With the coming State Assembly elections not far away, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and BSP chief Mayawati has come up with support for the demand of Gujjar community.

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A major terror attack planned out was foiled as the Special Task Force (STF) in Uttar Pradesh has arrested 6 militants from Lucknow and Bareilly on Saturday night.

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village panchayats of Amethi. Contestants will be provided with cricket kits and the winners will receive a

cash prize of Rs. three lakh.

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MP

Defending her action over the issue, Mayawati said her action was intended to prevent politicalisation of bureaucracy. She stated that her government would not allow the officials to indugle in political affairs.

Kaushambi (Uttar Pradesh), Feb 1 (ANI): Residents of Uttar Pradesh's Kaushambi District are a worried lot as the area has been receiving acid rain for the past few days.

The stinking yellow coloured rain, reportedly each drop having half a centimeter diameter, has been giving nightmares to the residents of the area.

They say that the yellow rain has been falling mostly during the night though sometimes it falls during the daytime as well.

"For the past few days, we have been receiving yellow rain. We received more yellow rain in the night as compared to the day time although we saw yellow rain in the day as well. I have never seen anything like this in my life. Everybody is afraid," said Pushapa Manauri, a resident.

The yellow rain has been continuing for the past one-month. Experts say the yellow rain is actually acid rain.

"Chemicals get mixed with the moisture in the air by a chemical process and  become acidic. This acid in the air gets mixed with dewdrops and falls on the ground. This is called acid rain. Since it is yellow in colour, it is called yellow rain. This acid rain has many unfavourable consequences," said S.S Ojha, Professor, Allahabad University.

This yellow coloured rain was first received in Kaushambi last year during the summer season.

Since then, it has become a cause of concern for the people who are worried about the unfavourable consequences of this rain. (ANI)
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Bhatti (Varanasi), Feb.1: Bhatti, a non-descript village near Varanasi, is today home to 15 national level judo champions who have brought glory to their native place by bagging over 100 gold, silver and bronze medals.

This year's national Republic Day brought Bhatti another medal through Ram Ashray, a constable in Uttar Pradesh Police. He had won gold medal in the 73-kilogram category at the Commonwealth Judo Championship in Mauritius.

Twenty five-year-old Ram Ashray happens to be the son Shyam Lal Yadav, who earned a big name in the neighbouring Jaunpur and Ghazipur Districts for being a remarkable wrestler in his prime.

Son Ram Ashray just carried on the legacy and also done his village proud by winning medals in international competitions held in China, Bulgaria, France, Thailand and Vietnam.

In India, Ram Ashray has already won gold medal and the best judoka award during Mumbai Nationals in 2006. Earlier to that, he had won top honours at the Junior Nationals even held in Warangal (Andhra Pradesh) in 2004.

Representing India, as an Indian Railways employee, Ram Ashray won a silver medal during the World Railway Games. Elder brother German Yadav has also been equally good Judoka. He is working with the Central Reserve Police Force.

The duo share between them, over 30 medals, won at the State, national and international levels.

Another is Ravi Yadav is a buddying Judoka, who won bronze at the 2007 National School Games held in Mizoram. He washes cars at a workshop in Chowkaghat in Varanasi. He is disappointed that the government hasn't provided suitable ties for Judo at his village that has potential of turning out many more champions.

"We don't have any facility here. We can't practice here in Akhara (traditional gym and wrestling arena) during rainy season. There are no tin sheds, no water facility. There is no means of transportation," says Ravi.

"The boys come here through uneven terrains but then also we want to continue our practice. We can achieve similar to Ram Ashraybhai who did it while practicing in this Akhara only," he added.

There are many players who spend their evenings in gruelling practice sessions on the judo mats at Varanasi stadium

"The children here are overjoyed about Judo. They are so excited if they get some support and facility from the Government, they will return with a medal from the Olympics," claims Bharat Lal Yadav, one of the Panchayat (village committee) members in Bhatti Lohta. 

"German Yadav used to graze the cows. Later, he started practicing Judo and the art got him a job too. So, all the boys here are confident of getting jobs by learning judo. Hence they all are practicing hard," said Shankar Prasad, a local resident.

There are many others who have shown promise at the relatively preliminary stages of sports career while playing in school national events in sub-junior, junior or senior categories.

Also on the list are Subhash Yadav, Rahul Rai, Kanhaiya Yadav, Manoj Pal, Ganesh Yadav, Shiv Kumar, Radhey Pal, Avdhesh Kumar are medal winners at various events. But Shambhu Pal was lucky to have been employed with the Sashastra Seema Bal (or, the border guarding force).

Bhatti Village, for its glory, is today looked upon as a big motivation for neighbouring villages to take sports a bit seriously. The influence is visible when one witnesses scores of promising judokas from Bakharia, Kaparporwa and Akelwa areas training at the Varanasi stadium here.

Uttar Pradesh now has three international judokas: Garima Chaudhary from Meerut, Arjuna Awardee Akram Shah from Saharanpur and Ram Ashray. (ANI)
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