Month: March 2011

Sarabjit’s sister tries to meet Gilani

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Chandigarh, March 30: Dalbir Kaur, the sister of Sarabjit Singh who is on a death row in a Pakistan prison, today made a vain bid to meet Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani during his stay at a hotel here.

As Gilani along with his entourage entered the Hotel Taj located in the heart of the city, Dalbir Kaur along with Sarabit’s daughter Swapandeep Kaur and some other persons carrying a placard with a photograph of Sarabjit made efforts to have an audience with Gilani.

Samjhauta Express blasts probe still on: Govt

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New Delhi, March 30: The Centre today said the probe into the Samjhauta Express train bomb blasts, in which 43 Pakistani nationals were killed, was still on to find out the identities of all perpetrators of the crime.

A day after the Indo-Pak Home Secretary level talks, where Islamabad wanted to know the progress of the case, the Home Ministry said the National Investigation Agency (NIA) conducted “painstaking” investigation in the 2007 bomb attack case.

On or off shoot, Bollywood celebs catch India-Pakistan match

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New Delhi, March 30: Bollywood stars like Shah Rukh Khan, Arjun Rampal and Hrithik Roshan are not leaving anything to chance to catch the India-Pakistan World Cup semifinal either at home, at a get together or in a restaurant. Those who are busy shooting plan to catch the action in their vanity vans.

Some actors like Shah Rukh Khan have planned get togethers, while a host of actors like Aamir Khan, Vivek Oberoi, Rahul Bose and Preity Zinta, among others, are in Mohali to watch the clash live, said a source.

It’s raining VVIPs, celebrities at Mohali

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Mohali, March 30: After the thunderstorm scare over the crucial semifinal match in the cricket World Cup between India and Pakistan, it is now raining VVIPs and celebrities in Chandigarh and Mohali.

A day after rains triggered fears that the semifinal would be washed out, it was clear skies Wednesday. And while the much discussed match continued to draw all attention, two of the most important people coming to watch it found enough limelight too.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was here, and so was his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani with a 45-member delegation.

Half day for government employees

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Bhopal, March 30: The Madhya Pradesh government Wednesday gave half day leave to all its employees so that they could watch the India-Pakistan World Cup semifinal.

Earlier, a half day holiday was declared by assembly Speaker Ishwar Das Lohani.

–IANS

Mahatma’s Controversy

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Mahatma Gandhi’s place in history is secure, but was he a “great soul”?
Mahatma Gandhi has long been considered a visionary and a martyr. But Pulitzer Prize–winner Joseph Lelyveld examines Gandhi’s accomplishments as a politician and an advocate for the downtrodden, measuring them against Gandhi’s own expectations and in light of his complex, conflicted relationship with India.

Katie to meet new boyfriend’s parents

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London, March 30: Former model Katie Price’s Argentine boyfriend Leandro Penna is all set to introduce her to his parents.

“I’m going to introduce her to my family and all of that. Really, I am not lying. I’ve only done that a few times in my life… she has introduced me to her family and I want her to know where I’m from and how I am,” femalefirst.co.uk quoted Penne as saying.

Penne also wants the 32-year-old to experience the lifestyle he leads in South America.

Chiru, Naidu brush up Tamil to campaign in upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly polls

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Hyderabad, March 30: Arch rivals, Praja Rajyam chief and actor-turned-politician, Mr K. Chiranjeevi and the Telugu Desam president, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, are brushing up their Tamil to campaign in the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly polls.

The political rivals in Andhra Pradesh will campaign for rival parties in Tamil Naidu — Mr Chiranjeevi for the DMK-Congress combine and Mr Naidu for Jayalalithaa’s AIADMK and allies.

India bat against Pakistan in World Cup semifinal

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Mohali, March 30 (IANS) Indian captain Mahendra Singh won the toss and opted to bat against Pakistan in the much awaited World Cup semifinal at the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium here Wednesday.

India made one change to the team that won against Australia, seamer Ashish Nehra coming in place of Ravichandran Ashwin. Pakistan fielded an unchanged team that beat the West Indies in the quarterfinals.

Teams:

Train kills three in Maharashtra

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Yavatmal (Maharashtra), March 30: Three people were Wednesday crushed to death by a train at an unmanned rail crossing in Maharashtra’s Yavatmal district, police said.

The dead were identified as the driver and two passengers of an autorickshaw, which was hit by Nandigram Express. The incident took place near Wani village, 150 km from Yavatmal town.

–IANS

Sack Sheila Dikshit, says BJP

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New Delhi, March 30: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Wednesday sought the sacking of Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit over allegations of corruption by civic agencies ahead of the Commonwealth Games (CWG).Delhi BJP vice president Vijay Jolly said Dikshit needed to go as she had been indicted by the V.K. Shunglu Committee for corruption and diversion of funds during last year’s Games in Delhi.

Fake `wedding cake’ bomb travelled undetected on cargo plane

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London, March 30: Britain has launched an investigation into how a fake bomb concealed in a wedding cake box was transported undetected on a cargo plane to Turkey earlier this month, police said Wednesday.

A 26-year-old man had been arrested in London on suspicion of a bomb hoax, but was later released on bail, police said. The Department of Transport said it was taking the matter “very seriously”.

A Turkish man delivered the package, which had a timer, wires and detonator and was placed inside a wedding cake box, to a UPS office in north London a fortnight ago, media reports said.

Computers replace kitchen table as focal point of meals

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Washington, March 30: Internet and smartphones are changing the way college students eat, with the computer replacing the kitchen table as the focal point of meals.

People are more likely to have meals sitting at the computer than at the kitchen table, and they use social media as the main avenue to obtain recipe and nutritional information.

Myanmar’s new president sworn in, junta disbands

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Yangon, March 30: Myanmar’s new president was sworn in Wednesday, officially launching a new administration to replace the military junta that has ruled the country for the past two decades.

Thein Sein was sworn in as Myanmar’s new president in a ceremony held in Naypyitaw, the country’s capital since 2005. He replaces Senior General Than Shwe, Myanmar junta chief since 1992, as the new head of state.

Vice Presidents Tin Aung Myint Oo and Sai Mauk Kham were also sworn in to their posts.

Suicide bombing kills seven in Pakistan

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Islamabad, March 30: A suicide bomber detonated his explosives near a rally of a political-religious party in north-western Pakistan, killing at least seven people, a government official said.

The attack took place when the activists from Jamiat Ulma-e-Islam were gathered to welcome their leader Maulana Fazalur Rehman in Swabi district, some 70 km north-west of Islamabad.

“It was a suicide attack,” Jabar Khan, administrative chief of Swabi district said. “For the moment seven dead bodies and 10 injured have been moved too hospital.”

“Maulana Fazalur Rehman is safe,” Khan said.

‘Treat waste before disposal’

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Hyderabad, March 30: Urban landfill sites are not the final answer for solid waste management. The problems caused by landfills can only be mitigated by adopting environment friendly waste-to-energy (WTE) technologies that will help in treating waste before disposal. The twin cities need three WTE plants to be able to recycle close to 3,000 metric tonnes (MT) of garbage produced on a daily basis.

Fake `wedding cake’ bomb travelled undetected on cargo plane

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London, March 30: Britain has launched an investigation into how a fake bomb concealed in a wedding cake box was transported undetected on a cargo plane to Turkey earlier this month, police said Wednesday.

A 26-year-old man had been arrested in London on suspicion of a bomb hoax, but was later released on bail, police said. The Department of Transport said it was taking the matter “very seriously”.

A Turkish man delivered the package, which had a timer, wires and detonator and was placed inside a wedding cake box, to a UPS office in north London a fortnight ago, media reports said.

‘MAUD lapses led to revenue loss’

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Hyderabad, March 30: The State government has suffered revenue losses in the execution of some of the major projects taken up by the Municipal Administration and Urban Development department.

The department did not consider the post tender reductions in the quantity of work executed by the contractors and failed to incorporate necessary safeguards resulting in losses to the exchequer.

The failure to incorporate clauses pertaining to changes in work quantity resulted in undue benefit of Rs. 86.67 crore to contractor who was awarded the Elevated Expressway Corridor works.

Bhanu Kiran at large even after eighty-five days of factionist Suri’s murder

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Hyderabad, March 30: Nothing is more paradoxical than this. The city police are preparing the grounds to secure the conviction of Bhanu Kiran but they are not able to catch him even 85 days after he allegedly shot dead factionist Gangula Suryanarayana Reddy alias Suri!

A day after the killing of Suri, the police top brass exuded confidence that they would apprehend Bhanu in a few hours since they kept a tab on his movements and that of his associates. Days and even months are passing by, but there is no trace of the man the police in the State capital want the most.

Chandy not in Rahul’s good books, says Kodiyeri Balakrishnan

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Thiruvananthapuram, March 30: Kerala Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan Wednesday said things would be tough for opposition Congress leader Oommen Chandy as it was obvious that he was not in the good books of party general secretary Rahul Gandhi.

“Our party has no problems about who the leader is, instead all the confusion and problems are there in the Congress party. (Rahul) Gandhi does not favour Chandy, instead Ramesh Chennithala has got his blessings,” Balakrishnan told reporters here.

Cricket mania grips the twin cities

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Hyderabad, March 30: The cricket fever is sweeping across twin cities and has reached its zenith. In its wake, it has left nobody untouched. The first ever India-Pakistan semi final in the ICC Cricket World Cup-2011 has created an atmosphere of revelry, raised sky-high expectations, has made people from all walks of life tense and anxious. Wednesday, surely, is going to be a truncated day for one and all.

The software companies have led the way and have made it official. “Start the work early and close shop early,” is the mantra for techies.

Army recruitment rally from April 18

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Vizianagaram, March 30: Army Recruitment Rally for Solider Technical/Nursing/General Duty/Tradesmen/Clerk will be conducted at Sir Vizzi Stadium here from April 18 to 25.

At a meeting with officials on Tuesday, Collector M. Veerabrahmaiah and Col. B.K. Singh, Director (Army Recruitment), Visakhapatnam, said that about 30,000 to 40,000 candidates from the six districts, Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East and West Godavari, Krishna, and Yanam (Puducherry) were expected to participate in the rally.

Council condemns humiliation of Tri Valley students

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Hyderabad, March 30: The Legislative Council adopted a resolution condemning the humiliating treatment meted out to the students from Andhra Pradesh who were studying in Tri Valley University of the USA.

The House also expressed its solidarity with the NRI students who staged a protest outside the White House against affixing RFID tags to their legs.

SCCL official allays fears over exploration work

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Khammam, March 30: Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL), General Manager (exploration), Y.S. Babu Rao, has allayed the apprehensions expressed by the ‘Anti-Opencast Projects Committee’ that the ongoing exploration work at Mamakannu block near Koyagudem dip side block in Gundala mandal would pave way for setting up of an opencast project in the near future. Addressing a press conference in Kothagudem on Tuesday, Mr. Rao said that the ongoing exploration work was only aimed at proving the coal deposit reserves with a futuristic perspective.