India,

The Union Cabinet on Thursday gave its consent for the setting up of a UNESCO regional centre for training and education in Biotechnology at Faridabad, on the outskirts of Delhi.

The revised budget for the project has been set at Rs 99.55 crore. 

What was expected to be a delight to the taste buds, turned out to be a horror for a 22-year-old solutions engineer, Saurav Sabharwal, working with Nokia-Siemens Network in Gurgaon, Haryana. 

Saurav joined his colleagues on eating most pastry in least time on Wednesday afternoon. He won the bet but ultimately lost his life to asphyxiation. After the competition Saurav choked his throat due to eating three pastries in quick succession and collapsed in the washroom.

He was immediately transported to a hospital but could not be saved.

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) bagged 44 out of total 45 oil and gas exploration blocks with its partner BHP Billiton and GVK Power. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, on Thursday, gave permission to start oil exploration. 

The wholesale price index (WPI) based inflation rate continued to decline in the second consecutive week and now stands at 8.90 per cent. The inflation was 8.98 per cent a week ago. Declining trend brings a respite for the central government, which is facing flak for rising prices. 

It has also paved a way for Reserve Bank to further revise key interest rate to improve liquidity condition in the financial system. Economists believe that it can further slide even below the expectations of the Reserve Bank in the coming days. 

The state government of UP is likely to give pay scale to school teacher in accordance with the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission. After the pay hike, school teachers would get pay scale equal to central government employees. 

The decision would put extra burden of Rs 1,500 crore on the state exchequer but politically prove beneficial for BSP in the wake of forthcoming general elections.