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[] | 2016-08-26T16:53:27 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will arrive in Sri Lanka on August 31, 2016 on a three-day official visit, the Foreign Ministry said on Friday. Mr. Ban will hold discussions with President Mait | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Finternational%2Fun-chief-ban-kimoon-to-visit-sri-lanka%2Farticle9035824.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02987/SRILANKA-WAR__2987188c.jpg | en | null | UN chief Ban Ki-moon to visit Sri Lanka | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Mr. Ban will visit a resettlement site for displaced people in Jaffna and take part in a conference on youth and reconciliation in Galle.
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will arrive in Sri Lanka on August 31, 2016 on a three-day official visit, the Foreign Ministry said on Friday.
Mr. Ban will hold discussions with President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, among others.
He will deliver a speech in Colombo on the U.N.’s global development goals.
Mr. Ban will arrive in Sri Lanka from Myanmar and will highlight the importance of development and human rights in both the countries.
Mr. Ban will also visit a resettlement site for displaced people in Jaffna in the north and take part in a conference on youth and reconciliation in Galle in the south. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/un-chief-ban-kimoon-to-visit-sri-lanka/article9035824.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/1cd4474ec81484393b16d5727735231aecc515b16974a9a7b7d41bfd93dbcf1d.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T06:54:01 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | APCC president N. Raghuveera Reddy has named DCC president Y. Adiraju as the candidate for the MLC (Graduate Constituency) election, which is scheduled to be conducted in February/March next year. Aft | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fandhra-pradesh%2Fdcc-chief-is-mlc-candidate%2Farticle9052440.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | DCC chief is MLC candidate | null | null | www.thehindu.com | APCC president N. Raghuveera Reddy has named DCC president Y. Adiraju as the candidate for the MLC (Graduate Constituency) election, which is scheduled to be conducted in February/March next year. After laying stone for the DCC office building here on Tuesday, Mr. Reddy made the announcement with the consent of leaders Dronamraju Srinivas (Visakhapatnam) and Viswaprasad, MLC (Srikakulam).
The PCC chief said it was a reward for Mr. Adiraju’s zeal to strengthen the party by infusing new blood. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/dcc-chief-is-mlc-candidate/article9052440.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/29c5c7b1fafab7f5ca85d3b28d5653de5c7a256d270b3f0d717ec88c937f13ed.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-28T00:51:02 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Tens of thousands of people, cutting across castes and religions thronged the Erwadi Dargah, the holy Islamic tomb turned shrine, in the early hours of Saturday to witness the annual Santhanakoodu fe | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FMadurai%2Fthousands-visit-erwadi-to-witness-santhanakoodu-festival%2Farticle9040788.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02988/28MA_FESTIVAL_ERWA_2988889c.jpg | en | null | Thousands visit Erwadi to witness Santhanakoodu festival | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Tens of thousands of people, cutting across castes and religions thronged the Erwadi Dargah, the holy Islamic tomb turned shrine, in the early hours of Saturday to witness the annual Santhanakoodu festival, organised to commemorate the anniversary of Hazarat Sulthan Syed Ibrahim Shaheed Badhusha Oliyullah.
Standing as the symbol of religious harmony, the 842nd festival was celebrated with fervour as hundreds of people took part in the sandal anointing ceremony of holy Raula Sherff and offered special prayers at the Dargah.
A large number of Muslims and Hindus from various parts of the district, neighbouring districts and States, mostly from Kerala converged in the small coastal town to offer prayers. A sense of unity in diversity rent the air as Haqdhars (heirs of Nalla Ibrahim, the founder of the Dargah) brought the tastefully decorated ‘Santhanakoodu’ (silver pots filled with sandal paste) in a procession.
The procession was led by caparisoned elephant and horses even as folk artistes added colour to the procession with their dance performance. People started visiting the shrine since Friday night and they occupied every available space on either sides of the road, leading to the Dargah from the main road to witness the procession. They welcomed the procession with reverence and offered prayers, sinking their religious differences.
The Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation operated special bus services throughout Friday night for the benefit of devotees. The Dargah Haqdhar Management Committee made the arrangements for the festival, which began on August 14 with flag hoisting. The festival would draw to close on September 2 with the lowering of the flag. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Madurai/thousands-visit-erwadi-to-witness-santhanakoodu-festival/article9040788.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/050835efa611f12b8e288d288826c5ef463ef1b2a9c3fa7253ae97c6c3406a0a.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-27T04:52:26 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | S. Subbiah, Vice-Chancellor, Alagappa University, said a batch of students from China is likely to join the university to pursue undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in English as the university | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FMadurai%2Fstress-on-need-for-safeguarding-consumer-interests%2Farticle9037009.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Stress on need for safeguarding consumer interests | null | null | www.thehindu.com | S. Subbiah, Vice-Chancellor, Alagappa University, said a batch of students from China is likely to join the university to pursue undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in English as the university was making available world-class facilities to attract foreign students.
Addressing a two-day national seminar on ‘Consumer protection and empowerment in India in the wake of technology domination’ here on Friday, he said the university was offering quality infrastructure and instruction to the students.
“An institution can survive long only when it continues to satisfy the needs of the consumers by providing quality services,” he said. Consumers were kings in today’s competitive world but unfortunately, they were not aware of the various nuances of the Consumer Protection Act, he said.
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Rajya Sabha member A. Navanithakrishnan, in his inaugural address, exhorted the students to make full use of the internet facility with the help of laptops, supplied by the State government and excel in their studies.
Stating that villages too had facilities on par with urban areas, he said the technology should be optimally utilized by all and the “net neutrality” should ensure unrestricted supply of information to the public.
With technological advancements, markets have become more sophisticated and complicated, posing challenges to the consumers in availing quality goods and services, he said and stressed the need for safeguarding the interests of consumers from exploitative business practices.
Prof. Pushpavanam, a Consumer Right Activist from Trichy, dwelt at length, the various rights of consumers. The technology domination helped consumers avail quality services, he said.
Prof. Suresh Misra, Chair Professor and Coordinator, Centre for Consumer Studies – Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi, in his special address, said that “consumer justice is a part of social and economic justice enshrined in the constitution of India.”
Stressing the need for creating new regulatory rules in the current scenario of technology domination, he appealed to the legislators to pass the amended Consumer Protection Bill 2015 into an Act at the earliest, to render justice to the consumers. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Madurai/stress-on-need-for-safeguarding-consumer-interests/article9037009.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/30907272ca4c7065712e6b70d779dc592b54c170b4cc04b509f11008a205cf68.json |
[
"V. V. Subrahmanyam"
] | 2016-08-28T08:50:39 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, on Sunday, remarked that the journey to bigger stardom has just begun for the Rio Olympic medallists shuttler P.V. Sindhu and wrestler Sakshi Malik and gymnast D | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fsport%2Fother-sports%2Flegendary-cricketer-presents-car-to-pv-sindhu-sakshi-malik-dipa-karmakar-and-pullela-gopichand%2Farticle9042633.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02989/_SACHIN_TENDULKAR_2989496c.jpg | en | null | Legendary cricketer presents cars to P.V. Sindhu, Sakshi Malik, Dipa Karmakar and Pullela Gopichand | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Sachin, accompanied by his wife Anjali, reminded that the entire country prayed for you and showered their blessings.
Legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, on Sunday, remarked that the journey to bigger stardom has just begun for the Rio Olympic medallists shuttler P.V. Sindhu and wrestler Sakshi Malik and gymnast Dipa Karmakar who missed a medal by a whisker in the recent Rio Olympics.
“You have all done the entire country proud. We all know how focussed you were in the run-up to the Olympics during preparatory phase and even in Rio also where you were not accessible to remind about the intensity in the preparations,” Sachin said at the presentation of BMW cars to the three athletes and also the chief national badminton coach Pullela Gopi Chand.
“Now is the time to go for gold in the next Olympics and we are all with you to see many more wonderful moments in your career. Keep going and keep winning medals,” Tendulkar said.
Looking at Gopi, Sachin observed: “You are wonderful. Always showing that urge to produce champions. Shown great qualities as a coach. You are a role model for all and wish you many more laurels.” Everyone looked up to you.
Sachin, accompanied by his wife Anjali who were in Hyderabd to attend a wedding, reminded that the entire country prayed for you and showered their blessings. “This is what every athlete looks for in their pursuit for excellence,” he added.
Replying to the felicitation, Sakshi thanked all those who showed their love and affection and promised to go for gold in next the Tokyo Olympics.
“I am grateful to JSW, Railways, Sachin Sir for all their best wishes,” she said.
And, she quipped that her brother is a big fan of Sachin and they all wanted to have a selfie with him.
Gymnast Dipa Karmakar was crisp in her response thanking all for the support and encouragement.
Local girl Sindhu recalled that when Sachin presented a car to her last time he promised to present another one if she wins an Olympic medal. “My dream has come true and I thank all and especially Gopi Sir,” she said. “Definitely, I will try my best to keep winning laurels at the highest level,” she added.
For his part Gopi congratulated all the champion athletes present on the occasion.
“You have made the entire nation proud with your fantastic efforts and wish you many more successes at the highest level,” he said.
Gopi taking a line from the Save the girl campaign of the Union Government, he said it was the girls who saved India in the recent Rio Olympics.
The former All England champion also recalled the financial help he got from entrepreneur Nimmagadda Prasad who had come forward when struggling to raise funds for the construction of his Badminton Academy in the early stages. “Today what I am is to a large extent because of him,” he said.
Gopi thanked Sachin for gracing the occasion and said the latter was always a huge source of inspiration before, during and after the Rio Olympics.
Thanking V. Chamundeswaranath (more familiar as Chamundi in sporting circles) for taking the initiative in presenting the cars. “He was also instrumental in presenting cars on 13 previous occasions to outstanding sportspersons.”
“It is not these cars which matter a lot. His small gestures in sponsoring a knee cap or soul or a shuttle racket to the need have always been very encouraging,” Gopi said. | http://www.thehindu.com/sport/other-sports/legendary-cricketer-presents-car-to-pv-sindhu-sakshi-malik-dipa-karmakar-and-pullela-gopichand/article9042633.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/43e04e26d335a9339803a8df574a32616d94fa49512eb1525564555501018247.json |
[
"Peerzada Abrar"
] | 2016-08-28T18:51:19 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | When young college graduates John K. John and Karan Vaish decided to look out for work, they did not choose conventional jobs like working in an IT services company. Instead, the graduates, who are in | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fbusiness%2FIndustry%2Fyoung-grads-aim-to-land-a-robot-on-the-moon%2Farticle9043063.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02989/TH29_BU_MOON_29899_2989972c.jpg | en | null | Young grads aim to land a robot on the moon | null | null | www.thehindu.com | To win the $30 mn Lunar XPrize, their robot has to land on the Moon, explore at least 500m and transmit video, images
When young college graduates John K. John and Karan Vaish decided to look out for work, they did not choose conventional jobs like working in an IT services company. Instead, the graduates, who are in their early twenties, decided to pursue their passion and use their skills for an audacious project of building a privately-funded spacecraft capable of soft landing on the moon by December 2017.
The duo is now part of Team Indus run by Bengaluru-based aerospace start-up Axiom Research Labs. It is the only Indian team competing for the $30 million Google Lunar XPrize (GLXP).
To win the prize, Team Indus has to place on the moon’s surface a robot that explores at least 500 metres and transmits high-definition video and images back to Earth.
“Eighty per cent of our team is less than five years out of college,” said Rahul Narayan, Team Indus fleet commander in an interview. The young team is helping build the lunar lander and a rover. These would be carried by Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) launch system that would blast into space on a 15-day voyage to the moon. By the time the spacecraft reaches the lunar surface it would have covered about 238,900 miles.
“I was just a college student couple of years ago and now I am working on an actual space mission, how cool is that,” said Karan Vaish, 23, who is helping Team Indus to design the lunar rover, code-named ECA, which can fit in travel luggage. The all terrain, four-wheel electric rover has been tested to drive on the dustiest lunar surface.
Its wheels are made of aluminium instead of rubber. It is capable of climbing slopes and over obstacles as its wheels, which look like that of a battle tank, have grousers and meshed surfaces. The lightweight rover has two big eyes or cameras that would stream pictures and videos down to the Earth. Mr.Vaish, an alumnus of SRM University and whose official designation is ‘Skywalker’, said that such space missions used to be limited to ‘extremely’ elite people and PhDs. “That stereotype is breaking,” he said.
Unlike Chandrayaan-1, India's first mission to the moon, where its probe had a hard landing on the moon surface that terminated its functioning, a soft landing is key. The lunar lander with the rover inside is critical to this objective. John K. John, 23, who had joined Team Indus as an intern, is helping the start-up design this four-legged lander, code-named HHK. The lander has to be durable as it would be clocking speeds close to 10 kilometres per second before it slows down, prepping up for the descent.
“Sometimes we have to do the same thing a hundred times to get it right,” said Mr. John, an alumnus of Karunya University.
There are over 85 engineers and 15 former ISRO scientists helping Team Indus design and develop its proprietary technology at its headquarters in Jakkur, near Bengaluru. Among former ISRO scientists mentoring the young team is 61-year-old Mohini Parameswaran, Team Indus Jedi Commander. She is helping with the mission-planning and operations. “I feel twenty years younger,” said Ms. Parameswaran who has also worked with the European Space Agency.
Team Indus is one of the 16 remaining from the 29 that had entered the GLXP competition. It plans to use ISRO’s workhorse -- the polar satellite launch vehicle (PSLV) to send the spacecraft to the moon. But Team Indus needs to secure a verified launch contract by this December to remain in the GLXP competition and complete the mission by the end of 2017. Two of its rivals – Israeli non-profit organisation SpaceIL and US-based start-up Moon Express, have already secured verified launch contracts for 2017. “I love them (Team Indus). I love the fact that they are from my mother country, are trying to think anew,” said Naveen Jain, billionaire entrepreneur and co-founder of Moon Express in an interview. He, however, cautioned that Team Indus had only four months left to buy the rocket launch contract and that the biggest hurdle for them is the development of the lander. This month, Moon Express became the first private company to get permission from the U.S. government to travel beyond Earth’s orbit and land on the moon in 2017. The company, co-founded by Mr. Jain in 2010 with space entrepreneur Bob Richards and computer scientist Barney Pell, is also aiming to mine the moon for rare metals and elements. Some of these include platinum, titanium, gold, and the non-radioactive Helium-3, regarded as having the potential to power nuclear fusion reactors. Team Indus is backed by angel investors including India’s top tech entrepreneur Nandan Nilekani, as also support from corporates such as Tata Communications, Sasken and Larsen & Toubro. But Mr. Narayan said the firm requires to raise funding of about $65 million.
Mr. Jain of Moon Express said raising money in the ‘space’ space is difficult as it is not a proven business and most venture capitalists don't understand it. He said angel investors may put in some money but that doesn't add up to millions of dollars. “Space is an extremely hard business. It requires a tremendous amount of effort and finances,” said Mr. Jain. He said that Moon Express has signed a multi-launch deal with aerospace company Rocket Lab to use its launch services for the moon mission. “For us, winning the prize is an icing on the cake,” he said.
The other competitor SpaceIL is taking an innovative approach – its spacecraft is about the size of a dishwasher. In order to conserve mass, SpaceIL developed the idea of a 'space hop'. In this, the spacecraft lands on the lunar surface and then takes off again with the fuel left in its propulsion system. Then it will perform another landing, 500 meters away, according to the prize criteria.
But Mr. Narayan is not deterred by his more resourceful competitors. He doesn't think that a race or competition is won by one with the deepest pockets or that all the smart people work for the richest. He compared his mission to the 1983 Cricket World Cup – won by the underdog Indian team, defeating a formidable West Indies team in the finals. “It (Indian team) was just a team of ordinary people who said we will make this happen. They tried really hard and got lucky,” said Mr. Narayan. “I think we have a very good (chance).” | http://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/young-grads-aim-to-land-a-robot-on-the-moon/article9043063.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/7ce93f6a7a18b8d6e71f6309344c086392419ec515dd90a1ba1bbf46f1d29ba1.json |
[
"Giji K. Raman"
] | 2016-08-28T02:50:56 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Migration of African catfish and intensive use of chemical fertilizers in cardamom plantations have posed a threat to local fish species abundant in the river system originating from the high range ar | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FThiruvananthapuram%2Flocal-fish-in-high-ranges-facing-threat%2Farticle9040643.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Local fish in high ranges facing threat | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Migration of African catfish and intensive use of chemical fertilizers in cardamom plantations have posed a threat to local fish species abundant in the river system originating from the high range area.
Periyar Lake, home to 36 fish species, has been identified as the largest one in the district to host endemic species including the Periyar trout. As per an International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classification, seven species are critically endangered, six endangered, and eight vulnerable in the lake where six varieties are endemic.
Akbar Ali, Assistant Professor, Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies, told The Hindu that the introduction of hybrid varieties such as tilapia to the lake system resulted in high competition for food where the endemic species lose out. Moreover, tilapia has a tendency to monopolise the lake, as it has high survival rate and lays egg at an early stage of growth.
The spread of African Catfish in the lake was from private ponds where they were grown even after their breeding was banned by the Union government. A survey in the small tributaries to the lake pointed out high concentration of African catfish that lives on local fishes.
The two main threats to the endemic spices in the lake are African Catfish and tilapia, as per the studies. A Kerala Forest Research Institute study in 1999 also pointed out that there was high level of threat to local fish varieties in the lake owing to the introduction of hybrid fish.
It was mainly due to competition for food, the study said. Mr Ali said that though there was no report of natural breeding by African Catfish, it was opposite in the case of tilapia, which grew faster in the waterbodies. The Sucker Catfish, also reported in the waterbodies of Kerala, posed a threat to the endemic species, he said.
Though Matsayafed had deposited fish seeds in the reservoirs of Idukki, Anayirangal and Ponmudi with a view to increasing inland fish production, they could not be realised. The spread of pesticide residue, introduction of hybrid fishes, and the migration of African Catfish are stated to be the reasons. There were instances of large-scale fish kills reported from ponds in the cardamom plantations, especially after the application of pesticides. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/local-fish-in-high-ranges-facing-threat/article9040643.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/5689ded1f549e3d1465d508a5c937c8ca111d872839d6296ccbfd2fd6de48fff.json |
[
"Rajeev Viswanathan"
] | 2016-08-29T04:55:59 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Chepauk Super Gillies thrashed Karaikudi Kaalai by 67 runs to register its first win in the Tamil Nadu Premier League at the NPRCET grounds here on Sunday.In reply to Chepauk Super Gillies’ score of | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2Ftnpl-big-win-for-super-gillis%2Farticle9043092.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02989/TH29SATHISH_2989983c.jpg | en | null | Big win for Super Gillis | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Karaikudi Kaalai slumps to its second consecutive defeat
Chepauk Super Gillies thrashed Karaikudi Kaalai by 67 runs to register its first win in the Tamil Nadu Premier League at the NPRCET grounds here on Sunday.
In reply to Chepauk Super Gillies’ score of 195, Karaikudi Kaalai was bowled out for 128.
Chasing 196, opener S. Anirudha was run out on 7 by a direct hit from R. Sathish. M. Vijay Kumar top scored, smashing three sixes and four of a Yo Mahesh over. He raced to 38 off just twelve balls as Kaalai was 48 for one after just three overs.
Vijay Kumar followed up with a six off left arm spinner R. Alexander, and a half-century stand with R. Srinivasan, as Kaalai reached 69 for one at the end of the Power Play.
Alexander though had the last laugh, getting Vijay Kumar caught and bowled for 46. He then struck twice to remove Badrinath and Shahjahan in successive overs as Karaikudi Kaalai slumped to 100 for four in 11 overs.
R. Srinivasan played a lone hand as wickets were tumbling at the other end. With him getting dismissed by a brilliant yorker from Antony Dhas, it was just a matter of time before Chepauk Super Gillies wrapped the match up.
Earlier in the day, Chepauk Super Gillies openers Gopinath and Thalaivan Sargunam cut loose as three boundaries and a six came in the second over off Santha Moorthy. Mohan Prasath got through the defence of Sargunam as Chepauk Super Gillies was 34 for one after four overs.
Two sixes by Saravanan immediately after he came to crease showed the intent of Chepauk Super Gillies. Santha Moorthy once again was taken to the cleaners in the last over of the power play.
Gopinath’s pull over square leg for a four and fine leg for a six was followed by a flick by Saravanan to the mid wicket boundary as 22 runs came in the last over of the power play. Chepauk Super Gillies raced to 67 for one.
Immediately after the power play, Saravanan was caught at deep cover. Gopinath, though, carted two consecutive sixes off Suresh Babu as Chepauk Super Gillies was 94 for two at the end of 10 overs.
Yo Mahesh, going for a big one, was caught in the deep as Chepauk Super Gillies was 100 for three. Gopinath was finally trapped in front by Shajahan.
Sasidev and captain R. Sathish continued to accelerate despite wickets falling at regular intervals. The duo stitched together a fifty-run partnership in just under five overs.
Karaikudi Kaalai wilted under pressure, conceding as many as twenty two wides in the innings. R. Sathish, with three fours and as many sixes in his innings, made sure Chepauk Super Gillies set a daunting target for Karaikudi Kaalai.
The scores: Chepauk Super Gillies 195 for nine in 20 overs (R. Sathish 46, Gopinath 43, R. Sonu Yadav four for 27) bt Karaikudi Kaalai 128 in 17.1 overs (M. Vijay Kumar 46, R. Srinivasan 38, Antony Dhas four for nine, R. Alexander three for 28). | http://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/tnpl-big-win-for-super-gillis/article9043092.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/4133cb56671a8bd39ccf4c2448f0a9b8918b968b90e9f4abdc19e2a2cef57d69.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T02:50:59 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | A historic midnight ceasefire on Sunday is set to end a 52-year-old war between the Colombian state and FARC rebels.Hundreds of thousands of Colombians have died since 1964 as rebel armies and gangs | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Finternational%2Fcolombia-ceasefire-to-end-halfcentury-war-in-hours%2Farticle9045050.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02990/Colombia_2990689c.jpg | en | null | Colombia ceasefire to end half-century war in hours | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) on Sunday issued the order for its fighters to observe the ceasefire from Monday midnight.
A historic midnight ceasefire on Sunday is set to end a 52-year-old war between the Colombian state and FARC rebels.
Hundreds of thousands of Colombians have died since 1964 as rebel armies and gangs battled in the jungles in what is considered Latin America's last major civil armed conflict.
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) on Sunday issued the order for its fighters to observe the ceasefire from midnight (0500 GMT Monday).
“I order all our commanders and units and each one of our combatants to definitively cease fire and hostilities against the Colombian state from midnight tonight” top FARC leader Timoleon Jimenez said in a declaration before the media in Cuba, where peace talks were held.
On the government side, President Juan Manuel Santos on Thursday ordered the Colombian national armed forces to halt military operations against the FARC.
“We noted with excitement the president's order to the army. Consequently we are proceeding to give the same order to our troops,” Jimenez said Sunday, surrounded by FARC commanders in white shirts.
Santos wrote on Twitter: “The end of the conflict has arrived!”
The FARC declared a unilateral ceasefire in July 2015. But Sunday night's ceasefire is the first in which both sides have committed to a definitive end to the fighting.
“The ceasefire is really one more seal on the end of the conflict. It is the test of fire,” said Carlos Alfonso Velazquez, a security expert at the University of La Sabana.
Demobilisation
Santos and Timochenko are due to sign a final, full peace agreement sometime between September 20 and 26.
The ceasefire and definitive end of hostilities will be followed by a six-month demobilization process.
From Monday, the FARC's estimated 7,500 fighters will start heading to collection points to give up their weapons under UN supervision.
Guerrillas who refuse to demobilize and disarm "will be pursued with all the strength of the state forces," Santos told El Espectador newspaper.
Before the demobilization, the FARC will convene its leaders and troops one last time before transforming into “a legal political movement,” according to a statement published on Saturday.
Peace referendum
On October 2, Colombians will go to the polls to cast ballots in a referendum that Santos hopes will endorse the peace agreement.
“A victory for the 'Yes' vote will be a mandate from citizens for future governments,” Santos was quoting as saying by El Espectador.
“The plebiscite will grant the political legitimacy that is needed.”
He said the exact question that will be posed to voters in the referendum would be announced “in the coming days.”
“We are on the verge of perhaps the most important political decision of our lives,” Santos said in a speech on Saturday.
Deadly conflict
The territorial and ideological conflict has drawn in various left- and right-wing armed groups and gangs.
It has left some 260,000 dead, 45,000 missing and 6.9 million people uprooted from their homes.
Efforts to launch peace talks with a smaller rebel group, the National Liberation Army, have yet to bear fruit.
But with the country's biggest rebel group, the FARC, ordering a definitive ceasefire, the conflict appears to be reaching an end.
“To the soldiers, naval personnel and air force pilots, police and state security and intelligence agencies, we wish to express our clear and definite will for reconciliation,” said Jimenez, known by the nom-de-guerre Timochenko, in Havana.
“Rivalries and resentment must remain in the past. Today more than ever we regret that so much death and pain has been caused by the war. Today more than ever we wish to embrace them as compatriots and start to work together for a new Colombia.” © AFP, 2016 | http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/colombia-ceasefire-to-end-halfcentury-war-in-hours/article9045050.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/dbc6ec72c73fa5f8144245199d3b27a7ef5bde09b3d708a8213544227b40e206.json |
[
"B.Venkat Sandeep"
] | 2016-08-31T07:10:45 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | A brightly lit arena, twangs from badminton rackets, young talent from across the country and a cheerful, yet noisy, audience! The ongoing ‘All-India Junior Ranking Boys and Girls Badminton Tournament | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fandhra-pradesh%2Fbadminton-fever-grips-tirupati-as-players-bask-in-sindhu-glory%2Farticle9034031.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02986/25tp10286HI-W02_26_2986840c.jpg | en | null | Badminton fever grips Tirupati as players bask in ‘Sindhu glory’ | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Unexpected turnout for junior national championship
A brightly lit arena, twangs from badminton rackets, young talent from across the country and a cheerful, yet noisy, audience! The ongoing ‘All-India Junior Ranking Boys and Girls Badminton Tournament-2016’, for players under 17 and 19, has proved that it has all the necessary ingredients for a fantastic sporting event.
The event, which began post ace shuttler P.V. Sindhu’s triumph at the Rio Olympics, has been drawing steady crowds to the Sri Srinivasa Sports Complex in the temple city. Every shot, be it the jump smash, hairpin drops or slices, in addition to the impeccable rallies, was met with thunderous applause from the crowd - all this being watched by a towering flex banner of P.V. Sindhu, on a side wall.
“We did not expect such a turnout for the event. The sports complex, since day one, has been jam-packed with crowds and we are happy that the support is still continuing,” remarked P. Ramakrishnaiah, treasurer of Chittoor District Badminton Association (CDBA), elated at getting a chance to host the prestigious event.
“These tournaments are held 4-5 times a year to help the players in improving their ‘All India Rankings’. This will further enable them take part in bigger campaigns, both on national and international stages,” he added.
‘Overhaul sports infrastructure’
While several parents and coaches were found cheering the players, they were equally vocal in highlighting the need for overhauling the sports infrastructure across the state, if the country were to produce sportspersons of global repute.
“The lack of sports academies and coaches in Chittoor district has prompted me to enroll my son in Pullela Gopichand Academy at Hyderabad. He has been undergoing training for the past five years and he now stands tenth in the country, in the under 17 category,” D. Jayachandra, a badminton player turned national referee told The Hindu .
The parents rued that there were no good sporting facilities for students in the district, despite being the home for seven universities in the region. They also opined that schools, many of them which have no proper playgrounds, have been detrimental towards the overall development of the children and urged the State government to focus on this issue at the earliest.
The event is being organised by the CDBA in association with the Badminton Association of India, Andhra Pradesh Badminton Association, Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh and District Sports Authority – Chittoor. More than 750 aspiring players from across 25 States and representing various sports academies are participating in the event, which concludes on August 27. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/badminton-fever-grips-tirupati-as-players-bask-in-sindhu-glory/article9034031.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/d6f8f4929f54ee2a041d0f25815475175f1e8b69307ad5fd44ce00bd75d4692c.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-30T16:52:22 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | Livspace, an online home design company, has raised Rs.100 crore from existing investors in a funding round led by venture capital firm Bessemer Ventures Partners. Other existing investors, Jungle Ven | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fbusiness%2FIndustry%2Fhome-design-startup-livspace-raises-rs100-cr%2Farticle9051210.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Home design start-up Livspace raises Rs.100 cr. | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Livspace, an online home design company, has raised Rs.100 crore from existing investors in a funding round led by venture capital firm Bessemer Ventures Partners. Other existing investors, Jungle Ventures and Helion, also participated in the round. According to the company, the funds would be utilised to expand operational footprint across metro cities including Noida, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Pune and Hyderabad, by next year. Design studios integrated with virtual reality technology would also be set up to improve home design experience. Founded by entrepreneurs Anuj Srivastava and Ramakant Sharma, Livspace has India’s largest community of home designers and home design enthusiasts. The firm’s design automation platform would be expanded across thousands of freelance designers in the country.
"We are very impressed with the traction, and commercial scale achieved by Livspace, in a short period of time,” said Vishal Gupta, managing director, Bessemer Venture Partners. Livspace said the home industry was estimated to between $25 billion and $30 billion. | http://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/home-design-startup-livspace-raises-rs100-cr/article9051210.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/a013bab64db985f4934d2bf2710074f0f9fc2ce879f72cc23c611ffc07e3293d.json |
[
"Prakash Kamat"
] | 2016-08-26T17:00:20 | null | 2016-08-25T00:00:00 | The arguments were completed on Thursday in the case of suspicious death of a minor British girl at Anjuna beach in 2008 at the Goa Children’s Court. The court reserved its order for September 23.On | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fother-states%2Fbritish-girl-death-goa-court-reserves-verdict%2Farticle9032302.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | British girl death: Goa court reserves verdict | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The arguments were completed on Thursday in the case of suspicious death of a minor British girl at Anjuna beach in 2008.
The arguments were completed on Thursday in the case of suspicious death of a minor British girl at Anjuna beach in 2008 at the Goa Children’s Court. The court reserved its order for September 23.
On Thursday, the contention of the defence was that in the absence of irrevocable admissible evidence the accused cannot be held guilty.
On the other hand, the prosecution submitted that Supreme Court has said clearly that at a time when the evidences are destroyed it is up to the court to apply its mind.
According to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)’s case before the Children's Court Samson D’Souza and Placido Carvalho, two workers of a local shack in Anjuna, who are the main accused, spiked the 16-year-old girl’s drinks with drugs, sexually assaulted her and left her to die at the beach in the morning of February 18, 2008. The duo are facing charges under Section 304 of Indian Penal Code (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 354 (use of criminal force on a woman with the intent to outrage her modesty) and 328 (administering drug to cause hurt).
After the mother of the victim, Fiona MacKeown, expressed her distrust at the probe conducted by local police, which led to suspension of some senior police officials for tampering with evidence in August 2008, the case was finally handed over to the CBI in August 2008. The trial started in 2010 and nearly 70 witnesses were examined over the past six years.
The minor's battered body was found in Anjuna beach on February 18, 2008. The girl who had come to Goa from Britain on holiday along with her mother and siblings was allegedly raped before she was killed, according to a pathologist's report which said that she died after being "forcibly submerged in water for five to 10 minutes". | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/british-girl-death-goa-court-reserves-verdict/article9032302.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-25T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/532fe68767c50208a401e24c29cb0fab940edc31bffa84ebf526f2672f1ddc0a.json |
[
"N. Kesavan"
] | 2016-08-31T08:52:07 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | There was a time when Test cricket dominated the scene with fans thronging the stadiums. It was a ''mela'' for fans and their families. But, as times changed, Test matches lost the glamour and sheen | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2Fthe-evolution-of-odi%2Farticle9054140.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02993/ENGLAND-PAKISTAN_2993330c.jpg | en | null | The evolution of ODI | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The game has changed as a batsmen paradise with bowlers toiling hard. Taking wickets, around the world now, has become a tough task for the bowling team.
There was a time when Test cricket dominated the scene with fans thronging the stadiums. It was a ''mela'' for fans and their families. But, as times changed, Test matches lost the glamour and sheen as crowd-pullers. The International Cricket Committee (ICC) then hit upon a novel idea tof the one-day format. The first One Day International (ODI) was played between arch-rivals Australia and England on January 5, 1971 at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). It was a Test match which was washed out for the first three days and it was decided to play a one-day game consisting of 40 eight-ball a side. Australia won the game by 5 runs. The ODIs then were played in white kits and a red ball.
With the success of the first game, the ICC brought in the ODI format with 60 overs a side, and eventually the 1975 Prudential World Cup was held in England.
Even with 60 over a side, the team batting first could not reach a target of 275 or 280. It was difficult for the batsmen to score runs without any fielding restrictions. In the 60-over format, a bowler can bowl 11 overs (maximum). A target of 260 was found wanting by the team batting second.
That format was followed till the 1983 Prudential World Cup in England. One cannot forget the memorable finals between India and West Indies at Lords. India batted first and scored a meagre score of 183. Fans thought that with the likes of Vivian Richards, Clive Lloyed, Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes, West Indies would massacre the Indian bowling. But rest was history. With Mohinder Amarnath and co. bowling well, India restricted West Indies to 140 and lifted the World Cup. It was a stunning victory in the history of cricket.
In the 1987 World Cup, the ICC decided to reduce the overs from 60 to 50 and it was a huge success. Since then the ODIs are played in the 50 over format.
In the late 1970s, Kerry Packer introduced new features to ODI cricket, which included coloured uniforms, matches played under lights with a white ball and dark side screens. The first match was played in Melbourne on January 17, 1979. Coloured kits and the white ball fully replaced the white uniform and the red cherry in ODIs in 2001.
The ICC further brought in several restrictions. Fielding restrictions were first introduced in the Australian 1980-81 season. In the 1992 World Cup, only two fieldsmen were allowed outside the circle in the first 15 overs. From the 16th over, five fieldsmen were allowed outside the circle. Once again, the ICC brought in a change, to make ODIs more challenging. Two fielders were allowed outside the circle in the first 10 overs and two five-over powerplays were introduced and the bowling team allowed to decide the timing. Again in 2008, it was further relaxed, with the batting team deciding the timing of one of the powerplays. One is bowling powerplay and other batting powerplay.
The ICC introduced more innovation in 2011. The teams were restricted to completing the powerplays between the 16th and 40th overs. Previously, powerplays could take place at any time between the 11th and 50th overs. In 2012, the bowling powerplay was abandoned and the number of fielders allowed the 30-yard circle was reduced from five to four.
Earlier, the ODIs were equally matched. Now it has become a batsmen dominated one. In the era where ODIs were gaining ground, when a team batting first reaches a score of 300+, they heave a sigh of relief. The batting second were under extreme pressure to chase the target. Now even a score of 400+ looks achievable.
When such a score was set, the bowling team has to tighten the screws by taking wickets at regular intervals. The game has changed as a batsmen paradise with bowlers toiling hard. Taking wickets, around the world now, has become a tough task for the bowling team.
Following are examples of 400+ that looked threatening:
5th ODI: South Africa v Australia at Johannesburg, March 12, 2006: Australia won the toss and scored a mammoth 434 for 4 riding on Ricky Ponting's 164 and Mike Hussey's 51-ball 81. Simon Katich and Adam Gilchrist gave their team a good start. Losing their opener Dippenaar for 1 didn't deter Gibbs and Smith from thrashing the Australian bowlers to all corners of the ground. Gibbs and Smith stitched together a 187-run partnership in just 21.3 overs. Gibbs scored a scintillating 175 off just 111 balls with 21 fours and 7 sixes. After the dimissal of Gibbs at 299, Australians felt they were in for a chance but Mark Boucher had other ideas. He rotated among the tail-enders and South Africa reached the target of 434 with 1 ball and 1 wicket to spare. Boucher was unbeaten on 50 off 43 balls. This was the first time that even a target of 400+ looked threatening.
1st ODI: India v Sri Lanka at Rajkot, December 15, 2009: Sri Lanka won the toss and asked India to bat first. Riding on Sehwag (146), Sachin Tendulkar (69) and Dhoni (72), India put on a huge total of 414 for 7 in their allotted 50 overs. Indians were confident that they can win easily but Dilshan had other ideas. He just thrashed the Indian bowlers and there was a spirited chase by the Sri Lankan batsmen. Dilshan (160), Sangakkara (90) and Tharanga (67) gave the crowd at Rajkot a treat of batsmanship. Eventually India won the match by just 3 runs.
So far there are 18 instances of 400+ totals.
England scored a total of 444 for 3 in 50 overs against Pakistan on August 30, 2016. It remains the highest total in ODIs. South Africa has scored 400+ runs 6 times, India 5, Sri Lanka 2, Australia 2, England 2 and New Zealand 1. In all 16 times, the team batting first had scored 400+. Only 2 times, i.e. South Africa vs Australia and India vs Sri Lanka, had the teams batting second scored 400+. Only on one occasion a team has won chasing the target of 400+.
Team Score Run-rate Opponent Venue England 444 for 3 8.88 Pakistan Nottingham Sri Lanka 443 for 9 8.86 Netherlands Amstelveen South Africa 439/2 8.78 West Indies Johannesburg South Africa* 438/9 8.78 Australia Johannesburg South Africa 438/4 8.76 India Mumbai Australia 434/4 8.68 South Africa Johannesburg South Africa 418/5 8.36 Zimbabwe Potchefstroomn India 418/5 8.36 West Indies Indore Australia 417/6 8.34 Afghanistan Perth India 414/7 8.28 Sri Lanka Rajkot India 413/5 8.26 Bermuda Port of Spain Sri Lanka 411/8 8.22 India Rajkot South Africa 411/4 8.22 Ireland Canberra South Africa 408/5 8.16 West Indies Sydney England 408/9 8.16 New Zealand Birmingham India 404/5 8.08 Sri Lanka Kolkata New Zealand 402/2 8.04 Ireland Aberdeen India ** 401/3 8.02 South Africa Gwalior
* denotes: South Africa won the match by chasing down the target
** Sachin Tendulkar's 200 not out and the first man in ODI to hit double century. | http://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/the-evolution-of-odi/article9054140.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/c48bb65b883d44f4bf95192aab7997c46183539a3a83859389028fbcf366d4f2.json |
[
"S. Anil Radhakrishnan"
] | 2016-08-30T20:52:12 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | The State and the Railways will sign an agreement on September 1 to set up a joint venture (JV) company to execute commercially viable railway projects on a cost-sharing basis.
The JV agreement wil | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkerala%2Fstate-to-ink-pact-with-railways-on-sept-1%2Farticle9050920.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | State to ink pact with Railways on Sept. 1 | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Move to implement rail projects on cost-sharing basis
The State and the Railways will sign an agreement on September 1 to set up a joint venture (JV) company to execute commercially viable railway projects on a cost-sharing basis.
The JV agreement will be signed by Secretary, Transport, and an official of the Railway Board in New Delhi for “development of rail infrastructure for critical connectivity and capacity enhancement,” official sources told The Hindu.
A Cabinet meeting on August 3 had given the nod for the formation of the Joint Venture Company (JVC) following clearance given by the departments of Law and Finance to the shareholders’ agreement forwarded by Railways.
The MOU to set up the JVC to undertake project development, financing and implementing rail projects on a 51:49 equity share between the State and the Railways was signed in Delhi on January 27.
The Articles of Association and Memorandum of Association need to be formed and filed with the Registrar of Companies to form the company. The name of the JVC will be finalised only after securing the nod of the Registrar of Companies.
The JVC will undertake the viable projects by itself or through subsidiary (Project SPV), including those with Viability Gap Funding (VGF). The projects need to have an Internal Rate of Return of not less than 12 per cent.
The JVC will have an authorised share capital of Rs.100 crore with initial paid-up capital of Rs.100 crore. The headquarters of the JVC will be in Thiruvananthapuram.
Besides the part-time Chairman to be nominated by State, the JVC will have a Managing Director, 2 directors and six part-time directors. The State and Railways will have two part-time directors each. Two part-time independent expert directors will be drawn from the private sector, public sector units and educational institutions,
Once the project gets the nod, a concession agreement has to be signed between the project SPV and the Railways for 30 years. The railways will provide last mile connectivity to the projects.
As many as eight projects, including the Rapid Rail Transit System (RRTS), rail coach factory at Kanjikode, and the Sabari Rail have been identified for execution through cost-sharing. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/state-to-ink-pact-with-railways-on-sept-1/article9050920.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/467d3fa27c61fb1bc9d53a8f18d11c39b7fedb2d08001f6b36c7d2d505ab3941.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-27T14:50:16 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | Around 10,000 people comprising of writers, thinkers, activists, filmmakers, people from different walks of life are expected in Dharwad on August 30, on the first death anniversary of rationalist sc | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkarnataka%2F10000-people-expected-for-dharwad-march%2Farticle9040622.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | 10,000 people expected for ‘Dharwad March’ | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Around 10,000 people comprising of writers, thinkers, activists, filmmakers, people from different walks of life are expected in Dharwad on August 30, on the first death anniversary of rationalist scholar Prof. M.M. Kalburgi, who was shot dead by unidentified assailants last year.
Addressing press persons here on Saturday, convenors of “Dr. Kalburgi- Dr. Dabholkar- Comrade Pansare Hatya Virodhi Horat Samiti,” linguist G.N. Devy, Basavaraj Sulibhavi and Shankar Halgatti said that the event planned and coordinated by the Samiti was both to remember Prof. Kalburgi and also to register protest against the indifferent attitude of the government in inquiring into the murder of a scholar which had shocked the country.
Mr. Devy said that the murder of Prof. Kalburgi at his residence in Dharwad had led to sharp reaction from Indian intellectuals, literary scholars, artists and from various quarters.
“Earlier, rationalist Dr. Narendra Dabholkar was killed in Pune and Comrade Govind Pansare in Kolhapur in Maharashtra and none of the three cases have been cracked yet. While there is some progress in the Dabholkar case, there is little progress in Prof. Kalburgi’s case, despite appeals from individuals and concerned bodies from across the country,” he said.
To protest the government’s apathy and also to send out a strong message to those who want to intimidate the individuals who stand up for rational views, a silent march would be taken out from the residence of Prof. Kalburgi at Kalyannagar to the RLS College Grounds in Dharwad where a public meeting would be held, he said.
Listing out the names of various organisations that would be participating in the August 30 event, Mr. Sulibhavi said that over 90 organisations had so far extended support and more support was pouring in from different quarters. They said the organisations included cultural bodies, student organisations, literary associations, professional unions, women’s organisations, various colleges and publishing houses.
1,000 writers to participate
Around 1,000 writers are expected to participate in the Dharwad March.
Mr. Halagatti and Mr. Sulibhavi said that from octogenarian poet Channavir Kanavi to the teenage award winning writer Muddu Theerthalli, around 1,000 writers would participate in the march. And the spouses of all three deceased rationalists would be present at the originating point of the silent march.
The prominent speakers at the public meeting include writer and editor, Antara Dev Sen, media persons Kumar Ketkar and Siddharth Varadarajan, novelist Rajan Khan, poet Sanjeev Khandekar, film artists Anjum Rajbali. And apart from them, Kannada writers Rahmath Tarikere, Rajendra Chenni, Narahari Balasubramanyam, Chandrashekhar Patil (Champa), B. Suresh, K.S. Bhagwan, Muzaffar Asadi and many others will also address.
A compilation of essays about Prof. Kalburgi is slated for release at the public meeting. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/10000-people-expected-for-dharwad-march/article9040622.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/69f243593fb3750bee420662e7d22bc7d54eb8bf6981eabd605845fea369e0ab.json |
[
"Manob Chowdhury"
] | 2016-08-31T07:00:15 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | At least three persons were killed and several others injured in a police firing in Tonagatu village in Ramgarh district, about 50 kilometres from Jharkhand’s capital Ranchi. The incident took pla | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fother-states%2Fpolice-firing-in-jharkhand%2Farticle9049756.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | At least 3 killed in police firing in Jharkhand | null | null | www.thehindu.com | At least three persons were killed and several others injured in a police firing in Tonagatu village in Ramgarh district, about 50 kilometres from Jharkhand’s capital Ranchi.
The incident took place on Monday evening as the locals gathered to protest against a power plant polluting the area. The locals also demanded enhanced pay for working in the plant – Inland Power Limited – established few years back.
“At least 30 people are injured, condition of four are serious,” said Sureshkumar Patel, a farmer of Tonagatu village to The Hindu.
They said that the power plant “completely damaged the bypass road connecting the village to the main road as huge vehicles ply on it round the clock.”
“It has totally polluted the area and the water of the river and many villages are affected,” said Mr Patel.
The workers also demanded a pay hike.
As the workers and the villagers came together to protest on Monday, police opened fire at Tomagatu killing three persons. The death toll may rise, the villagers said.
The incident took place only weeks after Chief Minister Raghubar Das launched a drive to attract investments and claimed that Jharkhand is focussing on “massive uplift” of basic infrastructure to boost investment. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/police-firing-in-jharkhand/article9049756.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/9a542152bbd6d49c639ae6ba95fc3bc026587d420335d7af97b7ee692b2cc380.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T10:52:12 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | A suicide bomber killed at least 54 people when he drove a car laden with explosives into a compound run by local militias in Aden on Monday, Medicins Sans Frontieres said, in one of the deadliest at | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Finternational%2Fsuicide-bomber-kills-45-in-aden-attack%2Farticle9045610.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02991/YEMEN-final_2991121c.jpg | en | null | IS suicide bomber kills 54 in Aden attack | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Drives a car laden with explosives into a compound run by local militias.
A suicide bomber killed at least 54 people when he drove a car laden with explosives into a compound run by local militias in Aden on Monday, Medicins Sans Frontieres said, in one of the deadliest attacks in the southern Yemeni port city.
The official said at least 60 other people were brought into a nearby hospital run by the medical charity in Aden's Mansoura district.
Meanwhile, the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the suicide bombing and said the attack killed about 60 new recruits, according to the group's Amaq news agency.
A security source said the attack targeted a school compound where conscripts of the Popular Committees, forces allied to the internationally recognised President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, were gathered for breakfast.
Debris fly, residents flee
The blast rocked the area and sent debris flying, sending residents fleeing, one witness said.
Islamist militants have exploited an 18-month-old civil war between the Houthis and Mr. Hadi's supporters and launched a series of attacks targeting senior officials, religious figures, security forces and compounds of the Saudi-led Arab military coalition which supports Mr. Hadi. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/suicide-bomber-kills-45-in-aden-attack/article9045610.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/95a80da6befb3e133af32288a754ede752242abd20edce2267bd4e6c509ea01a.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T06:50:42 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Muslim extremists carrying Islamic State group insignia have staged a daring jailbreak in the southern Philippines, freeing 28 detainees in the latest in a series of mass escapes, officials said Sund | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Finternational%2Fislamic-stateinspired-maute-group-stage-mass-jailbreak-in-philippines%2Farticle9042582.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02989/Marawi_2989465c.jpg | en | null | Islamic State-inspired Maute group stage mass jailbreak in Philippines | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The jailbreak is just the latest mass escape from poorly secured Philippine jails with the incidents often involving Muslim extremists.
Muslim extremists carrying Islamic State group insignia have staged a daring jailbreak in the southern Philippines, freeing 28 detainees in the latest in a series of mass escapes, officials said Sunday.
About 50 heavily armed members of the Maute group raided the local jail in the southern city of Marawi on Saturday, freeing eight comrades who had been arrested barely a week ago, police said.
Twenty other detainees, held for other offences, also escaped in the raid, provincial police chief Senior Superintendent Agustine Tello said.
The freed members of the Maute group were arrested on August 22 after soldiers manning an army checkpoint found improvised bombs and pistols in the van they were driving.
The Maute group is one of several Muslim gangs in the southern region of Mindanao, the ancestral homeland of the Muslim minority in the largely Catholic Philippines.
The group has carried out kidnappings and bombings and is believed to have led an attack on an army outpost in the Mindanao town of Butig in February.
The fighting there lasted a week, leaving numerous fatalities and forcing tens of thousands to flee their homes as helicopter gunships fought off the attackers.
The gunmen attacking the jail Saturday were seen carrying black flags of the Islamic State group, and bandanas bearing the jihadists' insignia were later found in their base, the military said.
Authorities said they were investigating why the jail's guards did not resist the raid or why security had not been increased after high-risk suspects were brought in.
The jailbreak is just the latest mass escape from poorly secured Philippine jails, with the incidents often involving Muslim extremists.
In 2009, more than 100 armed men raided a jail in the strife-torn southern island of Basilan, freeing 31 prisoners, including several Muslim guerrillas. © AFP, 2016 | http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/islamic-stateinspired-maute-group-stage-mass-jailbreak-in-philippines/article9042582.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/98e0100b685964f6ff6d0d5b16e1cd99947749de8aad6c4c21f9a8966a84667a.json |
[
"Nirupama Rao"
] | 2016-08-29T20:51:41 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | “I wouldn’t recognise the Balochistan problem if it hit me in the face.” These were words spoken by Henry Kissinger during a mission to Pakistan on behalf of the Kennedy Administration in 1962. The w | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fopinion%2Flead%2Fthe-neighbours-concern%2Farticle9046606.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02991/30THEdit_jpg_2991349c.jpg | en | null | The neighbour’s concern | null | null | www.thehindu.com | India highlighting violations of human rights and repression in Balochishtan and PoK may be in order. But let us not be too expectant that this will radically temper Pakistan’s obdurateness on Kashmir
“I wouldn’t recognise the Balochistan problem if it hit me in the face.” These were words spoken by Henry Kissinger during a mission to Pakistan on behalf of the Kennedy Administration in 1962. The words seem oddly out of place today, for suddenly Balochistan is the subject of protracted debate in the Indian and Pakistani media, following the references made in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort in Delhi.
A new Great Game
Do the Prime Minister’s words portend a New Age in India’s foreign and security policy? Are they moves on some grand chessboard? The days of that “period piece” as some have called it, the Great Game, may be behind us, but as a metaphor there is still a frisson that the term evokes. In what Kipling called the grand Asiatic disorder of our region, India is still the strategic centre, and our policies and actions will determine the future course of stability in South Asia.
There has long been the view that we as Indians should avoid introversion when it comes to dealing with the world and the problems that challenge us. K.M. Panikkar, one of our earliest modern strategic thinkers, was dismissive about pacifism in Indian thought, saying that while Ahimsa was a great creed, the “Hindu theory at all times” was one of active assertion of the right, if necessary through the force of arms. “Wake, be thyself, scourge thy foes” was the teaching of Krishna in the Gita. Indian freedom, in his words, could be “achieved and upheld only by firmly deciding to shoulder our share at all costs in the active defence of the areas necessary for our security”.
It can be construed that the Prime Minister’s words on Independence Day were very much in the tradition of the assertiveness defined by Panikkar. They seemed to leaven awareness of our strategic vulnerabilities with a good dose of nuanced boldness and cunning, and a determination to articulate a plan of active offence-defence in addressing the challenge thrown by an importunate and unrelentingly adversarial neighbour. The centrality of a stable, secure India and the ability to tenaciously safeguard the national interest was implied. Nationalistic opinion, in particular, would see it as a significant and calculated move on the grand chessboard.
The Prime Minister’s words were carefully articulated. This was no one-off impulse. New Delhi offers a vantage position for a high-resolution view of the lamentable state of affairs in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and in the province of Balochistan. The world must wake to the realisation that even as Pakistan knocks on international portals to complain about the human rights of Indian citizens in the Kashmir Valley, it seeks to avoid focus on, and camouflages, the erasing of the identities and the gross violations of human rights of the inhabitants of Gilgit and Baltistan, and of the Baloch people.
Cross-currents on an altered map
Gilgit-Baltistan offers a classic example of a region, part of Jammu and Kashmir, now torn away from its mother node, whose disenfranchised people are essentially prevented from expressing their Kashmiriyat and live in a cul-de-sac determined by Islamabad, prevented from any contact with fellow Kashmiris across the Line of Control. Family and trade links with Jammu and Kashmir, including Ladakh, have been severed completely, thanks to actions of the Pakistani state. Terrorist attacks on top of sectarian clashes have affected the area in recent years. An economic crisis has compounded problems in the region. Residents have no bargaining power or wherewithal to generate their own resources. Many reports state that the improvement of the Gilgit-Baltistan section of the Karakoram Highway linking Chinese Xinjiang with PoK has been entrusted to Chinese defence and security personnel.
It is largely lost in the stalemated discourse on Kashmir that the Constitution of India recognises the people of Gilgit-Baltistan as its citizens. In the words of Senge Hasnan Sering, who campaigns in exile for the rights of the residents of Gilgit-Baltistan, the statement by the Prime Minister on Independence Day, sends a clear message: “Gilgit-Baltistan, Jammu, Ladakh and Kashmir are all equal stakeholders and the issue cannot be solved by focusing on Kashmir alone. It is a positive sign that India is advancing a policy to address the region’s constitutional question by bringing Gilgit-Baltistan on par with Kashmir at the negotiating table.” (The Indian Express, August 24, 2016)
And then, there is the case of Balochistan, one India has largely shied away from mentioning previously in its diplomatic forays about the state of India-Pakistan relations. Mr. Modi’s reference to Balochistan was also a calculated move designed to cause a stir in both Pakistan and China. A Chinese scholar, Hu Shisheng, in a recent interview to this newspaper said it “signals a watershed moment in India’s policy towards Pakistan in the future.” The same scholar is sceptical, however, about the advisability of the move, saying it could be “disastrous” for relations between Pakistan and India, and importantly, between China and India. Scholar Hu referred in this context to China’s emphasis on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and its determination to make the corridor a “success story”.
China’s drang nach süden or thrust towards the south, has seen its submarines in the Indian Ocean, homing into harbours close to our shores, and its One Belt One Road (OBOR) plans include the ambitious CPEC — that “noodle formation” of a highway as a Pakistani journalist called it. The CPEC will run through Indian-claimed territory in PoK, and thence down the Pakistani land mass to hit the port of Gwadar on the Balochistan coast, close to the Straits of Hormuz.
It is reasonable to surmise that in addition to Pakistan, China is uneasy about India’s move to shine a light on Balochistan. Gwadar, the end point of the CPEC, is a port that is a strategic investment of China’s and even as it may claim that the corridor is mainly focussed on advancing Pakistan’s economic progress and well being, the establishment of a viable link across the Karakoram from Xinjiang to this warm water port helps promote China’s economic and strategic great power ambitions with the detour it provides to bypass the maritime routes across the South China Sea and the Malacca Straits.
Balochistan formed with Nepal and the Naga Hills the “Inner Ring” of the so-called ring fence that defined the security perimeter of undivided India prior to Independence. There is evidence to suggest that British civil servants like Olaf Caroe even advocated an autonomous status with linkages to Britain for Balochistan (and not merger with a future Pakistan). Balochistan, with its strategic location on both maritime and land routes from the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Peninsula into the subcontinent, was prized territory that held the key to the “wells of power” (the words are Caroe’s), the vital energy reserves of the Gulf.
After August 1947, Balochistan, which comprises over 40 per cent of the territory of Pakistan today, was compelled to accede to Pakistan. India has not questioned the status of Balochistan within a sovereign Pakistan state. If the area were to secede, Pakistan would be a greatly shrunken country. Baloch identities are spread across Pakistan and Iran while a significant Pashtun population in the province is ethnically tied with members of the same community in Afghanistan across the controversial Durand Line. The Baloch population has suffered considerably as a result of their struggle against state repression, particularly since 2003. Young Baloch men and women have died or disappeared in large numbers as a result of this conflict. The Pakistani state’s aim has been to run the province with maximum central government control and military force leaving little scope for local autonomy or devolution of powers.
Caution advised
The fact that there will be more intensive focus publicly asserted by India on global platforms about Balochistan and the travails of its people as also the nature of administration in PoK and Gilgit-Baltistan, and the denial of rights to the people there, should be welcomed. By raising human rights issues in this context, India is acting in accordance with its own democratic standards and traditions, and this is entirely legitimate.
Keep in mind however, that the trajectory of such gambits must be plotted with due deliberation, calculation and calibration. The endgame cannot be a scenario of protracted contest and conflict. Voyages down a river of no return can come at a heavy cost for the nation. India’s strategic centrality to the region is best assured by ensuring that its agenda for accelerated economic development is reinforced and facilitated by secure defence of the homeland, the tangible reduction of tensions in the Kashmir Valley, super-efficient counterterrorism measures, and non-closure of the door to dialogue with Pakistan. The China factor also intrudes into the sphere of calculations to be made here. The implications of opening new fronts of tension with our largest neighbour must be clinically assessed.
Most importantly, it is essential for the government to express with greater clarity the agenda and goals of its Pakistan policy. The announcements in the Prime Minister’s speech of August 15 cannot be a cause for over-exuberance. Highlighting the grievous violations of human rights and repression in Balochishtan and PoK is certainly in order. But let us not be too expectant about this radically tempering Pakistan’s obdurateness on Kashmir. Festina lente. Hasten slowly.
Nirupama Rao is a former Foreign Secretary. | http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/the-neighbours-concern/article9046606.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/56de5a6ffffbdbd7f193d7729439a8fcf5fe9ca6d28774ae024441489882a733.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-27T06:54:57 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | CPI(M) veteran V.S. Achuthanandan on Thursday urged the youth to actively resist the menacing spread of fascism in the country. Maintaining that fascist forces might not be defeated through the ballot | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FKochi%2Fvs-urges-youth-to-resist-spread-of-fascism%2Farticle9032736.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | VS urges youth to resist spread of fascism | null | null | www.thehindu.com | CPI(M) veteran V.S. Achuthanandan on Thursday urged the youth to actively resist the menacing spread of fascism in the country.
Maintaining that fascist forces might not be defeated through the ballot alone, he said only an intense strife based on class struggle could make it possible.
Mr. Achuthanandan, while inaugurating the anti-fascist meet organised here ahead of the AIYF district meeting that got under way on Thursday, observed that secularism was getting increasingly threatened across the country, as the RSS was attempting to market a communal ideology based on a skewed reading of Hinduism.
“If Hitler had sought to bring about racial purity, the ‘cultural nationalism’ pushed by the RSS resembled it,” he said. Mr. Achuthanandan decried the “saffronisation” of cultural and educational institutions and myth being paraded as historical and scientific facts.
On beef killings and related violence, he asked the Sangh Parivar: “If you say the cow is your mother, would you call its partner, the bull, your father?” | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Kochi/vs-urges-youth-to-resist-spread-of-fascism/article9032736.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/12bf560dc21c3e4687e5170a14d01a6f76387503552c57a8ee05471827122a0c.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T12:52:16 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Dozens of United Kingdom-based Baloch and Sindhi protesters gathered outside the Chinese embassy here on Monday and held a protest against Pakistan and China over the two countries’ $46 billion econo | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Finternational%2Fbaloch-sindhi-activists-hold-protest-against-pakistan-china-in-uk%2Farticle9045770.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02990/GWADARAFP_jpg_2990899c.jpg | en | null | Baloch, Sindhi activists hold protest against Pakistan, China in U.K. | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Say the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor at Gwadar will further intensify and strengthen their subjugation.
Dozens of United Kingdom-based Baloch and Sindhi protesters gathered outside the Chinese embassy here on Monday and held a protest against Pakistan and China over the two countries’ $46 billion economic corridor and “gross human rights violations.”
The protest in London follows a similar demonstration in Leipzig, Germany, last week demanding that Pakistan cease plans for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in Balochistan and against what the protesters describe as “gross human rights violations” in the region.
“We are being displaced”
“Pakistan wants to forcefully impose the CPEC on Balochistan. We are being shown as a minority community and being displaced from our land,” said a protester, who was part of the Baloch Students and Youth Association (BSYA).
Other groups involved in the protest included Baloch Human Rights Council UK (BHRC-UK) and the World Sindhi Congress and they chose the Chinese embassy with the aim of raising wider international support for their cause.
“Pakistan’s security agencies have intensified their operations in Balochistan and Sindh to brutally implement the CPEC, ruthlessly committing gross human rights violations while doing so,” BHRC-UK said in statement.
Slogans laud Modi
“The Baloch ethnic population perceives the corridor project as a plan to convert them into a minority in their own homeland, and have openly opposed it on every level...Balochs and Sindhis firmly believe that CPEC will further intensify and strengthen their subjugation,” it said.
The protesters waved placards reading ‘Hands off Balochistan’ and ‘Balochistan Zindabad, Pakistan Murdabad’ and shouted slogans in praise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for raising the issue recently. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/baloch-sindhi-activists-hold-protest-against-pakistan-china-in-uk/article9045770.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/ec7970fefc8acd3fe68e116de5a1dff3abb834f2e3f6fefad015f8883b281b3f.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-31T06:55:45 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | Contention on the issue of employment to dependents of retired employees and workers in the Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) resulted in a clash between the activists of Telangana Boggu Gan | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Ftelangana%2Fsccl-activists-clash%2Farticle9053336.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | SCCL activists clash | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Contention on the issue of employment to dependents of retired employees and workers in the Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) resulted in a clash between the activists of Telangana Boggu Gani Karmika Sandham (TBGKS) and the Singareni Karmikula Biddela Sangham (SKBS) at Srirampur on Tuesday.
The clash resulted in the activists of the latter being beaten up, and some of them being admitted to Mancherial hospital. According to information, the TBGKS had organised a meeting of its workers at Srirampur area and while the meeting was under progress, about 30 activists of the SKBS, barged in and tried to obstruct the proceedings. They alleged that the TBGKS leadership had reneged on its promise to make efforts on securing employment to the dependents of employees and workers who had opted for voluntary retirement. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/telangana/sccl-activists-clash/article9053336.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/e385546b971ff8a69c830873a1a1c34f75ad8ac68deb36ce448495653504252a.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-27T20:52:16 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Auto enthusiasts got a glimpse of classic cars and super bikes at the The Hindu Auto Expo 2016. As many as 16 brands were on display at the Chennai Trade Centre. The two-day expo was inaugurated by d | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fchennai%2Fchen-events%2Fgala-time-for-auto-enthusiasts%2Farticle9040908.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02988/28TH_EXPO_2988996c.jpg | en | null | Gala time for auto enthusiasts | null | null | www.thehindu.com | A host of classic cars and super bikes were on display at The Hindu Auto Expo 2016. — Photo: M. Vedhan
Auto enthusiasts got a glimpse of classic cars and super bikes at the The Hindu Auto Expo 2016. As many as 16 brands were on display at the Chennai Trade Centre. The two-day expo was inaugurated by director Lingusamy.
Super cars were one of the main attractions, with brands such as Rolls Royce, BMW and Mercedes on display. The Rolls Royce Dawn, BMWi8, BMW Mini Convertible and Mercedes AMG were some of the models that awed visitors. Cars from firms such as Tata Motors (Tiago and Zest), Toyota (Innova and Crysta), Maruti Suzuki, Renault, Hyundai, Ford, Nissan, Skoda, Fiat and Volkswagen were showcased. Vintage cars such as Morris Minor 1948 attracted interest. The vintage cars were arranged by the Madras Heritage Motoring Club.
Super bikes such as Ducati, Aprilia and Harley-Davidson were also on display. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/chen-events/gala-time-for-auto-enthusiasts/article9040908.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/0664b427ebe733746a132d75da85bc34d2ed278b6a37dfba65aceae4cdd896dc.json |
[
"Santosh Patnaik"
] | 2016-08-30T08:55:13 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | Heavy Plates and Vessels Plant of Bharat Heavy Electrical Ltd (BHEL) may achieve a turnaround if the momentum in getting new orders continued.Battling for survival due to subdued market conditions, H | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FVisakhapatnam%2Fhpvp-order-book-position-improves-may-achieve-turnaround%2Farticle9046788.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | HPVP order book position improves, may achieve turnaround | null | null | www.thehindu.com | It may achieve turnaround if momentum continues
Heavy Plates and Vessels Plant of Bharat Heavy Electrical Ltd (BHEL) may achieve a turnaround if the momentum in getting new orders continued.
Battling for survival due to subdued market conditions, HPVP (formerly known as Bharat Heavy Plate and Vessels), which became a subsidiary of BHEL, after a prolonged struggle in May 2008 was merged with the maharatna company in August 2013.
Sources told The Hindu that now it had an order book of about Rs.300 crore. The unit recently received orders for fire heaters from ONGC-Hazira and IOCL-Haldia amid tough competition. The order value is estimated to be between Rs.37 crore and Rs.40 crore.
The unit signed an agreement recently with Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre of ISRO for supply of titanium alloy elliptical domes for satellite launching vehicle PSLV.
It obtained orders for auxiliary boilers for Bangladesh and super critical power plants in North Chennai. The unit received a shot in the arm with the receipt of order for supply of 40 compact heat exchangers for Defence sector from Aeronautical Development Agency- Bengaluru.
HPVP had earlier manufactured and supplied compact heat exchangers for Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), which was inducted into Indian Air Force sometime ago.
The unit is at present in final stage of capacity augmentation and modernisation, which has been taken up at a cost of Rs.265 crore. The focus now is to regain its reputation as the supplier of process and cryogenic equipment. When contacted, HPVP recognised union honorary president and BHEL Joint Negotiating Committee (federation level) member Ch. Narsinga Rao told The Hindu that HPVP could achieve a turnaround if orders were placed based on its speciality instead of treating it as a feeder unit of BHEL-Trichy.
The Vizag unit, he said had a production worth Rs.70 crore last year incurring a loss of Rs.89 crore. This year, it has set a target of Rs.285 crore. The loss will be Rs.26 crore if the target is achieved.
Due to adverse market condition, BHEL suffered a loss of Rs.913 crore with a turnover of Rs.28,000 crore during 2015-16. “BHEL has order book of Rs.60,000 crore and if it could complete orders worth Rs.36,000 crore during current fiscal, it can achieve a breakeven,” Mr. Rao said. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Visakhapatnam/hpvp-order-book-position-improves-may-achieve-turnaround/article9046788.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/f631b56dc6809052818a1a479f5ed5be4a1a6425a0226f560b1e72815b5b3d91.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-26T16:55:37 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | THANJAVUR
Sri Venugopalaswamy Temple, Vishnampettai:
Uriyadi uthsavam, Sri Venugopal Swamy veedhi ula in pallakku in vennaithazhi, 1 p.m.; sandhana kappu, deeparadhana, 7 p.m.; ashtapath | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Ftamil-nadu%2Fevents-for-thanjavur%2Farticle9034379.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Events for Thanjavur | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The Royal Pudukottai Sports Club: Tamil Nadu State Shooting championship – shotgun events, J.Loganathan, Superintendent of Police, inaugurates, Maharaja of Pudukottai Shooting Range, Avarangudipatti, 10 a.m.
Mount Zion College of Engineering and Technology: Seminar on Power quality and issues, D.Varadarajan, professor, Periyar Maniammai University, chief guest, 11 a.m.
Sri Venugopalaswamy Temple, Vishnampettai: Uriyadi uthsavam, Sri Venugopal Swamy veedhi ula in pallakku in vennaithazhi, 1 p.m.; sandhana kappu, deeparadhana, 7 p.m.; ashtapathi bhajan, 8 p.m.; Swamy reaching Uriyadi mandapam, 11 p.m.; uriyadi, 1.30 a.m. (the next day)
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[
"Internet Desk"
] | 2016-08-30T22:56:44 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated the first phase of SAUNI (Saurashtra Narmada Avataran for Irrigation) project in which nearly 10 dams and reservoirs of Rajkot, Jamnagar and Morbi would | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Flive-pm-modi-inaugurates-first-phase-of-sauni-project-in-gujarat%2Farticle9049855.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02992/modi_2992178c.jpg | en | null | LIVE | PM Modi to inaugurate first phase of SAUNI project | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The prime minister addresses rally after the inauguration in Jamnagar.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated the first phase of SAUNI (Saurashtra Narmada Avataran for Irrigation) project in which nearly 10 dams and reservoirs of Rajkot, Jamnagar and Morbi would be filled up with the water of Narmada river.
The Rs 12,000 crore project is considered to be an ambitious one for Modi, who had announced the project in 2012 when he was the chief minister of Gujarat, to fill up nearly 115 dams of Saurashtra region which faces shortage of water for irrigation and drinking.
“Nearly ten dams of three districts would be filled up with water from Narmada under the project, which would be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Aji-3 dam site,” Rajkot district Collector Vikrant Pandey said.
Live updates from our correspondent Mahesh Langa and agencies
1:33 pm: Gujarat has adopted the mantra of 'vikas'. We took up the issue of better road connectivity across India and, particularly, in villages: Modi
1:22 pm: At Modi's first public rally in Gujarat after taking his post as the prime minister in 2014, he says, "we have launched an intergrated crop insurance scheme to help farmers."
1:20 pm: SAUNI project is an initiative that will make every Gujarati proud. All of us should take note of how this project has come through: Modi.
1:18 pm: Whatever I have learnt in Gujarat and whatever the state has taught me is immense and the entire country benefits from that today: Modi
1:14 pm: "Narmada project is an engineering marvel. It uses the highest technology to pump water in difficult terrains," says the PM.
1:12 pm: Six water bodies, check dams, farm ponds have been built in the state. Topography of Saurashtra is like inverted saucer. It is very difficult to supply water but Gujarat has ensured it: Modi
1:08 pm: Few people did not like what I said then, they disagreed with me but I remained firm on my stand that water is of prime importance: Modi.
1:07 pm: When I became the CM, I told farmers to concentrate on water and water conservation: Modi in Jamnagar.
1:04 pm: "Whatever I learnt in Gujarat has helped me a lot when I went to Delhi," says Modi.
1:00 pm: PM begins to address a large group of people who have gathered for the event in Jamnagar. Speaking in Gujarati, Modi says "I am thankful to the Gujarat govt. for inviting me to inaugurate this project."
PM Narendra Modi speaking at the inauguration of SAUNI project in Jamnagar (Gujarat) pic.twitter.com/j6Y9PA7qw1 — ANI (@ANI_news) August 30, 2016
12:58 pm: "Modi ensured that the Narmada project is completed at the earliest," says Nitin Patel, Deputy CM of Gujarat, at the rally.
12:45 pm: Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, his predecessor Anandiben Patel, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel, and other ministers of Gujarat government are also present at the rally.
12:28 pm:
12:22 pm:
Gujarat: PM Modi to address a public rally shortly after inaugurating the first phase of SAUNI project in Jamnagar pic.twitter.com/XBFe1XSW7d — ANI (@ANI_news) August 30, 2016
12:10 pm: After the inauguration, Modi will address a rally at Dhrol in Jamnagar district. This is will be Modi's first public rally in Gujarat since he became the prime minister in 2014.
11:55 am: The prime minister opens the pipeline to release water into the dam at Aji-3 dam site in Jamnagar.
11:52 am: Modi, in 2012, then chief minister of Gujarat, had launched the SAUNI scheme, to be developed at a cost of Rs 1,200 crores.
11:50 am: PM Modi reaches the dam site where Narmada water will be released.
11:40 am: Under Saurashtra Narmada Avtaran Irrigation Yojna (SAUNI), the state government envisages to fill 115 dams with excess overflowing water of Sardar Sarovar dam across river Narmada by a web of pipeline networks.
11:30 am: On Monday, the newly-appointed Gujarat CM said: "As many as 10 dams will be filled upto the brim in the first phase. We plan to fill 115 dams of Saurashtra region. The four-phased project is expected to be completed before 2019.”
11:00 am: Prime Minister Modi arrives in Jamnagar for the inauguration of the irrigation project.
10:45 am: Preparations are underway at the venue where PM will address a public rally. Heavy security is in place. Photo: ANI | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/live-pm-modi-inaugurates-first-phase-of-sauni-project-in-gujarat/article9049855.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/a37531f103982953892e005e69651c8d247690cd7fdebf6c7ba8532ebc634846.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T18:50:49 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | She became the face of Italy’s earthquake: The photograph of Sister Marjana Lleshi, blood staining her veil as she texted her friends that she was alive, was seen across the world. The 35-year-old | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Finternational%2Fnun-in-italy-quake-photo-wants-to-go-to-mother-teresa-canonisation%2Farticle9037043.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02987/27TH-NUN_2987656c.jpg | en | null | Nun in Italy quake photo wants to go to Mother Teresa' canonisation | null | null | www.thehindu.com | An injured nun checks her mobile phone as she recovers after an earthquake in Italy on Wednesday. The magnitude 6.2 earthquake, which killed at least 73 people, was felt across central Italy, including Rome. Photo: AP
She became the face of Italy’s earthquake: The photograph of Sister Marjana Lleshi, blood staining her veil as she texted her friends that she was alive, was seen across the world.
The 35-year-old nun recounted how she thought she would die when her convent walls collapsed. She texted her friends asking that they pray for her soul, only to be rescued by a man she has called her “angel”.
An injured Sister Marjana Lleshi checks her mobile phone as she recovers after an earthquake in Italy. Photo: AP
Now safe, Sister Lleshi says she wants nothing more than to go to next week’s Rome canonisation of Mother Teresa, the ethnic Albanian nun “who gave hope to those who didn’t have any”.
Sister Lleshi was sleeping in the Don Minozzi convent beside the Church of the Most Holy Crucifix in Amatrice when the quake struck early on Wednesday.
She had been there, with six other sisters, caring for five elderly women. Her order, the Sisters of the Handmaidens of the Lord, runs nurseries and homes for the aged.
She woke up covered in dust and bleeding. Realising what had happened, she immediately tried to summon help outside her room.
No one responded. And she couldn’t get out.
“When I started losing all hope of being saved, I resigned myself to it and started sending messages to friends saying to pray for me and to pray for my soul and I said goodbye to them forever,” she said outside the order’s headquarters in Ascoli Piceno. That moment was immortalized in an image taken by a photographer for the ANSA news agency reprinted worldwide.
She said she eventually was rescued by a young man who cared for one of the elderly women at the home.
She still hopes to travel to Rome for the Sept. 4 canonisation of Mother Teresa. “For me she’s the symbol of Albania, of a strong woman,” she said of Teresa. “I would have liked to go, but after this I don’t think I can.” — AP | http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/nun-in-italy-quake-photo-wants-to-go-to-mother-teresa-canonisation/article9037043.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/7aed3b5d692887ec8d1c9c1f6f29a8eda10ffda4c9a4685157bd8fcd538e5b82.json |
[
"Richa Khare"
] | 2016-08-28T14:52:11 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | The build-up of nuclear arsenals by India and Pakistan is dangerous due to the “great potential of errors and accidental launch” leading to a catastrophe, said Dr. M.V. Ramana, physicist and the lect | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fmumbai%2Fnews%2Findopak-nuclear-race-is-fourway-says-ramana%2Farticle9040884.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02988/28BM_RAMANA_2988979c.jpg | en | null | Indo-Pak nuclear race is four-way, says Ramana | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The build-up of nuclear arsenals by India and Pakistan is dangerous due to the “great potential of errors and accidental launch” leading to a catastrophe, said Dr. M.V. Ramana, physicist and the lecturer with the nuclear futures laboratory and the programme on science and security at Princeton University. The looming presence of the US and China in the background only complicates matters: “While Pakistan seeks Chinese and US military and economic support in its struggle with India, India seeks US support against China to satisfy its great power ambitions. While China is trying to establish itself as an emerging global power able to re-order the international system, the US is trying to defer and limit its decline as the dominant world power by constraining and balancing the rise of Chinese power and influence.”
Dr. Ramanna was speaking on ‘Nuclear Weapons in South Asia: programmes, plans and dangers’, a lecture organised by the Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer Memorial advisory committee and the Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament and Peace (CNDP), dedicated to the memory of journalist and peace activist Praful Bidwai.
Dr. Ramana said that though the nuclear programme in India was started for peaceful purposes, the government never lost sight of the possibility that the facilities constructed and enterprises gained could be used for military purposes. Comparing the India-Pak nuclear race to the earlier one between the US and the USSR, he said, “The situation is much different. The early warning system can be relied upon between US and Russia. There is no scope for errors between Indian and Pakistan because of the short flight between the two countries. With great potential of errors and accidental launch, early warning system cannot be relied upon.”
He said that despite high level political attention and fanfare, treaties like the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and platforms like the Nuclear Security Summit have achieved little in the area of nuclear disarmament. In the concluding remark, Dr Ramana said “India and Pakistan will continue to build up nuclear arsenals with the dangerous four-way military and nuclear race playing out. Its dangers are by and large out of sight and out of mind.”
The writer is an intern at The Hindu | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/mumbai/news/indopak-nuclear-race-is-fourway-says-ramana/article9040884.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/2c74587e714ee5867de9f88109ad8388a4c95db5170a5acd8f402c8a79855b83.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-28T14:58:54 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | Now, the residents of Thoothukudi have started feeling the pinch of drinking water crisis, which is looming over several parts of the Corporation area.The people are experiencing a tough time as water | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Ftamil-nadu%2Fdrinking-water-crisis-looms-large-over-thoothukudi%2Farticle9034905.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02987/25aug_tuticorin_MA_2987011c.jpg | en | null | Drinking water crisis looms large over Thoothukudi | null | null | www.thehindu.com | CONTINUING WOE:The long queue of empty pots in front of a tap at P & T Colony in Thoothukudi stands testimony to the water crisis prevailing in the city.— Photo: N. Rajesh
Tail-end areas are worst-hit as water supply reaches them late, and ends fast
Now, the residents of Thoothukudi have started feeling the pinch of drinking water crisis, which is looming over several parts of the Corporation area.
The people are experiencing a tough time as water is supplied only once in eight days or even beyond that. While the temperature is soaring high, many residents are increasingly finding it difficult to get sufficient quantum of drinking water in the 60-ward Corporation.
M.S. Muthu, district secretary, Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), who resides in the second street of Bryant Nagar, said water was supplied once in 10 or 11 days.
Moreover, the residents were not sure of the timing of the supply. Hence, they had got no alternative to waiting for long hours at the pumping station with empty pots to collect water.
Since water supply was unreliable, most of the households stored water in containers when it was supplied. But, the water thus collected in containers got contaminated it four or five days. The people had been eagerly awaiting the completion of the fourth drinking water pipeline project, which was started four years ago but kept on dragging, he also said.
M. Balasubramanian, councillor of ward 46, said even during the period of delayed water supply, tail-end residents could get water only long time after the supply started for other areas. The supply to tail-end area would also stop soon.
Hence, the authorities concerned should do something to ensure proper and uniform supply of drinking water to all areas, he demanded.
Corporation Executive Engineer A. Lakshmanan told The Hindu that whenever a problem occurred in water supply carrier, it consumed more time to fix it and reconnect the pipeline along Palayamkottai Highway. Moreover, frequent power cuts in main water head works at Vallanadu also aggravated the problem, he said. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/drinking-water-crisis-looms-large-over-thoothukudi/article9034905.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/6c15fdf948a4e8f37a4e5fe874210e4c235ea19f3efd94bc9befe3b795dd8c04.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-28T14:52:49 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | In a lighter vein, the ride through the barely 200-metre stretch under the upcoming Panniyankara Railway overbridge could be compared to a voyage. The vehicles tilt from one side to the other quite of | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fkozhikode%2Fat-panniyankara-traffic-blocks-are-the-norm%2Farticle9042137.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02989/PANNIYANKARATH_2989431c.jpg | en | null | At Panniyankara, traffic blocks are the norm | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The pathetic condition of the service roads on both sides of the upcoming railway overbridge causes long traffic blocks at Panniyankara. PHOTO: K. RAGESH
Until work on overbridge is completed, motorists are forced to bear with pathetic service roads
In a lighter vein, the ride through the barely 200-metre stretch under the upcoming Panniyankara Railway overbridge could be compared to a voyage. The vehicles tilt from one side to the other quite often as if they are gliding on waves, but a tad more rough, for it is potholes, not waves, that they are gliding on.
Work progressing
It has been only a few months since work on the overbridge began and it is progressing at a steady pace. But, until the time it is completed, the motorists are forced to bear with the pathetic service roads on both sides of the bridge, more so on the western side.
The slow pace of the traffic on the stretch due to the potholes often result in long traffic blocks, especially during peak hours.
Motion moved
“I often travel through the stretch by bus and am often at least half-an-hour late when I arrive at my destination,” said Ponnath Shaima, the Corporation councillor representing the Marad ward, who, pained by the condition of the road, introduced the issue as a motion at the Council meeting last week. “Some levelling was done last week. But it does not help much,” she said, enumerating the number of meetings she missed due to the traffic blocks at Panniyankara.
Her motion was passed unanimously at the Council, which suggested that the State government find a solution to the issue, as the stretch fell under the jurisdiction of the Public Works Department.
Temporary steps
“There is no point repairing the road when the work on the bridge is yet to be completed. But some temporary steps could be taken to alleviate the problem faced by motorists,” Ms. Shaima said.
Public Works Standing Committee chairperson T.V. Lalithaprabha also said that the Council had requested the State government to speed up work on the flyover. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/kozhikode/at-panniyankara-traffic-blocks-are-the-norm/article9042137.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/d7e5c6f69e34075cad8c70316b9ab5b255cab6e278cdacf00e97df3857c5a21c.json |
[
"S. R. Praveen"
] | 2016-08-30T04:54:03 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | : Digital governance is the buzz phrase these days, but to ensure that things work as they should, nothing can match the feet on the ground. Sowmya Kidambi, Director of the Society for Social Audit, A | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkerala%2Fsocial-audit-ensures-better-service-expert%2Farticle9046421.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02991/sowmya_kidambi_jpg_2991283c.jpg | en | null | Social audit ensures better service: expert | null | null | www.thehindu.com | One of her key ideas is that people should be equipped to carry out audits themselves
: Digital governance is the buzz phrase these days, but to ensure that things work as they should, nothing can match the feet on the ground. Sowmya Kidambi, Director of the Society for Social Audit, Accountability and Transparency, which carries out social audits for the governments of Telengana and Andhra Pradesh, spoke to The Hindu on the effect of social audit on the quality of services. She was here on Monday for a workshop on the rollout of social audit in Kerala for local body projects and activities.
“During our auditing of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA), I am continuously told that there is no need for social audits as images of worksites are captured and uploaded online. But the issue is that there is no one to cross-check what is being uploaded. The Management Information Services of the MGNREGA is world class as every rupee is tracked, but still manipulation is possible. So the day you start saying that physical verification is unnecessary because everything is digitally captured, then we are allowing ourselves to fall into a trap,” she says.
She says that in the enthusiasm for digital India, we moved towards digitisation without realising its limitations, including issues of connectivity.
“In seven rounds of social audits of the MGNREGA over the past nine years, over Rs.50 crore has been recovered. Due to scrutiny, quality of services has gone up. Saving related to social audit is not just the saving of money. It also introduces discipline and forces them to deliver services on time. Aadhaar is not going to improve the efficiency of a tardy governance system or ensure the accountability of people within the system,” says Ms. Sowmya.
One of her key ideas is that people should be equipped to carry out audits themselves.
“I train close to 3,000-5,000 people a month in Telengana and Andhra Pradesh on the audit process. Each audit, we train about 40-50 village social auditors. These youth belong to families of MGNREGA labourers and are job card holders. Ninety per cent of them are Dalits. Once experienced, they are appointed as district resource person, after an examination and interview,” she says.
Ms.Sowmya started her career with the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) based in Rajasthan, which played an important role in the formulation and passage of the Right to Information and the MNREGA acts.
“The MKSS was the first in the country to pioneer social audits. It was one of the basic mechanisms used to establish why the Right to Information was needed. Without information, you have no way to start questioning. MKSS’s first trouble was just trying to get information
When it began 25 years ago, even muster rolls were a secret document. Now it has gone online and anybody can access it. It establishes the primacy and absolute necessity of information in the entire context of good governance,” says Ms. Sowmya. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/social-audit-ensures-better-service-expert/article9046421.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/d0c9f1d2ef09a998ef36948c00df09c7f2b5b8af6e922f0d208e5f4f44f8f2f6.json |
[
"Krishnadas Rajagopal"
] | 2016-08-26T16:52:39 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | In a measured relief to expelled AIADMK MP Sasikala Pushpa, the Supreme Court on Friday extended her protection from arrest for six weeks, while asking the Tamil Nadu government why they wanted her b | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fsupreme-courts-extends-protection-to-sasikala-pushpa%2Farticle9035761.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02967/pushpa_2967447c.jpg | en | null | SC gives six-week protection from arrest to expelled AIADMK MP Sasikala Pushpa | null | null | www.thehindu.com | "Why are you keen on her appearance? What is the great hurry? She is a lady MP and not running away," Chief Justice Thakur asks TN counsel.
In a measured relief to expelled AIADMK MP Sasikala Pushpa, the Supreme Court on Friday extended her protection from arrest for six weeks, while asking the Tamil Nadu government why they wanted her behind bars.
A bench, led by Chief Justice of India T.S. Thakur, on an urgent mentioning by Sasikala's lawyer and senior advocate Siddharth Luthra, questioned the State's eagerness to have her arrested in a case registered by the Thoothukudi police against her and her family members for allegedly ill-treating and sexually abusing two domestic aides.
Ms. Sasikala had moved the Supreme Court against the summons issued to her and other accused persons by the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court to appear on August 29.
“Why are you keen on her appearance? What is the great hurry? She is a lady MP and not running away,” Chief Justice Thakur asked Tamil Nadu counsel and senior advocate Subramonium Prasad.
The court further said: “the fact that the State is keen on her appearance shows that there is more to this case than meets the eye... that this is all a counterblast against her allegations against you”.
The Bench, however, asked Ms. Pushpa and the accused to comply with the summons and directed the High Court to consider their anticipatory bail applications “uninfluenced by the fact that the Supreme Court has protected her”.
The High Court had directed the MP to appear before it on August 29 and explain how she could have signed a ''vakalat'' in Madurai on August 17, authorising her lawyer C. Susi Kumar to argue the advance bail application on behalf of her, when the police claimed that she did not enter Tamil Nadu ever since the case was registered early this month.
Additional Advocate General B. Pugalendhi had said the joint anticipatory bail application was filed on August 18 as if the accused was present in Madurai. In response, the petitioners’ counsel had sought to withdraw the case.
However, turning down the request, the judge ordered all the accused, including Ms. Pushpa, to be present in the court on August 30 to respond to the allegation. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/supreme-courts-extends-protection-to-sasikala-pushpa/article9035761.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/c6c1a0028902da21d09916bb4c7e0de28a2f64102e77b74f281261cee914a63d.json |
[
"Prakash Kamat"
] | 2016-08-31T10:52:06 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | The Goa Legislative Assembly on Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution ratifying the amendments to the Constitution to pave way for the presidential assent to the Goods and Services (GST) Bill, 20 | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fother-states%2Fgoa-assembly-ratifies-gst-bill%2Farticle9055329.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02955/2_ISBS_TAIWAN-A_1__2955342c.jpg | en | null | Goa Assembly ratifies GST Bill | null | null | www.thehindu.com | With this, 50 per cent of States have passed the Bill, paving way for the presidential assent, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said.
The Goa Legislative Assembly on Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution ratifying the amendments to the Constitution to pave way for the presidential assent to the Goods and Services (GST) Bill, 2016.
Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said that Goa is the 15th State Assembly to ratify the Bill. With this, 50 per cent of States have passed the Bill paving way for the presidential assent, he said.
The resolution ratifying the Bill was passed at a specially convened one-day session after a two-hour long discussion, where legislators raised concerns over the possible revenue-loss the State could face, in view of that fact that it is primarily a service-oriented State and not a manufacturing destination.
Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, however, sought to allay apprehensions saying that Goa, being a consumption destination, will benefit from the GST.
“With the ease of doing business improving considerably due to a taxation reforms like the GST, businesses will expand and our growth rate will grow. Our share in central taxes will grow and we will get 50 per cent of service tax and other central taxes. Goa will largely benefit as cheaper services will bring in more tourists,” Mr. Parsekar said, adding that the State’s revenue could go up by around Rs.1,000 crore.
Earlier, Opposition MLAs, while supporting the resolution of amendment, raised concerns that State’s reliance on the Centre may increase and also feared that Goa’s revenue may decline.
Demanding a white-paper on cost-benefit analysis of the GST, independent MLA Rohan Khavte asked, “Our dependency on the Centre will increase. Has the government taken all these into consideration?”
Allaying the fears of revenue decline, Mr. Parsekar assured the members that the State will retain control of tax on petroleum products, excise on alcohol, besides major taxes like vehicle tax, royalty on minerals and stamp duty — the major revenue earners of the State. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/goa-assembly-ratifies-gst-bill/article9055329.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/795bccef54bb7995f35ea1180e0e4ef0a47c9e5d6dbcc2b2733d4c42041785c8.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-29T04:52:23 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | The Communist Party of India-Marxist CPI(M) has called upon the people to draw inspiration from the spirit of martyrs of power agitation to fight against the reforms.A commemorative meeting of those w | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FVijayawada%2Fcpim-leaders-call-for-struggle-against-power-reforms%2Farticle9044980.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | CPI(M) leaders call for struggle against power reforms | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The Communist Party of India-Marxist CPI(M) has called upon the people to draw inspiration from the spirit of martyrs of power agitation to fight against the reforms.
A commemorative meeting of those who died during the 2000 power sector agitation was conducted in the city on Sunday.
Addressing the gathering, CPI (M) State secretariat members Y. Venkateswara Rao and V. Krishnaiah said that the reforms meant steep hiking of power tariff in early 2000.
But, now reforms had swayed every sphere of life.
The reforms were being implemented in every sector by the State and Central governments. These reforms were benefiting only a few businessmen and the corporate sector. Privatisation had become order of the day. Education and Health sectors spoke volumes of the perils of privatisation and reforms. There was no focus on welfare of the poor, they said.
The power agitation reflected the Left parties’ struggle against the liberalisation policies. The ruling parties had not learnt any lessons from that agitation. Instead, they were going ahead with their plans to woo foreign investors.
Laws were being made against the working class and middle class. The gap between the rich and poor was growing and this led to many disparities in the country, they opined.
The CPI (M) leaders said that the State government was committing the same mistakes again. Centralised development led to heartburn of many people in the backward regions.
These findings were parroted by the ruling party members at many fora.
Notwithstanding this, the government was committing same blunder with its plans regarding the capital city of Amaravati, they said.
Earlier, the leaders garlanded photos of Ramakrishna, Balaswamy, and Vishnuvardhan Reddy who were killed in the Basheerbagh firing.
Former MLC K. Lakshman Rao, Teachers Union leader I. Venkateswara Rao and others spoke.
CPI (M) leader J. Prabhakar presided over the meeting. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Vijayawada/cpim-leaders-call-for-struggle-against-power-reforms/article9044980.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/388ca228f6bb003e8dda6d87f94c8abba68e5d9bc69788ac8189e3403420568d.json |
[
"Damini Nath"
] | 2016-08-26T16:56:19 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | Cases registered by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) have gone up over the past three years, but those where monetary relief was recommended have in fact declined. While the NHRC cannot | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fnhrc-registering-more-cases-says-there-is-more-awareness%2Farticle9032731.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02987/NHRC_2987240c.jpg | en | null | NHRC registering more cases, says there is more awareness | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Exclusive
Some cases had been taken up by the courts or State human rights commissions, others were closed or disposed off for lack of a clear offence being established. File Photo
Over the three years, cases related to the police remained the top contributor, accounting for 30 per cent of the total cases.
Cases registered by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) have gone up over the past three years, but those where monetary relief was recommended have in fact declined.
While the NHRC cannot prosecute, the best case scenario for complainants is when the apex human rights panel recommends monetary relief for them. Data from the NHRC analysed by The Hindu showed that the cases where relief was recommended fell 26 per cent from 2013-2014 to 2015-2016. For the same time period, the number of cases registered by the Commission rose 20 per cent.
In 2013-2014, 98,136 cases were registered and monetary relief was recommended in 443. While the number of cases lodged in 2014-2015 rose to 1.14 lakh, the cases where relief was granted decreased to 378. The trend continued in 2015-2016, with 1.17 lakh cases being registered and relief being recommended in 326 cases.
The figures do come with a note of caution, however, with NHRC officials explaining that there are several reasons behind fewer cases ending with monetary relief. Some cases were taken up by the courts or State human rights commissions, others were closed or disposed off for lack of a clear offence being established.
Complaints where someone lost their life or was hurt were clearer cases of compensation. Four types of complaints – custodial death (judicial and police), death in police encounter and alleged fake encounters – accounted for almost 2 per cent of cases lodged in 2015-2016, but 35 per cent of cases relief was granted. The magnitude of the offence had a role to play, as per NHRC officials.
Over the three years, cases related to the police remained the top contributor to the NHRC's load, accounting for 30 per cent of total cases registered in 2015-2016.
On the number of cases increasing, the NHRC chalked up the trend to better awareness amongst complainants.
“In the view of the NHRC, the people's faith in the Commission has been increasing because of the way it has been dealing with cases. There is also increased awareness thanks to the NHRC's own efforts and the media,” said Jaimini Kumar Srivastava, NHRC spokesperson.
tHE Commission was working with other stakeholders to increase awareness as well as State governments' compliance with its orders, he said.
For human rights experts, the increasing number of cases brought mixed reactions.
Devika Prasad, the coordinator of the police reforms programme of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, said that the rise in complaints signalled cause for “both cheer and worry”.
“While it is positive that more and more people are accessing the Commission for redress, it also tells us that allegations of human rights violations by public servants are rising. The NHRC's role in realising accountability for human rights violations is the crux of the issue,” Ms. Prasad said.
She added that since the hike in numbers of cases indicated greater awareness, the “markers of people's faith must be the response of the NHRC in each and every case and the redress provided.” | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/nhrc-registering-more-cases-says-there-is-more-awareness/article9032731.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/4ca315d697979b5c62b897062028b5fa9bdab865dc3bcd28644f717e5c3be8b3.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-30T02:57:59 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Office-bearers and leaders of the four organisational units of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in Coimbatore who met here on Sunday decided to mobilise cadre from Tirupur and Erode as well for the Septe | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FCoimbatore%2Fdmk-to-mobilise-cadre-from-three-districts-for-sept-3-protest%2Farticle9044270.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | DMK to mobilise cadre from three districts for Sept. 3 protest | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Office-bearers and leaders of the four organisational units of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in Coimbatore who met here on Sunday decided to mobilise cadre from Tirupur and Erode as well for the September 3 protest in the city.
Inaction
The DMK would stage a protest at the VOC Park grounds under the party treasurer M.K. Stalin’s leadership at about 10 a.m. to condemn the Kerala Government’s move to construct check dam across River Siruvani and the Tamil Nadu Government’s inaction in this regard.
In the Sunday’s meeting, the partymen who met under former State Minister Pongalur N. Palanisamy’s leadership resolved to mobilise cadre from the other two districts as well, as farmers and people there too would be affected if the Kerala Government were to construct the check dam.
The resolution recalled that when the Kerala Government attempted to construct a check dam near Mukkali in 2002, the DMK had successfully managed to stall it.
Now in 2016 when the Kerala Government had resumed its efforts to construct the check dam, the Tamil Nadu Government should have taken efforts to stall the construction to protect the interests of the people in the western districts. But it failed by not responding to letters from the Expert Appraisal Committee of for River Valley and Hydroelectric Projects and to Kerala Government. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Coimbatore/dmk-to-mobilise-cadre-from-three-districts-for-sept-3-protest/article9044270.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/dda873a5dc6be8c9275b95e53836128da8888f54746da8cc66f2e3f1202626e8.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-31T10:53:22 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | Two men were lucky to escape uncaught when they cut a mid sized sandalwood tree at Narayanapuram village in Salaiyur near Annur, in the early hours of Tuesday. But, in a couple of hours they were caug | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FCoimbatore%2Fsandalwood-seized-two-held%2Farticle9052636.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Sandalwood seized; two held | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Two men were lucky to escape uncaught when they cut a mid sized sandalwood tree at Narayanapuram village in Salaiyur near Annur, in the early hours of Tuesday. But, in a couple of hours they were caught while carelessly transporting a portion of that tree’s bark on their motorbike.
D. Yuvraj (25), of Kalliyan Puthur at Vijayamangalan in Erode, and his accomplice R. Kumar (29) of Madukkarai in Coimbatore were arrested by a highway patrolling team near Chettipalayam on the Palakkad Bypass Road.
They tried to run away from the police but were caught at Kalakaduputhur. The sandalwood weighed about 10 kg.
Found dead
K. Raju (45), a construction worker from Chitharayapuram in Sivakasi, was found dead with his head smashed, at a vacant house site in MGR Nagar at Theethipalayam village, near Perur, on Tuesday. According to the police, the man had come to Coimbatore for work three weeks ago.
It is learnt that his wife Subbulakshmi and two sons are in Sivakasi.
He worked for Rajkumar, a contractor. He did not have work on Monday and was seen by a few fellow labourers on that day.
According to the police, Rajkumar made repeated attempts to reach Raju over phone, but in vain.
On Monday farm labourers working near MGR Nagar noticed the man motionless and assumed that he could have been in an inebriated condition.
Later, they informed the police. Forensic experts and the dog squad were pressed for service.
The police said that a case was registered under section 302 (punishment for murder) of the Indian Penal Code.
Youth held
The police have arrested M. Vijay (22) from Thenkasi for allegedly murdering P. Manickem (67), a former government teacher, at his house at Kennedy Street in Naickenpalayam. The police said that he was murdered on Saturday afternoon but the incident came to light only on Monday as neighbours noticed unpleasant smell emanating from Manickem’s house.
Police sources said that Manickem lost wife 20 years ago and was having affairs with a few women.
One of the women told the police that he was trying to take advantage of a 24-year-old married woman working in a private company near Mettupalayam who had borrowed some money from him.
The police said that Vijay came to know about his wife being harassed by Manickem and hacked him to death. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Coimbatore/sandalwood-seized-two-held/article9052636.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/245f19459fb4eb4b03bc77ac70e874d156caa5ea85959aec2ae14147cb98a94e.json |
[
"Varghese K George"
] | 2016-08-30T04:51:15 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | India and the U.S on Monday signed the bilateral Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) that will give the militaries of both countries access to each other’s facilities for supplies and | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Finternational%2Findia-us-sign-logistics-pact%2Farticle9049583.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | India, US sign logistics pact | null | null | www.thehindu.com | LEMOA is one of the four ‘foundational agreements’ that the U.S. enters into with its defence partners. With LEMOA, India has signed two of the four.
India and the U.S on Monday signed the bilateral Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) that will give the militaries of both countries access to each other’s facilities for supplies and repairs. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and U.S. Defence Secretary Ash Carter said in a joint statement that LEMOA “will facilitate additional opportunities for practical engagement and exchange.”
While it is an enabling agreement, LEMOA does not make logistical support automatic or obligatory for either party, the minister and the secretary said. LEMOA does not involve allowing military bases either, they said. Each case will require individual clearance. The services or supplies accessed will be on a reimbursable basis as per the new pact.
LEMOA is one of the four ‘foundational agreements’ that the U.S. enters into with its defence partners. With LEMOA, India has signed two of the four. After the first one in 2002 – the General Security Of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) -- the governments led by BJP’s A B Vajpayee and Congress’s Manmohan Singh were wary of signing the other three amid concerns that these may lock India into an uncomfortably close embrace with the U.S.
Communications and Information Security Memorandum of Agreement (CISMOA) and Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA) for Geospatial Intelligence are the two pending ones. Mr. Parrikar said no timeline has been set for discussing these.
A joint statement by the minister and the secretary said they both “discussed India’s “major defence partner” designation, announced during Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Washington in June.” “They agreed on the importance this framework will provide to facilitate innovative and advanced opportunities in defence technology and trade cooperation. To this end, the United States has agreed to elevate defence trade and technology sharing with India to a level commensurate with its closest allies and partners,” the statement said.
Secretary Carter welcomed India’s membership in the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) and reaffirmed U.S. support for India’s membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), said the statement.
The statement said the minister and the secretary also discussed cooperation on capabilities to augment India’s capacity for maritime domain awareness, but there was no mention of India’s request for Predator drones for this purpose.
The designation of major defence partner allows defence trade and technology-sharing of a higher grade, Mr. Carter said. The Secretary said the designation also supports the two "important handshakes" between India and the United States.
According to Mr. Carter, the first handshake is strategic, as the U.S. rebalances to the Asia-Pacific, and India extends its reach towards east, in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. The second handshake, is technological and is demonstrated in the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative, said Mr. Carter. “These two handshakes have brought our two militaries closer together,” Mr. Carter said. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/india-us-sign-logistics-pact/article9049583.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/f58a0a3e5a43b8af90fd6411846e72cff15b08a53d625a053e06aedab8003341.json |
[
"Mohammad Ali"
] | 2016-08-29T14:51:03 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Union Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma on Monday clarified that his “avoid skirt” remark meant for women foreign tourists came out of concern and there was “no harm in taking caution”. He also said t | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fother-states%2Favoid-skirt-remark-no-harm-in-caution-clarifies-mahesh-sharma%2Farticle9046426.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | ‘Avoid skirt’ remark: No harm in caution, clarifies Mahesh Sharma | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Union Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma on Monday clarified that his “avoid skirt” remark meant for women foreign tourists came out of concern and there was “no harm in taking caution”. He also said that he was a father of two daughters and he would never tell any woman what to wear and what not to wear.
Mr. Sharma while addressing media in Agra on Sunday said that women tourists visiting India should not wear small dresses like skirts and avoid roaming around late in the night without any escort. He had also said that this was part of the advisory being given to foreign tourists as part of do's and dont's in India. His remark led to huge outrage on social media.
“I had said in the context of visiting religious places like temple. I had talked about respecting religious places like if you go to a Gurudwara you cover your head and take off your shoes before entering a temple,” he told news agency ANI.
“I did not ask anybody what to wear and what to avoid. Our country is a diverse nation. We do not ban anything. But something as part of advisory and precaution is something different. But there is no harm in being cautious because different countries issue advisories from time to time for the safety and security of their citizens and tourists but I did not say anything about what one should wear,” he said.
Before Mr. Sharma could clarify on his remark, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal took to Twitter and took sharp barbs at the Narendra Modi government over the statement of his tourism Minister.
“Women had greater freedom for their clothes of their choice in Vedic times than they have in Modi times,” Mr. Kejriwal tweeted on Monday. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/avoid-skirt-remark-no-harm-in-caution-clarifies-mahesh-sharma/article9046426.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/63a00c6098deefc7122fce8747efa94a2d80a0cf0881d10a01bd0c6c3e8c395d.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-31T02:55:01 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | Several shops and establishments halted their business activities on Tuesday in protest against the growing atrocities of anti-social elements in Srikakulam town and other places.Members of the Chambe | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fandhra-pradesh%2Ftraders-observe-bandh-against-hooliganism%2Farticle9052411.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Traders observe bandh against hooliganism | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Several shops and establishments halted their business activities on Tuesday in protest against the growing atrocities of anti-social elements in Srikakulam town and other places.
Members of the Chamber of Commerce organized a rally in Srikakulam town and raised slogans against the anti-social elements. They protested the murder of a sweet shop owner G.Venkata Ramanamurthy and sought stern action on the culprits responsible for it.
Meanwhile, Srikakulam police personnel suspected that one Ganesh would have killed Ramanamurthy due to business rivalry. The secretary of Chamber of Commerce PV Ramana met senior police officials and demanded arrest of persons involved in the murder and other anti-social activities. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/traders-observe-bandh-against-hooliganism/article9052411.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/1b5659e0f71b3e2fa3442bec4824acc1ec5c2381175efddaa5197a3d353254ef.json |
[
"Bindu Shajan Perappadan"
] | 2016-08-29T12:54:47 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | : A survey conducted by the National Heart Institute here has revealed a 10 per cent increase in cardiac illness among women. The cases of 1,20,444 patients admitted to the hospital between 2012 and 2 | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FDelhi%2F10-increase-in-cardiac-illness-among-women%2Farticle9044298.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02990/DE29-WORLD_HEAR_DE_2990517c.jpg | en | null | ‘10% increase in cardiac illness among women’ | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Study says women and youngsters stand at an elevated risk of getting a heart disease.
: A survey conducted by the National Heart Institute here has revealed a 10 per cent increase in cardiac illness among women. The cases of 1,20,444 patients admitted to the hospital between 2012 and 2016 were studied for the survey.
“Today, women and youngsters stand at an elevated risk of getting a heart disease. This trend can be attributed to an unhealthy diet, increase in consumption of tobacco and related products, a sedentary lifestyle, and stress,” notes the study.
Changing trend
Findings by the institute also suggest that more and more pre-menopausal women are being treated for heart-related diseases. A sizeable 25 per cent of the total bypass surgeries are done on women. “The female hormone estrogen protects a woman’s heart till she obtains menopause. As the hormone levels drop around the age of 50-55, women start to catch up with men in Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) rates. However, this trend is changing due to smoking, dangerous weight loss practices, consumption of unhealthy food, high stress and less vigilant screening. Contrary to popular belief, women also stand a greater chance of dying of a heart disease than men due to lack of awareness and preventive action,” said Dr. Vinod Sharma, vice-chief executive officer and head of cardiology services, National Heart Institute.
O.P. Yadav, CEO, National Heart Institute, said: “Indians have a four-fold higher prevalence and death risk resulting from a heart attack compared to people in other countries.”
He said while the West had been able to slow this pattern through lifestyle changes, the same cannot be said about a developing country.
The study offers solutions to prevent heart-related diseases. “A diet rich in fruits and vegetables should be the norm. A brisk exercise routine of about 20-30 minutes every day or at least three days in a week is essential for the heart to function well. Everybody should undergo regular health check-ups beyond the age of 35 years,” says the study. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/10-increase-in-cardiac-illness-among-women/article9044298.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/3ca3fc3a069427c44e6f96f93cda456626cb70bd2a9d2177c272dba4fff3caf1.json |
[
"Manojit Saha"
] | 2016-08-26T18:51:12 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) announced on Thursday that bank applications for the Unified Payment Interface have officially become operational, which means that UPI apps of banks can | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fbusiness%2FEconomy%2Fupi-could-change-the-way-we-pay%2Farticle9037034.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | UPI could change the way we pay | null | null | www.thehindu.com | National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) announced on Thursday that bank applications for the Unified Payment Interface have officially become operational, which means that UPI apps of banks can now be downloaded and used for transactions:
What is UPI and what can a user do with the app?
UPI is a payment system that allows money transfer between any two bank accounts by using a smartphone.
UPI allows a customer to pay directly from a bank account to different merchants, both online and offline, without the hassle of typing credit card details, IFSC code, or net banking/wallet passwords.
How can one download the UPI app?
The UPI app of 19 banks -- Andhra Bank, Axis Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Bhartiya Mahila Bank, Canara Bank, Catholic Syrian Bank, DCB Bank, Federal Bank, ICICI Bank, TJSB Sahakari Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Karnataka Bank, UCO Bank, Union Bank of India, United Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, South Indian Bank, Vijaya Bank and YES Bank -- will be available on the Google Play Store of Android phones in the next few days for customers to download.
Steps to get started with UPI
1. Download the app from Play Store and install in phone; 2. Set app login; 3. Create virtual address; 4. Add your bank account; 5. Set M-Pin; and 6. Start transacting using UPI
How safe is UPI?
It is safe as the customers only share a virtual address and provide no other sensitive information.
What kind transactions can be performed via UPI?
Merchant payments, remittances, bill payments among others.
Is there a per transaction limit?
The per transaction limit is Rs.1 lakh.
How exactly does one make a payment transaction?
A user can make an in-app payment for goods or services purchased online.
For instance a site allows purchase of a movie-on-demand.
User clicks buy, the site/app triggers the UPI payment link and is taken to the pay screen of the UPI app, where the transaction information is verified and a click followed by entry of a secure PIN completes the purchase. | http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/upi-could-change-the-way-we-pay/article9037034.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/95c8e1801bae99a03d7a4e3021161c31fb6595ef331592fe521758d5c60dc5d2.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T21:00:30 | null | 2016-08-25T00:00:00 | The death toll from a powerful earthquake in central Italy reached at least 241 on Thursday, but officials cautioned it could rise again as rescuers continued a grim search for corpses, as powerful a | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Finternational%2Fquestions-mount-as-italy-weeps-for-victims%2Farticle9032581.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Questions mount as Italy weeps for victims | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The death toll from a powerful earthquake in central Italy reached at least 241 on Thursday, but officials cautioned it could rise again as rescuers continued a grim search for corpses, as powerful aftershocks rocked the devastated area.
Weeping in a campsite erected to house the homeless from a string of mountain villages, Rita Rosine, 63, said her 75-year-old sister was trapped under the ruins of a collapsed house, presumed dead.
“The situation is worse than in war. It’s awful, awful... they say it will take two days to dig her out because they have to shore up the surrounding buildings.
“She didn’t deserve to die like that, she was so good.”
As rescuers sifted through the rubble, questions mounted as to why there had been so many deaths in a thinly-populated area so soon after a 2009 earthquake in the nearby city of L’Aquila left 300 people dead.
Limited preparations
That disaster, just 50 km south, underscored the region’s vulnerability to seismic events — but preparations for a fresh quake have been exposed as limited at best.
Giuseppe Saieva, the chief public prosecutor for most of the area affected, said he would be opening an investigation into whether anyone could be held responsible for the disaster.
In Amatrice a 4.3 magnitude aftershock shook the already badly damaged village on Thursday, fuelling fears of fresh collapses.
Mayor Sergio Pirozzi said over 200 people had died in the village alone, suggesting the total number of victims could increase significantly. Amatrice has a population of around 2,500, but it was packed with visitors when the quake struck.
The fate of 28 of 32 guests staying in the village's Hotel Roma was still unclear. The Red Cross began shipping in food and water supplies for homeless residents.
Among those who came to pick up emergency provisions were Maria Atrimala, 48, and her 15-year-old daughter.
“We escaped by pure luck, the stairs of the house held and we ran, blindly in the dark and dust,” she said with tears rolling down her face. “When we got out we could hear the cries of people still trapped and we helped those we could.”
Hundreds spent the night sleeping in their cars or in hastily-assembled tents, the aftershocks adding to their discomfort. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/questions-mount-as-italy-weeps-for-victims/article9032581.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-25T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/694777350558d9f78774ffab9da631e278a77a3f37bd45f32dfbcee7623de0bf.json |
[
"R. Prasad"
] | 2016-08-28T14:51:13 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Going a step further, a team of researchers from IISc Bangalore has improved upon the water purification membrane they developed in 2014. The membrane allows higher flow rate across it and kills nearl | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fsci-tech%2Fscience%2Fiisc-researchers-produce-a-better-water-purification-membrane%2Farticle9042869.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02989/29_EPBS_Science_pr_2989737c.jpg | en | null | IISc researchers produce a better water purification membrane | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The membrane allows higher flow rate across it and kills nearly 99 per cent of E. Coli
Going a step further, a team of researchers from IISc Bangalore has improved upon the water purification membrane they developed in 2014. The membrane allows higher flow rate across it and kills nearly 99 per cent of E. Coli present in water. The results of the study were published recently in the journal Nanoscale.
Instead of creating a membrane with sub-micron pore size, a team led by Prof. Suryasarathi Bose, the corresponding author of the paper from the Department of Materials Engineering, IISc produced a more permeable structure by creating pores that are bigger in size and more interconnected.
Bigger and more tortuous pores were produced by mixing equal amounts of two polymers — polyethylene (PE) and polyethylene oxide (PEO). Since PEO is soluble in water unlike PE, pores tend to form when the membrane containing PEO is dipped in water. Earlier, the researchers used tiny amount of PEO and sheared it at high speed to produce tiny droplets of PEO to create smaller pores.
“We took equal amounts of PE and PEO so we get more tortuous pores upon removal of PEO. This is not possible if we take tiny amounts of PEO,” says Prof. Bose.
Besides being tortuous, the pores are also asymmetrical — the pore dimensions are not uniform throughout. At some places the pores get so narrow that they tend to be as small as the micro holes that the team produced two years ago. Explaining the logic behind having asymmetrical pores, Prof. Bose says: “If the pores are asymmetrical then bacteria and other contaminants will have a tougher path to pass through, so they will get trapped.” The pores are also well connected thereby increasing the ability of water to pass through the membrane. When two polymers are mixed and subjected to post processing application like hot pressing the initial PEO droplets tend to become bigger. The bigger droplets of PEO tend to leave bigger pores. “To prevent this and control the morphology we added maleated polyethylene. The maleated polyethylene does not allow the droplets to get bigger,” Prof. Bose says. “Maleated polyethylene basically interacts with PE (polyethylene) on the one hand and reacts with PEO on the other hand. So it is a kind of interfacial stabilising agent and doesn’t allow the morphology to coarsen.”
In their earlier attempt, to render the membrane antibacterial, graphene oxide was mixed with the two polymers and the graphene oxide was made functional with amine groups. “Earlier the antibacterial effect was not significant as graphene oxide was embedded inside the membrane. But now we have made it more effective by anchoring graphene oxide on the surface of the membrane,” he says.
Antibacterial studies through direct contact of E. coli with graphene oxide resulted in 100-fold reduction in E. coli colony forming units at the end of 12 hours of contact with the membrane. According to him, graphene oxide has very sharp edges and this helps in piercing and destroying the bacterial cell wall. Also, the amine group of graphene interacts with the phosphate group of the lipids present in the cell and generates reactive oxygen species that eventually destroys the cell membrane.
Since polyethylene is inert, the researchers had to render suitable surface modification to anchor graphene oxide on to it, which otherwise would have been very difficult.
Lab studies have revealed that there is unimpeded permeation of water across the membrane suggesting that anchoring the graphene oxide on the surface does not clog the pores. | http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/iisc-researchers-produce-a-better-water-purification-membrane/article9042869.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/09be2a3479dd61b9d8a9c90e3bfae472b2eed7e1b4dd453d86c3e35421b3504a.json |
[
"Kallol Bhattacherjee"
] | 2016-08-30T18:52:20 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | Echoing India’s concerns for an end to distinction between “good terrorism” and “bad terrorism”, the United States on Tuesday sought action from Pakistan on 26/11 attacks and the attack on the Pathan | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fact-against-terror-kerry-tells-pakistan%2Farticle9051356.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02992/AVD_KERRY_2992641c.jpg | en | null | Act against terror, Kerry tells Pakistan | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The U.S. Secretary of State supports efforts to bring 26/11, Pathankot attackers to justice.
Echoing India’s concerns for an end to distinction between “good terrorism” and “bad terrorism”, the United States on Tuesday sought action from Pakistan on 26/11 attacks and the attack on the Pathankot airbase, while announcing that the U.S. will hold trilateral talks with Afghanistan and India during next month’s U.N. session to fine-tune counter terror measures.
The tough announcement against terrorism was the highlight of the Strategic and Commercial Dialogue (S&CD) which saw Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker address Indian concerns on a wide range of issues like counter terror, multilateralism and easier visa regime for Indian workers to the U.S.
Mr. Kerry’s announcement of a trilateral is a significant move ahead and indicates a hardening position on terror that hurts South Asia. The first and second trilateral dialogues including India, the U.S. and Afghanistan were held in 2012 and 2013.
“Let me be clear, United States continues to support all efforts to bring the perpetrators of Mumbai and the Pathankot attacks to justice and we cannot and will not make distinction between good and bad terrorism”, Mr. Kerry said. The comments from the visiting Secretary of State of the outgoing Obama administration came a day after he supported Bangladesh in its fight against international terrorism.
“Terror is terror no matter where it comes from and who carries it out,” Mr. Kerry said and announced that the U.S. and India have agreed to exchange “terrorist screening information” to build a wall against global terrorism.
However, Mr. Kerry acknowledged that Pakistan had acted against the “Haqqani network” which has often been accused of attacking Afghanistan. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/act-against-terror-kerry-tells-pakistan/article9051356.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/3b9bb28f20d913cf5b49d27aaa3e703f234a2dbc6da7dbd4bbe8dd2d509039ab.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T12:52:08 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | Scientists have discovered a new species of pterosaur - an extinct group of flying reptiles - from the early Jurassic period in the Patagonia region of South America.
The cranial remains were in an | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fsci-tech%2Fenergy-and-environment%2Fnew-species-of-pterosaur-from-early-jurassic-period-discovered%2Farticle9055591.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02993/pterosaur_2993557c.jpg | en | null | New species of pterosaur from early Jurassic period discovered | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The study, published in the journal PeerJ, provides new information on the origin, tempo and mode of evolution in this particular group of flying reptiles.
Scientists have discovered a new species of pterosaur - an extinct group of flying reptiles - from the early Jurassic period in the Patagonia region of South America.
The cranial remains were in an excellent state of preservation, said the researchers who have named this new species ‘Allkauren koi’ from the native Tehuelche word ‘all’ for ‘brain’, and ‘karuen’ for ‘ancient’
Pterosaurs had an extraordinary adaptation to flight, including pneumatic bones to lighten their weight, and an elongated digit supporting a wing membrane.
However, pterosaur neuroanatomy is known from only a few three dimensionally preserved remains and, until now, there was no information on the intermediate forms.
This study, published in the journal PeerJ, therefore provides new information on the origin, tempo and mode of evolution in this particular group of flying reptiles.
“Allkaruen, from the middle lower Jurassic limit, shows an intermediate state in the brain evolution of pterosaurs and their adaptations to the aerial environment,” said one of the researchers Diego Pol from the Museum of Paleontology Egidio Feruglio in Trelew city, Argentina.
“As a result, this research makes an important contribution to the understanding of the evolution of all pterosaurs,” Pol noted.
The fossil of Allkaruen koi was found in northern central Chubut Province in Argentina and the remains included a superbly preserved and uncrushed braincase.
In order to study the neurocranial anatomy, the researchers used computed tomography to observe, in three dimensions, the cranial endocast and the inner ear.
Subsequently, a comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of the group was performed, including these cranial data and other anatomical features. | http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/energy-and-environment/new-species-of-pterosaur-from-early-jurassic-period-discovered/article9055591.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/659543d012be128689749648fb2eb2b5f97f3417395ca3542664a57632774309.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T06:55:38 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Worried over the health conditions of their spouses languishing in Pakistan jails, the wives of three Indian fishermen have requested to be granted visa to visit their husbands.
The three women — G | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Ffishermen-ail-in-pak-jails-wives-write-to-pm-for-visa%2Farticle9043230.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Fishermen ail in Pak. jails, wives write to PM for visa | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Worried over the health conditions of their spouses languishing in Pakistan jails, the wives of three Indian fishermen have requested to be granted visa to visit their husbands.
The three women — Gangaben, wife of Bhagwan Solanki from Tad village in Gir Somnath district; Amritaben, wife of Amritlal Vaishya from Wanakbara of Union Territory of Diu, and Vanitaben, wife of Dipakbhai Bamania from Kotda village in Gir Somnath — have written a letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and sought his help in getting them visa on humanitarian grounds to go to Pakistan.
In the letter signed by the three women, they have pleaded with the Prime Minister to take up the issue with his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif and request him to grant visas to them so that they can visit their husbands and enquire about their health.
Improper treatment
The women alleged that the authorities were not providing proper medical treatment to their spouses because of which their health condition was deteriorating in the jails where they are lodged. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/fishermen-ail-in-pak-jails-wives-write-to-pm-for-visa/article9043230.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/8e2e09fddc2bb2bbdeeeeb0048a80b7fa22e1bb9d496de4017c1169f89e7e217.json |
[
"Shazia Andaleeb"
] | 2016-08-28T14:50:53 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | It’s not every day that we hear of 14-year-olds making the news. However, this 14-year-old is in the news for all the right reasons: Advay Ramesh, a tenth grader at National Public School, Gopalapuram | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Ffeatures%2Fmetroplus%2Fsociety%2Fdreaming-up-a-lifeline%2Farticle9040400.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02988/29MP_ADVAY_RAMESH__2988696c.jpg | en | null | Dreaming up a lifeline | null | null | www.thehindu.com | City student Advay Ramesh, who won the Google Science Fair Community Impact Award 2016 for the Asia Pacific region, talks about his project and the plans he has for it
It’s not every day that we hear of 14-year-olds making the news. However, this 14-year-old is in the news for all the right reasons: Advay Ramesh, a tenth grader at National Public School, Gopalapuram, received the Google Science Fair Community Impact Award 2016 for the Asia Pacific region a few months ago.
Google Science Fair is an online science competition open to 13 to 18-year-old students worldwide. Students are expected to formulate a hypothesis, perform an experiment and come up with a result and a solution. The fair throws up a variety of innovative ideas every year, from youngsters who want to solve global problems.
Every year, between India and Sri Lanka alone, there are around 900 cases of fishermen inadvertently crossing the International Maritime Boundary and landing in trouble on either side. They face everything from arrest to prison time.
Advay conceived and created an app called ‘FishErmen Lifeline Terminal’ (FELT). This android app uses GPS to help fishermen track their path and position while they are at sea.
On what gave him the idea, he says, “I was on the ISRO website reading up about the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System. At the same time, newspapers were full of reports of fishermen, especially from the Rameshwaram area, venturing into Sri Lankan waters and getting arrested. This seemed like a big problem and I wanted to do something about it.”
The FELT system alerts fishermen when they are near the International Maritime Boundary, ensuring that they do not cross over. Apart from this, this app can track the path on which fishing boats have travelled, and creates catchment records, so that the fishermen know the best fishing spots to return to.
These records are also useful for researchers who could use the data to study the marine environment. And in case of imminent dangers like storms, cyclones or tsunamis, it will broadcast alert signals to other fishing boats out at sea.
Once the idea was in place, Advay taught himself JAVA script, and with some help from his father (a software engineer), designed his project. As part of his groundwork, he spoke to fishermen on Marina Beach to figure out the challenges they face. He continued his research at Rameshwaram, where he saw the fishermen at work.
Vidya Rajshekar, Advay’s mother, has much to be proud of. She is quite excited about the impending award ceremony to be held on September 27 at the Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, which Advay will be attending.
She says, “We wanted him to focus on something outside of regular studies. Advay always showed an interest in GPS whenever we travelled, especially by train. He was always playing with the maps, figuring out our location and destination. We are happy that he was able to relate to the fishermen’s problems, and that he was able to come up with a solution. The award is important, but more than that, we are glad that something he has worked on is helping other people.”
The Community Impact Award comes with a $10,000 funding and a year-long mentorship program at Scientific American.
“I am hoping that the mentors will help me fine-tune this project. I eventually want to build a hand-held device that will have all the features of this app and much more,” he says.
While reading and football are Advay’s hobbies, his ambition is to “pursue technology and make things that help the community”. Former President APJ Abdul Kalam is his role model and a source of inspiration.
Advay seems pretty nonchalant about all the publicity and attention; all of this was completely unexpected, but it feels great.
“It has been a great opportunity and a perfect start to all that I want to do,” he says. | http://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/society/dreaming-up-a-lifeline/article9040400.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/f2283451fabcab92668c6f2a60077d13e003d52aa6cffd9ad0064d8e69eb68f6.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-31T12:55:16 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | People who have converted to Christianity continue to get all welfare schemes that are extended to people belonging to the Adi Dravidar community, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa said.Intervening during C | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fchennai%2Fconverted-christians-still-benefit-from-welfare-schemes%2Farticle9052572.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | ‘Converted Christians still benefit from welfare schemes’ | null | null | www.thehindu.com | People who have converted to Christianity continue to get all welfare schemes that are extended to people belonging to the Adi Dravidar community, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa said.
Intervening during Congress MLA J.G. Prince’s speech, Ms. Jayalalithaa said students who converted to Christianity and eligible for scholarship studying in self-finance institutions are exempted from paying compulsory and non-refundable fees (that is directly disbursed to the colleges by the Adi Dravidar Welfare Department). She said page 7 of the policy note (of Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Department) contains specific details. According to the policy note, the maintenance allowance depending upon the class they study is credited to the savings bank accounts of students. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/converted-christians-still-benefit-from-welfare-schemes/article9052572.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/aae28906c18fb7908d5a68ce0e3deb37e33684ed6a05233f6fab6a376e26ad9b.json |
[
"Legal Correspondent."
] | 2016-08-29T22:55:27 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Agri Gold case adjourned to TuesdayA Division Bench of the Hyderabad High Court comprising Justice V.Ramasubramanian and Justice SV Bhatt on Saturday took on record the status report filed by the CID | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FHyderabad%2Ftp27hyskm02legal-itemsart%2Farticle9044904.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | TP-27hyskm02-Legal items.ART | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Agri Gold case adjourned to Tuesday
A Division Bench of the Hyderabad High Court comprising Justice V.Ramasubramanian and Justice SV Bhatt on Saturday took on record the status report filed by the CID pertaining to Agri Gold and Akshya Gold.
The cases filed in this regard are adjourned to Tuesday.
The Bench on an earlier occasion had asked the Agri Gold management to deposit Rs.10 lakh so that the expenses for auctioning the properties will be met.
The management informed the court that the police have seized all the bank accounts and money has to be taken from these accounts. The court passed necessary orders in this regard and adjourned the case to Tuesday. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/tp27hyskm02legal-itemsart/article9044904.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/3d14dc0ad08a4102179aec9def7cee669035f6feac9aaefd7c9067751258485c.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-30T06:55:54 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to waive 50 per cent of farm loans provided by commercial banks to bail out farmers caught in the agricultural crisis.
“If Mr. Mod | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkarnataka%2Fcm-urges-pm-to-waive-farm-loans-taken-from-commercial-banks%2Farticle9046293.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02991/29KOPPAL_KRISHI_HO_2991216c.jpg | en | null | CM urges PM to waive farm loans taken from commercial banks | null | null | www.thehindu.com | State govt. will also help, he tells farmers at Koppal convention
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to waive 50 per cent of farm loans provided by commercial banks to bail out farmers caught in the agricultural crisis.
“If Mr. Modi does so, I will also take a decision to waive agricultural loans taken from cooperative societies in the State,” he said and added that he had already discussed the issue with Mr. Modi in person, apart from apprising him about the plight of farmers. “I am committed to my stand even now,” he added.
He was addressing a mammoth convention of beneficiaries of Krishi Bhagya, titled ‘Swavalambi, Swabhimani Samavesha’, drawn from 12 districts of north Karnataka here on Monday.
“I am aware of the problems and plight of farmers in the State and also believe that the country prospers only if farmer prospers. I have been trying to mitigate their problems by providing interest-free farm loans upto Rs. 3 lakh, besides charging minimum interest rate for loans upto Rs. 10 lakh, waiving off interest and compensating their loss of crop due to severe drought. My government is committed to farmers’ welfare.”
‘Promises fulfilled’
Mr. Siddaramaiah said that the Congress government has been fulfilling its promise of completing all the pending irrigation projects by spending around Rs. 10,000 crore every year. So far, the government had spent around Rs. 30,000 crore and an equal amount would be spent during the next two years to provide irrigation facilities under various schemes.
He responded positively to some of the demands put forth by Basavaraj Rayareddi, Minister for Higher Education and district in-charge Minister, and other legislators of the district, including according administrative approval for Krishna third phase irrigation projects that benefits a couple of taluks and for construction of balancing reservoir to recoup the State’s legitimate share of water in Tungabhadra dam going waste into the river. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/cm-urges-pm-to-waive-farm-loans-taken-from-commercial-banks/article9046293.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/724c14ba08d35793859bf10fcd6ca7912ffd63ccb6c64ee490b42b02c7858952.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T10:52:08 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Seeking U.S. investment in the Rs. 40,000-crore NIIF, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said there is need to further increase bilateral trade between the two countries.U.S. Secretary of Commer | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fbusiness%2FEconomy%2Farun-jaitley-wants-indous-trade-on-firmer-footing-hardsells-national-investment-and-infrastructure-fund%2Farticle9045806.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02991/VBK-JAITLEY_1_2991090c.jpg | en | null | Arun Jaitley wants Indo-U.S. trade on firmer footing, hardsells National Investment and Infrastructure Fund | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Seeking U.S. investment in the Rs. 40,000-crore NIIF, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said there is need to further increase bilateral trade between the two countries.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, in her meeting with Mr. Jaitley, too said the U.S. wants to institutionalise the trade relations between the two countries to give it an impetus. There is “a great potential to increase the bilateral trade among the two nations,” she said.
During the meeting, Mr. Jaitley drove home the point that many Indian States are growing at 10-11 per cent and offer opportunity for U.S. investment.
“Both the leaders discussed issues relating to bilateral trade and measures to increase the trade,” said a Finance Ministry statement.
Appreciating the passage of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill by Parliament, Ms. Pritzker hoped that it will boost economic activities in India.
“The trade dialogue by the State Chief Ministers with different U.S. authorities can be given a structured shape in order to give impetus to the bilateral trade,” Ms. Pritzker noted.
Mr. Jaitley, on his part, expressed India’s interest in increasing the bilateral trade and said most concerns between the two countries have been either resolved or narrowed down to a large extent.
CEOs of various Indian companies are in constant dialogue with their U.S. counterparts for increased trade and investment among the two, he said.
The Indo-U.S. trade stood at $109 billion last year.
Going further, Mr. Jaitley said the GST Bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament unanimously earlier this month.
He said eight States have already approved the Bill and hoped that the remaining will follow suit and the desired number of state ratifications can come in early next month.
Mr. Jaitley also spoke of the creation of the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) in which various U.S.-based insurance, pension and endowment funds can invest, especially in the infrastructure sector that has great potential in India.
The government had set up the Rs. 40,000-crore NIIF in December as an investment vehicle for funding commercially viable greenfield, brownfield and stalled projects. It was envisioned as a mother fund with several sectoral feeder funds.
The government is to contribute Rs. 20,000 crore to the fund and the remaining Rs. 20,000 crore is expected to be raised through sovereign wealth funds.
Ms. Pritzker is on a 3-day visit to India to preside over the Indo-U.S. Strategic and Commercial Dialogue. | http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/arun-jaitley-wants-indous-trade-on-firmer-footing-hardsells-national-investment-and-infrastructure-fund/article9045806.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/65e01c0e92257c822ca4dc45cc0ed71b56dde5f336ab3b6bb83dfee48d177884.json |
[
"Staff Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-31T08:51:58 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | Representatives of different social organisations, religious institutions and political parties on Wednesday carried out a protest in Mandekolu village in Sullia seeking action on persons who had inf | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkarnataka%2Fvillagers-protest-against-youths-decision-to-convert%2Farticle9054999.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Villagers protest against youth’s decision to convert | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Representatives of different social organisations, religious institutions and political parties on Wednesday carried out a protest in Mandekolu village in Sullia seeking action on persons who had influenced a 24-year-old youth to embrace Islam.
The protest was led by former Mandekolu Gram Panchayat president Suresh Kanemaradka. Members from Srikshetra Dharmastala Rural Development Project, Navodaya Charitable Trust, local bajana mandals and representatives of Bharatiya Janata Party and Vishwa Hindu Parishad participated in the protest.
The protest was to demand action against persons who have influenced 24-year-old Sathisha M to embrace Islam. A certificate has been issued by Therbiyathul Islam Sabha of Calicut in Kerala on April 15, 2015 stating that Sathisha had changed his name to Muhammed Mustakim, following his four month stay at the Sabha.
Addressing the protestors, Mr. Kanemaradka said the way Mr. Sathisha has changed his thoughts creates fear of influence of radical groups on youths from the village, which was known for communal harmony and law abiding citizens. “We fear radical groups attempt to harm the nature of peaceful coexistence of communities in the village.”
Mandekolu Gram Panchayat President Mohini Chandrashekar said the fear was more so because the conversion of Mr. Sathisha had come at a time when youths from Kerala have left their villages to join ISIS. “Security agencies cannot treat Mr. Sathisha’s incident in light manner,” she said.
Members from SKDRDP, Navodaya Charitable Trust, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and other organisations also spoke.
Elaborate security arrangements was made by police to prevent any breach of law and order. Security personnel were also placed at the house of Mr. Sathisha. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/villagers-protest-against-youths-decision-to-convert/article9054999.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/09682555738f117096fd7f29201a6269f2a63062873161dce4a1a6d1f519a8f2.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T16:49:31 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | Dancing Prances shone when the horses were exercised here on Friday (Aug. 26) morning.Inner sand:600m: Cezanne (rb), Midnight Run (rb) 40.5. Former better. Angel Girl (A. Gaikwad) 40. Easy. Makino (D | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fsport%2Fraces%2Fdancing-prances-shines%2Farticle9036470.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Dancing Prances shines | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Dancing Prances shone when the horses were exercised here on Friday (Aug. 26) morning.
Inner sand:
600m: Cezanne (rb), Midnight Run (rb) 40.5. Former better. Angel Girl (A. Gaikwad) 40. Easy. Makino (Dashrath) 41.5. Easy.
800m: Mairah (rb), War Pony (Shubham) 52, 600/39. Former was two lengths superior. Champagne (Yash Narredu) 54.5, 600/41. Moved freely. Nature Boy (rb), Arctic Whizz (rb) 54.5, 600/39.5. They finished level. Dragon Of War (C. Umesh), Voulez Vous (rb) 50.5, 600/38. Former finished three lengths ahead. Mizilla Gold (rb), Britain (Akshay) 54, 600/41. They moved level freely. Rock In Rio (C. Umesh) 56.5, 600/42.5. Easy. Zanzibaar (J. Chinoy) 54, 600/40. Moved well.
1000m: Dancing Prances (rb) 1-4, 800/49.5, 600/37. Urged in the last part. Night Fury (rb) 1-12, 600/43. Easy. Myrtlewood (Parmar) 1-12, 600/42.5. Easy. | http://www.thehindu.com/sport/races/dancing-prances-shines/article9036470.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/77573c04adbb654f0961480508a86346e9172c0f79c2565572ce5146c452d9a3.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T10:50:09 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | Kurdish-led forces in northern Syria say Turkish airstrikes have hit their bases near Jarablus, a town seized by Turkey-backed rebels earlier this week. The Jarablus Military Council says the airstri | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Finternational%2Fkurdishled-syrian-forces-report-turkish-air-raids-on-bases%2Farticle9040347.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02988/TURKEY_SYRIA_2988677c.jpg | en | null | Kurdish-led Syrian forces report Turkish air raids on bases | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The Jarablus Military Council says the airstrikes on Saturday on their bases in Amarneh village marked an "unprecedented and dangerous escalation" and came after Turkish artillery shelled the positions the day before.
Kurdish-led forces in northern Syria say Turkish airstrikes have hit their bases near Jarablus, a town seized by Turkey-backed rebels earlier this week.
The Jarablus Military Council says the airstrikes on Saturday on their bases in Amarneh village marked an “unprecedented and dangerous escalation” and came after Turkish artillery shelled the positions the day before.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed the airstrikes. Turkish officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
The Jarablus Military Council is supported by the U.S.-backed and Kurdish-led Syria Democratic Forces. Turkey sent tanks across the border to help Syrian rebels capture Jarablus from the Islamic State group.
The incursion was partly aimed at containing Kurdish-led forces. Turkey says the Kurds must withdraw to the east of the nearby Euphrates River. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/kurdishled-syrian-forces-report-turkish-air-raids-on-bases/article9040347.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/cb675dd2b69ab03efe62ef9ded95a3a75a6bf5b4b03729a563e37fe908c1eb80.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-31T06:56:03 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, on Tuesday, announced that the government would provide smart white canes to the visually challenged.The government has allocated around Rs. 1.58 crore for the purpose. Th | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fchennai%2Fvisually-challenged-to-get-smart-white-canes%2Farticle9052580.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Visually challenged to get smart white canes | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, on Tuesday, announced that the government would provide smart white canes to the visually challenged.
The government has allocated around Rs. 1.58 crore for the purpose. The technology was developed under the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi’s Assistive Technologies Group a couple of years ago.
The canes have a device with ultrasonic sensors to detect objects up to three metres and produce vibrating signals, thus alerting the user.
The government will provide the smart canes to 5,000 visually challenged persons this year.
A senior official from the Department for the Differently Abled said this is the first time that a State government had come up with such a scheme. Currently, the government provides white canes with reflectors to identify the users in darkness. “Until now some NGOs have been providing these devices, but no government has so far attempted such a scheme,” the official said.
D. Elumalai, whose four siblings are also visually impaired said, “I am using the smart stick now. I received this when it was first introduced last year. It is good for those who have mastered mobility techniques as sometimes the cane would vibrate extensively and we don’t know what is ahead. It is welcome that for the first time the State government has launched the programme. We hope the project would be extended to at least 50,000 persons.”
According to him, Vellore district, where he lives has around 23,500 visually disabled persons and he hopes that the government would consider providing advanced technology such as GPS-enabled shoes.
“The Central government’s National Institute for the Visually Handicapped offers a range of products. I hope the State government would consider doing the same,” Mr. Elumalai said.
The canes have a device with ultrasonic sensors to detect objects up to three metres and produce vibrating signals | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/visually-challenged-to-get-smart-white-canes/article9052580.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/d0352ec965a975911a73756350a7c11242820cf5023dd49d651233cd786c8fdb.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-30T20:54:24 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | The locomotive and nine coaches of the 12696 Thiruvananthapuram-Chennai Central Superfast Express jumped the home signal and went ahead towards the Oachira railway station on Tuesday night, violating | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fchennai-express-jumps-signal-in-kerala%2Farticle9051433.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Chennai Express jumps signal in Kerala | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The incident occurred at 7.38 p.m. just as 12507 Thiruvananthapuram-Guwahati Express was leaving the Oachira station.
The locomotive and nine coaches of the 12696 Thiruvananthapuram-Chennai Central Superfast Express jumped the home signal and went ahead towards the Oachira railway station on Tuesday night, violating safety norms.
The incident occurred at 7.38 p.m. just as 12507 Thiruvananthapuram-Guwahati Express was leaving the Oachira station, a top railway official told The Hindu. The locomotive and coaches went more than 120 metres and it was an “indicative incident,” he said.
If the Guwahati Express had not left the station, the incident would have been disastrous, sources said.
The Chennai train had left Thiruvananthapuram Central at 5.25 p.m. and the crew was changed at Kollam Junction. Following the incident, loco-pilot G. Sudhir and assistant loco-pilot Krishnadas were removed from duty and subjected to mandatory breath analyser and medical tests.
The loco-pilot would be placed under suspension, sources said.
The train resumed its journey from Oachira at 10.49 p.m. with another crew. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/chennai-express-jumps-signal-in-kerala/article9051433.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/29ed4b9d4909eb1f524f135f659da9ccf1431222305faab66610d5f14f082aee.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-30T14:52:04 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | Rio Olympian Etimarpu Rajani on Monday gave an inspiring message to youngsters to dream big and work hard at a National Sports Day function organised at the Indira Gandhi Municipal Stadium here.The da | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FVijayawada%2Fdream-big-and-work-hard-rajani%2Farticle9048875.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02992/30VZPG5-FLAG_G9_30_2992028c.jpg | en | null | Dream big and work hard: Rajani | null | null | www.thehindu.com | SAAP Chairman P.R. Mohan and Olympian E. Rajani at a rally organised in Vijayawada on Monday. —Photo: Ch. Vijaya Bhaskar
Emulate the Olympian, youngsters told
Rio Olympian Etimarpu Rajani on Monday gave an inspiring message to youngsters to dream big and work hard at a National Sports Day function organised at the Indira Gandhi Municipal Stadium here.
The day is celebrated in remembrance of hockey wizard Dhyan Chand.
Hundreds of athletes, skaters, hockey players, coaches and administrators took part in a rally from the IGMC stadium to Benz Circle.
They also participated at a meeting where the Chittoor district girl, who represented country’s women’s hockey team at Rio, was honoured by the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh.
“Rajani fought against odds to make it to the Olympics. Though she is from a non-descript village she made use of the opportunities to represent the country at the highest level,” said SAAP chairman P.R. Mohan.
Dhyan Chand hailed
Hailing the contribution of Major Dhyan Chand, several administrators highlighted how the hockey wizard impressed German supremo Adolf Hitler with his stick work at the Berlin Olympics in 1936.
Senior SAI athletic coach Vinayak Prasad asked the State government to take up infrastructure works on a war-footing and suggested an astroturf stadium in Rayalaseema where hockey is popular.
“It is difficult to produce champions on improper playfields.” | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Vijayawada/dream-big-and-work-hard-rajani/article9048875.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/894234c8b517c8f1710b9e265947f7276639fe6a1d83ce1123ae9c1b17eb61ea.json |
[
"Jacob Koshy"
] | 2016-08-26T18:56:31 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | Genetically-modified (GM) mustard may have moved closer to being cleared for commercial cultivation in India after a key committee, tasked with assessing all the available evidence so far on the plan | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fgm-mustard-moves-closer-to-approval%2Farticle9032700.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02986/mustard_2986050c.jpg | en | null | GM mustard moves closer to approval | null | null | www.thehindu.com | However, multiple clearances are still required
Genetically-modified (GM) mustard may have moved closer to being cleared for commercial cultivation in India after a key committee, tasked with assessing all the available evidence so far on the plant’s suitability for Indian soil and risks posed to health and ecology, is learnt to have given a favourable assessment on the tests done so far on GM mustard. However there are multiple approvals still required for any likely clearance.
Multiple sources told The Hindu that a document — called a safety document — detailing the sub-committee’s findings as well as the data it had perused in assessing DMH-11, the genetically modified (GM) mustard hybrid developed by researchers at the Delhi University, would be made available online for public comments next week.
The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) is an Environment Ministry body whose clearance is mandatory for testing GM crops in farmer fields. For DMH-11 it had consulted with plant biologists, ecologists and environmentalists before tasking a sub-committee with compiling all evidence — and addressing key questions — on DMH-11. Earlier too in 2010, the GEAC had cleared Bt brinjal but it’s decision over-ruled by the then Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh.
“The GEAC has approved the subcommittee’s report and is now with the Minister [Anil Madhav],” a key official told The Hindu, “GM mustard being a sensitive issue, it’s on his desk…finger’s crossed. We cannot put curbs on research.”
Mr. Madhav, in a press statement, emphasised that “no final decision has been taken as yet on the issue” and that in a meeting held on August 11, 2016, it has “appraised” the “Safety” Document prepared by the Sub-Committee that would be put up on the website of GEAC inviting comments from the public. Moreover, a GEAC approval doesn’t mean the States — who have the final says on agriculture seeds — are compelled to clear it their fields.
The imperative to make public bio-safety data around DMH-11 follows a reprimand by the Central Information Commissioner earlier this month to the government for not making bio-safety data around genetically-modified organisms and mustard public.
The mustard in question has been developed by a team of scientists at Delhi University led by former vice-chancellor Deepak Pental under a government-funded project. In essence, it uses a system of genes from soil bacterium that makes mustard — generally a self pollinating plant — better suited to hybridisation than current methods. A similar sequence of genes has been used in imported canola oil. This means local crop developers can more easily develop different varieties of hybrid mustard, like in say GM cotton, and confer traits like pest resistance and potentially improving yield.
Activists have however maintained that publicly-available data on DMH-11 shows that its yield is no better than existing varieties. Moreover the government has consistently stone-walled attempts, according to Kavitha Kurugnati of the Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture, to obtain complete data on the tests done on DMH-11 in multiple States over the years.
Proponents of the technology said that India’s dependence on edible oil imports made it necessary to harness GM-mustard. “Annually, India spends about $12 billion on imported edible oil. The edible oil deficit will continue to widen with the increase in population and per capita income. To address this challenge, India needs to increase productivity of oilseed crops. DMH-11 is one of the promising technologies to improve mustard yield in India, which is almost stagnant since the last two decades,” said a statement by the South Asia Biotechnology Centre. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/gm-mustard-moves-closer-to-approval/article9032700.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/61c59fc2437341b35838f3f2e5e6ad7464ba68574f39e0f8d07e0bb34199aae2.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-29T18:51:49 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | With reports of four Indian women’s hockey players mistreated by Indian Railways on their way back home from Rio creating a furore, the players themselves are keen to put an end to the entire issue. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fsport%2Fhockey%2Fplayers-keen-to-put-an-end-to-railways-controversy%2Farticle9046707.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Players keen to put an end to Railways controversy | null | null | www.thehindu.com | With reports of four Indian women’s hockey players mistreated by Indian Railways on their way back home from Rio creating a furore, the players themselves are keen to put an end to the entire issue. Interestingly, all four are Railway employees.
The four — Lilima Minz, Sunita Lakra, Deep Grace Ekka and Namita Toppo — were part of the Indian team that qualified for the Olympics after 36 years and were travelling from Ranchi to Rourkela on board the Bokaro-Alleppey Express after arriving from Rio.
“I know there are reports of us travelling on the floor of the train. But that is not true. What happened was that we didn’t have tickets but since we are Railway employees, we were allowed to board the train regardless. However, the TTE told us we had to wait for a couple of stations since the train was full and he could not ask a paying traveller to vacate seat. After about half an hour he allotted us seats,” Lilima said from Bhubaneswar, where the girls had been invited for a State government felicitation.
The Indian Railways issued a statement refuting the incident. “The news reports about women’s hockey team, after their return from Rio Olympics, being forced to sit on the floor is completely false. The players, on reaching the Ranchi airport, went to the station and took the train without any information to the Indian Railways, which would have been in a better position to make appropriate arrangements. However, when the players boarded the train, the TTE took only 20 minutes to make seats available to them,” the statement said.
The players also said that while officials offered to make alternate arrangements, they decided to board the first available train since they wanted to reach home early. “If it had been daytime, we could have thought of waiting. But it was already late evening and we have been away from home for more than two months. There were also several events planned for us across the State so we wanted to reach home as soon as possible,” the players added.
Sunita had earlier been quoted as saying that the TTE denied them seats before providing the same after about an hour but she said that her words had been twisted. | http://www.thehindu.com/sport/hockey/players-keen-to-put-an-end-to-railways-controversy/article9046707.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/4067cba8a7d4e25fcd186fc47685fa36f9b2cbe67c65febe66897d06aaea9694.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-30T22:52:35 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | Senior Congress leader Devineni Rajasekhar (Nehru) and his son Avinash will join the Telugu Desam Party in the presence of party president and Chief Minister N. Chadrababu Naidu here on September 15. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FVijayawada%2Fnehru-son-to-join-tdp-on-sept-15%2Farticle9051802.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02992/Nehru_2992734c.jpg | en | null | Nehru, son to join TDP on Sept. 15 | null | null | www.thehindu.com | “We want to be part of development process of Andhra Pradesh and construction of Amaravati”.
Senior Congress leader Devineni Rajasekhar (Nehru) and his son Avinash will join the Telugu Desam Party in the presence of party president and Chief Minister N. Chadrababu Naidu here on September 15.
They met the Chief Minister at his residence at Undavalli in Guntur district and expressed their willingness to join the TDP, putting an end to speculation about Mr. Nehru’s re-entry into the Telugu Desam. Mr. Nehru told reporters that it was like a home-coming for him as it was the TDP which gave him an opportunity to grow as a leader and political life. “In view of the recent political developments, we decided to join the TDP. We received a warm welcome from Mr. Naidu,” he said. Asserting that he strove hard for the development of the Congress, Mr. Nehru said that he never thought what the party gave to him. Many insiders feel that Mr. Nehru took the decision of joining the TDP keeping in mind the future of his son. Mr. Avinash, who contested the 2014 Lok Sabha election on the Congress ticket, suffered a humiliating defeat. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Vijayawada/nehru-son-to-join-tdp-on-sept-15/article9051802.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/0ce1e13d42394705553da15e80ba5209c65ba468d0c75a247edc9c2cc2924a11.json |
[
"Giji K. Raman"
] | 2016-08-28T02:50:48 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Migration of African catfish and intensive use of chemical fertilizers in cardamom plantations have posed a threat to local fish species abundant in the river system originating from the high range a | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkerala%2Findigenous-fish-in-idukki-high-ranges-facing-threat%2Farticle9042113.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02989/24idkgi1-catfis_28_2989321c.jpg | en | null | Indigenous fish in Idukki high ranges facing threat | null | null | www.thehindu.com | African Catfish and use of chemical fertilizers endanger endemic species
Migration of African catfish and intensive use of chemical fertilizers in cardamom plantations have posed a threat to local fish species abundant in the river system originating from the high range area.
Periyar Lake, home to 36 fish species, has been identified as the largest one in the district to host endemic species including the Periyar trout.
Species at threat
As per an International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classification, seven species are critically endangered, six endangered, and eight vulnerable in the lake where six varieties are endemic.
Akbar Ali, Assistant Professor, Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies, told The Hindu that the introduction of hybrid varieties such as tilapia to the lake system resulted in high competition for food where the endemic species lose out. Moreover, tilapiahas a tendency to monopolise the lake, as it has high survival rate and lays egg at an early stage of growth. The spread of African Catfish in the lake was from private ponds where they were grown even after their breeding was banned by the Union government. A survey in the small tributaries to the lake pointed out high concentration of African catfish that lives on local fishes.
The two main threats to the endemic spices in the lake are African Catfish and tilapia, as per the studies. A Kerala Forest Research Institute study in 1999 also pointed out that there was high level of threat to local fish varieties in the lake owing to the introduction of hybrid fish.
It was mainly due to competition for food, the study said. Mr Ali said that though there was no report of natural breeding by African Catfish, it was opposite in the case of tilapia, which grew faster in the waterbodies. The Sucker Catfish, also reported in the waterbodies of Kerala, posed a threat to the endemic species, he said.
Though Matsayafed had deposited fish seeds in the reservoirs of Idukki, Anayirangal and Ponmudi with a view to increasing inland fish production, they could not be realised.
The spread of pesticide residue, introduction of hybrid fishes, and the migration of African Catfish are stated to be the reasons.
Fish kills
There were instances of large-scale fish kills reported from ponds in the cardamom plantations, especially after the application of pesticides. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/indigenous-fish-in-idukki-high-ranges-facing-threat/article9042113.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/b246c46e89e7fefa24006882c18c1ff9ef377adc747a0fa4c2ebef30157ed59a.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T16:50:18 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss and opted to bowl in the first of the two Twenty20 Internationals against the West Indies here on Saturday.
Shikhar Dhawan has been left out of the | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2Findia-win-toss-opt-to-bowl-against-west-indies%2Farticle9040669.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02988/CRICKET_2988802c.jpg | en | null | India win toss, opt to bowl against West Indies | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Shikhar Dhawan has been left out of the Indian playing eleven and Lokesh Rahul will open the batting with Rohit Sharma.
Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss and opted to bowl in the first of the two Twenty20 Internationals against the West Indies here on Saturday.
Shikhar Dhawan has been left out of the Indian playing eleven and Lokesh Rahul will open the batting with Rohit Sharma.
For the West Indies, Chris Gayle will miss the match as he is injured. Test captain Jason Holder has also been left out.
The Teams:
India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk; capt), Rohit Sharma, Lokesh Rahul, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Stuart Binny, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
West Indies: Carlos Brathwaite (capt), Johnson Charles, Andre Fletcher (wk), Evin Lewis, Marlon Samuels, Lendl Simmons, Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell, Dwayne Bravo, Sunil Narine, Samuel Badree. | http://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/india-win-toss-opt-to-bowl-against-west-indies/article9040669.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/2c6b0ec851b2759bdbeab2f135b3e39092bea9de9321f5c591e76a6f22be100d.json |
[
"Vasundhara Sirnate Drennan"
] | 2016-08-29T20:51:13 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | We live in strange times. Last week a woman in Nice, who was wearing a burkini, was forced to remove her “offensive” clothing. This week Union Minister Mahesh Sharma issued an informal advisory to fo | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fopinion%2Fop-ed%2Fburqa-versus-bikini-a-false-debate%2Farticle9046738.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02991/30THBURKINI_2991417c.jpg | en | null | Burqa versus bikini: a false debate | null | null | www.thehindu.com | A woman forced to wear a burqa is objectified and constrained, as is a woman who is forced to wear a bikini
We live in strange times. Last week a woman in Nice, who was wearing a burkini, was forced to remove her “offensive” clothing. This week Union Minister Mahesh Sharma issued an informal advisory to foreign women to not wear skirts to avoid violence.
The discussion on this needs to be situated in the general misogyny that undergirds not only all religions, but also infiltrates the secular state that is closely linked to capitalism, which has effectively commodified the female form. The traditional debate on robing/disrobing of the female form is located in a false binary, that is, the false idea that religious and cultural norms will dictate women being robed while secular forms of thinking like liberalism that focus on choice will advocate a freedom for women based on their ability to strip at will, which is then interpreted by men as a form of sexual consent.
France takes its secularism, or laicite, very seriously. Politicians who favour bringing religion back into the public sphere are criticised, and the practice of religion privately is seen as a public good. In this schematic of secularism there is no place for a public assertion of one’s religious identity, which when combined with attacks on France’s public spaces by terrorists pledged to the Islamic State has resulted in a spiteful policy of banning one particular form of Islamic dress, the burkini, from public spaces like beaches.
Subjugation of female bodies
France is not alone; across the world, masculine gazes seeks to garb the female form in particular imaginations. These imaginations are quite clearly linked to projects of state power, cultural assertions or ideological change and revolution. When women’s outfits become linked to projects of political power, both robing and disrobing become forms of subjugation of female bodies, or the exercise of biopower by states. Women are policed physically and sexually through what they wear. In India and West Asia, outfits are meant to conceal bodies. A woman is taught that disrobing brings shame to their families, especially the patriarch, since he is the only person (apart from the state) who can exert power over female bodies linked to him by blood or marriage. The state supports the patriarch’s claims.
In advanced countries, the opposite happens. Women are allowed to strip as part of a much-needed sexual revolution. Even so, this freedom has been appropriated by a male gaze where the purpose of being female has been reduced to being a commodity. This was recently evinced in a news discussion on American female Olympians and their make-up and outfits, with male commentators encouraging the use of make-up and not evaluating the athletes on their sporting prowess.
In this sense, robing/disrobing when looked at through the lens of biopower becomes a technique of managing and limiting female desire, power, nutrition, politics, health and ambition. Disrobing is, in a capitalist world, seen as liberation; as a form of feminine power and an assertion of non-religious modernity. Robing through the burqa is seen as the exact opposite — it is a form of ugliness; it is medieval.
In a world where wars of strategy have increasingly become entangled with ethnic and religious ideologies, a woman’s body has become the battleground where wars of doctrine are being fought. So, an Islamic cleric and an Indian khap, while asserting their cultural purity at the service of a right-wing political movement, will decree that women cannot show skin. On the other hand, a Time magazine cover from 2010 showing the mutilated face of an Afghanistani woman asks, “What will happen if we leave Afghanistan”? as an assertion of the argument that the U.S. troop concentration in Afghanistan must be preserved to save the robed women of that nation.
The female form is caught between these war-making imperatives between groups of men who share fellowships of certitude about their ideologies and their relationship to womankind. To win a strategic war is becoming increasingly difficult; therefore, wars are being waged through the militant deployment of ideologies where they can be quickly seen and discussed. The female form is collateral damage in this larger war, where choice is no longer something where a woman actively chooses, but her choice becomes residual, a casualty of a larger political battle. In France, Muslim women’s “choice” to wear specialised bathing suits has become a casualty to the global war on the Islamic State. In India, men police women’s outfits and actively punish women who do not conform. Even the state will treat women dressed in a non-Indian way, differently. This is all done in the name of protecting Indian culture. In the West, women exercise their “choice” to disrobe, but are not too sure if it is an active choice, or patriarchal social conditioning combined with good advertising and a fear of being socially rejected if they do not conform to some ideal standard of beauty.
The question that should be asked of the French state is this, by forcibly disrobing a woman in a burqini, is the state not reobjectifying her in a different way and according to a culturally different male gaze? In the same way, a woman forced to wear a burqa is also being objectified and constrained, as is a woman forced to drape a sari or a woman forced to wear a bikini. In this way, to forcibly robe or to disrobe are both not very liberating as they only seek to transfer the woman from one condition of male objectification to another. To find a way out, there needs to be an awakening amongst women to consistently and relentlessly interrogate the relationship of the “choices” they make to the immediate structures of domination that surround them. This is the only way to reclaim real and active choices from other structured choices.
Vasundhara Sirnate Drennan is the Chief Coordinator of Research at The Hindu Centre for Politics and Public Policy. | http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/burqa-versus-bikini-a-false-debate/article9046738.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/f5c7fe76c96013ea1eecc0fa612417dd5514eb3b4c832a0cd35f2cb6804efb1b.json |
[
"R. Rajaram"
] | 2016-08-30T00:51:45 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | Surveillance inside the Tiruchi Central Prison premises is poised to be enhanced with the authorities planning to install more cameras inside the jail. A proposal seeking additional cameras to cover m | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FTiruchirapalli%2Ftiruchi-prison-to-get-more-surveillance-cameras%2Farticle9046499.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Tiruchi prison to get more surveillance cameras | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Surveillance inside the Tiruchi Central Prison premises is poised to be enhanced with the authorities planning to install more cameras inside the jail.
A proposal seeking additional cameras to cover more vantage points inside the prison campus has been forwarded to the authorities in Chennai. Accommodating around 1,400 male inmates including convicts and remand prisoners, the prison has some cameras deployed at different spots to mount vigil and keep a tab on the activities taking place inside the jail. The authorities engaged its technical person and identified the spots where cameras could be installed to keep a closer watch.
Accordingly, the key spots that needed enhanced surveillance were chosen. The plan was to put in place over 15 cameras to cover various blocks inside the prison. After getting additional cameras, they would be installed at the identified spots and connected to the prison control room as well as to the chamber of the Superintendent of Prison to monitor the happenings taking place inside the jail. The existing cameras are already connected to the chamber of the Superintendent of Prison.
The prison is being guarded round-the-clock by jail personnel and those of the Tamil Nadu Special Police (TSP). While jail personnel take care of security inside the prison, TSP personnel provide security cover in the outer area. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Tiruchirapalli/tiruchi-prison-to-get-more-surveillance-cameras/article9046499.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/9e470f25bda3a96b93543262591942ed01daf8e47648f82b2c5fdec57b1e1163.json |
[
"Prabal Sharma"
] | 2016-08-26T16:49:23 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | “Deepa Mehta stressed on knowing about the lives of the characters before the incident, their background and the why of the case,” says Vansh Bhardwaj, while speaking about The Anatomy of Violence, a | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Ffeatures%2Fmetroplus%2Fvansh-bhardwaj-shares-his-experience-of-working-in-the-anatomy-of-violence%2Farticle9036925.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02987/27DMC_VANSH_2987576c.jpg | en | null | Vansh Bhardwaj shares his experience of working in "The Anatomy of Violence" | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Vansh Bhardwaj shares his experience of working in “The Anatomy of Violence”, which investigates the 2012 Delhi gang rape and murder case
“Deepa Mehta stressed on knowing about the lives of the characters before the incident, their background and the why of the case,” says Vansh Bhardwaj, while speaking about The Anatomy of Violence, a docu-drama on the 2012 Delhi gang rape and murder.
Known for his natural acting in both films and theatre, Vansh tells how the shocking incident, which shook the conscience of the nation, has been narrated by the director.
In the city for conducting workshops at the National School of Drama, Vansh is packing his bags for Toronto for the screening of the fictionalised version of the real life horrendous incident, which made the people march on to the streets. The film will be screened at Toronto International Film Festival on 12th September.
Excerpts:
Enlighten us about the Deepa Mehta’s method of storytelling.
From the starting, we could figure out that Deepa Mehta’s style of working is very uncommon. She let her actors work first, then she moves the camera accordingly. So, the actors are free, they don’t have to bother about technicalities. This way, you get an opportunity to unveil yourself as an actor. You are acting for the craft and not the camera. When The Anatomy of Violence was being shot, we were working on the characters and improvising our lines. There was no script, we chose real life locations to practice and had to look appropriate for the scene. Deepa shot the whole film in this manner. The edited version of our workshops is the film itself.
Tell us about working with Abhishek Chaubey in Udta Punjab
We met when he had just completed the script of Udta Punjab. He narrated me the script and I loved it. In terms of process, Abhishek is director’s actor, he gives you full freedom, full space to improvise and whatever you can bring to the table. You have to come up with something new and exciting and if you don’t, he discusses the scene again and again with all calmness.
How did theatre help you grow as an actor?
Whatever I am now is all because of theatre. I started very young when I was ten but acting was just a hobby. And I wanted to be a cricketer. But in my college day, I had to choose one. I chose acting as a lifetime companion. Theatre gives you discipline, dedication and aesthetics. The medium of cinema is a collaborative medium, a person cannot make a film on his own. Theatre broadens your imagination, which helps you in films.
What is more challenging acting in theatre or in films?
See, I am a performer and it’s my duty to evolve as an actor. But you have to calibrate because theatre is larger-than-life. An actor has to perform with a mindset of theatrical realism. On the other hand, cinema wants you to act with subtlety, so you have to act more with your eyes. Another difference associated with this is the sequence of working. Theatre gives you a chronology, but in films sometimes there is no chronology while shooting. On the first day, we might be shooting climax. So, you are supposed to create a graph in your mind for how you are going to play the character.
Is it true that condition of theatre is improving in India?
Yes, better than before. Nowadays schools are offering acting as a subject; they have acting teachers. By this step we are reaching out to the young talents of the country. We are living in the Digital Age; we get exposure of international cinema as well as international theatre. The opening of job opportunities makes it possible for an actor to survive.
Do you think formula films are harming the core of acting and theatre.
The truth is we have huge audience in India, with distinct tastes. Cinema has a lot of opportunities in India. Whether you make a film for social reform or entertainment, you will get your bunch of audiences. | http://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/vansh-bhardwaj-shares-his-experience-of-working-in-the-anatomy-of-violence/article9036925.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/e04236c15ed0a8e5178a8135ef40f73b27afee3029ee56c35ad6afc51e31246a.json |
[
"T. Nandakumar"
] | 2016-08-30T00:51:48 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | The absence of prescribed limits on the use of chemical pesticides for various crops could hinder the government move to step up enforcement of food safety during the Onam festival season, experts fe | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FThiruvananthapuram%2Fabsence-of-pesticide-regulation-hits-food-safety-enforcement%2Farticle9046352.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Absence of pesticide regulation hits food safety enforcement | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The absence of prescribed limits on the use of chemical pesticides for various crops could hinder the government move to step up enforcement of food safety during the Onam festival season, experts feel.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has not prescribed the Maximum Residue Level (MRL) of many of the pesticides used on vegetables and fruits.
This, according to official sources, poses legal hurdles in cracking down on the indiscriminate use of pesticides by domestic farmers and curbing the import of pesticide-contaminated items from other States.
MRL is the legally permitted level of pesticide residue in food items. The MRL value is fixed on the basis of a rigorous evaluation. It acts as an indicator of the correct use of pesticides and ensures compliance with legal requirements for food safety.
“It is a matter of concern that the majority of pesticides that have been detected in vegetables, fruits, spices and condiments do not have MRL values,” says a senior scientist associated with pesticide safety.
“This makes a mockery of the periodic monitoring of food items for pesticide residue,” he said.
The State government conducts regular surveillance sample testing of food items and the reports are published on the official website. But in the absence of MRL values, officials are hamstrung in taking legal action.
“For example, Profenophos is a typical highly neurotoxic insecticide registered for use only in cotton. But it has been detected in chilli, chilli powder, curry leaf, coriander leaf, mint leaf, cardamom, cumin seed, fennel seed, and curry powders. The FSSAI has not fixed the MRL for this insecticide in any of these commodities, because its use is not approved in any of these crops,” says an official.
Vice Chancellor, Kerala Agricultural University (KAU), P. Rajendran said the multiplicity of pesticides used for various crops posed a problem in regulation. “Fixing the MRL value for a pesticide used on a crop is a complex, time- consuming process, often taking years. To complicate matters further, pesticide manufacturers come up with new products every now and then, by changing the formulation.”
Under a special food safety drive for the forthcoming Onam festival season, the Pesticide Residue Research and Analytical Laboratory under KAU is screening samples of vegetables and fruits collected from markets across the State. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/absence-of-pesticide-regulation-hits-food-safety-enforcement/article9046352.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/098f78b409afb7d49d1ad0bb557e8a2f267b8d5ecacca7cfded44ede5b57e329.json |
[
"R. Ramabhadran Pillai"
] | 2016-08-28T02:50:39 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Even the assurance of an ISI logo on packaged drinking water can no longer be taken for granted. Officials of the State unit of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) have been detecting fake ISI label | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkerala%2Fsome-drinking-water-units-fake-the-public-out%2Farticle9042046.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02989/28TV_PACKEGED_W_28_2989305c.jpg | en | null | Some drinking water units fake the public out | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Officials of the State unit of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) have been detecting fake ISI labels on some.
Even the assurance of an ISI logo on packaged drinking water can no longer be taken for granted. Officials of the State unit of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) have been detecting fake ISI labels on some.
These fakes were seized during a raid conducted by the officials two days ago in Palakkad district. Similar instances had come to light in raids in Alappuzha earlier.
Misuse of ISI mark is an offence punishable with one-year simple imprisonment or fine up to Rs.50,000, or both, as per the BIS Act, 1986. The 30-year-old and relatively mild punishment codified in the Act could be no big deterrent, say officials, urging a scaling up of the fine to at least Rs.2 lakh and a more severe incarceration clause. The new rules are understood to be in a draft stage now.
Spurious ISI mark
State BIS chief Kadirvel told The Hindu that packaged drinking water, filled in 20-litre jars bearing spurious ISI mark, was found at a unit at Kannadi in Palakkad. The product was being sold under brand names such as ‘Aqua Varshah’, ‘Surabhi Aqua’, ‘Gogul Dew’, ‘Pure.O’, ‘Holy Aqua’, and ‘Suraksha H2O’. The manufacturing unit consisted of just a shed, where workers filled the jars with water drawn from a tank nearby, he said.
“The unit did not have a BIS licence, which is mandatory as per the FSSAI Act, 2006. Every unit manufacturing drinking water is required to have facilities such as Reverse Osmosis and ultraviolet (UV) filtration to ensure quality. The manufacturing facility should be certified by BIS and the product must conform to quality standards as per quality norms set by it.”
Food material seized from manufacturing units are to be tested at government-approved laboratories, since the BIS has no laboratory of its own in Kerala. The Kochi-based BIS office has to depend on the food testing laboratory of the Cashew Export Promotion Council at Kottayam or a few other select laboratories approved by the government.
While BIS officials can take action against those using the fake ISI mark, it is for the FSSAI officials to find out whether drinking water units are functioning with valid permits. Consumers could verify the genuineness of names and addresses of BIS certified products from the website www.bis.org.in, the official said | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/some-drinking-water-units-fake-the-public-out/article9042046.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/6a177e8eb0728e9e9a56a3bf2330d0099a72997c258dabce3b0478306420d81e.json |
[
"R. Krishna Kumar"
] | 2016-08-29T18:53:57 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | The collapse of a portion of the Devaraja Market on Sunday has put a question mark on the ongoing restoration work as the Mayor B.L. Bhyrappa has called for its complete demolition and rebuilding.The | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkarnataka%2Fconflicting-views-on-market-restoration%2Farticle9044819.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02990/28myrkk_Devaraj_29_2990635c.jpg | en | null | Conflicting views on market restoration | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The collapse of a portion of the Devaraja Market on Sunday has put a question mark on the ongoing restoration work as the Mayor B.L. Bhyrappa has called for its complete demolition and rebuilding.
The heritage structure is nearly 132 years old and is being restored at a cost of nearly Rs. 9 crore.
The plan is to retain the facade of the building and its architectural profile, while extensive repairs would be undertaken in the interior portions.
The project is being supervised by conservation architects and heritage experts.
‘Lacked strength’
But the Mayor said the structure was delicate, lacked strength and hence he would press for its demolition and oppose the continuation of the present conservation exercise.
“The restoration of the Lansdowne Building should also be halted to take a fresh view in the light of today’s incident,” said Mr. Bhyrappa.
Four fires
The structure had suffered four major fires in the last couple of decades while ad-hoc repairs and constructions were carried at free will by the tenants which compromised the integrity of the building. However, retired Commissioner for Archaeology, Museums and Heritage C.G. Betsurmath said that the architectural profile of the building can be maintained using the same construction material which is a mix of lime mortar with jaggery and other ingredients as used in the original and will have the same strength.
Even the Lansdowne Building is being restored similarly.
Hence there is no need for total demolition and reconstruction, Mr. Betsurmath added. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/conflicting-views-on-market-restoration/article9044819.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/b77d63907eef7fb5e0f8835da002b65087e9da3fcb2b37c7c3c39c9cb648117d.json |
[
"Legal Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-30T10:53:20 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | Justice Suresh Kumar Kait of the Hyderabad High Court made it clear that the in service doctors who work in remote tribal areas are eligible for weightage of marks when they seek to get admission into | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FHyderabad%2Fdoctors-working-in-tribal-areas-to-get-weightage%2Farticle9048296.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Doctors working in tribal areas to get weightage | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Justice Suresh Kumar Kait of the Hyderabad High Court made it clear that the in service doctors who work in remote tribal areas are eligible for weightage of marks when they seek to get admission into Super Specialty courses.
The Judge was allowing a case filed by Dr. D. Gopal Rao, a government doctor from Warangal. The petitioner complained that the Telangana Government and the Kaloji University of Health Sciences are not giving 30% weightage marks for the ongoing admission into Super Specialty Courses (PG 2) for the academic year 2016-17.
The judge pointed out that “when that is the larger perspective and ideology behind the rural/remote/difficult area posting under the compulsory government Service formulation, certainly the in-service medical officers like the petitioner who have rendered rural/tribal service for almost 5 years , are entitled to weightage of marks as incentive.”
Oncology seat
A Division Bench of the Hyderabad High Court comprising of Justice V.Ramasubramanian and Justice Anis was informed by the authorities that the counselling to fill seats in Oncology , Super specialty course under Health University will be done after 2.30PM and the case filed in this regard will be heard at 1030 AM on Tuesday.
The bench was dealing with case filed by Phanidra Kumar who got first rank and wanted seat in surgical oncology. But the authorities said that all the three seats will go to the Telangana area students only. The bench wanted to hear the case in detail on Tuesday wondering how all the seats can go to one area only.
YSRCP plea
Justice M.S. Ramachandra Rao of the Hyderabad High court on Tuesday directed the Telangana Government to invite YSR Congress to the all party meeting which will be conducted for discussion on creation of new districts in the State. These interim orders were passed in a case filed by the party general secretary, Shiva Kumar. He said that the competent authorities have recognised YSRC as a political party and the officers failed to invite them to All Political Party Meeting on August 20. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/doctors-working-in-tribal-areas-to-get-weightage/article9048296.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/2f7559b1197edbb5be41ea29ea3754a8473b14127da4697fb62f61ea355a0e50.json |
[
"Aloysius Xavier Lopez"
] | 2016-08-27T20:51:31 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | The walk-in payment facility for paying property tax through banks is losing popularity, reducing to less than one per cent of the total tax collected in the city. The number of assessees paying prope | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fchennai%2Fchen-infra%2F80-dip-in-walkin-payment-of-property-tax%2Farticle9040906.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | 80% dip in walk-in payment of property tax | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Banks see the number of assessees reducing from 12,500 in 2013-14 to 2,500 in 2016-17
The walk-in payment facility for paying property tax through banks is losing popularity, reducing to less than one per cent of the total tax collected in the city. The number of assessees paying property tax at bank counters has reduced from 12,500 in 2013-14 to 2,500 in 2016-17.
The total property tax collected through bank counters was Rs. 6.5 crore in 2013-14. The amount reduced to Rs.2.5 crore in 2014-15 with 8,500 assessees. The collection dipped further in 2015-16 with just 5,000 residents visiting bank counters to pay Rs.1.5 crore as property tax to the Chennai Corporation.
Even as the Corporation has collected Rs. 250 crore as property tax this half-year, the collection through bank counters has so far been pegged at just Rs.75 lakh. The civic body introduced the system claiming that it was the simplest way for collecting property tax. Residents would be able to pay the tax in cash at bank counters by just mentioning the bill number, zone number and division number of the building.
The dip in collection through 650 bank counters has been attributed to the lack of awareness among residents and banks. Civic body officials have also stopped reviewing the system, leading to reduced cooperation from the banks.
Property tax assessees may walk in, pay it in cash and generate receipt in real time at the counters of Indian Overseas Bank, Tamilnad Mercantile Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Lakshmi Vilas Bank, IndusInd Bank, Yes Bank, Canara Bank, IDBI Bank, HDFC Bank, City Union Bank and Karur Vysya Bank. “Other modes of property tax payment do not accept cash. Residents can pay it in cash only at the bank counters,” said an official.
Tax collectors, e-seva centres and Corporation offices accept cheques and demand drafts. Residents have started complaining to officials that some of the eleven banks are not offering the service. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/chen-infra/80-dip-in-walkin-payment-of-property-tax/article9040906.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/7b0850dcbc6670088b6dcf35c77921481993a7ba2a9b14deb2c31ecc4e6c0563.json |
[
"Omar Rashid"
] | 2016-08-27T20:51:33 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Jignesh Mevani, Dalit activist and the face of Una protests, said here on Saturday that he would lead a march to Jaipur, where protesters would burn “Manu” in effigy outside the Rajasthan High Court | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fother-states%2Fdalit-protests-to-take-up-cause-of-farmers%2Farticle9041186.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Dalit protests to take up cause of farmers | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Jignesh Mevani, Dalit activist and the face of Una protests, said here on Saturday that he would lead a march to Jaipur, where protesters would burn “Manu” in effigy outside the Rajasthan High Court on December 6, the death anniversary of B.R. Ambedkar.
The court compound houses a statue of “Manu”.
Intensifying his outreach in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, where he delivered an address before members of the Dalit intelligentsia and civil society, Mr. Mevani said he would lead a padyatra from Bundelkhand to Lucknow soon, to protect the interests of farmers and the Constitution.
“If there is anybody most affected by the Gujarat model, it is the farmer, the labourer, the Dalit and the Muslim ...We demand that they give us our lands. Gai ki dhum aap rakho, hamen hamari zameen do (Keep the cow’s tail, give us our land),” Mr. Mevani said in a speech targeting the BJP government.
At Ambedkar Mahasabha, he appealed to Dalits, farmers, labourers, adivasis and Muslims.
He urged those involved in the movement to “join all streams” who work for the poor, labourers, farmers, Muslims and tribals. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/dalit-protests-to-take-up-cause-of-farmers/article9041186.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/513c665b119126b09fd030381e407e8b1d85dbfb105ef56cc914fef3fc808a5d.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-29T22:57:07 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Dr. Agarwal’s Eye Hospital opened its branch here on Sunday. Shriya Saran, film actor, inaugurated the hospital on Shastri Road. Amar Agarwal, Chairman and Managing Director, Dr. Agarwal’s group of ey | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FTiruchirapalli%2Feye-hospital-opens-branch%2Farticle9044956.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02990/28AUG_TYJAI03_n_TY_2990664c.jpg | en | null | Eye hospital opens branch | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Dr. Agarwal’s Eye Hospital opened its branch here on Sunday. Shriya Saran, film actor, inaugurated the hospital on Shastri Road. Amar Agarwal, Chairman and Managing Director, Dr. Agarwal’s group of eye hospitals, said the new hospital said the group was looking at expanding the services from the current 50 hospitals to 150 in the next three years.
Earlier, Ms. Shriya flagged off a rally to create awareness of eye donation. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Tiruchirapalli/eye-hospital-opens-branch/article9044956.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/e429d4583cec1d3c7789710565ea34b8620960e587f3c9838d4a99096a652094.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-26T20:54:43 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | Eleven years after Sohrabuddin Shaikh’s fake encounter took place, a special CBI court here on Thursday discharged the 12th accused in the case.
The court said sanction was not taken to prosecute | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fother-states%2Fsohrabuddin-case-12th-accused-discharged%2Farticle9032623.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Sohrabuddin case: 12th accused discharged | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The court said sanction was not obtained to prosecute Rajkumar Pandiayan, the then SP of ATS
Eleven years after Sohrabuddin Shaikh’s fake encounter took place, a special CBI court here on Thursday discharged the 12th accused in the case.
The court said sanction was not taken to prosecute Rajkumar Pandiayan, the then Superintendent of Police of Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) team in Gujarat, headed by D. G. Vanzara, the then Deputy Inspector of Police, ATS. On August 25, the court had discharged the 11th accused Narendra Amin as there was lack of evidence to prosecute him. He was then the Deputy Superintendent of police, city crime branch, Ahmedabad.
When the CBI took over the case, its charge sheet stated that in 2005 Amin was in touch with Mr. Vanzara, Mt. Pandiayan and the then Home Minister of Gujarat, Amit Shah, who was also discharged in the case.
Sohrabuddin belonged to the Jharnia village in Madhya Pradesh and had a criminal track record.
On November 23, 2005, he was travelling with his wife Kauser Bi from Hyderabad to Sangli in Maharashtra. En route, the ATS of the Gujarat police stopped the bus and took them away.
Three days later, a team led by Mr. Vanzara allegedly killed Sohrabuddin, claiming that he was a terrorist trying to attack the then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi. Subsequently, a State CID report found Kausar Bi’s burnt body. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/sohrabuddin-case-12th-accused-discharged/article9032623.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/d13e89463dd386822bd912bb977a7c25b180dce4cc6eada10303ba2ea3c49842.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-28T20:51:56 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | The sixth edition of the Airtel Hyderabad Marathon saw over 16,000 runners participate in three events held here on Sunday. Nearly 1,000 runners participated in 42 km full marathon flagged off by Add | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Ftelangana%2Fover-16000-runners-take-part-in-hyderabad-marathon%2Farticle9043167.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02990/HY28-MARATHON__2990033c.jpg | en | null | Over 16,000 runners take part in Hyderabad Marathon | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Participants at the Airtel Hyderabad Marathon held in the city on Sunday.
The sixth edition of the Airtel Hyderabad Marathon saw over 16,000 runners participate in three events held here on Sunday.
The sixth edition of the Airtel Hyderabad Marathon saw over 16,000 runners participate in three events held here on Sunday.
Nearly 1,000 runners participated in 42 km full marathon flagged off by Additional Commissioner for Traffic Hyderabad Police. Mesfin B. won the men’s event after completing in 2.32 hours. Jyoti Gawate was the first woman to complete it in 2.59 hours.
Pankaj Kumar, who completed the half marathon in 1.10 hours and Amandeep who finished the half marathon in 1.31 hours, were awarded the first place in men and women’s category.
Kuleep and Navya were the first man and woman to complete the 10 K run.
The events kicked off at People’s Plaza on Necklace Road. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/telangana/over-16000-runners-take-part-in-hyderabad-marathon/article9043167.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/436f2eeef45331ebddaee5459d9f458d893e63d7e9435e86ee268c5531ec6a6f.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T00:52:38 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | At least 25 people were injured in fresh clashes between protesters and security forces in Kashmir on Saturday even as the death toll in the ongoing unrest in the Valley reached 68 amid curfew in man | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2F25-injured-in-fresh-clashes-in-kashmir-death-toll-rises-to-68%2Farticle9040670.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02988/CURFEW_2988801c.jpg | en | null | 25 injured in fresh clashes in Kashmir, death toll rises to 68 | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Normal life remained paralysed for the 50th consecutive day due to curfew, restrictions and separatist sponsored strike.
At least 25 people were injured in fresh clashes between protesters and security forces in Kashmir on Saturday even as the death toll in the ongoing unrest in the Valley reached 68 amid curfew in many parts of the region.
Police recovered the body of a youth from River Jhelum at Sangam in Anantnag district on Saturday morning, a police official said.
He said locals alleged that Shahnawaz Khatana had drowned in the river on Friday when security forces chased a group of stone-pelters in the area.
With this death, the toll in the ongoing unrest in Kashmir has gone up to 68.
A police spokesman said barring five incidents of stone pelting in Anantnag, Shopian and Bandipora districts, the overall situation in the Valley remained peaceful and under control.
“The stone pelting incidents were reported from Barbugh, Hillow, Kadgam in Shopian, Sangam in Anantnag and Watpora—Potshah in Bandipora,” the spokesman said.
He said some miscreants in order to disturb the situation assembled on roads and allegedly pelted stones on police and security force deployments.
While the spokesman did not mention the number of those injured in the clashes, police sources said at least 25 people sustained injuries during incidents at these places.
Authorities had to re-impose curfew in Anantnag town and adjoining areas in view of violent protests in Sangam area, the official said.
Curfew from the south Kashmir town was briefly lifted on Saturday morning after remaining in force for 49 days.
Curfew remained in force in entire Srinagar district and two south Kashmir towns of Pulwama and Pampore to maintain law and order in view of the separatist plans to march towards the headquarters of Army at Badamibagh here.
He also said restrictions on assembly of people were in force in rest of the Valley to maintain law and order.
Hardline Hurriyat Conference chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani was taken into preventive custody as he tried to defy house arrest in order to march to the Army headquarters for handing a letter to the General Officer Commanding asking the forces to “vacate Jammu and Kashmir“.
Violent protests have been going on for the past 50 days in the Valley following killing of Hizbul Mujahideen ’commander’ Burhan Wani in an encounter with security forces on July 8.
Normal life remained paralysed for the 50th consecutive day due to curfew, restrictions and separatist sponsored strike.
Shops, private offices, educational institutions and petrol pumps remained closed while public transport continued to be off roads.
The attendance in government offices and banks was also affected, the official said.
Mobile Internet also continued to remain suspended in the entire Valley, where the outgoing facility on prepaid mobiles remained barred.
The separatist camp, which is spearheading the agitation in the Valley over the civilian killings during the protests against Wani’s killing, has extended the strike call in the Valley till September 1. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/25-injured-in-fresh-clashes-in-kashmir-death-toll-rises-to-68/article9040670.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/763364bc0e1df089ae669b8efb7c957fcf4e837eb85184f6d157656e9f917350.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T12:53:12 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | A Railway Protection Force (RPF) jawan was seriously injured after being pushed out of a moving train by some miscreants on Wednesday near Kesinga railway station in Odisha’s Kalahandi district.
Th | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Frpf-jawan-pushed-out-of-moving-train-in-odisha%2Farticle9055184.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | RPF jawan pushed out of moving train in Odisha | null | null | www.thehindu.com | A Railway Protection Force (RPF) jawan was seriously injured after being pushed out of a moving train by some miscreants on Wednesday near Kesinga railway station in Odisha’s Kalahandi district.
The victim, identified as constable Bhubaneswar Thakur of Koksara in Kalahandi, was on duty in Dhanbad-Allepy Express train from Titlagarh to Muniguda when the incident took place in the early hours, railway officials said.
Mr. Thakur was first taken to Kesinga health centre and later shifted to Bhawanipatana for treatment. His condition is stated to be critical, the official said.
While probe is on to ascertain the reason behind the incident, preliminary inquiry indicates the constable was inquiring about a missing mobile phone of a passenger when some miscreants pushed him, the official said. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/rpf-jawan-pushed-out-of-moving-train-in-odisha/article9055184.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/1fa9b1f3e2d107cf6198c6269800ab2347d2c243fb037f5bb903027115473597.json |
[
"Pon Vasanth Arunachalam"
] | 2016-08-28T22:51:09 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Details obtained through the Right to Information Act have revealed apparent irregularities in the appointments of nearly 20 guest lecturers, with salary on an hourly basis, at the constituent colleg | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FMadurai%2Firregularities-in-mku-appointment-revealed%2Farticle9043123.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Irregularities in MKU appointment revealed | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Details obtained through the Right to Information Act have revealed apparent irregularities in the appointments of nearly 20 guest lecturers, with salary on an hourly basis, at the constituent colleges of Madurai Kamaraj University in the beginning of academic year 2015-16.
Information provided for requests filed by A.R. Nagarajan, secretary of NET/SLET Association, showed that many appointees did not meet the qualification criteria and the appointments were made without forming selection committees or conducting interviews as procedures demanded. As per the documents, most of the appointments were made without prior approval from the Convenor’s Committee, which was in charge of the administration as there was no Vice-Chancellor. The approvals were instead obtained only for sanctioning of salaries after the appointees started working in the colleges on an ‘ad-hoc basis.’
Hinting at appointment of unqualified persons, the documents showed that a candidate with postgraduation in Commerce was appointed for teaching History at the constituent college in Kottur near Theni. Mr. Nagarajan alleged that many candidates had not cleared National Eligibility Test (NET) or State-level Eligibility Test (SLET) and they were also not doctorate holders. “This is against University Grants Commission regulations. Many of the appointed candidates also had inadequate experience,” he alleged.
For instance, two appointees for teaching Economics at the college in Andipatti and four appointees for teaching different subjects at the college in Sattur had no experience.
On the contrary, S. Madhusudhanan, a candidate from Madurai who has cleared SLET in Economics and has seven year of experience, said his application was never considered. “Though they did not advertise for these posts, I sent applications several times after knowing about the vacancies. My application was not even acknowledged,” he said. For Mr. Nagarajan’s petition to Chief Minister’s Special Cell demanding investigation into the appointments, the university authorities had responded saying these were made to tackle the urgent need for teachers.
A letter sent by the Directorate of Constituent Colleges at the MKU to the Legal Cell handling petitions at the MKU said the appointments were ‘purely temporary’ and proper appointmentswould be made after the appointment of Vice-Chancellor.
When contacted, P. Vijayan, Registrar (in-charge), MKU, claimed that he was not aware of these issues as he took charge only recently. “I will enquire and see if there is truth in the allegations,” he said.
Mr. Nagarajan alleged that the information provided was incomplete and in violation of the order of the commission. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Madurai/irregularities-in-mku-appointment-revealed/article9043123.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/715dfc40a7daf9e4a447f73b2bbd28b39237941ebd7c059eba878124b015bdba.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T10:52:06 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | LG Electronics is known to be a pioneer in innovative ideas with its smartphones to make them stand out in among other mobiles. Its flagship Rs. 52,990 G5—touted to be the world’s first modular smart | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fsci-tech%2Ftechnology%2Flg-x-screen-smartphone-with-more-than-just-two-screens%2Farticle9045347.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02990/X-screen-medium06_2990863c.jpg | en | null | LG X Screen: Smartphone with more than 'just' two screens | null | null | www.thehindu.com | It takes on Moto G4 and LeEco Le 2 devices with all of them in the mid-range segment
LG Electronics is known to be a pioneer in innovative ideas with its smartphones to make them stand out in among other mobiles. Its flagship Rs. 52,990 G5—touted to be the world’s first modular smartphone featuring a “slide-out” battery design and dual rear cameras—is an apt example.
This time, LG has brought a difference in the front display and introduced a new secondary screen on top of the main screen in its mid-range offering— X Screen—to ease user interaction.
The Rs 12,990 X Screen is also equipped with a panic button in line with the Indian government’s initiative.
The smartphone takes on Moto G4 and LeEco Le 2 devices with all of them in the mid-range segment.
Here is what works for the device.
The plain-looking device has all the features of a mid-range smartphone. The back is covered by crystal-clear glass-fibre material.
The smartphone features 4.93-inch display along with an 1.76-inch HD In-cell touch display which LG calls “second screen”.
Armed with a 1.76-inch HD In-cell touch display which LG calls “second screen”.
The second screen’s “Always-on Display” feature allows users to check basic information such as time, date and notifications without having to wake up the phone. It shows the last four apps used on top right corner of the primary screen, along with a facility to receive calls without interrupting the main display.
A tap between the apps and it opens them instantly, making multi-tasking easy.
An option allows to include your signature in the second screen wherein you can express yourself in the signature bar with name or motivational phrases or your word of the day.
With Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 quad-core processor clocked at 1.2GHz, 2GB of RAM and running on Android 6.0 Marshmallow operating system, LG X Screen matches all expectations when it comes to performance.
The internal memory is 16GB of which 10.7GB is available to user. Users storing more videos, pictures or watch a lot of movies on the go, 10.7GB might find this less.
Memory can be expanded by up to 128GB via micro-SD card which will gives ample amount of storage for multimedia content, games and more.
LeEco Le 2 device, on the other hand, gives 32GB of on-board storage.
The 13MP rear camera captures superb shots with rich colours in bright-light conditions. We achieved best-quality images outdoors or indoors with ample light.
LG has packed some add-on features into camera app. With Quick Share, you can directly share your captured videos and photos on to your social media account.
As soon as you capture a picture a small icon will appear that will allow you to share your captured moment.
The 8MP front camera captures better selfies compared to Moto G4. With Auto Shot, you can take selfies with front camera using face detection.
When the face is detected, a white indicator appears and, as it turns blue,hold still and the shot is taken automatically.
This cuts the risk of the device from falling to the ground as otherwise it is hold and click picture simultaneously either by pressing volume button or tapping onto the screen.
The 2,300mAh battery gave enough juice to fuel apps for one day on a moderate-to-heavy usage.
What does not work?
LG going with 720p display in its X Screen does disappoint. Full-HD screen would have been appreciated as smartphones that are priced lower than X Screen carry one.
The camera protrudes slightly out from the back panel so it may get scratches when kept on rough surface.
Expect drop in quality in low-light photography.
LG X Screen is a device that will not disappoint. With second screen, good performance and a satisfying camera, it holds a respectable place in the mid-price range devices. | http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/technology/lg-x-screen-smartphone-with-more-than-just-two-screens/article9045347.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/56b5636896e10723752e4af0bf9299f20fa40012d7d35fd8b5cf4e70a7a80573.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T22:53:30 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | Apple on Monday sent out invitations to a “special event” on September 7 in San Francisco, where it is expected to unveil a new iPhone model.
The company provided no information apart from the date | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fbusiness%2FIndustry%2Fapple-expected-to-unveil-iphone-model-on-september-7%2Farticle9047205.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02782/Apple_2782320c.jpg | en | null | Apple expected to unveil iPhone model on September 7 | null | null | www.thehindu.com | 'iPhone 7' is expected to do away with jacks for plugging in wired headphones
Apple on Monday sent out invitations to a “special event” on September 7 in San Francisco, where it is expected to unveil a new iPhone model.
The company provided no information apart from the date, time and place to the invitation-only gathering at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium here.
Rumors include talk of an 'iPhone 7' that will boast improvements to software, cameras and processing speed, along with doing away with jacks for plugging in wired headphones.
California-based Apple could also use the event to showcase updates to other products, such as its smartwatch and laptop computers. | http://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/apple-expected-to-unveil-iphone-model-on-september-7/article9047205.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/cdd76d421bdebe0562c89fc72ec2e3e05cf664a5ef37c1c6e2534d73e64a807a.json |
[
"Aditi R."
] | 2016-08-30T02:54:43 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | What started as a move to provide better living conditions for pavement dwellers 15 years ago has now turned out to be a burden for the beneficiaries. With a loan amount of over Rs. 70 lakh, resident | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fchennai%2Fchen-infra%2Fat-ritchie-street-eviction-stares-residents-in-the-face%2Farticle9046851.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02991/30TH_RTCHIE_2991498c.jpg | en | null | At Ritchie Street, eviction stares residents in the face | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Residents fear they will be evicted if they do not repay their loan amount soon - Photo: R. Ravindran
What started as a move to provide better living conditions for pavement dwellers 15 years ago has now turned out to be a burden for the beneficiaries.
What started as a move to provide better living conditions for pavement dwellers 15 years ago has now turned out to be a burden for the beneficiaries. With a loan amount of over Rs. 70 lakh, residents of Ritchie Street, organised under the banner of the Ritchie Street Home for Homeless Cooperative Housing Society, now foresee eviction.
“If we can’t pay the sum, we will have to leave. That’s what we have been told,” said Arul Raj, a resident.
In the late 1980s, after the slum dwellers had been uprooted from Ritchie Street, Chintadripet, some years ago, the civic body and the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board approached the Community Development Information and Action Centre (CODIAC), a city-based NGO to build houses for the displaced people in the same area. In 2001, 96 families were given one-room flats with a kitchen alcove measuring 137 sq. ft. each on the 7,844 sq. ft. plot of land. Of the total amount needed, Rs. 62.5 lakhs was provided by EZE, a German missionary organisation, while CODIAC paid Rs. 7 lakh. The beneficiaries were to contribute Rs. 7.8 lakh i.e., Rs 8,000 per beneficiary and Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) offered a loan of Rs. 24 lakhs on a condition that the beneficiaries would repay via the NGO.
However, sometime later, the NGO conveyed its helplessness and transferred the fund recovery process to HUDCO.
The Corporation later filed a case against the families and the NGO which is currently pending in the Debt Recovery Tribunal.
“Whenever some of us, who could afford it, would offer to pay, the HUDCO officials would plainly refuse and demand joint payment or threaten us with consequences,” said D. Vannamayil, another resident.
The residents have now been asked to pay a sum of Rs. 44,31,000 (the amount includes the 6 per cent interest on the principal from the date of original application till the date of realisation) along with legal costs from the beneficiaries.
The total sum, according to an advocate representing the people, is over Rs. 70 lakh. A study conducted by Information and Resource Centre for the Deprived Urban Communities (IRCDUC) found that most of the families comprise daily wage labourers who earn between Rs. 3,000 and Rs. 6,000 a month on an average.
“Most of us are already in debt,” said 72-year-old Rani. “We also have to pay money lenders who charge us huge interest rates. We are already struggling to make a living,” she said.
“What is needed is State intervention to help achieve a one-time settlement. If the residents are evicted, they will once again be on the streets,” said Vanessa Peter from IRCDUC.
Officials from HUDCO refused to comment, saying that the case is sub-judice. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/chen-infra/at-ritchie-street-eviction-stares-residents-in-the-face/article9046851.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/a07296968495635bf344b695f47e8b9d3c1b123a402559b6f3c1d1f71eaabdb3.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-30T22:56:37 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has stopped its services to Tamil Nadu, which is observing a bandh over the Cauvery dispute, on Tuesday. Over 120 schedules of the KSRTC were | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkarnataka%2Fksrtc-services-to-tnadu-stopped%2Farticle9050270.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | KSRTC stops services to TN | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Officials hope services could resume late in the evening.
The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has stopped its services to Tamil Nadu, which is observing a bandh over the Cauvery dispute, on Tuesday.
Over 120 schedules of the KSRTC were cancelled in the morning after their counterparts in Tamil Nadu advised them on the fears of these buses being targeted.
In all, KSRTC operates 410 schedules to Tamil Nadu daily, while its Tamil Nadu counterpart operates 596 schedules. All these services came to a halt on Tuesday morning.
KSRTC officials hoped the services could resume late in the evening. So far, the Corporation has not reported any damage to its buses – some of which are parked in bus stations in Tamil Nadu.
Our Kolar correspondent reports:
Services cancelled
Services of both private and KSRTC buses to Tamil Nadu from Kolar district were affected on Tuesday in view of the bandh. Buses from Tamil Nadu did not enter Kolar either.
"On an average, 32 buses operate from different depots, including Kolar, Malur, Mulbagal and Kolar Gold Fields [KGF]KGF in the district. However, trips of all the buses were cancelled as a precautionary measure,” Yashwanth Kumar, KSRTC's Divisional Controller, told The Hindu.
Newspaper supply hit
Supply of several Tamil newspapers from Tamil Nadu was affected due to the bandh, KGF, with a sizeable Tamil speaking population, used to get a large number of dailies from the neighbouring State. But on Tuesday, readers had to go without their newspaper as no buses, which used to transport the paper bundles from Tamil Nadu, entered the area. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/ksrtc-services-to-tnadu-stopped/article9050270.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/ecf53ffb9cd6029973e6c6fd6fd65d92f1a0d2cb7e1d54113ae3040d0253e775.json |
[
"Zubeda Hamid"
] | 2016-08-28T04:51:08 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | Even as M. Dhanalakshmi feeds her year-and-a-half-old daughter, Prema, ahead of her discharge from hospital on Saturday afternoon, the family of 14-year-old M. Aravindan is getting ready to move him | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fchennai%2Ffever-in-tiruvallur-the-why-and-the-how%2Farticle9040905.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02989/Tiruvallur_hospita_2989021c.jpg | en | null | Fever in Tiruvallur: The why and the how | null | null | www.thehindu.com | A patient at the Ponneri government hospital where the medical ward is full; beds placed even next to the dust-covered stairway. Photos: B. Jothi Ramalingam
As authorities grapple with the rush in hospitals, residents, mainly parents of little children, are wary of any symptoms.
Even as M. Dhanalakshmi feeds her year-and-a-half-old daughter, Prema, ahead of her discharge from hospital on Saturday afternoon, the family of 14-year-old M. Aravindan is getting ready to move him from the Tiruvallur government hospital to Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital in Chennai.
Aravindan, a Class VIII student, from a village in Uthukottai block, has dengue, and since his stool turned bloody, is being referred to the larger hospital, a doctor said. Prema, from Kaverirajapuram, too had dengue, but has recovered. Her mother is looking forward to taking her home: “She is our only child, born after 10 years of marriage,” she said.
The medical wards at the Tiruvallur government hospital are full: on every bed, patients talk about a fever they have had for a few days and the treatment. The hospital is one of the hubs for fever cases that have racked the district for over 10 days now, and as of Saturday afternoon had a total of 79 patients with fever, of whom 10 had been admitted on that day. Of these, two tested positive for dengue and doctors were planning to discharge 14. Over 100 patients with fever had been seen as outpatients on Saturday, a senior hospital official said. Apart from dengue, typhoid and leptospirosis, there has been a suspected case of scrub typhus, he said.
Patients with any kind of fever are being admitted, treated and discharged after observation, a doctor said.
A few days ago, a patient said, each bed in the ward had two patients. Another patient holds a dengue positive report from a private lab, but said the hospital has not confirmed his diagnosis.
So what is going on in Tiruvallur? In the last week, five children from the district have died after contracting ‘fever’, all at the Institute of Child Health, Egmore. In all, 128 patients with fever have been admitted to hospitals in the district and in Chennai as of Saturday.
While four of these deaths were of children from two adjoining villages — Kaverirajapuram and Adi Andhrawada — the fifth was of a child from Keerapakkam, near Ponneri. Officials say the deaths are not connected: at the two villages, the infections were mixed and included dengue and leptospirosis, while the fifth death was due to Hepatitis A, they say.
But for the anxious parents at the outpatient department of another government hospital, with their children in tow, any fever now is a huge cause for concern.
Tiruvallur district, with a population of around 37 lakh, has according to the 2011 census the third-highest population density in Tamil Nadu (1,098), and sanitation and hygiene are challenges.
“Certain areas that are highly populated are prone to outbreaks. Add to this the rain pattern, the cleanliness index and the health-seeking behaviour of people, and such outbreaks may take place,” said Director of Public Health, K. Kolandaisamy.
At Kaverirajapuram and Adi Andhrawada, there were open, filthy drains earlier in the week. The drains were being cleaned and new pipelines had been laid, but it is likely, a public health official had said, that their water had been contaminated.
Tiruvallur shares a boundary with Andhra Pradesh, a fact that could make it more vulnerable as any outbreak there could flow in, said Dr. Kolandaisamy. Also, certain areas of the district such as Minjur, Puzhal, Poonamallee and Villivakkam have a lot of development work going on, with workers migrating back and forth, working on construction sites, while at the same time, families continue to rear cattle and work in agriculture too, he said. These areas were being given a special focus to prevent any potential health problem. For the suspected case of scrub typhus, cold fogging has been carried out, he said.
With dengue in particular, no district is endemic to it — its pattern changes constantly, said Dr. Kolandaisamy. “Dengue is not linked to the monsoon. With rain, mosquitoes can breed in containers thrown outside, but even when there is no rain, open containers of water can become breeding sources. In about eight to 10 days, from eggs you have adult mosquitoes,” he said.
The district administration has planned a mass cleaning drive in the 14 blocks, five municipalities and 10 town panchayats. This will involve fogging, source identification and larval clearance, garbage and bush cleaning, as well as distribution of Nilavembu Kudineer and fever surveillance, said Collector E. Sundaravalli. “We are also planning to set up a control room number and a WhatsApp number through which the public can intimate us of any lacunae,” she said.
Anganwadi workers have been trained to inform the district administration of any fever or diarrhoea cases and on Friday, 2,000 school headmasters were summoned for an awareness programme, she said.
The health department and the district administration have been focussing on quacks and drugs sold without prescriptions. In the last 10 days, Ms. Sundaravalli said, six quacks have been arrested and a search is on for more. Some patients had seen private practitioners first, while others had gone to government health centres, and others had been referred to government hospitals from the private sector.
The Health Department is working with the Indian Medical Association as well as with other private practitioners to ensure protocols for fever management, investigations and rational guidelines for dengue are followed, said Dr. Kolandaisamy. “The Directorate of Drug Control is taking action against pharmacies that sell without prescriptions,” he said.
At the Ponneri Government Hospital too, the medical ward is full. A total of 17 patients have been admitted with fever and are undergoing treatment, but none have dengue, a hospital official said. Patients’ families complained that it was only just before the Health Minister’s visit on Friday that they had been given fresh bedsheets and mosquito nets. “Just a little while after they left, it was all taken away. Will the mosquitoes not come now that the officials have gone?” one mother asked.
Another mother said the official visit had been a blessing: her child received prompt treatment. Further up, the relative of a sick boy dabbed his head with a cool cloth. A few people had been sick in her village, she said. “He has had fever for 3 days. We admitted him today.”
Even as the district gears up for its cleaning drive, the grounds of the Ponneri hospital are a mess. Empty cups, coconut shells and garbage are littered across, with goats feeding on the trash. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/fever-in-tiruvallur-the-why-and-the-how/article9040905.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/650e1da4d2000f7e4769fae87831722f48c0bc8134bea417001fa34945c34846.json |
[
"Santosh Patnaik"
] | 2016-08-29T04:52:50 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Visakhapatnam Port Trust, which is in the process of becoming a landlord port, is keen on liking port connectivity road from Old NH-5 to bypass road from Anakapalle to Anandapuram.Detailed project rep | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FVisakhapatnam%2Fvpt-keen-on-linking-port-connectivity-road-to-bypass-road%2Farticle9045027.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | VPT keen on linking port connectivity road to bypass road | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Visakhapatnam Port Trust, which is in the process of becoming a landlord port, is keen on liking port connectivity road from Old NH-5 to bypass road from Anakapalle to Anandapuram.
Detailed project report for linking has been completed. The project will cost around Rs.440 crore. During the recent visit of Union Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari, the port officials requested him to take it up as a combined project along with six-lane bypass being undertaken by National Highway Authority of India.
VPT had earlier association with NHAI in developing the 12.4-km long Port Connectivity Road connecting NH-16 during 2006 at a cost of Rs.99 crore.
The port has already awarded the contract for widening a stretch of 4.15 km, part of Port Connectivity Road, from two to four-lane in January. VPT received Rs.20 crore from the Central government under Sagarmala.
VPT Deputy Chairman P.L. Haranadh told The Hindu that they were contemplating taking up of work on Elevated Freight Corridor consisting of flyover and widening of road to ensure faster evacuation of cargo. This will connect Visakha Container Terminal Private Ltd to Convent Junction.
The project envisaged at a cost of Rs.120 crore will include grade separator at Convent Junction. It will be executed by a special purpose vehicle being formed by VPT and NHAI. Mr. Nadkari had already agreed in-principle to sanction funds for the project under Sagarmala.
The project will be taken up in two phases – for laying flyover from Convent Junction to the port area and from there widen the road from Kotaveedhi to the VCTPL entry point.
The cargo handling at the port is on the rise with dredging at the outer harbour getting completed with an investment of Rs.140 crore to handle Cape vessels. Now with completion of inner channel, turning circle and northern arm at a cost of Rs.260 crore, the inner harbour is able to receive fully-laden Panamax vessels without lightening. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Visakhapatnam/vpt-keen-on-linking-port-connectivity-road-to-bypass-road/article9045027.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/1ed145115e4de77e93550d5fe47d3845426a9d34fcdb277a045b2cc0f4ded068.json |
[
"Team Metroplus"
] | 2016-08-28T14:50:45 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | When we manage to talk to Daniel Surya, it is during the last three minutes of a 10-minute break he gets, after standing and ironing continuously for two hours. He has 10 minutes to fit in a bathroom | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Ffeatures%2Fmetroplus%2Fsociety%2Fdaniel-surya-attempts-to-break-the-guinness-world-record-for-nonstop-ironing%2Farticle9040399.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02988/MP29_IRONING_MARAT_2988695c.jpg | en | null | Daniel Surya attempts to break the Guinness World Record for non-stop ironing | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Daniel Surya looks to grab eyeballs with his attempt to break the Guinness World Record for non-stop ironing
When we manage to talk to Daniel Surya, it is during the last three minutes of a 10-minute break he gets, after standing and ironing continuously for two hours. He has 10 minutes to fit in a bathroom break, a quick physio session, drink or eat something and — most important of all — sit!
Taking away a minute from his valuable time between sips of juice, the soft-spoken Daniel says he is from Tondiarpet and has been ironing clothes for the last 15 years. During this time, he has been perfecting his technique, as he has always wanted to break the world record for non-stop ironing.
His decade-and-a-half of practice seems to have done him good, as he has already crossed one milestone: he ironed over 2,000 items in 26 hours. This was the same number of clothes the present world record holder, Gareth Sanders of Bristol, UK, ironed in his 100 hours. This has left the organisers — the Lions Club International, Chennai — in a scurry to find new clothes for the record holder to iron. And no, you cannot drop by and ask him to iron your weekly laundry. The clothes he’s ironing have been donated by people, and are headed to different orphanages around the city.
But why ironing? Quite simply, for Daniel, it is how he earns his livelihood. And it’s what he does best. He always felt like he could break the world record; so he read up and researched about the existing records. With a plan in place, he just needed some sponsors. That’s where the Lions Club came in. He tied up with them to do the event, and gave it a cause as well: awareness for eye donation. “I don’t need any money, I can take care of myself. So I thought I should do it for a good cause like eye donation,” said Daniel.
As he irons patiently, on a nearby stage, college students dance to popular numbers. According to the organisers, this is to make sure Daniel has some form of entertainment. The music also attracts some attention to the event taking place in the lower basement atrium at phase three of Spencer Plaza.
The organisers and Daniel are hoping that the people who witness the record-breaking event, or hear about it, will be motivated to go online and register to donate their eyes — a simple act that could help at least 4.5 million visually-impaired people across the world, who can benefit from corneal transplantation. Of these, 1.5 million people are in India. Some statistics say that a meagre 25,000 corneas are donated each year, against the annual requirement of 2,50,000. A number of misconceptions still abound, and apart from creating awareness, they also aim to educate people on what eye donation really means.
And then, there is also the fact that this would be the first time an Indian has broken an existing world record. According to S. Thiyagaraja, one of the organisers of the event, Indians have set many world records, but no Indian has, as yet, broken a world record previously set by another country. So if he makes it to the 101st hour, it will be a first for the country.
Daniel started ironing at 10 a.m. on August 25, and hopes to finish by Monday, August 29, using the new PerfectCare Iron from Philips — which uses an optimal temperature technology that allows him to move from one fabric to another, like from cotton to silk, without having to adjust temperature settings. This steam generator iron too has a record to its name. “It is registered in the Limca Book of Records in 2014 for ironing a grand ball gown made of 100 metres of cloth including 37 different fabrics, without changing any temperature settings,” said Tushar Ovhal from Philips.
According to the rules of attempting a world record, Daniel is allowed a five-minute break every one hour and the entire event is recorded on video, as well as live-streamed on the Lions Club website. This will be sent to the Guinness World Records Management Team, who will evaluate the footage and then award the certificate. | http://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/society/daniel-surya-attempts-to-break-the-guinness-world-record-for-nonstop-ironing/article9040399.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/0b0ea9d2e6f06878a06c5ecde28c4d6999de9cca3e7eef8cd62ec63ed25e6d64.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-31T10:55:41 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | After a period of lull, the Kozhikode Corporation Kudumbasree is all set to regain a strong footing with an array of new projects for the Onam season.Among the projects is the launch of a mobile resta | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fkozhikode%2Fkudumbasrees-onam-treat-for-kozhikode-a-mobile-restaurant%2Farticle9052931.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Kudumbasree’s Onam treat for Kozhikode - a mobile restaurant | null | null | www.thehindu.com | After a period of lull, the Kozhikode Corporation Kudumbasree is all set to regain a strong footing with an array of new projects for the Onam season.
Among the projects is the launch of a mobile restaurant in Kozhikode on Thursday, the first in the history of the Kudumbasree Mission in the State.
The mobile restaurant is the brainchild of the same group who came up with the concept of ‘Ruchipura’ three years ago. With the astounding success of the restaurant near the mofussil bus stand, the group of enterprising women have come up with the idea of a mobile restaurant, to which the Corporation Kudumbasree has extended its whole-hearted support.
Different
“The restaurant is in no way similar to ‘Food on Wheels’, a project that failed to take off,” said M.V. Ramsi Ismail, who, after a brief gap, is back as the project coordinator in-charge. “This is a full-fledged restaurant with an inbuilt live kitchen and waste management facility, unlike ‘Food on Wheels’ that was about selling food items manufactured elsewhere,” he said.
The restaurant will focus on providing healthy food, which will be steam-cooked as much as possible, and will avoid fried items.
To be launched at 4 p.m. on September 1 near the Central Library premises at Mananchira, the restaurant will begin with a ‘Payasamela’ for the first 10 days. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/kozhikode/kudumbasrees-onam-treat-for-kozhikode-a-mobile-restaurant/article9052931.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/e24b0c32d3dbb4ef7a61076560091888609d383b1c407d54cf6244ee1378f58c.json |
[
"Rajeev Viswanathan"
] | 2016-08-27T18:50:38 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | Former New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris, who is one of the commentators at the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL), spoke on various subjects, ranging from young talent in the TNPL to Kane Williamso | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2Fa-great-opportunity-for-district-players-says-scott-styris%2Farticle9040812.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02988/TH28STYRIS_2988911c.jpg | en | null | A great opportunity for district players, says Scott Styris | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Former New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris, who is one of the commentators at the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL), spoke on various subjects, ranging from young talent in the TNPL to Kane Williamson’s leadership and New Zealand’s chances in the upcoming tour of India.
Excerpts:
On TNPL-type leagues: I see leagues like these mushrooming all over the country. It is a great opportunity for the district players from all over the country to be a part of these leagues in the future.
On youngsters in the TNPL: It is a great opportunity for the young cricketers here to shine and get noticed. There are talent scouts everywhere who look for players who can be a part of the IPL since each team needs seven Indian players. Some of these players stand a chance if they perform well.
On Williamson’s leadership qualities: Kane Williamson has taken over from Brendon McCullum, who was one of the finest leaders of our country. Kane leads by example. He is one of the few players to have a century against all Test-playing nations. He is mature and a very humble cricketer and I’m sure he will get the best out of the players and take New Zealand cricket forward.
On McCullum’s legacy: Brendon McCullum has left New Zealand in the pink of health. His biggest strength was that he allowed the players to have fun. They played freely under his aggressive captaincy. But he also made sure that they trained and practised hard. It was a nice mix of both.
On New Zealand’s chances in India: New Zealand has a good balance in their side. Spinners Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi back the seamers Trent Boult and Tim Southee in the bowling unit to make it strong. The batsmen need to adapt against the Indian spinners. I never thought they would defeat India in the World T20 on a rank turner. It will be an interesting series although I believe India will be a tough team to beat at home. | http://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/a-great-opportunity-for-district-players-says-scott-styris/article9040812.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/ee3d5b1f8a93bb321a8ffaa2dd31209b6fbe41b910292acaa61765b03024d2ea.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-29T04:51:11 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | A comprehensive plan to clean up and rejuvenate Fort Kochi is getting ready.Kerala Tourism, which has taken the lead to elevate the stature of the tourist spot, will join hands with the Kochi Corporat | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FKochi%2Ffort-kochi-to-sport-a-clean-look%2Farticle9044627.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02990/28kihun03--fort_28_2990584c.jpg | en | null | Fort Kochi to sport a clean look | null | null | www.thehindu.com | AWAITING A MAKEOVER:Garbage, mostly plastic bottles and bags, remains piled up at the Fort Kochi beach.— Photo: H. Vibhu
A comprehensive plan to clean up and rejuvenate Fort Kochi is getting ready.
Kerala Tourism, which has taken the lead to elevate the stature of the tourist spot, will join hands with the Kochi Corporation and stakeholders in the tourism sector to launch the project within a month.
The Department and tourism trade entities would provide support to the Corporation’s lead role in executing the roadmap, which called for the iconic heritage destination to be cleaned and made waste-free before the upcoming tourist season, said a release issued here.
The move to clean up Fort Kochi came after a meeting held here on Saturday in which Mayor Soumini Jain, Tourism Director U.V. Jose and representatives of various bodies participated.
Ms. Jain said several tonnes of discarded coconut shells and styrofoam waste were being collected from the coastal areas and beaches.
She said it was tough to transport the waste to the dumping yard and then segregate it. “We are mooting a permanent solution, where the waste will be collected and processed in the area itself without posing any environmental hazards,” the Mayor said.
Homestay operators and hoteliers in the area are conducting weekly cleaning drives. A concerted and systematic plan to rejuvenate the area is being planned. The Fort Kochi Heritage Conservation Society has engaged 21 workers in the area as part of the project. More workers and lorries for waste removal are expected in the coming days.
Mr. Jose said the Tourism Department would supplement the Corporation’s efforts with funds, besides providing manpower and equipment to resolve the issue. “The waste problem will be resolved before November, when the new tourist season officially kicks off,” he said. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Kochi/fort-kochi-to-sport-a-clean-look/article9044627.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/cfe5aa3432ac9ad1aab79efe8a966c61877cd36b66b57f8e71936971ad2ade6b.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-29T02:52:32 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Youth dies as gun goes off accidentalyA 20-year-old youth died after his country-made gun went off accidentally on Saturday.According to police, Ajit, a resident of Narikurava Colony in Seduvalai, had | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Ftamil-nadu%2Fyouth-dies-as-gun-goes-off-accidentally%2Farticle9044234.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Youth dies as gun goes off accidentally | null | null | www.thehindu.com | According to police, Ajit, a resident of Narikurava Colony in Seduvalai, had returned home from hunting. He tried to park the two-wheeler in front of his house, when the gun fell from his shoulder. The gun fired accidentally and the pellet pierced the left side of his throat. He was rushed to a private hospital in Vellore but doctors declared him brought dead. – Staff Reporter
A 20-year-old youth died after his country-made gun went off accidentally on Saturday.
Please Wait while comments are loading... | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/youth-dies-as-gun-goes-off-accidentally/article9044234.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/132ded3946b393faaba3fb7693367b1fe064420cdb8f29466c082443bc34f6cb.json |
[
"S. Prasad"
] | 2016-08-31T03:06:14 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | A group of youngsters in Ulundurpet on Friday organised a novel protest of seeking alms to raise money to ‘bribe’ a Revenue Official to release Rs.12,500 sanctioned by way of funeral expenses to a be | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fpuducherry%2Fa-begging-protest-against-bribe%2Farticle9036998.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02987/_TH27_NOVEL_PROTES_2987633c.jpg | en | null | A ‘begging’ protest against bribe | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Youngsters of Ulundurpet organise a novel protest
A group of youngsters in Ulundurpet on Friday organised a novel protest of seeking alms to raise money to ‘bribe’ a Revenue Official to release Rs.12,500 sanctioned by way of funeral expenses to a bereaved family.
The agitators claimed that the family members of Kozhanji, who died due to kidney failure a year ago, had approached the village administrative officer seeking the release of the sanctioned amount. However, the VAO had allegedly demanded Rs.3,000 as bribe.
After running from pillar to post, the victim’s 15-year-old son Ajith Kumar, along with a group of youngsters, decided to beg to collect money to pay the official. The agitators carried a banner to tell the people why they were collecting the bribe. Photos of the protest also went viral on WhatsApp.
Ulundurpet Tahsildar Rajendiran said that he had deputed a Revenue Inspector to Kunnathur village to inquire into the allegations. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/puducherry/a-begging-protest-against-bribe/article9036998.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/97d7346d79159286768c5d240ca7dfa20c72c0784389d8d5a2820a44a3bcacc0.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-31T08:52:06 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | Bengaluru-based Highway Delite has introduced an app to make the highway journey safer and comfortable.The startup incubated at the N.S. Raghavan Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning at Indian Institu | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkarnataka%2Fapp-by-highway-delite-to-make-drive-on-highway-safer%2Farticle9055012.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | App by Highway Delite to make drive on highway safer | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Bengaluru-based Highway Delite has introduced an app to make the highway journey safer and comfortable.
The startup incubated at the N.S. Raghavan Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning at Indian Institute of Management, Bengaluru, is a verified information based app to help travellers make informed decision on highways regarding pit stops for refreshment, restrooms, fuel and emergency situations.
Highway Delite founder and CEO, G. Rajesh, told presspersons here on Wednesday that the app platform has information on facilities, photos of verified restaurants, fuel pumps, lodges, restrooms. Claiming that it is the only verified information highway service in the country, Mr. Rajesh said the app for the first time has introduced accident zones on the map and provided the nearest emergency contact information.
The process of mapping of all the 770 accident black spots in India is based on the list provided by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. So far, the promoters have traversed 6,000 km, chiefly in Karnataka and mapped more than 3,000 verified service providers. The App is available on GooglePlay and has seen over 5,000 downloads so far, Mr. Rajesh said.
Highway Delite (only for Android) can be used to plan one’s road trip by “Search Along Route” by entering the source and destination or can be used real-time location basis through “Search Near Me” options which would show nearest options in the range of 15 km. The App also provides options to filter search to specific service provider.
Some of the important highways verified by Highway Delite are, Bengaluru-Mysuru-Mangaluru-Hassan-Bengaluru; Bengaluru-Malavalli-Mysuru-Gundlupete-Wayanad-Kozhikode-Kochi; Bengaluru-Chitradurga-Hubballi-Belagavi-Goa; Bengaluru-Hyderabad-Vijayawada; Bengaluru-Kolar-Tirupati-Madanapalli-Bengaluru; Hassan-Chikkamagaluru-Shivamogga-Tumakuru; Indore-Ujjain; Delhi-Agra; Delhi-Jaipur; Delhi-Shimla; Guwahati-Shillong-Cherapunji.
Verification and mapping is an ongoing process and the promoters would cover more north Indian states in the coming days, Mr. Rajesh said. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/app-by-highway-delite-to-make-drive-on-highway-safer/article9055012.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/f0cabe6730dc612b67ba455a39be31bc73905b6fad1b928cf789d2f19697174b.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-26T18:57:30 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | Police on Wednesday night arrested a youth and retrieved a stolen two-wheeler, cracking a crime within six hours of the complaint being registered.According to police, Udayakumar had parked his bike n | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2Fchennai%2Fpolice-recover-stolen-bike-within-six-hours%2Farticle9034187.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Police recover stolen bike within six hours | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Police on Wednesday night arrested a youth and retrieved a stolen two-wheeler, cracking a crime within six hours of the complaint being registered.
According to police, Udayakumar had parked his bike near a parcel service centre in Jawahar Nagar, Red Hills, at 3 p.m. and gone inside.
He found the bike missing when he returned and lodged a police complaint.
Police personnel conducting a vehicle check on Tiruvallur Road on Wednesday night signalled a two-wheeler rider to stop. However, when the rider tried to abandon the bike and flee, the personnel nabbed him.
During interrogation, the rider, identified as Purushothaman (19), admitted to have stolen the bike belonging to Udayakumar.
The accused was remanded to judicial custody. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/police-recover-stolen-bike-within-six-hours/article9034187.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/59d8c3a57d2a72c2492624cd61bb733f415d0a1b56a8a8d132a3ae3af0d31cd6.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T18:51:05 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Beyonce has topped the winners list at this year's MTV Video Music Awards scoring a string of top honours, including video of the year for her politically charged song, "Formation" and best | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fentertainment%2Fbeyonc-dominates-mtv-video-music-awards%2Farticle9046719.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02991/Beyonce_2991404c.jpg | en | null | Beyoncé dominates MTV video music awards | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The 34-year-old superstar led all nominees heading into the show with 11 nods for her groundbreaking Lemonade album and short film.
Beyonce has topped the winners list at this year's MTV Video Music Awards scoring a string of top honours, including video of the year for her politically charged song, "Formation" and best female video.
The 34-year-old superstar led all nominees heading into the show with 11 nods for her groundbreaking Lemonade album and short film.
And she quickly racked up the prizes, earning best choreography, best direction, best cinematography, and best editing for "Formation", which she performed as part of a show-stopping Lemonade medley. "Formation" earned Beyonce the coveted video of the year itle, which she dedicated to the residents of New Orleans,
Louisiana, who have been struggling with severe flooding in recent weeks. Her best female video win was for "Hold Up".
With her multiple victories, she broke the record for most VMAs with 21 wins, surpassing the previous title holder Madonna, who has a total of 20 Moonman trophies.
Rihanna was another big winner at the VMAs, which she opened with the first of four performances during the New York show, singing hits "Only Girl" (In The World), "We Found Love", and "Where Have You Been."
She later returned to the Madison Square Garden stage to belt out tracks like "Work", "Needed Me", "Stay," and "Diamonds" before she was presented with the prestigious Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award by her frequent collaborator and rumoured boyfriend Drake.
He delivered a heart-warming speech hailing the R&B beauty's achievements, declared he had been "in love" with her since he was 22, and honoured Rihanna as a "living, breathing legend in our industry".
They then shared a kiss on the cheek as Rihanna stepped up to accept the special Moonman award, which she celebrated as "such an amazing moment" in her career.
The Bajan star then went on to thank her longtime fans, saying: "My success, it started as my dream, but now my success is not my own; it's my family's, it's my fans, it's my country's, it's the Caribbean as a whole, it's women, it's black women.
"So many people feel like their little piece is such a major part of this puzzle and I have to thank you guys for supporting me, over and over..." | http://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/beyonc-dominates-mtv-video-music-awards/article9046719.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/88008c2c178a068170e9f746318278bb6f2f49303669fca846c5fe27092cf014.json |
[
"Special Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-31T10:53:17 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | The government will institute an inquiry into the administrative and technical sanction granted by the previous UDF government for 10 projects under the District Flagship Infrastructure Project (DFIP) | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FThiruvananthapuram%2Fnod-for-dfip-projects-to-go-under-scanner%2Farticle9052986.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Nod for DFIP projects to go under scanner | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The government will institute an inquiry into the administrative and technical sanction granted by the previous UDF government for 10 projects under the District Flagship Infrastructure Project (DFIP) without making fund allocation.
Announcing this at a press conference here on Tuesday, Minister for Public Works G. Sudhakaran said the 10 works costing Rs.1,620.30 crore had been approved without following any norms.
The funds were to be sourced from the Kerala Road Fund Board from the 50 per cent of the additional sales tax levied for petrol and high speed diesel.
The KRFB was provided Rs.197 crore in the budget and it was for paying the annuity for works executed under it, he said.
The Cabinet sub-committee is also looking into the issue.
As the government does want the citizens to suffer, a high-level meeting chaired by the Chief Minister had decided to proceed with five of the 10 DFIP works handed over to the Uralungal Labour Cooperative Society.
The Minister said the Rs.17.50-crore first reach works of the Major District Road from Velloor to Pulingom in the Payannur Assembly constituency will be taken up as the stretch is in a bad condition. All the six road works will be taken up with the financial assistance of NABARD.
‘No repairs done’
The Minister said the government needed Rs.5,000 crore to repair roads damaged in the 14 districts. “There was no repairs earlier and supervision by the engineers. Even bitumen macadam and bitumen concrete (BM & BC) roads are getting damaged within six months. Things are changing after LDF came to power,” he said.
Replying to queries, the Minister said he stood by the statement to avoid lighting of traditional lamp and recital of prayers in government functions and programmes in schools. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/nod-for-dfip-projects-to-go-under-scanner/article9052986.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/3e5aac9df6f8770483275d31c0e509a97da853ab22cd3468eceb0507661b2c9b.json |
[
"Staff Correspondent"
] | 2016-08-29T14:51:19 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Maruthi Manpade, State president of Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha (KPRS), held the Union government responsible for falling prices of farm produce in the domestic market and resultant agrarian crisi | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkarnataka%2Fantifarmer-import-policy-causing-price-crash-for-farm-produce%2Farticle9046372.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02991/29raichur_Maruti_M_2991234c.jpg | en | null | ‘Anti-farmer import policy causing price crash for farm produce’ | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Maruthi Manpade, State president of Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha (KPRS), held the Union government responsible for falling prices of farm produce in the domestic market and resultant agrarian crisis.
Speaking to reporters here on Monday, he criticised the government’s import policy by terming it “anti-farmer.” He held that India’s imports are not based on domestic requirement and production, but on pressure from international and domestic capitalists.
“Our import policy was designed for safeguarding the interests of both domestic and international capitalists and not of domestic farmers. For instance, of the 24 lakh tonnes of pulses that India needs for a year, 20 lakh tonnes are domestically produced. We should import only four tonnes. However, our government imported 20 lakh tonnes last year and 10 lakh tonnes this year. This will surely cause price crash of pulses in the domestic market as there is an overstock of pulses,” he said. He said that though 2016 is being observed as International Year of Pulses, the Centre was “tightening the noose” around pulses growers.
Loan waiver
Referring to the loan waiver issue, Mr. Manpade attacked the Centre for turning down the demand of farm loan waiver and offering unreasonable financial favours to the corporate sector.
“Narendra Modi government has made Rs. 7.33 lakh crores worth tax favours to corporate companies apart from waiving off 1.63 lakh corporate loans. But, the government never thought of waiving farm loans which does not cross Rs. 2 lakh crore,” he said.
Farmers’ suicides that began during the tenure of P.V. Narasimha Rao had crossed three lakh over the last two decades and may cross 10 lakh within five years, he felt.
“We will actively support and participate in the all-India general strike called by trade union conglomerate by putting forward farmers’ demands,” he added.
Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha State president Chamarasa Malipatil was present. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/antifarmer-import-policy-causing-price-crash-for-farm-produce/article9046372.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/58d58f60cd15a3fe4b2cf2d5a4d41bda35afdbb97356a1024c8ca4c5d63930f6.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T02:52:36 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | null | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Ftelangana%2Ftop-class%2Farticle9053364.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02993/HY31KTR_G7ICN7ACN__2993085c.jpg | en | null | Top class | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Moment to cherish:Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presenting the "Most Promising State" award to Telangana IT Minister K.T. Rama Rao in New Delhi on Tuesday. The CNBC TV 18 Channel as part of its Indian Business Leaders Awards has selected the Telangana State for the award.–Photo: By Arrangement
Please Wait while comments are loading... | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/telangana/top-class/article9053364.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/405540b0a1e1b3e04b9f267e89bddc556dbac5e79c8010d0e4e3ac19d30874ab.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-31T02:57:34 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | Vice President M. Hamid Ansari has stressed the role of spiritual strength in overcoming hardships. Through spirituality, one can make introspections and provide highest priority for the welfare of o | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FThiruvananthapuram%2Fspirituality-helps-people-to-better-their-lives-ansari%2Farticle9051211.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/02992/31TVTV_VICE_PRESID_2992564c.jpg | en | null | Spirituality helps people to better their lives: Ansari | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Vice President M. Hamid Ansari at the 90th birth anniversary celebrations of Santhigiri Ashram founder Karunakara Guru at Pothencode on Tuesday. Swami Gururatnam Jnana Thapaswi and Swami Chaithanya Jnana Thapaswi of the ashram, Governor P. Sathasivam and Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien are seen. —Photo:S. Mahinsha
The Vice President stressed the role of spiritual strength in overcoming hardships.
Vice President M. Hamid Ansari has stressed the role of spiritual strength in overcoming hardships. Through spirituality, one can make introspections and provide highest priority for the welfare of others around him, he has said.
Mr. Ansari was inaugurating the 90 birth anniversary celebrations of Santhigiri Ashram founder Karunakara Guru on the premises of the ashram at Pothencode, near here, on Tuesday.
Pointing out that spirituality had helped many in overcoming trauma, Mr. Ansari said it could make people evaluate their lives and gradually change them for the better. “There is growing acceptance that spiritual and contemplative practices are associated with better health and wellbeing. Many spiritual traditions have a long history of using contemplative practices to increase compassion, empathy, attention as well as mental and physical wellbeing,” he said.
He drew similarities among various religions with respect to the practice of meditation. The parallelisms were striking even if rituals or modalities of enunciation might vary, he pointed out.
Mr. Ansari also emphasised the importance of practising yoga in reducing stress, regulating blood pressure and increasing wellbeing. Many spiritual traditions, he added, also encouraged participation in a community. “Spiritual fellowship, such as going to a temple, attending church, collective prayers or a meditation group can be sources of social support, which may provide a sense of belonging, security and community.”
The Vice President commended the efforts undertaken by the ashram in the sectors of health care and education, particularly in the development of traditional Ayurvedic practices. Several community welfare projects, including those for rainwater harvesting and sanitation improvement, carried forward the legacy of Karunakara Guru. It promoted transcendental spiritual values and the ideals of its founder such as universal love, world peace and religious harmony, he said.
Governor P. Sathasivam delivered the presidential address.
Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha P.J. Kurien; Forest Minister K. Raju; A. Sampath, MP; C. Divakaran, MLA; sociologist Bindeshwar Pathak; Santhigiri Ashram organising secretary Swami Gururethnam Jnana Thapaswi; and general secretary Swami Chaithanya Jnana Thapaswi; were present. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/spirituality-helps-people-to-better-their-lives-ansari/article9051211.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/20057c95766ba85f3c01f46e1bfb14a7ae71aa5a7ec60a2c72b0586d50a8f771.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T18:51:08 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Two months since the seemingly irreversible referendum outcome in Britain, there are more questions than answers about the shape of the country’s future in Europe. Had the electorate even remotely se | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fopinion%2Feditorial%2Funcertain-times-in-london%2Farticle9043013.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Uncertain times in London | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Two months since the seemingly irreversible referendum outcome in Britain, there are more questions than answers about the shape of the country’s future in Europe. Had the electorate even remotely sensed the sheer complexity of the now-impending divorce from the European Union, it may have allowed reason to prevail over apprehensions. In the event, practically every single element of the case for Britain staying in the EU, which the Leave camp dismissed as scaremongering, has emerged as a very real concern. Conversely, the Brexit mantra of ‘take control’ rings more hollow with each passing day. Prime Minister Theresa May insists that “Brexit means Brexit”, emphasising at the same time that London would not, until 2017, trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon treaty on leaving the bloc. Even then it is unlikely that the exit procedure will kick in before the French presidential polls next summer and the general elections in Germany a few months later. So, late-2017 is the earliest point that most commentators who believe in the eventuality of Brexit would hazard for the start of exit negotiations. Indeed, there are many who question even the necessity of carrying the outcome of the referendum to its logical end, since Parliament is not bound by the advisory nature of the popular verdict.
Meanwhile, in view of the preference shown in the June vote by a majority of Scots to stay in the EU, the mood in Edinburgh clearly favours a second referendum on Scottish independence. Yet, it is becoming apparent that Brexit will raise the economic burden of an independent Scotland since the bulk of its export revenues accrue from the rest of Britain and not from the bigger bloc of 27 states. Similarly, Northern Ireland is faced with a dilemma over whether the majority regional sentiment to remain should take precedence over the wider British decision to leave. There is palpable disquiet in Belfast and Dublin over the fact that the border-free movement between the north and south of Ireland that followed the historic 1998 Good Friday agreement may be in jeopardy following the verdict. Once London is outside the bloc, the restoration of customs and immigration controls at Newry between Northern Ireland and the Republic would become an inevitable reality, with enormous economic and psychological costs. This sense of uncertainty has gripped the rest of the Union — while central European states are positive about forging a common identity with the rest of the continent, there is anxiety about the future. The only reassuring thought amid this all-round chaos is that the EU is not unused to balancing such emotions. | http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/uncertain-times-in-london/article9043013.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/154ecca7ea3f26042eb18f6ffef8965e0cc1b0868613a07bf02841cde9f3457c.json |
[
"Staff Reporter"
] | 2016-08-29T14:59:12 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | The traffic-clogged city may be spared further traffic mayhem during this Onam season.It is likely that Lavanyam – the annual Onam celebrations organised by the State government, may not feature proce | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fcities%2FKochi%2Fcity-may-be-spared-processions-during-this-onam%2Farticle9036937.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | City may be spared processions during this Onam | null | null | www.thehindu.com | The traffic-clogged city may be spared further traffic mayhem during this Onam season.
It is likely that Lavanyam – the annual Onam celebrations organised by the State government, may not feature processions in view of the State government direction to avoid traffic hold-ups as far as possible. Organisers are planning to include more cultural programmes in place of the procession. However, the traditional Atham procession will be an exception.
Processions have for long been a nightmare during Onam seasons when people throng shopping areas and numerous fairs and exhibitions.
The latest edition of Lavanyam will be held from September 12 to 18. Durbar Hall Ground will be the main venue.
A meeting of the District Tourism Promotion Council chaired by District Collector K. Mohammed Y. Safirulla on Thursday formulated the preliminary programmes. This year, the celebrations will be staged in seven venues – Bhoothathankettu, Fort Kochi, Thrikkakara, Perumbavur, Kumbalanghi, and Kalamassery.
The State government has allotted Rs.32 lakh for the programme. The meeting decided to raise the rest of the funds through sponsorship.
Additional District Magistrate C.K. Prakash, Assistant Collector Renu Raj, tourism council members and municipal heads attended the meeting. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Kochi/city-may-be-spared-processions-during-this-onam/article9036937.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/ca0a482ca82669a24026934df526bce7599a1fb9243e3d0a5ad8b83851e95d2b.json |
[
"S. Anil Radhakrishnan"
] | 2016-08-28T22:50:56 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | Quick intervention and smooth coordination between various wings of Railways played a major role in reducing the hardships of commuters on board the derailed train. The KSRTC and private stage carrie | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thehindu.com%2Fnews%2Fnational%2Fkerala%2Fhelp-from-many-quarters-for-passengers%2Farticle9042975.ece%3Futm_source%3DRSS_Feed%26utm_medium%3DRSS%26utm_campaign%3DRSS_Syndication.json | http://www.thehindu.com/template/1-0-1/gfx/oghindunew1.jpg | en | null | Help from many quarters for passengers | null | null | www.thehindu.com | Railways send special team, KSRTC and private carriages arrange services, local people chip in
Quick intervention and smooth coordination between various wings of Railways played a major role in reducing the hardships of commuters on board the derailed train. The KSRTC and private stage carriers also rose to the occasion to help the stranded at various stations, operating 60-odd buses.
As soon as the derailment of 13 coaches around 2.20 a.m. was conveyed by Railway Control, Divisional Railway Manager Prakash Butani set off to the accident spot from Thiruvananthapuram Central in the DRM Special train with officials of mechanical, signalling, electrical and other wings. There was a medical team too.
The team led by Additional Divisional Railway Manager K.S. Jain opened helplines at the Central station here, Kollam, Ernakulam and Thrissur. After it was confirmed that no one was injured, the crisis team started arrangements to shift the stranded passengers and to regulate trains.
Kerala State Road Transport Corporation CMD Antony Chacko responded to the request to arrange buses. Local people in Karukutty too helped the stranded passengers reach the station with their luggage. Licensed porters were rushed from Chalakudy station. Tea, water, and biscuits were made available.
Mr. Butani supervised the works to remove the derailed coaches and restore traffic. Accident relief trains were rushed from Ernakulam and Shoranur and two cranes operated at the site to remove the coaches.
Additional General Manager, Southern Railway, P.K. Mishra arrived from Chennai, inspected the derailed coaches and track, and ruled out sabotage.
As many as 700 persons are working to restore traffic in the line to Thrissur, where the derailment took place, and on the down line towards Ernakulam. Of the 13 coaches derailed, including two air-conditioned, three will be placed on track using crane. The remaining will be kept nearby to be retrieved later.
Railways cancelled 21 trains, short terminated six trains, partially cancelled five, diverted six, and rescheduled three trains. “Even senior officials had to attend calls helplines were flooded with calls from the commuters,” Senior Divisional Commercial Manager V.C. Sudhiesh Kumar told The Hindu. | http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/help-from-many-quarters-for-passengers/article9042975.ece?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.thehindu.com/3c2fd354d5dad374ef8faf96eacdc053bb5fe2f56c381516ca516d1bfb4924f3.json |
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