Press Trust of India

Press Trust of India (PTI) is India’s premier news agency, having a reach as vast as the Indian Railways. It employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.

Spanish company Roca acquires Espiem Plastics

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Spanish company Roca announced Monday it has acquired 100 percent equity in Espiem Plastics, maker of toilet cisterns and seat covers.

In a statement, Roca India, subsidiary of the Spanish bathroom fittings major, said Espiem Plastics is now a wholly owned subsidiary of the Roca Group.

Espiem Plastics has two manufacturing units, one in Sriperumbuder near here and another at Uttarakhand, with a total capacity of 1.65 million cisterns and 1.35 million seat covers.

Didn’t expect elimination from ‘Jhalak…’ so soon: Purab

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Purab Kohli, whose journey on “Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 7” came to an end recently, didn’t expect to be ousted from the dance reality show so early. But the actor is sure he’ll pursue the art form in future.

“I did not expect to be eliminated from the show so soon, but I really enjoyed every bit of my journey on the show,” Purab said in a statement.

He was paired with choreographer Mohina on the show, which airs on channel Sony.

Bengal assembly adopts resolution against rail fare hike

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A resolution seeking immediate roll-back of the “highest ever” hike in railway fares was adopted Monday by the West Bengal assembly.

“The central government recently has created an unprecedented situation by increasing freight rates and passenger fares by 6.5 percent and 14.2 percent respectively. Due to this, the prices of essential commodities will increase, making the lives of crores of Indians miserable,” said the resolution moved by state Parliamentary Affairs Minister Partha Chatterjee.

I’m a strict mother: Madhuri Dixit

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Bollywood actress Madhuri Dixit, a doting mother to two sons – Arin and Raayan – is strict when it comes to their healthcare. She says she never lets them go to bed without brushing their teeth no matter how tired they are.

“There is one thing that I am really strict about my kids and that is (making sure that they are) brushing teeth twice a day. No matter how tired they are or how late they are arriving after attending birthday parties, I make sure that they brush their teeth,” Madhuri told IANS over phone from Mumbai.

Solar power can meet most energy needs in some regions: Study

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Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) could supply a substantial amount of current energy demand, claims a study.

For example, the study showed that in the Mediterranean region a connected CSP system could provide 70-80 percent of the current electricity demand at no extra cost compared to gas-fired power plants.

That percentage is similar to what a standard energy production plant, such as a nuclear plant, can provide.

Lakshmy grooms her actors to perform with subtlety: Piaa Bajpai

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Actress Piaa Bajpai is gung-ho about being part of actor-filmmaker Lakshmy Ramakrishnan’s Tamil actioner “Nerungi Va Muthamidathe”. She says Lakshmy encourages her actors to not act but perform with subtlety.

“Lakshmy likes subtle acting and she grooms her actors to follow that. Most actors don’t react the same way to a scene on and off the screen. If they genuinely try to do that, that’s called overacting. But Lakshmy never asks her actors to act, she wants them to be natural, Piaa told IANS.

Man with gold worth Rs.54 lakh held in Bengal

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An Indian national carrying nearly two kilograms of gold worth Rs.54 lakh was nabbed from a border outpost (BOP) in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district Monday, the Border Security Force (BSF) said.

BSF troopers conducted a special operation at Amudia BOP in the district and apprehended Sandeep Biswas, a local. They recovered 17 gold biscuits weighing 1.9 kg and worth Rs.54 lakh from him, an official release said.

The South Bengal Frontier of BSF has seized more than 53 kg of gold and apprehended 30 smugglers so far this year.
(IANS)

Big B’s compliment ‘biggest reward’ for Sajid Nadiadwala

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A compliment from megastar Amitabh Bachchan regarding the trailer of “Kick”, has turned out to be the “biggest reward” for producer Sajid Nadiadwala, who is making his directorial debut with the movie.

Earlier this month, the Big B had tweeted: “Did you see the trailer of ‘KICK’..baaadooom!! Compares with anything that the other ‘wood’ brings out from their high end films!”

It left Nadiadwala ecstatic.

Hundreds of metro passengers trapped in tunnel

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Hundreds of passengers in a Kolkata metro train were trapped in a tunnel between Park Street and Maidan stations Monday following a technical snag, sparking panic.

Passengers said several people suffered from breathlessness and fell sick but the metro authorities denied this.

The incident happened before noon when a metro train bound for Dum Dum developed a snag in the tunnel after leaving the Maidan station.

Ronaldo fitness no concern, says coach Bento

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Portugal coach Paulo Bento denies Cristiano Ronaldo is still hampered by a knee injury despite his subdued performance in Sunday’s 2-2 draw with the US.

The Real Madrid forward struggled for much of the match but provided the assist for Silvestre Varela’s stoppage-time equaliser with a sumptuous cross, reports Xinhua.

“Clinically he was ok,” Bento said at his post-match press conference at the Arena Amazonia stadium.

Moroccan microfinance to use Infosys banking solution

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Morocco’s leading microfinance institution Fondep has selected Finacle, a software product of Infosys, for its strategic banking transformation programme, the Indian IT bellwether said Monday.

“Our banking solution will help Fondep adapt to changing customer needs by enabling it to offer relevant products to its customer base,” the global software major said in a statement here.

The solution will also enable Fondep to expand beyond micro-credit to distribute its range of micro-insurance products to its clients in urban and rural areas.

Egypt sentences three Al Jazeera journalists to 7-year jail term

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An Egyptian court Monday sentenced three Al Jazeera journalists to seven years in prison, media reported.

The guilty verdicts were delivered against Peter Greste, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed, Al Jazeera reported.

Greste and Fahmy were sentenced to seven years in prison while Baher Mohamed was sentenced to an additional three years for possessing arms.

The three journalists were arrested in December last year in Cairo as they covered the aftermath of former President Mohamed Morsi’s ouster last July.

Indian jailed for role in riots

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An Indian national found guilty of obstructing a policeman during the December riots here was Monday sentenced to five months in jail, the media reported.

Mahalingam Thavamani, 27, was found guilty of obstructing Deputy Superintendent of Police N. Subramaniam from dispersing a crowd near the scene of the riots, Channel News Asia reported.

He could have been jailed up to eight years.

The riots in Little India erupted Dec 8 night when a private bus knocked down and killed an Indian construction worker.

Van Gaal slams FIFA

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Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal criticised FIFA for some refereeing and organisational issues regarding the World Cup.

“FIFA, with its great wisdom, decided to hold a press conference before training which is not very smart,” van Gaal said.

Traditionally, players who play the match participate in the pre-match conference but van Gaal appeared with injured Bruno Martins Indi who will not play the match. “The players have to concentrate. Bruno is injured so he is with me here,” van Gaal said.

When Lindsay Lohan ran naked in store

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Actress Lindsay Lohan reportedly recently ran around department store Selfridges here without clothes.

The “Mean Girls” star is said to have shocked onlookers at the plush department store when she allegedly charged out of her dressing room and started racing around the shop in the buff, laughing hysterically all the while, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

“Lindsay took some items into the changing room. Halfway through, she ran out of the room with nothing on and was chased by members of staff who were trying to cover her up,” a source was quoted by The Sun newspaper as saying.

Inaugural Manali-Khardung La Cycling Championship in July

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India will make its mark on the world cycling circuit when the inaugural Manali-Khardung La Cycling Championship starts July 5.

The 520-km race till July 13 will cover the soothing and picturesque Manali to Khardung La route which has snow-capped mountains overlooking rocky terrain, deep valleys, shimmering high altitude turquoise lakes and cold deserts.

The nine-day event will be directed by long-distance cyclist Anil Uchil. The eligibility for entering the race is 18 years and the winners will win high-end championship grade cycles.

No deal with Germany, says US coach Klinsmann

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US coach Jurgen Klinsmann insisted Sunday there would be no deal with Germany to draw their final group match and guarantee both teams’ passage to the World Cup knockout stage.

The US looked set to confirm their spot in the round of 16 before Silvestre Varela’s last-minute header earned Portugal a 2-2 draw at the Arena Amazonia stadium.

The result means the US and Germany need only a point from their final Group G match in Recife Thursday to progress.

Thai protest leader, junta chief in talks since 2010

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Thai protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban said that he had advised junta chief Prayuth Chan-ocha on ways to uproot Thaksin Shinawatra’s regime since 2010, media reported Monday.

Suthep, leader of the anti-government People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), made his statement at a dinner Saturday which suggests that Prayuth was plotting to bring down former prime minister Yingluck Shinwatra, since 2010 when she was the defence minister, Bangkok Post.

Mbia admits Cameroon’s poor performance

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Cameroon midfielder Stephane Mbia admitted his team’s bad performance led to their ouster from the FIFA World Cup group stages.

“We aim to finish the tournament in the best way possible. It’s about the pride of Africa and Cameroon. We need to enhance our image and not repeat what happened in 2010 when we were eliminated without gaining a single point,” said the Sevilla midfielder, reports EFE.

Mbia also spoke of his teammate Samuel Eto’o’s injury.

As Congress protests, Badal reaches out to receive memorandum

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At a time when the bitterness among senior Akali Dal leaders and the opposition Congress is at its peak in Punjab, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal himself went to receive a memorandum of demands from protesting Congress leaders at his residence here.

Badal walked up to the gate of his official bungalow to receive the memorandum from a delegation of Congress legislators led by Sunil Jakhar, leader of opposition.

Punjab Congress president Pratap Singh Bajwa was also part of the delegation.

Sensex closes 74 points down; FMCG stocks fall

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A benchmark index of the Indian stock markets closed Monday’s trade down 74 points or 0.30 percent on selling pressure in fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) and information technology (IT) scrips.

The 30-scrip S&P Sensex (sensitive index) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 25,108.09 points, closed the trade at 25,031.32 points (provisional), down 74.19 points or 0.30 percent from its previous day’s close at 25,105.51 points.

The Sensex touched a high of 25,197.50 points and a low of 24,878.66 points intra-day.

Being part of TV important for me: Aamir Khan

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Bollywood star Aamir Khan, who chooses to give a miss to film award functions, decided to turn up for the Star Parivaar Awards event here recently. The host of “Satyamev Jayate” said the small screen medium is vital to him.

“For me, being a part of TV is very important. My films are (for) entertainment but through TV, I am bringing forward social causes and (to) move towards a better future,” Aamir said here.

He is currently working on the third season of “Satyamev Jayate”, via which he raises important social issues of the country.

Secure safety of Indian nurses in Iraq: Jayalaltihaa to Modi

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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa Thursday sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s personal intervention to secure safety of 46 Indian nurses, including six from the state, trapped in Iraq.

In a letter to Modi, text of which was released to the media here, Jayalalithaa said six of the 46 nurses – Sini, Sili, Simi, Aleena, Neethu and Maneetha – are from the state’s Nilgiri district.

“Their families are extremely anxious about the safety of these young nurses. These nurses are innocent bystanders, rendering valuable service to the health system of Iraq.”

Rwanda to name 18 gorillas in annual ceremony

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Rwanda has announced that 18 newborn gorillas will be named at the country’s 10th annual gorilla-naming event, which is aimed at promoting the conservation of the endangered primates.

Speaking at a news briefing in Kigali Wednesday, Yamina Karitanyi, head of tourism and conservation at the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), said this year’s event, locally called Kwita Izina, will be held in Kinigi-Musanze district in northern Rwanda July 1, focusing on redounding to the communities behind conservation efforts over the last decade.