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Militants attack Kashmir BSF camp, two dead

      Srinagar: Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil's three- day visit to Jammu and Kashmir from Saturday got off to inauspicious start when Kashmiri rebels attacked a Border Security Force (BSF) camp in Sopore and killed one soldier hours before his scheduled arrival. Security officials also confirmed that another person had been killed and four soldiers wounded in the attack that took place about 55 km north of Srinagar. A BSF spokesman said that the area has been cordoned off for search operations. No group has so claimed responsibility for the attack so far, he added. Patil is making his first trip to Jammu and Kashmir since the Congress-led UPA government assumed charge in May.

Taj Mahal is not sinking (Go To Top)

      London: The Archaeological Survey of India has rubbished fears that the Taj Mahal's minarets are tilting dangerously and its base sinking on one side. The ASI claims that it has not detected any structural damage at the base for the past six decades. Indian authorities had launched an investigation in October when historians reported that the Taj Mahal was leaning and was in danger of sinking. However, their reports concluded that the tilts were either part of the original design, to prevent all the minarets from crashing in on the main dome in an earthquake, or the result of some sub- soil displacement and settlement centuries ago. According to the Newscientist, Doraiswamy Dayalan, Superintendent (Archaeology) at ASI, Agra, revealed that the report found no cracks at the minarets' base or their 300-metre-long plinth, but recommended regular four-yearly surveys to check on them. ASI's Director General Babu Rajeev also echoed the same opinion and said that no structural damage has been detected during two other major surveys conducted in 1991 and 1995. However, the historians still counter these claims by ASI and fear that the southwest minaret is tilting dangerously. Agam Mathur, a historian and former vice chancellor of Agra University and Ram Nath, former historian at Rajasthan University, told the magazine that the tilts need urgent attention as they fear that the drying up of the river Yamuna ,on whose banks the Taj was built, has led to its sinking on its northern side, which is now 1.44 inches (3.7 cms) lower than the southern side.

Al Qaeda-linked group warns of more attacks on US (Go To Top)

       Islamabad: Fresh on the heels of an alleged Al Qaeda videotape vowing to 'bleed the US to death', for acting against Muslim interests, a terrorist group linked to the Al Qaeda has apparently threatened the US with grave reprisals following President George Bush's re-election. According to the Daily Times, the Abu Hafs-al-Masri Brigades has reportedly posted an advertisement in a website that warns the US of "unbearable hell". "The coming days will show you that the one you preferred will lead you to an unbearable hell," the report quoted the advertisement as saying. Expressing its inveterate antipathy over the manner in which the American public voted Bush to power despite the atrocities Bush carried on over the innocent Muslims, it said that Americans by nature were bloodthirsty and had approved the war against the Muslims. "Although the criminal Bush has spilled blood of Muslims during the last four years and despite the butcheries that he committed and continues to perpetrate in Afghanistan, in Palestine and in Iraq, we see that... the applause of his people is increasing. This shows the nature of the American people who approved the war against Islam led by criminal America," the report added.

Abduction of Hindu girl draws flak from NGOs in Pak (Go To Top)

      Lahore: The abduction of a schoolgirl belonging to the minority Hindu community has drawn widespread condemnation from a number of civil society groups and non-government organisations (NGOs), including the Asr Resource Centre. According to the Daily Times, Sapna Kumari, a student of class 10, was kidnapped from Lora Lai and is still to be retraced even after a month. The Hindu community in Lora Lai has even met with the higher authorities including the chief minister of Balochistan in this regard and urged them to take immediate action in the matter. They have also reportedly carried on demonstration highlighting the discriminatory attitude of the government organizations in this regard. NGOs on the other hand have demanded that Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz take immediate action in this matter as the constitution guaranteed equal rights to all citizens without any religious discrimination.

Pak initiates security arrangements around mosques (Go To Top)

     Islamabad: The Islamabad administration has as part of its security drive aimed at providing better safety to the public, intensified the security arrangements around mosques. According to the Daily Times, the police have deployed commandos in and around mosques in order to supplement the normal security staff employed by the mosque management. Its understood that the administration has been directed to adopt such strict measures in view of the deadly bomb blasts on religious congregations in Multan and other parts of the country earlier in addition to other attacks on mosques and the Nankana Sahib gurudwara. This latest move is believed to be a follow up of the earlier measure adopted by the government to provide security to Qadiani citizens and their places of worships following intelligence reports that terrorists were planning to target someone belonging to the Ahmedis. Secret agencies it is believed had submitted reports to the Interior Ministry warning of potential security threats earlier. The paper quoted Senior Superintendent of Police for Islamabad Liaqat Ali Khan as saying that the police had already initiated security measures at Faisal Mosque and were thoroughly checking the people at the entrance.

Banks told to extend loans to the needy (Go To Top)

      Chennai: Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram today urged public sector banks to extend loans to the needy. An official press release here said that Chidambaram met the bank officials at Cuddalore and reportedly told them that they would face "problems" only if the loans were given in contravention of rules. "You need not worry if the loans are sanctioned as per prescribed norms," he was believed to have said. He also said that the agricultural loans given during the current financial year was Rs.25,000 crore more than what had been extended last year, adding that no guarantee would be required from farmers if the required loan amount did not exceed Rs.50,000. Later, at a function in Kurinjipadi, near Cuddalore, he distributed Rs.2.33 crore as loans to 413 persons belonging to 79 self-help groups.

Forex reserves cross 121 billion dollars (Go To Top)

      Mumbai: India's foreign exchange reserves have crossed 121 billion dollars during the week ended October 29, 2004. Foreign exchange reserves for the week under review grew by 562 million dollars to 1,21,178 million dollars, the Reserve Bank of India said in its weekly statistical supplement released today. Special Drawing Rights rose by USD four million at USD five million while gold remained static at USD 4,192 million, it said. India's Reserve Tranche Position (RTP) with International Monetary Fund (IMF) rose by USD eight million and stood at USD 1,330 million, it said. Loans and advances to central government had a nil balance while that to state governments were down by Rs 1,474 crore to Rs 4,460 crore.