Taj corridor case: High Court to pronounce verdict on November 5 - India

31  oct 2012

Taj corridor case: High Court to pronounce verdict on November 5

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Lucknow: Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati's legal trouble is far from over. After the Supreme Court quashed the disproportionate assets case against the BSP chief, the Taj Corridor case, that led the CBI to investigate Ms Mayawati's assets, has once again surfaced to haunt her.

On November 5, a two-member Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court will pronounce its verdict on a PIL seeking the reopening of the Taj corridor case against Ms Mayawati and her close aide Naseemuddin Siddiqui.

A Speical Judge of the CBI had discharged Ms Mayawati and Mr Siddiqui from prosecution because the then governor TV Rajeshwar had refused to grant sanction in 2007.

Three separate PIL's were filed in 2009 asking for the reopening of the case against Mayawati and her aide.

The Petitions alleged that the sanction to prosecute Mayawati was denied because of cordial relations between the Congress-led government at the Centre and Mayawati.

The CBI had investigated the case and filed a chargesheet against Ms Mayawati, MR Siddiqui and former Principal Secretary of Environment RK Sharma and Former Environment Secretary Rajendra Prasad.

They had been accused of siphoning off Rs. 175 crore in a construction of a corridor near the Taj Mahal.

Gun-waving MP gets pulled up by angry High Court judge - India

30 oct 2012

Gun-waving MP gets pulled up by angry High Court judge

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Ahmedabad: When Gujarat MP Vitthal Radadiya pulled out a gun at a toll plaza in Vadodara, he perhaps wasn't aware that he was being caught on candid camera.

Today, almost three weeks after that footage ran on television channels with a barrage of angry remarks from the public, the Gujarat High Court shared its own criticism of Mr Radadiya, adding to the ignominy for Mr Radadiya's party, the Congress.

"It's very unfortunate that a person with a special stature of MP, a lawmaker, behaves in such a way," Justice RH Shukla said.

The judge said "Just because you have a licensed weapon does not mean that you will brandish it in public." He also said that Mr Radidya should be willing to face an inquiry.

The MP, has refused to apologise for pulling a gun on the toll booth attendant who wanted to see his ID. Because MPs are exempt from paying toll, the attendant wanted to verify his documents before letting his car pass. Mr Radadiya has said that he was incensed after the staff at the toll plaza called him "a bogus MP." He also insists that he felt endangered because 15 security guards were surrounding him -a claim not corroborated by security cameras.

An FIR filed against Mr Radadiya by the toll plaza manager, Ajaysinh Thakore, accused him of life threats and rioting.

While Mr Thakore's advocate made a U-turn in court and did not insist on pressing charges, the BJP government said it will pursue the case as Mr Radadia's conduct was "unbecoming" of a public servant.

The case against Mr Radadiya has been filed by the local police, and the charges against him include rioting.

The case will next be heard on November 5.

In the midst of urban mess, a school dedicated to teaching Vedas flourishes - India

29 oct 2012

In the midst of urban mess, a school dedicated to teaching Vedas flourishes

Swanky malls, plush offices of multi-national corporations and sky-kissing high-rises are all what we know about the Millennium City. But there is another facet of the city that is unseen, unexplored probably unheard of - away from the mundane. Named Shringeri Sharadha Peeth Ved Pathshala, the one of its kind school in Gurgaon, teaches the Vedas to students in age-old gurukul style. 

 The school is situated at the Sheetla Mata temple, about 2 km from Old Delhi Road.
Apart from the Vedas, the students are taught rituals and other scriptures and the Upanishads.
Raghavendra Bhatta, 33, hailing from Karnataka, came to Gurgaon to start this Vedic school in January 2011.

At present, there are 16 pupils in the gurukul and many of them are from Haryana, while others are from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.

"Students are admitted on the auspicious day of Akshay Tritiya, which falls in the month of May," said Bhatta, who is not only a Guru but is also an astrologer and a Vastu expert.

Initially, when the school started, children of Brahmin community from Narnaul in Mahendergarh district took admission. "Most of the children enrolled here are in the age group of eight to 14 years," added Bhatta.
For pupils here, the Vedas are a way of life. They undergo a rigorous routine. "We wake up at 4am and sleep at 9.30pm," said Jitender Bhardwaj 16, a student from Narnaul.

The students get a day off after every 15 days - a day after the full moon and a day after the new moon.
"The reason behind this is the scriptures don't allow us to repeat anything on these days. Teaching them requires repetition," Bhatta explained.

Apart from this, pupils go home only on Raksha Bandhan and if there is a marriage ceremony at their place. "If they stay at home for long, they may get distracted and lose practice of the discipline taught here," he added.

It takes six to eight years to learn the Vedas thoroughly. It also depends on the pupils' grasping capacity. After which these boys grow up to become professional priests solemnising marriages, conducting Yagnas, Havans and poojas.

Rigorous routine a way of life here
Gurgaon: While pupils gather to recite the Shiv Tandav Mantra, youngest of all, 10-year-old Shivam Sharma spreads a mat, opens the lofty Rig Ved, touches his guru's feet and joins the group.

In May 2011, Shivam came from Mahendergarh district of Haryana, to learn the Vedas. His mother is a tailor and father is a farmer, his two sisters are married. He and his brother study here. "He is the youngest, but the sharpest of all," said Bhatta.

The 10-year-old adores his school. "I enjoy reading the Vedas. I don't miss home; this place is a home to me. I don't need an alarm to wake up. It has become a part of my life," said Shivam.

None of these 16 pupils of Shringeri Sharadha Peeth Ved Pathshala have ever visited a mall, saw a movie in the multiplex, sat in a luxurious car, or shook a leg in a discotheque.

Jitender Bharadwaj, 16, another pupil, who has studied till Class 10 in his village school, believes that he got true education in the gurukul.

"After coming here I felt that, I have learnt nothing," said Jitender.
Moreover, corporal punishment is a common practice here. One is beaten if he uses slang.

Won't sell 'family silver' to fund Kingfisher: Vijay Mallya - India

28  oct 2012

Won't sell 'family silver' to fund Kingfisher: Vijay Mallya

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Greater Noida: Liquor baron Vijay Mallya does not have to do a deal with UK drinks giant Diageo and will not sell prized assets to rescue his grounded Kingfisher airline, he told Reuters at the weekend.

Speaking in his office at Force India, the Formula One team he co-owns, the UB Group head poured scorn on media reports that he would be forced to sell stakes in profitable businesses to fund Kingfisher.

"That is the media perspective of what I am going to do. I am not so sure that I lack commercial acumen to the extent that I would sell a hugely thriving, successful business to take the cash and put it into an airline in an environment such as India," Mallya said at the Indian Grand Prix at the Buddh International Circuit south of New Delhi.

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"My group is sufficiently cash-generative to fund the airline as we have done. We have put almost 150 million pounds since April 2012 into the airline. But that has not meant that I have had to sell my family silver to fund the airline."

Mallya has been talking to Diageo Plc, makers of brands including Johnnie Walker whisky and Smirnoff vodka, about selling a stake in his United Spirits Ltd.

Earlier this weekend he said he was unsure whether or not he would agree terms with the London-listed firm.

"I do not have to do a deal with Diageo at all," said Mallya. "I am under no compulsion whatsoever. But having said that, I will do what is good ... for myself, my family wealth and for long-term shareholder value."

"I must do that for every business because these are public companies and I owe it to the shareholders and stakeholders in these companies," he said.

"Selling assets to fund the airline? No plans of that nature whatsoever."

BEST SHOT

Kingfisher Airlines Ltd, which has never made a profit, had its licence suspended by India's civil aviation authorities last week and has not flown since the start of October after a protest by employees, who had been unpaid since March.

The cash-strapped carrier said on Friday it would use its own money to try and get back in the air. The day before, staff had agreed to return to work after the airline said it would pay three months of overdue salary by November 13.

According to the consultancy Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, Kingfisher has total debt of about $2.5 billion.

Mallya said the airline had to be dealt with professionally, but he wanted it to survive.

"The environment and government policy must also encourage me to do that," he said, cigar in hand. "So we are going to give it our best shot. We are committed to that."

The tycoon, who said on Twitter earlier in the week that he was relieved to no longer be a billionaire on the latest Forbes list because it might lessen some of the envy directed at him, defended the management of the company.

He said there were many reasons for Kingfisher's predicament, but laid much of the blame on taxation and the Indian government.

"Very high fuel costs, obscenely high taxation, lack of foreign investment permission, until literally six weeks ago - so many different factors which make the Indian aviation space actually somewhat unattractive other than the potential growth going forward," he explained.

"The government needs to look at taxation very seriously. You can't have a 25 percent average sales tax on fuel when crude oil prices that used to hover around $60 or $70 a barrel are now well in excess of $100 a barrel."

Mallya has been looking for partners for the airline and said two investment bankers had been hired as part of the search.

"Both an Indian partner or partners or a foreign partner. we are in dialogue with a number of potential investors," he said.

"Now, you can't possibly sew up a deal in six weeks. It's impossible. It takes more like six months. Everything is moving. There are a lot of moving parts and we are trying to put together a good solid strong package," he said.

27 oct 2012

Australia's new investor visa category could attract HNI entrepreneurs from India

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

The applicants under this category will need to make investments of at least A$5 million (Rs 27.8 cr) in the country to qualify.

The Australian government's new significant investor visa, which provides a pathway for migrant investors, is set to roll out on November 24. The applicants under this category will need to make investments of at least A$5 million (Rs 27.8 cr) in the country to qualify.
While candidates have to meet the criterion on business innovation, there is no upper age limit. This visa category is attracting a great deal of interest in India and could make Australia the next big destination for high net worth Indians who want to immigrate.

While the Australian department of immigration and citizenship (DIMIA) is not willing to speculate on whether this new category is likely to attract a large number of Indians, India has recently emerged as the top source country for permanent migrants to Australia.

In July 2012, according to figures released by the Australian minister of immigration and citizenship, Chris Bowen, India had for the first time become the largest source of immigrants. Indian migrants comprised a total of 29,018 or about 15.7% of the total migration programme of 185,000 in 2011-12.

Bring in Innovation

The significant investor category is targeted at those who are likely to bring in significant knowledge and innovation in their businesses, and Indian entrepreneurs running certain mid-sized businesses are likely to make the cut.

"The investment amount is not too high for successful entrepreneurs and Indians running businesses involving intellectual property and specialised knowledge are likely to be targeted. While those in the 45-50 age bracket with successful businesses, who are looking at expansion in a new geography, could be lured by this visa, younger entrepreneurs from family businesses in the 28-34 age bracket could also move to Australia under this scheme," says Cyrus Mistry, a consultant with EasyMigrate, a licensed consultancy in Perth.

Sun TV purchases Hyderabad IPL franchise at Rs. 85 crore per year - India

26 oct 2012

Sun TV purchases Hyderabad IPL franchise at Rs. 85 crore per year

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Mumbai: The Chennai-based Sun TV has won the bid for a new Hyderabad Indian Premier League team as a replacement for the Deccan Chargers. It bid to pay Rs. 85.05 crore a year, for the right to own the Hyderabad team.

Only two teams finally bid to replace Hyderabad franchise owner Deccan Chronicle, which was forced to sell its team, the Deccan Chargers, after five seasons because of financial reasons. The Hyderabad-based PVP Ventures, the second bidder, offered Rs. 69.03 crores a year.  The reserve price set by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was Rs. 60 crore.

"SUN TV Network have won the Hyderabad Franchise for an amount of Rs. 85.05 crores per year. This Franchise fee represents a premium of over a 100 % above the amount paid by DCHL for the Hyderabad Franchise in 2008," BCCI Secretary Sanjay Jagdale said in a release.

"The SUN TV Network bid was substantially higher than the second bid of PVP Ventures, which was Rs. 69.03 crores," Jagdale said.

According to an IPL source, Sun TV has paid Rs. 20 crore as signing amount and also the bank guarantee of Rs. 85 crores for the first year.

The source said that the Deccan Chargers players, who are now left without a team following the termination of the franchise, will get the first option in the new team owned by Sun TV.

"Sun TV will have to inform the IPL by tomorrow as to which Deccan Charger players they want in the team," the source said.

Those players not selected will go to the common auction pool.

All the IPL franchises will have to indicate by October 31 which players they wish to retain for the sixth edition of the league.

The IPL season 6 will commence from April next year.

Meanwhile, Sun Group CFO SL Narayanan while talking to NDTV said that the deal fits in well with their overall business. He said, " The franchise comes at a very good price and fits in well with overall business."

Talking about the team composition, he said that they will take a decision on that in the coming days.

He said, "We are looking at the option of retaining some good players from the Deccan Chargers. Will take a call on composition of team in the coming days."

While clarifying that they do not have to pay Deccan Chargers for any player, Narayanan also ensured that a call on the team branding too will be taken soon.

He also said that shareholders' nod for the deal was not required.

The Jaypee group was expected to participate in the auction and there was talk that the Adnani group too would bid, but neither did. Sources said a key reason for Jaypee not following up on its initial keen interest in the auction was that its international cricket stadium in Noida is not yet ready and it would have had to play home matches elsewhere. PVP Ventures had made an attempt to acquire the Deccan Chargers last month too, offering Rs. 900 crore for 10 years, but it was not accepted by Deccan Chronicle.

At Rs. 850 crore for a likely 10-year contract, the Hyderabad team thus becomes the second most expensive team in the IPL after the Pune Warriors India for which the Sahara group paid Rs. 1702 for seven years. The Kochi Tuskers of Kerala, at Rs. 1533.32 crore for seven years, were the second most expensive, but had their contract terminated before the start of IPL Season 5.

Sun TV is owned and run by Kalanidhi Maran, the nephew of DMK chief M Karunanidhi. It is one of India's biggest television networks with 32 TV channels and 45 FM radio stations primarily catering to an audience in south India. Though the company is Chennai-based, the IPL already has a Chennai team in the Chennai Super Kings.

The BCCI had set a deadline of 12 noon today for the receipt of bids. After the Deccan fiasco, the board has tightened its contract clauses. Under its new guidelines the bidding teams had to deposit Rs. 20 crore while submitting bids. Bidders forfeit that deposit if they fail to provide an annual bank guarantee. Also now the BCCI can terminate the franchise if they don't pay players or change the ownership structure without informing BCCI.

A lower reserve price this time at Rs. 60 crore - almost half of what the board had set in 2010, when the Pune and Kochi teams came into existence - has sparked much speculation about whether the IPL's appeal is waning.

Earlier, on September 15, the BCCI had floated the tenders for a new IPL franchise after terminating Deccan Chargers' contract but the team owners DCHL had challenged it at the Bombay High Court.

The High Court had ruled in favour of the BCCI after Deccan Chargers Holdings Limited failed to furnish bank guarantee of Rs. 100 crore before October 12, 5pm deadline. Later, an arbitrator had ordered for status quo but the High Court again ruled in favour of the Board.

DCHL then approached the Supreme Court which, however, declined on October 19 to interfere with the High Court decision which had set aside the status quo order passed by the arbitrator.

God at work when rape leads to pregnancy: US Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock - India

24  oct 2012

God at work when rape leads to pregnancy: US Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

New Albany, Indiana: Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock said on Tuesday that when a woman is impregnated during a rape, "it's something God intended."

Mr Mourdock, who's been locked in a tight race with Democratic challenger Rep. Joe Donnelly, was asked during the final minutes of a debate whether abortion should be allowed in cases of rape or incest.

"I struggled with it myself for a long time, but I came to realise that life is that gift from God. And, I think, even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happened," Mr Mourdock said.

0:48

The race between Mr Mourdock and Mr Donnelly has been one of the nation's most expensive -- and most watched -- Senate races since the Republican unseated veteran US Senator Richard Lugar in May's GOP primary. Mr Mourdock's comments come two months after embattled Missouri GOP Senate candidate Rep. Todd Akin said during a television interview that women's bodies have ways of preventing pregnancy in cases of what he called "legitimate rape."

Since his comment, Mr Akin has repeatedly apologised but has refused to leave his race despite calls to do so by leaders of his own party, from GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney on down. It was not clear what affect, if any, Mr Mourdock's comment might have during the final two weeks before the November 6 election.

But it quickly placed the tea party-backed candidate on the defensive, one day after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell came to Indianapolis for a fundraiser and after the campaign released a spot from Mr Romney asking Hoosiers to support Mr Mourdock.

Indiana Republican Party spokesman Pete Seat referred comment to the Mourdock campaign. A spokesman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee and a spokeswoman for Mr Romney did not immediately return a request for comment Tuesday night.

National Democrats quickly picked up on Mr Mourdock's statement and used it as an opportunity to paint him as an extreme candidate, calling him a tea party "zealot."

Mr Mourdock further explained after the debate he did not believe God intended the rape, but that God is the only one who can create life.

"Are you trying to suggest somehow that God preordained rape, no I don't think that," Mr Mourdock said. "Anyone who would suggest that is just sick and twisted. No, that's not even close to what I said."

In response, Mr Donnelly said after the debate in southern Indiana that he doesn't believe "my God, or any God, would intend that to happen."

Mr Mourdock's ad featuring Mr Romney started airing on Monday and is the latest effort to break open the Senate race. Republicans need to gain three seats, or four if President Barack Obama wins re-election, and seats that were predicted to remain or turn Republican have grown uncertain.

Top Republicans have been flocking to Indiana. Arizona Sen. John McCain and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham campaigned for Mourdock last week, and New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte is due in the state Wednesday.

Mr Romney's coattails carry special significance in deeply conservative Indiana, where Mr Mourdock has underperformed Mr Romney by 12 points in most public polls. Karl Rove's Crossroads GPS also has bought another $1 million of airtime in Indiana, making his group the biggest player in Indiana's Senate race. A message left for Crossroads GPS spokesman Nate Hodson was not immediately returned.

More recently, Mr Mourdock, who ran unsuccessfully for Congress three times before becoming state treasurer, has been trying to woo moderate voters as Mr Donnelly has played up his moderate, three-term voting record in the House

A biker, a blonde, a jihadist and piles of CIA cash - India

24 oct 2012

A biker, a blonde, a jihadist and piles of CIA cash

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Washington: The man with the wire-rim glasses and bushy beard, speaking calmly in American-accented English, is familiar from dozens of Web videos urging violent jihad against the United States.

But in one astonishing clip, recorded more than a year before the man, Anwar al-Awlaki, was killed by a C.I.A. drone strike in Yemen, the American-born cleric had a very different mission: to propose marriage to a third wife.

"This message is specifically for Sister Aminah," Mr. Awlaki says in the video to his future bride, a comely 32-year-old blonde from Croatia who he hoped would join him in his fugitive existence. The woman had expressed fervent admiration for Mr. Awlaki on his Facebook page and later made clear in her own video reply that she shared his radical views, saying, "I am ready for dangerous things."

Neither Mr. Awlaki nor his prospective wife knew it, but their match was being managed by a Danish double agent as part of an attempt to help the Danish intelligence service and the C.I.A. find the cleric's hiding place in Yemen. The attempt failed, but the undercover agent, Morten Storm, 36, a former motorcycle gang member who had converted to Islam, continued to communicate with Mr. Awlaki. When Mr. Awlaki was killed in a drone strike on September 30, 2011, Mr. Storm was certain his efforts had been instrumental in it.

But eventually Mr. Storm's resentment at not getting what he regarded as sufficient credit boiled over. He phoned Jyllands-Posten, the second-largest newspaper in Denmark, and told the bewildered receptionist that he had helped track down one of the world's most wanted terrorist leaders. The Danish newspaper spent 120 hours interviewing Mr. Storm and verifying his account.

Among the evidence that the burly, red-haired Mr. Storm produced to confirm his wild tale, in addition to the video of Mr. Awlaki and e-mail exchanges with him, were postcards from intelligence agents, an audiotape of a C.I.A agent he knew as Michael and a photograph of $250,000 in $100 bills - money he says the C.I.A. paid him for his role as marriage broker.

As part of that plan, the suitcase carried to Yemen by the bride, identified only as Aminah in her video messages to Mr. Awlaki, was secretly fitted with a tracking device that the C.I.A. hoped would reveal the cleric's location, Mr. Storm told the Danish reporters. But a wary associate of Mr. Awlaki's had her discard the suitcase when she arrived in Sana, Yemen's capital. She traveled on to meet and marry Mr. Awlaki, but the C.I.A. plan was thwarted.

Mr. Storm's tale shows the lengths to which American intelligence officials went to hunt down Mr. Awlaki, a leader of Al Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen who some counterterrorism officials believed posed a greater threat to the United States than Osama bin Laden did. Their method was a variation on the traditional so-called honey trap, in which spy services use the lure of sex to ensnare male targets. Mr. Awlaki had been arrested during his years as an imam in the United States for hiring prostitutes; his two Arab wives lived apart from him in 2010, and he had asked Mr. Storm to find him a European woman willing to stay with him in hiding.

His eloquent calls for violence, scattered across the Web, helped radicalize dozens of young, English-speaking Muslims. He was added to the Obama administration's "kill list" after intelligence officials concluded that he had helped plan the failed bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner on Dec. 25, 2009.

His influence has survived his death. A 21-year-old Bangladeshi man, charged Wednesday with trying to blow up the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in a sting operation by the F.B.I., told an undercover agent that he had formed his jihadist views listening to Mr. Awlaki's sermons.

The killing of Mr. Awlaki, an American citizen, without a trial and based on secret intelligence, set off a legal and ethical debate in the United States. Now, in Denmark, the articles in Jyllands-Posten have prompted some Danes to ask whether their government was complicit in Mr. Awlaki's death and, if so, whether that violated Danish law.

Mr. Storm, whose life has been threatened since he went public, is in hiding and could not be reached for comment. The Danish intelligence service said in a statement that it "cannot and will not publicly confirm whether specific individuals have been used as sources." A spokeswoman for the C.I.A. said the agency had no comment.

In a conversation in October 2011 with Mr. Storm and a Danish intelligence officer, which Mr. Storm recorded on his cellphone and which the Danish newspaper posted online, the purported C.I.A. officer known as Michael praised Mr. Storm's efforts and even said that President Obama had been briefed on his efforts against Mr. Awlaki.

But he said "other projects" by the agency had located Mr. Awlaki. "We were very, very close," Michael said on the tape, comparing their position to players in a World Cup soccer championship who might have scored the winning goal but did not. Mr. Storm can be heard on the tape protesting that the C.I.A. officer was playing down his own role and Denmark's role.

Pierre Collignon, the editor in chief of Jyllands-Posten, said in an interview that the two reporters who met with Mr. Storm over a period of months, Orla Borg and Carsten Ellegaard, corroborated much of what he said about his dealings with Mr. Awlaki, the Danish intelligence service and the C.I.A.

"We were very cautious," Mr. Collignon said. "We were afraid he might still be a jihadist and might be luring our reporters into a trap, maybe to kidnap them. He was a criminal before becoming a devout Muslim, and it's difficult to trust him entirely. But we were able to document his story."

The newspaper has examined paperwork showing regular payments to Mr. Storm from the Danish intelligence service and has confirmed that the snapshot of $250,000 spilling from an attaché case - the purported C.I.A. fee - was taken at his mother's house. Mr. Collignon said the newspaper was planning to publish more articles based on Mr. Storm's account of his six years of undercover work if it could confirm the details.

But he said that Jyllands-Posten, which was the target of terrorist threats after it published a dozen cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in 2005, had decided not to post another video that showed Aminah removing her head covering to prove that she had blond hair, Mr. Collignon said. He said it might be considered provocative and invade the woman's privacy.

Aminah is hiding with Qaeda militants in Yemen and helping produce Inspire magazine, a slick English-language publication that offers bomb-making advice and taunts against the United States. She last contacted Mr. Storm a month ago, Mr. Collignon said, and told him her dream was to become a suicide bomber.

British envoy meets Modi, says it is engagement, not endorsement - India

22  oct 2012

British envoy meets Modi, says it is engagement, not endorsement

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Signalling a formal end to Britain’s 10-year-long boycott of Gujarat, British high comissioner James Bevan met Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi here on Monday.
Britain however stressed that the decision to “re-engage” with Gujarat was taken in the national interest of UK and should not be seen as an “endorsement” of any individual.
Britain had decided to boycott Modi after the 2002 riots. Earlier this month however, the British government announced a change in policy.
“This is engagement with Gujarat and Gujarat as a whole, and not an engagement with any individual,” Bevan told mediapersons after his meeting. “I don’t agree with your perception that we are rehabilitating Modi, this engagement is not about endorsement. If we need to engage with some state, we need to engage with the chief minister of the state and Modi is the democratically elected leader of Gujarat.”
Asked about the timing of Britain’s decision just ahead of the Gujarat assembly polls, Bevan said, “I sought to make it clear that we are not taking a political position on the elections in Gujarat...Who runs Gujarat is a matter of the people of the state.”
Asked about alleged human rights violations in Gujarat, Bevan said the UK considered the issue important, but “engaging with Gujarat” was a step in the right direction not only for pending human rights issues, but also “the right way to advance UK’s interest in the state”.
He also pointed out that with a former minister, Maya Kodnani, having been convicted, justice seemed to be progressing.

Pakistan helping terrorists enter India: Sushilkumar Shinde - India

21  oct 2012

Pakistan helping terrorists enter India: Sushilkumar Shinde

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

New Delhi: Accusing Pakistan of fomenting trouble in India, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde today said it was helping terrorists to infiltrate into the country.

"We have information that Pakistan is helping terrorists to enter our territory. We have intelligence inputs. But we are alert," he told reporters in New Delhi.

The Home Minister said his Ministry has directed all concerned to be extra vigilant during the ongoing festival season and ensure peace. "I also appeal people to be extra careful," he said.

Referring to Jammu and Kashmir, Mr Shinde said security forces cannot be withdrawn from the Valley till the situation is completely peaceful there.

"When I was in Jammu and Kashmir, locals asked me to remove the Army from the Valley but I told them that we can't do it till the situation is peaceful. We will remove the Army when the situation is peaceful," he said.

On the anti-corruption movement of Arvind Kejriwal-led India Against Corruption, the Home Minister said the activists should introspect as their acts were "creating indiscipline" in the society and the government would not tolerate it.

"They are creating indiscipline. This is illegal. If someone takes law in his hands, we would not tolerate it," he said.

Referring to Kejriwal's action of restoring electricity connection of an individual during his protest on water and power tariff in the capital, he said such acts were unacceptable as the supply had been stopped due to non-payment of bill.

Mr Shinde said he had visited the Indo-Bangladesh border yesterday and assessed the situation there.

Earlier, while attending the Police Commemoration Day, Mr Shinde paid tribute to 575 security men who laid down their lives in the last one year.

While 383 personnel from state police forces were killed between September 1, 2011 and August 31, this year, 192 troopers belonging to central armed police forces died during that period.

Quota for poor kids not just for nursery - India

20 oct 2012

With the school admission season just around the corner, the Delhi government’s Directorate of Education has made it clear that the 25% quota for economically weaker sections (EWS) will apply not just at nursery level but to kindergarten and Class 1 too.

This is because the EWS provision under the Right to Education Act is for all entry-level admissions, and there are some schools in the city where the entry level is KG or Class 1. Most schools, however, admit quota students only to nursery classes due to lack of clarity. 
Implementation of this rule would shrink the number of seats for the general category in an already competitive field.

On the flip side, it would mean 5,000-10,000 more seats for poor students, said Ashok Agarwal, founder of the NGO Social Jurist. “Many parents don’t know the rule applies to KG and Class 1 too. Once they become aware and assertive, implementation will be better,” he said.

For example, if a school admits 100 students in nursery, 25 of them must be from the EWS category.
If the same school decides to add 50 new students in Class 1 to those promoted from the lower class, it will have to reserve 12 of those 50 seats for the EWS category.

"There was little clarity on the issue till the Delhi high court judgment earlier this year, which clearly stated that all new admissions till Class 1 will include 25% EWS students. We conducted a special drive in June and July to fill the vacant seats," said Amit Singla, director of education, Delhi government.

Malala Yousufzai escaped certain death by centimetres, say doctors - India

19  oct 2012

Malala Yousufzai escaped certain death by centimetres, say doctors

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

London: Malala Yousufzai, the Pakistani schoolgirl shot in the head by the Taliban, has stood up with help for the first time but remains seriously ill, doctors treating her at a British hospital said on Friday.

She is unable to talk due to the breathing tube inserted into her windpipe but she can communicate by writing, said Dave Rosser, the medical director at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, central England.

The teenager escaped certain death by a matter of centimetres (inches), with the bullet grazing the edge of her brain, he revealed.

Though Malala has the potential to make "pretty much a full recovery", Dr Rosser warned that she is "not out of the woods yet" -- her doctors' chief concern being an infection in the bullet track through her head.

The hospital released a first picture of Malala, in her hospital bed, clutching a teddy bear.

In an attack which outraged the world, she was shot on a school bus in the former Taliban stronghold of Pakistan's Swat valley on October 9 as a punishment for campaigning for the right of girls to an education.

On Monday she was flown in an air ambulance from Pakistan to Birmingham in a medically-induced coma, and taken to the highly specialised hospital where staff have extensive experience of treating British soldiers seriously wounded in Afghanistan.

"Malala is still showing some signs of infection... in the bullet track which is our key source of concern," Dr Rosser told reporters outside the hospital.

"It's clear that she is not out of the woods yet.

"Having said that, she is doing very well. In fact, she was standing with some help for the first time this morning when I went in to see her."

He explained that Malala's airway became swollen after the bullet passed through it, so doctors inserted a tracheotomy tube to protect it.

The tube means she cannot speak but there is no reason to believe she would be unable to talk once it is removed, which may happen in the coming days.

She has movement in her arms and legs and is "communicating very freely -- she is writing," Rosser said.

"Malala is keen that I thank people for their support," he added, after thousands of people left messages for her on the hospital's website.

Bullet grazed her brain

With the schoolgirl's permission, the hospital gave a full breakdown of her injuries, condition and the slow path to her possible recovery.

Rosser explained how the bullet passed through the face of the girl, who the hospital now say is 15 although she has previously been described as 14.

"The bullet grazed the edge of her brain. Certainly if you're talking a couple of inches more central, then it's almost certainly an unsurvivable injury," he said.

Shot at point blank range, the bullet hit her left brow, but instead of penetrating her skull it travelled beneath the skin down the left side of her head.

The shock wave shattered the thinnest bone of her skull and fragments were driven into her brain.

The bullet damaged soft tissues at the base of her jaw and in her neck, which the bullet travelled through before lodging in the tissues above her left shoulder blade.

The bullet was removed in Pakistan soon after the shooting, but specialists have found her left jawbone is injured at its joint, while a bone behind the ear and the base of her skull have been fractured.

Her brain is still swollen, meaning doctors have not been able to do a full brain injury evaluation.

Malala regained consciousness on Tuesday. She is aware of her surroundings but gets tired very easily.

"She seems to have understood why she is no longer in Pakistan and what has happened to her," Dr Rosser said.

It was clearly "very difficult" for her to suddenly wake up in a foreign country, he added.

It will take weeks to months for Malala to defeat the infection and recover her strength enough to face surgery.

"Then her skull will need reconstructing either by reinserting the piece of bone that was removed initially or with a titanium plate," Dr Rosser said.

"Her jaw joint may need further work down the line but that remains to be assessed in a couple of weeks' time."

In a separate statement, the hospital stressed that she is "still very ill".

"This is a fluid situation and she sustained a very, very grave injury," it said.

Bangalore Metro completes a year - India

18  oct 2012

Bangalore Metro completes a year

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Bangalore: 

It has been a year since the much-hyped and awaited Bangalore Metro began commercial operations in the city. Running across a seven-kilometre stretch between the central Mahatma Gandhi road and Byapanahalli in the east, the metro ferries around 22,000 passengers daily and has to some extent, eased the pressure off the notorious traffic situation in the city.

Now, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation - the nodal body for the project in the city - is hoping that the northern and southern stretches in the city will be ready for use by the second half of 2013. This entails another 35 kilometres of connectivity, with nine kilometres running underground. The entire project is budgeted at Rs. 11,600 crore.

Plans are also afoot for a metro rail connection to the Bangalore International Airport which would cost an estimated Rs. 5000 crore.

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Built at a cost of Rs. 1,540 crore, that took a little over four years, the Bangalore Metro currently sees earnings of over Rs. 11 crore per day. Presently, the elevated trains that link the city centre to eastern suburbs run from 6 am to 11 pm. Trains are scheduled every ten minutes in peak hours. The cost for a one-way ticket is Rs. 15.

Pakistani girl stable in UK hospital as support floods in - India

17  oct 2012

Pakistani girl stable in UK hospital as support floods in

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

London: The 14-year-old Pakistani girl shot in the head by the Taliban was in a stable condition in a British hospital on Wednesday as well-wishers from around the world left her messages of support.

Doctors said Malala Yousafzai spent a second comfortable night at the highly specialised Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, central England, which is accustomed to treating British soldiers wounded in Afghanistan.

On Wednesday she "remained in a stable condition and continued to impress doctors by responding well to her care," a hospital spokesman said.

The teenager's family were still in Pakistan, he added.

Malala was shot on a school bus in the former Taliban stronghold of the Swat valley last week as a punishment for campaigning for the right of girls to an education, in an attack which outraged the world.

She came to prominence with a blog for the BBC highlighting atrocities under the Taliban, the hardline Islamists who terrorised the Swat valley from 2007 until an army offensive in 2009.

The teenager had a bullet removed from her skull during an operation in Pakistan last week.

Donations towards her care, which is being funded by the Pakistani government, are being received by the Queen Elizabeth Hospital's charity while hundreds of people have left messages of support on the hospital's website, lauding her campaigning and praying for her recovery.

The well-wishers are from countries including Pakistan, Britain, India, the United States, Libya, Canada, Brazil, Australia, Myanmar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Ireland, New Zealand, the Philippines, Rwanda and the Netherlands.

"We the Pakistanis are so sorry that a little girl like you had to stand up for all of us. If we had shown some courage you would have been safe and healthy today. Malala, get well please, we need you," wrote Durre Nayab.

"Please accept my and my family's gratitude for what you have stood for. You are a true daughter of Pakistan. We are in your debt forever. Get well soon," said Munir Pervaiz.

Ajmal Khan wrote: "We salute your courage and your commitment toward your cherished goal.

"I personally was in tears when I heard of your ordeal. But hopefully you will get well soon and start your mission again with the same spirit and agility."

A message book has also been opened at Council House, the headquarters of Birmingham's local authority.

Birmingham has a 100,000-strong ethnic Pakistani community -- a tenth of the city's population.

Cards, letters and gifts to Malala are being handled by the city's Pakistani consulate.

From January, no airport development fee for Delhi, Mumbai passengers - India

16  oct 2012

From January, no airport development fee for Delhi, Mumbai passengers

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

New Delhi: If Aviation Minister Ajit Singh has his way, air travelers will be a happy lot next year. The government has decided to abolish the airport development fee charged in Delhi and Mumbai. The Civil Aviation Ministry has said that the fee will not apply from January 1.

Domestic fliers pay Rs. 200 at Delhi, and Rs. 100 at Mumbai. International passengers are charged Rs. 1300 in Delhi and Rs. 600 in Mumbai.

However, GMR, which leads the consortium that runs the Delhi airport, has been non-committal about whether the minister's order will be implemented. GMR has said that the aviation ministry's order needs to be upheld by the Airport Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) for it to be imposed.

The civil aviation ministry's order says that the gap in funds can be met by increasing the equity of Airport Authority of India and by raising loans. GMR, however, has remained non-committal on raising fresh loans and has also indicated that the abolishment of the development charge at airports will lead to an increase in the cost of aeronautical services.

The Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL), however, took a more cautious approach, saying it will respond only after appropriate discussions. "We will study the current development, assess its impact on our project and means of finance and after consulting with our Board of directors, partners and lenders, will respond to the relevant authorities, in due course of time," MIAL said in a statement today.

In August, the national auditor had attacked the civil aviation ministry for allowing the Delhi airport consortium to charge passengers a development fee to help raise funds for the project. The auditor said this was not part of the original contract. The CAG says Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) will get an undue benefit of over Rs. 3,400 crore from the development fee.

The Mumbai and Delhi airports had started to levy an airport development fee because the state-run Airports Authority of India failed to infuse additional equity to meet development costs at the airports, where it is an operating partner with private players.

Civil aviation minister Ajit Singh has asked the Airports Authority of India to raise approximately Rs. 288 crore for the Mumbai airport and Rs. 102 crore for Delhi,  against its 26 per cent share in both joint ventures.

Mitt Romney Gangnam Style - India

14  Oct 2012

Mitt Romney Gangnam Style

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTCRwi71_ns

DLF did Rs 446 crore deals with Robert Vadra in 50:50 hotel venture - India

12  oct 2012

DLF did Rs 446 crore deals with Robert Vadra in 50:50 hotel venture

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

These dealings raise further questions about the depth of the business relationship between DLF and entities owned by Robert Vadra.

DLF Ltd.

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NEW DELHI: DLF Ltd, India's largest real estate company, has carried out three transactions worth Rs 446 crore with its hotel joint venture since giving Robert Vadra a 50% stake in it for Rs 35 crore in October 2009, an ET investigation has uncovered.

These dealings, many experts say, raise further questions about the depth of the business relationship between DLF, a listed company, and entities owned by the son-in-law of Congress President Sonia Gandhi.

These transactions find no mention in the documents released in the past week by activist-turned-politician Arvind Kejriwal on the business dealings between DLF and Vadra, which have ignited a political and media firestorm.

According to DLF annual reports, the first of these three transactions took place in 2009-10, when it sold assets for Rs 150 crore to the 50:50 hotel JV, Saket Courtyard Hospitality. The hotel JV is yet to pay DLF for this transaction.

In an emailed response, DLF says this transaction related to the transfer of ownership rights of the Hilton Garden Inn in Delhi, the JV's sole hotel property. "The valuation was done by independent chartered engineers and government-approved valuers," it says.

Next, in 2011-12, DLF sold development rights - essentially, the rights, with regulatory clearances, to build on a plot of land - for Rs 161 crore to Prowess Buildcon Pvt Ltd, a 100% subsidiary of the hotel JV.



DLF says this related to the development of an "affordable housing project" spread over 44 acres in Haryana. The project, DLF says, was cancelled because it was financially unviable due to escalating cost of construction and lack of government incentives.

As a result of these problems, DLF decided to covert this venture into plotted or group housing projects. "These projects are underway and would take another three to four years to complete," the company statement says.

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

The third transaction, in the same year, is a Rs 135-crore loan shown in the 2011-12 annual report of DLF.

Explaining this transaction, the company says "no further loan" has been extended. Instead, it adds, the amount outstanding for the hotel transfer - the first transaction - has been converted into a loan.

"The outstanding amount of DLF Limited was intended to be paid back to DLF by obtaining a loan from a bank/financial institution, which could not materialise due to partnership structure and change in lending regulations," the company says. "DLF continues to charge interest at 12% per annum, compounded quarterly."

The latest annual report of DLF also shows that, as of March 31, 2012, it was yet to receive Rs 132 crore of the total Rs 311-crore proceeds from the two sale transactions.

Amitabh Bachchan at 70 - India

11  OCT 2012

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  Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

Grand plans are in store for megastar Amitabh Bachchan who turns 70 today. Wife Jaya Bachchan and ad guru Piyush Pandey have conceptualised an art show called B Seventy, where leading artists like Akbar Padamsee, Anjolie Ela Menon, Satish Gujral, Badri Narayan, Gieve Patel, Manu Parekh, Paresh Maity and many others have created artworks dedicated to the actor. Also, a coffee table book on the art works will be launched during the exhibition.

Bachchan favourites Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla have designed a special birthday outfit for Big B. Here's a look Mr Bachchan's extraordinary journey.

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  Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Born in the tumultuous year of 1942, Amitabh Bachchan was almost named Inquilab by his freedom fighter parents, renowned poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan and Teji. After a family friend intervened, the name Amitabh was chosen. His name means 'the light that will never go off.'

But to his parents, he was also Munna, the child, even though he would soon find himself playing big brother to Ajitabh

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  Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Amitabh Bachchan is perhaps the most famous alumnus of Nainital's Sherwood College, and later Delhi University's Kirori Mal College, where he was actively involved in theatre. At the time, acting wasn't a priority for young Amit - who aspired to be an engineer or an officer with the Indian Air Force.

Alas, his dreams remained just that, and he found himself in Kolkata working with Shaw Wallace Breweries, followed by a stint with the shipping firm Bird & Co. as a freight broker.

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  Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

  
  

  The baritone voice that was to be his trademark later left All India Radio unimpressed. In a moment of irony, his voice was deemed too heavy for radio and he was shown the door after auditioning for the post of newsreader. Now, the actor's voice has become a part of cinematic lore as one of the most recognisable and mimicked in Indian cinema.
  
  Adding salt to a young man's wounds, he didn't even qualify in the preliminary round of a talent contest held by Filmfare, and a dejected Amit left the comforts of Kolkata to join his parents in Delhi.

  
  

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    Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

  On February 16, 1969, Amitabh moved to Mumbai to try his luck as an actor and, with no place to stay, Big B spent many nights on the benches skirting Marine Drive. For a while he did radio spots that earned him Rs 50 a month and morphed into the narrator's role in Mrinal Sen's Bhuvan Shome.
  
  In a 1999 interview, Mr Bachchan admitted that at the time, he had a driving license and if his dream had failed, he would have resorted to the life of a cab driver.

  
  

  But when his brother Ajitabh informed him that director K A Abbas was looking for a fresh face for his film Saat Hindustani, Amitabh arrived at the director's doorstep armed with a letter of introduction from Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, mother of his good friend Rajiv. He was cast as Muslim poet Anwar Ali Anwar and won the National Award for Best Newcomer in 1970. But despite this initial breakthrough, leading roles were hard to come by for the tall, dark but not conventionally handsome Amitabh.

  The year 1971 saw six films that featured Big B, including the Rajesh Khanna starrer Anand that won Mr Bachchan the Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award for his performance as Dr. Bhaskar Banerjee, the Bengali doctor fondly referred to as "Babu Moshai" by Rajesh Khanna's Anand Sehgal.
  
  But even Anand offered no respite from the black hole Big B's career was languishing in even before it had taken off. He did some more bit roles and again took the microphone as a narrator in the Rajesh Khanna starrer Bawarchi (1972). Some misses followed, including the 1973 film Saudagar alongside Nutan and Padma Khanna.

  
  

  And just as it seemed that the actor's foray into films was falling in deep waters, 1973 changed it all with the birth of the Angry Young Man in Prakash Mehra's Zanjeer. A dejected Amitabh Bachchan famously almost took the train back to Allahabad when he was cast in Zanjeer, courtesy a recommendation from the film's script-writers Salim-Javed, by director Mehra who had been turned down by Dev Anand and Raaj Kumar.

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    Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

  But casting the "flop actor" meant the makers then faced another hurdle - none of the other top actresses wanted to star with him. Enter Jaya Bhaduri, his Ek Nazar co-star, and together they made history.

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    Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

  His personal life was deeply entwined with his professional journey, for a romance that began on the sets of 1972's Ek Nazar became the love story scripted in the best Bollywood fashion. The young couple were married on June 3, 1973 following the success of Zanjeer.

  
  

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    Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

  The couple were blessed with a daughter (Shweta) on March 17, 1974 and the Angry Young Man transformed into a doting papa. Shweta is married to businessman Nikhil Nanda (Ritu Nanda's son) and the two have a daughter, Navya Naveli, and son, Agastye.

  
  

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    Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

    Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan's second child, Abhishek, was born on February 5, 1976. Abhishek went on to join the family business and has had some measure of success as an actor.

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      Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

      Another unprecedented hit was the 1983 film Coolie, but what really united the nation was Big B's near fatal injury on the sets of the film. During the shooting of Coolie, Amitabh Bachchan was seriously injured in an action sequence, where Puneet Issar accidentally punched Big B too hard.

    
    The entire country added their prayers to those of Jaya's who walked barefoot to Siddhi Vinayak Temple everyday and Mr Bachchan finally made a full recovery. Director Manmohan Desai changed the ending of the film to keep Big B's character alive rather than have him die saying that the man who had cheated death in real life deserved no less.

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      Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

    Amitabh Bachchan was honoured with the Padma Shri in 1984 for his outstanding contribution to the Hindi film industry.

    By the late 1980s Mr Bachchan's career had all but stalled. He dabbled with the non-mainstream genre with Main Azaad Hoon (1989), but it was the 1990 blockbuster Agneepath that jumpstarted his star status once again. His portrayal of the underworld don Vijay Dinanath Chauhan won him his second National Award, this time for Best Actor.

    But Agneepath's glory was brief. With his career graph dipping, Amitabh Bachchan turned to politics at the behest of his friend Rajiv Gandhi. He contested from the Allahabad seat on a Congress ticket and defeated the formidable H N Bahuguna, former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, in a landslide victory. But the actor and his brother Ajitabh got embroiled in the Bofors scandal and he resigned from the Lok Sabha in 1987. Mr Bachchan was eventually cleared of all charges.

    It was at this time that Mr Bachchan set up his ill fated company - Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited (ABCL) - and he turned producer with Tere Mere Sapne (1996), a box office dud. In 1997, Mr Bachchan decided to give acting another shot with his home production Mrityudaata, a film that recast Big B in his old action hero ways. Alas, he failed to even create a glimmer of magic. But the trouble was just beginning.

    ABCL brought the Miss World competition to India in 1996. But, after protests, cases of employees being overpaid and other big issues piling up with the entire event, Amitabh Bachchan and ABCL were left in the red.
    
    The consequent legal battles surrounding ABCL drove the company into the ground, to the point that in April 1999, the Bombay High Court had to restrain Mr Bachchan from selling his new Mumbai bungalow Prateeksha along with a few other properties to recover the losses. He mortgaged the properties instead.

    But while the Angry Young Man had been laid to rest, Big B was not done. As the millennium changed, so did his luck. The year 2000 brought with it a blockbuster hit in the form of Aditya Chopra's Mohabbatein, co-starring Shah Rukh Khan, and a job hosting the Indian version of game show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?

    Amitabh Bachchan has hosted all but one season of Kaun Banega Crorepati and is currently hosting its sixth season.

    If TV resurrected the Bachchan mystique, Bollywood lost no time in cashing in. Hence, the 2000s triggered off some notable films for Big B that included Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001), Khakee (2004) and Dev (2004), but not without some duds too, like Boom (2003).

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      Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

    He was also honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2001.

    In 2005, Amitabh was hospitalised and had to undergo surgery for diverticulitis of the small intestine. He was in the middle of his Kaun Banega Crorepati season 2 shoot - where he had completed 61 of the 85 episodes.
    
    Once he had fully recovered, the new season of the show was being anchored by SRK, but for Mr Bachchan a new opportunity presented itself - the reality show Bigg Boss 3. And if reports hold true, he charged Rs 126 crores to host the season.

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      Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

    This year will also see Amitabh Bachchan's big Hollywood debut in the film adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, directed by Baz Luhrmann. The film co-stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire

    mitabh Bachchan was recently voted as India's greatest actor in a massive opinion poll conducted by NDTV. In 1999, he was voted Greatest Star Of The Millenium in a BBC poll, beating such greats as Marlon Brando and Charlie Chaplin.

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      Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

    In July this year, the veteran actor took part in the London Olympic torch relay and carried the flame. "Never ever dreamed that I'd do something like this. One is watching the Olympics, everything that goes around it ever since you were a kid and now you suddenly find yourself to be a part of it and a very prominent part," he said in an interview.

    In February 2012, Amitabh Bachchan underwent abdominal surgery again. After being discharged from the hospital, he thanked his fans for the well wishes. "God bless the well-wishers. God bless them for their permanence in my life. God bless their consistency, their love and enthusiasm. I am indebted for life. It is a debt I shall never be able to repay; the one burden that shall remain with me unattended. One burden that shall make me happy," Mr Bachchan wrote on his blog.
• s to be his trademark later left All India Radio unimpressed. In a moment of irony, his voice was deemed too heavy