The Islamic State plans to take over large parts of the world, including almost the entire Indian subcontinent, by the next five years, according to a chilling map that features in a new book on the dreaded terror group.

According to the map, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) plans to take control of the Middle East, North Africa, most of the Indian subcontinent and parts of Europe, within the next five years, to complete its caliphate.

The caliphate — a state governed by Sharia law which ISIS plan to claim — covers areas from Spain in the west to China in the east, the Mirror reported citing the map. The map reveals the calculated way ISIS plans to take over the world by 2020.

According to the map, Andalus is the Arabic name given to the parts of Spain, Portugal and France that were occupied by the Moors from the 8th to the 15th century while the Indian subcontinent would come under ‘Khurasan’.

BBC reporter Andrew Hosken, who includes the map of the targeted areas in his new book ‘Empire of Fear: Inside the Islamic State’, said ISIS wants “to take over all of what they see as the Islamic world.

A seven-step ISIS programme, dating back almost 20 years, includes the US being provoked into declaring war on the Islamic world between 2000 and 2003 and an uprising against Arab rulers between 2010 and 2013, the report said.

ISIS have up to 50,000 members and cash and assets of nearly 2 billion pounds, partly due to their control of oil and gas fields in Iraq and Syria, it said.

“They want to take over all of what they see as the Islamic world. Once they have their caliphate, they plan to turn against the rest of the world. They envisage the whole world being under their rule,” Hosken was quoted as saying.

“They have 60 nations against them, including the United States and Russia, so one would think that is pretty unlikely. But one would have thought the first steps were unlikely as well,” he said.

Hosken says in his book that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who founded the terrorist group that would later become ISIS, in 1996 described the seven-step programme that would lead to Muslim victory by 2020.
“We were so close to destroying them back in 2010-11.

80% of their leaders had been captured or killed and they ended up as a little rump. We didn’t finish them off and like a cancer they came back,” Hosken said.

Mumbai, Aug 11 (PTI) The US dollar ended dearer against the rupee at 64.19/20 per dollar and the pound sterling also finished higher at Rs 100.01/03 per pound at the close of the Interbank Foreign Exchange market today.

Following are the Interbank Forex and RBI rates:

(In Rs Per Unit) Unit Interbank RBI Reference US Dollar 64.19/20 US Dollar Rs. 64.1732 Pound Sterling 100.01/03 Euro Rs. 70.3595 Euro 70.84/86 Japanese Yen(100) 51.

Writes: Dr. Vimal Khawas

Nepali speaking Indians are often confused with the Nepalese of Nepal

ONE OF my friends recently complained to me of being verbally abused by a woman. The immediate basis of the quandary was his motorcycle parked at the allotted space. On that fateful day while the woman was on her way through the area a part of her sari accidentally happened to mesh with the edge of one of the parts of his motorcycle. She allegedly roared at him by means of some of the most improper and unfounded statements as far as the Nepali speaking Indians are concerned. “You Nepalese! You foreigners! I know you people! You people do not know how to live!” were some of her remarks.

The point here is not a mere abuse of an individual by another individual but connotes a much larger issue that needs serious discourse among the responsible Nepali speaking Indian nationals. The victim is a bona fide citizen of India and permanent resident of Kalimpong located in the district of Darjeeling, West Bengal. Like many other Indians he too is struggling in Delhi in search of better economic pastures.

There are Bengalis and Punjabis, for example, with their counterparts residing in other countries such as Bangladesh and Pakistan. But they have never been lamented as Bangladeshis or Pakistanis. In our case, however, the term Nepalese or foreigner has often been used by the mainstream Indians. So where is the problem? Why are Nepali speaking Indians often confused with the Nepalese of Nepal? Why don’t the mainstream Indians appreciate that there are about a crore Nepalis who have been the bona fide citizens of India for generations?

Before going further with the discussion let us be clear with the terms `Nepalese’ and `Nepali.’ The former is basically used to represent people with Nepalese citizenship while the latter is used to denote the Nepali speaking Indian nationals. `Nepalese’ refers to the national identity or nationality of the people of Nepal while the term `Nepali’ connotes the ethnic identity of the Indian Nepalis. Bengali, Tamil, Oriya, Punjabi, etc., are all ethnic identities of respective social groups with Indian nationality. The Nepalese from Nepal have scattered across the length and breadth of the Indian territory and got into the blue-collar jobs notably in the hotel industry, security services and as domestic helps. They are here mainly as seasonal migrant workers who would visit their country from time to time.

Two factors

Two important factors need serious debate here. First, India and Nepal signed a Treaty of Peace and Friendship on July 31, 1950. Among other things Article 7 of the treaty grants, on reciprocal basis, to the nationals of one country in the territories of the other the same privileges in the matter of residence, ownership of property, participation in trade and commerce, movement and privileges of a similar nature. The treaty is, however, silent with respect to the impact of such agreement on the already settled and bona fide Nepali Indians. Over the years on the strength of this agreement the Nepalese have been crossing the borders and spreading across the Indian territory.

Secondly, the crux of the issue has been the ill reputation carried by the Nepalese in India. Take the following points that appeared in a leading newspaper in the capital as examples: `A Nepalese servant strangles a 60-year-old woman,’ `A Nepalese servant killed a 62-year-old businessman,’ `A retired lieutenant colonel and his wife were murdered by their Nepalese servant.’

What are the repercussions of such activities of the Nepalese on the settled Nepali speaking Indians? They look identical; speak almost the same language with some dialectical variations; and bear similar names. The consequences of their deeds and misdeeds have, however, often to be borne by the settled Indian Nepalis.

Alternative arrangement

The government of India either needs to abrogate this treaty or the settled Indian Nepalis have to be protected from such onslaughts by some other means. The GNLF led `Gorkhaland’ agitation had rightly highlighted this grave issue before the relevant authorities in the 1980s. But the agitation petered out before achieving any of its objectives. Mention should, however, be made that the GNLF led by Mr. Ghisingh has been successful in bargaining for and negotiating an alternative arrangement for the settled Indian Nepalis and other social groups of the Darjeeling hills in the recent talks held in New Delhi.

It is time to highlight relevant issues such as the ones mentioned above before the government. Since the Darjeeling hills and Sikkim are the places where the Nepali speakers constitute a majority of the inhabitants, it is from these regions that voices towards these ends need to originate.

Jacqueline Fernandez, the gorgeous Sri Lankan model and actress debuted in the tinsel town with her film Aladin in 2010 for which she even bagged an IIFA best debut award and Stardust award. Post that, there was no looking back for her as she went on to work in successful ventures like Murder 2, Race 2, Housefull 2 and Kick. This stunning beauty will soon be seen in director Karan Malhotra’s Brothers opposite Akshay Kumar. As Jacqueline celebrates her 30th birthday on August 11, astroYogi takes a look at what is in store for her:

New York, Aug 11 (IANS) Silicon Valley giants Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and Twitter are working with Britain’s Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) to implement a new system that will help detect and block images of child pornography online.
IWF, a charitable foundation, has introduced a new technology that enables it to tag images of sexual abuse with distinct hashes — sort of codes that act like a digital fingerprint, The Verge reported.
Once a hash is assigned to an image, it’s unique to it, making it easy to identify a specific image.
The IWF keeps a record of all the hashes, which it has only shared with the five tech companies so far, but plans to roll out to others soon.
Once the system is implemented, any image that is uploaded to Facebook, Twitter or any other participating website is scanned.
If the image has previously been tagged by the IWF, the system will detect its hash and automatically prevent it from being uploaded — and thus from being shared.
Google has long scanned the images that pass through Gmail for child pornography. Now, the joint support of the tech giants should help widen the net.

Washington D C, Aug. 11 (ANI): Chinese company OPPO has released its new smartphone in India called Mirror 5.
According to the in.techradar.com, Mirror 5 sports a 5-inch display. OPPO’s Mirror 5 is relying on their customized version of Android-flavoured interface called ColorOS 2.1, which is based on Android 5.1.
The device packs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 1.2 GHz Quad-Core 64 bit processor with 2GB RAM plus 16GB ROM, 3G connectivity along with dual-SIM support. It comes with a 5MP front camera and 8MP rear camera and 1.4um pixel size.
OPPO said in a statement that with 11 different built-in filters for one-step image enhancements, the user can effortlessly edit and create excellent images without downloading additional apps.
OPPO Mirror 5 will be available in two variants of white and blue colour options.
Also, the Mirror 5 comes fitted in a bi-metallic frame and cross beams. It has a diamond-like mirrored surface, which the company claims has been crafted using a sophisticated ultraviolet embossing technique
OPPO Mirror 5 will be priced in India at Rs 15,990. (ANI)

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that Aadhar card is not mandatory for the citizens.

Here are five important things you should know:

A Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court ruled today that the citizens of India are not mandatory required to have Aadhar card. The court has even instructed the Central government to publicise the decision widely.

The court ruled that Aadhar card will remain optional for availing various welfare schemes of the government.

However, Aadhar card will continue to be required for PDS and LPG distribution system.

The court also directed the authorities to ensure that no personal information of Aadhar card holders is shared.

The court has allowed the use of details of Aadhar card holders for criminal investigations.

n conversation with the stunning Sunny about films, roles, love and more…
A glamed up doll with bright red lips, or pink maybe, a super hot outfit that’ll make every girl go green with envy and a lot of starry tantrums – that’s what I expected when I went for my first interview with Sunny Leone! Well, she was running late by an hour and my doubts about the starry tantrums were only reaffirmed. Also while I was waiting, I was thinking of how to tackle her clingy husband, Daniel Weber. At least that’s what I had heard that he’s like this body guard who doesn’t give her any space and would not let me ask questions and… well a lot of other things. And then…

Someone called me and I looked up to see Daniel smiling warmly at me and apologizing for the delay. I have to say I was surprised by his humility. He walked me to Sunny and I froze, thankfully for just a fraction of a second. And no, it wasn’t because of her stunning beauty (which BTW is true), but because I saw this petite girl dressed in a pair of denims and fancy red top curling up her nude lips in a sweet smile. She got up to greet me and soon my nervousness vanished leading me into an easy, smooth conversation with Sunny about life in Bollywood, controversies and troubles, dream roles and films, love and romance, and much much more.

And guess what? Her so-called clingy husband sat far away, on another table, all by himself. Not monitoring, not disturbing and not being clingy at all! Whoever bestowed that awful title on Daniel must have been insanely jealous of him! Anyway…

Here’s what I talked about with Sunny ‘Not So Starry’ Leone…

How’s Bollywood treating you?

So far so good! Daniel and I work together most of the time. We’ve had a lot of ups, we’ve had a lot of downs. I’d say more ups than downs, which is a good thing. It hasn’t been easy. To the outside world, when somebody peers into our world, it looks like everything has come so easy, but it hasn’t. It’s been a struggle. There’ve been moments when we definitely get hit hard and then we just bounce back haste fast because we have to keep working.

Which would you say was the worst moment of them all…

Recently with this lady that filed an FIR. It was probably one of the worst moments.

Do you plan on taking any action against this unwanted trouble that comes your way because of your past?

In this country it’s not something that’s easily done. There are no laws protecting different artists and celebrities or people that are in entertainment. There are no laws against defaming, there are no laws against people writing and doing crazy things. So until those laws are in place, there’s not much I can do. I have to just take it. We are working towards coming to some sort of resolution with all this. God-willing that’s going to happen. I’m not here to offend anybody, I’m not here to continue the path that I was on. I’ve come to India to start a new life, to start something that is not a part of my path. I’ve come here to make a new future.

You’ve always maintained that you loved everything about the adult industry. But of late there’s been a sudden change in your statements. Why so?

Because I’ve been forced to! I still love everything about the adult industry but I’ve been forced to say that I’m here to do this (work in Bollywood) because people are so horrible and mean. Not everybody, but there are certain groups, certain sections who seem to have a personal vendetta against me because I’ve hurt them so horribly (laughs sarcastically)… I don’t get it. I have to start clarifying my reason for being here because of those people. And also because the media has made it such a big issue. If the media didn’t recognize my porn star past as a big issue it wouldn’t have become so big.

But in a culture like India’s, your past might still have been a problem even without the media’s help…

It still would have been something I had to deal with but if it wasn’t created into such a huge thing with the media and online circulation then those people would have never gone to that level because all this is being done for publicity.

You’ve said the same thing about Celina Jaitley and Rakhi Sawant’s statements too

My response is pretty much the same every time. I never say anything bad about anybody. And also it is non-sense. So if those two want to be categorized in the same group of people who create non-sense then what am I supposed to do. I can’t call her and say why are you doing this, this is not true or why are you doing all these mean things. They are just doing it for publicity.

Coming to the work front, what’s the update on Mastizaade and Tina and Lolo?

My producers are very secretive. They don’t even give me an update. I know that they’ve been working very hard and hopefully we’ll have an answer soon.

I heard that the films have been shelved…

That’s just something the media started. Nothing’s over yet. It’s (Tina and Lolo) still in the process of being approved and it will be a real shame if it doesn’t because it’s actually a great film and it’s so funny. It’s not as crazy as people think. May be it might be because my outlook of cinema is very different than other people. I don’t take it seriously; it’s all fiction. The great thing is that is you don’t like that kind of content you don’t have to buy a ticket. No body’s forcing you to watch it. I play twin sisters Tina and Lolo and I love both characters.

All you characters so far have always been glamorized. Do you think it’s because of your past or is it that you aren’t ready to leave your comfort zone yet?

There are a lot of movies that I signed a long time ago and they finished all around the same time. So it looks like they are all very very similar. But next few movies that I’m working on are in this very serious drama zone and a few comedies too.

No matter what the story, your films are always marketed around your sexuality, like Ek Paheli Leela had a lot more than just skin show. Are you okay with it or do you not have a say in it?

I don’t really have a say in how they take it forward. Certain things I definitely voice saying that I don’t like this and I won’t promote it, you can do whatever you want… because at the end of the day it is owned by somebody else. So how they showcase something is really upto them. If I don’t like it I don’t promote it.

You said in one of your earlier interviews that you choose films based on scripts. Would the criteria be same if the film starred the Khans, Kumars or Kapoors?

Whenever I’ve watched any of the films of Shah Rukh or Salman, I’ve realised they don’t really make films that are boring. They usually make films that are very very interesting for the most part; a couple of them might not have been so great, but mostly they are. So it works out for the best. But if I were offered a character in one of their films that I didn’t like, I wouldn’t do it. I mean it has to be something I’m comfortable with… A couple of movies that I’ve watched, not theirs, like different movies… I felt like that’s not the zone I want to be in. But yes if an A-List actor wants me to do a cameo I’d say yes and if they asked how much I wanted, I’d say absolutely nothing! You know at that point it’s only about working with people you’ve admired for so many years. It’s the same thing as in the US, if Leonardo Dicaprio’s camp asked me if I wanted to do a cameo in his film I wouldn’t ask for money. I would do it because I’ve been dying to work with him.

So far, all your films have been centered around you, but if you sign a film with one of the A-Listers, aren’t you worried that the focus would shift?

If I were being side-zoned by Mr Salman Khan, I don’t care. It would be fine, even Shah Rukh. It’s not that I want a film to be all about me, I just want to make a good product.

Daniel too is making his Bollywood debut with Dangerous Husn. Can we expect to see you two pair up onscreen?

I actually want to make a film with Daniel. It’s all about finding the perfect script that captures his personality and mine and the chemistry we have. So it has to have these elements in the movie that really capture who we are naturally. I don’t know if I’m making sense… Like if I ever think of a movie that Daniel and I could have been in, it is Mr and Mrs Smith. Even though it’s an action movie, I almost feel like some of the scenes that these two have are actually how they are in real life because they are so natural.

How would you define your personality and Daniel’s in one word?

It’s very difficult to define Daniel in one word!

Okay you can use more…

Daniel is extremely grounded; he is extremely smart when it comes to business – handling the company, handling my career and his own. He’s very very organized and he’s very sharp. And something that people don’t know about him is that he’s very silly. He’ll never show you, you’ll probably never see that side of him; but I’m the lucky one and I get to see that every day. I see a different Daniel from what people see – a loving, caring one who makes me laugh all day long. He’s very supportive.

When it comes to my personality, people visualize and think that I’m exactly how they see on TV or what people try to portray me as. But if they spent 5 minutes with me they would know that I’m very goofy, I’m a little clumsy, I’m very determined when it comes to my job. I’d rather be working every single day than take a vacation. I work a lot.

Is Daniel a workaholic too?

Oh yes! We are both workaholics, but we spend some amazing time together. Every single morning we make breakfast together and we sit and we eat together. We talk about anything and everything. And it’s very rare that we have an argument (let me knock wood here so we don’t have a fight later). Obviously we disagree like any normal couple but we talk it through and reach a compromise. It’s never my way or the highway… that doesn’t work in a relationship. So it’s all about give and take.

From what you’re saying, your idea of romance sounds very different from the Spiltsvilla idea of romance…

Well Spiltsvilla is a very teenage, early 20s kind of romance. We all know what kind of mental state we were in when we were 19 or 20 and what we are in now which is may be 5 years or 10 years or even 15 years later. The decisions we make in our teens and early 20s are all based on our hormones (laughs). There can’t be anybody older than 25-30 who can disagree with this because that’s just the way it is. Those dolphins that we have in our tummies when we meet someone for the first time, it dictates a very irrational decision. Spiltsvilla is very young love… We put the couples in different situations that challenge them mentally and physically.

But a lot of your challenges objectify both men and women…

Well when you watch any reality show whether it’s in India, whether it’s in the US, whether it’s anywhere, part of the lure of watching is seeing things and doing things that you would never do in real life. May be that’s what the youth wants; they want to be hot and good looking. It might seem like objectification to the older group but not to them… they’re the ones doing it, we dint force them to do anything. Like the theme this season is ‘what women want, what women love,’ so I would remind these girls, and so would Ranvijay, that if you don’t want to do something, you need to speak up. And we’ll never force anybody to do something they don’t want to. The boys just did whatever they wanted any way, but for the girls on the show, we did emphasize that if they are uncomfortable, they need to speak up.

Any particular role or reality show or TV show you want to take up?

I really always wanted to play a superwoman. I know actors often say that they want to play this serious role or that serious role and make this type of art film… I just want to make entertaining cinema and I want to have fun doing it. And I always wanted to be a superhero, since I was a little kid.

And what would your super power be?

I would definitely want some sort of flying and some sort of super strength to be able to move things out of my way… I don’t know if I’ll ever get to do it, but yes that’s something that interests me.

You once said that your parents were very religious and that you visited the temple every weekend as a child. Do you still?

As a kid I went to the Gurudwara every weekend and my brother and I were forced to do kirtan. Now I realize that it was a good thing. In fact, Daniel and I had a Punjabi wedding; we got married in a Gurudwara. Since both my parents had passed away, it was very important to me that even though they are not here, the tradition got carried forward.

You say you’re a big fan of Priyanka Chopra and Aishwarya Rai and that you’d be starstruck on seeing them. But now that you’ve achieved so much, would you still?

Oh my gosh, yes! I so haven’t met them and I so want to meet them.

Hinthada (Myanmar), Aug 10 (AFP) The death toll from severe flooding across Myanmar has topped 100, state media reported today, with nearly one million people affected as fears intensify for the country’s crucial rice bowl region.

Floods from a heavy monsoon season have cut through swathes of South and Southeast Asia in recent weeks, claiming hundreds of lives and displacing millions.

Myanmar, one of Asia’s most impoverished countries, has been hit particularly hard by weeks of torrential rain with 12 out of 14 states and regions suffering flooding.

International aid has been stepped up in recent days following an official government request for help.

The Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper Monday gave updated government figures, of “more than 100” dead and “nearly one million” people affected nationwide by the inundations.

More than 1.2 million acres (486,000 hectares) of rice fields are currently under water, with more than 430,000 acres destroyed by the floods, the paper added.

Four regions have been designated disaster zones, with the cyclone-battered western state of Rakhine particularly hard hit.

In recent days fears have grown for rising waters in the the more downstream areas of the Irrawaddy basin and its delta, two key agricultural areas close to the commercial hub Yangon.

Citing the weather bureau, the Global New Light of Myanmar said river levels had dropped slightly on Sunday but “still remained above their designated danger levels”.

Myanmar’s previous junta government was accused of indifference in its sluggish response to Cyclone Nargis in May 2008, a crisis which at least 138,000 people dead or missing.

The country is set for a general election in November and the floods have taken on a political dimension, with both the quasi-civilian government and opposition — led by Aung San Suu Kyi — at pains to show they are reacting speedily to the floods.

President Thein Sein was pictured visiting relief efforts yesterday in the Irrawaddy region as army chief Min Aung Hlaing made trips to the western states of Sagaing and Chin.

But many of those hit by the flooding appear not to be relying on government help, either trying to cope alone or turning to local monasteries or community groups.

Authorities have insisted that the election set for November 8 will go ahead despite the floods, even as they try to assess the scale of the damage.

Mumbai, Aug 10 (PTI) Mumbai Police today filed a charge sheet against 35-year-old corporate lawyer Jahnvi Gadkar, who is accused of mowing down two persons here on June 10 under the influence of alcohol.

“We have filed a 560-page charge sheet against the accused. We have made it a watertight case,” said an official of the police department.

The official said the document includes statements of 57 witnesses, wherein the statements of 14 witnesses were recorded in court under the provisions of section 164 of Criminal Procedure code.

The charge sheet, which was filed before Kurla Metropolitan Magistrate court here, contains the statements of Gadkar’s friends and doctors. The document also contains her medical reports, reports from RTO, postmortem reports and other forensic reports, besides CCTV footage from hotel and other evidences.

Gadkar, who was present in the court today, was granted bail on August 5 by the sessions court.

Two persons — Mohammed Abdul Sayyad (55) and Mohammed Salim Sabuwala (50)– were killed when Gadkar’s car rammed into their taxi on June 10.