Chennai girl tops Civil Services examLaw graduate S.Divyadharshini of Chennai emerged the national topper in the Civil Services Examination 2010.
The Union Public Service Commission announced the results on Wednesday and released the merit list of 920 candidates who made it to the civil services.
Ms.Divyadharshini (24) said she wanted to join the civil services in order to contribute significantly to the development of the country. Cracking the examination in her second attempt, she said, “This success is a reward for hard work and perseverance. My parents, my mentor Prabhakaran and friends played a significant role in my success. I will serve society better as an IAS officer.”
A law graduate from School of Excellence in Law, Adyar, Tamil Nadu Dr. Ambedkar Law University, Ms.Divyadharshini opted for Public Administration and Law as optional subjects.
Her father V.Shanmugam is a customs consultant.
Her mother S.Padmavathy is a homemaker.
Another Chennai-based candidate, R.V.Varun Kumar, secured the third rank.
“I would have got IAS with this rank. But I have opted for IPS. My heart was always with the police service. I did not join the private sector job after my graduation in engineering.”
“The only broadsheet I read was The Hindu. Google Books was also of help,” he says.
The fourth rank holder, Abhiram G. Sankar, who hails from Tirunelveli, says, “I opted for civil services after convincing my parents. ”
The UPSC has recommended a total of 920 candidates who appeared for the Civil Services Examination 2010 for appointment to the civil services.
Indo-Afghan ties to reach a new level: Manmohan“India cannot be immune to instability in Afghanistan”
On the eve of his first visit to Kabul in six years, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Wednesday that he was looking forward to wide-ranging discussions with the Afghan leadership to advance India's partnership to a “new level'' in the coming years. Dr. Singh leaves for Afghanistan on Thursday morning and will return the next day.
The Prime Minister pointed out that India “cannot remain unaffected by developments in Afghanistan and it took a long-term view of our partnership with Afghanistan.” The government sources amplified Dr. Singh's observations by spelling out India's imperatives — security, economic and involvement of regional countries — in Afghanistan.
“India cannot be immune to instability in Afghanistan as it will affect our progress, development and security. We want Afghanistan to be the trade, transportation and energy hub connecting South Asia with Central Asia through unfettered and free transport links,” said the sources. “It is only through economic inter-dependence that the region can prosper,” they added.
TN, West Bengal register record poll percentageFor the first time in the electoral exercise in their respective States, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, which had Assembly elections recently, have created history by recording the highest percentage of voter turnout this time.While West Bengal recorded 84.46 per cent voter turnout this time, in 2006 Assembly poll it had 81.97 per cent polling. In Tamil Nadu, in the recent poll 78.80 per cent voters exercised their franchise compared to 70.82 per cent in 2006 poll. Puducherry had 85.57 per cent (it was 85.46 per cent in 2006 poll) voter turnout this time, Assam 76.04 per cent (75.77 per cent) and Kerala recorded 75.12 per cent (72.38 per cent) during this election.
Indian woman conquers Mt. Everest
Tine Mena, 25, of Arunachal Pradesh, has become the first Indian woman to successfully scale Mt. Everest this season. She reached the top of the world's highest peak , along with her guide Tsering Dorje Sherpa, 32, on May 9. — PTI
Raj Rajaratnam convictedRaj Rajaratnam, 54, founder of the hedge fund group Galleon, was found guilty on Wednesday of fraud and conspiracy in the biggest ever insider trading case in the U.S. — PTI
Raman Singh: why appoint Binayak to Planning Commission panel?Even as the Planning Commission stood by its decision to nominate Binayak Sen to its steering committee on health, there is a loud note of disapproval from Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh, who has questioned the rationale behind the appointment, saying the rights activist is still facing trial.
“The people of Chhattisgarh do not approve of the appointment,” he said. “He has not been absolved of the charges by the court but just given bail,” Dr. Singh told journalists here.
(The Supreme Court recently granted bail to Dr. Sen, who was sentenced to life imprisonment by a Chhattisgarh trial court on charges of sedition.)
Pointing out that for such appointments a proper procedure was followed including scrutiny of antecedents, Dr Singh said: “Is there such a dearth of experts in the country that the Centre had to take the advice of a person accused of sedition?
New IT rules may make cyber cafés out of boundsIf the new rules framed by the Department of Information Technology for using cyber cafés are implemented in letter and spirit, they could well force people without their own computers to stay away from accessing the Internet, besides compelling the owners of these small businesses to store minute details about their customers' surfing habits in the face of penal action.
Notified last month, the IT (Guidelines for Cyber Café) Rules, 2011, require cyber café customers to furnish proper identification proof, a copy of which must be stored for a year. Acceptable identity cards include those issued by any school or college, or photo credit cards, passports, voter identity cards, PAN cards, driving licences or any cards issued by a government agency, including the UID number.
Schoolchildren who do not have a photo ID will not be allowed entry unless accompanied by an adult possessing identity proof.
Iran seeks enhanced regional roleIran and the global powers are set to begin fresh talks, with south-west Asia in flux following uprisings in the Arab world and the death in Pakistan of Osama bin Laden.
Head of Iran's National Security Council Saeed Jalili wrote to European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton accepting the invitation for talks. He asked the global powers to align themselves with the political transformation that the region has been experiencing. “What we witness today obviously proves that…the future management of the world would be based on the will of nations for their self-determination.”
Mr. Jalili said the “developments of the past few months” had established that Iran three years ago had correctly identified the underlying principles that have brought about these changes.
Iran had last held talks with the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and Germany in January in Istanbul.
The western powers have expressed anxiety about Iran's nuclear enrichment programme, which they fear can lead to Iran's emergence as an atomic weapon power
India goes down to PakistanThe spectacular victory sequence that India constructed since the last World Cup in New Delhi was shattered when Pakistan inflicted a 3-1 defeat on Wednesday in the Azlan Shah hockey tournament here. India led 1-0 at half-time.
RCB cruises to its sixth win in-a-rowThe farewell for Shane Warne at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium was not the desired one. Chris Gayle expectedly spoilt it.
Rajasthan Royals was beaten by Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Indian Premier League engagements at this venue came to an end with the home team unsure of a place in the play-offs.
Led by Virat Kohli in place of an injured Daniel Vettori, Royal Challengers with this nine-wicket win has almost sealed a play-offs slot with 15 points and three matches in hand. RR has 11 from 12 matches.
‘I came good when it mattered most'Dronavalli Harika is delighted at having won one of the biggest titles of her career (the Asian women's chess championship in Moshad in Iran on Tuesday) and more importantly that she has once again qualified for the next edition of the World championship.
“This is a great feeling. The competition was very tough but I enjoyed the tournament and I am happy that I came good when it mattered most,” said Harika, whose first phone call was to her coach N. V. S. Ramaraju.
“The long wait for the big title has ended and this should help me in looking ahead,” said the 20-year-old from Guntur, who was top seeded in the tournament.
“The long hours of hard work with my coach has paid off. I did experiment a bit with my Defence variations rather unsuccessfully. ” said the former World junior champion.
ICC committee recommend Decision Review System in all international matchesThe controversial Decision Review System (DRS) should be used in all international matches, the cricket committee of the International Cricket Council recommended on Wednesday.
“The committee, while recognising the need to take account of existing (television) contracts, unanimously recommended the system be used in all Test matches, one-day internationals and Twenty20s,” committee chairman Clive Lloyd, the former West Indies captain, told a news conference here at Lord's following the conclusion of a two-day meeting.
He added teams should be restricted to one unsuccessful challenge per innings in one-day and Twenty20 games, rather than the current two to stop what Dave Richardson, the ICC's general manager for cricket, called the ‘tactical' use of reviews.
The system, whereby players can challenge on-field decisions, was used in all matches throughout the recent World Cup in the subcontinent.
But for all other major international matches the agreement, in practice, of both sides is required although responsibility technically rests with the home board.
However, world champion India has been opposed to the system almost from its inception and a controversial lbw decision during its World Cup tied match with England.
Nevertheless, Richardson insisted: “The level of believability in ball-tracking systems has improved.
World table tennis championships :Sharath exits Olympian Achanta Sharath Kamal suffered a shock 11-8, 9-11, 8-11, 7-11, 9-11 defeat to lower-ranked Chen Chien-An of Chinese Taipei in the first round of the World table tennis championships in Rotterdam.
FIH to launch ‘Project Chak De'The International Hockey Federation (FIH) has announced its intention to make India a hub of hockey activities.
Unveiling its plan of reviving its erstwhile Project India, now called ‘FIH Project Chak De,' the FIH has charted out the major features of the initiative.
Under the project, the FIH promised five important tournaments to be held in India in the next three years, establishment of invitation places for the country in elite events like the Champions Trophy and other televised tournaments, creation of a professional Indian league, administrative and international coaching support to assist Hockey India and support to schools and academies.
Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, FIH President Leandro Negre and Chief Executive Kelly Fairweather — encouraged by the success of the World Cup and Commonwealth Games last year — committed a few more events to India apart from those already allotte
Bin Laden death impacts on Russian security: MedvedevRussian President Dmitry Medvedev said the killing of Osama bin Laden directly impacts on the country's security and called for strengthening security at Russian embassies abroad.
In his first public comment on bin Laden's killing, Mr. Medvedev noted links between al-Qaeda and the simmering insurgency in Russia's North Caucasus.
“The liquidation of terrorists, even as high-profile as the recently killed bin Laden, is directly related to the level of security in our country,” Mr. Medvedev told a meeting of the Security Council in his Gorky residence outside Moscow on Wednesday.
“It is no secret that the terrorist network al-Qaeda has regularly sent and continues to send its emissaries to the territory of our country,” said Mr. Medvedev.
Wipro to buy major stake in Brazilian firmWipro has signed an agreement to acquire a majority stake of Brazil based Hydraulic Cylinder manufacturer R.K.M.Equipmentos Hidraulicos, subject to approvals, Wipro said in a statement.
Taj Gateway Hotel opens in ColomboIndian Hotels Company (Taj group) on Wednesday announced the opening of the first international ‘gateway' hotel, with the re-branding of the Taj Airport Garden Hotel here
Centre allows FDI in Limited Liability Partnership firmsFIIs, foreign venture capital investors will not be allowed to invest in LLPs
In a policy amendment aimed at attracting more long-term foreign inflows, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday allowed foreign direct investment (FDI) in Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) firms, beginning with the ‘open' sectors such as mining, power and airports where monitoring is not required, subject to certain specific conditions.
“The FDI in LLPs will be implemented in a calibrated manner, beginning with the ‘open' sectors where monitoring is not required,” an official statement said. As per the CCEA approval for calibrated implementation, LLPs with FDI will be permitted through the government approval route (read Foreign Investment Promotion Board) in those sectors and activities where 100 per cent FDI is allowed through the automatic route and there are no FDI-linked performance related conditions.
However, LLPs with FDI will not be allowed to operate in agricultural and plantation activities, print media or real estate business and will also not be eligible to make any downstream investments.
With regard to funding of LLPs, the statement said that an Indian company, having FDI, will be permitted to make downstream investment in LLPs only if both the company as well as the LLP are operating in sectors where 100 per cent FDI is allowed, through the automatic route.
CCI to vet high value M&As The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Wednesday notified regulations that require corporates to seek its approval before going in for high-value mergers and acquisitions (M&As), while CCI will take a view on the proposed merger deals within 180 days of the filing of notice by the companies.
The new regulations — Competition Commission of India (Procedure in regard to the transaction of business relating to combinations) Regulations, 2011 — will come into effect from June 1.
According to the regulations, CCI can either approve the merger proposal or reject it or modify it. Companies would have to submit a fee of up to Rs.1 lakh for getting the CCI approval. Companies with a turnover of over Rs.1,500 crore will have to approach the CCI for approval before merging with another firm. Only those proposals would need the CCI's nod where the companies have combined assets of Rs.1,000 crore or more, or a combined turnover of Rs.3,000 crore or more.
9% GDP growth unlikely this fiscal, says Pranab In line with the Reserve Bank's prognosis on the economic scenario, Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee conceded that it would not be possible to achieve the targeted GDP (gross domestic product) growth rate of nine per cent during the current fiscal owing to volatility in global commodity prices.
“Due to volatility in international commodity prices and other supply constraints, it may not be possible to achieve the growth rate of nine per cent (+/-0.25 per cent) for the current financial year,” Mr. Mukherjee said while addressing probationers of Indian Economic Service (IES) here.
However, he expressed confidence that headline inflation [is] moderate to 7.0-7.5 per cent from the current high of near nine per cent.
Mr. Mukherjee felt that one of the major challenges that India faces is to “achieve sustained GDP growth at the rate of 9-10 per cent with fiscal prudence and moderate inflation”.
High growth was also essential to raise resources for funding social sector schemes such as guaranteed employment under MGNREGA, the Right to Education and the proposed Right to Food Act
