UK-based scientists are set to travel to the Himalayas in a bid to become the first team to successfully drill through the world's highest glacier, the media reported on Tuesday.

The group from Aberystwyth University, Wales, will use a drill adapted from a car wash to cut into the Khumbu glacier in the foothills of the Everest, the BBC reported.

They will work at an altitude of 5,000 metres, in the hope of finding out how climate change affects Khumbu.

Project leader Professor Bryn Hubbard said there will be "particular challenges".

The 17-km long glacier, in north eastern Nepal, flows from as high as 7,600 metres down to 4,900 metres and is often used by climbers on their way to the Everest base-camp.

"Working in the field is challenging at best, but this mission presents some particular challenges," the BBC quoted Hubbard as saying.

"We don't know how well our equipment will perform at altitude, let alone how we will be able to contend with the thin air."

Half of the team's 1,500 kg equipment will be airlifted on to the glacier by helicopter in several trips while the other half will be carried by Sherpas.

The domestic passenger vehicles sales rose by 9.96 per cent in March, industry data showed on Tuesday.

According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), sales of passenger vehicles, including the off-take in cars, utility vehicles and vans, surged to 282,519 units from 256,920 sold in March 2016.

On the sub-segment basis, sales of passenger cars rose by 8.17 per cent in the month under review to 190,065 units from 175,709 units in March 2016.

The utility vehicles' off-take zoomed in the month under review by 20.91 per cent to 77,689 units. However, van sales plunged by 12.94 per cent to 14,765 units.

BJP MP Subramanian Swamy on Tuesday demanded that senior Congress leader P Chidambaram should be relieved as Chairman of Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs as he was being “investigated” by the CBI.

Swamy raised the issue through a point of order after Deputy Chairman P J Kurien called Chidambaram to lay on the table, a copy of the panel's report on border security.

As Chidambaram was not present, another committee member, Majeed Memon, did the job.

Swamy, however, said if Chairman of a parliamentary committee is being investigated by CBI, he should not take up the post.

As Congress members protested, the BJP member said the former finance minister was being investigated by CBI for the clearance he gave to Malaysian firm Maxis to buy 100 per cent of Aircel.

Google on Tuesday honoured Jamini Roy, one of the earliest and most significant modernists of Indian art, with a doodle inspired by his famous "Black Horse" painting.

"On what would be Jamini Roy's 130th birthday, we celebrate his significant contribution to the global art world with this Doodle homage, featuring one of his popular subjects," Google said in a statement.

Roy is famous for creating bold artworks reimagining traditional South Asian folk art. 

Born in 1887, Roy spent his early artistic career studying at the Government School of Art in Kolkata, and by mid-century was exhibiting his distinctive paintings in London and New York.

Trained in the British academic style of painting, Roy became well-known as a skilful portraitist, but he later consciously rejected the style and sought inspiration from East Asian calligraphy, folk arts and crafts traditions, according to India's National Gallery of Modern Art.

By the end of 1920s, Roy turned for inspiration towards the folk arts and craft traditions of his home district, Bankura in West Bengal. 

He painted ordinary rural people, scenes from epics, icons from folk cults of the region, and made witty representations of animals. 

"During his lifetime he was honored with Padma Bhushan award, and his works are considered national treasures of India," Google said.

Roy breathed his last at the age of 85 in 1972. 

Choreographer Terence Lewis has always stood out with his funky styling and edgy looks, but for his appearance as a judge on Nach Baliye 8, he has decided to be natural — without any make-up.

Commenting on this, Terence said in a statement: "Nach Baliye has chronicled my growth and seen my transformation over the years. I've done it all! Hence, this time I've decided to do nothing special at all. I've decided to own my greys, my lines and wrinkles and will wear no fancy designer wear but just simple no fuss casual clothes.

"The audiences have always loved me for who I am and I've just come of age where it feels unnecessary to keep up with the norms and want to try to break the stereotype."

The show is judged by Terence along with actress Sonakshi Sinha and director Mohit Suri.

Terence has in the past tried an array of looks — the rockstar-punk look to the machismo, handle-bar moustache or the even a six-pack abs one.

He said: "Being in the entertainment industry, as an artist, we do enjoy certain liberty of being hatke (different), experimental and out of the box. However, after being out of the box for so many years and breaking every rule in the book, exploring and trying every option there is, there comes a point when the only option left to be 'out of the box' is to stay 'in the box'.

"And in it, lies the great paradox. It's important to sometimes explore being naked in the metaphoric sense, where you are not afraid to show your vulnerability and yet dignify yourself with acceptance and grace.

The secretary-level dialogue between Pakistan and India on Indus Water Treaty will be held either by the end of April or beginning of May in Washington, the Pakistani media reported on Tuesday.

Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Asif on March 20 said the talks will be held for developing a consensus in the light of the treaty on the mechanism for resolution of "faulty designs" of 300MW Kishenganga and 850MW Ratle hydropower projects, The News International quoted a senior official as saying.

Asif had said the secretary-level talks would take place in Washington from April 11-13 as proposed by the World Bank.

He said Pakistan was prepared for the talks but India was not ready for the proposed dates.

"And we are hopeful that belated talks will take place by the end of current month (April)," the official said.

The official said the World Bank wanted both countries to develop a consensus either on mechanism of neutral expert or of court of arbitration mentioned in the treaty for the resolution of issues.

A World Bank official would also be part of the meeting and try to persuade both the countries to reach consensus on any mechanisms or find the middle way.

Pakistan wants the World Bank to constitute a court of arbitration to resolve the disputes, but India wants the solution through the mechanism of neutral experts.

The Income Tax department on Tuesday said it has issued Permanent Account Number (PAN) within a day to 19,704 newly incorporated companies till March 31, 2017.

In addition to physical PAN card, CBDT has introduced the Electronic PAN (e-PAN) card, which is sent by email to all applicants, including individuals.

“Applicant would be benefited by having a digitally signed E-PAN card which they can submit as proof of identity to other agency electronically directly or by storing in the Digital Locker,” CBDT, the apex policy making body of the Income Tax department, said in a statement.

It said that newly incorporated companies have also been issued Tax Deduction Account Number (TAN) simultaneously with PAN as the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has tied up with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) under which companies can submit a common application form.

Applicant companies submit a common application form SPICe (INC 32) on MCA portal and once the data of incorporation is sent to CBDT by the MCA, PAN and TAN are issued immediately without any further intervention of the applicant.

“The Certificate of Incorporation (COI) of newly incorporated companies includes the PAN in addition to the Corporate Identity Number (CIN). TAN is also allotted simultaneously and communicated to the company,” the statement added.

Till March 31, 2017, 19,704 newly incorporated companies were allotted PAN in this manner. During March 2017, of the 10,894 newly incorporated companies, PAN was allotted within 4 hours in 95.63 per cent cases and within one day in all cases.

Similarly, TAN was allotted to all such companies within 4 hrs in 94.7 per cent cases and within 1 day in 99.73 per cent cases.

“CBDT's initiative in starting of a business is expected to significantly improve the ranking of India in the Ease of Doing Business Study conducted by World Bank by reducing the number of processes of registration before various authorities under law, reducing the time taken for allotment of the registration number (CIN, PAN, TAN) and making the entire registration process for new companies much simpler,” it said.

Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama on Tuesday wrapped up his week-long tour of Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing had strongly objected to.

The Dalai Lama left by helicopter for Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Guwahati, Assam, on Tuesday morning from Tawang helipad. Thousands of people lined up along the road to see him off.

Chief Minister Pema Khandu and other dignitaries also saw him off at the helipad, a government official told IANS.

"The Chief Minister thanked the Dalai Lama for his visit and requested him to visit Arunachal Pradesh again in the near future," the official said.

On Monday, the Nobel Peace laureate, who Beijing has called an "anti-China separatist", described his visit to Arunachal Pradesh as a "memorable one" that he would cherish forever.

He also thanked the people, particularly from far off villages, who gathered in large numbers to welcome and listen to him at all the places that he visited.

In fact, this is not for the first time that the 81-year-old Tibetan leader is visiting Arunachal or Tawang. In 1959, he escaped from China via Tawang and visited the state in 1983, 1997, 2003 and 2009.

The Dalai Lama was to start his week-long religious visit to Arunachal Pradesh from Tawang on April 4. But bad weather forced him to travel by road as his helicopter couldn't take off from Dibrugarh airport in Assam.

The Tibetan spiritual leader reached Tawang – the high point of his visit to this mountainous state — on April 7 after traversing over 550 km from Assam's Dibrugarh and crossed the 13,700 feet Sela Pass.

The Dalai Lama stayed at the Tawang monastery belonging to the Gelugpa school of Mahayana Buddhism, which had a religious connection with Lhasa's Drepung monastery that continued during the British rule.

Beijing refers to this connection to claim Tawang as part of China after invading and taking over Tibet in 1950.

The Dalai Lama had stayed in the Tawang monastery for some days before he reached Assam after fleeing his homeland in 1959.

During his religious tour to Arunachal Pradesh, the spiritual leader consecrated the Thupsung Dhargyeling monastery at Dirang on April 6. On Sunday, he also consecrated the Tara Temple 'Dolma Lhagang', Guru Padhmasambhava Statue cum Temple (Lumpo), and laid the foundation stone of Gyalwa Jamba (Kuber) statue to be built at Buri near the India-Bhutan border.

He gave the name Jamtseling for the Jamba (Kuber) statue besides donating Rs.50,000 from his side for its construction.
 

Amy Schumer has hit back at body shamers by sharing a series of her pictures dressed in bikini.

The 35-year-old actress-comedienne posted eight pictures on her Instagram Story, where she can be seen paddle boarding, walking on the beach and enjoying a boat ride with her friends.

The Trainwreck star ended her post with the message, “I feel great…”

Schumer's posts come in barely days after swimwear designer Dana Duggan criticised the actress for her appearance on the May 2017 cover of InStyle magazine, which features her floating in the pool wearing a white one-piece swimsuit.

Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer and Briton Andy Murray trained on a raft floating on the Limmat river here to promote the "Match for Africa 3" and to raise money for African children.

The game on Monday was organised by the Roger Federer Foundation, which manages several projects in Africa, reports Efe.

The match will take place later in the day between the world's No. 1 Murray and the world's No. 4 Federer at the Hallenstadion facility here.

During the raft training, Federer and Murray, who dressed in casual gear, had to hit the ball gently to prevent it from falling into the water.

The training attracted hundreds of viewers and was recorded by a drone.

Founded in 2003, the Roger Federer Foundation supports educational projects located in the region of southern Africa and Switzerland.

The programmes on the African continent focus on the improvement of the quality of early learning and basic education.

Actress Khushbu Sundar, who has commenced shooting for Pawan Kalyan's yet-untitled Telugu project, says it feels like first day at school with lot of unlearning and learning.

"Good morning from Hyderabad. I start shooting for Pawan Kalyan and Trivikram film from today. Feels like first day at school. Lot of unlearning and learning to do," Khushbhu tweeted on Tuesday.

Last seen on screen in the 2006 Telugu actioner Stalin, she returns to the industry after a decade with this project.

While Khushbu featured in a cameo in 2007 Telugu film Yamadonga, she had said she considers Stalin as her last film.

"Yamadonga with Rajamouli was just a special appearance. Just three days of shoot. I'm sure it cannot be counted as a full-length role," she had tweeted last year.

Celebrations unfolded on Tuesday at Hanuman temples across the country as devotees thronged these shrines to offer special prayers and to worship with chant of mantras on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti.

Hanuman Jayanti is celebrated every year on the full moon day (purnima) of the Chaitra month. Devotees celebrate this occasion by smearing vermillion on their foreheads and observe a day long fast to commemorate the day.

On the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti, here is a list of famous Hanuman temples across the country where devotees can visit and offer prayers.

Jakhu Temple, Shimla: Dedicated to Lord Hanuman, the Jakhoo temple is an ancient temple believed to be holding the footprints of Lord Hanuman. A special aerial ropeway has been arranged for devotees on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti, linking Shimla's Ridge with the Hanuman temple in 8,000 feet high Jakhu hills. Constructed by Jagson International Ltd, the ropeway would facilitate the visitors to reach the famous Hanuman temple in five minutes.

Hanuman Garhi, Ayodhya: Dedicated to Lord Hanuman, the 10th century Hanuman Garhi temple in Ayodhya, is located on a hilltop and has 76 staircase pathway to lead devotees to the entrance of the temple. A 6-inch tall deity of Lord Hanuman and panoramic view of the surrounding hills attract devotees from many parts of the country to this picturesque location.

Balaji Hanuman Temple, Rajasthan: Dedicated to Lord Hanuman, this temple is located at a nearby a small hill. It is just 66km away from Jaipur. Ritualistic healing and exorcism of evil spirits attract pilgrims from different parts of the state and country.

Hanuman Dhara, Chitrakut: Dedicated to Lord Hanuman, Hanuman Dhara is one of the great shrines in the hills of Chitrakoot, about 5 km from Ram Ghat. They say Hanuman came to this place with his tail on fire, after destroying Lanka. To cool his extreme anger he stood under a stream of water flowing out of the rock, which was later named as Hanuman Dhara. cDevotees have to climb 360 steps to seek blessings of the deity Hanuman. Tourists can also find an old step-well on their way to Hanuman Dhara, which never gets dried up.

Mahavir Hanuman Temple, Bihar: One of the oldest and leading temples in the country, Mahavir Mandir in Patna attracts devotees from across the country. Two huge deities of Hanuman are the main attractions of the temple. The temple is situation just near to the railway station in Patna.

Actor-comedian Vir Das has returned to India from the first leg of his world tour which saw him perform in eight cities across the US. It was an experience "like no other", he said.

The world tour, which will be spread throughout this year, will have Vir visit over 21 countries. 

Vir did 46 shows in eight US cities like Chicago and Los Angeles in February and March. 

The show in all sold over 20,000 tickets in its first leg and will soon begin its European leg in June. 

Vir said in a statement: "It was an experience like no other. I have toured the US earlier, but this time it was even better as it was the first destination of my world tour."

"The response was something I hadn't expected and thus, it was even more satisfying. Now looking forward to the Europe leg of the tour in June."

BJP leader Tarun Vijay's alleged racial remarks on Tuesday echoed in the Rajya Sabha with opposition Congress slamming it as being part of the "divisive" agenda of the ruling party.

Pramod Tiwari (Cong) raised the issue in the Zero Hour through a point of order saying the comments of Vijay reflected "BJP's double speak".

"BJP is trying to divide the country on the basis of racial colour," he said.

Vijay had made the controversial remarks in a recent television interview.

As Deputy Chairman P J Kurien disallowed it saying Tiwari was raising a statement of an individual, the Congress and other opposition members strongly protested.

Opposition in the Lok Sabha had yesterday slammed Vijay and demanded lodging of an FIR against him.

Real Sociedad regained sixth-place in La Liga with a 3-1 victory over relegation-bound Sporting here.

The hosts on Monday came out determined to erase the bad impression left by recent poor performances at the Anoeta that damaged Sociedad's prospects of playing in the Europa League next season, reports Efe.

Sociedad needed only nine minutes to draw first blood as William Jose exploited the latest in a long line of poor clearances by the Sporting defense to put the home side up 1-0.

Seconds later, Juanmi thought he had made it 2-0 for Sociedad, but the goal was disallowed for an offside.

The 2-0 came in the 26th minute when Juanmi converted with a major assist from Xabi Prieto.

Sociedad kept up the pressure in the second half, pinning the visitors in their own end for long stretches.

Yuri delivered a great goal in the 77th minute to seal the win for Sociedad, though Elderson managed to salvage some honour for Sporting with a tally in the 86th.

With 52 points from 31 matches, Sociedad are two points behind fifth-placed Villarreal and the same number ahead of Eibar in seventh.

Sporting, with 22 points, remain five points from safety. 

Singer Mel B returned to social media after being silent for a month in the wake of her messy split from estranged husband Stephen Belafonte.

Though Mel B didn't write anything about her split, the 41-year-old took to Twitter on Monday to share an article by Billboard magazine regarding a record-breaking win for Adele with her 21 album, reports dailymail.co.uk.

"Adele's 21 has broken the record for longest-charting album by a woman on the Billboard 200," Mel B tweeted.

It emerged earlier this month that Mel B is splitting from Belafonte, for whom she was issued a restraining order last week, as she had made allegations of abuse against the producer. 

Besides her, Belafonte also broke his silence on his divorce battle, insisting that he will fight for custody of his children. 

The former couple were together for 10 years.

India on Tuesday warned Pakistan that bilateral ties will be hit if it went ahead with the death sentence awarded to alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav.

"The government and people of India would view very seriously the possibility that an innocent Indian citizen is facing death sentence in Pakistan without due process and in violation of basic norms of law, justice and international relations," External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj told the Rajya Sabha.

The minister added that the Indian government "will go out of the way to save him (Jadhav)".

"I would caution the Pakistan government to consider the consequences for our bilateral relationship if they proceed on this matter."

She reiterated India's stand that Jadhav, arrested in March 2016 from the restive Balochistan province and accused of espionage and waging war against Pakistan, has been framed under false charges.

She said Pakistan was doing all that to divert global attention from its activities of sponsoring terrorism in India.

"There is no evidence of any wrongdoing by Kulbhushan Jadhav. He is the victim of a plan that seeks to cast aspersions on India to deflect international attention from Pakistan's well known record of sponsoring and supporting terrorism.

"We have no choice but to regard this sentence if carried out as an act of premeditated murder," the minister said.

Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad, appealed to the government to appoint a strong lawyer who can fight Jadhav's case in the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

"This is a matter of the entire nation. I appeal to the government to appoint a competent lawyer to fight his case in Pakistan's Supreme Court. So that his case is won in the apex court," said Azad.

The minister assured the House that the government would appeal to the Supreme Court of Pakistan and would petition the President of the country to save "the son of the nation".

"Not just the Supreme Court… We will do everything possible to save him. Appealing in the Supreme Court or appointing a lawyer for him is a very small thing. We will even approach the President of Pakistan to save him," said Sushma Swaraj. 

The matter was raised in the house with opposition and the treasury benches jointly expressing solidarity with Jadhav, who was awarded the capital punishment by a Pakistani Field General Court Martial. 

Army chief General Qamar Javed has confirmed the sentencing.

The issue was raised by Samajwadi Party MP Naresh Agrawal, who said Pakistan has challenged India by sentencing Jadhav to death. He said New Delhi's "Pakistan policy is weak".

"It's a challenge to the country," he said.

Agrawal was supported by former Defence Minister A.K. Antony, who termed the issue "very serious" and said India "must convey it to Pakistan in strongest terms".