Had opposed MNS's Rs 5 crore demand from ADHM makers in the meeting: Fadnavis

Karan Johar's film faced protests by MNS workers for casting Pakistani actor Fawad Khan

Under fire over "brokering" a deal between producers of "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" and MNS Chief Raj Thackeray, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has maintained that he had opposed the offer of Rs 5 crore contribution from makers to the Army welfare fund.

Karan Johar's film faced protests by MNS workers for casting Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. Film's smooth release, scheduled to open on October 28, was ensured at a meeting Film Producers' Guild, producers and MNS Thackeray, mediated by Devendra Fadnavis last week. A key demand conceded in the meeting was Rs 5 crore contribution from makers for the army welfare.

"Thackeray had put three demands, out of which there was no objections to the other two. When the issue of Rs 5 crore came up, I intervened and made it clear to the Film Producers' Guild that they need not have to agree to it. I also told them that the contribution has to be made voluntarily. However, it was producers' decision to accept it," Fadnavis said on Monday evening at his residence 'Varsha'. Read More

Also Read:

'ADHM' controversy has rubbed salt onto the wounds of martyred soldiers: Shiv Sena

After ADHM stir, MNS wants traders to 'sacrifice' biz with Pak

ADHM Truce: Raj Thackeray asks producers to pay Rs 5 cr for casting Pak artistes

Not Johar, Members of Producers Guild to meet Rajnath over 'Áe Dil Hai Mushkil' controversy

MNS to continue protest against 'ADHM', Karan Johar to meet Rajnath today

Akhilesh vs Mulayam: Why the SP infighting is bad news for BJP

Walking out of the shadow of his father and uncle and with the support of Congress and Nitish Kumar, Akhilesh Yadav could be bad news for the BJP

The split in the Samajwadi Party (SP), which increasingly looks imminent, is bad news for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), not just for the 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls but also for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

With the Congress weakened, the BJP effort has been to dent the support base as well as credibility of regional political parties that have the potential to form the nucleus of a strong third front in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

These parties are Uttar Pradesh-based SP and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP); Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in Odisha; the Dravidian parties of Tamil Nadu; the Nitish Kumar-Lalu Prasad Akhilesh Yadav combine in Bihar, Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress in Bengal and the Left parties.

The states where these parties wield influence – Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Bengal, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Jharkhand and Tripura – send over 250 seats to the Lok Sabha, that is nearly half its strength of 543.

The long-term BJP plan is to fill the vacuum created by the decline of some of these regional parties and capture the support bases these parties have in their respective states, particularly among Hindus - primarily the Dalits and Other Backward Castes.

In the last two years, the BJP has tried to weaken these regional parties, but not always with significant success, as the Bihar Assembly poll results of 2015 showed. In recent months, the BJP cadre has been galvanised in Kerala, Bengal and Odisha. The party held its national council meeting in Kozhikode in Kerala in September. Read More

Also Read:

SP saga: Mulayam shows who's boss, says Amar Singh will stay

Mulayam defends Amar, Shivpal; SP meet ends in acrimony

Akhilesh told me he would float new party, says Shivpal at SP meet

My heart goes out to Akhilesh Yadav, says Shatrughan Sinha

Would have resigned had Netaji asked me to, says an emotional Akhilesh

India triumphs in Kabaddi World Cup 2016, maintains dominance

India wins 2016 Kabaddi World Cup beats Iran 38-29

India fought off a tough challenge from Iran to win their third successive Kabaddi World Cup 2016 here on Saturday.

In perhaps the most exciting match of this World Cup, the Indians overturned a first-half deficit with a superb second-half performance to win 38-29.

India have thus won all the three Kabaddi World Cups held so far. They have beaten Iran in the finals of all the three editions.

The experienced Ajay Thakur played a crucial role in India's win with his raiding prowess.

Iran enjoyed a stronger start and dominated the first half. But the Indians showed superb fighting spirit and aggression to pull off the win.

Thakur had started the revival early in the second session by claiming four consecutive raid points. His team-mates also showed excellent raiding and defending technique to edge out their opponents.

"This is the best moment of my life," Thakur said after the win. Read More

INS Arihant commissioned in Aug, but not 'fully ready' for patrols: Report

India's 1st indigenous nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine can carry between 4 to 12 nuclear-tipped missiles

India quietly commissioned into service its first indigenous nuclear submarine, the INS Arihant, in August this year and the vessel has been operational since then, The Times of India reported on Tuesday while citing sources.

With its induction, India has completed the first step towards setting up a nuclear triad.

The national daily said that according to the same sources, despite being inducted, the Arihant is "not yet fully ready" to be deployed for "deterrent patrols". The report added that the Ministry of Defence and the Indian Navy have refused to comment on the matter.

All you need to know about INS Arihant:

INS Arihant is India's first nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine. While India has leased nuclear submarines from Russia before, Arihant is the first such vessel built indigenously.

According to reports, the vessel will be armed with the K-15 missiles, which can carry nuclear warheads to a range of 750 km, and with K-4 missile, which has a longer range.

In April this year, news agency IANS had reported that the K-4 ballistic missile was test-fired secretly from the Arihant in March the same year. The report added that the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) refused to officially comment on the matter.

The report said that the K-4 missile had a range of 3,500 km, adding that the Arihant has four vertical launch tubes, which can carry 12 K-15 missiles or four larger K-4 missiles. Read More

India seeks $500-bn BRICS trade by 2020

Leaders of the five economies agree to work on credit rating agency, trade in local currency and cooperation on tax evasion

While a key agreement on setting up a BRICS credit rating agency eluded them, leaders of the five emerging large economies ended their eighth summit with a commitment to strive for greater synergy and higher economic growth.

With Indian and Chinese exports to the West shrinking, Prime Minister Narendra Modicalled for doubling of intra-BRICS trade to $500 billion by 2020.

This was seen as a key to spur growth in BRICS economies, two of which have recorded negative growth. Chinese President Xi Jinping drew attention to “some countries getting more inward looking in their policies… Protectionism is rising and the forces against globalisation are an emerging risk,” he said.

The ‘Goa Declaration’, issued at the end of the summit, welcomed “experts exploring the possibility of setting up an independent BRICS Rating Agency based on market-oriented principles, in order to further strengthen the global governance architecture. However, it was felt that experts should study the proposal further since credit rating agencies need to have credibility,” said Amar Sinha, secretary (economic relations), external affairs ministry.

An important idea that nearly reached fruition was the suggestion that BRICS members should trade in their local currencies. If this happens, trading costs could come down by up to six per cent, according to estimates. (more)

Your next job interview may be taken by a robot

Candidates interviewed by webcam send their response to the firm for review

The future of job interviews might horrify you. It horrified Jake Rosen.

A recent graduate of UCLA, Rosen was applying to be a page at NBC (yes, yes, just like Kenneth) when he learned he wouldn't be going to an office to talk to a human being about his skills. Instead, he interviewed by webcam, on a laptop.

So Skype, right? Nope, nothing as personal as that. He recorded his answers and sent them back to a hiring manager at NBC for review at the company's convenience.

It's the robo-interview, and it goes something like this. In the more humane experience, a hiring manager, who also isn't all that practised in the art of digital video, delivers taped questions. Or, if it's truly Mr Roboto, a question pops up on the screen. You have a limited amount of time to answer. You talk to your computer, record the responses, and send them back to the company. Sometimes there's a practice question to get prospective employees used to talking to a camera. Sometimes there isn't. Often, at the end, you have the chance to re-record your answers.

For shy people, it may be a dream come true. No firm handshake needed, and sure, you smell fine. And wouldn't we all love the redo option after making up an answer and mumbling it, too?

For everyone else, it's awkward at best. It's a pretty slick encounter, a little like FaceTime, except you're forced to stare at your big, nervous face as you wax on about why you want to work at the company. It feels more like performing for an invisible audience than having a conversation, because that's essentially what it is. Not used to being on camera, Rosen felt flustered from the first question, which coloured the rest of his interview, he said. Read More

JeM's Masood Azhar calls on Pakistan govt to give free hand for jihad: Report

Azhar argues that organisations like his JeM can achieve victory for Pakistan in Kashmir and avenge the 1971 defeat

Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) head Masood Azhar has called on the Pakistani government to "shows a little courage" and allow jihadist organisations a free hand in escalating their attacks in India, in order to "resolve" the Kashmir dispute, the Indian Express reported on Thursday.

According to the report, Azhar, alleged to have masterminded the Pathankot attack in January this year, was addressing the Pakistani establishment in the current issue of the JeM weekly magazine al-Qalam.

Quoting Azhar, the national daily's report said: “If the government of Pakistan shows a little courage... The problem of Kashmir, as well as the dispute over water, can be resolved once and for all right now. If nothing else, the government simply has to open the path for the mujahideen. Then, god willing, all the bitter memories of 1971 will be dissolved into the triumphant emotions of 2016."

The appeal was meant to stir up memories of Pakistan's defeat in the 1971 Bangladesh liberation war, where Indian armed forces and the Bangladeshi Mukti Bahini handed the Pakistani armed forces in then East Pakistan a decisive defeat, a historical event which still feeds into the bellicose narrative of those like Azhar and Jamaat-ud-Dawah chief Hafiz Saeed.

Jihadist policy has "damaged" India

Lobbying for greater role and freedom for terrorist organisations like the JeM, Azhar, according to the national daily, wrote that jihad by Pakistan-based organisations had left “every one of its (India's) limbs badly injured”.

Touting the success of jihad as a military strategy, Azhar added, “What remained of its military prowess was exposed in Pathankot and Uri." Read Full Story

ALSO READ:

Why can't govt, army take action against JeM, JuD chiefs: Pakistani daily

Ready for talks on India's entry into NSG but opposed to UN ban on JeM chief: China

Pathankot attack aimed at probing Modi govt's red lines: C Christine Fair

Continued jihad in Kashmir

Parmeshwar Godrej: Philanthropist and style icon bids adieu

Best remembered for her work in fighting AIDS, she was incredibly networked across biz and entertainment

On a day when millions across the world and in India celebrated the festival of Dussehra, came news that 71-year-old Parmeshwar Godrej, wife of industrialist Adi Godrej, was no more. She passed away on Monday night in a hospital here. Her death came as a shock to many of her friends and well-wishers, who took to twitter to express their grief.

Pam, as she was referred to among friends, is survived by her husband and three children – Tanya, Nisa and Pirojsha.

She was among India's foremost style icons, philanthropist and a gracious host, who was the life of every party she attended or threw. Behind the glamour, however, was a strong woman, say acquaintances and friends, who was intelligent, who carried herself well and who could strike up a conversation easily, helping her straddle the world of business and entertainment well.

An example of her influence in social circles was when American talk show host Oprah Winfrey chose Godrej to organise a welcome party for her in India. This was in 2012 and the buzz then was that Winfrey wanted a private do, where only the creme-da-la-creme of business, entertainment and politics were guests. Godrej did not disappoint her, inviting the likes of the Ambani brothers, the Khans from Bollywood, the Bachchans, Hrithik Roshan and his then wife Susanne with her family as guests. Read More

Plane evacuated at Louisville airport after replaced Samsung phone starts smoking

Plane evacuated at Louisville airport after replaced Samsung phone starts smoking

An overheating, smoking Samsung smartphone forced the evacuation of a Southwest Airlines jet that was preparing to take off from the Louisville airport.

The incident raised fresh trouble for Samsung, which saw its new Galaxy Note 7 device recalled last month because of overheating batteries.

Samsung, Southwest and federal aviation-safety officials declined to say what model of Samsung phone was involved, saying they were still investigating.

But an Indiana woman, Sarah Green, told The Courier-Journal of Louisville that it was her husband’s Samsung Galaxy Note 7 that made popping noises and started to smoke after he powered it down while the plane sat at the gate.

Green told the newspaper that her husband, Brian, received the Galaxy Note 7 about two weeks ago as a replacement for his recalled phone. He called her from someone else’s phone to tell her what happened.

Last month Samsung agreed to recall the Galaxy Note 7 after receiving 92 reports of batteries overheating in the US, including 26 reports of burns and 55 cases of property damage.

The Federal Aviation Administration took the unusual step of warning passengers not to use or charge the devices while on board and not to stow them in checked luggage.Read More

Also Read:

Samsung profits beat estimates despite Note 7 global recall

Samsung makes farmers rich

Elliott push for Samsung makeover puts founding family plans under microscope

US plane evacuated after new Samsung phone catches fire

Surgical strikes achieve tactical closure, not strategic detente: Former NATGRID CEO

Surgical strikes achieve tactical closure, not strategic detente: Former NATGRID CEO

Military power is never about the number of troops, tanks, ships or aircrafts. If military power was all a country needed to establish superiority, America would not have been beaten by Vietnam, the Soviet Union would not have been routed by Afghan tribes and the juggernaut that is the Indian Army would not have been held at bay by a few thousand Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka.

A country’s military power is actually determined by a combination of economic realities, governance frameworks, national will and strategic thinking – which work together to deliver a punch worthy of its weight.

Comparing India’s military power to Pakistan’s from this perspective actually yields a startling conclusion.

In 1999, Pakistan’s army chief at the time was mid-air when Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif decided to sack him. Surgical Strikes Denied permission to land in Pakistan and faced with the option of making an emergency landing on Indian soil, the sacked general decided to land in Karachi anyway. He communicated his orders to his military subordinates through the civilian aviation channel and by the time his plane landed, Pervez Musharraf was firmly back in the saddle while Sharif had been toppled off his. That is the power of the Pakistani military.

Now compare the Pakistani army’s swiftness to India’s handling of the Kandahar hijacking in 1999. When the Indian Airlines flight was taken over by terrorists and parked in Amritsar over the course of its long journey, the Indian establishment could not decide between blocking the aircraft’s departure or letting it go. That ambivalence cost India the advantage it had in being able to control events happening on its own turf. Read More

Three nuances of national strength

Three strategic realities India cannot overlook

Using economic leverage to influence Pakistani economy

Expose and target value chains of Pakistan’s military businesses

Combine ‘strategic depth’ with ‘strategic stretch’

Article Source : Business Standard

Two terrorists killed in Jammu and Kashmir's Handwara, search ops on

Two terrorists killed in Jammu and Kashmir's Handwara, search ops on

Two terrorists were killed in Jammu and Kashmir's Handwara district on Thursday morning after they opened fire outside the 30 Rashtriya Rifles camp at Langate. The terrorists, who were in army combat uniform, had opened fire at around 5 a.m.

During the search operation in the area, the militants opened fire at the forces. The firing continued for 10 to 15 minutes. Since the troops were alert, the attack was aptly retaliated by the security forces. The operation is currently underway.

Meanwhile, additional forces have been rushed to the spot to nab the remaining terrorists.

No casualties have been reported, so far. Meanwhile, it is reported that the army foiled three infiltration bids along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir last night. Two infiltration bids were foiled in Naugam Sector while one such attempt was foiled in Rampur sector.

The attack comes days after terrorists attacked a BSF and adjoining camps in Baramulla district, where one Bolder Security Force (BSF) soldier was killed in the attack.

The attack also comes after the Indian Army conducted surgical strikes and destroyed seven terror launch pads across the Line of Control (LoC), last week.

Last month, terrorists had attacked the army brigade headquarters at Uri, killing 19 soldiers.

Also Read:

Army camp attacked in Kashmir's Kupwara, 2 terrorists killed

Google launches AI-powered Pixel smartphone; will cost Rs 57,000 in India

Google launches AI-powered Pixel smartphone; will cost Rs 57,000 in India

With an aim to lead the world of smartphones with its artificial intelligence (AI)-based technology, Google on Tuesday launched much-awaited Pixel — a new premium device completely designed by the tech giant with Google Assistant built right-in — at a special event here.

India is among the first six countries where Google Pixel is being launched. Starting at Rs, 57,000, it will be available for pre-order in India starting October 13 on e-tailer website Flipkart and at over 1,000 plus multi-brand retail stores, including Reliance Digital, Croma and Vijay sales, among others.

The launch also ended the Nexus branding under which the company has always released phones in partnership with other original equipment manufacturers like LG (for Google Nexus 5) and Huawei (for Google Nexus 6P).

Although HTC has manufactured the smartphones, the new device bears Google branding.

With curved sculpted edges and a unibody made up of combination of aerospace grade aluminum and glass, the device comes in two sizes — 5 and 5.5-inch with 2.5D Corning Gorilla Glass 4 protected super AMOLED display. Pixel is available in two — quite black and very silver colours in India.

Pixel is first smartphone with Google Assistant — a built-in AI programme that works as an intelligent personal assistant and knowledge navigator. Read More

Also Read:

Google takes on Apple with Pixel phone, Home assistant

Google launches AI-powered Pixel smartphone

WhatsApp introduces new camera features

Article Source : Business Standard

SpiceJet announces festival sale; tickets starting at Rs 888

SpiceJet Launches Festival Sale, All-Inclusive Tickets From Rs 888

Domestic budget carrier SpiceJet on Tuesday announced special festival sale, offering fliers one-way all inclusive airfares as low as Rs 888 for domestic and Rs 3,699 for overseas flights for a limited period.

The flights under the offer can be booked from today till October 7 while the journey can be undertaken between November 8, 2016 and April 13, 2017, SpiceJet said in a release.

The seats available under the special festival sale are limited and on first-come-first-served basis, it added.

The domestic routes routes avaible for discounted fares include Bengaluru–Kochi, Delhi–Dehradun, Chennai, among others, while within the international sector, the sale offer comes for routes such as Chennai–Colombo routes, SpiceJet said.

Article Source : Business Standard

ING plans to shed 7,000 jobs, invest in digital platform

The layoffs represent slightly less than 12 per cent of ING's 52,000 workforce

ING Groep plans to shed 7,000 jobs and invest heavily in its digital platforms to achieve annual savings of 900 million euros ($1 billion) by 2021, the Netherlands' largest financial services company said on Monday.

The layoffs represent slightly less than 12 per cent of ING's 52,000 workforce because nearly 1,000 are expected to come at suppliers rather than the company itself.

The job losses are the heaviest since 2009, when ING was forced to restructure and spin off its insurance activities after receiving a state bailout during the financial crisis.

Although other large banks have announced mass layoffs at branch offices in the past year to boost profitability, ING said the job cuts were partly to combine technology platforms and risk control centres as well to help it to contend with regulatory burdens and low interest rates.Read More