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[Grapevine] For 8 Feb, 2010



The Mumbai Grapevine
Connecting Mumbaikars with Mumbai
(Published by Mumbai-Central.com)


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______News_______

  • 15 killed, 17 injured in avalanche-hit Kashmir
  • MAMC rape case: Delhi HC awards lifer to accused
  • Congress needles Pawar on rising food prices
  • CRPF's women contingent to leaves for Liberia
  • Virender Sehwag departs after notching up 18th century
  • Playing in India an advantage for Royals: Warne
  • HI forms panel for gradation system of players
  • India to host Eng women's team for ODI, T20 series
  • 'Bt Brinjal decision will reflect general sentiment'
  • Montek pitches for withdrawal of stimulus in budget
  • Price rise will be in control soon : Pranab
  • Turkish Airlines to lease 3 Boeing 777 from Jet
  • Market Indices
  • Currency Rates



    15 killed, 17 injured in avalanche-hit Kashmir

    Srinagar, Feb 8 (PTI) Tragedy today struck a group of armymen when 15 of them were killed and 17 others were seriously injured in a massive avalanche that hit them during winter warfare training on the steep slopes of a ski resort, 70 kms from here.

    The avalanche came down on a 60-strong group as they were going up the sheer ice walls in Khilanmarg with near zero visibility hampering any evasive action by them.

    An army spokesman, Colonel J S Brar and police said that 15 men were buried in tonnes of snow and 17 others were extricated and moved to base hospital at Srinagar. While two soldiers were still missing, 26 others had been rescued by nightfall, after which the operations were called off.

    The dead included an officer, Lt Prateek, and 14 other ranks from the Army's prestigious High Altitude Warfare School (HAWS), he said.



    MAMC rape case: Delhi HC awards lifer to accused

    New Delhi, Feb 8 (PTI) The Delhi High Court today sentenced the prime convict in the sensational Maulana Azad Medical College student rape case, which had rocked the national capital seven years ago, to life imprisonment.

    Observing that the accused, Rahul, had acted "not only as a beast but even acted savage," a bench headed by Justice Pradeep Nandrajog upheld the trial court verdict which had sentenced him to life imprisonment.

    The court, however, acquitted the other convict Amit on charges of rape stating that there was no evidence to establish that he had raped the medical student but convicted him for robbery.

    The victim, a fourth-year student of the Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC), was raped at knife point on the terrace of the Mughal monument 'Khooni Darwaza' in central Delhi on November 15, 2002.



    Congress needles Pawar on rising food prices

    New Delhi, Feb 8(PTI) Sharad Pawar today came under continued needling from Congress which virtually held him responsible for spiralling food prices.

    "The food inflation falls squarely within the ministries of Agriculture, Food Distribution and Consumer Affairs(all under Pawar's charge)," Party spokesperson Manish Tewari told reporters here.

    His comments came a day after Pawar met Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray ostensibly with the plea to let Australian players take part in the IPL while sending a subtle message to Congress which has come down hard on him over soaring food prices.

    The Pawar-Thackeray meeting also came on a day the Centre asked the Maharashtra government to take firm action against the "divisive agenda" of the Shiv Sena.

    Replying to a volley of questions, Tewari said that the party was well within its rights to reflect the concerns of millions of people in the country.



    CRPF's women contingent to leaves for Liberia

    New Delhi, Feb 8 (PTI) A women contingent of the CRPF will leave for civil war stricken Liberia tonight as part of the United Nations Peace Keeping assignment.

    The fourth women contingent to be sent to Liberia by the largest paramilitary force in the country comprises 106 women personnel besides 19 male officers and others. They will leave by a special UN aircraft at a time when Liberia is expected to elect a new government this year after experiencing years of civil war.

    The officers and women have been trained in advanced unarmed combat tactics, crowd and mob control, modern sophisticated weapons, counter insurgency operations, disaster management, international policing with special emphasis on community policing among others.

    A Female Formed Police Unit (FFPU) of the country was first deployed in Liberia in 2007.



    Virender Sehwag departs after notching up 18th century

    Nagpur, Feb 8 (PTI) Virender Sehwag slammed his 18th century before throwing his wicket away as India reached 221 for four in reply to South Africa's mammoth first innings total of 558 for six at lunch on the third day of the first cricket Test between the two sides here today.

    Sehwag cracked a fluent 109 off 139 balls to lead the home team's fight-back along with S Badrinath, who hit half century in his maiden innings, before slashing a wide Wayne Parnell delivery to give a straight-forward catch to JP Duminy at the deep.

    The irrepressible Sehwag was quite clearly the dominant partner in the fourth wicket partnership with Badrinath, who negotiated a fiery post-lunch spell from Dale Steyn, that yielded 136 runs in 197 balls and lifted India from a sorry-looking 56 for three to 192 for four.



    Playing in India an advantage for Royals: Warne

    Mumbai, Feb 8 (PTI) Indian Premier League's (IPL) return to India after being held in South Africa in its previous edition will be a huge advantage to Rajasthan Royals, feels skipper Shane Warne.

    "Going back to India, it suits our players. India suits our style of play we saw in IPL-I. The way we played is why we captured public imagination in India and abroad.

    "For us everyone involved with the Royals, its exciting to go back to India,," Warne told reporters here over phone from London today.

    Former legendary Australian spinner, who is also the coach of Royals, said that changes have been made to the squad for the third edition of the Twenty20 tournament and induction of new players would enthuse new energy in the side.

    "IPL-3 is a big year. Everybody's contract will be over and everybody will be looking to perform well.



    HI forms panel for gradation system of players

    New Delhi, Feb 8 (PTI) With the World Cup just round the corner, Hockey India today formed a five-member committee to look into the gradation system which was one of the key demands of the players during their rebellion last month.

    Former India player and now Hockey India Director (Planning) Jagbir Singh has been named convener of the committee which will have ex-captain Ajit Pal Singh, Zafar Iqbal, MP Ganesh and Dhanraj Pillay as members, an HI statement said.

    The statement said the captains and national coaches of both the men's and women's teams would also be the members of the committee, while the president and secretary general of HI will be special invitees in the panel.

    The panel will look into the gradation system of not only the senior and junior men's national team members but also their female counterparts.



    India to host Eng women's team for ODI, T20 series

    New Delhi, Feb 8 (PTI) The Indian women's cricket team will play five one-dayers and three Twenty20 internationals against England from February 17 to March 8.

    The England team will arrive in Bangalore on February 14 and will begin the tour with a warm-up match against Board President's XI on February 17, according to a BCCI release.

    The first ODI will be played in Bangalore on February 19 and the fifth and last on March 1 in Mumbai.

    The ODIs will be followed by three T20 matches, all of them to be played in Mumbai.

    Schedule:

    Feb 17: Warm-up Match V/s Board President's XI, Bangalore

    Feb 19: 1st ODI, Bangalore

    Feb 21: 2nd ODI, Bangalore

    Feb 24: 3rd ODI, Vishakhapatnam

    Feb 25: Rest & Practice

    Feb 26: 4th ODI, Vishakhapatnam

    March 1: 5th ODI Mumbai

    March 4: 1st T20 D Y Patil (Mumbai)

    March 6: 2nd T20 BKC (Mumbai)

    March 8: 3rd T20 BKC (Mumbai).



    'Bt Brinjal decision will reflect general sentiment'

    Kochi, Feb 8 (PTI) Barely two days left for his ministry to take a final call on commercialisation of Bt Brinjal, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh today said the decision would reflect "people's general sentiment".

    "I have to be sensitive to the public opinion, be responsible to science. I have to look at the interest of consumers,producers and think of conservation of bio-diversity and yet think of the need to reduce the use of pesticides," Ramesh told reporters here.

    "It is not easy to make a decision and I do not expect anybody to be happy with what I will decide," he said.

    But it is a decision that will reflect the "general sentiment" of the people, the minister, who on February 6 concluded the nation-wide consultations on the genetically modified crop in Bangalore, said.



    Montek pitches for withdrawal of stimulus in budget

    New Delhi, Feb 8 (PTI) Expressing satisfaction at the 7.2 per cent growth estimates for this fiscal, the Planning Commission today pitched for phased withdrawal of stimulus in the forthcoming budget to be unveiled by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on February 26.

    "We should say the stimulus has succeeded and we should begin to phase it down. Fiscal deficit next year would be lower than that of this year," Commission's Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said.

    In order to help the industry combat the impact of global financial crisis, the government had provided three stimulus packages to the industry resulting in a revenue sacrifice of Rs 1.86 lakh crore.

    The stimulus, which included tax cuts and raising public expenditure, is expected to push up the fiscal deficit to 6.8 per cent of GDP during 2009-10 from 6.2 per cent a year ago.



    Price rise will be in control soon : Pranab

    Kolkata, Feb 8 (PTI) As food inflation spiralled to over 17 per cent, the government today said that the price situation is being reviewed regularly and surge in prices of essential items would be controlled soon.

    "The process is on to control the price rise. I am hopeful that the prices of essential items will be in control soon," Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said after receiving the Indira Gandhi Gold Plaque at the Asiatic Society here.

    "There is an imbalance between the demand and supply and the Centre has taken notice of it. Some people were taking advantage. The government has taken the initiative to increase the supply line so that there is a balance with the demand ratio," he added said.

    He said that a committee has been formed and the price situation was being reviewed.



    Turkish Airlines to lease 3 Boeing 777 from Jet

    Mumbai, Feb 8 (PTI) Turkish Airlines will lease three Boeing 777 aircraft from Jet Airways as per a latest agreement inked between the two carriers, sources close to the development said today.

    "Turkish Airlines has signed a lease agreement with Jet Airways to take on lease three Boeing 777 wide-body aircraft.

    The deal was signed last week," the sources said.

    Turkish Airlines has already taken four Boeing 777 aircraft on lease from Jet Airways, which are currently on a 25-month dry lease. The lease period would be completed by November 2011.

    Though the deal size is not known, according to market experts, a brand new Boeing 777-300ER or Boeing 777-200LR can fetch up to USD 1.2 million rental per month when on dry lease, as per present international market rates.


    ______Market Indices______

    Index Value Change
     
    BSE 30 15,935.61 Up - 19.96 (0.13%)
    AUTO INDEX 6,849.76 Down -  14.53 (0.21%) 
    BANKEX 9,320.06 Up - 45.56 (0.49%)
    BSE - 100 8,511.05 Up - 6.63 (0.08%)
    BSE - 200 2,021.64 Up - 1.43 (0.07%)
    BSE - 500 6,381.96 Up - 3.66 (0.06%)
    BSE - CAPITAL GOODS 12,982.84 Up - 72.30 (0.56%)
    BSE - CONS. DURABLES 3,947.02 Up - 3.86 (0.10%)
    BSE - FMCG 2,714.67 Up - 4.62 (0.17%)
    BSE - HEALTHCARE 4,747.75 Down -  5.46 (0.11%) 
    BSE - INFOTECH 4,850.63 Up - 4.77 (0.10%)
    BSE Mid-Cap 6,430.36 Down -  5.57 (0.09%) 
    BSE PUBLIC SECTOR 9,201.64 Up - 14.19 (0.15%)
    BSE Small-Cap 8,191.20 Down -  6.73 (0.08%) 
    BSE TECK INDEX 3,092.37 Up - 17.20 (0.56%)
    METAL INDEX 15,392.80 Down -  215.58 (1.38%) 
    OIL & GAS INDEX 9,708.11 Up - 13.63 (0.14%)
     
    S&P CNX NIFTY 4,760.40 Up - 3.15 (0.07%)
    S&P CNX DEFTY 3,529.80 Up - 1.95 (0.06%)
    CNX NIFTY Junior 9,972.20 Up - 10.75 (0.11%)
    S&P CNX 500 4,067.30 Up - 0.45 (0.01%)
    CNX MIDCAP 200 7,171.40 Up - 18.65 (0.26%)
    BANK NIFTY 8,342.20 Up - 67.00 (0.81%)
    CNX IT 5,484.65 Down -  17.05 (0.31%) 

    ______Currency Rates______

    1 U.S. $ 46.840 INR
    1 Japanese Yen 0.5223 INR
    1 British Pound 72.754 INR
    1 Canadian $ 43.652 INR
    1 Singapore $ 32.787 INR
    1 UAE Dirham 12.697 INR
    1 Saudi Arabian Riyal 12.438 INR
    1 Euro 64.018 INR
    1 Qatar Rial 12.819 INR


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