News

TDP to launch protest against ‘misuse’ of defence funds

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Visakhapatnam, August 13: The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) will hold a protest in the city tomorrow against the alleged misuse of defence funds.

Stating this at a press conference at the TDP office here yesterday, TDP district president Ch Ayyannapatrudu said, ”The CAG report had identified several cases of misuse of funds in the defence department.” ”It is shameful that even the supplies to the army were given after the expiry date. Out of 11,346 food samples sent for test, 11,330 were found stale,” he said.

He said the CAG has estimated the misuse of funds at Rs 1,500 crore.

Poor response to Pakistan aid appeals frustrates charities

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Islamabad, August 13: Leading charities have attacked the international response to the worst natural disaster in Pakistan’s history, saying delays in funding the relief effort had affected aid operations.

With 1,600 people dead after two weeks of flooding and nearly 14 million people affected, 6 million of them children at risk of malnutrition, pneumonia and diarrhoea, the UN warned that many more could die unless nations step up their relief contributions.

LDF govt charged with adopting ‘soft Hindutva’ approach

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Kozhikode, August 12: Popular Front of India, whose activists allegedly chopped off the right hand of a lecturer for preparing a ‘defamatory’ question paper, today charged CPI(M)-led LDF government of adopting a ‘soft Hindutva’ approach after losing support of Muslims and Christians.

Nazaruddin Elamaram, PFI state president said this change in approach followed the “failure” in administration and loss of support from Christians and Muslims.

Telangana parties urge Governor to sack Andhra ministers

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Hyderabad, August 12: Pro-Telangana political parties and groups Thursday urged Andhra Pradesh Governor to sack ministers from Andhra for calling those demanding a separate Telangana as “anti-nationals”.

Telangana Joint Action Committee chairman M. Kodandaram, Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) chief K. Chandrasekhara Rao and leaders of Bharatiya Janata Party Thursday met Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan to demand action against the ministers.

UAE aims to build bridges with books on Islam

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Dubai, August 12: Multilingual publications about Islam will be distributed to build a bridge between local people and Muslims from other countries settled in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) will distribute 20,000 packets containing booklets and CDs to public and private organisations in Dubai and an additional 30,000 booklets and 10,000 CDs in English and Urdu to non-Arabic speakers in the Emirates.

The programme will target public, non-profit, private organisations, hospitals, shopping malls, parks and sports clubs.

Dad comes home to horror find

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Geotge Town, August 13: A father was horrified to find his 13-year-old son dead at home in a pool of blood with his throat slit.

The man, identified only as Ramesh, 37, found his son R. Surendran in one of the bedrooms at their home in Taman Seri Relau with a cloth around his neck and his shorts pulled down to the knees.

Ramesh had returned home at 1.30pm yesterday to check on him after his daughter informed him that Surendran had played truant from school.

A small gift for Egypt’s faithful

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Cairo, August 13: Egypt began unifying calls to prayer that ring out five times a day from thousands of minarets across the capital, but the move has been criticised by the men who make the call or azzan.

The ministry of religious endowments says it will implement the plan neighbourhood by neighbourhood until all of Cairo’s estimated 4,500 mosques transmit the call live and in unison from a radio station studio.

“It has so far been implemented without a problem in Nasr City and Heliopolis,” ministry official Salem Abdel Galal said, referring to two of the city’s neighbourhoods.

Destroyed Muslim graves in Jerusalem were fake: Israel

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Jerusalem, August 13: Around 300 Muslim gravestones destroyed by Israeli bulldozers in a Jerusalem cemetery earlier this week were “fake” and set up in a bid to snatch government land, the city charged on Thursday.

The allegation was flatly denied by the Islamic Movement which earlier this week accused the municipality of razing recently renovated Muslim graves in a centuries-old cemetery in a large park in mostly Jewish west Jerusalem.

Terrorist planning to attack US

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Washington, August 13: Asking its nationals to take all security precautions and remain alert, US has said it has credible evidence that terrorist groups are seeking to continue attack on its citizens and interests world over in particular the Middle East and North Africa.

In a “Worldwide Caution” issued on Thursday, the state department said that it continues to receive information that terrorist groups in South and Central Asia , including Pakistan and India, may be planning attacks in the region, possibly against US government facilities, US citizens, or US interests.

Haleem to get Hyderabad-only tag

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Hyderabad, August 13: Like Darjeeling Tea, Banarasi Silk and Tirupati Laddu, Hyderabadi Haleem will soon get Geographical Indicator (GI) tag protecting the name from being used by any other city.

Haleem, the famous and delicious Iranian dish, is back in focus with the onset of the Muslim holy month of Ramzan. Haleem is available literally by tonnes in every nook and corner of Hyderabad city, during Ramzan as Muslims prefer to break their dawn-to-dusk fast with his nutritious syrupy dish.

TRS demands dismissal of “anti-Telangana” AP Ministers

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Hyderabad, August 13: TRS petitioned Andhra Pradesh Governor ESL Narasimhan seeking dismissal of the Ministers from non-Telangana regions for allegedly making “objectionable” remarks against the separate statehood demand.

“We have been demanding an unconditional apology from the non-Telangana Ministers for describing those seeking separate Telangana as anti-nationals. They have not done that so far. We asked the Governor to either make the Ministers apologise for hurting our self-respect or dismiss them,” party President K Chandrasekhar Rao told reporters in Hyderabad.

US delays Aafia Siddiqui’s sentencing

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Washungton, August 13: The sentencing of Pakistani neuroscientist Aafia Siddiqui, accused and found guilty of attempted murder of US agents in Afghanistan in a controversial trial, has been postponed to next month.

Siddiqui, 37, who was detained by Afghan police on July 17, 2008, was held in custody based on allegations that she had documents containing recipes for chemical weapons and explosives in her handbag, csnnews.com reported.

Fatwas only by senior scholars: King

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Jeddah, August 13: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has issued a royal order saying only approved scholars can issue fatwas (religious edicts).

“As part of our religious and national duty we want you to ensure that fatwas are only issued by members of the Council of Senior Religious Scholars and other permitted people,” King Abdullah said in the decree that was sent Thursday to Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh, who heads the Presidency for Scholastic Research and Religious Edicts (Dar Al-Ifta) as well as the scholars council.

How can Wikileaks be so irresponsible: US

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Washington, August 13: Slamming WikiLeaks’ announcement that it is going ahead with its plan to post additional 15,000 classified documents on Afghan war on its website, the Pentagon termed it as the height of irresponsibility.

“The only responsible course of action for them is to immediately remove all the stolen documents from their website and expunge all classified material from their computers,” the Pentagon spokesman, Geoff Morrell, said.

CM tests negative for swine flu

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Hyderabad, August 13: The result of medical test of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosiah, who suffered cold and fever, was negative for H1N1h influenza (swine flu), according to Dr.K Subhakar, Chief Coordinator swine flu in AP chest Hospital.

The Chief Minister is suffering from simple cold and fever, Dr Subhakar said adding Rosaiah has already resumed office.

Indo-Pak bus service attacked in Kashmir

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Srinagar, August 13: For the first time, the cross-LoC bus service has come under attack from the protestors in north Kashmir. A resident of Pakistan Administered Kashmir (PaK) has been wounded as the protestors pelted stones on the bus at Pattan.

Angry mob crashed window panes of the ‘Caravan-e-Aman’ bus that carried passengers from Srinagar, travelling across the Line of Control (LoC) to Aman Setu in Baramulla.

Modi summon again by Nanavati Panel

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Ahmedabad, August 13: The Jan Sangharsh Manch (JSM), representing the victims of the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat, has again moved the Nanavati-Mehta judicial inquiry commission for summoning Chief Minister Narendra Modi and others for cross-examination.

The JSM’s application came on the advice of the Gujarat High Court, which heard their petition seeking the court’s directive to the commission to summon Modi and others.

Gay marriages can resume in California

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San Francisco, August 13: Same-sex marriages can resume in California after a federal judge Thursday lifted a temporary stay he put in place after overturning the state’s ban on gay marriage last week.

Judge Vaughn Walker ruled that same-sex marriages will be legal in California from Aug 18.

Walker Aug 4 overturned California’s ban on same-sex marriage, saying that the voter-approved restriction violated the highest law of the land, the US Constitution.

19 killed in Nigerian building collapse

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Abuja, August 13: At least 19 people were killed when a three-storey building collapsed in Nigeria’s capital Abuja, police said Thursday.

Nineteen bodies had been recovered and 12 others were rescued, said Abass Jimoh, the Federal Capital Territory police spokesman, Xinhua reported.

The collapse occurred at about 4 a.m. (local time) Wednesday on the city’s Ikole Street, Area 11.

The rescue efforts carried out by the authorities ended Thursday evening, the report said.

–IANS–

Birthday gift of Taslima Nasrin

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New Delhi, August 13: The government has extended the visa of controversial Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasrin by another year from August this year, shifting from its earlier stand of asking her to leave the country and apply afresh to stay in the country.

The 47-year-old doctor-turned writer, who will be celebrating her birthday on August 25, is also trying for a permanent residency in the country. Her visa is valid till August 16 and has been extended by another year, official sources said.

Christian bishop asks Hezbollah not to air Jesus film

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Beirut, August 13: A Lebanese Christian Maronite bishop called late Thursday on Hezbollah television to stop airing a Ramadan series called Al Maseeh, Arabic for Jesus.

Bishop Bashara al-Raai asked al-Manar television to stop airing the Iranian series because it conflicts with teachings of the Bible that are recognised by all Christians around the world.

Al-Raai called on all Lebanese media outlets to attend a press conference at noon Friday, where he would explain further why the series should be stopped.

Two soldiers killed in Iraq violence

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Baghdad, August 13: Two Iraqi soldiers were killed and five security personnel wounded in three attacks, including a suicide car bombing, in central and northern Iraq, police said.

A suicide car bomber struck an Iraqi army checkpoint Thursday night outside a military base in the village of Zaidan in Abu Ghraib area, just west of Baghdad, killing a soldier and wounding two others, a source from the operation command of Anbar province told Xinhua.

Stage set for Cong-BJP face-off in Vadodara today

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New Delhi, August 13: The slanging match between the BJP and Congress is expected to peak on Friday in Vadodara, with both sides preparing their ranks for a big turnout to hear the “ultimate truth” about each other.

While former BJP president Rajnath Singh will be in the city to take part in the party’s initiative of Nyay Saptah (Week for Justice), Congress is geared up for its Satya Ujagar (Unearthing of Truth) rally to be led by Gujarat Congress president Siddharth Patel on the same day.

US aid to flood-hit Pakistan totals $76 mn

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Washington, August 13: The US assistance to the flood-affected areas of Pakistan has totalled $76 million, the State Department said.

“As of this morning, the additional money that the US is providing is to Save the Children, and that’s $4.1 million. That will be used for food vouchers enabling flood victims to purchase food in their local markets,” department spokesman Mark Toner said Thursday.

Toner also said the 19 helicopters ordered by Defence Secretary Robert Gates to help the affected population will be in place over the next few days.

PC says BJP only wants to prove Rajiv ‘hand’

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New Delhi, August 13: For the second consecutive day on Thursday, the BJP tried to pin the government down on the Bhopal gas disaster by raising the issue of then Union Carbide chairman Warren Anderson leaving India. However, it found a tough combatant in Union Home Minister P Chidambaram.