J.K. Rowling's new book will be 'The Casual Vacancy'

J.K. Rowling has written her first book for adults, and on Thursday the title was announced. The novel, described as "darkly comic," will be called "The Casual Vacancy." On its website, publisher Little, Brown has posted a thumbnail description of the book:

When Barry Fairweather dies unexpectedly in his early forties, the little town of Pagford is left in shock.

Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war.

Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils...Pagford is not what it first seems.

And the empty seat left by Barry on the parish council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations?

Rowling's "The Casual Vacancy" will be published worldwide on Sept. 27. It is not quite 500 pages long. Unlike the Harry Potter books, it will be released simultaneously in print book and as an e-book.

Kid Sells Kidney for iPad 2, Regrets Transaction

So, the iPad 2 is a pretty cool device, right? What would you be willing to do to get your hands on one? Pay someone $900 to stand in line for three days? Shell out $13,500 because it's sold out? Maybe even sell your kidney?
Apparently one Chinese teen thought that last idea wasn't such a bad one. Shanghai Daily reports that a 17-year-old student in Anhui Province -- identified only by his surname, Zheng -- sold his kidney to buy an iPad 2.
According to Shanghai Daily, the boy "wanted an iPad 2 but could not afford it." However, a "broker" (aka black market organ hustler) contacted the boy online and offered to help Zheng sell his kidney for 20,000 yuan (about $3100). Apparently Zheng was so desperate for an iPad 2 that he agreed to the transaction, traveled to Chenzhou City in Hunan Province, and had his right kidney removed at Chenzhou No. 198 Hospital.
He was paid his 22,000 yuan (about $3400) right after the removal. He then went home. His mother questioned him after he showed up with a brand-new Apple tablet, and he confessed to her that he'd sold his kidney. She immediately contacted the police (by the way, selling organs on the black market is totally illegal), and they opened an investigation. They were unable to contact the agents Zheng had worked with -- because said agents' phones were mysteriously always switched off.
Zheng has since had post-surgery issues -- the hospital, after all, was reportedly not qualified to perform an organ transplant. The hospital also claimed they had no knowledge of the surgery, though they did admit to contracting out the urology department to a Fijian businessman. That's not sketchy at all.
The case remains under investigation, and Zheng's health continues to deteriorate. Needless to say, Zheng now regrets selling his kidney for an iPad 2.
Even if they never catch the organ brokers, I hope Zheng recovers -- and never ends up in a situation in which he needs more than one kidney.

Leonardo DiCaprio Highest-Paid Actor in Hollywood: Report

Looks like Leonardo DiCaprio is king of the world, or over the last year, at least the king of Hollywood.

The Inception actor took in an estimated $77 million last year, on the back of that and Shutter Island, according to Forbes magazine's "Hollywood's Highest-Earning Actors" list. DiCaprio, who leapt from fifth last year to the top this time around, made his money from upfront fees and a slice of the films' profits.
DiCaprio displaced last year's number one actor, Johnny Depp, who earned $50 million in 2010. Depp could be back on top again next year on the back of his reappearance as Jack Sparrow in this year's Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
Rounding out the top five are Adam Sandler with $40 million; Will Smith with $36 million; and Tom Hanks with $35 million. Ben Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr., Mark Wahlberg, Tim Allen and Tom Cruise completing the top 10.
Forbes based its ranking on box office take from May 2010 to May 2011, with the 15 actors ranked taking a combined $473 million during that period.

Clock Ticking For King Fisher Airlines!!

The clock is ticking for India’s Kingfisher Airlines. Analysts say Vijay Mallya, the airline’s flamboyant billionaire chairman, has little time left to sort out the cash-strapped carrier’s financial troubles or it risks facing bankruptcy.
The raft of problems – growing debts, loan payment defaults and unpaid tax and salary dues – that first emerged late last year when the airline shuttered its low-cost operations are quickly becoming insurmountable, they say.
 

The airline, which has lost almost 70 per cent of its market value in the past 12 months, needs at least Rs6bn ($114m) immediately to keep its aircraft flying and retain disgruntled pilots and stewards, many of whom have not been paid in months.
Mr Mallya, who also owns India’s largest liquor group, in November said he was close to sealing a deal with a private investor to put $250m into the airline. So far, no such deal has been announced.
Kingfisher has declined to comment further.
“Without an external injection of liquidity, [Mr Mallya] cannot continue to run his airline,” says Sharan Lillaney, aviation analyst at Angel Broking. “In fact, it’s a miracle the airline is still standing.”
The likelihood that the airline will secure a Rs6bn lifeline from banks is also slim, given that two lenders on Friday said that Kingfisher had defaulted on loan payments.
“We agreed to restructure the loan once all the terms of the first round of restructuring have been met, except for a fresh capital infusion,” N. Seshadri, executive director at Bank of India, told local media.
Kingfisher is spending more money than it is making primarily due to rising fuel prices and a bruising price war set in motion by state-run Air India, factors that present a challenge to all of India’s private airlines.
The latest blow for the struggling carrier was a warning last week by the aviation regulator that the airline’s financial trouble could affect passenger safety. Kingfisher said it was operating all its flights with “utmost safety”.
Since its financial problems emerged in November, the airline has fallen from India’s second-largest domestic airline – carrying just under a fifth of domestic passengers – to fifth place, transporting 14 per cent of the 55m people flying in India.
In the absence of a fresh investor, analysts say one of the few remaining solutions for Mr Mallya would be to sell a stake in United Spirits, his liquor group, to raise funds for Kingfisher. Diageo, the world’s biggest spirits company by sales, is known to be interested in the company, India’s largest beer and whisky vendor.
It is unclear whether the tycoon would consider that option, but Mr Mallya’s personal sacrifice would be welcomed by bankers, who have said they would then be more open to restructuring Kingfisher’s debt if he were to show willing. This may also be his best shot at keeping control of the airline, say analysts.
If the tycoon fails to inject fresh liquidity into Kingfisher, the airline’s creditor banks could be forced to step in and oust the colourful founder. “The banks have a large stake in the airline [and] they would rather take it over than lose all of their money,” says an analyst who did not want to be named.
A consortium of mainly state-owned banks controls more than 20 per cent of Kingfisher and risks losing about Rs65bn lent to the airline. None of the banks would comment on the matter and many banking industry experts believe it is unlikely that they would want to take over and thus have to run the carrier. Before mounting any takeover, Banks would want the government to make the first move, analysts say.
Ajit Singh, India’s aviation minister, has suggested allowing foreign airlines to buy a minority stake of up to 49 per cent in domestic carriers. New Delhi currently prohibits foreign airlines from investing in Indian carriers.
Analysts say any move on Kingfisher by its banks would hinge on the government opening up the sector, as it would provide the possibility of selling their stake to a foreign carrier at a later stage.

None of India’s domestic airlines is in a financial position to take over Kingfisher’s debts. Most are also struggling to survive, though none are in as critical a condition as Kingfisher.
“Kingfisher is not immune from bankruptcy ... Other airlines have gone bust before in India,” says Mr Lillaney.

Akmal cleared for selection

LAHORE - Pakistan's troubled wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal could finally make a comeback to the national team for the ODI and Twenty20 match against Bangladesh later this month. Reports attributing from the Pakistan Cricket Board said that Kamran, who has been out of favour since the 2011 World Cup, was only allowed to train with the Pakistan team at the National Cricket Academy last week after the board gave clearance.
"The Chairman of the Board, Zaka Ashraf has finally cleared Kamran to be considered for national selection that is why he is now training with the Pakistani players at the NCA," a source said.
The 30-year-old -- who has played 53 Tests, 137 one-day internationals and 38 Twenty20 internationals -- has not been cleared by the board to be considered for selection to the national team since after the World Cup.
While he was dropped after the World Cup because of poor form, the PCB also had suspicions about his integrity after the spot-fixing scandal saw three Pakistani players, Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer first banned and then jailed for their role in it. "Kamran has now also been cleared on the integrity form and given that he has regularly been playing domestic cricket and performing pretty consistently, he is now in line to be considered for the one ODI and one Twenty20 against Bangladesh later this month in Lahore," another source confirmed.
The source said the move to get Kamran cleared and bring him back to the Pakistan team had begun when Pakistan were playing the one-day series against England in the UAE.
"Even former coach, Mohsin Khan, in a meeting with the PCB Chairman and captain Misbah-ul-Haq, had pleaded that the national team still could make lot of use of the experience and skills of Kamran Akmal," the source said.
Kamran recently also played in the Bangladesh Premier League and performed well for the Sylhet team also captaining them in the last few matches.
Interestingly, Pakistan's former captain and senior batsman Mohammad Yousuf has also started training at the NCA but chief selector Iqbal Qasim made it clear to the media in Karachi that while there was no issue with Yousuf training but he had to perform at the domestic level.
"It is good to hear that Yousuf is training again as there is no doubt about his quality as a player and his services to the national team are well known but if he wants to be considered for national selection once again he has to prove his form and fitness once again," Qasim said. The chief selector also said that the same rule applied on Akmal.

World Bank selects Jim Yong Kim as its next President

Washington: US nominee Jim Yong Kim was Monday chosen as the next president of the World Bank, an appointment that continues the longstanding tradition of an American leading the Washington-based institution.

"Dr Jim Young Kim of the United States would be the next President of the World Bank," an official announcement said Monday.

Kim, 52, will take over at the beginning of July, after the current president, Robert B Zoellick, steps down at the end of his five-year term. Seoul-born Kim is currently president of Dartmouth College.

Kim is a co-founder of Partners in Health (PIH) and a former director of the Department of HIV/AIDS at the World Health Organisation (WHO).

In a statement, the World Bank Board of Executive Directors expressed its deep gratitude for Zoellick's outstanding leadership and his dedication to reducing poverty in its member countries, the core mandate of the World Bank Group.

Dr Kim was selected from three candidates. The other two were Jose Antonio Ocampo, the former Colombian central banker and United Nations official and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

Numerous African countries had rallied around Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Nigerian finance minister and former World Bank managing director.

"The final nominees received support from different member countries, which reflected the high caliber of the candidates. We all look forward to working with Dr Kim when he assumes his responsibilities," the World Bank said in its statement.

The World Bank President is Chair of the Boards of Directors of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA).

He is also ex officio Chair of the Boards of Directors of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and the Administrative Council of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID)

Rolls Royce does not wants to sell a car to Mallika Sherawat

Mallika Sherawat might have played a role with Jackie Chan and Stanley Tong. She might have got clicked standing near the US President Barack Obama. She also might have posed with Michael Lambert, Yanni, Ric Wake and some other people from Hollywood. She might have her bank account flush with money she has earned by doing item songs. She might have also got very recognized in the country due to her dressing sense, or should we say, the lack of it. There must be several things Mallika might be up to but what she won’t be seen doing is driving around in her own Rolls Royce car. Apparently, Mallika recently decided to buy herself a Rolls Royce. Now, the Brit luxury car maker does a background and status check before selling its cars. It seems like Mallika’s curves and X-factor could not impress Rolls and they denied selling her a car. As expected, Mallika is not agreeing to this news and she tweeted, “not true. Please don't believe silly rumours.”