News Digest: Australian high commissioner meets science and tech minister ahead of PM Abbot's maiden visit

		THE TIMES OF INDIA
		Wednesday, August 27, 2014
		Today's Headlines

		India
		Australian high commissioner meets science and tech minister ahead of PM Abbot's maiden visit Australian high commissioner in New Delhi, Patrick Suckling, met Jitendra Singh and discussed different issues likely to come up during Abott's visit. Jaitley hopeful of Parliament nod on Insurance Bill by year-end Finance minister Arun Jaitley on Tuesday expressed hope that long-pending Insurance Bill seeking to hike FDI cap to 49 per cent will be passed by Parliament by the end of this year. Rajinikanth in good books of BJP, says Tamilisai Superstar Rajinikanth is in the good books of BJP and is welcome to join the party, state BJP chief Tamilisai Soundararajan said on Tuesday. More India News»

		Business
		Jan Dhan: Banks target 1 crore accounts in two days This translates into each public sector bank branch opening close to 125 accounts each over the next two days, along with issuing Aadhaar numbers on the spot and authenticating the new address wherever the beneficiary of the no-frills account certifies a change in address. Power, metal stocks continue to slide Among the stocks hit badly on Tuesday was Reliance Power, which lost 6.4% to Rs 77 while Adani Power was down 6.4% at Rs 49. MFs fall back on closed-ended funds Over the last one year, about 35 closed-ended schemes have mobilized over Rs 6,000 crore, while a couple of schemes — one each from UTI Mutual Fund and ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund — are currently open for subscription. More Business News»

		Environment
		New butterfly species found in Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh is known as a treasure trove of nature, where one after another, new fish and butterfly species have been found in recent years. Govt to ban pesticides harming bees The fertiliser ministry is likely to soon recommend a ban on the use of a pesticides that are harmful for bees, particularly honeybees. From 50 in 2013, Tadoba-Andhari tigers up by 10 The abstracts of the report were discussed at a two-day internal research seminar by WII from August 18-20. More Environment News»

		World
		Gaza truce open-ended, but puts off tough issues In the end, both sides settled for an ambiguous interim agreement in exchange for a period of calm.Hamas, though badly battered, remains in control of Gaza with part of its military arsenal intact. Putin, Poroshenko hold bilateral meeting: Officials Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine's Petro Poroshenko on Tuesday began a bilateral meeting in Minsk to discuss the conflict raging in eastern Ukraine, officials said. US hostage held by IS is female aid worker Family members and US officials say the Islamic State militant group has been holding a young American woman hostage in Syria since last year. More World News»

		Entertainment
		Kareena Kapoor Khan visits Ajmer Dargah Kareena Kapoor landed in Jaipur on Monday and headed straight to the Ajmer Dargah to seek divine blessings of Khawja Moinuddin Chisti. SRK will be the next target: Underworld Top 10 double meaning songs Marathi actor and producer Dada Kondke may have made it big in the Marathi music industry but his hit music numbers have gained popularity throughout the nation. More Entertainment News»

		Science
		US firm plans to put life-detector on Mars A private American space organization, Explore Mars, has announced a new method of detecting life on the Red Planet by employing military technology. This polish nails date-rape drug by changing hue A group of university students in the US have come up with a unique way of helping to protect women from sexual assault on nights out - a nail polish that changes colour when it comes into contact with date-rape drugs. Modern airships brace for space odyssey Airships are dusty relics of aviation history. Lighter-than-air vehicles conjure images of the Hindenburg, in its glory and destruction, and the Goodyear Blimp, a floating billboard that barely resembles its powerful predecessors. More Science News»

		Sports
		Footballer Frank Lampard retires from England duty Since making his England debut in 1999, the 36-year-old Lampard has scored 29 goals in 106 appearances, with his last appearance coming at the World Cup 2014. Ana Ivanovic storms into US Open second round Serbia's Ana Ivanovic beat American Alison Riske 6-3, 6-0 in the first round Tuesday. Ivanovic has won 48 matches this year, more than anyone else on tour. Saina Nehwal progresses in World Championship Saina Nehwal stormed into the third round of the World Badminton Championship with a commanding straight game win over Natalia Perminova. More Sports News»

		Technology
		Review: Xolo 8X-1000 smartphone and HIVE UI How does Xolo’s first attempt at creating a customized UI work out? Does it hamper the user experience or does it help the phone work better? We find out in our Xolo 8X-1000 review… Android One smartphones set to become expensive Indian manufactures are set to price Android One handsets between Rs 7,000 and Rs 10,000, higher than the planned sub-$100 (Rs 6,000) tag. 6 reasons Xiaomi Redmi 1S is a game changer We got a chance to experience the phone during a media meet and here's why we feel it is a game changer... More Technology News»

		Education
		Students' papers to be verified online The time-consuming document verification process of Bangalore University (BU) students is all set to go online from the next academic year. Educational Initiatives, Duke TIP launch talent search programme for school children The ‘Duke TIP ASSET India Talent Search 2014’ programme seeks to identify toppers in mathematics, science and English in classes 7 and 8 and give them a platform to aim for more. Only 17,500 poor kids provided free books, Delhi high court told Out of around 70,000 children from poor and disadvantaged families, only 17,500 have been provided free books in this academic year, the Delhi government informed the Delhi high court on Tuesday. More Education News»

		Mumbai
		MFs fall back on closed-ended funds Over the last one year, about 35 closed-ended schemes have mobilized over Rs 6,000 crore, while a couple of schemes — one each from UTI Mutual Fund and ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund — are currently open for subscription. Shah Rukh Khan gets extra cover after Pujari threat Police have beefed up security at the residence and office of actor Shah Rukh Khan after fugitive gangster Ravi Pujari mentioned the actor's name in an SMS threat issued to film producer Karim Morani and followed it up with a threat call to the actor's office. Maharashtra govt suspends rape-accused DIG Sunil Paraskar Deputy inspector general of police Sunil Paraskar, accused of raping a model, was suspended on Tuesday to facilitate an “impartial” departmental probe into the allegation that he misused his office. More Mumbai News»

		Delhi
		14-yr-old girl alleges rape by 2 youths A case has been registered at the Harsh Vihar police station in northeast Delhi. Cops identify woman on pyre, family still missing Police have identified the woman whose body had been abandoned on the pyre at Nigambodh Ghat on August 19. AAP to start cleanup drive Aam Aadmi Party’s volunteers in Malviya Nagar, along with residents, will start a signature campaign in the area from Monday to demand dustbins and toilets in the colony. More Delhi News»

		Bangalore
		Traditional festival sweets hit the shelves It's the season for a sugar rush: the modak, kayi kadubu, panchakajjaya, kari modak and must-have obbattu are being patted, shaped, steamed and fried in traditional Kannadiga homes in time for Ganesh Chaturthi. Lokayukta raids 7 babus, nets Rs 9.7 cr illegal assets In simultaneous raids across the state, Lokayukta police swooped down on seven officials and unearthed disproportionate assets worth over Rs 9.7 crore from them. Narendra Modi aide Vajubhai Vala is Karnataka governor Vajubhai Vala, 76, Gujarat Assembly speaker and senior BJP leader of that state, has been appointed the governor of Karnataka.  More Bangalore News»

		Hyderabad
		From Jana Sangh foot soldier to Maharashtra governor, Vidyasagar Rao comes a long way For someone who began as a foot soldier in Jana Sangh several decades ago, Ch Vidyasagar Rao has come a long way as he gets ready to take charge as the new governor of Maharashtra. Hyderabad woman gangraped in front of husband, brother-in-law A 21-year-old daily wage worker was gang-raped by five people at Medipally on Tuesday. The victim, along with her husband and brother-in-law had migrated to the city from Mahbubnagar a week ago in search of livelihood. Ration card screening may save govt Rs 200 crore The Telangana state government expects to save about Rs 200 crore per year once it completes the massive exercise of eliminating bogus white ration cards. More Hyderabad News»

		Chennai
		Near Kalpakkam, geotubes to check marauding sea It has been a fortnight since they got into the boats. Rajendran and his fellow fishermen at Kadalur Periyakuppam are hopeful, however, and continue to mend the nets in their village south of Kalpakkam, gazing at the rough sea that causes rapid erosion on their shoreline. Tamil Nadu: where the masses set the norm Word is that Tamil is a language like no other. And researchers at the People's Linguistic Survey of India have several reasons to offer. Karunanidhi's Teso lauds Modi for efforts to find Lanka solution The Tamil Eelam Supporters Organization (Teso), headed by DMK chief M Karunanidhi, on Tuesday lauded the NDA government’s efforts to find a political solution to the Sri Lankan Tamils issue and asked the Centre to expedite steps in this regard. More Chennai News»

		Ahmedabad
		SFI fee hike to hit students hard For the students who have got admission in various colleges earlier this month, the second semester is going to be pricey. State to be secured with 'Eklavya' A year ago, if police had encountered a mangled car on a state highway with all the occupants dead on any Saturday, they had to wait for two days till the RTO opens on Monday to get the details of the car registration. More volunteers for traffic warden scheme City police's traffic branch conducted its second awareness seminar at Bapunagar police station to create awareness about traffic rules and encourage senior citizens to join the traffic warden scheme. More Ahmedabad News»

		Allahabad
		Railways to set up ticketing centres outside stations For easy access of tickets from counters other than railway stations, Indian Railways will open up yatri ticket suvidha Kendra. These kendras will sell both reserved and unreserved tickets through PRS (passenger reservation system) and UTS (unreserved ticketing system) counters respectively. Railways has also allowed private participation in the establishment and operation of these centres. In this connection, Indian Railways has given instructions to all the zonal railways including North Central Railway. UP Board: Online registration for IX, XI begins The world’s biggest examination conducting body, UP Board has started online registration of students taking class IX and XI examinations. The Board has started a special website www.upm.sp.edu. for the purpose. At least 23,000 schools across the state have been instructed to apply before October 1. UPTET qualified candidates still wait Board recognition Saumya cleared Uttar Pradesh Teachers Eligibility Test (UPTET) in 2011 while she was still pursuing BEd, which is the mandatory qualifying examination. She passed BEd a year before the declaration of TET results in 2013. Three years on, the candidate is still running from pillar to post to know whether she is eligible to apply for teaching in government or aided schools or not. More Allahabad News»

		Bhubaneswar
		Setback for smart class project The ambitious e-vidyalaya project launched by the state government to provide ICT-based education in schools received a setback as a high-level technical committee raised objection over the list of electronic equipment and goods the government wanted to buy. Funds shortage hits ailing folk artist Proper medical care eludes cash-strapped Sanchar artist Bisakha Rana, suffering from a kidney ailment. Gave money to politicians to buy their favour: AT boss Pradeep Sethy, chit fund organization Artha Tatwa (AT) Group's CMD, on Monday said he had given money to at least 55 prominent persons, including politicians, ostensibly to buy their favour for pursuing his activities. More Bhubaneswar News»

		Bhopal
		Was it a murder bid at Scindia School? Scindia School management, which hushed up the matter for two days, told police he was found sprawled on the balcony of his hostel room. Three Scindia School students held for abetting suicide Five people, including three students, were on Tuesday arrested in connection with the alleged suicide attempt by Bihar minister Jai Kumar Singh’s 14-year-old son at Gwalior's Scindia School last week. MP's first bio-toilet on a platform inaugurated at Habibganj station The state’s first bio-toilet on a platform was inaugurated at the Habibganj railway station by the west central railways (WCR) on Monday. More Bhopal News»

		Chandigarh
		New clot buster set to revolutionize medicine A clot buster, which can target a clot in the blood vessels without internal bleeding and dissolve it, is set for launch, subject to regulatory clearances after clinical trials. Golf club terms DC bank seal illegal The Chandigarh Golf Club has not taken kindly to the Deputy Commissioner's act of sealing the bank accounts as the DC "is not empowered to do so under the law". Fire & Emergency Services Committee sanctions breathing compressors Sources said the MC had two breathing air compressors, out of which one is out of order, because of which the fire department wants an AMC contract. More Chandigarh News»

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