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IT notice to `Big B' over 'Rs 2.7 lakh' sunglasses

       Mumbai: The Income Tax department in Mumbai has sent a notice to superstar Amitabh Bachchan asking him to explain the purchase of Ray Ban sunglasses worth Rs 2.7 lakh (5878 dollars). The veteran actor has worn the glasses in his upcoming film Zamanat. Interestingly, Bachchan gifted the expensive pair to S Ramanathan, the director of Zamanat, after shooting for the movie was completed. In the notice, Amitabh has also been asked to disclose details of other expensive accessories in his possession. This is the fourth notice served on Amitabh by the IT department since November last year for different matters. Earlier, he was issued notices with regard to his earnings from his overseas ventures and assignments, and TV game-show Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC). In February this year, the 63-year-old actor was again asked by the IT department to give details of taxes deducted at source by his Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Ltd (ABCL) in 2000-2005.

Patna comes to a standstill after rains (Go To Top)

      Patna: Heavy monsoon rains brought life to a virtual standstill in Patna on Friday as rainwater entered many homes after a record 35-hour downpour. Residents waded their way through water-logged streets in several localities in the main city of Bihar state as the monsoon rains, arriving a week ahead of normal, became an eye-opener of the city's shoddy infrastructure. Sudhir Kumar, a resident of Rajinder Nagar in central Patna, said the waters that began entering his home early on Thursday, has risen to about three feet, ruining several household items. Kumar said his family hadn't cooked for more than a day and were relying on kind neighbors for food. "Water has entered our homes and even in the kitchen. It's everywhere. The administration is not doing anything about this and the water is also not draining out. We could not even eat anything. It's a very bad situation," Kumar said.

     The rains that came on the first day of the monsoon set a record in the last five decades. While local residents blamed the state government for inadequate response, a government minister in charge of development in the state said municipal officials were working day and night to drain out the water. "The ministers are running as are the Secretaries and senior officials. Nobody has slept in the night and everybody including the engineers and lower level staff are making all efforts to bring back normalcy. You might think it's a small task. I have myself been making rounds of the affected areas even in the middle of the night. But what has happened is unnatural. The city has witnessed record heavy rainfall continuously for the last 35- 40 hours. In total, it has rained nearly 150 mm. And everybody fails in front of nature," said Ashwinin Kumar Choube, Minister for Urban Development said. Residents said the situation was worse in low-lying areas where many people had to be evacuated to higher ground. Authorities have cleaned up areas that had carcasses of animals floating, though some residents said the risk of an epidemic was now staring them in the face.

Delhi police search Sahil's Srinagar house (Go To Top)

       Srinagar: Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir police officials have carried out a search on the Srinagar residence of Sahil Zaroo, one of the accused in the Rahul Mahajan drug abuse case. The Zaroo residence is located in Srinagar's posh Nigeen area. The police team was quoted by sources as saying that they were looking for the clothes that Sahil was wearing on the night of June 1, when he visited the 7, Safdarjang Road residence of late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan. Sahil was allegedly present at the ''champagne and drug party'' which resulted in the hospitalisation of Rahul Mahajan and death of the late BJP leader's key aide Bibek Moitra. The sources said the team also searched for Sahil's mobile phone from which he allegedly made several calls to Nigerian drug peddler Abdullah. Sahil is alleged to have brought the drugs (heroin and cocaine) from Abdullah to the party. Sahil is in police custody till June 12.

13 Naxalites killed in Chhattisgarh (Go To Top)

        Balrampur (Chattishgarh): At least thirteen Naxalites were killed in two separate gunbattles with security forces yesterday in Chhattisgarh, police said on Friday. In the first incident, paramilitary troops, backed by police, raided a village in Dantewada district, 520 km south of state capital Raipur, and shot dead 10 Naxalites in a three-hour gunbattle. Five others were also arrested in the raid. In the other clash, police killed three Maoists and seized several weapons in the state's Balrampur region, 420 km northeast of Raipur. The Special Task Force of the police raided Jalbotha village of Balrampur, where the Naxalites were killed in an encounter after efforts to make them surrender failed. "We surrounded the Naxalites from all three sides. The encounter started at 7:40 p.m. (IST) and continued for a long while. After the gunbattle, we traced three bodies during a search operation. A huge cache of arms and ammunition, including Maoist literature has also been seized," said Shivram Prasad Kaluri, Superintendent of Police of Balrampur. Chhattisgarh is the worst affected of the states hit by the Naxalites insurgency that began more than three decades ago. According to Home Ministry, 76 districts in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Maharashtra, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal are 'badly affected by Maoist violence'. Official figures show that at least half of Chhattisgarh's 16 districts have a presence of the Maoist guerrillas and over 170 civilians have been killed in the State since January this year. The Naxal leadership makes strong claims of fighting for the rights of the poor, but has so far remained unsuccessful in enhancing the quality of life in villages, arguing all reforms will follow the revolution. The insurgency, named after the town of Naxalbari where it emerged in 1967, is thought to affect 165 of the country's 602 administrative districts in a "red corridor" stretching from the southern tip of the country all along its eastern half and up to Nepal.

Four killed in Guwahati blast (Go To Top)

       Guwahati: At least four persons were killed and several injured following a powerful bomb blast on Friday, suspected to be triggered by ULFA militants in Guwahati. According to the police, the blast occurred at the busy Machkhoa Vegetable Market around 4.30 p.m. Some of the injured were admitted to the local hospital in serious condition, police said. The incident took place a day after 34 people were injured in bomb blasts and attacks carried out by the militants. On Wednesday, the Centre had announced date for the third round of talks between government peace representatives and an 11- member civil society group from Assam chosen by the outlawed United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) would be held on June 22 in New Delhi. The rebel group has demanded the release of at least five senior jailed ULFA leaders before the outfit begins direct peace talks with New Delhi. The ULFA which is active since 1979, considered as most powerful insurgent outfit in Asom. Over 15,000 people have lost their lives to insurgency in Asom since the foundation of ULFA.

World's first cancer vaccine gets approval (Go To Top)

       Washington: It's often said that cancer has no cure, but a new cancer vaccine, which might turn out as a "small step for man and a giant step for mankind", has finally been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Called Gardasil, the drug developed by Dr. Richard Schlegel, a University of Georgetown researcher, can eliminate most new cases of cervical cancer worldwide. It works by blocking four strains of human papillomaviruses (HPV), including two that give rise to nearly 75 percent of cervical cancer cases and two other strains that cause about 50 percent of genital warts. Prof. Schlegel began working on the project since the late 1980's, studying the molecular biology of the human papillomavirus (HPV), the precursor to most cervical cancers. He focussed his study on the millions of people worldwide infected with the sexually transmitted disease, particularly in the developing countries where HPV affected as many as 400,000 women annually. "We realized these deaths were largely preventable ... that's really all the motivation we needed," he said, adding it was a very gratifying experience to see their efforts bear fruit. "It's a researcher's dream ... to see something that started as a very cerebral idea in the laboratory to advance through animal and clinical trials, gain FDA approval and ultimately have a major global impact. It's highly unlikely but extremely gratifying to see it through so far," he added. Prof. Shin-je Ghim, who was working along with Schlegel and Prof. A. Bennett Jenson, said that once the three researchers began working together, they knew they were on to something. "Progress was slow at first, but we sensed it was coming. No one really believed in a vaccine's ability to prevent cancer," she said. "At the time, Georgetown had one of the strongest HPV research programs of any institution in the country ... you couldn't have asked for a more capable team of people. We were the right group of people, at the right time, with the right stars shining in our direction," Prof. Jensen added.

'MI6' helped nail Zarqawi (Go To Top)

      London: Britain's Secret Intelligence Service, 'MI6', reportedly played a pivotal role in helping US-led alliance forces to kill al Qaeda chief in Iraq, Abu Musab al- Zarqawi, yesterday. "The intelligence services and special forces have been working with American colleagues. British intelligence played a role in helping to locate al Zarqawi. And, special forces were involved in raids rounding up his men soon after," The Sun quoted a reliable source as saying. According to the report, MI6 officers helped identify the whereabouts of the al-Qaeda general and his henchmen before the US air strike. And, the SAS (Special Air Service) were involved in a series of "smash and grab" raids to seize his aides nearby, it added. Sources further confirmed last night that MI6 had worked for weeks together with their US and Jordanian counterparts to track down the al Qaeda operative. They helped pinpoint al Zarqawi and his team in their safe houses - leading directly to the bombing mission.

      Zarqawi, who was killed in an air raid north of Baghdad, was a Jordanian like his boss Osama bin Laden. He led Arab fighters against the Soviets in Afghanistan in the 1980s. After the Soviets quit Afghanistan, he went back to Jordan, where he was arrested for being involved in a conspiracy to topple the monarchy and spent seven years in jail. After the release, he fled Jordan and was later sentenced to death in absentia for plotting attacks on American and Israeli tourists. The fugitive returned to Afghanistan and set a camp in Heart where he trained men in the manufacture and use of poison gas. It was here only when he renewed his contacts with Afghanistan. Later, after the US mission strike on his Heart terrorist camp in 2001, he fled Afghanistan and settled in Iraq. He carried a 25 million dollar bounty on his head, an equal amount announced for Osama.

Baghdad under curfew after Zarqawi killing

       Baghdad: Iraqi capital Baghdad was placed under curfew for several hours on Friday, a day after U.S. fighter jets bombed a remote safehouse in the north Iraqi town of Baquba, killing the country's Al Qaeda chief Abu Musab al-Zaqawi and several others. International news reports said that a ban on vehicle movement was in place amid fears of bomb attack reprisals following Zarqawi's death. US defence forces struck after receiving specific tip-offs from within Zarqawi's organisation, officials said. However analysts and officials warned were quoted by the BBC as saying that the rebel's death did not signify an end to Islamist-backed insurgency. On Thursday, at least 35 people were killed in a spate of bombings in Baghdad, leading the local authorities to impose the vehicle movement ban. The news of the militant's death - announced by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki - came shortly before the Iraqi parliament approved the key posts of defence and interior ministers. Zarqawi was known for his particularly gruesome techniques, such as his trademark videotaped beheadings. His group was also blamed for many of the worst attacks on civilians, both inside Iraq and in neighbouring Jordan.

Sensex registers highest gain in 14 years (Go To Top)

      Mumbai: The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) 30 share sensitive index (Sensex) on Friday closed 9810.46, registering a single-day gain of 514.65 points on all-round buying support, the highest in the last 14 years. The previous highest gain for the index was 426.05 points, which was registered on March 24, 1992. Petrochem giant and among the top heavyweights, Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), was the most sought after stocks and shot up by Rs 96.85 to close at 922.10, contributing immensely to the rise of Sensex, dealers said. Though the BSE-30 share sensitive index (Sensex) opened slightly weak at 9,270.78 from last day's close of 9,295.81, it immediately pulled back sharply and rallied to a high of 9,849.20, before ending at 9,810.46, registering a smart rise of 5.54 percent over previous close. The National Stock Exchange (NSE), Standard and Poors CNX Nifty spurted by 141.95 points or 5.21 percent to to close at 2,866.30. Friday's positive returns ended four days of share reverses that wiped out a massive 1,155-point or 11 percent from the index, leaving share brokers and investors in a state of panic. All sectoral indices also finished with remarkable gains.

Extravagant opening for 2006 World Cup

       Munich: The 2006 Soccer World Cup today opened with a lavish opening ceremony in Munich's Allianz Arena that starred the living legend Pele alongside German supermodel Claudia Schiffer. For the first time, as all the living members of the World Cup winners arrived inside the stadium, the 60 thousand strong crowd that included German President Horst Koehler and his Costa Rican counterpart Oscar Arias, gave a standing ovation. True to its culture a host of shows featuring dancing, singing and some spectacular costumes were on display. Around 1.5 billion people across the planet witnessed the opening ceremony turning the climax of the beautiful game into a galactic event. Kohler declared the game open saying "finally it can start". For the host nation which will be playing the edition's first match there was disappointment as skipper Michael Ballack was ruled out of today's match against Costa Rica.