Asian News International

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Bharti Airtel raises about $2 bn in dual currency bond sale

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Bharti Airtel raised around $2 billion in a dual currency international bond sale to refinance its debt, the company said here Monday.

“The notes will be fully and unconditionally guaranteed by Bharti Airtel. Bharti will apply the net proceeds to refinance its existing debt. This refinancing exercise has significantly lengthened the average maturity profile of Bharti’s debt. With this, the company has fully refinanced the original $9 billion acquisition facility and also taken care of all near term maturities,” the company said.

Chemicals in toothpaste, soap behind drop in male fertility: Study

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Hundreds to thousands endocrine-disrupting chemicals found in toothpaste, soap and plastic toys could be behind drop in male fertility, as revealed from the findings of a German- Danish team of researchers from the Center of Advanced European Studies and Research.

Niels E. Skakkebaek, professor and leader of the Danish team said that for the first time, they showed a direct link between exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals from industrial products and adverse effects on human sperm function.

‘Moderately fit’ elderly men at lower death risk

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Elderly men with high blood pressure can lower their risk of death with even moderate levels of fitness, according to research.

“This level of fitness is achievable by most elderly individuals engaging in a brisk walk of 20 to 40 minutes, most days of the week,” said Charles Faselis, a professor of medicine at George Washington University in Washington, DC.

Researchers assessed the fitness status of 2,153 men, aged 70 years and older with high blood pressure by a standard treadmill exercise test.

‘2 States’ crosses Rs.100-crore mark

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Arjun Kapoor and Alia Bhatt-starrer “2 States” has joined the Rs.100-crore club.

Said to have been made on a budget of approximately Rs.45 crore, “2 States” released in over 2,000 screens in India April 18.

“‘2 States’ hits a ton. Crosses Rs.100 crore mark. Rs.102.13 crore nett. Super Hit,” trade analyst Taran Adarsh posted on Twitter Monday.

Co-produced by Karan Johar and Sajid Nadiadwala, distributed by UTV Motion Pictures, and directed by Abhishek Varman, the movie is based on a bestseller by author Chetan Bhagat.

Survey on madrasas conducted by SIO

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The Students’ Islamic Organisation (SIO) of India, Karnataka zone released the results of a survey conducted by the organisation on 29 residential madrasas offering education up to the graduation level, here on May 12.

About 966 residential madrasas are present in Karnataka.

SIO zonal President, Mr. Thouseef Ahmed M.Y said that, “The syllabus has not evolved to adapt to opportunities and challenges in the society. Rather, a large number of students stay aloof from the mainstream after passing out from madrasas.”

Government decision on medium of instruction after studying SC verdict

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‘The government would be able to decide its stand on medium of instruction in primary education only after studying the Supreme Court order,’ said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah referring to the Supreme Court verdict here on May 6.

Mr. Kimmane Ratnakar, minister for Primary and Secondary Education said, “This is a blow to all the States where regional languages are not getting due importance.” He also said that a meeting would be held with pro-kannada writers and Kannada Sahitya Parishat on May 7.

CFI : reasonable fee structure is the duty and responsibility of the Government

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Campus Front of India (CFI) impelled the government of Karnataka to execute logical and reasonable fee structure in professional unaided colleges, here recently. The responsibility of the government does not cease at just fixing of fee structure. It is also the duty of the government to monitor and prevent the other fees collected by educational institutions in the form of tuition fee, internet fee, hostel fee, library fee etc.

Panel submits report to Council Chairman

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A report on the alleged false information furnished by Minister for Wakf Qamarul Islam, to the House, on encroachment of wakf properties in different parts of the State by various leaders, was submitted by the Legislative Council Privileges Committee to Mr. D.H. Shankaramurthy, the Council chairman here on May 8.

Mr. G. Madhusudhan, chairman of the Committee submitted the report to Mr. Shankaramurthy. Mr. Islam was holding the wakf portfolio before it was given to Mr.R. Roshan Baig after his induction into the Cabinet.

Vivek Oberoi hosts ‘The Amazing Spiderman 2’ special screening for cancer patients in Mumbai

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Vivek Oberoi recently hosted a special screening of ‘ The Amazing Spiderman 2’ for kids suffering from cancer in Mumbai.

The 37-year-old actor, who is the brand ambassador of Cancer Patients Aid Association, also gave Spider-Man costumes to the kids.

Whilst speaking about the NGO, Oberoi said, “Cancer Patient’s Aid Association is my family from past 12 years and this is my 13th year with them as an ambassador. From past 13 years, we are doing different types of events”. (ANI)

Green diesel might soon run your car

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Heard of green diesel? That could be the fuel for your vehicle in near future.

A team including two Indian-American scientists at the US Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory has created biofuel refining technology that is faster, cleaner and cheaper.

The scientists developed a nanoparticle that is able to perform two processing functions at once for the production of “green diesel”.

Green diesel is an alternative fuel created from the hydrogenation of oils from renewable feedstocks like algae.

Maha dharna on May 19: Eflu students

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In the absence of positive results, the Chalo Eflu rally will now continue as a “Maha Dharna” outside gate no. 2 of the English and Foreign Languages University on May 19.

A group of representatives of political leaders and civil rights activists from Telangana met members of the university administration regarding the restitution of students, Mohan Dharavath, Subhash Kumar and Satish Nainala, who were rusticated for allegedly breaking a glass door during a mass protest not in favor of closure of the only reading room on campus.

6,000 voters in Muslim areas ‘dropped’ from Varanasi list, leads to protests

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The ninth and final phase of the general elections polling ended with a fair bit of drama in Varanasi, were the voters claimed that nearly 6,000 names were deleted from the records without prior intimation.

At the National Inter College in Pilikothi, where a large number of Muslim weaver families are registered to vote, conditions turned violent by afternoon when people were denied permission to vote for the reason that their names had allegedly been deleted from the voters’ list.

MIM outshine in Andhra municipal polls, open to alliance with Congress,TRS or BSP

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The All India Majlis Ittehadul Muslimeen for the first time in its history has won 101 wards and divisions in Telangana and Seemandhra areas. The MIM party had won 42 seats in the previous municipal polls in Telangana region exclusive of 44 seats in Hyderabad Municipal Corporation.

It has appeared as the third largest party in Telangana after the Congress and the TRS.

The party contested in 28 municipalities, including municipal corporations in Telangana and 19 municipalities in Seemandhra and won 96 wards, including 18 divisions in Karimnagar and Nizamabad corporations in Telangana.

Number plates of Telangana to be marked with ‘TG’tag

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Come June 2, and the RTA for two successive states will begin operating in two floors of the RTA office in Khairatabad with files for the two regions being divided among the offices.

Indeed, staff and office space at all the RTOs too will be divided in the same way.

All registrations in the new Telangana state will bear TG initials and a new series while all vehicles registered previously will be given three years to change to TG number plates.

Dogs share ‘albino’ gene found in humans

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Have a doberman at home? This news may interest you. Researchers have identified a genetic mutation in Doberman that causes albinism in the breed – a discovery that has eluded veterinarians until now.

“What we found was a gene mutation that results in a missing protein necessary for cells to be pigmented. Some defects in this same gene cause a condition called oculocutaneous albinism in humans,” explained Paige Winkler, a doctoral student at University of Michigan’s college of veterinary medicine.

Shoe trend 2014: Pool sliders

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It’s time to say goodbye to pretty ballerina flats and embellished sandals to usher in thick-soled sandals called pool sliders that have taken fashion runways by a storm this year.

International brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Givenchy, Helmut Lang and Celine are some of the names that took up the new shoe trend and showcased it in their latest collection, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

Inspired from 1990s era, these footwears are not only practical when you’re on holiday, but also comfortable as they consist of foot support and extra padding on the sole.

Most outrageous hotel complaints ever revealed

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A recent survey has revealed some of the most outrageous hotel complaints made to the hotel staff by people.

According to travel search engine Skyscanner’s poll of 400 international hotel workers, people complained about overly-handsome waiter, a snoring girlfriend and the sea being too blue, News.com.au reported.

Three imams banned for life over Muslim Brotherhood links

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Three well-known imams in Saudi Arabia have been banned for life from delivering sermons in mosques and religious camps for their Muslim Brotherhood links.

The three imams maintained direct contact with the Muslim Brotherhood in a number of Arab countries, the Saudi Gazette reported Monday.

The three imams were well-known in their regions.

Seventy-six other imams, Muslim scholars, preachers and academics were being closely watched for their alleged connection with the Muslim Brotherhood, the report said.IANS

US continues to maintain silence on Modi’s visa status

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The US continued to maintain silence on granting a visa to BJP leader Narendra Modi, whose party-led NDA is projected by exit polls to form the next government in India.

“We don’t speak on visa acceptances, applications, etcetera, so I don’t have anything for you on that,” State Department Spokesperson Jen Psaki told reporters at her daily news conference yesterday.

Apple, Google’s $324M ‘no-poaching’ lawsuit settlement challenged by petitioner

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Tech giants, accused of engaging in wage-fixing, may have settled the class action lawsuit filed against them by their employees, but not everyone is happy with the 324 million dollar settlement.

According to CNET, Michael Devine, a freelance programmer and member of the class, has spoken out against the deal and even issued a letter asking US District Court Judge Lucy Koh, who will ultimately decide on the settlement, for “a chance at real justice”.

After bitter campaign, Narendra Modi says time for healing, reviving bipartisanship

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With the heat and dust of elections over, Narendra Modi today said it is time to resurrect the spirit of bi-partisanship in Indian politics which was temporarily lost in the poll campaign.

“This is the right time to look ahead. It is a time to connect with each other. Lets place people over politics, hope over despair, healing over hurting, inclusion over exclusion and development over divisiveness.”

Sensex at new record high for the first time, crosses 24, 000

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The BSE benchmark Sensex on Tuesday breached 24,000 levels for the first time on the brightness backed by exit polls forecast that shows a stable government led by BJP coming to power at the Centre.

All the sectoral indices led by oil and gas, power, PSUs, banking, realty and capital goods sectors are trading in the positive zone.The 30-share Sensex rose by over 514.82 points to trade at an all-time high of 24,066 while the 50-share NSE Nifty zoomed 128.70 to trade at 7,143.

2 Indians charged with wire fraud in US

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Two Indians have been charged for their involvement in a microcap stock kickback scheme and face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Sandip Shah, 40, was charged in an indictment with nine counts of wire fraud and Shailesh Shah, 47, was charged with two counts of mail fraud and two counts of wire fraud.

Both are residents of California and were arrested in February this year.

The two face a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison each followed by three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000.

Congress hopes for unchanged foreign policy under new government

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Congress leader Rashid Alvi on Tuesday expressed hope that whichever party forms the new government at the centre should pursue the same foreign policy practiced by its predecessor.

Alvi said, “Whosoever wins and forms the government, it will also pursue almost the same foreign policies as the previous government.”

He added that India would engage with all countries of the world, including the United States, and that it was under the UPA Government that relations between India and the U.S grew manifold.

Modi a mix of Atal, Advani, Pramod Mahajan: Amar Singh

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As the exit polls give a mandate to the BJP-led NDA coalition, Rashtriya Lok Dal candidate Amar Singh on Tuesday said that he will accept the verdict given by people.

Commenting on the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, Singh said one could see a glimpse of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, party patriarch LK Advani, and slain BJP leader Pramod Mahajan in Narendra Modi.

“One could see mix of Atal ji, Advani ji and late Pramod Mahajan ji in Modi, will accept the verdict of people,” he added.