Kanishtha Dhankhar wins Pantaloons Femina Miss India World 2011

Forty-six years have gone by, but the passage of time does nothing to dim the glow of the foremost beauty pageant of the country. The winners of the Pantaloons Femina Miss India (PFMI) 2011 pageant were declared at a star-studded event at Mumbai's Mehboob Studio. 

Fittingly, two girls from Mumbai won titles on Thursday night. PFMI World Kanishtha Dhankharand PFMI International Ankita Shorey are both from Maximum City. Delhi's Hasleen Kaur was crowned PFMI Earth. In answer to the final question, 'There is a lot that children can learn from mothers but what can mothers learn from children?' Kanishtha said, "Children can learn everything from mothers and vice versa. We live in contemporary India where we have a voice and a choice. Mothers can learn to dream from us, we can set an example for them." 

The PFMI 2011 winners were crowned by PFMI World 2010 Manasvi Mamgai, Miss Earth 2010 and PFMI Earth 2010 Nicole Faria and PFMI International 2010 Neha Hinge. Tarun Jha, head of marketing, Skoda Auto India, handed the winners the keys of the Skoda Fabia as their grand prize. 

The springtime colours of April came to life as the 20 finalists walked the ramp in the Ra' gemstone collection designed by Rajesh and Anirban. Hosts Manish Paul and Sonu Sood welcomed the ladies whose show of confidence likely concealed some serious jitters. This was followed by another spectacular show in white and ivory georgette saris designed by RMKV. Round three saw the girls walk the ramp in scarlet evening gowns by Gaviin C Miguel. As the girls sashayed on stage, one of them lost her shoe, only to have judge Fardeen Khan find it and slip it back on her foot. The Cinderella moment drew spontaneous applause. 

The importance of India's first and foremost beauty pageant which is now in its 47th year can hardly be underestimated, and this was visible in the line-up of star performers who took the stage through the evening. Sonakshi Sinha performed to a medley of songs, including Chura Liya Hai Tumne — perhaps a tribute to former Miss India Zeenat Aman. Punjabi rapper Hard Kaur and a bunch of semi-acrobatic dancers grooved to Laung Da Lashkara. Malaika Arora Khan did her Munni Badnam act, with Dabangg co-star Sonu Sood egging her on. Anushka Sharma danced to Haule Haule, while Sunidhi Chauhan sang Heartbeat. 

Amidst the bunch of 500-odd spectators, it was a small cluster of seats facing the ladies that occupied their attention. The army of judges included Prachi Desai, Kangana Ranaut, Fardeen Khan, Dino Morea Ritu Kumar, Leander Paes, Tarun Mansukhani, Sajid Nadiadwala and Shiamak Davar. Nadiadwala declared Ankita Mohapatra the winner of the Bollywood Diva title. The lucky girl will be cast in a film under the Nadiadwala Grandsons Entertainment banner. 

The crowns for the pageant were designed by Forever Jewellery. The PFMI 2011 contestants underwent an intensive 30-day training session at Novotel, Mumbai Juhu Beach. An accomplished team of experts led these youngsters through the task, namely diction expert Sabira Merchant, cosmetologist and dermatologist Dr Jamuna Pai, smile care expert Dr Sandesh Mayekar, fitness expert Yasmin Karachiwala, rampwalk trainer Alesia Raut and creative director of PFMI 2011, Marc Robinson. The official photographer was Jitu Savlani while the designer and stylist was Gaviin C Miguel. Hair and make-up was taken care of by experts Bharat and Dorris while image and makeover was managed by stylist Queenie Singh. Bharat and Dorris also did the hair and make-up of all contestants at the finale. Prasad Bidappa was contestant advisor. 

The Bollywood Diva Panel comprised Sajid Nadiadwala and Nadiadwala Grandsons as talent partner, Anupam Kher and Actor Prepares as acting mentor and Shiamak Davar as the guru of modern and contemporary dance. 

The title sponsor of PFMI 2011 was Pantaloons, associate sponsors Hewlett Packard, RMKV Unique Silks and Forever Jewellery, telecast partner Sony Entertainment Television and radio partner Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM. The outdoor partner was Times Out of Home, reality series partner Zoom, destination partner Lavasa, official foot fashion partner Liberty, powered by Divine Thoughts. The official car was Skoda, official time keeper Tissot, beauty partner No Marks, official grooming partner Veet and hospitality partner Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach. PFMI 2011 found a radiance partner in Kaya Skin Clinic, while Whyte & Mackay was beverage partner. The event was produced by 360 Degrees Entertainment, while On Cue helped with stage and wardrobe management. Entertainment dance acts were choreographed by Shiamak Davar while Remo D'souza choreographed Anushka Sharma. The on- ground event was conceptualized and executed by Aditya Bhat and the team from Business of Ideas.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/fashion/shows/Kanishtha-Dhankhar-wins-Pantaloons-Femina-Miss-India-World-2011/articleshow/7985588.cms

Sonia Gandhi takes exception to DMK brinkmanship

NEW DELHI/CHENNAI: Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on Monday expressed displeasure over DMK's brinkmanship, telling M Karunanidhi's emissaries that the party's behaviour had been discourteous. 

The plainspeak came even as the sides appeared to be clawing towards a pact, though hurdles remain on Congress's demand to pick the constituencies it wants to contest. 

Sources said Sonia expressed her peeve when Union ministers M K Alagiri and Dayanidhi Maran visited her late on Monday evening as part of efforts to wrap up the seat-sharing talks which tensed the ties to the point of break-up. 

Sources said the Congress president, while being polite, told her visitors that the talks being held now could have been held earlier. Instead, DMK people chose to go public on the differences, sources quoted Sonia as telling the DMK ministers in a clear reference to DMK's threat to pull out its ministers from the Manmohan Singh government. She underlined to her visitors that Congress had been accommodating DMK's political demands all the while. 

DMK's top decision-making body had on Saturday passed a resolution to pull out of the central government, blaming its decision what it called Congress's desire to push it out of the ruling coalition. 

DMK sources said the Congress chief did not get into the details of seat-sharing, stressing that she was more concerned about coalition courtesies. 

Sonia's decision to meet the two DMK ministers, particularly Alagiri who has been playing hardball, was interpreted as signalling a breakthrough. Although she is not the last word on alliances, she does not get into the nitty-gritties of seats 

Congress likely to scale down seat demand 

That she chose to focus on coalition manners and not on Congress's claims in her meeting with the DMK duo kept the issue hanging. Sources said differences between the two sides had come down to 6 seats. Congress is still sticking to its demand for 63 seats, but indications are that it may agree to scale down the demand. Congress has been insisting to chose the dozen seats that it will contest over and above its share of 48 in 2006 polls.DMK has offered that Congress could choose six of those. 

The evening meeting followed day-long confabulations between the two sides. The ice was broken on Sunday night itself when Congress's troubleshooter Pranab Mukherjee established contact with DMK leadership, giving Karunanidhi room to re-engage with Congress. 

Mukherjee contacted Karunanidhi on Monday morning, leading the DMK ministers to put off their plans to pull out of the government. 

The ministers who to visit PMO at 6.30 pm were told by leadership to put off the plan by a day because, Karunanidhi's son M K Stalin claimed in Chennai, Congress had sought more time. 

The six DMK ministers in Manmohan Singh government met in the capital at the residence of Madurai strongman MK Alagiri to hammer out strategy. It was felt that Congress could take six constituencies of its choice while DMK could make that choice for ally in remaining six. Congress too sought one seat more than the tally of 60 to keep its pride intact in the bare knuckle bargaining. 

The DMK patriarch, controlling manoeuvres from Chennai, found his son Alagiri take the hardline of dumping the Congress but preferred the discretion of his younger son MK Stalin. He nominated textiles minister Dayanidhi Maran as the interlocutor with Congress heads in clear signals that he was keen to salvage the alliance after the Saturday night brinkmanship. 

DMK retained its pride because it was Pranab Mukherjee who reestablished the communication with a latenight call to DMK leadership and followed it up with another on Monday. Karunanidhi tried to impress upon Congress his predicament after delimitation because many of DMK's strong constituencies have got split.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Sonia-Gandhi-takes-exception-to-DMK-brinkmanship/articleshow/7651517.cms

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A Rs 10,000cr kerosene black market killed Yeshwant Sonawane

NEW DELHI: A thriving black market in kerosene, estimated to be worth Rs 10,000 crore every year, killed additional collector Yeshwant Sonawane. A litre of kerosene sold at ration shops is often costlier than a bottle of packaged water. Most of this "poor man's fuel" is pilfered and sold in the black market for a price that's two or three times higher.

It's really money for jam. Sonawane tried to meddle with this lucrative illegality and paid with his life. Actually, most enforcement officers make peace with the fuel mafia and get some crumbs from the mafia. It would appear Sonawane didn't.

The oil ministry has tried to work out the maths of this black market. According to its estimates — said to be conservative — as much as 40% of the kerosene supplied for the poor is siphoned off by "organized gangs of mafia proportion". But even going by this estimate, the illegal trade is humungous.

Here's a quick calculation. State-run oil companies annually supply 9-10 million tonne of the fuel for sale through ration shops; 40% of that means almost 4 million tonne — or about 5200,000,000 litres of kerosene — is flowing into the parallel market. At around Rs 31 per litre in the open market, this trade is worth Rs 16,120 crore. That's why the official estimate (done in 2006) is said to be conservative.

"Even at the government-capped price, the value of this diverted kerosene will be huge. Add to that the money these fuel gangs would be making by selling it in the black market for more than twice the controlled price, and you will get a really large trade involving thousands of people," said a senior marketing executive of biggest fuel retailer IndianOil Corporation said.

An interim report by National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) had in 2005-06 said nearly 4-5 million kilolitres of kerosene was being diverted every year. It had put the stakes at Rs 10,000 crore at the time when consumption levels were hovering a tad higher at 10-11 million tonne a year.

Around the same time, a study by National Institute of Public Finance and Planning (NIPFP) said government subsidy gave kerosene an undue price advantage against other fuels and created ground for diversion. The NIPFP study also said kerosene and cooking gas subsidies benefit semi-urban and urban consumers more, respectively, rather than the rural poor. "Decades of subsidies have failed to shift the fuel consumption patterns away from biomass in rural areas."

Oil company executives said about 20% of the total kerosene supplied to the ration shops are used for adulteration of diesel and lubricants used by truckers. Now a substantial quantity is smuggled to Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan as the fuel is priced much higher in those countries. "When the studies were being conducted, kerosene was even being smuggled to Sri Lanka. But it may not be the case now," the IOC executive said.

Oil company executives say that about a third of the diverted kerosene is used as fuel (no doubt, by the poor at a hefty premium). The remaining quantity is used for adulteration or is smuggled out of the country. Usually adulteration with diesel is done in the ratio of 30:70 but in cases it can go upto almost half. "It all depends on how quick a buck the adulterator wants to make or on the diesel supply position," one executive said.

Source:-http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/A-Rs-10000cr-kerosene-black-market-killed-Yeshwant-Sonawane/articleshow/7368515.cms