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Ten die in landslide in Kerala

     Mulliyar (Kerala): At least ten people were killed in Kerala due to heavy landslides and soil erosion after continuous two days of rains, reports said today. The victims were working at a check dam construction site at Mulliyar village, Atta Parnabu, in Kasargode district when the loose soil caved in on April 26 afternoon. Eyewitnesses said three people were rescued and 13 injured were being treated at a nearby hospital. Bodies of those perished were recovered using a shovel.

Deuba arrested on alleged corruption charges

     Kathmandu: Former Prime Minister of Nepal Sher Bahadur Deuba was arrested from his residence early this morning here on alleged charges of corruption. Deuba a week earlier refused to appear before a Royal Corruption Control Commission (RCCC) for questioning over allegations of committing irregularities in the multi-million dollar contract dealing with the ADB-funded Melamchi Drinking Water Project. According to Nepali Congress spokesman Minendra Rijal, around 2 AM armed policemen arrived at Deuba's residence in Budhanilkantha, 10 kms from here and took him into custody forcefully. Policemen cut off all communications and electricity connections before they entered the house, he added. The commission was set up by King Gyanendra just after he took over the power on February 1. There are other charges also on Deuba of distributing unauthorised funds to party workers. "The action was inhuman", said Rijal. There is no information about the whereabouts of senior leader, he added.

Reliance Infocomm turns profitable; RIL net up 47 percent (Go To Top)

     Mumbai: Reliance Group's flagship company Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) has announced here on Wednesday an impressive 47 percent growth in net profit for the fiscal 2004- 05. The group company Reliance Infocomm, after running in loss for two years has finally turned profitable. It has earned a profit of Rs 51 crore for the fiscal 2004-05 overcoming the loss of Rs 390 crore in 2003-04. The results were announced after the board meeting of Reliance Industries Limited. The meeting was chaired by company Chairman Mukesh Ambani and was attended by all 11 members including his younger brother and Vice Chairman and Managing Director of RIL Anil Ambani. Rewarding the three million shareholders, RIL announced a whopping 75 per cent dividend. The shareholders would be getting Rs 7.50 per share of Rs 10 each RIL has reported a net profit of Rs. 7572 crore for fiscal 2004- 05 against Rs 5,160 crore in 2003-04. On quarterly basis, RIL posted a net profit of Rs 2,292 crore during (January-March 2005) over Rs 1,419 crore in the same quarter of previous financial year, an increase of 61.5 percent. RIL has a paid-up equity capital of Rs 1,393.51 crore as on March 31, 2005. In a press statement, RIL said that the company became the first private sector entity to record a net profit of over 1.7 billion US dollar. RIL's turnover during the year stood at Rs 73164 crore in 2004-05 compared to Rs 56247 crore in 2003-04, recording a growth of 30 per cent. During the same period Reliance Infocomm notched up a turnover of Rs. 5,387 crore reflecting a 99 per cent jump from level of 2003-04, RIL said in statement. Meanwhile, the RIL Board today approved the appointment of Ashok Mishra as the new director of the company. Mishra, a technocrat and IIT graduate, comes in place of TRU Pai, who passed away on January 26, 2005. Pai was on RIL Board since 1979.

Shoaib Malik advised elbow surgery for correcting bowling action (Go To Top)

     Islamabad: Pakistan all-rounder Shoaib Malik has been advised to undergo surgery on the right elbow of his bowling arm for correcting his bowling actions. According to The News, Malik was getting considerable pain while straightening his arms during bowling, and this, experts believe was the reason the International Cricket Council (ICC) had banned him from bowling. South African elbow surgeons Joe de Beer and Basil Veretos who were examining him have said that there were only two remedies for Malik to avoid the pain. One was the use of painkillers before a match which will keep him stay trouble free while bowling and also help him straighten his arm in the process, and the other was elbow surgery to make things comfortable on permanent basis. "There are bright chances of solving the problem permanently if the player undergoes surgery. However, the surgery is sensitive and the bowler has to spare around three months for the purpose," the paper quoted one of the specialists as saying.

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