Month: January 2010

Congress, TDP split on Telangana ahead of all-party meet

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Hyderabad, January 05: A day ahead of the all-party meeting in New Delhi to discuss statehood to Telangana, Andhra Pradesh’s ruling Congress and main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) Monday continued to be undecided on their stand and were likely to put forward a divided opinion.

While the representatives of both the parties from Telangana will urge the central government to immediately start the process for formation of Telangana state, their counterparts from Andhra region will oppose any bifurcation of the state.

Police search Gujarat town for escaped terrorists

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Gandhinagar, January 05: Gujarat police have begun search operations in the temple town of Dakor in Kaira district following reports that the three Pakistani terrorists who escaped from Delhi Police last week were hiding there.

Acting on leads, police set up roadblocks and virtually surrounded the town in search of the terrorists who are believed to be the ones who had managed to escape from the Delhi police.

The tip off came from a mother-daughter duo who had gone to Dakor to pay obeisance at the main temple on Saturday and had noticed some suspicious looking people.

Four held for Rs.15.5 mn robbery in Delhi

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New Delhi, January 05: Four men have been arrested here for robbing a businessman of Rs.15.5 million, police said Monday.

Vikas Aggarwal, Parveen Goyal, Harshit Prabhakar and Deepak alias Jitesh Gogia were arrested for robbing a city based businessman at gunpoint in Ashok Vihar area of northwest Delhi on Oct 16, 2009. The victim was going with his daughter-in-law to HDFC bank when they were robbed.

Police have recovered Rs.1.25 million from the accused. One Hyundai i-10, one Ford Endeavour, two motorcycles were also recovered from them.

Clinton calls Yemen situation threat to global security

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Washington, January 05: The unstable situation in Yemen poses a threat to regional and global security, US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Monday.

International efforts to support the Yemeni government in confronting extremism must be strengthened to prevent Al Qaeda from using the country “as a base for terrorist attacks far beyond the region,” Clinton said.

“The instability in Yemen is a threat to regional stability and even global stability,” she said after meeting with the prime minister of Qatar, Hamad Bin Jassim Jabr al-Thani.

Bodoland outfit chief’s sister killed in Assam

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Guwahati, January 05: Masked gunmen late Monday shot dead one of the sisters of Ranjan Daimary, chief of the outlawed National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB), at her village home in Assam, officials said.

A police spokesperson said three to four gunmen attacked 40-year-old Lilawati Daimary at her residence at village Harisinga in Udalguri district, about 110 km north of here.

Ranjan Daimary is believed to be somewhere in Bangladesh.

Rs.400,000 stolen from a car in Noida

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Noida, January 05: A bag containing Rs.400,000 was stolen from the car of a businessman in Noida Monday afternoon, police said.

According to police, Amit Kansal of Ghaziabad had gone to The Nainital Bank in Sector-2 to deposit a cheque. His driver had parked his car some distance away from the bank premises and he had walked on foot towards the bank.

Five more exoplanets found in Milky Way

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Washington, January 05: NASA scientists said Monday they have identified another five planets orbiting stars in the Milky Way Galaxy.

But none of them appears to be the long sought after Earth-twin that could support life the way the home planet does, Kepler telescope specialists said at a news conference in Washington.

A rally with a secular message

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New Delhi, January 05: A group of students from Jamia Millia Islamia will carry out a unique cycle rally from Pushkar in Rajasthan to New Delhi on a mission to “join hearts”, or a Dilon Ko Jodo mission.

“At least 25 of our boys and girls will start a cycle rally from the Temple of the Lord of Creation in Pushkar (Rajasthan) to spread fraternal fellow-feeling among people of all religions. This will also go a long way to shed people’s perception about our university,” Jamia Vice Chancellor Najeeb Jung told IANS.

244 Indian pilgrims died in Saudi Arabia

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New Delhi, January 05: As many as 244 Indian pilgrims died in Saudi Arabia during the Haj pilgrimage in November 2009, mostly due to ailments, according to the Haj Committee of India.

Eight people died in two road accidents. One pilgrim, from Andhra Pradesh, died of swine flu.

Over 165,000 Indians performed the Haj, one of the fundamentals of Islam, in November 2009.

While 124,000 pilgrims went through the Haj Committee, the rest proceeded to the kingdom through tour operators.

A coffee table book in aid of Bahadur Shah Zafar’s descendants

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New Delhi, January 05: Sultana Begum, the great granddaughter of the last Mughal emperor of India, Bahadur Shah Zafar, has found an unusual saviour – a coffee table book on the former prime ministers of India.

The book, ‘The Prime Ministers of India 1947-2009’ has been compiled by journalist Shivnath Jha and his teacher wife Neena Jha to raise money for Sultana Begum’s rehabilitation. Sultana Begum, a poor widow with four daughters, sells tea in a kiosk in Shibpur, a semi-urban township, 80 km southwest of Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal.

Afghans Fete Extended Pakistan Hospitality

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Peshawar, January 05: When Samiullah Jan was told to pack his few belongings and get ready to head back home to war-ravaged Afghanistan, he felt being sentenced to death. But after few days, he was granted clemency.

“I am very happy that at least for the next three years I won’t be forced to leave,” the Afghan refugee, who has been taking shelter in the suburbs of Peshawar for the past nine years, told.

Like millions of Afghans, Jan and his family fled their home after the 2001 American invasion and headed to neighboring Pakistan.

Sporadic incidents mar ‘one Andhra’ bandh

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Hyderabad, January 05: Barring sporadic incidents, the bandh called today by the all-party Joint Action Committee (JAC) in non-Telangana regions in support of united Andhra Pradesh passed off peacefully.

Police registered a case against Telugu Desam MLA K E Prabhakar, who had an argument with the law keepers while enforcing the bandh in Kurnool district.

“They (TDP activists) tried to forcibly close shops and the MLA pushed aside a Circle Inspector and a Constable while enforcing bandh in Kurnool town,” Kurnool District Superintendent of Police Ch Srikant told PTI over the phone.

US Plan For Mideast Peace Deal in 2 Years

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Washington, January 05: The Obama administration is reportedly promoting a plan to reach a final peace settlement between the Palestinians and Israel in two years and agree on permanent borders in nine months.

Citing unnamed sources, Maariv daily said the plan foresees talks between the Palestinians and Israelis to agree on permanent borders in nine months.

“After reaching an agreement on borders, the sides will move on to discuss the other core issues: Jerusalem and refugees,” the Israeli daily said.

Hazaras Eye Education For Afghan Power

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Kabul, January 05: Sidelined for years by the dominant Pashtun tribes, ethnic Afghan Hazaras are now using education to regain influence in the central Asian Muslim country.

“The Pashtun had the opportunities in the past,” Mustafa, a Hazara teenager, told.

“But now the Hazaras have these opportunities.”

The 16-year-old had fled Afghanistan into the Pakistani town of Quetta when the Taliban took control of the country in the 1990s.

But after the Taliban ouster by the 2001 US invasion, Mustafa’s family returned to Kabul to get better schooling for their son.

After 22 yrs, US lifts HIV/AIDS travel ban

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Washington, January 05: Human rights groups on Monday praised the official lifting of a decades-old ban that prevented people with HIV/AIDS from traveling to the United States. President Barack Obama announced in October that his administration would end the ban, and the legislation lifting the travel restrictions came into effect on Monday.

Vexed Telangana to make it tempestuous today

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New Delhi, January 05: The Tuesday meeting on the Telangana issue, called by Union Home Minister P Chidambaram, is unlikely to yield any concrete results and seems to be the first of a series of meetings and wide range of consultations to come on the issue.

With serious differences between leaders of Telangana and Rayalaseema and Andhra leaders on the issue, Tuesday’s meeting is likely to be stormy one. Sources said that Union Home Minister P Chidambaram could also be meeting the representatives of political parties separately.

Indian workers sold like cattle in Saudi Arabia

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Jaipur, January 05: Habib Hussain of Moradabad, who hid in a toilet on an Air India flight from Saudi Arabia to return to his own country, says he did so for his two children, his pregnant wife, and an ailing mother.

After his bizarre experience, Habib says he has realised that ‘aadhi roti’ (half a piece of bread) at home is better than one in an alien land. He also said Indian labour is sold like cattle in that country.

Policeman killed in Yemen shooting

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Sana’a, January 05: One policeman was killed and three were wounded following clashes at a demonstration in the city of Aden on Monday, police said.

Brigadier General Abduallah Qairan, head of police forces in Aden, said that demonstrators at a sit-in at the banned al-Ayyam newspaper first opened fire on the police, who retaliated.

“Armed supporters of the newspaper opened fire on the policemen, killing one instantly and wounding three others, including a senior officer,” Qairan told dpa, adding that the protest was unauthorized.

Third person crashed White House dinner for PM

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Washington, January 05: A third person not on the White House guest list was able to gain access to President Barack Obama’s first state dinner organized in November for Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the Secret Service confirmed Monday.

The Secret Service in a statement said the individual, who was unnamed, travelled to the White House dinner as part of the official Indian delegation but was not on a pre-approved list for the event.

Malaysia’s Allah Debate Goes Online

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Kuala Lampur, January 05: Thousands of Malaysian Muslims rushed online to vent growing anger at a court ruling allowing Christians to use the word “Allah” when referring to God.

A newly-formed Facebook group in the local Malay language drew more than 43,000 Malaysians in a few days, reported.

Targeting Muslims “who realize that this is propaganda to confuse Muslims now and in future,” the group continues to draw 1,500 new supporters an hour.

US Screens Visitors from Muslim Countries

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Washington, January 05: The US has toughened security measures for US-bound airline passengers from or via 14 countries, mostly Muslim, raising fears of profiling based on nationality, the Washington Post reported.

“Because effective aviation security must begin beyond our borders, (Transportation Security Administration) TSA is mandating that every individual flying into the US from anywhere in the world traveling from or through nations that are state sponsors of terrorism or other countries of interest will be required to go through enhanced screening,” said TSA spokesman Greg Soule.

Jihad Remarks Infuriate India Muslims

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New Delhi, January 05: Union Home Minister Shri P Chidambram’s remarks linking jihad to terrorism are infuriating Indian Muslims for misinterpreting the true meaning of the Islamic term.

“It is a gross misrepresentation of ‘Jihad’ and also betrays sheer ignorance on the part of your speech writer,” the All India Muslim Majlis-E-Mushawarat, an umbrella body of Indian Muslim organisations, in a statement.

Addressing an intelligence lecture on December 23, Minister Chidambram linked jihad to terrorism.

Jihad: Its True Meaning and Purpose

World music, dance come to Abu Dhabi

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Abu Dhabi, January 04: Featuring the best of contemporary world music and dance, the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) continues its unique initiative World Stage by hosting three exceptional artistic experiences this January and February.

Authentic music lovers will witness an extraordinary performance of internationally acclaimed Malian musician Habib Koite on January 21 at the Cultural Foundation in the capital.

Dates’ packaging competition held at Al Dhafra Festival 2010

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Abu Dhabi, January 04: In its third season, Al Dhafra Festival will witness Dates Packaging Competition for the second year in a row. The competition is aimed at encouraging date producers to develop the packaging methods of this important product, as well as safeguarding it as one of the most important symbols of UAE’s national heritage. Promoting dates as a significant part of a healthy diet, and paying attention to their preservation, packaging and marketing, are the aims of the competition. It will also emphasise the need to make the packaging more modern, vigorous and transportable.

Abu Dhabi Classics continues its thrilling musical night

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Abu Dhabi, January 04: The year long musical program, Abu Dhabi Classics, organised by Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) will continue in January with more extraordinary consorts.

Three magnificent nights are scheduled for this month; the first one will take place on January 14, 2010 where the London Philharmonia Orchestra will perform Symphonic Masterworks for Mozart and Beethoven at the Emirates Palace Auditorium.