traffic on certain key stretches as agitators forced shutdowns in several areas in Rajasthan.
A group of protesters set tyres afire in Gurgaon's M G Road area, where major malls are located, causing a major traffic jam, police said. They dispersed after police intervened.

Vehicular movement was affected in sections of Mehrauli-Gurgaon and GT-Karnal roads by protesters who put up blockades.

With the Gujjars threatening to bring the NCR to a halt tomorrow, large contingents of police are keeping a close watch across the capital, especially in Gujjar-strongholds of Mehrauli, Ghazipur, Patparganj, Badarpur, Khanpur, Ayanagar, Chilia village and Rampur.

In Rajasthan, the agitators forced shutdowns in Tonk, Sawaimadhopur, Rajsamand, Rawatbhata, Pali and Deoli areas.

Traffic was also affected on the Jaipur-Agra, Jaipur- Kota and Udaipur-Ahmedabad national highways, police sources in Jaipur said.

Rajasthan Government has clamped in 15 districts the stringent National Security Act, under which a person can be arrested without a warrant.

Meanwhile, the Rajasthan government today said the reservation should be done at the Central level and asked the community members to "use their wisdom".

"Now the entire proceedings of reservation should be done at the Centre level. The Gujjar community should take their initiatives to the Centre and use their wisdom," Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje said in a full-page advertisement carried by leading newspapers.

She also appealed to the Gujjars to stop violence, understand the reservation procedure and come forward to settle the issue through dialogue.

While the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has referred the issue of reservation sought for Gujjars by Raje to the Law Ministry, the Congress dismissed her recommendation saying it was "immature" and legally untenable.

Meanwhile, Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla, who is camping in Karwadi village in Bharatpur district, accused the Centre and Rajasthan Government of adopting "time buying tactics" on the community's demand for ST status.

"The Prime Minister's Office by referring the issue to the Law Ministry is part of the time-buying tactics adopted by the Central and Rajasthan governments," Bainsla said.

He was responding to questions on the PMO's decision to refer to the Law Ministry the letter of Raje seeking a separate quota for Gujjars.

"Only granting ST status for Gujjars will end the agitation," he said.

Bainsla asked the Rajasthan Government to send a "clear and factual" report to the Centre on the community's demand.

Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil chaired a meeting with Special Secretary (Internal Security) M L Kumawat and Delhi Police chief Y S Dadwal yesterday and is understood to have later briefed the Prime Minister on the situation.

Raj minister's son held

Police on Wednesday arrested Devalal, son of the Rajasthan Panchayat Minister Kalulal Gujjar, for allegedly planning a meeting for Gujjar agitation and road blockade at Karaoi village in Bhilwara district.

Devalal, arrested under section 151 apprehending public nuisance and law and order would be produced before the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, SP Bhilwara, Mohan Singh said.

The minister has not been supporting the ongoing Gurjjar agitation in the state but he is the one who raised ST quota demand during the previous Congress government.

Source: Expressindia

US Freezes Assets of Top Lashkar Leaders

2008-05-28T05:19:00.000-07:00

Washington: The US has clamped down on Pakistan-based Laskar-e-Toiba (LeT) that has targeted India, including the 2001 attack on Parliament building, by freezing the assets of its top four leaders and barring its nationals from dealing with the militant outfit.

The four are Muhammad Saeed, the group's overall leader, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, its chief of operations; Haji Muhammad Ashraf, the chief of finance--- all hailing from Pakistan-- and India-born Mahmoud Mohammad Ahmed Bahaziq, a main LeT financier, the US Treasury Department said.

It said Lashkar had links to terror mastermind Osama bin Laden and the al Qaeda network.

"LeT is a dangerous al Qaida affiliate... Its transnational nature makes it crucial for governments worldwide to do all they can to stifle LET's fundraising and operation," Stuart Levey, Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI), said in statement.

The US said LeT has conducted numerous attacks against Indian military and civilian targets since 1993, including the the December 2001 targeting of Parliament building and the July 2006 attack on multiple Mumbai commuter trains.

LET is also suspected of involvement in attacks in New Delhi in October 2005, and in Bangalore in December 2005.

LET arose in the early 1990s as the armed wing of the Sunni missionary movement Markaz-ud Dawa-wal-Irshad. Despite being banned by the Government of Pakistan in January 2002, LET continues to operate in Kashmir and engage in or support terrorist activities worldwide, the US statement said.

The US named LET a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) on December 26, 2001.

"Any assets these designees have under U.S. Jurisdiction will be frozen and U.S. Persons are prohibited from engaging in any transactions with the designees.

Source: PTINEWS

Woman Raped in Moving Truck in Delhi

2008-05-28T05:16:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI: A 24-year-old woman alleged that she was raped in a moving truck in Kapashera area in southwest Delhi late on Monday night.

The police have arrested driver and cleaner of the truck and have registered a case.

According to police, the woman raised an alarm near a police picket in Kapashera after which cops stopped the truck and found two man and the victim inside the truck. The victim alleged she had been raped by the two after which a medical examination was conducted which confirmed rape, said the police.

The police have arrested the driver Vijay (24) and cleaner Ramesh (27) on the basis of the woman’s complaint. The victim belongs to a nearby village, added the police.

She told the police that she was picked by the two late on Monday night while she was walking towards her house.

Source: TOI

No Oil Cess on Income Tax: Chidambaram

2008-05-28T05:13:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI: The Finance Ministry on Wednesday said reports about certain new tax proposals to offset oil marketing companies' under recoveries due to rising global crude prices are totally “baseless” and “speculative” in nature.

“Attention of the Ministry of Finance has been drawn to the reports appearing in a section of media following a routine meeting between the Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and the Finance Minister. The reports are largely speculative and in particular, reports about certain new tax proposals are totally baseless,” an official statement said.

Various reports in a section of the media after the meeting on Tuesday had said that Government is mulling a cess on income tax to fund oil subsidy. The government may also reduce customs and excise duties, besides increasing prices of petrol and diesel and issuing oil bonds, the reports had said.

“Ministry of Finance points out that no body from the Ministry had briefed the media,” the statement said.

Source: Newindpress

McCain Backs Indo-US Nuclear Deal

2008-05-28T05:08:00.000-07:00

Washington: Republican presidential candidate John McCain says he supports the India-US civil nuclear deal to strengthen ties with the world's largest democracy and further involve India in the fight against nuclear proliferation.

He would also actively engage both India and Pakistan to improve the security of their nuclear stockpiles and weapons materials, said McCain, 71, who would be the oldest first term US president If elected in the November presidential poll.

'We need to enlist all willing partners in the global battle against nuclear proliferation,' he said Tuesday in a major foreign policy speech outlining his vision on nuclear security at the University of Denver in Denver, Colorado.

I support the US-India Civil Nuclear Accord as a means of strengthening our relationship with the world's largest democracy, and further involving India in the fight against proliferation,' McCain said.

'We should engage actively with both India and Pakistan to improve the security of nuclear stockpiles and weapons materials, and construct a secure global nuclear order that eliminates the likelihood of proliferation and the possibility of nuclear conflict,' he added.

The Republican candidate said he was convinced that civilian nuclear energy can be a critical part of the fight against global warming as nuclear power provides a way for the US and other responsible nations to achieve energy independence and reduce dependence on foreign oil and gas.

'But in order to take advantage of civilian nuclear energy, we must do a better job of ensuring it remains civilian,' he said, suggesting some nations use the pretence of civilian nuclear programmes as cover for nuclear weapons programmes.

'We need to build an international consensus that exposes this deception, and holds nations accountable for it,' McCain said. 'We cannot continue allowing nations to enrich and reprocess uranium, ostensibly for civilian purposes, and stand by impotently as they develop weapons programmes.'

To prevent countries from using civilian nuclear programmes as a cover for the development of nuclear weapons, the presidential hopeful said he would limit the further spread of enrichment and reprocessing.

He favoured international guarantees of nuclear fuel supply to countries that renounce enrichment and reprocessing and also expressed support for establishing international nuclear enrichment centres and an international repository for spent nuclear fuel.

But in other remarks suggesting an edging away from President George W. Bush, the Arizona senator said he would pursue nuclear arms reduction talks with Russia and China as part of a foreign policy vision that brings back 'broad-minded internationalism and determined diplomacy'.

It is a vision not of the United States acting alone, but building and participating in a community of nations all drawn together in this vital common purpose. It is a vision of a responsible America, dedicated to an enduring peace based on freedom,' McCain said.

But even as his remarks were seen as an attempt to distance himself from Bush who has often been accused of going to war against Iraq without broad international support and participation, McCain expressed support for the president's current Iraq strategy and criticised those seeking withdrawal of US troops.

Facing down a handful of anti-Iraq war protesters who interrupted his speech several times with chants of 'End this war' and 'What about Iraq?' he said: 'By the way, I will never surrender in Iraq. Our American troops will come home with victory and honour.'

Going beyond the Bush administration's non-proliferation objectives, McCain proposed more nuclear arms reductions saying he would consider Russia's proposal to expand an intermediate range nuclear weapons treaty.

He also expressed a willingness to talk to China about arms reductions, and backed an overseas nuclear waste repository to avoid building a controversial storage facility in Nevada.

'These are all different from the Bush administration,' said McCain foreign policy adviser Randy Scheunemann. Democratic frontrunner Barack Obama has been trying to paint McCain as a candidate who would in effect give Bush a third term by continuing his unpopular policies.

Source: Sulekha News