Month: May 2014

Arrangements in full swing for KCR Swearing-in

by

Arrangements are being made for the wearing-in of K Chandrashekhar Rao as first Chief Minister of Telangana State, at Raj Bhavan at 8.15 am on June 2 and the Telangana Formation Celebrations at Parade Grounds in Secunderabad the same day.

Polavaram Ordinance– Telangana bandh total; Normal life disrupted

by

The day-long Telangana Bandh call given by TRS in protest against Polavaram ordinance issued by the BJP Government at the Centre was total and peaceful. The TRS rank and file took to streets and staged a sit-in at all the ten district headquarters, towns and villages. The Bandh affected normal life in the entire Telangana region.

Finnish divers find German submarine lost in 1915

by

A group of Finnish divers Thursday claimed they found the wreckage of the German submarine U-26, which sank in the Gulf of Finland nearly 100 years ago.

Badewanne, a Finnish diving research group, told Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat that the wreckage was found in the western part of the Gulf of Finland, Xinhua reported.

The German submarine was built in May 1914, two months before World War I broke out, and sank during the war in August 1915.

The U-26 was the pride of Germany since it bombed and sank four Russian warships in the Baltic Sea during its one year of service.

Foreign ministers call Sushma, discuss ties

by

Foreign ministers from across the world Thursday called External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to congratulate her and discuss bilateral issues.

A statement from the ministry said Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop discussed ways to deepen “bilateral trade and economic ties as well as civil nuclear cooperation.”

“They also discussed cooperation in multilateral fora such as the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) and G-20,” the statement said.

Sushma Swaraj also discussed ways to “develop the trade and investment relationship” with Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird.

Karnataka invites Peru to participate in global investors’ meet

by

Karnataka Thursday invited the South American nation of Peru to participate in the Global Investors’ Meet (GIM 2015) the state will hold here in January-February next year.

“We invite you to participate as partner country in the GIM event and sign agreements with us to harness the state’s potential in the field of investments, trade and business,” Chief Minister Siddaramaiah told visiting Peruvian ambassador to India Javier Paulinich here.

Tarantino, Thurman – go from friends to lovers!

by

They first worked together in “Pulp Fiction” and now, after 20 years, Uma Thurman and Quentin Tarantino have reportedly taken their friendship on a romantic journey.

Us Weekly reports that the long-time friends have embarked on a romance after the actress – whom the director has often referred to as his ‘muse’ – split with fiancé Arpad ‘Arki’ Busson last month, reports dailymail.co.uk.

Tone down rhetoric on article 370, says Karan Singh

by

Congress leader Karan Singh Thursday expressed distress over the controversy over Article 370 “flowing from an avoidable statement by the MoS in the PMO” and appealed to all to “kindly tone down the rhetoric”.

In a statement two days after Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office Jitendra Singh stirred a controversy by saying that the new government has started the process for repealing article 370 that confers special status to the state, Karan Singh said the issue was “extremely sensitive and must be handled coolly and in a mature fashion”.

Lottery system of choosing RS members from AP, Telangana may be changed

by

Members of Rajya Sabha from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana respectively may not be chosen by the lottery system as envisaged in a law passed during the previous UPA government as the Narendra Modi dispensation has started the process of reviewing it.

Highly placed sources in the government said the provision in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act would create
confusion and was therefore not feasible practically. Since the draw of lots system is mentioned in the Act itself, government is also mulling the option of changing the procedure by issuing an Ordinance. But as Parliament session

Telangana: TRS’s bandh against Polavaram passes off peacefully

by

The bandh called by Telangana Rashtra Samithi to protest against Centre’s ordinance transferring some villages and Mandals of Khammam district to the residuary Andhra Pradesh to facilitate Polavaram project passed off peacefully in Telangana and Hyderabad today. The bandh was total, especially in the districts, and affected the normal life to some extent but no untoward incident was reported, officials said.

Work collectively to achieve ‘education for all’ goal: Ansari

by

Vice President Hamid Ansari today asked the society to work collectively to realise the goal of “education for all” and 100 per cent literacy as schools in many parts of the country lack infrastructure and other facilities.

He said in 1947, only 12 per cent population was educated in our country which has now increased to 75 per cent but it
was still less than the world average, which is above 80 per cent.

Vice President said teachers in schools in many parts of the country were not paid salaries on time while others were

Ordinance on Polavaram project defended by government

by

The government Thursday defended its move to clear an ordinance concerning the Polavaram irrigation project, saying there had been broad political support on the issue when the process was expedited for creating a separate state of Telangana.

“There is no controversy on the subject. The issue was decided earlier,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu said here in response to questions from media persons.

He said the cabinet had approved the recommendations of the home ministry, adding that the decision was taken during the United Progressive Alliance government.

Ex-councillor jailed for five years in graft case

by

A court here Thursday sentenced former municipal councillor Hiren Tokas to five years in jail in a 2003 graft case.

Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Special Judge Madhu Jain jailed Tokas after finding him guilty of accepting illegal gratification. The court also slapped a fine of Rs.25,000 on him.

Another accused in the case, and Tokas’s associate, Subhash Chander Jain was sentenced to one year in jail and a fine of Rs.5,000 imposed on him.

The court held them guilty of criminal conspiracy and under various section of Prevention of Corruption Act.

Who after Modi will contest for Vadodara?

by

With Prime Minister Narendra Modi giving up his Vadodara Lok Sabha seat, speculation is rife on who in BJP will contest from the constituency in his home state even as the name of his close aide Amit Shah is doing the rounds.

Nigerian president declares war against terrorists

by

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan Thursday directed the country’s security forces to launch a full-scale military operation to put an end to the impunity of terrorists in the country.

The president gave the directive in his Democracy Day broadcast to the citizens of the West African country.

The Nigerian leader said the country’s unity and stability as well as the protection of lives and property were non-negotiable, Xinhua reported.

China planning for extra 2 million babies per year

by

China is preparing for 2 million extra babies a year as a result of a loosening of its “one child” birth limits that will allow more couples to have two children, health officials said today. The ruling Communist Party introduced birth limits in 1980 to curb population growth and demand for water and other resources. Most urban couples are allowed one child and face fines and other penalties for additional births.

Pressure to enforce limits has led local officials to force women to abort foetuses or to be sterilised, even though

Desi, deglam: Rani goes ‘Mardaani’

by

Rani Mukerji has taken on effervescent roles in the past — but for the forthcoming entertainer “Mardaani”, where the recently married actress essays a police officer’s role for the first time, she has shed frills and style to get under the character’s skin.

In the Yash Raj Films (YRF) movie, produced by her husband Aditya Chopra, Rani plays Shivani Shivaji Roy, an astute police personnel working in a Mumbai Crime Branch unit.

The raw and gritty film, a distinct departure from Pradeep Sarkar’s style of filmmaking, will hit the screens Aug 22.

Youth held for extorting doctor in Delhi

by

A 19-year-old youth has been arrested here for making extortion calls to a doctor demanding Rs.10 lakh from him, police said Thursday.

Dheeraj Bhardwaj, who indulged in the extortion ostensibly to end his family’s poor financial condition, was arrested Wednesday night from Najafgarh in west Delhi.

Inspired by a south Indian movie, the youth along with a juvenile planned to extort the doctor, who practices at a prominent hospital in central Delhi and who he had met once during treatment.

Ministers justify demand for Hyd airport’s renaming after NTR

by

Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi Airport could be renamed after former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N T Rama Rao with two senior Ministers of the Narendra Modi government justifying the demand today.

“I was one among the people, who was present when it was named after the great N T Rama Rao earlier. It was changed subsequently. Some people are suggesting you change it back. That is an issue that will be decided in due course of time. That is not urgent today,” BJP leader and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu told reporters here.

Yemeni intelligence officer gunned down

by

A Yemeni military intelligence colonel was gunned down by suspected Al Qaeda gunmen in the southeastern province of Hadramout Thursday afternoon, a government official said.

“Two armed men riding a motorbike opened fire from automatic rifles at Colonel Salmin al-Obthani, killing him on his way back home in the coastal city of Mukalla, Hadramout’s provincial capital,” the government source told Xinhua.

Court issues summon to Kingfisher Airlines for pilot’s salary

by

The Delhi High Court has issued summons to defunct Kingfisher Airlines on the plea of a serving pilot seeking recovery of more than Rs.52 lakh, her outstanding salary for 21 months, from the grounded airline.

Moving the court through advocate M.K. Ghosh, the pilot said that because of the insecure financial environment, she had heavily suffered both professionally as well as financially.

The private airline has been grounded since October 2012.

Man held for duping people of Rs.20 crore

by

A man has been arrested here for duping several firms and people of around Rs.20 crore by pretending to sell them properties using fake documents, police said Thursday.

Rajan Grover, a resident of DLF-2 area, was Thursday produced before a court which sent him to three days’ police custody.

Several complaints of cheating and breach of trust have been registered against the accused at various police stations, police officer Naresh Kumar of the Sushant Lok police station told IANS.
(IANS)

BJP protests poor power supply in Uttar Pradesh

by

Over 200 BJP workers held a protest here Thursday against poor electricity supply in Uttar Pradesh.

Bharatiya Janata Party leader Ashu Verma accused the Akhilesh Yadav government of meting out “step motherly” treatment to industrial cities like Ghaziabad, Kanpur, Meerut and Muzaffarnagar that are faced with power cuts.

Verma said the state government had ensured regular supply to chief minister’s home district Etawah and Rampur, the home district of Uttar Pradesh’s influential minister Azam Khan.