28 & 29 July, 2013

Bengal panchayat polls: Counting underway, Trinamool takes early lead in most districts

Counting for the West Bengal panchayat polls started on Monday with initial trends putting ruling Trinamool Congress in the lead in most of the districts.

With security ring provided by both central and state security forces, 329 counting centres have been set up which by Monday evening will decide the fate of thousands of candidates in fray.

According to a State Election Commission official, the Trinamool Congress is leading in most of the districts as per the initial counting trends.

IAS Durga Shakti Nagpal who took on sand mafia suspended

The UP government late on Saturday night suspended Durga Shakti Nagpal, the sub-divisional magistrate of Gautam Budh Nagar. Nagpal, a 2010 batch IAS officer, who has been in news for her crackdown on illegal sand mining, was allegedly suspended over a dispute related to a religious place.

KG basin gas price: SC issues notices to Centre, RIL

The government's controversial decision to raise the price of natural gas came under judicial scrutiny with the Supreme Court on Monday agreeing to examine the matter and issued notices to the Centre and Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL).

A bench headed by Chief Justice P Sathasivam issued notices to Centre and RIL on the issue.

The apex court issued notices on petition by MP Gurudas Dasgupta.

A life spent in Mawsynram, the wettest place on earth

Deep in northeast, villagers use grass to sound-proof their huts from deafening rain, clouds are a familiar sight inside homes and a suitably rusted sign tells visitors they are in the " wettest place on earth".

Oddly enough, lifelong residents of Mawsynram, a small cluster of hamlets in Meghalaya state have little idea that their scenic home holds a Guinness record for the highest average annual rainfall of 11,873 millimeters (467 inches).

No proof against Gurunath, Kundra, says BCCI probe panel

Exactly 58 days after he "stepped aside" as BCCI president, the decks have been cleared for N Srinivasan's return to the helm of the richest cricket body in the world.

A report submitted by a two-member panel that probed allegations of betting and spot-fixing against Srinivasan's son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan, India Cements Ltd (owner of Chennai Super Kings) and Jaipur IPL Pvt Ltd (owner of Rajasthan Royals), found no direct evidence of wrongdoing on the part of any party. The panel consisted of two former judges of the Tamil Nadu high court, Jayaram Chouta and R Balasubramanian.

Ind vs Zim: India beat Zimbabwe by 7 wickets to take unassailable 3-0 lead

A disciplined India notched up a convincing seven-wicket victory over Zimbabwe in the third one-day international to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series on Sunday.