Postnoon E-Paper for 28 January 2013 by Scribble Media & Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013 HYDERABAD

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FIGHT CLUB

With great power comes a great deal of temper issues! The latest cat fight between Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey on American Idol prompted us to take a look at the top 10 celebrity spats. P16&17

HYDERABAD’S FIRST COMPACT AFTERNOON NEWSPAPER

M ANIL KUMAR

CITY GEARS FOR 100 DAYS OF STRIFE

JENNIFER LAWRENCE IS APPARENTLY BATTLING PNEUMONIA

ALCOHOL VACCINE

FOR HANGOVER TO BE TESTED IN INDIA In a bid to tackle the growing problem of alcoholism, a new vaccine that gives alcoholics an immediate and heavy hangover will soon be tested in India after preclinical trials in Chile, researchers say. The preclinical trial preludes the phase one clinical trial.

P20

The Silver Linings Playbook actress admitted she was suffering from the flu on Golden Globes weekend and is apparently still under the weather.

HMDA SERVES BIG REALTORS, WALLOPS THE SMALL

Covering 5,965 square kilometers and 35 mandals spread across Rangareddy, Medak, Nalgonda and Mahabubnagar districts, it appears that the plan has given a boost to the real estate business. Their is discontentment among small developers though, because to register a layout with HMDA, the area should be at least 10 acres.

P28 P4

REPORT ON P5

‘Finish off Congress’ is their call. Riled after being taken for a ride by the ruling party, Telangana activists are gearing up for a no-holds-barred siege to paralyse the administrative machinery. A 100-day strike by government staff and pressuring Congress ministers is being planned — and this is just the beginning.

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

city events

THE RIVER MOVING WITHIN

The River Moving Within is an exhibition of art work by Koeli Mukherjee Ghose. It is inspired by the works of Rumi and 'Narda Bhakti Sutra' and reflects a love for life. It will go on till February 8 from 11am at Truffles Cafe, Jubilee Hills.

Weather for Hyderabad

Evening

Overnight

Morning

Afternoon

25°C

18°C

23°C

29°C

Clear with cloudy periods.

Mostly clear.

Sunny. Chances of shower.

New Delhi Mumbai Max 22 Max 30 Min 8 Min 19 Mostly sunny.

Chennai Max 30 Min 20

Clear skies.

Mostly sunny.

Bangalore Max 28 Min 17 Mostly sunny.

AROUND THE CITY: YOUR GUIDE TO THE TWIN CITIES Nampally, When: Up to February 15, 4pm to 11pm Contact: (040) 2460 3015

SHOWS Yudh Sai Shree Arts presents Yudh, a Bharathanatyam solo by Savitha Sastry on war. Where: Ravindra Bharathi When: February 19, 7pm to 8:15pm Contact: (040) 2323 1245

Fastrack discounts There is a discount on backpacks, totes, hobos, leatherette bags, among other things, in all Fastrack outlets in the City. Where: Fastrack outlets When: Up to February 17

Humanite It is an investigative fim on the rape and murder of a little girl, directed by Bruno Dumont. Where: Sri Sarathi Studio, Ameerpet When: January 28 6:30pm onwards. Contact: (040) 23732050

Confluence Perfect Harmony Productions and Cisne for Arts bring together Zakir Hussain, Bela Fleck & Edgar M for a trio concert. Where: Shilpa Kala Vedika, Hitec City When: February 8, 6:30pm onwards Contact: (040) 2311 2707

DINING Snack Like a King Delicious varieties of snacks and beverages inspired by the Spanish tradition. Where: La Cantina, Hitec City When: Up to January 31 Contact: 9pm onwards

HORTICULTURE EXPO: Visitors at the Horticulture show at People Plaza, Necklace Road. It started on Republic Day M ANIL KUMAR and will go on till January 30. Contact: (040) 6535 5018

Just For Women Special W-Lunch for Women on Wednesdays. The menu changes on a weekly basis. Where: Ohri’s Ruci & Idoni, Opp Rainbow Hospital, Banjara Hills When: Every Wednesday 1pm to 3:30pm

Kailash Parbat food fest Kailash Parbat, a vegetarian multicuisine restaurant, is organising a Gujarati and Rajasthani food fest, which includes dishes like Ram Kichdi, Dhokla,Angoori Basundi, and Burfi Choorma. Where: Kailash Parbat, Road No. 36, Jubilee Hills When: Up to February 3 Contact: (040) 2355 8857 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 started with Britannia restaurant & cafe located in Bombay, with delicious Parsi dishes.

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

Where: Truffles cafe Plot no. 376, Road no. 10, Jubilee Hills, When: Up to February 10 Contact: (040) 2355 0105

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 Diva Divine Deified An exhibition of ceramic and terrakota sculptures by artist Jayaprakash. Where: Iconart Gallery,

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

When: Ongoing Contact: www.iconart.in Buy Art It is an anniversary art show of affordable art by 30 artists. All artworks are priced between `1,000 to `10,000. Where: Iconart Gallery, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad When: January 18-February 18 11:30am-7pm Contact: www.iconart.in

The Landmark sale Landmark announces its sale of Up to 70 per cent off. Bestselling books starting at `49, 3 for 2 on the top 500 new releases are just some of the offers. Where: Landmark When: January 25-February 25

MISCELLANEOUS Numaish Numaish is the 73rd All India Industrial Exhibition is an ongoing event in the City. Where: Exhibition Ground, Mukarramjahi Road,

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

Big Hyper Sale HyperCITY, is having its Hyper Sale at all its stores across India. Customers can get discounts and deals across categories, including fresh produce, home & furniture, electronics, toys and apparels. Where: Inorbit mall, Madhapur When: Up to January 31

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 28, 2013

City

YESTERDAY’S QUESTION

ARE AADHAR CARDS DELAYED TO BENEFIT PRIVATE VENDORS? 86% 14%

YES (A) NO (B)

Duo cons woman

Two strangers trick a woman and take her gold ornaments in exchange for a gold-plated brass bar.

wo women swindlers tricked an unwary woman and took away five tolas of gold in an ingenious way on Saturday. Y Rani, 27, was waiting for a bus at Patni Circle in Secunderabad. She was returning home after attending a Republic Day function at her office. Two women came to the bus stop and struck up a conversation with Rani. The duo then told her that they had a stroke of good luck and had stumbled upon a gold biscuit in a public place. It must have fallen from someone’s bag, they said. They took out the gold bar,

YES

To vote visit www.postnoon.com

CRIME

Mohd SUBHAN mohd.s@postnoon.com

TODAY’S QUESTION

DO NUMAISH AMUSEMENT RIDES LACK SAFETY MEASURES?

saying they are poor and want to sell it and use the money. Rani believed them. But as the gold weighed around 20 grams, Rani could not buy it with cash. She then suggested bartering her five tolas of gold ornaments for the gold biscuit. The duo ‘reluctantly’ agreed. Thinking how lucky she was, Rani immediately engaged an auto rickshaw and reached home. When she told the household the exciting tale of getting a gold biscuit, they doubted it was genuine gold. They took it to a goldsmith who pronounced it a gold-

plated brass bar! Alarmed, Rani and her family rushed to the bus stop and found that the duo had vanished. They then lodged a complaint with the Mahankali police.

CRIME

Tipplers thirsty after hooch heist

Man sells local liquor under brand names. POSTNOON NEWS feedback@postnoon.com

n the eve of the 64th Republic Day celebrations in the City, Task Force north zone team arrested a man and seized a huge cache of Indian made ‘foreign liquor.’ Task force inspector AP Anand Kumar said G Anand Goud is only 22 and is a resident of RTC colony. He works at a private firm. Knowing that January 26 is holiday for all liquor shops, he decided to take advantage of the situation. Goud bought a large quantity of liquor a day before to be sold at a higher price to those who want to buy it on Republic

Day. Police found that he has been doing this quite often. But this time he went one step ahead. He bought very cheap brands and used labels of highly priced brands. Most of these ‘well known brands,’ which were just cheap liquor filled in empty bottles, fetched a big sum on Republic Day. When he was caught, he had in his possession 36 bottles of high-end verities — all local stuff that would give the consumer a head-splitting hangover the next day. Trimulgherry police is investigating the case. Police believe this is not an isolated incident. On all occasions when liquor shops are closed, many unscrupulous people resort to black marketing.

city MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

REAL ESTATE

LAST YEAR... HERE

HMDA serves big realtors, wallops the small

‘Liquor’ politics

ast year Postnoon had reported how Punjabis in the City felt about the elections in their home state. Some felt candidates lure voters with alcohol, liquor consumption being a major problem in many parts. They felt corruption and scandals in their state should be put to an end and promises of politicians be kept. The Punjab elections were scheduled for January 30.

JANUARY 28, 2012

NUMEROLOGY

to 60 complaints per month, on an average, are received by the metrology department. It is surprising that the department receives only two complaints per day, roughly.

It’s curious... we knew nobody who were writers... But I read a lot when I was a boy. When other boys spent time with their girlfriends, I was reading books. Martin Figura, poet See page 8

Big developers greet Master Plan 2031 while marginal ones cry foul. They blame the CM for his hasty decision even as the T-pot boils. Md NIZAMUDDIN nizamuddin.a@postnoon.com

he crux of the discontentment among the small developers is the provision that to register a layout with HMDA, the area should have at least 10 acres of land. Covering 5,965 square kilometers and 35 mandals spread across Rangareddy, Medak, Nalgonda and Mahbubnagar districts, it appears that the plan has given a boost to the real estate business. But longtime observers are finding the decision of the government to be a hasty one. “It is nothing but a hasty decision by Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy. The government should have taken some more time to study it,” says M

The master plan is expected to have a huge impact on the real estate business. Some feel the decision should have been taken after the T-issue was resolved. Vedakumar, president, Forum for a better Hyderabad, and urban and regional planner. But most of the realtors working in the big ventures are a happy lot, as they feel that it would have a positive impact on their business. Y Venkata Ratnam Naidu, senior marketing manager of Green Home is very optimistic about the future. “I welcome the government’s decision to go with the master plan. With

Fact file n Objections received — 4,446 n It currently covers 5,965 square kilometers, 35 mandals. n Districts: Rangareddy, Medak, Nalgonda and Mahabubnagar.

our ventures in the outskirts of the City, we feel that there would be good response from the people in the near future. This would be a turnaround in the market.” The businessmen who are investing in lands less than the mandatory are likely to feel the brunt. Most of them are yet to understand the complete picture and its impact on the realestate. Some of them are directly blaming the government, saying that it has succumbed to the tactics of big business

establishments in the industry. “I believe that it would obviously have an impact on small businessmen who are already facing the Telangana heat,” says Md Iqbal Ahmed of Amir Construction. Some of those who are working in ventures close to Shamshabad Airport feel that the prices would fall, as people can choose any place in the in jurisdiction of the HMDA. “This decision would have an impact on the prices as HMDA’s jurisdiction has been extended. Now people may invest in plots away from the City, yet ensure that it would have good returns,” says Rajneesh, who works for a real estate firm in Banjara Hills. Some other voices point out that the decision should have been taken after the Telangana decision was resolved.

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

Don’t blindly believe strangers you’ve just met. Two strangers exchanged a gold plated brass bar for ﬁve tolas of gold ornaments from a woman who believed everything they said about the bar being pure gold.

TDP feels left out from the T-party. Despite its support for a separate state, other pro-T parties have accused the TDP of political opportunism.

Online consumer fora fail to deliver. Online consumer fora that promise to solve customers’ problems do not seem to deliver on their promise. The government redressal system in this regard is not great either.

Chandrababu Naidu suspends yatra

Deadline for EPSS applications extended

Owaisi shifted to Sangareddy jail

State level judo competitions held

All that glitters is not gold, especially with liquor. A man was arrested in the City for selling cheap liquor under foreign brand names on Republic Day.

Some things at Numaish never change. Kashmiri dry fruits are one feature of the exhibition that is there every year, even as other things change.

NEWS BRIEFS DP president N Chandrababu Naidu suspended his ongoing Padayatra on Monday for the second consecutive day. The decision comes in the wake of doctors' advice to him to suspend the yatra till he regains his normal health. Following the advice of the doctors, Naidu is likely to take a break from his yatra on Tuesday also.

ndhra Pradesh Central Power Distribution Corporation Limited (APCPDCL) has extended the date for receiving applications for Expensive Power Supply Scheme to January 30 from January 21. Under the scheme, the gas-based generating stations in State with idle capacities will be supplied with the Regasiﬁed Liqueﬁed Natural Gas.

IM MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi was shifted to the Sangareddy jail, in connection with the case of abuse of the then district collector of Medak in 2005. He will be produced later in the court as his remand would end on Monday. His brother and MP Asaduddin Owaisi was arrested in the same case and was released on bail.

tate level judo competitions for school children were held at Ravi Public School (RPS) in Nizamabad town on Sunday. A total of 450 competitors from 19 districts across the State participated in the competitions. The selected students will participate in the national level judo competitions to be held in Gurgaon in Haryana state.

city MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

TELANGANA AGITATION

T stirs reaching a crescendo A 100-day strike by Telangana government employees, dharna before T-Cong ministers, distributing bills and leaflets announcing Congress as No 1 enemy of T are among the long-drawn battle plan of T groups. INKESHAF AHMED ahmed.m@postnoon.com

A large crowd gathered this morning at Dharna Chowk where leaders have been on fast since yesterday. Throaty slogans denouncing the Congress rent the air as a large posse of police stood on alert. “Congress dhokebaaj hai” shouted one that found acceptance among the crowd. ‘Congress ko khatam karo Telangana hassil karo’ (finish the Congress and achieve Telangana) is the new slogan that the agitating pro-Telangana leaders have floated. Frustration is palpable through the rank and file of the pro-T forces as the Samara Deeksha entered the second day today and Ghulam Nabi Azad’s derision on deadline has added to their discomfiture. “Now these leaders (Congress) are reading new meaning to deadline. What does deadline mean?” asked Bhaskar Rao, a college teacher and pro-T activist. Now, Azad says deadline is not to be taken literally. Should it be taken figuratively? He wanted to know. The TRS leaders are referring to the deadline of one month announced by Home Minister SK Shinde early this month for announcing a decision on the separate statehood for Telangana. with inputs from Anubha K Singh

pping their ante the TRS-T-JAC leaders today decided to make an all out attack on the Congress party for what they termed, “traitorous behaviour” of the party leadership. The bugle for a long struggle was sounded at Dharna Chowk where the T-JAC leader Prof Kodandaram, TNGO president Srinivas Goud, TNGOs leader Devi Prasad, MLA Hareesh Rao among others participated. The T leaders — both the TRS and TJAC — are chalking out a plan for taking on the Congress government, which included a 100day strike by Telangana government employees, forcing the Telangana Congress ministers and MPs-MLAs to quit, a grand alliance with all parties supporting Telangana barring the TDP are on anvil. The Telangana protesters dropped enough hints that they were going to target Congress ministers. Meanwhile, the OU police arrested two students for shouting ‘indecent” slogans. The campus that erupted yesterday with violence was relatively calm today though police did not lower their guard.

POSTNOON PHOTOGRAPHERS

POLITICS

TDP falls between two stools on T-issue

The party’s support for T has been brushed off by pro-T parties as mere political opportunism. It is now trying to reverse that impression.

POSTNOON NEWS feedback@postnoon.com

he main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has been alienated in the ongoing struggle for a separate Telangana state. Despite the fact that the TDP had publicly acknowledged and extended its support to the formation of a separate state, the party’s Telangana leaders did not win any support from the TRS and TJAC in the ongoing T-stir. The pro-Telangana groups, after the extension of Telugu Desam’s support to the separate state cause, termed the stand of

Pushed to a corner with the T-JAC’s stand, TDP is now planning to hold parallel agitations under the TDP Telangana Forum. the party as a mere demonstration of political opportunism. They said the TDP’s pro-T stance was just to make party president Chandrababu Naidu’s padayatra a success in the T region. The T-JAC, has neither praised the TDP nor invited it to join hands with them.

The stubborn and reluctant stand of the pro-Telangana groups towards TDP had disappointed many party leaders. Apart from this, lack of acknowledgement of the efforts the TTDP leaders took towards creation of a separate state has benumbed T-leaders from TDP. “After our unconditional support to the separate Telangana issue, we thought that the T-JAC would not only praise our hard work but also join hands with us in organising joint agitations to achieve the separate state. But it did not happen. Instead of laudatory remarks, the T-JAC is levelling baseless alle-

gations against us,” said a senior TDP leader on Sunday. Pushed to a corner with the T-JAC’s stand, party leaders are now planning to hold parallel agitations under the TDP Telangana Forum. “We will hold all kinds of protest programmes with the sole objective of building pressure on the Central government,” he said.

The forum, headed by E Dayakar Rao, are planning to hold a meeting to chalk out their strategy. The leaders strongly believe that the party will be reduced to a weak dispensation if it did not launch a blitzkrieg campaign to widely publicise the party’s support for the T-cause, especially in the wake of serious attacks from TRS.

city MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

BUSINESS

Aging US woos young India RAHUL RAMAKRISHNA rahul.r@postnoon.com

‘D

oing Business in US’ campaign held in the City today welcomed Hyderabad and AP to invest in American businesses. The campaign is a part of BIA Conferences’ grand plan of generating an additional $1 billion in twoway trade with Indian companies seeking entry into the US. Today’s workshop gave answers to many queries from those who seek business in America. Speaking at the workshop held at The Park, Dr James R. Zeigler, senior advisor, staffing and mobility, said, “US would love to welcome investments from India and this would prove beneficial for both countries as the US has currently the largest GDP of $15 trillion in 2011.” Incentives like tax credits are offered for foreign companies in the US. This would prove helpful especially since the Indo-American trade is expected to cross the $100-billion mark this year. P Venugopal, director of STPIHyderabad, presented US business

India will be the only ‘young’ country with 48 million people of working age group by 2020 and the US is gloating over the biz possibilities. M ANIL KUMAR

EXHIBITION

Kashmiri dry fruits have City drooling

opportunities in the IT industry. Stressing on the importance for a need on global perspective on IT services, he said 62 per cent of our country’s IT services are an export to the US. “India’s opportunities lie in the services sector. The current rate of business growth shows that US is generating $1.45 for every dollar worth work in the country. In this context, India is projected to be the only country to have significant population with a surplus of 47 million in the working age groups by 2020. This will have a positive effect on the IT services sector.” Other key topics that were touched upon by Dr James R Ziegler were global mobility and staffing challenges, employment and immigration compliance, tax planning and trade regulation. Representatives from various companies and trades were in attendance at the workshop, which was co-hosted by Federation of Indian Export Organisations, Basic Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals and Cosmetica Export Promotion Council, AP Invest, FAPCCI and ESC.

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Kashmiri dry fruit stalls are an all-time favourite at Numaish. POSTNOON NEWS feedback@postnoon.com

ver the years, Numaish has incorporated several changes, but the one thing that has survived is the dry fruits from Kashmir. Hyderabad is like a second home for many Kashmiris. Therefore, it is no surprise that dry fruits from the Valley are a hit in the City and is one of the most visited stalls at Numaish. In fact, its popularity is such that there

is a separate section with nearly 30 stalls being set up from Kashmir alone. “We have been coming to Hyderabad for 15 years now and there is a lot of demand for Kashmiri dry fruits here. Earlier, there were only five to six stalls and now the number has shot up,” said Aziz Ahmed, owner, Willow Dry Fruits. Shopkeepers claim the dry fruits they sell here are authentic and pure, unlike those passed off in the City under the guise of N SHIVA KUMAR

Kashmiri dry fruits. Ahmed Kaul from Srinagar says the real stuff can be easily identified by the aroma alone. In addition to dry fruits, Kashmir has a lot of other items to offer such as saffron, honey, apple chips, Kashmiri rajma, asafoetida (hing), saffron, zafrani masala, shilajat and special dry garlic which is known to control cholesterol. “The dry fruits at Numaish are different from what is available at the local market, and the best part is that you can choose from different varieties here. Every year, I ensure I buy dry fruits and honey from the shops here,” said Sarita Deshmukh, a visitor. Jewellery is also a hit among Numaish visitors. Big pendants and necklaces with heavy beads are all the rage this year. Many stalls also sell precious stones and gems.

/095 Rs.1 9/: e c 4 r Pri Rs.5 Cove r Price: : 50% g e f n f i O l Sav Tota

A FRESH NEW POINT OF VIEW You can also call or email us at:

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city MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

CIVIC

Few takers for metrology helpline The legal metrology department claims that they only receive an average of two complaints a day. Whether this is because of ignorance or indifference is not certain. RAHUL RAMAKRISHNA rahul.r@postnoon.com

n RTI plea filed by activists from the City has helped raise awareness about the state of legal metrology affairs in the City and the State. Given the number of incidents of faulty meters and unfair trade practices in the City, the legal metrology department had launched a helpline number, in addition to an email and SMS service, for consumers to address their complaints. The flip side is that the details revealed by the department about the functioning of the helpline and the services offered make it seem as though the department has had no complaints at all. According to Mahendar Reddy from It’s Time To Make Difference (ITMD), “We filed an RTI plea to find out about the helpline service and how much cost it had incurred to set up the service. We also asked if there was an alternative apart from the general helpline launched and how many complaints do they receive on a monthly basis.”

FOR REPRESENTATION ONLY

Given the number of incidents of unfair trade practices, the legal metrology department had launched a helpline number. In reply to the RTI application, the details of the service established by the department show that over `1 lakh had been used to set up the ‘1860-425-3333’ helpline. Other alternatives include an email service where complaints can be mailed to ‘clm@ap.nic.in’ and an SMS option to 9490165619. “However, they do not provide any acknowledgement for the complaints registered with the helplines, which means, there is no guarantee that your complaint or grievance will ever be addressed,” said Mahendar. Further details about the number of complaints received every month were placed at 50 to 60 on an average. Considering the number of fraudulent meters in autos and other businesses, it is surprising that the department

receives only roughly two complaints a day from our City. “Is it because there is no awareness about the helpline or because there are no cases registered through the complaints or is it because the information provid-

ed is not entirely true — we don’t know what the case is. We plan to launch an awareness campaign about the helpline and its uses shortly,” added Mahendar. In a previous story on meter tampering, Postnoon found out

CIVIC

that most of those caught with tampered meters were let off after a lenient fine and a warning. It is not surprising that the department receives only two complaints on an average per day, if at all they do receive any.

No online relief for consumers

Websites that promise to solve consumer complaints do not deliver, nor is the nationalised consumer forum of much help, say aggrieved citizens. ALEENA ALICE aleena.t@postnoon.com

ook on the internet for online consumer fora and you will find dozens of websites which promise to help customers solve their disputes. However, it seems like none of these fora/websites take their consumer complaints seriously. Though most consumers try their luck by posting their complaints on websites, not many websites proved successful in addressing the issues. Given the fact that there are many online options, not many websites are dedicated to help consumers file their complaints. Few of the consumer sites that are promoted by the Central government only help by giving suggestions to the consumers on how to go about the process of filing complaints. However, when it comes down to the purpose of solving the problem, the consumers are left to

their fate of dealing with it. Rahul, a private firm employee, said, “Recently, I had purchased a two-wheeler and within 15 days, I started facing problems with the battery and the brakes. The company did not pay heed to my complaints so I decided to file a complaint online. However, I could not find any genuine website. There were a few websites which asked the consumers to pay for the registration. So many of the sites seemed more like ad pages, and even browsing was difficult.”

NATIONALISED CONSUMER FORUM OF NO HELP Though most of the sites promoted by the government promise to discuss various problems of consumers and also find solutions to their queries, according to most consumers, these sites are never responsive and prompt. Ashwin, who saw the ‘Jaago Grahak’ ad on television and had vis-

ited the website to register a complaint against an insurance company, said, “The toll-free number mentioned on the site is of no use, one can never get through the number. It is forever busy and very annoying. I had also registered a complaint on the site, however, I have not found any response to my query so far.” Commenting on how it is the need of the hour to have dedicated websites for consumer redressal, advocate CA Aravind said, “According to the order passed by the Supreme Court, the consumer cases should be solved within six months to one year at the most. However, in our judicial system, we have cases which have been going on for more than three years. It is high time e-governance is given priority. If the procedure to register and solve complaints is made an online process, there will be no delay in the cases and also will benefit the citizens.”

city MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

INTERVIEW

MAN OF MANY ROLES

RAJESH RAVINDRAN rajesh.r@postnoon.com

hen Martin Figura’s father died, he noticed that the undertaker had plumped his cheeks so that it appeared he was whistling. “It was funny,” says Martin. Now don’t conclude that the man is insane. The relationship was difficult (to be more precise, “awkward”) for Martin because his father had killed his mother. Martin was nine then. “He was a paranoid schizophrenic,” says Martin. “He suspected her and he thought that she was trying to poison him.” Incidents revolving around this tragedy and his childhood make the theme of Martin’s first collection of poems, Whistle, which he performed at the Taj Deccan. The performance organised by Taj Deccan and the British Council involved Martin reciting poems from Whistle while images from his childhood which connected with the poems were displayed in the background. There are excerpts from the love letters of June, Martin’s mother, to his father Frank in Whistle, which shows how much she loved him. Frank, a Pole from Silesia, a disputed area around the time of the Second World War, was conscripted into the German Army when he was a teenager. He was captured and released, and later migrated to Britain as “most of the Poles did then and kept his past a secret for obvious reasons”. When the tragedy struck, Martin and his sisters were moved to the neighbours who told them that there had been an accident and their moth-

er died. “But nobody explained the absence of my father,” Martin recalls. Martin says he had always wanted to be a writer. “It’s curious because we knew nobody who was a writer, neither did we know anybody who knew any writers. But I read a lot when I was a boy. When other

It’s curious because we knew nobody who was a writer, neither did we know anybody who knew any writers. But I read a lot when I was a boy. Martin Figura Poet boys spent time with their girlfriends I was reading books.” Martin says he wrote poems when he was a teenager. “But bad poems, really,” he admits. Martin joined the Army pretty young, as that was the best thing to do then. He says he found a sense of a family being in the barracks. He has not seen action in service, but he has done a lot of shooting... photographs. Now he does portraits of fellow writers and is pretty good at it. It was towards the end of his

Army career that he started writing again, funny poems. “I always wanted to do something creative. I wanted to write seriously, but I decided I would do it properly. And so I joined the Norwich School of Art & Design. You may say I learned my craft here,” Martin says. About eight years ago, around the time, when poems of Whistle happened, he met his wife, Helen Ivory, poetess herself. “We met at a poetry festival and I was performing with the Joy of Six (a group of poets). We got on well. She was in a bad relationship and I was out of one and was planning to go away. Then she left him and moved in with me and after eight weeks, we decided to carry on,” remembers Martin. After six months, they married. Helen says there has been a massive development in Martin’s poems. “Earlier, it would be funny poems. But I was there during the process of writing and compiling Whistle, so I know.” Martin professes to be a huge fan of Randy Newman. “His songs are a mirror that shows us what we really are.” So when Martin feels morally “humpty dumpty” he listens to Randy Newman and is cured. At the performance, Martin’s voice was smooth and solemn. From the audience came

He’s faced some pretty tough times, but Martin Figura chose to see the lighter side of things. Little wonder then his poetry is a reflection of his outlook towards life.

In Martin’s cap

n Poet, teacher, retired army major, qualiﬁed accountant, photographer. n Winner of Arts Council Lottery Fund Award in 2010 for Whistle. n Shortlisted for Ted Hughes Award for New Work in Poetry for Whistle. n Winner of Poetry Society’s 2010 Hamish Canham Prize for his poem Victor.

giggles and laughs at lighter twists in his poems. But mostly, it was rapt attention when Martin took them through his stories in verse. During the Q&A, he talked about his poems, his inspirations, his past and his bad back (caused by a slipped disc) worsened by the rickshaw rides he took in Delhi, which he says is the most daring thing to do on bad roads with the lights off on a dark night. And when he asked if the audience liked his work and what they thought of the performance, one among them blurted out, “We liked the pictures better.” Though Martin’s voice is sonorous, the hapless man may not have followed his northern accent. Martin burst out laughing, “Thank you.” He was least displeased, but greatly amused.

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

focus

NIGERIA’S MAIN SOURCE OF INCOME

The Workers' Party was founded by Singapore's former chief minister, David Marshall, in 1957. In 1981, the party's then-leader JB Jeyaretnam (pictured) became the first opposition MP to be elected to Parliament since Singapore's independence in 1965, when he defeated the candidate of the governing People's Action Party (PAP) at a by-election in the constituency of Anson.

POLLS

Singapore votes stability Saturday’s vote for a vacant seat in the sleepy suburb of Punggol East became a lightning rod for a national debate over the cost of living, immigration and other issues raging in social media.

PHILIP LIM Agence France-Presse SINGAPORE: Singapore’s ruling party needs to reconnect with voters or face more severe setbacks in national polls, analysts said Sunday after a massive swing to the opposition in a byelection dominated by debate over the rising cost of living and immigration. It was the second by-election defeat in eight months for the People’s Action Party (PAP), which has been in power for more than 50 years. Saturday’s vote for a vacant seat in the sleepy suburb of Punggol East became a lightning rod for a national debate over the cost of living, immigration and other issues raging in social media. The opposition Workers’ Party won 54.5 per cent of the vote — exactly the same share garnered by the PAP when it last took the seat in the May 2011 general elections. “The swing of votes has been massive,” Reuben Wong, an assistant professor of political science at the National University of Singapore, told AFP. Wong said defeated PAP candidate Koh Poh Koon, 40, a prominent surgeon who had never been in politics and was introduced by the party just weeks before the vote, was seen as an “elitist” figure. By contrast, he said Workers’ Party candidate Lee Li Lian, a 34-year-old corporate trainer running for a second time, was regarded as more representative of Singapore’s “heartlanders” — the majority who live

Workers’ Party supporters celebrate after the results for the Punggol east by-election was announced in Singapore on January 26, 2013. Workers Party candidate Lee Li Lian won 16,038 votes while People’s Action Party candidate Koh Poh Koon received 12,656 votes. AFP PHOTO/ROSLAN RAHMAN

in public housing. “The PAP is lacking grassroots candidates that are grounded in the communities,” said Bridget Welsh, an associate professor at Singapore Management University. “The formula of ‘best and brightest’ is not working,” the political scientist added, referring to the PAP’s traditional approach of fielding academic achievers and successful professionals. Candidates do not have to live in the districts where they are running for office. “The erosion of support in this contest is so significant that it cannot be dismissed as an anomaly. The PAP needs to reevaluate its engagement with the electorate and policies, and work to rebuild trust or it will face many more Punggols,” Welsh said. The setback came less than two years after the PAP, which has been in power for more than 50 years, suffered its worst general election showing in May

2011 when its share of votes fell to an all-time low of 60 per cent. The Workers’ Party captured six seats, tripling the number of opposition MPs in the 87-member parliament — a small presence by international standards but a major development in a city-state known in the past for rigid social controls. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said after Saturday’s vote

gave the Workers’ Party a seventh seat that reforms would take time to produce results, vowing to present a “report card for voters to judge in the next general elections”, which do not have to be called until 2016. Since the 2011 vote, the government has promised to spend billions of dollars on public housing, mass transport and social programmes.

The opposition Workers’ Party won 54.5 per cent of the vote — exactly the same share garnered by the PAP when it last took the seat in the May 2011 general elections.

It has slowed the intake of foreign workers and immigrants, who have been accused of competing with citizens for jobs and public services and driving up prices of homes. More than a third of Singapore’s population of 5.3 million are foreigners. Saturday’s vote was called to fill a seat left vacant when then parliament speaker Michael Palmer stepped down in December after he confessed to an extramarital affair. But the scandal was relegated to the sidelines and the campaign’s focus was largely on socio-economic issues in Singapore, which has become one of the costliest cities in Asia. The Workers’ Party had found itself in a similar situation last year when one of its MPs also quit over an extramarital affair. But unlike the PAP, it retained the seat comfortably in a by-election in May, underscoring the growing appeal of an alternative political voice to Singaporeans.

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

Business

JAPAN ECONOMY TO GROW 2.5% IN FISCAL 2013

Japan on Monday said the world’s number three economy was on track to expand 2.5 per cent in the fiscal yea, thanks to fresh stimulus and a recovery in overseas markets. PM Shinzo Abe’s cabinet approved the forecast — higher than an estimate of one-percent growth for the current year.

Hinduja boosts Africa business DAVOS: Global business conglomerate Hinduja group is planning to significantly expand presence in Africa in areas ranging from transport, infrastructure and coal, and would look to partner governments of various African countries for its new businesses in the region. The UK-based group, run by billionaire Hinduja brothers, is already present across various countries including India in sectors like banking, auto, energy, technology and healthcare and has a turnover of over $25 billion. “We at Hinduja group are planning significant expansion plans in African countries. We

are trying to create our business hubs in Kenya and in East Africa, in addition to out existing hubs in South Africa, Tanzania and Nigeria in the region,” Group’s co-chairman Gopichand Hinduja told PTI here.

Gopichand and his brother Prakash Hinduja were here to participate in the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting. Prakash Hinduja said the group is also looking at expansion in Latin American countries and its expansion plans in India, where it has previously announced investments totalling $30 billion over a five year period, are progressing on track. The group’s Indian units include commercial banking entity IndusInd Bank, lubricants and speciality chemicals firm Gulf Oil and commercial vehicle maker Ashok Leyland, among others. “In Africa, there

is so much to be done, but for now we are focussing on our existing strength in various business verticals and therefore focussing on sectors like transport, auto, lubricants, infrastructure and coal. “We will focus on partnering the governments of various African countries and look at PPP model of business there,” Gopichand Hinduja said. Hinduja Group’s Europe chairman Prakash Hinduja said the two brothers met government heads of South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria, among others during the Davos meeting and discussed potential business opportunities in those countries. PTI

REAL ESTATE

New Brigade in town The appreciation in capital values of the property should not be looked at a monthly or yearly basis. One should only see the growth in values in a five-year term or in 10-year time frame.

rigade group has forayed in to the City market as part of its expansion plans for South India. The company, which is a well known brand in Bangalore, has also its presence in cities like Mysore, Mangalore, Cochin and Chennai. It also emerged as an integrated developer, with its presence in various aspects of real estate development like hospitality, residential, commercial and retail. Talking about the uniqueness of newly launched Hyderabad project (Brigade at No.7), MR Jaishankar, CMD of the group (pictured), said, “ The value addition can be easily seen in the location apart from features and specifications. It is a kind of limited edition with 55 apartments (flats) and very few people have get this opportunity to buy, as there is scarcity of the land for developing spa-

cious projects in Banjara Hills.” When asked why it took these many years for the group to enter in to City market, he said, “We were quite focused in strengthening the brand in Bangalore market and the company is now ready for expansion. The City market has also become matured over in all these years. “It (City real-estate market) may be smaller as compared to Bangalore but the growth of IT sector pushed the City to have cosmopolitan status. Many migrants come to the

city to work in this sector and some of them settle here over time. Infrastructure in the City is also much better than many other cities in the Country,” On the price rise of newly constructed properties in short term, he said, “There will be undoubted price rise with the inflation especially with the increase of diesel price. This price rise will have its impact on over all construction costs and will result in increase of over all prices of the property,” Asked about the real estate

losing its sheen from an investor point of view especially in Cities like Bangalore and Hyderabad, he said, “Real-estate investment is a long-term investment; there are ups and downs in the market. The appreciation in capital values of the property should not be looked at monthly basis or even yearly basis. One should only see the growth in values in a five-year term or in 10-year time frame. Investors can at least see 10-15 per cent growth in five-year cycle or even more in 10-year cycles, which was easily attained in Bangalore.” The company is also not bothered about the agitations and its impact. “There were not many launches in this segment. The inventory of the project was very small which can be cleared easily. However with the overall market, people may wait and watch temporarily but they have to continue with life and business. Agitations are temporary issues and cannot hold the market or buyers forever.”

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ADVANTAGE INDIA

India has a big advantage over China in the global labour market, as its young and English-speaking literate workforce is much more relevant on the global level, as per leading human resource consultancy giant Manpower Group. However, the Indian government and companies need to focus on understanding the skill sets they would need in the future and train the country’s young population accordingly to maintain the supply-demand balance of the job market, Manpower Group President (Global Corporate and Government Affairs) David Arkless told PTI. Arkless, who was at Davos to attend the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, maintained that he remains optimistic about the Indian labour market, although the conditions remain volatile and uncertain globally.

NUMEROLOGY

‘Stirs are temporary issues and cannot hold the market or buyers forever.’ PRUDHVI RAJU K prudhvi.k@postnoon.com

is the worth of the deal Vietnam inked a deal with firms from Japan and Kuwait to build an oil refinery complex.

RELIEF FOR MYANMAR Myanmar said on Monday that the Paris Club of creditor nations had agreed to cancel half of its debts, another milestone in the rapid transformation of the former junta-ruled nation. The deal, together with pledges by Japan and Norway, reduces the country’s debt burden by nearly $6 billion, according to an ofﬁcial statement published by state media. It said the agreement, struck with Paris Club creditor countries on January 25, would cancel the debts in two phases, with the remaining amounts to be rescheduled over 15 years. Japan has committed to cancel arrears worth over $3 billion while Norway is writing off $534 million, according to the statement. “Other bilateral donors are expected to follow suit and more debt cancellation is coming on the way in the next six months,” it said. The move follows a string of dramatic political reforms in the one-time pariah state.

BSE 6,057.70 6,071.30 NSE

20,097.63 20,025.67 44.10 5.02 9.20 2.75

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

nation

INDIAN BOOTLEGGERS JAILED IN SAUDI ARABIA

Two Indian nationals have been sentenced to one year in prison each and flogging for manufacturing and selling liquor in Saudi Arabia where alcohol is strictly prohibited. They will be deported once they complete their jail terms.

POWER STRUGGLE

Shettar launches counter-strike

JUMBO BLESSING

Rajnath backs embattled Karnataka CM. BJP to seek disqualification of rebel MLAs for anti-party activities. BANGALORE/NEW DELHI: Launching a counter-attack on the 13 party MLAs who have announced their decision to quit their Assembly membership, the ruling BJP today decided to seek their disqualification for 'antiparty' activities. Earlier in the day in New Delhi, Shettar met BJP president Rajnath Singh and discussed the future course of action. Shettar, who reached Delhi by a special flight last evening from Hubli, expressed confidence that the BJP government would complete its full term. He later left for Bangalore. Singh had on last Friday asked Shettar not to compromise on the BJP's principles even if it threatens the survival of the government in the southern state. The party has said it is confident of overcoming the crisis. Sources in the BJP said a petition would be filed today with the Assembly Speaker KG Bopahiah, seeking their disqualification on the charge of 'antiparty' activities. They said the BJP would also urge the Speaker not to accept the resignation of the 13 MLAs. The MLAs loyal to Karnataka Janata Party chief BS Yeddyurappa are likely

"He is very intelligent, very sharp and very confident chief minister," Rajnath Singh said after meeting Shettar in Delhi. to meet the Speaker tomorrow to submit their resignation letters. Their attempt to submit their resignations to the Speaker on January 23 came to nought as was not in station, an issue which irked them and made them petition Governor HR Bhardwaj to whom they submitted copies of their resignation letters. Bhardwaj had stated on January 26 that the Jagadish Shettar government still enjoyed a majority and as leader of the BJP legislature party, it was left to him to take action on the issue of resignation of the 13 MLAs. In the 225-member Karnataka Assembly, BJP has a strength of 117 excluding the Speaker and requires 113 for a simple majority. Congress has 71 members and JDS 26. There are seven Independents and two vacancies. One member is nominated. PTI

An elephant blesses LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan during Bihar bachao rally in Samastipur on Sunday. PTI/AMRIT JAI KISHAN

Yavatmal MLA dies in mishap He was one of the five Youth Congress leaders who were given tickets by Rahul Gandhi during Maharashtra Assembly polls. MUMBAI: Sitting Congress MLA from Yavatmal, Nilesh Deshmukh Parvekar was killed in a road accident near Ladkhed village, about 25 km away from Yavatmal. The 44-year-old MLA was driving a car when the accident occurred at around 8.30 PM, party sources said, adding that details of the mishap are awaited. Zilla parishad member Balasaheb Mangulkar, who was also in the ill-fated vehi-

cle, sustained serious injuries. Doctors said he is now out of danger and admitted to a local private hospital. Nilesh was rushed to the same hospital where doctors declared him dead, they said. Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan and MPCC president Manikrao Thakre will be going to Yavatmal tomorrow, as Nilesh was a close associate of Chavan.

An active member of the Rahul Gandhi brigade, he was one of the five Youth Congress leaders who were given party tickets by Rahul during the last Maharashtra Assembly polls. Son of late Balasaheb Deshmukh Parvekar and Kantabai Deshmukh, Nilesh is survived by his wife, two young daughters, mother and younger brother Yogesh Deshmukh Parvekar. PTI

LINGUISTICS

TRAGEDY

Five milk traders die in accident

New dialect discovered

MIDNAPORE: Five milk traders on their way to deliver milk and milk products were killed when their vehicle collided with a trailer in Kharagpur in West Midnapore district, police said today. The accident took place when the vehicle of the milk traders collided with a trailer on NH-6 at Sadatpur village. Four other injured people are admitted in Kharagpur state general hospital and Midnapur Medical College and Hospital. PTI

WASHINGTON: A US based Indian linguist claims to have discovered a new dialect spoken by the minority Musilm community in some districts of Bihar that has no written record or name. Mohammad Warsi, who teaches linguistics and Indian languages at the Washington University in St. Louis, said the main language for communication in Darbhanga, Madhubani, Samastipur, Begusarai and Muzaffarpur, is Maithili. But when Muslims speak among themselves, they speak a dialect that is different from Maithili, Hindi, and Urdu. This dialect does not have its own script or literature, he said. This might be the reason that this dialect went unnoticed to linguists so far, said Warsi, who is a recipient of James E McLeod Faculty Recognition Award for 2012.

While doing a comparative study, Warsi said he found that this new dialect is completely different from Hindi, Urdu, and Maithli and their verb conjugation and sentence structure, is quite different from each other. For example "We are going" would be rendered "hum jaa rahain hain" in Hindi, "hum jaay rahal chhii" in Maithli and "hum jaa rahain hain" in Urdu sentence. But in the new dialect it would be: "ham jaa rahaliya hae". Also, there is no agentive marker "-ne" in Mithilanchal Urdu. Only one second person pronoun "tu" is used in the new dialect instead of "tu, tum and aap". From these examples, it is clear that the verb conjugation in the new dialect is completely different from that of Hindi, Urdu, and Maithli, Warsi said. PTI

PICK YOUR

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MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

World

FRENCH-LED TROOPS CLOSE IN ON TIMBUKTU French-led troops were closing in on Mali’s fabled desert city of Timbuktu Monday after capturing a string of other towns in their offensive against Islamists in the north of the country. A reconnaissance team had reached the edge of Timbuktu, and French and Malian soldiers were approaching the city “without meeting any resistance”, a senior Malian officer said Sunday.

CAIRO CRISIS

Emergency in Egypt

ALARMING PICTURES

Sunday’s violence left another six people dead and more than 460 injured, according to medics. CAIRO: President Mohamed Morsi declared a state of emergency in three provinces hit by rioting which has left dozens dead, warning he was ready to take further steps to confront threats to Egypt’s security. In an address on state television Sunday evening, Morsi said the emergency measures would come into effect in the provinces of Port Said, Suez and Ismailiya “for 30 days starting at midnight (2200 GMT Sunday)”. Curfews would be imposed on the same three provinces from 9pm until 6 am, he added — and he warned he would take further steps to confront threats to Egypt’s security if need be. But Morsi also invited opposition politicians for talks Monday in a bid to bridge the growing political gulf in the country. Morsi acted after a second day of rioting rocked Port Said Sunday, sparked by death sentences handed down by a court on Saturday against some of those convicted over deadly football riots last year. Sunday’s violence left another six people dead and more than 460 injured,

New satellite images reveal ongoing activity at North Korea’s atomic test site, according to a US research institute, as expectation mounts of an imminent nuclear detonation by the isolated state. The images, as recent as January 23, suggest the facility would be ready to conduct a test “in a few weeks or less” once the order is given, the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University posted on its 38 North website Sunday.

according to medics. Crowds attempted to storm three police stations in the Suez Canal city, while others looted and torched an army social club. The latest casualties, among them a teenager shot in the

Women sexually assaulted

t least 25 women have been sexually assaulted during clashes in Tahrir Square, according to local women’s rights campaigners. In a typical attack, crowds of men quickly surround isolated women, groping them and attempting to remove their clothes. Some women have been stripped naked and one was raped, the campaigners said. chest, added to the toll of 31 people including two anti-riot police killed in the city on Saturday. Unrest also erupted on Sunday in Suez, another canal city, where protesters surrounded a police station, lobbed Molotov cocktails at security forces and blocked the road leading to the capital.

NUMEROLOGY

With his trousers around his knees to show defiance, an Egyptian protester throws stones towards riot policemen. AFP/MOHAMMED ABED

THE SURVIVOR

NIGHTCLUB MISHAP

Brazilians in mourning

Relatives of victims from a fire that broke out at a nightclub weep during their funeral in Santa Maria.

SANTA MARIA: A massive blaze at a nightclub in Brazil killed more than 230 people and left relatives desperately searching for loved ones as horrific accounts emerged of a tragic rush to escape the inferno. Shocked survivors, mostly science students in the southern college town of Santa Maria, described a traumatic scene of blocked exits and rising flames, with scores of revelers being trampled or passing out from

smoke inhalation. A band’s malfunctioning pyrotechnics triggered the fire early on Sunday, witnesses said, in an incident likely to raise concerns about public safety as Brazil readies to host the football World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016. The fire regulations permit for the Kiss nightclub expired in August 2011, local media reported, citing the head of the state’s fire department.

tonnes

may be loaded onto China’s China’s new long-distance military transport aircraft and it can carry this load over distances of up to 4,400 kilometres.

“I saw victims who had one side of their face melted,” Max Muller, who was walking by and started to film some of the chaotic early morning scenes from outside the club, told AFP. “I am traumatized. It is hard to forget what I saw. People who were trying to get out who stopped to give other people CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) — except they didn’t know how to do it, and they were breaking people’s bones.

NEWS BRIEFS Oz radio network dumps royal hoax show

Pentagon eyes boost of cybersecurity force

Three dead, dramatic rescues in Oz flood

South Korean rapist sues prison over porn

SYDNEY: An Australian radio show at the centre of a hoax call controversy involving Britain’s Prince William and his pregnant wife Catherine has been taken off air permanently. Two DJs were sidelined by the Austereo network after making the prank call to the London hospital after which an Indian-born nurse committed suicide.

WASHINGTON: The US Department of Defense has approved a ﬁvefold expansion of its cybersecurity force over the coming years in a bid to increase its ability to defend critical computer networks, The Washington Post reported late Sunday. The Defense Department’s Cyber Command, currently has a staff of about 900.

SYDNEY: Three people were dead and dozens plucked from roofs and marooned cars in dramatic air rescues in north-eastern Australia Monday as severe ﬂoods swept through two states, inundating hundreds of homes. The bodies of two men swept away by ﬂoodwaters were found on Monday.

SEOUL: A jailed South Korean rapist has filed a lawsuit against prison authorities seeking the return of hundreds of pornographic photos seized from his cell, an official said Monday. The 46-year-old sued after 200 photographs were confiscated when he was transferred to a prison in the southwestern city of Gwangju late last year.

An Australian teenager who went missing from his home in Sydney more than two months ago was discovered emaciated, exhausted and covered in leeches, but alive in bushland north of the city, police said Monday. Matthew Allen’s family feared the worst after the 18-yearold disappeared in late November from Westleigh, near Cherrybrook in northwest Sydney and his mobile phone and bank accounts went untouched. Extensive searches of the area by police failed to ﬁnd a trace of Allen, who suffers from an undisclosed medical condition.

He (Basher alAssad) should have acted much more quickly and reached out to the peaceful opposition which was ready to sit at the negotiating table with him. It’s a grave error on his part, perhaps fatal. Dmitri Medvedev Russian Prime Minister

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

Technology E-POLITICS

BLOGGING FOR PEACE As tensions mount again with just over a month until Kenya’s parliamentary polls, the Ushahidi team are back in front of their screens. The non-profit software company employs 23 people and bears witness to a tech boom in what has traditionally been a rural East African country. BORIS BACHORZ Agence France-Presse

ive years ago, a handful of bloggers invented a way to track — and hopefully prevent — post-election violence that hit Kenya and claimed more than 1,100 lives. The group of friends that set up Ushahidi — which means “to witness” in Swahili — has seen their concept become a worldwide success, used in conflict and disaster zones, and again in Kenya ahead of March 4 polls. Their non-profit software company, funded by several foundations, now employs 23 people and bears witness to a technology boom in what has traditionally been a rural East African country. As tensions mount again with just over a month until Kenya’s presidential and parliamentary polls, the Ushahidi team are back in front of their screens.

GAME PULLED IN PAK Two hugely popular video games have been ordered off store shelves in Pakistan for portraying Pakistanis as terrorists. According to Gameinformer, the All-Pakistan CD, DVD, Audio Cassette Traders and Manufacturers Association has directed that Call of Duty: Black Ops II’ and Medal of Honour: Warfighter be taken off the shelves as they “show Pakistan in very poor light”. Gameinformer quotes Saleem Memon, president of the association, as saying: “The problem is that there are things that are against Pakistan and they have included criticism of our army. They show the country in a very poor light.”

THAT’S THE END

Their invention is now one of the most popular crowdsourcing platforms in the world, taking input from large numbers of people, and so far, its map-tracking concept has been used in more than 150 countries. Most recently, it has been used in Indonesia to track floods in Jakarta, to map the scale of rape in the Syrian conflict and to fight violence against women in Cambodia. “Something which started as a collaborative project is now an actual institution, which is very gratifying,” said Juliana Rotich, 35, Ushahidi’s executive director. “There are more than 38,000 maps in different countries... some of them are around crisis mapping, some of them are around election monitoring, and an emerging trend, which we are really pleased to see, is corruption mapping.” Ushahidi is based in one of Nairobi’s most fashionable buildings: The iHub, home to Internet technology projects and which boasts a view of the Ngong Hills on fine days. In late 2007 — when Kenya spiralled into bloody ethnic violence following the news that President Mwai Kibaki had won the polls — the idea of collating Internet reports to track a political crisis was not new to Africa. Tunisian blogger Sami Ben Gharbia had notably shown its

possibilities. But the Kenyan bloggers added the possibility of feeding data into their interactive map by text message, the cheapest and most widespread means of communication on the continent. Initially, their initiative had just 300 contributions, compared with 3,00,000 when the same software was used in Nigeria’s presidential polls in April 2011.

The Kenyan bloggers added the possibility of feeding data into their interactive map by text message, the cheapest means of communication. “In five years, the most important development has been the penetration of mobile phones and Internet in Africa,” said Daudi Were, another Ushahidi co-founder. More than three-quarters of Kenyans — at least 30 million people — have a mobile phone, with almost one in every three Kenyans having Internet access. Ushahidi is preparing to launch a crowdsourcing project titled Uchaguzi (simulation.uchaguzi.co.ke) — “election” in Swahili — ahead of the March 4 polls, which will take input from smartphones and social media.

On election night, the iHub will become the operations room to mobilise even more web users than the 200 who came for Kenya’s 2010 referendum on a new constitution. The team will check data with local observers and associations on the ground, before feeding it into the platform. At the time of the referendum, this alert system, linked to another network managed by the national electoral commission, made it possible to inform the police of several isolated incidents of violence. On March 4, if necessary, Kenyan web users will also be able to mobilise a further 900 colleagues worldwide who regularly help out online with cartography in crisis situations. The young men and women at Ushahidi say they are “quietly optimistic” that polls will be peaceful this time, admitting they were traumatised by the tribal violence five years ago — a world removed from their permanently connected cosmopolitan urban microcosm. Juliana recalls, “It was tragic. It shattered our conception of Kenya as a non-tribal society.” “Technology can make more informed citizens. The question whether more informed citizens will vote in a more intelligent way is left to anthropologists,” jokes Daudi Were.

Intel has decided to shut down its desktop motherboard business in the next three years. The company has been in the business for more than 20 years. It said it will not develop motherboards after the launch of its fourth-generation Core processor ‘Haswell’ in 2013, adding that it would continue to support all products sold through the warranty period. There are also talks of Intel stopping production of chips that can be placed in another motherboard. In the future, boards will come with a chip soldered on.

PORN PROBLEM Less than a week after Twitter unveiled Vine, the video-sharing app apparently has developed a porn problem. Released Thursday, the app for iPhone and iPod Touch lets anyone create and share six-second clips, but it also has become a popular venue for male genitalia and pornographic movies taped off TVs and laptops. As ﬁrst pointed out by The New York Times’ Nick Bilton, searches for #porn, #sex, and other associated tags brings up a handful of videos featuring male exhibitionism and other activity. While Vine’s terms of service don’t expressly forbid sexually explicit content, Twitter does encourage users to use good judgment.

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

Comment

HIGH-FLYING THOUGHTS Our views about social media are varied. Helen Ivory, poetess, believes if she has not chatted on facebook it’s as if she has not talked to anyone at all. And tweeting is like shouting into an empty biscuit tin.

MONEY MATTERS

The world is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.

INDIA BUDGET 2013 HARD TALK

PK Surendran

Bertrand Russell British philosopher

‘Germany’s a kill joy’

CHARLIE CHARALAMBOUS feedback@postnoon.com

ypriot officials are hitting back at Germany with charges that German domestic politics and "envy" over the island's role as a financial hub are damaging efforts to seal an EU bailout before the eurozone nation sinks into bankruptcy. German politicians have criticised plans to bail out Cyprus, saying its banks are havens for tax evaders and money launderers. Cyprus's request for EU financial aid for its debt-ridden economy has been undermined by damaging allegations it is a laundromat for dirty Russian money as international lenders call for greater transparency. "The issue is a political one because of the German elections," a government source told AFP on condition of anonymity. Cyprus sought out aid last June. But suspicions over banking sector transparency and Nicosia's reluctance to push through tougher reforms such as privatisation have delayed the urgently needed bailout, leaving the country on the brink of bankruptcy. "We are making sure we comply with all recommendations of the International Monetary Fund and the Eurogroup to ensure these allegations go away," said the government source, referring to money-laundering charges. "Another reason is that countries would like to have a piece of our pie as a financial centre," the source added. Former finance minister Michalis Sarris said the money laundering issue keeps resurfacing because it is a "sexy topic" that sells in the German media and the election campaign in that country. AFP

t’s that time of the year when India’s finance minister is straining to think of new ways to mulct the aam aadmi. But he would never admit that. Rather he would swear by the submerged and would talk of taxing the super rich. Blah! Dare he do it? Well, to lessen his pains, here I suggest a possible new ledger that will dazzle the silent majority of ordinary tax payers but in reality help the rich who pays for his party’s election expenses.

REVENUE (NEW TAXES) n

n n

and tissue paper to go up by 3% LPG cylinder price to go up by `36 per refill Cigarette to have a special lung-repair tax, depending on its length Liquor above `500 per 750 ml to have a ‘kick tax’ for two years Diesel price to be brought on par with petrol (FM does not believe in discrimination. Car manufactures to be compensated separately as business loss is not to be allowed) New entertainment tax of 1% for all cartoons, comic photographs that appear of Netas in newspapers and TV Air tickets to have an air tax ranging from 3 to 5 % of the basic price Hotel tariff to be revised per

square foot of the room rented A new service tax on paying guests (unmarried women to be exempted) 3% tax on every well whether it be open well or borewell

EXPENDITURE (SOPS) n

n n

3% tax relief on hairpin, lipstick, paper pins, ball pens, sewing needle & thread, lollipop, bindi, greeting cards, gulli-danda, plastic bats, balloon, band aid, bun, sickle, knives and dog biscuits 5% cut on inheritance tax (jai ho super rich who keep donating property among family members) Income tax ceiling up by `121 Custom duty on Indian made goods coming back from abroad to be cut by 2.5%

1% VAT on breathing over 5,000 intakes and capped on 1,0000 a day (average man breathes between 17200 to 18000 a day—Expected revenue 120 crore x 18000 1% VAT on each cup of tea served on wayside cart, 2% for tea served in a restaurant A new tax of .5 % on candles (candle sales has gone up exponentially as power supply plays occasional guests throughout the country, FM has found out) 2.5 percent additional tax on spectacle frames (pollution has deprived 50 per cent population of their normal sight, data tell FM) 1% additional tax across the board on all drugs from Anacin to antibiotics 4% service tax on 1 litre mineral water VAT on chutney, spices

n n

Compensation ranging from `2 lakh to 3 lakh per women who suffered sexual abuse (gangrape victim to be paid `5 lakh) Widows, acid-attack victims, dowry victims to get a new monthly pension of `97 SC, ST, Dalit women exempted from income tax (as there is hardly any income) A new incentive for intercommunity love marriage (to be eligible the couple will have to survive the combined onslaught for 5 years) All cattle owners to get a cattle allowance not exceeding `55 a month Freedom fighters (those who’d gone to jail before independence, not after) to get an acre of rocky & barren land for cultivation Small industrial units to get a reimbursement of dark hours enjoyed everyday 5% cut in ST on slippers sold to senior citizens Coffins to be exempted totally from ST

TAILEND Having poured over for months on spotting new goods and services to be taxed this year, the FM has shouted ‘Eureka.’ He had found that body tattooing is still free of a service tax. Last heard, the FM plans to put a slab on ST where tattoos on public parts of the body will have higher rate and private parts less. Tattoo artists will have to maintain records of their clients and specify which parts of so-and-so the branding was done. It is heard that de-tattooing will also be brought in the bracket.

EDITORIALS Defer at your own peril America calling

he government at the Centre better be warned that they are playing with ﬁre if they are intent on delaying deciding on Telangana. For about half a century the people here had been suffering and they don’t look like they like this game of politics being played by leaders and others of consequence. A decision was expected on January 28 and days leading to that date everyone expected something deﬁnite. Now Telangana sentiments have been set alight by this dilly-dallying on part of the government and the incidents do not augur well for the people, government, central and state. Already Hyderabad has suffered considerably in many aspects due to the agitation and has earned itself the tag of being business-hostile. Matters have reached a state where any more delay for a decision would result in serious repercussions which the government may not hope to contain that easily. Everyone knows that the decision makers are worried about how they decide could affect the 2014 polls. But this issue must be held above considerations of political gains. This is the hope and aspiration of a lot of people who have been suffering for a very long time. The centre should not be blind to that.

READERS’ VIEWS

he US wants AP’s business people. The US business promotion team in town inviting our entrepreneurs to the ‘land of promises’ is a welcome sign for ventures in the States. It would be the ideal time for those seeking biz in the US to spread their INR to the Dollar land. It is also a sign of our business acumen that the US government seeks us out.

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

campus

GANDHI SPEAK

An elocution competition for students of engineering colleges will be organised at Lamakaan on January 30 at 1pm. The topic is “Gandhi — the social engineer”.

CHANGING LIVES

PRAGYAN'S GOT TALENT

Students who work with Street Cause Gold deftly juggle studies and their conscience to make the City a better place.

National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli, will be organising Pragyan's Got Talent as part of Pragyan, the cultural fest of the college. Registrations for the competition is open from January 27. The event will be held from February 28 to March 3. Log on to www.pragyan.org to register. Contact: 9884568588

Weekends of change AMY ROSE THOMAS amyrose.t@postnoon.com

IIT

Hyderabad is a public university located in Medak district. IIT Hyderabad offers undergraduate BTech degrees in six disciplines of engineering, MTech degrees in eight disciplines of engineering, postgraduate and research degrees across all disciplines in engineering, sciences and liberal arts. About 80 faculty members from the science and engineering departments are engaged in teaching, research and industrial consultancy.

hough a lot of elders talk about how irresponsible the youth of today are, there are many teenagers who are committed to working for the underprivileged and betterment of the society. They have packed weekends and prefer working for a cause to spending their time lazing around playing video games and watching television. College students who are part of the NGO Street Cause Gold especially are a busy lot, with the NGO having taken up a three-drive project recently. They will be involved in distributing food to the poor, donating blankets and planting trees in schools at a particular date each month. The NGO comprises college students and young professionals. As part of the plantation drive, they visited government schools in

COLLEGE OF THE WEEK

Moulali near the railway quarters, where they planted more than 50 saplings. Event co-ordinator Farnad, a BPharm student from Malla Reddy College of Engineering, said, “We took prior permission from the school before we headed there on a Saturday. We had around 50 volunteers participating. School authorities were very supportive of the cause and let students help us with the ploughing and planting. We started at 8am and went home around 2 in the afternoon.” The ‘Annapoorna’ drive, which involves distributing

food to the needy is the other drive. On the 19th of each month, volunteers donate free food packets to the underprivileged on the streets. Meenakshi Thakur, who passed out of CBIT college, said, “We are planning to hold Annapoorna drive every month but blanket donation will be replaced with footwear or the like from next month since winter has come to an end. We have more than 25 volunteers turning up for each of the drives. For the blanket donation drive, we gathered at 8pm and went around the slum areas, giving

away free blankets to those who were sleeping without a blanket. It feels wonderful when you get to bring about change in others’ lives.” The NGO also holds blood donation and medical camps for the underprivileged. Thirini Pavala of Keshav Memorial Institute of Technology said, “Work at the NGO has kept me busy on the weekends for the past six months. We meet only during the weekends since there are a few working professionals too who are part of the organisation.”

TRENDING...

CollegeFashion. net: This is a fashion site dedicated to college women, featuring clothes we can actually afford and those that ﬁt into our lifestyles. College Fashion covers trends, products, celebrity style and everything else you need to build the coolest wardrobe on your campus.

Video Jug College: This is a hilarious howto site that features videos on how to do pretty much every major college skill (eg playing dizzy bat, advice from Dr Drew, etc). While it is seriously amusing, it actually does hold some serious tips that college students can all use.

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

spotlight

ROCK & RETRO

DJ Shafi will be belting out jazz, classic rock and retro music at Firangi Paani tonight. Fun begins at 8 pm.

SRINIVAS SETTY

SPLASH OF COLOUR 1

A CHIC AFFAIR 3

Shopaholics and friends of Shalini made a beeline to the launch of her designer store Lilac at Himayat Nagar on Sunday.

1 Shraddha,

Archana, Junaid 2 Vandana, Sonia, Sudha, Rajini,

Reena

with a friend

3 Sara 4 Disenar

6 Shipra Gandhi 7 Kanchan

5 Smita Duggal (left)

8 Meenakshi, Sonia

9 Sonia, Pooja 10 Mejabeen 11 Sania, Simran

ICE-COLD TREATS

REMEMBERING THE SUPERSTAR

Fans of Rajesh Khanna relived the superstar's heydays at Lalitha Kala Thoranam on Sunday with a song and dance programme. Nayan Rathod, the winner of K for Kishore, was among the singers who brought to life once again the immortal combination of Kishor Kumar's vocals and Rajesh Khanna's acting.

Hyderabadbased ice-cream brand Cream Stone launched its ďŹ fth outlet at South India Shopping Mall Complex, Kukatpally on Sunday. The store was inaugurated by Vice Chairman, APSRTC, AK Khan.

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

health

'PLAIN CIGARETTE PACKS COULD LOWER SMOKING’

Experts from the University of Cambridge's Behaviour and Health Research unit estimate that two years after the introduction of generic packaging, the number of adult smokers would be reduced by one percentage point in Britain from 21 to 20 per cent.

EMERGENCY MEDICATIONS

Beat the venom

There are an estimated 2,50,000 venomous snake bites in India every year. The dos and don’ts of treating a snake bite are often misunderstood. DEEPASHRI V

deepashri.v@postnoon.com

f you’re going trekking or on an outing to the outskirts of the City, or your backyard is one where snakes pay a regular visit, one thing you should know is what to do for immediate first aid to treat a snake bit, and what to avoid doing at any cost. People tend to panic, but more than 50 per cent of snake bites are not poisonous, said Dr Mahesh Joshi, head of emergency division at Apollo Hospitals. At the same time, people should not take it causally and must seek immediate medical attention at a proper institution that stocks anti-venom. “Drooping eye lids, breathing difficulties, swelling at the site of the bite, bleeding spontaneously, are some of the symp-

DON’Ts of snake bites n Do not try to suck the venom. This is bad for the one trying to do it and also might infect the bite victim. n Applying ice pack can drive the venom into the skin, according to the website. n Tourniquet should not be made as they cut off the blood supply completely. n Trying to capture the snake will only increase the chance of another person getting bitten. Source: SymptomFind.com

toms of poisoning (by snake bite),” said Dr Joshi. “(the biggest mistake is) people sit on it for such a long time.” Talking about first aid in such cases, he said before going to a hospital one must clean the area and immobilise it with a crape bandage, leaving a finger gap. Tourniquets, sucking the wound and letting it bleed are a

big no! The affected area must be at a level lower than the heart. Sanjay Balu, who rescues snakes in the City and is a member of Friends of Snakes Society, an organisation involved in snake conservation, said all multi speciality hospitals in the City stock anti-venom. Osmania, NIMs, Apollo, are some of them. According to the Friends of

Snake Society website, there are a reported 2,50,000 estimated venomous snake bites per year in India. Of that, it is estimated that there are at least 50,000 fatalities. Common Krait, Saw Scaled Viper, Indian Spectacled Cobra and Russell's Viper are called the “Big Four” in the website, as they are the main venomous snakes in India, and

these snakes are so prevalent that a common anti-venom has been developed for the bites from any of the four snakes. The common misconceptions in treating a snake bite and the time it takes to get proper medical attention remain areas of concern. People often aggravate the condition with wrong self medications.

HOUSECALL

DID YOU KNOW?

PIONEERS

Just 6 weeks

Multiple myeloma

2.5 tn RBCs in the body

Elizabeth Stern

That’s all you need to reach your goal. It is a personal trainer app that claims it can have you fit in no time using a series of programmes covering pushups, sit-ups, squats, dips and pull-ups. The app features automatic timer, reminders that notify you about the workout, statistics on exercises and export/import data.

Multiple myeloma is a type of cancer involving the plasma cells. Some symptoms of the multiple myeloma are bone pain, renal failure, recurring infections and anaemia. It is treated with chemotherapy. A commonly used chemotherapy regimen is the Vincristine, Adriamycin, and Dexamethasone. Thalidomides, velcades, melphalans, prednisones and interferons have also been used.

Research shows that there are 2.5 trillion (give or take) of red blood cells in your body at any moment. To maintain this number, about two and a half million new ones need to be produced every second by your bone marrow. That' s like a new population of the city of Toronto every second.

Canadian-born pathologist Elizabeth Stern (born September 19, 1915) joined the faculty of the University of California in 1963 as professor of epidemiology. While there, she tracked the 250 stages of a cell's progression from normal to cancerous, making early cancer screening possible. She also discovered a link between prolonged use of oral contraceptives and cervical cancer.

ANEWS PP-LYBRIEFS YOURSELF

health MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

BREAKTHROUGH

RESEARCH

Alcohol vaccine for hangover to be tested in India Doctors say this is the first time such a vaccine will be injected into people and if the results are positive, it will be available within two years. WASHINGTON: In a bid to tackle the growing problem of alcoholism, a new vaccine that gives alcoholics an immediate and heavy hangover will soon be tested in India after preclinical trials in Chile, researchers say. The preclinical trial preludes the phase one clinical trial in India, when doctors will inject people with the vaccine for the first time. If all goes well, the vaccination could be available as soon as two years from now, Santiago Times quoted Dr Juan Asenjo, director of the Institute for Cell Dynamics and Biotechnology at Universidad de Chile, as saying. The vaccine, which would be effective for between six months and a year, works by sending a biochemical message to the liver telling it not to express genes that metabolise alcohol. Normally, the liver turns alcohol into the hangover-causing compound called acetaldehyde, which is then broken down by a metabolising enzyme. If someone who’s been vaccinated tries to drink alcohol, they will immediately experience severe nausea, accelerated heartbeat, and general discomfort. Once the vaccine has been administered, it cannot be reversed, the report said. Asenjo thinks that although the vaccine is not a cure-all, it could provide an important first step. “People who end up as alcoholics have a social problem; a personality problem and then they get depressed. So it’s not so simple. But if we can solve the chemical, the basic part of the problem, I think it could help quite a bit,” Asenjo said. Asenjo said if all goes well, the vaccination could be available as soon as two years from now. The vaccine could affect hundreds of millions of alcoholics worldwide. “If it works, it’s going to have a worldwide impact, but with many vaccines one has to test them carefully. I think the chances that this one will work are quite high,” said Asenjo. The vaccine would work for six months to one year through RNA, which can control gene expression. The so-called anti-aldh2

antisense RNA acts as a messenger to tell the liver not to express genes that metabolise alcohol. In other words, the vaccine ups the ante on hangovers in order to discourage consumption. Asenjo said his research team in Chile is

heading up the only trial of alcohol vaccines in the world. The drug doesn’t ease intense cravings and has a high toxicity level. Coping with harsher hangovers is apparently a tough pill to swallow as patients often don’t continue taking the medicine as directed. PTI

Ibuprofen poses kidney injury risk for kids

WASHINGTON: Sick children who may be dehydrated by flu or other illnesses, risk significant kidney injury if given NSAIDs drugs such as ibuprofen and naproxen, say US researchers. Jason Misurac and colleagues from the Indiana and Butler Universities reported that nearly three per cent of cases of acute paediatric kidney injury over a decade could be traced directly to having taken non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). NSAIDs affect kidney function by restricting blood flow to the blood-filtering components of the kidneys and magnifying risks for children dehydrated by vomiting or diarrhoea, during an illness, Misurac was quoted as saying in the Journal of Paediatrics. The study included young patients who needed dialysis, and those who may have suffered permanent kidney damage, the researchers said, according to an Indiana statement. “These cases, including some in which patients’ kidney function will need to be monitored for years, as well as the cost of treatment, are quite significant, especially when you consider that alternatives are available and acute kidney injury from NSAIDs is avoidable,” Misurac, a fellow in paediatric nephrology at Indiana, said. Fever is normal during an infection and not in itself dangerous, he noted, so “one alternative to NSAIDs would be acetaminophen, but another alternative would be no medication at all, at least for a while, to let the body fight the infection”. The team evaluated medical records at Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana from January 1999 through June 2010 and found 1,015 cases in which patients had been treated for acute kidney injury from any cause. IANS

MENTAL HEALTH

Yoga helps in psychiatric cases

WASHINGTON: Yoga has shown promising results in major psychiatric disorders such as depression, schizophrenia, ADHD and sleep complaints, say findings from a review of over 100 studies. Emerging evidence in support of the 5,000-year-old Indian practice is “highly promising” and

showed that yoga may not only help to improve symptoms, but also may also prevent stress-related mental illnesses, said P Murali Doraiswamy, professor of psychiatry and medicine at Duke, who co-authored the study with Meera Balasubramaniam. Yoga has positive effects on mild depression, affecting more

than 350 million people globally, says WHO and sleep complaints, even in the absence of treatments, and improves symptoms tied to schizophrenia and ADHD which is linked with inattentiveness, over-activity, impulsivity, among children, the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry reports. Yoga is a popular exercise and

is practiced by 15.8 million adults in the US alone, according to a survey by the Harris Interactive Service Bureau. Yoga was found to influence key elements of the human body which are thought to play a role in mental health in similar ways to that of anti-depressants and psychotherapy. IANS

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

Entertainment NO TO TOLLYWOOD?

Sonam Kapoor& Mahesh Babu

are not a pair... yet

t was a crazy Sunday for Sonam Kapoor, who was inundated with queries about her debut in Telugu cinema. A section of media reported that she has signed Mahesh Babu’s next film tentatively titled Aagadu and when Sonam Kapoor was asked about this, she categorically denied the news. This isn’t the first time that Sonam Kapoor’s debut in Telugu has made news. Few years ago, there were rumours floating around that K Vishwanath might direct Sonam Kapoor in a Telugu film, which never happened. Moreover, Sonam Kapoor’s father Anil Kapoor had acted in numerous Hindi remakes of hit Telugu films like Swatimuthyam (Eeshwar), Pavithra Bandham, Pellichesukundham and Shubha Lagnam in the past which led credence to the rumours that he might convince her to act in a Telugu film. With Sonam Kapoor’s confession that she hasn’t signed Mahesh Babu’s film titled Aagadu, it looks like there’s still a long way to go before she changes her mind about acting in South Indian films. Currently, Sonam Kapoor is busy with the pre-production of Nupur Asthana’s upcoming Hindi film to be produced by Yash Raj Films and the remake of Khubsoorat. This year, she’ll be seen in two films including Anand L Rai’s Raanjhnaa in which she’s paired up with Dhanush and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag.

CINE BYTES It’s a working birthday for Shruti

t’s turning out to be a working birthday for Shruti Haasan, who turns 27 today. She’s currently in Hyderabad shooting for her upcoming Telugu ﬁlm Yevadu which has Ram Charan in the lead role. Apart from this ﬁlm, she’ll soon be seen in Ramaiya Vastavaiya, D Day and Balupu later this year.

Mirchi set to release on February 8

rabhas’ upcoming film Mirchi is all set to hit the screens on February 8. Directed by Koratala Shiva, the film has Prabhas, Anushka and Richa Gangopadhyay in lead roles. This action entertainer is set in Palnadu backdrop and it’s one of the most eagerlyawaited films of the year.

Rey nears completion

ai Dharam Tej’s debut film Rey is in the last stages of shooting. Apart from two songs and a fight sequence, the rest of the film’s shooting has been completed. Saiyami Kher and Shraddha Das are playing the lead roles in this musical love story. YVS Chowdhary is directing the film. The film will release in summer this year.

Entertainment MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

DIVAS GALORE

CINE BYTES

SRK, Priyanka bag two titles at Stardust awards

ollywood actors Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra bagged two awards each at the Stardust awards 2013 this year. While Priyanka won the Best actress (drama) for her film Barfi and the Star of the year award (female), Shah Rukh Khan won the Star of the year (male) and Best actor (editor’s choice) for Jab Tak hai Jaan. Anurag Basu’s Barfi was awarded the Best film award. IANS

‘Happy to do a small part in Vishwaroopam’

hekhar Kapur is proud of acting in Kamal Haasan’s dream project Vishwaroopam, which is currently banned in Tamil Nadu. “This movie is a man’s dream to prove that Indian cinema stands at par with the world. Kamal Haasan has put everything into it and I wish him the best. I am just happy to do a small part in Kamal Haasan’s Vishwaroopam,” he says. IANS

‘Singh Saheb The Great’ item number a tribute to Indian cinema

BIG B, B’WOOD DIVAS IN

ADNAN SAMI’S MUSIC VIDEOS?

inger-composer Adnan Sami plans to invite Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan and beauties like Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone to feature in the music videos of songs from his new album Press Play. The album, which was released ahead of schedule to

beat piracy, is doing well. Each of the songs is now expected to get a music video. Each of the tracks in the album will feature one Bollywood diva dancing with Adnan in the music videos. The names on the list include Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra, Sonakshi

Sinha, Sonam Kapoor and Asin. Talks are on with several actresses for what promises to be Adnan’s personal multi-starrer, said a source. “Years ago when Adnan did the album Tera Chehra, he got Rani Mukerji, Ameesha Patel and many other screen queens of that phase to do music videos.

Now when Adnan’s new album, which is his most personal and autobiographical album to date, has received such a warm reception, Adnan and his music company Universal have decided to carry the eleven tracks of Press Play forward with top notch music videos,” said a source very close to the project. IANS

ilmmaker Anil Sharma says he has finalised an actress to groove to an item number in his film Singh Saheb The Great that stars Sunny Deol in the lead. He says the number will be like a tribute to 100 years of Indian cinema. “We have finalised the girl who will be doing the item song. We will make an official announcement soon,” he says. IANS

Entertainment MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

DIETING WOES

CINE BYTES

Kristen Stewart not afraid of anything

ctress Kristen Stewart says she is not afraid of anything now and has accepted life as it comes. The 22-year-old had faced the ire of fans and was criticised publicly when she was caught cheating boyfriend Robert Pattinson, with director Rupert Sanders. “I have realised that you can close yourself off to life if you put walls up, but it’s a difficult thing," she said. IANS

Seann William Scott, Lindsay Frimodt end engagement

ASHTON KUTCHER

WAS “RUSHED TO HOSPITAL” WHILE DIETING FOR ‘JOBS’

shton Kutcher has revealed that a severe diet for the upcoming jOBS led to him being rushed to hospital. The Two and a Half Men star is playing Apple founder Steve Jobs in the upcoming biopic. BreakingNews.ie reports that Kutcher told USA Today about the health challenges of the role at a premiere of the movie at the Sundance Film Festival, saying: “First

of all, the fruitarian diet can lead to like severe issues. I went to the hospital like two days before we started shooting the movie. I was doubled over in pain. “My pancreas levels were like completely out of whack. It was really terrifying... considering everything." He also revealed what he views are his personal similarities with Jobs, saying: “We both have a ravenous interest in the tech space. He’s a guy that failed and got back on the horse.”

eann William Scott and Victoria’s Secret model Lindsay Frimodt have ended their engagement a few weeks shy of their one-year mark. Back in 2012, it was reported that Scott proposed to Frimondt on Valentine’s Day. A source told US Weekly: “They remain friends. It was a very amicable split.” IANS

Anna Paquin, Ellen Page back for ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past’

nna Paquin, Ellen Page and Shawn Ashmore are set to reprise their comic book roles in the upcoming X-Men: Days of Future Past. Director Bryan Singer announced on Twitter: “Very excited to welcome #annapaquin, @ellenpage & @shawnrashmore to #XMen #DaysofFuturePast thank you @BrettRatner for letting them live!"

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 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 Come unglued 6 Bob Marley was one 11 The Theatre Cat in “Cats” 14 Where the beverage cart rolls 15 Island known for immigration 16 Dinner plate scraping 17 Some county fair awards 19 A geisha may tie one on 20 Mark, as a ballot square 21 Associate of the id 22 “Mateo” or “Diego” lead-in 23 Of the surrounding environment 27 Infamous garden creature 29 Guy’s counterpart 30 Catches a performance 32 Leave flabbergasted 33 Scrapbook pastings 34 Syllables sung while skipping 36 Blueprint details 39 Ruler division 41 David’s weapon against Goliath 43 After-shoveling feeling 44 In the buff

46 Play matchmaker for 48 Baby beaver 49 Very dry, as a desert 51 The tide may do it 52 Denzel Washington film “The Book of ___” 53 Dartmouth College town 56 Double 58 Yeller’s adjective 59 Before, to Frost 60 Card that may be one or 11 61 Racetrack stop 62 With a hoarse timbre 68 Gabor of “Green Acres” 69 Cook’s utensil 70 Excruciating pain 71 Thieves’ place 72 Campaign poster word 73 The items over there

DOWN

1 Go on and on and on 2 Slick liquid 3 Sun Devils’ sch. 4 Prefix for “glas” or “glass” 5 Most weird 6 Confederate soldier, for short 7 Mass robe 8 Blackthorn fruits 9 Slight traces 10 Divides by type

11 Like some flexible lamps 12 Kind of renewal or sprawl 13 Stretch in the service 18 Archery target areas next to bull’s-eyes 23 One way you can say that 24 Miraculous fare 25 Drink made by mixing ale and stout 26 Dabbling ducks 28 Butterfly stage 31 More crafty 35 Those against 37 Texas cook-off dish 38 ___ motion (begin) 40 White-hat wearer, stereotypically 42 Painter Klimt or composer Mahler 45 Widely varied 47 Seaman’s jacket 50 Go off the tracks 53 Had one’s fingers crossed 54 Not yet eliminated 55 View anew 57 Sound by the bay? 63 Plumber’s pipe material (Abbr.) 64 “But on the other hand …” 65 Dove cry 66 Widths of typical characters 67 Hair coloring agent

Chai Time MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013 Thiruvaikumar

STAR POWER for 29-1-2013

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

ARIES

TAURUS

GEMINI

CANCER

LEO

VIRGO

LIBRA

SCORPIO

SAGITTARIUS

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

Avoid unwanted arguments and discussions. Be cordial with your neighbours and family members for peace at home. Businessmen might face a reduction in the margin. Avoid giving financial commitments through postdated cheques.

STRIP TEASE AGNES

Children will make you happy and proud. Employees are likely to get a pay hike and promotion too. Businessmen will get good co-operation from their staff. Bonding between couples will improve. Applied bank loan will get sanctioned.

Avoid emotional decisions. Legal issues and court cases might get delayed. Employees might face work burden but income will be abundant. Avoid sharing secrets, even with very close friends and relatives. Good events to be bring cheer.

Blood relatives will put you in an embarrassing situation. Maintain cordial relationship with those who lent you, else there might be misunderstandings. Court verdicts may go against you. Delay in travel and repair in vehicle likely.

Misunderstanding between couples will end. Those planning to go abroad will achieve success in their efforts. Employees will get good support from their colleagues. Business will pick up good speed and progress well.

Misunderstanding between couples will increase. If women are not keeping their cool, trouble is certain. Chances of a problem through children need special attention. Expected money may not come by.

Differences between couples will dissolve and they will lead a happy life hereafter. Marriage of a family member is likely to be successful. Debts issues will be under control and with your wise plans you will soon find an end to the vexed issue.

Minor tensions will come but one need not worry. Held up marriage talks will resume. Colleagues will create trouble at the workplace; hence be alert and avoid such problems carefully. Businessmen might face trouble in clearing their debts.

Money inflow will be as per your expectations and hence you will be in a comfortable situation. Management will not be able to use your skills properly. Good news from a distant relative is on the cards. New efforts will be successful.

TAROT READ

Sumaa Tekur

tarotreadhyd@gmail. com

ARIES:

GEMINI:

Ten of Swords — Bad advice has caused you to make decisions that lead to some kind of loss. Be prepared for change. You’ll get up and fight.

LEO:

Five of Swords — If your planning has been logical, then you will come out of this difficult time unscathed. Still, expect obstacles to the most well-laid plans.

LIBRA:

PEARLS BEFORE SWINE

Three of Wands — Team work is important. It will help you see your job in new light. Lend a patient ear to your coworkers and consider their ideas, too.

SAGITTARIUS:

Strength— Your patience will be tested by your partner who is restless today. That irritation is passed on to you. Stay calm and do not pick a fight.

TAURUS:

Ten of Cups— Spend time with family. Plan a weekend trip so you get quality time together. You need to switch off from the office to achieve work-life balance.

CANCER:

Nine of Cups — A chance encounter brings to your life the person of your dreams. There is sexual passion. You also experience strange synchronicity.

VIRGO:

Knight of Cups— You’re feeling emotional today. But make sure you’re not trampling on someone else’s feelings because you are not able to see beyond yourself.

SCORPIO:

The Hermit— You want to be left alone today. You’re working on finding answers to a tricky problem and would rather be on your own.

CAPRICORN:

Seven of Wands — Expect some good news in an email or letter from overseas. Consider all options carefully before you go ahead with a major move.

PREVIOUS SOLUTIONS

PISCES:

Ten of Pentacles — Money is in focus. You have recently made a number of choices that involve making more money. Ensure the tradeoff is worth it.

NUMBER GAME

Seven of Cups — You are focused on material possessions. There is some confusion over the things you are giving up to gain this material comfort. Think it through again.

SCRABBLE

AQUARIUS:

POOCH CAFE

Businessmen need to be focused and daring and can be sure of good profit margins. Artists will have a dull time. Politicians need to a maintain low profile and cordial relationship with seniors. Employees need to be careful.

for 29-1-2013

Queen of Wands — You gain new interest in a creative endeavour. It might be painting or music or some art form. Keep the interest alive and you might achieve something.

NON SEQUITUR

Might be in a dilemma with regards to decision-making. But decide after due thought. Minor misunderstanding between couples is likely. Expenses will increase but there will a deficit in the inflow which might keep you upset.

SUDUKO

Businessmen might face a tough time to get new business but need not worry; soon the situation will change. Employees might face disappointment, frustration and work burden.Those planning to go abroad will be successful.

Boggle SEAL WHALE WALRUS DOLPHIN Vol: 2, No 192 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 28, 2013

JENNIFER LAWRENCE

IS APPARENTLY BATTLING PNEUMONIA

UNDER THE WEATHER

CINE BYTES

'Fast & Furious 6' releases new image

he Fast and the Furious 6 has released a new image featuring its franchise stars Paul Walker and Vin Diesel. Walker and Diesel will reprise their roles as Brian O'Conner and Dominic Toretto in the new ﬁlm, which is planned for a May 24 release in the US and UK.

Age is just a number for Jennifer Lopez

inger Jennifer Lopez says she does not feel old and gives more importance to how she feels. "I feel youthful and in a sense almost timeless. In fact, I don't even think of myself in terms of age. I think of the way I feel — and that is very healthy and agile and ﬁt," Hello magazine quoted Lopez, 43, as saying. IANS

he Silver Linings Playbook actress admitted she was suffering from the flu on Golden Globes weekend and is apparently still under the weather. Jennifer's Silver Linings costar, Jackie Weaver, accepted the AACTA best actress award in LA on Jennifer's behalf. "Poor Jen is really sick," Jackie said as she took the podium. "She really is sick. She has pneumonia." Jennifer, who already picked up a Globes honour for her role in Silver Linings, is also up for a SAG Award this weekend. No word yet on whether she'll be able to attend the show, but we wish she recovers soon.

Kimberly Walsh nervous about first solo album

inger Kimberly Walsh is feeling jittery as her ﬁrst solo album nears its release. The 31-year-old, who is also the member of band Girls Aloud, is nervous about release of her album Centre Stage but says this is something which she always wanted to do. "It's weird having your own album and seeing the hard copy — it's freaking me out but it's exciting,” she says. IANS

sports

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

DECCAN BOOKMAKERS GOLCONDA DERBY

S BALAKRISHNA

SYED SHOAIB shoaib.s@postnoon.com HYDERABAD: Race lovers came out in their best attires and with loaded wallets to grace the big day of the Hyderabad Race Club on Sunday. Neither the fact that the derby here was scheduled the next day of the big Bangalore derby, nor the Telangana stir threat deterred ardent horseracing enthusiasts from thronging the Malakpet racecourse. Nine delightful races with big names in the field marked the occasion ensuring that the crowd had an eyeful of supreme action. Tintinnabulation won the Deccan Bookmakers Golconda Derby Stakes, the main event of the day. Guided by PS Chouhan, the four-year-old trained by LVR Deshmukh donkey-licked the field by a convincing margin of 5-3/4 lengths.

sports

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

FARMERS INSURANCE OPEN

TIGER TAKES CHARGE AT TORREY PINES

Tiger Woods strengthened his hold on the game, carving out a sixshot lead with 11 holes to play at the Torrey Pines course where he has won seven titles.

LA JOLLA, CALIFORNIA: Seeking the 75th victory of his legendary career, Tiger Woods fired a three-under par 69 in a third-round that was wiped out on Saturday by fog, then birdied three of the first seven holes in his fourth round before darkness halted play on Sunday. Woods was on 14-under par 202 after 54 holes, then birdied the par-3 third, parfour fourth and par-5 sixth before a par at the seventh at dusk left him on 17-under at a course where he has won six PGA events and the 2008 US Open. “I drove it great in the morning. I drove it on a string all day,” Woods said. “I’ve got 11 holes to play and I’ve got to go out and play them well.” Americans Nick

Watney and Brandt Snedeker shared second at 11-under with Canada’s Brad Fritsch fourth two shots further back. Snedeker had five holes to play. Watney had twice as many. Fritsch had 11 to finish.

No other rivals were within nine strokes of Woods, who could beat his record victory margin at the $6.1 million event. No other rivals were within nine strokes of Woods, who could beat his record victory margin at the $6.1 million event, an eight-stroke triumph in 2008. Woods has been the sole leader of an event 41 times after 54 holes and won 39 of those tournaments. Past success at Torrey

Pines has been a precursor to strong seasons from Woods, a 14-time major champion who at age 37 hopes to close the gap on the career record 18 major titles won by Jack Nicklaus after seasons diminished by injuries and the aftermath of an infamous sex scandal. A victory Monday would put Woods seven shy of Sam Snead’s all-time PGA title mark of 82. The Farmers would be the third event Woods has won seven times in his career, joining tournaments at Bay Hill and Firestone and all one shy of Snead’s PGA record eight career wins at Greensboro. Defending champion Snedeker, who rallied from seven strokes down to win the event last year, birdied three of the first six holes to charge again, but was only one-under over the next seven holes.

Tiger Woods studies the green during the Third Round at the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines South Golf Course on Sunday in La AFP/ DONALD MIRALLE Jolla, California.

SPORTS BRIEFS Anand shocked by Wang Hao, finishes joint third WIJK AAN ZEE, THE NETHERLANDS: World champion Viswanathan Anand suffered a shocking last-round defeat against Wang Hao of China and had to be content with a joint third ﬁnish at the 75th Tata Steel Chess tournament here. Having done decently so far, Anand ran out of steam in the last round and was outplayed by Wang Hao. Anand remained at sixth spot in the world rankings and stands to gain seven rating points from his efforts here. Magnus Carlsen of Norway completed the formalities of winning the crown after surviving a scare against Anish Giri of Holland. Carlsen was pushed to the wall but salvaged a half point to match Garry Kasparov’s best ever 10 points out of a possible 13 in this tournament. L Aronian of Armenia ended second on 8.5 points after a draw with Fabiano Caruana of Italy. PTI

Doping chief wants US decisions on Lance’s fate NEW YORK: American jurors and US anti-doping ofﬁcials should decide Lance Armstrong’s fate rather than the International Cycling Union, the main investigator who has chased Armstrong for years has said. US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) chief executive Travis Tygart spoke to the CBS television network in an interview broadcast on Sunday, saying he thinks the US Justice Department should join a fraud case against Armstrong. And Tygart also wants Armstrong to testify before USADA rather than the world cycling governing body UCI, saying USADA-gathered evidence contradicts Armstrong’s claims that UCI never assisted him in covering up a positive test. “He exonerated, essentially, the UCI and our information, and the evidence, is different than that,” Tygart said. “I think their involvement was a lot deeper in him pulling off this heist than he was willing to admit to.” AFP

AUSTRALIAN OPEN

Supreme Djokovic grinds down Murray

Djokovic, unbeaten in Melbourne since 2010, had hammered Murray in straight sets in the 2011 final and outlasted Rafael Nadal over 5hr 53min to claim last year’s trophy in the longest Grand Slam decider ever played. ROBERT SMITH Agence France-Presse MELBOURNE: World number one Novak Djokovic (right) wore down Andy Murray in an attritional four-set final to clinch a historic hat-trick of Australian Open titles and reaffirm his tennis supremacy on Sunday. The Serbian world number one lost the opening set in a tiebreaker but got progressively stronger to dominate the battle-weary Murray and win 6-7 (2/7), 76 (7/3), 6-3, 6-2. The punishing victory, fought out over 3hr 40min at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena, brought

What a joy, it’s an incredible feeling winning this trophy once more and it’s definitely my favourite Slam, my most successful Grand Slam. I love this court. Novak Djokovic Oz Open champion

Djokovic his fourth Australian crown and his sixth Grand Slam title overall, and confirmed him as the game’s best and toughest player. The 25-year-old became the first man in the Open Era and only the third ever to win three consecutive Australian Open titles, joining Australians Jack Crawford (1931-33) and five-time winner Roy Emerson (1963-67). “What a joy, it’s an incredible feeling winning this trophy once more and it’s definitely my favourite Grand Slam, my most successful Grand Slam. I love this court,” Djokovic said. Murray, the British world nu-

mber three, began strongly but he battled a left hamstring injury and blistered feet as Djokovic stepped up, winning the important points and most of the lungbusting long rallies. “I congratulate Novak. His record here is absolutely incredible and there are very few people who have managed to do what he’s done here. He’s a very deserved champion,” Murray said. “When you go two sets to one down, you know you really need to get off to a good start to the fourth set because most of the guys at the top of the game, when they get a lead and momentum it’s tough to stop them.

sports

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

INDIA-ENGLAND ODI SERIES

Two bright spots after a dark start to this year for India TWELFTH MAN

Babu Kalyanpur

one-day series win against England and the number one ODI ranking will be cause for at least a little satisfaction. However, the tame defeat in the final ODI has taken away some sheen from the overall results. A 4-1 victory would have stamped India’s dominance over England on her soil. A 3-2 win gave away some glory for the struggling England team. India are nowhere getting there yet. The shaky batting and the opening malaise has not been shaken off. The bowling has also looked ragged at times. The fielding, though, has been good. Thankfully India don’t play one-day matches for some time after this. This will give them time to reflect on the inconsistent performances recently. India must thank two players for the series victory. Suresh Raina was back at his best and he played many crucial knocks in the middle order. Unfortunately he threw away his wicket when a hundred beckoned. He was well aided by Ravindra Jadeja. The left-handed all-rounder performed well with both bat and ball.

He was the fulcrum around which the lower order played. He gave momentum to the side when needed or put his head down and grafted if the situation demanded it. He outshone all the other spinners in the side. His clever chance of pace befuddled many an England player. And around these two, skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni provided the finishing touches. But the top order must perform if India have to maintain the number one ranking. The vexed opening slot, once India’s strength in the heydays, remained shaky. Ajinkya Rahane was dumped and Rohit Shama found himself in the hot seat. Until then, Sharma’s innings in the last few games resembled a telephone number. But he came good on first try, getting a solid 83 in India’s victory in Mohali. However, the continual dismal form of Gautam Gambhir is worrying. From a confident player, Gambhir has become a tentative one. He still plays some of the glorious shots of the old but in between periods of tentativeness. Both Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Singh had a decent series but they need to fire regularly. Kohli seems to be getting back into his stride but needs to be a little more aggressive to be at his best. Yuvraj has promised much but hasn’t gone very far.

Hopefully the long break will help them press the refresh button. The bowling has been good at times. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been tidy and the wickets have come his way. Shami Ahmed has also done well but needs to stick to proper lengths in the slog overs. Ishant Sharma, when good,

has been unplayable. But the bouts of erratic bowling have spoilt his figures regularly. Ravichandran Aswin is now on a downward curve. As Dhoni says, he has been trying too many variations. The off-spinner needs a big rethink because he is a fine bowler and a little bit of help from the coaching staff is the

need of the hour. England come away from the series with some positives. At least they lost honourably this time. After racking up a big score in the first ODI, England’s batsmen went into a slumber before waking up in the final match. The real find for England has been Joe Root. For a man so young, he seems very mature. He took to the one-day version very easily and for an elbow up type of a player, he certainly stretched them in all directions to play some audacious shots. Root will be firmly entrenched in future England sides. Cook played steadily throughout but Kevin Pietersen was not his dominating self. Though he did not fail, Pietersen did not carry away matches on his own. Ian Bell played two fine innings which set up England’s win in-between periods of inconsistency. Eoin Morgan had an ordinary series. James Tredwell was easily England’s best bowler while Steve Finn, when not knocking over the stumps, did have some good spells. England will be a much better side once some of the regulars return. The series brought out a few positives for both teams. England’s Subcontinent blues at least had a few upbeat sounds to it. For India, a victory was the need of the hour and they got it.

India hand Eng parting gift DHARAMSALA: England defeated India by seven wickets in the final one-dayer of the five-match series at the HPCA stadium here today. England captain Alastair Cook was full of praise for centurion Ian Bell (left), who scored an unbeaten 113 to guide England to overhaul the target with 16 balls to spare. Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni today said had India batted "more sensibly", the hosts could have won the fifth and final ODI here and wrapped up the series by a bigger margin. Sent into bat, India were all out for 226 and Dhoni said

the home team were 30-35 runs short of the target they would have liked to set before England at the picturesque HPCA Stadium which made

its ODI debut today.

BRIEF SCORES INDIA: 226 all out 49.4 in 50 overs (Suresh Raina 83, Tim

Bresnan 4/45) ENGLAND: 227/3 in 47.2 overs (Ian Bell 113no, Eoin Morgan 40no; Ravindra Jadeja 1/21). PTI

India claim No 1 rank

We won imp toss: Cook

Statistical highlights

DHARAMSHALA: India today snatched the number one rank from England in One-dayers, courtesy their impressive 3-2 series-win over the visitors. India lost the fifth ODI here today by seven wickets but it was a dead rubber. India, which started the series in third place at 117 ratings points, ended at 119.

ngland captain Alastair Cook today admitted that it was an "important toss to win" and they possibly couldn't have lost the match once his bowlers dismissed India's top four batsmen for only 49 runs during the fifth and final ODI here. "It was an important toss to win. But you still have to execute your skills.”

India posted their fourth series-win in succession against England in India in the Limited-Overs Internationals. Suresh Raina has become the 13th Indian player to complete 4,000 runs in ODIs. Raina has managed 277 runs in the series at an average of 92.33.

MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013

sports SERIE A

Napoli close gap on leaders Juve JUSTIN DAVIS Agence France-Presse MILAN: Edinson Cavani scored his league-leading 18th goal in Serie A this season to take Napoli to within three points of leaders Juventus as Parma lost their unbeaten home record on Sunday. Juventus had spurned the chance to secure an eight-point lead on Saturday when they were denied a last-gasp penalty in a 1-1 draw at home to Genoa. Juve coach Antonio Conte later called for referee Marco Guida’s resignation after he refused to point to the spot when the ball came off the forearm of Genoa defender Andreas Granqvist in the final minute of injury time. “The rules are clear, the arm must be close to the body. In such cases, you have to hand in your refereeing licence,” said Conte. Juve president Beppe Marotta hit out at the fact the referee originates from near Naples. “Making him officiate Juve isn’t putting him in the best possible conditions. Furthermore, I ask myself what is the point of having six officials if the referee and goal-line official are not on the same wavelength?” he said.

BENITEZ RUES FIXTURE PILE-UP AFTER FA CUP SCARE Interim manager Rafael Benitez admits his Chelsea players are beginning to suffer from the demands of a congested fixture list after securing an FA Cup replay at third-tier Brentford. The Spaniard was relieved his side recovered after twice falling behind to the League One club.

FA CUP

LA LIGA

Liverpool humbled, Chelsea escape Rodgers fumes at under-performers

Liverpool became the fifth Premier League team to go out of the FA Cup to lowerleague opposition in three days.

OLDHAM, UK: Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers castigated his players after they crashed to a sensational defeat at third-tier Oldham Athletic in the FA Cup fourth round. Rodgers named fringe players Brad Jones, Sebastian Coates, Jack Robinson and Jordan Henderson in his starting XI at Boundary Park and the plan back-fired as the 18time English champions were beaten 3-2 by League One Oldham. Striker Matt Smith was the hosts’ match-winner on Sunday, scoring twice either side of a Luis Suarez goal.

TOM WILLIAMS Agence France-Presse LONDON: Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur were both dumped out of the FA Cup by lower-league sides on Sunday, on a day of sensational fourthround upsets that also saw Chelsea scrape a 2-2 draw at lowly Brentford. The magnitude of the shocks seemed to increase as the day progressed, with Chelsea’s near miss followed by Spurs’ 2-1 loss at Championship side Leeds United before Liverpool went down 32 at third-tier Oldham Athletic. Liverpool’s loss was the most remarkable, with 80 places in the English league pyramid having separated the sides prior to kick-off at a rain-

soaked Boundary Park. FA Cup semi-finalists in 1994, Oldham made an ideal start when Matt Smith headed them in front in the third minute from Youssouf M’Changama’s left-wing cross. Liverpool replied in the 17th minute through stand-in

Messi hits 4, shatters another record DERMOT LEDWITH Agence France-Presse MADRID: Lionel Messi (below) hit four and Cristiano Ronaldo a hat-trick as Barcelona and Real Madrid warmed up for their Spanish Cup semi-final on Wednesday with 5-1 and 4-0 victories over Getafe and Osasuna on Sunday. Meanwhile second placed Atletico Madrid, who split the two giants at the top of the league, lost ground losing 3-0 at Athletic Bilbao. Atletico’s defeat means Barcelona stretch the lead to eleven points at the top while Real are now only four behind their city rivals in third place.

captain Luis Suarez, only for Smith to restore the hosts’ lead in first-half injury time when he tapped in following a mistake by visiting goalkeeper Brad Jones. A glorious Reece Wabara header extended Oldham’s advantage early in the second period.

PREMIER LEAGUE PREVIEW

City spy chance against United Manchester City can cut the gap to just two points with victory against out of form Queens Park Rangers on Tuesday. LONDON: Having trailed Premier League leaders Manchester United by seven points as recently as January 18, Manchester City fancy their chances of closing the gap with a win over QPR. United would be able to restore their advantage by beating Southampton on Wednesday, but City’s trip to the league’s bottom club gives them an opportunity to inject tension into a title race. City won 1-0 at Stoke City on Saturday to reach the fifth round of the FA Cup, but victory came at a cost as captain Vincent Kompany was forced off in the first half with a calf injury. The English champions have

ruled Kompany out of the trip to QPR, leaving manager Roberto Mancini with Matija Nastasic and Joleon Lescott as his only available senior centre-backs.

City overcame Stoke through a strike from right-back Pablo Zabaleta (right), whose thoughts quickly switched to an opportunity on United. TW/ AFP

Top10 (played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, goals against, points)

Tuesday games

n Manchester United n Manchester City n Chelsea n Tottenham n Everton n Arsenal n Liverpool n West Bromwich n Swansea City n Stoke City

Aston Villa Vs Newcastle United, Queens Park Rangers Vs Manchester City, Stoke City Vs Wigan Athletic, Sunderland Vs Swansea City

23 23 23 23 23 23 23 23 23 23

18 2 3 57 30 56 15 6 2 45 19 51 13 6 4 47 22 45 12 5 6 40 28 41 9 11 3 35 26 38 10 7 6 46 27 37 9 7 7 40 28 34 10 4 9 33 32 34 8 9 6 34 27 33 6 11 6 22 27 29

(1945GMT)

Mikel San Jose headed the first of the game from a corner on 50 minutes for Athletic Bilbao who move into twelfth. Markel Susaeta doubled the lead on 77 minutes, finishing well after running onto a delightful through ball from Ander Herrera. The third was again superb counter-attacking play from the Basques when Oscar De Marcos finished off a crisp passing move. Atletico missed their topscorer Radamel Falcao, out with injury, but had their chances in a game closer than the scoreline suggests. Messi earlier became the first player to score in eleven consecutive La Liga matches when he hit four as Barcelona eased past ten-man Osasuna. Osasuna remain in the relegation zone on 18 points, two from safety. Messi now has 33 goals for the season.