Will Shibu Soren now bargain for his old job?

RANCHI - Known to be a hard bargainer, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) chief Shibu Soren could now demand that he be given back the coal ministry at the centre, having lost the assembly by-poll which will cost him the chief ministership of Jharkhand.

India’s Somdev through to Chennai Open second round

CHENNAI - Somdev Devvarman advanced to the second round of the Chennai Open tennis with a 6-3, 6-3 win against American Kevin Kim here Tuesday keeping Indian interest alive as in the $450,000 tournament.

NRI owned firm takes over German clothing chain store

DUSSELDORF - German business circles were startled when a small NRI-owned textile importing company took over the financially troubled German clothing chain store Wehmeyer that is a household name for the country’s lower and middle-class consumers.

Neil Harvey calls for Hayden’s scalp

SYDNEY - Former Test great Neil Harvey has joined the chorus to drop out-of-form Matthew Hayden from the Australian team after Hayden again failed in the first innings against South Africa here Saturday.

Cheaper liquor from Chandigarh flooding other states

SHIMLA - Low levies on spirits in Chandigarh seem to be leading to increased smuggling of cheap liquor from there to neighbouring Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh.

Rich Indians eyeing second homes abroad

NEW DELHI - The realty industry is one of the worst-hit sectors globally following the financial meltdown, but for the well-heeled in India, this is excellent tiding. With real estate prices at an all-time low across borders, buying property abroad is suddenly making sense to affluent Indians.

Nepal’s ruling Maoists refuse to hand over illegal arms

KATHMANDU - Two years after signing a peace pact and now heading the government, Nepal’s former Maoist guerrillas Wednesday rejected an ally’s plea to hand over their weapons to win the trust of the international community as well as other parties.

Pakistani, Indian military officers speak to defuse tension

ISLAMABAD - Senior Pakistani and Indian military officers have made contact in a bid to defuse tensions in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks that almost sparked a sub-continental war, a media report here said Monday.

Gisele Bundchen not engaged to beau?

LONDON - Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen is not preparing to marry her US quarterback boyfriend Tom Brady, according to the sportstar’s father.

Change was buzzword for TV industry in 2008 (Yearender-11)

NEW DELHI - Change, they say, is the only constant in life. The saying may not have been true for India’s Rs.226 billion/ Rs. 22,600 Crores television industry for the past seven years but it certainly seemed apt for 2008.

Key milestones in India’s telecom industry in 2008 (To go with Yearender 14)

Following are key milestones and timeline of developments in India’s telecom sector in 2008, when the country’s network emerged as the second largest in the world after China’s, displacing that of the US: