Month: November 2014

All colleges in India should be disabled friendly, says Bombay High Court

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The Bombay High Court has directed Chief Commissioners for Persons with Disabilities at the Centre and in Maharashtra to instruct all educational institutions in the country to provide a barrier-free environment for disabled students by March 2015.

The direction was given yesterday by a bench headed by Chief Justice Mohit Shah on a petition filed by Akanksha Vardhaman Kale, a handicapped student in Pune.

The judges directed the government to file a compliance report by December 15 saying that such arrangements had been provided or were being made.

Bailable warrant against Digvijay Singh by Delhi court

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A Delhi court today issued bailable warrant against Congress leader Digvijay Singh for his failure to appear before it in connection with a criminal defamation case filed against him by BJP leader Nitin Gadkari.

Metropolitan Magistrate Gomati Manocha also directed Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Gadkari, who had filed the plea in 2012, to be present in court on November 10, warning that his plea would be dismissed if he fails to appear on that day.

‘Kiss of Love’ to be held as scheduled: organisers

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A day after Kerala High Court refused to intervene, the organisers of controversial ‘Kiss of Love’ protest today said they would go ahead, even as they were yet to get permission from the police.

Stressing that it was “not a kiss fest” but a gathering of like minded people to raise awareness against moral policing, they said they would next focus on creating awareness about the deadly AIDS.

Digvijay wants Rahul Gandhi to take full charge of the Congress

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Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh on Saturday said it is high time that party vice-president Rahul Gandhi took full charge of the party.

“It is a general feeling within Congress that the party has always encouraged younger workers. And, therefore, it’s time for Rahul Gandhi to take charge. However, the timing should be left for him to decide,” said Singh.

New US general seeks China air safety dialogue

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The US Air Force’s new commander in the Pacific said today, she’s hoping to continue talks with China on avoiding dangerous encounters in the air that have added to regional tensions.

General Lori Robinson said she anticipates a speaking engagement at China’s biggest air show later this month will allow her to renew dialogue on the issue.

“The dialogue is beginning. I think that’s very, very good for the region,” Robinson said in a telephone interview from Hawaii.

‘Happy Ending’ is a spoof on Bollywood: Kalki

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Actress Kalki Koechlin is returning to the big screen after a year-long gap with ‘Happy Ending’, which she says is a spoof on Bollywood romantic comedies.

The film helmed by ‘Go Goa Gone’ fame director duo Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK, also stars Saif Ali Khan, Govinda and Ileana D’Cruz.

In ‘Happy Ending’, the 30-year-old actress, whose last release was ‘Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani’ in 2013, plays an America-returned girl obsessed with Saif’s character.

Boko Haram calls Nigerian government’s claims of ceasefire, talks ‘lies’

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Boko Haram has denied that they had agreed to a ceasefire in a new video, describing the Nigerian government’s claims as a lie and apparently ruling out future talks.

The group’s leader, Abubakar Shekau, also claimed on Friday the 219 schoolgirls kidnapped from the remote northeast town of Chibok, in Borno state, in April had converted to Islam and been married off. In addition, Shekau said the Islamists were holding a German national, who was kidnapped in Adamawa state, also northeast Nigeria, in July.

More than 4,000 killed in Ukraine conflict: UN

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More than 4,000 people have been killed in fighting in eastern Ukraine between the army and pro-Russian separatists, the UN has said as the Ukrainian president took steps to “unite” the country after elections.

The United Nations said in over six months there have been 4,035 deaths, more than 300 in the last 10 days alone, showing the fragility of a ceasefire reached in September.

Women are not treated equal to men: Taylor Swift

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Singer Taylor Swift says there are separate standards for judging men and women.

Swift, 24, said if a man dates more than one girl in his life, he is called mysterious but if a woman gos out with more than one guy, her character is doubted, reported Aceshowbiz.

“We (she and her friends) talk a lot about feminism and the inequality between the way men and women are talked about.

“The kind of things we say are: ‘Why is it mischievous, fun and sexy if a guy has a string of lovers that he’s cast aside, loved and left?

Congress leader Anand Sharma downplays Digvijay Singh’s views on leadership change

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Senior Congress leader and former minister Anand Sharma on Saturday downplayed his party colleague Digvijay Singh’s views on leadership change in the party, and added that both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are the strength of the grand old party.

“Well those are his views. Congress is a democratic organization. Congress has always taken a considered and collective view in the interest of the country and in the interest of the Indian National Congress to uphold its ideals and principles,” he told ANI here.

Anand Sharma downplays Digvijay’s views on leadership change

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Senior Congress leader and former minister Anand Sharma on Saturday downplayed his party colleague Digvijay Singh’s views on leadership change in the party, and added that both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are the strength of the grand old party.

“Well those are his views. Congress is a democratic organization. Congress has always taken a considered and collective view in the interest of the country and in the interest of the Indian National Congress to uphold its ideals and principles,” he told ANI here.

‘Parenting’ plays little role in child’s IQ development

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A new study has revealed that conventional parent children interaction like reading bedtime stories, engaging in conversation and eating nightly dinners together in early age has no role in IQ development of the child.

Florida State University criminology professor Kevin Beaver has examined a nationally representative sample of youth alongside a sample of adopted children from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) and found evidence to support the argument that IQ is not the result of parental socialization.

Congress leader Anand Sharma downplays Digvijay Singh’s views on leadership change

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Senior Congress leader and former minister Anand Sharma on Saturday downplayed his party colleague Digvijay Singh’s views on leadership change in the party, and added that both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are the strength of the grand old party.

“Well those are his views. Congress is a democratic organization. Congress has always taken a considered and collective view in the interest of the country and in the interest of the Indian National Congress to uphold its ideals and principles,” he told ANI here.

All colleges in India should be disabled-friendly: HC

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The Bombay High Court has directed Chief Commissioners for Persons with Disabilities at the Centre and in Maharashtra to instruct all educational institutions in the country to provide a barrier-free environment for disabled students by March 2015.

The direction was given yesterday by a bench headed by Chief Justice Mohit Shah on a petition filed by Akanksha Vardhaman Kale, a handicapped student in Pune.

The judges directed the government to file a compliance report by December 15 saying that such arrangements had been provided or were being made.

Oceans appeared on Earth millions of years earlier than believed, new study finds

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A new study conducted at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), US, researching evidence of water on Earth and in the inner solar system, discovered that the oceans arrived on Earth much earlier than expected.

Lead author Adam Sarafian, said the answer to one of the basic questions was that oceans were always on Earth and they didn’t emerge from a late process, as was previously thought.

US-Japan joint rain radar mission to end next year

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After 17 years of groundbreaking 3-D images of rain and storms, the joint NASA and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) will come to an end next year, the US space agency said in a statement.

NASA predicts that science operations will cease in or around April 2015.

Orbiting at an angle to the equator that covers 35 degrees north to 35 degrees south of the equator, TRMM carries five instruments that collectively measure the intensity of rainfall, characteristics of the water vapour and clouds, and lightning associated with the rain events.

How to increase your popularity on Twitter

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Having a large number of followers on Twitter is a more efficient strategy to gain popularity on the social networking site than increasing your number of tweets, said a study.

Messages from influential people have much more impact and less popular users can gain popularity by increasing their activity and their tweets, but the outcome is costly and inefficient, the findings showed.

Former world champion Aruna Mishra sorry for L Sarita Devi; all praise for Mary Kom

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Former World Boxing champion Aruna Mishra today alleged that the adverse decision against Sarita Devi has robbed her off a gold in the Asian Games, but opined the boxer should have accepted the bronze medal as it was for the nation.

“The decision against her was atrocious. It was a clear bout in favour Sarita. But it was shown as a close affair before knocking her out of the gold medal contention,” Aruna told PTI here.

Undergo seaweed body wrap for a beautiful you

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Try seaweed body wraps in a spa for improved skin elasticity and reduction of cellulite.

A seaweed wrap is typically made by combining seaweed with hot water and sometimes essential oils, clay and other skin-loving ingredients. The thick paste is applied and spread over the entire body. Your body is then wrapped in a heated towel, sheet or blanket while the paste is soaked by the skin, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

There are many skin benefits you get from a seaweed body wrap:

India resume World Cup build-up against ‘under-cooked’ Sri Lanka

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Their World Cup build-up halted by West Indies team’s sudden mid-series pullout, India would resume the preparations for the mega-event when they square off against under-cooked sub-continental rivals Sri Lanka in a hastily-arranged ODI series starting here tomorrow.

A series against the depleted Lankans on surfaces totally different from those on offer in Australia and New Zealand may not be the ideal launchpad but it would certainly give the reigning world champions an opportunity to test their bench strength under stand-in skipper Virat Kohli.

BJP welcomes move to challenge death sentence awarded to Tamil Nadu fishermen

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The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday welcomed New Delhi’s decision to legally challenge the death sentence awarded to five fishermen from Tamil Nadu by a Sri Lankan court for alleged drug trafficking.

“In keeping with the struggle of the five fishermen who have been awarded death sentence in Sri Lanka, the spokesperson of MEA has maintained that the Indian Government would continue with legal and consular assistance to these five Indian fishermen. This is a welcome step,” BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said.

When Jake Gyllenhaal went out with real nightcrawlers

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Actor Jake Gyllenhaal, who features in “Nightcrawler”, found it a “dangerous” experience to venture out in the dark to prepare for his role in the movie. But he found it to be exciting too!

He even witnessed a scene of an accident first-hand.

For his role of Lou Bloom, a career-hungry guy in the unscrupulous world of freelance crime journalism, Gyllenhaal went out on the roads at night with real life nightcrawlers. For four whole months, the star roamed the streets on the lookout for mayhem.

Somali pirates free 7 Indian sailors held hostage for 4 years

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Somali pirates have reportedly released seven Indian sailors who were held hostage for nearly four years.

According to News 24, Somali officials and a maritime monitoring group said on Friday that the sailors were freed in exchange for an undisclosed ransom

The sailors, who were taken captive after the pirates hijacked the Panama-flagged ship MT Asphalt Venture in September 2010, were freed on Thursday.

The pirates had earlier released eight of their colleagues along with the ship in April 2011 for a ransom.

Kids likelier to follow peers than apes

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A new research provides a direct comparison between apes and humans, where humans are likelier to do away with their own preferences just to fit in with their peers.

Lead researcher Daniel Haun of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and the University of Jena said that conformity is a very basic feature of human sociality as it retains in- and out-groups, helps groups coordinate and stabilizes cultural diversity, one of the hallmark characteristics of the human species.

Membership of four rebel JD-U MLAs terminated

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Bihar Assembly Speaker Uday Narayan Choudhary Saturday terminated the membership of four rebel JD-U MLAs Gayanendra Singh Gayanu, Rahul Sharma, Ravinder Rai and Neeraj Bablu.

Choudhary told mediapersons here that the decision was taken on the basis of charges levelled against them by the JD-U.

The speaker took the decision after repeated hearing of their cases in the past few months.