April-August 2015 India's Fiscal Defict stood at 3.69 lakh crores or 66.5% of BE 2015-16

 

The fiscal deficit in the first five months of the current fiscal ended August stood at Rs. 3.69 lakh crore, or 66.5%, of Budget estimates for 2015-16

The fiscal situation in April-August showed some improvement over the corresponding period of the previous year(2014-15) as the deficit then stood at 74.9 % of the Budget estimates.

As per the data released by the Controller General of Accounts, tax revenue was Rs 2.09 lakh crore, or 22.8 %, of the estimate.

Total receipts (from revenue and non-debt capital) of the government during the first five months came in at Rs 3.6 lakh crore, or 29.7 %, of the estimates for the current year.

The total expenditure of the government in April-August was nearly Rs 7.32 lakh crore, or 41.2%of the entire year estimate.

Of the total expenditure, plan spending was over Rs 1.86 lakh crore and non-plan over Rs 5.45 lakh crore

Note

The fiscal deficit -- the gap between expenditure and revenue -- for the entire current fiscal has been pegged at Rs 5.55 lakh crore
 
For 2015-16, the Govt aims to restrict fiscal deficit to Rs 5.55 lakh crore, or 3.9 % of GDP

The fiscal deficit was Rs 5.01 lakh crore, or 4 % of GDP, in 2014-15, down from 4.1 % pegged in the revised estimate.

Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Simplifies 15G,15H Declaration Procedures from today Thursday October 01,2015

 

The CBDT has simplified the procedure for filing of self declaration by individuals in 15G and 15H forms, allowing them to do it electronically.

Forms 15G and 15H are filed by persons whose incomes are below the taxable threshold, to seek exemption from TDS on interest income.

The procedure for submission of the forms by the deductor has also been simplified and now they would allot a Unique Identification Number (UIN) to all self declarations, according to a Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) notification.

The revised procedure shall be effective from October 1, 2015, it added.

“In order to reduce the cost of compliance and ease the compliance burden for both, the tax payer and the tax deductor, the CBDT has simplified the format and procedure for self declaration of Form No 15G or 15H,” it said.

“The requirement of submitting physical copy of Form 15G and 15H by the deductor to the Income Tax authorities has been dispensed with. The deductor will, however, be required to retain Form No 15G and 15H for seven years,” it added.

Note

While Form 15H is submitted by senior citizens, 15G can be filed by an individual whose taxable income is less than the exemption threshold

Domestically producued Natural Gas Price Slashed by 16% to $4.24/unit

 

The government on Wednesday Sep 30,2015 announced a price reduction of almost 16 % on net. 

From October 1,2015 domestically produced natural gas price will be at $4.24 a unit on net value for the next six months. 

This is slightly lower than what it was during the government controlled (administered price mechanism) regime at $4.66 a unit. 

There was speculation if the government would reduce the price for domestically produced gas in sync with the global trend as the worst hit will be its own exploration major — ONGC. 

A government notification said the revised price will be $3.82 per million British thermal unit (mBtu) on a gross calorific value basis (or $4.24 a unit on net) for October to March 2016 (value of the gas is measured based on its heat).

 This is the third revision since the gas price was deregulated in November 2014

Godrej Sells Mumbai Property to Abbott for 1480 crores Wednesday Sep 30,2015

In one of the largest office space transactions, Godrej Properties on Wednesday Sep 30,2015 announced the sale of 4.35 lakh sq ft in its commercial project at BKC, Mumbai for about Rs 1,480 crore.

Although the company did not disclose the name of the buyer, sources said the office space has been purchased by pharma company Abbott India.

In a filing to the BSE, Godrej Properties informed that "the company has entered into a transaction for selling 4,35,000 sq ft of saleable area at its commercial project Godrej BKC in Bandra Kulra Complex (BKC) Mumbai to a single user for a total consideration of Rs 1,479 crore.

"This is the highest ever value for any single end-user commercial real estate transaction in India".

Godrej BKC is a large high-end commercial real estate project with approximately 1.3 million sq ft of saleable area. Godrej Properties had partnered with Jet Airways to develop this project, which is expected to be completed and ready for occupancy by mid-2016.

Supreme Court of India(SCI)Ruling on MAT in Castleton Investments Case Wednesday Sep 30,2015

Supreme Court of India Ruling on MAT

In a big relief to Castleton Investments, the Supreme Court on Wednesday Sep 30,2015 disposed of the company’s SLP after the Centre told the court that it stood by its circular exempting foreign investors from paying minimum alternate tax (MAT) if they didn’t have a permanent place of business in India.

The case had been followed keenly by foreign investors, who were jittery on the outcome and the impact it would have on them. But with Attorney-General Mukul Rohatgi assuring the apex court that the Centre would stand by its decision to exempt foreign companies from MAT if they don’t have a place of business in India, the apex court noted that no dispute remains in the Castleton case, and disposed of the Special Leave Petition.

Mauritius-based Castleton had filed the SLP challenging a 2012 ruling of the Authority for Advance Ruling (AAR) on MAT applicability. 

In  August 2012 AAR ruling had said Castleton would have to pay MAT on capital gains arising from sale of shares.

Authority for Advance Ruling(AAR) on Minimum Alternate Tax(MAT)
In August 2012,the Authority for Advance Ruling(AAR)in the case of Castleton Investment Ltd(the applicant)held that transfer of Shares in an Indian Company by a Mauritius Holding Company to Singapore company as part of Internal Re-structuring is not liable to capital gains tax under the Article 13(4) of the India-Mauritius Tax Treaty
The AAR held that since the MAT provisions under the IT ACt,1961(the Act)does not make distinction between an Indian Company and a Foreign Company,MAT provisions are applicable to the foreign companies
Further,the AAR held that the Transpfer Pricing Provisions are applicable to the facts of the present case even though share transfers are not taxable under the Tax Treaty

Ministry of Finance clarifies on MAT

Ending the debate on whether foreign companies will be subject to minimum alternate tax (MAT) provisions, the government on Thursday Sep 24,2015 clarified that the tax regime would not apply to overseas firms not having a permanent establishment in India.

An official statement from the Ministry of Finance said that two categories of companies — foreign companies with no permanent establishment in India but based in countries with which India has a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement, and those with no place of business here — will not be covered under MAT.

This move follows the recent decision of the government to exempt foreign financial institutions/foreign portfolio investors from MAT.

“After due consideration of the various aspects of the matter, the government has decided that with effect from April 1, 2001, the provisions of Section 115JB shall not be applicable to a foreign company — if the foreign company is a resident of a country having DTAA with India and such foreign company does not have a permanent establishment within the definition of the term in the relevant DTAA, or the foreign company is a resident of a country which does not have a DTAA with India and such foreign company is not required to seek registration under Section 592 of the Companies Act 1956 or Section 380 of the Companies Act 2013,” the statement said.

No retrospective MAT; Govt accepts Shah report

Ending all speculation on the fate of the Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT), Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Tuesday Sep 01,2015 said the government has accepted the Justice AP Shah panel’s recommendation to amend the Income Tax Act, exempting foreign institutional investors and foreign portfolio investors from MAT on transactions prior to April 1, 2015.

BSNL Broadband Users to Get Minimum 2 Mbps From Today Thursday Oct 01,2015

Under this scheme, BSNL is upgrading the speed of existing Broadband plans of 512 Kbps and 1 Mbps to 2 Mbps speed with no extra charge
"The speed upgradation will benefit all the existing and new broadband customers of BSNL. Under this scheme, BSNL is upgrading the speed of existing Broadband plans of 512 Kbps and 1 Mbps to 2 Mbps speed," the BSNL said in a statement.

Note

BSNL launched the broadband services over its landline in India in 2005, with speed of 256kbps and above over the state-of-art multi-protocol label switching (MPLS) -based IP infrastructure in urban as well as rural areas.

State-run telecom service provider Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. (BSNL) on Monday Sep 08,2015 decided to upgrade landline broadband speed to minimum 2 Mbps at no additional cost for broadband customers on pan-India basis from October 01,2015

Truck Operators go on indefinite strike from today Thursday Oct 01,2015

Truckers on Thursday Oct 01,2015 proceeded on a nationwide indefinite strike Thursday morning on the call of All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC) to protest against the present toll system.

Transporters went on indefinite strike after talks between the government and AIMTC delegation failed as the truckers' body said the offer of electronic-toll system by December was not practical.
However, essential commodities like milk, vegetables and medicine have been kept off the purview of the strike

AIMTC is demanding scrapping of toll system terming it a tool of harassment and one-time payment of taxes besides simplification of TDS.
Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari yesterday offered electronic-toll system pan-India by December to address their concerns but made it clear that scrapping of toll system is not possible.
However, AIMTC President Bhim Wadhwa said electronic toll system offered by the Highways Minister is no solution as "E-tolling project of the government is a failed concept... even their pilot project has failed. The partnering banks viz. ICICI and Axis Bank too has distanced itself from the project."
AIMTC President Bhim Wadhwa said one of their demands is TDS provisions on transport trade to Pre-Finance Act 2015 and the Finance Arun Jaitley has assured them to call a meeting with Chairman, CBDT.

Note

Another truckers body AITWA has said that it is not joining the strike.

IDFC Bank Starts Operations with 23 branches from today Thursday Oct 01,2015

IDFC which received Banking Licence from RBI in July 2014  will formally kick-start operations on October 01,2015 with 23 branches and 15 of those will be in three districts of Madhya Pradesh and the remaining 5 branches would be in metropolitan cities like Delhi and Mumbai

Vinod Rai,former Comtroller and Auditor General of India will be the Non Executive  Chairman of IDFC Bank

IDFC has 3 finance subsidiaries -

• IDFC AMC
• IDFC Alternatives and
• IDFC Securities

it has to create a non-operative financial holding company(NOFHC)under IDFC and the 3 finance subsidiaries will have tot be under NOFHC,a 100% subsidiary of IDFC

Remembering Sivaji Ganesan on his birthday(Oct 01,1927 - July 21,2001)Thursday October 01,2015

Viluppuram Chinnaiahpillai Ganesan Manrayar (விழுப்புரம் சின்னையாபிள்ளை கணேசன் மன்றாயர்),popularly known as Sivaji Ganesan ( சிவாஜி கணேசன்)
was born on October 1, 1927 to Chinnaiya Manrayar and Rajamani in a Tamil middle-class Kallar family in Villupuram. His ancestors were from a village called Surakottai in Thanjavur Districy

 Sivaji Ganesan is well known for his versatility and acting skills with numerous roles depicted on screen.In a career spanning 5 decades, Ganesan has performed a variety of characters.


Sivaji Ganesan made his film debut in "Parasakthi"(1952)

The portrayal of Lord Shiva in the movie Thiruvilayaadal (1965)won him lot of accolades.

In the film Navarathiri (1964), Sivaji Ganesan played 9 different roles that represented the nine emotional states of a person

Sivaji Ganesan in ''Deiva Magan'' - Triple Role Played with ease

Memorable films  -

Parasakthi(1952),
Manohara(1953) - well remembered for dialogues
Raja Rani(1956),
Uthama Puthiran(1957) - well remembered for dual acting
Baga Pirivinai(1959)Veerapandiya Kattabomman (1959),
Padikkatha Methai(1960),PavaMannippu(1960)
Pasamalar(1961),Palum Pazhamum(1961),Parthaal Pasitheerum(1961),Padithal Mattum Pothuma(1961),Kappalotiya Thamizhan(1961), 
Balle Pandiya(1962),Aalaya Mani(1962),Kulamagal Radhai(1962), 
Karnan(1963),Paar Magalle Paar(1963),
Puthiya Paravai(1964),Navarathiri(1964), 
Thiruvilayaadal(1965) - well remembered for his performance as Lord Siva
Saraswathi Sabatham(1966), 
Thiruvarutselvar(1967), Kandan Karunai(1967), 
Thirumal Perumai(1968),Uyarntha Manithan(1968),Thillana Mohanaambal(1968),
Deiva Magan(1969) - well remembered for triple role played with such perfection
Vietnam Veedu(1970),Engiruntho Vanthaal(1970),Sorgam(1970),
Savaalae Samali(1971),Moondru Deivangal(1971),Pattikkada Pattinama(1971),
Vasantha Maaligai(1972),Bharatha Vilas(1972),Raja Raja Chozhan(1972),Gnana Oli(1972)
Gauravam(1973) - well remembered for dual acting
Thangappathakkam(1974),Avanthan Manithan(1974),
Dr Siva(1975),
Uthaman(1976),Dheepam(1976),
Annan Oru Lovil(1977),Andaman Kathali(1977),
Pilot Premnath(1978),Thirisoolam(1978),Kavari Maan(1978),
Pattakkathi Bairavan(1979),
Kalthoon(1981),
Theerpu(1982),Thiyagi(1982),
Vellai Roja(1983),Mirudhanga Chakravarthy(1983),
Mudal Mariyathai(1985) - well remembered for subtle acting

won him critical acclaim.

Awards

Sivaji Ganesan has won(Best Actor)TN State Award for the movies -

• Deiva Magan(1969)
• Vietnam Veedu(1970)
• Vasantha Maaligai(1972)
• Gauravam(1973)
• Mudal Mariyathai(1985)

Sivaji Ganesan has won (Best Actor)Filmfare Award for the movies -

• Gnana Oli(1972)
• Gauravam(1973)
• Mudal Mariyathai(1985)

 International Awards
Sivaji Ganesan was the first South Indian film actor to win a best actor award in an international film festival, the Afro-Asian Film Festival held in Cairo, Egypt in 1959 for "Veerapandiya Kattabomman"
 Sivaji Ganesan was awarded the Chevalier in 1995, given by the National Order of the Legion of Honour of France.

Indian Govt. Awards

• Dadasaheb Palke Award in 1997
• Padma Shri in 1966
• Padma Bhushan in 1984

                                                                               

  

                                                                               

 Sivaji Ganesan was considered to be one of the finest  actors in India praised for his body language; his resounding voice and dialogue delivery.He took on roles which most other actors would have refused without any hesitation. But he accepted to play roles like a blind man, a physically handicapped person in Bhaagapirivinai, or a man with a scarred face as in Deiva Magan or a murderer in Puthiya Paravai, or a traitor as in Andha Naal which film had no songs at all and proved everyone that he is such a versatile actor.

Death
Suffering from respiratory problems, Ganesan was admitted to the Apollo Hospital on July 21,2001 and died at 7.45 P.M at the age of 72

His funeral the next day was telecast live on Sun TV and was attended by thousands of viewers, politicians and personalities from the South Indian film fraternity. His eldest son, Ramkumar, performed his last rites at the Besant Nagar Crematorium, Chennai
A documentary, Parasakthi Muthal Padayappa Varai was made to commemorate Sivaji Ganesan's legacy.

Posthumous Honours

Pondicherry was the first state to erect a statue of Sivaji Ganesan in honour of his acting skills and his huge fan base in the state

 

A Statue of Sivaji Ganesan was erected on Kamarajar Road in Chennai,Tamil Nadu to honour the actor and was unveiled by the then Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi on 2006

 

The South Indian Film Artistes' Association as a tribute to Ganesan, declared that 1 October, the birth day of Ganesan, would be observed as Actors' Day by the association

The Govt of Maharashtra has instituted a state award, in the name of Ganesan, which is given under the Best Actor category every year entitled "Sivaji Ganesan Award" 

Postage honouring Sivaji Ganesan

 

Indian Institutes of Management(IIM's)in India

 

The Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) are a group of 19 Public,Autonomous Institutes of Management Education and Research in India

• IIM Calcutta (1961)
• IIM Ahmedabad(1961)
• IIM Banglaore(1973)
• IIM Lucknow((1984)
• IIM Kozhikode(1996)
• IIM Indore(1996)
• IIM Shillong(2007)
• IIM Rohtak(2010)
• IIM Ranchi(2010)
• IIM Raipur(2010) 
• IIM Trichy(2011)
• IIM Udaipur(2011)
• IIM Kashipur(2011)
• IIM Nagpur(2015)
• IIM Gaya(2015)
• IIM Visakhapatnam(2015)
• IIM Amritsur
• IIM Sambalpur
• IIM Sirmaur

IIMs are registered as societies under the Indian Societies Registration Act

Each IIM is autonomous and exercises independent control over its day-to-day operations. However, the administration of all IIMs and the overall strategy of IIMs is overseen by the IIM council.

IIM's  primarily offer Post-Gradiate,Doctoral and Executive Education Programmes 

Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) in India

 

The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are autonomous public institutes of higher education governed by the Institutes of Technology Act, 1961

The Institutes of Technology Act, 1961 lists 16 institutes located at Chennai, Delhi, Guwahati, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Mumbai, Roorkee, Bhubaneswar, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, Indore, Jodhpur, Mandi, Patna, Ropar and Varanasi

Each IIT is an autonomous institution, linked to the others through a common IIT Council, which oversees their administration

The IITs have a common admission process for undergraduate admissions, called IIT - JEE, which was replaced by Joint Entrance Examination Advanced in 2013.

The post-graduate level program that awards M.Tech, MS degrees in engineering is administered by the older IITs (Kharagpur, Bombay, Madras, Kanpur, Delhi, Roorkee, Varanasi, Guwahati)

M.Tech and MS admissions are done on the basis of  Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineeering(GATE)

In addition to B.Tech, M.Tech and MS programs, IITs also award other graduate degrees such as M.Sc in Maths, Physics and Chemistry, MBA, PhD etc

In 2014, six new IITs were announced by the government. In the Union budget presented on 28 February 2015

IIT Tirupati and IIT Palakkad started functioning in June 2015

2015-16 UEFA Champions League Wednesday Sep 30,2015

 

Group A

Malmo FF Vs Real Madrid
Real Madrid beats Malmo 2-0

Shakt Donsk  Vs PSG

Group B

CSKA  Vs PSV

Manchester United Vs VfL Wolfsburg 
Manchester United beats VfL Wolfsburg 2-1

 
Group C

FC Astana Vs Galatasaray 
Atl Madrid  Vs Benfica
  

Group D

Borussia Mönchengladbach Vs Manchester City
Manchester City beats  Borussia Mönchengladbach2-1

Juventus Vs Sevilla 
Juventus beats Sevilla 2-0 

2015-16 UEFA Champions League Tuesday Sep 29,2015

 

Group E

FC Barcelona Vs Bayer Leverkusen
FC Barcelona beats Bayer Leverkusen 2-1

Bate Bor Vs A S Roma
Bate Bor beats A S Roma 3-2

Group F
Arsenal Vs Olympiakos
Olympiakos beats Arsenal 3-2

Bayern Munich Vs Dynamo Zagreb
Bayern Munich beats Dynamo Zagreb 5-0

Group G

FC Porto Vs Chelsea
FC Porto beats Chelsea 2-1

Maccabi Tel Aviv  Vs Dynamo Kiev
Dynamo Kiev beats Macabi Tel Aviv 2-0

Group H

Lyon Vs Valencia
Valencia beats Lyon 1-0

Zenit Vs KAA Gent 
Zenit beats KAA Gent  2-1

This Leopard in Rajasthan,India Found Itself in a Tight S'pot'

 

Considered among the stealthiest and fastest animals in the world,  this leopard found itself in a not-so-graceful spot in Rajasthan,India

Apparently out looking for a drink of water, a leopard in Rajsamand district's Sadulkhera village got his head stuck in a utensil.

The unfortunate creature was finally rescued by forest officials who tranquillized it and then managed to take the pot off his head.

"The male leopard is about three years old. He is being kept under observation. He has been checked by vets and seems to be fine," District Forest Officer of Udaipur range Kapil Sharma.

"He will be released in the forest later. It is difficult to say where he came from because the Kumbhalgarh sanctuary is about 20 kilometres away," District Forest Officer of Udaipur range Kapil Sharma said

Hardik Patel Announces Formation of a New Group'' Akhil Bhartiya Patel Navnirman Sena'' Wednesday Sep 30,2015

 

Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti leader Hardik Patel on Wednesday Sep 30,2015 announced the formation of a new group, Akhil Bhartiya Patel Navnirman Sena, with the aim to unite the Kurmi, Gujjar, Maratha and Patel communities

Hardik Patel, who has been spearheading protests in Gujarat to demand reservations for the Patel community, said at a press conference in New Delhi that the new organisation would try to mobilise support of these communities on the issue of reservation.

"The Akhil Bhartiya Patel Navnirman Sena will fight for the cause of farmers, labourers and youth of the country," he said.

Hardik Patel said he would also fight for reservation in government jobs on the basis of castes.

Earlier, Hardik Patel had said that he would fight for reservation in jobs according to the economic condition of the candidate.

2015 Indian Super League(ISL) October 03 - December 20,2015

 

The 2015 Indian Super League season will be the second season of the ISL,the Football League,since the league was founded in 2013

The 2015 ISL will have 8 Teams and the 2015 ISL season shall kick-off on October 03,2015

The 8 Teams are -

• Atletico de Kolkata
• Chennaiyin FC
• Delhi Dynamos
• FC Goa
• Kerala Blasters
• Mumbai City
• Northeast United
• Pune City

The second edition of Indian Super League (ISL) football tournament will be played from October 3 to December 20, 2015 across 8 venues.

In all, there will be 61 matches played between 8 teams on home/away basis. The top 4 sides, after the league phase, qualify for semi-finals.

Defending Champions
The defending champions are Atletico de Kolkata, who defeated the Kerala Blasters 1–0 in the Final

On the opening day (October 3), Chennaiyin FC will face defending champions Atletico de Kolkata at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai

Antrix(ISRO's commercial arm) to pay $672 million damages to Devas Tuesday Sep 29,2015

In a jolt to ISRO's commercial arm, Antrix, an international tribunal has asked it to pay damages worth $672 million (Rs 4,432 crore) to city-based firm Devas Multimedia for "unlawfully" terminating a deal four years ago on grounds of national security.

The International Chamber of Commerce's(ICC) arbitration body International Court of Arbitration has ruled in our favour in the Antrix-Devas arbitration case and Antrix is liable to pay damages totalling $672 million to it, Devas said on Tuesday Sep 29,2015

"Devas Multimedia and its shareholders, including highly-regarded international investors, are pleased that the ICC Tribunal unanimously ruled in its favor and found that Antrix is liable for unlawfully terminating the Devas-Antrix Agreement in February 2011," Devas said in the statement

The Tribunal awarded damages and pre-award interest totalling USD 672 million to Devas with post-award interest accruing at 18 per cent per annum on that sum until the award is fully paid, it added.

The Tribunal comprising Michael Pryles, VV Veeder QC, and Justice AS Anand gave the order in an unanimous decision. It noted that Antrix had no legal justification for terminating the agreement and that Dr KR Radhakrishnan, who at the time of annulment, was Secretary, Department of Space and Chairman of ISRO, Antrix and the Space Commission, could have prevented the Cabinet Committee on Security(CCS) from approving the annulment.

The CCS had annulled the deal based on the recommendation of the Space Commission on the ground that it was not in the security interests of the country. The UPA government's action had come months after the Comptroller and Auditor General of India came out with a report on 2G scam that had estimated a "presumptive loss" of Rs 1.76 lakh crore due to flawed spectrum allocation process.

Under the deal signed in 2005, Antrix was to provide 70 MHz of the scarce S-Band wavelength to Devas for its digital multimedia services by leasing 90 per cent of the transponders in ISRO's GSAT-6 and GSAT-6A satellites. Devas, in turn, was to pay Antrix a total of $300 million over 12 years.

The award will come up for hearing in the Delhi High Court which has to enforce it.
ISRO Chairman AS Kiran Kumar when asked for his comments said, "Our legal team is looking into it."

2017 ICC Champions Trophy - Bangladesh replace West Indies in top 8 to qualify Wednesday Sep 30,2015

 

Bangladesh will return to the ICC Champions Trophy for the first time since 2006 after the eight sides were confirmed for the 2017 tournament, which will be hosted by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) from 1 to 18 June.

Bangladesh has replaced the West Indies, which finished outside the top eight in ninth position, in the ICC ODI Team Rankings on the September 30,2015 cut-off date

ICC ODI Team Rankings (as on 30 September 2015, top eight sides have qualified for the ICC Champions Trophy 2017):
Rank
1 Australia
2 India
3 South Africa
4 New Zealand
5 Sri Lanka
6 England
7 Bangladesh
8 Pakistan
9 West Indies
10 Ireland
11 Zimbabwe
12 Afghanistan


Bangladesh's last participation in the ICC Champions Trophy was in India, when it featured in the qualifying round. It lost to Sri Lanka (by 37 runs) and the West Indies (by 10 wickets). Its only victory was against Zimbabwe by 101 runs.

The ICC Champions Trophy 2017 will be a 15-match tournament, with teams split into two groups of four, with the top two teams in each group progressing to the semi-finals. The groups and the schedule for the ICC Champions Trophy will be announced in due course

2006 Mumbai train blasts case - Five sentenced to death and seven get life term Wednesday Sep 30,2015

The MCOCA court on Wednesday Sep 30,2015 sentenced five of the 12 convicts to death in the serial bombs blasts in Mumbai local trains in 2006 in which 188 people were killed.

The five convict who have been given death sentence are  - bomb planters Kamal Ahamed Ansari (37), Mohd Faisal Shaikh (36), Ehtesham Siddiqui (30), Naved Hussain Khan (30) and Asif Khan (38)

The convicts' lawyers said that they will move the Bombay High Court against the order

The Seven convicts sentenced to life are - Tanvir Ahmed Ansari (37), Mohammad Majid Shafi (32), Shaikh Alam Shaikh (41), Mohd Sajid Ansari (34), Muzzammil Shaikh (27), Soheil Mehmood Shaikh (43), Zamir Ahmad Shaikh (36)


Prosecution had demanded death penalty for 8 of the 12 accused while it sought life imprisonment for the remaining four in the MCOCA court of Special Judge Yatin D Shinde.

The accused were found guilty of several charges under IPC, Explosives Act, Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and Indian Railway Act and those under MCOCA.

The chargesheet filed by Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) in November 2006 had named 30 accused, out of which 17 are still absconding. The absconding accused comprise 13 Pakistan nationals, include Azam Cheema, an alleged Lashker-e-Toiba member.

The ATS chargesheet had said that Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) were made in a room in Govandi in suburban Mumbai and some Pakistani nationals were also present during the bomb-making.

Seven RDX bombs had exploded in the first class coaches in many suburban trains on July 11, 2006, killing 188 people and injuring 829.

Earlier, on September 11,2015 it had convicted 12 of the 13 accused, all allegedly having links with banned SIMI, while acquitting one