Gunfight with Maoists over, 'missing' Chhattisgarh cops safe

Security forces fought a long-drawn gun battle with heavily armed Maoists in a forest in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada area that ended on Wednesday evening, a top police official said, adding that the 70 policemen earlier reported missing were found to be safe. "Our courageous jawans displayed bravery in the encounter that began around 11 a.m. and stretched till evening. Now the gun fight is over and all policemen are safe... they are on their way back but returning very slowly as there is a possibility of landmines or ambushes in their forested way after sunset," Director General of Police Vishwa Ranjan said.

The gunfight began when Maoists attacked a search team of the state police in a thickly forested area of Gumiapal, close to Kirandul, about 420 km south of capital Raipur, an iron ore mining facility of India's top iron ore producer NMDC Ltd.

A strong contingent of the District Force and Koya Commando comprising special police officers (SPOs) had gone into the forest around 11 a.m. after a tip-off about the presence of a unit headed by Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) commander Ganesh Uike, state police spokesperson Rajesh Mishra told reporters.

"Our forces hit five rebels with bullets in the initial spell of the battle and the rebels climbed up to a hilltop to launch a counter-attack but they (Maoists) never managed to succeed," said Ranjan.

Ranjan, who was monitoring the gunfight from the police headquarters here, said some 100 policemen came under attack from the Maoists and a 75-member reinforcement sent later also engaged the rebels.

Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) T.J. Longkumer said: "It is really a major relief... Maoists were never allowed during the six-hour battle to dominate us. It is good to know that all our jawans are safe."

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Rahul, Dimpy seek divine blessings

Rahul Mahajan and Dimpy Ganguly put up a show of togetherness in public for the first time today after a quarrel on Friday when the Kolkata-based model walked out to return the same day following an apparent patch up.

The couple who got married just in March this year visited the famous Sidhhivinayak temple here this afternoon to seek blessings.

"We have no issues between us and I love my wife. We are together and therefore came to take blessings of the God," Rahul, who kept his arm around Dimpi's shoulders, told reporters.

However, Dimpi. who had earlier spoke of her marital woes and physical abuse, refused to speak to the media.


Soon after she was back in the Mahajan family home but says she needs time to think. "He says he has regretted what he did. I need some time alone to think,” she maintained.

As the heir to his father's political legacy, Rahul Mahajan had it all. But he has squandered his legacy with allegations of drug abuse and repeated domestic violence.

Rahul's first marriage ended after allegations of violence. His television stint - an attempt to restore his battered image. But looks like the real life re-run could come in the way.


Earlier, Kolkata-based model Dimpy Ganguly walked out of her four-month-old TV marriage with Rahul Mahajan, accusing him of "punching, kicking and dragging" her by hair only to return home after an apparent patch-up.

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Obama's day out with daughter

US President Barack Obama took some time out of his busy schedule to spend with his lovely daughter Sasha. Here are a few snapshots.

US President Barack Obama speaks with Washington Mystics owner Sheila Johnson as his
daughter Sasha looks on.

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US President Barack Obama attends the Washington Mystics basketball game with his daughter Sasha.

Read more at: http://goodtimes.ndtv.com/PhotoDetail.aspx?Page=3&ID=7866&AlbumType=PG#talk&c

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9 killed in US warehouse shooting: Official

Nine people are dead after an employee summoned for a disciplinary hearing opened fire at a beer distributor in Manchester, Conn., on Tuesday morning, the police said.

One of the dead was the suspected gunman, said Sgt. Sandy Ficaro of the Manchester Police Department. Investigators had been at the company, Hartford Distributors, throughout the day trying to determine the number of fatalities.

"We do know that there are eight deceased and the suspect as well," Sergeant Ficara said. "That is the final count."

Lt. J. Paul Vance of the Connecticut State Police, which is conducting the investigation with the Manchester Police, said the suspect went on a rampage in the warehouse, then "probably" turned the gun on himself. "We're still piecing a lot of it together now," he said earlier.

Sergeant Ficara said, "It's been a crazy scene out there."

He identified the suspect as Omar Thornton, who is 34.

John Hollis, a legislative affairs representative for the Connecticut Teamsters, said Mr. Thornton had been called in for a disciplinary hearing that could have resulted in his being terminated. Mr. Hollis called the suspect "a bottom guy" because he was the last man hired, and said he brought a union representative from Local 1035 for the hearing.

The death toll increased throughout the chaotic morning. At first, officials confirmed three dead. The total is believed to have increased as investigators searched the family-owned warehouse about 10 miles east of Hartford. Three of the injured, all with multiple gunshot wounds, had been transported to Hartford Hospital, and one victim died later in the morning, according to a hospital spokeswoman.

The spokeswoman, Rebecca Stewart, said one patient at the hospital remained in critical condition and another was in fair condition.

Mr. Hollis said Mr. Thornton was a driver for the company, the last to be hired within the previous three years. Public records show that Mr. Thornton, 34, graduated from East Hartford High School in 1996.

Mr. Hollis said Mr. Thornton had run through the warehouse at the busiest time of the morning, right before 7:30 a.m. At that point, more than 100 drivers, sales people and executives would have been in the building during a shift change.

"He came in to meet with the company and after that, all hell broke loose," Mr. Hollis said. "He pulled the gun and ran through the warehouse."

Mr. Hollis said the State Police told him they confronted the suspected gunman and ordered him to drop the gun. The suspect most likely shot himself, Lieutenant Vance said, adding, "There was no police discharge of weapons."

Lt. Joe San Antonio, a spokesman for the Manchester police, said that when officers responded to an emergency call at 7:30, they searched the building and found the suspect shot.

Buses transported employees from the warehouse to Manchester High School, where union representatives and Ross Hollander, the owner of Hartford Distributors, were comforting families of the victims, Mr. Hollis said.

In a statement, Gov. M. Jodi Rell of Connecticut called the shootings a "senseless act of violence."

"In the wake of this tragedy," Ms. Rell said, "we are all left asking the same questions: How could someone do this? Why did they do this?"

One man, who did not want to be identified, walked out of the high school on Tuesday afternoon and quickly got into his car. "It was a sad day," the man said. "I was in there."

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'Solar tsunami' may hit Earth anytime: Scientists

The Earth could be hit by a 'solar tsunami' anytime now as an unusually complex magnetic eruption on the Sun has flung a large cloud of electrically charged particles towards our planet, scientists have warned.

Several satellites, including NASA's new Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), recorded on Sunday a small solar flare erupting above sunspot 1092, the size of the Earth.

The satellites also recorded a large filament of cool gas stretching across the Sun's northern hemisphere also exploded into space.

The explosion, called a coronal mass ejection, was aimed directly towards Earth, which then sent a 'solar tsunami' racing 93 million miles across space, the New Scientist reported.

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When the violent cloud hits, which could be anytime now, it could spark aurorae in the skies around the poles and pose a threat to satellites, although not a severe one, it said.

Despite being separated by hundreds of thousands of kilometres, the two events may be linked, said astronomers who studied the images from SDO that hint at a shock wave travelling from the flare into the filament.

"These are two distinct phenomena but they are obviously related," said Len Culhane, a solar physicist at the Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College London.

Experts said the wave of supercharged gas will likely reach the Earth on Tuesday, when it will buffet the natural magnetic shield protecting Earth.

It is likely to spark spectacular displays of the aurora or northern and southern lights.

"This eruption is directed right at us," said Leon Golub, of the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics.

"It's the first major Earth-directed eruption in quite some time," Golub was quoted as saying by the Telegraph.

Scientists recently discussed the implications of volatile space weather at the Space Weather Enterprise Forum. One of the biggest concerns is the potential for a major blackout.

Daniel Baker, Space Scientist, University of Colorado-Boulder says, " One of the that things we really saw the major impacts would be on the power grid. That a major storm could cause immense damage. It could cause major blackouts that could last for weeks, possibly months or even years."

In August 2003 a computer malfunction played a major role in the US's worst blackout putting 50 million people in the dark, including all of New York City.

The effects of a solar storm on the power grid are still unknown, but researchers are trying to assure they are prepared for the worst case scenarios.

Richard Fisher, head of NASA's Heliophysics Division says, "Hours is okay, you can get along. A few people stuck in elevators, a few people on heart-lung machine, it's very important for them. As you go into days our water supplies are impacted. And that's an essence of life. So it's potentially a devastating blow. But we think it's an unlikely blow."

NASA recently warned that Britain could face widespread power blackouts as well and be left without critical communication signals for long periods of time, after the earth is hit by a once-in-a-generation 'space storm'.

Earlier scientists had said that they believed the Earth would be hit with unprecedented levels of magnetic energy from solar flares after the Sun wakes "from a deep slumber" sometime around 2013.

It remains unclear, however, how much damage this latest eruption will cause the world's communication tools.

Dr Lucie Green, of the Mullard Space Science Laboratory, Surrey, who followed the flare-ups using Japan's orbiting Hinode telescope, said this was a very rare event.

"Not one, but two almost simultaneous eruptions from different locations on the Sun were launched toward the Earth.

"These eruptions occur when immense magnetic structures in the solar atmosphere lose their stability and can no longer be held down by the Sun's huge gravitational pull. Just like a coiled spring suddenly being released, they erupt into space."

"This means we have a very good chance of seeing major and prolonged effects, such as the northern lights at low latitudes."

So how should individuals prepare for solar storms?

Richard Fisher says, "I think a little bit of extra water, a couple of flashlights, and a transistor radio are a few good things to have."

Scientists are preparing, too.

NASA, the Department of Defense, and the Federal Aviation Administration - are working together to prepare for space weather events, and will soon be launching probes to monitor radiation belts.

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Nightclub owner molested me, says Delhi MBA student

It's not advisable to drink and drive, but it's an equally bad idea for a woman in an inebriated state to accept an offer of lift from a virtual stranger. An MBA student learnt this the hard way on July 22 in Delhi.

Speaking to MiD DAY, the victim said that on that night she had gone to RAAS bar, situated in B Block at Lajpat Nagar. There she joined a group of people including a Russian girl and Varun Arora, the bar owner, whom she had met for the first time. The victim says she did not speak to Varun at that point; they just drinking together.

"It was around 2 am when the bar closed. I called up the caretaker of my PG accommodation and asked him to arrange a cab for me. The caretaker expressed his inability and said I would have to return on my own. I was waiting for an auto-rickshaw or a taxi when Varun Arora, the bar owner, approached me and offered me a lift in his car. Varun assured me that he will drop me at my PG accommodation safely."

"I sat on the rear seat of the car while Varun was on the front seat along with the driver. However, on the way he stopped the car to sit beside me. He then started asking me questions about myself and eventually began molesting me. I resisted but he carried on. He threw me out of the car when I said that I am the daughter of a CBI officer and would call the police," alleged the victim.

The MBA student said that she suffered injuries on her arms and chest. She approached the police but was asked to come next day. She further alleged that she had to visit police station several times before an FIR was finally lodged.

Meanwhile, a police officer said that a report had been filed on the basis of the allegations made by the victim and the matter was being investigated. They also said that they were yet to get the forensic report of the victim.

"We have not arrested anyone in the case. She has charged the bar owner with attempted rape. We have taken the statement of Varun who claimed that the girl was demanding money. Varun has also alleged that he has a video recording of the girl when she was trying to blackmail him. But he has not given us the footage so far," said the police officer.

When contacted by MiD DAY, Varun Arora refused to speak on the matter. He claimed that he didn't know the victim. When this reporter said that a copy of the FIR was in his possession, Varun said that it was a fictitious account.

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Pranab loses temper, slams Opposition

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday lost his temper at the Opposition in Parliament and warned them not to “ridicule his sensitivity”.

"I am from a village. I studied under a kerosene lamp till my Class 10, commuted to school by walking, in today`s terminology, 10 km everyday. Don`t ridicule my sensitivity," said Mukherjee with folded hands whenOpposition members claimed that the Centre was trying to blame the states for price rise in the country.

Pranab asked the Opposition to explain what was “insensitive”: raising kerosene prices from Rs2 a litre to Rs9 per litre (during the NDA regime) or increasing the prices from Rs 9 a litre to Rs 12 per litre?

The UPA government in June raised prices of kerosene by Rs3 a litre, cooking gas by Rs35 a cylinder and diesel by Rs a litre, besides freeing petrol prices from government control that made the fuel costlier by Rs 3 a litre.

Pranab was replying to the discussion on the Motion on Inflationary pressure on the economy.

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