Month: March 2013

India tests multi-barrel rocket launcher for second day

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India successfully tested its indigenously-built multi-barrel rocket launcher ‘Pinaka’ from a defence base in Odisha for the second consecutive day Friday, an official said.

The multi-barrel rocket launching system was tested from the Proof and Experimental Establishment (PXE) in Chandipur-on-sea in Balasore district, around 230 km from state capital Bhubaneswar.

“During today’s test, two rounds of rockets were fired successfully,” a senior PXE official told IANS.

Scientists capture birth of a planet

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Astronomers have captured the first direct images of a forming planet still embedded in a thick disc of gas and dust surrounding a young star, just 335 light-years from earth.

Using European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope in Chile, an international team of scientists studied the disc of gas and dust that surrounds the young star HD 100546, a relatively nearby neighbour located 335 light-years from earth.

Mom’s snacking makes baby a fast food addict

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Moms-to-be, please note! Munching on junk food during pregnancy may raise the risk of your babies becoming addicted to fast food, a new study has claimed.

Pregnant mothers who consume junk food actually cause changes in the development of the opioid signalling pathway in the brains of their unborn children.

This change results in the babies being less sensitive to opioids, which are released upon consumption of foods that are high in fat and sugar.

Sudani man arrested for marrying minor girl

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A Sudani national was arrested on charge of forcibly marrying a minor girl at Moghalpura here, police said on Friday.

Three others, including a woman, were also arrested for helping him in the marriage, they said.

The accused Osama Ibrahim, who worked as a project engineer with a petroleum company in Sudan, came to India after one of his friends informed him that he could get married to a girl in Hyderabad, they said.

Osama agreed to pay Rs two lakh in order to get married to a girl and accordingly came to the city on February 19.

Moderate quake jolts India-Bangladesh border

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An earthquake measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale rocked the entire northeast India and adjoining Bangladesh on Saturday morning. No casualties were reported, officials said.

According to a seismologist in Shillong, the quake was felt around 7.01 a.m. in most parts of the northeast region and neighbouring Bangladesh, and its epicentre lay along the India-Bangladesh border.

“The exact epicentre of the quake was on the India-Bangladesh border with western Tripura. The tremor lasted for about four to five seconds,” an official at the Regional Seismological Centre told IANS.

NIA court orders release of terror suspect on bail

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A terror suspect, who allegedly conspired to kill prominent politicians and journalists in three states, has been ordered to be released on “statutory” bail by National Investigation Agency court since the NIA had failed to file chargesheet against him, a lawyer representing him said today. NIA Court had yesterday ordered release of Ejaz Ahmed Mirza, working in DRDO as a scientist, on “statutory” bail, Mohammed Sultan Beary, advocate representing the accused, told PTI here.

Narendra Modi could be removed from speakers’ list at Wharton Forum: sources

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The management at Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania is reportedly apprehensive about having Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as one of the keynote speakers at the prestigious Wharton India Economic Forum to be held in Philadelphia on March 23, sources have said.

The BJP leader was approached by the students who organised the forum and had agreed to deliver a key note address at the prestigious meet through video conference. But sources now say that the management might ask for Mr Modi to be removed from the speakers’ list.

Teachers caught drinking alcohol in school

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The teachers of a West Bengal government-run high school allegedly drank alcohol during a party organised in the premises of the famous school in Cooch Behar, the police said today. The police said Bijan Saha, a teacher of Jenkins School, who took the lead in organising the feast last night was detained after angry students lodged a complaint with the police. According to the police, a feast was arranged in the school premises to celebrate the admission of three sons of three teachers. The teachers and employees of the school were caught in a drunken state by the students, the police said.

Krishna district: two constables suspended

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Two police constables attached to Guduru police station in Krishna district have been suspended for misusing commemoration stickers. Head Constable T Krishna Rao and Constable M Narasimha are accused of selling expired commemoration stickers for a huge amount. Following an enquiry, Superintendent of Police J Prabhakara Rao issued the suspension orders yesterday, police sources said. PTI

CISF gets first intelligence school

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An intelligence school for paramilitary CISF was today inaugurated here. The school will impart various skills related to gathering, analysing and dissemination of snoop information for the force which is tasked to guard the country’s civil airports and other vital installations in nuclear and aerospace domain. Minister of State for Home R P N Singh inaugurated the school at the CISF campus located here.

Man hangs self after killing wife

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A 26 year-old man allegedly committed suicide after allegedly killing his wife with a lethal weapon at thier residence Ganganarasi village in Harihar taluk, about 25 km from here today, police said. Deputy Superintendent of Police, D K Kavalappa told PTI that the accused Srinivasa allegedly killed his 24 year-old wife Vishalakshi with a lethal weapon over family dispute and later hung himself. The deceased couple, who had been married for seven years, have two children. PTI

Bhandara rape and murder case: police still clueless

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The police investigation into the rape and murder of three minor sisters at Murmadi village in Bhandara district of Maharashtra has not made a headway even after a fortnight. The post-mortem report had said that the girls, aged six, nine and eleven years, were raped and murdered. However, sources close to the investigation claim that they were not raped. A recent forensic analysis report also showed that the girls were neither strangulated nor poisoned but failed to pinpoint the cause of the deaths.

Karna HC stays proceedings against Owaisi in Bangalore court

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The Karnataka High Court today stayed for three weeks proceedings against Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) legislator Akbaruddin Owaisi in a lower court here in connection with a complaint filed against him for his alleged hate speech.

Hearing a criminal petition by Owaisi seeking quashing of the proceedings against him, Justice K N Keshavanarayana stayed for three weeks the proceedings pending before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) court.

Azam Writes to Centre Against Curtailing of Haj Subsidy

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Uttar Pradesh Haj Minister Azam Khan has written a letter to External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid asking him to reconsider the Centre’s decision to provide subsidy to Haj pilgrims once in a lifetime as against the earlier policy of once in five years.

In April last year, the Centre had told the Supreme Court that it had decided to restrict Haj pilgrimage at government subsidy to Muslims only as a “once in a lifetime” affair.

Azam has also asked the Union minister to address problems being faced by pilgrims in getting passport, an official spokesman said here.

No setback for AP over apex court ruling on Babhali: Kiran

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Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy today said there was no loss to the state with the Supreme Court’s verdict permitting Maharashtra to complete construction of Babhali irrigation project on river Godavari that had been a bone of contention between the two neighbouring States for the past few years. “On the face of it, there is no loss to the state in general and farmers in particular. I have full trust in the Supreme Court’s judgement,” he said. He was referring to the verdict on Babhali by a three- member Bench yesterday.

Municipal employee arrested for accepting bribe

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An Assistant of this Municipality has been arrested for allegedly demanding and accepting Rs.2000 as bribe from a retired employee for settling his retirement dues of Rs.12568, police said. Municipality assistant Balraj was arrested last evening by the Vigilance and Anti-corruption Police following a complaint from the retired employee who worked with the Water supply department of the Municipality, police said.PTI

Man gets 10 years in jail for raping sister

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A local court today sentenced a man to 10 years in prison for repeatedly raping his sister in 2006. The court convicted Mandeep Sharma, a resident of Mandi Gobindgarh, and also imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on him. In default of payment of fine, he will have to further undergo a sentence of 10 years, the court said. The case was registered in December last year when Sharma’s sister approached police and accused him of repeatedly raping her. The 28-year-old woman told the police that she was married to a youth of Sangrur district and had two children.

SIT & Cyberabad CCS will conduct probe into Dilsukhnagar blast

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One of the twin blast cases has been transferred to SIT while the other case will be investigated by Cyberabad CCS.

On 21st February, 2 blasts rocked Dilsukhnagar area. Two cases were registered in Cyberabad and Hyderabad in this connection. Since some part of the Dilsukhnagar area comes under the jurisdiction of Malakpet police, a case was registered as crime no 56/2013 under sections 302, 307, 120-B IPC 3 & 5 Explosive Act by Malakpet police. Commissioner police Anurag Sharma issued orders to hand over the case to SIT.

Fifth Convocation at MANUU

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Maulana Azad National Urdu University is organizing Fifth Convocation of the University. According to Controller of Examination I/c Prof. Syed Mohammad Haseebuddin Quadri, candidates who have passed various Degrees/Diplomas upto 25th March 2013 can apply in the prescribed form available on the University website www.manuu.ac.in to obtain their Degrees / Medals either ‘in person’ or ‘in absentia’ (Distance Mode programmes/ courses and all Diplomas in ‘in absentia’ only).

2 minor girls ‘gang-raped’, killed

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Two minor girls, sisters by relation, were allegedly gang-raped and killed in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district, police said today. Bodies of the tribal girls aged four and six years were retrieved today from beneath the ground near a pond at Raupada village under Badampahar police station area, about 105 km from here. The two victims had been missing for the past two days. Police suspected the minor girls were gang raped before being killed. Their bodies were sent for postmortem.

Dilsukhnagar blast: Another youth detained from Bazarghat

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Following Dilsukhnagar blast police from various states arrived in the city and are carrying out investigations on their own. Meanwhile police have detained another Muslim youth. It is said that 24 year old Mohammed Aqueel, resident of Bazarghat has been arrested late at night when he was returning after attending a function. His arrest has been confirmed.

Woman jumps into well with two kids

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A 24-year-old married woman today committed suicide by jumping into a well with her two children at Antarwali Sarati village in Ambad tehsil. Police said the deceased were identified as Alka Revalnath Rajguru, her son Pradeep (3) and daughter Pooja (3 months). Cause of the suicide was not yet known, said assistant police inspector Ajinath Kashid. PTI

Former teacher accuses ex-school principal of sexual harassment

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A former teacher of an Army school here has accused an ex-principal of the same school of sexual harassment and demanded cancellation of his appointment as the new head of Navodaya school in Lalitpur in Uttar Pradesh. She accused him of sexual harassing her in 2010 and said action was never taken against him by the school authorities despite directions from CBSE. The lady, who was an art teacher, alleged that she verbally and sexually harassed by the then principal of the school in November 2010, following which she lodged an FIR against him in May 2011.

Hyderabad stadium under security blanket for second cricket Test between India and Australia

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Unprecedented security is in place for the second cricket Test between India and Australia beginning in Hyderabad on Saturday in the wake of last week’s terror attack.

Over 2,000 policemen have been deployed as part of the massive security arrangements at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium at Uppal.

Cyberabad police have thrown a thick security blanket around the stadium, which is about eight km from Dilsukhnagar, where the twin bomb blasts in a crowded area on February 21 killed 16 people and injured over 100 others.

Pak frees eleven Indian nationals

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The Pakistan Government today freed eleven Indian nationals as they were repatriated to India through the land transit route of Attari/Wagah border. Th Indian nationals, set free from different jails of Pakistan, travelled to India on the basis of ‘Emergency Travel Certificate’ issued by Indian Embassy based in Islamabad, an official at Attari border said. The moment they crossed over to India, they bowed their head down and kissed the Indian soil, he added.