President, welcomes the President of Sri Lanka,

(PIB NEWS) June,09,The President, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil welcomes the President of Sri Lanka, Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa and his wife Mrs. Shiranthi Rajapaksa, at the ceremonial reception, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on June 09, 2010. The Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh is also seen. (Photo by PIB No.CNR-31974)
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Jaipal Reddy Workshop Inauguration,

(PIB NEWS)June,09, The Union Minister of Urban Development, Shri S. Jaipal Reddy addressing at the launch Workshop for inauguration of Sustainable Environmentally friendly transport mode in the country, in New Delhi on June 09, 2010. The Secretary, Ministry of Urban Development, Dr. M. Ramachandran is also seen. (Photo by PIB No.CNR-31986)
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Booklet releasing"Performance of Ministry of textiles"

(PIB NEWS) June,09, The Union Minister of Textiles, Shri Dayanidhi Maran releasing a Booklet ‘One year’s Performance of Ministry of Textiles’, in New Delhi on June 09, 2010. The Minister of State for Textiles, Smt. Panabaka Lakshmi and the Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Smt. Rita Menon are also seen.
(Photo by PIB No.CNR- 31990)
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US presses Pakistan to stop India infiltration, try 26/11 suspects

Underlining its hands off policy on the Kashmir issue, the US has asked Pakistan to first show progress in stopping cross-border infiltration into India and the trial of the Mumbai terror attack suspects.“No, there’s no change right now” in US policy on Kashmir, US assistant secretary of state for South Asia, Robert Blake said in an online conversation Tuesday with Teresita Schaffer, director of the South Asia Programme at Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington think tank.“I think at this point the top priority for India and Pakistan is, first, to kind of get their own bilateral dialogue going in a more systematic way,” he said noting that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh “is personally and deeply committed to achieving peace with Pakistan”.“But he needs to see progress on these two important issues… that is, progress to stop some of the cross-border infiltration that’s taking place into India, but also progress on the trial of the Mumbai suspects.“And if we can see that, I think that there will be a flourishing of the dialogue that could take place. But those are very important things that need to take place.”He agreed with Schaffer that the main interest of the United States is that they be able to agree on something that makes the risk of a war that could go nuclear disappear.Nothing that “from 2004 to 2007, in fact, the two countries did make quite a lot of progress on Kashmir”, Blake said: “And that, again, could be picked up, I think, relatively quickly if they can sort out some of these other issues.” “This is going to have to be a kind of incremental process to build up to that stage where they can tackle this very hot button issue (Kashmir) for both of those countries.”At the State Department, spokesperson Phillip J. Crowley too made a similar point. Asked to comment on Manmohan Singh’s offer to open peace talks with the separatist and extremist elements in Kasshmir, he said: “All I would say is that we recognise that this is a very, very important issue between India and Pakistan.”“And as the dialogue between India and Pakistan continues to expand, including at the leader level, that we would hope that India and Pakistan can make progress in understanding this issue and moving forward, just as they did a few years ago.”
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10 TRS, BJP, TJAC activists held

Mahbubabad, Jun 9 : Police have arrested ten activists of Telangana Rastra Samithi (TRS), BJP and Telangana Joint Action Committee (TJAC) for their involvement in the violence that rocked the town on May 28 during former Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy's son and Congress MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy's 'Odarpu yatra'.Circle Inspector of Police R Prabhakara Rao told UNI today that the accused were arrested on specific charges and booked under Sections 307(Attempt to Murder) and 147(destruction of public property) of IPC.He said seven accused were arrested for their involvement in the violence and three for damaging a private car and burning a government vehicle on that day.The accused were picked up last evening and later produced before the Sub Divisional Magistrate. Search was on to arrest some more accused involved in the incident, he added.
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Conditions favourable for advance of southwest Monsoon in AP

Hyderabad, Jun 9 : Conditions were favourable for further advance of southwest monsoon over some more parts of Andhra Pradesh as a low pressure area formed over Westcentral Bay and neighbourhood today, leading to rains at a few places over Coastal Andhra Pradesh and isolated rain over Telangana and Rayalaseema.The chief amounts of rainfall recorded in cm were Avanigadda (Krishna district) and Salur (Vizianagaram district) four each, Bobbili (Vizianagaram district) and Vikarabad (Rangareddy district) three each, Tirupati, Chevella (Rangareddy district), Gajapathinagaram and Parvathipuram (both Vizianagaram districts), Mandasa and Patapatnam (both Srikakulam districts) and Mulugu (Warangal district) two each and Hanamakonda, Nellore, Cumbum (Prakasam district), Gudur (Nellore district), Jangaon and Mahabubabad (both Warangal districts), Komarada, Srungavarapukota, Terlam and Vizianagaram (all Vizianagaram districts), Nuzvid and Tiruvuru (both Krishna districts), Sangareddy (Medak district) and Satyavedu (Chittoor district) one each, Met Department said today.However, heat wave conditions prevailed over the districts of West Godavari of Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Hyderabad, Mahabubnagar, Medak and Warangal of Telangana. The maximum temperatures significantly fell at one or two places over Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Telangana but rose at a few places over Rayalaseema. They were significantly above normal at one or two places over Rayalaseema and over the remaining districts of Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The highest maximum temperature of 44 degrees Celsius was recorded at Ramagundam and Rentachintala. Moderate to rather heavy rain/ thundershowers may occur at many places over Coastal Andhra Pradesh while Light to moderate rain/thundershowers would occur at a few places over Telangana and Rayalaseema. Isolated heavy rain could occur over Coastal Andhra Pradesh during the next 48 hours. A few spells of rain/thundershowers may occur in the city.Maximum and Minimum temperatures may be around 38 and 25 degrees respectively.
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Study Circle to select candidates for coaching for UPSC exam

Hyderabad, Jun 9 : The Andhra Pradesh Study Circle, established by the Social Welfare Department for the purpose of giving residential coaching to candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes (SC) to prepare for Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and Civil Services Examinations, will select the new batch for 2010-11.Addressing a press conference here today, Social Welfare Commissioner K Praveen Kumar said the study circle would select 184 meritorious students from SC and ST and Backward Classes students from rural areas.He said in view of some allegations on the entrance tests for the selection of candidates, the department had decided to select the candidates based on the marks attained by the student from tenth class to degree-level and those who got the highest marks would be selected for coaching.The selection committee with nine officers would select the candidates.He said so far in the past 31 years, Andhra Pradesh Study Circle had given residential coaching to 5,757 students of whom 43 got into IAS, 42 into IPS and 372 got into other services. He said 75 per cent of the seats would be given to SC and ten per cent to ST and 15 per cent to BCs.Stating that 50 per cent of seats were reserved for women belonging to SC, ST and BC in each category, he said three per cent were reserved for physically handicapped across all categories.He said the last date for submission of application was June 25.
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Asthma patients queue up to take fish medicine?

Hyderabad, June 8: Hundreds of asthma patients from different parts of India queued up here Tuesday to gulp down a live 'murrel' fish with a yellow herbal paste in its mouth in the hope it can cure them.The distribution of the famous 'fish medicine' began this evening at the sprawling Exhibition Grounds in the heart of the city. The members of Bathini Goud family, which has administered the medicine free of cost for over 160 years, started distributing the medicine after a traditional 'puja' at 5 p.m., the time set by their astrologers, which also heralds the onset of monsoon. Men, women and children stood in long queues hours before the Goud family members and volunteers started administering the 'wonder drug'. The Hyderabad district administration made elaborate arrangements for the annual event. Over 300 policemen were deployed as part of the security measures. The fisheries department has made arrangements for the sale of 'murrel' fingerlings. Those who don't take fish are being provided medicine with jaggery. Like in the past, people from different regions gathered in the hope of finding some relief to their nagging respiratory problems, despite the controversies surrounding its efficacy. The fish medicine lost its popularity in recent years after some groups, working to inculcate scientific temper among people, termed it a fraud. They also approached the court, claiming that the contents of the herbal paste, which remained a closely guarded family secret, do more harm than good to the patients. The turnout has clearly dwindled over the last five years. The Goud family claims that over 400,000 asthma patients turn up every year but the turnout has hardly exceeds 100,000, going by the arrangements made by fisheries department for sale of fingerlings. The Goud family, which named the medicine 'fish prasadam' recently to avoid legal problems, claims that it was still popular despite the 'false propaganda' by some groups. According to the family, the tests in laboratories conducted as per court orders revealed that the herbal paste is safe. The herbal paste is put into the mouth of the live fingerling before slipping it into the mouth of the patient. It is believed that if taken for three successive years, the medicine cures asthma. The Goud family has distributed the 'fish prasadam' free of cost for 164 years. It claims that the secret formula for the herbal medicine was given to their ancestor in 1845 by a saint after taking an oath from him that it should be administered free of cost.
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Andhra earns nearly Rs.7,000 cr from liquor shops sale

Hyderabad, June 8 : At a time when a severe financial crunch has forced it to go slow on many welfare schemes, the Andhra Pradesh government has earned a whopping Rs.6,904 crore from the auction of liquor shops.The earnings are said to be the highest by any state through sale of liquor shops. The excise department earned Rs.6,904 crore from the auction of 6,505 out of 6,595 liquor shops. The revenues may cross Rs.7,000 crore as remaining 91 shops are yet to be auctioned. Tenders for majority of the shops for next two years were opened Monday. The remaining shops will be sold in couple of days. Excise Commissioner Hiralal Samaria told reporters the revenues were 114 percent more than waht was earned in 2008. The department was expecting Rs.4,500 crore this year. The average bid amount for each shop auctioned so far was over Rs.1 crore. Shops in some districts were sold for whopping Rs.5 crore. A shop at Nadikudi village of Dachepalli mandal in Guntur district was bid for Rs.5.21 crore while another shop in the same mandal was sold for Rs.4.92 crore. Creating a record of sorts, the government earned Rs.48.6 crore from the sale of tenders forms alone. About 48,600 bids were received for 6,596 shops which was 125 per cent in excess of the demand in 2008. Unlike in the past when shops in and around Hyderabad were auctioned for over Rs.5 crore, there were few takers this time. Slowdown in real estate market and the Information Technology sector is cited as the main reason for the relatively poor response in and around the state capital. Though slowdown in real estate has hit hard the state's revenues, the excise department has come to the rescue. Officials, however, said the revenues from liquor constitute only eight percent of the total revenues.  The fall in revenues over the last two years has already raised question mark on continuation of various welfare schemes launched by former Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy. In a state which witnessed total prohibition in mid-1990s following a massive movement by women, the sale of liquor shops was not without protests. The Lok Satta Party alleged that the government was encouraging the consumption of alcohol through auction of liquor shops. Party president Jayaprakash Narayan said liquor dealers promote unauthorised outlets or "belt shops" to make the sales required to realise the license fee. Women's groups also criticized the government for promoting consumption of liquor and demanded re-imposition of prohibition. Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh High Court Tuesday issued notices to the central and state governments on a public interest litigation over sale of liquor shops. Narayana, a resident of Nizamabad district, filed a petition in the court, demanding prohibition. The petitioner alleged that the government was promoting sale of liquor, badly affecting public health.
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ISNA Joins Religious Leaders to Condemn Illegal Medical Experimentation on Detainees

(Deccan Samachar Service) June 08, A report was issued today by the Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), which details evidence of illegal experimentation on detainees captured after 9-11, in the form of torturous medical experiments, performed by healthcare professionals working for the U.S.Military and intelligence agencies during the Bush administration. The comprehensive PHR report described the methods of "enhanced interrogation techniques" used by medical professionals to determine the "breaking points" for detainees. This information was delivered to the Department of Justice to amend the current laws in a way that legalizes these gross acts of torture and medical negligence from prosecution. ISNA condemns the acts of torture inflicted by these medical professionals. These acts directly violate their sworn oath as physicians to protect human life and alleviate human suffering. ISNA condemns the actions our government to effectively legalize this torture and turn their backs on upholding both the spirit and letter of the constitution.ISNA praises the Physicians for Human Rights and their dedication to protect all people from illegal and damaging misuse of medical skills and experiments to inflict pain instead of alleviating suffering. ISNA joins Physicians for Human Rights and other religious leaders to demand a Commission of Inquiry to investigate the misuse of medical skills and the acts of the Department of Justice in relation to this case. ISNA President, Dr. Ingrid Mattson, will join other leaders in a press conference about this issue tomorrow morning.ISNA is a founding member of the National Religious Campaign Against Torture, an organization that also supports the courageous report issued by the Physicians for Human Rights. For more information on the press conference,the PHR Report and the National Religious Campaign Against Torture, ================================================

Press Statement by Media Adviser on the Visit of the Prime Minister to Jammu and Kashmir on 7th and 8th June 2010

(PIB NEWS) June,08, The Prime Minister made a two day visit to Jammu & Kashmir from 7th June to 8th June 2010.The Prime Minister presided over the 5th convocation of Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology at SKICC, Srinagar. In his convocation address, the Prime Minister lauded Dr Shah Faisal on his achievement in topping the Civil Services Examination of the UPSC. He assured that in cooperation with the state government, we will make all possible efforts to create employment opportunities in J&K. The Prime Minister mentioned that three Round Table Conferences had been convened, with participation from many civil society participants, and other political groups. He noted that the recommendations of these deliberations are being implemented in a step-wise manner. The Prime Minister mentioned that the process of talks could be extended. The Government of India is willing to talk to all those who are willing to shun violence. The Prime Minister noted complaints related to human rights. He made it clear that the "Government policy is to protect human rights of the people even when dealing with terrorism. The security forces in J&K have been strictly instructed to respect the rights of civilians. We will act to remove any deficiency in the implementation of these instructions." Later in the evening, the Prime Minister had interaction with representatives of various political parties. Among these were delegations from National Conference, Indian National Congress, PDP, BJP, Panther's Party, Awami National Conference, J&K Democratic Party (Nationalist), the CPI(M), and the CPI. On Tuesday morning he met the Sikh community, house boat owners, artisans, saffron growers, Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and hoteliers, and many other groups. The Prime Minister also took a review meeting of the developmental activities in the state, with the Chief Minister and his cabinet colleagues, and senior officials. Shri Farooq Abdullah, Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy, and Shri Ghulam Nabi Azad, Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare also participated in the deliberations. The Prime Minister noted that the state is doing well on flagship programmes. He drew the state government's attention to unutilized funds and also impressed upon them the need to move forward and hold elections for the local bodies and panchayats. The Chief Minister gave a detailed presentation on the economic situation, plan performance, financial delivery, and on the progress in certain specific sectors like energy, transport, and health. He underlined his government's commitment to third party / independent scrutiny in project implementation as part of a larger principle of accountability and transparency. He assured the Prime Minister that local body elections would be held in October/ November 2010.
In his closing remarks, the Prime Minister complimented the Chief Minister for providing dynamic leadership to the state administration. In particular, he observed "it is heartening to note that the state government has gone in for tariff-based bids even for hydro projects." While the Prime Minister assured the Chief Minister of financial support for the state government, including on account of difficulties of implementation of the 6th Pay Commission award, Dr Manmohan Singh expressed his disappointment that a section of the state government employees often respond to bandh calls by separatist groups, and fail to discharge their duties in the service of the people of the state. Among many assurances, the Prime Minister ordered for restoration of cuts amounting to about Rs 400 crores in the state plan outlay for 2009-10. He also announced that Central Government had decided to dispense with the cutback of Rs 691 crores in this year's outlay in the reconstruction Plan. The Prime Minister mentioned that the Ministry of Rural Development will assist in setting up of Self Help Groups of women belonging to Gujjar and Bakkerwal communities. The Ministry of Tribal welfare will provide additional allocation to take forward the schemes that use local community based volunteers for delivery of health and education to nomadic groups like gujjars and bakkerwals. Three Cultural Centres including folk museums, auditoria etc, will be set up by the Ministry of Culture for the pahadi, gujjar and bakkeral communities, along with computer laboratories in selected schools for these groups. The Prime Minister concluded that the Central Government will do all that it can to support the state government. He added that "things have improved considerably, fund utilization is better, but much more remains to be done.” Just before leaving for New Delhi, the Prime Minister had a meeting with the Chief Minister. No aides were present.
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Vice President’s Address at the Ceremony Hosted by Lord Mayor of Prague, Czech Republic

(PIB NEWS) June,08, Following is the text of the address of the Vice President of India Shri M. Hamid Ansari at the Ceremony hosted by Lord Mayor of Prague Mr. Pavel Bem at Old Town Hall, Prague in Czech Republic today : “My wife and I and my entire delegation are delighted to be in your beautiful and renowned city, so richin culture and tradition. Prague is one of the great cities of the world, and I am happy to be back here, having visited it several years ago. We in India have great admiration for the Czech Republic and its capital city in particular. We admire its history, cultural heritage and its accomplishments in all the fields of human knowledge. Prague lies at the intersection of Europe. It was here that tradesmen, politicians, scholars and artists from all over the world have met. Prague has witnessed the unfolding of events that have impacted the course of history. Czech Republic and India have historically been close partners in our quest for equality, human rights, freedom and democracy. The leaders of India’s freedom struggle, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, visited your beautiful city in the 1930s. Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore visited Prague in the 1920s. Both Pandit Nehru, as well as Tagore, raised their voices against Czechoslovakia’s occupation. I thank you very much for this honour that you have extended to me and my delegation and through us to the people of India.”
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Jaganmohan Reddy postpones 'Odarpu Yatra' to July 8

Hyderabad,June 8: Congress MP and the son of late Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YSR Reddy, Jaganmohan Reddy has postponed his controversial 'Odarpu Yatra' to July 8."I got a message from the high command to postpone the yatra indefinitely. I have full faith in our leader. Hence, as per the message from the high command, I am postponing the yatra for some days," Jaganmohan said in a statement."I will resume the yatra on July 8. I believe that I will be able to get the approval and blessings of our party President by then," he added.Jaganmohan was scheduled to undertake his yatra in Srikakulam District from today.Earlier, the Congress had asked Jaganmohan not to go ahead with his yatra.After a meeting with Law Minister Veerappa Moily, Jaganmohan had claimed that he has been given permission to go ahead with his yatra. Reddy said: "My yatra was widely appreciated, and I have been given a clear indication to go ahead and do what I was doing."However, the claim was dismissed by Moily who said Jaganmohan Reddy should stop his yatra.
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'Fish Prasadam' distribution starts today

Hyderabad,Jun 8:Thousands of Asthma patients are gathering here from across the country for a two-day distribution of 'fish prasadam,' which started here today.Patients from across the country, who are here for the 'fish prasadam,' believe that fish distributed by 'Bathani brothers' will cure them of their disease. The Hyderabad district administration has made appropriate arrangements for the distribution of the 'prasadam.' There are 32 counters for distribution of 'fish prasadam' at the exhibition grounds at Namapalli in the city. The department of fisheries has procured 1.50 lakh murrel fingerlings, stocked in 24 nurseries of fish seed farm in the city.The department has set up 27 stalls for the supply of live murrel seed near the queue complex for the 'prasadam' point, official sources said.The Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation would plying 40 speical buses from Rajiv Gandhi Intenrnational Airport at Shamshabad, Railway stations and various bus stations for the convenient of the patients.The city police has made elaborate security arrangements by deploying police personnel at the 'fish prasadam' points. For giving due consideration to cleanliness during the gathering, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation authorities has deployed scores of sweepers and labourers to work round the clock.Hyderabad City Police Commissioner AK Khan, in a notification, said the police have taken all steps to regulate traffic without causing inconvenience to the general public in connection with the distribution of 'fish medicine' on Mrugashirakarti falling on 8th and 9th od this month.
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YSR's son defers 'yatra' on Sonia Gandhi's directive

Hyderabad, June 7 Finally bowing to the Congress leadership, Lok Sabha member Y.S.Jaganmohan Reddy Monday postponed his 'odarpu yatra' by a month.The late chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy's son said he will now launch his yatra in Srikakulam July 8. The young MP announced this in a statement a day before he was scheduled to set out on the controversial tour. The yatra is aimed at consoling the family members of those who either committed suicide or died of shock following the death of his father in a helicopter crash last year. After blowing hot and cold on the yatra, Reddy decided not to go ahead with his yatra June 8. The decision came after he was reprimanded by the party leadership for repeatedly defying its directive and Congress president Sonia Gandhi asked him to defer his yatra. Reddy said in the statement: "I have full faith in Sonia Gandhi and I will launch yatra on July 9 with her consent." Jagan's attempt to defy the high command and take out yatra in Warangal district of Telangana region May 28 had triggered violence. The MP was arrested on his way to Mahabubabad town in the district but firing by gunmen of his two loyal legislators in the town injured nine pro-Telangana activists, who were opposing his tour. While stating that he saw no reason for postponing the yatra in a non-Telangana area, Reddy said he would abide by the party president's directive. The MP said his mother Vijayalakshmi June 2 wrote a letter to Gandhi, urging her to give permission for the yatra. "We were waiting for an appointment with her to explain our stand in person. However, last night I received a call from high command asking me to indefinitely postpone the yatra. I asked if there are any strong reasons for this?" said Reddy without mentioning the high command's response.
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Massive health plan to be implemented

Hyderabad, Jun 7 : Andhra Pradesh Health and Family Welfare Minister Danam Nagender today said the state government would implement a massive health plan with an outlay of Rs 1,140 crore.As part of this plan, the state government had already created 180 new Primary Health Centres (PHCs) and 23 Community Health Centres (CHCs) while 354 community health and nutrition clusters were being carved out, he announced at a news conference here.He said the department had initiated a number of measures to strengthen the health delivery systems in the state, focussing on prevention of water, food and vector-borne diseases and effective management of other infectious diseases.He said instructions had been issued to all District Medical and Health Officers to activate the health machinery to monitor water and food quality in the state and take immediate corrective measures, wherever required. He said every gram panchayat had been given Rs 10,000 as part of NRHM grant for village health and sanitation committees and these committees had been instructed to chlorinate drinking water regularly and keep the drains clear and working.The Institute of Preventive Medicine was conducting regular testing of water in all rural and urban areas and was advising gram panchayats and municipalities on corrective measures, he said.The Minister said a major campaign would be launched in all malaria-endemic districts, especially in the ITDA areas of the state from July 20, to take up for intensive spraying, active surveillance and medical treatment of people suffering from fever.He said the government was in the process of filling 759 posts of staff nurses and 2,434 posts of doctors and all the doctors would be in place by end of July this year.He said the government would take stern action to terminate the services of doctors, who had been absent without leave for more than six months.(photo by RSJ Thomas)
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Centre releases second instalment of scholarship

Hyderabad,Jun 7: Andhra Pradesh Minority Welfare Minister Ahmadulla Syed Mohammed today said the Centre had released the second instalment of scholarship amount of Rupees 43.41 crore for pre-matric and post-matric students of minority communities for 2009-10.Addressing a press conference here, he said the Centre had already released the first instalment of Rs 42 crore for the benefit of 1.13 lakh students in the State.Mr Syed Mohammed Ahmedullah said the government had sanctioned Rs 19.53 crore for scholarships for 86,011 pre-matric students and Rs 19 crore for the post-matric students and Rs three crores for the 1309 merit-based scholarships.A.P State Minorities Financial Corporation,(VC & MD) Alhaj Dr.Mohammad ilyas Rizvi (IFS),Principal Secretary,Minorities welfare Lingaraju Panigrahi also seen in picture, ( photo by RSJ Thomas)
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7 killed, 3 hurt in 2 road accidents

Guntur,Jun 7: Seven people were killed and three others injured in two road accidents in this district today.According to police, four people, including a woman and a six-year-old girl, were killed when they were crushed under iron pipes of the lorry, which they boarded on National Highway-5 at Atmakuru in Mangalagiri Mandal late last night.The labourers hailed from Singarayyakonda in Prakasam District and were proceeding to this district in search of work. The lorry' coming from Kanigiri in Prakasam District, was heading towards Vijayawada.The accident occurred when the victims were sitting between the lorry cabin and the iron pipes, placed on the top of the lorry. The lorry driver had to apply sudden brakes, which led the iron pipes to fall on the four, resulting into their death. The police had a tough time in retreiving the bodies which were later sent to Mangalagiri Government Hospital for post-mortem, police added.
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Heat wave conditions despite isolated rains in some areas

Hyderabad, Jun 7 : Heat wave conditions prevailed over the districts of Krishna of Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Khammam, Medak and Nizamabad of Telangana even as isolated rain occurred over Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Rayalaseema.The maximum temperatures significantly rose at many places over Coastal Andhra Pradesh and at one or two places over Rayalaseema and changed little over Telangana. They were significantly above normal at a few places over remaining districts of Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and at one or two places over Rayalaseema. The highest maximum temperature of 45 degrees Celsius was recorded at Khammam and Rentachintala, Met department said today,The chief amounts of rainfall recorded in cm are Pulivendula 3, Chittoor, Proddatur and Tiruvuru one each.Light to moderate rain/thundershowers would occur at a few places over Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Rayalaseema. Isolated rain or thundershowers may occur over Telangana. Heat wave conditions may continue to prevail over the districts of Krishna of Coastal Andhra Pradesh and over Adilabad, Karimnagar, Khammam, Medak and Nizamabad of Telangana during next two days.A spell of rain or thundershowers could occur in parts of city.Maximum and Minimum temperatures would be around 39 and 28 degrees Celsius respectively.
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Congress playing votebank politics for Telangana: Gadkari

Hyderabad, June 7 : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Nitin Gadkari has accused the Congress of indulging in votebank politics for establishing its influence in the Telangana region. Addressing media persons here on Sunday, Gadkari said: "The Congress party has declared the decision. They are creating the problems. If they don''t want to execute it, why did they declare the decision? Actually, whatever things have happened in Andhra Pradesh, It is only because of the votebank politics of the Congress."He further said the BJP would support the bill for a separate state of Telangana if it was placed in Parliament.The Srikrishna Committee formed by the Central Government to look into the Telangana issue was a waste of time, he alleged."The Central Government first declared and later deferred its promise in December 2009 to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh," he said.Talking on other issues, Gadkari said he was glad that Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had admitted that the Afzal Guru file wass being pushed under political pressure."I think she (Sheila Dikshit) is speaking the truth. The BJP party has accused the Congress party again and again that the word ''secular'' means an appeasement of terrorist. The work of pulling Afzal Guru''s file under political pressure is an appeasement for terrorist. The blame that we are putting on the Congress party and Sheila Dikshit has agreed to it and I respect her for that," said Gadkari.The issue was further aggravated with the controversial statement made by Dikshit a few days ago, where she denied that the Home Ministry had sent her a letter on the case.He also blamed the policies of the UPA government for the miseries of farmers in the country.
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