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Delhi shivers in lowest temperature of season

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New Delhi, November 29:Chilly winds swept through the national capital Saturday with the lowest temperature of the season – 7.9 degrees – being recorded here.

“The minimum temperature recorded today (Saturday) was 7.9 degrees Celsius, two degrees below average. The maximum temperature was 25 degrees Celsius,” a met official told IANS.

The previous seasonal low of 8.6 degrees Celsius was recorded Nov 21.

“This is the lowest temperature recorded in November since 2006, when the temperature had dipped to 7 degrees Celsius,” the official said.

Yahoo improves its search engine

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Munich,November 29:Searches on the Yahoo engine should soon deliver more results, thanks in part to new filter functions, reports the company.

Those new filters could allow a searcher, for example, to limit results to those found on major websites like Amazon or Wikipedia. The company also reports that its filter allows searches by related terms.

The engine’s search methods have also been upgraded, reports Yahoo. It now analyses the search habit of users over a certain period of time to come up with logical connections between past and present searches.

ATS constable, two others killed by suspected SIMI activist

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Bhopal, November 29:An Anti-Terrorist Squad constable, involved in tracking members of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), was killed along with two others by a motorcycle-borne youth Saturday night. Police suspect the killer to be a SIMI activist. Six people have been arrested in connection with the killings, police said Sunday.

The police have recovered the motorbike used by the assailant.

Is the Golden Temple all real gold, asked Canadian PM

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Toronto,November 29:During his recent visit to the Sikhs’ holiest shrine, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper could not believe that the Golden Temple was all covered with real gold.

Harper was so struck by the sight of the resplendent Sikh temple that he asked someone in his entourage whether it was all real gold.

Britain to host conference on Afghanistan in January

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London, November 29:Britain would host a conference on Afghanistan Jan 28 next year, where members of the international coalition will discuss plans for handing control of the country back to local authorities, the prime minister’s office announced Saturday.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown joined UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to make the announcement Saturday from the Commonwealth summit in Trinidad and Tobago, Xinhua reported Sunday.

When I work, I’m like a machine: Beyonce

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London, November 29:US pop star Beyonce Knowles says she is so passionate about her career that she often works like a machine, without any breaks.

She often refuses to pause for meals while she is in the recording studio or rehearsing for performances, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

“When you are the person that created the music and you know how you want things to look, it’s all harmony, it all has to work together. When I work, I don’t eat, I don’t use the restroom. I’m like a machine,” said Knowles.

Senior bureaucrat commits suicide in Uttar Pradesh

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Lucknow, Novemebr 29:A senior Uttar Pradesh bureaucrat committed suicide at his residence here early Sunday, police said.

Harminder Raj Singh, principal secretary (housing) in the state government, shot himself in the head with his licensed revolver at his residence on Vikramaditya Marg here, an official said.

‘Telecom penetration in rural India faces challenges’

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New Delhi, November 29:Even as the rural market is growing attractive for India’s telecom industry, the operators face several challenges in rural penetration like illiteracy and low revenue per user, according to a report.

“Despite the inherent attractiveness of the rural market for telecom operators, several challenges in going rural stare the operators in their face,” said the report jointly prepared by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and global consultancy KPMG.

GE Healthcare offers IT solutions to Indian hospitals

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Bangalore, November 29:GE Healthcare, the $17-billion unit of General Electric, has initiated a project to provide IT solutions to Indian hospitals for affordable treatment.

The $1.5-billion GE Healthcare’s IT business has tied up with the Delhi-based Diwan Chand Aggarwal (DCA) imaging research centre for a pilot project to develop solutions that integrate the various functions of hospitals to deliver quality healthcare.

Shiv Sena in damage control mode after Smita outburst

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New Delhi,November 29:With the Congress reacting positively to feelers from Bal Thackarey’s daughter-in-law Smita Thackarey to join the party, a stunned Shiv Sena went into a damage control mode Saturdday with the party’s executive president Uddhav Thackeray refraining from openly commenting on the issue.

Reacting to Smita’s interview to a newspaper, he said he will comment if she announces a decision. However, he indicated that everyone could take his or her own decision.

“I will continue doing my work,” Uddhav, who is Smita’s brother-in-law, said.

61 dead in Bangladesh accidents

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Dhaka, November 29:Twenty one people were killed in road accidents in Bangladesh during the Eid-ul-Azha festival rush Saturday while 40 died in a boat capsize, media reports said Sunday.

The toll in the boat capsize at Bhola in the southern region touched 40 Sunday as rescue vessel M.V. Hamza arrived at Nizapur, 24 hours after the incident, Bdnews24.com website reported.

Some 25 passengers were still reported to be missing.

Perform or perish is Manmohan Singh’s mantra

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New Delhi, Novemeber 29:There’s a deadline coming up and many ministers are suddenly burning the midnight oil. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wants his entire cabinet to submit performance reports of the functioning of each ministry by Nov 30.

While several high performers like Home Minister P. Chidambaram, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh are confident that their ministries have made the mark, several others have reasons to worry.

Aarushi murder case: CBI raids hospital in Noida

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Noida, November 29:Eighteen months after the double murders of 14-year-old Aarushi Talwar and her domestic help in a Noida locality, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Sunday raided a hospital and seized some documents, an official said.

The sleuths conducted the raid in the records section of the Noida district hospital.

“The investigation is on and we have seized some documents. It includes the post- mortem reports of the entire 2008 year,” said a senior CBI official requesting anonymity.

Govind Naik caught red handed with woman in hotel room

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Siddapur,November 28:The convenor of the Hindu Jagran Vedike of North Karnataka, Govind Naik was caught red handed with a woman in a hotel room when the public broke in at the hotel in Siddapur. He was already in the news since a few days for protesting against the celebration of Eid ul Azha and for allegedly organizing attacks against the Muslims of the Bhatkal town.

AIMPLB unhappy about clean chit to Rao

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Lucknow, November 28:All India Muslim Personal Law Board has taken a strong exception to the “clean chit” given to then prime minister P V Narsimha Rao in Liberhan Commission report on Babri Masjid demolition and questioned the “unfortunate” observations made in the document on Muslim organisations.

A senior member of the Board, Maulana Khalid Rashid Firnagimahal, told PTI here today that giving a “clean chit” to Rao is a “mockery of sorts”.

Olympic Champions Germany off to good start in Champions Trophy

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Melbourne, November 28:Germany got their Champions Trophy hockey campaign off to a winning start Saturday with a 3-2 victory over England here.

The Olympic and World champions secured the group victory on the opening day of the tournament with a 66th-minute winner from captain Max Mueller.

Hosts Australia also made a positive start, defeating South Korea 4-0 with striker Des Abbott scoring once and setting up two others, while the Netherlands prevailed 3-2 against Spain.

Germany went head through Christoph Menke before Janes Tindall levelled matters off an Ashley Jackson corner.

Eid-ul-Zuha celebrated across Pakistan

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Islamabad, November 28: Eid-ul-Zuha was celebrated across Pakistan Saturday with religious zeal and fervour in commemoration of the supreme sacrifice offered by Hazrat Ibrahim Khalilullah and his son Hazrat Ismail Zabiullah in fulfilment of a divine order.

Eid prayers were offered at Eidgahs, principal mosques and open places across the country where the Ulema and Khateebs highlighted the significance and philosophy of the sacrifice and called upon Muslims to follow the teachings of Islam in true spirit, Geo TV reported.

Bopanna-Qureshi in Helsinki Challenger doubles final

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Helsinki (Finland), Nov 28 (IANS) India’s Rohan Bopanna and Pakistan’s Aisam-Ul-Haq

Qureshi have entered the doubles finals of the ATP Challenger here.

The third-seeded India-Pakistan pair rallied to beat the wilcard pair of Karol Beck of Slovakia and Jiri Krkoska of the Czech Republic 3-6, 7-5, 10-3 here Friday.

Bopanna-Qureshi next play the winner of the match between top seeds Henri Kontinen and Jarkko Nieminen of Finland and Germany’s Phillip Marx and Slovakia’s Igor Zelenay.

—————IANS

Van Persie ruled out for up to five months

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London, November 28:Arsenal suffered a huge blow to their hopes of winning silverware this season after Robin van Persie was ruled out for up to five months because of injury.

The Holland striker injured his ankle on international duty November 14 and had initially expected to be out for only six weeks.

But after another scan on the injury, Arsenal said Saturday that the injury will require an operation.

“Robin Van Persie returned to Arsenal on November 22nd following an ankle injury sustained whilst on international duty with Holland,” Arsenal said in a statement.

Domestic demand will help India grow faster: Mukherjee

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Chandigarh, November 28:The Indian economy has been able to face up to the recent global economic slowdown and will grow faster backed by strong domestic demand and a young population, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said here Saturday.

Delivering the P.N. Haksar memorial lecture at the Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development, Mukherjee said though the Asian economies had been impacted up to a certain extent by the slowdown, they were showing clear signs of a faster recovery.

Seven new dengue cases in Delhi, total now 1,068

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New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) With seven new dengue cases, the total number of people affected by the mosquito-borne disease in the national capital has reached 1,068, a health department official said Saturday.

“There were seven new confirmed cases in the last 24 hours. The cumulative of dengue affected people is 1,068,” Debashish Bhattacharya, state nodal health officer for dengue cases, told IANS.

Of the total, 1,055 were Delhi residents and 13 were from outside the city.

Three arrested for attack on former union minister’s home

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Chennai, November 28:Three people have been arrested for throwing petrol bombs at the house of former union minister and Congress leader E.V.K.S. Elangovan here Friday night, police said.

The attack came after Elangovan Friday removed posters and banners eulogising the late Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) chief V. Prabhakaran at Erode.

Elangovan has charged the Erode police officials with abusing him when he complained about the posters.

Insufficient evidence against Hafiz Saeed: Pakistan

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Port of Spain/New Delhi, November 28:Pakistan cannot prosecute Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) founder Hafiz Saeed, the alleged mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, as there is insufficient evidence against him, the country’s foreign minister said Saturday, even as he urged New Delhi to resume the sub-continental peace process.

India celebrates Eid-ul-Zuha with spirit of sacrifice

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New Delhi, November 28:Dressed in their finest, millions of Muslims Saturday thronged mosques across the country and then visited their relatives and friends to celebrate the festival of Eid-ul-Zuha.

In the national capital, one of the main centres for the Eid festivities was the historic Jama Masjid where thousands gathered to offer prayers.

After prayers, the devotees sacrificed goats and other animals and shared the meat with their relatives, friends and the poor.

CAT computer glitch to be short-lived: IIM director

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New Delhi, November 28:Notwithstanding the hiccups faced by thousands of students on day one of the Common Admission Test (CAT), an Indian Institute of Management (IIM) director said the online examination is a “democratising process” and “all the problems will be sorted out quickly”.

“CAT on computer is a democratising process and aims at benefiting students in a large way. We have heard about the server problem but it won’t be a prolonged one,” Debashis Chatterjee, director of IIM Kozhikode, told IANS.