Month: February 2015

Three fresh swine flu deaths in Telangana

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Swine flu cases continued to mount in Telangana, where three fresh fatalities have been reported, while 27 more patients tested positive for the deadly disease.

After the latest deaths, the toll has risen to 54 since January this year, the State Government said today.

“In the current year (from January 1 till February 24), 4,242 samples have been tested, of which 1,352 found to be positive and the number of deaths because of swine flu and other complications stood at 54,” a Government bulletin on the disease said here.

T-Cong demands full-fledged probe into Wakf properties

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The Congress party has demanded a full-fledged probe into the Wakf properties and all related affairs.

Briefing the media persons after participating in the first meeting of Telangana Legislature Committee on Wakf lands, Deputy CLP leader in Legislative Council Mohammed Ali Shabbir said that the Congress party has demanded a comprehensive probe into the Wakf affairs. “We have sought complete information on number of properties, encroachments and the ongoing disputes, especially between the Revenue and other government departments with the Wakf Board,” he said.

Soon Parade ground near Golconda fort

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After deciding to change the location of the Telangana State Secretariat to Erragadda, chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Tuesday announced that the Centre has in principle agreed to allot 40 acres of land within the vicinity of the Hyderabad Golf Course near Golconda Fort into a permanent Parade Grounds.

Aaqib Javed says exclusion from Pak’s WC XI would’ve ‘badly shaken’ Sarfraz’s confidence

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Former Pakistan pace bowler Aaqib Javed believes that exclusion of specialist wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfraz Ahmed from the playing XI in the first two World Cup ties would have shaken his confidence.

Pakistan suffered a humiliating 150-run defeat against the West Indies at Hagley Oval on Saturday after Misbah’s men were thrashed by defending champions India in their opening game last week.

Taylor Swift donates $50,000 to NYC public schools

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Taylor Swift has stayed true to her words and donated her proceeds from the song ‘Welcome To New York’ i.e. 50,000 dollars to the New York City public schools.

The officials of the Department of Education revealed that this was not a one-time donation and the ‘Blank Space’ singer will continue to donate the proceeds she receives from the sale of her New York single to NYC public schools, E! Online reported.

House Committee on Wakf lands begins probe

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The House Committee, which was constituted to enquire into Wakf lands in Telangana State, has begun its probe here on Wednesday.

The first meeting of the House Committee was held in the Committee’s Hall in State Legislative Assembly premises on Wednesday. The meeting chaired by, Bajireddy Govardhan, was attended by MLAs inlcuding Akbaruddin Owaisi (MIM), DK Aruna (Congress), Shakil (TRS) and S Rajender Reddy (TDP) and MLCs Mohammed Ali Shabbir (Congress), Mohammed Saleem (TRS) and Syed Altaf Hyder Razvi (MIM).

TS Govt sanctions Rs 150 Cr to buy 500 new RTC buses

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The Telangana Government on Wednesday accorded administrative sanction of Rs 150 crore to purchase 500 new buses by the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC).

The Telangana RTC has a fleet of 10,744 buses which operate 35 lakh Kilometres transporting 90 lakh every day. Different types of buses, ranging from Pallevelugu to Vennela A/C sleeper, are operated to meet the varying journey requirements of passengers. As per the norms, the RTC was due to replace 1613 buses in the year 2014-15. They included 621 Pallevelugu buses.

No proposal to delete Article 370: Govt

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There is no proposal under consideration of the government “to delete” Article 370 of the Constitution, which gives special status to Jammu and Kashmir, Rajya Sabha was informed Wednesday.

“No, sir. There is currently no such proposal under consideration,” Minister of State for Home Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary said in reply to a written question on whether government intends to delete Article 370.

Chaudhary said Article 370 was made in the Indian Constitution for continuance of the state of Jammu and Kashmir with the Union of India on the basis of Instrument of Accession.

Rahul’s absence continues to generate speculation

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Pictures of Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi purportedly in a hill station generated speculation about his whereabouts but the party said they were taken in 2008.

Rahul has gone on leave of absence for a few weeks for reflecting on the party’s string of electoral defeats, including in Delhi, and there was speculation he was away abroad.

But Jagdish Sharma, claiming to be family loyalist, has circulated pictures of Rahul inside and outside a tent and claimed he was at present in Uttarakhand and denied media claims that he was in Bangkok.

Former model Heidi Thomas accuses Bill Cosby for sexually assaulting her

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The problems for Bill Cosby doesn’t seem to end as now a screenwriter named Heidi Thomas has accused the comedian to sexually misconduct her after making her drink.

The English screenwriter said that she was called for an audition by Cosby in 1984 when she was an aspiring actress, CNN reported.

Thomas admits that her memory of the next few hours was “foggy”.

The former model continued that she was not in her senses when the actor tried forcefully to have sex with her.

US team to carry out safety mechanism at Hyderbad airport

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Government has given its go-ahead to the visit of a team from the US Department of Transportation (DOT) to carry out safety mechanism at the GMR-run Hyderabad Airport, sources said.

National carrier Air India is the only carrier which operates to the US from Hyderabad via Delhi, and its passengers have to undergo security check at both the airports perior to flying to the US.

If the US DOT team clears the security mechanism at the Hyderabad airport, passengers will not have to undergo a second security check at the Delhi Airport, the sources said.

‘Speed Merchant’ Cummins ‘unlikely’ to make Test comeback during Ashes series’Speed Merchant’ Cummins ‘unlikely’ to make Test co

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Australia’s rising speedster Pat Cummins is unlikely to make his Test comeback during the upcoming Ashes tour of England this year, hints team high performance manager Pat Howard.

After the conclusion of the World Cup, Australia will venture into the West Indies for a two-match Test series in June, which would act as a build up to the prestigious Ashes series.

Meanwhile, Sheffield Shield will have come to a close and Cummins will be off to the IPL before Australia plays the West Indies

Passports issued on non-existent addresses:HC seeks govt reply

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Taking note of allegations of Indian passports being issued to citizens and foreigners not living at addresses given by them, the Delhi High Court today sought an explanation from the Centre and the city government on the issue.

A bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice R S Endlaw issued notices to the ministries of external affairs (MEA) and home affairs (MHA) as well as Delhi government and city police and sought their replies by April 29.

Government ready to go the extra mile on land Ordinance: M Venkaiah Naidu

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While staging the walkout, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge accused the Minister of “insulting” the opposition and assured him of a counter-attack when they have their say.

Faced with fierce attack on the land acquisition ordinance, government today said it was ready to deliberate on opposition suggestions and “go the extra mile” to prevent any injustice to farmers and to strengthen their hands.

EU to install air purifiers at its office, residences in Delhi

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Concerned over high pollution level in the capital, European Union has directed its diplomats here to soon install air purifiers in their offices and residences. Ambassador and Head of Delegation of the European Union to India Joao Cravinho said the decision has been taken keeping in mind the well-being of the EU staff in Delhi.

“We don’t need to monitor the pollution level, the US is doing that… We don’t need that… But we need to respond for the safety of our staff, the EU delegation living in the city here,” Cravinho said on the sidelines of the 7th EU-India Environment Forum.

‘Dummy Catch’ to ‘Fielding Match’, Team India Does It All

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Innovation is the name of the game if one wants to beat drudgery of mundane training sessions as Team India showed today during their 75-minute fielding session with drills that had the cricketers interested and enjoying every bit of it.

There weren’t any ground breaking new methods deployed at the session but a bit of tweak here and there brought out the competitive spirit in them on a day when there weren’t any net sessions held.

Crocodiles, not dinosaurs ruled Earth 13mln yrs ago

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Scientists have found that it weren’t the dinosaurs who ruled Earth 13 million years ago in Peru, it were the crocodiles.

There were at least 7 different species of the reptile that hunted in the lakes, swamps and rivers of the massive wetland region that pre-dated the Amazon basin, the Mirror reported.

Scientists uncovered the crocodile fossils from a rock layer known as the Pebas Formation in north-eastern Peru in a series of excavations conducted since 2002, of which 3 of the species are entirely new to science.

World Cup 2015: Viv Richards hails Chris Gayle’s phenomenal double century

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West Indies legend Sir Viv Richards has lavished praise on swashbuckling batsman Chris Gayle for his blistering World Cup double-ton against Zimbabwe, describing his knock as the ‘stuff champions are made of’.

Gayle smacked a staggering 215 runs and claimed two wickets to guide the West Indies to a 73-run win over Zimbabwe, and earn two points to lift his side to second place in Pool B.

Also Read: Trivia about the West Indies at the World Cup

At least 28 dead in Afghanistan avalanches: Officials

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Avalanches triggered by heavy snowfalls have killed at least 28 people in Afghanistan and the death toll is expected to rise, officials said on Wednesday. Most of the victims were in Panjshir province north of Kabul, where two days of heavy snow have blocked main roads and made it difficult for rescue workers to reach the affected villages.

World Cup 2015: Sri Lanka’s Jeevan Mendis out of tournament with hamstring injury

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Sri Lankan all-rounder Jeevan Mendis has been ruled out of the World Cup with a hamstring injury on Wednesday and will be replaced by seasoned batman Upal Tharanga in the squad.

Mendis played in both World Cup games against New Zealand and Afghanistan, taking two wickets.

World Cup 2015, Sri Lanka v/s Afghanistan: Sri Lanka sneak past Afghanistan by four-wickets

Sri Lanka lost the opening game against New Zealand by 98 runs and registered their first win with a four-wicket win over Afghanistan in Dunedin, and will play Bangladesh on Thursday in Melbourne.

Webber claims Vettel ‘better off’ switching from Red Bull to Ferrari

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Former Formula One racer Mark Webber has claimed that his ex-Red Bull Racing teammate Sebastian Vettel would be better off going somewhere he might feel he would get more out of himself, as the German left the team at the end of last season for Ferrari.

Four-time Formula One world-champion Vettel would have his first race for Ferrari at the Australian Grand Prix next month, after six years with Red Bull.

FBI announces 3M dollar award for Russian prolific cyber criminal

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The FBI has reportedly placed a 3 million dollar award for information leading to Evgeniy Mikhailovich Bogachev, who is considered one of the world’s most prolific cyber criminal.

According to the Verge, the feds maintain that the crippling GameOver Zeus botnet that Bogachev was helping push had caused financial damages exceeding 100 million dollars before it was finally shut down in June of last year.

MI5 agents dressed in disguise testify in trial of Abid Naseer

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A group of MI5 agents, dressed in disguise, testified against Pakistani al-Qaeda suspect Abid Naseer on trial in New York, revealing how they had conducted surveillance of suspected terrorists during Operation Pathway.

According to the Independent, the suspects who were given the names Small Panel, Glass Pendant, Happy Skater and Regional Difference, were covertly watched by MI5 agents over the course of several months in the spring of 2009 as they allegedly planned an operation the security services believed was a threat to national security.

No set time limit given by CAG over audit of discoms: Satyendra Jain

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Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain on Wednesday said Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) Shashi Kant Sharma has not given any time limit for the audit of private power distribution companies.

Jain, however, said the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Government has extended full support to CAG over the matter.

MPs slam anti-terror laws in Lok Sabha

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Two stringent anti-terror laws were on Wednesday criticised by a couple of members in Lok Sabha for their “abuse” with demands for repeal or review. Mohammed Basheer of IUML raised the issue of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act during Zero Hour, saying it was a “black law”.

Underlining that an anti-terror law cannot be misused for “victimisation”, he demanded a judicial review of all the cases charged under it, suggesting that many accussed have no terror links.