Taliban abductors of an Indian engineer in Afghanistan this evening threatened to kill him if all Indians did not leave the country by 7 P.M. (IST) tomorrow as reported by PTI.

With the news of Taliban issuing the threat, the Government stepped up efforts to secure early and safe release of K Suryanarayan, but asserted that India “will continue to fulfil its solemn commitments to Afghanistan’s development.” The Government tonight sent a team of officials to Kabul to assist the Indian Embassy there. The team has been authorised to establish contact with all parties through appropriate channels in order to secure the safe and early release of the 41-year-old engineer.

Suryanarayan’s family in Hyderabad appealed to the abductors to free him without any harm and urged the government to ensure their reunion with the father of three.

The engineer, working with a Bahrain-based company Al-Moayed and engaged in a telecom project in Afghanistan, was abducted last evening in Hassan Kareiz district of Zabul on Kandahar-Kabul highway along with his Afghan driver.

Issuing the threat, a man claiming to be the spokesman for Taliban called up news agency AP and claimed that Suryanarayan was an “American spy”.

“We warn all Indians working here to leave Afghanistan within 24 hours starting 6 PM (7 PM IST) today, otherwise we will kill him,” the caller identifying himself as Qari Yousef Ahmadi was quoted as saying. Ahmadi releases regular statements on behalf of Taliban.

To take stock of evolving developments, Cabinet Secretary B K Chaturvedi here chaired a high-level meeting that was also attended by senior officials from the Ministries of External Affairs and Home Affairs. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is also being kept briefed about the situation. PTI

The 93rd Constitutional amendment rings in a new sound, a not very musical one, Reservation in private schools. The law that enables the Centre to extend OBC quota to private and public professional colleges, also permits it to introduce 27% quota in high-profile schools, like Sanskriti, Delhi Public School, Modern School, Amity, et al.

The Law Ministry’s draft Bill for increasing the access of backward classes to higher education is ready. The draft, Reservation of Seats in Central Educational Institutions, 2006, was sent to the HRD Ministry, which forwarded it to the Cabinet Secretariat on March 27.

The draft Bill has seven sections clearly earmarking 27 per cent for “educationally and socially backward classes up to a maximum of 50 per cent (the cap on quotas set by the Supreme Court)� in all 32 Central educational institutions.

This means that the existing SC/ST reservation of 22.5 percent will make the total reservation 49.5 percent and the remaining 0.5 percent could be further added, if and when further castes are notified under the “socially and educationally backward classes.�

As it is worded, the 93rd Constitutional Amendment, inserting Clause 5 in Article 15, makes the previously inconceivable idea possible. It empowers the government to make any law for OBC/SC/ST reservation in private “educational institutions”. The insertion of the phrase “educational institutions” ends up including schools in its ambit besides the professional colleges.

Experts are unanimous in their view that the statute amendment as it is worded can make reservation mandatory in private schools if the government desires.

Reservations is all what every one is talking bout nowadays. Some are protesting against it some are favouring it. People are talking bout merits vs quota and what not. We have been seeing that voices have been raised against it all over India but if you ask me personally, I think we should have job reservations in all the fields.

I have my complete support for all the reservation and quota thing doing rounds nowadays and I am with all the politicians for promoting this. And Why should we limit the reservations only to jobs in private and public sector. I think we should have it in all the fields and Let’s start the reservation with our cricket team. We should have 10 percent reservation for muslims. 30 percent for OBC, SC/ST like that. Cricket rules should be modified accordingly. The boundary circle should be reduced for an SC/ST player. The four hit by an OBC player should be considered as a six and a six hit by a OBC player should be counted as 8 runs. An OBC player scoring 60 runs should be declared as a century.

We should influence ICC and make rules so that the pace bowlers like Shoaib Akhtar should not bowl fast balls to our OBC player. Bowlers should bowl maximum speed of 80 kilometer per hour to an OBC player. Any delivery above this speed should be made illegal.

Also we should have reservation in Olympics. In the 100 meters race, an OBC player should be given a gold medal if he runs 80 meters.

There can be reservation in Government jobs also. Let’s recruit SC/ST and OBC pilots for aircrafts which are carrying the ministers and politicians (that can really help the country.. )

Ensure that only SC/ST and OBC doctors do the operations for the ministers and other politicians. (Another way of saving the country..)

Let’s be creative and think of ways and means to guide INDIA forward…

Let’s show the world that INDIA is a GREAT country. Let’s be proud of being an INDIAN..

May the good breed of politicans like ARJUN SINGH long live…

So what do you think?????????

In the past few months, Bird flu has generated a lot of news and really has cuased a scare. News agencies have reported that a number of chicken have died and this flu has even taken a toll on the human lives. But is this all true?? Some pople say that it is not. Inface they say that it is a money genrating gimmick of few very influential interested parties.

They say “So far only 55 people have died of the so-called bird flu (7,000 died by lighting last year alone) so are we having a lighting epidemic, rubbish? These deaths were due to Respiratory symptoms, but not confirmed.How many people handling birds have died because of diarrhea? Must be more than 55 in the last few years; then we can say we are in a Salmonella epidemic??? “

Any layman can understand that any thing cooked beyond 70 degrees centigrade cannot contain any germs or viruses. So how can eating a cooked chicken cause it. Reports have come it that a lesser known company called Gilead would stand to benefit because of the widespread rumours of Birdflu. Now, the question is how?? Gilead has the patent for “TAMIFLU” whose sale would boost up because of the epedemics of the bird flu. Would any one buy that as a story?? But sadly its true.

Now, Who is the major shareholder of this company? Can anybody guess? Lemme tell you..
Donald H. Rumsfeld. He was chairman of the Board of Gilead Sciences, where he remained until early 2001 when he became defense secretary in Bush’s Cabinet.

And Who else stands to benefit?
Bush campaign funders, Bilderberger spokesman Etienne F. Davignon and Reagan-Bush former secretary of state George P. Shultz, both of who are also on the board of directors of Gilead. Another member of the Bush circle is Lodewijk J.R. deVink, who sits on the board of Hoffman-La Roche, Gilead ‘s partner.

In other words, bird flu will generate outrageous profits for insiders like Shultz, Rumsfled, Davignon and deVink.

By the way, what is Tamiflu (Generic name: Oseltamivir Phosphate)? It’s an extract from Star Aniseed (our very own Garam Masala) and each dose is $100; so even if 15% of the world has one dose – then the total sale will be just $100 billion.

Since last year media started this “Tamasha” by highlighting the news from other countries. Our Poultry Industry suffered losses due to those rumors during that year and now millions of farmers will loose their jobs & be bankrupt but only a few people will make money.

I know it is going to be late & millions are going to loose their livelihood in India; Chicken is being sold at Rs. 4/kg in some places. Think of the state of the Farmer & unlike other countries he is not going to be compensated (only farmers in Navapur, Nandurbar are being compensated).

So, it my sincere request to all of you that spread this information to everyone.

** Remember that anything cooked over 70 degrees is safe **

Lesson One

An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing. A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, “Can I also sit like you and do nothing?â€Â� the eagle answered, “Sure, why not.” Therefore, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested.

All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the Rabbit and ate it.

Management Lesson – To be sitting and doing nothing,
you must be Sitting very, very high up.

Lesson Two

A turkey was chatting with a bull. “I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree,â€Â� said the turkey, “but I haven’t got the energy.” “Well, why don’t you nibble on some of my droppings?” replied the Bull.â€Â� They’re packed with nutrients.” The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch.

Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree. A farmer, who shot him out of the tree, promptly spotted him.

Management Lesson – Bullshit might get you to the top, but it will not keep you there.

Lesson Three

A little bird was flying south for the winter. It was so cold; the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field. While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him. As the frozen, bird lay there in the pile of cow dung; he began to realize how warm he was. The dung was actually thawing him out! He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing
for joy. A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to Investigate. Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow Dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.

Management Lesson

(1) Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy.

(2) Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your
friend.

(3) And when you are in deep shit, it is best to keep
your mouth shut!

Observing that pressures of competition have hobbled professionalism and encouraged some “unhealthy” trends, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today asked the media to play a constructive role in the process of moderation and consensus building on issues of public and national interest.

“Journalism of courage is not just about giving voice to those who are willing to shout, but it is about giving voice to the voiceless and to those who choose to be silent,” he said while presenting the first Ramnath Goenka Awards for Excellence in journalism to 16 media persons.

The Prime Minister said objectivity did not imply neutrality. “It implies respect for truth and facts and willingness to take positions, howsoever contrarian or contentious”.

Emphasising that government has to ensure consensus on many issues across a wide spectrum of political opinion, he said if the national media was content with focussing only on disagreement, who would widen the area of agreement.

“Our democracy may be better off if we can increase the area of agreement, rather than sharpen disagreements,” he said contending that getting rivals to disagree and turn debate into a “gladiatorial sport”, may be entertaining and commercially rewarding but did not help society move forward.

The INDO-U.S. nuclear deal signed in March got a big boost on Thursday when two top Democratic Senators joined their Republican colleagues in cautiously welcoming the agreement and promising qualified support.

At a crucial hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the first hurdle in a long legislative process to give life to the deal, Senator Joseph Biden, the top Democrat on the Committee, and former Presidential candidate John Kerry, supported the Bush administration’s initiative despite some reservations.

The US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has made the strongest speech so far on why the nuclear deal with India should actually be carried through. Rice was firm on her stand against persistent demands from opponents of the deal in the US Congress to impose new conditions such as limiting the size of India’s arsenal or linking the nuclear agreement to such issues as India’s relationship with Iran.

There were back-to-back hearings in the Senate and the House of Representatives that lasted more than six hours, and Rice was firm and polite all through.

She never once deviated from the actual framework of the deal that President George W. Bush had agreed with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in India.

And as reported in a leading English daily, “Whatever might be the eventual outcome in the US Congress and the NSG, Rice’s defence of the nuclear deal, running into more than 100 printed pages of single space text, would be remembered for long in New Delhi for one simple reason.

By any measure, it is the strongest public defence of India’s policies by any foreign leader since the nation’s independence nearly sixty years ago�

This is a significant move where police claiming to have cracked the Varanasi blasts case. Today Police have arrested six militants including the key conspirator, in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, in connection with the March 7 twin explosions, which is jointly planned by the two outfits.

It is claimed that these militants are linked with terrorist out fits of Bangladesh-based HuJi and JeM of Pakistan.

The blasts in the temple town, that claimed 20 lives, were planned by Harkat-ul-Jehadi-Islamia and Jaish-e-Mohammad militant outfits. The six ultras of these outfits, including main conspirator Wali Ullah, were arrested from Lucknow, Allahabad, Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh and one place in West Bengal, police sources said.

The sources said the six militants were trained by the JeM outfit.

The central security agencies and the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force, which had been working on the case, claimed to have solved it with the arrest of the six ultras.

This is the first such attack jointly carried out by two militant outfits operating outside the country.

On March 7, two explosions occurred in quick succession at the Sankatmochan shrine and the cantonment railway station, killing 20 people and injuring over 50.

The worst hit was the railway station where 14 people were killed and 30 injured. The other blast at the famous Sankatmochan temple occurred when it was teeming with devotees, killing six persons and injuring 25 others. PTI

The conviction of Sunil More, the 35-year old Mumbai constable in the case of rape of a college girl inside a police chowki last April, in less than a year in a regular court, assumes great significance in comparison to the slow trial or lack of justice in cases like that of Jessica Lal or Mattoo.

The case had shaken Mumbai’s faith in the police force last April after the constable was arrested for raping a college girl in a police chowki on Marine Drive. Relying largely on the in-camera deposition of the 16-year-old collegian, the judge held the former cop guilty of rape, wrongful confinement and criminal intimidation.

The conviction brought the curtain down on one of the most shocking cases of police excess in the city in recent times, although an appeal is likely.

The constable was given 12 years’ rigorous imprisonment by a session’s court judge on Monday. Although one of the two medical reports in the case said that there was “incomplete sexual intercourse”; the judge said that this did not make a difference since he had based his conclusion on the girl’s testimony, which withstood cross-examination in court.

As it stands, Sunil Atmaram More, a former constable attached to the Marine Drive police station, will now serve 12 years’ rigorous imprisonment and will have to pay a penalty of Rs 26,500, to be given to the victim.

When an overloaded wooden boat on a dinner cruise sank off Bahrain coast on Thursday night, at least 21 Indians, including two women, were among 57 people killed. There were over 130 people aboard, all of whom worked for South African construction firm Murray & Roberts or its professional design team, NASS, and various subcontractors.

The cruise had been organized to celebrate the completion of concrete structure of Bahrain World Trade Centre Towers by the company. The authorities had detained the boat’s captain for questioning after concerns arose about his qualifications and whether the boat was overloaded. Officials have said 126 people were believed to have been on board. Tourism sources said the vessel had a capacity of 100.

And now adding salt to the wounds is the report that the boat was not licensed to sail.

Interior Ministry spokesman Colonel Tareq Al-Hassan told reporters late on Saturday that the ship’s owner had applied for a licence but never completed the procedures.

“The owner of the ship had applied for a license in December 2005. He was asked to meet the regulations and he was given a list of regulations that were required,” Hassan said. “He went away to complete the regulations but never came back for the boat to be licensed. So the ship is not licensed to be a sailing ship but it is registered as a fishing boat,” Hassan said.

The dinner party is over, the precious lives lost and the boat was not even licensed to sail. Tragic.