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MUMBAI | TUESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2015 | PAGES 32 *

PRICE ` 6.00 ALONG WITH MUMBAI MIRROR OR THE ECONOMIC TIMES OR MAHARASHTRA TIMES *

ROYS SON TOLD US TO CONTACT

LALIT MODI TO SEAL FOREIGN
HOTEL DEAL, FIRM TELLS SC 17
Only one taker
for black money
amnesty scheme

he Centres amnesty scheme launched on July 1

to mop up black money stashed abroad before the tough
law kicks in next April has
reportedly resulted in just
one declaration, estimated
at Rs 70-80 crore. The poor response could be blamed on
the doubts about the scheme
not providing a blanket ban
from prosecution. There are
also issues with tax and penalty being imposed on declaration. However, experience
shows that such schemes pick up towards the end as those with illegal money tread
cautiously. P 8

At 36, H1N1 toll

citys worst ever

hree more people died

of H1N1 in the city over
the weekend, taking the toll
to 36, the worst since 2009
when the virus first broke
out. While a 74-year-old Powai cancer patient, hospitalized with fever and cold on
August 6, died of sepsis on
August 14, a two-year-old from Chembur succumbed to
the virus at Rajawadi Hospital. On August 13, a 63-yearold man from Null Bazar died at J J Hospital. P 2

Notice to Nestle
on `640cr suit

he apex consumer court

on Monday issued a notice to Nestle India admitting
the governments Rs 640-crore suit for alleged unfair trade
practices pertaining to Maggi
noodles, directing the firm to
respond by September 30. It
also asked the government to
send samples of the noodles
to an accredited laboratory
for tests. The panel took note
of the Bombay high court order quashing the ban on the
popular food item. P 10

NITISH TO SKIP MODI

EVENT FOR HIGHWAY
PROJECTS IN BIHAR 12

27 killed as bomb hits Hindu PM sends tough

shrine in heart of Bangkok message to Pak
from Dubai stage
4 Foreigners Die, RUSH

117 Hurt As Cars HOUR

& Bikes Explode TERROR

Bangkok: At least 27 people

were killed and 117 others injured when a powerful bomb
went off in the complex housing a popular Lord Brahma temple in a crowded area of Bangkok on Monday. It was the
first such attack in the Thai
capital, and four foreigners
were among the dead.
The blast, which the government believes was aimed at
damaging the countrys economy and tourism, occurred in
the Erawan shrine in downtown Chidlom district, creating
panic as people fled the place
with cars and motorcycles exploding on impact. The temple is located on a main road through Bangkoks commercial

Says Nations
Must Unite
Against Terror

The bomb went off in

the evening near the
Hindu Erawan Shrine,
which is also popular
with many Buddhists.
Foreigners are said to
have been the target

h The Bangkok Post said there were twin blasts

h No group has claimed responsiblity for the attack.

one from a motorcycle bomb and the other from a

device fixed to an electricity pole
h It quoted police as saying 5kg of TNT was used
h At least two more bombs were defused at the site

Car bombs are rare in Bangkok, but have been used

in south Thailand, where a Muslim separatist
insurgency has been flaring; the military assumed
power last year after months of unrest

hub and is surrounded by three big malls and hotels of international chains. It is among
Bangkoks most popular attractions and is visited by East
Asian tourists and local Bud-

dhists. But there were no reports of any Indian casualties

in the explosion that left body
parts and glass panes scattered all over.
The national police chief

City corporators lax in asking

questions, attending meetings
Richa.Pinto@timesgroup.com

Mumbai: Are our civic representatives doing enough? In

2014-15, the proportion of questions asked by corporators
compared with peoples complaints was as low as 29.1%. A
total of 220 corporators asked
just 2,727 questions in a total
of 817 meetingsa dismal average of 3.3 questions per meeting; nine didnt ask a single
question. Their average attendance dropped to 68% in
2014-15 from 75.4% in 2013-14.
A fourth of the corporators

PRAJA REPORT

h The corporators asked just

2,727 questions in 817 meetings

h 9 didnt ask a single question

h Average attendance dropped
to 68% from 75.4% in 2013-14

h 57 corporators have FIRs

registered against them

h BJPs Sunita Yadav from

Poisar ranked best; MNSs
Avinash Sawant worst
have FIRs registered against
them.
On Monday, NGO Praja

Foundation released the annual report card of Mumbais

municipal corporators. It ranked 220 of the 227 corporators. Former and current mayors Sunil Prabhu and Snehal
Ambekar, respectively, were
not ranked as both held office
at some point during April
2014 to March 2015, the period
for which the report card is
brought out. The remaining
five corporators were either
suspended or did not complete the 12 months.
Sena lags behind BJP, P 2

Golfer Anirban Lahiri putts best show by an Indian

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

unday turned out to be a

milestone day for Indian
sport. After Saina Nehwals historic silver medal at the
World Badminton meet, Anirban Lahiri made a resounding
statement for Indian golf when he recorded Indias best-ever finish in a Major. Lahiri fin-

NEWS DIGEST
PIL against award for
historian Purandare
A PIL has been filed in the
Bombay HC against the states
decision to confer the
Maharashtra Bhushan award on
Babasaheb Purandare. P 4

Rapist school van

attendant a major
A test of the private school van
attendant accused of sexually
assaulting a 3-year-old Malad
girl has shown that he is 19. P 3

10 ex-Services chiefs
push for OROP
The protest for one rank, one
pension has gained momentum
with two former servicemen
launching an indefinite fast and
10 former Services chiefs
urging PM Modi to settle the
issue quickly, warning the
forces morale could be hit. P 9

FTII students gherao

director for 6 hours
In high drama at FTII, protesting
students gheraoed director
Prashant Pathrabe for six hours
on Monday over his decision to
go ahead with the assessment
of films of the 2008 batch. P 11

OTHER TOP STORIES

Fired for urinating, Punjab
man kills 5 under truck, P 8
Haryana bag sellers son
tops pre-medical test, P 5 & 9
Polygraph, DNA test on
Pak terrorist Naved, P 13
Bin Laden cited Gandhi as
inspiration in 93 speech, P 16
Terror financier who
jumped furlough held, P 3
Coalgate: Koda wants
ex-PM Singh summoned, P 10
Youths inappropriate
conduct under lens, P 2
* P L U S 8 PA G E S B O M B AY T I M E S
* The TOI Combo offer and Bombay Times
Supplement are available in Mumbai, Thane
and Raigad districts while Education Times will
be circulated in Mumbai Metro Region only.

Times Classifieds | P 6 & 10

SAVE TIGER PROJECT: NCP SAYS

SACHIN SHOULD BE MADE BRAND
AMBASSADOR, NOT BACHCHAN 5

ished tied fifth in the

PGA Championship,
the years final Major,
with rounds of 70, 67, 70
and 68 at Kohler, Wisconsin (US), eclipsing Jeev Milkha Singhs tied
ninth result at the same event
in 2008. Lahiri was seven strokes behind winner Jason Day
of Australia. Golfers that he fi-

nished ahead of included Rory McIlroy, Phil

Mickelson and several
Major winners. Tiger
Woods failed to even
make the cut.
Lahiri (28) pocketed
$367,000 (Rs 2.4 crore), the 2nd
highest pay cheque in his career after his Malaysian Open
win ($500,000) earlier this year,

and jumped from 53rd to 38th

in the world rankings.
Lahiri has almost singlehandedly assured Indias firstever presence in the prestigious US vs International (excluding Europe) Presidents Cup
event slated for October. He is
only the third Asian to breach
the $1 million earnings barrier in a single season. P 21

put the death toll at 16, but Thai TV placed it at 27. The toll
may rise as a large number of
people are injured. AGENCIES
Separatists suspect, P 16

NCP MLA held

in `365cr scam
in bank loans

n a setback for NCP, Ramesh Kadam, its MLA from

Mohol, Solapur, was arrested from Pune on Monday for
his alleged involvement in a
Rs 365-crore scam in the Lokshahir Annabhau Sathe Development Corporation, which he heads, reports Samrat Phadnis.
Ex-NCP minister Laxman Dhoble, who quit the party
after being denied a ticket from Mohol, has been vocal about malpractices in the corporation and had accused former deputy CM Ajit Pawar of
shielding Kadam. P 3

M Narendra Modi used

a public event with
50,000 cheering expat
Indians at the Dubai cricket
stadium to attack terrorism
originating from Pakistan.
Referring to the IndiaUAE joint statement, he said,
in a thinly veiled reference to
Pakistan, There are those
who believe in terrorism and
those who believe in humanity. Those nations who support
the latter must unite. There is
no good or bad Taliban, good
or bad terrorism.
It was a strong message to
Pakistan, delivered from the
soil of one of its closest allies.
Modi made no bones of the fact
that he saw the joint statement
as aimed at Pakistan. TNN

Takes dig at Cong, P 12

 BRIDGING THE GULF, P 12

NA-PAK ACTIVITIES

There are those who

believe in terrorism
and those who believe in
humanity. Those nations
who support the latter must
unite... those who need to
understand will do so. There
is no good or bad Taliban,
good or bad terrorism

Pact with UAE may

curb Dawood & Co

M Modi and the Abu Dhabi

Crown Princes pact to
cooperate against terrorism
and organized crime could
prevent terror groups from
using the Emirates as a springboard against India. P 12

SC upholds
Katara killers
conviction, but
to review term
AmitAnand.Choudhary
@timesgroup.com

New Delhi: The apex court

on Monday
upheld the
conviction of
Vishal and
Vikas Yadav, who had
murdered
Nitish Katara in 2002 for having a relationship with their
sister Bharti. It, however,
agreed to weigh whether the
30-year jail term imposed by
the Delhi high court was just
punishment for the cousins.
A bench of Justices J S
Khehar and Adarsh Goel
had no doubt about the guilt
of the two, who were concurrently held guilty by the trial
court and the Delhi HC. While they were sentenced to 30
years in prison, their accomplice Sukhdev Pehalwan was
awarded 25 years.
The SC agreed to examine if the sentences were disproportionate to the crime as
the convicts pleaded for leniency. It sought Delhi polices
response in six weeks.
Show strong point, P 11

Birla legacy feud may trip Lodhas

`5,000cr Lafarge cement units buy
Udit Prasanna Mukherji &
Reeba Zachariah TNN

Kolkata/Mumbai: Harsh
Lodha-led Birla Corporation
has agreed to acquire Lafarge
Indias two cement units in
the eastern region in a deal
valued at Rs 5,000 crore. It will
mark the biggest M&A play in
the Kolkata-based companys
nearly century-old history

and make it a stronger rival to

Kumar Mangalam Birlas UltraTech Cement.
While Harsh Lodha manages Birla Corporation, its ownership is locked in a legal dispute between Lodha and the Birla families, something industry observers say could create
obstacles for the big-ticket deal as it requires shareholder
and court approvals. The own-

ership is under dispute after

Priyamvada Birla, the widow
of M P Birla, named Harsh Lodhas chartered accountant father R S Lodha as the heir to
her entire estate.
Birla Corporation pipped
several bulge-bracket private
equity funds and strategic
players to acquire the units.

In Indian Top 10, P 18