Month: February 2010

China fumes after U.S. arms sales to Taiwan

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Beijing, February 01: Chinese state media laid into the United States on Monday after the Obama administration unveiled its first arms package for Taiwan, a move that prompted China to impose sanctions on the firms involved.

The latest spat between the world’s biggest and third-biggest economies threatens to add to a litany of other issues straining ties, including the value of China’s currency, trade protectionism and Internet freedoms.

The official China Daily said U.S. weapons sales to the self-ruled and democratic island “inevitably casts a long shadow on Sino-US relations.”

Rupee down by 22 paise against dollar in early trade

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Mumbai, February 01: The rupee today depreciated by 22 paise against the US currency in early trade in line with weak stock markets. At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the rupee fell by 22 paise to 46.38 a dollar.

The rupee had closed higher by 19 paise at 46.16/17 a dollar in the previous session. Dealers said dollar”s gains against other Asian currencies and buying of US currency by banks, mainly weighed on the Indian rupee”s sentiment.

The Bombay Stock Exchange index Sensex opened lower by 175 points, or 1.06 per cent, in early trade today.

—PTI

Moderate quake hits China kills one

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Beijing, February 01: One person was killed, 11 others were injured and more than 100 houses collapsed in an earthquake of magnitude 5.0 that hit southwest China on Sunday.

The quake measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale struck Sichuan province at 0306 hrs IST with its epicentre near the city of Suining, Xinhua news agency quoted Sichuan earthquake authority as saying.

Suining, a city with a population of 3.8 million, is 140 kilometres east to Chengdu, capital of Sichuan.

Sensex opens lower by 175 points on global cues

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Mumbai, February 01: The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex today fell by over 175 points, or 1.06 points, in early trade on fresh spell of selling by funds driven by weak trends in the overseas bourses. The 30-share Sensex fell by 175.85 points to 16,182.11 points in early trade.

The wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty declined by 50.50 points, or 1.05 per cent, to 4,831.55 points. Sentiments on the domestic bourses were dampened by weak trend in global markets, triggering selling by funds as well as retail investors, brokers said.

Cong leaders from Telangana to discuss JAC issue today

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Hyderabad, February 01: Congress leaders from Telangana region would on Monday discuss the party’s directive that they should “withdraw” from the all-party Telangana Joint Action Committee (JAC).

The matter would be discussed at a meeting of the leaders from Telangana, Congress MLA B Saraiah told reporters on Sunday night.

He said the JAC was formed at the residence of senior MLA and former minister K Jana Reddy and that it never acted against the party.

Another senior leader and former minister T Jeevan Reddy said formation of Telangana state would solve all problems.

NASA to launch mission to unravel solar secrets

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London, February 01: NASA is embarking a new ambitious mission to unravel the sun’s interior mechanisms that may help predict solar storms that cause chaos on Earth.

The U.S. space agency hopes the mission — scheduled for February 9 from Space Launch Complex-41, Cape Canaveral AFS, Florida — will help understand the causes of extreme solar activities such as sun spots and solar winds and flares.

According to NASA, after its launch, the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) will spend five years in orbit trying to discover how such solar phenomena are created.

Saif says, I deserve Padma Shri

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Mumbai, February 01: Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan’s name in the list of Padma Shri awardees may have raised some eyebrows but the star says that he deserves the honour and will try his best to live up to it.

“If you look at the awardees over the last couple of years, all of them have not exactly invented a nuclear bomb,” the actor told a news channel.

Saif’s being named a Padma Shri had surprised many and sparked protests from the Bishnoi community due to the pending court case against him and Salman Khan for killing two black bucks.

Tokyo protests at Russian border guard shooting

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Tokyo, February 01: Tokyo has lodged a formal complaint after Russian border guards shot at two Japenese fishing boats off the disputed South Kuril islands, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said.

The guards fired warning shots from a helicopter and then shot directly at the boats on Friday when the fishermen failed to stop after straying into waters off Kunashir island, a Russian statement said.

Kunashir, known as Kunashiri in Japanese, is the southernmost in the island chain, which is controlled by Russia but claimed by Japan.

Corruption in judiciary too bad: Advani

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Bhopal, February 01: “Around 20-25 years back one began hearing about bureaucratic corruption, then it was of political corruption, but now there is also talk of judicial corruption,” this was how veteran BJP leader L K Advani today expressed his anguish on the reported incidents of graft in the legal circle.

“I am sad that these days we even hear talk of corruption in judicial quarters,” he said at a conference of newly-elected BJP corporators of local bodies at the Chief Minister’s residence.

African Union Summit begins with dispute over leader

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Africa, February 01: The African Union (AU) summit opened in Addis Ababa on Sunday and faced an immediate rift over Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi’s likely bid to retain the leadership of the organisation.

The summit’s official theme is information technology and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was expected to highlight the importance of putting the Millennium Development Goals back on their 2015 target.

The 53-member body’s annual meeting at the Addis Ababa headquarters looked set to be hijacked by one of its most controversial leaders.

Agra meet to discuss robot use in urology treatment

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Agra, February 01: Use of robots and computers for surgery on patients with urological problems will be discussed at an international conference on advances in urology, to be held in the city of the Taj Mahal beginning Feb 3.

The five-day conference will be attended by over 1,000 Indian and 200 foreign specialists in urology.

In the pre-congress workshop, specialists of the American Urological Association will highlight and demonstrate latest robotic assisted laproscopic techniques.

11 people fear drown in Tandava

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Hyderabad, February 01: In yet another boat tragedy, 11 people were feared drowned as a country-made boat capsized in Tandava reservoir in Andhra Pradesh today.

This was the second boat mishap after yesterday’s incident, which claimed 11 lives in West Godavari district in the state.

The mishap occurred when 14 villagers of Ammapeta in Golugonda mandal in Visakhapatnam district were returning in a boat after worshipping a local deity on a hillock, Visakhapatnam Rural Superintendent of Police Vineet Brijlal, who visited the spot, told PTI over phone.

‘Mechanism on Telangana unlikely soon’

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New Delhi, February 01: Grappling with the ticklish Telangana issue, Congress today indicated that the much-talked about mechanism on it was unlikely to be formed soon and asked partymen to withdraw from the Joint Action Committee agitating for statehoood, warning them of stern action for indiscipline.

Union Law Minister M Veerappa Moily said the Centre was seized of the matter on the formation of a committee or mechanism to look into all issues and concerns of all regions in Andhra Pradesh.

Headmaster held on sexual harassment charge

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Kannur, February 01: A government school headmaster was arrested today on the charge of sexually harassing a 11-year-old girl student in the district.

The 48-year-old headmaster of Government Upper Primary School in Karyad was arrested following a complaint by Parent Teacher Association President N P Anwar, police said.

Gilani seeks report on political violence in Karachi

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Karachi, February 01: Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has sought report from Sindh province government on the fierce clashes between supporters of two political parties in this port city that left about 17 people dead.

Gilani spoke to the chief minister of Sindh province, Syed Qaim Ali Shah late last night and asked him to give a report on the recent incidents of killing in Karachi and on the situation arising out of these incidents, reports said.

1 in 3 Britons wants total ban on wearing a burka

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Briton, February 01: A third of Britons want to see an outright ban on the burka, according to a poll.

And two thirds believe it should be illegal to wear a burka in places such as banks and airports.

France has been considering a ban on the burka and the issue has caused controversy when it has been raised in the UK.

A ComRes poll of 1,000 people for today’s Independent found that six out of 10 oppose a ban on wearing it in all public places.

Some 52 per cent disagreed with the proposition that there should be no legal restrictions on wearing a burka, while 43 per cent agreed.

Mumbai is for Marathis only, says Shiv Sena confronts RSS

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Mumbai, February 01: The RSS and BJP’s key ally Shiv Sena were on a collision course over the migrants issue with Bal Thackeray’s party today telling the Sangh, which said Mumbai is for all Indians, that the western metropolis belongs to Marathi people only.

The RSS while echoing its chief Mohan Bhagwat’s remarks yesterday on the emotive issue said it was opposed to discrimination on the basis of language and demanded steps to check any disturbances in this regard in Maharashtra.

Jackson kids to accept Grammy on his behalf

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Los Angeles, February 01: Pop icon Michael Jackson”s children will be present at the Grammy Awards ceremony this year to accept the Lifetime Achievement trophy on the late star”s behalf. The ”Thriller” hitmaker”s two eldest children, Paris, 11, and Prince Michael, 12, are scheduled to take the stage at the prestigious event on Sunday and will be handed the posthumous award, People magazine reported online.

Taliban leader ‘killed in U.S. missile strike’

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Islamabad, February 01: Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud may have died from injuries sustained in a US drone missile strike in mid-January, the country’s army has revealed.

The announcement came shortly after state television reported that Mehsud died in Orakzai, an area in Pakistan’s northwest tribal region where he was reportedly being treated for his injuries.

‘We have these reports coming to us,’ army spokesman General Athar Abbas said. ‘We are investigating whether it is true or wrong.’

U.S. expanding missile defenses in Gulf

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Washington, February 01: The United States has expanded land- and sea-based missile defense systems in and around the Gulf to counter what it sees as Iran’s growing missile threat, U.S. officials said.

The deployments include expanded land-based Patriot defensive missile installations in Kuwait, Qatar, UAE and Bahrain, as well as Navy ships with missile defense systems in and around the Mediterranean, officials said.

ASH looks best in a sari: Neeta Lulla

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Mumbai, February 01: Ace designer Neeta Lulla has been lending her creative touch to Aishwarya Rai’s wardrobe for more than a decade. Having dressed the actress in varied costumes in movies like “Taal”, “Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam” and “Jodhaa Akbar”, the designer feels the sari suits the former beauty queen best.

“No doubt Aishwarya looks beautiful in Indian outfits, but, personally, I feel that she looks her best in a sari. She can carry a simple cotton to a designer sari with equal poise and elegance,” Lulla told IANS in an interview.

Eye on polls, Bengal gives quota to more Muslims

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New Delhi, February 01: Even as Muslim leader Siddiqullah Chowdhury on Thursday hit streets demanding 15 per cent job reservation for the community, the state government decided to adopt the ‘Kerala model’ to include 28 Muslim communities in the OBC category.

At present, there are 12 Muslim communities under this category. Through this initiative, the state government aims at providing reservation to nearly half of the Muslim population in West Bengal.

Jaya Prada backs Amar, party says she’s ‘history’

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Lucknow, February 01: A day after Amar Singh launched Lok Manch, a non-political front, in Ghazipur (UP), SP Lok Sabha MP from Rampur Jaya Prada came out in his support, but the party was quick to run her down, saying she had become history for them.

NASA’s new mission to unlock secret of solar storms

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London, February 01: NASA is sending a new mission in the space to observe the surface of the sun so as to unlock the secret of solar storms and other chaotic activities.

The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), scheduled to be launched Feb 9, will spend five years in the space to observe how sunlight is generated. It will try to trace causes of extreme solar activities, such as sun spots, solar winds and flares.

No entrance test to Class I, civic body reminds schools

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Pune, February 01: The education department of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) will send a warning letter to 350 schools in its jurisdiction, against conducting entrance examinations for class I admissions.

The move follows an agitation launched by the Maharashtra Navnirman Vidyarthi Sena (MNVS) against St Vincent’s and Loyola Schools conducting entrance test for class I admissions.