Month: February 2010

Centre weak on acting against terror, Naxalism: RSS

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Kollam (Ker), February 25: Accusing the UPA government of failing to act firmly against terrorism originating from Pakistan and Naxal threat, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat today said indecisiveness on these challenges has become a major threat to the nation.

The government is claiming that it has adopted a “humanitarian approach” on these issues grossly overlooking the grim threat posed by them, Bhagwat told a massive gathering of over one lakh RSS volunteers here.

Good diet can help exam stress

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New Delhi, February 25: As exam time approaches so does stress. Be it smoking, taking pills or skipping meals, students do everything possible to soothe their frayed nerves but all they need is a good diet that will help them tide over this period.

With diets having a bearing on moods, nutritionists say children should have light and frequent meals to help maintain blood and sugar levels.

No player association can dictate terms: Modi

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Bangalore, February 25: In a strong criticism of the Federation of International Cricketers Association and Ricky Ponting, IPL commissioner Lalit Modi said that the IPL would not be dictated to by players associations on where to play.

Writing on his twitter account, Modi said, “We will not be dictated by players associations where to play. DLF IPL will be played in India.”

“[I’ve] been told Ricky Ponting is pressuring players not to come. Maybe it’s due to the fact he was dropped from KKR,” Modi added.

I Would like to see an Indian break this record: Sachin

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Gwalior, February 25: Master batsman Sachin Tendulkar said records are meant to be broken and he would be glad to see an Indian eclipsing his epic unbeaten 200 that he smashed against South Africa in the second ODI at Gwalior.

Tendulkar became the first cricketer to hit a double century in the four-decade-long history of one day cricket but the Indian reckoned even this record would be bettered some day.

“No record is unbreakable. Records are made to be broken and I would like to see an Indian breaking this record,” Tendulkar said, dedicating the knock to all his fans.

Zarine Khan loses it!

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Mumbai, February 25: After being nicknamed Fatrina, Veer actress Zarine Khan who closely resembles Katrina Kaif, is desperately shedding the flab she acquired for the film.

The newbie has been working out religiously and the results are already showing. She has been gymming daily for over an hour coupled with swimming and jogging.

B-Town buzz is that she has been signed for another film and is keen to shed the flab. Sources state that she will feature in Salman Khan- starrer Kick, produced by Sajid Nadiadwala. Zarine prefers to be tightlipped, though.

Salman Khan plays matchmaker

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Mumbai, February 25: To his on-screen maa’s (Beena Kak; in Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya) off-screen beti (Amrita)

Salman Khan loves to play matchmaker. The actor is very close to Rajasthan Tourism Minister Beena Kak and has grown close to her entire family over the years.

Salman Khan and Amrita Kak at her brother Ankur’s wedding. file pic

He is very protective about her daughter Amrita, who he treats like a younger sister. He even took the responsibility of finding a suitable groom for her. Salman finally zeroed on a dulha, and the wedding will happen on an auspicious day this summer.

Sanjay Bhansali’s Massakali

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Mumbai, February 25: Abhishek had his Massakali in Delhi-6, and now Hrithik Roshan gets his own feathery friend in Sanjay Bhansali’s Guzaarish.

It seems that the pigeon is in most frames with the actor. Bhansali is completely smitten by the bird.

And recently, he delayed shooting for five hours to make the bird look beautiful.

A source reveals, “Bhansali wasn’t happy with the lighting and he insisted that they wait till the sun sets and shoot just before it got dark!” The crew wasn’t too kicked with the idea that all they wanted to scream was Kabootar Ja, Ja, Jaa.

Ban tells Israel of concern over East Jerusalem, Gaza

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New York, February 25: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon Wednesday raised his concern over developments in East Jerusalem, Israel’s heritage sites and the ongoing problems in Gaza Strip in a meeting with Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak.

Ban met with Barak at UN headquarters in New York and urged Israel to take steps to allow the resumption of the peace talks on settling the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, said UN spokesman Martin Nesirky.

Israeli nominee for Peace Nobel wants to be removed from list

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Oslo, February 25: Israeli nuclear whistle-blower Mordechai Vanunu has again asked to be removed from a list of Nobel Peace Prize nominees, the head of the Oslo-based Norwegian Nobel Institute said Wednesday.

“He has written letters to us this year and last year also, where he stated explicitly that he did not want to be a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize,” Nobel Institute Director Geir Lundestad told DPA.

Karzai criticized over Afghan poll watchdog move

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Kabul, February 25: Afghanistan’s main opposition on Wednesday criticized President Hamid Karzai’s removal of foreign observers from a UN-backed electoral watchdog as “autocratic” and urged international pressure to ensure impartial elections.

The five-member Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC), tasked with reviewing voting fraud, previously had three foreign members appointed by the United Nations, and last year nullified a third of Karzai’s votes in the presidential poll as fraudulent.

‘Militarization’ of society risks coups, says Iraq’s VP

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Baghdad, February 25: The “militarization” of Iraqi society puts the country at risk of military coups, Vice President Adil Abdel-Mahdi said in remarks quoted by Baghdad’s Al-Mada daily on Tuesday. Abdel-Mahdi said the country’s 1 million police officers and soldiers mean that there is one policeman for every 30 Iraqis — and that at least one member of every family is part of the security forces.

“There is a historical precedent in this case. The country is set for military coups,” the vice president said.

‘Hirakud dam is failing, farmers are killing themselves’

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Bhubaneswar, February 25: Dozens of farmers have committed suicide in Orissa in the past one year as the Hirakud dam is no longer serving its purpose, says a new study that warns of a grimmer situation in the coming days if urgent steps are not taken.

The dam, built across the Mahanadi river, about 350 km from here in the district of Sambalpur, is one of the longest in the world. It is one of independent India’s early multipurpose river valley projects.

Slumdog star Pinto gets new role

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Los Angeles, February 25: Freida Pinto, the Indian actress who made a splash in “Slumdog Millionaire”, will play the female lead in the new movie “War of Gods”, Variety magazine reported Wednesday.

Pinto will portray the oracle priestess Phaedra in the film about Theseus, a warrior from Greek mythology who takes on the Greek gods.

In the film, Phaedra is an ally with Theseus, played by Henry Cavill, in his fight against the titans.
–IANS

Mrinalini Sharma loves ‘Bingo’

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Mumbai, February 25: The sexy actress, Mrinalini Sharma, who made her debut in Vishesh Films’ “Awarapan’ in 2007, is busy nowadays with “Bingo’. No! One is not talking about Abhishek Bachchan’s show ‘Bingo’ here but about her adorable dog with the same name. She is in love with Bingo and is very close to it. Perhaps that is why she hates any kind of injustice done to animals.

Eye problems can predict dementia: Study

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Washington, February 25: Seniors with poor vision, particularly untreated eye problems, are at an increased risk of developing dementia in the long run, a new study finds.

According to the study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, vision problems may precede the diagnosis of dementia by years.

Seniors with poor vision even with corrective lenses are five- to 10- times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia over the next 8.5 years.

Bitter melon can fight breast cancer

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Hamburg, February 25: The extract of bitter melon, a common vegetable in India, China and South America, can help protect women from breast cancer, a new study finds.

Bitter melon, rich in Vitamin C and flavonoids, had long been known for its anti-diabetes and blood-sugar lowering properties.

According to the study published in Cancer Research, the extract of the melon, also known as ‘karela’ in Hindi, can slow the growth or even kill breast cancer cells, leaving healthy cells intact.

Pakistan might extradite Baradar to Afghanistan

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Islamabad, February 25: Pakistan says it will hand over detained top Taliban commander Mulla Abdul Ghani Baradar to the Afghan government after reviewing his case.

“My visiting Afghan counterpart has formally requested the Pakistani government to hand over Mullah Abdul Ghani Barader, however, we would take decision about it (the issue) by keeping international laws in view,” Rehman Malik, Pakistan’s Interior Minister was quoted by the correspondent as saying on Wednesday.

UN: 131 children killed in 2009-NATO air raids

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London, February 25: As US-led forces strive to win public support for “Operation Mushtarak” in Afghanistan, a new UN report reveals that over 130 children have been killed in NATO air raids in the country last year.

Radhika Coomaraswamy, the UN secretary general’s special representative for children and armed conflict also said Wednesday that 346 children were killed in Afghan violence last year.

Maoists were arrested in Orissa

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Bhubaneswar, February 25: Three suspected Maoists were arrested from Rasol village in Keonjhar district of Orissa, police said Thursday.

The arrested people have been identified as Rengal Munda, Daitari Munda and Jhula Munda.

‘We have arrested three Maoists. They were involved in several Maoist incidents,’ said Superintendent of Police Ashish Kumar Singh.

—-IANS

Australia summons Israeli envoy over Dubai case

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Abu Dhabi, February 25: Australia has summoned the Israeli ambassador over forged Australian documents used by a terror team that assassinated a senior Hamas commander in Dubai last month.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said Thursday that Australia “will not be silent on the matter” after three Australian passport-holders were named among 15 new suspects linked to the assassination of Mahmud al-Mabhouh in his hotel room in Dubai, AFP reported.

New Iran sanctions in 30-60 days, Clinton claims

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Tehran, February 25: UN Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expects the UN Security Council to impose new sanctions against Iran in the “next 30 to 60 days.”

Clinton claimed that the US administration’s overtures to Tehran have helped Washington gain greater international support for tougher sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program.

“Our very clear commitment to engagement has created space for a lot of these countries to now consider supporting sanctions that they might not have otherwise,” Clinton told a Senate hearing on Wednesday.

Pak hockey coach unhappy with security in Delhi

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Karachi, February 25: The security being given to them in Delhi has done little to inspire confidence in the Pakistani hockey team and coach Shahid Ali Khan is unhappy with safety arrangements for his players in the World Cup starting on Sunday.

Shahid said he was unhappy with the security arrangements for the team especially while they were travelling from the hotel to the ground.

“I think there is need for more security for a tournament of such nature especially when we are traveling,” the former Olympian was quoted.

‘Russia not working on Iran sanctions’

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Moscow, February 25: A senior Russian diplomat says his country will not support what he called crippling sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program.

“We are not going to work on sanctions, on measures which should lead to political, economic or financial isolation of that country,” Oleg Rozhkov, a deputy head of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s security and disarmament department said.

“Russia isn’t working or participating in actions which should lead to overthrowing the existing regime,” The Washington Post quoted Rozhkov as saying on Wednesday.

Iran airports to be equipped with body scanners

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Tehran, February 25: Head of Iran’s Drug Control Headquarters Brigadier General Esmail Ahmadi-Moqaddam says by next year all Iranian airports will be equipped with body scanners.

“International Iranian airports all have been equipped with sniffer dogs, body scanners and etc.,” General Ahmadi-Moqaddam said in a meeting with Indonesia’s National Narcotics Agency chief, Brigadier General Gories Mere, on Wednesday.

Ahmadi-Moqaddam said that the security measure is aimed at tackling drug problems.

China puts off military exchanges with US: Pentagon

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Washington, February 25: The Pentagon says that Beijing has put off several high-profile military exchanges with Washington over the US military’s 6.4-billion-dollar arms deal with Taiwan.

China “has postponed planned exchanges such as their chief of the general staff’s visit to the United States, the commander of US Pacific Command’s visit to China, and a visit to the US by one of China’s military region commanders,” Major Maureen Schumann, a Pentagon spokesman, AFP reported on Wednesday.