4 Leftists for Rajya Sabha from Bengal

     Kolkata: In a surprise result in the biennial elections for the Rajya Sabha, four Left and a Trinamool Congress candidates were elected to the Upper House from West Bengal on Tuesday. Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Tapan Kumar Sen, Mainul Hassan Ahamed, Saman Pathak, Dr Barun Mukherjee of Forward Bloc and Mukul Roy of the Trinamool Congress were elected for the Rajya Sabha. Earlier in the morning, after filing the nominations, CPI (M) leader Rabin Deb, had said that out of 192 members in House, they nominated four candidates, three from CPI (M) and one from All India Forward Block, all of whom eventually won the election for the Rajya Sabha. "We will vote for our candidates and they are confident about winning Rajya Sabha seats. They will fulfill our agenda in the Rajya Sabha. We are supporting the UPA-led government at the Centre. On the basis of common minimum programme (CMP), we will discuss our plans. Our emphasis is on the question how to play the role for the upliftment of the toiling members of the country," Deb had said.

Charles, Camilla visit Sikh shrine (Go To Top)

     Anandpur Sahib (Punjab): Britain's Prince Charles and his wife Camilla Parker Bowles today visited one of the holiest shrines of Sikhs in Punjab where the royal couple walked barefoot and sought blessings of the Guru. The royal couple later witnessed a performance of traditional Sikh martial arts. "We are feeling very happy and privileged that he (Prince Charles) saw our entire performance with rapt attention. He was very impressed by the fact that we have managed to preserve our culture with such integrity," Ranjit Singh, one of the performers, said. Anandpur Sahib is the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh, the Sikh's 10th and last Guru. The Prince and his wife were on a two-day tour of the state, which has a massive migrant population in the United Kingdom. Chief of India's Sikh apex body meanwhile urged the British prince to help lift a French ban on their children wearing turbans to school. France banned religious symbols such as Sikh turbans and Muslim headscarves in state schools in 2004. The Sikhs also appealed to the Prince to help retrieve a Kalgi or plume and sword of Guru Gobind Singh, which they say are with a private art collector in England. "We asked his help in solving the Turban issue in France. We also told him that some of ancient weapons and a headgear of a Guru now in UK should be returned to us," Avtar Singh Makkar, president of the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee said.

    The heir to the British throne and his wife are on a six-day private tour of India and the royals will next travel to Rajasthan, famous for its royals, forts, palaces and breathtaking desert beauty. This is the third visit of Prince Charles since 1992 to what was once the jewel in the crown of the British Empire. The royal couple will be skipping the Taj Mahal, a 17th century- wonder in pure white marble. During the 1992 visit of Charles with his former wife, Diana had been photographed alone in front of the monument of love, in what became a defining image of their impending split. India is the last leg of the royal couple's month-long foreign tour, which included Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

India test-fires Pinaka missile (Go To Top)

     Balasore (Orissa): India on Tuesday successfully testfired the indigenously built multi-barrel rocket launcher "Pinaka" from a defence range in Orissa. Confirming the test, a defence source said that the rocket launcher with a range of 39 kms was test fired from the Proof and Experimental Establishment of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) at Chandipur in the coastal district of Balasore at 1515 hours and again at 1545 hours(IST). 'Pinaka' is an area weapon system aimed at supplementing the existing artillery gun with a range beyond 30 km. Its quick reaction time and high rate of fire gives an edge to the Indian army during low intensity war-like condition. The unguided rocket system test-fired here could be used to neutralise a higher geographical area with its salvo of rockets, the sources said. 'Pinaka' can fire a salvo of 12 rockets within 44 seconds. One salvo each (12 rockets) fired from a battery of six launchers can simultaneously neutralise a target area of 3.9 sq km. The complete system comprises a launch vehicle, command post besides, a loader/replenishment vehicle. The system consists of three batteries of six launchers each. Each launcher can neutralise a football field size battle ground and is meant as a supplement to the existing artillery system at a range beyond 30-km. It can be fitted with a variety of warheads ranging from blast-cum-pre-fragmented high explosives to anti- tank mines, and is inexpensive than the international competition. It has been designed and developed at the Armament Research and Development Establishment in Pune. Pinaka has been inducted into the Indian armed forces after rigorous tests since 1995 and the latest test today is aimed to improve the complete system of the rockets developed by the DRDO, said sources.

Bhopal gas victims stage rally (Go To Top)
by Chandrika Jain

     New Delhi: The survivors of the 1984 Union Carbide chemical disaster, the worst industrial disaster in Bhopal, today staged a protest before the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers at Shastri Bhavan here and sought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention for their rehabilitation. The survivors, including some women and children, joined by human rights and environmental activists, arrived here after completing an 800-kilometer-long 'Padayatra' (foot march), begun on February 20, to submit their six-point charter to Manmohan Singh. The survivors, under the aegis of four organizations, including 'Bhopal Group for Information and Action', 'Bhopal Ki Awaaz' (Voice of Bhopal), 'Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationary Karamachari Sangh' and 'Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangarsh Morcha', are demanding that the government provide them with medical rehabilitation, clean water, livelihoods, pension, environmental remediation, punishment for the guilty and a Bhopal Gas Victims memorial.

Threat closes US consulate in Peshawar (Go To Top)

     Islamabad: Following bomb threats by unidentified militant groups, the US consulate in Peshawar has been temporarily closed. Quoting sources in the US consulate, the Daily Times reported that unidentified militants had threatened to blow the consulate up. The consulate would be shifted elsewhere in the city, they added. The consulate administration contacted the police following the threats and increased security in the area. According to another report, US Consulate General Michele Supernager decided to close the consulate, but refused to share information about its shifting the consulate staff.

White House Chief of Staff Andrew quits (Go To Top)

      Washington: White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card Junior has resigned and will be replaced by Budget Director Josh Bolten, an administration official said Tuesday. President Bush is expected to announce the shake up during a meeting with the media at the Oval Office of the White House. Card, 59, served as Secretary of Transportation for President George H.W. Bush. He was previously a Vice President at General Motors, and a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. Card is married with three children. Many of the President's top aides have been by his side nonstop for more than five years. Card's resignation comes amid a sharp decline in Bush's approval ratings and calls from Republicans for the president to bring in new aides with fresh ideas and new energy. Card came to Bush recently and suggested that he should step down from the job that he has held from the first day of Bush's presidency, said the administration official. Bush decided during a weekend stay at Camp David, Md., to accept Card's resignation and to name Bolten as his replacement, said the source who spoke on condition of anonymity because he did not want to pre-empt the president. Bolten is widely experienced in Washington, both on Capitol Hill as well as at the White House, where he was deputy chief of staff before becoming director of the Office of Management and Budget. At a White House news conference last week, Bush was asked about rumours that a shakeup in the White House staff was in the works, but he said he was "satisfied with the people I've surrounded myself with."

Bhajji wraps it up at Ferozeshah Kotla (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: The 'Turbanator', Harbhajan Singh, spun India to victory against England in the opener of the seven-match ODI series, taking five wickets after being the top scorer for the hosts at the Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium here today. After setting a modest target of 204 on a wicket of uneven bounce, India bowled England out for 164, thus winning the match by 39 runs and taking a 1-0 lead in the series. Beginning their run-chase, the Andrew Flintoff-led English team faced a bad start when they lost opener Andrew Strauss of the third ball of the innings, bowled by Irfan Pathan. The southpaw again struck in the same over, this time getting rid of Owais Shah, who started sweetly with a crisp drive for four, but was trapped in front a ball later with a big inswinger. Although Matt Prior (22) and Kevin Pietersen (46) steadied the innings with a third wicket partnership of 53 runs, Harbhajan's brutal spin proved to be a handful on a double -paced wicket. Harbhajan completed his quota of 10 overs, scalping five wickets for 31 runs. This morning, England put India into bat, and within a couple of hours of the start of play, it seemed as if the Poms had the match in their grasp. At one stage, the score read 48 for six and 184 for 7. The Indians were eventually bowled out for 203. Harbhajan Singh played a valuable innings down the order to top score with 37 while captain Rahul Dravid played a raspy innings of 34 with seven boundaries. Irfan Pathan (28) and Suresh Raina (24) also contributed some valuable runs down the order. Harbhajan was naturally adjudged the Man of the Match for his allround performance. Teams: India: Rahul Dravid (capt), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Suresh Raina, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Wk), Irfan Pathan, S Sreesanth, Harbhajan Singh, and Rudra Pratap Singh. England: Andrew Flintoff (Captain), Andrew Strauss, Owais Shah, Matt Prior, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Geraint Jones, Ian Blackwell, Liam Plunkett, Kabir Ali and James Anderson.

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