News Digest: FM takes on SC over judges' appointments

		THE TIMES OF INDIA
		Monday, October 19, 2015
		Today's Headlines

		India
		FM takes on SC over judges' appointments Finance minister Arun Jaitley has taken on the Supreme Court for striking down the National Judicial Appointments Commission, saying the judiciary could not arrogate to itself the role of being a parallel legislature. Fake adoption racket busted, kingpin arrested in Delhi The kingpin of a gang, who used to steal newborn babies from hospitals across NCR and put them up for adoption or sale to childless couples, was arrested, police said on Sunday. Amit Shah pulls up saffron hotheads at Modi's prompt BJP chief Amit Shah on Sunday delivered a stern reprimand to saffron motormouths in the news for controversial comments on issues like the Dadri lynching and beef bans, asking them to immediately stop making inflammatory statements, which he said deflected attention from Modi’s development agenda. More India News»

		Business
		E-tailers 'appy' as sales draw in more shoppers Last week's mass-scale, heavily marketed sales by India's biggest e-tailers appear to have succeeded in drawing many millions more to online platforms, and especially to buying on mobile phones. WestBridge raises $575m to hit $2 billion Top-tier investment fund WestBridge Capital has raised another $575 million, or Rs 3,735 crore, to back Indian companies, taking its assets under management to $2 billion, the fastest scale-up for any domestic-focused fund. VW's French HQ raided over emission scandal Police have raided Volkswagen’s French headquarters over an investigation into the massive pollution-cheating scandal that has engulfed the German auto giant, a judicial source said on Sunday. More Business News»

		Environment
		Film on leopard conservation hits wall as government objects A documentary on leopards' conservation, Discovery Channel's 'Jawai: India's Leopard Hills' that was to be aired on October 19 this year will now not be aired following objections from the forest department. 'Why is port trust being asked to resume coal handling?' Maharashtra’s environment department seems to have forgotten the reason for its existence. Climate change fans global security crisis: Kerry More Environment News»

		World
		Obama orders steps towards lifting Iran sanctions President Barack Obama ordered the US government on Sunday to take steps towards lifting sanctions on Iran, in line with the nuclear deal struck between world powers and Tehran in July. Spanish women knit blankets for Syrians Every night for the past week, a team of some 20 women and girls have met in a café in the heart of Villaverde del Rio, a town of white-washed houses near Seville, to finish their blankets. Air France to go ahead with 2016 job cuts Air France will go ahead as planned and cut almost 1,000 jobs in 2016 under the first part of a restructuring plan that triggered violent protests, the chief executive of Air France-KLM said Sunday. More World News»

		Entertainment
		Deepika: SLB is never pleased the first time A perfectionist at his craft, Sanjay Leela Bhansali is known to be a tough task master. Urvashi Rautela crowned Miss Diva 2015 Salman Khan secretly engaged to Lulia Vantur? Rumours mills have been abuzz with talks of Salman Khan and Romanian TV personality Lulia Vantur being in a relationship. More Entertainment News»

		Science
		Sitting postures leading to more spine problems: Study The daily routine of a majority of urban Indians - driving over bad roads, sitting hunched over workstations or fiddling with their smartphones for hours on end - seems to be fuelling an epidemic of spine-related problems. Not just bones, brain too needs calcium That calcium is important for strong bones is no secret. But a recent study by city-based scientists has revealed that the chemical element is needed by cells as well and an imbalance can cause problems. Three-planet spectacle to be visible till October 26 After the Super Moon eclipse last month, stargazers will be able to see this week a major planetary ‘conjunction’ from October 18 to 26. More Science News»

		Sports
		3rd ODI: South Africa beat India by 18 runs to take 2-1 lead South Africa defeated India in the third one day international by 18 runs to take 2-1 lead in the five-match series in Rajkot on Sunday. Turning points: India v South Africa, 3rd ODI TOI Sports looks at the key moments from South Africa's 18-run win over India at Rajkot. CSK, RR to return in 2018; BCCI to invite tender for teams The BCCI will now float tenders for two new franchises to take CSK and RR's place for the upcoming ninth edition of the Twenty20 league. More Sports News»

		Technology
		7 iPhone 6S features taken from other phones Apple has launched its two new iPhones -- iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S in the Indian market. Is Apple charging Indians the most for iPhone 6S? Until a few years ago, iPhones were launched in India months after global launch, thereby giving rise to a flourishing grey market. There's a big catch in Trai's call drop compensation plan Compensation will be provided only if the call drop happened due to the calling party's network; so, if the call is dropped due to the receiving party's network, the consumer will not be compensated. More Technology News»

		Education
		50-day plan to hone in kids' Hindi, math skills The 54 schools in Delhi government's model school programme have been asked to put their regular mathematics and Hindi instruction on hold and teach a programme designed by education NGO Pratham in primary school. 'We plan to ease closure process to curb number of seats going vacant' Over a spread of South Indian delicacies served on the traditional plantain leaf, the All India Council for Technical Education vice-chairman Avinash S Pant discusses with Adarsh Jain, the regulatory body’s plan to improve quality in technical education. Here are excerpts from the interview in Coimbatore. School boards' meeting on October 28 to discuss high exam scores With the admission cut-offs in universities scaling new peaks every year, the HRD ministry has called a meeting of 42 all-India and state school education boards to discuss how to check the trend of excessively high board exam scores. More Education News»

		Mumbai
		Record number of Jains chose diksha this year When the ‘plastic king’ rode on a specially designed ‘ship’ and tossed packets containing gold coins and keys of brand new cars into the crowds in a Ahmedabad ground on May 31, he lived up to his moniker. 'Golu' dolls breathe life into Navratri MUMBAI: Since the start of Navratra, South Indian homes have welcomed scores of guests with gifts of betel leaves, cloth, coconut, fruit and sweets. Pawar slams RSS, recalls Savarkar stand on cows NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday said Hindutva icon and freedom fighter Veer Savarkar had said that cows could be slaughtered once they had outlived their usefulness. More Mumbai News»

		Delhi
		Fire breaks out at Delhi's Mongolpuri area Major fire broke out in Delhi's Mongolpuri area early on Monday, according to ANI reports. Two minors held for toddler's rape Two minors have been apprehended for the brutal rape of a two-and-a-halfyear-old girl in west Delhi’s Nihal Vihar on Friday night. Government must leave AIIMS alone: Jaitley Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said ministries should refrain from getting over-involved in the internal matters of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) as it hampers the institution’s growth. More Delhi News»

		Bangalore
		Bengaluru: Forum bats for anti-superstition bill The forum for anti-superstition bill will hold rallies across the state urging the government to implement the Karnataka Prevention of Superstitions Practices Bill by October 30. Bengaluru: Wine lovers can now clink glasses For over a decade, tipplers had no choice but to pick their wine from wine shops that sell and stock more spirits and beer than wine. Be tech savvy to adopt a child in Bengaluru Want to adopt a baby? You got to be tech savvy, have a PAN card, a mobile phone and access to the internet. More Bangalore News»

		Hyderabad
		BJP cautions Naidu over capital event spending Sources in the BJP said party leaders from Andhra Pradesh have taken up the issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Sudhir panel to fast-track Muslim quota The commission, headed by former special chief secretary G Sudhir, has conducted public hearings in half-a-dozen districts so far and proposes to fast-track its work to meet deadline of 31st March 2016. Hyderabad cops raid hookah parlours; 11 booked Police also conducted searches at horse stables in Chandrayangutta and seized eight horses. More Hyderabad News»

		Chennai
		Chennai: Bore well digging in Masinagudi will deplete ground water, increase man-animal conflict Permission to dig nine bore wells in Masinagudi, the buffer zone of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve and an important elephant corridor in the Nilgiris Biosphere Reserve, has shocked local residents and naturalists. Tamil Nadu freebie sarees sold in Kerala shops for Rs 100 Tamil Nadu state government free sarees, which is meant to distribute to the ration card holders in the state during Pongal festival, are being sold at a price of Rs80 and Rs100 in many shops in Padmanabha Swamy temple, Balarama Puram and Kovalam cities in Tiruvananthapuram. Culture brings home the flavour of Puja season in Chennai What is a Bengali gathering without some intellectual exercise, and what better time to showcase talent other than the few days of Durga puja festivity. More Chennai News»

		Ahmedabad
		Khanpur Darwaja closed after partial collapse Fire Brigade Operation To Clear Debris Continued Till Midnight. Slight winter chill only by November-end in Ahmedabad: IMD Amdavadis, who are reeling under sultry weather conditions, will have to wait till November-end for a slight nip in the air. Gold loses shine this Navratri, sales dip by 50% in Ahmedabad The surge in gold purchases usually associated with Navratri has gone missing this year, bringing down sales of jewellery this festive season. More Ahmedabad News»

		Allahabad
		'Smart Mini City' in Allahabad takes off While the Modi government ambitious smart city project is yet to take off, a private builder in Allahabad has come up with a 'smart mini city'. Rly to cut down power bills with new vendor In an attempt to bring down its staggering electricity bills, north central railway (NCR) will purchase electricity from Adani Power Limited. HC dismisses plea challenging AMU V-C's appointment The Allahabad High Court on Friday dismissed a writ petition challenging the appointment of Zameeruddin Shah as vice-chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU). More Allahabad News»

		Bhubaneswar
		BU readies for golden jubilee Higher education minister Pradeep Kumar Panigrahy on Saturday laid foundation stone of the 'golden jubilee' gate of Berhampur University. OUAT gives quota rules the miss The Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) has apparently bypassed reservation rules, documents obtained using RTI Act reveal. Berhampur drain renovation begins The much-awaited renovation of Bahana Nala, one of the major drains flowing on the outskirts of Berhampur, started on Saturday. More Bhubaneswar News»

		Bhopal
		Kidnapped complainant of sexual harassment found in Manali A 35-year-old woman, who was drugged and kidnapped immediately after police lodged a case of sexual harassment against a deputy director of department of public relations, has been tracked down in Manali. Subsidized coal for MSMEs 'diverted' to open market A coal scam involving diversion of subsidized coal procured from Western Coalfields Limited (WCL), Betul for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in the state has come to light. Ex-IFS officer, tied to Vyapam, dead Vijay Bahadur Singh, the retired Indian Forest Services officer, was an observer in 12 Vyapam recruitment tests. This first after the Supreme Court handed over the probe into the Vyapam recruitment scam to the CBI. More Bhopal News»

		Chandigarh
		We will ensure exemplary punishment to the culprits: Parkash Singh Badal Exhorting the agitating people to shun the path of agitation, which was causing a lot of harassment to the general public, chief minster Parkash Singh Badal assured them that the state government would make every effort to ensure that the perpetrators of heinous crime of sacrilege of Sri Guru Granth Sahib was brought to book. 2016 will be dedicated to health, education & cleanliness: Vipul Goel With the inflation, increased electricity rates and poor law and order situation staring on the BJP government in Haryana, the Faridabd MLA Vipul Goel on Sunday listed out his achievement of the year while setting the goals for next year. Another Sikh holy book found torn Torn pages of a Sikh religious scripture were on Sunday found in Ghwaddi village of the district after which heavy police force was summoned to avert any untoward incident. More Chandigarh News»

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