Month: July 2009

Wanted man shot dead in Uttar Pradesh

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Lucknow, July 07: A man wanted in over 20 criminal cases, including those of murder and abduction was shot down by the police here Monday, officials said.

“Rakesh Kewat, a close associate of bandit Ghanshyam Kewat, was killed in a gun battle that continued for about an hour in the Gudumba locality in Lucknow,” Deputy Inspector General (DIG) N.K. Srivastava told reporters.

“While we managed to gun down Rakesh Kewat, one of his aides managed to escape. Two pistols and several live cartridges were recovered from Rakesh Kewat’s possession,” he added.

Woman, five minor girls drowned in water tank

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Bikaner, July 06: A woman and five minor girls today drowned in a water tank in Bhansar village under Chatragarh division, sources said. The incident occurred this afternoon when they went to take a bath in the 15-ft deep water tank, they said.

A girl slipped into the tank while bathing and when the woman and the other girls tried to rescue her they also fell into it, they added. Deceased were identified as Paresha (30), Asha (3), Bagati (13), Mukhtyara (10), Sarma (11) and Bhaita (10).

—PTI—

Mumbai flood control project gets Rs.500 crore

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Mumbai, July 06: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee Monday allocated Rs.500 crore to the Brihanmumbai Storm Water Drainage Project designed to control floods in the city during monsoon.

The Rs.1,200-crore project, entirely funded by the central government, was sanctioned Rs.500 crore last fiscal.

While Mukherjee had allocated Rs.200 crore in the interim budget presented earlier this year, the allocation has now been enhanced to Rs.500 million – leaving a shortfall of Rs.2 billion.

Eleven new swine flu cases in S Africa raises total to 29

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Durban, July 06: Eleven fresh cases of H1N1 influenza have been reported in South Africa, taking the number of confirmed cases of swine flu to 29 in the country.

The Department of Health said in a statement today the new cases were all of university students, and National Institute of Communicable Diseases had confirmed them as ‘positive’.

Sixteen cases have been linked with university sports events held in Johannesburg region where majority of students, who were male squash players, shared the same residence.

US and Russia agree key nuclear deal

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Washington, July 06: Russia and the US agreed today to cut their nuclear warhead arsenals to as few as 1,500 each, aiming toward the lowest levels of any US-Russia arms control deal.

The initial agreement signed by presidents Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev at a Moscow summit, is meant to guide negotiators as the nations work toward a replacement pact for the START strategic arms control reduction treaty, which expires in December.
–Agencies

Tunisia arrests 9 men over plot to kill US soldiers

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Washington, July 06: Tunisian police have arrested nine men, including two officers, and charged them with plotting to kill U.S. servicemen taking part in joint military exercices in the North African country, a defence lawyer said on Monday.

Tunisia has been clamping down on radical Islamists over the past few years and has jailed more than 1,000 people, many of whom planned to join insurgents in Iraq to fight U.S.-led forces there and. Most are still in prison.

Union says BA cabin crews reject cost-cut measures

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Washington, July 06: Cabin crew union members at British Airways on Monday rejected the company’s proposals to slash costs, including pay freezes, new contracts for cabin crew and 3,700 job cuts, Unite union said.

“There was an overwhelming rejection of BA’s proposals, including a new rate for starters, a pay freeze and changes to crewing patterns that are quite profound,” a union spokesperson said.

More than 2,000 of the union’s about 27,000 BA members were meeting at Kempton Park Racecourse in Middlesex.

Cong alleges irregularities in Guj power sector

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Gandhinagar, July 06: Accusing the Narendra Modi government of “favouritism” and “corruption”, the Opposition Congress today said there has been financial irregularities and corruption in power purchase from the Adani group.

Referring to a High Court judgement, Leader of Opposition Shaktisinh Gohil said in Assembly that the court also had found that the state government’s intentions were malafide and were meant to favour Adani group.

He said the High Court observed that the government had “favoured Adani Enterprise over other bidders”.

6 US troops killed in Afghanistan

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Kabul, July 06: Two roadside bombs killed six American troops in Afghanistan on Monday, as a suicide bomber attacked the gate of the main NATO base in the south, officials said.

The attacks come as thousands of U.S. Marines continued with their massive anti-Taliban offensive in the south, the biggest U.S. military operation since the ouster of the Taliban from power in 2001.

American troops recently received new guidelines limiting use of airstrikes in order to minimize Afghan civilian casualties that threaten local support of foreign forces’ presence.

Obama, Medvedev agree to pursue nuclear reduction

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Moscow, July 06: President Barack Obama said he and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev are countering “a sense of drift” in relations between their nations with preliminary agreement Monday to reduce the world’s two largest nuclear stockpiles to as few as 1,500 warheads each.

“We must lead by example, and that’s what we are doing here today,” Obama said as he and his Russian host pointed their arsenals toward the lowest levels of any U.S.-Russia arms control agreement.

JK CM meets PM, Chidambaram

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New Delhi, July 06: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today had a spate of meetings with central leaders, including Prime Minister Mamohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram over re-orientation and re-organisation of paramilitary forces in the state. Omar, who is in the national capital, met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and later Chidambaram and in both the meetings, National Security Advisor M K Narayanan also participated.

Central committee meet will settle everything: Pandhe

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Thiruvananthapuram, July 06: A day after CPI-M Politburo decided to convene a central committee meeting to find a solution to the infighting in party”s Kerala unit, Politburo member M K Pandhe said all issues including the graft case would come up for discussion at the July 11-12 meeting. In a brief chat with reporters on the sidelines of a party function here today, Pandhe, also a CITU leader, said besides SNC Lavalin issue, organisational problems in the party and the functioning of the state government would also be discussed.

Maytas Infra awarded two airport projects

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Bangalore, July 06: The Karnataka government today decided to award the contract to develop greenfield airport projects at Gulbara and Shimoga to Maytas Infra.

Briefing reporters after a Cabinet meeting, Home Minister V S Acharya said the Department of Corporate Affairs at the Centre has written to the state, recommending restoring the airport contract to Maytas.

He noted that K Ramalingam is the government-nominated Chairman of the Board of Maytas Infra now. The Department’s letter assured completion of the two projects within 12 months.

Surat gangrape: Defence lawyer for Narco test on victim

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Surat, July 06: Lawyer of one of Surat gangrape accused has filed an application in the local court here today demanding for Narco-Analysis Test of the victim and her friend who was with her when the incident took place.

Babu Pathan representing Abu Bakr, one of the three accused of raping a teenage girl, has filed the application in the court of Chief Judicial Megistrate R I Rawal.

In the application, Pathan has demanded that Narco analysis test of the victim and her friend was necessary to find out the truth if Bakr was present when the incident took place.

Fresh case against arrested CPI-Maoist spokesman

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Kolkata, July 06: CPI-Maoist spokesman Gaur Chakraborty, arrested last month under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, was today slapped with another case related to possession of Maoist literature, leaflets and documents.

Chakraborty, arrested on June 23 after the Centre banned the CPI-Maoist group, was charged afresh under section 20 of the Act in the court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate S S Ahmed here.

The fresh case was for possession of Maoist literature, leaflets and documents.

Woman, five minor girls drowned in water tank

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Bikaner, July 06: A woman and five minor girls today drowned in a water tank in Bhansar village under Chatragarh division, sources said.

The incident occurred this afternoon when they went to take a bath in the 15-ft deep water tank, they said.

A girl slipped into the tank while bathing and when the woman and the other girls tried to rescue her they also fell into it, they added.

Deceased were identified as Paresha (30), Asha (3), Bagati (13), Mukhtyara (10), Sarma (11) and Bhaita (10).
–PTI

‘Nuclear-armed India, Pak can’t take over each other’

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London, July 06: With his forces battling Taliban in the country’s troubled northwest, Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari does not see India as the foremost threat and says the “position of being able to take over another state is nullified” after both countries acquired nuclear arms.

As his goodwill gestures towards India clubbed with a domestic campaign to end militancy have attracted criticism at home, Zardari says “it rankles the small mind.”

U.N. Council to meet Monday on N.Korea – spokesman

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Seoul, July 06: The U.N. Security Council will hold closed-door consultations at 4 p.m. EDT (2000 GMT) on Monday to discuss North Korea, a U.N. spokesman said.

Over the weekend, North Korea launched seven ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan in defiance of a Security Council resolution, according to South Korea’s defense ministry.

—Agencies

CM ready for CBI probe into alleged fake encounter

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Dehradun, July 06: Uttarakhand Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank today said his government is ready for a CBI probe into the death of an MBA graduate from Ghaziabad in an alleged “fake encounter”.

“I have full faith in the CB-CID. But if the family members of Ranbir want a CBI probe into the matter, we will not shy away from it also,” Nishank said after meeting the father of 22-year-old Ranbir Singh, who was killed in an encounter with police in Dehradun on Friday.

Pak jets pound Taliban stronghold, 14 killed: army

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Islamabad, July 6: Pakistani combat jets today pounded Taliban positions in the troubled South Waziristan tribal region as the army claimed 14 militants were killed in clashes with security forces in the northwestern Swat valley.

The jets attacked militant positions in Ladha area of South Waziristan, a stronghold of Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud though there were no reports of casualties.

The army has said it is preparing for an offensive against Mehsud and his network.

Spy chief’s cover blown

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London, July 07: The wife of the new head of Britain’s spy agency has posted pictures of her husband, family and friends on internet networking site facebook, details which could compromise security, a newspaper said on Sunday.

Sir John Sawers is due to take over as head of the Secret Intelligence Service in November. The SIS, popularly known as MI6, is Britain’s global intelligence-gathering organisation.

Happiness is…Costa Rica

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London, July 07: Costa Rica is very nearly paradise, not just for holiday-makers lounging on its beaches, but for its citizens who are extremely satisfied with their lot and also have a tiny carbon footprint.

The combination has earned the central American country first place in a new Happy Planet Index (HPI) published on Monday.

Anushka Sharma is not exclusively for Yash Raj!

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Mumbai, July 07: Anushka Sharma shot to fame much before the release of her very first film, RAB NE BANA DI JODI. Being signed by Aditya Chopra to play the lead role opposite King Khan made headlines all over and once RAB NE… released and went on to become an All Time Blockbuster and Yash Raj’s highest grosser ever, Anushka was a household name. She played the modern as well as the traditional Punjabi woman with sophistication and confidence.

Web users defy China’s censors

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Shanghai, July 07: Independent information about deadly riots in China’s remote northwest filtered out on Twitter, YouTube and other internet forums on Monday, frustrating government efforts to control the news.

The communist authorities who built the so-called Great Firewall of China raced to stamp out video, images and words posted by Internet users about the unrest on Sunday which, officials said, left at least 140 people dead.

Credit crunch ‘ruining diets’

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Geneva, July 07: The head of the World Health Organisation, Margaret Chan, said Monday that the global economic crisis was causing people to ditch healthy foods and that this would lead to health problems.

“When money is tight, the first thing that drop out of the diets are the healthy foods,” said Chan, adding that these are “almost always more expensive” than processed items.

This was particularly true in the developing world, where chronic diet related diseases were on the rise, she noted.