Mumbai, August 23: Reliance Life Insurance Company (RLIC), part of Anil Ambani-led Reliance Capital on Monday said it has crossed the milestone figure of Rs.15,000 crore in assets under management (AUM) and plans to double this by 2011-12.
“RLIC would be among the fastest private sector life insurance companies to cross this milestone in a span of less than 5 years,” said Malay Ghosh, president and executive director, Reliance Life Insurance.
Punjab, August 23: Two teachers admitted to a hospital in Punjab’s Malerkotla town on Monday following an acid attack on them by unidentified people, police said.
Police officials in Malerkotla, 130 km from here, said that both the teachers, Abdul Gaffar and Mohammad Arif, were admitted to local government hospital after the attack.
“We have recorded their statements and have registered a case against three people, including the owner of a private business networking company,” an area police official said.
Pakistan, August 23: At least 17 people, including a former member of the National Assembly (MNA), were killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up in a mosque of Pakistan’s south Waziristan region on Monday afternoon, a political agent of the area said.
The blast took place in the town of Wana when former MNA Maulana Noor Mohammed Wazir was meeting people after prayers at the mosque, security officials said. Maulana Wazir was running a seminary in the area.
Syed Noor, a nephew of Maulana Wazir, confirmed that his uncle died in the incident.
Pakistan, August 23: At least 17 people, including a former member of the National Assembly (MNA), were killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up in a mosque of Pakistan’s south Waziristan region on Monday afternoon, a political agent of the area said.
The blast took place in the town of Wana when former MNA Maulana Noor Mohammed Wazir was meeting people after prayers at the mosque, security officials said. Maulana Wazir was running a seminary in the area.
Syed Noor, a nephew of Maulana Wazir, confirmed that his uncle died in the incident.
Andhra Pradesh, August 23: Defying the Congress leadership again, parliament member Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy on Monday launched the third leg of his “Odarpu (consolation) yatra” in his native Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh.
The young MP began his road shows in Pulivendula constituency after paying floral tributes at the grave of his father, the late chief minister Y.S.Rajasekhara Reddy (popularly known as YSR), at their Idupulapaya family estate.
YSR, a practising Christian, was laid to rest at his family estate after he was killed in a helicopter crash last year.
Mumbai, August 23: The title of the movie might be crisp as nachos, but Neil Nitin Mukesh and Deepika Padukone starrer edgy love story “Lafangey Parindey” was not crunchy enough to attract the audiences to theatres.
“The business of ‘Lafangey Parindey’ was nothing great. It was below expectations as the movie could manage only 50 percent occupancy over the weekend on an average,” Amit Awasthi, senior manager (Programming and Operations) of Spice Cinemas, told news agency.
Pakistan, August 23: Seven people were killed in a bomb explosion at a meeting of tribal elders in Pakistan’s Kurram region near the Afghan border on Monday.
“We have reports that it happened in a jirga. The death toll could be higher,” the official said.
Taliban insurgents have waged a bombing campaign across the northwest region and in the Pakistani heartland, stoking concern about the stability of the US ally, TV channel reported.
—Agencies
Manila, August 23: The bus hijacker has been gunned down by the commandos during rescue operation in Manila.
According to the reports four foreign tourists has been rescued by the commandos.
Radio channel of Philippine reports, the bus has been surrounded by the commandos and rescue operation has been reportedly finished.
Earlier, heavily armed dismissed police officer on Monday, demanding that his job be reinstated, hijacked a bus in the Philippine, carrying mostly foreign tourists.
There are about 25 passengers in the bus including 22 foreigners.
Mumbai, August 23: Larsen and Turbo (L&T) on Monday said it has won two projects worth Rs.1,195 crore from state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).
The project involves setting up of additional processing units to enhance the gas production at the Uran unit by five million metric standard cubic meter per day (MMSCMD) and the Hazira unit by 5.6 MMSCMD to upgrade infrastructure at its Hazira and Uran complexes in Gujarat.
New Delhi, August 23: Gold prices declined by Rs 25 to Rs 18,965 per 10 grams in the national capital on Monday.
Profit-selling by stockists at existing higher levels amid weak global cues.
However, silver held steady at Rs 29,200 per kg in restricted buying activity from industrial units.
Marketmen said profit-selling by stockists and reports of weak global markets mainly led to the fall in gold prices.
Gold in global markets, which normally sets a price trend on the domestic front, traded marginally lower by 0.02 per cent to USD 1227.70 an ounce.
Islamabad, August 23: Pakistan’s military spy agency ISI has warned the Taliban not to open negotiations with the Hamid Karzai regime or the US without its permission.
Quoting top Pakistani security officials, New York Times said that the Taliban leaders have been warned against carrying out free-lance negotiations, where Islamabad is excluded.
“The message from the ISI is: no flirting,” the paper said quoting a western diplomat.
New Delhi, August 23: The Supreme Court has held that Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (DMRC) has got a right to invoke the “urgency” clause to acquire any land in the metros without undergoing the necessity of inviting objections from aggrieved land owners.
A Bench of Justices P Sathasivam and B S Chauhan cleared decks for DMRC to go ahead with the construction of Chattarpur Metro Station on Qutub Minar-Gurgaon Corridor at Mehrauli over a 26,187 sq mtr.piece of private land before the Commonwealth Games in October.
Chennai, August 23: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK president M Karunanidhi today said it was for LTTE International spokesman Kumaran Pathmanathan to clarify the truth about his interview on the proposed ceasefire between LTTE and Sri Lankan Army after a CPI(M) MLA denied having leaked it to MDMK General Secretary Vaiko.
He was replying to a question whether he read the denial issued by CPI(M) Legislator K Mahendran that LTTE Political Commissar B Nadesan had informed him of the proposed ceasefire and that he had leaked it to Mr Vaiko, who had allegedly thwarted it.
New Delhi, August 23: The file containing the mercy petition
of 2001 Parliament attack convict Mohammad Afzal Guru, who is
facing death sentence in the case, is yet to reach President
Pratibha Devisingh Patil.
President’s Secretariat has revealed this information in response
to an RTI application filed by a journalist Aman Sharma.
The mercy petition was forwarded to Union Home Ministry by
Lieutenant Governor of Delhi Tejendra Khanna in June this year with
the recommendation that the plea may be rejected and the terrorist
should be hanged till death.
–Agencies
Chandigarh, August 23: State Bank of India said it is yet to make any headway in its investigations into five cases of fraudulent ATM withdrawals here during the last one week, which have created a panic among customers about the safety of their money.
“We are working on it… to find out how this thing (the fraud) has happened only with SBI customers,” a senior SBI official said on condition of anonymity, without divulging further information.
Mumbai, August 23: Hiranandani Group director, Surendra Hiranandani, against whom a look-out notice was issued in connection with an alleged provident fund scam, was today granted interim anticipatory bail by a special court.
Surendra sought anticipatory bail three days after CBI told the court that he was still absconding.
Both the brothers, Niranjan and Surendra, have been named accused in an FIR lodged by CBI on March 29, 2008 for an alleged fraud of provident fund deposits to the tune of Rs nine crore.
New Delhi, August 23: Public and private power producers will continue to get duty benefits on the import of equipment till the end of the 11th Five-Year Plan (2007-12), Power Minister Sushilkumar Shinde today said.
Under the Mega Power Policy, the import of equipment for thermal projects with a capacity of 1,000 MW and above and hydel plants of more than 500 MW are exempted from excise and customs duty. The power projects which do not fall in the mega-power project category are subject to 5 per cent excise and customs duty.
Srinagar, August 23: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has requested the Union Road Transport and Highways Ministry to ensure that locals get maximum jobs in the Jammu-Srinagar national highway project.
In a letter to Union Minister Kamal Nath today, Omar underlined the need for giving preference to people of the state in NH-1A project to help address the problem of unemployment, an official spokesman said.
He sought directions to the companies undertaking construction of roads and tunnels for engaging educated youths including technical, skilled and unskilled workers.
Tehran, August 23: Iran said today it has launched mass production of two high-speed missile-launching assault boats to be deployed along its coastline and around the key Strait of Hormuz shipping route.
The inauguration of the production lines for the Seraj and Zolfaqar speedboats comes a day after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad unveiled Iran’s home-built bomber drone, which he said would deliver “death” to Iran’s enemies.
Dambulla (Sri Lanka), August 23: Sri Lanka might have handed India its biggest ODI defeat in terms of balls remaining yesterday, but captain Kumar Sangakkara feels the islanders’ best victory against the team came way back in the year 2000 in Sharjah.
In the Coca Cola Champions Trophy in October, 2000, India, chasing Sri Lanka’s 300-run target, were bowled out for a meagre 54 to register their lowest ODI score and Sangakkara said it was the most memorable win against the Indians so far in his career.
New Delhi, August 23: Former RAW official Brigadier (Retd) Ujjal Dasgupta, who is accused of passing sensitive information to an American woman diplomat, was today granted bail by a city court here nearly four years after his arrest.
Dasgupta is the last of the three accused to get bail in the case. Commodore (Retd) Mukesh Saini, who was working with the National Security Council Secretariat and a Senior System Analyst Shib Shankar Paul at the Secretariat, who were his co-accused, have already been released on bail by the Tis Hazari court here.
Jammu, August 23: Describing continuance of violence and threats to Sikhs in Kashmir as a very serious matter, senior BJP leader Chaman Lal Gupta today alleged that both central and state governments were failing to deal with anti-national elements.
“Total anarchy is prevailing in Valley for about two months but the leaders of the coalition of National Conference (NC) and Congress are playing a dubious role,” Gupta said here while interacting with party activists, including Sikhs, on the happenings in Kashmir and Sikhs being threatened there.
New Delhi, August 23: Heavy rains poured over vast swathes of north India, including the national capital, for another day today as rivers rose menacingly threatening to flood low-lying areas.
Torrential rains hit Uttar Pradesh where several districts were facing a flood-like situation. Six persons were feared drowned in Lakhimpur district when two boats ferrying nine passengers capsized in Ghaghara river late last night.
A major portion of the rail track near Dudhwa area was submerged in flood water that resulted in suspension of over half a dozen trains.
Chennai, August 23: The suspected mastermind of a fake currency circulation racket was arrested from Katihar district in Bihar and brought here for questioning, police said today.
Samsul Haque was arrested recently at Sandhaghat by Tamil Nadu police, with the assistance of Bihar police. Haque was brought to Chennai on a transit warrant issued by the Chief Judicial Magistrate in Katihar, a CB-CID release said.
Kolkata, August 23: Industrialist Ratan Tata today met West Bengal governor M K Narayanan after attending the AGM of Tata Global Beverages here today.
A spokesperson for external communications of Tata group said it was a courtesy visit.
Later, he visited the upcoming cancer hospital set up by the group at Rajarhat near the metropolis.
–Agencies