Parkinsons Disease Helpline Launched

Medanta Institute of Neurosciences in Gurgaon has launched the Parkinsons disease (PD) support group Swavalamban On World Parkinsons Day on Monday to help the  patients and their families to tide over the ordeal. Medanta Institute of Neurosciences has launched a helpline number which aims at providing emergency services to patients.

A public awareness seminar was also organized which was attended by 10 Parkinsons disease patients along with their families. The hospital has also announced a week of free OPD at Medanta the Medicity and Mediclinic.

The Medanta Hospital authorities aim to break the false beliefs about PD that has spread among others. Most of the common people think that getting infected by Parkinsons is like the end of the road for the patient and that they will have a poor quality of life. The true stories narrated by the patients themselves who are living a healthy life after the Parkinsons treatment is the biggest evidence to prove that medicine has changed significantly. Particularly the amazing results achieved by Deep Brain Stimulation surgery in very severe PD case gives new hope for the patients.

The helpline number for Parkinsons patient is 0124-4855055  and will also provide vital information and education regarding the symptoms, diagnosis and treatment options for the PD, apart from other emergency services.

Winter Death Toll in Uttar Pradesh Rises to 104

Two more persons died due to extreme cold conditions in Uttar Pradesh, taking the death toll in Uttar Pradesh this winter to 104. While one person died due to cold in Bahraich district, one more death was reported from Sitapur, officials said in Lucknow. The state capital, which was the coldest place, recorded a minimum of 0.8 degrees Celsius this morning, which was six notches below normal,

Varanasi recorded a low of 2.2 degrees C, seven notches below normal.

Kanpur shivered at 1.9 degrees C, which was six notches below normal, while minimum temperature in Allahabad settled at 3.6, five degrees below normal.

Sultanpur recorded a minimum of 1.5 degrees C, which was eight degrees below normal, followed by Gorakhpur at 2.3 degrees C, seven notches below normal.

Source - http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/uttarpradesh/Two-more-die-due-to-cold-toll-at-104/Article1-649410.aspx

IndiGo Airline in a $16 Billion Deal with Airbus

Indian budget airline IndiGo has recently signed an agreement to buy 180 Airbus A320 aircraft, in a record sale worth $16.4 billion (12.6 billion euros). As per the Airbus officials it is one of the largest single firm order number for large jets in commercial aviation history.

The low-cost  airline from India has signed a memorandum of understanding to acquire 150 single-aisle A320neo jets. The neo versions - "new engine option" -- are equipped with more efficient engines and fuel-saving wing tips.

IndiGo is the first client for this new version of the aircraft, which Airbus only unveiled last month and plans to start delivering in early 2016. The other 30 planes are to be standard versions of the A320. The value of the deal was not announced, but according to Airbus' catalogue price the sale is worth $16.4 billion.

The aircraft are expected to deliver fuel savings of up to 15 percent, with corresponding cuts in overall pollution. "Ordering more A320s was the natural choice to meet India's growing flying needs. "The opportunity to reduce costs and to further improve our environmental performance through the A320 were key to our decision," they said in a statement.

Airbus said it has delivered some 4,500 of the aircraft to 310 airlines, with another 1,300 on the order books, making it the world's best-selling single-aisle aircraft family.

The A320neo is Airbus' bid to counter rival aircraft such as Canada's Bombadier CSeries and China's C919, as well as heading off Boeing, which has not yet decided on the future of its medium-haul 737.

Airbus will offer airlines a choice of motors on its A320neo.

They will be able to choose between the latest model from CFM International, a joint venture between France's Safran and General Electric in the United States, and a US Pratt & Whitney engine.

IndiGo had not yet decided what engine it wanted for its models and would make an announcement at a later date, Airbus said.

Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Indian-budget-airline-IndiGo-in-16bn-deal-with-Airbus-/articleshow/7264811.cms

CAT 2010 - 8 Engineers Score 100

The 100 percentile scorers in the Common Admission Test (CAT) held in 2010 will be an eight-engineer all-male club. They have topped the second edition of the online CAT exam which decides admission to 11 Indian Institutes of Management and over 150 B-schools this year. The test scores will be released today.

Maharashtra has three toppers — two from Mumbai and one from Pune — and Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata and Indore have one each. Breaking the myth that women rarely top CAT, two women from Kerala and Andhra Pradesh have scored 99.9 percentile. In all, 19 candidates have scored 99.99 percentile, with three candidates each from Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Gujarat getting the second-best score. There are two candidates from Karnataka with 99.9 percentile. The identity of all toppers has been kept confidential.

IIMs, which jointly conduct the CAT, will announce the results on Wednesday. Candidates can download their score cards from the CAT website, www.catiim.in Over 1.86 lakh candidates appeared for CAT 2010, held between October 27 and November 24, across 20 test days. The CAT score is one of the inputs used by IIMs in admitting students to its flagship two-year Post-Graduate Programme. Weightage is given to work experience, personal interview and group discussion and academic performance in Class 12 and degree exams. Individual IIMs have uploaded their admission criteria for the 2011-13 batch on their websites.

Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/8-engineers-score-100-in-CAT-2010/articleshow/7264304.cms

Supreme Court Issues Notice to Government on Cancellation of 2G Spectrum

The Supreme Court of India today issued notice to the Central Government on the plea seeking cancellation of 2G spectrum licenses allocated during the tenure of former Telecom Minister A Raja. The court also issued notices to a11 the companies which allegedly did not fulfill the roll out obligations as per the terms and conditions of allocation of the spectrum.

The apex court also impleaded TRAI (Telephone Regulatory Authority of India) as a respondent in the petition. A bench comprising justices G S Singhvi and A K Ganguly sought the response from the Department of Telecom and the companies within three weeks and posted the matter for hearing on February 1.

"After considering submission of the petitioner's counsel that since TRAI has sent a letter dated November 15, 2010 to Secretary, DoT, which indicated that many companies have not complied with the roll out obligation and not started the services, we deem it fit to entertain the petition," the bench said.

The bench was hearing a petition filed by an NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) seeking cancellation of the licenses alleging that all norms were violated. The companies to which notices weree issued includes Etisalat, Uninor, Loop Telecom, Videocon, S-Tel, Allianz Infra, Idea Cellular, Tata Teleservices, Sistema Shyam Teleservices, Dishnet wireless and Vodafone-Essar.

The bench was also hearing the petition filed by Janata Party Chief Subramanian Swamy who has also sought identical directions.

However, the bench asked Swamy to make the companies, who have not fulfiled the roll out obligations, as parties, and then it will hear the matter along with the CPIL petition. Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the CPIL, elaborated the grounds for the cancellation of the 2G licenses.

The bench also questioned the silence of TRAI, which is the highest regulatory authority in the telecom sector, on the issue of alleged delay in fulfilling roll-out obligations of the companies which were issued 2G spectrum licenses.

While one petition was filed jointly on 14th of December by various civil societies such as Centre for Public Interest Litigation, Telecom Watchdog and Common Cause another was filed by Janata Party chief Subramanian Swamy on January 4.

Several eminent persons like former chief election commissioners J M Lyngdoh, T S Krishnamurthy and N Gopalaswami and former Central Vigilance Commissioner P Shankar are also petitioners in the petition filed by civil societies.

The second petition was filed after the apex court on an earlier plea by Swamy decided to monitor the ongoing probe into the scam by the CBI and Enforcement Directorate.
Citing two judgements by the Delhi High Court and the CAG's report on the issue of spectrum allocation, the two petitions have alleged that the process of the spectrum allocation was marred by "multiple illegalities, corruption and favouritism."

Citing the CAG report, they said 85 of the 122 licences were given to companies which were not even eligible and as many as 343 applications were not even considered by the DoT.

The petitions have also pointed out that even the sectoral regulator has recommended cancellation of 69 out of the 122 licences as the licencees have failed to roll out their services as stipulated by the condition on which they were given the licences.

The petitions said internationally, in most legal systems, transactions tainted by bribery or corruption or made in violation of established norms and procedures are considered illegal and unenforceable.

Source - http://www.deccanherald.com/content/127880/sc-issues-notice-govt-cancellation.html

Quitting bananas Helps to Conceive Baby Girl

As per the Scientist, if you want to have a daughter, then you should quit bananas and go on a diet of beans and hard cheese. Researchers from Maastricht University in Holland have discovered that a combination of the right food and the timing of sex are the key to the nursery being painted pink rather than blue.

They say that the trick is to refrain from eating sodium and potassium-rich foods, such as anchovies, olives, bacon, salami, smoked salmon, prawns, savoury rice, blue cheese, potatoes, processed meats, bread, pastries etc. Instead they should concentrate more on foods rich in calcium and magnesium.

Foods containing high amounts of calcium include yoghurt, hard cheese, canned salmon, rhubarb, spinach, tofu, almonds, oatmeal, broccoli and oranges. Brazil and cashew nuts, whole-wheat cereals, figs and beans are rich in magnesium.

The researchers also claim that the father's diet has no effect on what sex the baby will be. If prospective mothers want a daughter, the scientists recommend having regular sex - but not on days immediately prior or after ovulation. Their conclusions follow a five-year study involving 172 Western European women who were aged from 23 to 42. The women had all previously given birth to boys - in one case, four of them - and wanted girls.

They were told to cut out salt and eat at least a pound of dairy products a day. Their diet also included bread, vegetables, fruit, meat, rice and pasta. Although a large number of the women dropped out of the survey because they failed to adhere to the strict dietary requirements or rules on when to have sex, 21 women stuck it out to the end.

Of the 21, 16 gave birth to daughters - an astonishing success rate of almost 80 per cent.

"The results show that both diet and timing methods increase the probability of girl - the impact of the diet being the most pronounced," the Daily Mail quoted a spokesman for the scientists as saying.

Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/health/Want-a-baby-girl-Quit-bananas/articleshow/6499567.cms

iGate Corp Acquires Patni for $1.2 Billions

In another big move, iGate Corp has acquired the country's seventh largest technology services firm, Patni Computer Systems for a deal $1.2 billion. The deal reiterates that Indian information technology, an entrepreneurial story for the last three decades, is now a play for the lion-hearted, something shown by the much smaller but far more ambitious Nasdaq-listed iGate Corp. The $300 million iGate is ringing up debt in excess of $700 million to finance the transaction. It will be assisted in the buyout by Apax Partners and will issue an open offer by April.

The buyout was closed after several weeks of negotiations and media speculation. The transaction value includes the open offer to public shareholders of Patni. The deal is expected to be closed, with regulatory nods, in the first half of this year.

The deal has been done at Rs 503.5 per share, valuing Patni at around $1.45 billion. TOI had first reported that iGate and Apax's winning bid would be priced between Rs 500-505 per share, about 10 days ago. The three Patni brothers, who jointly held a 45.6% stake, are selling their stake along with private equity investor General Atlantic who held 17.4% stake in Patni. iGate will make an open offer for a further 20.6% stake in Patni as a result of which its stake in Patni could range between 63% and 83%. It is said to be among the largest deals in the tech sector in India, the largest being Oracle Corp's acquisition of majority stake in i-flex solutions for more than $1.5 billion in 2005.

iGate is raising debt from the Royal Bank of Canada and Jeffries and Company. A further sum of $100 million will be raised from iGate's cash reserves. PE firm Apax Partners will invest anywhere between $270-$480 million through convertible equity (depending on response to open offer). Its stake could also therefore range between 20-34% in the merged entity.

With the merger of the two companies, a decision about the Patni brand name will also be taken soon and sources say the Patni name will give way to the iGate Global brand. Significantly unlike similar M&As, there is no non-compete fee agreed to in this deal.

The takeover is seen by analysts as a David and Goliath scenario. While Patni registered revenues of $518.7 million in the 9 months ended September 2010, the corresponding figure for iGate is less than half of that, at $199.5 million.

The deal values Patni at around eight times EBITDA and at around 1.8 times revenue. The valuation appears rich for any mid-tier firm but compares poorly with the big IT companies, where Infosys, Cognizant and TCS quote at over 20 times EBITDA and between 5-8 times revenue. But the public markets have valued mid-sized firms differentially for several years now. Two bankers who worked on the deal said Patni's valuation was good, factoring in its growth profile in recent years. "Patni remains a turnaround story for the acquirer," they added.

The combined revenues of the merged entity will take it into the billion-dollar league. This is expected to place iGate in a better position to compete for deals against the likes of TCS, Infosys and Wipro. Smaller sized IT companies have in recent times struggled for revenue growth and profitability, as they are unable to offer scale efficiencies or attractive pay packages to retain staff. "The huge scale will enable us to mine out more deals as we bring a better value proposition to the table," said Murthy, who had previously attempted to break into the big league by acquiring Satyam Computer, which eventually went to Tech Mahindra.

Patni will also enable iGate to widen its client base and reduce its dependence on a few clients. iGate's top 10 clients bring 84% of total revenues versus Patni's 48%. The combination will now have 2 clients that bring $100 million plus revenues, 2 clients that bring $15 million plus revenues, and 36 clients in the $5 million plus league. General Electric is one of the biggest customers for both companies and this is expected to bring synergies.


The Patni board members will remain at least until the deal is closed and in the next 3-4 weeks, 2 of iGate's senior officials will join Patni's board. Post the completion of the deal the roles of senior board members will also be defined. Murthy is expected to be the CEO of the combined entity.

The combined employee base will now be more than 24,000. Murthy said that they will look to retain as many Patni employees as possible and there would be no need for major retrenchment. Patni has good presence in the western and northern Indian region, while iGate has offices in the south, which gives employees good options to move around the country. "Though Patni currently suffers from high attrition rates, this is expected to stabilize as employees are now assured job stability," Murthy said.

The biggest concerns that iGate officials is regarding the cultural integration between the two organizations as well as the debt on its books. IGate, is currently a zero debt company, and will have debts in its books for the next few years. "The combined company will have an EBITDA of $210-220 and hence we have the debt-furnishing ability. However, we will look to wipe out this debt as quickly as we can," Murthy said.

Patni is expected to remain listed in India at least until the first half of next year. Murthy views Nasdaq, where iGate is listed, as the main listing market. "Trading at Nasdaq is strategic as far as branding is concerned," Murthy said.


Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/iGate-buys-Patni-for-12bn/articleshow/7256725.cms

Passengers Traveling in Rajdhani Express Denied Meals

A section of passengers travelling by the prestigious New Delhi-Patna Rajdhani Express (12310) detained the train for about 2 hours at  Allahabad on Saturday night in protest against non-supply of meals to them. They halted the train and made sure the train did not move unless they were served meals. However, the train was allowed to move by around 10 pm on Saturday night after direct intervention of railway and IRCTC officials.

These harried passengers lodged a complaint with railway officials at Patna Junction when the train reached here at 9.30 am on Sunday morning.

Narrating their nightmarish experiences, a few passengers, told TOI the train left New Delhi only around midnight on Friday. A few of the passengers were served meals on the train and the rest were assured that they would get it at Tundla. However, this was not done, they said.

According to passengers, they were not served meals at Kanpur also where the train reached at 11 am on Saturday. Most of the hungry passengers were again assured that they would get meals at Allahabad where the train reached at 8 pm on Saturday night. Thus, most of the hungry passengers, including women and children, ran out of their patience and detained the train demanding meals and water, they said. Patna-based IRCTC regional manager A K Jha attributed the incident to abnormally late running of trains.

In fact, about 700 passengers are normally served meals in the Rajdhani Express.


Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/Rajdhani-Express-passengers-denied-meals/articleshow/7250496.cms

Onion prices Comes Down by Rs 5-10/kg Following IT Raids on Traders

Onion prices today came down by Rs 5-10 a kg in major metro cities in India following raids on traders by income tax authorities in several states like Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir.

As the income tax officers were swooping down on big onion traders, Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrasekhar is believed to have told state Chief Secretaries through a video conference to put the local taxes like octroi and mandi levies on hold for three months on vegetables.

The retail prices of onions declined by Rs 5-10 per kg to Rs 60 in metros across the country, both because of the heat on traders and reports of beginning of fresh arrivals of crop from Gujarat. The Centre finally agreed to compensate agri-cooperatives Nafed and NCCF for losses on selling the vegetable at Rs 35 per kg in Delhi.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee asked the Chief Ministers to crack down on hoarders to ensure smooth supply of essential items from farm gate to retail customers. Food inflation has touched a high level in more than a year at 18.32 per cent for the week ended December 25. "A larger part of price rise is due to the widening gap between the wholesale and retail prices and the growing demand for these products due to rising income levels," Mukherjee pointed out.

I-T officials raided wholesale onion dealers across UP. "The raids were conducted in cities such as Lucknow, Varanasi, Kanpur, Ghaziabad, Bareilly, Meerut and other places of the state at main dealers of onion," a senior IT official told PTI. Similar operations were carried out at over 10 wholesale merchants across Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana and Chandigarh in a move to check hoarding.

"The survey operations, which commenced yesterday, are primarily aimed to check profiteering," a senior I-T official said in Chandigarh. In Tamil Nadu too, traders came under the IT scanner with the department carrying out state-wide "survey operations".

"In this operation, ten big vegetable traders are covered and they are being questioned about the profit earned in their business especially due to increase in prices and investment made by them in the recent times," S Ravichandran, Additional Director, I-T (Investigation), Chennai, said. Meanwhile, India has initiated talks with Pakistan seeking resumption of onion imports through land route of Wagah border where 300 trucks were stopped yesterday from crossing over to the Indian side.

"We have initiated talks and we are hopeful that we will find a solution," External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said. In a retaliatory move, Amritsar-based exporters refused to send to Pakistan trucks carrying tomatoes and other vegetables.

Source - http://www.deccanherald.com/content/127060/onion-prices-ease-rs-5.html

Cold Wave Prevails in Delhi

A thick layer of fog covered the city this morning even as the cold wave continued, leaving Delhiites shivering and disrupting flight operations. The minimum temperature was recorded at 4.3 degrees Celsius and heavy fog in the morning hours disrupted air and road traffic.

As per the airport officials, a cargo flight was diverted while the schedules of several others were affected this morning due to dense fog. Fog started to descend on the airport last night and thickened around 11 PM, forcing airport authorities to implement low visibility procedures at around 11.20 PM.

The cold wave has persisted throughout this week and the maximum temperatures too has slid below 15 degrees Celsius on several days.

Tuesday was the coldest day of the season with both minimum and maximum dropping to season’s lowest of 3.7 degrees and 12.7 degrees, respectively. Low temperature coupled with icy winds has made life difficult for the people and the capital has recorded at least three cold-related deaths since December 26.

According to Met statistics, the record for the highest maximum for the month of January was 32.5 degree Celsius recorded on the 28th of 2004. The record minimum is -0.6 degree Celsius recorded on 16th of the month in 1935.

Source - http://www.deccanherald.com/content/127363/cold-wave-continues-sweep-national.html

Gautam Gambhir Goes to KKR for $2.4 Million in IPL Auction

 Kolkata Knight Riders has bought Delhi Opener Gautam Gambhir for a whopping $2.4 million as the world's leading cricket players go under the hammer for the Indian Premier League auction in Bangalore on Saturday. Mean while Sri Lankan all-rounder Dilshan was bagged by  Royal Challengers for $650,000. Former West Indies captain Brian Lara and a host of England's Ashes heroes will also be among 350 players up for grabs at the auction in Bangalore on Saturday and Sunday.

Lara and England bowler James Anderson are among 21 cricketers with the highest reserve price of $400,000 for a three-year contract, with the cash-rich Delhi and Mumbai teams likely to engage in a fierce bidding war.

Other foreigners on offer include Adam Gilchrist and Brett Lee of Australia, England's Kevin Pietersen, South Africans Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis and AB de Villiers, and New Zealand's Daniel Vettori.

Proceedings at a luxury hotel in the IT hub of Bangalore, presided over by a professional auctioneer from Britain, will begin both days at 11:00 local time (0530 GMT) and be broadcast live on an Indian television channel.

The annual IPL tournament revolutionised the sport when it burst onto the scene in 2008 with a high-octane blend of international star players, Twenty20 matches and Bollywood glamour.

But its fortunes dipped dramatically last year after allegations of massive corruption, money-laundering and tax evasion, as well as secret deals to hide teams' real owners, and even links to India's criminal underworld.

IPL founder Lalit Modi -- whose brash style personified the event -- was thrown out by the BCCI, the sport's governing body in India, over accusations about his conduct and organisers hope this year will be fresh start.

The tournament, to be held from April 8 to May 22, is expected to feature 10 teams after Indian courts overturned the expulsion of the Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab.

The BCCI, as part of its attempt to improve transparency in the IPL, threw out both teams in October for not declaring changes in their ownership structures.

The ensuing legal battle led to their probable return -- though no official announcement has yet been made.

Two new teams have joined the league: Kochi, who have also been involved in a nasty ownership squabble, and the Pune Warriors.

The players' auction was due to be held in November but was delayed amid confusion about the size and format of this year's tournament, which will start just six days after the end of the World Cup co-hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Twelve players have been retained by their original franchises, with Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni staying with the Chennai Super Kings and Shane Warne and Shane Watson sticking with the Rajasthan Royals.

Some of the top cricketers have opted out of the IPL's fourth season, which includes the Australian trio of Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and Mitchell Johnson, and former India captain Anil Kumble.

Other notable absentees include former Australian stars Matthew Hayden and Glenn McGrath. Former England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who signed for $1.55 million with the Chennai Super Kings in 2009, has retired.

Pakistan's cricketers will continue to miss out on the IPL bonanza after none of them was included for the auction.

Their players participated in the inaugural IPL, but were forced out of the 2009 season due to security concerns in the wake of the Mumbai attacks, and were then ignored for the 2010 tournament.

Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/iplarticleshow/7240363.cms

Sensex Falls 493 Points and Dips Below the Crucial 20k Level

The BSE benchmark Sensex today dropped 493 points to close below the psychological 20,000 level, as investors continued to off-load holdings for the fourth day in a row, concerned over the strong possibility of interest rate hike to reign in inflation.

The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex, which lost 375 points in last three sessions, plunged by another 492.93 points to 19,691.81, the lowest since December 15. Intra-day, it had dipped to a low of 19,629.22 triggered by a steep fall in stocks of metal, auto and IT sectors.

Similarly, the broad-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty fell below 6,000 points level, losing 143.65 points, to 5,904.60. It touched an intra-day low of 5,883.60.
Selling pressure gathered momentum on fears of hike in interest rates to curb surging food inflation.

Reserve Bank of India deputy governor said food inflation is "worryingly high", even as the finance minister asked states to improve supplies to help slow price increases.

These comments came on the heals of the International Monetary Fund saying the RBI may have to keep raising interest rates to curb the pace of price increases.

Marketmen said investors were much worried that the hike in interest rates will have a negative impact on industry and might slowing down economic growth.

A weak trend in the Asian region and lower opening in Europe further influenced the market sentiment.

The metal sector index suffered the most by losing 4.03 per cent to 16,943.54, following a steep fall in Tata Steel, Sterlite Industries, Hindalco, Sesa Goa and JSW Steel. Hindalco Industries, an aluminium producer recorded its steepest drop since November 2009.
The interest senstive index of auto segment dropped by 3.26 per cent to 9,486.47 as Tata Motors, the leading truckmaker sank the most in more than seven months.
The banking index fell by 1.38 per cent to 12,512.18 as State Bank of India, the biggest state-run lender dropped 0.97 per cent, taking its weekly slide to 8.3 per cent. The stocks of HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank also recorded fresh losses.
As the selling spread over a broad-front, smallcap sector index lost 2.86 per cent to 9,363.19 and midcap index by 2.49 per cent to 7,470.70.


Source - http://www.deccanherald.com/content/127019/sensex-falls-493-pts-dips.html

Citibank Fraud Funds Flowed To Real Estate Sector Too

A part of the funds involved in the Rs 300 crore fraud at Citibank, allegedly masterminded by employee Shivraj Puri, was pumped into the real estate sector too.

Investigations into the fraud have revealed that Shivraj Puri invested a part of the funds in property. The police sources   have said that the amount was small, compared to the money that went into the stock market.

Puri, the Relationships Manager with Citibank, is reported to have paid token money to real estate companies for buying properties.

The bulk of the funds, however, were invested by Puri in Nifty options -- which are derivative products with the NSE benchmark index Nifty as the underlying asset -- where the investor has no obligation to take delivery and needs to pay only margin money.
In this derivatives segment, investors bet on the upward or downward movement of the Nifty and the returns depend on the accuracy of such bets.

Puri, whose policy custody was extended by six days by a local court, has been investing in the stock market through brokerage firms Religare and Bonanza. Some money was also routed through Norman Martin, a firm owned by his relative.

Several persons, including the promoters of the Hero Group and Helion Advisors Managing Director Sanjeev Aggarwal, lost crores of rupees in the Citibank fraud that was uncovered last week.

Puri is accused of luring high net-worth individuals to invest in bogus schemes by promising of unusually high returns, which he falsely substantiated with a forged letter from market regulator Sebi

Source - http://www.deccanherald.com/content/127159/citi-fraud-funds-flowed-real.html

Govt Rejects CAG's Findings on 2G Scam

Government on India today rejected CAG estimates of losses of Rs 1.76 lakh on account of allocation of 2G spectrum to telecom operators saying it ''had no basis and was utterly erroneous''.

"We are extremely pained at methodology adopted by CAG (Comptroller and Auditor General) for arriving at 2G spectrum (allocation loss) figures... that have no basis", Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal told reporters.

The CAG estimates on losses arising from sale of 2G spectrum, the minister added, were "utterly erroneous".

Asserting that there were actually no losses to the exchequer, Sibal said "CAG has done injustice to itself and the Opposition is doing injustice to aam aadmi"

The CAG in its 77-page report of CAG, tabled in Parliament in November last year, had said that due diligence was not followed and even the recommendations of the telecom regulator TRAI were "not followed in spirit".

The report said the "presumptive" loss caused to the exchequer through spectrum allocation to 122 licensees and 35 dual technology licences in 2007-08 was Rs 1,76,645 crore. It arrived at the figure on the basis of 3G auction held earlier this year in which the government mopped up over Rs 67,000 crore.

The 2G scam has become one of the major political issue with the Opposition demanding a Joint Parliament Committee to probe the issue. The demand, however, was rejected by the Government of India leading to disruption of almost the entire Winter Session of Parliament.

Source - http://www.deccanherald.com/content/127124/2g-scam-govt-rejects-cags.html

Woman Declared Dead 'wakes Up' At Funeral

A woman, who was declared dead by doctors and whose body was being taken in a procession to the burial grounds, suddenly stirred and stood up sending shivers down the spine of relatives and others present at the place.

However, after a few hours of her `rebirth,' she died in a nearby corporate hospital. Earlier, the woman, Pinnitla Varalakshmi of Neelamma Vepachettu area in Allipuram, `woke up' even as family members burst crackers, as per the custom in the region.

"We were about to leave for the burial ground when she got up suddenly when a youth fired a bomb," Rama Rao, a resident of Neelamma Vepachettu area said.

She had been admitted to King George's Hospital after she collapsed in the house while attending to her daily chores on Wednesday. The callous KGH doctors had declared her dead and even issued a death certificate.

After her `rebirth,' the family later took Varalakshmi to a corporate hospital in a 108 vehicle on Thursday morning. A relative, Nageswara Rao, said the 108 staff noticed her pulse and shifted her to a private hospital where she succumbed later.

The deceased woman has two children. Meanwhile, the KGH authorities refused to comment on the incident. Police said no formal complaint was lodged against the hospital.

Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Dead-woman-wakes-up-at-funeral/articleshow/7232438.cms

Mohinyattam Artist Kalamandalam Hemalatha Enters Guinness For Dance Marathon

Famous Mohinyattam exponent Kalamandalam Hemalatha has entered the Guinness Book of World Record for the'longest dance marathon.' Through her 123-hour performance staged in Thrissur in September last, Hemalatha set the mark, erasing the record of Hyderabad-based  Vettikotta Yadagiri.

The certificate, received by Hemalatha, said " the longest marathon by an individual was 123 hours and 15 minutes achieved by Kalamandalam Hemalatha."

"More than a personal achievement, I consider this as a recognition of Mohiniyattam, the unique dance form of Kerala", Hemalatha said.

"When I embarked on the mission, there were criticism from certain quarters that this was cheap stunt which marred the beauty and elegance of Mohiniyattam. But I was convinced start from the right that mine is a humble attempt to know the world about this performing tradtion unique to Kerala", she said.

Hemalalatha compelted the record-making performance in her second attempt after she failed to make it in her first bid after 64 hours of dancing as she fell ill on the stage.

The artist, who now runs a dance school in Thrissur, said the Guinness honour came as an inspiration to launch programmes to instil interest in Kerala dance forms among youngsters.

She said planned to embark on  a one-month-old all-Kerala relay from January 26 to create health and physical fitness awareness among women and children.

She would be touching hundreds of schools, grass root level NGOs, reading and youth clubs on her way to take the message.

Source - http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/thiruvananthapuram/Kerala-artist-enters-Guinness-for-dance-marathon/Article1-647003.aspx

Bank tried to bribe me, says CitiBank Customer

A Citibank customer, who was duped out of about Rs 11 crore in the recent Rs 300-crore fraud at the bank, has claimed that senior executives offered him money to settle the issue for not complaining about it to the police. Citibank have however, denied the allegation. Sanjeev Aggarwal, a well-known serial entrepreneur and current managing director of venture capital firm Helion Advisors and founder & former CEO of BPO Daksh, has said that ever since the fraud came to light, top Citibank officials have been in constant touch with him for a settlement.

Aggarwal had on Tuesday filed a complaint with the Gurgaon police against top Citibank officials, which includes Indian-born CEO Vikram Pandit.

Denying the charge, a Citibank spokesperson said: “As this individual knows well, Citi identified the fraud and immediately reported the matter to the regulators and law enforcement agencies. His claims against senior executives are completely without basis and we intend to contest them vigorously.”

Aggarwal, who called the fraud a “systems failure”, said: “I trusted Citibank with my life’s savings, which have now been wiped out. It is impossible for an employee to undertake fraud of such a scale, without the knowledge of the bank.”

The perpetrator of the fraud, Shivraj Puri, he said, was introduced to him in 2007 “and senior officers of Citibank were with him at that time”.

Since then, whenever Puri visited him at his office, he was accompanied by senior colleagues. However, he started visiting Sanjeeve alone over the past one year.

In the second week of December 2010, Aggarwal received a call from CitiBank saying that his relationship manager had gone on leave. That was the first time he checked his account statements and found a discrepancy of about Rs 11 crore.

His two goals now, he added, are to “get back my hard-earned savings and make Citibank own responsibility for the fraud”.'

Source - http://www.hindustantimes.com/Citibank-fraud-Bank-tried-to-bribe-me-says-customer/H1-Article1-646823.aspx

Schools in Delhi to remain closed till January 9th

School children can stay back at home for some more days now, to keep themselves warm. Delhi government has asked all schools to remain closed till January 9 due to extreme cold conditions. As per the directions, all private unaided schools, government schools and those under MCD, NDMC and Delhi Cantonment Board will now reopen only on next Monday. /The education department have asked all schools to close for all classes after receiving requests from parents and schools. It is mandatory for all the schools to follow this direction.

The extreme cold climatic condition forces schools to extend vacations almost every winter now. As a result, most of the schools altered their schedule this year to begin the winter break from January 1 instead of December 25. The others that reopened on Wednesday have also declared holidays once again. Parents are happy too at this decision by the Delhi Government.

Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Delhi-schools-to-remain-closed-till-Jan-9/articleshow/7225450.cms

Hindutva leader Aseemanand to be booked for Samjhauta blast

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) investigating the blast on Samjhauta Express on February 2007 looks all set to book militant Hindutva leader Aseemanand. Aseemanand has been identified as the key plotter of the attack which killed 68 people. Majority of the victims were Pakistani citizens returning home after visiting their kin in India.

Sources in the agency, which was brought in after investigations by Haryana Police, told TOI that Aseemanand planned the blast to avenge the series of terror attacks by Islamist terror groups.

"The role of Hindu extremists behind the blast has become clear. The probe agency found that Aseemanand was one of the plotters. The group had done it under their 'Bomb-for-Bomb' plan which was hatched in the Dangs district of Gujarat," said sources in the NIA.

Haryana police had found similarities in the explosives used in the Samjhauta blast and the explosion at Hyderabad's Mecca Masjid. But the Haryana cops could not connect the dots. The picture was further complicated when the US named a Pakistani terrorist, Asif Kasmani, suspected to be a go-between Lashkar and al-Qaida, as the main suspect in the Samajhauta blast.

National Investigation Agency's probe into the cases of saffron terror has gathered momentum after the arrest of Aseemanand who is believed to have inspired Abhinav Bharat members to retaliate against Islamist terror.

NIA's investigation into the Samjhauta train attack might give Pakistan a handle to embarrass India. Officials are wary of the possibility of Islamabad asking for Aseemanand's custody once he is charge-sheeted. But the government has decided to press ahead with the probe, said an official.

Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Saffron-terror-leader-to-be-booked-for-Samjhauta-blast/articleshow/7225559.cms