India vs England 2012: Pune T20I - Previewx

Pune: India need to put behind the humiliation of losing the Test rubber against England and regroup quickly to take on the confident visitors in the first of the two T20 Internationals here from Thursday.

Under-fire for the first Test series loss to England in 28 years and and with his captaincy under the scanner, skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni will have to put these issues on the back burner and motivate his teammates for the shortest format of the game.

To the home team's advantage, a younger lot of players some of who were not part of the Test series like flamboyant all rounder Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma and Ambati Rayudu would give India the much-needed edge and enthusiasm.

All three are very good T20 players and would also bring the extra zip and verve in the fielding department which was absent in the Tests.

They have all been busy playing in the Ranji Trophy for their respective units and will be match fit too.

Incidentally Sharma, who has been in good form with the bat in the Ranji Trophy recently, had top-scored with an unbeaten 55 when the two teams last met in a T20 game, won by India by a whopping margin of 90 runs in Sri Lanka earlier this year during the ICC T20 World Cup.

Yuvraj Singh, who flopped in the Test series barring a fighting 74 in the opener at Ahmedabad, is back to the format in which he has excelled in the past.

Dashing opener Virender Sehwag has opted out of the two-match series, which ends with the last match at Mumbai on December 22, and it has given the chance to Ajinkya Rahane, who warmed the bench right through the Test series, to open the innings with Gautam Gambhir.


Rahane had impressed with a 61 when the two teams met in a T20 game last year in England at Manchester and would be eager to get going after playing Ranji Trophy games for Mumbai.

Dhoni, himself a superb T20 and 50-over batsman, would be the late-order game changer, and with Virat Kohli, who had rediscovered his wonted touch with a patient 103 in the last Test at Nagpur, will give extra impetus in the batting and fielding sections.

The new ball bowling has a fresh look to it in the form of Ashok Dinda, Abhimanyu Mithun , Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Parwinder Awana with veteran Zaheer Khan opting out.

Dinda and Awana had been part of the Test squad in the latter stages but did not get a game while Mithun has been added as a replacement for his injured Karnataka teammate, R Vinay Kumar.

Spin bowling department will be manned by R Ashwin, who would be extra keen to impress after a disappointing show with the ball in the Test rubber, Ravindra Jadeja, who made his Test debut at Nagpur, and Piyush Chawla, who too was part of the team in the drawn final game.

England have made wholesale changes in their squad with triumphant Test skipper Alastair Cook returning home and replaced at the helm by hard-hitting middle order batsman Eoin Morgan who was part of the Test team but did not play a single game.

Morgan is also the stand-in captain for the injured Stuart Broad, replaced by James Harris, who has returned home along with many other members of the team, notably Kevin Pietersen.

The absence of Pietersen, who played a big role in England winning the Test rubber, would be welcomed by India. The star batsman is no longer part of the England Twenty20 team.

England have included T20 specialists like Alex Hales, Jos Butler, Jade Dernbach, James Tredwell, Michael Lumb, Luke Wright and Danny Briggs.

some of who have been part of the development squad which played a few matches in Navi Mumbai when the Test matches were on.

Retained from the Test squad along with captain Morgan are Tim Bresnan, wicket-keeper Jonny Bairstow, Samit Patel and Joe Root, who made an impressive Test debut in the final match.

Bresnan and Patel also had the opportunity to play in two and three Tests while Morgan and Bairstow did not.

India have lost three T20 games, all in bilateral series, between the two sides. They had lost bilateral matches played at Lord's in June 2009 and the next two held at Manchester and Kolkata in August and October last year.

The game here would be the first T20 International played at the swanky Sahara Stadium on the city's outskirts which hosted IPL matches last year. It has a capacity of 43,000.

Teams:

India: Mahendra Sing Dhoni (capt), Gautam Gambhir, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Ambati Rayudu, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Piyush Chawla, Ashok Dinda, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Abhimanyu Mithun and Parvinder Awana.

England: Eoin Morgan (capt), James Harris, Jonny Bairstow, Tim Bresnan, Danny Briggs, Jos Butler, Jade Dernbach, Alex Hales, Michael Lumb, Stuart Meaker, Samit Patel, Joe Root, James Tredwell and Luke Wright.

Umpires: C Shamsuddin, Sudhur Asnani

Third Umpire: Vineet Kulkarni

Fourth Umpire: N K Srinath

Match Referee: Jeff Crowe.

Match starts at 7 pm (IST).

PTI

Delhi gangrape: Victim continues to be stable, evidence sent for forensic examination

The Delhi gangrape victim continued to be in ICU at city's Safdarjung hospital on Thursday while the doctors attending her said she was stable. Raids were on in Haryana and Bihar in hunt of the sixth accused in the case and all the evidence collected by the Delhi Police from the bus - where the crime took place - and the clothes of the accused were sent for forensic examination. The victim had on Wednesday given a complete written statement to the police, explaining in detail what happened to her and her friend on the fateful night.
Meanwhile, a Delhi Police team, which visited Bihar on Wednesday in search of Akshay Thakur - one of the accused in the rape - questioned his father and brother. The five-member team visited Lahankarma village bordering Jharkhand and questioned Akshay's father and brother at the Tandwa police station, Acting Superintendent of Police Pranav Kumar said.
Kumar said Akshay's father Saryu Singh, a marginal farmer, and his younger brother Abhay who works in Delhi, were let off after questioning. The Delhi Police team accompanied by the Bihar police also spoke to villagers to secure information about Akshay. As per information, Akshay studied at the Tandwa school and had gone to Delhi in search of a job.

BJP evasive on question of Modi running for PM's chair

As Narendra Modi appeared set for a hat-trick in Gujarat, BJP on Thursday parried questions on whether he will be the party's prime ministerial candidate in the next Lok Sabha elections.

"Modi bhai has always been an important leader in the BJP... We are not a dynastic party which

is led by a Yuvaraj. We function in a pure democratic fashion," BJP chief spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said. He was asked whether the third straight victory in Gujarat has defined Modi as the prime ministerial candidate for the BJP in the next Lok Sabha election in 2014.
The party should be allowed to rejoice in its performance-led victory in the state, Prasad said, adding that Modi fought against all forms of vicious campaigns against himself at different levels in the state as well as internationally.
"What is significant about this election is that in this country where there is so much of caste divide, a leader who has identified with the aspirations of an entire population, has emerged victorious," he said.
He also warded off questions about implications of BJP's relations with the Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, who has been critical of the idea of Modi's elevation to the national level.
"This issue (Modi and Nitish) has been discussed several times. Our roots (BJP and JDU) are very strong and we have fought several polls together," Prasad said.
He termed "speculative" further queries on this issue.
"This is a speculative question. Allow us to celebrate Modi bhai's third victory," Prasad said.
The BJP leader also said that the party is proud to have several eminent people with capability to become Prime Minister.
"We are proud to have so many eminent leaders capable of becoming Prime Minister, unlike a Yuvaraj leading a dynasty. Our candidate will be chosen at the appropriate time," he said.

HP launches Windows 8 hybrid, Ultrabook

HP became the latest to announce its Windows 8 portfolio by launching the Envy X2 hybrid and the Envy TouchSmart Ultrabook 4 in India. The company has also launched the HP Envy 23 TouchSmart all-in-one.

The Envy X2 is an ultrathin Intel Atom powered Windows 8 notebook. Remove its keyboard and the X2 becomes a 11.6-inch tablet. Docked to the keyboard the device promises up to 14 hours of battery life.

The device comes with Beats Audio, HD webcam, an 8-MP camera and NFC. Without the keyboard, this hybrid weighs just 700 grams.

The Envy Ultrabook is a 14-inch device with a multi-touch screen and 3rd gen Intel Core i5 processor. Though an ultrabook, the device weighs 2.16 kg and promises 8 hours of battery life. Both the X2 and the ultrabook have been priced at Rs 59,990 and will be available from January 2013.

The Envy 23 AiO comes with a Intel Core i5 processor on a 23-inch HD display. There is also a substantial 1TB storage on this slim device. The touchscreen can sense up to 10 fingers at a time and there is also a remote for wireless control. The AiO is priced at Rs 71,990 and will be available in stores this month.

Ireland's abortion law is virtually meaningless

 

The news that Ireland is to legalise abortions when the mother’s life is at risk, is two decades late and will make little practical difference to the vast majority of women in this difficult position, writes Cathy Newman.

It's a rare event when an FT headline sets the pulses racing. When I used to work in the politics team there, we used to joke that our scoops on the latest ministerial antics had been knocked off the front page by hot news on a cement company merger in Tasmania. But when I saw, in big, bold, black and white (or pink): "Ireland to legalise abortion" I had to take a look.

Ireland is one of only two EU countries where women can't have an abortion - despite five referendums on the subject since 1983. So the suggestion that this was about to change was indeed front page news.

Of course, the story wasn't quite as interesting as the headline.

What Ireland is proposing is simply to pass legislation to allow abortions where a woman's life is at risk. Far from a new departure, this simply implements a court ruling which should have been enshrined in law two decades ago.

Let me explain. The Irish Supreme Court declared in 1992 that terminations were legal in just such limited circumstances. It's all to do with the so-called "X" case, where the authorities prevented a 14-year-old girl - who became pregnant after being raped - from travelling abroad for an abortion. The Supreme Court overturned the travel ban, ruling that abortion was legal in Ireland where there was a risk to the mother's life - for example in the "X" case, a risk of suicide.

Networks Project S. Korea to Elect First Female President

 

SEOUL — With partial returns counted, several broadcast networks in South Korea project Park Gyeun-hye will win the country's election, making her the country's first female president.

Three major broadcast networks are predicting Park Gyeun-hye of the conservative Saenuri Party will defeat Moon Jae-in, the candidate of Democratic United Party.

Turnout was high, nearly 76 percent, surpassing the two previous presidential elections, despite sub-freezing temperatures across the country.

Voters, bundled in their thickest winter clothing and stomping their feet to stay warm, waited in long lines to get into polling stations.

In Seoul, 51-year-old Chun Dae-young, noted he has never had to line up before to vote.  The small business owner expressed sentiments typical of Moon's supporters.

Chun says he wants "to live in a society where law, common sense and rules are recognized."  He says the system must respect small and medium-sized enterprises and protect the weak.  He says he wants the next president to make his dreams come true.

Twenty-three-year-old student Kang Eun-jeong, unlike the majority of younger voters, cast her ballot for Park and expects to see the country's first female president.

Kang says she knows her friends and colleagues have a different opinion about who should be president, but notes Park's father held the post for 16 years and his daughter "can do well as she has a lot of political experience."

The incumbent, President Lee Myung-bak of the Saenuri Party, is limited to a single five-year term.  He was elected in 2007.

The new president, who will take office February 25, will confront a widening income disparity amid a slowing economy, soaring welfare costs for an aging population and the ever-present threat posed by North Korea.

During the campaign, Moon said he wanted a summit meeting with North Korea in the first year of his presidency.  Park declared no such meeting could take place unless Pyongyang apologizes for military provocation it has conducted in recent years.

Moon wanted modifications to the controversial free-trade agreement with the United States, while Park says it is generally satisfactory.

Both candidates support the long-standing military alliance with the United States.

Moon's campaign received a boost after an independent and a far-left candidate both dropped out.  But despite their support it has not given him enough votes to defeat Park, a veteran lawmaker.

Her father took power in a 1961 coup and was South Korea's autocratic president until he was assassinated in 1979 by the chief of his intelligence agency.

Three more polio workers shot in Pakistan; eight dead in 48 hours

Three workers in a polio eradication campaign were shot in Pakistan on Wednesday, and two of them were killed, the latest in an unprecedented string of attacks over the past three days that has partially halted the U.N.-backed campaign.
The United Nations in Pakistan has pulled all staff involved in the campaign off the streets, spokesman Michael Coleman said.
The government said immunization was continuing in some areas without U.N. support although many workers refused to go out. Women health workers held protests in the southern city of Karachi and in the capital, Islamabad.
"We go out and risk our lives to save other people's children from being permanently handicapped, for what? So that our own children become orphans?" health worker Ambreen Bibi said at the Islamabad protest.
The government was caught off guard by the violence, saying they had not expected attacks in areas far from Taliban strongholds and they would have to change tactics in the health campaign.
"We didn't expect such attacks in Karachi," said Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar, minister for human rights, who oversees the polio campaign. He was referring to the southern commercial hub where there have been attacks this week.
"In far flung areas where the threats are more pronounced, we have been providing polio teams security."
Wednesday saw four separate attacks, all in the north. In the district of Charsadda, men on motorbikes shot dead a woman and her driver, police and health officials said.
Hours earlier, gunmen wounded a male health worker in the nearby provincial capital of Peshawar. He was in critical condition, said a doctor at the Lady Reading Hospital where he is being treated.
Four other women health workers were shot at but not hit in nearby Nowshera, said Jan Baz Afridi, deputy head of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation. Two women health workers were shot at in Dwasaro village in Charsadda, police said.
It was not clear who was behind the violence.
Many Islamists, including Taliban militants, have long opposed the campaign. Some say it aims to sterilize Muslims, while one militant commander said it could not continue unless attacks by U.S. drone aircraft stopped.
The Taliban have repeatedly threatened health workers involved in the campaign. Some said they received calls telling them to stop working with "infidels" just before the attacks.
But a spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, Ihsanullah Ihsan, told Reuters his group was not involved in the violence.
"BETTER COORDINATION"
On Monday and Tuesday, six health workers were killed in attacks in the southern port city of Karachi and in Peshawar. Five were women and the youngest was 17.
Five of the shootings happened in Karachi, home to 18 million people. Health authorities there suspended the polio eradication campaign in the entire province of Sindh.
Karachi police spokesman Imran Shaukat said teams were supposed to tell police of their movements but had not done so.
"There has to be better coordination between the health department and police," he said. "We have decided that we will be more forthcoming and contact polio team heads ourselves."
Minister Khokhar said the drive would resume as soon as security was in place.
"The teams go into every little neighbourhood. You can understand that enormous resources are needed if we have to protect each and every team and worker, which we will have to now," he said.
On Wednesday, police said they killed two people and arrested 15 during raids connected to the shootings.
Authorities in the northern Khyber Paktunkhwa province, the capital of which is Peshawar, said they would not accept the U.N.'s recommendation to suspend the campaign.
"If we stopped the campaign it would encourage the forces opposing the polio vaccination," said provincial official Javed Marwat.
But their insistence the campaign continue angered health workers who said their colleagues told officials in Charsadda about threats before Wednesday's shootings. The officials insisted the vaccinations take place anyway.
Khokar said Taliban hostility to the campaign increased after it emerged that the CIA had used a fake vaccination campaign to try to gather information about Osama bin Laden, before he was found and killed in a Pakistani town last year.
Pakistan had 20,000 polio cases in 1994 but vigorous vaccination efforts had brought the number down to 56 in 2012, the government said.
A global vaccination campaign has eradicated the disease from everywhere except Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria.
Polio can paralyse or kill within hours of infection. It is transmitted person-to-person, meaning that as long as one child is infected, the disease can be passed to others. (Additional reporting by Mehreen Zahra-Malik in Islamabad and Imtiaz Shah in Karachi; Writing by Katharine Houreld; Editing by Michael Perry and Robert Birsel)

Telugu film industry shocked by Yasho Sagar's death

Telugu film industry is shocked by the sudden death of actor Yasho Sagar, who died in a road accident near Shira in Tumkur district, Karnataka, when he was returning from Mumbai to Bangalore. Soon after the news about his demise broke out, several Tollywood stars took to their Twitter page to share their shock and offer their heart-felt condolences to his family. GV Prakash Kumar had debuted as musician with Yasho Sagar in the movie Ullasamga Utsahamga. He was the person who was most shocked to hear about Yasho Sagar's demise. On his Twitter account, he tweeted, "RIP Yasho sagar ... He was the lead in my first Telugu film as music director for dir karunakaran ... Too soon to die ..." Sneha Ullal entered films with the Hindi movie Lucky, and Ullasamga Utsahamga was also her debut movie in Telugu. She played the female lead in the film. She was also very much shocked to hear about the sad demise of Yasho Sagar. She tweeted, "Rushing to Banglore.." Actress Sanjjanaa wrote, "Life is so fragile,shocked to hear my friend Yashosagar is no more! He was an innocent fun full kid,met him last an year back,Unbelievable!" She added, "Can't imagine what the family will go through, prayers and strength to the family.. Rip yasho sagar !!" Lakshmi Manchu: So much tragedy.. Be careful when u drive..:( Yasho sagar hero of Ulasamga Utsahamga died in a car accident. RIP heart wrenching. Manchu Manoj: I'm shocked to know that yasho sagar is no more .. We had lunch together before he left to Banglore in that car... Heart breaking. Nithin: Just heard bout yashoo sagar's accident..shocking..R.i.p. Nikhil Siddhartha: Shocking..... Yasho Sagar.. The bubbly hero of Ullasanga Utsahanga Passes away in a Road Accident... This is Tragic... Very very Sad... Rahul Haridas: Terrible News"@idlebrainjeevi: Yasho sagar - hero of ullasamga utsahamga died in road accidenT. Rip."

More Funerals for School Shooting Victims, Obama to Address Gun Violence

 

U.S. President Barack Obama will outline a process for formulating policies addressing gun violence Wednesday, in the wake of last week's school shooting in Connecticut that killed 26 people.

The effort is expected to be led by Vice President Joe Biden. White House aides say the president is not expected to call for specific measures. On Tuesday, a White House spokesman said Mr. Obama supports efforts to reinstate an assault weapons ban and also favored closing loopholes in gun show regulations that allow people to purchase guns from private dealers without undergoing background checks.
Meanwhile, the principal of the Connecticut school where the gunman opened fire, on Friday is among those who will be laid to rest on Wednesday. Funerals are set for Sandy Hook Elementary Principal Dawn Hochsprung, a teacher, and at least three more of the young children killed in the attack.
Classes resumed at all Newtown, Connecticut, schools, on Tuesday, except Sandy Hook. Officials say plans are underway to move classes to a school in the nearby town of Monroe, possibly in January.
Also, investigators are trying to determine what prompted the shooting rampage. Authorities believe 20-year-old Adam Lanza killed his mother at home and then took some of her guns, including a military-style assault rifle, with him to the school.
On Tuesday, the powerful National Rifle Association — the nation's largest gun rights organization — broke its silence on the carnage. In a written statement, the NRA said its members were “shocked, saddened and heartbroken by the news of the horrific and senseless murders.” It also said it wanted to give families of the dead time to mourn before making additional statements.
Also, pressure mounted on Capitol Hill. U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell — a staunch ally of gun rights groups — said for the first time, on Tuesday, that Congress should pursue a legislative response to mass shootings.
California Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein, the author of an assault weapons ban that lapsed in 2004, said she would introduce new legislation at the start of the next Congress in January.
The attack was the second-worst school shooting in U.S. history — topped only by the 2007 rampage that killed 32 people at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, known widely as Virginia Tech.

Delhi gang rape: One more detained, another says 'hang me'

NEW DELHI: Faced with widespread outrage over the brutal rape and assault of a young paramedical student, government on Wednesday announced a slew of measures to instill confidence among people even as a fifth person was detained in Bihar while another accused said "hang me".

Taking suo motu cognisance of the gang-rape of the 23-year-old girl in a moving bus here on Sunday night, the Delhi high court pulled up the city police asking how the offence remained undetected.

The girl, admitted to the Safdurjung Hospital, continued to remain in a critical condition.

As indignation mounted, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today described the incident as "very upsetting". He directed Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde to ensure that culprits are brought to book and such incidents are not repeated.

"It's a heinous crime...it is very upsetting," he said.

In Parliament, Sushilkumar Shinde said that there will be an immediate crackdown on buses having tinted glass and heavy curtains. They shall be impounded immediately, if they do not remove them.

All buses will be asked to keep their lights on while plying at night in Delhi and these must be parked with their owners and not their drivers, Shinde told Rajya Sabha.

Police detained Akshay Thakur, one of the six accused, from Aurangabad in Bihar and he is being brought to Delhi.

Three of the four people already arrested in the case were produced before a court which sent two of them -- Vinay Sharma, an assistant gym instructor, and Pawan Gupta, a fruit seller -- to four-day police custody and Mukesh, the brother of driver Ram Singh who was also arrested, to 14-day judicial custody for undergoing Test Identification Parade.

Vinay and Pawan, however, have refused to undergo TIP.

When the judge asked whether they would volunteer to undergo TIP and if not why, Vinay said, "I had beaten up the boy but did nothing with the girl" and went on to say "mujhe faansi de do (hang me)", while Pawan told the court, "I do not want to undergo TIP as I have committed a heinous act".

On a day the city witnessed a series of demonstrations, including one outside Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit's residence and Police Headquarters, Delhi high court said it was "at a loss to understand as to how the bus could evade surveillance for 40 minutes".

"This incident is of great concern for all the citizens of the capital city as it relates to the safety particularly of women and girl children," a bench headed by Chief Justice D Murugesan said and asked the Police Commissioner to file a detailed status report within two days.

"There are two important questions. The first is the investigation in the case and the second is the preventive measures. We want to know what measures have been taken by the police to prevent such incidents," it said.

Mukesh, who has agreed for a TIP, will undergo the test tomorrow at Tihar Jail.

Police said it has to recover the ATM cards and mobile phones of the victim and her male friend.

A Special Investigation Team has been set up under DCP Chhaya Sharma to closely monitor the probe.

Earlier in the day, Delhi Police chief Neeraj Kumar met Shinde and it was decided that a drive will be launched to ensure removal of tinted glasses and curtains from all buses. It was also decided that mobile number and licence number of drivers will be displayed on buses.

Demanding stern action against the six accused, scores of protesters associated with All India Students' Association (AISA), All India Democratic Womens' Association (AIDWA) and other organisations staged protest in front of the residence of Dikshit and police headquarters.

Police used watercanon to disperse protesters outside Dikshit's residence. BJP's Delhi unit also staged protests at Jantar Mantar.

Protesters accused the government of failing to ensure a safe environment for women in the capital.

"Government is just playing the game of passing the buck and shying away from its responsibility. Delhi CM is saying law and order is under Home Ministry and they are saying its the responsibility of the state. How long such things will go on?" one of the protesters asked.

"Police should arrest the rapists promptly. Police patrolling needs to be increased. Law needs to be changed so that next time nobody can dare to do such heinous crime," Delhi State Joint Secretary of AIDWA Kavita Sharma said.

Demanding a strong punishment for the culprits, Mayor of East Delhi Municipal Corporation Annapurna Mishra said they should be hanged within a month.

US to reimburse $688 million to Pakistan

The US has decided to reimburse $688 million to Pakistan for the cost of supporting some 140,000 coaltion troops on Af-Pak border in what appears to be a fall back to its decades-old policy of "appeasement" to seek an honourable exit from war-torn Afghanistan.
The Pentagon notified the Congress about its decision to reimburse $688 million to Pakistan, under Coalition Support Fund (CSF). Deputy Defence Secretary Ashton Carter, notified the Congress of the decision of the US Department of Defence in a letter dated December 6, 2012, a Pentagon official said.
"In making this determination, I find that the reimbursement is consistent with the national security interest of the United States and will not adversely affect the balance of power in the region," Carter wrote.
In summers the US had reimbursed $1.118 billion under the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) which has now crossed the $10.5 billion mark post 9/11, defence officials said.
"This is a concrete illustration that our security relations with Pakistan are indeed moving forward," a defence spokesman said.
US officials believe that without co-operation from Pakistan, which can reign in the terrorist networks, it would be an horrendous task to have an "honorable exit" from Afghanistan and logistically would require an herculean effort to bring back its equipment and troops from this war-torn country without safe passage and support from Pakistan.
As a result of which the Obama Administration, soon after its re-election, has moved quickly to take the extra step to be in the good books of Pakistan, which is all aimed towards 2014.
The quite decision of Pentagon to notify the Congress to reimburse USD 688 million and its determination to a New York court that the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and its two former director generals, Ahmed Shuja Pasha and Nadeem Taj, "enjoy immunity" in the case related to 26/11 case filed by the victims of the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attack, are simply pointers in that direction.
From the rhetoric of "complex and problematic" relationship – which had been the case now at least since May 2011 when al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed by US commandoes in a daring raid at his hideout in Abbottabad, US officials in both private and public conversations are quick to pronounce that the relationship is back on track.
Details of this meeting, which officials asserted, signaled the re-establishment of contacts and confidence among the military leaders of the two countries, have not come out in the public.
In addition to the Defense Consultative Group meeting, there has been multiple high-level exchanges between the officials of the two countries in the last one month alone, including the one between Secretary of State Hillary Clinton her Pakistani counterpart Hina Rabbani Khan in Brussels.
Officials point out that recently there has been meeting of nearly half a dozen working groups between the two countries – some in Washington and others in Islamabad – ranging from issues on security, stability and non-proliferation to energy.
All these effort, officials insist, is aimed towards improving its relationship with Pakistan so that there is successful withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Five fast-track courts cleared for rape cases by Delhi High Court

New Delhi : Taking suo motu cognisance of the shocking case of the gang-rape of a 23-year-old girl in a moving bus on Sunday, the Delhi High Court today asked the Police Commissioner to a file status report on the case within two days.

The court also approved the setting up of five fast-track courts for tackling rape cases in the city.

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had yesterday urged the Chief Justice of Delhi High Court to take "urgent" action in making the fast-track courts functional.

She said the city government had already approved setting up of the fast-track courts to deal with the cases of sexual assault on women and to provide speedy justice and conviction of the guilty. Ms Dikshit said the courts have not been made functional despite the Delhi government conveying the High Court about its approval to the proposal in October.

Referring to the gang rape and brutal assault on the girl on Sunday evening, Ms Dikshit suggested to Justice Murugesan that bail should not be given to those involved in heinous crimes against women. "This would additionally act as a strong deterrent," she added.

The Chief Minister said her government would extend any possible support required in making the courts functional at the earliest.

The girl, a paramedical student, was raped and brutally assaulted before being thrown out of the moving vehicle with her male friend.

"This is a shocking incident and we will take all necessary action to ensure that such incidents do not recur in future. At the same time we need to have deterrent punishment to the perpetrators of such crime against women," Ms Dikshit said.

Bomb blast in Manipur, civilian injured, CRPF vehicle damaged

A civilian was injured when two powerful bombs, suspected to have been planted by militants at a roadside, exploded in Imphal east district of Manipur today, minutes after a CRPF convoy passed through.
Sources said the bombs, made of improvised explosive device (IED), went off at 10.20 AM at Porompat water tank area, about 100 metres from Porompat Police Station, while several water tankers were coming to collect water from the tank.
The bombs were planted on both sides of the road. One of the vehicles of the CRPF's 143rd battalion, escorting the water tanker, which had come to collect water was damaged and its tyre deflated, the sources said.



According to official reports, a civilian who was yet to be identified, was injured by the splinters and was taken to the casualty department of the nearby JN nstitute of Medical Sciences and Hospital where his condition was stated to be out of danger.
Reports said the bombs might have been planted by suspected militants late last night to attack police and security personnel, who frequently pass through and patrol the area to detect movement of the ultras. Police personnel from nearby Porompat Police Station, led by senior police officials, cordoned off the area before launching a search operation which was still continuing, sources said.
No individual or group has claimed responsibility for the incident so far. Official sources said all police and security posts have been alerted to step up frisking within their jurisdiction to prevent movement of armed ultras.

Gunmen target Pakistan polio workers again

GUNMEN in Pakistan have opened fire on health workers carrying out polio vaccinations in three new attacks, after the killing of six people involved in the campaign.
Pakistan is one of only three countries in the world where polio is still endemic.
However, efforts to stop the highly infectious disease have been hampered by resistance from the Pakistani Taliban, who have banned vaccination teams from some areas.
Six people working to immunise children against the crippling disease have been shot dead in Pakistan since the start of a UN-backed three-day vaccination campaign on Monday.
Two workers were giving out polio drops in a suburb of Peshawar, in the northwest, when gunmen on a motorbike rode up and sprayed them with bullets, Janbaz Afridi, doctor in charge of the immunisation campaign in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province said.
One of the workers was in a critical condition in hospital after the attack, Afridi said.

Senior police official Asif Iqbal confirmed the attack and said police were investigating the motive and who was behind it.
Two other polio teams were targeted in similar attacks in the towns of Nowshera and Charsadda, police and health officials said, but the polio workers escaped unharmed.
One passer-by was slightly injured in Nowshera.
Violence has blighted every day of the polio campaign so far: one health worker was shot dead in Karachi on Monday and four more were killed in the city with another gunned down in Peshawar on Tuesday.
After Tuesday's attacks, the government of Sindh province, of which Karachi is capital, halted the immunisation drive, and Afridi said the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government would have no choice but to follow suit.
"We are holding an emergency meeting with our donors and we have no option but to postpone the vaccination campaign for the time being. We will formally announce it after the meeting," he said.
Rumours about polio drops being a plot to sterilise Muslims have long dogged efforts to tackle the disease in Pakistan, but suspicion of vaccination programs intensified after the jailing of a doctor who helped the CIA find Osama bin Laden in 2011 using a hepatitis vaccination program.
There has been no claim of responsibility for the polio worker attacks, but in June the Pakistani Taliban banned immunisations in the tribal region of Waziristan, condemning the polio campaign as a cover for espionage

Huge crowds vote in South Korean presidential election

Huge crowds turned out on Wednesday to vote in a tight presidential race pitting the son of North Korean refugees against the conservative daughter of a late dictator. 

Despite bitter cold, turnout was higher than past elections, which political analysts said might provide a slight boost to liberal Moon Jae-in over conservative Park Geun-hye in their contest to lead Asia’s fourth-largest economy at a time of high tension with rival North Korea.

South Koreans stood in long lines, wrapped in mufflers and parkas. A big turnout could mean large numbers of young people more likely aligned with Mr Moon are going to the polls, analysts said. Ms Park’s conservative base is comprised mainly of older voters who remember with fondness what they see as the firm economic and security guidance of her dictator father, Park Chung-hee.

Seoul’s election watchdog said turnout was about 45 per cent as of early afternoon, 9 percentage points higher than five years ago, when current conservative President Lee Myung-bak won a landslide victory, and 3 percentage points higher than a decade ago when Mr Moon’s former boss, liberal Roh Moo-hyun, won.

Wednesday is a national holiday in South Korea. Polls opened at 6 a.m. and were to close at 6 p.m. local time, after which television broadcasters planned to announce results from exit polls predicting a winner.

For all their differences, Mr Moon, who was Mr Roh’s former chief of staff, and Ms Park, who belongs to Mr Lee’s party, hold remarkably similar views on the need to engage with Pyongyang and other issues.

“Everything’s now at heaven’s disposal,” Mr Moon told reporters at a polling station in the south-eastern port city of Busan. “I have put forward every bit of my energy.”

Ms Park, a five-term lawmaker, voted in Seoul and said she would wait for the “people’s choice with a humble mind,” calling on voters to “open a new era” for their nation.

Iraqi President Is Said to Be in a Coma

 

BAGHDAD — Jalal Talabani, the president of Iraq, whose influence in mediating disputes among the country’s many political factions has far outweighed the limited powers of the office he occupies, suffered a stroke and was in grave health on Tuesday in a Baghdad hospital.

Mr. Talabani’s illness cast a shadow over the Kurdish lands in the north where he once fought a guerrilla war and where he now lives, and added a new element of uncertainty to the country’s divided politics a year after the departure of the American military left Iraq’s leaders to steer the country’s shaky democracy on their own.

Officials and doctors said Mr. Talabani, 79, who has been treated abroad for medical conditions in recent years, was in stable condition, but privately other officials suggested his condition was more serious. A hospital official, as well as a high-level government official — both of whom requested anonymity out of respect for Mr. Talabani’s family — said the president was in a coma.

The deteriorating health of Mr. Talabani, a Kurd, comes at a time of heightened political tensions between Iraq’s central government and the semiautonomous Kurdish region. A dispute over land and oil that has festered for years has turned more serious in recent weeks as government forces have sought to take more control of security in disputed territories near Kirkuk, a northern city claimed by both the Kurds and the central government.

Mr. Talabani exerts sway over Iraq’s national affairs beyond the limited powers of his office, which is largely ceremonial. He is seen as a unifying figure with the power, at times, to bring Iraq’s many factions to the bargaining table, among the few national leaders, and perhaps the only one, with that status. His absence from politics would have a profound influence in Baghdad, where Mr. Talabani has been trying to mediate a continuing political crisis that at its core is a contest for power among the country’s three main groups: Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds.

At a brief news conference on Tuesday at the hospital where the president was being treated, a doctor described Mr. Talabani’s condition as “stable” and said he expected it to improve. On Twitter, Mr. Talabani’s son, Qubad Talabani, who represents the Kurdistan Regional Government in Washington, wrote that his father “is currently stable” and “we hope can begin his recovery soon.”

On Monday, Mr. Talabani met with Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to discuss Iraq’s political problems. Afterward, a statement from Mr. Talabani’s office said, the two men stressed the need for calm and transparent dialogue, as well as “working according to the spirit of the Constitution and the national agreements” as the way to solve the country’s ills.

Mr. Maliki has visited Mr. Talabani in the hospital, according to officials.

Mr. Talabani was apparently rushed to the hospital on Monday evening, although no announcement was made until Tuesday morning.

He is being treated by specialists at a hospital known as the Baghdad Medical City. Officials said doctors were trying to determine whether Mr. Talabani could be flown abroad for care. If not, foreign medical specialists were expected to fly to Baghdad to join the team treating him.

Christine Hauser contributed reporting from New York.

Russia Sends Warships Toward Syria for Possible Evacuation

MOSCOW — Russia sent warships to the eastern Mediterranean Sea on Tuesday, the Defense Ministry announced, in what appeared to be preparation for a possible evacuation of Russian citizens from Syria.

Russian officials began formulating plans during the summer for an evacuation, but have delayed announcements, analysts say, to avoid signaling a loss of confidence in President Bashar al-Assad, a longtime strategic ally. Moscow staunchly opposes international intervention in Syria and has blocked United Nations Security Council resolutions meant to force Mr. Assad from power. Officials have repeatedly said that Russia’s position has not changed.

However, Moscow has signaled in recent days that it sees Mr. Assad’s forces losing ground, and that it is beginning to prepare for a chaotic transition period. One immediate concern is the large number of Russian citizens scattered across Syria, as a result of decades of intermarriage and longstanding economic ties.

Late on Monday, Russian diplomats said that two Russian citizens had been kidnapped by an armed group. The two Russians, evidently workers in a privately owned steel factory, were seized as they traveled on a road between Homs and Tartus and were held for ransom. An Italian citizen, Mario Belluomo, was abducted with them, the Italian Foreign Ministry said.

Then on Tuesday, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that a flotilla of five ships — a destroyer, a tugboat, a tanker and two large landing vessels — was being sent from Baltiysk, a port in the Baltic Sea, to relieve ships that have been near Syria for months. At typical cruising speeds for such vessels, the ships would arrive on station around the beginning of January.

A naval official, speaking on the condition of anonymity as is customary, told the Interfax news service that the ships were “on their way to the coast of Syria for possible participation in the evacuation of Russian citizens” to a Russian port on the Black Sea. The official said that the mission had been planned swiftly but under total secrecy, and that the timeline for the ships’ return to port “depends on the development of the situation in Syria.”

Aleksandr I. Shumilin, a regional analyst and a foreign correspondent, said that Russian leaders had avoided openly taking steps toward evacuation until now, to avoid signaling that Russia was scaling back its support for Mr. Assad, but that they also risked public anger if Russians became targets of violence in Syria.

“It appears that some break has taken place, but whether that means a change of policy, or a modification of policy, that’s hard to say,” said Mr. Shumilin, who is head of the Middle East conflict analysis center at the Russian Academy of Science’s Institute for Canada and the United States. “The decision makers are now concentrating on humanitarian questions, the protection of Russian citizens.”

The Syrian rebels have been moving aggressively around the capital, Damascus, in recent weeks, and Mr. Assad’s forces have responded by firing Scud missiles. On Tuesday, Syrian fighter jets bombed the Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmouk for the second time this week, seeking to drive back rebel forces that had moved in, The Associated Press reported.

Iran, Syria’s last ally in the region, appeared to remain firmly committed to Mr. Assad. On Tuesday, Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian of Iran told reporters in Moscow, “The Syrian Army and the state machine are working smoothly.”

A planned visit by the president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to Ankara, the capital of Turkey, was suddenly canceled on Monday amid tensions between Iran and Turkey over NATO’s decision to deploy Patriot antimissile batteries on the Turkish border with Syria.

Iranian leaders, politicians and commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps have denounced NATO’s decision on Dec. 4 to send six batteries of American, German and Dutch Patriot systems to intercept any Scud missiles that the embattled Syrian government may launch toward Turkey.

Iran fears that NATO will use the batteries, which are staffed by about 1,000 soldiers and can also be used against aircraft, to set up a no-fly zone and a rebel safe haven in northern Syria.

Iran’s top general, Hassan Firouzabadi, said at a meeting of senior commanders on Saturday that the deployment was part of a Western plan to start a “world war” and that Iran’s own ambitious missile program was the real target.

“They signify concerns over Iran’s missiles and the presence of Russia for defending Syria,” he said. “The sensible people in America, Turkey and Europe must prevent this situation from getting out of control.”

The mobile Patriot systems could technically be used to intercept Iranian as well as Syrian missiles. They are effective against missiles at a range of about 12 miles, and against aircraft up to 100 miles.

Iran has threatened to fire missiles at Israel if its nuclear installations come under attack.

On Tuesday, Iran’s defense minister, Brig. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, said Israel was the winner in the Syrian conflict because it was witnessing the destruction of an enemy — the Assad government — while the Syrian people were being “manipulated” by “terrorists.”

Turkey’s foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, urged Iran to use its political clout with Damascus to end the violence in Syria, instead of making statements about the Patriot systems.

“Turkey and NATO have stressed over and over again that this system is solely for defensive purposes,” Mr. Davutoglu told reporters. “Turkey has the right to do what it wants in order to protect its territory. It is time for Iran to give a clear message to the Syrian regime.”

Ellen Barry reported from Moscow, and Thomas Erdbrink from Tehran.

Powerful gun group breaks silence on Connecticut school massacre

NEWTOWN, Connecticut: The White House said US President Barack Obama is "actively supportive" of reinstating an assault weapons ban as the United States wrestled with the treacherous issue of gun control in the aftermath of an elementary school massacre. With the debate sharpening, the country's most powerful gun rights group broke its silence over the shooting and promised "to offer meaningful contributions to help make sure this never happens again."
In the Connecticut town where the shooting occurred, funerals were held for two more of the tiny fallen, a 6-year-old boy and a 6-year-old girl, the latest in a long, almost unbearable procession of grief. A total of 26 people were gunned down at Newtown's Sandy Hook Elementary School in one of the worst mass shootings in US history. The gunman, who committed suicide, also killed his mother in her home.
The massacre has rattled the usual national dialogue on guns in America, where public opinion had shifted against tougher arms control in recent years and the gun lobby is a powerful political force.
Congressional gun rights supporters showed an increased willingness Tuesday to consider new legislation - provided it also addresses mental health issues and the impact of violent video games. Republicans in the House of Representatives discussed the gun issue at their regular closed-door meeting Tuesday, and at least some were willing to consider gun control as part of a solution.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said Tuesday that Obama is "actively supportive" of reinstating an assault weapons ban and would also support legislation to close the gun show "loophole," which allows people to buy guns from private dealers without background checks.
Obama has long supported reinstating the assault weapons ban, which expired in 2004, but was quiet on the issue during his first term. Obama has said he believes the Constitution's Second Amendment guarantees an individual the right to bear arms.
The president was not expected to take any formal action on guns before the end of the year, given the all-consuming efforts to resolve tax and deficit-reduction talks and nominate new Cabinet secretaries.
The most powerful supporter of gun owners, the National Rifle Association, broke its silence Tuesday, four days after the school shooting. After a self-imposed media blackout that left many wondering how it would respond to the killings, it said in a statement that its members were "shocked, saddened and heartbroken by the news of the horrific and senseless murders."
The group - typically outspoken about its positions even after shooting deaths - also said it wanted to give families time to mourn before making its first public statements.
"The NRA is prepared to offer meaningful contributions to help make sure this never happens again," the organization said.
As shares in publicly traded gun manufacturers were dropping for a third straight day Tuesday, the largest firearms maker in the United States said it is being put up for sale by its owner, which called last week's school shooting a "watershed event" in the American debate over gun control.
Freedom Group International makes Bushmaster rifles, the weapons thought to have been used in Friday's killings.
The New York-based private equity group Cerberus Capital Management - which invests money on behalf of public employees like teachers, among other clients - said it will sell its controlling stake in the company, while investors fled other firearms makers.
However, many Americans who consider firearm ownership a bedrock freedom remained opposed to tightening gun laws. Firearms are in a third or more of U.S. households and suspicion runs deep of an overbearing government whenever it proposes expanding federal authority.
AR-15 assault rifles - the same rifle that gunman Adam Lanza used in Newtown - have been flying off the shelves at gun shops across the U.S., according to Andrew Molchan, director of the Professional Gun Dealers Association. He attributed the sales boom to fears among gun owners that the weapon will be outlawed.
"It's what you might expect especially when people start talking about banning certain guns," Molchan said. "I would be surprised if there is much inventory on the shelves anywhere at this point."
A Washington Post/ABC News poll conducted over the weekend showed 54 percent in the U.S. favor tougher laws, about the same as the 51 percent in favor earlier in the year. Seven in 10 are opposed to banning the sale of handguns to anyone except law enforcement officers, the highest percentage since 1999.
After the meeting of House Republicans on Tuesday, Congressman Jack Kingston said that nothing should be done immediately.
"Put guns on the table, also put video games on the table, put mental health on the table," he said. "There is a time for mourning and a time to sort it out."
Authorities say the horrific events of Friday began when Lanza shot his mother, Nancy, at their home, then took her car and some of her guns to nearby Sandy Hook Elementary, where he broke in and opened fire, killing 20 children and six adults before turning the gun on himself.
A Connecticut official said the mother, a gun enthusiast who practiced at shooting ranges, was found dead in her pajamas in bed, shot four times in the head with a .22-caliber rifle.
The motive remained a mystery. Investigators have found no letters or diaries that could explain why Lanza, described as smart but severely withdrawn, targeted the school.
In Newtown, students returned to their classrooms Tuesday for the first time since the shooting, though not at Sandy Hook Elementary.
The students who survived the Sandy Hook shooting will return to class after the winter break in the neighboring town of Monroe at a school that was closed last year. Volunteers and town officials have been making the Chalk Hill School safe and suitable for them, the Connecticut Post reported.
At St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Newtown, back-to-back funerals were held for little James Mattioli, who especially loved math and recess, and Jessica Rekos, who loved horses and had asked Santa for new cowgirl boots and hat.

South Koreans vote in presidential election

South Koreans cast their votes on Wednesday in a tight and potentially historic presidential election that could result in Asia's fourth-largest economy selecting its first female leader.

The ballot is a straight fight between Park Geun-Hye, the conservative daughter of
assassinated dictator Park Chung-Hee, and her liberal rival Moon Jae-In, the son of North Korean refugees. Opinion polls indicate the result could go either way.
The eventual occupant of the presidential Blue House will have to deal with a belligerent North Korea, a slowing economy and soaring welfare costs in one of the world's most rapidly ageing societies.
Park, 60, was looking to make history by becoming the first female president of a still male-dominated nation, and the first to be related to a former leader.
Her father remains one of modern Korea's most polarising figures -- admired for dragging the country out of poverty and reviled for his ruthless suppression of dissent during 18 years of military rule.
He was shot dead by his spy chief in 1979. Park's mother had been killed five years earlier by a pro-North Korea gunman aiming for her father.
Moon, who was chief of staff to the late left-wing president Roh Moo-Hyun, is a former human rights lawyer who was once jailed for protesting against the Park Chung-Hee regime.
Polling booths opened at 6:00 am (2100 GMT Tuesday) on a bright, chilly winter's morning, with the temperature hovering around -10 Celsius (14 Fahrenheit).
Initial turnout among the 40 million-plus registered voters was strong, with 35 percent having cast their votes by midday -- a sharp increase on the 2007 election.
"It's freezing cold, but I plead with the people to come out and vote to open a new era for this country," Park, wrapped up in a long coat and red scarf, said as she cast her ballot in Seoul.
After locking in the support of their respective conservative and liberal bases, the two candidates put a lot of campaign effort into wooing crucial centrist voters, resulting in significant policy overlap.
Both have talked of "economic democratisation" -- a campaign buzzword about reducing the social disparities caused by rapid economic growth -- and promised to create new jobs and increase welfare spending.
Moon has been more aggressive than Park in his proposals for reining in the power of the giant family-run conglomerates, or "chaebol" that dominate the economy.
"This is the only way for the people to change the world," Moon said as he voted in the southern city of Busan.
"This election is about our livelihoods, economic democracy, welfare and peace on the Korean peninsula," he added.
While both have signalled a desire for greater engagement with Pyongyang, Park's approach is far more cautious than Moon's promise to resume aid without preconditions and seek an early summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.
Although North Korea has not been a major campaign issue, its long-range rocket launch last week -- seen by critics as a disguised ballistic missile test -- was a reminder of the unpredictable threat from across the border.
The never-married Park has promised a strong, parental style of leadership that would steer the country through the challenges of global economic troubles.
"Like a mother who dedicates her life to her family, I will become the president who takes care of the lives of each one of you,"  Park said in her last televised news conference on Tuesday.
A female president would be a big change for a country that the World Economic Forum recently ranked 108th out of 135 countries in terms of gender equality -- one place below the United Arab Emirates and just above Kuwait.
Older Koreans, who generally favour Park, are seen as more dependable voters and Moon's camp has pushed hard to ensure the younger demographic that make up his support base cast their ballots.
One early voter, Kim Su-Eun, 29, said she had opted for the ruling party candidate.
"I think Moon's election promises are too radical while Park says she will carry out reform step by step. That's why I voted for her", she told AFP.

National Geographic turns off Instagram over new terms

The backlash over announced changes to Instagram's terms of service has led National Geographic to suspend its posting activity on the photo sharing app.
The Facebook-owned app ignited a storm of protest with the announcement earlier this week that it had perpetual right to sell users' photographs without payment or notification. Under the new policy, Facebook claimed the perpetual right to license all public Instagram photos to companies or any other organization, including for advertising purposes, effectively transforming the Web site into the world's largest stock photo agency.

National Geographic, a magazine long respected for presenting high-quality photographs that are both artistic and journalistic, made the announcement today on its Instagram account. "We are very concerned with the direction of the proposed new terms service and if they remain as presented we may close our account," the post reads.
Recent comments by Instagram suggest such action may not be necessary. The app maker apologized to its users today, saying it will "remove" language from its legal terms that would have let it sell users' photos or use them in advertisements.
In a blog post this afternoon, Chief Executive Kevin Systrom said it's "our mistake that this language is confusing" and that the company is "working on updated language."
"Since making these changes, we've heard loud and clear that many users are confused and upset about what the changes mean," he wrote.