Hyundai Xcent Launching Tomorrow

Hyundai seems to be on a roll! Having shaken the small car space with the Grand i10 unlike any other product before it, save for Maruti's Swift, the Korean auto maker is going to announce its entry into the sub-4 metre sedan segment - a category that's done wonders for Maruti Suzuki, and Honda, of late. Popularly mentioned in the motoring world as the Grand i10 sedan, the Xcent will be launched tomorrow.

Hyundai had revealed the Xcent to the media just before the commencement of Auto Expo and the press world went crazy talking about it - rightly so. The Xcent is based on the Grand i10 platform, and taking cue from how rounded the hatchback is as a mechanical product, and how brilliantly it's done in the market, the compact sedan is expected to mirror that performance. Expected, mind you.

The comact sedan segment was, in essence, create by Tata Motors when it came out with the Indigo CS. Maruti Suzuki soon followed suit with its Swift-based Dzire and has been the strongest player in the segment ever since. Honda, however, did worry Maruti a fair bit when the Amaze was introduced. The fact that it was a serious effort from a company like Honda, no less, and also that it came with the first ever diesel engine (for India) from the chaps at Minato, Tokyo, shifted the market sentiment heavily in favour of Honda.

But Hyundai has added the spice that Maruti and Honda would've been keen to avoid for some more time. We compare the three - the Hyundai Xcent, Honda Amaze and the Maruti Suzuki Dzire to checkout if the fight will get any bloodier!

When it comes to design, the Honda does look more striking. There is a bit of modernity to it and though the front bears resemblance to the Brio hatchback, it does have its own character. The Xcent on the other hand carries over the front fascia of the Grand i10 but the boot could be slightly better integrated. It does look a bit odd from the rear. Now, the Swift Dzire does fail to appeal in this department. It looks similar to the Swift and Maruti has not really thought about the rear. It looks like it was done in a hurry.

Obviously, all the three mentioned cars are less than four metres in length. We don't have the spec-sheet of the Xcent yet but since it is on the hatchback (the Grand i10) the basic width and height would remain unchanged. The wheelbase is said to be changed - we'll let you know about the exact dimensions when we get them. Which will be tomorrow.

The Swift Dzire at 3,995mm is the longest in the segment while the Amaze scores a close second measuring in at 3,990mm. The Swift is 1,695mm wide; the Amaze is 1,680mm while the Xcent (going on the Grand i10's figures) is the narrowest of the lot with 1660mm.

A bit of engine-talk now. The Dzire gets the 1.2-litre K-series petrol engine and the 1.3-litre MultiJet diesel. The Honda Amaze gets a four-cylinder 1.2-litre petrol and a 1.5-litre petrol engine. The Xcent might carry forward the same engine from the Grand i10 and it will get the 1.2-litre Kappa petrol and the 1.1-litre, 3 cylinder diesel engine.

On the transmission front, the Amaze and the Swift Dzire get a five-speed manual as standard. But the petrol variants also get the auto-box. Expect the Xcent to get the 5-speed manual or the 4-speed auto box

As for features, all the cars will be evenly matched. But since the Xcent is the most recent of the launches, it will come with some best-in-class features like push button start-stop system, rear AC vents and two-din audio system with 1GB of memory. There will also be automatic climate control on offer (just like in the Dzire) and even safety features like ABS and Airbags will form part of the car.

The Maruti Suzuki Dzire still holds a strong influence in this segment, but if there's any manufacturer that's spoiled Maruti's game, it's mostly been Hyundai. This may not be any different. It's difficult to overthrow the Dzire as the segment bestseller, but Hyundai will definitely make a heavy dent in its numbers - or so we expect. The Honda Amaze too, new to the segment, remains a strong contender. At the end of the day, it will come down to the price of the Xcent and Hyundai will make no mistake in seeing that it prices the car just right.

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Malaysian Military Tracked Missing Jet To Strait Of Malacca

Malaysia's military believes it tracked the missing Malaysia Airlines jetliner by radar over the Strait of Malacca, far from where it last made contact with civilian air traffic control off the country's east coast, a military source said.

The Strait of Malacca, one of the world's busiest shipping channels, runs along Malaysia's west coast. The airline said on Saturday that the flight carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew last had contact off the east coast Malaysian town of Kota Bharu.

"It changed course after Kota Bharu and took a lower altitude. It made it into the Malacca Strait," the military official, who has been briefed on investigations, told media.

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Nadal And Sharapova Beaten At Indian Wells

Rafal Nadal and Maria Sharapova were both knocked out of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells on Monday after stunning upsets at one of the world's biggest tournaments outside the four grand slams.

Nadal was sent packing by Ukraine's Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-3 3-6 7-6 (7-5) after Sharapova fell to Italian qualifier Camila Giorgi 6-3 4-6 7-5 as last year's men's and women's singles champions both crashed out.

Nadal blew a 4-2 lead in the deciding tiebreak after the Spaniard had fought his way back into the match.

Nadal beat Dolgopolov in the final of the inaugural Rio Open last month but the Ukrainian got his revenge on the world number one in the Californian desert.

Giorgi, a 22-year-old ranked 79th in the world made the fourth round of the U.S. Open last year as a qualifier, but her win over the world number five Russian was the biggest of her career.

"I did not play a good match at all," said Sharapova, who dropped serve eight times and committed 58 unforced errors.

"(I've) never played against her, but she's someone that doesn't give you much rhythm. She's quite aggressive, but some shots she hits incredible for a long period of time.

"Sometimes they go off a bit. But, if I'm speaking about my level, it was nowhere near where it should have been."

Giorgi will play her countrywoman Flavia Pennetta in the next round after she beat Australian Sam Stosur 6-4 3-6 6-1.

There were no other major surprises although Britain's Andy Murray was forced to dig deep to see off promising Czech Jiri Vesely and avoid a similar fate.

The Wimbledon champion won 6-7 (7-2) 6-4 6-4 but only after clawing back from the brink of defeat against the 20-year-old Vesely.

Murray lost the opening set despite going up an early break but then struggled on serve against the left-handed Vesely, ranked 77th in the world.

The Scotsman was broken six times in the match and trailed in both the second and third sets but fought back each time, reeling off four consecutive games to seal victory.

"It was just one of those matches where there wasn't one period where I thought that the level of tennis from both of us was high at the same time," said Murray.

"That can create a lot of breaks and a lot of sort of back and forth swings in the match. It wasn't just the start of the match that was frustrating. The whole match was."

Murray will play Canada's big-serving Milos Raonic in the next round as he bids to win one of the few North American hardcourt titles to have eluded him.

Switzerland's former world number one Roger Federer also advanced after he was pushed all the way by Russia's Dmitry Tursunov before winning 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (7-2).

Federer, who won his 78th career singles title in Dubai earlier this month, will play either German Tommy Haas or Japan's Kei Nishikori in the fourth round.

"I feel like I'm in a good place," said Federer, a four-time champion at Indian Wells. "I know what my solid level is. Even if I won 6 and 6 today, I just feel like I was calm and served for the set.

"Okay, got broken. Still managed to stay calm. Down ... in the second; stayed calm and came back. So those are the moments where you feel there is confidence around somewhere."

China's Li Na, the top seed in the women's draw, had no problems booking her place in the fourth round, beating Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic 6-3 6-4.

Despite dishing up nine double-faults and having her own service broken twice, Li was far too strong and streetwise for Pliskova, wrapping up the win with an ace.

"At least I could win the last point and stay in the tournament," Li said.

"If you're a tennis player, you'll make double faults. At least I can improve my serve even more from here."

Li is looking to win her first Indian Wells title and continue her great start to the year after capturing the Australian Open.

Her next opponent is Canada's Aleksandra Wozniak, who defeated Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-1 6-7 (3-7) 6-0.

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70 Indian passports stolen from San Francisco

About 70 Indian passports have reportedly been stolen from a private company, to which the Indian Consulate in San Francisco had outsourced for various visa and passport related services.

The serious breach of security is being investigated by the San Francisco Police Department. Both the Indian Consulate and the local police have informed the State Department and the relevant federal authorities so that these passports are not misused, a media report said.

At least 70 Indian passports were stolen from BLS International's San Francisco Office, sometime during the weekend beginning November 29, an Indian-American publication India West reported.

The San Francisco Police Department began investigating the case on December 2, 2013. According to the investigating officer a BLS employee told the police that the passports, along with cash and checks, were taken from a locked safe.

The Indian Consulate in San Francisco has cancelled the stolen passports. The cancelled passports cannot be used for fraudulent travel, as they are machine-readable and verified through a system that is used throughout the world, the newspaper quoted a consulate official as saying.

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Kasturirangan Report: Draft Notification Gets Election Commission Clearance

The Election Commission gave clearance to issue the draft notification on Katurirangan report on Western Ghats conservation on Monday. The Election Commission advised the environment ministry to hold back the final notification till the Lok Sabha elections are over.

The BJP had approached the Election Commission with a complaint against the issuing of the draft notification on the Katurirangan report after the election code of conduct came into effect.

Though The Election Commission had found ground in BJP's complaint that only a new government could take any further decision on the report, it found objection in issuing the draft notification.

State Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala has asserted that all the doubts related to the draft notification has been removed with Election Commission 's clearence and added that all the efforts of the parties including the CPM to derive a political advantage over the issue has fizzled out.

Meanhwhile, the High Range Protection Committee has declined to accept the draft notification.

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Malaysia Air Probe Finds Scant Evidence Of Terror Attack

Investigators in Malaysia are voicing skepticism that the airliner that disappeared early Saturday with 239 people on board was the target of an attack, U.S. and European government sources close to the probe said.

The fate of the Malaysian airliner that vanished about an hour into a flight to Beijing remained a mystery, as a massive air and sea search, now in its third day, failed to turn up any trace of the Boeing 777 plane.

Neither Malaysia's Special Branch, the agency leading the investigation locally, nor spy agencies in the United States and Europe have ruled out the possibility that militants may have been involved in downing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.

But Malaysian authorities have indicated that the evidence so far does not strongly back an attack as a cause for the aircraft's disappearance, and that mechanical or pilot problems could have led to the apparent crash, the U.S. sources said.

"There is no evidence to suggest an act of terror," said a European security source, who added that there was also "no explanation what's happened to it or where it is."

Meanwhile, dozens of ships and aircraft from 10 countries were still scouring the seas around Malaysia and south of Vietnam as questions mounted over possible security lapses that could have led to a downing of the Boeing 777-200ER after it climbed to an altitude of 35,000 feet (10,670 meters).

Interpol confirmed on Sunday at least two passengers used stolen passports and said it was checking whether others aboard had used false identity documents.

Even so, one U.S. source said Malaysian authorities were leaning away from the theory that the plane was attacked. Their view was mostly based on electronic evidence that indicates the flight may have turned back toward the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur before disappearing.

Even that information has not been clearly confirmed, and investigators and intelligence sources say the fate of the Flight MH370 is still shrouded in mystery.

One reason was that the aircraft had failed to make automatic contact with a flight data-monitoring system after vanishing from radar screens, two people familiar with the matter said on Monday. Such contact could have helped investigators determine what happened.

The aircraft was equipped with a maintenance computer capable of talking to the ground automatically through short messages known as ACARS. "There were no signals from ACARS from the time the aircraft disappeared," a source involved in the investigations said.

Also raising doubts about the possibility of an attack, the United States extensively reviewed imagery taken by spy satellites for evidence of a mid-air explosion, but saw none, a U.S. government source said. The source described U.S. satellite coverage of the region as thorough.

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US Says Ready To Do Business With Modi

The United States would welcome Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi if he wins the upcoming election, a U.S. official said, in the clearest sign Washington will drop a travel ban on Modi imposed after anti-Muslim riots in 2002.

US Assistant Secretary of State Nisha Biswal told a television interviewer that Washington was ready to do business with Modi, the front runner ahead of the April-May general election who is best placed to form a coalition government.

"I would just say that the United States has welcomed every leader of this vibrant democracy, and that a democratically elected leader of India will be a welcome partner," Biswal said.

Biswal made her comments in New Delhi on a visit to rebuild trade and political ties shaken by a row over the arrest in New York last December of an Indian diplomat suspected of visa fraud.

US Ambassador to India Nancy Powell visited Modi at his home in Gandhinagar in Gujarat last month, ending a long estrangement over riots that erupted in the state governed by the Hindu nationalist leader.

At least 1,000 people, most of them Muslims, were killed in 2002 when mobs went on a rampage across Gujarat after a train carrying Hindu pilgrims was torched, killing 59 people.

Powell's visit was the highest-profile encounter between US officials and Modi since the State Department revoked his visa in 2005 over the bloodshed to which rights activists say he turned a blind eye. He denies the allegation.

Biswal said the United States hoped India would continue to build a tolerant, moderate and secular society when asked if Washington had put its human rights concerns on the back burner because of Modi's political rise.

"Visa issues are handled on a case by case basis. And determinations are made based on the facts of the day and are reviewed at the time that a request is made," she said according to a transcript released by the US embassy.

The US administration, which does not want to be seen as taking sides in the Indian election campaign, has stopped short of stating publicly that Modi would be able to travel to the United States should he win the lower house election, leading to speculation that he would not be welcome in Washington.

But diplomats say the until the election results are known, the question of whether Modi would be given a visa is hypothetical. Should he become the country's next leader, he would automatically receive a US visa, they say.

Modi himself has not commented on the travel ban, but for his supporters in the Bharatiya Janata Party and outside the US decision has been a sore point. Senior party leader Arun Jaitley said last month that the US boycott had not been based on any evidence or court verdict but on "excessive propaganda".

Britain was the first European country to end its boycott on meeting Modi followed by other European countries last year.

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