Month: July 2009

Doctors closely monitor baby with two heads born in Philippines

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Manila, July 29: Doctors in a government hospital in the Philippine capital on Wednesday were closely monitoring the condition of a baby girl born with two heads.

The still unnamed baby was born late Tuesday at Doctor Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital in downtown Manila.

One of the unnamed attending doctors said the newborn was in a stable condition but she may die if both heads share only one heart.

The parents of the baby, a tricycle driver and a housewife, are appealing for help and prayers.

—-Agencies

Sensex slips into red on opening

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Mumbai, July 29: A key index of the Indian equities markets opened slightly lower Wednesday, and slid further into the red about five minutes into trade.

The sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) opened at 15,293.19 points, as against Tuesday’s close at 15,331.94 points, and then moved further down to 15,253.1 points.

The broader S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) was also ruling in the red at 4,531.9 points, a loss of 0.71 percent.

Dozens lightly wounded by Spanish car bomb

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Madrid, July 29: Dozens of people were slightly wounded when a car bomb exploded in the northern Spanish city of Burgos early on Wednesday, according to reports.

Police blamed the blast on Basque separatist rebels ETA, claimed the report published on the website of newspaper El Mundo.

The bomb exploded near the Civil Guard barracks in the city.

ETA are held responsible for killing more than 800 people in the past 40 years in a campaign to carve out an independent Basque homeland in northern Spain and southern France.

Fierce clashes continue in Nigeria

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Potiskum, July 29: Fierce clashes between local fighters and security forces are continuing in northeastern Nigeria.

The battles have left over 250 people dead over the past three days.

Witnesses say security forces have shelled a mosque and the home of extremist leader Mohammed Yusuf in Borno state.

Police say the shelling was in response to mortar fire and gunshots from the building.

Sporadic mortar fire and gunshots were heard in Maiduguri and a black plume of smoke rose above the city.

Lalu, Mulayam join Left protests over price rise

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New Delhi, July 29: A joint protest against price rise, organised by the Left Front, saw participation from the Opposition as well as allies of the government.

For the first time since the swearing-in of the second United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, the Left parties organised a joint protest on the issue.

Several supporters of the UPA, including the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), joined the demonstration. They urged the Centre to come up with concrete measures to control the rising prices.

Dhaka sees heaviest rain in 53 years

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Dhaka, July 29: Bangladesh has been battered by its heaviest rain storms in 53 years, leaving at least six people dead and stranding thousands in their swamped homes.

Six persons, including two children, were drowned or electrocuted as power lines snapped in the capital Dhaka, an overcrowded city of about 10 million, on Tuesday.

The Weather Bureau reported 13 inches (33.3 cms) of rain fell in 12 hours in Dhaka, the highest amount in a single day since 1956.

Cigarette packaging misleads smokers

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Washington, July 29: Health experts from Oxford University have revealed that despite stringent efforts cigarette packaging styles are still misleading consumers over health hazards.

Most of the smokers believe that cigarettes are less hazardous when the packs display words such as “silver” or “smooth,” have lower numbers incorporated into the brand name or have lighter colours or pictures of filters on the pack.

Risky sexual behaviour among Jharkhand youths: Study

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Ranchi, July 29: The incidence of premarital sex among Jharkhand youths, particularly in tribal areas, is higher than the national average, says a study that also points to low condom use and little awareness of AIDS in this section.

According to the survey, 17 percent of young men and seven percent of young women indulge in pre-marital sex while the national average is around 15 percent and three percent respectively.

UP govt to pay non-practising allowance to doctors

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Lucknow, July 29: Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday decided to pay non-practicing allowance (NPA) to government doctors of Provincial Medical Service.

A meeting of the state cabinet presided by chief minister Mayawati took the decision to pay non-practicing allowance equivalent to 25 percent of salary of allopath government doctors.

The decision would benefit nine thousand doctors of the Provincial Medical Service of the state government.

–Agencies

Afghan govt. reaches truce with local Taliban

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Kabul, July 29: Ahead of the crucial presidential polls, the Afghan government has made a truce with the Taliban in Badghis Province and announced a ceasefire.

After nearly three weeks of talks, the deal was ultimately reached with the intervention of tribal elders of a small part of the northwestern Province of Badghis, where insurgent attacks have soared and thousands more troops have poured in to establish security for the August 20 election.

Bihar MLA’s killers among nine get life term

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Patna, July 29: Nine persons were sentenced to life imprisonment on Tuesday by three courts of Bihar in cases of murder and abduction.

A Bhabua court today awarded life term to two persons for the murder of former BSP MLA from Rapatganj in Uttar Pradesh Khamri Singh Kharwar in Bihar’s Kaimur district.

Additional district and sessions judge T P Sharma found Subba Yadav and Ramchand Yadav guilty of killing the former MLA and sentenced them to life-imprisonment.

Kharwar was killed with sharp-edged weapons at village Dumardev under Chainpur police station on January 2, 2006.

Conditions intolerable at Israeli desert prison

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Jerusalem, July 29: Hundreds of Palestinian detainees have criticized the deteriorating conditions in Israel’s desert prison of al-Naqab, saying they are denied their basic rights.

They complain that the Israeli administration refuses to treat sick prisoners despite ill health. They say that when transferred to Israeli hospitals, doctors in many instances have falsely claimed that they are fine and sent them back to their cells.

Several prisoners met with a Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) lawyer this week and complained of their deteriorating conditions.

Netanyahu rejects US call for halt to settlements

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Washington, July 29: US Mideast envoy George Mitchell and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have discussed Israel’s settlements in the occupied West Bank.

The two met for almost three hours on Tuesday in Jerusalem (al-Quds) to discuss the thorny issue of illegal settlements, but with little progress.

The US has been pressing Israel to stop the expansion of illegal settlements in occupied Palestine, which has stalled peace negotiations.

US, China agree to fight climate change

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Beijing, July 29: The United States and China have reached a deal which envisages stronger mutual cooperation in the promotion of free trade and the fight against climate change.

The document was signed in Washington, DC on the second day of bilateral talks between US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan.

The two sides also discussed ways to curb protectionism amid the global economic downturn.

Washington said it is trying to get China to reduce its reliance on exports to the US.

Madhya Pradesh tops rape cases list

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New Delhi, July 29: The country witnessed a surge in rape cases in 2007 with Madhya Pradesh topping the list followed by West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh.

Delhi reported 598 rape cases thus topping the chart of Union territories which registered a total of 641 cases.

According to official data, a total of 3,010 rape cases were registered in Madhya Pradesh in 2007.

There were 2,106 cases reported in West Bengal, 1,648 in Uttar Pradesh and 1,555 in Bihar during the period.

PM to clarify on Indo-Pak jt statement today

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New Delhi, July 29: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will Wednesday defend the joint statement with his Pakistani counterpart Yusuf Raza Gilani agreeing to de-link the issue of terrorism from future composite dialouge.

The joint statement issued after the two leader met in Sharm-el-Sheikh in Egypt on July 16 also had a reference to Balochistan, where Pakistan accuses India of fomenting an insurgency. New Delhi denies the charge.

‘Good times’ Kingfisher warns staff of salary delays

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New Delhi, July 29: It seems to be end of good times for Kingfisher Airlines as the airliner has sent a mail to its employees warning them of salary delays, media reports claimed Wednesday.

The airline, smarting under a loss of nearly Rs 8000 crore, has already trimmed its fleet to 69 from the earlier 89. In a statement underlining the difficulties of survival in the industry, Kingfisher top management also hinted that the future of the airline is uncertain.

Sonia lets Lalu stay in front row seat

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New Delhi, July 29: The Congress and the RJD may have gone their ways in Bihar, and Lalu Prasad may not be a minister anymore, but the rapport between him and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi remains.

Earlier this week Gandhi intervened to ensure that the former railway minister was allotted a front row seat in the Lok Sabha, from the Congress quota. The RJD has four members in the Lok Sabha and has been relegated to the back benches.

Queen Elizabeth gets first Sikh guards

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London, July 29: In a first, two Sikh men have been inducted into the Royal Guards who protect British Queen Elizabeth II.

Simranjit Singh (26) would get the honour of being the first ever Sikh to wear his turban on public duties protecting the Queen and the crown jewels.

The other Sikh inducted into the elite force is Sarvjit Singh (28). Both are serving British Army men.

Signaler Simranjit now posted at Buckingham Palace serves with 21st Signal Regiment based in Wiltshire.

His partner Lance Corporal Sarvjit serves with 3rd Regiment Army Air Corps based in Suffolk.

UPA reversed India’s strategic positions, NDA tells president

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New Delhi, July 29: NDA leaders have told president Pratibha Patil that the Manmohan Singh government has “completely reversed India’s strategic and foreign policy positions, much to the detriment of the nation”.Emerging after handing a memorandum to the president, BJP leader LK Advani said the NDA urged president Patil to intervene and prevent some of the agreements that were yet to be signed.

Saif follows in Bebo’s steps!

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Mumbai, July 29: This may sound too preposterous but don’t be surprised if Saif Ali Khan’s Love Aaj Kal takes as huge an initial as Kareena Kapoor’s Kambakkht Ishq did a few weeks back. The trade is extra upbeat about Saif’s maiden production as there is huge demand for the film.

Reveals a trade insider, “Eros, the co-producer of Kambakkht Ishq and Love Aaj Kal, doesn’t need to despair looking at the falling collections of Kambakkht Ishq because their upcoming film Love Aaj Kal just might shake the box-office.

Train derails in southern China, killing 4

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Beijing, July 29: Delicious Digg Facebook Fark Newsvine Reddit StumbleUpon Technorati Yahoo! Bookmarks Print AP – In this photo released by China’s Xinhua News Agency, derailed train cars are seen at an accident site … 55 mins ago
BEIJING – A landslide caused a train to derail in southern China on Wednesday, killing at least four people and injuring 50, state media said.

The official Xinhua News Agency said the train derailed in the pre-dawn hours in Liuzhou city in the Guangxi region.

Pakistani man jailed for life for killing three prostitutes

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Hong Kong, July 29: An unemployed Pakistani man has been jailed for life after strangling three prostitutes in a three-day killing spree in Hong Kong, a media report said Wednesday.

Nadeem Razaq, 24, who came to Hong Kong when he was one year old, claimed in police interviews that he murdered the women on the orders of armed debt collectors in Macau, the South China Morning Post newspaper said.

Microsoft-Yahoo search deal imminent

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San Francisco, July 29: Microsoft and Yahoo will announce a search and advertising partnership on Wednesday, capping months of negotiations aimed at challenging the internet dominance of Google, The Wall Street Journal reported late Tuesday.

The paper’s blog AllThingsD said that under the terms of the deal, Yahoo will use Microsoft’s new search engine on its sites, while Yahoo would handle some advertising sales for Microsoft. The two companies will share search-related advertising revenue, the report said.

Neither companies would comment on the reports.

Gammon India may not be blacklisted: DMRC Chief

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New Delhi, July 29: Construction major Gammon India is likely to get off the hook as the company is “very important” to Delhi Metro for the completion of its projects in time, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) indicated on Tuesday even as it blacklisted two other firms for the July 12 mishap that killed six people and injured 15 others.

“Gammon India is very important for us. They are involved in five major projects in Phase II. If you take them away, the projects will get delayed by six to eight months,” DMRC Chief E Sreedharan said.