Qayam Ali

Overcast skies and scattered rains today offered respite to the national capital with both maximum and minimum temperatures settling below normal.

Light showers were recorded at Lodhi Road, Ridge and Safdarjung observatories while Palam and Ayanagar weather stations remained dry.

The maximum temperature today settled at 37 degrees Celsius, three notches below the season’s average and 3.6 degrees less than yesterday, while the minimum was two notches below normal at 25.9 degrees, Meteorological department officials said.

In a sartorial shift, employees at IT major Infosys can now wear business casuals on all working days starting from Monday, as the company has decided to do away with its dress code.

The move is considered an attempt by the country’s second largest IT services firm to better engage with its employees and arrest attrition.

“From Monday, June 1, 2015, you can flaunt your smart business casuals all week long!” an email sent by Infosys to its employees read.

Tension continues to bubble between Muslims and Hindus at Ballabhgarh as once again the talk between the two communities went in vain on Sunday.

“The first thing the Muslim community wants is the arrest of the Jat culprits, who torch their homes in an hour-long rampage and the construction of the disputed mosque in Atali village. Only then they will return to the village.

“We want the accused to be arrested promptly. There can be no talks until then,” Firoz Ali, a villager from Atali, said.

In a ghastly incident a man along with his two friends allegedly raped a minor girl who lives in his neighborhood in BodUppal area of Medipally.

According to police the prime accused, Ravi, 23, a car driver and the 17-year-old victim are neighbors. About ten days ago, Ravi called the victim over the phone saying that he wanted to meet her to a spot near Boduppal.

A meeting of a panel led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been called today to decide on the chiefs of Central Information Commission (CIC) and Central Vigilance Commission (CVC).

Today’s meeting has been convened at the Prime Minister’s residence and will be attended by Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Leader of Congress in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh, official sources have confirmed. The last meeting of the panel held in New Dellhi on May 23 had remained inconclusive.

Bangladesh is set to honour former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee for his outstanding support for the country’s independence from Pakistan in 1971 when he was a Lok Sabha member.

A Foreign Ministry spokesman familiar with the process said Bangladesh will hand over Mr Vajpayee’s “Friends of Bangladesh Liberation War Award” to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his upcoming visit to the country from June 6.

Mr Vajpayee, who is unwell, could not visit Bangladesh to receive the honour.

A 92-year-old cancer survivor rocked her way into the record books Sunday, becoming the oldest woman to finish a marathon.

Harriette Thompson of Charlotte, North Carolina, completed Sunday’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon in San Diego in 7 hours, 24 minutes, 36 seconds. She was mobbed by well-wishers as she crossed the finish line.

“I’m fine, they’re really pampering me here,” Thompson said in a firm, joyful voice as people all around her shouted congratulations.

This was her 17th Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon and, by far, the hardest.

As many as 279 migrant workers from India, one of the largest migrant worker sending countries, died in 2014 in Qatar – the host of 2022 Fifa World Cup, Amnesty International said in its latest report.

Titled “Promising Little, Delivering Less: Qatar and Migrant Abuse ahead of the 2022 Football World Cup”, the report cites official statistics of the government of India.

Ms Swaraj said she will be travelling to Israel this year, besides Palestine and Jordan. India had established “full” diplomatic relationship with Israel in 1992 though it had recognised the country in 1950.

The then Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had become the first premier from that country to visit India when he came here in 2003. He is credited with transforming bilateral relations from diminutive defence and trade cooperation to the strategic ties of today.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has received 65 gifts worth Rs 3.11 lakh during his foreign visits in the past ten months since assuming charge last year, an RTI query revealed.

On February 19 Modi received gold and diamond studded cufflinks, valued at Rs 75,000, by a host country.

The PM was also twice given tea-sets and books as gifts. He also was presented a statue of Lord Buddha, whose messages he has invoked in several of his speeches abroad, said Foreign Ministry in response to an RTI query.

Hundreds of people have pledged to boycott United Airlines after a Muslim passenger alleged discrimination due to Islamophobia over an unopened can of Diet Coke onboard the American airliner.

Tahera Ahmad’s Facebook post over the “clear” discrimination went almost immediately went viral on Saturday.

The Muslim chaplain at Chicago’s Northwestern University was onboard a flight this weekend when she asked for an unopened can of soda for hygienic reasons and says was told, “Well, I’m sorry. I just can’t give you an unopened can, so no Diet Coke for you.”

People will have to shell out more from tomorrow while using mobiles, eating out and travelling as the service tax rate goes up to 14 per cent.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his Budget had proposed to raise service tax from 12.36 per cent (including education cess) to 14 per cent. The proposal takes effect from June 1.

The tax is levied on all services, expect a small negative list.

Mobile operators and credit card companies have already started sending messages to subscribers conveying the increase in service tax rate which will have a bearing on the bills.

The family of India’s most wanted underworld dawood Ibrahim family got together for a lavish function in Mumbai on Friday evening, after son of the gangster’s younger sister Farzana threw a wedding reception party at the Tulip Star hotel in Juhu.

About 600 people appeared for the most-exorbitant and heavily guarded wedding. Each plate of food that included a range of cuisines easily costs about 1,000 to 1,500 per plate.

A 21-year-old girl threw acid on her boyfriend for turning down her marriage proposal in Rasra area in Ballia district in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday night.

According to police the 22 year old Raj Kumar Pal a resident of Jamgaon village in Rasra police station area, was sleeping on the terrace of his house when the girl from his neighborhood threw acid on his face.

Telangana Government is all set for the week-long celebrations to observe Formation Day on June 2, marking one year of formation of the new state. The 10 districts in the newly-formed state have geared up for celebrating ‘Telangana Formation Day’ that will witness a host of events as part of week-long celebration on Telangana’s culture and struggle (for statehood) on a grand scale.

The official celebrations, to be held from June 2-7, will have a series of cultural and literary programmes along with a slew of events that will showcase the rich history and culture of the new state.

Even as his Cabinet decided today to promulgate the Land Acquisition Ordinance for the third time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the legislation is not “a matter of life or death for me” and that he was prepared to accept any suggestions.

“This is not a matter of life or death for me. And neither was it the agenda of my party or the government,” he said in an interview carried by The Tribune newspaper.

In a separate interview, Mr Modi responded strongly to Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi’s jibe that the government was “suit boot ki sarkar”.

Fares for first class and AC class in passenger trains besides freight charges will be increased by 0.5% from June 1 as new service tax will come into effect.

“Currently, 3.708 per cent service tax is levied on train fares for AC Class, First Class and freight. This will go up to 4.2% from June which means the rise is only 0.5%,” said a senior Railway Ministry official.

If the AC fare is Rs 1,000, then you will be charged Rs 10 more. Increase in service tax will be applicable on tickets purchased on June 1 and onwards, he added.

A mother from Tamil Nadu puts her kidney on sale just for the sake of her son’s higher education.

On 25th May a surgeon in Chennai receives a mail as written “I am a 37-year-old married woman. “I want to sell my kidney. I have no money for my son’s studies and I have family problems. So can you help me sir? It’s very urgent. My blood group is B positive”.

Snapping its four-day falling run, gold prices recovered by Rs 55 to trade at Rs 27,330 per ten grams at the bullion market on revival of buying by jewellers at prevailing lower levels amid a better global trend.

However, silver fell by Rs 175 to Rs 38,575 per kg owing to reduced offtake by industrial users and coin makers.

A 35-year-old man moving suspiciously in the border belt of Jammu was arrested by the Army, an official said on Saturday.

Troops of Tiger division arrested Zakir Ahmed of Vellore in Tamil Nadu, who was moving suspiciously in Marh area of Jammu late last night, PRO (Defence), Lt Col Manish Mehta said. The suspect was later handed over to the police for further questioning.

878 teachers and headmasters, working in government schools across the Telangana state, might soon be charge and face termination, after it found out that they acquire jobs through bogus certificates.

The highest numbers of teachers i.e. 300 with fake degrees are from Medak district. Most of the teachers are said to be still in service, especially around the city’s outskirts area such as Vikarabad and Saroornagar.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who recently completed one year in office, has, in an exclusive interview with Smita Prakash, Editor, ANI, said the opposition alleging that his government is a “Suit Boot Ki Sarkar” is definitely better and more acceptable than being labelled a “Suitcase” (ki Sarkar), and satirically added, that after ruling for sixty years, the Congress has suddenly remembered the poor.

The interview with ANI follows:

The Telangana Wakf Board claiming Rs 32,000 cr compensation for the properties that were allotted to various corporate at Gachibowli and Manikonda.

1,630 acre Wakf land belonging to the Dargah Hazrat Hussain Shah Vali located in Manikonda and Gachibowli were allotted to Microsoft, Infosys, Wipro, Emaar, Lanco Hills, VJIL, Polaris and other corporate companies during the previous govt regimes.

In a recent incidents of Muslim community being denied jobs and accommodation because of their religion have once again highlighted the absence of an anti-discrimination law in the country.

According to experts, such cases mostly happens with Muslims and lower caste people, though the Constitution, under its Article 15 (1), promises non-discrimination, there is no legislation to penalize offenders.

Super30 founder and mathematician Anand Kumar has been honoured in Canada for his pioneering work in the field of education.

The Legislature of British Columbia, Canada has honoured the 42-year-old for his rare achievements to the students from India’s underprivileged sections.

The British Columbia Government had invited Kumar in recognition of his work through globally acclaimed Super30, which has successfully mentoring 30 students mostly from the underprivileged sections of the society for IITs free of cost for the last 14 years.