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.

Six teenagers hit by car, two dead

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Two teenagers were killed while four suffered injuries when they were hit by a speeding vehicle driven by a drunk man early on Monday, police said. The accused driver was arrested.

The accident occurred around 1 a.m. in east Delhi’s New Ashok Nagar area, where the victims were standing on one side of the road.

Siva, 15, and Dileep, 13 fell into the roadside canal on being hit by the car, and died on the spot.

Rahul, 16, Subham, 16, Sahul, 15, and Akash, 13, were also injured but were out of danger, police said.

Ajay Maken made Delhi Congress chief

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The Congress on Monday appointed Ajay Maken as chief of the party for Delhi, replacing Arvinder Singh Lovely, who resigned as Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) head after the party’s rout in the February 7 assembly polls.

Maken too had resigned as All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary after the drubbing, as he was heading the party’s election campaign in Delhi.

Mass student poisoning reported in South Africa

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Hundreds of primary school students in South Africa have been hospitalised after being poisoned, the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) claimed on Sunday.

The DA said it has received confirmation about the hospitalisation of hundreds of learners at the Mankgane Primary School in Sekhukhune, Limpopo province late last week as a result of poisoning from their school feeding scheme.

The confirmation came from the Limpopo education department, the DA said.

Kim Raver to join ‘The Advocate’

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Kim Raver, of “24” and “Grey’s Anatomy” fame, will feature in drama pilot “The Advocate.”

Raver plays tough-as-nails business woman Francis “Frankie” Reese, reports variety.com.

After a dangerous misdiagnosis, her character experiences first-hand the hazards of the U.S. health-care system. She leaves her successful career behind unexpectedly after the medical scare to become an advocate for those lost in the same ever-changing system.

Sri Lanka seeks foreign help in corruption probe

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The Sri Lankan government said on Sunday that it has sought assistance from India, the US and Britain to help investigate financial fraud allegations against the former government.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera and Justice Minister Wijeydasa Rajapaksa had visited these countries to seek assistance for the probe, Xinhua reported.

“We have sought assistance from the World Bank, the US Justice Department, the major fraud investigations unit in London and the Indian central bank,” he said.

AAP’s internal Lokpal claims two camps, breakdown of trust

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Amid reports of internal rumblings in AAP, the party’s internal Lokpal, Admiral L. Ramdas (retd) warned of “two camps” and “abject breakdown in trust between topmost leadership” and sought clear signals that all senior party members were united.

In a letter, for the members of the national executive and political affairs committee ahead of party’s meeting Feb 26, Ramdas said the party’s stunning victory in Delhi polls had raised hopes of restoration of positive energy and that many mutual suspicions would be put to rest.

Iran to help facilitate Google’s services in Gulf

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Iran said on Sunday that it was ready to cooperate with information technology (IT) companies like Google to facilitate their services in the country and the Persian Gulf region.

Iran’s deputy minister of telecommunications and information technology Nasrollah Jahangard said negotiations were underway with Google to establish a version of its servers in Iran, according to a media report.

“This is a normal thing in the world and it will be economical for (IT) companies to be closer to their main clients,” Jahangard told Iran’s Fars news agency.

Lebanon to shelter Assyrians fleeing IS

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Lebanon said on Sunday that Assyrian Christians fleeing the Islamic State (IS) militants were welcome to take refuge in the country, considering their exceptional humanitarian case.

“After discussing the matter with Prime Minister Tammam Salam and Social Affairs Minister Rashid Derbas, I gave the order to allow the inflow of Assyrian refugees from Syria,” Lebanon’s Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk told the al-Mustaqbal daily in an interview.

Iraq violence kills over 1,100 in February: UN

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Latest figures released by the United Nations show that ongoing violence and terror activities claimed the lives of more than 1,100 people across Iraq in the month of February.

The UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) said in a statement on Sunday that 611 civilians were among the 1,103 people killed last month. The rest were members of the security forces.

UNAMI further said 2,280 people, including 1,353 civilians, were wounded across Iraq last month, adding that the capital city of Baghdad was the worst hit with 329 people dead and 875 injured.

Omar hits out at Sayeed’s comments on Hurriyat

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National Conference chief Omar Abdullah Sunday hit out at Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed’s remarks that the separatist Hurriyat Conference and militant outfits had facilitated conducive atmosphere for assembly polls in the state.

“”Pakistan, Huriyaat & Militants ALLOWED peaceful conduct of elections” says Mufti Syed. I guess we should be grateful for their generosity,” tweeted Abdullah.

Thousands rally in Moscow to mourn slain opposition leader

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Thousands of people rallied in Moscow on Sunday to mourn the death of former Russian deputy prime minister and opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, who was gunned down last week.

The rally, which was supposed to be one to protest the Russian policy on Ukraine, and which was to be led by Nemtsov — one of the staunchest critics of President Vladimir Putin, turned out to be a rally to mourn the slain leader, CNN reported.

Protest in Kolkata over Bangladeshi-American writer’s killing

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Intellectuals, activists, artists and writers staged a protest here on Sunday to denounce the killing of a Bangladeshi-American blog writer in Dhaka last week.

Organised by Bhasha O Chetona Samiti (Language Awareness Society), a city-based organisation for promotion of Bengali language and culture, the protest saw people gather at the Academy of Fine Arts to condemn blogger Avijit Roy’s killing and called for fighting against fundamentalism.

Bhushan expresses differences with Kejriwal

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Reflecting his discontent about the functioning of the Aam Aadmi Party, senior leader Prashant Bhushan has written a letter raising questions about some decisions of party convenor Arvind Kejriwal who is now chief minister of Delhi.

In the letter, apparently written to members of party’s national executive, Bhushan has raised questions about the party running a “person-centric” campaign in Delhi polls and not following some of its professed principles.

Pavlichenko wins luge title at European championship

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Russia’s World champion Semyon Pavlichenko won the men’s luge title at the European championship here on Sunday.

Pavlichenko timed one minute and 44.020 seconds over two runs at Sochi’s Sanki Sliding Center, which is last year’s Olympic venue, reports Xinhua.

Russian Alexander Peretyagin was 0.232 seconds behind for second place. Germany’s Olympic champion Felix Loch finished third, 0.319 seconds off the pace.

(IANS)

Resident doctors defer strike after negotiations with government

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Following assurances from the health secretary to improve security conditions for resident doctors in government hospitals, the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) on Sunday decided to postpone its indefinite strike for a fortnight.

“We have decided to postpone our indefinite strike till March 15. We have been assured of proper security conditions by next week. We will go on a strike from March 16 if our demands are not met,” said Balwinder Singh, president of FORDA.

FORDA is an association of 25 Delhi-based government hospitals.

South Korea’s Yang wins Thailand women’s golf tournament

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South Korea’s Amy Yang won the Honda Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Thailand golf tournament by three strokes here on Sunday.

Yang struck a three-under 69 in the final round of the $1.5 million tournament at the Siam Country Club. She collected 15-under 273 as total. She held off World No.3 Stacy Lewis from the United States, who was leading after each of the previous three rounds, reports Xinhua.

Lewis tied for second place with Chinese Taipei’s Tseng Yani and South Korean Lee Mi-Rim. They fell short by three strokes.

Free laptops for Kerala girls admitted in professional colleges

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A total of 1,500 girl students in Kerala from poor families or with small land holdings who are admitted in professional colleges will be given a laptop for free, state Finance Minister K.M. Mani said on Sunday.

In a press statement here, Mani said this was part of the first phase of a state government programme, the announcement of which was made in the 2014-15 budget.

The programme would be implemented this fiscal itself, he said.

I love awards: Usha Uthup

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Usha Uthup, popular for singing hit songs like “Darling” and “Koi yahaan naache naache”, says she love awards.

“I love awards. I think it’s truly a recognition and that’s what we all are working for. When an award is given to me, it’s a recognition. I hope I get an award and I love it,” Usha, known for her powerful and unique voice, told IANS.

“At least I am honest about it. Everybody feels it, but not all are willing to say it. My fruit is when the audience reacts and I love that,” she added.

Bangladesh to seek FBI’s help in Avijit Roy murder probe

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Bangladesh Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali Sunday said it has decided to take help of the US’ Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the probe into writer-blogger Avijit Roy’s murder following Washington’s offer.

The minister conveyed the decision to a group of Dhaka-based diplomats including those of the US, while briefing them on the ongoing political situation Sunday, bdnews24.com reported.

Ali said the government had decided to “positively respond” to the US offer to engage the FBI in unearthing the motive and real culprits behind the murder.

Ranji: Tamil Nadu set up title clash against Karnataka

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Tamil Nadu entered the final of the Ranji Trophy cricket tournament getting the better of Maharshtra via a first innings lead in the semifinals at the Eden Gardens here on Sunday.

Tamil Nadu piled on a gigantic score of 549 in the first innings. Last year’s runners-up Maharashtra were bowled out for 454 in their reply, conceding a 95-run lead. The first innings lead propelled Tamil Nadu to their 12th Ranji final where they will be facing Karnataka in Mumbai from March 8.

Delhi kids get high on fashion at IKFW

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Fashion is not just for grownups. Vibrant attires and stellar performances by children enthralled the audience on Sunday at the Delhi edition of the India Kids Fashion Week (IKFW) 2015.

The two-day event, which started on Saturday at The Grand hotel here, saw children sharing the ramp with confidence and style with the blue blood of the fashion fraternity.

Terror attack planned for Pakistan Day foiled: Police

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Police Sunday said they have foiled a terrorist attack that aimed to the strike the Pakistan Day parade on March 23, media reports said.

Police sources said that two suspected terrorists were arrested during recent raids and confessed to planning an attack, Dawn News reported.

They said the men were arrested from Ghouri Town here in connection with the attack on the Qasar-e-Sakina Imambargah which occurred on February 19.

Sources said the arrested men confessed to planning an attack during their interrogation. A large cache of weapons was also seized from their possession.

107 applicants for 43 coal mines for allocation to PSUs

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The Coal Ministry on Sunday received 107 applications from state-run undertakings like NTPC, SAIL and the Damodar Valley Corp for allocation of 43 coal blocks whose earlier allotments were cancelled by the apex court.

“(A total of) 107 applications were received for 43 coal blocks for allocation to government entities,” Coal Secretary Anil Swarup said in a tweet.

The Palma II mine in Chhattisgarh got nine applications, the highest for a single block.

Suspended Trinamool MLA threatens defamation suit

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Suspended Trinamool Congress legislator Swapan Kanti Ghosh on Sunday threatened to file a defamation suit against party secretary general Partha Chatterjee who announced his suspension for anti-party activities.

A legislator from Suri in Birbhum district, Ghosh was suspended on February 25 after he staged a demonstration at the assembly premises alleging that the Trinamool-run Suri municipality siphoned off Rs.10.36 crore meant for central schemes including a drinking water project.

Modi seeks ideas for PMO mobile app

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Urging young engineers to help move India to the status of an innovation hub, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said he will invite ideas from the public for developing a mobile application for the Prime Minister’s Office towards making it mobile-friendly.

“The faster you all make mobile apps, the faster you will capture the market. We need a revolution in mobile governance. We will launch a competition through mygov.In to seek ideas for a PMO mobile app,” he said at an event here to mark 25 years of the IT industry body Nasscom.