Obama calls for replacing sequester with balanced approach

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama urged Congress on Saturday to replace automatic across-the-board spending cuts known as the sequester with what he called "a balanced approach," which combines "smart" cuts with reforms.The appeal came the day after the president, complying with the law, signed an order bringing arbitrary cuts worth US$85 billion into force as well as a report by his...

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Suryanelli rape case: Court rejects girl's plea against PJ Kurien

IDUKKI (KERALA): In a relief to Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien, a local court on Saturday rejected a plea by the victim in the Suryanelli gangrape case for a reprobe into the alleged involvement of the Congress leader, holding there was no new ground for a fresh investigation. The victim had filed a petition for a fresh probe into Kurien's alleged involvement in the light of the recent...

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WHO: Slight cancer risk after Japan nuke accident

LONDON (AP) — Two years after Japan's nuclear plant disaster, an international team of experts said Thursday that residents of areas hit by the highest doses of radiation face an increased cancer risk so small it probably won't be detectable.In fact, experts calculated that increase at about 1 extra percentage point added to a Japanese infant's lifetime cancer risk."The additional risk is quite small...

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Sequester: What Will Happen, What Won't Happen

When it comes to critical elements of the sequester timeline, not much is known -- because federal agencies have been tight lipped.Asked when specific effects will be felt, officials at three federal departments declined to discuss the timing of sequester cuts and their consequences. Some departments were waiting for President Obama's Friday night sequester order and subsequent...

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Zionism row risks overshadowing Kerry visit to Turkey

ANKARA (Reuters) - Secretary of State John Kerry will upbraid Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on Friday for his description of Zionism as a crime against humanity, comments which could overshadow his first trip to a Muslim nation since taking office. Kerry is meeting Turkish leaders in talks meant to focus on Syria's civil war and bilateral interests from energy security to counter-terrorism....

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Italy's lefti-wing leader suggests loose alliance to end deadlock

ROME: Italian left-wing leader Pier Luigi Bersani on Friday held out the prospect of forming a minority government based on a loose alliance in parliament following inconclusive elections, as Europe puts on pressure for a quick solution."I am calling it a government of change, which I would take the responsibility of leading," the Democratic Party leader said in an interview with La Repubblica...

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Prepared for arrest on return: Yasin Malik

ISLAMABAD: JKLF chief YasinMalik, who created flutters in India by sharing dais with 26/11 mastermind HafizSaeed in Pakistan, said on Friday he is prepared for confiscation of his passport or his arrest on returning home next week. "I will be flying back to Delhi from Lahore on the regular PIA flight on March 9," Malik said. Asked about calls for the revocation of his passport after Saeed joined...

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WHO: Slight cancer risk after Japan nuke accident

LONDON (AP) — Two years after Japan's nuclear plant disaster, an international team of experts said Thursday that residents of areas hit by the highest doses of radiation face an increased cancer risk so small it probably won't be detectable.In fact, experts calculated that increase at about 1 extra percentage point added to a Japanese infant's lifetime cancer risk."The additional risk is quite small...

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Sequester Set to Trigger Billions in Cuts

Nobody likes the sequester.Even the word is enough to send shivers of fiscal panic, or sheer political malaise, down the spines of seasoned politicians and news reporters. And today, the sequester will almost certainly happen, a year and a half after its inception as an intentionally unpalatable event amid the stalemate of the debt-limit crisis in 2011.Automatic budget cuts will be...

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U.S. will give Syrian rebels medical, food aid, not arms

ROME (Reuters) - The United States will send non-lethal aid directly to Syrian rebels for the first time, Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday, disappointing opponents of President Bashar al-Assad who are demanding Western weapons. More than 70,000 Syrians have been killed in a devastating conflict that began with peaceful anti-Assad protests nearly two years ago. Some 860,000...

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SingPost sets up S$10m fund to help low-wage employees

SINGAPORE: SingPost is setting up a $10 million "Inclusivity Fund", which will benefit its low-wage workers.Over 70 per cent of the fund will go to helping the workers cope with the rising cost of living. This will include retention awards and enhancements to their wages.Part of the fund will also go into training to help them upgrade their skills.Staff with school-going children can also...

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Left pulls off emphatic win in Tripura sweeping 50 of 60 seats

AGARTALA: The Left Front on Thursday retained power in Tripura for the fifth consecutive time, sweeping 50 of the 60 seats and leaving the Congress badly bruised with just 10 seats.Hundreds of Left activists, mainly from the Communist Party of India-Marxist CPI(M), celebrated across the state as election results left the Congress in gloom. The CPI(M) bagged 49 seats while the Communist Party of...

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Medicare paid $5.1B for poor nursing home care

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Medicare paid billions in taxpayer dollars to nursing homes nationwide that were not meeting basic requirements to look after their residents, government investigators have found.The report, released Thursday by the Department of Health and Human Services' inspector general, said Medicare paid about $5.1 billion for patients to stay in skilled nursing facilities that failed to...

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Benedict Pledges 'Obedience' to New Pope

In his farewell remarks to colleagues in the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Benedict XVI, the first pontiff to resign in nearly 600 years, promised "unconditional reverence and obedience" to his eventual successor.Benedict, in a morning meeting at the Vatican, urged the cardinals to act "like an orchestra" to find "harmony" moving forward.Benedict, 85, is spending a quiet final day...

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Iran upbeat on nuclear talks, West wary

ALMATY (Reuters) - Iran gave an upbeat assessment of two days of nuclear talks with world powers that ended on Wednesday, but Western officials said Tehran must start taking concrete steps to ease mounting concerns about its atomic activity. The first negotiations between Iran and six world powers in eight months ended without a breakthrough in Almaty, but they agreed to meet again at...

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Rehabilitative care innovation can alleviate manpower crunch: govt

SINGAPORE: The government said the use of technology not only accelerates the rehabilitation process of patients, but also helps ease manpower shortages in healthcare.The latest in "rehab innovations" for those with disabilities are on display at the inaugural Rehab Tech Asia exhibition in Singapore.The showcase includes a robot arm which allows users who are paralysed in their upper bodies...

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Helicopter scam: I feel ashamed, taxpayers' money can't be wasted, Antony says

NEW DELHI: Defence minister AK Antony has said that the culprits in the VVIP helicopter scam will be punished and any company found guilty in the deal will be blacklisted.Responding to the debate on the chopper deal in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, Antony said, "I feel ashamed of this scam."It's a matter of shame for us every time a scam is reported," Antony said, adding that I want to find the truth...

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Advanced breast cancer edges up in younger women

CHICAGO (AP) — Advanced breast cancer has increased slightly among young women, a 34-year analysis suggests. The disease is still uncommon among women younger than 40, and the small change has experts scratching their heads about possible reasons.The results are potentially worrisome because young women's tumors tend to be more aggressive than older women's, and they're much less likely to get routine...

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Pope Thanks Crowd in Final Public Appearance

On his final full day as the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Benedict XVI thanked a huge crowd for respecting his historic decision to step down and told them that God will continue to guide the church."The decision I have made, after much prayer, is the fruit of a serene trust in God's will and a deep love of Christ's Church," Benedict said to cheers in his last public...

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Italy faces post-vote stalemate, spooking investors

ROME (Reuters) - The Italian stock market fell and state borrowing costs rose on Tuesday as investors took fright at political deadlock after a stunning election that saw a comedian's protest party lead the poll and no group secure a clear majority in parliament. "The winner is: Ingovernability" ran the headline in Rome newspaper Il Messaggero, reflecting the stalemate the country would...

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Keppel secures contracts worth S$200m from repeat customers

SINGAPORE : Keppel Offshore & Marine (Keppel O&M), a unit of Keppel Corp, said its subsidiaries have secured two contracts worth a combined value of S$200 million from repeat customers. In a filing with the Singapore Exchange on Tuesday, Keppel Corp said its Brazil subsidiary, Keppel FELS Brasil, secured a contract with MODEC and Toyo Offshore Production Systems to integrate...

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Suryanelli rape: Govt defends Kurien in Rajya Sabha

NEW DELHI: Government on Tuesday defended Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman P J Kurien, who has been under attack in connection with the Suryanelli rape issue, with parliamentary affairs minister Kamal Nath saying that police inquiries and courts have cleared him of all charges."A section of media and some political members have sought to drag Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Kurien in a rape case. It has...

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Koop, who transformed surgeon general post, dies

With his striking beard and starched uniform, former Surgeon General Dr. C. Everett Koop became one of the most recognizable figures of the Reagan era — and one of the most unexpectedly enduring.His nomination in 1981 met a wall of opposition from women's groups and liberal politicians, who complained President Ronald Reagan selected Koop, a pediatric surgeon and evangelical Christian from Philadelphia,...

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