Posthumous Michael Jackson album due out May 13

NEW YORK: When Michael Jackson´s record label released his first posthumous album in a year after his 2009 death, producer Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins was asked to work on the project.

He declined.Years later, the hitmaker who worked heavily on Jackson´s 2001 comeback album "Invincible," says he´s finally comfortable again producing the King of Pop´s music.

He produced the title track from the upcoming album, "Xscape," out May 13.Says Jerkins: "I had a personal relationship with Michael, (so) it was about, ...´What would he want it to sound like now?´""Xscape" was executive produced by Timbaland and includes songs Jackson recorded in the 1980s and 1990s.

Some of the tracks are taken from early recording sessions for successful albums such as "Bad" and "Dangerous."

Posthumous Michael Jackson album due out May 13

NEW YORK: When Michael Jackson´s record label released his first posthumous album in a year after his 2009 death, producer Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins was asked to work on the project.

He declined.Years later, the hitmaker who worked heavily on Jackson´s 2001 comeback album "Invincible," says he´s finally comfortable again producing the King of Pop´s music.

He produced the title track from the upcoming album, "Xscape," out May 13.Says Jerkins: "I had a personal relationship with Michael, (so) it was about, ...´What would he want it to sound like now?´""Xscape" was executive produced by Timbaland and includes songs Jackson recorded in the 1980s and 1990s.

Some of the tracks are taken from early recording sessions for successful albums such as "Bad" and "Dangerous."

RTI activist Chandra Mohan Sharma found dead in Noida

Greater Noida: An RTI activist was found dead in a burnt car near Eldeco Crossing in Greater Noida, police said on Friday.

Chandra Mohan Sharma’s charred body was found inside his car on Thursday night after passersby informed the police that the vehicle caught fire, a police official said.

Mr. Sharma was an employee at Honda car company and he was returning home on Thursday night after duty, one of his relatives said.

Mr. Sharma’s body was charred beyond recognition and his relatives identified the body on Friday, according to police.

Mr. Sharma’s relatives alleged he was murdered and he was getting threatening calls from the mafia whose deed he had exposed through RTI.

Police said body has been sent for post mortem and investigation is on from all possible angles, including murder.

PTI

RTI activist Chandra Mohan Sharma found dead in Noida

Greater Noida: An RTI activist was found dead in a burnt car near Eldeco Crossing in Greater Noida, police said on Friday.

Chandra Mohan Sharma’s charred body was found inside his car on Thursday night after passersby informed the police that the vehicle caught fire, a police official said.

Mr. Sharma was an employee at Honda car company and he was returning home on Thursday night after duty, one of his relatives said.

Mr. Sharma’s body was charred beyond recognition and his relatives identified the body on Friday, according to police.

Mr. Sharma’s relatives alleged he was murdered and he was getting threatening calls from the mafia whose deed he had exposed through RTI.

Police said body has been sent for post mortem and investigation is on from all possible angles, including murder.

PTI

Rajinikanth's 'Lingaa' launched

Mysore: Superstar Rajinikanth-starrer Tamil film "Lingaa" was officially launched here Friday with a customary puja on the occasion of Akshaya Trithiya.

Rajinikanth, along with the film's director K.S. Ravikumar, were present at the event.

Clad in a white silk dhoti and shirt, Rajini was also joined by his friend and Kannada superstar Ambareesh and his wife Sumalatha at the launch, which took place inside the premises of the famous Chamundeshwari Temple.

"The film has been officially launched and the regular shooting is expected to start in a few days," a source from the film's unit told IANS.

Sonakshi Sinha and Anushka Shetty will be playing the female leads in the film, for which double Oscar-winning composer A.R Rahman will compose the tunes.

IANS

Rajinikanth's 'Lingaa' launched

Mysore: Superstar Rajinikanth-starrer Tamil film "Lingaa" was officially launched here Friday with a customary puja on the occasion of Akshaya Trithiya.

Rajinikanth, along with the film's director K.S. Ravikumar, were present at the event.

Clad in a white silk dhoti and shirt, Rajini was also joined by his friend and Kannada superstar Ambareesh and his wife Sumalatha at the launch, which took place inside the premises of the famous Chamundeshwari Temple.

"The film has been officially launched and the regular shooting is expected to start in a few days," a source from the film's unit told IANS.

Sonakshi Sinha and Anushka Shetty will be playing the female leads in the film, for which double Oscar-winning composer A.R Rahman will compose the tunes.

IANS

Four held over rape of 16 year-old

Kollam: Police have arrested four persons in connection with the rape of a 16 year-old girl at Pathanapuram here.

The arrested also include the step-father of the victim, who, along with the others, had been sexually exploiting her for the past two months.

The police said that the victim, a native of Punnala, had been in the protection of a charitable trust here after the death of her parents.

Four held over rape of 16 year-old

Kollam: Police have arrested four persons in connection with the rape of a 16 year-old girl at Pathanapuram here.

The arrested also include the step-father of the victim, who, along with the others, had been sexually exploiting her for the past two months.

The police said that the victim, a native of Punnala, had been in the protection of a charitable trust here after the death of her parents.

South Korean ferry mishap toll rises to 226

Seoul:The number of confirmed deaths from the sinking of the Sewol ferry in South Korea has risen to 226 after five more bodies were recovered from the submerged ship Friday.

Divers continued trying to locate the bodies of the 72 people who are still missing.

Coast guard and navy divers, along with private divers, will Friday concentrate on the central and left sections of the fourth and fifth floors of the five-storey ship that have remained unexplored so far, rescue service personnel said.

The operations have been hampered by strong sea currents, which have also threatened to carry the bodies far away from the site of the sunken ship.

One of the bodies recovered early Friday morning appeared in the water about four km from the accident site.

During high tide, the force of the currents is approximately 40 percent higher than usual, said the rescue service personnel.

Meanwhile, South Korean President Park Geun-hye Friday declared that she would once again apologise to the victims of the accident and their families.

The leader issued an apology a few days earlier during a cabinet meeting in the face of increasing criticism of the management of the incident by the government.

Nonetheless, the opposition and some sections of the media believe that the apology was forced and without enough formality.

Out of the 476 people aboard the Sewol, 325 were high school students from the city of Ansan in the suburbs of Seoul.

The increasing number of funerals of the large number of deceased students in this area could exceed 250 once all the bodies are recovered and identified.

It is believed that the Sewol sank after making a sharp turn that displaced her cargo and vehicles to one side of the ship, thus destabilising it and causing it to tilt.

The captain, who has been criticised for delaying the evacuation at the time of the accident, is under arrest for allegedly abandoning the ferry and for neglecting the safety of the passengers.

On Friday, several members of the family that manages the operation of the ship were questioned over corruption charges.

They have, however, refused to answer the questions of the public prosecutor due to which an arrest warrant could soon be issued against them.IANS

South Korean ferry mishap toll rises to 226

Seoul:The number of confirmed deaths from the sinking of the Sewol ferry in South Korea has risen to 226 after five more bodies were recovered from the submerged ship Friday.

Divers continued trying to locate the bodies of the 72 people who are still missing.

Coast guard and navy divers, along with private divers, will Friday concentrate on the central and left sections of the fourth and fifth floors of the five-storey ship that have remained unexplored so far, rescue service personnel said.

The operations have been hampered by strong sea currents, which have also threatened to carry the bodies far away from the site of the sunken ship.

One of the bodies recovered early Friday morning appeared in the water about four km from the accident site.

During high tide, the force of the currents is approximately 40 percent higher than usual, said the rescue service personnel.

Meanwhile, South Korean President Park Geun-hye Friday declared that she would once again apologise to the victims of the accident and their families.

The leader issued an apology a few days earlier during a cabinet meeting in the face of increasing criticism of the management of the incident by the government.

Nonetheless, the opposition and some sections of the media believe that the apology was forced and without enough formality.

Out of the 476 people aboard the Sewol, 325 were high school students from the city of Ansan in the suburbs of Seoul.

The increasing number of funerals of the large number of deceased students in this area could exceed 250 once all the bodies are recovered and identified.

It is believed that the Sewol sank after making a sharp turn that displaced her cargo and vehicles to one side of the ship, thus destabilising it and causing it to tilt.

The captain, who has been criticised for delaying the evacuation at the time of the accident, is under arrest for allegedly abandoning the ferry and for neglecting the safety of the passengers.

On Friday, several members of the family that manages the operation of the ship were questioned over corruption charges.

They have, however, refused to answer the questions of the public prosecutor due to which an arrest warrant could soon be issued against them.IANS