The India President, Pratibha Devisingh Patil, will confer the national sports awards on 25 sportspersons on Saturday. For the first time, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award will be presented to two boxers — woman boxer M C Mary Kom and Beijing bronze medallist boxer Vijender Singh, and wrestler Sushil Kumar. The country’s... More

Indian team coach Gary Kirsten had promised that the intensity in training would be high in the short preparatory camp ahead of the tri series in Sri Lanka. True to his word, Day Two of the four-day camp was intense, with Friday morning devoted to fitness and fielding drills, which at times were neatly combined to keep away boredom,... More

Pakistan on Friday made a tall claim that the Mumbai terror attacks could have been stopped if India had shared information. In remarks that are bound to annoy New Delhi, interior minister Rehman Malik noted that India had arrested several suspects before the Mumbai attacks, and then made the preposterous claim that the attacks could... More

At least Daddy Cool announced that it was a copy of Frank Oz’s Death At A Funeral, unlike most Hindi films who steal inspiration from Hollywood. Unfortunately, the film is just not as cool as its title. Producers Ashok Thakeria and Inder Kumar bought the rights of the film and added two female parts to the original story —... More

Five more swine flu deaths were reported on Friday in India, taking the toll from the H1N1 virus to 83, health officials said. Three patients died in Karnataka and one each in Maharashtra and Kerala. In Karnataka, two deaths were reported from Bangalore and one from Bijapur. According to Maharashtra health authorities, a 39-year-old... More

Young children are at increased risk of swine flu complications, yet guidance for diagnosis remains ambiguous. Both the Health Protection Agency and Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health are advising GP review of symptomatic infants under the age of one. But what of older children? There are reports up and down the country... More

Salman Khan, Bollywood actor famous for his smacked out statements cleared that he was in no mood to get into a cold vibe with Sharukh Khan. Salman did an interview with Rajiv Masand where he talked about his 20 years journey in film industry where he also came across a question, whether healing of his friendship with SRK can be... More

Hyundai India Motor Friday said it will phase out its premium hatchback Getz by 2011 but launch a revised version of Santro next month. “The Getz will be phased out in two years,” said company managing director and chief executive H.S. Lheem at the annual convention of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. “We... More

India’s monsoon rains may improve next month but are still set to be the worst in four decades, and the associated slow filling of reservoirs is putting winter crops and power supplies at risk. Monsoon rains, the lifeline for farms that support more that half of India’s 1.1 billion people, have been patchy this year and... More

Whirlpool Corp. (WHR) will close a factory in Evansville, Ind., a move that will lead to 1,100 job cuts in 2010. The factory’s refrigerator and freezer production will move to one of its facilities in Mexico. The company has yet to decide on the fate of a product development center also in Evansville with 300 employees, and... More

Wildfires threatened hundreds of homes in the seaside hills and foothill canyons near Los Angeles early Friday, feeding on bone-dry brush in the midst of a heat wave expected to drive temperatures into triple digits. As many as 1,500 people had to leave the wealthy seaside community of Rancho Palos Verdes overnight, while residents... More

New Mexico’s top federal prosecutor confirms that no charges will be brought against Gov. Bill Richardson and his former top aides after a probe of an alleged pay-to-play scheme. But the U.S. attorney says that doesn’t exonerate the conduct of people involved. U.S. Attorney Greg Fouratt made the comments in a letter sent... More

A freshman Kansas congress woman said Thursday that her remark about fellow Republicans seeking a “great white hope” was not a reference to someone who could challenge President Barack Obama or his political agenda. Rep. Lynn Jenkins said she was instead making a comment about GOP leaders in the House and was trying to reassure... More

Most Americans approve of the way President Obama is handling energy issues and support efforts by him and Democrats in Congress to overhaul energy policy — including the controversial cap-and-trade approach to limiting greenhouse gas emissions. Even as public support has slipped for Obama’s health-care proposals, support... More

Taiwan’s president, trying to salvage his reputation after a deadly typhoon, is treading a delicate path as an upcoming visit by the Dalai Lama threatens to rock warming relations with China. WHY IS CHINA ANGRY ABOUT THE DALAI LAMA’S PROPOSED VISIT? A visit to Taiwan by the Dalai Lama brings into sharp focus two of China’s... More