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Thu, 20 August 2015
FTII row: I&B team arrives in Pune, raises hope of solution

Timeline  Refresh

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23:45   FTII row: I&B team arrives in Pune, raises hope of solution
A three-member team of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry arrived here tonight, raising hopes of a possible resolution of the impasse at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), where the students'
strike for removal of TV actor and BJP member Gajendra Chauhan
as the chairman entered the 71st day.

Coming against the backdrop of unprecedented police crackdown on the campus and arrest of five students on Tuesday night, the delegation leader S M Khan (Registrar of Newspapers in India) said here, "The Ministry has constituted the committee to solve the issue at the earliest. We have come
with an open mind."

The committee members will be talking to the faculty, non teaching staff, students and the director tomorrow, he said.

"We will try to calm down the students as much as possible. I cannot comment on arrests," Khan told reporters, adding he was "optimistic about finding a solution".  

The director Prashant Pathrabe was not under any pressure, he said, when asked whether Pathrabe filed the police complaint leading to arrest of students on instructions from the ministry.
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23:09   4 rockets from Syria hit Israel, Golan: military
Four rockets fired from war-wracked Syria struck northern Israel and the occupied Golan Heights today, causing fires but no injuries, the
Israeli military and security sources said.

"Four rockets were launched from the Syrian Golan Heights, landing in the Upper Galilee and the Israeli Golan Heights," the military said in a statement. "No injuries have been reported."

Security sources said the rockets sparked fires.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon visited northern Israel on Tuesday to meet military officials.

Israel seized 1,200 square kilometres (460 square miles) of the Golan from neighbouring Syria in the 1967 Middle East war.
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22:49   Banks to remain closed on 2nd, 4th Saturdays
Bringing cheers to lakhs of bank  employees, the government has accepted the long-pending demand of workers to declare second and fourth Saturdays holidays, with effect from September 1. 

"The notification regarding Saturday off has come. It is effective from September 1," All India Bank Employees'  Association General Secretary C H Venkatachalam told  PTI. 

At present, all PSU and private sector banks work  half-day on Saturdays. 

This is a welcome move. This will be a big relief to  employees and I hope that this will improve the productivity  of employees," he said. 

In case of a month having five Saturdays, banks will be  closed only on second and fourth Saturdays.
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22:44   Former US president Jimmy Carter has cancer spots on his brain
Former US president and Nobel peace laureate Jimmy Carter announced today that doctors have found cancer spots on his brain and will begin radiation treatment immediately, saying he is "at ease with whatever comes."

Carter, 90, said doctors have found four spots of melanoma on his brain, and that he would immediately receive his first radiation treatment. 

"I'm perfectly at ease with whatever comes," he said. 

"They did an MRI and found that there were four spots of melanoma on my brain," Carter told reporters. 

"I get my first radiation treatment for the melanoma in my brain this afternoon." 

The cancer in Carter's liver was already removed during surgery. He said it was likely that more cancer will be found elsewhere in his body.
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22:24   Sodium cyanide levels well past limit at Tianjin explosion site
High levels of dangerous chemicals remain at the site of last week's deadly chemical warehouse blasts in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin -- hundreds of times higher than is safe at one spot -- officials said, signaling that a cleanup has a significant way to go. 

Water tests show high levels of sodium cyanide, an extremely toxic chemical that can kill humans rapidly, at eight locations at the blast site, Ministry of Environmental Protection official Tian Weiyong said.

The sodium cyanide level at one spot was 356 times higher than a safety limit, Tian said.
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22:13   Chinese mock global city rankings
Melbourne may have been named the world's "most liveable city" again but should it expect fierce competition from China next year?

"Not a chance", according to China's vocal netizens -- who have expressed scorn and scepticism about the Economist Intelligence Unit's improved rankings for Chinese cities in 2015.

According to the annual report, Beijing and other Chinese cities have climbed up the table "largely due to a lower threat from civil unrest". "Don't take this list seriously. The men who made it probably never lived in China," said a Weibo user.
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21:51   5 NSCN-K militants involved in Manipur ambush on army held
The army have arrested five insurgents of NSCN-Khaplang involved in the June 4 ambush of a military convoy in Manipur's Chandel district which killed 18 armed forces personnel, sources said. "Five members of the ambush team have been caught and the search for the remaining killers is on. All the above apprehended are being handed over to NIA for further investigation," an army source said. 

After the ambush, the worst such attack on the army in two decades, special teams were tasked to investigate the incident and crucial evidences were found, the sources said, adding that they were able to establish the identity of the perpetrators. 
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21:28   Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras 'to resign' today
The Greek prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, has decided to step down and call snap elections for September 20, government officials said. As the debt-crippled country received the first tranche of its new 86bn (approx Rs 6 lakh crore) bailout, Tsipras was set to make the formal announcement later.

Read full report HERE
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21:19   Feeling the heat: July was Earth's hottest month ever recorded
July was the hottest single month worldwide since records began in 1880, scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced. 

July is typically the hottest month of the year. Much of western and central Europe was extremely hot. Austria sweltered to its hottest month ever recorded in the country's 249-year period of records. Spain had its hottest month on record, while France had its third-warmest month.
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20:55   CSK approaches Madras HC against IPL suspension
The Chennai Super Kings, one of the two teams suspended from the IPL for two years, has challenged the Lodha Committee decision in Madras High Court and has sought a stay on it. 

In the affidavit, the company alleged that Lodha Committee order, on July 14, goes against the fundamental principles of natural justice and fair hearing, non-compliance of which is evident from a finding of the committee that the only task left to the committee was imposition of appropriate punishment on the franchise without going into the charges or the offence committed.

The Lodha panel, set up in January by the apex court to determine the quantum of punishment in the case, had also recommended life suspensions on Chennai Super Kings official Gurunath Meiyappan and Rajasthan Royals's Raj Kundra from all cricket-related activities.
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20:33   The reasons women dont join the police in India
The number of women in the ranks of India's police has risen significantly over the past decade. In 2014, there were more than 105,000 policewomen, or about 6 per cent of the total force, in India according to government figures. That's a higher proportion than in neighboring Pakistan (1 per cent) and Bangladesh (4.5 per cent ), but far behind levels in some Western countries.

Read the full report HERE
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20:24   Over 10,000 sign up in first 24 hrs for Modi's reception in US
Over 10,000 people have signed up in the first 24 hours of opening of the registration process to attend the community reception for Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Silicon Valley on September 27. 

Modi is scheduled to address Indian-Americans at the popular SAP Centre in San Jose. An indoor arena in the heart of Silicon Valley, the SAP Centre has a seating capacity of 18,000, which the organisers said given the enthusiasm among the Indian diaspora would be full to its capacity. 

"This is reflective of the great enthusiasm among Indian-Americans," said Khanderao Kand, convener of the Indo American Community of West Coast, created recently to organise the reception for the prime minister.
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19:56   Kashmir separatist Yasin Malik to skip Pak reception
Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chairman Yasin Malik will not attend Pakistan high commission's reception. He will, however, send a two-member team to represent him.

Kashmiri separatists have been invited to meet Pakistan's Sartaj Aziz on Sunday. They were placed under house arrest today, but were released hours later.

Aziz will arrive on Sunday in New Delhi for talks on terror with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. The invite to separatists to a reception for Aziz has left New Delhi fuming.

In what could stir more trouble, the Pakistan foreign office spokesperson said Aziz would "raise all issues including Kashmir", reports NDTV.  
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19:41   Bangkok suspects surrender, say they are tour guides
Two men identified as suspects in the Bangkok bombing have handed themselves in to police, insisting they are tour guides.

The pair were seen in security camera footage shortly before Monday's blast at the Erawan Shrine, reports BBC.

The men, in red and white T-shirts, rose from a bench shortly before the main suspect, in yellow, sat down and left behind his backpack.

The attack at the shrine killed 20 people and injured dozens.Officers are now questioning the pair.
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19:12   Pak cancels Commonwealth meet amid row over J&K Speaker's invite
Pakistan today announced that it will not host next month's Commonwealth Parliamentary Union meeting amid a row with India over its refusal to invite the Jammu and Kashmir assembly speaker for the conference.

India had threatened to boycott the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference to be held in Islamabad from September 30 to October 8 after it refused to invite Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Speaker Kavinder Gupta for the event.

The conference was to bring together speakers of Commonwealth nations in Islamabad. "We have clarified to the London secretariat of the Commonwealth that Kashmir is a disputed territory and now it is impossible for the Commonwealth Conference to be held in Pakistan," National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq told reporters.

He said the event will now be held in New York. "A detailed letter will be written to the CPA countries over the Kashmir dispute and the Kashmir issue will be raised on every forum of the Commonwealth," Sadiq said.
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18:16   Delhi gang-rape convict Vinay Sharma beaten up by Tihar inmates
Just in: Vinay Sharma, one of the men convicted in the 2012 Delhi gang-rape has been beaten up in Tihar jail. The rapist was allegedly attacked by other inmates.

Mukesh, Akshay, Pawan and Vinay have been lodged in Tihar. Mukesh shares a cell with Akshay Thakur in jail 5. The two others, Pawan Gupta and Vinay Sharma, have been lodged in jail 7, originally meant for adolescent convicts.



Jails 5 and 7 are high security jails and the men are not allowed to engage in any regular jail work other than cleaning their wards for security reasons.


The fast-track court, which began trial proceedings in the case on January 17, 2013, took just eight months to hand out death sentences to all the accused. For its part, the Delhi High Court heard the convicts' appeals and confirmed capital punishment for them, all of it within six months.


But the case is stuck ever since the convicts moved the apex court on March 15, 2014, two days after their sentence was upheld by the high court. The top court needs to further confirm their sentences after hearing their appeals.
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17:35  
Just in: CBI sends documents to Interpol for Red Corner notice against former IPL chief Lalit Modi. 
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17:25   Here's what's on the agenda for the NSA meet
Defending its decision not to call off the India-Pakistan NSA-level talks despite the neighbouring country courting Kashmiri separatist leaders, government today said that the meet will only focus on the issue of terror and ways to prevent it.


"This meeting is for talks on terror and the need to prevent it," Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said. He was asked to respond to Pakistan High Commission's invite to separatist leaders ahead of the National Security Adviser-level talks in New Delhi on Sunday.


"I would just like to remind that the agenda of the meeting was settled at the Ufa meeting between Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Nawaz Sharif. The first was the meeting between NSAs to talk on terror, including the exchange of voice samples of 26/11 (Mumbai terror attacks).


"Therefore, this meeting is for talks on terror and the need to prevent it," he said. The minister said that a structured briefing will come from the Ministry of External Affairs on the issue.
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17:19  
Coke promised her a date with Hrithik 15 years ago. Still waiting, she heads to court. Read
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17:10   Probe on former CBI chief may move to CVC
The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) is contemplating the hand over of the probe into former CBI chief Ranjit Sinha to either the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) or to a panel headed by Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi.

Sinha, when he was CBI director, had allegedly met people accused in the 2G and coal scandals at his official residence without the presence of investigating officers.



The probe is now being headed by former Special Director of CBI ML Sharma. The PMO feels that Sharma will now need more authorisation to head the probe. The Department of Personnel has moved a file to get the CVC's opinion and will then approach the Supreme Court to modify the order. In all probability Sharma is unlikely to continue with the probe. 
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16:58   29 injured in huge explosion rocks Egypt
At least 29 people, including six policemen, were injured when group linked to the dreaded Islamic State militants carried out a powerful car bomb attack near a key police building in the Egyptian capital, officials said today.

The powerful blast rocked the popular Shubra el-Kheima neighbourhood in northern Shubra district in the middle of the night. Most of the injured suffered minor injuries, a doctor told the state news agency. The explosion was caused by a car bomb and was heard by many people from different areas in Cairo and Giza.
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16:57   Creepy or cool?
This picture of the late Princess Diana cooing over her granddaughter Princess Charlotte during her christening, has gone viral since it was uploaded onto Facebook. It has also divided the internet on whether it's creepy or touching. Be that as it may, it's certainly some impressive Photoshop work.
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16:20   Become so unafraid that your existence becomes rebellion: Guj IPS Sanjiv Bhatt
If the Gujarat government believed it could break former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt, by sacking him yesterday, his reaction proves otherwise.

Bhatt reacted to the termination of his service order saying, "It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong. And all the more dangerous when the government is diabolically devious as well."


The Gujarat-cadre officer claimed that he was removed "after conducting a sham, ex-parte inquiry on completely fabricated charges of unauthorised absence from duty." Down but not out, the IPS officer claimed that he has enjoyed every moment of his journey in the service.

On August 17, the Gujarat government issued Bhatt a show-cause notice over a video purportedly showing him with a woman. It sought his explanation for allegedly having extra-marital relationship; Bhatt denied that the man in the video was him and tweeted, :The only way to deal with a vindictive government is to become so absolutely unafraid that your very existence becomes an act of rebellion."


Then, yesterday, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) dismissed the suspended IPS officer for "remaining defiant and flagrantly flouting the rules with complete disregard" as all the 11 charges levelled against him by the Gujarat government were proved in an ex-parte inquiry conducted by the Gujarat government.

Bhatt posted this message on his Facebook page, in response to the sacking order:

"Many friends have been asking me for my reaction on my removal from the Indian Police Service. All I have to say is that, at the age of 24, with a passion and fire that still continues to rage in me, I chose the Indian Police Service because I saw it as a career that would add action and purpose to my life. And I have not been disappointed one bit. In fact, I have enjoyed every moment of the last 27 years in the IPS.

"The Government of the day has decided to remove me from service after conducting a sham, ex parte inquiry on completely fabricated charges of 'unauthorised absence from duty'.


"Mind you, this so-called 'unauthorised absence from duty' pertains to the period when I was deposing before the SIT (investigating into the Zakia Jafri complaint) and the Nanavati Commission (inquiring into the Gujarat riots). Be that as it may, the bottom-line is that if the Government of the day does not require my services...so be it.


"I pray to God that He may continue to kindle and stoke the passion and fire that has possessed me all these years. May He continue to lead me in my just pursuits."


In a four-page termination order dated August 13, the MHA has noted: "Shri Sanjiv Bhatt had remained defiant and flagrantly flouted the rules with complete disregard to the discipline which should otherwise have been the hallmark of an officer of the uniformed force."


Bhatt has been under suspension since 2011, soon after he took on the Gujarat state government and then Chief Minister Narendra Modi over the 2002 riots in the state. But his claims were rejected by the Special Investigation Team appointed by the Supreme Court to probe nine riots related cases.


He also tweeted: Finally removed from service today after serving 27 years in the Indian Police Service. Once again eligible for employment. :) Any takers?
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15:57   Bihar package is to launch, finish non-started works: Centre
Rejecting criticism that the massive Rs 1.25 lakh crore Bihar package is a rehash of existing schemes, the Centre today said it involves major additional outlays beyond the normal flow of central funds in which every scheme is a new work.


Necessary provisions for the schemes will be included in the budgets in the coming years, highly placed sources said, contradicting claims that no source of funding has been identified nor budgetary provisions made in the package announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
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15:41  
Katrina Kaif in Jackie Chan's next! Read
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15:04   Onion prices shoot up to year's highest of Rs 80 per kilo
Onion price at Lasalgoan in Maharashtra -- Asia's biggest wholesale market for onions -- on Monday rose to Rs 80 per kg, the highest so far this year, due to sluggish supply of the crop. The current wholesale price is higher than the average rate of Rs 36.94 per kg and Rs 16.10 per kg that prevailed in August 2013 and 2014, respectively.


Prices of onion in the retail market shot up to nearly Rs 80 in few areas of Delhi, despite the city governments attempt to control its prices by selling it at Rs 30 from its Fair Price Shops.


The government on Tuesday asked state-run trading company MMTC to import 10,000 tonnes of onion. It has also directed cooperative Nafed to cancel its tender. NAFED had re-invited bids for import of 10,000 tonnes of onions from countries like Pakistan, China and Egypt after it failed to attract any supplier in the previous tender. The bids required to be submitted before August 27.

Onion prices are on rise due to mismatch in supply and demand. A similar trend prevails in other parts of the country.


Traders said prices are under pressure due to production fall and sluggish supply of stored onions meant for meeting the demand during the lean period of July-September. Anticipating further rise in prices, farmers and traders are also withholding stocks in Maharashtra, the country's top onion producing state and are releasing limited quantities for sale in the wholesale market, they added.


As of now, less than 30 lakh tonnes of stored onion is left in the domestic market to cater the demand till September.


The total onion production is estimated to be at 189 lakh tonnes in 2014-15 crop year (July-June), slightly lower than 194 lakh tonnes in the year-ago period.


Maharashtra, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh are the top three onion producing states in the country.


Onion prices were regarded as the decisive factor in the 1998 state elections in Delhi and Rajasthan, and were responsible for bringing down the central government in 1980. India is the second largest onion producer in the world, after China.
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14:51   Ashwani Lohani is Air India's new chief
Just in: Indian Railway Service officer Ashwani Lohani to be next Air India chief. He will take over from Rohit Nandan. 
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14:38   Is frequent flyer Modi overdoing it?
How much money has the Modi government already spent and is going to spend on all those foreign trips, muses Sunita Iyer/Rediff.com. Read
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14:24  
Firing in Hyderabad's Jubilee Hills. Senior police officials rush to the spot.
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14:11   Swachh? Not quite
A 'Swachh-er Bharat' perhaps; but not quite. At least that is what meets the eye if one takes on the task of conducting a reality check on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nationwide cleanliness initiative -- that too in his government's own backyard. Read
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14:07   Saddened as a Bihari that Nitish did not thank PM for Bihar package: RS Prasad
Just in: BJP's Ravi Shankar Prasad says, "I am saddened as a Bihari, that let alone appreciate, Nitishji did not even thank PM for Bihar package."


Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Rs 1.25 lakh crore largesse was an attempt to woo the electorate by repackaging previously promised projects denied to the state over 15 months.


I ask where is the budgetary provision for the special package? There is no clarity on when and how it would take off. A supplementary budget can be brought but not before November. So, what does it all mean? Kumar questioned.


He said the package was just skilful jugglery and likened it to the BJPs previous promise of depositing Rs 15-20 lakh in each Indians bank account by bringing back black money from abroad. 


I say check again. Your facts are awry. Was it not central agencies that withheld funds for Bihar, making for their tardy implementation? Kumar questioned, replying to the PMs charge of underutilisation of funds by Bihar.


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14:01   US hopeful of successful Indo-Pak NSA talks
Ahead of crucial NSA-level talks between India and Pakistan, the US today hoped that the two national security advisors would address all bilateral issues, including "disputed" Kashmir, in a direct manner and come up with a common approach to resolve them.


"We support peaceful engagement (between India and Pakistan) to resolve any kind of issues - territorial issues or other issues. We look forward to hopefully a very successful round of talks and an ongoing political dialogue between India and Pakistan," Peter R Lavoy, Special Assistant to the president and Senior Director for South Asian Affairs at the National Security Council of the White House, told PTI.


Lavoy, who is the top White House official on South Asian issues, said the US has concerns when countries start addressing their disputes through violence as opposed to peaceful discussions.
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13:56   The need for restraint in Kashmir
More than 50 years after India and Pakistan were created in the partition of the British colonial empire, the disputed region of Kashmir remains a dangerous flash point. Cross-border violence has surged in recent months, raising new fears that the attacks could spiral out of control and set off another war between the two nuclear-armed adversaries.


Read the The New York Times editorial here
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13:31   Remembering Rajiv
Home minister Rajnath Singh tweets: "Paid homage to former prime minister Late Rajiv Gandhi on his birth anniversary today."


Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, Finance minister Arun Jaitley, Sonia Gandhi, senior BJP leader LK Advani and former PM Dr Manmohan Singh also paid tribute. Rajiv Gandhi would have been 71 today. 


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13:23   Foreign terrorist groups' role unlikely in temple blast: Thai
Thailand today said the attack at a popular temple in Bangkok that killed 20 people was "unlikely" to have links with international terrorist groups, as it sought help from global intelligence agencies to arrest the three suspects believed to be part of a 10-member network.


"The security agencies have collaborated with intelligence agencies from a lot of countries and have come to the same preliminary conclusion that the incident is unlikely to be linked to international terrorism," Thai junta spokesman Col. Winthai Suvaree said.


Nobody has claimed responsibility for the attack at the Erawan Brahma temple, one of the most popular tourist attractions in Bangkok, that killed 20 people, including five Chinese, and injured more than 100 others on Monday night.
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12:48   FTII strike: Students seek PM's intervention to resolve row
Striking FTII students today called for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intervention in resolving the 71-day-old crisis in the premier institute over the appointment of TV actor and BJP member Gajendra Chauhan as its chairman.


"Prime Minister should visit FTII to resolve the issues. All students in the country are feeling threatened by the government's insensitivity towards the problems being faced by them. The students should strike hard and strong if this continues", representative of the FTII Students' Association (FSA) Vikas Urs said.


Five students, including Urs, were arrested on charges of rioting after the institute's director Prashant Pathrabe was was confined to his chamber, following which the government formed a team of senior I&B department officials to resolve the impasse.


The students were released on bail by a Pune court yesterday. A striking student said, "We are very curious to see with what agenda they (the officials) are coming with. We are clueless. The students' body has not been told that the delegation is coming...We are hearing everything from the media. We are still expecting a good dialogue."
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12:43   J&K govt releases ALL separatist leaders after 2-hour detention
In a quick U-turn, the Jammu and Kashmir government released all three separatist leaders after putting them under house arrest for two hours.

The J&K police has released separatist leader Yasin Malik, the Chairman of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, the  Chairman of the Awami Action Committee and hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani. While Malik was detained at a Srinagar police station, Mirwaiz and Geelani were placed under house arrest.

The move comes a day after Pakistan invited them to a 'reception party' at the Pakistani embassy in Delhi with Sartaj Aziz, the neighbouring country's national security adviser.  Aziz was invited to New Delhi for the NSA-level talks as decided at Ufa.


The Hurriyat leaders had accepted the invitation and said they would meet Aziz to discuss their issues. Following their release from detention, the separatists are likely to meet the Pakistani NSA on Sunday.


Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah criticised the government move in this tweet: "I've never seen an Indo-Pak dialogue where both sides are so keen to sabotage it. India & Pak competing to give reasons to call off talks." 


Pic: A police van blocks the entrance of Syed Ali Shah Geelani this morning. The hardline separatist leader was released after being put under house arrest for two hours. Photo: Umar Ganie

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12:18   Talking terror to Pakistan only agenda of Sunday's meeting
India is going into the National Security Adviser-level talks on Sunday, August 23, with full awareness that Pakistan is doing its best to wriggle out of the commitment made at Ufa when the two prime ministers met in July.

Top government sources privy to India's approach at the talks say New Delhi has decided to go ahead with the commitment to have talks on terror despite grave Pakistani provocations. Read more
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12:14   Property prices must fall, Raghuram Rajan tells developers
Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan on Thursday made a case for reduction in property prices given the high inventory of unsold flats across the country. "If real estate developers, who are sitting on unsold stocks, start bringing down prices, that will be a big help to the sector because once there is a sense that the prices have stabilized more people will be willing to buy," Dr Rajan said.  Read more
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11:55   Will not disrupt Indo-Pak talks, say Separatists under house arrest
In the aftermath of the house arrests of the three Jammu and Kashmir Separatist leaders today, the moderate All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) chief Mirwaiz Umar Farooq  has said that Separatists have no intention of disrupting talks between India and Pakistan. Speaking to TV channels immediately after the arrest, Mirwaiz said it is in the interest of Kashmir that the talks go on.  


Sending out a strong message to Islamabad, India has placed Kashmiri separatists who had been invited for talks with Pakistan's National Security Advisor Sartaz Aziz, under house arrest. The Separatists were to meet the Pakistani NSA ahead of talks with the Indian counterpart Ajit Doval on Sunday.


The police detained Separatist Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chairman Mohammad Yasin Malik and have lodged him in the Kothibagh police station in uptown Srinagar.


Mirwaiz Farooq was put under house arrest, while hardline separatist leader, Syed Ali Shah Geelani was interred at his uptown Hyderpora residence.


All the three leaders had been invited to New Delhi by the Pakistan high commissioner, Abdul Basit.
 

Early this morning, policemen in larger numbers were moved to the residences of the Separatists to prevent their movement outside their homes.


Sources said police also raided the residence of Dukhtarani Milat chief, Asiya Andrabi this morning. However, she was in her house at the time of the police raid.

Mukhtar Ahmad/Rediff.com in Srinagar.


Pic: Yasin Malik, chairman JKLF, being taken to the police station. 
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11:43  
Separatist leader Yasin Malik has been arrested and taken to the Maisuma police station in Srinagar. 

Kashmiri separatist leaders Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq have already been put under house arrest today.  The move comes a day after Pakistan invited them to a 'reception party' at the Pakistani embassy in Delhi with Sartaj Aziz, the neighbouring country's national security adviser. 

The Hurriyat leaders had accepted the invitation and said they would meet Aziz to discuss their issues. 


Mirwaiz Umar has said the Separatists have no intention of disrupting talks and it is in the interest of Kashmir that the talks go on. 



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11:30   The wages of Uphaar sin
17 Years parents got to spend with daughter; 18 Years parents spent pursuing the case; 5+ Months Brothers Ansal spent in jail. Telegraph profiles the family who pursued the Uphaar case. Read 
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11:30   Hope for Uphaar victims? SC allows CBI to file review petition
Just in: Uphaar tragedy: The Supreme Court gives the CBI more time to argue the case and file a review petition. The CBI had sought 30 minutes from the SC to argue points that had been missed out. The SC refused permission but asked the CBI to file a review petition. The CBI has argued that the Ansals should go to jail.

Yesterday, real estate barons Sushil and Gopal Ansal escaped being jailed in the 18-year-old Uphaar Cinema fire tragedy in which 59 people died with the Supreme Court asking them to pay a fine of Rs 30 crore each and restricting their jail term to the period already undergone by them.


Overturning the pleas of the CBI and the victims' association, a three-judge bench of Justices A R Dave, Kurian Joseph and Adarsh Kumar Goel asked them to pay the total fine of Rs 60 crore in three months and deposit it with the Delhi government, which in turn will spend the money on welfare schemes.


While Sushil, 76, had spent over five months in prison, 67-year-old Gopal was in jail for over four months immediately after the tragedy.


The bench rejected the submissions of senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for CBI, that the convicts be sent to jail to serve the remaining jail term.

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10:41   Kashmiri separatists invited for talks by Pak under house arrest
Kashmiri Separatist leaders, who were invited by Pakistan to meet its National Security Advisor Sartaj Aziz when he comes to India for the NSA-level talks, were placed under house arrest by the Jammu and Kashmir government on Thursday.

Separatists Yasin Malik, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Syed Ali Shah Geelani were placed under house arrest in Srinagar on Thursday morning.

Pakistan's invitation to the separatists is being seen as a move designed to provoke India, but sources say the government will not call off the talks with Sartaz Aziz. 

They had said that India "has a surprise for Pakistan in the talks" but did not elaborate. 

Last July, India called off talks after Pakistan consulted Kashmiri separatists before a meeting of Foreign Secretaries. 
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10:04   Top general says India pounding Pak posts to cause casualties
Hindustan Times reports: A top army officer said on Wednesday the Indian Army was pounding Pakistani positions along the Line of Control (LoC) with explosives to cause enemy casualties in retaliation to ceasefire violations by the neighbour.

Days ahead of the NSA-level talks on August 23-24, Nagrota-based 16 Corps commander Lieutenant General RR Nimbhorkar told Hindustan Times: "Our job is to make them suffer casualties, otherwise they will merrily escalate hostilities. We are responding with overwhelming firepower to stop them in their tracks."

He said Pakistan-provoked military escalation in the Jammu region had spread fighting to a 114-km expanse of the LOC and forced the Indian Army to adopt a muscular stance.

Read more HERE

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09:29   Three-member government team set to visit FTII campus today
A day after the arrest drama at the Film and Television Institute of India, a team from the Centre is slated to visit the campus on Thursday. A three-member team of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry is slated to go to Pune to study the situation and talk to students and authorities.

This comes after five students of the institute, who were arrested on Wednesday, were granted bail against a surety of Rs 3000, even as 12 others filed for anticipatory bail.

Meanwhile, following the release of a video where FTII director Prashant Pathrabe was seen allegedly being cornered manhandled, the students released a fresh video claiming the contrary.

Speaking to CNN-IBN about the row, noted filmmaker and former FTII chairperson Shyam Benegal disapproved of the strike, urging the students to resume their classes. 

Condemning the police action inside the campus, the veteran filmmaker also offered to mediate between the authorities and the students.
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08:48   Government says Rahul derailed FTII talks
India Today reports: It's not clear how much Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi knows about the grand epic Mahabharata -- he's an "expert without knowledge" after all, as Arun Jaitley said -- but his decision to take on Gajendra 'Yudhisthira' Chauhan has certainly made things messy at the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune. 

Rahul's interference in the FTII tussle has scuttled the possibility of an amicable settlement of the two month-old students' protest, said top government sources.

The students have been protesting against the Union government's decision to appoint Chauhan as the chairman of FTII governing council. 

The Congress vice-president added a political colour by targeting the Modi government over Chauhan's appointment and blamed the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh for promoting "mediocrity" at premier institutes of the country. 

Since that interjection, the stalemate is not showing any sign of ending, and on Tuesday several FTII students had to be arrested.

Read more HERE

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08:42   Results of Rajasthan civic bodies' polls today
The results of the 129 civic bodies' polls, to be announced today, will be a political test for the Vasundhara Raje government which has been embroiled in Lalit Modi controversy over the past few months.

While, the BJP exuded confidence that it would sweep the polls, the Congress said the results would be in its favour due to the "wrong doings" of the state government. 

Counting began at 8 am in the 129 civic bodies which had gone to polls on August 17, witnessing 76.05 per cent turnout.

The results would be declared by evening. 

BJP President Ashok Parnami said the higher voter turnout showed that people endorsed the development works carried out by the state government. 

Dismissing Lalitgate controversy, however, Parnami said tomorrow's result would be in Raje's favour and would be self-evidentary.

Meanwhile, PCC President Sachin Pilot said that the results would be in Congress' favour simply due to the "wrong doings" of Raje government in last 21 months of its rule. 
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08:42   Wickremesinghe to be sworn-in as Sri Lanka's new PM today
Incumbent Ranil Wickremesinghe will be sworn-in as Sri Lanka's new Prime Minister today, returning to the office for a fourth term after his party won the closely contested general election.

Wickremesinghe's United National Party (UNP) coalition won 106 seats in Monday's parliamentary election, just 7 short of a simple majority in the 225-member assembly but enough to form a government.

66-year-old veteran reformist was handpicked by President Maithripala Sirisena to lead a minority government after the ouster of longtime president Mahinda Rajapaksa in January. 

A group of Sirisena supporters is likely to join a broad-based national unity government led by Wickremesinghe.

Wickremesinghe became prime minister for the first time in May 1993, when a suicide bomber assassinated president Ranasinghe Premadasa. He got his second chance in 2002, when he was credited with pulling the country out of recession. 
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08:41   India hope for improved show in Sangakkara's farewell game
Handed an unexpected thrashing in the opening game, India would look to plug their loopholes and get their team combination right even as Sri Lanka eye a series winning farewell for their iconic batsman Kumar Sangakkara in the second cricket Test starting in Colombo today.

The visitors dominated the first Test in Galle, yet ended up on the losing side, going down by 63 runs after having the hosts on the mat for a major part of the game. 

Despite all talk of aggression and winning attitude, when it mattered most, the Indian players failed to bring up the goods with both bat and ball. 

Middle-order batsman Dinesh Chandimal's counter-attacking hundred was not the first of its kind, yet the team was unresponsive and didn't have a plan C after their plans A and B failed.

While batting, they collapsed under pressure to quality spin bowling, just like they had done against the likes of Moeen Ali and Nathan Lyon on the English and Australian tours respectively.

In nine Tests on those two tours, Indian batsmen conceded 42 wickets to two spinners. With the addition of 15 more wickets in the Galle Test, it makes for a staggering 57 wickets to spinners in just 10 matches outside India (not counting the drawn Bangladesh Test).
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03:50   160 dead in Boko Haram massacre in Nigeria
The number of villagers massacred by Boko Haram jihadists in a remote village in northeastern Nigeria rose to 160 on Wednesday, according to locals, as the military rejected accounts of the attack.

Read this story HERE
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03:40   Putin takes dive in submersible, stirs up Ukrainian anger
Russian President Vladimir Putin has burnished his "action man" credentials with a new telegenic adventure: descending to the bottom of the sea in a submersible.

And he didn't miss the chance to make a political point with his latest feat. The submersible was launched Tuesday from the port of Sevastopol in Crimea -- Ukrainian territory that has been occupied by Russia for over a year.

Read this story HERE
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03:27   What you need to know about Queen Elizabeth II's reign
On Sept. 23, 1896, Queen Victoria became the longest-reigning monarch in British history, overtaking her grandfather, King George III, who had been on the throne for 59 years, 96 days.

"Today is the day on which I have reigned longer by a day than any English sovereign,' Victoria wrote in her journal.

Read this story HERE
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02:59   Russia sentences Estonia 'spy' to 15 years in prison
Russia sentenced an Estonian security officer to 15 years in prison for spying in the latest in a series of politically charged trials.

A regional court in the western Russian city of Pskov handed down the ruling Wednesday, finding Eston Kohver guilty of spying, arms smuggling and violating border regulations.

Read this story HERE
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02:58   Google went public 11 years ago today
Google's stock has been, historically, one of the best performers in the stock market over the last decade. But 11 years ago to this day, Google's IPO was considered a disappointment.

Read this story HERE
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02:56   Earthquake hits Mandi in Himachal Pradesh
A slight intensity earthquake measuring 4 on the Richter scale hit Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh late tonight.

According to the Meteorological department, the earthquake hit the region at around 12:48 am.

The epicentre of the quake was latitude 31.7 degree North and longitude 77 degree East. No report of any damage to property came till the last reports came in.
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02:08   2 Indians pitted against Miss World for SAfrican of Year title
Two internationally-recognised South Africans of Indian origin in hugely divergent fields have been pitted against current Miss World Roelene Strauss among seven candidates nominated by public vote for the title 'South African of the Year'.

Imtiaz Sooliman is the founder and chairman of Gift of the Givers Foundation, a relief organisation which has received international accolades for its immediate relief assistance in 41 countries across the globe hit by war or natural disasters for the past two decades.

Professor Salim Abdool Karim is a South African clinical epidemiologist and the director of the Centre for the AIDS Program of Research in South Africa. He also serves as pro-vice-chancellor at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
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01:39   ISIS beheads archaeology 'pioneer' Khaled al-Asaad in Palmyra
ISIS militants beheaded one of Syria's most prominent antiquities scholars in the ancient town of Palmyra, then strapped his body from one of the town's Roman columns, Syrian state media and an activist group said Wednesday.

Read this story HERE
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01:10   Uber suspends accounts of driver/passenger after altercation
Online taxi firm Uber cabs, embroiled in controversies over misconduct by its drivers with women passengers, today said it has suspended the accounts of a passenger and a driver following an alleged fracas involving them which led to traffic jam for nearly two hours in the city.

"We have suspended both the passenger and driver account until further investigation. If either party wishes to file a complaint with the police, we are happy to assist in the investigation," a company spokesperson said in a statement.

A source in Uber said no police complaint, however, had been filed and the matter had been settled between the driver and the woman passenger.
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00:40   Oscar Pistorius to stay behind bars -- for now
The indignation '" and jubilation - over the planned prison release of South African athlete Oscar Pistorius was just ramping up when an unusual Justice Ministry intervention cut it short Wednesday.

The ministry announced that Pistorius, who killed his girlfriend in 2013, will remain behind bars for now.

Read this story HERE
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00:05   Bangkok attack: Attacker is part of network, says police
The bomb attack that killed 20 people at Bangkok's Erawan shrine on Monday was carried out by a "network", Thailand's chief of police has said.

The police have released a sketch of the main suspect, a man in a yellow T-shirt who was filmed by security cameras leaving a backpack at the shrine.

Read this story HERE

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