We don't want all-out war with Russia: Britain

Bhubaneswar, August 28, 2008 : There is no question of launching 'all-out war' against Russia, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said on Thursday, while condemning Moscow's 'invasion' of Georgia।

Miliband, asked whether NATO would go to war against Moscow if it were to attack a neighbouring country or ally again, said: "We don't want all-out war with Russia। There's no question of launching an all-out war against Russia."

NATO is committed to the principle that an attack against one or several members would be considered an attack against all, and to defending its members against aggression। Georgia is not a NATO member but it has ambitions to join.

NATO was not an 'offensive' alliance, Miliband told BBC Radio।

He said no-one ever doubted that Russia's army would defeat a much smaller Georgian military।

"The question though for Russia is whether it wants to suffer the isolation, the loss of respect and the loss of trust that comes from that," he added।

Miliband was speaking a day after he called in a speech in Ukraine for relations with Russia to be reviewed। He said Russian President Dmitry Medvedev had a responsibility not to start a new Cold War.

The foreign secretary denied that his words in Ukraine, whose ambitions to become a NATO member also anger Russia, had ratcheted up tensions between London and Moscow।

He said it was right to describe Moscow's actions in the Georgian regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as an "international crisis" that jeopardised a growing calm and stability across Europe since the collapse of the Soviet Union।

He said there was a tit-for-tat between Georgia and Russia over the breakaway regions but 'the Russian response has been to invade a neighbouring country'.

More churches, homes burnt as trouble spreads in Orissa

Bhubaneswar, August 28, 2008 : Communal violence spread in Orissa on Thursday with fresh incidents of mobs burning churches and homes, adding to the tensions in the state that has seen at least 11 people being killed in revenge for the murder of a Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader last week।

The situation was so volatile that Minister of State for Home Sri Prakash Jaiswal and other Congress leaders, who arrived in Bhubaneswar to visit riot hit areas, were told by the state government that they could not do so and returned to New Delhi।

Though the volatile Kandhamal district continued to be the worst hit with mobs defying curfew, blocking roads and attacking churches even after shoot-at-sight orders, there were reports of churches and homes being attacked from other parts of the state too।

Police said trouble had spread to new areas, including the western district of Bolangir and the coastal district of Kendrapada।

No details were available but officials said curfew had been clamped in Kendrapada town and security intensified in Bolangir।

"There have been stray incidents of violence in Kandhamal। We have also received reports of people burning a church in the district of Bolangir," said Director General of Police Gopal Chandra Nanda, adding that more than 3,000 policemen had been deployed.

"We are hopeful normalcy would return in a week," Nanda told IANS while describing the situation as "under control"।

Police have registered at least 70 cases in different police stations related to the communal violence and 54 people have been arrested, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik informed the state assembly।

The state has been on the boil since Saturday evening when Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati, a member of the VHP's central advisory committee, and four others were killed by suspected Maoist guerrillas at his Jalespata ashram in Kandhamal।

As violence raged in Kandhamal, particularly in isolated hamlets, despite orders to the police to shoot at sight anybody defying curfew and indulging in violence, police and paramilitary forces marched through several town on Thursday।

Curfew has been clamped in all towns of the district and is still in force, said revenue divisional commissioner Satyabrata Sahu।

On Monday, the VHP had called for a statewide shutdown। Since then, 11 people have been killed in the state, 10 in Kandhamal and a woman in Bargarh district who was burnt when the crowds attacked an orphanage. Local newspapers and television channels, however, put the toll at 17.

Saraswati was leading a campaign against cow slaughter and religious conversion in the communally sensitive Kandhamal district - which with a population of around 600,000 including 150,000 Christians has witnessed numerous clashes between Hindus and Christians in the past।

Radical Hindu groups in the state blamed Christians for the crime and alleged that Christians killed Saraswati because he was opposing religious conversion। Christian organisations deny these allegations.

Saraswati's supporters have been holding protests since Saturday night, blocking trains and vehicles।

Orissa is not new to communal violence between Hindus and Christians।

On Jan 22, 1999, Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two sons, 10-year-old Philip and six-year-old Timothy, were burnt alive by a Hindu radical mob in their vehicle in Keonjhar district.

Manmohan announces Rs 1000 cr as flood relief to Bihar

Patna (PTI): Describing the floods in Bihar as a "national calamity", Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday announced an immediate assistance of Rs 1,000 crore to the state for rescue and relief operations and 1।25 lakh tonnes of foodgrains to tide over the situation.

After undertaking an aerial survey along with UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi of the four worst affected districts in the state where the swollen Kosi river continued to wreak havoc, Singh also assured Bihar to provide all possible help to meet the situation।

Singh and Gandhi arrived at the Purnia airbase by a special IAF plane from New Delhi and took off in an IAF chopper to undertake the aerial survey in Supaul, Saharsa, Araria and Madhepura districts, official sources said।

They were accompanied by Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil as also several union ministers including Lalu Prasad, Ram Vilas Paswan and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar।

Earlier, Kumar received Singh and Gandhi at the Purnia airbase and briefed them about the flood situation।

Over 25 lakh people in 15 districts have been hit by the impact of one of the worst floods in recent memory with victims from these four districts making up 19.78 lakh.

The Chief Minister who met the Prime Minister in New Delhi yesterday had sought central assistance of Rs 1,000 crore and one lakh tonnes of foodgrain immediately for the affected people.

Five killed, four hostages rescued

Jammu, August 27, 2008 : Security forces rescued three children and a woman, who were held hostage during a gunbattle in which three civilians, an army officer and a guerrilla were killed Wednesday in this winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir।

The militants, holed up in a house in Chinore on the outskirts of this city, took six civilians hostage Wednesday morning। The police said they were trying to rescue the two remaining hostages before launching an assault on the guerrillas.

The police said three terrorists had crossed into Jammu and Kashmir from the Kanachak sector of the border with Pakistan Tuesday morning। They were intercepted at the police check post of Chinore Wednesday morning, about 20 km north from the centre of Jammu.

The militants, dressed in police uniforms and carrying AK-47 assault rifles, shot dead a junior commissioned officer and then hijacked a three-wheeler। They then fired indiscriminately killing Shabeet Hussain, a milk man, and motorcyclist Naseeb Singh before killing the three-wheeler driver, Vijay Kumar, said the police.

The guerrillas then entered a house in Chinore। Police and army personnel cordoned off the area and were engaged in a gunbattle with the militants.

Once the remaining hostages were rescued, there would be a "final onslaught", said an army officer, which in military terms means blowing up the building with rocket launchers or explosives।

"This (civilian hostages) is what is holding us up from launching final onslaught। We are ready for that," the army officer on the spot told IANS.

Army personnel have taken positions on roof tops of adjoining houses in densely populated Chinore, located on a hillock।

Grenade explosions and gun shots were heard in the area as the one-storey building where the militants were hiding was perforated with bullet marks।

"A high alert has been sounded in Jammu due to the terrorist infiltration from across the border," said Inspector General of Police (Jammu Zone) K। Rajendra.

The Border Security Force (BSF), along with police and army personnel, had launched a massive manhunt for the militants, who had entered the Indian territory at Kanachak, about 20 km north of here, after cutting the barbed wire fence Tuesday।

"This is a serious situation। The intruders sneaked into the Indian side under the cover of fire, which was most probably provided by the Pakistani Rangers," a BSF official said.

This is the second major gun battle in Jammu region in less than three and a half months।

Six people were killed in Samba town, 40 km south west of Jammu May 11। According to defence sources, militants had infiltrated May 8 from across the international border in Samba sector before they surfaced May 11 morning and killed civilians and soldiers. Three militants were killed in that battle.

People in the Jammu region have been holding rallies demanding the allocation of 40 hectares of land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB). Shri Amarnath Sangarsh Samiti, a coalition of some 30 Hindu groups spearheading the agitation over the land row, has planned a huge rally later Wednesday at Jammu's Parade Ground.

3 MHADA officials held in forgery case

Mumbai: August 26, 2008, The Vikhroli police on Monday arrested three MHADA officials and one person involved in forging documents to help the person claim a MHADA flat। The three officials from MHADA are reportedly in the ranks of estate manager, clerk and rent collector.

According to sources at Vikhroli police station, Bharti Pawar, who was resident of Tagore Nagar at Vikhroli east, had rented out a room to one Raghuvinder Singh, 54। However, after Pawar expired, her son Ashok received eviction notices. When he approached MHADA officials, they told them that the flat was bought by Singh from his mother for Rs 7 lakh.

“Ashok then approached the vigilance officer of MHADA, who found that Singh had forged legal documents to get the flat in his name। He had taken the help of three MHADA officials for the same. That’s when the officer approached us with the case, and we found the bogus documents,” said Habib Ansari, senior inspector at Vikhroli police station.

The three officials and Singh were arrested on Monday, and have been remanded to police custody.

No medal, but Akhil Kumar is boxing icon

NEW DELHI: August 26, 2008, Akhil Kumar sounded like a brash young man when he spoke up for his fellow-boxers demanding clearance of South African physio Matthew Heath for the Beijing Olympics। His argument was that when people with no chance of winning a medal could go with their entourage, why not the boxers who have the potential to do well.

Still, Akhil remained an unsung hero। "Don't forget me If I fail to win a medal," was his parting shot before boarding the flight. Medal or no medal, he is highly popular among his peers.

He might have missed the medal he promised to his Bhiwani folk by a whisker, yet Akhil was given a hero's welcome on his return home from the Olympics early Tuesday।

Huge garlands drowning his neck, Akhil's homecoming reception at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport was as grand as that for India's first Olympic gold winner Abhinav Bindra। The boxer with his zeal had won the hearts of the masses and that was evident by the huge turnout of his admirers.

Akhil, along with bronze winners Vijender Singh and Jitender Kumar, put Bhiwani on the boxing map with their quarter-final appearance at the Olympics। Akhil failed to cross the next hurdle but his heroics in the ring fetched him the fame he longed for all his life.

More important, he came to be known as the "friend, philosopher and guide" of Vijender and Jitender, both of whom fought for Akhil after he lost his bout. They like his transparent sincerity and outspokenness.

30 injured in fresh Jammu protests

Jammu, Augst 26 2008 : Thirty persons, including a Senior Superintendent of Police, were injured in renewed protests in various parts of Jammu as the Shri Amarnath Yatra Sangarsh Samiti’s call for “chakka jam” caused a complete shutdown। The Samiti has already extended its strike till August 31.

There was no vehicular movement on Monday in response to a Samiti’s call but sporadic violence continued throughout the day in which SSP Manmohan Singh of 8th Battalion of the J&K Armoured Police was injured in stone pelting।

There were also incidents of stone pelting in Kathua। Crowds were dispersed by cane charge and tear gas shelling. Attempts were made in both places to block the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway 1 A, but police foiled them.

The Samiti’s decision to continue its protests is seen an attempt to hasten the decision which the government and the Samiti have almost arrived at।

There is a broad agreement that land will be given to the Shrine Board for three months during the “yatra” period।

The government is trying to get the “correct wording” of the agreement to make sure that there is no reaction in the Valley।

Samiti convener Leela Karan Sharma said, “The Centre and the State Government were delaying the decision to hand over the land to the Board due to pressure from separatists। In view of their dilly dallying tactics, the Samiti has decided to continue its agitation and so it has extended the bandh up to August 31.”

The Samiti would hold rallies on August 27 and 31 to press its demands, he added।

The bus service between Poonch and Rawalkote in Pakistan occupied Kashmir that was started in 2006 as part of the confidence building measures between India and Pakistan was suspended on Monday due to curfew in Poonch।

The Line of Control crossing was scheduled for Monday।

Officials are confident that the bus service would resume after 15 days.