Month: August 2013

Pak to host series against Sri Lanka in UAE from December

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Pakistan will play a series of three Tests, five one-dayers and two Twenty20 internationals against Sri Lanka in the United Arab Emirates starting in December, according to a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announcement. According to the Daily Times, since an attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore in 2009, Pakistan have been forced to play all top-level home international matches at neutral venues with foreign teams being too insecure to tour.

California `hockey mum` jailed for having sex with son’s teammates

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A California hockey mum has been sentenced to 16 months in jail for having sex with two of her teen son’s hockey teammates, who were 14 and 16 at the time of the encounters.

Kathia Maria Davis, 46, allegedly organized sleepovers for her son’s hockey team and it was during these that she engaged in sexual acts with two of his teammates, the New York Daily News reported.

She went on to have sex with the older teen in her bedroom on four separate occasions and engaged in sex acts with the younger boy.

22 police, 76 Taliban killed in Afghan battle: Officials

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More than 20 Afghan policemen and dozens of Taliban insurgents were killed on Friday when hundreds of fighters ambushed a police and military convoy in eastern Afghanistan, officials said.

The five-hour battle in the Sherzad district of Nangarhar province was described by provincial officials as “intense” after the convoy was attacked as it returned from an operation to rescue a politician being threatened by the Taliban.

Torrential rain, floods kill 19 in Pakistan

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At least 19 people have been killed and 42 others injured in flash floods triggered by heavy rains in Pakistan, even as authorities warned the situation may worsen further.

Parts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and the tribal areas were worst affected by the torrential rains, with as many as 13 reported dead and 34 injured in separate incidents yesterday, The Express Tribune reported on Saturday.

Two arrested for trying to kill baby

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Two men were arrested for allegedly attempting to kill an eleven-month-old baby by slitting his throat with a sharp weapon at Susua Thakurpatana village in Odisha’s Jajpur district, police said on Saturday.

The seriously injured baby was first admitted to local government hospital and then shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack after his condition deteriorated.

US issues half a million grant for Wisconsin Gurdwara victims

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The Obama Administration has announced a grant of more than half a million dollars for the victims of the Oak Creek Gurdwara shootout a year ago, as the Sikh community began a four-day memorial service observing the tragic incident in Wisconsin that killed six Sikh worshippers.

Focus shifts to Obama if Congress axes immigration bill

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If immigration reform sputters in the deeply divided U.S. Congress, supporters are planning to push President Barack Obama to act on his own to help 11 million illegal residents, lawmakers and immigration advocates said.

Immigration law experts, some senators and House Democratic aides speculated that if Congress cannot agree on a wide-ranging immigration bill this year, Obama could use his executive authority to stop deporting parents of children living in the United States illegally.

Express train derails in Thailand

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An express train derailed on Saturday in a 382m-long tunnel while heading for northern Thai tourist town of Chiang Mai with 415 passengers on board, many of them foreigners.

Nobody was hurt in the accident at 3 am (local time) which has blocked all Bangkok- and Chiang Mai-bound trains. The Chiang Mai-bound special express train derailed in the 382m-long tunnel between Ban Pang Ton Phueng station in Muang district of Uttaradit province and Huay Rai station of Phrae’s Den Chai district, Poonsawat Im-emchai, the chief of Sila-at railway station, said.

Hassan Rowhani set to become Iran’s 7th president

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Mid-ranking cleric Hassan Rowhani meets Iran’s supreme leader on Saturday to be endorsed as the country’s seventh president a day after making controversial comments about the Islamic republic’s arch-foe Israel.

After his surprise election win in June, the 64-year-old seen as a moderate assumes Iran’s highest elected office at a 1230 GMT ceremony presided over by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

‘Israel-Palestinian talks to resume this month’

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The next round of direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks will take place in the region during the second week of August, Israel’s negotiator Tzipi Livni, who is also justice minister, said on Saturday.

“These discussions that began in Washington will resume during the second week of August and will take place in the region,” Livni told the private Channel 10 television station.

She said the talks would alternate between Israel and the Palestinian territories, and that the first of the 104 Palestinian prisoners to be released would take place before the negotiations resume.

UN warns of plight of women, children in Syria’s Homs

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The UN on Saturday sounded the alarm about the plight of women and children in Syria’s Homs, urging all parties in the conflict to enable access to some 400,000 trapped civilians.

“The situation of women and children in the Syrian city of Homs is rapidly deteriorating,” UNICEF said in a statement, adding that “new checkpoints are preventing more supplies from entering” the neighbourhood of Al-Waer.

“Cannot all those involved agree that the innocent women and children in Homs, and across Syria, should be spared all possible suffering?” UNICEF’s Executive Director Anthony Lake asked.

Parents held for killing daughter in Odisha

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A couple was arrested in Odisha’s Ganjam district after they claimed to have murdered their 18-year-old daughter for having relationship with some men, police said on Saturday.

Sanyasi Dakua (55) and his wife Satya (45) of Hundata village, who were nabbed Friday, said as per their plan, they went to Berhampur for shopping. On the return trip, they killed their daughter Tuni with a stone in a forest near Chandipadara, about 200 km from the state capital Bhubaneswar on July 16.

Will ‘expose’ Congress’ ‘hollow’ claims on minorities: BJP

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The BJP on Friday alleged that Congress has done nothing for Muslims and vowed to “expose” UPA government’s “hollow” claims of minorities’ welfare.

Party’s spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said their “chargesheet” against the UPA government would highlight the “gross injustice” minorities have suffered under its rule and their tardy pace of development.

BCI opposes National Judicial Appointment Commission Bill

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Bar Council of India (BCI) on Friday opposed the National Judicial Appointment Commission Bill for looking into appointment and transfer of judges, saying it is not in favour of outside interference in the issue and warned that it will take away the independence of judiciary.

“We are totally against this National Judicial Appointment Commission Bill because of the fact that in the process of appointment of judges, we do not want any interference from any outsider, including the executive,” BCI chairman Manan Kumar Mishra said.

BSF recovers fake currency from India-Pakistan bor

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The Border Security Force (BSF) Friday recovered fake Indian currency notes (FICN) with a face value of Rs 496,000 from near the India-Pakistan border in Jammu, an official release said Friday.

Troopers of the 193 Battalion deployed at Chawani border outpost in R.S. Pura sub-sector of Jammu district saw some miscreants trying to throw goods over the international boundary fence.

“Two people, trying to take advantage of the darkness, had thrown the FICN across the border fence towards the Indian side. Alert troopers recovered the FICN,” the statement said.

Advani is the best PM candidate: Shatrughan Sinha

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Outspoken BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha has caused more embarrassment to his party, saying during a TV interview that senior leader L K Advani was best suited to be the party’s prime ministerial candidate.

He also said on Friday that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi should not have been made the party’s 2014 election committee chief.

In an interview to a news channel, the Bharatiya Janata Party MP from Patna Sahib in Bihar said: “If popularity is the criterion (to choose Modi) then Amitabh Bachchan should have been made this country’s president”.

Khursheed hopes new Pak prez would initiate positive steps

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External Affairs Minister Salman Khursheed today hoped that the newly elected Pakistan president would initiate positive steps to understand the pain and concern among Indians for his country.

“Mamnoon Hussain is from Agra and knows what the people of both the country want and I hope that he would initiate positive steps for understanding the frustration, pain and concern of Indian people towards Pakistan”, Khursheed who was here on a two day tour of his parliamentary constituency said when news persons referred to Pakistani president’s Indian roots.

No construction on river banks in Kedarnath: Uttarakhand CM

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No construction will be allowed on river banks in Kedarnath and near other shrines in Uttarakhand and a reconstruction plan has been chalked out to ensure sustainable development, Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna said on Saturday.

“We have chalked out a major reconstruction plan to protect Kedarnath and other shrines for the next 100, 200 or even 300 years. No construction will be allowed on river banks in Kedarnath and other shrines,” Bahuguna said.

Yahoo’s latest ‘buying spree’ acquisition is FB browser developer RockMelt

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Internet Corporation Yahoo, continuing with its acquisition spree has reportedly bought a US start-up that built a web browser tied to Facebook’s social media network.

According to CBS News, CEO Marissa Mayer acquired RockMelt for a price estimated to be above 40 million dollars as the start-up has raised that much money from venture capitalists and other investors since its inception.

The report said that the start-up company had launched its Facebook-focused web browser in late 2010 which never gained traction and so it later introduced a version for smartphones and tablets.

LinkedIn revenue soars 59% in Q2 following spurt in membership

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Social networking site for working professionals, LinkedIn reportedly saw a rise in its revenue as a result of robust membership growth.

According to the New York Daily News, LinkedIn exceeded market expectations with second-quarter revenue rising to 59 percent and its shares rose 7 percent to record levels and the company also raised its full-year guidance.

The site in a bid to attract more traffic has found its way through sponsored ads with the mobile-friendly format of the site’s update stream predicting for a new revenue source for the company.

Green tea extract can kill childhood cancers

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A green-tea extract could help destroy deadly childhood cancers that are resistant to traditional chemotherapy, a new study has found.

Cancer researcher Orazio Vittorio said that a modified antioxidant called catechin can kill 50 per cent of the cells from neuroblastoma cancers within three days in laboratory studies.

New drug targets found to help fight Alzheimer’s

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Scientists have unveiled two classes of drug compounds, which could help combat Alzheimer’s disease.

Their research suggests that these compounds target the disease-causing peptides with high precision and with minimal side-effects.

At the same time, the scientists offer a molecular explanation for early-onset hereditary forms of Alzheimer’s, which can strike as early as thirty years of age.

The conclusions of their research are very encouraging regarding the future of therapeutic means that could keep Alzheimer’s disease in check.

At last, it’s party time for Mamata Banerjee

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For over a year, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has been at the receiving end by the opposition, a section of civil society and the media. She, on her part, aided with unbecoming comments and deeds, and the spats appeared unending.

This past week has been different.

A resounding ruling Trinamool Congress victory in the rural polls, followed by a star-studded industry summit in the country’s commercial capital Mumbai seemed to have come as a windfall for the West Bengal chief minister, whose government appeared to be hitting one roadblock after another.

Agarbattis are hazardous to health

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Burning incense generates indoor air pollutants that may cause inflammation in human lung cells, a new study has found.

Previous studies, some by co-author Karin B. Yeatts, research assistant professor of epidemiology and other University of North Carolina (UNC) colleagues, have associated incense smoke with a number of health problems, including eye, nose, throat and skin irritation; respiratory symptoms, including asthma; headaches; exacerbation of cardiovascular disease; and changes in lung-cell structure.

Artificial human-like ear made from animal tissue

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Scientists in the US have reportedly grown a human-like ear from animal tissue and say they may soon be able to grow a complete human ear from a patient’s cells.

The ear has the flexibility of a real ear, researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston told BBC.

Tissue engineering is a growing field in medical science, where substitute organs are made in the laboratory in the hope of using them to replace damaged ones.