'No guarantee that Pak will not use US tech against India'

NEW DELHI: India’s worst fear in the ongoing US-led war on terror along the Pak-Afghan border is Pakistan accessing and using American technology

and aid to augment its conventional military strength against this country, but does the Obama administration’s new “Af-Pak strategy” address this concern?

According to Bruce Riedel, the former CIA official whom President Barack Obama had entrusted with the responsibility of giving shape to his Afghanistan strategy, there is no foolproof guarantee against Pakistan transferring US technology to its advantage against India.

Riedel warned India in an interview to TOI that military assistance provided for one purpose can be “inherently” used for another purpose or adversary because it is “fungible” in nature. Riedel made the statement even as he added that Washington will look into all allegations of transfer of American technology provided to Pakistan.

Pakistan has been pleading with the US for transferring crucial weapon technologies being used in the war on terror, including drones, to it to help it deal, as it says, effectively with terrorists operating out of its territory on the western border. India has been keeping its fingers crossed, hoping that US will not share drone or any similarly lethal weapon technology with Pakistani agencies and Riedel’s statement, coming as it does from the man who headed the White House committee which reviewed the US’ Afghanistan strategy after Obama took over as president, will only heighten the concern. “The US will probe allegations of technology transfer of American equipment provided to Pakistan thoroughly,” Riedel told TOI.

“It should be borne in mind, however, that military assistance is always fungible, that is equipment provided for one purpose can inherently be used for other purposes. As a consequence, US military aid and sales to south Asia should always be carefully calculated for their impact on the India-Pakistan balance of conventional military power,” he added.

Politicos board the cricket bandwagon

This is one power play that doesn't end after five overs. The grip that leaders from across the political spectrum have gained over the country's cricketing boards could be craftier than Shane Warne ever managed in the course of his career.

Be it the Congress, the BJP or their regional rivals, every political formation worth its salt has a finger in the cricketing pie. Most of them can't tell a chinaman from a googly, yet they preside over state cricketing boards with aplomb.

Let's take Sharad Pawar for example. The Maratha strongman is the face of the cricket- politics alliance.

While no one knows if he can bat or bowl, he did juggle his varied roles of Union agriculture minister and BCCI president with a lot of tact. "Even though he is a minister, his priority remains cricket," says an associate.

"The BCCI position gave him national and international standing. And he is aiming big. It is no coincidence that he will be the ICC president by the time the 2011 World Cup is played in India." Indeed, cricket and politics have gone hand-in-hand for Pawar. He became the chief minister of Maharashtra only after taking over the reins of the Garware Club House.

For old time's sake, he remains the honorary president of the club. "It was his lucky charm," adds his aide. One of Pawar's trusted lieutenants, Lalit Modi, used his political links to graduate from the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) to the BCCI, then to IPL and ultimately to the world stage. His proximity to the then Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje is a well-known fact. Lalit Modi used the Raje card to bring a contentious 'sports ordinance' in 2005, using which he bowled out Kishore Rungta in the RCA elections. But he didn't account for the discontent this would cause not only in the association but also in the state government. An IAS officer, Sanjay Dixit, ousted him from the RCA in elections held earlier this year.

The BCCI vice-president is far from done, however.

Rebels linked with him split the RCA into two on Sunday and "sacked" Dixit.

Still more interesting is the coup that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi orchestrated this week by capturing the cash-rich Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) and overthrowing long-standing president Narhari Amin.

As Narendra Modi lengthened his foray into state cricket, murmurs have grown louder that he is hoping to gradually gain control of the national board as well.

The man with the taint of the 2002 Gujarat riots has been working on an image makeover for some time.

Following the BJP's general elections debacle, cricket could be just the means to keep Modi in the national limelight - and for all the right reasons.

Not all forays are successful. Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee courted former India captain Sourav Ganguly some three years ago, believing this would yield him tons of votes. The communist leader was convinced, reportedly by people close to Sourav, that Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) chief Jagmohan Dalmiya should be removed. The CM chose Kolkata Police commissioner Prasun Mukherjee to contest the elections before publicly lambasting Dalmiya for his "failures". But if Buddha believed all this would help the CPM make inroads in the minds of young Bengalis, it didn't happen.

Several of his own partymen, including his predecessor Jyoti Basu and some Cabinet colleagues, carped Buddha for getting involved in cricket politics. His candidate won in 2006, but Dalmiya returned to the CAB's presidency earlier this year. And the CPM - with or without Sourav - went for a six in the general elections. Buddha, who once played cricket himself, now rarely even talks about the sport.

Never one to be left behind, RJD president Lalu Prasad took over the reins of Bihar cricket eight years ago. During his chief ministership in the 1990s, Patna had played host to two one-day internationals. That was pretty much all Lalu could show as his cricketing credentials, yet he was "elected unopposed" to the Bihar Cricket Association (BCA)' s presidency in 2001.

It was a crucial time in Lalu's career. He had been forced to give up chief ministership in the wake of the fodder scam. And Bihar had been divvied up just months earlier. His confidants apparently told him about the glamour of cricket and cited the examples of high- profile politicians like Madhavrao Scindia, Pawar and Arun Jaitley who headed the cricket administration of their states. Lalu saw no harm.

Some believe he also took over the BCA to further the careers of his two sons, Tej Pratap and Tejaswi Yadav, who had shown sparks of talent. At one of his rallies in later years, Lalu even introduced them as cricketers "who have no political ambitions whatsoever". But even if the sons took to cricket for the love of the game - their father, and many of his ilk, are driven very much by political ambition, and cricket's promise of power and publicity, when they open their innings.

source :- http://indiatoday.intoday.in/

India to launch Oceansat-2 on Sep 23: ISRO

BANGALORE: Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) would launch Oceansat-2 satellite, which would help identify potential fishing zones and in coastal zone studies, on September 23 in a mission that would have European flavour.

The 970-KG spacecraft would set-off by the home-grown Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) from Sriharikota spaceport on the east coast, where preparations for the launch are in full swing.

"Oceansat-2 is tentatively scheduled to be launched at around noon on September 23," S Satish, spokesperson of Bangalore-headquartered ISRO, said.

ISRO officials said the launch is expected at 11.56 AM on that day.

The satellite is intended for identification of potential fishing zones, sea state forecasting, coastal zone studies and providing inputs for weather forecasting and climate studies.

It is an in-orbit replacement to Oceansat-1, launched by ISRO in May 1999 and was used to study physical and biological aspects of oceanography.

"Data from Oceansat-1 (which has completed ten years of service) was widely used by fishermen," ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair said.

Besides ISRO, European space agencies would be keenly looking forward for the missions success as a set of six European nano satellites would ride piggyback and accompany Oceansat-2 on its trip to orbit.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Tendulkar, Harbhajan script India's tri-series triumph

COLOMBO: Sachin Tendulkar's 44th ODI century and Harbhajan Singh's five-wicket haul scripted India's tri-series triumph as the visitors raised their game when it mattered most and cruised to a 46-run win in the final match against Sri Lanka on Monday.

Scorecard

Thumped by 139 runs in their Saturday's meeting which cost them world number one ODI team's tag, India first amassed 319 for five and then shot out Sri Lanka for 273 in 46.4 overs to settle score.

Chasing a mammoth 320-run target, Sri Lanka got the perfect start from Tillakaratne Dilshan (42 off 29 balls) and Sanath Jayasuriya (36) before running out of steam. Down the order, the 70-run stand between Thilina Kandamby (66) Chamara Kapugedera (35) was a mere act of defiance and not enough to turn the match on its head.

Harbhajan Singh (5-56) was the wrecker-in-chief even though he missed a hat-trick chance.

Earlier, the Indian top order fired in unison and Tendulkar's majestic 133-ball 138 lifted them to a massive 319 for five wickets after Mahendra Singh Dhoni had won an important toss and elected to bat.

Tendulkar raised 95 runs with makeshift opener Rahul Dravid (39) and 110 with next man in Dhoni (56) and then Yuvraj Singh (56) provided the late charge to take the tally past the 300-mark.

The target was tough but Sri Lanka looked game for a fight with Dilshan going after Ishant Sharma. Dilshan greeted Ishant with back-to-back fours in his first over and then went on a rampage.

The famous Dilscoop was not far behind either as Dilshan executed the shot against his bemused Delhi Daredevils teammate Ashish Nehra.

Desperate for a breakthrough, Dhoni pressed in service Harbhajan Singh as early as in the eighth over and the offie did not let his skipper down, dealing a double strike that knocked the stuff out of Sri Lanka's chase.

Harbhajan castled Dilshan with his fifth delivery and then returned to catch Mahela Jayawardene (1) off his own bowling in his next over.

Encouraged by his success, Dhoni tossed the ball to Yusuf Pathan and the lanky offie claimed Jayasuriya, just when the left-hander had started looking menacing.

Two more quick wickets and Sri Lanka had lost their top half for 131 and once Sangakkara fell to a freak dismissal - his bat came loose and fell on the wicket on follow through - the hosts had the writing on the wall.

Earlier, 36-year-old Tendulkar seemed to be in imperious form as he notched up his 44th ODI century with a stunning display of strokeplay.

With Dinesh Karthik failing in both the matches, India opted for a new opening pair of Tendulkar and Dravid for the summit showdown and the experienced duo clicked together.

The two experienced batsmen found runs easy to come by as they took the total to 50 by the end of the 10th over and sought to accelerate the pace of scoring from then on.

Dravid got a reprieve when he was on 24 with Tillakaratne Dilshan dropping a fairly simple catch at gully, Thushara being the unlucky bowler.

Sangakkara introduced Lasith Malinga in the 13th over and Tendulkar greeted him with a glorious backfoot punch to the fence.

Dravid then lifted spinner Ajantha Mendis for a six but the wily Sanath Jayasuriya removed him in the next over. Dhoni promoted himself to the number three slot and got into the act almost immediately with a flurry of strokes.

He and Tendulkar kept up the pace of scoring without taking too many risks as they brought about the 100-run partnership to pile up the agony on the hosts.

Tendulkar took a single by cutting Mendis to the sweeper cover to notch up his 44th ODI century.

The hosts finally broke the partnership when Dhoni mistimed his pull shot and Kandamby took a well-judged catch.

A tired Tendulkar, who called in a runner after suffering from cramps, was dismissed at the fag end of the innings, being trapped leg before wicket by Mendis.

His sublime knock of 138 came off just 133 balls and was laced with ten boundaries and a six.

Down the order, Yuvraj chipped in with an unbeaten 41-ball cameo of 56 that had six fours and a six in it.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Paes-Dlouhy win US Open doubles title

NEW YORK: Leander Paes won the battle of Indians as well as his 10th Grand Slam title after defeating old pal Mahesh Bhupathi and Mark Knowles in the US Open men's doubles final along with his partner Luaks Dlouhy on Sunday.

Fourth seeds Paes and Czech Dlouhy scripted a sensational 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 win in the championship match over third seeds Bhupathi and his Bahamian partner.

The match was heading for a straight-set wash out for Bhupathi and Knowles but LeanderPaes enlivened the match with his inspiring play and changed the complexion of the game.

His sparkling play infused life into the match and Dlouhy complemented him well to emerge winners after a confidence shaking first set lapse.

For Paes it is his fifth men's doubles Grand Slam crown, 41st overall, and second with Dlouhy.
It was also second title of the year for the seasoned Paes, who won French Open in June along with Dlouhy.

The defeat for Bhupathi means that he has not won a men's doubles Grand Slam crown in seven years. Interestingly, his last victory came at the US Open only when he triumphed with Max Mirnyi in 2002.

He had won the Australian Open mixed doubles title with Sania Mirza at the start of the season.

Bhupathi and Knowles made a spiffing start by opening up a 2-0 lead after breaking Paes in the second game but their rivals retaliated by breaking the Bahamian in the third.

Paes' backhand slice return off Knowles' service earned them a breakpoint which they converted when the Indian fired a volley between their rivals, making the score 2-2.

Paes dropped his serve again in the sixth game but Knowles this time made amends and held his serve in the next to earn a 5-2 cushion.

Bhupathi, who served with great control all through, had no problem in sealing the first set in the ninth game.

Paes and Dlouhy overcame a disastrous start to the second set and played enthralling tennis with emotions flying high.

Dlouhy dropped his serve in the first game and Knowles held his to shot up to 2-0 lead but Paes and Dlouhy won four games in a row to go up 4-2.

The sixth game produced scintillating tennis as Paes hit some stunning and measured service return winners to earn as many as five breakpoints and finally converted the last to break Bhupathi for the first time in the match.

However, Paes failed to hold his serve yet again in the next game but the damage was neutralised as Knowles too dropped his serve in the eighth game.

Dlouhy then served out the set, converting their third chance and the match stretched to the decisive third set.

Carrying on with the momentum, the Indo-Czech continued their good work and earned an early break.

Knowles' double fault after Bhupathi's unforced volley error in the third game gave their rivals that crucial opportunity to push for the win.

Paes and Dlouhy then saved three breakpoints in the next game, broke their rivals in the seventh game and served out the match in the eighth game at love.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

India beat New Zealand to reach tri-series final

COLOMBO: No side has won a match at the Premadasa Stadium batting second in the last 13 ODIs played here. India broke that hoodoo on Friday,beating New Zealand by six wickets in the second match of the Compaq Cup tri-series and thereby ensuring a place in Monday's final against hosts Sri Lanka and also moving to the top of ICC's ODI rankings. India now take on the hosts in an inconsequential game on Saturday.

Scorecard

But the real positive to come out of Rahul Dravid's comeback match was the superb performance of another man on the comeback trail: Ashish Nehra whose career was thought to be as good as over after he suffered a serious ankle injury during the 2003 World Cup. into a match winner again. "It was tough but I never for once thought that I won't play for India again," said Nehra after his man-of-the-match showing.

Nehra generated good pace and bounce and, more importantly, moved the ball either ways after pitching. That he got both the New Zealand openers, Jesse Ryder and Brendon McCullum, one a left-hander and the other a right-hander, out leg-before with balls that came in after pitching showed that he knew what he was doing with the ball.

The Delhi left-armer opened the floodgate in his first over and also wrapped it up in the 47th over as New Zealand managed a modest 155 for nine wickets.

Nehra finished with figures of 3 for 24 from his 8.3 overs. New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori top scored with 25 in a card that had quite a few 20s, some 10s and a duck too. In reply, India notched up the required runs in the 41st over losing just four wickets.

Sachin Tendulkar, back in the squad after skipping the West Indies tour, scored 46 valuable runs before skipper MS Dhoni (35 n.o.) and Suresh Raina (45 n.o.) saw to it that India broke the Premdasa jinx.

But more than India's batting, coach Gary Kirsten & Co would have taken heart from what their fast bowlers did early in the day. Bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad applauded every New Zealand wicket that fell with a great sense of satisfaction.

It could be seen in his big smile as it flashed on the giant screen. And he had some good reasons for that too. Without Zaheer Khan in the line-up, many thought that this attack lacked bite and venom.

But Nehra's comeback and RP Singh return to form and fitness meant that a bowler like Ishant Sharma could afford to come in first change to trouble the opponents. Of course, conditions at the ground helped the bowlers and the Kiwi batsmen failed to put up any credible resistance. But Indian bowlers were still spot on.

If Nehra was hungry for some action, so was RP. He too had a point to prove and didn't let go of this opportunity. He mixed his deliveries well and never hesitated to dig in one short or bowl the slower ones every now and then.

And while the focus was on the seamers, part-time spinner Yuvraj Singh also proved incisive, grabbing three wickets for 31 runs to hasten New Zealand's fall.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Blame your working hours for wrong food choices

Long work hours and irregular schedules are forcing people to compromise on food choices for themselves and their children, suggests a new study.

The research team from Cornell University measured food choice coping strategies in low- to middle-income families in five categories: (1) food prepared at/away from home; (2) missing meals; (3) individualizing meals (family eats differently, separately, or together); (4) speeding up to save time; and (5) planning.

They found that fathers who worked long hours or had nonstandard hours and schedules were more likely to use take-out meals, miss family meals, purchase prepared entrees, and eat while working. Similarly, mothers were also likely to purchase restaurant meals or prepared entrees or missed breakfast.

About a quarter of mothers and fathers said they did not have access to healthful, reasonably priced, and/or good-tasting food at or near work.

The findings suggest that better work conditions may be associated with more positive strategies such as more home-prepared meals, eating with the family, keeping healthful food at work, and less meal skipping.

"This study examined how work conditions are related to the food choice coping strategies of low- and moderate-income parents,” said Dr Carol M. Devine, RD, Division of Nutritional Sciences, Cornell University, and colleagues.

“Study findings will enhance understanding of social and temporal employment constraints on adults'' food choices and may inform workplace interventions and policies ... The importance of work structure for employed parents'' food choice strategies is seen in the associations between work hours and schedule and food choice coping strategies, such as meals away from home and missed family meals.

“Long work hours and irregular schedules mean more time away from family, less time for household food work, difficulty in maintaining a regular meal pattern, and less opportunity to participate in family meals; this situation may result in feelings of time scarcity, fatigue, and strain that leave parents with less personal energy for food and meals," the researchers added.

source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Paes, Bhupathi to clash in US Open doubles final

NEW YORK: Indian tennis ace Leander Paes kept himself in line of two Grand Slam titles after entering the final of the men's doubles event of the US Open following an upset win over top seeds and local favourites Mike and Bob Bryan on Wednesday.

Third seeds Mahesh Bhupathi and Bahamian Mark Knowles also coasted to an easy straight set win over fifth-seed Belarussian-Israeli duo of Max Mirnyi and Andy Ram to enter the finals of US Open mixed doubles.

The Indo-Bahamian pair got the better of Belarussian-Israeli duo 6-4, 6-2 to set up title clash with fourth-seed India's Leander Paes and Czech Lukas Dlouhy.

Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi will now fight it out for the US Open men's doubles title. Paes and his partner Cara Black have already reached the final of the mixed doubles event.

Paes and his Czech partner Lukas Dlouhy, seeded fourth, overwhelmed the Bryan brothers 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (8-6) in one hour and 51 minutes in the semi-final at the Flushing Meadows.

The match had a sensational climax as Paes and Dlouhy had plenty of match points in the tie-breaker of the third and final set but Bryan brothers made a spirited comeback and saved five match points.

However, Paes and Dlouhy held their nerves and finally converted their sixth match point to clinch the issue.

It was Bryan brothers who got the first chance of a break but Paes and Dlouhy not only saved them but also converted the opportunities that came their way in the opening set.

The first set was tied 2-2 when on Paes' serve, the Americans earned two break points but the Indo-Czech combination played well to ward off the threat and held their serve.

In the next game, Paes and Dlouhy converted their second break point chance as Mike made a forehand error. Dlouhy served out the next game at love to take a 5-3 lead.

The next two games went with serve and the fourth seeds comfortably took the set to go one up.

The second set started on an ominous note for Paes and Dlouhy but they could not convert the early chance.

Dlouhy misfired an overhead volley to hand their rivals a break in the fourth game and it was enough for the Bryan brothers to claw their way back into the match.

Mike held his serve in the next game to consolidate the lead, making it 4-1. The next four games went with serve and the Americans stretched the match to the decisive third set.

The final set began with a marathon 16-point game but Dlouhy managed to hold serve after five deuces and in the process saved two break points.

The next chance of service break came in the seventh game when Paes and Dlouhy were down 0-40 on the serve of the Indian. The fourth seeds held their nerves and saved four break points in that game, making it a brilliant contest.

Bob served the 10th game to save the match and Paes hit a stunning backhand winner to earn their first match point. Bob served extremely well and made it 5-5.

No pair was willing to concede even an inch and it all boiled down to the tie-breaker.

It was a dream tie-breaker for Paes and Dlouhy as they created a 5-0 lead but Bryan brothers played exceptional tennis and saved four match points to make it 6-6.

The partisan crowd cheered for the American duo but Paes hit a backhand volley between the brothers to seal a final berth.

Source:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

UAE air force plane carrying arms, admits pilot

KOLKATA: After trying to fob off Indian officials and investigators all of Sunday night, one of the pilots of the United Arab Emirates air force aircraft detained at Kolkata airport since Sunday finally admitted to the plane carrying a consignment of weapons.

The C-130 Hercules among the biggest transport aircraft in the world was on its way to Xiangyang, China, from UAEAF's Western Air Command base in Abu Dhabi. Although the UAE government had the necessary clearances from Indian authorities for the flight to land in Kolkata, it had not informed that the aircraft would be carrying weapons.

Indian Customs and airport officials interrogated the nine-member crew till Monday afternoon. After that, the ministry of defence (MoD) took over. Talks are on in Delhi to avert a possible diplomatic row. Officials here are tight-lipped.

On September 3, the UAE government had applied to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for a flight information centre clearance that was necessary for a military aircraft not only to overfly Indian airspace but also land at a civilian airport.

An air defence/AOR clearance was also sought from MoD through proper channels. "As permission was sought through proper diplomatic channels and UAE is a friendly country, the clearances were given. Both applications were made in specific proformas with columns where the UAE authorities were supposed to mention if the aircraft would be carrying any weapons. These columns were marked 'nil' in both applications. Later, it was discovered that the aircraft was indeed carrying weapons. This was in clear violation of rules and the crew was detained," said a senior officer.

The aircraft was to land in Kolkata around 4 pm on Sunday, refuel, stay for the night and take off for China at 10.30 am on Monday. Crew members were booked for the night at a star hotel.

It was 5.30 pm on Sunday by the time the Hercules captain, Ismail Samsi, sought permission from Kolkata ATC to land. The details of what happened after this are slightly hazy. One version is that the pilot was asked upon landing whether his aircraft was carrying any weapon. He answered in the negative. But an alert Customs officer saw a sidearm on one of the crew members. Soon, a team from air intelligence arrived to check the plane for its cargo.

According to another version, every foreign aircraft parked in the bay overnight is checked. Customs officials accompany the crew on board for an inspection before the doors are sealed. That was when they noted something amiss.

There is a third version, which speaks of a tip received by Indian intelligence agencies from an undisclosed source.

A team from the air intelligence wing, led by B Jha, boarded the aircraft around 7 pm on Sunday and found three boxes that resembled those for carrying rifles. The pilot admitted there were weapons inside but that he did not have any details. He allegedly told officials that he was a mere courier and would often fly weapons to China for 'tests'.

The crew who were in military uniform were detained and led to the airport lounge. The plane was towed to hangar 14 and sealed. No effort was made to open the boxes in the cargo hold. The interrogation lasted till 2 pm on Monday after which the nine crew members now in civilian clothing were transferred to a hotel. According to the customs department, the ministry of defence would interrogate the crew there.

"Although the pilot's declaration regarding the weapons on board has dismissed the theory of the crew being involved in gun-running, the aircraft cannot be allowed to leave. All clearances granted have expired. There are some issues that still need to be checked out. We have also demanded an explanation from the UAE embassy in New Delhi," an officer said. The army is guarding the plane.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Preity does it for Salman!

You would be forgiven for thinking Preity Zinta’s doing a Kajre Re in this song for Salman Khan’s home production Main Aur Mrs Khanna.

Far from it, and the perky Preity doesn’t want any comparisons or confusion with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan who shook her hips for father and son Bachchan in the 2005 hit Bunty Aur Babli.

Turns out Salman’s her buddy, and this is not an item song she’s doing for him, but a special number in the film co-starring Kareena Kapoor
and Sohail Khan. “It’s an interesting cameo. The song’s called Happening and I agreed to do it because director Prem Soni is a friend. And since Salman has played Prem so often, let’s just say this one is for Prem,” the bubby actress said.

Prem (the director, not Salman) added, “Unlike Ash, who was just a part of Kajra Re, Preity plays an important role in the film.” Incidentally... ahem, Preity look’s kinda ‘happening’ because she worked out hard for the song. With two super fit actors in the film in Salman and Kareena, Preity forced herself to follow a special diet, take up a tough exercise regime and do yoga.


Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

30 YSR fans die of shock

HYDERABAD: Shell-shocked by the sudden demise of their beloved leader Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, 30 people died in different parts of the state on
Thursday.

In East Godavari, nine people died, while former minister Jakkampudi Ramamohan Rao fainted on hearing the news. Seven died of heart attack and shock, while two hanged themselves unable to bear the grief. According to district police, N Yesubabu, 20, of Narendrapuram in Rajanagaram mandal and Achanta Ramakrishna, 48, of Nagaram in Mamidikuduru mandal committed suicide.

The heart attack victims were: Yerravarapu Raji, 40, a barber shop owner, in Mangaturthi village in Pithapuram mandal, Bonam Tulasiveni, 56, of K Yenugupalli village in Gannavaram mandal, Ramayanam Radhakrishna, 62, a panshop owner at Masjid Centre in Kakinada, Ch Satyanarayana, 45, of Telugodupalem in Tallarevu mandal, Anaparthi Sriramulu, 50, Marnidi Venkannadora, 50, of Tuni and Pothula Tirupati Reddy, 70, of Bikkaolu mandal.

B Padma, 44, a Rajiv Arogyasri beneficiary and a daily-wager from Vanamalla in Punganur of Chittoor, collapsed on hearing the news of YSR’s death at 10 am and died. Parvathamma, 22, from Kummaragunta village in Punganur mandal died of shock. An ardent fan of YSR and TV shop owner, N Raja Reddy, 52, died of cardiac arrest at Pileru as soon as he saw the news of YSR’s death on the TV. “The people around him tried to resuscitate him, but he died a hospital,” a relative said.

A farmer from Kadapa, Narsaiah, 75, who had come to Piler along with his wife and children two days ago died of cardiac arrest after hearing the tragic news. In Durgasamudram, Shankaramma , 37, a daily-wager , who recently underwent a heart surgery under Arogyasri, died at around 6 pm. A Congress worker in Satyavedu, Muniratanam, 45, also died but its not confirmed whether he died of shock.

Laxminarayana, 19, a student of Chittoor Government Degree College, consumed pesticide. Earlier , a 25-year-old physically-challenged woman, Adari Raji, died of cardiac arrest at Jogannapet village in Vizag. Her father Suraynarayana was a former TDP sarpanch. She collapsed when she was watching the news about YSRs death, a relative said.

An ex-employee of RTC, P Seetha Ramaraju, 65, of Gajapathinagaram in Vizianagarm collapsed while watching TV. Though he was rushed to a nearby hospital , he was declared brought dead. An aged woman, Pyla Chandramma, 68, died of shock while standing in a queue for pension when fellow pensioners told her about YSRs demise.

Farm labourer Chinna Velugondarao, 30, of Podili in Prakasam district ended his life at Kambalapadu. A note was found in his shirt pocket which said, I am dedicating my life to YSR. Another person committed suicide in Unguturu in West Godavari, while toddy-tapper Kagita Rasalu, 22, slashed his neck with a knife at Chintalapudi. Ganta Lakshmamma, 70, of Eluru died of cardiac arrest upon hearing the news, while a die-hard YSR fan, Bhaskar, 45, died of shock in Tadipatri.

YSR fan Srinivas, 35, of Hyderabad collapsed and died. Gedala Aseervadam, 50, of Vempadu village in Kallal Mandal, Shaik Mohiuddin, 25, of Akiveedu, Raja Sesharatnam, 67, of Bhimavaram died. P Suresh, 22, of Papadu village and Mekala Krishna Rao, 30, of Tatakulagudem attempted suicide. Narayana, 27, a Congress activist from Marpally hanged himself. Yadgiri, 40, a barber in Amberpet died of cardiac arrest. Srinivas, 35, a private employee also suffered heart attack.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

YSR's chopper located near Kurnool: IAF

NEW DELHI: Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy's chopper has been traced near Kurnool. An Air Force spokesperson has said the chopper has been located on top a hill at a distance of 40 nautical miles east of Kurnool. The spokesperson, however, did not confirm if the chopper crashed.

Air Force helicopters are flying over the region, trying to find a position to land. More details are awaited.

The helicopter carrying YSR Reddy, two of his staff and two pilots went missing in pouring rain Wednesday morning over the Naxal and tiger-infested Nalamalla forests.

The Chief Minister left Hyderabad on a six-seater Bell chopper at 8.35am for Chittoor accompanied by his secretary and chief security officer. After 9.27am, radio contact was lost with the helicopter.

Soon after the chopper lost contact, multiple agencies of the state launched a massive hunt for possible wreckage in the desolate terrain. By evening, it expanded into the country's biggest-ever search operation with satellites in the sky joining remote sensing aircraft, fighter jets, unmanned aerial vehicles, troops on the ground and even barefoot deer-hunting tribals with bows and arrows.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Mob fury at station, cops fire in air

Mumbai Around 12,000 angry commuters at Nalasopara station in Thane on Tuesday brought trains on the western line to a halt for around four hours. They went on the rampage and attacked policemen forcing cops to open fire in the air.

The protest was triggered when train services were hit in the morning after an overhead wire snapped between Borivali and Dahisar stations.

Because of the snag, train services were disturbed from 7 am and trains were late, which got the commuters agitated. They pelted stones at policemen injuring two officers, senior police inspector Namankit More and inspector Ramesh Pawar, who are posted at Vasai railway police station, when they were trying to save a motorman from the fury of commuters.

“When my senior inspector More and I were taking the motorman to a safe place, commuters pelted stones at us. More was injured in the leg. I was injured in the head and nose,” said Pawar.

“To control the mob, police had to fire in the air. It was similar to the agitation two years back at Virar, when goons in the guise of commuters vandalised the station and entered into a fight with photographers capturing the act,” said a police source at Nalasopara. Today, commuters did not cause much harm to railway property. A sweet shop at Nalasopara station (east) was damaged.

According to SS Gupta, Chief PRO, WR, “Trains ran late between Churchgate and Virar due to the snag. And 10.55 am, services were restored. But at 10.30 am, the mob staged the agitation which continued till 1 pm.” The OHE wire broke down on the down line between Borivali and Dahisar station at 7 am. Till services were restored at 10.55 am after the wire was repaired, local trains were running on three lines ( one slow up line and two up and down fast line). These were delayed around 25 minutes. Meanwhile 5 up and down outstation trains were given halts between Virar and Borivali, said Gupta.

Pramod Harlaka, going to Palghar for his son Ronak’s admission in a computer course at St John technical college at Palghar, said, “We boarded Vapi passenger train from Bhayandar at 10.25 am, but when we reached Vasai, it stopped there for hours. There was no announcement. We reached Palghar at 4 pm. Today was the last day for admission. So, we left the train at 12.30 pm and took a taxi to Palghar and reached just in time for the admission,” said Harlaka.

This is the second day in a row that an ovehead wire is snapping on WR. On Monday, a wire had snapped at Bhayander. Today, 22 train services were cancelled.

Today’s incident is the seventh OHE breakdown this financial year. Last financial year, six cases of OHE breakdown were recorded between Churchgate and Virar.

Source:http://www.expressindia.com

139 colleges get varsity affiliation in 2 hours flat!

NAGPUR: The Nagpur University’s academic council granted affiliation to 139 new colleges on Monday. Only four proposals including one of an MPEd
college were rejected, university sources revealed to TOI. Additionally, 83 new courses were also granted permission to begin from this year while five colleges received permanent affiliation. With this, the total number of colleges affiliated to Nagpur University
, has jumped from 610 to 749.

According to rules, the local enquiry committees (LEC) reports of new colleges and shortcomings pointed out in them must be discussed in detail by the council members. However, the procedure is ritually ignored each year. This year was no different. Sources added that most colleges belong to politicians and influential persons and therefore, no council member dares to raise doubts.

The recent CBI investigations into shortcomings of engineering colleges
also failed to stir the university. CBI sleuths found that management of KDK College of Engineering was reportedly accommodating a school, a pharmacy college and also holding engineering classes in annexe building that was still under construction. After this, even LEC’s role came under the scanner as to how it had given a go ahead to the said college.

The story may be even more awful in the colleges offering general courses, especially in the rural areas. Surprisingly, the CBI’s verification checks found mention in the meeting with the members deciding to thoroughly verify whether the new professional colleges were strictly following norms set by AICTE and NCTE before granting affiliation.

Sources informed that during the meeting, pro-vice chancellor GS Parasher had requested the members not to grant affiliation to the new colleges without ensuring that they had appointed full-time, regular teachers.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com