News Analysis - April 2006 @ whatisindia.com

Uzbek Allows Indian Oil Exploration (April 28, 2006)
India and Uzbekistan reached a landmark deal where the latter will allow Indian companies to explore for natural gas that can then be shared equally. <More>

US Wants More Economic Reforms (April 28, 2006)
US Treasury Under Secretary Timothy Adams said that more economic structural reforms are necessary for billions of dollars to flood the India and create unprecedented opportunities for the nation. <More>

Since when is Punishing a Child Good? (April 28, 2006)
In the narrowest interpretation of the law, the Karnataka High Court ruled that under the Sec 95 of Indian Penal Code, a school could beat a child if such beating was done in good faith and to discipline the child.< More>

ISRO to Carry Experimental Satellites Free (April 28, 2006)
In a very positive move, the Indian Space & Research Organization (ISRO) has invited proposals from Universities and students to create miniature, non-commercial, experimental, and scientific satellites that can be carried free.<More>

Escalating War of Words about Iran (April 28, 2006)
The Iran issue refuses to be resolved with increasingly caustic comments from Iranians President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and equally acerbic comments from various influential circles of the US Administration. <More>

Germany Seeks Market Access (April 27, 2006)
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asked German Chancellor Angela Merkel to bring in more investments in infrastructure, manufacturing, and high technology while his interlocutor asked India to shed protectionism and open markets further.<More>

PM Appoints Narmada Monitoring Panel (April 27, 2006)
The Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced a three-member panel that will assess, monitor, and advise the Government on relief provided to those ousted by the Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP) across the Narmada River. <More>

SC Orders Dismantling Fish Tanks in AP (April 27, 2006)
The Supreme Court (SC) has ordered the Andhra Pradesh (AP) to destroy fish tanks created in the Kolleru Lake by politically connected individuals that threaten the ecosystem of the large wet lands and the livelihood of those who live around it.<More>

Eastern Naval Command Assuming Prominence (April 27, 2006)
In line with the Indian Maritime Doctrine released last year, the Eastern Naval Command (ENC) based in Visakhapatanam has assumed great significance to protect the 2,600-kilometer coastline and 200,000 square kilometer exclusive economic zone.<More>

Russia to Strengthen C. Asia Presence (April 27, 2006)
Russian President Vladimir Putin along with Kyrgyzstan President Kurmambek Bakiyev announced that Russia will increase its Air Force base force levels at Kant by 2.5 times in response to expansion of American base in Manas International Airport.<More>

China Reinforcing Developing Nations Ties (April 27, 2006)
Analysts say that through Chinese President Hu Jintao visits to Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Nigeria, and Kenya right after his visit to the US on the same trip shows that China is interested to reaffirm its ties with the developing world despite its economic ascendancy. <More>

IT Exports Up 36% (April 26, 2006)
Increased global reach of Information Technology (IT), strong demand for qualified human resources, and strong investments by IT companies saw India exporting over USD 22.5 billion worth of software and services up 36% from last year.< More>

Tirpur Knitwear Exports at USD 1.7B (April 26, 2006)
Knitwear mills in Tamil Nadu town Tirpur reported increase in exports of 33.3% valued at USD 1.7 billion to grab the number 1 spot from Punjab’s Ludhiana and is aiming to increase its output to USD 2.25 billion next year.< More>

Maran’s COI and Bigger Issues (April 26, 2006)
A New Indian Express (NIE) investigative report alleged that Minister of Telecommunications & IT Dayanidhi Maran abused his position to try arm-twisting the Tata Group to share part of its Dish-to-Home (DTH) business with his own Sun TV business.< More>

Denel Paid Middlemen (April 26, 2006)
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said that it has determined that South African Anti-Material Rifle vendor Denel paid a 12.75% commission to a Varas Associates for procurement of contracts.< More>

LTTE Strikes after Ban Call (April 26, 2006)
A day after the Sri Lanka called on the international community to ban the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), it deployed a suicide bomber to assassinate a senior decorated military commander seen as a hawk wanting stricter action against LTTE.<More>

Terrorists Declare War in Nepal (April 26, 2006)
Nepal’s Seven Party Alliance (SPA) elected veteran politician G.P. Koirala as Prime Minister for the 4th time and was jubilant about their victory, but the terrorists who are also part of the alliance refused to accept democracy and declared war on the nation.< More>

Nuclear & Bio-Warfare Suits (April 25, 2006)
The Indian Army has started create a large number of nuclear and biological warfare command centers to direct battle operations in a modern hostile environments in addition to mass manufacturing of nuclear radiation resistant suits for these forces.< More>

Govt Not Banking on Separatist Vote (April 25, 2006)
National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan said that the ongoing roundtable discussions with Jammu & Kashmiri groups cannot be held hostage by group and that separatists do not have a “veto” on the “success or otherwise” of these talks.< More>

India Joins Thermonuclear Organization (April 25, 2006)
Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) Direct Anil Kakodkar will be signing in India as the 7th participant in the global Thermonuclear Experiment Reactor (ITER) project to contribute USD 565 million worth of indigenous material or 10% of ITER needs.<More>

Osama Accuses West of “War on Islam” (April 25, 2006)
An audiotape attributed to fugitive terrorist Osama bin Laden said that the “Crusader-Zionist” armies are waging a “war against Islam” and said people in West shared the responsibility for their “financial and moral support.”<More>

Sri Lanka Wants LTTE Banned (April 25, 2006)
A senior Sri Lankan Government (SLG) functionary accused the LTTE of failure to continue with the peace process and honoring ceasefire agreements and called on the European Union (EU) to follow-through with its threat to ban the outfit.<More>

King Reinstates Parliament (April 25, 2006)
In a televised address, Nepal King Gnanendra, conceding a key Opposition demand, said that he will reinstate the Parliament he dismissed in 2002 from Friday and asked the political parties to “bear the responsibility” for restoring peace and national unity.<More>

Hamas Nominates Terrorist in Cabinet (April 25, 2006)
Deepening the concern of the world community, the Hamas-led Government has nominated a prominent terrorist, wanted by Israelis and Americans for the murder of American security personnel, as the Inspector-General of Interior Ministry.< More>

Japan and South Korean Make Island Deal (April 25, 2006)
Japan and South Korea averted a bitter naval showdown over a deserted group of islands that is rich fishing ground and reportedly over billions of dollars worth of unexplored fossil fuels by agreeing to stand down and engage in dialogue. < More>

FII Exposure valued at USD 80 billion (April 24, 2006)
With an estimated 8% Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate, India continues to attract Foreign Institutional Investors (FII) whose numbers have grown from 685 to 898 in a year and valued at USD 80 billion driven up by the 180 A-group companies. < More>

Islamic “Court” Defies SC (April 24, 2006)
The highest religious body of Sunni sect in Orissa, the Jamait-ul-Ulama chided the Supreme Court (SC) for interfering “in religious matter” and promised to excommunicate the couple that SC granted protection to stay married. <More>

Over 5 million HIV cases in India (April 24, 2006)
The National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) estimates that India has a HIV positive population of 5.21 million but cautioned that this figure could be much higher and the Government did not know how many people were dying of his disease.< More>

Advanced Russian Defense Systems in Belarus (April 24, 2006)
Anti-missile system deployment in Poland and Eastern European nations, air bases in former Warsaw pact nations Romania and Bulgaria, and expansion of the North Atlantic Treat Organization (NATO) is prompting Russia to deploy advanced defense systems. <More>

Pak to get Chinese Nuke Plants (April 24, 2006)
A report published in Pakistan paper The Dawn said that Pakistan will seek 4 more nuclear plants at a cost of USD 6.5 billion in addition to the 2 on order for USD 1.2 billon claiming that these plants will allow it to generate 8,800 megawatts of power by 2030.<More>

King Amenable to Parliament Resurrection (April 24, 2006)
Softening his offer to the 7-party political alliance, Nepal’s King Gnanendra said that he is willing to accept the resurrection of the Parliament by a Prime Minister appointed by them but the alliance has been recalcitrant to this softened position.<More>

Germany Softens Stand on Nuclear Deal (April 24, 2006)
Softening her stand on the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal, German Chancellor Angela Merkel acknowledged India’s non-proliferation record and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) backing but wanted to await outcome of US Congress discussions.<More>

Postal Act May Kill Courier (April 21, 2006)
The Indian Government created a new draft law that would essentially ban courier companies from carrying letter mail lighter than 300 grams —Industry sources castigated this move saying that it is “against the spirit of liberalization and globalization.”<More>

SC Admonishes Islamic Courts (April 21, 2006)
The Supreme Court (SC) took serious exception to an “Islamic court” that issued a fatwa seeking the divorce of a couple in Orissa because the intoxicated husband uttered “talak” word thrice in his sleep.< More>

Cauvery Tribunal Order Expert Committee (April 21, 2006)
The Cauvery Tribunal, charged with ensuring equitable sharing of water across riparian states, called for an expert committee to verify, validate, and confirm extremist and differing perceptions of the water usage, sharing, and needs. <More>

Countries Urge Norway to Stop Whale Hunting (April 21, 2006)
With Norway’s plan to hunt the highest number of whales in two decades this year, a dozen countries joined together and called on it stop this reprehensible practice of hunting whales for profit.< More>

King Calls for PM Candidate (April 21, 2006)
Sustained public demonstrations, non-nonsense statements from India, and blunt speaking from the US caused Nepal King Gnanendra to relent and call for a Prime Ministerial candidate from the 7-party alliance of political parties.<More>

US-Sino Relations & India (April 21, 2006)
The Chinese President Hu Jintao’s meeting with who-is-who of the US business world even before his planned meeting with President George Bush demonstrates the focus of China in its relationship with the US.< More>

Malaysia Destroys 100 Year Old Hindu Temple (April 21, 2006)
Even as Hindus, treated as 3rd class citizens in their own nation, were worshipping Malaysia destroyed a 100-year-old temple with a single day’s notice and without a clear indication of why it is taking this extreme step.< More>

SENSEX Breaks 12K-Barrier (April 20, 2006)
Defying international trends relating to oil and security concerns, strong domestic fundamentals inspired Indian mutual funds to flood the stock markets raising the SENSEX index beyond 12,000 in just 16 sessions.<More>

Tariff Relief per SAFTA (April 20, 2006)
At a meeting of South Asian Commerce Ministers meeting at Dhaka, India and Pakistan agreed not to charge import duties on 5% of products traded within the South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA) region.<More>

Reservation Politicking in Private Sector (April 20, 2006)
With state election campaigning in full swing, politicians have been ballooning innovative but retrograde ideas on reservations in private sector, premier institutions, and based on religion, which have been routinely opposed and trashed. <More>

Cong Pussyfoots around Commies (April 20, 2006)
With State Election campaign in full swing, the Congress Party finds itself in the unenviable position of leading a Federal coalition but face their allies as opponents in States who continue to eat into their vote-banks and criticize it with impunity. <More>

Govt to Allow GM Soya Oil Import (April 20, 2006)
Ministry of Environment & Forests said that it intends to allow the import of genetically modified (GM) Soya oil into India if it meets certification criteria to be defined by the Government.<More>

Closer to Agreement (April 20, 2006)
Over the last several months, India and Pakistan have been silent working on a deal to demilitarize Siachen, the world’s highest battlefield. <More>

Worried But No Progress (April 20, 2006)
Visiting Special Envoy Dr. Karan Singh returned from a 2-day tour of Nepal where he met King Gnanendra and major political actors to say, “he is optimistic” that Gnanendra will “make an announcement shortly.”<More>

Auto components Export Grows 28%(April 19, 2006)
Indian auto components exports have grown by 28% last year to USD 1.8 billion from USD 1.4 billion a year ago compared to overall auto component industry value of USD 10 billion with a growth of 15%. <More>

Police Files Charges against Salem (April 19, 2006)
Mumbai police formally charges Portugal-extradited gangster Abu Salem with conspiracy to murder, trespass to commit murder, and murder of Ajit Dewani in addition to violations of the Arms Act.< More>

Iran’s Nuclear Program Not Good for India (April 19, 2006)
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told visiting Shahi Imam of Delhi’s Jama Masjid Syed Bukhari that Iran has a secret nuclear program to develop weapons and that this program is not good for India as it does not desire a 3rd nuclear weapons power as a neighbor.< More>

PM Sends Karan Singh to Nepal (April 19, 2006)
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sent former Foreign Minister and former King of erstwhile state of Jammu & Kashmir, Karan Singh, to meet with Nepal’s embattled King Gnanendra and deliver a stiff message.< More>

China Opposed to India’s UNSC bid (April 19, 2006)
China has said that it is opposed to India’s inclusion in the United Nations Security Council as a so-called permanent member ostensibly because of India’s association with Japan through the G-4 initiative.<More>

Telco Companies Orders worth USD 15b (18/04/2006)
Indian telecommunication majors are placing orders worth USD 15 billion to acquire 150-180 million new lines within the next 12 months. <More>

Govt Capitulates to Poultry Industry (April 18, 2006)
Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar capitulated to poultry industry demands to not introduce mandatory bird flu vaccinations of poultry and also promised to upgrade laboratories, a 3-lab verification before declaration of disease, a zone-affected areas.< More>

Good Voting in Naxal Areas in WB (April 18, 2006)
People defied threats from naxal terrorists and stood in long lines for over two hours, endured clinical security screening, and followed intense Election Commission restrictions to vote in large numbers in naxal-infested areas of West Bengal (WB).<More>

US & UK Play Mock Iran Invasion (April 18, 2006)
Despite repeated denials by UK, the US and UK are said to have participated in a paper-based mock invasion of a fictitious country that resembled the Iranian coastline and the intended enemy resembling Iranian positions and targets.<More>

Pakistan Puts Off Wullar Dialog (April 18, 2006)
Pakistan said that it has postponed the upcoming dialogue with India on the Wullar Barrage and Tulbul Navigation Project saying that the Indian Water Resources Secretary was indisposed to attend this crucial meeting because of other business.<