WASHINGTON: The US does not intend to "meddle" in the Kashmir issue, but will support any effort by India and Pakistan to reduce their tensions,a key aide to President Barack Obama says while pressing Islamabad to take the "first step" to bring to justice the Mumbai attack masterminds.
Allaying apprehensions in some quarters in India that US special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke's mandate may also include Kashmir, Bruce Riedel, who co-chaired the inter-agency committee which formulated the Af-Pak policy, said: "I do not think, the Obama administration intends to meddle in Kashmir."
Riedel, a former CIA official, said it is in the interest of the US to see tension between India and Pakistan be reduced and diminished and see a resumption of the bilateral composite dialogue and a back channel between India and Pakistan that produced some significant result between 2006 and May 2007.
"But at the end of the day it is fundamentally up to the Indians and Pakistanis to make those decisions, and change those policies that way. United States can be a supporter and it should be, but it is up to Indians and Pakistanis to find a way to reduce tensions between them," Riedel said.
"The critical first step in that regard that is for Pakistan to take steps to bring to justice the masterminds who murdered a 160 people in Mumbai last November. That is the first step, without that it would be very-very difficult to see a reduction in tension between Islamabad and New Delhi," he said.
"I can't see how any Indian government could or should simply forget what happened last November in Mumbai," Riedel said, insisting that those responsible for that massacre have to be brought to justice.
"The Pakistani government has been asking for evidence. I think, India has provided the evidence. Now it is time to take some action against Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jamaat-ud-Dawa and those who perpetrated this terrorist outrage," he said.
Commenting on bilateral ties, Riedel noted that there was a bipartisan consensus in the US that India would be one of the most important partners and friends to the United States in the 21st century.
"On every issue that matters to America, from international terrorism to global warming, to arms control, the future of democracy; India is a critical player and the US and India have fundamentally similar interests and values.
"And I think, across the political spectrum in the United States there is a recognition (about) that. This is an unusual area of consensus in American politics. I expect the Obama administration to continue what the Clinton and Bush administrations began, which is strengthening US-Indian relations," he said.
When asked whether the fizz in Indo-US ties that was witnessed during the previous Bush era was missing after Barack Obama became US President this year, Riedel replied in the negative.
Riedel said: "The Obama administration has rightly given India a chance to conduct its own political process. India has been in a process of a very important election and has come out with a very important result - the return of the Congress Government.
"By definition during that electoral period, US-Indian bilateral relations were on the back-burner, while India put its own political house in order."
With the Congress-led UPA back in power, Riedel said he expected bilateral diplomatic ties to regain the tempo and take a "significant uptick."
He also noted that Washington has rightly focused on the war in Afghanistan, and the deteriorating situation in Pakistan. At the same time, he made it clear that the Obama Administration intends to consult closely with New Delhi at every stage it moves forward on the new Afghanistan-Pakistan strategy.
"I think, that makes perfect sense as the government in New Delhi very much wants those consultations," he said.
Describing India as a "key player" in Afghanistan, Riedel noted that New Delhi has provided over USD 1 billion as aid to the Afghan government.
Nimbalkar case: CBI arrests NCP leader Padamsinh Patil
MUMBAI: Nationalist Congress (NCP) MP Padamsinh Patil, who was nabbed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) early Sunday, has been charged with the murder of his cousin and Congress leader Pavan Raje Nimbalkar in 2006, a law official said.
Senior public prosecutor Ejaz Pathan said that Patil has been charged under the Indian Penal Code Section 302 and 120-B, dealing with murder and conspiracy to murder, respectively.
Meanwhile, in his home town Osmanabad, Patil's supporters went on a rampage protesting against their leader's arrest. According to police, the angry protesters pelted stones at and damaged several private vehicles and two state transport buses.
Patil, a former state home minister, was rushed to a Mumbai hospital early Sunday following complaints of headache, giddiness and hypertension, according to officials.
"We are awaiting his discharge from the Sir JJ Hospital. As soon as he is discharged, he will be brought to the Panvel court," Pathan said.
Elected last month from Osmanbad Lok Sabha constituency, Patil was questioned, detained and subsequently arrested for the murder and conspiracy to kill his cousin Nimbalkar.
Top officials of the CBI western region went to the hospital and consulted the medicos before planning their further course of action.
Patil is due to be presented before the magistrate court at Panvel, around 100 km from here.
Mumbai Police have beefed up security around the hospital premises in south-Mumbai.
Nimbalkar, Patil's cousin, was shot dead by two gunmen at Kalamboli in Navi Mumbai on July 3, 2006, after he was lured there under the pretext of striking a business deal.
Shooter Dineshram M. Tiwari (37) and his supervisor Parasmal T. Jain (47), were arrested by the CBI last week (May 25) for killing Nimbalkar and his driver Samad Qazi.
In their confessional recorded before a magistrate, the duo also made the sensational disclosure of receiving a Rs.2.50 million contract to eliminate renowned social worker and anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare, a Magsaysay award winner.
The contract to kill Nimbalkar and Hazare was allegedly given by two businessmen Mohan Shukla and Satish Mandade.
Jain said that he accepted the Rs.3 million contract to kill Nimbalkar since he had suffered business losses. He was facing financial problems and wanted money to cure himself of AIDS, he told police.
In police custody till Monday, Jain and Tiwari said that they refused the paid offer to kill Hazare.
Air France says speed monitors faulty, 2 bodies found
Sunday,Jun 07, 2009 at 1107 hrs IST,Paris:Air France acknowledged on Saturday that speed monitors on some of its Airbus planes have proven faulty, icing up at high altitude, and that recommendations to change them were first made in September 2007. Air France issued a statement with details about the monitors hours after the French agency investigating the disaster of Flight 447 said the instruments were not replaced on that aircraft an A330 - before it crashed last week into the Atlantic Ocean en route from Rio de Janeiro to Paris.
Air France said it began replacing the monitors on the Airbus A330 model on April 27 after an improved version became available. Pitot tubes, located on the exterior of the aircraft, are used to help measure aerodynamic speed.
Aviation officials have said the crash investigation is increasingly focused on whether external instruments may have iced over, confusing speed sensors and possibly leading computers to set the plane's speed too fast or slow - a potentially deadly mistake in severe turbulence. An Air France statement said that icing of the monitors at high altitude has led at times to loss of needed flying information.
However, the Air France statement stressed the recommendation to change the monitor "allows the operator full freedom to totally, partially or not at all apply it." When safety is at issue the aircraft maker issues, rather than a recommendation, a mandatory service bulletin followed up by an airworthiness directive. Air France said that only a "small number" of incidents linked to the monitors had been reported.
Indian student's car torched, cops deny racial attack
Melbourne:In yet another incident targeting Indian students in Australia, a car belonging to a youth from the community has been torched here, even as police ruled out any racial motive behind it. 22-year-old Vikrant Rajesh Ratan, who had used all his savings to buy the car, said the vehicle was burnt last night. He said that two other cars, also belonging to Indians, that were parked next to his vehicle, were also damaged during the incident. "We were sleeping when it all happened. We heard the fire alarm of the car. When we went out to see what happened we saw the cars on fire," Ratan said.
He said that it could have been done by a group of drug addicts who used to sit near the premises. "I believe they (addicts) probably first tried to open the car. Then they may have used a petrol can to set it ablaze." Ratan, originally from Ludhiana who came here a month ago to pursue a certificate course in Automotive Engineering, said that there was no chance of a short circuit that could have burnt the car in this cold weather. He said he had bought the vehicle a few days ago for 2500 dollars and now he was left with no money. The car was not even insured.
The incident has been reported to the Victorian police, who said they were in the process of getting more information. Ruling out any racial motive behind the incident, a police spokesperson said "there was only one car that was torched while the other two cars had slight damage." "We are investigating who did this. However, it does not look like a racially motivated attack," she said. This was the latest in the spate of incidents targeting Indians in Australia. Among the victims of racial attacks is 25-year-old Shravan Kumar, a student from Andhra Pradesh, who remained critical after being stabbed with a screwdriver by a group of teenagers who also assaulted his three other Indian friends.
Swine flu goes local; 7 cases reported in India
June 6, 2009, Hyderabad:A high-level team from Delhi is expected to arrive in Hyderabad on Saturday night as five of the seven confirmed H1N1 cases in the country have been reported in Andhra Pradesh. This includes the first case of a person who has got the infection locally.
A 25-year-old engineer in Hyderabad got infected after staying with his 28-year-old software engineer brother who had returned from the US on May 31 with the H1N1 virus on a British Airways flight.
On the same flight was a four and a half year old child who has also tested positive.
"In countries like the US there is no screening at exit point, but only at the entry point. So the infection is getting exported," said Andhra Pradesh Government Chest Hospital doctor B Subhakar.
The big challenge now is not just to make surveillance much more thorough at entry points like airports, but also increase isolation facility manifold because though H1N1 is curable, those affected are highly infectious.
At Hyderabad's chest hospital, for example, there is provision for a maximum of 12 people to be kept in isolation but the number of inpatients is already 10.
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Bankrupt GM pins high hopes on India for turnaround
NEW DELHI: Even as General Motors struggles to emerge from bankruptcy, the auto giant is rolling out new cars in India whose vast market it sees as key to fuelling future growth.
The once-mighty auto company is pinning high hopes on emerging economic powers like India and China to reverse its decline.
While thousands of GM's US employees are getting pink slips, GM India says it has no plans to trim the more than 4,000 workers at its two plants and engineer research and design centre in India.
"It's business as usual," said GM India president Karl Slym last week in New Delhi, where he unveiled GM's latest offering for India -- a clean-burning liquefied natural gas model of its popular Chevrolet Spark minicar.
"We're here for the long haul," Slym said in an interview.
"While the home US market is certainly the most important, China is equally important... India is also key as opportunities here are similar," he said.
Slym has several numbers he likes to focus on when talking about the huge potential for automakers in India and China, with their billion-plus populations.
"In America there are about 850 cars per 1,000 people, in India there are seven per 1,000 and in China there are 17 per 1,000," he told AFP.
"It's very clear there's a high car saturation level in the US while in India and China, it's not just a replacement market, there are new first-time buyers every day," he said.
"It will all be very important for the new GM," he said, referring to the slimmed-down, focused and hopefully profitable automaker to emerge from the US bankruptcy proceedings.
In China, where Detroit-based GM entered in 1996, it is one of the top automakers, having sold more than one million cars last year. In India, where Japanese-owned Maruti Suzuki is in a solid leadership spot, GM has been slower out of the starting gate.
The US auto company, which started selling its Chevrolet marque in India only in 2003, is the fifth-largest carmaker in the country.
It sold 65,702 cars last year, up nine percent from the previous year, but way behind Maruti which sold close to 800,000 cars.
Still, GM believes it can only grow in the India as it penetrates the minicar segment which accounts for 80 percent of Indian car sales.
"We can really say we didn't come to India until we brought in the Spark (in 2007) because the minicar segment is where most of the action is," said Slym.
But the company is still having to work to ensure its reputation is not tainted in India by its US parent's bankruptcy and is running ads to reassure customers it will still be around to service its cars.
GM India's sales in May fell 11.75 percent to 5,109 units from a year ago, a decline the company attributes to customer concern about the automaker's US troubles.
However, it says its Asian operations won't be hit by the bankruptcy as they were not included in the filing and that it is aiming to open new factories in India, China and Thailand even as it shuts down US plants.
In India it is also planning two more launches in 2009 -- that of its Chevrolet Cruze sedan and a new minicar. It will also be putting a "made in India" tag on its cars.
Its new minicar, to be priced at around 400,000 rupees (8,500 dollars), will be made at its Talegaon plant in western India for the domestic as well as export markets.
Up to now, GM India has built its cars using knocked down units from plants abroad.
The automaker has invested over 50 billion rupees (1.1 billion dollars) to build its two factories in the western states of Gujarat and Maharashtra that have capacity for 225,000 vehicles a year -- giving it plenty of growth headroom.
It is also spending 200 million dollars on constructing its first car engine and transmission plant.
"We're now going to be a truly local manufacturer in India," Slym said.
Satyam may layoff 5,000 support staff
New Delhi:The full board meeting of Satyam Computer is likely to be held on June 11 after its new owner Tech Mahindra assumed charge and the board may draw a consensus on the sensitive issue of laying off as many as 5,000 employees in phases.
Sources said the meeting is scheduled to be held on next Thursday or Friday and for the first time the full board -- six government-nominated members and four member from Tech Mahindra (through its arm Venturebay Consultants)—will discuss the business strategies.
A company spokesperson said as and when the meeting takes place, there will be comprehensive discussions on all related issues. He, however, did not divulge details of the agenda or whether or not the meeting would look at ways on how to rationalise the employee strength.
Sources said given the sensitivities of the situation,
the board is likely to draw a consensus on the 'lay-offs' to be undertaken which may take the shape of keeping 5,000-10,000 people on the bench (reserve).
Tech Mahindra CEO Vineet Nayar had recently said Satyam has 10,000 surplus staff and the company would look at the 'least painful' ways to handle the situation.
"It is a question of revival and viability", they said.
Last week Corporate Affairs Minister Salman Khurseed had said the government will not turn a blind eye to any lay-offs in Satyam.
Sources said the company may be forced to ask about 5,000 employees to leave out of the support staff, who are not on the software projects.
Tata Steel sales volume up 18% in May
New Delhi:Tata Steel said its sales volume surged by 18 per cent to 4.69 lakh tonnes in May on the back of robust demand from auto and construction sectors.
In the corresponding month last year, the company's sales stood at 3.97 lakh tonnes, the steel major said in a statement.
During the month under review, Tata Steel saw its saleable steel production surging by 23 per cent to 5.01 lakh tonnes as against 4.08 lakh tonnes.
The sale of long products, mainly used in construction industry, increased by 34 per cent while that of flat items, used by auto and consumer durable sectors, increased by nine per cent, over the year-ago period.
Tata Steel's crude steel output for the month went up by 17 per cent to 4.86 lakh tonnes from 4.16 lakh tonnes, while hot metal production rose by 19 per cent to 5.28 lakh tonnes from 4.43 lakh tonnes.
The company claimed that one of its steel melting shops in Jamshedpur achieved best-ever May production at 2.18 lakh tonnes. Also, a merchant mill recorded best-ever May production of 30,710 tonnes over 28,505 tonnes the same period last year.
The output of its hot strip mill and new bar mill also registered an impressive growth over May 2008, it said.
Indian Cricket News|Sports News|T20 World cup News |French News
Yuvraj, Ojha dazzle; India thump Bangladesh in T20 opener
Trent Bridge:Yuvraj Singh dazzled with the bat before Pragyan Ojha spun a web around Bangladesh as India thumped the minnows by 25 runs to begin their title defence with a bang in the Twenty20 World Cup here.
Ojha's four-wicket haul in his maiden Twenty20 International broke Bangladesh's back as the minnows finished at 155 for eight, a total they owe to Junaid Siddique (41) and Naeem Islam (28).
Earlier, Gautam Gambhir (50) and Rohit Sharma (36) gave India a rollicking start but it was Yuvraj's violent 18-ball 41 that propelled them to 180 for five in the Group A opener.
Chasing 181, Bangladesh began on a positive note with Tamim Iqbal (15) hitting Zaheer Khan for two successive fours and Junaid (41 off 22 balls) pulling Irfan Pathan for a six.
M S Dhoni introduced Yusuf Pathan and it paid off as the duo collaborated to get Tamim stumped in the third over.
Junaid looked unperturbed as he scored at a brisk rate, hitting sixes off the Pathan brothers -- Yusuf and Irfan -- and Harbhajan Singh.
Unfortunately, wickets kept tumbling at the other end.
Mohammad Ashraful (11) fell to Ishant Sharma and then Pragyan Ojha struck twice in his first over to unhinge Bangladesh.
Shakib Al Hasan (8) top edged Ojha's first delivery to Dhoni and then Junaid holed out in the deep as Bangladesh slumped to 77 for four.
Yuvraj took a stunner to remove Mahmudullah (8) and by then, the writing was clear on the wall for Bangladesh and their defeat was just a matter of time.
Gayle warns team of road ahead post victory over OZ
London:West Indies captain Chris Gayle said there was plenty of work left for his side after he led them to a crushing seven-wicket win over Australia in their first match of this year's ICC World Twenty20. Opening batsman Gayle dominated the Australia attack during a blistering innings of 88, off just 50 balls, which featured six sixes and six fours.
Australia quick Brett Lee was made to look like a club bowler during four overs that cost 56 runs, with Gayle striking him for a six out of the ground and then hitting him onto the roof of the stand above the players' dressing rooms at the pavilion end.
"This is only the first game, we still have a long way to go," Gayle told reporters after a morale-boosting win which followed heavy defeats in both Tests and one-day internationals against England earlier on their tour of the United Kingdom.
"In Twenty20 it's so short we tend to concentrate a bit better but there were too many fumbles in the field," Jamaica left-hander Gayle, 29, said. "After a tough series against England, we wanted to put a smile back on our fans' faces," added Gayle ahead of the West Indies' match against Group C rivals Sri Lanka at Trent Bridge on Tuesday.
Gayle received excellent support from Andre Fletcher (52) in an opening stand of 133 - the third highest for any wicket in all Twenty20 internationals. But the platform for victory had arguably been laid in the very first over of the match when Jerome Taylor removed both Shane Watson and Australia captain Ricky Ponting for ducks. "Andre Fletcher took the pressure off me and allowed me to pace my innings," said Gayle. "Credit too goes to Jerome Taylor for picking up those two wickets. "Restricting them to 169 was acceptable, you can get that in England because the wickets are very good and the outfields very fast."
South Africa eye easy win against Scotland
LONDON: South Africa begin their quest to win the ICC World Twenty20 title against Scotland at the Oval on Sunday determined to shed their reputation as One-day 'chokers'.
The Proteas have recently enjoyed some memorable Test triumphs, winning series in both England and Australia.
But since South Africa's re-admission in 1991 they have not reached the final of a major One-day tournament.
"We have had a wonderful past 12 months, which has included winning away Test series in both England and Australia and winning home-and-away ODI series against Australia to gain top spot in the world rankings," said South Africa captain Graeme Smith.
"One of the boxes we still want to tick is to win a major International Cricket Council Championship."
But that will require the Proteas to end their run of self-inflicted wounds. At the 1999 World Cup fast bowler Allan Donald was run out off the last ball of their semi-final against Australia, the tie taking the Aussies into the final.
And four years later, on home soil, South Africa's failure to correctly interpret the Duckworth-Lewis system saw them go out of the World Cup in the group stage during a rain-affected match against Sri Lanka.
South Africa staged the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007 but did not reach the semi-finals.
But 12 of their 15-man squad played in the recent Indian Premier League, that was moved to South Africa at short notice because of security concerns.
They beat both Pakistan and Sri Lanka convincingly in their warm-up matches and Smith said: "The confidence is good and we are excited about playing this tournament with the chance to go out and express ourselves.
"I think there is a lot more talent, flair and confidence among this team than ever before."
The Netherlands's shock win over hosts England on Friday ought to give fellow minnows Scotland hope that they too can cause an upset.
But there were few signs that such a shock was on the cards during Scotland's warm-up defeats by England and the Netherlands.
The Scots, captained by ex-England all-rounder Gavin Hamilton, opened their World Twenty20 campaign against New Zealand at the Oval on Saturday where rain reduced the match to a seven overs per side contest.
Another Slam for Paes
Sunday , Jun 07, 2009,Paris:Leander Paes was forced to keep his racquet aside and take a brief injury break at the end of the third game of the French Open men’s doubles final after Dick Norman let fly a volley straight at his face. It was a completely unintentional move by the Belgian, who apologised as the Indian sat with an ice pack pressed to his face, but at that moment, with Paes and his Czech partner Lukas Dlouhy already being down a break, the road to the trophy just seemed to get a little more rocky.
The recovery was quick, though, and despite the fact that Paes and Dlouhy could only mount a brief, unsuccessful fightback as they lost the first set, the next two had their names — along with impeccable serves and soft volleys — written all over them as Norman and South African Wesley Moodie capitulated to a 3-6 6-3 6-2 defeat to give Paes and Dlouhy their first Grand Slam.
This was Paes’s ninth Grand Slam title, but his first men’s doubles Slam in nearly three years — the last one he won was in 2006 at Flushing Meadows with another Czech player, Martin Damm. The 35-year-old has earlier won the trophy at Roland Garros in 1999 and 2001 with Mahesh Bhupathi.
Inspired comeback
On Saturday, the third-seeded Indo-Czech pair, who had taken out top seeds Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic to reach the final, didn’t let a first-set loss deter them. They roared back with intention in the second set, racking up a 5-0 lead before their opponents attempted to begin a comeback of their own, but it was cut short as Paes and his volleys often left Norman and Moodie with no option but to stare helplessly at each other.
Kuznetsova beats Safina to clinch French title
Paris:Svetlana Kuznetsova won the French Open when she outplayed fellow Russian and world number one Dinara Safina 6-4 6-2 in the final on Saturday.
The seventh-seeded Kuznetsova, the 2004 US Open champion, dictated the points throughout and prevailed after 74 minutes on Centre Court.
Kuznetsova, 23, overcame a nervous start to snatch the opening set on Safina's serve with a backhand winner.
She took a decisive lead by breaking for 4-2 in the second set and did not look back, wrapping up the win on her first match point and denying Safina her maiden grand slam title.
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