India tests nuclear interceptor missile

New Delhi, Feb 11 – The Defence Research and Development Organisation on Saturday successfully test fired a Prithvi Defence Vehicle interceptor missile designed to intercept and destroy hostile ballistic missiles in space even before they enter the Earth’s atmosphere. This further enhances India’s capability of dealing with a nuclear attack threat.

650 transgenders in Nepal apply for civil services

Kathmandu, Feb 11 – For the first time in the history of Nepal, 651 transgenders applied for civil service exams conducted by the Public Service Commission last year, a media report said. The forms for civil service jobs exams had three gender options, one for male examinees, the other for females, and the third for the ‘Other’ sex, Kathmandu Post reported.

Turkmenistan’s leader set to win re-election

FILE In this Saturday, Dec. 12, 2015 file photo, Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov smiles as he attends an international conference in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. The authoritarian president of Turkmenistan is set to sail to victory in Sunday’s election where eight other candidates are on the ballot, but all praise his polices.

Enlist as voters to determine your future, President to young people

President Uhuru Kenyatta has urged the youth to enlist as voters in large numbers, saying their vote will shape the country’s future. President Kenyatta said young people who constitute the largest percentage of the Kenyan population have the ability to determine the quality of leaders the country will have if they register as voters and participate in the coming general election.

Ukrainian author seized in Belarus, ordered to leave

A noted Ukrainian poet and novelist says he was seized by security agents in the middle of the night while visiting the capital of Belarus and ordered to leave the country. In a posting on a social media website, Serhiy Zhadan said Saturday that police confronted him in his hotel room in Minsk about 2 a.m. “Nothing was explained … I had to spend the night in a cell,” he wrote.

Afghan official: 7 killed in a suicide attack

An Afghan official says at least seven people were killed when a suicide bomber attacked Afghan soldiers in southern Helmand province. Omer Zwak, spokesman for the provincial governor in Helmand, said Saturday that 22 others were wounded in the attack, which took place in the provincial capital, Lashkar Gah.

Cambodian opposition chief resigns from party

In this Aug. 16, 2015 file photo, Sam Rainsy, leader of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party , waves from a car upon his arrival at Phnom Penh International Airport in Phnom Penh, Cambodia as hundreds of cheering supporters greeted him on his return from a trip abroad. The head of Cambodia’s opposition party has announced his resignation from the group after the country’s long-serving prime minister announced plans for a law that could lead to the party’s dissolution.

Eraman ‘Shop & Drive’ Contest Offers Lucrative Prizes

By Hazirah Husin KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 11 — Eraman, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysia Airports, which is renowned for a wide range of duty-free products, has launched the final part of the year-long ‘Shop & Drive’ contest. “With many passengers travelling through our airports in this period, it is the best time for them to shop at our stores and have a chance to win fabulous prizes we have to offer,” said Malaysia Airports Niaga Sdn Bhd General Manager Zulhikam Ahmad.

Modi faces biggest election test since 2014 landslide victory

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves towards the crowd as he leaves after attending the Republic Day parade in New Delhi, India January 26, 2017. Photo: REUTERS/Adnan Abidi/File Photo Prime Minister Narendra Modi faces his biggest electoral test since coming to power when the battleground state of Uttar Pradesh, which he swept three years ago, holds an election starting on Saturday.

Sabah UMNO Wanita Able To Make Impact On Community – Musa Aman

KOTA KINABALU, Feb 11 — Sabah UMNO Wanita is capable of making an impact on the people when delivering government policies due to their presence and persistence at the grassroot level. Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said UMNO Wanita, especially in Sabah, was well-known for their attitude of hard work and high powered party causes.

American woman visits all 196 countries in record time

American Cassie De Pecol has become the first documented woman to visit all 196 countries in the world and she did so at record speed. De Pecol, 27, managed to get around all 196 sovereign nations in 18 months and 26 days – less than half the time it took the previous Guinness World Record holder, says a CNN report.

Indian IT companies worried over Trump’s new visa plans

Indian experts say concerns are mounting that India’s software industry will take a hit as the United States looks at tightening visa rules for skilled foreign workers. This AFP photo taken on March 3, 2012 shows Indian labourers walk past the Meenakshi technology park at HITECH City , or Cyberabad, a major technology township at the centre of the information technology industry in Hyderabad.

US opposes Palestinian’s appointment to top UN post

The Trump administration opposed the appointment of a senior Palestinian leader for a top United Nations post Friday over concern that the move would boost the Palestinian cause at the world body. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres sent a letter to the Ukraine ambassador, who serves as president of the Security Council, informing the council of his intention to appoint former Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad to be his special representative for Libya, according a copy of the letter shown to CNN.

Russell Wangersky: That shrinking feeling

It’s a numbers game – and not in the way you think. There’s been plenty of talk over the year about declines in this province’s population, legitimate hand-wringing over an aging population that doesn’t have a strong cohort of young people coming up to pay taxes and fill jobs as an ever-larger portion of residents totter into retirement.

UP polls 2017: Akhilesh Yadav-Rahul Gandhi promise free smartphones,…

New Delhi: In a bid to make their alliance more stronger, Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday released the Common Minimum Programme of their ‘gathbandhan’ in Lucknow. Addressing the second joint press conference, the duo released a joint list of ten commitments to the people of Uttar Pradesh which includes free smartphones, skill development, better connectivity, infrastructural development, women empowerment and homes for the poor.

Himachal Pradesh CM Virbhadra Singh’s relative killed; all poll…

New Delhi : In yet another horrifying incident, the son of Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh’s brother-in-law Akansh Sen, died in the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research , Chandigarh after battling for life for nearly 36 hours. Akansh, who was the nephew of former MP Pratibha Singh, wife of Virbhadra Singh was left critically injured after two youths from Punjab hit him early on Thursday from BMW car in Chandigarh’s upscale Sector 9. The car driver did not stop the vehicle and crushed the victim’s head under its wheels.

More than 2,500 coins from 500 regions at Intl Coin Fair10 min ago

Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 11: More than 2,500 coins from around 500 regions, including those from the times of empires and princely states, will be on display at the three day international Coin fair which will get underway here from February 13. The exhibition will also feature collections of Justin Gilbert Lopez, who holds a Guinness world record for the largest coin collection, a press release said. Lopez, who hails from Poovar, has a collection of coins from 310 countries, even those whose claims of statehood are currently under dispute.

Civic polls: Many councillors lose seats post delimitation0 min ago

New Delhi, Feb 11 : Wards of many senior councillors in the three municipal corporations in Delhi have come under the reserved categories after delimitation, upstaging their plans to contest the civic body polls from their home turf. Malviya Nagar ward in South Delhi Municipal Corporation , represented by former Delhi BJP president Satish Upadhyay, has been reserved for women candidates.

French jihadist Rachid Kassim targeted in Mosul strike: Pentagon

PanARMENIAN.Net – French jihadist Rachid Kassim , suspected of inspiring several attacks in France , was targeted in a coalition air strike near the Iraqi city of Mosul, but his death is not yet confirmed, the Pentagon said Friday, February 10, according to AFP. “We can confirm that coalition forces targeted Rashid Kassim, a senior ISIS operative, near Mosul in a strike in the past 72 hours,” said Pentagon spokesman Major Adrian J.T. Rankine-Galloway.

BJP wins three MLC seats in UP0 min ago

Uttar Pradesh, [India], Feb. 11 : In the ongoing Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party has won all three MLC seats in Kanpur, Gorakhpur and Bareilly. The voting began earlier today and around 12 percent voting was recorded in the first phase of Uttar Pradesh elections till 9 a.m. With elaborate security arrangements being made to ensure smooth polling, the state will vote for 839 candidates at 26,823 polling stations today.

Uttar Pradesh polls 2017: Candidate goes missing, driver says he fled without paying for hired car

A Rashtriya Congress candidate, contesting from Moradabad Sadar, has allegedly gone missing under “mysterious circumstances” while canvassing on Thursday afternoon, his driver alleged. While police did not lodge a missing case, Dinesh Kumar, the owner-cum-driver of the SUV used by candidate Radhey Shyam for campaigning, lodged a complaint of criminal breach of trust with the police, alleging the man escaped without paying his vehicle fare.

Punjab: Fearing hung House, parties woo Independents

INDEPENDENTS, WHO contested this Assembly election in Punjab, are the cynosure of all parties ahead of the results on March 11. Parties are leaving no stone unturned to woo the strong Independents as fears of a hung Assembly loomed large over the parties as the election was a fiercely fought triangular contest. While all parties have officially claimed that they would get absolute majority, their leaders are either on the job to woo Independents or trying to keep them in good humour.

Pune civic polls: Rumblings turn into strident shouts as sidelined BJP leaders fume

On Thursday, when the Chief Minister arrived in Pimpri to launch BJP’s campaign, Durge sat on a hunger strike in protest against a ticket being denied to him in Sambhajinagar. THE BJP, which is hoping to capture the Pawar bastion of Pimpri-Chinchwad, seem to be facing opposition from within the party, especially from the sidelined leaders-who many believe are ‘sure-shot winners’.

Nighttime quake in Philippines kills at least 3, injures 80

Civil defense officials in the southern Philippines say a powerful nighttime earthquake has killed at least three people, injured about 80 others and damaged buildings and an airport. The late Friday quake with a magnitude of 6.5 roused residents from sleep in Surigao del Norte province, sending hundreds to flee their homes.

Siberian tigers seen in NE China

Siberian tigers rest at a Siberian tiger park in Harbin, capital of northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Feb. 10, 2017. Siberian tigers here have gained more weight than they are in summer due to increased food supply. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)