Postnoon E-Paper for 07 january 2013 by Scribble Media & Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 HYDERABAD

WWW.POSTNOON.COM

32 PAGES

WEATHER: A MIX OF CLOUDY AND CLEAR SKIES; 25°C

NICOLAS UNCAGED

On his 49th birthday, we revisit the works of Nicolas Kim Coppola Cage, who is arguably one of the most prolific actors to have ever graced the screen. We revisit some of his finest films.

P16&17

HYDERABAD’S FIRST COMPACT AFTERNOON NEWSPAPER

AKBAR RETURNS, PROMPTLY FALLS SICK M ANIL KUMAR

AND THE HOTTEST WOMAN OF 2013 IS...

Just when you thought AskMen's Most Desirable Woman of 2012, Jennifer Lawrence, was going to walk away with all the “hot” awards this year, Katy Perry sneaks up from behind and lands the number one spot.

P28

REPORT ON P3 Akbaruddin Owaisi, facing hate-speech charges, landed in the City early this morning, and now claims to be ill.

LOVE, SEX AUR MISOGYNY The influence of cinema on society has been a subject of vociferous debate ever since the Delhi gang rape shook the entire nation. Is cinema, among many other things, also part of the problem? The answer might lie in the portrayal of women in our movies.

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

city events

THE MONSOON ORACLE

The Monsoon Oracle is a factual film based on ritualistic practices that take places in the country. It revolves around the rituals performed, predicting the arrival of monsoon. The event will be held at NIFT Madhapur on January 25, from 7:30pm onwards.

Weather for Hyderabad

Evening

Overnight

Morning

Afternoon

25°C

18°C

23°C

31°C

A mix of clear and cloudy skies.

A mix of cloud and sun.

New Delhi Mumbai Max 12 Max 30 Min 3 Min 20 Clear skies.

Mostly sunny and clear skies.

Chennai Max 30 Min 23 Mix of sun and cloud.

Bangalore Max 29 Min 18

Partly cloudy skies.

AROUND THE CITY: YOUR GUIDE TO THE TWIN CITIES DINING

MISCELLANEOUS

Punjabi Food Festival There will be a bonfire and Punjabi delicacies like Murgh Tikka Anari, Gosht Ka Saag, Sarson Da Saag, Makki Da Roti and Doodhi Halwa will be served. Where: The Square, Hitech City When: Up to January 20 Contact: (040) 6682 4422

Transpersonal counseling Art & Science of Self-Actualization is a foundation course in transpersonal counselling by clinical psychologist Sujata Potay. Where: Center for Organization Dev Madhapur When: January 19-April 27 Contact: 9849453045

Gloria Jean’s coffee Gloria Jean’s, an international coffee chain, has introduced two new flavours for this season: Creamy Christmas Chocolate and Snowy Christmas Chiller. Gloria Jean’s Coffees will also give all its customers a chance to win exotic holidays in India and Thailand. Where: Lifestyle, first floor, Begumpet and Unit No.G 49 A, Inorbit Mall, Madhapur When: Up to January 15 Contact: (040) 4221 9376

ART

Numaish Numaish is the 73rd All India Industrial Exhibition is an ongoing event in the City. Where: Exhibition Ground, Mukarramjahi Road, Nampally, When: Up to February 15, 4pm to 11pm Contact: (040) 2460 3015

WATER WAY: A child performs folk music with his bull for the Sankranti festival at Shilparamam. The festival will go SRINIVAS SETTY on up to January 15.

lah and other stories. Where: Iconart Gallery, Banjara Hills When: Up to January 12 11:30am to 7pm Contact: www.iconart.in

Paintings exhibition Drawing and paintings by Siddhartha, Kappari Kishan & Shivanand Basavanthappa. Where: Shrishti Art Gallery, Jubilee Hills When: Up to January 15 Contact: (040) 2354 0023 Chai wallah art show There is an exhibition of paintings by Vijay Gille at the gallery on Chai wal-

Code Red Countdown Code Red Countdown is an art collection revolving around ecology, by New York based artist Asher Jay. The theme is endangered wildlife. Where: Lalitha Kala Thoranam, Public gardens When: January 27 6pm to 9:30pm Contact: 93965 55888

SHOWS Bonjour India festival The Bonjour India festival, a celebration of Indo-French cultural exchange, is being held for the sec-

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

ond time in India. The cultural calender for the same has been published by Alliance Française of Hyderabad. Where: Contact office for venues and dates When: January-March 9am to 6pm Contact: (040) 2770 0734 The Republic Ride The biggest corporate cycling event at Hyderabad is being organized by The Atlanta Foundation on republic day. The aim is to promote educational programs for underprivileged children. Where: Gachibowli Stadium When: January 26, 6:15am onwards Contact: atlantafoundation.org Krishnakriti festival Krishnakriti Art & Culture festival

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

2013 is starting on January 7. The inauguration and talk on the first two days will be held at Kalakriti. The time and agenda for the rest of the dates are available with Kalakriti. Where: Kalakriti Art Gallery When: January 7-11 7pm onwards Contact: (040) 6656 4466 Tribute to Rajesh Khanna There will be dance performances on Rajesh Khanna’s songs to pay tribute to the superstar. The dance will be choreographed by Mahesh L Munde, who has choreographed national and international performances. Where: Lalitha Kala Thoranam, Public gardens, Hyderabad When: January 27 6pm to 9:30pm Contact: 93965 55888

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

Photo competition Alliance Francaise, Hyderabad, is conducting a photo competition. The theme for the contest is Professions of the world. The winning entries will be sent to Paris. Where: http://hyderabad.afindia.org When: Up to January 10 Cotton & Silk Mela Lepakshi Handicrafts Emporium is organizing a cotton and silk mela, an exclusive handloom exhibition cum sale. Where: TTD Kalyanmandapam, Himayath Nagar, Liberty X roads When: Up to January 10 11am to 9pm Contact: (040) 2323 5028

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 7, 2013

City

YESTERDAY’S QUESTION

SHOULD POLITICIANS MAKING HATE SPEECHES BE DEBARRED? 89% 11%

YES (A) NO (B)

TODAY’S QUESTION

IS IT RIGHT TO REVEAL VICTIM X’S NAME? A)

YES

To vote visit www.postnoon.com

POLITICS

Owaisi returns, claims he’s ill

Akbaruddin Owaisi, facing hate-speech charges, landed in the City early this morning, and now claims to be ill. He is unlikely to appear at the Nirmal police station, even as doctors have been summoned to check his condition.

Mohd SUBHAN mohd.s@postnoon.com

IM workers sought to give a ‘hero’s’ welcome to the hate speech suspect and party’s floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi, when he landed at the City airport around 3.45am this morning. Cries of “CM down, down” and “Tiger Owaisi Zindabad” rent the air as around 1,000 party followers, including six MLAs, greeted Owaisi as he emerged from the RGI airport. A huge police posse prevented supporters from surging ahead and surrounding him. The po-

lice erected barricades at the airport’s exit. Owaisi is in the dock, faced with three cases of hate speech that he allegedly delivered at public meetings in Cyberabad, Nizamabad, and Adilabad last month. The speech, allegedly, was calculated to rouse communal feelings of the Muslim community. Following court orders, the police issued summons to him to appear before investigating officers for interrogation and clarification. Owaisi travelled in his vehicle to his home in Banjara Hills Rd No12. Assauddin Owaisi, his elder brother and party chief met him at his home. Meanwhile,

Owaisi now claims to be ill and doctors were summoned to his residence. According to sources close to Owaisi, he is unlikely to submit himself to the Nirmal police station as demanded, and may go to the party headquarters Darussalam in the afternoon. Instead, his lawyers will represent him at the police station. They also said that the party believes the CDs presented by complainants about his hate speech would not stand the scrutiny of law, and therefore Owaisi need not strain himself. His lawyers have sought four days time for him to appear for interrogation, it is learnt.

city MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

GOVERNANCE

LAST YEAR... HERE ‘Fire safety at hospitals

Hi-tech City has no tech for many depts

ast year we had reported on how the GHMC had begun to crack the whip on private and corporate hospitals for non-compliance of fire safety norms, following a fire mishap at a Kolkata hospital which killed many people. GHMC fire safety wing assistant director told Postnoon that notices will be issued to hospitals violating fire safety norms.

JANUARY 7, 2012

Ignorance of some governmental agencies on IT and its potential is astonishing, as Postnoon finds out.

NUMEROLOGY

100

is the number of assembly seats that JP’s Lok Satta is aiming at, much like the TRS. In 2008, it was able to secure 10 per cent votes in the assembly by-elections.

Insensitive film makers emerge from an insensitive society. These film makers then make insensitive films that influence that same society...the cycle continues. Anna MM Vetticad, author See page 5

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

Need for sensitive and sensible ﬁlms. Film critics and writers feel that the way women are portrayed in Indian cinema inﬂuence the way the society thinks and treats its women.

Jails turn into knowledge hubs for criminals. An infamous duo make the best of every jail sentence, updating themselves with the latest skills acquired from the seasoned veterans.

Old City traders hope for festive miracle. After the communal tensions of the last few months, traders in the Old City hope to do brisk business during Sankranti.

Government departments need to have websites. Though it is mandatory for government departments to maintain websites, many of these are outdated or dysfunctional.

Politicians should not be given special allowances. Owaisi claims to be sick and his supporters feel he needn’t strain himself by going to the police.

RAHUL RAMAKRISHNA rahul.r@postnoon.com

hen a Right To Information (RTI) activist asked a Lokayukta functionary as to why Hyderabad’s Lokayukta does not have a website, pat came the reply, “There is no money. Will you pay for the website?” This sheds light on the state of many government departments, who either have no website of their own or their sites are dysfunctional. RTI to National Informatics Centre (NIC), mandated with providing websites to governmental arms, evokes no reply. There are easily over a dozen departments who have web websites. Not long ago, the centre for good governance had carried a late chief minister as its ministerial head. What more to say? Soon after, however, the officials woke up and did some damage control. Among the many “under construction” and dysfunctional websites are the Rajiv Vidya Mission, AP Public Services Commission, Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh National Green Corps and Hyderabad’s water board. The GHMC too is part of this bandwagon that has not updated the list of officers who have in the past six months been transferred out of their portfolios.The water board’s director list is yet to name J Syamala Rao as its managing director. The website still carries the name of the previous MD. According to RTI activist Srikanth Reddy, “Every government department’s website

needs to be updated with annual reports. Also, a separate section for RTI should be made. Some of the websites fail to launch and when they do, they are in the most decrepit state that can absolutely offer no services.” Despite making it mandatory in the RTI Act of 2005 that all government agencies and departments ought to carry the RTI section, complete with RTI appellate authority and the names and contact addresses of the officers involved, most of AP’s websites remain incomplete. Most of the contact numbers of local officers on the GHMC’s website are yet to be updated. “We often end up calling the wrong officer of the wrong designation when we refer to the

Most of the contact numbers of local officers on the websites are to be updated. Activists feel there is no point of having an outdated list. website. What then is the point of the contact links anyway?” asks Srikanth. The police department too is yet to maintain and refresh its contacts on the website. “Officers get transferred and posted elsewhere every year and some of the City’s police officers’ numbers in the website provided are completely false or

never work.” Officials from the department explain that this predicament is because of the lack of a web monitoring team. Admin inspector of Hyderabad traffic police AV Srinivas says, “ Most of the departments either do not have a web team or the staff who handle the websites are not qualified enough. For example, our website’s e-challan records need to be updated every minute and this is a herculean task for people who are not technically sound in handling web services. Hence the problem.” While that is the case, we wait for the NIC to reveal what has been done on their part in developing the many websites of the AP Government.

NEWS BRIEFS TRS blames YSRCP, MIM for riots

Engineering colleges threaten closure

Naidu slams CM for power hike

Twelve cases against Owaisi for hate speech

he TRS accused YSRCP and MIM leaders of hatching a conspiracy to engineer communal riots, with the intention of delaying the formation of Telangana state. K Tarakarama Rao, TRS MLA, alleged that YSRCP was trying to sabotage the Telangana movement by propping communal rivalry with the help of MIM.

emanding the State government to clear their dues under fee reimbursement by January 20, the managements of private engineering colleges on Sunday threatened that they would close their institutions. According to them, the State government is yet to clear arrears of `200 crore for the academic year 2011-12.

pposition party leader Chandrababu Naidu berated the Congress for effecting unprecedented hike in power charges. He said it was shameful for the CM’s party to allow this increase. He felt that it would be a huge burden for the people of the State to bear. Naidu alleged that the CM pocketed `400 crore in the purchase of coal deals.

JP today rallied in Nirmal area of Adilabad district, demanding immediate arrest of hate-speech suspect and MIM leader Akbaruddin Owaisi. The party has also called for an Adilabad bandh. Many shops and educational institution were closed in Nirmal. The number of cases against Owaisi has gone up to 12 across the nation.

city MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

WOMEN IN CINEMA

Love, Sex aur misogyny

The influence of cinema on the society has been a subject of vociferous debate ever since the Delhi gang rape shook the entire nation. Is cinema, among many other things, also part of the problem? The answer might lie in the portrayal of women in our movies. HEMANTH KUMAR hemanth.k@postnoon

he never ending debate whether art imitates life or vice versa is once again in the limelight. It’s been almost three weeks since Victim X was brutally raped in Delhi and the incident left a deep void in our lives, forcing us to question our morality. Crime against women has been rising alarmingly and there’s no counter argument to the fact that we have failed as a society. Of late, a lot of people have been pointing fingers at the portrayal of women and misogyny in cinema as one of the reasons behind this problem. Objectification of women is not uncommon in movies and it is becoming all the more prominent as we progress. Since film industries across the country are dominated by men, it’s even more difficult to understand the perspective of women while discussing the issue of misogyny in cinema. We don’t listen and that’s a big problem. One of the major trends in cinema, since as early as 70s, has been the portrayal of rape. At one point of time, every big star’s film had to have a rape scene, which would be a major turning point in the film. No filmmaker or actor or a film would ever support this gruesome act, but has this trend desensitised an entire generation of movie goers when it comes to crime against women? Anna MM Vetticad, the author of The Adventures of an Intrepid Film Critic, says, “Rape scenes were frequently used in 1970s and 1980s Bollywood films to titillate the audience. A film maker’s intentions are usually evident in the manner of the portrayal of the crime, and those scenes in films starring the likes of Ranjeet are appalling. But there is no point in blaming the film industry alone. Insensitive film makers emerge from an insensitive society. These film makers then make insensitive films that influence that same society which then produces more insensitive film makers and so the cycle continues. Thankfully, today you rarely see such horrid rape scenes in mainstream Bollywood films, but rape jokes are not infrequent. Using this heinous crime as a tool for humour obviously contributes towards desensitising

movie-goers. That those who have done so include film makers of the stature of Rajkumar Hirani and Imtiaz Ali makes matters even worse.” You may argue that films have not desensitised you in any manner, but how certain can one be when so many films have made violation of one’s private space look cool? Eve-teasing, slapping women and stalking, which are some of the common ingredients in cinema, are part of our lives today. Shehla Rashid, a gender activist, says, “People don’t even intervene when a girl is being eve teased on the roads. The sense of crime gets impaired in case of women. What’s even worse is filmmakers have been perpetuating the idea that it’s cool to hang out and have fun with women who wear western clothes, but when it comes to

marriage, you should always look for a homely Indian girl. Movies do influence the society to a certain extent.” Misogyny and portrayal of rape in movies is just the beginning of a gruelling journey for the victim. The aftermath of the incident is far more gruesome and it requires a great deal of sensitivity to portray the emotional upheavals which the victim goes through. Some of the films like the Rishi KapoorMeenkashi Seshadri starrer Damini, Venkatesh-Soundarya starrer Pellichesukundham and 22 Female Kottayam have dealt with this issue in a sensitive manner, whereas Seema Biswas starrer Bandit Queen was quite graphic. Rima Kallingal, who played the lead role in the critically acclaimed Malayalam film 22 Female Kottayam, reveals, “My director Aashiq Abu was clear that he didn’t want the audience to have a voyeuristic view of the brutal act while portraying rape and he wanted to show only the voice of the character’s pain. It was mentally and emotionally difficult to get into the shoes of Tessa, the character I played in the film, and the whole crew was

in a state of depression when we heard about the incident in Delhi. The grief, loneliness and anger that a victim goes through is simply unimaginable.” Sexual innuendos in dialogues and lyrics are another chapter of the larger picture. Do item numbers make you cringe? What about the lyrics which have innumerable references to

sex? “There are so many sahityas in classical compositions which are full of erotica. A lot of people say that vulgarity in songs is affecting the minds of children. But I don’t understand the point of blaming films alone. I think as a society we are a failure and there is no point in blaming one thing or the other. Our society

teaches men to oppress and women to bear oppression. This is a period of change where women are raising their voices. And the intelligence and self sufficiency of so many women will hurt the average or below average man,” Chinmayi, a popular singer, says. Are films merely a source of entertainment which shouldn’t be taken seriously? That’s certainly what the film industry would claim since every argument about the negative impact of cinema is met with a question about why a positive message through a film doesn’t make an impact. All said and done, portrayal of women is at times quite demeaning. Some people even refuse to acknowledge that misogyny exists in our films. Has this notion become completely ingrained in our psyche that we don’t think it’s a problem? “Misogyny in Bollywood is reflected not just in specific scenes and stories, but also in the industry’s overall refusal to invest in scripts with strong female characters, the unsubstantiated claim that such films don’t make money and the insistence on casting men as heroes, with actresses young enough to be their daughters, the assumption obviously being that women of those men’s age are too unattractive to be heroines,” Anna Vetticad says. As a film critic and writer, I am continuously disappointed at how film fans tell me to ‘relax’ because it’s ‘just a film,’ when I insist on discussing such issues in my writings. The bigger the star, the greater the number of irritated fans. It makes me angry but I’m not about to give up, because if I give up, then I’m being as irresponsible as the film industry people, who claim that their films don’t influence society. I feel that every single word uttered has the potential to influence at least one human being out there, and it’s our job to never give up trying in spite of the flak,” she says. Change, like most things in life, will not happen overnight, especially in our films. But the least we can expect is a little more sensitivity while objectifying women on screen. A good step could be to stop making actresses look like barbie dolls to appease the carnal desires of the men. Now, that would be a fine start.

city MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

POLITICS

Lok Satta too aims for 100 seats Though a mackerel among whales, JP’s Lok Satta too is aiming for 100 Assembly seats much like the TRS.

INKESHAF AHMED ahmed.m@postnoon.com

stituencies it contested. Party president Jayaprakash Narayana won the election from Kukatpally Assembly constituency. Though the party could not succeed in winning majority number of seats in the general elections, it succeeded in denting the winning prospects of rival political parties like Congress, TDP, Praja Rajyam Party by securing 1.72 per cent of votes across the State. Interestingly, the party did well in all urban areas by securing 6.4 per cent of votes.

t is not only the AIMIM which is on a consolidationand-expansion spree these days, Lok Satta Party, is also aiming to expand its base across the state. The party is led by former bureaucrat Jayaprakash Narayan, who is also its lone MLA in the State Assembly. The party came into existence in October 2, 2006 with a promise to usher in clean politics and 15 novel objectives including reforming the existing system. Some of these objectives included establishing a new political culture placing all citizen at the centre of governance, protecting the unity and integrity of India at all times and create a secular and just republic in which citizen will be the true sovereign and create a political, economic and social environment for ensuing equal opportunities for vertical mobility to all sections of society irrespective of caste, ethnicity, reli-

TARGET 100 ASSEMBLY SEATS

gion or gender. While the party, despite being a new outfit, was able to secure 10 per cent votes in the Assembly by-elections held in 2008. The bypolls helped the party send out a strong signal to

rival political parties not to take it lightly. In the crucial 2009 general elections, the Loksatta party succeeded in opening its account in the Assembly by winning one seat out of the total 294 con-

POLITICS

KCR hoodwinking people with dialogues: Vimalakka

ocial activist Vimalakka has lambasted TRS chief K Chandrasekhara Rao stating that he uttered attractive dialogues to hoodwink the people. She has questioned how long he could think he could keep the people of Telangana under illusion. Vimalakka said KCR had failed to turn the Telangana movement into a mass fight. She lamented that it was only due to his failure that there were suicides in the region. She exhorted the youth to stay alive and

fight and not commit suicide. She has questioned KCR to explain about the need to wait till 2014 for achieving Telangana. She also asked how those who could not oppose

State violence could lead the movement successfully. She advised KCR to desist from misleading the people in the name of the Telangana movement. It may be mentioned here that Vimalakka was arrested for raiding the toll gate as part of the Telangana movement. She was released on bail recently. Though several civil organisations and Opposition parties condemned her arrest, TRS had not spoken about it. The TDP had even faulted the TRS for its silence.

The party is focussing on getting 100 Assembly seats in the next general elections. As part of the plan, Loksatta is planning to strengthen itself in all these Assembly seats by encouraging membership drive and organising other party related activities. “Our main objective is to consolidate our position in all these 100 assembly seats. We are currently

The party is focussing on getting 100 Assembly seats in the next general elections. As part of the plan, it is planning to strengthen itself in the seats. holding membership drive in all these constituencies. The response we are getting for this drive is excellent," Loksatta party general secretary Katari Srinivas Rao told Postnoon. He further added that the membership drive will continue till the end of this month. Interestingly, most of these assembly seats are urban assembly seats. "Our strong vote base is in urban and semi-urban areas as majority of the urban residents are attracted towards our party's objectives and ideologies. So, we are focussing on the urban assembly seats as part of our plan," he said.

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EMPLOYMENT

‘Regularise contract workers’ P

rof Hara Gopal on Sunday said that regularisation of contract workers was a constitutional right. He was speaking at a seminar organised by Progressive Contract & Casual Workers Union at Sundarayya Vignana Kendram, Bagh Lingampally here. Haragopal accused the State govern-

ment of dealing with the contract and casual workers against the rules enshrined in the Constitution. He lamented that though the contract, casual and outsourcing workers were discharging duties on par with the permanent employees, the government was not paying them reasonably. NSS

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classifieds MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

CRIME For the seventh time two men are caught and jailed for committing thefts and burglary. When they were jailed for similar crimes in the past, they perfected their art and formed syndicates.

How jails became schools of crime

CLASSIFIEDS Lingam is said to love both wine and women and he needed money for both. He has a couple of ‘girl friends’ whose maintenance also cost him money.

HEALTH/ CLINIC

Mohd SUBHAN mohd.s@postnoon.com

K HOME APPLIANCES

arkhana police have again arrested two men on charges of commiting several burglaries in various parts of the twin cities. D Balalingam and his friend R Mahesh are charged with thefts and burglary in the City, Medak, Karinmagar districts. Seized from

them are 11 tolas of gold and other electronic equipment, said ACP Mahankali GP Vasusena. Balalingam, 30, is the alleged brain who befriended Mahesh and offered to form a partnership. They were remanded earlier for crimes committed in Kushaiguda, Alwal, Tirumalgherry, Karkhana, CCS, Gavraram of Medak Dist and Jammikunta of Karimnagar distirct police station areas.

Balalingam was released from jail in November 2012 after a term for the same offence. After Mahesh joined the ‘enterprise’ they extended the operations to districts. Lingam is said to love both wine and women and he needed money for both. He has a couple of ‘girl friends’ whose maintenance also cost him money. It is said that each time he comes out of jail, he has a bigger scheme and list of friends who could associate with him. Jail has been proving a college for him.

PROTEST

Nava Bharat demands stringent law

he Nava Bharat National Party recently held a dharna to demand that the Indian government bring an ordinance to enact a law that will be the permanent solution to punish rapists. They suggested that the Act be titled ‘The prevention of Sexual Offences against Women Act (PSOWA)’. They urged the governmetn to avoid wasting time amending sections of existing laws. The party demanded that the proposed Act have the following: n Those who outrage the modesty of women be punished with a jail term of seven years and a fine of `1 lakh. The trial should be completed withing six months. n Those who attempt to rape be imprisoned for 10 years and be chemically castrated. n Rapists should be chemically or voluntarily castrated and be imprisoned for 20 years. n Those who rape and murder should be punished with death sentence.

INFRASTRUCTURE

Parking woes plague Numaish Barely a week since the launch of the All India Industrial Exhibition, the area is already plagued with traffic snarls thanks to lack of parking spaces. S BALAKRISHNA

ANUBHA K SINGH anubha.k@postnoon.com

To advertise on this page, contact: 9866074747 For Secunderabad 9290204030 For H y d e r a b a d - 9866663212

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t’s only been a week since the 73rd All India Industrial Exhibition, popularly known as Numaish, was launched. But for visitors and commuters in the area the Nampally stretch is already proving to be a traffic nightmare. With thousands of cars and twowheelers parked along the roads and the designated parking spots, it is difficult to negotiate this stretch of road leading to traffic jams. Weekends and holidays only make matters worse, given the high footfall the exhibition sees on these days. “It’s been only a week but the parking lot is already full and there is hardly any place left to park. The scenario at the Goshamahal parking is the worst, with even week-

days seeing it packed to capacity,” said Shiva Kumar, a visitor. Given the popularity of the exhibition and the large number of

visitors frequenting the place, traffic snarls are an annual problem here. “It’s disappointing to see how a society can plan such an event

without providing proper parking space? The society is only bent on increasing the parking and entry fee rather than focusing on important issues like lack of parking space,” fumed Laxmipati, a visitor. Meanwhile, the exhibition society claims that 10 places have been identified for parking, which include Gagan Vihar complex, Chandra Vihar complex, Government College, Nampally, Manoranjan complex and the Housing Board building. In addition to this, the parking lots have been warned against charging exorbitant amounts. This year the parking fee has been fixed at `50 and `20 for the first four hours for four-wheelers and two-wheelers, respectively. Additional charges of `10 and `5 will be levied for every extra hour.

city MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

FESTIVAL

Kite traders have fingers crossed Following the communal tension, traders in the Old City suffered losses. But they hope kite sales this festive season will help make up for the losses. ANUBHA K SINGH anubha.k@postnoon.com

ankranti is just around the corner and the Cityscape is dotted with colourful kites, while the air is rent with battle cries as kite flying kicks off in full swing. Unlike in the North, like in UP and Bihar, where people believe in taking a dip in a holy river like Ganga on this auspicious day to attain moksha (salvation), in the City Sankranti is all about flying kites. In fact, every year around this time it is common to see youngsters spend entire days on rooftops and open grounds holding kite flying contests. Despite the numerous changes wrought by kite flying continues to be the one tradition that has remained a constant in the City. “Every year we wait for Sankranti so we can hold kite flying competitions on our apartment terrace. The joy of cutting the string of other kites is great,

but the chance of losing your kite to an opponent makes the competition all the more exciting,” said Laxman Patel, a resident of Abids. “Kite flying requires participation from others. It is no fun to

CIVIC

just fly your kite high and watch it. It is boring. Every year I go to Necklace road where the competition is much more exciting,” said Abhijeet Anand, a B.Tech student. While the kite flying competi-

tions are held in different parts of the City, there is only one place where enthusiasts go to buy the best kites and manja (string) — Gulzar House in Old City is not only know for selling a wide variety of kites, but it also offers

the best quality of manja. And this traders are hoping to do brisk business. Given the communal tension that had Old City simmering for the last few months, many wholesalers and retailers in the area suffered huge losses. But with the onset of Sankranti, they hope to do good business to make up for the losses. “We barely earned anything in the last one month. But now things have thankfully settled down in the Old City. With the festival here I am expecting to do good business,” said Ibhrahim Shaik, a kite-seller in Old City. “Although prices have gone up by 15 per cent this year, we are still hopeful of doing good business,” he adds. According to him, wholesalers sell between 30,000 and 60,000 kites each. However, the paper kites will be conspicuous by their absence this year as Chinese manja and plastic kites are more in demand.

POWER

Officials told to complete Pay to get fogged, citizens! energy audit in civic bodies Fogging against mosquitos is banned worldwide but not at the GHMC. Officials who obviously make private gains are misleading the mayor to use the method. Md NIZAMUDDIN nizamuddin.a@postnoon.com

hile admitting in private that fogging does not kill mosquitoes the GHMC continues to procure new portable fogging machines. The GHMC under the Urban Malaria Scheme has bought 20 new machines, even though the officials from the same department have clarified on several occasions that this exercise was futile and did not help kill mosquitoes. Ironically, the height of hypocrisy could be seen by the fact that the same officials who deemed fogging useless were seen inaugurating the new machines with Mayor Md Majid Hussain and the

GHMC Commissioner MT Krishna Babu. Kapra (1), LB Nagar (1), Malakpet (3), Charminar (4), Asifnagar (5), Himayath Nagar (2), Khairatabad (3) and Kukatpally (1) will be getting these machines. With the already existing 134, the total Portable Fogging Machines will be now 154.

Officials of the power sector will work out an action plan for completing the process of energy audit in all municipalities.

s one of the major initiatives to tackle the power shortage to some extent, the State government directed the officials of power sector to work out an action plan for completing the process of energy audit in all municipalities and major gram panchayats in the first phase. M Sahoo, principal secretary, Energy, who held a meeting on Saturday to review Energy Efficiency initiatives with Muneendra, special secretary, Energy Department, M Kamalakar Babu, MD of New and Renewable Energy Development of Andhra Pradesh (NREDCAP) and officials of SECM, directed the officials to take serious steps for adopting the energy audit in respect of the street lighting and public water supply schemes in all the municipalities and major gram panchayats in coordination with the State Energy Conservation Mission (SECM), Municipal Administration and Panchayat

Sahoo said that the government is serious about inculcating the habit of energy efficiency since every unit saved is very precious. Raj departments, in view of huge scope of energy savings. During this critical juncture, the power utilities have no other option, but to take up energy efficiency measures in a big way to provide some relief to the consumers as well as power system. The principal secretary also directed NREDCAP to complete the process of energy auditing in AP Secretariat and Burgula Rama Krishna Rao (BRKR) Bhavan, which are crucial government offices, within one month in coordination with SECM and submit a report to the government. He reminded that the government

had already issued orders for mandatory usage of CFLs, LED lights and 3-star and above rated appliances by all the government departments, public sector undertakings, local bodies, hospitals etc. Sahoo thanked the Indian Association of energy management professionals for rendering valuable suggestions highlighting the importance of energy auditing and accounting in public and private establishments. He said that government is serious about inculcating the habit of energy efficiency since every unit saved is very precious in the present critical juncture and advised the power utilities to mainly focus on energy auditing and accounting to avoid wastage of precious power. It is a well known fact that 10 units energy saved is equal to 12 units generated. He also thanked the top representatives of CII, who have come forward voluntarily to follow the guidelines of the government. NSS

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

focus

NIGERIA’S MAIN SOURCE OF INCOME

The petroleum industry in Nigeria is the largest industry and main generator of GDP in the West African nation which is also the continent’s most populous. Since the British discovered oil in the Niger Delta in the late 1950s, the oil industry has been marred by political and economic strife largely due to a long history of corrupt military regimes and complicity of multinational corporations, notably Royal Dutch Shell.

CURSE OF CORRUPTION

‘NAMELESS, OVERSTUFFED ARISTOCRAT’

BEN SIMON Agence France-Presse LAGOS: With a champagne flute between his fingers, the Nigerian oligarch stares out with a self-satisfied grin on his bulbous face, not bothered by the desperate masses behind him. Artist Wande George said the inspiration for the painting, called “The Ruling Class”, is visible everyday in the upscale Lagos district of Victoria Island where his work was recently displayed. Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa, regarded as one of the world’s most corrupt nations, where enormous oil wealth has been siphoned off into the bank accounts of a few. Its richest sometimes cruise in chauffeur-driven 4X4 vehicles and sleep in ostentatious mansions, while the poor crowd into slums and eke out a living. But such inequality and adversity can spawn provocative and creative work, and Nigeria is certainly contributing its share. “We deal with it,” said artist Joseph Eze, whose work has explored the destruction of slums that have forced many to abandon their homes. “Otherwise, we would have just gone to ashes.” Visual art, including that with a political bent, appears to be blossoming here, particularly since stifling military rule ended in 1999 — though the famously raucous country was hardly culturally mute when it was led by soldier-dictators. Nigerians such as late afrobeat musician Fela Kuti and Nobel literature prize winner Wole Soyinka have long made their mark with politically focused work. Many painters and other visual artists working today carry the same torch. “Local artists are looking more and more at how to express themselves,” said Marc-Andre Schmachtel of Germany’s Goethe Institute cultural organisation, one of the judges at a recent national art competition in Nigeria. “People are thinking outside the box now. Already from last year to this year, the level of competition has improved a lot,” he added, attributing the progress to changes in Lagos. The sprawling city, despite being one of the world’s most chaotic, has in some ways become an easier place to pursue creative work, with its slowly growing middle class and increasing number of art venues. George, 50, told AFP that several of the pieces in his ReEmergence series were inspired by the tawdriness with which some flaunt their wealth in a city where many of the roughly 15-million people are extremely poor.

ART BARES

FAT CATS NUMEROLOGY

139

is the rank of Nigeria on the list of 176 countries in Transparency International’s 2012 Corruption Perceptions Index, tied with Azerbaijan, Kenya, Nepal, and Pakistan.

Artist Wande George said the inspiration for the painting, called ‘The Ruling Class’, is visible every day in the upscale Lagos district of Victoria Island where his work was recently displayed.

OF NIGERIA

Of the nameless, overstuffed aristocrat in the portrait, George said, “he doesn’t care about the people around him.” His work was exhibited at a trendy Lagos complex that includes a small gallery, a pricey restaurant serving a full range of local dishes, a library and stage venue that hosts theatrical and musical performances. At the national competition hosted at a conference centre overlooking the Lagos lagoon, Eze, one of the finalists, used the foam from flip-flop sandals that he found discarded on a beach to assemble a large panorama showing the effects of urban development on slum residents. Eze said he was seeking to chastise the powerful interests whose construction plans have forced thousands to leave their homes, including a recent case at a slum built on stilts above the water in Lagos. The piece also saluted the ability of impoverished Nigerians to manage the adversity heaped on them by powerful interests, the 38-year-old artist explained. Not all the finalists were preoccupied by the hardships inflicted on the poor by the powerful. Alafuro Sikoki, 32, who won the $9,500 second prize, said her work is partly aimed at forcing Nigerians to confront the worrying traits that many here have accepted as normal. Her 2012 prize-winning conceptual work “Cog” offered a theory to explain the immense popularity of the country’s Nollywood films, where outlandish plots, maximum drama and very, very loud performances are the rule. Nollywood, she suggested, serves a “confessional” role in a country where many have suffered devastating trauma but where discussing such incidents is often taboo. “We don’t really talk about things,” she said. “Really horrible things have happened to people or their families and the only way for them to know that it’s not crazy or strange is to experience it on TV as well.” This focus on concrete, modern issues is part of a trend emerging among many young Nigerian artists, who increasingly “reject any form of exoticism and Africanism” that many of their predecessors sought to highlight, said Eve Therond, a New York based artist and competition judge. Of late, “Lagos has certainly drawn the attention of international curators and collectors”, she added. One of Sikoki’s pieces, called “African Time”, features a series of clocks set to different hours that criticises Nigerians’ propensity to arrive for appointments whenever they please. “Why do we perceive time differently than everybody else?” she said. “We’re not on the moon!”

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Business

AIR INDIA EXPRESS TO HAVE A PERMANENT CEO

Air India Express, the budget airline of Air India, will soon have a permanent CEO, said minister of state for civil aviation KC Venugopal said. He also said that Air India Express headquarters would be shifted from Mumbai to Kochi in a phased manner.

RETAIL INDUSTRY

Bank liquidity rules eased

The boom boom song

he world's top banking regulatory body has eased the first global liquidity rules scheduled to start applying to banks in 2015 and aimed at improving their ability to survive financial crises.

The consumer’s spending ability, along with availability of a wide range of products, is driving growth in the Indian retail industry. PRUDHVI RAJU K prudhvi.k@postnoon.com

ndian retail industry has achieved a 15 per cent growth last year with improvement in consumer confidence in the second half of the year (after August). The buyers are confident about the economy and quite positive about their spending. Significant increase in income levels of attributed to the growth especially by Indian middle class last year, said Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO, Retailers Association of India. Talking about the shift in consumer spending, he said, “India, as the country is known for consumer savings rather than spending. However, the consumer spending levels are slowly increasing over the years with evident of modern retail. This has given opportunity for retailers to offer more number of products (SKUs). For instance, a small kirana store has 600-800 SKUs and the supermarkets may have a range of 15,000-20,000 SKUs. This offering is not limited to groceries but is happening across the segments in retail. Today, there is a huge offering in electronics from range of cables to

plugs with specialised stores in this segment. The consumer spending ability along with availability of wide range of products is driving the growth of the industry. “There is a significant raise in the spending power with growth in income levels across the sectors. The consumer is also trying variety of food products from across the world.

Traditional retailers have an edge with low operating costs. For instance, most operate from inherited or small rented shops, which have low real-estate costs. There used to be 40 items in the refrigerator of urban household five years ago. Today, they are having around 100 products, which is the reflection of changing consuming trends among the people. “For instance, in a research, we found only 2 per cent of the urban population have tried Pasta before five years. But today, more than 80 per cent of the people had tasted it. This consumer patterns has also

BSE 6,022.45 `54.99 5,209.05 DOLLAR`55.14 17,179.95DOLLAR NSEPOUND `86.60 `88.14 POUND BSE NSE GOLD`31,300 10g SILVER `58,600 1kg for

for

GOLD `29,500 10g SILVER `53,000 1kg for

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision said at a press conference here that it had widened the definition of the easyto-sell assets that banks will have to hold to survive periods of stress.

pushed even the traditional retail (Kirana) stores to increase its SKUs and to source from multiple vendors.” On the growth of traditional retail, he said. “The traditional retail still takes major chunk of the retail industry. Although, the modern retail is achieving a decent growth, it only constitutes 6-7 per cent of the total retail market, which was around 3 per cent five years ago. This may go up to 12-13 per cent in next five years with the emergence of FDI in retail. “The traditional retail is also adopting technology in bringing efficiency and is also evolving with the time by increasing SKUs or by delivering the products at home. However, the traditional retailers have an edge over modern retail with low operating costs. For instance, most of them operate from inherited or small rented shops, which have low real-estate costs, compared to modern super markets.” The traditional retail has at least grown by 10-13 per cent last year (2012). However, the modern retail, which is in expansion mode has seen 20 per cent growth during that time.

24C

for

98.90

33.65

Since our country is a union of states, we abide by its federal character and, therefore, are bound by the consensus on the issue, ANAND SHARMA, COMMERCE MINISTER

19,805.54 21.46

ANAND SHARMA, 6.55 COMMERCE MINISTER

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

nation

ASSAM’S KHOL PLAYERS SET NEW RECORD Assam entered the India Book of Records for the largest khol-playing ensemble. Organisers now eye mention in the Guinness World Records for the largest group playing this traditional percussion instrument. A total of 14,833 traditional khol players came together for a 15-minute performance.

HALL OF SHAME

BHAGWAT AT IT AGAIN

2 held for Noida murder

Indications from the crime scene point to rape, says senior police official. NOIDA: Noida Police has claimed to have cracked the alleged rape and murder case of a 21-year-old woman factory worker here with the arrest of two accused. The two arrested were identified as Naresh and Kailash. The third accused Udeyveer is absconding. Naresh had once worked in the same garment export house where the victim was working and had promised to marry her.

DELHI BUS RAPE

Accused in court today

NEW DELHI: Five of the six accused in the December 16 gang-rape of a 23-year-old will be produced in the Saket district court here Monday afternoon. The sixth, who is 17 years and six months old according to his school certificates, will be produced before a juvenile justice board. Two of the six accused had Sunday expressed the wish to turn into state witnesses. Vinay Sharma, a gym instructor, and Pawan Gupta, a fruit-seller, had confessed to their crime when produced before the court on December 19. The two said they wanted to be witnesses in the case and refused to take the service of a legal aid counsel. IANS

However, the woman came to know that he was already married and started avoiding him. Naresh told police that the woman was threatening to lodge an FIR against him and he got scared and hatched a plan to kill her. On the fateful day, he took her to an under construction factory at sector 63 where two other accomplices Kaliash and Udaiveer were present. Kailash and Udeyveer also

had enmity with the woman. The victim had in the past complained to police against Kailash. Udeyveer had few years ago forcibly entered her house and molested her. “Whether the woman was raped would be confirmed once the medical report is received. However, from the scene of crime we suspect the accused tried to rape her,” said a senior police officer. PTI

JUMBO RESCUE

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat stoked a new controversy with his comment that marriage was a contract and a man could disown his wife if she violates its terms of looking after his household. Bhagwat said a woman is bound by contract to husband to look after him. There was a theory of social contract and a deal is ﬁnalised between the wife and husband, said Bhagwat, “The husband says you take care of my house and I will take care of your needs, keep you safe,” Bhagwat said and added that they stay together till the contract works and if the wife violates it, he can leave her.

FOG DISRUPTS FLIGHTS

Forest workers drag a critically injured elephant calf from marshy land alongside the railway line in the Buxa Tiger Reserve in West Bengal on Sunday. Three elephants, an adult female and two young males were killed AFP and two calves injured when the speeding Guwahati-bound Jhaja Express crashed into them.

NEWS BRIEFS Three troopers injured in landmine blast

Police crack Mumbai triple murder case

Eight killed as jeep collides with bus

Dhule riot toll climbs to four, town peaceful

RAIPUR: Three policemen, including an officer, were injured in a landmine blast triggered by Naxals in Gariyaband district today, police said. The injured persons were first admitted to a district hospital and subsequently air-lifted to Raipur for treatment, he said. A senior police official said a search was on to trace the Naxals.

MUMBAI: City police today claimed to have cracked the triple murder case at a suburban bar with the arrest of a former employee. The motive behind the murder of the three persons, all employees of Natraj Bar in suburban Vidyavihar, is personal enmity, police said. The accused, Pravin alias Sonu, was arrested early this morning.

AGRA: Eight youths were killed and four others injured when their jeep collided with a bus in Sikar district, police said today. All the victims were returning to their homes in Churu from Jaipur after taking the recruitment exam for police constable posts when the incident occurred late last night. Condition of one person is said to be critical.

NEW DELHI: The toll in the riots in Maharashtra's Dhule town has climbed to four with one more person dying of bullet injuries early Monday, police said. A police ofﬁcial said the situation following Sunday's clashes was "peaceful and under control" and prohibitory orders had been imposed in some parts of Dhule.

Pick

at the

Dense fog today disrupted the schedule of over 30 domestic and international flights at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here. 10 flights were cancelled due to operational reasons. Fog started to descend at the airport around midnight and general visibility dropped to below 50 metres and runway visibility to 50 metres at the third runway around 3 AM, while visibility was around 1000 metres on main runway (28/10), airport officials said.

I have only said we won't have any objection if the government uses my daughter's name for a new law for crime against women that is more stringent. Father of Victim-X on naming controversy

airport,

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

World US

Hagel to be defence secy?

AUSTRALIAN TODDLER ATTACKED BY PYTHON An Australian toddler had a lucky escape after being attacked by a python which wrapped itself around the sleeping child’s arm and then began constricting and biting the infant. Snake handler Tex Tillis said the two-year-old girl’s mother woke at 3am on Saturday to find the 1.85 metre (six foot) reptile attached to her child as they lay in bed in Lismore.

MISSING MISSONI

OFF TO THE UNKNOWN

Authorities said they have intensiﬁed a search Sunday for a small plane that disappeared off the coast of Venezuela with six people aboard, including the scion of Italy’s Missoni fashion family. The plane was carrying Vittorio Missoni — the son of the eponymous fashion label’s founder Ottavio Missoni — and his wife Maurizia Castiglioni, another Italian couple and two Venezuelan crew members.

BY ANDREW GULLY WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama is poised to nominate Chuck Hagel as his new defense secretary on Monday, but Republicans are signaling a fierce confirmation fight even though he is one of their own. Obama has decided he wants the 66-year-old former Republican senator to succeed Leon Panetta at the Pentagon and will make his announcement on Monday, an administration source told AFP, confirming US media reports. Obama is also expected to announce who he has chosen to replace David Petraeus at the helm of the CIA.

Hillary Clinton back to office today US WASHINGTON: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will return to work on Monday after a monthlong absence caused by a series of health scares, including a blood clot in her head, the State Department said. Clinton has been sidelined for four weeks, since she was taken ill on her return from a trip to Europe on December 7, and briefly hospitalized for a few days. The top diplomat will meet at 9.15 am (1415 GMT) on Monday with her assistant secretaries in Washington.

Explorers Sir Ranulph Fiennes (L) and Anton Bowring talk to journalists on January 6, 2013 in Cape Town. Fiennes is leading a team of explorers willing to succeed in the last great polar challenge: crossing Antarctica in winter. Their attempt aims at raising 10 million US dollars for Seeing is Believing, an organization tackling avoidable blindness. The challenge will take six months — mostly in complete darkness — for more than 2,000 miles. In total, the team will spend an estimated 273 days on the ice, and once under way, travel at an average of 35km per day. AFP PHOTO / ALEXANDER JOE

WAR CRIMES

Morsi wants Assad tried Assad’s regime would fall, says Egyptian Prez to CNN WASHINGTON: Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi told CNN Sunday he backs Syrian calls for Bashar alAssad to be tried for war crimes, and predicted Assad’s regime would fall in the country’s bloody civil war. “The Syrian people, through their revolution, and through the movement will, when the bloodshed stops, move to a new stage where they will have an independent parliament and the government of their choosing,” Morsi said, according to excerpts released by the network. “And then they will decide

what they want to do against those who committed crimes against them. It is the Syrian people who decide.” Morsi spoke through a translator after being asked if he believed Assad, the president of Syria, should be tried by the Netherlands-based International Criminal Court. “This phase is the phase of the people. Similar to what the Egyptian people wanted, the Syrian people want it. And we support the Syrian people. And they are going to win and they have the will to win,” he said. Over the past 21 months,

the Assad regime’s crackdown on anti-government protests has ballooned into a bloody civil war that the United Nations says has claimed more than 60,000 lives. Earlier Sunday, Assad offered a road map to end the conflict in a rare speech — his first in public in seven months 1 in which he branded the opposition “slaves” of the West and told foreign powers to stop backing the rebels. In Washington, the US State Department described the road map as “detached from reality” and reiterated its call for Assad to resign.

NEWS BRIEFS Brit tourist plunges to death off Oz waterfall

Many still unaccounted for in Australia fires

Opposition gears up to protest in Venezuela

6 killed in Shanghai market fire

SYDNEY: Police on Monday were attempting to retrieve the body of a British tourist who slipped over the edge of a waterfall in Australia’s Blue Mountains and plunged to his death. The 20-yearold man was walking with friends at Wentworth Falls, west of Sydney, on Sunday afternoon when he lost his footing and fell.

SYDNEY: Australian police said many people remained unaccounted for Monday but no deaths had yet been recorded in fire-ravaged Tasmania state, as large parts of the nation braced for dangerous conditions. Prime Minister Julia Gillard toured the shaken southern island, where more than 100 homes were razed.

CARACAS: A top Venezuelan opposition leader called late Sunday for street protests if the government goes ahead with a plan to delay the inauguration of ailing President Hugo Chavez. Julio Borges, national coordinator of the opposition Justice First party, also promised to file complaints with unspecified world organizations.

BEIJING: Six people were killed and 12 others injured in a market fire in China’s commercial city of Shanghai. Fire fighters had extinguished the fire last night at a farm produce wholesale market in Pudong new district of Shanghai, the district’s official said. Rescuers have retrieved five bodies from the debris of the fire.

NUMEROLOGY

$9.7bn

is the amount of relief approved for Sandy victims after US President Barack Obama signed a bill. Obama signed the measure into law shortly after arriving back at the White House following his family vacation in Hawaii.

VANISHING YOUTH South Korea’s low birth rate means the size of its youth population — those aged between nine and 24 — will be slashed in half by 2060, a government report warned Monday. The number of young people peaked at 14 million in 1980, accounting for 36.8 percent of the whole population, census data by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family showed. Since then, it has steadily declined and stood at 10.2 million last year, or 20.4 percent. The ministry said the current demographic trend would see that number fall to 9.6 million by 2015.

I believe in using force, but only after a very careful decision-making process. I will do everything I can to avoid needless, senseless war. Chuck Hagel Republican senator about his views on war

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Technology ROAD TO EXTINCTION

THE RISE AND FALL OF

NETBOOKS

CALL ME MAYBE? Facebook is preparing to launch a new feature for its Messenger app which allows users to place free voice calls to friends. The feature is so far available only to smartphone users in Canada and is buried within the latest update to the app, but it will eventually allow users to make free internet voice calls, known as VoIP calls, to any FB friend. Experts say it represents a bid by the social network to dominate the market by taking on the default calling function in mobilephones. The feature comes at the same time as FB Messenger rolled out a new feature worldwide which allows users to record and send a voicemail-type message to friends.

KISS AND MAKE UP

It was cheap, light and had a good battery life; it was supposed to be the device of the future. So how did the netbook fade into obscurity? NT BALANARAYAN balanarayan.nt@postnoon .com

t was the year 2009, iPhones were over priced, Android phones were laggy, Samsung was selling their Corby phones, iPad was still a rumour and Nokia was still the biggest cellphone company out there. It is difficult to believe that was the world we lived in four years back, but at that time netbooks sounded like a good idea. In 2013 however, the device is dead and buried. In 2007, Taiwan-based Asus kickstarted the netbook trend with the launch of their EeePC with the goal of selling computers to the billions in third world countries, who couldn’t afford conventional laptops or full-fledged computers. Within two years though, almost every PC company had their own netbooks in the market and soon it became a race to the bottom with some like Acer offering devices for as low as `11,000. Steve Jobs ridiculed them as “cheap” and said that they are “not better than anything”. He was right; in hind-

sight, netbooks were a passing thing — underpowered laptops, with cramped keyboards that couldn’t run the latest version of Windows without screeching to a halt now and then. So what killed it? Was it the rise of the tablets as everyone’s saying or is there something more to it? Apple practically made tablet market popular among the public when they launched iPad in 2010 and soon enough Android tablets started rolling out, followed by Windows. Now decent tablets are available for as low as `7,000. So tablets did to some extent fill the gap for portable computing devices, but netbooks were much more than that were they not? They were also great for content creation (at least on paper) unlike most tablets that are good only for consuming media that were made by others. However the content creators did not adopt netbooks as expected because most of them ran on underpowered Atom processors and Intel didn’t want these processors to become too successful as laptop sales were declining

rapidly. Intel made more money selling their higherend chips that from Atom so they really wanted people buy more conventional laptops and fewer netbooks. Laptop manufacturers in turn decided to slash the prices of laptops to woo customers who could now choose between cheap underpowered netbooks and cheap fullfledged laptops. Around the same time Intel started pressuring OEMs to sell laptops and fewer netbooks and in some cases they even reduced the discounts to those companies that were pushing netbooks more. As if that wasn’t bad enough OEMs were trying to dig their way out of the grave they dug themselves. The low-margin netbook business was killing their laptop lines, but they couldn’t abandon netbooks overnight as there was a lot of demand for them. Customers were also an adventurous lot, they wanted to run the more recent Windows 7 operating system on it instead of XP, which meant the OEMs could now sell slightly costlier models of netbooks with dual-core processors.

However this was too little, too late. The damage had already been done. Customers were now sceptical of buying netbooks, those who bought one already did not want to buy another one ever. Around the same time Steve Jobs wooed the world with the iPad. The netbook however continued to survive for two more years and by 2012 the verdict was loud and clear. No one wanted netbooks when they could get the same functionality out of smartphones and tablets. Even the laptop prices remained at the `20,000 mark for those who wanted basic models. At the end of 2012, OEMs including Asus and Acer announced that they will not pushing out anymore netbooks, however some of the elements of a netbook continues to survive in ultrabooks — high-end laptops that are light, powerful and have long battery life. Hopefully this concept, championed by Intel won’t meet with the same fate as that of the netbook. This article was written on a laptop as an Asus EeePc watched on from the sidelines.

Google pulled a 180 on the decision to block Google Maps on Windows Phone, but it is not clear how it will stay that way. The search giant landed themself in a soup when they decided to block Windows devices from accessing their maps service. They claimed IE browser could not render Google Maps properly. Microsoft, on the other hand, claimed Google was targeting Windows users and said that the decision was anti-competitive. This is one of the many battles that are being fought over services offered by each ecosystem.

FINE NOT FINE Samsung, LG and four Taiwanese firms have been fined £35m by Chinese trade regulators for fixing the prices of LCD screens. China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said the six firms met regularly from 2001 to 2006 to decide what to charge for displays. The Chinese fines are the latest levied by governments around the world over the price fixing deal. In late 2011 the six paid the US $553m (£357m) to settle similar claims. The price fixing ring came to light as a result of a US Justice Department investigation and has led other governments and trade bodies to punish the six firms.

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Comment I beg of you... never assume an inner or an outer pose, never a disguise. Gustav Mahler Composer

A nameless issue THE HUMAN CONDITION Dean Williams

s usual the larger issue of violent crime perpetrated against women has taken a backseat to the more ‘pressing’ matter of whether Victim X should be named. The ‘name game’ is a construct of the media and has little to no bearing on rectifying the archaic patriarchal system in this country that treats women as second-class citizens. It is imperative that we in the media do not get sidetracked at this most important juncture. Whether the Sunday People was right in naming the victim or not is beside the point, what is more important is that her torment be used to alleviate the torment others may face in the future. I’m sure Victim X would want that, rather than have the media scrapping over the legalities of naming her. Already the political old boys club, mired in religion and contemptuous of anything progressive, are using a young woman’s legacy to tom-tom their regressive ideologies. The chaotic and downright embarrassing scenes following Hyderabad’s midnight ‘Take back the night’ march, where men (if we can call them that) harassed women on their way home, proves that we have a hard slog ahead. The biggest fear here is that other events may overtake this one and it will be relegated to the inside pages of newspapers and be reduced to vacuous bytes on TV. It is incumbent on the media to make sure this does not happen. But in order for us to do that we have to be very clear of our goal: making India safe for women, no matter if they are liberal or conservative. That is essential, everything else is guff.

HIGH-FLYING THOUGHTS There cannot be a sorrier lot that the Republicans. One of their own is to be made the defence secretary and they are against it, saying he is not Republican enough. He was against Iraq, is a bit anti-Israel... and what not. A bunch of sorry losers, what else!

ESSENCE OF LIVING

HOW TO BE HAPPY

And pray, why can’t people indulge in a bit of musing — I fail to understand. I believe it is the priesthood that makes fodder of common masses for their selfish ends. You are in this world, thanks to Nature and not of anything else. The two lifegiving entities in our system are the sun and earth: One gives us life; the other takes us back when we die. Tomorrow scientific man may travel to Mars or he may produce a new breed of centaur but it will not tell you how to enjoy life. Before it is too late, let us try to listen to a melody at night, read a few lines of wisdom, look at a nice picture, look at the sky before retiring to bed, I am sure no violent thoughts will cross one’s mind. This does not mean the one who just suffered irreparable damage or sorrow will be able to do this. But nobody has a perennial sorrow. It will pass.

HARD TALK

PK Surendran

he tragedy of human race has been its inability to enjoy life. From the time of caveman to spaceman, man has been mean, fretting and harbouring hatred for his brethren (remember Cain and Abel?). War is associated with human being, not with other creatures. The worst one could say about an animal is that it sometimes fights for food, or for ‘love’, but never over ego. As the Owaisi saga unfolds and his atrocious statements get repeated clicks on You Tube, I again wondered at the ‘educated man’ that is caught up in outdated beliefs; that life is for living is never understood by many. Hate speeches reflect utter illiteracy of the speaker about the ways of the world and lays bare a philosophical vacuum in him. We don’t make our children look at the night sky, tell them what a big merry-go-round this wondrous cosmos is, and what a wonder is life. My theory is that if we taught our children astronomy rather than meaningless history or war, we’d make better citizens of them. To believe you are the product of an individual god in human form is one thing, to kill for that belief is another. If you try to learn a bit of the infinite cosmos, learn about the Earth’s

unerring rotation and revolution and the numerous wonders associated with them, you would never want to kill, or talk of spilling blood. If you read the great classics of our wise old ancestors, you would never want to kill. If you listen to the lyrics of the film songs of the sixties, which are pregnant with little nuggets of life and wisdom, set to the tunes of masters of melodies such as S-K, K-A, Ravi, Nayyar, Burman, Naushad et al, you would never want to kill. If you ever listen (if you are allowed to listen in a ruthless noisy city) you will wonder at the rhythmic orchestra of

cicadas and wonder at its method and melody. How lulling is their music could be realised only after listening to them. You don’t have to take a sedative to sleep if you listen to them. Instead, what we get at night in a monstrous city is the endless noise and smoke of vehicles and constructions. As if this was not enough, you will hear every other day stereo blasting your existence for one reason or another. And, if you don’t become deaf yet, you have the ‘pleasure’ of fireworks going off simultaneously in hundreds in the neighbourhood for no reason. We never learn, do we?

TAILEND Once there was a spate of temple burglaries in Kerala which led to demands that the state should accord security to temples. The response of the veteran communist EK Nayanar, who was chief minister then, was: “Why does God need security?” Nobody upbraided him, for everyone enjoyed the joke. But in a crude way what he said was a truism. Are we not insulting God by reducing Him to an entity that receives material gifts or money? Does the omniscient and omnipotent need man’s munificence?

EDITORIALS Stop talking, do the right thing Really Dave, y’think?

asher al-Assad seems delusional as ever, a man caught up in his own unreal world which he hopes to sustain despite the real people who live in it want him out and gone. His onehour speech has nothing new, just the clichéd rhetoric of “his country” under a terror attack perpetrated by some Syrians and foreigners. Every passing day with Assad clinging onto power proves that he has lost every sense of the reality; if he goes on with wreaking havoc, he does not realise that efforts he made to cling onto power will have to be diverted to cling onto dear life, as was, has been and will be the fate of a tyrant. He says he will go... one day... but the country will stay. But how will any of the country be left with people to house it if he goes on ordering air strikes and greets his beloved citizens with tanks and thugs? Assad may call those of his own who have risen against him by whatever names: gang of criminals and western puppets. But they represent the real Syria who wants change in every aspect. Calling his endeavours to remain in power the war to defend the nation won’t help much. If Assad does not want to share the fate of many of his ilk such as Gaddaﬁ, he better stop talking and start acting, not was now, but doing the right thing: stand down.

READERS’ VIEWS

ell, well, well... David Cameron plans to stay on as Prime Minister till 2015 to oversee the implementation of a slew of reforms that he has proposed. But do you think that will be easy, Dave... with that big blondie Boris right behind you, breathing down your neck, your college chum. Blondie says his prospects of ever becoming prime minister as of being decapitated by a frisbee... But good luck, Dave: you will need it in loads.

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

campus

MUSICAL EXTRAVAGANZA Annual music fest will be organised at Lamakaan on January 10 at 6.30 pm. The fest will see students of Davidson’s School of Music performing.

SNAPSHOTS

BEHIND THE CAMERA Flick Fest, organised at Villa Marie college, saw budding filmmakers making their debut on screen.

FOUNDER’S DAY

Regelford International School The school celebrated Founder’s Day on January 5. Minister of State for transport and highways Sarvey Sathyanarayana, minister of labour Danam Nagender and minister for marketing & warehousing Mukesh Goud were the chief guests.

COLLEGE OF THE WEEK AMY ROSE THOMAS amyrose.t@postnoon.com

lick Fest at Villa Marie college proved that when in dearth of ideas, one must look to the youth, who are a treasure trove of ideas. The event had final year mass communication students screen movies that they developed from scratch. Veering away from the usual subject of love stories, which is common among the youth today, Flick Fest saw students dealing with subjects like hate, female foeticide and problems faced by the physically challenged. Ratna Bharati and her team won the first prize at Flick Fest for their film, The Music Within. “Our film was about this five-year-old hearing impaired girl, Rene, who wanted to learn dance. A dancer comes to their home every day to teach her sister dance. Rene gets interested and starts to dance along with her sister. Their mother gets angry about this, since there is no use of Rene learning since she can’t hear the music. The story is about how she convinces her mother, elder sister and dance teacher in her own

Bharati

way that she really wants to learn dancing,” Ratna said. When asked how they came up with this idea, Ratna said, “We wanted to do something inspirational. First, our idea was to narrate a story of a hearing impaired woman who goes to Paris and her misfortunes. Later, we decided against it and instead, came up with this idea.” There are others who have decided to take up filmmaking as a serious profession after their graduation. Swathi Rama is one of them. She said, “After this fest, I realised that I have many ideas that I would love to see on screen. I don’t think it will be possible right away, but in the long run, I am sure I can accomplish this feat. For the film, we worked on the concept of hate. We started as a film, however, towards the end, it was more of a documentary. We went around speaking to people we met in malls about what they thought about hate and what is hate to them. We faced a lot of difficulties with the project. When we started shooting, we realised that many things we thought of was impossible to attain within

the short time we were given. Then we changed the script overnight and brought out the movie.” Swathi says that while most of the people they approached with a camera and questions were nice, some of them were outright rude. Another group that garnered appreciation from teachers and students alike was Swetha Yadav’s team, who screened a movie on female foeticide. Swetha said, “The story is set in conservative rural India where a couple finds out that the woman is pregnant with a girl child. Her saas makes a ruckus and pressures her to abort the child. But the woman stands her ground, refuses to abort the child and walks out. Fast forward many years and the girl becomes a doctor and she treats her dadi without her knowing.” She says the best part about the movie is that they turned director and actors since they were short on cash and so it was a great experience. The fest witnessed future filmmakers of the country making their debut on screen.

Vidyapeeth, also known as Bharati Vidyapeeth University, is one of the largest universities in India. It was founded by Patangrao Kadam in 1964 in Pune. The main campuses of the university are in Pune, Katraj and Enradwane. The university offers a wide variety of courses, from law and engineering to medicine, MBA and pharmacy.

FASHION TRENDS

There are not many who look forward to their 8am classes, especially if they had to stay up late. Getting up in the morning in time for the class, brushing your hair and changing out of your pyjamas may seem like a challenge at the time. At times like these, wearing a XXL hood before getting to the class is essential.

Wearing a pencil skirt and heels to college each day can be a pain. There might be days when you impatiently wait for the day to end so that you can get back home and throw on your sweats. Instead of opting for pencil skirts everyday, you can go for sweatshirts that look cute on you and which you are not ashamed to wear to college.

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

spotlight

VISUAL POETRY

The visual art in the form of paintings and sculptures is not less than a poem. Catch a fabulous exhibition of paintings and drawings titled as, 'Visual Poetry' by Siddhartha, Kappari Kishan and Shivanand Basavanthappa. The exhibition is being held at Shrishti Art Gallery till January 15.

A LITTLE BIT OF SPICE IN HIGH SPIRITS

The audio launch of Kortala Siva’s directorial venture Mirchi was held at Ramanaidu Studios, Nanakramguda on Sunday. The ﬁlm stars Prabhas, Anushka Shetty and Richa Gangopadhyay in the lead roles.

Fire on the dance floor Weekends are no fun if there aren’t three things —music, great food and wonderful company. Liquids pub brings together all the three factors and so the party never leaves the club.

S BALAKRISHNA

ASSURED HAPPINESS

AOC TV, a premium brand in LCD and LED television launched an offer titled ‘ Drive home your TV’ at the All India Industrial Exhibition being held in the City. Tollywood actress Archana launched the offer.

That creative spark New York-based artist Asher Jay is holding an exhibition of her paintings titled Code Red Count Down. The exhibition is being held at the Muse Art Gallery, at the Hyderabad Marriott Hotel, Tank Bund.

1 Anjali

4 Krithika

7 Varsha

2 Marilyn

5 Pari

8 Aaknksha, Nazeer

3 Priyanka

6 Nora, Megna

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

health

PROZAC SPURS FORMATION OF NEW BRAIN CELLS Popular drug Prozac (fluoxetine), prescribed in depression and panic attacks, may also spur production of new brain cells in the grey matter, say researchers. These cells could potentially pave the way for the treatment of neuro-degenerative diseases and psychiatric disorders.

SHED THE PHOBIA

Killer smile Think dolls and clowns are adorable and fun? Not for everyone. We speak to experts on pediophobia and coulrophobia. RANJANI RAJENDRA

ranjani.r@postnoon.com

ou know how when you were a kid you loved going to the circus just to watch that clown perform all his special tricks? Or when you went shopping, your mother literally had to drag you away from that shop window with all those beautiful dolls, that you one day hoped to own? Most of us never tired of watching the same tricks over and over again and yet be thrilled or play with our dolls for hours together, pretending they were our students or babies. But for some, it is these very objects that cause them to scream in fright, panic, palpitate and nearly have nervous breakdowns. Why? As strange as it sounds, there are several people out there who suffer from pediophobia (fear of dolls, mannequins) and coulrophobia (fear of clowns). “Phobias according to psychological theories are a developed form of benign fears. People are basically afraid of things that are not at all harmful for some reason. While some people with coulrophobia or pediophobia might just find clowns or dolls creepy, for some others the fear may be much stronger and abnormal,” says Dr Minhaj Nasirabadi, consultant psychiatrist at Apollo Hospital.

These fears could plague both children and adults and could stem from some past experience. “During childhood people might have faced some unpleasant experience involving the object they now fear (in this case dolls/mannequins or clowns). There is almost always a triggering factor for such phobias and the individual will then generalise it

and develop a fear for all related objects,” says Dr Minhaj. He himself has seen his son develop an intense fear for

ANEWS PP-LYBRIEFS YOURSELF

HOUSECALL

clowns. “We had gone to a fair a few years ago. There were clowns there walking around on stilts and performing tricks. However, while there my son’s uncle in jest told him that the clown would take him away. Ever since, my son has been terrified of clowns. He cannot bear to be in the presence of one,” he explains. Coulrophobia is commonly found in children for whom the otherwise harmless clowns might be imposing and unusual figures. This clubbed with crowded and noisy environments can be overwhelming for the child. And if by chance the child has a bad experience in these settings he/she is bound to develop a long-lasting fear of clowns. A BBC News Online article from January 2008, titled “Hospital Clown Images too Scary” reported the findings of a University of Sheffield study. In this survey of over 250 children between the ages of four and sixteen, most found images of clowns unsettling or scary. Researcher Dr Penny Curtis is

DID YOU KNOW?

quoted as saying, "We found that clowns are universally disliked by children. Some found them quite frightening and unknowable." Even dolls can be rather unsettling for a lot of people. Like with coulrophobia, a previously unsettling situation could be the root cause of the fear or it could also stem from the fact that the object of their fear (dolls and clowns) have been portrayed rather negatively in a movie they’ve seen. For instance, the movie Child’s Play is all about a doll that has been possessed and turns into a

Coulrophobia is commonly found in children for whom the otherwise harmless clowns might be imposing and unusual figures. manic killer. Many children might find it unnerving to be around dolls after watching this movie, especially those that move and talk. “Although these objects are harmless, for the person with the phobia it is hard to accept that. What we then do is a systematic desensitisation that helps them relax around the objects that they fear. We work with the very objects that the patient fears to help them shed that fear,” explains Dr Minhaj.

PIONEERS

I'm Expecting

Mastitis

The myth of cold

Kenneth Matsumura

I'm Expecting is a pregnancy app. You can track your symptoms, share information with your doctor and compare with other moms. You can also get weekly updates of your baby's growth, add doctor appointments, upload photos, send out birth announcements to friends and relatives, among other things.

Mastitis is an inﬂammation of breast tissue. It can occur in women at other times, but is more likely to develop during breastfeeding. There are three principal causes: infection, which accounts for about half of cases, engorgement and blocked ducts. Infection usually produces the worst symptoms. The breast becomes red, hot, swollen and the nipple may produce pus. General symptoms include high fever and shivers.

Colds are not caused by being wet or cold, as opposed to popular belief. They are caused by viruses, that have nothing to do with cold temperatures. However, in cold temperatures, people are more inclined to spend time together indoors, thereby more easily transmitting the virus from one person to another.

Dr Matsumura is a world renowned scientist. He’s developed the HeartAlarm™; Wristwatch that gives advanced warning against heart attacks, invented the BioArtiﬁcial Liver, and invented the Artiﬁcial Pancreas which NASA invited onto the space shuttle. He is a member of the California Medical Association. Most importantly, he discovered the breakthrough drug that eliminates serious side effects of cancer chemotherapy.

health MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

RESEARCH

BREAKTHROUGH

More than 700 species of bacteria in breast milk identified Colostrum is the first secretion of the mammary glands after giving birth. In some of the samples taken of this liquid, more than 700 species of these microorganisms were found. LONDON: Scientists have found more than 700 species of bacteria in breast milk, the main source of nourishment for newborns. Spanish researchers traced the bacterial microbiota map in breast milk and found a larger microbial diversity than originally thought. The breast milk received from the mother is one of the factors determining how the bacterial flora will develop in the newborn baby. However, the composition and the biological role of these bacteria in infants remain unknown. A group of Spanish scientists have now used a technique based on massive DNA sequencing to identify the set of bacteria contained within breast milk called microbiome.

The finding will enable preand postnatal variables influencing the micriobial richness of milk to be determined. Colostrum is the first secretion of the mammary glands after giving birth. In some of the samples taken of this liquid, more than 700 species of these microorganisms were found, which is more than originally expected by experts. "This is one of the first studies to document such diversity using the pyrosequencing technique (a large scale DNA sequencing determination technique) on colostrum samples on the one hand, and breast milk on the other, the latter being collected after one and six months of breastfeeding," explain the coauthors, Maria Carmen Collado, researcher at the Institute of Agrochemistry

and Food Technology (IATACSIC) and Alex Mira, researcher at the Higher Public Health Research Centre (CSISP-GVA). The most common bacterial genera in the colostrum samples were Weissella, Leuconostoc, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus and Lactococcus. In the fluid developed between the first and sixth month of breastfeeding, bacteria typical of the oral cavity were observed, such as Veillonella, Leptotrichia and Prevotella. "We are not yet able to determine if these bacteria colonise the mouth of the baby or whether oral bacteria of the breast-fed baby enter the breast milk and thus change its composition," outline the authors in a statement. The study also found that the milk of overweight mothers

or those who put on more weight than recommended during pregnancy contains a lesser diversity of species. The type of labour also affects the microbiome within the breast milk: that of mothers who underwent a planned caesarean is different and not as rich in microorganisms as that of mothers who had a vaginal birth. The results also suggested that the hormonal state of the mother at the time of labour also plays a role. "The lack of signals of physiological stress, as well as hormonal signals specific to labour, could influence the microbial composition and diversity of breast milk," the authors said. The study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. PTI

STUDY

Cells that can restore vision LONDON: Oxford scientists have developed injections of light-sensing cells into the eye, which they claim restored vision in completely blind mice. The research team used mice with a complete lack of lightsensing photoreceptor cells in their retinas. The mice were unable to tell the difference between light and dark, the BBC News reported. They injected "precursor" cells which will develop into the building blocks of a retina once inside the eye. Two weeks after the injections a retina had formed. "We have recreated the whole structure, basically it's the first proof that you can take a completely blind mouse, put the cells in and reconstruct the entire light-sensitive layer," Professor Robert MacLaren said. The mice were tested to see if they fled being in a bright area, if their pupils constricted in response to light and had their brain scanned to see if visual information was being processed by the mind. Professor Pete Coffee, from the Institute of Ophthalmology at University College London, said the findings were important as they looked at the "most clinically relevant and severe case" of blindness. However, he said this and similar studies needed to show how good the recovered vision was as brain scans and tests of light sensitivity were not enough. Researchers are already trialling human embryonic stem cells, at Moorfields Eye Hospital, in patients with Stargardt's disease. Early results suggest the technique is safe but reliable results will take several years. Retinal chips or bionic eyes are also being trailed in patients with retinitis pigmentosa. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal. PTI

Walking wards off stroke for women

LONDON: Women who devote at least three hours to walking every week are more likely to ward off strokes than their inactive cousins, says a study. "The message for the general population remains similar: regularly engaging in moderate recreational activity is good for your health," said Jose

Maria Huerta of the Murcia Regional Health Authority in Spain, who led the study. Women walking briskly for 210 minutes or more per week had a lower stroke risk than inactive women but also lower than those who cycled and did other higher-intensity workouts for a shorter amount of time,

the journal Stroke reported. Nearly 33,000 men and women answered a physical activity questionnaire given once in the mid-1990s as part of a larger European cancer project. Huerta and his team divided participants by gender, exercise type and total time spent exercising each week,

according to the Daily Mail. During the 12-year followup period, a total of 442 strokes occurred among the men and women. The results for women who were regular walkers translated to a 43 per cent reduction in stroke risk compared to the inactive group, Huerta said. IANS

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Entertainment

SHRIYA CLARIFIES ABOUT PAVITRA Shriya Saran has clarified that her upcoming film Pavitra is a sensitive story about a girl fighting for justice and also stated that there are no initimate scenes. Janardhan Maharshi is directing this film

CINE BYTES Pranitha bags a biggie

ranitha Subhash, who was earlier seen in films like Bava and Saguni, has been chosen to play the second lead role in Pawan Kalyan’s upcoming film to be directed by Trivikram Srinivas. Samantha is playing the lead role. Shooting for the film will start Jan 22.

STAR POWER

Prabhas’ fans go berserk at Mirchi audio launch

t was a sight to behold at Nanakramguda at the audio launch of Prabhas’ upcoming film Mirchi. The venue was chock-a-block with fans of Prabhas who had come to Hyderabad from different parts of the state to attend the audio launch. For the past few weeks, audio launches of major films have been held at Ramanaidu Studios to accommodate more people; however, the sheer number of people who attended the event put the security system in jeopardy. As the event progressed, scores of people broke the barricades and thronged to the stage to get a closer sneak peek of Prabhas. The police had to resort to a mild lathi charge to disperse the crowds, who later retaliated in their own way. Sources say that the situation would have been even worse if Prabhas’ uncle and veteran actor Krishnam Raju hadn’t intervened. After some tense moments, things fell into place and Devi Sri Prasad even managed to make Prabhas, Anushka, Rajamouli and Dil Raju dance onstage much to the delight of the fans.

Ongole Gitta’s audio on Jan 12

he audio of Ram, Kriti Kharbanda starrer Ongole Gitta is going to be launched on January 12.. Bhaskar has directed the ﬁlm and BVSN Prasad has produced it. GV Prakash has scored the music and the ﬁlm will release in the last week of January

Entertainment MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

DELIGHTED WITH THE EXPERIENCE

CINE BYTES

Salman denies groupism in Bollywood

alman Khan has denied reports of a ‘feud’ between him and Shahrukh Khan, saying there is no groupism at all in the film industry. “There is no groupism at all... I do my own work. I don’t think there is any groupism. I don’t follow anyone’s life. I don’t care who is whose friend and all. It doesn’t matter to me at all,” Salman said. PTI

Kabir Khan scripting next film

RAANJHANA HELPS SONAM REDISCOVER PASSION FOR ACTING

fter the success of his film Ek Tha Tiger, director Kabir Khan is already on to his next project. The director says he is busy writing his new film’s script these days. “I am already writing my script at the moment. I cannot reveal much about it as of now,” Khan said. He says once the script is ready, he will start looking for the cast. IANS

ctress Sonam Kapoor, who is busy shooting for her new film Raanjhana, says it has revived her passion for acting. “I rediscovered my passion for acting because of Raanjhana and my love for the human spirit,” Sonam tweeted. Directed by Aanand Rai, the film features southern superstar Dhanush opposite Sonam. It releases on June 28. The actress is delighted with her experience with the team. “Last schedule of Raanjhana starts day after. I’m so blessed to have worked with Aanand L Rai and Dhanush. Don’t want it to end,” she further posted. After Raanjhana, Sonam will next be seen in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, which releases on July 12. IANS

Shutting clubs is not the solution: Arjun Rampal

rjun Rampal told reporters that his LAP nightclub in Delhi’s Hotel Samrat is losing money following restrictions on their functioning in the wake of the gang rape of a 23-year-old woman in the capital. The Inkaar actor also added that he felt that “shutting down nightclubs early is not a solution to the growing crimes against women”. IANS

Entertainment MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

CHILD’S PLAY

CINE BYTES

ANGELINA’S KIDS TRIGGER PANIC BUTTON AT MANSION

ngelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s children attracted police to their home after accidentally triggering a panic button. The couple have six children together, including their three biological children and adopted kids Maddox, Pax, and Zahara. Law enforcement officials told TMZ that police were called to the Pitt-Jolie home on Friday evening after a silent alarm went off. Police in both cars and a helicopter arrived at the scene, but were informed that the alarm had been a mistake made by the children. A nanny allegedly apologised for the mistake on behalf of Jolie and Pitt, who were not present during the incident. Pitt and Jolie are rumoured to have had a private wedding ceremony on Christmas Day. Neither star has commented on the report.

Jenny McCarthy on late night television

enny McCarthy is hoping to bring a sexy twist to late night television with The Jenny McCarthy Show, which premieres February 8 on VH1. “What is missing in late night — to me — is a bit of sexiness,” Jenny told reporters on Saturday. “Not that Jay Leno is not sexy, but I feel like the template that I talked about is Playboy After Dark,” she said.

Kim inspired by Victoria Beckham?

eality TV star Kim Kardashian is reportedly taking fashion inspiration from Victoria Beckham. Kim is expecting her first child with Kanye West. She has been studying pictures of Victoria to get ideas on staying chic. “Now with a bump on the way, she is following her style closely,” contactmusic.com quoted a source as saying. IANS

Busy Cohen pulled out of Django Unchained

omedian Sacha Baron Cohen says he was compelled to opt out of Quentin Tarantino’s western Django Unchained due to his busy schedule. The actor says he didn’t have time to shoot as he was busy editing and releasing The Dictator and filming Les Miserables. He admits it was a tough decision to have to let the Tarantino film go, deadline.com quoted Cohen as saying. IANS

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 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 O’Hara’s portrayer 6 They beg to differ 11 Sleep on it 14 Some arm bones 15 ___ Gras 16 Gene’s makeup, briefly 17 Holiday cookie 19 Put an end to alcohol? 20 Artificial water channel 21 Endow with a quality 23 Most fleet 26 Words to live by 27 They want to know 28 Leopard or lynx 30 Title in Russian history 31 Stable studs 32 Cry convulsively 35 Enjoy lunch 36 In vogue 38 The way, in philosophy 39 Change the colour of hair, cloth, etc 40 ‘For that reason’ 41 ‘Jail’ or ‘extremes’ lead-in 42 Tree limb 44 Atlanta Braves field

46 Teem (with) 48 Irish moonshine whiskeys 49 Subject of some dictionaries 50 Naval rank 52 Paul McCartney or Elton John 53 Like some Valentine’s Day candies 58 Not-so-desirable bread slice 59 Shield of classical mythology 60 Like a great deal 61 ‘‘___ the season to be jolly’ 62 Tongue-in-cheek humor 63 Asian kingdom

DOWN 1 Pull with perspiration 2 Cotton gin inventor Whitney 3 Hostel work environment? 4 Joke writer 5 Obedient dog 6 Sphere of influence 7 DEA worker 8 Elm, for one 9 Ms Lupino 10 Fries, usually

11 Popular tire maker 12 Happen as a result 13 Female equivalents of knights 18 ‘Broom Hilda’ creator Myers 22 Bert Bobbsey’s sister 23 Ill-___ (doomed) 24 Analyse 25 Ramped-up items? 26 Drinks in yards 28 Rip off 29 City on its own Great Lake 31 Lip-___ 33 Like certain cereals 34 Churlish chaps 36 China’s most populous city 37 Keep goal in hockey 41 Small explosive shell 43 Baseball score 44 Male turkeys 45 Mormon, often 46 One might be liquid 47 Russian pancake 48 Swindler’s victim 50 Edible starch 51 ‘___ go bragh’ 54 Ending for ‘musket’ 55 ‘___ Goes the Weasel’ 56 History book chapter, perhaps 57 Costa-Sol connector

Chai Time MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 Thiruvaikumar

STAR POWER for 8-1-2013

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

ARIES

TAURUS

GEMINI

CANCER

LEO

VIRGO

LIBRA

SCORPIO

SAGITTARIUS

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

You look very cheerful and dynamic. All undertaken work will end without putting in much efforts. There might be petty issues with friends but that will be resolved in no time. You will gain through ancestral property. Partners will support you.

STRIP TEASE AGNES

You will help friends and relatives at their time of need. You will be respected in the society for the good work you do. Good opportunities come to you and hard work is needed to realise them. Travel for business development possible.

You will act smartly according to the prevailing situation. All work will get completed exactly as per expectations you had. Friends and partners will respect your words and suggestions. You will take decisions after due consideration of pros and cons.

You will get all work done successfully with the help of good friends. All planned work will be successfully completed as per plan. Parents will be happy to receive your affection and caring. You will receive good news of children's achievements.

Religious thoughts will occupy your mind. Businessmen will see a good income with the support of their partners. New and trustworthy friends will join your list. Bright chances to buy a house or vehicle as the loan applied for will be sanctioned.

Businessmen will see a steady growth. You will be very close with friends and make them happy. You will understand and fulfill needs of your subordinates and get jobs done perfectly. Wisely manage issues that arise at home.

You will look very brisk and complete all work in fast mode with perfection. You will consult wellwishers and partners while taking very important decisions. Though income is good, avoid fresh investments for the time being.

A strong financial position is seen. You think of deals that yield mind boggling profits and will be successful in executing them. You will earn income easy ways without much problems Friends will help you by understanding your expectation.

A day of fortune opportunities. Held-up work will resume and end successfully. Income will be more than the expectation. Businessmen will face competition wisely and win over. Your talk will do wonders. Your influence will increase at home.

TAROT READ

Sumaa Tekur

tarotreadhyd@gmail. com

ARIES:

GEMINI:

Six of Wands – You need to take up a new hobby or activity to get the focus back into your life. Your thinking also needs to stabilize at this point.

LEO:

Eight of Wands – Good luck comes your way and you end up being at the right place at the right time. A new job offer falls in your lap.

LIBRA:

PEARLS BEFORE SWINE

Judgement – A well-deserved raise or promotion will lift your spirits. You feel good about all the hard work you put in. Times are good. Go with the flow.

SAGITTARIUS:

Three of Pentacles – Upgrade your skills and think carefully of the future. You may need to do something more in order to move ahead in your career.

TAURUS:

Temperance – Things are falling into place just the way you want them to. Be patient. Do not take any rash decisions. Haste makes waste!

CANCER:

Nine of Cups – Time to make a wish because it is about to come true. You are blessed with good health and get what you want at this time of your life.

VIRGO:

Eight of Wands – Good luck comes your way and you end up being at the right place at the right time. A new job offer falls in your lap.

SCORPIO:

Strength – You’re tougher than you know. A difficult problem is threatening your peace of mind. Don’t get perturbed by it. You can solve it in no time.

CAPRICORN:

Queen of Pentacles – You effectively use emotion and practicality to get ahead. Don’t hide a secret from those who really need to know. Be more open.

PREVIOUS SOLUTIONS

PISCES:

The Tower – Changes are in the offing. You will have no choice but to accept them and get used to it. Do not get into a mode of complaining or worrying.

NUMBER GAME

Some fear is holding you back. You need to let go of all apprehensions and take up a job head-on. Don’t worry about the outcome.

SCRABBLE

AQUARIUS: The World –

POOCH CAFE

You will complete all work boldly and with a determination. Dull period in business will disappear and brisk business will start with your hard work. You will encourage your subordinates and get all work done smoothly.

for 8-1-2013

Ten of Cups – Family time! Spend more time with close family members. Go out on a vacation or plan fun weekend activities so you bond better.

NON SEQUITUR

Your efficiency will improve enormously. Mind will be peaceful. Family will be in harmony and support you. You will be relieved from longstanding difficulties. Plan for future and implement necessary actions. New efforts will yield results.

SUDUKO

Be careful while expressing your opinions as it might land you in trouble. Businessmen will be in growth mode. Income will be more than satisfactory. Your affection towards family members will increase. Do not expect blood relatives to help.

Boggle CANADA MEXICO PANAMA RUSSIA Vol: 2, No 172 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 7, 2013

SIZZLING STAR

CINE BYTES

ust when you thought Ask Men's Most Desirable Woman of 2012, Jennifer Lawrence, was going to walk away with all the “hot” awards this year, Katy Perry sneaks up from behind and lands the number one spot in Men's Health magazine’s100 Hottest Women of 2013. The singer, 28, beat out Mila Kunis to take the title, which solidifies her spot as one of Hollywood’s sexiest stars. Perry even defeated Men’s Health's reigning hottest woman of alltime champion, Jennifer Aniston, who placed fifth on this year’s list. John Mayer is one lucky guy. Others on the list are Mila Kunis, Christina Hendricks, Jennifer Lawrence, Jennifer Aniston, Scarlett Johansson, Angelina Jolie and Amber Heard.

‘I’m trying to be better’

ustin Bieber delivered a message to his fans on Saturday after photos surfaced online showing the 18-year-old holding what appears to be a marijuana joint. “Everyday growing and learning. Trying to be better,” the Beauty and the Beat singer tweeted on Saturday, after TMZ posted photos of him partying with friends, clutching what the website alleges is “a smoldering blunt.”

Fakest of the fake

eality television has been derided as staged and contrived. But comedian Kevin Hart’s upcoming BET series is the “fakest reality show ever,” he says. “We’re mocking what everybody is doing.” Real Husbands of Hollywood spoofs the over-the-top antics of Real Housewives franchise. The programme features Hart, JB Smoove, Nick Cannon, Boris Kodjoe,Robin Thicke and Duane Martin.

Pamela’s love for animals

ctress Pamela Anderson dreams of sharing her home with rescued animals. The 45year-old is a staunch vegan and animal rights campaigner and would love to open her home to abandoned pets in need of care. “I work with animal rights, so maybe I’ll go and live on a ranch with rescue animals some day,” contactmusic.com quoted Anderson as saying. IANS

sports

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

MEN IN BLUE

Positive attitude is need of hour PTI

TWELFTH MAN

Babu Kalyanpur

ndia’s gloomy slide down the road to nowhere received a glimmer of hope in the cold of fog-ridden Delhi. They somehow managed to snatch an unlikely 10-run victory against Pakistan to salvage themselves from a 3-0 whitewash in the One-day series. Long last, there was something to celebrate for the fans whose patience has run out. India were playing the Old Enemy. The rivalry between these two teams are on par with the Ashes. A clean sweep by Pakistan would always be remembered. In that context, India can take some pride. It wasn’t a dominating performance. The batting crumbled as it did with regularity in recent times. What got them through was the grit and determination of the bowlers. For once the fielding also was on par with the high standards set in the 50-over version. But in the context of what has been happening to India for quite a long time, there is still much pessimism. There have been so many false dawns all of this season and the one before. With the first match against England starting on January 11,

there is not much time for the team to change course. Undoubtedly, progress has to be made with whatever little hope India gets. This constant call for skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni must stop. A captain can only be as good as his team. And if the team doesn’t perform it is not his fault, particularly when there are seasoned players around. All through the batting mess, Dhoni has stood out. He has captained well and been India’s saviour with the bat. Unfortunately, the batsmen don’t seem to learn from the past. They seem to be perplexed and undecided.

The openers have been dismissed before you could spell their names and the middle-order continued to cave in constantly. India needs a fresh approach. All the pushing and prodding must be replaced by strokes. India possess many proven stroke players and they must do what they are good at. This tentative approach has got them nowhere. Change the tack and get aggressive, even if you lose a match or two. This will help players like Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir and Suresh Raina find their best form. England are not as good as Pakistan in the one-day variety.

India in top form can beat them. Pakistan deserved their victory. Their bowlers were stand-out right through the series. And the batsmen showed efficiency and a positive attitude. Nasir Jamshed was the Man of the Series without doubt. He showed willingness to anchor the innings after the initial burst of stroke play. Skipper Mohammed Hafeez also returned to form and made vital runs. He also bowled mean spells with the ball and can look back in satisfaction on the series. Shoaib Malik played well against his favourite team and was crucial in ensuring stability lower down the order.

DAKAR RALLY

US PGA TOUR

Defending champ Peterhansel leads PISCO, PERU: Defending champion Stephane Peterhansel (right) overcame a 34-second overnight deficit to storm into the lead of the Dakar Rally on Sunday as former winners Carlos Sainz and Nasser al-Attiyah fell worryingly off the pace. Frenchman Peterhansel, a 10time champion on the world’s toughest auto endurance race, took his Mini to victory on the second stage, a 242km timed run in and around Pisco, in 2hr 35min 38sec. South Africa’s Giniel De Villiers, another experienced Dakar campaigner in his Toyota, was second on the day, 2min 35sec behind while French driver Ronan Chabot, in an SMG, was third, 3min 52sec off Peterhansel’s pace. “We had a good stage, mainly thanks to navigation. We’re fast, and we’ve got the potential

However, Pakistan would not have progressed much without the opening bowlers Junaid Khan and Mohammad Itfan. Junaid’s return has added a new dimension to Pakistan. His pace and swing befuddled many Indian batsmen. He also uses his brains which makes him Pakistan’s star bowler of the future. Irfan was a bit nervous at the start but once he got into rhythm, he used his seven feet height to good effect. Saeed Ajmal is the best offspinner in the world and he went on to prove it. India had very few positives. Dhoni batting was a big plus while the pace bowlers can take some credit. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been a real find. He has the knack of taking early wickets and bowls a good line. Debutant Shami Ahmed has also shown a lot of promise. Ishant Sharma is getting back to his old self now. He has found the right length to bowl which has made a difference to his bowling. Ashok Dinda is also promising but his habit of bowling short without having the pace to back it put paid to his chances. The long home season has still some way to go. There is time still for a reversal of fortune. So India should get those drooping shoulders up, get the chest out and be aggressive against England for starters. Who knows, it may just help.

to go even faster, but it was mostly (co-driver) Jean-Paul Cottret’s navigation which saved the day,” said Peterhansel, who now has 60 stage wins. Overnight leader Sainz, the

2010 champion, endured a nightmare session, getting lost as he tackled a tricky dune at the 75km mark, and finished outside of the top 10. “We need to have a look at

the GPS, there may be something wrong with it,” said former world rally champion Sainz, who lost around 18 minutes. “We went through certain points two or three times without them being validated, until we thought ‘too bad, let’s move on’ and, after 15 km, it went back to normal... I don’t know, we need to have a look at it.” Buggy teammate Al-Attiyah, the 2011 winner, was sixth on the stage, 11min 37sec behind and is also sixth overall, more than 10 minutes behind Peterhansel. He too endured navigational problems. “We went through a waypoint and nothing happened, so we continued to look around for a while and all of a sudden it was validated, not only for us but also for all the drivers behind us, who lost far less time,” said the Qatari. AFP

Play gets on at Kapalua MAUI, HAWAII: The US PGA Tour tried again to get the 2013 season underway Sunday, with players teeing off in the first-round of the Tournament of Champions after another four-hour weather delay. After weather disrupted play on Friday and cancelled all action on Saturday, organizers of the season-opening event had hoped to start fresh with two rounds on Sunday and finish a tournament reduced to 54 holes on Monday. But high winds led to a four-hour delay on Sunday, and when Matt Kuchar teed off on the 10th hole a gust knocked his ball off the tee. “It’s a little better ... very little,” PGA Tour VP Slugger White said.” AFP

sports

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

REVEALING TWEET

Murray’s friend fights cancer LONDON: British tennis player Ross Hutchins, a close friend of world number three Andy Murray, revealed on Sunday that he has been diagnosed with a form of cancer. “Happy New Year to all! Unfortunately I will be away from tennis for a while as I was recently diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma..” he wrote on Twitter. “I am doing well, very positive with excellent medical support, friends and family around me. Looking forward to being back on the court soon!” A tearful Murray appeared to dedicate his success at the Brisbane International on Sunday to Hutchins, saying: “I’d like to dedicate this victory to one of my best friends. “He’s back home watching — you’re going to get through it.” Hutchins, 27 and ranked number 28 in the world in doubles, is Murray’s Davis Cup team-mate and former doubles partner.

SYDNEY INTERNATIONAL

Kvitova out, Wozniacki through SYDNEY: World number eight Petra Kvitova’s Australian Open preparations were dealt another blow Sunday when she was trounced in straight sets at the Sydney International by Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova. Fifth-seed Czech Kvitova, the 2011 Wimbledon champion, continued her form slump in Sydney, losing 6-1, 6-1 to Cibulkova in little more than an hour. It follows her surprise second-round exit from this month’s Brisbane International, where she fell 6-4, 7-5 to Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and her withdrawal from November’s WTA Championships in Istanbul due to illness. “I played badly.”

BRISBANE INTERNATIONAL

Murray beats Dimitrov In a high-class final, Murray came from 4-1 down in the first set and a break in the second to subdue the challenge of the talented Dimitrov.

BRISBANE: Scotland’s Andy Murray (right) called on all his experience to defeat rising Bulgarian star Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (7/0), 6-4 and retain his Brisbane International title on Sunday. “I thought the standard of tennis was good today,” Murray said, admitting he had to change tactics during the first set after Dimitrov’s lightning start. “There were a lot of highquality rallies and I had to change a few things. He started the match off very well and was extremely aggressive. “I needed to change things around a little bit and I managed to start dictating a lot of points and use my forehand well. So my groundies worked well today.” The 87-minute victory gave Murray his 25th ATP career title and was the perfect preparation for the Australian Open beginning in just over a week. But he was made to work hard for the win by Dimitrov,

Results (x denotes seeding) Final n Andy Murray (GBR x1) bt Grigor Dmitrov (BUL) 7-6 (7/0), 6-4 Doubles Final n Marcelo Melo (BRA)/Tommy Robredo (ESP) bt Eric Butorac (USA)/Paul Hanley (AUS x1) 4-6, 6-1, 10/5

whose playing style and classical one-handed backhand has drawn comparisons with the great Roger Federer. It was Dimitrov’s backhand

that initially caused problems for the reigning US Open champion, who had trouble dealing with the amount of slice the Bulgarian was getting on the

ball. Dimitrov, playing in his first ATP final, broke Murray’s first service game and looked untroubled on his own serve until serving for the set at 5-4, when he faltered and allowed the Scotsman back into the match. Murray took his chance and stormed through the tiebreak without dropping a point, his powerful groundstrokes forcing Dimitrov onto the back foot and into error. The 21-year-old Bulgarian conceded Murray’s experience had been the difference. AFP

ATP CHENNAI OPEN

Tipsarevic ends title drought

Tipsarevic wins prestigious Indian tennis tournament in his fifth attempt. KULDIP LAL Press Trust o India CHENNAI: World number nine Janko Tipsarevic won the ATP Chennai Open with a masterful fightback to defeat young Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut in the final on Sunday. The second-seeded Serb came back strongly after losing the first set to beat the 80thranked Agut 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 in an

hour and 49 minutes at the Nungambakkam tennis stadium. Tipsarevic conceded just four games in the last two sets to end the giant-killing run by the 24year-old Spaniard, who defeated top-seed Tomas Berdych in the quarter-finals. Tipsarevic won the Chennai title for the first time after five unsuccessful attempts, including a loss to big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic in last year’s final.

Tipsarevic earned $69,500 and 250 ranking points for the morale-boosting win ahead of the season’s first Grand Slam, the Australian Open, which begins in Melbourne on January 14. Agut took home $36,650 and 150 points after making his firstever tour final. “I am extremely proud of finally winning in Chennai,” Tipsarevic said. “I just love this place and was desperate to win.

DAVIS CUP

Officials move to defuse row Players will be consulted on deciding the choice of courts and venues in the future. NEW DELHI: India’s tennis chiefs on Sunday attempted to end a simmering Davis Cup row with the country’s players by agreeing to most of their demands ahead of next month’s tie against South Korea. Eight India players, headed by Somdev Devvarman, had last week threatened to boycott the Asia-Oceania group one tie

in New Delhi from February 1-3 if a slew of demands made by them were not accepted. The All India Tennis Association (AITA) on Sunday accepted the demand for higher prize money, a change in the squad’s support staff, appointment of a full-time physiotherapist and the players’ involvement in the choice of venues for

ties. It announced that former Davis Cup competitor Zeeshan Ali will replace Nandan Bal as the India team’s coach, but decided that Shiv Mishra will continue in his role as non-playing captain at least for the Korean tie. The association, in an email to players that was also released to the media, said it had written

to the sports ministry to appoint a new team doctor in place of Vece Paes and a new physiotherapist in place of Sanjay Singh. It also agreed to give the players 70 percent of the prize money earned from home ties instead of the former 50 percent. For away ties, the entire prize money will paid to the players as before.

sports

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

LATE CONSOLATION

OZ TOUR OF INDIA

Where did this come from? Brief score India innings (Yuvraj Singh 23, SK Raina 31, MS Dhoni*† 36, Mohammad Irfan2/28, Junaid Khan 1/17, Saeed Ajmal 5/24 Pakistan innings (Nasir Jamshed 34, Misbah-ul-Haq* 39, Umar Akmal 25, Mohammad Hafeez 21, B Kumar 2/31, Shami Ahmed 1/23, I Sharma 3/36 R Ashwin 2/47, RA Jadeja 1/19

MR MISHRA Press Trust of India

NEW DELHI: A spirited India clinched a sensational 10-run victory in a low-scoring thriller to avoid a series whitewash and restore some pride in the third and final cricket one-dayer against arch-rivals Pakistan here today. The Indians were first bundled out for a paltry 167 in 43.4 overs but relied on a brilliant bowling display under pressure to stop the visitors at 157 in a nerve-wracking daynight contest, held in extremely chilly and windy conditions.

Fortunes fluctuated from one team to the other till the very end before the hosts finally brought some cheer for their fans with the dramatic victory, which reduced their margin of defeat to 1-2 in the three-match series. It was another poor batting display by the Indians who never really got going as the Pakistani pacers Mohammad Irfan and Junaid Khan caused early damages before Saeed Ajmal joined the party with a career-best effort of five for 24. But the host bowlers made amends in the end to fashion the win.

Statistical highlights of the match NEW DELHI: Statistical highlights of the third and final onedayer between India and Pakistan. n Umar Akmal, in the course of his 25 off 50 balls, has completed his 2,000 runs in 71 ODIs — 2001 at an average of 37.75. n Nasir has been adjudged the player of the series for the first time in ODIs. He has topscored in the series – 241 runs at an average of 120.50. n Jamshed has averaged 135.33 while making 406 runs in five innings, including three hundreds and a fifty — the best by a Pakistani batsman in five consecutive innings against India. n Virat Kohli has posted his worst performance in a series in ODIs, making 13 runs at an average of 4.33. Also his strike rate of 41.93 in the series is his worst ever. n Dhoni has aggregated 203 runs

at an average of 203.00 in the series — a tally exceeded only by Nasir Jamshed's 241 at an average of 120.50. Saeed Ajmal took five for 24 — his best in ODIs — his second instance of five wickets in an innings. His superb performance is the best by a Pakistani bowler at Feroz Shah Kotla. Ajmal has become the first Pakistani spinner to capture five wickets in an innings in ODIs in India. His excellent figures are the third best by a spinner against India. Muralitharan had bagged 7 for 30 against India at Sharjah on October 27, 2000 and Ajatha Mendis' 6 for 13 at Karachi on July 6, 2008. Besides Ajmal, Mendis and Muralitharan, three other spinners have taken five wickets in

ANIMAL RIGHTS SPAT WARNE–SAMUELS

an innings against India – Ashley Giles, Saqlain Mushtaq and Mushtaq Ahmed. Ajmal's figures of five for 24 are the second best by a Pakistani bowler against India on Indian soil. Naved-ul-Hasan had bagged six for 27 at Jamshedpur on April 9, 2005. Ajmal's above figures are the third best at Feroz Shah Kotla. Kemar Roach (WI) had captured 6 for 27 against Netherlands in 2011 and Vivian Richards (WI) — 6 for 41 against India in 1989. Ajmal's above performance is the second best by a Pakistani bowler in a losing cause in ODIs. Imran Khan had claimed 6 for 14 against India at Sharjah on March 22, 1985. Mahendra Singh Dhoni became the first Indian and the sixth

n n

SA HOST KIWIS

MELBOURNE: Australian star Shane Warne (above) was banned for one match and fined $4,700 on Monday after an ugly, foul-mouthed clash with West Indian Marlon Samuels during a Twenty20 match in Melbourne. The spin legend, captaining the Melbourne Stars against city rivals the Renegades in the domestic Big Bash tournament on Sunday, was furious that Samuels pulled back David

SYDNEY: Australia's series win over Sri Lanka did nothing to ease the uncertainty over their batsmen facing India's spinners on next month's tour to the subcontinent, newspapers said on Monday. Australia made hard work of chasing down 141 runs for victory on a turning Sydney Cricket Ground pitch before wrapping up a five-wicket win in the final Test and a 3-0 series clean sweep. Left-arm spinner Rangana Herath took three wickets for 47 and had most of the Australian top order in trouble in a tense few hours late on Sunday's fourth day. Australian newspapers, looking ahead to the fourTest tour to India, sense problems ahead for the team, who will now be without 79-Test veteran Mike Hussey following his Test retirement. "Australia won a Test yesterday, but missed a precious chance to get their house in order," News Ltd's Robert Craddock said. "As a consequence, they will fly into India for a four-Test tour a bit like an explorer heading into a dark forest at night. "A pungent whiff of uncertainty is in the air." Craddock said there were two unsolved issues in the team ahead of the series in India. "There are two major issues which will land like a bag of cement on Australia's doorstep: the choice of a second spinner to support Nathan Lyon and the recall of Usman Khawaja as the replacement for Mike Hussey."

ANIMAL SRI LANKA RIGHTS IN AUSTRALIA

Young stars bright spot for Sri Lanka

Warne banned after T20 bust-up Hussey when the batsman was turning for a second run. And when Samuels was batting later in the game, Warne confronted the West Indian with the words "Fuck you, Marlon." In the next over, Warne, in the field, threw the ball at the Jamaican's chest and Samuels reacted by tossing his bat down the pitch towards the Aussie. The two players squared up and had to be separated by the umpires. Samuels was later forced to retire hurt when he top-edged a Lasith Malinga delivery into his eye. With blood gushing from his face, he needed hospital treatment. Cricket Australia on Monday charged both players with multiple breaches of its code of behaviour. AFP

wicket-keeper to complete 200 catches or more in ODIs. With seven wickets at 15.57 runs apiece, Ishant Sharma has finished as the top wicket-taker in the series for India. Shami Ahmed has become the first Indian to bowl four maiden overs on debut in an ODI. Dhoni has been adjudged the Man of the Match for the fifth time against India — his 18th in ODIs. Pakistan have registered their first series win (2-1) over India in ODIs since 2004-05. India's 167 is their fifth lowest defended by them in ODIs successfully — their lowest ever is 125 against Pakistan at Sharjah on March 22, 1985. India's excellent win is their first in two games against Pakistan at Feroz Shah Kotla, New Delhi.

Australia spin worry ahead of India visit

Proteas call up four uncapped players for ODIs CAPE TOWN: South Africa rested veteran allrounder Jacques Kallis and called up four uncapped players for the oneday series against New Zealand at the end of the month. The Proteas also brought allrounder Ryan McLaren into their test squad as cover for fast bowler Vernon Philander, who again tweaked a troublesome hamstring in the series-opener and is doubtful for the second test against the Black Caps.

SYDNEY: Sri Lanka will take heart in the potential of three young batsmen, Dimuth Karunaratne (right), Lahiru Thirimanne and Dinesh Chandimal, despite their 3-0 Test series drubbing in Australia. Little went right for the Sri Lankans on their Australian tour after heavy defeats in Hobart and Melbourne, but they saved their best fighting performance for the final Test, in Sydney. Despite four players out with injury, including talismanic batsman Kumar Sangakkara with a fractured finger, Sri Lanka fought hard before going down by five wickets to Michael Clarke's Australians late on the fourth day at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The shining light was the batting of their young brigade.

Hussey goes out winner with Australian victory SYDNEY: Mike Hussey bowed out of Test cricket with a win when he guided Australia to a five-wicket victory over Sri Lanka Sunday, giving the home side a clean sweep of the three-match series. Left-hander Hussey, played his 79th and final Test after announcing retirement.

MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

sports

SAUNDERS TAKES CHARGE AT WOLVES Former Welsh international striker Dean Saunders was on Sunday confirmed as the new manager of struggling Championship side Wolves to replace the sacked Stale Solbakken. Saunders, 48, had been given permission to speak to Wolves earlier in the day.

FA CUP REVIEW

LA LIGA

Suarez ‘hands’ Reds win

The Uruguayan international clearly handled the ball before poking it into the net to give the visitors a 2-0 lead with just over half an hour to go. ROBIN MILLARD Agencie France-Presse MANSFIELD, UK: Luis Suarez’s controversial goal proved the difference as Premier League giants Liverpool beat fifth-tier Mansfield Town 2-1 in their FA Cup third-round clash on Sunday. The Uruguayan international — no stranger to controversy since his arrival in England in January 2011 — clearly handled the ball before poking it into the net to give the visitors a 2-0 lead with just over half an hour to go. The hosts’ leading scorer Matt Green ensured an exciting finish with a 79th-minute strike. Daniel Sturridge had opened the scoring seven minutes into his first outing following his £12 million ($19.3 million, 14.8 million euros) move from European champions Chelsea. Mansfield manager Paul

Graham denies Arsenal victory with equaliser

Liverpool’s Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez (C) appears to handle the ball in the lead up to his goal during the match on Sunday. AFP/ ANDREW YATES

Cox said he would give Suarez “the benefit of the doubt” over the goal, but Liverpool coach Brendan Rodgers admitted his forward had been fortunate. “There is no doubt it was handball, but the officials have seen it was not deliberate,” Rodgers told ESPN.

“I asked the fourth official if it was handball and he said it was. It is unfortunate for Mansfield and lucky for us we got the goal.” Mansfield’s chief executive Carolyn Radford complained that her side deserved a second chance.

LONDON: Danny Graham poached an 87th-minute equaliser to earn Swansea City a 2-2 draw with Arsenal in an FA Cup third-round tie that finished with a rapid exchange of goals at the Liberty Stadium on Sunday. Arsenal had fought back from behind to lead through a quick-fire pair of goals from Lukas Podolski and Kieran Gibbs in the last 10 minutes, only for Graham to pounce at the death to take a gripping tie to a replay. Swansea had led through a 58th-minute effort by Michu but Swansea appeared to be heading out until Graham found the roof of the net with three minutes to play.

SERIE A

Samp stun Juve as Pescara hamstring Viola JUSTIN DAVIS Agencie France-Presse MILAN: Juventus’s hopes of dropping Inter Milan virtually out of the Serie A title race were ended after the champions suffered a shock 2-1 home defeat to Sampdoria on Sunday. Inter had been stunned 3-0 by Udinese in Sunday’s early match, handing Juventus the chance to take their lead over the Nerazzurri — widely considered Juve’s main title rivals — to 12

Sunday results Udinese 3 Vs Inter Milan 0 Juventus 1 Vs Sampdoria 2 AC Milan 2 Vs Siena 1 Parma 2 Vs Palermo 1 Napoli 4 Vs Roma 1

points. But after Sebastian Giovinco (left) had given the Bianconeri a 24th minute lead from the penalty spot the hosts were stunned by a double from Argentine striker Emanuel Icardi in the 52nd and 68th minutes. Edinson Cavani relaunched his campaign to finish Serie A’s top scorer — and Napoli’s first since Diego Maradona — with a hat-trick in an emphatic 4-1 win over Roma on Sunday. If he suc-

ceeds, the Uruguayan will emulate former Napoli hero Maradona, who helped the Partenopei to their two league titles to date and remains the only Napoli player to finish as top scorer in Serie A. “I’m happy to be taking the match ball home after this hattrick,” Cavani told Sky Italia after the match. “It was a great performance by everyone tonight and helps put our recent poor spell behind us.”

CAVANI FOLLOWS MARADONA

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MANSFIELD, UK: Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers begrudgingly admits that if there’s controversy, his star striker Luis Suarez is always in the thick of it. Suarez has been no stranger to controversy since his arrival in England in January 2011 and Rodgers accepted it just had to be him again. “It always is, isn’t it?,” he told reporters.

MADRID: Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova admitted on Sunday that his cancer battle is not over and that he may be forced to once again step away from guiding the team’s thrilling pursuit of La Liga title. The 44-year-old underwent surgery for a second time on a tumour on a saliva gland on December 20. He missed the away win over Valladolid.

MILAN: Lazio president Claudio Lotito claimed the Serie A side’s fans are not racist despite Cagliari’s Victor Ibarbo being targeted with racist chants on Saturday. “Lazio is always singled out as a racist club, which is not true: we have several black players in our team,” Lotito told Sky Italia. “However, we can’t control the actions of individuals.”

MILAN: AC Milan have called for football’s authorities to take an ofﬁcial stand against racism in the sport as the controversy surrounding Kevin-Prince Boateng’s walk-off continued on Sunday. Boateng hit the headlines last week when he responded to racist chants by a small group of fans during a friendly against Pro Patria by storming off.

CR7 rescues Madrid, Barca cruise

TIM HANLON Agencie France-Presse

MADRID: Goalkeeper Iker Casillas came off the bench for 10-man Real Madrid who needed a second half double from Cristiano Ronaldo to beat Real Sociedad 4-3 while leaders Barcelona cruised to a 4-0 win over Espanyol. Barcelona, whose goals all came in the first-half against their city neighbours, remain 16 points clear of their bitter rivals and eleven ahead of second-

Sunday results Real Madrid 4 (Benzema 2, Khedira 35, Cristiano Ronaldo 68, 70) Real Sociedad 3 (X Prieto 9pen, 40, 76) Barcelona 4 (Xavi 10, Pedro 15, 27, Messi 29-pen) Espanyol 0

place Atletico Madrid who drew 1-1 with Mallorca. Madrid captain Casillas was left out for the second consecutive game but was called upon after just five minutes following a penalty conceded by his replacement Adan Garrido who was red carded. Xabi Prieto, who was to grab a hat-trick, scored from the spotkick to equalise after Benzema had put Madrid ahead in the second minute with Sami Khedira then restoring the lead for Jose Mourinho’s side after 35min. Prieto struck again before half-time before Ronaldo came to the rescue with a brace after the restart. Prieto hit his third with 14 minutes to go but Sociedad also finished with 10 men as Daniel Estrada was given a second yellow card. After the game Mourinho said he was unconcerned about receiving abuse from the crowd. “Perfect. Let them whistle me before the match and then support the team as they are doing. I think the whistles are for leaving Casillas out and also because we are not achieving our aims in the championship,” he said.