Pakistan gets representation on ICC Executive Committee

LAHORE: Pakistan has gotten representation on the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Executive Committee.

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Najam Sethi was elected to the newly formed ICC Executive Committee (ExCO). According to a PCB press release, ExCo comprises of five members with representation from India, England and Australia besides two others with Pakistan being elected as the fourth and the West Indies as the fifth member of the committee.

The ExCo will have a number of committees reporting to it and will deal with important matters like constitution, anti-corruption, ethics, integrity, development and HR. This will be the core committee of ICC which will meet with as much frequency as required to assist and advise the ICC Board on operational, management and administrative activities of ICC.

Najam Sethi said this was great news for Pakistan. “Our representation on ExCo would ensure the Pakistan remains involved in important decision making concerning the game of cricket. It also reflects that Pakistan now holds an important and undisputed position with the top echelon of cricket.”

ICC Anti-Corruption Code

After a request from Najam Sethi and advice from a Queen’s Counsel in the United Kingdom sought by the PCB on Mohammad Amir’s ban, the ICC has also agreed to form a committee to review its Anti-Corruption Code.

The work on the drafting of the new ICC Anti-Corruption Code has substantially progressed with a draft clause inserted into the Code permitting a banned player to be involved in domestic matches prior to the end of his ban period.

The Anti-Corruption Code will now be placed before the Board for approval soon after which the PCB will be in a position to make an application for Mohammad Amir.

Sethi gets Pakistan Big 4 status in ICC

LAHORE: Pakistan made extraordinarily significant gains at the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) annual meeting in Melbourne on Thursday, says a press release.

Of the three major concessions that PCB Chairman Najam Sethi was able to secure was the ICC’s willingness to grant Pakistan the fourth rank (‘Big Four’) after the ‘Big Three’ in terms of the percentage of revenue to be received from the ICC in the next eight years from broadcasting and other rights on ICC fixtures. The concessions include ICC’s confirmation to Pakistan for the award of presidential position with effect from June 2015.

“The PCB had organised itself and planned to get maximum advantage for Pakistan cricket from an extremely precarious position. We have accomplished all our objectives. And I am positive that in the times to come Pakistan Cricket shall greatly benefit from what PCB has been able to obtain for it today,” Sethi said while speaking from Melbourne.

It may be mentioned that Sethi had promised massive achievements for Pakistan after taking over the PCB charge. Talking to the Geo News programme, Aaj Kamraan Khan Key Saath, Sethi promised more good news.

Barack Obama gets a kick out of footballing robot

TOKYO: Barack Obama on Thursday came face to face with Japan's newest sporting phenomenon - an eerily realistic humanoid robot which can run, jump and enjoy a kickaround with the president of the United States.

The US leader marvelled at Asimo, a robot developed by Honda, as he highlighted Japanese technology and the potential for joint projects with US universities and firms on the first full day of his Asian tour.

He encountered Asimo, a robot which is about the size of a 10-year-old child in an astronaut suit, as he toured the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo.

"It's nice to meet you," the robot cheerily hailed Obama, prompting the amused president to reply "It's nice to meet you too."

Asimo then went through its paces for the president, showing off its realistic but somewhat spooky range of movements, before telling the US leader in its metallic voice: "I can kick a soccer ball too."

"OK, come on then," Obama said, bracing for a pass as the robot backed off to line up his shot before coming in and delivering a sharp kick, sending the ball towards Obama. He deftly controlled it with a shiny dress shoe.

"How about that? That was pretty impressive," Obama said, before the robot showed off its newest trick - jumping around the room.

Moments later, talking to students, Obama admitted: "I have to say the robots were a little scary, they were too lifelike."

Asimo is the latest prototype in a 20-year project by Honda to develop a humanoid robot that can be used as an aid for elderly people or to perform tasks hazardous to humans, like fighting fires or cleaning toxic spills.

According to the Honda website, the robot, controlled by a laptop computer over a wireless network, can climb stairs and grasp objects and is the first such machine that can actually run like a human.

T. rex gets new home in Smithsonian dinosaur hall

WASHINGTON: A Tyrannosaurus rex is joining the dinosaur fossil collection on the National Mall on Tuesday after a 3,000-mile journey from Montana.

For the first time since its dinosaur hall opened in 1911, the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History will have a nearly complete T. rex skeleton. FedEx is delivering the dinosaur bones in a truck carrying 16 carefully packed crates.

The T. rex, discovered in 1988 on federal land in Montana, is about 80 to 85 percent complete. It's one of about half a dozen nearly complete T. rex skeletons that have been uncovered. This specimen could become the most prominent with its new home in one of the world's most-visited museums. About 7 million people visit the natural history museum each year, and it offers free admission.

Many people think of the T. rex as the ultimate dinosaur, and it's the first thing they want to see, paleontology curator Hans Sues said. Now the museum will be able to show a real skeleton and allow scientists to continue studying it.

"In some ways, I think of it as the most American of all dinosaurs: this big, huge animal that was dominating its ecosystem," Sues said.

Scientists want to learn more about how T. rex related to other animals and what its short arms were used for, Sues said.

Visitors can get their first look beginning Tuesday as curators begin unpacking and examining each bone of the skeleton over the next six months. But it will take five years for the museum to overhaul its dinosaur hall with the T. rex mounted as the centerpiece of a $35 million gallery devoted to the history of life on Earth.

While pieces of the exhibition have been updated over time, this will be the first comprehensive reimagining of the dinosaur hall since it opened in the early days of paleontology, Museum Director Kirk Johnson said.

"There's so many things that have happened in science in the last 100 years that this will be a great new hall," he said.

The T. rex was previously displayed at the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman, Mont. It is on a 50-year loan to the Smithsonian that could be extended. It was previously scheduled to move to Washington last year but was delayed due to the government shutdown.

Washington's current 103-year-old dinosaur hall closes April 28 for renovations. A temporary dinosaur exhibit will open later this year.

Gulzar gets Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2013

NEW DELHI: Veteran film lyricist and director Gulzar has been chosen for Dadasaheb Phalke Award for the year 2013. The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is India's highest award in cinema given annually by the Indian government for lifetime contribution to Indian cinema.

Gulzar was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2004 for his contribution to the arts and the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2002. He has won a number of National Film Awards. At the 81st Academy Awards, he won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Jai Ho" (shared with A R Rahman), for the film Slumdog Millionaire. On 31 January 2010, the same song won him a Grammy Award in the category of Grammy Award for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media.

A committee consisting eminent personalities from the Indian film industry is appointed to evaluate the award.

Introduced in 1969, the birth centenary year of Dadasaheb Phalke, considered as the father of Indian cinema, the award is given to recognise the contribution of film personalities towards the development of Indian cinema and for distinguished contribution to the medium, its growth and promotion.

Saif Ali Khan gets on ‘Dolly Ki Doli’

 

Saif will be playing the role of a prince in 'Dolly Ki Doli'.

Sonam Kapoor’s Dolly Ki Doli’, produced by Arbaaz Khan, has a new edition in its cast.

Apart from Pulkit Samrat, Rajkummar Rao, and Varun Sharma, the film will also have ‘Bullett Raja’ actor Saif Ali Khan.

Saif will be playing the role of a prince in ‘Dolly Ki Doli’.

Film critic and trade analyst confirmed the news as tweeted, “Update: #DollyKiDoli, starring Sonam, Rajkummar Rao and Pulkit Samrat, will see a new addition to the cast – Saif Ali Khan. He plays a prince.”

‘Dolly Ki Doli’ went on floors on the auspicious occasion of Gudi Padwa, in Mumbai.

‘O Teri’ actor Pulkit Samrat, who plays a Haryanvi cop in the film, had also done workshops to get into the skin of his character.

Rajkummar Rao, who plays the role of a Jat boy Sonu Sharma, is very excited about his role. It is for the first time the Queen actor shall be playing a character like that.

Directed by debutant director Abhishek Dogra, Dolly Ki Doli has Sonam Kapoor playing a runaway bride.

IB chief gets extension

 

ISLAMABAD: The Director General of the Intelligence Bureau (IB), Aftab Sultan, who was to retire on reaching the age of superannuation on Wednesday, was asked by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to continue till the ‘reforms’ being introduced in the spy agency were implemented.
“Sultan is likely to serve for another year. He also had the option of getting three-year posts of the government,” a senior official told The News.He said that the extension was given as the officer had been working to the satisfaction of the prime minister. The IB’s main job is to assist the law enforcement agencies in counter-terrorism efforts.

The official said the IB was specifically contributing a lot in Karachi and the interior of Sindh in catching criminals and terrorists.The IB recently got a huge amount of funds from the government to replace its outdated equipment and gadgets. The surveillance tools of the IB became obsolete and outmoded long ago as they had not been upgraded after 1999, the official said.

He said that neither Pervez Musharraf nor the subsequent governments paid any attention to the poor state of the IB, which had affected its performance.The second major handicap the IB faced was the serious deficiency of manpower. To overcome it, the ban on recruitments in the IB was lifted by the prime minister some time back, and resultantly recruitments were made.

The official said the police could not get the requisite assistance unless the IB was sufficiently equipped with modern gadgetry and manpower.The IB played a key role in tracking down the attackers who struck the Sindh High Court judge Justice Maqbool Baqar and wounded him grievously. Besides, the agency is doing a comprehensive job in the anti-terror war.

At one time, the counter-terrorism duty was taken back from the IB but it was assigned to it again. Like most prime ministers, Nawaz Sharif is relying too much on the IB. While civilian rulers generally want to strengthen the IB, military dictators ignore it totally and pay more attention to the army or army-led spy agencies.

MQM gets offer to join Sindh government

 

KARACHI: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) confirmed on Wednesday that the party had received an offer to join the Sindh government, but said that it was holding deliberations within party ranks following the talks held in Karachi between former interior minister Rehman Malik, the Sindh governor and the chief minister.
This was disclosed to The News by MQM leader and member Coordination Committee Waseem Akhtar just after Rehman Malik held a meeting with Dr Ishratul Ebad Khan at the Governor House and later called on Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah.

Waseem said that the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has offered the MQM to join the government, adding that the MQM has not demanded any portfolios as being reported in a section of the press.

He said that it was the second meeting in Karachi between Qaim Ali Shah, Rehman Malik and Dr Ishratul Ebad but added that the MQM Coordination Committee would take a final decision on whether to join the government or not.

Waseem was again asked to when the MQM would be joining the government, to which he said, “No decision has been taken as yet…Discussions are under way in this regard”.He mentioned that Governor Ebad had earlier met former president Asif Ali Zardari in Dubai to sort out various issues.

Waseem said that departments and ministries did not matter for the MQM.It may be noted here that Sindh Minister for Information Sharjeel Inam Memon had told a press conference at the Sindh Assembly that he would neither confirm nor contradict reports about the MQM joining the government.

He had further said that ministries or departments did not matter for the ruling party as the same could be changed at any time.However, Speaker Sindh Assembly had told The News that important departments could not be given to Muttahida.

It may be noted here that the MQM normally takes time to join the government as they say that they have had bitter experiences in the past and that they are accountable to their people and voters.Rehman Malik has been playing a vital role to bridge the gap between the PPP and the MQM.

Earlier, the ruling PPP and the opposition MQM remained engaged in negotiations to evolve a power-sharing formula and both sides were hopeful that the issues would be resolved amicably.

Sources said that both sides were busy settling the remaining issues and clearing the way for the MQM to join the Sindh government. However, independent sources claimed that the ruling party was trying to convince the MQM not to insist on the local government and excise portfolios, as the PPP had been holding both portfolios in the previous tenure and there were reservations in the party ranks on this demand.

The MQM spokesperson rejected the impression that the process of talks was affected due to the statements of some PPP leaders against the MQM and pointed out that the dialogue was still in process as per the advice of the top leadership of both parties. He pointed out that the party leaders were bound to follow the instructions of the party chief and avoid talking to the media as the high command of both parties agreed that no party leader would speak against each other in the media.

PPP leader Syed Khurshid Shah had recently raised objections against MQM chief Altaf Hussain for his statement regarding the role of the army, while Speaker Sindh Assembly Agha Siraj Durrani also criticised the MQM’s demand for the local government and excise portfolios.

However, the MQM spokesman said that the party leaders would not speak in the media against any PPP leader and hoped that the PPP would also follow the instruction of their party high command in this regard.

The Governor’s House issued a statement that during their meeting, Dr Ishrat-ul-Ebad, Qaim Ali Shah and Rehman Malik agreed that both the PPP and the MQM believed in political harmony and reconciliation. They also said the leaderships of the two parties were engaged in talks to become coalition partners.

Sooraj Barjatya's film with Salman Khan finally gets a title!

Salman Khan

 

Whatever Bollywood's heartthrob Salman Khan does becomes news. Not only is his character in Sooraj Barjatya's upcoming film called Prem, the name that made him very popular in Bollywood, but his name will appear in the title of the film too.
A Mid-Day report says Sooraj is naming the film as Prem Ratan Dhan Payo. The shooting of the film will commence from May and about 70 percent of the film is going to be shot in ND Studios, Karjat.
The cast includes Sonam Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Swara Bhaskar. The film will release on Diwali 2015.

Kangana Ranaut’s Queen gets a thumbs up from Bollywood

The P.K. actor just couldn’t stop singing praises for the film Queen and its heroine

Kangana Ranaut has found a huge fan club in Bollywood post the release of her film Queen. Not only has Kangy overshadowed Madhuri Dixit Nene and Juhi Chawla starrer Gulaab Gang at the box office, but she has now found fans in B-town biggies like Aamir Khan and Karan Johar, joining her fast growing list of starry fans is none other than Salman Khan’s brother Arbaaz Khan.

Actor turned director Arbaaz Khan is the latest celebrity to be floored by the actor’s performance in the movie. He has called her an extremely gifted actor. “I am going to personally talk to her (Kangana) and congratulate her. She is fabulous in the film, she is so natural, she is so gifted and talented. In this film you can see her come into her own, she is so endearing, watchable and this film is beautiful,” the 46-year-old said after a special screening of Queen.

Arbaaz further praised the film, saying that it is one of the best he has seen in recent times. “It is an outstanding and a terrific film. Kangana has done such brilliant work and it is a very well-written and beautiful film. One of the best films that I have seen in recent times and I think it will do really well,” Arbaaz said.

Directed by Vikas Bahl, Queen is receiving a wonderful response at the box office. It is the story of a woman who goes on her honeymoon alone and enjoys her journey of self-realisation.

Cate Blanchett gets tattoo to celebrate Oscar win?

Cate Blanchett was seen visiting the Shamrock Social Club with her husband Andrew and her fellow Oscar nominee Amy Adams. (Reuters)

‘Blue Jasmine’ star Cate Blanchett was spotted leaving a celebrity favourite tattoo parlour with a bandage on her wrist.
Blanchett, 44, was seen visiting the Shamrock Social Club with her husband Andrew uptown, and her fellow Oscar nominee Amy Adams, on March 3, reported Daily Mirror.
“Cate was spotted leaving the tattoo parlour with a black bandage around her wrist,” a source said. It is still unclear what design Blanchett went for, with a staff member at the Shamrock declining to comment on their A-lister visitor’s inking.
“Congrats to our friends Jared Leto and Cate Blanchett for your Oscar wins! (sic),” the tattoo parlour tweeted.

Miss India UK Deana Uppal gets inspired from Rohit Shetty

Entertainment News : Director Rohit Shetty, known for unique kind of action in his films who will be seen hosting the fifth season of reality TV show Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi the action- adventure show is an amalgamation of stunts and entertainment.

Rohit Shetty has mastered the art of pleasing the masses with his box office responses. As per the sources new B’town Bee Miss India UK Deana Uppal who is pleased with Director Rohit Shetty style of working in reality show Fear Factor:

Khatron Ke Khiladi she has got inspired by his films where she saw top action sequences like blowing up cars, flying of the goons with one heroic touch. Deana Uppal was in Big Brother and was the third finalist in the show and now she is in KKK. Deana has already signed two Bollywood films.

As sources to be believed Deana Uppal was heard speaking about The Hit Man of Bollywood Rohit Shetty, A man whose films are ostentatious, there’s certain understated about his personality.

He is very active and fearless the way he hosts the show. Deana finds herself very lucky by participating in the show to face fear of her life. Deana is really excited about the stunts and nervous too, as sources claimed. E Pakistan News

Germany’s Siemens gets $253mn Qatar power contract

DUBAI: Siemens has been awarded a $253 million contract by the Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation (KAHRAMAA) to build nine substations, the German technology giant said on Sunday.
The contract, valued at 920 million Qatari riyals, is part of KAHRAMAA's Qatar Power Transmission System Expansion project, which aims to improve supply stability in the Qatari capital and its suburbs.
"This project will contribute to improving the power infrastructure in and around Doha," Bernhard Fonseka, head of Siemens operations in Qatar, said in a statement.
The project is expected to be completed within 26 months.
Qatar bought a 2.4 billion euro ($3.1 billion) stake in Siemens, Germany's second most valuable company, in 2012.
Qatar's wealth, mostly generated from gas exports, has spurred a population and construction boom over the last decade. The tiny Gulf state's plan to host the World Cup soccer competition in 2022 is expected to put further strain on Doha's power supplies.