ஜனாதிபதி பதவிக்கு மீண்டும் போட்டியிட மாட்டேன்: பிரதீபா பட்டீல் அறிவிப்பு

இந்தியாவின் தற்போதைய ஜனாதிபதி பிரதீபா பட்டீல் கடந்த 2007-ம் ஆண்டு ஜுலை மாதம் 25-ந் தேதி பதவி ஏற்றார். இவர் இந்தியாவின் 12-வது ஜனாதிபதி ஆவார்.

ஜனாதிபதியாக பதவி ஏற்பதற்கு முன்னர் ராஜஸ்தான் மாநில கவர்னராக பதவி வகித்தார். மராட்டிய மாநிலத்தை சேர்ந்த இவர் ஜனாதிபதியாக பதவி ஏற்று 4 ஆண்டுகள் ஆகிறது. அடுத்த (2012) ஆண்டு ஜுலை மாதம் இவரது பதவிக்காலம் முடிவடைகிறது.

இந்நிலையில் அடுத்த ஆண்டு மீண்டும் ஜனாதிபதி பதவிக்கு போட்டியிடுவீர்களா? என்று பிரதீபா பட்டீலிடம் இன்று கேட்கப்பட்டது. அதற்கு பதில் அளித்த அவர், ``நான் மீண்டும் ஜனாதிபதி பதவிக்கு போட்டியிடும் எண்ணம் இல்லை. எனது சொந்த மாநிலமான மராட்டியத்தில் உள்ள புனே நகரில் தங்கி ஓய்வு எடுக்க விரும்புகிறேன்'' என்று தெரிவித்தார்.

Canada is the most web-addicted nation on earth

Toronto:


Canada is the most web-addicted nation on the planet.

Canadians spend more time on the web and its offshoots - Facebook, YouTube and Twitter - than people anywhere else in the world. They are neck and neck with Indians for the number of Facebook accounts, says a report.

According to comScore, the leading online measurement service, Canadian online users log in more than 2,500 minutes a month, followed by Israelis with about 2,300 minutes. Users in a few other countries cross the 2,000-minute mark.

Giving figures for the month of April, comScore said nearly 68 per cent of the Canadian population was online, compared to 62 per cent in France and the United Kingdom, 60 per cent in Germany, 59 per cent in the US, 57 per cent in Japan, and 36 per cent in Italy.

In this country which leads the world in internet access, Canadians also lead the world in various offshoots of the web - Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, according to the report.

"In Canada, YouTube per capita consumption of video is No. 1 in the world. It's just absolutely crazy in terms of how passionate Canadians are about YouTube," the Canadian Press quotes Chris O'Neill, Canada's country director for Google, as saying.

According to him, more than 21 million Canadians out of its population of 34 million visit YouTube each month, compared to 147 million Americans in a population of over 310 million.

But considering the US has 10 times Canada's population, Canadians are way ahead on a per capita basis, says the report.

Canadians also watch more videos each month, with an average of 147 as compared to 100 per US viewer.

With more than 17 million Facebook users, Canada has more than half of its population hooked to this socializing web site.

India and Canada are neck and neck for the 9th and 10th positions on the list of countries with the most Facebook accounts, according to the report.

Though no figures are available for Twitter accounts in Canada, their number has jumped 75 per cent since the beginning of the year, according to Twitter.

In fact, Canadian pop sensation Justin Bieber, who is just 16, has more than 6.4 million followers on Twitter.

Two Prithvi-II missiles test-fired successfully

Balasore:

Two Prithvi-II nuclear-capable ballistic missiles with a strike range of 350 km were successfully test-fired in an hour's gap on Wednesday as part of user trials by the Army from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur off Orissa coast.

"Two indigenously developed surface-to-surface Prithvi-II missiles were test-fired from the ITR and both the trials were fully successful," ITR Director SP Dash said.

The missiles, mounted on mobile launchers and aimed at different targets, were test-fired from launch complex-3 in the ITR at around 08:15 and 09:15 hrs, defence sources said.

The test-firing of the sleek missiles, already inducted into the armed forces, were routine trials conducted by personnel of Strategic Force Command (SFC), they said.

"The entire trajectory of the twin trial was tracked by a battery of sophisticated radars, electro-optic telemetry stations and ships launched in the down range impact point area in the Bay for post-launch analyses," the sources said.

During the last user trial from the same launch complex on September 24 this year, the missile had failed to perform due to some technical problems.

"Prithvi-II missile had proved its robustness and accuracy repeatedly during many trials earlier," a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) official said.

With a maximum strike range of 350 km, Prithvi-II is capable of carrying a pay-load of 500-1000 kg warhead.