Serenaded in South Africa, Hillary Clinton says strained ties between 2 countries on the mend

CAPE TOWN, South Africa —At a housing project for the homeless she once visited as first lady, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton basked in the cheers and serenade from an adoring crowd Saturday and pronounced U.S.-South African ties on the mend after years of strain.

Family, friends cheer release of 2 California journalists, thank Clinton

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Friends and family of two California journalists were relieved and excited Tuesday after the pair were pardoned by North Korea and released to former President Bill Clinton.

Haryana likely to announce separate gurdwara body

CHANDIGARH - The controversy over having a separate Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) for Haryana to manage Sikh shrines in the state has started afresh with Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda Friday saying that an announcement in this regard will be made Nov 1.

Obama says ‘friendly, thoughtful’ chat with Gates and Crowley contributes to positive lesson

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is hailing his meeting with professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. and policeman James Crowley as a “friendly, thoughtful conversation.”

AP NewsBreak: Brother defends North Carolina man accused of plotting ‘violent jihad’ abroad

NEW YORK — Accusations that a North Carolina man recruited and trained would-be terrorists to wage violent jihad are “pure poppycock,” his older brother said Thursday, portraying the charges as an attempt to link Islam to terrorism.

3 Years to go: On time and on budget, London marks countdown to 2012 Olympics

LONDON — With three years to go until the opening ceremony, London organizers have passed an important test with the successful trial run of a high-speed train service to the 2012 Olympic Park.

Charge dropped against black Harvard scholar; city says arrest ‘regrettable, unfortunate’

BOSTON — Prosecutors dropped a disorderly conduct charge Tuesday against prominent black scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr., who was arrested after forcing his way into his own house in what he and other blacks say was an outrageous but all-too-common example of how police treat them.

Gangubai ushered in women’s power in music: cultural fraternity

NEW DELHI/BANGALORE - The cultural fraternity across the country mourned the death of legendary Hindustani classical singer Gangubai Hangal, saying her demise ended an era of women’s power in traditional Indian music which had conventionally been a male bastion.

One-fourth posts of CBI investigating officers lying vacant

NEW DELHI - India’s elite investigating agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is facing a shortage of one-fourth of officers, a senior official said here Monday.

Low monsoon rain concern for India’s farm output: Pawar

NEW DELHI - India produced record food grain in 2008-09 but the situation could become a cause for concern due to erratic monsoon in several parts of the country, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said Monday.

Episcopalians say bishops can bless same-sex unions, move toward official prayer

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Episcopalians on Friday authorized bishops to bless same-sex unions and research an official prayer for the ceremonies, capping a meeting that moved the church closer to accepting gay relationships despite turmoil over the issue in the Anglican family.

Ranchi prisoners paint their way to salvation

RANCHI - It is a painting of a man behind bars, regretting his deeds. The artist did not have to stretch his imagination to paint the picture — he just had to look within.

Indian American legislator to run for US Congress

WASHINGTON - An Indian American Democratic legislator in Kansas state, Raj Goyle, will run for the US House of Representatives next year.

Palin returns to work to sign law enforcement bill after stunning resignation announcement

KOTZEBUE, Alaska — Sarah Palin has returned to work as Alaska governor following the abrupt announcement that she’s resigning.

Last-lap wreck with Kyle Busch gives Tony Stewart victory at Daytona

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Kyle Busch braced himself for a four-lap “trophy dash” around Daytona International Speedway, intent on snatching a win away from Tony Stewart.

Railway budget disappoints Naveen Patnaik

BHUBANESWAR - Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik termed the union railway budget presented by Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee in the Lok Sabha Friday as “disappointing”.

Andhra MP regrets slapping bank manager, Congress seeks report (Lead, Changing dateline)

HYDERABAD/DELHI - Andhra Pradesh Congress MP Manda Jagannatham, who sparked off a controversy by slapping a bank manager, Wednesday expressed regret over the incident. The Congress called the MP’s behaviour “unfortunate”.

We are still in Lalgarh, say tribal leaders

LALGARH - Denying that he has fled from Lalgarh, agitating tribal leader Chattradhar Mahato Tuesday said he was still in this troubled area of West Bengal “with my people”.

Argentine woman confirms relationship with Sanford, but says she won’t discuss private matters

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — South Carolina’s wandering governor didn’t give away her name when he confessed to having an affair with an Argentine woman, but Maria Belen Chapur has finally stepped forward.

Suspected terrorist’s body to be exhumed for second autopsy

GHAZIABAD - A suspected terrorist’s alleged suicide in a jail here last week has turned more mysterious as jail authorities Thursday called for a second post-mortem examination after the first analysis failed to find the cause of death.

Sajjan Jindal wins international steel industry award

MUMBAI - JSW Steel vice chairman and managing director Sajjan Jindal has been conferred the Willy Korf/Ken Iverson Steel Vision Award for his contribution to the steel industry, the company said in a statement Thursday.

Two thirds of Brit teens don’t believe in God

LONDON - Nearly two thirds of Brit teenagers say they don’t believe in the existence of God, according to a new survey.

797th Urs of Khawaja Moinuddin Chisty begins in Ajmer

AJMER - Ajmer’s famous annual Urs festival, dedicated to Sufi saint Hazrat Khawaja Moinuddin Hasan Chisty started here on Friday.

Infosys’ Murthy wants budget to focus on inclusive growth

BANGALORE - Infosys Technologies Ltd chairman and chief mentor N.R. Narayana Murthy Saturday hoped the union budget for 2009-10 would focus on inclusive growth, which he termed as “the need of the country”.

Rajnath owns up BJP poll debacle, stands by Hindutva (Third Lead)

NEW DELHI - Amid dissent and blame game in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), its president Rajnath Singh Saturday took responsibility for the party’s poll debacle and reiterated the party’s commitment to Hindutva.

Ahmadinejad’s win pulled out of a hat, not ballot box: Expert

WASHINGTON - An academic at the University of Hawaii, Farideh Farhi, has questioned the legitimacy of Iran President Mohammad Ahmadinejad’s win in a presidential poll held last week.

Indian Aviation Minister suggests Initial Public Offer of Air India

NEW DELHI - Union Civil Aviation minister Praful Patel said on Monday that in the near future, the government might come up with an initial public offering (IPO) of the national carrier, Air India.

Kamal Nath’s new portfolio takes industry by surprise

NEW DELHI - The decision to shift Kamal Nath out of the commerce ministry to be given charge of the road transport and highways portfolio was Thursday seen by India Inc as the most unexpected development in the allocation of portfolios by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Joint replacement patients dance Bhangra

CHANDIGARH - A group of joint replacement surgery patients - in the age group of 60 to 75 years - Friday put on an energetic Bhangra/Giddha (Punjabi dances) performance that left spectators spellbound.

Children of Shepherds have a special school in Jharkhand

DUMKA - A man in Jharkhand’s Dumka district is running a small school for the children of shepherd community from a small shelter to enable them become literate.