FORMER PM RAJIV GANDHI (ASHOK)

Rajiv Gandhi, born in 1944, served as the Prime Minister of India from 1984 to 1989. The first son of Indira and Feroze Gandhi, Rajiv attended Cambridge University, where he met and married Sonia. He was not a man of any unusual academic achievements or other distinctions, and appears to have had few ambitions until the death of his brother Sanjay in 1980. The following year, his mother, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, appears to have induced Rajiv, an airline pilot, to enter politics. He stood successfully for election in 1981 and became a political adviser to his mother. After her assassination in 1984, Rajiv succeeded her as head of the Congress party, and was sworn in as Prime Minister of India. Rajiv, rather keen on preparing India for the twenty-first century, collected his buddies and cronies around him, and sought to increase Indian investments in modern technology. His "vision" of India, insofar as he had one, was that of a technocrat, and his policies did little to eradicate or diminish poverty and the vast inequities of power and wealth which are to be found in Indian society. Like his mother, he could not contain the political problems afflicting India, and found refuge in international entanglements and commitments. He committed the so-called Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to Sri Lanka in an endeavor to help the government there to eradicate militants agitating for a separate Tamil homeland. His period in office was marred by scandals and allegations of corruption on so huge a scale that he undoubtedly lost the election of 1989 partly on account of the public perception that he had received "kick-backs" from a Swedish company manufacturing Bofors machine-guns. The Congress suffered an electoral defeat. His successor, Vishwanath Pratap Singh, could not hold office for very long, and Rajiv started campaigning in earnest in 1991. It was while he was on this campaign in South India that a bomb explosion took his life; even his body could not be pieced together. As he had named thousands of buildings and institutions after his mother and brother, so his wife, Sonia Gandhi, has named everything after her dead husband.

Unlike his grandfather, Jawaharlal Nehru, or even his mother, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv appears to have been singularly lacking in intellectual attainments, and his interventions in Parliamentary debates were notoriously prosaic and dull. His years in office cannot be described as having contributed in any healthy way to the political life of the nation, and the precipitous decline of the Congress party can also be attributed to his inept handling of party affairs, and the encouragement he gave to those willing to do his bidding.

The life and death of Sanjay Gandhi

The post-Emergency days had seen, among other things, cathartic expressions of freedom of the press, to compensate as it were for its enforced suppression and constipation. In the familiar tradition of the Muse of History being the rightful grab of the victorious, there were several journalistic “quickies” to tell the sordid story of un-freedom and the villains who guided or operated there. Though claiming to be objective, they knew that none indeed cared to look for that elusive virtue during those heady days. Vinod Mehta’s The Sanjay Story was published early in 1978 as one of the Emergency ‘quickies’ and had met with well-deserved commercial success. Now, after nearly 35 years, the book is back in print, not in its revised avatar but with just a brief new Introduction.

The tragedy of ‘hubris-leading-to-nemesis’ is a good story-stuff, and when a good story-teller tells it, it invariably makes good reading. And when it is about our own democratic values and experiments, it produces a simmering mood anger, betrayal and pain. The biography of Sanjay Gandhi was written at that moment and has to be judged as such. The story necessarily begins with the high-profile household, in which figures Motilal Nehru, “something of a prig” who “mercilessly mimicked the English”, his politically famous son Jawaharlal Nehru and daughter-in-law Kamala who languished under “callous neglect”, their daughter, Indira, who was drawn to her suffering mother and was “determined not to be hurt”, Feroze Gandhi’s connection with Anand Bhavan and marriage with Indira, which produced two sons, including the subject of the book. Otherwise, the marriage was silently unsuccessful. In the lavishly documented life and times of Indira Gandhi, Feroze becomes “a footnote, a matrimonial accident”. This, as well as the relentless pampering at the Teen Murti from both the mother and the grandfather, is shown as going into the making of Sanjay’s character.

Vinod Mehta has rummaged the memories and testimonies of Doon School to find out how Sanjay indeed fared there: He was reportedly ‘outstandingly mediocre”, a ‘loner’, mostly friendless and ‘uncommunicative’. He had a reputation of being ‘bit of a kleptomaniac’ and ‘he tried his hand at some petty forgery, too’. He had a penchant for car pinching, whisking away unlocked cars for short, fast drives and brought back before they were missed. Later, when he shifted to Delhi, his nocturnal adventures continued, sometimes sneaking into the pages of newspapers, (as in an infamous case of car theft in May 1964) whose clever use of adjectives providing the key to decode the anonymity on offer. Vinod Mehta has also sleuthed his way into some of the equations that Sanjay struck with girls in which power-as-aphrodisiac is shown to have played a decisive part.

MARUTI PROJECT

The Maruti project and Sanjay’s putative entrepreneurial skills fill one full chapter. His fast-track training at the Rolls-Royce plant in England in which he claimed to have learnt all there was to learn, his friendship with Arjun Das who knew all the Delhi junkyards and ‘chor bazaars’, Bansi Lal’s generous land-grant for the impending plant and V.C. Shukla’s intervention to silence the objections of the Commanding Officer of the airfield, the magic of the man (whose declared income for 1970-72 was Rs 772) who could open the flood-gates of capital to his company, violations of import regulations and many other unedifying details bristle in its pages.

The Emergency, however, pushed all these inconvenient facts under the carpet to project Sanjay as the ‘future light of India.’ Vinod Mehta recounts the feverish growth of the Youth Congress, the recruitment of droves of practising or potential criminals into its service, the insults that many craven chief ministers received with a grin, the slum-clearance programmes in which bulldozers operated physically and metaphorically and the prose of hope and triumph that was hectored into a muted nation. The gory details of the ‘Mission Sterilisation’, of its many little concentration camps and its prowling volunteers fill another chapter. When the future of the country was sought to be secured by meddling with the most private areas of human anatomy and touching the dark regions of people’s psyche, they could not but resent it. It showed in the elections of 1977. The Sanjay Story ends there.

But Sanjay lived to see Congress come back to power in 1980 after “the Janata leaders fell on their own swords with great facility”. But not for long. He died when the plane he flew crashed. We are told that it took eight surgeons four hours to stitch up his mutilated body. But the party which propped him up and went about hysterically announcing his messianic greatness did not lift a finger to stitch up his mutilated reputation. It merely put a shroud of oblivion over him. Perhaps it was politically convenient to do so; but it throws up a few questions. Should the Emergency be seen as the curse of an individual’s ambitions or foibles? If so, does the buck really stop with Sanjay? Or was it a reflection of some deeper malady in our democratic life, attitude and governance?

The author could have revisited the story and reflected on it to give the book greater relevance and meaning. It could have more convincingly justified the exhumation of the subject after more than three decades.

Why did Indira Gandhi suddenly withdraw emergency in 1977? (NOVROOP & AMIT CHAUHAN)

I am going to keep my answer limited to the discussion only about the 'withdrawal of the emergency'.
(If you want to know about why was it imposed, you can read Alok Pandey's answer to Politics of India: What were the reasons Indira Gandhi imposed Emergency in 1975?)

Now we all know how authoritarian and dictatorian India Gandhi went during the emrgency.India’s strength has always been its vibrant democracy. Ours is perhaps the only country where people from contrastingly different castes, creed, religion and race live together in peace and harmony. The other hallmarks of our country are a strong judicial system and a free press. The imposition of the emergency in 1975 struck at the very core of these ideals, which constitute our democracy. It was perhaps the darkest period in the history of independent India.

Now, the common mistake people do when they ask this question you aksed is the mis-fact they know that 1977 elections were held after the emergency was called off. No, the emrgency was still in effect then.

Conscious of her world image..
In the world she was being described as a dictator and she wanted to prove she wasn't. 
According to Amnesty International, 140,000 people had been arrested without trial during the twenty months of Gandhi's Emergency. Jasjit Singh Grewal estimates that 40,000 of came from India's two percent Sikh minority.
The Economist, London, described the resistance movement against the Indira regime as "the only non-left revolutionary force in the world". It said that the movement was "dominated by tens of thousands of RSS cadres, though more and more young recruits are coming". Talking about its objectives it said "its platform at the moment has only one plank: to bring democracy back to India".

The Plan
Her own department did a survey and told her if she held the election during the Emergency she would return to power.Also Indira Gandhi believed that the opposition was splintered and that elections would only accentuate the divide among them. And by winning the elections she could legitimise the Emergency and all that happened as part of it before the international community and also formalise Sanjay Gandhi's position. 
That, perhaps was the reason why she chose to announce the dissolution of the Lok Sabha on January 18, 1977 and the release of all political prisoners. More specifically she did that unilaterally, in the same way as when the Emergency was proclaimed.Indira Gandhi called for fresh elections . 
It was a courageous decision, considering the fact that she was under no visible compulsion to do so.

But..
March 21, 1977, was indeed an important day in the history of independent India. The last of the results to the general elections, held during the previous week, were out quite early in the morning that day. And Indira Gandhi, her son Sanjay Gandhi, V.C. Shukla, Bansi Lal, Pranab Mukherjee, Om Mehta and such others who had presided over the semifascist Emergency regime had lost the elections.
The 'plan' was miscalculated and had backfired. The people played their historic role and threw her government out even though the Emergency still existed.

Ouchhh!! Burn!!
The voters in Rae Bareili, a constituency that was rural in most parts, rejected Indira Gandhi in the most emphatic manner. Indira Gandhi had lost from Rae Bareli by a margin of 55,202 votes! 
And Sanjay Gandhi, who tried his luck from neighbouring Amethi too was humbled by Ravindra P Singh, a political novice. The margin of victory in Amethi was 75,844 votes. 
The Congress party was swept aside everywhere in the North. And all of Indira Gandhi's men were defeated.
Indira Gandhi's Congress party drew a blank from Bihar (with 54 Lok Sabha seats), Himachal Pradesh (with 4 seats), Punjab (with 13 seats) Uttar Pradesh (with 85 seats) and Delhi (with 7 seats). The party won just one seat each in Haryana (out of the 10), Madhya Pradesh (out of 40) and Rajasthan (out of 25). In West Bengal, the Congress won just 3 out of the 42 Lok Sabha constituencies, 4 out of the 21 seats from Orissa, 10 seats out of the 25 from Gujarat and 20 out of the 48 from Maharashtra. In all, the Congress strength in the Lok Sabha stood at 154 (in the House of 542), the lowest in the party's history till then. It is another matter that, interestingly, this is higher than the Congress party's strength after May 2004! :P

Now the twist..
Ever heard of Bhasmasur? :D

See Indira Gandhi government in 1971, enacted a controversial law, Maintenance of Internal Security Act, giving the administration of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and Indian law enforcement agencies super powers - indefinite "preventive" detention of individuals, search and seizure of property without warrants, and wiretapping - in the quelling of civil and political disorder in India, as well as countering foreign-inspired sabotage, terrorism, subterfuge and threats to national security, the one which was exploitatively used by her regime during the emergency to curb the opposition.

Now that the political winds had changed and the opposition was in power with landslide majority and the emergency was still in effect, technically she found herself and her allies on the receiving end and hence, how do I say it politely, was the one in deep shit.

She obviously couldn't change the law overnight, right? So what did she do. She called off the emergency and resigned the next evening on on March 22, 1977.

The Emergency (India)(26 June 1975 – 21 March 1977) BLACK PERIOD OF INDIAN HISTORY AFTER FREEDOM( PM INDIRA GANDHI))

The Indian Emergency of 26 June 1975 – 21 March 1977 was a 21-month period, when President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, upon request by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, declared a state of emergency under Article 352 of the Constitution of India, effectively bestowing on her the power to rule by decree, suspending elections and civil liberties. It is one of the most controversial times in the history of independent India.[2] Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan, a scholar of law, called it one of India’s “blackest hours”.
REASON===
Raj Narain, who had been defeated in parliamentary election by Indira Gandhi, lodged cases of election fraud and use of state machinery for election purposes against Gandhi in the Allahabad High Court. On 12 June 1975, Justice Jagmohanlal Sinha of the Allahabad High Court found the Prime Minister guilty on the charge of misuse of government machinery for her election campaign. The court declared her election null and void and unseated her from her seat in the Lok Sabha. The court also banned her from contesting any election for an additional six years. Some serious charges such as bribing voters and election malpractices were dropped and she was held responsible for misusing the government machinery, and found guilty on charges such as using the state police to build a dais, availing the services of a government officer, Yashpal Kapoor, during the elections before he had resigned from his position, and use of electricity from the state electricity department. Because the court unseated her on comparatively frivolous charges, while she was acquitted on more serious charges, The Times described it as ‘firing the Prime Minister for a traffic ticket’. However, strikes in labor and trade unions, student unions and government unions swept across the country. Protests led by J.P. Narayan, Raj Narain, Satyendra Narayan Sinha and Morarji Desai flooded the streets of Delhi close to the Parliament building and the Prime Minister’s residence. The persistent efforts of Raj Narain, were praised worldwide as it took over four years for Justice Jagmohan Lal Sinha to finally pass judgement against Gandhi. The ruling later became the primary reason for the imposition of emergency by Gandhi.

ਜਾਨ 'ਤੇ ਖੇਡ ਕੇ ਵਾਪਸ ਪਰਤੇ ਇਹ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ

ਜਲੰਧਰ-ਇਰਾਕ 'ਚ ਫਸੇ ਪੰਜਾਬੀਆਂ 'ਚੋਂ 9 ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਇਕ ਜਰਮਨ ਨਾਗਰਿਕ ਦੀ ਮਦਦ ਨਾਲ ਕਿਸੇ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਜਾਨ ਬਚਾ ਕੇ ਇੱਥੇ ਵਾਪਸ ਆਏ। ਉਕਤ ਜਰਮਨ ਨਾਗਰਿਕ ਨੇ ਭੁੱਖ-ਪਿਆਸ ਨਾਲ ਤੜਫਦੇ ਇਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੌਜਵਾਨਾਂ ਦੀ ਹਾਲਤ 'ਤੇ ਤਰਸ ਖਾ ਕੇ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਇਰਾਕ ਦੇ ਨਜਫ ਕਸਬੇ 'ਚੋਂ ਕੱਢਣ 'ਚ ਮਦਦ ਕੀਤੀ ਅਤੇ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਇੰਨਾ ਸਾਹਸ ਕਰਨ ਲਈ ਕਿਹਾ ਕਿ ਉਹ ਆਪਣੇ ਪਾਸਪੋਰਟ ਆਪਣੀ ਕੰਪਨੀ ਦੇ ਮਾਲਿਕ ਤੋਂ ਕਿਸੇ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਖੋਹ ਲੈਣ। 
ਇਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੌਜਵਾਨਾਂ ਨੇ ਜਾਨ 'ਤੇ ਖੇਡ ਕੇ ਅਜਿਹਾ ਹੀ ਕੀਤਾ ਅਤੇ ਪਾਸਪੋਰਟ ਲੈ ਕੇ ਜਰਮਨ ਦੇ ਵਿਅਕਤੀ ਦੀ ਮਦਦ ਨਾਲ ਸ਼ਾਰਜਾਹ ਪਹੁੰਚ ਗਏ, ਜਿੱਥੋਂ ਉਹ ਅਹਿਮਦਾਬਾਦ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ 'ਤੇ ਉਤਰੇ ਅਤੇ ਉੱਥੋਂ ਜਲੰਧਰ ਦੀ ਟਰੇਨ 'ਚ ਅੱਜ ਦੁਪਹਿਰ ਬਾਅਦ ਸਟੇਸ਼ਨ 'ਤੇ ਉਤਰੇ। ਇਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੌਜਵਾਨਾਂ ਨੇ ਦੱਸਿਆ ਕਿ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦੇ ਕੈਂਪ 'ਚ ਹਾਲ 'ਚ ਤਿੰਨ ਨੌਵਾਨਾਂ ਦੀ ਮੌਤ ਹੋ ਚੁੱਕੀ ਹੈ ਅਤੇ ਅਜੇ 850 ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਉੱਥੇ ਫਸੇ ਹਨ। 
ਇਰਾਕ 'ਚ ਅਜੇ 2,000 ਹਜ਼ਾਰ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਫਸੇ ਹੋਏ ਹਨ। ਹਾਲਾਂਕਿ ਭੋਜਨ, ਪਾਣੀ ਨਾ ਮਿਲਣ ਨਾਲ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦੀ ਹਾਲਤ ਕਾਫੀ ਕਮਜ਼ੋਰ ਹੋ ਗਈ ਹੈ। ਅਹਿਮਦਾਬਾਦ ਸਟੇਸ਼ਨ 'ਤੇ ਇਹ ਨੌਜਵਾਨ ਬੇਹੋਸ਼ ਪਾਏ ਗਏ। ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੇ ਆਪ ਬੀਤੀ ਸੁਣਾਉਂਦਿਆਂ ਕਿਹਾ ਕਿ ਭੁੱਖ-ਪਿਆਸ ਕਾਰਨ ਉਹ ਬੋਲ ਨਹੀਂ ਸਕਦੇ ਅਤੇ ਅਹਿਮਦਾਬਾਦ ਸਟੇਸ਼ਨ 'ਤੇ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦੀ ਹਾਲਤ ਅਚਾਨਕ ਵਿਗੜ ਗਈ। ਅਚਾਨਕ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦੇ ਫੌਜ ਦੇ ਇਕ ਸਾਬਕਾ ਹਵਲਦਾਰ ਨੇ ਇਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਦੇਖਿਆ ਅਤੇ ਚਾਹ-ਪਾਣੀ ਪਿਲਾਇਆ ਤਾਂ ਜਾ ਕੇ ਇਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਹੋਸ਼ ਆਈ। ਉਸ ਨੇ ਹੀ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦੀ ਟਿਕਟ ਕਰਾਈ ਅਤੇ ਅੱਜ ਟਰੇਨ ਰਾਹੀਂ  ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਇੱਥੇ ਪਹੁੰਚਾਇਆ।

ਅੱਤਵਾਦੀਆਂ ਨੇ ਸੱਦਾਮ ਹੁਸੈਨ ਨੂੰ ਮੌਤ ਦੀ ਸਜ਼ਾ ਦੇਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਜੱਜ ਨੂੰ ਫਾਂਸੀ 'ਤੇ ਲਟਕਾਇਆ (NOVROOP CHAUHAN)

ਬਗਦਾਦ—ਇਰਾਕ ਵਿਚ ਆਈ. ਐੱਸ. ਆਈ. ਐੱਸ. ਦੇ ਅੱਤਵਾਦੀਆਂ ਨੇ ਕਥਿਤ ਤੌਰ 'ਤੇ ਸੱਦਾਮ ਹੁਸੈਨ ਨੂੰ ਫਾਂਸੀ ਦੀ ਸਜ਼ਾ ਸੁਣਾਉਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਜੱਜ ਨੂੰ ਫਾਂਸੀ 'ਤੇ ਚੜ੍ਹਾ ਕੇ ਮਾਰ ਦਿੱਤਾ। ਇਰਾਕ ਦੇ ਇਸ ਸਾਬਕਾ ਤਾਨਾਸ਼ਾਹ ਸੱਦਾਮ ਦੇ ਕਿਸੇ ਸਮੇਂ ਬੇਹੱਦ ਕਰੀਬ ਰਹੇ ਇਬਰਾਹਿਮ ਅਲ ਦੌਰੀ ਨੇ ਆਪਣੇ ਫੇਸਬੁੱਕ ਅਕਾਊਂਟ 'ਤੇ ਇਹ ਦਾਅਵਾ ਕੀਤਾ ਹੈ। ਦੂਜੇ ਪਾਸੇ ਜੌਰਡਨ ਦੇ ਇਕ ਐੱਮ. ਪੀ. ਨੇ ਵੀ ਆਪਣੇ ਫੇਸਬੁੱਕ ਪੇਜ 'ਤੇ ਇਸ ਦਾ ਦਾਅਵਾ ਕੀਤਾ ਹੈ। ਹਾਲਾਂਕਿ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਨੇ ਇਸ ਦੀ ਪੁਸ਼ਟੀ ਕਰਨ ਤੋਂ ਇਨਕਾਰ ਕਰ ਦਿੱਤਾ ਹੈ। 
ਅਲ ਦੌਰੀ ਨੇ ਦੱਸਿਆ ਕਿ ਸੱਦਾਮ ਨੂੰ ਮੌਤ ਦੀ ਸਜ਼ਾ ਸੁਣਾਉਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਜੱਜ ਰਊਫ ਅਬਦੁਲ ਰਹਿਮਾਨ ਨੂੰ ਅਗਵਾ ਕੀਤਾ ਗਿਆ ਸੀ। ਦੌਰੀ 2003 ਵਿਚ ਇਰਾਕ 'ਤੇ ਅਮਰੀਕਾ ਦੇ ਹਮਲੇ ਤੱਕ ਅਮਰੀਕੀ ਕਮਾਂਡ ਕੌਂਸਲ ਦੇ ਡਿਪਟੀ ਚੇਅਰਮੈਨ ਸਨ। ਉਹ ਇਰਾਕ ਦੇ ਪਾਬੰਦੀਸ਼ੁਦਾ ਬਾਥ ਪਾਰਟੀ ਦੇ ਵੀ ਨੇਤਾ ਹਨ। 
ਜੌਰਡਨ ਦੇ ਐੱਮ. ਪੀ. ਖਲੀਲ ਅਤੀਹ ਦੇ ਫੇਸਬੁੱਕ ਪੇਜ ਦਾ ਹਵਾਲਾ ਦਿੰਦੇ ਹੋਏ 'ਡੇਲੀ ਮੇਲ' ਤੇ ਕੁਝ ਹੋਰ ਨਿਊਜ਼ ਵੈੱਬਸਾਈਟਾਂ ਨੇ ਕਿਹਾ ਕਿ 16 ਜੂਨ ਨੂੰ ਜੱਜ ਰਹਿਮਾਨ ਨੂੰ ਅਗਵਾ ਕੀਤਾ ਗਿਆ ਅਤੇ 18 ਤਰੀਕ ਨੂੰ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਫਾਂਸੀ ਦੇ ਦਿੱਤੀ ਗਈ। ਰਹਿਮਾਨ ਇਕ ਕੁਰਦ ਸਨ। ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਸੱਦਾਮ ਨੂੰ ਮੌਤ ਦੀ ਸਜ਼ਾ ਸੁਣਾਏ ਜਾਣ ਦੀ ਇਰਾਕ ਦੇ ਕੁਝ ਹਲਕਿਆਂ ਵਿਚ ਤਿੱਖੀ ਆਲੋਚਨਾ ਹੋਈ ਸੀ। ਰਹਿਮਾਨ ਨੇ ਸਾਲ 2006 ਵਿਚ ਸੱਦਾਮ ਨੂੰ ਫਾਂਸੀ ਦੀ ਸਜ਼ਾ ਸੁਣਾਈ ਸੀ। 
ਅੱਤਵਾਦੀ ਤੇਜ਼ੀ ਨਾਲ ਬਗਦਾਦ ਦੇ ਵੱਲ ਵੱਧ ਰਹੇ ਹਨ। ਸੋਮਵਾਰ ਨੂੰ ਬਗਦਾਦ ਦੇ ਦੱਖਣ ਵਿਚ ਅੱਤਵਾਦੀਆਂ ਨੇ ਬੱਸਾਂ ਦਾ ਕਾਫਿਲਾਂ ਰੋਕ ਕੇ 69 ਮੁਸਾਫਰਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਗੋਲੀ ਮਾਰ ਦਿੱਤੀ। ਅੱਤਵਾਦੀਆਂ ਵੱਲੋਂ 9 ਜੂਨ ਤੋਂ ਇਰਾਕ ਦੇ ਵੱਡੇ ਹਿੱਸੇ 'ਤੇ ਕਬਜ਼ੇ ਦੌਰਾਨ ਇਹ ਦੂਜਾ ਵੱਡਾ ਹਮਲਾ ਹੈ। ਇਸ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੇ ਸੋਮਵਾਰ ਨੂੰ ਤਾਲ ਅਫਾਰ ਦੇ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ 'ਤੇ ਵੀ ਕਬਜ਼ਾ ਕਰ ਲਿਆ। 
ਅਮਰੀਕੀ ਰਾਸ਼ਟਰਪਤੀ ਬਰਾਕ ਓਬਾਮਾ ਨੇ ਚਿਤਾਵਨੀ ਦਿੱਤੀ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਇਰਾਕੀ ਅੱਤਵਾਦ ਬਗਦਾਦ ਵਿਚ ਵੀ ਫੈਲ ਸਕਦਾ ਹੈ। ਇਸ ਦੌਰਾਨ ਅਮਰੀਕੀ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ ਮੰਤਰੀ ਜੌਨ ਕੈਰੀ ਸੋਮਵਾਰ ਨੂੰ ਬਗਦਾਦ ਪਹੁੰਚ ਗਏ ਹਨ। ਅਮਰੀਕਾ ਨੇ ਅਰਬ ਦੇਸ਼ਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਕਿਹਾ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਉਹ ਇਰਾਕ 'ਤੇ ਛੇਤੀ ਹੀ ਨਵੀਂ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਦੇ ਗਠਨ ਦਾ ਦਬਾਅ ਬਣਾਏ।

Spain's new King Felipe VI swears his oath (NOVROOP)

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MADRID (ASHOK & NOVROOP) — Spain's new King Felipe VI was proclaimed monarch at a formal ceremony in the country's Parliament on Thursday, a deliberately low-key occasion for austere times and tarnished royal reputations.

Although the 18th-century Spanish crown and 17th-century scepter were displayed next to the new monarch, authorities shunned an opulent coronation ceremony. The option for a relatively low-key proclamation was chosen out of sensitivity to the financial hardship endured by many Spaniards after a double-dip recession.Felipe swore an oath of allegiance to democratic principles in front of lawmakers and senators, who shouted "Viva el Rey!" (Long live the king!).

Even so, the cheering crowds and the pageantry provided a welcome distraction as Spaniards were reeling from their national team's shock defeat by Chile in the World Cup in Brazil, which ended their hope of winning a second consecutive title.

Earlier, in his first official act since ascending to the throne after midnight, Felipe received the red sash of Captain General of the Armed Forces from his father Juan Carlos, who signed his abdication decree in favor of Felipe on Wednesday.

"We have a great country. We should all be proud of being Spaniards," Felipe said at his swearing-in ceremony.

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Spain’s newly crowned King Felipe VI, top center, accompanied by his wife Queen Letizia, top right,  …

Felipe acknowledged a need to restore the monarchy's image after recent royal scandals.

The monarchy was rocked when Juan Carlos went on a luxurious elephant-hunting safari in Botswana as Spaniards endured financial hardship, and his youngest daughter, Princess Cristina, was obliged to testify in a fraud and money-laundering case engulfing her husband, Olympic handball medalist turned businessman Inaki Urdangarin.

Felipe also sought to inspire a country where a quarter of the population is unemployed and many have emigrated in search of work.

He ended his speech by saying "thank you" in three Spanish regional languages — Catalan, Basque and Galician. Some people in those regions want to secede or achieve greater independence from Spain.

After a brief military parade, Felipe and his wife Queen Letizia drove through Madrid in an open-top vintage Rolls Royce with the king standing, before appearing in front of crowds on a balcony at the royal palace. The royal couple's daughters, Princesses Leonor, 8, and Sofia, 7, accompanied them throughout.

The Phantom 2 Vision+ Drone: Your Eye in the Sky (NOVROOP CHAUHAN)

Now there are consumer drones, which you can fly the day you buy. For $300, you can get the first popular flying drone, the Parrot AR.Drone. You fly it using your phone as a remote control. The AR.Drone is smart enough to land and take off by itself, to hover in one place when you take your hands off the controls, and even to stop flying away from you if it goes out of range from your phone. It takes pictures and videos, and it’s a lot of fun.

But for $1,300, you can buy something that’s far more useful — and genuinely mind-blowing. Meet the Phantom 2 Vision+.

It’s made by DJI, the 800-pound gorilla of the consumer-drone industry. The “Vision” refers to the built-in camera, which takes pictures and captures hi-def video in flight. And the “+” refers to the camera’s three-axis gimbal (like a universal joint), a new feature that keeps your footage incrediblysmooth and stable, no matter what the drone itself is doing.

ਰੂਹੀ ਨੇ ਚਮਕਾਇਆ ਜਲੰਧਰ ਦਾ ਨਾਂ, ਬਣੀ ਆਈ. ਏ. ਐੱਸ. ਅਫਸਰ (ਵੀਡੀਓ)

ਜਲੰਧਰ- ਜਲੰਧਰ ਦੀ ਰਹਿਣ ਵਾਲੀ ਇਸ ਲੜਕੀ ਨੇ ਜਲੰਧਰ ਦਾ ਨਾਂ ਰੌਸ਼ਨ ਕੀਤਾ ਹੈ ਅਤੇ ਮਾਣ ਵੀ ਵਧਾਇਆ ਹੈ। ਰੂਹੀ ਡੁੱਗ ਇਕ ਡਾਕਟਰ ਹੈ, ਜਿਸ ਨੇ ਆਈ. ਏ. ਐੱਸ. ਦੀ ਪ੍ਰੀਖਿਆ ਵਿਚ ਆਲ ਇੰਡੀਆ ਲੈਵਲ 'ਤੇ 176 ਰੈਂਕ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਕੀਤੇ ਹਨ। ਉਸ ਦੀ ਇਸ ਉਪਲੱਬਧੀ ਨਾਲ ਉਸ ਦਾ ਪੂਰਾ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਖੁਸ਼ੀ ਨਾਲ ਝੁੰਮ ਰਿਹਾ ਹੈ ਅਤੇ ਰੂਹੀ 'ਤੇ ਮਾਣ ਕਰ ਰਿਹਾ ਹੈ।
ਜਲੰਧਰ ਦੇ ਗੁਰੂ ਅਮਰਦਾਸ ਨਗਰ ਦੀ ਰਹਿਣ ਵਾਲੀ ਡਾ. ਰੂਹੀ ਨੇ ਆਈ. ਏ. ਐਸ. ਦੀ ਪ੍ਰੀਖਿਆ ਪਾਸ ਕੀਤੀ ਹੈ। ਰੂਹੀ ਨੇ 2010 ਵਿਚ ਐਮ. ਬੀ. ਬੀ. ਐਸ. ਦੀ ਪ੍ਰੀਖਿਆ ਪਾਸ ਕੀਤੀ ਸੀ ਅਤੇ ਹੁਣ ਉਹ ਜ਼ਿਲਾ ਸੋਨੀਪਤ ਬੀ. ਪੀ. ਐਸ. ਯੂਨੀਵਰਸਿਟੀ ਫਾਰ ਵੁਮੈਨ ਵਿਚ ਬਤੌਰ ਮੈਡੀਕਲ ਅਫਸਰ ਵਰਕਰ ਹੈ। ਰੂਹੀ ਨੇ ਆਈ. ਏ. ਐਸ. 'ਚ ਆਲ ਇੰਡੀਆ ਲੈਵਲ 'ਤੇ 176 ਰੈਂਕ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਕੀਤੀ ਹੈ।
ਉਸ ਦੀ ਇਸ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤੀ ਕਾਰਨ ਜਲੰਧਰ ਸਥਿਤ ਉਸ ਦੇ ਘਰ 'ਚ ਉਸ ਦੇ ਮਾਤਾ-ਪਿਤਾ ਨੂੰ ਵਧਾਈਆਂ ਦੇਣ ਵਾਲਿਆਂ ਦੀ ਭੀੜ ਲੱਗੀ ਹੋਈ ਹੈ। ਡਾ. ਰੂਹੀ ਦੀ ਇਸ ਉਪਲੱਬਧੀ ਤੋਂ ਉਸ ਦੇ ਮਾਤਾ-ਪਿਤਾ ਹੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਸਗੋਂ ਕਿ ਉਸ ਦੀ ਨਾਨੀ ਵੀ ਉਸ ਦੀ ਇਸ ਉਪਲੱਬਧੀ ਤੋਂ ਬਹੁਤ ਖੁਸ਼ ਹੈ। ਰੂਹੀ ਦੇ ਮਾਤਾ-ਪਿਤਾ ਦਾ ਕਹਿਣਾ ਹੈ ਸਾਨੂੰ ਆਪਣੀ ਬੇਟੀ 'ਤੇ ਮਾਣ ਹੈ। ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਕਿਹਾ ਕਿ ਜਦੋਂ ਉਸ ਨੇ ਐਮ. ਬੀ. ਬੀ. ਐਸ. ਪਾਸ ਕਰ ਲਈ ਸੀ ਅਤੇ ਉਹ ਆਈ. ਏ. ਐਸ. ਕਰਨ ਦੀ ਇੱਛੁਕ ਸੀ ਉਸ ਨੇ ਕਰ ਕੇ ਦਿਖਾਇਆ।

GM Releases Official Horsepower, Torque Ratings for 2015 Chevy Corvette Z06

2015 Corvette Z06 Convertible loses its top without giving up on performance

General Motors (GM) has released the official SAE-certified power statistics on the all-new 2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06's LT4 supercharged engine, revealing the Z06 to be the most powerful production car ever made by GM. The 2015 Z06 features a 6.2-liter V-8 engine that will crank up to 650 horsepower and can deliver 650 lb.-ft. of torque at 3,600 rpm.

"The LT4 small block sets a new benchmark for power and torque at GM," said Steve Kiefer, vice president, GM Powertrain Engineering. "The engine also puts the new Corvette Z06 on par with the most powerful supercars offered in America, while delivering performance with impeccable manners that make it suitable for daily driving."

Just off idle, the LT4 engine produces 457 lb.-ft. of torque, and at 2,800 rpm it's producing 625 lb.-ft. By comparison, says GM, the V-12 engine in the Ferrari F12 Berlinetta, which features 12% more horsepower, doesn't reach its peak torque of 509 lb.-ft. until it's running at 6,000 rpm.

"Torque is the pulling power of an engine and the LT4's abundance of it at every rpm helps the Z06 accelerate quicker and respond nearly instantaneously," explained Jordan Lee, chief engineer for small-block engines. "It's the very definition of power on demand."

"It's also worth mentioning that the LT4's supercar performance numbers are achieved with an engine that is nearly the same size as the very compact LT1 engine introduced in the 2014 Corvette Stingray," Lee said. "The power density of the LT4 makes it one of the smallest and lightest 650-horsepower engines in the industry."

Features specific to the Z06's new LT4 engine include:

• aluminum cylinder heads;
• lightweight titanium intake valves;
• machined, forged powder metal steel connecting rods for reduced reciprocating mass;
• compression ratio of 10.0:1, enabled by direct injection;
• forged aluminum pistons with stronger structure;
• stainless steel exhaust manifolds and an aluminum balancer that are lighter than their LT1 counterparts.

The engine works with a standard 7-speed manual transmission or an all-new, paddle-shift 8-speed automatic. The 2015 Corvette Z06 goes on sale in the fourth quarter of 2014.

9 Best Travel Locations for Adrenaline Junkies (NOVROOP & NOVPREETI)

f all of the same old travel locations start sounding boring to you, check out these great and exciting travel locations that will provide you with the extreme activities specially designed to get your heart racing as quick as possible. So, if you like traveling and breathtaking views and you really want an adrenaline rush, here are a few thrilling travel locations you might want to visit this year.

1. Cedar Point Amusement Park, Sandusky, OH

Cedar Point Amusement Park in Sandusky, OH is a must-see for all adrenaline junkies! Known as “America’s Roller Coast” it features 72 rides, including 16 roller coasters. For the past 15 years, Cedar Point has been named the “Best Amusement Park in the World”, and it’s no wonder! It’s the only amusement park in the globe with 4 roller coasters taller than 200 feet. Top Thrill Dragster is one of my personal favorites! It shoots upward with the speed of 120 miles per hour reaching a 420 feet hill, before falling at the same 90-degree fall. So exciting!

बड़े बिजली संकट का खतरा: पावर प्लांट्स में कोयले की कमी, अंधेरे में डूब सकता है आधा भारत! और भी...

देश पर बड़े बिजली संकट का खतरा! (ASHOK & NOVROOP)

दिल्ली और उत्तर प्रदेश समेत कई राज्यों में बिजली कटौती से हाहाकार मजा हुआ है, लेकिन अब आधे भारत पर 'ब्लैकआउट' का बड़ा खतरा मंडरा रहा है. केंद्रीय बिजली अथॉरिटी के सूत्रों के मुताबिक, कोयले से चलने वाले देश के 50 से ज्यादा पावर प्लांट कोयले की कमी से जूझ रहे हैं. उनके पास सिर्फ 4 से 7 दिन का कोयला बचा है. अगर जल्द ही यह संकट नहीं हल किया गया तो देश में बड़ा बिजली संकट पैदा हो सकता है.अगर ऐसा हुआ तो ट्रेनों की रफ्तार और मेट्रो के सफर पर भी इसका असर देखने को मिल सकता है. सरकारी और निजी दफ्तरों में भी अंधेरा छाने और कारखाने ठप होने का खतरा है.
...तो बिजली संकट की जद में आएंगे कई राज्य
केंद्रीय बिजली अथॉरिटी के सूत्रों की मानें तो देश के 50 से ज्यादा पवर प्लांट्स के पास सिर्फ 4 से 7 दिन का कोयला का स्टॉक खत्म होने वाला है. सेंट्रल इलेक्ट्रिसिटी ऑथिरिटी कोयले से चलने वाली करीब 100 पॉवर प्लांट की निगरानी करती है. उसकी तरफ से कोयला मंत्रालय को जानकारी भेजी गई है कि उसके मुताबिक 100 में से 38 पावर प्लांट के पास सिर्फ 7 दिन का कोयला बचा है और करीब 20 पावर प्लांट्स के पास सिर्फ 4 दिन तक का कोयले का स्टॉक है.
अगर इन पॉवर प्लांट्स को कोयले की सप्लाई में आगे किसी तरह की रुकावट आई, तो उत्तर प्रदेश, दिल्ली, महाराष्ट्र, गुजरात, छत्तीसगढ़, आंध्र प्रदेश और तमिलनाडु पर ब्लैकआउट का खतरा है. इसके साथ ही वे राज्य भी प्रभावित हो सकते हैं जहां इन पावर प्लांट्स में आपात स्थिति में बिजली भेजी जाती है.
उत्‍तरी ग्रिड फेल होने का खतरा 
उधर, उत्‍तरी ग्रिड द्वारा से दी जा रही सप्‍लाई से यूपी और हरियाणा की आपूर्ति पर अधिकारी नजर रखे हुए हैं. खबरों के मुताबिक, बुधवार को यूपी ने उत्तरी ग्रिड से तय मानक से अतिरिक्त बिजली ली है, जिससे ग्रिड पर दबाव बढ़ गया है. इसके तहत यूपी प्रतिदिन 6400 मेगावाट बिजली ले सकती है, लेकिन बुधवार को उत्तर प्रदेश विद्युत निगम ने 300-500 मेगावाट अतिरिक्त बिजली ली. इसके चलते उत्तरी ग्रिड के फेल होने का संकट बढ़ गया है.
बता दें कि अगस्‍त 2012 में कुछ राज्‍यों की ओर से सीमा से ज्‍यादा बिजली लेने की वजह से उत्‍तरी ग्रिड फेल हो गया था, जिससे उत्‍तरी भारत और पूर्वी भारत में 60 करोड़ लोगों को 24 घंटे से ज्‍यादा वक्‍त तक अंधेरे में रहना पड़ा था.

ਵੀਡੀਓ 'ਚ ਦੇਖੋ ਕਿਵੇਂ ਇਕ-ਇਕ ਕਰ ਕੇ ਪਾਣੀ ਵਿਚ ਵਹਿ ਗਏ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀ

ਹਿਮਾਚਲ- ਹਿਮਾਚਲ ਪ੍ਰਦੇਸ਼ ਦੇ ਮੰਡੀ ਵਿਚ ਲਾਰਜੀ ਡੈਮ ਤੋਂ ਅਚਾਨਕ ਪਾਣੀ ਛੱਡਣ ਨਾਲ ਇੰਜੀਨੀਅਰਿੰਗ ਦੇ 25  ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀਆਂ ਦੇ ਵਹਿ ਜਾਣ ਦੀ ਘਟਨਾ ਦਾ ਇਕ ਖੌਫਨਾਕ ਵੀਡੀਓ ਸਾਹਮਣੇ ਆਇਆ ਹੈ। ਇਸ ਵੀਡੀਓ ਵਿਚ ਸਾਫ ਦੇਖਿਆ ਜਾ ਸਕਦਾ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਕਿਵੇਂ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀ ਨਦੀ ਵਿਚ ਵਹਿ ਗਏ। ਵੀਡੀਓ ਤੋਂ ਸਾਫ ਨਜ਼ਰ ਆ ਰਿਹਾ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਕਿਸ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਅਚਾਨਕ ਨਦੀ ਵਿਚ ਪਾਣੀ ਦਾ ਪੱਧਰ ਵਧ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ। ਜਿਸ ਕਾਰਨ ਇਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਆਪਣੀ ਜਾਨ ਗਵਾਉਣੀ ਪਈ।
ਜ਼ਿਕਰਯੋਗ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਬਿਆਸ ਨਦੀ ਵਿਚ ਵਹਿ ਗਏ 25 ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀਆਂ ਵਿਚੋਂ ਹੁਣ ਤੱਕ 5 ਲਾਸ਼ਾਂ ਬਰਾਮਦ ਕਰ ਲਈਆਂ ਗਈਆਂ ਹਨ। ਬਾਕੀ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀਆਂ ਦੀ ਤਲਾਸ਼ ਜਾਰੀ ਹੈ। ਇਹ ਸਾਰੇ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀ ਹੈਦਰਾਬਾਦ ਦੇ ਇਕ ਇੰਜੀਨੀਅਰਿੰਗ ਕਾਲਜ ਦੇ ਸਨ, ਜੋ ਕਿ ਟਰਿਪ 'ਤੇ ਗਏ ਸਨ ਅਤੇ ਆਪਣੀ ਫੋਟੋਗ੍ਰਾਫੀ ਕਰਨ ਲਈ ਉਹ ਪਾਣੀ ਵਿਚ ਉਤਰੇ ਸਨ ਤਾਂ ਅਚਾਨਕ ਹੀ ਲਾਰਜੀ ਡੈਮ ਤੋਂ ਅਚਾਨਕ ਪਾਣੀ ਛੱਡੇ ਜਾਣੇ ਤੋਂ ਬਾਅਦ ਪਾਣੀ ਦਾ ਤੇਜ਼ ਵਹਾਅ 'ਚ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀ ਨੂੰ ਵਹਿ ਗਏ। ਇਸ ਵੀਡੀਓ ਵਿਚ ਨਦੀ ਵਿਚ ਅਚਾਨਕ ਆਏ ਪਾਣੀ ਵਿਚ ਫਸੇ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀਆਂ ਅਤੇ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥਣਾਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਚੀਕਾਂ ਸੁਣਾਈ ਦੇ ਰਹੀਆਂ ਹਨ। ਉਹ ਆਪਣੀ ਜਾਨ ਬਚਾਉਣ ਲਈ ਮਦਦ ਦੀ ਗੁਹਾਰ ਲਾ ਰਹੇ ਸਨ। ਨਦੀ ਵਿਚ ਪਾਣੀ ਦੀ ਰਫਤਾਰ ਇੰਨੀ ਕੁ ਵਧ ਗਈ ਕਿ ਮਹਜ 31 ਸੈਕੰਡ ਅੰਦਰ 24 ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀਆਂ ਪਾਣੀ ਵਿਚ ਵਹਿ ਗਈਆਂ।

World's oldest man dies at 111

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(ASHOK CHAUHAN)    Alexander Imich, a 111-year-old Polish immigrant and Soviet gulag survivor who was recently certified as the world's oldest man, died on Sunday in New York City, multiple reports say.

Imich was pronounced the world's oldest living man in April by the Gerontology Research Group after the previous record-holder, Arturo Licata, died just days before his 112th birthday.

“Not like it’s the Nobel Prize," Imich told the New York Times then. “I never thought I’d be that old.”

How did he do it? “I don’t know, I simply didn’t die earlier,” Imich joked last month in an interview with NBC. “I have no idea how this happened.”

He did joke to the Times that not having children might have helped, as well as "good genes."

But the supercentenarian's health had been in decline in recent weeks. His niece, Karen Bogen, told the Associated Press that when she visited Imich a day earlier, he didn't recognize her.

Imich was born on Feb. 4, 1903, in Poland, and grew up in Czestochowa in southern Poland. He and his second wife, Wela, a painter and psychotherapist, immigrated to Waterbury, Conn., in 1951. Imich moved to New York in 1986 after Wela's death.

In his late 20s, the Times reports, he "grew fascinated with a Polish medium who was known as Matylda S., a doctor’s widow gaining renown for séances that reportedly called up the dead." He became a scholar of the occult, eventually editing an anthology — “Incredible Tales of the Paranormal: Documented Accounts of Poltergeist, Levitations, Phantoms, and Other Phenomena" — that was published in 1995, when Imich was 92.

Sakari Momoi, a 111-year-old Japanese man born just one day after Imich, is now believed to be the world's oldest man, but officials first must verify his age.

According to the Gerontology Research Group, there are 66 living women older than Momoi, including a Japanese woman, Misao Okawa, who is 116.