Postnoon E-Paper for 21 January by Scribble Media & Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013 HYDERABAD

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TAKEN The Algerian hostage crisis has come to a bloody end, with 48 civilians and 32 militants confirmed dead. Postnoon looks back at some of the worst hostage situations the world has seen.

P16&17

WEATHER: MOSTLY CLEAR; 24°C

PRETTY FACES, BUT SOME PRETTY BAD ACTING It takes more than just being a pretty face to get ahead in Bollywood. Postnoon gives you a list of B-Town celebrities who need acting classes immediately.

P22

HYDERABAD’S FIRST COMPACT AFTERNOON NEWSPAPER

THE PLIGHT OF TRAFFICKED WOMEN

A VICIOUS CYCLE OF TORMENT

Once a woman is rescued from traffickers and sent back home, how does she end up in a brothel again? Lack of family support, abuse by the police and other ‘samaritans’, and the tacit acceptance of the crime by society are culprits. Our investigation reveals shocking statistics and horrifying stories of those whose torment is eternal.

REPORT ON P7, 8 & 9

32 PAGES

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

city events

FOLK ART PAINTING

Crafts Council of Andhra Pradesh presents a folk art exhibition titled Kausalyam. It was inaugurated on January 8 by Chandana Khan, IAS, special chief secretary of tourism. It will go on till January 24 at Rainbow Art Gallery, Paryatak Bhavan, from 11am-7pm.

Weather for Hyderabad

Evening

Overnight

Morning

Afternoon

24°C

21°C

25°C

28°C

Clear.

Mostly sunny. Windy at times.

Mostly sunny.

New Delhi Mumbai Max 16 Max 30 Min 7 Min 15 Clear skies.

Chennai Max 30 Min 22

Clear skies.

Mostly sunny.

Bangalore Max 28 Min 16

Mostly sunny, clear skies.

AROUND THE CITY: YOUR GUIDE TO THE TWIN CITIES event in the City. Where: Exhibition Ground, Mukarramjahi Road, Nampally, When: Up to February 15, 4pm to 11pm Contact: (040) 2460 3015

ART Rural Excerpts An exhibition of paintings and sculptures, of village depictions and life in rural areas, by Narsimlu Kandi. The preview is on January 19. Where: Aalankritha Art Gallery When: Up to January 30, 11am to 7pm Contact: www.alankritha.in

Shoppers Stop sale Sale up to 51 per cent off on international and Indian brands across categories at Shoppers Stop, HomeStop and Mothercare outlets with Shoppers Stop. Where: Shoppers Stop outlets When: from January 12 Contact: www.shoppersstop.com

Diva Divine Deified An exhibition of ceramic and terrakota sculptures by artist Jayaprakash. Where: Iconart Gallery, Banjara Hills When: Ongoing Contact: www.iconart.in Code Red Countdown Code Red Countdown is an art collection revolving around ecology, by New York based artist Asher Jay. The theme is endangered wildlife. Where: Lalitha Kala Thoranam, Public gardens When: January 27 6pm to 9:30pm Contact: 93965 55888

DINING Hot Dog food festival ITC Kakatiya’s multi restaurant, Deccan Pavilion, is organising a hot dog festival. Hollywood hot dog, Philadelphia cheese steak dog, Garden Dog and Arizona rush are some of the items on the menu. Where: Deccan Pavilion, ITC Kakatiya

TRAVEL FOR CHANGE: Mount Litera Zee School’s ‘Torch of Learning’ bus will travel across India, with a demo M ANIL KUMAR classroom highlighting the different styles of learning that each individual child has at the school. When: 18-27 Contact: (040) 4008 1816

Jubilee Hills, When: Up to February 10 Contact: (040) 2355 0105

Kashmiri Food Festival Wazas, who are the Master Chefs of the Wazwan cuisine, are specially flown down from Kashmir to prepare a royal Kashmiri cuisine. Where: Ohri’s Jalvihar, Necklace Road When: January 18, 1pm onwards Cafe Classics Month Truffles cafe pays tribute to some selective cafes and restaurants in India and the world. The cafe will be serving some of their special dishes. This weekend starts with Britannia restaurant & cafe located in Bombay, with delicious Parsi dishes. Where: Truffles cafe Plot no. 376, Road no. 10,

Commissioner & Spl Officer

Helpline GAS BOOKING IVRS NO HP 9666023456 Indane 9848824365 BSNL Complaints HMWS & SB Complaints

198 155313

POLICE CONTROL ROOM Hyderabad 27852435 Traffic Control Room 27852482 DCP Traffic 23234065, 23243499F Pollution Control Board 23887500 ELECTRICITY General Complaints Breakdown Section

155333 23431178 23431179

MUNICIPAL CORPORATION

23262266 24166666R ENC 23225267 Engineering 23220418 MCH Tankbund 23225397 Emergency MCH Circle I&II 24525842 MCH Circle III 24736912 MCH Circle IV 23326975 MCH Circle V 23326976 MCH Circle VI MCH Complaints 1100 Head Office 23225397 IVRS CUM MANUAL ENQUIRY PHONE NUMBERS (TRAIN & RESERVATION) RAILWAYS Rail Nilayam 27833169, 27824216 Railway Information 131 Reservations 135 Recorded Information 1345 Enquiry (IVRS) 1331, 1332, 1333

SHOWS The Monsoon Oracle The Monsoon Oracle is a factual film based on ritualistic practices that take places in the country. It revolves around the rituals performed, predicting the arrival of monsoon. Where: NIFT, Madhapur When: January 25, Contact: (040) 2311 4537 Tribute to Rajesh Khanna There will be dance performances on Rajesh Khanna’s songs to pay tribute to the superstar. The dance will be choreographed by Mahesh L Munde, who has choreographed national

WATER SUPPLY Complaint Cell Sewerage Complaint Hyd. Water Supply HOSPITAL General Hospital, Sec-bad Niloufer Hospital, Red Hills NIMS, Director, Punjagutta Osmania General Hospital Railway Hospital, Lalaguda Apollo, Jubilee Hills Care Hospital, Banjara Hills Care Hospital, Nampally Care Hospital, Musheerabad Care Hospital, Sec-bad Kamineni Hospital, LB Nagar

155313 23307328 23313163

27505566 23314095 23390933 24600146 27001134 23607777 30418888 30417777 30419000 30416666 39879999

BLOOD BANKS Blood Bank,Narayanguda Chiranjeevi Blood Bank Blood Bank Mediton Goal Red Cross, Vidyanagar ADRM Blood Bank Mythri Charitable Trust NTR Memorial Trust Care Banjara Hills

and international performances. Where: Lalitha Kala Thoranam, Public gardens When: January 27 6pm to 9:30pm Contact: 93965 55888

MISCELLANEOUS Buy Art It is an anniversary art show of affordable art by 30 artists. All artworks are priced between Rs1,000 to Rs10,000 Where: Iconart Gallery, Banjara Hills When: January 18-February 18 11:30am-7pm Contact: www.iconart.in

Nikhil Chinappa Night Sky lounge is set to host its first ever grand party on the January 23, with celebrated DJ Nikhil Chinappa entertaining the guests over a gala dinner. Exquisite variety of food and beverages will be served, with a wide selection of alternative Tapas cuisine. Where: Sky Lounge, Madhapur When: January 23, 8pm onwards

Numaish Numaish is the 73rd All India Industrial Exhibition is an ongoing

27567892 23559555 23226624 27633087 27035588 27550238 30799999 30418296 30417445

AMBULANCES Apollo 23548888, 23607777 Kamineni 24022222 Medwin 23202902, 23204616 Smile Line Dental Hospital 23747979 Red Cross 27627973 Niloufer Hospital 23314095 Gandhi 23320332 AIRLINES

The Republic Ride The biggest corporate cycling event at Hyderabad is being organized by The Atlanta Foundation on republic day. The aim is to promote educational programs for underprivileged children. Where: Gachibowli Stadium, Hyderabad When: January 26, 6:15am onwards Contact: atlantafoundation.org

Airport Director 27903785, 27906001 For Air India Flight Information Toll free (from any network) for IC Flights 18001801407 And for All Flights: 1800227722 Air India has revised its flight timings. For more information call (Toll free) 18001801407, 1800227722 from BSNL/MTNL 04023430334 from other lines and mobile Website; www.airindia.in TOURISM OFFICES AP Tourism, Hyd 23262152/53/54 Sec-bad 27893100 Dept of Tourism 23453110 India Tourism 23261360 AP Tourism information Centre (24x7) 23450444, 23455999 UK VISA OFFICE VFS India Pvt Ltd Building, 8-2-542/A, Sunil Chamber, Road No. 7

Beside Meridian School, Banjara Hills34. Working hours are from 8 AM to 1 PM And 2 PM to 3PM. MUSEUMS Salar Jung Museum AP State Museum Nizams Museum

24523211 232431300/7641 24521029

Readers’ views

We invite you to write to us comments, suggestions, viewpoint or just about anything to feedback@postnoon.com or #1246, Level 3, Jubilee Casa, Road No 62, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad – 500 033 or even by way of a call on 4067 2222

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

City

YESTERDAY’S QUESTION

WILL YSRC FORM AN ALLIANCE WITH MIM? 69% 31%

YES (A) NO (B)

TODAY’S QUESTION

WILL THE STAND ON TELANGANA BECOME TDP’S UNDOING? A)

YES

To vote visit www.postnoon.com

CRIME

Man held for fraud Police arrests a man who looted lakhs of rupees.

Son steals cash, gold from mother

Mohd SUBHAN mohd.s@postnoon.com

POSTNOON NEWS feedback@postnoon.com

he Chilkalguda police arrested a man for cheating people and looting lakhs of rupees from them in the pretext of giving them jobs. Abdul Rasheed, 28, is a resident of Musheerabad. He is unemployed. Rasheed contacted Mahesh, a resident of Warasiguda, Secunderabad, and assured him that he will provide him a job in South Central Railways. He demanded `5 lakh in cash in return for the favour. When Mahesh requested him to lower the amount, Rasheed settled for `3.5 lakh. Rasheed also assured him that he will get his sister a job there too. Mahesh blindly trust-

ed him and paid him `1.75 lakh in cash. When Rasheed didn’t get them a job at the railways even after a few months, Mahesh questioned him. So Rasheed gave him a fake appointment letter in his sister’s name.

Mahesh later went to meet him, only to realise he had escaped with the money. He lodged a complaint with the Chilkaguda police. Police investigations revealed that Rasheed had cheated many people before this.

he crime department of police has solved a theft case which was reported a few days back, where 50 tolas of gold and `1 lakh were stolen from the house of a senior citizen. B Prameela’s son, B Vinod, and his wife, Laxmi, were involved in the crime. The police solved this case with the help of sniffer dogs. When policemen visited the scene they found the cupboard broken and didn’t find any other clue. Meanwhile, sniffer dog moved around Vinod and Laxmi, and this got the police suspicious. Vinod was later taken into custody by the police and on

interrogation he confessed to his crime. Police has recovered the stolen gold ornaments and cash from Vinod and Laxmi. Vinod runs a kirana shop near his house. He suffered a loss in the business, due to which he had taken huge money from the various people. Moneylenders used to harass him, demanding that he return their money. So he planned the theft with his wife. A few days back when she was out, he went inside and stole gold jewelery as well as cash. When she returned home, she noticed this and lodged a complaint with the Neredmet police station. She had initially expressed some doubts on the maid, but her own son and daughter-inlaw were nailed for the crime.

city MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

RTI CAMPAIGN

LAST YEAR... HERE

RTI to empower youth

‘Bandit queen’ held

ast year we had reported about a young woman who had 150 crimes to her name. The women criminals on police record was 175 then in Hyderabad. This woman went by multiple names and Postnoon tracked her deeds and gathered that she was declared a fugitive of Hyderabad. After her arrest, she told the magistrate she would go stealing once she’s out!

JANUARY 21, 2012

NUMEROLOGY

per cent of trafficking victims, who are re-integrated after rescue, end up in brothels again, due to discrimination from the family and society.

I don’t want to talk about deaf and dumb officials who do not want to respond. Ours is a colony which gives crores in taxes to GHMC, but still we are neglected. SHH Mujtaba, resident See page 6

THINGS WE 5LEARNT TODAY The column that teaches everyone something new about the way the City functions.

Development work stalled yet again in City. Kamalapuri Park has been awaiting development and inauguration for over a decade. It lacks proper lighting, benches and even toilets.

What is the way out for sex trafficking victims? Re-integrated victims of sex trafficking face discrimination in the society and even in their own families. They are re-trafficked or get into prostitution again due to poverty.

In our campaign on RTI, we take a look at empowering the youth, who will be a major part of our State’s political future, and check how aware they are about this new wave of activism. RAHUL RAMAKRISHNA rahul.r@postnoon.com

TI Act and RTI activism became common names in Indian politics, especially in 2012. While it empowered the educated strata, the Act is yet to be fielded and tasted by our country’s massive populace.

STATE GOVERNMENT’S CONTRIBUTION The best the State government ever did was to accept the State Information Commission’s proposal to include RTI in the Class VIII syllabus, which was scheduled to take effect from the academic year 2012-13. However, the proposal failed to materialise as the State Council for Education Research and Training said amending the Right to Education Act of 2008 would take time. And so the first little step towards RTI awareness was, intentionally or not, stalled. According to Rakesh Reddy Dubbudu, an RTI activist: “No university, engineering or medicine courses allow RTI as a subject or a course or an awareness session. RTI has not been part of the syllabus although there have been repeated calls to make it mandatory. “While the more popular and vote-bank related issues like `1 per kg rice scheme and free power get huge advertising and awareness, RTI has never had one single public campaign. When we can have repeated telecasts and commercials of ‘Tobacco Causes Cancer’ and ‘Jaago Grahak Jaago,’ why can’t we have the same for RTI?” Apart from the much hyped “training programmes” that the State Information Commission undertakes for the PIOs every year, which is obviously needed, the Act’s visibility in public life is pretty much obsolete.

WHY IS RTI IMPORTANT FOR STUDENTS? The Supreme Court’s orders in the past have granted the right towards fair evaluation and transparency of a student’s answer sheets and this can be done through RTI. The idea that a student can question his/her college management and the university about financial records and examination evaluations, and can inspect these records or take them to court if not provided, appeals greatly to the student fraternity. “I had filed an RTI in 2007 with the university about management quota seats being sold and bought at exorbitant prices, while there was no record of the money. It took me six years and by the time I had finished graduation and was well into postgrad, my principal called me to tell me that my RTI had forced the management to be inspected by a task force team from the university,” Kranthi Kumar, a student from a private engineer-

ing college and an RTI activist said. But the number of Kranthi Kumars who have filed RTIs to solve issues almost negligible in the City.

DRAWBACKS IN ACTIVISM AMONG EMPLOYEES The biggest drawback is related directly to the academic syllabus that churns out hundreds of students into professional courses with no social awareness, said Muthuswamy Ramaswamy, an academician and educationalist. “When a student is exposed to issues and is taught that he/she is empowered to fight them right from the time of schooling, that is true youth empowerment. But when our school system is based on learning for academic credit rather than a practical usage, it is not surprising that our young engineers and medicine students are left out of the RTI activism wave.” But our discussion on empowerment is not limited to

just students and the college fraternity. Hyderabad has produced organisations such as It’s Time to Make a Difference (ITMD), a team of employees from software company backgrounds who have fought many civil issues. As Rahul Buddala, president of ITMD said, “The zeal is certainly there among the youth to fight for issues. But the drive to keep it going vanishes pretty easily and we have seen a lot of cases like this.” ITMD had been greatly supported by Infosys and still continues to do so. Google too helped City-based activists in funding a counter study to the Central government’s study on RTI in 2009. So while the fire for social change burns among the youth, the lack of proper guidance brings it down. “It is good that we have so many young people flooding the streets to protest for a cause, but whether this will take them in the right direction is yet to be seen,” said a social media commentator.

Are employees today aware of the RTI Act? Very few students in the City ﬁle RTIs to question the working of schools and universities. Many youngsters do not have proper guidance in this regard.

Kodandaram cautions T-leaders

GHMC provides housing facility to employees

Red alert at airport till month end

Notifications issued for society elections

Politicians are very active in election preparations. TDP has started its preparatory campaign for the next General Elections to be held in 2014.

Cannot trust even your kith and kin these days! A man stole money and gold from his mother’s house, with his wife’s help, to pay off debts.

NEWS BRIEFS -JAC chairman Prof M Kodandaram cautioned the Tleaders against the “conspiracies” being hatched by Seemandhra leaders to stall the formation of a separate state for Telangana. He alleged that the leaders of Seemandhra were leaving no stones unturned in jeopardising the process of bifurcation.

he GHMC has zeroed in on two locations in Ranga Reddy district to provide housing facility to corporation employees. On the directions of GHMC commissioner MT Krishna Babu, two ideal locations in Ranga Reddy district have been shortlisted by a team led by additional commissioner (planning) K Dhananjaya Reddy.

yberabad police has declared red alert in and around Shamshabad International Airport, in view of the Republic Day celebrations. Special teams will keep round-the-clock vigil at the airport. The red alert will continue to be in force till month end. Airport authorities have temporarily suspended the issue of visitors’ passes.

tate government authorities have released a notification for the conduct of co-operative societies’ elections this morning. As per the notification, elections will be held in 2,949 co-operative societies in two phases. The first phase will be held on January 31, while the second phase of elections will be held on February 4.

city MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

EYE ON 2014

TDP shortlists candidates

The party has kicked off its preparatory campaign for the 2014 General Elections before any of its rivals to ensure enough time for all the candidates to prepare for the polls. FILE PHOTO FOR REPRESENTATION

INKESHAF AHMED ahmed.m@postnoon.com

n Talasani Srinivas Yadav Secunderabad

eaving all other political parties behind, the main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has kicked off its preparatory campaign for the next General Elections, scheduled to be held in the second quarter of 2014. As part of the plan, the party had prepared a list of its candidates for Lok Sabha seats, an exercise the party has never undertaken one-and-a-half years ahead of the elections since its inception in 1982. The fresh move of the party marked its departure from the convention of declaring the names of party candidates after the release of the election schedule. The main objective behind finalising the names of party candidates is to ensure adequate time for all the candidates and party cadres to prepare for the polls. However, the party leadership has not made any official announcement regarding the list of candidates. Highly placed sources in the party confirmed the news to Postnoon and said that the list consists of a select number of Lok Sabha seats, which either

Key players n Zahed Ali Khan - Hyderabad n Murali Mohan - Rajahmundry n Nama Nageswara Rao Khammam n Ramesh Rathod - Adilabad n Nimmala Kistappa - Hindupur n Dr N Siva Prasad - Chittoor n V Venugopal Reddy - Narasarao Peta n Narayana - Machilipatnam

have powerful leaders or no visible competition for the party tickets. “Yes, we have prepared a list of party candidates to be fielded in the next elections. The list has been prepared after undertaking a marathon exercise and weighing all pros and cons,” a senior leader of the party told Postnoon on Sunday. He also confirmed that the sitting Lok Sabha MPs of the party, including the TDP Parliamentary Party (TDPP) leader, have retained their seats in the next General Elections.

The party’s move marked its departure from the convention of declaring the names of party candidates after the release of the election schedule. The names of sitting MPs include TDPP leader Nama Nageswara Rao (Khammam Lok Sabha seat), Ramesh Rathod (Adilabad), Nimmala Kistappa (Hindupur),

Dr N Siva Prasad (Chittoor), V Venugopal Reddy (Narasarao Peta) and Narayana (Machilipatnam). Apart from the sitting MPs, the list consists of the names of many old and new faces, who are going to test their luck at the next General Elections. Some of the important leaders on the list are Greater Hyderabad TDP president Talasani Srinivas Yadav, Tollywood actor Murali Mohan and Siasat Urdu daily editor Zahed Ali Khan. While Talasani Srinivas Yadav is said to be con-

testing from his home turf of Secunderabad, Zahed Ali Khan is being fielded from Hyderabad against MIM party chief and present MP Asaduddin Owaisi. Khan also contested as a TDP candidate during the last General Elections held in 2009. Film actor Murali Mohan is being fielded for the Rajahmundry Lok Sabha seat. The party is in the process of zeroing in on the candidates for the rest of the Lok Sabha seats. A formal list is likely to be declared in the coming days.

POLITICS

‘Let the people vote on T-issue’

Leaders say that creating a separate state is the only way for the party to retain power in the region, even as politicians call for a people’s referendum on the matter. POSTNOON NEWS feedback@postnoon.com

realised that it would be difficult for the party to win majority number of seats in Andhra and Rayalaseema region due to YS Jagan factor and the only ray of hope the party has is in Telangana,” he said.

he issue of a separate Telangana state has become a hot topic these days following the imposition of a deadline of January 28 by the Union government to address the problem. While the struggle for achieving the separate T-state had been going on since the last 50 years, the firm statement made by the Centre to solve the decades-old problem in a month’s time floored leaders of all parties, including the ruling Congress. However, many of these leaders felt the proposed decision of the UPA-2 government on Telangana was a political decision. “The ruling Congress is facing the threat of extinction in the

VOICE FOR PEOPLE’S REFERENDUM GROWS State. It is highly unlikely for the Congress to retain power in the present circumstances, especially in Andhra and Rayalaseema regions. The only Bramhastra it has is to give separate Telangana state and retain power in the new State,” a senior Congress leader told Postnoon on the condition of anonymity. Another Congress leader and party MP, who played

a crucial role in forcing the Centre to hold an all-party meet last year, also expressed similar views. “We have told the party high command leaders that if they give a separate Telangana state, we will ensure the party’s victory in 16 out of 17 Lok Sabha seats of Telangana region. The high command leaders were convinced with our claims and

On the other hand, a simultaneous demand for holding a people’s referendum on the Telangana issue, especially on the status of Hyderabad, is gaining momentum. TDP leader and former Hyderabad mayor Teegala Krishna Reddy (in pic, right) said that the Centre should hold a people’s referendum on the status of Hyderabad before creating a separate Telangana state. “I

demand that the Central government immediately hold a referendum on whether the residents of Hyderabad want their city to be a part of Telangana or not. It is very essential as Hyderabad is a cosmopolitan city and people from all over the country have made it a place of residence,” Reddy said. However, APCC general secretary Abid Rasool Khan (in pic, left) said that a referendum on the issue at this juncture would not serve any purpose. “Referendum should have been held when the Telangana issue was raised. It will not yield any result at this stage,” he said. Khan, who is a complete Hyderabadi, also said that the residents of Hyderabad were never in favour of separate Telangana state.

city MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

CIVIC

PARKED IN LIMBO

Over a decade after locals won the case to secure their spot of greenery, Kamalapuri Park still does not have basic civic amenities. SRINIVAS SETTY, MD NIZAMUDDIN

Md NIZAMUDDIN nizamuddin.a@postnoon.com

here is usually a story behind every park saved from land sharks within GHMC limits. Unfortunately, it is rarely the authorities who make the effort. Residents fight tooth and nail to protect the land meant for parks in their localities. Take, for instance, the residents who live near Kamalapuri Park. Located between Sagar Society of Banjara Hills and Srinagar Colony. The park is yet to be inaugurated even after a decade for lack of facilities like lighting, benches and ladies’ toilets. According to locals, the park caught the attention of land sharks in the late 80s as it bordered Banjara Hills. Some constructions also came up on the land, as powerful men sold them to people by manipulating the layouts. All this was going on allegedly with the knowledge of the then municipal officials. There was a lot of pressure on the locals to give up their demand for a park. The process for permission for a ‘community hall’ in another location in the area also hit a roadblock. However, they never gave up and fought the case in courts for more than a decade. After

filing a writ appeal in the High Court, the park space was protected at last. Even though Kamalapuri Colony Welfare Association won the court case nearly a decade ago, the park does not have the provisions the residents are demanding. Several representations were made to the GHMC and also to public representatives, including P Sabitha Indra Reddy, home minister, whose residence is at Srinagar Colony. But the demand of civic amenities remains a distant dream for the residents. “We have been demanding benches, canteen and water supply, and ladies’ toilets. But the demands fell on deaf ears. I am a senior citizen and the officials rarely respond,” said Dr Ranga Reddy, vice-president of the association. With the summer nearing, the youngsters also wish to breathe some fresh air. But whenever they visit, they find the park closed. “It is a beautiful park, but until and unless there are amenities, what is the use?” said R Mohan Vijay, an engineering student. M Satish Chandra, a student of MJ college, added, “This place is full of greenery. During the holidays, I wish to spend my time here. Hope it would be opened at least in a couple of months.” Syed Mohammed Mubassir, another

youngster, points out how the park would provide a respite from all the pollution. “I have to travel a long distance to go to college, breathing in all the pollution of the City. In the evening, people like me would want to visit a place like this, but unfortunately, the park is closed,” said Mubassir. Those who played an active role in securing the park are now fed up with the lip service provided by the authorities. “I don’t want to talk about the deaf and dumb officials who do not want to respond. Ours is a colony which gives crores in taxes to the GHMC, but still we are neglected,” fumed SHH Mujtaba, general secretary of the association. P Sabitha Indra Reddy was not available for comment. According to Attaluri Vijaylaxmi, corporator, Srinagar Colony, the largest part of the park comes under Jubilee Hills, which is one of the reasons that she could not focus on it. She said the issue would be resolved with the help of GHMC. “I shall be taking up the issue after speaking to GHMC officials,” the corporator added.

This place is full of greenery. During the holidays, I wish to spend my time here. Hope it would be opened at least in a couple of months. M Satish Chandra MJ college student

It is a beautiful park, but until and unless there are amenities, what is the use? R Mohan Vijay Engineering student

I have to travel a long distance to go to college, breathing in all the pollution. In the evening, people like me would want to visit a place like this, but unfortunately, the park is closed. Syed Mohammed Mubassir, Student

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classifieds MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

CRIME

THE NEVER-ENDING STORY Once a woman is rescued from traffickers and sent back home, how does she end up in a brothel again? Lack of family support and acceptance from society are usually the culprits. DEEPASHRI VARADHARAJAN deepashri.v@postnoon.com

HELP, an NGO that rescues and rehabilitates trafficking victims. “She wants to study. She is now with HELP. She has no support from her parents or the government. Her father comes to visit her once in a while and goes away.” “Society is like that. Once a woman gets the stamp of a prostitute, she is always treated like one,” said CWC member Rama Devi. Only three respondents of the survey, out of 84, said that the brothel owner or pimp was arrested along with the victim.

hen a victim is rescued from a brothel, she just has one possession that she can call hers: The dress she is wearing. The “immediate relief” fund doesn’t reach her even after a year sometimes. The order that was passed by the government 10 years ago to provide rehabilitation facilities to these victims, has not been implemented yet. When this girl goes home, her family doesn’t want her back because the society “looks at them differently”. Sometimes poverty, sometimes her family and sometimes this society forces her into prostitution again. She tries to run away, with no idea of where she’s headed, only to be trapped by “brokers,” mediators or pimps. She is then re-trafficked to a different place. Nearly 30 per cent of the trafficking victims rescued and rehabilitated from three districts of Andhra Pradesh — Prakasam, Guntur, Krishna — from 200709, could not be traced for a status survey. Most of them are victims of re-trafficking, said Child Welfare Committee (CWC) chairperson Ram Mohan. Of the victims who could be traced, it was found that over 60 per cent who were rescued were directly handed over to their families without any counselling; neither was the family sensitised in this regard, nor was the victim given psychological support. “In most cases, the police send the survivors to their homes without conducting home investigation after rescue operations,” according to the survey report by HELP, an NGO that rescues and rehabilitates trafficking victims. “I had no respect in the society,” said 18-year-old Sandhya*. “People spoke very badly about me to my mother.” Sandhya was rescued from a brothel in Mumbai and placed back in her home in Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh. “I ran away from my house. I didn’t tell my parents,” she said. “I was waiting at the railway station. A man (mediator) took me from there and put me in a brothel.” A total of 84 people were questioned for the survey. These

NOT RAPE, NO HELP

consisted of either the victims themselves or the relatives of victims, most of whom replied with “I don’t know,” when asked about the life and whereabouts of the rescued victim.

‘STAMP’ OF PROSTITUTION

Maya*, 17, did not lodge a police complaint against her neighbour, who had promised to marry her and later sold her to a pimp at Warangal. He used to threaten her, saying he would “expose her life in the brothel” if she ever filed a complaint.

Her parents were afraid of society and the neighbours. They scolded her and asked her to go away. They said people were looking at them ‘differently’ because of her. Parimala Y Sr counsellor, HELP

Maya had escaped from the brothel at Warangal, but the pimp had tipped off her “lover,” who intercepted her at the railway station, and left her at a different brothel in Ongole. She was rescued again from Ongole, but was no longer wanted by her family. “Her parents were afraid of society and the neighbours. They scolded her and asked her to go away. They said people were looking at them ‘differently’ because of her,” said Parimala Y, senior counsellor at

A government order was passed in 2003 in Andhra Pradesh, following a Supreme Court ruling to provide rehabilitation packages to rescued trafficking and prostitution victims, said Ram Mohan, who is also the secretary of HELP. “(It included providing) land, housing, voter ID, ration card and education to children (of victims). The government of AP released a `25 lakh revolving fund for this. But the order has still not been implemented.” “A rape victim is given a relief fund of nearly `1.5 lakh to `2 lakh (in instalments),” Mohan added. Postnoon had reported on January 1 on how sex trafficking, even of minors, is not registered as a case of rape in most police stations. These victims are only entitled to an immediate relief fund of `10,000. Most of them do not even get this. “Almost 50 per cent don’t get the immediate relief fund. Sometimes it is delayed by six months and after that, it is difficult to get the address of the victim (they may have relocated or been re-trafficked),” Rama Devi said. A total of 66 per cent of the respondents of the survey said they faced economic problems, and nearly 17 per cent said “prostitution” is their current source of income. Some victims are threatened and harassed by pimps and traffickers even after rescue. There is almost no help for them from the government or family. They feel they have no respect in the society. Nearly 62 per cent said even the police illtreated them. How then do they get out of this vicious loop of trafficking, re-trafficking and prostitution? (Some names changed to protect identity.)

Special Report MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013 HELP conducted a survey in Prakasam, Guntur and Krishna districts to find the status of re-integrated sex trafficking victims. Of the 365 rescued victims (2007–09), 101 could not be traced.

VICTIMS OF A VICIOUS CYCLE OF

VIOLENCE

SEX TRAFFICKING PRESENT STATUS OF THE VICTIMS

3 respondents

It can be seen from the pie chart that a majority are daily wage workers. 25 per cent still continue to be prostitutes. Around 14.3 per 21 respondents cent of the victims are continuing in dependent on their families and prostitution 10.7 per cent are into either some form of employment or have 39 started a business of their own. respondents

don’t know

9 respondents in some employment or business

respondents depend on family members

earning daily wages

6 respondents have other problems

6 respondents said they don’t know

TYPES OF PROBLEMS FACED

5 respondents face A majority husband’s harassment (66.7 per cent) of the respondents face 0 respondents said they economic problems. are ill-treated by family 13.1 per cent said members. they face problems with 11 respondents their health. have health problems

respondents have economic problems

DISTRIBUTION OF THE RESPONDENTS BY AGE

26.1 per cent fall in the age group of 19 to 22, followed by 22.6 per cent in the age group 23 to 25. Over 40 per cent are separated, divorced or deserted by their husbands.

Survivors of age below 14

Survivors of age 15-18

Survivors of age 30-35

Survivors of age 26-30

Survivors unmarried

Survivors deserted

Survivors of age 19-22

Survivors of age 23-25

50 40 30 20 10

Survivors separated

Survivors Divorced

Survivors are married

THE LAST TIME OF RESCUE OF THE RESPONDENT

1 0

82.1per cent of respondents were rescued for the first time. But nearly 30 per cent could not be traced for the survey.

Rescued 2000 for 1st time

2006 2007 2008 Year of previous rescue

7 3

2009

2010

No of survivors

Survivors of age 35 and above

No. of survivors

20 10 0

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

Police ill-treated

3 Seized belongings

4 Customer/trafficker/pimps escaped

Almost 87 per cent of the respondents said they were ill-treated by the police.

0 Taken statement 4 Don’t know 0

No of survivors

What happened during the rescue

BEHAVIOUR OF POLICE WITH SURVIVORS DURING RESCUE

Special Report

SOURCE: CID OF POLICE, AP (2007-09)

EXPERIENCE WITH POLICE DURING RESCUE

In most of the cases, the number of victims rescued is more than one, which is why their number is more than the cases registered.

15.5 per cent of victims complained that their belongings were taken away by the police.

Treated well

No of survivors

Abused/ ill-treated

Given counselling

PEOPLE ARRESTED WITH THE VICTIM

2 Belongings seized

No. of No. of cases victims registered rescued Prakasam 37 40

SL. Name of the NO. district

Don’t know

Interviewed Address victims/their not traced family members 10 10

Guntur

185

Krishna

140

TOTAL

200

365

101

DETAILS OF THE PEOPLE ARRESTED WITH THE VICTIM

Of the 43 respondents, 44.2 per cent said that co-victims were arrested along with them. 41.9 per cent didn’t know if anybody was arrested. Only in very few cases (4.7 and 2.3 per cent), the brothel owner and pimp were arrested with the victim.

A majority (51.2 per cent) of the respondents said others were arrested with them. No one was arrested with them, said 34.5 per cent; and the remaining did not know who else was arrested.

No response from

survivors

Don’t know if others were arrested with the victim

Co-Victim arrested with the victim

Don’t know who else was arrested

Survivors

Others were arrested with the victim

respondents

No one was arrested

Pimp arrested with the victim

The number of rescue operations declined in 2008–09 due to a change in the police department’s priorities. Transfer of officials was another reason for this decline. The police are unaware of the whereabouts of the victims.

respondent

Brothel keeper arrested with the victim

respondent

Study report on status of re-integrated survivors GRAPHICS: MADHAVA B KULKARNI

COURT PROCEDURE AFTER RESCUE

Over 60 per cent of the victims were handed over to their families without any counselling. 8.3 per cent were send to remand homes, contradicting the ITP Act. 4.8 per cent were handed over to transit homes. None of the respondents surveyed said they were sent for a medical examination by the court. Some of the family members of victims who were surveyed said they don’t know what happened to them.

14 7

0 Sent for medical examination

Sent to remand

Handed over to family/ parents

Handed over to NGO’s transit home

Handed over to GOs’ transit home

Sent back to home

0 Taken 164 CrPC statement

Don’t know

SOURCE OF RESCUE OPERATION

NGO/Police (rescue operation)

media and police

don’t know

DISTRIBUTION BY PLACE OF RESCUE 48.8 per cent of the rescue operations happened in cities. The study concludes that brothels are visited more frequently in cities.

Neighbour’s complaint

The chart gives information on the people involved in the rescue operations. Almost all the rescues were by the police as they are the competent authority.

Police raids

victims rescued in city/ municipality

victims rescued in villages

victims rescued in towns

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

Business

PAK COMMERCE MINISTER CALLS OFF VISIT

Pakistan commerce minister Amin Fahim has called off his scheduled visit to India in the wake of prevailing tensions between the two countries over violations along the Line of Control, Online news agency reported Sunday.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Future is in new centres

State’s IT industry, growing at 16 per cent, is pushing for the development of Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities to ensure sustainable growth. PRUDHVI RAJU K prudhvi.k@postnoon.com

espite the political turmoil and power crisis, the IT industry in the State could perform well and at par to the national IT industry — growing 16 per cent. With this growth, the industry achieved many milestones in terms of employment and revenues. Industry leader, ITsAP president V Rajanna, asserts that the State has much more potential which can be reaped through various frame works. “The industry leaders has come up with a 10-point agenda for growth. It talks about various aspects like development of Tier 2 cities like Vishakhapatnam and Vijayawada as software hubs and need for dedicated officers to enable setting up offices in these growing cities. We need to implement China model in developing these Tier 2 and Tier 3 centres for which there should be better and faster transport system between them,” he said. “There should be also preferential policies by providing aggressive incentives so that the industry will set up offices in these cities. We also requested government to hire an international consultancy firm to identify differentiators of State IT industry in this cut-throat competition. This will also help to attract foreign investment in the State. The 10-point agenda has been submitted to the government and the response has been positive,” said Rajanna He also stated that the ecosystem is also evolving for startups. Many academic institutes like JNTU, NIT Warangal are coming forward to facilitate setting up small enterprises in their incubation centres. “This will be great support for start-ups in terms of physical infrastructure,

IMF POSITIVE ON GREECE

No additional measures would be necessary for Greece if it carries out the reforms under its bailout programme, IMF chief Christine Lagarde said in an interview with the Sunday edition of Kathimerini. “But if the structural reforms are not carried out... then more cuts would be necessary,” the head of the International Monetary Fund told the Greek newspaper. Entering a sixth year straight of recession, the heavily indebted country is relying on EU-IMF bailout packages. It also received a private-sector debt cut early last year. Since 2010, the EU and IMF have committed $320 billion in rescue loans to Greece, while last week the IMF unblocked a frozen tranche of 3.2 billion euros from its pending aid package.

NUMEROLOGY

$1.1

Growth story Industry revenues: `53,246 crore in 2012 Growth rate: 16 per cent Export revenues: `40,646 crore (76 per cent) Domestic Revenues: `12,600 crore (24 per cent) Current direct employment: 3,18,624 jobs Indirect employment: 10,12,769 jobs Total employment: 1.33 million Contributes to total AP exports: 38 per cent State contribution to IT exports of the country: 12 per cent of overall exports State position in terms of IT exports: 4

as they need not to invest their time and money. The academic institutes stand to benefit as they may get placement opportunities for their students as interns in these centres. This will not only create a win-win situation but also act as a bridge between academia and industry,” he said. “The AP government is doing its best by providing various special preferential policies for start-ups and SMEs by which prime bidder of certain egovernance projects should outsource certain percentage of the project for small and medium companies. It also encourages SMEs with turnover between `50 lakh and `10 crore to bid for the e-governance projects. “The teachers should also keep themselves constantly updated with industry knowledge and stay abreast of evolving technologies. ITsAP is organising faculty development programmes to achieve this objective. For instance, we

organised a TCS-sponsored faculty development programme on Geospatial Technologies, which was attended by around 50 professors from the state. We also organise expert lectures on latest technologies and facilitate internships,” said Rajanna. Talking about needs of the industry, he said, “There is a misconception that IT industry needs more then what student learns in classroom. Students have to be clear with concepts they study. For instance, during campus interviews we ask questions only on the student’s favourite subject be it operating systems, database management or digital electronics. Student should also be thorough with one programming language like C++, Java or .NET. The of the questions are based on life skills and communication skills. We know there will be gaps, but as long as student has mastery over his preferred domain that is enough for the industry.”

GOLD`30,910 10g SILVER `59,835 1kg

24C

for

DOLLAR `53.82 POUND `85.44

is what Norway’s Statoil ASA will pay Hyundai Heavy Industries to build the 21,000-tonne topside facility, capable of producing 23 million cubic metres of oil and gas a day.

BILLION-BARREL FIND Iraq said on Sunday it has discovered deposits of crude equivalent to one billion barrels of oil after the first exploration work by state-owned firms in almost 30 years. The deposits were found after exploration in Maysan province, in southern Iraq near the border with Iran, and could potentially make a significant addition to Baghdad’s already substantial reserves. The country has proven reserves of 143.1 billion barrels of oil and 3.2 trillion cubic metres of gas, both of which are among the largest in the world.

THUS SPAKE Efforts on R&D are not up to the mark. An example of this is the number of patent applications, which is an indicator of innovation. Patents ﬁled by Indian scientists are far less than Germany, Japan, China and the US, PRANAB MUKHERJEE, PRESIDENT

BSE 6,073.10 NSE

20,104.06 65.02 8.70

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

nation

WOMAN ABDUCTED, GANG-RAPED A 24-year-old woman, currently out on bail in a case, has alleged that she was raped by two men after being abducted from Chandigarh and later thrown out of a car in Bathinda district, police said today. She said she was in the city to attend an interview.

JAIPUR CONCLAVE

GOA MINISTER BOOKED

BJP calls Rahul Gandhi’s elevation ‘family inheritance’

The best among BJP leaders will become ‘the first amongst equals’ and will not be chosen on name, surname or a family claim of inheritance, says Arun Jaitley. NEW DELHI/BANGALORE: The BJP sought to link Rahul Gandhi’s elevation as the Congress vice president to “family inheritance”, and said he sounded like a leader of the opposition in his first speech after assuming the new role. Speaking at a function in Bangalore, BJP leader Arun Jaitley took a dig at Rahul Gandhi and said that world’s largest democracy cannot be put to risk by “risking ourselves” in the hands of those whose actual potential and whose policy and opinion on various issues was not known. Jaitley, who did not name Rahul Gandhi, stated that the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate would be selected on the basis of his leadership abilities and not on “family inheritance”. He said the best among BJP leaders will become “the first amongst equals” and will not be chosen on name, surname or a family claim of inheritance. He said the leader will be chosen only on the basis of his proven ability. BJP vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi accused the Congress of practising dynastic politics. “They need to understand the difference between a

A minister in the Goa government and chairman of the state law commission were on Monday formally charged in an arson case involving railway property during an agitation in May last year. Police submitted a chargesheet at the Quepem trial court against Minister for Sports Ramesh Tawadkar, Goa Law Commission Chairman Narendra Savoikar and several others. They were booked for damaging railway property during an agitation by the United Tribals Alliance Association (UTAA) for implementation of tribal rights. Two people were killed during the agitation, which took a violent turn at Balli village in Cuncolim.

‘OPEN STILLWELL ROAD’ Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi gestures as he shares a light moment with his mother, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, during a party leadership conclave in Jaipur on Sunday. Rahul, newly named to the number two post in the party, delivered a powerful call for change to meet the aspirations of the nation’s “young and impatient” population. AFP

party where the prime ministerial candidate is born in a cradle and the one where he is born out of hard work and valour,” Naqvi said. He claimed that the purpose of the Congress’ introspection meeting in Jaipur was the elevation of Rahul Gandhi. Naqvi said the meeting was

also aimed at controlling damage over allegations of corruption, misgovernance and inflation against the UPA government. BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said Rahul spoke like a leader of the opposition and not as someone from the

ruling party. She said former PM Rajiv Gandhi had also spoken about the need for the Congress to get out of the mould of power brokers. She said Rahul Gandhi had spoken a great deal of idealism. “I hope he is able to implement it in his own party first,” Sitharaman added. IANS

NEWS BRIEFS Abducted daughter of Delhi trader rescued

RDX recovered, Assam on alert for R-Day

Flute maestro Ramani bags Chaurasia award

New-born girl found abandoned

CHANDIGARH: Three-and-ahalf-year-old daughter of a Delhibased stock broker, who was allegedly kidnapped from a hotel here a few days ago, was today rescued by police. The child, who had been abducted by her father’s business partner for a ransom of `1 crore on January 15, was rescued from a village in Jind, Haryana.

GUWAHATI: A huge quantity of RDX was recovered from a village in Assam’s Tinsukia district, police said, even as security forces are on alert across the state after warnings that insurgent groups may strike in the run-up to the Republic Day (Jan 26). Police said that seven kgs of RDX were recovered from Purana Haahkhoti village.

THANE: Flute maestro Padmashri Dr N Ramani has been honoured with the ﬁrst ‘Padma Vibhushan Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia Award’ for his contribution to music. The award has been instituted by ‘Gurukul’, an organisation engaged in promoting Indian music through its ‘Bansri’ festival.

THANE: A newly-born girl was found abandoned in the city’s Vartak Nagar locality in the early hours today, police said. Some of the people who had come out for a morning walk, found the abandoned baby lying on the ground of a Firing Range around 6.30 am and later informed the Vartak Nagar police.

Pick

at the

Arunachal Pradesh Governor Gen (Retd) J J Singh has advocated reopening of the historic Stillwell Road, the gateway to South East Asia, for economic development of the North East region. “The opening of the road can transform the economy of Arunachal Pradesh by making it a production hub for feeding the Myanmarese and western Chinese markets,” Singh said.

It is a funny party. It is the largest political organisation in the world but perhaps does not have a single rule or regulation. We create new rules every two minutes and then dump them. Nobody knows the rules in the party. Rahul Gandhi Congress vice-president

airport,

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

World

THE DRONE SHOW IN PAK WILL GO ON Central Intelligence Agency will be allowed to continue its campaign of drone strikes in Pakistan for a year or more under a new detailed counter-terrorism manual, a media report said. The detailed counter-terrorism manual which is nearing completion is designed to establish clear rules for targeted-killing operations, the Washington Post reported.

ALGERIA HOSTAGE CRISIS

THAI DEPUTY PM DIES

I was prepared to die, says Japanese hostage The man said he was leaving a lodging house with other foreign workers in a convoy of buses when militants first swooped. TOKYO: A Japanese hostage who narrowly survived the armed attack on an Algerian gas plant said he was sure he would die after seeing two colleagues shot dead in front of him, a report said Monday. The unnamed man told colleagues how Islamist gunmen had dragged him from his barricaded room, handcuffed him and executed two hostages standing nearby. In a chilling account of his escape, published Monday in the Daily Yomiuri newspaper, the hostage told colleagues he had been aboard a bus when it was attacked by a group of heavily-armed Islamists in the Sahara desert early Wednesday. Seven Japanese are known to have survived the three-day assault, which ended in a bloodbath on Saturday — all of them connected to Japanese plant builder JGC. The man said he was leaving a lodging house with other foreign workers in a convoy of buses when militants first swooped. As the vehicle in front was hit by a hail of bullets, the driver of his bus slammed the vehicle into reverse and tried to flee. But a wheel snapped off, stranding the bus and forcing passengers to run through the desert and seek refuge at the workers’ formerly-secure lodging house. The man barricaded himself in his room and cowered with

AFP/ISSOUF SANOGO

TOTAL RECONQUEST

French troops on Sunday consolidated gains in Mali’s Islamist-held north as Paris said the aim was its “total reconquest” and Canada, Germany and Russia offered vital aid for the offensive. The AlQaeda-linked group that shocked the world with its audacious hostage attack in neighbouring Algeria threatened meanwhile to stage further reprisal strikes on nations involved in chasing out Islamists from Mali. The French advance towards the jihadist strongholds in Mali came amid reports that the militants were abandoning some of their positions.

Five kidnapppers captured

the lights off, as gunmen began their rampage through the compound. But a short time later, the door splintered open as militants shot the lock apart and burst in, plucking the frightened man from his hiding place and clamping handcuffs on him. He was frogmarched to a bright room with other foreign hostages where his captors began speaking Arabic with some of his Algerian colleagues.

IN AMENAS, ALGERIA: Troops captured five kidnappers and found the bodies of 25 captives at a remote Algerian gas plant on Sunday, a report said, as Algiers warned the toll from a dramatic hostage crisis at the site may rise. Governments scrambled to track down their missing citizens as more details emerged a day after the final showdown

between special forces and Islamists who took hundreds hostage, demanding an end to French military intervention in Mali. The mastermind of the brazen hostage-taking, Mokhtar Belmokhtar, said meanwhile in a video posted online that the attack was carried out by 40 fighters from the Muslim world and European countries.

Solo sailor adrift for days saved

Canadian’s kidnappers arrested in Colombia

3 Chinese ships in disputed waters: Japan

Suicide bombing, gunfire rock Kabul

SYDNEY: The captain of a cruise ship spoke Monday of the dramatic rescue of a French sailor adrift for days in mountainous seas and the cheers from passengers when he was hauled safely on board. After three days on a life raft in the Southern Ocean, 63-year-old yachtsman Alain Delord was saved by the Antarctic adventure vessel.

BOGOTA: Colombian authorities on Sunday arrested three people suspected of taking part in the kidnappings of a Canadian, two Peruvians and two Colombians, which have been blamed on leftist rebels. “We have managed to capture three people who were with the group behind the abduction,” President Juan Manuel Santos said.

TOKYO: Three Chinese government ships were in waters around islands at the centre of a dispute with Tokyo on Monday, the day after China issued a rebuke to the US over comments seen as supporting Japan. Japan’s coastguard said the maritime surveillance boats were in waters around a chain of Tokyocontrolled Senkakus in Japan.

SYDNEY: A suicide car-bombing followed by several other explosions and gunﬁre rocked western Kabul around dawn on Monday, police and witnesses said. A large pall of smoke was rising from the vicinity of a border police complex on the road to the parliament and the road had been sealed off, residents in the area told AFP.

AFP

NEWS BRIEFS

Thai deputy prime minister and minister of tourism and sports Chumpol Silpa-archa died Monday of a suspected heart problem aged 72, his party said. Chumpol, the leader of the Chart Thai Pattana Party — a member of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's ruling coalition — was admitted to hospital with breathing problems on December 17. "We received news that he passed away this morning," Chart Thai Pattana spokesman Vachara Kannikar said.

NUMEROLOGY

335

flights have been canceled by Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) citing the worldwide grounding of Boeing’s Dreamliner.

WAR CRIME VERDICT Bangladesh’s controversial war crimes court was to deliver its ﬁrst verdict Monday against a popular Islamic televangelist accused of genocide and rape during the 1971 liberation war against Pakistan. Maolana Abul Kalam Azad, who has been on the run for nearly a year, could be sentenced to death in absentia by the Dhaka-based tribunal. The International Crimes Tribunal, which was set up by Bangladesh’s secular government in March, 2010, has come in for widespread criticism for targeting opposition leaders.

We remind our Muslim brothers of the need to clear out from sites run by foreign companies, especially the French ones, to save their lives. Signatories in Blood warning more attacks

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

Technology BOEING IN CRISIS

he lithium-ion battery that powers the Dreamliner has emerged as the focus of a probe into why an All Nippon Airways plane was forced into an emergency landing. Electrolyte leaks and burn marks have been found on the metal casing of the battery in the ANA operated plane, the airline has said. Here are some basic questions and answers on lithium-ion batteries. What is a lithium-ion battery and what are they used for? A lithium-ion battery is a family of rechargeable battery types in which lithium-ions move from the negative electrode to the positive electrode during discharge, and back when charging. Lithium is a highly-reactive alkaline metal. Because it is generally lighter than other types of rechargeable batteries of the same size, it has been widely used for electronic gadgets such as laptop computers and mobile phones. Carmakers have recently started using lithium-ion batteries for their electric cars because they are lighter and more powerful than nickel-metal hybrid batteries that have been used in hybrid cars.

BOEING’S BATTERY PROBLEM

US and Japanese experts joined forces to investigate an ANA Dreamliner whose emergency landing due to a battery fire has provoked the grounding of the world's entire 787 fleet and embroiled Boeing in crisis. HOW LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES WORK ALL LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES HAVE THREE PARTS: 1 ELECTROLYTE LITHIUM SALT IN ORGANIC SOLVENT

What are the advantages of a lithium-ion battery? Lithium-ion batteries have a high power density with a long life. They are also relatively light. The battery is able to take repeated charges because it has no so-called "memory effect", a process in which other types of rechargeable batteries lose their powers of retention if they do not run down completely.

2 CATHODE n DIFFERENT FORMULATIONS OF METALS ARE ADDED TO LITHIUM IN THE CATHODE. n COMMON MATERIALS: MANGANESE, IRON, NICKEL, COBALT, ALUMINIUM. 3 ANODE: GRAPHITE

And the disadvantages? The batteries are currently more expensive than conventional nickel-cadmium and nickel-metal hybrid packs. Overcharging of the packs creates heat, which in some cases can cause combustion. What could have gone wrong with the Dreamliner battery? Tatsuo Nishina, a battery technology expert at Yamagata University in Japan said he did not know the specifics of the case, but that overheating, either caused by a defect in the battery itself or in the electrical system to which it is connected, was a possible cause. "If people who don't know the mechanism of lithium-ion batteries design the electrical system, it could cause trouble," he said.

A coveted dream The Dreamliner features dynamic day LED lighting that simulates a full day of flying for longer flights. Helping passengers adjust their internal clock and increase comfort during flight. Passengers experience a calmer flight thanks to advanced vibration isolation, and quieter air conditioning. Windows are the largest of any commercial passenger plane and feature adjustable tint. The 787’s air filtration system uses HEPA filters to remove bacteria from the air while gaseous filters remove odours, contaminants and other irritants. The Dreamliner produces 60% less noise, consumes less fuel and produces fewer emissions than aircraft of comparable size. Special sensors pinpoint upcoming turbulence, giving the aircraft more time to compensate for it and create a smoother ride for passengers.

LI-ION vs OTHER BATTERIES LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES HAVE HIGHER CAPACITY AND THE ABILITY TO DELIVER MORE POWER

LEAD ACID: NICKEL NICKELLITHIUM-ION: USED IN CAR CADMIUM: METAL BEST ENERGY BATTERIES TOYS, POWHYDRIDE: DENSITY, AND INEXER TOOLS, USED IN FIRST DROPPED IN PENSIVE OLDER TECH- HYBRID CARS COST 50% NOLOGY. LIKE PRIUS. SINCE 2008. (PERFORMANCE)

LITHIUM TITANATE

LITHIUM TITANATE CAN ALSO BE USED FOR ANODE, BUT IT COSTS $23,000/TONNE.

UNIQUELY, IT CAN CHARGE TO 90% FULL IN 10 MINS

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

Comment An expert is a man who has made all the mistakes which can be made, in a narrow field. Niels Bohr Physicist

Russians give Anna the cold shoulder ANNA MALPAL Feedback@postnoon.com

he latest film version of Leo Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina has prompted a storm of passions in Russia where some critics have slammed it as cliched, shallow and insulting to Tolstoy’s monumental work. British director Joe Wright’s costume drama starring Keira Knightley in the title role opened in Russian cinemas this month but its reception highlighted how hard it is for foreign versions of Russian classics to win recognition in the country. “This is like a lavishly illustrated, glossy children’s primer,” wrote the Izvestia daily. “Anna Karenina has been crushed by the scenery,” wrote Kommersant business daily, saying that Wright’s stagey concept of setting the film in a theatre made it “hard to take it too much to heart.” “From the very first minutes of Anna Karenina, your heart sinks at the excessive production,” wrote Boris Nelepo on Afisha lifestyle magazine’s website. “This constant scenerychanging is the only device, a fairground attraction at the heart of the film.” The new film version faced a tough audience of Tolstoy buffs in Russia, where it was released January 10 and has made $4.7 million, according to Variety Russia magazine.Here school children are forced to read Tolstoy’s “War and Peace” in its entirety and even those who skip “Anna Karenina” are familiar with a 1967 Soviet film version starring eyelash-fluttering Tatyana Samoilova. Nit-picking critics and viewers slammed howlers in the new film such as aristocrat Levin living in what appears to be a peasant’s wooden hut — topped with onion domes. AFP

HIGH-FLYING THOUGHTS

Now that Rahul Gandhi has been handed the mantle, sycophants have started their work. One has compared the mood after his speech to that of the one after Obama gave his “Yes, you can” speech. Please show some regard for someone who has worked from scratch to get to where he is.

LIGHT TIMES

TIME FOR A JOKE HARD TALK

PK Surendran

umerous are the grave news of our country, and too much heart-burning is bad for the liver. This time around, I want to help readers see how we could laugh our blues away. India is rich in comedians especially in its politics. In fact we have more clowns than performers in the political circus. From the endless supply of jokes they churn out, let’s sample some. Take for instance the leaders’ reaction to beheading of our soldier at the border. The netas were scouring the advanced learner’s dictionary for adjectives to comment on the gory affair. “It is a serious matter,” said one (we all thought it a frivolous one). “It is a shameful act,” said another (indeed!). “Let us have 10 heads of theirs (Pakistainis),” said the Opposition Leader (we wonder how she arrived at the two-digit figure). We then read of the Army chief’s wisdom. “We are ready to face any challenge’ (For Pete’s sake, we thought the Army was not yet ready!). India will give a fitting reply, roared another (Well, boss, we are waiting…). There are not just political jokers, but there are economic ones too who will make our day

in the morning with the shopworn phrases. “India would be a global leader by 2030,” declares one. Who can’t make long term predictions? I could say Earth will have moved away from solar home to farther galaxies by 2501. Who would contest it and live to prove it? Or take out great Akashvani’s ‘News bulletin.’ It begins with what the PM said today and ends with India losing in one game or the other— all in 5 minutes…flat. And, the most frowning face will wear a smile when he recalls the great advice of Asararam Bapu to women: recite Saraswati mantra when about to be raped (I hear men chuckle, if only...). There are investor jokers from overseas countries. Visiting dignitaries suddenly find a lot of good things about India and them… a ‘common bond’ between ‘our countries.’ The same cross the border and find a common bond between theirs and the hosts. Back home in AP, too, we have rich political jokes to lighten our bitter days. Chandrababu Naidu, now in 14-year vanvas pledges milk and honey to all the eight crore if only he would occupy the gaddi. The one in the gaddi right now promises rice for Re 1 and electricity free (Yes, electricity indeed is free since there is no supply. And, Re1-akg rice at the venue of the rice scheme inauguration). Jagan promises YSR regime II— a corruption free governance (Good Lord!). News of ants and bed-

bugs testing Owaisi blood in jail bring much amusement thinking of the tummy effect that took on the ants and bedbugs. The crown of all guffaws comes from the ‘Yuvaraja’ Rahul Gandhi’s coronation at the party meeting. He is now VP, we are told. What a step down! From crown prince to vice president! He deserves better, you know, after his hard labour in UP and Gujarat. Read it with a union minister’s backup: ‘All those seats where Rahul campaigned were won. It’s another matter that some hint that the party chose ‘sure seats’ for him to campaign so that he would get cent per cent marks. And Modi, against whom he is pitted by sensationalising media, wanted to know

what prevented Rahul from campaigning in all constituencies. And, there is Ambani who pulls Modi’s feet branding him another Mahatma.

TAILEND

Tired, and being sad seeing unscrupulous Netas making atrocious promises to electorate, one independent in the Assembly polls of Kerala a decade or so ago made a mock manifesto. One of the promises he made was “If I win I will make one from each home of this constituency a government employee and the rest of the household will sit at home and enjoy TV while my govt will supply food and drinks at every home.” Well, he too got 1,830 votes!

EDITORIALS The Prince and the pauper

t was emotional, was Rahul Gandhi’s speech. His personal tragedies were also the nation’s — the loss of his grandmother, that of his father. And his mother cried, too, as the time approached for him to take over the mantle of Congress leadership. This story could not have been otherwise: a party formed to win freedom, wins freedom, one of the leaders at the forefront becomes prime minister, then slowly his family consolidates its hold on this entity, which modern India is nothing without under the circumstances. As everyone gloats over Rahul Gandhi’s ascension and sympathises over his speech, what is forgotten is that the leadership of one of the greatest political parties in the world is held by one family of a country that comprises a billion in population. Those

READERS’ VIEWS

much qualiﬁed than Rahul Gandhi in experience and maturity bow to him, though the Gandhi scion’s only claim to such courtesies is that he is the Gandhi scion. India was a country that comprised monarchies; and if we can call a spade a spade, we will confess that the situation has not changed much despite our tall claims of being the largest democracy. Those who disagree with this, kindly explain how the Congress party functions. Can we imagine a Congress party president that is not a Gandhi? No. If the youth of this country is running away from politics, it is because they are sure they won’t get a fair chance. Either you have to be Gandhi, or a zealot. If the Prince truly means what he said, give a pauper a shot at the top post of your party. Reading Mark Twain might help.

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

campus

A TREAT FOR THEATRE LOVERS

The Wisest Fool On Earth, a play written by R Raj Rao and enacted by Feroze, will be staged on Thursday at 8pm at Lamakaan.

CULTURAL EXTRAVAGANZA

WORKSHOP NEWS

Myriad hues of college All colleges might host fests but there are a few that stand apart from the rest, attracting students from across the country. We list the most rocking fests in the country. POSTNOON TEAM feedback@postnoon.com

ome fest season, there is new excitement in college corridors, with preparations for the big day going on in full swing and students busy practising for the performances scheduled for the event. It is the time when even those with the least attendance turn up to partake in the festivities. Here are some of the fests that have the entire country waiting for them with bated breath.

MOOD INDIGO, IIT BOMBAY For four days in December, IIT Bombay puts its academic calendar on hold to put on the biggest cultural college fest in the country. With a footfall of close to 1,00,000 students from almost every big college in the country, a mammoth budget running into lakhs and top notch performers, it’s

The department of Mass Communication, St Francis College for Women, held a twoday workshop on January 16 and 17 for MA second-year students. The topic was research methodology, and the workshop was held by Prof K Stevenson from department of Communication and Journalism, Osmania University. The session was held to provide students with a better insight on mass media research and help them with their masters’ thesis.

unmatched in scale and reputation. If by day students are busy competing in the fiercely innovative competitions from talent shows and quizzes, treasure hunts and dramatics, to debates and dumb charades, their evenings are booked for stunning performances from A-list bands and top names from the world of music. With a breathtakingly beautiful campus, brilliant facilities, choc-a-bloc schedules and epic standards, it’s a fest every student must attend at least once in their college years.

MALHAR, ST XAVIER’S COLLEGE

Come August and it is time for the one of the biggest fests in the country. It is the intercollegiate fest of St Xavier’s College, Mumbai, one of the oldest and most prestigious colleges in India. With more than 20,000 turning up at the event, Malhar has a mix of Bollywood stars

gracing the do. The cultural festival is a three-day long event, which has street dance, band event and Bollywood dance performances as part of the fest.

RIVIERA, VIT UNIVERSITY

Riviera is VIT University’s cultural fest, famous for its live performances and dance competitions. Shaan, Shankar Mahadevan, Sonu Nigam, Vishal-Shekhar and Anoushka are some of the artistes who have performed during the fest. Colleges from across India participate in the events that last for around three days. There are game stalls set up by students, with a mix of brain teasers and simple luck, with lots of goodies to be won.

UNMAAD, IIM BANGALORE

IIM Bangalore is the place to be in January where Unmaad 2013: Masti Ki Artshala unfolds. It is the annual cultural fest of IIM

Bangalore and is the most awaited B-school fest in the country. This year around, KK will be performing live in concert during the event. Some of the fun programmes during the fest include Spoofsvilla: The Bollywood Spoof Making Competition, fashion show and Mr and Ms Unmaad.

OASIS, BITS-PILANI

Every year in October, the entire campus of BITS-Pilani comes alive with hundreds of students from all parts of India thronging to join the five-day cultural fest named Oasis. It’s one of the oldest and most prestigious cultural fests in the country and since the campus is so isolated from all the hustle bustle of the city, it feels like a different world altogether. Some of the most popular events at the fest include gigs by top bands, quizzes and dance performances by top colleges, especially from Delhi.

COLLEGE OF THE WEEK

VIT

Vellore Institute of Technology has campuses both at Vellore and Chennai. Programmes at VIT have been accredited by the NAB National Assessment and Accreditation Council and All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) of the University Grants Commission (UGC) has accredited the university with a 'A'.

TRENDING... Fashion disasters is a regular phenomenon. However, with fests around the corner, the pressure to look your best and not make a faux pas is all the more. We list two fashion disasters that you can avoid.

A jazzy dress is always welcome. But teaming it with jazzy earrings and a jazzy handbag is a strict no-no. Unless you want to look like a wannabe. So the advice is reduce the bling and you can easily make a style statement.

Matching your clothes may not be a good idea every time. You can go for black nails and a blue dress but not pink nails and a pink dress. Mix and match is a trend that is here to stay and going for the contrast is the safe way to go.

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

spotlight

BYE BYE MONDAY BLUES

The place to be on a Monday night is 10 Downing Street. Gang up with your girl pals and head to the pub to have a good time. The pub never lets you down even on a Monday.

S BALAKRISHNA

END WITH A BANG 1

1 Alekya

4 Chandana Khan

2 Sadaaf, Saloni

5 Alka, Lakshmi

3 Rani, Dayanand

6 Thomas, Anna 7 Sunil Shetty

ENTHRALLING THE AUDIENCE

Music lovers were in attendance at N convention where ghazal maestro Ghulam Ali Khan performed. It was part of Paigham - e- Mohabbat which is organised every year in the city.

SRINIVAS SETTY

MEETING OF

CULTURES The concluding day of Hyderabad Literary Fest had pianist Daniel Gomez, Kathak dancer and choreographer Mangala Bhatt and poet Theresa Hahl performing a remarkable piece together at Taramati Baradari on Sunday.

Fusion of art forms

Kathak maestro Pandit Chitresh Das and award winning Flamenco dancer from Spain Antonio Hidalgo presented Fastest Feet on Fire at Taj Krishna on Sunday.

START OF SOMETHING NEW

Web magazine Elan was launched with much fanfare at Alladin Mansion, Begumpet on Sunday.

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

health

INDIA UPS POLIO IMMUNISATION AT BORDERS India has taken measures at borders to prevent the re-entry of polio from Pakistan as it aims to continue its two-year run free from the disease. Though WHO took India off the list of polio endemic countries in 2012, it will declare it "polio free" only if no fresh case is reported for one year.

LACTOSE INTOLERANCE

Can you digest this? Galactosemia, an intolerance towards a simple sugar found in milk, can have some severe repercussions if not caught in time. RANJANI RAJENDRA

ranjani.r@postnoon.com

hen Mitali gave birth to her baby girl she was thrilled. The baby was healthy and everything seemed just perfect. However, a few days after birth, Mitali noticed that her daughter wasn’t able to hold down her food. The baby would throw up every time Mitali fed her, began losing weight and looked rather pale. When Mitali consulted the doctor she suggested switching the baby to formula milk for a few days to see if it would make a difference. But it didn’t seem to help. Further tests revealed that Mitali’s child suffered from galactosemia, a condition in which the human body cannot break down galactose, a simple sugar found in lactose in milk. This means the person cannot tolerate any form of milk. Incidentally, galactosemia occurs in one in every 10,300 live births, according to Neogen Labs, when it conducted a survey in 2004 of four major government maternity hospitals in Hyderabad. According to experts, galactosemia is an inherited disorder. People with galactosemia are unable to fully break down the simple sugar galactose, which constitutes half of lactose, the sugar found in milk. When an infant with galactosemia is given milk, substances made from gala-

ANEWS PP-LYBRIEFS YOURSELF

ctose build up in the body , eventually damaging vital organs like the liver, brain, kidneys and eyes. This condition is inherited in an autosomal recessive pattern, which means both copies of the gene in each cell have mutations. The parents of an individual with an autosomal recessive condition each carry one copy of the mutated gene, but they typically do not show signs and symptoms of the condition. Infants can develop galactosemia within a few days of birth. Symptoms of the condition may be due to a serious blood infection with the bacteria E.coli according to the NCBI website. When an infant with galactosemia is given milk he/she may display symptoms like convulsions, irritability, lethargy, poor feeding habits, poor weight gain, yellowish skin and nausea. Doctors usually test for the following – amino acids in the urine, an enlarged liver, fluid in the abdomen and low blood sugar levels. The only treatment for galactosemia is to stay off all forms of milk and milk products, including dry milk. This is a lifelong condition, hence reading food and beverage labels when choosing a product is essential for such patients. Complications like cataract, cirrhosis of the liver, delayed speech, irregular menstrual cycle and severe infection are possible if not treated on time. As an alternative infants can be given Soy formula or any lactose free formula milk. Doctors also advice daily calcium supplements for such patients.

HOUSECALL

Fact file n

In patients with galactosemia, galactose may build up in the body, eventually damaging vital organs like brain, liver, kidney and eyes.

n Galactosemia occurs in one in every 10,300 live births, according to Neogen Labs. n Soy formula or lactose free formula milk can be given to infants as an alternative. Doctors also advice patients to take regular calcium supplements. n This is an inherited disorder. The only treatment for such patients is to stay off all forms of milk and milk products.

DID YOU KNOW?

PIONEERS

Ambiance

Miners' lung disease

Source of body odour

Charles H Best

Ambiance is an "environment enhancer" designed to help you create the perfect ambient atmosphere to focus, relax or reminisce. You can choose from over 2,500 free sounds, exclusive to Ambiance, to download and listen to, create customized sound mixes, cycle through playlists and wake up to relaxing sounds.

Years spent breathing in large amounts of coal dust in relatively enclosed spaces puts coal miners at risk of developing respiratory diseases which can lead to serious disability. Most well known pneumoconiosis. Tiny particles of coal dust, around two to ﬁve microns in diameter, lodge in the alveoli where eventually they trigger an immune response which leads to ﬁbrosis or scarring of the lung tissue.

The source of smelly feet, like smelly armpits, is sweat. And people sweat buckets from their feet. A pair of feet have 500,000 sweat glands and can produce more than a pint of sweat a day. Sweat glands, which are also known as sudoriferous, are small tubular structures of the skin that produce sweat.

Charles H Best was a physiologist who, with fellow scientist Sir Frederick Banting, was the ﬁrst to use insulin to control diabetes in dogs, shortly thereafter using the same method to treat human patients. Best is also known for his discovery of the vitamin choline and the enzyme histaminase. He was one of the ﬁrst to introduce anticoagulants in treatment of thrombosis, which is clotting of blood.

health MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

STUDY

RESEARCH

Brain shape may

determine your cocaine addiction The study shows that use of cocaine need not inevitably lead to addiction in people with good self control and no familial risk. LONDON: People who take cocaine over a long period of time without becoming addicted have their brain shape to thank, a new Cambridge University study has found. Researchers have found recreational drug users who do not develop a dependence have an abnormally large frontal lobe - the section of the brain used in self-control. They asked individuals who used cocaine on a regular basis to undergo a brain scan and complete a series of personality tests. While the majority of the cocaine users were addicted to the drug there were some who were not despite having used it for several years, the Daily Mail reported. Scientists found that a region in the frontal lobes of the brain, known to be critical in decision-making and self-control, was abnormally bigger in these recreational cocaine users. They suggested that this abnormal increase in grey matter volume, which they believe predates drug use, might reflect resilience to the effects of cocaine. Researchers also found that the same region was significantly reduced in size in people with

Scientists found that a region in the frontal lobes of the brain, critical for self control, was abnormally bigger in recreational cocaine users.

who didn’t become addicted were sensation-seekers like addicts, however they also became bored quickly and moved on to other behaviours and experiences. “These findings are important because they show that the use of cocaine does not inevitably lead to addiction in

cocaine dependence. They believe at least some of these changes were the result of drug use, which eroded what self-control they had. “Drug addiction never happens overnight. It needs continued use to take hold as a habit,” study leader Dr Karen Ersche said. The personality tests showed that people who developed a dependence had two traits that could be harmful when combined - that of being impulsive and compulsive. This gave them an often uncontrollable urge to act without thinking as well as a need to repeat behaviours that then became habits. In contrast those

people with good self-control and no familial risk. “Our findings indicate that preventative strategies might be more effective if they were tailored more closely to those individuals at risk according to their personality profile and brain structure,” Ersche said. The study was published in the journal Biological Psychiatry. PTI

Botox beats steroids in easing painful heels MEXICO CITY: Botox could beat steroids in helping faster recovery from plantar fasciitis, the most frequent cause of chronic heel pain, says a new Mexican study. Plantar fasciitis results when connective tissues on the sole of the foot, the plantar fascia, become painfully inflamed. Physicians may prescribe steroids, regular stretching exercises or injecting botulinum toxin A (BTX-A), also known as Botox. Steroids can cause complications in the treatment of plantar fasciitis, even cause its rupturing, in an estimated two to six percent of patients, said researchers from the Autonomous University of Nuevo Leon, Mexico, the journal Foot and Ankle International reports. Researchers set up a randomized, double-blinded and controlled clinical trial, where patients were treated either with steroids or with Botox. Both groups were shown the same series of physical exercises to help their recovery. Initially the two groups appeared to be recovering at a similar rate. However, the Botox group then took the lead in scores relating to foot pain, function and alignment. After six months, patients who received Botox injections were the clear winners. IANS

BREAKTHROUGH

Tests to predict cancer recurrence?

LONDON: A simple blood test could predict if the most common form of breast cancer will come back after treatment, scientists, including an Indianorigin researcher have claimed. The kit which is being developed in Canada focuses on luminal A breast cancer — the most common form of the

disease and the type generally thought to have the best prognosis. The University of Alberta researchers tested blood samples taken from women when they had been diagnosed with breast cancer years previously, the Daily Mail reported. Comparing the DNA of

samples taken from women whose cancer had returned with DNA of samples from women who had remained in remission, showed that genetic changes were linked to the cancer’s return. Other predictor tests in development use the genes from the cancer itself. But

Canadian researchers believe their technique will be more accurate as it uses the DNA a person is born with. “If we can accurately predict which women are at high risk of breast cancer recurrence, it gives the physicians and oncologists time to design a more aggressive therapy,” said

researcher Sambasivarao Damaraju. “Treatment strategies could be tailor-made for these women based on their genetic make-up and how susceptible it makes them to breast cancer recurrence.” Several years of large-scale testing is needed before the test is marketed, researchers said. PTI

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

Entertainment ENAMOURED BY THE SUPERSTAR

I would love to direct Rajinikanth :Sekhar Kammula

CINE BYTES

Nikesha Patel joins RUM’s cast

ikesha Patel is going to play the role of Urvashi in MS Raju’s upcoming women centric film RUM — Rambha Urvashi Menaka. This is the third Telugu film which she had signed and the film’s shooting is expected to begin shortly. The film also stars Trisha and Poorna in lead roles. Nikesha Patel had earlier made her debut in Pawan Kalyan starrer Puli.

Shriya Saran is miffed

“I

have always been an admirer of Rajinikanth. I grew up watching his earlier films like Anthuleni Katha and it’s amazing to see his rise to fame as a cult figure today,” Sekhar Kammula said at a recent book launch of Rajinikanth : A Definitive Biography, written by Naman Ramchandran. Talking about the choice of Rajinikanth’s roles, Sekhar said, “It’s interesting to note that he started off his career by playing supporting roles and villain before his transition to being a superstar. I think a lot of great actors in cinema have followed similar trajectory.” When Naman Ramachandran asked him if he ever considered directing a film with Rajinikanth, he said, “I would love to direct a film with Rajinikanth. In fact, I tried to get in touch with him for the Tamil remake of Leader but didn’t succeed. I think he’s perfect for the role. He has the power to change governments, influence politics on a large scale and Leader would have been just perfect. So yes, if I was given a chance, I would love to remake Leader in Tamil with Rajinikanth.”

hriya Saran seems to be quite miffed with the deluge of negative comments she has been getting on Twitter. “Done with Twitter. I'm not on Twitter from now on. Crazy stupid people. Can't take all the trash written. (sic),” she posted on Twitter. Shriya will soon be seen in Janardhan Maharshi’s Pavithra, Roopa Iyer’s Chandra and Midnight’s Children.

Shruti Haasan to cheer for Chennai Rhinos

hruti Haasan has ofﬁcially joined the Celebrity Cricket League bandwagon. She’s going to cheer for the Chennai Rhinos team this year. Shruti was spotted couple of days ago at the CCL-3 curtain raiser in Mumbai. “Absolutely adore the chennai rhinos!! Such awesome boys! Proud to be the team ambassador it's going to be super fun !(sic),” she tweeted.

Entertainment MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

TO BE SEEN BUT NOT HEARD SONAM KAPOOR

JOHN ABRAHAM

He was first seen in Jazzy B’s techno-style Punjabi song Surma. The dapper young man subsequently dressed up many other music videos. Then came 2003, and John decided to go the Milind Soman way — act in movies. A profession that Soman had proved models shouldn’t pursue. But John felt he was something special, little did know that he would actually have to speak in movies and what’s worst, emote at times. With hardly any dialogues, he pulled off his first film Jism fairly well with his perpetually stoned expression — he was playing a drunk and we were fooled. Ever since Jism, John has starred in many films, some comedy, some romantic and some action. The only thing that’s common between all those movies — his expression, actually the lack of it.

She has more in common with Aishwarya Rai than just a shampoo brand. Sonam Kapoor too has that ever-so-annoying giggle. Not only does she giggle her way through interviews, she does the same even in movies too. She made her Bollywood debut with Saawariya. Picture perfect in the bluish-green movie, Kapoor has not done anything significant since. She is still the damsel in distress. Whether it’s Aisha, I hate Luv Storys or Mausam, all Sonam can ever do is look pretty. It’s about time she starts acting.

‘PRETTY’ BAD

It takes more than just being a pretty face to get ahead in Bollywood. Katrina Kaif is an obvious exception. Postnoon gives you a list of B-Town celebrities who need acting classes immediately.

NARGIS FAKHRI

ARJUN RAMPAL

Pyar, Ishq Aur Mohabbat — that was Arjun Rampal’s unfortunate entry into Bollywood in 2001. But just like other model turned actors, Rampal believed he could make his mark in the film industry. Thanks to his drop-dead-gorgeous looks, he was offered a number of lead roles in his early film career. And, one by one, they all bombed at the Box Office. You see, just like other model turned actors, Rampal could also not act. Rampal’s acting skills comprised pouting, posing and pretending to look morose. It’s been 12 years with him in the industry, has he picked up any other skills? Not really.

KATRINA KAIF

Apart from molesting food in advertisements and struggling to dance in raunchy item numbers, Katrina Kaif doesn’t boast much acting talent. Another model turned actor, Kaif kickstarted her Bollywood career with Boom. And, a boom it was. The movie bombed at the Box Office and Kaif was left in the lurch till Vipul Shah rescued her and cast her in Namastey London. Why Vipul? Though Kaif is among one of Bollywood’s top heroines her success rests on the shoulders of co-actors alone. After all, how many times can she play an NRI and get away with it?

Nargis Fakhri started her pouty career with 2011 release Rockstar. Fakhri has many talents actually, she can pout, she can make her eyebrows twitch while speaking at the same time and she can pout again... phew, that’s something, isn’t it. Hopefully, the 33year-old will soon discover that modelling is a much more lucrative option.

ZAYED KHAN

He comes from a family of flop actors. Father Sanjay Khan, uncle Feroz Khan and, wait for it, cousin Fardeen Khan. So, we know bad acting isn’t entirely his fault. It’s a genetic issue really. Zayed Khan, who could have opted modelling, chose films because he was sure he was born to act, tsk tsk tsk. He kickstarted his Bollywood career with Chura Liya Hai Tumne. Yes, that is a movie. Even though Khan has worked with some of the top names in B-Town, he has never been able to achieve anything. Guess it takes more than just being a Khan to succeed.

Entertainment MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

Entertainment MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013 CINE BYTES Rihanna, Chris Brown spark new collaboration rumours

ihanna and Chris Brown have been spotted leaving a recording studio in West Hollywood, sparking rumours that the pair are collaborating. Brown’s representative conﬁrmed when he told E! News that the pair are “indeed currently working on another single”. This will be the fourth time that the former lovers team up musically.

Noomi joins Tom Hardy in Animal Rescue

oomi Rapace has closed a deal to play the female lead opposite Tom Hardy in Michael Roskam’s drama Animal Rescue. Hardy plays a reformed criminal who gets mixed up in a bad heist and a death resulting from a lost and contested pit bull.

Oprah’s Armstrong interview a ratings disappointment

n the end, the biggest “get” of the past year didn’t get the massive audience that had been predicted for it, say analysts. Part 1 of Oprah Winfrey’s much-hyped interview with disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong, attracted just 3.2 million viewers — far fewer than the six million she averaged daily during the last year of her syndicated show.

‘SWATTING’

PRANK CALLS Just got a call from my mom telling me about this prank call that someone was shot in their home and 15 swat team and 3 helicopters showed up!

IS ‘NOT A JOKE!’

he Kardashian-Jenner clan became the latest victim of celebrity “swatting” on Friday afternoon, after a prank caller told 911 operators there had been a shooting at the Jenner compound — and Kim Kardashian is none too pleased with the hoax. “Just got a call from my mom telling me about this prank call that someone was shot in their home and 15 swat team and 3 helicopters showed up!” she said. “These prank calls are NOT funny! People can get arrested for this!” she added. “I hope they find out who is behind this. It’s dangerous and not a joke!” Kim’s 17-yearold half-sister, Kendall Jenner, also took to Twitter to voice her frustration over the incident, tweeting, “I love it when eight police officers show up at my door and 10 cop cars are outside my house. Just another casual Friday evening at the Jenner household. #nbd #EveryonesOk”

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

Chai Time

Play & Win

Please send in your filled-in entries to Postnoon, #1246, Level 3, Jubilee Casa, Road No 62, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad – 500033. The winners will be announced on this page in Sunday’s edition.

KAKURO How to play kakuro Kakuro is a popular game similar to sudoku in some ways. But is also suitably different. The key question: ‘How do you play kakuro?’, well here are the rules of kakuro. The answer: The kakuro grid, unlike in sudoku, can be of any size. It has rows and columns, and dark cells like in a crossword. And, just like in a crossword, some of the dark cells will contain numbers. Some cells will contain two numbers. However, in a crossword the numbers reference clues. In a kakuro, the numbers are all you get! They denote the total of the digits in the row or column refer-

QUICK CROSSWORD enced by the number. Within each collection of cells — called a run — any of the numbers 1 to 9 may be used but, like sudoku, each number may only be used once.Let’s have an example to explain this concept more clearly: In the image above, which shows a section of a kakuro puzzle, you will see the numbers ‘26’ and ‘14’ in the top row. Look at the 14. This means that the total of the three cells underneath must sum to 14. Therefore 9, 4, 1 could be the answer, or perhaps 7, 4, 3 and so

on... So, how do you work out the actual combination? Well, this is done through elimination and cross-referencing. For instance, as you work out the answers for other kakuro clues, this will naturally limit the valid combinations, and hence the answer for this particular run. Note the second cell in row two — it contains two numbers, 30 and 11. The 30 refers to the vertical run underneath the number 30 and the 11 refers to the two cells to the right, horizontally, of the number 11.

Play & Win

voucher from VENKEY’S VEG Restaurant, Nampally

ACROSS

SCRIBBLING PAD

Play & Win voucher from VENKEY’S VEG Restaurant, Nampally

SUDOKU

PREVIOUS PUZZLE ANSWER

Play & Win voucher from VENKEY’S VEG Restaurant, Nampally

1 ___ Lanka 4 Carpenter's grooves 9 Mushroom-to-be 14 Cigarette danger 15 Hurry to marry 16 Type of sprawl or renewal 17 Genetic cell matter 18 Cast your ballot 19 Word with ‘well’ or ‘human’ 20 Consents tacitly 23 Move like a dervish 24 Press statement 28 It falls quite predictably 32 Absolute fright 33 ‘___ all in your mind’ 36 Korean Peninsula capital 38 Wang of wedding wear 39 What many people in Atlanta have 43 Card player's stake 44 Sounding like a cold sufferer 45 Mao ___-tung 46 Turn water into soda water 49 Vintage barbershop item 51 Uninvited partygoer

53 Ticked off 57 Absolute foolishness 61 Wheels for the well-heeled 64 Credit cap 65 Non-Rx 66 Seat without a back 67 Totally absurd 68 Zodiac's lion 69 Popular fabric softener 70 Rattan worker 71 Cariou with a Tony

DOWN 1 A sucker might use this 2 Dressing flavour 3 Baghdadi 4 Infernal and diabolical 5 Ingredient in many lotions 6 Ellipsis threesome 7 Crude cartel? 8 Jewish feast 9 Easy to overlook 10 Where game is protected 11 Sash for a geisha 12 Raced on foot 13 Chang's twin 21 Spigoted vessel 22 Volleyball partition 25 ‘Ain't’ right?

26 Does a prelaundry chore 27 Remove, as recordings 29 ‘I never would've thought of that!’ 30 Bull's weapon 31 Bluefins 33 ‘Shaft’ composer Hayes 34 Copier fluid 35 Kama ___ (Indian love treatise) 37 Hang in there 40 Sixth of a fluid ounce 41 Tourist's rental 42 Religious site 47 In this way 48 ‘Mountain’ or ‘rocket’ finish 50 Start to conceive? 52 Keepsake 54 Small, rounded hill 55 Lauder of lipsticks and such 56 Raid rival 58 Smallest of a Columbus trio 59 Arabian Sea gulf 60 The whole ___ yards 61 It’s dropped on trips 62 Lance or Midori 63 Tend to the lawn

Chai Time MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013 Thiruvaikumar

STAR POWER for 22-1-2013

As per Hindu panchang thiruvaikumar@yahoo. co. in, 040-27177230 / 9177596118

ARIES

TAURUS

GEMINI

CANCER

LEO

VIRGO

LIBRA

SCORPIO

SAGITTARIUS

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

Influx of visitors likely, which will make you and family members cheerful. Happy events are likely to take place. Financial inflow from multiple channels will be good. Ancestral property is likely to come. Benefits through maternal relatives possible.

STRIP TEASE AGNES

Help through women folk and luxurious lifestyle likely. New friends will be added to your circle and through them you are likely to derive benefits. Though expenses are likely to go beyond expectations, you handle the situation wisely.

Be careful in implementing plans as chances of disappointment likely. Some are likely to get a respectful position in the society with comforts. Blood relatives will support you. Businessmen are likely to face govt-related problems.

Success in all undertaken work; even one in which you faced hurdles. Newlyweds will be blessed with an offspring soon. Happy events likely to take place in the family. Some might face problem in govt-related work; tackle issues carefully.

Financial constraints and mental tension likely; be careful. Health problems likely; avoid unhealthy food habits. Trips undertaken will be successful and purpose will be served. Avoid argument with family for it may sour relationships.

Hurdles in good events will be over and you will succeed in performing them. Debt issues will be under control. Financial position will be strong with which you will be able to progress well. Turning points make your life cheerful.

Employees are advised to complete all work with proper plan and in stipulated time to get favour from superiors. Businessmen advised to keep a watch on their staff as sabotage is likely. Avoid bad friendship for it might land you in trouble.

You are likely to get a vital position in the society as well as at workplace. Court verdict is likely to go in your favour, which will cheer you. You will succeed over your enemies and gain respect in the society. Medical expense of parents likely.

Father’s business will flourish, which will bring cheer to all family members. Sudden and unexpected events to your benefits will surprise and cheer you. Be careful while driving as a minor accident likely. Couples will remain cordial.

TAROT READ

Sumaa Tekur

tarotreadhyd@gmail. com

ARIES:

GEMINI:

Eight of Swords – You may be getting nightmares or not sleeping well enough thinking of something. Learn to let go and don’t be afraid of getting hurt.

LEO:

Four of Pentacles – Financials stability is important to you at this stage of your life. You achieve that, too, by hard work and determination.

LIBRA:

PEARLS BEFORE SWINE

Eight of Wands – Good luck comes your way in terms of new jobs and new projects. You do well, too, and please your bosses. They in turn reward you well.

SAGITTARIUS:

Six of Wands – You get creative ideas to provide solutions to some mundane problems. Don’t be afraid to do the new or the out of the box.

TAURUS:

The Lovers –It’s decision time! An important decision cannot be procrastinated any longer. You need to make a decision fast. Use your intuition and get on with it.

CANCER:

Four of Wands – A project is moving along quite rapidly and you’re happy with the progress. Some guilt gnaws at you from within. Don’t pay any attention.

VIRGO:

King of Swords – You’re in control of your life and have been planning it with the precision of a machine. Keep some free time for yourself for free thinking.

SCORPIO:

Queen of Cups – You wear your heart on your sleeve and walk around. This may make you seem less practical than you actually are. Again, it’s your choice.

CAPRICORN:

Nine of Cups – This is the wish card and a special card in the Tarot set. Make a wish but also be cautioned that you truly need what you’re wishing for.

PREVIOUS SOLUTIONS

PISCES:

Temperance – Your patience will be put to test by some annoying and irritating people around you. They are there so the best in you can come out.

NUMBER GAME

Family needs your time and attention. If you feel like it, take a few days off and spend time with your loved ones.

SCRABBLE

AQUARIUS: Ten of Cups –

POOCH CAFE

Present circumstances if planned properly will bring success. Avoid unwanted discussions and wasting time. Expenses are likely to go up and income might not match them. Avoid following women’s advice as it might land you in trouble.

for 22-1-2013

Seven of Swords – Secrecy is involved. Someone is not telling you the whole story and it is putting you in a fix. It makes you nervous about your financial stability.

NON SEQUITUR

Unwanted mental tension and health problem likely to keep you upset. You are likely to face opposition in the family resulting in arguments; try to be polite and solve issues wisely. Children will make you proud and happy with their change.

SUDUKO

Unexpected fortune is likely to make you financially strong. Avoid being selfish and give shape to innovative plans. Success is certain for you. Life comforts are set to increase. Health problem likely. Be careful in food habits and take good care.

Boggle IRELAND ENGLAND FINLAND THAILAND Vol: 2, No 185 RNI No: APENG/2011/39337 Published for the proprietors, Scribble Media and Entertainment Pvt Ltd, by V Harshavardhan Reddy, at #1246, Level 3, Jubilee Casa, Road No 62, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad – 500033 and printed by him at Jagati Publications Ltd, Plot No D-75&E-52, APIE Industrial Estate, Balanagar, Ranga Reddy Dist, Hyderabad – 500037, Editor: Dean Williams – Responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of the publisher is prohibited. For feedback, please write to: feedback@postnoon. com and for subscription, please call 040-4067 2222, Fax: 040-4067 2211

Entertainment MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

STAFF PARTY

CINE BYTES

Will Lady Gaga W perform at the White House ball?

atch out Beyonce and Katy Perry. There’s another diva set to perform during the inauguration festivities — Lady Gaga. A person familiar with the inauguration tells The Associated Press that the pop star will perform at Tuesday’s ball for White House staffers. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because that person wasn’t authorized to publicly reveal the information. The staff ball is typically a private affair. During the last inauguration festivities, Jay-Z reportedly performed for that event. According to one attendee, Jay-Z rapped a riff on one of his hit songs, 99 Problems but George Bush Ain't One, to the delight of the throngs of young staffers who worked to elect Obama in 2008.

Naomi Watts' movie with Robert Pattinson on hold

obert Pattinson and Naomi Watts will not be coming to a theater near you anytime soon. The two are signed to co-star in Queen of the Desert, a period piece about British writer, archeologist and spy Gertrude Bell. “It’s still a way off,” Watts said. “I don’t know yet. Hopefully, it will happen. I just can’t travel again right now because I did a lot of travelling last year."

Michael J Fox apologises to Taylor

aylor Swift has reportedly received an apology from Michael J Fox. He was asked if he would let Swift date his 23-year-old son. Fox is quoted as saying: “Taylor Swift writes songs about everybody she goes out with, right? What a way to build a career.” Swift later tweeted, “Michael J Fox got in touch with me today and we are good.”

Juno Temple to play Princess Margaret

he royal family probably never expected to see Princess Margaret, the Queen’s younger sister, portrayed on screen by a young English actress who made her name playing an American serial killer, a 1970s prostitute and a lesbian werewolf. Juno Temple, 23, will now play Margaret, known for her penchant for parties, in Michael Hoffman's romance titled Girls' Night Out set in 1945.

sports

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

AFTER OPRAH

NBA Raptors down Lakers as Howard is ejected

T Armstrong confession was a bleak day, says Contador MADRID: Two-time Tour de France champion Alberto Contador described Lance Armstrong’s doping confessions as a bleak day for cycling, but insisted the battered and bruised sport can enjoy a drug-free future. Contador, the Tour de France winner in 2007 and 2009 before being stripped of his 2010 victory and banned for two years after failing a dope test, believes the American’s mea culpa can close the door on cycling’s depressing recent history. “It’s true that his admissions damaged the image of cycling, but I see good things coming from this. Perhaps it’ll allow us to close the door once and for all on this chapter and concentrate on the future,” Contador told marca.com. “We have to forget about the previous decade and look forward to what tomorrow holds.” Contador returned to action last August and won the Tour of Spain. He will kick-off his 2013 season at the Tour of San Luis in Argentina on Monday with his SaxoTinkoff team. Contador said that nothing in Armstrong’s confessions, aired over two nights in a lengthy interview with US TV host Oprah Winfrey, surprised him. “It’s something that’s been talked about for a long time already and it needed to be got out.”

Thunder silenced Nuggets halted Oklahoma’s six-game NBA streak. DENVER, COLORADO: Corey Brewer scored 26 points and Danilo Gallinari added 18 Sunday as the Denver Nuggets halted Oklahoma City’s sixgame NBA winning streak with a 121-118 overtime triumph over the Thunder. Kenneth Faried scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, his layup with less than a minute left in overtime giving the Nuggets the lead for good. Wilson Chandler added a dozen points and Ty Lawson

and Andre Miller scored 11 apiece for the Nuggets, who bounced back from a disappointing loss to the hapless Washington Wizards on Friday and avenged a 20-point loss to the Thunder last Wednesday in Oklahoma City. The Thunder rolled into the contest on a six-game winning streak with a league-leading .800 winning percentage. In their previous contest, Kevin Durant had scored 52 points and gone a perfect 21for-21 from the free throw line

in an overtime win over Dallas on Friday. In this one, Durant finished with 37 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. But he missed a three-pointer at the end of overtime that would have tied the score and forced another extra session. Russell Westbrook’s threepointer with less than a minute remaining in regulation knotted the score at 109-109 and sent the contest into overtime. Westbrook scored 36 points with nine assists.

ABU DHABI HSBC GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP

Jamie shines bright

ABU DHABI: Jamie Donaldson reeled in red-hot Justin Rose to win the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship on Sunday. The 37-year-old Welshman poked his nose in front going into the back nine and he held firm, going up against the hotly-favoured world No.5 to

oronto guard Jose Calderon scored 22 points and handed out nine assists Sunday as the Raptors handed the Los Angeles Lakers their fifth straight NBA road defeat, 108-103. The Lakers were without center Dwight Howard for the second half, after he was ejected with 1:18 left in the first half for his second technical foul of the contest. Howard and Raptors forward Alan Anderson were whistled for a double-technical after they tangled while jostling for position under the basket. Howard picked up his first technical in the first quarter for arguing for a foul call. In the second incident, Anderson appeared to initiate contact and jaw with Howard, but after the officials conferred the double-technical call stood. “I don’t want to talk about it,” said Howard, who had never been ejected from a game until December 26, when he was tossed for a flagrant foul on Denver forward Kenneth Faried. “I didn’t do anything to get ejected,” Howard said. “(Anderson) pulled me. They called a double tech.” Landry Fields added a doubledouble of 18 points and 10 rebounds for Toronto, who had 18 points from Ed Davis and 14 from Anderson. “We played well enough this week to win a couple of games, but we didn’t,” said Raptors coach Dwane Casey, whose team snapped a four-game slide. “Today, our guys stayed together, followed the game plan and played together as a team.” Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 26 points.

RUNNING MAN

record just the second win of his professional career. He came in with a final round of 68 for a 14-under total of 274. Rose and Thorbjorn Olesen of Denmark were joint second on 13 under after rounds of 71 and 69 respectively with Ricardo Santos of Portugal fourth.

THE GREATEST RACEHORSE

Revisionism dogs Frankel PIRATE IRWIN PARIS: Frankel this week received the official stamp of approval as the greatest racehorse of all time. However, the world’s racing handicappers, the body which decides such weighty matters, in doing so also, for some, undermined the whole process by readjusting the historical weights given to previous great champions. Dancing Brave, who by happy coin-

cidence was also owned by Frankel’s owner/breeder Prince Khalid Abdullah, had been the previous standard bearer with a ranking of 141 (the ranking equates to weight in pounds). However, the winner of perhaps the greatest Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in history in 1986, and winner of eight of his 10 races, saw his rating reduced to 138. Frankel replaces him now as the historical benchmark with 140.

102-year-old Fauja Singh participantes in the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon in PTI/SHIRISH SHETE Mumbai on Sunday.

sports

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

AUSTRALIAN OPEN

Azarenka strides into quarters Victoria Azarenka’s ear-piercing shrieking is not to everyone’s taste but it did her no harm, winning as she did 6-1, 6-1, her match against unseeded Russian Elena Vesnina. MELBOURNE: Defending champion Victoria Azarenka (right) breezed into the Australian Open quarter-finals on Monday with an easy straight-sets defeat of unseeded Russian Elena Vesnina. The top-seeded Belarusian prevailed 6-1, 6-1 on Rod Laver Arena and will meet another Russian, two-time Grand Slam winner Svetlana Kuznetsova, for a place in the last four. The world number one, who was pushed to three sets in a tough third round clash with American Jamie Hampton, was in red-hot form off the baseline, but seven double-faults blotted her performance. “The top battles are starting now,” she said, looking ahead to her next match. “I’m really excited to be so far in the tournament again.” Vesnina, who won the Hobart International warm-up tournament, has never beaten a world number one and she did not look like improving her record on Monday. Azarenka immediately broke the 47th-ranked Russian in her opening service game to pile the

Kuznetsova upsets erratic Wozniacki

early pressure on. The Belarusian comfortably held before breaking Vesnina to love for a 3-0 lead with the Russian overawed and not getting in the game, having no answers to the sizzling Azarenka forehand. She finally held serve to get a game on the board before the top seed wrapped up the set in 33 minutes. While Azarenka’s ground-

strokes were near faultless, her serve was wayward and this gave Vesnina a glimmer of hope, but she failed to capitalise and Azarenka broke for a 3-1 lead. There was no stopping Azarenka, who needs to defend her title to have any chance of remaining world number one with Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova breathing down her neck, as she raced to victory in less than an hour. AFP

MELBOURNE: Two-time Grand Slam winner Svetlana Kuznetsova upset Danish 10th seed and exworld number one Caroline Wozniacki in a tense threeset battle to make the Australian Open last eight on Monday. The experienced Russian won 6-2, 2-6, 7-5 and will meet either top seed Victoria Azarenka or Russian Elena Vesnina in the quarter-finals. It was a courageous win by Kuznetsova, who at 75 is the lowest ranked player left in the tournament after an injury to her right knee forced her to miss a big chunk of 2012, spending two months on crutches. The injury meant she missed all post-Wimbledon events last year including the US Open, which ended

her streak of 40 straight Grand Slam appearances dating back to 2002 at Flushing Meadow. But Kuznetsova, who won the 2004 US Open and 2009 French Open, said she was feeling fresh again and delighted to be in the quarter-finals. “I’m really happy with the result because in the second set I got stuck a bit,” she said. “But I came out fighting in the third, and it’s great. After 10 years of travelling I was getting tired,” she added of her time on tour. “But I’m feeling fresh again and very happy to be in the quarter-finals because I struggled last year.” It was Wozniacki struggling on Monday. Her preparations here were hurt by going out early in two previous tournaments.

After epic, Djokovic regroups for Berdych test

ROBERT SMITH Agence France-Presse

MELBOURNE: Novak Djokovic (right) Monday insisted he can pull off another miracle recovery in time for his Australian Open quarter-final with Tomas Berdych after his epic five-hour duel with Stanislas Wawrinka. The Serbian world number one’s title defence was severely endangered when he was sur-

on top over one of the fittest players on the tour when he overcame Rafael Nadal to win a gruelling 5hr 53min final. That came two days after Djokovic saw off the threat from Andy Murray in a five-set semifinal over 4hr 50min. It’s little wonder Djokovic has the belief that he’ll be ready in compressed time to take on Berdych in the quarters. “I’ve been in these situations before,” Djokovic said

prisingly taken to the brink by the Swiss 15th seed, before finally prevailing 1-6, 7-5, 6-4, 67 (5/7), 12-10 in a shade over five hours. Once again Djokovic delved into his extraordinary stamina levels to fend off the inspired Wawrinka, and the three-time champion will need every ounce of his fitness against Czech fifth seed Berdych on Tuesday. Last year Djokovic came out

Radwanska wary of Li threat

MARTIN PARRY Agence France-Presse

MELBOURNE: Agnieszka Radwanska (right) is the hottest player on the women’s tour this year but is not underestimating the threat posed by Li Na as she bids for a place in the Australian Open semi-finals. Poland’s top player, seeded four at Melbourne Park, beat the Chinese number one 6-3, 6-4 at the lead-up Sydney International tournament, an event she went on to win.

It followed her victory in Auckland the previous week which coupled with her run to the last eight here gives her an enviable streak of 13 unbeaten matches without dropping a set, unmatched by anyone else so far. Li fought hard in the Sydney semi-final, but errors at crucial times ultimately cost her dearly. Radwanska, though, is wary of the Chinese star as she searches for her first Grand Slam title, with the Wuhan native also carrying solid momentum into their showdown on Tuesday.

shortly after his exhilarating win over Wawrinka, which began on Sunday evening and finished at 1:41 am on Monday. “I remember last year when I won against Murray in the semis after (almost) five hours, and then played against Rafa (Nadal) in almost six hours. “I know I can recover. Know I have it in me. I’m not too much worried about the physical part. I was ready for it. Ready to go the distance,” he said.

Murray has the last laugh MELBOURNE: Andy Murray (right) has had the last laugh on British journalists who questioned his fitness before he scored his breakthrough triumphs at the Olympics and US Open last year. The Scot was routinely grilled about his physical conditioning, or lack thereof, in the years he fell short of winning major championships. But at the completion of his stellar season in 2012, he invited a group of reporters to train with him in Miami.

“Hence, you may have seen a few photos of middle-aged journalists jogging down a beach in Miami alongside me,” Murray wrote in his column for a newspaper on Monday.

sports

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

KIWIS IN SOUTH AFRICA

Du Plessis replaces ABD

SHANE SHAMED Warne slapped with new conduct fine

It was another twist in a tale of two cricketers who were schoolboy team-mates at the Afrikaans Boys High school in Pretoria.

COLIN BRYDEN Agence France-Presse CAPE TOWN: Francois ‘Faf’ du Plessis (right) was handed the captaincy of the South African one-day international team Sunday after AB de Villiers was suspended for a slow over rate in the first match against New Zealand. In their earlier playing days, it was Du Plessis who was the captain of the first XI, although De Villiers was always the more obvious future star, playing for South African Schools in his last two years at school, while Du Plessis missed selection. But Du Plessis earned a place on a South African under-19 tour of England in 2003 and was made vice-captain to Imraan

When De Villiers sought a rest ahead of a Test series against New Zealand, Du Plessis captained the South African Twenty20 team in three matches during December, and now he will be in charge for the remaining two one-day internationals against the Kiwis, in Kimberley Tuesday and Potchefstroom Friday. Left-handed batsman David Miller was added to the squad to fill the gap in personnel left by De Villiers. In addition to De Villiers being suspended, the South African players, already stung by a surprise one-wicket defeat against the Black Caps in Paarl on Saturday, will lose their entire match fee.

Khan, who played in one Test for South Africa in the 2008/09 season. De Villiers was playing international cricket barely two years after leaving school and was named captain of South Africa’s one-day international and Twenty20 teams soon after Gary Kirsten took over as coach two years ago. Du Plessis made slower progress, making his one-day international debut two seasons ago. But he quickly earned recognition as one of the leaders in a team environment — a reputation which soared when he made a match-saving century on his Test debut against Australia in Adelaide this season.

SRI LANKA IN AUSTRALIA

Oz unveil revamped T20 squad

SYDNEY: Top-order batsman Shaun Marsh was recalled to Australia’s Twenty20 side Monday, joining others who impressed in the domestic Big Bash League to take on Sri Lanka later this month. Chief selector John Inverarity said Marsh was among six players in the squad who did not feature in last year’s ICC World Twenty20 event in Sri Lanka, where Australia were beaten by the West Indies in the semifinals. “Each of these six, Aaron Finch, Shaun Marsh, Adam Voges, Ben Cutting, James Faulkner and Ben Laughlin has shown outstanding form in the T20 format over the past two months,” said Inverarity. “Their performances have

been compelling and we anticipate they will take this momentum into the two fixtures scheduled for 26 and 28 January.” Marsh was the BBL’s highest run-scorer, finishing with 412

runs, while Finch was player of the tournament. Laughlin was the leading wicket-taker on 14, closely followed by Cutting, with 13 wickets. Cutting is the only player not

to have previously represented Australia in the T20 format. Inverarity said choosing the squad was difficult, with batsman Ben Rohrer from the Melbourne Renegades and New South Wales batsman Luke Pomersbach both in strong contention. David Hussey and Cameron White also missed out. “We’ve just picked the best squad that we can,” Inverarity said. “It was David Hussey or Glenn Maxwell and we’ve gone with Glenn Maxwell and some other younger players have performed better than White.” He said Marsh’s form had been “absolutely compelling”. “He’s batted brilliantly and we all know how well he can play,” he said. AFP

PAKISTAN VS SOUTH AFRICA

Pakistan set to test SAfrican challenge COLIN BRYDEN Agence France-Presse JOHANNESBURG: The Pakistan Test team are due to arrive in Johannesburg on Sunday night to take on world champions South Africa, led by Greame Smith (right), in a three-Test series. It is Pakistan’s first visit to South Africa in six years and their biggest challenge could be to adapt to the pace and bounce

Kaneria seeks help from PCB in his appeal issue

KARACHI: Pakistani Test legspinner Danish Kaneria is now looking towards the Pakistan Cricket Board to step in and help him after his appeal hearing in London has been delayed since December. Sources close to Kaneria, who is presently in London waiting for a fresh date for the hearing on an appeal against the life ban imposed on him last year by a dis-

ciplinary panel of the England and Wales Cricket Board from playing in England because of his links with bookmakers. The panel imposed the life ban on Kaneria based on a confessional statement made by Kaneria’s Essex teammate Mervyn Westfield who claimed that he was introduced to an Indian bookmaker by the leg-spinner who induced him into corruption.

of the pitches they will play on against a fast bowling attack generally acknowledged to be the world’s best. They will have a four-day warm-up match against a South African Invitation XI in East London, starting on Friday, but conditions in the coastal city are less pace-friendly than is likely when they play the Test matches in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Centurion.

SYDNEY: Australian veteran Shane Warne (above) was Monday fined Aus$5,000 (US$5,250) for a code of behaviour breach in the domestic Big Bash League, his second penalty this month, cricket officials said. Cricket Australia said Warne was fined following a disciplinary hearing into his failure to list himself as captain during the Melbourne Stars’ semi-final against the Perth Scorchers in a bid to dodge a penalty for a slow over-rate. Warne had previously been issued with one strike for a slow over rate violation and a second strike this season would have resulted in an automatic one-match suspension. “Warne was found guilty of breaching Rule 5: Laws of Cricket and Spirit of the Game by Commissioner Arthur Lodge,” said Cricket Australia. The 43-year-old spinner was not present at the hearing and was represented by Melbourne Stars officials. Warne apologised earlier this month after a foulmouthed rant against West Indian all-rounder Marlon Samuels that earned him a ban and a Aus$4,500 fine. He claimed 708 Test wickets in a celebrated career but has also courted controversy.

MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2013

sports SERIE A

IBRAHIMOVIC RETURNS PSG TO LIGUE 1 SUMMIT Zlatan Ibrahimovic guided Paris Saint-Germain back to the top of Ligue 1 on Sunday, notching his 19th goal of the campaign to earn the title favourites a hard-fought 1-0 win at Bordeaux. Ibrahimovic opened his account for 2013 with the game's decisive strike two minutes before half-time.

PREMIER LEAGUE

LA LIGA

Juve pull ahead as Napoli stall MILAN: Juventus reinforced their Serie A title defence thanks to a 4-0 win over Udinese as the Serie A champions opened up a five-point gap on title rivals Lazio and Napoli. Napoli and Lazio went into their weekend's fixtures, respectively against Fiorentina and Palermo, trailing Juventus by three points. However, Lazio were lucky to emerge with a share of the points thanks to an 84th minute penalty from Hernanes in a 2-2 draw at Palermo, while Napoli had Edinson Cavani to thank for their leveller in a 1-1 draw at Fiorentina. In Sunday's late match, Roma were held to a 1-1 draw by Inter Milan.

Sneijder signs for Galatasaray for 7.5m euros ROME: Inter Milan's Dutch midfielder Wesley Sneijder (below) signed for Turkish side Galatasaray on Sunday for a fee believed to be in the region of 7.5 million euros, the Istanbul side announced. Playmaker Sneijder penned a three-and-a-halfyear deal.

Madrid hand Valencia 5-goal thrashing TIM HANLON Agence France-Presse Tottenham Hotspur's US striker Clint Dempsey (C) scores their equalising goal against Manchester United at AFP/ IAN KINGTON White Hart Lane in London on Sunday.

Spurs hold United In the other match on Sunday, Arsenal lost to Chelsea. JULIAN GUYER Agence France-Presse LONDON: Clint Dempsey's equaliser in the final minute of stoppage-time denied Premier League leaders Manchester United victory as Tottenham Hotspur forced a 1-1 draw at a snowy White Hart Lane on Sunday. The result meant United's advantage at the top of the table over second-placed reigning champions Manchester City was reduced to five points after they had started the weekend seven in front of their local rivals. It looked as if Robin van Persie's 18th league goal of the season, a 25th-minute header from Tom Cleverley's cross, was going to secure all three points for United in a fixture that survived a pre-match pitch inspection. But in the third and final minute of stoppage time, Spurs pumped the ball forward. United keeper David de Gea, who had previously made

several fine saves, could only punch weakly as the ball came into the box and, from Aaron Lennon's cross, United States striker Dempsey rescued a point for the hosts. Afterwards United manager

‘We must get tough’ LONDON: Arsene Wenger admits Arsenal's bid for a topfour finish in the Premier League is in danger of ending in disaster unless his players toughen up. Wenger's side are seven points adrift of fourth placed Tottenham after slumping to a 2-1 defeat at London rivals Chelea on Sunday and their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League are looking increasingly bleak. A week after waving the white flag all too quickly in a 20 loss against Man City, Arsenal once again paid the price for making a nervous start. The lacklustre Gunners were two goals behind within 16 minutes at Stamford Bridge after Juan Mata's cool strike.

Alex Ferguson hit out at a linesman for not giving a penalty after Wayne Rooney went to ground in the box. "It was a clear penalty-kick on Wayne Rooney but in no way was the the linesman going to give that," Ferguson told BBC. "He gave them (Tottenham) everything else. We have not had a good record with this linesman, against Chelsea a few years ago he gave onside to Didier Drogba, who was three yards offside, you remember those things. Ferguson added: "We did so well at everything and we kept heading it out, the disappointment is not finishing them off. We had a lot of opportunities on the counter-attack but our final ball let us down." Meanwhile Tottenham boss Andre Villas-Boas said the draw would prove a real morale-booster for his team. "We wanted to win, but it was an important point in the end due to the form United are in,” he said.

FOOTBALL BRIEFS Guardiola-mania sweeps Munich

Keita fires Mali past spirited Niger

Gerrard 'flattered' by writers' honour

Violence prompts suspension of friendly

BERLIN: "Mia san Mia" - "We are who we are" is Bayern Munich's motto and Pep Guardiola will find out exactly what it means to coach the Bavarian giants when he takes office on July 1. Bayern pulled off a coup for the Bundesliga last Wednesday by revealing the 42-yearold will take charge for the 2013/14 season.

PORT ELIZABETH, SA: Mali denied determined Niger a first point at the Africa Cup of Nations when skipper Seydou Keita scored with six minutes left to earn a laboured 1-0 win. Niger goalkeeper Daouda Kassaly failed to deal with a high ball into his area and Keita slid home the match-winner in the 84th minute.

LONDON: Steven Gerrard said he felt "flattered" to be given a gala tribute dinner by England's Football Writers' Association. Liverpool and England captain Gerrard, the FWA's Footballer of the Year in 2009, speaking before the dinner in his honour at London's Savoy Hotel on Sunday, said, "Tonight's award means a lot.”

BUENOS AIRES: An Argentine friendly between bitter city rivals Rosario Central and Newell's Old Boys was called off Sunday after a policeman was shot in the neck as fans clashed. The game in the city, 310km to the north of Buenos Aires, was already scheduled to be played behind closed doors, but didn't prevent violent incidents.

MADRID: Real Madrid put their dismal first half of the season behind them as they tore Valencia apart for the first 45 minutes to win 5-0 and ease the pressure on coach Jose Mourinho. Cristiano Ronaldo (above) and Angel Di Maria both hit braces and Gonzalo Higuain was also on target in a first-half goal romp.

Top10 Barcelona Atletico Madrid Real Madrid Real Betis Malaga Rayo Vallecano Valencia Levante Real Sociedad Valladolid

20 20 20 19 20 20 20 20 20 20

18 1 15 2 12 4 11 1 9 5 10 1 9 3 9 3 8 5 8 4

1 3 4 7 6 9 8 8 7 8

66 42 50 30 30 27 27 24 31 29

23 55 18 47 20 40 29 34 17 32 36 31 32 30 29 30 27 29 25 28

(played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, goals against, points)

But there is still little hope of them retaining their title as they trail Barcelona by 15 points despite the Catalan side losing 32 against Real Sociedad on Saturday, their bitter rivals' first league defeat of the season.

ATLETICO MATCH RECORD RUN WITH LEVANTE WIN Atletico Madrid equalled their best ever winning streak at home in La Liga in a memorable season for the club with a 2-0 win Sunday over Levante. Goals from Adrian Lopez and Jorge Resurrecion ‘Koke’ saw Atletico win their 12th straight league game at the Calderon and match the club record dating back to a run between the 1939-40 and 1940-41 seasons. They have now had 18 straight victories in all competitions at home and during this campaign have overshadowed their more prestigious city rivals Real Madrid who face Valencia later. AFP