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Centre has leads on Jaipur blasts: Patil
Shillong/Kohima, May 14 (PTI) The government has leads on those who carried out the serial blasts in Jaipur that claimed at least 60 lives and injured over 100 people, Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil said today.
"The Centre has leads about the elements involved in the the strikes. But we will not disclose it now. Investigation is in progress," he told reporters here.
"There is a design behind the strikes," Patil said.
Later at Kohima, he said he was in constant touch with his ministry officials in Delhi to monitor the situation in Jaipur.
He was also in touch with Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and had assured her of help from the Centre.
Patil lauded the people of Rajasthan for showing restraint despite provocation by those who were trying to disturb peace.
He said he would visit Jaipur tomorrow along with Congress president Sonia Gandhi to take stock of the situation. PTI
Centre points at "neighbouring" country for Jaipur blasts
Jaipur/New Delhi, May 14 (PTI) As fresh leads into the terror attack in the Pink city increasingly pointed to involvement of Bangladesh- based HuJI, the Centre today did not rule out the hand of a "neighbouring" country in the serial blasts that left at least 63 killed.
With people of Jaipur still coming to terms with the unprecedented terror strike, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje said the eight serial blasts that ripped through crowded areas and near a Hanuman temple were the handiwork of an organised "international terrorist gang" to create communal tension. The death toll rose to 63 and is likely to go up, an official said, adding nearly 130 injured persons were undegroing treatment in hospitals.
As investigators sifted for clues, police said eight persons including a man injured in the blasts and a rickshaw puller are being questioned. However, no arrests have been made so far, police said.
High explosive RDX was used in the terror strike and the explosive devices were fitted with timers and planted on cycles, a modus operandi similar to the one used in last year's blasts in court premises in Uttar Pradesh in which Harkat-ul-Jehadi Islami(HUJI) was involved, police said.
After visiting the site of explosions, Union Minister of State for Home Sriprakash Jaiswal said in Delhi the blasts in the walled city smacked of a "deep-rooted and very well-planned conspiracy" by a "neighbouring country" but refused to say he was pointing to Pakistan.
Jaiswal however suggested the bombings were connected to previous attacks in India. He said the blasts were carried out with the help of high intensity explosives like RDX or by using Ammonium Nitrate.
Rapid Action Force (RAF)personnel were deployed in the city to prevent any communal incidents while daylong curfew was imposed in 15 police station areas. PTI
Polling in Singur peaceful
Singur (WB), May 14 (PTI) While violence marred the second phase of the panchayat election in some districts, Singur in Hooghly district, once the hotbed of state politics over Tata Motors' small car project, remained peaceful today.
"Voting was peaceful and both the CPI(M) and its archrival Trinamool Congress are hopeful of winning," police said.
The state police, assisted by Kerala police and the BSF, guarded polling booths, particularly the Tata Project area.
Krishi Jami Raksha Committee Convenor Bhajahari Manna, who is a Trinamool Congress Panchayat Samity candidate at Singur said he had no complaints about the polling.
Singur had hit the headlines with the Krishi Jami Raksha Committee spearheading an agitation against forcible acquisition of farmland by the state government for the Tata Motors' small car 'Nano' project in the last two years. PTI
Pak troops open fire on border post in North Kashmir
New Delhi, May 14 (PTI) For the second time in less than a week, Pakistani troops opened unprovoked firing on an Indian border post in Tangdhar region in North Kashmir but no casualty was reported.
It was a major violation of the ceasefire on the Line of Control which has been in force since December 2003, army sources said here.
The firing by the Pakistani troops from across the LoC comes close on the heels of Pakistani Rangers breaching the ceasefire on the international border in Samba sector earlier this week.
Using heavy machine guns and mortars, Pakistani troops targeted a forward Indian post in the Tangdhar area last evening.
Within a span of 15 to 20 minutes, Pakistani troops fired on the Indian post over 50 to 60 rounds from heavy machine gun and also fired from heavy mortars, the sources said.
"This was not a cover firing for any attempt to push in terrorists. It was targeted straight at the forward Indian post," the sources said .
About 8 to 10 mortar bombs fired at the post fell well short of it and there were no causalities.
Army has proposed a flag meeting with its Pakistani counterparts to take up the issue of unprovoked firing. Just a few days back Border Security Force personnel and Pakistani Rangers traded heavy fire near the international border in Samba sector as the Rangers gave covering fire to a big group of Pakistani terrorists trying to sneak into Indian territory. PTI
Harbhajan banned for 5 ODIs, warned of life ban
Mumbai, May 14 (PTI) Temperamental off-spinner Harbhajan Singh today got away with a five-match ODI ban for slapping his India teammate S Sreesanth but was warned by the Cricket Board of a life ban for any further misconduct on his part.
A day after BCCI-appointed Commissioner Sudhir Nanavati submitted a 14-page report to the Board, the BCCI's Disciplinary Committee acted swiftly to impose the ban on the beleaguered spinner who will now miss the forthcoming tri-series in Bangladesh and two matches of the Asia Cup in Pakistan.
The 27-year-old Harbhajan, who had already been banned from the ongoing Indian Premier League and fined a whopping Rs three crore match fee for the level 4 offence, was summoned by the Disciplinary Committee, headed by president Sharad Pawar, to hear his views on the incident which happened after an IPL match in Mohali on April 25.
"The Committee accordingly decided to ban Harbhajan Singh for five one-day internationals, starting today and further observed that any further instance of misconduct will invoke a life-ban," the BCCI said in a statement after the committee's hearing.
"The Committee invoked Rule 3.2.1 of the BCCI Regulations for Players, Team officials, Managers, Umpires and Administrators. Under this provision, the maximum punishment that can be meted out to a player is a ban up to a maximum of 5 ODIs and/or 3 Test matches," Pawar told reporters.
He said a copy of the report was given to Harbhajan who was heard by the committee before taking a final decision on the quantum of punishment. PTI
India take on unbeaten Pakistan in Azlan Shah
Ipoh (Malaysia), May 14 (PTI) Buoyed by back-to-back wins over Canada and Belgium, a resurgent India will take on the unbeaten-as-yet arch-rival Pakistan in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup Hockey tournament, here tomorrow.
The much-anticipated match is crucial for India as a win will boost its chances of a respectable finish in the event, while for Pakistan another victory would ensure a majestic passage to the final.
Pakistan, under the new coach Naveed Alam, has been in excellent form here ab intio, winning three while drawing against Argentina 3-3.
Their forward line looks formidable having scored 14 goals in just four matches, making it a phenomenal performance for a side that finished sixth here last year.
However, Indian coach Ajay Kumar Bansal is unperturbed by the Pakistanis' remarkable run and exuded confidence of an Indian win tomorrow.
"We have to win tomorrow. If we have to go anywhere near a medal, this win is a must and my boys are aware of this," he said.
"I think we will be able to put it across Pakistan", he added.
Bansal felt with both Sandeep Singh and Diwakar Ram in good form, the Indians have a real chance of ending Pakistan's unbeaten run.
"There is no reason why they cannot be successful tomorrow also?" he said. PTI
Knight Riders fined for slow over rate again
New Delhi, May 14 (PTI) The Kolkata Knight Riders completed a dubious hat-trick after the Sourav Ganguly-led squad was fined, for the third straight match, for slow over rate in their last night's Indian Premier League tie against Delhi Daredevils.
The Knight Riders, who beat the Daredevils by 23 runs in an exciting match at the Eden Gardens last night, were found two overs behind the schedule and were handed down a USD 1000 fine.
The IPL follows the ICC Playing Conditions and Rules, which states any team bowling a slow over rate would be fined USD 500 per over.
In their previous match against the Hyderabad Deccan Chargers too, the Knight Riders were two overs behind the schedule and Match Referee Talat Ali fined them an equal amount.
Prior to that, the Kolkata outfit incurred a USD 500 fine when they were found an over behind the schedule against the Bangalore Royal Challengers in the May 8 match. PTI
Mizos hooked to European football
Aizawl, May 14 (PTI) Big applause and shouts of dismay were heard in every locality of Mizoram's state capital and other places on Sunday night to watch a pulsating English Premier League final match even as the rest of the country was hooked to the Indian Premier League cricket extravaganza.
Traditional drums joined the cheers as firecrackers lit up the night, on the lines of the New Year to mark the win of Manchester United in the premier championship.
One of the fans Zoramdinthara, a lecturer of Pachhunga University College, sent a number of sms to his friends and friendly banters to the supporters of rival Arsenal.
A senior police officer said crimes like burglary and theft never occurred during World Cup football matches as even petty criminals were glued to TVs watching the matches.
All the local papers in Mizoram, where the European football is keenly followed, concentrate mostly on the game as a column is set aside for war of words between fans of English football clubs where sms received from the fans are published.
The eight-paged largest circulated vernacular daily 'Vanglaini' devoted two of the last pages for sports and used the last page mainly to publish stories about football.
Sports writers like Mamuana, Lalnghinglova Hmar and Hmingsanga are treated by young as celebrities for their contributions towards improvement of young Mizo footballers and also giving them the latest news and views about global football scenario.
Local television channels also organize weekly talk shows on football by sports writers which has a large number of viewers. PTI
Stock market shows signs of consolidation
Mumbai, May 14 (PTI) The stock market showed signs of consolidation on alternate bouts of buying and selling in line with narrowly mixed global trend with the benchmark Sensex quoting nearly flat at 1030 hours today.
The Bombay Stock Exchange 30-share index moved erratically in a range of 16,793.37 and 16,626.35 before being quoted at 16,754.00 at 1030 hours, hardly changing against overnight close of 16,752.86.
Yesterday, it was down by over 108 points.
The S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange, however, eased by 7.60 points to 4,950.20 from previous close.
Market players still concerned over the steep slowdown in industrial output and rising inflation as the global crude oil prices remained high near USD 126 a barrel after striking a new peak of USD 126.98 a barrel in New York yesterday.
Besides Taiwan, most of the other Asian markets were trading slightly lower. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended weak while the Nasdaq Composite Index edged up last night.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs), after three days of sell-off, turned positive and they picked up shares worth Rs 73.93 crore on Tuesday as per provisional data.
Some of the banking, power, capital goods and refinery shares displayed feeble trend while consumer durable, metal and IT stocks were quoting in the green on buying support. PTI
Power from rice husk: Virginia venture for Bihar villages
Sridhar Krishnaswami
Washington, May 14 (PTI) Two Virginia University students have started a project with an India-based partner to supply electricity to villages in Bihar by burning rice husks, a process that may also help reduce carbon emissions.
So far, two pilot rice husk generators are providing power to about 10,000 rural Indians, which will save 200 tonnes of emissions annually for each village if compared to generation of power from diesel or coal, the university said in a statement here.
The two students are Manoj Sinha and Charles Ransler, from the university's Darden School of Business and their partner is Gyanesh Pandey, an engineer who oversees things on the ground in India.
The project may help turn the huge piles of husks that accumulate in many "rice belt" villages into two valuable products: electricity and ash that can be sold as an ingredient for cement, the institute said.
The business plan of Husk Power Systems calls for a rapid expansion that will put the miniature power plants in hundreds more villages within a few years.
The plan recently received several votes of confidence as college business plan competitions have awarded it almost USD 100,000 in prize money, including USD 50,000 for winning the Social Innovation Competition at the University of Texas on May 2, USD 35,000 for second place at MIT's Ignite Clean Energy competition on May 12 and a USD 10,000 top prize from the University of Virginia on April 7. PTI
Dubai firms eye more investments in India
Dubai, May 14 (PTI) Several Dubai-based companies, who have invested billions of dollars in many real estate and infrastructure projects in India, are keen to boost it further in one of the fastest growing economies in the world.
The Dubai companies - Emaaar, Limitless and DP World have large operations and projects in India, but are keen to enter the infrastructure projects like the airports sector.
The offer of increased investment was made during a presentation by the Dubai-based companies for India's Minister for External Affairs, Pranab Mukherjee, here on Wednesday.
The minister said this after going through a presentation on "Dubai's growth and plans for the future and planned investments by leading Dubai companies in India" organised by the Dubai Executive Council.
DEC is a Dubai government entity that formulates and implements federal regulations and local laws and prepares annual budgets along with development plans.
The presentation was made by Mohammed Bin Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs, when Mukherjee visited Dubai Executive Council on Tuesday.
The Indian minister is on a three-day visit to the UAE, which began on Monday. Mukherjee said it is welcomed since "they were tailor-made for India's needs".
Indian officials told PTI that Mukherjee reiterated that the Indian government will assist the companies in all ways it can. "The minister also reiterated that the Indian government was investor-friendly and fully supported all private-public partnerships," the official added. PTI
Montek counters Patel on airport delay charges
New Delhi, May 14 (PTI) Fueling the spat with Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek S Ahluwalia today hit back saying review of projects was an important function of plan panel and it should not be blamed for delays in airport modernisation works.
"The review that I did was a routine review. It is an important part of the management that Planning Commission looks at," Ahluwalia said on the meeting with officials of DIAL, the Delhi airport developer, that sparked the row between him and Patel.
"The notion that we are holding back is perhaps not correct... It (any public project) goes through different procedures and goes up to Cabinet for approval," he shot back to Patel's charges that the plan body had delayed awarding of Delhi and Mumbai airport revamp projects.
Reacting to summoning of officials of DIAL, a GMR group company, by Ahluwalia after he found deficiency in services, Patel had shot off a letter laced with sarcasm, saying the Kolkata and Chennai airport projects too were being delayed by objections raised by the Planning Commission.
"This is despite the fact that the Committee on Infrastructure, headed by the Prime Minister, has categorically approved the project," the letter said.
On his part, Ahluwalia said: "There are always different points of view of the different ministries on how a public sector project is carried on." He, however, said that problems at the Delhi airport, particularly relating to security clearances, were not in the control of the airport managers and "we are taking that up with relevant ministries that is what these reviews are for." PTI
FO suggests offenders transfer pact with India over Sarabjit
Islamabad, May 14 (PTI) Pakistan's Foreign Ministry has suggested that there should be a treaty with India for "transfer of offenders" if death row convict Sarabjit Singh should be released.
A high-level meeting here yesterday also discussed a proposal to strike a deal with India to exchange Sarabjit for "all Pakistani prisoners detained in India", local media reported today quoting official sources.
The new government's proposal to convert all death sentences to life imprisonment was reviewed with special reference to Sarabjit's case during the meeting, attended by senior officials of the ministries of foreign affairs, interior, law and human rights and chaired by Additional Interior Secretary Zafeer Abbassi.
Foreign Ministry officials told the meeting that even if Sarabjit is given amnesty and released, he could not be handed over to Indian authorities as Pakistan had not signed any treaty with India for the "transfer of offenders".
They said the government should sign such a treaty with India if it wanted to release Sarabjit.
Abbassi asked the Foreign Office to "consider international charters and conventions relevant to the issue in case the government decided either way." The meeting also sought a report on the "legal aspects of Sarbjit's release" from the Law Division within 24 hours. Sources said the report would be sent to the Prime Minister and the President.
The Interior Ministry opposed commuting his death penalty to life imprisonment, saying it could "encourage subversive activities" and goes against the country's ideology.
Sarabjit was sentenced to death for alleged involvement in four bomb attacks in Punjab province that killed 14 people in 1990. Pakistani authorities put off his hanging indefinitely last month. PTI
China quake toll mounts to 20,000
Raghavendra
Beijing, May 14 (PTI) China today rushed more troops and air-dropped relief supplies in areas cut off near the epicentre of the devastating earthquake in southwest Sichuan province as the toll mounted to nearly 20,000 with thousands of people still buried, trapped or missing.
As troops reached the quake-battered areas near the epicentre, the state media reported that the death toll in Mianyang city alone rose from 3629 to 5,540 with 18,486 more buried and 1,396 missing.
In Yingxiu of Wenchuan county, only 2,300 people were believed to have survived out of 10,000 people living in the town near the epicentre, official Xinhua news agency said. It had earlier reported a toll of over 12,000 in the quake.
The toll was expected to rise further once rescuers reach other towns in Wenchuan.
Some towns near the epicentre have been "razed to the ground" with no houses left standing, a police official was quoted by the state media as saying.
"The losses have been severe. Some towns basically have no houses left. They have all been razed to the ground," Wang Yi, head of an armed police unit sent into the disaster zone, was quoted as saying by Sichuan Online news site.
Around 20,000 soldiers had landed in the disaster-struck areas, another 30,000 en route by air, road and rail and on foot and the People's Liberation Army (PLA) has ordered 30,000 more troops to reinforce the disaster relief, the agency said.
The first batch of elite soldiers from airborne special force were parachuted into Maoxian county. Inclement weather had initially hampered rescue operations. PTI
Akshay Kumar awarded Honorary Doctorate by Canada varsity
London, May 14 (PTI) Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar has been awarded a Honorary Doctorate of Law by the University of Windsor in Ontario, Canada for his outstanding work in film industry and contribution to social work.
The 40-year-old actor is not only the Indian ambassador for the Special Olympics, he has also helped raise money for Trillium Health Care Centre in Mississauga and the Vancouver Children's Hospital, his spokeswoman said here today.
Now Akshay has joined the list of Bollywood personalities like Amitabh Bachchan, Yash Chopra, Shabana Azmi and Shilpa Shetty who were conferred honorary doctorates from foreign universities in the past.
"Wow! This really is one of the most nerve-racking days of my life. My hands are shaking," Akshay said receiving the Doctorate at a ceremony at the University Chapel in Ontario, crammed with his fans.
He said: "I don't think even an Oscar would mean as much as this means to me. Indians believe that our success lies at the feet of our parents. It's not I who should be receiving this award, but my parents." Paul J Rennick, the President of the University, said: "We take particular pride and pleasure in honouring men and women of achievement and altruism, whose lives manifest the values of integrity, discipline and learning that are at the heart of the University." PTI
Earth Matters - TV programmes helps people take initiative
Shivani Bhakhry
New Delhi, May 14 (PTI) For them climate change was a distant process occuring in far away places. It could not affect them as they had never done anything to harm the environment. But had they done anything to support the environment? They never realised that the depleting water levels in the once water rich region could be a result of climate change and that they could save it.
According to the people of Rajgarh and Solan in Himachal Pradesh, the hilly terrains used to receive heavy rainfall at one point of time, but in the recent years this has reduced considerably causing the ground water to deplete. However, one programme not only helped them to understand the causes of the depleting water levels but also helped them with ways to conserve it.
Doordarshan's environment and wildlife series "Earth Matters" not only acquainted them with the effects of climate change but also told them about water conservation and afforestation as some of the solutions to deal with the problem. After viewing the programme, the people of the region decided to take steps to deal with the problem and thus came up the Earth Matters Nature Club.
The group headed by Tilak Vij, a farmer from Himachal Pradesh, along with the people of the region started working towards building water storage tanks using all renewable resources and rain water harvesting. They started planting more and more trees to stop soil erosion.
"We never realised that we ourselves were causing deforestation leading to soil erosion which in turn was depleting the quality of the crops. We have dug small ponds and earthen tanks to store the rain water and utilise it for irrigation purposes," Vij told PTI. PTI
Teasers on small screen is passe; social networking sites rule
Sabi Hussain
New Delhi, May 14 (PTI) Now you dont have to wait to catch rushes of forthcoming big screen releases on television. With movie marketing moguls fast latching on to popular social networking sites you could switch to the Internet and view promos and teasers for the latest flicks.
In the new trend, trailers for films like the upcoming Akshay Kumar-Katrina Kaif starrer 'Singh is King' are being promoted on the Internet on sites like Orkut, Facebook and My Space. These social networking sites provide subscribers with opportunities to create communities which are used to discuss films through forums as well as upload latest videos.
The first production house to take advantage of this medium was Subhash Ghai's Mukta Arts, who promoted their 'Black & White' staring Anil Kapoor via an online community with the tag line 'Kill Terror in Search of Harmony.' The initiative, however, did not do too well for them.
The fate of Ghai's movie did not hamper Yash Raj films from promoting their production house latest flick 'Tashan' through Orkut and Facebook.
"This is really a very encouraging medium i.E, Internet and it is advantageous to promote new movies on networking sites as large chunk of members on these sites are youth, who relates themselves with the character," says an official spokesperson from Yash Raj Films.
On Orkut and Facebook, the community has forums and polling booths to discuss Jimmy's (Saif) new mustachioed avatar or Pooja's (Kareena) size zero figure. It has more than a thousand members and the owners have placed themselves with the name of Bachchan Pandey, Jimmy and Bhaiyajee, the names of the characters in the movie. PTI
Infrastructure problems hinder tourist inflow at Tawang
Sukhendu Bhattacharya
Sella (Arunachal Pradesh), May 13 (PTI) At first sight the snow-covered place could be mistaken to somewhere in the Kashmir Valley.
The Sella Pass, perched at 18,000 ft above sea level, in the Himalayan ranges is as majestic as any tourist destination. The pass, however, has not been able to attract tourists thanks to lack of infrastructure.
The pass is about eight hours drive from Assam's town of Tezpur and falls on way to Tawang, where the second oldest Buddhist monastery after Lhasa, is situated.
Politically Tawang has become sensitive of late with the Chinese claim on territory, which has been vehemently contested by the Arunachal Pradesh people.
Admitting that lack of infrastructure had robbed the government of valuable revenue, Arunachal Tourism Secretary Bandana Deuri says roadside amenities have to be improved to attract tourists to even the lesser known areas of the state.
The road to Tawang and Sella is maintained by the Border Roads Task Force and a tourist has to depend on amenities provided basically by the army which is guarding the sector.
"This year there was seven feet snow in the Sella pass and our family and friends had fun," says the wife of a army colonel who is posted in the area.
"Thrilling" has been the overwhelming word of praise for the few tourists who came this year as a part of a conducted tour to Tawang and Sella. PTI
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