Here are some important reports from the biggest newspapers of India:
1. Soon, phone landline via WhatsApp
You may soon be able to dial landline or mobile phone numbers from popular internet apps such as Skype, WhatsApp or Viber, following clearance for inter-connect agreements between internet service providers and telecom operators by an interministerial panel of the government on Monday, as per a report in Times of India.
The move may result in substantially lower charges for voice calls (which would be billed as per data usage), though poor quality of internet networks - a general irritant with broadband services in many parts of the country - could be a dampener.
2. J&K Police butcher sheep to prove murder theory using an analogy
The murder of 21-year-old engineering student Owais Bashir Malik from Peerbagh — which made headlines after police claimed he was killed by a boy pretending to be a girl — has taken a new twist.
To prove their theory that stray dogs had torn apart Malik's body after the murder, Jammu and Kashmir Police recently slaughtered a sheep and left the carcass at the same spot, said a report in The Indian Express.
"The body was recovered in a mutilated condition and the deceased's chest had severe injuries. But according to the confession of Railway Police personnel, who moved the body away from the tracks, it was in an okay condition when they moved it from the spot (where the accused left the victim) to where it was later found. That created doubts over whether the body had been mutilated and eaten by stray animals," reads the chargesheet, written in Urdu and filed by the police before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Budgam.
3. Government to set up bureau to run canteens for poor
Canteens to provide cheap yet nutritious meals to the poor was among the real ‘aam aadmi’ proposals in Delhi finance minister Manish Sisodia’s budget that the presented on Monday.
Akin to the ‘ Amma Canteens’, which were started by Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa, the Delhi editions of the initiative will be implemented by a special organisation — Bureau of Affordable Meals. Finance Minister Sisodia has allocated a budget of ` 10 crore annually for the initiative. The bureau will run canteens where people will be able to eat hygienic food at affordable rates.
4. Mother tongue costs woman her bank job
A Kerala-based woman engineer was denied job in the Himachal Pradesh Gramin Bank because her mother tongue is Malayalam, not Hindi.
Twenty-four year old Binithamol P Vijayan approached the Supreme Court with her plea that denial of job on the ground of mother tongue violates her right to work, the Hindustan Times reported.
Justice J Chelameswar’s bench Monday agreed to examine the case and has sought the bank’s response. The Reserve Bank of India, the Centre and the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection were told to submit their stand.
5. Water crisis looms as dearth of rains dries up reservoirs
The water situation in parts of the country has reached alarming proportion after an extended period of deficit rain, including two consecutive monsoon failures, requiring states to take urgent steps to avert a looming crisis, a top official told The Economic Times.
This has already hurt hydropower generation and can delay planting of pulses, cotton, paddy and millets in western and southern states where water level has fallen drastically unlike northern India where some reservoirs are in a relatively better position.
"The situation is alarming as of now. We will soon be sending advisories to state governments for judicious use of water from reservoirs. Better planning can rescue states in the next few months if rains are delayed or not widespread," said GS Jha, chairman of Central Water Commission, which monitors the country's water situation.
6. 2 years on, 164 buyers will get flats
One of the longest waits for a flat seen across real estate markets will come to an end later this year when 164 homebuyers will get their houses, 12 years after bookings opened for the project.
The developer of Parsvnath Exotica in Gurgaon's Sector 53 appears ready to hand over possession of flats having applied for occupancy certificates from the department of town and country planning (DTCP). Bookings for these flats - some of whose wings have been completed and are inhabited - were taken in 2004, as reported in Times of India.
7. Ganesan became dad last month
Infosys techie Raghvendran Ganesan, 31, who had been missing since the twin terror attacks that shook Brussels on March 22, was confirmed dead late Monday evening. Following a DNA test, the Belgian authorities identified him as the sole Indian victim of the terror strikes that have killed 35 people and injured over 300.
Ganesan went to Brussels four years ago to work on an Infosys project with Proximus. He became a father just last month. His wife Vaishali and 40-day-old son are currently in Chennai, as reported by the Times of India.
Ganesan's last call had been traced to the Metro in the Belgian capital. He took the Metro route for work every day and had last spoken to his Mumbai-based parents over Skype just an hour before the attacks. A friend said he had even marked himself safe on Facebook after the two blasts at the Zaventem airport.
8. In West Bengal, a sweet snack becomes election issue
One of West Bengal’s most popular sweets is at the centre of a bitter poll battle in the South 24 Parganas district with rival political parties claiming credit for getting it the prestigious geographical indicator (GI) status.
The ruling Trinamool Congress and the Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist) both say they were instrumental in getting the GI tag for the Joynagar Moa, a perishable jaggery-based snack, the Hindustan Times reported.
The GI tag is an internationally recognised mark that prevents things produced elsewhere to be passed off as original. The tag is important for local businessmen struggling to fend off competition from cheaper “duplicates” that hurt the business of around 15,000 families in the area.
9. Pathankot air base: Ahead of Pak JIT visit, two witnesses ‘missing'
Ahead of the Pakistan JIT's visit to probe the attack at the Pathankot air base, two of the three men who saw the terrorists from close quarters could not be located.
Jeweller Rajesh Verma, SP Salwinder Singh's friend, was not at home and his family members were tightlipped about his whereabouts. His shop was closed, too.
Meanwhile, Madan Gopal, SP Singh's cook, had left home last week. The family had no clue about his whereabouts, reported The Indian Express.
10. Telecom panel says hello to virtual mobile operators
Consumers are set to get more choices for voice and data services while telecom companies will have additional options to monetise unused airwaves, as the government has allowed virtual network operators to set up shop in India.
Virtual network operators (VNOs) provide mobile services without owning spectrum or mobile infrastructure. Typically, a VNO buys bulk talk time and bandwidth from a telecom operator and resells that to users under its own brands, reported The Economic Times.
The Telecom Commission on Monday approved a new category of unified licence for virtual network operators, with an entry fee of Rs 7.5 crore for those who want to offer all services.For others, the fee would range from Rs 15 lakh for national-level Internet services to Rs 1.25 crore for a long-distance telecom licence. The permits would be valid for 10 years.
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