Scientists involved in the project say they have a long way to go as the orbit of the spacecraft has to be raised.


It was moment of triumph for scientists closely involved in the Mars Orbiter Mission. For KS Shivkumar, director of the Isro Satellite Centre where the spacecraft was built, the placing of the Mars Orbiter spacecraft into the orbit around the Earth was like his baby taking its first steps.

“Our baby is up in space looking for scientific objects but we have a long way to go,” he said.

He said that the spacecraft was realised in a record 15 months. The project team has undertaken all contingency measures to ensure that the spacecraft can take decisions on its own in the event of any issue. He said full scale autonomy has been built into the spacecraft which would take decisions on its own and put it on safe mode without a ground intervention.  Developing such a system is a real challenge, he added.

According to AS Kiran Kumar,  director of the Space Applications Centre (SAC), Ahmedabad,   the real challenge lies ahead. “We will have to raise the orbit from 23,000 km to 40,000 km and then to 2 lakh km. Then in the early hours of December 1, the crucial trans-Mars injection would be carried out to enable the spacecraft to undertake its 300 day journey to the red planet,” he said.

Mission director P Kunhikrishnan said, “With the precise injection of the spacecraft in the desired initial orbit, the crucial part of the mission for its long journey to Mars has been achieved. It is the 25th mission of the PSLV rocket.”

Professor Yashpal, founding father of ISRO, lauded India’s effort to chart its own path by launching the mission and not following others. “There are a whole lot of programmes going on in the Isro and the best part is that you are making your own path and not following anyone else’s,” he said.

Professor UR Rao, who had conducted the feasibility study of the Mars mission, said: “It is indeed a great day for India as something that has gone out of our own cradle. I can proudly say India has become mature. I hope we get very good results.” He added, “I was talking to some scientist friends in the US and they told me why Indians are shouting about Rs.500 crore spent on the mission, it

The United Arab Emirates state security court on Tuesday launched the trial of 30 Emiratis and Egyptians charged with setting up an illegal branch of the Muslim Brotherhood.

A total of 24 defendants attended the hearing in Abu Dhabi, WAM state news agency reported, saying that the session was attended by families of the defendants as well as by representatives of civil society and the media.

The so-called "Muslim Brotherhood cell" comprises 10 Emiratis and 20 Egyptians, including six who remain at large.
The judge appointed a three-member medical committee to perform checkups on some defendants, WAM said, adding that he adjourned the hearing until November 12 to allow more time for lawyers to call in witnesses.

Prosecutor Ahmed al-Dhanhani accused the group of having "established and managed a branch for... The international organisation of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, without a permit."

The founders set up an administrative structure aimed at recruiting members for the Muslim Brotherhood, strengthening its presence in the UAE and maintaining allegiance to the main party in Egypt, he said.

The group also "raised money through donations, Zakat (Islamic alms), and membership fees to support" the Brotherhood, he added.

The Egyptian defendants, including doctors, engineers and university professors, were arrested between November 2012 and January 2013, according to Human Rights Watch.

The UAE has not seen any of the widespread pro-reform protests that have swept other Arab states. However, authorities have boosted a crackdown on dissent and calls for democratic reform.

The Gulf emirate strongly supported the July 3 ouster by the Egyptian military of the country's first democratically- elected president -- the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Morsi.

Ties between the UAE, where political movements are banned, and Egypt were severely strained during Morsi's year in power during which the Gulf state arrested a number of Egyptian residents.

The top UAE court in July jailed 69 Emirati Islamists for up to 15 years each on charges of plotting to overthrow the government, at the end of a mass trial criticised by rights groups. 

The "lackadaisical attitude" of Bihar Police in handling the security at Narendra Modi's Patna rally, which was hit by multiple blasts, has peeved the Home Ministry as, even three days after the explosions, live bombs were found at the venue.

"Live bombs were found at the venue after the serial blasts. Live bombs were found a day after the blasts. Live bombs were found two days after the blasts and live bombs were found three days after the blasts," a Home Ministry official said, expressing frustration over the alleged carelessness of Bihar Police.

The official said that reflected how Bihar Police had acted while providing security at the BJP Prime Ministerial candidate's public rally in Patna on October 27.

Gandhi Maidan in Patna, which was the venue for the rally, is a site of hardly 800m x 300m size and it should not be difficult for any police force to scan it before a public function, the official said.

"Live bombs were being discovered at Gandhi Maidan itself for three days after the blasts. That shows how they (Bihar Police) handled the security at the venue," the official said.

Home Ministry has already asked all states to ensure foolproof security for any visit by Modi after he was declared the BJP prime ministerial candidate.

A Home Ministry team, which visited Patna after the serial blasts, had also found that even though the stage, from where Modi had addressed the public, was sanitised and an anti- sabotage drill was carried out, Bihar Police officials were not ready to sign the relevant papers to that effect.

"Perhaps state police officers did not want to annoy their bosses," another Home Ministry official said.

The Centre has already upgraded Modi's security by ensuring that an advance foolproof drill is held wherever he goes ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

The move will ensure that Modi's rally venues are sanitised the same way as is done for the SPG protectees like Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi and former Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani.

The drill, called the Advance Security Liaison (ASL), will see Modi's security detail ensure anti-sabotage checks while the venue is sanitised well in advance in close coordination with local police.

Besides, door-frame metal detectors will be installed at each entry point into the venue and each visitor would be thoroughly checked through multi-layered frisking with hand-held metal detectors.

Every minute of Modi's itinerary will be documented in writing by the police of the state hosting him and will be monitored by officials from the state government and other security agencies. 

The police on Tuesday arrested BSP MP Dhananjay Singh’s wife Jagriti Singh on charges of beating to her maid death and assaulting another domestic help at their South Avenue residence on Sunday night.

Jagriti was picked up for questioning earlier in the day after 17-year-old Rampal testified the MP’s wife beat him and Rakhi, the deceased 35-year-old maid, on Sunday night with an iron rod, sticks, an iron and horns of a dead animal.

But instead of taking them to hospital, the accused, a dental surgeon, gave them first aid at home.

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The police were informed about Rakhi’s death on Monday night though she is believed to have died in the morning. The police have confirmed injury marks were found on the maid’s head, arms, legs and chest.

Jagriti has been booked for murder, attempt to murder and for assaulting a juvenile. The torture of the domestic helps had been going for many months, Rampal has told the police.

This is the third case of abuse of a domestic help in Delhi in the past one month. An airhostess was recently arrested for allegedly assaulting her 13-year-old domestic help and locking her inside the house while she was abroad. In another case, a 50-year-old senior executive in a multinational firm was jailed for brutally assaulting her teenage servant.

Azad Kumar, an electrician who had recently visited the residence, also claimed the BSP MP’s wife used to beat the people employed at her house.

“When I asked her why she would beat up defenseless servants, she slapped me,” he alleged.

Refuting the charges, Dhananjay, an MP from Jaunpur, said his wife had called him three days ago and said the maid had injured herself after a fall from the terrace of the house.
“Yesterday night I again got a call from Jagriti...she said the maid had died. I came from Jaunpur and informed the police," he said.

Sriharikota: India has launched its first mission to Mars on Tuesday at 02:38pm (0908 GMT) from Satish Dhawan Space Centre here in Andhra Pradesh.

The spacecraft was carried onboard the indigenous PSLV-C25 rocket which injected it into Earth's orbit after 40 minutes from lift-off.

The 350-tonne launch vehicle will orbit earth for nearly a month before picking up the necessary velocity to break free from Earth’s gravitational pull.

The Rs 430-crore project, informally known as "Mangalyaan", was approved on 3 August, 2012 and the Indian Space Research Organisation immediately jumped into action to create India’s first interplanetary spacecraft.

"I am extremely happy to announce PSLV-C25 placed Mars Orbiter spacecraft very precisely in elliptical orbit around Earth. Now it will be a complex mission to take the Mars Orbiter from the Earth's orbit to Mars orbit," K Radhakrishnan, ISRO chairman, said.

The Bangalore-based organisation and its 16,000 staff also share their rocket technology with the state-run defence body responsible for India's rapidly evolving missile programme.

So far only three other space agencies including United States’ NASA, Russia’s Roscosmos and the Europe’s space agency have achieved the feat of reaching Earth’s closest neighbour.

Some of the objectives of the mission are to develop the technologies required for design, planning, management and operations of an interplanetary mission and also to study the Martian surface and atmosphere using indigenous scientific instruments.

NASA, which will launch its own probe to study Mars on November 18, is helping ISRO with communications. 

 As a Sachin Tendulkar mania sweeps Kolkata, West Indies operations manager and former skipper Richie Richardson says the little master deserves all the adulation, but that will not affect his focus once he enters the field.

Describing Tendulkar, who plays the 199th and penultimate Test match of his career at Eden Gardens beginning Nov 6, Richardson said: "He has been a great ambassador of the game. He deserves every bit of adulation and celebrations surrounding him. But once he enters the field, the celebrations will not affect his focus."

Tendulkar will be retiring after the second and the last Test - his 200th - at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, Nov 14-18.

Richardson said Tendulkar was a great both as a sportsperson and a human being.

"It is difficult to express in words Tendulkar's contribution to cricket and humanity. What I like most about him is he is humble despite his achievements, and always smiling," said Richardson after Windies' practice session at the Eden Gardens.

"He is a great human being. You do often find somebody who is great at sports, but may be he is not equally great as a person. But Sachin is blessed to be both. People admire him forever," he said.

Richardson said the Caribbeans were happy to be a party in the final two matches of Tendulkar's Test career. "But at the same time we are here to play, to compete and to win."

He praised the Indian team, and said the visitors needed to work hard to make a mark in the two Test series.

"India are playing very well at the moment. They have some very good players, and they will come hard at us. We will have to work hard, but we will be pretty competitive," he said.

Krrish 3, starring Hrithik Roshan, has struck the right chord with the audience and is reaping rich dividends at the box office - it did a business of Rs.72.7 crores within the first three days of its release. The superhero sci-fi is still counting.
Watch Video: Krrish 3 cast spills beans about wild Diwali memories

The figure includes collections from the Tamil and Telugu dubbed versions as well.

Krrish 3 is director-producer Rakesh Roshan's third instalment of the franchise that hit the road to glory in 2003 with Koi...Mil Gaya.

Krrish 3 came out on Friday and collected Rs.25.20 crores on the first day, followed by R .23.20 crores on the second day with impressive Diwali day collections at Rs.24.30 crore, said a statement.

If the audience lapped up Hrithik as superhero again, they have also appreciated the performances by Vivek Oberoi and Kangana Ranaut who play negative characters in the film. Priyanka Chopra is the female lead.

 A defiant Mohamed Morsi today appeared at a court here to face charges of inciting murder and violence during the ousted Egyptian president's year-long rule, even as his high-profile trial was adjourned to January 8.

Morsi, in his first public appearance since the army deposed him in July, called the court "illegal" and asserted: "I am Dr Mohamed Morsi, the president of the republic...".

"This court is illegal," the 62-year-old Muslim Brotherhood leader said, clad in a suit rather than the customary white detention clothes.

He slammed his ouster and demanded that the military leaders, who staged the coup, face trial.

"This was a military coup. The leaders of the coup should be tried. A coup is treason and a crime," Morsi said.

After Morsi's remarks and his refusal to wear a uniform, the judge adjourned the trial until January 8 to allow prosecution and defence to examine documents.

During the trial, Morsi asserted that he is the "legitimate president of the country," appealing to the "Egypt's judiciary not to provide cover for the criminal coup d'etat," in reference to his ouster on July 3.

Supporters of the leader protested outside the court and elsewhere.

At least 10 people died in the clashes at the Ittihadiya presidential palace in December 2012 which broke out after pro-Morsi protesters attacked a sit-in held by opponents of a presidential decree which had granted the Islamist leader expanded powers.

If found guilty, Morsi and 14 others could face lifetime imprisonment or the death penalty.

The deposed Islamist president was brought from a secret military facility where he has been detained for the past four months.

He was flown down to the venue of the trial, a police academy in an eastern district here, by a helicopter.