DURBAN: Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder scored in each half Monday to give the Netherlands a 2-1 win over Slovakia and a spot in the World Cup quarter-finals.

JOHANNESBURG: FIFA’s refusal to use technology to help decide on close calls has left soccer isolated in major international sport, clinging to the idea that human error is somehow preferable to computer-backed truth.

CAPE TOWN: The saliva is already pooling on the floor in Cape Town as mouths water ahead of the first-ever World Cup match between neighbours Spain and Portugal, who meet on Tuesday in the final round of 16 match.

PARIS: Under-fire World Cup referee Uruguayan Jorge Larrionda was no stranger to controversy prior to his blunder in the World Cup last 16 match between Germany and England on Sunday.

JOHANNESBURG: Japan’s dead-ball prowess could hold the key to breaking down Paraguay’s stingy defence as both World Cup underdogs chase a first appearance in the quarter-finals.

ERASMIA: Less than 24 hours after their stunning 4-1 win over England, Germany were already planning for Saturday’s World Cup quarter-final against Argentina — and how to contain Lionel Messi.

NEW DELHI: Ajantha Mendis wrecked havoc when India toured Sri Lanka in 2008 but senior batsman Rahul Dravid hoped this time around he and his colleagues are better equipped to tackle the ‘mystery’ spinner in the forthcoming Test series beginning in Galle next month.

PANAJI: The Transport Minister, Mr Ramkrishna Dhavalikar on Monday said that the government will shortly take a decision regarding the bus fare hike.

PANAJI: With an increase in the number of crimes in the state and the resulting increase in arrests of culprits as well as their convictions, the government is facing severe problem as regards unavailability of space in the state prisons/jails for detaining them.

PANAJI: The state government is currently chalking out a health insurance scheme of up to Rs 60,000 per year, which will cover every Goan family. A provision of Rs 15 crore will be made for the same.

PONDA: In an incident of theft, a temple at Dharbandora, near sugar factory, was burgled on the intervening night of June 27 and 28, where religious items worth Rs 24,000 including cash of Rs 5000, was reported missing.

PONDA: Ponda police inspector, Mr C L Patil informed that a complaint has been lodged in connection with a theft of Rs 21,000 at the Shiroda Progressive Finance Cooperative Credit Society, near Shiroda market, which took place on Sunday night.

BICHOLIM: The Opposition leader, Mr Manohar Parrikar said students have more inclination towards technical education and their parents are fully aware of the present situation, which is a good sign of development of this field.

PANAJI: A day-long training programme for implementing agencies of Member of Parliament Local Area Development Schemes such as PWD and Collectorate organised by Nodal Officer South Goa District was held at Margao on Monday.

Light showers, strong winds, an overcast sky and excitement in the air! Sao Joao was celebrated with much gusto in Goa. To celebrate the spirit of Sao Joao - Goa’s rain festival, Muzic Matters and Riveira de Goa in association with beverage leaders Tuborg organised the Tuborg Sao Joao Grind on June 24 at Riviera de Goa in Arpora.

By Aroona Reejhsinghani
If you want to prepare your own shampoo, then dry and powder the seeds of custard apple and mix with equal quantities of powder of whole green mung dal. Make into a paste with buttermilk or skimmed milk and used on the hair as shampoo.

Working parents with busy schedules have little time to narrate stories to their children and the Page-Turners Children’s Book Club brings the fascinating world of tales to the children.

Chef Poornima of Alegria recommends    
Peri peri masala  is also sometimes known as Piri piri masala. Although the origin of the peri peri masla used by us is traditionally from Portugal, there are many variations.

NEW DELHI: With their relationship on “track” in Bihar now after the row between Mr Nitish Kumar and Mr Narendra Modi, BJP and JD-U have finalised seat sharing for the upcoming Assembly election in the state.

NEW DELHI: To prevent the kind of air space violations done by Chinese helicopters in Jammu and Kashmir last year, the Indian Air Force is planning to deploy radars along its mountainous frontiers in northern and eastern parts of
the country.

PATNA: The Bihar government will approach Sri Lanka for another sapling of the Bodhi tree after the first one planted by Tibetan leader the Dalai Lama here wilted due to negligence, triggering anger in the Buddhist community.

MANALI (HP): The drilling of a tunnel through the Himalayan ranges began here on Monday to facilitate laying out of an alternative all-weather road route to strategically important areas of Ladakh and providing a year-long connectivity to the remote Lahaul-Spiti valley.

WAYANAD: With passions running high in football-loving Kerala, a 23-year-old man, a fan of the Brazilian team, allegedly committed suicide in the state’s Wayanad district after his friends made fun of him, police said Monday.

WASHINGTON: India and the US have agreed to set up four working groups to advance cooperation and establish common goals between two countries in health sector.

KATHMANDU:  After keeping the house in abeyance for over a month for fear of obstruction by the opposition Maoist party, Nepal’s embattled government Monday announced that the new budget session of Parliament would convene from July 5.

ISLAMABAD: At least 18 people were killed and 40 others injured when a powerful explosion occurred today in Hyderabad city in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province, police said.

WASHINGTON: Cash outflows of as much as more than USD 3 billion has been reported out of Kabul in the past three years, raising fears among US investigators that it could be ill-gotten gains of the top Afghan officials being stashed away to financial safe havens abroad.

KATHMANDU: Nepalese government has rejected the Maoists’ demand for bulk integration of their People’s Liberation Army in the country’s armed force.

MUMBAI: India’s premier bank, State Bank of India’s base rate (for lending) to come into effect from July 1 would be below 8 per cent, a top bank official said. “It (the base rate) will not be more than eight per cent—it will be eight per cent or below,” SBI’s Chairman, O P Bhatt, told reporters here today.

MUMBAI: IT major, Wipro, today said that it has bagged the 2010 Microsoft Country Partner of the Year Award for India. Wipro has been chosen out of an international field of top Microsoft partners as delivering market-leading customer solutions built on Microsoft technology, a company press release said here.

BANGALORE: Mahindra Aerospace of the $6.3-billion utility vehicle maker Mahindra Group will become the India’s first private firm to manufacture smaller civil aircraft for the Indian general aviation market, which is set to boom this decade.

MUMBAI: Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) today announced its seventh oil discovery in exploration block CB-ONN-2003/1 (CB 10 A&B) in Cambay basin, about 130 km from Ahmedabad.A RIL release here said the well flowed at the rate of 410 barrels of oil per day
(BOPD).

MUMBAI: Air India’s five-year turnaround plan for financial revival of the ailing national carrier was today reviewed at its Board meeting in the presence of Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel.

Shimla: Early varieties of apples of Himachal Pradesh have arrived in the market, attracting buyers from across the country. “The season has started well.

MUMBAI: Snapping two days of losses, the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex closed 200 points higher today on heavy buying in energy giants RIL and ONGC in the wake of a hike in fuel prices.

BY BRAHM SWARUP
RECENTLY, Mr L N Mittal, the steel billionaire, complained that India is not yet ready for big projects. If he had been to our villages, he would have said that India is not ready for any project, big or small.

IT is a paradox that the capitalist world which dictates and defines the norms of the global economy should look towards India, a developing economy, for coming out of the economic mess which incidentally is their own creation.

GOAN farmers still nurse the impression that the government would do some thing to stop usurping of the agriculture land for urbanisation and initiate effective steps to protect their precious land.

Replace Electric Poles in Vasco
IN a span of just three days two electric poles along the Swatantra Path in Vasco, the main road of the Port Town, came crashing down. In the first instance a man who was working on the pole was injured.

JAKARTA: Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal notched up an incredible hat-trick of titles by successfully defending her Indonesia Open Super Series trophy with a hard-fought win over Japan’s Sayaka Sato here on Sunday.

LONDON: The annual cap of 24,100 professionals from India and other non-European Union countries to be announced on Monday will be open to challenge in the courts, an influential group representing professionals from India and other non-EU states said on Sunday.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has virtually ruled out barring Jamaat-ud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed, mastermind of the Mumbai terror attack of 2008, from giving inflammatory speeches targeting India.

TORONTO: Making it clear that each country needed to devise its own strategy to weather the deepest global financial crisis in decades, Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Sunday asked rich nations to resist protectionism.

VASCO: Saligao United Sports Club, Bardez inscribed their name on the 37th Bandodkar Memorial Soccer Tournament, organised by Baina Sports Club, by shooting out Nagoa Sporting Club 4-2 via tie-breaker in the finals played at MPT ground on Sunday.

MANCHESTER: England survived a dramatic collapse to beat Australia by one wicket in the third One-day international at Old Trafford here on Sunday and so take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series.

MARGAO: Betalbatim Sporting Club came back twice to post a thrilling 3-2 victory over Don Bosco Oratory, Fatorda to enter the quarter-finals of the Cana-Benaulim soccer tournament organised by Cana Benaulim Sporting Association and played at St John Baptist grouinds Dando Benaulim on
Sunday.

PANAJI: The Goa Private Bus Owners’ Association has threatened to go on a day’s strike and keep the buses off the road on July 5 if their demand to revise bus fare is not met. This was stated on Sunday by the Association’s secretary, Mr Sudip Tamankar.

PANAJI: The Nationalist Congress Party observer for Goa, Mr Prakash Binsale on Sunday said that NCP will try and keep the secular forces in Goa united.

MAPUSA: Faiyyaz Sheikh, aged 12, and his younger brother, Yasin, aged 9, drowned in an abandoned stone quarry at Canca on Sunday afternoon.

MARGAO: In what could be seen as a clear sign of another awakening against corrupt practices in Goa, the gram sabhas of Chandor and St Jose de Areal village panchayats on Sunday opposed land filling in their areas.

PANAJI: Farmers of Salpem Tollem, Rawanfond, Sinquetim, Davorlim, Varca and nearby villages have resolved that no agricultural land in their villages will be allowed to be acquired.

MAPUSA: The Bardez Kala Bhawan Nirmiti Samiti (BKBNS) spearheading the movement of construction of the Ravindra Bhawan has called for a CBI enquiry into the alleged fraud in the Mapusa Communidade land.

MARGAO: The exorbitant prices of essentials commodities including the local vegetables are ruining the lives of people from the low income and middle income group. Consumers have faced a sharp rise in prices of staple food items such as pulses, sugar and edible oil.

BICHOLIM: Marathi medium government primary schools in Bicholim and Sattari villages have suffered a setback on account of low enrolment, caused due to relocation of people and shifting of students from village schools to English medium schools in the towns.

VALPOI: Mr Vishwajit Rane after joining the Congress party has brought cheers on the faces of the senior Congress workers from Valpoi. Mr Rane has served as an independent legislator from Valpoi constituency in North Goa and state Health and Agriculture Minister in the Digambar Kamat-led coalition government for
three years.

PONDA: Ponda MLA and Home Minister, Mr Ravi Naik on Saturday said parents play a pivotal role in their children’s education and hence, they should cooperate with the teachers and non-teaching staff of the school.

MAPUSA: Fishermen in Goa consider June 29 as the sacred day which has been traditionally dedicated to their patron saint, St Peter. On this day instead of venturing out to catch fish, the fishermen tie their traditional wooden canoes together to form the Sangodd. Palm leaves and other flora are then used to decorate the Sangodd which is made to resemble a chapel.

BY ALBERT FERNANDES | NT NETWORK

POINGUINNIM: The potter’s wheel is truly a fascinating piece of equipment. One can stare at it for hours and be amazed at how a lump of clay, with the expertise of the potter, turns into an object of beauty.

BY ROQUE DIAS | NT NETWORK

MARGAO: Sonsoddo which is in the commercial capital of Goa – Margao, has a very colourful history. Lot of ideas, deals were planned and worked to treat piling garbage at Sonsoddo, but what finally generated from it were filth, smoke and decay.

BY SHYAM ZAMBAULIKER | NT NETWORK

MARGAO: It is often pointed out that detecting criminal cases, arresting the criminal and maintaining law and order is one of the main obligation of the police.

BY SUDESH BHOSLE|NT NETWORK

VASCO: Come monsoon and the hundreds of occupants of the houses located on the hilly area of Vasco, viz Headland-Sada and Bogda, live in fear of their lives and property.

By ASHOKKUMAR U DESAI | NT NETWORK

CANACONA: Successive governments have failed in providing adequate basic healthcare facilities at Canacona Community Health Centre particularly to the economically poor section of society.

by MINOO FERNANDES | NT NETWORK

MARGAO: Frog meat is a delicacy which is much in demand and is favoured by many, particularly the residents of Salcete taluka, who usually go out into the paddy fields and hilly terrains in search of these amphibians during the monsoons.

PANAJI: Goa State Industries Association (GSIA) felicitated Mr Anil Counto in recognition of his Outstanding Entrepreneurship at the hands of Chief Minister Mr Digambar Kamat during its recently held annual function, held at Hotel Mandovi.

NEW DELHI: Assocham has urged the government to streamline approval processes for Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) in Media and Entertainment (M&E) sector.

NEW DELHI: FICCI today asked the government to replace the Dividend Distribution Tax (DDT) on foreign shareholders by a Withholding Tax as it would help reduce

the cost of doing business in India.

By Nandkumar Kamat

THE first vice chancellor of Goa University, historian Prof B Sheik Ali created a culture of novel initiatives. He wasn’t bogged down by protocols, formalities and red tapism. He knew that within the UGC’s framework the new state university was meant to fulfil the aspirations of Goa and Goans.

THE spectre of bonhomie between India and Pakistan following the meeting of the home ministers of the two countries appears to have fizzled out as a day after the meet the Pakistan Foreign Minister, Mr Shah Mehmood Qureshi termed India’s concern that enough was not being done by Pakistan in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks as "presumptuous" and expressed helpless over the inflammatory anti-India speeches made by the terrorists there.

APPARENTLY it may appear that the market forces prevailed on the government to take the first step towards reforming the oil sector by deregulating petro-product prices.

Hike in Liquor Prices not the Answer

I

WITH reference to the letter, ‘Hike in liquor prices’ by Mr S Kamat (NT, June 26), I wish to comment as follows.

By Antony Kuriakose

 Velha Goa (Old Goa) has the prestige of having a number of churches that have been included in UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites. Among these are the ruins of St Augustine Church, once the largest in Goa.

By Prajal Sakhardande

ome of the old houses have wells set at a great depth. The well was almost sacred to the household. Laying the foundation of the house and digging a well were done simultaneously. Many of these traditional houses had a ‘nirpanas’ (bread fruit) tree planted close to the well and hence the name ‘paanpanas’ or ‘nirpanas’ wherein ‘paan’ or ‘nir’ meant water. It is unfortunate that many families have buried their wells and cut the breadfruit trees snapping ties with their ancestral heritage.

By Uma Ramachandran

 "By and large the attitude of a man towards his wife is possibly worse than his attitude towards his buffalo." - Colin Gonzalves

By Tomazinho Cardozo

ahan Mhozo Des’ is an audio album of Konkani songs on National Integration. The album is scheduled to be released tomorrow (June 28). The album is dedicated to the late Rajaram U Pai. He was a freedom fighter and my teacher. Many of my friends ask me the reasons for producing an audio album of songs on National Integration. Hundreds of audio and video CD’s are produced every year in Konkani.

By Khushwant Singh

he spectacular victory of Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress in the recently-held municipal committee’s polls will have far-reaching ramifications in the politics of the country. As the saying goes: "When Bengal sneezes, India catches a cold", she has written the last paragraph of a saga of over three decades of Marxist rule in West Bengal.

What inspired you to get into photography?

Well, I started my career in designing and advertising. I was also a freelance desk top publisher and required photographs for publishing. This gave me the idea of learning photography myself. Although I had an affinity for clicking photographs and had started clicking at the age of 15, I wanted to learn the finer points and this made me join a basic course in visual art photography. This was for a month’s duration and it gave me the knowledge which I was searching for.

This is a wake up call for young parents. The coming decades would be the toughest for the children and their children. So it makes sense to prepare them to face a very disturbing future in a different world. Nature shows no mercy to anyone. We have entered an age called Anthropocene. Geologists do not recognise it officially - for them we are still in holocene.

By Michael Walker

owntown Johannesburg staged one of those epic matches that define tournaments on Thursday, packed with drama, intrigue and goals.

BY ABDUL RAUF BEIG | NT NETWORK

PANAJI: The political happenings earlier in the week, wherein two prominent members of the group of seven joined the Congress party, is likely to give a boost to the prospects of the Congress and change the course of politics in the state and perhaps give an edge to the ruling party in the days ahead.

PANAJI: Stating that the Bharatiya Janata Party has prevented an amount of approximately Rs 36 crore from going out of the pocket of common man, including Rs 18 crore from the owners of two-wheelers and equal amount from the owners of four and six wheelers, as linked to the high security registration plates, the opposition party on Saturday

PANAJI: Incessant rains accompanied by gusty winds lashed the state on Saturday. People throughout the state were put to hardships due to the rains. Normal life was thrown out of gear due to water-logging, falling of trees and mudslides. Though the rains led to destruction of properties, no casualty was reported from any part of the state.

MARGAO: Call Centre of the Communication Department, which was closed a few years back, will be re-started and the necessary tender process is on, informed Mr Shantaram Naik MP while inaugurating 3G Mobile Service at Margao on Saturday.

POINGUINNIM: An awareness programme highlighting ills associated with drug-abuse was conducted in Canacona on Saturday, under the aegis of Canacona mamlatdar’s office.

MARGAO: Speaking to the media at a press conference held in Margao Dr Shailesh Raiturkar, Dr Venkatesh Nevagi, Dr Neena Faldesai and Dr Megha Savoikar - all consulting

MARGAO: The Goa Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education has issued circulars to the heads of all the recognised secondary schools to implement grading system for SSC examination from March-April 2011 onwards.

VALPOI: A meeting comprising of all heads of government departments was held recently at forest rest house, Valpoi to review the pre-monsoon works carried out in Sattari taluka.

VASCO: Long queues of applicants were witnessed in the office of the Mormugao mamlatdar on Friday, as form VI and other forms of the electorates were taken up for scrutiny.

LONDON: Defending champion Serena Williams remained on course to retain her singles’ title at Wimbledon after reaching the fourth round with a 6-0, 7-5 win over Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova on Saturday.

PANAJI: Nerul Sports Club overcame Ambelim Sports Club 8-6 via the tie-breaker to move into the second round of a high-scoring encounter of 39th Custodio memorial football tournament, at Raia grounds on Saturday. The teams were tied 4-4 at the end of regulation time.

MARGAO: Hosts Cana-Benaulim Sporting Association recorded a hard-fought 3-2 tie-breaker victory over Goa Velha Sports Club to enter the quarter finals of Cana -Benaulim Soccer tournament being played at St John Baptist grounds, Dando -Benaulim on Saturday.

Film review by Sachin Chatte

Film: Edge of Darkness

Cast: Mel Gibson, Ray Winstone

Directed by: Martin Campbell

Duration: 117 minutes

Rating: * * * 1 / 2

 From the director of Bond films like ‘Golden Eye’ and ‘Casino Royale’ comes a riveting thriller and certainly one of the better we have seen from Hollywood this year. Based on a television series, the story may not be exactly unique but it is the execution that keeps you entertained throughout the film.

By Aroona Reejhsinghani

Beautiful hands hold the admiring attention of the people around you. Well cared for hands and nails create an impression of spruceness and smartness. With beautiful hands you should have beautiful nails but pretty hands are often marred by brittle and weak nails.

The chess activity centre, Taleigao along with the International Centre Goa, Dona Paula has come up with first of its kind concept of blindfold chess in Goa.  The demo of the same was hosted at the International Centre, on Saturday.

Sunita Rodricks of Ah Goa recommends

With the season of mangoes coming to an end, here’s your chance to start the day with a smile. If you believed that Mangoes were just a tasty fruit…then look at their benefits. Mangoes contain phenols, which have powerful antioxidant and anticancer abilities.

When she signed on, Padmini Kolhapure’s sister Tejaswini Kolhapure was told her role in Raavan was a “prominent” one (she plays‑Ravi Kissen’s wife in the film). She spent two and a half gruelling months‑away from home and‑husband (filmmaker-actor Pankaj Saraswat)‑in the jungles shooting.

Yesterday, Apoorva Lakhia and Shveta Salve both denied that she was at his house. 24 hours on, their stories have changed. Read on to find out why the actress returned the earrings she had stolen...

WHAT WE HAVE HERE: Are pics of Manisha Koirala’s private wedding to businessman Samrat Dahal and the reception thereafter.

DURBAN: Portugal and Brazil played out an unsavoury goalless draw, including seven first-half yellow cards, as both sides reached the World Cup second round on Friday after completing their Group G games unbeaten.

DURBAN: Brazil coach Dunga blamed Portugal for what he considered negative tactics after the dismal 0-0 draw which ensured both sides reached the last 16.

NELSPRUIT: Ivory Coast convincingly beat North Korea 3-0 on Friday, but the win, which could easily have been by a larger margin, was still not enough to prevent the Africans from going out of the World Cup.

RUSTENBURG: Coach Bob Bradley and his indefatigable United States team will seek revenge and a place in the quarter-finals when they meet Ghana on Saturday.

PORT ELIZABETH: South Korea and Uruguay meet on Saturday in a fascinating World Cup last 16 clash that few pundits would have predicted at the start of the tournament.

GEORGE: Exactly a month ago, a majority of Japanese wrote off their team’s chances of reaching the World Cup second round following a dismal 2-0 home defeat to old rivals South Korea in a send-off friendly.

PANAJI: The Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat has said that his government would study the situation arising after the increase of prices of petroleum products, including liquefied petroleum gas and take appropriate decision on the matter.

PANAJI: The state cabinet on Friday accepted the report of the committee headed by the Chief Secretary, Mr Sanjay Kumar Shrivastava, on the High Security Registration Plates and directed the Chief Secretary to take further action in accordance with the law in terminating the agreement.

PANAJI: The North Goa zilla panchayat has tendered 85 developmental works at the cost of Rs 1.98 crore in all the 30 segments in the backdrop of cancellation of a previous tender for 86 developmental works.

PANAJI:  Acknowledging that investors arriving in the state have faced lot of problems in fields like special economic zones, the Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat on Friday said the new industries coming to the state should be cautious before opening their units here, because Goa gives special preference to pollution-free, environment-friendly units, which generates employment for locals.

PANAJI: The Bharatiya Janata Party will soon file a disqualification petition against the Education Minister, Mr Atanasio Monserrate for allegedly violating the anti-defection law by joining the Congress party.

PANAJI: The transport director, Mr Swapnil Naik on Friday said that the Bus Owners Association will have to make a fresh proposal before the government for revision of the fares keeping in view of the hike in diesel prices by the Union government by Rs 2 even as the bus owners association have demanded the removal of the Transport Minister, Mr Ramkrishna Dhavlikar.

PONDA: Ponda police arrested three more persons -- Jabir Khan, 25, Abdul Karim, 24, and Asif Khan, 27, all from Gogol, Margao, on Friday, in connection with the theft of raw sugar last month. Police had earlier arrested three accused in the same case.

ISLAMABAD: The Union  Home Minister, Mr P Chidambaram on Friday night met his Pakistani counterpart, Mr Rehman Malik and is understood to have pressed for urgent action against JuD chief, Hafiz Saeed and 26/11 handlers, including those who are believed to be in the Pakistani Army.

NEW DELHI:  In a politically sensitive move, the government on Friday hiked prices of petrol by Rs 3.50 a litre and diesel by Rs 2 a litre, raised LPG by Rs 35 a cylinder and the poor man’s cooking fuel kerosene by Rs 3 a litre.

NEW DELHI:  The International Film Festival of India ) will have a restructured two-tier jury system from this year with at least four to five regional juries.

The monsoon which had played hide-and-seek all these years on June 24, this year decided to lash out in full fury, thus blessing Goans with a drop in temperatures and a fantastic ambience, in keeping with the theme of Sao Joao.

With the Soul Mind Body Healing system, healing starts with the empowerment ‘I have the power to heal myself’ and accesses the power of the soul to transform every aspect of life.

By K D L Khan
Curry belongs to Indian cuisine and our gourmets state that there are nearly 200 authentic curries in India ranging from the Chettinad chicken curry of South India to the Yakhni mutton curry of Kashmir.

By Odette and Joe Mascarenhas
Well the World cup fever is on…and Joe seemed to require a thermometer, especially when Shakira shakes to her Waka Waka anthem. Well I was given to understand that the term means ‘Do it’ and so with the news that there was a special menu created for the FIFA fever, I decided to treat my better half to something that he truly loves…food.

WASHINGTON: The US Congress has overwhelmingly passed tough new sanctions against Iran, targetting the Islamic Republic’s powerful Revolutionary Guards and country’s imports of gasoline and other refined energy products.

WASHINGTON: A day after India raised the issue of visas for Indian professionals and skilled workers, a senior US official acknowledged that visas posed an “appallingly pervasive problem” in science and technology cooperation.

WASHINGTON: Since the Second World War, the use of rape as a weapon of war has assumed strategic importance and is now a deliberate military strategy, argue researchers.

NEW DELHI: Condemning the recent spate of honour killings in the capital, activists of various organisations Friday staged a protest and demanded tough punishment for the culprits.

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court Friday issued production warrants against three youths arrested in connection with the sensational honour killings of their relatives last week.
Metropolitan Magistrate Mr Satish Kumar directed Dasna jail authorities at Ghaziabad to produce the accused before the court here on Saturday.

NEW DELHI: Home Minister Mr P Chidambaram Friday requested Karnataka Lok Ayukta head Mr Santosh Hegde not to press his resignation, saying this would only encourage the “corrupt elements” in the state.

SRINAGAR: They smoke it, sniff it, eat it, inject it and temporarily escape into a deceptive world.
Be it a way to fight personal crisis, means to wipe the mental scars or just a sign of being cool, the youth in Kashmir have fallen into the net of drugs, with such cases increasing by 35-40 per cent in the last few years.

NEW DELHI: The government today decided to release five million tonnes of wheat in the open market and retain zero duty on sugar and wheat imports in the wake of soaring food prices. The empowered group of ministers (EGOM), headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, decided to offload wheat under the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) at prices lower than the market price.

MUMBAI: Mukesh Ambani-run Reliance Industries and his younger brother Anil-led RNRL today signed a revised gas supply agreement, a development that paves the way for government to allocate gas to Anil Ambani group’s power plants.

SHANGHAI: Stockpiles of imported iron ore at China’s major ports fell by 180,000 tonnes from a week earlier to 69.85 million tonnes, industry consultancy Mysteel said on Friday.

TOKYO: Toyota Motor chief Akio Toyoda’s pay package was below 100 million yen ($1.1 million) last year, less than what his peers at Honda Motor and Nissan Motor made, securities filings showed.

LONDON: Afghanistan plans to tender in September for companies to develop its Hajigak iron ore deposit and aims to hold tenders of gold and copper deposits later in the year or early next year.

KOCHI: In a first of its kind venture by any coconut producing country, India is mulling launching a ‘Coconut Trail’ across various states producing the wonder nut which would give tourists an insight into the rural life and history of the 3000 year-old tradition of coconut culture.

MUMBAI: L&T Infotech today announced setting up of a European software development and maintenance centre in Belfast in Northern Ireland. The investment, which is supported by Invest Northern Ireland (Invest NI), is expected to help create 85 new high quality jobs in Northern Ireland within the next one year, the company said in a release here.

MUMBAI: A sharp gain in energy stocks today failed to arrest the drop in the broader market, with the BSE benchmark Sensex shedding 156 points as investors feared that a hike in auto and kitchen fuel prices would lead to very high inflation.

BY INDER MALHOTRA
EVEN in the midst of the current rage, recrimination, blame game and damage limitation over the “betrayal of Bhopal” there was at least one other news item that drew attention and indeed shook those who read and followed it.

APPARENTLY it appears that with Mr Vishwajeet Rane back in the Congress and prime mover of the G-7, Mr Atanasio Monserrate joining the Congress rank, the Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat is in an unenviable position and has a firm grip on the government.

THE foreign secretary level talks between India and Pakistan entrusted with the task to bridge the trust deficit failed to evolve a comprehensive mechanism with Pakistan unwilling to concede any ground.

Incompetent Governance-I
DEMOCRACY means making the truth powerful and power truthful. But what we see is that every position of power has conspired to manipulate, suppress, disguise or bury the truth! We are witness to the IPL saga and Bhopal gas tragedy now playing out. In Goa too, the police personnel involved in the drugs nexus are out on bail.

JOHANNESBURG: Holders Italy made a humiliating exit in the World Cup group stage when they lost 3-2 to Slovakia on Thursday having been largely outplayed.

DAMBULLA: Pace battery led by Ashish Nehra demolished Sri Lanka to help India win the Asia Cup with a comfortable 81-run win on Thursday.
Dinesh Karthik top-scored with 66 as India made 268-6 after electing to bat in the day-night final, before the defending champions and hosts were shot out for 187.

POLOKWANE: Paraguay topped Group F at the World Cup on Thursday after a drab 0-0 draw with surprise packets New Zealand.

DURBAN: Pride not pragmatism will be the watchword when soccer powerhouses Brazil and Portugal meet in a mouth-watering World Cup clash on Friday to decide the winners of Group G.

POTCHEFSTROOM: Spain must ignore external criticism and show faith in the playing style that has served them so well for Friday’s showdown against Group H leaders Chile, according to midfielder Andres Iniesta.

JOHANNESBURG: Ivory Coast will make one last desperate bid to win a place in the World Cup last 16 on Friday when they face a North Korea side hoping to salvage some national pride in Friday’s Group G finale.

BLOEMFONTEIN: Switzerland’s resolute defence has won many World Cup plaudits though the focus must be on attack when the Swiss face Honduras in their last Group H game on Friday as they bid for a place in the last 16.

PANAJI:  The Industrial Development Corporation will soon acquire around 20 lakh sq mts of land near various industrial estates around the state for further expansion of these estates.

PANAJI: Questioning as to whether there exists a collective drive between the state government and the business community in Goa, the first secretary (trade and investment) at the British Deputy High Commission, Mumbai, Mr Daniel Charles Mouawad on Thursday said that the world has changed a lot and Goa should use all key ingredients of trade and investment so as to position itself for facing the changing global scenario.

PANAJI: The revolutionary 3G mobile services provided by the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited were launched in North Goa by the Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat, at a special function held here.

PANAJI: The Agriculture Minister, Mr Vishwajit Rane on Thursday said that hiked allocation of more than Rs 51 crore, from Rs 27 odd crore in the previous financial year,

PANAJI: The Director General of Police, Mr Bhim Sain Bassi has said that probe into drug related cases, particularly relating to Yaniv Benaim alias Atala, was carried out in a professional manner and that it got due attention of the senior officials in the supervisory capacity.

PANAJI: The government has constituted a committee of secretaries as per the guidelines of the Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) with the state Development Commissioner as its chairman and the secretary for Town and Country Planning and the secretary for Urban Development as its members.

NEW DELHI:  Expressing concern over the spurt in cases of artificial ripening of fruits using chemicals, the Union health ministry on Thursday asked the states to take action against those indulging in the hazardous practice.

TORONTO:  Twenty-five years after the Kanishka tragedy that claimed 329 lives, the Canadian Premier, Mr Stephen Harper on Thursday apologised for the “institutional failings” that led to the Air India bombing and took the first step towards providing compensation to the victims’ families.

ISLAMABAD:  In an effort to bridge the trust deficit, India and Pakistan on Thursday exchanged proposals on a wide variety of issues bedevilling bilateral ties, including terrorism, humanitarian matters and Jammu and Kashmir.

All Time Party Hits
Here is a collection of dance music released by Rock & Raaga Productions (India) Pvt Ltd, Panaji. The album ‘All Time Party Hits’ has 21 dance tracks that will make you put on your dancing shoes.

‘XELLI…PUNN SANDLELI’
Pal Soares presents another impressive drama. This prolific writer has something different to present each time he releases a show. ‘Xelli…Punn Sandleli’ deals with the various groups or sects that have divided the catholic faith and the lack of unity between Christians because of misunderstandings.

By Zofeen T Ebrahim
“She will not be able to pursue her dreams,” observes Karachi-based Shirin Imani, about Indian tennis star Sania Mirza’s recent marriage to Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik amidst much controversy and media hype.

By Amita Quenim
A time in life, when all needs is to count on destiny, is old age. It is a time when you are answerable to yourself, for the good or bad you think you have done to others and to yourself. I would call it a time when you cannot escape through a hidden door.

Chef Pradhan of Goenchin recommends
Chinese imperial food dates back to slave society. Ever since there were emperors and palaces, there has been imperial food, which was served mainly to the emperors, their wives and concubines, and the royal families.

NEW DELHI: Domestic and international air fares would rise by Rs 100 and Rs 500 respectively from July one with the government issuing a notification to bring air travel into the service tax ambit.

MUMBAI: Reliance Industries (RIL) Thursday said it will pay $1.3 billion for a 45 percent stake in US-based Pioneer Natural Resources’ Shale gas assets.

KOLKATA: The Calcutta High Court today allowed M P Birla group company Birla Corporation to hold its AGM which was stalled yesterday following a district court order.

PANAJI: Bank of Baroda, (BoB) Vasco-da-Gama  branch recently conducted Customer Meet at its premises. Shri S D Inamdar, Assistant General Manager and Regional head for Goa and Western Maharashtra Region, said a press release.

PANAJI: The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports Govt of India has arranged to send a 100 members Indian Youth Delegation to China with a purpose to promote mutual understanding of Values and Cultures amongst the Youth and to develop better relations between India and China.

MUMBAI: The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex today pared early gains to close 25 points lower due to selling in realty and banking stocks on concerns over rising inflation. The 30-share barometer lost 25.50 points to close at 17,730.24 points.

WASHINGTON: The US President, Mr Barack Obama would meet the Indian Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh on Sunday on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Toronto, during which the two leaders would discuss a range of issues, a senior Obama administration official said today.

DUBAI: Three Indians were among four construction workers who were killed after their suspended working platform collapsed in Sharjah in UAE, police said today.

WASHINGTON: India has asked US to remove its two state-run frontline technology establishments ISRO and DRDO from the entities list, in apparent anticipation of Washington and New Delhi opening cooperation in hi-tech systems.

ISLAMABAD: South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation member nations have exchanged lists of banned groups during preparatory meetings ahead of a conference of Interior Ministers of the regional grouping here on June 26.

NEW DELHI: The expelled BJP leader, Mr Jaswant Singh today rejoined the party nine months after he was summarily thrown out for writing a controversial book on Pakistan founder Mohammed Ali Jinnah.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Union Home Ministry has written to the Kerala chief secretary to initiate action against Tomin J Thachenkery, Inspector General of Police, currently under suspension for going on a foreign trip without official clearance and reportedly meeting people there who have cases registered against them.

SRINAGAR: As India and Pakistan opened talks on Thursday, the Jammu and Kashmir separatist leader, Mr Syed Ali Geelani was detained under a tough law and moderate Mirwaiz Umer Farooq was put under house arrest.

HUBLI:  After the demise of Manohar Malgaonkar, the legendary Indian writer in his bunglow deep inside the jungles of Uttara Kannada last week, uncertainty prevails over the protection of the invaluable personal library and other priceless belongings.

BY V Y KANTAK
THE University Grants Commission will probe the issue of huge capitation fees allegedly demanded by two Tamil Nadu-based institutes, including one run by a Union Minister. The decision was taken following media reports that officials of Shree Balaji Medical College and Sri Ramachandra University allegedly demanded capitation fees in the range of Rs 40-50 lakh from students.

THE Karnataka Lokayukta, Mr Santosh Hegde known for his crusade against corruption and the mining lobby, resigned from his post at a time when the first-ever BJP government in the south is gearing up to celebrate in a grand style its completion of two years in office on June 25.

THIS time the opposition to the land acquisition for the international airport at Mopa has not come from the ‘South Goa hotel lobby’ or the ‘South Goa political lobby’; instead the villagers of three villages in Pernem taluka have questioned the rationale of issuing fresh notification to acquire another 6.69 lakh square meters of land when the Advocate General had assured the High Court that the government would not acquire more land.

Konkani Tiatr Festival
THERE is no denying that the present-day Goan tiatrists are doing a splendid job of keeping the age-old love for Konkani tiatr alive, in the process promoting the language of Konkani. But it seems necessary to initiate children into the culture of Konkani tiatr as well.

NEW DELHI: The government on Wednesday unveiled a national litigation policy that would dictate how it would reduce the burgeoning number of its court cases and act as "an efficient and a responsible" litigant.

COIMBATORE: The first World Classical Tamil Conference got off to a rousing start here on Wednesday with host of leaders led by the President, Ms Praibha Patil hailing the glory of the language, but the meet costing Rs 380 crore has its own share of political bickering.

PANAJI: The seats in the state professional colleges, including engineering and pharmacy colleges, as reserved by the All-India Council for Technical Education for girl students and economically backward students are found to be merged in the general category of seats, thus creating confusion among parents and students.

PANAJI: Denials notwithstanding, Mr Vishwajit Rane, the Health Minister and Independent MLA from Valpoi, is all set to rejoin the Congress party on Thursday afternoon along with his supporters at an impressive ceremony.

PONDA: Thirty-eight schoolchildren, the driver and an attendant of a school bus given under the Indira Bal Rath scheme were injured on Wednesday morning when it was hit from behind by a speeding truck at Suktolem, Mollem.

PANAJI: The BSNL 3G service being introduced in the state on June 24 is all set to bring about radical metamorphosis in the communication sector, in areas like fast downloading of information, easy access and transfer of videos and availability of diverse services on the BSNL portal – BSNL Live, the Chief General Manager of BSNL for Maharashtra and Goa Telecom Circle, Mr Aloke Kaul informed.

MARGAO: Vicar of Holy Spirit Church, Fr Ventura Lourenco on Wednesday inspected the alleged illegal hutments in the property of Lar De Estudantes, a former boarding in Modsai area, belonging to the Church. A Margao councillor was accused of encouraging the hutments.

PANAJI: Demanding that the government should take serious view about the drug trade in the state and investigate the same thoroughly, including allegations as regards the involvement of the son of a Goan politician in the same, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday

PANAJI: The Vasudeva V Dempo Change Awareness Programme for Goan School Children, a TERI-Dempo initiative, will be launched at the Dempo Corporate Headquarters, Panaji at 5 p.m. on June 25 on the occasion of 75th birth anniversary of late Vasudeva V Dempo.

PANAJI: The acting president of the Nationalist Congress Party, Dr Carmo Pegado on Wednesday said that the NCP plans to revamp the party in the state but yet to receive an official communication from Delhi that Civil Supplies Minister, Mr Jose Phillip D’souza is being nominated as the president of the state unit.

PANAJI: There is no lean season or off season for drug peddlers as well as for drug addicts in the state, said the Superintendent of Police (SP), Anti Narcotics Cell (ANC), Mr Veenu Bansal.

VASCO: Commander Dilip Donde, the yachtsman who became the first Indian to circumnavigate the globe solo by sailing INSV Mhadei, was felicitated for his historic feat at the hands of Flag Officer Commanding Goa Naval Area, Vice Admiral Sudhir Pillai, NM in a function held at Hotel Bogmalo Beach Resort recently, in a programme titled ‘Welcome Home Sailor.’

PANAJI: A team of budding electronic engineers from Goa College of Engineering Farmagudi, were invited by the Ex-Students Association, for a presentation on Robo World, to be given for the students of Std VIII, IX and X of St Mary’s High School, Ponda.

MAPUSA: Mapusa market, which is a hub of activity for the entire Bardez and other surrounding areas, is once again facing the brunt of the rains. Contrary to claims made by officials in the municipality that desilting and clearing of drains have been carried out in Mapusa the ground reality is that Mapusa market is still witnessing flooding.

MARGAO: South Goa Advocate Association (SGAA) has demanded for independent High Court for the state of Goa.

WIMBLEDON: Venus Williams powered into the third round of Wimbledon with a 6-0, 6-4 victory over Ekaterina Makarova on Centre Court on Wednesday.

VASCO: Saligao United Sports Club, Bardez trounced holder United Club of Nerul 4-2 via tie-breaker to set a date with Nagoa Sporting Club in the finals of the NRB Group 37th Bandodkar Memorial soccer tournament organised by Baina Sports Club and played at MPT grounds here.

BANGALORE: Karnataka Lokayukta (ombudsman) Mr N Santosh Hegde on Wednesday quit his post frustrated at the state government’s indifference to the institution set up to curb corruption in bureaucracy.

NEW DELHI: BJP Wednesday sent mixed signals to its ally JD(U) by making it clear that conditions like keeping Gujarat Chief Minister Mr Narendra Modi and Mr Varun Gandhi away from the election campaign in Bihar for continuance of the coalition were not acceptable to it.

NEW DELHI: Saying honour killings were nothing but cold-blooded murders, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Wednesday demanded that fast-track courts be set up to deal with the growing incidence of such cases.

BY REZAUL H LASKAR | PTI

ISLAMABAD: Bridging the trust deficit between India and Pakistan and finding the elusive common ground in efforts to tackle terrorism will top the agenda when Foreign Secretary Ms Nirupama Rao meets her Pakistani counterpart Mr Salman Bashir for talks here on Thursday.

By Betwa Sharma | PTI

NEW YORK: UN Secretary General Mr Ban Ki-moon has set up a three-member panel to look into alleged human rights violations during the final stages of the war against LTTE in Sri Lanka.

BY LALIT K JHA | PTI

WASHINGTON: The ongoing Bhopal controversy did not figure during the meeting of the Indo-US CEO Forum here, which was attended by Finance Minister Mr Pranab Mukherjee and US Secretary of State Ms Hillary Clinton.

WASHINGTON: India today assured US Inc. That its concerns on infrastructure, investment restrictions and other impediments would be addressed expeditiously, and a roadmap would be prepared for discussions ahead of American President Barack Obama’s visit in November.

By Michael Fisher | NT

PANAJI: Polluted waters from mines in South Goa have started to decant onto the surface, nullahs, and rivers, with long-term devastating consequences for the environment and the health of the people, agriculture and animals of the surrounding areas. It is also believed to be polluting Salulim dam and Ponda Water Works.

PANAJI: A meeting of architects, builders, interior designers, developers and others was held recently in the city to apprise them of the light emitting diodes and LED lit products and state-of-the-art security system.

KOLKATA: The Annual General Meeting of M P Birla group flagship Birla Corporation, which is at present controlled by the Lodhas, was today stalled owing to a stay order by a city court here.

By Praful Bidwai

THE Bharatiya Janata Party - once known for internal cohesion and discipline, although not for sober or inclusive politics - is now so faction-ridden that it often ends up damaging itself by pandering to particular leaders.

IT would be naïve to expect a confessional statement from the Goa police that granting of bail to the alleged drug dealer, Atala Benaim was a set-back to it.

POLITICS is the art of managing contradictions. But in Bihar the fight for one-upmanship between the alliance partners, the BJP and JD(U), is taking a nasty turn with both the parties ignoring the basic tenet of politics. The alliance has been on rocks ever since the advertisement crediting the Gujarat government with helping Bihar was released.

SC Notice on Honour Killings

IT is simply inexplicable how there has been a spurt of honour killings in a number of states of North India including the capital itself. There is no need to elaborate on the different cases of the brutal murders of young couples of different castes, marrying against the wishes of their parents.

In Goa after a gap of 6 months, Rohit Barker is back here to do what he does best – play mind-blowing music.  Marienelle DSouza caught up with Rohit as he gets set to put the DJ console on fire today at Riviera De Goa for the Tuborg Sao Joao Grind.

BY PURVI RADIA|NT NETWORK

We all know that Sao Joao signifies the moment when St John the Baptist leapt for joy in the womb of his mother. To mark this occasion, people jump in wells as a symbolic gesture.

Tiatr Academy of Goa (TAG) recently organised a meeting of tiatr and khell-tiatr artistes at TAG's Conference Hall, Campal, Panaji. The purpose of the meeting was to decide the correct format for tiatrs and khell-tiatrs.

Spicy and Hot

Chef  Ranjan Divya  of The Royal Orchid Galaxy recommends