Vajpayee vows to fulfil Mahant's dream of building Ram temple; Ties with BJP limited to UP only: Mayawati; US turns to Pak for troops for Iraq; Pak al-Qaeda men funded 9/11 attacks: FBI; B'desh indecision delays Agartala-Dhaka bus service; Militants kill 9-year-old girl in J and K; Maruti sales up by 70 pc; India educational activities satellite by 2004; Facelift for Amritsar's Akal Takht; Raipur in grip of cholera epidemic; Liz Hurley, a 19th century serial killer; 'Bubbly' Diddy woos Lisa Marie Presley; Jolie's nipples create ripples in Lara Croft sequel; News from India; News for Tourists and Travellers; India Travel Times; India News; India News Times; Indian News; Travel News; Travel; Tourism;

Ayodhya, Aug 1: The BJP's two senior-most leaders, Atal Behari Vajpayee and LK Advani, have once again asserted that the controversial Ram temple will be built at Ayodhya. On Friday, the duo vowed to "remove all the obstacles in the path" that was a cherished dream of the late Mahant's Paramhansa Ramchandra Das, president of the Ram Janambhoomi Nyas. "We would fulfil the Mahant's last wish. We are confident that all obstacles would be removed and the path paved for it," Vajpayee said, adding that "good sense would prevail even on those who are opposing it, and together, we will fulfil his dream. We feel confident in front of his funeral pyre."

Deputy Prime Minister Advani said consensus through dialogue, court verdict and legislation were the options for temple construction, but consensus was the best option and hoped that better sense would prevail "on those opposing it (construction of temple)." The statements from the two leaders assume significance as they come with the Ayodhya case still being sub-judice before the Supreme Court. It may be recalled that in 1998 general elections, the BJP had come to power on the promise that it would construct the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Earlier in the day, members from all the communities, including Muslims, offered floral tributes to Paramhansa Ramchandra Das. The pyre was lit at the bank of Saryu river by Vaishnao Das Shastri at 3.30 pm. Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, vice-chairman of the Sri Ramjanmabhoomi Nyas, will take over as chairman of the religious trust following the demise of Paramhans, Vishwa Hindu Parishad General Secretary Praveen Togadia said.

Shimla, Aug 1: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and BSP chief Mayawati has said that the alliance between her party and the BJP was limited to the state only. "As far as the alliance with the BJP is concerned, it is limited to Uttar Pradesh only. When the government was formed it was decided that whenever general elections will take place, the BSP will form an alliance with the BJP only in UP, and not outside. We will fight the elections on our own at places other the state," Mayawati told reporters on Friday. The chief minister was here to attend a meeting of her party. BJP is the junior partner in the Mayawati-led coalition government in UP. The two parties share a love-hate relationship ever since coming to power in the state. Earlier this week, ties were further strained when BSP demanded resignation of Union Tourism Minister Jagmohan after he criticised construction of a controversial corridor near the Taj Mahal. However, the crisis blew over after Mayawati withdrew her demand.

London, Aug 1: Fresh moves have been initiated by the United States to get Pakistan and members of the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance (NATO) to send 6,000 and 20,000 troops, respectively to Iraq. Quoting a defence official at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, the News said this pressure on Islamabad and European allies was being put to ensure legitimacy for the recently appointed Governing Council in Iraq and relief for tired American troops there. He also confirmed that Washington had shelved its plan to involve Indian troops in the peacekeeping mission in Iraq. Governing Council President Ibrahim Jafari is expected to make a formal request to Islamabad and NATO for troops soon, he added.

Washington, Aug 1: High ranking al-Qaeda operatives in Pakistan funded the September 11, 2001, attacks on World Trade Centre in New York that killed thousands of people, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has said. "We have traced the origin of the funding of 9/11 back to financial accounts in Pakistan, where high-ranking and well-known al-Qaeda operatives played a major role in moving the money forward, eventually into the hands of the hijackers located in the US," a top FBI official was quoted as saying in the report which was submitted to a US Senate panel.

John S. Pistole, Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI's counter- terrorism division, however, did not elaborate as to how and from where the bank accounts in Pakistan were funded. According to an estimate, the September 11 attacks cost between 175,000 and 250,000 US dollars. "That money, which paid for flight training, travel and other expenses, flowed to the hijackers through associates in Germany and the United Arab Emirates. Those associates reported to one Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who planned most of the attacks from Pakistan," the report said. The FBI did not specify the role played by Saudi Arabia. Richard Newcomb, director of the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, said that some Saudi organisations provide considerable support for terrorism. "The extent to which that takes place is not completely clear, but I would characterise it as considerable," he added.

Agartala, Aug 1: The much-awaited Agartala-Dhaka bus service has been delayed since the Bangladesh government is yet to give its mandatory nod. Tripura Transport Department Commissioner Debasish Sarkar on Friday told reporters that the state government had no clue as to when the service would begin as "the Bangladesh cabinet is yet to give its final nod for the service." Sarkar said the Bangladesh cabinet was yet to decide whether the country's communication ministry or the foreign ministry would supervise the service. The decision to start the bus service was taken at a two-day meeting of the India-Bangladesh Joint Economic Commission that concluded on July 15 in Dhaka.

Jammu, Aug 1: Some unidentified Pakistan-based militants killed a girl and seriously injured her sister here on Friday. The incident reportedly occurred in a village in Rajouri Hills. The extremists beat the girl to death with their gun buts, the police said, adding that a combing operation has been launched to trace the militants. According to police, the militants belonging to the terrorist outfit Harkat-ul-Jehadi Islami (HUJI) forcibly barged into the house of one Nisar Hussain in Khabala village. They asked the two girls about the whereabouts of their father. When the duo expressed ignorance, the terrorists clubbed them with their gun buts. While Nazia (9) died instantly, her sister Shareefa (11) received serious injuries all over her body. She was admitted to a local hospital.

New Delhi, Aug 1: Maruti Udyog Limited sold 41,795 vehicles during July 2003. This is 70 per cent more as compared to the number of vehicles sold during the same month last year, when the figure stood at 24,604 only. Company sources said exports contributed a major chunk to the impressive rise in total sales. The exports rose by nearly 197 per cent. According to them, 5250 vehicles were exported in July compared to 1770 vehicles last year. They said the company sold 1,45,843 vehicles during April-July'03 against 95,222 vehicles sold during the same quarter last year.

New Delhi, Aug 1: India will launch a satellite for beaming educational activities by the middle of 2004. In a written reply, Ballabhbhai Kathiria, Minister of State for HRD, disclosed this in Rajya Sabha on Friday. He said the Department of Space and Ministry of Human Resource Development would launch the satellite that would be dedicated to educational and cultural activities. The aim of the satellite would be to provide quality education to children with a focus on subjects like mathematics and physics, the minister said.

Amritsar, Aug 1: The 17th century Akal Takht, the Sikh community's highest temporal authority, will soon undergo a facelift. If the shrine authorities are to be believed, the interiors of this institution will soon feature exquisite inlay marble work. With expense having no bearing on the project, every effort is being made to create a brilliant ambience from scratch. Putting pen to paper, artists have reportedly come up with a range of soft designs reflecting tranquility and peace. The best artisans in the field will be brought for the project that aims to restore real Sikh art as it existed during the glorious reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Artisans are being brought in from Gujarat, Rajasthan and Western Uttar Pradesh, areas where inlay work is a special skill. It has taken more than five years to reach this stage

Raipur, Aug 1: Chattisgarh authorities have sprung into action to prevent the spread of cholera, which has assumed epidemic proportions over the last few days. "More and more cases of people suffering from vomiting are getting admitted here everyday. We are admitting 15-20 people daily in the hospital here who come from both villages and the city," said Dr. Meenakshi Singh of the Raipur District Hospital. According to official sources, seven people have died from diarrhoea in the district and many more have been taken ill. Most patients are suffering from water-borne diseases. The authorities are educating people in the affected areas to maintain high level of personal hygiene and to avoid drinking dirty water.

Bottomlines

Liz Hurley, a 19th century serial killer (Go To Top)

London, Aug 1: Hollywood actress Liz Hurley is playing a serial killer in her new movie, 'Method.' The actress has flown to Bucharest to start work for her first major role after giving birth to baby Damian, according to a report in Ananova.com. The model will stay there for more than a month to shoot for the film, being made by British director Duncan Roy. Hurley is playing the role of an actress in the movie who gets to play the role of a 19th-century serial killer and begins adopting some of the killer's characteristics in her real life. Several Romanian actors also have roles in the production, which is described as a mixture of' 'Day For Night' and 'Basic Instinct.'

'Bubbly' Diddy woos Lisa Marie Presley (Go To Top)

London, Aug 1: So how much would wooing Lisa Marie Presley, the budding singer daughter of the late King of Rock and Roll Elvis Presley, cost U.S. rap star Puff Diddy. Well, nearly 5,000 pounds. Recently, during a night out at Mission nightclub in New York, Puff splashed out 5,000 pounds on vintage Cristal champagne. An onlooker said: "They arrived separately and P Diddy sent over a bottle of champagne when he spotted her sitting at another table. And the bottles kept on coming. As soon as one was finished he sent over another." "By the time the night was over, the bill was nearly 5,000 pounds. But his perseverance paid off because they got chatting and eventually left together, accompanied by their entourages," The Sun quoted the onlooker as saying.

Jolie's nipples create ripples in Lara Croft sequel (Go To Top)

London, Aug 1: UN Goodwill Ambassadoress and Hollywood star Angelina Jolie has given a drubbing to film executives for fiddling with her bountiful assets and airbrushing from sight her bosom in advertisements for the latest Tomb Raider movie. Apparently, the executives had to touch down on 'Bone Collector' actress' bod as they feared a public outcry of obscenity in response to Jolie's mounted twin peaks, which were quite pronounced in the initial inserts, according to a report in People News. However, the fiery actress did not take too kindly to the touch- up and instead, lost her cool. "I want my nipples to be there to see. Last time I took too much protein powder, that gave me lots of curves. This time I ate normally and therefore Lara is slimmer and sexier,' she explained, laying to rest further airbrush rumours. Jolie has dedicated a great deal of time leading up to filming of 'Tomb Raider 2: The Cradle of Life' perfecting her physique and toning up her body and is miffed over the fact that execs are trying to dehumanise her and convert her into a real-life Lara Croft.