Press Trust of India A travelogue documentary series and a show based on transformation in rural India are among five fresh shows being offered by the national broadcaster Doordarshan.
Starting Friday, DD National will roll out “Nadiyaan Gaati Hain”, the first of the five shows, which promise to offer a whiff of fresh air, full of entertainment and information, for viewers this summer.
Extreme heat wave conditions continued in most parts of Uttar Pradesh with the mercury climbing steadily with Mahoba being declared the hottest district Friday. The maximum temperature in Mahoba was recorded at 48.4 degrees Celsius.
Day temperatures in the state hovered around 46 degrees Celsius in most places including the state capital of Lucknow.
Temperatures significantly soared in Agra, Unnao, Kanpur, Bareilly, Kannauj, Mainpuri, Muzaffarnagar, Deoria and Gorakhpur and humidity levels were also high.
The central government will ensure real integration of the northeast region and engage in constant dialogue with the region, union Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar said Friday.
“We should have a constant dialogue with northeast region and will ensure real integration of the region. The television, radio connectivity along with physical and digital connectivity in the region needs to be strengthened,” Javadekar told media persons here.
Actor Mark Wahlberg isn’t trying to impress anyone and doesn’t pay much attention to his looks.
The 42-year-old, who has children – Ella, 10, Michael, eight, Brendan, five, and Grace, four, with wife Rhea Durham, tries not to pay too much attention to his looks, reports contactmusic.com.
He told GQ magazine: “I’m 42 years old, I haven’t looked in a mirror in 10 years. I don’t give a f**k how I look.”
“If I have to prepare for a part physically, I will but I’ve got nothing to prove. I’m not trying to impress anybody,” he added.
(IANS)
The Union Health Ministry is considering raising the minimum age for purchase of tobacco products in the country from 18 years to 25 years, an official said here Friday.
Lov Verma, the health and family welfare secretary, said that “Based on the recommendations being received by the government, it (the ministry) is considering writing to the various state governments regarding the same.
Portuguese coach Leonardo Jardim signed a three-year contract with French club Monaco.
International Foot, which represents Jardim, said the 39-year-old will replace Italian coach Claudio Ranieri, reports EFE.
Jardim was able to lead Sporting Lisbon within only one season to the second place in the Portuguese league, advancing to the Champions League of the (2014-15) season.
Jardim has also managed other clubs like SC Braga, Olympiacos FC and SC Beira-Mar.
(IANS/EFE)
Spain will repay 1.3 billion euros ($1.776 billion), part of the bailout sum given by the European Union (EU) in June 2012, Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria said Friday.
Saenz de Santamaria made this announcement after the cabinet meeting, where she told reporters that the government wanted to “reinforce confidence in Spain’s economy”, Xinhua reported.
She announced two measures in order to achieve this goal — firstly, the government will begin to repay in advance 1.3 billion euros of the 41.3 billion euro bailout fund.
An uneasy calm prevailed at the Golden Temple complex here on the 30th anniversary of Operation Bluestar Friday following a clash between radical Sikh activists and SGPC task force volunteers in which 10 people were injured.
Swords and sticks were freely used as scores of men from both sides chased one another outside the Akal Takht building within the complex, home to the holiest of Sikh shrines – Harmandir Sahib.
People with bleeding injuries and ground stained with blood could be seen later at the site of the clash.
Goalkeeper David de Gea remains hopeful that Spain would defend the World Cup in Brazil.
De Gea said it has been his childhood dream to represent Spain in the World Cup, reports EFE. De Gea joined Manchester United in 2011 after leaving Atletico, where he had been played since 2008.
“We will go out to win the World Cup,” the 23-year-old was quoted by Spanish sports daily Marca.
Afghanistan has “certain concrete leads” on the kidnapping of Indian aid worker Alexis Prem Kumar in Herat province four days ago and has shared them with India, the external affairs ministry said Friday.
External affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said that Kabul is sharing details with New Delhi related to the kidnapping of Alexis. The 47-year-old Alexis of the NGO Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS), was abducted from Zendjan district Monday while he was visiting a project site.
Our ability to identify where it hurts – called “spatial acuity” – varies across the body, being most sensitive at the fingertips, a new study shows.
Researchers at University College London (UCL), using lasers to cause pain to 26 healthy volunteers without any touch, produced the first systematic map of how acuity for pain is distributed across the body.
With the exception of the hairless skin on the hands, spatial acuity improves towards the centre of the body whereas the acuity for touch is best at the extremities.
Official data indicates that a married man commits suicide in India every eight minutes, but help is at hand for the distressed males facing domestic violence — they can now seek instant help courtesy a mobile phone app.
Christened “SIF One”, the Android application available on Google Playstore for free, has been launched by Save India Family Foundation (SIFF), a platform of 50 men’s and family rights organisations spanning India.
“Men in distress, facing domestic violence, abuse on social media, family disputes, legal harassment, can seek instant help with the touch of a button.
The Maharashtra legislative assembly Friday paid rich tributes to its former member Gopinath Munde, who died in a road accident in New Delhi Tuesday.
Moving a ‘Motion of Gratitude’, which was adopted by the House, Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan described Munde as “a mass leader full of life, enthusiasm whose life was cut short at its peak”.
“Munde never took elections lightly…He was always busy planning and strategising his next political moves. He was also very enthusiastic about the forthcoming state assembly elections…” Chavan said.
The South Goa district police chief and chief secretary were Friday issued notices by the State Human Rights Commission over a two-week-old incident when vigilantes stripped two suspected thieves, tied them to vehicles, dragged and beat them up.
Both officials have been asked to respond to the three-member Human Rights Commission by July 1, even as TV news channels through the week showed graphic and shocking images of the two youngsters stripped and beaten even as they cried in pain.
Eight-time parliamentarian Sumitra Mahajan was Friday unanimously elected speaker of the 16th Lok Sabha, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced his council of ministers to the lower house of parliament as per tradition.
The name of Mahajan, the MP from Indore in Madhya Pradesh, was proposed by Modi and seconded by BJP patriarch L.K. Advani.
Mahajan, 71, is the second woman speaker of the Lok Sabha after Meira Kumar, who presided over the 15th Lok Sabha.
China Friday urged Japan to correct its past mistakes with practical actions as international D-Day commemorations were held.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said at a daily press briefing: “We again urge Japanese leaders to face up to and remember its aggression past, correct mistakes with tangible actions and win the trust of Asian neighbours and the international community.”
International commemorations of the 70th anniversary of D-Day was held in Normandy, France, Xinhua reported.
After two losses and a draw, India will be looking to salvage some pride when they face off with Malaysia in their fourth group game of the Hockey World Cup here Saturday.
India suffered two close defeats against Belgium and England, but against Spain they showed determination and especially goalkeeper P.R. Sreejesh put on a stunning show to eke out a draw. Malaysia have lost their all three matches and are yet to open their account.
India’s chief coach Terry Walsh felt that the team’s performance has improved significantly in the weak areas.
A special investigation team (SIT) of police in Uttar Pradesh’s Badaun district has begun probing the gang-rape and murder of two minor girls, both sisters, that led to a nationwide outcry, a police official said Friday.
The team formed by the district police chief is being headed by circle officer (CO) Ujhani Mukesh Saxena and comprises four other officials.
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh Friday reviewed the working of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), an official statement said here.
Singh lauded the CAPF personnel for their contribution in maintaining internal security.
“I salute my jawans who are doing outstanding work,” Singh said. He also lauded the work of Indo-Tibetan Border Police jawans posted in Afghanistan.
(IANS)
They have formed a mutual admiration society. If Mahesh Bhatt is in awe of Hansal Mehta’s work, the latter is so fascinated by Bhatt that he wishes to remake his “Saaransh”.
Mehta, who associated with Bhatt for “Citylights”, said: “I love the kind of films Mahesh Bhatt has made and if given an option, I would love to remake ‘Saaransh’.”
Bhatt, who made the highly appreciated film with Anupam Kher, a newcomer then, is okay with the idea.
When asked if he is fine with Mehta’s ‘Saaransh’ remake plans, Bhatt promptly replied: “I will be more than happy if he wants to remake ‘Saaransh’.”
The Badaun rape incident, over which the UN has voiced shock, is a “repugnant act” which has shocked both the Indian government and the nation, the external affairs ministry said Friday.
Answering a question at a press briefing here on what India had to say over the rape and hanging of two teenage girls in Badaun in Uttar Pradesh, which UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has termed as appalling and gruesome, external affairs spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said: “Obviously this was a repugnant act and we have no hesitation in condemning it.”
In a ray of hope for the blind, researchers have used electrical stimulation of retinal cells in lab tests to produce the same patterns of activity that occur when the retina sees a moving object.
This is a major step toward restoring natural, high-fidelity vision to blind people.
The first artificial or bionic vision technology is already out in the market in the US and western Europe.
This has allowed people suffering from retinitis pigmentosa to regain eyesight.
However, the technology does not enable people to drive, jog down the street or see a loved one’s face.
Online hiring in India rose by 19 percent in May, the sharpest increase in 15 months, as hopes of business friendly policies under the new government boosting recruitment activities, according to a survey by job portal Monster.com.
Media, entertainment, travel, tourism, business process outsourcing (BPO) and IT enabled services led the rise in the employment activities.
“With a 19 percent growth in the overall hiring activity which has been the highest since February 2013, Monster Employment Index reflects business optimism,” said Sanjay Modi, managing director of Monster India.
In a breather for Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, the Supreme Court Friday extended the suspension of trial in the disproportionate assets (DA) case against her till June 16.
An apex court bench of Justice J.S. Khehar and Justice C. Nagappan will hold hearing June 16 on Jayalalithaa’s plea that trial in the DA case should not proceed till the ownership of the immovable assets shown to be her alleged benami possession was decided as directed by the Madras High Court.
A court here Friday issued summons to union minister Smriti Irani in a defamation case filed against her by Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam.
Metropolitan Magistrate Dheeraj Mittal issued the summons to Irani and asked her to appear before it Sep 27.
Nirupam has said his reputation has been dented due to the scurrilous, defamatory and derogatory comments of accused Irani during a TV debate.