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Students beat professor to death in Ujjain

       Ujjain (Madhya Pradesh): Students allegedly belonging to BJP affiliated students group Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) beat a college professor to death here on Saturday. The students group was angry over the decision of cancellation of the college elections and had taken the entire college hostage since morning. Professor L M Sabharwal along with two of his colleagues tried to broker peace and tried to convince them that the elections were cancelled as certain committees were not formed. However, not impressed with Professor's clarification and accusing them of being Congress affiliated NSUI's 'agents', student activists of ABVP roughed all the three professors and started beating them. Prof Sabharwal had a cardiac arrest and was rushed to the city Hospital where he was declared brought dead. Sabharwal's other colleague Professor Nath has been admitted to the same hospital, while the third professor's condition is still serious and has been rushed to Indore. Meanwhile, police has registered a case against "unidentified people" under Section 302of the Indian Penal Code.

PM asks scientists to 'take advantage'
of Indo-US nuke deal  (Go To Top)

      New Delhi: Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh urged country's eminent nuclear scientists to take advantage of the Civilian Nuclear Energy Cooperation that was agreed between him and US President George Bush on July 18, 2005. During his 90-minute long meeting with a group of eminent nuclear scientists, including Dr H N Sethna, Dr P K Iyengar, Dr. M R Srinivasan, Dr. Singh said: "Outline a path to take advantage of this new opening (provided by the Indo-US nuclear agreement) to end the nuclear apartheid against India". He also urged them to demonstrate the best use of the opportunities while minimising the risks by taking care of national interests. The meeting of the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) was attended by all the members, including AEC Chairman Anil Kakodkar, National Security Advisor M K Narayanan, Cabinet Secretary B K Chaturvedi, Chairman of the PM`s Science Advisory Council C N R Rao, BARC Director Srikumar Banerjee and Minister of State in PMO Prithviraj Chavan. Prime Minister also asked the Department of Atomic Energy Chief Anil Kakodkar and National Security Advisor MK Narayanan to work in close cooperation while negotiating the safeguards agreement and the India-specific additional protocol with the International Atomic Energy Agency. Dr. Singh tried to allay the concerns raised by the scientific community over the Indo-US nuclear deal and reiterated the assurances, which he had given to the Parliament. The nuclear scientists welcomed Prime Minister's statement made in the Parliament, earlier this week and complimented it as a 'beautiful one".

Police recovers huge cache of RDX in Rajouri

      Rajouri: The Jammu and Kashmir police on Saturday raided a militant hideout and recovered a large cache of explosives including deadly RDX. Acting on a tip-off, police made the recovery in the state's Rajouri district. "During search of the hideout, we found nearly 14 kg RDX, 20 electrical detonators, 20 DTD (Disclosed time devices) and three RCD (Remote Control Devices), All these were looking as if they had been freshly kept and there were no apparent marks to say there had been here since a long time," said Kulwant Singh, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Rajouri. According to officials, the infiltration of militants into the state from the Pakistani side had fallen during the winter but has gained momentum since the onset of summer when the snow blocking Himalayan passes melts, allowing rebels easier access.

Another Sikh boy's hair is forcibly cut (Go To Top)

      Kurukshetra: After the shocking incidents of Jaipur and Jamshedpur, one more case of a Sikh youth's forcible haircut has been reported from the town of Kurukshetra in Haryana. This time, the victim is Jasbir Singh Cheema, a boy studying in eleventh standard whose hair was cut by a stranger. "I was coming from school and stopped at a shop to buy some books, a man asked me for direction. After walking a while some one put handkerchief on my nose and I fainted. When I woke up I found myself in a car and my hair cut, I started to walk to my aunt's place as it was near," narrated Jasbir Singh Cheema. The incident has sparked widespread protests by the members of the Sikh community in Kurukshetra and various Sikh bodies have taken up the issue with state authorities. "This is very shameful incident. After our Gurudwara president returns from Karnal then only we would decide over our future course of action", said Manpreet Singh, Head Granthi of Kurukshetra gurudwara. A case has been registered but the police are facing difficulty to make a sketch of the alleged person who had forcibly cut Jasbir's hair.

Clean chit to Amarnath Board over lingam row

      Jammu: Justice Gupta Commission which was asked to go into the allegation of artificial Shiv Lingam at Amarnath Cave Shrine in Kashmir on Saturday gave a clean to the Shrine Board. In the 90-page report, the Commission observed, "We see no hand of any official of the Sri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) in the formation of snow Shiv Lingam or tampering of the natural Ice Shiv Lingam, which in fact had not been tampered during the yatra period announced by SASB". The report which was presented to the Jammu and Kashmir Governor Lt. General (Retd) S K Sinha also said that no tampering of any nature of the Holy Shiv Lingam took place. On the allegations that Board purchased huge quantity of 'dry ice' for the purpose of forming the artificial lingam, the Commission said, "The dry ice was purchased for Rs 85248 from Delhi to keep the area cool and not for forming artificial Shiv Lingam". Besides this, the Commission also proposed 11 recommendations for future improvements that included insuring pithoos, ponys, palkiwallas and labourers working on regular basis and relocation of the helipad for making the cave area pollution free. The one-man commission was instituted by Jammu and Kashmir Governor in his capacity as Chairman SASB on June 29, after consulting with Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad to inquire into the complaints of tampering with the size and shape of the Holy Ice Lingam at Shri Amarnathji Cave. The Commission has recommended Sri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) to find a permanent solution to make the area around the holy cave cool so as the life of the Holy Shiv Lingam is prolonged.

Ganesh Chaturthi festival begins Sunday (Go To Top)

      Mumbai /Pune/ Chennai: Country is getting ready for celebrating the 10-day long Ganesh Chaturthi, which begins from Sunday. In western Pune, hundreds of artisans are giving final touches to the idols. With awareness about pollution and intervention of judiciary, idols are now mostly made of degradable substances, instead of Plaster of Paris, which was used to make idols in the past. "I only make idols of clay as they do not pollute the environment. When these idols are immersed in water they get easily dissolved which is not the case with idols made of Plaster of Paris. I always recommend to make idols of clay," said Sachin Ingale, an idol maker. Unlike other deities where any changes shown in its image could be considered sacrilegious, the Ganesh can be depicted in any way -- dancing, standing on top of the world or lying down. In southern Tamil Nadu, idol makers have come up with postures of the gods in different ways to attract devotees. As the festival approaches, the demand for sweets offered to Lord Ganesha, popularly known locally as modaks have also shot up. Considered as a favorite of Lord Ganesha, modaks of various varieties becomes popular during the festival. The recent serial train blasts in Mumbai has led to strict security arrangements as the organisers are leaving no stone unturned over the security measure. Thousands of people are expected to flock to the city to see the idols in the hundreds of make-shift tents, set up specially for the festival across the city. Close circuit cameras, private security guards armed with metal detectors are helping the city police to keep a vigil. Ganesh Chaturthi is one of the greatest of festivals in western Maharashtra. Legend has it that Hindu Goddess Parvati, consort of Shiva, one of the three most powerful Gods in the Hindu pantheon, had created Ganesha from a perfumed putty-like substance, which she used to remove dirt from her body. Shiva flew into rage on seeing the boy near the bath and beheaded him. Later, on realisation of his mistake Shiva brought him back to life by slaying an elephant and giving him the animal's head. Thus was created Ganesha who is worshipped at the beginning of every auspicious occasion.

Communal tension in UP village (Go To Top)

     Harriya (Uttar Pradesh): The demolition of a school wall in the village of Harriya, in Uttar Pradesh's Basti District, has led to communal tension prevailing in the area. A Hindu outfit went on protest, saying there was no justification for demolishing the wall and leaving a Muslim shrine standing next to the school untouched. The Hindu Yuva Vahini (HYV) took out a demonstration saying they will rebuild the wall. The demonstration turned violent as activists went on a rampage, pelting stones and vandalising vehicles and burnt down shops. Four people were injured in the violence. Officials said police resorted to firing to bring the situation under control. "The procession turned violent when it reached the district and people started pelting stones and burnt vehicles. The police had to resort to firing in which one person was seriously injured and three others were also injured who have been admitted to the hospital," Surendra Verma, the local District Magistrate said. Local authorities had, a few months ago, demolished the school's boundary wall to enable people access an adjoining narrow lane.

Northwest Airline Indian passengers
return to Mumbai (Go To Top)

      Mumbai: Twelve Indian passengers who were arrested from a US Northwest Airlines flight after they apparently behaved suspiciously, landed at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport early on Saturday morning. The Northwest Airlines flight 'NW042' arrived at the airport at 2.15 a.m. after a delay of four hours. Passengers told the media that the incident should be seen only as a case of misunderstanding, and thanked the Central Government for its efforts in getting them released without charge. Mohammad Iqbal Batliwala, a garment trader in his mid-40s said that they had changed seats in the flight. "There was a misunderstanding. They found our action suspicious and would create problem in the flight. There was also a problem because of seat exchange," Batliwala said. When asked about any difficultly they faced during investigation, one passenger said they were treated well by the Dutch authorities, but wanted to forget their bad experience. "We were not abused either verbally or physically. They blamed us that we were moving around the flight during take off. They also blamed us of playing with mobiles. But after interrogation, they found that there was a mistake from their side. So they apologised," Shakeel Usman Chotani, one of the detained passengers said. Both Batliwala and Chottani appealed to the media to "please put the issue to rest", saying they were businessmen and did not want the incident to affect their business. Relatives of 12 men, all Muslims, cleared of any wrongdoing and released, said they were victims of racial discrimination. Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma on Friday said that the Dutch ambassador to India has expressed regret for the arrest of 12 passengers, but the Government of The Natherlands said no such apology had been tendered. The Indian Government had conveyed its strong protests over the incarceration of the passengers to the Dutch envoy in New Delhi, who was summoned to the foreign ministry. Dutch authorities said on Thursday they had no evidence to suggest that the men were planning a terrorist attack.

    Other passengers from the detained flight, who arrived in Mumbai on Thursday night, said they saw the 12 men exchanging seats and fidgeting with their mobile phones. The Boeing DC 10-30 was flying from Amsterdam to Mumbai with 149 passengers on board when suspicious behavior prompted the pilot to return to Amsterdam on Wednesday. The jet, which was flying over Germany at the time, was escorted back to Amsterdam by two Dutch air force jets as soon as it entered Dutch air space.

Kolkata celebrates Teresa's birth anniversary

      Kolkata: Birthday celebrations and special prayers were held at the headquarters of Missionaries of Charity here on Saturday to commemorate the 96th birth anniversary of Mother Teresa. Hundreds of people joined nuns at the Missionaries of Charity for a special morning mass at Mother's House here. Sister Nirmala, the Superior General of the Charity, said that prayers were held to make their lives as fruitful as that of the Mother. "We all thank God for Mother's life. We are having prayers and rejoicing and we are also praying that we all of us make our life something beautiful for God as Mother has done," she said. Selfless love and devotion of Mother towards humankind has earned her followers from far and wide.

     Mother Teresa qualified for beatification after Vatican officials acknowledged that she was responsible for a miracle in which an Indian woman was cured of stomach cancer through her intervention. Mother Teresa who died on September 5, 1997, at the age of 87, was popularly known as the "Saint of the Gutter" for her extraordinary love and dedication to poor, homeless and diseased people. She came to India in 1929 at the age of 18 and took up teaching and became an Indian citizen in 1948. She started working in the slums and later set up her Missionaries of Charity, which was approved by the Vatican in 1950. The Missionary now runs more than 500 homes in over 100 countries. Mother received several national and international awards for her social service during her lifetime. They include the Magsaysay Award in 1962, the Pope John XXIII Peace Prize in 1971, the John F. Kennedy International Award in 1971 and the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979.

Musharraf may reveal state secrets to make
his book a best seller: Sherry Rehman (Go To Top)

      Islamabad: Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf may divulge national secrets in his forthcoming book 'In the Line of Fire' in order to make it a best seller, PPP Information Secretary Sherry Rehman has said. "The President would reveal sensitive information on Pakistan's internal security in his book to make it a best seller," the Daily Times quoted Sherry as saying while criticising Musharraf for writing his autobiography. An American publisher Simon and Schuster had been paid one million dollars to publish the book, she added. Musharraf is slated to visit the US next month to attend the launch of the book in New York. Only after the book is launched in the US, it would be sold in Pakistan. So far the contents of the book have been kept as a guarded secret, and even book critics and journalists were not allowed to get advance copies of the book for writing reviews.

Mumbai's 'Dabbawallahs share trade secrets
with management students (Go To Top)

      New Delhi: Mumbai's "dabbawallas" or lunch- box delivery boys, known for their clockwork precision in supplying lunch-boxes to lakhs of city dwellers, are now sharing trade secrets with management students. In an interactive session with the students of Birla Institute of Management Technology (BIMTECH) recently, Raghunath Medge, president of the Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association, shared the nuances of their success and efficiency of the system. "This is our third generation who is working now. Our fathers were the ones who started it. We run it all by ourselves. Till day there has been no police complaint and no court matter. We make the rules and regulations, which are needed, for our business", said Medge. Impressed by the Dabbawallahs' trade secrets, Parikshit, a management student said: "If you have your business goal very clear in your mind, then your logistics system and your technology all are secondary factors. And this is what these people are doing out there. Their technology is very simple but what they have in mind is customer first and that is why they have been successful in the last 115 years".

    A dabbawallah's day officially starts at 9 am--- although by then they may already have travelled up to four hours from outlying villages -- when the lunchboxes are collected from homes and brought to the nearest railway station. Some of the lunches start their journey as many as 60 kilometers from their suburban destinations, going through nearly half a dozen different sets of hands along the way. The dabbawalas have a coding system, which ensures the correct Tiffin reaches the correct person. Teamwork, precision and a backup team to handle emergency situations are the secrets that make the system foolproof. The Forbes magazine has given the dabbawalla syndicate a Six Sigma performance rating or a 99.99999 percent of precision, which mean they have only one error in six million deliveries. But real limelight came in 2003 when they were honoured and admired by Prince Charles on a rare visit to the former British colony. In the dabbawalla syndicate, everyone is a shareholder and irrespective of a member's function in the entire supply chain, and each is paid anything between rupees 2000 ($ 44.4) to rupees 4000 ($ 88.8) a month.

Dhoni 'frenzy' leads to scuffle in Ranchi (Go To Top)

     Ranchi: A scuffle broke out here on Saturday as fans and journalists clashed with security personnel to force their way to cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni at a corporate function. Wicketkeeper-batsman Dhoni's appearance at a motorbike showroom triggered immediate pandemonium as fans charged at him while the showroom security tried pushing them back. The police had to be called in as the situation went beyond control. Police baton charged to disperse the crowd, injuring some fans and media-men. "He was invited by his friends and the showroom people. Then they roughed up reporters and cameramen," said Manadeo Sen, a journalist present at the site. "There was a lot of chaos at the showroom. It was inevitable, there were way too many people waiting there. It went completely out of control, in spite of some of us trying to pacify the fans," said Nirmal Sharma, an onlooker. Dhoni, visibly upset by the riot, withdrew to a corner of the showroom behind security personnel. Dhoni, a native of Jharkhand state, has stunned his fans and cricket pundits with the phenomenal beginning of his cricketing career since his debut in December 2004. He has been averaging over 52 in 42 matches, at an enviable strike rate of 103. He briefly displaced Ricky Ponting as the top batsman in ODIs in the latest ICC rankings.

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