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Security idea: CCTV blanket to wrap city

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Mumbai, July 04: A “blanket CCTV network” could soon cover the city, with cameras capturing images of every possible threat to security.

The state government on Friday formed a core group of eight members to look into the possibility of enlisting the aid of Indian Merchant Chambers (IMC) to set up such a blanket.

Since 26/11, the IMC had been discussing with the government how it could contribute towards the city’s security. It proposed setting up of a CCTV network across the city’s 2,000-odd roads and bylanes to monitor traffic and other movements.

Doctor who killed daughters critical in Max, hospital where she interned, met future husband

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New Delhi, July 04: Life has come a tragic full circle for Dr Rupa Kupuri, who allegedly killed her four-year-old twin daughters and then made an unsuccessful attempt to take her own life on Wednesday evening.

On Friday, the 32-year-old was still fighting for life at Pitampura’s Max Hospital — the same hospital where she began her medical career as an intern in 2000 after completing MBBS.

Shiney tells court: we had sex but with her consent

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Mumbai, July 04: Actor Shiney Ahuja on Friday went on record that he did have sex last month with the domestic help who has accused him of rape. He told the court, however, that it was consensual and she had responded to his advances.

A bail application filed last week had said Ahuja belongs to a “respectable” family and has been wrongly implicated. However, the prosecution has now taken a strong stand, its reply claiming that a respectable family did not reflect itself in Ahuja’s character.

Cop shoots at self day after 2nd marriage

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New Delhi, July 04: A Police officer deputed with the Intelligence Bureau allegedly shot at himself in his East Delhi house on Friday morning, a day after marrying for the second time, the police said. He is stated to be critical and is still fighting for life at a private hospital in East Delhi.

The officer, identified as Alok Bhal, 46, lives in E-1710, Krishna Nagar. He is posted as deputy central intelligence officer in the Capital. According to the police, Bhal had divorced his first wife some time ago.

Govt. bans Assam militant group DHD

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New Delhi, July 03: The Centre has banned the Dima Halam Daogah (DHD)-Black Widow militant group in the wake of its involvement in several incidents of violence in Assam.

The decision was taken at a meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday.

The move comes in the wake of DHD’s involvement in several violent incidents in North Cachar Hills district where the group targeted businessmen, railway properties besides government officials.

DHD’s chief Jewel Garlosa was arrested in Bangalore last month.

–Agencies

Weather in capital to remain pleasant

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New Delhi, July 03: Though monsoon rain continued to elude the capital for two consecutive days, a met official said Delhi will enjoy pleasant weather Friday.

The maximum temperature will hover around 34 degrees Celsius and the minimum will be around 26 degrees Celsius.

“The sky will mainly remain clear today. Later in the day, there is possibility of rain and thundershowers,” a met department official said.

The humidity will be around 66 percent.

–Agencies

11 killed in suspected US missile strike in Pak

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Islamabad, July 03: Pakistani intelligence officials say 11 people were killed in a suspected U.S. missile strike in northwest Pakistan.

The two officials say the attack struck a suspected training facility of Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud early Friday in the villages of Montoi in South Waziristan. A suspected militant hide-out in Kokat Khel was also hit.

South Waziristan is part of the lawless tribal belt along Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan where top Taliban and al-Qaida leaders are believed to be hiding.

Dancing in the streets after gay sex declared legal in India

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New Delhi, July 03: Jubilant crowds cheered outside a Delhi court yesterday after judges announced that gay sex was not a crime – a landmark ruling for India that spells the end for a 150-year-old law introduced by the British Raj.

Activists danced in the streets after the Delhi High Court ruled that “consensual sex amongst adults is legal which includes even gay sex and sex among the same sexes”.

The judgment, which technically only applies to the country’s capital but which will have national implications, will boost the small but increasingly vocal gay rights movement.

Iraq’s top Shiite clerics silent on Iran

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Baghdad, July 03: There is no place outside Iran that has closer links to Tehran’s ruling establishment than Iraq’s holy Shiite city of Najaf, where the silence during Iran’s post-election crisis says much about the deep complexities of their cross-border bonds.

“Simply put, the whole affair does not concern Najaf,” said Sheik Ali al-Najafi, son of and spokesman for Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Bashir al-Najafi, one of the city’s four top Shiite clerics. “We will not interfere in the internal affairs of a dear, next door neighbour.”

Soldier captured by rebels as US launches Afghan offensive

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Page 1 of 2 View as a single page 11:07AM Friday Jul 03, 2009
By Kim Sengupta
Washington, July 03: In the biggest military offensive of the Obama presidency, more than 4,000 US Marines, backed by heavy artillery and helicopter gunships, stormed into the Taleban heartland yesterday, the first assault in what one commander called a “summer of decision” aimed at stabilising Afghanistan ahead of next month’s elections.

As the mission unfolded, news broke that a US soldier had been kidnapped in Paktika province further south.

Bar employee arrested for killing cashier

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Mumbai, July 03: The Santa Cruz police on Wednesday arrested an employee of a bar for allegedly murdering the cashier in February this year. According to the police, the accused had killed the cashier to steal money from the safe.

The accused has been identified as Sagar Kumar (22) and the victim as Uday Shetty.Kumar. Kumar has been remanded to police custody till July 13. The police are now looking for the stolen booty.

US sanctions Pak Lashkar man, cites his Samjhauta blast link

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Washington, 03: The United States has imposed sanctions on four Pakistan-based terrorists including a Lashkar-e-Toiba operative accused in the 2007 Samjhauta blasts and 2006 Mumbai train bombings, freezing their assets and travel in the US.

Arif Qasmani, chief coordinator and fundraiser for the Lashkar, and three others — Ameen Al-Peshawari, Yahya Mujahid and Nasir Javaid — can’t enter into financial transactions in the US, or with a US national.

Mamata to present a ‘pro-people’ Rail Budget today

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New Delhi, July 03: Amid expectations of improvement in railway amenities and food served in trains, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee would present a “pro-people” Budget in Parliament on Friday.

“It will be a pro-people Budget, a simple Budget, people’s Budget,” Banerjee said.

According to sources close to her, the Budget in a way would reflect Mamata’s vision for the Railways in the coming years and means of generating resources for key projects.

High on her agenda would be completion of Kashmir rail link project and putting the dedicated freight corridor project on fast track.

Doctor kills twin daughters, attemps suicide

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New Delhi, July 03: A practising doctor took her twin daughters to a three star hotel in Pitampura on Thursday, saying they were going to swim in the hotel pool. The bodies of the 4-year-olds are now awaiting postmortem.

She had administered lethal injections to them in the hotel room, before injecting herself with a double dose. Dr Rupa Ranjan (35), working with the Ambedkar Hospital, is recuperating in a critical state in Max hospital.

Liberhan report, Lalgarh likely to generate heat in Parliament

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New Delhi, July 01: The first Budget session of Parliament after the elections begins on Thursday for a business-like session but the submission of the Liberhan Commission report has raised the prospects of raising political temperatures.

The scenario for the session, which was expected to be a smooth affair till now, has suddenly undergone a change with main opposition BJP attacking the Congress-led coalition after the presentation of the report of the Liberhan Commission that went into the Babri Masjid demolition.

Commerce Ministry expects sops in Budget as exports dip

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New Delhi, July 01: India’s exports continued to fall like there was no bottom, dipping by 29.2 per cent in May, and raised hopes for sops in the budget in the absence of any sign of recovery.

Government data released today showed that exports shrank for the eighth month in a row to USD 11.01 billion from USD 15.55 billion in May 2008 — an indication that there was no demand in the recession-hit global economies.

Imports too dropped by 39.2 per cent for the fifth consecutive month to USD 16.21 billion in May, helping halve the trade deficit in the month to USD 5.20 billion.

Ancient DNA used to map extinct bird’s colours

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Wellington, July 01: Australian and New Zealand scientists have used prehistoric feathers to help map the colour of giant extinct birds and they believe their method could help reconstruct the appearance of other extinct bird species.

The researchers retrieved ancient DNA from four species of New Zealand’s extinct Moa from feathers found in caves and rock shelters and believed to be at least 2,500 years old.

The native Moa – a flightless, powerfully built forager that stood over 8 feet tall and weighed 250 kilograms – ranged widely in southern New Zealand before the arrival of man.

Stress more likely to make men gamble or take risks

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Washington, July 01: Stressed men are more likely to gamble, smoke, have unsafe sex or consume illegal drugs. Conversely, stressed women moderate their behaviour and are less likely to indulge in risky choices, says a new study.

“Evolutionarily speaking, it’s perhaps more beneficial for men to be aggressive in stressful, high-arousal situations when risk and reward are involved,” said gerontologist Nichole Lighthall.

For teeth, orange juice worse than whitening agents

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Washington, July 01: When it comes to dental health, an acidic fruit juice like orange is even worse than teeth whitening agents, warns a recent study.

University of Rochester Medical Centre’s YanFang Ren and his team determined that the effects of six percent hydrogen peroxide, the common ingredient in over-the-counter whitening products, are insignificant compared to acidic fruit juices.

For the first time, researchers were able to see extensive surface detail thanks to a new focus-variation vertical scanning microscope.

Security situation in Afghanistan deeply worrying: India

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Washington, July 01: Concerned over the security situation in Afghanistan, India on Wednedtoday told the UN Security Council that the talks of “reconciliation” requires greater caution and said distinctions like “good” and “bad” Taliban could be seen as reflection of “weakness”.

“The security situation remains deeply worrying. It does not take much foresight to predict that the coming six months will be difficult, most of all, for the Afghan people,” the Indian Ambassador to the UN, Hardeep Puri, said at a special meeting of the Council On Afghanistan.

Katrina throws starry tantrums

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Mumbai, July 01: Rumours are rife in industry circleas that Katrina Kaif threw a lot of starry tantrums while shooting for the ad shoot of a famous designer luxury brand soon to be launched in India. If sources are to be believed, Katrina was demanded and was paid a huge fee for the endorsement deal.

Present US-India ties unthinkable in mid 80s: US Admiral

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Washington, July 01: The level of military engagement between India and the United States at present was unthinkable in the mid-80s, a top US military official has said.

Commander of the US Pacific Command Admiral Timothy Keating, who returned from a trip to India a few weeks ago, said the Indian government is more willing to talk about engagement and partnership with the United States than they were in the mid-’80s.

More foreign students killed in Australia than government admits: Report Buzz Up Share

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Melbourne, July 01: Australian coroners have suppressed the details of the death of over 50 international students ‘amid evidence the death toll is higher’ than the government has admitted, a media report claimed Wednesday.

‘Details of the deaths of more than 50 overseas students have been suppressed by Australian coroners amid evidence the death toll is higher than the Federal Government has admitted,’ The Age reported Wednesday.

India will reject greenhouse gas emission targets

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New Delhi, july: India will not sign up to targets to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions but will instead focus on fighting poverty and boosting economic growth, the environment minister said on Tuesday.

India is one of the world’s biggest emitters alongside China, the U.S. and Russia, and the second most populous nation. But India’s per capita emissions lag far behind rich countries and it feels the developed world should take the lead on tackling climate change.

Hyderabad no hub for terror: Chidambaram

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Hyderabad, July 01: Union Home Minister P Chidambaram today asserted that Hyderabad was no hub for terrorist activities in the country.

”Hyderabad cannot be branded as a hub for terrorists. No city can be branded in that manner,” he told a press conference after dedicating to the nation the country’s third National Security Guard (NSG) regional hub here. ”As a regular briefing, the central intelligence agencies had shared inputs with the Andhra Pradesh police three weeks ago.