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72.29 percent voting in Haryana

     Chandigarh: Yesterday 72.29 percent of the total voters in Haryana exercised their right to vote, state's chief Electoral Officer Urvashi Gulati said today. The state's total electorate was 1,26,57,879. According to a press release, Ms Gulati said this was the second highest voting percentage since the state came into being on November 1, 1966. She said that in the first election to the Vidhan Sabha in 1967, as many as 72.65 per cent electors had exercised their adult franchise. The electoral officer said that the highest 88.01 percentage polling was recorded in the Rori Assembly constituency while the lowest of 47.96 per cent was recorded in Gurgaon constituency. Only three blind electors cast their vote using Braille script in Gurgaon, the only constituency where this facility was made available for the first time in the state.

     After Rori, the second highest voting percentage was recorded in Narwana (87.34) followed by Chhachhrauli -86.43, Darba Kalan- 83.78, Bhattu kalan- 83.78, Sadhaura (SC)-81.96, Pai-81.88, Radaur (SC)-80.94, Pundri- 79.89, Nilokheri-79.78, Uchana Kalan-79.69, Indri-79.53, Ghirai-79.50, Fatehabad-79.39, Adampur-79.24, Narnaud-78.93, Barwala-78.85, Safidon-78.82, Naraingarh-78.54, Meham-78.52, Tohana-78.48, Ellanabad (SC)- 78.42, Naggal-77.89, Badhra-77.89, Kalayat (SC)-77.78, Dabwali (SC)-77.68, Loharu-77.63, Samalkha-77.61, Jagadhri-77.47, Gulha (SC)-76.74, Shahabad-76.58, Gharaunda-76.55, Mulana (SC)-76.27, Bawani Khera (SC)-76.24, Hansi- 76.22, Ratia (SC)-76.13, Jatusana-76.12, Pehowa-75.97, Julana-75.86, Rajound-75.41, Tosham-75.19, Dadri-75.11, Baroda (SC)-74.91, Mahendergarh-74.83, Mundal Khurd-74.77, Jind-74.71, Nauthla-74.71, Ateli-74.70, Sohna-74.38, Rewari-74.37, Beri- 74.12, Kailana-74.11, Thanesar-73.97, Salhawas-73.80, Sirsa-73.47, Bawal (SC)-73.13, Narnaul-72.78, Hassangarh-72.50, Assandh (SC)-72.48, Taoru-72.13, Rai-72.13, Rohat-72.08, Badli-71.81, Kaithal-71.47, Hathin-71.25, Kalanaur (SC)-71.23, Jundla (SC)-71.14, Gohana-70.70, Nuh-69.83, Ferozepur Jhirka-69.56, Ambala Cantt.-68.68, Palwal-68.39, Kiloi-68.06, Jhajar (SC)-66.98, Yamunanagar-66.88, Hisar-66.72, Bhiwani-66.59, Hassanpur (SC)-65.45, Rohtak-64.88, Panipat-64.69, Bahadurgarh-64.14, Kalka-64.09, Sonipat-64.08, Karnal-63.28, Pataudi (SC)-62.24, Ambala City-62.12, Ballabgarh-60.47, Faridabad-52.10, Mewla Maharajpur-51.35, Gurgaon-47.96.

Attacking Iran not on US agenda: Rice (Go To Top)

     London: The US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice has insisted that attacking Iran is not on America's "agenda at this point in time". She was speaking in London on her first overseas trip as US secretary of state following meetings with Tony Blair and Jack Straw. Rice said the US and UK were unified in their view that Iran should not be able to create a nuclear programme, The BBC quoted Rice as saying. She condemned Iran's human rights record. Straw said Iran should deliver on its obligations. The pair were speaking at a joint press conference here shortly after talks between Ms Rice and UK Prime Minister Tony Blair on Iraq and the Middle East. Rice described the half hour meeting as "productive" and hailed the strength of the US/UK friendship, saying America had "no better friend and no better ally". Asked if she envisaged circumstances in which the US would attack Iran, she said: "The question is simply not on the agenda at this point in time."

     Rice said that her government was still pursuing diplomacy in dealing with Iran's controversial nuclear programme. "We have many diplomatic tools still at our disposal and we intend to pursue them fully," she said. Pointing to recent elections in Iraq and Afghanistan, she said: "Iran is not immune to the changes that are going on in this region." The meetings in London come as concerns are raised about Iran's nuclear programme amid fears that the Tehran regime is trying to build a nuclear bomb. Britain, together with France and Germany, has been spearheading efforts to secure a diplomatic resolution to the crisis. Speaking to US reporters on her flight to London, Rice strongly condemned the Iranian regime. "I don't think anybody thinks that the unelected mullahs who run that regime are a good thing for the Iranian people and for the region," she said. A more contentious issue may be Britain's support for moves by France and Germany to lift the EU arms embargo on China imposed after the Tiananmen Square massacre of student demonstrators in 1989. Rice has warned of the dangers of sending the "wrong signal" on human rights.

Afghan airliner wreckage 'found' (Go To Top)

     Kabul: The wreckage of an Afghan airliner which went missing near the capital Kabul has been found, reports say. Western security sources say the plane, carrying 104 people, was found to the northeast of Kabul. Afghan officials have not confirmed the reports. The Kam Air Boeing 737 flight from Herat to Kabul vanished amid heavy snowstorms on Thursday afternoon. The aircraft lost contact with traffic control after being turned away from the airport because of the weather. "The plane was found 35km east of Kabul. We don't know if there are any survivors," an anonymous source told foreign news agency. Turkey has said nine of its citizens were on the flight, and three US women are also reported to have been on board. The eight crew included six Russians and two Afghans, a spokesman for Kam Air said. Nato troops and Afghan helicopters had been combing the mountainous terrain surrounding the airport looking for the missing craft. Kabul and the surrounding area have been hit by freak snowstorms, with almost 10cm of snow falling in the past six hours. Flights out of Kabul have been suspended. Kam Air is Afghanistan's only private airline. It was set up last year and flies national and regional routes, reports the BBC.

Tamil Tigers free 23 child soldiers (Go To Top)

     Colombo: Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels said on Friday they were freeing 23 child soldiers after allegations they recruited at least 40 underage combatants since the island was battered by tsunamis. The rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said the 23 children were handed over to the North East Secretariat on Human Rights (NESOHR) on Thursday to be reunited with their parents. "In a process of identifying underaged kids among those volunteered for enlistment with the LTTE, 23 such children were handed over to the NESOHR chair person Rev. Fr. M.X. Karunaratnam," the tigers said in a statement. According to The BBC, the release came a week after the United Nations children's fund accused Tigers of recruiting at least 40 child soldiers since tsunamis devastated Sri Lanka's coastlines and killed nearly 31,000 people on December 26.