AP CM lays foundation stone for Urdu university in Andhra

EFT Report, Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Monday laid the foundation stone for a Urdu university in Kurnool district, and said his government has taken a major step for the development of the language by deciding to set up the institution.

The university is coming up in Urvakallu on 125 acres of land at an estimated cost of Rs.20 crore.

Kurnool district in Rayalseema region has the highest concentration of Muslims in the state.

On the occasion, Naidu said Urdu was not only being treated as the second official language in the state but the government has also taken a major step for the development of the language by deciding to set up the university.

Naidu said the university would help in educational development of students from minority community and create employment opportunities.

Recalling the role played by him in setting up of the Moulana Azad National Urdu University in Hyderabad, the chief minister said his government would ensure development of minorities at par with other communities.

Naidu said the government was giving top priority to development of Urdu and welfare of minorities.

Under the 'Dulhan' scheme, a financial assistance of Rs.50,000 is being given for marriage of poor Muslim girls.

The chief minister said an education hub would be established over 900 acres in Kurnool. He said Visakhapatnam, Amaravati and Kurnool would be developed as three educational hubs in the state.

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British Council's 'Language and Development Conference' in Delhi

EFT Report, New Delhi: The British Council is set to host the 11th Language and Development Conference in New Delhi from November 18 to 20. The conference is being hosted in association with Deen Dayal Upadhya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) of the Ministry of Rural Development, Jawaharlal Nehru University and Research Council of UK.

This conference is expected to attract over 300 policymakers, academicians and researchers working in the area of languages and development from India, Asia, Africa and other parts of the world. Some of the eminent speakers who will be present at the conference are Ajit Mohanty, Osama Manzar, Rukmini Banerji, Birgit Brock- Utne, James Simpson and Srikant Sarangi.

This is the first time that India will be hosting this prestigious international conference. The conference's main theme will be 'Multilingualism and Development' with three sub themes, which includes multilingualism and the metropolis; language, technology and multi-literacies; and multilingualism, marginalization and empowerment.

"British Council is a firm supporter of the Language and Development Conference series because as UK's cultural relations organisation, we believe that multiple languages sustain cultural diversity which has long term and sustained effect in securing peace and prosperity for us as individuals, for our communities and for our countries," said Rob Lynes, Director, British Council.

The Language and Development series is held every two years that explores the role of language in development. It addresses issues of world, national, second and minority languages and the role they play in economic, social and cultural development; language policy, conflict transformation, language rights and identity; communication, education and development and language pedagogy. The conference will be webcast live- www.britishcouncil.in .

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Punjabi third language of Canada's Parliament

EFT Report, Toronto: Four years after Punjabi became Canada's third most common language, it has now attained the same status in the country's new Parliament after English and French following the election of 20 Punjabi-speaking candidates to the House of Commans.

Twenty-three Member of Parliaments of South Asian-origin were elected to the House of Commons, Parliament of Canada on October 19 parliamentary elections.

Three of them, Chandra Arya - born and raised in India, Gary Anandasangaree - a Tamil and Maryam Monsef - of Afghan origin, do not speak Punjabi, The Hill Times Online reported.

Of the 20 who speak Punjabi, 18 are Liberals and two are Conservatives. Among the newly-elected Punjabi-speaking MPs, 14 are males and six are females. Ontario elected 12, British Columbia four, Alberta three and one is from Quebec.

Prime Minister-designate Justin Trudeau is scheduled to unveil his Cabinet this week and some of these Liberal MPs are expected to be included in the front bench.

"The voice of the Indo-Canadian community will now be very well represented in the Parliament. In the overall aspect of it, the South Asian community won," MP Deepak Obhrai of Conservative Party said.

In an interview with the paper, Navdeep Bains, a Liberal MP, said although 20 Punjabi-speaking MPs have been elected, these MPs represent all constituents regardless of their party affiliation or ethnic origin.

"It speaks to our commitment to diversity and allowing individual [MPs] to play an important role in our political institutions. The main issue to understand is that we have a very clear mandate to execute our platform and we also have a responsibility to represent our constituents, which are very diverse," Bains said.

Iqra Khalid, the Liberal MP who was born in Pakistan, said the diversity of the newly-elected House reflects the true make-up of Canada.

According to Statistics Canada's 2011 National Household Survey, 430,705 Canadians identified Punjabi as their mother tongue, making it the third most common language after English and French.

The 430,705 native Punjabi speakers make up about 1.3 per cent of Canada's population. The 20 Punjabi-speaking MPs represent almost six per cent of the House of Commons.

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JNU rejects Yoga, Culture courses proposal

EFT Report, New Delhi: In a rebuff to the government, Jawaharlal Nehru University's Academic Council has rejected a proposal for introduction of short-term courses in 'Indian Culture' and 'Yoga' for propagating spiritual and mythological traditions and establishing Indian values in the world.

The proposal was mooted by the varsity administration following communications from UGC and HRD Ministry.

However, the varsity's Academic Council (AC), which is the top decision making body, rejected the proposal at a meeting last Friday.

The proposal to introduce three short-term courses in these subjects had come against the backdrop of right-wing organisations, including BJP's ideological mentor RSS, insisting on propagation of culture in educational campuses to promote India's rich heritage and restore its cultural identity.

"The draft for introduction of three short-term courses on Culture and Yoga was placed before the AC along with the feedback received from various departments on the same. The council unanimously resolved to reject the proposal," an AC member told PTI.

The rejection comes at a time when the government, especially the HRD ministry, is being accused of making attempts at saffronisation of education.

The varsity had last month circulated a draft of three courses among various schools and departments of JNU for their feedback. .

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SRK receives autographed copy of Coelho's 'The Alchemist'

EFT Report, Mumbai: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan was elated to receive an autographed copy of acclaimed writer Paulo Coelho's "The Alchemist".

"&,when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping u to achieve it.Thx @paulocoelho This is so special," SRK posted on Twitter along with images of his signed copy of the book. 

Coelho's autograph read, "Dear Shah Rukh Khan, a master of acting. With my admiration". 

Earlier this month, SRK sent across a collection of his films to the Brazilian author, who has written several books such as "Brida" and "Eleven Minutes" and "Adultery", to introduce him to the world of Hindi films. 

"What a Monday morning gift, @iamsrk! Now I need to know where to start," Coelho had tweeted, along with an image.

In the photograph, DVDs of Shah Rukh's films like "Swades", "Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna", "Ra. One" and "Om Shanti Om" were seen sprawled on the floor.

Earlier this year, Coelho praised Shah Rukh's 2010 film "My Name is Khan", saying it is the best film that he has watched this year.

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Ratan Tata to inaugurate T-Hub on Nov. 5

Hyderabad, Oct 17 (IANS) T-Hub, the country's biggest start-up incubator, will be inaugurated by Tata Sons chairman emiritus Ratan Tata on November 5.

Telangana Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan and Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao will also attend the event.

The inauguration was originally scheduled on September 7 but had to be postponed due to non-availability of Tata.

The first phase has come up at the International Institute of Information Technology (IIIT).

The facility is being set up in collaboration with IIIT Hyderabad, the Indian School of Business (ISB) and the NALSAR University of Law.

While NALSAR would help in intellectual property and related areas, ISB and IIIT would provide business mentoring and technology mentoring respectively.

Phase I coming up at IIIT at a cost of Rs.35 crore will be spread over 60,000 square feet and can accommodate 400 start-ups by 2017.

The second phase will come up on three acres of land in Raidurgam near Hitec City, the IT hub.

The government promises that it will be an incubator of incubators, offering startup environment available in the west.

The facility will also have venture capitalists and angel investors.

The government is also planning a venture capital fund. Officials said they were in discussion with various venture fund groups.

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SRK shares life lessons at Edinburgh University

EFT Report, Edinburgh: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan will be delivering a lecture on life lessons at the University of Edinburgh on Thursday.

"My speech today is about Life Lessons at the Edinburgh University and my biggest learning is Life is the only Miracle," SRK tweeted alongside a black and white photograph of himself on Thursday.

The actor, who has been honoured with a Padma Shri award, is globally known for films like "Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge", "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" and "Jab Tak Hai Jaan".

The 49-year-old star has three films in his kitty -- "Dilwale" "Raees" and "Fan".

"Dilwale", directed by Rohit Shetty, will see SRK and Kajol together on the big screen after five years since “My Name is Khan”.

While "Dilwale" is slated to hit the theatres on December 18, "Raees" and "Fan" will release next year.

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Marlon James wins Man Booker Prize 2015

EFT Report, London: Jamaican author Marlon James has won the 2015 Man Booker Prize for his book 'A Brief History of Seven Killings'.

The prize awarded on Tuesday, promotes the finest in fiction by rewarding the very best book of the year, The Man Booker Prize foundation said.

"This is the riskiest novel I have ever written. Not just in subject matter but in form also," Marlon said.

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UPSC prelims results 2015 declared

New Delhi, Oct 13 (IANS) The results of the civil services (preliminary) examination 2015 held by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on August 23 have been declared.

The successful candidates will have to apply online in a detailed application form for the civil services (main) exam to be held on December 18.

The application form will be available on UPSC website (www.upsc.gov.in) from October 29 till November 13, the UPSC said in a statement.

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Sweden's Angus Deaton awarded 2015 Nobel Prize in Economics

EFT Report, Stockholm: The 2015 Nobel Prize in Economics has been awarded to Scottish micro-economist Angus Deaton, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced here on Monday.

According to an academy statement, Deaton, 69, was awarded "for his analysis of consumption, poverty, and welfare", Xinhua news agency reported.

"More than anyone else, Angus Deaton has enhanced the understanding of individual consumption choices which is crucial to design economic policy that promotes welfare and reduces poverty," it said.

By linking detailed individual choices and aggregate outcomes, his research has helped transform the fields of microeconomics, macroeconomics, and development economics, the statement added.

Answering questions at the press conference after the announcement, Deaton said he was "surprised and delighted" to win the prize.

Deaton was born in Edinburgh and received his PhD at Cambridge University. 

Last year, the award - which is officially known as the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in memory of Alfred Nobel - went to French economist Jean Tirole for his pioneering work on the regulation of large companies.

This prize has been awarded every year since 1969.

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Delhi soon to have a sports university

EFT Report, New Delhi: Delhi government will start a sports university in the national capital where students who want to focus on sports could be given a degree to enable them to earn a livelihood.

Delhi Education and Sports Minister Manish Sisodia made the announcement at an award ceremony of Delhi Assembly sports tournament at a sports complex in east Delhi.

He cited the case of a boy who started focusing on athletics in class 12 but then, due to that, could not clear his exams and could not get a job.

Sisodia said that a sports university would address the requirement of such people.

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Belarus' Svetlana Alexievich wins Nobel Prize for Literature

EFT Report, Stockholm: Belarusian writer and journalist Svetlana Alexievich was on Thursday named the winner of the 2015 Nobel Prize for literature.

Announcing the prize, Swedish Academy's permanent secretary Sara Danius, called her writing "a monument to courage and suffering in our time", BBC reported.

The award is worth 8m kronor (691,000 pounds).

Alexievich, 67, is the 14th woman to win the prestigious prize.

Her works include "War’s Unwomanly Face" (1988) book based on interviews with hundreds of women who participated in the Second World War, the first in a "Voices of Utopia" cycle that depicted life in the Soviet Union "from the perspective of the individual", the academy said.

Her other works available in English include "Zinky Boys: Soviet Voices From a Forgotten War" (1992), "Voices From Chernobyl: Chronicle of the Future" (1999) and "Voices From Chernobyl: The Oral History of a Nuclear Disaster" (2005).

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Scandinavian Noir author Henning Mankell died at 67

EFT Report, London: Swedish author and playwright Henning Mankell, whose best-selling mystery series featuring the dour Inspector Kurt Wallander were among the first in what is now famous as Scandinavian crime fiction or Nordic Noir, and revealed his country's dark side, has died. He was 67.

"Henning Mankell is dead. He died in his sleep early this morning in Göteborg. He was 67 years old," said a post on the author's official website on Monday. 

Mankell, who divided his time between Sweden and Mozambique where he was the artistic director of a local theatre, was suffering from cancer, BBC reported. He had announced he had the disease in a newspaper column in January 2014 and had also written about his experiences in the recently published "Quicksand: What It Means To Be A Human Being".

The son-in-law of famous Swedish director Ingmar Bergman, Mankell was also a committed activist right from his youth and was also on board a flotilla that had tried to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza in 2010.

He also wrote books for children, but was mostly known for his 40 novels that have been translated into 40 languages and of which the best-known were the dozen-strong Wallander series, all starring the Inspector but the last one, which had his daughter Linda, who has also joined the police, in the lead. 

Beginning with "The Faceless Killers" (1991, English translation 1997), they were mostly set in Ystad in south Sweden, but the second "The Dogs of Riga" (1992, English 2001) takes Inspector Wallender to the newly-free Latvia and "The White Lioness" (1993, English 1998), which has a plot to assassinate then South African president F.W. De Klerk, is also set in Africa. 

Like the iconic Martin Beck series of the husband-wife pair of Per Wahloo and Maj Sjowall, it attempted to understand what had gone wrong with the Swedish welfare state and why crime was gaining ground in a relatively prosperous society. 

Mankell's other fiction includes "Kennedy's Brain" (2007) which deals with the HIV epidemic in Africa, and - like John le Carre's "The Constant Gardener" - on the cupidity of multinational pharmaceutical companies, and "The Man from Beijing" in which the unearthing of a massacre in a Swedish settlement leads a dogged prosecutor into international intrigue.

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One of world's oldest Quran manuscripts on display in Britain

EFT Report, London: Britain's University of Birmingham will put on display next month one of the world's oldest Quran manuscripts, which has been radiocarbon dated to the period between AD 568 and 645 with 95.4 percent accuracy.

The exhibition will be held from October 2 to 25 in the Bramall Music Building of the university's Edgbaston campus, according to the varsity.

Consisting of two parchment leaves, the Quran manuscript contains parts of Suras (chapters) 18 to 20, written with ink in an early form of Arabic script known as Hijazi.

For many years, the manuscript had been misbound with leaves of a similar Quran manuscript, which is datable to the late 7th century.

The manuscript is part of the Birmingham university's Mingana Collection of Middle Eastern manuscripts, held in the Cadbury Research Library.

The radiocarbon dating, carried out in a laboratory at the University of Oxford, places the leaves close to the time of the Prophet Muhammad, generally believed to have lived between AD 570 and 632.

"The announcement of our radiocarbon dating result generated huge excitement and an overwhelmingly positive response around the world," said Susan Worrall, director of special collections at the University of Birmingham.

"The manuscript is a global treasure, and we hope people will enjoy being able to view such an important document here at the University of Birmingham," Worrall added.

"The result of the radiocarbon dating of the Birmingham Quran manuscript is tremendously exciting and has clearly stimulated wider academic debate. However, at this stage we cannot draw any conclusions beyond the fact that the manuscript appears to be among the oldest in the world," said David Thomas, professor of Christianity and Islam at the University of Birmingham.

According to Muslim tradition, the Prophet Muhammad received the revelations that form the Quran, the scripture of Islam, between AD 610 and 632, the year of his death.

The age of the manuscript, as ascertained by the radiocarbon dating technique, places it to less than two decades after Muhammad's death.

The tickets for the exhibition can be booked online at the university's website.

Visitors will be allocated time slots to view the manuscript.

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Jackie Collins, best-selling author of steamy novels, dies at 77

EFT Report, Washington: Best-selling author Jackie Collins, whose 32 hugely popular but often controversial steamy novels chronicled the fast and extravagant life of the Hollywood glamorous set and of Mafia families, died on Saturday, reports said. She was 77.

The cause of death was breast cancer, her family said in a statement, reported the New York Times. 

The British-American author, who moved to Los Angeles in 1980, was the younger sister of acclaimed actress Joan Collins. 

Born on October 4, 1937 in London, Jacqueline Jill "Jackie" Collins debuted with "The World is Full of Married Men", about a middle-aged philandering advertising executive in London of the Swinging Sixties.

Pilloried mercilessly by Barbara Cartland as "nasty" and "disgusting", it was banned in Australia and South Africa but the furor led to increased attention and sales in Britain and the US. 

She followed up with "The Stud" in 1969, about the ambitious nightclub owner Fontaine Khaled - which was subsequently made into a film starring her sister. 

Khaled returned in "The Bitch" (1979). 

But Collins' most famous character was the ravishing Lucky Santangelo, the daughter of Italian-American former gangster Gino Santangelo, who first appeared in "Chances" (1981) and would go to appear in eight of her works which are set in the world of Mafia and organised crime and its relation with business and the entertainment industry and span from the 1920s to the present day. 

Her other famous novels included "Hollywood Wives" (1983) about the glamorous lives of women behind the scenes of the film industry, "Lovers & Gamblers" (1977), the story of rock/soul superstar Al King, "Rock Star" (1988). 

She also wrote the screenplay for several of her novels adapted into films or TV series. 

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Hindu religion or culture was never under attack during Muslim rule in India: Book

EFT Report, Washington: At a time when religious discourse is coming under friction, a new book by a Stanford University historian has revealed a cultural alliance between Muslims and Hindus in early Sanskrit texts, a finding that may help ease relationships between the two religion's followers.

Titled Culture of Encounters: Sanskrit at the Mughal Court, the book by Audrey Truschke, a leading scholar of South Asian cultural and intellectual history, argues that the heyday of Muslim rule in India from the 16th to 18th centuries was, in fact, one of "tremendous cross-cultural respect and fertilisation and not religious or cultural conflict."

Popular thought in India holds that the origin of this conflict goes back centuries to medieval times, when Muslim rule expanded into the Indian subcontinent.

In her study of Sanskrit and Persian accounts of life under the Mughal empire, the author provides the first detailed account of India's religious intellectuals during this period.

“Her research paints a far different picture than common perceptions, which assume that the Muslim presence has always been hostile to Indian languages, religions and culture,” the Stanford University said in a statement. 

According to Truschke, the divisive interpretation actually developed during the colonial period from 1757 to 1947.

“The British benefited from pitting Hindus and Muslims against one another and portrayed themselves as neutral saviours who could keep ancient religious conflicts at bay," she writes. 

"While colonialism ended in the 1940s, the modern Hindu right has found tremendous political value in continuing to proclaim and create endemic Hindu-Muslim conflict,” she continues.

According to Truschke, a Mellon postdoctoral fellow in the department of religious studies, her research shows that much of the current religious conflict in India has been fuelled by ideological assumptions about the Mughal period rather than an accurate rendering of the subcontinent's history.

She argues that the ideology underpinning such violence erroneously “erases Mughal history and writes religious conflict into Indian history where there was none, thereby fuelling and justifying modern religious intolerance”.

Her work shows that the Muslim impulse in India was not aimed at dominating Indian culture or Hinduism. 

Early modern-era Muslims were in fact "deeply interested in traditional Indian learning, which is largely housed in Sanskrit," says Truschke, who is teaching religion courses at Stanford.

For several months in Pakistan and 10 months in India, Truschke travelled to more than two dozen archives in search of manuscripts. 

She was able to analyse the Mughal elite's diverse interactions with Sanskrit intellectuals in a way not previously done.

Truschke found that high-level contact between learned Muslims and Hindus was marked by collaborative encounters across linguistic and religious lines.

The research overturns the assumption that the Mughals were hostile to traditional Indian literature or knowledge systems. 

In fact, the findings reveal how Mughals supported and engaged with Indian thinkers and ideas.

She hopes her findings "will provide a solid historiographical basis for intervention in modern, political rewritings of the Indian past."

Truschke is currently working on her next book, a broader study of Sanskrit histories of Islamic dynasties in India.

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James Franco to teach high school students

EFT Report, Los Angeles: Actor James Franco will teach an eight-part film course to high school students.

The 37-year-old took to Instagram to share news about his special session and encouraged the students to enroll for it, reports hollywoodreporter.com.

“The Interview” actor posted a photograph of himself along with the caption: "PALO ALTO HIGH SCHOOL - I will be teaching an 8 part film class for HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS. Sign up NOW!" 

Under the course, 24 high school students in grades nine to 12 will learn to produce a film that will be shown at a film festival. 

Franco has previously delivered lectures at New York University and University of Southern California.

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Google celebrates Joan Aiken's 91st Birthday

EFT Report, London: An author who 'won the hearts of a generation with her historical fantasy books has been honoured with a Google Doodle.

The search engine is today celebrating what would have been the 91st birthday of Joan Aiken, who died aged 79 in 2004.

The Doodle commemorates her best known novel the The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, which imagines and England in which Catholic James II was not deposed and replaced with William and Mary.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

Part alternate history, part fantasy, her novels played with geography and magic to capture the hearts of adults and children alike.

The Doodles team wrote: "Every so often an extraordinarily prolific author comes along to win the hearts of a generation. Writer Joan Aiken was one of those authors. At the age of 16, she finished her first full-length novel. She was destined for great things.

"Born into a family of writers, Joan emerged with a voice all her own, publishing more than one hundred books over the course of her career. Her stunning volume of writing includes children’s books, thrillers, and literary works modeled after the fictional world created by Jane Austen. It’s hard enough to write for a single audience, but Joan was comfortable writing a range of stories that everyone could enjoy.

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President of India to teach at a Delhi school on Teacher’s Day

EFT Bureau, New Delhi: The President of India, Mr Pranab Mukherjee will interact with students and teachers of Dr. Rajendra Prasad Sarvodaya Vidyalaya in the President’s Estate, New Delhi on September 4, 2015 at the invitation of the Government of NCT of Delhi.

The President will first take a class for students of classes XI and XII of Dr. Rajendra Prasad Sarvodaya Vidyalaya.  He will then interact with the teachers.

The President will on the occasion receive the first copy of the school Magazine “Gyanoday” which will be released by Shri Arvind Kejriwal Chief Minister of Govt. of NCT of Delhi.

The address of the President to students and teachers will be telecast live on Doordarshan (News) Channel from 1155 hrs to 1255 hrs and 1325 hrs to 1335 hrs respectively.  It will also be webcast Live on the President of India website at webcast.gov.in/president/

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Now Apply Online for CTET Test

EFT Report, New Delhi: Candidates appearing for the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) can now apply on-line with CBSE starting this service from July 15, 2014.

According to a statement by Central Board of Secondary Examination, the candidates can submit their application on CTET website "www.ctet.nic.in .

The examination will be held on September 21 and the last date for submitting on-line application is August 4.

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