Wanted, an aircraft to study clouds

New Delhi, July 27: The Union earth sciences ministry has pencilled a proposal to acquire an aircraft to study clouds in an attempt to tackle gaps in weather prediction science that are handicapping current forecasts of rainfall and other weather phenomena.

The aircraft will carry instruments for the study of cloud formation and cloud microphysics and help supplement atmospheric data currently available through instruments on weather balloons, earth sciences secretary Shailesh Nayak said.

BJP pushes, Yeddy digs in heels Delhi talks stretch late into the night

New Delhi, July 27: The BJP leadership was trying desperately to persuade Karnataka chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa to resign after he was indicted in the Lokayukta report on illegal mining but he was resisting strongly in a meeting that dragged on for over three hours till early morning.

At 2.30am, Arun Jaitley, Rajnath Singh and M. Venkaiah Naidu were still at party president Nitin Gadkari’s home arguing with Yeddyurappa that his position had become untenable, sources said. The meeting had started at 11pm.

Cop death

Lucknow, July 27: A police constable collapsed during a 10km run today for a physical test mandatory for promotion to inspector and died in hospital, triggering an uproar against the “cruel” endurance exam that claimed another cop last week.

A deputy superintendent of police who was conducting the test in Azamgarh, about 280km from Lucknow, said Ali Suzma “started off well” but fainted after crossing 5km.

Soldier killed on talks day

Srinagar, July 27: A junior commissioned officer was killed and two jawans were injured in a gunfight with militants at the Line of Control the very morning foreign ministers of India and Pakistan met in New Delhi to discuss confidence-building measures.

The encounter in the Machil sector of Kupwara began early in the day and, according to the defence spokesperson, it was continuing in the evening.

Teesta breather

Ahmedabad, July 27: Rights activist Teesta Setalvad, who faces allegations of levelling false charges against some Gujarat riots accused, today got a breather when a sessions court reserved its order till August 2 on her anticipatory bail plea.

This means Gujarat police cannot arrest the Mumbai-based activist in the Naroda Gam riot case till that date.

Village head's killers held

Delhi Police claimed to have solved a murder case by arresting a person on Tuesday. According to police, the accused, identified as Sanjay, was involved in the murder of Hayatpur village sarpanch Rakesh Yadav. Another accused, Sanjay's brother Rakesh, is still on the run.


Sanjay, who was arrested by Delhi Police's Crime Branch on Tuesday.
Pic/Nitish Arora

"On July 26, Sanjay was held near Rohini Plaza, Sector 10, following a tip-off. He and his younger brother Rakesh had hired a criminal to kill sarpanch of Hayatpur. On June 23, they murdered Yadav. The brothers managed to flee but villagers caught the hired killer and lynched him," said Ashok Chand, DCP (crime and railways).

Cops finally catch Andheri parent-killer

The 58-year-old Moiz Bharmal, who had allegedly killed his parents in the MIDC area a few days ago, has been arrested by officers of the Mumbai Crime Branch.
The police claimed that Bharmal wanted to sell off the flat in which he was staying with his parents, but they were against it.
The police also claimed that Bharmal blamed his parents for the suicide of his wife in 2004. These reasons reportedly drove him to kill his parents.

Norwegian mass killer's manifesto hails Hindutva

Norwegian mass killer Anders Behring Breivik hailed India's Hindu nationalist movement as a key ally in a global struggle to bring down democratic regimes across the world.

‘2080: A European declaration of independence' lays out a road map for a future organisation, the Justiciar Knights, to wage a campaign that will graduate from acts of terrorism to a global war involving weapons of mass destruction — aimed at bringing down what Breivik calls the “cultural Marxist” order.

India figures in a remarkable 102 pages of the sprawling 1,518-page manifesto. Breivik's manifesto says his Justiciar Knights “support the Sanatana Dharma movements and Indian nationalists in general.” In section 3.158 of the manifesto, he explains that Hindu nationalists “are suffering from the same persecution by the Indian cultural Marxists as their European cousins.”

JPC: Ex-telecom secy says overruled Gujral

Former telecom secretary A V Gokak on Wednesday told the JPC probing the 2G scam that he over-ruled a directive by then PM I K Gujral in 1997 that the Department of Telecom- munications ask TRAI to study the demands made by telecom operators and come out with a report. Gokak, telecom secretary between November 1996 and August 1998, told the panel that,instead, he assigned the task to Bureau of Industrial Cost and Pricing and the ICICI Bank as he wanted “expeditious” report.
Since the telecom industry, he reasoned, was then at a nascent stage and not in the best of financial health, TRAI may not have delivered.

“Not at all,” JPC chief Chacko said when asked if the committee was convinced by Gokak’s arguments. On the role of the then telecom minister in the matter, Chacko said, “He was not consulted (by Gokak)”.
Though Gokak maintained that he outsourced the study to get the report fast and help the industry,the report came after 11 months, in November 1998, when Gokak had retired.

JPC to quiz former Telecom Secys from tomorrow

The Joint Parliamentary Committee on 2G scam will quiz Telecom Secretaries who served during the initial years of NDA rule, when the controversial migration policy was unveiled for cellular operators.
A V Gokak, who served as Telecom Secretary between November 1996 and August 1998 will appear tommorow before the JPC headed by Congress leader P C Chacko in connection with the 2G spectrum allocation scam.

DMK strongman Veerapandi gets bail in land-grab cases

SALEM: DMK strongman and former minister Veerapandi S Arumugam was granted anticipatory bail by a local court on Wednesday in connection with land-grabbing cases after three days of custodial interrogation at the central crime branch here. He had surrendered to the authorities on Monday.

Fifth judicial magistrate B Sarath Raj granted bail to Arumugam, DMK's Salem district secretary, on furnishing of sureties. The police interrogated Arumugam at the crime branch in compliance with the condition imposed by Madras high court after hearing his anticipatory bail petition. He had moved the high court in the Angammal Colony and Premier Mill land grabbing cases.

Veerapandi Arumugam gets conditional bail

He has been directed to appear before the CCB at 8 am every day

After keeping the DMK strongman and former minister Veerapandi S Arumugam under the ‘custodial interrogation' for three days from Monday in connection with two land grab cases in which he has been named as Accused No.1, the Central Crime Branch (CCB) Police on Wednesday produced him before the Salem Judicial Magistrate No.5, who had enlarged him on conditional bail

Sharjah : 17 Indians on Death Row to Walk Free

 








CHANDIGARH/SHARJAH, Jul 27 (IANS): Seventeen Indian youth on a death row in the United Arab Emirates for the death of a Pakistani national could walk free October after members of the Indian community in Dubai deposited "blood money" in a court in Sharjah Wednesday to secure a pardon for them.
Community representatives, led byDubai hotelier S.P. Singh Oberoi, deposited 3.4 million dirhams (Rs.40.8 million/Rs.4 crore) with the Sharjah court in the presence of Mohammed Ramzan, a representative of victim Misri Khan's family.

Blood money deposited, Indians await verdict

Dubai: The 17 Indians on death row in UAE for killing a Pakistani man were officially pardoned on Wednesday by the family members of the deceased after an Indian businessman deposited a sum of Rs 40.47 million in a blood money deal.
The development brings the possibility of their being released and returned home nearer, with the judge setting a September 12 date for giving a verdict in the case.
Dubai-based businessman SP Singh Oberoi deposited the money on behalf of the Indian community as compensation in the Sharjah Appeals Court hearing the case of the 2009 murder.

Dubai-based businessman SP Singh Oberoi deposited the money on behalf of the Indian community.

CMO murders: HC orders CBI probe, sets 3-month limit

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday directed the CBI to probe the murders of Dr Vinod Arya and Dr B P Singh, both former chief medical officers of family welfare in Lucknow, and file a report in three months.

Passing the order on a PIL filed by an NGO ‘We, the people’, a division bench of Justices Pradeep Kant and Ritu Raj Awasthi also directed the CBI to investigate two cases of financial irregularities in the office of the Lucknow CMO, which had surfaced during the investigation of Singh’s murder in April.
Arya was shot dead by motorcycle riders while he was taking a morning walk near his Vikas Nagar residence on October 27 last year. His successor Singh was killed in an identical manner near his Gomti Nagar residence on April 2. Investigation showed that at least one of the weapons used in both crimes was common.

HC orders CBI probe in CMO murders, Lucknow health scam

After the mysterious death of Deputy Chief Medical Officer Y S Sachan in a Lucknow jail, the Allahabad High Court today asked the CBI to also probe the murders of two of his former senior colleagues in Lucknow and complete the investigations within three months.

The order was passed by a Lucknow Bench comprising Justices Pradeep Kant and Ritu Raj Awasthi just a week after the Mayawati government had recommended a CBI probe into the deaths of Chief Medical Officers V K Arya and B P Singh and the health department scam of which the murders were believed to be a fallout.
The court directed the CBI to complete the investigation into both the murders within three months period.
The court on last Friday reserved its order on the pending PIL seeking direction for the CBI probe into the murder of two CMOs in the state capital.
In the last hearing, the chargesheet, case diary along with entire records related to police investigations in the murders were submitted on the direction of the High Court.

Embattled Patil bats for Mumbai Police

Mumbai: While claiming that the Mumbai Police is number one in the country, home minister RR Patil announced on Tuesday that his department is contemplating additional force and technological facilities for key cities. These include Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Aurangabad and Nagpur.
He said that because the density of population in Mumbai was the highest in the country, the ratio of police and people was lower than Punjab and other key states. Patil added that even after the recruitment of 13,000 personnel this time, the force will not be able to match that of Punjab with respect to numbers. However, key cities in the state face different type of problems and need additional force to tackle them, he said.

‘DMK backstabbed us during Assembly polls'

CHENNAI:  Presided by founder leader Dr S Ramadoss, the general council of the PMK met here against the backdrop of the recent electoral drubbing and resolved to pull out of the DMK-led alliance.In a resolution, the party said an alternative force ‘that could give life and hope’ to the people was both the need of the hour and an absolute necessity. “The PMK is desirous of leading an alternative front only to fulfill this historic duty and need.”Although the party had been a part of different coalitions, the PMK never compromised on its core ideology. 

Be it the reservation policy, education, language, agriculture, liquor prohibition or the Eelam issue, the party had never compromised, nor had failed to fight for the people, the resolution noted.“It is resolved to slog for the rights of the people of Tamil Nadu by creating an alternative front to the parties that have ruled the State. The PMK invites parties, organisations, democrats, liberals and human rights activists to join the front.” Earlier, many party functionaries, including PMK State general secretary Vadivel Ravanan,  participating in the meet, said people were not benefited by the rule of both the Dravidian parties. It would not be possible ‘to do good to the people’ by aligning with them.Some PMK functionaries demanded that the party severe its links with the DMK as it “backstabbed” PMK in several constituencies, including Paramathivelur, in the Assembly elections.Some functionaries, however told Express, that the timing of the decision may not be correct. “Reasons like backstabbing were given when the party quit the DMK previously too. If the party had taken this decision at the height of the killings in Sri Lanka, it could have got a moral high ground.”A total of 14 resolutions were passed at the meet, including the one that declared quitting the DMK front.  PMK president GK Mani, former Union ministers Anbumani Ramadoss, AK Murthy and MLA J Guru were among those who participated.

RR Patil orders probe into pilgrim mishap

MUMBAI: Home minister RR Patil on Wednesday announced a high-level probe into the road tragedy and the subsequent police firing on a crowd, which turned violent after a mishap at the Ambad-Jalna road in Marathwada recently.

The inquiry will be conducted by a retired high court judge, Patil said in the state assembly. He said this in a discussion on an adjournment motion on the mishap. The motion was moved by leader of the Opposition in the assembly, Eknath Khadse, and others. The issue was also raised in the legislative council by leader of the Opposition, Pandurang Phundkar.

PMK vows not to align with Dravidian parties in future

Alleging that the “sloganeering and empty rhetoric” of the Dravidian parties had resulted in Tamil Nadu losing its land, culture, language and rights over sharing of inter-State rivers, the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) founder S. Ramadoss on Wednesday vowed that his party would lead an alternative front in future elections, beginning with the local body elections in the State.

BRPSE favours merger of four state-owned construction cos

A top government body for PSUs revival has made a case for merger of four state-owned construction firms, including NBCC and Hindustan Prefab, arguing that there is great synergy between them.     
The Board for Reconstruction of Public Sector Enterprises (BRPSE) has constituted a task force to examine different options which may include project-based consortium for business bids, sources said.
However, there is an opposition to the proposal in two of the cases-National Project Construction Corporation Ltd (NPCC) and Hindustan Prefab Ltd (HPL), they said.     

Hazare: Cabinet must present a strong Lokpal Bill in Parliament

The Hindu Social activist and member of the Lokpal Bill drafting committee Anna Hazare with Arvind Kejriwal, Prashant Bhushan and Swami Agnivesh during a press conference in New Delhi. File photo

Social activist Anna Hazare on Wednesday appealed to the Union Cabinet to come out with a Lokpal Bill that has “the right structure and strong foundation.”

Asserting that the government's version of the Bill that was presented in the joint drafting committee meeting fell short of people's expectations, Mr. Hazare said it did not address the day-to-day corruption faced by the common man.

Gr Noida admin to open talks with villagers

Discussions on ‘abadi’ land, 6 per cent developed property as compensation, more money for acquired land
A day after the Allahabad High Court sent a bunch of petitions on the Noida Extension row to a larger bench, the Greater Noida Authority announced it was ready to open talks with residents of Patwari village, where state acquisition of farm land had earlier been quashed by the High Court.

Greater Noida Authority CEO Rama Raman said on Wednesday that a notice has been sent to the pradhan of Patwari, asking him to convene a panchayat and select a committee comprising the villagers.
The Authority has not fixed a date for the meeting. Pradeep Yadav, a Patwari farmer, said the notice had reached the village, and a panchayat would be held soon.
Raman said three issues will be addressed broadly during the talks. They comprise ‘abadi,’ or populated lands; six per cent of the developed property with which farmers would be compensated; and the increased compensation for the acquired land. CEO Raman listed the three issues in that order, and when pointed out that the third pointer on his list is the farmer’s primary demand, he said, “We are ready to talk to them on all issues. It is too premature to discuss the amount of compensation now.”

Lokpal Bill goes to Union Cabinet today

New Delhi: The Union Cabinet, Thursday, will discuss the government's version of Lokpal Bill which is to be introduced in the Monsoon session, set to begin August 1.

The most important among the issues that will be mulled over is the one concerning the demand by the civil society to bring Prime Minister, higher judiciary and MPs under the ambit of the proposed Lokpal.

Yeddyurappa government hangs by a thread

The survival of the first Bharatiya Janata Party government in Karnataka hangs by a thread with Lokayukta N. Santosh Hegde indicting Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa and proposing to Governor H.R. Bhardwaj that criminal action be initiated against Mr. Yeddyurappa.

A decision on the removal or continuance of Mr. Yeddyurappa as Chief Minister, however, rests with the BJP high command. It is the first time in the history of the State Lokayukta that a case has been made out against a Chief Minister.

India, Pakistan officials claim new era in relations

NEW DELHI — The foreign ministers of India and Pakistan spoke of entering a new era in relations between their nuclear-armed nations, after meeting Wednesday for the first time since bilateral peace talks resumed this year.
While no major breakthroughs on their thorny disputes had been expected, the two agreed to work more closely in fighting terrorism and to ease commerce and travel across the UN-drawn Line of Control dividing their nations.

No compromise on Hyderabad, Telangana leaders tell Azad

As Congress MPs from the Telangana region made it clear that they would not participate in the Parliament session commencing from August 1 unless the Centre took some concrete action on the Statehood issue, party seniors from the region has conveyed to Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad that there was no question of compromising on Hyderabad and it should be the capital of the new Telangana State.

Azad to drag on 'Telangana' for 2 more months

HYDERABAD/NEW DELHI: The Congress high command’s move to hold parleys with Telangana and Andhra leaders is being seen as a “welcome” development since many T activists believe it to be the first decisive action to resolve the T issue.Though no one knows what the party wants to do at the end of the consultations, initiation of the exercise is reflective of the Congress decision to reach a stage on the statehood issue where it can take an informed decision instead of putting it on the backburner and making empty statements.

“No one knows what is going on in the minds of the top leaders in Congress. The Andhra and Telangana leaders are making their moves in response to the indications emanating from the Centre,” a senior leader said. After the meeting with AICC general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday, the delegation of Telangana leaders, who had given a power-point presentation on why the state should be divided, came out with hopeful hearts. During the three-hour presentation, they also explained the historic need for keeping Hyderabad in a future Telangana state. They also reportedly took strong exception to the remarks of Home Minister P Chidambaram that Telangana cannot be solved easily.  After the meeting, Industries minister J Geeta Reddy said: “Compared to Monday, we have come out of the meeting with Azad with more hope. As it is Ramzan season now, the consultations process might take more time but within two-three months, Azad would be able to submit a report to the party leadership. We are hopeful it would be in favour of bifurcation of the state.” Though what’s Azad stand is anybody’s guess, at least the consultations have given the Congress leaders some hope.

India-Pakistan talks: A breath of fresh air

   

Though the various issues bedevilling the bilateral relations between India and Pakistan remain stuck, Hina Rabbani Khar has sought to change the ambiance of the bilateral interactions by introducing an element of decency in discourse that was markedly absent under her predecessor, says B Raman.
Hina Rabbani Khar, the young and seemingly forward-looking foreign minister of Pakistan, brought in a breath of fresh air during her short visit to New Delhi on July 26-27, for talks with her Indian counterpart S M Krishna to review the progress in the dialogue process covering various issues since the last meeting of Krishna with her predecessor, Shah Mehmood Qureshi at Islamabad in July last year.

What a near diplomatic disaster the previous meeting between Krishna and Qureshi was due to the totally negative and undiplomatic attitude of Qureshi who used the joint press conference at the end of the talks and another interaction with the media subsequently to talk disparagingly of the Indian foreign minister and in unduly critical terms on India's attitude to the dialogue process -- particularly on the Kashmir issue!

BJP convenes Parliamentary Board meet; Yeddy likely to go

The BJP Parliamentary Board will meet here today to decide the fate of Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa amidst signs that his continuance in office could be untenable in wake of the Lokayukta indictment in the mining scam.
The top brass of the BJP will meet this morning at the residence of BJP President Nitin Gadkari, who met Yeddyurappa late last night.

Yeddyurappa, who continued to be defiant and ruled out his resignation, left for Bangalore early this morning. He has a convened of meeting of party MLAs this morning in the Karnataka capital.
Sources said usually a meeting of the Parliamentary Board, the party's highest decision making body, is called only when some big decision has to be taken, and this is also a pointer that Yeddyurappa's time is up.
Upon his arrival here last evening with his ministers and close confidants, Yeddyurappa appeared defiant and said he has not been asked to resign.

India's players are not well looked after: Nasser Hussain

Calcutta (The Telegraph): Former England captain Nasser Hussain has called India a "ragged" side, whose players are not well looked after due to the IPL, and insisted that this would precisely be the reason why the English would go past them in the ongoing Test series.
"India? Let's face it, they were very ragged. It's been noticeable that the guys who have done well for them in this Test, Ishant Sharma, Praveen Kumar, Rahul Dravid; were all out in the Caribbean recently," Hussain wrote in the Daily Mail.

Auto, realty sectors unhappy at interest rate hike

New Delhi, July 26 (IANS) Automobile and realty sectors Tuesday voiced reservations over the RBI decision to hike interest rates by 50 basis points to tame inflation, which sets the stage for commercial banks to raise interest charged on personal and corporate loans.
'If today's rate increase is passed on to the retail lending rate for cars, it will further impact the sales,' Arvind Saxena, director, marketing and sales, Hyundai Motor India Ltd, told IANS.
Saxena said the impact of the latest hike in basis points would be more on the small car segment.
'The impact is felt more on the small car segment as the customers have relatively lower affordability,' Saxena said.

Ramesh wipes shoe with khadi garland, Congress fumes

New Delhi, July 26 (IANS) Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh has stirred a controversy by wiping his shoe with a garland of spun cotton (khadi) given to him as a token of respect by Congress workers at a function in Rajasthan, with his party Tuesday conveying its disapproval.

Congress general secretary Janardan Dwivedi conveyed the party's disappointment over Ramesh's action without directly naming him.

Yeddyurappa can be tried for corruption, says Hegde

 

Bangalore, July 27 (IANS) Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa can be prosecuted for corruption, Lokayukta N. Santosh Reddy said Wednesday after submitting his report on illegal mining in the state and added that a decision on the matter rested with Governor H.R. Bhardwaj.

Some firms involved in illegal mining gave donations to trusts run by Yeddyurappa's kin and also purchased land from them paying exorbitant prices, Hegde said.

 

Rakhi Sawant desires to marry Yoga guru Baba Ramdev

New Delhi, July 27 (ANI):Controversial Bollywood actress and TV personality Rakhi Sawant expressed her willingness to marry Yoga guru Baba Ramdev. While addressing mediapersons on the sidelines of a promotional event in New Delhi, Sawant spoke of how she also admired Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi. The Drama queen admitted that Ramdev's yoga sessions have made an impact on her life.

Sanjay Dutt plays it safe

Not wanting ruffles any feathers, Sanju invites Salman and SRK to separate parties

Sanjay Dutt does not believe in being in any camp and he sent this message loud and clear recently. No in a mood to rub anyone in a wrong way, Sanju baba invited all his filmy friends to Maanyata’s birthday, just making sure that all of them are not present together at the same time.

Fission and fusion

Equipment failure, nuclear meltdown and release of radioactive material as a result of the Japan earthquake brought worldwide criticism for the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant disaster. This steered the world back to the age-old debate on the benefits of nuclear technology.
Many international bodies advocated closing down nuclear plants. But everything has its advantages and nuclear debates brought to light the many benefits of developing nuclear energy. A world with more energy and less carbon emission, no electricity problems and better medical facilities, the advantages are clearly more.

Disappearance of the Iconic Villain from Bollywood

Bollywood films of the 70s and 80s were instrumental in giving birth to 'specialised villains' who stayed on the minds of the people long after they had finished watching the movies. Such was the impact of villains in earlier decades that people felt terrified of them and wished for the hero to crush the villain under his boots.
 The villains were specialised to evoke hatred from the people and were very convincing in their roles.

Conscience over profit? Not business as usual

New Delhi, July 27 (IANS) The nature of entrepreneurship is no longer the same. A semblance of conscience, innovation and growing desire to impact the grassroots have crept into many young Indian businesses, adding a touch of heart to the aggressive pursuit of profit.
In the popular tongue of business board rooms, this growing tribe is known as social entrepreneurs whose business has a social objective.

Bollywood’s tryst with ‘real cinema’

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When Sabrina Lall came out of the special screening of 'No One Killed Jessica', she was quite relieved. She wasn't concerned about the overdramatisation of the Jesicca Lall murder case nor was she bothered much about the dowdy depiction of her own character by Vidya Balan. All she wanted was that her sister should be shown in true light and Rajkumar Gupta managed to do that. Speaking after a special screening of the film, Sabrina had said, "When we agreed to let them make the film, my family and I had been warned about the Bollywood types but Rajkumar replicated almost every detail."

Dead at 27: What’s the fuss?

The morning after we learned of Amy Winehouse's death my friend, an indie musician doggedly loyal to the legends, posted on Facebook: "Did Amy say to herself: %^$# it, I'm 27, I want to be a legend and OD?"

Amy Winehouse

The Forever 27 Club, a sort of modern-day Dead Poets Society that posthumously enfolds Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, Brian Jones and now, Winehouse, has been much fussed about. I'm tempted to imagine that my friend may be right, especially since Winehouse didn't have much going for herself in her last years. Then again, looking at the bright side (everything has one, doesn't it?), I'm relieved that it wasn't Britney Spears, who turns 30 in December, or Avril Lavigne — wait, she still has time.

Al Qaeda threat to Kerala shrines, Jayalalithaa?

Guruvayoor (Kerala), July 27 (IANS) A letter posted from Chennai to this pilgrim town Wednesday warned of a bomb attack by the Al Qaida on two of Kerala's most popular temples - the Guruvayoor and Sree Padmanabha Swamy shrines, police said.

It claimed to be from the Al Qaeda and also mentioned that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalaalitha would be assassinated in the coming days.

Want to marry rich?

For 30 hours of training costing 20,000 yuan ($3,080), women keen to snag a billionaire, millionaire or even just an affluent man learn techniques to make them more attractive, from how to put on make-up in the most flattering way to how to spot a liar by looking at his facial expressions.

bride_china

The school in the world's second largest economy -- home to 189 billionaires and just under one million millionaires -- has attracted over 2,800 mainly middle class women since it opened in August last year, and students such as 23-year-old Zhou Yue believe it's time and money well spent.

Top 6 low-intensity workouts

Taking to the water can provide a great workout and be ideal for people who are just starting out in fitness or working their way back after an injury. There are a variety of options, from a full aqua aerobic session to sessions consisting of walking on underwater treadmills – really it’s all about being active, but in the water.
The water supports your bodyweight (up to 85 per cent of it), minimizing the impact on your joints, making it suitable for people of any age, size or fitness level. The number of calories burnt is dependent on the depth of the water – the deeper the water, the more calories you will burn as more energy is required to push your body mass through water. On average, a half hour session in the water will burn around 200 calories – and even more should you add additional weights to your body.

Indian team skipped envoy's dinner for Dhoni's charity event, matter reported to MEA

London, July 27 (ANI): Members of the Indian cricket team skipped a reception that was to be hosted by Indian High Commissioner Nalin Surie on July 18 to attend a fund raising event for the Sakshi Foundation, which is run by skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his wife Sakshi for under-privileged children.
High Commissioner Surie has reported the matter to the Ministry of External Affairs for further action at its end.

India can't stop England from being No 1: Boycott

Former captain Geoffrey Boycott does not foresee world number one India bouncing back in the ongoing Test series against England and believes the hosts are well on their way to clinch the top spot in ICC Rankings.

"The hosts are all fired up. Confidence is high, they believe they can beat India and they are hungry to be No.1 in the world. I can't see India stopping them and it would be an amazing turnaround if they beat England," Boycott said.

RIM cutting 2,000 jobs, COO retiring

Blackberry maker Research In Motion (RIM) announced on Monday that it was cutting 2,000 jobs and that its ailing chief operating officer planned to retire.

RIM, which is facing increased competition from Apple's iPhone and mobile phones running Google's Android software, revealed plans last month to cut jobs this quarter in a bid to "streamline operations."

China suspends 2 of 5 fake Apple stores in 1 city

Chinese officials found five fake Apple stores in a southwestern city and ordered two of them to suspend business while they're investigated, a local government website said on Monday.

Officials couldn't do anything about the other three stores - which prominently displayed Apple signs and logos - because they did not find any fake Apple products for sale, according to a report by a local newspaper posted on the Kunming city government's website.

Facebook iPad app surfaces in iPhone app, blogger says

Last month I wrote about an official Facebook iPad application, which is expected to be available soon. The app still has not made its formal debut, but MG Siegler of the blog TechCrunch, said he found the code for the app hidden inside Facebook's iPhone app.

Mr. Siegler, who said he gained access to the new app by sifting through the Facebook iPhone code, could not confirm if the features he discovered show the final version for the app, but in a blog post, offered some details of the interface and design.

Dalai Lama achieves phenomenal following on Twitter

More than two million people across the globe religiously follow him on microblogging site Twitter, giving Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama an unprecedented reach.

The Dalai Lama has outstripped the following of many icons of cinema and sports, as he disseminates his teachings, speaks on various issues concerning his people and even reaches out to the Chinese people.

China's Baidu quarterly profit up 95 percent

Baidu Inc., which operates China's dominant search engine, said Tuesday its quarterly profit jumped 95 percent on traffic growth and strong spending by big advertising customers.

Profit for the three months ending June 30 was $252.6 million, or 72 cents per share, the Beijing-based company said. Total revenue rose 78.4 percent from a year earlier to 3.4 billion yuan ($528.4 million).

"We benefited from strong traffic growth and improved monetization," said Baidu's chairman and CEO, Robin Li, in a statement. "We were especially encouraged with the strong spending from large customers."

Wal-Mart offers video streaming on website

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is now renting and streaming movies online, many the same day they come out on DVD, in a second bid for a share of popular movie rental and streaming website Netflix Inc.'s business.

The world's largest retailer bought video-streaming service Vudu.com 18 months ago and Tuesday started offering 20,000 titles that can be viewed on almost any device with Internet access, from PCs to televisions to Sony's PlayStation3 and other Blu-Ray disc players.

Review: Samsung D8000 Smart TV 55-inch

Introduction

Samsung wowed us at Consumer Electronic Show 2011 when they showed off their latest generation of LED panels. But the picture quality and design elements of the television were secondary; it was the Smart TV dynamic that took centrestage. Here's where you find out if the D8000 is really smart or not.
 
Packaging and Content

Most HDTVs are shipped in large rectangular boxes and this is true for the Samsung D8000 Smart TV. In the package, we get the HDTV itself, a couple of manuals, the power cable, an adaptor for component cables and the remote control.  We also get a single Active shutter 3D glass, which we think is quite stingy on Samsung's part as LG ships 4 glasses with their lower range models.

 

Amazon 2Q profit falls but results beat Street

Amazon.com Inc. said Tuesday that its second-quarter profit fell despite a 51 percent jump in revenue as the leading online retailer spent heavily to expand its business.

The results easily beat analyst expectations, as did Amazon's third-quarter sales outlook. Its shares rose 6 percent in after-hours trading.

CEO Jeff Bezos attributed the sales growth to "low prices, expanding selection and innovation."

Internet privacy controls challenge tech industry

The federal government has put Google, Microsoft, Apple and other technology companies on notice: Give consumers a way prevent advertisers from tracking their movements across the Web - or face regulation.

Yet for all its innovative know-how and entrepreneurial spirit, the technology industry has yet to agree on a simple, meaningful solution to protect consumer privacy on the Internet.

'I want Strauss-Kahn to go to jail,' says maid

New York:  She's on a magazine cover and national television, telling her emotional and explicit story of being sexually attacked by Dominique Strauss-Kahn and pressing for him to be tried.

But while Nafissatou Diallo's interviews marked a dramatic turn in the public narrative surrounding the case, they may have far less impact on prosecutors' private investigation and deliberations about whether to keep pursuing her troubled case - a process that seems to be becoming, if anything, more complex as it heads toward an Aug. 1 court date.

Curse of number 39 haunts Afghan car dealers

Kabul (Afghanistan):  Attracting dust but few prospective buyers in a car lot on the outskirts of Kabul, three saloon cars, a crane and a dump truck sit abandoned due a numerical curse that has swept Afghanistan.

A bizarre phenomenon that equates the number 39 with prostitution has become a headache for the car industry, as buyers avoid car licence plates containing the dreaded number for fear of being ostracised.

"This is no longer just a social issue, it is becoming an economic issue for us," said the car yard's owner Said Mohammad Zaman.

Pentagon's apps for those scarred by war

Washington:  When terrifying battlefield memories come rushing back to mind, in night sweats, flashbacks or a panic attack, some troops and vets now find comfort by reaching for their smartphones.

Using new-age technology to cope with age-old wounds of war, they tap into mobile phone applications, or "apps," designed to help with post-traumatic stress and brain injuries.

"I'm not going to lie - when this came out, we sort of wanted to slam it," a once skeptical Staff Sgt. Meg Krause said of her group of veteran friends.

India, Pak Foreign Secretaries meet in Delhi

Attari/New Delhi:  The Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan on Tuesday discussed a host of issues, including terrorism and Jammu and Kashmir, and firmed up confidence-building measures (CBMs) that will be announced after talks between their Foreign Ministers on Wednesday.

Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and her Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir held delegation-level talks that reviewed the progress in bilateral relations since they last met in Islamabad a month ago. They finalised a slew of CBMs.

This teenager was almost killed by a bear

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Anchorage, Alaska:  A teenager who survived a terrifying bear attack in the Alaskan wilderness was recovering in hospital on Monday.

Sam Gottsegen clearly bears the marks of his ordeal in the shape of long claw marks across his chest.

The attack on Saturday night in the Talkeetna Mountains north of Anchorage happened as the group was nearing the end of a 30-day course to learn how to survive in the wilderness.

Military plane crashes in Morocco, 78 dead say reports

Rabat:  A C-130 military transport plane crashed into a Moroccan mountain Tuesday in bad weather, killing 78 people, the state news agency said. It said there were three survivors.

The crash in a southern region close to the disputed Western Sahara was this country's deadliest in years.

Information Minister Khaled Naciri told The Associated Press that the military believes 78 were killed but that searches are ongoing for all the bodies.