Oscar Fernandes, Girija Vyas and Sisram Ola may get Cabinet berths in reshuffle today

NEW DELHI: In an exercise influenced by Rahul Gandhi, a much-awaited Congress organizational revamp on Sunday saw the elevation of leaders seen to be close to him, removal of some non-performers while trusted hands continue to retain charge of important party tasks.

Changes in the organization are linked to a comprehensive ministerial reshuffle scheduled for Monday evening aimed at filling vacancies like railways, highways, housing and urban development.

Taken together, the AICC and ministerial reshuffles aim to set Congress's election machinery in motion with a focus on poll preparations in states and filling of important Cabinet berths. Sources said eight new names - four each in cabinet and MoS level — could be inducted.

Oscar Fernandes, Birender Singh, Girija Vyas and Sisram Ola could be the cabinet picks while Manikrao Gavit, J D Seelam, EMS Natchiappan and Santosh Choudhury could be junior ministers. Besides, cabinet minister for labour Mallikarjuna Kharge could be shifted to the key railways ministry. Fernandes could be in the highways ministry vacated by CP Joshi who was inducted as general secretary in AICC in the Sunday reshuffle.

The Congress leadership seems intent on beaming a business-like message of a party getting down to the brass tacks while its main rival BJP remains uneasy with Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi's elevation as campaign head.

Congress's organizational changes have been in the works since Rahul was named vice-president and heir imminent at the Jaipur 'chintan shivir' in January.

Senior leader Ambika Soni, who left the government in October last year, has been given charge of a newly created Congress president's office. This gives her a role in Congress chief Sonia Gandhi's interface with the party as well as government.

Ahmed Patel continues to be political secretary to the Congress president with an overarching role as a key aide to Sonia.

Ajay Maken and C P Joshi, who quit the government, have been given significant assignments. Maken replaces long time media incharge Janardan Dwivedi as head of communications and Joshi is in charge of Assam, Bihar and West Bengal.

Rahul's vote of confidence in the two leaders is being read with a diminished role for Dwivedi and the exit of veteran Oscar Fernandes from AICC.

There was some speculation on Jitin Prasada being considered for independent charge. The changes may see some seniors like health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad given a new portfolio.

Elevation of younger leaders like Milind Deora to independent charge and induction of Mandsaur MP Meenakshi Natarajan is also seen as a possibility. There are numerous vacancies at the minister of state level in the wake of DMK pullout of UPA.

The fairly exhaustive organizational exercise touches management of states deeply, with Rahul seen to have got rid of some of the deadwood. Care, however, has been taken in ensuring tried and trusted organizational hands like Mukul Wasnik, B K Hariprasad and Digvijay Singh retain key jobs. Shakeel Ahmed has got the charge of Delhi and neighbouring Haryana and Punjab.

On the other hand, non-performers like Gulchain Charak and Birender Singh were shown the door. Delhi leader Jagdish Tytler is also out. Gujarat's Madhusudan Mistry has got a leg up as has Mumbai leader Gurudas Kamat who has been rehabilitated.

AICC also announced screening panels to select candidates for MP, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Rajasthan and Mizoram, a rare urgency by party standards for polls scheduled for November.

The changes are linked to Congress's bid to appear focused ahead of election. Many attached importance to the Congress decision to effect the AICC rejig on the day BJP faced a high-voltage divorce with its old ally in Bihar, JD(U), and ouster from the state government.

To observers, it makes political sense that Rahul is seen to have complete control of the ruling dispensation while there are differences in BJP over Modi's elevation as poll mascot.

Assigning the tricky Andhra Pradesh to Digvijay Singh also bears the trust of Rahul although he has been kept away from UP.  

Indians overstaying visa in Saudi Arabia to face action: Embassy

 DUBAI: The Indian embassy in Riyadh has warned its citizens not to overstay their visa in Saudi Arabia and leave the country immediately once they have obtained Emergency Certificates to avoid penal action over Nitaqat law.
"Anyone who overstays their visa in Saudi Arabia beyond the grace period will face penal action including jail sentence, penalty and deportation with a ban on re-entry," the embassy said in a statement.
"The embassy again urges all overstaying Indian nationals to avoid such a situation by availing the 'concessions' announced by the Saudi authorities during the grace period which ends on July 3, 2013," it added.
According to the embassy, all those who have obtained ECs from the embassy will have their original passports cancelled. They will not be able to travel out of India using their old passports, even if the date of expiry on their passports shows validity.
"Anyone wanting to change their jobs (Tanazul) in Saudi Arabia could obtain new passports after following the necessary procedures," said the statement.
The embassy urged all Indian nationals who have applied for ECs to collect the same from the embassy on the dates allotted to them, on or before June 20, 2013.
Earlier, the embassy had said that its officials would undertake EC verification and distribution tours to different parts of the country in order to reach out to Indian nationals staying in other cities.
The new Saudi labour law, 'Nitaqat', and the ongoing drive to identify workers who are overstaying in the Arab Kingdom was one of the main areas of focus during the recent talks held between external affairs minister Salman Khurshid and his Saudi counterpart.
The 'Nitaqat' law makes it mandatory for local companies to hire one Saudi national for every 10 migrant workers.
As a result of this law, a number of people who were working without valid work permits and runaways have come under the scanner.
Once the three-month grace period ends on July 3, all those expatriates who are found in Saudi Arabia without valid papers will be jailed and heavily penalized. As of May 20, 75,000 Indians have registered with the Indian embassy in Riyadh and the Consulate in Jeddah to be processed and be send back with 'emergency certificate'. There are over two million Indians in Saudi Arabia.

Samsung Galaxy S4 sales estimates cut by 30%

SEOUL: Analysts fell under Samsung's marketing spell when they made what they now admit were hopelessly optimistic forecasts for its smartphone sales.

Samsung's huge share of the high-end smartphone market also persuaded some analysts to downplay industry data pointing to a fast-saturating segment, a reality that is already eating into sales of Apple's iPhone 5.

Woori Investment & Securities, one of South Korea's largest securities firms, cut its outlook for Samsung's earnings and target share price on June 5. It was the first to adjust its view.

A massive wave of downgrades has since followed, with forecasters including JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs taking a harder look at their assumptions of how well the S4, Samsung's latest Galaxy smartphone, would actually do.

Sales estimates for the S4 were slashed by as much as 30%, stirring investor concerns over Samsung's mobile devices division - the company's biggest profit generator.

Investors in the South Korean IT giant have paid dearly. Samsung lost nearly $20 billion in market value in a week as shares plunged following the downgrades.

"I'd say most forecasters including myself had this conviction that they'll outperform again - because it's Samsung," said Byun Hanjoon, an analyst at KB Investment & Securities. "They had beaten expectations before, which led many to believe they are bound to excel again with the S4."

The S4 sold 10 million sets in just one month of its debut in late April, outperforming its predecessor, the S III.

Yet analysts now say the high-end smartphone segment is slowing, citing lacklustre prospects in Europe and South Korea in particular.

The S4, in reality, also lacks any real wow factor, they say.

"The Street, including Goldman Sachs, admittedly extrapolated the first-quarter earnings momentum through the year," Goldman Sachs analyst Michael Bang said in a report. "This resulted in very optimistic earnings expectations."

Most analysts have reduced their estimates for S4 shipments to around 7 million units a month from their previous average expectation of 10 million.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch has lowered its S4 sales estimate for this year by 5 million to 65 million units.

Some analysts say a loss in potential sales of 5 million S4 units would cut around $1 billion of Samsung's operating profit.

"S4 sales are solid. It's just that some analysts had higher expectations and then they lowered them," JK Shin, head of Samsung's mobile devices division, told reporters last week.

Over the past month, 17 out of 43 analysts have downgraded their earnings estimates for Samsung, leading to a 0.6% drop in their average forecast for the company's April-to-June earnings to 10.4 trillion won ($9 billion), according to Thomson Reuters StarMine.

The lowered forecast, however, would still be a quarterly record.

Many analysts say weaker-than-expected S4 sales will not necessarily stop Samsung from posting record quarterly profits. The company has diversified into many segments of the smartphone market, Merrill Lynch says.

Mid-tier phones
Still, the scale of the downgrades has cast a shadow on Samsung's dominance in the $250 billion smartphone market.

Doing it no favour, Chinese rivals are aggressively growing their market share, aided by strong sales of mid-tier models - a segment in which Samsung has relatively weak positioning, according to analysts.

The mid-tier segment accounted for less than 15% of Samsung's total shipments last year.

Analysts say Samsung has to focus on this lower tier in the medium term.

The high-end segment is losing momentum, with manufacturers struggling to differentiate themselves and consumers calling for a leap in innovation, they say.

To be sure, Samsung has not sat idle.

It has gradually expanded its offerings. Among four varieties of the S4 introduced in recent weeks, there was one stripped-down version called the Galaxy Mini.

By comparison, Apple has had no new offerings since the iPhone 5 hit the market in September last year.

Samsung bulls are also pinning their hopes on product launches later this year including the Galaxy Note III, a phone-tablet hybrid.

Some analysts say conservative forecasts will prevail.

"Expectations for innovation have been lowered, and I don't think there'll be as much buzz surrounding new product launches as it used to be," said Byun at KB.

Samsung's stock, which slumped to a six-month low on Thursday, inched up 0.9% on Friday.

Rafael Nadal predicts top 10 ranking for Kei Nishikori

Paris:  Rafael Nadal predictably proved a clay court bridge too far for Kei Nishikori on Monday at the French Open but predicted the Japanese will be a top 10 player soon.

The Spaniard, looking to become the first man to win the same Grand Slam singles crown for an eighth time, was celebrating his 27th birthday.

And Nishikori was unable to spoil the Mallorcan's centre court party as the 23-year-old from Shimane could manage only eight games in going down to a 6-4, 6-1, 6-3 defeat.

Yet Nadal still had praise for his efforts and offered some crumbs of comfort.

"He's a player with a lot of talent," said the Mallorcan.

"Now he's in the top of the ranking and he's improving; playing round of 16 here in Roland Garros is great. He had a good tournament in Madrid, too, quarterfinals.

"I think he's a candidate to be top 10 without any doubt."

Nishikori failed in his quest to become just the second Japanese man to reach the last eight after Jiro Satoh, who made the quarter-finals in 1931 and 1933.

He said afterwards he wished he had been more aggressive.

"The second set, I think I was a little bit, you know, too passive or like defensive. He was hitting more forehands. I was running side to side more than the first set," the Japanese conceded.

Nishikori, who last year became the first Japanese man to reach the quarter-finals at the Australian Open in 80 years before falling to Andy Murray, became Nadal's 56th victim in 57 matches at Roland Garros as the 13th-seed proved unable to go one better than Fumiteru Nakano, who reached the last 16 on the Parisian clay in 1938.

Despite his loss, Nishikori, whose Australian exploit saw him emulate 1995 Wimbledon quarter-finalist Shuzo Matsuoka as the only Japanese man to reach the last eight at a Slam, improved greatly on two previous second round losses in Paris.

Last year he missed the event with an abdominal strain but came in this time having seen off Roger Federer in Madrid to show his burgeoning clay prowess.

BlackBerry says majority of top US firms testing its new devices

Sixty percent of US Fortune 500 companies are already testing or using the system to manage BlackBerry's new line of devices, the company said on Wednesday, as U.S. carriers began to roll out its new keyboard-equipped Q10 smartphone.The Q10, which comes with the tiny physical keyboard that many BlackBerry fans admire, is the second device powered by the new BlackBerry 10 operating system.
The touchscreen Z10 launched earlier this year.
The U.S. market is crucial for Waterloo, Ontario-based BlackBerry as it seeks to win back market share ceded to Apple Inc's iPhone, Samsung's Galaxy smartphones and other devices powered by Google's Android operating system.
"This is a very exciting day for us, launching with all four major U.S. carriers," BlackBerry Chief Operating Officer Kristian Tear said in an interview.
Tear said BlackBerry, which has long had a strong base of corporate and government users, expected the Q10 to allow it to win back customers who have been using other devices.
He believed demand for the smartphones would be helped by the fact that a majority of top U.S. companies were testing or installing the BlackBerry Enterprise Service system that would allow them to manage the new devices on their internal networks.
"Since everybody is migrating toward this, we expect it will definitely create pull for our (smartphone) products," he said.
"There are a lot of very loyal BlackBerry keyboard users out there who have been waiting for this and I think, with the Q10, we will also be able to win back prior BlackBerry customers, who are now trying other platforms."
The Q10 launched in Canada, Britain and a few other countries two months ago. The U.S. launch was delayed due to a longer carrier-testing process.
The device is already on sale through T-Mobile in the United States, while rivals Verizon and AT&T have begun to accept pre-orders for shipping later this month. Sprint plans to begin selling the devices this summer.

Top 10 changes that Microsoft Windows 8.1 will bring

After several rumours hinting at the new features that Microsoft's Windows 8.1 would bring, the Redmond giant has officially announced some of them through a new blog post taking a "first look."According to Microsoft, Windows 8.1 will not just respond to customer feedback, will add new features and functionality to improve the touch experience and the operating system's mobile computing potential.
"The Windows 8.1 update will deliver improvements and enhancements in key areas like personalization, search, the built-in apps, Windows Store experience, and cloud connectivity," the company said.
1. New Start tip
The biggest change that the update brings is the Windows Logo at the left hand corner in place of the Start screen "tip" that comes up when one hovers the mouse pointer in Windows 8. The Windows Logo is more recognisable according to Microsoft. It also gives the ability to users to choose between booting to the desktop directly. At the moment, only the Start screen shows up when one boots the PC.
2. Desktop wallpapers for Start screen
Microsoft will now allow users to turn their PCs or tablets into a photo frame when it's locked. Users can choose to show a slideshow of pictures stored locally in their devices or in the cloud via SkyDrive. It will also add the ability to take pictures from the lock screen via the device's camera directly from the lock screen.
In addition to this, the update will bring more colours and backgrounds including animated ones for the Windows Start screen and will even allow users to set their desktop background as their Start screen background. As reported previously, the Windows 8.1 Start screen would features new tile sizes including a new large and new small size.
3. Updated Search
According to Microsoft, Windows 8.1's Search charm will offer global search results powered by Bing in "a rich, simple-to-read, aggregated view of many content sources to provide the best "answer" for the user's query." Search will also offer "Quick actions" that include actions users would like to take, for example, play songs or videos. Results from local files, apps, and settings would be accessible in the same was as they are on Windows 8.
4. App Updates
Microsoft will be updating native apps to offer new functionality. The company mentions that the Pictures app will offer the ability to edit pictures and the Music app has been completely redesigned to offer a better experience and adds that it will also be introducing new apps shortly.
5. New multitasking experience
Following the Windows 8.1 update, users will be able to snap apps in variable sizes, as reported earlier. It will allow users to run three apps simultaneously on one screen and run different Modern UI/ Metro apps on different displays if connected, while keeping the Start screen on one display. Users will also be able to snap multiple windows of the same application.
6. Updated Store
Microsoft is also revamping the Windows Store to show more information with detailed lists of top free apps, new releases, and picks on the homepage.
7. SkyDrive improvements
Windows 8.1 will allow users to save files directly to SkyDrive and will offer an updated SkyDrive app that allows offline access to files.
8. Better PC Settings menu
Another issue that a lot of users faced with Windows 8 was that a lot of system settings were not available in the PC settings and they had to still go to the Control Panel on the desktop to access them.
Users will now be able to change their display resolution, set power options, see the make and model of their PC, change the product key, run Windows Update, and even join a domain directly from PC Settings.
9. New Internet Explorer
The Windows 8.1 update will bring a new version of the Internet Explorer browser. Internet Explorer 11 would be built for touch and would offer faster page load times in addition to several other new personalisation features.
10. Better handling of tiles
Users will be able to group and rearrange tiles more conveniently. They'll now be able to select multiple apps all at once, resize them, uninstall them, or rearrange them on the Start screen. Windows 8.1 will require users to press and hold or right click to move tiles around to prevent accidental movement of tiles. The update also brings the ability to filter apps by name, date installed, most used, or by category. 

Gael Monfils beats Ernests Gulbis at French Open

Paris:  Gael Monfils advanced to the third round of the French Open by defeating Ernests Gulbis of Latvia 6-7 (5), 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-2 Wednesday.

A former top 10 player, Monfils missed the French Open last year because of a right knee injury. His best showing at Roland Garros was a semifinal finish in 2008.

Monfils warmed up for the tournament by reaching the final of the Open de Nice last Saturday.

The last Frenchman to win at Roland Garros was Yannick Noah in 1983.

Railway bribery case: BJP protests against top CBI officer in Chandigarh

Chandigarh: At least 10 BJP activists were injured today after police used water cannons to stop them from marching towards CBI office in Chandigarh to protest against a top officer whom they accused of shielding former Railway Minister Pawan Bansal in the railway bribery case.

Several local party workers, led by BJP leader Harmohan Dhawan, protested against Chandigarh's CBI deputy inspector general Mahesh Aggarwal in Chandigarh alleging that he had close family links with Mr Bansal and had shielded the former railway minister after the arrest of his nephew in a multi-crore graft case.

The protesters tried to take their march towards the local CBI office but were stopped by police, following which the BJP activists tried to break the barricades.

Police then used water canons to disperse the BJP activists, in which at least ten of them, including a woman, received minor injuries, sources said.

"Our's was a peaceful protest...without provocation police used water cannons against us," Mr Dhawan said.

Mr Dhawan claimed that a CBI officer had submitted an affidavit before the Central Administrative Tribunal on May 15 against Mr Aggarwal alleging that he had tried to influence the investigation in two cases involving relatives of Mr Bansal.

Demanding Mr Aggarwal's immediate suspension and a high-level probe against him, Mr Dhawan also alleged that the CBI officer had leaked the information on Delhi CBI team's raid at Mr Bansal's nephew Vijay Singla's house on May 3 in connection with the railway scandal.

Mr Aggarwal, a 1994 batch Tamil Nadu cadre IPS officer, came to Chandigarh as a superintendent of police in 2006 and was later promoted to DIG rank

Top 10 points from India-China's joint statement

New Delhi:  Visiting Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held formal talks in New Delhi today and briefed the press. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to areas of mutual concern with particular focus on border issues. Dr Singh said that there had been an agreement that peace at the border must be preserved and that lessons had been learnt from the recent incident on Western sector, referring to the incursion in Ladakh. Premier Li stressed on the need for sincere dialogue.

Here are the top 10 points from their joint statement:

1. Both sides reaffirmed mutual sensitivities for each other's concerns and aspirations.
2. Both countries view each other as partners for mutual benefit and not as rivals or competitors.
3. India and China consider the potential for a bilateral Regional Trade Arrangement and review the state of negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
4. While striving to realise the trade turnover target of $100 billion by 2015, the two countries agreed to take measures to address the issue of the trade imbalance.
5. The Chinese side shall provide greater facilitation to Indian pilgrims for the Gang Renpoche and Mapam Yun Tso Pilgrimage (Kailash Manasarovar Yatra).
6. Two sides agreed to consult the other parties with a view to establishing a Joint Study Group on strengthening connectivity in the BCIM (Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar) region.
7. The leaders expressed satisfaction over the work done so far by special representatives of the two countries on the boundary question and encouraged them to push forward the process of negotiations and seek a framework for a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable settlement in accordance with the agreement on political parameters and guiding principles.
8. Two sides shall work together to maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas in line with the previous agreements.
9. The two sides will further strengthen cooperation on trans-border rivers.
10. Support for an "Afghan-led, Afghan-owned" reconciliation process. 

Top 10 stocks to track in trade today

The BSE Sensex opened in the green on Wednesday after closing at its lowest level in a week on Tuesday. The Sensex has gained nearly 11 per cent since mid-May, raising prospects of a near-term correction. Market analyst Sarvendra Srivastava says the bullish setups are intact and markets may be range bound in a band of 6,100-6,200. The rupee, which has hit its lowest in 2013, continues to be an overhang on markets though.

1. Larsen & Toubro: Q4 sales seen up 14 per cent at Rs. 21,015 crore, while adjusted net profit is seen up 11 per cent at Rs. 2,041 crore.
2. Tata Motors: CLSA recommends buy with a target of 360 saying fundamentals are supportive of double digit growth in China.
3. United Spirits: Morgan Stanley initiates coverage with buy rating and a target of 3,115 expecting greater focus on profitable growth.
4. Tech Mahindra reported higher than estimated net profit in the March quarter. Sales rose 1.7 per cent sequentially to Rs. 1822 crore, while net profit jumped 18 per cent quarter-on-quarter to Rs. 327 crore.
5. Maruti Suzuki: LIC has sold 2.5 per cent stake in the car maker over the last six months. It still holds around 8.247 per cent in the company.
6. Oracle Financial Services' offer for sale will start today with floor price at Rs. 2,275.
7. JSW Energy's offer for sale will start today with floor price at Rs. 61.5.
8. Ranbaxy: India's health ministry will reportedly initiate a probe in the drugmaker after it settled a long-pending issue with the US Department of Justice, agreeing to pay a penalty of $500 million.
9. Zydus Wellness goes ex-dividend by Rs. 6 today.
10. SREI Infra's board has approves raising up to Rs. 1,500 crore via debentures and preferential issue of up to Rs. 500 crore.

Top 10 stocks to track in trade today

The BSE Sensex slipped below the key 20,000 in early trade on Thursday tracking weakness in Asian stocks. China's factory activity hit the lowest in seven months, dampening upbeat sentiments about the recovery in the world's second largest economy. Market analyst Sarvendra Srivastava advised traders to book profits after three consecutive days of losses have hit bullish sentiments on the Street.

1. State Bank of India Q4 net interest income is seen down 0.9 per cent at Rs. 11,602 crore, while net profit is seen falling 9.5 per cent at Rs. 3,664 crore. Fresh restructuring of Rs. 8,000 crore expected in this quarter.
2. Mphasis: HP has lifted its full-year earnings guidance, which is a positive for the IT firm.
3. ONGC: CLSA has upgraded the stock to outperform and raised its 12-month target to Rs. 360 citing lower subsidy sharing burden.
4. Ranbaxy: Owners Daichi Sankyo is exploring legal remedies to sue ex-promoters of Ranbaxy for misrepresenting critical information about U.S. Department of Justice and FSA probes.
5. Voltas: UBS maintains buy with a target of Rs. 125, says macro improvement a key catalyst to the stock.
6. AB Nuvo: Morgan Stanley maintains overweight, while raising target price to Rs. 1,459, saying risk-reward is very compelling for the stock.
7. Bharti Airtel goes ex-dividend by Rs. 1 per share today.
8. Kotak has upgraded Bajaj Auto to add with a target price of Rs. 2,000 saying Africa will be a key driver for the company.
9. LIC Housing: Kotak re-initiates coverage with add rating and a target price of Rs. 300. LIC Housing finance loan book is well-placed to benefit from decline in bulk borrowings rates. Kotak also retained its sell call on HDFC.
10. Jet Airways: Market regulator Sebi has reportedly written to Jet raising objections over parts of its agreement with Etihad.

Samsung Galaxy S4 hits 10 million units shipped

Samsung Electronics Co said sales of the latest version of its flagship Galaxy S smartphone have reached 10 million since its launch in late April, making the model its fastest selling smartphone.
The S4, the South Korean firm's challenge to Apple Inc's iPhone, is already selling in 60 countries and Samsung plans to expand sales to 327 carriers in 155 countries by next month, the world's biggest smartphone maker said on Thursday.

Solid sales have come even as supply issues have snarled the U.S. rollout through some carriers.

Analysts expect strong sales of the fourth version of the Galaxy, which has propelled Samsung to the top of the $225 billion smartphone market since its debut in 2010, will help the firm report record earnings in the current quarter.

Despite mixed reviews of the S4 by gadget experts, Samsung is benefiting from heavy marketing as it bids to gain market share in the absence of new competing models from Apple.

Samsung won a record 33 percent of the smartphone market in the first quarter, and JP Morgan analysts expect its operating profit to top Apple's this quarter for the first time in years.

BlackBerry says majority of top US firms testing its new devices

Sixty percent of US Fortune 500 companies are already testing or using the system to manage BlackBerry's new line of devices, the company said on Wednesday, as U.S. carriers began to roll out its new keyboard-equipped Q10 smartphone.The Q10, which comes with the tiny physical keyboard that many BlackBerry fans admire, is the second device powered by the new BlackBerry 10 operating system.
The touchscreen Z10 launched earlier this year.
The U.S. market is crucial for Waterloo, Ontario-based BlackBerry as it seeks to win back market share ceded to Apple Inc's iPhone, Samsung's Galaxy smartphones and other devices powered by Google's Android operating system.
"This is a very exciting day for us, launching with all four major U.S. carriers," BlackBerry Chief Operating Officer Kristian Tear said in an interview.
Tear said BlackBerry, which has long had a strong base of corporate and government users, expected the Q10 to allow it to win back customers who have been using other devices.
He believed demand for the smartphones would be helped by the fact that a majority of top U.S. companies were testing or installing the BlackBerry Enterprise Service system that would allow them to manage the new devices on their internal networks.
"Since everybody is migrating toward this, we expect it will definitely create pull for our (smartphone) products," he said.
"There are a lot of very loyal BlackBerry keyboard users out there who have been waiting for this and I think, with the Q10, we will also be able to win back prior BlackBerry customers, who are now trying other platforms."
The Q10 launched in Canada, Britain and a few other countries two months ago. The U.S. launch was delayed due to a longer carrier-testing process.
The device is already on sale through T-Mobile in the United States, while rivals Verizon and AT&T have begun to accept pre-orders for shipping later this month. Sprint plans to begin selling the devices this summer.

Top 8 firms' m-cap drops by Rs. 36,555 crore in a week

Mumbai: Eight of the top 10 most valued companies of the country saw a plunge of Rs. 36,555 crore in their combined market valuation last week, with mortgage lender HDFC and energy major RIL taking the steepest hit.

While eight of them, including HDFC, RIL, ONGC and HDFC Bank, saw losses in their market capitalisation (m-cap), the valuations of TCS and Infosys surged.

The m-cap of HDFC plunged Rs. 7,615 crore to Rs. 1,29,770 crore, while that of RIL dropped by Rs. 6,796 crore to Rs. 2,53,926 crore.

State-run ONGC's valued dipped by Rs. 5,946 crore to Rs. 2,73,690 crore, while HDFC Bank lost Rs. 5,582 crore to Rs. 1,61,097 crore from its m-cap.

The market cap of ITC slipped by Rs. 4,346 crore to Rs. 2,64,197 crore, Coal India shed Rs. 3,158 crore from its valuation to Rs. 2,02,092 crore.

State Bank of India's (SBI) value went down by Rs. 1,679 crore to Rs. 1,38,390 crore and the m-cap of ICICI Bank fell by Rs. 1,433 crore to Rs. 1,31,754 crore.

In contrast, TCS added Rs. 4,600 crore to Rs. 2,98,104 crore in its market cap, while Infosys saw a rise of Rs. 2,256 crore to Rs. 1,40,509 crore in its value.

In the ranking of top-10 companies, TCS continued to remain at number one position, followed by ONGC, ITC, RIL, CIL, HDFC Bank, Infosys, SBI, ICICI Bank and HDFC.

The BSE benchmark Sensex ended the week 1.67 per cent lower at 19,429.23.

Gael Monfils sends Milos Raonic packing in Halle

Currently ranked 67th in the world, Monfils is unseeded in the grass-court season-opener but he reproduced the kind of form that once took him into the world's top 10 to win 6-4, 6-2 in just over an hour on court.


Halle:  Canadian fifth seed Milos Raonic was knocked out of the ATP Halle Open at the first-round stage on Tuesday, going down in straight sets to France's Gael Monfils.

Currently ranked 67th in the world, Monfils is unseeded in the grass-court season-opener but he reproduced the kind of form that once took him into the world's top 10 to win 6-4, 6-2 in just over an hour on court.

"I felt good and read his game well. When you are feeling good, you need to make the most of it," said Monfils, who beat world number six Tomas Berdych on his way to the third round of the French Open at Roland Garros.

Monfils broke Raonic three times altogether, including in the second game on his way to winning the opening set in just 26 minutes. A semi-finalist in Halle in 2011, Monfils will face Czech qualifier Jan Hernych next.

Raonic was not the only seed to fall on Tuesday, with Polish seventh seed Jerzy Janowicz suffering a shock defeat in three sets at the hands of Bosnian outsider Mirza Basic.

The 21-year-old Basic, ranked 240th in the world, is taking part in Halle as a lucky loser following the withdrawal of Philipp Petzschner due to a shoulder problem and his meeting with Janowicz was his first match on the ATP World Tour circuit.

Basic was broken twice but eventually prevailed in a deciding tie-break after just over two hours on court, winning 7-6 (7/5), 3-6, 7-6 (7/5).

"It was just my eighth match on grass," admitted Basic, who was only told he would be replacing Petzschner late on Tuesday morning.

Basic will face German wild card Mischa Zverev in the second round, with top seed and five-time champion Roger Federer likely to await the winner.

Elsewhere on Tuesday, Ernests Gulbis of Latvia beat former Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus in three sets to set up a second-round meeting with third seed and defending champion Tommy Haas.

Neymar scores, Brazil top Japan 3-0 at Confederations Cup

Brasilia:  Only three minutes into the match, Neymar got the job done.

The Brazil striker scored early to help Brazil beat Japan 3-0 in the opening match of the Confederations Cup on Saturday, knocking in a firm shot from outside the penalty area.

Neymar connected with the ball after Fred controlled a long cross from Marcelo with his chest. The ball bounced only once before Neymar whacked it in.

"It was a very quick moment where Fred was able to control the ball and I was very lucky to get a fantastic kick and score a goal," said Neymar, who went off in the 74th minute with what appears to be a minor injury.

"Everything's OK," Neymar said. "Not to worry."

For the two minutes following the goal, most of the 67,432 fans at the National Stadium chanted Neymar's name, reveling in the knowledge that their poster boy is already starting to deliver for the national team with one year to go before the World Cup.

Paulinho added the second goal for Brazil in the 48th, deftly controlling a cross from Dani Alves before turning inside and shooting. Japan goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima got his hands to the ball, but it was too powerful for him to stop. Jo got the third, latching onto a through ball from Oscar and sliding it past Kawashima in injury time.

The win puts Brazil at the top of Group A with three points. Italy and Mexico will play in the other group match on Sunday.

"The reason we were not able to do what we normally do on the pitch is because we went one goal down in the third minute of the first half," Japan coach Alberto Zaccheroni said. "This probably shocked us."

Neymar entered Saturday's match facing a minor wave of criticism. He has become something of an idol in Brazil, but a nine-match scoreless streak had heaped pressure on the 21-year-old striker heading into the Confederations Cup.

The fickle Brazilian fans, who had taken to booing their team in recent weeks, were firmly behind the "Selecao" and its star this time, however.

"We are building an environment that is even better than then one we had 15 days ago," said Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, who led his national team to the 2002 World Cup title. "I believe this is something everybody wants for us to reach the final, and win it."

With his hair long on top and short on the sides, Neymar has already started to transcend the game in Brazil, like David Beckham nearly everywhere else. His picture is plastered around the country in underwear and phone ads, to name a few. He has also appeared on Brazilian TV, appearing as himself in one of the country's biggest soap operas.

That's just off the field. On it, Neymar has earned himself a massive transfer from local club Santos to Barcelona, where he will be teammates with Lionel Messi next season.

The match against Japan was likely something Neymar was looking forward to. The Japanese have never beaten Brazil in 10 games, earning only two draws - both at the Confederations Cup, first in 2001 and then again in 2005.

The last time they played, in a friendly in Poland in October, Neymar scored two goals. This time, he was named "Man of the Match."

Japan had its chances in the match, with Keisuke Honda getting some in the first half and Ryoichi Maeda had a couple in the second.

But Zaccheroni again said Brazil was a superior team to his, and wondered if it was the long flight to Brazil or Neymar's quick strike that beat his team.

"Either the early goal we conceded made the team too worried or maybe the physical fitness was not enough," the Italian said.

Not everything was perfect for Neymar on Saturday, however. In the 15th minute, Neymar was stuck on the sidelines fiddling with the socks on his right foot. He came back on the field about two minutes later - after the fans took a moment to boo referee Pedro Proenca for not letting their star back on more quickly.

Midway through the second half, he was briefly knocked down. When he got back up, the fans started chanting his name once again.

And then, about six minutes later, Neymar was taken off and replaced by Lucas. The decision halted the Neymar chants, but not the cheers for Brazil from the yellow-clad faithful.

"He had a good game," Scolari said, "and he only left because he had an injury."

 The Top 10 most wacko Jacko stories ever

Controversial ... Jacko made headlines throughout his life

Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/features/4971372/The-Top-10-most-wacko-Jacko-stories-ever.html#ixzz2WSwMCvcF

 Elite universities taking fewer state-educated pupils than a decade ago

Government’s social mobility commission calls for higher targets to close the ‘access gap’

Top universities have been warned they must change their “elitist” image after a study found that they are awarding places to fewer students from state schools and poor families than a decade ago.

Alan Milburn, the Government’s social mobility tsar, told The Independent  he believed the main factor in the “unacceptable” decline was that pupils from low income families feel the universities in the 24-strong Russell Group are “not for them.”  He said: “They have to do more to dispel any notion  that they are elitist.”
Mr Milburn believed the £9,000 maximum tuition fees introduced by the Coalition might be deterring students “in fear of debt” from applying to university but said the figures were inconclusive. He called on universities, schools and the Government to close the “fair access gap.”
In a report published on Monday, the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission chaired by Mr Milburn, reveals there were 126 fewer students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds at Russell Group universities in 2011-12 than in 2002-03. When the exam grades of applicants were taken into account, there were 3,700 “missing” state-educated students in these institutions.
The commission calls for more ambitious targets to close the gap, saying that the number of “missing” students would be cut by only a quarter even if the top 24 universities hit their targets for 2016-17.
Mr Milburn, a former Labour Cabinet minister, acknowledged that universities are now more determined to make Britain more socially mobile. He said those outside the Russell Group had made“great progress” in admitting  more state school and low income pupils, but  leading institutions now needed to follow suit.
“The biggest factor is not tuition fees but more a feeling among low income kids that the leading universities are not for them,” he said. “It is as much about what the universities do to dispel that notion as about the kids and their teachers aspiring to them.”
He said America’s top universities had shown that “excellence and equity can be friends rather than enemies.” He warned the Treasury it would be  “premature” to lower the income threshold at which graduates start to repay student loans from £21,000 to £18,000, a proposal being discussed in the public spending review. “Fear of debt is a barrier for low income families,” he said. “Although the numbers are not as bad as people might have expected [after the fees rise] there are some grounds for concern, particularly the number of working class and mature students applying to university.”
Today’s report proposes  clear statistical targets to improve “fair access”; greater use of “contextual data”, such as postcodes and whether students’ parents went to university, in the admissions process and urgent action by the Government to improve the national scholarship
The commission says: “In contrast to the overall progress made by the higher education sector in becoming more socially representative over the last decade, the most selective universities have, overall, become more socially exclusive.”
The odds of a state secondary school pupil  eligible for free school meals being admitted to Oxford or Cambridge is almost 2,000 to 1 against. In contrast, the odds of a privately-educated pupil is 20 to 1, says the report.
Although the number of state-educated pupils entering Russell Group universities rose by 2.6 per cent (1,464) between 2002-03 and 2011-12, almost half the new places created at these institutions went to privately-educated children (up by 7.9 per cent or 1,426). The proportion of entrants from state schools dropped from 75.6  to 74.6 per cent over the same period, and among pupils from  less advantaged backgrounds it fell from 19.9  to 19 per cent.
The commission says one of the possible explanations is an “applications gap” in which students with the right A level grades do not apply to the most selective universities.
In the report, Mr Miliburn and his deputy Baroness (Gillian) Shephard, a former Conservative Education Secretary, say: “The blame game –where universities blame schools, schools blame parents and everyone blames the Government—must stop.”
Replying to Mr Milburn’s remarks about elitism, Dr Wendy Piatt, the Russell Group’s director general, said:“A huge amount of time, effort and resources goes into outreach work to persuade students, parents and teachers that our doors are wide open to all those with the qualifications and potential to succeed, and that all able and talented students can thrive at a Russell Group university, whatever their background.”
She accepted that more progress must be made but said under-representation could not be solved by universities alone. “This is an entrenched problem and there is no quick fix – it will take time to raise aspirations, attainment and improve advice and guidance offered to students in some schools,” she said.

Top 10 Bollywood roof-top songs

Bollywood music is something which makes Bollywood unique. Hero-Heroines are usually seen singing songs in the gardens, roads, beaches and one should not forget the notorious roof tops. Here are few songs which are sung on the roof tops.

The theme 'Roof Top' is well existing in this song. ‘On the roof in the rain’ is the song from the movie Masti when the leads are enjoying the rains on the roof top.

Mehendi Laga Ke Rakhna… is famous song from the movie Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, where the female lead is getting engaged and the male lead narrates her the song.

Chand Chupa Badal Mein is the song from the movie Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam which is picturized on the situation where the female lead recalls her Karwa Chauth spent with her ex flame before marriage on the roof top.

Dheel De Dheel De De is again from Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, when the entire family is enjoying the festival of kites on the roof top. 

Hum Do Premi from the movie Tu Chor Mein Sipahi is a very naughty song where the leads are romancing on the roof top forgetting all the rules made by the society.

Mere Rang Mein from movie Maine Pyaar Kiya is a sensual song where the male lead surprises the female lead with a beautiful birthday night held on the roof top. Listen to this song on Gaana.com

Mujhse Mohabbat Ka is the song from the movie Hum Hai Rahi Pyaar Ke. In the song, the leads are enjoying the first rain on their roof top.

Bindiya Chamkegi from the movie Do Raaste is a song where the female lead tries to convince the male lead who is upset on the roof top.

Bheegi Bheegi Raaton Mein from the movie Ajnabee is again a sensual song where the leads are enjoying the rains on the roof top. Listen to this song on Gaana.com

Dekho Na from the movie Fanaa is a corporeal song where the leads enjoy the rains on the roof top in the midst of having their dinner. Listen to this song on Gaana.com

Top 10 Blog Websites to Create Free Blogs

It’s a great idea to create a blog. Maybe you want to write sometog websites are the most popular ones among millions of active bhing to share your knowledge, your discovery or just for fun. The first thing about blogging is to choose a website to create a blog and then host it. The following 10 blloggers.
1. Blogger
Blogger is one of the most popular blog websites and now it is owned by Google. Blogger is a great starting site to get to know blogging and its user dashboard is very user friendly.
2. WordPress
WordPress is another major blog website besides blogger. With its own blogging platform WordPress, you can easily choose your favorite theme and blog layout.
3. Livejournal
Livejournal is not only a great blogging website but also a social networking website where you can search people by interests and school and participate in community discussions.
4. Blog.com
Blog.com offers free blog hosting with unlimited bandwidth for free members, more benefits for paid members.
5. Tumblr
Tumblr is a micro-blogging website where users can post text, images, videos, and more to their tumblelog.
6. Blogsome
Another blog website offering free web hosting for blogs. Blogsome is powered by wordpress.
7. Open Diary
Offers unlimited storage and posts, low cost subscription rates for advanced features.
8. Blogetery
Blogetery is a blog website that offers you payment to write blogs. You will get 90% of the profit, which is much more higher than other sites.
9. Blogster
Blogster offers free blogs as well as free image hosting.
10. Weebly.com
Weebly is one of TIME’s 50 Best Websites, which  has an easy, drag & drop interface