|
Nation
& States
I-
Day: militants set off
bomb in Assam, kill 13
What is India News
Service, August 16, 2004, 1700 hrs IST
At least 13 people
including seven school children were
killed and 35 others injured in a bomb explosion at an official
Independence Day function in Assam\92s Dhemaji town on Sunday, where
violence erupted as a backlash to the blast forcing the police to
fire in the air.
The powerful blast took place at around 9:00 am at the entrance of
the Dhemaji College when the official I-Day celebration of the
district was about to begin. Sixteen children died on the spot.
Another child died at Dhemaji Civil Hospital, official
sources said.
Agitated people started pelting stones on police vehicles after the
blast.
PM
moots code of conduct for parties: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
today put water management at the centre of the new development
paradigm and obliquely cautioned that the ongoing river-water
disputes among state governments could turn out to be potentially
divisive.
Dr Singh, who became the first Prime
Minister from a minority community to unfurl the tricolour and
address the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort, opened a
debate on the need for high moral standards among politicians,
mooting the idea of a code of conduct for all political parties.
Peppering his Independence Day speech with thoughts of Mahatma
Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and B R Ambedkar, Dr Manmohan Singh
outlined the broad contours of the government\92s policies, which
include: a seven-point economic agenda, a purposive dialogue with
Pakistan, commitment to resolving the border dispute with China, a
code of conduct for political parties and willingness to initiate
negotiations with terrorist groups if they shunned the path of
violence.
Boycott
of Indian goods in Manipur: The 32 organisations spearheading
a stir demanding the repeal of the Armed Forces Special Forces Act
in the state have asked the Manipuris to boycott cold drinks and
packaged drinking water mineral water in the first phase.
Official sources said agitators demanding withdrawal of the AFSPA on
Monday blocked roads at Tera, Kwakeithel, Imphal West district,
Wangkhei in Imphal East district and Bishenpur.
Parliament budget session resumes
Monday: In the second phase of the session, the \91tainted\92 ministers issue and the Manipur
agitation will be discussed.
Negotiations
stalled:
Twenty-six days after seven truckers, including three Indians, were
taken hostages in Iraq, the situation remains as deadlocked as ever.
To make matters worse, the worsening security situation within Iraq
is further complicating negotiations for the release of three
Indians, taken hostage in Iraq on July 21.
Bihar
withdraws case against Taslimuddin:
The Rabri Devi Government set a legal precedent by
withdrawing a criminal case against Mohammed Taslimuddin, her party
representative in Parliament and Union State Agriculture Minister.
India
wants more trade Pakistan:
The Indian government has presented a fresh list of proposals
seeking concessions in 24 areas to enhance commercial and economic
cooperation between the two countries.
Tribute
in the thick of toil: Sonia Gandhi has
unwrapped new editions of Nehru\92s classics which she has edited
for Penguin.
Musharraf
greets Kalam:
President General Pervez Musharraf has extended greetings to his
Indian counterpart Abdul Kalam over the country's
independence day on August 15.
|
States
TRS,
Congress rift widens:
Telangana waters are becoming more
murky with the cacophony of statements from different leaders on the
issue
AP
will promote IT, BT: For the first time since he took over three
months ago, chief minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy came out strongly in
favour of promoting information technology and biotechnology.
Double check on
exam papers: The West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education has pledged to the high court that it will introduce a system of double evaluation of answer-scripts and simplify the review procedure from next year.
1,050
prisoners released in Andhra:
The Andhra Pradesh Government has remitted the
sentences of 1,050 prisoners and freed them on the occasion of the
Independence Day. Those released include 602 persons serving life
imprisonment. The remaining ones are charged with petty crimes and
are incarcerated for shorter sentences in various jails of the state
Australian
accuses Kashmiri of rape:
A 22-year-old Australian woman has accused a houseboat owner in
Srinagar of repeatedly raping her. The woman, who arrived in Srinagar
on May 27, alleged that Mohammed Rafiq Dundoo, who owns 'Youngson
Beam' houseboat, virtually held her hostage for over two months.
Dundoo was arrested on Sunday.
Gay
crime rocks Delhi: Police believe the
brutal murder of USAID official Pushkin Chandra is a hate crime
against gays.
Former
Gujarat CM passes away:
Amarsinh Chaudhari, former Chief Minister of Gujarat
and leader the Opposition in the State Assembly died in Ahmedabad on
Sunday after a prolonged illness.He was 63
Neighbours
Maldives
Opposition wants India intervention: Members of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) seek India\92s intervention in restoring democracy in the republic where President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom declared a state of emergency late last night.
Diplomatic circles here believe that the decision to impose
emergency in the Maldives is a desperate attempt by Gayoom to
establish control in the face of rising demands by his opponents to
restore democracy.
Pakistan
likely to build more N-power plants: The
Pakistan government has directed the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC)
to make long-term plans to manufacture a series of nuclear power
plants in the country to meet power requirements.
Show
soft Pakistan, says Musharaff: President General Pervez
Musharraf has said there is a need to project a \93soft image\94 of
Pakistan through culture, sports and tourism.
Eight
bomb blasts rock Quetta:
Eight bomb blasts rocked Quetta on Saturday despite heavy deployment
of law-enforcement agencies to check any untoward incident on Independence Day.
Pakistani
troops seize arms: Soldiers seized a large quantity of arms and
ammunition being smuggled from Afghanistan and arrested 13 people, a
security official said on Sunday. The seizure was made by the
paramilitary Pishin Scouts in the town of Toba Achakzai, 30
kilometres west of Chaman on the border with southern Afghanistan on
Saturday, Colonel Rana Basit said.
Two
soldiers killed: Two Pakistani soldiers were reportedly killed
and seven others were injured when militants fired rockets at the
Wana Scouts Camp on Friday night. The authorities however did not
confirm if there were any casualties in the rocket attack. The camp
came under attack from the north and south and continued
sporadically till 9:00am on Saturday. Paramilitary forces retaliated
with mortar fire.
Islam
Council rejects act: The Council for Islamic Ideology (CII)
rejected the proposed Hasba Act prepared by the government of the
NWFP in order to implement Sharia. \93The CII, in its first meeting
held here on Thursday, reviewed the Hasba Act and rejected it,\94
sources privy to the CII meeting told Daily Times on Saturday. The
CII also proposed that the NWFP government establish the provincial
and district ombudsman\92s office, the sources said.
Indian
embassy donates ambulances: The Indian
Embassy in Kathmandu gave an I-Day gift of 15 ambulances to various
Nepali organisations.
Teenager
killed in Nepal blast:
A teenager was killed and three policemen injured in an explosion at
Narayangarh Sunday evening. The incident occurred when rebels
detonated a bomb targeting a police vehicle.
21
killed in Afghan turf war:
At least
21 people were killed in Afghanistan on Saturday in factional
fighting for control of a abandoned airbase in a western province
where militia commanders have launched raids to oust the provincial
governor.
Pakistani immigrant deported:
Despite pleas from the Pakistani community and US legislators, US
immigration authorities have deported a Pakistani immigrant who was
detained for taking photos of a reservoir in upstate New York after
the 2001 terror attacks.
View from
abroad
Head
of Indian school released from Saudi jail: The
head of a prominent Indian school in Jeddah was released from a
two-week police custody after the intervention of Indian diplomats,
media reports said. Yousuf Khan
Jaweed, managing committee chairman of the International Indian
School, was arrested on July 31 in connection with the payment of
fees to a local lawyer.
Indian-origin defence officer complains against racist slur:
A South African defence force officer of Indian origin has asked the
Human Rights Commission to investigate incidents where he and other
Indian-origin soldiers have been allegedly referred to as `coolies''
and ``cane-cutters.''
Greece
arrests Pakistani immigrants:
Greek police
arrested 21 illegal immigrants, 18 of them Iraqis and three
Pakistanis, as well as their presumed Greek smuggler, near the
border with Turkey.
Overall:
Bomb in Assam killed 13: Seven
school children were among those killed in an explosion set off by
militants.
Maldives opposition sought Indian intervention: The emergency
in that country has led to demands that India step in and help
restore democracy.
Andhra CM said he would boost IT, BT: Y S Rajasekhara Reddy
announced his government would go all out to encourage the IT and
biotech sectors.
|
|
![]()
|
