0815 HRS
08th May, 2013 

THE HEADLINES:

• Counting of votes for Karnataka Assembly Elections begins.

• Government takes action against 31 officers and employees of public sector banks and LIC on charges of violation of various regulations.

• Centre sets up inter-ministerial group to suggest ways to tackle fraudulent money pooling activities.

• 55 people including 13 militants killed in multiple attacks in Nigeria.

• Indian men's team to take on Singapore in the finals of 19th Commonwealth Table-Tennis championship in New Delhi.

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Counting of votes for the Karnataka assembly elections has begun this morning amidst tight security in 36 counting centres across the state. There are 2940 candidates including 170 women in 223 constituencies. The Congress has pitted its candidates in all the 223 constituencies, while the BJP is contesting in 222 seats and the JD(S) in 221. There are 1223 Independents in the fray. They also include candidates from regional parties like the KJP , BSR Congress and also BSP. Polling in the Periyapatna assembly constituency in Mysore district has been deferred to May 28th by the Election Commission, following the demise of the BJP Candidate.

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The News Services Division of All India Radio will broadcast a special live bilingual programme on the Assembly Election Results in Karnataka in Hindi and English today from 1220 to 1400 hrs. In this programme experts and commentators in the Delhistudios will interact with Correspondents and experts in Karnataka on the trends and the results of the Assembly elections. This broadcast can be heard on Rajdhani and FM Gold Channels.

The News Services Division will also broadcast a special live bilingual Radio Bridgeprogramme from 9.30 pm to 10.30 pm today on the verdict of the assembly election. This programme can be heard on Rajdhani and FM Gold Channels. In addition, the News Services Division will broadcast an extended 10 minute news bulletin every hour to highlight trends and results from 10 am to 1.00 pm and at 6 pm.

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Both houses of Parliament were adjourned for the day yesterday after repeated disruptions. As the three-month long session is to conclude on the 10th of May the fate of key legislations like the National Food Security Bill and Land Acquisition Bill remains uncertain. The only work done in the second phase was the passage of the Finance Bill, which marked the end of the budgetary exercise and the Railway Budget without any discussion with the opposition walking out.

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The Government has said that action has been taken against 31 officers and employees of public sector banks and LIC including suspension, on charges ofviolation of various regulations. The Finance Ministry in a release said that so far, 15 officers and employees of various public sector banks have been suspended including one from the insurance sector. Besides, ten officers of PSU banks have been divested of their work and six have been asked to proceed on leave.

This followed a directive by the Financial Services Secretary Rajiv Takru to the Chairman and Managing Directors of public sector banks and LIC to take immediate action following the Cobrapost, Red Spider 2 expose which was released on Monday.

Takru has also sought an action taken report from the bank chiefs and LIC on utmost priority in this regard. Besides the Finance Ministry, the insurance regulator IRDA had said, it too was examining the allegations and action would be taken against the guilty at the earliest.

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The government has set up an inter-ministerial group, IMG, to suggest ways to tackle fraudulent money pooling activities and protect the interest of investors. The move follows rising instances of people being defrauded by ponzi schemes. Official sources said, representatives from the Finance and Corporate Affairs Ministries, Reserve Bank of India and Securities and Exchange Board of India will be members of the IMG. Setting up of the IMG is the latest in a slew of measures initiated by the government in the wake of the Kolkata-based Saradha Group cheating many investors through fraudulent money pooling schemes.

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The demarcation of the India-Nepal border is almost complete. The two countries had jointly begun the demarcating the boundary scientifically through a Joint Technical Committee. The two sides have now agreed to establish a Boundary Working Group for maintaining the border pillars in the identified sectors.

Giving this information in the Lok Sabha yesterday, Minister of State for Home Mullapally Ramachandran said India has an open border with Nepal.

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At least 55 people were killed in multiple attacks in Nigeria's northern state of Bornoin. The dead include 13 militants of the radical Islamic sect Boko Haram. The militants attacked an army base, a police station and a prison. Military spokesman Lt Col. Sagir Musa told reporters at Bama that 22 policemen, 14 prison guards, twosoldiers and four civilians were killed by the heavily-armed Boko Haram militants.

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In Pakistan, at least 18 people were killed and over 50 injured in two bomb blasts. 12 people were killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up near the car of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam leader Mufti Syed Janan, while he was campaigning for the May 11th general elections at a market at Doaba in Hangu district. He, however escaped unhurt. Hours later, an explosion ripped through an election meeting at Baba Gaam area killing six persons and injuring 15.

Meanwhile, Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan was injured on his head when he fell off a forklift that was hoisting him on to a stage for an election campaign meeting in Lahore yesterday.

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With admissions for the new four-year undergraduate programmes set to begin from next month, Delhi University's Academic Council has passed the new course structures of 28 departments from this academic session. The Academic Council met to assess the course syllabus recommended by the Standing Committee for subjects to be offered as major, minor and applied courses, besides the 11 foundation courses which will be compulsory for all students. The meeting was adjourned yesterday and will resume today to pass the remaining courses and to discuss several issues regarding the four-year undergraduate programme.

Meanwhile, a delegation of the Left and other MPs submitted a memorandum to thePrime Minister seeking his intervention in the matter. Later CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yechury told reporters in New Delhi that the Prime Minister assured the delegationthat the matter would be examined.

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In Uttar Pradesh, the death toll in the hooch tragedy which occurred in four police areas of Amethi in Sultanpur district last evening, has risen to eight.

The AIR Lucknow correspondent reports that senior administrative and police officers have reached the spot. The district police chief said that the exact cause of the same would be ascertained only after receiving the post-mortem report.

Local administration is on back foot due to eight deaths spanning into a wider area of four police station of the district. The spurious liquor which took these precious lives, was reportedly bought from a licensed vendor of western Mahona. Surprisingly, no arrests have been made or no shops have been sealed so far by the administration even after the deaths of eight persons losing eye sight by one and three persons still struggling for life. This is Merajuddin AIR News, Lucknow.

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Indian men paddlers have entered the finals of the team event at the 19th Commonwealth Table-Tennis Championships. However, the Indian women's team lost in the semi-finals. In the men's team semi-final in New Delhi yesterday, Indiabeat England 3-2. The Indian men will now take on Singapore in the finals today.

The Indian women's team lost their semi-final against England by a 2-3 margin and settled for a bronze medal.

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In the IPL match in Mumbai last night, Mumbai Indians beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 65 runs. The win has put Mumbai in the second spot on the league table with 16 points. Earlier, in the fixture played at Jaipur, Rajasthan Royals defeated DelhiDaredevils by nine wickets. Today, Sunrisers Hyderabad will take on Chennai Super Kings in Hyderabad at 8 P.M.

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In a novel event to foster peace in Asia, an Asian Internet Chess Festival among the Russian Cultural Centres was inaugurated in Chennai yesterday. A field of eight countries are vying for the honours- represented by seven teams. The tournament was inaugurated by Mr Nikolay Listopadov, the Consul General of the Russian Federation in south India by playing the first online move. World champion Vishwanathan Anand endorsed the tournament and remarked that Russia has a very special place in his heart.

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An RBI panel suggested setting up a common platform for payment of various bills, taxes, insurance premia, university and school fees. A report of the panel headed by RBI Executive Director G Padmanabhan said in Mumbai that the Committee recognises the need for a Giro model in India to start with mainly to streamline the bill payment process in the country.

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NEWSPAPERS HEADLINES

"CBI pulls chain at Bansal Junction", headlines the Mail Today. With the surrender of Ajay Garg, a close associate of Railway Minister Bansal's arrested nephew Vijay Singla, the CBI's web has begun tightening inexorably around the Minister, writes the paper.

Reporting on neonatal mortality rates, the Hindu writes that over 3 lakh newborns inIndia die within 24 hrs of their birth every year and that is the highest number in the world. The track record of the States shows that Kerala is far ahead of the rest of India in saving babies. Internationally, Bangladesh has reduced its new born mortality by 49 % since 1990, and Nepal by 47%, reports the paper.

"Queen to skip Lanka CHOGM" writes the Asian Age reporting that for the first time in 40 years, Queen Elizabeth II will skip the Commonwealth summit to be held in Sri Lanka, and will send her son Prince Charles instead for the biennial event.

In good news for foreign tourist inflow into the country, the Times of India writes, "India makes it easier to get visas on arrival". The paper says that not only has the visa on arrival facility been extended from 4 to 9 airports in the country, but a group visa on arrival facility has been given the nod for visitors from most countries.

The Pioneer writes that amid fierce protests in Delhi and Punjab against Congress leader Sajjan Kumar's acquittal in a 1984 anti Sikh riots case, the CBI plans to challenge the relief to former MP from the trial court in the case.

"Army pushes for arms for mountain warfare", says the Asian Age, adding that the modern weaponry will boost the Army's mountain warfare capabilities, a significant step considering the recent Chinese incursion in eastern Ladakh.

And finally, validating that human beings across the world are linked in more ways than one, the Times of India says that for the first time ever, European and Asian languages, spoken by billions of people today, have been traced back to a single mother tongue, as old as the Ice Age.