News Digest: UGC interviews 46 candidates in less than 6 hours

UGC interviews 46 candidates in less than 6 hours
Disregarding protests by deputy secretaries and under secretaries against what they call an arbitrary change in recruitment rules for appointment of joint secretaries, University Grants Commission handed out appointment letters to four new joinees on Wednesday.

Airports Authority of India plans improved facilities at its airports
Tired of being seen just as the “poor parent“ of glitzy PPP (private-public partnership) airports in metros like Delhi and Mumbai, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has decided to work towards improving passenger experience at its airports. ​

Nutrition rank gives food for thought

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Tata Tele 'unanimously' removes Mistry as chairman
Tata Teleservices on Wednesday said Cyrus Mistry has been removed as director and chairman of the company after its shareholders "unanimously" passed a resolution moved by Tata Sons for his ouster..

Cabinet approves Major Port Authorities Bill, 2016
The government on Wednesday approved the Major Port Authorities Bill, 2016, a move aimed at bringing greater efficiency and professionalism in governance of ports through full autonomy in decision making. It will replace the Major Port Trusts Act, 1963.

75% Indian companies not disaster ready: CBRE
Nearly 75 per cent of Indian companies are not prepared for disaster management, a recent survey by real estate consultant CBRE says.

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NGT imposes interim ban on manja for flying kites
The National Green Tribunal on Wednesday imposed an interim nationwide ban on use of glass-coated 'manja' for flying kites as the sharp string poses a danger to humans, animals and birds. The green panel said that the ban order would apply on all nylon, Chinese and cotton manja coated with glass.

EU tightens fishing rules in its eastern waters
EU nations have reached a deal to tighten fishing rules in its eastern waters and become a sustainable industry by 2020 but environmentalists said quotas still allowed for overfishing. EU said that more stocks will be fished at max sustainable yield to push species within safe biological limits.

Antarctic Ice Sheet has an impact on climate change
The Antarctic ice sheet plays a major role in regional and global climate variability, researchers said.The discovery may help explain why sea ice in the southern hemisphere has been increasing despite the warming of the rest of the Earth, Xinhua news agency quoted researchers as saying.

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Eiffel Tower blacks out in a show of solidarity with Aleppo civilians
The lights of the Eiffel Tower in Paris were switched off on Wednesday to show support for the people of the shattered Syrian city of Aleppo. Several hundred people demonstrated in Paris on Wednesday in support of Aleppo's residents.

Respect state to state relations: Afghanistan to Russia
Afghanistan has asked Russia to respect state to state relations after the Russian ambassador to Kabul stunned the Afghan parliament by saying Russia and Taliban had shared interests in fighting ISIS/Daesh.

Nearly 1,000 people held at Iran checkpoint outside Aleppo
Nearly 1,000 people from Syria's Aleppo evacuated overnight after a ceasefire deal are held at an Iranian militia checkpoint outside the city, Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency quoted the head of the Turkish Red Crescent as saying on Wednesday.

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Abhinav Shukla in 'Aksar 2'
The actor will be seen alongside Zareen Khan and Gautam Rode in the film.

REVEALED: Title of Aamir Khan starrer next
Aamir Khan has already started prepping up for his next. Post 'Dangal' Aamir will be seen in the biopic on astronaut Rakesh Sharma.

What makes 'Wajah Tum Ho' an interesting watch
After the success of 'Hate Story 2' and 'Hate Story 3', Vishal Pandya explores a novel subject in 'Wajah Tum Ho' ('WTH').

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Researchers from inStem study sterile inflammation, come up with drug delivery system using bio materials

Honeycomb-like structure to trap dangerous gases
Researchers have developed a new method that can trap potentially harmful gases emitted by coal factories, cars and trucks within honeycomb-like microscopic organo-metallic structures. These structures can trap emissions from things as immense as coal factories and as small as cars and trucks.

Proof of alien existence on Mars?
Three tall “towers” standing in a perfect straight line on our neighbouring planet Mars in a recent image are claimed by some UFO and alien enthusiasts as clear evidence that highly intelligent beings exist there.

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Wrong to compare Virat with Sachin now, feels Boycott
England opening great-turned commentator Geoff Boycott has offered a 'reality check' for the die-hard supporters of Kohli, currently enjoying the best phase of his career. Boycott believes that the 'Kohli mania' is also a by-product of the human tendency what is on show presently as the 'best-ever.'

Kohli is two times more aggressive than me: Ganguly
Saurav Ganguly, during his time as India captain was known to be an aggressive leader, famously celebrating India's Natwest Series win in 2002 by taking off his shirt at Lord's. But the former skipper feels that Virat Kohli is two times more aggressive than him.

Sindhu wins opening match at World Super Series Final
Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu made a winning start to her maiden campaign at the prestigious BWF World Super Series Final, defeating higher-ranked Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in an entertaining opening women's singles Group B match on Wednesday.

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Google year in search 2016: Dominated by sports and entertainment
Google India has released the 2016 recap of its top trending stories. This includes everything from the biggest moments to major events and user interests, based on trillions of web searches made by Indian internet users this year.

Nubia Z11 smartphone: First impressions
ZTE’s sub-brand Nubia's Z11 boasts of a 16MP rear camera with dual-LED flash and flaunts a stylish metallic design. We spent some time with the device at its launch event, here are our first impressions.

Lenovo K6 Note smartphone with Full HD display, 4,000mAh battery launched, price starts at Rs 13,999
Chinese smartphone maker Lenovo has expanded its product line-up in India with the launch of the K6 Note. The handset is available in two variants – a 3GB RAM version that costs Rs 13,999 and a 4GB variant bearing a price tag of Rs 15,499.

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NEET super specialty exam to be held on June 10, 2017
"The examination being conducted by the National Board of Examinations, shall be held as a computer-based test and shall comprise of 200 multiple choice questions from the MD/MS curriculum followed at medical colleges in India duly prescribed /adopted by Medical Council of India with prior approval of the Health Ministry," said the statement.

Prakash Javadekar confident X Boards will be reintroduced from 2017-18
"This month there will be a CBSE Board meeting, in which there will be a resolution (for compulsory class X board exams). So, I am very sure from academic session 2017-18, Board examination will be mandatory for all students," Javadekar told PTI.

Bihar CM writes to Sushma Swaraj, asks Centre to maintain autonomy of Nalanda University
​Hurt over George Yeo’s recent resignation as Nalanda University’s chancellor, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar has written a strong-worded letter to the external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, urging the NDA Government not to tamper with the essence behind the ‘idea of Nalanda’.

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ACB drags feet on Ajit Pawar, Tatkare in dam inquiry
Two years after chief minister Devendra Fadnavis granted permission to the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) to conduct an open inquiry against senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar and the party's state unit chief Sunil Tatkare for their alleged involvement in the irrigation scam, no progress seems to have been visible in the inquiry, particularly against the politicians.

SIT to look for ghost pupils in ashramshalas
A special investigation team (SIT) is to conduct an inquiry to determine if aided private ashram schools show bogus tribal students on their rolls, announced the state government on Wednesday.

Monsanto kicked out for giving farmers raw deal
Complaints from farmers made the state government announce on Wednesday that the multinational seed giant Monsanto would not be allowed to develop cotton seed varieties in the state. Instead, the four agricultural universities in the state and the Central Institute for Cotton Research will undertake research and provide seeds to cultivators.

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More card machines at govt hospitals from today
A day after TOI reported how patients were facing problems in making payments at government hospitals even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is pushing for Digital India, the authorities woke up to the crisis.

Angry BJP dares Congress vice-president to make public his charges against Narendra Modi
BJP threw down the gauntlet before Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday, saying his allegations against PM Narendra Modi are a “damp squib“ and that he is acting out of frustration.

Legion hacker claims mail leak of 74k CAs
He is an 18-yearold somewhere in India. Or so, he says. And he is part of Legion, the hacker group that has got India's attention after several high-profile email and Twitter hacks, and some extensive data dumps. On Wednesday evening, he shared with TOI a list of what he claims are email addresses and passwords of nearly 74,000 chartered accountants in the country.

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From IT capital to I-T raids hub: 20% of all cash seized in Karnataka
Karnataka has earned the distinction of topping the list of states identifying unaccounted money and seizing new currency notes worth crores since demonetisation was announced.

8 tainted Bengaluru cops dismissed
Eight Bengaluru policemen were dismissed from service after being arrested in three different cases.

Post Antarctica trip, Bengaluru woman plans to conquer South Pole
A globetrotter driven by passion for photography, Priya Venkatesh’s joy knew no bounds when she conquered the polar region---Antarctic and the Arctic Circle in three years. The 42-year-old resident of Jayanagar is the first woman from Bengaluru to cross the Antarctic Circle.

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Getting messy at UoH: No money to cough up fines

Arvind Kejrwal's odd-even model can cut deadly vehicular emissions

Malls' change rider: Make big cash-buy or go home

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After Vardah's cold hug, Chepauk gets coal treatment
The Indian spinners, led by local boy R Ashwin, would love a dry pitch to work their magic in the final Test against England starting here on Friday . But with cyclone Vardah wreaking havoc and the pitch for the Test match being under covers for the last few days, there's some moisture still left on the pitch.

'100 TN fishers can go to Katchatheevu'

Official panels remain headless, non-functional

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Teenage dalit girl raped by former MLA's driver

Liquor seized in run-up to New Year celebrations

Two more accuse Pooch of cheating

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All new Prayagraj express to ply from December 18

MNNIT conducts workshop on demonetisation

Father's ex-employee held for killing boy
Hours after the kidnapping and killing of a minor boy, the accused identified as Vijay Kumar Maurya (20) was arrested near Holagarh road.

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Contractual teachers on protest path
Hundreds of gana sikshyaks (contractual primary teachers) on Tuesday morning staged demonstrations in front of the residences of six ministers demanding regularisation of their jobs.

Kids show science is fun
A convex lens put on the camera of a mobile phone can lead to magnification of the object.Wireless sensors can detect cracks in railway tracks and send alert to mobile phones.

Bhubaneswar cops on toes for farmers' rally today

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BJP MP gets notice for violating 'office of profit' rule

Affluent more responsible for female foeticide, says MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan

Farmer commits suicide, another dies in queue of cash starved banks in Madhya Pradesh

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NOTA option to make way in Faridabad, Bhiwani civic polls
The Haryana State Election Commission (SEC) on Wednesday announced to give NOTA option to the voters while rolling out schedule for the general elections to the Faridabad municipal corporation and Bhiwani municipal council to be held on January 8, 2017.

Row over Manali winter carnival
The five-day-long winter carnival, beginning January 2, 2017, has raked up controversy with all stakeholders blaming the administration of pressurizing them to contribute for the event financially.

Sufi singer Hans Raj Hans slams Congress, AAP

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