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Refusing to divulge the venue of the meeting, sources in the IIMs said that a meeting would certainly take place to decide on the issue. One official of the Union HRD Ministry may also be present.
Asked whether the proposed meeting would decide on postponing its April 21 deadline for announcing the final list, they simply said the meeting could either decide or each IIM could independently do so.
Stalled once again by the apex court on the reservation plans, the government is of the view that IIMs should not go ahead with the admission process for the coming academic session as threatened by them from April 21.
Sources in the HRD Ministry said that the responsible people running the elite institutions would act in the national interest.
Under intense support from its allies particularly DMK and PMK for implementing the quota regime from this academic year, the ministry had earlier told all the IIMs, IITs and other Centrally-funded institutions to put on hold the admission process and not to issue offer of admission.
The directive from the ministry came after a meeting of leaders of UPA and Left parties which had resolved that the government would take all "appropriate" steps to ensure that the reservation for OBCs to the extent of 27 per cent becomes operational from this academic session. PTI
NCP talks tough on seat sharing with Congress in Goa
Panaji, Apr 19 (PTI) The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), an alliance partner in the Congress-led government in Goa, today said it would forge an alliance with like-minded parties if the Congress gives cold shoulder to its demand on seat sharing for the forthcoming state assembly elections.
The NCP is ready to forge an alliance with secular like-minded parties if the Congress continue to dilly-dally on a concrete alliance strategy, party state spoksperson Surendra Furtado said in a release here.
"The party is also ready to fight the elections on its own strength...It will be difficult for the Congress to go for polls bereft NCP," he said.
Furtado, who is also the state unit general secretary, said his party is demanding ten out of 40 seats to be part of the alliance and "there would not be a compromise on that." The Election Commission yesterday had announced that elections to the 40-member assembly would be held on June two. According to the poll schedule, last date for filing nominations is May 15.
"We have made it clear that we will not go for less than ten seats. We spelled out all the seats and the party has been actively working in these constituencies to keep BJP out in the ensuing elections," Wilfred D'Souza, the NCP state unit president, told reporters here last evening. PTI
Arunachal CM to discuss boundary issue with Tarun Gogoi
Itanagar, Apr 19 (PTI) Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Dorjee Khandu will hold talks with his Assam counterpart Tarun Gogoi shortly to resolve the boundary dispute between the two states, government spokesman Tako Dabi said.
"However, no dates for this has been finalised yet," Dabi, also the Water Resources Development minister, told a press conference here yesterday.
Sincere joint efforts in this direction would boost the socio-economic development of both the states, he said.
Meanwhile, the new Congress ministry in the state headed by Khandu has desolved all district land advisory boards and directed land management secretary to reconstitute the same, Dabi said.
A one-man committee has been constituted to look into alleged irregularities in appointments and expenditure incurred by the department of Health and Family Welfare, he said.
The state cabinet, he said, has decided to appoint almost all the ruling Congress legislators as parliamentary secretries and an ordinance has already been promulgated. PTI
Malik appointed Pakistan captain
Karachi, Apr 19 (PTI) Shoaib Malik was today appointed the captain of the Pakistan cricket team with an underfire cricket establishment hoping that the young all-rounder will be able to turnaround the fortunes of the side following the World Cup fiasco.
The 25-year-old Malik was formally named as the successor to Inzamam-ul Haq at a press conference in Lahore, pipping senior pro Mohammad Yousuf to do the job after first choice Younis Khan refused to take up the challenge for personal reasons.
PCB Chairman Naseem Ashraf said Malik would be the captain till the end of the year in both Tests and one-day international cricket.
"At the end of the year we will review his performance and decide for the future. But we have picked Malik with an eye on the future," he told reporters.
"He is a unanimous choice. He is the best man to lead the team," said Ashraf, who was flanked by Malik himself.
Malik has played 137 one-day internationals and 18 Tests and has been one of the most improving players of the country in recent years. He has earned the tag of being a useful utility player in both modes of the sport.
Ashraf said he was confident that all the players including the seniors would support Malik.
"These are difficult times for Pakistan cricket particularly after the World Cup. But we have to keep the future in mind and hopefully have a good team on its feet when the Champions Trophy is held in Pakistan in 2008," he said. PTI
India begin Test series Down Under with Boxing Day Test
Melbourne, April 19 (PTI) India's Test series in Australia in 2007-08 season is to begin with the traditional Boxing Day Test in Melbourne from December 26 to 30.
The Indians will play three more Tests, in Sydney (Jan 2-6), Perth (Jan 16-20) and Adelaide (Jan 24-28), Cricket Australia announced here today.
The Test series will be followed by a triangular one-day tournament involving Sri Lanka as the third team.
The limited overs series begins from February 3 and includes a India-Lanka tie in the Australian capital of Canberra on Feb 12.
The league matches, which run till Feb 29, will be followed by a best of three finals on March 2 (Sydney), 4 (Brisbane) and 7 (Adelaide) between the top two teams.
Besides, India are also scheduled to play a Twenty-20 international against the hosts at Melbourne on Feb 1.
Sri Lanka come into the tri-series after playing two Tests against Australia, at Brisbane (November 8-12) and Hobart (Nov 16-20).
In between, Australia host New Zealand for Chappell-Hadlee Series involving three one-dayers. The two teams will also play a Twenty-20. PTI
Parimarjan starts his campaign in style
By Our Chess Correspondent
Malmo (Sweden) Apr 19 (PTI) World's youngest Grandmaster Parimarjan Negi got off to a flier, defeating seasoned GM Jonny Hector of Sweden in the first round of 15th Sigeman and Co. International Chess tournament here.
Parimarjan, with his black pieces, played an imaginative game and cornered Hector in a long drawn endgame.
The opening day of this category-13, 10-players round robin event, in fact, was a spectator's delight as all the five games ended decisively.
Winning in quick time was top seed Ivan Cheparinov of Bulgaria who cruised past highest rated Swede Emanuel Berg, while defending champion Jan Timman caught local hopeful Emil Hermansson in a tactical manoeuvre to romp home with ease.
The other winners in the first round were Vasilios Kotronias of Greece and Tiger-Hillarp Persson of Sweden defeating Erwin L'Ami of Holland and Swede Pontus Carlsson respectively.
As a result of these decisive results, all five winners emerged as joint leaders while the losers share the sixth spot.
Parimarjan gave an emphatic all round display but towards the end he was a bit lucky to get a full point as Hector went haywire while trying to win. For the records, it was a Sicilian Nazdorf while Hector went for a topical variation that netted him little.
Parimarjan got a better middle game with deft manoeuvres and should have been winning around move 25 itself but for a couple of inaccuracies. PTI
Selectors have unenviable task on hand
Mumbai, Apr 19 (PTI) Ageing warriors Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly are likely to be retained but a few other senior cricketers may not be so lucky when the Indian team for the upcoming tour of Bangladesh is picked here tomorrow.
The national selectors have an unenviable task given the turmoil in Indian cricket following the team's dismal performance in the World Cup and the subsequent unceremonious exit of coach Greg Chappell.
The Cricket Board's directive, after the meeting of the all-powerful Working Committee here on April 7, to choose a young team has put the five 'wise men' under severe pressure.
Selection panel chief Dilip Vengsarkar and his colleagues Venkatapathy Raju, Bhupinder Singh, Sanjay Jagdale and Ranjib Biswal will hold discussions with captain Rahul Dravid, already appointed skipper for the tour as well as the subsequent visit to England and Ireland, and newly appointed cricket manager Ravi Shastri before deciding the squads for the tour from May 7 to 29.
Vengsarkar has already indicated that around 20 players would be chosen for the two teams, but a wholesale sacking of the seniors appears unlikely. Chappell had reportedly questioned the commitment of the seniors in the World Cup and had called for younger players to be inducted in the team.
The biggest name in Indian cricket - Tendulkar - is expected to be chosen along with another ex-captain Ganguly after having given a satisfactory explanation to the Cricket Board for his outburst in the media against Chappell. PTI
Sensex reacts 52 pts in high volatility on weak Asian cues
Mumbai, Apr 19 (PTI) In high volatility, the Benchmark Sensex reacted downwards by over 52 points, mainly weighed down by distinctly sluggish Asian markets.
Expecting rise in interest rates following China's rapid economic growth of 11.1 per cent in the first quarter from a year earlier weighed on Asian equity markets today which had also a spillover effect on the domestic bourses.
But the Sensex recovered major part of early losses indicating good underline support.
The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) 30-share sensitive index, Sensex, opened with a sharp down wide gap to 13,538.71 from yesterday's close of 13,672.19 and immediately touched a low of 13,423.64, a steep fall of 248 points in early trade.
However, sustained buying by Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) and short-coverings by operators and retail investors at lower levels pushed the Sensex up to 13,658.11 before concluding the day at 13,619.70, still showing a fall of 52.49 points or 0.38 per cent.
The broader S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) also declined by 13.95 points or 0.35 per cent to close at 3,997.65 from previous close of 4,011.60.
The recovery was mainly attributed to sustained buying by FIIs which pumped in Rs 1,436.80 crore on the first two days of the week.
In Asia today, China's Shanghai Composite Index tumbled by 4.52 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng by 2.30 per cent, Japan's Nikkei-225 by 1.67 per cent, Singapore's Strait Times by 3.21 per cent, South Korea's Kospi by 1.36 per cent and Taiwan's Weighted Index by 1.43 per cent. PTI
Whirlpool to invest USD 20 mn for rolling out new products
Chennai, Apr 19 (PTI) Home appliances major, Whirlpool of India, a subsidiary of Whirlpool Corporation, will invest about USD 20 million over the next 15-18 months to roll out new products, a top company official said today Addressing a press conference here, Shantanu Das Gupta, Vice president-Marketing said the company was expecting 25 per cent growth this year.
He said Whirlpool has earmarked Rs 70 crore for advertising and marketing. The company is looking at unveiling a wider product range like ovens and 'built in' range of products.
The company today unveiled a slew of products across four categories -- refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners and dryers -- which, Gupta said, featured the company's patented sixth sense technology.
The range includes Whirlpool 'Mastermind refrigerator, 'Sensation Neo' washing machine, 'Magicool' air conditioners and 100 per cent automatic clothes dryer.
Gupta also said that exports were recording a growth of 30 per cent.
He said they expected a 27 per cent market share in the refrigerator category, 20 per cent in washing machines and 10 per cent in the air conditioner category this year. PTI
RBI Reference rate for US dollar and Euro
Mumbai, Apr 19 (PTI) Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today fixed the Reference rate for the US currency at Rs 42.15 per dollar and the single European unit at Rs 57.22 per Euro from Rs 41.89 per dollar and Rs 56.93 respectively yesterday.
In a press release issued here by the apex bank, the exchange rates of British Pound and Japanese Yen against the Rupee have been given as Rs 84.3843 per pound and Rs 35.77 per 100 yen respectively, based on the reference rate for US dollar and middle rates of the cross currency quotes at 12 noon.
The Reference rate is based on 12 noon rates of a few select banks in Mumbai and the SDR-Rupee rate will be based on this rate, the release added. PTI
TRAI rules out fresh hearing to Nimbus on channel prices
New Delhi, Apr 19 (PTI) Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has refused fresh hearing to sports broadcaster Nimbus on reviewing the charges of its cricket channels.
During proceedings held at broadcast tribunal Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) early this week, TRAI said prices were fixed after completing due process and it would not start the process again.
The regulator also said it had the powers to fix prices and was ready to argue the matter in the tribunal.
A TDSAT bench headed by Justice Arun Kumar has posted the matter for hearing on April 30.
Nimbus had originally priced Neo Sports and Neo Sports Plus at Rs 49.50 a month for each channel. It also fixed Rs 58.50 as the bouquet price for both the channels.
However, the regulator had later directed Nimbus to reduce the bouquet price to Rs 37.25.
The sports broadcaster, which bought telecast rights for matches featuring the Indian team from BCCI for 612 million dollars, had contended that TRAI fixed the prices without giving it proper representation.
It also pleaded the tribunal to direct TRAI to disclose the material based on which the price was fixed.
Meanwhile, TDSAT also issued notice to TRAI on another petition related to the same matter filed by one Pune-based NGO Grahak Hitvardhini Sarvajanik Sanstha.
The NGO has challenged the price fixed by TRAI, describing it as exorbitant and unaffordable for common people. PTI
Political madrassas have created an "irregular" militia:Bhutto
Islamabad, Apr 19 (PTI) Expressing concern over the rise of militant clerics in Pakistan, self exiled former prime minister Benazir Bhutto has said the establishment of "political madrassas" have created an irregular militia in the country.
Bhutto's remarks comes after a hardline cleric from the capital's Red Mosque set up a self-styled Islamic court and students from schools attached to it launched anti-vice patrols targeting local music and video shops.
In a statement released here, Bhutto, who is also Pakistan People's Party Chairwoman, warned that the "irregular militia" of the madrassa could confront law enforcement agencies "unless the matter is nipped in the bud".
She also expressed concern over the rise of vigilant groups terrorising professionals in universities and shops, and said the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (PML) was treating them with leniency while the government used teargas and batons against protesting lawyers. PTI
Nepal to beef up security along India border
Kathmandu, Apr 19 (PTI) Nepal is set to beef up security along the Indian border to check the movement of criminals and clampdown on smuggling in the porous region.
"Necessary preparations are already underway and Armed Police Force (APF) personnel for the posts have already been sought," APF's Deputy Inspector General Thakur Mohan Shrestha said at Pakali in Sunsari district yesterday.
He said security units of APF are to be deployed along the Nepal-India border of five eastern districts within the second week of June in order to curb criminal activities and to maintain security.
The decision to beef up security along the international border comes as Nepal's top watchdog, the Commission of Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), has directed the authorities to clampdown on smuggling of red sandalwood from India to China via Nepal.
Nearly seven tonnes of red sandalwood valued at Rs 2 crore was seized at Shimle in Nepal's Sindupalchowk district while being smuggled to China via Tatopani border.
A week back, the police had seized 11 tonnes of red sandalwood from Naubise in Kathmandu.
Shrestha said a separate border security team of 235 APF personnel under the command of a Superintendent of Police would be deployed for the purpose.
He was quoted as saying by the Kantipur Online that the government had selected locations at Chandragadhi-2 of Jhapa, Budhanagar-1 of Morang, Inaruwa-6 of Sunsari, Kocharbarbari-7 of Saptari and Sanhaitha-1 of Siraha district to establish the posts on the international border. PTI
Bomb scare at US universities triggers panic among students
New York, Apr 19 (PTI) At least two persons were shot at the University of Missouri as bomb and other threats in several schools and universities across the United States send security personnel scrambling with students and parents.
The two persons, who were shot in Missouri, were taken to a hospital, a report has said without elaborating the details.
The Virginia Tech campus, which witnessed a gunman killing 32 people before shooting himself on Monday, saw another bomb scare yesterday in the building housing the president's office but it turned out to be false alarm.
Similar false bomb threats were reported form University of California's Hastings Law college in San Francisco and from University of Minnesota where eight buildings were evacuated.
In New Jersey, a school was closed after someone left a message on the answering machine of the principal, saying he was coming to school with a gun to kill the students. Police locked in students and searched their bags.
Media reports said in Lawrenceville in New Jersey, a student was arrested after he waved an air gun from dormitory window. It was not a real gun but police were not taking any chances.
Reports of similar incidents leading to locking down of educational institutions were coming in from across the country till late into the evening. PTI
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