Month: April 2014

PCB to conduct post mortem of Pakistan’s performance in T20 WC

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The Pakistan Cricket Board is set to conduct a review of the national team’s stunning defeat at the hands of the West Indies that led to their ouster from the ICC World Twenty20 in Bangladesh.

Pakistan crashed to a big defeat against the Windies in a must-win match yesterday which has led to widspread calls for the axing of senior players like Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal and even captain Mohammad Hafeez.

Senior cricket consultant of the national team and former captain Zaheer Abbas today made it clear he would ask the PCB to conduct a post mortem into the team’s performance.

All 227 passengers of MH370 cleared: Malaysian police chief

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A criminal probe into four specific areas including hijacking and sabotage has cleared all 227 passengers aboard the ill-fated Flight MH370, Malaysian police chief said today.

Investigators have cleared all 227 passengers of any role in hijacking or sabotage and of having personal or psychological issues that might have played a role in the plane’s disappearance on March 8, Inspector-General Khalid Abu Bakar said.

Palestinians hope Kerry will renew peace push ‘in days’

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The Palestinians want US efforts to salvage the peace process to continue, a senior official said today, just hours after they renewed controversial moves to seek international recognition.

“We hope (US Secretary of State John) Kerry’s efforts will be renewed in the coming days,” Yasser Abed Rabbo, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation’s executive committee, told reporters in Ramallah.

“Kerry knows the reality. We don’t want these efforts to finish.”

SP releases election manifesto, eyes Muslim vote

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Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Mulayam Singh Yadav on Wednesday unveiled election manifesto as it eyes Muslim vote bank for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Reiterating his party’s commitment towards numerically-significant Muslims, Yadav said he would provide reservation in government jobs and educational institutions for the minority community.

“Muslims in our country are not being provided with benefits. If they are provided with benefits, our country may develop. Samajwadi Party takes this matter seriously and will provide special benefits to Muslims” said Yadav.

Sidhu’s wife says Jaitley fit to be prime ministerial candidate

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While Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and his son Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal limited themselves to predicting Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Arun Jaitley as the future Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister respectively, BJP leader Navjot Kaur Sidhu on Wednesday endorsed Jaitley for the Prime Minister’s post.

She said, “He (Jaitley) is a prime ministerial candidate because he is one of the most senior leaders of the BJP.”

Message drive by Mumbai ‘dabbawalas’ on vector-borne diseases

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Mumbai’s famed “dabbawalas” will join hands with the World Health Organisation to draw attention to prevention and control vector-borne diseases (VBD), an official said here Wednesday.

The Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Charity Trust (NMTBSCT) will carry a special message tag on its 200,000 plus tiffin boxes April 7 to highlight the threats by vector-borne diseases in India.

The WHO campaign, being carried out jointly with the state health ministry, is entitled “Small Bite: Big Threat”.

BEST drivers, conductors call off their strike in Mumbai

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The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST) drivers and conductors on Wednesday called off their strike bringing much needed relief to the commuters in the country’s financial capital.

Drivers and conductors went on strike on Tuesday in their protest against new computerised scheduling system.

The BEST management has agreed to postpone the implementation of the new system till June 1.

The transportation wing of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking ( BEST) operates a large number of bus lines in Mumbai .

Check Congress complaint on internet posts: EC to Gujarat

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A complaint to the Election Commission by the Congress alleging posting of “highly objectionable material” on the social media has been referred to a Gujarat poll official for appropriate action under the Indian Penal Code and Information Technology Act, party sources said.

K.C. Mittal, secretary in the legal and human rights department of the Congress, complained to the poll panel last week about “highly objectionable material spreading communal hatred in India” on social media.

Modi says people want to punish those who looted India in these elections

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Asserting that the people of the country has already taken a decision even before polling for the Lok Sabha elections have started, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the people will be voting for a change and are in a mood to punish those who have looted and destroyed the country.

In Gurgaon manifesto, AAP vows to battle corruption

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The AAP Wednesday released its Gurgaon election manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls, saying it was determined to battle endemic corruption in this business hub bordering Delhi.

Gurgaon represents the unity-in-diversity that is India, Aam Aadmi Party leader and Lok Sabha candidate Yogendra Yadav said.

The manifesto said those living in Gurgaon’s high rise buildings as well as farmers and others in the Mewat region faced corruption at all levels.

All their problems would be resolved if the AAP candidate was elected to the Lok Sabha from Gurgaon, it said.

Kejriwal faces protests during road show in capital

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Former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday faced protests during his road show aimed at reviving the shrinking base among the common man and to consolidate his Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) position in the upcoming general elections.

Protesters wore black bandanas and shouted anti-AAP and Kejriwal slogans. People said that Kejriwal has betrayed and broken trust of Delhi residents.

“We are against him. He is an escapist. He betrayed us. We gave him votes and he backstabbed us by running away,” said an irked protester.

IDFC, Bandhan Financial get banking licences

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The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Wednesday granted “in-principle” approval to IDFC Limited and Bandhan Financial Services Private Limited to set up new banks, with some big guns failing to make the cut.

As many as 27 companies were in the fray for new banking linceces, including some top corporate houses like Tata Sons, L&T, Reliance Group, Bajaj, Shriram and Religare.

“After withdrawal by two applicants, 25 applications have been considered,” the RBI said, adding that those whose applications had been rejected could reapply.

Baba Ramdev targets Congress, beats drum for BJP in Chandigarh

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Yoga guru Baba Ramdev has hit out at Congress calling it the most ‘corrupt’ party embroiled in multiple scams, while beating drums for main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party’s win in 2014 general elections during a rally in Chandigarh.

Ramdev slammed Congress party on Wednesday saying that it was responsible for the multi-billion coal scam and various other graft cases in the country.

Jailed Congress leader Imran Masood gets bail in hate speech case

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A local court on Wednesday granted bail to jailed Congress Lok Sabha candidate from Saharanpur, Imran Masood, after he was arrested for delivering a hate speech in which he allegedly threatened to “chop” BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi “into pieces”.

Masood, 40, was arrested on the basis of a video clipping that went viral on the web. The clipping showed threatening to “chop Narendra Modi to pieces”, igniting a new political controversy prior to next month’s general election.

Warm Wednesday in Delhi, Thursday to be cloudy

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The national capital experienced a warm Wednesday with traces of rainfall in some areas in the evening. The Met Office has forecast a partly cloudy Thursday.

The day’s maximum temperature settled at 35.1 degrees Celsius, two notches above the season’s average, while the minimum was 17.7 degrees Celsius, one notch below average.

“The sky will be partly cloudy with mist in the morning,” said an official of the India Meteorological Department.

The maximum and minimum temperatures are likely to hover around 34 degrees and 17 degrees Celsius respectively.

Govt. only interested in pink revolution, giving subsidies to mutton exporters: Modi

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Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the central government is more interested in pink revolution over the green revolution or the white revolution, and added that it is giving subsidies to mutton exporters instead of farmers.

Addressing a rally in Nawada District of Bihar, Modi said: “But the present government in Delhi is not bothered about green revolution or white revolution. Instead it is interested in pink revolution. Do you know what pink revolution is? It is the color of the flesh when animals are killed.”

India, Bangladesh working on MoU to tackle fake currency menace: Sujatha Singh

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India and Bangladesh are working towards signing a Memorandum of Understanding to tackle the problem of fake currency, Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh revealed here today.

Delivering the keynote address at the 5th India Bangladesh Dialogue, organised by Observer Research Foundation and Bangladesh Enterprise Institute, Dhaka, Singh said the Task Force on Fake Currency had conducted its first meeting in January this year and now working on a MoU to be signed between the two countries.

Don’t take MNS lightly, says Pawar

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NCP chief Sharad Pawar Wednesday urged his partymen not to take Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena lightly in the ensuing parliamentary election.

Addressing a meeting of Nationalist Congress Party workers, the union agriculture minister said that based on the MNS’s past performance in Lok Sabha and assembly elections, it could prove to be an important factor in the coming polls.

“Don’t take it lightly. Raj Thackeray has built it up with great struggles,” Pawar said.

Varun Gandhi distances himself from appreciating Rahul

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Bharatiya Janata Party leader and candidate from Sultanpur Varun Gandhi has distanced himself from his comments where he had apparently praised his estranged cousin Rahul Gandhi for the work done in Amethi.

Varun tweeted by clarifying “My comment, last night, in a meeting with teachers and NGOs, in response to being asked whether I knew about initiatives in Amethi, was that although I had not seen the work done via self help groups in Amethi, I had heard it was fairly decent, and that I would stress it should ‘NOT’ be seen as an endorsement of any political party or candidate.”

Action against 21 Haryana officials for missing poll training

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At least 21 micro-observers will face action in Haryana for remaining absent during their election training programme.

The District Electoral Officer of Sirsa district, Anshuj Singh, Wednesday ordered that a case be registered against these micro-observers for missing the training.

“The 21 micro-observers were absent in the training programme held at CMK College, Sirsa today (Wednesday). Directions have been issued to register FIRs against them under sections 134 and 128 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951,” Singh said.

Captain Amarinder Singh suggests Badal to undergo lie detector test

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Taking a dig at Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal for speaking ‘outright lies’, Congress candidate from Amritsar Capt. Amarinder Singh on Wednesday described him as a ‘congenital and compulsive liar’ and said that Badal should better undergo a lie detector test to redeem and salvage his pride and prestige.

Capt. Amarinder even challenged Badal to hold a public referendum to establish as to who is considered to be a liar by the people of Punjab.

India aims to expand nuclear energy generation capacity by 2032: PM

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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday said the country aims to expand nuclear energy generation capacity to more than 62000 mega watt by 2032 with additional safety features and proliferation resistant technologies.

Singh was addressing the audience on nuclear weapon free world at Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) in New Delhi.

US Air Force’s X-37B shatters own orbit record

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Boeing’s X-37B space plane reportedly broke its endurance record in orbit last month after it crossed 470 days.

The Orbital Test Vehicle 3 was launched by the US Air Force in December 2012 on a classified mission, which involved collecting data for the US military.

According to Fox News, the X-37B was launched into orbit aboard the Atlas 5 rocket from a pad at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla and will return to Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., at an undisclosed date.

Can’t remove government leaders from ads: Centre to SC

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The Centre Wednesday told the Supreme Court that government leaders could not be blacked out of official advertisements just before the Lok Sabha election.

The court Wednesday reserved its verdict on a plea seeking issuance of guidelines for curbing ruling parties from taking political mileage by projecting their leaders in official advertisements.