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Tue, 25 November 2014
Pakistan Taliban chief Fazlullah survives drone attack

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23:43   What am I really? Katju explains
Having missed out a second term as chairperson of Press Council of India, Justice Markandey Katju today said though he has been called various names including megalomaniac at times, an explaination of his views is in order.

"What am I really ? What do I stand for ? I think a clarification of my views is in order. I submit that my views are consistent, coherent, and directed to one single aim: to help my country become prosperous with its people having decent lives," Katju wrote in his blog. 

It is learnt that a committee headed by Vice President Hamid Ansari has recommended the appointment of former Supreme Court judge Chandramauli Kumar Prasad as the next Chairperson of the Press Council of India (PCI).

Katju said the worst thing in life is poverty.

"In India, there is massive poverty, malnutrition (every second Indian child suffers from malnutrition), unemployment, farmers suicides, skyrocketing prices, lack of healthcare and good education for the vast majority, etc," he said. 

Katju said his whole effort is to "combat backward, feudal ideas and promote rational and scientific thinking among the Indian people so that India emerges as a modern, highly industrialized, prosperous country, in which all its people (and not just a handful) are prosperous." 
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23:40   AAP founder member joins BJP
In a setback to Aam Aadmi Party before Delhi polls, its founder member Ashwani Upadhyay today switched to BJP.

"We had left our high-profile jobs and joined AAP just to fight the 4C's namely corruption, crime, casteism and communalism. But over the last one year we realised that instead of abolishing these evils we have adopted them. The party is functioning just as the other regional parties. 

"I am attracted by the way Modiji is working and that is the reason why I have joined BJP. I have the vision that the country will change in the next ten years," Upadhyay told reporters in Delhi. 

BJP also claimed that AAP members Subhash Talwar, Rajesh Gupta and Salil Kumar have also joined the party. 

"Besides, Deepak Kumar, a youth Congress leader from Valmiki community also joined BJP," Delhi BJP chief Satish Upadhyay said. 

He said that if people like our strategies and believe to bring a change and development then they are welcome to join the BJP. 
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21:29   Reports of bird flu outbreak in Kerala state, Centre sends response team
Two outbreaks of a highly pathogenic bird flu virus has been reported of having broken out at duck farms in the southern state of Kerala, the World Organization for Animal Health on Tuesday.

About 15,000 ducks died of the H5 strain of the disease at a first farm and another 500 died at another, the Paris-based OIE reported on its website, citing data submitted by the Indian ministry of agriculture.

In response, the Centre rushed a team of experts to Kerala to deal with the outbreak of bird flu in parts of the state.
     
Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh told a group of Kerala MPs that a team of experts from the Bangalore regional lab of the Veterinary Institute has been sent to the state hit by H5 avian influenza virus.

Tests on dead samples conducted at the High Security Animal Diseases Laboratory at Bhopal has confirmed avian influenza as the cause of mass death of ducks, following which a red alert has been sounded by Kerala government in Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta and Kottayam districts to restrict movement of poultry and allied products.

The state government has worked out a plan to 1.5 lakh birds, including poultry, in the three affected districts of Alappuzha, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta.
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21:22   Reports of bird flu outbreak in Kerala state, Centre sends response team
Two outbreaks of a highly pathogenic bird flu virus has been reported of having broken out at duck farms in the southern state of Kerala, the World Organization for Animal Health on Tuesday.

About 15,000 ducks died of the H5 strain of the disease at a first farm and another 500 died at another, the Paris-based OIE reported on its website, citing data submitted by the Indian ministry of agriculture.

In response, the Centre rushed a team of experts to Kerala to deal with the outbreak of bird flu in parts of the state.
     
Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh told a group of Kerala MPs that a team of experts from the Bangalore regional lab of the Veterinary Institute has been sent to the state hit by H5 avian influenza virus.

Tests on dead samples conducted at the High Security Animal Diseases Laboratory at Bhopal has confirmed avian influenza as the cause of mass death of ducks, following which a red alert has been sounded by Kerala government in Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta and Kottayam districts to restrict movement of poultry and allied products.

The state government has worked out a plan to 1.5 lakh birds, including poultry, in the three affected districts of Alappuzha, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta.
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21:15   Reports of bird flu outbreak in Kerala state, Centre sends response team
Two outbreaks of a highly pathogenic bird flu virus has been reported of having broken out at duck farms in the southern state of Kerala, the World Organization for Animal Health on Tuesday.

About 15,000 ducks died of the H5 strain of the disease at a first farm and another 500 died at another, the Paris-based OIE reported on its website, citing data submitted by the Indian ministry of agriculture.

In response, the Centre rushed a team of experts to Kerala to deal with the outbreak of bird flu in parts of the state.
     
Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh told a group of Kerala MPs that a team of experts from the Bangalore regional lab of the Veterinary Institute has been sent to the state hit by H5 avian influenza virus.

Tests on dead samples conducted at the High Security Animal Diseases Laboratory at Bhopal has confirmed avian influenza as the cause of mass death of ducks, following which a red alert has been sounded by Kerala government in Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta and Kottayam districts to restrict movement of poultry and allied products.

The state government has worked out a plan to 1.5 lakh birds, including poultry, in the three affected districts of Alappuzha, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta.
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21:04   Gangster Abu Salem seeks ban on a book on him
Gangster Abu Salem today filed an application in the special TADA court seeking a ban on a book written by a former journalist, titled `My name is Abu Salem'. 

During the hearing, when judge G A Sanap asked Salem about the book, he said he had never spoken to anyone. "The author must have taken details from chargesheets and other evidence," Salem said. 

The judge observed how could such a book be written when the trial was going on. Salem, an accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, was extradited from Portugal in November 2005.
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20:52   PM gifts Bodhi tree sapling to Nepal
As a symbol of shared Buddhist heritage, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today gifted a sacred Bodhi tree sapling to be planted in Lumbini, the birthplace of the Lord Buddha.

"I have brought a sapling from Bodh Gaya which will be planted by our Ambassador in Lumbini," Modi said while inaugurating a trauma centre built by India at Kathmandu's Bir Hospital.

The sapling would be planted on the premises of Maya Devi temple in Lumbini on November 28.
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20:00   Pakistan Taliban chief Fazlullah survives drone attack
The chief of Pakistan Taliban Mullah Fazlullah has narrowly escaped a US drone strike in theborder region of Afghanistan in which five militants were killed, officials said. The chief of outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan was in Nazyan village of Nangarhar province of Afghanistan near Pakistan border when a drone targeted him last night.

The CIA-operated unmanned aircraft fired four missiles on a compound in the village, security official said, adding atleast five Pakistani and Afghan militants were killed in the attack but Fazlullah escaped unhurt.
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19:01   You can now take Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes to Nepal
In what will come as a huge relief to Indian tourists to Nepal, the decade-long ban on carrying of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 Indian bank notes while visiting each other's countries has been lifted. "We have decided to allow our nationals to carry Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination notes up to the limit of Rs 25,000," Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced today.
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18:58   Pak PM ready for talks with India
JUST IN: Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif says he is ready to hold talks with India.

So far, India has ruled out a formal meeting with Pakistan at the SAARC summit. The two-days SAARC summit begins tomorrow in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Earlier in the day, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj met her Pakistani counterpart Sartaj Aziz on the sidelines of the SAARC summit. She termed the meeting a "courtesy'. The ministers had a brief exchange of words as they passed each other during the summit.

"It is basic courtesy. If you meet ministers of other countries on an international platform, you greet each other,' she said while talking to reporters.

The brief interaction between the two ministers took place even as speculations are being made regarding a possible informal meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif. However, both Swaraj and Aziz refused to comment about any possible meeting between the two leaders.
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18:22   Allow girls to enter library: Allahabad HC to AMU
The Allahabad High Court today directed Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) authorities to allow entry of girl students inside the Maulana Azad central library.

The court held that the varsity authorities' decision to restrict entry of girl students into the library was "arbitrary" and "in violation of Article 14 and 16 of the Constitution".

The varsity authorities who opposed the entry of girl students inside the library in an affidavit filed before the court today submitted that they would ensure that no gender discrimination is allowed on the premises and safety of female students would be ensured wherever they choose to go.
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18:00   Indo-Nepal bus service begins
PM Narendra Modi flags off the Kathmandu-Delhi bus service. Called the  Pashupatinath Express, the luxury bus, will take passengers from Nepal to India via three routes. Route 1: Kathmandu to New DelhiRoute; 2: Kathmandu to VaranasiRoute and  3: Pokhara to New Delhi.
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17:45   People want change: Rajnath
Home minister Rajnath Singh on the Jammu-Kashmir and Jharkhand polls: "Defying threats from militants and Naxals the people of J&K and Jharkhand have rejected the ideology of terror and violence. People want change. 
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17:39   100 per cent flawless polls, 70 per cent voting in Kashmir
In Ganderbal, Bandipura the polling percentage is at least 10 to 15 per cent higher than 2008. EC says good security ensured higher turnout.

J-K CM Omar Abdullah tweets: "I wonder how long it will be before someone gives the credit for the high voter turnout to the BJP."

The Election Commission says the polls were 100 per cent flawless. The 1st phase of the five-phase polls took place in Jammu and Kasmhir today. The EC says not a single incident vitiates poll process.
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17:30   Seven naval officers found guilty in Sindhuratna mishap
Seven naval officers were found guilty following a probe into the fire that occurred on board submarine INS Sindhuratna earlier this year, which left two personnel dead and led to the resignation of former Navy Chief Admiral DK Joshi.

Disciplinary action against these officers has been initiated at the Western Naval Command headquarters, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha.
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17:19  
70 per cent polling in 15 constituencies in the first phase of Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir: EC
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17:17   7 naval officers indicted in INS Sindhuratna mishap
Seven naval officers have been indicted in the INS Sindhuratna mishap. The officers are culpable of various acts of omission and commission.

Read: INS Sindhuratna: Tale of an underwater tragedy
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17:14   India@SAARC: I can never forget the love Nepal has given me, says Modi
PM Narendra Modi who is in Nepal for the 18th SAARC summit spoke a short while ago at the inauguration of a trauma centre in Kathmandu.

Beginning his speech on a sentimental note, Modi said, "I can never forget the love that Nepal has given me. I am fortunate that I have been to Nepal again in a short span of time."

Modi's first visit to Nepal came in August shortly after he took over the reins of government. It was the first bilateral trip by an Indian prime minister to the Himalayan nation in 17 years.

Inaugurating a trauma centre in Kathmandu today, Modi said, it was an example of the 'live' relations between Nepal and India (jeevant sambandh)... India will stand with Nepal in upgrading and maintaining this trauma centre.

He said he wanted to go to Janakpur, Lumbini and Muktinath by road so that, "I could experience first hand the difficulties faced by people traveling there. But due to lack of time, I couldn't go this time," he said.
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17:05  
Court has given a six-day remand to Rampal so that police can investigate the matter.

Don't know who Rampal is? Tsk Tsk. Read this and be informed.
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17:01   Modis China roadmap unfolds
The appointment of the National Security Advisor Ajit Doval as the Special Representative for the talks with China on the border problem and the strategic dimensions of India-China relations is welcome news. Read more
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16:56   Buy fish get worm free
Read this only if you want to be grossed out.
A retired headmaster found a nasty surprise halfway through tucking in to a portion of fish -- a gruesome yellow creature buried in the sea bass he had just bought in the UK. He discovered it was a parasite called the tongue-eating louse. Read
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16:46  
IPL spot-fixing hearing adjourned till November 27th. 
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16:45   Who's in the PM's team for the SAARC summit?
Prime Minister Modi's high-level delegation at the summit includes External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh and a number of senior officials of various ministries.
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16:44   Kathmandu-Delhi bus soon
India-Nepal to sign Motor Vehicle Agreement. Three routes agreed upon. PM to flag off the 1st Pashupatinath Express, a luxury bus, that will take passengers from Nepal to India in three routes.

Route 1: Kathmandu to New Delhi
Route 2: Kathmandu to Varanasi
Route 3: Pokhara to New Delhi
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16:41   Pak author wins 2014 Shakti Bhatt First Book Prize
A Pakistan-based author has won the 2014 Shakti Bhatt First Book Prize, which is awarded to encourage authors from the subcontinent. Lahore-based author Bilal Tanweer's novel 'The Scatter Here Is Too Great' was selected for the prize by a jury comprising the 2009 Shakti Bhatt First Book Prize winner Mridula Koshy, Aatish Taseer and Amit Chaudhuri. Tanweer picked up a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh along with the award.
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16:21   1st stop on PM's Kathmandu visit
India extends a healing hand for the trauma stricken in Nepal. PM @narendramodi and PM Koirala inaugurate the Trauma Centre at Kathmandu. 
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16:16   Every second stock has doubled in past 15 months
According to an analysis by Business Standard, about half (428) the 836 stocks in the BSE 500, BSE small-cap and BSE mid-cap indices have doubled in the past 15 months. During this period, the benchmark indices '" the BSE Sensex and the National Stock Exchange Nifty '" have gained about 60 per cent. Read more
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16:15  
More than 50 percent turnout registered till 14:00 hours in Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls.
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15:58   Sensex slips 161.49 points
Sensex slips 161.49 pts to end at 28,338.05 in biggest single-day drop in nearly 6 weeks; Nifty ends 67.05 pts down at 8,463.10.
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15:45   If you meet ministers, you greet each other: Sushma on meeting Sartaj Aziz
External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said that meeting with her Pakistani counterpart Sartaj Aziz on the sidelines of the SAARC summit was "out of courtesy'. The ministers had a brief exchange of words as they passed each other during the summit.

"It is basic courtesy. If you meet ministers of other countries on an international platform, you greet each other,' she said while talking to reporters.

The brief interaction between the two ministers took place even as speculations are being made regarding a possible informal meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif.However, both Swaraj and Aziz refused to comment about any possible meeting between the two leaders.
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15:39  
Children waving the tricolour welcome PM Narendra Modi at a Kathmandu hotel.
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15:35   Mysterious satellite sparks concerns that Russia has developed a space weapon
A mysterious Russian object that was launched earlier this year has been performing some rather fishy maneuvers, prompting some to start panicking that the satellite could be some kind of secret space weapon. Read
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15:34  
Why Comedy Central is going to go blank in India for the next six days
The channel has been censored for injuring public morality. Read
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15:25   Incurring the DRDO's rath
An Indian military laboratory tucked away in a leafy Pune neighbourhood, tasked with building combat support vehicles, has built and supplied a gleaming battery-powered rath to the grateful Alandi Temple nearby.   Read
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15:07  
Guard of honour for PM Modi at Kathmandu airport. 
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14:52   India votes against UNGA resolution on death penalty
India has voted against a UN General Assembly draft resolution calling for moratorium on the use of death penalty, saying it fails to recognise each nation's "sovereign right" to determine its legal system and punish criminals according to its laws.

The draft resolution on 'Moratorium on the use of the death penalty' was approved last week in the General Assembly's Third Committee, which deals with social, humanitarian and cultural issues. India was among the 36 nations that voted against the resolution, which got 114 votes in favour and 34 abstentions.
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14:49   He helped capture Kasab. Now he detects nakli products
26/11 taught us we have to be ready for a direct attack. Today if anyone launches a similar attack we are more than prepared.' A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com meets Inspector Sanjay Govilkar six years after the biggest arrest of his career. Read
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14:46   PM Modi in Kathmandu for SAARC summit
PM Narendra Modi reaches Kathmandu for the 18th SAARC summit. 
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14:34   Loose cigarettes likely to be banned in India
In a major decision to curb the use of cigarettes, the Health Ministry has accepted the recommendation of an expert panel to ban the sale of loose cigarettes. The ministry has circulated a draft note on the ban.

Before a reshuffle in the Cabinet, former health minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government Dr Harsh Vardhan had favoured a complete ban on e-cigarettes and all products described as electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS). He had said that such products push children towards tobacco habit eventually via nicotine dependence. -- IBN Live 
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14:28   Astrologer Smriti visited had told her she would be a minister
Like most astrologers who like to flaunt their clientele, Nathulal Vyas too has quite a few photos and newspaper clippings to showcase in his cramped "office room', including those of former President Pratibha Patil and Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje.

However, even Vyas, 85, would not have expected the furore that followed the visit on Sunday of HRD Minister Smriti Irani to his house in Karoi, a small town 27 km from Bhilwara.

"Last year when she visited me and asked about her political prospects, I had told her that whether she wins or loses, she will go on to become a minister. She had almost expressed disbelief then and said that if she did become one, she would come back to me. And she kept her promise,' Vyas told The Indian Express.

Read more
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14:05   Dilip Kumar perfectly fine: Amitabh
Amitabh Bachchan put an end to online rumours about Dilip Kumar's death by tweeting that veteran actor was "perfectly fine".

Rumours about Dilip Kumar's death spread online last evening prompting Bachchan to call Saira Banu. "Some baseless rumours being spread about Yusuf Saheb - Dilip Kumar, being ill .. Saira ji just informed me he is perfectly fine!," Bachchan, 72, tweeted.

Dilip Kumar, 91, and Saira Banu, 70, recently attended Salman Khan's sister Arpita's wedding reception in Mumbai.
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13:58   Chinese journalist who tweeted in support of protestors sacked
A journalist on a newspaper controlled by the ruling Chinese Communist Party has been fired after he spoke out in support of Hong Kong's Occupy Central pro-democracy movement.

Wang Yafeng, who wrote editorials for Communist Party mouthpiece the Jiaxing Daily in the eastern province of Zhejiang, lost his job after sending out tweets highly critical of state media's line on the Hong Kong protests on his personal microblog account.

"People who, without understanding the situation, launch their invective at Hong Kong's citizens' protest deserve to spend the rest of their lives as slaves," Wang tweeted last week.
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13:55  
34 per cent polling till noon in J&K. 
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13:49   President Pranab Mukherjee pens book on Indira years
A book by President Pranab Mukherjee is set to hit stands this December, publishers said today. Titled "The Dramatic Decade: The Indira Years," the book chronicles the history of India from the perspective of a parliamentarian and a statesman. The book is expected to be out on December 11, Rupa Publications said in a statement.
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13:41  
"SAARC, regrettably, has yet to develop into a conflict-mediating or resolving institution on multilateral and bilateral issues. While it has succeeded in evolving as a forum, it does not have the capacity to devise instruments for consultations on bilateral and multilateral political and security problems."

Subramanian Swamy writes for SAARC. Read
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13:38   Modi in Jharkhand: I am with you in your fight for rights
Narendra Modi tweets: Leaving for Nepal to attend the SAARC Summit.

Ahead of his departure for Kathmandu, the PM addressed a rally in Chaibasa, Jharkhand. The PM spoke about the need to elect a stable government for the overall development of Jharkhand. "BJP is committed to the overall progress of Jharkhand and taking its development journey to new heights. Aap Chaibasa waale hain aur main chaiwala, isse humara naata ekdum pakka ho jata hain," Modi said.

Modi tells the largely adivasi audience, that dynasty politics (Congress) will not benefit them.
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13:22   J-K poll percentages so far
Omar Abdullah tweets: Poll percentage till 1200 hrs.

Gurez 46.05%
Bandipora 34.68%
Sonawari 37.45%
Kangan 41.88 %
Ganderbal 34.59%
Nubra 27.5% '
Leh 10.4%

Voting is being held in 15 of 87 assembly seats - six in the Jammu division, five segments in the Kashmir valley and four in Ladakh. Polling was briefly disrupted at Barsoo in Ganderbal district after clashes broke out between two groups.
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13:07   Opposition brandishes black umbrellas in Parl to protest black money
The opposition has discovered a new way to protest in Parliament. Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned till noon today after the opposition staged protests with an open umbrella and disrupted the House.

The protest led by the Trinamool Congress (why are we not surprised) was joined by the Congress and the Samajwadi Party in the well of the House.

The MPs refused to shut the open umbrellas which had 'bring back black money' written on it. The MPs were shouting slogans like "where is black money, PM should answer.'
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12:42   Deora stood like a rock with Cong in every situation: CWC
The Congress Working Committee today expressed deep grief over the death of former Union Minister Murli Deora saying his loyalty to the party was unquestionable and he stood with it like a rock in every situation.

Read our tribute here: Murli Deora: A politician for all seasons
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12:35   SAARC Summit to begin tomorrow in Nepal
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and leaders of other SAARC countries will meet in Kathmandu tomorrow with an aim to revitalise the regional grouping and make it a major platform to fuel economic growth through liberalised trade and combat challenges of terrorism and climate change effectively.
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12:34   Six who stalked women outside ice-cream parlour arrested
So, the Bengaluru police has acted and about time too. Six people who harassed and stalked a group of women outside an ice-cream parlour in the city have been arrested.

The incident happened on Saturday around 11.30 pm when the women on a weekend outing stopped their car near an ice cream parlour on M G Road and found to their shock unidentified men trying to open the doors of their vehicle. As they were seated inside waiting for their driver who had gone to pick up ice cream for them, the men stared at them, stood around the vehicle and tried to open the doors, according to the complaint lodged by one of the victims.

Read more
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12:22  
Chetan Bhagat tweets and he's asking for it: "Girls, please never get a lip job. If you have a good heart, thin lips are just as kissable."

Where did that come from?
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12:21   J-K voters brave the cold on 1st phase of polls
Voting underway in the first of the five-phase assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. 
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12:18  
Just in: Rajya Sabha adjourned twice amid uproar by Congress over removal of Rajiv Gandhi's name while renaming of airport in Hyderabad.
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12:14   Former SC judge to replace Katju as Press Council of India chief
Former Supreme Court judge CK Prasad is set to be appointed as the next Chairperson of the Press Council of India.

Information and Broadcasting ministry sources said Prasad has been selected by a committee headed by Vice-President Hamid Ansari yesterday and a communication has been received in this regard.

Prasad will succeed justice Markenday Katju as the Chairman of the PCI.
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12:07  
Rajya Sabha extends deadline beyond November 28 for Select Committee on Insurance Amendment Bill to submit report till December 12. 
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11:31  
The Supreme Court has asked the country's premier investigating agency why it had not questioned the coal minister during whose tenure a coal block was allocated to a firm owned by billionaire Kumar Mangalam Birla. 

At the time, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held direct charge of the Coal Ministry.

"The then Coal Minister was not permitted to be examined," the CBI said to judges today - neither mentioned Dr Singh by name.
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10:55   Kathak legend Sitara Devi passes away
Kathak queen Sitara Devi died at a hospital in Mumbai today. She was 94. Born in 1920 in Kolkata, Sitara Devi drew from the themes, poetry and choreography collected by her father in her choreographies. 

She also got inspired from the environment around her - whether it is a town or a village. The characters around her came live in her dance. "By training, I am just a 'kathakar' of Krishna-leela (tales of Krishna)," the danseuse used to say.
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10:51  
TMC, Sena want black money debate: The Centre is likely to face opposition on the Insurance Bill as the government is planning to hike foreign direct investment in the sector.

TMC and Sena will oppose bill raising FDI cap in insurance from 26% to 49%. TMC leaders are protesting at Parliament gate over black money issue.

The Shiv Sena has also united with other parties opposing FDI hike in Insurance Bill.MP Arvind Sawant says, "Our opposition is to the Insurance Bill only and this has nothing to do with Maharashtra development."
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10:41   Opposition to attack govt on black money issue in Parl
The Opposition parties have decided to show a united front in Parliament today to corner the ruling NDA on the issue of repatriation of black money. The Trinamool Congress and the JD-U have already given a notice for the suspension of the Question Hour in Rajya Sabha to discuss the black money issue.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, who is already on the warpath against the BJP, has declared that she would "politically retaliate" against her party being dragged into the Saradha scam. 
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10:39   Coal scam: Why was coal minister not examined, asks court
Special court asks CBI if the then coal minister was examined by it in a coal scam case involving Kumar Mangalam Birla and others.   

"Don't you think examination of the then coal minister was necessary in the matter."  

Court also asks CBI whether the then officials of Prime Minister's Office were examined during the probe.   

Court summons case diary of the matter. CBI says will file it in sealed cover.
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10:32   PIOs can avail Visa-on-Arrival and Electronic Travel Authorisation for 43 countries
In another major initiative, Visa-on-Arrival and Electronic Travel Authorisation in respect of 43 countries, including United States, Australia, Fiji and Pacific Island countries is expected to be inaugurated on November 27th, 2014. 


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09:37   Swaraj does not rule out informal talks between India-Pak at SAARC Summit
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday did not rule out an informalmeeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif on the sidelines of the 18th annual South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit.

"Wait till tomorrow for these issues,"Swaraj told the media in Kathmandu when asked about the possibility of a meeting between the two Prime Ministers.
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08:51   Some violence breaks out in Ferguson
CNN reports say some protesters in Ferguson destroyed a police car, and one demonstrator was seen dousing another patrol car with lighter fluid before police in riot gear moved in.

At least one gunshot was heard near the Ferguson Police Department. 
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08:46  
No indictment for Ferguson officer:  A white police officer will not face charges for fatally shooting an unarmed black teenager in a case that set off violent protests and racial unrest throughout the nation.

A St. Louis County grand jury declined to indict officer Darren Wilson, 28, for firing six shots in an August confrontation that killed 18-year-old Michael Brown, St. Louis County prosecutor Robert McCulloch said Monday night.
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08:20  
Battle for Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand begins

Voting has begun for the first of the five-phase assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand today. The BJP, which swept the Lok Sabha elections in May and recently added Maharashtra and Haryana to its kitty, is hoping to win big in both states, where regional parties are in the driving seat. 

The Congress, which was part of the ruling alliance in both states, broke away in the run-up to the elections - from Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) in October and the National Conference in Jammu and Kashmir in July.
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03:59   Iran nuclear deal deadline extended to July 1
Iran and world powers missed a deadline to clinch a landmark nuclear deal and defuse a 12-year standoff but gave themselves seven more months to reach agreement. 

The failure followed an intensive five-day diplomatic push in the Austrian capital Vienna involving the foreign ministers of Iran, the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany.

But US Secretary of State John Kerry, speaking in Vienna, and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, speaking in Tehran, yesterday said real progress had been made in the talks and raised hopes a deal could eventually be sealed. 

"This path of negotiation will reach a final agreement," Rouhani said on state television. "Most of the gaps have been removed." 

In their second extension this year, Iran and the five  permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany, known as the P5+1, will seek to strike an outline deal by March and to nail down a full technical accord by July 1, officials said.

"These talks aren't going to suddenly get easier just because we extend them," Kerry said as he and other officials conceded a midnight yesterday deadline would be missed. 

"They are tough. They have been tough and they are going to stay tough," he told hundreds of journalists crowded into a tent outside the 19th century palace where the talks were held.
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01:11   Modi's 'Yoga ministry' stirs doubts among scientists
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has thrown his weight behind the India's traditional systems of medicine earlier this month by creating the Ministry for Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy. 

Among its stated goals is to promote educational standards, quality control and standardization of drugs.

Modi -- who is said to begin each day by practising yoga -- made a pitch for declaring an 'international yoga day' in a speech at the United Nations in September. The initiative was backed by 130 countries.

While homoeopathy originated in Europe, and unani is a version of ancient Greek medicine, India also has native medical traditions. 

These include siddha, which originated in southern India as early as 10,000 years ago, and ayurveda, which dates back to the sixth century bc or earlier. 

The Modi government contends that Indian systems of medicine were suppressed during colonial times and were marginalized after India gained independence at the hands of anglicized elites. 

Although many Indians still use such systems along with folk healing practices especially in rural areas, their integration into modern medicine faces high hurdles and stiff resistance.

Read more HERE

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01:09   How to prevent people from knowing when you've seen a message in apps
It seems like every messaging app these days, from iMessage to Facebook, insists on sending "read receipts" letting people know that you've seen their message. 

This can be annoying. 

Here's how to turn off the feature in some of the most popular apps.

Read more HERE

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01:08   Grand jury reaches decision in case of Ferguson officer
Washington Post reports: A grand jury has reached a decision on whether to indict Darren Wilson, the white Ferguson, Mo. police officer whose fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager sparked days of turbulent protests, sources close to the process said.

Sources said that press conferences are being prepared by the county prosecutors office and the Missouri governor. Those press conferences will likely come later today.

The announcement gave no indication of whether Wilson, 28, will face state charges in the August shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown, which triggered a frank conversation about race and police interaction with African-Americans.

The grand jurys decision is the latest turn in a case marked in the national consciousness by the stunning images of protesters looting stores and police wearing riot gear and deploying tear gas in the days after Browns death. 

Details of the grand jurys deliberations have leaked out in recent weeks, angering the Brown family and protesters who saw it as a signal there would be no charges filed.
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01:08   Egyptian Cyber Army: The hacker group attacking ISIS propaganda online
There's a new hacking group in cyberspace, and it's going after the Islamic State's online propaganda.

Last week, less than 24 hours after ISIS social media accounts posted a threatening message from the group's leader, the audio recording was replaced with a song and its transcript with a logo resembling that of the Egyptian military, accompanied by a writing in Arabic that read "Egyptian Cyber Army."

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's recording had been hacked, and the operation carried all the hallmarks of a group such as the Syrian Electronic Army.

Read more HERE

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01:07   Craigslist down after DNS attack
The Craigslist website went down for hours after a hacker used a DNS attack to hijack the website. Users who visited any Craigslist location were instead served a link to the DigitalGangster.com domain.

Because Craigslist serves a massive number of visitors, the DigitalGangster domain also crashed, serving up a bit of irony to the hacker.

The successful hack was not a direct attack on the Craigslist website, but rather a change of DNS settings which allowed the hacker to redirect the website.

The attacker(s) apparently changed some settings, and redirected requests for craigslist.org to the New York Times website, after going through a third party click through gateway, which could have been an affiliate link. Soon after that, requests reverted back to the DigitalGangster site.

Read more HERE

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