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China’s top 500 firms outperform US rivals in 2008: Survey

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Beijing, September 07: China’s top 500 companies outperformed their US counterparts for the first time last year, a survey conducted by a business group has revealed, as the financial crisis wreaked havoc in the United States.

Net profits at the nation’s highest-performing firms totalled USD 171 billion in 2008, compared to USD 99 billion for the US firms, according to the survey by the China Enterprise Confederation (CEC).

The business group has compiled a list of China’s top 500 companies, similar to the Fortune 500, since 2002.

US troops stormed through Afghan hospital: Report

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Kabul, September 07: A Swedish charity accused American troops on Monday of storming through a hospital in central Afghanistan, breaking down doors and tying up staff in a search for militants. The US military said it was investigating the allegation.

The Swedish Committee for Afghanistan accused the US Army’s 10th Mountain Division of entering the hospital without permission to look for insurgents in Wardak province, southwest of Kabul, according to the charity’s country director, Anders Fange.

Rocket hits Kabul, kills three family members: Police

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Kabul, September 07: A rocket fired on a house in Kabul in the early hours Monday morning killed three members of one family and injured two others, officials said.

“Three members of one family have been martyred and two others wounded,” an official at the Ministry of Interior said.

The rocket was fired from the outskirts of the city, landing on the Spin Kalay neighbourhood, a densely populated residential area in the capital’s western suburbs, he said.

“We are investigating where exactly the rocket was fired from,” said the Ministry press office.

Dozens of civilians died in NATO strike: Afghan rights body

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Kabul, September 07: Scores of civilians died in last week’s NATO air strike on Taliban insurgents in northern Afghanistan, a prominent domestic rights group said on Monday in a first independent estimate of the death toll.

Afghanistan Rights Monitor (ARM), a non-governmental group funded by domestic rights campaigners, said in a report based on more than a dozen interviews with local residents that between 60 and 70 civilians died in the September 4 strike in the Char Dara district of Kunduz province.

I was not a dictator: Musharraf

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London, September 07: Former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf has said it would be incorrect to dub him a dictator as, but for him, the media would not be enjoying the freedom it does.

“If I was a dictator, the media would not have gotten independence during tenure,” he told a delegation of the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) here, Online news agency reported, quoting a private TV channel.

The overall political situation in Pakistan, the war against terrorism and regional issues were discussed at length during the meeting of the erstwhile ruling party.

Warrant issued for Iraq’s ambassador to Jordan

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Baghdad, September 07: An Iraqi court has issued arrest warrants for the country’s ambassador to Jordan and a senior Finance Ministry official.

Judge Arif Shahin says the ambassador has been charged with refusing to carry out an arrest warrant for an Iraqi man accused of assassinating a leading Iraqi Baath Party official in Lebanon.

The ambassador, Saad al-Hiyyani, denies the charge.

The judge says the ministry official has been charged with wasting public money.

The official, Abdul-Basit Turki, is director general of the Finance Ministry’s auditing department.

Nine feared dead in Indonesian military air crash: Report

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Jakarta, September 07: Nine people were feared dead Monday after an Indonesian Navy aircraft disappeared in a remote part of Indonesian Borneo, local television reported.

Air traffic controllers lost contact with the Nomad plane around 0100 pm (0500 GMT) in East Kalimantan province, Navy spokesman Iskandar Sitompul was quoted as saying by Metro TV news.

“We lost contact with the aircraft when it was on a maritime patrolling mission in eastern Indonesia,” he added.

Rescue operations are being carried out to locate the missing plane, Sitompul said.

Taiwan Premier resigns over typhoon disaster

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Taipei, September 07: Taiwan Premier Liu Chao-shiuan said Monday that he submitted his resignation to the president to take the blame for a disaster triggered by last month’s Typhoon Morakot that left close to 700 dead and thousands homeless.

Liu said his resignation was approved by President Ma Ying-jeou Saturday ahead of a cabinet shuffle Thursday.

–Agencies

Two swine flu patients critical in Delhi hospital

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New Delhi, September 07: Two swine flu patients a 12-year-old girl and a 69-year-old man are critical and are on ventilator at a Delhi hospital, doctors said Monday.

“Both of them are in very critical condition and we are keeping our fingers crossed,” N.K. Chaturvedi, medical superintendent of the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital, said.

They were diagnosed with the H1N1 virus late last week but have other health complications as well.

“The girl has a respiratory problem and the 69-year-old male is suffering from renal failure,” Chaturvedi said.

Lockheed begins F-16 trials for Indian Air Force

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Bangalore, September 07: US aerospace major Lockheed Martin Monday began flying its three fighter F-16s here for trials of the medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRC) that the Indian Air Force (IAF) wants to buy, to replace its ageing MiG-21 fleet.

“The field trials will be conducted in Bangalore, Jaisalmer and Leh till Sep 18 in different conditions. We had the training phase from Sep 3-5 in preparation for the trials,” Lockheed’s international communications manager John Giese said.

‘India has right to respond to ceasefire violations by Pak’

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Rajouri, September 07: In the backdrop of recent ceasefire violations by Pakistan, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has said India has the right to respond to them.

“It is our right to respond in case of ceasefire violations,” he told reporters at an army function here yesterday.

He hoped that Pakistan will keep its promise of holding truce along the LoC as it has helped people on both sides.

Abdullah said the army will return to the barracks only when the situation improves in the state.

Jaswant chairs PAC meet, BJP MPs absent

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New Delhi, September 07: Jaswant Singh, who has defied the BJP’s advice to quit the Chairmanship of the Public Accounts Committee following his expulsion from the party, on Monday convened its first meeting.

As per reports, no BJP member of the committee attended the meeting. Former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha and former Maharashtra deputy CM Gopinath Munde are among the BJP MPs who did not show up at the meet.

Jaswant Singh had rejected the BJP’s demand to step down as Chairman, saying a decision on this can be taken only by the Lok Sabha Speaker and not by the party.

I did not finance book on Jinnah: Nusli Wadia

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New Delhi, September 07: Industrialist Nusli Wadia, grandson of Mohammad Ali Jinnah, today dismissed a suggestion that he had financed the book by Jaswant Singh to glorify Pakistan’s founder but said he was “appalled” by the BJP leader’s expulsion from the party.

“It is all nonsense. My grandfather is my grandfather, it is not going to change. I don’t need Jaswant Singh to write a certificate for him,” he told a private news channel.

Prez Patil asks countries to take steps to eliminate terrorism

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Dushanbe, September 07: India on Monday asked countries in the region to take “urgent, proactive measures” to cooperate and eliminate terrorism in all its forms and manifestations to ensure that these forces do not derail the processes of progress and prosperity.

President Pratibha Patil, who is in Tajikistan on a three-day state visit, conveyed India’s concerns about terrorist threats during talks with her Tajik counterpart Emomali Rahmon, which also covered a wide-ranging cooperation in the field of education, culture, investment and enhanced business transactions.

Pakistani flag found hoisted in Gujarat’s Anand district

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Anand, September 07: In a shocking incident, a Pakistani flag was found hoisted in Gujarat’s Anand district.

According to reports, a Pakistani flag was found hoisted in a graveyard in Amreth in Gujarat’s Anand district. The preliminary investigations have revealed that the flag had been there for the last two months.

The incident came to light when a Sub-Inspector informed his superiors about the flag following which he was asked to take action.

Retired Indian-origin man dying after London race attack

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London, September 07: An elderly Kolkata born man is fighting for his life in a London hospital on Monday, after a gang of teenage schoolboys beat him mercilessly in what the police say is a racist attack.

Retired care worker Ekram ul Haque, 67, was battered to the ground in front of his five-year-old granddaughter as they returned from their local south London mosque, police said.

After mutton biryani, Kasab now demands ‘basmati’ rice

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Mumbai, September 07: After ‘mutton biryani’, 26/11 Mumbai terror attack accused Ajmal Kasab now wants ‘basmati’ rice to be served to him in jail.

Kasab wants spicy food and ‘basmati’ rice for himself and if he does not get dish of his choice he gets furious and abuses the staff of the Arthur road central prison, where he is lodged.

Last week, he had demanded ‘basmati’ rice and before that wanted ‘mutton biryani’, Jail Superintendent Rajendra Dhamne said on Monday.

“Kasab’s mood swings still continue and time and again we reprimand him,” he said.

Forensic evidence tampered with in Aarushi case?

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New Delhi, September 07: The mystery surrounding the sensational Aarushi Talwar murder case has deepened further with evidence suggesting that the 14-year-old girl’s vaginal swab sent to the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics was not the sample originally taken from her body.

According to an independent investigation conducted by the Zee News into the case, the vaginal swab sent to the Hyderabad-based forensic laboratory did not contain any traces of semen or white discharge, suggesting that the samples were not of Arushi and instead belonged to an unidentified woman.

Neil-Ranbir to fight it out at the Box Office again!

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Mumbai, September 07: Bollywood’s young heartthrobs Ranbir Kapoor and Neil Nitin Mukesh, who were seen fighting it out for prestigious film awards as debutantes previously, may again have a clash, but strictly professional!
Now, once again, the actors are set to fight it out at the Box Office, as Ranbir’s upcoming film ‘Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani’ and Neil`s hard-hitting drama ‘Jail’ are slated for release on the same day – November 6, 2009.

Irrfan Khan to play Raghu Rai in foreign film ‘Behind the Bodice’

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Mumbai, September 07: Hollywood’s favourite Bollywood actor, Irrfan Khan, has landed himself yet another meaty but controversial international project. Known for his fixation with the West and passion for alternative cinema, Irrfan Khan is bound to stir many passions as he has given his nod to a foreign project that will re-ignite the debate surrounding depiction of nudity in art and photography.

With Indian art as its background, the film is set to showcase the controversies that embroiled MF Husain and Raghu Rai, who depicted nudity in their artwork.

Prince Harry and Chelsy back together

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London, September 07: British royal Prince Harry and his former girlfriend Chelsy Davy have decided to give their romance another shot, eight months after their much publicised break-up.

Twenty three-year-old Davy who had famously dumped the young royal on Facebook has reunited with him after several clandestine visits over the past few weeks, reported Daily Mail online.

The 24-year-old prince who dated the Zimbabwe-born-beauty for five years prior to the split, is understood to have initiated the meetings and the pair have been in regular contact by phone.

Crying is good for relationships: Study

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Washington, September 07: Crying is known to be a symptom of physical pain or stress but it can improve personal relationships, says a new study.

New analysis by Tel Aviv University (TAU) zoologist and evolutionary biologist Oren Hasson shows that while tears signal distress, they also function as an evolution-based mechanism to bring people closer.

“Crying is a highly evolved behaviour,” explains Hasson.

UAE Air Force plane detained at Kolkata with arms, explosives

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Kolkata, September 07: A transport aircraft of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Air Force that had landed at Kolkata airport for refuelling Sunday evening was detained for carrying arms and explosives without declaring them, an official spokesperson said here Monday.

The UAE Air Force plane (C130J) was flying from Abu Dhabi to Hanyang in China and had landed at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) airport here to refuel.

INDIAN TANDOORI FISH RECIPE

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Ingredients:

2 lbs of any white fish fillets (cut into 2-3-inch pieces)
1 tbsp chopped fresh ginger
4 cloves garlic
1/3 cup vinegar
Salt To Taste
1 tbsp ground coriander seeds
1 tbsp ground cumin seeds
1 tsp ground cayenne pepper
1/2 cup vegetable oil

How to make barbecued fish :

* Blend together ginger, garlic, vinegar, salt, coriander, cumin, cayenne and oil in the blender to form a fine paste.
* Marinate the fish pieces into the paste for about 4 hours in the refrigerator.
* Pre-heat the oven on maximum heat at broil.

Ramzan Special: Shikampuri Kebab

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This is an aromatic kebab made of yellow gram, mutton and yogurt.

Ingredients:

Mutton pieces (from the leg) 1/2 kg
Chana dal (split gram)1/3 cup
Green chillies, whole 3-4 or to taste
Ginger-garlic paste 1 tablespoon
Chilli powder 2 teaspoons or to taste
Black cardamom 4
Bay leaves 4
Cinnamon sticks 4
Cloves 6
Salt to taste
Yoghurt 1/2 cup
Garam masala (mixed spices) powder 1-1/2 teaspoons
Green chillies, finely chopped 2-3
Fresh coriander leaves, finely chopped 1/3 cup
Fresh mint leaves, finely chopped 2 tablespoons
Fresh cream or hung yoghurt 1/2 kg