Month: January 2015

Six governors in six months: Now Qureshi goes to Mizoram

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Mizoram’s Governor-designate Aziz Qureshi, who was transferred from Uttarakhand, will be the sixth head of the state in less than six months in the northeastern state.

Qureshi will arrive to take charge of the Congress-ruled state after a “two-week break”, a Raj Bhavan official said Thursday.

The 74-year-old Qureshi was transferred by President Pranab Mukherjee Tuesday and appointed as Mizoram governor for the remainder of his term till May 2017.

Meghalaya Governor Krishan Kant Paul will take his place in Uttarakhand. Paul was holding additional charge as the Mizoram governor.

For Mammootty and Mohanlal, 2015 looks bright

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If 2014 had nothing much to cheer for the two reigning superstars Mammootty and Mohanlal, 2015 looks bright with numerous films already inked by the duo.

While Mammootty had seven releases in 2014 – including “Varsham” that was termed as the real money spinner and “Munnuariyupu” that showed his brilliance as an actor – the rest did not warm the box office.

Mohanlal had just three releases and barring “Peruchazhi”, the other two did not work wonders. However, “Drishyam”, released in late 2013, did the real business even last year.

Planning Commission gives way to NITI Aayog

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The Narendra Modi government began the New Year replacing the age-old Planning Commission with a new institution named NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India), where the prime minister would continue as chairperson of the revamped body.

“The institution will serve as a ‘think tank’ of the government – a directional and policy dynamo. NITI Aayog will provide governments at the central and state levels with relevant strategic and technical advice across the spectrum of key elements of policy,” a union cabinet release here said.

Asaram taken to AIIMS for checkup

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Spiritual guru Asaram was Thursday taken to the AIIMS for medical checkup after the Supreme court ordered his examination to ascertain if he required any surgery for his neurological ailment.

“Asaram was brought to AIIMS around 2.00 p.m. today (Thursday) and will undergo a checkup at the O.P.D itself. No decision on admitting him has been taken till now,” Amit Gupta, spokesperson, AIIMS told IANS.

IB officer to be special secretary for internal security

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The central government Thursday approved the appointment of Ashok Prasad, presently the special director of the Intelligence Bureau, as special secretary for internal security under the home ministry.

His appointment would be effective from the date of his joining the post and up to the date of his superannuation – Jan 31, 2016 – or until further orders, whichever is earlier, an official release said.

(IANS)

Mascherano wishes to retire at River Plate

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Argentine midfielder Javier Mascherano wishes to end his career at his first club Atletico River Plate after his contract with Barcelona expires June 30, 2018.

“I’d like to end my career at River, where I started out, but I have a contract with Barcelona until 2018,” the 30-year-old was quoted as saying by marca.com.

TVS Motor’s December sales surge by 20 percent

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Motorycles, scooters and auto-rickshaw maker TVS Motor Company (TVSMC) Thursday said its sales in the month of December grew by 20 percent with total sales clocking at 191,880 units.

“Total two wheeler sales increased by 19 percent from 153,358 units recorded in December 2013 to 181,994 units in December 2014. Domestic two wheeler sales grew by 19 percent increasing from 132,664 units in December 2013 to 157,438 units in December 2014,” the company said in a statement.

Sensex closes flat, metal stocks up

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After a rise of 30 percent in valuations for 2014, a benchmark index of Indian equities markets closed the first day of trade session in 2015 flat, marginally higher by 8.12 points or 0.03 percent as no major triggers affected investor sentiment Thursday.

Healthy buying was observed in metal, automobile and capital goods stocks, while selling was seen in fast moving consumer goods (FMCG), healthcare and power sectors.

Congress releases first list of candidates for Delhi polls

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The Congress party on Thursday released its first list candidates for the upcoming Delhi Assembly polls.

Prominent among the 24 names released are that of former Delhi minister Haroon Yusuf , who shall be contesting from Ballimaran; Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) chief Arvinder Singh Lovely, who will contest from Gandhi Nagar; and Chaudhary Mateen Ahmed , who will stand from Seelampur.

Dr. A K Walia will contest from Laxmi Nagar, while the Congress candidates from the Matiya Mahal and Uttam Nagar constituencies are Shoaib Iqbal and Mukesh Sharma respectively.

Egyptian court accepts appeal of Al-Jazeera journalists

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An Egyptian court Thursday accepted an appeal against the sentence handed out to three Al-Jazeera journalists and a retrial will be scheduled, media reported.

The three journalists — Mohamed Fahmy, Baher Mohamed and Peter Greste — of the Qatar-based news network in English were sentenced in June last year.

Fahmy and Greste were sentenced to seven years in prison, while Mohammed got 10 years in jail for spreading false news and aiding the now outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, Xinhua reported citing Ahram Online.

Baher Mohamed got an additional three years for possessing weapons.

Governor wants KCR, Naidu to end differences

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Hoping that the New Year would bring growth and prosperity in both the States of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, Governor ESL Narasimhan on Thursday announced that he would soon convene a meeting between Chief Ministers K Chandrashekar Rao and N Chandrababu Naidu to resolve contentious issues.

TS Govt writes to Centre on IAS allocation

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The Telangana Government has written a letter to the Centre seeking allocation of four IAS officials for Telangana State.

In its letter, the State Government urged the Centre to allocate Somesh Kumar (1989), Poonam Malakondaiah (1998), Jayesh Ranjan (1992) and D Ronald Ross (2006) to Telangana. The services of these officials were allocated to Andhra Pradesh by the Centre through a notification issued by the Union Ministry of Personnel on December 29, 2014. (INN)

Kolkata celebrates New Year with picnics, prayers

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People in the eastern metropolis – including backpackers and travellers from across the world – ushered in 2015 with family events, prayers, picnics and trips to popular tourist spots, following a night of partying.

Despite the forecast of rain, celebrations went on in full swing across the state.

While some chose to stay indoors and celebrate with their families, hundreds made a beeline for the famed Alipore zoo and iconic Victoria Memorial.

Religious places like the Dakhshineswar temple and St. Paul’s Cathedral saw heavy footfall.

Indian cricket needs new direction: Geoff Lawson

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Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s Test retirement might have been sudden but former Australian pacer Geoff Lawson feels it was time for a new direction in Indian cricket and newly-appointed captain Virat Kohli seems ready for the leadership role.

TiE Hyderabad appoints Safir Adeni as President for 2015

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TiE (The Indus Entrepreneurs) Hyderabad Chapter today announced that Safir Adeni will be its new president.

He will take over the responsibilities from Murali Bukkapatnam who served in the position for two years.

Adeni is a global transformational leader with diverse experience leading large organisations to trail-blazing growth and profitability.

He is also credited for building and growing smaller organisations in multiple geographies.

Currently he is Managing Partner for Ineda Venture Group and CEO for other Ineda group companies, a TiE statement said.

Pak sets up three special courts to hear terrorism cases

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The Pakistani government today set up three out of five special courts to try terror suspects, days after it lifted the moratorium on executions after the Taliban school massacre.

The three courts have been formed in Peshawar, Lahore and Quetta in accordance with the Protection of Pakistan Act passed by the Parliament in order to curb rising militancy in the country, the Dawn reported.

Judge Mukarrab Khan will head the special court in Lahore whereas Judge Zafar Khosa and Judge Anwar Ali Khan will preside over the courts in Quetta and Peshawar respectively.

NASA’s Dawn spacecraft begins approach to dwarf planet Ceres

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NASA’s Dawn spacecraft has entered an approach phase in which it will continue to close in on Ceres, a Texas-sized dwarf planet never before visited by a spacecraft.

Launched in 2007, Dawn is scheduled to enter Ceres orbit in March 2015.

Dawn recently emerged from solar conjunction, in which the spacecraft is on the opposite side of the Sun, limiting communication with antennas on Earth.

AirAsia Indonesia pilot fails drug test: airline

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A senior pilot working for AirAsia Indonesia was suspended after he was tested positive for drugs, days after one of the airline’s planes with 162 people on board crashed into the Java Sea.

“I would like to clarify that one of our pilots in a random preliminary drug test was found to be positive,” airline president director Sunu Widyatmoko said.

“As a consequence, the pilot cannot fly pending further investigation,” he said.

But the pilot is one the one who operated doomed AirAsia Indonesia Flight QZ8501, Indonesian news agency Antara quoted Sunu as saying.

Sharif to meet parliamentary leaders, discuss future of military courts

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Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will preside over a meeting of parliamentary leaders at the Prime Minister House on Friday.

The meeting is expected to focus on concerns related to the nation’s military courts, reports the Dawn.

According to the daily, the two main opposition parties-the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), are reportedly having second thoughts on commitments during the December 24 meeting of parliamentary parties and key stakeholders, including the military’s top brass.

Has Imran Khan married to BBC Weather girl?

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Rumour mills are rife with news that the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chairperson has gotten married in secret to a former BBC weather girl, against the wishes of his party and family, according to reports in Pakistan.

The 62-year-old is believed to have tied the knot at the weekend with Pakistani news anchor Reham Khan, 41, who is a divorced mother-of-three.

Rumours have been circulating for several months that the pair are an item, and there have been reports in recent days that they are now married.

Sony hackers threaten cyber attack on US news organization

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The group of hackers that breached Sony Pictures Entertainment has threatened to attack a US news organisation.

New York Post reports Guardians of Peace, the cyber-terrorists behind the Sony Pictures Entertainment intrusion, has warned that their wake of destruction “may extend to other such organizations in the near future,” according to an FBI and Department of Homeland Security Joint Intelligence Bulletin that was obtained by The Intercept.

It is reported that the media organisation that the group has threatened to attack is CNN.

Pakistan sets up three special courts to try terrorists

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The Pakistan Government on Thursday formed three special courts to deal with terrorism-related cases.

The courts have been created under the Protection of Pakistan Act passed by Parliament. Five special courts are to be formed in total, reports the Dawn.

The three courts have been formed in Peshawar, Lahore and Quetta.

Judge Mukarrab Khan will head the special court in Lahore, whereas Judge Zafar Khosa and Judge Anwar Ali Khan will preside over the courts in Quetta and Peshawar respectively.

Sindh is also scheduled to get special courts but these are yet to be established.

Recollections of a Communicator: An era has come to an end with passing away of George Verghese

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Noted journalist B. G. Verghese , who passed away two days ago was cremated at the electric crematorium this morning amidst a gathering which included Finance and Information Minister Arun Jaitley, his colleagues and admirers which included senior media persons, diplomats, civil servants and noted artistes.

With the passing away of B. G. Verghese, an era has come to an end in journalism. Known for his free and frank nature, he was heard and read with respect all over the country.

‘Information will be shared at right time’, says B S Bassi on death of minister’s driver

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Delhi Police Commissioner B.S. Bassi on Thursday said accurate information about a driver’s body reportedly being found in the official car of Union Minister of State for Urban Development Babul Supriyo will be shared at the right time.

“We will share the right information at the right time,” he said.

According to reports, the driver’s body went unnoticed by security agencies for over 12 hours. He was identified as Supriyo’s driver on Wednesday morning.

—ANI

Uber temporarily suspends its Uber Pop ride sharing service in Spain after court order

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Uber has reportedly suspended its Uber Pop ride sharing service in Spain in the wake of a court ruling banning it in the country.

According to Tech Crunch, Uber Pop, a European version of Uber X that uses everyday vehicles and provides bill-splitting options for passengers, arrived in Spain in April, and it has been under pressure for months in the country and in a number of other markets in Europe in recent times.

Uber said that it was “temporarily suspending” the services in Spain following the issuance of the court order.