Reliance Industries Q2 net profit rises 28 percent

New Delhi, Oct 30 (IANS) Reliance Industries Saturday reported a 28 percent rise in net profit for the second quarter ended Sep 30 at Rs.4,923 crore as against Rs.3,852 crore earned during the like period of the last fiscal.

The total income during the July-September quarter increased 22.5 percent to Rs.58,151 crore from Rs.47,476 crore during the corresponding period of the previous year, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The total expenses of the company for the quarter under review stood at Rs.51,460 crore from Rs.42,063 crore during the like period last fiscal.

At the Bombay Stock Exchange, the shares of the company were up 1.18 percent to trade at Rs.1,095.80.

©Indo-Asian News Service

Floods feared in Delhi as Haryana releases more water

New Delhi/Chandigarh: Delhi faced fresh flood threats Monday with nearly seven lakh cusecs of water being discharged into the Yamuna river from the Hathini Kund barrage in neighbouring Haryana. Fresh alerts have also been issued in major districts like Karnal, Panipat and Faridabad.



The water level in the Yamuna reached 205.48 metre, .65 metre above the danger mark of 204.83 metre. Nearly 7.44 lakh cusecs of water has been released by Haryana, which is expected to reach Delhi by Wednesday.



Continuing rains in the national capital are also contributing to the water level. The national capital has recorded 59.2 mm of rains in the last 24 hours till 8.30 a.m. Monday morning. According to officials from the Flood Control Department, the water has broken a record of nearly 30 years.



"I have never seen so much water in the Yamuna ever since 1979, this is the highest," an official from the flood control department told IANS. With people having been evacuated from the river bed and adjacent low lying areas earlier, the flood control department says rescue boats and booster pumps are not required.

Floods feared in Delhi as Haryana releases more water



Flood threat again looms over Haryana

The Yamuna continued to flow alarmingly high in Haryana Monday, posing a threat of heavy flooding in villages along the river, officials said. Fresh alerts have been issued in major districts like Karnal, Panipat and Faridabad.

Floods feared in Delhi as Haryana releases more water



According to government officials, nearly 700,000 cusecs of water was discharged into the Yamuna from the Hathnikund barrage Sunday. It was the maximum release of water into the river this season.



Incessant rainfall in the upper reaches of Shivalik hills and in Uttarakhand has led to heavy inflows. Officials said flood water has also entered into the territory of a few villages in Karnal and Yamunanagar districts and rescue work was on.



The Haryana government has issued fresh flood alerts in Karnal, Panipat, Sonepat, Faridabad and Palwal districts and their deputy commissioners have been alerted to take preventive measures.



"We have told the residents of low lying areas to leave for safer locations. We will make sure that all necessary assistance will be provided to them. We are closely monitoring the situation. Several acres of agricultural land are facing the threat of heavy floods," Ashok Sanghwan, deputy commissioner of Yamunanagar, told IANS Monday.



"Besides, over 25 villages, including Kalesar, Baburambass, Mamdubas, Tappukamalpur, Punehri, Baghwali, Jathlana and Sandhala-Sandhali villages, are on the verge of flooding."



In Karnal district, flood threat was looming over Chougam, Hansu Majra, Garhi Birbal, Garhpur Tapu, Palsora, Halwana, Nabiyabad, Japti Chhapra, Sayed Chhapra, Nagli and Dera Sikkligarh villages.



The Haryana government has also alerted the Delhi flood authorities about the increased discharge in the river and told the army to remain on standby.



Over 30 people were killed in floods in Haryana in July. Heavy flow of water has also damaged the Tajewala headworks point in Yamunanagar district. A portion of it was swept away with the heavy currents.

Source: IANS

Women believe in global warming more than men

Washington: Women tend to believe in the scientific consensus on global warming more than men, finds a recent study.



The findings challenge common perceptions that men are more scientifically literate, said sociologist Aaron M. McCright at the Michigan State University in the US.

"Men still claim they have a better understanding of global warming than women, even though women's beliefs align much more closely with the scientific consensus," said McCright.



The study is one of the first to focus in-depth on how the genders think about climate change, reports the journal Population and Environment.

Understanding how the genders think about the environment is important on several fronts, said McCright, who calls climate change "the most expansive environmental problem facing humanity," according to a Michigan State University release.



"Does this mean women are more likely to buy energy-efficient appliances and hybrid vehicles than men," he said. "Do they vote for different political candidates? Do they talk to their children differently about global warming?"

McCright analysed eight years of data from Gallup's annual environment poll that asked fairly basic questions about climate change knowledge and concern.



He said the gender divide on concern about climate change was not explained by the roles that men and women perform such as whether they were homemakers, parents or employed full time.

Instead, he said the gender divide likely is explained by "gender socialisation."

According to this theory, boys in the US learn that masculinity emphasises detachment, control and mastery.




A feminine identity, on the other hand, stresses attachment, empathy and care - traits that may make it easier to feel concern about the potential dire consequences of global warming, McCright said.

"Women and men think about climate change differently. And when scientists or policymakers are communicating about climate change with the general public, they should consider this rather than treating the public as one big monolithic audience," he said.

Source: IANS

Now a 'Rancho' school comes up in Bihar

Begusarai (Bihar): A school for the poor in Bihar, inspired by Rancho's iconic school in Bollywood blockbuster "3 Idiots", has been opened by a scientist to teach complex science theories through games and interactive workshops.



Sudhir Kumar, a scientist working in the biotechnology laboratory of the International Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), Pune, has set up a school in his native village of Mirzapur Chand in Bihar's Begusarai district, about 110 km from Patna.

"Besides formal education up to Class 6, explanation of complex theories of science through fun and interactive workshops conducted by a panel of scientists will be part of the school's curriculum," Sudhir Kumar, an assistant professor at IIIT-Pune, told IANS.



The school, which opened Sunday, has a staggered fee structure -- free of cost for the poor and different slabs for children with different economic backgrounds.

The governing body of the school will verify the family income of each student and will decide the fee accordingly. Richer parents will be charged more so that education of poor children can be subsidised.

"Education will be free for children belonging to families having no farm land or those of labourers, while kids of well-off parents such as landowners, businessmen, transport contractors, builders, government and private employees having regular income will be charged a monthly fee ranging from Rs. 50 to Rs. 100," said Sunil Kumar, the principal of the school.



The school will be financially supported by a panel of scientists, including Naibedya Chattopadhyay, deputy director, Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Lucknow; Manavi Chatterjee, senior research fellow, Pharmacology Division, CDRI; and Tanaya De, former research fellow, Endocrinology Division, CDRI.

Besides them, international researchers who are extending support to the effort include Shawon Lahiri, Laussane University, Switzerland; Anchal Gussain, Chicago University; Rajiv Kumar Jain, Tartu University, Estonia; Ajay Kumar Srivastava, Seoul University, South Korea; and Elo Madissoon, a research fellow in Karolinska Institute. They will also conduct regular workshops in the school.

"Lectures would be organised with the help of guest faculty who are experts in different walks of life. Students can also interact with their teachers through video-conferencing," said Kumar.

"The idea of having a school where poor children are encouraged to study science came to my mind many years back. Being a scientist, it is my responsibility to simplify the scientific theory so that they can be utilised by a layman and thus can be more useful for society," said Kumar.



Initially, the school will enrol 50-100 students in the first batch. The number will increase later as per the infrastructure and availability of teachers.

"After Class 6, our focus will be to get the students admitted to high-end schools such as Sainik School, Tilaiya, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalay and Netarhat Vidyalay and avail scholarship schemes offered by the government for high school students," he said, adding: "We are also planning to start classes up to 12th standard in this school".



The classrooms would be equipped with projector screens, computers, internet and all the modern facilities and the children will be encouraged to participate in different activities such as art, music, dance and theatre, he said.

"Before the regular session begins in January next year, classes will be conducted specially for dropouts from September so that they can be registered with open schools," said Satya Narayan Singh, one of the patrons of the school.



The school will be run by around 10 staff members, including retired teachers -- Baidyanath Choudhary and Satya Narayan Singh -- and CDRI's deputy director Naibedya Chattopadhyay as patrons. While Sunil Kumar is the principal, Priyank Kumar, Kundan Sah and Sunil Sharma are teachers. The regular teachers will be paid a consolidated salary of Rs.1,000 per month.

Begusarai is the industrial hub of Bihar. Apart from the Indian Oil Corporation's oil refinery in Barauni, it houses at least 200 small and big industries in an area of seven to eight kilometres. With the population dominated by landowners and farmers, the district also provides livelihood for businessmen, workers and transport contractors coming from other parts of the state.

Source: IANS

This year, 130 leopards poached in India

New Delhi: Watching a leopard amble along a sun-beaten track at dusk is a captivating sight. But now these big cats are in danger in India.



At least 130 leopards have been poached this year so far, say experts describing the figures as "alarming".

Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra recorded the highest number of leopard deaths, stated the NGO Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI).

There have been reports of 240 leopard deaths so far.


A dead male leopard is carried away by the forest workers at Sukna wildlife rescue centre on the outskirts of Siliguri. The leopard was found dead at a tea garden estate supposedly poisoned by the villagers.

Across the country, 17 leopards were killed in man-animal conflict, 19 died in road accidents, eight were shot dead by the forest department, six died in rescue operations, two were killed by other big cats, while 58 more were found dead, says WPSI.

The rest of the deaths are feared to have been caused by poaching.

Uttarakhand has seen a spurt in leopard deaths. Twenty-nine leopards were poached, four killed in man-animal conflict, including three that were shot dead by the forest department.



"Thirty-one more leopards were found dead in the state. Some died of natural causes, but others may have died in conflict. We don't have proof," said Tito Joseph of the WPSI. Seven more died in road accidents.

A census in 2007 showed 2,300 leopards in the state.

"We are compiling a report as part of the tiger census this year which will reveal the latest figure of leopards," Paramjit Singh, chief conservator of forests of Uttarakhand, told IANS.



There is no record of the total number of this agile and stealthy predator in India. They are protected by Schedule 1 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, the highest protection provided to wild animals.

Fifteen leopards were poached in Maharashtra, 13 in Uttar Pradesh and 12 in Karnataka. Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Assam and Himachal Pradesh have also seen leopard deaths in man-animal conflicts.



The buffer areas of wildlife sanctuaries have been the main poaching grounds. Some of these places have seen intense man-animal conflict.

Among big cats, leopards are the most adaptable. They are skilled climbers. Wildlife enthusiasts swear by the exquisite grace with which the animal sways while disappearing into the forests.

Each year, a large number of these endangered animals face unnatural deaths.


A forest guard carries the body of an 18-month-old leopard at Sukna Wildlife Rescue Centre near Siliguri.

n 2009, some 160 cases of poaching and body parts seizures were recorded.

In 2008, the figure was 157, according to the NGO.

Some members of Haryana's Bawaria tribe are alleged to be involved in organised poaching and operate across a vast area in and around wildlife sanctuaries. They are expert hunters.

"These people (Bawaria poachers) know only how to hunt. They don't have anything else to do. So they kill them for money. It's business," said Singh.

"Poachers from other states also come in two- or three-member groups," he said.

Tito said there are different types of poachers: "One type is organised like the Bawarias.

"Another type is opportunistic - for instance, one who faces the threat of leopard attacks. He will poison the animal and skin it. When he gets a chance he will sell it.

"The third type looks to hunt other animals but will kill a leopard if there is an opportunity."

Source: IANS

3096 days of horror

London: A girl in Austria, who was locked up in a dungeon where she suffered physical and sexual abuses for eight years, has revealed she was beaten black and blue and forced to share bed with her captor.



In her autobiography, "3096 Days", Natascha Kampusch tells how she was kept in a "hermetically sealed" dungeon, beaten "black and blue", forced to sleep manacled to her captor and tried taking her own life because she saw it as her only means of escape, The Independent reported Monday.

Kampusch disappeared while on her way to school at the age of 10 in 1998 and only escaped the clutches of Wolfgang Priklopil, a communications technician, in August 2006. She managed to distract him with the noise of a vacuum cleaner as he took a phone call and fled from the cell.

Later, Priklopil, 44, committed suicide while on the run from the police by jumping in front of a train.



Bizarrely, Kampusch, who is now 22 and presents a talk show on an Austrian television, marked her tormentor's death by saying she was in mourning because in a macabre way he had become "part of my life".

In extracts from her book, published in the Daily Mail, she describes the first time that she saw the man who would steal her away from her family, her childhood and her life.

"He had blue eyes, and his gaze was strangely empty; he seemed lost and very vulnerable," she writes. She recalls that she had only recently been allowed to walk to school by herself in the town of Donaustadt and still felt the full force of her mother's warnings not to talk to strangers.

Recalling her capture as "a choreography of terror" - as Priklopil grabbed her by her waist and threw her into his white delivery van - she attempts to write her sufferings after being incarcerated in the tiny cellar beneath the garage of Priklopil's home in a suburb of Vienna.



Although Priklopil at first appeared relatively considerate, even asking his young captive what she needed "as if I were staying the night at a hotel", he gradually became violent and sexually abusive. After a year, he forced her to choose a new name in an attempt to diminish her sense of identity; she chose Bibiane.

Kampusch says she began to seriously consider suicide as her only escape when she heard the author of a book about missing persons speaking on the radio about her disappearance. "At 14, I'd tried several times to strangle myself with articles of clothing. At 15, I tried to slit my wrists with a large sewing needle," she recalls.

Kampusch is considered to have made a good recovery in the circumstances. However, the psychological scars of her ordeal are still very much in evidence. She is considering suing Austrian police over their failed attempts to locate her.

Source: IANS