Modi says IPL is on, Chidambaram assures help

Putting all speculations to rest, Indian Premier League (IPL) chief Lalit Modi Friday said that the Twenty20 league is on and the governing body is working on its revised schedule. The government said it would ensure adequate security for the tournament.
IPL chairman Modi at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai said: 'We want to assure all our fans and sponsors that the IPL is on. There are a lot of speculations. There is no question of IPL moving to any other country.'
Modi, who is also the vice-president of the Indian cricket board, said the IPL is working on a revised fixture and it will be decided soon. He also said that the IPL will also come up with a security plan next week.
In Hyderabad, Home Minister P. Chidambaram said the government will help the IPL hold matches and ensure adequate security, but the tournament must be rescheduled because the general elections are being held at the same time.
'Cricket in India is completely safe but the IPL and the election schedules are overlapping and rescheduling seems unavoidable,' Chidambaram said. 'I must know whether I have paramilitary forces to provide security to the IPL. To the best of our ability we will try to help IPL hold the matches,' he said.
The minister denied he had suggested that the IPL be postponed.
'I did not say it should be postponed. All I said was that the Election Commission announced the election dates Monday morning and the next afternoon it was brought to my notice that the IPL schedule and election schedule are exactly the same. I don't blame the IPL management. When they announced the matches, they did not know the election schedule,' he said.
Modi also said that the his men are working on a rescheduling the fixtures.
'We are rescheduling the fixture and we are in touch with all state associations. It is a cumbersome process and can't be done overnight. We will shortly have a new schedule out,' he said.
Modi, however, made it clear that there won't be any matches on the day of the counting - May 16.
'There won't be a match in a city also on election day. We are working on it and we have also 14 cities available and we have to shortlist eight from them,' he said.
The general elections are scheduled to be held April 16-May 13, while counting will take place May 16. The IPL will be held April 10-May 24.
Chidambaram said he never wanted the IPL to be postponed or moved out of the country. He said he wanted the IPL organisers to reschedule some of the matches.
'The Indian Premier League should be in India. Where else it will be played? I want cricket to be played in India but when played in India, it should be completely safe. Nobody needs to worry about safety while playing in India,' he said.
'I suggested IPL should take a second look at the schedule and they have come up with another programme. In the meanwhile, they have got inputs from DGPs (directors general of police) and commissioners of the nine cities (where IPL matches will be played). They are discussing it in New Delhi,' he added.
Chidambaram also said it was fortunate that Indian cricketers did not go to Pakistan.
'This attack was on the Sri Lankan cricketers. No matter which country the cricketers belong to, we feel sorry and condemn it. Even if they had attacked the Pakistan team that would have been a sad development we would have condemned it,' he said.

Return of Michael Jackson, the King Of Pop!

Michael Jackson announces at a press conference in the London O2 Arena that he is set to play ten live concerts at the London O2 Arena in July. The singer also stated that this would be his final performances in London.

Imran suspects 'foreign hand' in attack on Sri Lankans

London:Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan says a "foreign hand" may have planned the attack on Sri Lankan cricketers with a view to hurt Pakistan and end cricket in the country. "It could be India, Afghanistan, the Tamil Tigers," Khan, 56, was quoted as saying by The Times of London Saturday.
"The motive is to damage the state of Pakistan and end cricket here. The shocking thing is that there was so little security for the players," Khan said in the interview.
"This attack was guaranteed front-page news everywhere in the world," said the chief of the Tehreek-e-Insaf (Movement for Justice).
"The perpetrators wanted to portray Pakistan as a chaotic state in the Dark Ages... Pakistan is a resilient country but we have gone from crisis to crisis."
Khan said Pakistani extremists were being made the scapegoats. He said almost all the terrorism taking place in Pakistan since 2004, when its army was sent into the tribal areas, had been suicide attacks.
"Last year there were over 100 suicide attacks but they have a pattern. They are always in retaliation."
He said the attack on cricketers in Lahore this week by gunmen was different.
"They had an escape route - it was well planned. I certainly don't think this was done by ideological terrorists, motivated to blow themselves up."

IT biggies that got most H-1B visas

IIndian technology majors received the maximum number of H-1B work permits, according to the statistics for 2008 published by US immigration authorities.
The figures provided more ammunition to the critics of the H-1B visa program who have opposed the dominance of Indian firms when it comes to bagging H-1B visas.
The statistics is for the fiscal year which ended September 30, 2008. In 2007 also Indian companies topped the list of H-1B recipients. Six of the top 10 visa recipients that year were based in India.
The Programmers Guild and Hire Americans First, groups that oppose H-1B visa program, always cite the dominance of Indian firms to oppose it. They advocate that only US business should be allowed to bring workers on H-1B visa.
Critics point out the difference between Indian companies and the US companies which use the visa. Most of the US companies will keep the H-1 workers and sponsor them for Permanent Residence. But the Indian companies bring them for only a brief period with low wages, critics say. They will get training in the offices of US clients, and go back after some time. With the expertise gained from the US they can work for the US companies from India.
Meanwhile, companies and job seekers are again gearing up for applying for the H-1B visas, which will become available in financial year 2010, which begins in October. The USCIS will receive application for the 65,000 visas on April 1. If they get more applications as in earlier years, winners will be selected in a lottery.

Infosys Technologies -- 4,559 visas
Infosys Technologies, by far, was the biggest recipient of H-1B visas, with the USCIS granting it approval for 4,559 visas, the same number that it got in 2007.

Wipro Technologies -- 2,678 visas
Wipro, at second spot, received 2,678 visas in 2008, slightly more that 2,567 that it got in 2007.

Satyam Computer Services -- 1,917 visas
The fraud-hit Satyam Computer got as many as 1,917 H-1B visas in 2008. The company had received only 1,396 in 2007.

Tata Consultancy Services -- 1,539 visas
Indian IT giant, TCS, bagged 1,539 visas in 2008. The number for the company has almost doubled from 797 it got in 2007.

Microsoft Corporation -- 1,307 visas
The fifth place went to Microsoft with 1,018 visas, 59 more than it got in 2007.

Cognizant Technology Solutions -- 467 visas
Nasdaq-listed Cognizant is a leading provider of information technology, with more than 40 global delivery centers and over 58,000 employees.
The company got 467 H-1B visas in 2008.

Cisco Systems -- 422 visas
Cisco Systems is a US communications technology company. It designs and markets networking and communications technology products and services.
In 2008, the company got 422 H-1B visas.

Google -- 207 visas
Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google is a top web property in all major global markets. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia.
In 2008, the company got 207 H-1B visas.

Oracle -- 168 visas
The Nasdaq-listed, Larry Ellison-led Oracle Corporation develops and markets enterprise software products.
In 2008, the American IT major got 168 H-1B visas.

Yahoo -- 139 visas
Yahoo! Inc is a US Internet giant providing worldwide services.
In 2008, the company got 139 H-1B visas.

Lehman Brothers -- 130 visas
Lehman Brothers, the giant investment bank, succumbed to the sub-prime mortgage crisis that rocked the United States and the global economy. Lehman was strangled by a massive credit crisis and fast plummeting real estate prices. Most parts of its business were taken over by Barclay�s.
Lehman received 130 H-1B visas in 2008.

Motorola -- 112 visas
US-headquarted Motorola is a multinational telecommunications major. It manufactures telephone handsets and other related equipment.
The telecom major got 112 H-1B visas in 2008.

IBM -- 104 visas
Computer technology multinational IBM is one of the world's largest information technology companies.
The American technology giant got 104 H-1B visas in 2008.

Apple -- 70 visas
Apple Inc, ranked as the world's most admired company by Fortune magazine, received 70 H-1B visas during 2008, which is slightly less than 1.6 per cent of what Infosys got.

Rogue Pakistan's biggest victim is India

The attack on the bus carrying the Sri Lankan cricket team is brutal and reprehensible. It is just the latest. That Pakistan has become a sanctuary and safe haven for all kinds of sundry terrorist groups has become quite clear by now to all sensible people. What is of utmost priority at this moment is to protect not just cricket, but entire South Asia, including Pakistan.Sadly, the central discourse after the attack was on whether Pakistan is safe for cricket in future. There were 'concerns' over the future of the World Cup to be held in 2011.
The issue is not just about cricket, it is a pure and simple case of terrorism; the degeneration of Pakistan into a rogue State. However much the 'candle-lightwalahs' may resent it, Pakistan must be shunned completely until it cleanses its entire system and purges the last terrorist from its soil.
Ignorant politicians declared that the last time sportsmen were attacked was during the Munich Olympics in 1972. They forget that only a few years ago there was a suicide bomb attack outside the hotel in Islamabad in which the New Zealand cricketers were staying. Although the cricketers escaped unhurt, scores died in that attack. In fact it was in that climate of terror that the tour of the Indian cricket team to Pakistan had to be deferred by several months by the then National Democratic Alliance government.
While the details about the perpetrators of this attack will only be known after the investigations, one thing is clear: the terrorists wanted to send a message out to the world that they are in control in Pakistan. The nexus between the Pakistan-based terrorist groups like the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in Sri Lanka dates back to early 1990s, when they were exchanging weapons for narcotics. The Sri Lanka government's determined efforts to crush the LTTE can be a sufficient reason for the attack on the Sri Lankan team as these outfits thrive on each other's support, especially since the LTTE was a major source of funding through the narco-trail for the jihadi groups.
In fact with a non-functional government at the helm in Pakistan, in order for the truth behind this attack to come out, the Sri Lankan government must demand direct participation in the probe.
The LTTE had close links with many South Asian terror groups. Those Indian politicians who go all out to please pro-LTTE groups in India must not forget that it was the same LTTE which was equipping Indian terror outfits like the Maoists and the United Liberation Front of Asom.
India had responded appropriately by calling for dismantling the terror infrastructure in Pakistan. It needs to be proactive in isolating and pressuring Pakistan because the biggest victim of a 'rogue Pakistan' will be India. The Western powers are always driven by their own self-interest rather than any serious concern for curbing terror. We hear theories emanating from Western 'experts' that the Taliban isation of Pakistan is a local phenomenon and should be left to the local forces to tackle. In fact the Swat agreement was sought to be justified with the same argument. In other words, what the West wants is a gentleman's agreement with the Taliban -- 'You take South Asia; but don't come to Europe and America'.
It is time all the countries in the South Asian region -- especially democracies like India and Sri Lanka -- came together to exert pressure on Pakistan to end terrorism.
Ram Madhav is a former spokesperson for the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh

Global financial crisis claims another 651,000 jobs in America

The ongoing global economic meltdown has claimed the loss of another 651,000 jobs in America, boosting the nation's unemployment rate to 8.1%, its highest figure since 1983.
The Labor Department figures in January had revealed a hike from 7.6%, putting U.S. unemployment at a level not seen since December 1983, when the jobless rate hit 8.3%.
An estimated 4.4 million jobs have vanished in the past 15 months, including 2.6 million in the last four months alone, the federal officials said.
According to the Daily News, those figures included revised numbers showing job losses in December and January were worse than initially thought.
In December, there were 681,000 jobs lost, instead of the estimated 577,000.
Likewise, in January the job loss figures amounted to 655,000, and not 598,000.
As a result, the number of unemployed Americans now stands at 12.5 million.
The economic experts have predicted more bad times ahead.
"Job losses were everywhere, and there's no hope for a turnaround any time soon," said Nigel Gault, an economist with IHS Global Insight.
Every sector has been experiencing the wrath of the economic slowdown.
Construction companies had to cut 104,000 jobs, while professional and business services dumped 180,000 positions.
Temporary agencies slashed 78,000 jobs in February.
Moving on a similar pattern, the financial companies reduced their payrolls by 44,000 pounds.

IBM unlikely to bid for Satyam stake - sources

IBM is unlikely to bid for Satyam Computer Services Ltd as the advantage of expanding in India is outweighed by the legal and financial risks related to Satyam's accounting scandal, according to people familiar with the matter.
Satyam won regulatory approval on Friday to sell a majority stake in itself, about two months after founder and Chairman Ramalinga Raju admitted the information technology outsourcer's profits had been inflated for years and its assets falsified.
Earlier this week, India's Business Standard newspaper said International Business Machines Corp was the "front-runner" to buy Satyam and had brought in a team of bankers and lawyers from the United States and Europe to India to assess the deal size and risks.
But two sources familiar with the situation told Reuters that IBM had not flown a team to India and was unlikely to be interested in bidding for Satyam. It is unclear whether IBM, which declined to comment, has hired financial advisers.
Rumors of IBM's interest in Satyam have circulated for years, as the two compete on technology outsourcing and computer-related services.
Buying Satyam, India's fourth-largest software exporter, could help IBM expand its geographic presence, but analysts say the Armonk, New York-based company already has a lead in India with customers that include top wireless provider Bharti Airtel.
Compared to Satyam, IBM -- the world's largest technology services company -- also offers a fuller range of software and services including high-end consulting projects that bring in high margins.
"IBM already has a brand in India," said Susquehanna Financial Group analyst James Friedman. "I don't know that Satyam is going to help that."
Even if IBM were interested, it would be tough to get a fair assessment of Satyam's valuation, making an acquisition difficult, Friedman added. Fraud-hit Satyam's market value has plunged to about $550 million, from $7 billion last May.
LOOKING BUT NOT BUYING
Technology bankers and analysts say they expect IBM, which has about $12 billion of cash, to take a look at Satyam's assets once its government-approved board invites formal expressions of interest.
But one person familiar with the sale process said a key issue that could deter IBM or another potential buyer is the lack of clarity on the extent of Satyam's liabilities. Satyam faces a class-action lawsuit from U.S. shareholders that any new owner would have to assume some degree of liability for.
David Grossman, an analyst at Thomas Weisel Partners, said some Satyam capabilities, such as their partnership with SAP, would hold value for IBM "but you have to balance that against the liabilities that exist."
"Balancing risk and reward, I don't see an immediate need for IBM to buy," he said.
Bankers and analysts also listed Hewlett-Packard Co and Computer Sciences Corp as other U.S. companies that could be interested in Satyam. HP and CSC declined to comment.
But HP is still digesting its $13.9 billion acquisition of IT services provider Electronic Data Systems, and CSC may not have the financial wherewithal to buy Satyam, they said.
India's Larsen & Toubro Ltd, which controls about 12 percent of Satyam, and diversified companies Spice Group and Hinduja Group have expressed interest in Satyam but said they had not decided whether to bid.
SOME ASSETS COMPELLING
Satyam provides back office operations to more than 600 global customers, including General Electric Co and Qantas Airways.
Two technology bankers suggested IBM might look at buying some Satyam assets rather than a majority stake. One banker, who has worked with IBM in the past, said its acquisition strategy of late has been to pursue companies that have strong intellectual property rather than services, which is Satyam's forte.
"If IBM needs to grow its market, grow its revenue stream, and position themselves for the recovery and expand their lead over HP, Satyam is the only choice that can accelerate those objectives," said Trip Chowdhry, an analyst at Global Equities Research.
IBM Chief Financial Officer Mark Loughridge said at a conference last month the company looks for software acquisitions that completes IBM's "content and overall services offering." At IBM's January earnings call, he said the company was looking at ways to use its $12 billion cash most effectively.
Shares of IBM fell 1.91 percent to close at $85.81 on Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.

Pak awaits India's response on its questionnaire, says Gilani

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani today said he is hopeful that India will provide "substantial evidence and material" to Islamabad for the successful prosecution of persons arrested in Pakistan for their involvement in the Mumbai terror attacks. Briefing Interpol Secretary General Ronald Noble on progress in the probe into the Mumbai incident, Gilani said Pakistan is committed to a "transparent, prompt and professional" investigation of the incident to ensure security and peace in the region.
Gilani "hoped that India will respond positively and provide substantial evidence and material to the Federal Investigation Agency (for) successful prosecution of those culprits in Pakistan who are involved in the Mumbai terror attacks", said an official statement. Pakistan is also committed to sharing information regarding the Mumbai attacks with Interpol, he told Noble.
Pakistan is currently awaiting India's response to 30 questions seeking further information on the Mumbai attacks. The queries were handed over on February 12 along with Pakistan's response to the Indian dossier on the incident.
Authorities in Pakistan have arrested six suspects in connection with the Mumbai attacks. Four of the suspects Lashker-e-Taiba activists Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, Zarar Shah, Abu al Qama and Hamad Amin Sadiq have been remanded to the FIA's custody till March 17 by an anti-terrorism court

Pak must dismantle terror infrastructure: India

Union Home Minister P Chidambaram has urged Pakistan to completely dismantle the terror infrastructure from its soil and declare a zero-tolerance for any kind of terrorist activity.

Asked whether the terror attack in Lahore earlier this week brought a qualitative change in Pakistan's attitude, Chidambaram said, 'I hope so, I hope so."

But he said nabbing one or two people was not enough.

"The entire terrorist infrastructure must be dismantled. If the terror infrastructure remains intact, it is like riding a tiger and you know what happens when some body rides a tiger," he said.

Replying to another question about the reports that the terrorists were trying to infiltrate in to India from Pakistan, the Home Minister said that he gets such reports every day.

"There is a lot of information about militant or terrorist activity. Our response is to raise the level of preparedness and response swiftly and decisively in the event there is a terror threat or terror attack," he said.

After reviewing the security situation in Andhra Pradesh with Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy and other senior officials, Chidambaram said that the preparedness level in Andhra Pradesh was much higher today than what it was three months ago. "Three months from today it will be even higher than what it is today. The government is taking every step to raise level of preparedness to meet every threat," he said.

The home minister said that the National Security Guard hub in Hyderabad will become operational by June-end. He said Andhra Pradesh was also raising a commando force with 256 members which will be trained by NSC and will be as effective as NSG for the urban policing.

Chidambaram was all praise for Andhra Pradesh on its success against Naxalites and for strengthening the intelligence set-up in the state.

He said that the control rooms of the central Intelligence Bureau and the state intelligence in Hyderabad along with the Subsidiary Multi Agency Center in Hyderabad and the special branch control rooms were all working 24/7. He said that the connectivity between them will be in place by the end of this month. The new technology and equipment to be put in place by May end will enable the exchange of information on real time basis.

As Andhra Pradesh has a 1000 km-long coastline, the issue of coastal security prominently figured in the review meeting. In addition to the 6 coastal police stations, the state government has sought another 15 coastal police stations in the nine districts, he said.

The state government has also identified 508 coastal villages where identification cards will be provided to the people under a new programme of the Centre, he said.

The home minister suggested to the state government to adopt the Kerala example of providing cellphones to the fishermen community who can provide information to police about any suspicious movement in the sea or on the shore.
Image: Home Minister P chidambaram after reviewing a security meeting with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Dr Y S Rajasekhar Reddy Hyderabad secretariat on Friday.

Gandhi auction: Images

Gandhi's personal items were being displayed at a New York City auction.

The signboard says it all.

Tony Bedi, who represented liquor baron Vijay Mallya in the auction, outside the bidding house.

Tony Bedi, who appeared on behalf of Vijay Mallya.

James Otis talks to media outside the auction building.

Gandhi's spectacles on display.

Gandhi's sandals being displayed

A brass bowl used by Gandhi on display.

The pocketwatch used by Gandhi

India successfully tests interceptor missile

New Delhi: India Friday successfully tested an indigenous interceptor missile that destroyed an incoming "enemy" ballistic missile at an altitude of 80 km, an official said.
During the test, an 'enemy' missile which was a modified version of the Dhanush surface-to-surface missile was fired from a naval ship in the Bay of Bengal to simulate the terminal phase of the flight of a ballistic missile with a range of 1,500 km. As the incoming missile neared the Wheeler Island off the Orissa coast, a Prithvi air defence missile was launched to intercept it at an altitude of about 80 km and kill it, the official added. The test was part of the Defence Research and Development Organisation's effort to put in place a ballistic missile shield.

`Sri Lankan team security in Pakistan was insufficient'

A Pakistani think-tank has said that the security cover provided to the visiting Sri Lankan team was insufficient and stressed that the Pakistan authorities 'must pay attention to uncover the truth without wasting time on conspiracy charges'.
'It (security) was not sufficient. They should have deployed the army or the commandos for the team's security instead of special police force, because it was a big event in Pakistan and the Sri Lankan team took a big risk to come here,' Amir Rana, director of the Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS), has said in an interview with Sri Lanka's state-run Daily News Friday.
A team of 12 terrorists Tuesday sprayed bullets and fired rocket-propelled grenades at the convoy carrying Sri Lankan players to the Gaddafi international stadium in Lahore, where they were to play on the third day of the second and last Test against the host Pakistan.
Seven players and the team's assistant coach were injured and six Pakistani police officials providing protection to the bus carrying the players were killed in the attack. Three of the wounded players are recovering at a private hospital here.
Sri Lanka's middle-order batsman Thilakaratne Dilshan, who narrowly escaped without injuries in the terror attack, said upon returning home Wednesday that the security cover for the two-Test series was relatively relaxed as compared to the one-dayers they played in Pakistan a month before.
The media report said that defence analysts and intelligence services of South Asia 'are working hard to ascertain whether last Tuesday's terrorist attack on Sri Lankan cricketers was part of a larger plan to create diplomatic crisis among the South Asian nations'.
'The arrests into the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore indicate the investigators are trying to establish if the terrorists had any external links with the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) or militant groups in India,' Amir Rana has been quoted as saying.
'The issue is why they targeted Sri Lankan team. Is it to create chaos? Did they have a deal with the LTTE? Hopefully this will clear within days.... Right now it is difficult to pin-point a specific group, but in Pakistan a few groups have used the same tactics in the past,' Rana added.

IPL is on, working on revised schedule, says Modi

Indian Premier League (IPL) chief Lalit Modi Friday cleared any doubts about the holding of the tournament, saying the governing body is working on a revised schedule.
'We want to assure all our fans and sponsors that the IPL is on. There are lot of speculations. There is no question of IPL moving to any other country,' IPL chairman and commissioner Modi told reporters at the Wankhede Stadium here Friday.
Modi, who is also the vice-president of the Indian cricket board, said that the IPL is working on a revised fixture and it will be decided soon. He also said that the IPL will also come up with a security plan next week.
'We are rescheduling the fixture and we are touch with all the state associations. It is a cumbersome process and can't be done overnight. We will shortly have a new schedule out,' he said.
Modi, however, made it clear that there won't be any matches on the day of the counting - May 16.
'There won't be a match in a city also on election day. We are working on it and we have also 14 cities available and we have to shortlist eight from them,' he said.

Pakistan on back foot on Lahore security lapses

The Pakistani authorities Thursday went on the back foot in the face of charges that lax security had led to the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore - and TV footage showed motorcycle-riding gunmen fleeing past an approaching police vehicle.
Sri Lankan spinner Muthiah Muralitharan, Australian umpire Simon Taufel, English match referee Chris Broad and former England player Dominic Cork went public with their charges of security lapses - a chorus that former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf also joined in.
In an attempt to cool passions, Punjab provincial Governor Salman Taseer maintained Thursday that security was adequate and that report of the probe into the incident would be released Friday.
'It is wrong to say there was no security. We had provided four vehicles (with security personnel),' Taseer said at a press conference in Lahore.
'We delivered what we promised. Chris Broad is wrong. How can he say there was no security?' the governor wondered.
Broad, the match referee for the second cricket Test between Sri Lanka and Pakistan, Wednesday said he was 'extremely angry' about security in Pakistan.
The former England batsman was in a minibus directly behind the vehicle carrying the Sri Lankan players in Lahore Tuesday when both came under terrorists' fire which wounded six cricketers and killed six policeman and the minibus driver.
'I am extremely angry that we were promised high-level security and in our hour of need that security vanished,' Broad said upon arrival in Manchester.
He said the match officials were left like 'sitting ducks' after the security forces ran for cover when the attack happened close to the Gaddafi Stadium.
His remarks were borne out by TV footage aired Thursday that clearly showed two of the terrorists who attacked the Sri Lankan team fleeing past an approaching police vehicle.
Captured by a CCTV camera and aired by Geo TV, the visuals showed two men on a motorcycle, one of them brandishing an automatic, entering the frame from the bottom of the picture.
A police vehicle approaches from the other side, crosses the motorcycle and speeds on without even attempting to stop the duo as they ride out of the frame.
On their part, Muralitharan and Taufel both spoke about an inexplicable change made to the departure timing of the Pakistani team's bus that had the effect of sparing the host nation's team from the terrorists' bullets.
Taufel told The Times that while the two teams had travelled to the stadium together on the previous two days, on the day of the attack the bus carrying the Pakistan team left five minutes later.
'One thing I have been impressed about in Pakistan is that logistically they are usually very well organised. They normally depart on time,' he said in comments quoted Thursday.
'We knew we were departing at 8.30 a.m. on the third morning. As to why the Pakistani team left at a different time, I don't know.'
Muralitheran suggested the terrorists may have had inside information.
'Somehow in this incident there were no police with guns on the bus - if someone was there with a gun we would have had a chance of defending ourselves,' Muralitharan told Radio5aa in Adelaide, Australia.
Cork said the Lahore attack was 'one of the most frightening experiences' imaginable.
'It's just been one of the most frightening experiences you could ever witness,' said Cork, whose bus was just ahead of the ones carrying the Sri Lankan players and umpires.
Musharraf, speaking for the first time in public on the Lahore attack, blamed the security forces for not reacting swiftly and effectively when the terrorists struck.
'I expected the security forces to shoot down those people who attacked the Sri Lankan team. There are elite forces placed there and they are expected to react within three seconds of any such incident,' he told reporters here.
'This the kind of training that these forces are provided with. The standards of the training have to improve if we are to tackle such situations effectively,' the former president maintained.

Mittal, Rohini Nilekani in Forbes' 'Philanthropy' tally

Washington: Four Indians have been listed among Forbes' "48 Heroes of Philanthropy" who opened their cheque books for a cause even as the global financial crisis is hammering fortunes all over Asia.
Indian telecom czar Sunil Mittal, NRI businessman Anil Agarwal, HCL Technologies chairman Shiv Nadar and Rohini Nilekani, wife of Infosys Technologies Co-founder Nandan Nilekani, made it to the list compiled by the US business publication.
The list features 48 individuals, four each from India, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, The Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand, besides another four from Australia and New Zealand.
"The global financial crisis is hammering fortunes all over Asia, but the past year was still a good one for philanthropy as tycoons and more modest donors tried to maintain their charity commitments, Forbes said announcing its third annual 'Heroes of Philanthropy' list."Many opened up their chequebooks to help the victims of the Sichuan earthquake and the Myanmar cyclone in May.
Many more donated to health, education, cultural and other causes," it noted. Anil Agarwal, 55, chairman of mining outfit Vedanta Resources, Forbes noted pledged $1 billion to build a new university in the eastern state of Orissa.
Apart from arts and sciences, medicine and engineering, it plans research centres for bio- and nanotechnology, crop genetics and alternative energy.
Sunil Mittal, 51, chairman and group chief executive of Bharti Enterprises, set up the Bharti Foundation in 2000 and contributed $22 million. It also set up telecom-technology colleges on the campuses of the Indian Institutes of Technology in New Delhi and Mumbai, and has funded 26 computer centres and more than 100 libraries aimed at poor children, especially girls. Shiv Nadar, 63, Chairman and chief strategy officer, HCL Technologies, started the SSN Trust, named after his late father, in 1994.
Its $30 million endowment is used mainly to fund SSN Institutions, which are aimed at providing affordable higher education, offering $1 million in scholarships each year. Rohini Nilekani, 49, along with her husband, pledged $5 million to Yale University, where both their children are students, to start the Yale India Initiative, an India studies programme that she believes will be "the most comprehensive in any US university."

Rain plays spoilsport, washes out second ODI

Incessant showers stopped a galloping India in their tracks in the second cricket one-day international against New Zealand, resulting in the abandonment of the game at the Westpac stadium here tonight.
India were rocking at 130 for one in 19 overs when rain disrupted the proceedings. After two restarts, the tourists had surged to 188 for four from 28.4 overs when the skies opened yet again.
Umpires Rudi Koertzen and Ewan Watkin, abandoned play at 8.15 pm (local time). Three interruptions had reduced the 50-over game to a 34-over affair, frustrating the motley crowd which hung on patiently for almost four hours before the umpires put them out of their anxiety.
The teams move to Christchurch for the third ODI with India leading the five-match series 1-0.
Virender Sehwag (54) and Sachin Tendulkar (61), prudently playing second fiddle to his adventurous partner, put India in the driver's seat with a quick-fire 76 run partnership for the first wicket.
The hapless Kiwis were smacked all over in the first 12 overs as Sehwag, despite being hampered by a cramped leg muscle, spanked their attack with gay abandon.
Sehwag's 31st half-century came off just 36 balls and was studded with nine fours and one shot over the fence

Did not participate in auction at Govt's behest: Mallya

Flamboyant industrialist Vijay Mallya today appeared displeased at the government's claim that it had arranged for procurement of Mahatma Gandhi's personal effects through him, saying his participation in the auction was purely a personal decision and a matter of pride. "I have not had any dialogue or any conversation with anybody in the government.
This was purely my personal decision," he told PTI over phone from France. Mallya, who had in 2004 bought Tipu Sultan's sword from a London auction house, said he was bringing Gandhi's memorabilia to Delhi and would be "presenting these to the government.
" Reacting to Tourism Minister Ambika Soni's statement that the government has "been able to procure them through the services of Mallya, who was in touch with us," Mallya said: "I'm not aware of what Ambika Soni has said, but neither before nor after the auction, anybody in the government was in touch with me."

Gandhi items to return to India after New York auction

Items that belonged to revered Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi were sold at auction for $1.8 million on Thursday to an Indian tycoon who plans to donate them to his country.
The seller had tried at the last minute to withdraw the items -- Gandhi's trademark wire-rimmed glasses, worn leather sandals, a pocket watch and a metal bowl and plate -- after the planned sale caused uproar in India.
But the auction in New York went ahead despite protests by the Indian government.
The items were sold by Antiquorum Auctioneers to Vijay Mallya, chairman of UB Group, said Tony Bedi, who bid for Mallya.
Mallya, who as head of UB Group runs Kingfisher Airlines and United Breweries that owns Kingfisher beer, will donate them to India for public display, Bedi said.
"I am sure all Indians will be pleased that these Gandhi items will be coming home," Bedi told reporters.
California-based collector James Otis, the seller, said earlier on Thursday that the items had been withdrawn. A lawyer for the peace activist said the sale was illegal.
"I never intended for my actions to cause such controversy," Otis told reporters before the sale. "I pray the outcome is positive and one that Gandhi would approve of."
He said he would have donated the items to India if the government had agreed to increase spending on the poor.
NATIONAL HERITAGE
The auction was sharply criticized in India. Many view the items as part of the national heritage and want them placed in a museum.
Some Indians said the sale went against the philosophy of a man who shunned material possessions and led an ascetic life.
"The issue here was not to put Mahatma Gandhi's legacy on the auction block," Ravi Batra, a lawyer for Otis, told reporters.
The Indian government announced earlier on Thursday that it planned to bid for the items, which had been expected to fetch $300,000.
It had previously held talks with the auctioneers to stop the sale, government officials said.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, better known as Mahatma Gandhi, pioneered the philosophy of nonviolent resistance and was a major figure in the struggle for Indian independence. He was assassinated in 1948 in New Delhi by a Hindu radical.
The Zenith pocket watch was given to Gandhi by Indira Gandhi. Indira Gandhi, who was not related to Mahatma Gandhi, was the daughter of India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, and was herself an Indian prime minister. She was assassinated in 1984.
Mahatma Gandhi used the plate and bowl for his last meal.

TV footage shows Lahore attackers fleeing past police

TV footage aired Thursday clearly showed two of the terrorists who attacked the Sri Lankan team in Lahore fleeing past an approaching police vehicle, giving the lie to the authorities' claims that they had cordoned off the area immediately after the incident occurred.
Captured by a CCTV camera and aired by Geo TV, the visuals show two men on a motorcycle, one of them branding an automatic, entering the frame from the bottom of the picture.
A police vehicle approaches from the other side, crosses the motorcycle and speeds on without even attempting to stop the duo as they ride out of the frame.
On Wednesday, Geo TV had aired four sets of visuals captured by CCTV cameras in the lanes around the Liberty Market area near the Gaddafi Stadium where a group of terrorists, said to number 12, sprayed bullets on the Sri Lanka team bus Tuesday.
Eight Pakistanis, including six security personnel died in the attack, while six Sri Lankan cricketers, and the team's assistant coach, were injured.
One of the visuals showed two armed terrorists running 50 metres down a lane to where another man waited on a motorcycle. The rider kick starts the machine, the other two get on and the motorcycle speeds away.
Another visual showed a terrorist brandishing his weapon as he ran up a deserted street.

Where's the evidence of Indian hand in Lahore attack, asks Pakistani media

The 'flurry of charges' linking India to the attack on the Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore 'make no sense at all', an editorial in a leading English daily said Thursday, while another cautioned that such finger pointing would only widen the India, Pakistan rift.
'The flurry of charges from the media and members of the government that our neighbours to the east may have had a hand make no sense at all - given that the gunmen have not been apprehended and no other evidence points in this particular direction,' The News said in an editorial headlined 'No closer to the truth'.
On its part, Daily Times referred to the 'planting' of a police report that apparently warned that India's spy agency RAW was planning to target the Sri Lankan cricketers and said it was meant to 'widen the rift between India and Pakistan and bring relief to the terrorist elements under pressure from the Pakistan army in the tribal areas'.
The editorial was headlined 'Reaching out for denial again'.
Pointing to the need 'to put passion aside and accept the reality', The News said: 'There is now no doubt at all that Pakistan is unsafe; no sporting team should be asked to visit it, unless we wish for blood on our hands.'
'The priority must be to assess how order can be restored in our state and the violent forces that operate within it eradicated.
'Turning our attention to this would be a far more useful exercise than pointing fingers towards neighbours or pretending that the Pakistan is not a terrorist haven. The events of March 3 prove that it is and will remain so till we act decisively to restore the rule of law within it,' the editorial maintained.
The News also noted that the government had 'done little' to 'clear the mist of confusion or calm the deep unease' the audacious attack had created.
'Indeed, the interior adviser's media talk in Islamabad seemed to add to the suspicions that no one at all with an iota of good sense is in charge of the country,' the editorial added.
The reference was to Interior Minister Rehman Malik's statement hours after the Lahore attack pointing to a 'foreign hand' in the outrage. He, however, did not specifically name any country.
Urging 'logic and rationality' in dealing with the aftermath of the incident, the editorial said: 'We all know that groups capable of carrying out the well-planned and expertly executed attack we saw Tuesday exist within the country.
'It is useless to turn a blind eye to the presence of forces such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) which have the capacity to stage such acts of terrorism. They of course also have reason to try and extract revenge for the crackdown against the group carried out over the past few weeks, in the aftermath of what happened at Mumbai,' The News added.
Noting there was 'no doubt' about the fact that the security provided to the Sri Lankan team was seriously lacking, Daily Times said: 'But to unite in dumping the entire incident on India may be proved wrong in the near future and may not be a durable prop on which to lean.
'This is what happened after the Mumbai attacks when Islamabad was compelled to own that Ajmal Kasab was a Pakistani and the incident was partly planned inside Pakistan,' it added.

Pakistan identifies those who attacked cricketers

Pakistani authorities have identified the people responsible for this week's attack on Sri Lanka's cricket team, a senior government official said on Thursday.
The ambush on the team and its police escorts as they drove to the main stadium in Lahore shocked cricket-mad Pakistan and raised new fears about the nuclear-armed U.S. ally's ability to overcome the threat of rising Islamist militancy.
Seven Pakistanis -- six policemen and the driver of a bus carrying match officials -- were killed in Tuesday's attack.
Police issued sketches early on Thursday of four of the gunmen who attacked the team and their escorts with AK-47 rifles, hand grenades and a rocket-propelled grenades, as they drove to Lahore's main stadium.
Later, provincial governor Salman Taseer, said authorities knew the identity of those responsible.
"We have identified the people who did the operation. We have made arrests, we are chasing them, we have rounded up people," Taseer told a news conference.
He declined to elaborate, saying: "I am going to give you details in the next few days."
There has been much angry finger-pointing over the failure of the police to protect the team, despite a warning about just such an attack. Taseer said a report on the team's security would be sent to the government on Friday.
City police inspector Asif Rashid said sketches of four of the gunmen, who appeared to be 25 to 30 years old, were made from descriptions provided by a motorist and rickshaw driver.
Six Sri Lankan players were wounded along with two team officials, including a British assistant coach. They flew back to Colombo along with the rest of their party later on Tuesday.
Two Australian umpires and an English referee caught up in the attack slammed the security arrangements and said they were abandoned by Pakistani security forces once the shooting began.
"We were caught in a war zone," umpire Simon Taufel told reporters on his return to Australia.
ICC match referee Chris Broad told a news conference in Manchester he and other match officials had been left like "sitting ducks" when the attack began.
The Pakistan Cricket Board said it would lodge a protest with the International Cricket Council over Broad's remarks.
SUSPECTS
There is a long list of possible suspects.
Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said in Islamabad on Wednesday it was the first attack on Sri Lankans outside the country and he did not rule out the possibility the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam were involved.
Speculation has otherwise focused largely on two Pakistani Islamist militant groups -- Lashkar-e-Taiba and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi -- as well as the Pakistani Taliban.
Whoever was responsible, the consequences for Pakistani cricket would appear dire.
Even before the attack many countries refused to come to Pakistan and on Thursday Bangladesh postponed a visit there by the Pakistani team this month over security concerns. [nSP420780]
Pakistan were due to arrive in Bangladesh on Saturday to play two Twenty20 and five one-day internationals against the hosts.
Former president Pervez Musharraf said Pakistani cricket was almost finished.
Musharraf, who has been keeping a low profile since stepping down as president in August, also told reporters the special police guarding the Sri Lankan team should have responded and killed the attackers in less than three seconds.
"That should be the level of training that I expect from an elite force ... we need to improve that standard," former army chief Musharraf said.
Pakistan, beset by economic problems, has reeled under a wave of bomb and gun attacks in recent years, mostly carried out by militants linked to the Taliban or al Qaeda.
The civilian government which came to power a year ago is also embroiled in a confrontation with the main opposition party over a court ruling banning its leaders from elected office and forcing the party's government from power in Punjab province.
More trouble is looming.
Anti-government lawyers backed by opposition political parties are due to launch a cross-country motor convoy on March 12 to press for an independent judiciary and plan to begin an indefinite sit-in near parliament on March 16.
Commentators have mentioned similarities between the Lahore attack and November's assault on the Indian city of Mumbai in which nearly 170 people were killed. India blamed Pakistani militants and their security agency handlers for that attack.

IPL submits revised schedule to Home Ministry

In a desperate bid to save the Indian Premier League's second edition, its organisers have sent a revised schedule of the high-profile event to the home ministry, which will now decide whether security can be arranged for the Twenty20 tournament. The tournament has come under a cloud of uncertainty in the wake of the deadly terror attack on Sri Lankan team in Lahore and the general elections in India which coincide with the league that starts April 10.
After a series of meetings, the IPL organisers have re-drawn the schedule of the tournament taking care that no matches are held on polling days in the cities hosting the games. "We have taken care to ensure that host cities are not alloted a match two days before and after the polling day.
We have submitted the schedule to the home ministry. It is upto them now to advice us," a top IPL source said.
The IPL officials are not meeting the Home Ministry officials for the time being. "We will have a meeting if they call us to seek certain clarifications or for any other matter," he added.
The organisers are not in favour of postponing the tournament as it may lead to massive financial loss for the franchise owners as well the tournament itself.

Cricketers' night out as PM hosts India, NZ cricket teams

Wellington: New Zealand Prime Minister John Key today hosted an official dinner for the visiting Indian cricket team which was also attended by Daniel Vettori-led national side at the parliament here.
Welcoming Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men and the Kiwis, John Key quipped that the tight finishes in the matches between the two teams had made for some sleepless nights in his household.

"I have a 13-year-old son (Max), who is the cricket follower in our household. These tight late games are playing havoc with the schedule in our house because every time I return from a function late in the night, my son is watching cricket. So these tight finishes have made for some sleepless nights in our household," said Key.

"I told him that I was going to meet the cricketers from the Indian and New Zealand teams and he gave me a list of names from both sides whose autographs he wanted. So Dhoni and Daniel, if I come up and ask for some autographs, it is not for me, it is for my son Max," he added.

Talking about the attacks on the Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore on Tuessday, Key said, "I would like to say quite simply it was a despicable act and the government, like everyone, was shocked and condemns what took place."

"It must be very upsetting for many of the players who are here this evening. Our hearts go out to the players and to the families of those who were killed in the attacks," Key said. "It is the intention of the New Zealand government to send a message to the Sri Lankan cricket team. Also, cricket is a gentleman game and when you start seeing terrorism translating into attacks on international teams, you know the world is taking a very unsafe step and one that we must all stand up and condemn," he added.

Key also recalled the feats two greats of India and New Zealand cricket, Kapil Dev and Sir Richard Hadlee.

"The history of cricket between New Zealand and India is one that goes back a long way. Those of us who play a bit of backyard cricket are just as likely to be belting out the names of Sachin Tendulkar or Bishan Bedi as we do the names of a New Zealand player."

"I fondly remember that back in 1990, when Sir Richard Hadlee took his 400th wicket, Sanjay Manjrekar and the Indian cricket team responded by presenting him with 400 roses. A few years later, Kapil Dev set the record for the most Test wickets by bowling out Blair Hartland to equal the mark of 431 wickets," he recalled.

He also commended former New Zealand batsman John Wright for his notable performance as India coach. "We must also acknowledge John Wright who has been a very successful coach with the Indian team." While wishing both teams success, Key said, "The real winners will be the New Zealand public who will get to watch some fabulous cricket."

Responding to Key's address, Indian captain Dhoni said, "For most of us, the youngsters who are part of this Indian team, it is our first trip to New Zealand. In the last 10 days that we have spent over here, we have found out whatever we have heard about New Zealand, it is exactly the same. It is a beautiful country and has wonderful people."

"We as the Indian cricket team acknowledge the fact that we are here to entertain you throughout this summer."

"Hopefully, we will make your good summer even better. As far as Mr Prime Minister is concerned, me and Daniel will talk to our respective teams and tell them not to take the game till the last over or the last few overs so that we can take a bit of tension away from you (Mr Key)," Dhoni said.

Broad's charge of lack of security totally fabricated: Butt

Lahore:Pakistan's cricket chief Ijaz Butt Thursday took a swipe at match Referee Chris Broad over his outburst against security arrangements in Lahore, saying that he would soon send a formal complaint against the Englishman to the International Cricket Council (ICC).
"His (Broad's) allegations are totally fabricated," Butt told a press conference here at the Gaddafi Stadium. "There is no truth in them. The security arrangements were in place," he added.

Butt was responding to allegations fired by Broad on his return to England where he claimed that he and other match officials and Sri Lankan players were like sitting ducks for the terrorists who attacked them in Lahore Tuesday morning.

Eight people, mostly policemen, were killed in the attack while several of the Sri Lankan players were injured.

"I am extremely angry at the Pakistani security forces," Broad told reporters in Manchester Wednesday.

"We were promised high level security and in our hour of need that security vanished and they left us to be sitting ducks."

Australian umpires Steve Davis and Simon Taufel have joined Broad in seeking answers after surviving the Lahore attack.

"We were certainly left without any security in our van when we were being fired upon," said Davis at Melbourne airport.

An angry Butt rejected these charges, saying that people like Broad and Davis were alive because the Pakistani security men died, saving them.

"People who escaped the tragedy without even a scratch should not be talking against the same security men who died saving them," he said.

Broad, a former England Test opener, also questioned why the Pakistan team bus missed the convoy, departing five minutes later after travelling with them on the previous two days of the second Test, though he noted it also happened at times during the Karachi Test.

"I thought maybe they were having five or 10 minutes more in the hotel and would turn up later, but after this happened you start to think, 'Did someone know something and they held the Pakistan bus back?'" Broad said.

While recalling those comments, Butt got even angrier.

"I will not use the language I want to use against Broad," he said. "Because he is the same who's been praising security arrangements in Pakistan all along."

The PCB chief also washed his hands of the security lapse that allowed the attack on the Sri Lankan team, saying that the security arrangements are the responsibility of the government.

"It is the state that provides security to the players not the PCB," he said.

The PCB has come under intense criticism over its failure to ensure fool-proof security to the Sri Lankans and the match officials.

However, he said that in future the board might hire private security experts for "guidance".

He also didn't rule out the idea of having "bullet-proof" transport vehicles for players and officials in the future.

"We have received offers from military officials that they can help us have bullet-proof transport but I must tell you that it is a very, very expensive proposition," he said. "But we will consider it."

Murali blasts Pak security arrangement, suspects insiders

Melbourne: Sri Lanka spinner Muttiah Muralitharan today hit-out at the security arrangements in Pakistan in the wake of the deadly terror attack on his team bus in Lahore and suspected militants had inside information about their movement.
"Somehow in this incident there were no police with guns on the bus," the 36-year-old off-spinner said.

"If someone was there with a gun we would have had a chance of defending ourselves," said the world's highest wicket-taker in both Tests and one-dayers.

"Normally all the buses go and we have four or five escorts," said the spin legend revealing his anguish that there could have been inside information about the Sri Lankan team bus' route to the Gaddafi stadium.

Also read:
Chris Broad says Pakistan security forces failed players Australian umpires angry at security lapses

"We left at 8.30am, and Younis Khan (with the Pakistan team) at 8.35am. We divided into two, maybe they knew the information for the right time. They tried to shoot the driver. Then they were shooting both sides of the bus and they counted 39 holes," he told 'Radio 5AA' in an interview.

The off-spinner said he thought Tharanga Paranavitana, who along with Thilan Samaraweera was one of the more seriously wounded players, would die from his injuries.

Paranavitana had a bullet lodged in his chest while Samaraweera had a shrapnel in his right leg. "There were gun shots going on and the bullets were passing us. I saw Paranavitana was bleeding in the chest. I thought he was gone, actually. Thilan Samaraweera was bleeding, Kumar Sangakkara was bleeding from the shoulder. There was blood everywhere. It was frightening," he said.

Both Paranavitana and Samaraweera were operated upon after they reached colombo yesterday and were known to be recovering.

Global job crisis to worsen sharply this year: ILO

New Delhi: Deepening recession is expected to increase the number of unemployed women by up to 22 million as global job crisis could "worsen sharply" this year, the International Labour Organisation has warned.
Ahead of the International Women's Day on March 8, the ILO said the labour market projections for 2009 showed deterioration in global labour markets for both women and men.
The UN labour body projected that global unemployment rate could reach between 6.3 per cent and 7.1 per cent, with a corresponding female unemployment rate ranging from 6.5 to 7.4 per cent compared to 6.1 per cent to 7.0 per cent for men.
"This would result in an increase of between 24 million and 52 million people unemployed worldwide, of which from 10 million to 22 million would be women," the ILO said in its annual Global Employment Trends for Women report.The report said the gender impact of economic crisis in terms of unemployment rates is expected to be more detrimental for females than males in most parts of the world.
Noting that the economic downturn has hit women harder as they were "more vulnerable" than men, the report said the trend can be arrested through gender equality policies.The ILO said the global economic crisis would place new hurdles in the way to sustainable and socially equitable growth making decent work for women more difficult and advocated "creative solutions" to address the gender gap.

Otis offers to loan Gandhi's blood sample, ashes to India

New York: The US collector of Gandhi memorabilia has offered to loan India a sample of Mahatma Gandhi's blood from his assassination site and ashes from his cremation if New Delhi agrees to sponsor a world travelling exhibition.
James Otis, whose collection of five items including Gandhi's iconic watch is set to go under hammer Thursday unless a last minute agreement is reached, has also added a blood report of Gandhi from Irwin Hospital (now Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan Hospital) in Delhi and a signed telegram the Mahatma had sent to students congratulating them on their peaceful struggle.
The offer was made Wednesday night to the Indian Consulate General in New York hours ahead of Thursday's planned auction by New York auction House Antiquorum Auctioneers.Mahatma Gandhi's silver Zenith pocket watch (circa 1910-1915) is expected to attract significant interest. The pocket watch belonged to Gandhi, who later gave it to his grandniece Abha Gandhi, his assistant of six years, and in whose arms he died.Also offered as part of the same lot are Gandhi's sandals, glasses, bowl, plate and letters of authenticity.
The sandals were given to a British army officer in 1931 prior to the Round Table talks in London that were held to discuss self-rule for India. The bowl and plate were given by Gandhi to his grandniece are also for sale.

India, Pakistan will survive or sink together

The terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan cricketers at Lahore lends itself to various interpretations. In the increasingly volatile political landscape of Pakistan, the pertinent question should always be, 'Who stands to gain?'
Days or weeks may pass before we get a credible enough answer. That is, if at all. What emerges for the present is that the Pakistani military lost no time in taking matters into its hands in the Gaddafi stadium .
Where Pakistani politicians are once again abysmally failing, the military has stepped in unfailingly as the nation's saviour.
This is almost ditto how Pakistan's tortuous political history has been punctuated time and again during the past six decades. Thus, we may well be witnessing the opening scene of a shadow play with a predictable denouement.
To be sure, the Lahore attack has seriously dented President Asif Ali Zardari's leadership. Whether he can recover from this lethal blow, time only will tell.
As things stand, his popularity is abysmally low on account of his failure to fulfill his pre-poll political assurances last year regarding the restoration of the country's political and constitutional underpinnings.
Equally, Zardari will live to rue his blatant resort to manipulative politics in undercutting Nawaz Sharif .He had a splendid opportunity to elevate Pakistani party politics from the morass of a futile zero-sum game. But he goofed up.
He simply could not rise above cronyism or control his own personal aggrandisement of power. The ghosts of the Pakistan Peoples PartyP-Muslim League rivalry that has been the bane of Pakistani politics for the past several decades have been resurrected.
This does not augur well for political stability. In the process, Zardari is bound to end up the loser. Lahore is traditionally the nerve-centre of Pakistani politics. Zardari has overreached.
He simply lacks the locus standii to grab the levers of power in Lahore. Punjab is unlikely to accept his holding the levers of power. And Punjab is also the province from where Pakistani military recruits the bulk of its soldiers.
That is to say, the terrorist attack in Lahore has taken place against a huge political backdrop of titanic forces contesting for power.
It ricochets, however, on various planes. Evidently, the United States will now be even more loath to "pressure" Pakistan when the country's political economy is so manifestly fragile. That, in turn, has implications for the ongoing investigations into the Mumbai attacks.
Two, there is a message for Washington as Barack Obama finalises his war strategy in Afghanistan. Washington cannot escape the writing on the wall -- that its military intervention in Afghanistan seven years ago has hopelessly destabilised Pakistan.
The vast reservoir of "anti-Americanism" in Pakistan has become the breeding ground of terrorists. The primary responsibility for what is happening lies with the United States -- as was the case in engendering the tragedy of Pol Pot in Cambodia a long time ago.
The "anti-Americanism" in Pakistan, cutting across social strata, practically hinders the civilian government -- and even the military -- from undertaking actions against the militants that lend to interpretation as collaboration with the US.
To compound this, the US is dictating the manner in which Pakistan must tackle the threat to its security. The Pakistanis resent the US's muscular dilomacy.
All this is affecting Pakistan's will to fight off the beast slouching through the Khyber toward Peshawar.
The wave of instability sweeping through the badlands of the tribal areas is now showing signs of spreading to the settled areas within Pakistan. But, is Pakistan on the verge of a militant takeover? Hardly so.
The overwhelming majority of Pakistanis abhor extremism -- just like us Indians. Therefore, the extremists can be contained and isolated and eliminated as a residue. The issue is, how this can be optimally achieved?
First and foremost, Pakistani people must be allowed genuine freedom to mould their destiny through free and fair elections. Pre-cooked civilian facades made in America should not be imposed. Benazir Bhutto's killing in cold blood should have taught Washington a lesson or two about dictating the ABC of democracy.
Second, a political solution must be found to the Afghan war, which is radiating a lot of negative energy in the region.
Most important, the US must genuinely address the widespread perception that it is deliberately humiliating Muslims worldwide. In the Middle East, in particular, there is need of the West jettisoning its century-old policy of political, economic and cultural domination.
The spectre that haunts Pakistan is more of widespread anarchy where the centre cannot hold unless and until the politicians get their act together. For the same reason, India must vastly rachet up its threat perceptions.
When the terrorists strike in broad daylight in the presence of tens of thousands people in a high security environment within earshot of Amritsar ,it naturally sends shock waves across India. It is no more relevant where they have struck -- on this side or the other side of the Wagah border. The ground reality is that there is no such thing as absolute security anymore.
The terrorist attack in Lahore brings home the stark reality that the security of India and Pakistan is intertwined. We survive together or sink together. It is up to the two countries to come to terms with this grim reality.
The silver lining is that an awakening is visible in the Pakistani opinion and in the civil society regarding the imperative of strongly meeting the scourge of terrorism. It is in India's interests to foster and encourage this trend rather than score propaganda points.
Our politicians will do a great favour to be the responsible people that they are expected to be. Let us hope they lapse into silence instead of inventing smart one-liners and repartees. How on earth does it matter whether it is Pakistan or India that increasingly resembles Somalia?
In any case, we need to be mindful that these are extraordinary times. When a neighbour's roof catches fire, there is always the danger that the fire can spread to our own homestead sooner or later -- especially our fractured society with plentiful incendiary materials lying loosely guarded.

The writer is a former ambassador---M K Bhadrakumar

RBI cuts key rates by 50 bps

The Reserve Bank on Wednesday cut its key overnight lending and borrowing rates by 50 basis points each with immediate effect, signalling banks to further soften interest rates.
The repo, the rate at which RBI lends short-term funds to commercial banks, has been reduced from 9 per cent in October to 5 per cent now. Similarly, the reverse repo, the rate at which banks park overnight funds with RBI, has been brought down from 6 per cent to 3.5 per cent.
The decision, RBI said, "will further encourage banks to provide credit for productive purposes at viable interest rates. The Reserve Bank on its part would continue to maintain ample liquidity in the system."
Hoping that the rate cuts would encourage banks to lend at varable rates, the apex bank said that concerns about rising NPAs had discouraged banks from lending earlier.
The decision to reduce key rates follows a review of the current global and domestic macro-economic situation, the RBI said.
Following the string of rate cuts by RBI, banks, especially state-owned, have reduced their lending and deposit rates considerably, but borrowing activities do not seem to have witnessed any major surge.
RBI Governor D Subbarao had earlier said there is room for further cut in policy rates.
Even though banks have cut lending rates in response to RBI's policy stance, the central bank said in a statement that "concerns over rising credit risk together with the slowing of economic activity appear to have moderated credit growth".
It further said that banks should ensure that creditworthy enterprises should continue to get funding.

Microsoft to lay off H-1B visa holders

Observing that the H-1B work visa programme helps hire the best available talent of the world, American software giant Microsoft has said H-1B visa holders has contributed significantly to its success.
However, the company, which had recently announced to lay off some 5,000 jobs in the next 18 months, would be handing over pink slips to H-1B visa holders too.
Microsoft's observation on H-1B visas and their significant contribution to its success was made by the company in a letter to Senator Charles Grassley.
H-1B employees have always accounted for less than 15 per cent of Microsoft's US workforce, the level that is used in immigration law to determine whether a company is "H-1B dependent," the letter said.
The Senator, in a letter dated January 22, had sought information from Microsoft particularly about how its plan to fire 5,000 people would affect US workers and non-US citizens working for Microsoft.
The Microsoft letter dated March 3 written by Bradford L Smith, its general counsel, has been posted on its website http://microsoftontheissues.com.
"Nonetheless, the ability to tap into the world's best minds has long been essential to our success. Although they are a small percentage of our workforce, H-1B workers have long made crucial contributions to Microsoft's innovation successes and to our ability to help create jobs in this country.
"We are confident this will continue to be true in the future," said the Microsoft.
Microsoft said it focuses its recruiting for core technology jobs at US universities, which continue to be among the best in the world for computer science and engineering graduates.
However, as one recent study found, in 2005 temporary residents earned more than 40 per cent of the engineering and computer science degrees at US higher education institutions.
For doctoral degrees, that number was even higher, as temporary residents accounted for 59 per cent of the degrees awarded in these fields that year, the letter said.
"The substantial majority of H-1B petitions filed by Microsoft are for core technology positions, and technology and engineering positions account for about 90 per cent of Microsoft's H-1B workforce," Microsoft said.
Many of these H-1B employees have been seeking permanent resident status for many years and would no longer be dependent on their H-1B visas but for multi-year delays in the green card process, the letter observed.
"With these factors taken together, we do not expect to see a significant change in the proportion of H-1B employees in our workforce following the job reductions," said the company in its letter.
Answering to the specific question from the Senator on H-1B people losing their jobs, the Microsoft said: "Workers on H-1B visas and other temporary work visas make up only a small percentage of our overall workforce, but they were also among the employees impacted by the reductions announced in January.
Employees outside the United States were also impacted." Since majority of Microsoft's workforce is made up of US workers, the company said the majority of jobs eliminated in January were held by US workers.

We were naive to feel safe in Pakistan, says Sangakkara

Colombo: In an article for the Telegraph, Sri Lankan batsman Kumar Sangakkara writes that in hindsight every player in the team was just to naïve to think that they would not be attacked by extremists.
Recalling the incident, he said Tuesday started as just another day in Lahore: a morning report to the fitness trainer to check our hydration levels, a quick breakfast and cup of coffee and an 8.30 a.m. departure to the ground.

We were all looking forward to the third day's play of the second Test, and trying to win the series.

Our team bus left with three to four police cars in a convoy, with around 12 policemen and security officers. Along the route, road junctions were cleared and side roads closed to ensure we passed through the traffic easily.

Traffic came close but it was all routine and we did not feel threatened. Up until yesterday there had been no hint of danger.

The guys were all having fun in the bus as we usually do, cracking jokes and sharing banter. Some were chatting about the first session and the need for early wickets, a couple of others were talking about shopping in Lahore before our scheduled departure on Friday.

Then, as we approached the large roundabout before the Gaddafi Stadium, having used the same route for the third time, we suddenly heard a noise like a firecracker. The bus came to a halt and some of the guys stood to up to see what was happening. Then came the shout: "They are shooting at us!"

From the front I heard the shouts of "get down, get down" and we all hit the deck. Within seconds we were all sprawled along the floor, lying on top of each other and taking shelter below the seats. The gunfire became louder, we heard explosions (which I understand now were hand grenades) and bullets started to flash through the bus.

I was sitting next to Thilan Samaraweera and close to the young Tharanga Paranavitana, who was playing his first international series. For some reason I moved my head to get a better view and a spilt second later I felt a bullet fizz past my ear into the vacant seat.

Fortunately, as a team, we remained quite calm. No one panicked. After what must have been two minutes standing still we urged the driver to make a run for the stadium just a few hundred metres away: "Go, go, go" we shouted.

We owe our lives to Mohammad Khalil, the driver. The tyres of the bus had been shot out and he was in great danger, exposed to gunfire at the front of the bus. But he was hell bent of getting us to safety and, somehow, he got us moving again. Had he not acted with such courage and presence of mind in the face of incredible danger, most of us would have been dead.

Standing still we were sitting ducks. We only found out afterwards that a rocket launcher fired from the other side just missed us as we turned for the stadium gates, the rocket blowing up an electricity pylon.

Khalil saw a hand grenade tossed at us that failed to explode. Someone must have been looking over us because right now it seems a miracle we survived.

As we moved towards the stadium, Tharanga announced he was hit as he sat up holding his chest. He collapsed on to his seat and I feared the worst. Incredibly, the bullet hit his sternum at such an angle that it did not penetrate. He was fine. Shortly afterwards Thilan complained of a numbness in his leg, which we later found out was a bullet wound.

Thilan and Tharanga were the worst hit. Just before reaching safety I felt a dull ache in my shoulder. Shards of metal, shrapnel, were lodged in the muscle. After being quickly evacuated to the dressing room the paramedics attended to those with minor wounds. My cuts were cleaned.

Ajantha Mendis had several shards of metal removed from his head and neck after his hair was shaved off. Paul Farbrace, our assistant coach, had a large piece of shrapnel removed from his arm. Mahela Jayawardene had a minor cut to his ankle. After a while we started to calm down, and the phones started ringing.

We had always felt pretty safe in Pakistan, to be honest. It shows how naïve we were. We realise now that sports people and cricketers are not above being attacked.

All the talk that "no one would target cricketers" seems so hollow. Far from being untouchable, we are now prize targets for extremists. That is an uncomfortable reality we have to come to terms with.

In future, we need to consider carefully how to better tackle the issue of security in a new post-Lahore reality. Pushing the blame around between national boards, governments and the ICC right now will not help. We need to consider a more centralised system for assessing security and a more open sharing of security information – with the players and their representatives, as well as board and ICC officials.

From a Pakistan perspective, it is tragic this has happened. Pakistan is a great country with a strong cricket tradition and a very hospitable people. We like playing cricket there, but the presence of a small minority pursuing their own agendas at any cost will surely prevent tours for the foreseeable future.

Will we go back? Will I go back? When you have been through what we have experienced, when you have been targeted and hit by terrorists yourselves, coming back is a big question.

It cannot be answered now. I suspect, too, it can only be answered as an individual. Our families will never feel the same about us leaving to play in Pakistan. That is sad for Pakistan and world cricket.

Will Chiranjeevi steal the show in Andhra?

The Congress and the Grand Alliance of the Telugu Desam Party, the Telengana Rashtra Samithi, the Communist Party of India-Marxist and the Communist Party of India are expected to be locked in a direct contest for electoral supremacy in Andhra Pradesh, with Praja Rajyam Party likely to emerge as a dark horse with its chief Chiranjeevi hoping to do an Obama with his 'change' mantra.
Though players like the Bharatiya Janata Party and Lok Satta Party of bureaucrat-turned-politician N Jayaprakash Narayan are also in the fray for the May 16 Lok Sabha and assembly elections, analysts say their impact is not likely to be significant and the main fight will be essentially among Congress, the Grand Alliance and the PRP.
While the Congress is readying itself to fight the elections on the 'development-welfare', the Grand Alliance has a host of issues ranging from corruption to Telangana.
On the other hand, Chiranjeevi is harping on 'change'. Andhra Pradesh could well decide who would form the next government in New Delhi, according to the analysts.
By sending as many as 33 members to the Lok Sabha in 2004, the Andhra Pradesh electorate helped Congress form a government at the Centre in the company of other political party in a big way.
But the Grand Alliance, claiming itself as the 'third alternative', is bent on spoiling the chances of the ruling Congress by "exposing its failures".
Equally bent is PRP, which might well give a tough fight to both the Congress and the GA by splitting their votes in most pockets in the state.
But PRP's aspirations may actually come a cropper if it fails to secure a common symbol for all its candidates. As things stand, the party that is solely banking on the charisma of megastar Chiranjeevi is unlikely to get a common symbol.
Another most significant aspect of this elections will be the total isolation of the ruling Congress in the state. In 2004, the Left parties had aligned with the Congress while the TRS was also part of the alliance that ousted N Chandrababu Naidu from power.
TDP had only BJP for company in 2004 but the combination could not outwit the Congress-Left-TRS combine. Congress, however, is putting up a brave front saying no combination or force can prevent it from retaining power
"It will be a positive vote for the government, which is quite unprecedented. The slew of welfare measures, apart from the major development works including the construction of irrigation projects, will stand us in good stead," Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy said.
The 2004 poll outcome also makes for an interesting study. The Congress, which polled 38.56 per cent of the total valid votes, bagged 185 seats in the 294-member state assembly while the TDP with a 37.59 per cent vote share could muster only 47 seats.
The CPI got 1.53 per cent votes (six seats), the CPI-M 1.84 per cent (nine seats) and the TRS 6.68 per cent (26 seats) while the BJP secured 2.63 per cent and just two seats.
On the other hand, Congress won 33 seats, TDP four, TRS two, while CPI, CPM and MIM bagged one Lok Sabha seat each.
But this year, things are likely to be different. CPI-M, CPI and TRS have now crossed over to TDP with the sole objective of dislodging the Congress. BJP has none for company this time and is striving to rediscover itself in the state.
And this is where analysts say that PRP might come into play in splitting votes, particularly in the coastal Andhra region and to some extent in Rayalaseema.
PRP's impact is expected to be the maximum in the East and West Godavari districts, which hitherto used to be TDP's citadels.
In north coastal Andhra too -- comprising Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts -- Chiranjeevi's party is likely to eat into the traditional TDP votes much to the comfort of Congress.
In the final analysis, this could prove to be the most decisive factor in determining who comes to power. Of course, the outcome in Telangana will also be crucial as the region has as many as 117 seats.

RBI cuts key rates, interests may soften further

Mumbai: The Reserve Bank on Wednesday cut its key overnight lending and borrowing rates by 50 basis points each with immediate effect, signalling banks to further soften interest rates.
Since October, RBI has reduced key policy rates to fuel demand in the economy reeling under the impact of the global financial meltdown.
The repo, the rate at which RBI lends short-term funds to commercial banks, has been reduced from 9 per cent in October to 5 per cent now. Similarly, the reverse repo, the rate at which banks park overnight funds with RBI, has been brought down from 6 per cent to 3.5 per cent. The decision, RBI said, "will further encourage banks to provide credit for productive purposes at viable interest rates. The Reserve Bank on its part would continue to maintain ample liquidity in the system.
"Hoping that the rate cuts would encourage banks to lend at varable rates, the apex bank said that concerns about rising NPAs had discouraged banks from lending earlier.
The decision to reduce key rates follows a review of the current global and domestic macro-economic situation, the RBI said.
Following the string of rate cuts by RBI, banks, especially state-owned, have reduced their lending and deposit rates considerably, but borrowing activities do not seem to have witnessed any major surge.
RBI Governor D Subbarao had earlier said there is room for further cut in policy rates.
Even though banks have cut lending rates in response to RBI's policy stance, the central bank said in a statement that "concerns over rising credit risk together with the slowing of economic activity appear to have moderated credit growth".
It further said that banks should ensure that creditworthy enterprises should continue to get funding.

Warne declares Pakistan a no-go zone, others not shocked at what happened

Champion former Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne has declared Pakistan a no-go zone, saying that the safety of players and officials should be of paramount importance.
"I can't believe this has happened. This is an absolute tragedy," the Herald Sun quoted Warne as saying yesterday.
"It's terrible. People have been killed and I just hope that those who have been injured are all OK. Our hearts and thoughts are with those people," he added.
"Unfortunately, I think this rules out the Aussies playing in Pakistan now and for a very long time. It is just not worth taking the risk, full stop. I think this is just a commonsense approach. Any tours to Pakistan, now or in the future, can't even be looked at," Warne said
International Cricket Council president David Morgan said Pakistan cannot host international cricket unless it dramatically improves security.
"In the current situation it clearly is a very dangerous place," Morgan said.
Asked about plans for the World Cup, due to be played in four Indian subcontinent countries, Morgan said: "Things will have to change dramatically in Pakistan if any of the games are to be staged there."
"I think that international cricket in Pakistan is out of the question until there is a very significant change, a regime change I guess," he added.
Former Australian fast bowler and Pakistan coach Geoff Lawson reluctantly agreed.
After years of campaigning for teams to tour Pakistan he now admits the nation will become the Wanderers XI of international cricket.
"It was an honest belief we held (that sporting teams would not be terrorist targets), and it is tragic that this has happened. I have been looking at the footage on TV and I know that area very well. I have a lot of friends over there . . .
"Cricket won't be played in Pakistan for the foreseeable future. Pakistan look like they will become a wandering cricket team now.
"Obviously, there is no chance of the Champions Trophy or the World Cup going ahead."
Pakistan was to be the joint host of the 2011 World Cup with India and Sri Lanka.
Former Pakistan great Inzamam-ul-Haq feared the worst when he told Pakistan television: "The World Cup (in 2011), too, might be affected. No country would want to come now to Pakistan.
"I am worried where Pakistan will get a chance to play, not only in Pakistan but outside as well. This is all so sad."
Former Test batsman Rameez Raja told the Cricinfo website he heard the blast and the commotion after it.
"I never thought we will face a situation like this in Pakistan where sportspeople will be targets," he said. "We have to get united and fight the terrorists. Time for staying quiet is over."
Former Australian paceman Jason Gillespie declared the cricketing world could boycott touring Pakistan forever.
"I'm guessing there's all these cricketers around the world, and I bet there's some Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore at the moment, who are saying: I'm never coming back to this place again," he said.
"And they are justified in saying so."
Victorian captain Cameron White said that he was not shocked by the terrorist attack on the Sri Lanka team in Pakistan.
"It doesn't come as an absolute shock. On one of the Australia A trips I played on in Pakistan we had quite a few bombs go off close to where we were out for dinner one night. o it isn't an absolute shock and in the past I haven't felt totally safe there, but in saying that the last time I went there, I felt okay," said White.
White added he had played at the stadium where the bus convoy was headed when the attack struck and he said it was pretty worrying to learn what had happened.
He expressed his sadness and sympathy over the attack.