Friday 30 September 2016

Surgical strikes: How the world conducts them and how India did it

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Indian armed forces conducted surgical strikes in the early hours of Thursday across the Line of Control (LoC), involving not more than 100 commandos, in what is seen as a paradigm shift in how this government plans to deal with terrorist camps across the border.
The term "surgical strike" has been prevalent in the international media since the days of the Gulf War, and it came to typify operations conducted by the US thereafter.
Going by the generally accepted definition offered by experts, a surgical strike comprises a swift, intelligence-driven attack on a specific target or targets with minimum collateral damage to structures, infrastructure or civilians in the target's vicinity.
The operation can involve special forces units on the ground, strikes conducted by military aircraft or vessels. Read More
How India conducted its strikes
How the big hitters do it
Article Source : Business Standard

Thursday 29 September 2016

ICICI Prudential Life Insurance lists below issue price

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ICICI Prudential Life Insurance has listed at Rs 330, 1.2% below its issue price of Rs 334 per share, on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).
At 10:01 am, the stock was trading at Rs 331.60, after hitting a high of Rs 333.80 post its listing.
ICICI Prudential Life Insurance has raised Rs 6,057-crore through initial public offer (IPO), become the first insurer to list.
The company's public issue was oversubscribed 10.5 times. The quota set aside for qualified institutional buyers was subscribed 11.83 times while for the non-institutional investor category, it was 28.55 times. The retail portion was oversubscribed 1.42 times, the exchange data shows.
The insurer is a venture between banking major ICICI Bank and UK's Prudential Corporation Holdings. Singapore's Temasek and PremjiInvest are also the shareholders.
At the end of financial year 2016 (FY16), ICICI Prudential was the biggest private sector insurer in the Country having a market share of 11.3%. The company has 521 offices with around 10,663 employees and 121,016 advisors all over India as of FY16. ICICI Prudential Life’s total premium and net profit has risen at a CAGR of 8% and 5% in the past four years, respectively.
Article Source : Business Standard

India strikes back as Army conducts surgical strikes across LoC in Pakistan

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The Indian Army conducted surgical strikes across the Line of Control (LoC) on Wednesday night on launchpads where terrorists had amassed and positioned themselves to infiltrate into India, Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Lt Gen Ranbir Singh informed the gathered members of the press at the joint briefing following the Cabinet Committee on Security meeting held on Thursday.
According to Times Now, a total of eight surgical strikes were conducted by the Indian Army. There were no Indian casualties during the operation.
Singh said that the strikes were based on credible information and that the terrorists were poised to conduct attacks in Jammu and Kashmir and other major metros in the country. Singh revealed that significant casualties were inflicted on the terrorists in the operation.
The DGMO added that he had contacted his Pakistani counterpart to inform him of the operation conducted by the Indian armed forces on Wednesday night.
"It has been a serious matter of concern that there has been continuing and increasing infiltrations by terrorists across the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir. This is reflected in the terrorist attacks at Poonch and Uri on September 11 and 18, respectively. Almost 20 infiltrations attempts have been foiled by the Indian Army successfully this year. During these attacks and infiltration attempts, we have recovered items, including global positioning systems and stores which have had Pakistani markings," the DGMO added.
Further, the DGMO said that Pakistani-origin terrorists, who have been captured, have also provided testimonies of their training in Pakistan. Read More
Also Read:

Article Source : Business Standard

Wednesday 28 September 2016

Indian-origin lawyer shoots 9 in US, killed by police

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An Indian-origin lawyer with apparent Nazi sympathies went on an early morning rampage in US' Houston city shooting nine people on Monday before he was killed by police, according to authorities.
Nathan Desai was wearing military-style clothing with Nazisymbols during the 20-minute shooting spree when he fired at passing cars.
Police said that they did not know why Desai went on the rampage hitting people at random.
Desai's name was written with the 's' capitalised in media reports in Houston, making it sound European, but his father was identified as Prakash Desai.
All of his victims survived but one person was critically wounded and five others were hospitalised, Houston's Acting Police Chief Martha Montalvo said.
She described the shooter as a lawyer who was having problems at his law firm. When police responded to the shooting, he shot at them and was killed when police returned fire, Montalvo said.
The shooter's father, 80-year-old Prakash Desai told KPRC TV that his son was "worried" because his law practice was not doing so well. Read Full Story >>>

Tuesday 27 September 2016

US presidential debate: Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump spar over jobs, taxes

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Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump took to the stage on Monday to begin their first-ever presidential debate and immediately sparred over jobs, taxes, the Islamic State (IS), guns and the former secretary of state's undisclosed emails, media reports said.
Clinton is held to have won the first presidential debate, according to a new CNN/ORC poll.
According to the poll of debate watchers, 62 per cent of voters who watched the debate thought Clinton won, while only 27 per cent said that Donald Trump came out on top.
On prosperity, taxes and jobs
Moderator Leslie Holt of NBC News opened the 90-minute debate at Hofstra University, Long Island, New York, with the first topic being "Achieving Prosperity", where the first question about putting money back into Americans' pockets and creating jobs was directed to Clinton,CNN reported.
Clinton, the first woman to represent a major US party in the presidential race, mentioned her granddaughter's birthday, and talked about everything from gender pay gaps, to paid family leave, to presidential temperament.
She started her speech by defending the idea of creating "an economy for all" and stressed that she intends to do so "by having the wealthy pay their fair share", EFE news reported.
"I also want to see more companies do profit sharing. If you help create the profits, you should be able to share in them, not just the executives at the top," she said, and stressed that "the central question in this election is really what kind of country we want to be in".
Clinton insisted she would work to achieve equal pay between men and women, paid paternity leave and debt-free college.
Clinton accused her rival for being one of the real estate tycoons who benefited from the economic crisis that hit the country in 2008.
Trump conceded the point saying, "It's called business."
On Trump's business practices
On Trump's tax returns and Clinton's emails
On the Islamic State
On police shootings
On gun control
On the 'birther' issue
On supporting the result of the elections
Clinton said, "Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, but I certainly will support the outcome of this election."
Trump pointed that he would "... want to make America great again. We are a nation that is seriously troubled... If she wins, I will absolutely support it."
The debate is divided into 6 segments with 15 minutes given to each nominee. Two minutes will be allotted to answer a question asked by the moderator, two minutes to reply and the remaining time for the nominees to debate.
This is the 20th US presidential debate and is being organised by the Read Full Story >>>

Friday 23 September 2016

L&T Technology Services lists 7% higher at Rs 920

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Benchmark indices continue to trade in a narrow range with negative bias amid weakness among index heavyweight shares. However, the downside is limited due to buying demand among Reliance Industries and HDFC.
At 11:00 am, the S&P BSE Sensex slipped 29 points at 28,744 and the Nifty50 dipped 7 points to trade at 8,861. Among broader markets, BSE Midcap and Smallcapindices are up 0.4% each.
Top losers from the Sensex pack are Axis Bank, Lupin, ICICI Bank, Tata Motors and Infosys, all down between 1%-4.5%. Axis Bank was down over 4% on speculation of SUUTI stake sale in the bank.
On the gaining side, TCS, Reliance Inds, Bajaj Auto, Bharti Airtel and HDFC are up almost 1%.
L & T Share Price Technology Services opened at Rs 920 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) today, against an issue price of Rs 860 per share, at a premium of around 7%.
Morepen Laboratories rose 6% to Rs 26.25 on the BSE on reports that the company may sell its over-the-counter brands to focus on active pharmaceutical ingredient and home diagnostics business as growth drivers.
Shares of Majesco are up nearly 3% to Rs 484 on the BSE after the company announced that it has entered into an agreement with Glemham, a UK based managing general agent, to create a new cloud based bureau processing business.
Markets are trading in a subdued note tracking mixed global cues on account of booking profits after the recent run-up.
At 9:30 am, the S&P BSE Sensex slipped 48 points at 28,725 and the Nifty50 dipped 9 points to trade at 8,858. Among broader markets, BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices are up 0.3%-0.5%.
“Subdued trading is expected early in the day inside the 8890-8860 region. Breakout beyond the same is expected, but a directional move is less likely. Downsides look limited, but upsides in the near term look more limited, suggesting that bearishness should dominate,” adds Geojit BNP Paribas in a technical note.
On Thursday, Indian equities surged mirroring strong global markets after the US Federal Reserve kept interest rates at a near-record low, but hinted a hike could come in December.
On the macro-economic front, the government, on Thursday, appointed three academics to the panel. The RBI has already appointed its members to the panel. read full story

Thursday 22 September 2016

Lenovo launches Z2 Plus smartphone priced at Rs 17,999

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Chinese smartphone major Lenovo on Thursday launched Lenovo Z2 Plus smartphone in India that comes with "U-Health" feature to help users track steps taken and calories burnt.
The device comes in two options — 3GB/32GB (priced at Rs 17,999) and 4GB/64GB (priced at Rs 19,999) and will be available on Amazon starting September 25.
Z2 Plus features 5-inch full-HD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor and comes in fibre glass frame and also packs a U-Touch 2.0 fingerprint sensor that can be used to do seven different functions.
The 4G VoLTE-enabled smartphone sports 13MP rear camera and a 8MP front camera and supports 4K capture, 1080p time lapse and slow motion recording.
The smartphone will come with a premium chrono case accessory with five different chrono faces.
The matte black stealth case worth Rs 699 will come bundled with the phone.
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Nawaz Sharif's UNGA speech: Top 10 things he said and India's rebuttals to his accusations

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Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif raked up the Kashmir issue at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday and tried to burnish his country's credentials as an opponent of global terrorism.
His speech, which also referred to the prevailing situation in Europe and the Middle East, attempted to paint India as an uncooperative neighbour which had rebuffed Sahrif's overtures for peace.
His speech came days after suspected Pakistan-based terrorists attacked an Indian army camp in Uri, in Kashmir, and killed 18 Indian soldiers. The four terrorists who participated in the attack were also eliminated by the security forces during the attack.
India for its part reacted very strongly to the Pakistani prime minister's speech, calling it an act of "self-incrimination" on the latter's part.
Here are the top 10 things Sharif said at the UNGA and India's rebuttal to some of them: Read More

Wednesday 21 September 2016

Mark Zuckerberg, Priscilla Chan pledge $3 billion to cure all diseases

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Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan will spend $3 billion over the next ten years on their ambitious goal aimed at helping to eradicate all diseases by the end of this century.
The goal is to "work together to cure, prevent or manage all diseases within our children's lifetime," Chan, who is a pediatrician, said during an event in San Francisco for the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, the couple's philanthropic group.
Speaking through tears, Chan recalled telling parents their child had an incurable disease or could not be revived, experiences she said made her even more determined to work with scientists and engineers to build new tools that can save lives by the end of the century.
The investments will include creating research tools - from software to hardware to yet-undiscovered techniques - they hope will ultimately lead to scientific breakthroughs, the way the microscope and DNA sequencing have in the past. Read Full Story

Angelina Jolie files for divorce from Brad Pitt

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Hollywood actress-filmmaker Angelina Jolie has filed for divorce from actor husband Brad Pitt after two years of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences.

Monday 19 September 2016

ACB officials question DCW chief Swati Maliwal

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A team of Anti Corruption Branch (ACB) officials on Moday, questioned DCW chief Swati Maliwal in connection with a complaint of illegal recruitments in the women's panel.
A team comprising five ACB officers reached the office of the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) at 11 am to question Maliwal, a senior ACB officer said, adding the questioning is still going on.
The ACB had sent a notice last week to Maliwal informing her that she would be questioned on September 19.
The probe has been taken up by the ACB on a complaint by former DCW chief Barkha Shukla Singh. In her complaint, Singh had claimed that several AAP supporters were given plum posts in the women's panel.
Singh, in her complaint, listed names of 85 people who, she claimed, got jobs "without requisite credentials".
Earlier, Maliwal had rubbished the allegations, saying the staff is needed in her office considering the number of cases the women's panel handles.
"During her tenure of nine years in DCW, Barkha Shukla Singh handled only one case. During this period, the commission made no recommendation to the government and conducted only six visits despite having a staff of about 50 officers," Maliwal had said.

Priyanka Chopra among world's highest paid TV actresses

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Priyanka Chopra has become the first Indian star to enter the Forbes list of highest paid television actresses in the world, after starring on American series "Quantico".
Priyanka ranks eighth in the coveted list, which has retained American actress Sofia Vergara at the first position fifth year in a row.
The 44-year-old Colombian-American actress brought home a whooping $43 million before management fees and taxes, but not all came from her hit TV show "Modern Family".
Vergara has an impressive array of endorsement deals as well as her line of products.
Priyanka, meanwhile, has earned $11 million. She made her international acting debut last year with ABC's "Quantico" and now is gearing up for its second season. Read More

Samsung sued after Note 7 exploded in man's pocket in US

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Adding to Samsung's woes over Galaxy Note 7, a man from Florida has sued the South Korean company after a Note 7 device exploded in his pocket while at work in Palm Beach Gardens.
Jonathan Strobel suffered severe and "deep second-degree burns" on his right thigh and thumb when the phone exploded, West Palm Beach News - Breaking News, Local Headlines & Weather reported on Monday.
The lawsuit has asked for $15,000 in compensatory damages from Samsung Note 7.
Strobel later received an email from the company, requesting him to surrender Note 7.
"Samsung is a big corporation and they control the information that's put out. They obviously knew what was wrong (with the phone). Unfortunately for Strobel, it was too late for the mandatory recall, Strobel's lawyer was quoted as saying. read full story

Thursday 15 September 2016

Donald Trump's paid maternity leave plan gets Hillary Clinton rejoinder

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Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has introduced an unorthodox childcare plan, becoming a rareRepublican calling for paid maternity leave.
Introduced on Tuesday by his daughter Ivanka, who asserted that childcare issues were at the "root of wage inequality by disproportionately affecting women", Trump tried to soften his image at an event held in Pennsylvania, a former stronghold for moderate Republicans that has trended Democratic in recent years, the Guardianreported.
Trump also asserted that "my opponent has no childcare plan". Clinton has in fact made a number of detailed proposals on childcare.
Clinton in June last year first outlined a programme for universal pre-kindergarten and in May this year proposed to cap childcare costs at ten per cent of household income and to introduce 12 weeks of paid family leave.
Maya Harris, a senior policy adviser to Clinton, described Trump's plan as "half-baked and completely out of touch". read full story >>>

Wednesday 14 September 2016

Donald Trump wants allies to share burden of security

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Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has said that if elected he would ensure that America's European and Asian allies meet the NATO obligation of spending two per cent of their GDP on defence.
"Only five of the 28 member NATO countries meet their obligations to spend two per cent of GDP on defence. I will convene a summit of our European and Asian allies to make sure everyone is sharing in the burden of security. We are paying tremendous amounts of money to secure other nations, to protect and defend other nations," Trump said at an election rally in Iowa.
"We are going to be made whole. We have no choice. This isn't 30 years ago. This isn't 40 years ago. And I believe properly asked, we'll be in a very good position and they will be very nice about it," he said as he slammed the foreign policy of the Obama Administration in particular that of the former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who is now the Democratic presidential nominee.
"Whether it's her e-mails, her disasters in Iraq, Libya and Syria, or her failures on the economy, of which it's been disastrous, Hillary Clinton lacks the judgement, temperament and moral character to lead this country. She does. You know it. Everybody knows it," he said amidst applause from the cheering audience. read full story >>>

Tuesday 13 September 2016

Javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia wins gold at Rio Paralympics

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Javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia became the first Indian to clinch two gold medals at the Paralympics after he broke his own world record to clinch the top honours at the Rio Games here.
Devendra, who won his previous gold in the 2004 Athens Games, bettered his own world record to finish on top in the men's F46 event.
Devendra, whose previous best was 62.15 metres (achieved in the 2004 Games), improved the mark with an attempt of 63.97 metres at the Olympic Stadium (Engenhao).
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India now have two gold, one silver and one bronze in the ongoing edition of the Games.
Thangavelu Mariyappan had earlier struck gold in the men's high jump, while Varun Bhati had secured a bronze in the same event.
Later, Deepa Malik won a silver in the women's shot put event to add to the tally.

Triple Talaq: Patriarchy not just a 'women's issue', marriage no holy cow

From academic jargon, the word 'patriarchy' has come a long way in the Indian public sphere. But it has a long way to go yet ...