Times Chennai Epaper, April 09, 2009

VOL: 2 ISSUE 64

April 09, 2009

Moorthy takes a dig at Baalu Chennai, April 09:Former Union Minister and PMK Sriperumbudur candidate' A K Moorthy' today took a dig at his rival DMK candidate and Union Minister' T R Baalu' for having shifted his seat from South Chennai, which he had represented four times as MP, saying he (Mr Baalu) did not have

implemented any useful scheme for them. In the same vein, he called Mr Baalu's bluff on having implemented Rs 56,000 crore worth schemes in Tamil Nadu. The then Union Minister' Dayanidhi Maran' had requested

taken possession of 55,000 acre of land after throwing out some 1.25 lakh people, Mr Moorthy claimed. The PMK leader then held an agitation following which the proposal was dropped. On Tamil Nadu Chief Minister' M

any faith in the people of his constituency. Addressing a rally here, Mr Moorthy alleged though people of S o u t h C h e n n a i Constituency placed their trust and voted for Mr Baalu, a three-time Union Minister, he had not

PMK Founder-Leader' S Ramadoss' to stop Mr Baalu' from inking an agreement with a Malayasian firm for setting up a satellite township for Chennai. Under the p r o p o s a l , t h e government would have

Karunanidhi's' claim saying the laying of foundation stone marked the fulfillment of a longpending dream for the Chennai Central-Egmore Link Project, he said till now no step had been taken to complete the project. ''When he has not

Police studying Vaiko's speech: City Police Commissioner Chennai, April 09 : The police is studying the speech made by Marumalarchi DMK (MDMK) general secretary Vaiko for his alleged remarks that ''India would not remain one country'' if Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa did not stop the war against Tamils in the island nation. ''We are studying his speech,'' City Police Commissioner K Radhakrishnan told UNI, when asked whether the police was contemplating any action against Mr Vaiko for his speech made y e s t e r d a y, w h i l e addressing a protest demonstration against the Lankan government. M r Va i k o h a d made the remarks, while sharing platform with Pattali Makkal Katchi

(PMK) founder-leader S Ramadoss, CPI state secretary D Pandian, BJP leader Su Thirunavukarasar and Ta m i l N a t i o n a l i s t Movement leader P Nedumaran in the protest demonstration organised by the Sri Lankan Tamils Protection Committee, an umbrella organisation of various poltical parties to espouse the cause of Lankan Tamils. The City Police Commissioner said the police has not received any complaint with regard to Mr Vaiko's speech. H o w e v e r, sources said the police, in the absence of any complaint, could suo motu initiate action against him as ''the offence is cognizable in

nature.'' If at all police take action, Mr Vaiko could be booked under s e c t i o n s 1 2 4 (a)(sedition), 125 (waging war against a friendly government), 153 (a) (offences against public tranquility) of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and under the provisions of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. Mr Vaiko was earlier arrested on charges of sedition on October 21 last year for supporting the outlawed LTTE, while addressing a party function in the city. After being in jail for 14 days, he was released as police did not press for his remand extension. -Agencies

been able to complete this project, how will he bring Metro Rail Project to Chennai?'' Mr Moorthy asked. Recalling several projects had c o m e u p i n Sriperumbudur during the reign of AIADMK General Secretary and Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, he said the previous BJP Government at the Centre allocated funds for the golden

quadrilateral project under which work had been going on for the last five years. Land for the project ''was acquired at low rates.'' Mr Moorthy said if he was elected, he would ensure 50 per cent of the jobs here in the consituency were given to local educated unemployed and balance for those from other districts. He promised to provide education allowance of Rs 500 a

month to the children of those who gave lands for the project and also employment on completing studies. Mr Moorthy said he had been representing C h e n g a l p a t t u Constituency in Parliament for ten years during which tenure 74 works were completed at a cost of Rs 22 crore. Due to delimitation, he was standing here. -Agencies

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Times Chennai E-Paper

AIADMK inks poll pact with MDMK, announces candidates Chennai, April 09 : Ending the nearly fortnight long suspense and behind the scene parleys, the Opposition AIADMK today finalised the seat-sharing deal with its principal ally, the MDMK, and released the list of candidates for the 23 seats it would be contesting in the May 13 Lok Sabha polls in Tamil Nadu. The agreement, under which the MDMK has been allotted four Lok Sabha seats, was inked by AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa and MDMK General Secretary Vaiko this morning. A joint statement issued by both the leaders said, the MDMK would contest from Virudhunagar, Thanjavur, Erode and Nilgiris (Reserved) constituencies. The clinching of the deal after hectic parleys and mediation by alliance party leaders, marked the culmination of the seat sharing agreement in AIADMK-led front. The AIADMK, heading the Third Front in the state, would contest 23 seats. It had allotted seven seats to PMK, which had renewed its ties after a gap of eight years, and three seats each to the two Left parties-- the CPI and the CPI(M). There was considerable delay in finalising the pact as the MDMK, which had initially asked for eight seats, one seat more than seven seats given to PMK, refused to scale down its demand. However, when the AIADMK suggested that it could allot only two seats, Mr Vaiko believed to have insisted that it be allotted atleast five seats, one more than it had contested in the 2004 Lok Sabha polls. F i n a l l y, t h e AIADMK made it clear that it could give only four seats. Till the eleventh hour, Mr Vaiko had demanded that the party be allotted one more seat, but the AIADMK turned down the request, party sources said. The MDMK, which was in the DMK-led DPA during the 2004 Lok Sabha polls, quit the DMK front, prior to the 2006 Assembly elections, after differences with the DMK leadership, over allottment of seats and joined the AIADMK-led front. The AIADMK would contest from Tiruvallur (Reserved), South Chennai, Central Chennai, Kancheepuram ( R e s e r v e d ) , Ve l l o r e , Krishnagiri, Arni, Villuppuram (Reserved), Salem, Namakkal, Ti r u p p u r, P o l l a c h i , Dindugul, Karur, Trichy, Perambalur, Cuddalore, Mayiladuthurai, Sivaganga, Theni, Ramanathapuram, Tuticorin and Tirunelveli. Ms Jayalalithaa, after

clinching the muchawaited deal with the MDMK, wasted no time in releasing her party candidates list and her month-long campaign trail, beginning from April 16 in the city. She would extensively cover all the constituencies, starting from Southern Tirunelveli on April 18 before culminating her electioneering on May 10 in the city. There were no surprises in the candidates list, which, however, figure several new names. W h i l e nominating old faces for the constituencies coming under the southern districts, the party has nominated two women candidates N a m m k a l district women's Wing s e c r e t a r y V Va i r a m Thamizharasi from Namakkal and Former Assembly Speaker P H Pandian's wife Dr Cynthia Pandian from Tuticorin. Former minister S Raja Kannappan, who had recently quit the ruling DMK and joined the AIADMK, was rewarded with a ticket. The AIADMK strongman would contest from his favourite Sivaganga constituency. A few former state ministers and exRajya Sabha members figure among the list of candidates. Former Union Minister and party's propaganda s e c r e t a r y M Thambidurai, MLA, would contest from Karur, while former Rajya Sabha members O S Manian and star speaker and film comedian S S Chandran would contest from Mayiladuthurai and Central Chennai respectively. S h e a l s o nominated former Rajya Sabha member Thanga Ta m i z h s e l v a n f r o m Theni. Mr Tamizhselvan, who had won from Andipatti in 2001 after Ms Jayalalithaa was disqualified from contesting the Assembly polls, had resigned his seat, paving way for the party supremo's victory in the subsequent bypolls. Ms Jayalalithaa rewarded him with a Rajya Sabha seat and has now nominated him for the Theni seat. Former state minister S Semmalai would contest from Salem, while senior leader and former MP V Sathiyamurthy from Ramanathapuram. Former DMK m i n i s t e r D r E Ramakrishnan, who had joined the AIADMK and won the 1991 Assembly e l e c t i o n f r o m Acharapakkam, would contest from the

Kancheepuram (Reserved) seat, former MLA C Sivasami from Tiruppur and former minister M C Sampath would contest from Cuddalore Following is the list of AIADMK candidates: R Rajan (Thiruvallur-Reserved), S Rajendran (South Chennai), S S Chandran (Central Chennai), Dr E R a m a k r i s h n a n (KancheepuramReserved), S K M P Vasu (Vellore), K Nanjegowda (Krishnagiri), N Subramanian (Arni), P Murugan (VilluppuramReserved), S Semmalai (Salem), Ms V Vairam Tamizharasi (Namakkal), C Sivasami (Tiruppur), K Sugumar (Pollachi), P Balasubramani ( D i n d i g u l ) , M Thambidurai (Karur), P Kumar (Tiruchirapalli), R P Marudhairaj (Perambalur), M C Sampath (Cuddalore), O S M a n i a n (Mayiladuthurai), R S Raja Kannappan (Sivaganga), Thanga Tamizhiselvan (Theni), V S a t h y a m u r t h y (Ramanathapuram), Ms Cynthia Pandian (Tuticorin) and K Annamalai (Tirunelveli).

Swamy flays Vaiko's comments Chennai, April 09: Janata party President Subramanian Swamy on Thursday criticised MDMK leader Vaiko's comments at a public meeting here, warning of a "bloodbath in Tamil Nadu if anything happened" to LTTE leader V Prabhakaran and demanded his detention under the National Security Act. In a party statement here, Mr. Swamy termed Vaiko's remarks on Wednesday as "highly objectionable, anti-national," and deserving legal action. Mr. Swamy said Prabhakaran was a "proclaimed offender" who was wanted in the R a j i v G a n d h i assassination case, and warning of a 'bloodbath' in Tamil Nadu if he was harmed amounted to "incitement of violence and disloyalty to the nation." Te r m i n g t h e statement made by Vaiko a s " o ff e n s i v e , " M r. Swamy urged the Chief Minister M Karunanidhi to initiate legal action against the MDMK leader and detain him under the NSA.

April 09, 2009

'Chennai Digestive Diseases Week 2009' begins Chennai, April 9 : More t h a n 5 0 Gastroenterologists from across the country arrived in the city as part of the 'Chennai Digestive Diseases Week 2009', which began here today. The event was organised by the Tamil Nadu chapter of Indian S o c i e t y o f Gastroenterology in association with World Gastroenterology Organisation (WGO). Organising Committee Chairman Dr K R Palaniswamy told reporters here that during the event, WGO President Dr Eamonn Quigley would deliver a

lecture on the impact of life style disorders and digestive health. The event would be formally inaugurated by the Tamil Nadu Governor Surjit Singh Barnala tomorrow. There would be a two-day training programme for the 50 specialists on the use of Endoscopic Ultra Sonogram (EUS). The main aim of the training programme was to educate the specialists on the use of the new technology which was practised on the diagnosis of Cancer of the Oesophagus, Brochogenic Carcinoma,

Gastric Cancer and Rectal Cancer. A live course on Endoscopic Ultra Sonography has also been organised from Apollo Hospitals to educate the specialists. The event would conclude with an International Continuing Medical Education programme that would have participation from international and Indian experts, discussing on the advances in Gastro Oesophageal Reflux Disorder, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), Diventicular diseases. -Agencies

DMDK ready to boycott polls on Tamils issue: Vijayakant Sivaganga, April 09: Actor-turned politician and founder of DMDK Vijayakant has said his party was ready to boycott the Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu on the Sri Lankan Tamil's issue, if the AIADMK and DMK also do so. "We are ready to boycott the elections on the Sri Lankan issue, but we need the support of the DMK and the

AIADMK," he said, at an election meeting here on Wednesday night. "When the Tamils are getting killed in Sri Lanka, the political parties in Tamil Nadu are holding alliance talks," Mr. Vijayakant, whose party is going it alone in the polls, said. He challenged the Congress, DMK and AIADMK to fight the elections alone.

Stating that he had faith only in the people, he asked the voters "do you have faith in me." The government, which was offering one KG rice for Rs one was not caring about the exhorbitant prices of other essential things, mainly water, cotton seed and animal feed. -Agencies

April 09, 2009

Times Chennai E-Paper

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Paramount to launch operations in Kolkata

Seeman pleads his detention under NSA be quashed Chennai, April 09: Tamil film Director Seeman, who was arrested under National Security Act (NSA) for openly supporting the banned LTTE and speaking against the unity and integrity of the country, today appeared before the Advisory Board and pleaded for quashing his detention under NSA. The director appeared before the Board

comprising Mr Justice M K Natarajan (Chairman), Mr Justice M Murugadas (Member) and Mr Justice S M Siddique (Member) and submitted that he had not committed any offence to attract charges under NSA. He told the Board that he had only offered moral support to the Sri Lankan Tamils and did not speak

anything against national integration. H e w a s produced before the board by Palayamkottai police, which arrested him under the NSA amid tight security. After Mr Seeman appeared before the Board, he was taken back and lodged in Puducherry prison. -Agencies

Chennai, April 09 Paramount Airways, India's first premium service, all business class airline is to launch its operations in Kolkata by end of this month. Paramount Airways Managing Director Thiagarajan recently met We s t B e n g a l C h i e f Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee to fly to Kolkata, is the gateway to North eastern operations. The Airways announced operations of daily flights along the Chennai-Kolkata sector and would also connect

Guwahati and Agartala, a release from the airlines said here today. Passengers flying from Kolkata will find it more convenient to travel to southern destinations, allowing them early access to connecting flights to Madurai, Coimbatore, Cochin, Trivandrum, Tiruchirapalli, Bangalore and Hyderabad. The flight from Chennai is set to take off at 0705 hrs and will arrive Kolkata at 0910 hrs thereafter proceeding to Guwahati and Agartala. The return flight will leave

Kolkata at 1325 hrs and will reach Chennai at 1530 hrs. Paramount Airways operates brand new e-jets along with all the trappings of luxurious seat recline, ample leg space between seats and an ethnic signature cuisine and this coupled with the airline's competitiveness has always ensured that it attracts discerning passengers. Paramount is now set to repeat its successful business model in the North eastern sector.

MDMK demands lifting of ban on LTTE

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Chennai, April 09 : The MDMK today demanded that the Indian government must lift the ban on Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and sought the Centre's intervention to bring about immediate ceasefire in Lanka. Adopting a resolution to this effect, the party's General Council, chaired by its General Secretary Vaiko, alleged that both the DMK government in Tamil Nadu and the C o n g r e s s l e d government at the Centre had cheated the Tamils in

Sri Lanka. The General Council, in another resolution, said separate Tamil Eelam was the only solution to the ethnic crisis in Sri Lanka and condemned the UPA government for miserably failing to find a solution to the crisis. The General Council also resolved to work for the victory of AIADMK led alliance in the May 13 Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. E a r l i e r , addressing the General Council, Mr Vaiko said

partymen should not bother about those who had quit the party and joined the ruling DMK recently. ''Let us not talk about those who had left us'', he said. After rebel leaders and party MPs L Ganesan and Gingee N Ramachandran, joined the DMK, after they were expelled from the party for their anti-party activities, two MLAs, party's Presidium Chairman M Kannappan and Cumbum N Ramakrishnan quit the party and joined the DMK and resigned their MLA seats.

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Times Chennai E-Paper

National

Don’t be over-confident: Advani tells cadre

Assam elections under shadow of terror Guwahati, April 09: The shadow of terror looms large over the elections in Assam with militants striking with a vengeance in the past one week, killing 11 people and wounding up to 100 more in a string of bombings and grenade attacks. There were four powerful explosions and three grenade attacks Monday in which eight people were killed. Two of the blasts were in Assam's main city Guwahati. "The wave of terror attacks would surely scare away people from actively taking part in electioneering and may even force people to keep away from voting," Akhil Ranjan Dutta, a political analyst and a teacher at Gauhati University, said. There is a general sense of fear and panic after the serial bombings and grenade attacks Monday in different parts of Assam. "A sense of insecurity haunts people and the situation is getting even more complicated with political parties politicising the terror attacks for electoral gains," said Dilip Chandan, editor

of Asom Bani, a mass circulation Assamese weekly. With no other issue of substance raised in this campaign so far, the opposition is going all out against the ruling Congress party over lack of security. Elections to Assam's 14 Lok Sabha seats are scheduled April 16 and 23. " T h e government has no moral right to continue in office and should resign. There is no security and the government has miserably failed," said Chandra Mohan Patowary, president of the main opposition Asom Gana Parishad (AGP). The role of the opposition, however, has come under attack from the civil society with views expressed that leaders were simply trying to whip up emotions rather than standing up in the war against terror. "This is not the time for loose statements and attempts to make political gains. In situations like terror, be it political parties or the civil

society, everybody must join hands to counter t e r r o r, " s a i d J a t i n Borgohain, another political analyst. But Borgohain did criticise the way Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi had handled the situation. "The chief minister said the state doesn't have enough security to guard every locality and such other things.... We want the chief minister to be a little more bold in his reactions," he said. The Congress, in turn, is asking why no other political party is coming out strongly against the perpetrators of terror. "Why is the opposition so scared to attack terror groups like t h e U L FA ( U n i t e d Liberation Front of Asom) who are involved in the recent attacks? We have not heard a single word from parties like the AGP speaking boldly against the ULFA," Assam Health Minister and government spokesperson Himanta Biswa Sarma said. -Agencies

Congress will contest around 440 seats: Jairam Ramesh New Delhi, April 09: A week before the Lok Sabha elections start, Congress strategist Jairam Ramesh has conceded it will be a "tough fight" although he is optimistic that his party will win again. Ramesh said his party would contest around 440 seats out of 543 seats as against 417 in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections. It won 145 seats the last time, while the party expects to better its performance this time. "It is a tough fight and no political party can predict the outcome. But we sure have an edge," Ramesh, who resigned as a central minister to take

charge of the party's election war room, said. He said there was "cautious optimism" in the Congress, which is trying to again emerge as a single largest party in the 545-seat Lok Sabha. R a m e s h admitted that the exit of the PMK from the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) was a serious setback. " We a r e seeking a mandate on the performance of our government, which implemented 85 percent of its promises in the previous manifesto," he said. But "Indian

elections are not fought on achievements alone", he quickly added. "There is a caste arithmetic that also has to be factored in." Asked how he would compare the previous Lok Sabha elections with the one set to start, Ramesh answered: "Security is an important issue now. "Then you don't have (former prime minister Atal Bihari) Vajpayee, who was like an umbrella figure (for the National Democratic Alliance allies), which (L.K.) Advani is not," he added. -Agencies

MP Sampark Kranti Express train derails; no casualties Faridabad, April 9: Three coaches of KhajurahoHazrat Nizamuddin express train derailed at Faridabad railway station in the wee hours on Thursday but there was no report of any casualty. The incident happened at 5:20 am. Though rail traffic was affected initially, Divisional

Railway Manager, Delhi, B D Garg, said. Rail traffic was briefly disrupted on the route The impact of derailment was minimised as the train was running at a slow speed, he said adding that senior railway officials have rushed to

April 09, 2009

the spot. The stranded passengers have been sent to Nizamuddin by other trains. The railways have opened helpline numbers: 01123455964 and 01134359748. -Agencies

Ahmedabad, April 09: BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate L K Advani today said that he sensed over confidence among party cadres and warned them that this could lead the same situation which resulted in the defeat of NDA in 2004 general elections. "After the defeat of the NDA in 2004 I was asked several times what was the reason behind it. The one reason I could give is that it was over confidence among party workers," Advani said while addressing partymen here on Wednesday night. "The party workers were over confident due to the good work done by the BJPled government at the Centre especially the Golden Quadrilateral and the Prime Minister rural road scheme projects," Advani said. "Today I see the same over confidence amongst party workers. This might end up making same mistakes which we did in 2004," he added.

"Four weeks ago, I was asked in an interview why do you think BJP will win in 2009, one reason I gave was that there was no over-confidence among party cadre this time. "This is what I had said four weeks ago. But today I won't say that. Today I am sensing over confidence, which has seeped in the last four weeks," the BJP leader said, adding that "I don't blame you for that. Even I am surprised at this development." He said that after the interview he was on election campaign in Maharashtra and Karnataka, where he addressed rallies in lesser known areas like Pandharpur, Sehwag, Delguri and Satara. " A l l t h e meetings with party workers in those areas were bigger than the BJP-Shiv Sena meeting in Shivaji Park in Mumbai," Advani said, adding that it gave him the confidence to think that the nation has decided to vote NDA to power.

"But, I just want to warn you that don't be under any false illusion. But at the same time there should not be decrease in the confidence," Advani told the gathering. "BJP should be the one to take India to the top. Victory for BJP is victory for India," he added. Advani also urged booth workers to ensure that there is a higher turnout on the day of election in the Gandhinagar constituency. "The micro management of the booth should be organised in such a manner that there is at least 60 per cent voting on the polling day. Last time in 2004 it was only 43 per cent," he said. Advani also urged the party workers to ensure that maximum number of women and first time voters cast their votes on April 30. He asked them to identify people in the constituency who are educated and well off but do not vote. "Try and bring them for voting. That would be a great help," Advani added. -Agencies

Solution to Babri issue only through dialogue: Kalyan Singh Aligarh (PTI): Kalyan Singh, who as BJP leader was a prominent member of the Ayodhya movement in the 90s, says a solution of the vexed issue cannot be enforced through laws but reached only through a dialogue between Hindus and Muslims. Singh, who recently aligned with the Samajwadi Party and has owned "moral responsibility" for the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992, said, "it is my firm conviction that any attempt to enforce a solution by enacting new laws without taking the sentiments of both s e c t i o n s i n t o consideration would only lead to further acrimony and bolster divisive forces in the country". In an interview to PTI, 77-year-old Singh, who parted ways with the BJP in the run-up to the general elections, says the "major realignment" of political forces that has taken place in north India will throw up "surprise results" that will be a "setback" to BSP and the BJP. Hitting out at the BJP, he said while it pledged to build the Ram

Temple, it was aware that many NDA allies were opposed to this move. The BJP has presented a "duplicate manifesto" and will finally veer around to moving on the NDA agenda. "The BJP is still raising sensitive issues including the false promise of building the Ram Temple but the people of the country are now asking as to what it has done for building the temple when it was in power in the Centre for more than six years," Singh said. "If this imbroglio is not resolved through negotiations, then the only way out for both the parties is to await a final decision of the Supreme Court on the matter," Singh said. Singh also attacked the saffron party for indulging in "divisive" politics by harping on controversial issues like abrogation of Article 370 and introduction of Common Civil Code. The former BJP vice president said, "the country is passing through a very challenging period and any attempt to inject divisive politics will only

be detrimental to its interests". Singh lashed out at the Mayawati government saying "the breakdown of law and order in the state, which is a result of overpowering influence of mafia, has led to a reign of terror in the state." For BJP, Singh said, "After facing an imminent rout in this general elections, the party would receive such a set back that it will take more than 20 years for it to dream of any sort of come back." Singh said his friendship with Mulayam Singh marks a major realignment of political forces in north India as it is based on the principal of fair and proportionate share for all sections of the s o c i e t y, i n c l u d i n g minorities, backward and tribals. He said the new alliance was fully committed to providing 33 percent reservation for women in all legislative bodies in the country as long as this measure also included adequate representation of women belonging to all underprivileged sections. -Agencies

April 09, 2009

World

Times Chennai E-Paper

5,000 clash with police in China: Rights group Beijing, April 09: About 5,000 villagers clashed with police in eastern China after laying siege to a coal mine blamed for damaging local farmlands, a human rights group said. The villagers had "surrounded and attacked" the coal mine in a rural county of Anhui province on Tuesday, the Hong Kong-based Information Centre for Human Rights and Democracy said in a press release. Police in Fengtai county confirmed the protest took place but said only about 1,000 people were involved and denied there was any clash with police. "They wanted the coal mine to stop operating in the villages because the lands have sunk due to the mining," a police officer who refused to give his name said.

"No conflict happened between police and the people." However, the human rights group, quoting local authorities, said the crowds fought with police, smashed up a police car and injured the county's vice chief, Ma Shiping. Residents say the Gubei coal mine has caused land subsidence that has affected 50,000 people in the area, with a total of 8,000 hectares (19,800 acres) suffering cave-ins, the rights group said. It said more than 1,000 paramilitary police had been sent to the area to restore calm and that local officials were trying to resolve the dispute, but that 5,000 people were still at the mine on Thursday. "Local leaders

and the coal mine have been holding meetings to resolve the issues raised by villagers these days, but we need time," the police officer said. He denied villagers were still gathered at the scene. China sees tens of thousands of protests or outbursts of violence e v e r y y e a r, o f t e n stemming from land d i s p u t e s o r dissatisfaction with local authorities. China's rulers are particularly concerned about unrest in 2009, which will see a string of sensitive anniversaries including 20 years since the Tiananmen massacre and 60 years since the founding of the communist republic. -Bureau Report

Georgia rules out revolution ahead of mass rallies Tbilisi, April 09: Georgia's Interior Minister said on Wednesday there would be no new revolution in the former Soviet state on the eve of mass opposition protests to demand the resignation of President Mikheil Saakashvili. The opposition plans to protest daily in the capital Tbilisi until Saakashvili quits, accusing him of an authoritarian streak that has stifled democratic reforms promised in the 2003 Rose Revolution that swept him to power. War with Russia last year, when Moscow crushed a Georgian assault on breakaway South Ossetia, has emboldened critics who argue Saakashvili, 41, has made too many mistakes to continue ruling until 2013. The West is watching closely for a possible repeat of a November 2007 crackdown, when police firing tear gas and rubber

bullets dispersed the last big demonstrations against Saakashvili. Interior Minister Va n o M e r a b i s h v i l i , considered the power behind the throne, said police would be tolerant p r o v i d e d t h e demonstrations remained peaceful. "There is no chance of a revolution in Georgia," he said. "It (the protest) cannot last for ever. The participants also have their own limits." "If there is no threat to the lives of the citizens, our tactic will be to not intervene or impede members of the protest in expressing their will freely," he said. "My position does not give me the liberty to exclude anything, but my mood tells me there will not be violence." Analysts say they have doubts about the unity of the opposition, its strength of

leadership and the level of support for it beyond Tbilisi. A protracted stand-off, they add, could play into the hands of hardliners. The authorities said last month they had uncovered a plot to o v e r t h r o w t h e government, arresting 10 men alleged to have links with the opposition and releasing secretly filmed video of them apparently buying weapons. The opposition accused the government of a smear campaign. The Interior Ministry said on Wednesday it had information the Russian military was reinforcing positions in South Ossetia near the de facto border with Georgia. R u s s i a ' s Interfax news agency quoted a Russian military official as saying troops were conducting exercises. -Agencies

Iran to decide on nuclear talks after reviewing offer Tehran, April 09: Iran will decide on the offer of nuclear talks made by the United States and five other world powers after reviewing the details, a senior adviser to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Thursday. "We will review it and then decide about it," Ali Akbar Javanfekr said. Wednesday's invitation to direct talks marked a major policy change in Washington, which suspects Iran's nuclear program has

military aims, a charge Tehran denies. The United States, Russia, China, France, Germany and Britain said in a statement they would ask European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana to invite Tehran to the talks to find "a diplomatic solution to this critical issue”. Breaking with past US policy of shunning direct talks with Iran, President Barack Obama's administration said the United States

would join in nuclear discussions with Iran from now on. "We strongly urge Iran to take advantage of this opportunity to engage seriously with all of us in a spirit of mutual respect," the six powers said after a meeting of senior diplomats in London. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the United States would be a "full participant" in major power talks with Iran. -Agencies

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Assume being on camping trip: Italian PM to quake victims L’Aquila, April 09: Gaffe-prone Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has reportedly asked the 28,000 people left homeless by Monday’s earthquake to assume being on a camping trip. Making the serious gaffe on German television station N-TV, Berlusconi said, “[The victims] have everything they need. They have medical care, hot food ... of course, their current lodgings are a bit temporary, but they should see it like a weekend of camping." The magnitude-

6.3 quake hit L'Aquila and several towns covering 230 square miles (600 square kilometres) in central Italy early Monday, killing 272 people, levelling buildings and reducing entire blocks to piles of rubble. It was the worst quake to hit Italy in three decades. According to the Guardian, Berlusconi's comment might have been aimed at reassuring the public as rescuers kept on searching for survivors in the midst of a powerful aftershock.

Berlusconi said in total 28,000 people had lost their homes in the earthquake, with 17,000 now living in tents and the rest in free hotel rooms or staying with family. The Italian Premier is famous for his v e r b a l g a ff e s , w h i c h include describing US President Barack Obama as "young, handsome and suntanned". He also hit headlines last week by making a number of diplomatic gaffes at the round of summits in the UK, France and Germany. -Agencies

Algerian Prez looks to third term in election Algiers, April 09: Algerians are looking largely with frustration or indifference toward a Presidential Election on Thursday set to hand Abdelaziz Bouteflika another five years at the helm of this US ally with vast gas reserves, s o a r i n g y o u t h unemployment and an active al Qaeda offshoot. The left-wing opposition, many Islamist leaders, and the chief of al Qaeda in Islamic North Africa have called for a boycott of the vote and predicted fraud. Bouteflika, who was first elected with the Army's backing in 1999 and again in 2004, enjoys support of all key government players. He faces five low-profile opponents, but none has successfully challenged his message of continuity and reconciliation after an insurgency that ravaged this North African country in the 1990s. The President, 72, had the Constitution changed last year so he could run again. There is so little suspense about the outcome that voter turnout is viewed as the key test of the election. Bouteflika's campaign has said that President wants 60

percent turnout, and has predicted he should win at least 75 percent of votes cast. National radio reported late Wednesday that participation was reaching about 75 percent in some of the election bureaus for nomads in the southern Sahara Desert, who started voting early because of the huge distances they have to cross on camel to cast their ballot. Elhaj Boualem, who sells fruits in the Casbah, the often-restive historic centre of the capital, Algiers, said he lost faith in voting since 1992, when authorities cancelled legislative elections that Islamists were poised to win. That sparked a cycle of bloodshed that killed up to an estimated 200,000 people over the ensuing decade. "I'll just cast a blank ballot," said Boualem. He said he was only voting because local authorities told him his housing application would be rejected if he couldn't produce a stamped voter's card. The President's program hinges on continuity. A m e d i a watchdog, meanwhile,

slammed the Algerian government for censoring three French magazines this week because they were deemed critical of Bouteflika. "This censorship is disgraceful," said the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders in a statement. "It constitutes a denial of press freedom and therefore a denial of democracy." During his campaign, Bouteflika repeatedly hinted that he could offer a blanket amnesty if the last militants from al Qaeda in Islamic North Africa renounce their near-daily ambushes or bombings and turn themselves in. Bouteflika's tenure has also seen a large investments in roads, dams, and housing, part of a USD 200 billion program funded through Algeria's large oil and natural gas exports. With most leading Islamists banned from politics in this overwhelmingly Muslim c o u n t r y, c a n d i d a t e s running against Bouteflika include one woman from a small, far-left party, two nationalists, and two relatively moderate Islamist-leaning politicians. -Agencies

Russia to build nuclear powered submarine in 2009 Severodvinsk, April 09: A Russian shipyard has been told to begin construction of a nuclearpowered strategic submarine this year, an official said. "Russia's Defence Ministry has ordered the shipyard to start construction of the fourth Borey class submarine this year," a Sevmash shipyard official told RIA Novosti Wednesday, adding that work could begin either in July or December.

The first Borey class submarine, the Yury Dolgoruky, will start sea trials in June. The vessel is 170 metres long, has a hull diameter of 13 metres, a crew of 107, including 55 officers, a maximum depth of 450 metres and a submerged speed of about 29 knots. It can carry up to 16 ballistic missiles and torpedoes. Two other Borey-class nuclear submarines, the

Alexander Nevsky and the Vladimir Monomakh, are currently under construction at the Sevmash shipyard and are expected to be completed in 2009 and 2011. Russia is planning to build eight of these submarines by 2015. All Borey class submarines will be equipped with new BulavaM ( S S - N X - 3 0 ) intercontinental ballistic missiles, which carry up to 10 nuclear warheads and have a range of 8,000 km. -Agencies

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Rupee recovers by 16 paise in late morning trade Mumbai, April 09: The Indian rupee on Thursday pared its early gains and fell to 50.02/03 a dollar in late morning deals due to volatile stock markets. Activity was at low ebb due to long weekend holidays, starting on Friday. The forex and money market will remain closed on April 10 on account of 'Good Friday'. In quite trade at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the domestic unit slipped below 50-level in opening trade, but later was quoted at 50.02 a dollar, down by five paise, against the US

currency from the overnight close of 50.18/19. The local unit recovered 16 paise against its previous close. It moved in a range of 49.95 and 50.07 per dollar. On Wednesday, it was down by 14 paise. Forex dealers said strong equity market in opening trade led to the recovery in the rupee. The Indian benchmark Sensex was up by 91 points or 0.85 per cent at 1015 hrs, but it declined by 86 points at 1030 hrs.

DoT to issue norms to check evasion of fees by operators

F o r e i g n Institutional Investors (FIIs) continued their buying spree and they pumped in USD 273.50 million in three trading session since April 1. Asian indices also exhibited a firm trend in their early trade due to overnight rally on Wall Street. Ta i w a n ' s weighted index was up by 3.52 per cent, Kospi by 2.92 per cent, Nikkei by 2.77 per cent, Straits Times by 2.02 per cent and Hang Seng by 1.95 per cent. -Agencies

L&T bags orders worth Rs 605 crore Mumbai, April 07: Engineering firm Larsen and Toubro on Thursday said it has bagged orders worth Rs 605 crore in the last quarter of FY'09 for engineering and construction related works. In a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange, L&T said its construction division would execute these contracts. L&T has bagged a Rs 165 crore order from the Andhra Pradesh government for supplying

p o t a b l e w a t e r. T h e project is to be completed in 15 months. Besides, it received Rs 133 crore order from the Delhi Jal Board for designing and laying pipelines. The project is scheduled to be completed in 21 months. Another order worth Rs 118 crore, it secured from Utkal Alumina International for designing and constructing raw water transmission pipeline at

their Alumina plant in Orissa. It is expected to be completed in 17 months. Further, L&T bagged a contract worth Rs 189 crore from SAIL-IISCO Steel plant for civil works in West Bengal, to be completed in 12 months. Shares of L&T were today trading at Rs 836, up 3.64 per cent on the BSE. -Agencies

Canadian firm defends use of Indian steel for oil pipeline to US Washington, April 10: A Canadian pipeline company has defended the use of India-made steel for an oil pipeline project in President Barack Obama's home state of Illinois after a protest rally by hundreds of steel workers. TransCanada said Wednesday that it was necessary to look to India for a large share of the pipe that is being used for the project that will transport Canadian oil to the US as an idled Illinois steel mill couldn't have supplied the pipe needed for it. A TransCanada spokesman told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that the US companies will supply about 30 percent of the pipe for the project but contended that the US Steel plant in Granite City, Illinois, was unable to produce pipe to the necessary specifications. The newspaper said around 500 protesters gathered outside the Granite City Works Tuesday to support "Buy

American" policies at a rally organised by United Steel Workers near a lot where the India-made pipe for the project was being stored. The protesters demanded that the 'Buy American' policy be also implemented for the 2,000-mile Canada-US oil pipeline that would bring crude oil from Alberta to the Wood River refinery complex. The protest came after the board of the local county unanimously passed a resolution at its regular meeting declaring that federal funds be used to promote goods and services made or performed by American citizens and companies. While there have been protests against the use of Chinese products in the US in the recent past, this is the first time that an Indian product has been targeted. Protesters

carried banners of 'Buy American' and 'Rebuild American Manufacturing' at the rally, held in the backdrop of a huge pile of steel pipes with 'Made in India' marks. The protesters called for an overhaul of state policy that has led to the dismantling of industrial base of in America and the loss of millions of jobs. The protests come hardly a week after the US joined the G-20 declaration to "name and shame" the countries r e s o r t i n g t o protectionism. In addition to India, TransCanada is using 11 other pipe suppliers, four from the US and two from Canada. The orders were made three years ago, when the US steel industry was near capacity and the world economy was growing. -Agencies

Sensex falls into negative territory on profit-taking Mumbai, April 09: After rising by nearly 190 points in opening trade, the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex declined by over 86 points at 1030 hrs owing to profitbooking at higher levels. The Sensex, which shot up by 189.78 points in early trade, was

down by 86.38 points to 10,655.96 at 1030 hrs with stocks of oil and gas, IT, FMCG and PSU sectors succumbing to profit-taking. Similarly, the National Stock Exchange index Nifty also fell by 35.90 points to 3,307.05. Stock brokers

April 09, 2009

Business

said ahead of tomorrow's holiday, major players preferred to book profits at every rise. The market will remain closed tomorrow on account of "Good Friday". -Agencies

New Delhi April 09: The Department of Telecom is in the process of working out new guidelines for revenue calculations of operators having multiple licences, including for Internet services, to check licence fee evasion. "There is a need of issuing guidelines to such service providers on apportioning the revenues earned from the Internet customers towards the usage of NLD network ...," said an internal DoT note. S o m e integrated players are

found to be showing lower revenues under licences on which they have to pay higher licence fee so that they end up paying lesser dues to the government, said a DoT official. T h e n e w guidelines will focus on segregation of cost and revunue of the operators in more strict manner, he said. Operators are required to pay six per cent of their income from long-distance services, while they do not have to pay any share of revenue earned from Internet services.

R e c e n t l y, t h e telecom ministry had found that Dishnet Wireless has not shown income earned from selling its NLD infrastructure to the ISP business division. A spokesperson of Dishnet Wireless said his company has abided by all the rules and regulation of the government. At present, operators having more than one licences — unified access (mobile and fixed), NLD, ILD and ISP — give the consolidated income of the group. -Agencies

Japan govt approves $154bn stimulus spending Tokyo, April 09: Japan's ruling party said on Thursday that it had approved record stimulus spending of about 154 billion dollars to resuscitate the recession-hit economy. Spending on the emergency economic measures should total some 15.4 trillion yen, the party's

policy board announced. In total the stimulus package will be worth more than 56.8 trillion yen (570 billion dollars) when nonspending steps such as loan guarantees for firms are included, the board said. Prime Minister Taro Aso is expected to unveil the package later

this week, before s u b m i t t i n g a supplementary budget to parliament for approval. The injection is the latest in a series of stimulus packages aimed at pulling the Japanese economy out of its worst slump since World War II. -Agencies

RIL's maiden gas delivery to NFL plant likely today New Delhi, April 09: Reliance Industries is likely to deliver natural gas from the nation's most prolific field to its first customer, Nagarjuna Fertiliser Ltd, on Thursday. RIL's eastern offshore KG-D6 field started producing gas on April 1 and the initial volumes were used for pressuring the pipeline and maintaining the minimum buffer in the line. "We have been told that gas will reach our plant at Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh in next couple of days...maybe even tomorrow," an NFL

official said. The NFL plant is just 60 km away from RIL's gas processing facility at Gagimoga near Kakinada. RIL is currently producing five million cubic meters per day of gas from Dhirubhai-1 and 3, the first two of the 18 gas fields in KG-D6 block. Output is expected to be ramped up to 40 mmcmd by July and to peak 80 mmcmd by next year. The company had last month signed gas sales and transportation contracts with 12 fertiliser companies.

"Fertiliser firms will pay RIL the rupee equivalent of $4.20 per million British thermal unit plus taxes and transportation," a Petroleum Ministry official said. "The exchange rate will be the average of rupee-dollar rate of the previous month. So, all the sales that will happen in April will be billed at the average of reference rate for March," he said. Of the 15.35 mmcmd gas distributed among 15 urea making plants of 12 fertiliser firms, NFL is to get 1.55 mmcmd. -Agencies

Idea launches GSM mobile services in Orissa Bhubaneswar, April 09: Expanding its national footprint, leading telecom operator, Idea Cellular on Wednesday launched its GSM mobile services in Orissa offering world class facilities covering over 2,200 towns and villages. Part of the Aditya Birla group, Idea aims to provide the people of Orissa superior connectivity and offer whisper clear audio q u a l i t y, z e r o c a l l congestion and high capacity, ahead of time, Ambrish Jain, Director, Operations of Idea

Cellular Ltd, said at the launch ceremony. Idea would introduce its complete range of affordable and innovative mobile telephony products and services for over 39 million people in the State, he said. Idea's 2.75G capable and 3G ready core network provides for all future technological enhancements. It now covers over 80 per cent of the telephony potential of the country and is the third largest private GSM player with over 41

million subscribers across 15 telecom circies. Promising to develop customer service with a robust retail network comprising exclusive +My Idea Stores,+ +Idea Points+ and other outlets, Jain said adding the retail network would be expanded to cover 18,500 outlets by March, 2010. Idea's 2.75G edge enabled network would cover over 360 places in Orissa by next month and would expand to cover 2,200 towns and villages by March, 2010. -Agencies

April 09, 2009

Sports

Times Chennai E-Paper

Perform or perish: Hilditch to Symonds Melbourne, April 09: Andrew Symonds might have been recalled to the Australia team despite a mediocre domestic performance, but chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch has issued a warning to the troubled allrounder, saying it's high time for him to either perform or perish. Hildtitch said Symonds, who has had a run-in with behavioural issues in the recent past, deserves one last opportunity to prove himself and has been selected in the squad largely based on his past heroics. "He's obviously n o t p e r f o r m e d domestically as well as we or he would have liked, so we really had to make a

decision on giving him an opportunity to see how he was going or not prior to the Twenty20 World Championships in June," he said. "We thought it was the right way to go but, as I've told Andrew, it will be up to him from now on. He's going to have to perform. "We think after everything he's done for Australian cricket, one of our all-time best one-day players, that he deserves this opportunity. But it will be up to him now to seize that chance," he added. Symonds, playing for Queensland, had a disappointing outing in the domestic circuit this season, scoring mere 197 runs in eight first-class matches

at an average of 15.15. Meanwhile, skipper Ricky Ponting, who alongwith Michael Hussey and Mitchell Johnson, has been rested for the ODI series against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi and Dubai from April 22, welcomed Symonds's inclusion in the squad. "He's a very important player in our overall setup. Yes, he is working through his fair share of issues and everything. But once he gets back around us then I'm sure that he'll have an impact on our team with his onfield performances," he was quoted as saying by the 'Sydney Morning Herald'. -Agencies

Safina to become world number one in WTA rankings Washington, April 09: Russia's Dinara Safina will replace American Serena Williams as world number one in the coming WTA world rankings, the organization said on Wednesday. Safina, who has yet to win a Grand Slam event, has risen up the rankings thanks to four WTA singles titles in the past year -- at Montreal, Los Angeles, Berlin and

Tokyo.

Safina.

The Russian was also runner-up in five competitions including the 2009 Australian Open, where she was beaten by Williams, and the 2008 French Open. "There's no question that while I am very proud of my results over the past year, I would have liked to reach this achievement in a different manner," said

"I hope to prove to everyone over the coming months that I merit the honour of being world number one. "It's a great honour to reach the number one ranking and it is a dream that every girl who has ever wanted to play professional tennis shares." -Agencies

Sania-Chuang enter quarter-finals in Florida Florida, April 09: Sania Mirza and her Chinese Taipei partner Chia-Jung Chuang reached the doubles quarter-finals of the $220,000 MPS Group Championships here, but not before some late scares. The Indo-Taipei pair had to fight it out in a marathon three-setter to

down Melinda Czink of Hungary and Lilia Osterloh of America 6-0 3-6 10-5 in the first round. H o w e v e r, Sania-Chuang duo's route to the last four won't be a cakewalk as fourth seeded pair of Bethanie Mattek-Sands of America and Nadia Petrova of Russia awaits them in the

next round. S a n i a ' s campaign in the singles already came to a premature end with a straight sets defeat at the hands of seventh seed Alona Bondarenko in he opening round. -Agencies

Sehwag leading cricketer, Dhoni leads Wisden's Dream Test XI London, April 09: Wisden, the highly respected cricket publication, on Wednesday named Virender Sehwag as the Leading Cricketer in the Wo r l d f o r 2 0 0 8 a n d Mahendra Singh Dhoni captain of its first ever Dream Test XI which has five Indians in the ranks. India's rich vein of form found ample reflection in Wisden's first ever Dream XI which include Sehwag, Dhoni, S a c h i n Te n d u l k a r , Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan. India has the largest representation in

the Test squad, followed by Australia (Ricky Ponting and Mitchell Johnson) and South Africa (Graeme Smith and Dale Steyn) who have two each. Flamboyant batsman Kevin Pietersen is the lone English player in the XI, while the West Indies is represented by run-machine Shivnarine Chanderpaul. S m i t h i s Dhoni's deputy in the side. The three selectors who picked the squad were former India captain Ravi Shastri, retired West Indian pacer

Ian Bishop and former New Zealand stumper Ian Smith. "The criteria for selection are simple: the best eleven to play a Test match, no matter the opposition, guided by performances in 2008, and taking into consideration the amount of Test cricket they played in the year, the quality of their opponents, and that indefinable blend of class and form," Wisden said. Gallery: India's win in New Zealand after 41 years -Agencies

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Entire country supported us in New Zealand triumph: Tendulkar Mumbai, April 09: Sachin Tendulkar and four other victorious Indian teammates returned to Mumbai in the wee hours of Thursday and thanked the countrymen, saying the entire nation supported the team in its quest of creating history in New Zealand. " I t ' s a n achievement. Everyone is happy. The entire country has supported us. It was victory after 41 years," the champion batsman told reporters at the Sahar airport on arriving with four other

teammates. U n d e r Mahendra Singh Dhoni, India defeated New Zealand in their own backyard in a Test series for the first time since Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi's team had vanquished the Kiwis in 1967-68 after hopping across the Tasman sea after a poor series in Australia. Tendulkar, who had made vital contributions with the bat in both the preceding five-match one-day series and the Test rubber, returned with

Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh, Munaf Patel and Dhawal Kulkarni. Some members of the support staff of the team also landed in Mumbai along with them. Skipper Dhoni and some other members of the team, based in northern cities, disembarked in Delhi by a different flight. South-based cricketers, including stalwarts Rahul Dravid and V V S Laxman, went to their respective places directly, according to Cricket Board sources. -Agencies

Younis banks on Shoaib, Afridi for success against Australia Karachi, April 09: Pakistan captain Younis Khan is banking heavily on the experienced duo of Shoaib Akhtar and Shahid Afridi to fire in the coming series against Australia in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Younis said he was happy to see injuryprone Shoaib back in the side for the five one-day internationals and Twenty20 game. "He has worked hard and I am confident he will play out the full series. His return is a

good sign for us as he is a very experienced performer," Younis said on Wednesday. The senior batsman pointed out that both Shoaib and Afridi had this habit of performing well against top opposition. "I am banking a lot on them although we require a complete team effort to beat the Australians," he added. Younis pointed out that Pakistan had some top all-rounders in Shoaib Malik, Afridi and

Sohail Tanvir and felt the trio would have to make significant contribution if Pakistan were to win the series. "It is going to be a tough series and we need to put in a collective effort. Even though Australia will be without their regular captain Ricky Pointing and inform all-rounder Michell Johnson, the return of Andrew Symonds is a big plus for them as he has always been a successful performer against us," Younis said. -Agencies

I will miss 'my hometown' Delhi for sure: McGrath Australian pacer Glenn McGrath at the bowling end in his heydays meant batsmen had hardly a chance to free their arms, be it in ODIs or in Tests. A legendary bowler, who was famous for applying brain over brawn, McGrath earned most of his international wickets through impeccable line and length, which is quintessential in T20 cricket. His strength was for all to see when he played in the inaugural edition of IPL for Delhi Daredevils, where he proved to be one of the most economical bowlers. But his life has changed a lot since. He lost his beloved wife Jane immediately after IPL. Initially apprehensive about coming back for the tournament, McGrath finally decided to fulfil his commitments to the Delhi team. Zeecric.com’s Biswajit Jha had a chat with the lanky Australian pacer on the sidelines of a promotional event in Delhi. Excerpts: Will you miss Delhi this time since the you were treated here like a son of the soil last year? Last time I really enjoyed playing in Delhi. I got a huge support from the local crowd, which was

fascinating for me. In that sense I will miss Delhi. You have retired from international cricket almost two years back. Are you fit enough to play in the second season of IPL? It’s true that I had quit international cricket a couple of years ago. But in the last one month I have been working really hard in the gym. I am okay with my fitness now and I will have no problem in adjusting to the demands of IPL. What will be the difference in South Africa? It will be a good contest between the bat and the ball in South Africa. The wicket will be good for the pacers too. Why did you have apprehensions in playing for IPL this time? It was a big decision to come back here. I have had some personal problems since I lost my wife Jane. I have two little children to look after. That’s why I had initially decided not to take part in IPL this time. But then I chose to fulfil my commitment to Daredevils at least for this season. My mother is taking care of my children. How difficult was it to handle the death of your wife Jane, who

died of cancer? It was really tough time for me and my family. But the support I got from everybody is awesome. I was moved to find the support for Jane McGrath Foundation during the Sydney Test. I am thankful to everybody, who helped me come out of that terrible phase of my life. What’s your opinion about the Delhi Daredevils team this time? We have a balanced team this time around. The induction of David Warner will add more firepower to batting. Will you miss your opening bowling partner of last season, Mohd Asif? The team has enough resources to replace anybody. How do you rate Virender Sehwag as a captain? Sehwag has a very astute cricketing sense. I really enjoyed playing under him last season. What’s your opinion about Sehwag as a batsman? He is a terrific batsman. I enjoyed bowling against him. What are the attributes of a good captain? A good captain is one who uses the experience of the senior players…one who listens to everybody, even to the junior members of the team.

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Times Chennai E-Paper

April 09, 2009

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