Month: April 2013

Over 50 million accounts affected following hacking of LivingSocial

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Washington, Apr. 27 (ANI): Online flash sales company the LivingSocial has been hacked.

More than 50 million accounts have been affected and the Washington-based company has asked its members to reset their passwords.

According to ZDNET, LivingSocial’s spokesperson confirmed the security breach.

In an email to its employees, CEO, Tim O’Shaughnessy, informed about the unauthorized access to some customer data from their servers.

The data included, names, email addresses, date of birth of some users, and encrypted passwords, the report added.

Pune money lender chases fame with $250,000 shirt made of gold

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Pune, April 27 (ANI): One of the most expensive shirts in the world surprisingly belongs to an Indian. It is made of gold at a staggering $250,000 to fulfil his twin obsessions of gold and fame. The 32-year-old moneylender Datta Phuge, from Pune, ordered the golden shirt, which took a team of 15 goldsmiths working 16 hours per day and two weeks to create the spectacle after some very intricate, weaving and knitting of the gold threads. Phuge said that he always wanted to do something, which would make him famous all across the country and get his name into record books.

Punjab and Haryana HC asks Naveen Jindal’s mother to vacate govt. house

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Chandigarh, April 27 (ANI): The Punjab and Haryana High Court has asked one of India’s wealthiest women, Savitri Jindal, to vacate her government accommodation, which she has been occupying illegally for over three years now, within the next 15 days. Savitri Jindal is the mother of Kurukshetra Congress Member of Parliament and businessman Naveen Jindal. She had topped Forbes magazine””s list of richest Indian women in 2012 with a net worth of 8,200 million dollars.

Operation Blue Star memorial to be unveiled

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Amritsar, April 27 (ANI): A memorial built in honour of those killed during Operation Blue Star in the first week of June 1984, is set to be opened to the public at the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar on Saturday. The work on the memorial, which had generated much controversy following its foundation stone laying ceremony, is complete. The memorial was proposed by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC). The SGPC had entrusted the memorial”s construction to Damdami Taksal, whose head, Harnam Singh Khalsa, said that work is over.

We had no answer to Watson’s onslaught: Sammy

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Darren Sammy today refused suggestions that Surisers Hyderabad were outplayed by Rajasthan Royals but admitted that they had no answer to the onslaught by Shane Watson, who blasted a 53-ball 98 in his side’s win.

“I think we did a good job by reaching 144 and had chances but Shane Watson batted beautifully and his 98 run unbeaten weighed on us. He is a class player in any form of cricket. He smashed the ball to all parts of ground. We had no answer to his onslaught,” Sammy who hit a fighting 60 off 41 balls to propel his side to 144 for 9 after being reduced to 29 for 6, said.

India offers assistance to Pakistan in treating Sarabjit

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With Sarabjit Singh battling for life in a Lahore hospital, India today offered medical assistance to Pakistan in treating the prisoner and said it will use this incident as an additional ground to push hard to get him back to his homeland.

“The best we can we will. Right now there is very little we can do in terms of medical intervention, unless Pakistan seeks any assistance in medical diagnosis,” External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid told reporters here.

BJP govt ushered in “anti-climax” : Azad

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Lashing out at the BJP government in Karnataka for ushering in the “anti-climax” for the state, Union Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad today said that in comparison the Congress government led by S M Krishna, had taken the state to a position of “climax” in terms of development.

Pak has no faith in democracy, humanity: Azad

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Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad today described the attack on Indian prisoner Sarabjit Singh, who was in a jail in Pakistan, as “most unfortunate” and said there was no democracy or humanity in Pakistan.

“It is very unforunate. We have an example here. A Pakistani militant who was in jail and because of whom so many people died in a Mumbai hotel, till he was hanged, not only were crores of rupees spent on his protection, even his lawyer’s fee was taken care of”, he told reporters here, apparently referring to Amir Ajmal Kasab.

Rapes will come down if people shun meat, alcohol: Agnivesh

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Rape cases will come down if people shun non-vegetarian food and alcohol, activist Swami Agnivesh said today.

“We cannot stop a crime like rape by policing only…. I think rapes will come down significanlty if people stop eating non-vegetarian. There has been lot of research on this…. Rapes will come down significantly if alcohol consumption is not there,” he told reporters here.

He said a lot of crimes and accidents take place due to consumption of alcohol.

Narendra Modi can say anything, who will stop him?: Shinde

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Apropos Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s comments on Sarabjit Singh issue, Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde on Saturday said nobody can stop the BJP leader from speaking, but “speaking without knowing the facts” was wrong.

“Modi-ji can speak anything, who will stop him? But anybody speaking without knowing the facts is wrong,” Shinde said here, when asked about Modi’s criticism of UPA government’s foreign policy over the issue of Sarabjit Singh, the Indian convict who was assaulted at Lahore jail yesterday.

India, China to hold anti-terror drills even as PLA intrusion in Ladakh continues

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India and China have finalized arrangements to hold joint anti-terrorism exercises later this year even as they are grappling with the issue of intrusion by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) forces into the Depsang Valley in Ladakh.

Separately, officials of the two countries are also poised to hold talks on river waters next week to address New Delhi’s concerns over Beijing’s plans to construct new dams on Brahmaputra as well as liberalization of visa regime between the two countries ahead of external affairs minister Salman Khurshid visit here on May 9.

Multiple agencies crackdown on Ponzi schemes, Saradha Group

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The government on Saturday said several of its investigating wings like Sebi, RBI, IT Department and Enforcement Directorate have begun crackdown on Ponzi schemes and have initiated action against Saradha Group under various laws including the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has launched prosecution in 59 cases of Collective Investment Scheme (CIS), while the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) is also investigating the Saradha Group for violation of various laws, Finance Ministry said in a release.

Sarabjit Singh’s family to travel to Pakistan on Sunday

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Four members of Sarabjit Singh’s family will travel to Pakistan on Sunday to meet the death row convict who is battling for life in Lahore after being brutally assaulted by jail inmates.

The Pakistan High Commission in Delhi has issued 15 days ‘gratis visa’ to Sarabjit’s wife Sukhpreet Kaur, daughters Poonam, Swapandeep Kaur and his sister Dalbir Kaur to meet the Indian prisoner who is in “deep coma” and put on ventilator support.

Pakistan has no faith in democracy, humanity: Azad

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Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Saturday described the attack on Indian prisoner Sarabjit Singh, who was in a jail in Pakistan, as “most unfortunate” and said there was no democracy or humanity in Pakistan.

“It is very unforunate. We have an example here.

A Pakistani militant who was in jail and because of whom so many people died in a Mumbai hotel, till he was hanged, not only were crores of rupees spent on his protection, even his lawyer’s fee was taken care of”, he told reporters here, apparently referring to Amir Ajmal Kasab.

Botcha Stopped from Speaking in Karimnagar

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Telangana protagonists today obstructed PCC Chief Botcha Satyanarayana from speaking at Indiramma Kalalu program. Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and Botcha Satyanarayana participated in the ‘Indiramma Kalalu’ launching meeting at Mulukanuru village here on Saturday.
In the presence of Chief Minister and PCC Chief, local MP Ponnam Prabhakar raised Telangana voice strongly. He warned both the leaders that the Telangana Congress leaders would not keep quiet if the AICC Chief Sonia Gandhi failed to fulfill the assurance given to them on Telangana.

Abbas begins talks to form Palestinian national government

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Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas began discussions on Saturday to form a national government, reported Xinhua citing the official Wafa news agency.

The government would be formed in accordance with deals brokered between Abbas’ Fatah party and Hamas in Doha and Cairo in the past couple of years, Abbas said in a statement.

Thai tourists stranded mid-air as monorail stops working

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Twenty foreign and Thai tourists were stranded mid-air for an hour after an electric monorail stopped working at a zoo in Thailand’s northern province of Chiang Mai frequented by several Indian visitors every month.

A rescue basket was deployed to free the passengers from cars about 10 metres above the ground, Bangkok Post online said, adding that no one was injured.

A preliminary investigation showed that a brake problem caused it to stop unexpectedly.

Italy poised to get new government

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Italy appeared poised today to finally get a new government, a broad coalition which brings media mogul Silvio Berlusconi’s forces back to power, this time in tense alliance with center-left rivals.

Premier-designate Enrico Letta arrived at the Quirinale Palace to brief Italy’s president, a meeting widely seen as indicating the center-left leader either had succeeded, or was on the verge of succeeding, in forming a government commanding strong support in Parliament.

Rebels attack sprawling air base in northern Syria

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Syrian rebels attacked a sprawling military air base in the country’s northwest on Saturday, while in the south opposition forces assaulted a string of army checkpoints and positions, activists said.

The raids follow nearly two weeks of advances by Syrian troops, mostly in the suburbs of the capital, Damascus, and areas near the Lebanese border in the central province of Homs.

Shock to Jagan: Jaya Prada to join Congress

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Film actress and Rampur MP appears to have got clearance for her admission into Congress and contesting from Rajahmundry Lok Sabha seat in the 2014 elections.
It may be recalled that Jaya Prada expressed her intention to come back to the state politics and contest to the Parliament from Rajahmundry. It was thought that she would join the YSR Congress. However, her mentor Amar Singh reportedly told her not to join a regional party and instead join a national party like BJP or Congress.

Investigators push ahead in Boston bombing probe

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With the Boston marathon bombing suspect in a prison hospital, investigators are pushing forward both in the US and abroad to piece together the myriad details of a plot that killed three people and injured more than 260.

FBI agents picked through a landfill near the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, where 19-year-old suspect, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, was a sophomore. FBI spokesman Jim Martin would not say what investigators were looking for.

Chemical weapons claims ‘barefaced lie’: Syrian minister

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US and British accusations that the regime in Damascus may have used chemical weapons are a “barefaced lie,” Syria’s information information told Russian television on Saturday.

“First of all, I want to confirm that statements by the US Secretary of State and British government are inconsistent with reality and a barefaced lie,” Omran al-Zohbi said in an interview published on the Kremlin-funded RT’s website.

Sabita Back In Office After 20-Day Hibernation

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Home Minister P. Sabita Indra Reddy, who stayed away from office after she was named as an accused in the Jaganmohan Reddy Illegal Assets case by the CBI, stepped into the Secretariat on Saturday after 20 days and resumed her official duties.