B4U India

Fresh round of NSG talks to take place today

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 04:35:00 -0400

With China joining the Group of Six like-minded countries that have expressed reservations in granting India-specific waiver, the crucial two day meeting of the 45-member Nuclear Suppliers'' Group (NSG) remained inconclusive and a fresh meeting is slated for Saturday.

The US battled hard overnight to clinch the India-specific waiver for India from the NSG with diplomats moving back and forth poring over a revised draft.

China appeared to have raised concerns that put roadblocks in the way of a consensus.

The six countries holding out for tougher conditions to be written into the draft proposal granting India an exemption from the NSG’s rules are Austria, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, the Netherlands and Switzerland. They have raised questions at the NSG meeting, particularly with regard to the issue of nuclear testing.

According to diplomatic sources, the number of countries pushing for approval of the exemption has also grown. Under the 45-nation cartel’s rules of consensus decision-making, however, even one country has the right to block a decision.

Suspense mounted over the fate of the revised draft which was under discussion at the nuclear club with Indian and US officials going over the changes sceptic countries like Austria and New Zealand insisted on incorporating.

Austria gave enough indications that "more work still" needs to be done that will enable India cross a major hurdle in operationalising the Indo-US nuclear deal.

"Some work still needs to be done. A number of mirror images need to be added to the current talks and ideas in the draft. We want to have more effective and qualitatively improved security architecture," said Peter Launsky, an Austrian foreign ministry official.

Launsky said some "auxilliary measures" required to be incorporated in the crucial document.

However, the US maintained that "significant progress" was made and remained optimistic over securing the exemption.

Five rounds of deliberations on the second day saw diplomats and officials battle for a consensus that is needed to operationalise the Indo-US civil nuclear cooperation. (ANI)

Pratibha Patil to undertake a two-day visit to Vidarbha from today

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 04:34:00 -0400

President Pratibha Patil will arrive here this morning on a two-day visit to Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.

After reaching Nagpur by a special flight, the President will fly to Achalpur in Amravati District for laying the foundation stone of Finlay Mills.

After an overnight stay at Amravati, the president will flag off a twice-a-week Amravati-Mumbai train on Sunday afternoon and lay the foundation stone for modernization of Amravati Railway Station.

Maharashtra Governor S C Jamir, Union Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh and Deputy Chief Minister R R Patil are attending the President’s programmes.

Patil will fly back to New Delhi the same evening via Nagpur. (ANI)

Navy Chief meets Manmohan Singh to resolve pay-related issues

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 04:34:00 -0400

Navy Chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh late on Friday evening and brought up the “core issues” dogging the defence personnel in the government-notified Sixth Pay Commission report.

After the Defence Minister, it is the Prime Minister’s doors that the Armed Forces have knocked for resolving issues regarding “disparities” and “lowering of status” in the Sixth Central Pay Commission (CPC).

Mehta, in his capacity as the Chiefs of Staff Committee Chairman, went to brief Singh on his recent overseas visit to Japan and South Korea, when he brought up the pay issues and later handed over a written representation from the Armed Forces, Defnece Ministry sources said.

“The Armed Forces have full faith in the Union Cabinet and we want only the political leadership to consider the issues of disparities and lowering of status of defence officers and men, and not leave it to the Anomalies Committee,” sources said.

The Navy chief, sources said, apprised Singh of the four important issues that the defence forces had flagged in the notified CPC report.

“The notification of the CPC report has unwillingly upset the existing relativities between the defence forces and other central government Class-I officers, including the Indian Police Service (IPS).

“This has not only resulted in lowering of their status, especially in the middle ranks, but also has an effect on the organisational structure in various fields where they work together,” the Navy chief was quoted as stating in his written representation to the Prime Minister. (ANI)

Manmohan Singh calls for quality education to all

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 04:28:00 -0400

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today asked the political leadership to understand the importance of education in the country''s development in his speech at the 150th anniversary celebrations of the Madras University in Chennai.

"Unfortunately, a considerable part of our public discourse is focused on short-term problems and on issues pertaining to access to what is presently available,” the Prime Minister said, and added, “We are not devoting as much attention to questions of growth and development and to the challenge of a multi-fold expansion of opportunities."

He said, "I urge all our political leaders to understand the central importance of education in the development of our country," adding that expansion of opportunities should not compromise on the standards and outcome of education.

Singh, while asserting that the focus should be on granting access to quality education to all deserving children, said "India cannot realise its full development potential if the hitherto marginalised sections of society do not become active partners in the process of development. Education must contribute to the achievement of this goal."

On democratisation of education, the Prime Minister said, "an innovative India must combine both inclusion and excellence and it is wrong to see them as two separate and contradictory goals."

The Prime Minister also said that the Indian subcontinent has been a land of learning since the dawn of civilization and that it not only gave birth to great and ancient languages like Sanskrit and Tamil, but also to great ideas in science and mathematics like the concept of zero and the binary system.

Singh said that it should be the goal our country to build an India where all the children are in school, all young adults have an opportunity to be professionally trained in marketable skills if they choose to, and all children can pursue intellectual excellence.

He also emphasized that special attention would have to be given to the education of the girl child and women.

In this context he he said that Congress President Sonia Gandhi, has "called for making universal female literacy the cornerstone of our educational endeavour as it has the maximum multiplier effects on development".

Singh also complimented the Tamil Nadu government and Chief Minister M Karunanidhi for the impressive track record in increasing female literacy and education of the girl child. (ANI)

Lalu Prasad conducts aerial survey of flood-affected areas in Bihar

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 04:28:00 -0400

Union Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav on Friday conducts an aerial survey of flood-affected areas of Bihar.

The Minister, who hails from Bihar said that the situation is depressing and accused the Bihar Government for its sloppiness in providing relief to the flood victims.

“The situation is grim and beyond any description. In Nepal there are a lot of relief camps and people have been provided with shelter. But when you come back to Bihar you find no arrangements. There are a lot of areas where still no official has reached. Only the periphery of the flood-affected region is getting some attention but the main areas of the floods are still untouched by the relief workers. They (flood victims) are virtually living by the grace of god. Chief Minister’s claim that people will be evacuated from the flood-affected areas within 72 hours seems hollow,” said Prasad after conducting aerial survey of the flood-hit region.

The flooding, the worst in 50 years, was caused after the Kosi River breached a dam in Nepal. This unleashed huge wave of water that smashed mud embankments downstream in Bihar.

The waters of Kosi, known as Bihar''s ''river of sorrow'' for its regular floods and tendency to change course, gushed into the State inundating vast areas and affecting around two million people.

Over 550,000 people have been affected and more than 150,000 have been evacuated to safer places so far, but there are thousands still marooned and are in need of immediate help. (ANI)