Cabinet clears draft Lokpal bill; angry Team Anna protests

New Delhi: The cabinet Thursday approved the draft of an anti-corruption Lokpal bill, to be introduced in the monsoon session of parliament, that does not include the prime minister, judiciary or the conduct of MPs inside the house in its purview and has left the civil society members deeply disappointed.

The draft bill excludes from its ambit the prime minister, the chief justice of India and members of parliament for their actions inside the house, informed sources said. This led to immediate protest from Team Anna, which described it as a "sarkari" Lokpal.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni said the Lokpal will have eight members, half of whom will be from the judiciary. The chairman will also belong to the judiciary.

Soni, who addressed the media along with Law Minister Salman Khurshid and Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office V. Narayanasamy, said qualifications have been laid down for the non-judicial members of the panel.

"Overall, the task has been to ensure greater accountability and transparency in public life," she said, adding the government was also working for the whistleblowers' protection bill, Central Vigilance Commission bill and the judicial accountability bill.

Narayanasamy said the prime minister has been kept out of the purview of the Lokpal bill, though Prime Minister Manmohan Singh offered to be included.

"The prime minister himself offered that he should be included in the Lokpal but after due deliberations, weighing all pros and cons, the cabinet decided that the prime minister should be excluded," he said.

However, the prime minister can come under the purview of the bill after demitting office, he added.

Reacting strongly to the developments, social activist Anna Hazare accused the government of cheating him and the entire nation by clearing the draft Lokpal bill that excludes the clauses the civil society has been fighting for.

"We said that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) should be brought under the ambit of the Lokpal bill. Also we discussed that all states should have Lokayukta (ombudsman). It was decided that all these things will be put forward while discussing the bill in the cabinet, but today we found that these were removed," Hazare said.

"This is cheating -- not just with Anna Hazare but with the entire nation. If states don't have Lokayukta, then corruption will never end. So, we will sit on a fast in Jantar Mantar from Aug 16 on... I will fast until my last breath," he added.
A 10-member committee, comprising five ministers and five civil rights leaders, was set up in April to draft the bill after Hazare went on a indefinite hunger strike demanding a strong Lokpal bill. But the two sides prepared separate versions following disagreements over key issues.

Activist Prashant Bhushan described the draft as a "sarkari" Lokpal. "It's a cruel joke on the people of the country. If they think they can fool the people, then they are sadly mistaken. They played a cruel joke on people," he told mediapersons.

An angry Kiran Bedi lambasted the government. "Government version is a jokepal."
Khurshid said the government had accepted 34 of 40 provisions given by the civil society members during discussions in the joint drafting committee.

Asked about Hazare threatening to go on fast from Aug 16 in support of a stronger Lokpal bill, Khurshid said once the bill was introduced in parliament, it would become the property of the house.

"Anyone who challenges this procedure is not challenging government but parliament of the country," he said. He said the Lokpal would have its own investigation wing and sooner or later have its own staff.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/cabinet-clears-draft-lokpal-bill--angry-team-anna-protests.html

Mumbai Crime Branch detains Speak Asia's COO in Indore

Indore: The Mumbai Crime Branch on Friday detained the online survey company Speak Asia's Chief Operations Officer (COO) Tarak Bajpai in connection with a multi-crore rupee ponzi scheme across the country.
The Singapore-based company Speak Asia, which is yet to be incorporated as a company in India, would be inspected under section 591 of the Companies Act, which is applicable on companies incorporated outside India and has established a place of business within the country.

The company charges a membership fee is Rs 11,000 for a year. The members are expected to conduct online surveys for clients of the firm. Members are paid for conducting the surveys. The company said that it pays Rs 500 for every survey to its member.

Kirit Somaiya, BJP leader and president of the Investors' Grievances Forum in Mumbai, filed a complaint in May with the economic offences wing of the Mumbai Police against Speak Asia, saying he had received several complaints from consumers across the country.

Source:
http://www.newsbullet.in/india/34-more/14138-mumbai-crime-branch-detains-speak-asias-coo-in-indore

Cabinet approves draft Lokpal Bill; PM, judiciary out of ambit

New Delhi: The cabinet Thursday approved the draft of an anti-corruption Lokpal bill - to be introduced in the monsoon session of parliament from Aug 1 - that does not include the prime minister, judiciary or the conduct of MPs inside the house.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni said the Lokpal will have eight members, half of whom will be from the judiciary. The chairman will also belong to the judiciary.

Soni, who addressed the media along with Law Minister Salman Khursheed and Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office V. Narayanasamy, said qualifications have been laid down for the non-judicial members of the panel.

"Overall, the task has been to ensure greater accountability and transparency in public life," she said, adding the government was also working for the whistleblowers' protection bill, Chief Vigilance Commission bill and the judicial accountability bill.

Narayanasamy said the prime minister has been kept out of the purview of the bill. "The prime minister himself offered that he should be included in the Lokpal but after due deliberations, weighing all pros and cons, the cabinet decided that the prime minister should be excluded," he said.

However, the prime minister can come under the purview of the bill after demitting the office, he added.

Khursheed said the bill provides for seven years' limitation for a complaint to be made against a former prime minister. "This limitation applies to others too. It is for the standing committee to see if the period needs to be increased or decreased," he said.

The minister said the judiciary has not been included in the bill as its autonomy and independence should be maintained. He said a separate judicial accountability bill has been introduced in parliament and was being examined by a standing committee.

The minister said the government has stuck to its commitment on the Lokpal bill. "Hopefully, it will come in the first two days of the monsoon session," Khursheed said.

Khursheed said the government had accepted 34 of 40 principles given by the civil society members during discussions in the joint drafting committee.

The government had constituted the joint drafting committee for Lokpal bill which had five members from civil society led by social activist Anna Hazare. However, there were two different versions of the draft in June at the end of nearly two-month-long discussions.

Asked about Hazare threatening to go on fast from Aug 16 in support of a stronger Lokpal bill, Khursheed said once the bill was introduced in parliament, it would become the property of the house.

"Anyone, who challenges this procedure is not challenging government but parliament of the country," he said.

Khurshid also took a dig at civil society activists for having termed the government draft as 'jokepal'.

"They are terming their own contribution as a joke. The discussions were constructive. We are ready to give them credit," he said.

He said the Lokpal would have its own investigation wing and sooner or later have its own staff. The minister said the Lokpal can requisition officers of the Central Bureau of Investigation or state governments and will not need sanction for investigation and prosecution.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/cabinet-approves-draft-lokpal-bill--pm--judiciary-out-of-ambit.html

Live updates: BJP says Yeddyurappa must resign

 

11: 45 am: Yeddyurappa's possible successors
NDTV compiled a list of politicians who could succeed Yeddyurappa as Karnataka CM. Watch the video here.

11: 30 am: Too late, says Congress on Yeddyurappa ouster
Reacting to the BJP's decision to let Yeddyurappa go, the Congress party said the decision has come 'too late'. More

10: 58 am: Yeddyurappa holds emergency meeting
Even as the BJP high command has come to a decision, Yeddyurappa himself is huddled in a meeting with some close aides at his residence. Yesterday, Yeddyurappa had said there was no question of him resigning.

10: 42 am: BJP cracks the whip on Yeddyurappa
Ravishankar Prasad said BJP parliamentary committee met since 9:30 am and came to a unanimous decision that there has to be a change in leadership in Karnataka and asked the chief minister to tender in his resignation.

10: 36 am: Yeddyurappa must go: Ravishankar Prasad
The BJP parliamentary board has taken a decision on the Karnataka political crisis. Addressing the media outside party president Nitin Gadkari's residence, spokesperson Ravishankar Prasad said Yeddyurappa must step down as the CM. Senior party leaders Arun Jaitley and Rajnath Singh will head to Bangalore to select a new leader.

10: 15 am: Reddy brothers to address media later today
Reddy brothers, accused of running a parallel government in Bellary district, will address the media this afternoon, Kannada channels report.

9: 50 am: Karnataka BJP split on Yeddyurappa
The BJP in Karnataka seems to have split vertically. Most ministers may give the meeting Yeddyurappa has called at 10.30 am a miss. (He is also talking of a 3.30 pm meeting). MLA CT Ravi is reportedly telling his party colleagues not to attend any meeting called by Yeddyurappa. The legislator told TV9 that reporters should not dig into a party's internal affairs.

9: 30 am: Yeddyurappa certain to go
Yeddyurappa is certain to go, and the BJP is only struggling to zero in on a successor, reports ET. Front runners, Jagdish Shettar, KS Eshwarappa and Ananth Kumar, are engaged in marshalling support for their respective bids, according to the business paper. More on Economic Times

9: 00 am: BJP likely to decide Yeddyurappa's fate today
On Wednesday, Karnataka Lokayukta submitted its report on illegal mining in the state and indicted Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa. The BJP parliamentary committee will meet today to take a decision on his continuation as the CM.
Yeddyurappa, who reached New Delhi Wednesday evening went to the residence of party president Nitin Gadkari to attend the meeting, convened in the wake of report by Karnataka Lokayukta N Santosh Hegde which levelled charges against him.
The meeting, which lasted over three hours, was attended by senior BJP leaders Arun Jaitley, who is BJP party in-charge of Karnataka and former president Rajnath Singh.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/live-updates--will-yeddyurappa-go-.html

Rakhi Sawant desires to marry Yoga guru Baba Ramdev

New Delhi, July 27 (ANI):Controversial Bollywood actress and TV personality Rakhi Sawant expressed her willingness to marry Yoga guru Baba Ramdev. While addressing mediapersons on the sidelines of a promotional event in New Delhi, Sawant spoke of how she also admired Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi. The Drama queen admitted that Ramdev's yoga sessions have made an impact on her life.

Known to be in limelight for all wrong reasons and numerous controversial acts,  she has always been in the news for her raunchy videos to her controversial stay on 'Bigg Boss', or walking out of 'Nach Baliye' finale in a huff and leaving Salman Khan high and dry.

If this was not enough to satiate her hunger for publicity, she hit headlines for her infamous romance with commoner Abhishek Awasthi, followed by a kissing episode with singer Mika. Her 'Rakhi Ka Swayamvar' on NDTV Imagine opened a pandora's box that not only entertained people but also had the gossip columns buzzing for months.

All this helped her in paving way to one of Bollywood's most sophisticated filmmakers Karan Johar's chat show 'Koffee With Karan'.
For the last one year Rakhi has been constantly courting controversy for her non-stop bloopers and blunders on the reality show 'Raki Ka Insaaf'. If one tries to list her bunglings on the small screen, it would be difficult to pen all as she has been in the limelight for all the wrong reasons for more than five years. No wonder she is crowned the controversy queen.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/rakhi-sawant-desires-marry-yoga-guru-baba-ramdev-114919289.html

RBI hikes repo, reverse repo by 50 bps each

Natalia George, On Tuesday 26 July 2011, 11:07 AM

The Reserve Bank of India has continued its hawkish stance and increased both the repo and the reverse repo rate by 50 basis points each. The repo rate will now be raised to 8 percent while the reverse repo rate will be increased to 7 per cent.

The rate increase is its eleventh since March 2010, making the RBI one of the most aggressive inflation fighters among central banks.

This has taken the market by surprise as most analysts expected the central bank to be more dovish and only announce a 25 basis point repo rate hike given the threat to India's industry growth due to increased interest rates.

The central bank, however, said it would take further action only after looking at the inflation trajectory.

"Considering the the overall growth and inflation scenario there is a need to persevere with the anti-inflationary stance. The cumulative impact of monetary action on demand will be reinforced," RBI Governor D Subbarao said.

Recent industrial output and manufacturing data was the worst in nine months, while sales of cars have slowed sharply and loan demand is easing, complicating the central bank's inflation-fighting task. Subbarao, however said that he has seen no evidence of a broad based slowdown in growth and that demand pressures continues to remain strong and therefore did not see the need to pause its hawkish stance.

The central bank has left its gross domestic product (GDP) expectation unchanged but has cut its credit growth projection from 19 per cent to 18 per cent.

The Governor further announced that inflation is expected to remain elevated for a few more months and that the RBI had revised its March 2012 inflation projection to 7 per cent as against it's earlier projection of 6 per cent.

He concluded by saying that the Reserve Bank would remain focused on curbing inflation and sustaining growth in the medium at the same time. "The challenge for the Government and the Reserve Bank is to ensure that demand is constrained in the short term to bring inflation down, but to encourage supply response so as to expand the potential output of the economy in the medium term," he said.

In an interview with CNBC-TV18, most bankers said that banks would not be able to sustain a a 50 basis points hike and that it was highly likely that banks would announce lending rate hikes as soon as next week.

A shocked market saw a major set back, with the Nifty sliding 60 points and the Sensex losing 180 points. bank stocks took a 2.5 per cent hit while the realty sector saw a 2 per cent fall.

The reserve bank has probably underestimated the time it takes for monetary action to take effect and should have probably have taken a wait and watch stance. The market was  clearly taken by surprise and market experts say that the indices would continue to see further downslides on  account of the rate hike added to the global crisis.

Source:
http://in.finance.yahoo.com/news/RBI-hike-repo-reverse-repo-50-yahoofinancein-1919458909.html

Chandigarh looks forward to Bollywood dreams

Chandigarh, July 26 (IANS) Nearly 30 movies have been shot in and around Chandigarh in recent years. So the city and its surrounding states of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir have decided to give a push to their Bollywood connection by attracting more shooting units as well as fans.

With big hits like 'Singh is Kinng', 'Jab We Met', 'Namaste London', 'Fashion', 'Veer Zaara', 'Apne' and many others being shot in Chandigarh and surrounding areas, particularly in Punjab, the tourism authorities are getting their act together to offer locales for greater Bollywood involvement.

To start with, these states are organising the North India Cinematic Tourism conclave here Wednesday. The conclave will be inaugurated by union Tourism Minister Subodh Kant Sahai.

'The Chandigarh Administration is focusing in a big way on promoting the city and its adjoining areas for cinematic tourism. Leading producers, directors, Bollywood stars, TV artists and theatre personalities will all converge in Chandigarh due to good connectivity with Mumbai and Delhi,' Arvind Malhotra, general manager-tourism with Chandigarh industrial and tourism corporation (CITCO), told IANS.

'Chandigarh already has a Bollywood facilitation centre to ensure that film units coming to shoot in the city and surrounding areas don't face any difficulty and get all permission through a single window facility,' Malhotra said.

In recent months, several leading stars from Bollywood like Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Kareena Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinha, Imran Khan and several others have stayed in Chandigarh while shooting for their films in and around the city.

'We keep getting a lot of top actors and directors who come for shooting in the region and stay with us,' Anil Malhotra, general manager of the Taj Hotel here, told IANS.

During the conclave, Chandigarh, Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh will jointly promote cinematic tourism packages.

'The administrations of the respective states and Chandigarh will proactively look into all concerned affairs to ease the information flow and provide logistical support to the crew,' a senior tourism official said here.

'Emphasis would be laid on streamlining the process to make this region a hub for the media, cinematic and television entertainment industry.'

Designed by French architect Le Corbusier and his team in the 1950s and 60s, Chandigarh has a population of nearly 10 lakh. Its attractions include the manmade Sukhna Lake, the Rock Garden, nearly two dozen gardens and several green belts and a well laid out road network.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/chandigarh-looks-forward-bollywood-dreams-052350582.html

RBI hikes repo, reverse repo by 50 bps each

Natalia George, On Tuesday 26 July 2011, 11:07 AM

The Reserve Bank of India has continued its hawkish stance and increased both the repo and the reverse repo rate by 50 basis points each. The repo rate will now be raised to 8 percent while the reverse repo rate will be increased to 7 per cent.

The rate increase is its eleventh since March 2010, making the RBI one of the most aggressive inflation fighters among central banks.

This has taken the market by surprise as most analysts expected the central bank to be more dovish and only announce a 25 basis point repo rate hike given the threat to India's industry growth due to increased interest rates.

The central bank, however, said it would take further action only after looking at the inflation trajectory.

"Considering the the overall growth and inflation scenario there is a need to persevere with the anti-inflationary stance. The cumulative impact of monetary action on demand will be reinforced," RBI Governor D Subbarao said.

Recent industrial output and manufacturing data was the worst in nine months, while sales of cars have slowed sharply and loan demand is easing, complicating the central bank's inflation-fighting task. Subbarao, however said that he has seen no evidence of a broad based slowdown in growth and that demand pressures continues to remain strong and therefore did not see the need to pause its hawkish stance.

The central bank has left its gross domestic product (GDP) expectation unchanged but has cut its credit growth projection from 19 per cent to 18 per cent.

The Governor further announced that inflation is expected to remain elevated for a few more months and that the RBI had revised its March 2012 inflation projection to 7 per cent as against it's earlier projection of 6 per cent.

He concluded by saying that the Reserve Bank would remain focused on curbing inflation and sustaining growth in the medium at the same time. "The challenge for the Government and the Reserve Bank is to ensure that demand is constrained in the short term to bring inflation down, but to encourage supply response so as to expand the potential output of the economy in the medium term," he said.

In an interview with CNBC-TV18, most bankers said that banks would not be able to sustain a a 50 basis points hike and that it was highly likely that banks would announce lending rate hikes as soon as next week.

A shocked market saw a major set back, with the Nifty sliding 60 points and the Sensex losing 180 points. bank stocks took a 2.5 per cent hit while the realty sector saw a 2 per cent fall.

The reserve bank has probably underestimated the time it takes for monetary action to take effect and should have probably have taken a wait and watch stance. The market was  clearly taken by surprise and market experts say that the indices would continue to see further downslides on  account of the rate hike added to the global crisis.

Source:
http://in.finance.yahoo.com/news/RBI-hike-repo-reverse-repo-50-yahoofinancein-1919458909.html

Poonam Pandey to Strip on Bigg Boss 5?

 

Remember Poonam Pandey, the woman who tricked Team India - and the rest of us, after a promise of stripping if India won the Cricket World Cup 2011?

After faking ill health and then crying about censorship (there was even talk about going to Paris) Poonam's latest conquest might make her wear less than a bikini (yawn).

She claims to have rejected more than 30 offers for reality shows, films and item numbers since then, and states: “It’s been hard to say no, but I’ve no regrets. Whatever I choose will be my debut in Bollywood and keeping that in mind, I need something really big and unforgettable. Of course, some of these offers have been substantial but not the way I see myself debuting.”

She gushes about Khatron Ki Khiladi: “It was wonderful just being around Akshay sir (host Akshay Kumar). Though we never spoke about films, we did play cricket once,” she recollects.

Rumors that an offer of Rs2 crore has been made to her has been corroborated by her - “It’s nice being in news, but when I hear that I’ve been offered a certain amount to strip on national television in a reality show, I wonder to myself — Rs2 crore isn’t enough to strip,” Poonam laughs.

Poonam Pandey evidently doesn't know the difference between Bigg Boss and her regular job.

Her claim to fame has kept her visible and prominent even after our World Cup Win.

“The other day, I walked down my lane to have panipuris and people standing there kept murmuring my name. Whatever the reason, the way I’m recognised everywhere makes me feel on top of the world,” she states.

In other news, Poonam Pandey has stated her intentions of finishing her education; she might even apply to the IIMs.

"The thought itself is so inspiring! Why not IIMs?" But since getting through IIMs calls for hard work and determination, and most importantly lots of time to prepare, Poonam you need to stay focused! (MensXP.com)

Source:
http://in.lifestyle.yahoo.com/poonam-pandey-to-strip-bigg-boss-5-130539905.html

At least 87 dead in Norway shooting, bomb attack

OSLO (Reuters) - A gunman dressed in police uniform opened fire at a youth camp of Norway's ruling political party on Friday, killing at least 80 people, hours after a bomb killed seven in the government district in the capital Oslo.

Witnesses said the gunman, identified by police as a 32-year-old Norwegian, moved across the small, wooded Utoeya holiday island firing at random as young people scattered in fear. Norwegian television TV2 said the gunman detained by police was described as tall and blond and had links to right-wing extremism.

"We had all gathered in the main house to talk about what had happened in Oslo. Suddenly we heard shots. First we thought it was nonsense. Then everyone started running," a survivor, 16-year-old called Hana told Norway's Aftenposten.

"I saw a policeman stand there with earplugs. He said 'I'd like to gather everyone'. Then he ran in and started shooting at people. We ran down towards the beach and began to swim." Hana said the gunman fired at people in the water.

Many sought shelter in buildings as shots echoed across the island, ran into the woods or tried to swim to safety. Boats searched for survivors into the night, searchlights sweeping the coast. Rescue helicopters flew overhead.

The bomb, which shook the city centre in mid-afternoon, blew out the windows of the prime minister's building and damaged the finance and oil ministry buildings. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, who was not in the building at the time, will give a press conference at 0600 GMT on Saturday.

EXPLOSIVES FOUND ON ISLAND

There were no immediate reports of other suspects. But acting police chief Sveinung Sponheim said authorities were working on the hypothesis that several people may have been involved.

Police seized the gunman, named by local media as Anders Behring Breivik, and later found undetonated explosives on the island, a pine-clad strip of land about 500 metres long, to the northwest of Oslo.

Breivik's Facebook page appeared to have been blocked by late evening. Earlier it had listed interests including bodybuilding, conservative politics and freemasonry.

Norwegian media said he had set up a Twitter account a few days ago and posted a single message on July 17 saying: "One person with a belief is equal to the force of 100,000 who have only interests."

About 10 police officers were outside the address registered to his name in a four-story red brick building in west Oslo.

The Norwegian daily Verdens Gang quoted a friend as saying

he became a right-wing extremist in his late 20s. It said he expressed strong nationalistic views in online debates and had been a strong opponent of the idea that people of different cultural backgrounds can live alongside each other.

With police advising people to evacuate central Oslo, and some soldiers taking up positions on the streets, the usually sleepy capital was gripped by fear of fresh attacks. Streets were strewn with shattered masonry, glass and twisted steel.

Norwegians reacted with horror to television images of the bodies of young men and women strewn around the island.

"I just saw people jumping into the water, about 50 people swimming towards the shore. People were crying, shaking, they were terrified," said Anita Lien, 42, who lives by Tyrifjord lake, a few hundred metres (yards) from Utoeya island, northwest of Oslo.

"They were so young, between 14 and 19 years old."

A young girl, her hair still wet after escaping told TV2:

"He walked slowly but surely around it (the island) and shot everyone. Eventually he came to where I sat and then he slowly went over and shot ten people." She escaped by jumping into the water."

"He was so calm, that is what was so strange."

It is the most violent event to strike Norway since World War Two," said Geir Bekkevold, an opposition parliamentarian for the Christian Peoples Party.

The prime minister declined to speculate on who had been involved. But he told a televised news conference. "No one will bomb us to silence, no one will shoot us to silence."

OKLAHOMA BOMBING

NUPI Senior Research Fellow Jakub Godzimirski said he suspected a right-winger, rather than any Islamist group. Right wing groups have grown up in Norway and elsewhere in northern Europe around the issue of immigration.

"It would be very odd for Islamists to have a local political angle. The attack on the Labour youth meeting suggests it's something else. If Islamists wanted to attack, they could have set off a bomb in a nearby shopping mall rather than a remote island."

Right-wing militancy has generated sporadic attacks in other countries, including the United States. In 1995, 168 people were killed when Timothy McVeigh detonated a truck bomb at a federal building in Oklahoma City.

NATO member Norway has been the target of threats before over its involvement in conflicts in Afghanistan and Libya.

Violence or the threat of it has already come to the other Nordic states: a botched bomb attack took place in the Swedish capital Stockholm last December and the bomber was killed.

Denmark has received repeated threats after a newspaper published cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad in late 2005, angering Muslims worldwide.

In Oslo, the building of a publisher which recently put out a translation of a Danish book on the cartoon controversy was also affected, but was apparently not the target.

The Oslo district attacked is the very heart of power in Norway. Nevertheless, security is not tight in a country unused to such violence and better known for awarding the Nobel Peace Prize and mediating in conflicts, including the Middle East and Sri Lanka.

(Additional reporting by Gwladys Fouche, Victoria Klesty, Henrik Stoelen and Ole Petter Skonnord in Oslo, William Maclean in London and Patrick Lannin in Stockholm; Writing by Myra MacDonald; Editing by Ralph Boulton and Matthew Jones)

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/least-87-dead-norway-shooting-bomb-attack-022231311.html

More gold, cash tumble out of Sai Baba's cupboards

Hyderabad, July 19 (IANS) Cash, gold and silver continue to tumble out of cupboards in the late Sathya Sai Baba's residential quarters in Puttaparthi town of Andhra Pradesh, with valuables worth nearly Rs.59 crore being found so far in three rounds of counting.

In the latest round of inventory taken up Monday at Yajur Mandir in Prashanti Nilayam, Anantpur district officials found ornaments, cash and other valuables.

The inventory, the third in a month, yielded 34.5 kg of gold, 340 kg of silver and Rs.1.90 crore of cash till Monday night. The counting resumed Tuesday morning in the presence of Sathya Sai Central Trust officials.

Anantapur district collector Durgadas told reporters last night that the counting began at 10.45 a.m. Monday and lasted nearly 12 hours. The jewellery, cash and other valuables were found in six rooms, which were not opened in the earlier rounds.

The officials found gold bangles, earrings, silver mugs, silver cookware, plates, spoons, puja material, expensive saris, shirts, trousers and other gift items.

The officials believe there might be more rooms and closets which were not searched earlier and might yield more treasure.

The third haul is likely to raise further doubts about the functioning of the trust, which manages the affairs of the vast spiritual empire of Sathya Sai Baba.

The trust, which had opened the spiritual guru's personal chamber June 16 for the first time after his demise April 24, found Rs.11.56 crore, 98 kg gold and gold jewellery, 307 kg silver articles.

It also claimed to have completed the inventory of all the articles.

However, two days later seizure of Rs.35 lakh by police while being transported from Prashanti Nilayam to Bangalore triggered a huge row with a section of devotees alleging that the trust members were involved in financial irregularities and that huge amounts of cash and gold were shipped out of Baba's ashram.

Though the trust clarified that the cash was donated by a group of devotees for building Baba's 'samadhi', police have still not solved the mystery behind the unaccounted money.

Following the row over the seized cash and the allegations by devotees, the government stepped in. The district officials inspected the rooms adjoining Yajur Mandir July 3 and found silver and gold articles worth over Rs.76 lakh.

The second and third round of valuables have proved wrong the initial claims by the trust that there were no more rooms left to be inspected, say officials.

In the three rounds of inventory so far, nearly Rs.59 crore worth gold, silver and cash has been recovered from Yajur Mandir and adjoining rooms, say officials.

More cash, gold and silver is being found at a time when an expert committee appointed by the state government is evaluating the report submitted by the trust July 10.

The report was submitted by the trust after the government issued a notice, asking it to provide all details of its finances, activities, revenues, background of the trust members and officials and future plans.

After evaluating the report, the government is likely to take a decision on whether to take over the trust or set up a mechanism to monitor the trust in view of the demands made by a section of devotees.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/more-gold-cash-tumble-sai-babas-cupboards-061841043.html;_ylt=AlCPI7aSlcpB7tp8jhVq0OXRscB_;_ylu=X3oDMTNwOTdjOTFnBGNjb2RlA3dlaWdodGVkY3QEcGtnAzMwOTQyNGVjLWI0ODUtM2JjNi1hZjMyLTcwZDc1YjE2NDlhMgRwb3MDMQRzZWMDbW9zdF9wb3B1bGFyBHZlcgM0NTk4Y2E3MC1iMWQwLTExZTAtYmZkYi0zN2VjOWY2ZTU5ZTk-;_ylg=X3oDMTFvb2F2N3YyBGludGwDaW4EbGFuZwNlbi1pbgRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdAN3b3JsZHxhc2lhBHB0A3NlY3Rpb25z;_ylv=3

A week after blasts, Mumbaikars feel helpless, resentful

Mumbai, July 20 (IANS) Exactly a week after their city was rocked by triple blasts, Mumbaikars Wednesday seemed resigned to living under the shadow of terror. India's financial capital has been repeatedly attacked in the past 18 years, with 12 major strikes leaving nearly 700 dead and several thousand injured.

'Mumbai was shocked only the first time in the March 1993 blasts. It was unprecedented. But after so many terror attacks, now there is no shock or anger. There is regret at how the rulers of the city, state and country continue to exploit Mumbaikars for their ability to make money and drive the country's economic engines,' Rajeev Jain, a businessman from Juhu, told IANS.

In all instances, the attacks have been carried out with precision - targeting Mumbai's transport lifeline or its business hubs where transactions worth billions of rupees are carried out daily.

Besides providing a living to several millions of citizens, they spell huge income by way of taxes and levies to the exchequer.

Terror attacks have occurred in other places in Maharashtra like Thane, Nashik, Malegaon and Pune in the past five to six years. The latest serial bombings July 13 have left 20 dead and at least 128 in hospitals with injuries.

Like in the past, this time too, Mumbai, almost by force of habit, went back to normalcy within hours.

But J.P. Purohit, a corporate tax advisor from Versova, feels the impression created by politicians that Mumbaikars are tough or stoic is a misnomer.

'It is just a lollipop of praise for the helpless citizens given by everybody, from the prime minister to the local leaders. Let them speak these words before those persons who have actually suffered the loss of their near and dear ones in terror attacks,' Purohit told IANS.

A week after the triple blasts at Zaveri Bazar, Opera House and Dadar West, Mumbai was its usual bustling self Wednesday.

'Barring the casual odd reference, it has gone practically unnoticed, like a bad dream,' said Kiran S.V., an executive and mother of three who works with a private company in Worli, who travels by suburban trains daily.

However, she agreed that now Mumbaikars were more cautious and careful.

'In case of anything unusual, the best option is to get away and not crowd around. Keep your family informed of your physical whereabouts on a regular basis, just in case...' Kiran trailed off, conveying the obvious.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/week-blasts-mumbaikars-feel-helpless-resentful-055516972.html

Bhakra Dam on terrorists' hit-list

By Jaideep Sarin and Parminder Singh Bariana | IANS – Sat, Jul 16, 2011

Chandigarh/Nangal, July 16 (IANS) The 225-metre high Bhakra Dam is high on the latest hit-list of Pakistan-based terrorist outfits like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), specific intelligence reports have said.

The Intelligence Bureau (IB), in its latest report to various security agencies, including the Himachal and Punjab Police, has said that Pakistan-based terror outfits were specifically training their cadres in cliff-climbing, swimming across water channels and handling explosives with the intention to attack the dam, located near the border between Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.

'A number of intelligence inputs indicate that the Bhakra Dam is one of the most preferred targets of Pak-based terrorist organisations. Reportedly, the LeT has also been training its cadres on aspects like cliff-climbing, swimming across water channels and handling of explosives with the intention to target major dams in India, particularly those located in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh,' the IB report, a copy of which is with IANS, said.

'Recently, Pak-based terrorist outfits like the JuD/LeT have been raising the emotive issue of water sharing between India and Pakistan and allege that India has been appropriating major share of water from rivers flowing into Pakistan by constructing various dams. The Bhakra Dam figures prominently on their target list due to its economic importance and potential for large-scale damage on the downstream,' the report has warned.

'Bhakra Dam has high propaganda value and any attack (on it) would attract immediate media attention,' the report pointed out, saying that the dam had acquired 'iconic status'.

The report said the Bhakra Dam, India's first and biggest hydro-electric project which was described by former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru as the 'temple of resurgent India'. Located about 130 km from here on river Sutlej, it is 15 km from Nangal town of Punjab. The dam can be reached by road from Nangal and the Naina Devi temple side in Himachal Pradesh.

The IB said that security measures and equipment at the Bhakra Dam were currently grossly inadequate. It said that the dam's security was being handled by multiple agencies 'leading to confusion and dilution of responsibility. There should be a single agency responsible for security of the entire project'.

The security of the landmark dam is being looked after by central para-military forces and aided by the Himachal and Punjab Police.

The report has stated that the security equipment and gadgets like walkie-talkie sets were inadequate and outdated. The check barriers on access roads to the dam are manually operated and not equipped to handle any forced entry.

'The dam also needs to be secured from underwater threat. Sensors, sonars and underwater cameras may be considered for the purpose,' the report said, adding that divers should periodically check underwater for any unwanted activity.

While suggesting greater manpower and technology need at the dam immediately, the IB report has even suggested more watch-towers, cameras for all areas and speedboats for security personnel to ward off any threat.

Work on the dam had started just after India's independence in 1947 and was completed in 1963.

The nearly 90-km long reservoir, Gobind Sagar, created by the dam can hold over 9,300 million cubic metres of water. This is enough to flood major parts of north India, including Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi.

(Jaideep sarin can be contacted at jaideep.s@ians.in)

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/bhakra-dam-terrorists-hit-list-070548661.html

TCS to hire 20,000 employees in Q2 of FY 2011-12

On Friday 15 July 2011, 3:27 PM

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), country's largest software exporter is likely to hire up to 20,000 employees in second quarter of the current fiscal and about 60,000 people in the ongoing financial year 2011-12. During the quarter ended June 30, the company made a gross addition of 11,988 employees, while 8,412 left the organization.

During the first quarter the attrition rate was 14.8% as compared to 14.4% last quarter (Q4 FY11). People leave for higher studies and there are also cases of dissatisfaction because of the wage hike in April quarter causing certain amount of attrition. In the January-March quarter, 2011, the company had done 75% of fresh hiring and 25 lateral hiring, however for 20,000 of headcount during the current quarter the company expects to hire 55 fresh and 45 lateral.

TCS is chasing 12 large deals in the United States, UK and elsewhere in Europe, and additional deals in emerging markets. TCS added 24 new clients in its first quarter, the company said today, helping it post a forecast-beating 28% rise in net profit.

The company’s net profit after tax for the quarter ended June 30, 2011 surged by 32.51% at Rs 2062.43 crore as compared to Rs 1556.41 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2010. Its total income has increased by 37.59% to Rs 8870.96 crore for the quarter under review from Rs 6447.38 crore for the similar quarter of the previous year.

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Copyright 2011 Accord Fintech Pvt. Ltd., distributed by Contify.com

Source:
http://in.finance.yahoo.com/news/TCS-hire-20-000-employees-Q2-accordfintech-142077389.html

How secure is your credit card?

BankBazaar.com, On Friday 15 July 2011, 2:46 PM

Credit cards have become an integral part of our life, but concerns about its security and vulnerability is an ongoing issue. Credit card frauds are rising at an alarming rate. Card associations and banks on the other hand have been trying hard to enhance card security features to minimize frauds and misuses.

Here is a look at the security features introduced by card issuers and banks in the current scenario.

Verified by Visa/Mastercard SecureCode

A significant upgrade in credit card security features came with the introduction of 'Verified by Visa/MasterCard Secure Code programme' or second factor authentication. It addresses the credit and debit card transactions over internet.

Earlier, to do an online transaction, the only information needed was your credit card number, expiry date and the CVV number printed on the back of the card. It is easy to obtain this information as they are exposed when you handover your card at hotels, shops or petrol stations. Fraudsters can use this data for online transactions where physical presence of the card is not needed.

With the introduction of the Verified by Visa/MasterCard Secure Code programme, apart from card information, the customer needs to provide an additional password like that of a debit card, to make the transaction secure. This is to authenticate any online transaction.

EMV Chip

The EMV chip addresses security concerns while the card is physically swiped in a machine. When cards are being swiped on an electronic device, all the information stored on its magnetic strip gets extracted for verification. Fraudsters can extract this data from swiping machines and use them to make a duplicate card through a process called cloning. This duplicate card can be used for online transactions and your credit account gets billed.

The susceptibility of magnetic strip cards forced the card associations to come up with an innovative solution - the EMV (Europay, MasterCard and Visa) chip. It stores the data securely in a highly encrypted format which is difficult to skim off and thereby reduces the chances of extraction. It also relies on a digital signature scheme based on public key techniques to confirm the data's legitimacy. As the transaction is being processed, any tampering or unauthorised alteration of data is detected and the transaction will be declined.

India is slow in adding this security feature. In India, the card acceptance mechanism at many merchant outlets is still not equipped with the process. So, the Indian card manufacturers need to issue cards with both EMV platform and magnetic strips. The card makers ensure that the new cards will have a magnetic strip, but the card's confidential data will be stored on the chip. The magnetic strip facilitates the transaction where EMV processing is not available and at the same time data will not be skimmed.

Second Level Authentication for IVR Transaction

Even though second-level authentication has been introduced for online transactions, telephonic transactions with Interactive Voice Response (IVR) started using second-level authentication with a PIN or a password this year only. So, now a customer making an IVR transaction would need to provide an additional password, just like he does on the Internet, so that fraudsters would no longer use the information on your card for IVR transactions.

Credit Card Protection

If you happen to lose your wallet while traveling in India or abroad, earlier you need to call each card issuer separately to get the cards blocked. To ease this situation, a solution in the form of Credit Card Protection (CPP), exists. CPP India comes with a 24-hour toll-free helpline and a world wide cover. One free call to this number will block all your cards on request with additional features like emergency travel cash assistance, fraud protection, valuable document registration and lost card replacement assistance. This service can be availed by taking a membership with CPP which costs around Rs.1000/- to Rs.1500/- annually.

Stay Safe

Although many security features have been introduced, still you can be a victim of the most common trap —phishing. Beware of mails appearing like coming from your bank/ card company asking for your card details or personal information. They will contain an unsolicited link, which when clicked will be directed to a fraud website looking similar to that of your bank. The chances of clicking them unknowingly are fairly high and you will end up exposing your confidential information.

So, as far as credit card transactions go, be cautious. Here are a few pointers:

• Type the URL yourself and don't rely much on search engines as there are chances for clicking similar duplicate sites.
• Look for the prefix 'https' in the website addresses. The 's' in https stands for secured.
• Keep in mind that no bank/card company would ever ask for confidential information through email/phone under any circumstance.

Source:
http://in.finance.yahoo.com/news/How-secure-credit-card-bankbazaar-2494835558.html

Mumbai blasts: NIA searches home of Ranchi man

By Indo Asian News Service | IANS – 4 hours ago

Ranchi, July 15 (IANS) A National Investigation Agency (NIA) team Friday searched the home of a man in this Jharkhand capital in connection with the Mumbai triple bombing, police sources said.

However, Manzar Imam, said to be in his 30s, was not at his home in Bariatu locality when the team from India's premier anti-terror agency went. Police sources said the NIA sleuths spoke to his family and searched his computer for information.

Mazar, sources said, is a neighbour and friend of Danish, whose name figured in the probe into the 2008 Ahmedabad serial bombings, in which at least 50 people were killed.

'My son is being implicated as he was a friend of Danish,' said Manzar's father Ali Imam.

His family said Manzar was not at home as he was unwell and had gone for treatment.

According to police sources, Danish's mail was tracked by investigating agencies who believed that some Ranchi youth were associated with the Indian Mujahideen.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/mumbai-blasts-nia-searches-home-ranchi-man-083156253.html

PM wants perpetrators caught as terror plot remains mystery

Mumbai, July 14 (IANS) A day after a terror strike rocked Mumbai, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the perpetrators must be 'pursued relentlessly' as investigators scrambled for clues on a rain-soaked Thursday and a weary metropolis picked up the pieces.

Seventeen people were killed and 131 others injured in synchronised blasts that rocked India's financial capital, striking the congested areas of Dadar, Zaveri Bazar and Opera House within minutes of each other Wednesday evening -- but a day after, there was no breakthrough on who was behind it.

Manmohan Singh, who visited the metropolis Thursday evening with Congress president Sonia Gandhi, condemned the 'barbaric' bomb blasts, promising 'the government will do everything in its power to prevent such attacks in future'.

He said the government was coordinating 'efforts and resources to relentlessly pursue the perpetrators... (who) have sought to subvert'.

The prime minister and Sonia Gandhi visited some of the injured in J.J. Hospital.

Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) chief Rakesh Maria vowed that they would 'ensure no matter wherever the accused are, we will identify them and bring them to book' as he appealed for faith and trust.

Officials refused to name any particular group suspected to be behind the blasts for which there has so far been no claim of responsibility. But they said they were looking at 'all angles' to identify the perpetrators.

Resigned, outraged or simply stoic, Mumbaikars rallied around to battle the crisis, 31 months after the Nov 26-29, 2008 terror assault, India's worst. They waited outside morgues to claim the bodies of their kin, lined up at hospitals or packed into trains and buses to go about their daily work.

'I am a Mumbaikar and we shall not be scared by these terror attacks. Like me, lakhs of co-commuters are in the trains, buses and roads. It actually helps give strength to each other,' Archana Shukla said as she went to work.

In Zaveri Bazar, Mumbai's most popular address for jewellery that Wednesday saw its third terror strike, merchants were shocked. But they firmly said they were staying put.

'What is the point in shifting base? Are other business locations safer?' asked Raju Solanki, a gold jeweller.

That was a question even experts were loathe to answer as investigators began unravelling the conspiracy behind this latest assault by yet unknown terrorists.

Various agencies, including the National Security Guard (NSG), the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Mumbai Police, were involved in the probe.

As the investigators were searching for clues, the only thing that was sure was union Home Secretary R.K. Singh saying the ammonium nitrate-based IEDs were 'not crude' but indicated 'some level of sophistication'.

A top doctor at one of the hospitals where the bodies of the dead were taken for a post-mortem examination said an electric circuit, that may have triggered the blast, was found on one of them, leading to speculation that it may have been a suicide bomber at work.

Sources said traces of ammonium nitrate, also confirmed by Home Minister P. Chidambaram, and fuel had been found in the explosives.

'Ammonium nitrate was used with a timer. The fact that they all took place within minutes of each other -- eight-to-10 minutes -- shows that it was a coordinated terror attack,' Chidambaram said.

The CCTV footage holds the key. Sources told IANS that some of the footage was marred by the rain and bad light Wednesday evening.

Hours after visiting the terror sites, Chidambaram said 131 people had been taken to 13 hospitals with injuries. He said one severed head was also found at the site that could take the death toll to 18.

Addressing a press conference in Mumbai, he admitted there was no prior intelligence input.

Quick to seize the initiative, Bharatiya Janata Party leader L.K. Advani pointed the needle of suspicion towards Pakistan.

'It is a policy failure, not intelligence failure. There have been repeated attacks on Mumbai, this is a failure of policy,' Advani told reporters during his trip to the city.

Advani quoted reports of a probable link between the blast and the Indian Mujahideen (IM) and said even if it were behind the attack it was being sustained by Pakistan.

'The last attack on our land is proved to have been engineered by the ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence),' Advani said.

'So far as India is concerned, the government of India should shed its ambivalence to terrorism,' Advani said.

Pakistan's foreign minister comes to New Delhi for talks July 26-27 and External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna said the terror strikes would not impact the strategic dialogue.

The timing of the attack has raised suspicions in informed strategic circles over whether the serial blasts were engineered by those who wanted to derail the peace process in the subcontinent.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/pm-wants-perpetrators-caught-terror-plot-remains-mystery-161339850.html

Top Engineering Colleges of 2011

IIT-Kanpur retains first place on the list of the country's best institutions for technical education.
IIT-Delhi retains its second place while IIT-Kharagpur moves up to the third spot.

There's no beating the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) when it comes to engineering. IIT-Kanpur retains first place on the list of the country's best institutions for technical education. IIT-Delhi retains its second place while IIT-Kharagpur moves up to the third spot. IIT-Chennai and IIT-Roorkee close out the top five.

At number 6, the Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences (BITS), Pilani, is India's best privately run engineering institute. IIT-Kanpur's continued top billing is confirmation of the institute's commitment to excellence. It has unveiled a new model for academics, in acceptance of the Academic Programme Review Committee report.

The most significant development for the institute in the past year has been that of providing students an open architecture of academics. The undergraduate programme now puts focus on interdisciplinary learning to give students access to a wider body of knowledge.

Interactive and collaborative models of teaching and learning have already been introduced. Other changes, such as an option to complete the BTech programme in two different streams in five years, will be introduced from the next academic session.

"The freedom provided to students and faculty in academic as well as non-academic activities makes IITKanpur a unique institution," says S.G. Dhande, Director, IIT-Kanpur. The freedom is double-edged: it offers students a new way of learning and living and also puts huge responsibility on the shoulders of teachers and students, he adds.

This freedom has translated into a significant rise in research work on campus. The institute received over Rs 100 crore last year from private agencies for sponsored research and consultancy in addition to the planned Government budget of Rs 50 crore and non-planned budget of Rs 122 crore.

"Nowadays more undergraduate students are showing an interest in research, which was earlier a prerogative of postgraduate students. Their participation in the institute's research activity has dramatically gone up," says Ajit Chaturvedi, Dean, Research and Development, IIT-Kanpur.

Ambitious research projects undertaken at IITKanpur include the Satellite Imaging for Rail Navigation project, which was introduced in the Railway Budget Mamata Banerjee presented this year. The institute is also engaged in an information and communication technology venture to meet the country's vast agriculture demand. IIT-Kanpur is also developing organic solar cells to produce solar energy. The institute's primary goal in the new academic year is to emphasise research and strengthen postgraduate education.

With a casual, friendly and cosmopolitan teaching environment, IIT-Kanpur provides freedom for students to grow, innovate, analyse and play with new ideas. Chaturvedi says education doesn't just mean doing courses, it also entails intellectual growth.

An IIT-Kanpur education, he insists, produces innovators and not merely job-seekers. "A majority of students is choosing finance oriented jobs over technology-oriented ones in recent times as the former pays better. Every industry needs sharp brains. I encourage more students to get into the growing field of technology," he says.

IIT-Delhi, a close second to IIT-Kanpur, is setting up a facility for nanoscale research and fabrication of nanoscale non-silicon devices. The interdisciplinary centre has brought together more than 50 faculty members and hundreds of students across departments. The research projects from agency sponsorships are worth more than Rs 120 crore. In 2011, its golden jubilee year, the institute has developed a new scheme for identifying high impact research projects.

"For IIT-Delhi, change is the only constant. The constant desire to improve and evolve sets us apart. We have three pillars of strength. First, there is infinite freedom of thought for students and faculty to set their own agendas and create their own paths in life. Second, scholarship, which comes naturally because of the quality of students and faculty we recruit, and last, a constant desire to remain sensitive to the needs of the society we live in," says Surendra Prasad, Director, IIT-Delhi.

The college has also set up a First Year Teaching Council to steer discussions and workshops to motivate teachers to experiment with pedagogical methods. A mentoring programme by senior undergraduate students to help freshers in their formative phase at the institute has shown remarkably promising results.

LEATHER CAPITAL TO TECH TITAN
Started in 1959, IIT-Kanpur began functioning from a building borrowed from the Harcourt Butler Technological Institute at Agricultural Gardens in Kanpur.

A year later, the Uttar Pradesh government allocated land 15 km west of Kanpur city. In 1963, the institute moved to its current location. Its founding director, Purushottam Kashinath Kelkar, registered the IIT-Kanpur Society on December 14, 1959. The 110-acre Grand Trunk Road campus was designed by Delhi based architect Achyut Kanvinde. When it began, IIT-Kanpur had just 100 students on its rolls. Today, the institution has over 5,000 students and 350 faculty members.

On the eve of its diamond jubilee year, third-ranked IIT-Kharagpur has ramped up its infrastructure and introduced several new programmes in the past year, such as a dual-degree programme in engineering entrepreneurship, a master's programme in infrastructure design and management, water resource management and an executive MBA programme.

The institute is also offering joint masters and PhD study schemes. Not wanting to lag behind in research, the institute is working to bring medical and engineering convergence, leveraging technology to create a new system of heath-care delivery. Biomedical research and medical outreach will form two pillars of the new system of heath-care delivery.

The institute is also working towards attaining international competitiveness. Student creations, such as an automated underwater vehicle and a Formula 1 car, have entered global competitions.

The institute has put the recent embarrassment of a senior professor using the campus and IIT brand to run a fake institute behind it. "IIT-Kharagpur is currently undergoing a transformational phase. The institute's target is to figure among the top 10 institutions in Asia and top 50 institutions in the world in the next 10 years. It wants to be a leader in the creation and dissemination of knowledge. Multidisciplinary education and research, with technology as its core, will be its focus. State-of-the-art research infrastructure is being created," says Damodar Acharya, Director, IIT-Kharagpur.

Technical education in India has expanded exponentially in recent years and the IITS continue to be the top-tier institutes. But they're still a long way from being world-class institutions: none of the IITS figure in the top 25 world university ranking for engineering and technology.

"Indian society looks at IITS as elite undergraduate institutions. This is unfortunate. IITS should have created an impact in research, postgraduate education, development of technologies for the benefit of society and providing effective academic and intellectual leadership to the society at large. This has not been the case," says IIT-Kanpur's Dhande. "Society should demand more from IITS instead of merely glorifying them as elite undergraduate colleges. Being national heroes and international zeros is not going to work for long," he adds. Sharp but sensible.

Reproduced From India Today. © 2011. LMIL. All rights reserved.

Source:
http://in.education.yahoo.com/news/yeduindiatoday/top-engineering-colleges-2011-20110712

6 foods to help you have great sex

They say sex is a great stressbuster. They are right because love-making has been found to relive the pressure of the burdens of life, ease stress, soothe chronic aches and pains, spur creativity and rev up the energy levels.

Experts say that anything that makes you feel good, alive and physically excited will make you feel as if you've shed years. And all these things are associated with sex.

You are probably aware of the basics of terrific sex, but let us suggest you a few aphrodisiacs which can add zing to your sex life.

Figs have been found to be brimming with minerals like magnesium, manganese and zinc and also Vitamin E. All of them can do wonders to spice up your sex life.

The flashy-red watermelons contain a substance called citrulline, which sends the body the signals to release arginine, which relaxes blood vessels. This produces an effect similar to Viagra. And need we give you details about what Viagra does?

You've tried whiskly, you've tried wine but didn't feel the buzz. Pick a bottle of champagne and feel the difference. It enters the bloodstream faster than the wine does, so make sure you don't drink too much of it. Many champagnes have been found to have the same amount of antioxidants as red wine.

The Red Hot Chilli Peppers can bring out the hotness in you. They help recreate the symptoms of arousal: flushed cheeks, a quiver on your tongue, and more kissable lips. They also up the heat in the body.

Cheese releases 10 times more endorphins than the great ol' aphrodisiac - Chocolate. It will help you set the right mood.

Chocolate has been your trusted friend when it comes to having a great sex. You just need to maintain the bond. Its aphrodisiac property has been ascribed to two chemicals. One, tryptophan, which is the building block of serotonin, a brain chemical involved in sexual arousal. And two, phenyethylamine, a stimulant.

So the kind of food we gorge upon can do wonders with our sex life. Right food can make you positively sexual. (MensXP.com)

Source:
http://in.lifestyle.yahoo.com/6-foods-to-help-you-have-great-sex.html

Gaddafi 'using sexy daughter Aisha against Libya's rebels'

London, Mar 30 (ANI): Colonel Gaddafi is using his sexy blonde daughter as his secret weapon in the war against Libya's rebels.

With revolutionaries fighting to take control of the country, Gaddafi is using pretty Aisha to rally battle-weary troops, reports the Daily Star.

The glamorous lawyer has gone to the front line to tell soldiers her dad is 'a great man and leader'.

Aisha, dubbed the Claudia Schiffer of North Africa, is known for her designer sunglasses and supermodel looks.

But with the country in the midst of a bloody civil war, the 34-year-old has ditched her makeup, donned a veil and headed to the war zone.

The mum-of-three has been stripped of her role as a UN Goodwill Ambassador because of her support for her brutal dad.

The rumoured death of one of her closest brothers, Khamis, 27, last week is said to be behind her rallying call.

He was reported killed by a kamikaze fighter pilot, but the state Wednesday showed apparently live footage of him greeting supporters.

Aisha has hated the West ever since she was nine, when her adopted sister Hanna was killed by a US air raid on Tripoli as they slept.

"I woke to the screams of my sister, with blood splattered all over me," recalled Aisha.

Since then Aisha, who married her cousin Ahmed al-Gaddafi al-Qahsi in 2006, has spoken out in support of the IRA and worked as a lawyer for former Iraq tyrant Saddam Hussein. (ANI)

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/gaddafi-using-sexy-daughter-aisha-against-libyas-rebels-20110330-005802-827.html

Seven new BlackBerries to be unveiled soon

Toronto, July 13 (IANS) Warding off investors' anger at their annual meeting at Waterloo near here Tuesday, BlackBerry co-CEOs announced that seven new smart phones running a new operating system will hit the market soon.

Declining market share, shrinking revenue, profit warnings and delays in replacing the aging handsets have triggered investor anger at the two co-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis who control management as well as board at the BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM).

Calls for making board independent of management have grown shriller as RIM stock has sunk more than 50 percent this year - hovering at about $27 now.

Admitting that RIM faced 'some challenges,' the co-CEOs managed to control investor anger Tuesday, with Lazaridis announcing that seven new BlackBerry smart phones running a new operating system will be unveiled in the coming months.

The release of the seven smart phones, including the new BlackBerry Bold, will again catapult the wireless giant into the lead role, he said.

'It (the new Bold) may have delayed us, but we are going to come out ahead,'' said Lazaridis who started RIM in the 1980s. Warming the hearts of investors, Jim Balsillie added, 'Mike and I, along with the executive team, are closely managing this transition and have positioned the company for continued future success.''

The new line-up of BlackBerry smart phones will be run by RIM's powerful new operating system used in its PlayBook tablet.

Responding to the prevailing rumours of RIM's takeover by Apple or Microsoft, Balsillie said a rights plan would be put in place in the 'blink of an eye'' if a hostile takeover bid was mounted against the company.

Assuring investors, he said, 'If there is anything that will make you sleep better at night that I can do, I will do it.' There have been rumours that cash-rich Apple or Microsoft could buy out RIM whose net worth is now just $14 billion.

BlackBerry has sunk from top to the third place in the US smart phone since October under onslaught from Apple's iPhone and Google Android devices.

(Gurmukh Singh can be contacted at gurmukh.s@ians.in)

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/seven-blackberries-unveiled-soon-035323149.html

Serial blasts rock Mumbai, injuries reported

Three blasts rocked Mumbai this evening, police said on Wednesday. Two of the blasts were in south Mumbai, while one was in central Mumbai, police said. The blasts have taken place in Dadar, Opera House and Zaveri Bazar. The Home Ministry has confirmed the serial blasts. According to TV

reports four people are dead and 15 are injured. Two fire tankers have been rushed by the fire brigade to the sites of the explosions.

Source:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/mumbai/Serial--blasts-rock-Mumbai-injuries-reported/Article1-720723.aspx

List of ministers to take oath Tuesday evening

New Delhi, July 12 (IANS) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Tuesday wrote to President Pratibha Patil recommending that the following be appointed as members of his council of ministers:

CABINET MINISTERS:

1. Shri V. Kishore Chandra Deo

2. Shri Beni Prasad Verma

3. Shri Dinesh Trivedi

4. Shri Jairam Ramesh

MINISTERS OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE):

5. Shri Srikant Jena

6. Smt. Jayanthi Natarajan

7. Shri Paban Singh Ghatowar

8. Shri Gurudas Kamat

MINISTERS OF STATE:

9. Shri Sudip Bandopadhyaya

10. Shri Charan Das Mahant

11. Shri Jitendra Singh

12. Shri Milind Deora

13. Shri Rajiv Shukla

The prime minister has recommended the portfolios of the newly appointed ministers may be as follows:

CABINET MINISTERS :

Shri V. Kishore Chandra Deo : Tribal Affairs and Panchayati Raj

Shri Beni Prasad Verma : Steel

Shri Dinesh Trivedi : Railways

Shri Jairam Ramesh : Rural Development

MINISTERS OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE):

Shri Srikant Jena : Statistics and Programme Implementation and Minister of State in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers

Smt. Jayanthi Natarajan : Environment and Forests

Shri Paban Singh Ghatowar : Development of North Eastern Region

Shri Gurudas Kamat : Drinking Water and Sanitation

MINISTERS OF STATE:

Shri Sudip Bandopadhyaya : Health and Family Welfare

Shri Charan Das Mahant : Agriculture and Food Processing Industries

Shri Jitendra Singh : Home Affairs

Shri Milind Deora : Communications and Information Technology

Shri Rajiv Shukla : Parliamentary Affairs

The prime minister has further recommended that the portfolios of the following Ministers may be changed as indicated below:

CABINET MINISTERS:

Shri Vilasrao Deshmukh : Science and Technology and Earth Sciences

Shri M. Veerappa Moily : Corporate Affairs

Shri Anand Sharma : Commerce and Industry; and additional charge of Textiles

Shri Pawan Kumar Bansal : Parliamentary Affairs and additional charge of Water Resources

Shri Salman Khursheed : Law and Justice and additional charge of Minority Affairs

MINISTERS OF STATE:

Shri E. Ahamed : External Affairs and Human Resource Development

Shri V.Narayanasamy : Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions; and Prime Minister's Office

Shri Harish Rawat : Agriculture and Food Processing Industries; and Parliamentary Affairs

Shri Mukul Roy : Shipping

Shri Ashwani Kumar : Planning; Science and Technology and Earth Sciences

The prime minister has fowarded the resignation letters of the following ministers in the union council of ministers with the recommendation that they may be accepted.

1. Shri Dayanidhi Maran

2. Shri Murli Deora

3. Shri B.K. Handique

4. Dr. M.S. Gill

5. Shri Kanti Lal Bhuria

6. Shri A. Sai Prathap

7. Shri Arun S. Yadav

 

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/list-ministers-oath-tuesday-evening-055805977.html

21 dead, 100 injured as train derails in India

LUCKNOW, India (AP) — Rescuers searched through the wreckage of a packed express train for people trapped inside after it derailed in northern India on Sunday, killing at least 21 and injuring more than 100 others, officials said.

The Kalka Mail train was on its way to Kalka, in the foothills of the Himalayas, from Howrah, a station near Kolkata in eastern India, when 12 coaches and the engine jumped the tracks near the town of Fatehpur in Uttar Pradesh state, senior railway official A.K. Jain said.

The cause of the derailment was not immediately clear but it appeared that the driver applied the emergency brakes, Jain said.

At least 21 people were killed and rescue workers pulled at least 100 injured passengers out of the wreckage, said Brij Lal, a state police official.

The accident site was a pile of twisted metal. At least one coach flew above the roof of another ahead of it and was dangling precariously, television footage showed. Another coach was thrown away from the rest of the train.

The toll was likely to rise as rescuers made their way through the coaches and used gas cutters to cut through the mangled metal, Lal said.

"We're trying to cut into the coaches and rescue those still trapped inside," Lal said.

Medical personnel rushed to the area, about 75 miles (120 kilometers) southeast of Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh state.

TV stations showed local residents helping injured passengers away from the train and breaking the windows of coaches to help those trapped inside.

The number of passengers on board the Kalka Mail — named for its past use in the postal service — was not known. Express trains normally carry about 1,000 people and travel at speeds of 60-80 miles (100-130 kilometers) per hour.

The derailment delayed several other trains, officials said.

India's railroad network is one of the largest in the world and carries about 14 million passengers a day. Accidents are common, with most blamed on poor maintenance and human error.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/21-dead-100-injured-train-derails-india-121551119.html

SBI hikes lending and deposit rates

 

New Delhi: The country’s largest lender State Bank of India on Thursday increased lending rates by 25 basis points and raised deposit rates by up to 100 basis points, a move that will make home, auto and other loans more expensive, but will provide better returns to savers.

The bank has revised the base rate or the minimum lending rate upwards by 25 basis points (bps), or 0.25 per cent, to 9.50 per cent with effect from July 11, SBI said in a statement. The interest rates on fixed deposits with a maturity period of 1-10 years has been fixed at 9.25 per cent. The new deposit rates would be effective from July 11.

The bank has also raised its benchmark prime lending rate (BPLR), used to determine floating interest rate loans, have been increased to 14.25 per cent from 14 per cent. The decision follows the rate hike announced by the Reserve Bank in its policy review last month. Several banks, including major private lender ICICI Bank, Canara Bank, Bank of Baroda, have already raised their lending rates.

According to the statement, deposits up to 90 days will fetch an interest rate of 7 per cent as against 6.25 per cent. The interest rates for fixed deposits with a maturity period of 1-10 years would be 9.25 per cent. Current deposits between 1 year and 554 days earn an interest of 8.25 per cent. SBI has also decided to waive the penalty for premature withdrawal of deposits up to 90 days. For premature withdrawal of other deposits, it reduced the penalty to 0.50 per cent from from 1 per cent.

Source:
http://www.starnews.in/india/34-more/13106-sbi-hikes-lending-rates-by-25-bps-deposit-rates-by-100-bps

Maruti stops Swift production

India’s largest carmaker Maruti has ended the production of its highly selling premium hatchback Swift, to make way for the next generation Swift, which will be launched in late August or early September.

Dealers have started accepting bookings for the new Swift. Maruti has codenamed the new Swift as YP8 and its trial runs are on in the Manesar plant, reports Economic Times.

According to a report in Business Standard, The car will come with 1.2-litre petrol and 1.3-litre diesel variants. It was reported that the new model, built on a slightly longer yet new platform, will be little extra roomy, lighter and return better mileage than the current generation Swift. Besides, engineers have also achieved a substantial reduction in the overall weight of the car by replacing the metal fuel tank with a plastic tank. This will improve its fuel efficiency by a little over 13 per cent. This will be the first major face-lift for the Swift since it was launched six years ago. Pricing details of the new car has not been shared by the company.

It was also reported that the new Swift will be produced at the company’s Manesar facility in Haryana, which has recently seen labour unrest. The petrol variant will return a mileage of around 20 km a litre, as compared to 17.9 km per litre certified by the Automotive Research Association of India. Similarly, the diesel model will deliver around 23.8 km per litre, as against the existing 21 km a litre.

The report stated that for installing the plastic fuel tanks, Maruti Suzuki India has tied up with France’s Plastic Omnium, the world’s largest manufacturer of plastic fuel tanks as it was mentioned that plastic fuel tanks are usually 25-35 per cent lighter than the conventional metal tanks. Besides, these are corrosion-free, durable, non-explosive and easily recyclable. Maruti Suzuki India has entered into a tripartite joint venture with Suzuki Motor Corporation and Plastic Omnium to manufacture fuel tanks at the Manesar facility. The new plastic tank manufacturing facility, Inergy Automotive Systems Manufacturing India Private Ltd, was inaugurated in Manesar on Monday.

According to the report, Maruti may also offer a four-speed automatic transmission option in the petrol version, besides the regular five-speed manual. The Swift which is available now in petrol, diesel and CNG versions and priced between Rs 3.9-5.5 lakh, sells close to 12,000 units every month. It recorded a growth of 21 per cent last year selling over 140,000 units as against 116,000 units sold in the previous year. The Swift accounts for about 25 per cent of the hatchback segment, and competes with Hyundai i20, Volkswagen Polo, Skoda Fabia, Nissan Micra, Fiat Punto and Toyota Liva. It was also mentioned that Maruti is also preparing to launch a new Swift Dzire, which will be cheaper and will probably hit the market by early 2012.

Source:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/maruti-stops-swift-production.html