India, Bangladesh to conduct joint army exercise

KOLKATA - In order to combat growing terrorist activities and insurgency problems, the armies of India and Bangladesh will jointly conduct a counter terrorism exercise in the northeastern state of Assam this year, officials said here Wednesday.

Mexican priest arrested for sexually abusing boys

VERACRUZ - The police in the Gulf coast state of Veracruz arrested a Catholic priest accused of sexually abusing boys at a church-run residential facility, EFE news agency reported Wednesday.

Orissa farmers warn government against diverting dam water

BHUBANESWAR - Farmers’ leaders in Orissa Tuesday warned the state government against allowing use of Hirakud dam water for industrial purposes, neglecting irrigation.

Reliance wants end of state intervention in fuel prices

NEW DELHI - Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) is keen to re-open its retail fuel stations but is waiting for the government to end its intervention in determining the sale price of petrol and diesel, a company official said here Tuesday.

Lalu Prasad has a date with Japan’s Bullet Train

NEW DELHI - Railways Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is on a seven-day visit to Japan, Tuesday took a ride on the Bullet Train in Tokyo to get a first hand experience of what the Japanese call Shinkansen high-speed trains.

Vibrant Gujarat meet sees massive investments in energy sector

AHMEDABAD - The 4th Vibrant Gujarat global investors summit which began Monday set a record of sorts with 114 MoUs entailing a capital investment of over Rs.3.4 trillion (Rs.349,752 crore) in the energy sector alone being signed on the first day of the two-day event.

Congress seeks new industries at abandoned Tata project site

KOLKATA - Hundreds of Congress activists Sunday staged a road blockade in front of the abandoned Tata Motors small car factory site at Singur in West Bengal, demanding new industrial units in the area.

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.

Government creates 12 new central universities through ordinance

NEW DELHI - The government will issue an ordinance to create 12 new central universities, it was announced here Friday.

YSR urges PM to form team to manage Satyam affairs

HYDERABAD - Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy Wednesday urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to constitute a management team to run the affairs of crisis-ridden Satyam Computers to restore the confidence of global customers.

ONGC launches Rs.44-bn project in Tripura

AGARTALA - India’s premier hydrocarbons exploration company, Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), has undertaken a Rs.43.76-billion project in Tripura to boost gas output, the company said here Tuesday.

Women activists demand probe into stripping of anti-liquor activist

BHUBANESWAR - Women activists in Orissa Monday demanded a probe into the alleged stripping last month of a woman anti-liquor activist by some people in Balasore district.

Maoists eyeing Pashupatinath’s riches, says Hindu outfit

KATHMANDU - A global outfit of Hindus Sunday joined the row over the Maoist government removing the revered Pashupatinath temple’s Indian priests, saying the former guerrillas were trying to capture the deity’s treasure that is said to contain fabulous jewels and other riches.

Kolkata auto-rickshaw drivers protest ban, Trinamool calls strike

KOLKATA - Agitated auto-rickshaw drivers set ablaze a government bus here Friday, opposing the court ban on two-stroke public transport vehicles in the city, while the opposition Trinamool Congress stepped into the protest and called for a 12-hour auto and taxi strike Saturday.

Indian Science Congress begins in Shillong Saturday

SHILLONG - The stage is set for the inauguration of the Indian Science Congress Saturday in Meghalaya capital Shillong by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

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.

Will support self rule in Kashmir: PDP

SRINAGAR - Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which has emerged as the second largest party according to the election result trends in Jammu and Kashmir, Sunday said it would support ’self rule’ in the state.

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:

India, Maldives to enhance marine anti-terror cooperation

NEW DELHI - In the wake of the terrorist attack on Mumbai from the sea route, India and the Maldives have decided to scale up anti-piracy and marine counter-terrorism operations in the Indian Ocean.

Low turnout in Srinagar, brisk polling in Jammu

SRINAGAR/JAMMU - Jammu and Kashmir was a study in contrasts Wednesday as voting got underway for the seventh and last round of the state elections with long queues outside polling booths in Jammu but low turnout in Srinagar constituencies where a boycott call by separatists held sway.

Engineer’s lynching provokes Samajwadi party’s shutdown call

NEW DELHI - Uttar Pradesh’s main opposition Samajwadi Party has called for a statewide shutdown Thursday after a ruling Bahujan Samaj party (BSP) legislator was named in a police case for lynching a government engineer.