India Batting Crumble-Test Heading for a tame draw

Virender Sehwag (319) slammed the highest score by an Indian and Rahul Dravid (111) broke into the 10,000 test run club even though their personal landmarks may not prove enough to force a result in the first cricket Test against South Africa.

In a change of trend after three days of lop-sided battle between the bat and the ball on a docile pitch, South African bowlers finally made a mark on Saturday and bartered 159 runs for nine Indian wickets that did not allow the hosts to stretch their first innings lead beyond 87 runs.
And after restricting the Indians to 627, South Africa were 131 for one in their second essay with in-form duo of Neil Mckenzie (59) and Hashim Amla (35) in the middle when stumps were drawn with the visitors leading by 44 runs.
Sehwag failed to eclipse Brian Lara's world record score of 400 not out but he nonetheless posted the highest test score by an Indian, bettering his 309 against Pakistan in the 2004 Multan Test.
Dravid (111) too had his slice of history as the former captain became the sixth batsman, and third Indian, to join the 10,000 test run club en route to his 25th century in the longer version of the game.
With just one day's play left, the Test seemed headed towards a draw unless the Indian bowlers produce an extra-ordinary display to skittle out the South Africans cheaply in the second innings.
When India resumed their innings at 468 for one on Saturday morning, the main focus point was whether Sehwag can break Lara's record. Makhaya Ntitni, however, had other plans and the South African spearhead dealt a double blow to send groans across the ma Chidambaram stadium.
First he induced an edge from Sehwag that flew to Jacques Kallis in the slips and in his next over, the South African had Sachin Tendulkar caught by Neil Mckenzie, again in the slips, for a duck.
Sehwag could add just 10 runs to his overnight score and his 319 was the result of his 304-minute stay in the middle which produced 42 delectable boundaries and five breathtaking sixes.
Sourav Ganguly (24) too got going but the left-hander could not convert the start and bottom edged Paul Harris to perish caught behind.
Dravid was far from fluent, as evident from his strike rate of 38.14, but the former captain was rewarded for his endurance.
Batting at 79, Dravid flicked Morne Morkel and completed a single to join Brian Lara (11,953), Tendulkar (11,782), Allan Border (11,174), Steve Waugh (10,927) and Sunil Gavaskar (10,122) in the elite league.
Never the one to break into a wild celebration, Dravid raised his bat, took off the helmet and kissed it before acknowledging the rousing standing ovation from the crowd that included wife Vijeta and son Samit.
Ntini finally cut short Dravid's stay when Kallis took a sharp catch in the slips. Dravid's 291-ball 111 included 15 hits to the fence.
Once Dravid exited, India's lower order was exposed and suddenly Dale Steyn decided to live up to the pre-series hype around him.
The Protea Tearaway came up with a four-wicket burst that rocked India's lower order. Steyn had M S Dhoni (16) caught behind before he went on to disturb the stumps of Anil Kumble (3), Harbhajan Singh (0) and R P Singh (0).
VVS Laxman (39, 64B, 4X4) was the last man to go when Harris caught him off his own bowling to restrict India to 627.
In their second essay, South African openers Graeme Smith (35) and Neil Mckenzie began with a flourish, just like they had done in the first innings.

20,000 Christians threaten to revert to Hinduism

Exposing the deep-seated animosities and divisions within the fold, over 20,000 caste Christians of Eraiyur village,near Villupuram Chennai have threatened to revert to Hinduism unless a seperate parish was provided to the Dalit Christians there.

A parish in Eraiyur village was devastated by violent clashes between two groups a fortnight ago. It all started with the Arch Bishop Antony Anandarayar permitting Dalit Christians to undertake a funeral procession on Church Road, a privilege they have been denied for more than a century. Amidst tight security the procession was taken out.
Protesting against this, the caste Christians have boycotted prayer sessions at the St Rosary Church for the past three days.

Anandarayar assured that none would be discriminated in church on any ground and this has not gone well with the caste Christians who have accused the bishop of not considering the sentiments of the majority. They have also stated that by the decree an age-old custom and tradition has been broken.

Indian Workers Plead Ronen Sen

The nearly 100 Indian workers, who claim to be victims of human trafficking and exploitation after they fell for false promises by recruiters, met Ambassador Ronen Sen here in Washington on Thursday to press for a CBI probe into the racket in India and an intervention with US government agencies to prosecute the employing firm, Signal International.

In the course of a three-hour meeting that climaxed the workers’ eight-day “journey for justice” from New Orleans to Washington DC, the Indian envoy promised all possible help for their safety, security and well-being, but expressed his inability to intercede with the US immigration authorities or the departments of justice and labour for reasons of diplomatic protocol.

Sehwag Steamrolls The Proteas With A Triple Ton

A Masterful Triple-century, faster than a run a ball from Virender Sehwag was the highlight of an emphatic Indian response to South Africa's mammoth total.At the end of the third day, Sehwag had made more than two-third of India's runs.The first-wicket partnership ended at 213, with Wasim Jaffer contributing a dogged 73, but that was merely the signal for Sehwag to unleash a fusillade of strokes to reach his triple century.His 309 came of only 292 balls along with 41 fours and 5 sixes, Dravid supported him with a well deserved 65 of 181 deliveries.Virender Sehwag was only the 3rd batsman in the history of the game to score two triple centuries.The two other men were Brian Lara and Don Bradman. Sehwag and Dravid have now put on a partnership on an unbeaten 255 run partnership in 53 overs. Africa's five bowlers toiled away with no reward on an unforgiving pitch and by the end of day's play, a couple of them were looking a little shell-shocked.India ended the day's proceedings at 468/1.

Kingfisher Flight hits Dog,Skids 4 injured

Passengers and crew members on board the Hyderabad-bound Kingfisher Airlines aircraft had a miraculous escape on Thursday night when the ATR 72-500 skidded on the runway at the HAL airport here in Bangaluru.
While the pilot said the aircraft hit a dog on the runway, airport sources said the aircraft was yet to gain velocity for take-off when the nose wheel broke and it skidded. At least four passengers were injured .
The runway was closed for over three hours, causing flight delays and diversions. The incident occurred between 9.37 and 9.45 p.m. when the aircraft with 25 passengers and four crew members aboard was preparing to take off. Captain Mmopi was the main pilot.

According to the commander, a black dog crossed the runway while the aircraft was on its take-off roll and because the runway was dimly lit, the crew did not notice the animal till it was too late to take evasive action.

3-month jail for Dinamalar Editor,Publisher

XIII Metropolitan Magistrate, Bhagya Jothi in Egmore Court has sentenced Dinamalar Editor R. Krishnamurthy and its publisher R. Lakshmipathi to undergo three months’ simple imprisonment in a defamation case filed by a retired headmaster of a government school.

A. Sethuraman, who worked as headmaster of the Government Boys Higher Secondary School, Oothukottai, filed a complaint against Dinamalar for publishing a news item on March 16, 2001 stating that he helped students to indulge in copying in the public examination.Following the publication of the report, headmaster was placed under suspension.The news item was wrong, malicious and baseless, he contended.
Based on this the order was passed.

Kingfisher Flight hits dog on runway, skids -4 injured

Passengers and crew members on board the Hyderabad-bound Kingfisher Airlines aircraft had a miraculous escape on Thursday night when the ATR 72-500 skidded on the runway at the HAL airport here in Bangaluru.
While the pilot said the aircraft hit a dog on the runway, airport sources said the aircraft was yet to gain velocity for take-off when the nose wheel broke and it skidded. At least four passengers were injured .
The runway was closed for over three hours, causing flight delays and diversions. The incident occurred between 9.37 and 9.45 p.m. when the aircraft with 25 passengers and four crew members aboard was preparing to take off. Captain Mmopi was the main pilot.

According to the commander, a black dog crossed the runway while the aircraft was on its take-off roll and because the runway was dimly lit, the crew did not notice the animal till it was too late to take evasive action.

15-year-old girl assaulted by teacher dies in coma

Fifteen-year-old Rinky Kaushik, who was allegedly beaten by her teacher for refusing private tuitions, has died after remaining in coma for three months.
A teacher of the Dinkar Model School, Dhirendra Kumar Dinkar had allegedly thrashed her with a stick after she refused to attend his tuition classes.
Kaushik, who was admitted to the Maharaja Agrasen Hospital on January seven with severe pain in the head, died on Thursday night.
“She had developed severe chest infection and her brain had got infected at the same time,” said Dr M S Gupta, CEO, Maharaja Agrasen hospital.
An FIR had been lodged against the principal and teacher of the school.

India need not be Scared of US -Rahul Gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said it was time India stops being scared of the agreement this against the backdrop of Left parties and BJP's opposition to the Indo-US nuclear deal.
"On the Indo-US nuclear deal, my thinking is that in India we need not be scared or lack confidence in dealing with anything or anybody," Gandhi said while talking to students at TMA Pai Institute organised by National Student Union of India (NSUI).
Gandhi said that in fact other countries have now realised the strength of India. "I speak to foreign leaders and I get the sense that have realised and recognised an united and confident India," he said.
On a campaign trail in poll-bound Karnataka, he said "a united and confident India is the course for everyone, including students, the IT industry or the manufacturing industry." Gandhi asked the student community to be the engine of advancement of the country and help to the poor.

Yoga Guru Ramdev Threatened!!!!

Moradabad Police on Thurday arrested a middle aged man, Iqbal, for sending a letter threatening yoga guru Baba Ramdev with dire consequences.
In the wake of the letter, the district administration has beefed up security arrangements at a camp that is being supervised by Baba Ramdev till March 30.
Iqbal, a resident of the Mugalsarai locality of Muradabad, is being interrogated. Baba Ramdev reportedly advocated the two-child policy for India, while addressing his followers in Lucknow two days ago.
He said that those who maintain small families should be honoured and suggested imposing a harsh penalty on those who keep relatively large families.

S.Africa Post a Mammoth 540

Hashim Amla hit a fluent 159 as South Africa steered towards a mammoth first innings total of 540 on Day 2 of the second Test against India at the M A Chidambaram stadium in Chennai on Thursday.

The right-hander hit 20 boundaries in his 262-ball knock before being run-out, as South Africa went galloping securing this mammoth score.
With 10 overs to go India were cruising along at 78-0 with openers Sewag and Jaffer making merry at 47 and 25 respectively.

Market reacts to F&O Expiry

Being the end of the F&O expiry week, market continues to be volatile and under pressure. Sensex is currently trading at 15898, down 188 points. Nifty is trading at 4784, down 44 points from the previous close. The CNX Midcaps index is down 0.53% and BSE Smallcaps index is up 0.16%. The market breadth is negative with advances at 506 against declines of 694 on the NSE

US gives breather for India on N-deal

The Bush administration has accepted New Delhi's call for some more time it says it needs to forge a national consensus on the nuclear deal.
Even as India's External Affair Minister Pranab Mukherjee left Washington DC on Tuesday, White House spokesperson Dana Perino agreed that there is still time remaining to consummate the deal, rejecting the proposition that a ''now or never'' moment had arrived.
''Well, we have a little bit of time before we have to say 'now or never.' We've got several months to continue to work with them,'' Perino told reporters when asked for an update on Mukherjee's meeting with Bush. The comment was a departure from earlier exhortations from U.S officials and lawmakers that the clock was running out to consummate the deal.

India "Over cautious" Dalai Lama

Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama on Wednesday said the Indian government was a "little over-cautious" on the Tibet issue but the Tibetan refugees here enjoyed sympathy of the government and the public.

"I have always looked India from a holistic view. There is some incident here, there. They are a little over-cautious, well it does not matter," he said.
"But that is understandable," he said. Recalling that late Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had laid down policies for Tibetan refugee communities, he said that "no matter what government is at the Centre... whether it is Janata Party or Congress party it has remained the same. We have received help and sympathy from Indian public as well as from the government".

Sexual harassment charge against Orissa Speaker

(Mohanty with Godman Sri Sri)
An allegation of sexual harassment levelled against Orissa Assembly Speaker Maheshwar Mohanty by a woman marshal led to the adjournment of the House twice after he sought an impartial inquiry into the charge.

As soon as the House assembled this morning, the speaker made a suo motu statement referring to media reports about charges of sexual harassment of a woman marshal of the assembly levelled against him and proposed setting up of a House Committee to probe the matter.

Terming the allegation as false and baseless, he said it was the fallout of actions initiated against indisciplined employees and also part of a "conspiracy in which important persons were involved".

Market remained Volatile

It was a choppy but quiet day today. Weak global cues saw the market close in the negative. Sensex closed at 16086, down 130 points and Nifty at 4828, down 48 points from the previous close. The CNX Midcaps index was up 0.74% and BSE Smallcaps index was up 2.12%. The market breadth was positive with advances at 822 against declines of 414 on the NSE. Top NSE gainers included Tata Steel, PNB and HDFC while losers included Nalco, ICICI Bank and Bharti Airtel.

Musharraf's presidency is “illegal”, Sharif tells US

Stepping up opposition to embattled Pervez Musharraf, former Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday told the US that his presidency was “unconstitutional and illegal”.

Sharif, whose PML-N party is a key constituent of the PPP-led new coalition government, met visiting US deputy secretary of state John Negroponte and assistant secretary Richard Boucher here and told them that Musharraf was an “unconstitutional and illegal” President.
The former premier, who was toppled by Musharraf in a bloodless military coup in 1999, said people have given a clear verdict against Musharraf in the February 18 general election in which the President's ally PML-Q was routed by PPP and PML-N.

Sharif also renewed his call for the president to step down. “I will again advice Musharraf to accept people's mandate and step down from his post,” he told reporters after his meeting with Negroponte and Boucher.

Tatas seal Jaguar, Land Rover deal

Auto major Tata Motors has clinched the Jaguar and Land Rover (JLR) deal estimated to be valued between $2-2.5 billion.
According to sources close to the development, the deal was signed last evening and is estimated to have cost the Tatas between $2-2.5 billion.
When contacted a Tata Motors spokesperson said the company would make an announcement at an "appropriate time". Ford on the other hand has been insisting that they would make public the deal only after it has informed its employees.
The deal has taken almost nine months to finalise as both Ford and Tata and their financiers sought to iron out issues seen as crucial to the future of the two British marques. It is expected to cover long-term supply of engines to both brands from Ford.

South Africa off to a rousing Start

With half an hour to go for lunch S.Africa after winning the crucial toss were 103-0 with ND McKenzie on 54 and Captain Greame Smith on 47 on the first Test Match held in MAC stadium Chennai.The Indian Team and South African Team are thumped up after thier successful triumps recently on foreign soil.
the Indian Team
India team: RP Singh, S Sreesanth, *A Kumble , Harbhajan Singh, S Tendulkar , S Ganguly , VVS Laxman, V Sehwag , MS Dhoni, R Dravid, W Jaffer.

Pranab, Bush discuss N-deal, bilateral ties

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee met US President George W Bush in Washington at the White House and discussed the entire gamut of bilateral ties, including the civil nuclear deal.
The 35-minute meeting, held at the Oval Office on Monday afternoon, was described as one in which the atmospherics were said to have been excellent and cordial.

Bush and Mukherjee are said to have exchanged not only pleasantries but also discussed the width and depth of the United States-India relations that included the civilian nuclear initiative.

Bullish Day out for Indian Stock Market

The day certainly belonged to the bulls! The market had a gap up opening on the back of positive global cues and then there was no looking back. Shortcovering and value buying at lower levels kept the market up throughout the day. Sensex closed at 16,217,up 928 points from the previous close. Nifty shut shop at 4877, up 267 points. It was an equally good day for the midcaps and smallcaps; CNX Midcap index gained 6.2% and BSE Smallcap index, 4.8%. Realty, banking and consumer durable stocks were the favourites. Biggest gainers on the Sensex for the day include JP Associates, DLF, Reliance Energy and Infosys among others.

Yousaf Gilani takes oath as PM

Newly-appointed Pakistan Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani took oath of office and secrecy at the Presidency in Islamabad on Tuesday.
President Pervez Musharraf administered the oath to Gilani at 12:38 pm. Members of Gilani's party chanted “Long Live Bhutto!'' after he was sworn in.

More than 500 invitations were sent to all the important political and other personalities, including PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif, his brother Shahbaz Sharif and PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari.
However, Nawaz Sharif had announced that he would boycott the swearing-in ceremony of Pakistan's new prime minister to protest against Pervez Musharraf's presence whom he has called "an illegal and unconstitutional" President.

Gavaskar to step down as ICC Cricket Committee Chairman

Sunil Gavaskar is all set to step down as ICC Cricket Committee Chairman after the governing body asked the former Indian captain to give up his other job of a commentator and columnist, which is in "direct conflict" with his duties in the ICC.
The issue was raised in the ICC's Executive committee meeting in Dubai last week where members felt Gavaskar's dual roles were in conflict with each other and he should choose between the two.
However, the committee decided against removing Gavaskar as it felt it would be better to give him the option of deciding what he wants to do. The former batsman will meet ICC CEO Malcolm Speed this week to take a final call on the issue.

"Gavaskar will meet CEO Malcolm Speed in Dubai this week to discuss this matter," an ICC spokesman told PTI.
Gavaskar has lucrative deals as a television commentator and a newspaper columnist and this is likely to weigh on his mind when he decides on whether to continue as ICC's cricket committee Chief.
The development comes close on the heels of his latest outburst in which he described England and Australia as "dinosaurs" unable to digest India's growing clout in the governing body's affairs.
A BCCI source said despite the outburst, the ICC wants to have Gavaskar on board.
"The icc has lot of respect for Gavaskar and it does not want to take such a step of removing him. The ICC wants to have Gavaskar on board as cricket committee chairman," the source said.

Delhi Police ACP Rajbir Singh shot dead

Delhi Police Special Operations Squad ACP Rajbir Singh, known as the "encounter specialist", was gunned down allegedly by a property dealer on the city outskirts late on Monday night.
The ACP, who was shunted out of DP crime branch and returned in November last year to head its special anti-terror cell, was allegedly shot dead by Vijay Bharadwaj, a property dealer near Sukhrali village in Gurgaon.
Delhi Police spokesman Rajan Bhagat said that the shooting is believed to have taken place around 10:30 pm and they were informed about the incident by their counterparts in Gurgaon around Monday midnight.
A Delhi Police team had been sent there to verify details and a statement on what exactly happened could only be made after it returns, he said.
Gurgaon Police Commissioner Mahendra Lal independently confirmed the incident. Reports said the property dealer shot dead Singh over some monetary dispute.
The Additional Commissioner of Police was transferred from the crime branch to Delhi Armed Police after allegations of his involvement in an illegal land deal last year.

The vigilance probe however gave him a clean chit and he returned to head the Special Operations Squad in November last year.

Will sensex hold its gains???

Sensex crosses 16000 and Nifty 4800 making the market look very good. Sensex is trading at 16015, up 726 points and Nifty is at 4818, up 208 points from the previous close. The CNX Midcaps index is up 4.07% and BSE Smallcaps index is up 3.397%. The market breadth is good with advances at 1034 against declines of 190 on the NSE

Markets signs off with 295 plus

It was a fairly good day for the largecaps, but the same cannot be said about the midcaps and smallcaps that witnessed significant amount of selling pressure today. Mixed cues from the Asian markets, kept market participants cautious. Sensex ended the day at 15,289, up 294 points from the previous close. Nifty shut shop at 4609, up 35 points. But the CNX Midcap index lost 1.5% and BSE Smallcap, down 3.8%. Sector-wise, metals lost the maximum on concerns over measures taken by the government to curb inflation. Realty and consumer durable stocks also saw selling. But banking stocks were the favourite, as the BSE Bankex gained 3.3%. Top Sensex gainers include HDFC, Wipro and ICICI Bank, while losers are Tata Steel, Reliance Energy and DLF among others.

Jagmohan Dalmiya misappropriated over Rs 2.90 cr

Former Cricket Board President Jagmohan Dalmiya has been found to have misappropriated over Rs 2.90 crore in the BCCI accounts, police said on Sunday.
During investigations, the Economic Offences Wing has found that Dalmiya diverted funds from a bank account in Kolkata meant for paying legal fees towards various other expenses.
The expenses included paying personal phone bills, purchasing foreign exchange, car rental, hotel bills and stationary.
“Till now, we have ascertained that there has been a cheating of over 2.90 crore and we will be filing a chargesheet against Dalmiya and two others on Wednesday,” Joint Commissioner of Police (crime) Rakesh Maria told reporters here in Mumbai this evening.

Pranab to Meet Bush

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee is likely to meet US President Bush in Washington during the day, where the civil nuclear deal will be the big focus.
Mukherjee will first be meeting with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

The Americans are keen to know where talks with the Left parties are headed. Time is running out for the deal to be cleared by the US Congress ahead of the US elections.

The US would like to know the status of talks the UPA has had with the Left parties over the Indo-US nuclear deal.

Third political front need of the hour: CPI

Apparently keen on playing a bigger role in the coalition era and strengthening its base in North India, the Communist Party of India (CPI) would be focusing on strategies in this direction at its five-day 20th National Congress at Hyderabad beginning here from Sunday.

The congress would conclude with a public meeting on March 27 at the Nizam College Grounds. Though the Left parties, including the CPI and the CPM, aligned with the Congress-led UPA at the Centre, both are not happy with the performance of the Union Government and want to take a firm stand.The CPI would have a criticial review of the implementation of the Common Minimum Programme (CMP), proposed Nuclear Agreement with the US, agrarian crisis — post-loan wavier situation and market-driven economic policies benefitting only a few.
Recently Left has expressed distasifaction with Finance Minister for not toeing in line with Common Minimum Programme on Economic Policies.Brinda Karat Openly critisised Finanace minister for making his own agenda.

"Iam Being Harrassed" Vijayakanth

Actor-politician Vijayakanth on Sunday said he was being �harassed and pressurized� by certain political parties in Tamil Nadu to forge an electoral alliance with them.
Referring to an allegation that he had taken over five acres of poramboke land near Madurantakam in Kancheepuram district, he said there was an attempt to besmirch his name in the land deal.
My adversaries are desperate to take a political revenge on me,� he said, in an apparent reference to the ruling DMK.
The reason for this act of vengeance is to somehow force me to join them. Had not I made it clear that my alliance is only with people?
Why are you hounding me? Why don�t you leave me alone? He said, while presiding over the marriage function of one of his party functionaries here.
Vijayakanth said he had purchased 100 acres of land, of which five acres could have been poramboke land. The sellers of the land may have cheated me.
Even the Village Administrative Officer has betrayed me in the deal. I asked the government to take back the poromboke land if it had been annexed by mistake.
Instead, they are using the issue to denigrate and defame me,� he alleged. The DMDK leader said he had bought the land with his hard earned money, unlike others who were purchasing property with 'looted' money.

Software Engineers Kills wife,Hangs himself

A software engineer from Delhi employed by Infosys allegedly strangulated his wife with a pillow suspecting her to be having an affair with one of her colleagues and then committed suicide by hanging himself.
Amit Budhiraj, 30, strangled his wife, Rinku Sachdeva 28, because he suspected she was having an affair, said police.
Police suspect the murder of Rinku was committed between 6 and 7 pm on Saturday.
Amit was from Delhi and Rinku, who worked in a bank, was from Mumbai.
The murder came to light on Sunday when Rinku's friend came home to pick her up to go for a movie, police said.
Amit left a note saying he had heard about the affair of his wife. The couple had been married for almost a year, said police.

MUSHARAF OPEN DOORS FOR US TO STRIKE AL-QUEDA TARGETS

The Musharraf regime has given tacit approval to attacks by pilot-less United States planes on Al Qaeda targets along Pakistan's restive border area. The strikes have been stepped up as officials fear that the new civilian government will be hostile to such an offensive.

Since January, missiles reportedly fired from Central Investigative Agency operated Predator drones have hit at least three suspected hideouts of Islamic militants, including a strike on March 16 in Toog village in South Waziristan that left 20 dead.