News Digest: Rs 10 lakh fine on land owners for felling 477 trees in Shimla

		THE TIMES OF INDIA
		Wednesday, January 21, 2015
		Today's Headlines

		India
		Rs 10 lakh fine on land owners for felling 477 trees in Shimla In a first, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has ordered three persons — the owner of the land, a hotelier and his agent — to pay a fine of Rs 10 lakh to the forest department for allegedly chopping 477 trees in Shimla in private land and part of reserve forest land. Small improvements but Laxman still critical The condition of eminent cartoonist R K Laxman continues to be critical but stable. The doctors treating him said his creatinine level (important for assessing kidney function) has improved with the help of renal replacement therapy. Chautala's grandson alleges threats Former Haryana chief minister Om Prakash Chautala's grandson, Digvijay Chautala, on Tuesday claimed to have received threats from Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's followers. More India News»

		Business
		India to outpace China growth by FY17: IMF India's economic growth is expected to overtake China's by 2016, the International Monetary Fund (IMF)'s projection showed on Tuesday as the multilateral agency revised down global growth due to new risks. Make in India: Govt woos US companies Ahead of US president Barack Obama's visit over the weekend, the Indian authorities are courting around 200 American companies - including the likes of Boeing Corporation - to invest in the country and boost the Narendra Modi government's ambitious Make in India programme. Jan Dhan covers 99.7% households Banks, primarily the public sector players, have opened 11.5 crore accounts under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), covering 99.74% households and paving the way for transfer of over Rs 65,000 crore of subsidies and other transfers directly into these accounts, the government on Tuesday said. More Business News»

		Environment
		Tadoba, Pench, Melghat tiger reserves adjudged 'very good' Beat High Profile Parks Like Bandhavgarh, Kaziranga, Ranthambore Western Ghats zone holds world's single-largest tiger population A single ecological continuum spread across three states of India in the biodiversity rich Western Ghats region holds the world's single-largest tiger population, according to a government report. Leopard cub found dead in Amreli A six-month-old male leopard cub was found dead on a road near Umariya village in Amreli district on Monday morning More Environment News»

		World
		Pakistan says no request received for handing over Lakhvi Pakistan on Tuesday denied reports that the UK and Washington had asked it to handover 26/11 accused Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi to India or to them for his "independent trial" to help improve ties with New Delhi. India signs prisoner exchange agreement with Hong Kong India signed an agreement on "transfer of sentenced persons" with the local government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on Tuesday. Pope: Catholics do not need to breed like rabbits Pope Francis has said that good Catholics do not have to breed “like rabbits”, defending the Church’s stance on artificial contraception and appealing to the world’s 1.2 billion Roman Catholics to practise responsible parenting. More World News»

		Entertainment
		MSG will not see a Republic Day release In the media interaction held at a suburban Mumbai hotel, Saint Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Ji Insan came clean on the controversies surrounding the release of his film — MSG: The Messenger of God. 'I want Prime Minister Modi to see Baby' A 9am interview is ‘late’ for Akshay Kumar. Bollywood remakes to look forward to in the coming months Remakes are not new in Bollywood and the latest news doing the rounds is that critic-filmmaker-author Khalid Mohamed is set to remake a classic. More Entertainment News»

		Science
		Now, 'smart mirrors' that lets you virtually try on clothes New “smart mirrors” have recently been developed that allows people to virtually try on clothes, it has been reported. Magic bullet claims of vitamin A for newborns busted International experts and articles in prestigious journals are not always right and magic bullet claims need careful examination before becoming policy. Outside the box: When work's a day at the beach Hotels and resorts have long catered to travellers who cannot disengage from their jobs. But increasingly, there is a new option for those who need to work, but also want the benefits of a vacation. More Science News»

		Sports
		I didn't support Sarita Devi's refusal to accept medal: Rahul Dravid Rahul Dravid feels that Indian woman boxer L Sarita Devi didn't do the right thing by refusing to accept the bronze medal at the Incheon Asian Games in October, last year. Ravindra Jadeja sues Rajkot newspaper for defamation Ravindra Jadeja on Tuesday filed a defamation suit against the editor of a Rajkot-based evening newspaper for defamation, seeking damages of Rs 51 crore. Appoint an Indian coach for national hockey team: Nobbs Former coach Michael Nobbs said it was perhaps a good time to appoint a home grown product to take up the national coach's job ahead of the Rio Olympics. More Sports News»

		Technology
		TCS ends RIL's 23-year run as most profitable firm Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) posted a net profit of Rs 5,328 crore for the quarter ended December, overtaking long-standing champion Reliance Industries Ltd. Indian IT companies: Middle managers in firing line Many of these mid-managers have 6-12 years of experience, and have grown into roles involving allocating engineers for projects, managing software quality and training fresh hires. 5 interesting phones launched recently The year 2015 has opened on a high note for the smartphone market in the country. More Technology News»

		Education
		There's also a fake side to the reading habit Rows of books from the latest bestseller list, authored by eminent personalities or recommended by celebrities are neatly stacked in the alphabetical order on a shiny white bookcase at this techie’s house in Hinjewadi — their mint condition a dead giveaway that they have not been read. India now largest recipient of UK govt's student scholarship, beats China The United Kingdom government would quadruple its global scholarship funding for Indian students over the next two years making India the largest recipient in the world, replacing China, said minister counsellor (political and press), British High Commission, Andrew Soper. Complaints of donation, date change pour in Not all schools are dealing responsibly with the autonomy given to them to set nursery admission guidelines. More Education News»

		Mumbai
		Relief for student who forwarded exam questions A second year MBBS student, facing arrest for forwarding a Whatsapp message with exam questions to fellow students, has got a reprieve from the Bombay high court. Colleges ignore state's directive to conduct surya namaskar sessions Not a single college affiliated to Mumbai University has followed the state education department's directive to hold training and practical sessions for surya namaskar every morning between January 12 and 26 to mark Swami Vivekananda's 150th birth anniversary celebrations. Rs 16cr jewellery sold by bizwoman seized The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized diamond-studded gold jewellery worth Rs 16 crore that nine people had bought from businesswoman Vihari Sheth, who had been caught while trying to smuggle in Rs 2.35 crore jewellery in her innerwear in August 31, 2013. More Mumbai News»

		Delhi
		3 storey-building collapses in Delhi, many feared trapped A three-storey building in Gautampuri area of northeast Delhi collapsed in wee hours on Wednesday. Soho on their mind Alon and Carmel, a young Israeli couple in their early thirties, work, save up and spend their free time backpacking around the world. Delhi elections 2015: Arvind Kejriwal fails to file papers due to massive crowd A crowd of more than 10,000 accompanied Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday as he started his Jantar Mantar march before filing his nomination. The massive swarm milling around the AAP chief held him up and he couldn’t file his nomination. More Delhi News»

		Bangalore
		Lottery ticket for Rs 10 can get you free treatment in Bengaluru Buy a lottery ticket for Rs 10 and get free medical treatment up to Rs 5 lakh irrespective of your economic status. Flex ban easy only on paper in Bengaluru The Siddaramaiah government plans to ban flex boards in the city, but the task is easier said than done. Spot tell-tale signs of suicide If your child has a crush in school, make sure you maintain her privacy even if you're discussing it with other parents. More Bangalore News»

		Hyderabad
		Home department gives nod for counselling centre The Telangana home department gave its nod to the city police for establishing a Centralised Counselling Centre for women, children and aged at HACA Bhavan. Woman alleges 'indecent' proposal by ex-husband Alleging that her ex-husband had posted her nude videos and photographs on the internet in collusion with his family members, a 24-year-old woman lodged a complaint with the office of the deputy commissioner of police (DCP), South Zone, on Tuesday. Cashless transactions for hajis this year According to APSHC officials, haj applicants can now make payments using their debit or credit cards. The payments can be made online. More Hyderabad News»

		Chennai
		53-yr-old man is first H1N1 victim this year in Chennai A 53-year-old man from Mannady died at the Government General Hospital on Monday night after he was diagnosed with the H1N1 virus. Chennai RTOs refuse to register luxery cars Many car manufacturers and dealers across the state have been finding it tough to deliver vehicles to customers since the beginning of the year as regional transport offices refuse to register them, allegedly demanding a higher bribe than usual. Traffic to be diverted from tomorrow for Republic Day rehearsals in Chennai The city traffic police will introduce traffic diversions on January 22, 24 and 26 for rehearsals for the Republic Day celebrations on Kamarajar Salai. More Chennai News»

		Ahmedabad
		RTI query on VS reveals malpractice of numbers On Monday, when four Independent board members of VS Hospital gatecrashed the mayor’s VS Hospital budget presentation at her bungalow, the members had a point when they claimed that the hospital administration lacked transparency. DFS to probe Sunanda's laptop, mobile phones The state Directorate of Forensic Sciences (DFS) on Monday received a laptop and five mobile phones associated with death of Sunanda Pushkar, wife of former MoS external affairs Shashi Tharoor. Soon, new drug for resistant prostate cancer Of the 7.6 million deaths due to cancer worldwide, one-sixth are caused by prostate cancer which is the second most frequently diagnosed cancer type after lung cancer. More Ahmedabad News»

		Allahabad
		Volunteers help unite 20,740 lost persons in two days People getting lost is a common feature a mela but stories of people being found on time is not so usual. This year, volunteers of ‘Bhoole Bhatke Shivir’ have reunited more than 33,000 families at the ongoing Magh Mela. Saint allegedly killed by follower on Mela campus A 65-year-old saint was allegedly killed by his ‘sewadaar’ (follower) in Manav Utthan Sewa Samiti camp at Kali Sadak on Magh Mela campus under the Daraganj police station late on Monday night. A case under Section 302 of the IPC was lodged in this regard. The accused is on the run. Central zone V-C meet from today A two-day Central Zone Vice-Chancellors meet (CZVCM-2014-15) would be organised at Sam Higginbottom Institute of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences (SHIATS) from January 21. Organised in association with Association of Indian Universities (AIU) and attended by V-C’s of over half-a-dozen universities, the meet would discuss issues of higher education for national development. More Allahabad News»

		Bhubaneswar
		Seashore Group fraud: CBI summons lawmaker again The CBI has asked Balasore MP Rabindra Kumar Jena (BJD) to appear before it again for questioning in connection with the Seashore Group fraud. Auction more mines: Orissa The Odisha government on Monday opposed Centre’s decision to exempt mines due for second and subsequent renewals from the auction process and demanded more funds for development works in districts affected by mining. BJD terrorizing us, says BJP The BJP on Monday accused the BJD of unleashing terror on its workers because the ruling party is frustrated with former’s rising popularity after its president Amit Shah’s ‘impressive’ rally here on January 6. More Bhubaneswar News»

		Bhopal
		Burn injuries inflicted in minor girl's private parts for urinating on bed A woman employee of a government funded shelter home — Ladli aashray grah — has been booked for torturing a 5-year-old girl by inflicting burn injuries to her by candle for urinating on bed while sleeping in night. DEOs to be responsible for all school recognition related work District education officers (DEOs) will now be responsible for looking after all the school recognition related work. Proposal for the same is currently under consideration by the school education department. MP increases tax liability on Basmati to Rs 50 crore The Madhya Pradesh state cabinet under the leadership of chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday accorded ex-post facto approval to the decision of increasing tax liability limit on purchase of Basmati paddy from Rs 10 crore to Rs 50 crore. More Bhopal News»

		Chandigarh
		Delhi polls: Only 1 of 4 SAD candidates to fight on party symbol The frosty ties between Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and BJP may have thawed in Punjab but the warmth does not seem to have spread to the assembly elections in Delhi. 81 yrs after Thikriwala's martyrdom, AAP demands apology from Patiala royals Eighty one years after the icon of Riyasati Praja Mandal leader Sewa Singh Thikriwala died in a jail of the then Patiala princely state, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday sought an apology from the Patiala royal family for his death. Inspection of roads by CM's technical adviser leaves Jalandhar MC officials red faced The two-day visit of Punjab chief minister's technical adviser V K Bhatt to inspect roads in Jalandhar left the municipal corporation officials, especially of the building and roads department, embarrassed as he pointed out technical deficiencies and lack of planning at several places. More Chandigarh News»

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