NDTV.com: Slow WACA stumps Indians, Aussies:
It was touted as a pacer's paradise but a slow WACA has left both the Indian and Australian teams a bit surprised and the two sides say the one-time 'fastest track in the world' is now aiding spinners more than the quickies."The pitch has become slow and there is a bit of bounce to go with it," said Indian batting mainstay VVS Laxman after putting the visitors in the driver's seat with a well-timed 79-run knock in the second innings on Friday.Australian coach Tim Nielsen also agreed and felt the Indians were in a very strong position going into the fourth day as they had a quality spinner in Anil Kumble."It has been very hot here, which has made the track dry.
It is offering a lot of spin and bounce. India have a quality spinner in their ranks, which makes them all the more challenging on a fourth day track," he said after the world champions ended the day 65-2 chasing a mammoth 413 for a record-breaking 17th straight Test win.A worried Nielsen said the Australians were banking on skipper Ricky Ponting, who has had an ordinary series so far, to guide the team to the huge target."Certainly, to chase down this target is a real challenge and we have a very tough task on our hands. We have to start well tomorrow and (Michael) Hussey and Ponting have to bat really well," he said.Laxman, meanwhile, could not hide his glee after rescuing the visitors from a precarious 125-5 with some help from the resolute batting by tail-enders."We lost wickets in the early session and it was important to build partnerships... rotate the strike.
When I was batting with (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni, he understood the situation and played out a fighting knock. RP Singh's effort was equally encouraging," he said."We wanted 350-plus and it is nice to have got that especially after the loss of early wickets," he added. Bowlers from both the sides gave a good account of themselves and both Laxman and Nielsen applauded their effort.Laxman said, "from the Australian side all of them bowled really well but Brett Lee was superb and I always enjoy playing against him"."Both the bowling sides did well and the fact that we have a fourth innings at hand within three days of the match just goes on to prove that," said Nielsen. The Australian coach, however, found it hard to explain slinger Shaun Tait's failure in the match after being described as a "wicket-taking machine" before the start."It's his first Test and as I said it's a very tough wicket. But overall he would be pleased with his effort. Today was just a bad day for him," he suggested.
Friday, January 18, 2008
ADAG buys 250 cinema houses in US
Times Of India ePaper:
Mumbai: Over the last one year, Reliance Entertainment (REL), a company promoted by the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG), has acquired 250 cinema houses in the US. The company spokespersons declined to comment. Sources, though, said that this string of acquisitions ties in with the company’s plan to promote films, it either produces or acquires, in the US and UK. As things stand right now, the company has plans to make 25-30 films, all of which will go into production this year. The cinemas that have been acquired in the US will be used to promote these films, sources said.
On an average, a reasonably large Hindi film is released on 250-300 screens outside India. As a thumb rule, this is dispersed across 100 screens in the US, 125-150 in the UK and the remaining in other parts of the world. Here, a lot depends on what areas a distributor reckons a movie will do well. Not just that, a distributor also gets a part of the revenues earned out of a movie. With 250 screens in the US alone, REL is hoping that it will now have greater control over how movies are distributed. Eventually, these acquisitions will also help the company shore up the revenues it earns from these markets.
For instance, on every Rs 100 that a movie earns, 70% comes from India, the US and UK bring in 20% and the rest of the world brings in 10%. This ratio may find itself altered in the future with a larger chunk coming in from the US and UK. Most of the cinemas acquired until now are frequented by patrons of Indian and Pakistani origin. Over time, though, REL has plans to acquire more mainstream cinema halls. The plan, sources said, is to eventually take a crack at Hollywood. What contours that plan take is unclear. There is some speculation that the company is talking to a few top actors and directors to get into production agreements. IPO rush hits online trading Mumbai:
The second day of the Reliance Power IPO saw a huge rush of retail investors committing funds to the mega issue. By late evening, 11.2 lakh retail applications had been received with the retail portion of the issue subscribed three times. The Future Capital IPO, too, which closed on Wednesday, was subscribed 131 times with the retail portion getting subscribed 45 times. The unprecedented rush of IPO applications hit the online trading systems of the broking arms of some major banks, with some slowdown reported in the primary market sections of websites. Market players said that some brokers were unable to access their depository accounts. They said there was a lack of planning. TNN
Mumbai: Over the last one year, Reliance Entertainment (REL), a company promoted by the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG), has acquired 250 cinema houses in the US. The company spokespersons declined to comment. Sources, though, said that this string of acquisitions ties in with the company’s plan to promote films, it either produces or acquires, in the US and UK. As things stand right now, the company has plans to make 25-30 films, all of which will go into production this year. The cinemas that have been acquired in the US will be used to promote these films, sources said.
On an average, a reasonably large Hindi film is released on 250-300 screens outside India. As a thumb rule, this is dispersed across 100 screens in the US, 125-150 in the UK and the remaining in other parts of the world. Here, a lot depends on what areas a distributor reckons a movie will do well. Not just that, a distributor also gets a part of the revenues earned out of a movie. With 250 screens in the US alone, REL is hoping that it will now have greater control over how movies are distributed. Eventually, these acquisitions will also help the company shore up the revenues it earns from these markets.
For instance, on every Rs 100 that a movie earns, 70% comes from India, the US and UK bring in 20% and the rest of the world brings in 10%. This ratio may find itself altered in the future with a larger chunk coming in from the US and UK. Most of the cinemas acquired until now are frequented by patrons of Indian and Pakistani origin. Over time, though, REL has plans to acquire more mainstream cinema halls. The plan, sources said, is to eventually take a crack at Hollywood. What contours that plan take is unclear. There is some speculation that the company is talking to a few top actors and directors to get into production agreements. IPO rush hits online trading Mumbai:
The second day of the Reliance Power IPO saw a huge rush of retail investors committing funds to the mega issue. By late evening, 11.2 lakh retail applications had been received with the retail portion of the issue subscribed three times. The Future Capital IPO, too, which closed on Wednesday, was subscribed 131 times with the retail portion getting subscribed 45 times. The unprecedented rush of IPO applications hit the online trading systems of the broking arms of some major banks, with some slowdown reported in the primary market sections of websites. Market players said that some brokers were unable to access their depository accounts. They said there was a lack of planning. TNN
Sensex below 20K on global cue
Times Of India ePaper: "Sensex below 20K on global cue"
Heavy Selloff On Wall Street & Citigroup Q4 Loss Trigger Plunge
Mumbai: The secondary market took a beating for a second consecutive trading session on Wednesday as global markets tanked. The Asian pack closed sharply lower dragging the domestic bourses down as an $18 billion write-off by Citigroup spooked investors.
The fresh losses have triggered fears of a recession in the US economy with oil prices still above the $90 per barrel level and retail sales in the US down by 0.5% in December.
The BSE sensex was down by over 700 points at one point in the afternoon before paring some losses to close 383 points lower at 19,868, under the 20K level for the first time in almost three weeks. The NSE barometer, nifty, closed at 5936 points, 139 points lower than the previous close.
Market players said there was surprisingly not much buying support at lower levels, which could be attributed to the investor rush for the Reliance Power IPO.
“The markets reacted to global cues, especially those coming from the US where the markets dropped as Citigroup wrote-off $18 billion in losses arising from exposure to highrisk subprime home loans,” said Seshadri Bharatan, director, stock broking, Dawnay Day AV Securities.
Market players say the US Federal Reserve will cut its key lending rate by at least half a percentage point, or 50 basis points, to 3.75% at its meeting on January 29. On Wednesday, the rest of the Asian bourses took an even harder hit with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropping by 5.3% and Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite falling 5%.
Indian investors will watch for continuity of earnings momentum in favourite sectors like engineering, power, construction, financials, media and real estate. Other sectors like auto, IT, textiles and pharma will continue to remain under pressure, stated a research note by Religare Securities.
Other macroeconomics that could impact trading in the coming days are the upcoming public offerings that could suck out some liquidity from the secondary markets.
All the sectoral indices closed in the red with realty and metals dropping the most by 4.4% and 3.7% respectively. Among the sensex stocks, ICICI Bank led the gainers moving up by 1.3%. Bharti Airtel, TCS, M&M and Cipla were the other gainers. HDFC Bank was the top sensex loser, sliding by over 6% to close at Rs 1,676. Reliance Communication and NTPC also dropped by over 5% each.
Investors saw their wealth decrease by Rs 1.5 lakh crore with the BSE’s market capitalization now at Rs 68.99 lakh crore. The overall market breadth was extremely negative with 615 stocks advancing as compared to 2,207 that closed lower.
The fresh losses have triggered fears of a recession in the US economy with oil prices still above the $90 per barrel level and retail sales in the US down by 0.5% in December.
The BSE sensex was down by over 700 points at one point in the afternoon before paring some losses to close 383 points lower at 19,868, under the 20K level for the first time in almost three weeks. The NSE barometer, nifty, closed at 5936 points, 139 points lower than the previous close.
Market players said there was surprisingly not much buying support at lower levels, which could be attributed to the investor rush for the Reliance Power IPO.
“The markets reacted to global cues, especially those coming from the US where the markets dropped as Citigroup wrote-off $18 billion in losses arising from exposure to highrisk subprime home loans,” said Seshadri Bharatan, director, stock broking, Dawnay Day AV Securities.
Market players say the US Federal Reserve will cut its key lending rate by at least half a percentage point, or 50 basis points, to 3.75% at its meeting on January 29. On Wednesday, the rest of the Asian bourses took an even harder hit with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropping by 5.3% and Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite falling 5%.
Indian investors will watch for continuity of earnings momentum in favourite sectors like engineering, power, construction, financials, media and real estate. Other sectors like auto, IT, textiles and pharma will continue to remain under pressure, stated a research note by Religare Securities.
Other macroeconomics that could impact trading in the coming days are the upcoming public offerings that could suck out some liquidity from the secondary markets.
All the sectoral indices closed in the red with realty and metals dropping the most by 4.4% and 3.7% respectively. Among the sensex stocks, ICICI Bank led the gainers moving up by 1.3%. Bharti Airtel, TCS, M&M and Cipla were the other gainers. HDFC Bank was the top sensex loser, sliding by over 6% to close at Rs 1,676. Reliance Communication and NTPC also dropped by over 5% each.
Investors saw their wealth decrease by Rs 1.5 lakh crore with the BSE’s market capitalization now at Rs 68.99 lakh crore. The overall market breadth was extremely negative with 615 stocks advancing as compared to 2,207 that closed lower.
Ugly Aussies bare fangs, again
Sumit Mukherjee TNN
Perth: Pact or no pact, the Aussies made it clear at the WACA on Wednesday they would continue to pursue their brand of aggressive cricket that invited widespread criticism in the wake of their Sydney triumph. Caught in their own web of lies and deceit over the WACA wicket, the Aussies resorted to typical gamesmanship on the field in a bid to unsettle the Indian batsmen who ruled the better part of Day I of the third Test. However, to their credit, they did make a conscious effort not to violate the spirit of the game, as agreed to by their captain Ricky Ponting and Indian skipper Anil Kumble. From staring down and hustling batsmen, making body contact with them while they were running to slowing down the over-rate, pressuring umpires with vociferous appeals, swearing under their breath, the ‘ugly’ Aussies tried every trick in the trade on a day not much went right for them.
The Indians, known for their tolerance, took it in their stride — in good faith and good humour. Rahul Dravid, for example, was shoved twice — once by Shaun Tait on his follow-through, and then by Mike Hussey while trying to get back into his crease. The salty pro did not let these bother him, but once the Aussies, having fallen behind on over-rate, tried to get their overs in quickly, he showed his irritation. “What I did not like was the Aussies trying to hustle me by not giving me enough time to settle down in my stance before their bowlers delivered. I pointed it to both umpires and the matter was settled.
No big deal,” Dravid explained. Symonds was lucky not to be reported for over-appealing Perth: The Aussies tried every trick in the trade to unsettle the Indians on Day 1 of the Perth Test. For instance, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, whose had to face the ire of Aussies when a strap of his thigh pad came off after an impact with the ball. As Dhoni took his time to fix the problem, a few Australian players gathered to give him 'the stare'. Brett Lee, easily the pick of the Australian bowlers on Day I, is, of course, has a masters degree in staring at batsmen. He simply walks up the batsman after beating him and gives him a 'Lee Special' (cold stare with a half-smile). Sachin Tendulkar, Dhoni and Irfan Pathan all were accorded that 'privilege' which, however, was sans any sideffects.
Andrew Symonds is easily the most hot-tempered and volatile character in the Aussie ranks. He was lucky not to have been reported for trying to intimidate umpire Asad Rauf for turning down his 'roaring' appeal for lbw against Tendulkar. He went on and on along with the slip fielders led by Ponting. Both Symonds and Ponting were caught on camera mouthing something, but it was difficult to say whether it was aimed at the umpire or their own selves. On India's part the most unsporting gesture came from Sourav Ganguly who took 'ages' to reach the crease after Tendulkar was given out and then realized he had left his arm guard behind! Howzzzaat!
excerpts from TOI
what are your thoughts on never to bow down Aussies?
Perth: Pact or no pact, the Aussies made it clear at the WACA on Wednesday they would continue to pursue their brand of aggressive cricket that invited widespread criticism in the wake of their Sydney triumph. Caught in their own web of lies and deceit over the WACA wicket, the Aussies resorted to typical gamesmanship on the field in a bid to unsettle the Indian batsmen who ruled the better part of Day I of the third Test. However, to their credit, they did make a conscious effort not to violate the spirit of the game, as agreed to by their captain Ricky Ponting and Indian skipper Anil Kumble. From staring down and hustling batsmen, making body contact with them while they were running to slowing down the over-rate, pressuring umpires with vociferous appeals, swearing under their breath, the ‘ugly’ Aussies tried every trick in the trade on a day not much went right for them.
The Indians, known for their tolerance, took it in their stride — in good faith and good humour. Rahul Dravid, for example, was shoved twice — once by Shaun Tait on his follow-through, and then by Mike Hussey while trying to get back into his crease. The salty pro did not let these bother him, but once the Aussies, having fallen behind on over-rate, tried to get their overs in quickly, he showed his irritation. “What I did not like was the Aussies trying to hustle me by not giving me enough time to settle down in my stance before their bowlers delivered. I pointed it to both umpires and the matter was settled.
No big deal,” Dravid explained. Symonds was lucky not to be reported for over-appealing Perth: The Aussies tried every trick in the trade to unsettle the Indians on Day 1 of the Perth Test. For instance, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, whose had to face the ire of Aussies when a strap of his thigh pad came off after an impact with the ball. As Dhoni took his time to fix the problem, a few Australian players gathered to give him 'the stare'. Brett Lee, easily the pick of the Australian bowlers on Day I, is, of course, has a masters degree in staring at batsmen. He simply walks up the batsman after beating him and gives him a 'Lee Special' (cold stare with a half-smile). Sachin Tendulkar, Dhoni and Irfan Pathan all were accorded that 'privilege' which, however, was sans any sideffects.
Andrew Symonds is easily the most hot-tempered and volatile character in the Aussie ranks. He was lucky not to have been reported for trying to intimidate umpire Asad Rauf for turning down his 'roaring' appeal for lbw against Tendulkar. He went on and on along with the slip fielders led by Ponting. Both Symonds and Ponting were caught on camera mouthing something, but it was difficult to say whether it was aimed at the umpire or their own selves. On India's part the most unsporting gesture came from Sourav Ganguly who took 'ages' to reach the crease after Tendulkar was given out and then realized he had left his arm guard behind! Howzzzaat!
excerpts from TOI
what are your thoughts on never to bow down Aussies?
Bharat Ratna may elude all as politics takes centrestage - do politicians deserver bharat ratna?
Vishwa Mohan TNN
New Delhi: It’s always been a difficult task. But awarding this year’s Bharat Ratna to a political personality either living or dead could prove to be impossible for the government given the rising clamour for the honour from almost every quarter — the ‘nominees’ range from Atal Bihari Vajpayee to Karpoori Thakur to Charan Singh. And thanks to the fierce politicking, this could well be the seventh straight year when the Bharat Ratna is not awarded, even if there is a deserving candidate. The last time the highest civilian award was announced was in 2001. That year, it was awarded to two non-political personalities — playback singer Lata Mangeshkar and shehnai maestro Ustad Bismillah Khan.
There are already quite a few names doing the rounds this year and, as one would have come to expect, not a single one is non-political. The race for the Ratna started with Leader of Opposition L K Advani writing to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and suggesting former Prime Minister Vajpayee’s name for the honour. While delayed reactions are the order of the day, other political parties immediately woke up. The names flowed —Biju Patnaik (BJD), Kanshi Ram (BSP), Karpoori Thakur (RJD), Chaudhary Charan Singh (RLD), Jagjivan Ram and Jyotiba Phule (both recommended by Lok Janshakti Party).
Though the final decision lies with the Prime Minister who, if he so wishes, may consult the Leader of Opposition and vice-president Hamid Ansari after going through a shortlist, government sources said there has hardly been any official move so far. The government may, however, spring a surprise at the last moment by announcing a non-political name, someone who will be broadly acceptable to all. Given the jostling over the social justice plank and the politics of reservations, it is possible that the honour may be bestowed posthumously. But it remains to be seen whether the government will step on what is perceived as a mine field. Sources in the home ministry, which provides secretarial support to the Padma award committee, said if somebody wrote to home minister Shivraj Patil suggesting someone’s name for the Bharat Ratna, the request would simply be forwarded to the PM.
The ball, therefore, is in Manmohan Singh’s court. The Bharat Ratna was introduced in 1954. The first Indian to receive this award was the famous scientist, Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman. Since then, 40 leading personalities have received this coveted award. There is no written provision that the Bharat Ratna should be awarded to an Indian citizen only. It has, therefore, been awarded to a naturalized citizen, Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, better known as Mother Teresa (1980), and to two foreigners — Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan and Nelson Mandela (1990). It is also not mandatory for the Bharat Ratna to be awarded each year.
The Padma award committee — responsible for shortlisting names for Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri — has, meanwhile, held a number of meetings to prepare a list for the Prime Minister. Sources said the committee has already received as many as 1,223 recommendations from different states, Union Territories, MPs, MLAs, ministries/departments of central government, individuals and organizations for the three Padma awards. The committee is finalising its list before sending it to Singh.
New Delhi: It’s always been a difficult task. But awarding this year’s Bharat Ratna to a political personality either living or dead could prove to be impossible for the government given the rising clamour for the honour from almost every quarter — the ‘nominees’ range from Atal Bihari Vajpayee to Karpoori Thakur to Charan Singh. And thanks to the fierce politicking, this could well be the seventh straight year when the Bharat Ratna is not awarded, even if there is a deserving candidate. The last time the highest civilian award was announced was in 2001. That year, it was awarded to two non-political personalities — playback singer Lata Mangeshkar and shehnai maestro Ustad Bismillah Khan.
There are already quite a few names doing the rounds this year and, as one would have come to expect, not a single one is non-political. The race for the Ratna started with Leader of Opposition L K Advani writing to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and suggesting former Prime Minister Vajpayee’s name for the honour. While delayed reactions are the order of the day, other political parties immediately woke up. The names flowed —Biju Patnaik (BJD), Kanshi Ram (BSP), Karpoori Thakur (RJD), Chaudhary Charan Singh (RLD), Jagjivan Ram and Jyotiba Phule (both recommended by Lok Janshakti Party).
Though the final decision lies with the Prime Minister who, if he so wishes, may consult the Leader of Opposition and vice-president Hamid Ansari after going through a shortlist, government sources said there has hardly been any official move so far. The government may, however, spring a surprise at the last moment by announcing a non-political name, someone who will be broadly acceptable to all. Given the jostling over the social justice plank and the politics of reservations, it is possible that the honour may be bestowed posthumously. But it remains to be seen whether the government will step on what is perceived as a mine field. Sources in the home ministry, which provides secretarial support to the Padma award committee, said if somebody wrote to home minister Shivraj Patil suggesting someone’s name for the Bharat Ratna, the request would simply be forwarded to the PM.
The ball, therefore, is in Manmohan Singh’s court. The Bharat Ratna was introduced in 1954. The first Indian to receive this award was the famous scientist, Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman. Since then, 40 leading personalities have received this coveted award. There is no written provision that the Bharat Ratna should be awarded to an Indian citizen only. It has, therefore, been awarded to a naturalized citizen, Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, better known as Mother Teresa (1980), and to two foreigners — Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan and Nelson Mandela (1990). It is also not mandatory for the Bharat Ratna to be awarded each year.
The Padma award committee — responsible for shortlisting names for Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri — has, meanwhile, held a number of meetings to prepare a list for the Prime Minister. Sources said the committee has already received as many as 1,223 recommendations from different states, Union Territories, MPs, MLAs, ministries/departments of central government, individuals and organizations for the three Padma awards. The committee is finalising its list before sending it to Singh.
BIRD FLU STRIKES BENGAL
Times Of India ePaper: "FLU STRIKES STATE"
Four Lakh Birds To Be Culled, Centre Sends Team Of Scientists
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Margram: Bird flu has struck Bengal. The state has sounded the red alert after lab tests confirmed an outbreak of the deadly H5N1 virus in Birbhum and South Dinajpur. Highway checkpoints have been set up to stop supplies of poultry from the affected areas and local residents warned against consuming chicken and eggs. People in neighbouring districts have been asked to report cases of an unusually large number of bird deaths. There is near panic among chicken traders and small-time retailers after sales crashed in urban areas. The government has decided to cull more than 4 lakh chicken in a 5-km radius of the affected farms. “The (lab) reports confirmed bird flu of the H5N1 strain. Precautionary measures are being taken to prevent an epidemic,” said animal resources development minister Anisur Rahman. The Bangladesh border has been sealed to poultry products as a similar strain of virus had recently surfaced there.
The test reports were doublechecked by the High Security Animal Diseases Laboratory, Bhopal, and the Institute of Virology, Pune, and communicated to local authorities by joint commissioner A D Negi. The outbreak has rapidly spread to all eight blocks of Rampurhat, particularly Nalhati-I and II, Rampurhat-I and II, Mayureswar and Murarai. On Wednesday, BDOs of all these blocks will hold an emergency meeting with village pradhans and health officials. Panchayats have been asked to explain to villagers why culling must begin. “We’ll start despatching rapid response teams from 9 am. The chickens will be buried,” said animal resources director Dilip Das. “We have announced Rs 1 crore compensation for poultry owners, who will get Rs 30-40 per chicken. All domestic birds in the area will be culled.”
With hundreds of chicken and ducks dropping dead, there is panic among the local populace. Officials asked villagers to bury the dead birds, but no one is willing to touch the carcasses, especially when employees of the animal resources department are themselves scared to do so. Malipara villager Abu Toyeb retorted: “How can they expect us to bury the dead chickens? If we touch them, we’ll get the fever.” The piles of rotting birds are a cause for more worry for the district administration. There are fears that other diseases could spread because of this. The outbreak has rattled the entire country. Bengal was spared by the virus in 2006, but millions of chicken in other states had to be culled. It dealt a body blow to poultry farmers across India. The Centre’s concern can be gauged from the fact that the health ministry has already put together a team of scientists who will look into the genetics of the H5N1 strain.
Central and state animal husbandry department officers are camping in Margram. More senior officers are expected to arrive at Rampurhat on Thursday to monitor culling. Rahman couldn’t say how long the culling operation would continue, particularly in Birbhum where bird deaths have taken place over a wide area.
Dont you think this is neglegence of both state and central goverment? What about the small business man who earns there stomack from poultry and chicken?
Four Lakh Birds To Be Culled, Centre Sends Team Of Scientists
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Margram: Bird flu has struck Bengal. The state has sounded the red alert after lab tests confirmed an outbreak of the deadly H5N1 virus in Birbhum and South Dinajpur. Highway checkpoints have been set up to stop supplies of poultry from the affected areas and local residents warned against consuming chicken and eggs. People in neighbouring districts have been asked to report cases of an unusually large number of bird deaths. There is near panic among chicken traders and small-time retailers after sales crashed in urban areas. The government has decided to cull more than 4 lakh chicken in a 5-km radius of the affected farms. “The (lab) reports confirmed bird flu of the H5N1 strain. Precautionary measures are being taken to prevent an epidemic,” said animal resources development minister Anisur Rahman. The Bangladesh border has been sealed to poultry products as a similar strain of virus had recently surfaced there.
The test reports were doublechecked by the High Security Animal Diseases Laboratory, Bhopal, and the Institute of Virology, Pune, and communicated to local authorities by joint commissioner A D Negi. The outbreak has rapidly spread to all eight blocks of Rampurhat, particularly Nalhati-I and II, Rampurhat-I and II, Mayureswar and Murarai. On Wednesday, BDOs of all these blocks will hold an emergency meeting with village pradhans and health officials. Panchayats have been asked to explain to villagers why culling must begin. “We’ll start despatching rapid response teams from 9 am. The chickens will be buried,” said animal resources director Dilip Das. “We have announced Rs 1 crore compensation for poultry owners, who will get Rs 30-40 per chicken. All domestic birds in the area will be culled.”
With hundreds of chicken and ducks dropping dead, there is panic among the local populace. Officials asked villagers to bury the dead birds, but no one is willing to touch the carcasses, especially when employees of the animal resources department are themselves scared to do so. Malipara villager Abu Toyeb retorted: “How can they expect us to bury the dead chickens? If we touch them, we’ll get the fever.” The piles of rotting birds are a cause for more worry for the district administration. There are fears that other diseases could spread because of this. The outbreak has rattled the entire country. Bengal was spared by the virus in 2006, but millions of chicken in other states had to be culled. It dealt a body blow to poultry farmers across India. The Centre’s concern can be gauged from the fact that the health ministry has already put together a team of scientists who will look into the genetics of the H5N1 strain.
Central and state animal husbandry department officers are camping in Margram. More senior officers are expected to arrive at Rampurhat on Thursday to monitor culling. Rahman couldn’t say how long the culling operation would continue, particularly in Birbhum where bird deaths have taken place over a wide area.
Dont you think this is neglegence of both state and central goverment? What about the small business man who earns there stomack from poultry and chicken?
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
An early burial for the trust deal - Hogg had reportedly called Sourav a b*****d and the former India captain had retorted by asking him to “f**k off”
Perth: The pre-series pact between India and Australia with regard to players adhering to the spirit of the game has been scrapped. The bhai-bhai deal agreed to by Ricky Ponting and Anil Kumble in the presence of match referee Mike Procter and the umpires in Melbourne was called off by mutual consent after the two captains met ICC Chief Referee Ranjan Madugalle here.
“It’s been scrapped, as of yesterday (Monday). That wasn’t the way I wanted to play, but the feeling through the Indian team, and probably not just Anil’s thoughts on it, were that they would like it to go back and be in the hands on the umpires on the field,” Ponting said. “I’ve just had a chat with the umpires out on the ground now about the whole thing and they’ll be endeavoring to make the call between themselves on the field rather than referring everything. That’s the way it’s going to be, I think, for the rest of the series,” he added.
Kumble, who appeared to be somewhat surprised by Ponting’s assertion, said: “Obviously, we wanted it reviewed after the Sydney Test. We had put across our views to the match referee and left it to his discretion.” Kumble, however, is happy to go back to the good old ways. “Certain things are best left to the umpires, third umpire and the match referee. As it is, the players and umpires are under pressure out in the middle. There is no need to burden ourselves with more. I think these things are best handled by the match officials,” Kumble said. Why Aussies called up Sourav as their witness: It now transpires that Brad Hogg had also abused Sourav Ganguly during the first innings in Sydney.
Hogg had reportedly called Sourav a b*****d and the former India captain had retorted by asking him to “f**k off”. The matter had ended there. Under pressure to save their mate, the Australians held a brain-storming session and came up with the idea of calling in Sourav as a witness for the hearing before Procter.
The Australians’ logic was simple: Kumble and Dhoni were called the same name by Hogg but Sourav did not obviously construe the word as an abuse, so Hogg should be let off. It is a pity that we will never know whether the Australian ploy would have worked because it was never put to test after Indians withdrew the charge against Hogg.
Saurav be careful to open your mouth next time???
Counting on experience: Meanwhile, Kumble is banking on the experience of his players to counter the challenge of a lively Perth pitch. “Sure there is bounce and pace for the bowlers but we have the quality and experience. It does take some time to get used to this sort of pitch but it’s more mental than anything else,” he said. Kumble, who hinted that Virender Sehwag would open the innings, said the team would revert to the old batting order with Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman dropping down the order. “Sehwag would come in. It would be a regular batting order with the quality of Rahul Dravid at No. 3 again. It would mean shuffling around a bit, but this has been our batting order for a long time,” Kumble said, adding that Sourav, who was down with high fever, would be fine to play the game. Kumble also expects his bowlers to deliver in windy conditions. “It’s a unique situation here and it appears for the moment that I would be mostly bowling into the wind,” Kumble said. “It is up to our bowlers to lift their game.”
Sumit Mukherjee TNN excerpt for TOI
Back up Kumble back up!!!!
What will speak BCCI money power or the ICC rules.. What do you think..
“It’s been scrapped, as of yesterday (Monday). That wasn’t the way I wanted to play, but the feeling through the Indian team, and probably not just Anil’s thoughts on it, were that they would like it to go back and be in the hands on the umpires on the field,” Ponting said. “I’ve just had a chat with the umpires out on the ground now about the whole thing and they’ll be endeavoring to make the call between themselves on the field rather than referring everything. That’s the way it’s going to be, I think, for the rest of the series,” he added.
Kumble, who appeared to be somewhat surprised by Ponting’s assertion, said: “Obviously, we wanted it reviewed after the Sydney Test. We had put across our views to the match referee and left it to his discretion.” Kumble, however, is happy to go back to the good old ways. “Certain things are best left to the umpires, third umpire and the match referee. As it is, the players and umpires are under pressure out in the middle. There is no need to burden ourselves with more. I think these things are best handled by the match officials,” Kumble said. Why Aussies called up Sourav as their witness: It now transpires that Brad Hogg had also abused Sourav Ganguly during the first innings in Sydney.
Hogg had reportedly called Sourav a b*****d and the former India captain had retorted by asking him to “f**k off”. The matter had ended there. Under pressure to save their mate, the Australians held a brain-storming session and came up with the idea of calling in Sourav as a witness for the hearing before Procter.
The Australians’ logic was simple: Kumble and Dhoni were called the same name by Hogg but Sourav did not obviously construe the word as an abuse, so Hogg should be let off. It is a pity that we will never know whether the Australian ploy would have worked because it was never put to test after Indians withdrew the charge against Hogg.
Saurav be careful to open your mouth next time???
Counting on experience: Meanwhile, Kumble is banking on the experience of his players to counter the challenge of a lively Perth pitch. “Sure there is bounce and pace for the bowlers but we have the quality and experience. It does take some time to get used to this sort of pitch but it’s more mental than anything else,” he said. Kumble, who hinted that Virender Sehwag would open the innings, said the team would revert to the old batting order with Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman dropping down the order. “Sehwag would come in. It would be a regular batting order with the quality of Rahul Dravid at No. 3 again. It would mean shuffling around a bit, but this has been our batting order for a long time,” Kumble said, adding that Sourav, who was down with high fever, would be fine to play the game. Kumble also expects his bowlers to deliver in windy conditions. “It’s a unique situation here and it appears for the moment that I would be mostly bowling into the wind,” Kumble said. “It is up to our bowlers to lift their game.”
Sumit Mukherjee TNN excerpt for TOI
Back up Kumble back up!!!!
What will speak BCCI money power or the ICC rules.. What do you think..
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