Month: September 2013

Kiran takes potshots at Digvijay

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Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy tonight took potshots at AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh, and mocked his continued claims that they would look into all issues (of concern) being raised by the anti-bifurcation protagonists.

“What he (Digvijay) says is a political statement. He is not a permanent general secretary of the Congress,” Kiran Kumar said at a press conference here tonight.

Asked about the ongoing verbal war between him and Digvijay over the bifurcation issue, the Chief Minister quipped: “There is no fire and there is no ceasefire.

US reporter gets groped by baboon on Live TV

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US reporter Sabrina Rodriguez had just started telling Fox 40 viewers why baboons were fans of grapes, when a cheeky monkey groped her.

The baboon, called Mickey, grabbed her breast during her live report and made a face that showed he was clearly very happy at that exact moment, the Daily Star reported.

And rather than taking it away, Mickey kept his hand where it was for her entire report. (ANI)

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Congress MP from Andhra Pradesh joins Jaganmohan’s party

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In a setback to Congress in Andhra Pradesh, the party’s Lok Sabha member from Nandyal, SPY Reddy, joined YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) here today.

Reddy met YSRCP President YS Jaganmohan Reddy and announced his decision.

Recalling how Jaganmohan had undertaken a fast in support of united Andhra Pradesh while in jail, Reddy complimented the YSRCP leader for his sincerity in fighting for the cause.

Observers feel that more Congress leaders from Seemandhra regions would join YSRCP in the coming days in view of the ruling party’s decision to grant statehood to Telangana.

Kate Moss art collection reaps over 1.6M pound at London auction

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A collection of photographs and artwork of Kate Moss raised over 1.6million pounds at an auction in London.

The collection by Gert Elfering went under the hammer at Christie’s and was reported to be very popular with the public, the Daily Star reported.

According to Christie’s international head of photographs, Moss, who is one of the most photographed models in the world, gave her blessing to the sale which “attracted worldwide attention and admiration.”

‘CCTV mandatory for all Gurgaon toll plazas’

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Gurgaon authorities Friday invoked Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1973 and directed the managers and owners to install CCTV cameras of good quality at their toll plazas within 10 days, an official said.

These CCTV cameras should have data storage capacity of at least a month.

In the orders issued here, Gurgaon district magistrate (DM) Shekhar Vidyarthi said there are seven points for collection of toll tax on national highways, inter-state roads and other roads passing through the revenue estate of Gurgaon district.

India to be newest country to have negative voting

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India Friday was set to join a select club of nations, including France, Brazil, Finland and the US, where the electorate have the option of negative voting.

The other countries are Belgium, Greece, Ukraine, Chile, Bangladesh, Sweden, Colombia and Spain.

Of these countries, eight countries have the NOTA (none of the above) option the apex court gave to the voters in India Friday. However, right to exercise NOTA by EVMs is done in France and Belgium only, while those using ballot papers to exercise NOTA are Brazil, Greece, Ukraine, Chile, and Bangladesh as well as the US’s Nevada state.

Congress MP S.P.Y. Reddy joins YSR Congress

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Congress MP S.P.Y. Reddy Friday joined YSR Congress party, saying it is the only party sincerely working to keep Andhra Pradesh united.

The MP from Nandyal Friday night met YSR Congress president Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy and joined the party.

Later, S.P.Y. Reddy told reporters that he would meet Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar Saturday to submit his resignation to oppose the Congress decision to carve out separate Telangana state.

He said YSR Congress alone was trying sincerely to keep the state, and recalled that Jaganmohan Reddy went on hunger strike in jail for a united state.

Sunrisers, Titans look to keep chances alive in CLT20

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With one win and a defeat, both Sunrisers Hyderabad and Titans will be desperately looking for a victory to stay in contention for a semifinal berth when they face each other in their crucial Champions League Twenty20 match here tomorrow.

The two teams are on four points each and a defeat tomorrow would mean that the losing side will be virtually out of the reckoning.

President Mukherjee gives nod to Land Acquisition Bill

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President Pranab Mukherjee has given his assent to the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill- 2013.

The Bill has now become law. The Bill was passed in the recently-concluded Monsoon Session of Parliament.

The Bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament with overwhelming majority.
The new Bill proposes that farmers and landowners be paid up to four times the market value for land acquired in rural areas, and two times the market value in urban areas.

JPC adopts report on 2G scam

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The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on 2G scam adopted its report by a majority in its meeting held here on Friday.

JPC chairman P.C Chacko after the meeting said that 16 members voted in favour of the report, while 11 against it.

Chacko said that report is based on the record placed before the committee.

He also said that all those who voted against the draft report have been given 15 days to file their dissent notes.

Manmohan Singh arrives at White House to meet President Obama

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Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has arrived at the White House here to meet U.S. President Barack Obama.

Describing the U.S. as an ‘important strategic partner’, Dr. Singh earlier said that under President Barack Obama”s regime, India has taken several steps to widen and deepen its bilateral partnership in diverse fields.

Modi welcomes SC decision on negative voting

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BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi Friday welcomed Supreme Court decision on negative voting, calling it a “great step” for political reforms.

“I wholeheartedly welcome this. I am sure it will have a long lasting impact on our polity and will be a great step in the direction of further electoral reforms that can make our democracy even more vibrant and participative,” Modi said in a blog post published Friday.

Kiran Reddy ready to sacrifice CM’s post for united Andhra

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Andhra Pradesh appears to be heading for political crisis over Congress’s decision to bifurcate the state with Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy Friday making it clear that he is ready to give up his post to keep the state united while state Congress chief Botsa Satyanarayana and some other ministers are also planning to quit.

With the Congress leadership ruling out going back on its July 30 decision to carve out separate Telangana state and the union home ministry already drafting a resolution to divide the state, Kiran Reddy asked the party to take back the decision.

Indian-origin scientist gets top Canadian award

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A 42-year-old Indian-origin scientist has been named this year’s recipient of a prestigious Canadian award that recognises excellence in complementary and alternative medicine.

Sunita Vohra, director of Canada’s first academic pediatric integrative at the University of Alberta medicine programme was named the winner of the $250,000 Dr. Rogers Prize at a gala dinner in Vancouver Thursday, the Vancouver Sun reported.

The Dr. Rogers Prize carries the largest cash prize of its kind in North America.

Rapid rise in dengue cases, three deaths in Delhi

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The number of dengue cases in the national capital has shot up from 1,355 Monday to 1,729 Thursday.

There have also been three confirmed deaths and seven suspected deaths, as per an official Friday.

“There has been a total of 1,729 cases and three have died from the vector-borne disease,” said municipal health officer N.K. Yadav.

Of the total cases, 1,698 patients are from Delhi and 31 belong to adjoining states.

The north, south and east corporations reported 837, 408 and 368 cases, respectively.

IIM-C tops in finance among 70 global B-schools

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Premier B-school Indian Institute of Management-Calcutta (IIM-C) has bagged another laurel and the top spot in finance among the world’s 70 leading business schools, a statement said Thursday.

The finance module included in the Master of Management programme offered by the institute, has been hailed as the best in comparison with the subject taught at other B-schools, according to the Financial Times Global Masters in Management 2013 survey.

IIM-C has also clinched the second place for its economics course in the same study.

Amrita University’s rural programme tie-up with US varsity

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The Amrita University in Kerala Friday launched a pioneering experiential learning programme that encourages the youth to live and experience the problems in the country’s villages.

As part of the programme, the Amrita University signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the University of California (UC), San Diego, to enhance research and student exchanges.

The varsity’s Amrita Centre for International Programs floated its new ‘Amrita Live-in-Labs’ on the 60th birthday of the world-renowned spiritual leader Mata Amritanandamayi Devi here.

Man arrested for rape, murder in Odisha

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A man was arrested Friday in Odisha’s Cuttack district for the alleged rape and murder of a 25-year-old woman earlier in the week, police said.

Accused Durga Prasad Das, 32, allegedly intercepted the woman on her way back home to Tarito village, 40 km from Bhubaneswar, Sunday evening.

He forcibly took her to a secluded place and raped her. When she protested, he hit her with a stone killing her, Cuttack Superintendent of Police (rural) Gurudash Kundu told IANS.

Das dumped the body in a nearby canal.

2 kg gold seized at Goa airport

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Customs officials in Goa seized Friday two kg of gold worth Rs.60 lakh from a resident of Bhatkal in Karnataka, an official said.

The gold was hidden inside a television set, which was in the cargo hold of an incoming flight from Sharjah. The passenger, who brought the television set, has been detained but the Customs officials have declined to make his identity public.

This is the sixth gold haul at the Goa airport in the last few months, since the central government hiked import duty on gold to rein in its trade deficit.

Forgers held, fake US dollars and euros seized in Bihar

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A forger Ranjit Kumar and his gang, who were arrested for printing fake stamp papers worth over Rs 100 crore in the state capital Wednesday, were also printing foreign currencies including US dollars and Euros, a police official said Friday.

“Gang mastermind Ranjit Kumar confessed that they were also printing foreign currencies like American dollar and Euro in Patna” a district police official said.

Railway bribery case: Court grants bail to Singla, 3 others

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The Delhi High Court Friday granted bail to four accused, including former railway minister Pawan Kumar Bansal’s nephew Vijay Singla and suspended Railway Board member Mahesh Kumar, in the Rs.10 crore cash-for-post railway bribery case.

Justice Hima Kohli granted bail to Singla, Kumar, businessman Narayan Rao Manjunath and alleged middleman Sandeep Goyal each on personal bond of Rs.5 lakh and two sureties of the same amount.

The trial court July 12 had denied bail to the four accused.

21 die, 74 missing in Indonesia boat capsize

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A boat carrying asylum seekers heading to Australia sank in the waters off West Java in Indonesia Friday, killing at least 21 people and leaving 74 others missing, a local military officer said.

The boat carrying 120 people from Pakistan and Lebanon was hit and pushed by huge waves in waters off Cianjur in West Java, Xinhua quoted Budi Mawan, officer in-charge of the military command at Cianjur, as saying.

“The boat sank in Cianjur’s water. The bodies were found by the local police and sailors,” Mawan told Xinhua over phone from Cianjur.

Abhishek, Aishwarya to miss Kolkata film fest

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Fans of the Bachchan clan in the eastern metropolis are in for a disappointment. Abhishek Bachchan and wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan will not be able to make it to the inauguration of the 19th Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF) beginning here Nov 10.

“We will be busy shooting and so will not be able to make it,” Abhishek told media persons on the sidelines of the launch of eastern India’s first Omega boutique here Friday.

However, he did not reveal the name of the movie which the star couple will be shooting for.

‘Ram Leela’ music launch postponed for Ranveer Singh

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The music of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s “Ram Leela”, which was slated to be launched Sunday, has now been pushed to next week as the movie’s lead actor Ranveer Singh is in hospital with dengue.

A source close to the film’s team said: “The music launch of the film was supposed to happen on Sunday. It will now most probably be on Thursday (Oct 26). Sanjay Leela Bhansali, who is known to have a grand event for all of his films, has decided to postpone the music launch of the film considering Ranveer’s health.”

“Ram Leela” also features Deepika Padukone.