Hyderabad, December 02: The Political Affairs Committee (PAC) of Praja Rajyam, which met here today, recognised the need for strengthening the party from the grassroot level.
The PAC , which met under the chiarmanship of party president K Chiranjeevi, analysed the outcome of the GHMC elections and reviewed the party’s perfromance. It decided to hold the PRP’s Executive Committee meeting on December 2.
–Agencies
Hyderabad, November 02: LATE Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy’s fondness for fancy registration numbers was well known as he was keen on having the number — 2345 — for all his vehicles.
It was perhaps this fancy that led Reddy to give a go-ahead to the Transport Department for reassignment of registration numbers which simply means that even if the owner sells his vehicle, he would be able to use the old number for his new vehicle. But recently, the Centre intervened and asked the Government to drop the idea immediately saying it would lead to utter chaos.
Mumbai, December 02: The Bombay High Court has dismissed a case filed by Income Tax department against Bollywood actor Salman Khan for alleged tax invasion.
According to case, Salman had declared his income for the year 1999-2000 as Rs 2,95,09,771, but assessing officer, after reopening the assessment in 2006, put the figure at Rs 4,63,64,106. The assessing officer had charged the actor with evading income tax to the tune of Rs 1.03 crore.
However, commissioner of Income Tax (Assessment)later granted relief to Khan, setting aside the assessing officer’s finding.
Islamabad, December 02: Militants today struck Pakistan’s Naval Headquarters with a teenage suicide bomber blowing himself up at the gate of the complex here, killing a naval official and injuring three others, including a young boy.
In the brazen attack, the bomber approached the naval headquarters complex on Margalla Road, a key thoroughfare in the federal capital, on foot at 1.30 pm (local time) and blew himself up on being challenged by the guards, police said.
Hyderabad, December 02: Chief Minister K. Rosaiah is leaving for New Delhi on a two-day visit from Wednesday.
During his visit, Mr. Rosaiah, , is expected to call Sonia Gandhi and others AICC leaders. He is likely to discuss the latest political situation including the arrest of TRS president K. Chandrasekhara Rao.
–Agencies
Kadapa, December 02: The late chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy’s son and Kadapa MP YS Jaganmohan Reddy has once again made his intentions crystal clear. ‘‘I will play a bigger role in State politics. My uncles will take care of our constituency (Pulivendula),’’ Jagan said, addressing a meeting organised in connection with the filing of nomination by his mother, Vijayalakshmi, for the Pulivendula bypoll.
Hyderabad, November 02: Hundreds of medical students and volunteers gathered at Nizam College Grounds on Tuesday morning to observe World AIDS Awareness Day.
Washington, December 02: Google, under fire from Rupert Murdoch and some other newspaper owners, said it will let publishers set a limit on the number of articles people can read for free through its search engine.
Google’s announcement came as the News Corp. chairman, who has threatened to block the Internet giant from indexing his newspapers, and other US media heavyweights gathered here to discuss journalism in the Internet age.
Hyderabad, December 02: As the entire world observed World AIDS on Tuesday, India is still battling the disease and trying to increase awareness among the high-risk groups and the general public. The ambitious National AIDS Control Program (NACP) has allotted a total budget of Rs. 11,585 crore in the phase three of its program with 67.2 per cent being used for prevention activities. However the social stigma associated with the disease is still rampant in society.
Kuwait City, December 02: Gulf stock markets steadied on Wednesday after heavy losses in the previous two days, in the absence of fresh developments in the Dubai debt crisis.
The Kuwait Stock Exchange, which plunged 2.7 percent on Tuesday, fluctuated sharply at the opening of the market and then traded slightly lower despite a rise in the leading banking sector.
The Bahrain Stock Exchange, which reopened on Wednesday after a six-day holiday, eased 0.5 percent amid quiet trading.
Washington, December 02: After three months of intensive review of his Af-Pak policy, US President Barack Obama on Wednesday announced to send an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan and begin withdrawal of troops in 18 months.
“I have determined that it is in our vital national interest to send an additional 30,000 US troops to Afghanistan. After 18 months, our troops will begin to come home,” Mr. Obama announced in his speech at the West Point Military Academy in New York.
Ahmedabad, Dec 02: Two persons allegedly robbed Rs 6.51 lakh cash at gunpoint from the Bank of India branch at Narol Circle on Tuesday. Bank officials were inside the premises at that time.
The police said the two entered the bank when the officials were finishing the day’s work. They reportedly held a firearm on the cashier’s head and threatened to kill him.
West Point, December 02: President Barack Obama renewed a pledge Tuesday that all US forces will leave Iraq by the end of 2011 as planned.
“Today, after extraordinary costs, we are bringing the Iraq war to a responsible end,” Obama told military cadets gathered in the prestigious West Point military academy as he unveiled a new strategy in Afghanistan.
“We will remove our combat brigades from Iraq by the end of next summer and all of our troops by the end of 2011,” he said, praising US troops.
Dubai, December 02: Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashed al-Maktoum on Tuesday urged citizens of the Gulf emirate to “roll up your sleeves” to support the economy as state-controlled conglomerate Dubai World attempts a massive restructuring of its debt.
In his first public statement since Dubai World said it plans to halt payments for at least the next six months on its 59 billion dollars of borrowings, Sheikh Mohammed said: “Today our economy is one of the largest economies of the world in terms of power and stability.”
Beirut, December 02: Hezbollah’s new political platform signals a shift in its position as it seeks to portray itself as an integral part of Lebanon’s domestic scene rather than an Iranian proxy, analysts said Tuesday.
“The manifesto is reassuring as it shows Hezbollah’s integration with Lebanese political life,” said Paul Salem, who heads the Beirut-based Carnegie Middle East Centre.
New Delhi, December 02: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday promised to consult Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to decide what could be done to punish the guilty in the anti-Sikh violence of 1984.
Mr. Mukherjee, who is also leader of the Lok Sabha, made the intervention in the wake of an emotional appeal by Shiromani Akali Dal MP Harsimrat Kaur during Zero Hour.
She wanted to know what the government had done over the past 25 years to punish those who killed innocent Sikhs in the wake of the October 1984 assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
Rajkot, Dec 02: A woman died at a private hospital here following an abortion conducted by an ayurvedic doctor at Morbi, said the police. The police have begun investigation and said that if found guilty, a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder will be registered against the doctor for terminating a 20-week pregnancy.
Tripoli, December 02: Libya sentenced two Swiss businessmen to 16 months in prison and a fine on Tuesday, an official said, in a row stemming from the arrest in Geneva last year of Libyan leader Moamer Gathafi’s son.
“The two Swiss citizens have received a 16-month prison sentence and a fine of 2,000 dinars (1,100 euros) each,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
They were detained in Libya after Gathafi’s son Hannibal was arrested in July 2008 after two servants complained he had mistreated them in a Geneva hotel, sparking a diplomatic row between Bern and Tripoli.
Alappuzha, Dec 02: Two persons were killed when the car they were traveling in rammed a tanker lorry near Thumboli on the National Highway-47 early on Wednesday morning.
According to the police, the two persons were identified later as Robin Thomas Varghese, 35, Kandathilkuzhiyil house, Othara West, Pathanamthitta and Samkutty Kurian, 36, Chakalayil House, Othara,
Pathanamthitta. The two were on their way back to Pathanamthitta from the Nedumbassery Airport after seeing off Samkutty’s father, C.T. Kurian around 4.30 a.m. when the accident occurred.
Brussels, December 02: A row broke out between Israel and the European Union Tuesday over a draft EU proposal that Israeli-occupied Palestinian East Jerusalem should become the capital of a future Palestinian state as part of a Middle East peace deal.
At the heart of the diplomatic spat is a suggestion by the Swedish EU president that EU nations should call for an “independent, democratic, contiguous and viable state of Palestine comprising the West Bank and Gaza and with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
Hyderabad, December 02: One out of four women in university campuses in the United States face sexual assault in one form or other and it is feared that, while there are not statistics, the problem could be rampant in India too.
Karen Singleton, a crusader against sexual violence against women students in varsities, working for a global voluntary organisation ‘Take Back The Night’ was in the city on Tuesday and interacted with students at the University of Hyderabad.
Kadapa, December 02: As many as 24 Ministers and more than 60 Congress legislators were present in Pulivendula on Tuesday when Y.S. Vijayalakshmi, widow of former Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, filed her nomination as the party candidate for the ensuing by-election.
In what is seen as a show of strength by YSR’s loyalists, a large number of Ministers and legislators, besides district level leaders from various regions turned up at Pulivendula.
Moscow, December 02: Russia will not block new sanctions against Iran if the international community agrees on such a response to Tehran’s new enrichment plans, a Russian diplomatic source said Tuesday.
“We do not plan to remain in isolation, if there is a consensus on sanctions. We will not remain to one side,” the diplomat told reporters in Moscow on condition of anonymity.
“We need to keep such an option in mind and consider the fact of sanctions.”
Jerusalem, December 02: The Israeli Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a government blackout on details of negotiations on a prisoner swap with the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas for a captured soldier.
The court rejected a demand from an Israeli group demanding that the government provide the names and criteria for Palestinian prisoners to be freed in exchange for Gilad Shalit, seized by Gaza militants in June 2006.
The group opposes the release of any Palestinian convicted of involvement in deadly attacks against Israelis.
New Delhi, Dec 02: The Centre on Wednesday said State Governments have been asked to prepare the local level adaptation action plans on climate change consistent with the objectives of the National Action Plan on Climate Change.
Necessary assistance is also being provided to the State Governments (to tackle climate change) subject to availability of funds, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said in reply to a written question in Lok Sabha.