Month: November 2011

Islamabad, November 03: Pakistan’s cabinet unanimously decided on Wednesday to grant India Most Favoured Nation (MFN) trade status, a major breakthrough that could bolster efforts to improve relations between the nuclear-armed rivals.

Trade has long been tied to political issues between the hostile neighbours, who have fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947.

There are hopes that progress in trade ties will help bolster a fragile peace process, which the two resumed in February, with political implications likely to outweigh any practical benefits.

Ahmedabad, November 03: Every day at 7.30 am in Sardar Baug, a public garden in the Walled City area of Lal Darwaja in Ahmedabad, Muslim women in burqas and men in kurta pyjamas practise yoga. As their instructor, Chandrika Kansara, begins the session with the chanting of aum, her trainees, almost all of them Muslims, follow her with the sound of all…aah…ou.

It is an improvisation of the sound that accompanies pranayam — the breathing exercise that starts and ends a yoga session — disassociating it from religious symbolism and opening it to all.

Gandhinagar, November 03: The Indian Express on Thursday reported that the Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s office has issued a long list of do’s and don’ts to ensure that embarrassing incidents like the chief minister having to reject a skull cap and a kaffiyeh offered by two Muslim men on two recent occasions are not repeated.

Tirupati, November 03: Primary Education Minister S Sailajanath on Wednesday stated that the bifurcation of state would not be possible with pressure tactics on the Centre.

Talking to media persons at Renugunta Airport after having darshan of Lord Sri Venkateswara as part of his visit to the temple town to mark the State Formation Day celebrations, Sailajanath said that the pressure tactics and hunger fasts towards mounting pressure on Centre to achieve Telangana state would not serve any purpose.

Riyadh, November 03: Saudi Arabia’s new Crown Prince Nayef bin Abdel Aziz has warned that the kingdom would employ all means necessary during the Islamic Hajj rituals to deal with any unrest in the Persian Gulf state.

“We are ready to face all events, whatever they are … our means are peaceful … except for those who want to attack, whom we will prevent with all means,” said Nayef, who is also the interior minister of the US-backed kingdom, in Mecca on Tuesday.

Gaza, November 03: International activists say two ships carrying humanitarian assistance and pro-Palestinian campaigners have set sail from Turkey in a new attempt to break Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip.

A statement issued by the Freedom Waves to Gaza activists said the mini-flotilla made up of one Irish vessel and one Canadian ship had left Fethiye on Turkey’s south coast on Wednesday afternoon and planned to arrive in Gaza on Friday, AFP reported.

Bangalore, November 03: The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) land scandals in Karnataka that have landed its first chief minister in jail now seem to spread to affiliates of the party’s mentor, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

New Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, still struggling to establish his authority nearly three months after taking over, has promised action if land allotment to RSS affiliates in Bangalore is proved illegal.

Srikakulam, November 03: Tamil Nadu Governor K Rosaiah on Wednesday expressed serious concern over the current political scenario and arrest of senior politicians for their alleged involvement in various scandals.

Talking to media persons after unveiling former Assembly Speaker Tangi Satyanarayana’s statue here, Rosaiah expressed unhappiness over the present political developments and said that the Chief Ministers, Ministers and MPs were going to prison for their alleged involvement in corruption and various scams.

Nalgonda, November 03: Former Minister Komatreddy Venkat Reddy on Wednesday alleged that the withdrawal of general strike by the employees has diluted the Telangana statehood agitation.

Komatreddy, whose indefinite hunger fast demanding Telangana entered second day on Wednesday, told reporters that he launched the fast to revive the spirit of Telangana agitation, which was diluted due to withdrawal of general strike of employees. Thousands of his followers have joined him in the hunger strike that he launched on Tuesday near Clock Tower in Nalgonda.

New Delhi, November 03: The Indian Army’s proposal for a Mountain Strike Corps to add depth to its defence in Arunachal Pradesh is expected to reach the Cabinet Committee on Security soon, sources said on Wednesday. The new Corps will add one lakh men to the existing force structure and cost more than Rs 60,000 crore.

Once passed by the committee, its budgetary clearance is likely to be done next April when the 12th Plan allocations are made.

London, November 03: An Indian-origin man has been given a suspended jail term in Britain for secretly feeding his wife steroids so that she becomes overweight and stays at home to cook and look after their children.

In the bizarre case, Leicester-based Dalwara Singh, secretly laced his wife’s food and drink with the drug between November last year and January, which caused her to sprout hair on her face and back and made her skin itchy and spotty.

Singh has been banned from seeing his wife, reports from Leicester said.

Hyderabad, November 03: Congress MP Ponnam Prabhakar has claimed that the Telugu Desam Party was against the formation of Telangana state.

Addressing a press conference at Congress Legislature Party here on Wednesday, Ponnam quoted a statement reportedly made by TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu stating the Telugu speaking people lived separately only for 150 years out of 3,000 years of their history. Asking Naidu to verify the historical facts, he reminded that it was during Naidu’s regime that Hyderabad celebrated 400 years of its formation and Seemandhra was not a part of it.

Jaggampet, November 03: Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Wednesday claimed that the successful conduct of second phase of Rachabanda programme would minimise the problems being faced by the people in the State.

Anantapur, November 03: Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday stated that the State Government has totally failed to help the drought affected farmers in the State.

Hyderabad, November 03: It will be an acid test N Kiran Kumar Reddy government to carry out the Rachabanda and other welfare schemes across the state, however populist they may be, but the State has a moral point to prove should there be few or no takers in any region.

After the state formation day passed off without any major incident though both regions vented their feelings and the government went by its own way, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy begins the mass contact programme in the name of Rachabanda Phase II from today.

Hyderabad, November 02: The City Police on Wednesday arrested a four-member gang of drug peddlers and seized two Kilograms of ‘charas’ from their possession.

According to police, a few months ago the main accused Mohd Taj came in contact with one Saleem Bhai of Kanpur in East Uttar Pradesh who promised to supply ‘charas’ at the rate of Rs 15,000 per kilogram. Taj was asked to sell the same for Rs 50,000 per kg in Hyderabad.

Jerusalem, November 02: Israel test-fired a ballistic missile on Wednesday, Israel Radio said, amid a heightened public debate over the possibility of an Israeli attack against Iran’s nuclear program.

“Israel today carried out the test-firing of a rocket propulsion system from the Palmachim base (in central Israel),” a Defence Ministry statement said.

“This had been planned by the defence establishment a long time ago and has been carried out as scheduled.”

Hyderabad, November 02:The Supreme Court of India today cancelled the bail of Mohammed Salahuddin Ayub the former Principal of Parkwood International School who is allegedly involved in the rape case of a student.

According to the sources the principal of the school was arrested by the sleuths of the central crime Station in July 2010 on the charges of raping 17 year old a student of the school.

Jaggampet, November 02: Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy has said that over 50 lakh families would be benefited during the second phase of the Rachchabanda program.

Mumbai, November 02: Actor Saif Ali Khan, who has been annointed the 10th Nawab of Pataudi, says he’s honoured and hopes to carry his late father Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi’s legacy forward in a responsible manner.

“I’m overwhelmed with the kindness and simplicity the village heads have shown me and my family and the respect to my late father. This is a huge responsibility for me to take my father`s legacy forward in whatever way I can,” Saif said in a statement.

Mumbai, November 02: Her oomph and chutzpah in the ‘Ooh la la’ song from ‘The Dirty Picture’ is already a rage. Vidya Balan is now gearing up to mesmerise fans with a live performance with other artists at the music launch of the film in Mumbai Friday.

“Vidya, Emraan (Hashmi), Naseeruddin Shah, Tusshar Kapoor, Bappi Lahiri and Shreya Ghoshal will perform at the event live,” Girish Johar, head of acquisition and distribution, Balaji Motion Pictures, told reporters.

Asked if Vidya will perform to ‘Ooh la la’, Johar said: “Yes of course!!!”

Mumbai, November 02: Actress Chitrangada Singh will be seen in a different avatar in Shirish Kunder’s ‘Joker’. The actress will do her first item number in the film which stars Akshay Kumar, Sonakshi Sinha and Shreyas Talpade.

Sonakshi’s item dance is already being touted as one of the hottest numbers of 2012 (that’s when the film releases) and now sources close to the film state that Chitrangada’s dance number will be raunchy and pleasantly surprise her fans.

Madanpally, November 2: Additional Joint Collector incharge of Chittoor district Mr. Sishayya told that a ban has been imposed on cow slaughter on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha hence measures will be taken to restrain it. He convened a review meeting along with the officials in this connection and said that slaughtering cattle is a crime under law.

Hyderabad, November 2: Renowned religious scholar of Barkas, Maulana Abdullah bin Ahmed Alqarmoshi patron Masajid committee Barkas and president Al-Jamiat-u-Shafia, passed away on Tuesday at the time of Fajr. Funeral prayer was offered after Asr prayers at Jamia Masjid Barkas and burial took place at “Maskan Mahvia” Farooq Nagar Jamal Banda.

The funeral prayer was offered by Maulana Mufti Mohammad Azeemuddin Saheb mufti Jamia Nizamia. On the occasion a large number of religious scholars and mashaiq were present.

New Delhi, November 02: Superstar Shah Rukh Khan, who turned 46 Wednesday, says he neither feels older nor wiser. For the actor, who is riding high on the box office success of his superhero film “RA.One”, his day will be well spent by sleeping and relaxing.

“Going to sleep now…this birthday will celebrate with a well deserved many hours of sleep…thanks for your wishes. Don’t feel older or wiser,” Shah Rukh posted on his Twitter page.

King Khan, as he is lovingly called, says he got emotional when his fans sang a birthday song for him outside his residence in Mumbai.