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Thursday, November 30, 2006

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   News Analysis - March 2006

• Sugar Farming Increases for Quick Profit (March 31, 2006)
  More and more Indian farmers are switching from traditional crops of vegetables, pulses, and cereals to sugarcane because of the quick profit they can make from this cash crop.<More>

• SC Refuses Total Cow Slaughter Ban (March 31, 2006) 
  The Supreme Court refused to ban cow slaughter as that would amount to judicial legislation and would infringe on the roles, responsibilities, and authority of the Legislative bodies. <More>

• Customary Laws Govern Religion, Posts: SC (March 31, 2006) 
  The Supreme Court (SC) has said that tribal customary laws requiring a headman to perform both administrative and religious obligations can bar individuals who converted to other religions from contesting for such positions.<More>

• AIDS Case Numbers Dip in South  (March 31, 2006)
  An Institute of Medical Education and Research of Chandigarh study concluded that the number of AIDS cases in South India is lower because of the use of condoms and more awareness of infections than good medical practice or testing processes.<More>

• Coalition Force Inflicts Damage on Taliban (March 31, 2006)
  A strong Taliban force attacked a coalition base in Halmand province of Afghanistan shortly after midnight using mortars, rocket-propelled grenades, and small arms. < More> 

• Carter Bid to Bring Peace to Nepal (March 31, 2006)
  Former US President Jimmy Carter, Nobel Laureate for bringing peace to Israel and Egypt, is arriving in Nepal to talk to King Gnanendra, political opponents, and Maoist terrorists. < More> 

• Kadima wins to form Coalition Govt in Israel (March 31, 2006)
  Interim Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of comatose Ariel Sharon’s right of Center Kadima party won the elections and is set to form a Government only with the help of coalition partners.< More>

• Sharp debates in US on Nuclear Deal  (March 31, 2006)
  A sharp debate is ensuing in the US over the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal with former President Jimmy Carter publicly stating that he opposes the Agreement while a senior Intelligence Committee member said he supports it. <More> 

• India 4th World GDP Growth Engine  (March 30, 2006)
  In continuing euphoria, the Indian economy was fourth largest contributor to incremental global GDP growth at 3.2% after the US, China, and Japan; it raced past Germany, France, and the UK in this key indicator.<More>

• Major Gains in Food Processing (March 30, 2006)
  Indian food processing industry is now valued at USD 92 billion and the Government says that more money from the 8-10% growth is reaching the farmers directly because of production innovations such as contract farming.<More>

• Landmark SC Labor Judgments  (March 30, 2006)
  The Supreme Court (SC) made three landmark judgments that together would vastly change how labor is viewed and used by the Government.<More>

• Two Doctors Testing Fetal Sex Convicted   (March 30, 2006)
  For the first time, two doctors who tested the sex of the child in the fetus of the mother have been convicted for violating the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Technique Regulation & Prevention of Misuse Act, 1994.<More>

• Novel HIV-AIDS Train To Educate Villages (March 30, 2006)
  India will soon host a novel project that will allow artists, doctors, and counselors will travel by a special train that will make 40,000 stops to educate villages about the dangers of HIV-AIDS. <More>

• Did Salem name Bollywood Actors?  (March 30, 2006)
  Unnamed sources present at the laboratory tests performed on Portugal-extradited gangster Abu Salem said that the names or issues relating to Bollywood actors did not even feature in their questioning.<More>

• Pinaka Successful, Mig-29K next year  (March 30, 2006)
  The indigenously designed and built multi-barrel rocket launcher code named Pinaka was successfully test fired twice from India's integrated test range at Chandipur. <More>

• Saran on Selling Trip to US (March 30, 2006)
  Ahead of first briefings, Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran is travelling to the United States with a group of senior Government officials to drum up support for the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal among key Congressmen and Senators.<More>

• New Taliban Threatens to Consume Pak (March 29, 2006)
  The Pakistani establishment is increasingly nervous about the rise of a group calling itself the "Pakistani Taliban" and reports say that they rule large swathes of tribal land in Waziristan.< More>

• Nepal Continues to Self-Destruct  (March 29, 2006)
  On receiving intelligence on a gathering on Maoist terrorists in Central Nepal, in a move to avenge the murder of 13 of their colleagues, the Royal Nepal Army (RNA) launched a surprising attack killing more than 20 terrorists.< More> 

• Iranian Vice-PM Visits India (March 29, 2006)
  Visiting Iranian Vice-President Rashim Mashaee insisted that his country is not hiding any nuclear bomb program and encouraged India not to believe Western propaganda.< More> 

• US, Japan, & Aussie Strategic Grouping (March 29, 2006)
  The United States, Japan, and Australia have created a new forum to discuss global security and stability and met for the first time last week to discuss Iran, North Korea, China, and India.< More>

• India & GCC in new Partnership (March 28, 2006)
  India and 6 Gulf Cooperation Countries (GCC) entered a new era of partnership with a free trade agreement (FTA) and framework agreement for economic cooperation.<More>

• Cut Back in "Target Plus" Scheme   (March 28, 2006)
  The Government's plan to cut back on its Target Plus program for iron ore, sugar, and rice exporters is raising the anger levels of these exporters.<More>

• Islamic Court Review in 4 weeks (March 28, 2006)
  The Supreme Court (SC) granted four extra weeks to the Government to collect data on the presence of Islamic and Shariat courts, their roles, and implications on the judicial system.<More>

• The Hindu Wants to Print Tobacco Ads (March 28, 2006)
  In a surprise move, nationally available English newspaper, The Hindu, has petitioned the Supreme Court (SC) to overrule a Madras High Court (MHC) ruling that disallowed the publication of tobacco advertisements (ads) in newspapers.< More>

• Absenteeism of Teachers Affects Development (March 28, 2006)
  A World Bank survey studying absenteeism in many countries found that 25% of teachers in India miss work on an average every day, but this rate is not prevalent in all states.< More>

• Nepal Maoists kidnap Trekkers (March 28, 2006)
  Maoist terrorists in Nepal kidnapped 4 Polish trekkers even as news of two more European trekkers was reported missing.<More>

• Renewed Bugti-Pakistan Baloachistan clash (March 28, 2006)
  Pakistan’s Bugti clan clashed with Pakistani 23,000 strong armed force in Baloachistan at least four times over the weekend destroying all road transport and gas supply from the Sui Valley.<More>  

• India Not Part of Asian Currency Unit (March 27, 2006)  
  Despite the size, growth, and potential of their economies, India, Australia and New Zealand will not be part of an Asian Currency Unit (ACU) being created by for ASEAN countries but will include China, Japan, and South Korea. <More>

• Manufacturing Grows with Globalization (March 27, 2006)  
  Globalization over the last 14 years has tripled manufacturing production with more than 1/2 of produced goods being exported to mainly other Asian and African nations.< More>

• No Consensus on "Office of Profit"  (March 27, 2006)  
  The Government finally buried its misgivings on the developments leading to the resignation of Sonia Gandhi and led conversations with political parties to seek amendments to relevant laws so it can avoid nasty jolts to the democracy.< More>

• Canada Allows Barbaric Seal Slaughter (March 27, 2006)  
  In continuation of its barbaric tradition, the Canadian Government has allowed hunters kill hundreds of thousands of harp seal pups off its East coast.< More>

• Stricter Pesticide Regulation (March 27, 2006)  
  In an encouraging move, the Central Insecticide Board (CIB) will, through the Ministry of Environment, soon ban 7 pesticides and also fix the maximum residue limit (MRL) for 23 more.< More>

• No Drop in Bird Flu Cases over summer (March 27, 2006)  
  With the onset of summer, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the bird flu virus is not going to die with the hot weather as once the virus is in an animal, it will continue to survive regardless of ambient weather conditions.< More>

• Surprise! Govt has a Naxal policy (March 27, 2006)  
  Responding to a question in the Parliament, Home Minister Shivraj Patil shocked everyone by tabling a policy, which he says has been in existence for a while.< More> 

• Indo-French Defense Exercise (March 27, 2006)  
  India and France will kick off their eighth round of Varuna joint exercises off Goa with India fielding a contingent of Jaguars strike aircraft and Canberra surveillance jets against French Atlantique II.< More>

• India-Pak Friendship & Peace Accord (March 27, 2006)  
  Prime Minister Manmohan Singh offered a peace, security, and friendship accord to Pakistan and asked that country not to link Kashmir with this accord; Pakistan responded positively to this proposal but refused closer business ties.   <More>

• Caution on Escalating Violence in Lanka (March 27, 2006)  
  The Sri Lankan Monitoring Mission (SLMM) cautioned both the Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) against gradually worsening confrontations.< More>

• Nepal Journalists under Siege (March 27, 2006)  
  An independent international media mission that completed a tour of Nepal stated that the media there has been muzzled both by the Government and the Maoist terrorists.< More>

• Pro-Russian Party to Win in Ukraine (March 27, 2006)  
  A pro-Russian Opposition Party of Regions led by former Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich was leading in initial counting and is expected to trounce a pro-Western party that failed to improve living standards or the economy.  <More>

• Energy Deficit India Sparks Mega Projects (March 25, 2006)  
  Energy deficiency in India is seeing large investments in mega projects in refinery, pipeline installations, new power generation projects, power line grid deployment, and even private sector nuclear plants.<More>

• The Sonia Déjà vu (March 24, 2006)
  After pursuing a path to protect its leader Sonia Gandhi from ouster and disgrace through an ordinance that would probably be struck down in the courts, the Congress Party got a jolt when their leader in a master political move resigned from the Parliament. <More>

• US Finds New H5N1 Subtype (March 23, 2006)
  As India is trying to deal with the bird flu outbreak in Navapur an Jalgaoan, US scientists revealed that the virus has mutated to a different subtype that can be transmitted to humans.<More>

• Lackluster Bangla PM Visit (March 23, 2006)
  Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia met with her Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh and shared mutual concerns on terrorism.< More>

• Govt to Release Spectrums, Boost Telecom (March 22, 2006)
  Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that his Government would release a part of the spectrum that it owns.< More>  

• China may be "Diabetics Capital of the World"  (March 22, 2006)
  The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that China may have piped India to earn the dubious honor of being the "Diabetes Capital of the World."< More>

• Defense Minister Defends Scorpene Deal (March 22, 2006)
  Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee issued a statement in the Parliament defending the Scorpene deal.< More>

• No Russia-China Accord on Pipeline (March 22, 2006)
  Visiting Russian President and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao signed three pacts but failed to agree on a pipeline to carry Natural Gas from Siberia to China.< More>

• Bush Says Nuclear Deal in US Interest (March 22, 2006)
  US President George Bush extolled American Congressmen and Senators to support the civilian nuclear deal saying that it was in America's interest to support India's nuclear needs.< More>

• India’s Stable Democracy Will Quell Chaotic Surface (March 21, 2006)
  Professor of International Business at Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College Vijay Govindarajan said that India represents a chaotic surface and stable democracy while China has a stable surface but a chaotic foundation. <More>

• Para-Military Forces to Guard Trains  (March 21, 2006)
  After the latest incident when Naxal terrorists hijacked a train for several hours, the Home Ministry has proposed to the Railways Ministry to seek paramilitary guards to guard trains going through forested and Naxal-infested areas.< More>

• NDA Alleges Corruption in Scorpene Deal (March 21, 2006)
  The Opposition National Democratic Alliance (NDA) accused the Government of hiding a major defense scandal involving the USD 3.5 billion deals to buy Scorpene submarines.< More>

• River Water Generates Inter-District Feud (March 20, 2006)
  An inter-district water dispute is generated by the proposed Upper Bhadra Project (UBP) that seeks to dam 23 thousand million cubic feet (tmcft) of water to irrigate 250,000 acres of land in Chittradurga and Kolar districts at the cost of USD 450 million.< More>

• Reusable Launch Vehicle being developed by ISRO (March 20, 2006)
  The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is designing a Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) to place satellites in orbit, reenter earth’s atmosphere, and use parachutes to land as an airplane.< More>

• Musharraf Indian Response to his Proposals (March 20, 2006)
  Indian politicians who visited Pakistan and had intense discussions with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf urged India to respond to his 4-step proposal.<More>

• Suzlon Buys Hansen for USD 656 for Wind Energy (March 18, 2006)
  Suzlon Energy Limited, makers of windmills, announced the acquisition of the second largest wind energy and industrial gear box maker, Belgium-based Hansen Transmissions International NV for USD 565 million.< More>

• President Disqualifies Jaya Bachan (March 18, 2006)
  Heeding sound advice from the Election Commission (EC), President Abdul Kalam too the unusual step of disqualifying Samajwadi Party (SP) Rajya Sabha representative, former actress Jaya Bachan since she was engaged in an “office of profit.”< More>

• US Says That It Will Not Renegotiate Nuclear Deal (March 18, 2006)
  US Under Secretary of Political Affairs Nicholas Burns told Congressmen and Senators that US will not renegotiate the deal with India should the Congress tries to change the wording.< More>

• India-Russia Sign 3 Deals, Keep Nuke Deal Quiet (March 18, 2006)
  India and Russia signed three important deals that included energy, space, and economic co-operation but were carefully not highlighting the deal for Russia to supply “limited quantity” of uranium for Tharapur.< More>

• US & Iran Talk Iraq But Fight Over Nuclear Program (March 18, 2006)
  Even as hard-line US Permanent Representative to the United Nations John Bolton demanded strong action by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) against Iranian nuclear program, the US sought Iran’s help to resolve the situation in Iraq.< More>

• Indo-Sino Trade Boom May Eclipse Indo-US Trade (March 17, 2006)
  Commerce Minister Kamal Nath said if the 30% growth trend in Indo-Sino trade continues, it will eclipse Indo-US trade and make China India’s largest trading partner.< More>

• Contingency plans to check Bird Flu (March 17, 2006)
  In a belated move, the Government has at last woken up to the reality of bird flu epidemic in India and released a contingency plan with specific timelines for all the states to follow.< More>

• US Pre-emptive Military Strategy to Continue (March 17, 2006)
  The United States has released a National Security Strategy that advocated preemptive strikes on so-called rogue nations if diplomacy should fail to check the spread of nuclear weapons and terrorism.< More>

• Russia Promises Uranium despite US Reservation (March 17, 2006)
  Despite US reservation and call for restraint, Russia said that it would supply the “limited quantity” of uranium to keep Tharapur safe and operational.<More>

• Indo-US Civilian Nuclear Deal in US Congress (March 17, 2006)
  The Indo-US civilian nuclear deal called The India Civilian Nuclear Bill is being introduced in the US Congress and Senate with voting scheduled in April or early May.< More>

• US to Accept Russian Tarapur Supply (March. 16. 2006)
  The US said that while it would accept the sale of Russian uranium for the Tharapur plant in principle, it would like Russia to wait for India to move further along on the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal.<More>

• Govt to Control Export of High Quality Iron Ore (March 16, 2006)
  Government is likely to control the export of high quality iron ore to build domestic reserves so a string of major steel projects can achieve their targets.< More>

• India Urgently Needs Inter-State River Water Dispute Management  (March 16, 2006)
  Thee Kerala Assembly unanimously passed an amendment of its 2003 Irrigation and Water Conservation Act to obviate the Supreme Court (SC) verdict that allowed the height of the Mullaperiyar Dam to increase from 136 to 142 feet.< More>

• Culling of 70,000 birds begins (March 16, 2006)

  The Government dispatched several Rapid Response teams to cull 70,000 birds as a precautionary measure to check the spread of the dreaded H5N1 virus in a 10-kilometer radius around Jalgaon covering 173 villages.<More>

• France & UK Circulate Draft Statement on Iran   (March 16, 2006)
  France and Britain, support by the United States (US), have floated a draft statement to be issued by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Iran’s nuclear program to the 10 so-called non-permanent members of the UNSC.<More>

• Bangladesh PM Khaleda Zia to visit India from March 20 (March 16, 2006)
  India and Bangladesh are to sign three accords on trade, investment protection, and avoidance of dual taxation when Bangla Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia visits India from March 20.< More>

• Government Plans to Export Sugar   (March 15, 2006)
  Ministry of Food and Agriculture says that sugar production from Uttar Pradesh has exceeded the target 18.1 million tons (mt) by .4 mt and is allowing the export of this quantity to Pakistan < More>

• Indian Exports May Hit USD 100 Billion in a Month (March 15, 2006)
  Moving in line with long-term goal of doubling India’s share of world’s trade in 5 years, going by recent export trends, value of Indian exports would be close to the USD 100 billion mark.< More>

• Terrorism Sparks Secularism Debate & Confusion (March 15, 2006)
  The blasts in Varanasi energized an old debate in India regarding secularism, common civil code, and equality in the eyes of the law <More>

• Bird Flu is back (March 15, 2006)
  Just as the Government claimed that the dreaded H5N1 bird flu was contained to Navapur district, fresh reports surfaced of an outbreak in Jalgaon district adjoining Navapur.< More>

• Nepal besieged by Maoist Terrorists (March 15, 2006)
  Maoist terrorists announced an indefinite blockade of the Katmandu Valley and major cities from April 3.< More>

• Ahmadinejad Says West Will Die of their Anger (March 15, 2006)
  A day after the US extended economic sanctions on Iran by another year, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad defiantly warned the West before a crowd chanting “death to America” that they will “die” of their own anger against Iranians.< More>

• UK Diplomat Warns of “Unbelievable Mess” in Iran (March 15, 2006)
  Senior British diplomat in Baghdad John Sawers, representing Prime Minister Tony Blair, warned his country of following bungling US policies.<More>

• Russia Promises Nuclear Fuel for Tharapur (March 15, 2006)
  Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov is visiting India to discuss a range of issues including supply of nuclear fuel for Tharapur nuclear plant.< More>

• Israel Raids Jericho Jail to Secure Terrorist (March 15, 2006)
  The small time oasis city of Jericho in Palestinian Territories (PT) saw a surprise attack by Israeli troops to capture a leader of leftist Popular Front for the liberation of Palestine Ahmed Saadat.< More>

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