Shahid Afridi Banned for Ball Tampering!!

Shahid Afridi is banned for 2 matches for ball tampering. He was shown biting the ball on the large screen. This happened during the final one dayer against Australia. Incidentally, Shahid Afridi was the stand-in skipper in this match. Well this is not the first time Shahid Afridi has been penalised for ball tampering. He has been banned under the same account once earlier as well.

Also Pakistan lost the series 5-0. They already had lost the test series 3-0. And now with the T20 matches coming up against Australia, if Pakistan misses the services of Shahid Afridi, then for them beating Australia will be an uphill task.

Shahid Afridi has proved himself as a lethal weapon in the short forms of the game, specially the twenty twenty cricket because of his spin bowling ability and his devastating batting towards the end of the innings.

I guess this series has not been very good for Pakistan cricket. They have been completely been outplayed by the Australian cricket team. Well in the t20 matches I guess Pakistan will definitely be looking for their first win on the tour. With Afridi to miss the T20 matches this will just be a little more difficult.

Here is the cricinfo article. I am just pasting it here.

” Shahid Afridi has been banned for two Twenty20 internationals after being found guilty of ball-tampering during Pakistan’s two-wicket loss to Australia at the WACA in Perth.

Afridi, leading Pakistan for the second time in an ODI, in the absence of Mohammad Yousuf, was caught on TV cameras apparently biting the ball on a couple of occasions. The incident was reported to the on-field umpires by the TV umpire and after a chat with Afridi, the umpires changed the ball immediately.

Afridi was called into a hearing with the match referee Ranjan Madugalle immediately after the match. “Shahid Afridi has been banned for two T20Is after the incident,” a team official told Cricinfo. “He pleaded guilty to the charge.”

The punishment puts Pakistan into a quandary because Afridi is their Twenty20 captain and they end their tour of Australia with a Twenty20 in Melbourne on February 5. Yousuf, who captained Pakistan in Tests and ODIs, is not part of the Twenty20 squad and Younis Khan, who was captain before the tour of New Zealand which preceded this one, has retired from the format. Shoaib Malik, who was captain in all three formats this time last year, might be one of those in the running. Afridi will also now miss the first Twenty20 against England in Abu Dhabi in February.

“It’s unacceptable,” Intikhab Alam, the Pakistan coach, said. “It shouldn’t have happened but it happened and I feel sorry for him. Being a captain you should be above everything but unfortunately it’s happened.”

Afridi’s antics were part of a bizarre finale to the game, which sealed a 5-0 win for Australia. Opener Khalid Latif was tackled by a fan who broke through the security cordon and ran on to the field. Police have spoken to Latif, who is not thought to be seriously injured. But action is likely to be taken against the spectator and Pakistan’s management will also look at the incident in further detail.

“I thought it was disgraceful,” Australian seamer Clint McKay said. “Something you don’t want to see ever. For someone to go out there and to touch one of their players is not on. Hopefully it all gets put to bed and he gets a right whack. It’s probably the worst thing that can happen on a cricket field, so hopefully it gets stamped out and we don’t see it again.””

Emma Watson’s interview on Fair Trade Fashion

Well in recent times I have been reading a lot on Emma Watson. I found a blog that updates about her very regularly. In fact I have even started following this blog. In the meanwhile i came across this article both in the Mail as well as on this blog. I liked this article very much and i am pasting it over here.

“”‘You’ The Mail on Sunday, Daily Mail magazine, has an interview with the lovely Emma Watson about fair trade fashion and why she has chosen to involved herself in a project for People Tree, the fair trade fashion organization.

You’ve done acting, modelling, and now you’re designing. Is this the future for Emma Watson?
Oh, I don’t have any plans to be a designer. I’m doing this range because I really care about fair-trade and ethical fashion. I’m so pleased that I got involved, but I don’t want to take all the credit for being the designer because I haven’t trained as a designer or even gone to art college – in fact, I had no idea about the amount of work involved at the outset!

So this is not an Emma Watson clothing line?
I didn’t want this collection to be all about me. This is not a celebrity endorsement, it is about creating something that is genuinely a great idea and about making a difference through fashion.

How did the collaboration come about?
It was all because my friend, Alex Nicholls, was wearing this great People Tree T-shirt one day, which I liked. He then told me all about the company – he knows Safia and said that I should meet her. He set up an introduction and Safia and I just clicked. A couple of weeks later she got in touch with the idea of a teen range – they were doing older ranges and baby clothes but nothing in between – and asked if I’d like to help put it together. I said yes straight away.

Wise move, People Tree – every teen wants to dress like you!
I am very interested in fashion and I’ve been working a lot in the fashion world recently – it’s such an influential industry, so I knew that trying to help people, trying to alleviate poverty through a fashion line, could work. Fashion is a great way to empower people and give them skills; rather than give cash to charity you can help people by buying the clothes they make and supporting things they take pride in. It’s that simple.

Where did you get your design inspiration for the range?
I went through my summer wardrobe and thought, ‘If I filtered this so that it was just the very basics, what would I want to keep?’ The answer was cotton vests, easy T-shirt dresses, nice scarves to accessorise with and some lovely linen pieces. For the boys’ range I’ve done hoodies, which I know they’ll love. The clothes are very British, which is why we shot them in an English country garden – it’s all very strawberries and cream and tennis.

We particularly like the T-shirts printed with slogans such as ‘I’m not toxic’ and ‘Please don’t panic, I’m organic’.
I was keen not to preach – you don’t want to be too serious or heavy. I also came up with a daisy print which I’m really proud of – it’s fun and messy. I just wanted to make clothes that are wearable, cool and easy.

What is your favourite part of the collection?
I would wear all the clothes, which are made in Bangladesh, India and Nepal, and there is also some amazing jewellery – especially a necklace made from recycled sweet wrappers, which is made in Bangladesh. It comes in a box also made of sweet wrappers. Brilliant!

It must have been a fast learning curve for you, being on the design side of things for the first time…
It was such fun going through all the Pantone colour books with Safia, but yes, I had to learn quickly – the colours on the page don’t always look the same on the fabrics, so you have to be patient. It’s a case of learning as you go along, and it’s all massively time consuming! When we did the first set of samples some of them looked great but others needed altering a lot.

If the reaction on the shoot is anything to go by, these clothes are going to be out of stock long before spring is here!
I really enjoyed the shoot. All the models are friends of mine: my housemate Sophie, my brother Alex. I basically called in favours – a lot of the crew are friends too. They are all super-talented, so I am very lucky that they were prepared to help out. I asked Andrea Carter-Bowman to do the photos as I just love her work, and she’s young. So this really is a collection for young people put together by young people. And I’m so proud of it – it’s exactly how I intended it to look.

You are something of a fashionista, but were you completely new to fair-trade fashion?
The first time I heard about fair trade was during a geography coursework project, and I remember thinking, ‘Why isn’t everything fair trade?’ Everyone knows about fair-trade bananas and coffee, but of course anything can be fair trade. Fair-trade fashion costs a bit more but allows those who make it to earn a decent living; to be able to take care of their families and live with dignity.

But do you think it is possible to enjoy high-street fashion and also support fair trade?
It’s important to differentiate between fast fashion, which is made very quickly for a very small price, and fair-trade fashion. So if you buy a T-shirt for £2, you just have to do the maths and work our how much the person who made it is being paid.

How realistic is it that the Primark generation will buy into this range and concept?
It sounds like a cliché, but we are the future. The earth is ours and will be our children’s, and I think that more than any other generation we are aware of environmental and humanitarian issues. That’s why it’s so great that People Tree is doing something aimed at people of my age – because we do care and we will buy with a conscience. I hope that more companies will follow People Tree’s example. “”

REFERENCES

1. http://emmawatsonupdates.wordpress.com/2010/01/30/you-emma-watson-interview-about-fair-trade-fashion-mail-on-sunday/

2. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/article-1246238/Emma-Watson-weaves-fashion-magic-unveils-new-fair-trade-clothing-range.html

Shraddha Nigam on her divorce with Karan Singh Grover

Well I have been reading a lot over the internet for the past few days. I have been trying to look for some news on Karan Singh Grover’s where abouts. It is at this time when I just came across one of these articles. I am pasting it here for everyone to read.

TV actress Sharddha Nigam, who divorced Karan Singh Grover, said in one of her interviews that there was a lot of pain. Here’s she is talking about the painful phase and her furure plans.

What prompted you to take this step?
“There were a lot of things. Like marriage, divorce is not a decision you can jump into. You can’t just wake-up one day and say that I can’t put up with all this shit and give up. It was thought about clearly as the marriage. I am a very regular Indian girl at heart. So, I wouldn’t end a marriage in a moment.”

Are these rumors true that Karan Singh Grover had link ups with Jhalak Dikha La Ja choreographer Nichole and Dill Mill Gayye co-star Jennifer Winget?
“Honestly, if you went through something so painful like I have, you would face many things. I still have many questions that I have no answers for, so giving you an answer would be equally difficult.”

So, then why did she walk out on her marriage?
“I have always been true to myself. Honestly; divorce to me was like a death sentence. But all I knew was that I was standing up for myself. I don’t believe in blame games, but I do believe that people who aren’t true themselves have to go through pain, maybe not immediately but eventually.”

Did you have parental support?
“My parents stood firmly by me in every decision I took. They were very understanding and supported me throughout and there was no pressure for anything. I salute them because it’s tough for any parent.”

Ok, then did Karan Singh Grover’s parents support you?
“It is tough for all parents involved in this. The space I share with his parents is also something I share in reverence. It was a beautiful phase that I shared with a lot of respect and regard.”

In one of his recent interviews, Karan admitted that you guys were still good friends, what do you have to say about it’
“Well, I think there has been some misunderstanding or miscommunication in that article, I don’t think he would say something which is not quite true.”

What about your career?
“I always planned to return by the end of 2009. The reason I took a break was because I wanted to enjoy my marriage like every girl does and its just incidental that my divorce is happening at the same time that I had decided to come back. I am doing Rohit Roy’s film which I finished before I got married and now I am looking forward for its release. Not only this I am also looking forward for a chat show too.”

I dont understand why is all this suddenly coming up when we all are expecting the return of Karan in Dill Mill Gayye. Why are such news again surfacing is the biggest question in my mind. Well I just hope all is well with Karan and he does come back to the show. Also I wish both Shraddha and Karan for their future lives(I mean now their seperate lives).

Jerome David Salinger is No More!!!

JD Salinger died due to natural causes on January 27, 2010. He was 91 years old. He was most famously known for his novel “The Catcher in the Rye”.

JD SALINGER
Jerome David “J. D.” Salinger (January 1, 1919 – January 27, 2010) was an American author, best known for his 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye, as well as his reclusive nature. His last original published work was in 1965, he gave his last interview in 1980.

Raised in Manhattan, Salinger began writing short stories while in secondary school, and published several stories in the early 1940s before serving in World War II. In 1948 he published the critically acclaimed story “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” in The New Yorker magazine, which became home to much of his subsequent work. In 1951 Salinger released his novel The Catcher in the Rye, an immediate popular success. His depiction of adolescent alienation and loss of innocence in the protagonist Holden Caulfield was influential, especially among adolescent readers. The novel remains widely read and controversial, selling around 250,000 copies a year.

The success of The Catcher in the Rye led to public attention and scrutiny: Salinger became reclusive, publishing new work less frequently. He followed Catcher with a short story collection, Nine Stories (1953), a collection of a novella and a short story, Franny and Zooey (1961), and a collection of two novellas, Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction (1963). His last published work, a novella entitled “Hapworth 16, 1924,” appeared in The New Yorker on June 19, 1965.

Afterward, Salinger struggled with unwanted attention, including a legal battle in the 1980s with biographer Ian Hamilton and the release in the late 1990s of memoirs written by two people close to him: Joyce Maynard, an ex-lover; and Margaret Salinger, his daughter. In 1996, a small publisher announced a deal with Salinger to publish “Hapworth 16, 1924” in book form, but amid the ensuing publicity, the release was indefinitely delayed. He made headlines around the globe in June 2009, after filing a lawsuit against another writer for copyright infringement resulting from that writer’s use of one of Salinger’s characters from Catcher in the Rye.

Salinger died of natural causes on January 27, 2010, at his home in Cornish, New Hampshire.

REFERENCES

1. WIKIPEDIA

Marin Cilic’s Dream Run in Australian Open Ends!!

The dream run of Marin Cilic got over in the semi-finals when he lost to Andy Murray 6-3, 4-6, 4-6, 2-6. The 14th seeded Croatian was undefeated this year until this semi-final. He won the Chennai Open, successfully defending his title. He played some great tennis in this tournament defeating 7th seeded Andy Roddick in the quarter-final, US Open Champion Juan Martin Del Potro in the fourth round and 19th seeded S Wawrinka in the third round.

He had a good run but lost almost all his energy before the semi-final clash. He won against all of Andy Roddick, JM Del Potro and B Tomic in 5 set matches. These matches do take a lot of energy out of a player. His match against Wawrinka was also a 4 set affair. He did look tired and you can say just conceded all his left energy in the first set against Andy Murray winning 6-3. After that it was Andy Murray all over, just making the rallies a little longer, just keeping the ball in the court and made which made it hard for Cilic and forced him into many unforced errors. Murray won the next three sets 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 pretty easily.

I feel Marian Cilic must have realized and learnt a lot from this grand slam. It is a different thing reaching the semi-final and final stages, and a completely different thing winning them. However he will be happy with his performance here and would definitely work on his game for the next three grand slam event in the year.

Seeing him play in this tournament I can say that the future of Croatian tennis is in safe hands. And also it will not take much time for Marin Cilic to break into the top 10 and then top 5.

INDIA thrash BANGLADESH 2-0 !

Well the final scores do depict that India did Thrash Bangladesh, but to be honest it has not really been that easy as the final scores suggest. On the very first day of first test match, Bangladesh did put India in some sought of a humiliating position, by taking 8 wickets without much score on the board. If it had not been a hundred by Sachin Tendulkar, India could have found themselves in deep problems in the first match. Bangladesh came very hard at India, but just due their inexperience let the situation of the hands. And then as a big team should do India capitalized and won very comfortably.

In the second test also Bangladesh had come all guns blazing in their second innings, and made Indian team look an ordinary team, no way close to a no.1 team. They had India on the back foot. But again it was up to the experience that counted and Zaheer Khan came back to pick up two wickets of both the well settled batsman in the last few over’s of the day to put India back on top. In fact on the fourth morning it was Zaheer Khan again to get the downfall of the team by picking up 4 wickets in the space of 8 balls. And Bangladesh lost their last seven wickets for just 22 runs. India came to bat needing just 2 runs to win, and they won of the second ball of the match and that too without any of the batsman scoring the runs (a very rare occasion).

Zaheer Khan was given the man of the match award for his 10 wickets in the match and was also given the man of the series award for his 15 wickets in the series. Zaheer also became the fourth Indian fast bowler to pick up 10 wickets in an away match. Many other records were made during this series. India won their 4th consecutive match in a row, only their second time they have done it. Dhoni continued his unbeaten form in Test cricket as a captain. India registered its 5th consecutive series win. Gautam Gambhir scored his fifth century in consecutive matches. Sachin notched up his 44th and 45th hundred and in the meanwhile also passed the 13000 run mark in test matches. Dravid scored his 29th century and now is at par with Sir Donald Bradman with the total number of centuries. Harbhajan Singh picked up his 600th international wicket and now has become only the third Indian after Anil Kumble and Kapil Dev to do so. Also Sachin Tendulkar becme only the second Indian to score 22000 first-class runs.

Well these were definitely the high points of the series. But there were many low points in the firm of injuries as well. Sreesanth and Laxman got injuries in the first test match and Dravid and Yuvraj got injured during the second test. With four premier players missing, in fact we can say that complete middle order missing out it will be very tough for India in the coming series against South Africans. This will give opportunity to the young players but it will be up to them how they capitalize on this situation.

With the no.1 position in test matches up at stake in this series it will be a lot of pressure on Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir and Zaheer Khan to carry their form from this series into the next. And also guide the young players who will be trying to fill in the void created by the injuries to the senior players.

I end this here hoping that India continue its good form and defeat South Africa in the coming series and also hold on to their no.1 position.

2010 Galantry Awardee List : Republic Day

On the 61st Republic day celebrations the President has approved awards of 442 gallantry and other Defence decorations to Armed Forces personnel and others. This includes one Ashoka Chakra, six Kirti Chakras, 26 Shaurya Chakras, three Bar to Sena Medals (Gallantry), 118 Sena Medals (Gallantry), three Nao Sena Medals (Gallantry),three Vayu Sena Medals (Gallantry), 28 Param Vishisht Seva Medals, four Uttam Yudh Seva Medals, one Bar to Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, 50 Ati Vishisht Seva Medals, 16 Yudh Seva Medals, two Bar to Sena Medals (Devotion to Duty), 38 Sena Medals (Devotion to Duty), eight Nao Sena Medals (Devotion to Duty), 14 Vayu Sena Medals (Devotion to Duty), two Bar to Vishisht Seva Medals and 119 Vishisht Seva Medals .

ASHOKA CHAKRA:

1. 2890262 HAVILDAR RAJESH KUMAR, 11TH BATTALION THE RAJPUTANA RIFLES (POSTHUMOUS)

KIRTI CHAKRA:

1. IC-61390 MAJOR SURESH SURI, KUMAON REGIMENT /13 RASHTRIYA RIFLES (POSTHUMOUS)
2. IC-65685 MAJOR PUSHPENDER SINGH, RAJPUTANA RIFLES / 28 ASSAM RIFLES
3. SHRI BHOPAL SINGH, SUB INSPECTOR (GENERAL DUTY), SASHASTRA SEEMA BAL (POSTHUMOUS)
4. SHRI REL DEO SANGMA, CONSTABLE, MEMBER OF THE SPECIAL OPERATION TEAM, MEGHALAYA POLICE (POSTHUMOUS)
5. MS. RUKHSANA KOSSER, SHAHDARA SHARIEF (MORHA KALSI), TEHSIL – THANAMANDI, DISTT.-RAJOURI, J&K.
6. SHRI AJAZ AHMED, SHAHDARA SHARIEF (MORCHA KALSI), TEHSIL – THANAMANDI, DISTRICT-RAJOURI, J&K.

SHAURYA CHAKRA:
 
1. IC-46936 LIEUTENANT COLONEL SANJAY KAUSHIK, MADRAS REGIMENT / 8 RASHTRIYA RIFLES
2. IC-56413 MAJOR AKASH SINGH, 5TH BATTALION THE MARATHA LIGHT INFANTRY (POSTHUMOUS)
3. IC-57255 MAJOR KUMAR ANKUR, SM, 12TH BATTALION THE BIHAR REGIMENT
4. IC-59470 MAJOR MANOJ ARUPARAYIL POTHEN, SM, 4TH BATTALION THE SIKH LIGHT INFANTRY
5. IC-60656 MAJOR ANUJ SINGH, BRIGADE OF THE GUARDS / 59 RASHTRIYA RIFLES
6. IC-61038 MAJOR HARMEET SINGH SAMRA, RAJPUT REGIMENT / 10 RASHTRIYA RIFLES
7. IC-63409 MAJOR NN VENKATA SRIRAM, MADRAS REGIMENT / 8 RASHTRIYA RIFLES
8. IC-63920 MAJOR DIPANKAR DEY, 39 ASSAM RIFLES
9. IC-64074 MAJOR SHISHIR JUNEJA, ARMOURED CORPS / 8 RASHTRIYA RIFLES
10. IC-65220 MAJOR JEEVAN B, 11TH BATTALION THE JAT REGIMENT
11. SS-39651 MAJOR AJAY SINGH, 11TH BATTALION THE MARATHA LIGHT INFANTRY
12. SS-41214 MAJOR JUGMAL SINGH VAGHELA, 11TH BATTALION THE JAT REGIMENT
13. IC-63580 CAPTAIN MUDASSAR IQBAL, 2ND BATTALION THE BIHAR REGIMENT
14. IC-63809 CAPTAIN TUSHAR DHASMANA, 6TH BATTALION THE PARACHUTE REGIMENT
15. IC-64088 CAPTAIN PAURUSH PRADHAN, KUMAON REGIMENT / 26 RASHTRIYA RIFLES
16. IC-67238 CAPTAIN LOKESH KUMAR, 9TH BATTALION THE PARACHUTE REGIMENT (SPECIAL FORCES)
17. IC-69343 CAPTAIN ANOOP PANDEY, 4TH BATTALION THE RAJPUT REGIMENT
18. IC-70145 LIEUTENANT SATBIR SINGH, SM, ARMY EDUCATIONAL CORPS / 12 MARATHA LIGHT INFANTRY (POSTHUMOUS)
19. JC-520623 NAIB SUBEDAR NIRMAL SINGH, SM, DOGRA REGIMENT / 11 RASHTRIYA RIFLES
20. G/114735 HAVILDAR THANGJALET, 11 ASSAM RIFLES (POSTHUMOUS)
21. 4478544 LANCE NAIK DAVINDER SINGH, 4TH BATTALION THE SIKH LIGHT INFANTRY
22. 9103039 RIFLEMAN SURAJ PRAKASH, JAMMU AND KASHMIR LIGHT INFANTRY / 10 RASHTRIYA RIFLES (POSTHUMOUS)
23. CHANDRA SHEKHAR, POWTR CD III, (120351-A), (POSTHUMOUS)
24. GS -171792-K OPERATOR EXCAVATING MACHINERY PRITAM CHAND
BORDER ROADS ORGANISATION (POSTHUMOUS)
25. GS -173772-P DRIVER MECHANICAL TRANSPORT GRADE-II  PIAR CHAND
BORDER ROADS ORGANISATION (POSTHUMOUS)
26. SHRI SANJAY BHAURAO SHINDE, LAXMI NARAYAN NAGAR, PUSAD,
DISTRICT YAVATMAL, MAHARASHTRA (POSTHUMOUS)

Well I could just list out the list of major gallantry awards. For the complete list of awards that were declared please click here.

2010 Padma Awardee List : Republic Day

On the 61st Republic day celebrations the Padma Awards were given to several Indians for their contribution towards the country. Overall 6 Padma Vibhushans, 43 Padma Bhushans and  81 Padmashree were awarded.

Padma Vibhushans:

1. Shree Ibrahim Alkazi(Art)
2. Shree Umayalpuram Sivaraman(Art)
3. Zohra Segal(Art)
4. Yaga Venugopal Reddy(Public Affairs)
5. Venkatraman Ramkrishnan(Science and Engineering)
6. Prathap Chandra Reddy(Trade and Industry)

Padma Bhushans:

1. Ilaiyaraaja (Art) 
2. Aamir Khan (Art) 
3. Akbar Padamsee (Art) 
4. Allah Rakha Rahman (Art) 
5. Pandit Chhannulal Mishra (Art) 
6. Kumudini Lakhia (Art) 
7. Kuzhur Narayana Marar (Art) 
8. Prof. Madhusudan Amilal Dhaky (Art) 
9. Mallika Sarabhai (Art) 
10. Prof. N C Satyanarayana (Art) 
11. Pandit (Dr.) Puttaraj Gavai (Art) 
12. Ram Kumar (Art) 
13. Shrinivas Vinayak Khale (Art) 
14. Ustad Sultan Khan (Art) 
15. B.K. Chaturvedi (Civil Service) 
16. Moosa Raza (Civil Service) 
17. Dr. P.R. Dubhashi (Civil Service) 
18. Fareed Zakaria (Journalism) 
19. Anil Bordia (Literature and Education) 
20. Prof. Bipan Chandra (Literature and Education) 
21. G.P. Chopra (Literature and Education) 
22. Prof. Mohammad Amin (Literature and Education)
23. Prof. Satya Vrat Shastri (Literature and Education)
24. Prof. Tan Chung (Literature and Education)
25. Prof. Belle Monappa Hegde (Medicine)
26. E.T. Narayanan Mooss (Medicine)
27. Dr. Noshir M. Shroff (Medicine)
28. Dr. Panniyampilly Krishna Warrier (Medicine)
29. Dr. Ramakant Madanmohan Panda (Medicine)
30. Prof. (Dr.) Satya Paul Agarwal (Medicine)
31. Prof. Abhijit Sen (Public Affairs)
32. Sailesh Kumar Bandyopadhyay (Public Affairs)
33. Sant Singh Chatwal (Public Affairs)
34. Prof. Arogyaswami Joseph Paulraj (Science and Engineering)
35. Prof. Bikash Chandra Sinha (Science and Engineering)
36. Jagdish Chandra Kapur (Science and Engineering)
37. Dr. Balagangadharanatha Swamiji (Social Work)
38. Balasaheb Vikhe Patil (Social Work)
39. Capt. C.P. Krishnan Nair (Trade and Industry)
40. Dr. Kushal Pal Singh (Trade and Industry)
41. Vindi Banga (Trade and Industry)
42. Narayanan Vaghul (Trade and Industry)
43. S.P. Oswal (Trade and Industry)

 Padmashree :

1. Gulam Mohammed Mir (Public Service) 
2. Rekha (Art) 
3. Arjun Prajapati (Art) 
4. Arundhati Nag (Art) 
5. Carmel Berkson (Art) 
6. Ustad F. Wasifuddin Dagar (Art) 
7. Gul Bardhan (Art) 
8. Haobam Ongbi Ngangbi Devi (Art) 
9. Hari Uppal (Art) 
10. K. Raghavan (Art) 
11. Guru Mayadhar Raut (Art) 
12. Mukund Lath (Art) 
13. Nemai Ghosh (Art) 
14. Pandit Raghunath Panigrahi (Art) 
15. Rajkumar Achouba Singh (Art) 
16. Dr. Ram Dayal Munda (Art) 
17. Resul Pokutty (Art) 
18. Saif Ali Khan (Art) 
19. Dr. Shobha Raju (Art) 
20. Sumitra Guha (Art) 
21. Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar (Art) 
22. D.R. Karthikeyan (Civil Service) 
23. Dr. Ranjit Bhargava (Environmental Protection) 
24. Arun Sarma (Literature and Education) 
25. Prof. Arvind Kumar (Literature and Education) 
26. Bertha Gyndykes Dkhar (Literature and Education) 
27. Prof. Govind Chandra Pande (Literature and Education) 
28. Prof. Hamidi Kashmiri (Literature and Education) 
29. Prof. (Dr.) Hermann Kulke (Literature and Education) 
30. Janaki Ballav Shastri (Literature and Education) 
31. Dr. Jitendra Udhampuri (Literature and Education) 
32. Dr. Lal Bahadur Singh Chauhan (Literature and Education) 
33. Lalzuia Colney (Literature and Education) 
34. Maria Aurora Couto (Literature and Education) 
35. Dr. (Smt.)Y.G. Parthasarathy (Literature and Education) 
36. Prof. Ramaranjan Mukherji (Literature and Education) 
37. Dr. Ranganathan Parthasarathy (Literature and Education) 
38. Fr. Romuald D’Souza (Literature and Education) 
39. Prof. Sadiq-Ur-Rahman Kidwai (Literature and Education) 
40. Sheldon Pollock (Literature and Education) 
41. Dr. Surendra Dubey (Literature and Education)
42. Dr. Anil Kumar Bhalla (Medicine)
43. Dr. Arvinder Singh Soin (Medicine)
44. Dr. B. Ramana Rao (Medicine)
45. Dr. Jalakantapuram Krishnamoorthy (Medicine)
46. Dr. K.K. Aggarwal (Medicine)
47. Prof. Kodaganur S. Gopinath (Medicine)
48. Dr. Laxmi Chand Gupta (Medicine)
49. Dr. Philip Augustine (Medicine)
50. Dr. Rabindra Narain Singh (Medicine)
51. Dr. Vikas Mahatme (Medicine)
52. Dr. Rafael Iruzubieta Fernandez (Public Affairs)
53. Prof. M.R. Satyanarayana Rao (Science and Engineering)
54. Prof. (Dr.) Palpu Pushpangadan (Science and Engineering)
55. Prof. Ponisseril Somasundaran (Science and Engineering)
56. Prof. Pucadyil Ittoop John (Science and Engineering)
57. Dr. Vijay Prasad Dimri (Science and Engineering)
58. Dr. Vijaylakshmi Ravindranath (Science and Engineering)
59. Anu Aga (Social Work)
60. Ayekpam Tomba Meetei (Social Work)
61. Deep Joshi (Social Work)
62. Dr. J.R. Gangaramani (Social Work)
63. Kranti Shah (Social Work)
64. Dr. Kurian John Melamparambil (Social Work)
65. Baba Sewa Singh (Social Work)
66. Sudha Kaul (Social Work)
67. Dr. Sudhir M. Parikh (Social Work)
68. Ignace Tirkey (Sports)
69. Kumar Ram Narain Karthikeyan (Sports)
70. Ramakant Vithal Achrekar (Sports)
71. Saina Nehwal (Sports)
72. Vijender Singh (Sports)
73. Virendra Sehwag (Sports)
74. Dr. Alluri Venkata Satyanarayana Raju (Trade and Industry)
75. Dr. B. Raveendran Pillai (Trade and Industry)
76. Deepak Puri (Trade and Industry)
77. Irshad Mirza (Trade and Industry)
78. Brig. Dr. Kapil Mohan (Trade and Industry)
79. Dr. Karsanbhai Khodidas Patel (Trade and Industry)
80. T.N. Manoharan (Trade and Industry)
81. Venu Srinivasan (Trade and Industry)

For the complete and Original list click here.

Sachin Tendulkar scales peak 13K in Test Matches!!!

Well I have just got a bit late to write this post but I was just waiting for the series to get over and then write about it. But I just could not wait anymore especially when he has scored his second hundred of the series.

Sachin on his way to his 45th Test Century

Sachin Tendulkar completed 13000 runs in Test cricket in the first test match against Bangladesh on his way towards his 44th test century. He became the first batsman in the history of cricket to do so. He was also the first player to reach the 12000 peak. In fact if you see his ODI record he was the first player to achieve the mark of 10000 runs, and also every subsequent 1000 runs. Now in the second test he has scored his 45th test century and now has a total 13234 Test runs. Well 13234 test runs to go with 17394 ODI runs is a spectacular record. He has now got 45 centuries in both forms of cricket. That makes his stats as 30628 international runs with 90 centuries. Well these are brilliant statistics if nothing else.

Sachin played a spectacular innings in the first match to save the team and help win the match. He stood tall when all the wickets kept falling. Finally India won and he was awarded the man of the match. He along with Dravid stitched a brilliant partnership in the second test and has put the team in a commanding position. Well I don’t think India should lose the match from here and a win looks a very much possibility.

He has shown great temperament in the past, in fact for the past 20 years. And that is why his statistics speak for him. Not many people can get very close to him. With the closest competitors being Ricky Ponting who is about 1300 runs and 6 centuries behind in test matches while Sanath Jayasurya is about 3900 runs and 17 centuries behind him in ODIs.

Now with the No.1 position at stake against the South Africans in the next series starting in about 10 day’s time, I guess Sachin will have to take it from the front. Well if he can continue his form against them, I guess the no.1 position will not go anywhere. With the No. 1 position at stake he will have to continue his good form or the team might just lose the spot. The team will be depending heavily on him to perform especially when they know they might have to miss the experience of Dravid and Laxman due to injuries. 

Well I can hope that he does continue playing this type of cricket in future as well and for many more years. And give us many such incidents to be proud of. Now I am eagerly waiting for his 50th century in either form of cricket and also his century of centuries in international cricket.

Sachin and Dravid

Is Karan Singh Grover coming back in DILL MILL GAYYE?

Is Karan Singh Grover coming back to Dill Mill Gayye. This has been one of the questions many people have asked me during the past week. There have been many rumours this week that he is set to return soon. I am not really sure how really true it is. In the meanwhile I have been searching over the net for any clue on this. I have found a few instances. I am pasting it over here.

“With Riddhima finding the truth about Armaan, she now goes searching for her love in Star One’s Dill Mill Gaye..With this, we wonder whether Karan Singh will stage a grand comeback to the show or not..

Star One’s Dill Mill Gaye, produced by Cinevistas will see a big high point when Riddhima (Jennifer Winget) comes face to face with the real truth behind Armaan (Karan Singh Grover) leaving her.

Riddhima will be crestfallen when she gets to know that it was her father Dr. Shashank (Mohnish Behl) who had lied to her that Armaan had walked out of her life when she was lying unconscious after the bullet injury. And Riddhima had got to believe that Armaan could not take the extra baggage with the doctors telling that she might be handicapped for the rest of her life after the bullet had hit her spine.

But with the truth being out, our source tells us that Riddhima will go ballistic, and will run helter-skelter looking for Armaan.

According to our source, “The next few episodes will see the truth being revealed to Riddhima. And after this happens, the back story will be shown wherein the creatives are planning to give a justification to why Armaan readily agreed to go out of Riddhima’s life. With the back story coming out, we will see a furious Riddhima going against her own father. Her only aim now will be to get Armaan back in her life”.

“Also, another turning point will be when Dr. Siddhant( Karan Wahi) will also get to know that Riddhima and Armaan love each other. This will bring a major twist to the tale”, adds our source.

Now comes the major question of whether Karan Singh Grover will return to the show as Armaan or not!!

To this, our source states, “Talks are surely on with Karan. The channel and production house are keen to get him back. But nothing is confirmed as of now”.

We tried contacting Karan, but we heard that he has gone to his home town right now, and will be back to Mumbai on 25th January.

When contacted, Palki Malhotra, Script Head, Cinevistas told us, “Yes, the viewers have been waiting patiently for more than four months now, to see Armaan’s comeback. But I can only tell that Armaan is and will always be an integral part of Dill Mill Gaye. We have always lived with the memories of Armaan-Riddhima love story, but wanted to play on another track of hate between Riddhima and Sid. The upcoming track will show a mellowed-down Siddhant”.

When asked Palki about the big question of Karan coming back, she stated, “Well, I can only tell you that Dr. Armaan might come back, what with Riddhima desperately searching for him. But I cannot tell you whether it will be Karan Singh Grover or someone else who will be back as Armaan”.

We tried to probe in, on whether Karan has been approached for the show, and she was quick to say, “I can’t comment on this right now”.

However, our source insists that there is a bright chance of Karan coming back to the show…

Now let’s see whether we get to see Karan as Armaan, or we get to have a totally new Armaan….

Reporter and Author: Srividya Rajesh”

Well I have been pasting news from this source for quite some time on my blog for any updates. And with this news coming from it makes me feel that this possibly can be true. But I really don’t want to start dreaming already. But yes with this I can make out one thing that we will have Armaan back to the show. But will it be Karan Singh Grover or someone else that is not really sure. I just hope it is Karan who comes back.

I also received a couple of comments on my blog stating that Karan is set to return on the show on 1st of February. Here are the comments.

“oww good news armaan is came back seriosly i am so happy 1st february armaan is come back” comment number 12

and

“Hey guys, Armaan is coming back to dmg in February. It shows on youtube.com.” comment number 27

Well I have not found any decent clue at it as yet, but I will definitely wait for 1st Feb hoping that all this is true.

Well now coming to the show, the show has taken many turns since the return of Riddhima. First it was Tamanna who left the show and then the creatives tried to create a similarity in between both the Karans (Armaan and Siddhant). For example, even initially Armaan had gone to the jail because of Riddhima. Secondly there was a basketball match with a kiss bet that happened in both the cases and both of the times it ended in the same abrupt fashion. Thirdly the creatives tried to get a small girl for treatment to Siddhant. Remember earlier they had got a girl for Armaan who made him realise that he loved Riddhima and tried to get both of them together. Because of all this I was just hoping that my thoughts do not come in real. Now with the u-turn the story has taken, it looks that Armaan might come back to the show and Siddhant will have to leave (looks like there can only be one Karan at a time). But I still am scared because even Armaan had left the hospital earlier because of a fight with Riddhima and then later returned. I hope that the creatives are not doing the same thing again.

Well I am not really sure of what is in store for us in the coming episodes, but I can just hope that “ALL IZZ WELL” and we well get Armaan back on the show and, will be able to watch the Armaan-Riddhima chemistry once again. Also I will keep on updating everyone with any news that I can find out on this.

INDIA again loose in a Tri-Nation Tournament!

Well India yet again loose in the finals of a tri-nation tournament. In the recent past, or I must say since Dhoni has taken up the captaincy, India have played well, won most of its bilateral series, almost reached to each and every final of a multi-nation tournament very comprehensively. It’s only the Champions Trophy that they could not, at least the only one i remember. But surprisingly, having reached the finals India has not been able to end the tournament as champions most of the times.

I think the team does have a lot more psychological pressure in the final, or maybe I can say that the other teams come out better prepared for the finals and it’s India who treats it just as another match. Because if you see the overall performance of the team, whenever they have played a bilateral match where, each match holds the equal importance the team has performed pretty well, and at most of the times ended the series going into the last match itself, which is very good cricket.

I think the team must look into this final problem of theirs. And its also the players that need to contribute and stand up to the occasion. A final is not just another match, in fact it’s the match that decides the fate of the performance in the tournament. Even if a team somehow manages to reach the finals and an end with winning the finals, no one remembers how they played the tournament, it also happens to the opposite scenario. If the team loses the finals no one remembers how well they played in the other matches.

If India needs to become no.1 One day team in the world and actually stay there for a long time, then the team needs to win matches on consistent basis, and must win tournament finals consistently as well. That’s the way Australians have been doing it and that was one of the reasons why it stayed at top for such a long time. They have players who rise to the occasion of the final day. India needs those kinds of performances at a regular basis. In the last tournament that happened in Sri Lanka which also featured New Zealand, It was first Sachin Tendulkar who scored a huge century and then Harbhajan Singh picked up five wickets to win the finals and become no.1 team at that time.

I feel we need these types of performances on a regular basis, if Indian wants to be No.1 One Day team in the world. The year has somewhat started on a disappointing note but hopefully it will not continue in this way. Hoping that India gives everyone some great moments to feel happy about in the near future.