Gali Nagaraja

Shutdown hits normal life in Andhra Pradesh

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The nation-wide shutdown called by the opposition to protest hike in diesel price, cap on subsidised LPG cylinders and FDI in retail, evoked near total response in Andhra Pradesh.

Buses of state-owned Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) went off the roads in most parts of the state.

The road transport came to a grinding halt with over four lakh trucks across the state joining the 24-hour strike since midnight.

A section of auto-rickshaw drivers in Hyderabad and other towns too joined the strike.

Mixed response to shutdown call in Tamil Nadu

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It was a mixed response in Tamil Nadu to the opposition sponsored nationwide shutdown Thursday with buses plying on the roads and government offices as well as educational institutions functioning. But shops remained shut and trucks did not run.

Banking/insurance operations were affected as majority of the staff did not report for work.

Pope lauds respect from Muslims in Lebanon

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Pope Benedict XVI has praised Lebanon’s Muslims for the “great respect and sincere consideration” they showed him during a vist to the country last week.

“The Muslims welcomed me with great respect and sincere consideration. Their constant affable presence gave me the opportunity to launch a message of dialogue and collaboration between Christianity and Islam,” the pontiff said.

“I believe the time has come to bear sincere and definitive witness together against division, violence and war,” he said.

Five Indian Americans among Forbes 400 richest

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Five Indian-Americans figure in the Forbes magazine’s annual list of the richest people in America with Microsoft Corp chairman Bill Gates retaining his top spot with $66 billion, up $7 billion from 2011.

He is followed by Berkshire Hathaway Inc.’s Warren Buffett (No. 2) with $46 billion, also up $7 billion from last year, and Oracle Corp’s Larry Ellison (No. 3) with $41 billion, up $8 billion – and the biggest dollar gainer this year.

Shah Rukh Khan remembers father on his death anniversary

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Superstar Shah Rukh Khan today remembered his late father Taj Mohammed Khan on his 31st death anniversary.

The 46-year-old actor’s father died from cancer when he was just 15-years-old.

“Where shall I find you now, in which garden can we sit? Where might you and I chat for a bit? My father’s ‘barsi’ today. 31 years without him,” Shah Rukh posted on Twitter.

The actor also tweeted a photo of his late father in another post writing, “Life is beautiful for it never takes away the people it pretends it does. It is just a question of us calling its bluff.”

Syria war also targeting allies: Assad

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The civil war raging in Syria is targeting not only Damascus but the entire “axis of resistance” formed with its allies, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said.

Syria, Iran, its closest ally in the region, as well as the Lebanese Shia movement Hezbollah and Hamas, the de facto rulers of the Gaza Strip, refer to themselves as an “axis of resistance” in their common opposition to Israel.

“The ongoing war is targeting the entire axis of resistance, not just Syria,” the Syrian SANA news agency quoted Assad as saying at a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi.

13-year-old girl found in Russian brothel

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Investigators in Russia’s western region of Tatarstan have opened a criminal case after a 13-year-old schoolgirl was found to be engaging in prostitution.

An investigation found that in July this year, a massage parlour in the region’s second largest city, Naberezhnye Chelny, was operating as a brothel.

The girl, a seventh-grader at a local school, was engaged in prostitution, officials said.

Other underage girls also worked at the massage parlour, investigators said.

—IANS

Pakistani migrants rescued off Italy coast

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Italian coast guards have rescued a boat with 14 Pakistani migrants on board, off the southern coast of Italy.

The Pakistani migrants, all male, were rescued off Otranto in Puglia region during a joint patrol along with the European Union’s border protection agency Frontex.

The coast guards from Italy and other EU countries have since January intercepted 1,300 migrants on 25 boats in joint operations. At least 28 human traffickers have been arrested.

Coast guards also recovered a corpse floating in the sea off the southern Italian island of Lampedusa.

Chinese farmer makes, flies own aircraft

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A farmer in China made an aircraft, carried it to a road near his village and successfully flew it.

Tian Shaoqiang, 39, a farmer from Linzhou in central China’s Henan province, made his own dynamic delta-wing aircraft at home. With the help of relatives and neighbours, Tian transported the aircraft wings and body to a road near the village.

He then took off on a stable 20-minute flight after which the aircraft landed safely, reported Global Times citing chinanews.com.

Congress states to raise cap on subsidised LPG cylinders

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The Congress has asked party-ruled states to raise the cap on subsidised cooking gas cylinders from six to nine, it was announced Wednesday.

The decision was taken by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi at the party’s core group meeting here.

“Wherever we have a government, they will get three more LPG cylinders at subsidised prices,” party general secretary Janardan Dwivedi said after the Congress Core Committee meeting.

Babu Bajrangi bashed up in jail by Godhra convicts

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(Siasat News)Inmates inside Sabarmati Central Jail thrash former Bajrang Dal leader Babu Bajrangi who was recently convicted for the attacks in the 2002 riots.

According to the jail officials Babu Bajrangi was beaten up by convicts of Godhra train carnage and the under trials of 2008 Ahmedabad serial bomb blasts.

Following this the VHP President Praveen Togadia said: “We have always said that Hindus are not safe anywhere in Gujarat including high-security jails.”

Will back any party which supports Bihar: Nitish

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The Janata Dal-United (JD-U) will extend support any party which gives special category status to Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said Wednesday.

Nitish Kumar said this at a public meeting in Bettiah in West Champaran district after launching an ‘Adhikar Yatra’.

Without naming the Congress, the chief minister said he will support any party which forms a central government which will give special category status to Bihar.

—IANS

Ball in Congress court: Mukul Roy

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It is now for the Congress to save the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) coalition, outgoing Railway Minister Mukul Roy said Wednesday.

Roy rubbished claims that the Congress leadership had tried to reach out to the Trinamool before the party announced Tuesday night it was pulling out of the UPA government.

“I don’t know what they are saying but the fact is I did not receive any message or feelers from the Congress leadership,” Roy told IANS.

China accelerates exploiting oil in South China Sea

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China’s pace of exploiting the oil of the South China Sea has “accelerated”, said a state-run daily Wednesday.

An article in People’s Daily Online said that the China National Offshore Oil Corporation recently announced the second batch of 26 oil areas in the South China Sea which allows foreign companies’ joint development in 2012.

“China’s pace of exploiting the oil of the South China Sea has obviously accelerated,” it said.

It said that China “still holds a relevantly cautious stance in developing the oil resources of total 55 billion tonnes in the South China Sea”.

Seven arrested for illegal mining

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Seven people were arrested Wednesday for illegal mining in Bihar’s Rohtas district, and police seized 3,000 detonators and a large quantity off ammonium nitrate.

Rohtas Superintendent of Police Manu Maharaj said: “It appears that the detonators and explosive materials were meant for use in illegal mining.”

—IANS

No beef, pork festival: High court tells JNU

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The Delhi High Court Wednesday asked Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and city police to ensure that no “beef and pork” festival takes place in the campus on Sep 28.

A student organisation of the university had announced plans to hold a beef-and-pork festival Sep 28.

A division bench of Acting Chief Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw said: “The JNU and police are directed to ensure that no such beef and pork festival take place on Sep 28 and in future.”

Srinagar students protest anti-Islam video

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Dozens of students of a medical college protested here Wednesday against an anti-Islam video made in the US that has triggered widespread protests in the Middle East.

Marching with pro-Islam and anti-US banners, dozens of students of the Srinagar Medical College boycotted classes to hit the streets.

Police and paramilitary forces did not stop them as they remained peaceful.

After marching through the main markets, the protesters torched a US flag inside the college complex before dispersing.

Eight get Priyadarshni Foundation’s global awards

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Industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla, actress Deepika Padukone and member of European Parliament Nirj Deva were among achievers who were conferred the global awards instituted by NGO Priyadarshni Academy, a representative said here Wednesday.

At the 28th anniversary Global Awards function that concluded late Tuesday awards were presented to eight people of different nationalities.

The awardees were Kumar Mangalam Birla, Dr Samir Brahmachari, Nirj Deva, Dr Jeanne Devos, Aditya Puri, Dr Jacques Rogozinski, Deepika Padukone and Juan Schiaretti.

Anurag Basu plans English ‘Barfi!’

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After treating Hindi-viewing audiences to “Barfi!”, director Anurag Basu plans to cook up an English version of the movie for non-Hindi audiences. He says “Barfi!” is his most personal film ever, and is confident that a movie with only a few dialogues could strike a chord with the viewers all across.

“I’ve to confess we’re toying with the idea of putting out an English version of the film,” said Basu in an interview.

After Mamata blow, UPA turns to ‘Netaji’ and ‘Behenji’

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As Mamata Banerjee turned her back on UPA-II, Congress emissaries Wednesday opened fresh channels of communication with Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and BSP supremo Mayawati.

Confirming they had been contacted, a senior SP leader told IANS that while desperate efforts were on to win over both sides, Mulayam Singh was playing hardball.

According to the SP source, the issues of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail and the hike in diesel prices were likely to hurt the SP’s core vote base of farmers and traders.

I would love to work in a Bollywood film: Brad Pitt

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Hollywood’s reining star Brad Pitt missed the opportunity of romancing Indian beauty Aishwarya Rai in “Troy”, but with the growing presence of Indian films on the world stage, he says he might just decide to surprise fans by grooving in true Bollywood style any time.

“Indian cinema seems to be growing very well at its own pace. I would love to work in a Bollywood film as there is so much drama and colour in the films there,” Pitt told IANS in an email interview.

Saina signs up 40-crore deal with Rhiti Sports

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India’s badminton queen Saina Nehwal has signed up a 40-crore deal with Rhiti Sports Management company, making her the country’s highest paid sportsperson outside cricket.

The London Olympics bronze-medallist shuttler had a three-year contract with Deccan Chargers which expired early this month.

“I am very happy to be associated with Rhiti Sports and look forward to start a working relationship with them. With Rhiti’s background and credibility, they know how to balance things and that is a big plus point,” said Saina, who signed a three-year contract with Rhiti Sports.

Alzheimer’s sabotages brain wiring?

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Alzheimer’s could actually sabotage the working of several of the brain’s networks, says a study.

Beau Ances, assistant professor of neurology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, who led the study said: “Communications within and between networks are disrupted, but it doesn’t happen all at once.”

“There’s even one network that has a momentary surge of improved connections before it starts dropping again.

Mid-term polls not likely, says Chavan

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Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan today ruled out the possibility of mid-term polls in the country despite Trinamool Congress pulling out of the UPA government.

“UPA has the support of pro-reform parties. Besides, people don’t want elections now but are looking forward to policy decisions which are in their interest,” Chavan told reporters, after performing Ganesh puja at his official residence ‘Varsha’ in south Mumbai.

Stressing that there is no political instability at the Centre, Chavan said he is keeping a watch on political developments taking place in Delhi.

My love story with Kareena is different in ‘Heroine’: Rampal

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Arjun Rampal, who is teaming up with Kareena Kapoor for the third time with ‘Heroine’, said the romance portrayed between them in the film is not of the conventional kind.

The 39-year-old actor played the villain in ‘Ra.One’ and was seen as Kareena’s husband in ‘We Are Family’. But it is an altogether different pairing in the Madhur Bhandarkar directed film, where both of them are playing superstars.