Junior Digest

Chandigarh, Jan 14 : Former Punjab Chief Minister Surjit Singh Barnala, who took over reins of the state in the difficult period when militancy was at its peak in the mid-80s, died here today at the age of 91.

Barnala, who served as Chief Minister from 1985 to 1987, was admitted to the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) here on Thursday.

A moderate leader of the Akali Dal, he became chief minister after the Rajiv-Longowal accord to usher in peace in the troubled state was reached in the summer of 1985.

Barnala was admitted to the Cardiac Care Unit of PGI and was shifted this morning to respiratory ICU where he breathed his last.

As Governor of Tamil Nadu, Barnala had famously refused to recommend dismissal of the DMK government in 1991 when the late Chandrashekhar was the Prime Minister for a short time.

When he was transferred to Bihar following his refusal, he chose to resign as Governor.

The government headed by Chandrashekhar then dismissed the Karunanidhi ministry using the “otherwise” provision in Article 356 of the Constitution after Barnala’s refusal to make a recommendation.

He had also served as Governor of Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Barnala was Agriculture Minister at the Centre in the Moraji Desai government and Chemicals & Fertilizers Minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Cabinet.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has condoled the death of former Senior Akali Leader.

The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a plea on lifting the ban on the bull-taming sport of Jallikattu, a day after the AIADMK urged the Prime Minister to immediately issue an ordinance to remove “bulls” from the list of animals that are banned from being exhibited or trained so that there Jallikattu could be held smoothly this year.

The petition had sought the top court’s intervention to pass the judgement.

However, the court said that the draft of the Jallikattu judgement had been prepared but it was not possible to deliver it before Saturday, when the festival is to be organised in Tamil Nadu.

With Tamil Nadu asking the Centre to promulgate an ordinance to enable the smooth conduct of the bull taming sport, the government has said “things are ready from our side” but insisted that it would wait for the Supreme Court’s decision regarding the issue.

Environment Minister Anil Madhav Dave, who met a delegation led by Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha M Thambidurai, regarding this issue also blamed the previous Congress-led UPA government for including bulls in the list of animals prohibited from being exhibited or trained as performing animals.

Dave asserted that there was no ill treatment of the bulls during the performance of the sport and expressed confidence that the Supreme Court will look into all these aspects while giving its decision so that the people can celebrate their festivals with full pleasure.

The Supreme Court in November 2016 had dismissed the plea of the state government seeking review of its 2014 judgement which banned the use of bulls for Jallikattu events in the state.

New Delhi, Jan 12 : The Supreme Court today asked the Centre to set up a statutory mechanism to deal with citizens’ complaints against TV and radio programmes.

A bench comprising Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justice D Y Chandrachud asked the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to use the power under section 22 of the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act and set up a body to deal with complaints against television and radio channels.

The court considered the submission of the Centre that there has been mechanism to deal with such cases.

“The Union of India said that there is a mechanism. We, however, feel that it needs adequate publicity so as to enable common public to seek redressal of grievance,” the court said.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for NGO Common Cause, said “this business of self regulation business doesn’t work”.

Mumbai : Eminent lyricist-filmmaker Gulzar believes there is nothing wrong with film music changing with times and one should accept and learn to embrace it.

He says songs are written according to the mood of the character in a movie and it is unfair to compare them with those of the 50s or 60s era.

“Songs will be according to the film. If a character wants to sing a song after being drunk, he won’t sing ‘Dil Aey Naadan…’, but ‘Goli maar bheje main’. The language changes according to the characters,” he said.

“Time will change and with it music will too. Our speed has changed, clothes have changed, food habits have changed so why should music remain the same? Of 50s and 60s? Even that will change,” he said.

Gulzar was speaking at the curtain raiser of the Zee Jaipur Literature Festival last night.

The writer hailed Prasoon Joshi and Swanand Kirkire for bringing pure Hindi style to song lyrics which is otherwise being dominated mostly by Urdu and Punjabi.

He said one should keep up with the times and move ahead with the music.

“Somewhere, even the listener has to come out of the cave if you want to walk ahead. This has been going on in generation after generation, ‘oh these kids of today’s generation…’,” he said.

Gulzar also said that today, more than ever, Hindi film songs are being liked by the West, a space which didn’t have much presence of Bollywood music.

“Film music was taken outside by A R Rahman and it was accepted in the West for the first time. In our times, foreign version of films was made after editing the songs,” he said.

“Today, songs are being added because our music is being liked everywhere. You should look at this side also and not always complain that the music has changed today,” the lyricist further said.

The Jaipur Literature Festival will be held between January 19 and 23.

The festival’s Managing Director, Sanjoy Roy, said “over 400 authors” are expected to be present this year.

Apart from the authors, the festival, which is now in it’s 10th year, is expected to see participation by a host of thinkers, politicians, journalists and popular culture icons.

Mumbai : Police are recording statements of veteran actor Om Puri’s kin, friends and others in connection with his death, a senior official said today.

“Statements of his relatives, neighbours and friends are being recorded in the wake of post-mortem report which mentions that the actor had suffered an injury to his head,” the police official said.

There is noting suspicious in the case, however, we are verifying all aspects. Nothing has been found in his building’s CCTV camera too, police said.

On January 7, the Mumbai police had registered an ‘Accidental Death Report’ (ADR) in connection with Puri’s death.

Puri (66), known for his roles in several landmark films such as “Ardha Satya”, “City of Joy” and “Aakrosh”, died after a heart attack at his apartment in Lokandwala Complex in suburban Andheri here on January 6.

The actor had also sustained an injury, caused apparently when he collapsed to the floor after the heart attack.

Since he was alone at his house at the time of death and sustained an injury, Oshiwara police registered an ADR as per routine procedure, a senior police officer had said.

Sagar Islands (WB) Jan 14 :  Over nine lakh pilgrims took a holy dip at the Gangasagar today on the auspicious occasion of Makar Sankranti and offered prayers at Kapil Muni Ashram amidst tight security that is in place in view of the Gangasagar Mela, officials said.

Pilgrims started taking a holy dip from 2:52 AM onwards and the auspicious time for the dip will be over after 2:15 AM tomorrow.

One elderly pilgrim became ill and efforts were on to transfer him to Kolkata by a helicopter.

The state and South 24 Parganas district administration have taken a number of measures to avoid any untoward incident and deployed 9,000 policemen and volunteers to provide assistance to the pilgrims, officials said.

Altogether 165 CCTVs were also installed at various places to keep a close watch, they said.

A drone and 20 vessels including several from the Coast Guard were being used for surveillance.

The theme of Gangasagar Mela being ‘Green and Clean’ this year, the administration made arrangements for 10,000 toilets so that people could use it.

Gyandas Mohanto of Hanumangarhi Trust, which runs the Kapil Muni Ashram in Gangasagar, handed over the charge to Sanjay Das here.

Mohanto said that Sanjay Das will look after the day-to-day activities at the fair at Gangasagar nest year.

He also demanded that this fair should get the status of a national fair.

Mumbai, Jan 12 :  Tata Sons today named TCS Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director N Chandrasekaran as its new Chairman over two months after the unceremonious sacking of Cyrus Mistry.

Popularly known as ‘Chandra’, the 54-year-old was chosen to step into the shoes of interim Chairman Ratan Tata, who took over on October 24 last year after the removal of Mistry.

The decision to appoint Chandra, a Tata group veteran, was taken at a meeting of Tata Sons board here, sources said.

The decision followed a five-member search committee comprising Ratan Tata, TVS Group head Venu Srinivasan, Amit Chandra of Bain Capital, former diplomat Ronen Sen and Lord Kumar Bhattacharya zeroing in on Chandrasekaran. .

Madras High Court dismissed a PIL seeking a direction to the Centre to nationalise the immovable and movable properties of late Tamil Nadu chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Thursday, saying these were self-earned by her and the court could not interfere.

A division bench of the court here comprising Justice A.Selvam and Justice P Kalaiarasan said the PIL was not maintainable as it did not come under the description given for Public Interest Litigations by the Supreme Court.

Besides, the bench said the properties of Jayalalithaa were self-earned, bought by her in her personal capacity and the court could not interfere and give a direction to nationalise them.

Petitioner KK Ramesh of Tamil Nadu Centre for PIL, an NGO, had submitted that Jayalalithaa owned Rs 72 crore worth properties and did not have any direct heir. Nor did she mention as to who would inherit her properties.

Since she had openly stated that ‘she was for the people’, it was necessary for the government to take over her properties and use the revenue from them for the welfare of the poor people, he had contended.

Petitioner had also sought appointment of a retired high court judge to manage the properties of Jayalalithaa, who died on December 5 last year.

He moved the court as there was no response to his representation made to the Principal Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office on the matter, the petitioner had submitted.

Scientists have discovered why humans have an appendix – the small, thin tube attached to the large intestine whose purpose has long been a mystery.

The appendix is prone to painful inflammation, known as appendicitis, and sometimes has to be surgically removed.

It is usually considered a pointless, vestigial organ, but may actually serve as a reservoir for beneficial gut bacteria, according to researchers at Midwestern University in the US state of Arizona.

Associate Professor Heather Smith studied the intestines and environmental characteristics of 533 different mammals as part of their research into the evolution of the appendix.

Some animals, including primates, wombats and rabbits, have an appendix, while others, such as dogs and cats, do not.

They discovered the appendix had evolved 30 separate times in different species, and almost never disappeared from an evolutionary lineage once it had appeared.

Animals with an appendix have a higher concentration of lymphoid tissue in their gut, which plays an important role in the immune system, the scientists found.

This tissue can stimulate growth of some types of beneficial bacteria, which can be stored in the appendix, so it is not all lost if the creature suffers an attack of diarrhoea, it is believed.

Associate Professor Smith said it may take people who have had their appendix removed “slightly longer to recover from illness, especially those in which the beneficial gut bacteria has been flushed out of the body,” according to Time magazine.

 

Washington, Jan 14 :  Donald Trump may be trying to undermine the legacy of Barack Obama but an aluminium plaque carried to Mars by a NASA rover with the President’s signature would be hard to destroy.

Curiosity Mars rover’s Twitter handle @MarsCuriosity on Thursday posted a photo of a plaque bearing the signatures of Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and other US officials.

“Signed, sealed, delivered. I carried @POTUS’s signature to the surface of #Mars. http://go.nasa.gov/2jIeWVU #NASAPast8Years,” Curiosity Rover tweeted.

The image was taken by the rover’s Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) during the rover’s 44th Martian day on Mars.

“That is out of this world. Thanks, @NASA.,” Obama, who will demit the White House on January 20 after serving eight years as US President, tweeted.

The rectangular plaque made of anodized aluminum is located on the front left side of the rover’s deck. It was affixed to the rover’s deck with four bolts.

Similar plaques with signatures – including those of the sitting president and vice-president – adorn the lander platforms for NASA’s Spirit and Opportunity rovers, which landed on Mars in January of 2004.

The main purpose of Curiosity’s MAHLI camera is to acquire close-up, high-resolution views of rocks and soil at the rover’s Gale Crater field site, NASA said.

Pope Francis on Wednesday took aim at the modern world’s obsessions with power, success and beauty, citing the example of a woman who had an abortion to preserve her looks.

In an anecdote he said dated from his time as Bishop of Buenos Aires, Francis recounted the story of a a very beautiful woman who was inordinately proud of how she looked. “She said, as if it was natural, ‘Yes, I had to have an abortion because my appearance is important’,” the 80-year-old, whose papacy began in March 2013, said during his midweek public audience.

“When values such as physical beauty, health become idols to which everything must be sacrificed they create confusion in our spirit and in our hearts. Rather than promoting life, they drive us towards death,” he added in comments that also targeted “power, success and vanity with their illusions of eternity and omnipotence.”

Catholic teaching considers abortion as akin to the most heinous of murders. Francis does not waver from that line but has authorised priests to absolve women who have had terminations, something which only a bishop could previously do.

Jaipur, Jan 11 :  Camel races, safaris for tourists and camel fur cutting will be the highlights of the annual Camel Festival beginning in Bikaner from January 14.

Many fun activities have been lined up at the festival to attract tourists.

“Folk and fire dances and spectacular fireworks will light up the night sky in the desert city during the festival,” Ajay Sharma, Deputy Director of Tourism department said today.

The festival will begin with camel rides and camel safaris for tourists at the Gram Raisar on January 14 which will be followed by a grand procession from Junagarh to Karni Singh Stadium.

The inaugural ceremony will witness performances by Bagpiper Army Band and RAC Band.

Day two will begin with a heritage walk from Kote Gate to Bikaji Ki Tekri.

The visitors will also witness competitions like tug of war, rural wrestling, turban tying (for foreign tourists), camel milking, camel dance among others. Earthen pot race and musical chair competitions for the women will be held during the event, he said.

Camel Festival in Bikaner is an annual fair dedicated to the ship of the desert in which camels are beautifully bedecked and form a colourful spectacle.

The first wax museum attraction Madame Tussauds will debut in Delhi this June with its operator Merlin Entertainments foraying into India with an investment plan of 50 million pounds over the next 10 years. “Merlin Entertainments will open its first Madame Tussauds attraction in Delhi in June with 50 figures. 60% of the figures will be local celebrities and rest global,” Merlin Entertainments Director New Openings Europe and Emerging Markets Marcel Kloos told reporters.

UK-based Merlin Enterprises runs 116 attractions in 24 countries and the company will be foraying into the Indian market with the launch of Madame Tussauds in the national capital. When asked if the company is also looking to bring in its other brands such as SeaLife and Legoland in the country, Merlin Entertainments India General Manger and Director Anshul Jain said: “We are looking at bringing in other brands but our priority is to launch Madame Tussauds in Delhi. We plan to invest 50 million pounds over the next 10 years.”

Talking about investments the company has made in opening its first Madame Tussauds attraction in India, Jain said: “We cannot give specific details but we are launching India with 50 figures with a minimum investment of Rs 1.5 crore for each figure.” The museum will be housed in the Regal Cinema building at Connaught Place and will be spread over two floors.

Khagaria (Bihar), Jan 12 : Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to order liquor ban in all BJP-ruled states in order to create a “favourable environment” for prohibition in the entire country.

“I thank prime minister for praising bringing prohibition in Bihar. I also praise him (PM) for effectively implementing liquor ban in his home state Gujarat during 12 years of his chief ministership,” he said addressing ‘Chetna Sabha’ here.

“I urge the PM to implement prohibition in the entire country and to create a favourable environment for it he should get liquor ban promulgated in the BJP-ruled states,” Kumar said.

During th 350th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh in Bihar, PM Modi had lauded Kumar for effectively implementing prohibition in the state and had appealed to all political parties and social groups to join the campaign to ensure its success.

Kumar, whose government declared Bihar a dry state in April last year, has taken it on a mission mode and is moving across Bihar through his ‘Nishchay Yatra’ to get the feedback from people on banning trade and consumption of alcohol, both domestic and Indian-Made Foreign Liquor.

He also spoke about the praise by Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama for prohibition.

The Dalai Lama, who is in Bodh Gaya in connection with Kalachakra Puja being attended by devotees of 80 countries, has also praised Kumar for trying to ensure complete ban on liquor and urged followers not to touch it.

Kumar highlighted the positive results of prohibition from April 2016, when it was imposed, to November 2016 while claiming that there had been a substantial drop in heinous crimes like murder, dacoity, kidnapping and loot besides road accidents.

He said there was increase in the sales of milk, sweets, readymade clothes and sewing machines among other items from money saved from liquor consumption.

Kumar appealed to people to participate in the mammoth human chain on January 21 to express their commitment to liquor ban and welcomed the support extended to it by BJP.

“All protests against prohibition will vanish when everybody unites against it,” he said.

New Delhi, Jan 12 : Moving ahead with the strategic sale of Pawan Hans, the government today said it will sell its entire 51 per cent stake and transfer the management control of the helicopter service operator.

Pawan Hans is a joint venture where state-owned ONGC holds 49 per cent.

The government has sought applications from entities to act as transaction advisor for the proposed disinvestment of its stake in the company.

“The government of India intends to divest its entire shareholding of 51 per cent in Pawan Hans Ltd, through strategic disinvestment with transfer of management control,” a public notice said today.

As per the notice, issued by the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management, a transaction advisor is to be roped in from “reputed professional consulting firm, investment bankers, merchant bankers, financial institutions and banks” who would provide advisory services and manage the strategic disinvestment process.

The deadline for sending the applications is February 2.

Set up in 1985, Pawan Hans currently has a fleet of 46 helicopters.

It was incorporated with the primary objective of providing helicopter support services to the oil sector for off-shore exploration operations, services in remote and hilly areas as well as for charter services.

Earlier this month, defence equipment maker BEML said government would offload 26 per cent stake through strategic disinvestment that could fetch the exchequer Rs 1,000 crore.

Government has set a disinvestment target of Rs 56,500 crore for the current financial year and so far around Rs 24,000 crore has been mopped up through share sale and buy backs.

New Delhi, Jan 11 : The Supreme Court today rejected plea for a court-monitored SIT probe into bribery allegations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the basis of documents seized during the raids in business houses–Sahara and Birla– on the ground they had no no evidentiary value.

The case based on “random materials” like loose sheets, papers, e-mail print outs is “merit less” as they are “inadmissible materials” having “no evidentiary value under the law” to order registration of FIR and investigation, more so against the high constitutional functionaries, whose names are mentioned in the documents which has been held as prima facie “fabricated” by income tax settlement commission, the court said.

The high-voltage hearing was conducted by a new bench of Justices Arun Mishra and Amitava Roy which said “courts have to be on guard” while dealing with matters demanding probe against high functionaries as the case in hand was devoid of any “cogent” material or “independent evidence corroborating materials” to order investigation.

The new bench was constituted as Prashant Bhushan, lawyer for the Common Cause, had sought recusal of the then Chief Justice of India-designate, Justice J S Khehar, on the ground that his file for elevation for CJI was pending with the executive headed by the Prime Minister.

“There must be some cogent, reliable and admissible evidence”. Otherwise the process of law can be abused to achieve ulterior goals,” the court observed dismissing the NGO’s plea.

Dissatisfied with the loose sheets, which were claimed to be part of the diary entries of the Sahara Group and Aditya Birla Group, containing entries like “Gujarat CM” and other politicians, the bench said materials placed on record by the NGO, Common Cause were not maintained by the two business housed in the regular course of business.

Another bench of the court had earlier termed the loose sheets and other material “zero material” to order investigation.

“In view of the materials placed on record and peculiarity of the facts and circumstances, no case is made out on merits to direct investigation against various political functionaries, officers etc. The interim applications are found to be merit less and are dismissed,” the bench said.

The bench also referred to the order passed by the Income Tax Settlement Commission in the Sahara group matter and said that the commission has also found prima facie that materials recovered from the group were not genuine and fabricated.