PRANAB MUKHERJEE BECOMES PRESIDENT OF INDIA

Pranab wins the race to Raisina Hill

United Progressive Alliance (UPA) candidate Pranab Mukherjee wins the presidential race by beating NDA-backed PA Sangma by a huge margin as he scored more than 558,000 votescrossing the required half-way mark of 5,25,140 votes. 

His rival, former Lok Sabha speaker P.A. Sangma, was way behind with 239,966 votes as counting continued, Mukherjee's polling agent Pravin H. Parikh said. "He has crossed the halfway mark. He is the president-elect," Parikh said.

The win was anticipated as Mukherjee had the backing of the Trinamool Congress, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, the DMK, the Forward Bloc and Samajwadi Party but also National Democratic Alliance (NDA) ally Janata Dal-United and Shiv Sena.

"I am very happy. I thank everybody for their love and support. I thank all the people of my country," Mukherjee told a Bengali news channel.

"In the last one month I have covered the entire country. And with the emotions and feelings that I have sensed in the common people revolving round this presidential election, it felt like it was not a presidential election but a general election.

"I am very happy, and I will strive to live up to the expectations and faith that people have bestowed on me," Mukherjee said in his first comments.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

Mother's Day is a celebration that honours mothers and motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society.

Hillary Clinton and Mamata Banerjee's meeting in Kolkata

Kolkata:  US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata to explore investment opportunities in the state.  

“The secretary expressed the hope that Kolkata would become an important hub in the new Silk Road Strategy to connect the countries of East, South and Central Asia,” the statement from the US consulate in Kolkata said.

The statement issued by the US consulate in Calcutta appeared to corroborate Mamata’s claim about American interest in Bengal. “Secretary Clinton enjoyed a warm, vibrant and energetic discussion with chief minister Mamata Banerjee,” it said, adding that the “secretary reaffirmed to the chief minister… the US desire to work with India and West Bengal to deepen and broaden our partnership”.

Many injured as Punjab Mail derails near Rohtak

Rohtak (Haryana), May 6: At least 27 passengers were injured when eight coaches of the Delhi-bound Firozpur-Mumbai Punjab Mail derailed near Kharawar village, about 14km from Rohtak. Incident took place around 3:30am. 
The injured were admitted to the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS) at Rohtak, 70 km from New Delhi.

The train was going from Ferozepur in Punjab to Mumbai. Traffic on the Rohtak-Delhi section was affected.

59th National Film Awards: List of winners 2012

New Delhi: Here is a list of winners of the prestigious 59th National Film Awards. The ceremony will be held on May 3, 2012.

Feature Films

Best Feature Film: Shared by Deool (Marathi) and Byari (Byari) Deool

Producer: Abhijeet Gholap

Director : Umesh VinayakKulkarni

Byari (Byari)

Producer: TH AlthafHussain

Director :Suveeran

SwarnaKamal: Rs.2,50,000/-

Indira Gandhi Award For Best Debut Film of a Director: Aaranyakandam (Tamil)

Producer:S.P.Charan

Director :Kumararaja Thiagarajan

SwarnaKamal: Rs.1,25,000/

Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment:AzhagarsamiyinKuthirai (Tamil)

Producer: P. Madan

Director :Suseentharan

SwarnaKamal: Rs.2,00,000/-

Best Children’s Film: Chillar Party(Hindi)

Producer: UTV Software Communications Ltd

Director : VikasBahl & Nitesh Tiwari

SwarnaKamal: Rs.1,50,000/-

Best Direction: GurvinderSingh for Anhe Ghorey Da Daan (Punjabi)

SwarnaKamal: Rs. 2,50,000/-

Best Actor: Girish Kulkarni for Deool (Marathi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Actress: Vidya Balan for The Dirty Picture (Hindi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Supporting Actor: Appu Kutty for Azhagarsamiyin Kuthirai (Tamil)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Supporting Actress: Leishangthem Tonthoingambi Devi for Phijigee Mani(Manipuri)

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/-

Best Child Artist (Shared): Partho Gupte for Stanley ka Dabba (Hindi)

Irrfan Khan, Sanath Menon, Rohan Grover, Naman Jain, Aarav Khanna, Vishesh Tiwari, ChinmaiChandranshuh, Vedant Desai, Divij Handa and Shriya Sharma for Chillar Party(Hindi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/-

Best Male Playback Singer: Anand Bhate for Balgandharva(Marathi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/-

Best Female Playback Singer: RoopaGanguly for Abosheyshey (Bengali)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Cinematography: Anhe Ghorey DaDaan (Punjabi)

Cameraman: Satya RaiNagpaul

Laboratory: Reliance Media Works

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/-

Best Screenplay

Screenplay Writer (Original): Vikas Behl & Manish Tiwari for Chillar Party(Hindi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/-

Screenplay Writer (Adapted): Avinash Deshpande Nigdi for Shala (Marathi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/-

Dialogues: Girish Kulkarni for Deool (Marathi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/-

Best Audiography

Location Sound Recordist: Baylon Fonseca for Zindagi NaMilegi Dobara (Hindi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/-

Sound Designer: Baylon Fonseca for Game (Hindi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/-

Re-recordist of the final mixed track: Hitendra Ghosh for Game (Hindi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/-

Best Editing: Pravin KL for Aaranyakandam (Tamil)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Production Design: Indraneel Ghosh for Naukadubi (Bengali)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Costume Designer (Shared): Neeta Lulla for Balgandharva (Marathi)

Niharika Khan: The Dirty Picture (Hindi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Make-Up Artist: VikramGayakwad for Balgandharva (Marathi) and The Dirty Picture (Hindi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Music Direction

Songs: Neel Dutt for Ranjana Ami Ar Ashbo Na (Bengali)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Background Score: Mayookh Bhaumik for Laptop (Bengali)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Lyrics: Amitabh Bhattacharya for ‘Agar Zindagi’ in I AM (Hindi)

Special Jury Award: Anjan Dutt for Ranjana Ami Ar Ashbo Na (Bengali)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Special Effects: Harry Hingorani and Keitan Yadav for Ra. One (Hindi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Choreography: Bosco and Caeser for ‘Senorita’ from Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (Hindi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 50,000/-

Best Feature Film In Each Of The Language Specified In The Schedule Viii Of The Constitution

Best Bengali Film: Ranjana Ami Ar Ashbo Na

Producer: Rana Sarkar

Director : AnjanDutt

Rajat Kamal: Rs.1,00,000/-

Best Dogri Film: Dille Ch Vasya Koi

Producer: Sanjeev Rattan

Director: Sanjeev Rattan

Rajat Kamal: Rs.1,00,000/-

Best Hindi Film: I AM

Producer: Anirban Dhar (Onir) & Sanjay Suri

Director : Onir

Rajat Kamal: Rs.1,00,000/-

Best Kannada film: Kurmavatara

Producer: Basant Kumar Patil

Director : Girish Kasaravalli

Rajat Kamal: Rs.1,00,000/-

Best Malayalam Film: Indian Rupee

Producer: August CinemaIndia Pvt. Ltd.

Director :RanjithBalakrishnan

Rajat Kamal: Rs.1,00,000/-

Best Manipuri Film: Phijigee Mani

Producer:Takhelchangbam Ongbi and Medha Sharmi

Director :Oinam GautamSingh

Rajat Kamal: Rs.1,00,000/-

Best Marathi Film: Shala

Producer: Vivek D. Wagh & NileshNavalkha

Director: Sujay SunilDahake

Rajat Kamal: Rs.1,00,000/-

Best Punjabi Film: Anhe Ghorey Da Daan

Producer: National Film Development Corporation

Director : Gurvinder Singh

Rajat Kamal: Rs.1,00,000/-

Best Tamil Film: Vaagai Sooda Va

Producer: S. Muruganandham

Director : A. Sargunam

Rajat Kamal: Rs.1,00,000/-

Special Mention

Byari (Byari): Mallika

Certificate only

Adimadhyantham( Malayalam)

Director : Sherry

Certificate only

Non-Feature Films

Best Non Feature Film: And We Play On (Hindi & English)

Producer: PramodPuRs.wane

Director: Pramod PuRs.wane

Swarna Kamal: Rs.1,50,000/- each

Best Debut Film Of A Director: The Silent Poet (Manipuri)

Producer: BorunThokchom

Director: Borun Thokchom

Rajat Kamal: Rs.75,000/- each

Best Anthropological/ Ethnographic Film: Bom (Hindi & English)

Producer: Anirban Datta

Director: Amlan Datta

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/- each

Best Biographical/ Historical Reconstruction: Vishnupant Damle: BolpatanchaMook Nayak (Marathi)

Producer: Anil Anant Damle

Director :Virendra Valsangkar

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/- each

Best Arts /Cultural Film (Jointly Being given to two Films): Fried Fish, Chicken Soup and a Premiere Show (Manipuri & English)

Producer: Madhusree Dutta

Director: Mamta Murthy

Lasya Kavvya – the World ofAlarmel Valli (English)

Producer: Sankalp Meshram

Director: SankalpMeshram

Rajat Kamal: Rs.25,000/- each

Best Promotional Film: The Dream Fulfilled - Memories of the Engineering Challenges (English)

Producer: Delhi Metro Rail Corporation

Director: Satish Pande

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/- each

Best Environment Film: Tiger Dynasty (English)

Producer: S.Nallamuthu

Director: S. Nallamuthu

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/- each

Best Film On Social Issues (Jointly Being given to two Films):

Mindscapes… of Love and Longing (Hindi & English)

Producer: Public Service Broadcasting Trust

Director: Arun Chadha

Inshallah, Football (Kashmiri, Urdu & English)

Producer: Ashvin Kumar

Director: Ashvin Kuma

Rajat Kamal: Rs.25,000/- each

Best Educational Film: A Drop of Sunshine (English)

Producer: Public Service Broadcasting Trust

Director: Aparna Sanyal

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/- each

Best Exploration/ Adventure Film (Including sports): The Finish Line (English)

Producer: Syed Sultan Ahmed & Tabassum Modi

Director: Akshay Roy

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/- each

Best Investigative Film: Cotton for My Shroud (English)

Producer: Kavita Bahl

Director: Nandan Saxena and Kavita Bahl

Rajat Kamal: Rs.50,000/- each

Special Jury Award: Anand Patwardhan for Jai BhimComrade (Marathi)

Rajat Kamal: Rs. 1,00,000/-

Best Film Critic: Manoj Barpujari (Assamese and English)

Best Book on Cinema: R.D. Burman The Man, The Music (English)

Publisher: Harper Collins India

Author: Anirudha Bhattacharjee and Balaji Vittal

Swarna Kamal: Rs. 75,000

Earthquake in Indonesia: India issues tsunami warning after massive Sumatra quake - The Times of India

Earthquake in Indonesia: India issues tsunami warning after massive Sumatra quake - The Times of India:

NEW DELHI: India on Wednesday issued a tsunami warning for Nicobar islands and alerted the coastal regions of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh after an earthquake of 8.9 magnitude hit waters off western coast of northern Sumatra.

"We have issued a tsunami warning for Nicobar islands," Shailesh Nayak, Secretary Ministry ofEarth Sciences told PTI.

The projections issued by the Indian Tsunami Early Warning Centre (ITEWC) showed the tidal waves triggered by the quake hitting parts of Nicobar, Komatra and Katchal minutes after it struck the region at 14:08 IST.

The ITEWC also issued an alert for coastal Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and the Andaman islands forecasting the arrival time of the first wave.

For Tamil Nadu, the first wave was expected to reach the coastal regions at around 4:33pm. Strong tremors were felt in Chennai and some other nearby areas. People in multi storeyed apartments and those working in high rise buildings rushed out to open areas.

Kolkata and its neighbourhood were rocked by tremors which were also felt in North 24 Parganas adjoining Kolkata and in the north Bengal town of Siliguri.

A large number of people rushed out of offices in Park street and downtown BBD Bagh area here as windows and doors rattled.

According to reports, some buildings on Park street developed cracks.

Metro Rail services in the metropolis were suspended from 2:42 pm and passengers were asked to vacate stations.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said a tsunami watch was in effect forIndonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Myanmar, Thailand, the Maldives and other Indian Ocean islands, Malaysia, Pakistan, Somalia, Oman, Iran, Bangladesh, Kenya, South Africa andSingapore.

A tsunami watch means there is the potential for a tsunami, not that one is imminent.

The US Geological Survey said the powerful quake was centered 33 kilometers beneath the ocean floor.

A giant 9.1-magnitude quake off the country on December 26, 2004, triggered a tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killed 2,30,000 people, nearly three quarter of them in Aceh.

WEST BENGAL BUDGET 2012-2013: West Bengal Budget plan outlay higher - Indian Express

West Bengal Budget plan outlay higher - Indian Express:

The West Bengal government led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today presented a higher plan outlay of Rs 23,371.44 crore in the Budget for 2012-13 whose size has been estimated at Rs 3,28,468 crore.

While presenting his maiden Budget in the Assembly today, Finance Minister Amit Mitra said that the plan outlay is 11.56 per cent higher than that of the last year.

The minister proposed to allocate an extra amount of Rs 200 crore through additional resource generation through the various tax proposals.

Value-added tax (VAT) rates on balloons have been withdrawn while that on paneer reduced from 13.5 per cent to four per cent.

For wooden boxes not covered in packing materials, VAT rates were reduced from 13.5 per cent to four per cent, and the same proposed for small units manufacturing kite sticks.

Items where VAT rates were increased from 13.5 per cent to 14.5 per cent are: cars costing over Rs 10 lakh, TV sets with MRP in excess of Rs 25,000, mobile phones with MRP higher than Rs 20,000, watches costing more than Rs 15,000 and ACs with capacity of more than one tonne.

The Budget also introduced an ad valorem duty on MRP in the country liquor segment. Cess of tea is withdrawn.

Proposals taken together would garner state tax revenue of Rs 31,222 crore during 2012-13.

Mitra said that through various policy measures announced in the Budget, there would be an additional creation of 10,11,183 jobs. He added that the estimated total deficit in the Budget is Rs 9 crore.

 

আশার বাজেটে সংশয় রোজগার

কৃষি-ক্ষুদ্রশিল্পে জোর, কর বৃদ্ধি বিলাসপণ্যে

নিজস্ব সংবাদদাতা • কলকাতা

গত বাজেটে আশা করেছিলেন রাজস্ব ঘাটতি হবে ৮ হাজার ২৯০ কোটি টাকা। বছরের শেষ লগ্নে এসে দেখা যাচ্ছে ঘাটতির পরিমাণ বেড়ে দাঁড়িয়েছে ১৭ হাজার ২৭৩ কোটি টাকা। তার পরেও শুক্রবার ২০১২-১৩ আর্থিক বছরের বাজেট পেশ করতে গিয়ে রাজস্ব ঘাটতির পরিমাণ ৬ হাজার ৯৭৬ কোটি টাকায় বেঁধে রাখার ব্যাপারে আত্মবিশ্বাসী রাজ্যের অর্থমন্ত্রী অমিত মিত্র।

Govt doctor found drunk on duty in Kolkata, suspended : East News - India Today

Prabir Ghosh, the doctor on duty in the emergency facility of Baghajatin Hospital in south Kolkata, was found drunk by relatives of a patient after .......more>>>

Govt doctor found drunk on duty in Kolkata, suspended : East News - India Today:

VISIT DOCTORS-IN-KOLKATA 

Hatibagan Market gutted in fire-cursed city - The Times of India

The Times of India: KOLKATA: The fire-a-day phenomenon continued unabated in the state as Hatibagan market in north Kolkata was reduced to ashes in an inferno on Thursday................ Hundreds of businessmen and small-time vendors lost everything in the fire that started in the wee hours.  More>>> 

Hatibagan Market gutted in fire-cursed city - The Times of India:

দশ ঘণ্টার যুদ্ধে হেরে নিঃস্ব হাতিবাগান

নিজস্ব সংবাদদাতা • কলকাতা

দমকলের লাইসেন্স নেই। ট্রেড লাইসেন্স বাতিল হয়ে গিয়েছে বহু আগে। এমনকী, দমকলের সুপারিশ অনুযায়ী জলাধারও তৈরি করেননি কর্তৃপক্ষ। ‘নেই রাজ্যের’ হাতিবাগান বাজার তাই বৃহস্পতিবার ভোরে পুড়ে গেল দমকল আসার আগেই। More>>>

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