Asian News International

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Maha CM to seek trust vote after Speaker’s election on Nov 12

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With the three-day special session of Maharashtra Assembly beginning here today, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will seek a trust vote after election of Speaker on November 12.

State Governor C Vidyasagar Rao will administer oath to Jeeva Pandu Gavit as pro-tem Speaker of the Assembly in Raj Bhavan at 10 AM today, an official said.

Assembly proceedings will start at 11 AM and the first two days will see the members of the 13th Assembly take oath.

Karan Singh’s son Ajatshatru joins BJP

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Ajatshatru Singh, son of senior Congress leader Karan Singh, joined the BJP yesterday, a move that the party feels will strengthen its foothold in the Jammu and Kashmir ahead of Assembly polls.

Singh’s joining is likely to give a boost to BJP’s prospects in the Jammu region.

The BJP has also taken back its expelled senior leader Chaman Lal Gupta ahead of the polls in its attempt to strengthen the party.

AirAsia India joins fare war, puts one-way ticket at Rs 699

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AirAsia India on Sunday joined the domestic fare war launching a week-long sale offer for its entire network with one-way tickets with prices as low as Rs 699 including taxes.

The move came as part of its Malaysian parent company AirAsia presenting a ‘Big Sale’ with three million promotional seats on its network from Kuala Lumpur, with a starting fare of Rs 2,599 for international flights operated by AirAsia Berhad and Thai AirAsia, the airline said in a release.

Obama, world leaders arrive in China to attend APEC summit

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China is all set to kick off APEC summit, one of the biggest collection of world leaders, here today to discuss a host of global issues like rise of ISIS, US troops withdrawal from Afghanistan and Ukrainian crisis, besides a road map for Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific.

US President Barack Obama, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and a host of leaders of the region besides top WTO officials have arrived here to take part in the meeting.

India is not a member of APEC, a bloc largely comprised of the countries of the Pacific region.

Shankar’s ‘I’ release date not finalised yet

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Audiences have to wait a little longer to watch filmmaker Shankar’s Tamil magnum opus “I” in cinemas as its release is getting delayed due to special effects work and dubbing in multiple languages.

Starring Vikram, “I” was scheduled to release for Pongal next year, which now seems doubtful.

Newcomer Aari extremely happy to work with Nayantara in ‘Night Show’

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Actor Aari, who is just a few films old in Tamil filmdom, is extremely happy that popular southern actress Nayantara didn’t have any qualms of working with a newcomer like him in upcoming Tamil supernatural thriller “Night Show”.

“Nayantara had the opportunity to work with a leading hero, but she didn’t mind working with me as she believed in the script. I’ve just started my career and at this point, to even work with a star like her means a lot,” Aari told IANS.

Kelly Clarkson wants to ‘squeeze’ daughter cute face off

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Singer Kelly Clarkson yet again shared a picture of her baby daughter, River Rose, and said she wants to “squeeze her little cute face off”.

Taking to social media on numerous occasions since River Rose’s birth June 12, Clarkson has shared plenty of photos of her first child with her fans.

She yet again posted a particularly “cute snap of the chubby-cheeked baby” Friday all wrapped up in her winter woolens as she snuggled up in her capsule.

“Seriously, I want to squeeze her little cute face off!” the 32-year-old singer captioned the image.

Sensex makes marginal gains 0.01 percent during truncated week

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Indian equities markets saw a volatile trade session in the truncated week ended Nov 7, with the main index remaining flat with a marginal gain of 2.8 points or 0.01 percent.

“Current account deficit and fiscal deficit are turning more positive and inflation is also subsiding very fast. However, credit off take, IIP and investment cycle are still showing weakness,” said Rajesh Iyer, head of investment advisory services at Kotak Wealth Management.

AAP protest in Chennai for release of fishermen

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The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday was on a hunger strike here to ask the Central Government to take necessary steps to bring back the five fishermen who are facing death sentences in Sri Lanka.

About 75 AAP cadres took part in this hunger strike. They raised slogans demanding the central government to take necessary legal steps to release the fishermen.

“We have only three more days for appeal and we don’t see any sign of steps taken to bring back the fishermen,” Christina Swamy, the National Executive Secretary of AAP said.

India agrees to stay on as advisory board member of UNCCT

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India has agreed to UN chief Ban Ki-moon’s offer to remain a member of the advisory board of a UN centre on counter-terrorism for an additional three years.

“We would like to express our consent to the offer of the Secretary-General to India to continue as a member of the Advisory Board of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Center (UNCCT) for an additional three years starting from April 2, 2015,” India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Asoke Mukerji said in his statement to the 9th meeting of the board.

Special package for drought-hit region in Maharashtra

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A special package would be declared for drought-affected areas in Maharashtra, Union agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh said here on Saturday.

The minister was speaking during a meeting with Maharashtra agriculture minister Eknath Khadse here.

The package would be declared after receipt of report about crop yield in these areas, Singh said.

District banks in Wardha Buldhana and Nagpur will be given banking permits again, he said.

Strengthening of agriculture is essential for development of the country, he said. There won’t be shortage of funds for agriculture, he added.

FBI agents raid pro-Pakistani US diplomat’s home

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FBI agents searched the home of India baiter pro-Pakistan American diplomat Robin Raphel in October as part of a counter-intelligence investigation, according to media reports.

Raphel was a senior adviser on Pakistan for the office of the special representative on Afghanistan and Pakistan at the time of the raid.

In that job, she was chiefly responsible for administering non-military aid such as US economic grants and incentives, according to The Washington Post which first reported the story.

Spicy Creamy Kadai Chicken

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Ingredients

For the marinade:

1 kg chicken

1 Tbsp ginger-garlic paste

1/2 tsp pepper powder

1 Tbsp lime juice

1 Tbsp oil

Salt, to taste

For the paste:

2 medium tomatoes

2 green chillies

1 Tbsp ginger-garlic paste

1 tsp chilli powder

1 cup water

3 black cardamoms

3 cloves

For sauteing:

2 large onion, thinly sliced

1/2 tsp ginger, finely chopped

3 green chillies

2 tsp chilli powder

Mutton Dalcha

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Ingredients

300 gms chana dal

250 gms lamb, diced

6 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 inch piece ginger, finely chopped

2 green chillies, chopped

1 inch cinnamon stick, powdered

2 green cardamom, powdered

2 medium sized onion, finely sliced and fried crisp

1 medium sized onion, finely chopped

Juice of 1 lime

1 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

3 Tbsp oil (groundnut/olive oil)

Salt, to taste

Method

India, Bhutan Sign Memorandum of Understanding on Establishment of Nalanda University

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India and Bhutan on Friday agreed to collaborate on the “noble objectives” of the establishment of Nalanda University in Bihar to develop the institution as an international centre of excellence.

The two sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in this regard in Thimphu after President Pranab Mukherjee held talks with the Bhutanese King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck.

India, Israel to Collaborate in Fighting Terror

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Recognising the evolving global terror threats, India and Israel have resolved to deepen cooperation in fighting the menace and collaborate in the field of cyber security.

During a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, visiting Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday discussed the regional situation and the evolving threats to the global community from terror.

“The Home Minister said that terror was a threat not only to countries like India and Israel but to the whole world.

Madras High Court Orders Old Age Pension to 95-Year-Old Man

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‘Coming to the aid of a 95-year old man who was denied old age pension on the ground that he was fit enough to work, The Madras High Court in Madurai on Friday ordered that he be provided the financial assistance within four weeks.

Moved by the plight of the petitioner S Murugesan who appeared in the court in person, Justice M.Venugopal asked the officials “do you think this man is fit to work?”

The petitioner, who was a sanitary inspector with the Madurai Municipality, said he got voluntary retirement and hence could not get pension.

Obama confidante Blinken named Deputy Secretary of State

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US President Barack Obama has nominated one of his deputy national security adviser Tony Blinken to become the number two diplomat after John Kerry.

“I’ve known and worked closely with Tony for the past decade, starting when I joined the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and he was its Staff Director.

For the past six years, I’ve relied on Tony in the White House, where I’ve come to have extraordinary respect for his knowledge, judgment, and inclusive approach to developing and implementing our foreign policy,” Mr. Obama said.

Haley to visit India to lure jobs, promote tourism

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Fresh from her emphatic re-election, South Carolina’s governor Nikki Haley is to visit India next week to bring investment and promote her state as a tourist destination in her parents’ native country.

During the 10-day trip beginning November 11, Ms. Haley and her delegation are scheduled to have as many as 90 meetings in New Delhi, Hyderabad, Amritsar, Mumbai and Chennai.

“Next week, the State of South Carolina is launching our first trade and investment mission to India,” Secretary of Commerce Bobby Hitt said.

Modi takes cleanliness drive to ghats in Varanasi

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday took his cleanliness drive to the ghats of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. He cleaned an area on the banks of river Ganga as a part of the Nirmal Ganga Mission.

Mr. Modi arrived at the Assi Ghat in Varanasi around 8.40 a.m. amid tight security arrangements.

He prayed at the ghat and after a ‘Ganga Puja’ and amid chanting of hymns, the Prime Minister ploughed through an area and removed silt and dirt accumulated at the river bank. He was joined in by local BJP leaders.

‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ new teaser trailer out

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The 15-second new teaser trailer of ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ is out and it shows yet another glimpse of the elusive Christian Grey played by Jamie Dornan. The new teaser sees Jamie Dornan slipping on a crisp white shirt from his wardrobe as he stands with his back to the camera. As Beyonce’s song ‘Haunted’ slowly begins to play, Dornan then pulls open a drawer filled with ties before the screen then transitions to black again.

Watch the teaser here:

The film, based on E L James’s best-selling S&M-themed novel, will be released on February 13.

–PTI

Silver falls 1.35% in futures trade on overseas cues

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Silver prices moved down by 1.35 per cent to Rs 33,810 per kg in futures market today as speculators engaged in trimming positions amid a weak trend overseas.

At the Multi Commodity Exchange, silver for delivery in December declined by Rs 461, or 1.35 per cent, to Rs 33,810 per kg in a business turnover of 3,657 lots.

March silver traded lower by Rs 466, or 1.33 per cent, to Rs 34,500 per kg in 143 lots.

3,600 vehicles challaned in Ghaziabad for traffic violations in 1 week

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About 3,600 vehicles have been challaned for traffic violations so far as part of a month-long special drive which began on November 1, Ghaziabad traffic police said today.

The ‘Traffic Month’ was started on November 1 and will continue till November 30, Traffic Inspector Anil Yadav said. “Only today, till 12 noon a total number of 666 vehicles were challaned.

A pecuniary fine of rupees 93,850 was collected from errant vehicle drivers,” he said.

Ashok Leyland to sell overseas companies, halts Stile production

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Commercial vehicles maker Ashok Leyland Ltd has set in motion the process of selling two of its overseas companies -Albonair GmbH and Avia – as a part of its decision to exit non-core areas, said a senior company official here Friday.

He said the company has halted production of its multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) Stile in order to liquidate the existing inventory.

“We have decided to sell Albonair and Avia. We are interested in selling them to the right buyer,” Gopal Mahadevan, chief financial officer, told reporters.