LIVE! Stephen's announces first cut-off list; English highest at 99 pc

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Sat, 18 June 2016

Stephen's announces first cut-off list; English highest at 99 pc

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23:29

JUST IN: Euro 2016: Hungary draw 1-1 with Iceland, top Group F with four points from two games.

23:23 Stephen's announces first cut-off list; English highest at 99 pc

Delhi University's prestigious St Stephen's College on Saturday announced the first cut-off list for the 2016-17 academic session with the highest requirement being for English honours at 99 per cent even as the institution saw a dip in the number of applications this year.

The cut-off for admission to the college remained almost similar to that of the previous year.

The college had last year received a record 32,100 applications but this year only 23,500 have been received for the 400 seats.

The cut-off for a seat in the Stephen's English Honours class works out to 99 per cent for Commerce, 98 per cent for Science and 97.50 per cent for humanities, the highest for the subjects on offer at the college.

For Economics, the cut-off is 98.25 per cent for commerce students, 97.25 per cent for science and 96.75 per cent for humanities.

For History, BA Programme, Mathematics, Sanskrit and Philosophy, the cut-offs are 98, 97, 96.50, 80 and 97 per cent respectively.

Last year too, the highest cut-off was for English at 99 per cent. However, the cut-offs for BA programme, Economics and Maths have actually dropped for certain streams this year.

Stephen's being a minority institution follows a schedule and procedure for admission which is different from other Delhi University colleges.

But for the first time, the college was asked to join the centralised registration process and hence those applying to St Stephen's had to register on DU's admission portal first.

23:20 Rajan exits, who's next?

As Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan formally declared that he won't take up second term in the office, some media channels have claimed that the government has shortlisted probable candidates to replace the central banker.

Here are likely names for the post of RBI governor:

Rakesh Mohan, Urjit Patel, Subir Gokarn, Arundhati Bhattacharya, Kaushik Basu and Parthasarathi Shome

A heavily pregnant woman and her husband have become latest victims of suspected honour killing in Pakistan, just a day after another pregnant woman was killed by her own mother in the same Punjab province for

contracting marriage against parents' will.

Muhammad Shakil, 30, and his wife Aqsa, 26, were allegedly killed for 'honour' by the latter's brother who had recently returned from Saudi Arabia.

Shakil, who worked at a government school in Faisalabad, had been married four years with Aqsa, who worked as a lady health visitor in Rural Health Centre.

Three days ago Aqsa's brother along with her mother, maternal uncle and another accomplice barged into the couple's house, mercilessly beating them and afterwards took the couple to an unidentified location and shot them, the Express Tribune reported.

There bodies were recovered from Gujra-Jang Branch canal on Thursday night.

Thikriwala Police Station has registered a case in this regard after a complaint by Shakil's father, Khushi Muhammad.

An autopsy revealed that the deceased were killed by gun fires on their head. Visible marks of injuries were also found on their bodies.

The postmortem report also showed that Aqsa was pregnant and was to deliver a baby in four days, the report said.

Asserting that Aligarh Muslim University is not a minority institution, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on Saturday said the varsity is committing a "big crime" by not implementing the policy of reservation for SCs, STs and OBCs.

RSS joint general secretary Krishna Gopal said the National Democratic Alliance government's stand on the issue of AMU's minority status was in sync with that of previous governments, barring the United Progressive Alliance dispensation, and an order by the apex court in 1968.

The NDA government had told the Supreme Court in April that it would withdraw the appeal filed by the erstwhile UPA government challenging the Allahabad high court verdict holding AMU as non-minority institution.

"The Centre took the stand which was the position of Maulana Azad, (HRD Minister) M C Chagla, (Saiyid) Nurul Hasan. At that time, all the (then) three Prime Ministers Jawharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri and Indira Gandhi were also there. Our stand is similar to the decision of the Supreme Court. We did not change the decision, it was done in 2005 by the UPA.

"So, the present central government has not taken any new decision. They have taken the same decision which was given by a bench of five judges of the Supreme Court in 1968. It's the same decision taken by the Constituent Assembly, which had Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, Maulana Azad and several Muslim leaders," Gopal said.

He was speaking on a day-long workshop on 'National Reservation Policy and Aligarh Muslim University', which was attended by several BJP MPs and MLAs.

The issue assumes significance as BJP is raising the issue in view of Uttar Pradesh assembly polls where the party is seeking to repeat its Lok Sabha performance when it won 71 of the state's 80 seats.

'Mission Madukkarai Maharaj' to capture a rogue elephant which has been creating panic among people of Madukkarai and nearby areas for the last one year officially got underway today.

Officials from the forest and animal husbandry departments, anti poaching squad and police commenced the operation today, forest department sources said.

The principal chief conservator of forests in Chennai had ordered to tranquilise and translocate the pachyderm,which had killed at least three persons and destroyed lakhs of Rupees worth agricultural produce.

Four kumkis (tamed and trained elephants) were brought from various camps in Tamil Nadu in the last one week and test trials carried out on how to take the problematic elephant to the wooden kraal and from there to lorry for translocating.

However, the officials faced a big problem as the elephant was seen with two other pachderms and moving around in different areas, including those in neighbouring Kerala.

Meanwhile officials got information that some elephants had entered a farm and destroyed banana plantations early today in Ettimadai, some five km from the place of operations.

The officials are optimistic they can capture the elephant within 78 hours, as they are sure to zero in the location of elephants in another 48 hours.

However, the question was how the rogue elephant could be identified for tranquilising it, they said.

21:30 'PM Modi doesn't need experts like Rajan'

Rahul Gandhi has attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan's decision to not to take a second term.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi knows everything. He has no need for experts like Raghuram Rajan," said Rahul.

"Thank you Dr Rajan for steering the economy in difficult times. People like you make India great," he added.

Kin of the 2002 Gulberg Society massacre victims and eye-witnesses on Saturday contested a special court's conclusion that firing by former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri acted as a catalyst for mob fury.

While Jafri's son Tanvir said that court has relied on a "totally false" evidence, kin of some other victims said that the firing by him was done in "self defence". One of the witnesses in the case even said that there was no firing by Jafri, which he had testified before the court.

In its order given on Friday, special court judge P B Desai said that the firing by Jafri, which killed one person, provoked and infuriated the mob that led it to the "killing frenzy", but asserted that the firing cannot condone the acts of the mob.

"It was the private firing by Shri Ehsan Jafri that acted as a catalyst and which infuriated the mob to such an extent that it went out of control, the limited police force available there had no means to control or disperse such mob, which had gathered in large numbers post the incident of private firing," the court said in its order.

However, Tanvir and some eyewitnesses on Saturday questioned the conclusion drawn by the judge.

"We are not at all in agreement with the judgement, wherein the court said that the private firing of Ehsan Jafri provoked mob into a killing frenzy. The court has relied on some evidence, which is totally false," Tanvir said.

"Defence lawyer could not present a single witness who could testify to the fact that they saw Jafri saheb firing from his gun. They referred to a statement by someone who is both a victim and witness, who said in his statement before the police that Jafri saheb fired from his gun. He was not even presented to testify before the court," he added.

Saed Khan Pathan, who lost his entire family in the Gulberg carnage, said that the firing by Jafri was in self defence after a huge mob had gathered outside the society.

In a blistering attack on Donald Trump, Indian-American California Attorney General Kamala Harris has said the presumptive Republican presidential nominee has an "unstable temperament" and his dangerous policy

positions make him "unfit" for holding a public office.

All set to become the first Senator of Indian-origin this year, Harris said, "Donald Trump is doubling down on his outrageous, dangerous rhetoric."

"Most recently, he called for a ban on all Muslim immigrants and accused Muslim American communities of hiding terrorists," Harris said in an email to her supporters.

Harris is running for the United States Senate from California, a Democratic bastion.

Herself being a Democrat and a close friend of US President Barack Obama, her victory in the November general elections is considered a foregone conclusion by political pundits.

In her email, Harris slammed Trump for his recent rhetoric.

20:22 Only 15% water left in 91 major reservoirs

The slow progress of the monsoon has meant water storage in 91 major reservoirs has dipped further and overall availability stands at just 15% of capacity. This has not only hit initial kharif sowing but also availability of drinking water.

Though the area under kharif will increase once rains sweep the entire country over the next few weeks, the current water shortages have shrunk the total area under rice, pulses, oilseeds and other crops, except sugarcane.

As on Friday, the sown area under kharif crops was 10% less than that in the same period last year.

Water levels in key reservoirs dipped from 26.81 billion cubic metres on May 26, to 23.78 BCM on June 16.

International referee Angela Rajan Naik has been appointed a member of the Referee Committee of the Commonwealth Taekwondo Union.

Naik is the first Indian to receive this appointment.

"I will always keep India's flag flying high at the National and International arena, be it as a player or international referee. I have worked hard to reach where I am today with my discipline and dedication for the Korean Martial Art Taekwondo, since its introduction in Goa in 1986," Naik, who celebrates her birthday today, said.

In September, 2015, Naik became the first Indian to be inducted into The Official International Taekwondo Hall of Fame held at Croatia.

She was named the Best International Referee at the 2016 Qatar Open.

She is also the first Indian female Grandmaster with 7th Degree Black Belt in Taekwondo, Kukkiwon, Korea.

She has been a Gold Medalist at the Commonwealth Taekwondo Championship.

The Goa-based international referee has represented India as a player since 1990, and has refereed three World Championships and four Asian Championships.

The southwest monsoon that set over Kerala on June 8 is gathering force with rains expected to become progressively heavier until next Wednesday, Indian Meteorological Department said on Saturday.

The monsoon further advanced into remaining parts of Rayalaseema and Bay of Bengal, most parts of coastal Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Sikkim and some parts of Odisha, Jharkhand and Bihar, said an IMD statement.

It said conditions are favourable for further advancement of the southwest monsoon, over the next two to three days, into the remaining parts of central Arabian Sea, entire Konkan, Goa, some parts of central Maharashtra, Marathwada, Vidarbha, Chhattisgarh and East Madhya Pradesh, remaining parts of North interior Karnataka, Coastal Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Gangetic West Bengal, entire Telangana and some more parts of Jharkhand and Bihar.

19:19 Rajan realised he won't get second term: Swamy

BJP MP Subramanian Swamy, who demanded sacking of RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, today said his decision not to take a second term was good because he has realised he would not get another tenure.

"It (Rajan's decision) is good. The reasons I had given (against Rajan's continuance) were all valid. He has realised he would not get a second term. That's why he has made a statement himself," Swamy said reacting to Rajan's decision.

Earlier in the day, the newly-nominated Rajya Sabha member, who has been running a strident campaign against Rajan, had said the Reserve Bank head is a government employee and is not selected on the basis of popular vote.

"Raghuram Rajan is an employee of the Government of India. We don't select employees on the basis of popular vote," he said.

In a series of letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Swamy had demanded sacking of Rajan, arguing that he is not "fully mentally Indian" and had been sending confidential and sensitive financial information around the world.

Rajan, in a letter to RBI employees today, said that he would go back to Chicago to continue his academic career after completion of his three-year term as central bank chief on September 4.

The government appreciates good work done by RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan and respects his decision, said Finance Minister Arun Jaitley after Rajan said no to a second term in the post.

"A decision on successor of Rajan would be announced shortly," said Jaitley

Top industry leaders today said Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan's decision not to take a second term will be "nation's loss" as he brought economic stability and enhanced India's credibility on the world stage.

India Inc led by Anand Mahindra, Deepak Parekh, NR Narayana Murthy, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Mohandas Pai hoped that Rajan's successor will continue with the 'good work' he did, although industry chambers CII and FICCI declined to comment.

Reacting to the development, Mahindra & Mahindra Chairman Anand Mahindra said he was "saddened" to hear about Rajan's decsion to opt for academia at the end of his current term.

"In my travels around the world and encounters with leading overases businessmen it became clear that during his tenure he greatly enhanced the credibility and bankability of India. I trust that a successor will be found who will continue and enhance the great work done by Governor Rajan," Mahindra said.

HDFC Chairman Deepak Parekh said: "It's a pity to lose him. I'm wondering what has precipitated this action by the governor. I am sure the government, at the right time, would have considered giving him another two years term as most governors have got."

Murthy, who had pitched for at least two more terms for Rajan, expressed sadness over the development and said Rajan deserved more dignity than what he was treated with.

Similarly, Biocon Chairperson & Managing Director Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw tweeted: "RBI Gov Raghuram Rajan not seeking second term - Academic gain, RBI loss. He leaves a legacy of economic stability."

Adi Godrej, who had earlier supported Rajan's second term, declined to comment.

Mohandas Pai said in a tweet that it is a "very sad day for us great talent driven away by alcontents,cronies...deeply concerned."

RPG Enterprises Chairman Harsh Goenka tweeted: "Globally acknowledged. Inflation warrior. Economic guru. Independent mind. Bank surgeon. #RaghuramRajan leaving is a loss to the nation."

Eminent banker Meera Sanyal tweeted: "Academia's gain is India's loss : Gov Rajan to return to Chicago on Sept 16. Swamy gets his way at the cost of India."

Former Chief Economic Advisor Kaushik Basu tweeted: "Raghu has been one of the finest central bank governors anywhere."

A 70-year-old tribal man was mauled to death by a tiger in the buffer zone of Kanha Tiger Reserve, officials said.

"A tiger yesterday mauled to death Raja Ram at the buffer zone close to Khatia forest range of the park," Kanha Tiger Reserve Field Director J S Chauhan said.

He said the deceased's family has been given Rs 10,000 as immediate relief. They will be given a compensation of around Rs 4 lakh shortly.

Efforts are being made to drive away the big cat to the core area of the reserve with the help of elephants, Chauhan said.

"The mortal remains of the man were consigned to flames today after post-mortem," police said.

18:31 No threat to polio-free status of India: WHO

Amidst concerns over resurfacing of polio cases in India, the World Health Organisation on Saturday said there is "no threat" to the polio-free status of all South East Asian region countries, including India, and the detection of a rare strain of the crippling disease is "not unusual".

Noting that all the countries including India maintain a "high vigil" for the detection of the disease, the World Health Organisation's South-East Asia Regional Office said that no child has been afflicted by wild poliovirus since the last case was reported from West Bengal in January, 2011.

"All countries in the Region continue to maintain a very high vigil for poliovirus detection. As part of this, environmental surveillance -- collection of samples from sewage -- is being conducted regularly from 30 sites across seven states in India," it said in a statement.

There is "no threat" to the polio-free status of all South East Asian region countries, including India, it added.

The statement comes after a 6-year-old child of Padrauna village in Gaisdi in Balrampur district in Uttar Pradesh was admitted to a hospital on suspicion of polio, following which the state health officials have sent a report to the WHO.

Prior to this case, vaccine-derived polio virus type 2 was detected in a sewage sample collected from a site in Hyderabad.

Following these cases, the Union health minister has initiated a probe and maintained that though it comes across thousands of such cases every year, none of them has been detected of polio.

18:16 Congress is a 'sinking' ship: Rajnath Singh

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday described the Congress as a "sinking ship", saying many people want to leave such a "vessel" as it has no future.

Addressing a 'Vikas Parv' rally organised to celebrate two years of the Modi government, Singh said former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Ajit Jogi has created a hole in the "ship" called the Congress and the "ship" is sinking now.

"Ajit Jogi has created a hole in the ship called Congress. When there is a hole in a ship, no power in the world can save it. So, the Congress is now a sinking ship, it has no future," he said.

The home minister said when a ship sinks, even birds on the ship want to leave it and it is certain that many people would leave the "sinking ship".

Singh said once the Congress was a formidable opponent but now it has reduced to a weak rival.

Claiming that the Modi government accomplished many achievements during its two-year tenure, Singh said one of the commendable task it has completed is removing graft from the top echelon of the government.

"During the Congress rule, corruption was everywhere. Even some ministers were jailed on corruption charges. Now, no one can say that our government has indulged in corruption," he said.

The home minister said to eradicate corruption, one has to take steps to remove it from the top and the National Democratic Alliance government has done that.

"If Gangotri (the origin of river Ganga) is cleaned, the whole Ganga gets cleaned. It is the same in case of corruption," he said.

Former Indian cricketer Chetan Chauhan's appointment as the Chairman of the National Institute of Fashion Technology, country's premier fashion technology institute, prompted sharp reaction from Twitteratti.

Twitter users created elaborate jokes and made the 68-year-old trend on the social network for hours.

"Former cricketer Chetan Chauhan is now chairman, National Institute of Fashion Technology. Reports suggest Salman Khan will soon head ISRO," Twitter user lindsay pereira said.

"Time for BCCI to announce Manish Malhotra as Indian team's coach," another tweet said.

Many also cited the NIFT ACT 2006 which states that the chairperson of the institute should be "an eminent academician, scientist or technologist or professional."

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the appointment.

"Modi ji ne bhi chun chun ke chamchon ki fauj jama ki h- Gajendra Chauhan, chetan chauhan, pahlaj nihalani, arnab goswami, smriti irani," he tweeted.

Egypt's toppled Islamist President Mohamed Morsi was on Saturday sentenced to life imprisonment by a court for passing state secrets to Qatar.

The court also upheld death sentences given to six Muslim Brotherhood members in the same case and awarded life imprisonment (25 years in prison) to two others.

Morsi was given an additional 15 years in prison in the same case, increasing his jail term to 40 years.

Last month, the court ordered that the case documents of the six defendants, excluding Morsi, be referred to the Grand Mufti, who according to the Egyptian law must review all death sentences. However, his decision is not binding.

The six defendants include Ahmed Abdo Ali Afifi, a documentary film producer (who is in jail), Asmaa el-Khateeb reporter in Rassd news network (sentenced in absentia), Alaa Omar Mohammed, a Jordanian news producer in Al-Jazeera (sentenced in absentia), and the news editor Ibrahim Mohammed Hilal in Al-Jazeera (sentenced in absentia).

The verdict is not final and can be appealed.

Morsi as well as other defendants have been convicted for leaking classified documents to Qatar and selling them to Al-Jazeera channel. The classified documents allegedly include information on general and military intelligence, the armed forces, its armaments and the state's policy secrets.

As three women were inducted as into IAF as fighter pilots today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed it as a "matter of immense pride and joy".

"It is a matter of immense pride & joy to see the first batch of women fighter pilots being inducted in our Air Force. More power to them," Modi tweeted.

He was commenting on the induction of three women -- Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth and Mohana Singh -- as the first women fighter pilots of the Indian Air Force.

They were commissioned at a function at Air Force Academy in Dundigal on the outskirts of Hyderabad.

"It is a golden letter day...," said Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, asserting that "step-by-step", "total gender parity" will be achieved in the armed forces in the coming years.

JUST IN: The Press Trust of India is reporting that Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghram Rajan has told his colleagues that he will be returning to academics after his term ends on September 4.

Rajan said work on containing inflation, cleaning bank books was not over, but he decided to go after 'due reflection' and consultation with the government, PTI further reported.

Over the last few weeks, Rajan has kept the market guessing about his future at the central bank.

Speculation on whether the government will give him another term has reached a crescendo in the past two weeks, especially after Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy launched a tirade against him, accusing him of 'willfully' wrecking the Indian economy with high interest rates.

Later, in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Swamy levelled six allegations, accusing Rajan of leaking confidential financial information through his personal email and continuing to hold a US Green Card despite holding a "very high Government of India post".

DMK treasurer and Opposition Leader in Tamil Nadu assembly M K Stalin today rejected reports of differences with his father and party chief M Karunanidhi, as he charged arch rival AIADMK with trying to create confusion among DMK workers.

Stalin also described as "indecent allegation", Finance Minister O Panneerselvam's claim that DMK's demand for proper facilities for wheelchair-bound Karunanidhi to attend Assembly proceedings was due to problems between him and Karunandhi.

"Panneerselvam has embarked on creating confusion in the party and the family by claiming that there are differences between the father and the son. This does not behold his Minister's post," Stalin said in a statement.

He, without elaborating, said Panneerselvam was not known to make such statements "but has been forced to do so".

"The contention by Panneerselvam and reports in some dailies supporting them (AIADMK) that there are differences between the father (Karunanidhi) and the son (Stalin) are completely false. The efforts by AIADMK to create confusion in DMK will not succeed," he said.

16:48 Acid attack on college teacher in Bhopal

A college teacher was on Saturday seriously injured after two bike-borne assailants allegedly threw acid on her in front of her house in Bhopal's posh Arera Colony area while she was on her way to the college, police said.

The incident took place around 9 am, Habibganj Police Station In-charge, Ravindra Yadav said.

The attackers have not been identified as yet. One of them had covered his face with a mask while the other was wearing a burqa, he said.

It is not clear whether the burqa-clad person was a male or female.

The victim sustained severe burns on her hand and waist by the acid hurled on her, the police official said.

She was admitted to a private hospital where her condition is stated to be stable.

A case has been registered against two unidentified persons under sections 326 (Voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means) and 34 (Acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the IPC and efforts are on to nab the duo.

Sixteen girls of a government-run school were allegedly beaten up by the warden of their hostel at Rajbagh in Srinagar for "refusing to clean her room", following which the authorities put her under suspension.

"The students, belonging to Gujjar and Bakerwal communities, were on Thursday roughed up by their hostel's warden for refusing to clean her room. The girls sustained injuries in the assault and two of them suffered fractures in their arms," a police official said.

"Sixteen girls were beaten up and injured by the warden. All of them were discharged after necessary treatment," the official said. The warden has been suspended by the authorities concerned and an FIR registered against her, he said.

Taking strong note of the incident, Director School Education Kashmir Shah Faesal placed the warden under suspension. She has been attached with Chief Education Office, Ganderbal, an official of the Education department said.

The court of Ernakulam chief judicial magistrate has granted permission to the police to conduct an identification parade of accused in the Jisha rape-murder case.

Kerala DGP Loknath Behera today said the legal matters pertaining to the case have to be taken care of.

"Because the case is under investigation, the accused is in judicial custody. It is absolutely improper to discuss anything related to the case. We have done the arrest; we have done all the procedure of the arrest," Behera told the media in Thiruvananthapuram.

"He is in judicial custody. We have some formalities to do. We will take him to our custody and for interrogation. Legal matters are to be taken care of," he added.

The accused in the brutal rape and murder of Dalit student Jisha was sent to judicial custody for 14 days by the Perumbavoor Court yesterday.

15:02

JUST IN: After 186 days in space on the International Space Station, European Space Agency astronaut Tim Peake, American Tim Copra and Russian Yuri Malenchenko have returned to Earth.

The end of a journey spanning almost 79 million miles for the astronauts.

14:28 Mamta Kulkarni now an accused in India's biggest ever drug seizure

In a major breakthrough, Thane Police today named former Bollywood actor Mamta Kulkarni as an accused in India's biggest ever drug racket which was busted two months ago.

Mamta is likely to face a Red Corner Notice by the Interpol.

Earlier, police had also named Mamta's husband Vicky Goswami as an accused in the case.

Addressing the media, Thane CP Paramvir Singh said police probe reveals that Mamta and Vicky were the masterminds behind the drug racket.

The police have also said that the husband had connection with drug lords and their drug connections extended as far as Morocco. Thane police will now be verifying her bank accounts and investments.

"Some people from Bollywood are being investigated for their connections with Mamta Kulkarni and Vicky Goswami," said Singh.

According to The Indian Express, the Thane police has so far arrested 10 people in connection with the case in which ephedrine for medicines was allegedly being diverted from the Solapur unit of Avon Lifesciences Ltd and used for making narcotics.

A 17-year-old militant who was arrested this week while carrying out a failed assassination attempt on a Hindu lecturer in southwestern Bangladesh was killed overnight in what police claimed to be a "shootout".

"Golam Faizullah Fahim's cohorts fired gunshots as he was guiding us (police) to a hideout of theirs...He died in crossfire as we retaliated," Madaripur's Superintendent of Police Sarwar Hossain told PTI over phone.

Another official familiar with the incident said police took Fahim to an area on the outskirts of the district town last evening where the shootout occurred. He was injured and declared dead when brought to a hospital after the "shootout".

The surprise shootout came a day after police secured a court order to interrogate Fahim in custody in connection with the murder attempt on Ripan Chakraborty, 50, a mathematics lecturer of a government university college in Madaripur.

Bangladesh in recent months witnessed a series of deadly clandestine attacks on religious minorities and secular and liberal activists. The machete-wielding militants fled the scenes after carrying out the murders.

Karnataka Cabinet is all set to be revamped in a day or two with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah today saying he has got the green signal from the Congress High Command to drop some ministers and induct fresh faces.

"We discussed all names to be dropped and inducted with AICC President and Vice President Sonia and Rahulji. We have convinced them. High Command has authorised me to go ahead with the reshuffle," Siddaramaiah told reporters here after the second round of consultations in as many days with the Congress Chief.

He said "the list will be prepared in a day or two and will be submitted to the Governor".

Amid pulls and pressures for ministerial berths, the discussion held yesterday in connection with the much talked-about reshuffle had remained inconclusive.

Before the meeting, Siddaramaiah discussed the matter with Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge.

Sources said that the chief minister has proposed dropping of at least 10-14 ministers from the Cabinet and inducting young legislators and senior Congress leaders in order to balance caste and regional factors.

13:38

Some people from Bollywood are being investigated for their connections with Mamata Kulkarni and Vicky Goswami: Thane Police

Will send request to Interpol for red corner notice against Mamta Kulkarni through CBI. Verifying her bank accounts,investments: Thane Police

12:48 Udta Punjab flies high in CM Badal's bastion

Hindutan Times reports: In spite of allegations that Anurag Kashyap's Udta Punjab paints the state in a bad light, the film received a positive response from moviegoers in many parts of the region.

Youngsters descended on movie halls in droves across Bathinda, the stronghold of the ruling Badals, besides other cities such as Amritsar, Jalandhar and Ludhiana.

Though Bathinda cinema halls witnessed low occupancy in the first show starting at 9.30 am, they ran housefull in the subsequent screenings. "The first show witnessed just 40% occupancy, but the subsequent ones more than made up for it," said Sandeep Bansal, duty officer at Big Cinemas.

While some viewers found Udta Punjab "close to reality", others took exception to the use of explicit language in the movie. However, there seemed to be a general consensus that it was a "must watch".

12:43

Jisha murder case: Ernakulam chief judicial magistrate court grants permission to conduct identification parade of accused

12:37 China offers cloud-seeding tech to drought-hit Maharashtra

China is in talks with India to provide cloud-seeding technology to drought-hit Maharashtra to induce rain and train the staff of local meteorological department.

A team of scientists and officials from Beijing, Shanghai and China's eastern Anhui province mooted the cooperation during their recent visit to Maharashtra which has experienced severe droughts over the past two years.

China has over the years used the cloud seeding rockets tipped with silver iodide to cause precipitation. But it requires clouds to cause precipitation.

If the discussions are successful, Chinese experts would provide training to officials of the Indian Meteorological Department on their latest cloud-seeding technology, state-run China Daily quoted officials as saying.

The training is expected to be given on procedures to seed clouds successfully, the daily said.

The training is aimed at inducing rain over Maharashtra's Marathwada region in the summer of 2017 if needed, it said.

12:36

Resolution on Centre to activate Cauvery management Committee, to allow water level in Mullaperiyar Dam to be increased by 152 feet

12:24 Monsoon arrives in Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal

Monsoon made its way to Bihar, Odisha and West Bengal on Saturday with rains drenching parts of the three states.

The weatherman predicted heavy to very heavy rains in Bihar, Gangetic West Bengal, Odisha, Vidarbha, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, coastal Karnataka and Kerala.

Heavy rains lashed Kerala and Lakshadweep with several houses suffering damage and trees getting uprooted at many places.

Heavy to very heavy rainfall is most likely to occur at one or two places in the state from June 19 till June 22 morning.

Rio state authorities declared a "state of public calamity" over a major budget crisis in order to release emergency funds to finance the Olympic Games due to begin in August.

The decree authorises the state to "adopt all necessary emergency measures to ration essential public services in order for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games to take place."

"Any institutional instability would hurt the country's image," said the decree, signed by acting governor Francisco Dornelles.

The August 5-21 Olympics and September 7-18 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro will be the first to be held in South America.

The events pose "serious difficulties in delivering essential public services and could even cause a collapse in public safety, health, education, transportation and environmental management," the decree said.

Rio de Janeiro state is in financial straits due to the fall in global oil prices, while Brazil overall is floundering through a deep recession.

Police, teachers and other government workers in Rio state have seen paychecks delayed because of the cash crunch. Retirees have protested because of unpaid pensions.

Flying Cadets Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth and Mohana Singh created history on Saturday by becoming the first three women fighter pilots to be commissioned in the Indian Air Force.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar reviewed the passing out parade at the IAF Academy in Hakimpet in Telangana.

The three will now undergo advanced training for one year on Hawk aircraft in Bidar in Karnataka and would enter a fighter cockpit by June 2017.

They will be going to Bidar in June for their stage-III training for a year on Hawk advanced jet trainers, before they get to fly supersonic warplanes.

Six women cadets were competing to become fighter pilots after the government, in a landmark move, approved an IAF plan in October to induct them as fighter pilots. However, only three trainees were selected for the fighter stream.

Want to know more about the three women fighter pilots? CLICK HERE

Reuters reports: Russian athletes' hopes of competing in the Rio Olympics are now at the mercy of the IOC after world athletics' governing body unanimously upheld its ban on the country for systematic doping, saying not enough progress had been made in reform.

Russia, a superpower of track and field, had lobbied furiously to avert the prospect of a Summer Olympics athletics programme taking place without its athletes, and argued that it was taking all the steps required of it to dispel charges of state-sponsored drug abuse.

But after a meeting of the Council of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) in Vienna, its president Sebastian Coe told reporters: "Some progress has been made, but not enough ... The decision was unanimous - politics did not play a part in that room today."

Rune Andersen, who heads the IAAF task force overseeing Russia's attempts to reform, said that a "deep-seated culture of tolerance, or worse, appears not to be materially changed".

"No athlete will compete in Rio under a Russian flag," he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena jointly inaugurated a stadium, which was recently renovated by India, in Jaffna today.

PM Modi joined event through video conferencing.

Some 8000 people also joined the event at Duraiappah Stadium where a yoga demonstration was also organised to mark the International Yoga Day, which is on June 21.

In 2014, the United Nations had declared June 21 as the International Yoga Day.

The stadium, named in honour of former mayor of Jaffna late Alfred Thambirajah Duraiappah, has been recently renovated by India at a cost of over Rs 7 crore.

This will be the first major stadium at the renovated stadium.

India's silver medal winning performance in the 36th Hero Champions Trophy has earned the players and team officials a reward from Hockey India.

Immediately after the medal presentation, Narender Batra, President of Hockey India, went to the dressing room and announced the rewards.

"Australia did well to win the title, but for me you too are winners today," said Batra soon after the Champions Trophy jury had rejected India's appeal against a shootout infringement.

India lost 1-3 in the shootout to world champions Australia after the title encounter remained goalless in regulation period.

Hockey India's chief announced that each player and the chief coach would receive a reward of Rs 2 lakh, while the remaining support staff shall be rewarded by Rs 1 lakh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday consoled the Indian men's hockey team after their heartbreaking loss to Australia in the Champions Trophy final.

He tweeted: "Congrats to our Hockey Team for a spirited performance in Champions Trophy finals. Their effort has been brilliant. We're proud of the team."

India muffed three tries in the title-deciding shootout to settle for a silver medal in the 36th Champions Trophy as they lost the final 1-3 against Australia in London.

Officials in an Alabama county refused to lower flags to half-staff to honor the victims of the Orlando mass shooting this week even after President Barack Obama and Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley ordered flags to be lowered.

Citing the US Flag Code, Baldwin County Commissioner Tucker Dorsey told CNN affiliate WPMI that while his "heart certainly goes out to the victims and their families," the incident "doesn't meet the test of the reason for the flag to be lowered."

Dorsey added that the code states that the flag is to be lowered on Memorial Day and to commemorate the deaths of government officials.

In a Facebook post published Tuesday, Dorsey wrote that Baldwin County also didn't lower the flags after the Paris terror attacks in November and the shooting in San Bernardino, California, in December by a married couple who pledged allegiance to ISIS.

Following death threat to a member of Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission in Dhaka, authorities of the Order have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee apprising them of the situation.

"Our general secretary wrote a letter to both of them requesting to look into the matter. We explained what has happened in Dhaka," a monk of the Order, headquartered in Belur near here, told PTI.

He said both of them have expressed their anxiousness in the matter and offered all possible help.

"After the incident, we are in constant touch with the PM's Office. Our chief minister also called us up. We are also in touch with the high commission in Dhaka and adequate security arrangements have been made," the monk said.

The Mission had received a threat letter on Wednesday which said the member will be killed if he continued to preach his religion amid a spate of targeted murders across Bangladesh by suspected militants in recent months.

Two Ramadan shows broadcast by private news channels in Pakistan were taken off air today by regulators for discussing blasphemy laws.

The channels, 'Aaj News' and 'TV One', were said by Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority to have violated its code of conduct by promoting sectarian views and disgracing the holy month of Ramadan.

"An immediate ban has been imposed on TV One's programme Ishq-e-Ramazan (hosted by Shabbir Abu Talib) and Aaj News programme Ramazan Hamara Iman (hosted by Hamza Ali Abbasi)," a PEMRA statement said.

The regulator ordered both channels to cease the programmes from today evening or face being shutdown.

In his show earlier this week, actor and activist Hamza Ali Abbasi discussed the alleged oppression of the Ahmadi community and blasphemy laws.

The discussion triggered debate on social media, while Islamic cleric Allama Kokab Noorani threatened Hamza with "terrible consequences" for raising the topics.

01:26 Iraq forces retake central Fallujah from IS

Iraqi forces raised the national flag over the government compound in Fallujah today, top commanders said, a breakthrough in the nearly four-week-old offensive against the Islamic State group's bastion.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi went on state television to announce that his forces were in control of the city except for a few small pockets of jihadists.

They met limited resistance from IS fighters, who were fleeing the city, the commanders told AFP, leaving the organisation on the brink of losing one of the most emblematic strongholds in its two-year-old "caliphate".

It is the latest setback for the jihadists who have also lost territory in neighbouring Syria and in Libya in recent weeks.

01:25 Aleppo bombardments kill 9 civilians

Barrel bomb attacks and shelling on rebel-held areas of Syria's northern city of Aleppo killed at least nine civilians today, the second day of a temporary truce, a monitor said.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the crude explosive devices hit three areas of Aleppo, prompting the rebels to fire rockets into regime-held western parts of the city.

The violence erupted at sunset, breaking the calm that had prevailed throughout the day, the monitor added.

Syrian regime ally Russia had announced a two-day truce in Aleppo, but hours after it took effect yesterday barrel bombs and air strikes hit the eastern side, and rebels retaliated with rockets.

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