Month: December 2013

Fletcher says Indian team arriving in SA with `no mental scars`

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Indian cricket coach Duncan Fletcher has said his young and inexperienced team will arrive in South Africa without any mental scar and play freely.

Fletcher said he believes that the relative inexperience of the team could actually prove to be beneficial for them as they would approach things with an open mind, Sport24 reports

He felt confident about his well-balanced team with batsmen capable of making runs, and the bowling line-being a good mixture of quicks and spinners capable of bagging wickets, the report added.

Royal prank DJ Mel Greig quits Oz radio station

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Radio host Mel Greig, who was behind a royal prank call linked to the death of a Indian origin UK nurse – Jacintha Saldanha, has quit her job after settling her dispute with employer Southern Cross Austereo. Greig had filed a Fair Work complaint claiming that her employer had failed to provide a safe workplace. According to Stuff.co.nz, Austereo said in a statement that the dispute arising from the royal hoax had been “amicably resolved” and Greig had resigned, effective from December 31.

Liverpool”s Luis Suarez `four goal show` snuffs out Norwich

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Liverpool striker Luis Suarez has netted four goals and created an assist in a 5-1 defeat of Norwich at Anfield.

Suarez became the first Premier League player to score three hat-tricks against the same team, Sport24 reports.

After notching spectacular goals in the 15th, 29th, 35th and 74th minutes, Suarez then turned provider for Raheem Sterling to score late on. (ANI)

Resolving Mumbai attack case would be in Pak’s interest: Hina

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Former Pakistani foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar has said it would be in Islamabad’s interest to solve the Mumbai attacks case, saying that she also disagrees with banned outfit Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed, who masterminded the attacks.

Rabbani said India and Pakistan should shed their ‘old baggage’ of historical mistakes for resumption of Indo-Pak peace dialogue process, the Nation reports.

Hafiz Saeed has been put in detention twice in Pakistan, but she said the court lacks evidence against him in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.

Qantas to cut 1,000 jobs, deducts CEO’s salary

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Australian airliner Qantas is reportedly going to cut at least 1,000 jobs and deduct the salaries of chief executive Alan Joyce and the airline”s board as part of a cost cutting exercise over the next three years.

The national carrier is trying to achieve cost savings of two billion dollars and will also impose a pay freeze for executives in a bid to secure the group”s future, News.com.au reports.

Qantas said it expects to report a tax loss of between 250 to 300 million dollars in the first quarter of fiscal 2013-14.

Indo-Pak trade turnover improves to $2.5 bn

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Indian High Commissioner Dr T C A Raghavan has said the trade turnover between Islamabad and New Delhi has improved substantially to 2.5 billion dollars, and it is expected that Pakistani exports to India will enhance to 500 million dollars.

Raghavan said that the opening of Khokhrapar-Monabao passenger train service has paved way for lots of opportunities for both countries to look forward towards the possibility of carrying out trade, the Daily Times reports.

Pak urges India to pull out Siachen troops over environment threats

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Pakistan has urged India to pull out its troops from the Siachen Glacier, saying that their presence is a serious threat to the environment.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s advisor on National Security and Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said the glacier is the largest source of water for Pakistan, which been facing a water crisis for a long time, and blamed Indian forces for disposing items of daily use in the glacier threatening its very existence, the Daily Times reports.

Aziz said India should resolve the dispute on a priority basis to prevent further environmental damage.

SC pulls up states, asks for life term for milk adulteration

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The Supreme Court Thursday urged state governments to consider making necessary amendments to the law to make production and marketing of adulterated milk, which is injurious to human consumption, an offence punishable with life imprisonment.

The observation by a bench of Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan and Justice A.K. Sikri came after it took note of Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Odisha having made the sale of adulterated milk, contaminated with synthetic material, an offence punishable with life imprisonment.

BJP objects to Cong referring Modi as ‘Feku’

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BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad on Thursday objected to the use of word ‘feku’ by Congress leaders and ministers in reference to Narendra Modi, which Congress leader Ajay Maken defended saying that the word was used to convey to people that the person was giving wrong facts.

Maken, who along with Prasad was participating in a discussion organised by a news channel, also expressed confidence that despite the predictions of various exit polls, Congress under Sheila Dikshit would retain power in Delhi.

Al Qaeda claims responsibility for Iraq attacks

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Al Qaeda Thursday claimed responsibility for attacks on police headquarters and a shopping mall in Iraq’s Kirkuk city, in which 10 people were killed and 75 injured.

The outfit said six suicide bombers carried out the attacks. One of them drove a truck loaded with explosives, and the others wore explosive vests and had assault rifles and grenades, reported Xinhua.

Tom Daley admits love at first sight on meeting boyfriend Dustin Lance Black

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Tom Daley has confessed that it was love at first sight when he met his boyfriend Dustin Lance Black.

During the Jonathan Ross Show, the 19-year-old diver said that he had never felt anything like it before and he had made the first move, the Mirror reported.

The London 2012 bronze medallist claimed that people would only see the true him after he had come out in YouTube video recently, where he admitted that he was bisexual and currently in a relationship with a man. (ANI)

BJP to win record seats: Raman Singh

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Chief Minister Raman Singh said Thursday that the BJP was all set to retain power in Chhattisgarh, with a stunning electoral win.

“The BJP will stun everyone Sunday with the highest ever figure in the 90-member house,” Raman Singh told the media at the airport after arriving from New Delhi.

“I disagree with exit poll outcomes though all have predicted a BJP victory in Chhattisgarh either marginally or heavily,” he said.

Ben Affleck says Batman will be older and wiser in `Man of Steel` sequel

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Ben Affleck has revealed that his portrayal of Batman will be older and wiser in the sequel ‘Man of Steel’.

The 41-year-old actor said that his version of Batman would not compete with Christian Bale’s in Christopher Nolan’s trilogy, Metro.co.uk reported.

He insisted that he didn’t want to give away too much, but the idea for the new Batman is to redefine him in a way that doesn’t compete with Bale and Christopher Nolan’s Batman but still exists within the Batman canon.

Kimye planning wedding at Palace of Versailles in France

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Kanye West and Kim Kardashian are planning to have their wedding at the Palace of Versailles in France, it has been revealed.

According to an insider, they are not working with a budget, Radar Online reported.

Another source claimed that since the 36-year-old rapper has never been married before, he is ready to go all out for his wedding with the 33-year-old reality TV star. (ANI)

Is Orlando Bloom dating Liv Tyler?

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Orlando Bloom is reportedly dating his ‘Lord of the Rings’ costar Liv Tyler.

The 36-year-old actor and the 36-year-old actress were spotted getting cozy when they tuned out to support ‘Lord of the Rings’ costar Sir Ian McKellen in his New York production of Waiting for Godot.

A witness told Star magazine that when they got behind closed doors, they were playfully tickling, gazing into each other’s eyes and holding hands, Radar Online reported.

Star claimed that the pair have been friends for years, before sparking a relationship. (ANI)

Gal Gadot set to star as Wonder Woman in Batman-Superman flick

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Israel-born actress Gal Gadot is set to star as Wonder Woman in Warner Bros superhero team-up film with Batman and Superman. Director, Zac Snyder said that Wonder Woman is arguably one of the most powerful female characters of all time and a fan favorite in the DC Universe, Stuff.co.nz reported. He added that not only is Gadot an amazing actress, but she also has that magical quality that makes her perfect for the role. Already starring in the currently untitled film are Ben Affleck as Batman and Henry Cavill as Superman. (ANI)

Paul Walker died by impact and fire in car crash

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Paul Walker had died by impact and a fire in the car crash, a post-mortem examination has revealed.

The Los Angeles County coroner claimed that the driver Roger Rodas, had died from impact injuries alone.

According to media reports, the ‘Fast and Furious’ star and Rodas died within seconds of the crash, the BBC reported.

Results of toxicology tests will not be available for several weeks.

Investigators continue to look into the cause of the single-car crash, but have said speed was believed to be a factor. (ANI)

Norman Rockwell painting fetches record $46m at NYC auction

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A Norman Rockwell painting titled Saying Grace sold for 46 million dollars at an auction in New York City.

Sotheby claimed that it is the highest price ever paid at auction for an American painting.

The pre-sale estimate of the painting was claimed to be 15-20 million dollars, the Guardian reported.

In 2006, the same auction house had sold Rockwell”s Breaking Home Ties for more than 15 million dollars.

Another Rockwell painting titled The Gossips, was sold for under 8.5 million dollars, while a third, Walking to Church, fetched a little more than 3.2 million dollars.

More than 2mn stolen Facebook, Google and Yahoo passwords leaked online

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More than two million stolen passwords for sites like Facebook, Google and Yahoo have been reportedly posted online by cyber criminals.

Security experts suspect that the confidential data was taken from computers infected with malicious software that logged key presses.

Security researcher Graham Cluley said that 30-40 percent of people use the same passwords on different websites which makes the leaked information more vulnerable, the BBC reports.

Arsenal maintains top position in EPL after Hull City win

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After beating Hull City by 2-0, Nicklas Bendtner and Mesut Ozil allowed Arsenal to maintain their four-point advantage at the top of the Premier League table.

The hosts made five changes from the side that had won 3-0 at Cardiff City on Saturday, replacing injured Bacary Sagna with Carl Jenkinson, and allowing Mikel Arteta, Kieran Gibbs, Jack Wilshere and Olivier Giroud to rest on the bench.

According to Sports24, Hull, winners at the Emirates in September 2008, made two alterations to the side that beat Liverpool 3-1 on Sunday.

De Villiers confident of team’s skills to counter `batting heavyweights` India in ODIs

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Proteas captain, AB de Villiers is confident that his team has the skill to counter India’s hitters in the ODI series in Wanderers starting on Thursday.

De Villiers said that Indian players will face a different challenge in South African conditions despite being ranked the best in a couple of high-scoring series against Australia and the West Indies at home.

The captain said that the strength of the Indian team lies in their batting and their last scores have been big.

Ashok Leyland offers VRS to 500 senior officials

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Hinduja Group flagship company Ashok Leyland has offered Voluntary Retirement service for 500 senior officials as on November 30, a top official said Wednesday.

“Roughly 500 executives were offered VRS (Voluntary Retirement Scheme) on November 30, representing about 10 percent of the executives…,” Ashok Leyland MD Vinod K Dasari told reporters here, at the sidelines of the conference SIMCOMVEC — the eighth edition of SAEIndia International Mobility Conference and first Commercial Vehicle Engineering Congress.

PM stresses on manufacturing base development; M&A rules soon

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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday said a strong domestic manufacturing base in electronics and telecommunications will mitigate burden of growing imports for the sector.

“India needs to develop a strong domestic manufacturing base in electronics and telecommunications,” Singh said in his inaugural address at the industry event ‘India Telecom 2013’.

He said by 2020, it is estimated India will be importing electronics products worth about 300 billion dollars, which will be more than the value of the country’s imports of petroleum products.

WTO meet: No agreement better than a bad one, says Anand Sharma

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Dismissing the suggestion that India was insisting on food security because of the ensuing general elections at home, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma on Thursday said New Delhi was only pursing an old proposal and stressed that “no agreement” would be better than a bad one.

The Minister, at a packed press conference, made it clear that New Delhi was not prepared for any compromise on the food security issue, adding the deal at Bali has to be fair and balanced as “it is better to have no agreement than a bad agreement”.

Challenges for India Inc to continue in 2014: Moody’s

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Reflecting macroeconomic challenges over the next 12 months, Moody’s expects challenges for Indian non-financial corporates to continue in 2014.

“India’s GDP growth to remain weak at 5.5 percent in the fiscal year ending March 2015, as elections in mid-2014 will delay reforms needed to revive the economy,” Moody’s Investors Service said in a report.

Companies will also face higher borrowing costs and tight funding conditions with monetary policy likely to remain tight, it said.