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Wanted in Taiwan: Crab escorts

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Taipei, July 18: A Taiwan park is seeking 30 volunteers to help escort land crabs on their journey to the sea during the breeding season, a newspaper said Saturday.

Land crabs in the Kenting National Park, at the southern tip of Taiwan, live away from shore for most of the year. But during the breeding season, female crabs carry their fertilised eggs and migrate to the sea to release them.

The park administration is inviting volunteers to help the crabs safely cross roads and to remove any discarded fishing nets blocking the crabs’ access to the sea, the Taipei Times reported.

Goa criticised for pushing SEZs in guise of ‘health estates’

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Panaji, July 18: Health estates, a new real estate project being aggressively promoted by the Goa government, has raised the hackles of Goa’s numerous civil society groups who allege that the government is trying to slip in SEZs through the back door by disguising them.

The health estates, which were notified through a government gazette, are meant to promote health services and facilitate medical tourism in the state. They will function under the newly formed Goa Health Services Development Corporation.

Tribal group calls shutdown in three West Bengal districts

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Kolkata, July 18: A tribal group spearheading a protest against police excesses in Lalgarh in West Bengal has called a 72-hour shutdown in three Maoist-affected districts from Sunday to protest the state government’s month-long operation against the rebels in the region.

BlackBerry to pay $267 million to settle patent lawsuit

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Toronto, July 18: BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd (RIM) will pay $267.5 million to California-based Visto Corp to settle a patent infringement lawsuit.

Visto, which is a wireless e-mail company, had slapped the lawsuit on RIM in a Texas court for patent infringements in 2006.

In its lawsuit, the US company had said that RIM was using its technology without authorisation. Visto’s software is used Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom AG’s T-Mobile and Sprint Nextel Corp.

Save your teeth, stop drinking acidic beverages

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Washington, July 18: It is known that acidic beverages like sodas and citric juices like grapefruit and orange juice can damage teeth. An expert says the only solution is to stop or at least reduce consumption of these beverages.

Mohamed A. Bassiouny, professor of restorative dentistry at Temple University and co-author of a new study on the subject, outlined three steps to rehabilitate teeth that suffer from dental erosion as a result of the excessive consumption of these products.

Wishing Priyanka Chopra a very happy Birthday

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Mumbai, July 18: Even though she has ‘PR’ as her initial two letters in her name, she is one chic who just does not need any PR to be in the news. On the other hand, it’s the term ‘PR’ that feels honoured and gratified to be a part of her name. We are indeed talking about the one and only gorgeously astonishing girl whom the world knows as ‘Priyanka Chopra’. We would rather call her the ‘Birthday Girl’ as she celebrates her grand birthday this Saturday.

Aloe vera’s healing power extends to teeth, gums

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Washington, July 18: The aloe vera plant’s ability to heal burns and cuts and soothe pain has been documented as far back as the 10th century. Now, it has also gained popularity as an active ingredient in tooth gel.

Similar to its use on skin, the aloe vera in tooth gels is used to cleanse and soothe teeth and gums, and is as effective as toothpaste to fight cavities, according to a study.

Aloe vera tooth gel is intended to perform the same function as toothpaste, which is to eliminate disease-causing bacteria in the mouth.

Solar activity has big impact on earth’s climate

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Washington, July 18: A high in solar activity impacts the earth in a way that resembles the devastating El Nino, releasing more energy than a million Hiroshima bombs, according to a new study.

The study shows that as the sun reaches maximum activity, it heats cloud-free parts of the Pacific Ocean enough to increase evaporation, intensify tropical rainfall and the trade winds, and cool the eastern tropical Pacific.

Terrorist nabbed in Dhaka linked to attacks in India

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Dhaka, July 18: Bangladesh authorities claim that an Indian militant arrested here has been living in the country since 1995 and has links with Pakistan-based terrorist groups as well as underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, media reports said Saturday.

Mufti Obaidullah, who was paraded before the media Friday, was described by Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner A.K.M. Shahidul Hoque as “one of the most wanted Indian terrorists”.

Seven militants killed in Pakistan

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Islamabad, July 18: Seven militants were killed and 11 injured in an air attack by security forces Saturday in northwest Pakistan, a media report said.

Fighter jets bombarded the hideouts of militants on receiving a tip-off regarding presence of Hakeemullah Mehsud, the leader of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban, in Upper Orakzai Tribal Agency, GEO TV reported.

–Agencies

How to talk about the birds and bees without offending

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New Delhi, July 18: Discussing sex and sexuality, HIV/AIDS and responsible sexual behaviour with adolescents is a topic that makes most teachers and parents squeamish and also has community elders fuming. How should one get over the prudishness and disapproval and also make the topic interesting and interactive for the students?

Though adolescence education is a part of the school curriculum, it faces a major hindrance in the form of objections from some community elders and parents who feel it will promote licentiousness among the children, said experts.

BSF to raise strength by 35,000

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Jammu, July 18: The strength of the Border Security Force (BSF) is to be increased by 35,000 troopers and a women’s battalion will be raised by July 25, the Director General (DG) of BSF M.L. Kumawat said Saturday.

Kumawat, addressing a press conference here, said that despite the “dangerous” situation in Pakistan, “our strong vigil has assured safe borders”.

He said that after the 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attacks, “there was heavy build up like situation at the border on the Pakistani side but we did not get provoked.”

India had been able to maintain calm on the borders, he added.

Blasts rock Marriott hotels in Jakarta, 9 dead, 50 injured

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Jakarta, July 17: In coordinated bombings, suspected terrorists targetted two luxury hotels in the Indonesian capital Jakarta today, killing at least nine people and injuring 50 others, many of them foreigners.

“There were two explosions, one in the Marriott and one in the Ritz-Carlton,” a police spokesman said. Mostly foreigners stay at these two hotels. It is not yet known if any Indian was among the dead or injured.

“So far, nine people have been killed. Eight died at the scene and one in the hospital,” the spokesman said, adding 14 foreigners were injured in the blast.

Iran opposition stages fresh protests in Tehran

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Tehran, July 17: Defiant supporters of Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi staged fresh demonstrations in Tehran Friday, witnesses said, after a powerful cleric called for the release of detainees held in a post-election crackdown.

Thousands of Mousavi supporters, shouting “Ya Hossein, Mir Hossein!” and “Allahu Akbar” (God is Greatest) demonstrated at various locations around Tehran university where Friday prayers were led by Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.

Reliance-DreamWorks deal may not benefit Bollywood

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New Delh, July 17i: Bollywood may not get any significant mileage from the deal between Reliance ADA Group and Steven Spielberg’s DreamWorks Studios as the share of revenue from Hollywood films that run in India is small, say industry experts. According to industry estimates, the Hollywood films generate only around 3 per cent of the Rs 12,000 crore Indian film industry’s annual revenues.

Supplier of Ahmedabad killer brew arrested

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Ahmedabad, July 17: Vinod Dagri, alleged to be the main supplier of the illicit liquor that led to the death of 136 people here last week, was arrested Friday along with three of his accomplices, police said.

“We arrested Dagri and three of his accomplices early this morning from the outskirts of Ahmedabad. They have been brought to the crime branch office for questioning,” a crime branch official said.

He added that Dagri and his accomplices had been absconding since July 5, when the first person died after consuming the killer brew in Sagrapith locality.

Two militants, woman associate killed in Jammu and Kashmir

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Jammu, July 17: Two Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militants are believed to have been killed along with a woman associate in an ongoing gunbattle with security forces in Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir Friday morning, officials said.

“We believe that two militants and their associate Shakeela have been killed but we can confirm this only when we recover the bodies,” Doda district Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Prabhat Singh told IANS.

Young, urban and draped in that six-yard wonder

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New Delhi, July 17: The traditional sari is making a stylish comeback in the wardrobes of young women in cities, with corporate honchos, politicians and actresses inspiring the new generation to drape it not only as evening wear but also to office.

“Most of the young generation wears saris to parties, evening get-togethers because you stand out and it is a most sensual attire. It looks great on every woman, irrespective of their body type,” ace designer Ritu Kumar, known for her ethnic Indian saris, told IANS.

Kumar feels the sari will remain special because of its elegance.

Azharuddin to court arrest in support of Joshi

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Lucknow, July 17: To mark his protest against the arrest of Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi, former Indian cricket captain and Congress MP Azharuddin will court arrest in his constituency Moradabad Friday.

“Azharuddin will lead a protest rally and court arrest after the Friday namaz in Moradabad,” said a Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) spokesperson.

Chandrayaan spacecraft’s faulty sensor set right

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Bangalore, July 17: A malfunctioning star sensor of India’s first lunar mission spacecraft Chandrayaan-I was set right by space scientists to ensure correct orientation, an official said here friday.

“One of the star sensors, which gives the orientation of the spacecraft, was malfunctioning but our scientists have overcome this problem with innovative techniques of using antenna pointing mechanism and gyroscope on board the spacecraft to get the orientation information,” Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) direcvtor S. Satish told IANS.

Eight killed as blasts hit Jakarta hotels

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Jakarta, July 17: At least eight people were killed in two powerful explosions at the JW Marriott and Ritz Carlton hotels Friday morning in the Indonesian capital, media reports said.

Jakarta police officials said four foreigners died in the apparent attack, but media reports put the toll at eight.

A number of people were injured in the blasts.

The first explosion hit the Ritz-Carlton, completely destroying its facade, and the second blast hit the nearby Marriott hotel.

A witness said the explosions were about five minutes apart.

–Agencies

US has no real concerns about India n-deal

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Washington, July 17: The US has again assured India that it does not have any real concerns about going forward with the India-US civil nuclear deal as it has proper IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) safeguards built into it.

“I think that whenever there’s one of these agreements, the so-called 123 agreements, there’s quite a bit of transparency measures built into it, IAEA safeguards,” State Department Spokesman Ian Kelly told reporters Thursday.

CM to discuss projects in DelhiJuly 17th, 2009

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Hyderabad, July 17: The Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, has decided to take up the KG basin gas controversy with the Centre.

Annoyed over the delay in increasing the gas supply to the state, Dr Reddy is planning to use his influence in the Congress to expedite a decision from the Centre on the ongoing dispute between Reliance Industries Limiter chairman, Mr Mukesh Ambani and and Reliance Dhirubhai Ambani Group chairman, Mr Anil Ambani.
He will meet the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, and the petroleum minister, Mr Murali Deora, on the issue.

Hong Kong bank manager steals $13 mn from customers

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Hong Kong, July 17: A bank manager in Hong Kong was Friday sent to jail for stealing almost $13 million from the accounts of wealthy customers.

A number of prominent Hong Kong socialites were among the victims of Cheuk Sau-yee, 31, a relationship manager in the private banking department of Hang Seng Bank.

Cheuk said she began taking the money to cover up for a $900,000 loss she made through a blunder on one client’s account, fearing the mistake would lead to her losing her $14,000-a-month job.