India

Lucknow, Aug 1: UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday defended the suspension of IAS officer Durga Shakti Nagpal claiming that action was taken against her for demolishing the wall of a mosque without consulting seniors and not for preventing illegal sand mining. "The issue was not mining. Even we are against illegal mining. The demolition of the wall of a mosque had vitiated the harmony

Hyderabad, Aug 1: Several Ministers from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema on Wednesday remonstrated with Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy the decision on creation of Telangana even as protests erupted in non-Telangana regions of the state against the contentious move. Several ministers from non-Telangana region, who had threatened to quit if the Congress decided to carve a new state out of Andhra

New Delhi, Aug 1: Resorting to the fifth increase since June-beginning, public sector oil firms hiked petrol prices by Re 0.70 per litre from Wednesday-Thursday midnight. Diesel prices too moved up by Rs 0.50 per litre. The price increase excludes VAT or local taxes. After the hike, petrol prices for Bangalore will be Rs 78.12 per litre, in NewDelhi Rs.71.28, in Kolkata Rs 78.64, Mumbai Rs 78.61

Kolkata, Jul 31: With Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) renewing the demand for Gorkhaland in Darjeeling after UPA endorsed creation of a separate Telangana state, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday ruled out division of West Bengal and blamed the Congress for the agitation in the hills. “Darjeeling is part and parcel of West Bengal. There is no question of division of West Bengal. We are

Lucknow, Jul 31: With the UPA giving its nod for the creation of a separate Telangana state, former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati today renewed her demand for splitting the state into four parts, besides creation of Gorkhaland and Vidarbha. "BSP has always been in favour of smaller states for which it had sent a proposal duly passed by the state Assembly on November 23, 2011, when it was

Hyderabad, Jul 31: Normal life was disrupted in Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions on Wednesday as a shutdown began in the two regions against the decision of the Congress and the UPA to create Telangana state out of Andhra Pradesh. Educational institutions, commercial establishments remained closed and the services of state-run Andhra Pradesh Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) were suspended

Colombo, Jul 31: Sixty-five Indian fishermen in nine trawlers have been detained by the Sri Lankan Navy for allegedly violating the international maritime border. Naval spokesman Commander Kosala Warnakulasuriya has said that 34 of them in five trawlers were arrested off the coast north of Point Pedro in the north, on Tuesday. Another 31 were arrested east of Mullaithivu along with four vessels.

New Delhi, Jul 31: The ruling UPA on Tuesday decided to split Andhra Pradesh and create Telangana, acceding to a 45-year-old demand for statehood in a bid to win local support and stymie political rivals ahead of the 2014 general elections. Telangana, likely to be born as the 29th state of India sometime next year, will comprise 10 out of the 23 districts of united Andhra. For the first decade

New Delhi, Jul 30: A trial court on Tuesday awarded life term to lone suspected Indian Mujahideen operative Shahzad Ahmed who was convicted in the 2008 Batla House encounter for killing inspector M C Sharma and injuring two others. Shahzad has also been fined Rs 95,000 of which Rs 40,000 would be paid to family of slain inspector MC Sharma and Rs 20,000 to injured cop Balwant. Additional sessions

New Delhi, Jul 30: In the midst of mounting pressure from both pro and anti-Telangana leaders, Congress president Sonia Gandhi met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday ahead of the crucial UPA and CWC meetings to take a final decision on the separate statehood issue. The meeting came as leaders from both groups continued with their pressure tactics even as the leadership was veering towards a