Javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia wins gold at Paralympics

Javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia wins gold at Paralympics

Javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia scripted history by becoming the first Indian to clinch two gold medals at the Paralympics after he broke his own world record to clinch the top honours at the ongoing Rio Games here.

The 36-year-old, who won his previous gold in the 2004 Athens Games, bettered his own world record to finish on top in the men's F46 event.

Devendra, whose previous best was 62.15 metres (achieved in the 2004 Games), improved the mark with an attempt of 63.97 metres at the Olympic Stadium (Engenhao).

Another Indian Rinku Hooda, who also competed in the event, finished fifth with a personal best of 54.39 metres in six attempts, while Sundar Singh Gurjar didn't start the event.

The Rajasthan born athlete had lost his left hand when he was electrocuted while climbing a tree as an eight-year-old. But he continued to follow his dream and went on to achieve the Arjuna award in 2004 and the Padma Shri in 2012, becoming the first Paralympian to receive the honour. (more)

Beautiful things in the World

Starting Rs 60,000, Apple iPhone 7 in India from October 7

Starting Rs 60,000, Apple iPhone 7 in India from October 7

Apple iPhone 7and iPhone 7 Plus will be available for iOS lovers in India beginning October 7 - the last in the list of countries.

Available in silver, gold, rose gold and the new black finish (jet black), iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus will be available in 32GB, 128GB and 256GB models, starting at Rs 60,000.

The new jet black finish will be offered exclusively on the 128GB and 256GB models from Apple authorised resellers and select carriers, the Cupertino-based tech giant announced on Wednesday.

Pre-orders for the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus begins from September 9 and the shipping will start from September 16 first in 25 countries and other countries a week later.

All iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus models will include EarPods with "Lightning Connector" and a Lightning to 3.5 mm Headphone Jack Adapter, also sold separately for Rs 2,500 and Rs 900, respectively.

"Apple-designed accessories including leather and silicone cases in a range of colours will be available starting at Rs 2,900 and iPhone 7 Smart Battery Case will be offered in black and white for Rs 8,900," the company said.

Lightning Docks in several colour-matching metallic finishes will also be available for Rs 3,700.Read more

April 1 deadline for GST a stiff target: Jaitley

April 1 deadline for GST a stiff target: Jaitley

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday said the April 1, 2017, deadline to roll out the goods and services tax (GST) was stiff, as there were a few hurdles ahead.

He added the Centre and states were “running against time”, and there were issues, which the proposed GST Council needed to address.

“After the notification and constitution of the GST Council, there are obviously some pending issues, which the council will have to resolve. So we have September and October, and, parts of November to do that,” said Jaitley at the The Economist India Summit in the national Capital.

Later, a senior finance ministry official said there were three issues — GST rates, dual control over assessment and scrutiny of assessees, and geographical or area-based exemptions.

“If we are able to successfully transact those issues, the pieces of legislation would be introduced in Parliament in the winter session. Looking ahead, it’s very stiff. We are running against time,” said Jaitley.

More than half the states have ratified the Constitution amendment Bill, passed by Parliament on August 6. Only the President’s assent is left to make it a law.(more)

How to get Jio SIM & 3-month free data offer Edit

How to get Jio SIM & 3-month free data offer

With free voice calls - for both local and roaming - and cheap data plans, Reliance Jio has unleashed a price war in the telecom sector. But how do you go about getting one, how do you install one, what devices are compatible, what is VoLTE... Read on to know all about Jio...

Reliance Industries caused a stir in the telecom industry when it made an announcement on September 1, during the company’s annual general meeting in Mumbai, offering free voice calls - both local and roaming - and data at cheap prices of Rs 25-50 per gigabyte (GB) throughReliance Jio Infocomm. On September 5, the fourth-generation mobile phone service was launched for public subscription.

The Mukesh Ambani-promoted company promised consumers voice calls on Jio would always be free. It announced 10 data tariff plans, starting at Rs 19 a day for occasional users, to Rs 4,999 a month for heavy data users. The most popular is the Rs 149 a month plan for low-data users. At an average data price of Rs 50 per GB, the data plans are touted to be amongst the lowest in the world.

Also read:

• Supporting device
• How to get a Jio connection?
• How to activate a Reliance Jio 4G SIM
• Cut the queue with Aadhaar
• Jio deconstructed
• Future plan
• Devices supporting Jio

Gujarat HC issues notices to developers of 'Pokemon Go'

Gujarat HC issues notices to developers of 'Pokemon Go'

The Gujarat High Court on Wednesday issued a notice to the developers of location based-augmented reality game Pokémon GO, following a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking a ban on the game in India, alleging it not only hurts religious sentiments but is also a threat to national security.

The court issued notices to San Francisco-based developer of the game, Niantic Inc, the Centre and the Gujarat government.

According to the PIL by one Alay Dave, the image of eggs in the augmented reality game appear in places of worship of various religious groups. The petitioner has said eggs are considered non-vegetarian food, and it is blasphemous to carry non-vegetarian food inside a place of worship of Hindus and Jains. "People playing the game get their points in the form of virtual eggs which generally appear in the places of worship of different religious groups. To find eggs in temples of Hindus and Jains is blasphemous, and my client has sought a ban on the game from the country," the petitioner’s lawyer Nachiket Dave said. Read more

Bollywood Celebrities and their Ganpati 2016

Bollywood Celebrities and their Ganpati 201

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Jealous Neighbour Killed Nurse In Mumbai With Acid Attack, Says Court

Man who threw acid on Delhi nurse convicted for murder

A young woman who moved to Mumbai to work as a nurse in the navy was murdered by an acid attack inflicted by her jealous neighbour, a court has ruled today.

Preeti Rathi, 23, who was from Delhi, was to begin work at a naval hospital in Mumbai in 2013. She had just reached the city after an overnight train journey with her father when a man tapped her on the shoulder. When she turned around, he flung acid at her and disappeared.

Ankur Panwar was arrested nearly a year later. His family lived next door to Ms Rathi's in Delhi. The police said he was jealous of her success and frustrated by his family goading him about being unemployed while lauding Ms Rathi as a success. So he allegedly took the same train to Mumbai that the Rathis were on, attacked the young woman, and then boarded another train departing Mumbai.

He will be sentenced tomorrow.

"Preeti had told her friend in hospital that Ankur used to harass her in Delhi and even tried to propose marriage to her. When she refused his advances, that's when he decided to teach her a lesson," said special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam. "I will ask for the maximum sentence, that's the death penalty."(more)

Read more: Preeti Rathi acid attack case: Accused held guilty of murder

Barack Obama cancels Rodrigo Duterte talks after insult

Barack Obama cancels meeting with new Philippine President Duterte

US President Barack Obama has cancelled what would have been his first meeting with Rodrigo Duterte, according to a White House spokesman, hours after the Philippine leader described his American counterpart in vulgar terms.

Duterte called Obama a "son of a whore", saying that he would not be lectured by the US leader on human rights, according to AFP news agency.

Inside Story - Can Rodrigo Duterte win the war on illegal drugs?

Duterte's tirade came as he bristled at warnings he would face questioning by the US president at their scheduled meeting over his war against drugs in the Philippines, which has claimed more than 2,400 lives in just over two months.

"You must be respectful. Do not just throw away questions and statements. Son of a whore, I will curse you in that forum," Duterte told a news conference shortly before flying to Laos to attend a summit on Monday.

"We will be wallowing in the mud like pigs if you do that to me," he said.

However, a statement released by the Philippine president on Tuesday expressed regret for the tirade against his US counterpart.

"While the immediate cause was my strong comments to certain press questions that elicited concern and distress, we also regret it came across as a personal attack on the US president," the statement said.

Duterte was due to hold a bilateral meeting with Obama on Tuesday afternoon on the sidelines of a gathering of global leaders hosted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Vientiane, the capital of the Laos.

READ MORE: The Philippines, where bodies pile up, but no one talks

PM Modi raises black money, tax evasion at G20

PM Modi raises black money, tax evasion at G20

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday raised the issues of black money and tax evasion at the G20 Summit here, urging member countries to act against financial corruption.

On the second day of the Summit here, Modi said: "Fighting corruption, black money and tax evasion were central to effective financial governance."

Modi urged the grouping to show full commitment to action against financial corruption and said effective financial governance required action against the corrupt and elimination of safe havens for economic offenders.

"We need to act to eliminate safe havens for economic offenders, track down and unconditionally extradite money launderers and break down the web of complex international regulations and excessive banking secrecy that hide the corrupt and their deeds," Modi said in his address at the G20.

Representing 85 per cent of the world's GDP, the G20 is composed of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the UK, the US and the European Union.

Making his intervention in the discussion on 'More Effective and Efficient Global Economic and Financial Governance at the G-20 summit', Modi called for further strengthening the global financial safety net.Read more.

Long queues, SIM cards scarcity on Day 1 of Jio launch

Long queues, SIM cards scarcity on Day 1 of Jio launch

(Crowd outside a Reliance Digital Express store to get Reliance Jio SIM cards in New Delhi, on Monday. )

Customers joining long queues outside Reliance Jio stores here on Monday — the day of the full service launch — were often disappointed to find SIM cards unavailable.

A visit to a few stores in Sarojini Nagar and RK Puram, in the south west, made it clear that demand for Reliance Jio SIMs far outstretched supply. Customers were seen running from one store to the next.

Few of the customers who spoke to Business Standard said though there was a paucity of SIMs at the Reliance Digital stores, local dealers had these. They were charging between Rs 300 and Rs 600.

SIM cards are available free of charge but the dealers were making a quick buck, thanks to the surge in demand.

A Reliance Digital store employee, who did not want to be named, said local dealers had acquired SIM cards in bulk and were selling these at a premium.

The company was yet to comment at the time of going to press.

Another Reliance Digital employee said they had issued tokens to walk-in customers who could not get a SIM on Monday.Read more.