times chennai epaper, april 09, 2009

8/14/2019 Times Chennai Epaper, April 09, 2009

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VOL: 2 ISSUE 64 Apr il 09, 2009

hennai, April 09:Formernion Minister and PMKriperumbudur candidate'K Moorthy' today took ag at his rival DMK

andidate and Unioninister' T R Baalu' foraving shifted his seatom South Chennai,hich he had representedur times as MP, saying he

Mr Baalu) did not have

ny faith in the people ofs constituency.

Address ing ally here, Mr Moorthyeged though people ofo u t h C h e n n a i

onstituency placed theirust and voted for Mraalu, a three-time Unioninister, he had not

implemented any usefulscheme for them.

In the samevein, he called Mr Baalu'sb l u f f o n h a v i n gimplemented Rs 56,000crore worth schemes inTamil Nadu.

The then UnionMin is te r ' Dayan idh iMaran' had requested

PMK Founder-Leader' SRamadoss' to stop MrBaalu' from inking ana g r e e m e n t w i t h aMalayasian f irm forsetting up a satellitetownship for Chennai.

U n d e r t h ep r o p o s a l , t h egovernment would have

taken possession of55,000 acre of land afterthrowing out some 1.25lakh people, Mr Moorthyclaimed.

The PMK leaderthen held an agitationfol lowing which theproposal was dropped.

On Tamil NaduC h i e f M i n i s t e r ' M

Karunanidhi 's ' claimsaying the laying offoundation stone markedthe fulfillment of a long-pending dream for theChennai Central-EgmoreLink Project, he said tillnow no step had beentaken to complete theproject. ''When he has not

been able to completethis project, how will hebring Metro Rail Projectto Chennai?'' Mr Moorthyasked.

R e c a l l i n gseveral projects hadc o m e u p i nSriperumbudur duringthe reign of AIADMKGeneral Secretary andFormer Tamil Nadu ChiefMinister J Jayalalithaa,he said the previous BJP

Government a t theCentre allocated fundsf o r t h e g o l d e n

quadri lateral projectunder which work hadbeen going on for the lastfive years. Land for theproject ''was acquired atlow rates.'' Mr Moorthysaid if he was elected, hewould ensure 50 per centof the jobs here in theconsituency were givent o l o c a l e d u c a t e dunemployed and balancefor those from otherdistricts.

He promised top r o v i d e e d u c a t i o nallowance of Rs 500 a

month to the children ofthose who gave lands forthe project and alsoemployment on completingstudies.

Mr Moorthy saidhe had been representingC h e n g a l p a t t uConstituency in Parliamentfor ten years during whichtenure 74 works werecompleted at a cost of Rs2 2 c r o r e . D u e t odel imi tat ion, he was

standing here. -Agencies

Moorthy takes a dig at Baalu

Police studying Vaiko's speech:

City Police Commissionerhennai, April 09 : Theolice is studying thep e e c h m a d e b ya r u m a l a r c h i D M KDMK) general secretary

aiko for his allegedmarks that ''India wouldt remain one country'' ifi Lankan President

ahinda Rajapaksa did notop the war against Tamilsthe island nation.

''We are studyings speech,'' City Policeo m m i s s i o n e r K

adhakrishnan told UNI,hen asked whether thelice was contemplating

y action against Mr Vaikor his speech madee s t e r d a y , w h i l eddressing a protestmonstration against thenkan government.

Mr Vaiko hadade the remarks, whilearing platform with

attali Makkal Katchi

(PMK) founder-leader SRamadoss, CPI statesecretary D Pandian,B J P l e a d e r S uThirunavukarasar andT a m i l N a t i o n a l i s tMovement leader PNedumaran in the protestdemonstration organisedby the Sri Lankan TamilsProtection Committee,an umbrella organisationof various poltical partiesto espouse the cause ofLankan Tamils.

The City PoliceCommissioner said thepolice has not received

any complaint wi thregard to Mr Vaiko'sspeech.

H o w e v e r ,sources said the police,in the absence of anycomplaint, could suomotu ini t iate actionagainst him as ''theoffence is cognizable in

nature.'' If at all policetake action, Mr Vaikocould be booked unders e c t i o n s 1 2 4( a ) ( s e d i t i o n ) , 1 2 5(waging war against afriendly government),153 (a) (offences againstpublic tranquility) ofIndian Penal Code (IPC)and under the provisionsof Unlawful Activities(Prevention) Act, 1967.

Mr Vaiko wasear l ier arrested oncharges of sedition onOctober 21 last year forsupporting the outlawed

LTTE, while addressing aparty function in the city.After being in jail for 14days, he was released aspolice did not press for hisremand extension.

-Agencies


2/8

Times Chennai E-Paper April 09, 2009ge 2

hennai , Apr i l 09 :nding the nearly fortnightng suspense and behinde scene parleys, thepposition AIADMK todayalised the seat-sharingal with its principal ally,e MDMK, and releasede list of candidates for the3 seats it would be

ntesting in the May 13k Sabha polls in Tamiladu.

The agreement,der which the MDMKs been allotted four Lok

abha seats, was inked byAD M K s up rem o Jyalalithaa and MDMKeneral Secretary Vaikos morning.

A joint statementsued by both the leadersid, the MDMK wouldntest from Virudhunagar,

hanjavur, Erode andl g i r i s ( R e s e r v e d )nstituencies.

The clinching ofe deal after hectic parleysd mediation by alliancerty leaders, marked thelmination of the seataring agreement inADMK-led front.

The A IAD M K,ading the Third Front ine state, would contest 23ats. It had allotted sevenats to PMK, which hadnewed its ties after a gapeight years, and three

ats each to the two Leftrties-- the CPI and the

PI(M).T h e r e w a s

nsiderable delay inalising the pact as theDMK, which had initially

ked for eight seats, oneat more than seveneats given to PMK,fused to scale down itsmand.

However, whene AIADMK suggestedat it could allot only twoats, Mr Vaiko believed tove insisted that it beotted atleast five seats,e more than it hadntested in the 2004 Lok

abha polls.F i n a l l y , t h e

ADMK made it clear thatcould give only four seats.l the eleventh hour, Mr

aiko had demanded thate party be allotted one

ore seat, but the AIADMKrned down the request,rty sources said.

T h e M D M K ,hich was in the DMK-ledPA during the 2004 Lokabha polls, quit the DMKont, prior to the 2006ssembly elections, afterferences with the DMKadership, over allottment

seats and joined theADMK-led front.

T h e A I A D M Ko u l d c o n t e s t f r o mruval lur (Reserved),

outh Chennai, Centralhennai, KancheepuramR es e rv ed ) , Ve l l o re ,

r i s h n a g i r i , A r n i ,luppuram (Reserved),a l e m , N a m a k k a l ,r u p p u r , P o l l a c h i ,ndugul, Karur, Trichy,erambalur, Cuddalore,a y i l a d u t h u r a i ,v a g a n g a , T h e n i ,

a m a n a t h a p u r a m ,ticorin and Tirunelveli.s Jayalalithaa, after

cl inching the much-awaited deal with theMDMK, wasted no time inre leasing her partycandidates list and hermonth-long campaigntrail, beginning from April16 in the city.

S h e w o u l dextensively cover all the

constituencies, startingfrom Southern Tirunelvelion Apr i l 18 beforec u l m i n a t i n g h e relectioneering on May 10in the city.

There were nos u r p r i s e s i n t h ecandidates list, which,however, figure severalnew names.

W h i l enominating old faces fort h e c o n s t i t u e n c i e sc o m i n g u n d e r t h esouthern districts, theparty has nominated twowomen candidates -

N a m m k a ldistrict women's Wingsecretary V VairamTham i z ha ras i f r omNamakkal and FormerAssembly Speaker P HP a n d i a n ' s w i f e D rCynthia Pandian fromTuticorin.

Former ministerS Raja Kannappan, whohad recently quit theruling DMK and joinedt h e A I A D M K , w a srewarded with a ticket.The AIADMK strongmanwould contest from hisfavouri te Sivagangaconstituency.

A few formerstate ministers and ex-

Rajya Sabha membersfigure among the list ofcand ida tes . FormerUnion Minis ter andpar ty 's p ropagandas e c r e t a r y MTham b i du ra i , M LA,would contest from Karur,whi le former RajyaSabha members O SManian and star speakerand film comedian S SChandran would contestfrom Mayiladuthurai andC e n t r a l C h e n n a irespectively.

S h e a l s onominated former RajyaSabha member ThangaTam i z hs e l v an f r om

Theni. Mr Tamizhselvan,who had won f romAndipatti in 2001 after MsJ a y a l a l i t h a a w a sd i s q u a l i f i e d f r o mcontesting the Assemblypolls, had resigned hisseat, paving way for theparty supremo's victory inthe subsequent bypolls.

Ms Jayalalithaarewarded him with aRajya Sabha seat andhas now nominated himfor the Theni seat.

Former stateminister S Semmalaiwould contest f romSalem, while senior

leader and former MP VSath iyamur thy f romRamanathapuram.

Former DMKm i n i s t e r D r ERamakrishnan, who had joined the AIADMK andwon the 1991 Assemblye l e c t i o n f r o mAcharapakkam, wouldc o n t e s t f r o m t h e

K a n c h e e p u r a m(Reserved) seat, formerMLA C Sivasami fromTiruppur and formerminister M C Sampathwould contest fromCuddalore

Following is thel i s t o f A I A D M Kcandidates: R Rajan

(Thiruvallur-Reserved),S Rajendran (SouthChennai), S S Chandran(Central Chennai), Dr ER a m a k r i s h n a n( K a n c h e e p u r a m -Reserved), S K M P Vasu(Vellore), K Nanjegowda( K r i s h n a g i r i ) , NSubramanian (Arni), PMurugan (Villuppuram-Reserved), S Semmalai(Salem), Ms V VairamTamizharasi (Namakkal),C Sivasami (Tiruppur), KSugumar (Pollachi), PB a l a s u b r a m a n i( D i n d i g u l ) , MThambidurai (Karur), PKumar (Tiruchirapalli), RP M a r u d h a i r a j(Peramba lur ) , M CSampath (Cuddalore), OS M a n i a n(Mayiladuthurai), R SR a j a K a n n a p p a n(Sivaganga), ThangaTamizhiselvan (Theni), VS a t h y a m u r t h y(Ramanathapuram), MsC y n t h i a P a n d i a n( T u t i c o r i n ) a n d KAnnamalai (Tirunelveli).

Chennai, April 9 : Moret h a n 5 0Gastroenterologists fromacross the count ryarrived in the city as partof the 'Chennai DigestiveDiseases Week 2009',which began here today.

The event wasorganised by the TamilNadu chapter of IndianS o c i e t y o fGastroenterology inassociation with WorldG a s t r o e n t e r o l o g yOrganisation (WGO).

O r g a n i s i n gCommittee Chairman DrK R Palaniswamy toldreporters here that duringt h e e v e n t , W G OPresident Dr EamonnQuigley would deliver a

lecture on the impact oflife style disorders anddigestive health.

T h e e v e n tw ou l d be f o rm a l l yinaugurated by the TamilNadu Governor SurjitSingh Barnala tomorrow.

There would bea two-day t ra in ingprogramme for the 50specialists on the use ofE n d o s c o p i c U l t r aSonogram (EUS).

The main aim ofthe training programmewas to educate thespecialists on the use ofthe new technologywhich was practised onthe diagnosis of Cancerof the Oesophagus,Brochogenic Carcinoma,

AIADMK inks poll pact withMDMK, announces candidates

Gastric Cancer and RectalCancer.

A live course onE n d o s c o p i c U l t r aSonography has also beenorganised from ApolloHospitals to educate thespecialists.

The event wouldc o n c l u d e w i t h a nInternational ContinuingM e d i c a l E d u c a t i o nprogramme that wouldhave participation frominternational and Indianexperts, discussing on theadvances in Gas t roOesophagea l Ref luxDisorder, Irritable BowelS y n d r o m e ( I B S ) ,Diventicular diseases.

-Agencies

'Chennai Digestive DiseasesWeek 2009' begins

Sivaganga, April 09:Actor-turned politicianand founder of DMDKVijayakant has said hisparty was ready toboycott the Lok Sabhaelections in Tamil Naduon the Sri Lankan Tamil'sissue, if the AIADMK andDMK also do so.

"We are readyto boycott the electionson the Sri Lankan issue,but we need the supportof the DMK and the

AIADMK," he said, at anelection meeting here onWednesday night.

" W h e n t h eTamils are getting killedin Sri Lanka, the politicalparties in Tamil Nadu areholding alliance talks,"Mr. Vijayakant, whoseparty is going it alone inthe polls, said.

He challengedthe Congress, DMK andAIADMK to fight theelections alone.

Chennai, April 09:Janata party PresidentSubramanian Swamy onThursday c r i t i c i sedMDMK leader Vaiko'scomments at a publicmeeting here, warning ofa "bloodbath in TamilN a d u i f a n y t h i n ghappened" to LTTEleader V Prabhakaranand demanded h isdetention under theNational Security Act.

I n a p a r t y

statement here, Mr.Swamy termed Vaiko'sremarks on Wednesdayas "highly objectionable,an t i - na t i ona l , " anddeserving legal action.

Mr. Swamy saidPrabhakaran was a"proclaimed offender"who was wanted in theR a j i v G a n d h iassassination case, andwarning of a 'bloodbath'in Tamil Nadu if he washarmed amounted to"incitement of violenceand disloyalty to thenation."

Terming thestatement made by Vaikoas "of fensive," Mr.Swamy urged the ChiefMinister M Karunanidhito initiate legal actionaga ins t the MDMKleader and detain himunder the NSA.

Swamy flays

Vaiko's

comments

Stating that hehad faith only in thepeople, he asked thevoters "do you have faith inme."

The government,which was offering one KGrice for Rs one was notc a r i n g a b o u t t h eexhorbitant prices of otheressential things, mainlywater, cotton seed andanimal feed.

-Agencies

DMDK ready to boycott pollson Tamils issue: Vijayakant


3/8

Times Chennai E-Paperpril 09, 2009 Page 3

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hennai, April 09: Tamilm Director Seeman, whoas a r res ted unde rational Security ActN S A ) f o r o p e n l ypporting the banned

TTE and speaking againste unity and integrity of theuntry, today appeared

fore the Advisory Boardd pleaded for quashing

s detention under NSA.T h e d i r e c t o r

peared before the Board

comprising Mr Justice MK Natarajan (Chairman),Mr Justice M Murugadas(Member) and Mr JusticeS M Siddique (Member)and submitted that hehad not committed anyoffence to attract chargesunder NSA.

He to ld theBoard that he had onlyoffered moral support tothe Sri Lankan Tamilsand did not speak

anything against nationalintegration.

H e w a sproduced before theboard by Palayamkottaipolice, which arrestedhim under the NSA amidtight security. After MrSeeman appeared before

the Board, he was takenback and lodged inPuducherry prison.

-Agencies

Seeman pleads his detentionunder NSA be quashed Chennai, Apri l 09Paramount Airways,

India's first premiumservice, all businessclass airline is to launchits operations in Kolkataby end of this month.Paramount A i rwaysM anag i ng D i rec to rThiagarajan recently metWest Bengal ChiefMinister Buddhadeb

Bhattacharjee to fly toKolkata, is the gateway toN o r t h e a s t e r noperations.

The Ai rwaysannounced operations ofdaily flights along theChennai-Kolkata sectorand would also connect

Guwahati and Agartala, arelease from the airlinessaid here today.

P a s s e n g e r sflying from Kolkata willfind it more convenient tot r av e l t o s ou the rndestinations, allowingthem early access toconnecting flights toMadurai, Coimbatore,Cochin, Trivandrum,

Tiruchirapalli, Bangaloreand Hyderabad.The flight from

Chennai is set to take offat 0705 hrs and will arriveKolkata at 0910 hrsthereafter proceeding toGuwahati and Agartala.The return flight will leave

Kolkata at 1325 hrs andwill reach Chennai at 1530hrs.

P a r a m o u n tAirways operates brandnew e-jets along with allthe trappings of luxuriousseat recline, ample legspace between seats andan ethnic signature cuisineand this coupled with theairline's competitiveness

has always ensured that ita t t r a c t s d i s c e r n i n gpassengers.

Paramount i snow set to repeat itssuccessful business modelin the North eastern sector.

Paramount to launch operations in Kolkata

Chennai, April 09 : T h e M D M K t o d a ydemanded that the Indiangovernment must lift theban on Liberation Tigersof Tamil Eelam (LTTE)and sought the Centre's

intervention to bringa b o u t i m m e d i a t eceasefire in Lanka.

A d o p t i n g aresolution to this effect,the party's GeneralCouncil, chaired by itsGeneral Secretary Vaiko,alleged that both theDMK government inTamil Nadu and theC o n g r e s s l e dgovernment at the Centrehad cheated the Tamils in

Sri Lanka.The General

Counci l , in anotherresolution, said separateTamil Eelam was the onlysolution to the ethniccrisis in Sri Lanka and

condemned the UPAgovernment for miserablyfailing to find a solution tothe crisis.

The GeneralCouncil also resolved towork for the victory ofAIADMK led alliance inthe May 13 Lok Sabhaelections in Tamil Naduand Puducherry.

E a r l i e r ,addressing the GeneralCouncil, Mr Vaiko said

partymen should notbother about those whohad quit the party and joined the ruling DMKrecently. ''Let us not talkabout those who had leftus'', he said.

A f t e r r e b e lleaders and party MPs LGanesan and Gingee NRamachandran, joined theDMK, after they wereexpelled from the party fortheir anti-party activities,t w o M L A s , p a r t y ' sPresidium Chairman MKannappan and CumbumN Ramakrishnan quit theparty and joined the DMKand resigned their MLAseats.

MDMK demands lifting of ban on LTTE


4/8

Times Chennai E-Paper April 09, 2009age 4 National

uwahati, April 09: Theadow of terror loomsge over the elections in

ssam with mil i tantsiking with a vengeancethe past one week, killingpeople and wounding up100 more in a string of

mbings and grenadeacks.

There were fourwerful explosions andree grenade attacksonday in which eightople were killed. Two ofe blasts were in Assam'sain city Guwahati.

"The wave ofrror attacks would surelyare away people fromtively taking part in

ectioneering and mayen force people to keep

way from voting," Akhilanjan Dutta, a politicalalyst and a teacher at

auhati University, said.There is a general

nse of fear and panicer the serial bombings

nd grenade at tacksonday in different parts ofsam.

" A s e n s e o fsecurity haunts peopled the situation is gettingen more complicatedth pol i t ica l part ies

ol i t ic ising the terroracks for electoral gains,"id Dilip Chandan, editor

ew Delhi, April 09: Aeek before the Lok Sabhaections start, Congressategist Jairam Rameshs conceded it will be a

ough fight" although he istimistic that his party willn again.

Ramesh said hisrty would contest around0 seats out of 543 seatsagainst 417 in the 2004k Sabha elections. It

on 145 seats the lastme, while the partypects to better i tsrformance this time.

"It is a tough fightd no political party canedict the outcome. Bute sure have an edge,"amesh, who resigned ascentral minister to take

of Asom Bani, a masscirculation Assameseweekly.

With no otherissue of substance raisedin this campaign so far,the opposition is going allout against the ruling

Congress party over lackof security. Elections toAssam's 14 Lok Sabhaseats are scheduled April16 and 23.

" T h egovernment has nomoral right to continue inoffice and should resign.There is no security andthe government hasmiserably failed," saidC h a n d r a M o h a nPatowary, president ofthe main oppositionAsom Gana Parishad(AGP).

The role of theopposition, however, hascome under attack fromthe civil society withviews expressed thatleaders were simplyt r y i n g t o w h i p u pemotions rather thanstanding up in the waragainst terror.

"This is not thetime for loose statementsand attempts to makep o l i t i c a l g a i n s . I nsituations like terror, be itpolitical parties or the civil

charge of the party'selection war room, said.

He said therewas "cautious optimism"in the Congress, which istrying to again emerge asa single largest party inthe 545-seat Lok Sabha.

R a m e s hadmitted that the exit ofthe PMK f rom theCongress-led UnitedProgressive Alliance

(UPA) was a serioussetback." W e a r e

seeking a mandate onthe performance of ourgov e rnm en t , w h i c himplemented 85 percentof its promises in theprevious manifesto," hes a i d . B u t " I n d i a n

society, everybody must join hands to countert e r r o r , " s a i d J a t i nBorgoha in , ano therpolitical analyst.

But Borgohaindid criticise the way ChiefMinister Tarun Gogoi had

handled the situation." T h e c h i e f

minister said the statedoesn't have enoughsecurity to guard everylocality and such otherthings.... We want thechief minister to be a littlem o r e b o l d i n h i sreactions," he said.

The Congress,in turn, is asking why noother political party iscoming out stronglyagainst the perpetratorsof terror.

"Why i s theopposition so scared toattack terror groups liket h e U L F A ( U n i t e dLiberation Front of Asom)who are involved in therecent attacks? We havenot heard a single wordfrom parties like the AGPspeaking boldly againstthe ULFA," Assam HealthMinister and governmentspokesperson HimantaBiswa Sarma said.

-Agencies

elections are not foughton achievements alone",he quickly added.

" T h e r e i s acaste arithmetic that alsohas to be factored in."

Asked how hewould compare theprevious Lok Sabhaelections with the one sett o s t a r t , R a m e s hanswered: "Security is animportant issue now.

"Then you don'thave ( former pr imeminister Atal Bihari)Vajpayee, who was likean umbrella figure (for theNational DemocraticAlliance allies), which(L.K.) Advani is not," headded.

-Agencies

Assam elections undershadow of terror

Congress will contest around440 seats: Jairam Ramesh

aridabad, April 9: Threeaches of Khajuraho-

a z r a t N i z a m u d d i npress train derailed ataridabad railway station

the wee hours onhursday but there was noport of any casualty.

T h e i n c i d e n tappened at 5:20 am.hough rail traffic wasfected initially, Divisional

Railway Manager, Delhi,B D Garg, said.

Rail traffic wasbriefly disrupted on theroute

The impact ofd e r a i l m e n t w a sminimised as the trainwas running at a slowspeed, he said addingthat senior ra i lwayofficials have rushed to

the spot.The stranded

passengers have beensent to Nizamuddin byother trains. The railwayshave opened helplinenumbers: 01123455964and 01134359748.

-Agencies

MP Sampark Kranti Expresstrain derails; no casualties

Ahmedabad, April 09:BJP's Prime Ministerialcandidate L K Advanitoday said that hesensed over confidenceamong party cadres andwarned them that thiscould lead the samesituation which resultedin the defeat of NDA in

2004 general elections." A f t e r t h e

defeat of the NDA in 2004I was asked severaltimes what was thereason behind it. The onereason I could give is thatit was over confidenceamong party workers,"Adv an i s a i d w h i l eaddressing partymenhere on Wednesdaynight.

" T h e p a r t yworkers were overconfident due to the goodwork done by the BJP-led government at theCentre especially the

Golden Quadrilateraland the Prime Ministerru ra l road schemeprojects," Advani said.

"Today I see thesame over confidenceamongst party workers.This might end upmaking same mistakeswhich we did in 2004," headded.

"Four weeksago, I was asked in aninterview why do youthink BJP will win in2009, one reason I gavewas that there was noover-confidence amongparty cadre this time.

"This is what Ihad said four weeks ago.

But today I won't say that.Today I am sensing overconfidence, which hasseeped in the last fourweeks," the BJP leadersaid, adding that "I don'tblame you for that. Even Iam surprised at thisdevelopment."

He said thatafter the interview he wason election campaign inM a h a r a s h t r a a n dKarnataka, where headdressed rallies inlesser known areas likePandharpur, Sehwag,Delguri and Satara.

" A l l t h e

meetings with partyworkers in those areaswere bigger than theBJP-Shiv Sena meetingin Sh iva j i Park inMumbai," Advani said,adding that it gave himthe confidence to thinkthat the nation hasdecided to vote NDA topower.

"But, I just want towarn you that don't beunder any false illusion.But at the same time thereshould not be decrease inthe confidence," Advanitold the gathering. "BJPshould be the one to takeIndia to the top. Victory forBJP is victory for India," he

added.A d v a n i a l s o

urged booth workers toensure that there is ahigher turnout on the day ofe l e c t i o n i n t h eGandhinagar constituency.

" T h e m i c r omanagement of the boothshould be organised insuch a manner that there isat least 60 per cent votingon the polling day. Lasttime in 2004 it was only 43per cent," he said.

A d v a n i a l s ourged the party workers toensure that maximumnumber of women and first

time voters cast their voteson April 30.

He asked them toidentify people in theconstituency who areeducated and well off butdo not vote. "Try and bringthem for voting. That wouldbe a great help," Advaniadded.

-Agencies

Dont be over-confident:Advani tells cadre

Aligarh (PTI): KalyanSingh, who as BJPleader was a prominentmember of the Ayodhyamovement in the 90s,says a solution of thevexed issue cannot beenforced through lawsbut reached only througha dialogue betweenHindus and Muslims.

S i n g h , w h orecently aligned with theSamajwadi Party andhas ow ned "m o ra lresponsibility" for thedemolition of the Babri

Masjid in 1992, said, "it ismy firm conviction thatany attempt to enforce asolution by enacting newlaws without taking thesent iments of boths e c t i o n s i n t oconsideration would onlylead to further acrimonyand bolster divisiveforces in the country".

In an interviewto PTI, 77-year-oldSingh, who parted wayswith the BJP in the run-upto the general elections,says the "major re-alignment" of political

forces that has takenplace in north India willth row up "surpr i seresults" that will be a"setback" to BSP and theBJP.

Hitting out atthe BJP, he said while itpledged to build the Ram

Temple, it was aware thatmany NDA allies wereopposed to this move.The BJP has presented a"duplicate manifesto"and will finally veeraround to moving on theNDA agenda.

"The BJP is stillraising sensitive issuesinc luding the fa lsepromise of building theRam Temple but thepeople of the country arenow asking as to what ithas done for building thetemple when it was in

power in the Centre formore than six years,"Singh said.

"If this imbrogliois not resolved throughnegotiations, then theonly way out for both theparties is to await a finaldecision of the SupremeCourt on the matter,"Singh said.

S i n g h a l s oattacked the saffronparty for indulging in"divisive" politics byharping on controversialissues like abrogation ofA r t i c l e 3 7 0 a n d

introduction of CommonCivil Code.

The former BJPvice president said, "thecount ry i s pass ingt h r o u g h a v e r ychallenging period andany attempt to injectdivisive politics will only

be detrimental to itsinterests".

Singh lashed outa t t h e M a y a w a t igovernment saying "thebreakdown of law andorder in the state, which isa result of overpoweringinfluence of mafia, has ledto a reign of terror in thestate."

For BJP, Singhsaid, "After facing animminent rout in thisgeneral elections, theparty would receive such aset back that it will take

more than 20 years for it todream of any sort of comeback."

Singh said hisfriendship with MulayamSingh marks a majorrealignment of politicalforces in north India as it isbased on the principal offair and proportionateshare for all sections of thes o c i e t y , i n c l u d i n gminorities, backward andtribals.

He said the newa l l i a n c e w a s f u l l ycommitted to providing 33percent reservation for

women in all legislativebodies in the country aslong as this measure alsoi n c l u d e d a d e q u a t erepresentation of womenb e l o n g i n g t o a l lunderprivileged sections.

-Agencies

Solution to Babri issue only throughdialogue: Kalyan Singh


5/8

Times Chennai E-Paperpril 09, 2009 Page 5World

eijing, April 09: About000 villagers clashedth police in eastern

hina after laying siege tocoal mine blamed for

amaging local farmlands,human rights group said.

The villagers hadurrounded and attacked"e coal mine in a ruralunty of Anhui province Tuesday, the Hong

ong-based Informationentre for Human Rightsd Democracy said in aess release.

Police in Fengtaiounty confirmed theotest took place but saidly about 1,000 people

ere involved and deniedere was any clash withlice.

"They wanted theal mine to stop operatingthe villages because thends have sunk due to the

ning," a police officerho refused to give hisame said.

"N o c on f l i c thappened be tw eenpolice and the people."

However, thehuman rights group,quoting local authorities,said the crowds foughtwith police, smashed upa police car and injuredthe county's vice chief,Ma Shiping.

Residents saythe Gubei coal mine hascaused land subsidencethat has affected 50,000people in the area, with atotal of 8,000 hectares(19,800 acres) sufferingcave-ins, the rights groupsaid.

It said morethan 1,000 paramilitarypolice had been sent tothe area to restore calmand that local officialswere trying to resolve thedispute, but that 5,000

people were still at themine on Thursday."Local leaders

and the coal mine havebeen holding meetings toresolve the issues raisedby villagers these days,but we need time," thepolice officer said.

H e d e n i e dv i l l agers were s t i l lgathered at the scene.

China sees tensof thousands of protestsor outbursts of violencee v e r y y e a r , o f t e nstemming from landd i s p u t e s o rdissatisfaction with localauthorities.

China's rulersa r e p a r t i c u l a r l yconcerned about unrestin 2009, which will see as t r i ng o f s ens i t i v eanniversaries including20 years since theTiananmen massacreand 60 years since thef o u n d i n g o f t h e

communist republic.

-Bureau Report

5,000 clash with police inChina: Rights group

Severodvinsk, April 09:A Russian shipyard hasbeen to ld to beginconstruction of a nuclear-p o w e r e d s t r a t e g i csubmarine this year, anofficial said.

" R u s s i a ' s

Defence Ministry hasordered the shipyard tostart construction of thefour th Borey c lasssubmarine this year," aS e v m a s h s h i p y a r dofficial told RIA NovostiWednesday, adding thatwork could begin either inJuly or December.

The first Boreyclass submarine, theYury Dolgoruky, will startsea trials in June.

The vessel is170 metres long, has ahull diameter of 13metres, a crew of 107,

including 55 officers, amaximum depth of 450metres and a submergedspeed of about 29 knots.It can carry up to 16ballistic missiles andtorpedoes.

T w o o t h e rBorey-class nuclears u b m a r i n e s , t h e

Alexander Nevsky and theVladimir Monomakh, arec u r r e n t l y u n d e rc o n s t r u c t i o n a t t h eSevmash shipyard and areexpected to be completedin 2009 and 2011. Russia isplanning to build eight of

these submarines by 2015.All Borey classs u b m a r i n e s w i l l b eequipped with new Bulava-M ( S S - N X - 3 0 )intercontinental ballisticmissiles, which carry up to10 nuclear warheads andhave a range of 8,000 km.

-Agencies

Russia to build nuclearpowered submarine in 2009

LAqui la , Apr i l 09 : Gaf fe -p rone I ta l i anPrime Minister SilvioB e r l u s c o n i h a sreportedly asked the28,000 peop le le f thomeless by Mondaysearthquake to assumebeing on a camping trip.

M a k i n g t h e

serious gaffe on Germantelevision station N-TV,Berlusconi said, [Thevictims] have everythingthey need. They havemedical care, hot food ...of course, their currentlodg ings a re a b i ttemporary, but theyshould see it like aweekend of camping."

The magnitude-

6.3 quake hit L'Aquilaand severa l townscovering 230 squarem i l es (600 s qua rekilometres) in centralItaly early Monday, killing272 people, levellingbuildings and reducingentire blocks to piles ofrubble. It was the worst

quake to hit Italy in threedecades.According to

t h e G u a r d i a n ,Berlusconi's commentmight have been aimedat reassuring the publicas rescuers kept onsearching for survivors inthe midst of a powerfulaftershock.

Berlusconi said intotal 28,000 people hadlost their homes in theearthquake, with 17,000now living in tents and therest in free hotel rooms orstaying with family.

T h e I t a l i a nPremier is famous for hisverbal gaf fes, which

include describing USPresident Barack Obamaas "young, handsome andsuntanned".

H e a l s o h i theadlines last week bymaking a number ofdiplomatic gaffes at theround of summits in theUK, France and Germany.

-Agencies

Assume being on camping trip:Italian PM to quake victims

Algiers, April 09:Algerians are looking

largely with frustration orindifference toward aPresidential Election onThursday set to handAbdelaziz Boutefl ikaanother five years at thehelm of this US ally withvas t gas reserves ,s o a r i n g y o u t hunemployment and anactive al Qaeda offshoot.

The left-wingopposition, many Islamistleaders, and the chief ofal Qaeda in Islamic NorthAfrica have called for aboycott of the vote andp r e d i c t e d f r a u d .Bouteflika, who was first

elected with the Army'sbacking in 1999 andagain in 2004, enjoyss uppo r t o f a l l k eygovernment players.

He faces fivelow-profile opponents,but none has successfullychallenged his messageo f c o n t i n u i t y a n dreconciliation after aninsurgency that ravagedthis North African countryin the 1990s.

The President,72, had the Constitutionchanged last year so hecould run again. There isso little suspense about

the outcome that voterturnout is viewed as thekey test of the election.

B o u t e f l i k a ' scampaign has said thatPres ident wants 60

percent turnout, and haspredicted he should win

at least 75 percent ofvotes cast.National radio

reported late Wednesdaythat participation wasreach ing about 75percent in some of theelection bureaus fornomads in the southernSahara Desert, whostarted voting earlybecause of the hugedistances they have tocross on camel to casttheir ballot.

Elhaj Boualem,who sells fruits in theCasbah, the often-restivehistoric centre of the

capital, Algiers, said helost faith in voting since1992, when authoritiescancelled legislativeelections that Islamistswere poised to win. Thatsparked a cycle ofbloodshed that killed upto an estimated 200,000people over the ensuingdecade.

"I'll just cast ab lank ba l lo t , " sa idBoualem. He said he wasonly voting because localauthorities told him hishousing appl icat ionwould be rejected if hecouldn' t produce a

stamped voter's card.The President'sprogram hinges oncontinuity.

A m e d i awatchdog, meanwhile,

slammed the Algeriangovernment for censoring

three French magazinesthis week because theywere deemed critical ofBouteflika.

"This censorshipis disgraceful," said theParis-based ReportersWithout Borders in astatement. "It constitutes adenial of press freedomand therefore a denial ofdemocracy."

D u r i n g h i scampaign, Boutef l ikarepeatedly hinted that hecould offer a blanketamnesty if the last militantsfrom al Qaeda in IslamicNorth Africa renounce their

near-daily ambushes orb o m b i n g s a n d t u r nthemselves in.

B o u t e f l i k a ' stenure has also seen alarge investments in roads,dams, and housing, part ofa USD 200 billion programfunded through Algeria'slarge oil and natural gasexports.

With most leadingIslamists banned fromp o l i t i c s i n t h i soverwhelmingly Muslimc oun t r y , c and i da tesrunning against Bouteflikainclude one woman from asmall, far-left party, two

national ists, and twor e l a t i v e l y m o d e r a t eIslamist-leaning politicians.

-Agencies

Algerian Prez looks to thirdterm in election

bilisi, April 09: Georgia'serior Minister said onednesday there would be

new revolution in thermer Soviet state on thee of mass oppositionotests to demand thesignation of Presidentkheil Saakashvili.

The oppositionans to protest daily in the

a p i t a l T b i l i s i u n t i laakashvili quits, accusingm of an authoritarianreak that has stiflede m o c r a t i c r e f o r m somised in the 2003 Roseevolution that swept himpower.

War with Russiast year, when Moscowushed a Georg iansault on breakaway

ou th O s s e t i a , hasmboldened critics whogue Saakashvili, 41, hasade too many mistakes

continue ruling until13.

T h e W e s t i s

atching closely for aossible repeat of ao v e m b e r 2 0 0 7ackdown, when policeng tear gas and rubber

bullets dispersed the lastb ig demons t ra t ionsagainst Saakashvili.

Interior MinisterVano M e rab i s hv i l i ,considered the powerbehind the throne, saidpolice would be tolerantp r o v i d e d t h ed e m o n s t r a t i o n sremained peaceful.

"There is nochance of a revolution inGeorgia," he said. "It (theprotest) cannot last forever. The participantsalso have their ownlimits."

"If there is nothreat to the lives of thecitizens, our tactic will beto not intervene orimpede members of theprotest in expressingtheir will freely," he said.

"My posi t iondoes not give me thel i b e r t y t o e x c l u d eanything, but my moodtells me there will not be

violence."Analysts saythey have doubts aboutt h e u n i t y o f t h eopposition, its strength of

leadership and the levelof support for it beyondTbil is i . A protractedstand-off, they add, couldplay into the hands ofhardliners.

The authoritiessaid last month they haduncovered a plot too v e r t h r o w t h egovernment, arresting 10

men alleged to have linkswith the opposition andreleasing secretly filmedvideo of them apparentlybuying weapons.

The oppositionaccused the governmentof a smear campaign.

The I n t e r i o rM i n i s t r y s a i d o nW e d n e s d a y i t h a dinformation the Russianmilitary was reinforcingpos i t i ons i n Sou thOssetia near the de factoborder with Georgia.

R u s s i a ' sInterfax news agencyquoted a Russian military

official as saying troopsw e r e c o n d u c t i n gexercises.

-Agencies

Georgia rules out revolutionahead of mass rallies

ehran, April 09: Iran willecide on the offer ofuclear talks made by thenited States and fiveher world powers afterviewing the details, a

enior adviser to Iranianres i den t M ahm oudhmadinejad said on

hursday."We will review it

nd then decide about it,"i Akbar Javanfekr said.

W e d n e s d a y ' svitation to direct talksarked a major policy

hange in Washington,hich suspects Iran'suclear program has

military aims, a chargeTehran denies.

T h e U n i t e dStates, Russia, China,France, Germany andB r i t a i n s a i d i n astatement they wouldask European Unionforeign policy chief Javier

Solana to invite Tehran tothe talks to find "adiplomatic solution to thiscritical issue.

Breaking withpas t US po l i cy o fshunning direct talks withIran, President BarackObama's administrationsaid the United States

would join in nucleardiscussions with Iranfrom now on.

"We stronglyu r g e I r a n t o t a k ea d v a n t a g e o f t h i sopportunity to engageseriously with all of us in aspirit of mutual respect,"

the six powers said after am e e t i n g o f s e n i o rdiplomats in London.

Secretary ofState Hillary Clinton saidthe United States wouldbe a "full participant" inmajor power talks withIran.

-Agencies

Iran to decide on nuclear talksafter reviewing offer


6/8

Times Chennai E-Paper April 09, 2009Page 6 Business

umbai, April 09: Thedian rupee on Thursdayred its early gains andl to 50.02/03 a dollar ine morning deals due tolatile stock markets.

Activity was atw ebb due to longeekend holidays, starting Friday. The forex and

oney market will remainosed on April 10 oncount of 'Good Friday'.

In quite trade ate Interbank Foreign

xchange (Forex) market,e domestic unit slippedlow 50-level in opening

ade, but later was quoted50.02 a dollar, down bye paise, against the US

c u r renc y f r om theov e rn i gh t c l os e o f50.18/19. The local unitrecovered 16 paiseagainst its previousclose.

It moved in arange of 49.95 and 50.07per dollar.

On Wednesday,

it was down by 14 paise.Forex dealers

said strong equity marketin opening trade led tothe recovery in the rupee.

T h e I n d i a nbenchmark Sensex wasup by 91 points or 0.85per cent at 1015 hrs, but itdeclined by 86 points at1030 hrs.

F o r e i g nInstitutional Investors(FIIs) continued theirbuying spree and theypumped in USD 273.50million in three tradingsession since April 1.

Asian indicesalso exhibited a firm trendin their early trade due to

overnight rally on WallStreet.

T a i w a n ' sweighted index was up by3.52 per cent, Kospi by2.92 per cent, Nikkei by2.77 per cent, StraitsTimes by 2.02 per centand Hang Seng by 1.95per cent.

-Agencies

Rupee recovers by 16 paisein late morning trade

u m b a i , A p r i l 0 7 : ngineering firm Larsend Toubro on Thursdayid it has bagged orders

orth Rs 605 crore in thest quarter of FY'09 forn g i n e e r i n g a n dnstruction related works.a filing to the Bombay

ock Exchange, L&T saidconstruction division

ould execute thesentracts.

L&T has baggedRs 165 crore order frome Andhra Pradeshvernment for supplying

potable water. Theproject is to be completedin 15 months.

B e s i d e s , i treceived Rs 133 croreorder from the Delhi JalBoard for designing andlaying pipelines. Theproject is scheduled to becompleted in 21 months.Another order worth Rs118 crore, it secured fromU t k a l A l u m i n aI n t e r n a t i o n a l f o rd e s i g n i n g a n dconstructing raw watertransmission pipeline at

their Alumina plant inOrissa.

It is expected tobe completed in 17months.Further, L&T bagged acontract worth Rs 189crore from SAIL-IISCOSteel plant for civil worksin West Bengal, to becompleted in 12 months.Shares of L&T were todaytrading at Rs 836, up 3.64per cent on the BSE.

-Agencies

L&T bags orders worth Rs 605 crore

ashington, April 10: Aa n a d i a n p i p e l i n e

mpany has defended thee of India-made steel foroil pipeline project in

esident Barack Obama'sme state of Illinois after aotest rally by hundreds ofeel workers.

T r a n s C a n a d aid Wednesday that it wascessary to look to Indiar a large share of the pipeat is being used for theoject that will transportanadian oil to the US as

idled Illinois steel milluldn't have supplied thepe needed for it.

A TransCanadaokesman told the St.uis Post-Dispatch thate US companies willpply about 30 percent ofe pipe for the project butntended that the USeel plant in Granite City,nois, was unable tooduce pipe to thecessary specifications.

The newspaperid around 500 protesters

athered outside theran i t e C i t y Work sesday to support "Buy

American" policies at arally organised by United

Steel Workers near a lotwhere the India-madepipe for the project wasbeing stored.

The protestersdemanded that the 'BuyAmerican' policy be alsoimplemented for the2,000-mile Canada-USoil pipeline that wouldbring crude oil fromAlberta to the WoodRiver refinery complex.

The p ro tes tcame after the board oft h e l o c a l c o u n t yunanimously passed aresolution at its regularmeeting declaring thatfederal funds be used topromote goods ands e r v i c e s m a d e o rperformed by Americancitizens and companies.

Wh i l e t he rehave been protestsagainst the use ofChinese products in theUS in the recent past, thisis the first time that anIndian product has beentargeted.

P r o t e s t e r s

carried banners of 'BuyAmerican' and 'Rebuild

American Manufacturing'at the rally, held in thebackdrop of a huge pile ofsteel pipes with 'Made inIndia' marks.

The protesterscalled for an overhaul ofstate policy that has led tot he d i s m an t l i ng o findustrial base of inAmerica and the loss ofmillions of jobs.

The protestscome hardly a week afterthe US joined the G-20declaration to "name andshame" the countriesr e s o r t i n g t oprotectionism.

In addition toIndia, TransCanada isusing 11 other pipesuppliers, four from theU S a n d t w o f r o mCanada. The orders weremade three years ago,when the US steeli ndus t r y w as nea rcapacity and the worldeconomy was growing.

-Agencies

Canadian firm defends use ofIndian steel for oil pipeline to US

umbai, April 09: Aftering by nearly 190 pointsopening trade, the

ombay Stock Exchangee n c h m a r k S e n s e xclined by over 86 points1030 hrs owing to profit-oking at higher levels.

T h e S e n s e x ,hich shot up by 189.78ints in early trade, was

down by 86.38 points to10,655.96 at 1030 hrswith stocks of oil and gas,IT, FMCG and PSUsectors succumbing toprofit-taking.

Similarly, theNational Stock Exchangeindex Nifty also fell by35.90 points to 3,307.05.

Stock brokers

said ahead of tomorrow'sholiday, major playerspreferred to book profitsat every rise.

The market willremain closed tomorrowon account of "GoodFriday".

-Agencies

Sensex falls into negativeterritory on profit-taking

New Delhi Apr il 09: TheDepartment of Telecomis in the process ofw o r k i n g o u t n e wguidelines for revenuecalculations of operatorshaving multiple licences,including for Internetserv ices , to checklicence fee evasion.

"There i s an e e d o f i s s u i n ggu ide l ines to suchservice providers ona p p o r t i o n i n g t h erevenues earned fromthe Internet customerstowards the usage ofNLD network ...," said aninternal DoT note.

S o m eintegrated players are

found to be showinglower revenues underlicences on which theyhave to pay higherlicence fee so that theyend up paying lesserdues to the government,said a DoT official.

T h e n e wguidelines will focus onsegregation of cost andrevunue of the operatorsin more strict manner, hesaid.

Operators arerequired to pay six percent of their income fromlong-distance services,while they do not have topay any share of revenueearned from Internetservices.

Recent ly , thetelecom ministry had foundthat Dishnet Wireless hasnot shown income earnedfrom sel l ing i ts NLDinfrastructure to the ISPbusiness division.

A spokespersonof Dishnet Wireless saidhis company has abidedby all the rules andr e g u l a t i o n o f t h egovernment.

A t p r e s e n t ,operators having morethan one licences unified access (mobile andfixed), NLD, ILD and ISP give the consolidatedincome of the group.

-Agencies

DoT to issue norms to checkevasion of fees by operators

Tokyo, April 09: Japan'sruling party said onThursday that it hada p p r o v e d r e c o r dstimulus spending ofabout 154 billion dollarst o r es us c i t a t e t herecession-hit economy.

Spending ont h e e m e r g e n c yeconomic measuresshould total some 15.4trillion yen, the party's

Bhubaneswar, April 09:Expanding its nationalf o o t p r i n t , l e a d i n gtelecom operator, IdeaCellular on Wednesdaylaunched its GSM mobileserv ices in Or i ssaoffering world classfacilities covering over2,200 towns and villages.

P a r t o f t h e

Aditya Birla group, Ideaaims to provide thepeople of Orissa superiorconnectivity and offerwhisper clear audioq u a l i t y , z e r o c a l lcongestion and highcapacity, ahead of time,Ambrish Jain, Director,Operat ions of Idea

New Delhi, April 09:Reliance Industries islikely to deliver naturalgas from the nation'smost prolific field to itsfirst customer, NagarjunaF e r t i l i s e r L t d , o nThursday.

RIL's easternoffshore KG-D6 fieldstarted producing gas onApril 1 and the initialvolumes were used forpressuring the pipelineand maintaining theminimum buffer in theline.

"We have beentold that gas will reach

our plant at Kakinada inAndhra Pradesh in nextcouple of days...maybeeven tomorrow," an NFL

policy board announced.In to ta l thestimulus package will beworth more than 56.8trillion yen (570 billiondol lars) when non-spending steps such asloan guarantees for firmsare included, the boardsaid.

Prime MinisterTaro Aso is expected tounveil the package later

Cellular Ltd, said at thelaunch ceremony.

I d e a w o u l dintroduce its completerange of affordable andi n n o v a t i v e m o b i l etelephony products andservices for over 39million people in theState, he said.

Idea's 2.75G

capable and 3G readycore network provides forall future technologicalenhancements.

It now coversover 80 per cent of thetelephony potential of thecountry and is the thirdlargest private GSMplayer with over 41

official said.The NFL plantis just 60 km away fromRIL's gas processingfacility at Gagimoga nearKakinada.

RIL is currentlyproducing five millioncubic meters per day ofgas from Dhirubhai-1and 3, the first two of the18 gas fields in KG-D6block. Output is expectedto be ramped up to 40mmcmd by July and topeak 80 mmcmd by nextyear.

The companyhad last month signed

g a s s a l e s a n dtransportation contractsw i t h 1 2 f e r t i l i s e rcompanies.

t h i s w e e k , b e f o r es u b m i t t i n g asupplementary budget toparliament for approval.

The injection isthe latest in a series ofstimulus packages aimedat pulling the Japaneseeconomy out of its worstslump since World War II.

-Agencies

million subscribers across15 telecom circies.

P r o m i s i n g t odevelop customer servicewith a robust retail networkcomprising exclusive +MyIdea Stores ,+ + IdeaPoints+ and other outlets,Jain said adding the retailn e t w o r k w o u l d b eexpanded to cover 18,500

outlets by March, 2010.I d e a ' s 2 . 7 5 Gedge enabled networkwould cover over 360places in Orissa by nextmonth and would expandto cover 2,200 towns andvillages by March, 2010.

-Agencies

"Fertiliser firmswill pay RIL the rupeeequivalent of $4.20 permillion British thermal unitp l u s t a x e s a n dt r a n s p o r t a t i o n , " aPetroleum Ministry officialsaid.

"The exchangerate will be the average ofrupee-dollar rate of theprevious month. So, all thesales that will happen inApril will be billed at theaverage of reference ratefor March," he said.

Of the 15 .35mmcmd gas distributedamong 15 urea making

plants of 12 fertiliser firms,NFL is to get 1.55 mmcmd.

-Agencies

Japan govt approves $154bnstimulus spending

RIL's maiden gas delivery toNFL plant likely today

Idea launches GSM mobile services in Orissa


7/8

Times Chennai E-Paperpril 09, 2009 Page 7Spor ts

elbourne, Apri l 09: ndrew Symonds mightve been recalled to the

ustralia team despite ae d i o c r e d o m e s t i crformance, but chairman

se lec to rs Andrewlditch has issued a

arning to the troubledrounder, saying it's high

me for him to either

rform or perish.H i ld t i t ch sa id

ymonds, who has had an-in with behaviouralsues in the recent past,e s e r v e s o n e l a s tpportuni ty to provemself and has beenlected in the squadgely based on his pastroics.

"He's obviouslyo t p e r f o r m e dmestically as well as wehe would have liked, so

e really had to make a

decision on giving him anopportunity to see howhe was going or not priorto the Twenty20 WorldChampionships in June,"he said.

"We thought itwas the right way to gobut, as I've told Andrew, itwill be up to him from nowon. He's going to have to

perform."We think after

everything he's done forAustralian cricket, one ofour all-time best one-dayplayers, that he deservesthis opportunity. But it willbe up to him now to seizethat chance," he added.

S y m o n d s ,playing for Queensland,had a disappointingouting in the domesticcircuit this season,scoring mere 197 runs ineight first-class matches

at an average of 15.15.M e a n w h i l e ,

skipper Ricky Ponting,who alongwith MichaelHussey and MitchellJohnson, has beenrested for the ODI seriesagainst Pakistan in AbuDhabi and Dubai fromApri l 22, welcomedSymonds's inclusion in

the squad."He's a very importantplayer in our overall set-up. Yes, he is workingthrough his fair share ofissues and everything.But once he gets backaround us then I'm surethat he'll have an impacton our team with his on-field performances," hewas quoted as saying bythe 'Sydney MorningHerald'.

-Agencies

Perform or perish: Hilditch to Symonds

ashington, April 09: ussia's Dinara Safina willplace American Serenalliams as world numbere in the coming WTAor l d r ank i ngs , t heganizat ion said onednesday.

Safina, who hast to win a Grand Slament, has risen up thenkings thanks to fourTA singles titles in thest year -- at Montreal,

s Angeles, Berlin and

Tokyo.The Russian

was also runner-up in fivecompetitions includingthe 2009 Austral ianOpen, where she wasbeaten by Williams, andthe 2008 French Open.

" T h e r e ' s n oquestion that while I amvery proud of my resultsover the past year, Iwould have liked to reachthis achievement in a

different manner," said

Safina."I hope to prove

to everyone over thecoming months that Imerit the honour of beingworld number one.

"I t 's a greathonour to reach thenumber one ranking andit is a dream that every girlwho has ever wanted toplay professional tennisshares."

-Agencies

Safina to become world numberone in WTA rankings

orida, April 09: Saniarza and her Chinese

aipei partner Chia-Junghuang reached theubles quarter-finals ofe $220,000 MPS Grouphampionships here, butot before some lateares.

The Indo-Taipeiir had to fight it out in a

arathon three-setter to

down Melinda Czink ofH unga ry and L i l i aOsterloh of America 6-03-6 10-5 in the first round.

H o w e v e r ,Sania-Chuang duo'sroute to the last four won'tbe a cakewalk as fourthseeded pair of BethanieMattek-Sands of Americaand Nadia Petrova of

Russia awaits them in the

next round.S a n i a ' s

campaign in the singlesal ready came to apremature end with astraight sets defeat at thehands of seventh seedAlona Bondarenko in heopening round.

-Agencies

Sania-Chuang enterquarter-finals in Florida

M um ba i , A p r i l 09 : Sachin Tendulkar andfour other victoriousI n d i a n t e a m m a t e sreturned to Mumbai int h e w e e h o u r s o fThursday and thankedthe countrymen, sayingt h e e n t i r e n a t i o nsupported the team in itsquest of creating historyin New Zealand.

" I t ' s a nachievement. Everyoneis happy. The entirecountry has supportedus. It was victory after 41years," the championbatsman told reporters atthe Sahar airport onarriving with four other

teammates.U n d e r

Mahendra Singh Dhoni,India defeated NewZealand in their ownbackyard in a Test seriesfor the first time sinceM a n s u r A l i K h a nPataudi 's team hadvanquished the Kiwis in1967-68 after hoppingacross the Tasman seaafter a poor series inAustralia.

Tendulkar, whoh a d m a d e v i t a lcontributions with the batin both the precedingf i ve-match one-dayseries and the Testrubber, returned with

Zaheer Khan, HarbhajanSingh, Munaf Patel andDhawal Kulkarni.

Some membersof the support staff of theteam also landed inMumbai along with them.

Skipper Dhoniand some other membersof the team, based inn o r t h e r n c i t i e s ,disembarked in Delhi by adifferent flight.

S o u t h - b a s e dcr i cke te rs , i nc lud ingstalwarts Rahul Dravid andV V S Laxman, went to theirrespective places directly,according to Cricket Boardsources.

-Agencies

Entire country supported us inNew Zealand triumph: Tendulkar

o n d o n , A p r i l 0 9: i s d e n , t h e h i g h l y

e s p e c t e d c r i c k e tu b l i c a t i o n , o ne d n e s d a y n a m e drender Sehwag as the

eading Cricketer in theor ld for 2008 andahendra Singh Dhoniptain of its first eveream Test XI which hase Indians in the ranks.

India's rich vein ofr m f o u n d a m p l e

flection in Wisden's firstver Dream XI whichclude Sehwag, Dhoni,a c h i n T e n d u l k a r,arbhajan Singh andaheer Khan.

India has thergest representation in

the Test squad, followedby Austral ia (RickyPonting and MitchellJohnson) and SouthAfrica (Graeme Smithand Dale Steyn) whohave two each.

F l a m b o y a n tbatsman Kevin Pietersenis the lone English playerin the XI, while the WestIndies is represented byrun-machine ShivnarineChanderpaul.

S m i t h i sDhoni's deputy in theside.

T h e t h r e eselectors who picked thesquad were former Indiacaptain Ravi Shastri,retired West Indian pacer

Ian Bishop and formerNew Zealand stumper IanSmith.

"The criteria forselection are simple: thebest eleven to play a Testmatch, no matter theopposition, guided byperformances in 2008,a n d t a k i n g i n t oconsideration the amountof Test cricket they playedin the year, the quality oftheir opponents, and thatindefinable blend of classand form," Wisden said.

Gallery: India'swin in New Zealand after41 years

-Agencies

Sehwag leading cricketer, Dhonileads Wisden's Dream Test XI

K arach i , A p r i l 09 : Pakistan captain YounisKhan is banking heavilyon the experienced duo

of Shoaib Akhtar andShahid Afridi to fire in thecoming series againstAustralia in Abu Dhabiand Dubai.

Younis said hewas happy to see injury-prone Shoaib back in theside for the five one-dayi n t e r n a t i o n a l s a n dTwenty20 game.

"He has workedhard and I am confidenthe will play out the fullseries. His return is a

good sign for us as he is av e r y e x p e r i e n c e dperformer," Younis saidon Wednesday.

T h e s e n i o rbatsman pointed out thatboth Shoaib and Afridih a d t h i s h a b i t o fperforming well againsttop opposition.

"I am banking alot on them although werequire a complete teame f f o r t t o bea t t heAustralians," he added.

Younis pointedout that Pakistan hadsome top all-rounders inShoaib Malik, Afridi and

Sohail Tanvir and felt thetrio would have to makesignificant contribution ifPakistan were to win the

series."It is going to be a

tough series and we needto put in a collective effort.Even though Australia willbe without their regularcaptain Ricky Pointing andinform all-rounder MichellJohnson, the return ofAndrew Symonds is a bigplus for them as he hasalways been a successfulperformer against us,"Younis said.

-Agencies

Younis banks on Shoaib, Afridifor success against Australia

A u s t r a l i a npacer Glenn McGrath atthe bowling end in hisheydays meant batsmenhad hardly a chance tofree their arms, be it inODIs or in Tests. Alegendary bowler, whowas famous for applyingb r a i n o v e r b r a w n ,McGrath earned most ofhis international wicketsthrough impeccable lineand length, which isquintessential in T20cricket. His strength wasfor all to see when heplayed in the inaugural

edition of IPL for DelhiDaredevils, where heproved to be one of them o s t e c o n o m i c a lbowlers.

But his life haschanged a lot since. Helost his beloved wife Janeimmediately after IPL.Initially apprehensiveabout coming back for thetournament, McGrathfinally decided to fulfil hiscommitments to the Delhiteam.

Zeecric.comsBiswajit Jha had a chatwith the lanky Australianpacer on the sidelines ofa promotional event inDelhi.Excerpts:Will you miss Delhi thistime since the you weretreated here like a sonof the soil l ast year?Last time I really enjoyedplaying in Delhi. I got ahuge support from thelocal crowd, which was

fascinating for me. In thatsense I will miss Delhi.You have retired frominternational cricketalmost two years back.Are you fit enough toplay in the secondseason of IPL?Its true that I had quitinternational cricket acouple of years ago. Butin the last one month Ihave been working reallyhard in the gym. I amokay with my fitness nowand I will have noproblem in adjusting tothe demands of IPL.

W h a t w i l l b e t h e difference in SouthAfrica?It will be a good contestbetween the bat and theball in South Africa. Thewicket will be good for thepacers too.Why did you havea p p r e h e n s i o n s i n playing for IPL thistime?It was a big decision tocome back here. I havehad some personalproblems since I lost mywife Jane. I have two littlechildren to look after.Thats why I had initiallydecided not to take partin IPL this time. But then Ichose to fu l f i l myc o m m i t m e n t t oDaredevils at least forthis season. My mother istak ing care o f mychildren.How difficult was it tohandle the death ofyour wife Jane, who

died of cancer?It was really tough time forme and my family. But thes u p p o r t I g o t f r o meverybody is awesome. Iwas moved to find thesupport for Jane McGrathFoundation during theSydney Test. I am thankfulto everybody, who helpedme come out of that terriblephase of my life.Whats your opiniona b o u t t h e D e l h i Daredevils team thistime?We have a balanced teamthis time around. The

induction of David Warnerwill add more firepower tobatting.W i l l you m i ss you r opening bowling partnerof last season, MohdAsif?The team has enoughresources to replaceanybody.How do you rate VirenderSehwag as a captain?Sehwag has a very astutecricketing sense. I reallyenjoyed playing under himlast season.Whats your opinionabout Sehwag as a batsman?He is a terrific batsman. Ienjoyed bowling againsthim.What are the attributes ofa good captain?A good captain is one whouses the experience of thesenior playersone wholistens to everybody, evento the junior members ofthe team.

I will miss 'my hometown'

Delhi for sure: McGrath


8/8

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