Nanavati panel rejects Sanjiv Bhatt’s plea against cross examination

The Nanavati Commission, probing the 2002 riot cases, on Wednesday rejected the application of IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt, challenging his cross examination by other parties, including the State government.Commission, comprising Retd. Justices G.T. Nanavati and Akshay Nanavati, in its order said that Mr. Bhatt had no problem when he was cross examined by an NGO Jan Sangharsh Manch (JSM), Central Relief Committee and the Congress Party.

China urges Philippines to stop harming its rights in South China Sea

China has urged Philippines to stop harming its rights and interests in the South China Sea. In a statement, Philippines authorities said on Saturday that Chinese vessels were hampering legitimate activities by Philippine fishermen, undermining the peace and stability of the region. Responding to the statement, Chinese Foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei has said the Philippines government should stop publishing irresponsible statements that do not match the facts. He said Chinese vessels were carrying out scientific studies in waters under Chinese jurisdiction and acting in line with the law. Last week, Philippines authorities said Chinese ships had offloaded building materials and erected marker posts on reefs to the west of its island of Palawan, well within Manila's exclusive economic zone. Philippines Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario said the action aggressively violated a 2002 agreement between China and its Southeast Asian neighbours governing conduct in the South China Sea.

Courtesy : AIR

Shri Vasan Flags off India’s First Cruise Liner “M.V. AMET Majesty”

Thiru G.K. Vasan, Hon’ble Minister of Shipping flagged off M.V. AMET MAJESTY, India’s first cruise liner and onboard training ship in Chennai today. On the occasion, the Minister stated that Cruise Shipping is one of the fastest growing segments in the leisure industry worldwide. The government is gearing up to increase the footfalls into India further in the coming years besides promotion of Indian flag cruises, including river cruises. The focus will be to showcase India as an attractive tourist destination for cruise tourists with its vast and beautiful coastline, virgin forests and undisturbed idyllic islands, rich historical and cultural heritage. The government also plans to ensure that the cruise shipping industry in India becomes internationally competitive and contribute to the economy in terms of generation of foreign exchange, income, employment and business opportunities.

Green India Mission to Increase Forest Cover

A 45,000 crore rupees huge programme to increase the country’s green cover is going to be launched soon. The 10 year long  programme named Green India Mission, GIM after a preparatory phase of one year will get going from 2012. Addressing a series of functions on the occasion of the World Environment Day on 5^th June this year, the Minister for Environment and Forests, Shri Jairam Ramesh said that the target is to bring 5 million hectares of forest and non-forest land under green cover and improve the quality of green cover on another 5 million hectare of non-forest land.

Prime Minister asks ministers to declare their assets including those of their spouses and dependents.

The Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has asked ministers to declare their assets including those of their spouses and dependents along with any business interests, as per the annual exercise. The ministers have been asked to furnish the details by August 31st. A letter written by Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrasekhar to ministers on the 2nd of this month says that this has been desired by the Prime Minister as per the code of Conduct for Ministers.

India commissions its latest warship-INS Kabra

India's latest warship 'INS Kabra' was commissioned on Wednesday at Kochi Naval Base. This will add edge to Indian Navy in combating low intensity conflicts and anti-piracy operations. With a top speed of over 35 knots and maneuverability offered by her water-jet propulsion, the ship is ideally suited for high-speed interdiction of fast-moving targets and useful in search and rescue operations. AIR correspondent reports, INS Kabra complies with the latest regulations of International Maritime Organisation on sea pollution control.The ship has a crew of three officers and 39 sailors. INS Kabra is the eighth of a series built at Garden Reach Ship Builders and Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata.

Courtesy : AIR

ED and Finance Ministry officials briefing JPC on 2G scam

Chief of Enforcement Directorate Arun Mathur and officials of the Finance Ministry are briefing the Joint Parliamentary Committee, JPC, on the ongoing investigations into the 2G scam today. Mathur, along with other senior officials of the Directorate and representatives of the Department of Revenue in the Finance Ministry, will also brief the JPC separately about the probe carried out in the spectrum scam which included obtaining the share holding patterns of various telecom firms from foreign shores like Mauritius and UK.

Govt to bring IT’s Intelligence, criminal investigation units under one umbrella

The Finance Ministry is bringing under one umbrella the intelligence and criminal investigation units of the Income Tax department to enhance prosecution powers to counter terror financing and check transactions that pose threat to national security. A top official in the ministry said in New Delhi on Wednesday, the department will now train and designate its officials in the rank of Inspectors as 'Special Agents' and 'Agents' (Criminal Investigation) while the newly-created Directorate of Criminal Investigation will be headed by the Director-General of Intelligence (Income Tax).

First ever Indian Premier League Kabaddi Championship

The first ever Indian Premier League Kabaddi Championship on the lines of IPL Cricket will be held at Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh from today. Addressing a press conference, Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India general secretary Jagadeshwar Yadav said the main objective behind of conducting IPL Kabaddi matches was to encourage youth to play the sport and ensure that Kabaddi is also included in ''Olympic Games''. 

Courtesy : AIR

Ramdev's 'political' agitation is backed by RSS: Govt

The Government hit back at Ramdev saying that his was a "political agitation which is fully backed by the RSS and its front organisations" and made it clear that it would not "allow anything that will trigger a conflagration".Home Minister P Chidambaram also disclosed that Government had decided in advance that if Ramdev goes on a fast-unto-death, he would be denied permission and told to move out of Delhi.That decision was not enforced earlier because the Government was engaged in a dialogue.

Make Agriculture More Competitive and Develop Mechanism to Address Climate Change: Shri Pawar More Emphasis on Anticipatory Adaptation Measures Needed Parliamentary Consultative Committee of Agriculture Ministry Meets

Agriculture has to become more competitive, efficient, and profitable and develop mechanism to reduce its vulnerability to climate change. Indian farmers, scientists and policy-makers have to address these issues in totality and develop strategies to increase adaptive capacity.

Modern Trolleys at Important Railway Stations for Senior Citizens and Women

As announced in the Railway Budget 2011-12, the Ministry of Railways has decided to extend the Rail Yatri Sevaks with modern trolleys to six more stations. These six stations are New Delhi (Platform No. 1 and 16), Mumbai, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Thiruvananthapuram.

Free, compulsory education to be extended up to class X

The provision of free and compulsory education will soon be extended up to Class X. A proposal to this effect was approved at a meeting of the Central Advisory Board of Education — the highest decision making body on education in the country — held here on Tuesday.The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, provides for free and mandatory education only up to primary level — from Class I to VIII.

Food price volatility to remain till next year: FAO

High volatility and price swings in food commodities are likely to prevail for the rest of this year and could continue into 2012, UN body Food and Agriculture Organisation on Tuesday said.“High and volatile agricultural commodity prices are likely to prevail for the rest of this year and into 2012,” Food and Agriculture Organisation said in a statement.

Great Indian Bustard on brink of extinction

The Great Indian Bustard is on the brink of extinction, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced on Tuesday.The Great Indian Bustard has been up-listed to ‘critically endangered,’ the highest level of threat, IUCN said in a release.Hunting, disturbance, habitat loss and fragmentation have all conspired to reduce this magnificent species to perhaps as few as 250 individuals, IUCN said.

TigerText leaves security agencies worried

At a time when the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is struggling to find a way to satisfy Indian law enforcement agencies (LEAs) on security issues related to BlackBerry smartphone, the Union Home Ministry has asked it to ensure that no mobile operator is allowed to offer a unique mobile application – TigerText – before getting clearance from the government and security agencies.

Post-Aila salinity defeats Sunderbans farmers

For thousands of farmers at Gosaba in the Sundarbans the coming monsoon does not hold out any hope as they continue to battle the extreme salinity of the soil caused by cyclone Aila two years ago.Adding to their agony is the lack of manpower as the area has experienced large scale migration since the natural calamity.

Afghanistan faces economic downturn: Senate report

Afghanistan is at risk of a deep financial crisis when foreign troops leave in 2014 if the United States is unable to overhaul its multibillion—dollar package of nation—building assistance, according to a congressional report that comes as President Barack Obama weighs the size and scope of the initial phase of a U.S. troop drawdown.

Finance Ministry sets up another panel on black money

Facing flak from civil society for not doing enough to deal with the menace of black money, the government on Wednesday announced the setting up of another panel to suggest ways to trace tax defaulters, reveal their identity to the public and recover taxes.The committee, set up by Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) in the Finance Ministry, will also look into the possibility of putting the list of “chronic defaulters” in public domain.

Hegde says govt. ‘preventing’ drafting of Lokpal Bill

Karnataka Lokayukta and one of the members of the Joint Committee for drafting Jan Lokpal Bill, Justice Santosh Hegde, on Wednesday alleged that the Government was ‘preventing’ the drafting of a strong anti-corruption Bill.Asked about civil rights activist Anna Hazare’s statement that his fight was not against the government, but against the system, Justice Hegde said on the sidelines of a function here that now, “There has to be a fight against the Government itself” as it was “preventing” drafting of the Bill.

South Korea hands high-level job to North Korean defector

South Korea has handed a high—level job to a North Korean defector.Wednesday’s appointment of Cho Myung—chul to the government—run Education Centre for Unification is part of Seoul’s efforts to put more resources into teaching South Koreans to prepare for the eventual reunification of North and South. Inter—Korean projects have been languishing and Seoul is trying to focus on the potential costs of a unified Korean peninsula.Mr. Cho’s new job is the most prominent South Korean government post that a North Korean refugee has ever taken. Media reports say he taught at Pyongyang’s Kim Il Sung University and defected in 1994.

Courtesy : The Hindu

Cricket games in 3D

Nextwave Multimedia launches three cricket games in 3D, ‘World Cricket Championship', ‘Street Cricket' and ‘Beach Cricket'. With rich visuals, realistic animation and crisp camera movements, the game easily transports the gamer to the scene of action. It puts across the thrill, fun and high voltage drama of limited over cricket convincingly.