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Somdev loses semi-final of Aptos Challenger

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Aptos( USA), July 19: Somdev Devvarman’s brilliant run at the $75,000 ATP Challenger event was halted by Australian Chris Guccione, who outplayed the Indian in the straight sets in Aptos.

The sixth seed Indian lost 2-6 1-6 in the semi-finals to the big serving seventh seed.

Somdev’s effort was worth 29 ATP ranking points and $3765 prize money.

This is Somdev’s second best performance of the year after making the final of the Chennai Open.

Indian challenge also ended in the doubles event with the defeat of Harsh Mankad and his American partner David Martin.

American duo complete 1st space walk

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Washington, July 19: Two astronauts from the US shuttle Endeavour have successfully completed the first of five scheduled spacewalks aimed at completing a Japanese laboratory at the International Space Station, NASA said.

Tim Kopra, who made his first space walk, and Dave Wolf, an old hand with four walks under his belt, returned to the ISS’s decompression chamber and closed the airlock at 2151 GMT on Saturday, 37 minutes ahead of schedule, NASA reported.

The duo’s spacewalk lasted five hours and 32 minutes, US space agency officials said.

Daniel Radcliffe smitten by curvy girls

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London, July 19: Here is a clue to the heart of ‘Harry Potter’ star Daniel Radcliffe. The 19-year-old star has revealed that he prefers to date curvy girls and loves a lady with a womanly figure.

The ‘Harry Potter’ star who is rumoured to be dating actress Laura O’Toole, isn’t worried about what country a potential date comes from, as long as they have a womanly figure, Contactmusic reported.

SKorea reaffirms it seeks no atomic weapons

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Seoul, July 19: South Korea’s defence chief Lee Sang-Hee reaffirmed his country would not seek to deploy atomic weapons again on its soil despite North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.

Defence Minister Lee said South Korea’s alliance with the United States, which includes the Washington-backed “nuclear umbrella” for Seoul, would be able to thwart any potential atomic attack from North Korea.

Under the “umbrella” arrangement a nuclear power pledges to defend an ally that is not armed with atomic weapons.

No virginity tests conducted on us: MP girls

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Bhopal, July 19: The two tribal girls, who had filed complaints against three government officials for allegedly conducting virginity tests on them prior to a mass marriage function on June 30 near Shahdol, have taken a U-turn, claiming they were forced to lodge complaints with the police.

Rafsanjani to discuss crisis with high-ranking clerics

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Tehran, July 19: Former president Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani will discuss the current political crisis with senior clerics in the religious city of Mashad in north-eastern Iran, state media reported Sunday. “I will hold talks with the high-ranking clerics over the current developments,” Rafsanjani told Mehr news agency upon arrival in the Mashad airport.

Rafsanjani’s speech at the Friday prayer ceremony in the Tehran university provoked controversy within Iran’s political circles.

Fujitsu to build Japan’s next-generation supercomputer

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Tokyo, July 19: Japan’s next-generation supercomputer will be made by Fujitsu Ltd. after its two partners withdrew from a government-sponsored project to develop the computer which will achieve the world’s highest performance of 10 petaflops.

Fujitsu will make the supercomputer for the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research, an independent administrative institution known as RIKEN.

Iraqi Kurds, Arabs spar over Mosul security forces

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Mosul, July 19: Kurdish Peshmerga militias have the right to remain in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, an Iraqi Kurdish general on Sunday said in defiance of the Arab nationalist governor there. General Jabar Yawar, a spokesman for the Kurdish Regional Government’s Ministry of Peshmergas, said Governor Athil al-Najifi had overstepped his authority when he recently promised to eliminate Peshmerga paramilitary fighters from Nineveh province, of which Mosul is the capital.

Helicopter crash kills fifteen in Afghanistan

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Kabul, July 19: A helicopter crash in Afghanistan has killed 15 people, News agencies today reported.

Interfax and RIA Novosti say a Russian-made Mi-8 helicopter crashed in Kandahar on take-off.

Interfax says there were 17 people on board and that two survived the crash.

They cite an unidentified source in Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency.
–Agencies

49 per cent FDI in print media safe: Ambika Soni

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New Delhi, July 19: With the media reeling under the financial crunch, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni has backed increasing FDI (foreign direct investment) in print media to 49 per cent, saying “it is safe”. “I think it is a good suggestion,” Soni said in an interview when asked about her views on increasing FDI in print media from 26 per cent to 49 per cent.

Efforts on to end strike at Dabur against ban on mobile

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Rudrapur, July 19: Efforts are on to resolve the strike by a group of contract workers at the Dabur factory in Uttarakhand.

Workers at the factory went on a strike to protest the company’s decision to disallow mobile phones at work, official sources said.

Nearly 50 workers began strike on Tuesday with 10 to 15 of them staging a dharna near the factory premises, the sources said.

However, production at the plant is not affected as majority of the workers have stayed away from the strike.

Assistant Labour Commissioner Vipin Kumar said he was trying hard to negotiate a solution.

Declare Bihar drought-hit: RJD

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Patna, July 19: Bihar’s main opposition RJD today slammed the state’s NDA government for ‘failing’ to make available adequate fertilisers, diesel, kerosene and seeds to farmers as the state experienced ‘scanty’ rains this monsoon and called for declaring the whole state ‘drought-hit’.

Hundreds of RJD activists, led by former union minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, state party chief Abdul Bari Siddiqui and deputy leader in the state Assembly Shakeel Ahmed Khan, held demonstration here in protest against alleged apathy of the Nitish Kumar government towards the plight of farmers.

Abductors sell woman after gangrape

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Muzaffarnagar, July 19: A woman was allegedly sold for Rs 10,000 to a man after being gangraped by her abductors, police said here today.

According to the police complaint, the woman was picked up by two men from the railway station on her arrival here from Delhi on July 8 under the pretext of giving her lift.

The men then took her to an unknown location and raped her for two days. She was later sold for Rs 10,000 to a person in Solapur village in the district.
However, the woman managed to escape from the house of her buyer yesterday.

–PTI

Parents arrested for killing premature baby

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Jamshedpur (Jharkhand), July 19: A baby girl born prematurely to a couple seven months after their marriage was killed by them as the husband suspected her wife’s character at a village near here.

Bablu and Vandana Khumbhkar were arrested yesterday on the charge of strangulating their baby, the police said today.

Ever since the baby was born seven months after their marriage, the relation between the two had strained with Bablu suspecting Vandana’s character.

26 Cr Penalty On Kingfisher by Govt

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New Delhi, July 19: 26 Cr Penalty On Kingfisher by Govt, The Income Tax authorities have slapped Vijay Mallya held-Kingfisher Airlines with a Rs 26-crore penalty notice for delayed payment of tax deducted at source (TDS).

“In case of Kingfisher Airlines Pvt Ltd, a penalty of Rs 26.46 crore for the delayed remittance of deducted tax has been levied,” minister of state for finance S S Palanimanickam said in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha.

Spicejet and MDLR were the other two airlines that came under scrutiny of the tax authorities for not remitting the TDS on time.

Rita Joshi demands CBI probe

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New Delhi, July 19: Alleging that the ransacking and arson at her Lucknow house was a state-sponsored crime, UPCC chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi, charged with making derogatory remarks against Chief Minister Mayawati, today demanded a CBI inquiry into the incident.

“I demand a CBI probe into the incident that occurred at my house in Lucknow (on the night of July 15). The party has also demanded it because it is a state-sponsored crime,” 60-year-old Joshi, who was released from jail after being granted interim bail by a Moradabad court yesterday, said here.

J-K bans mobile phones in govt education institutions

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Srinagar, July 19: The Jammu and Kashmir today put a ban on use of mobile phones in all government-run educational institutions across the state.

The decision was taken to prevent interference in the teaching-learning activities, state Education Minister Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed said.

“The ban will be strictly imposed henceforth and stern action would be taken against the violators,” he said during a community mobilisation programme for promotion of education under National Programme for Education of Girls at Elementary Level (NPEGEL) at Bider-Kokernag, 60 kms from here.

‘Love Guru’ dismissed from service

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Patna, July 19: Professor Matuknath Chaudhary, better known as ‘Love Guru’ for publicly accepting his relation with his student, has been dismissed from the post of Reader of Patna University (PU).

The University syndicate, which met here yesterday, terminated his service after taking into consideration the report of an inquiry committee, PU vice-chancellor Shyam Lal said today.

Iran’s new nuclear chief urges mutual trust

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Tehran, July 19: Iran’s new Atomic Energy Organisation chief Ali Akbar Salehi Saturday urged more efforts to gain mutual trust in order to end the disputes over the country ‘s nuclear programme, local English-language Press TV reported.

‘We hope that, instead of a continuation of the hostilities over the past six years, more efforts will be made to obtain mutual trust. So that the case lasting for six years will be closed as soon as possible,’ Salehi was quoted as saying in his first official interview since his appointment with the state broadcaster IRIB.

Aus face record chase to win second Test

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London, July 19: Australia were left needing to set a new world record if they were to win the second Test against England at Lord’s.

England, when rain forced an early close on Saturday’s third day, were 311 for six, a lead of 521, with two days remaining.

Whether they declared on that total overnight, as seemed likely, or batted on, it meant Australia would have to set a new world record for the highest fourth innings total to win a Test, surpassing the 418 for seven made by the West Indies against Australia in Antigua in 2002/03.

First Round Of Investigation Of Bhutto Assassination Completed by UN Commission

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Islamabad: The UN inquiry commission probing the assassination of the former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has completed its first round of investigations and left the country.

During its three-day stay in Pakistan, the commission met President Asif Ali Zardari, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and Interior Advisor Rehman Malik.

The three-member commission also visited Liaquat Bagh in Rawalpindi, where Bhutto was killed in a gun and suicide attack in December 2007, The Daily Times reports.

China says police killed 12 in Urumqi rioting

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Beijing, July 19: Chinese police killed 12 people during July 5 rioting in the western city of Urumqi, officials said — a rare acknowledgment by the government that security forces opened fire in the worst ethnic clashes to hit the region in decades.

The unrest began when a peaceful protest by Muslim ethnic minority Uighurs turned violent after it was stopped by police. The Uighurs went on a rampage in the capital of Xinjiang province, smashing windows, burning cars and beating Han Chinese, the nation’s dominant ethnic group.

Tatas threaten to scrap Vista car launch’

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London, July 19: India’s Tata Motors has threatened to scrap its plan to launch Vista electric cars in the UK if it does not receive a 10 million pounds loan from the British government soon, The Observer reported on Sunday.

“The company is furious after being told by officials from (Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills) Lord Peter Mandelson’s business department that it needed more time to find out if the venture will be considered for the loan – taking the total wait to six months,” it said.

Rooney starting to mature, says Ferguson

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Kuala Lumpur, July 19: Wayne Rooney is starting to mature but still has plenty of room for improvement, according to Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

With Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez leaving over the summer, the spotlight has turned on Rooney who will be expected to score more goals this season after getting 20 in all competitions during the last campaign.

He got his first in United’s 3-2 friendly victory over a Malaysian XI on Saturday, and Ferguson said he was confident the 23-year-old can cope with the extra pressure.

Injustices done to me, asserts Kambli

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New Delhi, July 19: Cricketer Vinod Kambli on Sunday asserted that injustices had been done to him and he proved the selectors wrong with his scores and by Kambli coming back nine times.

“Yes injustices have been done to me but not by all selectors and my nine times come back to top cricket proved them wrong and every time I had deserved my place,” Kambli, who recently kicked a controversy about injustices and racial discrimination, reiterated said.