Month: March 2015

Reddy says ‘will strengthen Congress base in Telangana’

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The newly-appointed Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee ( PCC) chief, Uttam Kumar Reddy, on Monday said that his main priority would be to strengthen the party’s base in Telangana.

“My main priority will be, from village-level upwards, to strengthen the party base and to form party committees in every village in Telangana,” he said.

Reddy also thanked Congress president Sonia Gandhi and party vice-president Rahul Gandhi for considering him apt for the post.

Hartal in Kerala’s Thrissur district after CPI (M) member hacked to death; RSS blamed

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CPI(M) Thirunelloor branch committee M Shihab was hacked to death at Pavaratty Chukku Bazaar near Thrissur last night. Party District Secretary AC Moideen alleged that RSS was behind the murder. He demanded strict police action against the culprits involved in the crime.

Shihab was attacked by a gang that came by a car by 8.30 p.m. Though he was rushed to a hospital, he succumbed to injuries there. Shihab was an accused in the murder of an RSS worker which dates back to 2008. His brother was murdered by RSS activists.

Pak CWC’s most searched team on Google: Study

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A latest study by global online giant Google has revealed that Pakistan is the most searched team playing in the ongoing Cricket World Cup and the most trending queries Indian fans have are Mohammad Irfan’s height and Virat Kohli’s hairstyle.

The study has revealed that despite two humiliating defeats against India and the West Indies, Pakistan team continued to dominate search influence and remained the most searched team in the tournament.

Wily old warhorse Dalmiya’s second-coming to BCCI pinnacle

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Widely credited for making BCCI the world’s richest Cricket Board, life has come full circle for veteran administrator Jagmohan Dalmiya, who returned to the top post after being forced out of the body close to a decade back.

Expelled from the position in 2006, the 74-year-old was today elected BCCI president in the Board’s much-delayed 85th Annual General Meeting after Sharad Pawar pulled out of race failing to get a proposer from the East Zone.

Twin explosions kill three in Pakistan

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Twin explosions caused by gas leakage killed a woman and her two children in Pakistan on Monday morning, police said.

Three children from the same family were injured in the blast that rocked the entire Hazara community-dominated Marriabad area of Quetta in Balochistan province, Dawn reported.

The gas leakage in Marriabad`s Nasirabad and Nadirabad areas caused huge blasts, which led to the death of the woman and her two children in Nadirabad, said a police officer.

Central budget ignores marginalised sections: Narayanasamy

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AICC General Secretary and former union minister V Narayanasamy today dubbed the Central budget-2015-2016 presented in Parliament on February 28 as “pampering the affluent and the corporate sector and ignoring the depressed and marginalised sections”.

In a release here, he said the budget had ignored the welfare of the workers, fishermen, backward classes, scheduled tribes and the weaker sections.

He also criticised the Centre for slashing allocations for rural development, health care services,educationn, and government employees.

PTI

Major organisational reshuffle in Congress, five new PCC chiefs appointed

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In a major reshuffle ahead of possible elevation of Rahul Gandhi as party president at the AICC session next month, Congress on Monday appointed five new PCC chiefs and one regional Congress Committee President.
The reshuffle had a clear imprint of Rahul Gandhi in handing over Ajay Maken the state leadership in Delhi, Ashok Chavan in Maharashtra, Ghulam Ahmed Mir in Jammu and Kashmir Bharatsinh Solanki in Gujarat and Uttam Reddy in Telangana.

Court grants bail to Ritu Verma in black money case

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A Delhi court on Monday granted bail to Ritu Verma, the wife of former bureaucrat and ex-chief minister Sheila Dikshit’s aide R.K. Verma, in a black money case.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate D.K. Sharma granted bail to Ritu Verma after she appeared in court in pursuance to summons issued against her.

The court asked her to furnish a personal bond of Rs.50,000 and a surety of like amount.

It also directed her not to leave the country without prior permission of the court.

Rains lash Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand while heavy snowfall shuts down Jammu-Srinagar highway

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Rains continued to lash Punjab and Haryana today even as the minimum temperatures rose by few notches above normal in most parts of both the states. The maximum temperatures in most parts of Punjab and Haryana dropped yesterday following the rains as the mercury settled between 16 and 19 degrees Celsius in both the states. Agriculture scientists said though rains are beneficial for wheat crop but showers along with strong winds could flatten it and could cause lodging in the fields which is harmful for the crop.

‘Bank consolidation should happen, but subject to conditions’

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Indian bank employees are not against the consolidation of government-owned banks provided certain conditions are met, a top union leader said Monday.

We are not against consolidation happening in the banking sector. But it should satisfy three conditions, viz., the consolidation should strengthen the banks, help people and it should not bring tears to the eyes of the employees due to loss of job, C.H. Venkatachalam, general secretary of All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) told IANS.

He was reacting to the government’s reform measures for the banking sector.

HTC announces virtual reality headset Vive at Mobile World Congress

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HTC has reportedly announced a virtual reality headset as part of a tie-up with Valve, a leading PC video games publisher, at Mobile World Congress (MWC).

The HTC Vive will be clubbed with wireless controllers and tracking technology to allow wearers to explore computer-generated environments by walking around their rooms. It will give users a computer-generated 3D environment view to give them a sense of being there, reported the BBC.

A test version of the kit is expected to go on sale to developers shortly, while a public edition will be available later this year.

Fadnavis apologises for ‘VIP treatment’ meted to his convoy

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Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday reprimanded the Mumbai Traffic Police for stalled movement of public vehicles after its personnel stopped traffic in the city to make way his convoy.

“At around 7 pm I had given clear instructions to DCP traffic police to speed up the traffic as it was moving very slow and insisted that traffic shouldn’t be stopped for me. If the traffic has been stopped despite this then it is wrong. I have asked the police to submit a report of this incident, we will take action after studying the report,” Fadnavis said at a press conference here.

Basit Ali not impressed with Pak’s ‘laboured’ win over Zimbabwe in WC tie

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Former Pakistan batsman Basit Ali has claimed that though Pakistan won the match against Zimbabwe, it was not a great performance from the squad.

Pakistan continue with their aspirations for the World Cup as they still remain in the hunt for a quarterfinal spot, having defeated Zimbabwe by 20 runs in their Pool B match played in Brisbane.

However, their win did not come easy as Pakistan won by the skin of their teeth, which has given them hope of qualifying for the knockout stages, The Express Tribune reported.

How emperor penguin’s survived last Ice Age

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A new study has provided a deeper insight into how the emperor penguin’s survived the last Ice Age.

The research mentioned that the climate change has affected emperor penguins over the last 30,000 years found that only three populations may have survived during the last ice age, and that the Ross Sea in Antarctica was likely the refuge for one of these populations.

The Ross Sea was likely to have been a shelter for emperor penguins for thousands of years during the last ice age, when much of the rest of Antarctica was uninhabitable due to the amount of ice.

How low- calorie diets can lead to healthy ageing

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A new study has shed light on the beneficial effects of low-calorie diets on healthy aging.

The study conducted at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health suggested that Targeting mechanisms in the central nervous system that sense energy generated by nutrients might yield the beneficial effects of low-calorie diets on healthy aging without the need to alter food intake.

Relieve JP Nadda as Health Minister pending AIIMS probe: CPI(M)

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A demand for relieving Health Minister J P Nadda from his charge pending a probe into his alleged interference in working of the vigilance administration of AIIMS was made in the Rajya Sabha today.

Raising the issue during zero hour, T K Rangarajan (CPI-M) said Nadda, as an MP between May 23, 2013 and 2014, had sought dismantling of the vigilance section of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) that was probing corruption in the purchase of machinery and medicines.

PM Narendra Modi takes lunch at the Parliament Canteen

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He had a vegetarian thali and made the payment for the same himself.
Screen grab courtesy Zee News.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today joined some MPs in having lunch in the Parliament’s canteen meant for Parliamentarians.

Modi made a surprise visit to Room number 70 on the first floor of the Parliament building and took lunch there.

He had a vegetarian thali and made the payment for the same himself, sources said.

He also mingled with MPs present there at that time and chatted with them

PTI

PM Modi pays Rs 29 for lunch at Parliament canteen

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In a surprise move, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Monday, had lunch at the canteen in Parliament.

As per reports, PM Modi causally walked in to the canteen which operates from Room number 70 on the first floor of the Parliament building.

The canteen staff and others present were surprised by his sudden arrival. The canteen staff quickly regained composure and accosted him to a table and asked him what he would like to have for lunch.

The PM responded by saying that he will eat whatever has been prepared for lunch.

Modi first asked for some water and then ate some salad.

Why F1 champ Hamilton has ’44’ on his Merc than No. 1!

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Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton has claimed that the number 44 means more to him than number one, insisting that it is his family number and it would be there on his Mercedes this year as well when he begins the defence of his title.

Hamilton is Formula One’s Number 1, and hopes to remain so this year, but the number won’t be there on his Mercedes when the season starts in Melbourne on March 15. For him, 44 is closer to the heart and that is what he would continue racing with rather than any single digit.

Flintoff claims ‘life is so much easier’ with not having any alcohol

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Former England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff has claimed that life is so much easier with not having any alcohol, as he opened up on his battles with booze and depression.

Flintoff made his admissions as he appeared on reality TV show, ‘I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!’, a jungle survival-themed show that is currently being filmed in South Africa.

Flintoff, an Ashes winner and former England captain, said that one knows when one feels a little bit down to when one can’t actually physically get up, adding that one can’t get off their bed, Stuff.co.nz reported.

Bills on e-rickshaws, coal introduced in Lok Sabha

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The government on Monday introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha to facilitate plying of e-rickshaws and e-carts and a bill to provide for allocation of coal mines. The two bills seek to replace ordinances issued during the inter-session period.

The government also introduced The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2015 in the lower house.

The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2015 seeks to facilitate plying of e-rickshaws and e-carts by amending the Motor Vehicles Act. The bill also seeks to define e-rickshaw and e-cart.