Salman Khan splits with Katrina Kaif

Recently, in a TV interview Salman candidly exclaimed that he has broken up with Katrina and now they have gone separate ways. This would definitely an utter shock for their fans but this revelation is all true.

Their break up rumours was running for a long time in media and finally the buzz is all true. Earlier, even Katrina used to be very hesitant while speaking about Salman in any interviews; they both have chosen their path and are happy to split.

Well, we never know finally when our hot shot Salman will get settled after number of break ups.

This is what Salman said in the interview.

“I’ve broken up with Katrina. We were friends then for everybody, we are friends now... Koi cheez tootati hai toh isliye kyonki ya toh different ways chali gayi, ya ek shakhs ki growth nahin hui, ya ek ne kuch aur path chun liya, ya sensibility samajh mein nahi aati ... It’s just people not getting along, something that doesn’t end peacefully. But if you can manage to stay friends, there’s nothing like it.”

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Corrupt officials to face the heat post games: Sonia Gandhi

In a major setback to Suresh Kalmadi, Congress president Mrs.Sonia Gandhi made it clear that all those who would proved guilty of corruption charges in the preparations of commonwealth games would face the action post games.

Addressing the meeting of Congress parliamentary party here in capital, Mrs. Gandhi also said that while hosting the mega Commonwealth games is a matter of great honour for India, action would be taken against all those who are involved in shady deals. She adds that now Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh is himself looking after the preparations of the games. The meeting was attended by Congress MPs of both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.

Sources say that even though Suresh Kalmadi is secretary of the Congress Parliamentary party, he was not even invited to attend the meeting. He was very much in capital and meetingCommonwealth Games federation boss Micheal Fennel.

Meanwhile, CGF president Michael Fennel today met Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and discussed with her various issues related to the mega event.

In the meeting, Dikshit briefed Fennel about progress of various key infrastructure projects like Barapullah Nallah elevated road and Games Village and told him that all the works will be completed well on time. It is said that Fennel also expressed satisfaction over the preparations and requested the government to speed up work on unfinished projects.

The CGF chief arrived in the city on Tuesday night to inspect the city`s preparation for the event to be held from October 3 to 14.

Yesterday, Fennell visited Thyagaraj Stadium and Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium to inspect the facilities and take stock of the progress made in completing the works. The CGF chief, accompanied by CEO Mike Hooper, also visited Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, Indira Gandhi Stadium and the Games Village.

Fennell`s visit has come at a time when a spate of controversies and allegations of financial irregularities have marred the build-up to the event.

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In deep waters, Pak rejects Indian aid

Even though Pakistan is facing worst ever flood crisis of their history, it has still rejected Indian aid offer worth of 5 million dollars. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday called his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani and offered assistance in handling the devastation caused by the floods. Pakistani Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit said althoughPakistan appreciates India`s offer, it cannot accept it in the current circumstances.

Early last week, Minister of External Affairs SM Krishna had called on his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi and offered $ 5 million in aid for flood relief work.

Singh was of the opinion that all of South Asia should extend every possible help to the people of Pakistan affected by the tragedy.

Over two thousand people have died and the UN says more than 6,50,000 people are without basic shelter while six million desperately need emergency aid.

Singh called Gilani `to express his sense of sorrow and to condole the deaths resulting from the huge floods that have devastated parts ofPakistan.

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Deepika blushes after her loo visit goes public

These days our celebs and stars need to think twice before they go to attend the nature’s call in public loos. The paparazzo follows them where ever they go. Of late there has been number of such cases in which the public has invaded the privacy of the celebrity. In one such incident, our very own super hot and dignified lass Deepika Padukone experienced an extremely embarrassing situation after her visit to loo was made public on the sets of ‘Break Ke Baad’ in Mauritius.

According to reports, filmmaker Danish Aslam had assigned few young assistants to keep track on Deepika’s every movement. But they went beyond their job. They monitored every actionof the actress and even conveyed the news of her using the toilet to each other over walkie-talkie. One day during the shooting of the film, she stepped out of the vanity van and excused herself for using the bathroom.

The furious actress was later pacified and the assistants were instructed to be more careful about what they said into their walkies!

This is an alert alarm for all the celebs, better check your moves or the mob may invade your privacy any time.

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Hello Darling is a film on sexual harassment - Gul

It's tricky being an actress. More, if you're Gul Panag. If you glance through her filmography, you'll come across films that are more critically acclaimed than commercially. But in her tenure as an actress, she has shown in few films, if not many, a woman's guile and heart, pride and desperation. And mind you, all those performances in Dor, Manorama and Straight can only come from an actress who is never afraid to take a risk. It is that combination of talent and courage that Gul has shown over the years which make her do roles she wants to, and not the other way around. Think of it this way and ask: Will Hello Darling describe her any better? Whether she's playing a hard-boiled or soft-boiled character, one never knows with Gul Panag which way the shell is going to crack open. If you're an actress, the quest for a decent part on the screen is still a difficult one. 'Long-suffering' is an attitude you may have to strike in a majority of roles, while staying decorative enough to offer the leading man the promise of something more than conversation. The 'supporting' or 'character' parts she is commonly allotted, despite being the most combustible actress talent of her generation, have made Panag uniquely adept at turning herself from an object into a subject. This special correspondent chats with one of three leading ladies of Hello Darling: Gul Panag, on the many intelligent questions which are always thrown to her every time I interview her because when she talks....she talks sense. Welcome darling!

Hello Darling isn't a deliberate move on my part to do a film. I signed the film two years ago. At the time of signing Hello Darling, I also did a film called Straight which was started and released before this one. I was also a part of Summer 2007. For me, Hello Darling wasn't about a big banner film. I liked the story at the concept level and I was more than willing to work with new and interesting people.

Comically unhinged

My character is not the one that has all the comic lines. All the situations I'm in are what make it funny. Celina and Eesha's characters are truly comic to some extent. Mine is a pretty straight forward character. I don't consciously try and make my lines funny because if it's written well, it'll be funny anyway. You can't composite on the right thing.

Ranvir, Purab, Vinay

These comic talents are meant for people who can read between the lines. They are two different schools of comedy. A mainstream comic film like Hello Darling is different from a comic film like Bheja Fry. I think there are two different schools of comedy.

Promotions

I will promote any of my film with heart and go all out. That's how it should be, right? Your commitment will remain the same but the question is how much the producer is willing to market and promote it. If producers are roping in actors, we should all be obliged. If Aamir Khan
had promoted my film Straight, it would've worked and how because with great power comes a greater reach.

Old School

Subhash Ghai is definitely old school in terms of where he comes but as a person he is able to hold his ground with new school too. Someone else would've been stuck in their 1980's time capsule but Subhash Ghai isn't. It's incredible how someone with his history has so much youth appeal.

Javed Jaffrey

He doesn't seem to grow old. There must've been some genetic modification done to him. Javed doesn't seem to age. He is a living example of how you can preserve the way you look.

Humorous

Vinay's humour and Javed's humour is very different. Vinay gives one liners and Javed can't stop in his own style. In Vinay's case, the moment you try and think about the joke, the punch is gone. There is no time to rethink too.

Dynamics of films

The dynamics of Lafangey Parindey, Aisha and Hello Darling are very different. If you look at it, you can't compare actors from one section of the industry with the others because the market has a certain function and you can't challenge it. We also determine a lot on the choices we make.

Eesha Koppikar

Eesha is an extremely competent actor. I loved her in Kya Kool Hai Hum. She is really versatile and has an incredible comic timing. She is very hard working. She is a kind of person who'll be sitting in the corner on the set and will be rehearsing her lines again and again. Eesha is just at it.

Celina Jaitley

Hello Darling was my first interaction with Celina. In fact, before working together for this film, I'd not even met her socially. We've just shared an occasional 'hi' and 'hello' and just exchanged our numbers but that's it. But when eighty percent of the film is about these three girls, you begin to enjoy each other's company. Celina is a very intelligent woman. You can have a conversation with her on any subject under the sun, whether it's astrology, politics, human rights or astronomy.

Chunky Pandey

Chunky is a rock star. Honestly. I've had a crush on Chunky Pandey since Tezaab. Every time I've kept bumping into him socially and in parties, I have to tell him about my gigantic crush. Even today he looks quite close to what he used to look in Tezaab. He is a great guy who has got a great sense of humour. He is a great conversationalist.

Harassment

I think there are people who can be propositioned and there are people who can't be propositioned, in just the way they are. I firmly believe that belongs to the latter. Any man who attempts at propositioning a woman does it with a knowledge that I can get away with that woman. There isn't any underlying message in the film. The message is clear throughout the film. Hello Darling is a film on sexual harassment.

Director - Manoj Tiwari

Manoj is a wonderful guy and he is truly funny in any given situation. He is the one who understands the gist of comedy and its timings. He has been with Subhashji on many of his films and has worked in a few films before too. Manoj doesn't try and pretend to be what he's not. He is just there. That's so nice.

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Sex Pistols launch self-titled scent

Legendary rockers the Sex Pistols have launched the band's first fragrance. The group has collaborated with French beauty brand Etat Libre D'Orange to create the fragrance, which is described as ‘the spirit of punk’ in a bottle.

The perfume, which is launched this summer (10), comes in packaging inspired by the Sex Pistols' hit track ‘God Save the Queen,’ reports the Daily Express.


A statement from executives at the fragrance company reads, "To wear this scent, you must resist tradition, fight conformity, and disregard aromatic conventions. In the spirit of punk, you must be willing to express yourself with abandon. You take risks and you wouldn't be adverse to creating a little mayhem."

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Director Ken and actress Riva had never broken off

There is a buzz that famed director Ken Ghosh and television actress Riva Babbar had called their five years old serious love relationship a break- off. Even though the reason behind their spilt was not cleared, their mates called it just as a tough phase of any relationship. But the picture got clear when finally their relationship turned sour, resulting in a serious break up. And now after a period of time a buzz has come to us that Riva and Ken are back together.

If sources are to be believed then Riva and Ken are back together. Even though the truth was denied by both, a recent occasion made it clear as they went for a vacation to Srilanka (Colombo) together. Along with their vacation, they also attended the marriage ceremony of film maker Ramesh Taurani’s daughter as a couple.


So it means that the couple had never spilt and were never apart from each other. And the tragedy of split can be believed as the ‘tough phase of relationship’ in real sense. Though the buzz is denied, an insider said that they were never detached.

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Kristen Bell reveals her bikini body secret

Actress Kristen Bell has revealed that keeping busy and maintaining a healthy lifestyle has helped her retain her bikini body. Bell, 30, who is appearing on the dual covers for the September issue of Shape in which she shares her 30 best stay-fit tips, finds an active lifestyle to be much better than any fad diets.

“I’m like a jackrabbit throughout the day and like to keep moving whenever I can,” People magazine quoted her as saying. “I love to do projects around the house. I have a very old sewing machine, and if I spot something I like in a magazine, I want to see if I can make it,” she said.


She also revealed that instead of depriving herself of caloric sweets, she makes compromises. “More flights of stairs means I can eat more candy!” she added.

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Ronit sang Lafangey Parindey's title track

Ronit Sarkar has made his debut as a playback singer in the upcoming movie Lafangey Parindey, directed by Pradeep Sarkar, who came into prominence with Parineeta. Ronit has lend his voice to the title track of this movie, starring Deepika Padukone and Neil Nitin Mukesh.

Ronit is none other than the son of the director of this movie Pradeep Sarkar himself. The lad's father said that he was totally unaware of his son's talent. To his absolute amazement, he noticed this great talent for the first time at a music concert. Pradeep had no idea that a singing talent was growing right under his nose. He had quite often seen him play musical instruments like the guitar and humming some tunes, however, he discovered the singer in him only when he heard him sing at a concert. To his surprise, the audience was also swaying their heads in tune with the song and applauding to express their pleasure .


Feeling proud of his son, the director mentioned that Ronit has a small band. He added that music director Anandh was in search of a budding singer with fresh voice, who could sing in high octane. He chose Ronit for the title track of this Yash Raj movie. Besides this movie, Ronit has lent his voice in a couple of ads as well.

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Solid start soured as Rice's Delhi dream fades

WHILE she concedes her Pan Pacific Championships could be over after just one 50 metre swim, Stephanie Rice remains hopeful - not certain - she will be able to compete at the Commonwealth Games in October.

Rice swam just the 50m butterfly in Irvine, California, on Wednesday, and even that short sprint did little to quell her concerns about a chronic shoulder injury she has carried since the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

Rice delayed her departure for the US so she could continue with treatment for the inflamed bursa on her shoulder, and while the normal treatment for such a problem would be a cortisone injection, Rice has already had seven such injections - the usual dosage is normally capped at four - and it has been recommended she does not have any more.

Rice, who struggled with the shoulder problem at training the day before the event began, said last week she was likely to need surgery, but hoped to do so after the Commonwealth Games. She now might not get that far if doctors decide the shoulder the needs cleaning out.

''That could be my meet done, but at the same time I hope it isn't because it is so much fun to be here and race,'' Rice said after her heat.

''I'm not allowed to have any more [injections] because it starts to impact your shoulder and make it weaker anyway, so surgery is looking very possible at this point in time, and I'm obviously just trying to put it off.

''It is only a clean-out, it's not a reconstruction, and they say four weeks out of the water and a 12-week rehab, so it's not that bad, but I want to do it as soon as possible [after the Commonwealth Games] to give myself the right amount of time to prepare [for next year's world championship trials in April].''

Rice, a triple Olympic gold medal winner, has an affinity with the Commonwealth Games as it was at that event in 2006 in Melbourne where she first emerged on the Australian sporting landscape, winning the 200m and 400m individual medleys.

''I have never had to deal with something like this,'' she said. ''It's frustrating, especially after last year when I was so unmotivated [with post-Olympic hangover]. I really wanted 2010 to be the year I came back and proved myself again.''

Australia had a successful start to the Pan Pacs, winning three gold medals, courtesy of Emily Seebohm in the 100m backstroke, Marieke Guehrer in the 50m butterfly and Jessicah Schipper in the 200m butterfly.

Another highlight for the team was controversial speedster Nick D'Arcy pushing 14-time Olympic gold medal winner Michael Phelps all the way in the 200m butterfly, finishing just 0.62 seconds behind the American legend.

''I was talking to Michael after the race, and I think he was hurting as much as what I was,'' D'Arcy said.

Other medal winners for Australia were Seebohm (50m butterfly, silver), Blair Evans (200m freestyle, bronze), Katie Goldman (800m freestyle, bronze) and Ashley Delaney (100m backstroke, bronze).

Comeback kid Geoff Huegill, racing at his first international event in six years, narrowly missed a bronze medal in the 50m butterfly.

''It was good, but when you race 50m, it comes down to little things,'' he said. ''Overall I was pumped with it, and we'll use this as a stepping stone for the Commonwealth Games.''

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NZ-SL match called off due to rain; re-play on Friday

The tri-series cricket match between New Zealand and Sri Lanka was called off without a ball being bowled due to persistent rain in Dambulla on Thursday. The match will have a fresh start on Friday, which has been kept as a reserve day. There will also be a fresh toss, the organisers

said.

Heavy rain lashed the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium when the match was just about to start at 2:30pm local time and after New Zealand captain Ross Taylor won the toss and elected to bat.

Anticipating rain, the ground staff had kept most of the ground, including the pitch, under covers and there was a ray of hope for a truncated match after the downpour stopped for a while at around 4pm local time.

But the heavens opened up again and with rain persisting the umpires called off the match at around 6.20pm.

The umpires had earlier kept 8.15pm as the cut off time but seeing that there was no sign of rain abetting, they called off the match.

At the end of the first half of the tri-series, New Zealand and India are on five points with one win each from two matches and a bonus point.

Sri Lanka are on four points after their opening match win over New Zealand though they did not get a bonus point from that victory.

Sri Lanka took the field at the backdrop of off-spinner Suraj Randiv being banned by their Cricket Board for bowling a no-ball in the last delivery of their match against India on Monday to deny Virender Sehwag a century.

A six-member committee of Sri Lanka Cricket headed by its chief DS de Silva also docked senior batsman Tillakaratne Dilshan off his entire match fee after local media reported that he suggested Randiv to bowl the no-ball.

Captain Kumar Sangakkara was also warned to ensure that such incidents do not happen in future.

India won that match by six wickets but Sehwag was left stranded at 99 though he hit the no-ball for a six.

After the match, Sehwag slammed Randiv for deliberately bowling a no-ball.

Randiv later apologised to Sehwag and the Sri Lanka Cricket officials did the same to Indian team management, which declared the episode a "closed chapter". The Indian Cricket Board also made it clear that it would not pursue the case any further.

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Salman Khan leads a non-vegan life

Give Salman Khan a platter full of non-veg dishes and he would love to gobble it all up. He is an avowed meat-eater and can’t stay without it. Now, Sallu is reportedly carrying forward his craze for non-vegetarian food and is pursuing his co-stars and friends to start eating meat.

It’s learnt that the actor has also started giving lectures on going non-vegetarian and how beneficiary it is for the body. The Dabangg Khan not only preaches but acts too; he likes to pile up his guests’ plate with delectable non-veg dishes.

Sallu is even convincing his Dabangg co-star Sonu Sood, a vegetarian by choice, to try out meat. The actor tells Sonu that how being a non-vegan can yield better results when it comes to having a great physique, and seeing Salman’s torso, we do agree.

“So far I’ve resisted. But I don’t know how long I can evade him. He just doesn’t take no for an answer,” Sonu is quoted as saying.

Does PETA have anything to say!

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10-year-old cut from neck to toe by employer

When teachers at a government school in Kohima noticed bruises on a student's body, they suspected that he was in trouble. The fact that he worked as domestic help for a man nearby was known to them. But because the child was allowed to attend school, they hadn't complained to the police.

When he pulled up his shirt, they found his back covered with cuts and bruises. His legs were scarred too.

The child's teachers reported the case to the local panchayat who later took him to the nearest police station. What emerged was a story of the worst sort of torture. The child was often beaten by a copper wire. The child believed that he was being beaten with a copper wire. At other times, his employer nicked him with a knife. The employer would cover the boy's mouth so that his screams could not be heard. The police have arrested the employer.

Now, the Nagaland Child Rights Committee is investigating the case. The child is being kept at a welfare home.

In most cases of child abuse, rehabilitation is the biggest problem. Where will this child go? He wants to stay in school. While he is grateful for the help he has received from his teachers and the police, now, like so many other children who are rescued by the state, he worries that he will be reduced to a statistic, left to fend for himself.

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'I paint like Salman Khan'

Shatrughan Sinha’s daughter Sonakshi Sinha who is debuting in the movie Dabangg reveals her flair for painting.

Sonakshi will be making her first onscreen appearance with Salman Khan and the actress not only share screen space with him but his passion for painting as well.

“I am extremely good in sketching, I love to hold the pen; earlier I used to be away from brushes but now I love painting," said the debutante actress.

"Salman is a wonderful painter. Whenever he found himself free he started painting and I used to go and join him,” said Sonakshi.

Sonakshi says that their painting styles too are similar. “Salman used to give me a theme and I used to paint accordingly, and when we see the final output, we used to find both the painting same. I never copied him but I think our style of painting is the same,” said the debutant actress.

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Big-mouth Dilshan escapes big penalty

Like politicians, players who develop big egos and with it big mouths develop a habit of placing their foot in it when caught in the act.

Tillakaratne Dilshan did it on Monday when urging Suraj Randiv in Sinhala with the comment “Nam, no ball ekak danna puluwan), “If you want, you can bowl a no ball” with the fourth delivery of the 35th over to the facing batsman Virender Sehwag.

What a great attitude to adopt towards a fellow player, urging him deliberately go against the spirit of the game and to deliver a no-ball, all designed to deny Sehwag his 13th ODI century after a particularly well structured innings which enabled India to secure a batting bonus point as well as the a six-wickets victory.

Dilshan has developed a big mouth to go with an ego to match following his performances at the ICC World T20 in England last year followed by a successful run as an opening batsman at Test level. It has been known though how more than once he has opened his mouth, just as wide as he did at Rangiri Stadium on Monday, and on one occasion in India, was told it might be advisable to keep his mouth shut.

Already there are rumours surfacing that Sri Lanka Cricket are keeping a close watch on his future behaviour, which could have something to do with an unsavoury incident that took place on the tour of Zimbabwe a couple of months ago. Two contacts in Harare (names and emails withheld) suggest certain people in the landlocked African nation were pleased to see the back of Dilshan when the tour was over.

As for the no-ball incident, in which Indian Television networks went overboard with a variety of accusations of how the Indian Board was bullying the International Cricket Council and pushing Sri Lanka Cricket as well to fine players and called it “cheating” the bottom line here is infringement of the spirit of the game and Law 42.1 (fair and unfair play). Anyway, who knows what takes place in those often treacherous corridors of power between boards.

That SLC acted the way they did because the tour is one designed to help their side as part of the pre-World Cup programme. As for the no-ball incident, while Randiv has been banned and lost US$3500 match fee, the same treatment should have handed to Dilshan with a full series ban for instigating the incident and begs a few questions about the role of the captain.

From the post match comment of ‘Randiv possibly trying to bowl the doosra’ to now accepting full responsibility suggests that the captain has escaped lightly as well.

The ‘It may not have been intentional,’ comment by Sangakkara also explains that he was not in touch with what was taking place on the field at the time of the incident. It appears too that his thinking was that Sehwag did score the century, as well without checking, how the no-ball was bowled in such a way it could only have been a deliberate act.

As a former umpire, and having experience such pernicious behaviour years ago in the final of a senior club game, my initial reaction was to call “dead ball” and warn the captain his actions were unfair. He had urged the bowler to (lewer 'n no-bal en die kolf sal ons die prys kry); Afrikaans for “deliver a no-ball and we’ll get the batting prize”. Apart from citing that the mode of delivery was deliberate and unfair citing the laws, the bowler had to deliver the ball again. The batsman facing was not about to score a century, but the winning runs that would earn his team the best batsman award of the series, which the opposition was trying to prevent.

It is why this type of thing would not have happened under the stewardship of Mahela Jayawardene and also suggests that maybe a look at the team structure and Jayawardene be brought back as captain while telling Dilshan that if he steps out of line again, that his central contract be cancelled.

Tough? Well, if you are a professional sportsman, you should act like one, and had Dilshan kept his mouth shut none of this would have happened.

As it is, letter writers in some Sri Lanka papers have acted as foolishly as did Dilshan. Now, had this involved a Sri Lanka player being denied a century, the howling and headlines would have been strident enough to be heard from Rangiri Stadium to Mumbai and Dubai, with certain demands. One, it is suggested, would be the century be granted.

As with the Greg Chappell under-arm incident and instructions to his brother Trevor in 1981, and the Douglas Jardine 1932/33 Bodyline series in Australia, the captains accepted responsibility for their actions.

Sehwag, to an extent did over-react and this is not the first incident where players get involved in the heat of the theatre when they feel they have been cheated. Sourav Ganguly was denied a three-figure score at Asgiriya in Kandy when Mohammad Kaif’s leg-glance won the match for India. Dada’s laconic post-match comment is of how Sri Lanka would have bowled a wide to stop the Indian captain getting a century and is also a point that should be noted.

My point is that the laws of the game cover a wide variety of action and the wording of Law 21 (note 6 winning runs and extras) are specific enough. It is why the laws cite fair and unfair play to protect the game from such incidents. The pity is how India’s victory has been overshadowed by an incident that could have been prevented.

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Raju gets bail, but will he go home?

One year, seven months and eleven days after he had confessed to cooking the books of accounts of Satyam on January 7, 2009, Ramalinga Raju got bail from the Andhra Pradesh High Court on Wednesday. Justice Raja Elango ordered that Raju be released on provision of two sureties of Rs 20 lakh each.

The judge granted the bail to Raju as he was not convinced that the trial in the case would be completed in six months as had been argued by the counsel for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The other nine co-accused in the Satyam case — Raju’s younger brother Rama Raju, Satyam’s former chief financial officer Srinivas Vadlamani, other junior officials of Satyam and PriceWaterHouse Coopers auditors S Gopalakrishnan and Srinivas Talluri — are already out on bail.

After availing of his bail - the process might take another day or two - Raju will not come out of jail. He has been in the Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (Nims) since September 2009, undergoing treatment for Hepatitis C. Raju was admitted to hospital conicidentally a few days after chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy died in a copter crash. Raju has been suffering from Hepatitis C since 2001 and the doctors have not sent him back to jail saying that it would affect the treatment. How they are going to send him home now remains to be seen, although in a press conference shortly after the bail announcement, the doctors seemed to be changing stance.

"If he wants to go home, how can we stop him?" they asked. All this while, the CBI had been sceptical about the claims of the doctors and had wanted independent medical opinion. The Nims doctors’ report had, however, ensured that Raju did not ever visit the court - where the trial was just beginning. On Wednesday, the doctors said that they suspected that Raju was in the early stages of liver cirrhosis.

Whether Raju will choose to go home also remains to be a matter of speculation as the judge has made daily attendance before the CBI and trial court a part of the bail order. "It is generally believed that Raju is having a rocking time in hospital. Daily visits to the CBI office and trial court may become cumbersome. His earlier nine months in jail were seen to be easy what with a badminton court having been built for him. He was also allowed to enjoy other comforts.

The trial in the CBI special court is on the three chargesheets filed by the CBI. The Enforcement Directorate which is separately investigating the cases is yet to file any charge sheet. The agency is waiting for responses to its letter rogatories sent to 60 countries. Justice Elango was of the view that the answers for these queries might take up to two years.

Since pre-trial detention is unknown in Indian jurisprudence and the laws of the land allow the accused to get bail, he granted bail to Raju.

The CBI had objected to the bail application also because they feared that an out-of-jail Raju would try to influence the over 200 witnesses who are employees of Satyam. But Justice Elango overlooked this as Satyam is now a company under another management.

This was Raju’s sixth attempt at getting bail. His earlier applications were in the local criminal court, high court and Supreme Court respectively.

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Gandhi says Commonwealth Games corrupt will be punished

Mrs Gandhi said the Games were "a matter of national pride" and must be held successfully.

The showcase sporting event has been overshadowed by allegations of corruption and building delays.

Meanwhile, the Games chief Mike Fennell is in Delhi to inspect last-minute preparations.

"The prime minister [Manmohan Singh] is looking into the corruption charges against the Commonwealth Games scheduled in the city from 3 to 14 October this year," Mrs Gandhi told a meeting of the Congress Parliamentary Party in Delhi.

"The Commonwealth Games are not related to any political party or individual. It is a matter of national pride and efforts should be made to hold them successfully."

She added: "Let us not forget this even as we take steps to ensure accountability. I trust that as soon as the Games are over, the government will look into the allegations of malpractice and spare no-one found to be involved in them."

Earlier this month, two Games officials were suspended while a third resigned.

The Indian government has appointed a new group of ministers to oversee the preparations.

Commonwealth Games Federation chief Mike Fennell is inspecting venues; some of them are still under construction and many do not have the required safety certificates.

But Indian officials have said all the venues will be ready by this month.

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Daniel Vettori only Black Cap on awards list

Captain Daniel Vettori is the sole New Zealander nominated for the International Cricket Council's annual awards.

Offspinner and accomplished batsman Vettori is among 16 players listed in the Cricketer of the Year category, which includes six Australians and five South Africans.

Vettori is also included among the 15 one-day international Player of the Year nominees but was not included in the 16-strong test group.

England offspinner Graeme Swann was the most notable omission from any category, having taken 49 test wickets at 27.55 and 28 one-day wickets at 23 in the qualification period to climb to third on the ICC bowling rankings.

The lists of nominations were made by a five-man selection panel chaired by former West Indies captain and current chairman of the ICC cricket committee Clive Lloyd.

The panel included former international players Angus Fraser of England, Matthew Hayden of Australia, Ravi Shastri of India and Zimbabwe's Duncan Fletcher, also the former England coach.

Shortlists for each award will be produced before the ceremony in India on October 6.

Nominees:

CRICKETER OF THE YEAR

Hashim Amla (South Africa), Doug Bollinger (Australia), Michael Clarke (Australia), Mahendra Singh Dhoni (India), Ryan Harris (Australia), Mitchell Johnson (Australia), Jacques Kallis (South Africa), Morne Morkel (South Africa), Ricky Ponting (Australia), Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka), Virender Sehwag (India), Dale Steyn (South Africa), Sachin Tendulkar (India), Daniel Vettori (New Zealand), AB de Villiers (South Africa), Shane Watson (Australia)

TEST PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Amla, James Anderson (England), Mohammad Asif (PAK), Bollinger, Dhoni, Tamim Iqbal (Bangladesh), Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lanka), Kallis, Simon Katich (Australia), Sangakkara, Thilan Samaraweera (Sri Lanka), Sehwag, Steyn, Graeme Swann (England), Tendulkar, Watson

ODI PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Amla, Bollinger, Dhoni, Tillekeratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka), Harris, Michael Hussey (Australia), Kallis, Ponting, Sehwag, Tendulkar, De Villiers, Vettori, Watson, Cameron White (Australia).

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Facebook Places: social network adds location check-ins

The social network, which has over 500 million members, has launched the new mobile phone tool in the US-only, with plans for a global roll-out “soon”, according to the Facebook’s blog post. It is not yet known when the service, which allows users to check-in to restaurants, bars and shops, will launch in the UK. It is currently live via the Facebook iPhone app in the US and on an advanced version of its mobile site.

Facebook Places lets users share their location in a similar fashion to popular location-based social networks such as Foursquare and Gowalla. People using the tool can see if their friends are near them at any time based on whether they have chosen to check-into their current location.



US Facebook users need to update their iPhone Facebook app, or visit touch.facebook.com, to get access to the tool. A user then needs to select ‘Places’, tap the ‘Check-In’ button, and then a list of nearby places will come up on the screen. Facebook members then can choose the place which matches their location, and if it is not on the list, they can search for it or add it.

Once ‘checked in’, the activity will be posted in a user’s news feed and come up in the ‘Recent Activity’ section on the specific location’s page.

Facebook, which has already had to simplify its privacy settings earlier this year, after incurring the wrath of web privacy campaigners, is keen to stress that people can control who sees their location.

A spokesman said: “As part of the product launch check-ins are defaulted to friends only and minors will not appear in posts or check-ins to anyone but friends, you can also always remove any check-in from your phone or on the web. You and your friends can check each other in by tagging each other but you can only tag your friends and you can opt out of being checked in by your friends entirely.”

Facebook says it has made “special provisions” for minors. “Only friends will ever see when a minor checks in, anywhere. That means that even if the minor chooses to change their Places I ‘check-in’ setting to ‘Everyone,’ their check-ins will still only be visible to friends,” explained the spokesman.

Facebook has until now resisted launching any geo-location tools, despite it seeming a logical next step. The new tool could present a major threat to location-based social networks, such as Foursquare and Gowalla, which are just beginning to take off. However, Facebook has said it is working with the likes Foursquare and Yelp, to develop Places. It is not yet clear how these collaborations will impact the standalone location services.

Foursquare, and services like it, are aware that they are running the risk of established digital players, namely Twitter and Facebook, starting to prioritise location and developing a whole host of tools to encourage their huge userbases and commercial partners to take advantage of geo opportunities.

However, Dennis Crowley, Foursquare’s co-founder, remained relaxed when presented with this potential spanner in the works, during an exclusive interview with The Telegraph, last month, saying: "Twitter already turned on its location capabilities – but regardless of others starting to play on location more, Foursquare remains unique as people are using it for different reasons. They are using it to play the game, discover offers, tell friends where they are and find new places.

"On Twitter, people are telling each other their thoughts, whereas on Foursquare we are building an incentive and reward program to encourage people to try new places.”

Yesterday Foursquare introduced new privacy settings, ahead of the Facebook Places launch, which make it easier for its users to hide their email addresses and phone numbers, to opt-out of automatic check-in at certain venues, and to choose which lists they appear on. It allows them to control whether or not they publish their Foursquare activity to Facebook and Twitter, and decide whether they want companies and businesses to know if they are a regular customer.

Michael Sharon, Facebook’s product manager for Places said of the new service: “If you're like me, when you find a place you really like, you want to tell your friends you're there. Maybe it's a new restaurant, a beautiful hiking trail or an amazing live show.

“Starting today [in the US], you can immediately tell people about that favourite spot with Facebook Places. You can share where you are and the friends you're with in real time from your mobile device.”

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England v Pakistan – live!

Andy will be here from around 10.30am. In the meantime, here's Paul Weaver on Alastair Cook's batting troubles:

Alastair Cook is in such a mess with his trigger movements that it's just as well that his instrument of choice is a cricket bat and not a Smith & Wesson.

Cook's wretched run continued here and it was another innings in which the 25-year-old gave the impression that he thinks his feet are for the sole purpose of keeping his knees off the ground.

After yet another cheap dismissal – he scored only six in seven balls against Pakistan – he has scored only 106 runs in eight Test innings this summer, at an average of 13.

In this series he has been out for eight, 12, 17, four and six, which means he has scored 47 runs in five knocks. He has batted for 36 minutes, 35, 35, 11 and seven. So we are talking about a short-order Cook here.

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Anil Ambani's Reliance and CBS to launch 3 TV Channels

Breaking News! Anil Ambani's Reliance Broadcast Network (RBN) with a joint venture with US' CBS Studios is all set to launch three English, General Entertainment Channels (GEC) in India with an aim to roll out multiple television channels in the country.

The joint venture is called the Big CBS Networks and will target the English-speaking audiences in India. The three channels such as BIG CBS Prime, a premium English general entertainment channel, BIG CBS Spark. While BIG CBS focuses on the youth and Love, an English entertainment channel is meant for women.

According to Tarun Katial, CEO, Reliance Broadcast Network, the English GEC space is long way to go from the ground level in the market. But the move targets at an upper SEC audience for the good response.

As the R26, 000 crore television market in India always extends its hand for booming, the three channels from RBN and CBS Studios will be paid on the subscription-based growth to be available for other DTH players along with Reliance-owned DTH Company.

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Sonakshi Sinha to Pair again with Salman Khan in ‘Kick’

Sonakshi Sinha made a debut in Bollywood with the movie ‘Dabangg’ to star against Salman Khan. The actress has signed for her next film again with Salman Khan in the action comedy movie ‘Kick’, which is a remake of Telugu movie ‘Kick’.

‘Kick’ was also made Tamil version in 2010, where Jayam Ravi and Tamannaah were thelead roles. Now, it is going to be a remake in Bollywood. ‘Kick’ was a block buster hit two versions. Salman Khan was impressed with Sonakshi’s talent and recommended her for this film.

Sajid Nadiadwala is the producer of this movie. Initially Sajid planed to rope Deepika Padukone for the female lead role in the film. But, as Salman recommended Sonakshi Sinha, he changed his choice and signed Sonakshi for the film. Sources close to the producer say that Sajid watched both the Telugu and Tamil versions and was impressed with the script and decided to make the make with Salman Khan.

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My painting style is influenced by Salman’s—Sonakshi Sinha

Newbie actress Sonakshi Sinha, who’s all set to make her grand entrance in Bollywood with ‘Dabangg’ opposite Salman Khan, recently, revealed that just like Salman she too loves panting and strangely enough her painting style seems influenced by his.

Sonakshi went on to add that despite similarities in style she has never intentionally tried to copy him.

“Salman used to give me a theme and I used to paint accordingly, and when we see the final output, we used to find both the painting same,” added Sonakshi.

Sonakshi revealed that even before Salman showed her how to play with colors and brushes she was “extremely good in sketching” but was scared to use brushes.

"Salman is a wonderful painter. Whenever he found himself free he started painting and I used to go and join him,” added Sonakshi in her mentor’s praise.

Sonakshi being recommended by Salman?
As per tabloids buzz, it’s not just Sonakshi who’s showering praises on Salman for being helpful.

Reportedly, even Salman is not backing away from promoting and recommending the new starlet to other filmmakers in the industry.

Rumor has it that Salman recommended Sonakshi to his best buddy producer Sajid Nadiadwala, who was initially thinking about casting Deepika in his next venture.

However, all that changed after Salman’s suggestion and Sajid approached Sonakshi for his film ‘Kick’ opposite Salman.

Recently, reports emerged that Sonakshi has been approached by Abbas-Mastan for their venture ‘Italian Job.’

Govinda miffed with Salman over Sonakshi
As per industry grapevine, Salman’s fondness for Sonakshi has angered his best buddy Govinda.

Reportedly, Salman had promised to look after Govinda’s daughter Narmmaddaa’s launch in the Bollywood. Narmmaddaa was supposed to make her debut last year. However, so far nothing has materialized.

And Salman paying more attention to Sonakshi’s career is not helping the matters.

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India accuses Pakistan over border firing

India said its troops had retaliated to the "unprovoked" firing in Poonch district. Pakistan has not commented.

India says there have been over 150 ceasefire violations since 2006. The two countries struck a ceasefire in 2003.

Militants have been fighting Indian rule in Kashmir since 1989.

India's army said the firing took place across the Krishnaghati sector of Poonch district early on Thursday. The Line of Control separates Indian- and Pakistani- administered Kashmir.

"The Pakistani side fired medium and small arms besides rockets and mortars," a spokesman said.

He said the Indian troops retaliated to the firing.

There were no casualties on the Indian side in the firing, the spokesman said.

India has accused Pakistan of "unprovoked firing aimed mostly at facilitating infiltration of militants," a charge Pakistan has denied.

Violence in Indian-controlled Kashmir has reduced markedly since the 2003 ceasefire.

Despite the reduced violence, little political progress has been made on the future of the Kashmir region.

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Commonwealth Games: Sonia Gandhi says those guilty will not be spared

Stressing on accountability in works related to the Commonwealth Games, Congress president Sonia Gandhi today said the government will look into the allegations of malpractices and spare no one found to be involved in them after the event.

At the same time, she emphasised on the need for everyone to come together and ensure the success of the Games at this juncture.

"This is the time for all of us to come together and ensure their (Games) success. The success of the Games is that of our country - not of any party or of an individual. The Prime Minister has himself intervened decisively. The prestige of the nation is involved," she said at the meeting of the Congress Parliamentary Party here.

"Let us not forget this even as we take steps to ensure accountability. I trust that as soon as the Games are over, the government will look into the allegations of malpractice and spare no one found to be involved in them," she said.

Gandhi also expressed concern over the situation in the Kashmir Valley and said efforts should be made to reach out to the people of the region.

She backed prime minister Manmohan Singh's initiative in this regard.

On the issue of Naxalism, Gandhi underscored the need for taking tribal development seriously.

She also said that there was a need to check illegal mining.

Gandhi also expressed her regret on the loss of lives and devastation caused by the flash floods in Leh region of Jammu and Kashmir.

On the upcoming elections in Bihar, Gandhi asked partymen to work towards strengthening the organisation in the state.

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UN to meet on Pakistan aid as fears mount for survivors

Fears mounted for the survivors of floods in Pakistan as the UN prepared Thursday to drum up more aid and John Kerry became the first senior US policymaker to visit since the crisis which has affected millions.

The United Nations has described Pakistan's worst humanitarian crisis as one of the world's biggest disasters, but while foreign aid is now reaching some of the 20 million flood victims, criticis have slammed the response as too slow.

About six million survivors are dependent on humanitarian assistance to survive, in desperate need of food, shelter and clean drinking water, with concerns growing over potential outbreaks of cholera, typoid and hepatitis.

The UN General Assembly meets in New York on Thursday in an effort to hasten the delivery of aid after receiving just over half of the 460 million dollars appealed for last week.

The Asian Development Bank is reportedly ready to offer a two-billion-dollar emergency loan to repair the nation's damaged infrastructure and the World Bank has promised to lend 900 million dollars.

Although weather forecasters say the monsoon systems are easing off and water levels receding, the fallout from three weeks of devastating floods that have left nearly 1,500 people dead is likely to last for years.

The floods wiped out entire villages, farmland and infrastructure, and the UN aid coordination body OCHA said that more than 650,000 homeless families were still without basic shelter.

At a camps for the displaced across the country, survivors are battling with crippling heat, miserable sanitation and swarms of mosquitoes.

Many fled their homes with just the clothes on their backs and have been forced to drink contaminated water, causing watery diarrhoea.

OCHA said Thursday that water purification tablets are now being distributed and that improved funding means that almost 2.6 million people -- nearly half of the target six million -- have now been given clean water.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is expected to use the UN meeting to announce extra American aid -- currently 90 million dollars.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who visited the blighted region at the weekend and described the situation as "heart-wrenching", is to outline the humanitarian needs of the flood victims.

"There has been an increase in the pace of pledges, but we still need more funds, tents, food, water and medical supplies," UN spokesman Martin Nesirky said.

A resolution urging the international community to help Pakistan recover in the medium and long-term will also be on the table, amid signs foreign donors are rallying in support of the embattled Muslim nation.

The nuclear-armed country is on the frontline of the US-led fight against Al-Qaeda and is locked in battle with homegrown Taliban who have been blamed over a three-year bombing campaign that has killed more than 3,570 people.

A US government report warns that ecological problems would likely worsen due to climate change, threatening the unity of Pakistan and exacerbating the threat of Islamist extremists.

Kerry, who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and co-authored a record 7.5 billion-dollar aid bill for Pakistan, was holding talks with Pakistani leaders and scheduled to visit flood-hit areas on Thursday.

He is scheduled to meet President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, after holding talks with army chief General Ashfaq Kayaniy on Wednesday.

The US government said it could divert part of its 7.5 billion dollar non-military aid programme for Pakistan into short-term relief. The European Union has also doubled its commitment to 70 million euros (90 million dollars).

Hollywood star Angelina Jolie has handed 100,000 dollars to help refugees, according to UN sources, while former Pakistani cricket hero and politician Imran Khan has launched a fund-raising campaign.

Islamabad has confirmed 1,475 deaths, but WHO representative Guido Sabatinelli told AFP he suspected the toll was much higher.

"We're talking about 20 million people affected today and there is no infrastructure and no health centres that can register the deaths," he said.

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