Main Page                                                 Archives

Tsunami death toll rises to 285,993

     Jakarta: The number of people believed killed in December's tsunami disaster rose to 285,993 Saturday, more than six weeks after the catastrophe, as Indonesia increased its toll by nearly 800. Indonesia was hardest-hit by the December 26 quake and tsunamis, with a total of 232,732 people listed as dead or missing, the health ministry said in its latest figures. The number of people confirmed dead and buried rose by 791 to 117,810 while those missing and almost certainly dead remained at 114,922, the ministry told foreign news agency.

Indian envoy to Nepal summoned to Delhi for talks (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh has asked the country's ambassador to Nepal Shiv Mukherjee, to come to Delhi for consultations on Monday. An MEA spokesman said that Mukherjee is likely to brief Natwar on the situation prevailing in Nepal in the wake of last week's dismissal of the Sher Bahadur Dueba government by King Gyanendra. It may be recalled that on February 1, the king dismissed the Dueba government on charges of failing to restart the dialogue process with the Maoists rebels and the government's inability to commit to the holding of elections by April this year. Anticipating the protest to the decision, the king declared a state of emergency across the Himalayan kingdom and suspended initially suspended telecommunication and air links between Nepal and the outside world. In the week since the royal coup, the situation in Nepal though tense has stabilized somewhat, with the king activating lines of communication with key envoys, including India and the United States. He has gone to the extent of requesting that he be given atleast 100 days to normalise the situation in the country. India along with US and Britain have been putting pressure on the King for the restoration of democracy in Nepal, with the US ambassador to Nepal, James F Moriarty saying that Washington's assistance to Kathmandu was at a risk if no efforts were initiated towards restoring democracy in the Himalayan Kingdom.

Shiv Sena warns against Valentine's Day celebrations (Go To Top)

     Varanasi: The Shiv Sena on Saturday vowed to disrupt the Valentine's Day celebrations in Uttar Pradesh, saying that the Valentine's Day was against India's traditional culture. Valentine's Day has become increasingly popular in India in recent years, led by retailers selling red balloons, velvet pillows and teddy bears to mark the festival. But the growing popularity of the day in officially secular, but mainly Hindu India has in recent years sparked countrywide protests, which have sometimes turned violent. "We are giving a warning to those who are promoting Valentine Day. We have told the flower vendors and restaurant owners not to celebrate Valentine Day and keep a watch on couples. We have asked them to give us a call the moment they see couples out in the open and we are ready with a mobile unit to catch them," said Ram Kumar, an activist of Shiv Sena party. Shiv Sena has said, that it had set up 16 teams of 25 activists each who would ensure that couples would not be able to celebrate the day in public. Hardline groups have in the past made a bonfire of Valentine's Day cards and smashed shop windows to protest against what they describe as "cultural corruption" but that has not dampened the enthusiasm of youngsters who throng stores to buy Valentine's Day gifts and cards.