salman_jobs Batting legend Rahul Dravid has backed Virat Kohli to lead the Indian cricket team on a long- term basis, describing him as the ideal leader around whom the country can plan its Test future.
Kohli led the Indian side in two matches in the just-concluded Test series in Australia, which they lost 0-2, but Dravid said that the BCCI can keep faith in him as he can lead the team and also perform individually.
The New York City Police Department (NYPD) and other law enforcement personnel responded to a threat from the Sunni militant group Islamic State (IS) after someone re-released an old message that tells followers to “rise up and kill law enforcement officers”.
The threat specifically named the US, France, Australia and Canada as targets, CNN reported.
NYPD employees were told in an internal memo to “remain alert and consider tactics at all times while on patrol”, especially in light of the attacks in France last week.
Boosted by Sourav Ganguly’s pep talk and the return of Wriddhiman Saha, Bengal will look to bounce back by logging six points against a struggling Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) in their Ranji Trophy cricket Group A match here on Tuesday.
The former India captain and Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) joint secretary, Ganguly, who has returned from his commentary assignment in Australia, gave a peptalk in the dressing room before a close door meeting with the big four of the team — coach Ashok Malhotra, captain Laxmi Ratan Shukla, batsman Manoj Tiwary and pacer Ashok Dinda — in his cabin.
Around 500 South Korean Buddhist monks congregated in Bihar’s Bodh Gaya state to pray for world peace and tranquility on Monday. The monks, who are associated with a Seoul-based Buddhist non-governmental relief organisation, conducted prayer ceremonies at Mahabodhi temple, where the Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment. Apart from holding prayers at the Mahabodhi temple, these monks will tour prominent Buddhist sites in the country and pray for global peace. “These 500 people are on a 15-day tour in India.
In a first-of-its-kind, Jaipur played host to a Laughter Festival, where comics came together to enthrall the audience with their performances. A two-day event, the festival saw a large attendance in its very first edition. Thousands of people laughed their hearts out over the performances of standup comedy artistes like Raju Shrivastava and others. “This trend will be very popular. I have done 3,000 shows till now but this is first kind of show where artistes and audience both are equally enjoying the show,” said Shrivastava.
Asserting that Washington’s relationship with Paris is constant and is based on shared values, United States Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday said his country has been deeply coordinating with France from the moment the horrific attacks took place in that nation. “I want to emphasize that the relationship with France is not about one day or one particular moment, it’s an ongoing long-time relationship that is deeply deeply based on the shared values and particularly the commitment that we share of the freedom of expression,” Kerry told the media here.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday welcomed the announcement of dates for the Delhi Assembly polls and expressed confidence of achieving majority and forming a good government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership. “We welcome the announcement of the election dates. Whatever the Election Commission decides, it is applicable to everyone. And it is now an opportunity for the people of Delhi to have a government of their choice,” said BJP leader Nalin Kohli.
Reacting sharply to Pakistan’s allegation that it was carrying out attacks from Afghanistan soil, India on Monday said it was well known who was “upstreaming terrorism” and Islamabad was making an effort to obscure the challenge the safe havens pose to the region.
“We all know, who is upstreaming terrorism and who endeavours to downstream terrorism. It is certainly not India. We all also know that the main threat to peace and security in Afghanistan comes from terrorism.
Air Marshal Anil Khosla on Monday took over as Director General Air Operations at the Air Headquarters here.
An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, he was commissioned in the fighter stream of the Indian Air Force in December 1979, an official statement said.
He has over 4,000 hours of flying experience, having flown the Jaguar and MiG 21. He is equally experienced in both ground attack and air defence roles with specialisation in maritime roles.
AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal Sunday hit out at the BJP for making false claims and mocked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for calling him an “anarchist”.
“The mood in Delhi is different from what it was a year ago. Though the Congress is nowhere in the picture, we are more popular than the BJP and ahead of it in public perception for the ensuing elections,” the Aam Aadmi Party chief said here.
Four heart valves and liver, harvested from a brain dead person, were sent for transplant to two hospitals in Chennai within six hours by ambulance on Sunday, covering a distance of around 500 km.
The organs – kidneys, heart valves and liver – were harvested by doctors at the Sri Abhirami Hospital in the city last evening and the heart valves and liver were sent by ambulance to Madras Medical Mission Hospital and Apollo Hospitals in Chennai from here at around 1.30 AM.
Scientists have used human cells to grow tissue-engineered small intestine which mimics key aspects of a functioning human gut.
The tissue-engineered small intestine developed by researchers at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) contains important elements of the mucosal lining and support structures, including the ability to absorb sugars, and even tiny or ultra-structural components like cellular connections.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley Sunday said the Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors Summit had become the country’s main economic summit while encouraging other states to organise events of similar kind.
“Today, many other states have adopted this approach. The government of India is committed to supporting any such initiative of any state government,” Jaitley said in his speech at the summit here.
Later talking to reporters, he said: “I think this has become the principle economic summit as far as India is concerned. Now I think this is where economic activity is happening.”
Jharkhand government has informed the Centre that several programmes in the state have been pending because of requirement of forest clearance.
Calling on Union Minister of state for Forest and Environment (Independent charge) Prakash Javadekar in Delhi yesterday, Chief Minister Raghubar Das apprised him of the ongoing developmental works in the state.
Das, however, said several programmes were pending due to requirement of forest clearance, an official release said here.
CBI today smashed a major bribery racket allegedly involving senior Income Tax officials, chartered accountants and businessmen, arresting four persons including a Joint Commissioner of I-T department.
In the operation which started yesterday across Mumbai and Chennai, the agency has so far arrested Salong Yaden, Joint Commissioner of Income Tax department posted in Chennai, CBI sources said here.
About 1.4 kg of gold worth Rs 40 lakh was seized from an Air India passenger from Abu Dhabi at nearby Karippur International airport, Air Customs officials said today.
Officials found the gold concealed inside an iron box, melted and poured in the shape of the box, during a check yesterday.
They said the passenger Riaz, hailing from Palakkad district, has been taken into custody.
PTI
Congress leader and former Union Minister Rajeev Shukla today said that it is for the party high command to decide whether Rahul Gandhi should be made President of the party.
“Party leaders have been demanding to make Rahul Gandhi the President of the Congress party since long. But I think this decision should rest with the party high command. The decision on who should take what position in the party should rest with Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi,” he said.
Legendary athlete Milkha Singh today said hockey wizard Dhyan Chand should have been the first sportspersons to be conferred with the country’s highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna.
“Dhyan Chand should have got Bharat Ratna first. Dhyan Chand was the most deserving candidate,” Milkha told reporters.
The ‘Flying Sikh’ though felt that bestowing the honour on cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar has opened the door for the other Indian sportspersons.
Sri Lanka’s new President Maithripala Sirisena today invited all the political parties to join his national unity government and pledged to work for religious harmony by giving due recognition to all minorities.
“I invite all parties to be part of a government of national unity,” Sirisena said in his first address to the nation from the central town of Kandy after winning the historic elections that ended the 10-year rule of Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Sirisena said as pledged in his campaign manifesto, the powers of the executive president will be conferred to parliament.
In line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s focus on disseminating information through new media, Information and Broadcasting Ministry is planning to use ‘WhatsApp’ and also integrate other social media platforms to hold ‘talkathons’.
While the ministry has been widely using Twitter, Facebook and Youtube to publicise important events, it has yet not utilised the potential of WhatsApp, a senior official said.
Pakistan`s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has announced that the Army Public School in Peshawar will be reopened on January 12, almost a month after the Taliban massacre that left 132 children dead.
According to Dawn News, other educational institutions in the province will also be reopened on the same day.
After the December 16 carnage, the government had ordered stricter orders for all the schools across the country regarding their security measures.
Due to the threats of further attack by the Taliban, government had also extended winter vacations in educational institutions.
ANI
The Delhi High court has expressed concern over the lives led by military personnel, saying striking a balance between duty as a member of the armed forces and social obligations as a family member was always difficult.
“Striking a balance between discharge of duties as member of disciplined force and social obligations qua family has always been difficult for the members of armed forces as well paramilitary forces,” the court said in its order.
Al Qaeda has provided its followers with a new “bomb recipe” with which an explosive device can be made using household goods avoiding metal components intended to evade airport security and blow up a passenger jet.
The terror group’s branch in Yemen, which directed Wednesday’s attack against the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, has also told operatives that Britain is a higher priority target than France.
Outlining the bomb “recipe” in the latest issue of its online magazine ‘Inspire’, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) states: “We have spared no effort in simplifying the idea.”
Four Jewish hostages killed in the terror attack on a Kosher supermarket in Paris will be laid to rest at a cemetery here on Tuesday, even as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appealed to French Jews to immigrate to Israel and promised a “warm” welcome.
Robert Ejnes, the director of the CRIF, an umbrella organisation of French Jewish communities, who is coordinating the transfer of the victims’ bodies to Israel told Ynet news portal that the four victims will be laid to rest in the Mount of Olives cemetery in Jerusalem.
One of the victims of Australia’s Lindt Cafe stand-off was reportedly killed by a police bullet when she was caught in the crossfire between the gunman and the cops, media report said today.
Katrina Dawson, 38, was caught in the crossfire and struck possibly by a ricochet.
“The barrister was struck by police fire that was not a direct shot and possibly a ricochet, when Tactical Operations Unit officers stormed the cafe just after 2am on 16 December,” police was quoted as saying by Sydney Morning Herald.