Indian [email protected] RNI No: APENG/2010/35309 www.indianhorizon.org Volume Issue No: 180 No: 6 Horizon English Daily [email protected] In memory of Dr Asima Kemal and Prof. Dr. Salim W Kemal Published from Hyderabad & New Delhi Hyderabad, Friday, July 3, 2015 Postal Registration Order No HD/1188/2014-16 Pages 12 + 4 pull out (P16) AFPSA to be revoked in J&K when situation is conducive, says Rajnath Singh TS Govt to spend Rs. 26 Crore on Iftar, Dinners P-2 Price: 3.00 Ferry with 173 on board overturns in Philippines, 36 dead, 19 missing P-8 P-5 Flight delay controversy: Briefs Civil Aviation Minister says sorry for ‘inconvenience’ Civil Aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju Ramdan Timings Sahar - 4:14 Iftar - 7:00 Threats to stall parliament session ‘anti-growth’: Arun Jaitley New Delhi, July 2 (IANS) Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday brushed aside Congress’s threats to stall the monsoon session of parliament over the Lalit Modi controversy, saying it would project the opposition as “anti-growth”. The Congress was quick to react, saying his comments showed the BJP-led government’s “zero tolerance for probity and accountability”. The Congress has been demanding the resignations of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje from their posts for helping “fugitive” Lalit Modi, a former chief of the Indian Premier League. Jaitley told the media after a cabinet meeting that “the bills (to amend the Land Acquisition Act, and introduce the Goods and Services Tax) were very crucial for (the country’s) development and I hope no political party takes anti-growth and antidevelopment position”. HYDERABAD WEATHER FORECAST Max Min 35 25 FAJAR ZOHAR ASAR MAGRIB ISHA 4:25 12:21 3:43 6:55 8:16 GOLD 22 CT 26,500 SILVER 1 KG 35,750 Sensex BSE 27,945.80 NSE 8444.90 Forex Rates Indian Rupees US Dollar British Pound Euro Qatar Riyal Saudi Riyal UAE Dirham 63.51 98.91 70.28 17.35 16.95 17.25 New Delhi, July 2 (PTI) Under attack over two ministers causing inconvenience to Air India passengers, Civil Aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju today tendered an apology while saying that such “indefensible” incidents should never have happened. However, Raju also said that the incident is “too small” for the Prime Minister’s Office to step-in. “Whatever has happened should not have happened... I need to get to the truth... as Civil Aviation minister I apologise (for the inconvenience caused to the passengers),” Raju told reporters. He was responding to a volley of questions on the twin inci- dents involving Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Raju said his Ministry was getting all the facts about the two incidents. “I need to get to the truth, and I will do my duty,” he added. The Minister said that the Ministry would submit a report to the PMO, which has sought details on “delay in Air India flights on account of VIP travels in the recent past”. According to Raju, the incident is “too small” for the PMO to take note of. The development came after reports surfaced about inconvenience caused to passengers of two flights of Air India since June 24 because of Rijiju and Fadnavis. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stuck to his stand that he did not delay the Air India flight he took to the US, dubbing the reports in this regard as “misleading” and said that on returning home he will initiate “criminal defamation” proceedings in the matter. “Enough is enough. Once I m back to India I will initiate proceedings of criminal defamation,” Fadnavis, on a week-long trip to America to woo investment to the state, tweeted. A media report surfaced yesterday that on June 24, three members of a family, including a child, were offloaded from Leh-Delhi Air India flight at Leh to accommodate Rijiju along with Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh and an aide. AAP MLA slams Arvind Kejriwal for publicity fund New Delhi: AAP MLA Pankaj Pushkar, who has openly criticised the party leadership on several issues, today trained his guns on chief minister Arvind Kejriwal over allocation of Rs 526 crores for publicity and termed it as an exercise of “self propogation”. Terming the employment of AAP workers in the Delhi government at “hefty” salaries as an “abuse of public money”, the Timarpur MLA also questioned the appointment of 21 party legislators as parliamentary secretaries. He said the AAP was in serious danger of losing its way and was on a “slippery mode”. Speaking about the recent adverstisment by the Delhi government, Pushkar said, through this the Delhi government not only defied the Supreme Court, which clearly ruled that no government advertisments should try to glorify a politician, but also portrayed women in a regressive way. Pushkar said he has written to Kejriwal over these issues, but there has been “no response from him for the past one month.” “Under a false technical garb that Kejriwal’s pictures were not used, the Aam Aadmi Party tried to defend the obnoxious TV commercial where the name of Delhi CM was mentioned 11 times in just 2 minutes,” Pushkar told a news conference. Incidentally, there was no electricity in the room of the Vidhan Sabha where the conference was held. This led to confusion and delayed the event. The conference continued for a few minutes, but the electricity went off later, again to be resumed in few minutes. IPL money-laundering case: ED records statement of Srinivasan against Lalit Modi Mumbai, July 2 (PTI) The Enforcement Directorate here on Thursday recorded the statement of former BCCI president N Shrinivasan in connection with the money laundering case registered against ex-IPL boss Lalit Modi. “Srinivasan appeared before us today and we recorded his statement for close to three hours,” said an ED official. The case relates to a 2008 deal between World Sports Group (WSG) and Multi Screen Media (MSM) for television rights of IPL worth Rs 425 crore. BCCI filed an FIR in Chennai in 2010 under various provisions of the IPC while two years later the ED registered a case under Prevention of Money Laundering Act in the matter. “We have recorded Srinivasan’s statement as he had filed the police complaint on behalf of BCCI,” the official said. In 2008, the BCCI awarded 10-year media rights to WSG for USD 918 million. In the same year, WSG entered into a deal with MSM to make Sony the official broadcaster. Arvind Kejriwal Telangana CM KCR presents a memento to Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog Arvind Panagariya at a meeting in Hyderabad on Thursday. PTI Debt assigned to YIL to revive National Herald: Sonia New Delhi, July 2 (PTI) Sibal clarified that the exercise was carried out to revive AJL, and neither YIL nor its shareholders have derived any income or profit out of it. Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday told Delhi High Court that the party’s Rs. 90 crore loan to Associated Journals Ltd (AJL), the publisher of National Herald, was assigned to Young Indian Pvt Ltd (YIL) for Rs. 50 lakh to revive the publication. The submission was made before Justice Sunil Gaur by senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the Congress chief, who said AJL will start running the newspaper as soon it pays off its debt to the Congress party. Mr. Sibal made the argument while refuting the allegation of BJP leader Subramanian Swamy that AJL’s properties would only be used for deriving rent. argument was made during hearing of a bunch of pleas, filed by the Congress chief, her son Rahul Gandhi and five others, challenging the summons issued against them on a complaint by Dr. Swamy alleging cheating and breach of trust in the acquisition of AJL by YIL, in DS resigns from Congress, to join TRS Senior Congress leader D Srinivas quit the party and declared to join the ruling TRS in Hyderabad on Thursday. PTI Hyderabad, July 2 (INN) Former PCC President Dharmpuri Srinivas on Thursday announced his resignation from the Congress party. He also announced that he would join the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi soon. Addressing a press conference here, Srinivas said that the decision to leave the Congress party was highly painful. “I was associated with Gandhi Bhavan since 1969 and worked under the leadership of Indira Gan- dhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi. I will remain indebted to them throughout my life for the support that they extended to me,” he said. Srinivas claimed that two factors, ‘humiliation in Congress’ and ‘development of Telangana’, have forced him to quit Congress and join TRS. He said it was his inner conscience which led him to take this decision. Refusing to elaborate on how he was humiliated in the Congress party, he said he has shared those details only with Sonia Gandhi and no one else. He called AICC General Secretary Digvijay Singh a “bluffer” for describing his decision to join TRS as opportunistic politics. “I had a great opinion about him. He is a bluffer. I’m not joining the TRS for any posts,” he said adding that denial of MLC post by the Congress party did not trigger his exit. “I have distributed Bforms to 294 candidates in two General elections. Sonia Gandhi which the accused party leaders are shareholders. During the heari`ng, Mr. Sibal asked where the element of cheating or misappropriation or breach of trust was, as the acquisition process was carried out with the unanimous support of AJL’s shareholders. The acquisition was carried out by assigning to YIL for Rs. 50 lakh a debt of Rs. 90 crore that AJL had to pay to the Congress party, Mr. Sibal told the court and added that instead of paying YIL, shares in the publication were given to YIL. He clarified that the exercise was carried out to revive AJL, and neither YIL nor its shareholders have derived any income or profit out of it. Subsidised LPG sales under DBT down by 25%: Subramanian New Delhi, July 2 (PTI) Arvind Subramanian cautioned that the government should make sure genuine beneficiaries are not excluded. Sales of subsidised LPG cylinders under the Direct Benefit Transfer scheme (DBT) have come down by about 25 per cent as most “ghost beneficiaries” have been eliminated, CEA Arvind Subramanian on Thursday said. “... essentially, what we find is that on an average, the DBT scheme has reduced subsidised domestic LPG sales by about 25 per cent,” Mr. Subramanian said while speaking at the UNDP conference call in New Delhi. On the fiscal impact of DBT, the Chief Economic Advisor said, “We estimate that in 2014-15, savings could be as much Rs. 12,700 crore, which is a lot of money. But savings will be lower this year at around Rs. 6,500 crore.” Mr. Subramanian, however, cautioned that the government should make sure genuine beneficiaries are not excluded. “It’s necessary that we don’t overestimate the gain and under-recognise possible cost of doing this and in the case of DBT and Pahal, we have some preliminary evidence to suggest that a lot of it is elimination of ghost beneficiaries, but we can’t rule out that there could be exclusion of genuine beneficiaries,” he said. Mr. Subramanian, formerly a senior Fellow at Peterson Institute for International Economics, admitted: “We were expecting commercial sales to go up by a huge number, but actually, this did not happen... there was only 6 per cent increase.” 2 Indian Horizon, Hyderabad City Short Takes ACB approaches SC to quash Revanth’s bail TRS to raise HC bifurcation issue in Parl session Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): The Telangana Anti-Corruption Bureau has filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking quashing of bail orders granted by the Hyderabad High Court to TPD MLA A Revanth Reddy and two others in Cash for Vote case. The ACB Counsel contended that being a senior politician, Revanth Reddy might use his influence to tamper with the evidence or threaten the witnesses. He pointed out that, immediately after coming out of bail from Cherlapally Central Prison on Wednesday, Revanth Reddy, in his speech has used intimidating and harsh words against Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao. The ACB also appealed the Supreme Court to quash the bail granted to other accused Sebastian and Udaya Simha. Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): Accusing the Central Government of doing injustice to Telangana on the issue of bifurcation of High Court, TRS MP G Vinod Kumar announced that the TRS would raise the issue in forthcoming monsoon session of Parliament if it remains unresolved till July 21. Speaking to media persons in Karimnagar on Thursday, Vinod Kumar threatened that the TRS MPs would stall the proceedings of Parliament if the Centre fails to a decision on High Court bifurcation. He said it was highly regrettable that the division of High Court was not completed despite bifurcation of the State one year ago. ACB chief meets KCR Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): AntiCorruption Bureau Director General AK Khan called on Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao at latter’s camp office on Thursday. Khan has reportedly briefed the Chief Minister about the latest developments in ‘Cash for Vote’ case, especially in view of grant of bail to TDP MLA A Revanth Reddy by the Hyderabad High Court on Wednesday. He informed him that the ACB was approaching the Supreme Court to get the bail quashed. DS could not live without post for 35 days: Uttam Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president N Uttam Kumar Reddy has strongly criticised former PCC chief Dharampuri Srinivas for deciding to quit Congress to join the TRS party. Addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan here, Uttam Kumar Reddy said that the Congress would not lose anything if leaders like Srinivas leave the party. He said that the Congress party had the potential to groom and nurture new leadership. He ridiculed the claims of Srinivas that he was joining the TRS for the weaker sections. He said DS could not survive for even 35 days without a post and started hunting for posts in TRS after losing the post of Leader of Opposition in Council. President to visit Yadagirigutta on July 5 Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): President of India Pranab Mukherjee, who is staying in Rashtrapati Nilayam in Secunderabad as part of his 10-day Southern Sojourn, will visit the Yadagirigutta of Nalgonda district on July 5. According to officials, the President will visit Yadagirigutta at 11 AM. In view of President’s visit, Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao has made changes in his tour for Haritha Haram programme. KCR was scheduled to visit Peddapally of Karimnagar district on July 5. However, he will return to Yadagirigutta in a helicopter after attending the Peddapally meeting to join the President. MBT to meet President over Alair encounter Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): The Majlis Bachau Tahreek on Thursday sought appointment from President of India Pranab Mukherjee to make representation on the issue of Alair encounter in which five under-trials were killed in police firing. “The MBT delegation will comprise of families of five Muslim under trials - Viquar Ahmed, Syed Amjed, Mohd. Zakir, Mohd. Haneef and Izhar Khan who were killed near Alair of Nalgonda district on April 7, 2015, in a fake encounter by the Telangana Police. We will apprise the Hon’ble President on how the police and Telangana Government tried to show this mass murder into a ‘genuine encounter’,” MBT leader Amjed Ullah Khan said in a press release on Wednesday. I’m not leaving Congress party: Jana Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): Leader of Opposition K Jana Reddy on Thursday dismissed media reports that he was likely to quit the Congress party and might join the TRS. Speaking to media persons at Gandhi Bhavan here, Jana Reddy asked media houses to cross-check the reports before taking them on air. He said TRS MP Vinod had called on him to handover an invitation for the book launch of Maharashtra Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao. He said the media should not misinterpret the personal and professional relationship among the politicians. Commenting on the decision of exPCC chief D Srinivas to quit Congress to join TRS, Jana Reddy said it was opportunistic politics. He said that the Congress have been witnessing such people since 1977 when many leaders joined the Janata Party. Revanth threatening witnesses by body language: Vinod Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): TRS MP Vinod Kumar here on Thursday took a serious exception to the atrocious behavior of Telangana TDP leader A Revanth Reddy after his release from Charlapally central jail on a temporary bail. Speaking to mediapersons here, Vinod Kumar felt that the principal accused in cash-for-vote scam by slapping his thigh and twirling moustache was giving a clear warning to the witnesses in the case. His body language showed that he would see the end of his opponents. The MP also observed that the TDP supremo and AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has scant respect for democratic values. A-1 Revanth behaving like a hero: Tammineni Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): CPM Telangana State secretary Tammineni Veerabhadram has alleged that ‘corruption’ reached to its peak in political system. Speaking to the media here on Thursday, Tammineni said TDP MLA A Revanth Reddy was caught by ACB sleuths red handedly while he was offering bribe of Rs 50 lakh advance and exhibiting heroism instead of tendering apologies. “One should ponder where politics was going on in the democracy”, he asked. DS’ follower too to join TRS Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): TPCC secretary and official spokesperson B Krishna Murthy has tendered his resignation to the primary membership of Congress party and announced he would join the TRS along with his mentor former APCC chief D Srinivas, who also announced his decision to join TRS on July 6. In a pressnote here on Thursday, Krishna Murthy said he had accompanied D Srinivas when the latter called on Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao at the Camp Office. B Krishna Murthy is a staunch follower of D. Srinivas, since he took charge as APCC president. Friday, July 3, 2015 KCR announces Rs 26 cr Ramzan bonanza; Dawat-e-Ifthar at Nizam College on July 8 Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao today announced Rs 26 crore bonanza for Muslims brethren for the pious Ramzan festival to be conducted officially by Telangana Government. Speaking to mediapersons at the Camp Office here on Thursday, the Chief Minister said he would offer through Wakf Board Rs 1,000 monthly salary to all Imams and Mouzans in 5,000 mosques across the State. KCR said to honour the Muslim brethren, Dawat-e-Ifthar will be organized in a grand manner. The Chief Secretary will monitor the arrangements for the festivities for communal amity and brotherhood like “Ganga-Jamuna Tehzeeb”, Chief Minister asserted. The Chief Minister said arrangements will be made to offer Dawat-eIfthar party for over 4,000 people at the Nizam College grounds on July 8. KCR stated that he will participate in the festivities and invite all the leaders of all political parties, ministers, MPs, MLAs, district Collectors and scribes to attend the same. The district Collectors should conduct the Ramzan festival officially to ensure that the Muslim brethren participate in a peaceful and grand manner, he directed. Dawat-e-Ifthar will be conducted at 100 mosques in Hyderabad and one in every Assembly segment. “I have directed the Collectors during a video conference to conduct Ramzan festival”, he said, adding that Imams of the mosques should distribute clothes worth Rs 500 to every poor Muslim and mass feeding at all orphanages by spending Rs 25 lakh. Senior IPS officer ACB Chief A K Khan will head a committee for the arrangements and Deputy Chief Minister Mahamood Ali will monitor the festivities along with MLC Salim, KCR said, adding that a GO will be issued soon. While some 3,000 mosques were registered with Wakf Board, some 1,500 unregistered mosques will get the benefit of free clothes worth Rs 9.75 crore and Rs 4 crore for food and Rs 3 crore towards other expenses. It is a beginning to provide succor to the poor Muslims and will extend more help in future, he said. Arrangements are being made to provide food for over 1,000 persons at these mosques after completing Roza and Namaz ritual, he said. Minorities’ panel recommends regularization of Urdu Academy staff Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): The State Minorities Commission has issued recommendations to the Government of Telangana to regularize the services of 186 employees working in Telangana State Urdu Academy (Computer cum Libraries Employees Welfare Association) who had filed a petition before the Commission complaining that though they have completed 5 years of continuous service and some of them have put in 12 to 18 years in different categories and all of them have requisite qualification to be appointed in the specified posts. The Commission had conducted a detailed hearing in the matter and obtained reports from the Urdu Academy as well as Japanese delegation meets TS Industries Minister Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): A Japanese delegation, led by Yasuo Takamatsu from Takuma CO., LTD, an energy and environment company along with Masaya Kawamoto of Takuma and Yasuo Kano of CBM CO., Ltd. Japan and Venkat Gandhi director of Synoverge, Japan., called on Telangana Industries Minister Jupally Krishna Rao at the State Secretariat on Thursday. They explained that Takuma is one of the oldest established Broiler company with expertise in end to end solid waste. They are specialist in converting waste from industries, municipal etc to energy Minority Welfare Department and after examining the report and after hearing the petitioners, the Commission has recommended to the Government of Telangana to regularize the services of 186 employees by providing a budget provision under Plan Scheme for an amount of Rs.8 crores to the Urdu Academy so as to make provision for the salaries of the staff. The Commission observed that the services of the employees is very much required for proper and smooth running of the programmes initiated by the Urdu Academy so also for the proper functioning of Urdu Academy Training Centers and Libraries in different Districts and Mandals of Telangana. and disposal converted to fly ash which is only 5% of the total waste. Which can be used in construction and road laying. It is the No. One company in incineration and has presence in Europe and Asia. It need not have a place for dumping and can be constructed in the middle of the city and has almost zero percentage of pollution emission, they have developed means to reduce the release of dioxins and helped a viable technology which is applied to waste incineration throughout Japan to this day. They have 353 MSW incineration plants throughout Japan. They work on Takuma’s original grate technology. A plant of 1000 tonnes waste management costs around 150-200 million dollars. They have requested the government to help to set Kemal Publications Excellent modern multi colour offset press. Services for quality printing Newspapers, Magazines, Journals, Books, Text Books, Company Annual Reports etc. Please Contact: Ph: 9885183853: 040-66616611 E-Mail: [email protected]. [email protected] up the plant by the government or as a joint venture and informed that it would take around 2-2 1/2 years to construct the plant and get it operational. The Minister was impressed and felt that it would be of great help given the present scenario of garbage disposal and felt that this would help in Swachh Telangana and would bring down the pollution levels and also the stink that emanates from it as this Japanese model does not emanate smell. He spoke to TS Genco officials and Municipal Administration authorities and put them on to the concerned officials for further action and felt that this partnership would help in enhancing Brand Telangana and also achieve lower pollution levels both in Municipalities and Industries. Three more cases booked against Revanth in Cyberabad TDP legislator A. Revanth Reddy being wecomed by party supporters after he was granted conditional bail on a personal bond of Rs.5 lakh and two sureties by Hyderabad High Court in Hyderabad on Wednesday. (PTI Photo) Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): The Cyberabad police have registered three criminal cases against principal accused in cash-for-vote case Revanth Reddy for taking out a rally without police permission and making threats while swinging lethal weapons. Two cases were registered in Kushaiguda police station and one in the Malkajgiri police station under penal sections 341, 188, 506, 509. Police said after his release from Charlapalli central jail on temporary bail on Wednesday, Revanth Reddy, the principal accused in Note-for-Vote scam, took out a rally without police permission and made provocative speech threatening to dislodge TRS government from power and also threatened people concerned while swinging lethal weapons. It may be mentioned here that Revanth Reddy, after his release from jail on bail, went in a procession and made speeches attacking the Chief Minister and his cabinet colleagues. Dy CM inaugurates Marriage Counselling Centre at Haj House Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): The Telangana Government has constituted an exclusive Marriage Counselling Centre to settle the cases of marital discords and other problems in the light of legal provisions and respective personal law. Deputy Chief Minister Mohammed Mahmood Ali inaugurated the Centre at the Haj House at Nampally and promised to give it more powers so that it should be able to solve the marital disputes in the families in an amicable manner and give counseling to both the parties on the rights and responsibilities. He said that such centres would be set up in all the districts of the State. He said that Wakf Office Buildings would be constructed in all the districts of the state from where all the minority offices would function. He said that many women were lingering in the litigation for years together. ‘This centre is set up to help such couples’ he said and added that experts have been included in the panel headed by Mr. E. Ismail, a retired judge. He thanked the Chief Minister for taking revolutionary steps in the field of education and welfare of the minority communities. Nampally MLA Jaffer Hussain Meraj expressed happiness over setting up the centre and hoped that the minority couples would not get involved in litigations and approach the centre for settlement of their disputes. Minorities Welfare Department Secretary Syed Omer Jaleel highlighted the aims and objectives and said that the Counselling Centre would sit once in a fortnight or as often as necessary and take up the cases, referred to it by any party. MWD Director Mohammed Jalaluddin Akber welcomed the gathering and Prof. S. A. Shukoor, Special Officer Telangana State Haj Committee proposed a vote of thanks. Syed Vilayat Hussain GM Minorities Finance Corporation, Asadullah CEO Wakf Board and Members of the Counselling Centre were present on this occasion. BBPPL to vaccinate and sterilize 4,000 stray dogs in city Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): Brilliant Bio Pharma Private Limited (BBPPL),a member company of TGV conglomerate which is into the manufacturing of Veterinary Biological and Medicines to observe Zoonoses Day on July 6. To commemorate this event, the World Health Organisation has recommended celebrating this day as World Zoonoses Day, where the focus is more on vaccination. ‘Zoonoses’ is a term given to any infectious disease that can be transmitted from animals to humans and vice versa. To commemorate the occasion, BBPPL plans to vaccinate around 4000 stray dogs free of cost. This it will do in coordination with GHMC and along with volunteers. Vaccination will also be taken up in association with NGO-Blue Cross in Jubilee Hills. Further free vaccination will also taken up in Government Hospitals in Seetharambagh, Bhoiguda, Kukatpally, Patancheru, Sangareddy and Sangareddy disclosed Mourya Boda, Chairman and Managing Director of BBPPL. Mourya Boda expressed that even in these days, many casualties occur due to dog bites and this needs to be eradicated at least in cities like Hyderabad. At the same she emphasized the need for sterilization for stray dogs. Giving more details, Mourya Boda added that the company will also create awareness in selected schools by organising essay writing and painting competitions as she feels that the awareness program should start from grass root level. With our efforts and cooperation from Medical fraternity, she is hopeful of Hyderabad becoming a Rabies Free City. Indian Horizon, Hyderabad Short Takes AP seeks info of staff sacked by Telangana Govt Hyderabad, July 2 (INN): The Andhra Pradesh Government said that it has been brought to its notice that certain employees working in Schedule-X institutions are being relieved / terminated by Govt. of Telangana/management of Schedule-X institutions located in Telangana State on the ground that they belong to the State of Andhra Pradesh. “Such employees are requested to furnish the following information to the email id given below or post to the below mentioned address. Name of the Schedule-X institution, name of the employee, designation, whether regular / contract/outsourced employee, mobile number, email-id, scanned copy of appointment order and termination order, district to which the employee belongs to the mail id: [email protected],” according to a press release. Not a single rupee paid to Dowleswaram victims: Jagan Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): In a blistering attack on A P government, YSR Congress Party president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy today alleged that not a single rupee was paid to victims’ families of Dowleshwaram tragedy in which 22 persons drowned recently. Jagan, who was on a tour of East and West Godavari districts, today visited Achyutapuram in Visakhapatnam. The tragedy had occurred when a vehicle in which the victims were traveling, dived into the river Godavari from Dowleshwaram bridge killing 22 members, who were returning from a pilgrimage recently. He also criticized Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu for not visiting families of the victims. But, he said, a minister after visiting, had announced Rs two lakh ex-gratia to each family of the deceased. However, not a single rupee was paid till now, Jagan wondered. by a flight from Dubai in the early hours at the airport, had concealed the gold biscuits in a table fan, a senior Customs official said. The passenger, whose name was not revealed, has been arrested, he said. A probe is on into the matter. Forum hails DS for taking a right decision Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): The Forum to Support KCR on Thursday welcomed the decision of senior Congress leader D. Srinivas to quit the party and join TRS for making Bangaru Telangana a reality. Chairman of the Forum Konda Lakshma Reddy in a statement said that decision of DS has come at the right time when Chief Minister Chandrasekhar Rao was striving to make a golden state by initiating numerous welfare and developmental activities. While KCR is working hard and committed to transform the new born state into prosperous and developed welfare state, certain forces including his political adversaries were hell bent in creating hurdles, he pointed out and added that it was the right time for all true Telanganites to come together and extend an helping hand to the Chief Minister in his onerous task. Revanth’s rally a mockery of democracy: TRS Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): In an apparent move to scuttle the efforts of Telugu Desam for coming in the way of Telangana development in one way or other, the TRS leadership is upping the ante against the former for its rhetoric against the Telangana Government. TRS legislator Jeevan Reddy today dubbed Telugu Desam legislator Revanth Reddy as a liar, cheat and blackmailer. The TD leader will sure get back to jail sooner or later in the-cash-for-vote scam on which he got only a temporary bail, he alleged. Addressing a press conference at TRS party headquarters Preparations here, the TRS leader alleged that Revanth made a mockery for Godavari of democracy and its values. Is Pushkaralu not the TD leader, who came out satisfactory: BJP of jail on cash-for-vote scam a Hyderabad, Jul 2 (PTI): ‘freedom fighter’ to conduct a Telangana BJP unit today said rally?. the arrangements and works undertaken for the upcoming Tummala slams festival ‘Godavari Pushkaralu’ Naidu on have been far from satisfacRevanth’s rally tory. The ‘Pushkaralu’ (ritual of Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): sacred bath in river) is sched- Telangana Roads & Buildings uled to begin on July 14, but Minister Tummala Nagaeshthe works and arrangements war Rao here on Thursday said for the people to take holy dip AP Chief Minister N Chandrabin Godavari are of poor qual- abu Naidu was digging his own ity, Telangana BJP president ‘political grave’ by encouragand MLA G Kishan Reddy told ing leaders to loot and indulge a press conference. in corruption. The administration need to Addressing the media here, expedite the works and make Tummala charged the Teluproper arrangements soon, he gu Desam leadership with said. dumping the ideals of its party A team of BJP workers visited founder and former Chief Minthe places where the pilgrims ister NT Rama Rao, who strugwill visit the ghats for the sa- gled for the cause of Telugu cred bath and took stock of the pride and welfare. He termed arrangements, he added. Revanth Reddy’s rally from Cherlapally Jail as an affront to 3 kg gold seized democracy. “Naidu is putting to shame the Telugu pride and at airport the people are despising ReHyderabad, Jul 2 (PTI): Cus- vanth Reddy”, he noted. The minister slammed Retoms officials today seized 3 kgs gold from a passenger who vanth Reddy for behaving like allegedly tried to smuggle it at a street rowdy and his outthe Rajiv Gandhi International bursts against Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and the Airport. The passenger, who arrived TRS Government. 3 State Friday, July 3, 2015 Srinivas calls Digvijay singh ‘a bluffer’ Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): Senior Congress leader D.Srinivas, who had resigned from Congress party to join the ruling TRS party in the Telangana State on Thursday lambasted AICC General Secretary Digvijay Singh as a “bluffer” for accusing him of political opportunism. During the media conference organized to explain the circumstances that made him to quit Congress and join the pink party, DS was asked to respond to the charge of the AICC leader that it was “political opportunism” the main reason for jumping the ship. It was also pointed out him that he was annoyed with the Congress leadership at the Centre for denying him MLC re-nomination and instead a much junior was selected as him himself has recommended the woman leader’s name to Digvijay Singh. Senior Congress leader D Srinivas showing the resignation letter to media in Hyderabad on Thursday. He quit Congress to join TRS party. (PTI Photo) Losing his cool to the utter surprise of the media, DS shot back by stating that “ He ( Digvijay Singh) is a bluffer “ and went on to explain that he never had any discussions with the Central party leaders or was he consulted in the matter. “ Till now I had regard for Digvijay Singh”, he quipped “ but after his blatant lies I changed my mind”. He is a bluffer and does not what he is taking, DS fumed. Getting calm after his sudden outburst DS explained that he was not angry or unhappy with anyone for giving the MLC ticket to Lalitha ( the one selected by the High Command instead of DS). I am happy about her getting the ticket and my blessing would with her all the time, he added. Orientation programme for fresh MBA batch begins at HBS Orientation programme for fresh MBA batch begins at HBS Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): “Aim high. It is our limited thought that limits our career. With the power of thought one can achieve whatever one aspires to”, said Dr. Vivekananda Suri, Director, Strategy and Operations, Oracle Software India Ltd. He participated in the inauguration of the MBA Programme 2015-2017 at Hyderabad Business School (HBS), GITAM University, as the Chief Guest, and formally began the Orientation Programme which will be held from 2nd to 4th of July 2015 for the freshly recruited batch of MBA students. Advising the newly admitted students on career planning, he said, “Career is a set of goals achieved against a timeframe. To have a top career, one needs to plan it. Strong commitment to the goal is needed to achieve it. When it comes to one’s goals, one needs to be selfish so as to avoid distractions. Only the one who commits to himself will be successful.” By citing inspiring examples of achievement like Arunima Sinha who is the first amputee to scale Mt. Everest, Dr Suri exhorted the students to realize the power of thought and the commitment to a goal. He advised them to break a goal into manageable chunks, and never to leave in the middle what one starts. Dr Vivekananda Suri debunked the myth that there is shortage of jobs. On the other hand, the corporate world is always looking for good, skilled, committed workers. On skill development, he suggested the technique of ‘inch wide and mile deep”, that is to say, to specialize thoroughly even in a small area of knowledge. He congratulated the students for their choice of the field as well as the institution. Speaking on this occasion, Dr. N. Siva Prasad, Director, School of Technology, GITAM Hyderabad Campus, urged the students to take advantage of the intellectual and infrastructural resources of the university and develop confidence while on the campus so as to shine in their careers. As would be managers, they need to cultivate the attitude of being responsible for creating wealth by managing human and financial resources. CCL’s Gopal Singh recommended for CMD post in NMDC Hyderabad, Jul 2 (PTI): Public Enterprises Selection Board (PSEB) has recommended name of Central Coalfields (CCL) Chairman-cum-Managing Director Gopal Singh for the post of CMD of NMDC Ltd. The present CMD of the country’s largest iron ore miner Narendra Kothari will attain superannuation in December. The recommendation was made after it had interviewed 13 persons, PSEB said in a statement. A graduate from Indian School of Mine, Dhanbad in 1981, Singh has been working as CCL CMD since March 2012 and has over 30 years of experience in the industry, according to CCL website. Those interviewed for the post includes, four directors of NMDC (National Mineral Development Corporation), two directors of SAIL and one director each from RINL, CIL, HCL apart from the CMD of HSCL Kishan brings Inter Students issue to Smriti Irani Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): Telangana State BJP president G Kishan Reddy has said he brought the injustice meted out to Telangana Intermediate students in JEE ranks to the notice of Union Human Resources Development Minister Smrithi Irani and urged her to take a deci- Moyukh Bhaduri, CCL CMD Gopal Singh, PGCIL executive director V Sekar and KIOCL CMD Malay Chatterjee, it said. PSEB is responsible for selection and placement of candidates for board level positions in central public sector undertakings. A senior central government official said the recommendations will be sent to Central Vigilance Commission, Department of Personal and Training (DoPT). “Once the name is cleared by DoPT, the appointment committee of the cabinet will take a final decision on the appointment,” the official told PTI. Two senior officials from two different PSUs who were in the race for the post during initial stages withdrew their candidatures for “unexplained reasons”. The official on condition of anonymity said three names were included in the original list of candidates at a later stage. sion keeping the future of the students by consulting CBSE officials. He said the Minister assured that she would resolve the problem by keeping legal and technical issues in mind. Kishan Reddy said the Centre responded immediately on the issue. In a pressnote, Kishan Reddy alleged that the future of 1,188 students will be in dark due to the Telangana Intermediate Police arrest All India Youth Federation (AIYF) activists holding a demonstration demanding the ban of KFC which they claim are serving poisonous food in Hyderabad on Thursday. (PTI Photo) TTD EO reviews on Maha Pushkaram 2015 Tirupati, July 2 (NSS): TTD Executive Officer Dr D Sambasiva Rao on Thursday reviewed on the ongoing arrangements for Maha Pushkaram 2015 in Rajamundry. Board’s inefficiency. He said the Board has failed to send marks list of students, who applied for revaluation, subsequently they lost ranks in JEE Mains. In general, the JEE decides the ranks based on the marks of Intermediate and JEE Mains examination (40:60 percent). Due to the Intermediate Board’s inefficiency, the students lost their entry into IIT and NIT. ADVERTISEMENTS INVITED Revanth will end up in jail, To Advertise in says Jupally INDIAN HORIZON English Daily at concessional rates. Pleasing display, Wider reach Please contact: 040-66616611, 66839818, or Email: [email protected], [email protected], Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): Ministers Jupally Krishna Rao and Dr C Lakshma Reddy today lashed out at Telugu Desam legislator Revanth Reddy for his remarks against Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and his government. The ministers took serious exception to Revanth for his alleged remarks that he will strive to topple the KCR Government in the days to come. Addressing a press conference at Telangana Bhavan here on Thursday, the ministers said Re- The review meeting was held in his chambers’ in TTD Administrative Building in Tirupati. The EO called upon the officers to make the TTD activity a special attraction during the mega religious event. “This is going to be a prestigious event. So there should not be not ‘Thief’ Revanth shouldn’t spit on sky: Pocharam any compromise in the arrangements on our behalf”, he maintained. The EO also said that there is need to give extensive publicity for the TTD publications by setting up book stall as majority of pilgrim devotees visit the replica temple during Maha Pushkaram. Hyderabad, July 2 (NSS): Agriculture Minister Pocharam Srinivas Reddy has alleged that Telangana TDP MLA A. Revanth Reddy is a “thief” who was caught by the ACB in cash-for-vote scam case. Speaking to the media at TRSLP office here on Thursday, Pocharam asked Revanth Reddy not to lose his tongue and behave like a street rowdy. He said politicians should behave in a polite manner. He also said all sections of the people under TRS rule are happy and it was shame on the part of Revanth Reddy to criticize the TRS government. Finding fault with the rally taken by Revanth Reddy on Wednesday evening, the minister said Revanth was not a leader, who sacrificed for the sake of people, to organize such a huge rally spending Rs 2 crores. The rally was against rules. The court gave him conditional bail and it is better to Revanth Reddy to stay at Kodangal only, he said. vanth is not eligible to make such harsh comments against the chief minister. They fumed at the TD leader for swirling moustaches and throwing a challenge by hitting on his thigh saying that he has no eligibility to comment on the Chief Minister. It is shame on the part of the TD leadership for celebrating Revanth’s release by conducting a rally, distributing sweets and firing crackers, they said. He sought to know whether Revanth done some rare feat or achieved something that is impossible to conduct a rally from the jail to NTR Trust Bhavan. Though he came out of jail on bail for time-being, Revanth will finally end up behind bars, they stated. There is no comparison between KCR and Naidu as the former has championed the cause of new State and the latter is indulging corrupt practices, they said. They warned the TD leader of dire consequences if failed to mend his ways of coming in the way of Telangana at the behest of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu. Playing down the remarks that KCR got fever as he came out of jail, the ministers said the people in his native Kodangal Assembly segment and elsewhere will remove the flag-posts and banish Andhra parties from Telangana. 4 Short Takes 2 kgs gold seized from air passenger Chennai, Jul 2 (PTI): Two kilos of gold allegedly smuggled here from Singapore was seized today and the accused has been detained, Airport officials said. Acting on a tip off, Air Intelligence Unit officials detained Ikander Hayathullah as soon as he arrived here from Singapore. During questioning he told them that he had hidden the gold behind his seat in the aircraft and it was recovered and seized. Further inquiries are on, they said. 64 Star tortoises seized, man detained at airport Chennai, July 2 (PTI): As many as 64 star tortoises, a protected wildlife species, was seized from a man at the airport here today just before he was to board a flight to Malaysia, airport officials said. Naina Mohammed Yasin was detained by Customs authorities before his departure to Kuala Lumpur by a Malaysian Airlines flight after it was found that he had 64 star tortoises hidden in his baggage. He would be handed over to Forest Department officials for further enquiry and appropriate action, they said. Duo wearing helments snatch chain from old woman Coimbatore, Jul 2 (PTI): Two helmet wearing men on a bike snatched a four and half sovereign gold chain from a septugenerain woman at Peelamedu today, police said. The 75-year-old woman was going to dispose night waste in a dustbin near her house when they accosted her, snatched the chain and fled. Before she could raise an alarm and alert neighbours, the duo managed to escape, they said. A hunt is on to nab them, police said. ‘Rope in banks, industrial houses to maintain schools’ Puducherry, July 2 (PTI): Lt Governor of Puducherry Lt General (retired) A K Singh has urged education department officials to associate industrial houses and banks to strengthen infrastructure in government schools by using funds under `Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) scheme. Speaking after meeting the officials at Raj Nivas yesterday to identify needs of the schools and to evolve plans to tone teachers’ skills, he said infrastructure was essential for schools. He stressed the need to make available toilets and safe drinking water. posts of teachers remaining vacant should be filled at the earliest, he said A meeting at the level of Chief Secretary to government should be held with officials of industrial houses and banks to ensure that they use funds under CSR to tone up basic infrastructure in schools, he said. FICCI Workshop on ZED model on July 8 Kozhikode, Jul 2 (PTI): With a focus on making the MSME in Kozhikode and Malabar in particular aware about the ZED model, a workshop on “ZED Model - Zero Defect Zero Effect” will be here on July 8 by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). Indian Horizon, Hyderabad South The programme, organised in association with Quality Council of India (QCI) and Malabar Chamber of Commerce and Calicut Chamber of Commerce and Industry, will be inaugurated by K Sudhir, Additional Director, Department of Industries and Commerce of the state government, a press release from the FICCI state council said today. It is intended to give a major fillip to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to manufacture products with “zero defect” in terms of quality and with “zero effect” in terms of environmental impact under “Make in India” umbrella, it said. Stalin accused of slapping metro passenger incident Chennai, Jul 2 (PTI): DMK leader M K Stalin was in the midst of a controversy today after a video showed him allegedly slapping a fellow passenger on board a metro train here. “I did not slap him, I only gestured him to move away from a woman whose feet was being trampled by the passenger. My hand (inadvertently) touched his face while gesturing,” Stalin told PTI when asked on the issue. Video footages of Stalin allegedly slapping a passenger in a metro train yesterday went viral today with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa condemning the incident. “This is strongly condemnable, such an uncivilised behaviour is unbecoming of an MLA,” the AIADMK supremo said in a statement. DMK leader Stalin accuses TN Chief Electoral Officer of bias Chennai, Jul 2 (PTI): DMK treasurer M K Stalin today accused Tamil Nadu Chief Electoral Officer of being biased in favour of ruling AIADMK in the June 27 bypoll in R K Nagar, from where Chief Minister Jayalalithaa won by a huge margin. “He is a government official, an IAS officer and was vested with the responsibility of working without any party bias,” he said. “Sandeep Saxena (Chief Electoral Officer) however worked more than AIADMK ministers and MLAs for the victory of Chief Minister Jayalalithaa (in RK Nagar constituency),” he alleged. “He has to soon answer for all these and that time will come soon,” he told reporters here. Six arrested for murder of Dalit engineer; hunt on for 3 more Namakkal (TN) July 2 (PTI): Six persons were arrested here today in connection with the death of a Dalit engineer, whose body was found on the railway track near Pallipallayam in the district on June 27, police said. One among the arrested was a college student, they said, adding a hunt was on for three others. The death of Gokulraj (26) had triggered protests by his family here who had gone on an indefinite fast on June 29, along with some Dalit outfits, demanding a CBI probe and that a case of murder be registered, instead of suspicious death as initally done by Railway police. They had alleged that it was an honour killing as the youth was in love with a girl of another caste. Friday, July 3, 2015 Lokayukta corruption Jaya dismisses DMK’s claims of initiating row: Oppn mounts pressure for CBI probe Chennai metro rail Belagavi, Jul 2 (PTI): Keeping up pressure for removal of Lokaykuta Bhaskar Rao and a CBI probe into alleged bribery scandal in the anti-graft body, Opposition BJP and JDS members today staged a walkout from the Legislative Council, accusing the government of shielding the corrupt. As the House proceedings began, BJP and JDS sought to move an adjournment motion on the scandal that has rocked the Lokayukta office and demanded removal of Rao, alleging his son was involved in corruption amounting to crores of rupees. In their joint notice for adjournment motion, both parties said several social organisations, legal fraternity and its associations had expressed their dismay against the “corrupt” Lokayukta which was weakening the very institution and he should be removed. As BJP leader K S Eshwarappa began speaking, he was interrupted frequently by the ruling Congress members which enraged his party members who staged a walkout, followed by their counterparts in JDS also. Minister and Leader of the House S R Patil told reporters it is very unfortunate that BJP and JD(S) members walked out only because some from the ruling bench interrupted them. “The government has no intention of protecting anyone. But government has no power for removal of Lokayukta as per the Lokayukta Act 1984,” he said. Later, Eshwarappa told reporters that the government should seek opinion from legal experts on the charges levelled against Lokayukta. A situation had arisen Youth fighting corruption murdered;BJP demands debate in Assembly Belagavi (Karnataka), July 2 (PTI): Opposition BJP today demanded discussion in the assembly on alleged murder of a youth in Koppal district who spoke against corruption, charging that the district in charge Minister was “shielding those involved.” Leader of Opposition Jagadish Shettar raised the issue and requested the chair to allow discussion on it. “Goondagiri is on the rise in Koppal district, where a youth named Yellalinga was killed for speaking against corruption. We had heard of such killings in where all officers are scared of Lokayukta due to threat from his son, Eshwarappa said. The was protecting a corrupt Lokayukta, he alleged. JDS senior member Basavarj Horatti wanted to know as to why government is protecting the Lokayukta. An FIR was filed yesterday against the Lokayukta’s son in connection with the alleged scandal on the basis of a complaint that an executive engineer was asked to pay Rs 1 crore bribe to avoid a raid. Rao, a former High Court Chief Justice, has rejected allegations that his son was involved in the scandal and said he would resign if the charge was proved correct. The case has been handed over to a Special Investigation team by the government on the request by the Lokayukta. Bihar earlier, now Koppal is turning into a mini Bihar,” Shettar said. Alleging a political conspiracy behind Yellalinga?s killing, Shettar said “people who are suspected to be behind his killing are still roaming free. Killers are being shielded by District in charge Minister (Shivaraj Tangadagi).” He said police had earlier declared his death as a case of suicide, and an FIR was lodged only after his mother’s demand. Not agreeing to the opposition?s demand for immediately taking up the issue for discussion, Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa said the debate on demands pertaining to various departments should be taken up first and the murder issue could be discussed later. Chennai, Jul 2 (PTI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa today said it was her government which sowed the seeds for the Chennai Metro Rail and dismissed claims of arch rival DMK that it had initiated the project. Referring to DMK’s allegations of delay in execution of the Metro Project, Jayalalithaa said only three per cent of the work was completed during 2007-11 by the DMK regime. “Between 2007 and 2011, during the DMK regime, only three per cent of work was done. In the past four years, 73 per cent of the work was completed in my government and service between Alandur and Koyambedu is launched,” she said in a statement here today. The feasibility study for the Metro Project was done only in 2003 in the AIADMK regime, she said. “It is a pure lie to say that the plan was devised and executed expeditiously during the DMK regime,” she said. Though DMK was an ally of the Congress, it could get the Centre’s nod for the project only in 2009, she added. Also, it was only on February 15, 2011 during the fag end of the DMK tenure that an MoU was inked among the Centre, State and Chennai Metro Rail, she said. While DMK spent only Rs 1,143 crore for the project during its regime, Rs 9,229 had been spent till date by the AIADMK government since it assumed power in 2011, the CM said. “People will easily understand that it is the AIADMK regime which sowed the seeds for Metro Rail Project,” she said adding, DMK leaders M Karunanidhi and Stalin were “confusing” people to gain political mileage. She also said that all corridors of the Metro network would be operational by the end of 2016. Services between Airport and Little Mount and from Alandur to St Thomas Mount will be inaugurated by March next year, she said. Similarly, services from Koyambedu to Nehru Park would be operational by June next year, she added. RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan addressing a press conference in Chennai on Thursday. (PTI Photo) CPI(M) disrupts proceedings of Kerala Assembly once again Thiruvananthapuram,Jul 2 (PTI): CPI(M) led LDF opposition disrupted proceedings in the Kerala Assembly today in protest against alleged delay in distributing textbooks in government schools, prompting the Speaker to adjourn the House for the day ahead of the schedule. The trouble began during zero hour when the Opposition sought to move an adjournment motion over the education department’s ‘inefficiency’ in not supplying the textbooks even a month after the schools reopened. LDF also cornered the government over alleged differences between Education Minister Abdu Rabb and minister in charge of printing K P Mohanan in finalising the order of printing of textbooks to state-run Kerala Books and Publishing Society. Replying to the notice, Rabb assured the House that the textbooks would be distributed to students by July 20. He also explained the circumstances that led to delay in completing the printing of books before June 1, when schools reopened. “We tried to use quality papers for printing this year to make them more attractive. But scarcity of quality papers delayed the printing. Besides, syllabus revision of certain standards this academic year also caused the delay,” he said. He also denied the charge that printing was purposefully delayed to hand over the contract to the private sector. LDF slammed the government, saying it has put the future of 50 lakh students in jeopardy by not distributing textbooks on time. JD(S) leader Mathew T Thomas, who moved the notice, said government had tried to award the printing contract to a private press overlooking KBPS. “It is a clear case of deriliction of duty on the part of education and printing departments as everbody knows that schools Scorching of plants in coastal areas due to salt spray: report Kochi, Jul 2 (PTI): The scorching of plants reported during this monsoon season from various parts of Kerala coast is caused by salt spray, according to a study. In an interim report, scientists of Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) who tested the sea water, soil and plants collected from the affected areas have ruled out any chances of heat burst in Kerala’s coastal belt. “Environment has low temperature during the monsoon season. Heat bursts are local with a maximum of three km stretch and is very rare. Since this phenomenon happened all along the coast of the state, we rule out the possibilities of heat burst,” Prof S Suresh Kumar said who is the head of the committee comprising oceanographers, geologists, meteorologists, biologists and chemists. The report pointed out that salt nucleus formed from the salt spray due to strong wind caused wilting of plants. “There is high chance of salt spray. Aerosols with high salt content will be formed by the action of wind on wave surfing. Intermittent rain and sun during this monsoon may have aggravated the situa- tion,” the report said. Scientists also observed that the phenomenon was a gradual process and people came to know about this only at a later stage. Local enquiry confirmed the occurrence of similar phenomena for the last several years during August?September period, but this year it happened earlier in June, claimed the scientists. “This is more likely to be an oceanic process and it should be studied in detail with reference to atmospheric, oceanographic and chemical aspects,” said Dr B Madhusoodana Kurup, Vice Chancellor of KUFOS. in Kerala reopen on June 1 after summer vacation and textbooks have to be distributed by that time,” he said. He also alleged that the education department had failed to improve infrastructure of schools and distribute free uniforms. The minister, however, maintained that there was no serious situation in the department that warranted a debate. Unsatisfied, the opposition members trooped to the well of the House and raised slogans. They continued to protest sitting on the well, though Speaker N Sakthan asked them to return to their seats. When the protest continued, the Speaker suspended the proceedings for around half and hour. Though he called a meeting of party leaders to end the stalemate, they failed to arrive at a consensus. Before announcing the LDF sit-in protest, Opposition leader V S Achutanandan said the government had so far distributed only around one crore textbooks in place of five crore. The Speaker rushed through other business in the agenda, including voting on demands for grants in the budget for the year 2015-16 for exercise, fisheries, ports, food and stamps and registration and adjourned the House. Burial of dead of Pentecost Christians: HC disposes petition Madurai, July 2 (PTI): The Madras High Court today disposed a petition seeking a direction to prevent Pentecost faction Christians from ‘burying’ their dead at the corner of a tank in a village on the ground that groundwater will be contaminated. The bench came down on the attitude of public in fighting over even a burial place and said it could not interfere with the arrangements made by the Dindigul Revenue Divisional officer to bury Pentecost Christians on land alloted near a water body at A.Vellodu village in the district. “Christianity has no caste system. What is prevalent in Hinduism appears to have percolated into the Christian religion. Does the Holy Bible allows this practise? It is left to the conscience of the practitioners of the religion.” “Religious belief and customs may vary in the matter of disposal of dead bodies. The place of burial is visited by family members and friends as a mark of respect and to pay homage and there should be no fight there,” the bench, comprising Justices S Manikumar and G Chockalingam said. It said considering the ground reality, the Pentecost faction could be allowed to bury bodies of their loved ones on a site allotted above the water tank. Till a permanent solution was found, none should raise objections, they said. Petitioner P.Joseph Raj sought a direction to restrain officials from burying the bodies at a corner of the tank as it was the only water source for the village. Indian Horizon Hyderabad 5 Nation Friday July 3, 2015 Maharashtra move on madrassas contradicts PM’s vision: Congress Women click pictures with Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar “Har Ghar Dastak”, his door to door campaign for the state elections, in Patna on Thursday. PTI from Mokama to custody till July 15 in the case relating to the murder of one Sanjay Singh in 2008.The JD(U) MLA from Mokama was brought to the CJM Patna, Jul 2 (PTI) Janata court for production from Beur Dal(U) MLA Anant Singh was jail in the case which had been today remanded to judicial cus- lodged with Kotwali police statody by a district court in a sev- tion in 2008.Singh is in jail in a en-year-old murder case. case of kidnapping of a builder Chief Judicial Magistrate of Raju Singh under Bihta police Patna, Bharat Singh, sent the station of rural Patna district in ‘bahubali’ (muscleman) MLA November last year. Another case against Anant Singh Mumbai, July 2 (IANS) The Maharashtra government’s alleged move not to treat madrassas as schools in case they failed to teach primary subjects came in for criticism on Thursday from state party leaders of both the Congress and the Samajwadi Party. The move was “diametrically contradictory” to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s declared vision to bring Muslim youths into the national mainstream, said M. Naseem Khan, a Congress leader and a former minister for minority affairs. “In the 2012 Gujarat assembly elections, modernisation of madrassas was included in the BJP’s election manifesto. Modi spoke about this in parliament. In the union budget for 2015-2016, the Centre allocated Rs.100 crore for this noble cause. Now, the Maharashtra government is talking like this,” he said.“The government has not accorded them recognition; so where’s the question of derecognising them? Such statements will have no impact and the good education imparted in madrassas will continue unhindered,” said Khan while referring to the alleged move to “derecognise” approximate 1,900 madrassas across the western Indian state. The ruling BJP-Shiv Sena government has decided to “derecognise” the madrassas in the state as formal schools since they only impart religious education. Defending the move, state Education Minister Vinod Tawde said the government wants to bring in modern subjects in madrassas without interfering with the religious education.“How is that anti-Muslim? We want to do this for AFSPA to be revoked in J&K when situation is conducive, says Rajnath Singh Srinagar July 2 (PTI): The controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) will be revoked in Jammu and Kashmir when the situation is conducive, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday. “I want to say that the situation should be such, and I pray to Almighty, that AFSPA should not be needed anywhere in the country. We will need cooperation of one and all to achieve this goal,” Singh told reporters. The Home Minister, who was speaking after paying obeisance at the Amarnath cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas, also ruled out talks with separatists. Singh’s remarks on AFSPA came a day after BJP’s alliance partner PDP hit out at Union Minister Jitendra Singh for disfavouring withdrawal of the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh paying obeisance at the Hazratbal shrine in Srinagar on Thursday. PTI Act in Jammu and Kashmir, terming his statement “obnoxious and having unacceptable and unpardonable undertones”.Jitendra Singh, who is a BJP Lok Sabha member from Jammu and Kashmir’s Udhampur constituency, Nepali man held for raping, sodomising daughters, son Panaji, July 2 (IANS) In a shocking incident, A Nepali national was arrested on Thursday by Goa Police for raping and sodomising his biological daughter, a stepdaughter and sodomising his stepson, all of them minors. Police said the accused 39-year-old casual labourer was arrested after the school in which the three children were admitted to in South Goa’s Vasco subdistrict, noticed something amiss in their body language whenever they were in the proximity of male teachers.“We have arrested the accused. Formal statements of the victims are currently being recorded,” South Goa Superintendent of Police Shekhar Prabhudesai told IANS. The Nepali man has been booked for rape, sodomy and assault under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Goa Children’s Act.The accused’s daughter is seven years old, stepdaughter is 11, and stepson is 13 years old, police said. Police said the Nepali man had travelled to Goa from Chandigarh, where he was living with his previous wife, with who he had a daughter, the eldest of the three who have been sexually assaulted. “He came from Chandigarh to Goa a couple of years back with his daughter and married another woman, who already had two children,” a police official said. “When the school authorities noticed the unusual body language, they called a counsellor who managed to convince the children to share the story, following which the first information report was filed,” the official said. Kashmir, today said the stakeholders will have to cooperate in order to ensure that the act is revoked. Revocation of the AFSPA is part of the ‘Agenda of Alliance’ -- the common minimum programme on which the PDP formed government with the BJP in Jammu and Kashmir.“While both parties have historically held a different view on the AFSPA and the need for it in the State at present, as part of the agenda for governance of this alliance, the coalition government will examine the need for de-notifying ‘disturbed areas’. “This, as a consequence, would enable the Union Government to take a final view on the continuation of AFSPA in these areas,” the agenda reads. Asked if the Centre had any plans to hold talks with separatist groups in Jammu and Kashmir, Rajnath Singh said, “We have no proposal to hold talks with the separatists in Jammu and Kashmir. KOLKATA July 2 (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today visited landslidehit areas in Darjeeling district of West Bengal, where 38 people were killed. “Visited the spot where landslide was worst. Met families of victims and those affected in the area. Handed over more cheques to families. Distributed relief and visited community centres where affected families are,” Ms Banerjee said in a statement. ”The 3 community kitchens are open. Met more people affected there. The Chief Secretary, Home Secretary, DG Police also visited,” she said.Since Tuesday night, heavy rain triggered a string of landslides in the New Delhi, July 2 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi “will have to pay a heavy price in the coming days” for ignoring rising cases of corruption involving BJP leaders, the CPI-M warned on Thursday. “There should be no surprise at the corruption and the rapidity with which it has surfaced in BJP-led governments, both at the centre and in the states,” said an editorial in CPI-M journal “People’s Democracy”. “Corruption is inbuilt in the neoliberal regime which has spawned a big business-politician-bureaucrat nexus. Crony capitalism is inherent in such a set-up,” it said. “In fact, with the more aggressive push for neo-liberal policies and privatisation the scope for corruption and loot has increased manifold,” added the Com- West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee speaks to landslide victims at a relief camp in Mirik in Darjeeling on Thrusday. PTI mountainous Darjeeling district of West Bengal, killing at least 38 people, swamping homes, washing away highways and throwing normal life out of gear in the region famed for aromatic Punjab adopts Meghalya model to curb child labour Chandigarh, Jul 2 (PTI) Punjab government today adopted the Meghalya model to curb child labour under which provisions will be of Rs 20,000 as fine and three months imprisonment to offenders.A meeting under the chairmanship of Sukesh Kalia, Chairman, Punjab State Com- Mumbai-Newark service on Monday.The flight delay took place when Pravin Pardeshi, principal secretary in the Chief Minister’s Office, who was also travelling in the entourage, was stopped from boarding as he was not carrying his passport with a valid US visa. “If at all any report that has been submitted states that I refused to travel without my delegation, then it is a blatant lie because passengers sitting besides and behind me are witness that I was sitting quietly waiting for departure. Not even once I asked to offload me,” Fadnavis tweeted. Members of SFI and other Left students unions block the road in front of Calcutta University to protest against the State Government for allegedly heckling professor and non teaching staff of the university, in Kolkata on Thursday. PTI Kolkata, Jul 2 (PTI) A day after Calcutta University (CU) professors were heckled by alleged Trinamool Congress tea.Ms Banerjee had rushed to Siliguri from Murshidabad yesterday also and announced a compensation of Rs. 4 lakh each to the families of the deceased in landslides in Darjeeling Hills. mission for the Protection of Child Rights was held.It was recommended that a notice containing the provision of Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act 1986 that a child below the age of 14 years indulged in arduous and hazardous jobs or labour is considered a crime, an official said. “The offenders are liable to a fine of Rs 20,000 and three months imprisonment”, he said. Professors, teaching staff take out rally in Kolkata Chhatra Parishad activists, the teaching fraternity took to the streets here today in protest against it.The protesters New Delhi, July 2 (IANS) Devyani Khobragade, the 1999-batch IFS officer whose arrest and handcuffing in New York in 2013 over alleged visa fraud led to souring in IndiaUS ties, has been reinstated as director in the ministry of external affairs, a few months after she was stripped of her duties and placed on “compulsory wait”. Khobragade has been made director in the ministry’s States division since February, said sources.Khobragade was stripped of her responsibilities with the ministry in December last year after she gave interviews to the media in which she termed a vigilance inquiry against her as unfair. The vigilance case against Khobragade was on charges that she failed to disclose that her husband was a US citizen and that she has got US passports for her two children.The then Indian consul general was arrested in New York in 2013 on charges of ill-treating her domestic help Sangeeta Richards and visa fraud. Modi will suffer for ignoring corruption: CPI-M West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Visits Landslide-Affected Areas Flight delay row: Fadnavis threatens defamation cases Mumbai, July 2 (IANS) Irked by reports that he was allegedly responsible for delaying an Air India flight to the US, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday hit back with threats to file criminal defamation cases.“Enough is enough. Once I am back to India I will initiate proceedings of criminal defamation,” Fadnavis warned in a tweet during his ongoing business tour of the US.“The allegation that I forced to delay the flight to New York is false & misleading. I totally deny it,” a tweet said after the controversy erupted on the 57-minute delay to the had disfavoured partial withdrawal of AFSPA in the state and underlined that the last word on this would come only from the security agencies and not from political functionaries.Rajnath Singh, who was on a two-day visit to their betterment... Under the Right to Education, children who aren’t taught under National School Curriculum are considered out of school,” Tawde said. The move -- on which Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has not commented so far -- evoked a sarcastic response from Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil: “Is it a decision taken in haste, or a well thought about decision?” The move could deprive madrassas of funds for improvisation, unless they get affiliated to a formal board like the Maharashtra education board, Indian Certificate of Secondary Education or Central Board of Secondary Education and include subjects like science, maths and social studies in their curriculum.“We have never asked for funds from them (government). Khobragade reinstated as director in MEA also questioned the alleged silence of Vice-chancellor Suranjan Das over the assault on professors in front of him yesterday. The professors, who were joined by the non teaching staff, took out a rally from Rajabazar Science College, a premier institute in the city, to the famed College Square about 2 km away, wearing black masks and carrying placards denouncing the alleged assault.“We are out on the streets to protest against yesterday’s barbaric assault on teachers by TMCP goons inside the campus of Calcutta university,” said Shyamal Chakraborty, a member of ‘Save University - Save Democracy’. munist Party of India-Marxist. “Modi has been wilfully blind to this phenomenon. He will have to pay a heavy price for this in the coming days.” The editorial, titled ‘Spreading Stain of Corruption’, referring to the allegations of corruption and impropriety hurled against Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj as well as Maharashta BJP ministers Pankaja Munde and Vinod Tawde. The journal said the “stain of corruption, nepotism and crony capitalism is enveloping the Modi government and the BJP state governments”. It pointed out how Modi and the BJP had made the massive corruption under the UPA government their main plank in the Lok Sabha election campaign. ED attaches land worth Rs 1,000 crore in US in loan fraud case Ahmedabad July 2 (PTI): The Ahmedabad zonal unit of Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached 1,280 acres of land, worth Rs 1,000 crore, in California, USA, in connection with an alleged bank loan fraud. For the first time ED had taken such an action in USA, an official said. “ED Indore attaches under PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) 1280 acres of land in California, USA, of Zoom Developers Pvt Ltd and Vijay Chaudhary in bank fraud case,” the central agency tweeted today.Indore falls under the juris- diction of ED, Ahmedabad, official said. ED officials said this was one of the biggest bank loan frauds in the country. After suspecting the role played by some of the banks in granting loans, the CBI had also initiated a separate probe, officials said.Zoom Developers, promoted by Vijay Chaudhary, operates from Indore and Mumbai. Chaudhary, who is absconding, had taken loans of Rs 2,200 crore from various banks for realty projects in Europe. However, no project was ever undertaken and the money was allegedly siphoned off by Chaudhary. Last month, one of the directors of the company, Sharad Kabra, was arrested by the Indore ED. An arrest warrant has been issued against Chaudhary. JD(U) launches campaign song for upcoming Bihar elections Patna, Jul 2 (PTI) Banking on catchy tunes and exuberant lyrics, JD(U) today released its campaign song ‘Bihar mein bahaar ho, Nitishe Kumar ho’ (Let there be prosperity in Bihar, let there be only Nitish Kumar) for the forthcoming Assembly elections in the state. The song was made public by state JD(U) president Vashistha Narayan Singh amid much fanfare simultaneously with the launch of ‘Har ghar dastak’ campaign of the party. Music for the song has been composed by Sneha Khanwalkar of ‘Gangs of Wasseypur’ and ‘Oye Lucky Oye’ fame, besides the songwriter Raj Shekhar, known for his lyrics in Tanu Weds Manu. Neeti Mohan and Ghunghroo are the vocalists. JD(U) insiders said the song was prepared after a research of twoand-a-half months under guidance of Prashant Kishore, who was formerly associated with innovative social outreach strategies during Narendra Modi’s prime ministerial campaign and now hired by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to spearhead JD(U)’s poll campaign in the state.The 4.21 minute-long song has been tailor made to showcase developments made in Bihar over the last 10 years during which Kumar was at the helm of affairs. It uses the word ‘Nitishe’ which in colloquial language means ‘only Nitish’. “The song showcases the developmental efforts by the government, hints at how the downslide of the state stopped and an upward movement started. It points at the way pride has been brought to Bihar and how there is nobody else like Nitish Kumar,” a leader associated with JD(U) poll campaign said. By straightaway connecting ‘bahaar’ (prosperity) and development with Nitish Kumar in the state, the song tries to stymie the BJP, which will definitely bank on its slogan for a change in governance in the coming elections. As poll campaign songs cannot leave politics untouched, this one too goes on to talk about ‘Bhoomi ka sapoot, bhoomi bachayega’ (the son of the soil will save land) pointing to the land acquisition bill being pushed by the BJP-led government at the Centre. 6 BY SUJIT CHAKRABORTY A Friday July 3, 2015 Federal constitution with secular characteristic will provide an ideal solution to all problems After long last, there appears to be some light around the proposal in Syria with two fundamental ideas. First idea is to have a share for each members participating in Syria with a federal structure building but, Bashar-Al-Assad will have to retire compulsorily and find an exclusive safe refuge for himself. This is an excellent solution with one difficulty. This will leave untouched the element of promoting sectarianism and there will be no way to abandon and eradicate the sectarian conflicting elements in Syrian confederation. Therefore, there must be a rider to the federal structure that no issue or sectarian element must be given scope for causing trouble. The sectarian faith and ideas must be a private convenient provision for individual happiness, but in the public life of Syria, no issue of any sectarian nature will find expressive importance given to it. In other fter creating a significant electoral footprint in Congress-ruled Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Meghalaya, the BJP is inching ahead in Tripura, the lone Left-ruled state in the country. The Congress, on the other hand, is losing its political space in the northeastern states, once a party stronghold. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) got 7.87 percent of the votes in the May 3 elections to the 30-seat Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council. It secured 23.33 percent votes in bypolls to two Tripura assembly seats, the highest for the BJP in any election so far in the state ruled by Communist Party of India-Marxist-led Left Front. The BJP bagged 5.7 percent votes in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and only 1.54 percent votes in the 2013 assembly elections in Tripura. The party managed 115,319 votes in last year’s parliamentary polls compared with 59,457 votes in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. The by-elections to Pratapgarh and Surma assembly constituencies, both reserved for candidates from the scheduled castes, were held on June 27 and results declared on Tuesday. The by-polls were necessitated by the death of CPI-M stalwart and former minister Anil Sarkar (Pratapgarh) and former minister Sudhir Das (Surma). The CPIM won Pratapgarh for the ninth consecutive time and succeeded in Surma for the eighth time in a row. The Left party blamed the Congress, Trinamool Congress and other non-BJP parties for BJP’s rise in Tripura. “Congress’ misrule, hypocrisy in fighting against communal happenings and its weak political campaign to uphold secu- words, sectarian part of the confederation or federation will be positive on the subject of Islamic solidarity with the provision that any non-Muslim will have their international rights on the conditions, if they agree to participate in the military service along with other citizens and then there may be no imposition of Jazia (tax) or any such constitution made compulsory. Though the idea of Islamic law yet will have no legal sanctity to make any differences for military services for Muslims and non-Muslims. In other words, the solution would be based on Islamic law will be made a part of secular constitution to give equal rights to all. We will have to again reexamine that no part of the federation, inspite of being in larger majority will not prevail on others rights. This will give a new impetus to take a religious idea to secularize solution in the constitution. Yet, there may be some other minor elements which can be overlooked for the moment and the people should be allowed to frame their own constitution on the principle stated above. Kashmir enjoys nightlife this Ramzan BY RUWA SHAH have started this festival at other places like Hazratbal and the old city," Akeel told IANS. The brainchild of the Jammu and Kashmir ministry of tourism and culture, the main aim of the food carnival is to celebrate the night culture. "This festival is a celebration with religious sanctity. Throughout the globe, Ramzan is celebrated with such festivals. So we decided to bring in the charm to the state," Zameer Qadri, a consultant with the ministry, told IANS. "People come in during late evenings and offer prayers in gatherings. This way, we are celebrating Ramzan," he added. As for the citizens, they are thoroughly enjoying the hustle and bustle of the post-sunset event. "We have never seen such crowds out during the night. This is amazing," Javid Parsa, the owner of a local food outlet, told IANS. Local food outlets also joined the carnival after witnessing the positive response. Thus, Parsa also put the stall of his Kathi Junction outlet in the carnival and said there's a lot more that can be done. "This is just the beginning. We need to rejoice and celebrate. Such events and festivals must be organised in future as well," Parsa said. Apart from the food, the lights, reverberating religious songs and mehendi artists for women are the other attractions. Truly, there is peace on earth - at least in this little enclave. IANS larism in the entire country helped the BJP to grow,” CPI-M Tripura state committee secretary and party’s central committee member Bijan Dhar told IANS. Jubilant BJP leaders in Tripura claimed that they would achieve their goal of electoral victory in the next assembly elections in 2018. “The BJP will be the main opposition in Tripura now. The party’s pro-people campaign and struggle, besides Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government’s good governance, facilitated the party to steadily go forward in the northeastern states,” BJP’s national executive member and Tripura unit president Sudhindra Dasgupta told IANS. “Since August last, over 15,000 workers and leaders from different parties, specially the Congress, joined the BJP and more would join the party soon,” he said. The Congress, which last ruled Tripura in 1988-1993, admitted the results were a matter of concern for the party. “Percentage of votes secured by our candidates in the by-polls in the two assembly segments is shocking. We will introspect our political actions,” Tripura Congress working president Ashis Kumar Saha said. The BJP - for the first time - secured a majority in five gram panchayats and won 142 seats in several other gram panchayats and panchayat samitis in gram panchayat elections in July 2014. Northeast India, considered a stronghold of the Congress as five of the eight states are currently ruled by the party, is about to fall into the lap of the BJP and its allies following the unprecedented Lok Sabha results in 2014. In the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, of the 25 parliamentary seats in eight northeastern states, the BJP and its allies got 10 seats and the Congress eight. In the 2009 polls, the Congress and its allies secured 14 seats across the region while the BJP and its allies managed to win six seats. The BJP on its own bagged seven seats in Assam, one seat in Arunachal Pradesh while its allies -- Naga People’s Front (NPF) in Nagaland and National People’s Party (NPP) in Meghalaya got one seat each in the two northeastern states. Though the BJP could not win Lok Sabha seats, the party secured record number of votes in Left-ruled Tripura and the Congress-ruled Manipur and Meghalaya in the 16th Lok Sabha polls. The BJP has also won 11 seats in the 60-member Arunachal Pradesh assembly, for which elections were held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls. “Lack of trustworthy leadership, propeople movement and weak organisational structure is making the Congress irrelevant in northeast India. Central leadership of the Congress must analyse the party’s actual base in rural, semi-urban and urban areas,” political analyst Tapas Dey said. “The Tripura by-election results appeared to show a major dent in Congress support base, with its traditional votes getting divided between the Left Front and a resurgent BJP,” Dey told IANS. “The writing on the wall had always been clear because fighting elections against an organised ruling party like the CPI-M is always difficult. But Congress leaders went to Delhi to agitate on flimsy and backdated issues, leaving the party candidates in the by-polls in the lurch. So this was expected,” Dey added. The Congress faced the ignominy of losing security deposits in both Tripura assembly seats of Pratapgarh and Surma. IANS Europe’s crisis will linger till Euro exists BY VATSAL SRIVASTAVA or years, they've tickled the tastebuds of the national capital's denizens. Now, for the first time, some of New Delhi's well-known food outlets have come together to cheer the people of Kashmir by serving their delicacies during the holy month of Ramzan - and that too late into the night. It's one more sign of peace returning to this troubled land. From iftaar to sehri - the time during which Muslims are allowed to eat during Ramzan - there is much festivity in Kashmir Haat at Srinagar's Lal Chowk city centre, where food outlets like Karim's, Khan Chacha, Tunday Kebab and Hyderabad Sultan Biryani have put up stalls serving their authentic dishes to the people of Kashmir. Surprisingly, the event attracts many patrons even after the sun sets. This is something unusual for the Kashmir Valley as earlier all business outlets were shut down 30 minutes before iftaar. "We are receiving a huge response. People are coming here even late at night and that is surprising," Sheikh Samiullah, head of Loudbeetle - an event management company that has organised the event in collaboration with another company, The Wings, told IANS. Akeel Hassan, executive director of The Wings, said the festival has also been started at other places in Srinagar. "Since we are receiving very good response, we Friday July 3, 2015 BJP INCHING AHEAD IN INDIA’S LONE LEFT BASTION OF TRIPURA Indian Horizon F Indian Horizon Hyderabad EDIT A great economic experiment began in 1951 with the formation of the European Coal and Steel Community. It was an attempt to make war within Europe impossible by establishing free trade in coal and steel, eliminating all tariffs and restrictions on cross border economic shipments. Ideally, it would ensure that French steel mills relied on German coal and vice versa so that any future differences between the two nations would be extremely destructive economically thereby reducing the possibility of war. In 1957, the European Economic Community was formed as a customs union with free trade among its six founding members -- Belgium, France, Italy, Netherlands, Luxembourg and West Germany. By the mid 1980s, Britain, Ireland, Denmark, Spain, Portugal and Greece had joined this group. Free trade from closer integration undoubtedly led to economic gains not witnessed for many decades. But this was more about political integration and European unity. The idea that a previously war torn continent can be economically integrated and be a beacon of democracy was impossible to ignore. European political leaders were so enthralled by the idea of a “strong and united Europe” that all warnings of future asymmetric shocks and the problems addressing them within a single currency union were ignored. When the idea of a common currency was floated, it was politically impossible to reject. Principles of Economics 101 were abandoned and the Euro was in- troduced in 1999. This was of course an economic policy blunder. Consider what happened after the global housing bubble collapsed starting with the US and eventually led to housing busts in southern Europe. The housing boom in Spain was financed by huge inflows of capital from “core Europe” -- most notably Germany. This boom which eventually turned out to be a great bubble led to inflation and thus wage increases in Spain. Wages rose about 30 percent in Spain compared to only 9 percent in Germany. After the bubble collapsed, Spain needed to turn its economy away from construction towards services and manufacturing. But at this point, Spain had lost its competitive advantage due to the wide wage differential with Germany and other neighbours. Enter the problem of a common currency! With the Euro the only way Spain could restore competitive advantage was by cutting wages. But it is almost always impossible to negotiate lower wages and workers will always refuse wage cuts and a lower standard of living. But if Spain had its own currency, this problem would have been solved overnight. The Spanish central bank could have simply intervened in the foreign exchange markets and devalued its currency versus its competitors in order to regain competitiveness. The same logic can be extended to explain the problems faced by Portugal, Italy, Greece and the other “non-core” European nations. The Euro also fails to meet one of the key requisites of an “optimum currency area” -that of labour mobility. Labour does not move freely within the Eurozone. Even though Europeans can legally take up work anywhere in the European Union, linguistic and cultural divides are are large enough to put a cap on migration. How else would one explain 50 percent youth unemployment in Greece, mass unemployment in Spain and Portugal and historically low levels of unemployment in Germany? Such stark contrasts are proof that the disadvantages of a common currency far outweigh the benefits that have come Europe’s way by adopting the Euro. Right now it’s Greece’s problem. But as we saw at the peak of the debt crisis (2010-11), it doesn’t take time for much larger economies such as Spain, Portugal and Italy to be considered close to junk status. The markets have remained calm during this “crisis” as they believe the ECB can limit the contagion from spreading to other peripheral nations. But in the long run, the debate won’t be about the prowess (or the lack) of the IMF’s economic forecasting models, or the austerity versus fiscal stimulus, of for that matter the ability of the ECB to do “whatever it takes” or whether the bigger threat to the Eurozone is inflation or deflation. European policymakers will soon need to answer the more fundamental question which is at the heart of Europe’s problems: How long can the Euro survive? “If the Euro fails, Europe will fail”, said Angela Merkel in Berlin on Monday. A Grexit, or a Greek withdrawal, can be easily absorbed by the financial system. The great crisis we should prepare for is the likelihood of a “Euroexit”. IANS Facts belie minister's immunisation prediction BY CHAITANYA MALLAPUR H ealth Minister J.P. Nadda sparked scepticism when he declared on June 30 that India would reach the universal immunisation target, or 95 percent of all children, by the end of 2016. The disbelief gets credence because less than four months ago Nadda told parliament it would take five years to immunise 90 percent of India’s children. Only 65 percent of children are now immunised, the best rate achieved in 38 years since the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP), as it is officially called, was started. It targets 27 million newborn children and 30 million pregnant women every year. In India, 500,000 children die of vaccine-preventable diseases because one in three misses the benefits of full immunisation, according to government data. “The government has launched Mission Indradhanush on December 25, 2014 with an aim to cover all those children who are partially vaccinated or unvaccinated. The mission focuses on interventions to rapidly increase full immunisation coverage of children by approximately 5 percent annually, and to expand full immunisation coverage to at least 90 percent children in the next five years,” Nadda said in reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha on March 10, 2015. The current rate of immunisation has risen to 65.2 percent (2013-14) from 35.5 percent in 1992-93. The programme started in 1978. In 1985, it got its present name and was taken to all districts by 1989-90. Under UIP, the government provides free vaccination against nine preventable diseases: diphtheria, pertussis (whopping cough), tetanus, polio, measles, a severe form of childhood tuberculosis, hepatitis B, meningitis/pneumonia due to haemophilus influenza B and Japanese Encephalitis. Uttarakhand does well, UP lags Uttarakhand with 79.6 percent coverage is the best-immunised state, according to the Annual Health Survey (AHS) 2012-13 while Uttar Pradesh with 52.7 percent is the worst. Uttarakhand, Chhatisgarh, Rajasthan, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Assam and Uttar Pradesh are high-focus states since they constitute 50 percent of the country’s population, 60 percent births, 71 pecent infant deaths, 72 percent under-5 deaths and 62 percent maternal deaths. Even states that do better, such as Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, fall short by 20-25 percentage points in achieving universal immunisation. Those like Goa (89.1 percent), Sikkim (85.2 percent) and Kerala (82.5 percent), which are not high-focus statesand do better than others, also fall short of universal coverage. Lack of awareness among parents about vaccination benefits, fear of side-effects and a shortage of vaccines or have been cited as reasons for low immunisation. The government programme centres on 201 high-focus districts that account for nearly 50 percent of partially vaccinated or unvaccinated children in India. The government allocated Rs. 599.87 crore over the last three years to promote immunisation. Immunisation prevents approximately 2-3 million deaths globally every year from diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis and measles. In 2013, an estimated 21.8 million infants worldwide were not reached by routine immunisation; nearly half live in India, Nigeria and Pakistan, according to the World Health Organisation. Readers Response and contribution Welcome IANS Friday July 3, 2015 DECONSTRUCTING THE ARAB WORLD Are we on the brink of a full-scale project that will alter Middle Eastern borders? Is the partition of several countries now inevitable? BY JOSEPH A. KECHICHIAN A few days ago, the columnist Michael Young asked in the Daily Star whether Lebanon would break apart if Syria succumbed to the proverbial political ax. Although he concluded that Beirut was likely to “weather the partition of Syria”, Young concluded that “society has to constantly reaffirm the principles of sectarian coexistence and avoid using the political system as a means of fulfilling partisan agendas” if it is to survive. Lebanon was safe for now, Young predicted, even if he added that events in Damascus would batter Beirut for a while. For his part, Michael E. O’Hanlon, the Co-Director of Centre for 21st Century Security and Intelligence at the Brookings Institution laid out a devastating proposal to deconstruct Syria into a confederal state, and while he concluded that the “ascendance of the [self-proclaimed] Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Daesh) as the major element of opposition to the Bashar Al Assad regime may not amount to an imminent threat to American security,” he stressed that “[Daesh’s] ... rise does place at much greater risk the security of Iraq, the future of Syria itself, and the stability of Lebanon and Jordan”. A more realistic option, the well-connected O’Hanlon posited, was one that aimed to create safe zones, which will lead into a future confederal arrangement. Are we on the brink of a full-scale deconstruction project that will alter Middle Eastern borders? Is the partition of several countries now inevitable? Permanent fragmentations Beyond the ongoing debate in the Obama administration to determine whether Iraq and Syria are indeed heading towards permanent fragmentations, several Arab commentators have joined the bandwagon that perceived the rise of independent “statelets”, especially as Iraq and Syria ran the risk of permanent implosions. Fayez Sarah recently observed in the pan-Arab Asharq Al Awsat that “there is talk in political and media circles about the division of Syria as one of the ways to end the civil war”, an idea first developed by O’Hanlon and others in Washington, although Sarah did not rule out a putative role for the Al Assad regime to achieve it. American versions of Arab deconstruction, at least as far as it is publicly known, do not foresee any future duties for Al Assad, the Baath Party, or various extremist groups. To be sure, Sarah relied on the post-First World War French mandate model that foresaw a united Syria but with autonomous areas, though what was under discussion in 2015 was something quite different. Paris once contemplated a Alawite state (Dawlat Jabal Al Alawiyyin or, as it labelled it, État des Alaouites) alongside a Jabal Druze — thus creating two separate areas that enjoyed relative autonomy from 1920 to 1946 — that would not be in a loose association with Damascus. In 2015, and unlike O’Hanlon who envisaged confederation, Sarah advanced the idea of full secession that, were it to materialise, would necessitate the formation of several statelets, including one ruled by the Free Syrian Army in the south, another controlled by the Al Assad regime either extending from Damascus to the Latakia coast or just focused on a coastal strip without the capital, a third that encompassed Idlib and Aleppo under Islamist forces, a fourth mini-state across the East around Raqqa and Hasakeh, while a fifth entity would be controlled by the Kurds along the Turkish border. That was an ideal model for some even if Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was adamant that Ankara would not allow the establishment of an independent Kurdish state in northern Syria for fear of rekindling secessionism at home. Still, the effective creation of a Kurdish Autonomous Region in Iraq set a precedent, which was likely to be duplicated elsewhere. The answer to these dilemmas came from the erudite George Semaan of Al Hayat, who noted that recent losses in Daraa province highlighted why the Syria regime was in dire straits, which imposed inevitable political solutions on Damascus if the latter wished to save what was left of its authority. Notwithstanding the most recent Russian pledges made to Foreign Minister Walid Al Mua’llem, Moscow has toyed with the idea of abandoning Al Assad, which would be an unprecedented development in its own right. Be that as it may, the consequences of such events on several countries were all too real. In his elaborate memoirs, Camille Chamoun, the former Lebanese president, stated that he did not fear for his country to fracture along sectarian lines, until after Iraq fell apart. Such a scenario, envisaged Chamoun, would doom Lebanese unity even if few contemplated the current Arab deconstruction that, for better or worse, weathered the winds of change in the post-Second World War era. For no matter how unpalatable the deeds of extremist groups might be, the breakdown of Iraq and Syria — and, perhaps, Lebanon and Jordan — were bound to be even more troubling. Those who are in the deconstruction business may please one or more local actors to foster sectarianism, though it is fair to ask whether blowback is on anyone’s mind. COURTESY : GULF NEWS 7 OP-ED Indian Horizon Hyderabad IRAN DEAL ALREADY UNDER ATTACK FROM DOMESTIC INTERESTS BY FRANCIS MATTHEW T he negotiators on the Iran nuclear deal bust their own deadline as they continue their talks with both sides saying that they are close to a deal. Despite politicians on both sides making inflammatory speeches for their domestic markets, it has been remarkable how little has leaked on the details of the talks. Any deal as complicated as this must involve a delicate structure of giveand-take over a large range of issues including enrichment capacity, uranium stocks, access to technologies, verification access, and the timing and range of sanctions relief, and the snapback mechanisms in case it all goes wrong in the future. This means that any comment on one aspect of the deal should recognise the entirety, but this subtlety may not survive the imminent public and parliamentary scrutiny in Iran and the US as politicians anxious to make their own arguments will pick on narrow issues. And this debate will continue for a long time as any implementation of the deal will not happen quickly. Even if US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Zarif announce an agreement soon, nothing will happen the next day. Sanctions relief Iran will have to implement the actions it will have promised, they will need to be verified, and only then will the sanctions start to lift. Any wide reaching sanctions relief will take years for Iran’s actions to be seen and verified and the legal processes to be implemented. All the while, the Congress in Washington and politicians in Tehran will continue to comment on events and some of the arguments are already becoming clear. In the US, the Republicans are going to use this deal as ideal material to hammer the Democrats in the presidential elections, ac- cusing Obama of a sell-out. Republican leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, wrote a ferocious piece in Politico this week misrepresenting the talks as seeking “the best deal acceptable to Iran, rather than actually furthering our goal of ending Iran’s nuclear programme,” although neither statement represents the reality. He then added the jibe that “establishing an internationally recognised Iranian nuclear programme is not in the interest of the American people. But it now seems to be the premise upon which the Obama administration is approaching these talks”. McConnell added that that the Obama administration intends to muddle into an unacceptable deal with Iran and the current course would “grant Iran additional legitimacy as it seeks to blame the West for anything short of instantaneous sanctions relief. It would also allow Iran to continue to press for additional concessions on verification and disclosures on the possible military dimensions of its nuclear research. And that Iran would use funding derived from any sanctions relief to support proxy forces and advance its stockpile of missiles”. Public support for deal in US When Obama goes to Congress to argue against McConnell’s misrepresentation, he will be cheered by a by a 2-to1 margin in favour of a deal amongst the American public, according to a NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll that found that more Americans support the United States and other world powers pursuing a nuclear deal with Iran than oppose it. Thirty-six per cent of respondents backed the deal and 17 per cent opposed it, but an alarming 46 per cent said that they did not know enough to have an opinion, which may also mean they do not care very much, but certainly means that all the noise and fury over the deal has passed them by. The arguments in the US have been Rouhani’s internationalists will need quick gains to prove to the isolationists that the deal has a point based solely on security issues and have largely ignored any other effects. But Iran sees the deal from a more economic standpoint as President Hassan Rouhani’s internationalists try to overcome their isolationist opponents as they seek an economic revival. Some of this hoped-for revival has been looked at by Esfandyar Batmanghelidj in lobelog.com in an analysis of postsanctions windfall in Iran being domestically driven by private domestic investment from newly confident Iranian investors, who could transform Iran’s political economy for the better. Repairing broken relationship “A nuclear deal will actually help repair the broken relationship between consumption, savings, and private investment in Iran,” he said, noting the 2012 sanctions caused Iran’s gross national savings to fall from 45 per cent of GDP in 2011 to just 33 per cent in 2015, according to the International Monetary Fund, which has drastically limited capital available for business to invest for the future. But Batmanghelidj goes beyond what Rouhani may be thinking about when he sees profound social effects emerging from a strong economy. “The greater the degree to which the full range of Iranian citizens, who currently inhabit separate political and economic classes, invest in a marketplace like the Tehran stock exchange, the less reliant on patronage networks they become. Instead, everyone from schoolteachers to Revolutionary Guard commanders will become shareholders of a more political neutral type of capital. The segregation within Iran’s political economy, determined by the sources from which people earn their livelihoods and derive their wealth, will diminish as a prima facie structural reason for political antagonism between citizens,” said Batmanghelidj. This may be true, and it would be a very hopeful development with profound implications for the Middle East, but this argument will not be part of Obama’s arguments with McConnell as they stick to the security issues. COURTESY : GULF NEWS Drones kill any chance of peace in Afghanistan Use of unmanned US drones increases recruitment opportunities for the armed opposition in Afghanistan. BY AIMAL FAIZI T he use of unmanned US drones in Afghanistan has stepped up since January. With the launch of the new US counterterrorism mission, Freedom Sentinel, the ongoing and intensifying drone campaign has reportedly killed around 400 people in Afghanistan over the last six months. But insurgents are not the only ones being killed. Targeted drone attacks kill scores of civilians and armed opposition forces alike. These strikes violate Afghan sovereignty and international law, and severely undermine human rights while underscoring the ongoing threat to civilian lives in Afghanistan. Yet, the Afghan national unity government remains silent on the issue. Beyond the civilian casualties caused by these strikes, drones also fuel terrorism, increase anti-government sentiment and, as a result, increase recruitment opportunities for the armed opposition in Afghanistan. Extrajudicial killings Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's government must take seriously the issue of civilian casualties from US drone strikes and put an end to the extrajudicial killings of Afghans by the unmanned machines of our so called "strategic partner". Over the past decade, US drone missions in Afghanistan were unilateral. Unlike Pakistan, the use of drones lacked the agreement of the country's leadership. The large number of civilian casualties in drone and air strikes caused increasing tensions between Hamid Karzai, the former Afghan president, and US officials. So why has Afghanistan become the most heavily drone-bombed country in the world? What is the legal justification for the US' drone mission in Afghanistan when there is no mention of drones in its Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) with the US? Since the establishment of the Afghan national unity government in Afghanistan, Ghani's government has given "Ameri- can commanders a freer hand on night raids and air strikes", according to a recent New York Times report. Recent attacks show that drone operators are now authorised by "eased" counterterrorism guidelines, which permit them to hit a target even without having "the knowledge of the identities of the individuals marked for death". Despite the US administration's repeated announcements of the end of its combat mission, US forces in Afghanistan now have "a more aggressive range of military operations" - mostly drone missions and special operations. Several attacks a week Focused in the south and east of the country, US drones are hitting Afghanistan frequently, at a rate of one to several attacks every week. Nangarhar, Paktia, Paktika, Kunar, Nuristan, Khost, Farah, Helmand, and Logar are all provinces that have been targeted by US drone operations. According to international and national media reports and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, civilian casualties are involved in most of these incidents, but these go without any acknowledgement from the current Afghan government. Some Afghan TV channels report misleading and misinforming stories on the "effectiveness" and the "role" of drones in Afghanistan. Early this month, according to Afghan MPs and media reports, a US drone strike in the Alisher district of Khost province southeast of Afghanistan, killed more than a dozen civilians, reportedly "members of two families". On the condition of anonymity, a government official in Khost confirmed the killings to Pajhwok, an Afghan news agency. The media office for foreign troops in Kabul also confirmed the attack with a routine addition that "reports about civilian casualties were being investigated". As the Afghan national unity government continues to keep silent and neglects to send any delegation to investigate the incident, Afghan MPs and the former Afghan president have "strongly condemned" the strike in Khost. Ending the secrecy It is time to end the secrecy on the matter. The Afghan government should conduct its own investigation and assessment of each drone incident. Now, as the US "war on terror" in Afghanistan increasingly becomes an open-ended conflict, reports suggest that the US will "maintain an aerial capacity beyond 2017 ... to conduct air strikes". More US drone strikes means more civilian deaths for Afghanistan. These civilian casualties can severely risk the Afghan national unity government's legitimacy and sustainability. It is imperative that Ghani's government shows ownership and acts fully in accordance with the national interests of the country by reconsidering its stance vis-a-vis the US drone war in Afghanistan. As soon as possible, the Afghan national security council must examine all the drone incidents from the past six months and make its investigation public. Afghans have the right to know how many of their country's men, women, and children die in these drone strikes. Their government should bring this clarity to them. Additionally, the government should reach out to the families of victims and provide them with compensation. As Ann Wright, the former American deputy ambassador in Afghanistan, put it, drone killings, "because of the number of civilian casualties", are "jeopardising US national security and creating large numbers of people who despise the United States". The US administration and the Afghan government should take the advice of former US and NATO forces commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, who once rightly said: "For every innocent person you kill, you create 10 new enemies." COURTESY : GULF NEWS Villages face hard times after de-allocation of mines BY MOHD ASIM KHAN F or 34-year-old Sadhram Sidar, the only solace now is the two-odd acres of farming land he owns. That’s the only possession he has he can fall back on in tough times like these, when he is out of work for months after the de-allocation of mines on grounds of irregularities. He is lucky to have that piece of land, because many others in his village – Raipara near Tamnar town in Raigarh district of Chhattisgarh, 300 miles from capital Raipur – don’t even have that much. They only have whatever little savings they could make while working at the nearby GarePalma coal mines. But whether Sidar would be able to sustain his family of five by cultivating the land will depend much on the rain god’s mercy. There is no provision of irrigation and even drinking water is scarce. These men – thousands of them in total from all the nearby villages – have been out of work since March. How long can their savings see them through is anybody’s guess. Nobody has driven these men out of the mines. They are out of work because the two mines – earlier with Jindal Steel and Power Limited (JSPL) – had been de-allocated, besides 200 other mines, by the Supreme Court last September. The central government held auctions for the de-allocated coal mines in February and March. JSPL won the bid at Rs.108/tonne but the government cancelled this, saying the price was too low and that it suspected foul play. The matter is sub-judice and the arguments from both the sides jus- tifying their respective stands make for a separate story. Meanwhile, the mines have been handed over to Coal India Limited (CIL). However, CIL has not started the operations as yet in the mines, with a combined capacity of 6.25 milllion tonnes per annum. The only thing going on at the site is fire-fighting - literally, because the fires have been burning in the region for the past few months. Coal worth millions of rupees has turned into ashes in the absence of proper fire-fighting equipment and lack of workforce. The fire is more worrisome for the nearby villagers than it would be for the environmentalists and authorities, because the former earn their livelihood here. “My elder son who is four now, goes to an English medium school in (nearby) Talaipara. The monthly expenses are around Rs.500,” Shankarlal Yadav told IANS. Yadav, 28, from Raipara village, had been employed at the mines as a blaster, earning somewhere around Rs.7,000 per month. That’s the average monthly income for coal mine worker here. That’s probably low by the standards of a metro, but it has brought unprecedented comfort in the lives of these people, who otherwise have very little to call their own. JSPL has also set up a coal washery of 800 tonnes per hour capacity beside the mines, which feeds the 3400 MW Jindal power plant through a 7-km-long pipe conveyer belt. The plant is connected with the power grid through a 258 km, 400 KV Double Circuit transmission line from the plant to the PGCIL sub-station at Raipur. IANS The views expressed in these columns are the writers’ own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Indian Horizon or its management.-Editor 8 Indian Horizon Hyderabad International Friday, July 3 , 2015 Ferry with 173 on board overturns in Philippines, 36 dead, 19 missing Britain identifies nationals killed in Tunisia attack People gather during a rescue operation, after a bridge collapse led a train to fall into a canal in Wazirabad, near Lahore, Pakistan Thursday, July 2, 2015. At least four cars of a train being used to transport Pakistani soldiers fell into a canal because of a bridge collapse in the eastern Punjab province on Thursday, killing at least twelve soldiers, officials said.AP/ PTI London, July 2 (IANS) All 30 British nationals killed in the Tunisian beach attack have been identified, British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said on Thursday. “By tonight, 17 bodies will have been brought home to their loved ones,” Hammond announced on his Twitter account. Hammond said he was confident the number was the final death toll.“Tomorrow we will mark a week from the date of the attack with a minute’s remembrance at noon across the UK and across British embassies and posts around the world,” he said on national TV. A Royal Air Force (RAF) flight brought back the bodies of eight of the victims to their loved ones on Wednesday, with nine more due to arrive in Britain on Thursday, Xinhua news agency reported. Dozens of people, including foreign tourists, were killed when at least one gunman opened fire on a Tunisian beachside hotel in the popular resort of Sousse last Friday. MANILA July 2 (PTI): A ferry with 173 people on board overturned in rough waters in the central Philippines on Thursday as rescuers rushed to the scene, the coast guard said. The Kim Nirvana was heading from the central city of Ormoc to the island of Camotes when it capsized, the coast guard office in Manila said.36 people have died and 19 are missing while 118 people have been Five killed, over 100 injured in In new strategy, US to deepen Pakistan train accident Islamabad, July 2 (IANS) At least he has formed an inquiry comsecurity ties five people were killed, over 100 mittee to probe the incident, and others injured and scores went added he himself was on his way with India missing when four compartments to the accident site for monitoring of a train fell into a canal while crossing a bridge in Pakistan’s eastern city of Gujranwala on Thursday afternoon, media and officials said. Aaj TV said that the compartments were carrying over 200 passengers when these fell into the stream. Railway Minister Khwaja Saad Rafique said the bridge collapsed when the train was passing over it in Janki Chatta area of Gujranwala, a district located in the country’s Punjab province, Xinhua news agency reported.He said that the possibility of terrorist attack behind the attack cannot be ruled out as there was no apparent fault in the train or the bridge. Rafique said another passenger train crossed the bridge in the morning and at that time it was intact and fully functional.He said the rescue work. Railway sources said the train had 21 cargo wagons and six passenger coaches, of which four fell into the canal. Dunya TV said the train was shifting cargo of the Pakistan army from Kharian cantonment city to Pano Aqil city.The report also said that about 20 to 30 people, including soldiers and their families, were trapped in a compartment which could not be opened yet. Rescue teams from the army were using cutters and other machines to gain access to the occupants in the compartment, said the report.The injured passengers have been shifted to military hospital of the city.The Pakistan army, residents and government rescue teams are taking part in the operation to pull out the people from the canal. said chairman of US Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey while releasing the country’s National Military Strategy for 2015.The strategy provides the blueprint for how the military will use its forces to protect and advance US national and security interests. The presence of US military forces in key locations around the world unWashington, July 2 (IANS) The US will derpins the international order and deepen its security relations with India, provides opportunities to engage with Greece crisis: Eurozone chief warns of consequence of ‘no’ vote Taiwan pilot shut off engine before air crash, report says Taipei July 2 (PTI): The pilot of a passenger plane that crashed in Taiwan killing 43 people shut down the aircraft`s only working engine, exclaiming: “Wow, pulled back wrong throttle,” seconds before the disaster, investigators said Thursday. TransAsia Airways Flight GE235 clipped a bridge and plunged into a river shortly after take-off from Taipei`s Songshan airport in February with 53 passengers and five crew on board. Only 15 people survived. Disturbing cockpit transcripts released by Taiwan`s Aviation Safety Council revealed the pilots trying to deal with an engine that had lost power, but then reducing the thrust of the other, functioning engine. Thursday`s report said the plane climbed to 1,200 feet (365 metres) before a warning alarm sounded, which indicated that the plane`s second engine had undergone “flameout at take off”. Despite the warning signal coming from Engine Two, the pilot at the controls said: “I will pull back Engine One throttle.” Chaos then ensued with both engines failing as the pilots tried to restart them in the few seconds before the crash. The last words from the black box recordings were the monitoring pilot shouting: “Impact, impact, brace for impact.”Dramatic car dashcam images at the time showed the plane hitting an elevated road as it banked steeply away from buildings before crashing into the Keelung River.“As the pilot pulled back the wrong throttle, for some time both engines were powerless,” said Thomas Wang, head Court Overturns Death Sentences in Mob Killing of Afghan Woman: Judge men for the lynching and murder in March of a woman falsely accused of blasphemy in Kabul, a judge said Thursday. The woman, Farkhunda, 27, was savagely beaten and her body set ablaze in broad dayKABUL July 2 (PTI): An Afghan light, triggering protests around appeal court has overturned the country and drawing global death sentences given to four attention to the treatment of Af- Wikileaks exposes US spying of ECB, German ministries Berlin, July 2 (IANS/EFE) The US National Security Agency (NSA) has been spying on the European Central Bank (ECB) and several German ministries, and also tapped telephone calls of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, according to documents cited on Thursday by several German media outlets. The Wikileaks documents indicated that wiretapping on the German federal ministry for economic affairs and energy and the German federal ministry of food and agriculture had been going on since the 1990s, Suddeutsche Zeitung reported. Similarly, one of the documents unveiled wiretapping on Oskar Lafontaine’s telephone line during his time as finance minister for a few months between 1998 and 1999, during the first government under former chancellor Gerhard Schroder.The telephone line in question is still in use, and currently belongs to the German federal ministry of finance.According to leaked information, the NSA did not only listen in on the minister’s phone line, but ment for promoting a ‘no’ vote with unrealistic expectations.He said, “The Greek government is rejecting everything with the suggestion that if you vote ‘no’ you will get a better or less tough, or more friendly package. That suggestion is simply wrong.” He noted that Greece’s economic situation is only getting worse in the meantime, making a rescue program more difficult. The German president’s office says Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos has canceled a previously planned visit to Germany that was set for next Athens July 2 (PTI): The head of the eurozone finance ministers’ group, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, says it will be “incredibly difficult” to build a new bailout package for Greece if the country votes “no” in Sunday’s referendum. Speaking Thursday in a parliamentary committee, Dijsselbloem told lawmakers, “If the result is a ‘no,’ what foundation is there of ownership? And how can you then accept such a program if the result is ‘no.’ So it will be incredibly difficult.” The Dutch finance minister put the blame squarely on the Greek govern- of the aviation council.Wang also confirmed previous reports that the pilot had failed a simulator test for engine failure on take-off last year, but passed a later retake. Investigators refused to name the pilot at the controls but reports at the time of the crash identified him as Liao Chien-tsung.Initially Liao was hailed as a hero for steering the plane away from houses and into the river as it came hurtling down. Liao`s distraught parents defended their son following the release of the report. “At the end of the day, my son is dead, either as a `hero` or being blamed (for the incident) is meaningless to us now,” Liao`s father Liao Hsien-ming, told the United Evening News.He added that he still felt proud of his son saying he had tried to reduce casualties on the ground in the final seconds before the crash, as the plane dodged buildings to plunge into the river. ghan women.Police arrested 49 people in connection with the attack, including 19 police officers, some of whom were shown standing by doing nothing to stop the mob in cellphone videos recorded by bystanders.In May a court sentenced four men to death and eight others were handed 16-year jail terms after a other countries while positioning forces to respond to crises, Dempsey said in a Defense Department statement issued on Wednesday. “Therefore, we will press forward with the rebalance to the Asia Pacific region, placing our most advanced capabilities and greater capacity in that vital theatre,” it noted. For this, the US will strengthen its alliances with Australia, Japan, South Ko- week.Pavlopoulos was to make his first visit to Germany since being elected president on Tuesday, meeting President Joachim Gauck in Berlin. Gauck’s office didn’t give a reason for the cancelation, but Greece is holding a referendum on Sunday in which the country’s prime minister has urged voters to denounce the last deal offered by creditors for releasing bailout funds. Pavlopoulos, a conservative law professor and veteran politician, was elected as head of state in February. Spain’s economy minister says the doors for negotiations will remain open for Greece regardless of the outcome of Sunday’s referendum. Egyptian army kills 23 militants in North Sinai Cairo, July 2 (IANS) At least 23 suspected Islamic State (IS) militants were killed on Thursday in Egyptian army airstrikes on North Sinai, security sources said. The airstrikes were conducted in the early hours of Thursday, one day after clashes between the security forces and militants, the sources told Xinhua news agency on condition of anonymity. According to the army, 17 soldiers and 100 militants were killed in fierce fighting following a wave of militant attacks on military checkpoints on Wednesday. The sources said Apache helicopters on Thursday three-day trial broadcast live on national television. “The appeal court decided to reduce the sentence - three of them got 20 years in prison and one 10 years,” judge Nasir Murid, the head of the Kabul appeals court, told AFP without giving any further details.The appeal was heard behind closed also other senior officials in the ministries of finance, economy and agriculture, which suggests that US intelligence was interested above all in Germany’s economic and trade policies. As for the ECB, illegal surveillance targeted one of the phone lines of the bank’s economic development department.Suddeutsche Zeitung also published an NSA report about a conversation between Merkel and an unidentified assistant on October 9, 2011, in which she spoke about the situation in Greece and the various options that were shuffling at the time, while the chancellor showed concern regarding possible debt relief. Rescuers help passengers from a capsized ferry boat, right, in Ormoc city on Leyte Island, Philippines, Thursday, July 2, 2015. A ferry capsized Thursday as it left a central Philippine port in choppy waters, leaving dozens dead and many others missing, coast guard officials said. AP/PTI struck bases of militants suspected of taking part in Wednesday’s brazen attacks on military checkpoints in southern Shiekh Zuweid city.Sinai-based Ansar Bayet al-Maqdis, an IS affiliate in the peninsula, has claimed responsibility for the attacks. The peninsula has been plagued by a growing militant insurgency following the ouster of Islamist leader Mohamed Morsi in 2013 by the army in response to mass protests against his rule. According to an Efe news agency report earlier in the day, Egyptian armed forces on confirmed that the security situation in the area was calm and under control. doors and reportedly reached a verdict on Wednesday, according to local media.Farkhuda’s brother Mujibullah told AFP the family had not been told of the court’s decision or invited to the session.“We just heard through media that the appeal court in a secret session has reversed the decision. They didn’t inform us. rescued in Ormoc city on central Leyte island after an inter-island ferry capsized there, says coast guard spokesaman. Search and rescue operations were ongoing and it was unclear if there were any fatalities or anyone rescued so far, the coast guard office said.Poorly-maintained, loosely-regulated ferries are the backbone of maritime travel in the sprawling archipelago. rea, the Philippines, and Thailand.“We also will deepen our security relationship with India and build upon our partnerships with New Zealand, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Bangladesh,” Dempsey added. Such efforts are essential to maintaining regional peace and building capabilities to provide for missile defense, cyber security, maritime security, and disaster relief. Short Takes 71 journalists killed in first half of 2015: Report Geneva, July 2 (IANS) A total of 71 journalists were killed from January to June of 2015 in 24 countries, a 7 percent increase over the same period last year, a Press Emblem Campaign (PEC) report said. At least 24 journalists were killed in targeted terrorist acts, mostly in France, Libya and Iraq, and 17 journalists died covering fighting in Yemen, Libya, Iraq, Syria, South Sudan and Ukraine. The other 30 journalists were murdered in criminal acts outside war zones, especially in Latin America, the Philippines and India, the report said.According to the report, the Middle East and North Africa are the deadliest regions for media work with 23 journalists killed, Xinhua reported.“Four countries in this region are the deadliest: Libya (eight), Yemen (six), Iraq (six) and Syria (two) and Gaza (one),” the report said. Will confront political issues in Iran n-talks: EU Vienna, July 2 (IANS) Two days after the June 30 deadline, top negotiators involved in Iran’s nuclear talks will attempt to confront political issues holding them back from a deal, European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said on Thursday. “We’re moving forward, but we’re not there yet,” Mogherini told reporters here. “Today (Thursday) we will have the chance of checking some political issues that are still open,” she added.She noted the visit of Yukiya Amano, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), to Teheran “is something very important”, Xinhua news agency reportedUS State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf announced on Tuesday that fresh rounds of nuclear talks would take place from June 30 to July 7. Indian-American pleads guilty in sex trafficking case New York, July 2 (IANS) An Indian-American motel owner has pleaded guilty to financially benefiting from a sex trafficking scheme in the US state of Lousiana. Kanubhai Patel, 74, pleaded guilty for the network that operated out of Riviera Motel in New Orleans in which multiple adult women were compelled to engage in prostitution. This was announced by Vanita Gupta, principal deputy assistant aggorney general and head of the Civil Rights Division, and Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite Jr. of the Eastern District of Louisiana. “The Department of Justice will not tolerate those who traffic in human beings or who benefit financially from human trafficking,” Gupta said in a statement issued by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation. “We will continue in our steadfast determination to bring to justice not only those who use force and coercion to exploit other human beings but also those who knowingly profit from these depraved acts.” Only 49 African-Americans in Twitter team Troops move carrying guns walk at the Navy Yard in Washington, Thursday, July 2, 2015. A lockdown is underway on the entire Washington Navy Yard campus after a report of shots fired. AP/ PTI New York, July 2 (IANS) Despite its diversity pledges, Twitter employs just 49 black people out of its total US workforce of 2,910. The tiny number of African American staff - 35 men and 14 women - represents just 1.7 percent of Twitter’s US staff, The Guardian reported.Twitter’s Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) report, a legally mandated filing with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, showed that 93.8 percent of employees were white or Asian, with just 180 people out of a total workforce of 2,910 being drawn from other minorities. Friday, July 3, 2015 Economy picking up; need more reforms for strong growth: Rajan Chennai Jul 2 (PTI): Confident of economic recovery, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan on Thursday said capital investments are picking up but a stronger growth would require more reforms and clearing bottlenecks for stalled projects. Rajan, known for critical analysis of macroeconomic trends, however said that subdued exports, primarily on account of global factors, remain an area of concern. Talking to reporters after a meeting of RBI’s board, the central bank chief said, “I would say (economy is) picking up. We see some signs of capital investment picking up. There is a continuing need, which the government is trying to address, of putting some of the stalled projects back on track.” Stating that the Indian economy is in the process of a steady recovery, Rajan said, “Would we want to (grow) faster? Yes, obviously. But we have to work in the areas of bottlenecks and areas where we need reforms to ensure that growth is strong and sustainable.” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said yesterday that India is not satisfied with 6-8 percent growth and “wants to transcend to another level and aim for 8-10 percent growth”. Replying to questions on inflation and its implications on the policy stance of the RBI, Rajan said: “Inflation is always a matter of concern. The news on monsoon front has been good so far. But it is something that we are watching. What we have said is policy stance is contingent on the day, and we are watching the data. We have to watch for the progression of data as we see it. “...There are variety of projection about what could happen going forward. IMD thinks things will weaken in next 2-3 months. There are private forecasters who thinks it won’t. Let us see what happens. Forecasting is a difficult job and its a little noisy at this point.” The rainfall so far has been much better than was originally projected by the Indian Meteorological Department. It was 28 percent more than normal in June. IMD had in its forecast on June 2 predicted 12 percent deficit in rains during the current season. As far as inflation is concerned, based on the Consumer Price Index, it was 5.01 percent in May, while the Wholesale Price Index inflation was at (-)2.36 percent. On exports, Rajan said they “are an area of relative weakness. But they have been weak across the various Asian economies, to the exception of perhaps of China. The weak state of global economy is a big factor there. Confident of economic recovery, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan on Thursday said capital investments are picking up but a stronger growth would require more reforms and clearing bottlenecks for stalled projects. Rajan, known for critical analysis of macroeconomic trends, however said that subdued exports, primarily on account of global factors, remain an area of concern. “We need to continue to do the spade work to create sustainable growth and we discussed various plans that the RBI has over the coming years to do that.” As regards the stalled projects, the RBI chief said, “economic growth will help put projects back on track that are on difficulty. We are doing everything we can as we work with banks to put it back on track.” Will not allow prices of food items to rise: Govt New Delhi Jul 2 (PTI): The government on Thursday said it will not allow prices of essential food items to increase due to the impact of possible deficient monsoon this year. State governments have also been asked to take measures to prevent spike in prices of essential commodities, it added. “We will not allow prices of milk and for that matter any essential food items to rise due to impact of below normal rains,” Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh told reporters. The Met Department has projected 8 and 10 per cent deficient rains in July and August respectively. In June, rains were 28 per cent above normal. Stating that the government is keeping close watch on food prices, Singh said that measures are being taken to boost supply of pulses and other items, in which there have been price increase recently. “The state governments have also been asked to take measures to check prices of essential items,” he said, adding that more steps to check food inflation will be discussed in detail next week in a meeting of state food ministers, to be chaired by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. The Met Department has projected 8 and 10 per cent deficient rains in July and August respectively. In June, rains were 28 per cent above normal. Stating that the government is keeping close watch on food prices, Singh said that measures are being taken to boost supply of pulses and other items, in which there have been price increase recently. The government on Thursday said it will not allow prices of essential food items to increase due to the impact of possible deficient monsoon this year. State governments have also been asked to take measures to prevent spike in prices of essential commodities, it added. “We will not allow prices of milk and for that matter any essential food items to rise due to impact of below normal rains,” Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh told reporters. Singh said the government has a contingency plan for 600- odd districts to tackle deficient rains in July and August. There has been more than 60 per cent increase in retail prices of pulses in last one year. Pulses prices have already breached Rs 100 per kg market in most markets. Similarly, onion prices are inching up in the wake of short supply. At present, farmers are undertaking sowing of kharif (summer) crops. Monsoon rains are crucial as more than half of the cultivable land in the country is rainfed. Govt clears policy for skill development, entrepreneurship New Delhi Jul 2 (PTI): Government on Thursday said it has approved the first integrated national policy for developing skills and promoting entrepreneurship at a large scale with speed and quality. “The policy aims to align supply with demand, bridging existing skill gaps, promoting industry engagement, operationalise a quality assurance framework, leveraging technology and promoting apprenticeship to tackle the identified issues,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley told reporters here. The government has also approved common norms for Skill Development Schemes being implemented by the Centre as well as an institutional framework for the National Skill Development Mission. The National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015 acknowledges the need for an effective roadmap for promotion of entrepreneurship as the key to a successful skills strategy. The vision of the policy is to create an ecosystem of empowerment by skilling on a large scale at speed with high standards and to promote a culture of innovation-based entrepreneurship which can generate wealth and employment so as to ensure sustainable livelihoods for all citizens. The Policy has four thrust areas, an tion while 5 lakh hectares will benefit from drip irrigation. That apart, 1,300 watershed projects have been marked for completion. Currently, 142 million hectares are used for cultivation, of which only 45 percent farm land is under irrigation. “The major objective of the PMKSY is to achieve convergence of investments in irrigation at the field level, expand cultivable area under assured irrigation (har khet ko pani), improve on-farm water use efficiency to reduce wastage of water, enhance adoption of precisionirrigation and other water-saving technologies (more crop per drop),” he said. Besides, the FM said the scheme is aimed at enhancing recharge of aquifers and introducing sustainable water conservation practices by exploring feasibility of re-using treated municipal water for peri-urban agriculture and attracting greater private investment in precision irrigation. “The scheme also aims at bring- official statement said, adding that it addresses key obstacles to skilling, including low aspirational value, lack of integration with formal education, lack of focus on outcomes, low quality of training infrastructure and trainers. Further, it said the policy seeks to align supply and demand for skills by bridging existing skill gaps, promoting industry engagement, operationalising a quality assurance framework, leverage technology and promoting greater opportunities for apprenticeship training. “Equity is also a focus of the Policy, which targets skilling opportunities for socially/geographically marginalised and disadvantaged groups. “Skill development and entrepreneurship programmes for women are a specific focus of the Policy,” it added. In the entrepreneurship domain, the policy seeks to educate and equip potential entrepreneurs, both within and outside the formal education system. It also seeks to connect entrepreneurs to mentors, incubators and credit markets, foster innovation and entrepreneurial culture, improve ease of doing business and promote a focus on social entrepreneurship. Jaitely said that last week the Prime Minister launched programme on smart cities, yesterday on Digital India and the government has also similar plans for ‘Skilling India’. The Union Cabinet approved the institutional framework for the National Skill Development Mission in keeping with the commitment made in the Budget 2015-16. The Mission will have a three-tiered, high powered decision making structure. “At its apex, the Mission’s Governing Council, chaired by the Prime Minister, will provide overall guidance and policy direction. The Steering Committee, chaired by Minister in Charge of Skill Development, will review the Mission’s activities in line with the direction set by the Governing Council,” the official statement said. The Mission Directorate, with Secretary, Skill Development as Mission Director, will ensure implementation, coordination and convergence of skilling activities across Central Ministries/Departments and state governments. It will also run select sub-missions in high priority areas. Further, the National Skill Development Agency, the National Skill Development Corporation and the Directorate of Training will function under the overall guidance of the Mission. Fitch lowers India’s Ratan Tata to join Jungle FY`16 economic growth Ventures as Special Advisor Mumbai Jul 2 (PTI): The Singa- of companies to help them build catprojections to 7.8% pore-based Jungle Ventures has an- egory leadership while being ethically New Delhi Jul 2 (PTI): Global rating agency Fitch has lowered India’s economic growth projections to 7.8 percent for the current fiscal from 8 percent on pick up in demand. Fitch, however, said it expects that India’s GDP growth rate this year to surpass China’s for the first time since 1999, forecasting an acceleration to 8.1 percent in 2016-17 before settling back to 8.0 percent in 2017-18. “The implementation of structural reforms and resulting pick-up in investment remain key themes for India’s growth outlook, and recent data confirm the strengthening demand,” Fitch said. Emerging Asia will continue to experience relatively high rates of growth over the medium term as economic prospects remain starkly divergent across emerging markets, according to Fitch Ratings’ latest Global Economic Outlook report. “Growth should improve steadily through to 2017 for emerging Asia excluding China on aggregate. This should occur even as China continues to experience a gradual structural slowdown,” it said. While maintaining the expectation for an increase in growth, Fitch lowered its real GDP growth forecasts for India to 7.8 percent and 8.1 percent from 8.0 percent and 8.3 percent for FY16 and FY17, respectively. “The extent and pace at which reforms translate into higher rates of growth continues to be dependent on implementation, and there are signs that acceleration may be slower than previously expected,” it said. Emerging Asia will continue to experience relatively high rates of growth over the medium term as economic prospects remain starkly divergent across emerging markets, according to Fitch Ratings’ latest Global Economic Outlook report. “ Govt to spend Rs 50,000 crore under new irrigation scheme New Delhi Jul 2 (PTI): With an eye on improving farm productivity, the government will spend Rs 50,000 crore over the next five years under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY). “It has been decided that in 5 years, Rs 50,000 crore from the central Budget would be utilised for the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana. States’ share will be over and above this,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said while communicating the Cabinet decision. He further said: “This can also be utilised to help the material component in MNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act).” The decision was taken at the meeting of Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday. For the current fiscal, he said the allocation is Rs 5,300 crore. The spending this year is expected to bring an additional 6 lakh hectares under irriga- 9 Business Indian Horizon Hyderabad ing ministries, departments, agencies, research and financial institutions engaged in creation/recycling/potential recycling of water under a common platform so that a comprehensive and holistic view of the entire “water cycle” is taken into account and proper water budgeting is done for all sectors,” he said. With an eye on improving farm productivity, the government will spend Rs 50,000 crore over the next five years under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY). “It has been decided that in 5 years, Rs 50,000 crore from the central Budget would be utilised for the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana. States’ share will be over and above this,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said while communicating the Cabinet decision. The programme architecture of PMKSY looks at a ‘decentralised state-level planning and execution’ structure in order to allow states to draw up a District Irrigation Plan (DIP) and a State Irrigation Plan (SIP), he said. “DIP will have a holistic developmental perspective of the district outlining medium- to long-term developmental plans integrating three components namely, water sources, distribution network and water use application of the district to be prepared at two levels - the block and the district,” he said. All structures created under the schemes will be geo-tagged, he added. The programme will be supervised and monitored at the national level by an Inter-Ministerial National Steering Committee (NSC) under the Chairmanship of the Prime Minister with the Union Ministers concerned. A National Executive Committee (NEC) is to be constituted under the Chairmanship of the ViceChairman, NITI Aayog, to oversee programme implementation, allocation of resources, inter-ministerial coordination, monitoring and performance assessment, addressing administrative issues and the like. nounced that Ratan Tata, Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons, will come on board as a Special Advisor. Founded by Anurag Srivastava and Amit Anand, Jungle Ventures is an early stage venture capital fund focussed on helping build innovative technology-led companies in Asia-Pacific. The venture fund said it has already made investments in 30 leading Asian start-ups, including Zipdial (recently acquired by Twitter), LiveSpace, Tradegecko, CrayonData, Fastacash and travelmob (acquired by Nasdaq listed HomeAway). In his role as Special Advisor, Tata has formally committed to spending time with Jungle’s portfolio impregnable and culturally strong in Asian and global markets, the venture fund said in a statement. Jungle Ventures, launched with a USD 10 million seed-to-early stage fund in 2012, is currently raising a second fund with a much bigger corpus, it said. “For Jungle Ventures, Tata believing in our vision also comes as a validation of our purpose to spawn and nurture entrepreneurship across the Asia-Pacific and help build tech category leaders,” said Srivastava, founding and managing partner, Jungle Ventures. Some of the other advisors who currently work with Jungle and their start-ups include Gokul Rajaram, Product Engineering. Govt clears policy for skill development, entrepreneurship New Delhi Jul 2 (PTI): Government on Thursday said it has approved the first integrated national policy for developing skills and promoting entrepreneurship at a large scale with speed and quality. “The policy aims to align supply with demand, bridging existing skill gaps, promoting industry engagement, operationalise a quality assurance framework, leveraging technology and promoting apprenticeship to tackle the identified issues,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley told reporters here. The government has also approved common norms for Skill Development Schemes being implemented by the Centre as well as an institutional framework for the National Skill Development Mission. The National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015 acknowledges the need for an effective roadmap for promotion of entrepreneurship as the key to a successful skills strategy. The vision of the policy is to create an ecosystem of empowerment by skilling on a large scale at speed with high standards and to promote a culture of innovation-based entrepreneurship which can generate wealth and employment so as to ensure sustainable livelihoods for all citizens. The Policy has four thrust areas, an official statement said, adding that it addresses key obstacles to skilling, including low aspirational value, lack of integration with formal education, lack of focus on outcomes, low quality of training infrastructure and trainers. Further, it said the policy seeks to align supply and demand for skills by bridging existing skill gaps, promoting industry engagement, operationalising a quality assurance framework, leverage technology and promoting greater opportunities for apprenticeship training. “Equity is also a focus of the Policy, which targets skilling opportunities for socially/geographically marginalised and disadvantaged groups. “Skill development and entrepreneurship programmes for women are a specific focus of the Policy,” it added. In the entrepreneurship domain, the policy seeks to educate and equip potential entrepreneurs, both within and outside the formal education system. It also seeks to connect entrepreneurs to mentors, incubators and credit markets, foster innovation and entrepreneurial culture, improve ease of doing business and promote a focus on social entrepreneurship. Jaitely said that last week the Prime Minister launched programme on smart cities, yesterday on Digital India and the government has also similar plans for ‘Skilling India’. The Union Cabinet approved the institutional framework for the National Skill Development Mission in keeping with the commitment made in the Budget 2015-16. The Mission will have a three-tiered, high powered decision making structure. “At its apex, the Mission’s Governing Council, chaired by the Prime Minister. 10 Business Commodity takes Oil prices recover Select copra as Iran talks, Greek weakens on lower crisis drag on demand, ample supplies Singapore, Jul 2 (AFP) Oil prices recovered today after the Iran nuclear talks were extended until July 7, giving oversupplied markets a breather despite uncertainty over the Greek financial crisis, analysts said. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for August delivery was up 10 cents at USD 57.06 in late morning Asian trade while Brent was 23 cents higher at USD 62.24. “With the deadline now extended into next week on finding a comprehensive agreement on Tehran’s nuclear programme, the markets will monitor closely the outcome of the negotiations as Iran sits on the fourth-largest oil reserves and second-largest gas reserves in the world,” said Sanjeev Gupta, head of the Asia-Pacific Oil and Gas practice at Ernst and Young. Daniel Ang, investment analyst at Phillip Futures, said “we continue to focus on the timing that Iranian crude would flow into the market for this situation”. Oil futures prices fell yesterday after the Department of Energy reported an unexpected increase in US stockpiles last week, further dampening sentiment.Oil prices recovered today after the Iran nuclear talks were extended until July 7, giving oversupplied markets a breather despite uncertainty over the Greek financial crisis, analysts said. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for August delivery was up 10 cents at USD 57.06 in late morning Asian trade while Brent was 23 cents higher at USD 62.24.“With prices falling yesterday, we are seeing that the high volatilities that we were aiming for could be over. We suggest taking profit on this position,” said analyst Ang. Talks between Iran and major powers towards a nuclear deal will intensify today with the head of the UN atomic watchdog due in Tehran, seeking to resolve an impasse over inspecting suspect military sites. Traders are closely tracking developments in Europe ahead of Sunday’s crucial referendum on Greece on whether to accept creditors’ bailout reform proposals, with European leaders casting it as a simple in/out vote on Athens’ eurozone future. Gold at three-month low, down Rs 210 on global cues New Delhi, Jul 2 (PTI) Falling for the third straight day, gold prices slumped by Rs 210 to trade at over three-month low of Rs 26,500 per ten grams at the bullion market in the national capital today. Further, slackened buying by jewellers at the spot market weighed on the precious metal prices. Silver also remained under selling pressure and traded lower by Rs 300 to Rs 35,750 per kg. Bullion traders said a weak trend overseas where gold tumbled on speculation that US employment data will show further signs of recovery, boosting the outlook for higher interest rates, mainly dragged down the yellow metal prices. Gold in Singapore, which normally determines price trend on the domestic front, fell 0.5 per cent to USD 1,162.84 an ounce, the lowest since March 19. Silver also eased by 0.2 per cent to USD 15.54 an ounce. Silver coins too came under some pressure and slumped by Rs 1,000 to Rs 53,000 for buying and Rs 54,000 for selling of 100 pieces. In addition, shifting of funds towards domestic equity market, further dampened the sentiments. In Delhi, gold of 99.9 and 99.5 per cent purity lost another Rs 210 each to Rs 26,500 and Rs 26,350 per ten grams respectively. The precious metal prices have fallen by Rs 240 in the previous two days. Sovereign, however, held steady at Rs 23,300 per piece of eight grams. Silver ready moved down by Rs 300 to Rs 35,750 per kg and weekly-based delivery by Rs 380 to Rs 35,180 per kg. Silver coins too came under some pressure and slumped by Rs 1,000 to Rs 53,000 for buying and Rs 54,000 for selling of 100 pieces. Mumbai, Jul 2 (PTI) Copra edible Mumbai, copra office Alapuzha and copra office Kozhikode prices weakened further at the spice market here today due to poor demand from millers and exporters on the back of ample supply positions. While, rest all other spices held steady in the absence of any largescale buying. Copra edible Mumbai fell by Rs 200 per quintal to Rs 10,000 from Wednesday’s closing level Rs 10,200. Copra office Alapuzha and copra office Kozhikode fell by Rs 100 per quintal each to Rs 8,200 from Rs 8,000 from overnight level of Rs 8,300 and Rs 8,100, respectively. Following are today’s closing rates (in Rs with previous rates in brackets): Black pepper (per kg) 650/735 (650/735), ginger bleached (per kg) 240 (240), ginger unbleached (per kg) 260 (260), copra office Alapuzha (per quintal) 8,200 (8,300), copra office Kozhikode (per quintal) 8,000 (8,100), copra Rajapur Mumbai (per quintal) 15,500 (15,500), copra edible Mumbai (per quintal) 10,000 (10,200). Small sugar recovers on renewed demand Mumbai, Jul 2 (PTI) Small sugar prices recovered slightly at the Vashi wholesale market here today on renewed demand from stockists and bulk consumers. While, medium sugar weakened further owing to subdued offtake from stockists and retailers. Small sugar (S-30) gained by Rs 4 per quintal to Rs 2,176/2,325 from Wednesday’s closing level of Rs 2,172/2,325. However, Medium sugar (M-30) dropped by Rs 30 per quintal to Rs 2,260/2,582 as compared to Rs 2,290/2,582, previously. Following are today’s closing rates for sugar (per quintal) with the previous rates given in brackets: Small sugar (S-30) quality: Rs 2,176/2,325 (Rs 2,172/2,325). Medium sugar (M-30) quality: Rs 2,260/2,582 (Rs 2,290/2,582). Groundnutoil declines on lower demand Mumbai, Jul 2 (PTI) Groundnutoil prices declined at the Vashi oils and oilseeds wholesale market here today on lower demand from stockists and retailers. However, castorseeds bold and castoroil commercial recovered slightly following mild demand from shippers and soap industries. Refined palmolein and linseedoil ruled stable in the absence of any worthwhile buying activity. In the edible segment, groundnutoil eased by Rs 5 per 10kg to Rs 965 from Wednesday’s closing level of Rs 970. Refined palmolein closed unchanged at Rs 505 per 10kg. Castorseeds bold gained Rs 15 per 100 kg to Rs 3,965 from its overnight level of Rs 3,950 and castoroil commercial edged up by Rs 3 per 10kg to Rs 823 from Rs 820. Linseedoil ended unaltered at 780 per 10 kg. Base metals rise on industrial demand Mumbai, Jul 2 (PTI) Tin, Nickel, brass and select copper prices rose further at the non-ferrous metal market here today on stockists buying amid sustained demand from industrial users. Globally, London copper held its ground in early trade today after strong US data eclipsed worries about factory growth in Asia, with a jobs report later in the session expected to support the view that the world’s biggest economy is gaining steam. Tin regained by Rs 10 per kg to Rs 1,140 from Wednesday’s closing level of Rs 1,130. Nickel climbed by Rs 5 per kg to Rs 945 from Rs 940. Copper sheet cutting and bras sheet cutting moved up by Rs 2 per kg each to Rs 420 and Rs 320 from Rs 418 and Rs 318. Copper cable scrap, copper scrap heavy, copper wire bar and brass ute nsils scrap inched-up by a Re per kg each to Rs 439, Rs 434, Rs 459 and Rs 306. Indian Horizon Hyderabad Friday, July 3, 2015 HDFC Bank sees mobile banking overtaking net banking next year Mumbai Jul 2 (PTI): Private sector lender HDFC Bank may see transactions undertaken on mobile devices overtake those on Internet banking from the next fiscal, a top official said on Thursday. “Usage of mobiles has been growing rapidly and outpacing the growth of the Internet transactions. We feel next year it will overtake Internet banking,” its head of digital banking Nitin Chugh told reporters here. Declining to share specific data on mobile adoption within the bank, he said over 70 per cent of people access the Internet through the mobile phones at present and the same will have to reflect in its usage as well. This April, the bank had reported 17.46 lakh mobile transactions worth over Rs 5,686 crore, making it the market leader in the segment in value terms, while SBI is the leader by volume at 78.48 lakh. He said the use of mobiles and the Internet combined has also been growing steadily and it accounts of 63 per cent of total transactions for the bank today. Chugh said the same number was at 44 per cent two years ago and a low 13 per cent a decade ago. After announcing that it has made an application to run on Apple’s recently launched Watch, the bank today gave a demonstration of its software which runs on the i-Watch. Apple is yet to launch i-Watch, which sells at a minimum of USD 349, in the country. Chugh said there are 30 banks globally which have launched iWatch-based applications and claimed HDFC Bank is The bank has developed the wearable device (watch) application only for Apple phones for now, but will also be launching similar ones to run on Androidpowered watches made by brands like Samsung and Motorola shortly. Chugh said HDFC Bank chose Rupee remains firm against USD; tops 1-1/2 mth high at 63.51 Mumbai, Jul 2 (PTI) Strengthening for the third straight session, the rupee gained 10 paise to close at 63.51 against the US dollar today on continued selling of the greenback by banks and exporters. Besides, smooth supply of dollars on fresh capital inflows into equities and debts predominantly weighed on trading sentiments, forex dealers said. Positive comments from the Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan that India will see limited impact of the debt crisis in Greece as it has little direct exposure to the European nation also supported the overall trade. The rupee resumed weak at 63.64 as compared to overnight closing level of 63.61 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (FOREX) market on initial dollar demand from importers and weakened further to hit fresh intra-day low of 63.66, despite a firm opening in the domestic equity markets. However, the local unit trimmed initial losses and staged a smart rebound following renewed dollar selling to touch a high of 63.49 before concluding at 63.51, showing a gain of 10 paise, or 0.16 per cent, a the level not seen since May 15 this year. In last three days, it has gained 33 paise. Meanwhile, foreign investors bought shares worth Rs 75.03 crore yesterday, according to provisional data. In overseas trade, the dollar traded marginally higher against a basket of other major currencies amid concerns over Greece’s debt woes and also release of key US economic data later in the day. The US dollar index was up by 0.06 per cent at 96.53. Concurrently, crude prices firmed up after a steep drop in the previous session after data showed an unexpected increase in US oil stockpiles last week. . Veracity Group CEO Pramit Brahmbhatt said, “The USD/INR pair traded range-bound as investors awaited for the US jobs data due for the day which will show the road ahead to the market.” The trading range for the Spot USD/ INR pair is expected to be within 63.20 to 64.80. In the forward market, the premium for dollar ended lower on fresh receivings from exporters. The benchmark six-month premium payable in December dropped to 219-221 paise as compared to 226-228 paise while June, 2016 contract also finished lower at 440442 paise as against. Apple for its user interface, design and also because a ‘good part’ of its customer base uses i-Phones. Its rival ICICI Bank also has a similar offering, but it works on both Apple and Android systems. Chugh said there are 30 banks globally which have launched iWatch-based applications and claimed HDFC Bank is among the first three to announce that it will be developing such an application. A customer can do 10 types of transactions using the i-Watch, including account information, mobile recharges, sending requests for cheque books and locationbased services like viewing. China wants to combine ‘Make in India’ with ‘Made in China’ Beijing Jul 2 (PTI): China said it is making “every effort” to address India’s concerns on USD 47 billion trade deficit as it called for combining Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative with its ‘Made in China’ to step up investments. “We are making every effort to fundamentally solve the issue. We need to find a new channel, new methodology to break the bottle neck,” said Huang Xilian, Deputy Director General of the Asian Affairs department of the Foreign Ministry. China is trying to address the issue by promoting mutual investments to balance the trade. “We have agreed two industrial parks and encouraging more Chinese investments in India to promote exports to China,” he said. “We are ready to buy. This is next five years we are experted to import commodities from USD 10 trillion. We hope we could import as much as possible from India,” he said. “We should try to combine ‘Make in India’ and ‘Made in China’ strategy together. The key word in India-China relationship is development, which is a major factor of our cooperation,” he said. India’s trade deficit with China averaged around USD 47 billion in last year’s trade of over USD 70 billion. Huang said China has sent delegation to India to discuss measures to increase imports. China is importing films from India, he said, referring to recent success of PK which grossed over USD 16 million. China is also stepping up imports of Indian pharmaceuticals, Huang said. Punj Lloyd Group is a global conglomerate offering engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services. The shares of the company closed at Rs 24.75 on BSE, up 1.23 per cent from its previous close Mkts turn choppy after 2-day rally; Sensex drop 75 pts Mumbai, Jul 2 (PTI) Snapping a two-session upsurge, the benchmark BSE Sensex dropped by 75 points and closed below the psychologically significant 28kmark following profit taking at higher levels during the fag-end amid ongoing Greece standoff. Metal, technology, infra, capital goods and healthcare witnessed fresh bout of selling pressure. While, oil&gas, fmcg and banking stocks continued attract good buying interest. Despite a strong start against the backdrop of firm Asian sentiment, market turned highly volatile amid choppiness and succumbed to profit-booking at higher as investors turned cautious after two-day impressive rally as well as much awaited US jobs data later in the day, a floor trader said. The benchmark had gained over 375 points in last two sessions to hit a 2-1/2 month high. The 30-share index opened higher at 28,100.38 and hovered between a high of 28,115.96 and a low of 27,906.37 before settling at 27,945.80, showing a fall of 75.07 points, or 0.27 per cent over its last close. The broder Nifty also ended lower by 8.15 points, or 0.10 per cent at 8,444.90. Elsewhere in the region, barring China’s Shanghai Composite index, most equities ended higher tracking strong finish on Wall Street overnight. While European indices continued their rallying momentum with key indices in Germany, France and the UK are up 1.34 per cent to 1.87 per cent. Meanwhile, the global rating agency Fitch lowered India’s economic growth projections to 7.8 per cent for the current fiscal from 8 per cent earlier. Foreign investors reversed a recent trend and bought shares worth Rs 75.03 crore yesterday, according to provisional data. The benchmark had gained over 375 points in last two sessions to hit a 2-1/2 month high. The 30-share index opened higher at 28,100.38 and hovered between a high of 28,115.96 and a low of 27,906.37 before settling at 27,945.80, showing a fall of 75.07 points, or 0.27 per cent over its last close. The broder Nifty also ended lower by 8.15 points, or 0.10 per cent at 8,444.90. Elsewhere in the region, barring China’s Shanghai Composite index, most equities ended higher tracking strong finish on Wall Street overnight. While European indices continued their rallying momentum with key indices in Germany, France and the UK are up 1.34 per cent to 1.87 per cent. Pramit Brahmbhatt, Veracity Group CEO said, not much action was seen in the local equity market as the unsolved Greek debt issue continues to dent the movement of indices and traded flat and looked to consolidated ahead of the major U.S economic data due for the day. Out of 30-share Sensex pack, 20 finished lower while 10 ended higher. Major losers Tata Motors (1.84 pc), Hindalco (1.72 pc), HDFC Bank (1.33 pc), VEDL (1.08 pc), ONGC (1.07 pc), Cipla (1.06 pc), Dr Reddy (1.00 pc), Infosys (0.96 pc), Maruti (0.89 pc), GAIL (0.79 pc), HDFC (0.73) and L&T (0.71 pc). Among the gainers included Bharati Artel (2.13 pc), M&M (2.00 pc), Bajaj Auto (1.67 pc) Axis Bank (0.62 pc) Heromotoco (0.56 pc) and Wipro (0.53 pc). The market breadth continued to show positive trend as 1,519 stocks advanced, 1251 shares declined and 116 ruled steady. Total turnover dropped to Rs 2,710.70 crore from Rs 3,226.25 crore yesterday. 11 Sports Indian Horizon Hyderabad Friday, July 3, 2015 BCCI mulling performance-based incentives for Indian team New Delhi Jul 2 (PTI): Encouraged by the financial model followed by Cricket Australia and England and Wales Cricket Board, the BCCI is planning to introduce a performancebased incentive for the Indian team for each and every home and away series. There was an initial blueprint that was drawn at the Board’s finance committee meeting that took place in the capital here on Wednesday. While BCCI’s finance committee has agreed in principle on going the corporate way where profit sharing will be directly proportional to the board’s revenue, the members discussed the possible ways of doing it. According to BCCI sources, it was IPL COO Sundar Raman, who provided a presentation for the finance committee members where it was intimated that Cricket Australia, ECB and BCCI’s next door neighbours PCB also follow an incentive-based model in their respective countries. “Till now, BCCI normally gave handsome incentives to cricketers during triumphs in big tournaments like 50-over World Cup, World T20 or ICC Champions Trophy. But from now on, the BCCI is planning to have incentives for each and every series played at home and away,” sources told PTI. For example, if India wins a Test series at home against a particular opposition, the cricketers will be entitled to a specific amount of incentive from the board apart from their match fees. Similarly, the amount will shoot up when they are playing some other opposition on foreign soil. Even the best performers during a particular series will get special performance-based incentives. The amount will depend on the nature of opposition, conditions, home and away and impact of the performance. While Raman today gave an initial presentation, an elaborate blueprint is likely to be chalked out on July 22, when the next meeting of the committee will be held. Meanwhile, the finance committee today decided that India’s women cricketers will be divided into two groups A and B for the gradation payment system that the BCCI is planning to introduce. “Till now, BCCI normally gave handsome incentives to cricketers during triumphs in big tournaments like 50-over World Cup, World T20 or ICC Champions Trophy. Wimbledon 2015, Day 3: Murray, Federer, Wozniacki breeze through as weather cools off London Jul 2 (PTI): Former champion Andy Murray breezed into the Wimbledon third round on Thursday as the women`s top 10 lost its fourth seeded player of the week. Third seed Murray, the 2013 champion, brushed aside Robin Haase, the world number 78 from the Netherlands, 6-1, 6-1, 6-4 in just 87 minutes. The 28-year-old fired 25 winners past Haase and goes on to face either experienced Italian Andreas Seppi or highly-regarded 18-year-old Croatian Borna Coric. “I started the match off very well. I started quickly and Robin was a little bit slower at the beginning and then he started to come back in it, he played better tennis,” said Murray after his fourth win in five matches against his fellow 28-year-old. “That was the sort of match I was expecting at the end of the second and the third set where he was making it tough. “We were playing some longer rallies. He has good variety in his game so there were some fun points.” Seven-time champion Roger Federer also reached the Wimbledon third round today with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 win over Sam Querrey of the United States. Second seed Federer will face Australia`s Sam Groth for a place in the last 16. Later, two-time winner Rafael Nadal will attempt to follow Murray and Federer into the last 32. However, the women`s draw opened up even further when Russian eighth seed Ekaterina Makarova, a quarter-finalist in 2014, went down 6-2, 7-5 to unseeded Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia. Before 2015, the world number 65 Rybarikova had never won a match at Wimbledon in seven years of trying. Makarova joined third seed Simona Halep, seventh seed Ana Ivanovic and Carla Suarez Navarro, seeded nine, in failing to get beyond the second round. Rybarikova goes on to face Belarus qualifier Olga Govortsova who put out French 25th seed Alize Cornet 7-6 (8/6), 2-6, 6-1. Cornet had knocked Serena Williams out of Wimbledon last year.Former world number one Caroline Wozniacki made it through to the third round with a 6-1, 7-6 (8/6) win over Denisa Allertova, the world number 83 from the Czech Republic. Wozniacki, who has never got beyond the last 16 at Wimbledon, next takes on Italian 31st seed Camila Giorgi. Also going into the third round was German 18th seed Sabine Lisicki, the 2013 runner-up, who fought back to defeat Christina McHale of the United States 2-6, 7-5, 6-1. Lisicki next meets French Open semifinalist Timea Bacsinszky, the 15th seeded Swiss. Federer faces America`s world number 36 Sam Querrey who has lost both his previous matches against the secondseeded 17-time Grand Slam title winner, failing to win a set. The only time Federer has lost before the third round at a Grand Slam in his last 48 major appearances was at 2013 Wimbledon, when he was defeated by Sergiy Stakhovsky in the second round. Nadal, the two time winner and seeded 10 this year, takes on German qualifier Dustin Brown. Brown, the dread-locked world 102, defeated the Spaniard on grass in Halle last year in what was the pair`s only previous meeting. Czech sixth seed Tomas Berdych is also in action on Thursday when he faces French wild card Nicolas Mahut. Reigning women`s champion Petra Kvitova, the second seed, meets Japan`s Kurumi Nara. Thursday`s action started late due to rain which came as a welcome relief to fans and players who had sweltered. Recalled Steven Finn has learnt his England lessons But from now on, the BCCI is planning to have incentives for each and every series played at home and away,” sources told PTI. For example, if India wins a Test series at home against a particular opposition, the cricketers will be entitled to a specific amount of incentive from the board apart from their match fees. Similarly, the amount will shoot up when they are playing some other opposition on foreign soil. Even the best performers during a particular series. London Jul 2 (PTI): England pace bowler Steven Finn has learnt his lessons after a dramatic loss of form and is ready to make “another debut” if he is selected for the first test against Australia next week. The 26-year-old`s last test match was the 14-run win over Australia in the first Ashes test at Trent Bridge in 2013, a series England went on to win 3-0. But the Middlesex bowler struggled with his rhythm and pace and did not feature in England`s 5-0 Ashes defeat in the return series before being sent home to work on the technical aspect of his game. Having regained his line and length, Finn, who has collected 90 wickets in 23 tests at an average of 29.4, was included in England`s 13-man squad for the first Ashes test in Cardiff starting on July 8. “If I do play, it will feel like making another debut in test match cricket, so it`s really exciting,” Finn told reporters on Thursday. “I have done a lot of learning about my cricket over the last 18 months to two years and the way I need to go about things. “It wasn`t beneficial at the time but overall, it has been. “I am now very comfortable with where I am at and with the technical side of things and it is now just about getting batsman out and putting the ball in the right area.” England pace bowler Steven Finn has learnt his lessons after a dramatic loss of form and is ready to make “another debut” if he is selected for the first test against Australia next week. The 26-year-old`s last test match was the 14-run win over Australia in the first Ashes test at Trent Bridge in 2013, a series England went on to win 3-0. The 26-year-old`s last test match was the 14-run win over Australia in the first Ashes test at Trent Bridge in 2013, a series England went on to win 3-0. Finn`s return to form has coincided with England adopting a new attacking approach that earned plaudits during the recent drawn test series against New Zealand. “The way we have built momentum over the last eight weeks or so is really exciting,” Finn said. “I have confidence in the way I am bowling and, if selected, I feel I can do myself justice.” Sushil Kumar opts out of World Championships with shoulder injury New Delhi Jul 2 (PTI): Twotime Olympic-medallist Sushil Kumar has opted out of the World Championships after sustaining a shoulder injury, thereby taking the sheen out of the upcoming selection trials, slated for July 6-7 here. The World championships, scheduled to be held in Las Vegas from September 7-12, will also be the first qualification tournament for the 2016 Rio Olympics. “Yes, I have sustained an injury to my right shoulder while practising. So I would not be able to take part in the upcoming selection trials. So, automatically that rules me out of the first qualifying event for next year’s Rio Olympic Games,” Sushil told PTI. “I have been advised by the doctors to take rest. At the moment, I don’t know exactly how long my injury will take to heal completely, but I am taking good care,” he added. Sushil’s injury has ended what HWL: Indian men eager to tame attacking Belgians in semi-final Antwerp (Belgium) Jul 2(PTI): India will face one of their toughest tests in defence when they square off against the marauding Belgians in what promises to be a robust semifinal clash of the FIH Hockey World League Semifinals here on Friday. The encounter will test the ability of India’s defence to guard against the Belgian strikers, who have tasted enormous success in the past couple of years to boost their world ranking to No. 4 -- the highest in their hockey history. Ranked No. 9 in the world, India faces a formidable side that has enjoyed a slight edge in their recent encounters since the 2011 Champions Challenge final in Johannesburg. The Belgian players have, in fact, made giant strides in international hockey. Starting with the victory in the Champions Challenge that earned Belgium their maiden entry in the elite Champions Trophy, the Red Lions have emerged victorious in their fixtures against India in the 2012 Olympic Games and the 2014 World Cup. could have been a enthralling battle between the veteran wrestler and the young Narsingh Pancham Yadav in the selection trials slated for July 6-7 for a place in the World Championships. After the World Championships, there are six more qualification tournaments, all of which are scheduled to be held next year, starting from March 2016. The 32-year-old grappler said that it would not be wise to aggravate the injury as there are a number of qualifying events before the Olympics. “I am not keen to take a chance, even though the injury is not so serious. It is not good to take part in a competition half fit. I will be competing in the qualifying events next year before the Rio Olympics and I have been working hard for it,” insisted the wrestler from Haryana. Sushil, who had created history in 2010 by becoming the first Indian to win a gold at the World After turning pro, Vijender Singh meets Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar Chandigarh Jun 2 (PTI): Drawing flak from some quarters for turning professional, Olympic bronze-medallist boxer Vijender Singh met Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar here today. However, there was no official word on what transpired in the meeting which lasted for about 30 minutes at the CM’s official residence here. The ace boxer, who also holds the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) in Haryana, came in his Sports Utility Vehicle and avoided the media. However, it is understood that the CM had asked the boxer to follow the rules for turning professional from amateur. Recently, Haryana police had warned of taking action against Vijender if he fails to seek permission from the state government for turning professional. Vijender, the country’s most celebrated boxer, had bid adieu to his amateur career by turning professional, ruling himself out of next year’s Olympics. The first Indian boxer to win an Olympic medal -- the 29-year-old signed a multi-year agreement with Queensberry Promotions through IOS Sports and Entertainment. Vijender was appointed as Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) by the previous Bhupinder Singh Hooda government in Haryana for his outstanding record in boxing at national and international level. However, Vijender was currently on probation and had not yet completed his training. US seeks extradition of 7 FIFA officials in Switzerland Geneva Jul 2 (PTI): The United States has demanded the extradition of seven FIFA officials detained in May setting off what could become a prolonged legal battle over the handling of the major corruption case. Swiss authorities said Thursday that the US embassy in Bern had sent an extradition request the day before. The seven were detained in a dawn raid on a Zurich hotel on May 27 as a FIFA congress was about to start. FIFA leader Sepp Blatter was reelected to a new term at the congress but amid a storm of controversy over parallel US and Swiss investigations, he announced four days later that he would stand down. Blatter has not been accused by either inquiry and again strongly denied involvement in corruption in a German media interview released Wednesday. The US legal authorities had until July 3 to make their request and a Swiss federal justice office statement said the embassy action was “within the timeframe set down in the bilateral extradition treaty” between the two countries. The seven officials -- all from South and North America -have all indicated they will fight extradition. The seven held include Jeffrey Webb of the Cayman Islands and Eugenio Figueredo from Uruguay, who are both former FIFA vice presidents. Costa Rican Eduardo Li was supposed to join the FIFA executive committee in May. There was also Brazilian football federation chief Jose Maria Marin, Nicaraguan Julio Rocha and Costas Takkas, a Briton who worked for the Cayman islands federation and Rafael Esquivel, president of the Venezuelan Football Federation.All are accused by US authorities of involvement in more than $150 million of bribes given for marketing deals for football tournaments in North and South America. The seven are among 14 people -- officials and sports marketing company executives -- that US authorities have charged. Four others have already made deals with US prosecutors. Zurich police will now question the seven officials again and they will have 14 days to respond to the extradition request, the federal justice office said.Experts said the battle over their extradition could take more than a year with hearings running alongside the election for a new FIFA president.FIFA declined to comment on the extradition request. “This is a matter for the relevant authorities,” said a spokesperson. Blatter said on June 2 that a new presidential election would be held and he would hand over to a successor. Indications that he could stand again have been strongly opposed by other FIFA leaders. The FIFA executive is to meet in Zurich on July 20 to decide a date for the election, expected between this December and March 2016. The 79-year-old Blatter has defended his own record, insisting in an interview with German magazine Bunte that no-one could accuse him of corruption. “I will answer: Do you understand this word at all which you use? “Anyone who accuses me of being corrupt must first of all prove it to me,” he insisted in the interview released Wednesday. “No one can do that, because I am not corrupt.” The accusations against FIFA are unlikely to ease in the coming months, however. Alongside the arrest of the FIFA seven, Swiss police are investigating the attribution of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar respectively. Both have already been the target of a FIFA investigation. Football`s world body said nothing had been found which merited a new vote on the tournaments. But it has so far not released the full report made by former US federal prosecutor Michael Garcia who resigned from his role as a FIFA watchdog in protest. 12 Entertainment Indian Horizon Hyderabad Friday, July 3, 2015 Indian Horizon After Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt to move out of her parents’ home? Yes, it seems the Highway actress has decided to live independently and therefore is on a house-hunt these days… Last year, Ranbir Kapoor moved out of his parents’ place and rented a apartment in Bandra with his ladylove Katrina Kaif. Well, if the latest grapevine is true then even Alia Bhatt is planning to walk down the same path. Yes, the Shaandaar actress might move out of her parents’ place but she isn’t going to live with her beau Sidharth Malhotra. As per media reports, Ms Bhatt has been checking out flats and meeting property dealers for a while now. And that’s the reason Finally Yami gets over her fear? It is not easy for anyone to overcome their fears, especially when you carry them since childhood. Yami Gautam had one such fear that she recently overcame. The pretty young actress, who is currently in North India shooting for her upcoming next film, came across a white mouse there. She always found mice to be a little creepy and ran to the other side each time they came around her. She has always been petrified at the sight of them. But this time around, when she saw the mouse, she had a change of heart and decided to get over her fear. She was so determined, that she directly went close to the mouse and after some hesitation caught the white mouse in her hand. A source present there reveals that there were a few screams initially but within seconds, Yami felt comfortable with it. She found the creature so cute that she then she played with it for a while and even clicked some pictures with it. Courtesy:SB.com hush-hush whispers are doing the rounds that Alia may shift to a new place soon. While talking to a daily, a source said, “Yes, she is looking for something close to her parents’ home. From what I understand and know, it’s just for investment purposes. She is still living with her parents. But then you never know.” Whether the Udta Punjab heroine is looking for a new place to invest or move in, we dunno. But we won’t be surprised if she starts living on her own. After all, she comes from a family where everyone is strong-headed and independent, right Bollywoodlifers? Courtesy:Bollylife.com Troll attack: Abhishek Bachchan is the new target of Internet trolling! What left Priyanka Chopra speechless on the sets of Bajirao Mastani? The All is Well actor is the latest celebrity to have got trolled on Twitter and its harsh… Abhishek Bachchan is big on pulling pranks and being witty in life but we wonder how he will take to the Internet trolling! The actor tweeted a picture of himself aboard an airplane as he is leaving for Dubai to shoot for his upcoming film Hera Pheri 3 opposite John Abraham. Here is what Jr Bachchan tweeted, “Dubai calling” with this picture; An internet troller picked up Abhishek’s picture and was quick to make a mean meme out of it. The troller we are talking about is also a member of a popular comedy group. Here the meme to troll Jr Bachchan’s Dubai calling tweet. Now we are all for jokes and everything but this meme is just too harsh. It’s like writing off an actor without even watching their work first. Anyway, we will leave it for you to decide how you feel about this meme. Share your opinions with us in the comments section below! Courtesy:Bollylife.com Priyanka Chopra is back in Mumbai and she is currently shooting for Bajirao Mastani… Priyanka Chopra has finished shooting for her ABC show Quantico, she is back in Mumbai and she has also resumed shooting for Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Quantico. But all the chance, not only of place, but characters as well has got to PC! From playing a halfCaucasian and half-Indian FBI trainee to playing a royal Marathi queen, PC has to make quite a transition in terms of the characters that she has to play. And let’s face it, it’s quite tough to just switch off the brain, get out of playing one character, reboot and start playing another character all of a sudden. PC needs some time to settle into her character of Kashibai, who is Bajirao’s wife in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s film Bajirao Mastani. Talking about the trouble she is facing switching from one character to another, PC tweeted, “Going from an American dialect to an ancient maharashtrian dialect!Phew.In the middle of all this I’ve forgotten how I talk!!#BajiraoMastani” And all the travelling and change has left PC quite speechless. Courtesy:Bollylife.com Hrithik, Anushka to perform at IPL Sussanne Khan to lend creativity to foreign company Decor expert Sussanne Khan has been appointed the creative director of London-based resi- dential and hotel design company YOO. YOO, founded by international property entrepreneur John Hitchcox and Philippe Starck in 1999, and Sussanne will partner in a vision to create sustained value through exceptional design, launching with a project in India in quarter four of this year. "Together (with the YOO design family), I hope to offer new dimensions in creativity to the global market," Sussanne said. "New India is a rich mother lode of style, structure and material and the world is now ready to explore these intricately. Design to me is a feeling and an emotion and when all such energies align, we will, hopefully, reach heights of intensity and bal- ance, " she added. Sussanne is an interior designing skills, tastemaker and style influencer, with over 15 years of experience working on international design projects. Apart from putting her creative side to many high-profile international projects creating home, restaurant, office, retail, spa and outdoor spaces, she also launched a two-storey store in Mumbai -- The Charcoal Project, stocking diverse collections by global and Indian designers, as well as furniture designed by Sussanne herself. Hitchcox is also excited about the association. "We're delighted to welcome Sussanne Khan to the YOO family in a collaboration that represents an exciting evolution for the brand. This partnership creates a unique opportunity to promote the very apex of contemporary Indian design across the world through one of its foremost figures, " said the co-founder. Bollywood stars Farhan Akhtar, Shahid Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Pritam and Hrithik Roshan are all set to light up the stage at the 2015 Indian Premier League (IPL) Opening Ceremony at the Salt Lake Stadium here on Tuesday. According to a Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) release, the entertainers will come together to mark the start of the eighth sea- son of the cash-rich Twenty20 league with the evening's proceedings being hosted by actor Saif Ali Khan. All eight team captains will be present to take the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) Spirit of Cricket pledge. Gautam Gambhir, captain of defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders, will put the trophy back in play, signalling the start of the 2015 season. The two-hour show will start at 7:30 p.m. and the gates of the venue will open at 5:00 p.m. Tickets for the opening ceremony, which start at Rs.200, can be purchased online at iplt20.com or from gate No.1 and 4 of the Salt Lake Stadium. The programme will be telecast live on Sony Max and Sony Six and will also be streamed on mobile app Hotstar. Courtesy:Bollylife.com Printed, published & Owned by Dr.Rahimuddin Kemal, Printed at Kemal Publication's, H.No-8-2-618/3, Road No. 11, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad. 500034, TS. Editor Mr.Fahim Kemal. Published from Dil-a-Veez, H.No.8-2-618/3, Road No. 11, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad-500034.TS. India. Phone Nos: 040 66839818: Fax No: 040 23373717. Email: [email protected] [email protected]
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