Top India News Stories of 23rd October 2008

Daily news summary

Speaker’s chair malfunction causes adjournment of Rajya Sabha
A malfunctioning chair caused the adjournment of the Rajya Sabha today. Midway through zero hour as Deputy Chairman K. Rahman Khan sat down abruptly after rising to his feet in an attempt to soothe frayed tempers while Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) member Brinda Karat was castigating the activities of what she termed Hindu fundamentalist organisations, the ornate speaker's chair pitched forward. Rahman had to thrust his hands onto the desk in front of him to maintain his balance, even as an attendant attempted to push the chair back. After several attempts to seat himself on the malfunctioning chair failed, Rahman adjourned the house for 10 minutes. Various ministers tried to steady the chair only to realize the chair had broken, thus the house was adjourned for half an hour but due to repeated pleading by members the house was adjourned later until lunch. During the emergency, there was much controversy over a film titled "Kissa Kursi Ka" that dealt with the manifold ways politicians adopt to stay in power. This episode was quite a twist in the tale!

India's low quality uranium reserves necessitates imports: Minister
India's uranium reserves are estimated at 115,000 tonnes but most of this is of low quality, thus necessitating imports for the country's nuclear plants, parliament was informed today. Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office Prithviraj Chavan said during question hour in the Rajya Sabha, "We have a reserve of 115,000 tonnes. However, the quality of domestic uranium is low and this necessitates imports. Right now, we are trying to balance the mismatch between the supply and the demand." Replying to former Finance Minister’s query about uranium presence in Andhra Pradesh the minister said, "We have already opened a new mine in Cuddapah (district of Andhra Pradesh). This should become operational in 2010. Meanwhile environmental clearance is awaited for another mine in Andhra Pradesh." India recently secured a waiver from the Nuclear Suppliers Group. Following which Brazil, South Africa and Kazakhstan have agreed to sell uranium to India though no formal agreement has been signed.

Opposition stages walkout during question hour over lowering oil price
Unsatisfied over Petroleum Minister Murli Deora's stand that the government would consider reducing oil and gas prices in the country only after knowing the outcome of Saturday's meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the entire opposition in the Lok Sabha staged a walkout during question hour. Crude oil prices in the international market soared to a record USD147.27 a barrel in July and fell below USD61 a barrel in October. The opposition wondered as to why the UPA government was finding it difficult to reduce oil prices in the country even though crude oil prices in the international market have fallen by more than 50 percent. In response Deora said that they were waiting for an outcome of the Saturday’s meeting of OPEC before finalizing anything. Not satisfied with his reply, the entire opposition left the house.

India, Pakistan begin 2-day talks to address Chenab row
India and Pakistan today began two-day talks to address the issue of reduced water flow in the Chenab river, which Islamabad alleges has been triggered by the construction of the Baglihar dam by New Delhi. India's Indus Water Commissioner G. Ranganathan and his Pakistani counterpart Syed Jamaat Ali Shah discussed ways to address issues relating to the Chenab water flow. Pakistan contended that it faced water losses of over 200,000 cusecs in the Chenab river due to water storage in the Baglihar dam, a violation of the 1960 Indus Water Treaty, according to the Pakistan daily Daily Mail. Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari had raised the Chenab water issue with Manmohan Singh on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York last month. Soon after the talks, India invited Pakistan's Indus Water Commissioner to resolve issues relating to the Chenab water and assured Islamabad that it would abide by its commitments under the Indus treaty.

Dasmunsi continues to be on life support
Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi, who suffered a heart attack early this month, continues to be on life support, hospital sources said. Dasmunsi, 63, was rushed to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Oct 13 and was shifted to the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital Monday after suffering a second heart attack in three months. A statement issued by the hospital informed, “The medical condition of the union minister remains the same and he continues to be on life support.” The senior Congress leader has a 10-year history of diabetes. The senior Congress leader had earlier suffered a heart attack on July 8 and had undergone an angioplasty and stenting of two coronary arteries.

Dataquest honours Delhi as best e-governed state
Leading technology magazine Dataquest has named Delhi as the best e-governed state in the country. Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit received the award from Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah. The magazine stated that Delhi spent Rs.10,982 for every citizen on building its IT infrastructure and maintaining citizen-centric IT applications. Its citizens were the most satisfied with e-governance initiatives as it topped nine out of the 14 parameters in the category, as per a survey by IDC India, a leading technology think tank, for Dataquest magazine. Delhi also scored well when it came to e-governance satisfaction on business services. The other winners included Lakshmi Narayanan of Cognizant Technology Solutions as IT person of the year, Sanjeev Bhikchandani of Naukri.com as the path-breaker of the year and D.B. Pathak of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Mumbai for lifetime achievement. The annual awards, instituted by Dataquest publishers CyberMedia group, are now in their 16th year.

Ban from gatherings of people lifted in Kandhamal
Orders banning the gathering of four or more people have been lifted from all areas of Orissa’s Kandhamal district, where at least 37 people died in violence following the killing of a Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader. “The situation is becoming normal and we lifted the prohibitory orders from all areas of the district with effect from Wednesday night,” S. Praveen Kumar, district superintendent of police told media officials. Kandhamal district has seen large-scale communal violence, mostly attacks on Christians and their places of worship, after the Aug 23 killing of VHP leader Swami Laxmanananda and four of his aides Aug 23.Though Maoist rebels have claimed responsibility for the killings, radical Hindu groups hold Christians responsible for the crime. A large number of people returned home and the administration is trying to build confidence among them by taking several initiatives, a district administration official said.

MDMK chief Vaiko arrested for supporting LTTE
MDMK chief Vaiko was arrested here Thursday on the charge of supporting the banned Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and fomenting secessionism, police said. Vaiko was held around 3.45 p.m. from his northwest Chennai residence, police said. Meanwhile dozens of lawyers also took to street and blocked traffic outside the Madras High Court shouting slogans against the Congress party. Congress Party had earlier demanded the arrest of film directors who had called for an armed separatist rebellion in Tamil Nadu to garner support for the Tamil homeland in northern Sri Lanka - Eelam.

Radha Realty launches U31 in Hyderabad
Radha Realty Corp, a leading realty developer in South India, announced the launch of U31, a single-family homes gated community project in Hyderabad. The project is designed by internationally acclaimed Australian architect Andrew Maynard. The limited 31 edition ultra luxury town houses will be built on nine acres in Kondapur at a cost of Rs.2.75 billion. Greenery and water streams will surround the 19 courtyard houses and 12 pavilion houses, priced at Rs.120 million onwards. N. Ravinderanath Reddy, managing director, Radha Realty Crop, told a news conference that each of the four storied homes will have a property area of 1,250 square yards and a built-up area of 11,800 square feet.Each home will have five bed rooms, private swimming pool, exotic interiors, a designer home entertainment room, a private elevator, five car parking spaces, accommodation for up to eight domestic helpers and a bulk storage garage.

26 killed, 20 injured in fireworks factory blast in Rajasthan
At least 26 people were killed and 20 others injured in an explosion in an illegal fireworks factory in this Rajasthan district. The incident occurred Wednesday night in Deeg town of Bharatpur district, where the famous bird sanctuary is located, when crackers being manufactured in an illegal factory caught fire, the police said. Anand Kumar, Bharatpur collector said reports of 26 deaths have come in from Darukuta colony in Deeg town of Bharatpur district. Out of the 26 killed, 12 are reported to be children and at least five were women. Around eight nearby houses were damaged due to the explosion. Meanwhile, the state government has asked the divisional commissioner to conduct an enquiry into the incident. The commissioner is to submit a report in 15 days.

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