Month: January 2014

MDMK likely to be part of BJP alliance

by

The Tamil Nadu-based MDMK is likely to be part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the forthcoming general elections, party leader Vaiko said Wednesday.

MDMK — or Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam to give its full name — is a Dravidian party formed in 1994 in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

Speaking to reporters here, Vaiko said he had held preliminary talks with leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party on the issue of forming an alliance for the general elections.

T-Cong leaders hold protest at Gandhi Bhavan

by

Several Congress leaders on Wednesday held a silent protest before the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in the Congress headquarters Gandhi Bhavan at Nampally in protest against stripping of Legislative Affairs portfolio from D Sridhar Babu.

The Congress leaders, under the banner of Telangana Monitoring Committee, held the protest for over an hour. Those who took part in the protest include Rajya Sabha MP Anand Bhaskar, PCC General Secretary G Niranjan, Intellectual Cell Chairman Shyam Mohan and PCC Secretary Yousuf Hashmi.

Decision on audit of power companies Wednesday: Kejriwal

by

The final decision on the audit of power companies in the national capital will be taken Wednesday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said.

“The power companies were supposed to send their replies by (Wednesday) noon, the final decision will be taken today,” he told reporters outside Delhi assembly.

Kejriwal, who took oath as chief minister Saturday, fulfilled his second major election promise Tuesday, reducing power tariff through subsidy, a move expected to benefit an estimated 28 lakh households.

Outlook for 2014: Four-way contest in the offing

by

December was a game-changer for the Congress since it finally woke up to the unfavourable ground realities which its myopic leaders had ignored largely because of the blindness caused by their socialistic baggage.

However, as in the case of the nuclear deal in 2008, which might not have received the Congress’ approval but for Rahul Gandhi’s intervention, it was the heir apparent who again chose the right path by correctly interpreting the reason for the party’s electoral drubbing in the four north and central Indian states.

New Year celebrations banned in Islamabad

by

For thousands of party enthusiasts in Pakistan’s capital here, the New Year celebrations did not go as planned as local authorities withdrew NOCs given to hotels for hosting parties to usher in 2014.

Many had paid up to Rs 16,000 per head to join the celebrations. But keeping an eye on the increased security concerns in the federal capital, the local administration suddenly decided to banish all celebrations in the city. It was an emergency-like situation in some of the top hotels in the city where people, all decked up to celebrate, felt cheated.

Anderson strikes fastest ODI century to break the 17-year-old record of Shahid Afridi

by

New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson struck the fastest ODI century in 36 balls to guide the Black Caps to a massive 159-run win over the West Indies in the rain-curtailed third game of the five-match series against the West Indies at the Queenstown Events Centre here Wednesday.

It took some time for the rain to subside, but once it had the New Zealanders put on one of the most incredible cricketing spectacles in history.

Maruti sales down 4.4 pc at 90,924 units in December

by

Country’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India today reported 4.4 per cent decline in its total sales at 90,924 units in December 2013 as against 95,145 units in the same month previous year.

Domestic sales during the month stood at 86,613 units, up 5.5 per cent from 82,073 units in December previous year, Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) said in a statement.

Sales of mini passenger cars, including M800, Alto, A-Star and WagonR, were up 16.7 per cent at 38,286 units in December as against 32,797 units in the year-ago period.

SML Isuzu to raise prices by 2 to 5 per cent

by

Commercial vehicle maker SML Isuzu today announced it will hike prices of its products including trucks and buses by 2 to 5 per cent from next month, citing rising input cost.

Despite sluggish market, the company also said it will foray into higher capacity truck segment category by rolling out 13 tonne capacity vehicle.

The company said it plans to launch more trucks with bigger capacities in future to mark its presence.

Hyundai sales up 2.58 pc in December

by

Hyundai Motor India Ltd today reported a 2.58 per cent increase in its total sales in December 2013 at 49,069 units as against 47,833 units in the same month of previous year.

The company’s domestic sales were up 6.24 per cent at 28,345 units during the month from 26,697 units in December 2012, Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) said in a statement.

Exports during the month were down 1.94 per cent to 20,724 units from 21,136 units in the same month previous year, it added.

Arvind Kejriwal, others take oath as legislators

by

Newly sworn in Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday took oath as a member of the Delhi legislative assembly when met for the first time after last month’s elections.

Congress leader Mateen Ahmed, who was named th pro-tem speaker, administered the oath to Kejriwal.

Other members also took their oath after Kejriwal.

—PTI

M&M total sales down 12.55 pc in December

by

Auto-maker Mahindra & Mahindra today reported 12.55 per cent decline in its total sales at 39,611 units in December 2013.

The company had sold 45,297 units in the same month previous year, the company said in a statement.

In December, M&M’s domestic sales stood at 36,881 units as against 42,307 in the same month previous year, down 12.82 per cent.

Total sales of passenger vehicles, including Scorpio, XUV500, Xylo, Bolero and Verito, stood at 16,436 units during the month as against 22,761 in December 2012, down 27.78 per cent.

Minor girl raped inside taxi

by

A minor girl was allegedly raped inside a taxi in downtown Park Street area of Kolkata, police said on Monday.

A 13-year-old footpath dweller was allegedly pulled inside the taxi on Sunday night and was raped by a youth in Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road area.

Police have arrested accused Mohammed Anwar, who was known to the victim.

An investigation into the matter has been launched, police said.

Bollywood looks forward to a crowded movie calender in 2014

by

The race to the 100 crore club and beyond will get more exciting in 2014 with Aamir, Shah Rukh and Salman Khan battling it out at the box office even as a crop of upcoming actors and their films are set to challenge the Khan reign in Bollywood.

January’s most anticipated film is ‘Jai Ho’ which will mark Salman’s return to the big screen after a gap of one and a half years. Slated for January 24 release, ‘Jai Ho’ will see him play the role of a common man with lot of muscle power.

SIT chargesheets 225 people in Muzaffarnagar riots

by

The Uttar Pradesh government constituted Special Investigation Team has chargesheeted at least 225 people so far in connection with the September riots in Muzaffarnagar and neighbouring areas, police said on Wednesday.

The SIT has chargesheeted 225 people in 28 riot cases so far while 28 complainants in other cases could not be traced, said Manoj Jha, Additional SP, SIT.

Final report in nine cases has been submitted before a local court due to lack of evidence, he added.

The SIT has sent a list of 522 accused in different riot cases and asked the local police to arrest them.

Politics cost me money: Arnold Schwarzenegger

by

Action star-turned-politician Arnold Schwarzenegger says he lost out on millions of dollars when he was the Governor of California.

The 66-year-old Austrian actor took a seven-year break from acting to pursue his political dreams and while he loved being able to give something back to the people of America, he says it wasn’t great for him financially, reported Contactmusic.

‘Good night’s sleep’ essential for brain health

by

Researchers have found that one night of sleep depravity can cause morning blood concentrations of molecules NSE and S-100B to increase in healthy young men.

These molecules are typically found in the brain. Thus, their rise in blood after sleep loss may indicate that a lack of snoozing might be conducive to a loss of brain tissue.

The study involved fifteen normal-weight men, and in one condition they were sleep-deprived for one night, while in the other condition they slept for approximately 8 hours.

`Tobacco eating` Hornworm caterpillar puffs nicotine to ward off predators

by

Researchers have found a caterpillar that has a unique defence mechanism against some of their predators such as wolf spiders.

They discovered that a gene in hornworm caterpillars allowed them to puff nicotine out through their spiracles (tiny holes in their sides), from the tobacco that they ate, Fox News reported.

Study researcher Ian Baldwin, a professor at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Germany said that it was basically an insect eating a plant and then co-opting the plant for its own defense.

MF accounts drop by over 24 lakh during Apr-Nov

by

Mutual fund industry has lost an estimated over 24 lakh investors, measured in terms of individual accounts or folios, in the first eight months of the current fiscal, mainly due to profit-booking and various merger schemes.

According to Sebi data on total investor accounts with 45 fund houses, the number of folios fell to around 4.04 crore at the end of November 2013 from 4.28 crore in the last fiscal (2012-13) — indicating a decline of 24.23 lakh.

Folios are numbers designated to individual investor accounts, although one investor can have multiple folios.

Women are no more just eye candy: Madhuri Dixit

by

Bollywood diva Madhuri Dixit is set to make a comeback on the screen in a never-seen-before avatar in ready-to-release “Dedh Ishqiya”, a hinterland based thriller-drama, and thanks Indian cinema for evolving and making way for strong female characters.

“The more depth in the character the more fun you get to perform,” Madhuri said when asked how comfortable she was with the bold role in “Dedh Ishqiya”, which brings her out of her comfort zone, Madhuri told IANS in an interview.

Bollywood aspires to ‘stay fit’ in 2014

by

Bollywood celebrities have revealed their New Year resolutions. Actor Sonu Sood said, “The most common resolution every New Year is ‘Will go to the gym regularly from 1st’ and truth is everyone forgets as the New Year begins”.

‘Jodi Breakers’ star Bipasha Basu revealed that she has resolved to get strong in the New Year, but added that she is partying hard to welcome 2014.

‘Rockstar’ actress Nargis Fakhri said that her goals for 2014 include meditating everyday for at least 20 minutes, make yoga a daily practice and start trying to speak in Hindi to people.

NASA asks Beyonce not to ‘trivialize’ challenger disaster

by

Beyonce, who was criticized for including an audio clip from the 1986 Challenger disaster in her new song ‘XO’, has been advised by NASA not to ‘trivialize’ the shuttle disaster.

In the 6-second clip of the Challenger disaster , where the explosion of the space shuttle that killed 7 crew members has been compared to a failed relationship, NASA’s public affairs officer Steve Nesbitt can be heard saying that the flight controllers are looking very carefully at the situation and it’s a major malfunction.

Dwyane Wade’s baby mama’s name revealed!

by

Dwyane Wade’s son’s birth certificate, which reveals his and the baby mama’s name, has been leaked.

The birth certificate shows the kid’s name as Xavier Zechariah Wade, who was born in Los Angeles on November 10, 2013, and the mother is 30-year-old Aja Metoyer , TMZ.com reported.

Wade had recently confessed to fathering a son outside his relationship with fiancee Gabrielle Union. (ANI)

Federer backs ‘new’ racket to boost World No.1 chances in 2014

by

Swiss tennis ace Roger Federer is reportedly banking on his new racket to boost his chances to top the tennis rankings again after he made a winning start with his new equipment on Tuesday in the Brisbane International.

The 17-time Major champion paired with Nicolas Mahut of France to beat top seeds Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau 7-5 7-5 in a men’s doubles match at the ATP tournament in Brisbane.