Archive for November, 2006
Thursday, November 30th, 2006
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New Delhi, Nov 30 (PTI) Ten thousand children living with HIV/AIDS across the country are expected to benefit from the first ever National Paediatric HIV/AIDS Initiative launched by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and former US President Bill Clinton here today.
Gandhi and Clinton toured Kalavati Saran Children’s Hospital — the first centre to offer free anti-retroviral therapy (ART) for children and handed over a protocol booklet for adminstering the treatment to incharge Dr A K Dutta at a function attended by Union Health Minister A Ramadoss among others.
The Clinton HIV/AIDS Foundation is providing drugs for 10,000 children free of cost.
“Even as many countries make progress in combating HIV/AIDS, children are being left behind,” Clinton said adding that his foundation has focussed on treatment for children and is committed to treat 1,00,000 minors worldwide by the end of next year.
“This is a great day but we have a long way to go,” he said adding every child should have access to anti-AIDS drugs.
Terming the initiative as the “most important step forward”, Gandhi said there are a number of populous states where prevalence of the disease is low. “But care should be taken as these are most vulnerable.” “Social ostracism is still prevalent,” she said adding there was a need to remove the stigma associated with the disease so that more people can be treated.
Under the initiative there will be 36 Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) Centres and seven registered paediatrics centres where free CD-4 count monitoring, a test for HIV/AIDS, till the age of 15 years will be done. PTI
source PTI.
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Wednesday, November 29th, 2006
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New Delhi, Nov 29 (PTI) Nine Pakistan-based jehadi terrorists were involved in the July 11 bomb attacks on Mumbai’s commuter trains, National Security Advisor M K Narayanan said today.
“The investigation into this incident is complete, and the involvement of nine Pakistan-based jehadi terrorists, of whom one died, has been confirmed in the investigation,” he told an international seminar here on “Growing Challenges of Terrorism with special reference to railways”.
More than 20 Indians involved in carrying out the attacks were arrested and chargesheeted, but the eight Pakistanis managed to escape to their country, he said.
Narayanan said the probe into the attacks had revealed that the Pakistanis came to India through three different routes — Bangladesh, Nepal and the sea — and were directly involved in planting the bombs.
The explosives were stored in a residential suburb in Mumbai and packed into pressure cookers before being placed in first-class train compartments. A great deal of “advance planning and careful preparation” had gone into the attacks that were masterminded “by well-known jehadi leaders in Pakistan like Azam Cheema”, he said.
Intelligence experts have managed to piece together the information obtained from the train bombings and probes into other terrorist attacks to reach a “conclusion about the existence of a common thread linking attacks on mass transport networks, such as the Mumbai blasts, with targeted attacks on religious places like Varanasi and the Ram Janmbhoomi Complex” and the blast in Delhi’s Sarojini Nagar market, he said. PTI
source PTI.
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Tuesday, November 28th, 2006
| Sanjay acquitted of terror charge, held under Arms Act |
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Mumbai, Nov 28 (PTI) After a trial spanning 13 years, Sanjay ‘Munnabhai’ Dutt was today acquitted of the grave charge of conspiracy in the 1993 serial blasts here but was convicted for a much lesser offence under the Arms Act by a TADA court that ruled the Bollywood actor was not a terrorist.
The 47-year-old Sanjay, whose popularity has zoomed after the two super-hits “Munnabhai MBBS” and its sequel “Lage Raho Munnabhai”, will not go to jail immediately since Judge P D Kode extended his bail till December 19.
As with 90 others convicted in recent weeks in the blasts case, the judge did not pronounce the quantum of sentence immediately.
Dressed in a checked shirt, a visibly tense Sanjay was present in the jam-packed and heavily-guarded court when the verdict was pronounced to the relief of his family and friends. This sense of relief echoed through Bollywood, where movies involving an investment of more than Rs 150 crore are riding on his acting prowess. PTI
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Monday, November 27th, 2006
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Monday, November 27th, 2006
Mumbai, Nov 27 (PTI) The police today claimed to have successfully solved the September 8 Malegaon serial blasts case and said two Pakistani nationals were involved in the explosions carried out allegedly by the banned Students Islamic Movement of India.
“We have successfully detected the Malegaon blasts case. We are, however, on the lookout for eight more suspects in the case,” Director General of Police P S Pasricha told reporters here.
The Anti-Terrorism Squad probing into the case has already arrested eight suspects, including two booked in the July 11 Mumbai serial blasts, in connection of four explosions that rocked the town killing 31 people and injuring more than 200.
Pasricha said that one of the prime conspirators of the blasts, Shabbir Batterwalla, had received training at a camp near Karachi in Pakistan in 2003 but did not confirm if the Lashkar-e-Taiba was behind it.
To a specific query regarding the involvement of Pakistani intelligence agency ISI, Pasricha said, “I have spoken about the country where he received the training. There may have been some help.” According to him, a Pakistani national by the name of Muzammil had assembled the IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) at Malegaon in the third week of July after Mohammed Ali (July 11 accused), along with Junaid and two others delivered the RDX to prime accused Shabbir Batterywalla.
“Ali had sent 15 kg of RDX but only two kg was used to trigger the explosions. We are on the lookout for the remaining quantity,” Pasricha said. PTI
source PTI.
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Saturday, November 25th, 2006
Islamabad, Nov 25 (PTI) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is likely to visit Pakistan early next year during which the Siachen and Sir Creek issues are expected to be settled, a media report said today.
“Dates for Manmohan Singh’s visit to Pakistan have already been decided. It would take place in end of February or most likely in March,” a report in the “Dawn” said quoting officials.
“The predictions are that Siachen and Sir Creek issues would be settled and some tangible progress on the issue of Kashmir is likely during Singh’s trip,” it claimed.
Some key disputes between the two countries could be settled in the first quarter of 2007, the report added.
Talking about the the significance of Singh’s visit to Islamabad, Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid M Kasuri in a recent interview said that “Pakistan and India have been talking. At least we should try and make the visit of Manmohan Singh to Pakistan more constructive. That should be the objective of both the Foreign Ministers of India and Pakistan.
“If you ask me what should be the immediate target, the Foreign Ministers should make sure that the next visit takes place quickly as President (Pervez) Musharraf has already visited India. That is why I am talking of visit of Singh. It is turn of the Prime Minister. I hope both I and (External Affairs Minister Pranab) Mukherjee will be able to achieve that,” he said.
Today’s report about the likely visit of Singh early next year came even as Kasuri travelled to New Delhi today on a “private” visit to attend the wedding of the daughter of Union Minister Manishankar Aiyer. PTI
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Friday, November 24th, 2006
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Chennai, Nov 24 (PTI) India will hold discussions with Sri Lanka on sending humanitarian aid to the island nation when President Mahinda Rajapakse meets Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi next week, National Security Adviser M K Narayanan said today.
Asked about Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi’s demand that India should send assistance to Tamils in Sri Lanka, he said modalities for such a measure have to be worked out.
“First of all, it has to be considered whether such assistance is necessary,” Narayanan said.
India recently sent rice, sugar and milk powder to Sri Lanka by sea, but political parties here had expressed an apprehension that such a move would only justify Colombo’s closure of a vital highway linking Jaffna with Tamil-inhabited areas.
However, the Sri Lankan government later reopened the highway.
Narayanan’s observation on whether the aid is necessary triggered speculation that the Sri Lankan government was not pleased with the despatch of relief materials by India. PTI
source PTI.
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Tuesday, November 21st, 2006
| New Delhi, Nov 21 (PTI) India and China today signed 13 agreements, including one for encouraging two-way investment flows and another for streamlining iron ore exports, as part of efforts to take bilateral ties to a higher orbit.
The 13 agreements, protocols and MoUs were signed here between the two countries in the presence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao.
The Agreement for Promotion and Protection of Investments was signed between Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath and his Chinese counterpart Bo Xilai.
“The agreement provides a framework for bilateral investment flows between the two countries, thereby creating favourable conditions for investors of one country to make investments in the other,” officials said.
The Agreement on Cooperation in Inspection of Iron Ore was initialed by Nath and Li Changjiang, Administrator of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of China.
Changjiang also signed a protocol for streamlining rice exports from India with Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar.
Accordingly, basmati rice exported to China would comply with Chinese plant quarantine laws and adhere to the relevant measures under the WTO.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and his counterpart Li Zhaoxing signed a protocol to open an Indian consulate in Guangzhou and a Chinese consulate in Kolkata.
The Indian consulate would cover seven Chinese provinces of Guangdong, Fujian, Hunan, Hainan, Yunnan, Sichuan and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The Chinese consulate in Kolkata would cover West Bengal, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Bihar.
source PTI 2006
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Saturday, November 18th, 2006
| By Matt Spetalnick
HANOI (Reuters) - The United States, Japan and South Korea prodded North Korea on Saturday to abandon nuclear weapons, using an Asia Pacific summit to pile pressure on Pyongyang over its missile launches and nuclear test.
U.S. President George W. Bush met South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe separately, and then jointly, on the margins of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit and North Korea was the dominant theme.
“There is no doubt when we work together we can bring peace and stability, and prosperity for our peoples,” Bush said.
The message to North Korea was expected to be spelled out in a statement on Sunday from the 21-nation APEC summit: Forswear nuclear weapons and economic benefits will follow. A diplomatic source said it was likely to be read out by the chairman.
North Korea has agreed to return to talks over its nuclear programs with the United States, China, Japan, Russia and South Korea.
No date has been set — the U.S. hope is by the end of the year — and Washington says it is most concerned that Pyongyang be prepared at those talks to take “concrete steps” to show it is serious about abandoning atomic weapons.
White House national security adviser Stephen Hadley said Bush, Roh and Abe in their joint session discussed the need to use both pressure and incentives to try to get North Korea to give up nuclear weapons and the need for coordination among them and with China.
“I think there is a sense that while there is patience required, there was also a shared view that we must not let North Korea use the six-party talks as an instrument for delay,” he said.
Bush meets Chinese President Hu Jintao and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday.
Hadley would not be drawn into discussing what steps North Korea should take, saying it was to be negotiated with U.S. allies.
But he did not disagree that they could include suspension of a five-megawatt reactor and plutonium reprocessing plant and allowing international inspectors back into North Korea.
While Bush and Abe saw eye-to-eye that North Korea should not be allowed to import or export nuclear materials, South Korea’s Roh could only go so far.
Roh stopped short of complete support for the U.S.-led Proliferation Security Initiative aimed at intercepting North Korean ships. Seoul fears it would lead to armed clashes.
“Although the Republic of Korea is not taking part in the full scope of the PSI, we support principles and goals of the PSI and will fully cooperate in preventing WMD (weapons of mass destruction) materials in the North Korea region,” Roh told reporters as Bush sat nearby.
White House officials insisted they did not see Roh’s statement as a setback and acknowledged he faced political constraints in trying to intercept ships that share the same territorial waters as South Korea.
Roh sought to dispel questions about his resolve by vowing to implement “in a faithful manner” enforcement of U.N. Security Council resolution 1718, which banned trade of goods and transfer of funds to the North that could aid its arms programs.
BUSH MEETS ABE FIRST TIME
Bush and Abe, in their first face-to-face talks since Abe replaced Junichiro Koizumi as prime minister, agreed to strengthen pursuit of a ballistic missile defense against the threat of North Korean missiles.
Bush and Abe struck up a fast friendship, talking about baseball and their grandfathers. Bush had developed warm ties with Koizumi, taking him to Elvis Presley’s Graceland mansion earlier this year.
“I told the prime minister he needs to get over to the United States quickly. I’m looking forward to hosting you,” Bush said of Abe. The Japanese leader said he would visit next year.
(Additional reporting by Steve Holland and Arshad Mohammed.
© Reuters 2006. All Rights Reserved.
© Reuters 2006. All Rights Reserved.
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Wednesday, November 15th, 2006
| By Michael Flaherty and Paritosh Bansal
NEW YORK (Reuters) - US Airways Group Inc. proposed an $8 billion takeover of bankrupt Delta Air Lines Inc. on Wednesday after an attempt at merger talks failed earlier this fall.
The bid — which US Airways said would create an airline with the most flights across the Atlantic Ocean of any U.S. carrier and rank No. 2 in flights to and from the Caribbean region — could open the door to more airline mergers as well as prompt other offers for Delta.
“This is not value that either of our companies can create independently,” US Airways Chief Executive Doug Parker said on a conference call. “If we wait for Delta to emerge from bankruptcy, it will be too late.”
Delta, the No. 3 U.S. airline with over 47,000 workers, said Wednesday it intends to emerge from bankruptcy as a stand-alone carrier.
“We received a letter from U.S. Airways this morning and will of course review it,” Delta CEO Gerald Grinstein said in a statement. “Delta’s plan has always been to emerge from bankruptcy in the first half of 2007 as a strong, stand-alone carrier.”
US Airways shares shot up 13.4 percent, while Delta jumped 10 percent in mid-day trade, while the Amex airline index rose 5 percent.
US Airways, the No. 7 U.S. airline with over 35,000 employees, believes the combination will generate at least $1.65 billion in annual savings and expects a transaction to close by the first half of 2007.
‘SORT OF HOSTILE’
This appears to be sort of like a hostile takeover,” CreditSights analyst Roger King said. “US Airways is appealing directly to the creditors.”
Under terms of the offer, Delta creditors would receive $4 billion in cash and 78.5 million shares in US Air stock, with an aggregate value of about $4 billion based on Tuesday’s closing stock price.
The bid substantially undervalues Delta, but could still tempt its creditors, said Frank Werner, an expert in airline finance and management.
US Air has obtained $7.2 billion in committed financing for the deal from Citigroup.
With two major U.S. carriers — Delta and Northwest Airlines Corp. — operating in bankruptcy, industry watchers have been expecting consolidation and said the offer could lead other airlines to jump into the fray.
“This is a very opportunistic offer … My sense is that clearly US Airways is underpaying compared with what Delta might get in an open market,” Werner said. “It opens up opportunities for a United (Airlines), for example, to come in and top the offer.”
United and Delta together could have a more expansive reach both domestically and internationally, while a combination with US Air would have more overlap, analysts said.
“Merger synergies are much better with United,” CreditSights’ King said. “This is the right time but the wrong airline.”
Parker and UAL’s CEO Glenn Tilton, had previously approached Delta — which has been operating under Chapter 11 protection since September 2005 — about a merger, but Grinstein was not interested.
Parker had broached merger talks with Delta in a September 29 letter to Grinstein. According to Parker, Grinstein had “declined to meet or even enter into discussions.”
“Maybe US Airways did a preemptive strike here,” Calyon Securities Ray Neidl said. “The big concern is government regulators, if they give the green light.”
The offer is likely to be closely watched by the U.S. Justice Department. “In my view this is just sort of the first step in a long dance,” Kenneth Jacobs, CEO of Lazard North America, said at the Reuters Investment Banking Summit in New York. “The limits on the consolidation are going to be the regulatory constraints.”
But analysts said Parker, who in 2005 orchestrated the takeover of then-bankrupt US Air by America West, had the right credentials.
Parker said he expected Delta management to ultimately see a merger as a better alternative to remaining alone.
“We need to start working with Delta to do due diligence,” Parker told Reuters in an interview earlier Wednesday, adding that he had not yet heard from the company. “What we believe will happen is that creditors see the value of this proposal.”
Delta bonds soared after the offer. Its 8.3 percent bonds due in 2029 rose 13 cents on the dollar to 53.375 cents, according to MarketAxess.
In midday trade, US Airways rose $6.81 at $57.74 on the New York Stock Exchange, and Delta was up 15 cents to $1.62 in over-the-counter trading.
Other airline shares also jumped — including Airtran Holdings Inc., up 18 percent; JetBlue Airways Corp. adding 8 percent; UAL Corp. advancing 7 percent; and Southwest Airlines Co. gaining 5 percent.
(Additional reporting by Herbert Lash, John Crawley and Caroline Valetkevitch)
© Reuters 2006. All Rights Reserved.
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