News Digest: Tax exemption for gifts to doctors: CAG exposes dirty tricks of pharma companies

		THE TIMES OF INDIA
		Saturday, May 09, 2015
		Today's Headlines

		India
		Tax exemption for gifts to doctors: CAG exposes dirty tricks of pharma companies The most startling of the dirty tricks played was that of claiming tax exemption for giving gifts to doctors to lure them into prescribing certain drugs or treatments. MPPEB key accused's death defuses ticking scam bomb Mystery death of pharmacist Vijay Singh in Kanker district of Chhattisgarh has snuffed out linkages of several scamsters involved in MPPEB’s illegal transport constable recruitments, say sources. No further threat from Phuktal artificial lake burst: Experts The NDMA experts told a state government team that the water level was gradually reducing. More India News»

		Business
		Sahara chief Subrata Roy to SC: Mopped up funds for bail Sahara chief Subrata Roy, behind bars for the last 14 months, may get out of jail next week as he told the Supreme Court on Friday that he had managed to raise sufficient cash and bank guarantee of Rs 5,000 crore to fulfill the bail condition. Realty sales help HUL net rise 17% to Rs 1,018cr in Q4 Net sales were up 9% at Rs 7,555 crore during the quarter as against Rs 6,936 crore in the same period last year, with 6% underlying volume growth both ahead of market. Excise collection on petrol, diesel up 50% at Rs 74.5k cr Excise duty collection on petrol and diesel jumped over 50 per cent in 2014-15 to Rs 74,465 crore as the government on multiple occasions raised tax rates to shore up its revenues. More Business News»

		Environment
		Prepare to foot Yamuna clean-up bill in Delhi Applying the ‘polluter pays’ principle, National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Friday imposed an ‘environmental compensation’ on all households in Delhi which are generating sewage, irrespective of whether they are connected to a sewer or not. Rajasthan CM keen on saving GIB from extinction Chief Minister, Vasundhara Raje has said that her government was serious about saving the state bird Great Indian Butard (GIB) from extinction and no stone would be left unturned for this. For this, all efforts would be made locally as well as national and international level. Danish student in sun harvest break through A student from the University of Copenhagen has researched his way to a breakthrough that may prove pivotal for technologies trying to capture the energy of the sun and saving it for a rainy day. More Environment News»

		World
		Inspectors find undeclared sarin traces in Syria International inspectors have found traces of sarin and VX nerve agent at a military research site in Syria that had not been declared to the global chemical weapons watchdog, diplomatic sources said on Friday. Triumph means Cameron can govern UK on his own After years of sharing power, David Cameron pulled off an unexpected election triumph that gave the Conservative prime minister a second term with an outright majority Friday and dealt a stinging defeat to his three main rivals. N Korea test-fires underwater ballistic missile North Korea announced Saturday the successful test-firing of a submarine-based ballistic missile — a technology that would offer the nuclear-armed state a survivable second-strike nuclear capability. More World News»

		Entertainment
		'A strong woman is a bad woman in India'  Neena Gupta, 60, was way ahead of her times when she took the bold decision to go ahead with her pregnancy with one of the world’s finest cricketers, Vivian Richards, 27 years back (their daughter Masaba today is 26 years old). Salman Khan's biggest Friday release There are some things money can’t buy – like the collective relief of those who have crores riding on Salman Khan, now that he’s been granted bail. PIC: Baby Alia Bhatt poses for the camera Alia Bhatt is an adorable actress and was equally lovely as a kid. The actress recently shared a cute photograph of herself from her childhood days. More Entertainment News»

		Science
		Natural substance to prevent dental plaque identified An amino acid found naturally in meat, poultry, fish and dairy products breaks down dental plaque, which could help millions of people avoid cavities and gum disease, a new research has found. 500 mn years old brain reveals evolution of head A new study has identified one of the oldest fossil brains ever discovered - more than 500 million years old - and used it to help determine how heads first evolved in early animals. Failed Russian spacecraft falls from orbit, burns up An unmanned Russian spaceship loitering in orbit after a failed cargo run to the International Space Station plunged into Earth's atmosphere on Thursday, the Russian space agency reported. More Science News»

		Sports
		Mumbai Indians beat Chennai Super Kings by six wickets Ambati Rayudu continued his good form with the bat leading Mumbai Indians to a six-wicket victory over Chennai Super Kings in their IPL match at Chepauk. Disaster averted, narrow escape for Delhi Daredevils team A Raipur-bound IndiGo plane from Kolkata carrying the Delhi Daredevils IPL team vacated the runway in the "nick of time". Sardar Singh recommended for Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Indian men's hockey team captain Sardar Singh has been recommended for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award by Hockey India. More Sports News»

		Technology
		9 biggest tech myths debunked Ah, the world of tech myths! Despite countless efforts to kill them, a host of myths continue to persist. Facebook's new ploy to promote Internet.org Facebook is tricking users into thinking that Internet.org is free internet by promoting a campaign that does not mention its name anywhere until they reach the last step. Apple, Samsung revamp online sales models in India The lure of e-commerce has prompted smartphone rivals Apple and Samsung to take contrasting yet concrete steps for the first time in India. More Technology News»

		Education
		Daman and Diu students top national education survey Results of the elementary level of education in the country seem to be best in Daman and Diu, where students top 34 states/UTs in language and mathematics. Delhi students weak in maths: NCERT survey Students from the National Capital Region have a lot to make up in terms of performance in mathematics. Compared to the national average of 252, Delhi students are at 244. Biometric attendance system in varsities and colleges: Rajasthan In a bid to check large scale absenteeism, bio-metric attendance will be introduced in all state universities and colleges from the coming session. More Education News»

		Mumbai
		Maharashtra: 35% subsidy on cow urine fertilizer The state government has announced a subsidy on cow urine and dung to be used as fertilizer. Is there a fire audit policy for courts: HC Bombay high court on Friday sought to know from the state if it has a policy for conducting fire safety audit of all courts in Maharashtra 12-year-old girl ends life after quarrel with cousins A 12-year-old girl committed suicide at her aunt's flat in an Aarey Colony highrise, while playing with her younger cousins, on Wednesday More Mumbai News»

		Delhi
		'Delhi govt has no claim over reserved subjects' While the Centre is keeping itself aloof from the Arvind Kejriwal vs Delhi LG tangle on matters of jurisdiction, it firmly believes that Najeeb Jung is right in asserting his prerogative to involve or not involve the Delhi chief minister in decisions pertaining to 'reserved' subjects of police, public order and land. Meghalaya House staffer fined Rs 5k for burning leaves Tightening its vigil on incidents of waste burning in its areas, the New Delhi Municipal Council has imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on an employee of Meghalaya House who was found burning leaves. NGT slams poor rainwater harvesting at AIIMS flyover The National Green Tribunal on Friday slammed public authorities over the “pathetic condition” of rainwater harvesting system (RWH) at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) flyover. More Delhi News»

		Bangalore
		HC verdict on Jaya appeal on Monday Justice CR Kumaraswamy of the Karnataka high court will pronounce judgment on the criminal appeals filed by former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa and three others on Monday. Rs 1,000cr largesse for Bengaluru With BBMP elections just around the corner, the Congress government is set to pamper Bengalureans in the next couple of months. On Friday, chief minister Siddaramaiah announced Rs 1,000- crore bonanza for the city - in addition to an equal sum announced by him in the state budget under the Nagarotthana scheme. Mantri, Coremind fined Rs139cr for illegal construction NGT bans new construction projects in B’luru’s wetlands More Bangalore News»

		Hyderabad
		Chinese held for trying to buy smuggled red sanders A Chinese national was arrested by the Andhra Pradesh police in Hyderabad late on Thursday for trying to buy smuggled red sanders. Metro may not chug into Old City Even as the TRS government is seeking to fast track the operationalization of metro rail, the swanky trains appear unlikely to chug into the Old City. Lokesh meets US president Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president and AP chief minister Chandrababu Naidu's son Lokesh had a brief meeting with US president Barack Obama in Portland, Oregon, on Friday. More Hyderabad News»

		Chennai
		AIBA wants presidential reference in NJAC case Appointment of at least 125 judges for various high courts is hanging fire due to a constitutional vacuum created by the abolition of the erstwhile collegium system and the delay in the creation of National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC), All India Bar Association (AIBA) has complained to President Pranab Mukherjee. TV director plots to kill uncle, hires gang Police are on the lookout for a small-time television serial director who they believe hired a gang to murder his uncle over a property dispute at Valasaravakkam on Friday. Man buried alive as earth caves in at drain site in Otteri A 50-year-old man digging a trench for a drainage line at Otteri died on Friday afternoon after earth caved in on him and his friend. More Chennai News»

		Ahmedabad
		Gujarat board looks to keep tabs on CBSE, ICSE schools The Gujarat government, it seems, wants to bring CBSE schools and those of other non-state boards under its thumb. Prepaid taxi service at airport shut down Following several complaints of overcharging from passengers and violation of contract conditions by Amdavad Airport Taxi Owners Association (AATOA), the Airports Authority of India (AAI) on Friday terminated prepaid service operations. Four thieves caught, laptop seized Two teams of city crime branch caught two gangs involved in thefts of cash from cars. More Ahmedabad News»

		More News»

		Bhubaneswar
		Respiratory diseases, fever strike Bondas Fever and respiratory ailments have struck Bondas, a particularly vulnerable tribal group in the state. BSE plans action against examiners for faulty marking The Board of Secondary Education (BSE) has decided to take stern action against examiners found guilty of faulty evaluation and dereliction of duty. Chaotic parking spells woes for commuters The roadside parking space created jointly by the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the police for four-wheelers has brought with it more problems than solutions. More Bhubaneswar News»

		Bhopal
		BHEL cheer: Awadhpuri to get police station in month Awadhpuri area of BHEL township would get a new police station in a month’s time. Called Awadhpuri police station, it will cover an area of 10 square km having a population of 1.5 lakh residing in 33 plus colonies in the area. NIA team to visit Ratlam today to question wannabe ISIS militants A team of officers of National Investigation Agency (NIA) officials are likely to visit Ratlam on Saturday to interrogate the wannabe ISIS militant Imran Khan and his three accomplices before deciding to take over the case from state police. Crack down on illegal mining in Ken, NGT to Panna admn National Green Tribunal (NGT) expressed concern over illegal sand mining in Ken River in Panna district. NGT has asked district administration and police to crack down on those engaged in unlawful sand mining in a week’s time. More Bhopal News»

		Chandigarh
		230 trained at Smart Centre Within a year of its inception, the 'Smart Centre' at National Institute of Technical Teachers' Training and Research (NITTTR), Sector 26, has helped around 70% of its students find mainstream jobs. Doctors SPEAK up to silence unethical practice Kamini.Mehta@timesgroup.The next time when a doctor recommends joint replacement or uterus removal or any surgery, first 'SPEAK' out, as you might be a victim of unethical practice. Cop passes racist remarks, sent to police lines Sector 16 police in-charge sub-inspector Surjit Singh was sent to the police lines as punishment on Friday after he allegedly passed racist remarks against members of a community. More Chandigarh News»

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