News Digest: Be ready for performance audit, Gadkari warns babus

		THE TIMES OF INDIA
		Friday, October 02, 2015
		Today's Headlines

		India
		Be ready for performance audit, Gadkari warns babus Fed up with procedural delays, road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday cautioned officials that they should now be ready for performance audit. Independent rail regulator by year end, Prabhu says Railway ministers may lose their ‘absolute’ power to decide on passenger fares as the current incumbent Suresh Prabhu announced the decision to finalize the proposal for setting up of an independent regulator by the year end. NHAI to looks to the skies for real time tracking of road conditions National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is preparing an ambitious plan for real time tracking of road conditions using the scientifically mapped and updated data, and feed from Isro and NECTAR. More India News»

		Business
		Govt readies loan recast for nine power discoms The government is set to clear a mega debt restructuring next week for nine state power distribution companies as part of an exercise to reviatilise the sector and clean-up bank balance sheets. Manufacturing slows to 7-month low in September Manufacturing activity in the country slowed to a seven-month low in September as the pace of new orders moderated, a survey showed on Thursday, highlighting the need to unveil measures to get the industrial sector out of the sluggish phase. India fastest growing air travel mkt globally: IATA Thanks to low fares and increase in capacity with launch of new airlines, India is now witnessing the highest growth in domestic air traffic globally. More Business News»

		Environment
		India submits its climate action plan India on Thursday submitted its 'climate action plan' to a UN body at Bonn in Germany, telling the world that the country would fight the climate change by taking energy efficiency route and reducing its 'emission intensity' (carbon emission per unit of GDP) substantially as well as increasing the share of clean energy by huge 40% in its total energy mix by the year 2030. New lizard species discovered in Kozhikode The finding by a team of scientists led by B H Channakeshava Murthy of the Western Ghats Regional Centre, Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Kozhikode, was published in international scientific journal Zootaxa last week. NGT directs UP authorities to stop sand mining An NGO today moved the National Green Tribunal against the rampant illegal sand mining being carried out in Jalaun and Hamirpur districts of Uttar Pradesh, prompting the National Green Tribunal to direct authorities to immediately stop these activities. More Environment News»

		World
		50 knifed to death in China coal mine, Uighurs suspected Radio Free Asia said the number of people killed in the September 18 attack at the Sogan colliery in Aksu had reached 50, with most casualties being members of the Han Chinese majority. Sushma calls UN ineffective and asks for reforms Minister for external affairs, Sushma Swaraj, on Thursday criticized the United Nations for being ineffective in preventing some of the crisis around the world. She was speaking at the UN General Assembly. Refugee crisis: Hungary prepares to seal Croatia border A small gap in coils of newly laid razor wire is all that remains of the Zakany-Botovo border crossing between Hungary and fellow European Union member Croatia, as Budapest prepares to close off another route for migrants flocking to Europe. More World News»

		Entertainment
		The real people speak up about 'Talvar' As the sensational Noida double murder debate resumes on the big screen today, those impacted by the case tell us why it is a must-watch. Know all about Harbhajan-Geeta wedding Indian cricket team’s Turbanator Harbhajan Singh is finally set to tie the knot this month with longstanding girlfriend and Bollywood actress, Geeta Basra. Salman Khan: Cliches that make his films a hit The Bollywood heartthrob - Salman Khan, has a huge fan following and understandably so. More Entertainment News»

		Science
		Soon, `smart' glove to turn sign language into text A smart glove that features sensors to convert hand and finger movements into text and spoken dialogue is being developed by a university student in London. Researchers develop technology to produce low-cost heart valves Researchers at Colorado State University (CSU) and Ohio State University (OSU) say they have developed a technology to produce low-cost heart valves. Asteroids are Moon's main 'water supply' Water reserves found on the Moon are the result of asteroids acting as "delivery vehicles" and not of falling ice comets as was previously thought, a new study using computer simulation has found. More Science News»

		Sports
		MS Dhoni all for aggression, but within boundaries For long, MS Dhoni has been known to be a man unperturbed by situations, someone who doesn't get fazed easily, hardly spotted with animated on the field. Ranji: Sehwag sizzles with 92 as Haryana score 303/6 Virender Sehwag started the Ranji Trophy season for his new state Haryana in right earnest as his sparkling 92 set the foundation of a decent score of 303 for six at stumps against hosts Maharashtra. Rafael Nadal says Novak Djokovic 'difficult to equal' Nadal heaped praise on longstanding rival Djokovic for playing at a level "difficult to equal" ahead of an exhibition match between the pair in Bangkok. More Sports News»

		Technology
		5 reasons not to buy Google Nexus 5X Google has released its new Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P smartphones, complete with features like fingerprint sensor, fast-charging, high-end processors and the latest version of Android. The Baba who's a magnet for tech Babalog The Baba's halo shined bright last week when Zuckerberg mentioned to Narendra Modi during the Indian prime minister's US tour that he had visited a temple in India during the early days of Facebook on the advice of Apple founder Steve Jobs. In digital push, PM Modi shouldn't take Google, Facebook at face value Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been praised for his salesmanship in Silicon Valley, for extracting large commitments towards Digital India from Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Cisco and Qualcomm. More Technology News»

		Education
		JNU students vote against UGC guidelines on student safety 1,678 students who participated, 1,545 voted against the University Grants Commission's student safety guidelines at Jawaharlal Nehru University. Common counselling for NITs/IITs has helped: Smriti Irani Human Resource Development minister Smriti Irani on Thursday said common counselling helped reduce stress on students and also vacant seats in IITs and NITs. From superhero dubsmash to selfie contest ...Here’s what to watch out for at IIT-BHU’s upcoming FMC Weekend More Education News»

		Mumbai
		Consumers pay extra for fuel as state fails to clear tax muddle Motorists in Navi Mumbai, Thane, Kalyan-Dombivli and other parts of the state, barring Mumbai, had to pay the new ‘drought surcharge’ on fuel as well as local body tax (LBT) due to confusion over the government’s imposition of the tax and withdrawal of LBT at the same time. 'Police brutality' probes miss date The police probes into the brutal thrashing of a woman at the Lalbaugcha Raja pandal last week by woman constables and the Juhu cops trying to knock off money from a diamond merchant at gun point have not reached anywhere. The reports in both cases were to be submitted on Wednesday. Transporters' strike enters 2nd day The indefinite strike by transporters is likely to continue on Friday, with 90 lakh trucks across the country off the roads and a significant number of heavy vehicles stalled in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai. The agitation, however, has not affected the supply of essential commodities like vegetables, fruits, medicines, milk in the city. More Mumbai News»

		Delhi
		ACB to probe awarding of ads by Delhi government The LG-appointed chief of anti-corruption branch, M K Meena, has ordered a probe and issued a notice to the Delhi government based on a complaint alleging irregularities in awarding of advertisement contracts. The latter has denied the charge. Vijay Goel panned over paean to PM Modi A song in the 1954 movie Jagriti honoured Mahatma Gandhi as Sabarmati ke Sant (saint of Sabarmati); six decades later BJP MP Vijay Goel has found another sant in Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Minor driver kills 2 children, injures four men in east Delhi A 17-year-old youth mowed down two children and injured four men when he took his father's Eeco taxi for a spin after stealing the keys. More Delhi News»

		Bangalore
		HAL looks to scale two new heights on its choppers In its 75th year, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is looking to reach two major milestones by the year-end to keep its monopoly in defence aircraft manufacturing in tact and to continue to bag orders from the armed forces. Only 15 mediators cater to 100 couples every day Clutching her one-year-old daughter, IT professional Sunita Chandra is impatiently waiting to meet the mediator. It's her third counselling session at the family court. CID inspects Raghaveshwara Bharathi swamy's Girinagar mutt The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on Thursday inspected the mutt of seer Raghaveshwara Bharathi at Girinagar in Bengaluru on Thursday. More Bangalore News»

		Hyderabad
		CAT gives ultimatum to Centre on cadre division Disapproving the inordinate delay in explaining the rationale behind its cadre division exercise, the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) on Thursday slapped a penalty of Rs 500 on the central government and gave an ultimatum that if it fails to do its job by October 7, it would conclude the hearing in the case. Man who ripped off Flipkart arrested A con artist who duped e-commerce giant Flipkart by stealing valuable parts of electronic goods he had ordered to be delivered to him, but his luck ran out recently when the e-tailer kept a watch on him and caught him red-handed while he was trying to return a gadget claiming it was faulty. Why test meat, why not their brains, asks Owaisi Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi said India could soon turn into a “banana republic”, a day after the lynching of Mohammed Ikhlaq and his son in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, over rumours of eating beef. More Hyderabad News»

		Chennai
		Blood flows as politicos & mafia clash on land deals On the outskirts of the city and in neighbouring Kancheepuram, gangsters in the real estate business and their political masters are turning once peaceful neighbourhoods into badlands where cold-blooded murder is often how feuds are settled. Birders spot colourful European rollers on outskirts of Chennai The sighting of a few European rollers at the Pulicat sanctuary a fort night ago has excited naturalists and birdwatchers. AIADMK organ asks Karunanidhi if he would expel Stalin for temple visit The ruling AIADMK on Thursday sought to trigger a controversy over the recent visit of DMK leader M K Stalin and his wife Durga to the historical Thirukoshtiyur temple in Sivanganga district last week, posing a query to DMK chief M Karunanidhi as to whether he would expel his son from the party. More Chennai News»

		Ahmedabad
		HC turns down sedition recall plea Gujarat high court on Thursday declined Patidar reservation stir leader Hardik Patel’s request to withdraw its order asking Vastrapur police to register an FIR if his speech at the GMDC ground on August 25 is found seditious in nature. Mahatma's birthdays: From troubled to a happy one! When Mahatma Gandhi first returned to India from South Africa in 1915 to set up his ashram in Ahmedabad in May that year, his first birthday at Kochrab was not a very happy one! Congress supports 15-20% reservation for EBCs beyond 49% cap Congress party has thrown its hat into the reservation ring. Gurudas Kamat, general secretary of the All India Congress Committee and in-charge of Gujarat Congress, announced here on Thursday that his party supports 15-20% economically backward class (EBC) quota for Patidars and other non-reserved communities across India. More Ahmedabad News»

		Allahabad
		Duranto Express to stop at Kanpur station from today The new railway time table will come into effect from October 1. As per the new time table the timing of many trains passing in North Central Railway region has been changed. Students' union elections: Polling remains peaceful in AU, 4 colleges Cops remained on their toes throughout the day and did not allow any gathering in and around the varsity and colleges. Allahabad university students union gets first woman president Hailing from Aligarh, Richa Singh, a research scholar, founded a "Friends' Club" a few years back as an alternative platform, independent of students' wings of established political parties. More Allahabad News»

		Bhubaneswar
		Odisha achieves 25% growth in revenue generation by September Despite global slowdown, Odisha achieved 25 per cent increase in revenue generation from tax and non-tax revenue by the end of September, 2015. Domestic airline Vistara starts service from Bhubaneswar Vistara, a domestic carries, started its service from Bhubaneswar to Delhi from Thursday with two flights every day. With Vistara the total number of daily flights at Biju Patnaik International Airport reaches to 20 each in incoming and outgoing routes. CBI starts probe into murder of jeweller's wife, children in Puri CBI on Thursday started its probe into the sensational murders of a Lucknow-based woman and her two children in a hotel in Puri nearly two years ago. The woman’s husband Amit Agrawal, a bullion trader, is the main accused and has been on the run since the crime. More Bhubaneswar News»

		Bhopal
		Farmer attempts suicide in Sagar A young farmer on Thursday consumed insecticide to end his life in Sallaiya village of Sagar, 15 kms away from district headquarter. MP CM meets Japanese deputy PM, invites him to state investors meet On the third day of his official tour to Japan and South Korea, chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday met Japanese deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso in Tokyo and invited him to Global Investors Summit 2016 to facilitate greater cooperation and investment in Madhya Pradesh. Madhya Pradesh lokayukta arrests accounts officer accepting bribe Lokayukta police on Thursday arrested a senior accountant of local audit office allegedly while taking bribe from officers of state’s agriculture department. More Bhopal News»

		Chandigarh
		Now, rate grievance redressal To further improve the functioning of online grievance management system of the municipal corporation (MC) and to make it more responsive, the MC has added a unique feature under which citizens will be able to rate redressal of their grievances on a scale of 1 to 5 as soon as their complaint was resolved. Women voice need for liberty, dignity, equality The need for liberty, dignity and equality emerged as a unifying factor at the second Asia level regional meeting on promoting rights and dignity of girls and women. UT launches 3 services under e-district Giving a thrust to implement e-governance in the city and deliver improved public services, the Chandigarh administration on Wednesday launched three new services under the e-district initiative. More Chandigarh News»

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