The Virat Kohli-led Indian cricket team will be facing New Zealand and Bangladesh in warm-up matches ahead of the Champions Trophy to be held in England on June 1-18.

The Oval will host both the matches, where India will first take on New Zealand on May 28, and Bangladesh on May 30.

“We will play two practice matches against India and Pakistan before the tournament starts,” Bangladesh Cricket Boards operations committee chairman Akram Khan stated as quoted by the Bangladeshi media.

Bangladesh are set to feature in the Champions Trophy after a leap of 11 years. 

Their last appearance was in the 2006 edition of the 50-over tournament, that India hosted but Australia were crowned champions in the end.

Team India, who will enter the tournament as defending champions, have won the Champions Trophy twice in 2002 and 2013.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has said that Iran is complying with a 2015 nuclear deal.

In a letter to House Speaker Paul Ryan, Tillerson certified that Iran was compliant through April 18 with its commitments under the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

It was the first certification of Iran's compliance issued by President Donald Trump administration. Like his predecessor John Kerry, Tillerson is required to send the certification every 90 days.

However, calling Iran "a leading state sponsor of terror", Tillerson informed Congress that the Trump administration had directed a full review of the 2015 nuclear deal to evaluate whether continued sanctions relief was in the US national security interests, NBC News reported.

Trump during his campaign repeatedly criticised the Iran nuclear deal, calling it "the worst deal ever negotiated".

Iran and six world powers — Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the US — reached an agreement on the country's nuclear issue in July 2015 that put Iran on the path of sanctions relief but with more strict limits on nuclear programme.

The deal set limits on Iran's nuclear activities as it would take Tehran at least one year to produce enough fissile material for producing a nuclear weapon, and allowed regular inspections of the facilities inside Iran.

After the International Atomic Energy Agency verified in January of 2016 that Iran was in compliance with terms to scale back its nuclear programme, some international sanctions were lifted.

The sanctions drastically reduced crude oil exports from Iran. Since the sanctions have been lifted, oil exports from Iran to India have surged.

Iran was exempted from an OPEC deal to reduce output by 1.2 million barrels per day starting January 1, a victory for Tehran which argued it needs to regain the market share it lost during long years of sanctions. 
 

The cremation ceremony of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who died last year at the age of 88 after occupying the throne for 70 years, will take place on October 26, a royal spokesperson said on Wednesday.

The date has been proposed by a government committee and approved by King Vajiralongkorn — Bhumibol's son and successor, the spokesperson told EFE news.

The ceremony will last five days, according to a statement by Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam.

After the cremation, Thailand will start preparing for the coronation of Vajiralongkorn, who ascended the throne in December but wasn't formally crowned.

King Bhumibol passed away on October 13 last year after battling a long illness that kept him hospitalised for most of his life's last 10 years.

Bhumibol Adulyadej, revered in the country as a symbol of unity, ruled under the title of Rama IX, and was the only monarch most Thai people have known.
 

The 3rd semester result for Gauhati University Arts stream has been declared on Wednesday. Candidates can check the result of BA 3rd semester exam on Gauhati University’s official website – www.gauhati.ac.in. Here’s how candidates can check the results for Gauhati University’s BA 3rd semester:

1. Open Gauhati University’s official results website- www.gauhati.ac.in

2. Click on ‘GU Arts 3rd Sem Result’ tab

3. Enter semester name, roll number, roll code and click on submit.

4. Students can download and get a print-out of their results.

The result declared on the website is, however, not final, which students will get on their official marksheets.

The BA 3rd year exam was held in November and December 2016. The results for the 1stand 5th semester for Arts, Science and Commerce streams were declared in March.

Tracking mixed global markets, domestic benchmark indices closed Wednesday’s volatile trading session on a flat note with Midcaps and Smallcaps indices posting gains.

The BSE Sensex closed 17 points or 0.06 per cent up at 29,337 while the NSE Nifty ended two points or 0.02 per cent lower at 9,104.

Broader markets registered gains. BSE Midcap and BSE Smallcap indices jumped 0.7 per cent and 0.8 per cent respectively.

Among BSE sectoral indices, Power index registered the biggest gain with a jump of 2 per cent. Realty (up 1.5 per cent), Metal (up 0.6 per cent) and Capital Goods (up 0.4 per cent) were other notable gainers. Bankex and Healthcare indices dropped 0.5 per cent and 0.3 per cent respectively.

Top gainers in the Sensex-30 pack: Power Grid (up 4.4 per cent), Adani Ports (up 1.9 per cent), NTPC (up 1.9 per cent), Asian Paints (up 1.4 per cent) and Coal India (up 1.2 per cent).

Top losers in the Sensex-30 pack: SBI (down 2.1 per cent), Dr Reddy’s Labs (down 0.7 per cent), ICICI Bank (down 0.7 per cent), HUL (down 0.7 per cent) and ONGC (down 0.7 per cent).

The Rupee was trading three paise higher at 64.65 against the US Dollar.

Children born with lower or higher weight than normal may be at increased risk for developing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) by the time they become teenagers, says a study.

Advanced scarring of the liver was associated with low birth weight, while more inflammation was linked to high birth weight, according to the study published in the Journal of Pediatrics.

"With the obesity epidemic, we are seeing more babies with high birth weight than ever before," said study co-author Mark Fishbein from Stanley Manne Children's Research Institute at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago in the US. 

"Our study shows that these kids are more likely to have serious liver damage by the time they are teenagers," Fishbein said.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is the most common cause of chronic liver disease in children and typically is diagnosed in early adolescence. 

In its most severe form it can lead to liver failure and the need for liver transplantation.

"Being able to identify at birth infants at risk for severe liver disease will help initiate earlier interventions," said Fishbein, who also is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. 

"Maintaining a healthy weight is the main strategy for preventing NAFLD in children," Fishbein added.

The study included 538 children under 21 years of age. Birth weights were categorised as low (1,500-2,499 g), normal (2,500-3,999 g) or high (4,000 g and above) and compared with the birth weight distribution in the general U.S. population. 

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan has confessed that he doesnt know what to say when someone asks him to describe himself in one word or in one minute.

The actor said it has taken him over 50 years to "understand about 10 per cent" of himself, so how can he express it to people within a minute. 

"When in a 30-seccond or a one-minute byte, I am asked ‘Can you describe Shah Rukh Khan in one word as a person?' This is something I don't know at all. How do I describe anyone, let alone me, in one word and that also in a one-minute interview? It has taken me 52 years to understand about 10 per cent of who I am, let alone try to express it to people within a minute," Shah Rukh said in a statement. 

The actor, who enjoyed success at the box office with Raees and Dear Zindagi — which will air on Zee Cinema on Sunday — also shared two other questions that journalists tend to repeat while interviewing him. 

"First is ‘What is the practical joke you played on another artist on the set?' Well, my age for practical jokes is over and not many people come on the set to do practical jokes. We just have a good time and laugh. I am not saying it's a bad question, it's just that I don't have an answer to it," the Dilwale star said.

Shah Rukh said that he is often asked, "‘What's next?' Well, this is next, this is what I am doing right now". 

"What's next will come next and at that time I will come and talk to you about it. This kind of throws me out. Because I normally do one film at a time and this is the one most important thing right now, so I will talk about this. What's next, I will discuss in detail when it happens," he added. 

SRK is currently busy filming director Imtiaz Ali's tentatively titled The Ring opposite actress Anushka Sharma. 

The Australian government has not ruled out a shark cull in response to another surfer's death off the coast of Western Australia, the Environment Minister said on Wednesday.

Laeticia Brouwer, 17, died on Monday when a great white shark mauled her near Esperance city. She is Western Australia's 15th victim of a great white shark attack in the last 20 years, Xinhua news agency reported.

In response to the death, Environment Minister Josh Frydenberg said protecting human life had to come "first and foremost".

According to him, the government would "welcome" any plan that members of the public have to lower the risk of injury or death while in the surf.

"In light of the recent shark attack the (federal government) would welcome any proposal to protect human life first and foremost."

The minister said options include culling the sharks responsible for ending human life, introducing hooked drumline technology or any "other measures which Western Australia sees fit".

However, Western Australia government said it would not deploy drum lines following Brouwer's death.

"They don't actually make our beaches any safer," BBC quoted Western Australia Fisheries Minister Dave Kelly as saying.

Western Australia has previously employed drumline technology to cull sharks. In 2014, a controversial, 200-km drumline was introduced along a stretch of coastline often used by humans.

A drum line is a trap consisting of large baited hook attached to a floating object, which is anchored to the sea floor.

The plan came under fire from environmentalists and marine conservationists as they were deemed to be cruel.

Western Australia is one of the nation's biggest hot spots for fatal shark attacks.

Actor Prabhas, who plays the role of Baahubali on big screen, is not just a hero onscreen but also in real life.

Recently, Prabhas was seen hanging out with the crew members on the sets of Baahubali 2.

After a long tiring day of shooting for the final part of the Baahubali series, the actor is seen taking a break and having a light hearted conversation with the crew members in this exclusive picture from the sets.

Prabhas is not only loved and appreciated for his role of Baahubali but also because he is a down to earth actor unlike many other celebrities.

This on-screen Baahubali is also Baahubali off screen in true sense.

He is often seen cracking jokes and spending time with the crew including spot boys.

Prabhas will be soon seen as the great Baahubali in Baahubali: The Conclusion as the film will hit big screen on 27 April.

RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Wednesday said senior BJP leader LK Advani's last dream to become President of India is not possible any more after the Supreme Court order that he should face trial in the Babri Masjid demolition case.

"Advani is now out of race for the President's post. He was projected as a strong candidate for the top constitutional post, but it is not possible anymore," Lalu told the media here.

Lalu welcomed the apex court decision.

"After Advani was denied to become the Prime Minister of India, now he has also lost the chance to become the President of India," he added.

Lalu attacked the BJP, saying that Advani was made a "scapegoat" (bali ka bakra) in the 1992 Babri Masjid demolition case.

Lalu said the CBI is under the "control" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who "used it to sideline and oust Advani from the race for the President". Advani was hopeful of becoming at least the President after he was not able to become Prime Minister in 2014.

Lalu said Advani was ousted from the race for President as part of a "well-planned political strategy". "After all, Advani and his supporters in the BJP were sure that he will be made President, but he has lost the chance."

Lalu said it was he who ordered the arrest of Advani in 1992. "I arrested Advani, no one else," he added.

He said those accused of demolishing the Babri Masjid should get harsh punishment because it will send a message that it was an attack on the secular fabric of the country.

The RJD chief said he and his party RJD have been fighting for social and communal harmony.

Facebook does innovation to serve “everyone” in the community and not just the “high end”, its CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said in an apparent swipe at Snapchat boss' reported “poor countries” remark that triggered a controversy in India.

“I think one thing that people probably don't think about as much as we do is innovation to serve everyone in the community, not just the high end, right?,” Zuckerberg told Tech Crunch on the sidelines of the annual Facebook Developer Conference (F8) at the McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California yesterday.

When asked about the perception of Facebook being less innovative, Zuckerberg said, “I guess I'm not that worried about that. I mean, I feel like we do different kinds of work in different areas. I mean, I think certainly, no one who looks at the solar-powered planes that we're building or the satellites that were making, and thinks that that stuff isn't interesting.”

Zuckerbeg, 32, said we focus on a lot of things like Facebook Lite. It's up to 200 million people in like a year…I tend to worry more and think more about the substance of what our community actually wants, Tech Crunch reported.

Snapchat is strongly denying allegations by a former employee Anthony Pompliano, who alleged in a lawsuit that Spiegel had once shot down his suggestion to pursue growth in certain international markets.

Pompliano alleged that Spiegel said Snapchat is “only for rich people” and that he didnt want to “expand into poor countries like India and Spain.

Snapchat had refuted the reported claims of a former employee who alleged that its CEO Evan Spiegel made negative comments about the Indian market, saying the multimedia mobile app is for everyone and the company is “grateful” to its Indian users.

Spiegels remarks caused an uproar in India where users are quickly uninstalling the Snapchat app.

The Telangana government has advanced summer holidays for schools in view of a severe heat wave in the state.

With the maximum temperature rising to 44 degrees Celsius at some places, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao directed the education department to declare holidays from Wednesday in private and government schools.

Rao felt that it was better not to send children to schools as the weather conditions were severe, said a statement from his office.

The education department had earlier announced summer holidays from April 24 till June 11.

The meteorological department has issued a heat wave alert for the state for April 18-19. The maximum temperature in most parts was four to five degrees above normal.

Adilabad was the hottest place on Tuesday with the maximum temperature at 44.5 degrees Celsius. Mahabubnagar recorded 44 degrees.

In Hyderabad, mercury soared to 42.2 degree Celsius.

India's high economic growth rate last fiscal may not reflect the actual impact of demonetisation particularly on the informal sector, and it may take a few months to assess its real fallout, Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian has said.

He, however, said the impact of the sudden withdrawal of 86 per cent of currency is “pretty much over” as the newly- printed 500 and 2,000 rupee notes hit the banking system, replacing the old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes that were voided overnight on November 8, last year.

India is estimated to have clocked a surprising 7.1 per cent GDP growth in 2016-17 fiscal with a 7 per cent growth rate in the October-December quarter, notwithstanding demonetisation.

“There (has) been an impact of it (demonetisation) on the informal sector which would be difficult to assess. But, I think it is pretty much over. It was related to cash in the economy. The cash is back, so hopefully those short-term costs are pretty much behind us,” Subramanian said at the Centre for Global Development, a top American think tank.

Subramanian, who is here to attend the annual Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, said the actual impact of demonetisation is not reflected in the GDP numbers.

“That being said, I do think that the headline number might not give the actual impact of demonetisation. I think we will get to know over the course of the next few months what the actual impact is going to be,” he said.

The informal sector, which does the bulk of its transactions in cash, had borne the biggest brunt of demonetisation.

“A lot of impact of demonetisation is really a case of too early to tell and (we) will find out over the course of (the) next few months, except for the impact on the informal sector, which I do not think we are really going to get a handle on at all,” he said.

Subramanian said that the popular response to this policy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has “humbled him” in his understanding of Indian politics and to some extent economics as well.

“…What you have seen on demonetisation in terms of the popular response…it certainly humbled me in my understanding of Indian politics and to some extent Indian economics,” he said.

Responding to a series of questions on demonetisation, the chief economic adviser said that it was over and it signalled a regime change.

Demonetisation on the part of the government does signal a “regime shift” which says “if you are not going to be compliant on your tax payments, the government is going to make extra efforts to do so”, he said.

So, it is kind of signalling a regime change, he added.

Acknowledging that a lot of demonetisation was part economics, part politics, Subramanian said it does raise some really interesting questions about the popular response to demonetisation.

He conceded that this was a step towards digitisation and broadening of the tax base.

“It is really about creating an infrastructure, using technology to better deliver government services in the long run,” he said.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday urged people in Delhi "not to waste their vote on the Congress" and said he had information that Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken may join the BJP after the civic polls.

While releasing the Aam Aadmi Party's manifesto for the April 23 municipal polls, Kejriwal said the Congress was "finished" in the national capital. 

"Big Congress leaders are joining the BJP. I came to know that Ajay Maken talked to Amit Shah and he may also join the BJP after the municipal polls," the AAP leader said.

Former Delhi Congress President Arvinder Singh Lovely joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday.

Kejriwal also urged people not to vote for the BJP saying it "failed to clean Delhi in the last 10 years" when it controlled the civic bodies. "What will they do different now?"

AP EAMCET 2017 admit card/hall ticket will be released soon on the official website sche.ap.gov.in or http://sche.ap.gov.in/APSCHEHome.aspx. 

Candidates trying to download a copy of AP EAMCET admit card 2017 have to visit the official website and fill the blank space with the required information including roll number, registration number and other important details.

Along with this AP EAMCET candidates may also log on to http://sche.ap.gov.in/EAMCET/Eamcet/EAMCET_HomePage.aspx to directly reach the admit card webpage.

Earlier, it was informed that the APEAMCET 2017 hall ticket/admit card will be released on April 19 at 3:00 PM.

Andhra Pradesh Engineering, Agriculture and Medical Common Entrance Test (AP EAMCET) is conducted under the guidance of Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU).

As per the updates, APEAMCET 2017 examination will take place from April 24 to April 27. It has also been informed that about 2 lakh candidates will enter the examination hall this year.

Due to the huge number of visitors on the website candidates trying to download APEAMCET 2017 admit card may face technical issues in surfing the web. So the candidates are suggested to refresh the url in a short interval of time to enter the website.

AP EAMCET candidates facing any issue may get in touch with the officials at 0884-2340535, 2356255 or via Mail at onlineapeamcet2017@gmail.com.

Amid talks of a grand alliance to counter the BJP, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday urged regional parties to unite.

"All regional parties should come together and move ahead with greater strength maintaining good relations with each other. Our effort will be to unite them," Banerjee told reporters in Puri.

The chief minister is on a three-day visit to Odisha. She is likely to discuss the matter with her Odisha counterpart Naveen Patnaik on Thursday.

"I have sought time for meeting with Naveen Patnaik. If permitted, I will meet him before leaving Odisha," she said.

Janata Dal-United leader and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his colleague Sharad Yadav, who attended the funeral of former Lok Sabha Speaker Rabi Ray, had met Patnaik.

Banerjee criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party for creating differences between different regions.

"BJP believes in divide-and-rule policy on the basis of caste, religion and language. We don't follow that. For us, all religions are equal. Being a true Hindu and a believer of secularism, I won't allow the BJP to spread hatred and divide people," she said.

Banerjee rejected all charges against her party leaders and MPs in a chit fund case, saying it was a conspiracy by the BJP to malign the Trinamool Congress.

"Since we are opposed to BJP ideologically, they are deliberately doing this. They should fight us politically," she said.

On Tuesday, the Trinamool leader met party MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay, arrested by the CBI for alleged links with the Rose Valley chit fund scam, at the Apollo hospital here.

In the wake of his Twitter controversy over ‘azaan’ (Muslim call for prayer), Bollywood playback singer Sonu Nigam on Wednesday shaved his head on Wednesday, following a Kolkata-based cleric's call to shave Nigam's head.

West Bengal United Minority Council vice president Syed Sha Atef Ali Al Quaderi had announced a reward of Rs.10 lakh to shave Sonu Nigam's head and garland him with old shoes.

“If anyone can shave his hair, put a garland of old torn shoes around his neck and tour him around the country, I shall personally reward that person with Rs.10 lakh,” Syed Sha Atef Ali Al Quaderi had said.

However, things took a different turn when Sonu took to Twitter to say that he will get his own head shaved.

“Today at 2 pm Aalim will come to my place, and shave my head. Keep your 10 lakhs ready Maulavi … And Press is welcome to participate at 2pm,” he said.

Before tonsuring his head, Sonu held a press conference, where he expressed that his views were on a social topic and did not have a religious angle to it.

"I spoke only against use of loudspeakers, did not target any particular religion," he said, adding, "Everyone has a right to their opinion".

On Monday, Nigam landed in a controversy when he lashed out at 'forced religiousness' in India after being woken up by the ‘azaan’ from a mosque near his home. Following the tweet, he has been trolled by many Muslim community members with some even planning to move court against him.