About Kerala

Cinema

News Room

eGreetings

Info Tech

Shopping

Home

   About Kerala
Kerala at a Glance
Travel & Tourism
Kerala Map
Travel Guide
House Boat
Hill Stations
Tea Plantations
Beaches, Resorts
Wild Life, Water Falls
Ayurveda,  Yoga
Kerala History
Festivals
Districts & Cities
Pictures of Kerala

   Directories4u
Tour Operators
Airports & Airlines
Kerala Resorts
Hospitals
Hotels/Restaurants
Home

Last Updated Tuesday August 09, 08.00 Hrs. IST    

- Israel launches fresh attack
- LeT planned to bomb Bangalore
- Oil allotted to Sehgal to oblige Natwar: Pathak
- Natwar Singh gives privilege notice against Manmohan
- Lebanon seeks Pakistani troops
- Three more states ban colas
- Israel expands bombing; 8 killed in Hizbollah rocket attack
- Mumbai blasts: Key LeT man arrested in J&K
- Female judges to hear rape cases as India admits failures of legal system 

Israel launches fresh attack

Israeli jets have launched fresh attacks on Lebanon as troops battled Hezbollah fighters in the south. 

Planes have targeted the eastern Bekaa valley. Lebanese officials say 11 civilians have been killed in the latest strikes. 

The attacks come a day after at least 15 people were killed in Israel. Diplomats are trying to find a workable truce amid the escalating violence. 

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met with top defence officials to discuss the possibility of expanding Israel's 27-day-old offensive in southern Lebanon, Israeli officials said.

No decision on whether to intensify the operation was made, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to the media.

UN diplomats are due to meet again in New York to try to overcome Lebanese opposition to the text of a ceasefire.

Whereas, Arab ministers are in Beirut to discuss a strategy on the truce.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had said it's important to get a vote on a UN resolution in the next day or two to clear way for a halt to large scale violence in southern Lebanon. 

"First of all let me say that it's important that we vote the resolution in the Security Council, and we expect that to happen in the next day or two. At that point, the international community will have put forward its views on how this war can abate," said Rice.

"We've then got to get to a second resolution and the formation of an international force that can help the Lebanese government extend its authority throughout the country. So this is a first step," she added. (With AP inputs)

LeT planned to bomb Bangalore 
`The terrorist organisation had hatched the plan in Saudi Arabia' 

BANGALORE: While there has been speculation on whether terrorist outfits have infiltrated into Karnataka and whether threats by extremist outfits should be taken seriously, investigations by the Bangalore police have revealed the existence of Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT) cadres in the State and plots by them to divide the people and the nation. 

The investigations have revealed that the LeT had hatched the plan to destabilise India and Bangalore in particular, at a masjid in Saudi Arabia. It was in that country that the LeT had set into motion its plan for a Jehad against India and decided to recruit people for this cause. 

The LeT, investigations have revealed, had "divided" Karnataka into two segments and placed two persons it had trained in sabotage, jehadi and other terrorist activities to head them. The mandate to the two modules was to attack vital scientific and economic installations and dams in the State. While Afsar Pasha was in charge of the LeT module to look after south Karnataka, Mehaboob Ibrahim Sab Chopdar Ibrahim was in charge of north Karnataka. In turn, Pasha had recruited five persons and trained them in LeT methods of sabotage. 

Pasha held secret meetings with persons he had recruited in a place near Ulsoor, Cubbon Park and in his house in Bangalore. 

The investigations have revealed that Pasha and his associates had decided to plant bombs in Bangalore and elsewhere, and they had procured explosives, bombs and other equipment. At least five persons apart from Pasha, including, Mohammad Razhur Rehman, alias Abdul Rehman who is the LeT chief of south India; Mehaboob Ibrahim; Noorulla Khan, alias Noor of Kolar district; Mohammad Irfan of Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh and now residing in Kolar district; and Munna, who have all been identified as active members of the LeT, had entered into a criminal conspiracy to destroy public property, target places of worship, damage multinational companies and create enmity between different communities by setting off bomb explosions. 

The investigators have pinpointed how Abdul Rehman of Nalgonda in Andhra Pradesh came in touch with Sheikh Mehboob Ahamed Moulana, an LeT leader at a masjid in Saudi Arabia. 

Rehman, who worked as a salesman in a vegetable shop and later in a laundry, became a driver of a water supply van. 

He is now employed as a sales representative by a cosmetics dealer at Onaiza town in Saudi Arabia. In 1998, Sheikh Mehaboob motivated Rehman to join the LeT. 

The investigations have revealed that between 2003 and 2005, several LeT cadres met at Mulbagal in Kolar district, Guledgudda in Bagalkot district and in Bangalore and decided to attack dargas, temples and scientific institutions. 

The police have a list of phone numbers used by the LeT. The police have also seized explosives, a revolver, a pistol and ammunition. 

Oil allotted to Sehgal to oblige Natwar: Pathak 
To Iraq, the intended beneficiary was Natwar of the Congress 

NEW DELHI : The close support which the former External Affairs Minister, Natwar Singh, provided to his son Jagat Singh and his acquaintance Andaleeb Sehgal gave Iraqi authorities the impression that Mr. Natwar Singh was the principal actor in the entire project to procure oil from Iraq under the United Nations oil-for-food programme. 

This is the conclusion of the Justice R.S. Pathak Inquiry Authority report tabled in Parliament on Monday. 

"That impression appears clearly in the letter of May 9, 2001 written by the Executive Director of Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organisation (SOMO) to the Oil Minister in which a reference has been made to two million barrels of oil having been allocated to Masefield in favour of Natwar Singh of the Congress party. The part played by Natwar Singh may have been more limited, in fact, that of a facilitator, but the Iraqi authorities saw no such limitation," the report said. 

At the heart of the controversy surrounding Mr. Natwar Singh are three letters written by him to Iraqi Oil Minister Amer Mohammad Rasheed. All the letters, written between January and August 2001, have reference to Mr. Sehgal being described as a cousin of his son Jagat Singh, who was then general secretary of the youth wing of the Congress. In the first letter of January 22, 2001, Mr. Natwar Singh admitted knowing Mr. Sehgal and his company Hamdaan Exports for many years and "he enjoys my full support and confidence." 

The letter "demonstrates that Natwar Singh utilised his presence in Iraq not merely for the purpose of representing the Congress party in a goodwill mission but also took the opportunity of lending his assistance in the procurement of the oil allocation to Andaleeb Sehgal who accompanied him on the visit to the Oil Minister," the report said. 

The Pathak Inquiry Authority considered the January 30, 2001 letter as one of the most crucial pieces of evidence. 

Relying upon the letter of SOMO's Executive Director, the Pathak Authority concluded that in the eyes of the "Iraqi authorities the intended beneficiary of the contract was Natwar Singh of the Indian Congress party. Had Natwar Singh not met the Iraqi Oil Minister on January 22, 2001 when he visited Baghdad, there would have been practically no possibility of Hamdaan Exports obtaining the contract. These allocations were political allocations for which the primary consideration was that the person at whose behest the contract was being allocated was friendly to the people of Iraq and sympathetic to their cause." 

The report examined the events that led to the execution of the Contracts M/09/54 and M/10/57 and the subsequent transactions and dealings that took place between various persons and companies involved, either directly or indirectly, in the execution of the two Contracts. It noted that the possibility of getting an allocation of oil in Iraq had started to strengthen by December 2000-January 2001 and the ground work for it had been done by Mr. Sehgal and Aditya Khanna, son of Vipin Khanna, a Non-Resident Indian. They had also floated a company INDRUS which was registered in Jersey, Channel Island, the U.K. in 1996-97. Hamdaan Exports Limited was registered in the British Virgin Islands on February 9, 2001 and the beneficial ownership belonged to Mr. Sehgal. 

The report referred to a meeting with the Iraqi Oil Minister where Mr. Natwar Singh, his son and Mr. Sehgal were present and no other member of the Congress delegation was present during its Baghdad visit between January 18 and 24, 2001. "It is apparent that the meeting of Natwar Singh with the Iraqi Oil Minister carried great significance. That can be judged from the fact that SOMO opened its doors to Jagat Singh and Andaleeb Sehgal the very next day ... ," it said. 

SOMO needed an authorisation letter from the leader of the Indian delegation to Mr. Sehgal to lift or negotiate the oil allocation with it. "It is evident that during the visit of Congress delegation, Natwar Singh's meeting with the Oil Minister, with Mr. Sehgal accompanying him, played a vital part in the allocation of two million barrels of crude oil to Mr. Sehgal. 

The allocation of two million barrels of oil was made to Mr. Sehgal solely because the Iraqi Government wanted to oblige Natwar Singh," the report said. It noted that Mr. Natwar Singh tried to project himself as speaking for the entire Congress, while, in fact, he was addressing a personal request to the Iraqi Government. 

The need for assignment of the contract by Hamdaan in favour of Masefield AG, a company registered in Switzerland and owned by Masefield Limited of England, arose because under the U.N. oil-for-food programme only companies approved by the world body or accredited with it were allowed to lift the Iraqi oil. 

Since Hamdaan was neither registered with the U.N. nor approved by the world body, it would not have been possible for it to actually lift the oil.

Natwar Singh gives privilege notice against Manmohan 
Alleged "leak" of Justice Pathak report 

New Delhi: The former External Affairs Minister, Natwar Singh, has given a privilege notice in the Rajya Sabha against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the alleged "leak" of the Justice Pathak Inquiry Authority report. 

Invoking Rule 188 of the Rules of Procedure, Mr. Natwar Singh raised the issue of privilege because the Pathak report found its way to a number of media outlets before it could be tabled. 

Under the rules, the Chairman — Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhwat — will have to make a judgment about the admissibility of the notice. Rule 189 prescribes two conditions: the question shall be restricted to a specific matter of recent occurrence, and the matter requires the intervention of the Council. 

The basis of the alleged "breach" is that even though the Pathak Inquiry Authority was not technically constituted under the Commission of Inquiry Act, 1952, the official "notification" did commit that the report would be tabled before Parliament. 

The Union Cabinet is scheduled to meet on Monday morning to consider the Pathak report as well as the Action Taken Report, to be tabled in Parliament. 

Meanwhile, Raju Ramachandran, senior advocate of the Supreme Court and senior counsel to the Pathak Inquiry Authority, disputed reports that he could be a possible source of the leak. 

In a statement, Mr. Ramachandran, Additional Solicitor-General during the National Democratic Alliance Government, said his role ended with the questioning of witnesses and evaluating the evidence; he had no access to the report. 

For good measure, Mr. Ramachandran asserted that the "same is the position with respect to my colleague, Sidhhartha Dave [who was also counsel to the Pathak panel]." 

Whether or not Mr. Singh's notice gets admitted, the move is being seen as coming close to snapping his 22-year-old ties with the Congress. A number of Opposition parties have conspicuously extended moral and political support to the former Minister, who always took considerable pride in his proximity to the Nehru-Gandhi family. 

In his various interviews to the print and electronic media, Mr. Singh has sought to link his reported indictment in the Pathak report to his opposition to the India-U.S. civilian nuclear deal. He has been active in quarterbacking the "sense of the House" resolution move, bringing together the Left, the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Samajwadi Party, and other Opposition groups. 

Leaders of the Communist Party of India and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) have said that prima facie, there was merit in Mr. Singh's notice. The former External Affairs Minister also met NDA convener George Fernandes. 

Officially, the Congress maintained that it would not take a view on Mr. Singh till the Pathak report was officially available. Senior leaders, however, are baffled with his lack of political discretion. 

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi was reported to have told an agency that "if Mr. Singh has done so [given the privilege notice], it is an act of absolute indiscipline."


Lebanon seeks Pakistani troops

Islamabad: Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora has urged Pakistan to send its troops to his war torn country "as armies from Muslim states" will help in restoring the situation.

"If armies from the Muslim states are deployed in the country, the situation will improve," Siniora told Pakistan's private Geo TV channel in his first detailed interview after the Israeli attack in Lebanon.

In the interview broadcast Sunday, Siniora said, "Unless Israel withdraws from the occupied areas in Lebanon and provides maps of the landmines, a settlement is impossible". 

Meanwhile, The Nation newspaper criticised the government's stand that Islamabad would await a UN resolution before sending peacekeepers to Lebanon.

It noted that Pakistan has yet to officially condemn the Israeli action due to the US support to the latter on the issue. 

Three more states ban colas

NEW DELHI: Only tests and investigations will tell whether your children's soft drinks contain pesticides or not, but state governments are not willing to take chances. While some have already banned the colas in educational institutions, others are mulling to follow suit. 

On Sunday, Madhya Pradesh government decided to ban the sale of the soft drinks in government offices and educational institutions. 

"We will ban sale of colas in canteens at government offices and educational institutes," chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan told reporters, adding that orders in this regard will soon be issued. 

In Gujarat, Kirit Adhvaryu, private secretary to state education minister Anandiben Patel, said the government has banned the sale of aerated drinks in all government-run schools and colleges, with effect from Monday. 

However, health minister Ashok Bhatt said the state government is not empowered to impose such a ban. "We have asked the food and drugs commissioner to seek guidance from the Centre in this connection," he added. 

In Kerala, the ruling Left Democratic Front at a meeting recommended that the state government ban the sale of the soft drinks. 

The Centre for Science and Environment had said on Wednesday that a fresh survey by its pollution monitoring laboratory had found that on an average, the soft drinks contained 24 times higher amount of pesticides than approved by the Bureau of Indian Standards. 

Soon after, Punjab banned the sale of the soft drinks in the Vidhan Sabha canteen on Thursday, followed by Haryana on Friday. Rajasthan government too imposed a ban on colas in one lakh government and private institutes in the state on Friday. 

Israel expands bombing; 8 killed in Hizbollah rocket attack 

Beirut, Aug. 5 (AP): Israel's pounding of Hizbollah positions across Lebanon expanded Friday with missiles targeting bridges in the Christian heartland north of Beirut for the first time. A top U.N. aid official said air strikes on the main north-south highway risked cutting off Lebanon's ``umbilical cord'' to the world. 

Four civilians were killed and 10 wounded in the air raid, the Lebanese Red Cross said. A Lebanese soldier and four civilians were also killed in air raids near Beirut's airport and southern suburbs, security officials and witnesses said. 

Four Israeli missiles also slammed into a warehouse where farm workers were loading vegetables near the Lebanon-Syria border, killing at least 28, according to officials at the Syrian hospitals where the dead and wounded were taken. 

The Lebanese and Kurdish farm laborers were in a field in a strip of no-man's land along Lebanon's eastern border with Syria, foreman Rabei al-Jabali said. 

Meanwhile, 57 people were buried in rubble after Israeli attacks on the southern villages of Taibeh and Aita al-Shaab, security officials and the state news agency reported. The number of dead was not immediately known. 

The broadened bombing came as Hizbollah hammered Israel with more than 120 rockets, killing three people. 

One rocket crashed into a house in the Arab village of Mughar, near the town of Tiberias, killing a 26-year-old woman and seriously wounding a second person, police said. 

Later, rockets hit the Arab villages of Majdel Krum and Dir el-Assad, killing a man in each, police said. 

By Friday, police said more than 2,400 missiles had landed in Israel, destroying property and scorching vast swathes of forests and fields in the most intensive fire to hit the country since its independence in 1948. 

The destruction of four bridges in Lebanon on the main north-south coastal highway linking Beirut to Syria contributed to further seal Lebanon from the outside world, as the Israeli naval blockade _ along with earlier strikes against the road to the eastern boarder and the capital's international airport _ have largely closed off other access points. 

The strikes against the northern highway hindered means of bringing relief supplies into Lebanon, international aid agencies said Friday. 

``This is Lebanon's umbilical cord,'' Christiane Berthiaume of the World Food Program told AP. ``This (road) has been the only way for us to bring in aid.'' 

A convoy that was meant to carry supplies and emergency personnel to Beirut is now stuck, she said, and U.N. teams have so far been refused permission to assess the damage caused by the bombing. She added that U.N. trucks might be able to take secondary roads, but this would slow down aid shipments. 

Portugal put a cargo plane at the U.N.'s disposal, which will fly food and medicines from Italy to Beirut once a day for four days. Israel has given permission for these flights to start immediately, said Berthiaume. A Greek boat will ferry supplies from Italy, starting Saturday, she said. 

An Israeli army spokesman, Capt. Jacob Dallal, said Israel targeted the bridges to stop the flow of weapons from Syria. 

Lebanese President Emile Lahoud accused Israel of waging a ``war of starvation'' against Lebanon. 

``The Israeli enemy's bombing of bridges and roads is aimed at tightening the blockade on the Lebanese, cutting communications between them and starving them,'' Lahoud said in a statement. 

He said Israel was trying to pressure Lebanon to accept its conditions for a cease-fire, which include Hizbollah's ouster from a swath of south Lebanon to put an international force in place. 

Fierce fighting continued along the border, and Hizbollah said in a statement broadcast by the group's Al-Manar TV station that guerrillas had killed several Israeli soldiers near the villages of Aita al-Shaab and Markaba. 

The Israeli army confirmed a Hizbollah anti-tank missile killed three soldiers and wounded two others in southeastern Lebanon. 

The latest attacks in the southern Beirut suburb of Dahieh targeted Hizbollah facilities and a Hamas office, the Israeli military said. Beirut media said Israel launched 24 bombing runs in an hour. 

South Beirut has been attacked repeatedly by Israeli warplanes since fighting began July 12. It is predominantly Shiite Muslim sector largely controlled by Hizbollah guerrillas, and Israel has not struck Beirut proper since the start of the war. 

However, the strikes early Friday hit the affluent Christian locality of Jounieh, north of the capital, for the first time. The bombing against the picturesque coastal resort marked a sharp expansion of Israel's attack on Lebanon. 

On the ground, six Israeli brigades _ or roughly 10,000 troops _ are locked in the battle with hundreds of guerrillas in south Lebanon. 

Defense Minister Amir Peretz has told top army officers to begin preparing for a push to the Litani River, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of the border, according to senior military officials. 

In the 24th day of Israel's punishing onslaught both on the ground and from the air, Hizbollah has shown surprising strength and has found its support in Lebanon _ and among the larger Arab world _ vastly bolstered. 

There were more demonstrations around the region in support of Hizbollah on Friday, the biggest in Baghdad where hundreds of thousands of Shiites rallied in a protest organized by radical anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. 

The Israeli army said it has taken up positions in or near 11 towns and villages across south Lebanon as part of an effort to carve out a smaller 5-mile-deep Hizbollah-free zone. 

``We plan to carry out the whole mission,'' Peretz said. ``Hizbollah must not have illusions that we plan to give in. (Hizbollah leader Hassan) Nasrallah shouldn't doubt that he faces a force that insists on completing its mission.'' 

Ahead of the warehouse attack on Friday, an Associated Press count showed at least 530 Lebanese have been killed, including 454 civilians confirmed dead by the Health Ministry, 26 Lebanese soldiers and at least 50 Hizbollah guerrillas. Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora said that 1 million people _ or about a quarter of Lebanon's population _ has fled the fighting. Others estimate some 800,000 Lebanese have been made refugee. 

Since the fighting started, 74 Israelis have been killed, 44 soldiers and 30 civilians. More than 300,000 Israelis have fled their homes in the north, Israeli officials said. 

At the United Nations, the United States and France negotiated under strict secrecy for another day over a Security Council resolution that seeks to end Israeli-Hizbollah fighting, but officials said the same disagreements that have prevented a deal for weeks still remain. 

Security Council diplomats said one crucial sticking point was the timing of a halt to the fighting. France, reflecting wide international opinion, wants an immediate stop in the violence. But the United States, all but isolated except for Israel, does not want a halt without the immediate implementation of other steps, such as the deployment of peacekeepers. 

British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who has postponed his summer vacation to work toward a U.N. resolution to the crisis, believes the coming days are crucial for securing agreement to end the fighting, his office said. 

On Thursday night, Blair spoke to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, and early Friday to French President Jacques Chirac, a spokeswoman said. 

Chirac called for an all-out effort toward a U.N.-backed cease-fire and a political agreement, which France wants ahead of any peacekeeping force. 

Mumbai blasts: Key LeT man arrested in J&K

In a significant development in July 11 Mumbai blasts probe, police have arrested a Lashker-e-Toiba rebel in Poonch, sources said.

The sources said he was entrusted with the task of establishing a terror network in Mumbai.

A Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Mumbai police, assisted by counter intelligence wing of J&K Police, raided a hideout in Sanai Potha belt of Surankote on Thursday and arrested the LeT militant, identified as Abdul Hameed, they said.

Soon after the arrest he was whisked away to Joint Interrogation Centre in Poonch and was interrogated jointly by the Mumbai and J&K Police, they said.

Hameed was arrested following the recovery of his identity card by the SIT from the blast site at Matunga in the city. 

The card was issued by a private security agency in Mumbai for which he was working as a guard, they said.

Whereabouts verified. When his whereabouts were verified from the security agency, he was found missing from Mumbai since the day of the blasts and had not reported for duty since then, the sources said.

During preliminary investigation, security agencies found that Hameed was part of the LeT module. 

He had been deployed in Mumbai during the past one and a half year to establish a network and accomplish the tasks of LeT, they said. 

Hameed had been close to the LeT "divisional commander" in Poonch, Abu Usama. He is believed to have been directly receiving instructions from top LeT leaders across the border to trigger blasts in Mumbai, they said.

After seeking remand from the local court in Poonch, he will be taken in a special aircraft to Mumbai. 

During interrogation, Hameed has revealed some vital information regarding the Mumbai blasts and some more arrests are likely to take place in Baramulla and Poonch, the sources said. (PTI)

Female judges to hear rape cases as India admits failures of legal system 

Under a proposed new law in India, rape cases will only be allowed to be heard by a female judge. The radical measure is the latest in a recent series of initiatives to improve the country's poor record in prosecuting rapes. 

Every 29 minutes in India a woman is raped. In Delhi, it is far the most common form of violent crime. Muggings and street crime are far rarer than in Western cities, and the streets are safe for a man to walk even late at night. For a woman it is a different story.

At the end of last year, there were 58,310 rape cases still waiting to go to trial. Even when they get there, rape cases have been among the most glaring failures of the Indian legal system.

In one case a social worker, Bhanwari Devi, 41, was gang-raped in front of her husband by their neighbours as "punishment" after she tried to prevent a child marriage: a local family was trying to get their one-year-old daughter married.

When the case came to court, the five accused were acquitted, despite the evidence, on the grounds that they were members of the Hindu upper castes, and Ms Devi was a Dalit (formerly called Untouchable). "Upper caste men, including a Brahmin, would not rape a woman of a lower caste," the court said in its judgment.
In another case, a man accused of raping a seven-year-old girl was acquitted because there was no injury to his penis - there had been eyewitnesses to the rape, at a bus stop, and the girl had a ruptured hymen. The Indian government is hoping the law will prevent rape victims from being subjected to the sort of aggressive questioning that is routine in most rape trials. It believes women judges will be less tolerant of such questioning.

"This is a very positive step and will help get justice for the rape victim," said Girija Vyas of India's National Womens' Commission. "Until now, male lawyers were able to threaten the victim and scare her."

The proposed law, which has to be put before parliament, will also allow the victim to have her lawyer with her during cross-examination. Until now, cross-examination in rape cases was held in camera to protect the victim's privacy - but she was not allowed to have her lawyer present.

The government has already introduced new fast-track courts to try to clear the backlog of rape and other serious cases. 

Natwar misused position: Pathak Report 

The Pathak Commission indicted former Foreign Minister K Natwar Singh and his MLA son Jagat Singh for procurement of contracts in the UN oil-for-food programme in Iraq. 

Justice R S Pathak, probing allegations against Congress and Natwar Singh in Iraq's oil-for-food scam, submitted its report to the Prime Minister.

The 110-page report has given a clean chit to the Congress Party.

The BJP said the Pathak Committee's indictment appeared to be an "attempt to bail out" Congress, named in the Volcker Report on oil-for-food scam. 

BJP Parliamentary Party spokesman V K Malhotra told PTI that his party his party believed that the Authority has just made Singh a "scapegoat" while giving a clean chit to Congress.

"Right from the beginning, we have been demanding a CBI inquiry into the whole issue because an Authority like Justice Pathak's can have no powers to carry out investigation involving international crimes of this nature," Malhotra said. 

He objected to "deliberate leak" to the media of the Authority's report before its presentation in Parliament.

The report found that Natwar and his son had misused their position in helping Sehgal and Khanna bag three oil contracts from the UN sanctioned Saddam regime. 

Sehgal and Khanna, in turn, passed the contracts on to Swiss oil company Masefield AG that drew the oil and paid them a commission, the report says.

On a cut of five cents a barrel, Sehgal and Khanna received a total commission of $ 1,46,000, which they divided between themselves in a ratio of 4:1, according to the report.

Former Indian Ambassador to Croatia and Congress leader Aniel Matherani, who was part of a four-member delegation led by Natwar to Baghdad in January 2001, was exonerated of any wrong doing. 

Natwar Singh said the commission's report vindicated his position that he did not take any money. 

"I have not seen the report; whatever has been leaked to the media vindicates me and my son. The report says we have not derived any financial benefit. That is the crux of the matter," said Singh.

Sources close to the family say the report may have cast aspersions but it clears them and that the Pathak committee was set up in the first place to exonerate Congress and make Natwar Singh and his son scapegoats. 

The Congress Party hailed the report and indicated that action would follow against the former foreign minister after studying the findings.

"The report is there for anyone to see. It is a very high-powered commission chaired by a former Chief Justice of India which went into the facts and records and said what it has to say," said Abhishek Singhvi, Congress spokesman.

As far as individuals are concerned, he remarked, "let us wait to study the report and then decide on the individual course of action."

NDTV has learnt that the government is now likely to present an action taken report in the Parliament based on the report. 

When the oil-for-food scam came to light in November last year, Natwar Singh, had to first quit as Foreign Minister and then from the Union Cabinet within a month.

In between, after a political uproar, the government appointed the Inquiry Authority headed by Justice R S Pathak, former Chief Justice of India, to probe the whole affair. 

It also asked the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to investigate the financial dealings of the Indian entities.

Natwar Singh, who was summoned by the Authority, as were Sehgal and others, had always maintained that he had not done anything wrong in the whole affair and the inquiry would prove his innocence.

He had also accused the Enforcement Directorate of indulging in a witch-hunt and harassing his son and others. He had hinted at some higher-ups in the Congress party of going after him.

The UN-appointed Volcker Committee, which probed irregularities in Iraq's oil-for-food programme during the regime of Saddam Hussein, isuued its report in October last year.

In his report, Paul Volcker, former chairman of the US Federal Reserve who headed the committee, named Natwar Singh and the Congress party as "non-contractual beneficiaries" of the programme.

The government also appointed former diplomat Virender Dayal as a special envoy to liase with the UN to collect documents related to the oil-for-food scam. (With PTI inputs)


Pesticide issue dominates Lok Sabha 

After the Centre for Science and Environment released its findings on Wednesday on the high levels of pesticide residue in several soft drink brands in India, the issue was raised in the Lok Sabha. 

The BJP staged a walkout over the issue. In 2003, a Joint parliamentary Committee cleared as authentic a report by the CSE on high levels of pesticide residue in soft drinks. 

The JPC had directed the Bureau of Indian standards to set standards on the issue.

The Centre of Science and Environment on Wednesday claimed that 11 leading soft drink brands have pesticide residue.

According to the CSE, soft drinks available in India have a cocktail of three to six pesticides.

In a study of 57 random samples of 11 soft drink brands from 25 different manufacturing plants of Coke and Pepsi spread over 12 states, CSE claims to have found pesticides on an average 24 times higher that the Bureau of Indian Standards norms, which have been finalised but not notified.

The levels that the CSE has found are even higher than what they found in 2003.

The samples show a cocktail of 3-6 different pesticides and the presence of carcinogens and neurotoxins at levels much higher than BIS standards.

Moreover, even a banned substance like heptachlor was found in 71 per cent of the samples.

The average level of pesticides found was 11.85 parts per billion, while the standard is 0.5 parts per billion.

Moreover, in order to avoid any untoward criticism over the accuracy of their findings, the CSE laboratory was updated with state of the art equipment and accredited by the ISO 9001.

Thus, this makes it clear that this study was not a vendetta against soft drink companies, but just a demand to make products safer for consumers.

Meanwhile, the Indian Soft drink Manufacturers Association has responded to the study with the following statement. 

"Consumer safety is paramount to us. The soft drinks manufactured in India comply with stringent international norms and all applicable national regulations."

Three years ago, after the first such expose, when the CSE found pesticides in colas, the JPC Committee was constituted to look into their findings.

The JPC had not only validated the CSE report but had also asked for stringent standards to be set for carbonated beverages. 

Three years and 20 meetings later, new standards are yet to be notified.

In April this year, the BIS website said that new norms had been finalised but not notified. However, by June, the notice had disappeared.

Without proper notification, cola companies can hide behind old quality norms. Therefore, the delay in notification has raised several questions.

The CSE now hopes that this study will force the Health Ministry to notify the finalised standards and force soft drink companies to adhere to public health safety norms.

In fact, they have even filed an application under the RTI Act to gain information on the various BIS meetings to find out the reason for the delay in notifying the standards.

On his part, Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss said that coming out with norms for soft drinks takes time. 


Indian IT majors outsmart global peers

It's advantage for Indian companies like Infosys, Wipro and Tata Consultancy Services on the country's information technology services arena over their global peers including the giants like IBM and Accenture as far as revenue and profit growth are concerned, a recent study shows.

According to a report from global research firm Forrester analysing the performance of global IT vendors and their Indian counterparts, the Tier-I Indian providers have continued to thrive while major global players are continuing to lose ground.

Forrester Research vice president Stephanie Moore said that many global service providers are continuing to lose ground to large Indian firms, especially in the application services market.

While most legacy service providers worldwide have posted minimal to negative growth in the recent past, companies like Infosys, TCS and Wipro have all reported outstanding revenue and profit growth for their latest quarters, she added.

Forrester said Indian providers are clearly outsmarting global majors in terms of growth and profits, while global majors are struggling to compete in the more efficient and transparent world of IT service provisioning created by the Indian vendors.

Forrester Research's India head and senior analyst Sudin Apte said, "To move up the value chain, top Indian vendors are working successfully towards penetrating the global market for high-end services."

While Indian firms are challenged by linear revenue growth linked with labour growth, they are trying their best to break direct connection between the two, Apte added. 

Tigers started it, says Army 
Four locations overrun in Trincomalee, says TamilNet 

COLOMBO: Even as the "water war" between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the Sri Lanka Government spread to new areas in the east on Wednesday, the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) alleged that trouble started after a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam-directed fire in un-cleared areas of Sampoor targeted three Army detachments. It said troops repulsed the attacks effectively. "Unconfirmed reports received from ground troops further said that at least 40 terrorists were feared killed and another 50 injured in the fighting that went on in the early hours on Wednesday." 

It said LTTE cadres directed fire at a police post in the town as well as the police post providing security to the Telecommunication Center and looted the People's Bank in Muttur town. The SLA said two hospitals in the area came under mortar and caused damages to the infrastructure of both hospitals. 

However, TamilNet claimed that fighting formations of the LTTE have overrun four key locations in Trincomalee district after fierce artillery shelling since 2 a.m. on Wednesday. 

It said fierce fighting is also reported near Kallaru where attempt by SLA forces to capture the Mavil Aaru sluice gates was averted. The military said forces were close to the blocked waterway and consolidating their positions in the face of fierce resistance from the LTTE. 

TamilNet SLAF Kfir jets were seen flying towards LTTE held Muttur east and Eachchilampathu division as clashes were reported near Serunuwara army and police installations. 

It said the civilian ferry service between Trincomalee and Muttur town has been suspended and the ferry `Seruvila-2' which came under LTTE attack on Tuesday is now anchored in Trincomalee jetty. 

Separately the military said a sea movement of LTTE Sea Tigers, apparently on its way for a suicide mission, was intercepted in the seas off Pulmudai and attacked by Naval troops with the assistance of Air Force. 

"Fighter aircraft completely crushed at least five of those terrorist craft and damaged another four of them. The ensuing fire fight continued until late in the midnight on Tuesday and Naval troops cleared the seas by Wednesday early morning." 

In another development, the LTTE said its recent military activities in Trincomalee, including the operation against Sri Lankan military camps in the early hours were intended to disrupt Sri Lanka's "indiscriminate onslaught" against Tamils . 

The LTTE's military spokesman, I. Ilanthirayan, said that amid the indiscriminate bombing and shelling of civilian areas by the Sri Lankan armed forces as part of their offensive in the Mavil Aru region, there was an "urgent humanitarian need" that had compelled what he described as "defensive actions." The phrases employed by the LTTE in defence of its military operations in the last few days are exactly the ones used by the SLA to explain the water crisis.

Pesticides found in leading soft drink brands 

The Centre of Science and Environment has claimed that 11 leading soft drink brands have pesticide residue. According to the CSE, soft drinks available in India have a cocktail of three to six pesticides.

In a study of 57 random samples of 11 soft drink brands from 25 different manufacturing plants of Coke and Pepsi spread over 12 states, CSE claims to have found pesticides on an average 24 times higher that the Bureau of Indian Standards norms, which have been finalised but not notified.

The levels that the CSE has found are even higher than what they found in 2003. The samples show a cocktail of 3-6 different pesticides and the presence of carcinogens and neurotoxins at levels much higher than BIS standards. Moreover, even a banned substance like heptachlor was found in 71 per cent of the samples.

The average level of pesticides found was 11.85 parts per billion, while the standard is 0.5 parts per billion.

Moreover, in order to avoid any untoward criticism over the accuracy of their findings, the CSE laboratory was updated with state of the art equipment and accredited by the ISO 9001.

Thus, this makes it clear that this study was not a vendetta against soft drink companies, but just a demand to make products safer for consumers. Meanwhile, the Indian Soft drink Manufacturers Association has responded to the study with the following statement. 

"Consumer safety is paramount to us. The soft drinks manufactured in India comply with stringent international norms and all applicable national regulations." Three years ago, after the first such expose, when the CSE found pesticides in colas, the JPC Committee was constituted to look into their findings.

The JPC had not only validated the CSE report but had also asked for stringent standards to be set for carbonated beverages. Three years and 20 meetings later, new standards are yet to be notified.

In April this year, the BIS website said that new norms had been finalised but not notified. However, by June, the notice had disappeared. Without proper notification, cola companies can hide behind old quality norms. Therefore, the delay in notification has raised several questions. The CSE now hopes that this study will force the Health Ministry to notify the finalised standards and force soft drink companies to adhere to public health safety norms.

In fact, they have even filed an application under the RTI Act to gain information on the various BIS meetings to find out the reason for the delay in notifying the standards.

Annan "angry'' over Blair's line 

LONDON: In an embarrassing turn to British Prime Minister Tony Blair's increasing isolation over his pro-U.S. position on the continuing Israeli bombardment of Lebanon, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan is reported to have had a private telephone conversation with Jack Straw, former Foreign Secretary, and voiced his "anger'' over Britain's policy. 

Details of the conversation, which reportedly took place shortly after four U.N. peacekeepers were killed in an Israeli raid in south Lebanon last week, were not disclosed but barely two days later Mr. Straw, who is now Leader of the Commons, launched a blistering public attack on Israeli actions in what was seen as a "revolt'' against Mr. Blair's refusal to condemn Tel Aviv. 

In a statement, Mr. Straw called the Israeli attacks "disproportionate'' and warned that it could further "destabilise the already fragile Lebanese nation If you want to go for Hizbollah, go for Hizbollah, not the whole Lebanese nation.'' 

According to media reports, Mr. Annan's office confirmed that he spoke to Mr. Straw but insisted that it was a "personal call'' and not intended to put pressure on Mr. Blair through his Cabinet colleague. 

The Daily Telegraph said Mr. Annan was reported to be "so distraught'' at Mr. Blair's refusal to call for an immediate ceasefire that he asked Mr. Straw to help "in prising Tony Blair apart from George Bush.'' 

A former Foreign Office Minister, Tony Lloyd, said he felt "ashamed'' to be a Labour MP because of Mr. Blair's unabashedly pro-U.S. stance. 

Jaswant Singh evasive on US spy 

Former foreign minister Jaswant Singh has not named any Indian in his spy allegation but involved two Americans - Thomas Graham and Harry Barnes in the controversy. 

Singh in his book said there was a US agent in the Prime Minister's Office when Narasimha Rao was the premier.

Thomas Graham is a member of the Rockfeller Foundation in India and Harry Barnes is a former ambassador to New Delhi.

It was according to a letter written in 1995 claiming access to classified security information by Barnes to congressman Graham. 

A part of the letter has been published in Singh's book, and speaks of India's plans to conduct nuclear tests and deploy Prithivi missiles. 

About his source Barnes wrote: "We will have to respect the confidentiality of a person with direct access to Mr [Narasimha] Rao".

But Jaswant Singh was clearly on the defensive as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh aggressively argued, "if you cannot name the person the people will judge you".

Jaswant Singh's book may have become a bestseller but politically he is in a mess isolated within his own Bharatiya Janata Party. 

Israel launches attack deep in Lebanon 

BOURJ AL-MULOUK, Lebanon - Israel launched a major attack deep into Lebanon, and Hezbollah said its guerrillas were fighting Israeli commandos trapped inside a hospital in the eastern city of Baalbek early Wednesday. The Israeli army would not comment on the operation in the ancient city, which was once a Syrian army headquarters some 80 miles north of Israel. 

NASDAQ trading on Infosys campus 
First Asian company to get the honour 

MYSORE: History was made on Monday when trading on the NASDAQ stock market was opened from the Infosys campus here,making it the first company in Asia to be bestowed the honour. 

Infosys Chief Mentor N. R. Narayana Murthy pressed the electronic button as the clock struck 7 p.m. IST (9.30 a.m. Eastern Time U.S.), signalling the commencement of trading. 

Cheered by hundreds of employees and trainees of Infosys Technologies, the event marked the opening of trading in the NASDAQ market. Mysore became the third city in the world to get the opportunity of remote belling, the other two being London and Davos.

Coinciding with the 25th anniversary of the technology giant, the bell was rung electronically by Mr. Murthy in the presence of President and Chief Executive Officer of NASDAQ Robert Greifeld. 

With this, Infosys Technologies Ltd. got the distinction of becoming the first company from India to ring the remote opening bell — only the third time in the 35-year history of NASDAQ — which was broadcast worldwide live from the Infosys campus. 

The remote opening of NASDAQ trading took place from London in December 2005 and Davos in January 2006. 

Mr. Greifeld said the NASDAQ remote ceremonies were held from locations outside the NASDAQ MarketSite and were simultaneously displayed live from the broadcast studio. "These remote ceremonies capture the essence of a typical NASDAQ opening and closing bell. The growth of Infosys has stunned India and the world with the breathtaking pace." 

Earlier, Mr. Murthy said: "Being on NASDAQ has been a wonderful experience and we have derived more than what we expected. Many more companies could benefit from NASDAQ platform." Opening of the NASDAQ market from India was not only a great opportunity for Infosys, but also showcased the emergence of the new world. 

Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, said it was a matter of great pride and pleasure that an Indian company had been bestowed with such an honour. Infosys had set the highest standard of corporate governance by competing in global market without protection. 

The company was an example of success in the post-liberalisation era. Nandan M. Nilekani, Chief Executive Officer, Infosys Technologies was present. 

Speaking to presspersons, Mr. Greifeld said the world was turning flat and they were optimistic about the future relationship with Indian companies. Recognised growth trends in India could not be denied and those seeking to access deep capital market in the U.S. could do so by listing themselves on NASDAQ. 

While they were getting enquiries from Indian companies to be listed on NASDAQ, he said he was not in a position to reveal the names. 

When his attention was drawn to the marginal number of companies listed on NASDAQ, he said seven to eight Indian companies were listed and they were also getting enquiries from others. "In fact, more than 300 companies that have been listed on NASDAQ have operations in India.'' 

Jaswant unclear on PMO spy issue 

In the spy controversy, former minister Jaswant Singh has said he did not have a definite name about the US mole in the government when Narasimha Rao was Prime Minister.

His Bharatiya Janata Party has distanced itself from the issue.

The controversy arose a few weeks ago after Jaswant Singh mentioned in his book A Call to Honour about the agent who leaked nuclear secrets to the US.

Singh, who is the leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha said, he is ready to make a statement in Parliament.

"I do not intend to sensationalise the issue. I have no difficulty in responding to anything that the House wishes to be clarified," Singh said.

Earlier, in a strong rebuff, the Prime Minister's office had said that the letter from Jaswant Singh mentioned no names and gave no clues. 

The Prime Minister pointed out that the letter was not original and that it was unsigned. Moreover, it was not written on a letterhead and also did not disclose any information. 

The question is, does Jaswant Singh really know anything about the mole, and if so, will that revelation embarrass the UPA government. 

The governing Congress party appears more than ready to handle the issue. 

"Do you think the government is not trying to find out details that is why we are ready for a debate," said Congress MP Rajiv Shukla.

The UPA government is worried that adverse political fallout may cast a shadow on the Indo-US nuclear deal. 


Women, Girls Bear The Brunt Of AIDS In India

New Delhi, India (AHN) - Indian women as well as girls, already more vulnerable to HIV infection than other groups, now carry the burden of caring for a member of the family who is infected with the disease. 

It is usually young girls who are likely to be pulled out of schools to cope with household chores and caring for the ill, indicates a study on the Gender Impact of HIV and AIDS in India. 

The National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) estimates that in 2005, women account for approximately two million of the 5.2 million cases of HIV and AIDS - that is 39 percent of all HIV infections. 

The burden of caring for People Living with HIV and AIDS (PLWHA) is also higher when it comes to women. Of the 882 caregivers in the families surveyed, 627 were women. Twenty percent of the women-caregivers themselves were HIV positive as compared to 16 percent in the case of men. 

The study conducted by the National Council of Applied Economic Research (MCAER) and supported by the NACO and the United Nations Development Program (UNCP), concluded that the women's workload at home not only increases but often they are required to take up employment to supplement lost earnings.