THE BATTLE FOR DELHI DARBAR

Obama visit: India-US
ties set to move to
transformative level
BY RANJANA NARAYAN/NEW DELHI (IANS)
“I WILL EXPOSE AAP”
-SHAZIA ILMI
“BJP KNOWS THAT IT IS GOING TO
LOSE THIS ELECTION VERY BADLY
AND THIS IS WHY THIS PARTY HAS
FINALLY ROPED IN KIRAN BEDI”
-ARVIND KEJRIWAL
“KEJRIWAL IS INEXPERIENCED
AND THAT'S WHY I AM
SUPPORTING THE BJP”
-KIRAN BEDI
“I AM DEFINITELY NOT A
SCAPEGOAT. I'M SORRY BUT
I'M A WOMAN, AN ADVOCATE,
ACTUALLY VERY WELL READ”
-NUPUR SHARMA
THE BATTLE FOR DELHI DARBAR
KEJRIWAL CHALLENGES BEDI TO DEBATE, BJP SIDESTEPS, MAKEN READY
BJP RELEASES FINAL LIST, AKALI DAL NAMES FOUR FOR DELHI POLLS
KIRAN BEDI BJP'S CHIEF MINISTERIAL CANDIDATE IN DELHI
BJP WILL BLAME BEDI FOR DEFEAT IN DELHI POLLS: KEJRIWAL
'TOO DANGEROUS' TO VOTE AAP TO POWER: CONGRESS
New Delhi, (IANS) BJP's chief ministerial candidate Kiran Bedi Tuesday sidestepped AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal's challenge for a debate
on issues facing Delhi but Congress general secretary Ajay Maken
expressed his willingness for a structured discussion among the three
politicians who are leading the campaign of their par ties for the Feb 7
assembly polls.
Kejriwal threw the challenge for a debate a day after Bedi was named
the Bharatiya Janata Par ty's chief ministerial candidate.
The BJP retor ted by terming Kejriwal "I-run-man" and Bedi "Iron Lady".
The battle for Delhi intensified Tuesday, following clarity about the
campaign leaders of the BJP, the Aam Aadmi Par ty and the Congress.
Kejriwal and Bedi took potshots at each other.
Kejriwal, a former Delhi chief minister, led a road show in central
Delhi but could not file his nomination papers as thousands joined
him leading to a delay.
He could not reach the district magistrate's office on time and is
expected to file nominations Wednesday.
Later, Kejriwal addressed a gathering in Krishna Nagar, the seat Bedi
is contesting from and said the BJP would blame her for its defeat in
the elections next month.
He claimed the BJP has already conceded defeat, and Bedi had joined
the par ty to be "trapped".
Kejriwal assured cheaper power and water to the people of Delhi and
attacked the Narendra Modi government over its "unfulfilled" promises.
Bedi also addressed a par ty workers' meeting in Krishna Nagar and
promised a clean government.
Earlier in the day, Kejriwal invited Bedi for a debate.
"Ajay Maken, Kiran Bedi and I, all three should have a debate so that
people can make an informed choice about selecting their chief minister," he told repor ters.
He had earlier conveyed his challenge to Bedi for a debate through a tweet.
"Congrats 4 being nominated as BJP's CM candidate. I invite u 4 a
public debate moderated by neutral person and telecast by all,"
Kejriwal posted.
Kejriwal, who is leading the AAP campaign, also said Bedi has blocked
him on social networking site Twitter.
I CONTD. ON PAGE 11
LOHRI CELEBRATIONS IN COMMUNITY
PERRY MINHAS AND RUPI MINHAS CELEBRATED THEIR FIRST LOHRI AS A COUPLE.
DETAILS ON PAGE 3 & 4
India-US ties are set to move to the transformative level during President Barack Obama's India visit later this week, building also on the
personal rapport developed between him and Prime Minister Narendra
Modi with both sides keen to have promising outcomes from the talks
on a range of issues, including defence, energy, education and economic cooperation.
Obama, chief guest at this year's Republic Day parade, has described
Modi as a "man of action".
The two leaders have met thrice already in the recent past - in Washington during the bilateral in September last year, in Myanmar during
the East Asia Summit and in Brisbane during the G20 in November.
But the Jan 25 bilateral would be an "important summit" meeting in
that it would seek to give a more concrete shape to many of the
agreed points of the joint statement issued last year in Washington.
The summit would see a "more broader partnership and more energized" ties between the two sides.
In the field of defence, both sides are set to ink a new 10-year defence
framework agreement that would take defence cooperation to a higher
level.
Talks on developing the next generation aircraft carrier are likely to
gain steam as well as on coproduction of defence equipment.
The US is keen to replicate in par t the kind of defence cooperation that
India and Russia share, especially on the lines of the BrahMos missiles that is jointly developed by the two countries.
The US is also to cooperate with a planned National Defence University to be set up by India.
The agreement for US involvement the Smart Cities project for Ajmer,
Allahabad and Vishakhapatnam is also to get a push during the talks.
Talks have been going on between relevant authorities to take forward the project over the past few months.
I CONTD. ON PAGE 5
LOW OIL PRICES isn't all
negative for Canada's
economy: CIBC World Markets
Falling oil prices give Canadians a big break at the
pump as country wrestles with efficiency paradox
TORONTO/CNW/- While the rout in oil has sharpened the focus
on the economic fallout, Canada tops the list as the largest consumer of energy per capita among the Organisation for Economic
Cooperation and Development countries, meaning that trends in
the energy needs of consumers and industries alike paint a
fuller picture of the country's economic outlook, finds a new
repor t from CIBC World Markets.
"The dramatic collapse in crude has lines drawn between
winners and losers," says Benjamin Tal, CIBC Deputy Chief
Economist, who co-authored the repor t with Nick Exarhos.
"And, though the nation's emergence as an energy powerhouse has the negatives coming into sharper focus, there
will be spoils to be shared in Canada."
Canada is not only a major energy producer, but it also consumes more energy than any other major industrialized country, using more than 7,000 kg of oil equivalent per capita.
"It's cold here," says Mr. Tal. "Distances between major urban centres are relatively large, and the country's vast resource sector requires substantial amounts of energy for its
operation."
The repor t points out that this level of energy consumption
could have been much higher if not for the meaningful decline in the countr y's overall energy intensity. Canada's
economy uses 25 per cent less energy per unit of GDP today
than it did 20 years ago, but over the past decade, energy
intensity stabilized, as energy consumption in the oil patch
and manufacturing sectors vir tually cancelled each other out,
reflecting the past decade's growth in one and downsizing in
the other.
I CONTD. ON PAGE 10
CIRCULATED THROUGH : TORONTO, MARKHAM, SCARBOROUGH, RICHMOND HILL, VAUGHAN, WOODBRIDGE, ETOBICOKE, NORTH YORK, MALTON, REXDALE, BRAMPTON, MISSISSAUGA, OAKVILLE, HAMILTON, MILTON, STONEY CREEK, BURLINGTON
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LOHRI CELEBRATIONS IN COMMUNITY
ONTARIO - PAUL MINHAS AND RANI MINHAS ORGANIZED A STUNNING LOHRI CELEBRATION FOR THEIR SON RUPI MINHAS AND
DAUGHTER-IN-LAW PERRY MINHAS. SEVERAL DISTINGUISHED GUESTS ATTENDED THIS AUSPICIOUS EVENT.
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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2015
MIDWEEK NEWS
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TUESDAY, JANUARY
AUGUST 28,
20, 2012
2015
breaking news
Patrick Brown Leadership Campaign Hosts Peel Gala
Indo Canadian community shows support for Brown's Leadership bid
BRAMPTON: The Patrick Brown Leadership Campaign held a successful Peelregion
fundraiser on January 16, 2015. The Gala, in support of Patrick's PC Party of Ontario
Leadership campaign, had more than 350 people in attendance - a testament of the
strong support from the Indo Canadian community.
Patrick was joined by many special guests, including:
"
HonourableTim Uppal, Minister of State for Multiculturalism
"
Honourable Bal Gosal, Minister of State (Sport)
"
MP Parm Gill
"
MP Kyle Seeback
"
MP Brad Butt
"
MP WladLizon
"
Senator Asha Seth
Quotes
"I am honoured by the support I have received from the Indo Canadian community.
As Co-Chair of the Canada-India Parliamentary Friendship Group, I have had the
opportunity to build strong ties within the community and I look forward to a strong
working relationship as Leader of the PC Party of Ontario."
MP Patrick Brown, PC Party of Ontario Leadership candidate.
"Patrick Brown is one of the hardest working politicians I've ever known. He knows
how to win elections - by earning, and re-earning, the respect of voters and
constituents. I am confident that Patrick is the only candidate who can breathe new
life into the Party
- who can build a fresh new political movement that people across Ontario - from
every walk of life - will choose to lead our province in 2018."
Hon. Tim Uppal, Minister of State for Multiculturalism
"Patrick will bring new energy and a fresh vision to the Ontario PC party. He is the
kind of leader our party needs to reach out to the next generation of young Canadians and I know he will work hard to ensure we are ready to win the next election."
Hon. Bal Gosal, MP Bramalea-Gore-Malton, Minister of State (Sport)
"As the Member of Parliament for Barrie for 9 years, Patrick has demonstrated
MP Patrick Brown, PC Party of Ontario Leadership candidate and
special guests at his recent Peel Gala. Pictured left to right: MP
Brad Butt, MP Kyle Seeback, Hon. Minister Tim Uppal, MP Patrick
Brown, PC Party of Ontario Leadership candidate, MP Parm Gill,
MPP Rick Nicholls, and MP WladyslawLizon.
leadership, vision and determination. This is exactly the type of person we need to
lead the Ontario PC party if we want to win the next election."
Parm Gill, MP, Brampton-Springdale, Parliamentary Secretary to the
Minister of Veterans Affairs
"We need a dynamic new leader to remind Ontarians of why the PC Party is the
right choice for our province. Patrick Brown is that leader."
Kyle Seeback, MP Brampton West
"Patrick Brown is a friend of people from Asia and his affection for India makes him
a special Canadian politician. Patrick's intelligence, honesty and friendly demeanour
makes everyone feel comfortable. These are reasons Patrick has so many friends
around the World. Patrick has a vision to put Ontario on the path of prosperity and
I am proud to call him a friend."
LajPrasher. National Convenor, Canada India Foundation
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OBAMA VISIT: INDIA-US TIES SET TO
MOVE TO TRANSFORMATIVE LEVEL
CONTD. FROM PAGE 1
It would see the US participating in the three cities as knowledge partner in the areas of traffic management, solid waste management, garbage
disposal, recycling waste water and in water storage, said sources.
Economic ties are also set to get a major leg up.
The fact that the US government and business houses view the Modi government as business-friendly is evident from the fact that an 80-member team
from the US with 12 CEOs attended the Vibrant Gujarat Summit in Gandhinagar,
led by US Secretary of State John Kerry.
Kerry had met Modi during the sidelines of the Vibrant Gujarat for talks on the
agenda for Obama's visit. The US Secretary of State later told reporters that
both sides would strive to make progress on the four main issues of climate
change, defence, civil nuclear cooperation and economic partnership.
The stalled civil nuclear deal is also expected to get a major push with the
contact group from both sides having held two rounds of talks so far. Issues
over India's liability laws are expected to be ironed over.
The US is hoping to build on the Modi government's bold policy initiatives like
Make in India, Smart Cities, Skilling India and renewable energy.
After Modi's assurance to foreign companies to ensure ease in doing business in India by cutting away red tape, more investments have been flowing
into India from the US.
More concrete movement on the Modi government's Digital India initiative as
well as on India's proposal to establish the Global Initiative of Academic
Networks (GIAN, or Knowledge) would be seen during the summit.
As part of cooperation under GIAN, which is part of the joint statement, India
is to invite and host up to 1,000 American academics each year to teach in
centrally-recognized Indian Universities, at their convenience. While the American teachers are to be reimbursed by their parent universities, India would be
looking after their stay in the country and also pay a token amount.
The process of identifying the universities on both sides is underway.
Sunanda Pushkar case Tharoor questioned by police
Congress complains to EC
against Kejriwal's bribe remark
New Delhi, (IANS) Delhi Police Monday questioned Congress MP Shashi Tharoor in the mysterious murder of his wife Sunanda Pushkar
in January last year. Tharoor reached the Vasant Vihar police station in south Delhi Monday evening - a few hours after he was issued
a notice. The questioning lasted over four hours.
Police had constituted a special investigative team (SIT) to probe the murder after registering a FIR in the case Jan 1 this year. The FIR
was filed based on Pushkar's third autopsy repor t by the AIIMS medical board.
A five member team of SIT -- including a deputy commissioner of police, an additional deputy commissioner, an assistant commissioner
and two inspectors -- had questioned Tharoor.
Police said that Tharoor's statement was recorded under section 161 (examination of witnesses by police) of the Criminal Procedure
Code. Tharoor was called for questioning fist time in connection with his wife's murder case.
He had reached the national capital Monday from Bengaluru, where he had gone to attend a school function. Landing at the Indira Gandhi
International (IGI) airpor t around 2 p.m, he went to his house in Lodhi Estate area in central Delhi without answering questions from the
media standing outside the airpor t. The SIT has questioned at least 12 people, including Tharoor's security staff members and domestic
help, who were present in the hotel in south Delhi's Leela Palace hotel when Pushkar was found dead in a hotel room.
Meanwhile, Delhi Police Commissioner B.S. Bassi, asked to comment on repor ts about then information and broadcasting minister
Manish Tewari being present in the flight from Kerala Jan 15 on which the couple had a fight, said: "The possibility cannot be ruled out."
He said the process of sending the viscera of Pushkar to the US for special investigation was on.
New Delhi, (IANS) The Congress Monday asked the Election Commission to take criminal action against AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal
for inducing voters to accept bribes. In its complaint to poll panel
chief H.S. Brahma, the par ty said the statement made by Kejriwal
was in "clear violation of Model Code of Conduct". Aam Aadmi
Par ty leader Kejriwal Sunday had appealed to people to "accept
money doled out by both the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata
Par ty (BJP) but cast votes for AAP" in the Delhi assembly elections Feb 7. In the complaint, the Congress said" "The statement
cannot simply be described as irresponsible but has to be viewed
with utmost seriousness and gravity to even take criminal actions against him for the purity for electoral process."
"It is totally derogatory and scandalizing. By making such statement, apar t from instigating people to indulge in bribe and corruption, he (Kejriwal) has maligned the democratic institution
and the process," said the letter.
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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2015
Blue
Mountain
Brampton Receives Transit Upgrades
Resort announces
new activities
PROJECT POSSIBLE THANKS TO FEDERAL GAS TAX FUND
Brampton: Brampton residents are benefitting from improved
transit services thanks to contributions from the federal Gas Tax
Fund. Over the past year, joint investments from the federal,
provincial and municipal governments suppor ted the renewal and
expansion of the City’s fleet and transit road infrastructure.
Overall, 15 new low-floor buses with increased accessibility and
improved Presto fare collection and SmartBus technologies hit the
city’s roads, replacing aging vehicles and increasing the fleet to
meet the expanding needs of the community. An additional ten
buses were refurbished, to help extend their lifespan by six years
and maintain current and future service levels for public transit
users. Bus stop shelters and concrete flooring were replaced, to
increase passenger comfor t, safety and convenience.
Quick Facts
* The Government of Canada contributed $7,059,000 through the
federal Gas Tax Fund transfer towards these projects.
* The City of Brampton was responsible for the remaining costs of
these projects. The total project costs were $9,109,000.
* To date, a total of $94,834,914 has been made available to the
City of Brampton through the federal Gas Tax Fund.
SALE ENDS
SATURDAY
Quotes
* Our Government is taking significant steps to reduce traffic
gridlock and get people and goods moving across the Greater
Toronto Area. This investment to upgrade Brampton’s transit
services is another example of the benefits being realized as a
result of our stable, predictable gas tax funding. Our Government is
committed to building and revitalizing public infrastructure in order
to create jobs, growth and long-term prosperity for all Canadians.¡¨
The Honourable Joe Oliver,
Minister of Finance and Minister Responsible for the GTA
* Everybody - individuals, families, communities, and businesses benefits from public transpor tation: it enhances personal oppor tunities, saves fuel, reduces congestion, provides economic oppor tunities and reduces the carbon footprint. Since 2006, our government
has extended, doubled, indexed and made permanent the federal
Gas Tax Fund, delivering significant predictable, long-term infrastructure funding for local priorities like these transit improvements, which will help improve the quality of life in Brampton for
years to come.¨
Kyle Seeback, Member of Parliament for Brampton West
BLUE MOUNTAIN - Blue Mountain Resor t's list of cold weather activities has increased with the addition of a Hike N' Tube Park that is open
now. Located adjacent to South Base Lodge at the base of the L-Hill
ski trail, the Hike N' Tube Park features four tubing tracks spread out
over two courses and is suitable for guests aged 3 and older.
"Blue Mountain prides itself on having a winter activity that caters to
every age and level of ability," said Paul Pinchbeck, Vice President
Marketing, Blue Mountain Resor t. "Our Hike N' Tube Park is a great
cold-weather alternative for those guests that may not ski or snowboard
but still wish to enjoy a downhill experience."
Resor t veterans may recall Blue Mountain's first tube park which
was retired following the 2006/07 Winter Season. Reintroducing tubing to Blue Mountain's line up comes as a response to requests for
additional family friendly experiences outside the realm of alpine
spor ts. The Hike N' Tube Park joins Blue's list of off-hill activities
including The Mill Pond Skating Rink, Ridge Runner Mountain Coaster,
Columbia Guided Snowshoe Hikes and Plunge! Aquatic Centre.
Those who wish to experience Blue Mountain's latest offering can
visit the tube hut located at the base of L-Hill to pick up their tube
rental at a cost of $10 for 60 minutes of tubing time. Discounted rates
will also be available for lodging guests and group visitors.
JANUARY CLEARANCE SALE
HOURS: OPEN MON TUES WED 10 TO 6 THURS FRI 10-8 SAT 9-6 SUN 11-5
MIDWEEK NEWS
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TUESDAY, JANUARY
AUGUST 28,
20, 2012
2015
community
TAG TV STUDIO IS A WELCOME ADDITION OF
MISSISSAUGA MEDIA LANDSCAPE: BONNIE CROMBIE
MidWeek
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Improved GO Station for
Commuters in Bramalea
ONTARIO INVESTING IN PUBLIC
TRANSIT, CREATING JOBS
Mississauga - A new professional TV Studio - TAG TV - was inaugurated by Bonnie Crombie, Mayor of Mississauga. The Consul General
of India, Akhilesh Mishra was the guest of
honour. Introducing his new venture, CEO TAG TV Tahir Aslam Gora
said: “TAG TV Studio is a professionally equipped studio. It aims at
reaching bigger audience through new means of mass communications especially Internet.” He also claimed that TAG TV Studio shall
be presenting quality production in English, French, Punjabi, Hindi,
Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Bangla and other multicultural languages.
“I am pleased to attend inauguration of TAG TV Studio. TAG TV Studio
is a welcome addition of Mississauga Media landscape”, said speaking to the ceremony, Bonnie Crombie, Mayor Mississauga.
India’s Consul General, Akhilesh Mishra expressed his trust on TAG
TV team to reflect in pluralistic and responsible way.
The inagural ceremony was attended by members of South Asian
media, Coptic Christian community leaders, Persian and Arab media
representatives.
TAG TV Studio is situated at 2244 Drew Rd, unit 6 Mississauga.
Inauguration of Toronto Tabla Ensemble Centre
for Indian Arts on Gerrard Street, Little India
NEW CENTRE TO BECOME HUB FOR INDIAN MUSIC AND DANCE IN
DOWNTOWN TORONTO
The recently opened Toronto Tabla Ensemble Centre for Indian Ar ts
will have its inauguration ceremony on January 24th, 2015 located at
1386 Gerrard Street East. The day's events will begin with a celebration of the Indian festival, Saraswati Puja, at 9 AM followed by the
inauguration ceremony at 3 PM and per formances by the Toronto
Tabla Ensemble and other local ar tists at 6 PM. The Consul General of
India, Mr. Akhilesh Mishra, will be the guest of honour for the ribbon
cutting ceremony. This event will mark the opening of a unique
multidisciplinary arts centre and school in the hear t of Little India.
The new space will host daily tabla classes, afterschool youth programs, per formances by guest ar tists, and a range of dance and
music classes, workshops and rehearsals. The Gerrard India Bazaar
provides the perfect backdrop for the centre to develop into a permanent venue for Indian music and dance, something that has not yet
been available to Toronto audiences and arts practitioners. The Toronto
Tabla Ensemble (TTE) has been actively defining Toronto's world music
scene for the last twenty five years. Their mandate has been to promote the Indian percussion instrument, tabla, and spread knowledge
of the classical Nor th Indian rhythmic system through rigorous training at all skill levels.
The ar tistic director and lead teacher of the TTE is Ritesh Das, who
hails from a rich ar tistic lineage. His parents, Nrityachaya Prohlad
Das and Smt Nilima Das, opened up the first music and dance academy in Kolkata after India gained independence. Das' brother is the
living Kathak dance legend, Pandit Chitresh Das. Growing up surrounded by legendary ar tists and studying music from a young age,
he now continues under the guidance of his guru Pandit Swapan
Chaudhuri, who the TTE presents in Toronto for concer ts and workshops.
Since 1985, Das has been teaching tabla in Toronto and has helped to
bring the ar t form to the Canadian mainstream. As the director of the
TTE School of Tabla, Das continues to design programs to train professional tabla players, many of whom go on to become full-time
ar tists in Canada and beyond. Currently, Das directs tabla classes in
Toronto, Mississauga and Scarborough, and has recently launched
the first Toronto Tabla Youth Ensemble featuring ar tists between 8 and
15 years of age.
For more information about the Toronto Tabla Ensemble, its upcoming
location and seasonal programming, please visithttp://
www.torontotabla.com
Mayor Bonnie Crombie Issues Statement
on Mississauga's Light Rail Transit Plan
MISSISSAUGA - Following recent media repor ts, Mississauga Mayor
Bonnie Crombie issued the following statement to highlight the status
of the City of Mississauga's work to secure funding to construct the
Hurontario-Main LRT:
"Mississauga has always been upfront with Metrolinx about the funding required for the LRT, and we have never been told otherwise that
we would not receive funding for our LRT. Council has had ongoing
discussions about the need for funding for a number of years - this is
nothing new. The Eglinton Crosstown is an example of a fully funded
transit plan. The Scarborough LRT was to be fully funded before the
plan was scrapped.
"Our intention is simply that Mississauga deserves its fair share of
funding too. Metrolinx identified the Mississauga LRT as a leading
rapid transit priority for investment and we have one of the strongest
business cases to get this done. Mississauga is committed to this
project and we have already invested nearly $15 million with Brampton
and Metrolinx toward building the LRT. Our population is growing. We
are planning new intensified developments, and the LRT will help us
achieve this. "The LRT will reduce traffic gridlock. It will create jobs
and generate economic development. It will elevate the quality of life
for residents, and perhaps most impor tantly, it will unleash the potential of our Downtown core. But like most Ontario municipalities, we
are limited by what we can fund through the proper ty tax base. We
must secure funding elsewhere.
"I am carrying on Mayor McCallion's work to champion the LRT. I met
with Finance Minister Sousa in December. Later this month, I will
again make the case for the LRT with Minister Sousa at a pre-budget
consultation. I am meeting with Premier Wynne soon and this will be
a priority for our discussions. I have pressed our case with local MPs
and MPPs on this matter. As Canada's sixth largest city, I believe that
when all governments par tner to advance Mississauga's priorities,
all of Ontario and Canada are better positioned for success."
Ontario is making it easier for commuters to take public transit
with improvements to the Bramalea GO Station.
Work is already underway and includes extending the platform
to accommodate 12-passenger cars that will add about 300 extra seats per trip. Repairs are also being made to the south
parking lot, with the addition of a new Kiss 'N' Ride shelter and a
platform canopy complete with heated shelters. Work is expected to be complete by fall 2017.
Investing in transit is par t of the government's economic plan for
Ontario. The four par t plan is building Ontario up by investing in
people's talents and skills, building new public infrastructure
like roads and transit, creating a dynamic, suppor tive environment where business thrives, and building a secure savings
plan so everyone can afford to retire.
QUOTES
"These improvements will provide commuters using the
Bramalea GO Station every day a better, more accessible station and make provisions for the increased services underway."
- Harinder Malhi, MPP, Brampton-Springdale
"Our unprecedented public transit investments are making transit a better choice for commuters. This is fur ther proof of our
government's commitment to making the daily commute and
quality of life better for Ontario families."
- Steven Del Duca, Minister of Transpor tation
"We're improving Bramalea GO Station to make it easier for our
existing and future customers to take public transit. It's par t of
our plan to build a fast, convenient and integrated transit network here in the GTHA."
- Greg Percy, President, GO Transit
QUICK FACTS
"
Since 2003, the Ontario government has extended GO's
rail network by nearly 90 kilometres, opened 10 new GO stations and rebuilt two existing stations, and added over 30,000
parking spots across the system.
"
GO Transit carries approximately 66 million passengers per year.
"
Over the past year, GO Trains have arrived on schedule
93 per cent of the time.
INDIAN GOVERNMENT
HONOURS FOUNDER AND
CHAIRMAN TRUSTEE OF
THE LOOMBA FOUNDATION
Vice President Hamid Ansari confers
Pravasi Bhartiya Samman 2015 up on
Lord Raj Loomba CBE for his exceptional
contribution to the cause of empowering
poor widows in India
New Delhi: The UN-accredited global NGO, The Loomba Foundation, has announced that its Founder and Chairman Trustee
Lord Raj Loomba CBE has been conferred with the Pravasi
Bhar tiya Samman Award 2015 for his exceptional contribution
in the field of public service and community service to uplift,
emancipate and empower poor widows and their children in
India. Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) is celebrated annually to
mark the contribution of Overseas Indian community in the development of India.
The award was given away by the Honorable Vice President of
India, Shri Hamid Ansari at the Pravasi Bhar tiya Divas in India
last week, in the presence of Smt. Sushma Swaraj, Hon'ble
Minister for External Affairs and Overseas Indian Affairs, Government of India, General V K Singh, Hon'ble Minister of State for
ExternalAffairs and Overseas Indian Affairs, Government of India, Shri Om Prakash Kohli, Hon'ble Governor of Gujarat and
Smt Anandiben Patel, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Gujarat, amongst
over 5000 NRI’s who had come to attend the PBD Convention
from all corners of the world. The award is most prestigious and
highest given by the Government of India to honor the Non-Resident Indians settled abroad contributing immensely to India and
their adopted countries.
Elated at receiving the award, Lord Raj Loomba CBE, Founder
and Chairman Trustee, The Loomba Foundation, said, “I am extremely humbled with the honour bestowed upon me by the Government of India. It assumes even greater impor tance that I
have been chosen in the historic year that marks a centenary of
Mahatma Gandhi returning to India. The cause of widowhood is
very close to my hear t as I saw first-hand the discrimination
and prejudices faced by my mother when she became a widow.
Less than three months ago, the United Nations Association of
New York had also conferred the Lifetime Achievement Award
upon Lord Loomba on the UN Day 2014 New York. Lord Loomba
was instrumental in getting the UN recognition for “International
Widows Day” on June 23, the date on which his own mother
became a widow when he was just 10 years old. Lord Loomba
has also received the Excellence of the British Empire award
from Her Majesty The Queen in the UK, an Honorary Fellowship
by The University of Nor thampton, the Asian of the Year Award
and the Forbes India NRI Philanthropy Award amongst many
other accolades. The Pravasi Bharatiya Samman for Lord
Loomba comes at a time when The Loomba Foundation is trying
to raise funds for the benefit of widows and their children in
Varanasi, a holy City of widows located on the banks of Ganges
through their goodwill ambassador and renowned UK-based lawyer, Chris Parsons, who is walking 30 marathons (42 KMs everyday) a distance of 1,260 kms from Mumbai to Bengaluru over
30 days. The ‘Walk for Widows’ star ted from the Gateway of
India in Mumbai on 10th January, 2015 and is expected to be
completed on 10th February, 2015.
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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2015
ACTIVE VOICE
Modi magic may face its severest test in Delhi
BY AMULYA GANGULI
The Delhi elections next month will show whether Narendra Modi
continues to find it difficult to score sweeping victories in states where
he faces a modicum of political resistance.
As was seen in Maharashtra and Jharkhand, the Bharatiya Janata
Par ty (BJP) was unable to secure a majority on its own in the state
legislatures because the local par ties - the Shiv Sena in Maharashtra
and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha in Jharkhand - could not be brushed
aside by the purpor ted Modi wave.
This inability was seen in the general election as well when the AIADMK
in Tamil Nadu, the Biju Janata Dal in Odisha and the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal could not be dislodged from their strongholds.
The BJP's success in Haryana was due to the fact that its two major
opponents - the Congress and the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) had gone into serious decline with the topmost INLD leaders being in
jail. Jammu and Kashmir is in a different category because of its
distinctive demographic composition.
Since conventional wisdom suggests that even if the BJP gets a majority in Delhi, the Aam Admi Par ty (AAP) will not be a pushover, the
contest will be yet another major test of the efficacy of the Modi
magic. If the AAP runs the BJP close, the latter will have only itself to
blame. Had it been a little more energetic in addressing the problems
of the national capital via Lt. Governor Najeeb Jung, at a time when
more than 50 percent of the development funds have remained unspent, the BJP's prospects would have been brighter.
But it is not so much the political and official lethargy in heeding the
city's infrastructural needs which may hur t the BJP as its failure to
rein in the saffron loudmouths, although Prime Minister Modi is unhappy about their antics, according to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
However, the result of this failure is the possible consolidation of a
sizable percentage of minority votes behind the AAP, now that the
Congress is out of reckoning. Since Muslims constitute 11.7 percent
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of Delhi's population, their suppor t for the AAP is a gift to the BJP's
main opponent by Yogi Adityanath, Sakshi Maharaj and others whose
blinkered views make them oblivious of the fact that fundamentalism
has few takers.
The situation may be par tly redressed by the entry into the BJP by one
of the AAP's most visible faces at one time, Shazia Ilmi, who was
earlier with Anna Hazare. But her critics are likely to say that since
the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) claimed to have been associated with Anna's anti-corruption movement, Shazia has only come
full circle.
The entry into the BJP of another of Anna's former associates, Kiran
Bedi, has created considerable stir because of the belief that the
energetic former police officer may be the par ty's chief ministerial
candidate. She is however likely to face in-house opposition from
other chief ministerial aspirants like Vijay Goel and Jagdish Mukhi
who have long been associated with the par ty and are not a fair
weather friend like Bedi. Moreover, Bedi's earlier critical comments
about Modi, especially about the 2002 Gujarat riots, may come to
haunt her.
It is entirely possible that if the BJP had been more proactive in the
field of development at both the state and national levels, the AAP
would have been unable to make much headway. As it is, the par ty
has lost much of its earlier middle class suppor t, as its spokesmen
admit. A possible reason is that its chief minister of 49 days in the
Red Tape Reduction Week
controlling how much administrative burden is imposed on
businesses through regulation. Another example was our
introduction of the Small Businesses Job Credit, which will
lower small businesses’ payroll taxes by 15 percent for the next
two years, saving these businesses an expected $550 million
over this two year period. These are just some of the ways that
our Conservative Government is being par t of the solution, by
helping to strengthen small businesses in Brampton and across
Canada.
The Government of Canada is helping businesses in our
community succeed in the global economy. Included with this
focus is our commitment to keep taxes low, and control federal
regulation to free entrepreneurs from the burden of red tape.
INDIA MARKETING HEAD
MARKETING EXECUTIVE
SUNIL VERMA
ALI - NICE PHOTOGRAPHY
GRAPHICS DEPARTMENT
PHOTOGRAPHERS
THAPLIYAL & RAI LAW
OFFICE
BASHIR NASIR
PHOTOGRAPHERS
LEGAL ADVISOR
winter of 2013-14, Arvind Kejriwal, still gives the impression that his
penchant for showmanship will come in the way of governance.
He may no longer sit on a dharna or declare his anarchist preferences, but it is unlikely that he will eschew his instinctive confrontational style in favour of a mature approach to administration and in the
matter of dealing with other par ties.
Even otherwise, the AAP remains a hodge-podge of ideologies with
the "left of left" tendencies, as mentioned by its ideologue Yogendra
Yadav, alternating with Kejriwal's asser tion of his "bania" credentials. This medley stands in contrast to Modi's focus on economic
growth, which is the mainstay of his appeal.
It is this approach of the prime minister which has persuaded the
third party in the fray, the Congress, to decide to look beyond secularism and the welfare of the poor to reach out to the aspirational generation. However, as for its chances in the Delhi election, the decline in
its vote share from 25 percent in the assembly elections of 2013 to 14
percent in the parliamentary polls of 2014 shows that not only the
people have retained their dislike for the Congress, but their aversion
may have intensified.
Although the AAP's vote share rose from 29.5 percent in 2013 to 33
percent in 2014, the BJP's showing was more impressive since it
won all the seven parliamentary constituencies in Delhi with 46.1
percent of the votes, a substantial jump from 2013's 33.7 percent. Will
the BJP be able to live up to this achievement?
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PARM GILL, M.P. | BRAMPTON-SPRINGDALE
This week from January 19 to 23, 2015, marks the Canadian
Federation of Independent Businesses (CFIB) fifth annual Red
Tape Reduction Week. Red Tape Reduction Week is the per fect
oppor tunity to highlight our Government’s commitment to
promoting job creation, and fostering an environment in which
businesses can grow and succeed in the global economy.
Since the launch of the Red Tape Reduction plan in October
2012, we have been working hard to implement various Economic Action Plan reforms that help reduce red tape for small
businesses here in Brampton. These reforms are creating a
more transparent and predictable environment for our local
businesses so they can focus on creating jobs, and driving
economic growth.
One primary example is the One-for-One Rule which imposes a
new level of discipline across the regulatory system by
DISCLAIMER: THE VIEWS EXPRESSED ON THIS PAGE ARE THE PERSONAL OPINIONS OF THE AUTHORS.THE INFORMATION, FACTS OR OPINIONS APPEARING IN THE
ARTICLES DO NOT REFLECT VIEWS OF MIDWEEK AND ITS MANAGEMENT AND SO THE PAPER DOES NOT ASSUME ANY RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY FOR THE SAME.
MidWeek
MIDWEEK NEWS
NEWS WEEKLY
WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY
AUGUST 28,
20, 2012
2015
canada
MINISTER ALEXANDER
CONCLUDES TRIP TO INDIA
FOR VIBRANT GUJARAT
9
TARGET, HAS DECIDED
TO CLOSE DOWN ALL
133 LOCATIONS
ACROSS CANADA IP10
SEARS CANADA
HOSTED FITNESS AND
HEALTHY LIVING EVENT
DESK REPORT
Brampton - Sears Bramalea City Centre celebrated all things
fitness with its New Year, New You campaign event where it
had invited a select group of media and customers to experience a day of fitness and health. From learning about the best
pieces of equipment for your independent fitness needs to demonstrations on treadmills, ellipticals and stationary bikes - all
things physical fitness were on display.
The Sears team showcased the latest exercise equipment that
the retailer was housing at its outlet explaining the up-market
features of those latest gadgets. Along with equipment, customers were invited to speak with Fitness Exper t Kathleen Trotter
about fitness goals for 2015 as well as enjoy healthy homemade smoothies and snacks along with the take home recipes
to continue healthy habits at home. Sears Canada hosted three
of these fitness events across the country in Brampton, ON;
Edmonton, AB; and Trois Rivieres, QC. With the kickoff to a new
year it is a great time to make healthy lifestyle choices a par t of
your future and this event was used to help jump star t that
process.
Speaking on the occasion Kathleen said: "It is very impor tant to
have realistic goals, write them down and then see how they
can be achieved. Also, every now and then one must reflect on
what we need to do in areas that need improvement. Only then
make positive health choices but always you're your future challenges in mind and find solutions for the problems in advance."
CANADA, INDIA USE BIENNIAL SUMMIT TO FURTHER STRENGTHEN ECONOMIC TIES
Ottawa— Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister
Chris Alexander concluded a busy and successful trip to India,
which saw a number of impor tant advances in our bilateral
relationship.
Alexander led the largest-ever Canadian delegation to the
Vibrant Gujarat conference, where he helped promote the
abundant investment oppor tunities in the transpor tation,
natural resource and energy sectors, the strength of our postsecondary academic institutions, and the benefit of Canada’s
new Express Entry system.
In a series of meetings and speeches, Alexander highlighted
innovation and oppor tunity as the cornerstones for expanded
ties between Canada and India. In a meeting with Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, the two agreed to explore new ways
of working together to promote security and combat terrorism.
In Bengaluru (Bangalore), Alexander officially opened a new
Canadian visa office. There are now three such offices in
India, served by 10 visa application centres throughout the
country. This reaffirms Canada’s commitment to meeting the
high demand of travel facilitation with India, and will build on
impressive growth in visa issuance in recent years.
Minister Alexander completed his trip in Chennai where he
facilitated talks with students and faculty from one of India’s
most prestigious academic institutions – the Indian Institute
of Technology. Earlier in the trip, he also delivered a presentation to students and faculty at the Indian Institute of Management. Alexander used these oppor tunities and others to
promote Express Entry and the benefit of the Star t-up Visa
Program.
Quick facts
India is one of the top source countries for immigrants to
Canada. The Indo-Canadian community currently numbers
approximately one million.
In 2013, Canada issued more than 130,000 visitor visas to
people coming from India to visit family, friends or as tourists.
Between January and June 2014, 93 percent of visitor visas
issued to Indian nationals were multiple-entry visas. This is a
clear indication that Canada meets the needs of international
travelers looking for fast, flexible and convenient options to
come to our countr y.
Quotes
“Canada and India are great par tners, and the relationship is
only getting stronger – to the benefit of both countries’ economic growth and future prosperity. I was especially pleased to
highlight our new Express Entry system and Star t-Up Visa
program as key par ts our government’s plan to build a fast, fair
and flexible immigration system that attracts people with the
skills to integrate fully and quickly in Canada’s economy and
Canadian society.”
-Chris Alexander, Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister
“This trip had immense value by promoting job creation and
economic growth from coast to coast. This delegation did an
excellent job to highlight Canada’s economic strengths.”
-Dr. Kellie Leitch, Minister of Labour and Minister of Status of
Women
“The strong economic and cultural ties between Canada and
India have a profoundly positive effect on both countries. As a
par tner country, our entire Canadian delegation per formed
admirably during Vibrant Gujarat – we not only promoted the
benefits of investing in Canada, but also explored oppor tunities
for Canadian businesses from other delegations over the course
of the conference.”
-Devinder Shor y, Member of Parliament for Calgary Nor theast
“The benefits of a strong Indo-Canadian relationship never
cease to amaze me. It’s an honour to help build upon such an
impor tant friendship between countries.”
-Patrick Brown, Member of Parliament for Barrie
WALMART SQUARE ONE
SUPERCENTRE CELEBRATES
BABY REGISTRY
DESK REPORT
Mississauga - The Mississauga Square One Walmar t
SuperCentre recently hosted a shower to celebrate the launch
the company's Canada Baby Registry. The registry featured a broad
assortment of baby products, from diapers and bottles to cribs and
strollers as well as more than 1,500 online exclusives at the centre's
everyday low prices.
An official from Walmart informed that the registry, that was launched
keeping in view young moms who have no experience and are not sure
what to buy or from where to get those particular things. But once at the
Walmart Baby Registry, started in October last year, new mothers can
find everything possible. In a statement earlier Meghan McConchie,
Walmart Canada's director of category marketing for baby has said: "It
was 100% grounded in consumer insight. Consumers were telling us
that they're in our stores shopping for products to prepare for the arrival
of their new child, but there was no way they could extend this to their
friends and family."
On top of that, "they were actually a little bit embarrassed or reluctant at
times [to register with our main competitor] because they felt that was
quite expensive. So we found that there was a niche in the market, in
that we have a wide breadth of assortment of products and are able to
set up our moms in the right way. They can provide their friends and
families a low-cost solution at the best possible price." The online baby
registry features a Baby Resource Centre, which includes advice, tips
and articles on topics such as how to throw a great baby shower
to buying a car seat to creating a safe sleeping environment for
babies. The site is mobile-friendly, so customers can set up, view and
edit their registry from their mobile devices. Walmart is also offering
free shipping with no minimum purchase. Present on the occasion was
also Parenting Expert Alyson Schafer was available to answer question and provide advice to new and expecting parents. Customers also
had the opportunity to enjoy refreshments, play games and enter for a
chance to win a diaper cake. According to Alyson young mothers have
clue how to embrace the change when the baby is born.
416-907-4420
10
MidWeek
canada
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2015
LOW OIL PRICES isn't all
negative for Canada's
economy: CIBC World Markets
THE US-BASED RETAIL COMPANY, TARGET, HAS DECIDED TO CLOSE DOWN ALL 133 LOCATIONS ACROSS CANADA AFFECTING
17,600 EMPLOYEES (IANS)
CONTD. FROM PAGE 1
By far the biggest user of energy is the transportation sector, accounting
for almost 35 per cent of end-use energy consumption and 70 per cent of
oil consumption in the form of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, the report
says. That holds true even with steady and substantial improvements in
fuel efficiency. But, these improvements in fuel efficiency have been
tempered by more Canadians driving larger cars and light trucks. In the
past 15 years, the number of cars in Canada has risen by more than eight
million, four times the pace seen in household formations, and light
truck sales have risen four times faster than that of smaller cars. The
distance travelled per car over the same period has hardly changed,
however. "We call it the efficiency paradox. The more efficient it is, the
more you use it," says Mr. Tal. "The entire improvement in energy efficiency was consumed by the disproportionate rise in the number of
larger cars." "In a world of rising oil prices, it's a bad thing, but when oil
prices fall, it's good because Canadians get a big break at the pump," he
says, adding that cheaper fuel prices will likely keep the trend of auto
sales towards larger, though more fuel efficient, vehicles intact.
Canadian manufacturers, meanwhile, generally use electricity and natural
gas rather than oil-based fuels so the drop in oil prices will have very
little direct impact on the cost of production, the report says. That said,
given that natural gas prices will likely remain low compared to electricity prices, certain manufacturing sectors that are natural gas-intensive,
such as chemical fertilzer producers and the forestry industry, will be
among the biggest winners, it says.
Mr. Tal also expects the impact of low oil prices on core inflation will be
modest and too small to prompt an outright cut in interest rates by the
Bank of Canada. The complete CIBC World Markets report is available
at: http://research.cibcwm.com/economic_public/download/eijan15.pdf
CIBC's wholesale banking business provides a range of integrated credit
and capital markets products, investment banking, and merchant banking to clients in key financial markets in North America and around the
world. We provide innovative capital solutions and advisory expertise
across a wide range of industries as well as top-ranked research for our
corporate, government and institutional clients.
SOURCE CIBC World Markets
GTA REALTORS® REPORT
1,409 sales in first 14 days
of Jan: Treb
TORONTO: “Toronto Real Estate Board President Paul Etherington announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 1,409 sales
through the TorontoMLS system during the first 14 days of January 2015.
This result was up by 9.8 per cent compared to the same period in 2014.
Sales were up on a year-over-year basis for many of the low-rise home
types and for condominium apartments as well.
"Despite the cold weather, home buyers remained quite active during the
first two weeks of the New Year. Households continued to take advantage of the diversity of affordable housing options available throughout
the Greater Toronto Area," said Etherington. The average selling price for
January mid-month transactions, at $510,532, was down slightly in comparison to the same period last year.
"The slight dip in the average selling price reflects the fact that we saw a
different mix of homes sold this year compared to last year during the
first two weeks of January, as evidenced by a lower average listing
price. The month-end MLS® HPI Composite Benchmark price and the
average selling price will provide a clearer view on prices," said Jason
Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.
MidWeek
MIDWEEK NEWS
NEWS WEEKLY
WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY
AUGUST 28,
20, 2012
2015
india
SHAH'S RALLY RAISES
STORM IN PUNJAB
POLITICS IP12
THE BATTLE FOR DELHI DARBAR
BJP LEADER KIRAN BEDI, DELHI BJP CHIEF SATISH UPADHYAY, AND OTHERS DURING A PROGRAMME ORGANISED TO WELCOME
NEW ENTRANTS INTO THE PARTY IN NEW DELHI (IANS).
FORMER AAP
LEADER SHAZIA
ILMI JOINS BJP IN
PRESENCE OF
DELHI BJP CHIEF
SATISH UPADHYAY
AND OTHERS IN
NEW DELHI (IANS)
CONTD. FROM PAGE 1
Bedi said she was willing to take part in a debate but in the Delhi assembly
as her focus was on "delivery" and not on just discussion.
"I accept the challenge but I will do it only in the Delhi assembly. Right now,
I am focusing on delivery, while debate is all he (Kejriwal) has been doing,"
Bedi told reporters.
In an interview to Times Now news channel, Bedi accused Kejriwal of resorting to drama. "I stand for a new kind of politics (that is) not accusatory, not
agitational."
She said she was tracking "the way Prime Minister Narendra Modi had
changed India".
BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra called Kejriwal's move for a debate a publicity gimmick.
11
"The battle in Delhi is between Iron Lady and I-run-man -- a man who has
been on the run for (the post of) CM to PM," Patra said, referring to Kejriwal's
defeat in Varanasi to Modi.
He said Kejriwal stands for "drama, dharna and debate", while the BJP stands
for "development, democracy and delivery".
"This debate is a gimmick to gain some cheap publicity. The AAP is all about
publicity, they want to use Kiran ji for their publicity," Patra said.
Meanwhile, the BJP Tuesday released its final list of four candidates, while
its ally Shiromani Akali Dal also named four candidates for the Feb 7 Delhi
assembly polls. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) selected Sanjay Singh for
Vikaspuri, Sarita Chaudhary for Mehrauli, Rakesh Gulia for Greater Kailash
and Nandani Sharma for Malviya Nagar.
CONTD. ON PAGE 12
Bedi is BJP's trump card but
some leaders are sulking
New Delhi, (IANS) The BJP's projection of India's first woman
police officer Kiran Bedi as its face in Delhi has divided the
par ty, with one section overjoyed and the other left sulking.
Some also feel that while the decision was right, it may have come a
little too late for the Bharatiya Janata Party to score its first victory in
assembly elections after 1993.
The move took even some leaders in the BJP in Delhi by surprise but
has boosted the morale of workers who were stunned by the aggressive campaign of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), party sources said.
"The BJP has definitely found the right candidate (Bedi) and it will help
the party's prospects as she has decades of administrative experience
and knows how to get things done," party spokesman Ashwini Upadhyay
told IANS.
"She has worked on international assignments with the UN as well as
on the streets to help children through her NGO," he added. Another
party functionary, however, said that some leaders were sulking as
their ambitions had been stifled.
Arivind Kejriwal's AAP finished a surprise close second in the December 2013 election winning 28 seats against the BJP's 31. The Congress
finished a distant third with just eight seats in the house of 70.
Before Bedi was brought in, opinion polls were predicting another
hung house in Delhi although with the BJP doing marginally better
than in 2013.
Many in the BJP hope that Bedi, 65, will prove a tough match for
Kejriwal, who at age 46 too has strong anti-corruption credentials. Bedi has been an anti-corruption activist, a former tennis
player and her innings in Delhi Police is still widely remembered in the city. Bedi initiated prison reforms in the Tihar Central Jail.
She has won the Ramon Magsaysay award, an honour she shares
with Kejriwal. Both were part of the anti-corruption agitation led
by Gandhian Anna Hazare.
Since her induction in the BJP, Bedi has talked about her priorities -- as a likely candidate to lead the par ty's campaign.
BJP leaders say that while the par ty has considerable support
among the middle class, it needs to work harder to woo the poor
and the working class.
They also said that the BJP could not have gone without a local
face after the Congress named Ajay Maken as its campaign chief.
"AAP had Kejriwal and the Congress named Maken. We were the
only ones left without a prominent local face. It would have been
better if the decision (about Bedi) had been taken earlier," another leader said.
The source added: "The BJP conducted an internal survey which
showed that Kejriwal's anti-corruption credentials and the BJP
not having a prominent face were working against the par ty."
The BJP continues to bank on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's
appeal but now Bedi is a new face in the par ty's propaganda
campaign.
"It would be very tough for AAP to target Bedi. The BJP needed
such a face in Delhi," another leader said.
Delhi goes to the polls Feb 7. The BJP is keen on a victory after
losing face in 2013 when the AAP went on to form a minority
government and ruled the city for 49 days before Kejriwal resigned. Delhi has been under President's rule for the past 11
months. The BJP had named Harsh Vardhan as its chief ministerial candidate in 2013 but he is now in the Modi cabinet.
Pradeep Kumar Dutta, who teaches at Delhi University, said Bedi
was a strong and effective administrator and her joining the par ty
"will beef up suppor t among the middle class and the government
employees who previously voted for Kejriwal". Senior journalist Kuldip
Nayar said the BJP "has got a face" in Delhi with Bedi's induction and
this will help it to get swing votes.
Pahlaj Nihalani appointed new
Censor Board chairperson
New Delhi, (IANS) Four days after Leela Samson quit, film producer Pahlaj Nihalani, younger brother of filmmaker Govind
Nihalani, was Monday appointed the chairperson of the Central
Board of Film Cer tification (CBFC), along with nine new members.
Nihalani has produced films like "Shola Aur Shabnam" and
"Andaz" in the past, and is a former president of the Association
of Motion Picture and Television Programme Producers.
"The Central Government is pleased to appoint Pahlaj Nihalani
as Chairperson of the Central Board of Film Cer tification in an
honorary capacity from Jan 19, 2015 for a period of three years
or until fur ther orders, whichever is earlier," read a statement
from the ministry of information and broadcasting.
The nine members appointed with immediate effect include Mihir
Bhuta, Syed Abdul Bari, Ramesh Patange, George Baker, Chandra
Prakash Dwivedi, Jeevitha, Vani Tripathi Tikoo, S. Ve Shekhar
and Ashoke Pandit.
The decision comes just days after Samson resigned as CBFC
chairperson, citing interference, coercion and corruption of panel
members.
CBFC is a statutory body under the ministry of information and
broadcasting. It regulates the public exhibition of films under the
provisions of the Cinematograph Act 1952.
Samson, an acclaimed Bharatnatyam dancer, was appointed its
chair in 2011, and she and her members were continuing on
interim extensions.
Following her, 10 of the Censor Board's members -- Ira Bhaskar,
Lora Prabhu, Pankaj Sharma, Rajeev Masand, Sekharbabu
Kancherla, Shaji N. Karun, Shubhra Gupta, T.G. Thyagarajan,
Mamang Dai and Arundhati Nag - also put in their papers via a
letter to the ministry, citing the "cavalier and dismissive manner" in which the board is treated by the government. M.K. Raina
and Anjum Rajabali had resigned from the board earlier itself.
12
MidWeek
india
SHIROMANI AKALI DAL (SAD) LEADER BIBI JAGIR KAUR DURING A MEETING WITH WOMEN WING OF THE PARTY IN CHANDIGARH (IANS),
The Battle For Delhi Darbar
CONTD. FROM PAGE 11
The BJP had named 62 candidates Monday night and had also declared that
former Indian Police Service officer Kiran Bedi, who joined the BJP less than
a week ago, will be the party's chief ministerial candidate to take on her
former anti-corruption stir colleague Arvind Kejriwal of the Aam Aadmi Party
(AAP). The Akali Dal released a list Tuesday evening, chosing Manjinder Singh
Sirsa from Rajouri Garden, Harmeet Singh Kalka from Kalkaji and Jitender Singh
Shunty from Shahdara.
The party left out Shyam Sharma from the Hari Nagar seat and instead chose Avtar
Singh Hit.
All the three candidates - Sirsa, Kalka and Shunty - had fought the 2013 polls from
the same constituencies and won. Sharma, however, had lost from Hari Nagar. Of
the four candidates, Sirsa will contest on the Akali Dal's weighing scale symbol,
while the other three candidates will fight on the BJP's lotus symbol. Meanwhile,
protests began almost immediately after the party's first list came out Monday
night, as some vandals cut out the faces of Bedi and Delhi BJP president Satish
Upadhyay from a hoarding put up outside the BJP office at 14, Pandit Pant Marg.
The protests continued Tuesday as supporters of some BJP leaders, including
Upadhyay, protested at the party headquarters.
A day after the BJP named Kiran Bedi as its chief ministerial candidate and fielded
her from Delhi's Krishna Nagar constituency, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal held a
public rally in the assembly segment and said the BJP would blame her for its
defeat in the elections next month.
Kejriwal said the Bharatiya Janata Party has already conceded defeat, and Bedi
had joined the party to be "trapped".
The former Delhi chief minister said the BJP's sole purpose was to defeat him
rather than improving the national capital.
Addressing a boisterous crowd in the east Delhi constituency, he said the BJP and
everyone else have united to defeat him.
"When they will lose in the polls, they will say that it was because of Kiran
Bedi," the Aam Aadmi Par ty chief said.
Kejriwal also attacked the BJP-led central government on various
fronts, saying the Narendra Modi government had back-tracked on
several promises it made before coming to power in 2014.
His rally was preceded by Bedi's visit to Krishna Nagar - which the
BJP has not lost since 1993.
In the 2013 polls, BJP's Harsh Vardhan won from here for the fifth time
in a row. Harsh Vardhan was elected to the Lok Sabha in 2014, and is
now the union science and technology minister.
Addressing BJP workers, Bedi promised to bring a clean government
in the national capital by focusing on every depar tment.
"Every minister and government official will work together. I will bring
a clean government in Delhi which would focus on every depar tment," Bedi said.
It was Bedi's first visit to the constituency, where Harsh Vardhan
welcomed her along with par ty workers.
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2015
On the other hand the Congress, which propped up a minority Aam Aadmi Party
government in Delhi for 49 days over a year ago, Monday said it was "too
dangerous" to vote that party back to power in the assembly elections next
month.
Congress general secretary Ajay Maken, heading the grand old party's electoral fight-back in the capital, accused the AAP of making repeated somersaults during its short-lived rule in Delhi.
Maken released a booklet listing 16 Â"U-turnsÂ" the Congress said former
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal made vis-a-vis his own stands on issues in the run-up to the Delhi assembly elections in 2013.
The compilation "49 din ki ulti chaal, Dilli hui behaal, U-turn Kejriwal" is
a set of statements and promises that the AAP chief and other leaders
made but were found not complying with, Maken, now Delhi Congress poll panel chief, said while addressing media.
Describing AAP leaders as Â"irresponsibleÂ", he cautioned the electorate against giving the reins of power in the hands of such people.
Â"These (AAP leaders) are irresponsible leaders... We want to ask
the voters of Delhi that would they vote for irresponsible leaders who
only talk, do sit-ins, and protest?... It's too dangerous to give the reins
of power to somebody like that,Â" he said.
Contrary to the AAP's original stand that saw the Congress as politically untouchable until it formed the government last time, Maken
said the AAP supremo had sought people's opinion before striking a
post-poll alliance with the Congress.
Then why did Kejriwal not consult the people before resigning as Delhi chief
minister (in Feb 2014), he asked.
Maken alleged that Kejriwal did not even live up to his pledge of keeping lowkey security after becoming the chief minister.
Â"He (Kejriwal) had pledged that he would not keep a car with a red beacon
(indicating a person's VIP status). His own car was not with a red beacon...but
he was always flanked by a set of such cars," he said.
Indian-made vaccine approved
to fight meningitis in Africa
Accra, (IANS) A vaccine against meningitis prepared by an Indian company has been approved by the World Health Organisation
(WHO), paving the way for its use to eradicate the disease in subSaharan Africa.
The MenAfriVac vaccine was developed by the Indian company,
Serum Institute of India Limited (SIIL), under a project of the global non-profit health organisation PATH and the WHO.
"Developing the MenAfriVac vaccine fits exactly (with) Serum's
ingrained philosophy of bringing down prices of vaccines so that
under-privileged children of the world are protected," said the
Pune- based SIIL's chief executive, Cyrus Poonawalla.
SIIL was contracted by the Meningitis Vaccine Project (MVP) to
produce the vaccine, which has finally been approved by the
WHO for routine immunisation of infants in sub-Saharan Africa,
and has been described by MVP officials as "an innovative and
affordable vaccine that has all but rid the meningitis belt (in subSaharan Africa) of a major cause of deadly epidemics".
"Initial mass vaccination campaigns with MenAfriVac have been
highly effective in reducing the number of meningitis A cases,"
said the director of MVP, Marie-Pierre Preziosi.
80 PERTOSA DRIVE, UNIT 12,
BRAMPTON ONT., L6X 5E9
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13
IRs5 lakh crore to be invested
in road sector: Gadkari
New Delhi (IANS): Union Road Transpor t, Highways and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari Thursday said an investment of Rs.5
lakh crore would be made in the road sector in the coming five
years. Inaugurating the eighth Rubber Expo and Tyre Show (IRE)
here, the minister said: "In five years, there will be investment
of Rs.5 lakh crore."
The minister fur ther said that the government plans to build 30
kms of roads per day in the next two years. Currently, only two
kms of roads are built per day.
Badal urges NRIs to open
schools in Punjab
CANADIAN MP FOR CALGARY NORTHEAST, DEVINDER SHORY PAYS OBEISANCE AT THE GOLDEN TEMPLE IN AMRITSAR (IANS)
DECEMBER TRADE DEFICIT FALLS TO
$9.43 BN ON GLOBAL CRUDE DIP
New Delhi (IANS): India's trade deficit in December 2014 fell by over
7 per cent at $9.43 billion, from $10.18 billion in the corresponding
month of 2013, government data showed recently.
The fall on a month-on-month basis was over 44 per cent, the November deficit having been recorded at $16.86 billion, owing mainly to the
steep plunge in global crude oil prices.
"The trade deficit for April-December 2014-15 was estimated at $110.05
billion which was higher than the deficit of $107.07 billion during
April-December 2013-14," the commerce and industry ministry said
in a statement. According to data released by the Reserve Bank of
India (RBI), expor ts during the month under review decreased by 3.77
per cent at $25.39 billion compared to the level of $26.39 billion dur-
ing December 2013.
For the period of April-December 2014-15, expor ts grew by 4.02 per
cent at $241.15 billion from $231.82 billion in the same period of the
previous fiscal. Impor ts at $34.83 billion also fell by 4.78 per cent in
the month under review, from $36.58 billion impor ted in the corresponding month of 2013. Oil impor ts during December 2014 were
valued at $9.94 billion, which was a whopping 28.6 per cent lower
than oil imports in the corresponding period of 2013 at $13.92 billion.
This was primarily a result of softening of international crude prices
that has fallen below $45 a barrel. Instead, the non-oil imports during
the month under review were higher by 9.9 per cent at $24.89 billion
from $22.65 billion in December 2013.
Sirisena will promote peace in Sri Lanka: Modi
New Delhi, (IANS) Sri Lanka's new President Maithripala Sirisena "will advance peace, reconciliation and development" in the island
nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Monday.
Describing Sri Lanka as "a truly close neighbour and friend", Modi also offered India's continued suppor t and par tnership to Colombo and
Sri Lankan people in "realizing their aspirations".
The prime minister made the observations when Sri Lankan External Affairs Minister Mangala Samaraweera called on him, an official
statement said.
Samaraweera is on his first foreign trip after Sirisena took power Jan 9.
Modi admired Sirisena's vision of a "truly Sri Lankan government", inclusive of all voices, and the initial steps taken by the new
government for political reconciliation and inclusiveness.
Modi also congratulated Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wikramasinghe for their impressive victory in the presidential election
which, according to him, was "a vote for unity and change in Sri Lanka".
Thanking Sirisena for accepting his invitation to visit India, Modi said he "looked forward to receiving him at an early date".
Modi also accepted an invite to Sri Lanka at a convenient date.
Samaraweera, who met his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj Sunday, discussed ways to enhance bilateral cooperation and reconciliation efforts in Sri Lanka.
Indian development partnership projects in Sri Lanka and issues related to the alleged trespassing of Indian fishermen into Sri Lankan
waters were also discussed Sunday.
Jalandhar (IANS): Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal
Friday exhor ted the Punjabi diaspora to establish NRI schools
across the state for connecting their future generations with
their roots.
Addressing the second NRI Sangat Darshan here, 150 km from
Chandigarh, Badal said that the younger generations of the
Punjabi diaspora were somewhat detached from the land of
their forefathers. "The need of the hour was to reverse this trend
by making all out effor ts in this direction. This goal could be
achieved only if the NRIs take the initiative of opening NRI
schools across the state," Badal told the NRIs.
The chief minister said that these schools should be built exclusively for NRI students and should be run by the managements
comprising of NRIs. "The standard of these schools should be
at par with the schools being run in foreign countries so that NRI
kids could be impar ted hi-end school education. The NRI students must study in these schools for at least five years, so that
they could be acquainted with the rich cultural heritage of their
parental land," Badal said. Punjab has a big NRI community
settled in the US, Canada, Britain, European countries, Australia, south-east Asia and other countries.
AIADMK announces candidate
for Srirangam by-poll
Chennai (IANS): Tamil Nadu's ruling AIADMK Friday named
S.Valarmathi as its candidate for the Srirangam assembly constituency, held earlier by former chief minister J.Jayalalithaa,
for the Feb 13 by-poll. In a statement issued here, AIADMK said
Valarmathi sought Jayalalithaa's blessings after being nominated as the candidate for the by-poll. Valarmathi will be crossing swords with DMK's N.Anand who had lost to Jayalalithaa by
around 40,000 votes in the 2011 assembly election. The by-poll
was necessitated following the disqualification of Jayalalithaa,
who was convicted in a corruption case last year. Meanwhile DMK
president M.Karunanidhi in a statement issued recently appealed to all
the parties in the state to support Anand in the by-poll.
1.5 billion tonnes coal production
aimed by 2020: Official
Kolkata (IANS): After laying an ambitious target of 510 million tonnes
coal production for state-run Coal India Ltd (CIL) by 2015, the coal
department is aiming to mine 1.5 billion tonnes by 2020, a senior
government official said.
"The estimates reveal by 2020, the country will need 1.5 billion tonnes
of coal. What we have worked on is that a billion tonne will come from
CIL and 500 to 600 million tonnes (MT) from the private sector," union
Coal Secretary Anil Swarup said on the sidelines of a MCC Chamber of
Commerce event. According to the coal secretary, through the upcoming coal auction of 101 mines, the first 42 mines to be auctioned by
March 23 will produce 90 MT of coal while the 32 mines to be auctioned in the first week of April will generate 140 MT and the next round
of 27 mines to be auctioned in third week of April will generate 120 MT.
"Though the (upcoming) auctions, we are looking at 350 million tonnes
(MT) of additional coal beyond CIL which did 460 MT last year and this
year they will cross 500 MT," he said. He said in the first batch of the
auction, the 42 mines will be auctioned only to entities that has a ready
set-up and are in need of coal while for the second batch (32 mines
with 140 MT capacity) companies who can ready the set-up in the
coming year and a half will be able to bid. "We will work in tandem with
the private sector to keep the mines going," he said. Swarup said the
government is taking necessary steps to boost coal production and is
keen to address the bottlenecks in CIL.
BJP FIELDS NUPUR SHARMA
AGAINST KEJRIWAL
New Delhi, (IANS) The BJP Monday fielded a young par ty member, Nupur Sharma, to take on Aam Aadmi Par ty leader Arvind
Kejriwal in New Delhi seat and declared former Congress leader
Krishna Tirath as its nominee from Patel Nagar in its first list of
62 candidates for the Delhi assembly polls.
The list was declared after a meeting of par ty's central election
committee and parliamentary board.
NAVY CHIEF IN MAURITIUS
ON FOUR-DAY VISIT
New Delhi, (IANS) Indian Navy chief Admiral R.K. Dhowan
Monday reached Mauritius to explore new avenues of defence
cooperation and strengthen military ties.
During his four-day visit, Admiral Dhowan will meet senior government and defence officials. A defence ministry release said
that Dhowan and his Mauritius counterpar t will inaugurate "data
flow of the information exchange" concerning merchant marine.
The release said India and Mauritius share centuries old religious and linguistic bonds. "These bonds have strengthened
over time through goodwill gestures and bilateral visits. The
people of Indian origin, who comprise around 68 percent of the
population, have preserved their heritage and have a strong
emotional attachment with India," the release said. It said that
Indian Navy has been actively cooperating with Mauritius Maritime agencies on their maritime security needs such as hydrography surveys as also in training.
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world
PAKISTAN EXTENDS
LAKHVI'S DETENTION
FOR 30 DAYS
IP15
TIES WITH ISRAEL AT 'POINT OF
NO RETURN': PALESTINE
Ramallah, Jan 19 (IANS) A Palestinian official Monday said ties with
Israel reached a "point of no return" after Israel decided to halt the
transfer the tax revenues to the Palestinian National Authority.
"Israel is practicing a collective punishment against the Palestinian
people," said chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, in a statement
following his meeting with foreign diplomats in the West Bank, according to a Xinhua repor t.
"The Palestinian-Israeli ties would never return to what it used to be
before signing up to join international agencies and treaties, mainly
the International Criminal Cour t," said Erekat. "Keeping this situation
is impossible."
Erekat also referred to what he described as the Israeli government's
"endless threats" against the Palestinian leadership, the Palestinian
people and the international agencies.
He urged Israel to declare its commitment to abiding by international
treaties.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas made his decision to join international treaties after the UN Security Council (UNSC) failed to vote
in favour of a draft resolution that called for an end to the Israeli
occupation within three years.
In response to the Palestinian move to join international treaties, mainly
the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Cour t (ICC), Israel withheld the tax revenue it collects
from Palestinian impor ts.
According to Oslo accords,
signed in 1993 between Israel
and the Palestine, Israel collects
taxes on behalf of the Palestinians from Palestinian impor ts at
Israeli seapor ts, and pays them
back to the Palestinians.
EU to appeal
against removing
Hamas from
terror list
Brussels, (IANS) The European
Union (EU) has decided to appeal
against a ruling last December
that Hamas be removed from the
list of terrorist groups, EU foreign
policy chief Federica Mogherini
said Monday.
The ruling was clearly based on
"procedural grounds" and did not
imply any assessment by the
cour t of the merits of designating
Hamas as a terrorist organisation,
said Mogherini, according to a
Xinhua repor t.
The General Cour t of the EU Dec
17 annulled measures taken by
the EU Council against Hamas,
which designated Hamas as a
terrorist organisation and froze
the group's funds.
Mogherini said that as a result of
the appeal, the effects of the
judgement were suspended until
a final decision was made by the
EU Cour t of Justice. The EU foreign policy chief said that the fight
against terrorism remained a priority and that the EU was determined to
stem the financing of terrorism.
Iran seeks OPEC cooperation
to stop oil price slump
Tehran, (IANS) Iran Monday sought cooperation among the member states of the Organisation of Petroleum Expor ting Countries
(OPEC) to prevent the global oil prices from falling fur ther.
Iran was consulting with other OPEC member states to prevent
oil prices from falling fur ther, although it had no plans for an
OPEC emergency meeting, Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar
Zangeneh said.
"Cooperation among OPEC members should be strengthened so
that the oil price (is) balanced and reasonable for investors and
producers," he said during a petrochemical conference here,
Xinhua repor ted.
"Consultations with the OPEC member states have yet to bear
fruit," the Iranian minister said.
"A political determination is keeping oil prices from edging up."
Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs,
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian Saturday said Iran wanted Saudi
Arabia to help in stopping the continuous slump in oil prices to
protect the economies of the region's oil producing countries.
"We have told Saudi Arabian officials through diplomatic channels that they should prevent the enemies of the region from
harming the growing economies of regional countries," AmirAbdollahian said, according to media repor ts.
Oil prices have tumbled almost 50 percent to below $50 per
barrel.
Iran's economy is heavily reliant on oil expor ts. Besides the
losses from declining oil prices, Iran's crude expor ts have fallen
60 percent to 1 million barrels a day due to Western sanctions
on its energy and financial sectors.
SOCIAL NEGLECT WILL
TURN EX-JIHADIS INTO
WALKING TIME BOMBS
London, (IANS) Society, unfor tunately, may not have been able
to stop many a youth from treading a wrong path, but it is perhaps more unfor tunate that those seeking to return to the mainstream are given the cold shoulder.
The mother of a British youth who fought with the Islamic State
(IS) jihadis in Syria has precisely this tale to tell, sharing during
a televised interview to BBC her despair at being left without
suppor t since her son's return, which The Independent cited
Monday.
What is worse, the woman, Linda, who travelled to Turkey to
fetch her son James after he became disenchanted with the IS,
warned that without vital suppor t from the government, the hundreds of former jihadis, like her son, who have been scarred by
their experiences among terrorists, were "walking time
bombsa¿.
Revealing herself on camera for the first time, Linda, a 45-yearold single mother from London who conver ted to Islam along
with her son two years ago, said during BBC's "Inside Out
Londona¿ programme, that James has been left traumatised
and was occasionally violent because of his experiences in
Syria.
However, despite repeated requests, she said that they received
no help from the government.
Such a treatment of the scarred youth by the British government
endangered the security of the country and made it prone to
Paris-style terrorist attacks, according to Linda.
As a teenager James abandoned his studies at Cambridge to
become a jihadi in the Afghan civil war.
He suffered bullet wounds while in Syria and Linda claimed that
her son was still not able to fully talk about what he witnessed.
James could be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder,
Linda feared.
She said: "It's been difficult for him to go through that experience
and then rejoin society. When he came back he had nightmares
and he would sometimes wake up sweating and sor t of reliving
the traumas and feeling like he was still there.a¿
"He was in a war zone where people were being killed, people
were experiencing horrific things. He himself got wounded. I
can see that sometimes he is physically traumatisedaa¿ she
said, adding, "I feel quite helplessaa¿
"My son is mildly autistic and that made him extra vulnerable.
He was quite gullible and went into the situation very quickly
without really thinking about what he was doing.
"In a way, I feel guilty and I've gone over all the things that I
could have done to avoid it from happening. But as a parent, I
feel like I've been a victim of this, rather someone to blame,a¿
she said.
"There's no point in us as a society denying the presence of all
these people... I feel if these people are just left unattended a
they could become a walking time bomb,a¿ Linda said.
Referring to the Paris attacks, she said: "aIt is quite worrying
that there's all these young men returning from these situations
and I think that without the right care, we could be risking an
incident like what happened in France.a¿
Around 300 jihadis have returned to Britain and the British security agency, MI5 claimed that they posed the biggest threat to
national security. Crown Prosecution Service figures, however,
showed that only six have been convicted of terrorism.
The government has a number of deradicalisation programmes
in place, but not all returning jihadis get oppor tunities to join
them.
Linda said that at times she has felt like a prisoner in her own
home. She insisted that her son posed no danger to the society
and warned there could be serious consequences if returning
jihadis were not helped.
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PAKISTAN COURT
DECLARES TTP CHIEF
PROCLAIMED OFFENDER
Islamabad (IANS): A Pakistani Anti-Terrorism Cour t (ATC) in
Karachi Thursday declared Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)
chief Mullah Fazlullah as a proclaimed offender in the Karachi
airpor t attack case. ATC declared Fazlullah and TTP spokesperson Shahidullah Shahid as proclaimed offenders in last year's
attack, The News International repor ted Three detainees -Sarmad Siddiqui, Nadeem alias Burger and Asif Zaheer -- who
are being tried in this case, were presented in cour t during the
resumption of hearing. All three suspects have been accused of
being involved in the attack on Quaid-i-Azam International Airpor t in Karachi June 8, last year. The ATC adjourned the hearing
of the case till Jan 29. As many as 28 people, including personnel of the Airpor t Security Force (ASF) and 10 foreign militants,
were killed in the attack, for which TTP and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (UMI) had claimed responsibility.
BANGLADESHI MUSLIMS PROTESTING AGAINST POSTS, TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY MINISTER ABDUL LATIF SIDDIQUE ON PILGRIMAGE POLICY (IANS)
'Wrong policies will make 1 bn
more people poor by 2030'
London (IANS): Almost one billion more people globally may face
extreme pover ty by 2030 if world leaders fail to make concrete decision on inequality and climate change at two UN summits to be held
this year. The "action/2015", an international coalition of more than
1,000 organisations, warned that global poverty could rise for the first
time in a generation if politicians make the wrong calls, The Independent repor ted Thursday.
The "action/2015" campaign will target the UN summit in New York in
September, which will discuss a new agenda to replace the millennium development goals set in 2000, which expire this year. The new
agenda is expected to include ending pover ty and hunger, improving
health and education, making cities more sustainable, combating climate change, and protecting oceans and forests.
The campaign will also demand tough action to tackle man-made
climate change when UN-led negotiations on a new global agreement
reach a climax in Paris in December. Research for the campaign by
the University of Denver shows that, if world leaders get it right, the
number of people living in extreme pover ty - less than 82 pence or
about Rs.77 ($1.25) a day - could be reduced dramatically from more
than one billion to 360 million by 2030. By then, about 4 per cent of the
global population would live in extreme pover ty, down from 17 per
cent today. This would make eradicating extreme pover ty achievable
for the first time in history. However, if the two summits get it wrong,
the number of people living in extreme pover ty could increase to 1.2
billion by 2030 --the first rise since 1993, and 886 million higher than
if strong action is taken. Under this scenario, one in three of the world's
population would live on under 1.32 pound or Rs.123 ($2.0) a day. The
goals of "action/2015" include an end to pover ty in all its forms; ensuring fundamental rights, tackling inequality and discrimination and
speeding up the transition to "100 per cent renewable energy".
Nobel laureate and campaigner for girls' education Malala Yousafzai
said: "People globally want an end to injustice, pover ty and illiteracy.
Our world is interconnected and youth are ready and mobilised more
than ever to see real change take place. Together, we are demanding
our leaders take action in 2015 and we must all do our par t." The
campaign "action/2015" is suppor ted by more than 120 countries.
Queen Rania of Jordan, Bill and Melinda Gates, rock star Bono, actors
Matt Damon and Ben Affleck and the mobile communications entrepreneur Mo Ibrahim have also extended their suppor t to the campaign. British Prime Minister David Cameron, Leader of Opposition in
Britain Ed Miliband, and British politician Nick Clegg also have pledged
their suppor t.
NADIR PATEL IS CANADA'S
NEW ENVOY TO INDIA
ISSUE STAMP TO
COMMEMORATE DIWALI:
US LAWMAKER
Washington (IANS): A US lawmaker has introduced a resolution
in the Congress, urging the country's postal service to issue a
stamp honouring Diwali -- "an impor tant spiritual and cultural
festival for many Americans", a media repor t said. "Despite the
significance of this holiday to many Americans, the United States
Postal Service has not yet recognised Diwali with a commemorative stamp, as it has with other major religious and cultural
holidays such as Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and Eid," The
American Bazaar website quoted Democratic Par ty Representative Carolyn B. Maloney as saying in a press release.
"Our resolution would express the sense of the House that the
Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee should issue a stamp
honouring Diwali, an impor tant spiritual and cultural festival for
many Americans," said the representative for New York's 12th
congressional district. Maloney has spearheaded numerous effor ts in the past to raise awareness about Diwali, the Indian
festival of lights. Two years ago, she proposed a similar resolution but it failed to gain traction in Washington. However, this
time she is joined by lawmakers like Mike Honda, Ami Bera,
Tulsi Gabbard, and Grace Meng. Indian-Americans now number
around 3.5 million and comprise the third largest Asian community
in the US, according to a report by the Center for American Progress.
US, BRITISH LEADERS
OPPOSE EXTRA
SANCTIONS ON IRAN
Washington (IANS): US President Barack Obama and British
Prime Minister David Cameron warned that extra sanctions on
Iran would derail the ongoing effor ts to prevent Iran from getting
nuclear weapons. "We agree that the international community
needs to remain united as we seek a comprehensive, diplomatic solution to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons,"
Xinhua quoted Obama as saying at a joint press conference in
White House with Cameron. Additional sanctions on Iran at this
time would undermine that international unity and set back our
chances for a diplomatic solution." Washington's reluctance to
impose new sanctions on Iran was echoed by Cameron, who
was on a two-day state visit to the US. Calling the prospect of
imposing extra sanctions on Iran "counterproductive", Cameron
said the success of nuclear talks with Tehran required "space
for negotiation. It could put at risk the valuable international unity
that has been so crucial to our approach," he said.
PAKISTAN EXTENDS
LAKHVI'S DETENTION
FOR 30 DAYS
THE HIGH COMMISSIONER-DESIGNATE OF CANADA, NADIR PATEL PRESENTING HIS CREDENTIAL TO THE PRESIDENT PRANAB
MUKHERJEE, AT RASHTRAPATI BHAVAN, IN NEW DELHI. (PIB)
New Delhi, (IANS) Nadir Patel, Canada's new high commissioner to India, presented his credentials to President Pranab Mukherjee
Friday. He is the first Canadian of Indian origin appointed as envoy to New Delhi.
Patel succeeds Stewar t Beck.
Speaking about his new role, Patel said: "I look forward to working with Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi and his government to further
expand ties between Canada and India.
"There are several areas where collaboration is already strong, and there is scope for even greater cooperation to enhance our mutual
prosperity, security, and people-to-people ties."
Prior to his arrival in India, Patel served as Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Financial Officer for Canada's Department of Foreign
Affairs, Trade and Development.
Before that he held a series of high-level government positions, including Chief of Staff to the National Security Advisor to the Prime
Minister, and Secretary to the Cabinet.
From 2009 to 2011, Patel was Canada's Consul General in Shanghai, China.
Patel currently serves on the Board of Governors of the International Development Research Centre, a Canadian Crown Corporation that
supports research and innovation in developing countries to promote growth and development.
Patel was selected in 2012 by Canada's "Embassy" newspaper as one of the 80 most influential Canadians shaping Canada's foreign
policy, an honour he got again in 2014 from the "Power and Influence" magazine (top 100).
In January 2011, he was profiled by Canada's "Globe and Mail" newspaper as one of "45 Canadians Changing the World".
He is a graduate of the London School of Economics and Political Science and the HEC Paris School of Management.
Islamabad, (IANS) Pakistan government Monday extended detention of Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi by 30 days under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO), a media repor t said.
Lakhvi has been behind bars since Feb 19, 2009, after an FIR
was registered with the Federal Investigation Agency against
him for allegedly training terrorists and facilitating the 2008
Mumbai terror attack in which 166 people were killed and hundreds injured.
On Monday, the federal government, however, extended his detention in the Adiala Jail under the MPO ordinance, the Dawn
repor ted.
During the hearing, Islamabad's Deputy Commissioner (DC)
Mujahid Sher Dil informed the cour t that Lakhvi's detention has
been extended by the government under the MPO ordinance for
30 more days. The high cour t bench, hearing a plea filed by
Lakhvi's counsel against the detention under the MPO, had sought
the government's reply over it. The case will be heard again Jan
26. Earlier in the day, a division bench of the anti-terrorism cour t
here, comprising Justice Noorul Haq and Justice Shaukat Aziz
Siddiqui, resumed the hearing on a plea filed by the government
against grant of bail to Lakhvi.
Federal Investigation Agency's prosecutor Mohammad Azhar
Chaudhry told the court that two countries have demanded handing over of Lakhvi to India.
Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui replied that this was a diplomatic
issue, which needs to be addressed by the government.
An FIA petition had challenged the Dec 18 decision of an antiterrorism cour t (ATC) in Islamabad which granted bail to Lakhvi.
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'Adventurous' Priyanka
undergoes an
unexpected change
SONAM KAPOOR DURING PROMOTION OF HER UPCOMING MOVIE ‘DOLLY KI DOLI’.
EVERYBODY IN BIGG BOSS WANTS TO FIGHT
AND CREATE MESS, ALLEGES SANA
Actress Sana Khan, who got evicted from "Bigg Boss Halla Bol" Sunday, says she couldn't behave like former contestant Ajaz Khan in
order to enter tain the viewers.
Sana entered the "Bigg Boss" house as a challenger, but was not able
to do much and got voted out after spending two weeks there.
She was nominated alongside Rahul Mahajan and Sambhavna Seth
in the series which is an extended version of popular reality show
"Bigg Boss 8".
"The house needed some loud amplifiers and woofers, so a walkman like me was not able to make any impression inside there," Sana
told IANS over phone from Mumbai.
"Everybody there wants to fight and create mess to seek attention. In
my two weeks' journey, I did my best to bring some positivity inside
there but everything happened opposite to what I thought.
"I can't be like Ajaz Khan, who can enter tain people with his loud
behaviour to stay in the show for a long time. He has no competition
with me. My personality and work style are totally different from his,"
she added.
Since its first day, the spinoff has witnessed a lot of negativity inside
the "Bigg Boss" house with challengers and champions fighting with
each other to take their respective stand.
Last week, actor Upen Patel entered the house as a guest after Ajaz
Actress Priyanka Chopra, who mostly spor ts long tresses, has gone
for a short hairdo.
Before getting her locks chopped off, she tweeted Saturday: "Time to
do something spontaneous!! Feeling a bit adventurous. Chopping the
tresses!"
She even shared a photograph of her new look on social networking
site Facebook.
Spor ting a black ensemble and red lips, she showed off her new
short hairdo with highlights in the photograph.
Her fans have already given her thumbs up for the new look. They
have used words like "wow", "beautiful" and "cool" to describe her
new hairstyle.
She had also cut her hair shor t to play Kiara in the 2010 film "Anjaana
Anjaani".
BO REPORT CARD: ALONE
FETCHES A DULL RESPONSE
was asked to exit the show. Asked who according to her is fake inside
the house, Sana said: "All of them are fake in 'Bigg Boss' house. I
didn't see any real emotions there. People were changing groups
daily. All the contestants were changing opinions about each other on
a day-to-day basis." Hosted by filmmaker Farah Khan, the show is
now lef t with nine housemates including Ali Quli Mirza, Dimpy,
Gautam Gulati and Karishma Tanna.
SHWETA SUBRAM’S BOLLYWOOD DEBUT WITH
AYUSHMANN KHURRANA IN HAWAIZAADA
Shweta Subram, the beautiful Canadian songstress, is now taking on Bollywood
with the title track Dil-e-Nadaan, alongside heartthrob actor and singer Ayushmann
Khurrana for the upcoming film, Hawaizaada. In addition to Ayushmann, the film
stars Mithun Chakraborty and Pallavi Sharda. The soundtrack has been released
by T-Series.
Dil-e-Nadaan is a modern adaptation of the popular ghazal by iconic poet Mirza
Ghalib. Ayushmann and Shweta mellifluously render this song, as it seamlessly
incorporates itself in Hawaizaada’s storyline amongst breathtaking cinematography by Savita Singh. The film brings forth the inspiring story of Shivkar Talpade,
a man who is believed to have flown the first unmanned aircraft eight years
before the Wright Brothers. This is directed by Vibhu Puri and celebrates the spirit
of 'Make in India'. Produced by Vishal Gurnani, Rajesh Banga and Reliance
Entertainment, the film is scheduled to hit the theatres on January 30, 2015.
Watch the official video for Dil-e-Nadaan (Hawaizaada) [Ayushmann Khurrana,
Shweta Subram] at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ms9oXS8W5w
Beyond proving to be a gifted actor, Ayushmann has vocally enchanted us with
hits such as Pani Da Rang, Saadi Galli Aaja, and Mitti Di Khushboo. Meanwhile,
Shweta has mesmerized us with Bollywood Evolution, an Indian adaptation of
Swedish House Mafia’s Don’t You Worry Child with The Piano Guys, and Khuda
Ke Liye alongside Salim-Sulaiman at the IIFA Awards in Toronto.
Bipasha Basu-starrer "Alone" managed to rake in Rs.9.02 crore
in two days.
The Bhushan Patel directorial, which hit the screens Jan 16,
garnered an amount of Rs.4.57 crore on day one and Rs4.45
crore on the second day, read a statement.
Trade analyst Komal Nahta described "Alone" as "a fair entertainer with horror, sex and suspense".
Bipasha, who ahead of the release of "Alone" said "scary is the
new sexy", got emotional and thanked the team of the film, which
also stars Karan Singh Grover.
"My role in the beautiful journey of #Alone is ending... But many
more journeys are beginning... Will miss my entire team. Thank
u all for being so wonderful," she tweeted Saturday along with a
black and white photograph of herself and Karan.
18
MidWeek
bollywood
Movie Review
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2015
Upcoming
BOLLYWOOD Movies
DOLLY KI DOLI
RELEASE DATE:
Jan 23,2015
STAR CAST:
Sonam Kapoor, Rajkummar Rao,
Pulkit Samrat, Malaika Arora Khan
RKIRE, SHILPA
CAST: SWANAND KI
MAT, KUSHAL
SHUKLA, NINAD KA
HARTH SHARMA
PUNJABI AND SIDD
MENON
DIRECTOR: RITESH
RATING: **
'CRAZY CUKKAD FAMILY' - A
MISGUIDED COMEDY
Where there is a will, there is a greedy family. Ha ha ha!
This one-lined adage serves as the guiding light of debutant director
Ritesh Menon's misguided comedy.
"Crazy Cukkad Family" is a comedy desperately in need of genuine
laughter. You can't even force yourself to giggle at the sheer asininity
of the goings-on. The characters behave stupidly and seem very proud
of it. This is how dysfunctional families behave, so who are we to
change the rules...they seem to suggest by their exhibitionistic antics.
Some comedies are so frightfully misdirected that they appear to be
horrors. "Crazy Cukkad Family" must have sounded hilarious and
wacky on paper. In fact, I can close my eyes and see the entire cast
and crew falling off their collective seats as they read the script. Alas,
there is many a slip between the cup and lip-sync. Characters screaming their lungs off to prove they are par t of a dysfunctional family, do
not necessarily constitute an occasion for humour.
It is truly sad to see talented actors straining to be funny when the
material provided to them is pulling the other way. The plot about a
dysfunctional family of four unbecoming progenies who wait for their
rich father to kick the bucket required much more fleshing out. In the
absence of meat to chew on, the characters nibble on the edges of
their edgy characterisations trying desperately to keep the comic
spirit alive.
There are brave concessions to new age values such as a crossdresser and a son declaring himself to be gay. But you really don't
care if these characters are gay or fey.
Death as a laughing matter is hard to achieve in Indian cinema. Kundan
Shah managed to make mortality wor th some mir th in "Jaane Bhi Do
Yaaro". The feat seems way beyond Ritesh Menon's abilities. He gets
some sturdy suppor t from actors who know their jobs. Shilpa Shukla,
Ninad Kamat, Kushal Punjabi and specially Swanand Kirkire are in
fine form.
DIRECTOR(S):
Abhishek Dogra
PRODUCER(S):
Arbaaz Khan
BABY
RELEASE DATE:
Jan 23,2015
STAR CAST:
Akshay Kumar, Tapsee Pannu,
Rana Daggubati, Anupam Kher
DIRECTOR(S):
Neeraj Pandey
PRODUCER(S):
Bhushan Kumar
JAI JAWAAN JAI KISAAN
RELEASE DATE:
Jan 23,2015
STAR CAST:
Jatin Khurana, Om Puri, Prem Chopra,
Rati Agnihotri, Rishi Bhutani
DIRECTOR(S):
Milan Ajmera
PRODUCER(S):
Madan Lal Khurana,
KHAMOSHIYAN
RELEASE DATE:
Jan 30,2015
STAR CAST:
Gurmeet Choudhary, Ali Fazal,
Sapna Pabbi
Sadly, the humour is decidedly more dead in "Crazy Cukkad Family"
than the patriarch who just refuses to die. The writing could have
done with less lungs and more brains.
This is one crazy family we don't want to run into.
DIRECTOR(S):
Karan Darra
PRODUCER(S):
Mahesh Bhatt, Mukesh Bhatt
BAJRANGI BHAIJAAN
RELEASE DATE:
Jul 16, 2015
STAR CAST:
Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor,
Nawazuddin Siddiqui
DIRECTOR(S):
Kabir Khan
PRODUCER(S):
Kabir Khan, Salman Khan
SINGH IS BLING
MUSIC DIRECTOR SHANTANU MOITRA AND ACTRESS DEEPTI NAVAL AT KISHORE THUKRAL'S PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION IN NEW DELHI (IANS)
RELEASE DATE:
Jul 31, 2015
STAR CAST:
Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif
DIRECTOR(S):
Prabhu Dheva
PRODUCER(S):
Ashvini Yardi
WRITER :
Prabhudeva
MIDWEEK NEWS
NEWS WEEKLY
WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY
AUGUST 28,
20, 2012
2015
MidWeek
19
DE VILLIERS STUNS
WITH 31-BALL TON
A
B de Villiers ripped up the record books with the fastest
century in ODIs, off just 31 balls to beat the previous quick
est set by Corey Anderson off 36 balls little more than a year
ago, as South Africa beat their own record at the Wanderers
and racked up 439, four shy of the world record total of 443.
De Villiers' was the third hundred in a towering South African total the first time three had been scored in an ODI innings - which also
saw Rilee Rossouw register his maiden century and Hashim Amla
his 18th, a career-best 153 not out, in the highest opening stand South
Africa have ever posted of 247.
In less than an hour, de Villiers took an innings which was building
well and turned it into a skyscraper. He clobbered 16 sixes, the most
by a South African and the joint-highest number of sixes overall in an
ODI innings, and dominated a 192-run second-wicket stand with Amla
which lasted just 67 deliveries and in which runs were scored at
17.12 to the over. Amla only faced 30 balls and contributed 33. Such
was de Villiers' dominance.
None of the the West Indian bowlers were spared as de Villiers put on
his full range of strokes. There was the pull, the scoop, the lofted
drive and the good old slog and Jason Holder, given the toughest of
examinations as a young captain, was hardest hit. De Villiers plundered 45 runs off the nine balls he faced from him, including six of his
sixes.
By the time Holder could even consider launching a counter-attack of
his own, West Indies' challenge was over. Although they may have
had hopes of pulling off something similar to what they did on the
same surface last week, when they successfully chased the highest
T20 score of 232, West Indies lost Chris Gayle in the fifth over and
even though Dwayne Smith and Denesh Ramdin both scored halfcenturies, the South African attack were much more difficult to get
away than the West Indian one.
Jerome Taylor had the most expensive return for a West Indian bowler
in ODIs when his 10 overs cost 95 and Holder was not far behind. His
nine overs went for 91. Dwayne Smith also took punishment and
finished with an economy of 17 after one of his overs went for 30.
Contrastingly, Dale Steyn's 10 overs went for just 29 runs and Morne
Morkel's for 43 as the pair demonstrated how to operate on a batsmen-friendly surface. They used the shor t well sparingly and bowled
at good pace but ultimately West Indies did not have the same structure to their innings as South Africa did.
Rossouw and Amla were circumspect upfront with Rossouw feeding
off Amla's patience to script a knock he really needed. A yo-yo start to
his international career saw Rossouw collect as many ducks as he
did star ts and he could count them both on one hand. Five noughts
would not have infused the man who may be tasked with opening at
the World Cup should Quinton de Kock be unfit at the star t with confidence but a century will change all that.
After seeing off a testing early period, in which he was given out lbw
to a ball he bottom-edged off Sulieman Benn and successfully reviewed, Rossouw showed his ability off the backfoot with a selection
of strong pulls and a good understanding of timing and placement.
Amla kept the scoreboard moving while Rossouw settled and South
Africa had 100 inside 20 overs before they began to accelerate.
Samuels helped them in that cause. Twelve runs came off each of his
first and third overs as South Africa took 41 off the five overs between
20 and 25 and took the Powerplay two overs later. Benn enforced a
squeeze and South Africa managed just 29 with the fielding restrictions on but the opening stand was unbroken and both batsmen were
closing in on centuries. Rossouw's came first off 102 balls and Amla's
three deliveries later, off 103.
More worryingly for West Indies, it was only the 35th over.
Rossouw chipped a catch to mid-off shor tly after that to bring de
Villiers and carnage to the crease. At No.3, with a platform laid, de
Villiers dictated terms and knocked West Indies off their lines, lengths
and plans. His 50 came up in 16 balls, the first world record, before he
raced to 100 after facing just 15 more. The bigger he hit, the fewer
answers West Indies had and they couldn't find them in the second
half either.
Gayle tried to force the pace of the chase but ran out of luck early on
when he miscued a pull. Farhaan Behardien had to move quickly but
judged the catch well to immediately dent West Indies' already slim
chances. At least they did not fold and ended nine runs short of 300,
which in different circumstances would be considered a decent total.
But against the backdrop of the de Villiers show it paled in comparison as South Africa took centre stage and best of all, they did it pretty
in pink. It was the third match dedicated to breast cancer awareness
in the country and to date, South Africa have won all of them.
WORLD CUP KNOCK-OUT VENUES ALLOCATED
Dubai, (IANS) The International Cricket Council (ICC) Monday
announced the venue allocation criteria for the quar ter-finals of
the World Cup which will be held from Feb 14 to March 29.
If World Cup co-hosts Australia and New Zealand were to qualify
from Pool A, they will play their quar ter-finals in Adelaide and
Wellington March 20 and 21, respectively.
Besides the hosts, the current rankings list Sri Lanka and
England as the two next highest ranked teams in Pool A. If these
teams qualify for the quar ters, Sri Lanka will play in Sydney
March 18 and England will play in Melbourne March 19, irrespective of where in the top-4 these teams finish.
"It is customary for the ICC to afford the hosts the opportunity to play
knock-outs at home where possible during the World Cup. It is also
usual for the ICC to assign venues to the higher ranked teams on the
assumption they will progress through the pool stage," said ICC general
manager (cricket) Geoff Allardice. "This is done to assist teams and
spectators with their planning by giving them greater certainty. On this
basis, the ICC has allocated quar ter-final venues to the next two
highest ranked teams from Pool A."
However, if any one of the two hosts or the two next highest
ranked Pool A teams fail to reach the last eight, then the team that
qualifies will play at the venue that was allocated to the side that
did not qualify.
For example, if Sri Lanka fail to reach the quar ters, the Pool A team
that qualifies instead of Sri Lanka will play in Sydney March 18.
The venues for quar ter-finalists from Pool B will be determined by
their Pool A opponents on the basis of their finishing positions in
the group stage.
For example, if defending champions India top Pool B in position B1, they
will play against the Pool A team that finishes in position A4. Therefore, if
Sri Lanka finish in position A4 then India will play Sri Lanka in Sydney
March 18.
As far as semi-finals are concerned, if Australia and New Zealand qualify,
they will play at home unless they are scheduled to meet each other. In
this case, the side that finished higher in Pool A will host the match.
Once it is known whether Australia and New Zealand can meet in a semifinal (at the end of the pool stage), the semi-final venue allocations will be
confirmed.
If both the hosts fail to reach the quarter-finals, the winner of the Wellington
quarter-final will play its semi-final in Sydney.
Quarter-final matches:
Quarter-final 1 - A1 v B4
Quarter-final 2 - A2 v B3
Quarter-final 3 - A3 v B2
Quarter-final 4 - A4 v B1
A1 means the side that tops Pool A while B4 means the side that
finishes fourth in Pool B
Quarter-final dates and venues:
March 18 at Sydney Cricket Ground
March 19 at Melbourne Cricket Ground
March 20 at Adelaide Oval
March 21 at Wellington Stadium
Semi-final matches:
Semi-final 1 - winner QF1 (A1 v B4) v winner QF3 (A3 v B2)
Semi-final 2 - winner QF2 (A2 v B3) v winner QF4 (A4 v B1)
Semi-final dates and venues:
March 24 at Eden Park, Auckland
March 26 at Sydney Cricket Ground
Final date and venue:
March 29 at Melbourne Cricket Ground
where south asians meet daily
STARC, FINCH SET UP
SECOND AUSTRALIA WIN
MITCHELL STARC REINED INDIA IN WITH LATE WICKETS, AUSTRALIA V INDIA, CARLTON MID TRI-SERIES, MELBOURNE.
“
O
AUSTRALIA 6 FOR 269 (FINCH 96) BEAT
INDIA 8 FOR 267 (ROHIT 138, RAINA 51,
STARC 6-43) BY 4 WICKETS
n a day when Australia and India each had a dominant opener Rohit Sharma made 138 and Aaron Finch 96 - the difference be
tween the sides was Mitchell Starc. For the second consecutive
game, Starc broke through in the first over of the match. For the
second straight time he was Man of the Match in an Australian win. In Sydney
he took four wickets against England; here it was six against India.
Starc's 6 for 43 was the second-best return ever in an ODI in Australia, and
his efforts cannot be underestimated. Both of Australia's wins to begin this triseries have occurred in good conditions for batting. At the MCG, India chose
to bat first and Rohit's 138 could have been the catalyst for a huge total, but
Starc ensured that Suresh Raina's 51 was the only other contribution of
significance. India finished on 8 for 267, leaving Australia to chase exactly the
amount they successfully pursued against South Africa at the same ground
in November. That win came with exactly six balls to spare, and James
Faulkner at the crease. Remarkably, this victory also came with exactly six
balls to spare and Faulkner at the crease. His finishing ability was again on
display as he and Brad Haddin took 16 off the 49th over.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar was the bowler, and had just delivered a wicket-maiden.
But in the 49th, Haddin struck one boundary and Faulkner two, including the
winning runs, a sweep past fine leg for four. Australia's four-wicket win was
complete. India's problem had been a lack of incision from their bowlers
earlier, allowing Finch to compile half-century stands with David Warner and
Shane Watson, and a 101-run partnership with Steven Smith.
The wickets for India came sporadically. Warner skied a catch off Umesh
Yadav for 24, Watson entertained with 41 from 39 balls before he was bowled
trying to sweep Akshar Patel, and Smith struck a slower bouncer from
Mohammed Shami to midwicket on 47. There was no sense of momentum
from India in the field, and Australia easily milked runs through the middle of
the chase. Finch was not required to play the ultra-aggressive game he
sometimes does, striking his 96 from 127 deliveries with five fours and two
sixes. He did not always get the ball out of the middle of the bat, but worked
it around adequately enough to cause India problems. He edged behind off
Yadav with 49 still required off 59 balls, but it would have taken a collapse for
Australia to muff their lines.
There nearly was one, as George Bailey was stumped off R Ashwin for 5 and
Glenn Maxwell caught and bowled for 20 in Bhuvneshwar's wicket maiden.
But Faulkner and Haddin were good enough to get Australia home from a
position of 20 runs needed from 17 balls.
The day had started perfectly for Australia after MS Dhoni chose to bat. Starc
had broken through twice in the first over of the match against England in
Sydney on Friday and here he again struck in the opening over, albeit only
once, when Shikhar Dhawan edged to slip. The total became 2 for 33 when
debutant Gurinder Sandhu's extra bounce had Ajinkya Rahane caught behind.
Virat Kohli was unable to immediately transfer his Test form to the ODI series
and top-edged a catch off Faulkner, which left India at 3 for 59. But Rohit and
Raina then steadied the innings with a 126-run partnership that carried India
out of danger and into a position from which they could have pressed on to a
hefty total. Then came Starc's second wind.
He had Raina caught at mid-on for 51 off 63 deliveries, Dhoni chopped on for
19 and two balls later Patel was lbw for a duck. Starc completed his five-for
by picking up Rohit, caught off a full toss searching for some quick runs in the
dying overs, and it was the fourth time Starc had taken an ODI five-for. Only
Brett Lee and Glenn McGrath have done that more times for Australia, even
though Starc has played only 30 games.
By bowling Bhuvneshwar Kumar for a golden duck next ball, Starc also
became the sixth Australian to take at least six wickets in an ODI, and the first
to do it in Australia. His red-ball work over the past year might have been
mixed, but with the white ball Starc is approaching unplayable levels. Only
Ajit Agarkar has ended an ODI in Australia with better figures than Starc, and
then by only one run. By comparison, Pat Cummins, Faulkner and Sandhu
struggled to contain India in quite the same way. Sandhu, who became
Australia's 206th ODI cricketer, bowled with tight lines early but later in the
innings was wayward. Rohit enjoyed batting against Sandhu, Faulkner and
Cummins, and continued his habit of taking the Australians apart in limitedovers cricket. His third ODI century against them, and his sixth in total, should
confirm his place as India's opener of choice for the World Cup, a position for
which he was preferred in this game to Rahane, who batted at No.3. Rohit
was keen to score from the word go, and clubbed Cummins back over the
bowler's head for six in the fourth over, one of four sixes he struck during his
innings. He also picked up nine fours and brought up his century from his
109th delivery; notably Warner at third man was clapping as Rohit celebrated
by raising his bat to the crowd. Rohit and Warner had a heated exchange
earlier when it appeared the Australians were annoyed that India had taken
an overthrow, believing the throw had deflected off Rohit.
Replays could not verify whether the ball had struck Rohit, but could confirm
that he was on the end of some angry-looking words from Warner, and the
umpire John Ward had to step in. It could not detract from a fine innings from
Rohit, who had struggled during the recent Test series. He scored plenty of
runs behind the wicket on both sides and frustrated the Australians by picking
the gaps, and every run was cheered by a huge contingent of Indian fans in
the crowd of 34,253. Those fans went home unhappy with the result, but
pleased with what they saw from Rohit ahead of the World Cup.
BAILEY SUSPENDED FOR
SLOW OVER-RATE
Australia's stand-in captain George Bailey has been suspended
for Friday's ODI against England in Hobar t as a result of Australia's
poor over-rate in their win against India at the MCG on Sunday.
Steven Smith is likely to make his ODI captaincy debut in Hobar t,
while the selectors will also be forced to show their hand on their
preferred World Cup backup batsman with a replacement needed
for Bailey. Australia finished their 50 overs in the field at 6.16pm on
Sunday, which was 26 minutes later than the scheduled innings
finish time of 5.50pm. Bailey had been fined for another over-rate
offence in an ODI against South Africa in November when he was
also captain, and as such a suspension was inevitable when the
match referee Andy Pycroft ruled Australia were short against India.
Bailey has been banned for one ODI and fined 20% of his match fee, while his
players have been fined 10% of their match fees. Pycroft ruled that Australia
was only one over short of its target "when time allowances were taken into
consideration". Bailey pleaded guilty to the offence and accepted the
sanction, so no formal hearing was held. Perversely, Bailey's
suspension might be advantageous for Australia ahead of the
World Cup, because the slate is effectively wiped clean on past
offences and he does not have a future suspension hanging over
his head any longer. Australia's coach Darren Lehmann said he
told the players in no uncer tain terms after Sunday's win that
they had to improve their over-rates.
22
MidWeek
entertainment
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2015
Elevation Pictures' titles
receive nine Academy
Award nominations
TORONTO - The Academy Award nominations were announced
today. The Imitation Game received eight nominations,
Nightcrawler received one - that of Original Screenplay. The Imitation Game has been nominated for Best Picture, Best Actor,
Suppor ting Actress, Adapted Screenplay, Director, Film Editin,
Original Score and Production Design. The Academy Awards
will take place on February 22, 2015
KRISTEN STEWART KEEPS
CHECK ON HER ACTING SKILLS
CELEBS DURING THE LAUNCH OF YAMAHA FASCINO 2015 CALENDAR IN MUMBAI (IANS)
Oscar Awards Predictions
'BIRDMAN', 'THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL'
LEAD OSCAR NOMINATIONS
Los Angeles (IANS): Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's black comedy film
"Birdman", starring Michael Keaton, and Wes Anderson's comedy "The
Grand Budapest Hotel", starring Ralph Fiennes, are leading the 87th annual
Academy Award nominations, with nine each, including best picture.
None of India's probable contenders, including Oscar winner A.R. Rahman, have
made it to the final nomination list of the awards, announced at the Samuel Goldwyn
Theatre in Beverly Hills. The winners will be announced at a star-studded gala here
Feb 22. For the first time, nominees in all 24 categories were announced live by
directors J.J. Abrams, Alfonso Cuaron, actor Chris Pine and Academy president
Cherly Boone Isaacs in a two-part live event.
"The Imitation Gamea landed eight nominations in total while Clint Eastwood's
"American Sniper" and "Boyhood" had six each. The Best Motion Picture category
will see tough competition between "American Sniper", "Birdman", "Boyhood",
"The Grand Budapest Hotel", "The Imitation Game", "Selma", "The Theory of Everything" and "Whiplash". For the Achievement in Directing list, there's a neck-to-neck
competition between "Birdman" (Inarritu), "Boyhood" (Richard Linklater),
"Foxcatcher" (Bennett Miller), "The Grand Budapest Hotel" (Anderson) and "The
Imitation Game" (Morten Tyldum).
The contenders for the Best Performance by an Actor in Leading Role are Steve
Carell for "Foxcatcher", Bradley Cooper for "American Sniper", Benedict Cumberbatch
for "The Imitation Game", Keaton for "Birdman" and Eddie Redmayne for "The
Theory of Everything".
Those competing for the Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role trophy
are Marion Cotillard for "Two Days, One Night", Felicity Jones for "The Theory of
Everything", Julianne Moore for "Still Alice", Rosamund Pike for "Gone Girl" and
Reese Witherspoon for "Wild".
The Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role nominees are Robert
Duvall ("The Judge"), Ethan Hawke ("Boyhood"), Edward Norton ("Birdman"), Mark
Ruffalo ("Foxcatcher") and J.K. Simmons ("Whiplash"), while actresses in the
same category include Patricia Arquette for "Boyhood", Laura Dern for "Wild", Keira
Knightley for "The Imitation Game", Emma Stone for "Birdman" and Meryl Streep
for "Into the Woods".
In the Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (original score), the
nominees are "The Grand Budapest Hotel" (Alexandre Desplat), "The Imitation
Game" (Alexandre Desplat), "Interstellar" (Hans Zimmer), "Mr. Turner" (Gary
Yershon), "The Theory of Everything" (Johann Johannsson).
"Everything is awesome" from "The Lego Movie" (Music and Lyric by Shawn
Patterson), "Glory" from "Selma" (John Stephens and Lonnie Lynn), "Grateful" from
"Beyond the Lights" (Diane Warren), "I'm not gonna miss you" from "Glen Campbell,
I'll Be Me" (Glen Campbell and Julian Raymond) and "Lost stars" from "Begin
Again" (Gregg Alexander and Danielle Brisebois) are competing for Achievement
in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original song) category.
For Achievement in Visual Effects category, the contenders are "Captain America:
The Winter Soldier", "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes", "Guardians of the Galaxy",
"Interstellar" and "X-Men: Days of Future Past".
Contest for the Best Adapted Screenplay is among "American Sniper", "The Imitation Game", "Inherent Vice", "The Theory of Everything" and "Whiplash", while
"Birdman", "Boyhood", "Foxcatcher", "The Grand Budapest Hotel" and "Nightcrawler"
are there in the Best Original Screenplay Oscar.
Movies making it to the Best Animated Feature Film of the Year nominations
include "Big Hero 6a, "The Boxtrolls", "How to Train Your Dragon 2", "Song of the
Sea" and "The Tale of the Princess Kaguya", while the Best Animated Short Film
nominations are "The Bigger Picture", "The Dam Keeper", "Feast", "Me and My
Moulton" and "A Single Life".
Achievement in Cinematography category nominees are "Birdman" (Emmanuel
Lubezki), "The Grand Budapest Hotel" (Robert Yeoman), "Ida" (Lukasz Zal and
Ryszard Lenczewski), "Mr. Turner" (Dick Pope) and "Unbroken" (Roger Deakins).
Costumes are a vital part, and those who stand a chance to win the golden statuette
for Achievement in Costume Design are "The Grand Budapest Hotel" (Milena
Canonero), "Inherent Vice" (Mark Bridges), "Into the Woods" (Colleen Atwood),
"Maleficent" (Anna B. Sheppard and Jane Clive) and "Mr. Turner" (Jacqueline
Durran)
Nominations for Achievement in Production Design are "The Grand Budapest
Hotel", "The Imitation Game", "Interstellar", "Into the Woods" and "Mr. Turner".
The jury's picks for the Best Documentary Feature include "CitizenFour", "Finding
Vivian Maier", "Last Days in Vietnam", "The Salt of the Earth" and "Virunga", while
competitors in the Best Documentary Short Subject are "Crisis Hotline: Veterans
Press 1", "Joanna", "Our Curse", "The Reaper (La Parka)" and "White Earth".
The race for Achievement in Film Editing pits "American Sniper" (Joel Cox and Gary
D. Roach), "Boyhood" (Sandra Adair), "The Grand Budapest Hotel" (Barney Pilling),
"The Imitation Game" (William Goldenberg) and "Whiplash" (Tom Cross) against
each other.
Five films - "Ida" (Poland), "Leviathan" (Russia), "Tangerines" (Estonia),
"Timbuktua (Mauritania) and "Wild Tales" (Argentina) - are up for the
Foreign Language Film award.
Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling Oscar sees Bill Corso and Dennis Liddiard ("Foxcatcher"), Frances Hannon and Mark Coulier ("The Grand
Budapest Hotel") and ElizabethVYianni-Georgiou and David White ("Guardians of the Galaxy") against each other.
Best Live Action Short Film nominees are "Aya", "Boogaloo and Graham", "Butter Lamp", "Parvaneh" and "The Phone Call".
For Achievement in Sound Editing sees Alan Robert Murray and Bub
Asman ("American Sniper"), Mar tin Hernandez and Aaron Glascock
("Birdman), Brent Burge and Jason Canovas ("The Hobbit: The Battle of
the Five Armies"), Richard King ("Interstellar") and Becky Sullivan and
Andrew DeCristofaro ("Unbroken"), while for sound mixing category, figure technicians in films like "American Sniper", "Birdman", "Interstellar",
"Unbroken" and "Whiplash".
ZAYED KHAN,TINA DESAI AND RANNVIJAY SINGH DURING THE PREMIERE OF FILM SHARAFAT GAYI TEL LENE IN MUMBAI (IANS)
Los Angeles (IANS): Actress Kristen Stewar t uses a check sheet
to mark her acting ability in her films. The "Twilight" star
always makes sure she looks back at her per formances to
see what she can improve on, but when she watched "Still
Alice" she was blown away.
She was so impressed by Julianne Moore's por trayal of
Alice, a professor suffering from early onset of Alzheimer's,
t h a t s h e b a r e l y n o t i c e d h e r o w n c h a r a c t e r, r e p o r t s
femalefirst.co.uk. "I'm super technical, I will sit and watch
one of my films with a little list of checks and balances and
this finally took that away. Usually the first time is never a
proper experience, it's always getting over hangups and
weird memories, and this time it was just absolutely undeniable.
"What she (Moore) does needed to be done. It's so important," she told Salon magazine. "I've seen it twice now. The
first time I saw it, I was so blown away. I was present for a
lot of what she did that was impressive in the movie, but for
the things that I was not there for she so destroyed me (sic).
I thought nobody else in the movie existed," she added. The
24-year-old star plays Alice's daughter Lydia in the film.
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MIDWEEK NEWS
NEWS WEEKLY
WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY
AUGUST 28,
20, 2012
2015
23
WARNER FINED OVER ROHIT SPAT
David Warner has defended his use of the words "speak English" during an on-field squabble with Rohit Sharma during
Sunday's ODI at the MCG, but has been fined 50% of his match fee
over the incident. Warner admitted during a radio interview on
Monday morning that he was in the wrong by engaging with Rohit.
The incident occurred at the end of the 23rd over of India's innings,
when India took an overthrow and the Australians showed their
displeasure, seemingly believing the ball had ricocheted off Rohit's
legs. Replays suggested that was not necessarily the case, but
during the crossover at the end of the over the umpire had to step in
to hose down a verbal stoush between Warner and Rohit.
"On the cricket etiquette side of things when you throw a ball to
the keeper and it hits a player you don't run," Warner said on
Sky Spor ts Radio on Monday. "A few of the boys said something
to him and when I went over to say something he sor t of said
something in their language and I said 'speak English', because
if you're going to say something for me to understand theoretically, I cannot speak Hindi.
"So I did the polite thing and asked him to speak English, therefore
he did, and I can't repeat what he said. I thought I was okay by
asking him to speak English and I'm going to say it a couple of
times if he keeps saying it in Hindi. I got slapped on the wrist
yesterday by the ICC, I shouldn't have engaged him and should
have went to the other side to my fielding position, but I didn't.
"The guys behind the wicket said it hit him. I walked in because
I presumed it hit him as well. I was in the wrong. What he was
saying to me I asked him to speak English. I got in trouble for
engaging the player, which technically you're not allowed to do
that now … You're not supposed to walk at the player.
SHANE WATSON WAS BOWLED BY AKSHAR PATEL, AUSTRALIA V INDIA, CARLTON MID TRI-SERIES, MELBOURNE.
ITF Juniors: Yubrani storms into prequarters, Sinha goes down fighting
Kolkata, (IANS) Local talent Yubrani Banerjee sped past
Belgium's Nina Van Oost 6-1,6-2 to storm into the pre-quar ter
finals of the Girls Singles Under 18 category of the ITF Juniors
Monday.
Banerjee maintained her blistering form on cour t, as she
impressed with her skills onway to a sparkling victory at the
Dakshin Kalikata Sansad spor ts complex.
She will now battle four th seeded South African R.Janse Van
Rensburg for a place in the quar ter final.
In the Boys Singles Under 18 categor y, local favourite Nitin K.
Sinha went down fighting against third seeded Cing Yang
Meng from Taipei 2-6 6-1 4-6,
But bringing some cheers to the spectators, Ishaque Eqbal
jumped to the next round with a close 6-3 2- and 6-2 win over
Tejas Shevde in a qualifier.
Top seed in Boys Singles Under 18 Aryan Goveas survived a
scare, as he overcame an opening half loss pip Turkey's
Cagatay Sami Soke 6-7(4) 6-4,6-3.
Today's Match Score (IND, if not specified);
Boys Singles Under 18 (Round 1)
Aryan Goveas (1) bt Cagatay Sami Soke (TUR) 6-7(4),6-4,6-3
Yun Ruei Wen (TPE) bt Anirudh Chandrasekhar 6-4,7-5
Siddhant Banthia bt Adil Kalyanpur 6-1,6-0
Roop Rana Bhullar (NOR)(6) bt Siddhar th Basnet 6-3,6-0
B.R. Nikshep (4) bt Eric Jr Olivarez (PHI) 3-6,7-6(6),6-3
Ishaque Eqbal bt Tejas Shevde 6-3,2-6,6-2
Yugal Bansal bt Christian Cummings 6-1,6-0
Dhruv Sunish bt Breno Souza Plentz (BRA) 7-5,6-2
P.V. Gnana Bhasker bt Paras Dahiya 4-6,6-4,6-3
Cing Yang Meng (TPE)(3) bt Nitin Kr Sinha 6-2,1-6,6-4
Kaya Gore (TUR)(8) bt Par th Aggarwal 6-3,6-2
Cheng Cheih Wang (TPE) bt Mridul Kharkwal 7-6(5),6-4
Girls Singles Under 18 (Round 1)
Karman Kaur Thandi (1) bt Huai Shu Chen (TPE) 6-2,6-1
Mahak Jain bt Jaipet Anontaweesil (THA) 6-4,6-0
R Janse Van Rensburg (RSA)(4) bt Snehal Mane 6-3,6-4
Yubrani Banerjee bt Nina Van Oost (BEL) 6-1,6-2
Yu Pei Lee (TPE) bt Kwan Yau NG (HKG) 1-6,6-3,6-4
Ye Xin Ma (CHN) bt Jennifer Luikham (5) 3-6,6-0,6-4
Fang Hsien Wu (TPE)(8) bt Adrija Biswas 6-2,6-1
En Shuo Lian (TPE) bt Lalita Devarakonda 6-1,6-0
Zeel Desai (3) bt Inci Ogut (TUR) 6-0,6-3
Nidhi Suparapaneni bt Maia Bernadetta Balce (PHI) 3-6,63,6-4
Fleming tips Australia, New Zealand to reach World Cup final
Dubai, (IANS) Former Black Caps captain Stephen Fleming Friday
tipped joint hosts Australia and New Zealand to reach the final of the
for thcoming 2015 World Cup, also identifying South Africa and the
West Indies as the dark horses of the tournament.
It will be the first time the mega event will be held in the two countries
since 1992 when Pakistan emerged champions. The tournament star ts
Feb 14 and the final is slated for March 29. "New Zealand and Australia to make the final. South Africa will be close and West Indies are
the dark-horse," he was quoted as saying by the International Cricket
Council's (ICC) official website. Fleming said New Zealand will be a
tough team to beat since they have several players who are potential
match-winners.
"All the usual suspects, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Brendon
McCullum and then the bowling group with Tim Southee, Daniel Vettori
and possibly Trent Boult. The beauty of it is that I could name another
three or four players to watch out for - and that's why I'm optimistic
about the Cup," the former left-handed batsman said. He also tipped
experienced batsman Mar tin Guptill to be the perfect foil for destruc-
tive opener Brendon McCullum, also the captain of the World Cup. The
41-year-old, widely regarded as the finest captain of New Zealand,
expected McCullum to provide a quick star t to the Kiwis saying his
form would be crucial to the home team's chances in the quadrennial
event. "Mar tin Guptill would prove to be the perfect foil for Brendon
McCullum for the opening par tnership. McCullum would give the Kiwis a quick star t," he opined. Fleming, who also became a successful coach after retirement guiding the Chennai Super Kings to two
Indian Premier League (IPL) titles, also identified his match-winning
unbeaten knock of 134 against South Africa in the 2003 edition as his
fondest World Cup memory. The former left-handed batsman, who is
the New Zealand's most capped ODI captain, having led the side for a
record 218 times, said the Kiwi team for the 2003 edition was most
capable of lifting the trophy and regretted having missed the oppor tunity. New Zealand crashed out of the Super Six stage of the tournament, finishing fifth in the group. "In South Africa in 2003, we didn't
achieve what we should have achieved, but I felt that was one of our
most talented sides," he rued.
India have strong chance to defend World Cup: Fletcher
Sydney (IANS): Indian cricket coach Duncan Fletcher has
said his team's belief in defending the World Cup title stems
from the way it has per formed in overseas conditions over
the past couple of years. Fletcher, who will be coaching a
team in the World Cup for the third time, said the 2013
Champions Trophy victor y is a testament to the fact that the
Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side is used to winning and has a
strong chance to retain the title.
"We have a good chance to win after the way the team has
been building over the last three-four years. A big reason for
my belief is our Champions Trophy (2013) victory in England," the 66-year-old was quoted as saying by bcci.tv. "We
played in every foreign conditions that didn't suit the side and
yet we played so well that we didn't lose a single match. That
shows that the side is used to winning and that's really
exciting."
Asked to pick one quality that gives this team an edge over
the others, the Zimbabwean pointed out: "One-day cricket is
all about handling extreme pressure when the side is down;
understanding where the game is poised at that stage and
finding your way out of that situation to end up on the winning
side. Our excellent record when chasing totals shows that."
"Most other sides can't do it because under such pressure,
you lose your cool. Because Dhoni is so adept at soaking in
SANIA-MATTEK-SANDS WIN
SYDNEY DOUBLES TITLE
Sydney (IANS): Indo-American pair of Sania Mirza and Bethanie
Mattek-Sands defeated top-seeded Americans Abigail Spears
and Raquel Kops-Jones 6-3, 6-3 to win the women's doubles
title of the Sydney International tennis tournament. It was Sania's
first doubles title of the season and 23rd of her career. The IndoAmerican duo needed 69 minutes to complete the victory. The
victory, fifth for the pair together, should boost the confidence of
the pair ahead of the Australian Open, star ting Jan 19. The duo
earned 470 ranking points each and received $39,000 as prize
money. Sania's compatriot, veteran men's doubles player
Leander Paes also was in fine form reaching the finals of the
Heineken Open tournament in Auckland on Friday. The 41-yearold Indian, teaming up with South African Raven Klaasen defeated the pair of Austrian Alexander Peya and Brazilian Bruno
Soares 3-6, 6-3, 10-4.
MITCHELL MARSH TO PLAY
SYDNEY GRADE CRICKET
Sydney (IANS): Injured Australian all-rounder Mitchell Marsh
is trying to find his way back by playing Sydney Grade Cricket
from Jan 24. Though he won't bowl before the World Cup as he
is still recovering from a right hamstring problem, Cricket Australia (CA) wants Marsh to get some batting practice before
joining the team at the quadrennial event as a specialist batsman, repor ts news.com.au. "At the moment he's going to come
back through his batting. The oppor tunity to have Mitch Marsh,
one of the 15 best players in the country, for white ball cricket I'm sure there will be a little bit of interest," said CA high performance manager Pat Howard. The 23-year-old, who plays for
Western Australia, does not have a grade team in Sydney so
Cricket New South Wales (NSW) will run a ballot to fix upon
who he should play for. Howard expects plenty of interest in his
services. Marsh initially injured himself on the first day of the
Brisbane Test against India and then suffered another setback
during his rehabilitation.
SANGAKKARA JOINS SURREY
FOR 2015 SEASON
London (IANS): English cricket county side Surrey has confirmed the signing of Sri Lanka batsman Kumar Sangakkara.
"He is a five-star player and person and that is important because he will be working with our homegrown players," Alec
Stewar t, director of the county club was quoted as saying by
bbc.com. Sangakkara previously played county cricket for
Warwickshire and Durham. "He is the number one Test batsman in the world but it's the special character that he has
which is as impor tant to us," Stewar t added. Sangakkara is
currently the top-ranked Test batsman and fifth all-time highest
run scorer in the longest form of the game. The left-handed
batsman is also the four th highest One-Day Internationals (ODI)
run-scorer with 13,414. The 37-year-old is to retire from ODIs
after the impending World Cup.
CLARKE DETERMINED TO
PLAY 2019 WORLD CUP
the pressure, we have done well in those situations. It is
impor tant to be calm and take the game all the way and win with maybe
three balls to spare. People might say, 'Oh, they barely got home', but getting
home is the most important thing."
Sydney (IANS): Injury-plagued Australian skipper Michael
Clarke believes he can continue playing cricket as far as the
2019 World Cup. Clarke has been plagued with injuries over the
past year and has battled to overcome chronic back and hamstring troubles, but insists that he still has a long way to go in
international cricket.
"It's funny, a lot of people have said or thought, 'Michael is
going to retire at the end of this World Cup'. I'm sure I am going
to retire at the end of a World Cup, but I don't think it's this one,"
Clarke was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au. Clarke also
compared himself to wicketkeeper-batsman Brad Haddin, 37,
who is still an integral par t of the Australian set up. "I'm 33
years of age - look at someone like Brad Haddin, who is 37 and
still loving his cricket and contributing to the team. I do not see
any reason why I can't play in the next World Cup," added Clarke.
He batted in the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) nets Thursday to
give every indication that his recovery from hamstring surgery
is progressing well. He has played in 238 One-Day
Internationals for Australia and scored 7762 runs.
24
MidWeek
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2015