Month: August 2009

Ferry Dubai to Serve The World, Palm Projects

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Dubai, August 03: Ferry Dubai will serve The World and The Palm as part of theThe Marine Agency’s strategy to serve Nakheel development projects.

“A meeting reviewed the design of The World project and a priority list was set for the project to match with the approved schedules of works undertaken by Nakheel. “A new strategy has been developed for improved cooperation with the developers and landlords of The World and The Palm in order to provide the required infrastructure” said Dr. Khalid Al Zahid, acting CEO of Marine 
Agency in the Roads and Transport 
Authority (RTA).

Parking Spaces to be Mandatory

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Abu Dhabi, August 03: Landlords of multi-storey residential and commercial buildings will have to ensure parking space for each apartment owner or lessee if a federal draft law being planned by the Ministry of Justice comes into force.

A source told that municipalities will be told not to issue permits for construction of residential buildings unless the number of parking spaces matches the apartments and commercial offices in the building.

The draft law is expected to stipulate that landlords of commercial buildings should provide enough parking slots for their customers.

Dubai Municipality Urges Action on Food Advisories

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Dubai, August 03: Dubai Municipality is planning to encourage all restaurants in the emirate to issue advisories to consumers on safe handling of takeaway food.

The decision follows a similar initiative by a popular south Indian restaurant group that attaches red stickers to its takeaway bags at its two outlets in Dubai. A municipality official applauded the group’s move and said the civic body intended to support such initiatives by other restaurants as well.

Dusty Conditions to Prevail

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Abu Dhabi, August 03: The dusty weather conditions will prevail moderately today and visibility levels are expected to improve, particularly in the Western Region, where it had dropped to 200-300 metres on Sunday, the National Centre of Meteorology and 
Seismology said.

Met officials urged motorists to drive slow and fishermen not to venture out to sea. Asthma patients and children, too, were asked to remain indoors.

On Sunday, the visibility levels in the capital and other parts of the country as Al Ain and Dubai fluctuated between 1,000 and 3,000 metres.

Remains of missing Gulf War pilot found in Iraq

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Washington, August 03: The remains of a US Navy pilot who went missing during a bombing run in the first Gulf War in 1991 have been found in Iraq, the Pentagon confirmed Sunday.

The fate of Michael Speicher has been a mystery for 18 years. He had been the subject of multiple Pentagon investigations as the uncertainty over his status caused it to be changed from missing in action to captured.

Social websites harm relationships, says leading British Catholic

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London, August 03: Modern technology is undermining people’s ability to communicate properly, retarding social skills and, in worst case scenarios, increasing suicide risks, the head of the Roman Catholic Church in England said in an interview published over the weekend.

“As a society, we’re losing some of the ability to build interpersonal communication that’s necessary for living together and building a community,” said Archbishop Vincent Nichols in an interview with the Sunday Telegraph.

Israel to indict foreign minister on several charges

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Tel Aviv, August 03: Capping a long investigation, Israel police
recommended Sunday that Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman be indicted on charges of bribery, fraud, and obstruction of justice.

Lieberman is suspected of having received hundreds of thousands of US dollars, possibly as bribes from foreign businessmen, while serving as a lawmaker in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament.

Under Israeli law, legislators are not allowed to accept payments beyond their Knesset salary.

India poised to topple South Africa

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Dubai, August 03: India has moved up to second place on the Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Championship table following the annual update.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s team has jumped ahead of Australia and is now just one ratings point behind number-one-ranked South Africa after the adjustment.

The annual update is carried out to ensure the Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Championship table continues to reflect recent form with older results being discarded.

British government defends Afghanistan policy

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London, August 03: Britain has rejected claims that its military mission in Afghanistan was undermined by a failure to provide the army force with clear direction.

British responsibility in Afghanistan have been abstracted by unrealistic planning at senior levels and poor coordination between government departments, the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee said in a report published Sunday.

“We recommend that in the immediate future the government should refocus its efforts to concentrate its limited resources on one priority, namely security,” the committee said.

Two Canadian soldiers killed in Afghanistan

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Kabul, August 03: Two Canadian soldiers have been killed in southern Afghanistan when a roadside bomb exploded near a patrol party, military officials said Sunday.

The incident occurred approximately 15 km west of Kandahar city Saturday afternoon, the Department of National Defense said in a press release.

The soldiers had dismounted from their vehicle during their patrol when they touched upon the bomb.

Another soldier was seriously injured and is in stable condition in hospital.

Since 2002, 127 Canadian soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan mission.

–IANS–

Colombian rebels release kidnapped oil worker

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Bogota, August 03: Colombia’s rebel guerrilla group has released an oil worker they abducted nearly three months ago in the southern city of Puerto Asis, the oil worker’s wife said.

German Perez, who was taken hostage May 15 by the 48th Front of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, was set free Friday, Perez’s wife, Leveiza Mora, told reporters.

“The most important thing is that we have him with us and that we are enjoying his pleasant company, which for us, especially for me, is of great importance due to the suffering the kidnapping caused me,” Mora said.

No plans to act or revive ‘Rockstar’ now’: Imtiaz Ali

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Mumbai, August 03: His latest venture “Love Aaj Kal” has opened to a favourable response worldwide. And Imtiaz Ali, who is basking in his second success, has no immediate plans of reviving his 2006 project “Rockstar” or facing the camera in the near future.

“No, nothing is yet decided on ‘Rockstar’. After the release of ‘Jab We Met’ in 2007, I immediately moved on to ‘Love Aaj Kal’. Since then it has just been that project and nothing else. I was totally immersed in the film,” Ali told IANS.

UK spy agencies recruiting terrorists

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London, August 02: The British government on Saturday responded to a senior lawmaker’s call for an investigation into whether its intelligence agency, MI5, inadvertently recruited individuals involved with terrorist activity.

Conservative MP Patrick Mercer, seen here in 2007, says he based his allegations on discussions with sources.

A Home Office spokesman told CNN the department is not aware of MI5 recruiting extremists of any kind.

Social networking goes mobile

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New Delhi, August 02: Are you constantly on the move and don’t have time to log on to your computer to be in touch with your friends? Coming to your rescue now is your mobile phone through which you can access any social networking site, anytime, anywhere.

Take college student Ajay Kumar for instance.

On a holiday in Goa, Kumar was constantly glued to his mobile phone — not calling or texting but scrapping and walling his friends on their profiles on Facebook and Orkut.

HIV woman returns to hospital after rape-accused arrested

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Chandigarh, August 02: Almost two years after an HIV-positive woman was allegedly sexually abused by staff members of a leading hospital and the state AIDS control society, the victim has resumed treatment at the facility following the arrest of the two accused.

According to the police, accused James, a senior technician of the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh and Nek Ram, a counsellor with Chandigarh AIDS Control Society were arrested Friday.

A case of rape has been registered against the accused.

Abhinav Bindra shoots down cricketers’ concern about WADA code

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New Delhi, August 02: Indian cricketers have strong reservation about the ‘wherabouts’ clause of World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), but Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra, who is part of WADA’s testing pool, says ‘it’s no big deal.’

Bindra said lack of knowledge among the cricketers about the procedure might have led to so much of fuss on the issue.

ICC to find solution after BCCI rejects WADA clase

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Mumbai, August 02: After India cricket board’s rejection of the controversial ‘whereabouts’ clause of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the International Cricket Council (ICC) board will now have to find a way forward.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Sunday rejected the controversial anti-doping clause that makes it mandatory for players to make themselves available for out-of-competition tests.

BCCI strongly backed the players, saying that the ‘whereabouts’ clause is an ‘invasion into the privacy of an individual’.

BCCI rejects WADA’s anti-doping clause

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Mumbai, August 02: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Sunday rejected the controversial anti-doping clause of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) that makes it mandatory for players to make themselves available for out of competition tests.

BCCI strongly backed the players, saying that the ‘whereabouts’ clause is an ‘invasion into the privacy of an individual’.

Corporate grooming schools help candidates put best foot forward

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New Delhi, August 02: What do you do for candidates who come to interviews armed with eveything except confidence, communications skills and business etiquette? Set up grooming schools.

Mansi Gupta, former regional manager of HDFC Bank, set up such a school in June after she saw about 95 percent of the candidates getting rejected during interviews at the bank year after year due to problems with their overall personality.

NTPC an “innocent victim” of RIL’s corporate greed: Anil Ambani

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New Delhi, August 02: Terming NTPC as an “innocent victim” of Mukesh Ambani-led RIL’s corporate greed, Anil Ambani today warned that the power PSU could lose up to Rs 30,000 crore if it did not get gas at the committed rate of USD 2.34 per mmbtu.

Offering every possible cooperation to NTPC, Anil sought a meeting with Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde to clarify that his group company RNRL was not at all attempting to scuttle the PSU’s chance of getting 12 mmscmd gas, contrary to “speculative media reports and misinformation campaign by vested interests”.

Thousands homeless in Bihar due to floods

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Patna, August 02: Thousands of people have been rendered homeless in Bihar’s Sitamarhi district after the Bagmati river breached its embankment, flooding nearly 200 villages.

Those stranded in villages are living under the open skies without food and drinking water, waiting to be rescued.

NRI arrested in 80-mn pound investment fraud

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London, August 02: An NRI businessman, who allegedly masterminded 80-million-pound fraud investment operation, has been arrested for duping around 600 people, including celebrities like former England cricketer Darren Gough, actress Francis de la Tour and singer Jerome Flynn.

Chelsea-based Indian entrepreneur Nandan Pruthi and his business partners Kenneth Peacock and John Anderson were arrested after a series of raids by London police, the Guardian reported Sunday.

UK PM to write on Mahatma Gandhi

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London, August 02: Describing Mahatma Gandhi as “one of the great leaders” of the 20th century, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said he wants to write about the apostle of peace’s contribution to the world civilisation.

Mittal for greater business-politics ties

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New Delhi, August 02: The face of telecom India, Sunil Mittal, who was once keen on joining politics but left his ambition behind to create the largest private teleco, feels it is time for greater business-politics ties on the lines of Nandan Nilekani heading a prestigious government programme.

“I think the country is moving towards the next generation of leadership and this formation will really determine whether business people or professionals have a role in politics,” Mittal, who led Bharti Airtel to become Asia’s leading mobile operator, told a private channel in an interview.

Panjab University student booked for ragging

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Chandigarh, August 02:A case has been registered against a second-year engineering student of the Panjab University (PU) for allegedly ragging his junior, police said Sunday.

According to the police, Saurab Nandal of Rohtak town in Haryana studying here at University Institute of Engineering and Technology (UIET) was booked after the hostel warden registered a formal complaint against him.

PU authorities have also suspended the student until the probe against him is over.