faheem

Congress, BJP ganged up to stop me from becoming PM: Mayawati

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Lucknow, June 20: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati on Friday accused the Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and other political parties of conspiring to prevent her from becoming the prime minister.

“It was amply evident that the Congress, BJP and SP (Samajwadi Party) ganged up to prevent my rise to the prime minister’s chair, simply because they could not digest the idea of a Dalit occupying the highest office,” Mayawati, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo, told a public rally here.

Not having a school building ‘not a problem’: Orissa minister

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Bhubaneswar, June 20: Orissa minister Pratap Jena said on Friday that not having a school building was “not a problem” and was no reason for students “not to turn up to school to study”.

“This is not a problem. This can’t be a reason at all for students not turning up to school to study,” Orissa Minister of State for Mass Education Pratap Jena said.

File-sharer fined nearly $2m in landmark case

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New York, June 20: They may not see much of it, but the world’s biggest recording companies were celebrating yesterday after securing a $1.92m (£1.15m) verdict against a Minnesota woman who was found to have downloaded and shared tracks over the internet from artists like Green Day and Sheryl Crow in violation of their copyright.

AP mulls tough law to tackle acid attacks on women

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Hyderabad, June 19: Alarmed over the increasing acid attacks on women, the Andhra Pradesh government is mulling special legislation to deal with such crimes and ensure stringent punishment to the guilty.

A day after two women were injured in acid attacks, Home Minister P.Sabita Indra Reddy told reporters today that she would hold talks with the central home minister in this regard.

“A decision will be taken after due consultations with the union home ministry,” she said while underlining the need for special legislation to deal with such crimes.

World Bank offers India $180-mn loan to upgrade power plants

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New Delhi, June 19: The World Bank will extend a $180-million (Rs.900-crore) loan to India for upgrading its polluting coal-fired power plants and bringing down carbon emission, it said today.

“The project, which is expected to lower carbon emissions and boost power production at these plants, is co-financed with a $45.4-million grant from the Global Environment Facility (GEF),” World Bank said in a statement.

Saif learnt Punjabi for ‘Love Aaj Kal’

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Mumbai, June 19: After playing a rustic villain in “Omkara”, Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan is now playing a Sikh in his forthcoming film “Love Aaj Kal” and took Punjabi classes to get the right accent for the role.

“Saif plays a Punjabi in ‘Love Aaj Kal’. But he didn’t have the accent of a Sikh guy. So Saif mastered it by taking training for Punjabi diction. Saif got himself a tutor to train him to speak the language,” a source said.

In “Love Aaj Kal” Saif has teamed up with Deepika Padukone. It is Saif’s debut production and is directed by Imtiaz Ali of “Jab We Met” fame. (IANS)

India did not want trade talks to collapse: Anand Sharma

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Washington, June 19: India will look to find a middle ground in the global trade talks in the quest for a “fair solution acceptable to all parties”, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said here, insisting that New Delhi never wanted the talks to collapse.

Ambanis Brothers Now Under Pressure

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Mumbai, June 19: War-weary family members and well-wishers are seeing the adverse Bombay High Court judgement on the KG basin natural gas as an opportunity to settle the decade’s hottest business feuds and are exerting pressure on the Reliance Industries management to explore an amicable out-of-court settlement with the Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Natural Resources (RNRL).

Iran’s supreme leader addresses nation after protests

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Tehran, June 19: Iran’s supreme leader addressed the nation today in his first public comments since opposition supporters flooded Tehran’s streets in an unprecedented challenge to the country’s ruling clerics.
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Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has already approved the June 12 election results that gave hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a landslide victory, but he has not been able to ignore the powerful defiance of the opposition, which has called the vote rigged, of his authority.

Italy worry about future after crash against Egypt : Feature

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Rome, June 19: Gennaro Gattuso pulling up his shorts after a tackle and captain Fabio Cannavaro beating his chest amidst a shocked defence sum up Italy’s 1-0 debacle against Egypt at the Confederations Cup. “Italy remain in their underwear,” meaning they lost their shirts, opened La Gazzetta dello Sport’s web site late Thursday, minutes after the Pharaohs clinched their first-ever win over the lacklustre world champions.

Robbers Killed Indian Origin Youth In US

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Washington, June 19: A 26-year-old Indian origin youth working as a clerk in a convenience store was allegedly shot dead by robbers.

Gurjeet Singh of Merriville, Indiana who worked in his uncle’s gas station was shot dead by four armed robbers on June 14.

Community activists have expressed outrage over the senseless murder and “insensitive and shocking” behaviour of shoppers who made no effort to help him or call the police after the incident.

Cher supportive of daughter’s sex-change decision

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Los Angeles, June 19: Pop star Cher, 63, has broken her silence over her daughter’s “difficult journey” to change her sex. In a statement issued late Wednesday to US magazine People, Cher expressed her support on Chastity (Chaz) Bono’s decision to become a man.

Chastity (Chaz) Bono, who is a lesbian, began undergoing sex change operations shortly after her 40th birthday on March 4. She has been active in the gay and lesbian movement for many years.

Pakistan Reaches In T20 World Cup 2009 Final

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Nottingham, June 19: Pakistan beat South Africa in Twenty20 World Cup first semifinal as Afridi found form to his first fifty of the Twenty20 cricket.

Unusually for Afridi, he batted for 34 balls without clearing the ropes once. This was a reflection of a tricky pitch, which offered appreciable turn and some variation in pace. But he still managed to cudgel 51 runs – his first half-century in all international cricket for 28 innings.

Swine Flu Effected 8 Years Old’s Test Positive in Hyderabad

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Hyderabad, June 19: An eight-year-old girl on Thursday tested positive for influenza A(H1N1) here, taking the total number of swine flu cases in Andhra Pradesh to 14 — the highest in India.

Doctors at the Government Chest Hospital said the girl, who had come from New Jersey, was confirmed to be infected after her samples were tested at the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), New Delhi.

She is the seventh child to have tested positive since May 16, when India’s first swine flu case was confirmed here.

History suggests the coup will fail

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Tehran, June 19: At first sight, what is happening in Tehran today looks very like the extraordinary events of the Islamic Revolution 30 years ago. But how deep do the similarities go?

On 2 December 1978, two million Iranians filled the streets of central Tehran to demand an end to the rule of the Shah and the return of Ayatollah Khomeini. It was the most popular revolution in history. At night, people gathered on rooftops to chant “Allahu Akbar – God is Great”. In the daytime, mass rallies commemorated as martyrs the protesters who had been killed by the security forces.

Big Question: Is the writing on the wall for the Government’s ID card scheme?

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London, June 19: Why are we asking this now? The Government had been due to award a key contract as part of its grand biometric ID card scheme this autumn. Three companies – Thales,

Fujitsu and IBM – were bidding for the right to develop the cards’ design and handle their production. But this week the Home Office admitted a decision might not be made until the second half of 2010. This is the second delay to have hit the Government’s ID card scheme. Under the original plans, the widespread roll-out of the cards would have taken place next year. Now it is not due until 2012.

Pakistan Have 42 Operational Terror Camps: Kashmir

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New Delhi, June 19: When Prime Minister Manmohan Singh acted tough with Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari in the full glare of television cameras
this week, he had solid reason to do so. There are still 42 terror-training camps directed against India alive and kicking in Pakistan and PoK.

The latest assessment of Multi-Agency Centre (MAC), the nodal agency for all terror-related intelligence under the home ministry, holds there are 34 `active’ and eight `holding’ camps operational across the border.

US Open Golf 2009 TV Schedule

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Washington, June 19:
US Open Golf Championship 2009 Schedule dates –

June 18, Thursday
10:00 AM – 3:00 PM – ESPN
3:00 PM – 5:00 PM – NBC
5:00 PM – 7:00 PM – ESPN
8:00 PM – 11:00 PM – ESPN (replay)

June 19, Friday
2:30 AM – 5:30 AM – ESPN2 (replay)
10:00 AM – 3:00 PM – ESPN
3:00 PM – 5:00 PM – NBC
5:00 PM – 7:00 PM – ESPN
8:00 PM – 11:00 PM ESPN (replay)

June 20, Saturday
3:00 AM – 6:00 AM – ESPN (replay)
2:00 PM – 8:00 PM – NBC

June 21, Sunday
3:00 AM – 6:00 AM – ESPN (replay)
1:30 PM – 7:30 PM – NBC

Location where matches play is Old Bethpage New York

Navy, Coast Guard asked to enhance coastal security

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New Delhi, June 19: India today set up a high level committee to review coastal security measures at regular intervals, with Defence Minister A.K. Antony asking the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard to optimally deploy their assets to enhance surveillance in the wake of 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. “The government has decided to set up a high level committee under the chairmanship of the cabinet secretary to review the measures taken for coastal security at regular intervals,” a defence ministry statement said.

Srilanka Vs West Indies T20 Wrold Cup Semi Final Tomorrow

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London, June 18: West Indies are confident of chasing nearly any total in this event; Sri Lanka believe there is no score they can’t defend. Clearly, something will have to give in their World Twenty20 semi-final.

Friday’s match at the Oval sees two exciting sides up against one another and, while Sri Lanka will start favourites, the West Indies have shown that they are not to under-estimated.

Sri Lanka, who have an admirably well balanced side for cricket’s shortest format, have yet to lose a match at this tournament.

Baby Food Recipes

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The best way to care your baby is to go extra miles for feeding and preparing the right recipes. As your baby grows, he needs extra nutrients to be supplied in his food.

The food supplements for your babies also keep changing with each passing month. The healthy option to feed your toddlers the right kind of supplement is to give them home made baby food recipes.

Dacoit Gives 500 Cops The Slip In Chitrakoot After 48 Hrs Encounter

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Chitrakoot, June 18: Dreaded dacoit Ghanshyam Kewat alias Nanhu who was involved in a gunbattle with police officials in Uttar Pradesh’s Chitrakoot district has escaped.

The encounter started over 48 hours ago. ( Watch ) and atleast one policeman was killed today. A short while ago, Kewat managed to give cops the slip.

On Wednesday three policemen were killed and six others were injured in the fierce encounter with the dacoit along with his gang.

Inflation Rate In India Decreases -1.61%

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Mumbai, June 18: For the first time since the new Wholesale Price Index (WPI) series started in 1995, India’s annual rate of inflation turned negative, falling to minus 1.61 percent for the week ended June 6, official data showed Thursday.

The inflation rate, which was 0.13 percent in the previous week, had last turned negative in 1977.

With this, India is possibly the only country now that is recording deflation though the European region is nearing the zero rate of inflation on account of recession.