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Storm lashes Bangladesh, 38 killed

     Dhaka: At least 38 people were killed and 700 injured in a violent tropical storm that whipped through northern Bangladesh on Sunday (March 20) night. Officials said the storm, packing winds of 90 kph (60 mph), tore through several villages in the districts of Gaibandha and Rangpur, flattening hundreds of houses, uprooting trees and electric poles and damaging crops. "The storm has destroyed our iron sheet houses, two of our family members died. They were hit by iron sheets flying off from another house and killed," said Jahangir Alam, an injured. Rural homes, mostly made of bamboo, straw and corrugated iron sheets, could not withstand the rain and wind. Officials and witnesses said some 400 people were treated in Gaibandha and Rangpur hospitals. On Monday, wailing survivors were seen recovering bodies of relatives from under heaps of debris of collapsed houses while rescuers struggled to clear roads blocked by fallen trees. Most of the storm-swept areas were without electricity. The storm battered more than 10 villages in an area with a population of about 50,000, officials and police said. Storms frequently hit Bangladesh during the summer, killing hundreds of people. Sunday's storm was this year's first.

Rita Sharma is the richest Asian woman in London (Go To Top)

     London: There was a time when Indian-born Rita Sharma used to sell airline tickets to make ends meet, but today she is the ninth richest Asian entrepreneur in Britain, thanks to her roaring travel agency business, which she started from a small office on London's Oxford Street. Forty-four-year-old Sharma decided to set up her own business almost 20 years ago (in 1986), and this has now been transformed into a 95 million pound five-star holiday web site called bestatravel.co.uk. Today she is in the top 25 in a poll of Britain's wealthiest Asians, besides being named the richest Asian woman in London.

     According to a report in The Independent, that puts Sharma at number nine in a top 10 of Asian entrepreneurs in London, and 21st nationally, alongside such billionaires as steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal (13.5 billion pounds) and the Hinduja brothers who have made a 2.1 billion pound fortune, mainly from oil. Sharma, a first-generation immigrant from Punjab and a mother of two teenage daughters, said she was impatient for success early in life. "I was disillusioned and had a determination to make something work by myself. I was a great Thatcherite and I believed every word she said when she talked about businesses springing from your own backyard. I found a serviced office in Oxford Street that was about the size of a broom cupboard, and the other thing I had was contacts and the conviction that I could make money out of airline tickets for left-turners [industry-speak for first- class airline travellers]," the paper quotes Sharma, as saying. She further went on to say that she was inspired by her father, a clothes manufacturer who supplied C and A, and her brother Raj, who recently sold his travel business to lastminute.com. Sharma's husband, Rahul, 46, swapped his job with an accountancy firm to become her finance director, and the company now is preparing for floatation within three years.

      The wealthiest Asians in Britain are as follows: Lakshmi Mittal, 55, steel, worth 13.5 billion pounds Gopi and Sri Hinduja, 65 and 70, industry, oil, worth 2.1 billion pounds Mike and George Jatania, 40 and 55, industry, worth 650 million pounds Anil Agarwal, mining, worth 620 million pounds Mo Ibrahim, 58, telecoms, worth 275 million pounds Lord Paul, 74, industry, hotels, worth 275 million pounds Sir Anwar Pervez, 69, cash and carry, worth 237 million pounds Ramesh and Pratibha Sachdev, 60 and 57, care homes, property, worth 207 million pounds Shahid Luqman, 37, finance, worth 125 million pounds Firoz Kassam, 50, hotels, football, worth 95 million pounds Harpal Matharu, 49, hotels, worth 95 million pounds Rita and Rahul Sharma, travel, property, worth 95 million pounds and Manubhai Madhvani, 75, industry, worth 85 million pounds

Bangalore getting ready to host third Indo-Pak Test (Go To Top)

     Bangalore: Bangalore's Chinnaswamy Stadium is all set to host the high-profile deciding third cricket Test between India and Pakistan starting on March 24. The Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) is making an all out effort to make the event successful. Ticket sales for the third match have increased after India beat Pakistan by 195 runs in the second Test at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. "The sale has been pretty brisk. It is not like a one day match but for a test match it is very very good," said Brijesh Patel, the Secretary of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA). The cricket association is busy making comfortable and hygienic arrangements for the match. The last Test match played at the stadium was between India and Australia in October 2004.

    The sides are already camping in the city and the cricket buffs are looking forward to witness some exciting cricket and one more win for India. "India played very well in Kolkata and won the match. We'll be very happy if they perform well here in Bangalore also and win the match," said a cricket fan. The home ground crowd is waiting excitedly to see their ambassadors Anil Kumble and Rahul Dravid, who secured the victory for India at Eden Gardens, striking Pakistanis hard again. "It is the home play ground of Rahul and Kumble, I wish that they win the series by 2-0.They won in Kolkata and Bangalore being their home town they should play well. We have come here to buy the tickets of the five days series and looking forward for good performance," said another cricket fan. The third test is crucial for the Pakistani side and the team would give their best efforts to equal the series. Pakistan is touring India to play three test and six one-day series. First test at Mohali ended in a draw and the second one at Kolkata was won by India. Now the final outcome of the series depends on the Bangalore clash.

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