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Kalam was ready to appoint Sonia Gandhi as PM in 2004
New Delhi, Apr 20 (PTI) Ending speculation that has persisted for four years as to whether President A P J Abdul Kalam was unwilling to appoint Sonia Gandhi as Prime Minister, it is now being disclosed that he had a letter of appointment ready for her.
Giving first insights to what transpired at Rashtrapati Bhavan during that period, P M Nair, Secretary to Kalam, says the President was advised to sign the letter, shake hands with Gandhi and congratulate her. Kalam was also told to ask Gandhi when she would like to be sworn in.
Four days after the general election threw up a mixed result with no single party having a majority, the President asked "What do we do".
Nair in his book 'The Kalam Effect: My years with the President', excerpts of which were made available to PTI, said the President was advised that he should satisfy himself that there is a party or a coalition of parties which can form a stable government and then invite the leader of that party or the coalition of parties to form the government.
"So, what do I do? he asked noting he cannot "wait indefinitely".
On the advice of his aides, the President sent a letter on May 17, 2004 inviting Gandhi to Rashtrapati Bhavan the same day.
Kalam was told that Gandhi will come with letters of support from different parties. "You do not have to read all of those. Just leaf through them and ring the bell," Nair suggested to the President, saying he would be in the adjacent ADC's room with the letter appointing Gandhi as Prime Minister.
"Please sign it, shake hands with her and congratulate her. You should also ask when she would like to be sworn in," Nair advised Kalam who said "Okay".
The book will hit the stands tomorrow. PTI
FinMin sets up Implementation Cell for Sixth Pay Panel report
New Delhi, Apr 20 (PTI) The Finance Ministry is understood to have set up a cell to implement by September, the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations that is awaiting government approval.
Sources said Finance Minister P Chidambaram approved setting up of the Implementation Cell "to process and implement the accepted recommendations of the Pay Commission by September." The six-member cell set up in the Department of Expenditure, will be headed by a Joint Secretary and will complete its work in six months with effect from April 1, 2008, sources said.
The government had earlier set up a Committee headed by Cabinet Secretary to process the Sixth Pay Commission report before giving its final approval. Once the Cabinet approves the report, the Implementation Cell will implement the report, the sources said.
Ever since inflation rose to a three-year high of over 7 per cent, the government has been eager to implement the recommendations of the Central Pay Commission report at the earliest, sources said.
The pay panel has recommended an average hike of 28 per cent in the salary of the central government employees, which is expected to benefit over 40 lakh persons. PTI
Deccan Chargers restricted to 110 on poor pitch
Kolkata, Apr 20 (PTI) Kolkata Knight Riders bowlers utilised a poor pitch to skittle out a strong batting line up of the Deccan Chargers for 110 in their Indian Premier League tie here today.
The Chargers never appeared comfortable as only five of their batsmen reached double figures, with the Aussie duo of Andrew Symonds (32) and Adam Gilchrist (23) being the main contributors before a near-capacity crowd at the Eden Gardens.
Spinner Murali Kartik (3/17) was the wrecker-in-chief for the Knight riders, while Ajit Agarkar bagged a couple after being hammered for 16 runs in his first over.
Electing to bat, the Chargers lost quick wickets as their top order caved in to some disciplined stuff delivered by the Kolkata Knight Riders bowlers on a two-paced wicket, giving the visitors a trying time. Some of the balls kept low while some other deliveries jumped awkwardly.
Young Ashok Dinda, playing only his second Twenty20 match, opened the bowling and generated a good pace. His new ball partner Ishant Sharma also maintained a good line and length while sending down his customary fiery deliveries.
Success came Ishant's way in his second over, when Deccan Chargers' opener venugopal Rao departed giving a simple catch to Kaartik at gully.
Skipper V V S Laxman departed soon after without bothering the scorer, as Dinda got his first wicket, reducing the Hyderabad-based side to 22/2 in 4.2 overs. PTI
Keen tussle on cards as Rajasthan Royals meet Kings XI Punjab
Dinesh Sharma
Jaipur, Apr 20 (PTI) A keen tussle is on cards when Shane Warne-led Rajasthan Royals meets Punjab Kings XI in the Indian Premier League encounter at the Sawai Man Singh stadium here tomorrow.
Both teams have lost their opening matches and are desperate to open their account in the high-profile tournament.
Though Punjab lads fought gamely, their efforts proved to be insufficient against Chennai Super Kings.
On the other hand, Rajasthan Royals failed to put their act together and were largely done in by inept batting. They were restricted to 129 for 8 in 20 overs and their bowlers could not dent the formidable batting lineup of Delhi Daredevils, who marched to nine wicket facile win.
Warne had claimed that his team was well-balanced and had worked on a clever strategy but the burly tweaker was made to eat a humble pie last evening.
It was poor batting which weighed heavily against the Rajasthan Royals and adding salt to injury is the fact that the hosts would be compelled to take on the field tomorrow with more or less same set of players.
South Africans Graeme Smith and Morne Morkel and Pakistan players Younis Khan, Sohail Tanveer and Kamran Akmal will not be here for tomorrow's match.
According to the owner of Jaipur Franchise, Manoj Badale Pakistani players are expected arrive on Tuesday after their T20 match against Bangladesh. PTI
RBI may resort to tight measures in policy to check inflation
Mumbai, Apr 20 (PTI) Worried over the unabated inflation now at over 7 per cent, Reserve Bank is expected to take more monetary measures including a hike in key short-term rates in its credit policy on April 29, top bankers said.
A possible 0.25-0.5 per cent hike in the repo rate could be on the cards to supplement the 0.5 per cent cash reserve ratio (CRR) hike effected last week by the apex bank, they said.
Repo rate is the rate at which the RBI borrows from the banks while CRR is the amount of funds that the banks have to keep with the RBI.
"The first priority of the Reserve Bank would be to rein in inflation. A 0.25-0.5 per cent hike in repo rates is quite possible," Uco Bank's Chairman and Managing Director S K Goel told PTI here.
RBI had hiked CRR by 0.5 per cent to 8 per cent on Thursday to suck out Rs 18,500-crore liquidity from the banking system as a measure to combat ballooning inflation.
"The impound on Uco Bank with this CRR hike would be around Rs 400 crore while the loss of income would be around Rs 24 crore. This would have an impact on the lending surplus of the bank," Goel said.
The bank's Asset Liability Committee (ALCO) will meet on May 5 to take a decision on lending rates, Goel said.
Even a 0.25 per cent hike in short-term rates could force banks to pass on the burden to their customers through a hike in lending rates. PTI
ArcelorMittal is bullish about investment in India
H S Rao
London, Apr 20 (PTI) ArcellorMittal, the world's largest steel maker, is "very bullish" about India and is committed to invest nearly USD 25 billion in the country, according to a top company official.
"India is one of the star performers and we are very bullish about it. We are committed to invest nearly USD 25 billion," Malay Mukherjee, member of the Group Management Board of the company told PTI.
Besides investing USD 10 billion each in Orissa and Jharkhand on 12 million tonnes Green Field Steel Project each, the company proposes to have more customer-oriented projects such as Service Centres in the country.
"We are also working in joint venture in Chennai in stainless steel, mainly for the automotive sector," Mukherjee said.
Mukherjee, who will retire on May 13 as the executive member of the Board responsible for Asia, Africa, the CIS, mining, stainless and pipes and tubes but will continue as Non-Executive member of the Board, said it has been an exciting journey in ArcelorMittal.
Following the merger between Arcelor and Mittal steel in 2006, Mukherjee was appointed as one of the six members of the company's group management board.
Hailing the vision and leadership of NRI steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal which enabled the company to catapult from a production of 1.3 million tonnes in 1993 to 110 million tonnes now, Mukherjee said, "we still have fire in our belly and one of the areas where we do believe that a lot still needs to be done is definitely India." ArcelorMittal is putting up two integrated green field steel plants of 12 million tonnes capacity each in Orissa and Jharkhand at a total cost of USD 20 billion. PTI
India invites Saudi investment
Ajay Kaul
Riyadh, Apr 20 (PTI) India has invited investment from Saudi Arabia, particularly in infrastructure and power generation sectors, to raise the longstanding economic cooperation to greater levels.
"India and Saudi Arabia have a long tradition of economic cooperation which is being enhanced today with the pursuit of ties in areas such as energy, information technology and telecommunication," External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said at an Indian community reception here last evening.
Indo-Saudi joint ventures are increasing as businesses continue to identify new areas for partnership, he said, specifying IT sector in which companies like Infosys, Wipro and Tata Consultancy are already flourishing in this country.
He said many Indian entrepreneurs have shown interest in setting up joint venture operations in Saudi Arabia in sectors like construction, pharmaceuticals and industrial processing.
"Similarly, India too is looking towards Saudi Arabia for investment in our infrastructure, power generation and other mega projects," said the External Affairs Minister who is on a two-day visit here since yesterday.
Earlier, he noted that India would need investment to the tune of 600 million dollars over the next five years in these critical areas to sustain its high economic growth.
Referring to India's energy security, he described Saudi Arabia as an important component in this aspect as 26 per cent of its fossil fuel requirement is sourced from this hydrocarbon-rich country. PTI
Malaysia calls for politics-free Olympics ahead of torch relay
Jaishree Balasubramanian
Kuala Lumpur, Apr 20 (PTI) A day before hosting the Olympic torch relay amid tight security to thwart any possible protests over the Chinese crackdown in Tibet, Malaysia today said the Beijing Games should not be politicised.
"Malaysia takes this opportunity to reiterate that the Beijing Olympics should not be politicised", Foreign Minister Dr Rais Yatim said as the Olympic torch arrived here this morning in a chartered plane.
The torch relay, scheduled to begin at 1230 pm (local time) tomorrow, reflects the "close ties" Malaysia shares with China, Yatim said in a statement. Malaysia's multi-ethnic population comprises 25 per cent ethnic Chinese.
All measures will be take to ensure that the torch relay is safe and successful, the minister said adding that Malaysia was confident of the success of the Olympic Games.
Kuala Lumpur is among 21 cities outside China that is hosting the Olympic torch relay themed "Journey of Harmony" over 130 days and covering 137,000 km.
The Asian leg of the Olympic torch relay, which saw the flame passing from Islamabad, New Delhi and Bangkok earlier, has been largely peaceful and successful.
The torch arrived at Kuala Lumpur International Airport from Thailand and was received by officials from the Olympic Council of Malaysia and the Chinese ambassador to Malaysia.
Meanwhile, the Vajrayana Buddhist Council of Malaysia today held an hour-long multi-faith prayer session, calling for peace in Tibet.
"I hope after the Olympic games, China will sit with world leaders along with Tibetan leaders and hold dialogue for peace in Tibet," Buddhist High Priest of Malaysia Reverend K Sri Dhammaratana was quoted by media reports as saying. PTI
Prachanda to head new government in Nepal
Kathmandu, Apr 20 (PTI) Maoist supremo Prachanda, whose party has registered a surprise victory in recent Constituent Assembly polls, today declared that he will lead the next government in Nepal.
"I will soon become the head of the first republican government," Prachanda said during a victory rally in Kirtipur Municipality of Kathmandu.
Ahead of the April 10 polls, Prachanda was projected by the CPN-Moist party as future President. But as the interim constitution does not have the provision for electing a President, he is expected to head the government as Prime Minister, party insiders said.
The CPN-Maoist has emerged as the single largest party by securing 118 seats out of a total of 240 for which polls were held under the first-past-the-post voting system. The results of eight constituencies for which re-election was held yesterday are yet to be announced.
However, Maoists are unlikely to win majority in the 601-member Constituent Assembly as they have so far received only 30 per cent votes under the proportionate voting system for 335 seats. The remaining 26 seats will be filled through nominations by the Prime Minister.
Prachanda said he would give special emphasis to the development of Kirtipur, a constituency having strong anti-King feeling and from where the Maoist chief got elected to the assembly. Prachanda has also been elected from Rolpa district.
He also assured the voters that Nepal would be declared a republic through the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly, which will be held within three weeks of the announcement of all the results. PTI
Air India documentary screened at Hot Docs festival
Bal Krishna
Toronto, Apr 20 (PTI) 'Air India 182', a new Canadian documentary based on the 1985 airliner bombing that claimed 329 lives, made its world premier at prestigious Hot Docs festival here.
The documentary, which was screened at the festival on Friday, offers a first-person account of the conspiracies leading up to the attack on the airliner and the roles Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) played in its aftermath.
It also includes interviews with the victim's families and some high-ranking CSIS officials.
'Air India 182' has "profound implications about the way we think of ourselves and the society we live in," filmmaker Sturla Gunnarsson, who has written and directed it, said.
Hot Docs -- the 15th Canadian International Documentary Festival -- kicked off on Thursday night.
Canadians need to wake up to the history of the tragedy of Air India flight 182, "the most deadly incident of air terrorism before 9/11," Gunnarsson said.
"The conspiracy was Vancouver-based, most of the victims were Canadian and it has profound implications about the way we think of ourselves and the society we live in.
I hope this film goes some way toward distilling a very complex story and giving a voice to the Air India families, who are among the most graceful and dignified people I've ever met," he said.
PTI
Now the item boys are here!
Amit Das
New Delhi, Apr 20 (PTI) Flashing curves and gyrating is in for a competition. Now its time for men to burn the screen with their glistening six-packs.
With Bollywood on an experimental mood and escalating star power of actors, the Indian film industry is seeing a shift as far as item numbers are concerned with leading men shaking a leg as item boys.
While Shahrukh has emerged as the king of item songs, with films like 'Kaal' and Krazzy 4, Hrithik has recently burned the dance floor with his Michael Jackson look-alike dancing steps in Krazzy 4. Even Salman has put on his dancing shoes in 'Hello'.
"I think it is a very healthy trend. A lot of newer things are being attempted now a days. We always had item girls then why not item boys?" asks film analyst Taran Adarsh.
Director Jaideep Sen of Krazzy 4, who made the two leading actors dance in his film, says, "It helped the film in a big way. It proved to be the biggest attraction for the audience. It acted like giving icing on the cake." Even as the leading actors are ruling the roost, the other actors are also joining the item number bandwagon. While Tusshar Kapoor has already done a sizzling number in Rohit Shettys 'Sunday', Abhishek Bachchan will be seen strutting his stuff in a rocking track in Apoorva Lakhia's film 'Mission Istanbul'. Also Irfan Khan, who is not the best of dancers, will feature in a song in 'Teesri Manzil 302'. PTI
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