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Sat, 28 May 2016
Pakistan bans TV contraceptive adverts

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23:56   Pakistan bans TV contraceptive adverts
Pakistani authorities have banned all broadcast advertisements for contraceptives. 

The regulator, Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority, said there had been public complaints that they prompted curiosity in "innocent children".

Pakistan is a socially conservative country and such commercials were already rare. 

Pakistan, the world's sixth most populous nation, has a lower rate of access to birth control than the average for the region, according to the World Health Organization.
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23:22   Rahul to become party chief at 'appropriate time': Selja
Expressing confidence in the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, former Union minister Kumari Selja said that he would become the party chief at "appropriate time", while rejecting the "misconception" of the party being run by Gandhi dynasty. 

"Rahul Gandhi would become the party president but it is the matter of time," she said. "Victory and defeat are a part of the elections. The party is reviewing the results of the recent assembly elections and will improve our performance under the able leadership of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi," she said.
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23:01   We'll make full use of the belief the people have on us: Modi at mega bash
PM Modi speaks at the mega event to commemorate his 2 years in office. He starts by saying that a government should be continuously scrutinised but a false sense of despondency should not be created. 

 -- People's expectations are increasing but so is our enthusiasm to work.

-- -- We saw two things over the last few days: on one side there is Vikasvad and other side is Virodhvad.

-- Over the last 15 days, the work of the Government of India is being very carefully analysed and all aspects are being seen closely. 

-- In the process we have got renewed faith and enthusiasm. The blessings of the people are also increasing. 
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22:55  
-- In the next 3 years we will bring LPG connections to 5 crore people.

-- For good governance, it is imperative for the Govt to trust its citizens. 
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22:42  
PM Narendra Modi recalls the coal scam and the embarrassment caused by various other scams in the previous government at the two year anniversary celebrations. 

-- No one can disagree that previous Govt was infected with corruption,but after we came to power we stressed on eradicating corruption.

-- Those who were earlier looting the nation are not enthused by this government.

-- "In LPG gas subsidy lists we found so many fake names, so much leakage - we saved you nearly Rs 15,000 crore. 
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22:21  
Actor Amitabh Bachchan returns to share stories about brave daughters who have fought the odds in a special segment on 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao'. Ad guru Piyush Pandey also joins him at the NDA government's 2 year anniversary celebrations at India gate in New Delhi. 

"Once on Kaun Banega Crorepati, I met a young woman whose father had been told by the villagers not to 'waste' money on her education beyond the eighth grade," says Amitabh Bachchan.

"She left her home in protest, to her grandmother's place, but she was ill-treated there as well. Then she ended up on KBC. When I gave her the Rs 25 lakh-cheque and asked what she would do with it, she told me she would go and show it to her father and say look, even daughters can be good investments," he says.
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21:56   Modi@2 event: Make in India scheme up for discussion
A discussion now on the Make in India scheme. "We are able to draw a lot more foreign investment. PM Modi's trips are helping a lot to do that," says minister Nirmala Sitharaman. 

Mercedes-Benz India CEO Roland S Folger speaking at the event, says, "The creation of Make in India was a stroke of genius. It is helping draw a lot of investment in manufacturing."
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21:27   Rahul Gandhi slams Modi and his 'selfie politics'
At a rally to protest against the AAP and the BJP, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi didn't hold back and attacked the prime minister on a day when a grand bash has been held to commemorate Modi's two years in power. 

Speaking at the rally, Gandhi said, "For India to progress, governments need to stop making false and unrealistic promises and instead work to help the people. There is a drought all over the country.Farmers are committing suicide, but here at India Gate Modiji is celebrating with Bollywood stars."

He added, "Who is hurt when there is selfie politics? It's the farmer, the small businessman who gets hurt. My politics is based on Mahatma Gandhi's ideology, I can never do politics of lies and false promises."
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21:17  
And that's the Shillong choir singing an exceptionally stirring rendition of Saare Jahaan Se Achha interspersed with words from Rabindranath Tagore's Where The Mind is Without Fear, earlier at the Modi mega bash. 
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21:14   Modi's 56-inch chest not reduced an inch: Rajnath
Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said that the "56-inch chest" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not decreased "an inch" and asserted that there should be no doubt on that score. 

He also said if Pakistan does not have the capability to curb terrorist activities in its territory, it should seek India's help. 

Singh was asked by Rajat Sharma on his programme "Aap ki Adalat" on India TV about Modi's Lok Sabha election campaign in which he had said that a "56-inch chest" was needed to tackle Pakistan. 

"It has not decreased. I am the home minister. I know confidential matters. I have the IB with me. It has not decreased. There should be no doubts on that score. I can only say that the 56-inch chest is there," the channel quoted Singh as saying in a press release.
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20:52  
JUST IN: AAP leaders Sanjay Singh, Dilip Pandey and Raghav Chaddha detained by police near Rahul Gandhi's protest venue in Delhi.
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20:39   Under Modi, we shed policy paralysis: Gadkari @PM's event
And it's now to Nitin Gadkari and the condition of infrastructure in the country. 

Praising the government, Gadkari speaks, "Many projects that were lying around, we completed them. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi we shed the policy paralysis that had gripped government."

"PM Modi believes that the North East has been treated unfairly. We have set up a special infrastructure development corporation for the north east NHIDCL. Our programmes there will transform the infrastructure of the region," he adds.

"Travelling by waterways is far cheaper than road transport. It is a priority of this government," says minister Nitin Gadkari listing programmes to develop waterways. "It will be a game-changer, it will be our biggest achievement," he says.
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20:26  
JUST IN: Toll in Paris lightning strike rises to 11 injured, 6 seriously: official
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20:01   How farmers' lives have 'Modi'fied
Coming back to Modi's gala event, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh talks about initiatives that have changed the plight of farmers in the country. He says, "Farmers in the country are now backed by our government's schemes like soil health card, 'Neem' coated Urea, crop insurance scheme and irrigation facilities."

He adds, "The earlier regimes only used to talk about support prices. Now we have focused on profit to farmers and imminent financial help in the times of tragedy."
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19:54   Delhi police throws water over Congress' anti-AAP rally
Delhi Police bars Congress from using torch or lit lanterns during their 'Mashal Juloos' protest against the Aam Aadmi Party government over the water crisis issue. 

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi was to take out a rally in the national capital against power cuts and water shortage in the city. Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee chief Ajay Maken on Friday called on party workers to congregate at Raj Ghat and participate in the rally to boost strength.

The Congress holds that the power and water woes in Delhi were due to the "constant clashes' between AAP and BJP, and the Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal's "habit' of locking horns with the Centre on each and every issue.
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19:21  
Actor Vidya Balan joins the show from Gateway of India, Mumbai. "On my way to a village close to Varanasi, I was surprised to figure out that women still defecate in open. I was happy to associate myself with the initiative against open defecation. The condition has improved a lot in the last two years. I will continue to part of the initiative in making our country open defecation free."
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19:10   Our mission is power to the poor, says Ramvilas Paswan
Our government's aim is 'Power to the Poor'. We will achieve our target of complete electrification of more than 18,000 villages which have yet not received electricity since independence, says Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan.

Minister Najma Heptulla adds, "Our mission for power is bringing new hope to the people who had lost faith on the government."

Progress on rural electrification during our regime is like a revolution. We are reaching every village of the country: MoS Jayant Sinha
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18:58   Swachch was not a cool word, until now: Kailash Kher sings for Clean India
Singer Kailash Kher joins Modi government's celebrations at India Gate in New Delhi. "Earlier we had no idea what work the government was doing. Now we have a clear picture about all the work that is happening around us," he says, adding, "Swachh was not a cool word. But with Prasoon Joshi, we have made a song about it."
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18:39   CBSE Class 10th results: Girls outshine boys
A whopping 1,68,541 students across the country - 85,316 boys and 83,225 girls scored a perfect 10 Cumulative Grade Point Average or CGPA score in the CBSE Class X exam results of which were announced today. 

While the number of boys, who have scored 10 CGPA is more, girls have done better in terms of pass percentage. Girls have a pass percentage of 96.36 per cent which is better than boys who had a pass percentage of 96.11 per cent in the CBSE Class X exam. 
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18:22   By 2018, Ganga will be among 10 cleanest rivers: Uma Bharti's vow @ Modi event
After the Beti Padhao, Beti Bachao campaign, Ministers Uma Bharati, Chaudhary Birender Singh and others on stage now to talk about the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan - the government's cleanliness and sanitation drive. 

The government has exceeded its targets in building toilets, says minister Chaudhary Birender Singh. "Our mission is to end open-defecation completely," he says.

Minister Uma Bharti speaks about the efforts to clean the Ganga River. "Previous governments spent the money in an unplanned way. We have a clear, phased approach to clean the Ganga," she says.

"Today Ganga is among the 10 most dirtiest rivers in the world. By 2018, it will be among the ten cleanest rivers," she promises.
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17:45   Modi sarkar and saving the children
Maneka Gandhi, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Jagat Prakash Nadda, Raveena Tandon others on stage now to talk about government initiatives for women and children. Talking about the missing children, Maneka Gandhi talks about the national portal for lost and found kids, which she says has helped hundreds to be helped. 

Health Minister JP Nadda says, "Mission Indradhanush is a huge programme for immunisation that is helping the children who are usually left out." He adds, "Immunisation of children has increased by five to seven per cent in last one year."
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17:33  
"Big B koi nahi hota, you just need to work hard and keep yourself focused," that's Amitabh Bachchan's answer to a girl who asked 'How did you become Big B'. 

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17:24   Amitabh Bachchan calls for women's equality at Modi Sarkar's event
Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan says he is here to speak about Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao scheme - saving and educating the girl child. Starts off by speaking about the status of women in Indian traditions.

"It is time that we realise that half the population of the country can't be left behind. Our growth is intrinsically connected to the development of women," says Amitabh Bachchan.

"Please don't think of women as the weaker gender," says Amitabh Bachchan. "If we are talking about inner-strength, then they are far stronger than men," he says.
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17:16   Will bring Kashmiri Pandits back: J&K CM Mehbooba
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday asserted that her government was committed to bringing back Kashmiri Pandits and other migrants to the Valley and would set up transit accommodations for them till they feel safe to return to their native places.
Rejecting claims of opposition parties and separatists that the government was setting up separate colonies for Kashmiri Pandits, she told the assembly that the construction of transit accommodation was among  recommendations made by the prime minister's working group, formed in 2005, and it will be for Muslim and Sikh migrants too.
She wondered how migrants can be asked "to return to their native places when our political workers -- be it from the People's Democratic Party, the Congress, the National Conference or any other party -- are
living under security in hotels in Srinagar".
"Why don't we tell them to return to their places? Because they don't feel secure. No body raises questions why we have made a colony for them," Mehbooba said.
She said her government was committed to setting up composite transit accommodation with basic facilities.
"This is a facility for migrants. Don't we have Muslim migrants? Don't we have migrants in Jammu? Are not there Sikhs and other people among them? If we are saying 50 per cent will be Kashmiri Pandits and the rest others, you are saying it is Israel-like situation," she said.
Mehbooba said the migrants can return to their native places only when they feel secure enough. "They can go to Ganderbal, Pulwama or Baramulla after that," she said.
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16:18   'Udta Punjab' is not banned: Anurag Kashyap
Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap has refuted reports that his upcoming production "Udta Punjab", which is based on issue of drug abuse in Punjab, has been banned by the censor board.
There are reports that the Shahid Kapoor-Kareena Kapoor film has failed to get censor board's approval due to excessive swearing and drug consumption.
Kashyap has said the board's examining committee has forwarded the decision to revising committee and hence film is far from being banned.
"For the record ,'Udta Punjab' is not banned. The examining committee has deferred the decision to Revising and due process is on. And due process takes it own time so please abstain for spreading a BAN rumour. There is nothing to speak on the subject as of now," the "Bombay Velvet" director tweeted.
"A film is banned only when examining, revising and FCAT all three refuse certificate. And then you fight it out in Supreme Court," he further wrote.
The Abhishek Chaubey-directed film also stars Alia Bhatt and Diljit Dosanjh and is set to release on June 17.
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15:40   Go after terrorists mainly Taliban: US to Pakistan
The United States has asked Pakistan to go after terrorists especially the Taliban leadership, days after an American drone killed Taliban chief Mullah Akhtar Mansour in the country's troubled Balochistan province.

"We continue to cooperate closely with Afghanistan, but also urge Pakistan to go after terrorists, especially Taliban leadership, and that cooperation continues," State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner told reporters.

Meanwhile, a former US Ambassador to Afghanistan, James B Cunningham, said the drone strike that killed Taliban leader Mullah Mansour inside Pakistan should send a signal that the United States will not tolerate terrorist safe havens.

"I hope that this is the beginning of a message that we will not tolerate any more the strategic challenge that is posed by the leadership of the Taliban being in Pakistan and having a safe haven there. I hope that this is the beginning of a new phase in the effort to bring the Taliban into a= political discussion," he told the Atlantic Council.

"It is rumoured that senior parts of the ISI (Pakistan's intelligence agency) may have been involved in setting Mansour up. The official account is that we informed Pakistan of the strike after it took place. In places like Afghanistan and Pakistan, conspiracy rumours will circulate for some time," he said.
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15:36  
JUST IN: Senior Congress leader V Narayanaswamy announced as the Chief Minister of Puducherry.
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14:59   Wondered whether Modi govt 'deserves' Rajan: Congress
Former finance minister P Chidambaram on Saturday wondered whether the Modi government "deserves" Raghuram Rajan, describing him as "one of the most outstanding economists in the world", amid an unrelenting
attack by Bharatiya Janata Party MP Subramanian Swamy against the governor.
"I am beginning to think whether this government deserves Dr Rajan," he replied when asked whether he should be given a second term.
Rajan's 3-year term ends in the first week of September.
Interacting with reporters on two years of the Modi government at the Congress headquarters, Chidambaram first chose to ignore questions on Swamy's attack on Rajan, insisting that the Congress will respond if the prime minister and the finance minister speak against Rajan.
Defending Rajan, he said: "The United Progressive Alliance government appointed one of the most outstanding economists of the world as the RBI governor. We placed full confidence in him at that time and we continue to place full confidence in him today."
In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi two days ago, Swamy asked him to sack Rajan, charging that his insistence on high interest rate had led to recession in the domestic small and medium industries causing not only a sharp decline in output, but also massive unemployment of semi-skilled labour.
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14:40   Allegations against Khadse needs to be proved first: Rijiju
Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju has said the allegations that Maharashtra Revenue Minister Eknath Khadse has links with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim need to be proved before any action is taken against him.
Aam Aadmi Party spokesperson Preeti Sharma Menon had last week alleged that Khadse had received several calls from the number of Dawood's wife, Mehjabeen Shaikh, between September 4, 2015 and April 5, 2016.
"At this moment, it has only been alleged that Eknath Khadse has links with Dawood Ibrahim. The same has to be verified," Rejiju told reporters last evening on the sidelines of a programme in Vasco town.
"It is not that we will not take action against him but for doing that the same has to be proved," he added.
Khadse, however, had dismissed the allegations as "baseless", stating that the particular number was not in use for the last one year.
Mumbai Police on May 22 had stated that initial analysis of the cell phone number (belonging to Khadse) indicated that there were neither outgoing nor incoming calls from the number to that of the fugitive (Dawood) during the entire period of September 2015 to April 2016, as claimed by AAP.
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14:27  
JUST IN: P Chidambaram is a Congress nominee for Rajya Sabha election from Maharashtra while Kapil Sibal and Jairam Ramesh will contest from Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka respectively.
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14:19   96.21 per cent pass Class X CBSE exam, girls outshine boys
With a pass percentage of 96.36 per cent, girls outshone boys in the CBSE Class X exams results of which were declared on Saturday.
The boys registered a pass percentage of 96.11 per cent. Overall the pass percentage this year is 96.21, which has come down from 97.32 percent in the previous year.
Area-wise, the Thiruvanathpuram area was ahead of other regions with a pass percentage of 99.87 followed by Chennai region which had a pass percentage of 99.69 percent.
A total of 14,91,293 candidates were registered for Class X examination, an increase of about 8.5 per cent candidates over last year.
Category wise, the Central government run Jawahar Navodyaya Vidyalayas have scored a pass percentage of 98.87 per cent followed by Kendriya Vidyalayas which have a pass percentage of 98.85 per cent.
Independent schools have a pass percentage of 97.72 per cent while government schools recorded a pass percentage of 86.61 per cent.
According to data shared by CBSE, 85.62 percent students of government aided schools cleared the exam.
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13:50   EC cancels polls to two Tamil Nadu assembly seats
The Election Commission has cancelled polls to two Tamil Nadu assembly seats, saying money power has vitiated electoral process.   

The Election Commission had deferred assembly polls of to two Tamil Nadu constituencies, Aravakurichi and Thanjavur, citing evidence of use of money power.   

The EC had issued notifications to postpone the elections to the two constituencies from May 16 to May 23 following evidence that large-scale money changed hands to influence voters.
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13:25   Court orders Johnny Depp to stay away from wife Heard after alleged abuse
A Los Angeles judge granted actress Amber Heard a temporary restraining order against husband Johnny Depp, whom she claims has been abusive.
The actor has been ordered to stay away from Heard. She wanted the same order to apply to her dog, Pistol, but the judge wouldn't go along, saying there was "insufficient showing of need to protect the dog", reported CNN.
Heard, 30, and Depp, 52, have been married since February 2015. Earlier this week, she filed for divorce.
In her complaint, Heard alleged, "During the entirety of our relationship, Johnny has been verbally and physically abusive to me."
"Johnny has had a long-held and widely-acknowledged public and private history of drug and alcohol abuse. He has a short fuse."
Heard's paperwork include a reference to photos the actress supplied to the court which she said showed injuries to her face after an alleged altercation with Depp on May 21.
As part of the court documents, Depp filed a "memorandum of points and authorities" in which he rejects Heard's claims of domestic violence.
"Amber is attempting to secure a premature financial resolution by alleging abuse," the legal document said. 

"Her current application for a temporary restraining order along with her financial requests appears to be in response to negative media attention she received earlier this week after filing for divorce."
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13:09   1,200 light-years away planet may be habitable: researchers
A planet which about 1,200 light-years away from Earth and 40 per cent larger than its size may be habitable, according to US researchers.
Kepler-62f, which is in the direction of the constellation Lyra, is within the range of planets that are likely to be rocky and possibly could have oceans, scientists said. 
NASA's Kepler mission discovered the planetary system that includes Kepler-62f in 2013, and it identified Kepler-62f as the outermost of five planets orbiting a star that is smaller and cooler than the sun, they said.
But the mission did not produce information about Kepler-62f's composition or atmosphere or the shape of its orbit.
Now, scientists from University of California Los Angeles and University of Washington came up with possible scenarios about what its atmosphere might be like and what the shape of its orbit might be to determine whether the planet could sustain life.
"We found there are multiple atmospheric compositions that allow it to be warm enough to have surface liquid water. This makes it a strong candidate for a habitable planet," said Aomawa Shields from UCLA.
On Earth, carbon dioxide makes up 0.04 per cent of the atmosphere, researchers said.
Because Kepler-62f is much farther away from its star than Earth is from the sun, it would need to have dramatically more carbon dioxide to be warm enough to maintain liquid water on its surface, and to keep from freezing, they said.
Researchers ran computer simulations based on Kepler-62f having an atmosphere that ranges in thickness from the same as Earth's all the way up to 12 times thicker than our planet's.
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12:51   Gujarat Files: When Rana Ayyub met Narendra Modi
In 2010, journalist Rana Ayyub was 26, struggling to come to terms with a dear colleagues death and working with Tehelka magazine. It was one of the lowest points in her life, and she found her way out of this rabbit hole because of a story. Ayyub began investigating the Gujarat riots of 2002 and the way the state machinery worked in Gujarat under the aegis of Narendra Modi and Amit Shah. To do this, she went undercover and posed as a filmmaker from America, named Maithili Tyagi, who wanted to make a film on Modi and had a gora assistant named Mike. The identity worked. She got a meeting with Modi, who was then chief minister of Gujarat. 

Here’s how it went.
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12:44   Thane factory blast: Death toll rises to 12
The death toll in the boiler blast in a factory at Dombivli in adjoining Thane district climbed to 12 with recovery of another body from the debris on Saturday, an NDRF official said.
"The toll till Friday was 11. We have reports that civilians found a body at the site this morning," a senior National Disaster Response Force official told PTI.
"Six bodies were recovered on Thursday and four found yesterday. Also, an injured died in hospital, taking the toll to 11 till yesterday," the official said.
The rescue work is as good as over, he said.
The deceased included two sons, and daughter-in-law of owner of Probace Enterprises, Dr Vishwas V Vakatkar.
Charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder have been slapped on owners of the factory.
"We have sought help from the factory inspector and other departments to determine the exact cause of the blast and fire," a police officials said.
Police have lodged a case against the factory owners under IPC sections 304-A (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), which attracts upto 10 years jail term and a fine, 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or  personal safety of others), 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others).
On Thursday, Dombivli was shaken by a deafening blast which occurred in a boiler in the Probace chemical factory at Shivaji Udyog Nagar of MIDC phase-II area in Dombivli (East).

The impact of the blast followed by a massive fire resulted in heavy damage to two neighbouring factories in the MIDC complex.
The explosion impact saw damage to more than 600 houses, offices, shops in the two kms vicinity.
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12:33   BJP's 'double face' exposed on Ram temple issue: Congress
Taking a strong exception to Union Minister Rajnath Singh's remarks that the Bharatiya Janata Party would contest the Uttar Pradesh polls on development plank and not on the issue of Ram temple construction, the Congress party on Saturday said Singh's comment exposed the BJP's "double-face".

"Dubiousness is a habit of the BJP; one leader says something, while the other says something else. In the case of Ram Temple, Subramanian Swamy says the temple will be constructed by coming December. And now, Rajnath Singh says this is a non-issue. It is important to note that both of them are members of the BJP working committee, so they expose the double face of the saffron party," Congress leader Pramod Tiwari told ANI.

Tiwari asked if the Ram Temple matter is not a plank for the UP elections, then why there is a political discussion and repeated comments by top leaders over the issue.

"More importantly when the matter is pending in the Supreme Court, why these unwarranted statements are coming from the VHP and the BJP leaders," he said.

The Home Minister said his party would fight next year's assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh on the issue of development and not on the issue of construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, citing it as an important "cultural issue" and not political.
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11:50   Postpone or move Olympics due to Zika
The summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro should be postponed or moved "in the name of public health" due to the widening Zika outbreak in Brazil, more than 100 prominent doctors and professors said Friday in an open letter to the World Health Organization, CNN has reported. 

"We make this call despite the widespread fatalism that the Rio 2016 Games are inevitable or 'too big to fail,' " the writers said in the letter addressed to WHO Director-General Margaret Chan. "Our greater concern is for global health. The Brazilian strain of Zika virus harms health in ways that science has not observed before."

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10:50   Trump's xenophobia worsening climate of fear: Sikh-American
A Sikh-American councilman, who was called a "terrorist" on Twitter by a Donald Trump supporter, has said the Republican presidential candidate's "xenophobic political rhetoric" has worsened the "climate of fear" against
minority communities across the United States.
Ravinder Bhalla, councilman-at-large of the City of Hoboken, New Jersey, in an opinion piece on NJ.com said that fear-mongering and divisiveness had never worked to solve people's differences and "no public official, locally or nationally, should ever be telling you otherwise."
"As Donald Trump and others continue to inject charged xenophobic political rhetoric into our public discourse, the climate of fear directed towards minority communities across our nation has worsened dramatically," Bhalla said.
He underscored that diversity and unity is what makes the United States great.
"We are a nation of immigrants, where each new wave has strengthened and reinvigorated our nation," he said.
Bhalla was called a terrorist last week by Robert Dubenezic, an open supporter of Trump after the Sikh-American had tweeted about new bike lanes in his city.
Dubenezic replied to his tweet, saying "How the hell did Hoboken allow the guys to be councilman? Shouldn't even be allowed in the US #terrorist."
Bhalla was quick to answer, exclaiming, "Sir, I am born and raised in America. You clearly don't know what it means to be an American #ignorant."
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10:02   Demonstrators face off at Trump rally in California
Thousands of pro- and anti-Donald Trump demonstrators faced off outside a rally for the presumptive Republican presidential nominee in San Diego, with police out in force to head off violence, AFP reported.
Authorities said three people were arrested, including one for trying to climb over a railing, but the protests were mostly peaceful and there was none of the violence and mass arrests seen at Trump rallies in other cities.
News reports said Trump's hour-long speech inside the city's convention centre was interrupted at one point due to protesters who were quickly removed.
Outside the venue, pro- and anti-Trump demonstrators faced off, with dozens of police officers in riot gear standing between the two groups.
Authorities in San Diego earlier designated separate demonstration zones for the two sides to prevent them mixing.
Following the rally, police ordered the crowd to disperse, judging it to be an unlawful assembly, but many demonstrators remained.
Protests in New Mexico turned violent on Tuesday, prompting fears of a similar escalation at Trump's campaign appearances in California this week.
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09:35   PM Modi extends best wishes to Sharif for his heart surgery
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday extended best wishes to his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif for his open-heart surgey to be held in UK next Tuesday.
"My best wishes to PM Nawaz Sharif Sahab for his open heart surgery on Tuesday. And for his speedy recovery & good health," Modi tweeted.
Sharif will undergo an open-heart surgery on Tuesday, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif had said.
Asif, also a confidante of 66-year-old Sharif, had said doctors have advised the prime minister to undergo an open-heart surgery, following which he will be staying in the hospital for a week.
"The prime minister will travel after one week, on doctor's permission," he added.
Sharif's daughter, Maryam Nawaz had confirmed on twitter that her father will undergo an open-heart surgery on Tuesday.
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09:29   India's NSG membership is not about arms: US to Pak
In an apparent dissatisfaction over Pakistan's opposition to India becoming a member of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, the United States has said it is not about an arms race, but about civilian use of nuclear energy.
"This is not about an arms race and it's not about nuclear weapons. This is about the peaceful civil use of nuclear energy, and so we would certainly hope that Pakistan understands that," State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner told reporters at his daily news conference on Friday.
He was responding to questions about India's membership application to NSG and opposition to it by Pakistan on the grounds that this would give pace to nuclear arms race in the region.
However, the US has fingers crossed, ahead of the crucial meeting of the 48-nation NSG.
"Look, all I can say is that during his visit to India in 2015, President (Barack) Obama did affirm the US view that India meets missile technology control regime requirements and is ready for membership. But it's a consensus body, so we'll wait and see how the vote goes," Toner said.
"Deliberations about the prospects of new members joining the Nuclear Supplier Groups are an internal matter among the current members. I don't have much to say beyond that other than that I think they meet regularly," he said. 
The upcoming NSG meeting has not been set up for this purpose.
"This I not a specific meeting, I believe not set up to particularly talk about this issue," Toner said.
"They (Pakistan) have made public their interest, and certainly any country can submit its application for membership.  We will consider based on a consensus decision," the spokesman said. 
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02:28   'Mass rape' video on social media shocks Brazil
Two gang rapes of teenage girls including one supposedly involving 30 men that was filmed and posted online have shocked Brazil.

The UN women's rights agency condemned the cases after the video was posted on Twitter apparently by one of the rapists who boasted about the assault.

According to Brazilian media, the video posted on Wednesday showed a girl of 16 surrounded by men who claimed she had been raped by 30 of them in Rio de Janeiro, which will host the Olympic Games in August.
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01:58   Sharif to undergo open-heart surgery in UK on Tuesday
Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who is in London for medical check-up, will undergo an open-heart surgery on Tuesday, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said here today.

Asif, also a confidante of 66-year-old Sharif, said doctors have advised the prime minister to undergo an open-heart surgery, following which he will be staying in the hospital for a week. 

"The prime minister will travel after one week, on doctor's permission," he added. Sharif's daughter, Maryam Nawaz, confirmed on twitter that her father will undergo an open-heart surgery on Tuesday.

"Prayers are the most effective and potent medicines. Millions will pray for him so he will be fine," she tweeted. Maryam then went on to explain her father's medical condition, saying: "

In 2011 Nawaz Sharif had a cardiac procedure called 'Atrial Fibrillation Ablation', during which certain complications occurred resulting in perforation of heart which was in turn treated by open heart surgery." Therefore, Sharif had been visiting his doctor for follow up, she said.
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01:26   Men in car try to abduct girl, rob her brother in north Delhi
Three men allegedly tried to abduct a 19-year-old girl today and robbed her brother of his mobile phone and wallet before pushing him off a moving car, in which they had offered lift to the siblings in north Delhi's Geeta Ghat area, police said.

The girl was rescued after a six-km-long chase by a police team and the accused were arrested, police said. According to the police, the incident took place around 7.30 pm when the siblings, were heading towards their home in Wazirabad area, and a car stopped nearby, with its driver asking for directions. Once the girl's brother helped him with that, they were offered a lift to which they agreed. 

Two other persons were sitting inside the car and soon after the siblings stepped in, the group allegedly started assaulting the girl's brother. They robbed him of his mobile phone and wallet before pushing him off the vehicle near Geeta Ghat, and fled with his sister.
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01:07   Johnny Depp's wife accuses him of assault
BBC reports that a US judge orders actor Johnny Depp to stay away from estranged wife, actress Amber Heard, after alleged assault.

More details are awaited.

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