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Sahib Singh Verma dies in road mishap
Jaipur, June 30 (PTI) Senior BJP leader and former Delhi Chief Minister Sahib Singh Verma today died in a road accident in Alwar district of Rajasthan, nearly 165 kms from here.
Additional Superintendent of Police (Rural) P C Nyola said the mishap took place at around 2.30 pm when the car in which Verma was travelling collided with a mini-truck near Khandura crossing.
Verma (64), along with three others, was immediately rushed to the Shahjahanpur Government Hospital where the former Delhi CM, his driver and another person travelling in the same car were declared brought dead, the Addl SP said.
His security officer sustained serious injuries and was undergoing treatment at the hospital, police said.
The driver of the truck was also injured and has been admitted to a local hospital.
Verma was returning to Delhi from Neem ka Thana in Sikar district when the mishap took place.
Verma is survived by his wife, two sons and three daughters. PTI
Rail link with Southeast Asia, Turkey and Europe soon
New Delhi, Jun 30 (PTI) Within the next few years, travellers from India will have the option of going to places like Singapore, Bangkok, Yangon, Tehran and even cities in Turkey by train, giving airlines a run for their money.
Travel by train to these cities is set to become reality with the proposed revival of the Trans Asian Railway, for which an agreement was signed by Railway Board Chairman J P Batra in New York.
The agreement was initialled on Friday by major Asian states under the aegis of the United Nations. With Bangladesh and India entering the fold, the number of countries that have become signatories to the revival of the Trans Asian Railway has risen to 20.
Earlier, 18 countries signed the agreement at Busan in South Korea in November 2006.
The southern corridor of the proposed Asian rail network will link China's historic Kunming province, bordering Vietnam, with Kapikule in Bulgaria in the Euopean peninsula via a 11,460-km line.
The cities to be linked include Bangkok in Thailand and idyllic towns of Myanmar, Bangladesh, India, Iran and Turkey, giving Indian families a wide variety of holiday locales to pick from.
The long train corridor will be designed in such a manner that it will hook up with existing trunk routes of participating countries, giving travellers a wide choice of places to break their journey. PTI
Another round of Indo-US nuclear talks next month
New Delhi, June 30 (PTI) Keen to conclude the civil nuclear deal by the year-end, India and the US will hold another round of high level talks next month to sort out differences that have been nagging the negotiations for months.
National Security Adviser (NSA) M K Narayanan and Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon are expected to visit Washington on July 16 for talks with US NSA Stephen Hadley and Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns on 123 agreement, which will operationalise the civil nuclear deal.
The high-level meeting will come close on the heels of technical-level discussions between the two sides earlier this week in Washington where effort was made at formulating a mutually-acceptable language for the agreement.
India's High Commissioner to Singapore S Jai Shankar, one of the key negotiators from the Indian side, was in Washington for three days during which he held discussions with Richard Stradford, Director in the State Department's Nuclear Division, and some other officials, sources said.
The involvement of National Security Advisers from the two sides is intended to give a push at a higher level to the negotiations that have got stuck due to differences on issues like reprocessing.
India has been insisting on getting the reprocessing right but the US is reluctant, leading to a logjam.
The talks between NSAs will be followed by discussions at a higher level when US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visits India towards the end of next month or early August. PTI
Singur and Nandigram will not affect investment: Bengal CM
Siliguri, June 30 (PTI) The opposition's hue and cry over Singur and Nandigram would not adversely affect investment prospects in West Bengal, state Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said here today.
Addressing a press meet after inaugurating a flyover, Bhattacharjee said despite criticism of his government by the opposition, investors believed that a positive environment had been created in West Bengal and the state was receiving investment offers and queries on a regular basis.
He urged the opposition not to oppose projects meant for the development of the state and for creation of employment for the jobless.
Speaking about closed tea gardens in North Bengal, he said the government was trying to reopen two in the hills and 14 in the Dooars.
The government was providing relief to workers of closed gardens through different schemes and would continue to do so till they reopened.
Speaking about the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, he said he expected the bill relating to conferring the Sixth Schedule status to the Darjeeling hills to be passed during Parliament's Monsoon Session.
He said that the Sino-Indo trade through the Nathula pass in Sikkim was not benefitting the people of West Bengal and he would convey this to the Centre.
He also laid the foundation stone of a Rs 11.26 crore food park here. PTI
Govt mulls setting up of manufacturing investment regions
Kolkata, June 30 (PTI) The Industry ministry has mooted a proposal to set up Manufacturing Investment Regions (MIRs) in lines of PCPIRs to give a boost to the manufacturing sector in the country.
Minister of state for Industry Ashwani Kumar told reporters on the sidelines of the Annual General Meeting of Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) here today that the proposal had been circulated to the relevant ministries, adding that the cabinet was likely to give its approval.
"It is fairly at an advanced stage," the minister said.
Kumar said that MIRs would be set up on the lines of Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Regions (PCPIRs) which would run by a board of management comprising representatives of the central and state governments and anchor tenant.
The minister said that these MIRs would typically require an area of 250 square kilometres and would be developed around the existing industries clusters.
Kumar said that the government has set a target to maintain a 12 per cent growth in manufacturing sector till 2010, adding that it would generate additional jobs to the extent of 16 million. PTI
Railways likely to invest Rs 20,000 crore for gauge conversion
Katwa (WB), June 30 (PTI) Indian Railways is likely to invest about Rs 20,000 crore for conversion of 5,500 km of rail track into broad gauge in the coming years.
"We have decided to convert 5,500 km of rail track into broad gauge," Union Railway Minister Laloo Prasad said here today at the foundation stone-laying ceremony for conversion of the Katwa-Burdwan line into broad gauge.
The standard cost of conversion of one kilometre of railway track into broad gauge is estimated to be rupees three crore, a railway official said.
Prasad, however, did not give any timeframe for completion of the gauge conversion plan.
There are about 13,000 km of rail track nationwide, which were yet to be converted into broad gauge. Out of this, 9,000 km was meter gauge and 4,000 km narrow gauge, Laloo said.
The Railway Minister said the conversion of the 51-km Katwa-Burdwan line into broad gauge would be completed by 2012.
The Rs 202-crore project would be shared equally by Railways and the West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited. PTI
US detention of Chinese seafood unacceptable: China
Beijing, Jun 30 (PTI) China today asked the United States to revoke the "indiscriminate" ban on four kinds of seafood exports quickly and properly deal with the problem.
"China can not accept the indiscriminate and automatic detention of four kinds of Chinese seafood by the United States and the ban on importing those products," director of the State Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, Li Changjiang said, a day after Beijing protested to Washington over the slapping of anti-dumping duties on carbon steel tube exports.
Li made the remarks during a telephone conversation with US Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt, urging him to deal with the issue after Washington announced the ban some Chinese seafood Thursday.
Li urged the US side to "properly deal with the problem as soon as possible." He said that China also detected many substandard foodstuff among US exports to China every year, and these problems were properly handled in the principle of cooperation.
Likewise, there might be isolated cases of Chinese enterprises exporting products with quality problems to the US. However, "indiscriminate" ban of all exports of such as Chinese aquatic products is "unacceptable", Li was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Thursday it would detain three types of Chinese farm-raised fish -- catfish, basa and dace -- as well as shrimp and eel unless suppliers could prove the shipments contained no harmful residues unapproved in the US for use in farmed seafood. PTI
Vodafone CEO Sarin appointed on Business Council for Britain
London, Jun 30 (PTI) NRI entrepreneur and Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin has been appointed as a member of the Business Council for Britain, a high powered body comprising representatives of UK-based businesses.
Sarin was appointed by Prime Minister Gordon Brown to advise him on issues that affect enterprise, business and competitiveness of the economy.
The Council will be chaired by Mervyn Davies of the Standard Chartered Bank and will be attended by the Prime Minister and Secretaries of State of the main economic departments.
The council will advise the Government on its ongoing policies and priorities, conduct its own reviews on the areas it believes will determine the future economic well-being of the UK and where issues are particularly important. It will have the power to establish Special Commissions to make recommendations for reform.
The members of the Council are Sir Richard Branson, Founder of Virgin Group, Damon Buffini, Managing Partner of Permira, Sir William Castell, Chair, Wellcome Trust, Mervyn Davies, chairman of Standard chartered Bank, Sir Rod Eddington, director of News Corporation, Dr Jean Pierre Garnier, Chief Executive officer of Glaxo Smith Kline, Stephen Green, chairman of HSBC, Tony Hayward, CEO of BP, Sir Terry Leahy, CEO of Tesco, Sir John Parker, Chair, National Grid, Sir John rose, CEO of Rolls Royce, Stuwart Rose, CEO of Marks and Spencer, Arun Sarin, CEO of Vodafone, Dame Marjorie Scardino, CEO of Pearson, Sir Alan Sugar, Chair and CEO, Amst6rad.
William Sargent, Executive Chair of the Better Regulation Executive will also attend the council. PTI
I am unfazed by criticism, says Tendulkar
Belfast (Ireland), June 30 (PTI) Sachin Tendulkar says the worst of controversies and sharpest of criticisms only strengthen his resolve and he always lets his bat do the talking.
"It is their (the critics') job to have opinions. But when I hold a cricket bat in my hand it's a tougher and bigger job. That is what I will concentrate on," Tendulkar said on the eve of the third and final match in the Future Cup series against South Africa.
Cricket's longest serving player on the scene had, like the rest of the Indian team, a nightmarish World Cup in the West Indies earlier this year.
He had scores of 7 and 0 in the crucial matches against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka besides an unbeaten half-century against minnows Bermuda, and the team exited in the first round.
That prompted calls for his retirement and he was in fact issued a show-cause notice by the Board for his comments in the media against the then coach Greg Chappell.
Tendulkar and his opening partner Sourav Ganguly, were "rested" for the ODI series in Bangladesh but both of them announced their return with a bang.
The duo shared a 134-run partnership to help India overhaul South Africa's target of 227 and level the three-match series 1-1.
Tendulkar made 4 against Ireland in the lone match against the hosts last week but his 99 and 93 against the Proteas have made the pundits talk about a revival of 'Tendulkar of the old'. PTI
Calling it quits is never easy: Waugh
Melbourne, June 30 (PTI) Steve Waugh has dismissed the notion that sportspersons knew when their time was up and said that he experienced a raging mental conflict in his final days wearing the Baggy Green cap.
"People say you'll wake up and you'll know when you want to retire. I don't think it happens like that," the former Australian captain said.
"Most people juggle with it. I spoke to one or two people when I was thinking about it and it is natural for your emotions to go up and down," Waugh was quoted as saying in 'The Age'.
"Some mornings you're going to wake up and think 'Geez, I love playing for Australia and I want to be here every day'.
"Other days you'll think 'Geez, I miss the kids and my form's not too good, am I really doing the right thing," he added.
Waugh, who holds the record for captain with most number of Test wins, saw his career come to an end much against his wish in 2003-04 at the close of Australia's home series against India.
Waugh, 39 then, felt he still had a few years' cricket left in him then but the Australian board was determined to blood youngsters.
Two years before that, the Australian board had stunned the cricket world by bringing down the curtains on Waugh's one-day career. PTI
India hope to go for the kill in series decider
Belfast, Jun 30 (PTI) With the series levelled 1-1, India will heavily depend on their star-studded batting line-up for a morale-boosting overseas series triumph as they go into the third and final cricket one dayer against South Africa here tomorrow.
The six-wicket victory in the second game yesterday has not only restored the balance in the three-match series but has also presented India with an ideal opportunity to revive their sagging fortunes following the World Cup debacle.
A viral bug and fitness problems to some key players took a toll on the Indians in the first game but Rahul Dravid has now found just the right combination to go for the kill against the South Africans, who also promised to field a full-strength squad.
Sachin Tendulkar, who has shown glimpses of his vintage form with scores of 99 and 93 in the series, will have to play a big role in the crucial game at Stormont where India will again miss the services of paceman S Sreesanth, who has not recovered from flu.
Ajit Agarkar, who had to sit out both the matches with cold and fever, was expected to be available for the game which will test India's ability to handle pressure in crunch situation.
The series-levelling victory yesterday has not only strengthened the morale of Dravid's men, but also reaffirmed the team management's faith in the abilities of match-winners like Yuvraj Singh and Dinesh Kaarthick. PTI
Joshna bows out of San Diego Classic
New Delhi, Jun 30 (PTI) Fifth seed Joshna Chinappa lost to fourth seed Mauela Manetta of Italy in the quarterfinals to crash out of the Betteridge and Breitliong San Diego Classic squash tournament.
The Indian went down 3-9 9-6 9-3 3-9 4-9 to Manetta, who will now take on second seed Raneem El Weleily of Egypt in the semifinals of the USD 11,000 event.
Joshna had earlier beaten Mexican Imelda Salazar Martinez 9-6 9-1 9-3 in the first round.
This is Joshna's second successive loss in the quarterfinals of a tournament. She had lost in the last eight stage of LA Open in Los Angeles last week. PTI
BCCI to carefully handle coach selection in future: Pawar
London, Jun 30 (PTI) After being snubbed by South African Graham Ford, the Indian Cricket Board would be more careful in handling the coach selection process in the future, said BCCI President Sharad Pawar.
"In future, we will see that these issues are handled carefully," Pawar told PTI on the sidelines of the ICC Annual Meeting here yesterday.
The BCCI was put in an embarrassing situation when Ford, who was chosen ahead of John Emburey, turned down the offer and decided to stay with English county Kent.
Pawar, however, insisted that the Board had announced Ford's name only because it was sure about their association.
"Unfortunately, the person we selected didn't join. We asked him if he was ready to join. He said it was just a matter of 'when' and not 'whether' he can join us. He said he wanted to talk to his county and consult them on when he can join us and then he did not join.
"Anyway, we have discussed it among ourselves and took suggestions from former players like (Sunil) Gavaskar and (Ravi) Shastri," he said.
Pawar also said Ford was offered a three-year contract, to be confirmed after one year.
Pawar said the BCCI was now looking for another foreign coach, but there was no time frame for taking a decision in this regard. PTI
Appeasement policy has emboldened Taliban in Pak: Govt
New York, June 30 (PTI) Nine months after entering into a deal with pro-Taliban tribal leaders in its North West, Pakistan government has said "appeasement policy" had "emboldened" the fundamentalist group and "swift and decisive action" was needed to check the spread of their influence.
Pakistan's Interior Ministry has said its security forces in tribal areas of North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) were outgunned and outnumbered and had forfeited authority to the Taliban and their allies, 'The New York Times' reported.
"The ongoing spell of active Taliban resistance has brought about serious repercussions for Pakistan," the newspaper said citing the 15-page document.
"There is a general policy of appeasement towards the Taliban, which has further emboldened them," it warned.
The warning came more than nine months after the Pakistan government entered into an agreement with pro-Taliban tribal leaders for maintenance of peace in NWFP, a move many saw as appeasement and retreat by Musharraf in the face of stiff resistance.
The Internal Ministry said Islamic militants and Taliban fighters were rapidly spreading beyond the country's lawless tribal areas and without "swift and decisive action" the growing militancy could engulf the rest of the nation.
The Ministry's report warned that the influence of the extremists was swiftly bleeding the east and deeper into its own country, threatening areas like Peshawar, Nowshera and Kohat, which were considered to be safeguarded by Pakistani government forces.
The document, the report said, was discussed on June four by Pakistan's National Security Council at a meeting chaired by President Pervez Musharraf. PTI
Seven civilians killed as explosives found in Sri Lanka
Colombo, June 30 (PTI) Suspected Tamil rebels shot dead seven civilians while security forces apprehended a truck laden with powerful explosives, Srilanka's defence ministry said today.
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealem (LTTE) gunned down four farmers in the eastern town of Serunuwara last night, the military said.
Two Tamil civilians were shot dead by the guerrillas in the northern town of Jaffna also last night, the ministry said adding a former child soldier was killed by the rebels in the eastern Batticaloa district on Thursday as he attended a Hindu service.
Elsewhere, Sri Lanka's navy discovered a truck filled with about 1,000 kilogrammes of explosives in a fishing village in Trincomalee last night.
The bomb, found 260 kilometres northeast of the capital, Colombo, was defused, the ministry said.
Security forces detected a similarly powerful bomb near an oil storage depot in the capital last week. Earlier this month they seized another truck carrying just over 1,000 kilogrammes of explosives.
Nobody claimed immediate responsibility for the killings or the truck bombs. But the government has blamed the rebels for past bomb attacks in the capital and elsewhere. PTI
Al-Qaeda militants held on Pak-Iran border
Islamabad, June 30 (PTI) Pakistani security forces have arrested three suspected Al-Qaeda militants on the porus Pakistan-Iran border while trying to enter the restive Balochistan province.
The infiltrators, including two Iraqis and one Iranian, were trying to enter the Taftan area into Balochistan province, the border authorities said.
Fake ID cards were recovered from the suspected foreign militants, who were being put through intensive interrogation, PakTribune online said quoting unnamed official sources.
The police had nabbed three militants suspected to be Al-Qaeda activists from southwestern Balochistan region earlier this month. Pakistani security agencies arrested former Taliban defence minister Mullah Obaidullah Akhund from a hotel in Quetta in March.
Pakistan's northern area bordering Afghanistan has been a haven for foreign Islamist militants who have been engaged in violent activities in different parts of the world, including Afghanistan, Chechnya, China and India.
Pakistan, a key ally of the United States in its war on terror, has deployed at least 90,000 troops in its northwestern tribal areas to flush out remnants of the Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants, and their local supporters.
Efforts to flush them out of their hideouts in the tribal areas, where they have received patronage from the local warlords, has put them in direct conflict with the Pakistan Army, which has suffered heavy losses while engaging the militants. PTI
Musharraf says swift and decisive action need to curb Taliban
New York, Jun 30 (PTI) Warning that Islamic militants and Taliban fighters were rapidly spreading beyond the country's lawless tribal areas, Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf has said that without "swift and decisive action," the growing militancy could engulf the rest of the nation.
The warning came in a document from the Interior Ministry, which said Pakistan's security forces in North-West Frontier Province abutting the tribal areas were outgunned and outnumbered and had forfeited authority to the Taliban and their allies, 'The New York Times' reported.
"The ongoing spell of active Taliban resistance has brought about serious repercussions for Pakistan," said the 15-page document, which the Times says was shown to it.
"There is a general policy of appeasement towards the Taliban, which has further emboldened them." The document, the report said, was discussed by Pakistan's National Security Council on June four while Musharraf was present.
It appears to be the first such document to emerge from the Pakistani government formally recognising the seriousness of the spreading threat here from al Qaeda and the Taliban, the Times said quoting a Western diplomat.
The diplomat, who was not authorised to speak for attribution, called the document "an accurate description of the dagger pointed at the country's heart".
"It's tragic it's taken so long to recognise it," the diplomat added. PTI
UN decides to split Department of Peacekeeping Operations
Dharam Shourie
United Nations, Jun 30 (PTI) The United Nations General Assembly handed down a victory to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon when it decided by consensus to split the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO), a move over which several developing nations had shown strong reservations when the proposal was put forward.
Simultaneously, it also approved a record USD 5.25 billion budget for 13 active peacekeeping operations.
After months of wrangling, the 192-member Assembly agreed to create a new Department of Field Support to look after management and logistic under the supervision of an Under-Secretary-General.
The Peacekeeping Department will now concentrate on operations and will also be headed by an Under-Secretary-General.
Under the new structure, the head of peacekeeping will direct the head of field support and that is causing concern among some members and the Assembly asked Ban to explicitly define the role of duties of head of the newly created department.
But it was not unbridled victory of Ban who had argued that splitting DPKO is necessary for efficient functioning of the operations which now employ record 100,000 peacekeepers around the world and their number could go up by another 20,000 if the Darfur mission materialises.
The Assembly approved budget of USD 230.5 million for one year from July one this year for the newly created department and its continuation would depend on evaluation of its efficacy, efficiency and relevance. PTI
Digest of Domestic news for week June 23 -June 29
Digest of domestic news for the week June 23-Jun 29, 2007 Saturday Hyderabad: Incessant rains and strong winds wreak havoc in Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Goa and parts of Maharashtra, claiming 70 lives and prompting authorities to evacuate thousands of people even as the army joined rescue operations in worst-hit Kurnool district.
New Delhi: UPA-Left candidate Pratibha Patil files her nomination papers for the Presidential poll, the first nominee of a major political combine to enter the July 19 election fray.
Guwahati: Hours before the start of the Asian Athletics Grand Prix here, the proscribed ULFA explodes a bomb in front of a mosque situated near a commercial area, killing at least four and injuring 20 others.
Sunday Mumbai/Hyderabad: Torrential rains lashes Karnataka and Maharashtra, throwing life out of gear while the situation improved in worst-hit Andhra Pradesh and Kerala even as the toll in these states mounted to over 130.
Bhubaneswar: The 18-month-old son of a diamond polishing firm's manager, who was kidnapped from Surat last week, was found by police near a temple in Orissa's Cuttack district.
Puskhar (Raj): Holding Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje responsible for the death of 26 people during the recent Gurjar quota stir, the national-level mahapanchayat of the community demands her immediate resignation and also called for cases to be registered against those involved in the police firing.
Monday Sultanpur (UP): Five persons -- three prisoners and two jail guards -- were killed and over fifty people injured, six of them seriously, when inmates of the district jail here clashed with security personnel.
New Delhi: The NDA suffers a setback with Shiv Sena, oldest ideological ally of BJP, breaking ranks by coming out in support of UPA-Left Presidential nominee Pratibha Patil giving a jolt to Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat who filed his nomination unfazed by the arithmetic heavily loaded against him.
Pampady (Ker): Five HIV positive children in Mar Dionysius Primary school in Kottayam district face a boycott with most of the parents today refusing to send their wards to the institution and even threatening to withdraw the kids.
New Delhi: Seeking to resolve differences in the bilateral air services agreement, India and Kuwait will hold discussions before July 1, when the middle-east nation's decision to bar Air India and Indian from flying to that country will take effect.
Tuesday Patna/Ranchi: Normal life was hit in Naxal strongholds in Bihar, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh by a 48-hour economic blockade called by the CPI-Maoist to protest the government's economic policies even as the rebels targeted railway tracks at several places.
New Delhi: Facing flak over the visit to Indian waters by the American nuclear-powered USS Nimitz aircraft carrier, the government today allayed concerns over environmental hazards by saying the warship is not known to be carrying nuclear warheads.
Patna/Ranchi: Normal life was hit in Naxal strongholds in Bihar, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh by a 48-hour economic blockade called by the CPI-Maoist to protest the government's economic policies even as the rebels targeted railway tracks at several places. Wednesday Chandigarh/Amritsar: Acting on a court directive, Punjab government gives the go-ahead for the arrest and prosecution of Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh on the charge of hurting religious sentiments of Sikhs as the Sikh clergy rejected his fresh apology.
Pune: The multi-crore fake stamp paper case takes a dramatic turn with the former Mumbai Police Commissioner R S Sharma being discharged by a local court and the key accused Abdul Karim Telgi expresses his "desire" to plead guilty.
New Delhi: With hardly a week to go for a precious letter written by Mahatma Gandhi days before his assassination under the auctioner's hammer, government has stepped in with efforts to acquire it but Christie's says it will go ahead with the sale.
Thursday New Delhi: The 17th century Mughal marvel, Red Fort, has joined the ranks of 26 other Indian sites, including the Taj Mahal, to be included in UNESCO's list of World Heritage sites.
New Delhi: India will make a bid to acquire a letter of Mahatma Gandhi written 19 days before his assassination, which is up for auction in London on July three.
Pune: Abdul Karim Telgi, the kingpin of the multi-crore fake stamp scam, is sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for 13 years and fined over Rs 100 crore by a court here after he dramatically broke down while pleading guilty and seeking leniency.
New Delhi: World Health Organisation announces a special award for Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss for his contributions to control tobacco consumption in the country.
Friday
New Delhi: The NDA seeks action by the Election Commission (EC) against UPA-Left presidential nominee Pratibha Patil, alleging she had given her consent to the Congress to seek disqualification of Rajya Sabha member Natwar Singh for supporting rival Bhairon Singh Shekhawat.
New Delhi/Jalpaiguri: India rejects the US contention that NAM has "lost its meaning", with the government and political parties stressing in unison the continued relevance of the movement for promoting democracy in the world order.
New Delhi: The much-awaited pact on the 7.4 billion dollar Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline is likely to be delayed by at least a couple of months as New Delhi and Islamabad have opposed seller Tehran's last minute changes in agreement on pricing.
Pune: Fines of over Rs 251.26 crore -- perceived as unprecedented in legal circles -- have been imposed on fake stamp paper scam mastermind Abdul Karim Telgi by a special court here. PTI
Kaziranga National Park struggles with swelling rhino numbers
Sukhendu Bhattacharya
Kaziranga, Jun 29 (PTI) At a time when conservationists world over are fighting to preserve the highly endangered one horned rhino, the authorities of Kaziranga National Park are grappling with a different problem-- to manage the over populated species.
According to the last 2005 census, the Kaziranga National Park, in upper Assam, a world heritage site, and taken as a success story in rhino management, has a total 1,855 of the one horned rhinos.
Considering the unique terrain of the flood-prone park along which the mighty river Brahmaputra flows, the population has become a bit too much for the park authorities to handle at ease.
"For the tourists it is a matter of delight that hardly within a minute's foray into the park they get to see the majestic animal but for us management and protecting it from the poachers is posing some problem", Park Director Surendra Nath Buragohain says.
The area of the park has been doubled from 430 sq km to 860 sq km but the existing staff strength including the forest guards has not increased correspondingly putting additional pressure on the staff, he says.
"The unique forest growth (of elephant grass) is also a factor and the perennial problem also adds to the woes making it difficult to maintain tight vigil", the director says. PTI
Civil service no longer appeals to the youth: IAS Couple
New Delhi, Jun 28 (PTI) Civil service which was once considered as an elite service and the 'steel frame of India' no longer appeals to the youth as before says a senior IAS officer couple.
"A career in the administrative services was earlier a most admired and popular option. The change in perception that has come about now is not only because of government's role is reducing in every sphere.
"In fact, renumeration, though never the most attractive aspect of the job, has turned out to be the biggest reason for the change in perception - the salary structure, when compared to that of the private sector after liberalisation, is ludicrous. Cut out the frills and consider the essentials, and it will boil down to a choice between earning one's bread and illusory prestige," writes Leena Nandan, Director, Ministry of Tourism and Jiwesh Nandan, Director, Ministry of Power, Government of India in their book, 'How to Placate an Angry Naga'.
They further point out that, "If the present stage of affairs continues then only those who can't make the best of competitive opportunities will opt for this career in the coming years." The 1987 batch couple stops short of showing the murky undercurrents of the Indian Administrative Service while frequently bordering on their reflective stories featuring whimsical bosses and autocratic politicians, overzealous juniors and suspicious spouses besides other aspects of the service. PTI
Bingo to the new chat lingo!
New Delhi, Jun 28 (PTI) 'Hey dey..Ssup! m doin gr8..Cr4 a coffa ton8 ?? kewl.. C'ya at 8...G2g ,tc!!' Shortened verbs, sentences sans prepositions, abbreviations used as never before...Get accustomed to the language of young, considered the 'in thing' today. After all who has the time in this world to inquire if the person on other side is a he or she, an uncle or a kid, a "hi" is much more happening these days.
"The new chat lingo is faster, trendier and a great time saver, when it comes to text chat and on messenger. Moreover, they are in vogue these days", says Sanya Ralhan, Class X student.
As the cell phones replace Barbie dolls and toy cars, it seems laptops are what kids demand for on turning nine. The generation Y cannot debar itself from using the language in vogue. "One often faces time and space constraints in message chats, therefore use of abbreviations and jargons is convenient besides its fun to play with the language as we go on creating more and more smart lingos," says 12 -year -old Devika Kapoor.
What's more, the word 'sms' itself has found itself a comfortable place in Oxford dictionary. Seeing the wide usage of such lingo by a large number of people, its impact is very much visible on the written day to day English.
"With every new batch, chat lingo's are frequently seen in the answer sheets and assignments, but I have no qualms in accepting the changing trend. I feel language is a dynamic thing and changes to suit the needs of man should be readily acceptable," says S D Triparthy, Professor, I.P University. PTI
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______Forex_______
1 U.S. $ = 40.525 INR
1 Japanese Yen = 0.3290 INR
1 British Pound = 81.429 INR
1 Canadian $ = 38.034 INR
1 Singapore $ = 26.480 INR
1 UAE Dirham = 11.034 INR
1 Saudi Arabian Riyal = 10.805 INR
1 Euro = 54.883 INR
1 Qatar Rial = 11.134 INR
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This is the Mumbai Grapevine
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