Jakarta:Explosions ripped through two luxury hotels in Jakarta Friday, killing nine and wounding at least 50 more, ending a four-year lull in terror attacks in the world's most populous Muslim nation. At least 18 foreigners were among the dead and wounded.
The blasts at the J W Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels, located side-by-side in an upscale business district in the capital, blew out windows and scattered debris and glass across the street, kicking up a thick plume of smoke. Facades of both hotels were reduced to twisted metal.
Police said they were investigating whether the blasts, detonated inside cafes in each hotel, were caused by suicide bombers, planted explosives or a combination of both. Several of the bombing suspects were believed to have been staying at the Marriott.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the attack was carried out by a "terrorist group" and vowed to arrest the perpetrators. He said it was too early to say if the Southeast Asian Islamic militant group Jemaah Islamiyah, blamed for past attacks in Indonesia, including a 2003 bombing at the Marriott, was responsible.
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"Those who carried out this attack and those who planned it will be arrested and tried according to the law," a somber-looking Yudhoyono told a news conference.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton condemned the bombings as reflecting "the viciousness of violent extremists" and said they "remind us that the threat of terrorism remains very real." She said the United States was prepared to provide assistance if requested by the Indonesian government.
Maya's statue 'fetish' ignores UP's development: Rahul
METHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday described as "unfortunate" the comments by Uttar Pradesh unit chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi against Chief Minister Mayawati but criticised her fetish for installing statues while ignoring development.
Though he disapproved Joshi's comments, he said her anger and sentiments against the state government were "genuine".
He pointed out that the Congress party and its chief Sonia Gandhi have already disapproved of Joshi's remarks. He, however, parried questions whether action would be taken against Joshi saying it was the business of party President and other senior leaders to decide.
Stepping-up the offensive against the BSP government, Gandhi, on his thanksgiving visit after winning the Lok Sabha election, said he understood Joshi's anger when she criticised the government because nothing was being done for the people.
"I can understand her anger in dealing with the government because for all practical purposes it is not operational. We are in UP and it is our job to ensure that our programmes from Delhi are delivered to the people.
"We send huge amounts for schemes like NREGA and for providing electricity but they are wasted," Gandhi told reporters.
"Every leader has his priorities. The chief minister has the priority to do what she is doing by erecting statues, but I don't appreciate that the money we send gets wasted," Gandhi said.
The Congress leader said it was "hard to deal with the state government
as nothing is being done in UP".
"If installing statues is their priority its good for them. Our priority is that the programmers reach the poor people," he said.
He said that sentiment that the existing government was not working for poor and backward is correct and justified.
"I think that words used by Joshi were unfortunate. Even Congress president and the party had made it clear that they don't appreciate. But the sentiments and anger Joshi feels against the state government are genuine," Gandhi said.
"Wherever I go there is a common complaint that this government is doing nothing. In such circumstances there is a feeling of anguish that we are sending funds and it is not reaching the people," he said.
He criticised the police action against residents protesting against power crisis in Amethi.
"You have seen what has happened here. Police thrashed people who were protesting against power crisis. This is not what a normal and rational government does," he said.
On Samajwadi Party demanding that Congress clarify its stand on whether it stood with the party or BSP in Uttar Pradesh, Gandhi said, "We are neither with the SP nor BSP, we are with the poor people."
Asked whether he was trying to woo dalits, Gandhi said that the issue was not of "dalit agenda".
"It is not about dalit agenda, our agenda is that of poor people," he said.
He said that Congress' agenda is to work for the people of Uttar Pradesh. "And it will be clearly visible in time to come. People will realise that there is only one party which is working for the cause of poor and backwards and that party is Congress," he said adding the party "will give them hope".
Asked whether he suspected the involvement of police in arson at Joshi's house, Rahul said that his party will not get deterred by such incidents.
"Whether there is any government hand or the police is involved we are not bothered. Our work is simple, we are here to struggle for the poor people of the state and such an action will not make any impact on us," he said.
Joshi's remarks not pardonable, she will be punished: Maya
Lucknow:Congress President Sonia Gandhi's disapproval of Rita Bahuguna Joshi's remarks notwithstanding, UP Chief Minister Mayawati on Friday said legal action against her would continue and she would be punished.
She said Gandhi's disapproval of the UPCC chief's remarks was more of a "compulsion in the wake of the declining political graph of the Congress among the people, especially Dalits".
Mayawati told a press conference that the "reprehensive" and "derogatory" remarks made by Joshi were "not at all pardonable".
"Whatever legal action is being taken against Joshi on her July 15 remarks against me will continue and like Varun Gandhi, she may get bail, but it will not minimise the intensity of her crime," she said.
"Sooner or later she will be punished for the crime she has committed as per law," she added.
Mayawati, however, said that in view of Gandhi's disapproval of the remarks against her, her party will not disrupt business in both houses of Parliament.
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The BSP chief said, "After my statement that Joshi made derogatory remarks against me in Moradabad on the directives of the Congress high command, Sonia Gandhi was compelled to express anguish and pain because of the declining goodwill of the party.
"I have come to know that Gandhi has expressed deep pain and anguish over Joshi's reprehensive and indecent remarks against me. Therefore, in the interest of the country and the people, the party has decided to assist in peaceful and smooth conduct of both houses of Parliament," Mayawati said.
Motwani's death due to accidental drowning: US police
WASHINGTON: US police have concluded that the death of Rajeev Motwani, India-born Stanford professor and the mentor and adviser of founders of top internet firms like Google and PayPal, was a case of accidental drowning.
Police concluded their investigations into the case after the autopsy report released by the San Mateo county coroner's office revealed that Motwani's blood alcohol level was 0.26 when he died as against the US permissible driving level of 0.08.
San Mateo County Coroner Robert Foucrault termed it as an "unfortunate accident".
"It is difficult to know what effect a given alcohol level will have on a person because tolerance varies from individual to individual," Foucrault said.
"It was a contributing factor but the cause of death was drowning," he said, adding there would be no further investigation of the death.
The news of sudden death of 47-year-old Motwani, whose body was found in the swimming pool of his Palo Alto home June 5 had sent shock waves across the Silicon Valley.
Motwani's friends said, he was learning to swim.
Motwani was the brain behind several of the key advancements in the world of the internet, including Google and PayPal.
CAG flays Delhi Metro's quality control
NEW DELHI: Five days after a mishap at the Delhi Metro site claimed six lives, India's official auditor on Friday said it had found some glaring flaws in the quality control systems adopted by the state-run company.
Officials at the Comptroller and Auditor General of India's (CAG) office said there was also a departure from established norms in the bidding process to choose the contractors for the project.
The performance audit report on the Delhi Mass Rapid Transport System pertains to 2006-07 - the first phase of the Delhi Metro project - and was presented to the government last year but was not tabled in parliament.
"They (the government) deliberately delayed the tabling of the report on one pretext or the other. There were three sessions of parliament after we submitted the report," said A N Chatterjee, deputy comptroller and auditor general, at a news conference here.
"To hasten the project, quality control procedures were relaxed deliberately," he said, adding: "If these reports were presented in time, it would have been better as some of it has clear and direct linkage with what we are witnessing today."
Six workers were killed and 15 others injured when an elevated section of the Delhi Metro track under construction at Zamrudpur in south Delhi collapsed early Sunday morning. The next day, six people were injured at the same spot when three cranes, being used to remove a steel girder that had got inclined, suddenly toppled over.
According to the audit report, the Delhi Metro needed to evolve a mechanism for testing all materials through accredited laboratories. It said accountability issues should not be placed at unreasonable risk in the interests of expediency.
"Audit analysis of quality control indicated scaling down of testing requirements, non-witnessing of tests by the company's representatives, testing of material in non-accredited laboratories and non-preservation of test reports," the report said.
"The company has not prepared a corporate plan to chart out its goals and strategies for achievement of business development, diversification, technology upgradation, and customer satisfaction."
Indian Business News
Good times are back: Job offers flood IIMs
BANGALORE: The green shoots are springing up and they're becoming visible at the Indian Institutes of Management, bringing some hope that the economy
is looking up.
Pre-placement offers (job offers which come to students before the final placements) have begun to pour in for the graduating class of 2010. The IIMs are seeing a positive response from all sectors.
At IIM-Bangalore, consulting firms, which participated in the summer placement last year have announced their PPO results and all students received PPOs. "IIM-Bangalore is the only IIM with a 100% success rate till now. While this speak highly about the institution as a brand, credit must be given to students and their calibre too. The success rate is actually better than last year's," Vineet Sharma, placement representative, IIM-B, told TOI.
Last year, 12 consulting firms participated in these process. Some of the firms were McKinsey & Co, Boston Consulting Group, Bain & Co. Also, consulting majors Alvarez & Marsal and Result recruited students for the first time.
This year, the positions offered vary a fair bit. "But, it's on a par with an entry-level MBA position across the world," Sharma said. Last year, 120 companies confirmed their participation for the 270 students.
During last year's summer placements at IIMB, overall 24% of the batch accepted a position in a consulting career, known for its demand for multi-functional skills and cutting across finance, strategy and marketing. Other sectors which saw a significant number of offers included finance (21%), investment banking (20%), marketing (13%) and general management (13%). Consulting firms like McKinsey & Co., Boston Consulting Group and Bain & Co. recruited the highest number of interns from IIM-B. Interestingly, students have also bagged 2-3 international offers.
IIM-Calcutta students too are happy as they've got offers from across sectors, including FMCGs. Though IIM-C refused to give the number of offers made, it said the offers are a positive sign for students, especially during this recession. Students here bagged offers from the finance sectors and international ones.
The IIM-C didn't rule out the possibility of more than 10 overseas offers. Paul Savio, external relations secretary, IIM-C told TOI that some banks have put off the PPOs till September. "Earlier, we'd get the offers during May-June from some firms. One reason could be that banks want to see if the markets are doing better and hire people, if required. However, we're only some of the few lucky IIMs to get offers from the finance sector," he added.
Indian Institute of Management-Indore (IIM-I) started to receive PPOs from mid-June. With 240 students in the 2008-10 class, PPOs are more from for the marketing and finance sectors. "We're constantly in touch with firms and received a positive response," sources at placement committee, IIM-I said. He said PPOs would pick up later this year. "However, it's better compared to last year's," he added.
Tata to deliver first Nano today
MUMBAI: The common man's car is set to reach the common man. After overcoming obstacles like rising commodity prices and political opposition,Ratan Tata will finally hand over the keys of the Nano — his dream project — to its first owner here on Friday.
Though the identity of the first Nano buyer is not known, he or she is likely to be the quintessential ‘man on the street', with ordinary aspirations. In all likelihood he or she has even taken a loan for the prize catch. The defining moment — for Tata Motors, the buyer and the global auto industry — will be held at the company's showroom in central Mumbai's Prabhadevi locality. The rollout, which begins on Friday, will prove to be the litmus test for the much-awaited car's on-road performance.
Tata Motors, through a lottery, selected one lakh customers out of the 2.06 lakh applicants who had booked the snub nosed car. While a significant number of people opted for a loan, the top-end LX model has been the most sought after. The first Nanos are being built at a plant in Pantnagar, northern India, which can produce 60,000 units a year.
Beginning Friday, the first one lakh cars would be delivered in a phased manner by the last quarter of 2010. The first one lakh owners are price-protected and will get the Nano at the ex-showroom price of Rs 1 lakh.
Lufthansa makes new offer on Austrian
Brussels: Lufthansa has made new concessions in its bid for Austrian Airlines to allay antitrust concerns, European Union regulators say.
EU spokesman Jonathan Todd said last week that chances of Lufthansa winning regulatory approval for the deal by July 31 were fading fast because the company was not doing enough to eliminate competition concerns that the deal would reduce choice and hike fares on some routes.
Lufthansa has the right to pull out of the takeover if EU approval doesn't come through by the end of July. Todd said that deadline was set by Lufthansa and the EU has until Nov. 6 to decide on approving or blocking the bid.
The European Commission said Friday it was seeking clarification from Lufthansa on its new offer. It refused to give details on what Lufthansa was now promising to do.
The EU executive says the new company could become too powerful on flights from Vienna to Frankfurt, Munich, Stuttgart, Cologne, Zurich, Geneva and Brussels. Lufthansa is Germany's biggest airline and Austrian Airlines dominates routes out of Austria.
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Lufthansa last month resolved similar EU fears that its bid for Brussels Airlines would make it the only airline running some routes out of the Belgian capital. Regulators approved the deal after Lufthansa agreed to sell off airport slots to rivals - a move that would help rivals launch competing services.
Slots are the daily periods of time that airlines get to land and take off from airports. They are valuable, changing hands for as much as 30 million pounds ($48 million) a pair at Europe's busiest airport, London Heathrow.
Indian Sports News |Sports News
Lord's Test: Australia in trouble at lunch
London:James Anderson made his highest score against Australia on Friday and then claimed two wickets to reduce the tourists to 22 for two at lunch on day two of the second test.
England lost captain Andrew Strauss for 161 on the second ball of the day at Lord's, but Anderson hit 29 to put on 47 in 53 balls with Graham Onions for the last wicket to help the hosts total 425 after overcoming the loss of three quick wickets.
Anderson built on the momentum by having Phillip Hughes caught down the leg side off his glove for 4 and then removed captain Ricky Ponting for 2, albeit controversially.
Ponting was given out caught at first slip by Strauss after a debate between the umpires with input from the third umpire to check the ball had carried. Replays suggested Ponting had struck his boot with his bat and lbw would have been the correct dismissal from Rudi Koertzen, standing in his 100th test.
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Ponting had to ignore his own disappointment as the teams lined up to be introduced to Queen Elizabeth before taking lunch.
Australia, seeking to retain the Ashes, was frustrated as Anderson raised England's 400 with a textbook drive off the back foot through extra cover for four off Mitchell Johnson.
The hosts had resumed the day on 364-6 and Anderson, who played a starring role as England drew the first test in Cardiff on Sunday, repeated the shot next over with two more boundaries.
Although Johnson finished with three wickets, including having Anderson caught at gully, he conceded 132 runs from 21.4 overs. Anderson's five boundaries were all off Johnson.
Man U scrap trip to bomb-hit Jakarta
Kuala Lumpur: English Premier League club Manchester United have cancelled their proposed trip to Indonesia following Friday morning's bomb blasts at two five-star hotels in national capital Jakarta.
Club coach-cum-manager Sir Alex Ferguson described the cancellation as a major disappointment for him and his team, and said the bomb blasts was "terrible news".
The Red Devils were to play a game against an Indonesian XI on Monday, reports The Independent.
One of the attacks was on the Ritz-Carlton, where United had been due to stay for four nights from tomorrow.
Speaking at a press conference this morning, Ferguson said: "We got the news as we landed and it is very disappointing. I have never been to Indonesia before and I know the Indonesian FA have worked very hard on this. It is terrible news, but we have taken what I believe to be the right decision in terms of safeguarding our players."
United's chief executive David Gill said they had met with officials from the British High Commission before deciding to cancel their trip.
The hotels are in an upmarket business district in Jakarta. The explosions blew out windows and scattered debris and glass across the street.
Although there have been no terrorist problems in the country for a number of years and presidential elections passed off peacefully recently, the Marriott Hotel was badly damaged by a car bomb attack in 2003 that killed 12 people.
That coincided with a period when Islamist militants from the Jemaah Islamiyah organisation were blamed for numerous attacks, including bombings on the island of Bali in 2002 that killed 202 people. Many militants have since been arrested.
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