BAGHDAD, 16 JUNE: A string of nearly a dozen apparently coordinated bombs and a shooting in cities across Iraq killed at least 32 and wounded dozens today, extending a wave of violence that is raising fears of a return to widespread killing a decade after the US-led invasion.
Violence has spiked sharply in Iraq in recent months, with the death toll rising to levels not seen since 2008. Nearly 2,000 have been killed since the start of April.
Most of the car bombs hit Shi’ite-majority areas and were the cause of most of the casualties, killing 26. The blasts hit half a dozen cities and towns in the south and centre of the country.
There was no claim of responsibility for any of the attacks, but they bore the hallmark of Al Qaida in Iraq, which uses car bombs, suicide bombers and coordinatd attacks to target security forces, members of Iraq’s Shi’ite majority, and others.
The blasts began when a parked car bomb went off early morning in the industrial area of the city of Kut, killing three people and wounding 14 others. ap

ISLAMABAD, 16 JUNE: Former President Pervez Musharraf has been indicted by a Pakistani anti-terrorism court over the detention of dozens of judges during the emergency rule he imposed in 2007.
Musharraf, 69, was indicted during a hearing of the case held at his farmhouse in Chak Shahzad yesterday by anti-terrorism court Judge Kausar Abbas Zaidi. He was indicted under provision of the Anti-Terrorism Act and the Pakistan Panel Code. After the charges against him were read out, Musharraf refused to accept them and pleaded not guilty. He filed an application for his acquittal due to lack of evidence. pti

dawn/ann
QUETTA, 16 JUNE: Intelligence officials revealed today that a woman suicide bomber carried out the first attack on a bus carrying students of Sardar Bahadur Khan Women&’s University earlier yesterday.
At least 25 people, including the deputy commissioner of Quetta, 14 students of a women&’s university and four nurses were killed yesterday when a bomb tore through a bus, followed by a suicide attack and a gunbattle in the Bolan Medical College hospital, where the injured students were taken for treatment.
Banned outfit Lashkar-i-Jhangvi claimed responsibility for the bomb blasts.
An Intelligence official, who requested not to be named, said that a woman suicide bomber managed to sneak into the university bus. "When all the students gathered inside the bus, she blew herself up", he said.
Officials said they had no information about the identity of the bomber. Moreover, Intelligence officials said after the woman bomber blew up herself in the bus, a second male bomber followed suit and struck inside the crowded Bolan Medical Complex Hospital to wreak maximum damage.
According to the Intelligence personnel, the male suicide bomber was waiting inside BMC Hospital ward for the arrival of high level officials, including the Chief Secretary, and blew up himself when they reached.
Quetta Police Chief Mir Zubair Mehmood also said that the Deputy Commissioner of Quetta Abdul Mansoor Kakar was killed as result of firing outside the hospital.

Militants kill 2 Pak polio vaccinators
ISLAMABAD, 16 JUNE: Suspected militants shot and killed two polio vaccinators at Swabi in north-west Pakistan today, the latest in a string of attacks targeting the government’s vaccination campaign.
The vaccinators were attacked while they administering polio drops to children in Swabi area of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, officials said.
This was the second such attack in Swabi.
In January, six women and a man working for a NGO involved in the vaccination campaign were shot dead in the district. Last month, the killing of a woman polio vaccinator on the outskirts of Peshawar city had prompted the World Health Organisation to suspend its vaccination campaign. pti

press trust of india
MUMBAI, 15 JUNE: In spite of last day recovery on hopes of rate cut from the Reserve Bank of India, both the key indices, S&P BSE benchmark S&P Sensex and Nifty ended in the red by over one per cent for the second consecutive week on persistent selling pressure following fall in the rupee value to an all-time low.
Fresh capital outflows also affected the market sentiment as foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 2,515.68 crore during the week, including the provisional figure of 14 June. Shares of consumer durable, metal, realty, power and PSU sectors declined sharply on selling pressure from operators.
The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex resumed higher at 19,530.35 and moved up further to 19,585.75 on select buying mainly in IT sectors in view of depreciation of rupee value to lifetime low of 58.98 against the dollar.
However, it later turned negative and dropped to a low of 18,765.53 on profit-booking before recovering on the last day to end the week at 19,177.93, still showing a loss of 251.30 points or 1.29 per cent. It has lost 582.37 points or 2.95 per cent in the last two weeks.
The NSE 50-share Nifty also dropped by 72.60 points or 1.23 per cent to finish at 5,808.40.
Markets recovered at the end of the week due to fag-end buying on expectation of rate cut by the RBI in view of fall in inflation after WPI inflation fell to over three-and-half-year low to 4.7 per cent in May.
Finance minister Mr P Chidambaram’s comment that the government would announce steps soon to boost investment and growth also supported the market during the fag end of the week.
Lower inflation on account of declining prices of manufactured items and recent weak IIP data boosted hopes of monetary action by the RBI on 17 June traders said. The retail inflation (CPI) declined to 9.31 per cent in May from 9.39 per cent in April while industrial output growth (IIP) slowed down to two per cent in April this year from the revised 3.4 per cent in last month.
“Rupee’s sudden depreciation has led to some outflows and correction in the equity markets as well,” said Mr Lalit Thakkar, MD-Institution, Angel Broking.
Twenty shares out of the 30-share Sensex pack ended lower while 10 shares finished with gains.
Major losers from the Sensex pack were Jindal Steel (13.21 per cent), Tata Power (8.68 per cent), BHEL (7.06 per cent), Sterlite Ind (6.85 per cent), Tata Steel (6.11 per cent), Coal India (5.92 per cent), Sun Pharma (5.90 per cent), TCS (4.78 per cent), Hero Honda (2.66 per cent), ONGC (2.52 per cent) and M&M (2.03 per cent).

ALL EYES ON MONDAY’S RBI POLICY
– 10 June: The Sensex surrenders its gains to close just 12 points higher at 19,441.07, on profit-booking as the rupee at an all-time low was seen preventing the RBI from cutting interest rates on 17 June
– 11 June: The Sensex sinks by 298 points to close at nearly a two-month low level of 19,143 as a steep fall in rupee almost killed rate cut hopes
– 12 June: Slowdown in industrial production and higher-than-expected retail inflation pulls Sensex down by 102 points to end at 19,041.13, extending losses for the second day
– 13 June: A rout in world markets sends the Sensex 214 points down to end below the 19K-mark at 18,827.16, even as the finance minister Mr P Chidambaram says more reforms are on the anvil
– 14 June: Rebounding from two-month lows, the Sensex surges by 351 points to end at 19,177.93, as slowing inflation and strengthening rupee rekindled hopes of a rate cut by the RBI on Monday

indo-asian news service
MUMBAI, 15 JUNE: Mahindra and Mahindra Saturday said it will buy a 13.5 per cent stake in component manufacturer CIE Automotive for 96.24 million euros (Rs.738.45 crore).
"A committee of directors of the company on 15 June 2013 has approved entering into a share purchase agreement with Participaciones Internacionales Autometal, CIE Automotive and Autometal SA," the company said in a regulatory filling to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).
"Investment of an amount of euro 96.24 million to be made by the company through its subsidiary(ies) for a stake of 13.5 per cent in CIE Automotive SA at a price of euro 6.00 per share."
The company which is headquartered in Bilbao, Spain, focuses on three strategic business areas of automotive components, biofuels and providing technological solutions and services. The company is listed on the Madrid and Bilbao stock exchanges and has presence in 15 countries.
The company had reported a slowdown in its turnover for the first quarter of 2013, the consolidated turnover stood at 418 million euros (down 2.6 per cent).
Net profit for the period under review reached 17 million euros, which was slightly lower than the like period of last year, which the company said was caused mainly due to fluctuations in exchange rates.
On the other hand Mahindra and Mahindra which is a part of $16 billion Mahindra Group is a large Indian conglomerate with interests in automobile, information technology, finance and a host of other industries.

press trust of india
MUMBAI, 15 JUNE: Gold jumped to a one-month high at the domestic bullion market today on a wave of buying spree from stockists and speculators amid buoyant overseas sentiment.
The industrial metal also rallied owing to renewed jewellery demand coupled with heavy industrial off-take.
Standard gold of 99.5 per cent purity spurted by Rs 235 to conclude at Rs 27,905 per 10 gm from Friday’s closing level of Rs 27,670.
Pure gold of 99.9 per cent purity surged by Rs 240 to end at Rs 28,050 per 10 gm from Rs 27,810.
Silver ready (.999 fineness) jumped by Rs 640 to finish at Rs 44,975 per kg compared to Rs 44,335 previously.
On the global front, the shiny metal recouped most of its lost ground driven by investment buying after larger-than-expected rise in wholesale prices for May, curbing speculation that the Federal Reserve might start winding down its huge bond purchase programme.
Gold for August delivery rose $9.80 to settle at $1,377.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the NYMEX late yesterday and July silver contract gained 32 cents to close at $21.95 an ounce.

press trust of india
BANGALORE, 15 JUNE: Returning to ride out the bad times for Infosys, its chairman, Mr N R Narayana Murthy today said the task of rebuilding a “desirable” Infosys would take at least 36 months and there would be some tough decisions resulting in “pain.”
“The challenge is daunting and the task is tough,” said Mr Murthy in a candid address to shareholders at the 32nd Annual General Meeting here, two weeks after he was made Executive Chairman of Infosys which has reported poor earnings, disappointing investors.
He said: “The task of rebuilding a desirable Infosys will take at least 36 months, even with a high quality team and full dedication of every Infoscion. In the process, there will be some tough decisions resulting in pain as we move forward.” Mr Murthy sought the shareholders’ “understanding, support and encouragement in this exciting and rewarding journey of the next three years.”
Mr Murthy, who had shed executive role seven years ago and retired as the head of Infosys in August 2011, was made Executive Chairman on 1 June, replacing Mr K V Kamath during whose tenure the company shares slumped 15 per cent.
Mr Murthy, who surprised many by bringing his son Rohan Murthy as his executive assistant, said since the company’s focus on the third revenue stream was blurred in the last two years, it has to refocus on winning large revenue-yielding outsourcing projects in the short-term. The company should also ensure that it accelerates its progress in the first two streams in the medium to long term.
The first two revenue streams talks about focus on opportunities from consulting-led, end-to-end solutions leveraging technology for higher margins and developing intellectual property-based solutions to delink revenues from effort, he said.
“Such extra focus on commoditised businesses has the potential to accelerate our revenue growth while reducing our margins. I want you all to be aware of the downslide.”
He added that the current discussion on the new immigration bill in the US was both an opportunity for innovation and a challenge for growth and he would like every Infoscion to see this as an opportunity.

AFSPA revocation
Budgam (J-K), 15 June: The Jammu and Kashmir government’s demand for revocation of the controversial AFSPA is being discussed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi said today. Mr Abdullah has been pitching for revoking the controversial law from certain areas of the state where the Army does not operate. However, his efforts have so far met stiff resistance from the Army. pti
Telangana bandh
Hyderabad, 15 June: A day-long bandh began this morning in Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh in response to a call given by the TRS, which accused the state government of resorting to repressive measures to put down yesterday&’s statehood rally. pti
Irom Sharmila 
IMPHAL, 15 JUNE: Irom Chanu Sharmila feels that the implementation of an Inner Line Permit System is a must in the state to safeguard the future of the indigenous people of Manipur. Speaking to the media yesterday, Sharmila, who has been on a years-long hunger strike demanding the revocation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, said unrestrained influx of non-locals is a major threat to the identity of indigenous Manipuris. sns
Drifting vessel
MUMBAI, 15 JUNE: The Directorate General of Shipping, today said Pratibha Tapi, one of the two vessels of the financially distressed Pratibha Shipping is drifting towards the coast and an emergency towing vessel has been requisitioned to take care of any situation. pti
Media credibility
LUCKNOW, 15 JUNE: Vice President M Hamid Ansari on Saturday expressed concern over certain media-related developments which were posing a threat to its objectivity and credibility. He said these developments related to cross-media ownership, the phenomenon of paid news, declining role of editors and their editorial freedom, media ethics and the lack of effective self regulatory mechanisms as also the need to bring an improvement in the working conditions of media personnel and their safety. He was speaking at the inaugural function of the biennial session of the National Union of Journalists at Hathras. sns
School destroyed
JAMUI, 15 JUNE: Maoists triggered a blast in a school building in Bihar’s Jamui district, damaging the structure. A group of Maoists stormed the government school last night and detonated explosives in the building damaging it totally, Superintendent of Police, Mr Deepak Barnwal said. They attacked the school building apparently in retaliation to intensified operations by the security forces against them, he said. A case has been registered in this connection and raids were being carried out to nab the ultras, Mr Barnwal said. pti
 

press trust of india
BIRMINGHAM, 15 JUNE: Title favourites India produced yet another clinical performance as they outplayed arch-rivals Pakistan by eight wickets in a high-voltage group league encounter of the ICC Champions Trophy here today.
In a match marred by numerous rain-interruptions, Pakistan were bundled out for 165 in 39.4 overs due to a disciplined effort by the Indian bowling unit led by Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who finished with figures of two for 19.
India’s final revised target courtesy D/L method was 102 in 22 overs which they achieved with 17 balls to spare as Shikhar Dhawan again blazed his way to a 41-ball-48.
India thus finished their group league engagements with an all-win record.
Winning the ‘prestige battle’ against Pakistan will certainly be a big morale-booster for Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men as they await their semi-final opponents whom they will take on in the second semi-final in Cardiff on 20 June.
The win was also India’s first in the Champions Trophy against Pakistan, having lost against the same opponents in the 2004 and 2009 editions of the tournament.
With the game frequently delayed by intermittent rain, India never lost sight of the target as the openers Dhawan and Rohit Sharma (18) again gave a solid start adding 58 runs for the opening stand.
On an Edgbaston wicket where the Pakistan new ball bowlers, Junaid Khan and Mohammad Irfan, bent their back and extracted some pace and bounce, the batsmen looked quite at ease.
With rains looming on the horizon, the Indians were virtually racing along, scoring 45 in the mandatory powerplay of eight overs.
While Rohit was a bit subdued, Dhawan was in punishing mood, as he repeatedly peppered the off-side field. He twice slapped Junaid in the arc between point and extra-cover.
 Dhawan hit five boundaries and just when a half-century was there for the taking, the Delhi lad slashed hard at one from Wahab Riaz to be caught at the deep third-man boundary.
However, Virat Kohli (22 no) and Dinesh Karthik (11 no) ensured that there were no hiccups in the chase. The rain probably spared Pakistan a bigger humiliation.
 Earlier, India’s bowling quartet of Bhuvneshwar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Ishant Sharma shared the bulk of the spoils as they never really let Pakistan batsmen off the hook.
Spin twins Ravindra Jadeja (2/30 in 8 overs)and Ravichandran Ashwin (2/35 in 8 overs) kept the Pakistan batsmen on a leash during the middle overs after a brilliant opening spell by Bhuvneshwar, who again produced the goods upfront.
While Asad Shafiq (41) was the top-scorer for Pakistan, a lot of their batsmen got starts but were unable to convert them into substancial scores due to some impressive bowling. The bowlers picked up wickets at regular intervals as Pakistan’s woeful show with the bat continued. The top-order again saw a familiar collapse.
Nasir Jamshed, who has scored all his three ODI centuries against India, failed to reproduce his magic this time.
The left-handed opener was circumspect and enjoyed a lifeline when on one. Ruled out leg before by umpire Richard Kettleborough, the batsman was saved by the DRS.
 However, his innings was soon cut short by a beauty from Bhuvneshwar.
 Bhuvneswar Kumar got the ball to swing both ways and found the edge of Jamshed’s tentative prod which saw Suresh Raina complete an easy catch at second slip. Jamshed scored just two runs off nine balls.
India captain Mehndra Singh Dhoni was all praise for young Bhuvneshwar Kumar whose brilliant spell of eight overs set the tone for India’s facile eight-wicket victory over arhc-rivals Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy here today.
“He (Bhuvneshwar) is not someone who is very quick but he bowls in very good areas. In these conditions, he used the new ball well as he can swing the ball both ways,” Dhoni said at the post-match presentation ceremony. India’s middle-order hasn’t been tested in the three matches so far but Dhoni said that it is not of great concern.
“We have a settled middle-order consisting of myself, Raina (Suresh) and Jadeja (Ravindra). We have played a lot of matches and only thing that we need is for Raina to get some more practice at the nets. Also the middle-order got a fair outing during the two warm-up games.”

agence france-presse
CARDIFF, 15 JUNE: England limited overs coach Ashley Giles has denied his players tampered with the ball following controversial allegations by former captain Bob Willis.
Willis told Sky Sports on Friday that Pakistan umpire Aleem Dar and New Zealand&’s Billy Bowden had ordered the ball to be changed when Sri Lanka were batting during their seven-wicket Champions Trophy win over England at The Oval on Thursday because it had been tampered with.
"Let’s not beat about the bush ~ Aleem Dar is on England’s case. He knows that one individual is scratching the ball for England – who I am not going to name ~ and that’s why the ball was changed," Willis said.
But ex-England spinner Giles, speaking ahead of his side’s key Champions Trophy match against New Zealand in Cardiff on Sunday, said: “We don’t tamper with the ball.”
“With the situation the other day, the ball was changed because it had gone out of shape. We asked the question, the captain (Alastair Cook) asked that question to the umpires which he has a right to. The ball was changed, the rest is history.” Giles added: "The most important thing is winning cricket matches and not what Bob Willis says."
Reports in the British media have highlighted the role of Ravi Bopara in polishing the ball, a legitimate tactic, but Giles said the Essex all-rounder, who has starred with the bat in this tournament, had been selected for his cricket ability. "There’s even mention of one of our player’s (Bopara’s) specific role and that player is an extremely good cricketer. He has had an extremely good series so far and we’d like to let him concentrate on playing his cricket."
After England’s tournament-opening win over defending champions Australia at Edgbaston, Australia&’s stand-in captain George Bailey said he was "very surprised" by the speed with which Giles’s side got the ball to reverse.
However, Giles insisted on Saturday that an abrasive pitch at Edgbaston had played a key role in aiding England’s use of reverse-swing against Australia.
Prior to the Champions Trophy, New Zealand beat Giles’s men 2-1 in a one-day series in England. New Zealand coach Mike Hesson said on Saturday that he had seen nothing untoward during the recent home and away matches against England. "We played them in New Zealand and there were very abrasive surfaces. There was always going to be an element of reverse swing."
Asked if England achieved reverse swing by legitimate means, Hesson replied: "I’ve got no idea how they achieve reverse swing and that’s not my responsibility. The umpires are there to do a job and if they think something is done out of the ordinary then they will deal with it. From what I understand, they changed the ball the other day because it was out of shape."
On Thursday, Sri Lanka were 119 for two at the halfway stage of their reply to England’s seemingly imposing 293 for seven when the ball was changed.
The replacement ball moved little and Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara went on to complete a match-winning hundred.
Afterwards, Cook said: "The ball was changed because it was out of shape. The umpires make these decisions and you have to accept them. Sometimes you don’t think they are the right decisions."
Officials of the England-Sri Lanka match didn’t impose a penalty and the ICC explained, that as the umpires hadn’t reported anything and no team had complained, they were not planning to take any action.

KOLKATA, 14 June: Nearly three years have passed since the Trinamul Congress board took control of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), but nothing has been done as yet to improve the condition of the maternity homes.
After the new civic board came to power, the KMC authorities announced  in June 2010 that every maternity home will have ambulance facility and the residential medical officers would be present at the hospitals. Also, steps would be taken to  increase the number of beds and  introduce caesarian operation facility.
After three years none of the promises has been kept. The ambulance facility has not been introduced as senior officials felt  it was not needed to keep ambulances at the hospitals as almost every social welfare club has them these days and most of the ambulance services are open for 24 hours. No step has been taken to upgrade the maternity homes and increase the number of seats.
There are 100 seats in KMC’s four maternity homes. Kidderpore maternity home has 40 seats, which is highest among the maternity homes followed by north Kolkata, Champamoni and Garden Reach, each having 20 seats. 
The Champamoni maternity home which stands on 20 cottahs of land was inaugurated by then then chief minister of  West Bengal Dr BC Roy. The maternity home looks like a haunted house after dusk with no lights in most  of the rooms. As there is no facility for caesarean operation,  women prefer to go to state run hospitals.  sns

statesman news service 
KOLKATA, 14 JUNE: Doctors at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital have virtually brought a pregnant woman out from the jaws of death who suffered two cardiac arrests within a gap of few seconds and was put on ventilator support, although the stillborn couldn’t be saved. 
A resident of Basirhat, Mrs Pieu Chakraborty (25), in an advanced stage of pregnancy was admitted to the gynaecology ward of the hospital on 7 June after she complained of uneasiness. 
She was brought to the hospital after local doctors failed to cure her. It was found after tests that she was suffering from Peripartum Cardiomyopathy (a rare disease in pregnancy causing deterioration in cardiac function) and pregnancy- induced hypertension, said doctors who treated her. 
“The woman suffered the first cardiac arrest on the same day of admission and was immediately rushed to the Intensive Therapy Unit. But she suffered second cardiac attack on the way to the emergency ward,” said Dr Sugata Dasgupta, the critical care specialist at RG Kar.   
“We found that the patient was affected with pneumonia, lung failure and drop in oxygen which resulted in cardiac arrests. It was difficult to treat her because supporting the diseased lungs, diseased heart and dysfunctional brain after two cardiac arrests is very difficult, especially where the woman is pregnant,” Dr Dasgupta said. 
“The doctors and the staff did a remarkable job by pumping her heart while shifting her to the emergency building located at a distance from the ward where she was shifted. A delay of five minutes and any carelessness by the doctors attending her could have been risky,” he added.  
Terming her survival as a miracle, the doctors admitted that such instances are rare in  government hospitals due to lack of infrastructure. 
We saved the mother but couldn’t save the premature child but she can become pregnant again and enjoy her motherhood.  

bappaditya paul
KOLKATA, 14 JUNE: The N S C Bose International Airport in the city has registered a significant drop in passenger and freight movement in the just concluded 2012-13 fiscal year ending March.
This at a time when the airport has recently thrown open a Rs 2,325-crore new passenger terminal with an installed capacity to handle 20 million (two crore) passengers per annum.  
Airport insiders are blaming the overall slump in the country’s economy and also lack of any major industrial activity in West Bengal for the decline. 
According to data fetched from the Airports Authority of India (AAI) headquarters in New Delhi, in 2012-13, Kolkata airport handled a little over 1.01 crore passengers compared to 1.03 crore passengers the previous year. The net decline in this case is about 1.34 lakh passengers. Similarly, freight movement has dropped from a little over 1.25-lakh metric ton (MT) in 2011-12 to 1.22-lakh MT in 2012-13.
The net dip is of about 3,361 MT. What is cause for worry for the airport management is that the downfall in freight movement has been a recurrent phenomenon since 2010-11 and the drop in freight movement in the past three years has been around 7,727 MT.  As regards passenger movement, the decline has been on account of domestic passengers going down by around 2.21 lakh.
Interestingly, in contrast the number of international fliers has gone up by around 87,000 thus compensating for the overall drop to a limited extent. This despite Kolkata airport offering less number of direct flights to foreign destinations.
 “It appears that for domestic travel people these days are preferring trains to flights and this could be because of the overall drop in the country’s GDP, which has a direct bearing on the people’s purchasing power. Besides, you have to consider the absence of major industrial activity in Bengal that robs us business travellers,” said a senior AAI official. For the dip in freight movement, officials are pointing out a year-after-year decline in air exports from Kolkata.
"The decline in exports to Bangladesh is  prime amongst them. It could be Bangladesh’s ever-improving direct air connectivity with major production hubs across the world and also due to a rise in surface movement of cargo from countries such as Nepal and Bhutan,” an official overseeing the cargo operations said.  Exports from Kolkata mainly include readymade garments, raw leather, leather goods, handicrafts and perishables. They are sent primarily to the UK, USA, Italy, Germany and West Asia. Imports are dominated by electronics ~ both finished items and spares ~ telecommunications apparatus, machinery, industrial tools and silk. They mostly come from China.   In view of the under-utilisation of Kolkata airport’s cargo handling capacity, which is now stagnant at 20 per cent, the AAI chairman, Mr V P Agarwal, had on 29 May said that they were contemplating a concession on landing charges for cargo aircraft flying into Kolkata. The move is aimed at encouraging more airlines to operate cargo flights from and to Kolkata.

press trust of india
Birmingham, 14 June: The result would only be of academic interest but it is unlikely to be just another encounter when traditional foes India and Pakistan take on each other in their final Group B match of the Champions Trophy here tomorrow.
Like all the other times they have clashed in the history of the game,  the immediate context of the tournament will be irrelevant at Edgbaston tomorrow. With India already in the semi-final stage and Pakistan out of the competition, the last group B league fixture of the ICC Champions Trophy cannot influence the outcome of the tournament. However, when the Champions Trophy tickets went online for sale in April this year, it took all of 30 minutes for the allocated tickets to be lapped up. The insatiable demand from Indian and Pakistani fans will mean tomorrow’s game will be more than a dead rubber. Birmingham is the second most populous city outside of London in the UK. The city is home to a chunky mass of Asian expats whose voracious appetite for cricket has always seen Edgbaston wearing its prettiest frock when India and Pakistan play.
At least 90 per cent of the 25,000 capacity crowd is expected to be divided between the sub-continental cricket giants.
There are many ways to look at any India versus Pakistan clash. From an emotional standpoint, supporters of both teams will have a tumultuous ride, but the final equation will be determined by how the players ultimately perform in the middle.
Like any such battle where mind and matter go hand in hand, tomorrow’s contest will be unique as it will test both skill and mental toughness of the players. With nothing to lose, Pakistan can be a dangerous enemy.
The agony of crashing out of the Champions Trophy after two horrible performances against West Indies and South Africa will be instantly forgotten if Pakistan can beat India, the reigning World Cup champions and the No. 1 ODI team according to the ICC rankings. Champions Trophy history is, of course, siding with Pakistan. They have never lost to India in six editions of this event. Pakistan’s first win in this tournament came at Edgbaston in September, 2004. Chasing 201 for a win, Mohammad Yousuf (then known as Yousuf Youhana) scored an unbeaten 81 to anchor Pakistan to a three-wicket victory with four balls to spare.
In head-to-head, Pakistan made it 2-0 against India in the Champions Trophy with a 54-run win at the Supersport Park in Centurion in September 2009.
Shoaib Malik scored a 126-ball 128 to give Pakistan’s experienced bowling attack 302 runs to defend.
Two run outs ~ Gautam Gambhir (57) and Rahul Dravid (76) ~ doomed India.
Suresh Raina’s 46 went in vain as Mohammed Amir, Naved-ul-Hasan, Saaed Ajmal and Shahid Afridi picked up two wickets apiece to consign India to a big defeat.
Purely on form, India have a good chance to pull one back on Pakistan this time. A win will take India to the top of group B with six full points and they will travel to Cardiff to play the No. 2 team in group A.
India opened their Champions Trophy campaign against South Africa in Cardiff with a 26-run victory on 6 June. Like most encounters between the arch-rivals, tomorrow’s match will be a clash between Pakistan’s bowlers and India’s batsmen.
With rain soaking Edgbaston on Wednesday and Thursday and the Sun playing hide and seek, conditions may not be ideal for high scores. But India will back themselves largely because they have posted 300-plus scores thrice in four games, twice in warm-up matches. The toss, therefore, will be crucial as the team batting second will have the advantage of pacing its innings according to the circumstances. Both India and Pakistan have sound knowledge of the Edgbaston wicket. Riding on hundreds from Virat Kohli and Dinesh Karthik, India chased down 333 with consummate ease here in a warm-up match against Sri Lanka on 1 June.  Pakistan, on the other hand, were shot out for 167, chasing South Africa’s 234 for nine in a group league game on 10 June.
Pakistan’s batting has been a serious worry for them in this tournament. The absence of a grafter in the top-order has exposed the brittle middle-order too soon. Except opener Nasir Jamshed and skipper Misbah-ul-Haq, none of the batsmen have fired. Mohammed Hafeez and Malik’s poor run with the bat has hit Pakistan hard.
India’s batting remains their biggest strength. The opening combination of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan has worked like magic.
Against quality pace attacks, especially against a South African pace quartet, the duo put on 100-plus stands that gave set up the middle-order to control the innings.
Dhawan has been outstanding with back-to-back centuries. The last time the teams met, Pakistan surprised hosts India 2-1 in a short series in December 2012-January 2013.
The left-handed Jamshed made it a memorable tour with back-to-back-hundreds at Chepauk and Eden Gardens. In another development, former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has described most of the members in the Pakistan national team as  being “mentally disturbed”.
Teams (from): India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt), Ravichandran Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, Ravindra Jadeja, Dinesh Karthik, Virat Kohli, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Amit Mishra, Irfan Pathan, Suresh Raina, Ishant Sharma, Rohit Sharma, Murali Vijay, Vinay Kumar, Umesh Yadav.
Pakistan: Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Nasir Jamshed, Mohammad Hafeez, Imran Farhat, Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Asad Shafiq, Saeed Ajmal, Junaid Khan, M. Irfan, Asad Ali, Wahab Riaz, Umer Amin, Abdul Rehman, Ehsan Adil.
PCB chief
Former Pakistan captain Majid Khan and senior bureaucrat Khalid Mahmood have emerged as front-runners for the post of PCB chief after Zaka Ashraf’s suspension was upheld by the Islamabad High Court.

Birmingham, 14 June: Even though the result would only be of academic interest, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni today termed their face-off with arch-rivals Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy an “important” game but said that his team would not be under any added pressure.
“I think it’s an important match. It doesn’t matter which side you are playing, because all international sides are good enough; so there is no real point in taking any added pressure,” Dhoni said on the eve of the match. 
While admitting all India-Pakistan matches were big games, Dhoni said it would be suicidal to take extra pressure. “All international sides are good and packed with good fast bowlers. Pakistan also have good spinners in (Saeed) Ajmal and (Mohammed) Hafeez. We will not change our approach,” he said.
Dhoni also commended India’s batting muscle ahead of the eagerly-awaited match, saying they “don’t need 100-plus opening stands” every time.
“Well, I think we are a side that relies quite a bit on a good start.  That doesn’t really mean that we always need a hundred-plus opening partnership,” he said.
Misbah&’s take
Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq reckons tomorrow’s Champions Trophy contest against India here will be “one last chance to prove ourselves” in front of
the world. pti

press trust of india
Cardiff, 14 June: Kieron Pollard’s wicket at a crucial juncture proved to be the difference as South Africa managed to secure a semi-final berth ~ by virtue of having a better  run-rate than their rivals ~ despite their Champions Trophy Group ‘B’ match  against the West Indies ending in a tie under the Duckworth/Lewis method, here today. Chasing an imposing 231-run target to win in 31 overs in the rain-curtailed match, West Indies were 190 for six after 26.1 overs when the heavens opened up once again to bring an early end to the decisive game at Sophia Gardens.
Had Pollard not got out after scoring a 23-ball 28, the par for the West Indies would have been 187 for five under the D/L method. But the hard-hitting batsman was dismissed by Ryan McLaren just before rain intervened, dashing West Indies’ hopes of earning a semi-final berth.
South Africa ended with three points from as many matches while the West Indies also finished with the same tally but the Proteas advanced to the knockout stage on account of a better net run-rate. India are the other team to have qualified from Group B after finishing their league engagements with four points.
Marlon Samuels hit a 52-ball 48 to put the  Windies in contention ~ after they were reduced to 87/3 ~ before Dale Steyn removed him to dent their hopes.
Earlier, opener Colin Ingram struck a fluent half-century while David Miller played an unbeaten cameo of 38 as South Africa posted a formidable 230 for six. South Africa’s fifth-wicket pair of Miller and Faf du Plessis (32-ball 35) put on display some sensational strokeplay at the business end of the innings and added 68 runs in just 48 deliveries to put their side in the driver’s seat. From 153 for four in the 23rd over, both took their side to 221 for five as the last five overs yielded 52 runs for the Proteas. Miller’s unbeaten knock of 38 was laced with three huge sixes and a four while Du Plessis decorated his useful innings with three fours and a six. Ingram hit 63-ball 73 laced with six fours and two sixes as South Africa were invited to bat first under overcast conditions. The match started three hours and 15 minutes late due to inclement weather.

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MELBOURNE/LONDON 14 June:  The punishment has been handed out but Cricket Australia Chief Executive Officer James Sutherland remains livid with David Warner (in photo, right), saying the opener&’s bar-room brawl during the Champions Trophy was “despicable” and his public apology for the incident counts for little.
“David Warner has done a despicable thing,” Sutherland told reporters in Brisbane.
“But I also hold the team to account here. There were other people there with him and those that were there need to take responsibility for that, but so does the team as a whole and the team management group as a whole,” he said.
Sutherland said the team management was also to be blamed for the incident.
“There is no place for violence anywhere and I’m extremely disappointed with this . I’m extremely disappointed in him and I have told him that … There were certain things that led to this situation that happened, as I understand it, at 2.30 in the morning,” he said.
“There&’s not a lot of good that happens at 2.30 in the morning in a pub or a nightclub. I believe that the team as a whole and the people who were around him at the time also need to take responsibility for what happened.”
Michael Clarke (in photo, left), who accompanied Warner to the press conference where he issued a public apology, urged him to watch his conduct.
“Although the punishment for David is quite harsh, that&’s the reality when you play for the Australian cricket team,” Clarke said. “This is not an IPL team, this is not state cricket, it&’s not county cricket, when you play for Australia there are standards you have to uphold,” he added as a stern warning.