Currency Garlands in Vogue, RBI and Centre Inactive after Mayawati, Bihar MP garlanded with currency notes after Mayawati, Bihar MP garlanded with currency notes!Delhi HC declines to stay 3G spectrum auction process!Court dismisses Tiwari's plea over paternity suit!
Nirupama Rao briefs US on talks with Pakistan!Headley to plead guilty in Mumbai terror case as Five Americans charged with terrorism in Pakistan!Nepal lawmakers say border problems persist with India in 15 districts!IslamOnline staff protests curbs on 'editorial independence'!FBI going undercover on Facebook!Bin Laden won't be caught alive, says Attorney General Holder!
Indian Holocaust My Father`s Life and Time - THREE HUNDRED Thirteen
Palash Biswas
http://indianholocaustmyfatherslifeandtime.blogspot.com/
Greenpeace urges Members of Parliament to reject Nuclear Damage bill
Greenpeaca has written to all 795 MPs alerting them to the fact that the bill to be tabled in the Lok Sabha in this budget session not only allows US companies to go scot free in case of a nuclear mishap but also uses Indian taxpayers money to pay for the damages. Having lived through the trauma of Bhopal only a leader with a dead conscience will even consider the bill.
It may be mentioned that Soli Sorabjee, former Attorney General who reviewed the bill and declared it as unconstitutional. Legal luminaries Prashant Bhushan, K.K. Venugopal, P.P. Rao, B.B. Singh also endorsed Mr Sorabjee's opinion. The former chairman of atomic energy regulatory board (AERB) A. Gopalkrishnan, the Human Rights Law Network and hundreds of people have also opposed the bill.
The clause to cap the liability of the operator to Rs. 2385 crore when in the US the Liability is $ 10 billion(1) is glaring and any legislation that attempts to impose a cap on liability, dilute the Polluter Pays and the Precautionary Principle will be in blatant defiance of Supreme Court judgments
India's nuke establishment backs nuclear liability bill
MUMBAI: The country's atomic establishment on Wednesday threw its weight behind the civil nuclear liability bill in the face of the stand-off
Pitching for enactment of a law to fix civil damages caused by nuclear accidents, Atomic Energy Commission chairman Srikumar Banerjee said neither the Indian Environmental Protection Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991, nor the Indian Atomic Energy Act had provisions for damages caused due to war or radioactivity.
"Therefore, this legislation assumes great significance in the present context," he said. Currently and in the near future, the state-owned Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) will be the only operator of nuclear power plants, he added.
With the Opposition unrelenting on its opposition to the legislation, the government on Monday beat a hasty retreat and deferred the introduction of the the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill in Parliament.
"India does not have a law for fixing civil liability for damages caused by the nuclear industry. The government wants to introduce the Bill after a very careful study, but unfortunately there is lot of misunderstanding about it among the Parliamentarians which has to be corrected," Banerjee said.
Banerjee's views came against the backdrop of the government launching a bid to salvage the Bill whose passage is a must for full implementation of the Indo-US civil nuclear deal.
The views of the country's top boss were also echoed by two former AEC chairmen Anil Kakodkar and MR Srinivasan.
"The Department of Atomic Energy has been working on the bill along with legal experts and the Centre for over a decade," Banerjee said and added that of the 30 countries operating nuclear power plants 28, barring India and Pakistan, had such legislations in place. "It is high time India has its own legislation soon."
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| Editorial Political yoga: A new phase in our democracy It is a rather curious mix, our ready veneration of sundry godmen and the equally-prompt readiness to push them off their pedestals when we find that they, well, aren't so godly after all. Stop the Vedanta Project in Orissa In the long-term interest of internal security, survival of an endangered primitive tribe and justice and fairness , the government should withhold clearance to the bauxite mining project spread over Orissa's Kalahandi. Univ of California, Ghazipur?A cheer and a yawn for the proposed Foreign Educational Institutions (Regulation of Entry and Operations , Maintenance of Quality and Prevention of Commercialisation ) Bill. | |||
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What exactly is the Unique ID project? - CIOL News Reports
- 2 visits - 27/06/0926 Jun 2009 ... What exactly is the Unique ID project? A project in which every Indian citizen would have one unique identification number that will ...
www.ciol.com/News/News-Reports/...Unique-ID-project/.../0/ - Cached - SimilarUnique Identification Authority of India - Wikipedia, the free ...
- 28 FebThe authority will aim at providing a unique number to all Indians, but not smart .... "Nilekani first chief of Unique 'ID' project", The Assam Tribune, ...
en.wikipedia.org/.../Unique_Identification_Authority_of_India - 4 hours ago - Cached - SimilarState chosen for unique ID project
24 Aug 2009 ... You are here: Home » State » State chosen for unique ID project ... A unique National Identity Number will be assigned to each individual ...
www.deccanherald.com › State - Cached - SimilarGovt kicks off unique ID project for all citizens
The project will ensure a permanent ID card, which would have a unique number, photograph and biometric data, for every Indian, from birth till death, ...
www.indianexpress.com/...unique-id-project.../416129/ - United States - Cached - SimilarNational ID Card : Nandan Nilekani named Chairperson of Unique ...
25 Jun 2009 ... The unique identification number would ensure that any lacuna in these schemes ... The national ID project. The programme will issue unique ...
www.zeenews.com › Nation - Cached - SimilarThe Hindu Business Line : Nilekani to head Govt's unique ...
26 Jun 2009 ... Nilekani to head Govt's unique identification project ... It will own and operate the unique identification number database and be ...
www.thehindubusinessline.com/.../2009062651860100.htm - Cached - SimilarNilekani UID Project | Unique Identification Number ...
28 Nov 2009 ... The UID project head Nandan Nilekani said that the Unique Identification number will just provide identification and not citizenship.
news.oneindia.in/.../nilekani-unique-identification-number-citizenship.html - CachedWork for unique identification project to begin with census ...
21 Feb 2010 ... work for database for ambitious unique identification project will also begin which will result in national identity number (NIN) to be ...
www.dnaindia.com/.../report_work-for-unique-identification-project-to-begin-with-census_1350811 - CachedThe Hindu : News / National : Work for Unique Identification ...
21 Feb 2010 ... Along with Census 2011, work on database for the ambitious Unique Identification Project will also begin to provide national identity number ...
beta.thehindu.com/news/national/article110834.ece - CachedNilekani quits Infy board; to head govt prog: Rediff.com Business
25 Jun 2009 ... The unique identification number would ensure that any lacuna in these ... 16 to kickstart its ambitious Unique Identification Project. ...
business.rediff.com/.../nilekani-to-head-identification-project.htm - Cached - Similar
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Unique ID number will help bring in transparency: NilekaniTimes of India - 7 hours ago NEW DELHI: The Unique Identification Number will bring in mobility, choice, transparency and accountability at the doorsteps of the common man, ... Foolproof aid-provider wins UN contractFinancial Express - 7 hours ago The current project has two objectives. First, 4G ID will setup and run biometric enrollment stations to enroll citizens in order to create a unique ID for ... UIDAI gets over 3000 logo designsBusiness Standard - Mar 15, 2010 PTI / New Delhi March 16, 2010, 0:30 IST The UIDAI, which aims to provide a unique 16-digit number to all residents of the country by next year, ... Work for Unique Identification Project to begin with CensusThe Hindu - Feb 21, 2010 PTI Along with Census 2011, work on database for the ambitious Unique Identification Project will also begin to provide national identity number (NIN) to ...  Email this story4G Identity wins two bids to provide devices to UIDAIEconomic Times - Mar 10, 2010 The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has been set up by the Government of India with a mandate to issue a unique identification number to ... 4G Identity Solutions Wins India Unique ID Devices Contract Business Wire India (press release) Email this storyBuy Bartronics because of unique identification project: Ambareesh BaligaEconomic Times - Mar 2, 2010 One clear reason is the unique identification project. There is a lot of support from the government for this and it should take off much sooner than ... A year of UID: Much more than a numberBusiness Standard - - Feb 19, 2010 The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), set up to issue a unique identification (UID) number to all 1.2 billion Indian residents, ... Govt pledges support for launch of UID project in JK Rising Kashmir Email this storyBartronics climbs on allocation for unique identification projectBloombergUTV - Feb 25, 2010 The unique identification project is aimed at providing a unique number to all Indians. The project will provide a database of residents containing very ... Nilekani gets a bigger tag Times of India Nandan Nilekani gets higher role in government Stock Watch Ernst & Young selected consultant for Unique ID projectHindu Business Line - - Feb 23, 2010 The UID project would provide an identification number to each of the over one billion residents of India. The first set of UIDs will be issued between ... UIDAI calls for quotations for first IT contract: Sources Moneycontrol.com UIDAI inks MoU with MP govt to issue UIDs by 2011Economic Times - Mar 12, 2010 and to uniform standards and processes for verification and identification of beneficiary and for the implementation," an official statement by the Unique ... Stay up to date on these results: |
West Bengal govt ups the ante on MamataLivemint - - 3 hours ago Kolkata: Railway minister Mamata Banerjee's largesse for West Bengal has given her home state's Left Front government an opportunity to score political ... Railway Minister addresses General Managers' Conference Press Information Bureau (press release) Email this storyNo rail cos in divestment party, govt eyes Rs 40K cr from 12 PSUsEconomic Times - 13 hours ago NEW DELHI: Railway minister Mamata Banerjee has refused to include any of the public sector companies under her ministry in the government's divestment plan ... Juhi Chawla Calls Mamata Banerjee To Watch Kolkata Knight Ridersindia-server.com - Mar 16, 2010 Juhi Chawla invited Mamata Banerjee with a ticket to the Kolkata Knight Riders match against Chennai Super Kings on Tuesday at the Eden Gardens. ... Juhi Chawla invites Mamata Banerjee to watch KKR in action Cricketnext.com Death knell for CPM has been sounded: MamataIndian Express - Mar 14, 2010 Mamata Banerjee leads a rally to mark the third anniversary of Nandigram firing. Express Photo With an eye on the upcoming municipal and Assembly polls, ... Mamata: unite against political violence The Hindu Peace purr after action roar Calcutta Telegraph No difference between Maoists and Marxists : Mamata Press Trust of India Mamata Banerjee trusts Pranab Mukherjee to set her house in orderDaily News & Analysis - Mar 14, 2010 New Delhi: Keeping ally Mamata Banerjee happy is not easy, the Congress is finding out the hard way. The job not only involves putting up with the railway ... Mamata here? Minister scootsCalcutta Telegraph - - 17 hours ago Calcutta, March 16: A CPM minister from Tripura reportedly scooted from the All India Matua Mahasabha's office on Sunday after hearing of Mamata Banerjee's ... Mamata for setting up coach factory at SingurThe Hindu - - Mar 13, 2010 Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said here on Saturday that she would like to set up a coach factory at Singur, erstwhile site of the Nano factory of Tata ... Ambiguity over state's Railway projects Express Buzz Mamata Banerjee inaugurates auto hub in West Bengal Little About (blog) Rail budget to flag off Mamata Banerjee's poll campaignTimes of India - - Feb 23, 2010 NEW DELHI: With her eyes firmly focussed on the West Bengal elections next year, railway minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee will kick off ... Video: Mamata's Rail Budget: No hike in fares NDTV.com Mamata Banerjee downplays anger over Women's BillNDTV.com - Mar 9, 2010 After seething publicly over the vote on the Women's Bill, Mamata Banerjee has clarified that she supports the Bill, but was angry that her party was not ... Video: Govt succumbs to pressure UTVi Railways need private sector for resource mop-up: MamataThe Hindu - Mar 11, 2010 PTI AP A file photo of Indian Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee Faced with a requirement of mammoth resources for expansion, the railways will need to ... Railway budget is pro-Bengal: state MP tells House Times of India Mamata blames Naxals for railways' loss Business Standard MLAs seek censure motion against Mamata Express Buzz Stay up to date on these results: |
| Vol. 29 | March 16th - 31st, 2010 | No. 6
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Assam assembly resolution on NRC Fixes March 25, 1971 as the CUT Off Date for NRC as UID Projets Corporatarised Launches the Deportation drive Afresh!Mizoram to implement new land use policy!On the other hand, Government offers to discuss Nuclear Bill with opposition!Meanwhile,The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Wednesday said it was opposed to marshals being brought into the two houses of parliament and blamed the government for bad floor management in the first half of the budget session during which key bills, including a legislation on women's reservation, were tabled amid disruptions.Keeping in mind , Indian Parliamentary Premier league Reality Show and the Tradition of anti People Enactment, legislation, Budget Proposals, Misleading Plan allocation, media Coverage, Excellent Mind control and diversion with Non issues, uproars and Walkouts we do rather Feel Otherwise and know well all about the Unprecedented Floor Management led by Zionist Rothschild's in the Best Interest of Market Dominating Brahaminical Zionist Ruling Class in the US Dominated promoted Free Market Democracy! The Periphery of US War Economics! At the same time it sounds quite AMUSING as Defence Minister A.K. Antony Wednesday said that India should have its own public and private firms engaged in defence equipment production as it cannot indefinitely depend on foreign weapons.Accusing the Congress-led UPA Government of being "hand-in-glove" with BSP, SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav on Wednesday demanded that a probe be ordered into the currency garlands presented to UP Chief Minister Mayawati before April 12, when Parliament meets again after the recess.The Trinamool Congress, the second largest constituent of the Congress-led ruling coalition, says it is yet decide its stand on the nuclear liability bill that was deferred by the government Monday, the day it was listed for introduction in the Lok Sabha.
In Guahati, the Assam assembly today passed a resolution fixing March 25, 1971 as the cut-off date for updating the National Registrar of Citizen (NRC). Taking up the resolution in the House, Minister for Assam Accord Implementation Bhumidhar Barma said there was a consensus to fix March 25, 1971 as the cut-off date and the base year for updating the NRC. The NRC issue had become controversial with several Muslim parties opposing 1971 as the base year and demanding that the cut-off date be 1966.The minister said down the years a consensus was arrived at and the government was in favour of passing a resolution to end the stalemate and hasten the process of preparing the NRC which will have the names of ''genuine'' citizens. BJP member Mission Ranjan Das demanded protection for the Hindu refugees who had fled from Bangladesh prior to 1971 and were staying in the country.Leader of the Opposition and president of Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), Chandra Mohan Patowary demanded a time-frame of one year for completion of the updating of NRC, while CPI MLA Dhrupad Borgohain wanted to know the plight of those people who had entered the country between 1966 and 1971. Speaker Tanka Bahadur Rai placed the resolution for voice vote and then declared it as passed.
Currency Garlands in Vogue, RBI and Centre Inactive after Mayawati, Bihar MP garlanded with currency notes after Mayawati, Bihar MP garlanded with currency notes! I have been written consistently that alliance of Powerful Castes may ensure the success of Castelogy or social Engineering whatever you may like to say, but it is nothing to do with People`s Empowerment.Mayawati Throned or Dethroned makes no difference to the Subhuman Plight of Black Untouchable Indigenous Aboriginal Communities. Free Market Democracy led by Extraconstitutional Elements and Legislation, Governance and Policy Making endowed with Brahamincal Corporate Ruling Hegemony, Ideologies have become Irrelevant. Current Currency Garlands in Vogue exposes the constitutional, Parliamentary, Fiscal and Monetary follies which reflect the Continuity since Nehruvian Age and strengthened in the global Market run by Global Manusmriti apartheid Zionist satanic Corporate Imperialist Fascist Brahminical Order in this galaxy!
We in Uttarakhand has to witness the Colorful Political Ups and downs of the Development Icon of the Brahaminical hegemony who rules UP as well as Uttrakhand besides holding finance and Industry Portfolios in Indira Cabinet! I mean ND Tiwari. I had to witness how well the man Blackmailed and used the Bengali and Sikh Refugee partition victim Refugees with his passionate Socialist Demagogue Oratory. Hence, it helps me to understand the ploys of Black and white Matua Ms Mamata Banerjee ploys with Poetry and Passion highlighting the Vedic Poverty posture to establish Truth and Honesty so that the Political Face of the Ruling Resistance as well as power Hegemonies look quite Transparent and Human like Inflated Satyam Asatyam and Shining Sensex India. ND Tiwari is the best Icon of the Luxurious Five star lifestyle of Post Modern Politician maintaining continuity since Fifties way back!The Delhi High Court Wednesday dismissed former Andhra Pradesh governor N.D. Tiwari's plea challenging the paternity suit filed by a 34-year-old man who says the Congress leader is his biological father.Justices Vikramjit Sen and Manmohan Singh said there was ample evidence to prove that the suit filed by Rohit Shekhar could be filed in Delhi - a ground on which Shekhar's plea was dismissed earlier by a single bench.Tiwari's five-decade-old political career came to a virtual end after a news channel last year showed clippings of an elderly man purported to be Tiwari in bed with three young women.A few days later, Tiwari resigned as the Andhra Pradesh governor citing health grounds.
According to the division bench, as Tiwari is not the governor of Andhra Pradesh any more and has an official residence in Delhi, the case could be heard by the Delhi High Court.
The single bench, while refusing to admit Shekhar's plea earlier, had said that since Tiwari was the governor of Andhra, the suit against him should be filed in that state.
On Wednesday, the court checked Tiwari's counsel when he submitted that Shekhar's plea was not maintainable. It said it may consider ordering a DNA test if the issue of maintainability was raised by Tiwari, now 86.
Shekhar's plea will now come up before a single bench April 7.Senior advocate P.S. Patwali, who argued for Shekhar, stressed that Tiwari's denial in accepting him as his son was the reason for filing this civil suit.
Welcoming the court order, Ujwala Sharma, mother of Shekhar, said: 'I am very happy and it is a big victory for us.'Shekhar said the purpose of filing the suit was to know who his biological father was. 'It's my fundamental right,' he told reporters.Shekhar said he was seeking a DNA test to know if Tiwari was his father. He indicated that he wanted an apology from the veteran Congressman if the test proved him to be so.According to Shekhar's petition, Tiwari began neglecting Shekhar and his mother Ujjawala Sharma after 1995 and refused to meet him after becoming the Uttranchal chief minister.
Anotehr case of the Classic example of Judicial proactivism floor saround as Delhi HC declines to stay 3G spectrum auction process!The Delhi High Court today refused to stay the auction process of 3G spectrum (radio waves) initiated by government over a petition filed by an NGO alleging the Department of Telecom is flouting the norms and it is skewed to favour certain established operators. A division bench comprising acting Chief Justice M B Lokur and Justice Mukta Gupta declined to stay the Notice for Inviting the Application by DoT on February 25 this year in this regard.The court has directed to list the matter on April 7 for next hearing. The auction would begin on April 9.
The court''s direction came over a petition filed by Society for Awareness and Development which contended DoT''s Notice for Inviting the Application of February 25 is heavily tilted in favour of the big 3G operators at the cost of national exchequer. The NGO said government is going to auction such spectrum which is not even available with them.
"As per the tender notice, spectrum may be available only in September 2010. Auction is something which, if not available, would lead to suppression of price as also possible litigation ," alleged the NGO in its petition filed by advocate Sandip Mittal.
It said the auction process is also contrary to the clarification issued by DoT September 11, 2008, in which it said "auction for 3G services would be done when it becomes available". However, senior lawyer Vikas Singh and advocate Sanjay Hegde, representing DOT and government, opposed the petition and submitted there are some "hidden hands" behind the petition.
Close on the heels of the controversy over garlanding Mayawati with currency notes, a Bihar MP was today honoured in the same way here for opposing Women''s Reservation Bill in Rajya Sabha. Expelled JD(U) member Ejaz Ali was garlanded with currency notes worth Rs 1 lakh by his supporters when he landed from New Delhi at the Jayaprakash Narayan International Airport here.
However, the garland was snatched later by someone in the crowd. Ali described the incident as the handiwork of people opposed to his rise in politics, and told PTI, "Had they been my supporters, they would have behaved decently and not taken away the currency notes from the garland.
" Ali was recently expelled from JD(U) for his alleged anti-party activities.
Five Americans charged with terrorism in Pakistan! One the other hand, Nirupama Rao briefs US on talks with Pakistan!IslamOnline staff protests curbs on 'editorial independence'!FBI going undercover on Facebook!US law-enforcement agents are being trained to use social-networking sites like Facebook to befriend suspects and collect evidence, according to documents released by advocacy group The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).
Bin Laden won't be caught alive, says Attorney General Holder!Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden will not be tried in a US courtroom because he won't be caught alive, the top US law enforcement official said.Attorney General Eric Holder Tuesday appeared before a congressional committee for budget testimony but was forced to defend the Obama administration's plan to put some terrorist suspects on trial in civilian courts rather than military commissions at Guantanamo Bay.Holder rejected charges by Republicans that the policy would make it possible for bin Laden to enjoy the same constitutional rights as US citizens.
'We will be reading Miranda rights to a corpse of Osama bin Laden. He will never appear in an American courtroom,' Holder responded, referring to the rights read by police while conducting arrests.He said that bin Laden 'will be killed by us, or he will be killed by his own people'.
Bin Laden has been on the run since the Sep 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, believed to be hiding along Afghanistan's border with Pakistan.
Meanwhile,Nepal lawmakers say border problems persist with India in 15 districts! AsHeadley to plead guilty in Mumbai terror case!Pakistani American terror suspect David Coleman Headley, accused of helping to plan the deadly Nov 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, is expected to change his plea to 'guilty' in a Chicago court Thursday.Headley, son of a Pakistani diplomat and an American mother who changed his given name of Daood Gilani in 2006 to scout targets for the 26/11 terror attack, will appear before US District Judge Harry Leinenweber for a change of plea hearing, according to a court notice.It was not clear whether Headley, who had pleaded 'not guilty' to charges that include conspiring to bomb public places in India and aiding and abetting the murder of American citizens killed during the attack that left 166 people dead, would change his plea for all or just some of the charges against him.In a Jan 14 indictment prosecutors have alleged he made five trips to Mumbai from 2006 to 2008, taking photographs and making videotapes of targets later attacked.
The staff of Cairo-based IslamOnline website have gone on strike following a move by the site's management to restrict "editorial independence."
e site was plunged into chaos after its bosses in Qatar decided to take control of its content from editorial offices in Egypt.The move is likely to result in loss of 350 jobs at the website, which draws over 120,000 visitors per day.Angry staff sans the move was an effort by conservative elements in the Gulf to mute the media outlet, which has a reputation for voicing liberal and reformist voices in the Islamic world.
"This is not an issue of money. It's a matter of editorial independence and media ethics, and we are not going to back down. They are trying to hijack IslamOnline, and we are resisting," The Guardian quoted journalist Fathi Abu Hatab as saying.
The protesters urged the Egyptian Government to stop the conservative management from imposing a new editorial policy on it.
"We call on the Egyptian Government to interfere in order to stop this plan and solve our problem with the Qatari owners," one striker said.slamOnline has gained popularity among Muslims since it was started in the late 1990s.
So far, it has enjoyed a degree of independence from the political and religious.
Nepal's lawmakers have claimed that border problems with India persist in at least 15 districts, and, have demanded a revision of a survey that was prepared and inked during the 2008 visit of then Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee.
After delivering a blunt public warning to Pakistan to stop encouraging terror targeted at India, Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao has briefed top US officials about her talks with her Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir in New Delhi last month.Among others Rao met Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns and National Security Advisor General James Jones
The Foreign Relations and Human Rights Committee of Nepal's interim parliament has released a report based on lawmakers' visits to the contentious districts, asking the government to reclaim the land it says has been encroached on by India.
About three years ago, a Joint Technical Committee comprising officials from both India and Nepal drew up 182 strip maps, which were to be the foundation of a new Indo-Nepal border.
The committee, according to a report by an Indian daily, said most border disputes had been settled except for two contentious areas - Kalapani on the Indo-Nepal-China border where India has stationed troops since its 1962 war with China, and Susta in western Nawalparasi district where Nepal says there is heavy Indian encroachment.
It was decided that the Kalapani and Susta disputes would be resolved at a political level.
However, despite India's keenness to have the strip maps formally signed by both sides, Nepal has baulked at doing so. Now the MPs say the strip maps should be revised as they have found iscrepancies in at least 15 more Terai districts, including Rupandehi.
In Washington,Nirupama Rao briefed US officials about talks with Pakistan in the context of discussions 'focused on regional issues including India's neighbourhood', Indian officials said.
Headley, 49, has been cooperating with the FBI since his October arrest with co-accused, Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a Pakistani-Canadian businessman resident in Chicago. Headley faced a possible death sentence if convicted.
Headley and Rana are also charged with scheming to attack a Danish newspaper, Jyllands-Posten, that in 2005 published cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad and triggering anger in the Muslim world.
'We expect there will be a plea agreement,' Headley attorney John Theis said but declined to say to what charge or charges Headley will admit guilt in his March 18 appearance.
Randall Samborn, a spokesman for Chicago US Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald declined to comment on the docket entry.
Stressing that Afghanistan presented the foremost security related challenge in the region, Rao 'reiterated India's long held position that it was important for the international community to stay the present course in Afghanistan for as long as it is necessary'.
'The US interlocutors conveyed their appreciation of the important developmental work being done by India in Afghanistan,' Indian officials said.
Rao's bilateral meetings 'with US interlocutors provided an opportunity to review the progress on various pillars of India-US Strategic Dialogue agenda including cooperation in defence, nuclear energy, counter-terrorism, agriculture, education, energy, space, cyber-security', the Indian embassy said Tuesday.
The two sides had instituted the Strategic Dialogue in July 2009 when Clinton visited India. External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna is expected to visit Washington soon for the first round of the Strategic Dialogue with Clinton.
State Department spokesperson Philip J. Crowley told reporters Tuesday that the Clinton-Rao meeting 'is part of the ongoing dialogue that we have with India on our strategic dialogue'.
Rao also met Under Secretary for Policy in the Department of Defence Michelle Flournoy, Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Robert Hormats and Under Secretary of State for Democracy Global Affairs Maria Otero.
Besides, she met House of Representatives' Democrat member Gary Ackerman and Independent senator Joseph Lieberman. She attended a separate breakfast meeting to interact with experts from prominent Washington think tanks.
Rao and Bashir held talks in New Delhi Feb 25 during which the Indian side gave three dossiers linking elements in Pakistan to various terror attacks in India and asked Pakistan to create a climate of trust by addressing Indian concerns over cross-border terror.
The meeting ended without a breakthrough, with India making it clear that the time was not yet ripe for resuming the composite dialogue. But the two sides agreed to remain in touch.
In Islamabad,a Pakistani court formally charged on Wednesday five young Americans of plotting terrorism in the country, their lawyer said, in a case that has raised alarm over the danger posed by militants using the Internet.
The students, in their 20s and from the U.S. state of Virginia, were detained in December in the town of Sargodha, 190 km (120 miles) southeast of Islamabad, and accused of contacting militants over the Internet and plotting attacks.
A defence lawyer for the men, Hassan Dastagir, said the charges brought against his clients, included fund raising for terrorist acts.
"The court brought charges of terrorism against my clients and fixed March 31 for the next hearing in which the prosecution would produce evidence and witnesses," he told Reuters by telephone from Sargodha.
He said the men pleaded not guilty and described the charges as "lies".
The five men, who had told the court they only wanted to provide fellow Muslims in Afghanistan with medical and financial help, face life imprisonment if convicted, Dastagir said.
Police said the men -- two of them of Pakistani origin, one of Egyptian, one of Yemeni and one of Eritrean origin -- wanted to go to Afghanistan to join the Taliban to fight Afghan and Western forces.
Police have said emails showed they contacted Pakistani militants who had planned to use them for attacks in Pakistan, a front-line state in the U.S.-led war against militancy.
The five have accused the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation and Pakistani police of torturing and trying to frame them. Pakistani authorities deny the accusations.
Pakistan is fighting al Qaeda-linked militants and is under pressure from Washington to help stabilise Afghanistan by cracking down on militants' cross-border attacks on U.S.-led troops.
Trinamool Congress undecided on nuclear liability bill
The Trinamool Congress, the second largest constituent of the Congress-led ruling coalition, says it is yet decide its stand on the nuclear liability bill that was deferred by the government Monday, the day it was listed for introduction in the Lok Sabha.
Trinamool Congress MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay said Tuesday the party has not taken a decision on the matter.
'Let it be tabled first, then we will decide,' Bandyopadhyay told IANS when asked about his party's stand on the bill that is crucial to the operationalisation of the India-US civilian nuclear deal.
Reports had said Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee had joined the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and her arch-rivals, the Left parties, in opposing the bill and the 'isolated' government was forced to defer it.
Meanwhile, the Left parties Tuesday urged MPs to reject the nuclear liability bill, saying it amounted to giving subsidies to US suppliers of proposed nuclear plants while disregarding the interests of the Indian people.
The government is trying to evolve a consensus on the issue to introduce the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damages Bill in the second part of the budget session commencing April 12 after a three-week break.
The bill seeks to cap the liability of nuclear plant operators and equipment suppliers in case of an accident.
Indo Asian News Service
Government offers to discuss Nuclear Bill with opposition
Science and Technology Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Wednesday said that Central Government is ready to discuss Nuclear Bill with the opposition parties.
Addressing reporters on the sidelines of a conference here, Chavan urged the opposition parties to look up at the principles as to why was the government trying to bring in the Bill.
"My point is that they are free to criticize, my only request to the opposition, let us discuss in the open manner. But let us look at the merits, philosophy, the principles, why we are trying to bring it," he said.
Opposition parties say the Bill favours private players as it seeks to put a maximum liability of about 450 million dollars on the state-run reactor operator without placing any compensation burden on private suppliers and contractors.
Chavan further stated that the government was open to discuss compensation amount also.
"The compensation amount can be discussed, but it is a balanced with...of the compensation amount through out the world and it somewhere in the middle, it is not as high as in some countries, nor it is as low as in some countries. The compensation amount, we are insisting that operator must take insurance. So, if we set up unreasonably high compensation amount, the insurance cost come down, the cost of power goes up," he said.
The Central government deferred the crucial nuclear energy Bill after protests by opposition on Monday.
India has offered to tender construction of two nuclear power plants, a business opportunity worth 10 billion US dollars, to American firms such as General Electric Company and Westinghouse Electric Company, presently a subsidiary of Japan's Toshiba Corporation.
But the liability issue has delayed things, putting the US firms at a competitive disadvantage over Russian and French firms whose accident liability is underwritten by their governments. (ANI)
Mayawati gets another currency garland
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati was Wednesday presented with another garland of currency notes, even as a row triggered by a similar show of extragavance two days ago refused to fade away.
Stated to have been made with neatly folded Rs.500 and Rs.100 notes, the Rs.18 lakh garland was gifted to the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president at a function here Wednesday.
Unlike Monday, when every effort was made by BSP functionaries to conceal the fact that the garland was made of Rs.1,000 denomination notes possibly running into crores, this time the party gloated about the gift.
Mayawati's multi-portfolio cabinet minister Naseemuddin Siddiqui declared: 'This garland has been made with currency notes worth Rs.18 lakhs, contributed by party functionaries from Uttar Pradesh's 18 divisions. The party raised the money.'
The garland ceremony took place at meeting of party MPs and legislators at the BSP state headquarters here.
Siddiqui said the second garland was in response to the storm kicked up by the opposition over the Monday garland bestowed upon the BSP supremo.
Mizoram to implement new land use policy
The Mizoram government will introduce a New Land Use Policy (NLUP) to help farmers move away from the traditional slash-and-burn method of cultivation to more sustainable land-based means of livelihood, state Governor M.M. Lakhera said Wednesday.
'A Rs.2,527-crore NLUP has been taken up for sustainable land-based economic activities and to remove the age-old 'jhum' cultivation in the state,' the governor said in his customary speech on the opening day of the week-long budget session of the state assembly.
'The approval for the proposal is in the final stage by the Planning Commission,' he said.
The tribals in the hilly terrain of the northeastern states have for generations been carrying out the traditional slash-and-burn method of cultivation, locally called jhum, which has resulted in degradation of forest land and worsening of the soil condition.
According to the governor, in the first five years, the NLUP aims to support 120,000 families. He said the departments of agriculture, horticulture, veterinary, industries, forest, fisheries, sericulture and soil and water conservation would be involved in the scheme.
About 80 percent of farmers in Mizoram still depend on jhum cultivation that involves clearing of forests and burning trees, weeds and bamboos.
Every year many people die in jhum fires. Since February this year, at least seven people have died in the jhum fires in Mizoram.
The governor said the NLUP would restore ecological balance by providing the farmers sustainable and permanent land-based means of livelihood.
'The NLUP also aims to create 21,480 hectares of bamboo plantation to benefit 10,740 families.'
Despite the slash-and-burn system of cultivation, Mizoram has a large forest cover area with 75.77 percent of the total land.
'The NLUP intends to keep 60 percent of the state's total geographical area under forest cover and the remaining 40 percent for land-based development,' Lakhera said.
The state government has also endorsed the draft approach to the 11th Five Year Plan, especially in agriculture sector for sustainable development as well as self-sufficiency in food grain production.
'The main strategies would include accelerating the GDP (gross state domestic product) growth in agriculture sector to around 4 percent and larger investment of private sector through farming,' the governor said.
RBI should carefully normalise policy - Ahluwalia
Reuters
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) should consider carefully returning to normal monetary policy, with growth firmly on track and inflation rising beyond its comfort zone, deputy chairman of the Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, said on Wednesday.
The RBI is widely expected to raise its key lending rate by 25 to 50 basis points in April when it meets to review monetary policy as it continues steps to roll-back stimulus measures.
"Clearly inflation is become closer, much more into the worrying area. Secondly, we're much more confident the growth is picking up," Ahluwalia told reporters.
The annual wholesale price inflation accelerated to 9.89 percent in February and the finance minister said it could top 10 percent in March.
"What is the balance between controlling inflation and protecting growth, is an issue which the people responsible for short-term monetary policy have to take a look at," Ahluwalia said.
The economy is seen expanding at over 7.2 percent in the year to March 2010, with growth expanding to 8.5 percent the year after and to 9 percent in 2011/12.
When asked if the strong growth and high inflation made a case for the central bank to return to a normal monetary policy, Ahluwalia said: "That is an issue I want the RBI to consider very carefully and I've no doubt they will make the right decision."
Ahluwalia declined to say what he thought the RBI would decide during its April review meeting.
He said inflation was a concern and needed to be brought down, but dismissed concerns of a prolonged period of double-digit inflation.
"Over the next two months, I expect to see inflation coming down."
(Reporting by C.J. Kuncheria; Editing by Aradhana Aravindan)
Labour laws collapsing in country, says CITU chief
Zirakpur (Punjab), March 17 (IANS) Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) chief M.K. Pandhe Wednesday slammed the central government for its 'wrong policies' which he says are against the working class.
'Labour laws are collapsing in our country. It is because our government is determined to follow wrong policies that are highly anti-working class,' Pandhe told reporters on the sidelines of a conference here Wednesday.
Pandhe is in this Punjab town to attend the 13th All India Conference of CITU March 17-21. Zirakpur is 10 km from state capital Chandigarh. CITU is affilitated to the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M).
'Privatization, unemployment and inflation have gripped our society and their adverse affects are looming over our heads.'
Over 2,500 delegates from across the country and foreign delegates from 15 other countries like France, Brazil, Finland, Australia, Russia and the US have arrived to attend this conference.
Talking about the conference, Pandhe said,'We are meeting at a time when there are big challenges before the working class movement. We have a stupendous task ahead to build strong unity so that we can reverse the policies of the government.'
'So far, we have been able to unify our movement at the top level.....now we are shifting our focus at lower level,' he pointed out.
Taking a dig at the aftermath of financial meltdown, Pandhe said, 'The capitalism attempted to put the burden of the crisis on the shoulders of the working class and the poor. ILO (International Labour Organisation) estimates that as a result of global crisis the unemployment level is likely to reach 20 crore in the world.'
'The bailout package was given to MNCs and financial tycoons but no relief was given to workers who lost their jobs.'
Indo Asian News Service
No pressure from allies on women's quota bill: Congress
Ruling out quota within quota in the bill providing 33 percent reservation for women in all legislatures, the Congress party Wednesday said there was 'no pressure' on it from its allies and the government seeks to pass the bill in its present form in the Lok Sabha.
'We believe that all our allies will support us. We are absolutely confident that our allies will remain with us. We wish to pass the bill in the present form,' said Congress spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan here.
In response to a quesion, she denied any opposition to passing the bill in its present form by allies Trinamool Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).
'There is no pressure upon us (from the allies),' Natarajan said, adding that all differences within the alliance would be settled through discussions.
The bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha last week amidst strong protests by the Samajwadi Party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal and a section of the Janata Dal-United.
Indo Asian News Service
Pak taking action against terror groups: US envoy
Lucknow, Mar 17 (PTI) Brushing aside suggestions that his country was soft towards Pakistan, US Ambassdor to India Timothy J Roemer today said Washington had been repeatedly telling Islamabad to take firm action against terror groups operating from its soil. In fact, Pakistan had started taking effective action against Taliban and Lashkar groups in Waziristan and other places, he told a media round table here.
The US envoy, on a two-day visit to Uttar Pradesh, was responding to a question whether the US was soft on Pakistan, perceived to be the breeding ground of several terror outfits. Roemer lauded India''s efforts in fighting the terror menace and heaped praise on Union Home Minister P Chidambaram for taking steps in this regard.
The US and India would work more closely in fighting terrorism which needed to be crushed with an iron hand, he said. Terrorists had been trying to expand their wings all over the world, the ambassador said emphasising the need for concerted and firm efforts in eliminating the scourge.
Turning to US-India ties, he said both the nations were global players and working together in areas like education, women empowerment, healthcare, education, business and climate and environment. On the Indo-US civil nuclear cooperation agreement, he this would provide a green energy to the people of India and many jobs opportunites.
"It is a win-win situation for both the countries," Roemer said. He had a word of praise for Indian Parliamentary democracy, saying "we respect the system in India".
'ISI using Dawood & jihadis for terror hits'
India Today
Wed, Mar 17 11:37 AM
Security agencies may have achieved some success in apprehending a few terrorists planning attacks in Mumbai, but investigators say the arrests are just a tip of the iceberg.
''The ISI has brought together underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, Tiger Memon, and elements of the LeT, Jaish-e-Mohammad and Indian Mujahideen operatives such as Amir Reza Khan to create terror and mayhem throughout the country,'' an investigator said.
The officer added the information was gleaned from inputs from central intelligence agencies and also through those involved in planning the terror attacks.
''Abdul Latif, who has been arrested, is a relative of Bashir Khan. The latter was involved in planting explosives in the first serial blasts in Mumbai in 1993. Since the 1993 bomb blasts had a bigger involvement of Tiger than Dawood, we believe Tiger has once again been roped in to create terror,'' the officer said.
The official added that ever since Tiger fled to Pakistan after the bomb blasts, this is the first time they are suspecting his involvement in a terrorist activity.
The officers are concerned that the ISI is focusing on hitherto safe areas. For instance, Abdul latif and Riyaz Ali have revealed they scouted a well-known colony in Borivili and a mall in Malad to plant explosives.
Reproduced From Mail Today. Copyright 2010. MTNPL. All rights reserved.
Mail Today
More muck on pimp guru
India today
A court on Tuesday accepted a Delhi Police plea to extend the remand of Chitrakoot godman Shiv Murat Dwivedi. Special judge S. K. Sarwaria, extended Dwivedi’s custodial remand by four days.
The police told the court that Dwivedi had been running a flesh trade network involving more than 100 pimps and 1,000 sex workers across the country. He has amassed property in Mumbai, Noida, Kolkata, Varanasi and Gowardhan.
They police submitted before the court eight diaries and five CDs seized from him.
Reproduced From Mail Today. Copyright 2010. MTNPL. All rights reserved.
FBI going undercover on Facebook
US law-enforcement agents are being trained to use social-networking sites like Facebook to befriend suspects and collect evidence, according to documents released by advocacy group The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).
The Justice Department internal training document, called Obtaining and Using Evidence from Social Networking Sites, revealed that undercover agents for the FBI and other agencies set up false profiles on sites like My Space and Facebook to try to nab suspects by getting access to their social networks.
The training manual said that such operations can be useful to communicate with suspects or targets, reveal their personal communications, gain access to non-public information and map social relationships and networks. Information gleaned can also be used to verify alibis and establish locations, the 33-page document revealed.
Social networks are also a good source of information on defence witnesses, the Justice Department's slide presentation said.
'Knowledge is power,' the document said. 'Research all witnesses on social-networking sites.'
The document notes the potential problems with such covert operations with the words: 'If agents violate terms of service, is that 'otherwise illegal activity?'' referring to site policies against establishing accounts with a false identity.
While the Justice Department document left the question open, a document released to EFF by the tax-collecting Internal Revenue Service noted that that IRS employees are prohibited from using deception or fake online accounts to obtain information about taxpayers.
'In civil matters, employees cannot misrepresent their identities, even on the Internet,' the document states. 'You cannot obtain information from websites by registering using fictitious identities.'
The EFF, which advocates for online privacy rights, withheld comment on the Justice Department documents but did praise the IRS policy.
'The IRS should be commended for its detailed training that clearly prohibits employees from using deception or fake social networking accounts to obtain information,' the group said Tuesday.
Q+A - Will U.S. politics curb Obama foreign policy?
Reuters
Mindful that this year's pivotal U.S. congressional elections will be decided on jobs and the economy, President Barack Obama is putting his main focus where the votes are -- on his domestic priorities.
That has stirred debate over whether Obama may have to scale back his foreign policy goals as he grapples with political realities at home.
White House aides insist Obama is a master at multi-tasking and has no intention of skimping on his international agenda.
But in a telling example of the foreign giving way to the domestic, he has delayed his long-planned trip to Indonesia and Australia by three days to focus on his final push for a U.S. healthcare overhaul.
With Obama's poll ratings down among U.S. voters and legislative battles occupying his attention, many analysts believe he will have less room to manoeuvre on the global stage.
"Obama is now a little weaker in the eyes of the world and the American people," said Douglas Paal, an Asia expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
"You will start to see domestic concerns reflected in foreign policy matters," said Paal, who served in the Republican administrations of Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.
Many analysts credit Obama with improving the tone of U.S. foreign policy in his first year but see few tangible achievements, and some critics say he may have tried to do too much too soon.
Still looming is an array of challenges: wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, nuclear standoffs with Iran and North Korea, strains with China and Russia, and ever-elusive Middle East peace. Here are questions and answers about what can be expected from Obama on the foreign policy front:
WHERE IS FOREIGN POLICY ON OBAMA'S TO-DO LIST?
Looking toward the November mid-term elections, Obama finds himself in a tenuous position. Voter frustration over the struggling economy, high unemployment and big budget deficits could translate into heavy losses for his Democratic Party.
Success or failure in tackling these domestic woes could define his term and determine whether he gets a second one.
Though the congressional election won't hinge on foreign policy, Obama can ill afford to be seen retreating from the world, which would worry many Americans and alienate allies.
While juggling competing agendas, he will trim back from last year's heavy foreign travel to concentrate on reconnecting with voters and stumping for at-risk congressional Democrats.
Aides deny he is taking a lower profile internationally. "It would be a huge mistake to draw that impression," Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes told Reuters.
As evidence that Obama is sticking to his commitments, administration officials cite a plan to host a 44-nation nuclear security summit in April, diplomatic efforts to isolate nuclear Iran, monitoring of a U.S.-led offensive in Afghanistan and a sustained aid response to the Haiti earthquake.
Despite that, Obama helped fuel speculation that foreign policy was taking a backseat when he devoted little of his annual State of the Union speech to it. The most notable omission: not a mention of the Middle East conflict.
He then surprised European partners by opting out of a U.S.-EU summit planned for Madrid in May. The no-show was interpreted in European media as a transatlantic snub, but U.S. officials pointed out that Obama visited Europe six times in his first year in office.
HOW WILL U.S. POLITICS SPILL INTO FOREIGN POLICY?
There is little doubt Obama's political problems at home could complicate his life overseas.
Having failed to translate his popularity abroad into concrete diplomatic achievements, he may now find foreign leaders even warier until after the dust clears in November.
That could mean further obstacles on issues ranging from Middle East peacemaking to climate change to more NATO troops for Afghanistan.
Consider the rare feud between Washington and Israel over plans for new Jewish homes on occupied land. With Democrats facing tough elections and mindful of the risk of alienating pro-Israel groups, he will have to weigh the domestic political consequences in how far he pushes the Jewish state.
Obama is also facing increased protectionist pressure from congressional Democrats, which could have implications for already-strained relations with China, America's biggest trading rival.
Tightening the screws on China could in turn erode Obama's chances for overcoming Beijing's resistance to new U.N. sanctions on Iran, one of his top foreign policy challenges.
Democrats' election-year concerns about further U.S. job losses also seem likely to keep free trade pacts with Colombia, Panama and South Korea stalled.
HOW DO INDONESIA AND AUSTRALIA FIT OBAMA'S STRATEGY?
Obama has called himself "America's first Pacific president" because of his birth in Hawaii and part of his youth spent in Indonesia. So expect his visits to Indonesia and Australia during a March 21-26 trip to be big on symbolism.
Though no major policy breakthroughs are likely in Obama's first overseas travel of 2010, he will use the opportunity to build on his Asia debut tour last year.
U.S. competition with China for influence in the dynamic Pacific region will be the subtext, underscored by the fact Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will go to Jakarta next month.
On top of that, Obama will have a chance to cement personal ties with two key world leaders, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
This comes while U.S. foreign policy circles are buzzing over a Washington Post editorial column saying administration officials were asked to name a foreign leader with whom Obama had forged a close personal bond. They had little to offer.
Scoffing at the notion Obama has no foreign friends, a senior administration official insisted Obama is "kind of buddy-buddy" with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, "clicks" with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and shares a "pragmatic streak" with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
(Additional reporting by Ross Colvin; editing by Patricia Wilson and Vicki Allen)
Matt Spetalnick
Merkel demands 'truth and clarity' on abuse scandal
Reuters
Chancellor Angela Merkel demanded "truth and clarity" on Wednesday about sexual abuse committed by priests in the Roman Catholic Church against children.
But Merkel, in a speech to parliament, also said it makes no sense to limit any such investigation to the Church, backing the position taken by German bishops. She said child sexual and physical abuse was a broader problem affecting all of society.
"We all agree sexual abuse against children is a despicable crime," said Merkel, leader of Germany's conservative Christian Democrats. "There is only one way for society to come clean and that is truth and clarity about everything that has happened."
The head of Germany's Catholic Church, Archbishop Robert Zollitsch, apologised last week to victims of child abuse by priests.
More than 250 people were abused at Church-run schools in past decades, according to German media reports. Many cases of abuse at boarding schools also surfaced. Sexual abuse scandals have also rocked the church in the United States, Ireland and Austria.
In the Netherlands more than 200 Catholics have come forward to report alleged sexual abuse by priests, often decades ago.
CONFIDENCE DECLINES
Earlier on Wednesday, Pope Benedict said he hoped his imminent letter on the child abuse problem will "help repentance, healing and renewal".
The Vatican has acknowledged that confidence in the Church has declined. But senior prelates have said it is unfair to single out the Church for child abuse, which also occurs in secular institutions.
"Even if the first cases we've heard about are from the Catholic Church, it doesn't make any sense to limit this to one group," said Merkel, the daughter of a protestant pastor. "It's happened in many parts of society."
The scandal in Germany has personally drawn in Bavarian-born Pope Benedict, whose brother ran for 30 years the prestigious Regensburg choir which has been linked to cases of abuse.
His brother, Rev. Georg Ratzinger, has admitted to repeatedly slapping boys in his Regensburg choir. Ettal Abbey, scene of brutal beatings and sexual abuse in the past, is located in the archdiocese which the Pope once headed as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.
Merkel's Justice Minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger has accused the Vatican of covering up scandals and pressed the bishops to cooperate with prosecutors "like in Ireland".
Merkel welcomed a roundtable planned for next month on how to better protect children which will include Catholic and Protestant leaders, teachers, civil society and victims. She said abuse victims are scarred for the rest of their lives and urged considering extending the statute of limitations for filing charges against abusers beyond the current 10 years.
"There's no way to make complete reparations for that," she said. "But we'll have to talk about (changing) the statute of limitations and we'll have to talk about compensation."
(Editing by Jackie Cowhig)
Erik Kirschbaum
Vasundhara, Varun get key positions in Team Gadkari
Indian Express
BJP president Nitin Gadkari today announced his team of office-bearers, seeking to blend youth and women power with experience, while giving adequate representation to states.
Vasundhara Raje, Ravi Shankar Prasad and Dharmendra Pradhan are among the 10 general secretaries, and P Muralidhar Rao, Navjot Sidhu, Varun Gandhi, Smriti Irani and Vani Tripathi among 15 secretaries in Team Gadkari.
Shahnawaz Hussain and former JNUite Nirmala Sitharaman are among the seven spokespersons. Ram Lal, Ananth Kumar, Thevarchand Gehlot and Vijay Goel have been retained as general secretaries.
Purushottam Rupala, a confidant of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, has been made party vice-president. Narendra Singh Tomar, who as president of the Madhya Pradesh BJP enjoyed an excellent rapport with Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, is a new general secretary.
Five of Gadkari's general secretaries are from an ABVP background, the organisation in which the BJP president cut his teeth in public life - Ananth Kumar, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Vijay Goel, Dharmendra Pradhan and J P Nadda.
Though Gadkari has often talked about a "ten per cent plus approach" to stress the need to reach out to Muslims, Dalits and other sections who have traditionally not been BJP voters, no Muslim has been made a general secretary. Also, only three of the 10 general secretaries won the parliamentary elections.
A former Maharashtra BJP president, Gadkari has attempted to create a sub-structure to help him in Delhi politics. He has elevated adviser Vinay Sahsrabuddhe to the national executive. General Secretary Nadda, not known to be on the best of terms with some senior central BJP leaders, has worked with Gadkari during their student days.
Kirit Somaiyya, considered close to Gadkari, is a party secretary. Prakash Javadekar, who has worked with Gadkari in Maharashtra, remains a spokesperson. Vinod Tawde, another Gadkari confidant, has been made a permanent invitee to the national executive.
Gadkari has accommodated followers of former president Rajnath Singh and Arun Jaitley in the national executive. Bal Apte, Yashwant Sinha and B C Khanduri do not figure on the office-bearers' list, but Apte and Sinha have been included in the national executive.
Hema Malini, Kiran Ghai, Saroj Pande and Arti Mehra are among the 13 women in the office-bearers' team of 39. Kiron Kher is in the national executive.
Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi remains vice-president. Thrice Lok Sabha MP Shahnawaz Hussain, who was expecting an important organisational responsibility, is said to be unhappy. A leader claimed that Yashwant Sinha and Balbir Punj too are unhappy. The new spokespersons include former Panchajanya editor Tarun Vijay, besides Rajiv Pratap Rudy and Ramnath Kovind.
Suman K Jha
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Pak, Iran sign pipeline deal sans India
| Font Size |
Agencies
Posted: Mar 17, 2010 at 1432 hrs IST
Islamabad Pakistan has signed a deal with Iran paving the way for the construction of a much-delayed pipeline pumping Iranian natural gas to the energy-starved South Asian country, officials said on Wednesday.
The $7.6 billion project is crucial for Pakistan to avert a growing energy crisis already causing severe electricity shortages in the country of about 170 million.
Pakistani Petroleum and Natural Resources Minister Naveed Qmar hailed the signing of the deal in Turkey on Tuesday as an historic achievement.
It's a milestone towards meeting energy needs of the country, a Pakistani government statement quoted Qamar as saying.
The pipeline will connect Iran's South Fars gas field with Pakistan's southern Baluchistan and Sindh provinces.
Iran has the world's second-largest gas reserves after Russia. But sanctions by the West, political turmoil and construction delays have slowed its development as an exporter.
Under the deal, 750 million cubic feet of gas will be pumped to Pakistan daily from Iran by mid-2015.
Qamar said he hoped work on the project would be started soon so that gas supplies to Pakistan could start on time.
PEACE PIPELINE
Dubbed the peace pipeline, the project has been planned since the 1990s and originally would have extended from Pakistan to its old rival, India.
However, India has been reluctant to join the project given its long-running distrust of Pakistan, with which it has fought three wars since they achieved independence in 1947.
Under the deal signed on Tuesday, Pakistan is allowed to charge a transit fee if the proposed pipeline is eventually extended to India.
The United States has tried to discourage India and Pakistan from any deal with Iran because of Tehran's suspected ambitions to build nuclear weapons. Iran denies any such ambitions.
India has invested in civilian nuclear reactors to help fulfill its increasing energy demand. It also signed a landmark civilian nuclear deal with the United States in 2008.
Pakistan has long called for a similar deal from the United States but Washington has been unwilling to make an agreement with its ally, which is battling an al Qaeda-linked Islamist insurgency.
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari reiterated Pakistan's demand in talks with Director of U.S. National Intelligence Dennis C. Blair on Tuesday.
(Zardari) called upon the U.S. to assist Pakistan in civilian nuclear technology to help the country overcome (the) energy crisis, on the one hand, and bridge the trust deficit between the two countries on the other, a government statement said.
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Percept signs up Vijender and four other boxersTimes of India - 30 minutes ago MUMBAI: Beijing Olympics bronze medal winner Vijender Singh and four other Indian boxers who won gold at the Commonwealth championship in Delhi were signed by Sports and Entertainment Management firm Percept for a three-year brand endorsement deal. Vijender Singh wins gold in Commonwealth Boxing Championship Economic Times Mayawati's garlands strike a chord with someNDTV.com - 1 hour ago In Delhi, leaders of different parties may be using her multi-lakh garland to attack her, but in the Uttar Pradesh heartland, the public pomp and glory of Maywati's evokes a different reaction. Video: BSP defends Maya's garland NDTV.com BSP sacks partyman; can't shut up garland row IBNLive.com Hyderabad is a free zone: Supreme CourtThe Hindu - 2 hours ago PTI The Supreme Court has held that Hyderabad would be a "free zone", entitling people from other parts of the state to compete in police and other important government jobs. Hyderabad will be a free zone: SC indiablooms | Delhi Daredevils vs. Mumbai Indians, 9th match MI 136/3(13) | RR: 10.46 Tiwary* 27(19), Rayudu 9(7) Last 2 Overs: . . . 1Wd 1 . 1| 1 1 1 6 1 1 |
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