CJ of Madras HC posted as CJ of Kerala HC (Go To Top)

      New Delhi: The Chief Justice of Madras High Court, Justice Bollampally Subhashan Reddy has been transferred and posted as Chief Justice of Kerala High Court. According to a press release, the Kerala High Court Chief Justice, Justice Nauvdip Kumar Sodhi has already been transferred and posted as Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court. Justice Subhashan Reddy has been directed to take up his new assignment on or before December 1.

Over 100 Left activists arrested (Go To Top)

     Kolkata: West Bengal police today arrested 111 activists of the Left opposition party, SUCI, as they began a state-wide protest-cum-shutdown against the Centre's fuel price hike. Normal life in the state, however, was not affected. Amid tight security arrangement state-run buses and trams as well as taxis were seen plying while private buses were off the road on a number of routes. While shops were closed in several parts of the city, but most schools remained open. The SUCI activists were arrested for picketing and causing obstruction to road traffic and train movement in various parts of the state, Chayan Mukherjee, the state's IGP, was quoted as saying. Besides the fuel price hike, the SUCI's is also protesting the various anti-people policies of the Left Front government including the power tariff hike.

2 killed, 29 injured in Pak cinema hall blast (Go To Top)

      Islamabad: At least two people were killed and 29 others were injured when a bomb exploded in a cinema hall in northwestern Pakistan. The explosion took place after midnight at the cinema hall in Mingora, about 120 kilometers northeast of Peshawar. A foreign news agency quoted the police as saying that at least three of the 29 injured were in serious condition, while many others were being attended to at a hospital in Mingora. According to the report, the police has arrested a man suspected of carrying out the blast and seized bomb-making material from him. No one has immediately claimed responsibility for the blast.

Tenet's knife out for Condi Rice (Go To Top)

      Washington: It isn't likely to be a rosy path for incoming US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, as former CIA director George Tenet is likely to trash her achievements as the country's national security adviser in his memoir. According to the Daily Mail, Tenet is of the categorical view that Rice was responsible for the terrorist strikes on the United States in September 2001, as she did not initiate enough protective steps to prevent those episodes. "He (Tenet) claims she (Rice) was incompetent, that she didn't do her job" when it came to protecting the country from terrorists," the paper quotes a source as saying. Tenet's book collaborator and former spokesman, Bill Harlow, denies that Tenet is putting the blame on Rice."The book proposal is confidential," says Harlow, the author of the military thriller "Circle William." Tenet, who spent two weeks meeting with publishing-house editors, is also said to lay odds that Al Qaeda will strike next with a radioactive "dirty bomb." "He says they're looking for a symbolic, high-value target - presumably in Washington or New York," says our source. "He says the terrorists' only difficulty is getting it into the country." Robert Barnett, the lawyer who's shopping the proposal, also declined to discuss the book. But 12 houses are said to be vying for it. Bidding is said to have started at around a million dollars, though the word is that Tenet is hoping to get close to five million dollars.

Indian gurus `McDonaldise' yoga and rule the roost (Go To Top)

     Wellington: Five-times all-India yoga champion Rajashree Choudhury is in New Zealand these days, literally tying up the people of that country and in other parts of the world in knots. According to The New Zealand Herald, Rajashree and her husband Bikram Choudhury have created a stir among yoga traditionalists who have accused the pair of "McDonaldising" the ancient art of fusing mind, body and spirit. The couple have accumulated a tidy fortune from their international chain of 400 franchised Bikram Yoga training centres, where about 2500 instructors offer exactly the same range of 26 postures.

       The Bikram website (bikramyoga.com) touts them as the most exciting, effective, amusing and glamorous yoga class in the world. The mother of two left Kolkata to join Bikram in Los Angeles in 1984. The pair are now an established feature in Beverly Hills where they host rich and famous students such as Madonna, Shirley MacLaine and basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. While their critics claim yoga principles dictate austerity, the Choudhurys proudly flaunt their lifestyle of Rolls-Royces and flashy clothes. Rajashree spends most of her time travelling the world promoting women's health through the application of yoga. "Yoga is very sexy right now, it is. Look at all the sports stars, the supermodels, all trying to shape up through yoga. It is the rhythm of life ... harmony of the soul," she was quoted as saying. Bikram Yoga is the fastest-growing yoga style in the United States. Done at speed, in a room heated to 40.5C with 60 per cent humidity. The heat is supposed to warm muscles, improving flexibility and increasing the heart rate. The poses aim to cut blood supply, creating pressure, which when released causes blood to rush, flushing out veins and arteries. New students are recommended to attend daily classes for the first two months.

Indo-Pak bus talks soon (Go To Top)

      Islamabad: The much hyped Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service may finally see the light of the day with India and Pakistan likely to take up the issue during their scheduled talks on December 7 and 8. According to the Daily Times, the two sides are reportedly finalizing the strategy for the talks. "We are currently finalising our strategy for the talks. The chance of success in these talks is very bright as Pakistan will be flexible and constructive and will accept almost anything short of passports to identity passengers," the paper quoted official sources as saying. The proposed bus service had been plagued by numerous diplomatic hassles with Pakistan favouring UN documents for travel purposes in comparison to India, which had been advocating the use of passports. However, in an effort to take forward the peace process and bring about more people to people contact, New Delhi and Islamabad agreed to hold talks on the resumption of the bus service when the foreign secretaries of the two country met in September this year. Its understood that the scheduled talks are in continuation to the Indo-Pak peace process and will to a great extent help in normalising the estranged relations between the two nuclear neighbours. As per the report, Pakistan has favoured a simple form to be issued in triplicate for identification purposes. "The form will bear the name of the traveller, father's name, permanent and present addresses and identity card numbers. Copies of the form will be retained by Pakistani and Indian security officers and the third copy will be carried by the traveller," the source added.

China welcomes Indian troop cut in Kashmir (Go To Top)

      Beijing: China has reportedly welcomed the reduction of Indian troops in Kashmir, saying that any move that leads to increased trust and better relations between New Delhi and Islamabad is good for the region. "The Chinese side has always advocated that India and Pakistan should resolve their differences through peaceful means," the Daily Times quoted Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue as saying at her weekly news briefing. "We welcome and support any moves by the two sides which will help the two sides increase mutual trust and relax their relations," she added.