န All-girl show in Higher Secondary exams top three

Kolkata, 29 May : It was girl power all the way. The first three positions in the higher secondary examinations were clinched by three girls from the districts, and three others shared the top score in the CBSE Class X results announced on Friday. The Madhyamik topper this year, too, is a girl.
Madhumita Saha from Balurghat Lalit Mohan Adarsha Vidyalaya is the possible HS topper with a score of 473 out of 500. The next two slots were separated by just one mark each Sudipa Mondal from Bankura Mission High School scored 472 and Madhumita’s schoolmate Pompi Saha 471. All three HS top-scorers refuse to walk the beaten path engineering and medical and aim to specialize in the pure sciences.
The fact that she lost her father early egged her on, said Madhumita. “My mother struggled very hard to bring us up. It is her struggle that paid off today,” she said. “My success is a tribute to my father. I want to be a mathematician.”
>
Landslides disrupt toy train service in Darjeeling
Siliguri, 29 May : Landslides in West Bengal have disrupted the movement of the world famous toy train, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. The famous Darjeeling toy train runs between Siliguri and Darjeeling.
The train stopped operation from Tuesday as heavy rains and severe landslides washed away a huge portion of the railway track. A huge pile of debris has accumulated on the tracks, halting the operation of the toy train. “In 80 km route from Siliguri junction to Darjeeling, we have got landslides at 41 spots and total amount of muds and boulders is about 3500 cubic metres. We also have tree fallen on tracks at 16 spots. Out of the 16 spots, two spots are very heavy because very big tree trunk has fallen on track. We have got one location near Ghum where a portion of our track is washed away in between two buildings,” said Subrata Nath, director, Darjeeling Himalayan Railways (DHR).
The DHR is trying hard to resume the journey at the earliest, but the service is expected to resume not earlier than seven to ten days. DHR was declared a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO on 5 December at their 23rd session.
>
Rs 10 crore relief for cyclone-hit people in WBengal
New Delhi, 29 May : Rural Development minister C P Joshi has ordered the grant of Rs 10 crore towards relief work for cyclone-hit people in West Bengal.
Rural Development ministry sources said here that the minister ordered the release of the funds from the department of drinking water supply. "The decision to grant funds was taken soon after the minister assumed office, considering the plight of cyclone victims," sources added.
>
B'desh Police arrest fugitive killer of Gulshan Kumar
Police suspect A Rouf's contacts with Daud Ibrahim
Dhaka, 29 May : Police in Bangladesh have arrested Indian fugitive Abdur Rouf Merchant, also known as Daud Merchant, convicted of the murder of Mumbai music magnate Gulshan Kumar, officials said. Gulshan Kumar, renowned owner of Indian music company T-series, was shot dead on the streets of Mumbai on 12 August,1997, believed to have been murdered by contract after refusing to pay extortion money to gangsters.
Merchant, who was serving his sentence in an Indian jail since 2002, was reported absconding by Indian police after being released on furlough in April to visit his family in Mumbra, a small town about 40km from Mumbai. Bangladesh's Detective Branch police picked Merchant up on Tuesday night from the residence of a man named Kamal Miah in Mourail in Bramhanbaria district. Dhaka Metropolitan Police have made no official statement but an assistant commissioner of the DMP's Detective Branch confirmed the arrest.
Bramhanbaria police super Mukhlesur Rahman told reporters, quoting Detective Branch officials, that Merchant had recently arrived in the district after crossing illegally into Bangladesh through the Akhaura border. Rahman said he had also procured a Bangladeshi passport in the mean time in order to pass himself off as a local.
From the call list of Merchant's mobile phone, police suspect that he also has contacts with notorious underground mafia don Daud Ibrahim. န PTI File Photos
>
Repair of Aila-hit cross dams soon, Says minister
Bagerhat, 29 May : Bangladesh Water Resources Minister Ramesh Chandra Sen said that repair on cross dams, affected by cyclone Aila in the southern region, would begin soon.
Already the officials concerned have been asked to prepare a list of affected.
>
Kolkata lad to officiate at Wimbledon and US open
Kolkata, 29 May : Continuing his association with the Grand Slams, Kolkata's Abhishek Mukherjee will officiate at the Wimbledon and the US Open this year.
Regular in officiating at the Grand Slam level for the past five years, Mukherjee will be the only official from India, a Bengal Tennis Association (BTA) release said.