Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said India had always stood for the prosperity of Bangladesh and committed $500 million credit for the country's defence.

"India has always stood for the prosperity of Bangladesh and its people. We are a long-standing and trusted development partner for Bangladesh. India and Bangladesh are also determined that the fruits of our cooperation must reach our people," Modi said in a joint address to the media with visiting Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Modi said India wanted to build cooperation in new areas with Bangladesh "especially in some high-technology sectors which would include working in the fields of electronics, IT, cyber security, space explorations and civil nuclear energy".

He announced a new concession line of credit of $4.5 billion for the implementation of core projects of Bangladesh that "brings our resources allocation for Bangladesh to more than $8 billion over more than past six years".

He also announced that Bangladesh would be given "a line of credit $500 million for Bangladesh's defence procurement, which will be guided by Bangladesh needs".

Hasina is on a four-day trip to India during which the two countries are expected to sign more than 20 agreements to boost bilateral ties.

Strengthening ties between the countries, Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday launched new rail and Bus services between India and Bangladesh.

"Building the ties that bind, one step at a time,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Gopal Baglay said, adding, “The two leaders in inaugurate two rail and a road connectivity project via video conferencing".

The train, Maitree Express, will run between Kolkata and Khulna in Bangladesh. The bus services will run between Kolkata and Dhaka via Khulna.

The two leaders also restored a once defunct rail link between Radhikapur in north Bengal and Biral in Bangladesh and flagged off a cargo consignment of high speed diesel from Numaligarh Refinery in Assam.

Earlier, following the bilateral talks, both the countries signed 22 agreements to strengthen trade in multiple sectors.

(With inputs from agencies)

Political cases slapped on BJP leaders by the former Congress dispensation in Uttarakhand will be withdrawn by the new Trivendra Singh Rawat-led government, an official said on Saturday.

A decision to this effect was taken by the Chief Minister who is leading the Bharatiya Janata Party government in the state, the official said.

Of the many leaders of the ruling party who were likely to be benefited by this waiver, include Cabinet Minister Arvind Pandey, legislators Pooran Singh Fartyal and Ganesh Joshi among others.

Cabinet Minister and Gadarpur legislator Arvind Pandey has many cases against him, including one in which he was accused of bashing up a revenue official. He was jailed for many days following this. 

Rudrapur MLA Rajkumar Thukral was booked in 2011 for inciting mob violence. The BJP legislators had created a furore in the state assembly on the matter then.

Lohaghat legislator Pooran Singh Fartyal has various cases against him, including one for vandalising the office of a District Magistrate in 2014 and blocking a national highway. He was also subsequently jailed. 

Two cases against Fartyal was already withdrawn under the Harish Rawat-led Congress government. Now the third one was also likely to go off with the BJP coming to power. 

The most prominent of the cases was against Mussoorie legislator Ganesh Joshi who while leading a demonstration in 2016 allegedly injured police horse Shaktimaan, who died later.

The issue had caught the attention of animal rights activists, besides the national and international media.

Joshi then had claimed innocence and had said that he had not hit the horse at all. 

Senior BJP leaders, however, said there was nothing wrong or new in this decision as in the past too, previous Congress governments have withdrawn cases against its party leaders and workers.

Home Department officials said that while there has been a verbal announcement by the Chief Minister, the procedure of withdrawing such cases needed to go through a formal procedure. This could take three to six months time.
 

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton clinched his sixth straight pole on Saturday, ensuring he will start at the front of the grid as the Chinese Grand Prix, breaking a track record in the process. Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel was a close second to deny Mercedes an one-two, pipping Valterri Bottas by just 0.001s to replicate Australia’s front-grid.

Q1 is generally supposed to be sedate compared to the later sessions, but there was plenty of drama on the Shanghai circuit. With Antonio Giovonazzi spinning out and severely damaging his car after a spin out, crashing into the wall which then in turn curtailed a few drivers chances of progressing into the session as yellow flags were waived. Red Bull driver Max Verstapen was the big name who failed to progress, struggling with an engine problem in his car and unable to set a decent time.

Q2 saw Kimi Raikkonen break Michael Schumacher’s lap record that was set in 2004, sizzling in a 1.1:32.181 time, but it was Ferrari’s decision to send both their drivers out in the closing stages for a final lap that puzzled many. At that time they were safely in the top four and in no danger of missing out on the final session, but still chose to send both their drivers out for a final lap which set hopes high that Ferrari would manage a first one-two in qualifying since 2008.

It wasn't to be, as Lewis Hamilton unleashed a scorching lap time of 1:31.902, which even put Raikkonen’s earlier time to shade. Bottas was impressive himself, but Vettel managed to pip him to a place on the front row with a stunning final lap. Vettel’s teammate, Raikkonen will be disappointed as he could not replicate his Q1 heroics in the final session and was heard on the team radio complaining of an issue with his car.

Daniel Ricciardo, desperate to make up for lost time after his retirement in Australia, was decent and beat Felipe Massa and the impressive Nico Hulkenberg to 5th place. 

Force India had mixed fortunes with Sergio Perez ending up 8th but his teamamte, Esteban Ocon, will start last on the grid after failing to progress from Q1.

Behind Perez was Toro Rosso driver Daniil Kvyat and signs were encouraging for McLaren driver Fernando Alonso, the double-world champion nabbing a credible 13th place on the grid, an impressive feat considering the multitude of problems his Honda-powered car has.

So while the advantage is very much with Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton, they will have to be wary on Sunday, as Ferrari have a car which is arguably better on race day.

The top 10 drivers as they will line out on the grid for Sunday’s race:
1. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes
2. Sebastian Vettel Ferrari
3. Valterri Bottas Mercedes
4. Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari
5. Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull
6. Felipe Massa Williams
7. Nico Hulkenberg Renault
8. Sergio Perez Force India
9. Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso
10. Lance Stroll Williiams

While an accord on the sharing of Teesta waters continued to elude them, India and Bangladesh on Saturday signed 22 agreements, including five in defence and three in civil nuclear energy sectors, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a concessional Line of Credit (LoC) of $4.5 billion for development projects and another LoC of $500 million for defence-related procurement for Bangladesh.

Modi reassured Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina that his government was working with all stakeholders in India for an early conclusion of the Teesta water sharing agreement after she requested him for an early conclusion of the accord as was agreed upon between the countries in January 2011, a joint statement issued by the two sides said.

The two PMs directed their officials to meanwhile conclude discussions on various aspects relating to sharing of waters of the Feni, Manu, Muhuri, Khowai, Gumti, Dharla and Dudhkumar rivers.

In an indirect endorsement of India’s stand against Pakistan on the issue of terrorism, the joint statement said the two PMs strongly condemned the recent barbaric attacks in India and Bangladesh and expressed their conviction that the fight against terrorism should not only seek to disrupt and eliminate terrorists and terror organisations but also take strong measures against States which support and finance terrorism, provide sanctuary to terrorists and falsely extol their virtues. They shared the view that there should be no glorification of terrorists as martyrs.

On the trade and investment front, the two leaders noted that during the course of Sheikh Hasina’s visit, the private sectors of the two nations would sign agreements that would result in investment of more than $9 billion in Bangladesh.

The tone for making Sheikh Hasina’s four-day visit successful was set by Modi in the afternoon during the talks between the leaders. "While our partnership brings prosperity to our people, it also works to protect them from forces of radicalisation and extremism. Their spread poses a grave threat, not just to India and Bangladesh but to the entire region," Modi said at a joint media interaction with Sheikh Hasina after talks between the leaders.

What was quite perceptible during the brief media event at the majestic Hyderabad House was the personal chemistry between the two leaders. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who too was present on the occasion, appeared quite relaxed as she joined the two PMs in formally launching rail and bus services between the two countries. However, there was no word on whether the Teesta issue figured during her interaction with Hasina over the lunch hosted by Modi.

But the Indian PM Modi did not disappoint the Bangladeshi delegation on the contentious issue, saying he firmly believed that "it is only my government and Excellency Sheikh Hasina, your government, that can and will find an early solution to the Teesta water sharing.’’

The $4.5 billion LoC announced by Mr Modi for projects in priority sectors in Bangladesh bring India’s resource allocation to the neighbouring country to $8 billion over the past six years. The $500 million LoC to support defence-related purchases by Bangladesh is clearly aimed at reducing Dhaka’s dependence on China for meeting its defence requirements. However, Modi emphasised that India would be guided by Bangladesh’s needs and priorities in implementing this LoC.

In her brief remarks to the media, Hasina described India as the most important neighbour of Bangladesh, adding her government’s firm resolve to further strengthen ties with New Delhi. 

Speaking about defence accords, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar said, "We had a fairly extensive cooperation in the water and on the ground between our forces but there was some lacunae which has been corrected now.''

The other agreements relate to cooperation in areas like civil nuclear energy, cyber security, judicial services, passenger and cruise services, mass media, motor vehicle passenger traffic and trade.

Jaishankar said the two countries were expected to ink 12 business agreements to the tune of billions of dollars during Hasina's visit, taking the number of accords to 34.

US President Donald Trump and his visiting Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping agreed to work with the international community to achieve a peaceful solution to the North Korea nuclear threat, according to a White House statement.

Following a second day of bilateral talks, press secretary Sean Spicer on Friday said both China and the US agreed to increase cooperation between the two superpowers to "convince North Korea to peacefully resolve the issue and dismantle its illegal nuclear and missile programmes" and to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons in the Korean peninsula, Politico news reported.

President Xi arrived at Trump's Mar-a-Lago Florida resort on Thursday.

According to Spicer, Xi and Trump "reaffirmed their commitment to a denuclearized Korean peninsula, and committed to fully implement UN Security Council resolutions."

During an interview with the Financial Times on Sunday, Trump warned that if China was unwilling to collaborate on North Korea, the US would be willing to go it alone.

"China will either decide to help us with North Korea or they won't," he said, adding "If they do, that will be very good for China, and if they don't, it won't be good for anyone."

The White House said Trump also stressed to Xi the importance of creating "reciprocal market access" that did not disadvantage American workers. Trump repeatedly bashed China on the campaign trail and upon taking office, blaming it for the loss of American jobs, reports Politico news.

At Mar-a-Lago on Friday, Trump urged China to take steps to "level the playing field for American workers," according to the White House statement.

"President Trump noted the challenges caused by Chinese government intervention in its economy and raised serious concerns about the impact of China's industrial, agricultural, technology, and cyber policies on US jobs and exports," it said.

Xi and Trump also discussed China's increased militarization in the South China Sea, with President Trump urging the Chinese to adhere to international norms. 

Trump also "noted the importance of protecting human rights and other values deeply held by Americans," the statement added.

The S&P BSE benchmark sensex failed to maintain 30,000 level and Nifty also tumbled from all-time high level due to fag-end selling pressure after the news of US striking Syria.

In this week, major indices trimmed their gains due to weak global cues. The Sensex and the Nifty gave up majority of the weeks gains after the news of U.S. striking Syria came out on Friday. Heavy distribution was observed in the final trading session of the week which shrunk the gains accumulated from the first two sessions.

Mr. Anupam Singhi, COO of William O'Neil India said, Despite the US strike news the Nifty and the Sensex ended the week with increments of 0.27 pct to 9,198.30 and 0.29 pct to 29,706.61 respectively. The sensex crossed 30K level during the week on April 5 after two years.

Market momentum during this week was underpinned by solid performance by the realty and energy shares. Top three sectoral indices in the week were Nifty Realty, Energy and Auto gaining 4.49 pct, 3.49 pct and 1.15 pct, respectively. On the negative end,   Nifty IT, FMCG, PSU Bank and Pharma indices recorded losses over one pct, restricting the overall market movement.

On the economic front, Manufacturing PMI for the month of March increased to 52.5 from 50.7 in February. On the other hand Services PMI for March came at 51.5 following its level of 50.3 in February. These economic metrics have shown continuous improvement in the last three months after Novembers demonetization move. (

Looking back at the market action in this week, the Indian market started the week and FY 2018 with a bang, as both the major indices reached their all-time closing highs.

After a trading off on Tuesday, markets witnessed cautious trading keeping the bi-monthly RBI policy review in view. However, the key indices extended gains on Wednesday in a range bound session.

On Thursday, frontline indices came under pressure right from the start of the session. The Monetary Policy Committee decided to leave the repo rate unchanged at 6.25 pct and hiked reverse repo rate by 25 basis points to 6 pct. However, after the Committees announcement, indices trimmed intraday losses to end marginally lower.

Equities experienced a steep fall on the last day of the week, tracking weakness from negative global cues. Global markets put up a depressed picture after the U.S. fired cruise missiles into Syria.

Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth Rs.1,243.52 crore during the week, as per Sebi's record including the provisional figure of April 7.

Among the 30-share Sensex pack, 15 stocks ended higher while remaining 15 closed lower during the week.

The total turnover during the week on BSE and NSE fell to Rs.16,104.66 crores and Rs.1,05,939.97 crores, respectively during the week from their last weekend's level of Rs.52,203.39 crores and Rs.1,51,164.12 crores.

Among the major indices, S&P BSE Realty rose by 5.28 per cent followed by Captial Goods 4.92 pct, IPO 4.48 pct, Oil&Gas 2.92 pct, Consumer Durable 1.74 pct, Auto 1.01 pct, PSU 1.01 pct and Power 1.01 pct.

However, IT fell by 2.10 per cent, Teck by 1.54 per cent and FMCG 0.92 per cent.

Major gainers from the sensex pack were Larsen 6.90 pct, Reliance Ind 6.55 pct followed by Maruti 3.98 pct, Gail India 2.68 pct, Axis Bank 2.65 pct, Adani Ports 2.22 pct, Tata Steel 2.12 pct, HUL 1.29 pct and ONFC 1.05 pct.

However, Infosys fell by 3.87 pct, Sun Pharma by 3.21 pct followed by Coal India 3.02 pct, ITC 2.75 pct, Lupin 2.38 pct, BhartiAirtel 1.56 pct, SBI 1.09 pct, HDFC 1.07 per cent and Powergrid 0.99 per cent.

Actress-producer Priyanka Chopra, whose maiden Marathi production venture 'Ventilator' has won three National Awards, says she made the film for her late father, Lt. Col. Ashok Chopra.

'Ventilator', a comedy-drama, won the awards in categories like Best Director for Rajesh Mapuskar, Best Editing for Rameshwar Bhagat and Best Sound Mixing for Alok De at the 64th National Film Awards, which were announced on Friday here.

"I'm so excited, happy and proud! Our first Marathi movie ‘Ventilator' won not 1, not 2, but 3 National Awards," tweeted Priyanka, who produced the film alongside her mother Madhu Chopra under their home banner Purple Pebble Pictures.

"We made this film for my dad and I couldn't have done it without Madhu Chopra and my production team! 75 speaking actors! Well done team. Congratulations Rajesh Mapuskar, Rameshwar Bhagat and Alok De," she added.

The film, featuring filmmaker-actor Ashutosh Gowariker in the lead role, tells the story of a joint family whose eldest and the most respected person goes into a coma few days before the Ganesh Chaturthi festival and is kept on a ventilator.

Ten terrorists of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar and Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), involved in a suicide attack on Lahore's Mall Road in February, were killed in a shootout with police in the wee hours today in Lahore.

According to Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Punjab police, the terrorists were involved in a suicide attack on Lahore's Mall Road in February this year in which 15 people including six policemen were killed. Jamat-ul-Ahrar had claimed the responsibility of the attack.

"In early hours today a CTD team were taking the facilitators (Anwarul Haq, Irfan and Imam Shah) of Lahore Mall Road blast suicide bomber to Manawan area to identify the place where they had hidden weapons and ammunition when their accomplices attacked the police team," a CTD official said.

The police team retaliated and during the cross fire 10 terrorists were killed, he said.

The official said all three facilitators of Lahore Mall Road blast – Anwarul Haq, Irfan and Imam – were killed in the cross fire.

Two of the seven terrorists who attacked the police team have been identified as Attaur Rehman and Abdullah.

The official said all the 10 terrorists belonged to Jamat-ul-Ahrar and TTP. Weapons including hand grenades and explosives have been recovered from the site.

Two senior police officers were among 15 people killed when a Jamat-ul-Ahrar suicide bomber blew himself up during a protest rally outside Pakistan's Punjab assembly on Feb 13 that also wounded more than 71 others.

Police had arrested main facilitator Anwarul Haq with the help of CCTV and nabbed his other accomplices from tribal area of Bajaur.

Last Wednesday, five soldiers were among seven killed in a suicide attack on an army team taking part in ongoing census in Lahore's Badian Road. TTP had claimed the responsibility of the attack.

Police have so far taken 15 suspects into custody in connection with Badian Road attack on soldiers.

Police said initial investigation shows that the attacker and his handler were on a motorcycle and continued chasing the census van carrying army personnel.

When the van stopped and the army men started unloading the material, the suicide bomber came closer to them and blew himself up.

"We have arrested 15 suspects in connection with Wednesday's Lahore blast and are interrogating them," a senior police officer said.

A 19-year-old German tourist was robbed and injured in a knife attack here, police said on Saturday. The suspects have been identified.

The incident took place around 11.30 p.m. on Friday when Benjamin Scolt hired an e-rickshaw from the New Delhi railway station to the Red Fort, Deputy Commissioner of Police Jatin Narwal said.

Narwal, citing Scolt, said a man other than the driver was already seated in the rickshaw when the German boarded it.

Police believe the man was known to the driver.

After Scolt boarded it, the rickshaw was taken to an isolated place behind the 17th-century Red Fort, Narwal said. The two men then asked him to hand over his belongings.

The tourist may have resisted. The men then pulled out a knife and threatened him, the officer said.

"He refused to hand over his belongings and they attacked him with the weapon and left him injured after taking away his bag and cash," he added.

Scolt, Narwal said, cried for help as a police patrol van passed by.

The tourist was taken to the nearby Hedgewar Hospital. The German embassy was notified.

A police officer who refused to be named said the two suspects had been identified after police questioned at least 25 e-rickshaw drivers in the area.

"We should be able to arrest them soon," the officer said.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj sought a report on the attack and asked the Delhi government to provide best medical treatment to the German.

The central government on Saturday said that it is strengthening the rules to stop unruly air passengers from misbehaving, even as all the private airlines lifted a ban on flying Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad.

According to the Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha, his ministry is tightening the rules so that a national "No-Fly List" can be implemented.

Referring to the incident in which Shiv Sena MP Gaikwad assaulted an Air India senior manager on March 23, Sinha said in a series of tweets: "MoCA (Ministry of Civil Aviation) is strengthening rules so that a national no-fly list can be implemented, such incidents can be prevented, and safety improved. 

"Air travellers should note that safety and security for passengers and crew is our paramount priority. Unruly/disruptive behaviour will result in severe consequences. This includes police action for a specific incident as well as being placed on a no-fly list."

Currently, rules only allow airlines to refuse boarding or off-loading of a passenger whose behaviour is deemed as unruly or disruptive to the safety of flight operations.

On Friday, a letter from the ministry to Air India detailed that in order to deal with unruly passengers in the future, an amendment to CAR (Civil Aviation Requirement) is being drafted by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in consultation with the ministry for establishment of a national "No Fly List".

Sinha further said that Gaikwad apologised and gave an undertaking that such incidents will not recur. It was only after that assurance that Air India was advised to revoke the ban. 

"Police investigations regarding Shri Gaikwad's conduct during the March 23 incident are underway and the law will take its own course," the minister tweeted.

Air India had revoked the ban on Friday after it was advised by the ministry to do so in a letter. The ban was lifted a day after Gaikwad had expressed "regrets" in the Lok Sabha over the March 23 incident.

The national passenger carrier imposed the ban on flying the Shiv Sena MP aboard its flights after Gaikwad assaulted an Air India senior manager.

Subsequently, two FIRs were filed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport police station in Delhi for assault and delaying the aircraft — as the MP refused to disembark from the plane. The Delhi Police Crime Branch is currently investigating the cases. 

Since the ban, Gaikwad has been compelled to travel by train or by road depending on his engagements, keeping away from the media glare.

Meanwhile, all six private airlines on Saturday lifted their ban on flying Gaikwad.

The Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) announced that it was lifting the ban imposed on Gaikwad on March 24, a day after he assaulted an Air India staffer at Delhi airport.

The members of FIA are SpiceJet, IndiGo, GoAir and Jet Airways.

FIA Associate Director Ujjwal Dey said the decision was taken following Gaikwad's assurance "that our assets and colleagues shall be accorded the respect that they deserve for the hard work they put in every day".

Vistara and budget carrier AirAsia India also lifted the ban.

"We support the decisions of our industry peers taken in the interest of the safety of air passengers and flight operations and in upholding the dignity of airline staff. We stood in solidarity with Air India and members of the FIA during this recent episode that challenged both these critical aspects," a Vistara spokesperson said.

"We continue to stand by them today in their decision to revoke the ban. Unruly and disruptive passengers are a serious safety and security threat, and we are hopeful this incident results in specific regulations and actions to address this important issue." 
 

Researchers have discovered a protein that could help make vaccinations more effective and also provide protection from other diseases such as cancer.

The researchers purified a protein found on the exterior of bacteria (neisseria meningidis) and used it as an accessory to provide a better vaccination response. 

Typically, vaccines can either increase the amount of antibody production or they can stimulate cells (called cytotoxic T cells) to directly kill the offending agent. 

The protein, called PorB, is unique in that it can do both, the researchers said. 

The study, published online in the journal Scientific Reports, may lead to greater understanding of how vaccine enhancers work and can best be used.

"This study has wide implications as it could not only be used to help the body identify and fight off bacterial infections, but it could also potentially help the body use its own machinery to fight off other diseases like cancer, HIV, and influenza before they have a chance to establish within the body," explained corresponding author Lee Wetzler, Professor of Medicine and Microbiology at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) in the US.

In this study, the researchers used two experimental models. The first model was given a vaccination with antigen and mixed PorB, while the second model was given the antigen alone. 

The model that received the PorB had an increase in the response to the vaccine antigen, evidenced by an increased number of activated cells in the lymph nodes and a gain in the production of cytotoxic T cells, as compared to the vaccination with the antigen alone.

"Our study deepens the general understanding of how vaccine adjuvants modulate immune responses," Wetzler said.

"The antigen formulation with PorB triggers a sequence of cellular events at the periphery and in lymphoid tissue that are critical for the establishment of protection to a broad array of infectious diseases, and maybe for other diseases like cancer," Wetzler added.

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said the US would soon announce new sanctions on Syria, a media report said.

"We will be announcing additional sanctions on Syria as part of our ongoing effort to stop this kind of activity," CNN quoted Mnuchin as saying on Friday. 

"Those will continue to have an important effect in terms of people doing business with them."

The announcement comes a day after the US struck a Syrian airfield in response to a chemical weapons attack that killed over 80 civilians.

Mnuchin did not specify which entities would come under sanction by his agency, but he said, "they will be coming out in the near future".

"We view sanctions as being a very important tool," Mnuchin said. 

"These sanctions are very important and we will use them to the maximum effect."

A large near-Earth asteroid discovered nearly three years ago will fly safely past Earth on April 19, US space agency NASA has said.

The space rock, known as 2014 JO25, is estimated to be 2,000 feet in size. It is expected to fly by Earth at a safe distance of about 1.1 million miles (1.8 million kilometres), or about 4.6 times the distance from Earth to the moon, Xinhua news agency reported on Friday.

"Although there is no possibility for the asteroid to collide with our planet, this will be a very close approach for an asteroid of this size," NASA was quoted as saying.

Small asteroids pass within this distance of Earth several times each week, but this upcoming approach is "the closest by any known asteroid of this size, or larger, since asteroid Toutatis, a 3.1-mile (five-kilometre) asteroid, which approached within about four lunar distances in September 2004," NASA said.

The next known encounter of an asteroid of comparable size will occur in 2027 when the half-mile-wide (800-meter-wide) asteroid 1999 AN10 will fly by at one lunar distance.

In addition, the encounter on April 19 is also "the closest this asteroid has come to Earth for at least the last 400 years and will be its closest approach for at least the next 500 years," NASA added.

The asteroid will approach Earth from the direction of the sun and will become visible in the night sky after April 19.

It is predicted to brighten to about magnitude 11, when it could be visible in small optical telescopes for one or two nights before it fades as the distance from Earth rapidly increases, NASA added.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Saturday said that she has received a report on the death of a 26-year-old Indian who was shot dead in the US.

"I have received a report on the shootout incident resulting in the tragic death of Indian national Vikram Jaryal in Washington State, US," Sushma Swaraj said in a tweet. 

"On April 6 two miscreants entered the shop at 1.30 am. They snatched cash from (the) victim and shot on his chest. This resulted in his death," she said.

Jaryal had reached the US 25 days back and was working at a gas station of a family friend.

Speaking on the ongoing investigation, Sushma Swaraj said the Indian officials were coordinating with investigative agencies who "have got the CCTV footage and are in the process of apprehending the culprits".

"Our consulate in San Francisco is helping the family and following this up with the police authorities," she added.
 

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Uttar Pradesh has ordered a probe into the sale of 21 sugar mills at a "throwaway" price by former Chief Minister Mayawati.

The probe was ordered by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath after a review late Friday night of the Cane Development and Sugar Industry Department. 

He said that nobody can be allowed to sell such government properties at "dirt cheap rates" as the property belonged to the people.

Adityanath also said that he will not hesitate in ordering a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the matter, in which even the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has pointed out heavy irregularities. 

The Rs 1,180-crore scam has been hanging heavy on the former Chief Minister Mayawati but it was put in cold storage by the earlier Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party government.

Despite serious lapses coming to light in the probe ordered then, the SP government chose not to act against political rival and Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati in the sale of these sugar mills.

The mills belonged to the UP State Sugar Corporation Ltd and the state Sugar and Cane Development Corporation.

Complaints made on the scam alleged that huge kickbacks were paid to the "powerful" in the then BSP government to get the sale deal through.

Former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had handed over the probe into the alleged irregularities to the Lokayukta in November 2012, but despite a year long drawn probe, Justice N.K. Mehrotra had not fixed responsibility for the loss to the exchequer on anyone.

The ombudsman had also recommended that the view of the government be presented before the Supreme Court where the matter was pending.
 

Where do the kids play after school in Shimla? The hill city does not have any playground for them and they are often shooed away if they use open spaces for games like cricket.

The long standing gap in historic is highlighted well in 21-minute docu-drama, ‘SOS-Shivaji Park of Shimla’ by a Mumbai based film maker, Vivek Mohan, who hails from Shimla and knows the pulse of the city.

“It is the story of every child in Shimla. I suffered it too. There are play grounds in some schools in Shimla, but the kids have no place for outdoor games after school hours,” Vivek Mohan said.

The docu drama is shot over a period of six months by him and publicized through social media, it refers to the historic Ridge in Shimla as SOS Shivaji Park (of Mumbai), where players like Sachin Tendulkar grew up.

The film maker chases the groups of children in Shimla, who frantically search the playgrounds and eye the small little opportunity to occupy space anywhere or on the Ridge in the mornings, especially Sundays. But here too, they are often disallowed in the name of inconvenience to people or the possibility of damage to the century old water reservoir beneath.

In British times, however, the Ridge was the only space used as common playground.

At other places down the hill, which are interspersed by trees, grass and bushes, the children spend more time in searching their ball or shuttle than focus on the game itself. The scarcity of the space to play is felt so hard by the children that they are often forced to pursue their outdoor activities in the graveyards in this old city.

“The Annandale, the big green ground, is with Army in Shimla. There is no place for day to day recreation for children in Shimla. The Ridge, the SOS play ground in Shimla, is used for all other activities morning till evening, whether it is about political functions or drills, but the cops scream at the kids whenever they come to play there. The sports complex is there for indoor games in Shimla, but how many children can go there? The open ground has its own value?” Vivek Mohan said.

He said the state government and the Municipal Corporation of Shimla hasn’t thought about this issue seriously so far.

“I just want to highlight the plight of the children in Shimla, who have no option but to sit glued to the TV sets or internet,” he said.

‘SOS- Shivaji Park of Shimla’ is the third in the series on Shimla—the earlier ones being ‘For Whom the Jingle Bells Toll’ and ‘Spot the Difference’. Vivek Mohan had earlier won national award on his documentary on Malana, a village uphill Kullu, known for oldest surviving democracy.