US President Donald Trump plans to assign an ally to lead a broad review of American intelligence agencies, according to administration officials, an effort that members of the intelligence community fear could curtail their independence.

Stephen A Feinberg, a co-founder of Cerberus Capital Management, has informed his company's shareholders that he was considering a move to join the Trump administration, the New York Times reported.

On Wednesday, Trump blamed leaks from the intelligence community for the departure of Michael T Flynn, his national security adviser, whose resignation he requested.

"From intelligence, papers are being leaked, things are being leaked. It's criminal action. It's a criminal act, and it's been going on for a long time before me, but now it's really going on," Trump said.

"The real scandal here is that classified information is illegally given out by ‘intelligence' like candy. Very un-American!"

There has been no announcement of Feinberg's job, which would be based in the White House. He is a member of Trump's economic advisory council.

Feinberg, who has close ties to Stephen K Bannon, Trump's chief strategist, and Jared Kushner, the President's son-in-law, declined to comment on his possible position.

Top intelligence officials told the daily that they feared the businessman was being prepped for a position within the intelligence community.

Feinberg's only national security experience stems from his company's involvement with a private security company and two gun makers. 

US President Donald Trump plans to assign an ally to lead a broad review of American intelligence agencies, according to administration officials, an effort that members of the intelligence community fear could curtail their independence.

Stephen A Feinberg, a co-founder of Cerberus Capital Management, has informed his company's shareholders that he was considering a move to join the Trump administration, the New York Times reported.

On Wednesday, Trump blamed leaks from the intelligence community for the departure of Michael T Flynn, his national security adviser, whose resignation he requested.

"From intelligence, papers are being leaked, things are being leaked. It's criminal action. It's a criminal act, and it's been going on for a long time before me, but now it's really going on," Trump said.

"The real scandal here is that classified information is illegally given out by ‘intelligence' like candy. Very un-American!"

There has been no announcement of Feinberg's job, which would be based in the White House. He is a member of Trump's economic advisory council.

Feinberg, who has close ties to Stephen K Bannon, Trump's chief strategist, and Jared Kushner, the President's son-in-law, declined to comment on his possible position.

Top intelligence officials told the daily that they feared the businessman was being prepped for a position within the intelligence community.

Feinberg's only national security experience stems from his company's involvement with a private security company and two gun makers. 

As global smartphone sales to end-users hit nearly 432 million units in the fourth quarter of 2016, once a market leader BlackBerry now virtually has a zero per cent share.

According to the market research firm Gartner, out of more than 431.5 million smartphones sold last year, about 200,000 were BlackBerry devices that were running on its own operating system but that gives it less than half the unit volume of the "other OS" category. 

"This wasn't hard to see coming given BlackBerry's years-long decline, gradual shift toward Android and recent focus on services," Engadget reported.

Microsoft's Windows phones are not doing good either. The share of Windows fell from 1.1 percent to 0.3 percent in the last quarter of 2016. 

In a bid to provide acceleration to BlackBerry's transition into a security software and services company, BlackBerry and TCL Communication Technology Holdings Limited entered into a long-term licensing agreement recently.

Under the terms, BlackBerry will license its security software and service suite, as well as related brand assets, to TCL Communication who will design, manufacture, sell and provide customer support for BlackBerry-branded mobile devices.

TCL Communication will be the exclusive global manufacturer and distributor for all BlackBerry-branded smartphones with the exception of the following countries — India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and Indonesia. 

The company announced partnership with Optiemus, a Delhi-based telecom enterprise to licence software and services for the production of secure Android handsets in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh.

Under the terms of the agreement, BlackBerry will licence its security software and services suite, as well as related brand assets to Optiemus Infracom Ltd. 

The partner will design, manufacture, sell, promote and provide customer support for BlackBerry-branded mobile devices that offer the full BlackBerry experience, including the trusted BlackBerry for Android secure software. 

As global smartphone sales to end-users hit nearly 432 million units in the fourth quarter of 2016, once a market leader BlackBerry now virtually has a zero per cent share.

According to the market research firm Gartner, out of more than 431.5 million smartphones sold last year, about 200,000 were BlackBerry devices that were running on its own operating system but that gives it less than half the unit volume of the "other OS" category. 

"This wasn't hard to see coming given BlackBerry's years-long decline, gradual shift toward Android and recent focus on services," Engadget reported.

Microsoft's Windows phones are not doing good either. The share of Windows fell from 1.1 percent to 0.3 percent in the last quarter of 2016. 

In a bid to provide acceleration to BlackBerry's transition into a security software and services company, BlackBerry and TCL Communication Technology Holdings Limited entered into a long-term licensing agreement recently.

Under the terms, BlackBerry will license its security software and service suite, as well as related brand assets, to TCL Communication who will design, manufacture, sell and provide customer support for BlackBerry-branded mobile devices.

TCL Communication will be the exclusive global manufacturer and distributor for all BlackBerry-branded smartphones with the exception of the following countries — India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and Indonesia. 

The company announced partnership with Optiemus, a Delhi-based telecom enterprise to licence software and services for the production of secure Android handsets in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh.

Under the terms of the agreement, BlackBerry will licence its security software and services suite, as well as related brand assets to Optiemus Infracom Ltd. 

The partner will design, manufacture, sell, promote and provide customer support for BlackBerry-branded mobile devices that offer the full BlackBerry experience, including the trusted BlackBerry for Android secure software. 

Continuing protests by the Jat community in Haryana and their growing ranks are proving a major challenge for the BJP government in the state that had earlier shown political and administrative ineptness in dealing with the anarchic violence a year ago.

Bitter memories of the large-scale violence in 10 districts of the state last February during the Jat agitation for reservations, which left 30 people dead and over 200 injured and caused damage worth hundreds of crores of rupees to government and private property, are still fresh in the minds of people.

The inept handling by the government of the protests, which eventually led to the violence after the agitation was virtually hijacked by unscrupulous elements, had come in for criticism from all quarters.

This time too, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government has hardly done much – since the Jats resumed their agitation on January 29 – to instil confidence among the people that the situation will not get out of hand.

Initially, the government of Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar tried to project that only a faction led by All India Jat Sangharsh Samiti (AIJASS) president Yash Pal Malik, was resorting to protests. The government opted to talk to other factions of Jat leaders to defuse the situation, but the move backfired.

In the last fortnight, the Jat protests have grown bigger and have spread to nearly 20 of Haryana's 22 districts. BJP leaders in Haryana have even labelled Malik an "outsider" and tried to project that the Jat protests were politically influenced by the assembly elections in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh.

Ministers, legislators and leaders of the ruling BJP, including those from the Jat community, are blaming the Congress and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) leadership for fishing in troubled waters by supporting the Jat protests.

Last year too, the BJP government and leadership had squarely blamed the Congress, particularly the camp led by former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, himself a prominent Jat leader, for the protests and the violence.

Having come to power for the first time on its own since the creation of Haryana in 1966, the BJP, which is seen as a party supported by traders and non-Jat communities, has not been able to deal with the Jat community.

The Jats in Haryana have played a dominant role in Haryana's politics. They constitute 28 per cent of the state's nearly 28 million population and 25 per cent of its electorate.

The other main political parties, the Congress and the INLD, are led by Jat leaders and have a considerable hold over the community. The INLD, particularly, is dominated by Jat leaders from the clan of former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal and his son Om Prakash Chautala.

During last year's Jat agitation, two senior Jat ministers in the Khattar government, O.P. Dhankar and Abhimanyu, intervened but the move failed.

The BJP had also roped into its fold senior Jat leader Birender Singh, who was with the Congress for over four decades, before the 2014 parliamentary elections.

But the bottom line is that the BJP has not been able to make inroads into the Jat leadership and the community in the nearly 30 months it has been governing the state.

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has completed over four decades of his cinematic journey and says he became an "official entrant" in Bollywood on February 15, 1969.

The 74-year-old on Wednesday night wrote on his blog: "There is an avalanche of events related to this date – the 15th of February. On this date in 1969… I became an official entrant to the film industry, by signing my very first film, Saat Hindustani.

The Piku star shared a series of black and white photographs from the film's set as well. 

In his over four-decade journey in Bollywood, Big B worked in over 100 films and was feted with Padma Shri in 1984, the Padma Bhushan in 2001 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2015 for his contribution to arts. 

The government of France honoured him with its highest civilian honour, Knight of the Legion of Honour, in 2007 for his exceptional career in the world of cinema and beyond.

Amitabh has worked in hits like Bombay to Goa, Zanjeer, Abhimaan, Namak Haraam, Sholay, Agneepath and Deewar.

An Australian dog that gained international fame for saving a colony of penguins has died at age 15, the media reported.

Oddball, the fluffy Maremma, died from natural causes after a 10-year career in which he saved the penguins on Middle Island, 150 metres offshore off Warnambool in Victoria's south-west, from extinction, Xinhua news agency reported.

The penguin population had been cut to fewer than 10 penguins by wild foxes in 2005.

The dwindling population led Alan Marsh, a chicken farmer, to suggest that a Maremma should be employed to protect the penguins after he had success using the Italian sheep dog to protect his chicks.

After the success of Oddball, two dogs — Eudy and Tula — now spend five days a week on the island during breeding season.

The penguin population was estimated to be at 130 in 2015.

Kylie Gaston, the mayor of Warnambool, said she believed a statue of Oddball, who was the subject of a 2015 feature film, would be a fitting tribute to the dog.

The Seoul Central District Court will on Thursday decide whether to order the arrest of Samsung group's heir Lee Jae-yong, a media report said.

The Vice President of Samsung Electronics is being investigated for his involvement in the "South Korean Female Rasputin" corruption scandal.

Lee Jae-yong appeared in the court an hour before the start of the hearing, which was scheduled at 10.30 am local time, Efe news reported. 

During the hearing, the judges would decide on his arrest, which was requested by the prosecutors in the case.

The head of South Korea's largest business conglomerate is facing his second arrest warrant in the bribery case that lead to the impeachment of South Korean President Park Geun-hye in 2016.

South Korea is trying to establish whether the 48-year-old de facto leader of Samsung instructed the financial support to Choi Soon-sil, nicknamed the "Female Rasputin," in exchange for the government's backing for a merger between two of the group's subsidiaries.

On Tuesday, the prosecutors investigating the corruption scandal called for a new arrest warrant against Lee, after a local court rejected a previous request in January.

The court back then argued that it was not clear whether the donations were made in exchange for favours, but prosecutors said that after three weeks of additional investigations they have obtained new evidence against Lee.

In addition to bribery, the prosecution also accuses Lee of embezzlement and perjury for having given several versions of the events during his appearances in courts.

Lee and other Samsung personnel admitted having paid about $37 million to entities allegedly controlled by Choi but they deny that it was to get support for the merger process in 2015.

Lee Jae-yong took over the Samsung conglomerate in October 2016, after his father, Lee Kun-hee, suffered a heart attack in May 2014, which still keeps him hospitalised and unable to communicate.

Choi is still in detention since her arrest in October 2016 when she was charged with colluding with Park to create a network of corruption in which the President, members of her government and the main business conglomerates of the country were apparently involved.

In December 2016, the South Korean Parliament approved Park's dismissal. The final decision is now in the hands of the Constitutional Court, which has until June to decide in favour or against the impeachment. 

Gunmen looted Rs.3 lakh from a bank in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district on Thursday, police said.

The robbers entered the Turkewangam branch of the Jammu and Kashmir Bank and took away the money at gunpoint.

"An alert has been sounded to trace the robbers," a police officer said.

In a breakthrough that could transform the despair of diabetics into dimples of relief, Indian scientists have designed an insulin-like oral substance, nicknamed "Dimpi", which they claim can be used to tackle both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.

Over 400 million people across the world grapple with the disease and India figures among the top countries with a high diabetic population. It doesn't discriminate between the rich and poor and even celebrities like Oscar winners Tom Hanks and Halle Berry — not to forget prominent Pakistani ex-cricketer Wasim Akram — are not spared.

Efforts to develop non-toxic oral replacement for insulin have been on for the last several years but none of the molecules designed so far have reached the stage of clinical application due to efficacy, safety and stability issues.

But a team of researchers attempted to turn the problem on its head. The result: DMP (dimethyl proxy vanadate), referred to as Dimpi.

"The small molecule 'dmp' developed by our group is orally active, cost-effective, stable at room temperature and free from significant toxicity as seen in animal models," said endocrinologist Satinath Mukhopadhyay at the Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research, Kolkata.

Almost 25 years in the making, Dimpi was whipped up at Mihir K. Chaudhuri's lab in Tezpur University in a collaborative effort involving Visva-Bharati, Santiniketan, Regional Centre for Biotechnology, Haryana, National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi, and the Defence Research Laboratory, Tezpur.

Dimpi trumps the hurdles presented by conventional insulin replacement therapy (including injections and pills), Mukhopadhyay said.

Destruction and dysfunction of pancreatic beta cells (insulin producers) are of common occurrence in both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes and insulin injection becomes a compulsion.

They can be expensive and like some oral anti-diabetic drugs (such as thiozolidinediones or TZDs), can cause undesirable effects, such as edema, weight gain, heart failure and hypoglycaemia (low blood glucose).

A fall in blood glucose may lead to headache, weakness, sweating, tremors and the like, and, if severe, may result in death. No adverse effects were seen with the use of Dimpi in animal models, the researchers noted.

"The new molecule also does not meddle with growth metabolism as insulin sometimes does if administered for a long time," said Samir Bhattacharya, Emeritus Professor, School of Life Science, Visva-Bharati and a corresponding author of the study, published in PLOS ONE in January.

The molecule takes off from vanadium, deployed as anti-diabetic agents in research due to their insulin-like activity.

But the dose at which these compounds bring in to play their anti-diabetic effects could be too toxic for clinical use in humans, Bhattacharya said.

So to troubleshoot, the researchers crafted Dimpi, which not only displays powerful insulin-like action at a lower dose but also slashes insulin-resistance and makes the body more responsive to the insulin available.

The dual properties take care of the two forms of the disease, they said.

In Type 1 diabetes, the body's immune system attacks the cells that produce insulin, resulting in no, or a critically low amount of, insulin. So it becomes necessary to take insulin, without which the body can't properly get the energy and fuel it needs from glucose.

Type 2 diabetes is often a result of the body's inability to make enough of, or to properly use, the insulin that is produced. This requires diet, exercise and medication to bring the blood sugar under control.

Lauding the development, Partha Chakrabarti, an expert in metabolic diseases, said the work revitalises the possibility of orally-administrable drugs that have insulin like action.

"If the follow-up studies are fruitful, usage of this compound could reduce or even eliminate the use of insulin in some patients. Although development of small compounds at the laboratory and its appearance in the market is marred with lengthy, tortuous and complex processes, this work gives us new hope for a new generation anti-diabetic therapy," said Chakrabarti, Senior Scientist, Cell Biology & Physiology Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Biology.

A man committed suicide on Thursday by jumping in front of a Delhi Metro train at the Shahdara station here.

The incident occurred at 9.53 am when Manoj Kumar, 45, jumped on the tracks as a Rithala-bound train approached the station, the Central Industrial Security Force said.
 

Regular intake of Vitamin D supplements may help protect against cold and flu, as well as tackle high levels of the vitamin's deficiency in countries like India, a study has said.

The 'sunshine vitamin' as it known, not just improves bone and muscle health but also protects against respiratory infections by boosting levels of antimicrobial peptides — natural antibiotic-like substances — in the lungs. 

Acute respiratory infections such as pneumonia are a major cause of global morbidity and mortality. 

"Most people understand that Vitamin D is critical for bone and muscle health. Our analysis has found that it helps the body fight acute respiratory infection,…," said Carlos Camargo from the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).

The findings showed that daily or weekly supplementation halved the risk of acute respiratory infection in people with most significant Vitamin D deficiency below 25 nanomoles per litre (nmol/L). 

Administering occasional high doses of Vitamin D did not produce significant benefits.

People with higher baseline Vitamin D levels also benefited, although the effect was more modest (10 per cent risk reduction), the researchers noted, in the paper published in the journal BMJ. 

"Our study strengthens the case for introducing food fortification to improve Vitamin D levels in countries where profound vitamin D deficiency is common," added lead researcher Adrian Martineau Professor at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) in Australia.

For the study, the team analysed nearly 11,000 participants in 25 clinical trials conducted in 14 countries including India, Britain, US, Japan, Afghanistan, Belgium, Italy, Australia and Canada. 

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan will be hosting 'TED Talks India: Nayi Soch',a global first Hindi TV talk show created in partnership with TED, a non-profit devoted to 'ideas worth spreading', Star India, a unit of 21st Century Fox has announced.

"I believe 'TED Talks India-Nayi Soch' will inspire many minds across India. It is a concept I connected with instantly, as I believe that the media is perhaps the single most powerful vehicle to inspire change. I am looking forward to working with TED and Star India and truly hope that together, we are able to inspire young minds across India and the world," Shah Rukh said in a statement.

The show on Star Plus will feature speakers sharing big ideas in TED's signature format of short, powerful talks. This is the first time TED is collaborating with a major network and mega-star to produce a TV series featuring original TED Talks in a language other than English. 

"In an age of high volatility, the role of ideas to fuel positive change cannot be overstated. We are delighted to have Shah Rukh Khan share our vision and lend his charisma to this exciting endeavour," Uday Shankar, Chairman and CEO, Star India, said.

Juliet Blake, head of TV at TED and executive producer of the series, added: "The size of Star TV's audience, with more than 650 million viewers, makes this a significant milestone in TED's ongoing effort to bring big ideas to curious minds."

Washington's Smithsonian National Zoo began a series of public events in preparation to send off a giant panda named Bao Bao back to China.

"All of our fans are very sad to see her go, but we know that this is a really important step for her, giving her the opportunity to return to the breeding center in China and hopefully produce offspring of her own," said Michael Brown-Palsgrove, a giant panda curator.

"It's sort of like sending your kid off to college," he said. "Bao Bao is more independent than our male cub."

Keepers assured panda fans that Bao Bao has well prepared for her 16-hour direct flight to Chengdu city.

Kate Masters, who came to bid farewell to Bao Bao with her six-year-old daughter Genevieve, said it is definitely a loss for the Zoo, nevertheless, she felt exciting for Bao Bao.

"I came three times every year to see the pandas. They are my favourite animals in the zoo," Genevieve said.

Following the zoo keepers' meeting, the Chinese embassy on Thursday will bring dumplings to the zoo for panda fans.

In addition, a ceremony will be organised by the zoo on February 21, to bid farewell to Bao Bao.

Territorial integrity of the ancient kingdom of Manipur that had merged with India and the recurring economic blockades by tribal groups are the major issues in Manipur where the upcoming assembly polls are witnessing a close battle between the ruling Congress and the opposition BJP.

Intriguingly, none of the parties has so far stressed on the important issue of employment generation, despite the state having over 800,000 educated unemployed youths out of its less than 2.8 million population.

With the 60-seat assembly slated to hold two-phase polls on March 4 and March 8, campaigning is slowly picking up. The Congress is eyeing a consecutive fourth term in office while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) – which had only one legislator in the outgoing House – is throwing a determined challenge to wrest power.

The path ahead looks far from rosy for the Congress due to resignations, the anti-incumbency factor and the warning from an outfit to tribal politicians not to contest on tickets of the Grand Old Party.

Phungzathang Tonsing, the number two in the state cabinet for many years, resigned from the Congress despite being given a ticket. "Manipur is a small place and people know what the Congress is doing," Tonsing said cryptically, while declining to elaborate.

The Congress got more jolts as Parliamentary Secretary V Valte, lone tribal woman MLA Nemcha Kipgen and some other prominent lawmakers, who had been ministers for a long time, quit the party and crossed over to the BJP.

The Congress decision to nominate a Nepali, G Tamang, for the tribal-dominated but unreserved Kangpokpi seat also sparked a controversy and the anti-outsider campaign in the form of a demand for the Inner Line Permit system gained momentum.

Finally, bowing to pressure, the Congress withdrew Tamang's ticket and he is now in the fray as an independent.

Nineteen seats of the 60 in the assembly are reserved for tribals.

Chief Minister Okram Ibobi, who launched his campaign on Sunday, exuded confidence about a Congress victory on the strength of the development work undertaken by the party during its 15 years in power.

But he has so far declined to comment on the burning issues of tribals being asked not to contest on the Congress ticket and the controversy generated over Tamang.

The BJP is banking on a "(Narendra) Modi" wave.

The never-ending economic blockades over even mundane issues like inadequate power supply or thin attendance in offices feature in a big way as candidates try to drum up support.

The BJP and some other parties have assured of a "blockade-free Manipur" if voted to power.

The tiny Northeastern state has been facing an economic blockade since November 1, 2016 in protest against the creation of seven new districts.

The United Naga Council, backing the blockade, says these districts had divided the "lands of the Nagas" left by their forefathers. The Manipur government has countered by saying that no community is the land owner.

N Biren, a long time Congress minister who is now the BJP spokesperson, said: "The Congress and the United Naga Integration Council had signed an agreement on August 4, 1972. The Congress had agreed, inter alia, that the Naga demands are not unconstitutional and had accepted them."

Countering, Ibobi Singh has demanded that the Modi government's framework agreement with the NSCN-IM be disclosed, amidst fear in many circles that it envisages vivisection of Manipur, bowing to the long-standing NSCN-IM demand for "Naga integration".

The NSCN has been demanding unification of all Naga-inhabited areas in Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh under the umbrella of Nagaland. This has been opposed by the people and governments of the three states all these years.

The Manipur government's consistent position is that the state had a well-defined territory since 33 AD, with a written chronicle stretching for over 2000 years. The state was merged with India on October 15, 1949.

Ibobi Singh pointed out that in 2001, when the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government at the Centre extended the ceasefire with the NSCN-IM without territorial limits, the state had been in flames, with 18 persons losing their lives.

Director Ali Abbas Zafar chose not to divulge much information about his supposed third collaboration with superstar Salman Khan, which is apparently the remake of South Korean drama film Ode to My Father.

Salman and Ali worked in last year's blockbuster Sultan and have teamed up again for the sequel of Ek Tha Tiger, titled Tiger Zinda Hai.

There were reports that the duo will also work on the Indian adaptation of Ode To My Father.

When asked about the same Ali told reporters, "It's too early to speak about it. First, I am going to start Tiger Zinda Hai,' next month. That's my next film. I am excited about teaming up with Salman again. It is always great to work with him." 

He was speaking at the special screening of Shoojit Sircar's upcoming production, Running Shaadi, last night.

Starring Taapsee Pannu and Amit Sadh in lead roles, the film is scheduled for release this Friday.

Ode to My Father, the 2014 drama, was directed by Yoon Je-kyoon and represented Korean history. It is a story about a young boy's promise made during the chaos of the Korean War to take care of his family, which ends up spanning 60 years of turbulent modern history.

The film's remake rights have been bought by Salman's brother-in-law Atul Agnihotri. The Hindi film will reportedly be set during India-Pakistan partition.

The temperature in most parts of Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday remained above the freezing point, for the first time this season, the weather office said.

The minimum temperature in Srinagar settled at 3.5 degrees Celsius; 1.8 in Qazigund and Pahalgam; 1.1 in Kupwara and 1.5 in Kokernag , an official of the Met department said.

Despite the rise in temperature, the weather office has predicted rain and snowfall at isolated places in the next 48 hours.

However, the temperature in Leh region was recorded at minus 5.6 degrees Celsius, while Kargil had minus 5.4 as the lowest.

The temperature in Jammu was recorded at 14 degrees Celsius.