Month: February 2011

India, Afghanistan to jointly combat terror

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New Delhi, February 03: Amid Pakistan’s attempt to influence the Taliban integration process, India and Afghanistan Thursday discussed ways to jointly combat the common threat of terrorism and work for peace and stability in the region.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met Afghan President Hamid Karzai at his residence here and discussed a wide range of bilateral issues, including India’s developmental assistance and the security of Indians in that country.

Five injured in Kolkata building collapse

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Kolkata, February 03: At least five persons got injured when a three-storey building collapsed in India Exchange Place, the busy and crowded central business district here on Thursday.

Santosh Pathak, Councillor of Kolkata City Corporation, claimed that he rushed to the spot and witnessed how the other portion of the building also crumbled.

Radio-tagged students feel down-at-heel

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Hyderabad, January 03: For the last 11 days, Deepthi (name changed on request) has not moved out of the apartment that she shares with a fellow Tri-Valley University (TVU) student in Pleasanton, California. Ever since US Immigration and Customs Enformcement (ICE) officials called on her to check her status in the country, her spirits have sunk.

Her university has been busted, the money her family raised to send her to the US has gone down the drain and she may have to drag the RFID anklet around until September when the hearing on her future is likely to take place.

Inter practical exams from today

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Hyderabad, February 03: Intermediate practical examinations will be held from February 3 to February 23 across 2,573 centres in the state. A total of 5,92,904 students will appear for the exams to be held between 9 am to 12 noon and 2 p.m to 5 p.m.

CM plays Hindu music to Muslim ears

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Hyderabad, February 03: In an apparent attempt to woo the MIM, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Wednesday said Muslims were unfairly implicated in the Mecca Masjid blast which was the “handiwork of Hindu militants.”

BJP sees route to Delhi via AP

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Hyderabad, February 03: The BJP national leadership has decided to focus on Andhra Pradesh as part of its strategy to regain the lost ground at the national level. The party wants to maintain good relations with all the non-Congress parties in the state to get their cooperation in national politics and has shortlisted some important personalities from the state to seek their help to achieve its political targets.

HC: Implement SC orders on court functioning

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Hyderabad, February 03: A division bench of the AP High Court comprising Chief Justice Nissar Ahmad Kakru and Justice Vilas Afzalpurkar on Wednesday directed strict compliance of the earlier orders made by the Supreme Court and the High Court with regard to the functioning of the courts. The court order came in a writ petition filed by lawyer Syed S R Mamoom who complained that after the incidents in the Ranga Reddy court on Tuesday it was necessary to give protection to lawyers. He complained of failure of the official machinery.

Caution advised in drafting teachers for poll duty

Congress seniors lash out at Kaka

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Hyderabad, February 03: Several senior Congress leaders, including former chief minister K Rosaiah, former ministers JC Diwakar Reddy and G Venkat Reddy, MP S Satyanarayana and MLCs KR Amos and P Sudhakar Reddy, today came down heavily on CWC member and senior leader G Venkataswamy for his outburst against party chief and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

They strongly condemned his remarks.

Relief as jumbos march towards TN border

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Tirupati, February 03: The herd of 21 elephants that had Kuppam and surrounding villages on the edge for close to 12 hours finally moved towards the forests on the Chittoor-Tamil Nadu border.

They had strayed into Lakshmipuram near Kuppam on Tuesday morning, attracted by the water tank at the Varadarajaswamy temple. While the panicky locals alerted the forest department officials and police, the pachyderms played and rested in the water body till late in the evening.

No green signal to install jammers

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Hyderabad, February 03: The Andhra Pradesh Prisons department may have failed in arresting the menace of mobile phone smuggling inside ‘high security’ jails. But each time there is a hue and cry about mobile phone being used by convicts, they are quick to point a finger at the state government, for not giving green signal for installing mobile jammers inside jails. Meanwhile, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy has ordered director-general (Prisons) to conduct an inquiry into the incident.

Chidambaram arrives in Jammu to review situation

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Srinagar, February 03: Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram arrived here Thursday to take stock of the security situation and political developments in Jammu and Kashmir.

Chidambaram will review the security situation both here and in the hilly district of Kishtwar, about 200 km northeast of Jammu, to find out about the “ground realities”, official sources said.

He will start with an interaction with local Congress leaders and get their inputs about governance and how the party can be strengthened in the state, where it is ruling in alliance with the National Conference.

Teenager raped, whipped to death in Bangladesh

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Dhaka, February 03: A teenager in Bangladesh died after being raped and then whipped 100 times following a fatwa by local clerics this week, a media report said.

The Dhaka High Court directed the authorities concerned to explain why they failed to protect the teenager who was raped and then whipped following the fatwa (religious edict) by local Muslim clerics, Daily Star reported.

Sensex advances for second day; shoots up 358 points

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Mumbai, February 03: Shrugging off spike in food inflation and high interest rate worries, the BSE benchmark Sensex Thursday surged by over 358 points to close at 18,449.31 on aggressive value buying in the recently beaten stocks and indications of a steady global economic recovery.

The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex, which had gained 68 points in the previous session, spurted by 358.69 points to 18,449.31, even as the food inflation soared to over 17 percent for the week ended January 22 from 15.57 percent in the previous week.

Yemenis square off in rival “Day of Rage” protests

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Sana’a, February 03: Tens of thousands of Yemenis squared off in street protests for and against the government on Thursday during an opposition-led “Day of Rage”, a day after President Ali Abdullah Saleh offered to step down in 2013.

By early morning, anti-government activists drew more than 20,000 in Sana’a, the biggest crowd since a wave of protests hit the Arabian Peninsula state two weeks ago inspired by demonstrations that toppled Tunisia’s ruler and threaten Egypt’s President.

India Inc to conduct recruitment drive in Tihar jail

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New Delhi, February 03: In a first, top executives of India Inc will conduct a recruitment drive in Tihar jail and pick 50 inmates to be employed in their business houses.

The list — which includes big names like IDBI bank, Vedanata Group, Sterlite Foundation, Agarwal Packers, Jindal Steel and Flex shoes — will carry out the “campus selection” of the prisoners, who have received professional training during their term at the jail.

Six killed in fresh violence in Egypt

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Rania Cairo, February 03: Firing from assault rifles targeted anti-government protesters in the Egyptian capital’s Tahrir Square today apparently from supporters of the embattled President, killing at least six people as violence escalated just a day before the opposition’s proposed massive rally on Friday to oust Hosni Mubarak.

The Egyptian army arrested people after violence was sparked by supporters loyal to Mubarak in Tahrir square on Thursday, Al Arabiya television reported, without giving numbers.

UK to introduce tougher rules to ensure immigrants learn English

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London, February 03: Britain is planning to introduce tougher rules to ensure that immigrants specially from the Indian sub-continent have a “reasonable standard” of English, Prime Minister David Cameron has said.

“Migrant families have an obligation to teach their children English before they start school. We will bring forward tougher rules to ensure those arriving in the UK have a reasonable standard of English,” Cameron told the House of Commons.

Blast kills 2, injures 3 in Iraqi capital

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Tehran, February 03: A roadside bomb explosion has killed two civilians and injured three other people in the eastern Iraqi capital, Baghdad, police and health officials say.

The bomb, planted on a highway in al-Jadida district in the eastern New Baghdad area, went off at around 8:30 a.m. on Thursday.

Two of the injured are traffic policemen, officials told the Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The attack is the latest in a new spate of deadly bombings that have claimed dozens of lives across war-torn Iraq over the recent weeks.

Krishna to attend high-level meeting on development in UNSC

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New Delhi, February 03: External Affairs Minister SM Krishna is expected to attend a high-level meeting on peace, security and development at the UN Security Council on February 11 during which he would also push for India’s quest for a permanent seat in the top UN organ.

The meeting is being organised by the Brazilian delegation that holds the presidency of the Council for this month.

“We have received confirmation from minister of foreign affairs of several delegations,” Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti, Permanent Representative of Brazil, told journalists yesterday.

Six killed, 1500 wounded in Cairo

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Cario, February 03: Anti-government demonstrators are gathering in Tahrir Square for another day of protests against embattled president Hosni Mubarak.

The pro-government vigilantes opened fire at the demonstrators late Wednesday and in the early hours of Thursday.

Preliminary reports say at least six protesters have been killed and over 1,500 injured.

Main opposition figures have called for another mass rally on Friday, which they consider as President Hosni Mubarak’s day of departure.

—Agencies

Roadside bomb kills 5 Afghan civilians

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Kabul, February 03: At least five civilians, including two men and three children, have been killed as a roadside bomb hit their vehicle in Kodnuz province in northern Afghanistan.

“The tragic incident happened in Gortipa district at around 10:00 a.m. local time today, “deputy to provincial police chief Abdul Rahman Haqtash told Xinhua on Thursday.

Police say the civilians were travelling in a pick-up truck when their vehicle hit a roadside bomb.

Afghan civilians often fall victim to militants’ roadside bombs, which are mainly aimed at NATO and Afghan forces.

Wedding bells ring for Celina Jaitly

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Mumbai, February 03: It is time for wedding bells. Celina Jaitly will become Mrs Peter Haag on September 23 at a very private wedding and only the couple’s family and close friends will be present.

The actress had planned not to get married before 2012. Celina who is also the tourism ambassador of the country is hopeful that by the time of her marriage things will get better. Though Egypt is facing hard times, it’s very beautiful believes actress.

SRK to perform act full of controversies…

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Mumbai, February 03: Come February 12, and Ekta will conduct Global Indian Film & Television Honours (GIFTH), India’s first of its kind joint film and television awards, where SRK will perform India’s top 10 controversies of 2010. It seems Ekta loves controversy and is quite gung-ho about the theme.

Interpol Lauds India’s Role in Using Red Corner Notice

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Paris, February 03: India’s usage of the Red Corner Notice (RCN) regime to identify and track down suspects and fugitives has been praised by the chief of Interpol, who wants the country’s cooperation to host capacity building sessions for police around the world.

“I would say that India is one of our strongest countries in terms of appreciating the importance of using Red Corner Notices and tracking down people.”