The Gujarat High Court on Wednesday sought the stands of the Union and the state governments on a plea seeking cancellation of a 1994 official resolution which had inducted people of 39 castes into the OBC list.

The plea by BJP corporator Ajmal Thakor of Visnagar Nagarpalika in Mehsana district also sought a fresh survey to identify other backward communities and create a new list of the Other Backward Class.

The division bench of Chief Justice R Subhash Reddy and Justice V M Pancholi issued notices to the Union and the state governments as well as the national and state OBC commissions on Thakor's petition.

Thakor in his plea filed through his counsel Rohit Patel contended that the inclusion of 39 castes in the OBC list was not based on any review or recommendation of the OBC panel and that it was against the Supreme Court's 1993 order in Indra Sahwney case.

In the Sahwney case, while directing periodic review of the list every ten years, the apex court had ordered that no caste be included without recommendation or review of the commission.

The 1994 official resolution was made by the state government alone and was based on Parikshit Majmudar Commission's recommendation of 1953 in the old state of Saurashtra, it said.

The Thakor community (to which the petitioner belongs) being the largest community in the caste included in the list, is denied rightful opportunity under reservation due to faulty list, said the petition.

The 1994 decision of the state government was motivated by the vote-bank politics and was not backed by any review or recommendation, it said.

The petition sought the court's direction to scrap the 1994 Government Resolution, to freeze the current jobs and admissions being given on the basis of the list and to have the OBC list reviewed by the commission.

A similar plea was filed on January 19 this year by Prakash Patel who too has sought dismissal of the government's 1994 GR and holding a fresh decadal review of the OBC list by the state OBC commission.

The Islamic State jihadist group has taken credit for a deadly ambush at an Egyptian police checkpoint near the iconic Saint Catherine's Monastery in Sinai late Tuesday, US terrorist-tracking organisation SITE reports.

IS claimed the attack in a message published by its Amaq news agency, SITE said. 

The attack – the first IS has staged against a monastery – comes ahead of a visit to Egypt by Pope Francis later this month.

An Egyptian policeman was killed and four were injured during the firefight with IS gunmen, several hundred metres from the monastery's entrance, Egypt's Interior Ministry said in a statement. 

The remote 6th-century monastery is located in the desert at the foot of Mount Sinai in the southern part of the volatile Sinai Peninsula.

St Catherine's is one of the oldest Christian monasteries in the world and a Unesco world heritage site.

Egyptian President Abdul-Fattah al-Sisi declared a three-month state of emergency after 45 people died in Palm Sunday attacks against Christian churches in the Nile Delta city of Tanta and the coastal city of Alexandria on April 9.

The Sinai Province Egyptian branch of IS claimed the Palm Sunday attacks and the group has vowed further attacks against Egypt's Coptic Christian minority, which makes up 10 percent of the population.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has asked the PLA's newly-formed 84 large military units to prepare themselves for combat and give priority to building "new-type" fighting capabilities in electronic, information and space warfare.

Xi, also the Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), the overall high command of the 2.3 million-strong military, spoke to the commanders of the new units here on Tuesday and asked them to improve their joint operation capabilities and technology level.

He said the new units of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) must prepare themselves for combat and study wars.

The President told the new forces to conduct more combat exercises and give priority to building "new-type" fighting capabilities, state-run China Daily reported today.

In PLA terminology, "new-type" fighting capabilities generally refers to capabilities of engaging in electronic, information and space operations.

Xi's call for building "new-type" fighting capabilities of the world's largest military came as Beijing prepares to counter the US deployment of Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) interceptor missiles in South Korea, whose powerful radars could see through most of the part of China including its missile development programme.

As it expanded strategic influence, China is also flexing its military might especially in the neighbourhood over the territorial disputes with India, Japan and countries in the South China Sea.

All 84 of the new units are at combined corps level, which means their commanders have or soon will be promoted to a rank of either major general in the Ground Force, Air Force and Rocket Force or rear admiral in the Navy.

Though the PLA has not disclosed how these units were set up, it is likely that they were created through the regrouping of existing forces rather than recruiting new personnel, because the Chinese military is still engaged in cutting its troops by three lakhs, the daily said.

The units' emergence also indicates that the PLA's structural shake-up has taken effect.

At a CMC conference in December, Xi ordered the military's structure to be adjusted and optimised, calling for a smaller but capable and flexible military, the report said.

The establishment of the units is the latest move in a massive reform the PLA is undergoing.

The unprecedented reform began in November 2015, when the Central Military Commission unveiled a blueprint for the PLA's development.

The commission pledged to establish a leaner and more efficient command chain to reduce the number of non-combatant personnel and departments and to build the PLA into a mightier force capable of winning modern wars.

Since then, the PLA has set up a headquarters for its Ground Force, founded a Strategic Support Force dedicated to electronic, information and space operations, and established a Rocket Force to replace the former Second Artillery Corps.

The previous four top PLA departments-staff, politics, logistics and armaments-were dismantled, the report said.

Netflix has formally announced plans to reboot Carmen Sandiego with Gina Rodrigues as the voice of the titular character.

In the new series, of which 20 episodes have been ordered for a 2019 premiere date, Carmen Sandiego is back and ready for a new crop of international capers packed with thrilling adventure and intrigue, reported E! online.

“I already have the fedora and coat. And now we're sort of bummed that this thing is only animated!” Rodriguez wrote on Twitter.

She also tweeted a first look at the character's new look “Don't ask where…ask who…Just call me Carmen.”

The new take presents an intimate look into Carmen's past where viewers will not only follow her escapades but also learn who in the world is Carmen Sandiego and why she became a super thief.

The red fedora-wearing thief first became popular thanks to a children's computer game franchise in the '80s, before spawning two live-action PBS game shows.

“Stranger Things” star Finn Wolfhard swill also lend his voice for the role of Player, Carmen's chief accomplice and friend.

Actress Brie Larson's says she wants to bring “female complexity” in Hollywood with her Captain Marvel role.

The Oscar-winning actress says she is very excited to star in Marvel's first movie with a titular female superhero, reported Digital Spy.

“Aside from the fact that it's iconic to be part of this, to be playing the first female (lead) in a solo (Marvel) movie, I think for me personally one of the things I'm excited about is the idea of female complexity.

“That's what I've wanted to bring to every genre and every film that I've done. How can we come to understand the mystique of being female?” Larson says.

The 27-year-old actress previously called the role of Captain Marvel a “great responsibility”.

A ship docked at the Sicilian port of Augusta on Wednesday with 453 boat migrants on board including "many" women and children, as well as seven corpses recovered during a rescue operation, port officials said.

Several pregnant women were among the migrants who arrived in Augusta aboard the 'Phoenix' operated by the Migrant Offshore Aid Station (Moas) charity, according to officials.

A total of 8,360 people were rescued from Friday to Sunday in the Mediterranean in dozens of separate operations, the Italian Coast Guard said.

Improved spring weather may have fuelled the surge in crossings.

Some 32,800 migrants have been brought to land since the beginning of the year, the International Organisation for Migration said on Tuesday. 

The total number of arrivals in Italy was predicted to reach about 36,000 by Thursday, IOM said.

At least 900 migrants have died or have gone missing while attempting to cross the Mediterranean this year, almost 90 percent on the treacherous route from Libya to Italy, according to IOM.

Actress Meghan Markle will reportedly attend Pippa Middelton and James Matthews wedding with boyfriend Prince Harry.

The 32-year-old royal will reportedly be taking his girlfriend to a portion of the couple's wedding on May 20, but will be flying solo for the ceremony at St. Mark's church in Engelfield, England, reported People magazine.

Markle will not attend the main wedding as the protocol prohibits unmarried and un-engaged partners to attend the nuptials, but the 35-year-old actress is expected to attend the party that evening.

The report comes after Prince Harry jetted off to Toronto, Canada, where Markle lives, just before Easter weekend.

 Renewable energy firm Gamesa on Wednesday said it has commissioned wind power generation capacity of 2,050 mw in 2016 17 financial year.

"Being the first ever wind company in India to have achieved this number in one year, Gamesa has doubled its efforts as compared to last year thus setting a new benchmark in the Indian wind Industry," the company said in a statement.

"Today the company has a total installed capacity of over 4,800 mw across seven states in India," it said.

The company has projects across seven wind rich states of India and operates two nacelle manufacturing facilities near Chennai, Tamil Nadu and a blade manufacturing plant in Halol, Gujarat.

The merger between Gamesa and Siemens Wind Power became effective on April 3, 2017.

"United, Siemens Wind Power and Gamesa create a leader in the wind power market with presence in more than 90 countries and have 75 gw of installed capacity worldwide," it said. KKS MR

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) will conduct its first mock exercise on forest fires covering all districts of Uttarakhand, an official here said on Wednesday.

NDMA, the apex body of the disaster management in the country, will conduct the drill with the help of National and State Disaster Response Forces and other departments of the state administration on Wednesday.

"The exercise, to be conducted in collaboration with the state government, is aimed at assessing the efficacy of integrating the response mechanisms of the forest department with those of the district administration," the Ministry of Home Affairs said in a release.

To ensure necessary arrangements for conducting the mock exercise, NDMA conducted a table-top exercise with all district magistrates and Divisional Forest Officers of Uttarakhand through video-conferencing from Dehradun. 

Uttarakhand, with more than 60 per cent of forest cover, is prone to forest fires during the summer months which destroys the flora and fauna of the Himalayan state. 

Last year, a forest fire in Uttarakhand lasted for around 90 days, killing seven persons even as more than 6,000 personnel from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), state police, forest staff and volunteers were deployed.

NDMA regularly conducts such mock exercises across the country and has so far conducted more than 550 mock exercises in different states and Union Territories. 

Terming the Babri Masjid demolition as “more serious” than the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Wednesday deplored the delay in concluding the trial.

He also said those responsible for the “nation's shame” in 1992 are now running the country.

“Mahatma Gandhi assassination trial completed in 2 years & Babri Masjid demolition which (is) more serious than MK Gandhi killing not yet decided,” the Hyderabad Lok Sabha member tweeted.

“Gandhi's killers were convicted (and) hanged & Babri accused have been made Union Ministers, conferred Padma Vibhushan, justice system moves slowly,” he said.

His comment came after Supreme Court allowed the CBI's plea to restore criminal conspiracy charge against top BJP leaders L K Advani, M M Joshi and Uma Bharti in the Babri Masjid demolition case.

The apex court, however, noted that Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh enjoys Constitutional immunity and can be tried only after he ceases to hold the office. Kalyan Singh was the chief minister of UP in 1992.

“It's 24 years late. 24-25 years have passed. But at last the Supreme Court has taken the decision that the conspiracy charge should be there. But I hope the Supreme Court will also decide the contempt petition (pending since 1992)”, Owaisi has said.

“The contempt petition has to be decided by them (SC),” he said.

In a series of tweets, he said, “Will Kalyan Singh resign & face trial or hide behind cover of being Governor, Will Modi govt remove him in Interest of Justice I doubt”.

Attacking the Narendra Modi government, Owaisi said, “Demolition of Babri Masjid is a nation's shame people responsible for this shame are now running the nation.”

“Now Supreme Court has said conspiracy charge added against accused will Padma Vibhushan be taken back from accused,” he said.

“I think BUT for Supreme Court giving permission for Kar Seva Babri Masjid wouldn't have been demolished & Supreme Court yet hear Contempt pet(ition),” he said.

The apex court had permitted a “symbolic” kar sewa on November 28, 1992 following an undertaking by the Uttar Pradesh government that it would be peaceful. Days later on December 6, the 16th century mosque was pulled down by kar sewaks.

State-run National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) has received green nod for its third phase expansion of the alumina refinery complex in Koratpur district, Odisha at a cost of Rs.4,357.20 crore.

The proposal is to set up fifth stream with a capacity of 1 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) as well as steam-cum co- generation power plant (SPP) of 18.5 MW capacity.

"The Environment Ministry has given environment clearance for the third phase expansion of NALCO in Odisha with some specific conditions," a senior government official said.

The project requires 25.09 hectare of land, which the company already has under its possession. Bauxite, the ore required for the plant will be sourced from NALCO's own Panchpatmali mines.

The estimated cost of the proposed expansion project is Rs.4,357.20 crore. The anticipated capital expenditure for the pollution control measures is Rs.235 crore.

With the proposed expansion, the NALCO's alumina production capacity will increase from 2.27 MTPA to 3.27 MTPA, while SPP capacity will expand from 92.5 MW to 111 MW.

The company, which has abundant supply of quality bauxite from captive ore and adequate manpower, is expanding production capacity as it sees export opportunity of additional 1 million tonnes of alumina from 2021 onwards.

Currently, NALCO sells part of its alumina produced within India and exports the remaining quantity. It exported 1.22 million tonnes of alumina during 2015-2016.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Wednesday welcomed the Union Cabinet's decision to get rid of red beacons from all vehicles from May 1, saying it is a "healthy step that will further strengthen the country's democratic fibre".

Such regressive symbolism promoted by the VIP culture that has prevailed in India for decades needs to be eliminated completely to make the authorities more accessible to the people and promote transparent governance, he said here.

The Union Cabinet today decided that beacon light will be removed from all vehicles, including that of the Prime Minister. Beacons, however, will be allowed on vehicles concerning emergency and relief services, ambulance, fire service etc.

Other ministers in the state government also came out in support of the decision, terming it a "progressive move".

Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal said Punjab had emerged a clear trendsetter in this direction, having decided to do away with red beacons at the very first meeting of the Amarinder Singh cabinet.

Technical Education Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said it was a positive step which would go a long way in bringing the government closer to the people.

The elimination of VIP culture was a key promise in the Congress manifesto for the Punjab Assembly polls and the state government has already set an example with its initiatives to do away with red beacons.

The chief minister has also directed that plaques and foundation stones be dedicated to the people of Punjab and will not carry the names of any political leaders, including ministers.

Amarinder, a few days ago, also refused to accept preferential treatment at the airport while entering, checking-in and boarding a flight, thus sending a loud and clear message that his government was totally opposed to any VIP frills.

Actress Lily Collins' new book has a very special fan in former first lady Michelle Obama.

The actress-turned-author, 28, took to Instagram where she explained that after sending her book to Michelle on a whim, the former first lady recently sent back a sweet thank you note.

“Best way to start off my week! I can't believe this letter I received from someone I deeply respect and admire. It's absolutely epic. I'm in complete shock but just had to share!” Collins wrote, captioning a video of her reaction.

Collins read the note before revealing it had been written by the former FLOTUS.

The “To the Bone” actress was particularly excited that the letter's envelope included a Wonder Woman stamp.

Addressed “Dear Lily,” Michelle wrote, “I am writing to thank you for the copy of your new book. The gift was such a nice gesture and I look forward to sharing it with my daughters.”

She added, “The outpouring of support I have received from women across the country continues to amaze me, and I am filled with a great sense of hope for our shared future.”

In her collection of personal essays, 'Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets, Just Me,' Collins opens up about coping with troubled boyfriends, eating disorders, and her absentee father, musician Phil Collins.

Harvard scientists, including one of Indian origin, have created a new form of matter – dubbed a time crystal – which could offer important insights into the mysterious behaviour of quantum systems.

Crystals – like salt, sugar or even diamonds – are simply periodic arrangements of atoms in a three-dimensional lattice.
Time crystals, on the other hand, take that notion of periodically-arranged atoms and add a fourth dimension, suggesting that – under certain conditions – some materials can exhibit periodic structure across time.

Led by Professors Mikhail Lukin and Eugene Demler, researchers at Harvard University in the US built a quantum system using a small piece of diamond embedded with millions of atomic-scale impurities known as nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers.

They then used microwave pulses to “kick” the system out of equilibrium, causing the NV centre's spins to flip at precisely-timed intervals – one of the key markers of a time crystal, said researchers, including Junior Fellow Vedika Khemani.

However, the creation of a time crystal is not significant merely because it proves the previously-only- theoretical materials can exist, Lukin said, but because they offer physicists a tantalising window into the behaviour of such out-of-equilibrium systems.

While understanding such non-equlibrium systems could help lead researchers down the path to quantum computing, the technology behind time crystals may also have more near-term applications as well.

“One specific area where we think this might be useful, and this was one of our original motivations for this work, is in precision measurement,” Lukin said.

“It turns out, if you are trying to build, for example, a magnetic field sensor, you can use NV-centre spins,” he said.
The research was published in the journal Nature.
 

Actor Alec Baldwin has been named as the new host of Turner Classic Movies' The Essentials, replacing Robert Osborne on the show.

One of TCM's most popular franchises, The Essentials showcases classic films, often with commentary from special guests.

Joining Baldwin for the show's upcoming season, which kicks off on May 6, will be David Letterman, Baldwin's former “30 Rock” co-star and series creator Tina Fey, and Oscar- winning director William Friedkin, reported Entertainment Weekly.

With each of his guests, Baldwin will introduce a hand- picked list of classics and discuss the cultural and cinematic significance of the films.

Osborne, who died last month, had been with TCM since its inception in 1994. He hosted The Essentials from 2006 to 2015.

“I have some big shoes to fill hosting The Essentials, and I plan on doing Bob proud with this new season of The Essentials,” Baldwin said in a statement.

With the US tightening the norms for H-1B visas under the President Donald Trump's 'Buy American, Hire American' campaign, the Indian IT companies are bound to face disruptions by way of higher costs and even some laying off work force back home, and the rising rupee is aggravating the situation further for the technology export firms, an Assocham paper said here on Wednesday.

Nearly 86 per cent of the H-1B visas issued for workers in the computer space go to Indians and this figure is now sure to be scaled down to about 60 per cent or even less, the paper said. 

Remittances from the US would decline, hurting the balance of payment. World Bank data showed the US was the second largest source of remittance for India in 2015, behind Saudi Arabia, and about $10.96 billion, nearly 16 per cent of the total inflows, were sent to India. 

The industry chamber expects it to disturb the balance by 8-10 per cent.

As the cost pressure would increase, aggravated by rising rupee leading to lower realisations, the Indian IT firms may be forced to displace work force. "In that case, the chances of layoffs are real," said Assocham Secretary General DS Rawat.

He said the IT industry apex organisations and the government need to work out a joint strategy to deal with the unfolding situation. 

In the last three months, the Indian currency has gained by at least five per cent against US dollar, reducing net realisations for software exporters, among other export-oriented sectors. 

According to the Assocham paper, the reverses resulting from the tightening of the H-1B visas would force IT giants to effect fundamental changes in their strategies in terms of hiring, salaries, jobs, impacting employees in India too.

With Britain already hiking the minimum wage requirement to euro 35,000 for tier II visa immigrants, this latest move by the US will act as a definitive dampener to the Indian outsourcing industry.

The alternate solutions for the Indian outsourcing industry are: Investing "near shore centres" – facilities close to the US; focus on local hiring in America; and to work virtually, which is becoming easier with the wider adoption of cloud services and greater digitisation, the paper said.
 

The process of removing snow from the 16 km trek rout of Kedarnath in district Ruderprayag has started. Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM), involved in reconstruction work in the flash-flood hit valley, began the operation of clearing the route from 15 April and expects it to complete by the weekend.

Kedarnath will reopen after six month of winter break on May 3. The 16 Km trek starts from Gaurikund and heavy snow accumulation is blocking route at eight points.

NIM’s media coordinator Manoj Semwal, “We have deployed 70 working staff for removing snow from the trek. A total of about 700 Mts snow obstructed route need to be cleared. We will complete the work by weekend”

The 2013 disaster badly damaged the highway connecting Gaurikund. This year the pilgrims will find the 5km patch of Sonprayag-Gaurikund highway in good shape. But, even this time the visitors will to take shuttle service on jeeps to cover the 5 kms distance. Tourists will have to park their vehicles at Sonprayag and take the shuttle for the rest of 5 kms. 

With about two weeks remaining for the opening of Kedarnath, the Ruderprayag district administration has speed up preparation work. This time local hoteliers are expecting a good tourist season.

Gaurikund resident Rakesh Goswami says, “Local hotel operates have started getting quires, we are optimizing that this season is going to be the best post 2013 disaster.”