Low-cost internet to rural areas: CM

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NATIONAL DAILY

H CHENNAI H MONDAY

14.9.2015 (EVENING)

H OTHER STATIONS TUESDAY 15.9.2015 (MORNING) H 8

Assembly lauds Jaya for GIM success The GIM, which was inaugurated on Wednesday last by the Chief Minister saw top businessmen from all over the nation besides thousands of delegates from many countries across the globe come under one roof. At the valedictory function on Thursday, Jayalalithaa said the unprecedented investment of Rs 2.42 lakh crore fi nalised during GIM was a resounding endorsement of the State and her government’s policies. Interestingly, the GIM is just a beginning as the Chief Minister has announced that it would be conducted once every two years henceforth. Also, in a trailer to things to come, she said, ‘My government would come out shortly with pragmatic farsighted policies in areas like information technology and information technology-enabled services; electronic hardware manufacturing and aerospace and defence production.’

SPIRITUAL COVER

Low-cost internet to rural areas: CM q Village panchayats to be connected by optical fibre q Arasu Cable to give broadband connections

NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: Following a request from the State, the Centre has given permission to Tamilnadu government to start its own internet service under ‘Bharat Net’ scheme in a bid to connect all village panchayats for e-governance. Making a Statement under Rule 110 in the State Assembly today, Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa informed the Assembly that Centre has announced that village panchayats in all the State would be connected through internet by optical fibre under Bharath Net Scheme so that people could avail of e-governance services. ‘Following my request to the Centre that Bharat Net scheme be implemented by Tamilnadu, it has given approval to the State’, she said. Accordingly, a total of 12,524 village panchayats from across the State

16 killed in major lorry accident Hyderabad, Sept 14 (PTI): At least 16 people were killed and several others injured when the lorry they were travelling in tilted on the roadside in east Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh today. The lorry carrying about 35 agricultural labourers tilted at Gandepalli in east Godavari district in the early hours, according to H Arun Kumar, Collector, East Godavari district. The victims had boarded the lorry in neighbouring west Godavari district. The vehicle which was carrying clinker material met with the tragedy after the driver lost control allegedly due to sleepiness, he said. The clinker material fell on the victims and 16 bodies have been taken out so far, he added. The driver was absconding after the incident.

Mystery shrouds death of man at Poonamallee

Devotees gathered in large numbers for the Thirukudai procession organised by Hindu Dharmaarta Samiti Trust near Flower Bazaar in Chennai today. The 11 colourful umbrellas will be taken to the famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara in Tirupati, to be used during the annual Brahmotsavam. Photo: A R JAYAKUMAR

H Regd. No., TN/CC(S) DN/223/15-17, RNI No: 33810 / 82

NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: The body of a man was found at Poonamalle Road this morning. According to sources, a man appearing to be in his early forties, clad in a trouser, was found lying on a pavement. His body was sent to Rajiv Gandhi Government Hospital.

IN NUMBERS q Optical fibres in 12,524 village panchayats q 552 Arasu cable operators to provide internet service q Newly-designed wheel chairs for 960 specially-challenged q 300 additional e-seva centres would be connected through optical fibre. ‘With the Centre-State contribution, a total of Rs 3,000 crore will be spent to implement the project’, she said adding a new firm called Tamilnadu FibreNet Corporation would be constituted for this purpose. Arasu Cable TV Jayalalithaa said ‘the existing Tamilnadu Arasu Cable TV Corporation, which has obtained ISP Licence, will provide broadband connection to its consumers at low cost. ‘During the

first phase, a total of 552 cable operators will be registered to provide internet service to the people’, she said. The Chief Minister said that all the internet services will be provided under Internet Protocol TelU evision. AD N E-seva centres ‘My government has been providing all possible services to general public through e-seva centres. It was expanded to all districts in 2014. Today, a total of 10.034 e-seva centres are in operation’, Jayalalithaa said and added, ‘in the current financial year, additional 300 e-seva centres will come up and will provide 300 additional services along with the existing ones offered at these centres.’ The government will incur an additional expense of Rs 10 crore.

For the specially-challenged Stating that her government is committed to providing quality education to specially-challenged people through special schools, the Chief Minister, said, ‘a total of 23 AS such institutions are being run S now. The school for hearing impaired in Pudukottai has been running from a rented premises for the last two decades. We will construct building for it with hostel and classrooms at a cost of Rs one crore’. The Chief Minister further announced that special wheel-chairs designed for spinal problems and nervous disorders at a cost of Rs 20,000 each will be distributed. In the first phase, 30 chairs for each district covering 960 individuals in the State will be taken up. It will cost the exchequer Rs 1.92 crore, she announced. BLY EM

NT Bureau Chennai, Sep 14: The Tamilnadu Legislative Assembly today lauded Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa for the successful conduct of the first-ever Global Investors Meet (GIM) and for ensuring Rs 2.42 lakh crore investments into the State. Immediately after the arrival of the Chief Minister in the Assembly, members of the Treasury benches greeted her with loud thumping of desks for the successful conduct of the GIM. Soon, Speaker P Dhanapal read out a statement hailing the Chief Minister. He said the Rs 2.42 lakh crore investments that were finalised in the two-day GIM far exceeded the Rs one lakh crore target fixed by the State government. ‘The investments in fact was more than double the Rs one lakh crore target set by the State government’, he said, amid thumping of desks.

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nly six men in tennis history have won more Grand Slam titles than Novak Djokovic, who captured his 10th major crown by defeating Roger Federer in the US Open final. World number one Djokovic downed the Swiss world number two 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 to win his third Grand Slam title of the year and put himself among the sport’s elite, with a chance to take aim at the record 17 Grand slam singles crowns Federer has won. ‘We got to double digits now, and I’m flattered and honoured to be a part of elite group of players, legends of our sports to manage to win this many Grand Slam trophies in their lives and careers,’ Djokovic said on Sunday. ‘To be just mentioned alongside them is truly something special.’ Rafael Nadal and Pete Sampras share second on 14 with Roy Emerson having taken 12 and Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg the next within reach of Djokovic on 11. Meanwhile, President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi today congratulated Indian tennis star Sania Mirza and her Swiss partner Martina Hingis on winning the US Open women’s doubles title in New York. ‘Hearty congratulations @MirzaSania @mhingis on winning the U.S. Open women’s doubles, well done!’ the President tweeted. This was Sania’s second consecutive Grand Slam title of the season and fifth overall. Sania’s win capped off a memorable US Open for Indians as Leander Paes had won the mixed doubles trophy with Hingis on Friday, in a repeat show of the Wimbledon.

TAMIL

VOL. XXXIII NO. 279

FOUNDER EDITOR: T.R.R

O

Cup of glory

Man run over by MTC bus in Adyar NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: In a tragic incident, a man was killed when an MTC bus ran over him in Adyar this morning. According to police sources, Manikam (28) a resident of Kannagi Nagar in Thoraipakkam, worked with Ramaniyam Builders. This morning, police said, he was riding a two-wheeler along Sardar Patel Road, when a bus M49 driven by one Ramesh which was on its way to LB Road, ran over Manikam, killing him on the spot. Police said, Ramesh along with the conductor fled the spot. His body was shifted to Royapettah Government Hospital. The Adyar Traffic Investigation department has registered a case. Meanwhile, the incident sent the passengers travelling in the bus into shock. According to an eye-witness Suchitra, ‘I saw a bike fall over, but I did not see the man who was riding it. Then I heard loud screams from the last row of the bus, where women were

DANGER ZONE

Rescue works were on at the junction of LB Road - Sardar Patel Road in Adyar where a motorist was run over by an MTC bus. (Inset) The motorcycle taken in the same bus that rammed it. Photos: B ANAND looking out and screaming. I felt the It is reported that the biker’s head back wheels of the bus running over was completely under the wheels, something. It took a moment or two and that it was his mistake of having for me to realise that the bus actually come in the wrong direction even ran over the motorist’. when the signal was on.

Paes, Sania grab pie of honours at Big Apple q There is something about Martina for Indians q Rio 2016 is next target C SHYAM SUNDAR Chennai, Sept 14: Leander Paes is what one would call as a quintessential journeyman in the tennis world where doubles events are mere sideshows, especially at Grand Slams. However, for Indians he is a legend in the true sense as he continues to defy age to win one accolade after the other. A man, who has been living out of suitcases for the better part of almost twoand-a-half decades now, is a star in his own right in the sport. By winning his ninth mixed doubles Slam at the US Open a couple of days ago, Paes has established

SWISS ROLL

Leander Paes and Martina Hingis have been unstoppable at the Slams, sealing their third title of 2015 at the US Open. himself as one of the greats triumphs at various events, and is the man with highest including the Grand Slams. number of trophies (at the While Paes has enjoyed Majors). Along with fellow a wonderful season and trail-blazer Sania Mirza, captured three Slams in the former BAT Academy mixed with Swiss Miss trainee, has set the doubles Martina Hingis, Sania has world alight with a series of teamed up with the former

world number one singles player to win Wimbledon and now the US Open. Hingis, who has come out of retirement seems to be something of a lucky mascot for the India players as she has increased her tally of majors to 20 now. Paes, whose singles career didn’t reach the expected levels, has excelled in doubles, mainly due to his dashing style of play and self-belief. To sustain the level of play for nearly two decades now is amazing in itself and the Kolkatan has been at the top of the game overcoming several hurdles. He said after winning the

PM congratulates Prime Minister Narendra Modi today congragulated Sania Mirza and her Swiss partner Martina Hingis on winning the US Open women’s doubles title. ‘Congratulations @ MirzaSania & @mhingis on the phenomenal victory at the @usopen. Your accomplishments make us proud,’ the Prime Minister tweeted. Sania, in her response to the tweet said, ‘Thank you Sir for your wishes.’ Sania won the US Open women’s doubles with her Swiss partner Hingis yesterday as the top-seeded Indo-Swiss team outplayed the fourth seed team of Casey Dellacqua and Yaroslava Shvedova 6-3 6-3 in the final. mixed doubles crown that more than the technique it was his never-say-die spirit that has got him success. Also, he seems to share a great chemistry with his partners, the list which is pretty long.

As a teen, he burst into the scene with some powerful serve-and-volley game when most most teens were happy to trade groundstrokes from the baseline and made the

world take notice when he won the Wimbledon junior title in 1990. While many expected him to be the next Indian star in singles, Paes couldn’t live up to the hopes but he has more than made up for it with doubles exploits. Sania has also made a mark in the doubles after promising a lot in singles. It has been a phenomenal 2015 for her as she has climbed to the top ranking in the WTA ladder (doubles) and promises a lot more in the years to come. Paes, who has featured in six Olympics

has set his sights on next year’s Rio Games and has said a mixed doubles gold is among the priorities. There is a possibility of Paes and Sania coming together to strike gold for the country in the Brazilian capital in 2016.

City

MONDAY

2 14 SEPTEMBER 2015

Debris dumped below the bridge near Koyambedu needs to be cleared as it presents an ugly sight. Photo: M SRINIVASAN

q World Bank to the rescue

Fit & fine q Veeramamunivar Salai gets new

R

esidents of Veeramamunivar Salai in J J Nagar East are a happy lot as they are all set to get a new government healthcare facility. This ‘Urban Primary Health Centre’, located in Ward 93, is being built at a cost of Rs 62.26 lakh. ‘Many years ago we had a health centre (at the same place) which dealt with malaria and other water borne diseases. Later, it was closed due to various reasons. Residents made several requests for a new centre. After a long time, our requests have been accepted,’ says, Ramani, a resident of JJ Nagar. ‘A year back, the proposal for the centre was given, keeping in mind the benefit of residents of the locality. The plan got the approval of officials and we started the work a few months ago. Ninety per cent of the work has been completed. The facility will be ready soon and will be open to the public in a few weeks’ time’, says a government official. ‘It is a kind of lifeline to people looking

CHENNAI

Ambattur to get improved storm water drains

TASTE OF WASTE

This Urban Primary Health Centre is being built at a cost of Rs 62.26 lakh

Centre

healthcare centre for free health care. The centre will have a dedicated maternity ward with an accommodation for nearly AIR PP 20 patients, GA U M separate rooms for doctors, nurses and paramedical staff, and large visitors’ hall on the ground floor,’ sources say. Nandagopal, a resident of 2nd A view of the centre at Veeramamunivar Salai in JJ Block, says, ‘pri- Nagar East that is under construction. vate hospitals in ‘Since the old health centre was the locality collect huge sums as closed, the place was used as cow fees even for small treatments. They shelter. Thank God, authorities have charge Rs 300 to Rs 500 for consulta- removed it and we are happy to see a tion for any treatment. So, most of the new healthcare facility,’ says Gayatri residents are feeling happy about the a resident. new healthcare centre’. — NT Bureau

Chennai Corporation zonal office in Ambattur

T

he Chennai Corporation is planning to bring in advanced technology from Japan to improve storm water drains (SWD) in the neighbourhood. A resolution in this regard was passed on Monday. If this is implemented, one of the longtime problems faced by the residents here will come to an end. The SWD system has so far been less effective in Ambattur, residents allege. As per the new plan, Corporation engineers will be sent to Japan for a training programme, which would cover techniques to construct and manage SWDs effectively. It is expected to be useful in the implementation of the work taken up by the civic body. With the help of World Bank funding, work on SWDs is expected to begin soon in Ambattur, it is learnt. ‘The Corporation has accepted Rs 1,400 crore from the World Bank for this project. Units

for carrying out work (making the concrete slabs for construction) are set up in Pudur and Korattur. Unlike the usual SWDs, the canals will be entirely closed with the help of these slabs with an opening at every 10 meters with a door. This will prevent mosquito menace and garbage dumping by residents’, says a Corporation official. Also, in order to avoid water stagna- t i o n i n t h e R TU AT

B AM

lems faced by the residents here’. Secretary of Thiruvengada Nagar Residents Association S Suresh said, the new developments will fulfil the Chief Minister’s Rainwater Harvesting plan. ‘However in the neighbourhood, many residents do not know the difference between a drain and an SWD. When a SWD is run close to a house, they dig up underground to let out domestic water into it. Hopefully, the new SWD project will not be misused’. — NT Bureau

neighb o u r hood, borewells are dug. According to a resident in Krishnapuram, ‘Storm water drain and several other amentites which were promised to be provided to residents around a decade back are yet to be implemented. This proposal, if executed, will finally solve one of the underlying prob-

Corporation engineers will be sent to Japan for a training programme

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CHENNAI

MONDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2015

3

Spirit of Sanskrit in Science & Maths q School students create awareness on Rig Veda’s link with formulas S VISHNU SHARMAA Chennai, Sept 14: What have science and mathematics got to do with an ancient language like Sanskrit? Teachers and students of Vivekananda Vidyalaya (Chrompet) and Vivekananda Vidyalaya (Chitlapakkam) as part of Vivekananda Educational Society tried to find out by putting up a stall at the three-day Samaskrita Sammelanam that concluded here on Sunday. under the common banner Vivekananda Educational Society to find an answer. According to vice-principal of Vivekananda Vidyalaya (Chitlapakkam) Indra Shankar, Mathematical operations were vividly spoken about in the Rig Veda. Sankaracharya of Puri Mutt Bharathikrishna Theertha Swamigal wrote a book on Vedic maths wherein he described about 16 sutras (formulas) and 32 upasutras (sub-formulas), based on which any mathematical problem can be solved easily in less time, she reminded. She further said there were methods for solving a problem using digits upto five, larger digits could be changed into smaller digits

Students of Vivekananda Vidyalaya (Chromepet) explained about various vimanas (aeroplanes) mentioned in detail in the ancient Vimanika Sashtra written in Sanskrit by sage Bharadwaja

Students of Vivekananda Vidyalaya (Chrompet) explaining facets of aviation mentioned in ancient Sanskrit texts at an exhibition during the recently held Sanskrit Sammelan at Meenakshi College for Women in Chennai. and any problem could be solved Students of Vivekananda Vidyalaya rocket shape explained how ancient easily. (Chromepet) explained about various Sanskrit text Vaimanika Sashtra vimanas (aeroplanes) mentioned in dealt in depth about aeronautics. ‘The Rig Veda tells a great deal detail in the ancient Vimanika Sashtra The stall also had a special poster about them which not many know written in Sanskrit by sage Bharadon Shivkar Bapuji Talpade. It was about, and we wanted to create waja. The stall highlighted aeroplane based on ancient Sanskrit texts on awareness on the same. So, we set models like Tripura Vimana, a threeVaimanika Sashtra, he is said to have up the stall,’ she said. Students demtier aircraft that can move on land, built an unmanned aeroplane with onstrated how squares and cubes water and inside water. help of Venkata Subramanya Sashtry of two digit or three-digit numbers and flew it at an height of 1500 feet can be calculated in less time used A model of Sundara Vimanam, much before the Wright Brothers methods described in vedic maths. an aircraft in silver colour and in a

flew their aeroplane, said Kamakshi, teacher with Vivekananda Vidyalaya (Chromepet). There were also exhibits that spoke about how ancient texts in Sanskrit classified time into naal (days), hora (hours), yugas, and manvantarams. The classification of time in ancient texts of Sanskrit was called as Kalachakram, said a student. Ancient science written in Sanskrit considered 60 naligaigal as one day, when the English calculations take 24 hours as a day, said a student explaining about time classifaction according to ancient texts. There are four yugas which

Award in KB’s name goes to theatre veteran

The awardees -- M B Murthy, Karur Rangaraj and Amirtham Gopal with Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha president Nalli Kuppuswami Chetti and actors S Ve Shekhar and ARS among others at the 115th year celebrations of Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha in Chennai yesterday.

NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: Veteran theatre personality M B Murthy was delighted to be conferred an award instituted in memory of the legendary film director K Balachander. Speaking after receiving the ‘Iyakunar Sigaram Dr K Balachander Award’ by Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha at a function here yesterday, he said he was honoured to be the first winner of the prize. Various other awards including the Lifetime Achievement Award

were presented to veteran stage actor Karur Rangaraj. Industialist Nalli Kuppuswami Chetti presented the award to Rangaraj. Also, an award of excellance was presented to Amirtham Gopal. The awards were presented as part of their 115th year celebrations of Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha. The award to Rangaraj was presented for his dedicated and years of service in the field of drama while Murthy, actor, playwright and director, received

the K Balachander Award for his achievements in the field and contribution to theatre. Amirtham Gopal of Gitanjali Theatres was presented with Award of Excellence for producing 42 Tamil stage plays in 31 years since his troupe came into being in 1984. Renowned theatre personalities A R Srinivasan (ARS) and S Ve Shekher felicitated the awardees. Sabha secretary M Krishnamurthy welcomed the gathering. The award function was followed by a play ‘Chillu’ by Era Mohan.

are called as chaturyugas, a combination of 71 chaturyugas form a manvantaram, said the student. Kamakshi and Indra Shankar said ‘to highlight all these facts we did a good deal of research about the sciences mentioned in Sanskrit. We got material from internet too. Posters explaining facts also were prepared. All these involved hardwork which we began 20 days before the commencement of the sammelan, they said. Audiences are giving us a good response and that is making us happy, they added.

Study time NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: Vedanta Institute here will organise a study session on Vedanta Treatise by R Aravindan on 16 September (Wednesday) from 6.45 to 8 pm. The event will be conducted at ‘C’ Flat, Harmony (Second floor), 20/39, Venkatarathinam Nagar, Adyar. For details contact: 9840493904 Remembering Baba Besant Nagar Sai Samithy will celebrate the 90th birthday of Sri Satyasai Baba on 18 and 19 September. According to a release, the event will be marked by variety of spiritual and cultural programmes. A chariot will be taken around the main streets of Kalakshetra Colony on 19 September from 7 am to 8.30 am. The venue of the programmes on 18 and 19 is Ambalam, Yamuna Street, Kalakshetra Colony.

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4 MONDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2015 WHAT NEWS TODAY PRINTS IS NEWS THAT COUNTS

Migrant crisis continues q Germany

Farm Fears he mystery of monsoon continues. While its impact in these parts will be felt only in the coming days, the season is turning out to be a tragedy as the rains failed in between in many other regions of the country. The deficiency in rainfall is expected to be 30-50 per cent in various parts of the country. Marathwada, which has already seen more than 400 farmer suicides this year, has become a kind of barometer for rural distress, though the entire state of Maharashtra also is only marginally better (1,300 farmer suicides till June). Punjab and Haryana has been affected too, though more in terms of input costs than yield because of irrigation. Since nearly half of India’s agriculture is dependent on rain, crops such as pulses and oilseeds, which are grown on such marginal lands, will be the most affected. As India’s economy grows, the share of agriculture in the GDP goes down. That gives it certain resilience in the face of droughts. But that has a downside. Crop failure becomes more of a farmers’ concern than a national responsibility. The country is fairly well provided for in cereals and sugar. For pulses and edible oil, there are sufficient funds to import. That takes care of the supply side of food. None of that, however, helps the poor farmers, whose buying capacity goes down drastically. This detachment of the farm tragedy from the national agenda would explain why agriculture is steadily going down in the policymakers’ priorities. All states on the Deccan Plateau suffer for want of artificial irrigation, as ground water is not an option. And we have failed to build sufficient storage and distribution facilities. This is a particularly astounding failure of the political leadership. A sector that is just one-fifth of the national economy has not been taken care of even as it directly or indirectly supports three-fourths of the population. That is for the long-term issues. Even in the short term, safety nets like MGNREGA are being curtailed, which can act as default relief delivery channels. Rural distress is building up. A migration crisis may already be silently taking place. The Prime Minister has met industry leaders; perhaps a meeting is due with farming community leaders.

T

Sanjay Manjrekar @sanjaymanjrekar Watched a nice movie last night. Slept on time, woke up on time. Benefits of being a movie fan & not a tennis fan.

CHENNAI

starts temporary border controls

BERLIN:

Current border rules

Germany re-imposed border controls after Europe’s most powerful nation acknowledged it could scarcely cope with thousands of asylum-seekers arriving every day.

l The European Union’s Schengen zone allows passport-free movement between member countries l 26 European countries participate, but not the UK or the Irish Republic l Schengen signatories can re-impose border controls for short period for ‘public policy or national security’ reasons after consulting ‘contracting parties’.

A day before deeply divided European Union Ministers tackle the migrant crisis, the UN refugee agency also called on every member State to take in a share of asylum-seekers under a Brussels plan which some countries are fiercely resisting. Berlin announced that the temporary measure would be taken first on the southern frontier with Austria, where migrant arrivals have soared since Chancellor Angela Merkel effectively opened German borders to refugees a week ago. ‘The aim of these measures is to limit the current inflows to Germany and to return to orderly procedures when people enter the country, said Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere, adding that this was also necessary

WHAT IS HAPPENING? l Trains between Germany and Austria were suspended for 12 hours. l Germany expects 800,000 migrants to arrive this year. l The measure will help put pressure on other European countries to do their bit. l Czech Republic to boost border controls with Austria. l European countries, Gulf States and US to give billions of euros towards schools, accommodation and food in refugee camps in the Middle East. ‘We need swift progress on the Commission`s proposals now,’ the Commission said in a statement issued as tens of thousands of people fleeing war and poverty in Syria and other parts of the Middle East, Asia and Africa made their way north.

but controls can be re-introduced, provided they are only temporary. ‘The free movement of people under Schengen is a unique symbol of European integration,’ the EU`s executive Commission said in a statement. ‘However, the other side of the coin is a better joint management of our external borders and more solidarity in coping with the refugee crisis.’

for security reasons. Open borders among the European countries which signed the Schengen Treaty are a crucial part of the EU project

Commission President JeanClaude Juncker won the backing of the UNHCR, the United Nations` refugee agency.

At an emergency meeting on Monday, interior ministers from the EU`s 28 member states will discuss Commission proposals to redistribute about 160,000 asylum seekers across the bloc.

HOLY ACT

C

It appealed for the creation of effective reception centres to help, register and screen people arriving in the Schengen states of Greece, Italy and Hungary. ‘This

The aim of these measures is to limit the current inflows to Germany and to return to orderly procedures when people enter the country must be accompanied by the rapid implementation of a relocation programme as proposed by the European Commission,’ it said in a statement. Amid the political bickering among European governments, the crisis claimed yet more lives. On Sunday 34 refugees, almost half of them babies and children, drowned off a Greek island when their boat sank, the coastguard said.

L ICK

Arun Jaitley @arunjaitley Congratulations to Sania Mirza on winning the US Open women’s doubles title with Martina Hingis . She has made history & India proud.

PIC

Laser weapon melts test drone mid-air SAN FRANCISCO: A new laser weapon that can burn up targets in just a few seconds recently melted and destroyed a test drone flying over California. Known as the Compact Laser Weapons System, the futuristic, drone-shooting weapon is a smaller, more versatile version of the High Energy Laser Mobile Demonstrator (HEL MD), a system developed by Boeing to be mounted on top of US Army vehicles. Both weapons forgo conventional bullets for ‘directed energy’ a focused beam of energy that heats up and damages a target. ‘Think of it like a welding torch being put on a target, but from many hundreds of meters away,’ Isaac Neal, a Boeing engineer, said in a video about the new weapons system that was posted on the defense contractor’s website. In a recent test, the laser, which is compact enough to carry around in a suitcase, was able to locate, aim and fire at a small drone flying above a testing facility in Point Mugu, California. The laser gun acts quickly (it took just 15 seconds for it to shoot the test drone out of the sky) and discreetly, according to Neal. Speedy reaction times can be important in battles when every second counts. ‘If you were on the receiving end of

laser energy, you would have no idea where it was coming from or what was even happening,’ Neal said in the video. The Compact Laser Weapons System features four main parts that help it turn plain old energy into a deadly force: It has a battery, a chiller that keeps the system from getting too hot, a 2-kilowatt laser and a ‘beam director’ that points the laser light at the intended target. Engineers designed the system to be lighter and more compact than its big cousin, the HEL MD, by redesigning the beam director. The first prototype of the Compact Laser Weapons System is 40 percent lighter than the vehicle-mounted HEL MD system, said Neal, who noted that this lower weight makes the portable laser gun easier to move around than the HEL MD.and also allows the motors that control the compact system’s beam director to function quickly. Both the HEL MD and the smaller laser weapon can be operated by one person, but the main advantage of the Compact Laser Weapons System is that it can be used just about anywhere. While the bigger system features a more powerful, 10-kW laser, it’s fixed to the top of a vehicle, so it can only go where the vehicle goes.

VOICE MAIL Need for good teachers Sir, If a country has to make notable progress in various arenas it needs well qualified, dedicated teachers, who can inspire ordinary students to dream extraordinary things. A good teacher is the one who makes students realise that exams and grades are temporary but only education is permanent and in fact life is the most difficult exam. Teachers are the most responsible and important people of society because their efforts affect the fate of entire world. The government should take adequate measures to make the profession of teaching more attractive. T S KARTHIK, Valasaravakkam ADDRESS YOUR LETTERS TO : The Editor, News Today, 85, Mount Road, Guindy, Chennai - 600 032. or e-mail to : [email protected] / [email protected]

An Indian woman prays after taking a holy dip in the River Godavari during the ongoing Kumbh Mela or Pitcher Festival in Nasik. In the other photograph, a Naga sadhu, after a holy dip.

Indian-origin man becomes Bonn Mayor GERMANY: Ashok Sridharan, a candidate of Chancellor Angela Merkel-led Christian Democratic Union (CDU), has comprehensively won the election in Bonn, becoming the first person of Indian-origin to occupy the Mayor’s office in a major German city. The 49-year-old Sridharan secured the absolute majority by polling 50.06 per cent of the votes in yesterday’s election in the former German capital, according to provisional results. His victory marks the end of more than 21 years’ rule of the city by the Social Democratic Party (SPD). Sridharan, who is the son of a migrant

from India and a German mother, will take over the reigns of the city administration from the outgoing SPD mayor Juergen Nymptsch on 21 October. Until now, he served as the treasurer and assistant mayor in the municipal administration of neighbouring town Koenigswinter. His absolute majority in the first round of the election and his strong lead over his two main opponents came as a surprise to many political observers, who predicted a close finish. His nearest rival Peter RuhenstrothBauer of the SPD finished far behind him with a share of 23.68 per cent

Ashok Sridharan of the votes while Tom Schmidt of the Green party received a share of 22.14 per cent of the votes. Only around 45 per cent of the city’s 245,000 voters went to the polls to cast their votes, which was much less than the turn-out in the last election in Bonn in 2009, according to the election results.

Adult Rhesus monkey captured LOUISVILLE: A male monkey captured earlier this week in eastern Kentucky, remained in quarantine but how the adult Rhesus made it to the region is unknown, his current caretaker said. April Truitt, executive director of the Primate Rescue Centre, received a call late Tuesday from someone in Bath County, about 45 miles east of Lexington, who reported spotting the monkey near their home. Truitt then called Kentucky Fish and Wildlife officials. Less than 12 hours later, officials tranquilised the monkey and brought it to Truitt’s facility near Nicholasville. Truitt said the monkey was found close to the location of the caller’s home, indicating it was probably being fed by someone in the area.

UK threatened by Jeremy Corbyn’s victory q Chiefs of Britain’s biggest unions to ‘topple govt’? LONDON: Union bosses threatened to use Jeremy Corbyn’s victory to cripple Britain by holding a wave of strikes and instigating civil unrest. The chiefs of the UK’s biggest trade unions hailed Corbyn’s election as Labour leader and threatened to ‘topple the Government’ using ‘coordinated strikes and demonstrations’. It came on a day of chaos for Labour as Corbyn struggled to appoint a shadow cabinet because of his controversial views on the European Union, Trident and Britain’s membership of Nato. At 10.30pm on Sunday, he was finally able to appoint his closest political ally John McDonnell as shadow chancellor, despite MPs threatening not to serve if he was given the eco-

Jeremy Corbyn

NEWS MAKER of the day nomic portfolio. However, Chuka Umunna last night became the highest-profile figure to quit the shadow cabinet, warning

that he would be unable to serve under Corbyn because of the leader’s Eurosceptic views. It came as an immediate split emerged between Corbyn and Tom Watson, the new deputy leader, over renewal of the Trident nuclear deterrent. Watson also made clear that he would oppose Corbyn’s positions on the European Union and Nato, in a sign that the new leadership may be unable to agree on key policy positions in the weeks ahead. John Mills, Labour’s biggest private donor, said he would stop giving money to the party in the wake of Corbyn’s election, and instead fund the MPs plotting to oust him. Corbyn refused to be interviewed on the BBC’s Andrew Marr programme, instead choosing to appear at a

small rally to discuss mental health in his north London constituency. He spent much of the day in Parliament, trying to form a shadow cabinet following the resignation of more than 10 shadow ministers in the hours after he was declared Labour leader on Saturday. He was forced to offer potential shadow cabinet members free votes on issues such as Trident because so many moderate MPs oppose his views on the military and the EU. In one of his first acts, the new Labour leader sacked Ivan Lewis, one of his critics, as shadow Northern Ireland secretary. Mary Creagh, the europhile former shadow international development secretary, announced she was returning to the back benches.

Enterprise

CHENNAI

Axis Bank unveils ‘LIME’ NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: Axis Bank, India’s third largest private sector bank, has announced the launch of LIME, a mobile app that offers wallet, shopping, payments and banking services. ‘LIME’ will act as an independent app, empowering any person to open individual, shared mobile wallets and make seamless peer to peer as well as online, offline merchant payments. Users can also experience the convenience of in-app shopping that allows them to compare and buy products and services. LIME will enable individuals to open a full-fledged savings account digitally, by completing the KYC process, using their mobile. Shikha Sharma, managing director and CEO, Axis Bank said, ‘Customer preferences are changing rapidly and technology is transforming the way these preferences are being met. Our effort has been to constantly innovate through the use of smart technology to meet these evolving needs. LIME is the next big step in this journey.’

MONDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2015

India to inflate airbag biz q Industry eyes $2 bn opportunity with tougher road safety rules

New Delhi, Sept 14: The world’s largest air bag suppliers are setting up plants and ramping up capacity in India, eyeing a $2 billion opportunity thanks to tougher rules aimed at improving one of the world’s worst road-safety records. In India, a person is killed in a road accident every four minutes- 141,000 in 2014 - yet less than a third of the 2.6 million cars sold each year have air bags in this cost-conscious market. But a planned law that will impose crash test standards by 2017 is creating an opportunity for makers of safety equipment, as cars without air bags will achieve only the lowest safety ratings after tests. That, for the first time, will force consumers to directly consider the risks they run by buying cheap. By 2020, overall revenues from airbag sales in India are set to rise 11 per cent a year to hit $2 billion, outpacing the nine per cent growth expected in China, according to data from Transparency Market Research. By then, India is expected to be sell-

‘By 2020, overall revenues from airbag sales in India are set to rise 11 per cent a year to hit $2 billion, outpacing the nine per cent growth expected in China’ ing over five million cars a year. Some of the world’s largest air bag makers, Autoliv Inc , Takata Corp, TRW Automotive Inc and Toyoda Gosei Co, are already gearing up to cash in. ‘(This is a) good time to build capacity and the right time to invest to grow the business’, said Harish Lakshman, managing director of air bag maker Rane TRW Steering Systems Ltd, a joint venture between US-based TRW and India’s Rane Holdings Ltd. The company opened a new air bag assembly plant in August in southern India with capacity to make 500,000 units a year, invest-

ing 180 million rupees ($2.7 million). It expects revenues from the air bag unit to hit 3.5 billion rupees by 2020, from 400 million rupees today. Toyoda Goesi Minda India, a joint venture between the Japanese company and India’s Uno Minda, which has a 25 per cent market share, plans to increase its capacity by up to six times to 150,000 air bags over the next two to three years, group chairman NK Minda said. Analysts say others will follow, setting up in India to keep costs as

q To visit company’s headquarters q May also drop in at Google campus During the visit, Modi and Zuckerberg will discuss how communities can work together to address social and economic challenges. The Prime Minister invited questions for the session and tweeted, The Townhall Q&A will be incomplete without your participation. Share Qs on FB or on ‘Narendra Modi Mobile App’.

Modi is also expected to visit Google and the factory floor of auto major Tesla in Fremont, both in Silicon Valley, but those visits are yet to be confirmed. Zuckerberg asked Facebook users to send in their questions for the session and said, ‘ ‘Please ask them in the

comments below (the post) and we’ll try to get to as many as possible’. The live video of the session will be available on Zuckerberg’s Facebook page and also on PM Modi’s official page in the social media website. Recalling his meeting with Prime Minister Modi in India last year, the Facebook CEO wrote,’...it’s an honor to have the chance to host him here at Facebook’. India has the largest Facebook userbase outside the US. In June, the company had said 125 million users of its global base of 1.44 billion come from India. Last year, Zuckerberg had made his maiden trip to India. The young billionaire had called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss digital expansion in the country.

Vodafone hails spectrum trading norms

PIO teens build incubator to help startups New York, Sept 14 (PTI): Two Indian-American students have build an incubator to help new entrepreneurs get their startups off the ground for free by connecting companies with industry experts and arranging interns. Aman Sharma, a junior at Westview High School, and Bhavin Gupta, a senior, started Oregon Business Incubator to help newly minted entrepreneurs get their businesses off the ground for free. ‘We operate at completely no cost because charging startups is counterproductive to our mission statement’, Gupta said. ‘Furthermore, we hope to be an inspiration to younger students who want to pursue a career in business and entrepreneurship’, he said. They said they’ve already helped three startups, including the one that inspired them to start the incubator, oregonlive.com reported. The incubator works as a sort of middleman, connecting startups with outside sources that have the needed knowledge or skills. They also help companies find interns with knowledge the startups may need, the report said.

Desi firm to invest in Egypt’s agro sector Cairo, Sept 14 (PTI): In a major foray into agri-business sector in Africa, Indian corporate Embee International is in the process of acquiring 33,000 acres of land for farming in Egypt where it will invest over Rs 5,000 crore to grow pulses and vegetables. The company, which is into textile business in Egypt for the last 28 years, said the land is being given to it by the Egyptian government on lease for 50 years which can be renewed thereafter. Director of Embee International Sanjay E Khushalani said agriculture sector in Egypt has huge potential and the company hopes to get all the required permission for the ‘mega project’ by next month. ‘We are participating in the One Million Feddan land reclamation project of President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi. We have booked around 33,000 acres. The land is being given on lease for 50 years’, Khushalani said. He said the company has decided to

invest between Rs 5,000-6,500 crore in the project which he claimed will be largest investment by any Indian company in Egypt and the first foray by an Indian firm in the country’s agriculture sector. The ‘One Million Feddan (acres)’ is one of the most ambitious project launched by Egyptian President Sisi after he came to power in June last year. It is aimed at reclaiming one million acres of farm land across the country that relies heavily on imports of basic foodstuffs. Currently less than four per cent of Egypt’s total land area is arable.

New Delhi, Sept 14 (PTI): Government’s clearing the spectrum trading norms is a forward looking move that will allow better utilisation of radiowaves and help smaller telecom operators to raise capital, Vodafone India has said. ‘We see this as a very forward looking move by the government’, Vodafone India MD and CEO Sunil Sood said, adding that companies can now create greater efficiency and optimise the spectrum in the ecosystem. It gives an option to some of the smaller players to actually raise capital because they have huge debt on their books, he said.

McDonald’s India to double outlets Mumbai, Sept 14 (PTI): McDonald’s India is stepping up its operations in western and southern markets of the country by doubling its outlets with an investment of Rs 750 crore in the next five years.

NAME CHANGE I, YALINI LAKSHMANAN, Daughter of Bhavani Pandi, born on 17th January 2008 (native district: Madurai), residing at No. Flat F1, GR Avenue, Sri Meenakshi Street, Gandhi Nagar, Old Perungalathur, Chennai - 600 063, shall henceforth be known as YALINI BHAVANI. YALINI LAKSHMANAN

GST: State FMs to meet New Delhi, Sept 14 (PTI): The Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers will meet on Tuesday to finalise the model legislations that have to be approved by State legislatures for rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). Although hopes have dimmed for GST to roll out from the proposed 1 April, 2016 with the Centre dropping the idea of convening a special session, the Empowered Committee will continue with its preparatory work. ‘The 15 September meeting of the Empowered Committee will discuss the model draft legislations that will be needed for implementing GST’, an official said. The panel is headed by Kerala Finance Minister K M Mani. The two legislations Central GST (CGST) and State GST (SGST) will have to be approved by respective state legislatures for a nation-wide rollout of the single rate GST. Besides, another legislation integrated GST (iGST) - would also have to be adopted by the States.

Status: E-commerce players go offline

Modi to ‘like’ Facebook New York, Sept 14 (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the headquarters of social media giant Facebook on 27 September and is also expected to go to Googleplex, the campus of tech giant Google. Modi on his second visit to the US, will be visiting the headquarters of Facebook in Silicon Valley’s Menlo Park for a townhall Q&A, the company’s founder Mark Zuckerberg announced today. ‘I’m excited to announce that Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India will be visiting Facebook HQ later this month for a Townhall Q&A’, Zuckerberg said in a Facebook post. Modi tweeted to confirm the visit. ‘I thank Mark Zuckerberg for the invite to visit @facebook HQ & for the Townhall Q&A at 10 PM IST on 27th September’.

low as possible. ‘We expect that within five years the large airbag makers will have a manufacturing hub in India’, said Ayay Bandopadhyay, automotive research analyst at Transparency Market Research. Air bags in India are expensive mainly because most of the parts, such as inflators, are imported. And without rules imposing their use in a country of poorly maintained vehicles and overcrowded, badly lit and potholed roads, carmakers often opt not to add a costly component that could drive up prices.

5

New Delhi, Sept 14 (PTI): Many e-commerce players have started foraying into physical retail space and the trend is going to become more prominent in future as it provides an opportunity to reinforce the online brand and gauge the market, experts say. In order to differentiate their brand from the clutter of online brands, some e-tailers are setting up shops offline. According to property consultant JLL India, Pepperfry is the latest to go ‘hybrid’. The furniture portal recently leased a 1,800 sq ft space at Linking Road, Santacruz. Moreover, Lenskart, an Indian eyewear brand that started online, has lately opened up stores in retail malls. Besides, online travel firm MakeMyTrip has opened over a dozen stores. ‘The biggest nightmare for every online seller is to deal with a shopping cart abandonment rate of 70-80 per cent. The sweet spot is to be in a middle zone where, online sellers connect with actual customers and also promote their products in multiple avenues. Expect this trend to continue in times ahead’, JLL India chairman and country head Anuj Puri said. According to experts,

NAME CHANGE I, JAYARAMAN SERANJEEVI, Son of Thiru Jayaraman, born on 2 nd February 1996, residing at No,7/4, Sivaprakasam Nagar, Tiruvottiyur, Chennai - 600019, shall henceforth be known as JAYARAMAN CHIRANJEEVI. JAYARAMAN SERANJEEVI

companies are realising that for a lot of product segments like apparel, spectacles and jewelry, customer acquisition can increase with a physical store. Moreover, it also helps in creating more brand awareness. ‘The reality is e-commerce is still a fraction of overall retail and is going to be this way for quite some time. That’s why companies getting into it want to ensure that they increase their reach by setting up physical retail outlets as well’, said Divyan Gupta, founder and CEO of Artanddecors. com, a luxury e-commerce brand for decors and lifestyle products. Having a physical outlet separates a brand from the competition and allows consumers to get a real feel. Besides, it increases reach and distribution, experts believe. ‘A significant share of our customers still prefer to buy offline and consider online website as a research tool. The bigger ticket items are generally bought offline. Therefore, in the race to provide a complete solution, such phenomenon of online players going offline should stay’, said Vikas Bhasin, CFO, Pine Labs, an integrated payment solutions company.

6 MONDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2015

Sports

CHENNAI

PERFECT 10: DJOKOVIC REIGNS IN NEW YORK q World No.1 wins 2nd US Open title q Federer falls short again in bid for 18th Slam New York, Sept 14: Thrilled to win a point in the US Open final, and bent on proving a point, Novak Djokovic leaped and roared and threw an uppercut, then glared at some of the thousands of spectators pulling for Roger Federer. After winning another point in that game, Djokovic nodded as he smiled toward the stands. And moments later, Djokovic shook his right arm, bloodied by an early fall, and screamed, ‘Yes! Yes!’ to celebrate a missed forehand by Federer. Djokovic appeared to be all alone out there in Arthur Ashe Stadium, trying to solve Federer while also dealing with a crowd loudly supporting the 17-time major champion proclaimed ‘arguably the greatest player in the history of the sport’ by the stadium announcer during prematch introductions. In the end, Djokovic handled everything in a thrill-a-minute final on a frenetic night. Frustrating Federer with his relentless defence and unparalleled returning, Djokovic took control late and held on for a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 victory Sunday to earn his second US Open title, third major championship of the year and 10th Grand Slam trophy in all. ‘I have a tremendous respect for Roger and what his game is presenting to me and to any other player,’ Djokovic said during the trophy ceremony. ‘His level is always going to (force) the best out of you and that was needed from my side.’ Confronted with Djokovic’s unequaled ability to race along the baseline and contort his body this way and that, sneakers squeaking loudly as he changed directions or scraping like sandpaper as he slid to reach unreachable shots, the 34-year-old Federer found himself trying to put the ball into the tiniest of spaces. And it didn’t work. He wound up with 54 unforced errors, 17

more than Djokovic. Another key statistic: Djokovic saved 19 of the 23 break points he faced, while winning six of Federer’s service games. One more: Djokovic won 10 of the first 12 points that lasted at least 10 strokes, a pattern that repeated itself throughout the evening. ‘Being back in a final is where you want to be,’ said Federer, who last played in the title match at Flushing Meadows in 2009. ‘Playing a great champion like Novak is a massive challenge.’ After all the attention paid to Serena Williams’ bid for the first calendar-year Grand Slam, which ended with a semifinal loss at the US Open, it’s Djokovic who wound up 27-1 in major tournaments this season, including appearances in all four finals. He beat Andy Murray at the Australian Open in January, lost to Stan Wawrinka at the French Open in June, then beat Federer at Wimbledon in July. ‘An incredible season,’ Djokovic called it. The 28-year-old from Serbia also won a trio of majors in 2011, and his career total ranks tied for seventh-most in history behind Federer. Djokovic also evened his head-to-head record with Federer at 21-all. They have met in three of the last five Grand Slam finals, and Djokovic is 3-0 in those. It is as spectacular a rivalry as there is in tennis right now, with contrasting styles of play. Rain began falling about 10 minutes before they were supposed to head out from the locker room, and the start of the match was delayed for more than three hours, beginning after 7 p.m. Won’t happen again: The US Tennis Association is in the midst of constructing a retractable roof expected to be ready for next year’s tournament.

In the third game, Djokovic slipped as he raced forward and fell, ripping skin off his hand, elbow and knee. Federer looked across the net to check on him, and Djokovic quickly motioned that he was OK. Perhaps a bit shaken, he would lose six of the next seven points, and then had a trainer treat it at the next changeover. The cooler, damper, slower conditions seemed to help Djokovic mess with Fe-

THE NOLE COLLECTION Novak Djokovic’s Grand Slam titles so far: Australian Open: 5 (Winner in 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015); Wimbledon: 3 (2011, 2014, 2015); US Open: 2 (2011, 2015). He has been finalist at the French Open in 2012, 2014 and 2015. Career titles: 54. derer’s attacking style. All of 27 minutes and four Federer service games into the match, Djokovic already had earned four breaks. That was the same total managed by Federer’s opponents in 82 service games across his previous six matches. Federer also hadn’t lost a set until Sunday. If there were many folks in favour of Djokovic in the 23,771-capacity arena, they were tough to hear. Instead - and make no mistake, Djokovic noticed - a vast majority were on Federer’s side, even applauding fault’s by Djokovic, which is considered poor tennis etiquette. Over and over, chair umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore, the first woman to officiate a US Open men’s singles final, held up a hand the way a school teacher might and asked for quiet.

TWIN TROUBLE

STAT ALERT

l Djokovic into a tie with Bill Tilden with 10 Grand Slam titles, one behind Bjorn Borg and Rod Laver, who are tied for fifth most all-time. l He is the third man in the Open era to reach all four Slams in a calendar year. l Since the start of the 2011 season, Djokovic has won more titles (27) on hard courts than he’s lost matches (25), and his win in Flushing Meadows gave him his seventh title of 2015.

Mayweather’s legacy up for debate

Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis continued their domination of women’s doubles with the triumph at the US Open.

FAIRYTALE CONTINUES FOR SANIA-HINGIS DUO

q Indian ‘savours’ great season q Another doubles double for Swiss Miss New York, Sept 14 (PTI): Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis continued their domination in the women’s doubles by winning the US Open crown, their second Grand Slam of the season, after a crushing victory over Casey Dellacqua and Yaroslava Shvedova, here yesterday. It took the top seeds only 70 minutes to wrap up the final 6-3, 6-3 against the fourth seed Kazakh-Australian combination at Flushing Meadows. There were no sparks in the final as both Dellacqua and Shvedova were off colour. They never looked like troubling the top seeds, who did not even need their A game to clinch the issue. Such has been the class of the Sania and Hingis that they did not drop a single set en route to the title and only once they had to win a set through tie-breaker. Sania’s win capped off a memorable US Open for Indians as Leander Paes had won the mixed doubles trophy with Hingis on Saturday, in a repeat show of the Wimbledon.

Novak Djokovic

Sania’s ground-strokes from the back of the court and Hingis’ agility at the net was too good for their rivals. It was Sania and Hingis’ second Major title in a row, having won the Wimbledon championships earlier this season. Sania now has five Grand Slam titles in her collection. She won three Mixed Doubles trophies, the last one coming at this very venue with Bruno Soares in 2014. In an extraordinary season, Hingis has won five Grand Slam titles this season, taking her overall number to 20. She won three titles with Paes and two with Sania. ‘It’s a great year for us. It’s already been a great year for me. I became world number one. We were a solid team and were in with a chance in all Slams. We are happy to come through. I won mixed doubles here last year, great to come bak and win this,’ Sania said after her win and also thanked the Indians out there in stands who came out to support them. An elated Hingis said, ‘from the start we hit it off. Our games complement each other. Sania

won her first Wimbledon, for me it is bonus. I volley better than what I used to. (in her singles days)’. Shvedova committed a double fault in the second game at 30-all to give top seeds a break point and then a superb return from Sania brought another opportunity but the fourth seeds saved both chances. The top seeds did not have to wait much for next chance as they broke Dellacqua at love to take a 3-1 lead. But the advantage slipped soon as Sania was broken in the fifth. Shvedova, who is getting married on Tuesday, surrendered her serve one more time, letting Sania and Hingis just walk away with the set. Shvedova was far from the player she is as she was down by three break points in the very first game of the second set. Top seeds grabbed the opportunity and consolidated lead with a solid hold. Sania fired two stunning service winners on Dellacqua’s serve as the Australian was broken at love in the seventh game.

Las Vegas, Sept 14: Should Floyd Mayweather’s boxing career now be over, as the undefeated American insisted after easily beating Andre Berto in their welterweight showdown on Saturday, his place among the sport’s very best is assured. He will certainly be remembered as one of the greatest defensive practitioners of all time because of his remarkable ability to stay away from danger in the ring, right up there with fighters such as Pernell Whitaker and Willie Pep. As for his brash claim to be ‘TBE’ (The Best Ever), that will fall to historians to judge, though many pundits would be reluctant to put him on a pedestal alongside true greats like Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis and Roberto Duran. Part of the problem for Mayweather is public perception directly caused by the way he promoted himself as a boxer, both inside and outside the ring, with an extravagant lifestyle. His career-long pursuit

Rahane reminds me of Tendulkar: Steve Waugh Bengaluru, Sept 14 (PTI): Former Australian captain Steve Waugh said that Ajinkya Rahane reminded him a bit of Sachin Tendulkar and his ‘compact technique’ would fetch him a lot of runs for India. Waugh, who was here for the inauguration of world class sports arena at Brigade Orchards at the outskirts of the city, said Rahane has modelled himself on iconic batsman Tendulkar. ‘I like Rahane and he is a quality player. He reminds me quite a bit of Tendulkar. He does not have a very big back swing. He obviously has modeled himself a bit on Tendulkar,’ Waugh told PTI in an interview at the inauguration of world class sports arena at Brigade Orchards at the outskirts of the city here. ‘(Virat) Kohli is a world class player, one of the best. But, I also like Rahane’s technique. He has a very compact technique, has shots all around the ground and has a good temperament. I like him as a player and is going to score a lot of runs for India,’ said Waugh. Asked about Kohli’s captaincy, Waugh said the Delhi batsman was on right track as a skipper after he led India to a historic away Test series win in Sri Lanka.

Floyd Mayweather of perfection, with his focus on iron-clad defence to stay out of trouble, and his frequently arrogant showmanship helped him compile a stellar 49-0 record to match former heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano. All too often, though, he has been criticised for hand-picking his opponents, and there is also the question of his relatively low knockout rate, just 26 for a boxer who prides himself on his brilliant defensive skills and agile movement.

Spurs, Leicester post victories

Tottenham Hotspurs’ Ryan Mason celebrates after scoring the opening goal against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland. London, Sept 14: the defence after combining with Harry Kane, broke the Ryan Mason scored a late deadlock and provided a rare winner and was then carried off on a stretcher as Totten- burst of brilliance in an otherwise uninspired encounter ham Hotspur beat Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. The 1-0 to record their first Premier midfielder was then carried League victory of the season off injured after colliding with on Sunday, while Leicester Sunderland goalkeeper Cosfought from two goals down tel Pantilimon. in the last 18 minutes to beat Aston Villa 3-2 to maintain its Manager Mauricio Pochetstunning start to the Premier tino said the player’s condiLeague season. tion would be assessed on Monday. ‘It was a big knock on The win lifted Spurs to 12th the knee. It was a great goal in the table and dropped and we showed how we try to champions Chelsea, beaten 3-1 at Everton on Saturday, play,’ he said. down to 17th and in danSunderland, still searchger of falling into the bottom ing for their first win after three when Newcastle United five games this season and play at West Ham United on now with 11 goals conceded, Monday. dropped to the bottom of the table, behind Stoke City on Mason’s 82nd-minute dinked goal difference. goal, with Erik Lamela splitting

LOCAL SPORTS

Qualifiers spotted NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: The eight qualifiers for the main draw of the Justice P S Kailasam Centenary GNC International Men’s Futures Tennis Championships 2015 being held at the Gandhi Nagar Club in Chennai were spotted yesterday. The first three matches of the day went the distance. Siddarth Vishwakarma downed Rishabdev Ram in three sets, while Nitin Kumar Sinha the 13th seed edged out 5th seed Jatin Dahiya 6-4 in the third set. 15th seed Neeraj Elangovan started strongly against 6th seed Manish Suresh Kumar but fitness problems got in the way and Manish ran out a 6-0 7-5 winner in the second and third set respectively. In yet another three setter 10th seeded Rashein Samuel outlasted local favourite, Fahad Mohamed 5-7, 6-4, 6-1. Rohan Bhatia was too experienced and won in straight sets against host club’s Arjun Mahadevan, while the adidas MCC u-18 National Champion Vasisht Cheruku put up clinical display to down Faisal Qamar with loss of only four games. Results: Qualifying Final Round: Siddharth Vishwakarma beat Rishabdev Raman 6-4 5- 6-3; Nitin Kumar Sinha [13] beat Jatin Dahiya [5] 2-6, 6-3, 6-4; Manish Sureshkumar [6] beat Neeraj Elangovan [15] 2-6 6-0 7-5; Vasisht Cheruku Faisal Qamar 6-2,6-2. Rohan Bhatia beat Arjun Mahadevan 6-4, 6-3; Rashein Samuel [10]beat Fahad Mohammed 5-7,64,6-1; Zach Itzstein (AUS) beat Abdullah Shaikh [3] 6-2, 6-3; S D Prajwal Dev [4] beat Basil Khuma [14} 7-5, 6-0.

Mixed Bag

CHENNAI

MONDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2015

7

Tamil and Sanskrit are like brothers: Minister

q Pon Radhakrishnan urges people to learn other languages

State Minister for Information and Special Programmes Implementation K T Rajenthra Balaji greets Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa ahead of the discussion on demands for grants for his department, at the Secretariat in Chennai today.

State Tourism Department Commissioner Ramesh Chand Meena, retired IAS officials C K Gariyali and Karpoorasundarapandian and Sakthi Amma of Vellore Narayanee Peedam at a function in Vellore recently to distribute scholarships to students set to appear in civil service examinations. Scholarships to the tune of Rs 15 lakh were distributed.

NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: Tamil and Sanskrit are two ancient languages with both having their own rich legacy of culture and heritage, said Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways Pon Radhakrishnan at the valedictory ceremony of the three-day Samskrita Sammelanam at Meenakshi College for Women yesterday. Sanskrit and Tamil are ancient languages and both have given us a lot of knowledge, values and other information worth cherishing. These two ancient languages are like Annan and Thambi (siblings) and have witnessed a lot of exchange of information between them, said Minister Pon Radhakrishnan. He added that learning both languages will prove beneficial thanks to the knowledge and values embedded in them. We should have a mindset of encouraging all languages and learn Samaskritam as much as we have learnt Tamil, he said. The two languages had a brotherly attitude towards each other which paved the way for exchanges. When there is a

Oppn stages walkout TAMIL

his consideration and would be the September two general strike taken up at the appropriate time. called by the trade unions. As Speaker did not allow them The Speaker refused permission folto speak, the DMK members were lowing which the CPI and the CPI-M on their feet. Some of them also members staged a walk out. They were rushed towards the Speaker’s followed suit by the Congress and the chair. Puthiya Tamizhagam, who tried to raise the alleged human Dhanapal said the DMK memsacrifice that came to bers could not compel him to U AS D A S light during the ongoing take up the issue and asked N investigation into the them to resume their seats. multi-crore granite scam As the Speaker said he would at Madurai headed by not allow them to speak, the senior bureuacrat U SaDMK members led by Mr Stalin gayam. walked out of the House. As the Speaker reImmediately after this, CPI(M) fused permission, the Floor leader A Soundararajan sought to raise the issue of the al- Congress members and the PT leader Dr K Krishnasamy walked leged attack on his party legislator out of the House. Balakrishnan at Chidambaram during

Pulses prices go through roof q Govt to import 5,000 tonnes of toor dhal for public consumption NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: Barring channa dhal, the retail prices of all pulses are ruling above Rs 100 per kg across the country. The maximum increase in prices has been seen in toor and urad dhal. Speaking on the issue, Ramesh of Rathna Traders, Chennai, says, ‘There are main reasons for the increase in the prices of pulses like toor dhal (thuvaram paruppu), urad dhal (ulutham paruppu). Toor dhal is mostly cultivated in Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh, while urad dhal is cultivated in Andhra Pradesh. About 50 per cent of all pulses are imported from Myanmar, Canada and African countries. But unseasonal rains in the western part of the India have heavily damaged the crops. So, imports have reached almost 100 per cent. Not only the standing crops, but also stored food grains were severely damaged.” He continued that ‘Secondly, by traditional, south India is the main consumer of pulses. But for the past

few years, north Indians have also started consuming pulses more. Since there is a big demand with less production, the price has gone up. Particularly, toor dhal, which sold for about Rs 75 per kg last year, has gone up to Rs 150 per kg this year.’ The Central government today decided to import an additional 5,000 tonnes of toor dhal to boost domestic availability. Import of 10,000 tonnes of toor and urad dhal is already in the pipeline and the first consignment will reach by 23 September, it is said. The government has already directed the MMTC to expedite import of 10,000 tonnes of pulses tendered earlier and requested the State governments to gear up for distribution of imported lentils through retail outlets. India imports about 4 MT of pulses largely through private trade. But, this time, the government has started importing pulses after a gap of two years.

BLY EM

NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: The entire Opposition, barring the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), today staged a walk out from the Tamilnadu Assembly after making a vain bid to raise some important issues. Soon after Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa made a statement under Rule 110 of the Assembly, DMK FLoor leader M K Stalin rose from his seat and sought to raise the recent Global Investors Meet (GIM). Speaker P Dhanapal refused permission stating that the DMK had given notice about it only at 9.30 am today. DMK Depty leader Duraimurugan also pleaded with the chair. The Speaker said the matter was under

Anna medals for 130 personnel NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa will honour 130 personnel in police and other uniformed services on the occasion of former Chief Minister C N Annadurai’s birth anniversary which falls on 15 September. A government press release said as a recognition to devotion to duty, deserving personnel from police, fire and rescue service, prison service, Home Guards and finger print science departments from the State will he honoured with the Tamilnadu Chief Minister’s medal. The policemen will be receiving a bronze medal and a sum of money according to the ranks as mentioned in the medal rules, in a ceremonial medal parade to be held in due course.

Man rescued from Marina NT Bureau, Chennai, Sept 14: A man who was drowning in Marina Beach was rescued by the public yesterday. According to police sources, Perumal from Senji in Villupuram was taking a dip in the sea when he was overpowered by a high tide. However, timely action from other visitors and swimmers saved his life.

BJP, Manjhi sink differences Patna, Sept 14: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has apparently managed to placate former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, who on Monday confirmed that ‘everything is sorted.’ The differences between Manjhi and the BJP over the seat-sharing issue seem to have been ironed out as a Hindustani Avam Morcha (secular) leader claimed that the party is being offered 20 seats by the saffron party. ‘There is no confusion, everything is sorted,’ the ANI quoted Jitan Ram Manjhi while he was on his way to meet Amit Shah at his residence where the Bihar BJP Core Group meeting was held. In what suggested that the factions had reached a ‘sweet’ deal on

seat-sharing, both Manjhi and Shah were seen sharing sweets after the meeting, said reports. A final announcement on the seat sharing arrangeJitan Ram Manjhi ment between BJP and its three allies-- Ram Vilas Paswan’ LJP, Upendra Kushwaha-led RLSP and Manjhi’s HAM(S) is expected later today. Amit Shah, Bhupendra Yadav, Ananth Kumar, Jitan Manjhi, Narendra Singh, Shakuni Chaudhari were present at the meeting held at Shah’s residence. BJP president Amit Shah reportedly

cancelled his Mysore visit to resolve the crisis after Manjhi’s associates threatened to reconsider continuing in the alliance if a ‘respectable’ offer was not made. Earlier, Manjhi was said to be miffed after he was offered 13-15 seats by the BJP and sought to draw a parity with Paswan’s LJP, which was tipped to get around 40 seats. The entire issue was solved after a hectic day of talks on Sunday as negotiations continued till late night. A seat sharing agreement was said to have been reached at a meeting Meanwhile, BJP’s Central Election Committee is likely to meet on Tuesday to decide on its candidates for the elections.

Prize winning students along with Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways Pon Radhakrishnan during the valedictory ceremony of Samskrita Sammelanam at Meenakshi College for Women in Chennai yesterday. brotherly attitude based on love for each other, no room is left for hatred and differences based on languages, he said. Learn other languages, so that one can explain the greatness of one’s own language to people speaking other languages in their own tongue, he suggested. Mastering other languages would never limit the scope of your own tongue but would create ways and

means to spread it, he said. He said Tamilnadu has shown the way to learn to explore the greatness of one’s own culture and traditions through language. Former additional member (finance) with Railway Board, Government of India, S Ram Mohan, said under the influence of the McCaulay system of education, we have left behind the richness of languages like Sanskrit. It is a language that even foreign

Help realise Anna’s dream: Jaya NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: Taking pride in achieving an investment of Rs 2.42 lakh crore at the recently concluded GIM, Chief Minister and AIADMK general secretary J Jayalalithaa today said it was a phenomenal one, much more than the total achieved in some 20 years or so and added that it would herald a massive ‘industrial revolution’ in the State. In a letter addressed to partymen on the eve of the 107th birth anniversary of former Chief Minister C N Annadurai, Jayalalithaa said, ‘the success of the GIM can be dedicated to Annadurai. The progress of Tamil people was the only dream of Annadurai and he had dedicated his life for the same. We are working to fulfill his dreams by following his footsteps.’ ‘Under my guidance the GIM was held to attract a investment of one lakh crore, as a result during the meet Rs 2,42,160 crore investments were agreed on and

MoUs signed. This investments will usher in an industrial revolution in the State,’ she said and added that ‘it is the Southern parts of the State that will be benefitted more by these investments as more employment opportunities will be created.’ Jayalalithaa also urged the partymen to work for AIADMK’s victory in the forthcoming Assembly elections and use the success of the GIM as springboard to success.

Fekete, the bolter in Oz team for B’desh Sydney, Sept 14 (AFP): Australia sprang a surprise today when they called up uncapped paceman Andrew Fekete, 30, for next month’s Test tour of Bangladesh as part of a major shake-up following a number of retirements. Debutant top-order batsman Cameron Bancroft, 22, also gets the nod in a 15-man squad captained by Steve Smith as Australia grapple with wholesale changes. Ex-skipper Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin, Ryan Harris, Chris Rogers and Shane Watson have all retired as Australia lost the Ashes Test tour but won the one-day series against England 3-2. Quicks Mitchell Johnson and Josh Hazlewood are both rested after a heavy recent workload, while opening batsman David Warner and leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed are injured. Joe Burns, Patrick Cummins, Usman Khawaja, Glenn Maxwell and Stephen O’Keefe are all recalled for the two Tests in Chittagong and Dhaka.

scholars like Max Mueller had attributed greatness to in his works - but he is unrecognised in the present circumstances. Sanskrit is the only language that can convey the same meaning despite positional change of words, he said. The secretary of Vivekananda Educational Society (Chennai), T Chakravarthy, said ancient languages like Sanskrit must reach the common man. It must remain a language for a commoner as much as it remains a communication tool for a scholar, he said. The three-day event was organised by Vivekananda Educational Society in association with Meenakshi College for Women, Samskrita Bharati and SASTRA University and witnessed cultural programmes, book fair and exhibitions on greatness of Sanskrit. Winners of various competitions held during the event were given prizes on the occasion. All India general secretary of Samskrita Bharati (Kerala) P Nandakumar, president of Uttara Tamilnadu wing of Samskrita Bharati, R N Joe D’Cruz, were among others present.

Evening rain forecast for TN NT Bureau Chennai, Sept 14: It’s been a pleasant week for Chennaiites with the temperature coming down in the city to 35 degrees C. The met office has forecast rain over isolated regions of Tamilnadu during the evening or night. ‘There are two main reasons for this: one is heat convection and the other is the low pressure that has been formed over the west central Bay and north west Bay. It may persist over the next two-three days,’ said an official from the Regional Meteorological Centre. ‘The effect of the low pressure will be mainly felt in north Andhra Pradesh and Odisha and will be mild over Tamilnadu,’ he added. The Met office said the upper air cyclonic circulation extends up to 7.6 kilometres above sea level. The sky condition will be partly cloudy during the week with rain or thundershowers occurring in some areas of Tamilnadu. Isolated rainfall occurred over Tamilnadu and interior Karnataka yesterday with Meenambakkam and Kelambakkam receiving about 0.01 cm and 2 cm rain respectively. The maximum and minimum temperatures for today will be 35 and 27 degrees C, according to the Met forecast.

8 MONDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2015

, CHENNAI

Licensed to post without prepayment under WPP. No. TN / PMG / (CCR) / WPP-470 / 15-17

Busy week in KOLLYWOOD

10 ENDRATHUKULLA A song from Vikram’s 10 Endrathukulla will be out this week. A road journey movie, the film is directed by Vijay Milton of Goli Soda fame. Samantha plays Vikram’s heroine. Music is by D Imman and a single from the album will be released this week.

AJITH SPECIAL On 17 September, the title and first look of Ajith’s 56th film, being directed by Siva, will be out. Produced by A M Rathnam, the movie stars Sruthi Haasan, Lakshmi Menon and Soori in prominent roles. Music is by Anirudh.

The third week of September is crucial in Tamil cinema as lots of activities are lined up. It will be special for both Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan fans too.

KABALI FESTIVE RELEASES

Rajinikanth’s much-awaited shooting for Kabali will begin in Chennai on 17 September. Directed by Pa Ranjith, the movie has Radhika Apte, Kalaiarasan, Prakashraj among others in the cast. Music is by Santosh Narayanan. Produced by Kalipuli S Dhanu, the movie is about an ageing don.

On Vinayaka Chathurthi day, three films will hit the screens. Nayanthara starrer Maya, G V Prakash and Kayal Anandhi in Trisha Illana Nayanthara (TIN) and veteran comedian Goundamani’s comeback venture 49O will be out. Maya is a women-centric movie and is a horror thriller. TIN is a rom-com directed by Adhik Ravichandran and 49O speaks about agrarian troubles.

NADIGAR SANGAM POLLS THOONGAVANAM

With just a month to go for Nadigar Sangam polls, campaigning hits a feverish pitch in Kollywood, Team Sarathkumar and team Vishal are busy calling on film personalities to garner their support. The coming week would see the teams announcing their candidates list for the elections.

The trailer of Kamal Haasan’s Thoongavanam will be out on 16 September. The movie is directed by Ulaga Nayakan’s associate Rajesh. Trisha plays the female lead. Prakashraj and Asha Sarath are also in the cast. It is produced by Rajkamal Films International with music by Ghibran.

Namitha in Mohanlal’s movie A

fter she reduced her weight considerably, actress Namitha is back in the hunt. She is now shooting for a Malayalam movie titled Pulimurugan opposite Mohanlal. The new-look Namitha was the talk of the town on the sets. Even Mohanlal heaped laurels on her. The actress had lost 18 kgs in the last three months. She was at Sakshi Wellness where she underwent a special course to reduce the same. Says Namitha, ‘The team at Sakshii met me and assured me of instant weight loss in a healthy way’ . — NT Bureau

R

anbir Kapoor’s recent films may have failed to do well at the box office but his rumoured girlfriend, actress Katrina Kaif says the dedicated, passionate and focused actor is sure to bounce back. Ranbir is going through a rough patch in his career as his last few films -- Besharam, Roy and Bombay Velvet failed to grab eyeballs. His movies not doing well is a sad thing. But he gives his heart and soul for a film. I know it hurts and pains him deeply that maybe he is not able to live up to the expectations and satisfy his audience,

Katrina said. ‘He loves his audience... he wants people to love his films... he wants that acceptance from audience. So all this is hurtful to him,’ she said. The 32-year-old actress is hopeful that Ranbir will bounce back. But as an actor, I haven’t seen anyone more passionate and focused about his work. It is just a matter of time. Every actor goes through ups and downs. I am sure with his passion, dedication and God’s blessing, things will change, she said. Talking about her recently-released

PULI Promotional song from Vijay starrer Puli will be out on Vinayaka Chathurthi day. The movie directed by Chimbu Devan has Sruthi Haasan, Hansika and Sridevi in lead roles. Music is by Devi Sri Prasad. Vijay fans are eagerly waiting for the promotional song. — M BHARAT KUMAR

Rajini Murugan’s release postponed

Proud moment for Dhanush Actor Dhanush has crossed the benchmark of two million followers on microblogging site Twitter. The 32-year-old Raanjhanaa thanked his fans for their support and helping him reach the milestone on social media. He also promised them that we will continue to work hard. 2 million followers... thank you for all the love, support and encouragement. Will do my level best to make you all proud #spreadlove, Dhanush posted. —PTI

S

ivakarthikeyan’s Rajini Murugan which was to release on 17 September has been postponed. The producers of the film Thirrupathy Brothers is caught in a financial tangle, though Vendhar Movies has brought it from them. There are issues between Thirrupathy Brothers and their financiers notably Eros over earlier settlements. It is worth to mention that Thirrupathy brothers and Eros were supposed to release Rajini Murugan but the latter backed out due to unknown reasons. Thirrupathy brothers’ earlier film, Uttama Villain too landed in trouble as Eros walked out at the last moment. Meanwhile the producers of the film have told the trade that will release on 21 October, for the pooja weekend. — NT Bureau

film Phantom, Katrina says she is happy with the audience’s response. The actress is now excited for Nitya Mehra’s film with Sidharth Malhotra, for which she has started shooting. The film titled Baar Baar Dekho is a love story, which happens over a period of time. Nitya’s film is an amazing love story. It is an idea that shocked me when I first heard it. I have not seen or heard a film like this in long time, she said. ‘Most of the love stories are of similar types, but this seemed new and exciting. There is lot of performance in it,’ she said. Sidharth had earlier revealed that they would go for prosthetics look for the film. Talking about it, Katrina says, ‘It (use of prosthetics look) is there for a small portion in a film. Like in Barfi when they (Ranbir and Priyanka) are growing old and dying so you won’t say it is a film using prosthetics.’ It is used in a small portion in the film. There is a very small portion (growing old) that comes towards the end of the film,’ she said. Katrina’s upcoming films include Jagga Jasoos and Fitoor. — PTI

Ranbir will bounce back, says Katrina

‘The Jungle Book’ clip arrives online Ahead of the first trailer, Walt Disney Studios has given us a brief glimpse of its live action adaptation of The Jungle Book. Posting the short sequence of four scenes on Instagram, we see the dark and wild jungle and a young boy standing in the midst of it. Jon Favreau has directed the film, the latest live action adaptation of a Disney film following the likes of Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella and Beauty & The Beast. A new poster for the film was revealed during Disney’s D23 conference ahead of its April 2016 release. The film stars newcomer Neel Sethi as Mowgli, and features the voice talents of Ben Kingsley and Lupita Nyongo. Bill Murray features as Baloo the Bear, while Christopher Walken, Idris Elba and Scarlett Johansson are also lending their voices to the movie. The Jungle Book will hit cinemas in April 2016. — PTI

Movie inspired by Sheena Bora case?

B

ollywood helmer Madhur Bhandarkar believes that the sensational Sheena Bora murder case can become a plot for any film. As a filmmaker this case (Sheena Bora murder) definitely evokes interest. The case can become a plot for any film . However, it will be too early to say whether I am going to make a movie on the issue, Bhandarkar told said. The 47-year-old director, is known to make movies on social issues. Some of his popular films include Heroine, Chandni Bar, Fashion, Corporate among others. I have understood this case a little through news channels. During the investigation, new revelations are happening daily, he said. I through my films present all facts before the audience. I being a director do not want to make audience judgemental in the climax, Bhandarkar added. Bhandarkar’s upcoming film Calender Girls will hit the screens on 25 September. Indrani Mukrejea, her former husband Sanjeev Khanna and her former driver Shyamvar Rai have been arrested on the charge of murdering Sheena and disposing of the body in a Raigad forest in April 2012. — PTI

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