A full transcript of Hillary’s press conference on private use of emails:

I know there have been questions about my email, so I want to address that directly and then I will take a few questions from you. There are four things I want the public to know.

First, when I got to work as secretary of state I opted, for convenience, to use my personal email account, which was allowed by the state department, because I thought it would be easier to carry just one device for my work and my personal emails instead of two.

Looking back, it would have been better if I had simply used a second email account and carried a second phone. But at the time, this didn’t seem like an issue.

Second, the vast majority of my work emails went to government employees at their government addresses, which meant they were captured and preserved immediately on the system at the state department.

Third, after I left office, the state department asked former secretaries of state for our assistance in providing copies of work-related emails from our personal accounts. I responded right away and provided all my emails that could possibly be work-related, which totalled roughly 55,000 printed pages, even though I knew that the state department already had the vast majority of them.

We went through a thorough process to identify all my work-related emails and deliver them to the state department. At the end I chose not to keep my private, personal emails, emails about planning Chelsea’s wedding or my mother’s funeral arrangements, condolence notes to friends, as well as yoga routines, family vacations, the other things you typically find in inboxes. No one wants their personal emails made public. I think most people understand that and respect that privacy.

Fourth, I took the unprecedented step of asking that the state department make all my work-related emails public for everyone to see.

I am very proud of the work that I and my colleagues and our public servants did during my four years as secretary of state, and I look forward to people being able to see that for themselves.

Again, looking back, it would have been better for me to use two separate phones and two email accounts. But I thought using one device would be simpler, and obviously it hasn’t worked out that way

Madonna may be one the most famous singers in the world, but when it comes to being a parent, she is the same in the boat as the rest of us.

Following in her superstar mum’s footsteps, Lourdes is going to the University of Michigan but her mum isn’t allowed to cheer on her old football team.

The 56-year-old singer who is touring Australia soon, sat down with US TODAY’s Carson Daily and opened up about being a mum to a college student.

“I’m not allowed at games! You think my daughter wants me at a game?” Madonna joked.

Madonna known for pushing the envelope puts on the ‘mum hat’ when it comes to her 18-year-old living at college.

“I’m very ‘mom,’” she said of how she acts when she’s visits Lourdes.

“I’m very, you know, worried: ‘Are you okay? Are you getting enough sleep? Are you eating right?’ You know, I set up a humidifier in her room with eucalyptus oil. I was worried about the fact that she didn’t have enough towels, Q-tips.”

Madonna attended the same university back in late 1970, but dropped out to pursue her music career, yet the star had some sage advice for her daughter.

“Try to do everything in moderation! Try not to kill all your brain cells. And try to go to class

MUMBAI: Churchgate residents are worried about the impact construction work of the Metro-III will have on their iconic, art decor buildings, some of them dating back to the 1930s.

Residents of Thakur Niwas on Jamshedji Tata Road had written to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) about their concerns on March 11. The letter quoted Jamshedji Tata in a letter to his son Dorab, saying, “Be sure to lay wide streets planted with shady trees, every other of a quick growing variety. Be sure that there is plenty of space for lawns and gardens. Reserve large areas for football, hockey and parks. Earmark areas for Hindu temples, Mohammedan mosques and Christian churches.”

Shefali Kapadia, a resident, said, “Our building was built in 1953. J Tata Road is reclaimed land and ground water seepage is high in the area. Our building reverberates every time a BEST bus passes. An underground Metro could impact our building as it is over 60 years old. We wish to understand the safety and long-term impact of the Metro.”

The residents clarified that they were pro-development. Neera Punj from Lotus Court, built in the 1950s, said, “Ours is a six-storeyed building. We are concerned about the long-term hardships we may face. We are pro-development but not at the cost of damaging our peace of mind with the noise and air pollution the construction will cause. We have worked hard to maintain quality life in our area with street vendors being allowed in a particular area and footpaths being kept for pedestrians. We are not rabble-rousers. What if the work causes cracks in our buildings?”

The residents are also worried about the large green cover they may lose. “They are planning to destroy a boulevard of old trees for the Metro-III. The authorities say they will knock down our compound wall for better access. Their track record has not been very good, hence we are worried,” said Leetu Shivdasani, who has been at Lotus Court for nearly two decades.

Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd officials said buildings will be monitored daily or more frequently during and after construction through vibration-monitoring machines. MMRCL said special attention will be paid to heritage/historic and sensitive structures.

Around 50 supporters of slain TV executive Neeraj Grover, today held a protest rally from Dheeraj Solitaire building, where he was stabbed to death, in suburban Malad to Tulip Star Hotel in Juhu, demanding justice.

The protest rally was led by filmmaker Ashok Pandit for the gruesome murder of Grover.

“Earlier in the day, police picked up 15 supporters and took them to Bangur Police station, as they said that they did not have permission to hold the rally. Later, I called up Congress MP Sanjay Nirupam and he intervened in the matter. After talking to a senior police officer, we were granted permission to hold the protest rally,” Pandit said.

The supporters were detained and were later released by the police. Those who joined the protest rally include actor Raza Murad, television actress Jaya Bhattacharya and actress-VJ Teejay Sidhu among others.

The candle light vigil will be held in the evening at Sykz fitness centre at Lokhandwala at 6 pm.

On May 7, 2008, Grover was killed at Kannada actress Maria Susairaj’s flat by her enraged fiancé Emile Jerome Matthew, a naval officer, after he found the TV executive sleeping in Maria’s bedroom.

After the murder, Jerome and Susairaj chopped the victim’s body and stuffed it in bags. They then drove to the jungles of Manor, in Thane district, where they set Grover’s remains on fire.

In line with local equities, the rupee on Wednesday dipped for the third straight session and eased by two paise to close at fresh two-month low of 62.78 against greenback on sustained demand for US dollar from importers.

Continued slide in local equities amid fresh withdrawal of funds by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) also weighed on the rupee while some dollar selling by exporters helped the rupee to cushioned the fall, Forex traders said.

At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the Indian rupee resumed lower at 62.83 a dollar from Tuesday’s close of 62.76. It moved in a range of 62.69 and 62.87 before ending at 62.78, showing a loss of two paise or 0.03 per cent.

In three days, it has lost 62 paise.

“The Indian rupee has fallen over the last six sessions against the Dollar as the Greenback holds onto gains amid expectations of mid-year U.S. Fed rate hike. Investors continue to believe that Fed will adopt a hawkish stance at the upcoming policy meeting. The only thing limiting the fall is selling from exporters and other corporates,” said Suresh Nair, Director, Admisi Forex India.

The dollar index, consisting of six major global rivals, was up by 0.77 per cent. In the New York market, the dollar rose against five of its six currencies yesterday as investors worried that the Fed could raise rates prematurely.

The S&P BSE Sensex on Wednesday closed down by 50.70 points or 0.18 per cent in see-saw trade while FPIs sold shares worth Rs 748.13 crore Tuesday as per provisional data.

Pramit Brahmbhatt, Veracity Group, CEO said, “Trading range for the spot rupee is expected to be within 62.40 to 63.20.”

Meanwhile, the forward premia dropped further on persistent sluggishness on sustained receipts from exporters.

The benchmark six-month premium payable in August dipped to 225.25-227.25 paise from 229-231 paise Tuesday and the forward contracts maturing in February 2016 also tumbled to 437.25-439.25 paise from 444.5-446.5 paise.

The Reserve Bank of India fixed the reference rate for dollar at 62.7450 and for Euro at 67.0955.

The rupee remained firm against the pound to 94.45 from overnight closing level of 94.53 and also shot up further to 66.37 against the euro from 67.48.

It moved up slightly to 51.67 per 100 Japanese yen from 51.71 on Tuesday.

Keywords: rupee rate, rupee v dollar, currency values, foreign exchange, forex markets

New Delhi: Foreign tourist arrivals in India grew by 2.1 percent in the first two months of this year despite the Delhi gang rape, Minister for Tourism K. Chiranjeevi said Wednesday.

“There has been some speculation in the media about the state of Indian tourism because of some extremely unfortunate events,” Chiranjeevi said at a tourism related function.

“The growth of foreign tourists has been positive,” he added.

Foreign tourist arrivals grew by 2.1 percent in January and February, he said.

“There is no negative growth. During these two months, foreign exchange earnings from tourism rose by 19.8 percent in rupee terms and 11.4 percent in dollar terms,” he added.

Chiranjeevi said his ministry had discussed the safety of foreign tourists with chief ministers and of all states and police chiefs. “We will take care (of the foreign tourists) to the maximum,” he said.

Crying foul over the manner in which the state government ensured that cow slaughter at the Deonar abattoir could not resume even though the Bombay High Court (HC) had allowed the slaughter of cattle to continue until the government formally notified the Maharashtra Animal Prevention (Amendment) Bill, 1995, the Mumbai Suburban Beef Dealers Association has decided to protest on Monday.
After the Bombay High Court’s order on Tuesday that cow slaughter should be immediately stopped at the abattoir, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Mumbai Police evicted beef butchers the same night. The orders came after a right wing organisation approached the court, asking that beef butchering be immediately stopped at the abattoir following the state government’s ban on cow slaughter. The Association, however, submitted a writ petition in the court on Wednesday, and it was heard on Thursday. The HC subsequently stayed its own orders on Thursday and allowed the slaughter of cattle to continue until the government notified the Maharashtra Animal Prevention (Amendment) Bill.
The state government, however, circumvented the stay by publishing the notification in the official gazette on Thursday itself. The move has left the association fuming.
“Normally it takes 15 days for a new law to be published in the gazette. The state government has shown undue haste in publishing the notification in a few hours. This has left more than 1,000 people, working at Deonar abattoir, jobless. We have planned a protest at Azad Maidan on Monday,” said Mohammad Ali Qureshi, president, Mumbai Beef Dealers Association.
Dr Appasing Pawara, general manager, Deonar abattoir, said cow slaughter had now come to a stop following the notification. “Once the amended law was published in the government gazette, the HC’s stay was of no relevance. On Thursday, we sent back the cows to the traders,” he said.

New York: India’s ban on the BBC gangrape documentary will “not last very long” as the country’s courts “are not puppets” of the government and civilised values will return, the British filmmaker behind the controversial film has said.
“My prediction is that the ban will not last very long at all because the courts of India are not puppets of the government,” Leslee Udwin, director of ‘Storyville: India’s daughter’ said.
“India is a democracy, it is actually a civilised nation even though the current ban would suggest otherwise — that the most important pillar of democracy, which is free speech, has been stamped upon in this ban. It (the ban) is temporary. It’s not going to last. Civilised values will return, the ban will be lifted and then I hope when all of this hysteria dies down, they will focus on saving the women of the world rather than hiding their particular shame,” she said.
The US premier of the documentary on the brutal gang rape of the 23-year old paramedical student was attended by Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep, actress Frieda Pinto and Indian actor-producer Farhan Akhtar, who came with his wife Adhuna at the Baruch College on Monday.
Udwin faced backlash over her documentary, banned in India, with people saying the film gave a platform to the rape accused Mukesh Singh to air his views. Singh appears unrepentant in the documentary.
Udwin alleged that the comments made by Singh are not very different from what some Indian political leaders say about rape and its victim.
“What hypocrisy to scream in hysteria about the platform given to Mukesh who says exactly the same things as Indian politicians say day after day. It’s a reflection of the mindset of the society. And that’s what I learnt doing these interviews,” she alleged.
Udwin reiterated that the documentary was “never meant to single India out “for its record of offenses against women.”
“The film was meant to single India out in a particular way and that was in a very positive way as the only country in my lifetime that has stood up for over a month, day after day with unprecedented numbers of ordinary men and women out on the streets fighting for my rights.
“And that is why I came to India to make this film. If the protests had taken place as a response to any other case in any other part of the world, I would have gone there,” Udwin said.
She said she came to India “out of respect, admiration and gratitude” to those protestors who were “fighting for me on the other side of the globe.”