NEWS 24*7: September 2009

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Winners to get hand-sculpted cup

Winners to get hand-sculpted cup

Mumbai
Sept. 23: The Airtel Champions League Twenty20 (ACLT20) on Wednesday unveiled the hand-crafted winner’s trophy to be presented to the champion-of-champions in Hyderabad on October 23, 2009.
Designed by Carving Dreams and hand-sculpted by Creative Awards & Rewards, the ACLT20 trophy, which is made of precious metals, is studded with 5.12 carat diamonds and precious and semi-precious gemstones. It stands 1.5 feet tall and weighs just over 6 kg.
Inspired by the ACLT20 logo, the trophy’s petals are studded with precious and semi-precious gemstones that hold an uplifted platinum ball with emerald green stitching set in green gemstones. The different coloured petals, holding the ball together, signify the diversity of the league of champions and the entire trophy is mounted on a mahogany-coloured, dark wooden base.
ESPN STAR Sports (ESS), the global commercial rights partner of ACLT20, further announced on Wednesday a comprehensive line-up of production and global syndication initiatives that will showcase the tournament to fans in more than 160 countries.
Commenting on the trophy, Lalit Modi, Chairman, Airtel Champions League Twenty20, said: “The Airtel Champions League Twenty20 trophy is a distinct and an exquisite work of art, one befitting the stature of the tournament.”
Manu Sawhney, managing director, ESPN STAR Sports and Global Commercial Rights Partner of the Airtel Champions League Twenty20, said: “Like always we will showcase a stunning array of experts from all around the globe and for the very first time we would have Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara donning a new role as an expert analyst in the commentary box. This festive season, cricket fans can look forward to a state-of-the-art presentation as we are well prepared to set new benchmarks in the production and telecast of this blockbuster event with many new and innovative initiatives making fans’ experience truly engaging and really enriching.”

Sex for success, says coach Kirsten

New Delhi, Sept. 23: Coach Gary Kirsten’s reported mantra to Indian cricketers to have sex to boost their competitiveness was the subject of much amusement and discussion among world’s cricketers assembled here for the Champions Trophy.

Kirsten has reportedly handed out a four-part document which broadly envisages an active sexual life and a disciplined food and sporting habits, aimed at helping the players on and off the field.

The document, the content of which are quite unusual, looks back into India’s history, its food habits and its lack of aggression. “From a psychological perspective having sex increases testosterone levels, which causes in an increase in strength, energy, aggression and competitiveness,” it said.

“Conversely, not having sex for a few months causes a significant drop in testosterone level in both males and females with the corresponding passiveness and decrease in aggression,” the document said.

The document, jointly prepared by Kirsten and mental conditioning expert Paddy Upton, advice the cricketers ‘to go solo’ if they didn’t have any partner. “If you want sex but do not have someone to share it with, one option is to go solo whilst imagining you have a partner or a few partners who are as beautiful as you wish to imagine. No pillow talk and no hugging required ... just roll over and go to sleep,” the document advised.

The document also spoke on Personal mastery, which dwelt on the “shift from blaming others to taking responsibility, from being reactive to being proactive from knee-jerk reaction criticism to accepting that its one of the few things that helps us grow. It is realising that what other people say about you is none of your business.”

The topic came up for discussion during the press conference of Australian skipper Ricky Ponting and his England counterpart Andrew Strauss. Asked whether sex is a part of England’s dossier, Strauss said, “With regards to sexual habits, I don’t think that has come up in any of our dossiers. Not sure if it is likely to either, for us.”

When a similar question was put to Ponting, he said, “The team vision document would be interesting. No, I don’t think it would (be there in ours). That’s all I can say. You caught off-guard with that question.” The document one section on food habits and asked the players to stick to a strict diet regime.

“(Acid in the body) causes the body to turn calories into fat, lowers the body’s ability to deliver oxygen to the working cells, and can also cause day time fatigue, irritability, low brain functioning, over-sexuality,” the document said.

The document also states India’s lack of aggression by drawing historical examples. “India has never been an aggressor at war, they have never been first to strike,” it said.

S. African body will probe tests

Johannesburg, Sept. 23: South Africa’s sports governing body said on Wednesday it will probe the conduct of athletics officials in the gender tests carried out on 800 metre world champ Caster Semenya.
“We are mindful of the fact that people are angry and upset, but caution that due process must be followed in attempting to uncover the truth,” said Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) president Gideon Sam.
Outrage around Semenya — who faces a gender storm — deepened after Athletics South Africa (ASA) admitted on Saturday that sex tests were done ahead of the world championships in Berlin, and that medical advice to withdraw her was ignored.
“SASCOC will launch a full investigation into the Semenya matter to ascertain the truth about events leading to the participation and testing of Semenya and subsequent conduct of the officials of ASA,” Sam said in a statement.
A probe into Semenya’s sex was announced last month by the world athletics governing body the IAAF, shortly before she powered to the world’s fastest 800m this year at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin.
Leaked test results to the media reporting Semenya was a hermaphrodite this month caused further anger from the South African public and government, who have rallied behind the athlete and gave her a hero’s welcome on her return from the games.
Deputy sport minister Gert Oosthuizen on Sunday called for ASA head Leonard Chuene to be fired after he admitted to lying about the tests, saying “they will be running the risk of being led by a liar” if they did not act.
But a cabinet meeting on Wednesday said that “sports bodies must be given to deal with the matter first”, the Sapa news agency reported.
Sam welcomed ASA’s decision to co-operate in the investigation, saying meetings were planned with the athletics body.
“The investigation will result in making recommendations to SASCOC’s board on how the matter should be handled, and there are various options available to SASCOC,” he said.

Saina crashes out while Kashyap moves ahead

New Delhi, Sept. 23: India’s ace shuttler Saina Nehwal made a disappointing return to the court as she crashed out with an opening-round loss but P. Kashyap kept the Indian hopes alive by advancing to the pre-quarterfinals of the on-going Japan Open Super Series badminton tournament in Tokyo on Wednesday.
The only Indian contender in the men’s singles, Kashyap kept the tricolour fluttering and notched up a 21-17, 12-21, 21-11 win over Japanese Takuma Ueda in a 51-minute battle.
World number 34 Kashyap will next take on number three Dane Peter Hoeg Gade in the pre-quarterfinals on Thursday.
However, Saina, coming back after a month-long break, lost 15-21, 23-21, 14-21 to world number 10 Yanjiao Jiang of China in a 53-minute clash in the women’s singles.
The seventh seeded Indian mixed doubles pair of Jwala Gutta and V. Diju also hit a low after their Chinese Taipei Grand Prix Gold win last month and crashed out of the tournament with a scoreline of 18-21, 12-21 against Thai duo Sudket Prapakamol and Saralee Thungthongkam in an 25-minute encounter.
Jwala had more disappointment in store as she and Ashwini Ponnappa were beaten 15-21, 21-19, 18-21 by seventh seed Japanese combo of Miyuki Maeda and Satoko Suetsuna in the women’s doubles opener that lasted more than one hour
The men’s doubles pair of Rupesh Kumar and Sanave Thomas also bit the dust after going down 12-21, 16-21 against the Korean pair of Sung Hyun Ko and Yi Goo Kwon within half-an-hour.

PSLV is 16 and going strong

PSLV C-14 blasts off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, 90 km from Nellore, on Wednesday. The rocket put into orbit the 960-kg Oceansat-2 and six smaller foreign satellites within a space of 20 minutes.

Sriharikota
Sept. 23: It was a sweet 16th birthday on Wednesday for India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). The first PSLV was launched on September 23, 1993 from Sriharikota but unfortunately it burnt down into the Bay of Bengal. Old-timers recall with mixed emotions the sight of a weeping G. Madhavan Nair, the then mission director, who was hugged and consoled by Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.
“In 16 years, we had 15 successive and successful PSLV launches,” said Dr Nair. He said over the years PSLV has emerged as an internationally acclaimed satellite launch vehicle that is as reliable as European Space Agency’s Ariane, USA’s Delta and Russia’s Soyuz rockets.
That India has emerged as a global player became clear when the Isro chairman said Sriharikota could see four PSLV launches every year from 2010

Food grain crunch hits state

Hyderabad

Sept. 23: The deficient rainfall has turned 50 lakh acres of fertile fields in the state into brownish barren
swathes of land.
With the southwest monsoon coming to a close by the month-end, there is no relief possible now and food grain production is likely to be just half of what it was in 2008, with a consequent surge in prices.
In the Kharif season, sowing was carried on only 1.45 crore acres as against the normal 1.98 crore acres.
The price of paddy, ragi, jowar, groundnut, sugarcane and turmeric is likely to rise steeply with the fall in production.
As against 204 lakh metric tonnes of food grains produced in the state last year, the output this year may not be more than150 lakh metric tonnes.
The state agriculture department has plenty to worry about as reports of continuing drought pour in from the districts.
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has said there is little chance of rainfall in the next one week as the South-West monsoon is drawing to a close.
“Rainfall deficit is around 30 per cent. The season ends by September 30 though there is a chance of rains in October. But that is not taken into consideration when we assess the performance of the South-West monsoon,” said Mr M. Satyakumar, director of the Hyderabad Meteorological Centre.
Farmers’ associations have sought relief from the government which has declared 971 mandals in the state as drought-hit.

TRS MLA says scam in party

ADILABAD
Sept. 23: The Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) MLA from Mancherial, Mr G. Arvind Reddy, has termed the party as ‘TRS Private Company’ and accused the party president, Mr K. Chandrasekhar Rao, of making huge money in the name of Telangana.
He alleged that there was a big scam in the TRS like ‘Satyam’. He said Mr Rao will sit in the jail along with Ramalinga Raju of Satyam soon and claimed that he had enough proof about scam in the party.
He asked the party chief to shut down the ‘company’ in the interest of the people of Telangana.
Addressing a press conference, Mr Arvind Reddy questioned if the TRS leaders are using power to fight against him, why can’t the same power be used for the Telangana cause.

Chiru denies rift in party

VIJAYAWADA
Sept. 23: The Praja Rajyam president, Chiranjeevi, on Wednesday refuted speculation being carried in some sections of the media that the party is facing internal crises.
He said the party remained united and there were no differences among the party leaders.
Asked about some PR leaders’ comments on Kadapa MP, Mr Y. S. Jaganmohan Reddy’s capabilities to become the next chief minister, Mr Chiranjeevi said it was only personal opinion of some leaders and nothing to do with the party.
He said Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy is the political heir of YSR and also a popular leader with good cadre following.
He added that the appointment of the next Chief Minister is the internal affair of the Congress.

J&K militants kill city Major

Hyderabad/Srinagar
Sept. 23: Major Suresh Suri, a native of Hyderabad, and three other Army personnel were killed in two separate long-drawn gunbattles with militants in north Kashmir during which four terrorists, including two top Pakistani Hizbul Mujahideen commanders, were also shot dead.
While the encounter in Bandipora district ended on Wednesday evening after 25 hours, the other in a forest in Baramulla continued to rage for the third day. The gun battle between security forces and terrorists in Bandipora district in north Kashmir claimed Major Suri and Lance Naik Kushal Singh’s lives on Wednesday.
Major Suri, 30, of the Rashtriya Rifles was deployed in Bandipora for a year. Into his eighth year of service, he was trained at the National Defence Academy (NDA) and the prestigious Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun. He was also judged the best student in the counter-insurgency course and finished an instructive reading in junior command course during his stint with the Indian Army.
“Major Suri was a brave officer who led his men from the front. He was an instructor in counter insurgency and was martyred in a hand-to-hand combat with the terrorists,” said a defence spokesperson from Srinagar.
According to defence sources, the Army party led by the major barged into the house where the terrorists were hiding. The Army and police had strengthened the cordon around the house during the night to prevent any attempt by the terrorists to escape under the cover of darkness. While other members of the party came out, the two soldiers were trapped in the heavy firing and killed.
Major Suri is survived by his mother and his wife Pallavi. His mother, who stays at Malkajgiri in the city was taken away by relatives on Wednesday after they got to know of the tragic news. Pallavi, who married Suresh Suri just a year ago, is currently studying in Mumbai.

India may not back Obama

On board PM’s Aircraft
Sept. 23: India may not overtly support the US President, Mr Barack Obama’s proposal for “rebalancing the economic order” in case it rings in a protectionist regime in the US and Britain.

The cautious line to be pursued by India was evident in the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh’s statement ahead of his visit to Pittsburgh to participate in the G-20 summit. Dr Singh said, “We would like a strong message to emerge from Pittsburgh against protectionism in all its forms, whether trade in goods, services, investment or financial inflows”.

The Indian delegation headed by Dr Singh exhibited confidence ahead of the two-day G-20 summit as the country’s 6.7 per cent growth in last fiscal was mostly due to domestic consumption and not exports as in case of China. Mr Obama and his top adviser, Mr Michael Froman, have mounted a campaign during last two days against “excess reliance on exports by China, Japan and Germany.” Mr Obama had asked for re-balancing the economic and trade order.

China is stronger: IAF chief

Gandhinagar
Sept. 23: Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik said on Wednesday the Indian Air Force’s aircraft strength was “inadequate”, just “one-third” the size of China’s, and that it was therefore going in for more acquisitions to enhance its capability.
He downplayed reports of Chinese air incursions along the Line of Actual Control. “As far as the Air Force is concerned there are no incursions anywhere,” he said. “Our present aircraft strength is inadequate. We have one-third of the Chinese numbers,” he said, echoing recently retired Navy chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta’s concern that the country didn’t have the capability to match China.
“The government is doing a lot to augment Air Force capability,” he said at the South-Western Air Command headquarters. His comments come against the backdrop of reports about Chinese “incursions” into India in the past several weeks.
“We are not downplaying the challenges before us. But there is a strategy to handle it. One can either deal with it sternly or play cool and continue to develop capabilities,” ACM Naik said. On deployment along the Sino-Indian border, he said, “We have increased our capabilities on land as well as in the air.”

Spy contacted 7 soldiers

Patna, Sept. 23: In a startling revelation, the arrested ISI agent spying on Indian military establishments allegedly revealed that he was in touch with with six to seven Army personnel in India and collecting secret details.
“The ISI agent, Sudhanshu Sudhakar, has revealed maintaining contacts with six to seven Indian Army personnel from whom he used to collect military secrets,” the senior superintendent of police, Mr Vinit Vinayak, said here. The SSP said he extracted the details during Sudhanshu’s interrogation.
“These details will be handed to the military intelligence for follow up action,” Mr Vinayak said.
He, however, refused to divulge the names of the Armymen, saying it would hamper investigations.
Sudhakar, a dismissed soldier suspected to be spying for Pakistan’s ISI, was caught from Kankarbagh area here on Monday night with secret documents about deployment of forces in J&K and Secunderabad besides information about missiles, which he was planning to hand over to a contact in Kathmandu.

Ahmadinejad to Obama: See Iran as ‘friend’

NEW YORK
Sept. 23: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad urged President Barack Obama to see Iran as a potential friend instead of a threat.
The Iranian leader also said in a wide-ranging interview on Tuesday that he expects “free and open” discussion of nuclear issues at a meeting next week with six world powers, but stressed that his country would not negotiate on its own nuclear plans.
He sought to open a wider nuclear dialogue with the West, and said the onus should be on the US and other major nuclear powers to give up their weapons and to expand opportunities for all countries to make peaceful use of nuclear power.
Speaking to reporters and editors just hours after arriving in the US, Mr Ahmadinejad said he will seek a quick resolution to the case of three American hikers jailed in Iran.
He dismissed last week’s US shift away from a planned long-range missile shield in Europe, meant to guard against an Iranian strike, as “a respectful way of buying out” Russian objections. “I heard Mr Obama saying the next threat is Iran. Iran is an opportunity for everyone,” Mr Ahmadinejad said.
The Iranian leader said Mr Obama is not the first US President to believe Iran is a threat and said the President should read up on history “to see what the fate is of viewing these problems from this perspective.”
“Historically, whoever made friends with Iran saw a lot of opportunities,” Mr Ahmadinejad said. The Iranian President’s remarks on those and other issues in an hour-long interview at his New York hotel appeared designed to present his country as open to a broad international dialogue.
Meanwhile, Mr Ahmadinejad is muting his remarks on the Holocaust, an event he has frequently questioned as a matter of historical fact. Using markedly less confrontational language than he has in the past, Mr Ahmadinejad said he is not interested in debating historical details. Instead, he says he wants to focus on what he calls the wrong done to Palestinians who lost their land when Israel was formed.

US cannot fix it all: Obama

New York, Sept. 23: Seizing a chance to challenge the world, the US President, Mr Barack Obama, said the global community is failing its people and that is not “solely America’s endeavour”.
“Those who used to chastise America for acting alone in the world cannot now stand by and wait for America alone to solve the world’s problems,” Mr Obama said in a passage of the speech he was delivering on Wednesday to the United Nations General Assembly.
The White House released excerpts in advance that reportedly carried a blunt tone.
It comes in Mr Obama’s first speech to this world body, a forum like none other for a leader hoping to wash away any lasting images of US unilateralism under Mr George W. Bush.
In essence, Mr Obama’s message was that he expects plenty in return for reaching out. “We have sought in word and deed a new era of engagement with the world,” Mr Obama said, echoing the cooperative theme he promised and has since used as a pillar of his foreign policy. “Now is the time for all of us to take our share of responsibility,” he added.
Mr Obama foreshadowed his message to world leaders in a speech on Tuesday to the Clinton Global Initiative. saying that nations connected by problems, whether a flu strain or an economic collapse that crosses borders.

India’s role in Afghan angers Pak, warns US

New York, Sept. 23: India’s growing influence in Afghanistan could “exacerbate” regional tensions and encourage Pakistani “counter measures” in Afghanistan or India, a top US military commander said.
At the same time, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, commander of the US and coalition forces in Afghanistan, in his report to the Pentagon noted that “Indian activities largely benefit the Afghan people”.
“Indian political and economic influence is increasing in Afghanistan, including significant development efforts and financial investment. In addition, the current Afghan government is perceived by Islamabad to be pro-Indian,” the general said.
“While Indian activities largely benefit the Afghan people, increasing Indian influence in Afghanistan is likely to exacerbate regional tensions and encourage Pakistani counter measures in Afghanistan or India,” said Gen. McChrystal.
India has pledged $1.2 billion for reconstruction projects in Afghanistan ranging from roads and bridges to power transmission lines and grassroots training.
Pakistan has repeatedly objected to India having four consulates in Afghanistan in addition to the embassy in Kabul, alleging these are used to spy on Islamabad. The Pakistani intelligence was blamed for a suicide attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul in July 2008 that killed 58 people.

EU to get super watchdog

Brussels, Sept. 23: Europe on Wednesday laid out new proposals to police its banks and financial markets, seeking to set an example on the eve of a summit of G20 major economies.
But holes in the small print — not least an inability to commit to publish its demands for action by individual countries — mean a slew of new regulatory authorities may yet be muzzled at birth.
“Everyone is talking about it, but this European proposal is the first to spell out all the details,” said the Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner, Mr Joaquin Almunia.
“Sometimes we are criticised as being slow to respond,” the Spaniard added of painful barbs since the financial crisis first hit late last year. “But here, we are the first.”
Watchdogs overseeing banks, insurers and securities firms are to operate under a new European Systemic Risk Board, expected to deliver early warnings before major economic shocks.
The proposals come a year after the collapse of US bank Lehman Brothers.
“Our aim is to protect European taxpayers from a repeat of the dark days of autumn 2008, when governments had to pour billions of euros into the banks,” said the European Commission President, Mr Jose Manuel Barroso.
“This European system can also inspire a global one and we will argue for that in Pittsburgh,” where the leaders of the world’s biggest economies are holding a two-day summit starting on Thursday.
But with approval required by all 27 EU governments and the European parliament — and the City of London concerned at Britain giving up powers — the commission blueprint could be changed before it sees the light of day.
The European System of Financial Supervisors composed of national supervisors and the three new sector-specific authorities are due to get up and running by the end of next year.
Britain, which is not part of the eurozone, is also concerned at the mooted prospect of the European Central Bank President, Mr Jean-Claude Trichet, heading up the new systemic risk body. In a bid to smooth their path, diplomats said the governor of the Bank of England, Mr Mervyn King, could be named as his deputy.
Mr Almunia alluded to a such a compromise so as to get Europe’s biggest financial centre to buy into the concept. Amid rows over the nitty-gritty, a diplomat said, “This text could give the commission too much power and has little chance of being approved as it is.”

India to grow by 6%: FM

Kolkata
Sept. 23: The Indian economy is on a recovery path and the GDP growth of the country will be over six per cent at the end of this current fiscal, the Union finance minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, said on Wednesday.
He also made it clear that the stimulus package, which was introduced in the last fiscal to boost the Indian economy in the wake of global recession would continue till the world economy is stabilised.
Addressing the 155th annual general meeting (AGM) of the Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr Mukherjee said, “In the first quarter, the GDP growth stood at 6.1 per cent, while in the second quarter, we feel it would be a little better. If the present trend continues and improvement comes from third and fourth quarter, we hope that we will achieve a GDP growth to the tune of 6.5 per cent to 6.7 per cent for this fiscal.”
When asked on the timeline for the ongoing stimulus package, he said, “In the last meeting of the finance ministers of G-20 countries, we arrived at a decision against recommending exit strategy to the leaders who are assembling on September 24 and 25. We should wait for that till recovery in the world economy is more stable.”
Mr Mukherjee also informed that the Insurance Amendment Bill will be introduced in the next session of the Parliament after consultation with the political allies and other stake holders.

G20 will tell banks to save

Washington

Sept. 23: As the global economic storm abates, banks are being told to save more for the next potential deluge, a demand with striking consequences for the sector and the world’s economy.
At the G20 meeting in Pittsburgh later this week, leaders from the world’s largest economies will discuss new rules dictating how much banks must stash in their vaults versus the amount they are putting to work.
The fact that presidents and prime ministers will discuss apparent financial sector minutiae could be an indication of its importance across the economy.
“We just had a massive financial meltdown because banks did not have an equity cushion,” said Mr Simon Johnston, the former chief economist of the IMF, now a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. According to Mr Johnston, new rules should triple the amount of capital that banks need to hold in reserve.
Mr Johnston and others hope such tough rules would prevent a repeat of the current economic crisis, in which banks had woefully inadequate reserves to deal with a sharp drop in the value of their assets, in this case dodgy debt derivatives.
The resulting turmoil led to the collapse of Lehman Brothers and made borrowing difficult, stalling infrastructure projects, shuttering businesses and requiring governments to stump up trillions of dollars in bailout money.
But critics argue that a knee-jerk reaction could stall the economic recovery, and slash profit of the big four American banks by as much as 30 per cent, according to Wall Street Journal analysis.

Saturday, September 19, 2009

England suffer a ton of Paine

Nottingham (England), Sept. 18: Tim Paine scored his maiden international century as Australia inflicted fresh one-day misery upon England with a crushing 111-run win here at Trent Bridge, late on Thursday.

Victory in this day/night fixture left world champions Australia 6-0 up and on course to complete the first ever 7-0 clean sweep in a bilateral series in Sunday’s finale at Durham’s Riverside ground.

Paine’s 111 was the cornerstone of Australia’s 296 for eight as the holders continued to warm-up in style for next week’s start of the Champions Trophy tournament in South Africa.

England, chasing 299 to win, collapsed to 60 for four inside 15 overs. They were eventually dismissed for 185, with nine overs to spare as they suffered their 11th heaviest defeat, in terms of runs, in 517 one-day internationals (ODIs).

No England batsman made more than number eight Tim Bresnan’s 31 not out. Wicketkeeper Paine, an opener in the one-day format, reached three figures in only his seventh match at this level.

Together with Michael Hussey (65), Paine — who only made his one-day international debut against Scotland in Edinburgh last month put on 163 for the third wicket after the duo came together with Australia 40 for two.

After Ponting had called correctly to end Strauss’s streak of five straight toss wins, Anderson made a double breakthrough. He had Shane Watson playing on and then made it two wickets for seven runs in 16 balls when he had Ponting hooking straight to Ryan Sidebottom at deep backward square leg.

But England’s joy at removing Ponting for six, 120 fewer than he managed in Australia’s four-wicket victory here on Tuesday, was short-lived as his fellow Tasmanian Paine unfurled a fine array of strokes.

Brief scores: Australia 296 for 8 (Tim Paine 111, Mike Hussey 65, James Hopes 38; James Anderson 4/55) bt England 185 (Tim Bresnan 31; James Hopes 3/32, Brett Lee 2/48, Nathan Bracken 2/42).
Source::DC

Top guns out of big battle

New Delhi, Sept. 18: Bowlers could be forgiven for breathing a sigh of relief ahead of the Champions Trophy which starts in South Africa next Tuesday, for some of the world’s top big-hitters will be missing in action.

England duo of Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff, and Indian opener Virender Sehwag are recovering from injuries, with all of them renowned for ruining bowlers’ reputation with their innovative, clean and hard hitting.
When Sehwag fires, India are always assured of setting or chasing a stiff target. Not afraid of going after the bowling early in his innings, he is known for playing unorthodox shots to put the opposition on the back-foot.

“India will miss Sehwag’s explosiveness at the top,” legendary Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar recently wrote in his column.

Meanwhile, England will find it difficult to pose a serious threat to big teams without key batsman Pietersen and all-rounder Flintoff. “It is always hard to be without your two best players, but that’s the reality we are in,” England captain Andrew Strauss said after losing the recent one-day series against Australia. England have often relied on Flintoff’s aggressive batting and sharp seam bowling to gain a big advantage. While England, Champions Trophy runners-up at home in 2004, will be under strength without Pietersen and Flintoff, cricket will be poorer without the three quality batsmen.

Stuart, Sultan of swing

New Delhi, Sept. 18: If there is a fast bowler who is quickly developing into a match-winner by learning and improving with each game, it is Stuart Broad of England.

Many bowlers would have found it difficult to regain confidence after being hammered for six sixes in an over, but Broad came back strongly.

He was young in international cricket when he was smashed for 36 off six balls by India’s Yuvraj Singh in a Twenty20 World Cup match in South Africa two years ago. Broad has now become his team’s key bowler ahead of the Champions Trophy in South Africa, thanks to his mental toughness.

He is expected to share responsibilities with James Anderson in the absence of senior pacemen Andrew Flintoff and Steve Harmison.

Broad’s confidence is high, especially after producing one of his best spells in the Ashes when he grabbed five first-innings wickets at the Oval to set up his team’s series-clinching victory. His role is not confined to bowling, for he is also a gritty batsman capable of chipping in vital runs down the order.
Broad has it in him to make his presence felt despite the presence of talented rivals like Mitchell Johnson of Australia, South Africa’s Dale Steyn, Sri Lankan Muttiah Muralitharan and New Zealand’s Daniel Vettori.

Left-arm paceman Johnson returns to the scene of his amazing exploits which saw his team clinch a Test series in South Africa this year. He grabbed 16 wickets in three Tests.

Johnson, as effective with the new ball as with the old because of his ability to reverse swing, forms a deadly combination with Brett Lee who is hungry for success after missing the Ashes.

He was in form in recent one-day internationals in England, ensuring his team’s series victory. Steyn arrived in international cricket at the right time for South Africa, who had been looking for a genuine fast bowler.

He has the pace and shrewd variations to unsettle the best batsmen in the world. He played a major role in his team’s pair of one-day series wins against Australia at home and away.

Steyn could prove too hot to handle for the rival batsmen in home conditions in the company of Makhaya Ntini and Albie Morkel.

But it cannot be all about pace on South African pitches in the presence of Muralitharan and Vettori who have already proved there is always room for quality spinners in limited-overs cricket.

Off-spinner Muralitharan, the world’s leading wicket-taker in Tests and one-day internationals, has been Sri Lanka’s match-winner for more than a decade.

The Sri Lankan not only turns the ball hugely on any surface, but also has a deceptive ‘doosra’, a delivery that turns away from the right-handers instead of coming into them like a conventional off-break.

Sri Lanka will be the team to beat if Muralitharan gets support from unrothodox spinner Ajantha Mendis and pacemen Nuwan Kulasekara and Thilan Thushara. Like Muralitharan, left-arm spinner Vettori can also dry up runs and take wickets at crucial stages.

Skipper Vettori, with 244 one-day wickets can adjust to all conditions. He is always a difficult bowler to get away because of his tidy line and length.

India counters China

New Delhi, Sept. 18: India on Friday signalled that it would not take too much Chinese belligerence by landing its AN-32 transport aircraft in Ladakh near the Sino-Indian border and by asserting that Arunachal Pradesh was an integral part of the country.

The latest moves follow alleged Chinese incursions in the border and efficiently blocking aid from ADB Bank to Arunachal claiming it a disputed territory.

It is for the first time that the Indian Air Force has landed its fixed wing AN-32 transport aircraft at the Nyoma Advanced Landing Ground in Ladakh, just 23 km away from the Line of Actual Control. This is a terse and clear message to China.

Sources said that the next step would be to expand the Nyoma ALG into a full-fledged air-base where fighter aircraft can land.

In 2008, fixed wing aircraft had landed at the Daulat Beg Oldi ALG (the highest airfield in the world situated at an altitude of 16,200 feet) and the Fukche ALG. Experts believe that India is developing ALGs in Ladakh to improve its capability for quick transportation of troops. Further expansion of ALGs will give India the edge and restrain aggressive Chinese posturing along the LAC.

Meanwhile, after playing down the differences with China for days, the external affairs minister,

Mr S.M. Krishna said on Friday that India’s sovereignty will have to be respected by China. “Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India.”

The minister said both India and China were “mature” and “powerful” neighbours who needed to have trust and faith in each other.

When asked about Chinese incursions, the minister said. “The Indian armed forces are capable of defending our frontiers.”

Father throws newborn girl into river, arrested

A 27-year-old man has been arrested for throwing his newborn baby girl into a river in Durg district of Chhattisgarh, police said on Friday.

"Premjeet Deshmukh confessed that he tossed his week-old girl into Shivnath river as he was expecting a baby boy. He was arrested late on Thursday," said Superintendent of Police (Durg) Dipanshu Kabra.

Kabra said police recovered the body of the girl from the river September 6 and sent it to Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Government Hospital in Raipur for examination. The doctors confirmed that the child was killed.

"We went through records of all the addresses of mothers who delivered babies in August in government hospitals in Durg district. We reached their houses and then found that in Supela locality of Bhilai city resident Kriti Deshmukh, who delivered a baby girl September 2, had no answer to what happened to her newborn child," Kabra said.

He said Premjeet Deshmukh, a truck driver, who already had two girls was upset with the birth of the third girl. "He (Premjeet) took help of a female relative September 6 and dumped his newborn child into a river," Kabra said.

Premjeet and his female relative have been arrested.

Natco launches Swine flu drug

Hyderabad, Sept. 18: Drug maker Natco Pharma on Friday said it has launched anti-swine flu drug Natflu.

“Natco Pharma has launched Natflu capsule, the cure for swine flu,” the Hyderabad-based firm said in a statement.

The maximum retail price for the medicine is fixed at Rs 480 for a bottle of 10 capsules and is available in all licensed pharmacies, it further said.

Natflu is the generic version of Tamiflu-Oseltam-ivir. Shares of Natco Pharma surged nearly seven per cent on the Bombay Stock Exchange after the company announced the launch of anti-swine flu drug Natflu.

Shares of the company surged to a high of Rs 127.85, up 8.11 per cent over the previous closing during the intra-day trade. The scrip later pared some gains and settled up 6.26 per cent at Rs 125.65 on the BSE.

On the National Stock Exchange, the scrip closed with a gain of 4.67 per cent at Rs 124.30.

During the intra-day trade, the scrip rose 7.28 per cent to a high of Rs 127.40. Over 24.44 lakh shares changed hands on both the bourses.

Godrej to focus on realty

Chennai, Sept 18: The $2.5-billion Godrej group is targeting a 25 per cent growth in sales every year and plans to double its revenue to $5 billion in the next three years.

The Group expects 15-20 per cent growth through an organic route and another 5-10 per cent growth from the inorganic route.

Revealing the group’s growth strategy here, the group chairman, Mr Adi Godrej, said the group would focus on FMCG and property development. In the FMCG segment, the company will grow “considerably through the acquisition” route. The group has constituted an FMCG cell headed by Mr A. Mahendran, managing director, Godrej Sara Lee, mainly for merger and acquisition activities.

The group is looking for those firms, which are engaged in the manufacturing of haircare products in India and developing countries like China, Indonesia, Brazil, Egypt and Africa.

The group’s real estate arm, Godrej Properties Ltd, is developing about 100 million sq ft space, mainly in the residential space across the country.

“Our real estate development model is different from the existing players. We share profits with property owners,” he said. The group, which has 100 manufacturing locations in India and abroad, moved some of its Indian facilities to the North-East or Himachal Pradesh due to tax advantage.

It’s festive time for electronic firms

New Delhi, Sept. 18: As the festival season starts on Saturday with the Navaratri this year, the consumer electronic companies are expecting to make a kill. Last year, post-Lehman Brothers crisis the mood was sombre in the festival season.

“We are expecting sales of Rs 1,700 crore in this festival season, a growth of 40 per cent over last year,” said Samsung India Electronics, deputy managing director, Mr R. Zutshi.

Samsung India is offering discounts and free gifts with its products to boost sales. “We will be launching specific advertisement campaigns till Diwali. We have also made a new TV commercial for our digital cameras,” said Mr Zutshi.

“In 2008, the prices were high due to increase in the input costs and we were not able to give too many discount offers. But this year, things will be different,” said another official from Samsung.

The company feels that there will be no impact on the sales due to the poor monsoon or economic slowdown on the sales.

“It was only in the first quarter, when there was a slight impact but otherwise this segment has never seen any slowdown,” said Mr Zutshi. LG India, director of sales and marketing, Mr V. Ramachandran, said this festival season sales are expected to be quiet good as compared to the last year. “The government has released 60 per cent arrears of the sixth pay commission this year, which is a very high sum. We expect this step to boost the sales of companies like LG during this period,” said Mr Ramachandran.

He said that the company is expecting a growth of 30-40 per cent in the festival season. “We will not offer any special discount as we have launched many India-specific products, which should help in sales,” he said

US missile shield shift irks Poland, Czech

Warsaw (Poland), Sept. 18: The Poles and Czechs voiced deep concern on Friday at the US President Mr Barack Obama’s decision to scrap a Bush-era missile defense shield planned for their countries.

“Betrayal! The US sold us to Russia and stabbed us in the back,” the Polish tabloid Fakt said on its front page.

The Polish President, Mr Lech Kaczynski, said he was concerned that Mr Obama’s new strategy leaves Poland in a dangerous “gray zone” between Western Europe and the old Soviet sphere.

The Bush administration’s plan would have been “a major step in preventing various disturbing trends in our region of the world,” Mr Kaczynski said in a guest editorial in the daily Fakt.

The US secretary of state, Ms Hillary Clinton, defended the new Obama administration approach to missile defence in Europe, saying it will enhance protection of the US and its NATO allies.

Ms Clinton said Mr Obama’s new approach will improve US capabilities to defend against an Iranian missile threat by building a more comprehensive antimissile system at sea and on land. She said Poland and the Czech Republic are now at the top of the US’s list of candidates to host land-based versions of the new missile interceptor.

Pak elected to IAEA board

Islamabad, Sept. 18: Pakistan was on Friday elected to the Board of Governors of the UN atomic watchdog IAEA for a two-year term against a regional seat reserved for the Middle East and South Asia.

Pakistan was the consensus candidate of the region, said a statement issued by the Foreign Office. The election took place by acclamation at the IAEA’s general conference, which began in Vienna on September 14.

Pervez: Sacking CJ a mistake

Washington, Sept. 18: In a frank admission, the former Pakistani President, Mr Pervez Musharraf, said he made a “mistake” by sacking the Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry nearly two years ago.

“Now, after seeing the incidents following his (the Chief Justice’s) dismissal from the office I realised I should not have done that,” the ARY News quoted the former military ruler as having said in a university lecture on Thursday.

“It was a mistake to send the reference against him to Supreme Judicial Council, though it was my constitutional and legal obligation.

“The reference resulted in a chaos in the country... Probably I won’t commit such things in future,” he said.

Ex-MP evicted from official house

New Delhi/Mumbai, Sept. 18: The Republican Party of India chief, Mr Ramdas Athawale, was on Friday evicted from his government bungalow in Delhi after the ex-MP refused to vacate the premises triggering a violent reaction when his supporters attacked the newly renovated Mumbai Congress office.

The belongings of Athawale, who lost the recent Lok Sabha election from Shirdi in Maharashtra, were on Friday removed from his Lodhi Estate residence for overstaying despite repeated reminders to him to vacate, officials said. Mr Athawale was not at home when the action was taken.

A team of officials of the directorate of estates under the urban development ministry, which allots accommodations to MPs, went to his residence and removed all his belongings.

Mr Athawale condemned the action as a “political vendetta” of the Congress, for joining a Third Front ahead of next month’s Assembly elections in Maharashtra.

Mumbai Police arrested 23 persons in connection with the attack on the newly renovated office of Mumbai Congress, which was stoned and some window panes broken. The office was inaugurated by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi just this week.

Terror hits in India,says Israel

New Delhi, Sept. 18: The Centre on Saturday said it is fully prepared to deal with a Mumbai-type terror attack if such a situation arises. Responding to a warning by Israel’s counter-terrorism unit that said the terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Tayyaba, is planning terror strikes across India, a Union home ministry spokesman said, “We are fully prepared.”

Israel’s Counter-Terrorism Bureau at its National Security Council, issued a travel warning about “imminent and concrete” input about a terror strike planned by the LeT.

Taj case returns to haunt Maya

Lucknow/New Delhi, Sept. 18: The ghost of the Taj Heritage Corridor case returned to haunt UP chief minister Mayawati once again on Friday with the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court issuing fresh notices to her and the senior UP minister, Mr Naseemuddin Siddiqui, in the case.

In New Delhi, the Supreme Court said on Friday it would have to examine if the state government could spend huge sums of public money to construct statues and memorials of political leaders. A bench comprising Justices B.N. Agarwal and Aftab Alam, hearing the case relating to the construction of the Kanshi Ram memorial in Lucknow, told UP government counsel Mukul Rohatgi that it was not satisfied with the affidavit filed by it, and also said it did not accept the “profuse apology” by the state government.

The bench said it had to examine if the state could spend so much money in constructing memorials and statues.

When Mr Rohatgi pointed out that the decision to spend Rs 2,600 crore on the memorial had been taken by the legislature and that the court could not interfere in that, the court reacted by saying that “the legislature and the executive act under the Constitution.” It asked what if the legislature decided to allocate 80 per cent of budgetary allocations for statutes and memorials.

“Is that not then justiciable?” the court asked. It posted the matter for October 5 and asked all parties concerned to file their affidavits by September 29.

In the Taj Corridor matter, a division bench of the Allahabad high court comprising Justices Pradeep Kant and Shabibul Hassnain admitted a PIL filed by Mr Anupama Singh, Mr Kamlesh Varma and Mr Qatil Ahmad against Ms Mayawati and Mr Siddiqui, who had earlier been exonerated by the CBI court in the case.

Friday, September 18, 2009

Future of one-dayers hangs in a balance

New Delhi

Sept. 17: While the Champions Trophy continues to remain a big-ticket event for the International Cricket Council that can pull both fans and advertisers in droves, the game’s shifting landscape from ODIs to Twenty20 has started a debate the world body isn’t too pleased with.
By the ICC’s own admission, this edition beginning next Tuesday could be the final one, having faced a lot pressure from other national cricket boards questioning its relevance.
Salvaging what it can of the ODIs’ declining popularity is the least the ICC hopes to achieve. “We are putting all our money on it. The one-day format has certainly taken a bit of a hit with the England board scrapping its domestic 50-over tournament and the South Africans mulling the same. We have tweaked the Champions Trophy format to make it shorter and sharper. The event’s success will give us an idea over which way to move ahead as far ODIs are concerned,” said ICC commercial general manager Campbell Jamieson at the sidelines of an event here on Thursday.
The ICC is considering a trial of splitting the one-day matches into two innings of 25 overs for each team — an idea mooted by Sachin Tendulkar. However, the final decision will be only be taken when the cricket committee gets together next May.
Till then, experts feel, the format should not be tinkered with. “The fate of ODIs hangs in the balance, but we should give it a year or so and then take a decision. It has been hugely successful concept and to change it, the ICC has to give it a lot of thought. When you plan to alter such a successful product, you have to be careful,” said former India middle-order star Sanjay Manjrekar.
“The coming few days will give a fantastic opportunity to the administrators to prove that the shorter version of the game can survive,” he added.
Ex-Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram reckoned that splitting ODIs into four innings would not go down well with cricketers. “Despite the perception, most cricketers like playing in ODIs more than T20 since it involves more skill. If the format has to change, the ICC should try it at the club or domestic level and see how it goes before trying to implement it at the international level. Else, it could do more harm than good,” said Akram.
Source::DECCAN CHRONICLE

Gauti declared fit, joins squad

Mumbai, Sept. 17: Indian cricket team heaved a sigh of relief as opener Gautam Gambhir cleared a fitness test on Thursday to join his teammates who will leave for South Africa early on Friday to participate in the ICC Champions Trophy.
Gambhir had sustained a groin injury during the BCCI Corporate Trophy. Even though the left-hander travelled to Sri Lanka with the team for the tri-series there, he returned home after he had aggravated the injury.
He underwent a fitness test on Thursday before being cleared for the Champions Trophy starting September 22.
Gambhir edged out teammate Virender Sehwag on Thursday to be named the Castrol Cricketer of the Year 2008 at a glittering function in Bengaluru. He received Rs five lakh and a trophy. Harbhajan Singh was named the best bowler of the year while Sehwag and India skipper M.S. Dhoni were declared the Test and One-Day cricketers of the year.

Men in Blue gear up for CT

Mumbai
Sept. 17: Team India took the top spot in the ICC ODI rankings in Sri Lanka though for just a day. Now ready for their South African sojourn to take part in the ICC Champions Trophy starting next Tuesday, skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni says he’s under no pressure to regain the number one spot.
“We are not under any pressure. We don’t think about rankings or ratings, personally as well as collectively as a team and just try to enjoy our game. We look to give our best and that’s what the game plan would be this time as well,” said Dhoni at a press conference in Mumbai ahead of the team’s departure for Johannesburg on Friday.
The team are elated over the return of opener Gautam Gambhir, who missed the Sri Lanka tri-series with a groin injury. “It is good for us that Gambhir has regained fitness because he will have to take the responsibility at the top of the order. We have seen that whenever we get a good start, we score big runs,” said the Indian captain.
Dhoni reckons that the team need to improve on their fielding standards in an important tournament like the Champions Trophy.
“Whenever there is a slip-up as far as fielding is concerned, we have seen that it proves costly. We have not fielded well consistently with quite a few missed run-out opportunities and dropped catches,” Dhoni said. “These could prove to be crucial in a big tournament like the Champions Trophy. We are putting loads of effort to improve our fielding standards,” he added.
The skipper admitted that Rahul Dravid had brought experience to the team. “It’s good to have a player like him batting at the number three especially in South Africa where conditions suit fast bowlers. We have quite a few stroke players lower down the order and it’s important to give them a platform where they can launch their innings,” Dhoni said.
Dhoni emphasised that since South African pitches were favourable to fast bowlers, there was room for improvement for Ishant Sharma and Co. “I feel we also need to do well in the bowling department, especially in the middle and slog overs. But when the bowlers are not up to the mark the batsmen need to take the responsibility,” he added.
“It is very difficult to say which teams are the favourites because if one batsman has a good day he can take the game away from you. So it would be wrong to take any team lightly. I would not like point out to any team and say that they would or would not do well,” he said.

Firing continues at Indo-Pak border

There was firing again on Friday morning at the Border Security Force (BSF) post on the India-Pakistan border near Jammu where two BSF troopers had been injured late on Thursday.

A senior BSF official said there was firing again from the Pakistan side on the Nikowal border post, about 30 km west of this winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir.

The firing on the post began late on Thursday when two BSF troopers were injured. The Indian side had retaliated after the first bullet hit the post. "After last night's lull there was firing again at the same post to which we have again retaliated," said the official.

He said the BSF was trying to ascertain the source of the firing. It was unclear whether the firing was from militants trying to sneak into India or from Pakistani Rangers, the border guards of that country.

"The preliminary assessment points more to militants trying to infiltrate to this side," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

He added that the BSF had carried out a check of the three-tiered barbed wire fence from a distance and "there appears no breach, which scales down the possibility of the infiltration having succeeded. But there will be a closer look at the fence once we are sure that firing has stopped. If it was fire from Pakistani Rangers, then it can be termed as yet another ceasefire violation."

India has erected a barbed wire fence inside Indian territory to check cross border infiltration along the 220-km international border in the Jammu region as well as 720 km of the Line of Control (LoC) that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan. The BSF guards the border while the army is deployed along the LoC.

The security around the post under fire has been increased, and checkpoints erected at various points leading to this city. "We cannot rule out the possibility of militants having infiltrated. There are reports of militants stepping up infiltration and planning strikes around the festival season," said a senior police officer in Jammu.

The Muslim festival of Eid-ul-Fitr is on Monday while the Hindu festival of Navratra starts on Saturday. Both bring thousands of people out on the streets.

Senior BSF and police officials have been camping in the Nikowal area since Thursday evening.

Parents die as stalker attacks girl with knife

Rajahmundry
Sept. 17: A stalker attacked a teenaged girl with a knife and stabbed to death both her parents when they tried to protect her. The girl, Anusha, 16, suffered a stab wound on her neck.

The incident occurred at Lalitanagar of Rajah-mundry in East Godavari at around 8 pm on Thursday. Anusha is the eldest of the three daughters of Mr Narla Srinu, 37, an autorickshaw driver, and Mrs Satyavathi, 35, a housewife. The stalker, Matta Rajesh Kumar, 18, who works for a courier agency, had been harassing her for the last six months.
Though she spurned his advances and pleaded with him not to trouble her, Rajesh continued to harass her.

Unable to bear the teasing, Anusha lodged a complaint with the three town police station on May 28. The police arrested Rajesh on eve teasing charges and he spent four days in prison. But he came out on bail and continued to harass Anusha.

On Thursday, at about 8 pm, he jumped the wall of Anusha’s house, barged into her bathroom, whipped out a knife and attacked her. The terrified girl screamed even as Rajesh stabbed her on the neck. Her mother, Mrs Sathayavathi, flung herself between the assailant and her daughter. An angry Rajesh then stabbed her several times, wounding her heavily.

Anusha’s father, Mr Srinu, also rushed in hearing the commotion. Rajesh then turned towards him and stabbed him several times. As blood gushed out, he ran away from the spot. A wounded Anusha alerted neighbours who immediately summoned the 108 ambulance which shifted Sathyavathi to the Government General Hospital which was nearly five kilometres away. But she was dead by the time the ambulance reached the hospital.

The hapless and wounded girl took her heavily-bleeding father to the GGH in an autorickshaw. There was nobody to help her. But he too succumbed to his injuries as doctors tried to give him emergency treatment. Anusha was admitted in the hospital and is said to be out of danger. However, she had not been told about her parents’ death.

“Rajesh has been troubling me for a long time and had threatened to kill my father and molest my mother if I did not marry him,” said the injured girl. “I want him to be hanged publicly as a lesson for others.”

“She sustained a knife wound on the neck but her condition is stable at present,” said the GGH chief medical officer Dr Nagesh. Several women’s groups arrived at the GGH and sharply condemned the incident. “The boy should be hanged publicly for this heinous act,” said the AICC member, Ms Jakkampudi Vijayalakshmi.

The East Godavari superintendent of police, Mr Y. Nagireddy, said police had earlier arrested the boy on charges of eve teasing but was given bail by the court. “It would be best to conduct speedy trials and award punishments in eve teasing cases so that such offences do not take place,” he said.

“Rajesh’s parents admonished him and tried to prevent him from teasing the girl but he did not listen to them,” said a neighbour, Mr K. Ramana Murthy. “After police arrested him, his family was also forced to vacate the house in which they were staying.”

Tharoor tweets under attack from Congress

New Delhi

Sept. 17: The minister of state for external affairs, Mr Shashi Tharoor, is under the Congress scanner. Questions are being raised in party circles about the young minister’s “sense of responsibility.”
The question that is being asked, as one source put it, is “how a minister in a high-profile and sensitive ministry can Twitter all the time?”
Some Congress leaders are also apprehensive that the BJP and other Opposition parties might exploit the minister’s “attitude” to gain political mileage. Some of Mr Tharoor’s alleged misadventures are now being openly discussed in party circles, which range from his “sitting on the chair reserved for the Prime Minister in the Lok Sabha” to calling the Indo-Pak joint statement at the Sharm el-Sheikh NAM summit “not a legal document,” as well as his rejecting accommodation at New Delhi’s Kerala Bhavan as the state guesthouse “did not have a gym and did not offer privacy.”
A senior Congress leader said, “It has been indicated to him that being a Union minister he has to be responsible enough.” Mr Tharoor, he added, “should also remember that he is a minister in India and not in any other part of the world.”
The Congress is worried that the BJP might try to gain advantage.

Organ swap to be legal

New Delhi
Sept. 17: Finding that trade in human organs has thrived despite having a regulatory mechanism, the government on Thursday approved amendments to the Organ Transplantation Act-1994 to make the law stricter by enhancing jail term for wrongdoers from present five years to 10 years, along with a monetary fine of Rs 5 lakh from the current Rs 10,000.
The decision to approve amendments to the Act was taken at a meeting of the Union cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh.
Announcing the decision information and broadcasting minister Ms Ambika Soni said, “The Cabinet approved the proposals of the ministry of health and family welfare to amend the provisions of the Act and also for imposing stringent penalties on persons or hospitals violating the provisions.”
Among the proposed changes in the Act is one that will allow organ swapping, which is prohibited under the existing Act. “Two persons can give each others their different organs in case they agree to the swap,” the release added. To meet the high demand of organ, amendments also propose to expand the definition of “close relatives” for organ donation by including grandchildren. But minor will not be allowed to donate organs.
“An offence under the Act will attract a minimum imprisonment from existing five years to 10 years and the term ‘Rs 10,000’ shall be substituted by term ‘Rs five lakh’,” a Cabinet release said.
Among the proposed changes in the Act is one that will allow organ swapping, which is prohibited under the existing Act. “Two persons can give each others their different organs in case they agree to the swap,” the release added.
The minister said the decision had been taken, as despite putting in place a regulatory mechanism for transplantation of human organs, there has
been reports about “thriving” human organ trade in India and the consequential exploitation of economically weaker sections of society. The objective is to prevent commercial dealings and make the system “transparent and patient-friendly”, Ms Soni added.
The transplantation of the Human Organs Act was enacted by Parliament in 1994 and came in to force on February 4, 1995 in the State of Goa, Himachal Pradesh and Maharashtra.
It was later adopted by all states except Jammu and Kashmir, where the Central legislations have to be endorsed by the state Assembly.

2 in Karna, 3 in Pune die of swine flu

With two new swine flu deaths reported from Karnataka, the death toll due to H1N1 virus in the state has reached 75, while three more have died in Pune due to the virus, taking the toll in the city to 52, said reports.

In Karnataka, both the deaths were reported from Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases (RGICD) in Bangalore.

While Pushpa, a 28-year-old woman died at RGICD on September 12, 55-year-old Renuka died at the same hospital on September 13.

However, reports confirming that both the victims tested positive for the virus was received only on September 17, a health official said.

Out of 75 death reports, 55 were registered in Bangalore and rest from other parts of the state.

As a part of the ongoing H1N1 virus surveillance programme started in Bangalore by city's municipal corporation Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) in association with the health department, around 50 final year students from Bangalore Medical College (BMC) will assist experts.

"This is a mammoth task of visiting people door to door and checking people. We need qualified people to help experts in controlling the epidemic. Students are best suited for the job," said BBMP surveillance officer Manoranjan Hegde.

"The medical students will mostly create awareness about H1N1 influenza in the city. The students will also check for people with flu-like symptoms and provide them medical assistance," he added.

The surveillance will start September 22 and have students in teams of two. They will carry out the survey in K.R. Market and surrounding areas for two to three days.

Meanwhile, 22 more patients tested positive for the H1N1 virus in the state on Thursday. Out of these, 19 were reported from Bangalore, two in Chitradurga and one in Bagalkote.

With this the number of positive cases in the state has reached 829.

Meanwhile, the three who died late on Thursday in Pune in different hospitals were Prabhakar Gawde (38), Naresh Bhatia (35) and Sagar Bhalerao (7), hospital sources said.

EU summit targets India, China on G20 climate financing

The European Union (EU) has challenged rising powers India and China to brake their soaring greenhouse gas emissions in return for Western financial support.

"We need to make a credible financial commitment to the developing world. The equation is straightforward: no money, no deal, but if there are no actions, no money," European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said at an informal EU summit in Brussels on Thursday.

Next week, the leaders of the Group of 20 (G20) nations are set to meet in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with international funding for the fight against climate change high on the agenda.

According to estimates from the commission, the EU's executive, it will cost around 100 billion euros ($147 billion) per year by 2020 to fight climate change in developing countries.

Thursday's informal EU meeting echoed that estimate and a further call for quick-start money of 5 billion to 7 billion euros in aid to poorer countries per year up to 2012.

But in a clear challenge to rising powers such as Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa, EU leaders stated that "this estimate presupposes appropriate mitigating actions by developing countries, especially those that are economically more advanced".

Moreover, "all countries, except the least developed", should help pay the world's poorest states to fight climate change, the EU summit statement said.

That is a clear tightening of early drafts of the document, which only called for "ambitious mitigation reductions" around the world, without singling out any state or region.

The high-level EU and G20 meetings come in the countdown to a critical United Nations summit in Copenhagen, which is intended to seal a new global deal on fighting climate change.

EU leaders on Thursday were at pains to point out the urgency of finding a deal in December.

"The climate is changing much faster than expected. ... This underlines the urgent need to reach a global, ambitious and comprehensive agreement in Copenhagen," the joint statement said.

"The world has a fever: we need to stop the acting and start the action," said Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, whose country currently holds the EU's rotating presidency.

With just 80 days to go until the Copenhagen summit, there are 2,500 negotiating points that world powers still have to agree, said Reinfeldt, who will represent the EU in the Danish capital.

EU officials say that it will only be possible to reach a deal if the United States, historically the world's largest polluter, agrees to legally binding greenhouse-gas emission targets.

But US leaders have long maintained that they will only agree to such caps if the major developing powers pledge to brake the growth of their own soaring greenhouse-gas emissions.

The EU is therefore keen to bring the two sides by proposing a "global key", which would define rich and poor nations' responsibilities and calculate how much money each country should pay to the worldwide fight against climate change.

"You cannot move forward unless the world moves together. We have to bring in not just the old G8 (group of the world's leading developed economies): this involves all the countries of the world," British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said.

A week ago, the commission said that European taxpayers should pay from 2 billion to 15 billion euros per year toward the global fight against climate change by 2020, depending on whether the bill is calculated according to the EU's current wealth or greenhouse gas emissions.

Using the same formulae, the US would pay up to 12.6 billion euros per year, Japan 4.4 billion euros, China 7.9 billion euros and India 2 billion euros.

Blast kills 16 in Kabul

KABUL

Sept. 17: A suicide car bomber attacked an Italian military convoy in the heart of Afghanistan’s capital on Thursday, killing six Italian soldiers and 10 Afghan civilians.
The fourth major attack in the capital in five weeks, it was the latest reminder that even heavily guarded Kabul is vulnerable in a guerrilla war that has grown far beyond Taliban strongholds in the south.
The suicide bomber rammed his explosives-filled car into two Italian military vehicles about midday, Italian defence minister Ignazio La Russa said in Rome. He said six of those aboard were killed and four wounded.
Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed responsibility, saying in a text message that one of their militants carried out the suicide attack against Nato forces.
The explosion shattered windows in buildings about half a mile away and shook offices and homes throughout the central Afghan neighbourhood that houses a number of embassies and military bases.
Charred vehicles littered the area around the blast site — a road just off a main traffic circle that leads to the airport. An Associated Press reporter saw at least six vehicles burned, including an Italian Humvee, and two burned bodies that were later covered with plastic sheets.
The interior ministry said 10 Afghan civilians were killed and 55 wounded.
Shopkeeper Feraudin Ansari said he felt the blast in his store about 50 yards from the site. Windows were broken in all the shops on the street. He said he was angry at Nato forces for patrolling in downtown areas.
“Why are you patrolling inside the city? There is no Al Qaeda, no Taliban here,” 25-year-old Mr Ansari said.
“My shop is destroyed and my head hurts from the blast.” Violence has increased as the US sent thousands more troops to push back the resurgent Taliban and bolster security for last month’s presidential election.

Karzai defends integrity of polls

Kabul

Sept. 17: President Hamid Karzai on Thursday flatly denied major fraud in Afghanistan’s troubled elections and urged foreign allies not to interfere in probes over irregularities that could slash his clear lead. Afghans went to the polls in August to elect the President for only the second time in history with a Taliban insurgency at its deadliest since the 2001 US-led invasion replaced the Islamist regime with Western-backed rule.
The Independent Election Commission (IEC), which has been accused of bias towards Mr Karzai, has released results in an agonisingly slow process alongside mounting claims of massive vote-rigging in favour of the President.
On Wednesday, the final preliminary vote put Mr Karzai on track to be re-elected with 54.6 percent but recounts at more than 2,500 polling stations could yet tip the balance and force him into a run-off with his rival Abdullah Abdullah.
Addressing reporters publicly for the first time since the eve of the August 20 poll, Mr Karzai played down allegations of fraud and said he would respect investigations by the IEC and UN-backed Electoral Complaints Commission.
“Media has reported major fraud. It wasn’t that big. If there was fraud, it was small — it happens all over the world,” Mr Karzai told a news conference at his heavily fortified palace in the Afghan capital. But the President, whose nearly eight-year rule has been marred by worsening violence and cooling ties with the West, has been on a collision course with his international backers over fraud-tainted election.

No FDI in multi-brand retail in offing

Stockholm, Sept. 17: India is unlikely to allow foreign investment in multi-brand retail in the next couple of years, a top industry ministry official said.
“It’s a sensitive sector. I don’t see it happening, certainly not in one or two years,” the department of industrial policy and promotion, joint secretary, Mr Gopal Krishna, said during his interaction with Swedish industry captains.
India does not allow foreign investment in multi-brand retail, although it does permit 51 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in the single brand segment. The world’s biggest furniture retailer IKEA of Sweden recently dropped its $1 billion investment plan to set up single-brand retail outlets in India after New Delhi showed no inclination to allow FDI beyond 51 per cent in that segment.
“Retail is the second largest employer in India and there is a fear that opening up the sector for FDI will bring in extreme form of competition and the fears are not unfounded,” Mr Krishna said.
The commerce and industry minister, Mr Anand Sharma, along with officials from his ministry were in the Nordic country for a two-day visit. They were accompanied by the Indian industrialists led by the CII. However, he said 90 per cent of sectors are open including the entire manufacturing sector with the exception of defence.
He said the insurance bill which awaits the report of the Parliament Standing Committee is likely to be taken up by the Centre in the next six months

BHEL bucks economic slowdown

Hyderabad
Sept. 17: Despite the economic slowdown, power equipment maker BHEL has recorded an all-time high turnover of Rs 28,033 crore in the fiscal 2008-09, a growth of 31 per cent over the last fiscal.
Addressing the 45th annual general meeting of the company on Thursday, the chairman and managing director, Mr K. Ravi Kumar, said the PSU major’s exports have increased by a whopping 41 per cent at Rs 3,265 during the year.
“Despite an unprecedented increase in the raw material costs, the company has sustained its profitability and recorded its highest ever net profit of Rs 3,138 crore in 2008-09, which grew around 10 per cent over the previous fiscal,” he said. BHEL paid Rs 832 crore — 170 per cent of the paid-up capital — towards dividend to its shareholders during the year under consideration.
BHEL secured orders worth Rs 59,678 crore — the highest ever in a single year — including utility orders of 17,020 MW. The company has got Rs 13,320 crore orders in the fiscal and the order book has touched Rs 1,17,000 crore at the end of 2008-09.
BHEL has increased its manufacturing capacity to 15,000 MW annually and is planning to achieve 20,000 MW by 2012.
Outlining the trends in the global and domestic economies, the chairman said that the year 2008-09 has been a year of great turbulence “economically and politically and saw the economies of many countries on the brink of collapse with growth figures of many economies being revised downwards.”
He added, “The Indian economy grew by 6.7 per cent in 2008-09.”
Even in such an adverse business environment, he said that the company’s inherent strengths coupled with the Centre’s increased focus on building infrastructure continued to be a source of growth and competitive advantage.

Rangarajan sees ray of hope next year

Hyderabad
Sept. 17: Observing that globalisation spreads both prosperity and distress, Dr C. Rangarajan, the chairman of Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, said the country could recover from the economic slowdown in the second half of 2009-10 and in 2010-11.
“It (globalisation) cuts both ways. We will see definite signs of recovery in the second half of 2009-2010 and the economy will grow between six per cent and 6.5 per cent (2009-2010). The fiscal 2010-2011 will see a distinct improvement in growth and the economy will grow between seven and eight per cent,” he remarked. He added, “I believe, to achieve nine per cent growth, we have to wait for the world economy to improve and world trade to pick up. Interest rates may harden by end of this fiscal year.” The shock waves produced by the financial crisis would have its own repercussions on the structure of capitalism. Acceptable capitalism would require more regulation. Future discussions would centre on the nature and scope of such regulation, he said.
“Run-a-way financial innovations that are dysfunctional do more harm than good. These are the lessons that we can draw from the current financial crisis,” the veteran economist said.
Dr Rangarajan said that the accommodative policies of the Reserve Bank of India and the government may have to be slowly withdrawn. “There should not be a premature withdrawal unless there are signs of recovery,” he said. Later speaking to mediapersons on the sidelines of the International Conference on Global Economic Meltdown: Challenges and prospects organised by Disaster Management, Infrastructure and Control Society, Dr Rangarajan said he did not see RBI withdrawing its accommodative policy. Credit off take shows signs of recovery and this would pick up on demand.
He said stimulus packages were good and would continue till March next. “Inflows are improving. Disinvestment should be done at an appropriate time when the market is doing well,” he said.
Stating that the world was passing through a difficult time, he said the industrially advanced countries are now officially in recession. “This will be perhaps the deepest recession in the post-second world war period. We will see signs of recovery in India and rest of the world,” he predicted. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr K. Rosaiah, who was the chief guest, said the state’s revenues had grown at 18 per cent per annum during the last five years and as a proportion to GSDP, it was the highest for any State in the country.

KCR praises Nizam, kicks off row

Hyderabad
Sept. 17: The Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) president, Mr K. Chandrasekhar Rao, kicked off a controversy by praising the Nizam on the occasion of Hyderabad Liberation Day.
“If Sir Arthur Cotton is for you (people of coastal area), Nizam is for us,” he said.
The TRS chief’s comments have been controversial in the past but he remains unrelenting. Hyderabad Liberation Day is celebrated for merger of Hyderabad state with Union of India against the fascist Nizam rule and atrocities by Razakaars. Intellectuals have objected to the TRS chief praising Nizam in the past.
“When they can praise Sir Arthur Cotton for constructing a barrage across Godavari, why not Nizam for taking up Nizam Sagar which provides irrigation facilities for three lakh acres. When they can treat Cotton as a demi God why can’t we do so with the Nizam?” he asked.
“Why should some people continue to distort history? If they can praise a British born Cotton for his achievement, why not we do the same for Nizam? How long we should take diktats from others,” he said. The TRS chief said there was limit for everything and if some people still try to insult us, people of Telangana would not keep silent. The repercussions would be serious, he warned. The TRS chief said when he made a similar comment in the past it became a sacrilege.
“We are not backing Nizam on all accounts, but we certainly have to give credit to him if he deserves it in some cases. Whether the king is a Hindu or Muslim, if he had done something good for the people he should be given the credit,” he added. “Hyderabad Liberation day is not officially celebrated due to arrogance of present rulers,” he said.
Source::DC

State seeks Rs 9,000cr aid

Hyderabad

Sept. 17: The state government will seek a Central assistance of Rs 9,000 crore for drought relief measures.
The state government has already declared drought in 981 mandals. The Chief Minister, Mr K. Rosaiah, on Thursday asked the district collectors to send a mandal-wise update on the the drought situation so that more mandals can be added to the list if need be.
According to the information obtained from various departments, the state government will seek assistance of Rs 3,500 crore for the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NGERS), Rs 390 crore for agriculture and input subsidy, Rs 450 crore for both urban and rural drinking water, Rs 350 crore for animal husbandry, Rs 150 crore for horticulture and Rs 80 crore for integrated child development scheme.
The government will also seek assistance of Rs 4,500 crore under the Prime Minister Package for drought relief. The state had got Rs 1,900 crore in the early days of the Congress regime in 2004. That grant was utilised on agriculture and irrigation.
Sources in agriculture department said crop in about nine lakh hectares of land was damaged due to drought-like conditions.

Rosaiah forgets he is CM

Hyderabad
Sept. 17: The Chief Minister, Mr K. Rosaiah, is still to come to terms with the fact that he is now the head of the state cabinet.
This was evident from the video conference he held with district collectors in which he made several remarks as if he was still the finance minister and the final decision had to be taken by the ‘Chief Minister’.
For instance, while referring to the emptying of the existing stocks with rice millers to accommodate the produce in the coming kharif, Mr Rosaiah said the Chief Minister and civil supplies minister would immediately look into the matter. Then he corrected himself and said, “We would look into the matter.”
Likewise, while talking about Rajiv Arogyasri, he said the Chief Minister had developed a fool proof system to extend the benefit of the health insurance scheme to all the needy. Then he added that he meant the late Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy.
Surely, Mr Rosaiah alone cannot be blamed for all this since his ministers have not made him feel so far that he is their Chief Minister.

Congressmen on fast to make Jagan CM

Ongole
Sept. 17: The Prakasam district youth Congress president, Mr K.V. Ramana Reddy, on Thursday locked the district Congress office seeking the elevation of Mr Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy as the new Chief Minister of state.
He added that Congress activists have started fasting in 56 mandals of the district which will continue till their demands are met.
Mr Ramana Reddy requested the Congress High-Command to organise a meet of the legislature party to appoint Mr Jagan Mohan as the new Chief Minister.
He added that only the welfare schemes initiated by the former Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy resulted in victory of the Congress in the recent elections.
So, AICC should select Mr Jagan to continue those popular schemes.
He vowed that they will continue fasting before the district congress committee office and will not open the office till any action is taken.
Meanwhile, the Union minister of state for steel, Mr A. Saipratap, reiterated the demand to make Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy the Chief Minister while withdrawing a eleven day hunger strike by Congress activists in Nandalur in Kadapa on Thursday.
Speaking on the occasion, the minister said that he would sacrifice his life for Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy’s family and said that he was associated with the former Chief Minister for the last 30 years.
He opined that no other chief minister developed the state like YSR who helped the downtrodden, farmers and widows in the state.
Speaking on the occasion, the Rajampeta legislator, Mr Akeypati Amarnath Reddy, said: “The Congress high command has to keep in mind the public opinion and make Mr Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy the next Chief Minister.”

2 divers in UK find relic headed for city

London, Sept. 17: Two British divers made a remarkable discovery off the Sussex coast when they scooped a memorial plaque from a wrecked ship that was carrying it to Mumbai in 1912.
The plaque was due to be erected in Secunderabad, in a memorial ceremony to commemorate the soldiers who had died of cholera while stationed there.
The two divers from Tunbridge Wells Sub Aqua Club, Mr Jamie Smith and Mr Geoff Mulligan, were diving off the coast of Eastbourne when they came across a brass memorial plaque. “We cleaned it up to see what was on it and contacted the Receiver of Wreck at the Maritime and Coastguard Agency to help identify it,” he added.
“I spotted the edge of the plaque and bagged it up to be sent to the surface for closer inspection. I didn’t realise it would be such an interesting and unusual find,” said Mr Smith.
It has since been discovered that the plaque was aboard the Oceana, a P&O liner heading to Mumbai from Essex.
It reached the Sovereign Shoals, near Eastbourne, on March 15, 1912, where it hit a steel vessel, Pisagua. It was too late before the liner noticed the vessel and she sank.
The Sherwood Foresters Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment were stationed there between 1819 and 1836, reports from Kent said.
Mr Smith said: “I’ve been diving with the club in Tunbridge Wells for over 15 years now and this is my first major find.”
Mr Mulligan said: “When we first found it I thought it could be a commemorative plaque for lost souls on the wreck but then we realised it was destined for Bombay and the significance of it.”
Mr Smith did not want salvage rights, but wants the plaque returned to the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regimental Museum in Nottingham, ending its 97-year journey.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

India in terror, Maoist pincer

New Delhi
Sept. 15: The Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, said on Tuesday that infiltration from across the Line of Control and also via other routes such as Nepal, Bangladesh and the sea is “going up”.

Addressing the DGPs conference attended by the home minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, and the national security advisor, Mr M.K. Narayanan, Mr Singh described as “worrisome” attempts by secessionist and militant groups in Jammu and Kashmir to make common cause with “outside elements”.

Terming left wing extremism (LWE) the “gravest internal security threat”, he said that despite all efforts, the level of violence in the Naxalite-affected states “continues to rise”.

He also said the situation in the North-Eastern part of the country is “far from comfortable” especially in Manipur and Assam, where current levels of violence were cause for concern.

Favouring a new-age policeman who is well trained, more professional and suitably empowered, he said Central and state governments need to take quick action to strengthen policing at the grassroots level. “The police station has to be the fulcrum around which this needs to take place,” he said.

Describing as “worrisome” increasing inflitration from across the LoC, the Prime Minister said, “Infiltration across the LoC and also via other routes such as Nepal, Bangladesh and the sea is going up. Encounters with armed militants have become more frequent in recent weeks and months.”

In a veiled reference to infiltrators from Pakistan, Mr Singh said that “secessionist and militant groups” within J&K along with “outside elements” have embarked on a series of protest movements with the apparent intention of creating an impression of widespread turmoil in the state.

“We must not and I repeat we must not allow such a situation to develop. It is imperative that these disruptive efforts are contained, controlled and effectively checked,” he said. Mr Singh said dealing with Maoists requires a “nuanced” strategy.”

KVP tells Jagan to call off yatra

Hyderabad
Sept. 15: Mr K.V.P. Ramachandra Rao, close friend of the late YSR, has reportedly urged the latter’s son, Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy, to drop his plan for a ‘yatra’ to console families of people who died of shock after hearing of his father’s death.

Mr Rao, who is lobbying hard to make Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy the successor of YSR, felt that this was not an opportune moment to take out a yatra. However, Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy will be visiting Idupulapaya, Pulivendula and Chinthagundam, the crash site in Nallamalai Hills, by this weekend even as the political uncertainty over YSR’s successor continued in the state.

Mr Rao, who returned from Delhi after talks with the party high command, briefed ministers and MLAs of the Jagan camp at his residence in Banjara Hills. He apparently told them the brass had “overall” been positive to the request to make Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy the Chief Minister. Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy’s loyalists persuaded Mr Rao to continue his push with the high command.

He is likely to leave for Delhi on Wednesday. “Everything is left to Mrs Sonia Gandhi,” he said. “We hope the high command will take an appropriate decision in accordance with the prevailing public opinion.”

Nurse in Gandhi infected by flu

Hyderabad

Sept. 15: A senior nurse working in the isolation ward of Gandhi Hospital was tested positive for swine flu on Tuesday.
According to sources, the nurse was affected due to lack of masks and gloves in the isolation wards, out patient departments, etc.
The nurse was examined when she developed flu symptoms a few days ago. She was allegedly exposed to the deadly virus while handling patients, a source said. Her blood samples were taken by the swine flu department and sent to the Institute of Preventive Medicine, the source added.
The superintendent of Gandhi hospital, Dr K. Ashok, said that he was not sure if the nurse was affected by swine flu or some other illness. “However, as a precautionary measure, we have given her the required dosage of Tamiflu,” he said.
On the lack of preventive measures for the nursing staff in the hospital, Dr Ashok said that all staff members were given protective gear.
Doctors and nurses handling samples are also provided full-fledged protective clothing so that they remain safe while handling the H1N1 positive patients and their samples, he said.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday eight more cases tested positive for swine flu by the Institute of Preventive Medicine (IPM). The state health secretary, Mr Ram Reddy, told this newspaper that more than 13 patients are being treated at the Chest Hospital. Among them no one is serious, and medical teams have already supplied Tamiflu capsules to relatives of the patients to keep the virus under control, he said.

Another finance firm shuts shop in city

Hyderabad

Sept. 15: City Limouzines India Limited, a finance company, wound up business in the city on Tuesday by duping scores of customers. The quantum of the financial fraud is yet to be ascertained as the police is yet to verify the transaction books.
About 50 customers, who came to know of the fraud, rushed to the city branch office of the firm at Abids. On noticing the office was closed, they approached the Abids police station. They demanded that the company chairman, Mr Vikas Mehta, be arrested and their money returned to them.
The police booked a case against the company at around 8.30 pm under Section 420 (cheating) of IPC.
According to a complaint lodged with the Abids police, Mr Vikas and others floated the firm with its head office in Mumbai. It is alleged that the company was operating with a fake RBI licence since 2006. Its registered office is said to be located in Mumbai.
An investor from Golnaka, Mr M. Srinivas, said the company’s regional manager, Mr Wajid Khan, lured them into investing their money. The company had issued preference shares in the name of City Realcom Limited, and lured gullible investors by asking them to invest a minimum of Rs 1,30,000 with a promise that the investor would get a monthly return of Rs 7775 per Rs 1.30 lakh. The company paid interest every month for three years, but its cheques started bouncing since August.
Another victim of the firm, Mr Layk Ali, blamed the police for its failure to check the menace of fly-by-night firms. “The police punish ordinary motorists, but when it comes to financial fraud, they turn a blind eye. The Abids police does know that a fraud company is operating in its vicinity,” he alleged.

Tirupati laddus get GI status

Tirupati/New Delhi

Sept. 15: The famous Tirupati laddu given as prasadam to lakhs of devotees at the Lord Venkateswara Temple for three centuries has been awarded geographical copyright.
The “geographical indication” status makes the Tirumala-Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), which runs the renowned shrine, the exclusive manufacturer and marketer of the laddu.
It was in March 2008 that the TTD Trust Board submitted its application to the Geographical Indication Registry in Chennai. “The laddu is now protected under law and nobody can copy it,” said Mr G.L. Verma, assistant registrar of Trade Marks and GI in Chennai.
The high demand for the laddu from devotees had spawned a major black market trade in and around the temple in the last two decades. Fake laddus were sold all over. The TTD is hoping that the GI status would end this.
The mouth watering laddu is prepared using Besan flour, sugar, cashew nuts, cardamom, ghee, oil, sugar candy, raisins and almonds.
It comes in two sizes — the small one weighs about 174 grams, whereas the big ones weigh between 700 and 720 grams. About 2.5 lakh laddus are prepared daily in the temple. The laddu was priced just Rs 3 in 1989 but now sells at Rs 25 a piece.
Historians say that laddu prasadam was first given to devotees 300 years ago during the times of the Mahants at Tirumala.
But history alone cannot explain the allure of the laddu. It is the legend that sanctifies it. According to lore, the laddu was first prepared by Goddess Vakula Devi, mother of Lord Venkateswara, since it was the favorite dish of her son. Perhaps that is why devotees feel that extra savour in it.

US, NATO plan to persuade Taliban leaders to switch loyalties

Adopting the 'sons of Iraq' strategy, the US and Nato forces in Afghanistan have initiated a plan to persuade middle and low level Taliban commanders to switch loyalties, a top American military leader has said.

The strategy called 'sons of Iraq' was first adopted by the British forces in Baghdad where many Iraqi insurgents were persuaded to join self-defence militias.

A similar kind of program had worked in Iraq and the US commanders believe that it would yield desired results in Afghanistan too, Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told US law makers.

"There is a British general by the name of Graham Lamb who did this in Iraq and who is now working for General McChrystal and has initiated putting in place a program to focus on mid-level and lower-level fighters who would like to turn themselves in and do so in a way, they are both protected and that they have a future, so, in that regard, similar to Sons of Iraq," Mullen said.

The programme would involve Afghan leaders initially. "We're really at the beginning of right now. So we're not very far down that road," Mullen said in response to a question at a Congressional hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Congress-NCP seat-sharing talks remain inconclusive

A three-hour-long meeting to finalise the seat-sharing formula between Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) for the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections remained inconclusive late on Tuesday night, a Congress leader said.

Another meeting is slated on Wednesday to finalise the seat-sharing arrangements, the leader said.

This was the first and much-anticipated official round of talks between the two parties, held at 'Varsha', the official residence of Chief Minister Ashok Chavan.

Earlier, state Congress chief Manikrao Thakre held a meeting with A.K. Antony, the Congress general secretary in-charge of the state to discuss the modalities for the talks with the NCP.

NCP circles claimed that the two parties shall contest the Oct 13 elections jointly. The Congress-NCP alliance Democratic Front is ruling Maharashtra since 1999 and is hoping to do a hat-trick.

In the 2004 assembly polls, the Congress contested 157 of the 288 seats and the NCP fought 127 seats, leaving the rest to their allies. The NCP won 71 seats while the Congress got 69.

In the April-May Lok Sabha elections, the Congress contested 25 of the 48 seats in the state and won 17, while the NCP got only eight of the 21 seats it contested.

Several Congress leaders, including Heavy Industries Minister and former chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh have been advocating that the party should go it alone in the assembly elections.

Rahul’s train to Delhi stoned near Panipat

New Delhi

Sept. 15: Miscreants pelted stones at the Amritsar-New Delhi Shatabdi Express in which the AICC general secretary, Mr Rahul Gandhi, was travelling back to New Delhi.
Carrying forward the austerity drive, Mr Gandhi travelled to Ludhiana in the Shatabdi Express chair car giving up the comforts of executive class he is entitled to.
Later on his way back, his train was stoned by miscreants on Tuesday evening near Gharaunda town near Panipat, in Haryana. No one was injured, officials said. The incident took place around 9.45 pm.
Mr Gandhi boarded the train in Ludhiana where he addressed the youth congress workers of Punjab.
Some window panes of three coaches — C1, C2 and C4 — were broken when some youth stoned the train. The Northern Railways spokesman said that 39-year-old Rahul was in the C3 bogie amid reports that Mr Gandhi was not perturbed. A probe has been ordered into the incident. According to reports, the stone-pelters were youth in the age of group of 18 to 25 years.
Earlier in the day, during the journey to Ludhiana, the Congress MP maintained the sanctity of the travel by not causing any inconvenience to his co-passengers.
He had custard and omelette for breakfast preferring them over the paranthas, curd, idli, vada and fruits offered by the catering staff.
Mr Gandhi refused special cutlery offered to him by the catering staff and did not accept the flowers presented to him at the station, terming it as the privilege of the executive class passengers.
The railway minister, Ms Mamata Banerjee, was quick to appreciate the move. “It is a good thing. Rahul is a good boy,” she said.

CBI told to take over Shopian case

New Delhi, Sept. 15: : Its reservations against taking over the case notwithstanding, the Central Bureau of investigation (CBI) was on Tuesday asked by the Central government to investigate the alleged rape and murder of two women in the Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir.
“The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has issued a notification under Section five of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act and the CBI will take over the case in a day or two,” CBI spokesman Harsh Bahal said on Tuesday.
CBI director Ashwani Kumar had said on Sunday that the agency had informed the government about its reservations on taking up the case but left the final decision to the government.
The Jammu and Kashmir government had on September 9 approached the Centre for ordering a CBI probe into the alleged rape and murder, which had sparked widespread street protests in Shopian for days together, after the Special Investigating Team of the state failed to make any breakthrough into the case.
A notification issued by the state requested for a CBI probe into death of Neelofar, 22, and Aasiya, 17 whose bodies were found on May 30.

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