Devendra Fadnavis takes oath as BJP's first CM in Maharashtra...!!

Devendra Fadnavis was sworn-in as the chief minister of the first BJP government in Maharashtra in an open function at Wankhede stadium in Mumbai on Friday.

Maharashtra Governor C.V. Rao administered the oath of office and mystery to Fadnavis, 44, at a ceremony in Wankhede Stadium saw by in excess of 30,000 individuals.

PM Narendra Modi, Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah, business head honchos, celebrities from film indutries, sportspersons and big names were available on the occassion.

Along with Chief Minister Mr. Devendra Fadnavis, Eknath Khadse, Sudhir Mungantiwar, Vindo Sridhar Tawde, Prakash Mansukhbhai Mehta, Chandrakant W Patil, Pankaja Munde, Vishnu Rama Savara also takes an oath as the part of the new cabinet ministry in Maharashtra.

For more info visit: http://goo.gl/XqhC5o

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WHO: Pollution kills 7 million people every year

LONDON (AP) — Air pollution kills about 7 million people worldwide every year, with more than half of the fatalities due to fumes from indoor stoves, according to a new report from the World Health Organization published Tuesday.

The agency said air pollution is the cause of about one in eight deaths and has now become the single biggest environmental health risk.

"We all have to breathe, which makes pollution very hard to avoid," said Frank Kelly, director of the environmental research group at King's College London, who was not part of the WHO report.

One of the main risks of pollution is that tiny particles can get deep into the lungs, causing irritation. Scientists also suspect air pollution may be to blame for inflammation in the heart, leading to chronic problems or a heart attack.

WHO estimated that there were about 4.3 million deaths in 2012 caused by indoor air pollution, mostly people cooking inside using wood and coal stoves in Asia. WHO said there were about 3.7 million deaths from outdoor air pollution in 2012, of which nearly 90 percent were in developing countries.

But WHO noted that many people are exposed to both indoor and outdoor air pollution. Due to this overlap, mortality attributed to the two sources cannot simply added together, hence WHO said it lowered the total estimate from around 8 million to 7 million deaths in 2012.

The new estimates are more than double previous figures and based mostly on modeling. The increase is partly due to better information about the health effects of pollution and improved detection methods. Last year, WHO's cancer agency classified air pollution as a carcinogen, linking dirty air to lung and bladder cancer.

WHO's report noted women had higher levels of exposure than men in developing countries.

"Poor women and children pay a heavy price from indoor air pollution since they spend more time at home breathing in smoke and soot from leaky coal and wood cook stoves," Flavia Bustreo, WHO Assistant Director-General for family, women and children's health, said in a statement.

Other experts said more research was needed to identify the deadliest components of pollution in order to target control measures more effectively.

"We don't know if dust from the Sahara is as bad as diesel fuel or burning coal," said Majid Ezzati, chair in global environmental health at Imperial College London.

Kelly said it was mostly up to governments to curb pollution levels, through measures like legislation, moving power stations away from big cities and providing cheap alternatives to indoor wood and coal stoves.

He said people could also reduce their individual exposure to choking fumes by avoiding traveling at rush hour or by taking smaller roads. Despite the increasing use of face masks in heavily polluted cities such as Beijing and Tokyo, Kelly said there was little evidence that they work.

"The real problem is that wearing masks sends out the message we can live with polluted air," he said. "We need to change our way of life entirely to reduce pollution."

source: http://townhall.com/news/world/2014/03/24/who-pollution-kills-7-million-people-every-year-n1814011

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Sachin Tendulkar voted Cricketer of the Generation

MUMBAI: One of the greatest batsmen of all time, the iconic Sachin Tendulkar was on Friday voted Cricketer of the Generation as he staved off stiff competition from spin legend Shane Warne and all-rounder par excellence Jacques Kallis at the ESPNcricinfo awards function.

The award is meant to honour the most outstanding cricketer between the years 1993 and 2013, and the occasion also marked the 20th anniversary celebrations for the cricket website.

"I am speechless, honestly," said Tendulkar after receiving the award.

"Thanks to ESPNcricinfo for considering me worthy enough. When Martin (Crowe) and Rahul (Dravid) both spoke about me, I didn't know how to react."

Tendulkar has been the most successful batsman of his generation, having set innumerable records in both Tests and ODIs.

He rewrote some of the most coveted batting records, including those for most Test runs and Test hundreds, and for most ODI runs and ODI hundreds. The Mumbaikar is the only cricketer to score hundred international centuries.

On Kallis, Tendulkar said, "I first saw him in 1996. He looked an okay player and I thought, this guy could become a decent allrounder. But over a period of time, how he changed his batting technique and worked on his bowling was incredible.

"Kallis used to walk with his head down and I used to tell my teammates that once he has realised which way the blades of the grass are, he is going to make you pay."

Talking about Warne, he said, "I first played against Warne in 1992 and you could make out he had the talent, but he wasn't consistent enough in the first game.

"The second time I faced him was in Sri Lanka and I was beaten by his spin. I charged him next ball and was lucky to get away. Warne came up to me and tried to charge me up, but I turned towards square leg and ignored him. Post match, i asked him, 'Warne, what were you trying to say?' From then onwards, we became good friends."

Tendulkar ended his glorious 24-year international career last November, signing off with an elegant 74 against the West Indies in his final Test innings.

Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma won the awards for best batting performances in Tests and ODIs while Mitchell Johnson and Shahid Afridi bagged the top prize in Test bowling and ODI bowling, respectively, in the seventh annual ESPNcricinfo Awards.

Dhawan, who slammed the fastest century as a debutant scoring 187 against Australia, got the award for best Test batting.

His opening partner Rohit Sharma won the award in ODIs for his brilliant 209 against Australia in Bangalore. He beat the likes of Virat Kohli and Kiwi top-order batsman Martin Guptill.

Aussie speedster Johnson, who has been at the peak of his form, was awarded with the best bowling performance in Test cricket for his match winning spell of seven for 40 on a flat wicket in Adelaide against arch-rivals England in the Ashes series.

Mercurial Pakistan player Shahid Afridi bagged the award for best bowling in ODIs, for his devastating spell of seven for 12 against the West Indies in the Carribean.

Promising Indian pacer Mohammad Shami won the award for the best debutant that was voted by the fans, while Tarak Sinha got the award for contribution to cricket that was decided by a panel headed by former India captain Rahul Dravid.

Sinha is the first recipient of this award and he was recognised for producing 11 international cricketers and over 100 first-class cricketers.

Dravid got the cricket for good award for his support to other sports and taking up the role of mentor for India's Olympic prospects.

Tendulkar said his 114 at Perth in 1992 was a game changer for him.

"Perth innings was a game changer for me because from that point onwards I thought I was ready to take on the world. I had a lot of belief on my ability, but that innings took it to next level."

He also felt Test cricket is in safe hands. "I still believe Test cricket is in good hands. If you see around the world, most matches have results, which is probably due to T20 too, so the formats are complementing each other."

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/top-stories/Sachin-Tendulkar-voted-Cricketer-of-the-Generation/articleshow/32027149.cms

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2014 Lok Sabha election schedule announced, India goes to polls from 7th April, results on 16th May

The 16th Lok Sabha elections will be held over nine days starting on April 7 and ending on May 12 and the counting will take place on May 16, the Election Commission announced on Wednesday.

The elections will be held over nine 'poll days' spread over the two months.

April 7: Two states (six constituencies)

April 9: Five states (seven constituencies)

April 10: 14 states (92 constituencies

April 12: Four states (32 constituencies)

April 17: 13 states (122 constituencies)

April 24: 12 states (117 constituencies)

April 30: Nine states and UT (89 constituencies)

May 7: Seven states (64 constituencies)

May 12: Three states (41 constituencies)

May 16: Counting of votes

This is the state-wise list of election dates:

Andhra Pradesh: 30th April, 7th May (Assembly polls will also be held on the same days)

Arunachal Pradesh: April 9

Assam: April7, 12 and 24

Bihar: April 10, 17, 24, 30, May 7 and 12

Chhattisgarh: April 10, 17, 24

Goa: April 17

Gujarat: April 30

Haryana: April 10

Himachal Pradesh: May 7

J&k: april 10, 17, 24, 30, may 7

Jharkhand: April 10, 17, 24

Karnataka: April 17

Kerala: April 10

MP: April 10, 17, 24

Maharashtra: April 10, 17 24

Manipur: April 9, 17

Meghalaya: April 9

Mizoram: April 9

Nagaland: April 9

Odisha: April 10, 17

Punjab: April 30

Rajasthan: April 17, 24

Sikkim: April 12

Tamil Nadu: April 24

Tripura: April 7 and 12

Uttar Pradesh: April 10, 17, 24, 30, May 7 and 12

Uttarkhand: May 7

West Bengal: April 17, 24, 30, May 7, 12

Andaman and Nicobar Islands: April 10

Chandigarh: April 12

Dadra and Nagar Haveli: April 12

Daman and Diu: April 30

Lakshwadeep: April 10

Puducherry: April 24

The 2009 polls were held in five phases from April 16 to May 13.

The term of the current Lok Sabha expires on June 1, and the new House has to be constituted by May 31. Along with the Lok Sabha election, Andhra Pradesh, including the regions comprising Telangana, Odisha and Sikkim will go to polls to elect new Assemblies.

It could be the first time the country witnesses elections over such a long period.

An estimated 81.4 crore voters will be eligible to vote in the coming elections with 9.71 crore new voters being added to the rolls since the last elections. The electoral rolls are ready after being updated with January 1 as the cut- off date.

A total of 1.1 crore poll personnel, half of security personnel, will be deployed to ensure a free and fair poll. The database of the civilian staff to be deployed for conducting the polls has been prepared and at least 5.5 million civilians would be deployed.

For the first time in parliamentary polls, a system of paper trail for electronic voting will be introduced in some constituencies on a trial basis. A paper trail would help in avoiding controversies in case of a dispute.

The EC has also issued guidelines to political parties asking them to explain the rationale of financing the promises they make in their election manifestos.

The guidelines that followed the SC's directions in this regard have now been made a part of the Model Code.

From the coming elections, candidates in a parliamentary constituency in bigger states can spend up to Rs.70 lakh on their campaign, up from Rs.40 lakh in 2011. In the 2009 elections, it was Rs.25 lakh. Another first in the Lok Sabha elections will be the introduction of the ' None of the Above' option, which came into vogue in the Assembly elections a few months ago.

Source: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/2014-lok-sabha-election-schedule-election-commission/1/346864.html

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Sahara chief Subrata Roy to stay in Tihar jail till March 11

Subrata Roy, face smeared with ink thrown by a lawyer, walks into the Supreme Court in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, March 4, 2014.The Supreme Court on Tuesday said that Sahara chief Subrata Roy and two other directors will remain in custody till the company comes up with a proposal to pay the money it owes to investors.
The court sent Roy to judicial custody till the next hearing on March 11 while two other Sahara directors, except Vandana Bhargava, were also sent to police custody. Subrata Roy to sleep on the floor at Tihar, eat jail food

The court observed, "We are not happy with the proposal of Sahara on refund of money. They have not come up with concrete proposal, bank guarantee."
The apex court also said, "You can't make payment in cash as it is contrary to law. You have to make payment through demand draft or cheque."
Roy had tendered an unconditional apology to the Supreme Court for failing to appear before it in on February 26.
Roy is escorted away by policemen after his arrival at the Supreme Court.
The court accepted the apology but also said this: "We respected you, but you failed to respect us." Read SC order on Subarata Roy here


Roy's lawyer Ram Jethmalani told the court that Sahara will pay its dues within two months.

The Sahara chief had on February 27 too approached the apex court tendering an "unconditional apology" for his non-appearance in the contempt case and had sought recall of the non-bailable warrant. The plea was declined by the court.
Roy was arrested after his failure to appear before the apex court in the contempt case arising out of non-refund of Rs.20,000 crore to investors by two of his companies.

Roy had sought exemption from personal appearance on the ground of ill-health of his 92-year-old mother.

Day of colour and chaos for Subrata Roy

Chaos, commotion and high drama reigned supreme when Sahara chief Subrata Roy reached the Supreme Court premises on Tuesday. As soon as 65-year-old Roy alighted from the police vehicle at 12:45 pm, Manoj Sharma - a lawyer from Gwalior - sprayed a bottle of ink on his face. He then removed his shirt and began shouting "he (Roy) is a thief and has stolen money from the poor". Sharma was immediately taken away by the police.

Another police team then whisked away Roy, first straight into a washroom for cleaning his face after the ink "attack" and then into the courtroom.

Though the hearing was fixed for 2pm, the corridors and courtroom No.7 was chock-ablock with lawyers, court staff, and other curious onlookers.

The security staff was forced to ban entry into the courtroom around 1:45pm when the crowd inside and outside the court became uncontrollable. The police had a tough time while taking Roy into the court. His lawyers Jethmalani and Aryama Sundaram too were seen struggling to gain entry into the courtroom.

As soon as the hearing began, Jethmalani informed the bench that his client had something to say. Seated on the second row, Roy stood up and with his hands folded, said: "My Lord, I unconditionally apologise for being unable to appear before the court though the reason was genuine. Accept my apologies. The judges retorted: "Yes, we accept the apology now since you are here".

However, Roy and his lawyers were taken aback when the judges ordered to send him to the Tihar jail rejecting his compromise formula. Roy's downcast and stunned face which wore a smile seconds earlier when he was arguing, said it all.

Rift within legal team. Was Roy ill-advised? Senior lawyer Rajiv Dhavan, who is representing Roy, made those in the courtroom wonder by repeatedly making this allegation while taking potshots at Jethmalani, Sundaram and another lawyer Ravi Shankar Prasad, who were also representing Roy.


- By Harish V. Nair in New Delhi

Source: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/supreme-court-ignores-subrata-roys-apology-sends-him-to-delhi-police-custody/1/346772.html

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