Calls of Bharat Ratna for Anand gain momentum

Kolkata/Chennai, May 30 (IANS) Saluting Viswanathan Anand for winning the World Chess Championship title for the fifth time, Indian Grand Masters Wednesday described him as the country's greatest sportsperson of all-time and demanded he be conferred the nation's top civilian award, the Bharat Ratna.

'Of course, Anand is the greatest sportsperson in our country of all time. One hundred and eighty countries play chess. To be the World Champion, that too for five times, against such a field is a unique achievement for an Indian.

'Moreover, it was he who broke the stranglehold of the Grand Masters who were products of the Soviet era. He is the best candidate for the Bharat Ratna from sports,' Dibyendu Barua, a contemporary of Anand and the second GM produced by the country after Anand, told IANS.

Echoing Barua, GM Neelotpal Das said: 'There can be no doubt that he is the greatest sportsperson in India ever. After this feat, the demand for giving him the Bharat Ratna will only get louder'.

Barua said Anand's triumph was great news for the game in the country.

'it was a tough contest. We all thought that it would be a cakewalk for Anand who has lot of experience. He was also ahead of Gelfand in one-to-one fights. But Gelfand, having his first shot a the tile, really played well. He took the lead but then had to surrender it to the seasoned Indian player.

'And in the play-off rapid chess tie-breaker Anand proved he is still the king,' Barua said.

Barua said it could well be that it was the strategy of Team Anand that he would adopt some sideline tactics in the first set of 12 games so as not to tire himself.

'But as critics have been pointing out, we did not see the spark in Anand as we generally see in him. He was playing extremely carefully with Gelfand going on the attacks for most part of the series,' he said.

Das said Anand had rarely ever faced such a tough fight.

'But it is a tribute to his class, that Anand managed to bring out his special game at the last moment and put pressure on his opponent.

'There was not much of a difference between the two. Gelfand was more attacking. But Anand had the last laugh as he has more experience of playing in several formats. Though the entire tie was of very high quality, the public could find it abit low on entertainment,' Das added.

Chess world body, FIDE, also feels that Anand is the deserving candidate for the Bharat Ratna.

'Ever since he started playing as a young boy he has conducted himself with dignity and stayed clear of any controversy for more than 25 years,' D.V.Sundar, FIDE vice-president, told IANS in Chennai

India's first international chess arbiter and Anand's first official coach V. Kameswaran said that Anand deserves the award because he is the only player to win the world title in all formats.

'No other chess player has won the world title in different format except Anand,' said Kameswaran.

R. Raghunathan, a former National B player, said Anand has again showed his class in rapid chess.

The All India Chess Federation (AICF) also favoured honouring Anand with the top civilian award.

'It is a huge victory for Anand and also for India. He certainly deserves the Bharat Ratna for winning the world title for the fifth time. He has been performing consistently over the years,' J.C.D. Prabhakaran, president, AICF, told IANS in Chennai.

He said the AICF would hold a grand felicitation function here after getting the advice of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa.

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Google warns users of internet shutdown on July 9

WASHINGTON: Search giant Google has issued a warring to its millions of users that they could lose the ability to connect to the internet in July due to a computer virus.

The problem began when international hackers ran an online advertising scam to take control of infected computers around the world.

In a highly unusual response, the FBI set up a safety net months ago using government computers to prevent Internet disruptions for those infected users, but that system will be shut down on July 9, killing connections for those people

The FBI has run a campaign for months, encouraging people to visit a website that will inform them whether they are infected and explain how to fix the problem.

After July 9, infected users won't be able to connect to the internet.

According to Fox News, Google has now planned to throw its weight into the awareness campaign.

The site will be rolling out alerts to users via a special message that will appear at the top of the Google search results page for users with affected computers, CNET reported.

"We believe directly messaging affected users on a trusted site and in their preferred language will produce the best possible results," wrote Google security engineer Damian Menscher in a post on the firm's blog

"If more devices are cleaned and steps are taken to better secure the machines against further abuse, the notification effort will be well worth it," he added

According to the report, the challenge, and the reason for the awareness campaigns is the fact that most victims don't even know their computers have been infected, although the malicious software probably has slowed their web surfing and disabled their anti-virus software, making their machines more vulnerable to other problems.

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DMK reverses out of threat to quit UPA over petrol prices

Chennai: The DMK issued a red-alert. It would not hesitate to pull out of the UPA coalition if last week's increase in petrol prices were not rolled back, announced party leader M Karunanidhi to a cheering crowd of supporters in Chennai. By the afternoon, the 88-year-old leader had confirmed what everyone knew all along - that this was just an empty threat, aimed at distancing his party from an unpopular decision taken by the Centre.

"I have only said that we have walked out the government earlier," said Mr Karunanidhi, referring to his party's decision to quit the BJP-led government in 2003. "We will remain in the alliance with bitterness," he said, adding that with the elections for the President of India scheduled for July, he would not like to rock the UPA bay.

Last week's increase of nearly Rs 7.50 made this the country's steepest-ever rise in petrol prices.
"Don't push us further," Mr Karunanidhi had warned the government that his party participates in on Wednesday morning. "The DMK will not hesitate to walk out of the UPA to protest anti-people policies," he said.

But almost immediately, his own party and the Congress, which leads the UPA coalition, indicated this was just public posturing. "We have not said we are pulling out...we have been talking to the Congress," said DMK leader Khushboo.

Demonstrating the fact that this could be a more a case of posturing than anything else, she said, "We welcome the decision (to warn the UPA). It is long-awaited." Congress spokesperson Renuka Chowdhury described the DMK as a "mature ally" and said her party appreciates the local "compulsions" that have provoked Mr Karunanidhi's statement.

The decision to increase prices has been attacked by other allies like Mamata Banerjee as well as the Samajwadi Party, which provides external support to the UPA. Ms Banerjee deviated from established form to say that she will not quit the government over the price hike because she does not want to create political instability.

Mr Karunanidhi's warning is being read as little more than an attempt to distance his party from an unpopular policy move in Delhi. The DMK is not in power in Tamil Nadu. It cannot afford to have no clout at the Centre, either, given that Chief Minister Jayalalithaa and her government have been pinning corruption and other cases against many senior DMK members.

The DMK stand today does create a new public relations crisis for the Congress, which has clashed publicly with its key allies on a slew of issues recently. Yesterday, Defence Minister AK Antony also expressed his unhappiness with the new petrol prices. The Congress has said that it was not consulted by the government ahead of the hike.

Oil companies have hinted at a possible reduction of about Rs. 2 in petrol prices from next month if global oil prices and the rupee stabilise at current levels. Petroleum Minister Jaipal Reddy has said that diesel, LPG and kerosene prices will not be raised for now.

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Jagan Mohan Reddy arrested by CBI after three days of questioning in assets case

Hyderabad: Jagan Mohan Reddy, chief of the YSR Congress, has been arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with a disproportionate assets case against him. The arrest came after three days of interrogation at Hyderabad's Dilkusha Guest House, where Mr Reddy will be held tonight.

A CBI spokesperson said the agency had arrested Mr Reddy at 7.15 pm. Mr Reddy's wife Bharathi, mother Vijaylakshmi and sister Sharmila sat on dharna outside the guest house in protest against his arrest, but were taken away by the police. Mr Reddy's party has called for a state-wide bandh on Monday.

"YS Rajasekhara Reddy (Jagan's father) won 33 Lok Sabha seats for Congress in 2009. Publicly YSR declared he would work to make Rahul Gandhi Prime Minister in 2014. So her (Sonia Gandhi) son should become PM and my son should suffer in jail," questioned Mr Reddy's mother.

Jagan's wife, mother, sister sit on road in protest 

 1:47

Soon after his arrest, Mr Reddy reportedly told party leaders who had come to meet him that his supporters must be calm and not resort to any violence keeping in view the by-elections to 18 seats on June 12. The YSR Congress is contesting all 18 seats.

"It is a Congress-TDP conspiracy to arrest Jagan. We will peacefully protest against his arrest. Jagan's mother will lead the agitation," Ambati Rambabu, YSR Congress spokesperson said after Mr Reddy's arrest.  Political commentators say Mr Reddy's arrest and an emotive appeal from his mother might just turn into an electoral advantage for him in the by-elections.

The government fears violence and security is high all over Andhra Pradesh. There are prohibitory orders in place in Mr Reddy's district Kadapa and in several other places in the state. Many YSR Congress leaders have reportedly been placed under virtual house arrest and are not being allowed out. Hyderabad Police Commissioner Anurag Sharma has said that the security situation is under control.

In Vijaywada, YSR Congress leaders and workers staged dharnas at different places in the city and threatened to call for bandh in the city on Monday. Tension prevailed in the city following Jagan's arrest and some of the YSR Congress party leaders were picked up as a precautionary measure, police said.

Mr Reddy, who is the Lok Sabha MP from Kadapa, was denied anticipatory bail by the Andhra Pradesh High Court on May 25. 

PTI has quoted CBI officials as saying that Mr Reddy was questioned for three consecutive days and that his answers to certain investments made by a few companies to Sakshi Television and Jagriti publications, owned by him, were not convincing. "Some routing of funds have been detected from tax havens like Mauritius and Isle of Mann, indicating that there were quid pro quo investments in his TV channel and publication by some companies which were given land in the much sought after Andhra Pradesh Industrial Development Park," the CBI officials were quoted as saying.

Jagan Mohan Reddy arrived at the guest house, the CBI's camp, this morning, as he had on Friday and Saturday, surrounded by supporters. In an apparent show of strength, he brought along Congress MP Sabbam Hari and Congress MLAs Nani and Ranga Rao. His close associate and financial advisor and accused number two in the case, Vijay Sai Reddy, had arrived a little before him along with Jagan Reddy's lawyer Ashok Reddy.

The YSR Congress chief has accused the ruling Congress and the main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) of wanting to "eliminate the third force" in Andhra Pradesh, and of wanting to postpone the June by-elections. While he was being interrogated over the last three days, hectic political activity was taking place behind-the-scenes. The YSR Congress party says several Congress and TDP MLAs have got in touch with it and are ready to jump ship.

Yesterday, Venkata Sujay Krishna, Congress MLA from Bobbili joined the YSR Congress. Ranga Rao has also said he has joined the YSR Congress party.

Mr Reddy is the son of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy, who died in a helicopter crash in 2009. After his father's death he split with the Congress and formed his own party, the YSR Congress.

The CBI alleges that while YSR was in office, he conspired with other ministers to influence entrepreneurs to invest in his son's companies; in return, they were granted licences and other permissions required for their businesses.

The CBI inquiry into Mr Reddy's business empire and the source of its funds was ordered by the Andhra Pradesh High Court in August 2011.

The corruption case against Mr Reddy could affect not just his political fortunes, but that of several other leaders from the party who quit the Congress in a huff. One of those leaders, a minister named M Venkatramana, was arrested after seven hours of interrogation on Wednesday. Mr Venkatramana has been remanded to judicial custody till June 7. Five other Congress ministers are also being studied for possible collusion.

Minister Mopidevi reported sick this morning and was shifted to Care Hospital.

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Mozilla to Develop OS based on android!

Mozilla, who are renowned for their successful internet browser, are entering the mobile race, developing a new web-centric OS that will directly compete with Google, Apple and Microsoft.

If the name Mozilla rings any bells it's because they're the tech boffins who put together Internet Explorer, the browser that Windows defaults to. Mozilla took the leviathan computing company on with its Firefox browser, and today it stands as the second most popular browser worldwide.

Now the company who was underdog to Microsoft looks to be playing the same role, but this time against internet mogul Google.

Announced on the Mozilla discussion forum, Mozilla have begun coding for phones and tablets. The BBC revealed the mobile operating system will draw on Android code, with Mozilla writing as much fresh code as possible. The hybrid-like operating system will be named Boot To Gecko. 

It is an unusual name for an OS, until you remember Gecko is the rendering engine employed by the Firefox browser that interprets web page coding and displays it in a screen-friendly format, a homage to its origins.

Even though Android coding will form the operating system's foundations, Mozilla hope to add a much more open wrapper around it than Google currently do, making it more versatile as an operating system.

Its shared foundations will also make Boot To Gecko compatible with the same phones as Android, competing as a direct alternative to Google.

Often, when you select a link from an application native to the Android or iOS market, the operating system will have to open a new webpage in the browser. Boot To Gecko aims to limit this by making applications much more web-centric.

If the venture proves successful, Mozilla will be waging war against industry giants, with Google, Apple and Microsoft dominating many facets of the technological world. 

Mozilla have acknowledged the project is in infancy and have chosen to make the development public in hope it will attract talented enthusiast coders who will contribute to the Boot To Gecko's cause.

According to their project team, all of the code development will be completed and shared with the public as soon as it is written.

Researcher Andreas Gal, who announced the development, admits the company has set a high target, but wants to do it "the way we think open source should be done.

Gal says his ultimate goal is to break "the stranglehold of proprietary technologies over the mobile device world," implicitly referring to the practices of Apple, Windows Phone and Google.

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Facebook gurus cash out before stock plunge

·  Zuckerberg unloaded 30.2 million shares on Friday

·  Facebook founder made $1.13 billion on the sale

·  Zuckerberg had saved himself $174 million by Wednesday

MARK Zuckerberg and leading Facebook investors cashed out millions of shares before the price dropped off a cliff, according to company filings.

It was also revealed a company executive issued a warning days before the initial public offering that Facebook's revenues were lower than expected, information that would have almost certainly reduced the opening price of the newly floated stock.

The new reports are already raising questions about whether top investors profited from the  IPO at the expense of smaller buyers.

Shareholders filed a lawsuit against Facebook and the banks  behind the company's stock, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, yesterday.

Both the US Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority are looking into the matter.

The US Senate Banking Committee has also launched an inquiry and the state of Massachusetts has subpoenaed Morgan Stanley. Facebook stock rose 3.3 per cent yesterday, to $32 a share. But a new analysis said the stock could fall as low as $9.59.

That would be a far cry from the $37.58 Zuckerberg fetched for the 30.2 million shares he unloaded on Friday.

The founder of the social networking website made $1.13 billion on the sale.

By Wednesday the price had dropped to $31 - meaning that Zuckerberg had saved himself $174 million.

The 28-year-old still holds a vast amount of Facebook stock but his decision to sell off so much will leave investors wondering about his confidence in the company.

The drop is based around the realisation Facebook might not  be growing as quickly as initially thought.

And second-quarter growth will likely fall short of expectations as fewer new users join the social networking giant.

Shareholders filed a lawsuit yesterday, alleging Zuckerberg, Facebook and the banks that backed the IPO, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, knew this  information.

On Wednesday it was revealed the banks' analysts downgraded their estimates of future earnings while they were rolling out  the IPO.

Business Insider reported the banks revealed to privileged major investors the share price was likely to tank, but left smaller stock buyers in the dark.

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ViewSonic Set To Release Its '22-Inch Tablet'

Along with the giant tablet, the event will also feature other 'Touch and Connect' series devices like Windows 8 multi-touch display, new cloud computing solutions, high-end laser projectors and some interactive electronic billboards.  

Saturday, May 26, 2012:  Flash Flash! The news of a 55.9-cm (22-inch) tablet is erratic and ViewSonic is surely going to shake the tablet world hard. The 'smart business tablet monitor' is powered by the latest operating system from Google, Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. It will be released at the Computex event in Taipei on June 5. Along with the giant tablet, the event will also feature other 'Touch and Connect' series devices like Windows 8 multi-touch display, new cloud computing solutions, high-end laser projectors and some interactive electronic billboards. It will be released at the Computex event in Taipei on June 5. 

The exact hardware design of the tablet has not yet been revealed, all we know is that the size is almost double than that of the normal tablets we have in the market. The 13.5-cm (5.3-inch) Galaxy Note may have been enticing the consumers, but this tablet is surely going to devour its market.

Also, Toshiba's Excite 33-cm (13-inch) tablet is going to hit the market soon.

Well, conclusion is that the tablet market will be soon flooded with new entrances stirring the existing ones.

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