Istanbul: Turkey is to scrap the office of the prime minister in a historic switch under a government-backed proposal for a new presidential system, a cabinet minister said on Thursday. File photo of Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Forestry and Water Affairs Minister Veysel Eroglu said there would be one and possibly two vice presidents under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the new format, which is expected to be submitted to a referendum next year. “There... 

From Wednesday, 500 and 1,000 rupee notes will be scrapped, PM Narendra Modi said. NEW DELHI: To stop the spread of counterfeit notes, which is aiding terror activities from across the border, and flush out black money, the government has decided to scrap the notes of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday. Starting midnight, these notes will only be “worth the paper they are printed on,” he said. A proposal... 

NEW DELHI: Just as Prime Minister Narendra Modi had warned, getting used to the overnight scrapping of the highest-denomination currency notes brought inconveniences. One can visit bank to return 500- and 1000-rupee notes and withdraw money to spend. Banks will reopen tomorrow and stay open this weekend to help people swap 500 and 1,000 rupee notes which are now banned, said the Reserve Bank of India. Banks and ATMs were closed today leaving lakhs... 

Donald Trump has won the US presidential election 2016 emerging “victorious” against all odds, polls, and projections. But it’s not only Trump-supporters who will be celebrating the victory of the Republican leader who promised to make “America great again”. As Firstpost reported, the Islamic State (IS) were also cheering for Trump because it believed the Republican candidate (now President-elect) would lead America... 

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama today said that he would feel “deeply disturbed” if Donald Trump is sworn in as his successor and reiterated that the billionaire is not somebody who is fit to be president in any circumstances. Barack Obama said that Donald Trump is not somebody who’s fit to be president in any circumstances. “He (Trump) is not somebody who’s fit to be president in any circumstances. I would feel deeply... 

NASA has completed the construction of the world’s largest space telescope, after almost two decades. WASHINGTON: US space agency NASA has completed the construction of the world’s largest space telescope, after almost two decades. The James Webb Space Telescope is considered to be the successor to NASA’s 26-year-old Hubble Space Telescope, the agency announced on Wednesday. NASA said an Ariane 5 rocket will launch it from French... 

Washington: President Barack Obama has suggested that Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton faces a double standard as the first female presidential nominee of a major party against an outlandish opponent whose rhetoric and behaviour were being normalised. “She made me a better president and she didn’t ask for credit,” said Barack Obama. “I saw her as my Secretary of State. I saw her in the Situation Room making arguments... 

In his declaration, President Poroshenko revealed more than $26 million in various bank accounts. KIEV: A luxury watch collection, millions of dollars in cash and a Picasso painting are just several items listed on Ukraine officials’ income and asset declarations, shocking a country vowing to curb corruption. Officials are required under a new law to declare their assets and income online, a requirement for the disbursement of a $1-billion (920-million-euro)... 

It simply means, the National Anomaly Committee or Committee on Allowances won’t suggest or approve any changes in the basic pay or allowance against the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission. New Delhi, Nov 1: The ‘Committee on Allowances’, headed by Finance Secretary Ashok Lavasa, is yet to submit its report on fatter allowances recommended by the 7th Pay Commission, however the Finance Ministry sources said the government won’t... 

Qayyarah: Jihadist leaders are fleeing Mosul, a top US general in the coalition battling the Islamic State group said on Wednesday as Iraqi forces closed in on the northern city. Representational image. Mosul was where Islamic State supremo Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared his “caliphate” two years ago but is now the group’s last major stronghold in Iraq. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who announced the launch of a broad offensive...