Civic polls in Tamil Nadu rest Protest against koodankulam Nuclear Plant

The week-long protest against Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant was suspended for two days on Sunday in view of the civic polls in Tamil Nadu. Addressing the protesters in Idinthakarai, their leaders announced that the suspension of the second phase of the stir with immediate effect. They said the suspension was to enable residents of Idinthakarai and nearby villages to exercise their franchise in the two-phase local body elections being held on Monday.

Earlier, officials said around 100 employees of the Emergency services wing were stranded since Saturday as their relievers could not enter the complex due to the blockade by the protestors.

Mary Kom, Sarita Devi in semis

 Mary Kom, Sarita Devi  in semis-Five time World Champion M C Mary Kom and former World Champion L Sarita Devi stormed into the semifinal round of the 12th Senior National Women Boxing Championships being played in Bhopal. M C Mary Kom thrashed her opponent P Nirosha of Andhra Pradesh 17-0. L Sarita Devi defeated Vanlal Duati of Mizoram 26-12 in her quarter final bout. Dolly Singh, Pinky Jangra, Pwilao Basumatari, Pavitra, Mandakini Chann, Aruna Mishra, Heena Tokas, Arensangla and Leishangthem Jamuna Devi have also entered in the semifinal round registering victories over their respective opponents. Semi final bouts will be played tomorrow.

Maruti Workers sit-in strike enters 8th day

Defying the high court's orders, workers continued their sit-in strike on the premises of Maruti Suzuki India's Manesar plant for the eighth consecutive day on Friday, with production activities at a complete standstill.

The strike by workers at Suzuki Powertrain India Ltd (SPIL) in support of their colleagues at the Manesar plant has made the situation even more precarious for the Maruti Suzuki India management.

The company has decided to stop production at its main factory in Gurgaon on Friday and Saturday on account of a severe shortage of engines and transmissions due to the strike at SPIL.

Workers at Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt Ltd (SMIPL) have also resorted to a strike to press their colleagues' demands.

Surjit Hockey Tournament's semi-final begins

Surjit Hockey Tournament's semi-final begins

In Hockey, defending champion Indian Oil takes on Bharat Petroleum while Air India plays Namdhari-XI, today in the semifinals of the Indian Oil SERVO Surjit Hockey Tournament in Jalandhar.

Namdhari-XI had defeated ONGC 4-1 yesterday, while Air India beat Punjab & Sind Bank 2-1 to enter into the semis.

Earlier, Indian Oil had defeated Punjab Police while Bharat Petroleum beat RCF Kapurthala to enter the semifinals.

The tournament is being played at Olympian Surjit Hockey Stadium.

All India Radio Delhi live commentary of tomorrow’s Surjit Hockey final can be heard from 1910 hrs to 2035 hrs or till the end of the match on Rajdhani channel and additional frequencies.

Egypt opens registration for parliamentary election

Egypt's first parliamentary elections since the ouster of Hosni Mubarak begun submitting their applications today, the official news agency reported.
The submissions came as Egypt's deputy prime minister resigned after deadly clashes sparked a wave of anger at the ruling military and calls for the premier to quit.
The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces which took power when Mubarak was forced out by a popular uprising in February had promised a six-month transition period before handing power to civilian rule.
Egyptians will start voting for their representatives in the People's Assembly starting November 28 and in the Shura Council on January 29 next year, in a multi-round process expected to last four months.
The People's Assembly is scheduled to hold its first session on March 17 and the Shura Council on March 24.
Following the parliamentary and senate election, a committee is scheduled to draft a new constitution and then presidential elections are to be held.
The committee has up to six months to finish its work, meaning the presidential election might not be held until the end of August.(

India, Vietnam to deepen defence, strategic ties

India and Vietnam will seek to deepen strategic and defence ties apart from inking a couple of pacts, including an extradition treaty, during the visit of Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang who arrived in the country on Tuesday for a three-day tour.

Sang will hold comprehensive talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday during which both leaders will discuss all international, regional and bilateral issues of "mutual interest", including the ways to strengthen ties in the area of oil and natural gas exploration.

Asserting that the relationship with Vietnam was not directed against China, official spokesperson in the Ministry of External Affairs said the two leaders will discuss entire gamut of relationship which will include cooperation in hydercarbon sector also.

He was asked if India will talk about strengthening of ties in energy sector in the wake of recent objections by China.

Irked by the Indian exploration projects on Vietnamese blocks in South China Sea, Chinese authorities have raised objections claiming that it was in their area.

The Chinese claim on the South China Sea has been rejected by both India and Vietnam, saying as per the UN the blocks belong to Vietnam.

India has also made it clear that its state-owned firm would continue to explore in the resource-rich South China Sea.

Jagjit Singh no more

Ghazal king Jagjit Singh no more

Ghazal king Jagjit Singh, the soul-stirring voice behind 'Hazaron khwaishe aisi', 'Ye kaghaz ki kashti and 'Jhuki jhuki si nazar', died Monday morning over a fortnight after he suffered brain haemorrhage.

The 70-year-old singer, who alongwith his wife Chitra almost rediscovered the ghazal genre for common Indian in 70s and 80s, was admitted to the Lilavati hospital on 23^rd September and was in coma since then.

"Jagjit Singh passed away at 8.10 AM after having a terrible hemorrhage," said Dr Sudhir Nandgaonkar, hospital spokesperson.

The day he was admitted, he was supposed to perform at a concert at Shanmukhananda Hall, Matunga, in Mumbai but the programme was cancelled after he was taken ill. Despite a surgery, his condition did not improve and he remained on life support.

Singh, a Padma Bhushan recipient, was born in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan, on 8^th February, 1941.

After graduation, he shifted base to Mumbai, to explore career in the world of music. In the next decade and half, he earned nationwide fame as ghazal singer and music composer. He sang in several languages, including Hindi, Punjabi, Bengali, Gujarati, Nepali, Bhojpuri.

His personal life, though, was marked by a tragedy: His only son, Vivek, died in a car accident in 1990 when he was just 18.

The music world expressed grief on hearing the news of Jagjit Singh's death. Fellow ghazal singer, Pankaj Udhas, described Jagjit as an "extremely versatile singer".

"I am devas

Press conference Sagar31News_BJP leader LK Advani

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Rural Development works to come under ambit of CAG: Ramesh

Rural Development works to come under ambit of CAG: Ramesh

Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh on Sunday said expenditure on Rural Development works would soon come under the ambit of Comptroller and Auditor General.
"Very soon we are meeting with the CAG to make an 'understanding' to bring expenditure of all rural works across the country under CAGs (domain)," Ramesh told reporters in Ranchi.
There would be a special Accountant General for every state which would audit the expenditure being incurred on rural development works.
"This will put pressure on us and the state governments as well (to implement the projects properly and transparently)," he said replying to alleged leakage of funds meant for MG-NREGA and rural road works.
Stating that his departments concern was to put in place a foolproof mechanism like audit and enforcing guidelines in the rural development works, Ramesh, however, said it was the state government which had to implement programmes through transparency, accountability and quality control.
The Centre has earmarked Rs one lakh crore for rural development works this fiscal under its flagship programmes

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Nobel Prize for Medicine

Three scientists  shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine for their ground-breaking work on the immune system which the jury said opened up new prospects for curing cancer and other diseases. Laureates are Bruce Beutler of the United States, Jules Hoffmann of Luxembourg and Ralph Steinman of Canada.
The jury said in a statement, that this year's Nobel laureates have revolutionised our understanding of the immune system by discovering key principles for its activation.
The three lauded for their work on immunology the body's complex defence system in which signalling molecules unleash antibodies and killer cells in response to invading germs and viruses.
Beutler and Hoffmann, who shared one half of the 10 million Swedish kronor (USD 1.48 million) prize, discovered receptor proteins that activate the first step in the body's immune response system.
Steinman, who won the other half, discovered the dendritic cells, allowing the immune system to identify and attack the harmful micro-organisms while staying clear of the body's own endogenous molecules.
They will receive their prize at a formal ceremony in Stockholm on December 10, the anniversary of prize founder Alfred Nobel's death in 1896.

SHRMIndia_Sagar31NewsMedia-Inc_TIE2011-DelhiConference

Three dead as twin blasts hit Kandhar city

Two suicide bombers struck Afghanistan's biggest southern city Kandahar on Monday, killing three people, officials said. First blast, Assadullah Khalid, minister of border and tribal affairs and chief security coordinator for the south, claimed he was the target as two civilians were killed. Insurgents have recently stepped up a campaign of political assassinations, killing President Hamid Karzai's younger brother Ahmed Wali Karzai in Kandahar in July and his peace envoy Barhanuddin Rabbani in Kabul last month. But the interior ministry said there was no evidence the blast was aimed at Khalid and he himself admitted he was five kilometres (three miles) away when it happened. "There was an explosion - a suicide bomber wearing explosives on his body detonated in an area where there was not an obvious target," interior ministry spokesman Siddiq Siddiqui told the news agency. The Kandahar provincial media office said one person was killed and 19 injured, including six children. >But Siddiqui and local police chief Abdul Raziq put the death toll at two.Shortly afterwards in a different part of the city, a suicide bomber wearing army uniform struck inside an army garrison."It was a suicide attack that killed one guard and the attacker, two army soldiers were wounded," said General Abdul Hamid, commander of the army unit whose garrison was struck. It is relatively easy to buy army uniforms from Afghan markets and there have been a string of attacks this year committed by attackers wearing them.Kandahar is seen as the birthplace of the Taliban. Karzai's brother, a key figure in the south and head of Kandahar's provincial council, was killed at his home in the city on July 12

Light and Sound Programme at Udaigiri Caves

Light and Sound Programme at Udaigiri Caves Government of India has sanctioned `125.00 lakh to India Tourism Development Corporation Ltd (ITDC) to organize sound & light show programme at Udaigiri caves in Orissa. ITDC implemented the project and the trial run was held in April, 2008. However, due to conservation issues raised by Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), the show was not commissioned. ITDC has now submitted a concept paper for an alternative sound & light show at Udaigiri.

Development and promotion of tourism is undertaken primarily by the State Governments/Union Territory Administrations. The Ministry of Tourism extends Central Financial Assistance to the State Governments/Union Territory Administrations for tourism related projects, which are identified in consultation with them, under various tourism schemes of the Ministry, in accordance with the scheme guidelines, inter-se-priority and availability of funds.

2G Scam: CPI demands CBI probe role of Chidambaram

CPI has demanded a CBI probe into the role of P Chidambaram in the 2-G spectrum issue. A party release issued in New Delhi today said that 2-G is a national issue and not an internal affair of the Congress party or the UPA. The CPI also pointed out that the CBI cannot decide or argue that it will not investigate Chidambaram's role as the then Finance Minister in the 2-G issue saying that the latest revelations warrant a probe.

Formula One racing_Sagar31NewsMedia-Inc Press-Conference

Lack of co-operation among anti-corruption agencies: FM

Admitting "slackness" in implementing laws and lack of coordination between various probe agencies, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday asked private players and civil society to shoulder some responsibility in achieving "zero tolerance" on corruption.
"We are committed to making progress in our fight against corruption. It is also important that other stakeholders, including the private actors and the civil society, come forward in shouldering some responsibilities and contribute to the efforts of public agencies in this endeavor", he said.
"At the same time, we are one with the global community in sharing the responsibilities in our collective efforts to address this issue in its international dimension," Mukherjee said while addressing the concluding session of three-day conference of Seventh Regional Conference of the ADB-OECD Anti-Corruption Initiative for Asia and the Pacific Region.
He listed out various departments of the government which were engaged in controlling corruption but said, "this does not mean that we are free of corruption. Indeed, corruption is widespread and deep-rooted in our society".
"There are issues of slackness in implementation of existing laws, ineffectiveness of some laws, lack of coordination between different agencies that have overlapping mandates, policy gaps such as in the area of election funding and governance failure in several areas of public services delivery, that have contributed to the pervasiveness of this phenomenon."

Sagar31News:Press_Brief_HTC Explorer launched in India

UP-get three new districts

Uttar Pradesh,get three new districts including Prabuddha Nagar, Panchsheel Nagar and Bhim Nagar were set up on Wednesday in the western region of the state. With these new districts, the total number of districts has gone up to 75 in the state. AIR Lucknow Correspondent reports that Chief Minister Mayawati announced on Wednesday the formation of new districts during her one-day visit to the western districts of the state.

The new district of Prabuddha Nagar has been carved out of Muzaffar Nagar district. Shamli and Kairana tehsils from Muzaffar Nagar are being included in the new district whose headquarter will be at Shamli. New district Panchsheel Nagar has been set up carving out from Ghaziabad. Garh Mukteshwar, Hapur and newly set up Daulana tehsils of Ghaziabad will be included in the new district and Hapur will be its headquarter. Bhim Nagar will be the 75th district of the state. It has been carved out from Moradabad and Badaun districts. Chandausi and Sambhal tehsils of Moradabad and Gunnaur from Badaun are being included in new district. Sambhal has been announced as it’s headquarter.

Ms. Mayawati has said that her party, BSP has always been in favour of smaller states and administrative units and new districts and divisions have been set up in all her previous regimes.