Month: July 2009

Six sharpshooters of Chhota Shakeel caught in Delhi

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New Delhi, July 04: Six sharpshooters of Chhota Shakeel – one of India’s most wanted gangsters – were arrested from different parts of the Capital Saturday, police said adding “some VVIPs” were on their hit list.

“All the six work for Chhota Shakeel, who works for Dawood Ibrahim. They were planning to target some VVIPs in the national capital,” Joint Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) PN Aggarwal told reporters.

“We have just arrested them and will interrogate them about their purpose and targets in the capital,” he added.

YSR for monthly ministerial visits to SW hostels

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Hyderabad, July 04: Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy today asked ministers to visit at least one Social Welfare Hostel a month and take stock of the situation.

He also instructed District Collectors to spend one night at a Social Welfare hostel every month.

There are 2358 Government Hostels and other institutions functioning with a sanctioned strength of 100 each.

Free lodging and boarding facilities are provided, besides text books, note books, workbooks, bedding material, trunk boxes, plates, glasses, etc., free of cost. Each boarder is given four pairs of clothes.

Panel caps school fee at Rs 24,000

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Hyderabad, July 04: In a development that would bring respite to thousands of parents whose children are enrolled in private schools, the five-member Fee Regulatory Committee has prescribed a maximum fee limit of Rs 24,000 per student per annum for primary education and Rs 30,000 for high school. The hikes are to be effected only from the next academic year. It also made some farreaching recommendations related to fixing of fee, multiple heads of fee, transportation and sale of books and stationery by schools.

Lalu against legalising gay sex, Sharad Yadav has no issues

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New Delhi, July 04: Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Saturday said the Delhi High Court had done a “very dangerous thing” by decriminalising gay sex, though Janata Dal-United (JD-U) chief Sharad Yadav believed “homosexuality is not an issue in India”.

“It is a very dangerous thing the Delhi High Court has said that it (homosexuality) is not a crime and the law must be amended. I will raise this topic in Parliament and the amendment (to the law against it) should not be done,” Lalu Prasad told a news channel.

Over 300,000 evacuated as flood inundates south China

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Beijing, July 04: More than 300,000 people have been evacuated after torrential downpour, which continued for three days, flooded the banks of Rongjiang River, inundating several houses in southern China.

150,000 people living in the low-lying areas near Kama reservoir have been moved to safety after the rain destroyed a 44-foot section of a dyke near the dam in Guangxi province, a news agency reported today.

BJP wants government to bear 75 percent of crop insurance

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Ranchi, July 04: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Rajnath Singh Saturday said the central government should bear 75 percent premium of the crop insurance cover for farmers to help them overcome drought conditions in many parts of the country.

‘The small-scale farmers are unable to meet the crop insurance premium. We demand that the central government should bear 75 percent of it. Due to delayed monsoon, drought like situation is prevailing in many parts of the country,’ Singh told reporters here.

Singh was taking part in the two-day BJP state executive committee meeting.

Stalin demands gas grid in southern India

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Chennai, July 04:Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister M.K. Stalin Saturday requested the central government to set up a gas grid in the south for the rapid industrialisation of the southern states.

Inaugurating the Rs.244-crore sea water desalination plant of Chennai Petroleum Corp (CPC) here, he said: ‘A southern gas grid should be set up. Similarly, gas from the Krishna-Godavari (KG) basin in Andhra Pradesh should be piped to Tamil Nadu for the benefit of industries here.’

BCCI to reconsider Deodhar Trophy’s fate after Sena threats

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Mumbai, July 04: Stung by threats from the Shiv Sena, the Indian cricket board is contemplating to accommodate the Deodhar Trophy tournament in a cramped 2009-10 schedule.

Board of Control of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary N. Srinivasan said Saturday the fate of the Deodhar Trophy will be decided in the next working committee meeting.

Indian hockey captain to be made police officer in Haryana

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Chandigarh, July 04:Indian hockey team captain Sandeep Singh will be inducted as an officer in the Haryana police, Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda announced Saturday.

Sandeep, who hails from Haryana, has been playing for the Indian team for the past few years and will be given a rank of deputy superintendent of police.

Hooda made the announcement during a function here to honour 13 outstanding sportspersons from the state. The sportspersons were given cash rewards totalling over Rs.10 lakh.

‘2008 best year for South African cricket’

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Johannesburg, July 04:South African cricket fans say 2008 was the most successful year for the country’s cricket team, according to an internet survey.

The survey conducted by Cricket South Africa (CSA) found that 96 percent of the fans who took part in the exercise believe 2008 was the most successful year for the South African cricket.

The survey drew nearly 550 responses, Pakistan’s Online news agency said.

CSA CEO Gerald Majola said the online fan survey demonstrated the kind of support cricket enjoyed among the people in South Africa.

Stalin demands gas grid in southern India

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Chennai, July 04: Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister M.K. Stalin Saturday requested the central government to set up a gas grid in the south for the rapid industrialisation of the southern states.

Inaugurating the Rs.244-crore sea water desalination plant of Chennai Petroleum Corp (CPC) here, he said: ‘A southern gas grid should be set up. Similarly, gas from the Krishna-Godavari (KG) basin in Andhra Pradesh should be piped to Tamil Nadu for the benefit of industries here.’

Nine dead as speeding bus falls on Howrah rail tracks

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Kolkata, July 04: Nine people were killed Saturday when a speeding mini bus skidded off a bridge turned slippery by rain water and fell about 50 feet between two platforms of the Howrah railway station near this West Bengal capital.

At least 11 people were also injured in the ghastly disaster that onlookers said took place when two passenger buses were trying to outrace each other just before 4 p.m.

Jeddah-Mumbai flight tyres burst on landing, passengers safe

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Mumbai, July 04: Passengers aboard a Saudia airliner on a Jeddah-Mumbai flight had a scare when its tyres burst during landing at Mumbai airport Saturday evening, an official said.

The Saudia flight, SV-744, was landing around 6.30 p.m. in poor visibility conditions – upto 500 metres only – at the main runway, when the tyres burst.

Following the emergency, airport authorities immediately ordered the runway (0927) to be closed.

They made arrangements to tow away the aircraft but failed on account of the heavy load.

New swine flu case takes India’s tally to 129

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New Delhi, July 04:A Thai national was found suffering from swine flu, taking the total number of influenza A (H1N1) cases in India to 129, said an official statement Saturday.

‘The only new case reported Saturday was of a 23-year-old Thai national who travelled from Bangkok to Mumbai by Thai Airways flight TG 317 that reached Mumbai June 28 and proceeded further to Kandla port (in Gujarat) to board a ship on which he is a crew member,’ it said.

Heavy rains hit Mumbai, parts of city flooded

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Mumbai, July 04: The monsoon tightened its grip over Mumbai today, with heavy rains leading to flooding in the city and its suburbs, causing traffic snarls on highways and arterial roads and disrupting flights.

Several areas like Dadar, Wadala, Byculla, Mazagaon, Mahim, Santacruz, Goregaon, Jogeshwari, Kandivli, Mulund, Sion, Matunga and Ghatkopar were flooded with two to three feet deep water after the day-long showers.

Traffic movement on the two main highways and other main and arterial roads around the city was slow, leading to traffic jams in many parts.

Lalu against legalising gay sex, Sharad has no issues

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New Delhi, July 04: Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad today said the Delhi High Court had done a “very dangerous thing” by decriminalising gay sex, though Janata Dal-United (JD-U) chief Sharad Yadav believed “homosexuality is not an issue in India”.

“It is a very dangerous thing the Delhi High Court has said that it (homosexuality) is not a crime and the law must be amended. I will raise this topic in parliament and the amendment (to the law against it) should not be done,” Lalu Prasad told a news channel.

Youth killed by police. Fake encounter?

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Dehradun, July 04: Controversy broke out today over the gunning down of an MBA qualified youth by Uttarakhand police after he allegedly fled with a sub-inspector”s revolver while his family claimed he was killed in a fake encounter. The incident triggered protests from family and opposition Congress, after which Chief Minister R P Nishank handed over the probe to CB-CID into yesterday”s killing of 22-year-old Ranbir Singh from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh.

‘King of Pop’ to be buried in USD 25,000 casket

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London, July 04: Michael Jackson’s family is leaving no stone unturned to make sure that the pop legend has a grand funeral and they have reportedly chosen a custom made USD 25,000 casket to bury the ‘King of Pop’.

The ‘Thriller’ hitmaker will be laid to rest in a gleaming gold plated coffin, known as The Promethean, just like his idol, soul legend James Brown, reported Sun online.

The bronze coffin inlaid with velvet is made by a company from Jackson’s home state of Indiana called the Batesville Casket Company.

Eclipse aficionados wait to catch diamond rush from July 7

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Hyderabad, July 04: The months of July and August will present a grand spectacle for the skygazers across the country as a rare astronomical event – a series of triple eclipses, commences from July 7.

“The sequence of the first triple eclipse will be a penumbra lunar eclipse (in which the moon will be darkened by the earth’s shadow) occuring on July 7, which will be followed by a solar eclipse on July 22 and then another lunar eclipse on August 7,” N Raghunandan Kumar, General Secretary of city-based Planetary Society, said here today.

Lovers end life after facing opposition from family

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Fatehpur (UP) July 04: Facing stiff opposition from their family, a 21-year-old youth and his beloved committed suicide in Puren village, around 100 kms from Lucknow, police said here today.

Hitesh committed suicide by consuming a chemical in his house yesterday and when the news of his death reached his lover, 17-year-old Rakhi also consumed a chemical to end her life.

Police said that both had been facing immense pressure from their respective families over their relationship.

The bodies have been sent for post mortem, police added.
–PTI

Lalu falls as dias collapse in Bihar village

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Darbhanga (Bihar), July 04: RJD president Lalu Prasad along with other leaders suffered a fall when the dias erected for the party’s Panchayat conference at Chandanpati village near here collapsed.

However, Prasad escaped unhurt along with former union minister Ali Ashraf Fatmi and state RJD president Abdul Bari Siddiqui, police said.

While RJD leader Devendra Prasad Yadav received minor head injuries, Ram Lakhan Mahto fainted.

Later addressing the conference, Lalu opposed the Women’s Reservation Bill in its present form.

Mayawati expels former MP from party

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Lucknow, July 04: Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati today expelled former Rajya Sabha member Balihari Babu from the party for alleged anti-party activities.

The Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister announced Balihari Babu’s expulsion at a meeting of senior party functionaries including MPs, MLAs and MLCs, a party release said here.

Babu, who was elected to the Upper House of Parliament from Azamgarh, resigned from the membership of the Rajya Sabha on June 12, this year before the expiry of his term which was to end in April, 2012.
–PTI

Youth killed by police. Fake encounter?

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Dehradun, July 04: Controversy broke out today over the gunning down of an MBA qualified youth by Uttarakhand police after he allegedly fled with a sub-inspector’s revolver while his family claimed he was killed in a fake encounter.

The incident triggered protests from family and opposition Congress, after which Chief Minister R P Nishank handed over the probe to CB-CID into yesterday’s killing of 22-year-old Ranbir Singh from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh.

Former hockey player drowns in sea

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Kolkata, July 04: Former Bengal hockey player Manjinder Singh died after drowning off a sea resort where he went along with colleagues for a picnic, near Contai in East Midnapore district today.

Singh, 42, who played for Calcutta Customs team, went missing while swimming in the Bay of Bengal after a high tide came this noon, Bengal Hockey Association secretary Gurbux Singh said.

However, his two colleagues were rescued from sea water.

Body of the former forward would be brought back to Kolkata, Gurbux said.

Govt justifies fuel price hike

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Chennai, July 04: The government today justified the recent fuel price hike stating that it was left with no choice but to resort to increase in the prices of fuel for maintaining the financial health of the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs).

“The financial position of the OMCs continues to be a matter of concern for us. To maintain their financial health, the government was left with no other alternative but to increase the price of petrol and diesel by Rs four and Rs two respectively,” Union Petroleum Minister Murli Deora told reporters here.