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.

Kvitova heads into third round of Shenzhen Open

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World No.4 Petra Kvitova advanced to the third round of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Shenzhen Open tournaament with a comfortable 6-1, 6-2 victory in just 62 minutes here Tuesday.

It only took the Czech national 16 minutes to establish a 5-0 lead over the World No.56 Bojana Jovanovsiki before she won the first set 6-1, reports Xinhua.

Jocanovsiki tried to fight back but she made too many unforced errors and lost the second set 6-2 quickly.

“We’ll see what happens. I am trying to find a way to qualify for the final and I’ll focus on the next match,” said Kvitova.

TV makes leap towards theatre experience

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The new generation of televisions in 2015 will draw viewers closer to a theatre-like experience with the help of quantum dot technology, as announced by manufacturers on the eve of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) opening Tuesday in this US city.

The technology is being employed by, among others, South Korean companies Samsung and LG, Japanese firm Sony, and TCL of China.

According to statements by the manufacturers Monday, the new technology allows better image quality and lower costs, which is the biggest obstacle for the new high-resolution 4K technology.

No major impact of coal strike on Singareni

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The five-day nation-wide coal industry strike called by trade unions had only partial impact on Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) in Telangana as the company achieved near normal production Tuesday.

A spokesman of SCCL told IANS that the strike call had no major impact on coal production as the major recognized trade union, the Telangana Boggu Ghani Karmika Sangham (BGKS), was not participating in the strike.

SCCL general manager S. Chandrasekhar told IANS that “all mines are working. The attendance is partial in underground mines but normal in open cast mines”.

BSF chief vows to retaliate to Pakistani firing

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India will not do anything to disturb peace along the border in Jammu and Kashmir but will retaliate to any aggression by Pakistan, BSF chief D.K. Pathak said Tuesday.

The BSF director general said his men foiled three-four attempts by terrorists to sneak into India since Dec 31.

“India will not do anything to disturb peace along the border but will retaliate befittingly if the situation demands,” Pathak told the media.

“Prevalence of peace (is the) best situation. But if Pakistan does not want peace, if firing comes from their side, we will definitely respond,” he said.

Chennai company hopes to mine money from shredded paper

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With plans to tap the corporate sector with high paper usage, city-based Global Waste Recyclers has decided to set up document shredding units in Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad, said a top company official.

The Rs.43 crore turnover company also plans to set up one more waste paper recycling centre here.

“Many of the corporate shred their papers and they are disposed as garbage. With our own shredding units we will offer our services and pay the corporates for the shredded paper after adjusting our costs,” Bharath L. Pujara, managing director, told reporters here Tuesday.

Patna blast: NIA court frames charges against 10 accused

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A special NIA court here Tuesday framed charges against 10 accused in the Patna serial blasts ahead of the Oct 27, 2013 rally by then BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, police said.

“The NIA special court has finally framed charges against the 10 accused in the Patna blasts. It has directed the prosecution to produce witnesses from Jan 19 onwards,” a police official said.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) haf last year filed its charge sheet against the 10 accused suspected to be members of banned Indian Mujahideen and Students Islamic Movement of India.

Over 70,000 security personnel deployed for Sri Lanka election

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Over 70,000 security personnel were deployed in Sri Lanka ahead of the presidential election Thursday as campaigning ended Tuesday.

The strong security contingent includes 66,100 police personnel and 5,000 members of the Special Task Force (STF), to ensure a free and fair election, Ceylon Today reported.

Police spokesperson Ajith Rohana revealed that 420 permanent road barricades would be in place in addition to road-blocks around the country to check suspicious vehicles and persons during election time.

Fans tweet their disappointment over Yuvraj’s exclusion

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From lamenting how badly he will be missed at the 2015 World Cup to declaring that his career is already over, followers of discarded cricketer Yuvraj Singh showed a variety of emotions as they took to Twitter following the batsman’s exclusion from the 15-man Indian squad for the quadrennial event announced Tuesday.

A disappointed fan, whose twitter handle read @abhijitmajumder, posted “Yuvraj Singh’s career is officially over. Dream while it lasted. Strongly feel Indian team will miss his spunk, experience in #WC2015. #Yuvi”.

Coal production badly affected in Jharkhand

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Coal production in Jharkhand was badly affected due to the five-day strike by the coal workers that began Tuesday.

“Production has been badly affected in Central Coalfield Limited (CCL). There are total 58 collieries and production was zero in 39 collieries and partial impact on eight while 11 collieries were functional,” a CCL source told IANS.

The CCL produces around 1.50 lakh tonnes everyday but production has been affected by more than 80 percent due to the strike.

Injured Jadeja in, Yuvraj ignored for World Cup squad

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Injured all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was included in the 15-member Indian squad for the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup starting Feb 14 but star batsman Yuvraj Singh’s hopes of getting a late call-up were dashed as the BCCI announced the team for the mega-event here Tuesday.

Jadeja is nursing a shoulder injury sustained during training in the early stages of India’s ongoing tour of Australia.

Odisha to launch housing mission for poor

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Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Tuesday said the state government will launch Shelter Security Mission to provide low cost and affordable housing facilities to the poor.

The housing mission, which has a projected outlay of Rs. 15,000 crore to Rs. 20,000 crore, will provide affordable accommodation to both the rural and urban poor.

“The government will shortly launch its shelter security mission. The mission will be directly monitored by me and encompass both urban and rural areas,” said Patnaik, inaugurating a two-day conference of district collectors here.

Number of displaced people highest since WWII: UN

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The UN refugee chief Tuesday warned that the number of people displaced due to conflicts has hit the highest point since World War II.

Antonio Guterres, UN high commissioner for refugees, made the comments during a conference of Turkish ambassadors held in capital Ankara, Xinhua reported.

Some 51.2 million people were forcibly displaced after World War II in line with figures released at the end of 2013, Guterres said.

Some 13 million people were displaced fleeing the ongoing clashes in Syria, the UN refugee agency chief said, noting that two million people fled Iraq.

Recruitments on to cut down delays: Air India

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National passenger carrier Air India Tuesday said it is on a recruitment overdrive to fill on-board manpower vacancies that have affected some of its international flights lately.

According to a senior Air India official, the recruitment drive which has been going on for some time is expected to overcome the on-board manpower shortage.

Lately, some of the airline’s flights to the US got delayed, leaving many angry passengers. Some passengers of a delayed New Delhi-New York flight even created a ruckus recently at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) here.

Two would-be-suicide bombers shot in Afghanistan

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Police shot and killed two would-be-suicide bombers in Afghanistan’s Khost province, provincial police chief Faizullah Ghairat said Tuesday.

“Two terrorists equipped with small arms and suicide vests attacked a police checkpoint on Kondio area outside provincial capital Khost city Monday evening, but in a rapid reaction, police personnel opened fire and killed them on the spot,” Ghairat told Xinhua.

He also said the bodies of both the suicide bombers are with police.

Taliban militants fighting the government are largely relying on suicide and roadside bombings.

(IANS)

3 bodies found, sea currents hinder search for AirAsia plane wreckage

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International search teams Monday found three more bodies even as strong sea currents Monday hampered the search for the black boxes and bodies of more victims of the AirAsia plane that crashed Dec 28, 2014 with 162 people on board.

Despite improved surface weather conditions, the currents prevented divers and unmanned submarines equipped with cameras from descending into the waters, EFE reported.

Special units to tackle crimes against women proposed

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The central government Monday proposed to set up “Investigative Units on Crimes against Women” (IUCAW) in 20 percent of the districts in each state on half-cost sharing basis.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh has written to the chief ministers saying there was a need to strengthen various elements of the criminal justice system, namely investigation, prosecution and trials by courts to deal with rise in crimes against women, an official release said.

Muller survives French challenge in Chennai Open

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Last year’s finalist Eduard Roger-Vasselin went down fighting to eighth seed Gilles Muller 7-6 (11), 1-6, 6-7 (3) in an entertaining and high quality first round match of the ATP-Aircel Chennai Open here Monday.

Muller, the 31-year-old southpaw from Luxembourg and ranked 42, survived two tough tie-breaks, while Roger-Vasselin, after taking the first set, gradually faded against an opponent who improved as the two-hour and 23-minute match progressed.

Four injured as SSB men, villagers clash near India-Nepal border

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Four people were injured Monday in an exchange of gunfire between Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) personnel and villagers near the India-Nepal border in West Bengal’s Darjeeling district, police said.

The SSB, however, said at least four of its personnel were injured when villagers fired at them after the paramilitary troopers tried to stop smuggling of cattle.

An SSB officer said no civilian was injured in firing by the troopers.

According to the SSB, many villagers were trying to smuggle as many as 200 cows from Nepal to Bangladesh and were intercepted by officials along the border.

Thousands of people stand against Taliban in Afghanistan

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Thousands of people, including hundreds gathering in Jauzjan’s provincial capital Shiberghan city, 390 km north of Kabul, Monday denounced the Taliban outfit and announced their support to Afghan national security forces in the war against Taliban militants, provincial police chief Faqir Mohammad Jauzjani said.

“Around 10,000 people including hundreds of women across the Juazjan province assembled in Shiberghan city Monday condemned Taliban extremist policies and announced their support to Afghan national security forces,” Jauzjani told Xinhua.

Man held for killing four youths on New Year’s Eve

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A gangster has been arrested for killing four youths, the members of another gang, and setting their bodies on fire on New Year’s Eve, police said Monday.

Rajesh was arrested Sunday from west Delhi’s Kanjhawala in connection with the murder of four youths – Manish, Sandeep, Sudhir and Deepak – all residents of Delhi’s Mitraon village near Najafgarh.

“Rajesh along with his more than 15 associates killed the youths by firing indiscriminately when they were returning in their car after a New Year’s Eve party,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Rajiv Ranjan said.

India needs to invest in cancer, diabetes research: US scientist

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India needs to invest in research in emerging challenges such as diabetes, cancer and neurological disorders, Indian-origin US cancer biologist Inder Verma said here Monday.

Verma is a leading authority in gene therapy, retrovirology, and cancer, particularly glioblastomas (brain tumour).

Verma – who is originally from Punjab – is an American Cancer Society Professor of Molecular Biology in the Laboratory of Genetics at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the University of California, San Diego.

Arvind Panagariya appointed vice chairman of NITI Aayog

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Noted economist Arvind Panagariya has been appointed chairman of the NITI (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog, that has replaced the earlier Planning Commission.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also appointed full-time members, ex-officio members and special invitees.

The full-time members are Bibek Debroy, an economist and professor at the New Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research and scientist V.K. Saraswat, who has served as director general of the Defence Research and Development Organisation and as chief scientific advisor to the defence minister.

Modi launches Rs.10 per LED bulb scheme in Delhi

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi Monday launched an LED bulb distribution scheme in the capital under which the power-saving lamp will be made available to people at an initial cost of Rs.10.

He replaced one bulb in the South Block – which houses several ministries – symbolically launching the efficient lighting programme for Delhi and a national programme for LED-based home and street lighting.

Brar new Youth Congress chief

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In an organisational revamp, the Congress Monday appointed Amrinder Singh Raja Brar as national president of its youth wing, the Indian Youth Congress (IYC).

Brar, who succeeded Rajiv Satav, appealed to the Youth Congress workers to take on “anti-poor and anti-people policies” of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government, a party leader told IANS.

Messi not happy with Barcelona coach Enrique

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Barcelona star striker Lionel Messi has confronted the club’s board of directors and coach Luis Enrique, who he sees as a “master of the dressing room”.

The Argentine, who had the confrontation Sunday, is reportedly irritated by the excessive authoritarianism of the coach. Messi did not attend the open training session Monday due to an upset stomach but the signs are that the relationship is not working, reports as.com.