Indian student killed in Australia accident

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Melbourne, August 09: An Indian student was killed and six Indians were injured Sunday when a mini bus in which they were travelling veered off a road on the way to the Australian resort town of Mount Buller.

The man who died at the scene was a 22-year-old who was in Australia on an Indian student visa, The Herald Sun quoted investigators as saying. Mount Buller is over 230 km from here.

There were 10 people in the Toyota Hi-Ace when it slid down a steep embankment after a sweeping right turn. The van slammed into a tree.

Sri Lanka’s ruling alliance wins local elections

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Colombo, August 09: Sri Lanka’s ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) has recorded a significant victory in the provincial and local elections held Saturday.

In the final official results declared here Sunday, President Mahinda Rajapakse led seven-party alliance has recorded a landslide victory in the central Uva province by winning 25 seats in the 34 seat council, while the main opposition United National Party (UNP) scored seven seats.

Match-fixing allegations are rubbish: Itikhab

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Colombo, August 09: Coach Intikhab Alam has dismissed the match-fixing allegations levelled on some Pakistani players during the ongoing series against Sri Lanka, saying he has full faith on his wards and things like this won’t hamper the spirit of the team, which is looking for consolation wins.

”I don’t believe in such rumours, it’s total rubbish,” Intikhab said.

Now Delhi University gets its own networking site

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New Delhi, August 09: Move over Facebook, Orkut. Here comes Delhi University’s own networking site, Network DU. With over 2,000 registrations in just four weeks, this site is a virtual campus in which you can look for anyone and anything — from old friends to scholarships and even information on paying guest accommodation.

Started by Honey Arora, a technical expert, Network DU (www.networkdu.com) has all the features of other social networking sites and more.

‘Docs should inform patients about drugs adverse effect’

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New Delhi, August 09: The Supreme Court has held that doctors have a duty to inform patients about the adverse effects of a particular medicine prescribed by them or otherwise it might amount to medical negligence.

“The law on medical negligence also has to keep up with the advances in the medical science as to treatment as also diagnostics. Doctors increasingly must engage with patients during treatments especially when the line of treatment is a contested one and hazards are involved.

Plane, copter collide over Hudson; 9 believed dead

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New York, August 09: A small private plane collided with a sightseeing helicopter over the Hudson River on Saturday, scattering debris in the water and forcing thousands of people on the New Jersey waterfront to scamper for cover. Nine people on both aircraft were presumed dead.

A helicopter pilot refuelling on the ground at the heliport for Liberty Tours, which operated the doomed sightseeing craft, saw the plane approaching the helicopter and tried to radio an alert to the pilots, police commissioner Raymond Kelly said. The warning wasn’t heard or didn’t happen in time.

UK lawmakers ask govt to press US on renditions

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London, August 09: Britain should more closely monitor US activity on the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia to ensure American officials are not using the British territory for the rendition or interrogation of terror suspects, a group of UK lawmakers said on Saturday.

A committee of parliamentarians said the UK needs to press its ally to reveal the full extent of its activities on the remote but strategically important air base, halfway between Africa and Southeast Asia, which has been leased to the US to be used as a military base since the 1970s.

Thousands evacuated in China as typhoon Morakot nears

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Hangzhou, August 09: More than 953,000 people in two coastal provinces of eastern China were moved to safer places on Sunday with predictions of typhoon Morakot approaching fast accompanied by heavy rain.

More than 473,300 residents of Zhejiang have been relocated and some 35,440 ships called back from the sea, the provincial flood-control headquarters said on Sunday.

Russia pledges more military, financial aid to South Ossetia

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Vladikavkaz, August 09: Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has pledged more economic and financial assistance to South Ossetia on the anniversary of his country’s victory in the war against Georgia.

“Russia will assist you in everything from the economic and social point of view. We of course will even provide aid for military issues, because without military assistance there will be more problems,” Medvedev said at a function organised on Saturday to decorate officers and soldiers who took part in the Russia-Georgia war.

British soldier on patrol killed in Afghanistan

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Kabul, August 09: Britain’s Ministry of Defence says one of its soldiers has been killed by a roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan.

The soldier died on Saturday during a foot patrol in the southern province of Helmand. The death raises the number of international troops slain in August to 20.

Thousands of additional British forces and US Marines have been deployed to southern Afghanistan — the Taliban’s heartland — in an attempt to shake militant control and enable August 20 Presidential Elections to take place.

Safety of Russian planes in Afghanistan questioned

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Moscow, August 09: More than a year ago, the UN dropped the Russian air transport company Vertikal-T from its approved list of vendors after a fatal helicopter crash in Nepal.

Yet NATO continued to use helicopters owned by Vertikal-T in Afghanistan. And on July 19, one of those choppers crashed at southern Afghanistan’s largest NATO base, killing 16 civilians on board.

Blast kills another NATO soldier in Afghanistan

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Kabul, August 09: A bomb blast in southern Afghanistan has killed another US-led soldier in the war-ravaged country, as the death toll mounts in the fight against the Taliban.

NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) announced on Sunday that the soldier was killed by an improvised explosive device (IED), AFP reported.

The NATO statement did not reveal the identity or even the nationality of the soldier.

There are more than 100,000 international soldiers in Afghanistan, with British and Canadian forces deployed to the dangerous battlefields of the south.

Govt to set up more ART centres in AP

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Hyderabad, August 09: The Government was taking all necessary steps for proper arrangement of medicine to the HIV/AIDS patients besides creating awareness among people to control the deadly virus in the state, Andhra Pradesh Health and Family Welfare Minister Mr Danam Nagender said today.

Mr Nagendar was inaugurating the ART (Anti Retro viral Treatment) and ICTC centre (Integrated Counceling and Testing Centre) developed at a cost of Rs 10 lakh at District Hospital, King Koti, in the city.

AP Govt contemplating joint venture b/w APMDC and NMDC

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Hyderabad, August 09: The Andhra Pradesh Government is contemplating a joint venture between Andhra Pradesh Mineral Development Corporation (APMDC) and National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) on 50:50 sharing basis to explore Iron Ore deposits as well as that of Gold.

Shoaib can still play for Pakistan: Qasim

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Lahore, August 09: Chief selector Iqbal Qasim insisted that fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, who has been hampered by injuries and disciplinary issues for quite some time, still has a future with the national side.

Qasim also said the beleagured pacer needs to prove his fitness to the selectors to make a sucessful return into international cricket.

”The door is not closed on Shoaib Akhtar, he can still play cricket for Pakistan in future,” the newly-appointed chief selector said.

Canada triples aid to Sri Lanka

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Montreal, August 09: Canada has decided to triple its humanitarian aid to Sri Lanka to assist people displaced by the country’s conflict with Tamil separatists, Canada’s top development minister has said.

The move came after Minister of International Cooperation Beverley Oda spent three days visiting the island nation and will take Canada’s total aid contributions to Sri Lanka from 7.5 million to 22.5 million Canadian dollars (USD 20 million).

Hearing in Benazir’s assassination case adjourned

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Rawalpindi, August 09: The additional sessions judge has adjourned till August 31 the hearing of application seeking registration of FIR against 13 people, including former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf, in Benazir Bhutto’s assassination case, a media report said.

Tipaimukh dam protesters begin march to Indian border

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Dhaka, August 09: A “long-march” to protest the proposed Tipaimukh dam project in India has been kicked off in the Bangladeshi capital. The marchers are headed to Sylhet in northeastern Bangladesh and then on to the Indian border, a media report said on Sunday.

The “long march” was flagged off on Saturday and should reach Sylhet, located 272 km northeast of Dhaka, by Tuesday. The district borders India’s Assam and Meghalaya states.

Religare Macquarie on a hiring spree

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New Delhi, August 09: Religare Macquarie Private Wealth is planning to quadruple its head-count to close to 900 in the next three years in a bid to tap the increasing growth opportunities in the wealth management business.

“We have aggressive growth plans and are looking at increasing our relationship and advisory team significantly. At present the head-count at Religare Macquarie Private Wealth stands at 220, which would be ramped up to close to 900 in the next three years,” Religare Macquarie Private Wealth Chief Executive Officer Vikas Agnihotri said.

Teree Sang heroine Sheena is already married

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Mumbai, August 09: It is learnt that Teree Sang heroine has been married to on Mr. Vaibhav Gore since 2007.

Vaibhav is the son of a former police inspector. Incidentally, Sheena plays a 17 year old naïve girl Maahi, who gets pregnant with her best friend Ruslaan, aka Kukko in this week’s new release Teree Sang.

Sheena states in this regard that it happened long time back and she considers it to be a mistake. She is confident that this thing won’t affect her film career. She adds, that noting can affect her career or film and that it is her acting that will do the talking for her.

Maruti zips past 80-lakh-mark in 25 years

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New Delhi, August 09: Embarking on its journey 25 years ago with just over 800 units, the country’s largest car maker ,Maruti Suzuki India, has driven past the milestone of producing 80 lakh cars.

Since the rollout of the first ‘Maruti 800’ from its Gurgaon plant on December 14, 1983, the company has so far produced a total of 81,05,228 cars of its 14 models as on July 31 from its Gurgaon and Manesar facilities.

Maruti 800 alone accounts for over 27 lakh units, of which more than 25 lakh units were sold in the domestic market and the rest exported.

‘Mkt to see volatile trade; inch towards consolidation’

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Mumbai, August 09: Dalal Street may see small bouts of buying early this week amid volatile trade and look for directions towards global markets, analysts believe.

“Volatility would continue in the stock market this week. Profit booking would continue at the higher levels while some buying might emerge as the market falls,” Taurus Mutual Fund Managing Director RK Gupta said.

India invests in US debts worth $38.8 bn till May ’09

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New York, August 09: India has invested in US debt securities worth USD 38.8 billion till May this year, nearly four-fold rise when compared to the same month in 2008.

Even as the world’s largest continued to reel under one of the worst recession in 80 years, India has been steadily increasing its exposure to American debt since May last year, when the holdings were worth just USD 10.3 billion.

According to data available with the US Treasury Department, India bought American debt worth USD 38.8 billion till May 2009.

Pulses consumption decreased due to price rise

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New Delhi, August 09: Soaring prices have forced households to cut down the intake of pulses, a study by industry body Assocham said.

During 1960’s, per capita consumption of pulses was around 27 kg per year which has slipped to less than 11 kg a year during January-June 2009, it said.

“Rising prices of pulses has forced common households to curtail their pulses consumption,” Assocham said, adding, the per capita consumption has now come down to less than 11 kg in the first half of this calendar year.

Australia on verge of victory as England slump

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Leeds, August 09: Australia inflicted a dramatic England collapse for the second time in the match as they eyed a fourth Test win inside three days at Headingley that would leave the Ashes level at 1-1.

England, at stumps on the second day were 82 for five, still needing a further 261 runs to make Australia bat again after Marcus North’s 110 had been the centrepiece of the visitors’ 445 all out.

In England’s meagre first innings 102 their numbers three, four and five had managed nine runs between them.