Month: October 2009

Atomic Energy Commission chief Kakodkar to retire Nov 30

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Mumbai, October 30: Eminent scientist Anil Kakodkar, who played a strategic role in clinching the India-US civilian nuclear deal last year, will retire as chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) Nov 30.

Kakodkar, who was part of the team of scientists that successfully carried out the Pokhran-I (1974) and Pokhran-II (1998) nuclear tests, is also secretary, Department of Atomic Energy (DAE).

With exactly a month left before the 65-year-old Kakodkar demits office, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government has yet to name his successor.

Azharuddin campaigns in Lucknow, says presence will help

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Lucknow, October 30: Cricketer-turned-Congress MP Mohammed Azharuddin Friday
went around the streets of the walled city campaigning for the party’s nominee for the Uttar Pradesh bye-elections Nov 7.

The charismatic cricketer drew huge crowds as he went on a roadshow along the lanes and bylanes of Lucknow (West) assembly segment.

While he did not address any rally, he exuded confidence that his presence alone would break the monopoly of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) on this seat.

Haryana procures over 27 lakh tonnes paddy

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Chandigarh, October 30: Despite a drought-like situation and below average rainfall in the region this year, Haryana has managed to procure over 27.95 lakh tonnes of paddy so far, a state official said here Friday.

“This year, out of the total arrival, over 21.67 lakh tonnes of paddy has been purchased by various procuring agencies whereas over 6.27 lakh tonnes has been lifted by private rice sellers,” said a spokesperson of Haryana’s food and supplies department.

“So far, Haryana has contributed 17,254 tonnes of rice to the central pool,” he added.

Khadse elected Maharashtra BJP legislature party leader

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Mumbai, October 30: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Eknathrao G. Khadse was Friday unanimously elected leader of the legislature party at a meeting of newly-elected legislators here.

Subject to the outcome of the ongoing negotiations with its alliance partner Shiv Sena, Khadse could well be the next leader of opposition in the assembly.

Khadse, 57, elected from Muktainagar in Jalgaon district is a farmer by profession with a B.Com degree.

Sikhs to protest delayed justice in 1984 riots

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New Delhi, October 30: Sikhs in the capital have planned major protests over the coming two days as they grimly observe the 25th anniversary of the anti-Sikh riots that followed former prime minister Indira Gandhi’ assassination.

Messi, Ronaldo among FIFA World Player short list

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Zurich, October 30: Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are the top picks for the 2009 World Footballer of the Year award as part of a 23-player shortlist published Friday by the ruling body FIFA.

Ronaldo, who left Manchester United for Real Madrid in summer, won the prestigious prize last year.

But Barcelona’s Messi could be the man this year, given his club’s outstanding season highlighted by the European Champions League title Barca won in summer.

Indoor Asian Games: Mary Kom to spearhead India’s challenge

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Hanoi, October 30: Four-time world champion M.C. Mary Kom will be spearheading India’s challenge in the women’s boxing event here in the third Asian Indoor Games.

Mary Kom will open her campaign against Ting Lo Yueh of Chinese Taipei in the quarterfinals of 46 kg, Sunday, at the Bac Ninh Indoor Stadium, which is 30 km from Hanoi.

Chhoto Loura (51 kgs), Laishram Sarita Devi (54 kgs), N Usha (57 kgs) and Kavita Goyat (64 kgs) are the other Indians in the fray.

Himalya net profit rises to Rs.8.78 crore

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Shimla, October 30: Himachal Pradesh-based food processing company Himalya International Friday said its net profit for the quarter ended Sep 30 rose to Rs.8.78 crore from Rs.6.47 crore in the like period last year.
The company’s sales grew by 39 percent to Rs.34.06 crore in the quarter under review from Rs.26.32 crore a year earlier, Himalya chairman Manmohan Malik said in a statement.

Himalya has plans to set up two new food processing facilities, one each in Rajasthan and Gujarat.

Rashid tied fifth at Asian Amateur golf

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Shenzhen, October 30: India’s Rashid Khan took a bumpy ride with six birdies and three bogeys to card a three-under 69 that carried him up from tied 13th to tied fifth at the mid-way stage of the inaugural Asian Amateur Championship at Mission Hills Golf Club’s World Cup Course here Friday.
At four-under 140, he was still five shots behind midway leader Australia’s Jordan Sherratt (67) and Han Chang-won (69) of South Korea who share the 36-hole lead at nine-under 135.

China push to heal rift in ties

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Beijeng, October 30: Vice-Premier Li Keqiang, one of China’s top two emerging leaders, yesterday delivered in Sydney “a blueprint for Australia-China relations” that would sideline recent rows.

He underlined China’s political will to advance free trade agreement negotiations “with a sense of urgency”, backed further Chinese investment in Australia and praised Australia’s unique avoidance of the recession that has engulfed the rest of the industrialised world – hinting that this might be credited to China’s own “dynamic” growth, 8.9 per cent in the last quarter.

Actor Dennis Hopper battling prostate cancer

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Los Angeles, October 30: Actor Dennis Hopper is suffering from prostate cancer and canceling all travel plans to focus on his treatment, his manager told media today.

Hopper, 73, was released from the hospital earlier this month after his manager, Sam Maydew, said he checked in with flu-like symptoms during a trip to New York and was treated for dehydration.

But Maydew today was quoted on entertainment website E! Online as saying that Hopper has prostate cancer and is undergoing treatment at the University of Southern California.

“We’re hoping for the best,” Maydew said.

Former French president Jacques Chirac to be tried for corruption

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Germany, October 30: Jacques Chirac will be the first former French president to be tried for corruption, officials said today, after charges from his years as mayor of Paris returned to taint the twilight of his long career

Mr Chirac stands accused of giving political allies lucrative bogus jobs as city hall “ghost workers” and his trial will be the latest in a series to expose graft and dirty tricks at the highest levels of state.

Judicial officials confirmed that Mr Chirac would face trial on charges of “abuse of trust” and “misuse of public funds”.

Italian Olympians to be vaccinated against H1N1

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Italian, October 30: TALIAN athletes set to compete in the 2010 winter Olympics and Paralympics in Vancouver are to be vaccinated against the H1N1, or swine flu, virus, a government health official said today.

Ferrucio Fazio, the shadow minister for health in the Italian governement, said: “Naturally we don’t want the Italian delegation to be decimated (by the flu) and so we will honour a request by the Italian Olympic Committee asking us to vaccinate all our athletes,” said Fazio.

The winter Olympics will be held from February 12-28.

—Agencies

Pre-paid mobile phones banned in Indian Kashmir

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Srinagar, October 30: India banned pre-paid mobile telephones in Kashmir today, state television reported, following concerns that militants were using them to trigger bombs and hide their identities.

Mobile phones were launched in Kashmir only in 2003 after security agencies gave the go-ahead, but pre-paid versions are suspected to have been used in attacks since.

Pre-paid phones – phones that come with a set number of minutes charged on them – are easier to buy than their post-paid equivalents.

We know Maoists won’t lay down guns: Chidambaram

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New Delhi, October 30: Home Minister P. Chidambaram Friday said the government had not asked the Maoists to lay down their arms as it was “too realistic” to know that they would not do so, but reiterated his appeal to the left wing radicals to halt the violence and come forward for talk.
“We have never said as far as Naxalites (Maoists) are concerned, to lay down arms. Because I am too realistic to know that they will not do so,” Chidambaram told reporters, while presenting his ministry’s monthly report card.

Jessica Simpson wants brainy boyfriend

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London, October 30: American singer Jessica Simpson is looking for a man who can intellectually stimulate her as she doesn’t want to get bored in a relationship.

“I don’t want to get bored. I can bore out pretty easily so I love intellectual men… people that will always keep me intrigued,” contactmusic.com quoted Simpson as saying.

Jessica, who is in India for the shooting of her new TV show “The Price of Beauty”, says that the show has made her realise her expectations from life.

Pakistani diplomat knew US LeT planners of India attack: FBI

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Washington, October 30: A top Pakistani diplomat personally knew David Coleman Headley and Tahawwur Hussain Rana, accused of carrying out a major terror attack in India for the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), according to the US investigation agency FBI.

Pakistan’s Consul General in Chicago, Aman Rashid, knew both Rana and Headley alias ‘Daood Gilani’, as all the three went to the same high school, the FBI said in a revised affidavit filed in a Chicago court.

Aligarh university shuts in the wake of violence

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Aligarh, October 30: Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) was Friday temporarily shut down following protests by students over the murder of a final year student.

“The decision to close down the university and its maintained institutions was taken in a consultative meeting presided by AMU Vice Chancellor P.K. Abdul Azis,” AMU’s official spokesperson Rahat Abrar told IANS on telephone.

“We will convene a meeting shortly to review the situation and announce a date for opening the varsity,” he added.

Tension after Maoists kill RSS leader in Chhattisgarh

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Raipur, October 30: Tension was reported in Chhattisgarh’s restive Dantewada district Friday after Maoist militants killed a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leader and two of his relatives, police said.

“Guerrillas stormed into a village in Kikirpal under Sukma block and butchered three middle-aged people with sharp edged weapons,” S.L. Baghel, Dantewada’s additional superintendent of police, told IANS.

The attack site is about 450 km south of the state capital Raipur.

Bollywood celebs support Oxfam’s climate change campaign

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New Delhi, October 30: Bollywood celebrities like Gulzar, Farhan Akhtar and Abhay Deol have been tagged ‘green hearts’ after they signed up for British aid agency Oxfam India’s message on climate change Friday at the 11th annual Osian’s Cinefan Film Festival of Asian and Arab Cinema here.
The “green hearts” will be voicing their opinions and fighting for various causes of climate change, said a press release from Oxfam India.

Ashok Leyland half-yearly net falls 18 percent

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Chennai, October 30: Commercial vehicle manufacturer Ashok Leyland Friday said its profits in the first half this fiscal fell 18 percent to Rs.96 crore, as compared to Rs.117 crore earned in the corresponding period last fiscal.

In the period under review, the company posted sales of Rs.2,490 crore, a fall of 34 percent from the Rs.3,758 crore it made in the first six months of the last financial year.

Syndicate Bank net down 32 percent in second quarte

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Bangalore, October 30: State-run Syndicate Bank posted a net profit of Rs.178 crore for the second quarter this fiscal, a 32 percent decline compared to the Rs.262 crore earned in the corresponding period last fiscal.
In a regulatory filing Friday, the Manipal-based bank said its total income, including interest on advances and discount on bills, however, increased to Rs.2,821 crore during the quarter under review from Rs.2,527 crore, posting a 12 percent year-on-year (YoY) growth.

Venezuela bans toy guns, violent video games

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Buenos Aires, October 30: The Venezuelan parliament has passed a law holding as illegal the production, import and sale of toy weapons and violent video games, a media report Friday said.

The law, which includes a penalty of three to five years in jail in case of any violation, will come into effect in three months’ time, a Globovision TV report said.

National media will also be banned from running advertisements of toys of a “military” nature that are likely to encourage the “aggressive” tendencies among young children and teenagers, the report added.

Himachal hydropower producer gets green award

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Shimla, October 30: Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd (SJVNL) that owns and operates the 1,500-MW Nathpa-Jhakri hydropower project in Himachal Pradesh has won the Greentech Environment Excellence Silver Award for another power plant.

“SJVNL has been awarded the 10th annual Greentech Environment Excellence Silver Award 2009 in hydropower sector for its 412 MW Rampur project,” the company said in a statement Friday.

The Rampur project is under execution in upper Shimla.

Shakira vows never to marry

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London, October 30: Colombian pop star Shakira has vowed never to marry because she doesn’t want the press to make a mockery of her divorce if she ever split from her partner, investment banker Antonio de la Rua.

“It is funny how the papers want to see you married and then they want to see you divorced. Well, I won’t do any of it,” Contactmusic.com quoted Shakira as saying.

At the same time, Shakira is also keen to start a family with de la Rua, insisting they don’t need to be married to have children.