Month: July 2014

No-frills carrier SpiceJet on Tuesday put ten lakh seats on the block with base fares starting as low as Rs 999, which are lower than a 3-AC train ticket, for a one-way journey under a limited period offer.

The bookings for the three-day mega sale offer started on Tuesday for travel between January 6 and October 24, 2015, according to SpiceJet website.

“10,00,000 seats are up for grab at fares starting at Rs 999. SpiceJet mega sale is here,” the airline said.

It seems that trouble is far from over for Bollywood actor Salman Khan, whose past haunts him to present. The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued notice to Salman on account of Rajasthan governmentt`s plea challenging the High Court order suspending his conviction in blackbuck killing case.

The Union Home Ministry has sought a report from the Karnataka Government on the cash-for-MLC seat audio CD controversy involving JDS leader H D Kumaraswamy, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Tuesday.

The report would be submitted today or tomorrow, he told reporters here when asked about reports that the Union Home Ministry had asked the state to provide full details on the issue and the action taken.

Nation’s largest oil explorer ONGC on Tuesday raised USD 2.214 billion – the largest bond sale from the country – through dual tranche money to fund its overseas arm OVL’s Mozambique asset purchase.

The issue involved USD 1.5 billion of dollar money and 525 million in euros (USD 714 million at current exchange rate), merchant bankers said.

They said this is the largest dual currency RegS issuance from Asia, apart from being the first-ever euro issuance from a quasi-sovereign corporate. It is also the first dual currency RegS issuance from the country.

An earthquake measuring 4.9 on the Richter scale hit Pakistan-occupied-Gilgit late tonight and resultant mild tremors were felt in Doda and Kishtwar districts of Jammu and Kashmir.

The earthquake struck Gilgit at 21.06 hours, the Indian Meteorological department said.

However, no report of any casualty or damage to property has been reported so far in Doda and Kishtwar where the earthquake measured 2.3 on the Richter scale, according to local Meteorological department.

Congress deputy floor leader in Telangana legislative assembly Mohammed Ali Shabbir alleged that the Telangana government is not serious over implementation of minority welfare schemes. Commenting upon the meeting of collectors and high officials of departments convened by the chief minister, he said KCR directed officers regarding all other issues but did not pay attention towards minority and weaker sections welfare affairs.

In advance of the bilateral strategic dialogue, a top US diplomat will be visiting India this week as a part of preparation for the highest level talks between the two countries.

According to the State Department, Deputy Secretary of State William J Burns will be in India on a two-day visit starting July 10 in advance of the US-India Strategic Dialogue.

“He will discuss the full range of bilateral issues – including economic, energy, and security cooperation – with senior Indian officials,” the State Department said in a statement.

An unclaimed bag was found outside the BJP headquarters on Ashoka Road this morning, triggering panic in the area.

Police got a call about the bag around 8 am following which a bomb squad and dog squad were rushed to the spot.

Investigators found nothing suspicious in the bag.

In the meantime, a couple claiming to be BJP workers reached the spot and said the bag belonged to them.

Domestic passenger car sales increased 14.76 percent to 1,60,232 units in June as compared to 1,39,624 units in the year-ago month.

Motorcycle sales last month climbed 9.63 percent to 8,76,196 units from 7,99,254 units a year earlier, according to data released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

The total two-wheeler sales in June rose 12.99 percent to 12,61,589 units.

Sales of commercial vehicles were down 9.03 percent to 51,119 units in June, SIAM said.

The state government is looking into the demands of Hero MotoCorp regarding incentives and facilities to be provided at its proposed production site in Dharwad, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Tuesday.

Hero MotoCorp, a leading two-wheeler manufacturer, will be setting up its production unit there at a cost of Rs 1,450 crore. The unit will come up on 300 acres in Mummigatti near Dharwad, Siddaramaiah said, adding it planned to manufacture 1.8 million two-wheelers.

The benchmark BSE Sensex recovered over 78 points in opening trade today on emergence of buying by funds and retail investors at prevailing levels ahead of the release of Economic Survey later in the day.

The 30-share index, which had lost 518 points yesterday, its worst drop in 10 months, recovered by 78.30 points, or 0.31 per cent, to 25,660.41, with stocks of capital goods, oil & gas, consumer durables and PSUs, leading the recovery.

On similar lines, the National Stock Exchange index Nifty moved up by 11.35 points, or 0.15 per cent, to 7,634.55.

Shailesh Vara, an Indian-origin British Minister for Justice, has welcomed the UK government’s decision to install a statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Parliament Square here by early next year.

British Foreign Minister William Hague and Chancellor of Exchequer George Osborne, who are on a visit to India, yesterday announced the plan for the statue of Gandhi, the inspiration for non-violent civil rights movements around the world.

A 15-year-old Dalit girl was raped allegedly by a youth in Baniyather area, police said here on Wednesday.

The family members of the victim alleged that she was raped by a youth while his aide held her at gun point on Sunday night, it said.

The incident occurred when the victim was alone at her residence as other family members had gone to attend a wedding, police said.

A case was filed against Shauqeen and Akhtar last evening in this connection, they said, adding the accused were absconding.

………PTI

A new geological map of mars has revealed new insight into surface modified by water over much of planet’s history.

The map has been produced by Scott C. Mest and David A. Crown of the Planetary Science Institute, which established that the water in this area would be in the canyon systems of Waikato Vallis in the north part of the map and Reull Vallis in the central part of the map and these canyons were believed to have formed when underground water was released from plains materials to the surface, causing the ground to collapse.

NASA has recently stated that the bright light recorded by the Curiosity rover on Mars was just a ‘hot pixel’ and not a UFO .

Justin Maki, leader of the team that built and operates Curiosity’s navigation camera, said that in the thousands of images that they have received from Curiosity, they have seen ones with bright spots nearly every week and it was the hot pixel that has been around since they started using the Right Navcam, the Huffington Post reported.

He further added that these could be caused by cosmic-ray hits or sunlight glinting from rock surfaces.

Nike is reportedly cutting ties with Manchester United by not renewing a long-running kit supply deal with English soccer club because of the cost of a new contract.

The US sportswear company has been supplying United’s famous red jerseys since 2002 but the current agreement expires next year. Its withdrawal is expected to clear the way for the club to sign a lucrative new deal with German sportswear company Adidas , News 24 reported.

Media reports had suggested the club was looking for a new deal worth around 60 million Euros per season, the report added. (ANI)

Ousted England batsman Kevin Pietersen believes the hosts would face a tough Test series at home against India without off-spinner Graeme Swann in their ranks.

Swann retired from international cricket last year, and Pietersen’s view is that the selectors refusal to recall lef-arm spinner Monty Panesar could prove costly in terms of results, reports Sport24.

Swann took 255 wickets in 60 Tests and was the mainstay of the England attack.

Pietersen also questioned skipper AlastairCook’s tactics during the recent series agaisnt Sri Lanka, which the home side lostin all formats.

Irish golfer Rory McIlroy aims to eliminate mistakes when he takes part in this week’s Scottish Open at Royal Aberdeen in Scotland.

After winning the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in May, McIlroy, ranked eighth in the world currently, tied 23rd at the US Open in June and missed the cut at the Irish Open.

Sport24 quoted McIlroy, as saying that he was confident about being at the right end of the leaderboard again soon.

With the 143rd British Open starting at the Royal Liverpool seaside course on July 17, the 25-year-old is hoping to get used to links golf in Aberdeen.

Former U.S. vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin believes the time is right to impeach President Barack Obama for not doing enough for American workers and legalised immigrants.

Writing in a column for the conservative website Breitbart, Palin, who ran for vice president during John McCain’s bid for the White House in 2008, was quoted by Politico, as saying that Obama has commited many impeachable offenses that can no longer be ignored.

She went one step further by saying that if he could not be impeached, then no one could.

Former U.S. First Lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday defended her family and the Bushes against claims that the United States has been indirectly encouraging a monarchical system of governance on the lines of what has existed in the United Kingdom.

When asked in an interview with Germany’s Der Spiegel magazine, whether the U.S. is at risk of becoming a monarchy if she or former Florida Governor Jeb Bush wins the presidency in 2016, Clinton replied in the negative, and added that America has a history of political dynasties.

Samsung Electronics has forecast a 25 per cent drop in profit for the second quarter due to a slowdown in the smartphone market and a strong Korean currency.

It expects to make an operating profit of 7.2 trillion Won (USD7.1 billion) in the April-to-June period, down from 9.5 trillion Won a year ago, reports the BBC.

A stronger Korean currency (rising 11 per cent against the dollar) has also hurt Samsung’s earnings during the period.

Its operating profit has now fallen for three straight quarters.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is reportedly seeking advice from the International Cricket Council (ICC) over Salim Malik’s life ban after the former Pakistani captain’s plea to have his 2000 life ban for match-fixing removed.

The PCB wrote to the ICC after Malik approached Pakistan board’s chairman Najam Sethi in April claiming that a lower sessions court had declared the suspension illegal in 2008.

According to The Dawn, Malik argued in his meeting with Sethi that the board should clarify the position with the ICC.

Samajwadi Party leader Naresh Agarwal on Wednesday said that the Railway Budget has been very disappointing.

Naresh Agarwal told ANI, “Our expectation from General Budget is same as it was from Railway Budget. But it dint turned out to be in favor of common people. All I can say is that General Budget will not be good for us.”

“Inflation, poverty and unemployment should be looked after in the budget. Only then our country can develop,” he added.

Yesterday Railways Minister Sadananda Gowda presented the 2014-15 Railway Budget proposals in Parliament.(ANI)

JK Rowling has recently released a new short story of Harry Potter on her Pottermore fan website.

The 1,500-word tale tells the reunion story of 34-year-old Potter and his friends at the Quidditch World Cup Finals, the BBC reported.

In the story, dispatch written as a gossip column from Rita Skeeter in The Daily Prophet, Potter, who now “sports a nasty cut over his right cheekbone” along with his famous lightning scar and his hair slightly graying, took his sons James and Albus to visit the world cup compound, where he introduced them to Bulgarian seeker Victor Krum.

Pamela Anderson has reportedly filed for divorce from husband Rick Salomon again, just 6 months after revealing that they re-married.

The couple first got married in October 2007 but annulled their marriage after just two months and in January the former ‘Baywatch’ star went public and revealed that they had tied the knot for the second time, TMZ.com reported.

Salomon, a world-class poker player, won 2.8 million dollars in the World Series of Poker Big One for One Drop recently, so under the community property laws Anderson gets half, unless there’s a prenup. (ANI)