Yahoo! News India

By Kevin Lim and John O'Callaghan SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Haze from fires in Indonesia blanketing Singapore could persist for weeks or longer, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Thursday, as the smoke drove air quality to "hazardous" levels and disrupted business and travel in the region. Illegal burning of forests and other land on Indonesia's Sumatra island to clear space for palm oil plantations is a chronic problem during the June to September dry season. ...

By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - A United Nations human rights body accused Israeli forces on Thursday of mistreating Palestinian children, including by torturing those in custody and using others as human shields. Palestinian children in the Gaza and the West Bank, captured by Israel in the 1967 war, are routinely denied registration of their birth and access to health care, decent schools and clean water, the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child said. ...

By Tom Perry CAIRO (Reuters) - An Egyptian court ordered the release of former prime minister Ahmed Nazif on Thursday, because of a limit on pretrial detention in a corruption case for which he had been held since the revolution that toppled Hosni Mubarak. The court accepted an appeal lodged by Nazif, who was prime minister from 2004 until Mubarak replaced him during the uprising in January 2011. He still faces retrial in the case. A lawyer for Nazif, Mohamed Salah al-Buheiri, said he expected his client to leave prison by Saturday at the latest after two years and two months in detention. ...

By Manoj Kumar and Rafael Nam NEW DELHI/MUMBAI (Reuters) - A cautious Reserve Bank of India (RBI) with limited foreign exchange reserves stands as India's main line of defence against a currency at record lows - and markets are fretting it can't stand strong enough unless the government moves firmly to boost foreign inflows. The RBI stepped in to sell dollars several times on Thursday, traders said, including after the rupee slumped to a record low of 59.9850. It was Asia's worst performing currency on a day that saw a global sell-off. ...

By Pritha Sarkar LONDON (Reuters) - There will be an unfamiliar whiff of British success in the air at Wimbledon this year when Andy Murray, and thousands of patriotic fans, will try to stop the party-pooping antics of champions Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal. Tennis's so called 'Big Three' have lorded over Wimbledon ever since Federer won the first of his record-equalling seven titles in 2003, slamming the door shut on any pretender who threatened to gatecrash their invitation-only, VIP party. ...

By Toby Davis LONDON (Reuters) - Serena Williams heads to Wimbledon to defend her title with seeds of doubt and defeatism already sown in the minds of her opponents. The psychological scars of playing the younger Williams sister run deep in the women's game and, now that the American has dusted off the red clay from her shoes, predictions of an upset on southwest London's luscious lawns are few and far between. ...

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Monsoon rains were 89 percent above average in the week to June 19, weather office sources said on Thursday, a third straight week of torrential downpours that have caused major flooding in north India. This year's monsoon has drenched the country in record time, almost a month ahead of schedule. Heavy rains in north India have swollen the Ganges, India's longest river, and floods have swept away houses, killing over 80 people and leaving tens of thousands stranded. ...

By Fredrik Dahl VIENNA (Reuters) - Some states still appear to be sceptical about letting nuclear-armed India into an influential body regulating sensitive atomic trade, diplomats said on Thursday, suggesting Indian membership may not be imminent. The United States, Britain, France are among countries pushing for allowing India - a growing market for such commerce - to join the 48-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), a move that would boost the Asian nation's status as an atomic power. ...

ROME (Reuters) - Pope Francis said on Thursday that financial speculation and corruption were keeping millions of people in hunger and the financial crisis could not be used as an alibi for failing to help the poor. The speech was the latest in a series of criticisms by the Argentinian pontiff, the first Latin American pope, of what he has called "the dictatorship of the economy" and the spread of consumerist values. "It is a well-known fact that current levels of production are sufficient, yet millions of people are still suffering and dying of starvation. ...

By Abhishek Vishnoi MUMBAI (Reuters) - The BSE Sensex fell more than 2 percent on Thursday, the most in a day in nearly 21 months as blue chips such as Reliance Industries slumped after the U.S. Federal Reserve signalled a tapering of its monetary stimulus, stoking fears of portfolio outflows. Emerging markets, many of which have been primed by easy Fed money, saw some of the biggest selling as investors rushed to the exits. MSCI's benchmark index for emerging equities slumped by more than 3 percent. The rupee hit an all-time low against the U.S. ...

By Frank Jack Daniel and Mehreen Zahra-Malik ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's powerful military has played a central role in convincing Afghanistan's Taliban rebels to hold talks with the United States, U.S. and Pakistani officials said, a shift from widely held views in Washington that it was obstructing peace in the region. U.S. and Taliban officials were due to meet in Doha, the capital of Qatar, in the next few days, raising hopes for negotiated peace after 12 years of war between American-led forces and the Islamist insurgents. ...

By James Davey LONDON (Reuters) - British sales of tablet computers are booming, Europe's second-biggest electricals retailer Dixons said, underpinning profit growth and offsetting weak markets in debt-squeezed southern Europe. The firm, which trails Metro's Media-Saturn by annual sales, achieved triple-digit growth in tablet sales over the year in the UK and Chief Executive Sebastian James forecast "another big tablet Christmas. ...

By Nidal al-Mughrabi GAZA (Reuters) - Palestinian fans and big business are rallying behind a 22-year-old singer from the Gaza Strip in a final push to vote him the next "Arab Idol" in a TV talent contest choosing a winner in Beirut on Saturday. Mohammed Assaf is the first Palestinian to qualify for "Arab Idol", the Middle East's version of "American Idol", in which contestants perform for judges and voting viewers. ...

Mumbai, June 20 (IANS) A benchmark index of Indian equities markets closed Thursday's trade more than 500 points down on capital outflows following a record depreciation of the rupee and negative global cues after the US Federal Reserve signalled an end to its bond-buying programme.

Dehradun, June 20 (IANS) Pilgrimage to the shrines of Kedarnath and Badrinath in Uttarakhand cannot resume for three years due to extensive damage caused by heavy rains and floods, an official said Thursday.

Kathmandu, June 20 (IANS) Chief of India's Assam Rifles Lt General Ranbir Singh met Nepal army chief General Gaurav Shumsher Rana here.

Texas (United States), June 20 (IANS/CMC) Caribbean sprint legend Kim Collins is to be inducted into the Texas Christian University's (TCU) Hall of Fame during an official ceremony later this year.

Gurgaon, June 20 (IANS) Haryana will soon launch a campaign to replace all defective electricity meters and computerise all electricity bill cash collection centres in the state, an official said here Thursday.

New Delhi, June 20 (IANS) If you see your dear pet lazying around, vomiting, drooling or panting, take it immidiately to a good veterinarian. Beware, it can be a heatstroke caused by hot and humid weather.

Panaji, June 20 (IANS) New Jersey will see its first Marathi film festival in October this year, media professional Sanjay Shetye said here.

Panaji, June 20 (IANS) A Goan musician has teamed up with a Trinidad and Tobago rapper to craft an album with an eye to putting it out on international music channel VH1.

Kolkata, June 20 (IANS) Terming Bollywood actress Jiah Khan's suicide as "unfortunate" actor Vidya Balan Thursday said she could never understand why people resort to taking their own lives.

Los Angeles, June 20 (IANS) Teenage models and real life sisters Kendall and Kylie Jenner are ready to launch their debut summer fashion collection for the West Coast surf brand.

Los Angeles, June 20 (IANS) Jackie Stallone, mother of Hollywood action star Sylvester Stallone, says plastic surgeries have left her looking "like a chipmunk" with a "mouthful of nuts".

Raipur, June 20 (IANS) In a bid to bolster the rescue effort in flood-ravaged Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh's BJP government Thursday said it would send a 12-seater hired helicopter to Dehradun to rescue people stranded there by floods and landslips.

New Delhi, June 20 (IANS) Come rain or sunshine, keep your skin flawless by figuring out what your skin needs and following your skin care regime religiously. From easily available over-the-counter products to kitchen beauty secrets, use them as per the demands of your skin.