41 dead in Kenya bus disaster: police

Nairobi: At least 41 people were killed on Thursday in a bus crash west of the Kenyan capital Nairobi, the Kenyan Red Cross said.

"It is a horrible scene. Bodies are strewn all over," traffic police official Samuel Kimaru said by telephone from the scene near the town of Narok.

"It is difficult to tell exactly what happened but all indications point to speeding and possibly overloading," he said. "It is quite disturbing."

The Kenyan Red Cross said it had confirmed 41 deaths and 27 others with "multiple injuries".

The bus was travelling from Nairobi to Homa Bay on the banks of Lake Victoria.

It was about halfway into the journey when it veered off the road and plunged into a valley, rolling over several times.

The Red Cross said the accident occurred shortly after 2:00 am (2300 GMT Wednesday). Pictures from the organisation showed the bus in the bushes at the bottom of a hill, its roof ripped off.

Kimaru said police had "a difficult time recovering the bodies because this place is hilly and bushy".

"We've dozens others injured and we are not certain how many because they were taken to various hospitals... we have officers checking with the hospitals," Kimaru said.

Akhilesh Yadav suspends three MLAs including one caught in Goa 'dance bar'

LUCKNOW: In an image building exercise, the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) on Wednesday evening suspended its three "tainted" MLAs - Mahendra Kumar Singh, Radheshyam Jaiswal and Ram Lal Akela - from the party on charge of "anti-party" activities.

The party spokesman Rajendra Chowdhary said that the chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, who is also the state SP president, decided to suspend three MLAs from the party after they were found to involved in criminal activities, which have damaged party's image and reputation.

Mahendra Kumar Singh is MLA from Sevta assembly constituency in Sitapur district. He was arrested in Goa on Monday along with five others and a few call girls. He was booked under the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act and remanded in police custody for six days.

Sachin Jaiswal son of Radheshyam Jaiswal, MLA from Sitapur Sadar assembly constituency in Sitapur district, was on Tuesday booked by the police after he opened fire and injured one, Dharam Pal Yadav, following a dispute over a land. He was accused of land-grabbing.

Ram Lal Akela, MLA from Bachhrawan assembly seat of Rae Bareli, was also suspended because of his three sons Vikrant, Ranjit and Sonu, who bulldozed the house of an additional chief medical officer, Naseer, at Krantipuri locality on Saturday after he refused to pay them Rs 20 lakh.

SP leaders said that the chief minister has given a signal to party leaders and workers that "criminal activities" will not be tolerated.

The SP government is already drawing flak from all directions for the collapse of law and order in UP, which may go against the party in 2014 lok sabha polls.

However, opposition described it as an eyewash. State BJP spokesperson Vijay Pathak said that the action has been taken a day after media reported the matter. "Many SP leaders and workers are indulging in criminal activities across UP but no action has been taken against them," he said.

BSP general secretary Swami Prasad Maurya said that the three incidents prove that the state is being ruled by goons and mafia. "We will raise the issue in the next assembly session. BSP chief Mayawati has already demanded imposition of President rule in the state," he said.

Earlier, on April 14, 2013, Akhilesh had sacked khadi and village industry minister Raja Ram Pandey from his cabinet after the latter triggered a controversy by allgedly promising to get roads in Pratapgarh district constructed like cheeks of actresses Hema Malini and Madhuri Dixit.

Similarly, on June 21, 2013, chief minister had expelled Pramod Gupta, MLA from Bidhuna assembly constituency of Auraiya district, from the party for six years on charge of anti-party activities. Gupta is brother-in-law of SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and Akhilesh's uncle.

On March 4, 2013, on the direction of Akhilesh, independent MLA from Kunda and minister Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya had resigned after he was named in deputy SP murder case. Though CBI has given clean chit to Raja, he has not been re-inducted in the cabinet so far.

ராஜா ராணி

 ஆர்யா, நயன்தாரா நடித்துள்ள ‘ராஜா ராணி’ படத்துக்கு ஏகப்பட்ட பப்ளிசிட்டி கிடைத்துள்ளது. ஆர்யாவுக்கும் நயன்தாராவுக்கும் திருமணம் என பரபரப்பை கிளப்பி, இருவரும் சர்ச்சில் திருமணக் கோலத்தில் இருப்பதுபோன்ற படங்களை வெளியிட்டனர். அடுத்ததாக படத்தின் சிங்கிள் டிராக், மற்றும் பாடல் எடுக்கப்பட்ட காட்சி என வெளியிட்டு அமர்க்களப்படுத்தினர்.

இந்நிலையில், ஜி.வி.பிரகாஷ் இசையில் உருவாகியுள்ள இப்படத்தின் பாடல்கள் வெளியீட்டு விழாவை வரும் 23-ந் தேதி சென்னையில் பிரம்மாண்ட விழாவாக நடத்த திட்டமிட்டுள்ளனர். இதற்கான அழைப்பிழை பழைய எல்.பி. ரிகார்டு வடிவில் அச்சடித்துள்ளனர்.

இந்த அழைப்பிதழை இன்று காலை சூப்பர் ஸ்டார் ரஜினியிடம் இப்படத்தின் இயக்குனர் அட்லி நேரில் கொடுத்து விழாவுக்கு அழைப்பு விடுத்தார். அவருக்கு ரஜினி தனது வாழ்த்துக்களை தெரிவித்தார்.

‘ராஜா ராணி’ படத்தில் ஆர்யா, நயன்தாரா, ஜெய், நஸ்ரியா நஸீம், சத்யராஜ், சத்யன் ஆகியோர் நடித்துள்ளனர். பாக்ஸ் ஸ்டார் நிறுவனத்துடன் இணைந்து ஏ.ஆர்.முருகதாஸ் இப்படத்தை தயாரிக்கிறார். இப்படத்தின் இயக்குனர் அட்லி, நேரில் கொடுத்து விழாவுக்கு அழைப்பு விடுத்தார். அவருக்கு ரஜினி தனது வாழ்த்துக்களை தெரிவித்தார்.

‘ராஜா ராணி’ படத்தில் ஆர்யா, நயன்தாரா, ஜெய், நஸ்ரியா நஸீம், சத்யராஜ், சத்யன் ஆகியோர் நடித்துள்ளனர். பாக்ஸ் ஸ்டார் நிறுவனத்துடன் இணைந்து ஏ.ஆர்.முருகதாஸ் இப்படத்தை தயாரிக்கிறார். இப்படத்தின் இயக்குனர் அட்லி, ஷங்கரிடம் உதவி இயக்குனராக பணியாற்றியவர்.

Passenger gives birth on royal air maroc flight

Passenger gives birth on royal air maroc flight

Rabat: A passenger on a Royal Air Maroc flight from Casablanca, Morocco, to Bologna, Italy, gave birth to a boy mid-air.

The official Moroccan news agency MAP says that the 39-year-old woman went into labor shortly after takeoff on Sunday. The flight was diverted to Barcelona, and the baby was born just before landing. The airline didn't specify the passenger's nationality.

It said crew members and a midwife, who happened to be on the plane, helped with the delivery.

Mother and child were taken to Sant Joan de Deu hospital in Barcelona and are in good health, the airline says. The flight continued on to Bologna around 50 minutes after landing in Barcelona.

Raghuram Rajan is next Reserve Bank Governor

Mumbai, Aug 6: 

Chief Economic Advisor Raghuram Rajan is set to grab the top post as the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India for the next three years.

Rajan will succeed the current RBI Governor Duvvuri Subbarao whose term ends on September 4. The Finance Ministry announced his appointment on Tuesday.

"The Prime Minister has approved the appointment of Dr Raghuram Rajan as the Governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for a term of three years," a statement issued by the Finance Ministry said.

Last year, Rajan was appointed as the Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India. He has formerly worked as the chief economist at the International Monetary Fund.

Rajan has been a gold medalist in IIT-Delhi and IIM-Ahmedabad.