Sonia rejects Gogoi's resignation offer

NEW DELHI: Congress chief Sonia Gandhi today "outrightly" rejected the resignation offered by Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi following the party's debacle in the state in Lok Sabha polls.

"The Congress President outrightly rejected the Chief Minister's offer of resignation," State Agriculture Minister Nilomani Sen Deka told PTI after a meeting with Gogoi.

Gogoi, who met Sonia and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, did not speak to journalists and was closeted with more than a dozen of his supporters, mostly state ministers, MLAs and two former Union Ministers, at his residence here.

Senior MLA Anjan Dutta said the Congress President has authorised Gogoi to revamp the party organisation in the state and as the first step he will reshuffle his ministry after June 1 when Gogoi will complete three years in office in his third term.

Dutta said that during Gogoi's meeting with Rahul, the Congress vice-president too put complete faith in Gogoi's leadership in Assam. Former Union Minister B K Handique, who lost in the Lok Sabha polls in Jorhat, said Gogoi would continue as Chief Minister and lead the party in the state.

After Congress got its lowest ever tally in Assam -- 3 out of 14 Lok Sabha seats -- in the recent Lok Sabha elections, 78-year-old Gogoi had said on Saturday last that he would resign within a week. Gogoi has been Chief Minister of Assam since 2001.

During the day, Gogoi met Congress treasurer Motilal Vohra and Congress general secretary in-charge of Assam C P Joshi. The Chief Minister has already admitted to "arrogance and complacency" but said he would not leave politics and would continue to work for the party's recovery. Congress in Assam has been plagued by factionalism and dissidence with state Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma leading the anti-Gogoi campaign.

~MExN

Three killed in Manipur shooting

Imphal: Two militants and one Assam Rifles personnel were killed in a shoot-out between security personnel and the Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) in Tamenglong district of Manipur. Police said the exchanges of firing between the ZUF and the Assam Rifles occurred at Taodum village in Nungba sub division of Tamenglong district last night and this morning, resulting in the killing of two ZUF cadres and one Assam Rifles personnel.

According to the police, at around 6:30 pm, May 21, some cadres of ZUF in an apparent attempt to abduct one villager, identified as Chingkhudin, forced the man to drive his own vehicle to an undisclosed destination along with the ZUF cadres.

Feeling apprehensive, Chingkhudin took with him a relative of his wife, a 14 years old boy. On the way, the ZUF cadres put three more people in the vehicle. When they reached Taodum village vicinity, which lies between Nungba town and Kambiron, they saw personnel of the 13 Assam Rifles from F-Coy repairing one of their vehicles at around 8:30 pm.

Police said the security force personnel asked the incoming vehicle to stop but the ZUF cadres asked Chingkhudin to proceed. The security force personnel managed to stop them at which point Chingkhudin disclosed to the Assam Rifles personnel that he was being kidnapped by the ZUF cadres, the police added. The ZUF cadres jumped out from the vehicle and a gun-battle followed, which led to the death of one ZUF cadre, identified as one Makudin (42).

One Assam Rifles personnel identified as Takhellambam Gokil (25) and one Atuwa Oran were injured. While they were being transported to Leimakhing Military Hospital, Takhellam Gokil succumbed to his injuries.

Police said that a massive operation was conducted this morning in the Taodum village area which has been cordoned off since last night. At around 5:30 am on May 22, another gun battle broke out killing one more ZUF cadre. The deceased has been identified as one Mathuilan Haomei (30).

The Assam Rifles recovered two AK Rifles and two hand grenades from the site of the incident, the police stated. Meanwhile, the dead bodies of the two ZUF cadres and the jawan are deposited at the RIMS mortuary.

MExN

Modi to take oath as Prime Minister on May 26, top bureaucrats asked to stay in country

NEW DELHI: Narendra Modi, who steered BJP and the NDA to a landslide victory in the Lok Sabha election, was appointed Prime Minister on Tuesday, ushering in a new era of a non-Congress government with an absolute majority on its own in 30 years. 

"I came to call on the President. The President has given me a formal letter (of appointment as the PM) and has invited me for oath-taking ceremony on May 26 at 6pm as we had earlier decided," Modi told reporters after meeting with President Pranab Mukherjee. 

Modi's call on the President came after he was unanimously elected leader of the BJP parliamentary party and later at a combined meeting of the BJP and its allies constituting the NDA as leader of the coalition. 

Later, a Rashtrapati Bhawan communique said: "... As Modi has been elected leader of the BJP parliamentary party and BJP has majority support in the House of the People, the President appointed him the Prime Minister of India and requested him to advise the names of members of the council of ministers." 

"The President will administer the oath of office and secrecy on May 26 at 6pm at Rashtrapati Bhawan," the President's spokesman Venu Rajamony said. 

Top bureaucrats asked not to travel abroad 

Cabinet secretary Ajit Kumar Seth has written to secretaries of all ministries and departments asking them not to travel abroad this week unless it is to attend most important matters, officials sources said here. 

Seth has called a meeting of all the secretaries on Wednesday to discuss the presentations prepared by the respective departments to appraise the new Prime Minister, sources said. 

Seth has directed officials requiring to travel outside the country for pressing engagements, to seek prior written approval before travelling, they added. 

In a separate communication, the Cabinet secretary has also asked all departments to keep a presentation ready for appraising the new Prime Minister of the achievements as well as failures of the outgoing government. 

The presentation is also to list pending issues and steps that need to be taken soon. 

Sources said Seth directed that presentations must include things like five important achievements, failures and steps the department would like to take in order to boost the country's economic growth. 

He has asked all central secretaries to write what shouldn't have been done by the previous government and also provide "four or five practical goals/achievements" which can be pursued "for the next five years", if "freedom is given" to the bureaucrats. 

Officials have also been asked to furnish top achievements of their respective Ministry in the last 10 years and the gap between the actual result and the intended plan.

~TOI

Microsoft launches Surface 3, tablet that can ‘replace laptop’

NEW DELHI: Microsoft on Tuesday launched Surface Pro 3 at an event in New York. The company said that the device, which succeeds Surface Pro 2, combines the best of a tablet and laptop in a single gadget.

"So many people carry both a laptop and a tablet but really want just one device that serves all purposes," said Panos Panay, corporate vice president, Microsoft Surface. "Surface Pro 3 is the tablet that can replace your laptop — packing all the performance of a fully powered laptop into a thin, light and beautifully designed device."

Powered by an Intel Core i processor, Surface Pro 3 will be available in several configurations. The basic model, which has a Core i3 processor and 64GB internal storage, will cost $799. Despite packing in a Core i processor, the tablet runs cool. Microsoft claims it is the slimmest (9.1mm) device with a Core i processor.

"The product we're announcing today has been three years in the making. To get this thin, light, and powerful was a huge challenge - partly because the powerful processors that power Surface Pro 3 need to be cooled... we invented a new fan technology that is 30% more efficient than previous solutions. The new, thinner fan cools a series of fins placed around it instead of forcing the exhaust air out through a channel. Not having to create space for this channel allows Surface Pro 3 to be thinner without sacrificing performance," said Panay.

Surface Pro 3 will be available in the US and Canada from June 20. The availability will be extended to 26 additional countries by end of August but India is not one of them.

Microsoft has not yet launched a Surface tablet in India. It is likely that Surface Pro 3 may not come to Indian market any time soon. Amrish Goyal, the head of Windows division at Microsoft India, had earlier told TOI that the company believed the Surface tablets were too expensive for Indian market. He revealed that instead of Surface tablets, in India Microsoft was focusing on less expensive tablets created by Microsoft's hardware partners like Lenovo and Dell.

Surface Pro 3 has a 12-inch screen with a resolution of 2160 x 1440 pixels. It features an adjustable kickstand, has a casing made of magnesium and weighs around 800 grams. It has two cameras - 5MP each - in the front and rear. The device uses Windows 8.1 Pro.

The tablet will also be available with a Core i3 or a Core i7 processor. The device has 4GB RAM in standard configuration but consumers will have the option to go for 8GB RAM. Similarly, if consumers want, they would be able to opt for the model with 512GB internal storage. The fully upgraded model of Surface Pro 3 will cost around $1,949.

Like earlier Surface tablets, the Surface Pro 3 will also be compatible with a few accessories. "New Surface accessories like the improved Surface Pro Type Cover will take Surface Pro 3 from tablet to laptop in a snap. The new premium Surface Pen with pressure sensitivity enables a more natural writing experience, while a full-size USB 3.0 port, microSD card reader and Mini DisplayPort allow for quick file transfers and easy connections to a range of peripherals," said Microsoft. The accessories will cost extra.

Facebook Introduces New Way to Flirt With Relationship 'Ask' Button

If you've been eyeing someone on Facebook whose profile doesn't list a relationship status, the company is making it easier (or possibly more awkward) to find out if he or she's single.

Facebook has rolled out a new "ask" feature for those profile pages that don't list relationship statuses. The owner of the page doesn't see the button — only the person who is checking out the page.

 

IMAGE: BRIAN HERNANDEZ, MASHABLE

By clicking "ask," you must send the user a message related to the status (such as "want to grab a drink sometime?"), as well as a request to list a status as single, engaged, married or in a civil union. Note: users must be friends with the person in order for the "ask" button to appear.

 

The owner of the Facebook page then receives a request to list select a status that only the sender can see. This means your status can remain private but visible to only those who "ask" for that information, if you so wish to divulge it.

 It's also possible to update your entire network with this information too, but Facebook is probably guessing — correctly — that you'd simply list your status already if you wanted everyone to know.

The feature introduces a new way to use Facebook as a way to find dates. With the continuing success of online dating sites, and Facebook's massive user base, the only surprise here is that the feature wasn't introduced sooner.

A user's relationship status can also be of use to marketers that target products or services to certain demographics. By answering an "ask" request, a Facebook member is telling the site their status (even if it's not visible to the public) and in turn, giving the company that personal data.

It's also possible to "ask" for other unlisted information too, such as phone numbers, email addresses, current city, hometown and place of employment. That part of the "ask" feature started popping up on mobile and desktop versions of the site a few months ago, but the relationship status component is new.

http://mashable.com/2014/05/19/facebook-ask-button/#:eyJzIjoiZiIsImkiOiJfb2lwd2FtanNmdHp4NmNzOSJ9

Ukraine approaching point of no return, says UN chief

Ukraine is edging towards "the point of no return", a senior UN official says, amid rising tensions between security forces and pro-Russia separatists.

UN Assistant Secretary General for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic told the BBC that the crisis had worrying echoes of the 1990s war in his native Croatia.

Reports from eastern Ukraine say clashes between government forces and separatist militants have continued.

The separatists have not taken part in EU-brokered talks to defuse the crisis.

Overnight, attacks in the east wounded four Ukrainian servicemen, the ministry of defence in Kiev was quoted as saying by Ukrainian media.

Separatist militants are said to have attacked a military camp near the city of Izyum, in Kharkiv region, and four checkpoints near Sloviansk in Donetsk region.

On Saturday, the separatists appointed a prime minister for what they call the People's Republic of Donetsk.

The man, Alexandr Borodai, said the self-proclaimed entity would apply to join Russia.

The separatists have taken control of government buildings across cities in south-eastern and southern Ukraine.

Violence between the two sides has left dozens of people dead in recent weeks.

A new Ukrainian president is due to be elected on 25 May.

Mr Simonovic told the BBC: "What I'm really afraid is that country is approaching to a point of no return if there is no adequate and urgent action taken."

The UN says it has documented countless incidents of abduction, torture and murder in south and eastern Ukraine.

Deadlock

Although abuses have been committed on both sides, Mr Simonovic said, the majority were by the separatists.

He added that he hoped the planned presidential election could take place, but that it would be "extremely difficult".

"I firmly believe that there is a window of opportunity that should be used," he said, but added that it was closing.

The separatists have held referendums in the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, and claimed to have won overwhelming popular backing. Both the Ukrainian government in Kiev and Western countries regard the votes as illegitimate.

The BBC's Mark Lowen in Donetsk says both sides in the conflict are digging in.

The Ukrainian government refuses to talk to armed separatists and the self-proclaimed authorities say they will not hold a dialogue until Kiev ends its "occupation" of the east.

The revolt in the east gained momentum after Russia annexed Ukraine's mainly ethnic Russian region of Crimea in March.

Moscow acted after the overthrow of Ukraine's elected pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych during unrest in the capital Kiev in February.

Neiphiu Rio does a Modi, eyes cabinet berth

KOHIMA: In the biggest gamble of his political career, Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio of Naga People's Front (NPF) had contested the Lok Sabha polls this time. That risk paid off handsomely as Rio emerged victorious.

He won by over four lakh votes, defeating his nearest rival K V Pusa of Congress in a triangular contest.

Only the second chief minister after Narendra Modi to contest the LS polls, Rio had taken the plunge eyeing a ministerial berth at the Centre. NPF had already joined the NDA in March.

With the BJP-led NDA all set to form the next government, Rio looks to play an important innings in Delhi. There is a high chance that he could become the second politician from Nagaland to represent his state in the Union government, after S C Jamir. Jamir, currently Odisha governor, was a minister for state under Nehru in the 1960s.

In Christian-dominated Nagaland, many were left peeved with Rio's move to ally his party with NDA. However, his close aides dismissed such allegations. "BJP is a national party with secular credentials. It is a recognized political party," said close aide of Rio.

Playing a crucial role in northeast politics for over two decades, Rio heads the North East Regional Parties' Front (NERPF) and is its convenor. The NERPF, a conglomeration of 10 regional parties, has already supported NDA at the Centre. The NERPF constituents have won only two seats in this election. Apart from Rio, the other winner is former LS speaker P A Sangma of National People's Party, who won from Tura. Both Rio and Sangma are hopeful of a prominent place in Modi's ministry.

~TOI