. Cauvery row: Release 10,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu, SC tells Karnataka

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed Karnataka to release 10,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu from Cauvery river for the next five days.  The apex court bench of Justice DK Jain and Justice Madan B Lokur further asked Cauvery Monitoring Committee (CMC) to meet either on Thursday or Friday to decide on the quantum of water that Karnataka would be releasing to Tamil Nadu after five days.  The court said the authority would also keep in mind the standing crops in the lower riparian state.  The case will now be heard on Monday.  On December 03, both the states had traded charges and refused to come to any agreement during the hour-long hearing.  The court heard a batch of petitions and application filed by Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on the release of 9,000 cusecs of water daily from Cauvery for the latter.  The Cauvery River Authority headed by the Prime Minister in an interim award on September 19 had directed Karnataka to release 9,000 cusecs of Cauvery water every day.  Resuming his arguments, senior counsel Anil Divan, appearing for Karnataka, questioned the maintainability of the application by Tamil Nadu in its present form.  Tamil Nadu earlier sought to give a political colour to the whole issue when it alleged that with its eyes on Karnataka Assembly Election next year, the central government may not push Karnataka to release water for Tamil Nadu as directed by the authority.  Tamil Nadu on Tuesday had contended that its standing crops would perish if Cauvery water was not released immediately.  During the earlier hearing on November 26, the court had asked the Chief Ministers of the two states to meet and arrive at an amicable solution to the "sensitive" Cauvery water dispute. However, the talks between Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka had failed to break the deadlock on the Cauvery water-sharing row.

. Cauvery row: Release 10,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu, SC tells Karnataka

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed Karnataka to release 10,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu from Cauvery river for the next five days.  The apex court bench of Justice DK Jain and Justice Madan B Lokur further asked Cauvery Monitoring Committee (CMC) to meet either on Thursday or Friday to decide on the quantum of water that Karnataka would be releasing to Tamil Nadu after five days.  The court said the authority would also keep in mind the standing crops in the lower riparian state.  The case will now be heard on Monday.  On December 03, both the states had traded charges and refused to come to any agreement during the hour-long hearing.  The court heard a batch of petitions and application filed by Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on the release of 9,000 cusecs of water daily from Cauvery for the latter.  The Cauvery River Authority headed by the Prime Minister in an interim award on September 19 had directed Karnataka to release 9,000 cusecs of Cauvery water every day.  Resuming his arguments, senior counsel Anil Divan, appearing for Karnataka, questioned the maintainability of the application by Tamil Nadu in its present form.  Tamil Nadu earlier sought to give a political colour to the whole issue when it alleged that with its eyes on Karnataka Assembly Election next year, the central government may not push Karnataka to release water for Tamil Nadu as directed by the authority.  Tamil Nadu on Tuesday had contended that its standing crops would perish if Cauvery water was not released immediately.  During the earlier hearing on November 26, the court had asked the Chief Ministers of the two states to meet and arrive at an amicable solution to the "sensitive" Cauvery water dispute. However, the talks between Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka had failed to break the deadlock on the Cauvery water-sharing row.

'Midnight's Children' to premiere at Kerala film fest

Mumbai: Deepa Mehta's 'Midnight's Children' is set to be premiered at International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) Dec 10.

The film is an adaptation of Salman Rushdie's novel of the same name and features Satya Bhabha, Siddharth, Ronit Roy, Rahul Bose, Anupam Kher, Darsheel Safary, Soha Ali Khan and Shabana Azmi.

'Salman Rushdie has often said that his novel is his love letter to India. I hope my film reflects that sentiment. In its essence the movie is about the search for a home, an identity and a family. A quest that is universal and familiar to us all,' Mehta said in a statement.

'We are thrilled that 'Midnight's Children' screening is going to be at the International Film Festival of Kerala. A festival known for its love of cinema and lack of political bias,' she added.

The film has received wide acclaim at the Telluride Film Festival and Toronto International film festivals. It is being distributed in India by PVR Pictures and is slated for an early 2013.

'Being invited to the premiere at IFFK is a big honour. Deepa is an exceptionally brave filmmaker and 'Midnight's Children' is a very special gem from her. We are absolutely delighted to be distributing the film in India,' said Kamal Gianchandani, president, PVR Pictures.

International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) will be held Dec 7-14 in Thiruvananthapuram

'Midnight's Children' to premiere at Kerala film fest

Mumbai: Deepa Mehta's 'Midnight's Children' is set to be premiered at International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) Dec 10.

The film is an adaptation of Salman Rushdie's novel of the same name and features Satya Bhabha, Siddharth, Ronit Roy, Rahul Bose, Anupam Kher, Darsheel Safary, Soha Ali Khan and Shabana Azmi.

'Salman Rushdie has often said that his novel is his love letter to India. I hope my film reflects that sentiment. In its essence the movie is about the search for a home, an identity and a family. A quest that is universal and familiar to us all,' Mehta said in a statement.

'We are thrilled that 'Midnight's Children' screening is going to be at the International Film Festival of Kerala. A festival known for its love of cinema and lack of political bias,' she added.

The film has received wide acclaim at the Telluride Film Festival and Toronto International film festivals. It is being distributed in India by PVR Pictures and is slated for an early 2013.

'Being invited to the premiere at IFFK is a big honour. Deepa is an exceptionally brave filmmaker and 'Midnight's Children' is a very special gem from her. We are absolutely delighted to be distributing the film in India,' said Kamal Gianchandani, president, PVR Pictures.

International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) will be held Dec 7-14 in Thiruvananthapuram

Moscow unveils 2013 World Athletics mascot

Moscow: An anthropomorphic sparrow will serve as the mascot for the 2013 World Athletics Championships in Moscow, organisers announced Wednesday.

The cartoon bird has brown, black and white plumage and wears a blue t-shirt bearing the Moscow 2013 insignia.

'A sparrow was chosen as the mascot,' said the general secretary of the Russian athletics federation, Mikhail Butov.

'The bird shares a lot of qualities with the athletes: It's quick, light and nimble.'

It was chosen from more than 200 designs submitted by the public over the internet.

'There were lots of possibilities, but we settled on the sparrow, because we want the sparrow to be associated with Moscow and with athletics.'

Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium plays host to the championships Aug 10-18, 2013.

Moscow unveils 2013 World Athletics mascot

Moscow: An anthropomorphic sparrow will serve as the mascot for the 2013 World Athletics Championships in Moscow, organisers announced Wednesday.

The cartoon bird has brown, black and white plumage and wears a blue t-shirt bearing the Moscow 2013 insignia.

'A sparrow was chosen as the mascot,' said the general secretary of the Russian athletics federation, Mikhail Butov.

'The bird shares a lot of qualities with the athletes: It's quick, light and nimble.'

It was chosen from more than 200 designs submitted by the public over the internet.

'There were lots of possibilities, but we settled on the sparrow, because we want the sparrow to be associated with Moscow and with athletics.'

Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium plays host to the championships Aug 10-18, 2013.

Philippine typhoon toll tops 270

Bali: The toll from Typhoon Pablo that swept through the southern Philippines Tuesday has risen to 274, officials said Wednesday.

Pablo, said to be among the strongest to hit the south of the country in the past 20 years, made landfall on the east coast of Mindanao Island, home to 10 million people, early Tuesday.

The typhoon brought gusts of up to 210 kmph and heavy rain. Communications and power supplies have been cut across vast areas of the island.

The death toll will most likely continue to climb as rescuers slowly reach hard-hit areas that have been isolated by landslides and floods.

According to the latest bulletin of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, a total of 217,850 people have been affected in 22 provinces in the Visayas and Mindanao regions that were directly hit by Pablo.

At least 350 people were injured and 300 are listed as missing, while about 180,000 sought refuge in some 1,000 shelters set up by emergency services.

The typhoon grounded over 150 flights and over 4,000 of ferry passengers are still stranded at ports.

The eye of the storm is moving through northern Palawan heading northwest at 15 kmph, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) reported.

Pablo is still packing maximum sustained winds of 120 kmph with gusts of up to 150 kmph, Pagasa said.

Philippine typhoon toll tops 270

Bali: The toll from Typhoon Pablo that swept through the southern Philippines Tuesday has risen to 274, officials said Wednesday.

Pablo, said to be among the strongest to hit the south of the country in the past 20 years, made landfall on the east coast of Mindanao Island, home to 10 million people, early Tuesday.

The typhoon brought gusts of up to 210 kmph and heavy rain. Communications and power supplies have been cut across vast areas of the island.

The death toll will most likely continue to climb as rescuers slowly reach hard-hit areas that have been isolated by landslides and floods.

According to the latest bulletin of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, a total of 217,850 people have been affected in 22 provinces in the Visayas and Mindanao regions that were directly hit by Pablo.

At least 350 people were injured and 300 are listed as missing, while about 180,000 sought refuge in some 1,000 shelters set up by emergency services.

The typhoon grounded over 150 flights and over 4,000 of ferry passengers are still stranded at ports.

The eye of the storm is moving through northern Palawan heading northwest at 15 kmph, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) reported.

Pablo is still packing maximum sustained winds of 120 kmph with gusts of up to 150 kmph, Pagasa said.

With help from rivals SP, BSP, UPA-II wins FDI vote

New Delhi: In a boost for economic reforms, the Manmohan Singh-led government Wednesday sailed through a determiend opposition onslaught to win the vote in the Lok Sabha on foreign investment in multi-brand retail - with more than a helping hand from the BSP and the SP, the two sworn enemies who bailed out the UPA-II for their own political compulsions.

The vote is expected Friday in the Rajya Sabha, where the government does not have the numbers.

In a thumbs-up for for the second generation of economic reforms, shepherded by the prime minister, the government also won another motion on amendments to the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) to facilitate its initiative.

Both the motions had been moved by the opposition. The motion on the government's decision to allow 51 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail, which would allow global supermarket chains to set up shop in India, was moved by the BJP and the CPI-M. The second one opposing amendments to FEMA was moved by the Trinamool Congress.

The government may have won this crucial vote, but the point was not lost on watchers of the political scene as it owes its victory to internecine rivlary between two key Uttar Pradesh parties, Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which prop the ruling UPA from outside.

The BSP and the SP strategically walked out of the house before the vote, ensuring that government sailed through the challenges.

The halfway mark needed to win the votes was reduced with the SP's 22 MPs and the BSP's 21 abstaining. Propelled by the unlikely Mulayam Singh Yadav-Mayawati combination, the government won the FDI motion with a 35 vote margin - 218 votes for the opposition motion and 253 against with 471 of the 544 members present in the house.

The FEMA motion was won by 30 votes - the opposition getting 224 votes and the government 254.

A beaming Manmohan Singh, the prime mover behind the contentious FDI in retail initiative and the larger economic reform process, said the decision 'has the approval of the house' and underlined that the government is confident of its numbers in the Rajya Sabha.

'FDI has approval of the house,' Manmohan Singh told reporters after vote.

Industry lobby's hailed the vote, with Confenderation of Indian Industry president Adi Godrej saying FDI in retil 'would lead to capital infusion in the country, which would help farmers and customers.'

The Rajya Sabha will discuss the issue Thursday-Friday and vote on Friday.

The government touted the vote as a victory of pragmatism over ideological posturing. 'It was a contest between reform and retribution. It was a victory of pragmatism over ideological blinkers. And ultimately, reform and pragmatism have won,' Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari said.

'We are very happy. We have the support of the house,' said a beaming Communications Minister Kapil Sibal, while lauding the country's 'vibrant democracy'.

A defeated Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sushma Swaraj slammed Mulayam Singh Yadav for walking out of the house and condemned the UPA's 'arrogance of power'.

The SP, which had said earlier in the morning that it was against FDI but would not do anything to 'trouble the government', said the move was 'anti-farmer'.

'Five crore (50 million) people in retail trade will be destroyed. This decision has ignored the interests of 20 crore (200 million) farmers and their families. The decision on FDI was taken under pressure of foreign companies. This is the reason the party boycotted it,' Mulayam Singh said.

'This is not about helping or harming the government. The whole party and MPs had decided to stage a walkout. This was decided by the party and the SP will continue to oppose every wrong decision of the government,' he said.

The decision to allow FDI in multi-brand retail is expected to open the doors for major global majors like Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Tesco

With help from rivals SP, BSP, UPA-II wins FDI vote

New Delhi: In a boost for economic reforms, the Manmohan Singh-led government Wednesday sailed through a determiend opposition onslaught to win the vote in the Lok Sabha on foreign investment in multi-brand retail - with more than a helping hand from the BSP and the SP, the two sworn enemies who bailed out the UPA-II for their own political compulsions.

The vote is expected Friday in the Rajya Sabha, where the government does not have the numbers.

In a thumbs-up for for the second generation of economic reforms, shepherded by the prime minister, the government also won another motion on amendments to the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) to facilitate its initiative.

Both the motions had been moved by the opposition. The motion on the government's decision to allow 51 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail, which would allow global supermarket chains to set up shop in India, was moved by the BJP and the CPI-M. The second one opposing amendments to FEMA was moved by the Trinamool Congress.

The government may have won this crucial vote, but the point was not lost on watchers of the political scene as it owes its victory to internecine rivlary between two key Uttar Pradesh parties, Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which prop the ruling UPA from outside.

The BSP and the SP strategically walked out of the house before the vote, ensuring that government sailed through the challenges.

The halfway mark needed to win the votes was reduced with the SP's 22 MPs and the BSP's 21 abstaining. Propelled by the unlikely Mulayam Singh Yadav-Mayawati combination, the government won the FDI motion with a 35 vote margin - 218 votes for the opposition motion and 253 against with 471 of the 544 members present in the house.

The FEMA motion was won by 30 votes - the opposition getting 224 votes and the government 254.

A beaming Manmohan Singh, the prime mover behind the contentious FDI in retail initiative and the larger economic reform process, said the decision 'has the approval of the house' and underlined that the government is confident of its numbers in the Rajya Sabha.

'FDI has approval of the house,' Manmohan Singh told reporters after vote.

Industry lobby's hailed the vote, with Confenderation of Indian Industry president Adi Godrej saying FDI in retil 'would lead to capital infusion in the country, which would help farmers and customers.'

The Rajya Sabha will discuss the issue Thursday-Friday and vote on Friday.

The government touted the vote as a victory of pragmatism over ideological posturing. 'It was a contest between reform and retribution. It was a victory of pragmatism over ideological blinkers. And ultimately, reform and pragmatism have won,' Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari said.

'We are very happy. We have the support of the house,' said a beaming Communications Minister Kapil Sibal, while lauding the country's 'vibrant democracy'.

A defeated Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sushma Swaraj slammed Mulayam Singh Yadav for walking out of the house and condemned the UPA's 'arrogance of power'.

The SP, which had said earlier in the morning that it was against FDI but would not do anything to 'trouble the government', said the move was 'anti-farmer'.

'Five crore (50 million) people in retail trade will be destroyed. This decision has ignored the interests of 20 crore (200 million) farmers and their families. The decision on FDI was taken under pressure of foreign companies. This is the reason the party boycotted it,' Mulayam Singh said.

'This is not about helping or harming the government. The whole party and MPs had decided to stage a walkout. This was decided by the party and the SP will continue to oppose every wrong decision of the government,' he said.

The decision to allow FDI in multi-brand retail is expected to open the doors for major global majors like Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Tesco