Brussels, March 30 (DPA) European Union (EU) officials Tuesday hailed a streamlined new system for issuing visas to enter the Schengen zone, saying that it would make travel easier when it comes into force April 5.
Twenty-five European states make up the borderless Schengen zone, with a single visa allowing entry to all of them. But until now, each state has had its own method of issuing visas, making the system complex and unpredictable. (Continue reading)
Gandhinagar/New Delhi, March 30 (IANS) Somali pirates have hijacked seven cargo vessels with a combined crew of at least 97 Indian sailors in the treacherous waters off Somalia over the last week, a shipping association said Tuesday.
According to Ashok Bhanushali of the Kutch-headquartered Cargo Vessels Association, the Indian authorities had been alerted but there had been no ransom demand so far. (Continue reading)
New Delhi, March 30 (ANI): The nation is all set to embark on the largest census exercise, ever undertaken probably in the world, with Census 2011 on Thursday (April 1) that will commence with President Pratibha Patil being the first citizen to be enumerated, followed by Vice President Hamid Ansari. (Continue reading)
New Delhi, March 30 (IANS) Seven people were arrested from a south Delhi slum area Tuesday for killing cows, which is banned in the Indian capital. The police also recovered nearly three tonnes of beef from the arrested men.
The accused - Sazid, Sahzad, Mohammad Arfin, Mohammad Tayab, Zahid, Alam and Salauddin - were arrested from the R.K. Puram area. (Continue reading)
London, March 30 (IANS) Actor Will Smith, who was last seen in "Seven Pounds", is all set to play Captain Steve Hiller Will in the sequels to hit sci-fi film "Independence Day".
Contactmusic.com reports the two sequels will be shot back-to-back in 2011 and director Roland Emmerich and writer Dean Devlin already have a story for the first sequel. (Continue reading)
Lucknow, March 30 (IANS) A criminal wanted in cases of murder and abduction was shot dead in a gunfight with a state police squad on the outskirts of this capital city Tuesday, an official said.
Ejaz Ahmad, who had over 12 cases of murder, abduction, loot and other heinous crimes lodged against him, was shot dead Tuesday afternoon in the Gudamba area of Lucknow. (Continue reading)
New Delhi, March 30 (IANS) Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Kamal Nath Tuesday sought a day's time to reply to the demands of truck operators who have threatened an indefinite strike from April 5 to protest the recent hike in fuel prices.
"The minister will give a written reply to our demands at 11 a.m. tomorrow (Wednesday). He wants to discuss our issues with other related ministries," said G.R. Shanmugappa, president of the All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), here. (Continue reading)
Ranchi, March 30 (IANS) Maoist rebels torched four trucks and blew up a school building in Jharkhand's Chatra district, police said Tuesday.
Four trucks were fired on by 20 to 25 rebels, suspected to be from the People's Liberation Front of India (PLFI), near Piperwar coal mines of the district, around 170 km from Ranchi, Tuesday morning. (Continue reading)
New Delhi, March 30 (IANS) The Indian Premier League (IPL) Tuesday signed a major merchandising deal with Yog Sports, a marketing and distribution company.
As part of the 10-year exclusive deal, Yog Sports will be the IPL's "Official Merchandise Distribution Partner". (Continue reading)
Chennai, March 30 (IANS) Despite being placed second on the Indian Premier League leaderboard, Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Anil Kumble asserted his team needs to keep its focus when they take on the Chennai Super Kings here Wednesday.
"It will be nice to start the second half of the tournament with a win, but I expect the Super Kings to come hard at us and we need to keep our focus. The Super Kings are a good side and they have done well in the last two seasons, but they are rather off-colour this time," said Kumble at a media conference. (Continue reading)