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Dubai Govt invites DUBAI, Jan 10: In a rare honour given to an Indian leader, the Government of Dubai has invited ......more
JAKARTA, Jan 10: Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee arrived here today on a four-day visit to......more US made missiles ISLAMABAD, Jan 10: Pakistani security forces seized 13 US-made missiles smuggled into the......more China launches BEIJING, Jan 10: China placed an unmanned spacecraft into orbit today in the second....more |
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Bride caught
after posing for photo in stolen dress LONDON, Jan 10: A bride and groom who stole a wedding dress were caught after cheekily posing together for a wedding photo in their local newspaper........more Retired official ISLAMABAD, Jan 10: Muhammad Nazir, a retired Pakistani Government official has slashed his monthly car fuel bill by more than half after he began using Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in place of petrol........more Afghan officials DOHA, Jan 10: In an apparent show of support for suspected terrorist mastermind Mohammed Osama Bin Laden, several Afghan officials attended the wedding of the Saudi dissident’s son, the Qatari-based Al Jazirah Satellite TV channel reported today....more
Clinton proposal on HYDERABAD, Jan 10: Former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres today said the US "package".......more |
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Dubai Govt invites Naidu to address global gathering DUBAI, Jan 10: In a rare honour given to an Indian leader, the Government of Dubai has invited Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu to address an important international gathering. Mr Naidu is arriving here on Sunday on a three-day high-profile visit to utilise this opportunity to attract foreign investments in his state. The Dubai authorities have been quite impressed with the manner in which Mr Naidu has gone about in making Hyderabad a world famous city in the field of information technology. According to Mr Asoke Mukerji, Consul General of India in Dubai, Mr Nadiu’s was visiting Dubai primarily to address the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a forum of developed countries, on e-governance. He recalled that Mr Naidu was in Dubai in March last year. The Chief Minister’s visit was followed by the Dubai authorities sending a high-level delegation to Hyderabad to explore areas in which Andhra Pradesh and this emirate could cooperate. Newsreports said the Chief Minister would be accompanied by his Ministers for Finance and Major Industries. He was expected to also meet top political leaders of the UAE. Mr Naidu has often described Dubai as an ideal example for Andhra Pradesh to emulate in the matter of infrastructure development and information technology. He would also be visiting important centres like the Dubai Internet City (DIC) and the Dubai Media City. (UNI) |
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JAKARTA, Jan 10: Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee arrived here today on a four-day visit to Indonesia amid indications that Jakarta is looking towards New Delhi again to forge a close economic and political relationship. The visit is expected to give a major boost to bilateral relations with the signing of several agreements on defence cooperation, agriculture, science and technology and culture. Vajpayee, who flew in here from Hanoi, was warmly received by Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid, a great admirer of India and follower of Mahatma Gandhi. He was presented with a guard of honour by a contingent of Indonesian armed forces amid a 19-gun salute. A number of bilateral agreements are expected to be signed during Vajpayee’s stay in Indonesia including that in the fields of defence cooperation, agriculture, tourism and culture but the highlight is likely to be a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on setting up a joint commission to intensify cooperation between the two countries in various spheres. Foreign Ministers of the two countries would be co-chairmen of the commission. The agreement on defence cooperation is only limited to supply of some naval equipment and training. There will also be several MoUs between private and public sector companies of both countries, including in the fields of railways, oil and natural gas and consultancy. The Prime Minister will also be visiting Malaysia next month. Talks are already underway between the two countries to enhance cooperation in the petroleum and natural gas sector. Indian Oil Corporation and ONGC have already signed MoUs with Indonesian companies on exploration of natural gas. Vajpayee’s visit is a landmark one in ties between the two countries as it is the first such high level contact since Indonesia became a democratic state. The last Prime Ministerial visit to Indonesia was by Rajiv Gandhi in 1986. Indonesia is an important and active member of ASEAN, APEC, NAM and G-15 and supports Indian point of view in ARF and in the discussions under the ASEAN-India full dialogue partnership. During the visit, the Prime Minister would hold talks on bilateral, regional and multilateral issues with Wahid and other Indonesian leaders. He would also take time off to pay a visit to the picturesaque island of Bali. The island, which has a predominant Hindu influence, is famous for its dance dramas derived from the Hindu mythology often featuring fragments from the Ramayana and Mahabharata. Vajpayee would devote an evening to cultural programmes and balinese art besides visiting the famous Tanah lot temple. Wahid’s visit to India last year had opened a new chapter in bilateral relations between the two countries which had stagnated in the last nearly two decades after the warmth in ties during the 50s due to the special relationship between Pandit Nehru and President Sokarno. Vajpayee’s just concluded visit to Vietnam and his visit here is seen as part of India’s attempts to bring sharper focus to its ‘look east’ policy amid moves for holding an ASEAN-India summit. (PTI) |
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US made missiles brought from Afghanistan seized ISLAMABAD, Jan 10: Pakistani security forces seized 13 US-made missiles smuggled into the Mohmand tribal area from Afghanistan, reports said Wednesday. A Government statement quoted by the reports said a border patrol stumbled upon the arms cache in the Ghilzai hills of the Mohmand region after a group of suspicious-looking tribals fled from a ravine. During a search of the area, the patrol found 13 US-made missiles, which had a range of 25 km. Pakistan’s underworld is a market for weapons and ammunition left from the supplies sent by the United States and the former Soviet Union to their favoured sides in the war fought in Afghanistan from 1979 to 1989 to resist the Soviet occupation of the country. Arms smuggled from Afghanistan are often used in tribal and sectarian feuds in Pakistan. In recent months anti-Government political elements hit official buildings in Quetta, capital of Balochistan province bordering Afghanistan, including the Pakistan Army’s Staff College, with rockets. (DPA) |
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China launches second test flight of spacecraft BEIJING, Jan 10: China placed an unmanned spacecraft into orbit today in the second test flight of a vessel Beijing hopes will one day carry astronauts into space. A long march rocket blasted off from the Gobi Desert Launch Center and put the Shenzhou II spacecraft into orbit 10 minutes later, state media reported. The spacecraft would return in a few days after conducting experiments in physics and astronomy and on space’s effects on life forms and materials. China has placed great prestige on and poured an undisclosed amount of resources into its secretive space programme. If successful, the programme will make China only the third nation after the United States and Russia capable of putting astronauts into space. An important step in realizing manned spaceflight, The people’s daily said in a headline below a picture of the long March II-F rocket blasting off from the Jiuquan Launch Center. Newspapers praised the rocket and capsule as triumphs of domestic engineering and President Jiang Zemin sent a congratulatory telegram. I hope you will work persistently and unremittingly to achieve even greater victory, Jiang said in his message to the civilian and military personnel in the programme published in state media Today’s flight was the second unmanned test of the Shenzhou family of space capsules in less than 14 months. In the first test, in November 1999, the Shenzhou, or sacred vessel, orbited the earth for 21 hours before landing on the grasslands of China’s inner Mongolia region. (AP) |
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Bride caught after posing for photo in stolen dress LONDON, Jan 10: A bride and groom who stole a wedding dress were caught after cheekily posing together for a wedding photo in their local newspaper. A shocked Linda Purdey recognised the dress as one stolen from her shop four months earlier and called the police. A court in Southwest England fined Joanne Dixon 200 pounds (300 dollars) on Monday after she admitted handling stolen property. Her husband Che is awaiting sentence for stealing the 350 pound dress. Purdey told reporters: "I was amazed that she had the cheek to let her picture be published in the paper wearing a dress stolen under my very nose." (REUTERS) |
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Retired official slashes his monthly car fuel ISLAMABAD, Jan 10: Muhammad Nazir, a retired Pakistani Government official has slashed his monthly car fuel bill by more than half after he began using Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in place of petrol. It cost him some 400 U.S. dollars to install a CNG adaptor in his car. At the flick of a switch, he can run his vehicle on the environment-friendly fuel, which is stored in a 55-kg cylinder fitted in the boot of the car. One cylinder can run his car as far as 15 litres of petrol can, and costs about half as much. He refills the CNG at special outlets in the capital city. On long drives out of town, the driver can throw back the fuel choice switch to revert to petrol because there are still no CNG refill stations on the highways. Despite this limitation, more and more Pakistani car owners are fitting the CNG adaptors in their cars as the Government encourages a switch to the ‘green fuel’ to reduce urban air pollution and the country’s oil import bill. However, despite Government loans on easy terms for this, many car owners are still put off by the high cost of fitting the CNG kits, which are being imported from Italy and New Zealand. Costs may come down as car makers in Pakistan are testing new models that will run only on CNG. Foreign car companies have plants in Pakistan in collaboration with local partners. (IPS) |
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Afghan officials at wedding of Bin Laden’s son DOHA, Jan 10: In an apparent show of support for suspected terrorist mastermind Mohammed Osama Bin Laden, several Afghan officials attended the wedding of the Saudi dissident’s son, the Qatari-based Al Jazirah Satellite TV channel reported today. The son, Mohammed, yesterday afternoon reportedly married the daughter of Bin Laden’s deputy and military aide Aby Hafs El Masri in a place identified as Kandahar. The video tape showed a smiling Bin Laden, wearing Afghan traditional dress. The report said the celebration was inaugurated by Ayman El Zawahri, one of Egypt’s banned Jihad (holy war) organization leaders, and also attended by several members of the Arab community in Afghanistan. It added that a number of guests delivered speeches in which they touched on the "Palestinian Intifada (uprising) and developments on the Arab and Afghan front". El Zawahri was one of the military-wing leaders of the outlawed Jihad organisation in Egypt. He is wanted by Washington and has been sentenced to death by an Egyptian military court in Absentia. Bin Laden fought alongside Afghani rebels during the country’s Soviet occupation. (DPA) |
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Clinton proposal on Jerusalem
acceptable, HYDERABAD, Jan 10: Former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres today said the US "package" on dividing Jerusalem was acceptable to his country but felt a solution to the Middle-East crisis was not possible before President Bill Clinton lays down office later this month. "Jerusalem city could be divided and shared by Jews and Muslims but the 800 metre holy place could not be under the monopoly of any one community," he told reporters here. "The city could be divided demographically and shared on religious basis but this could not be applied to the actual holy place and its nearby surroundings as it’s a congregation of both Jews and Muslims," he said. As the holy place has entwined a 3,000 year Jewish history, 2,000 year Christian and 1,200 year Muslim history in it, all should be allowed to pray there in their respective manners, traditions and customs, Peres said. On the chances of an accord before the end of Clinton’s term, the senior Israeli leader did not appear optimistic saying there are just seven days left and it would be too short a time to resolve this complex issue. Asked if Clinton’s intitative could fetch him a nobel prize for peace, Peres said, "he should be given that prize for many more things" and added that the Clinton package on Jerusalem was acceptable to israel and not thrust on them. He, however, said there would be 100 per cent results of the peace initiative. "Israel was in five wars in the region and had won all militarily but lost them politically". His country would not allow its younger generation to die in a sixth war. On the dispute over "temple mount", he said "it could only be under the control of lord as the head of it is muslim and heart Jewish. Control of one of them is totally unviable". "There could be political compromise but a religious compromise is a difficult proposition", he said on the disputed temple mount, which is being claimed by both parties. Peres, who is now Israel’s Minister for Regional Cooperation, said trade partnership with India would go a long way and there were areas of focus which include water management, agriculture and technology transfer. On democratic set up in India, Peres said in a lighter vein, "while democracy world over means the right of every person to be equal, here in India it is the equal right of every person to be different. It is this attitude which brings us closer". (PTI) |
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