IAF to get advanced choppers for VVIPs

     New Delhi: Indian Air Force is planning to get eight advanced helicopters, equipped with special protection systems, to ferry the President, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister and other VVIPs. Top defence officials said that "The new VVIP helicopters will have advanced avionics, protection, electronic counter-measures, night visions as well as advanced communication." "These helicopters will have features like those recently chosen to transport the US President," they said. The tenders for the aquition of planned special choppers have already been floated with leading companies like Augusts Westland EH101, Eurocopter Cougar, Sikrosky SH-62, Bell Helicopters and Kazan M-172 Choppers. Most of the helicopters treasered by Air Force, at present, are of MI-8 version. The new VVIP helicopters will replace the old warhorse MI-8 helicopters inducted in 1982 which do not have night flying capability. The IAF is searching for a three-engined helicopter with flying ceiling higher than 17,000 feet to enable them to transport VVIPs to remote areas.

Pak gangrape victim granted political asylum in UK (Go To Top)

     Islamabad: Pakistan gang rape victim Dr Shazia Khalid has been granted political asylum in the United Kingdom. UK officials said that Dr Shazia and her husband, Khalid, have both been granted asylum keeping in view the seriousness of the case and the chain of events that ensued, following her gangrape in Sui. Officials said that both of them have been provided with provisional residential facilities in a hotel, adding that the British government is picking up the tab for their dining expenses. Officials said that both would soon shift to the residence provided by the UK authorities, reports Online News. The report further said that both Dr Shazia and Khalid, who is a petroleum engineer, would continue to receive a stipend of one thousand pound per month till the time they get jobs. Dr Shazia was reportedly gangraped by Pakistani forces in Balochistan's Sui region. The incident resulted in armed uprising between the Baloch nationalists and the Pakistani military, and witnessed rampant attacks on gas fields and installations across Sui, in the process even putting question marks over the Indo- Iran transnational gas pipeline project.

Miandad confirms son's wedding to Dawood's daughter (Go To Top)

     Lahore: Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad has finally confirmed that his eldest son Junaid will be marrying the daughter of suspected mafia don Dawood Ibrahim. Talking to The News, Miandad said: "Yes, there are plans for the marriage of my son to the daughter of Ibrahim but no date has been set for the marriage. When it happens everyone would know about it and they would be invited to attend the ceremony. We Muslims believe that marriages are made in heaven and we dont challenge destiny." On Friday, both Miandad and Junaid had categorically denied reports that the latter is to wed Dawood's daughter. Reacting to a Delhi-based newspaper report that claimed that Junaid was all set to wed Dawood's daughter next week, Miandad said that he was too busy a person to comment on frivilous reports. Junaid on the other hand told The Nation that this is the third call I have received regarding my marriage. It s strange that its my marriage and I don t know it.

    According to the Delhi paper's website, Junaid was engaged to Dawood's daughter in January, but the event was conducted away from the media and public glare. We expect the actual ceremony to be a hush-hush one too, with not many guests being invited. We also know for sure that Dawood will not be attending, the website quoted a source as having said. Miandad had then also reacted angrily to the report. Now with fresh rumours circulating again, the former Pakistan cricket captain and coach, laughed off reports that the marriage is supposed to take place on June 24 in Dubai. "No I have no intentions of travelling to Dubai in the near future. "I have said nothing today to anyone. At this time there is no plan for my son s marriage to anyone. When we decide to get our son married it will not be a secret, but a public announcement," The News quoted Mianadad as saying. He also said that he could not understand why this story kept on creeping up in the Indian press repeatedly. Junaid is a student of Business Administration in England and is in Pakistan these days. I don't have any marriage plans at present, he said.

     However, two persons close to Junaid went on to the extent of confirming the date of marriage. They were engaged last year, and due to be married on July 23, one of them claimed. Miandad also indicated he was prepared for a backlash from the Indian press and people over his decision, but said his family had chosen a well mannered, educated, religious girl like any other parent would do. Miandad's son Junaid has been studying at the Oxford University for the last many years and his future wife is also said to be based in London for years now. The two apparently met in London and this led to their engagement last year. India has put Dawood Ibrahim on its most wanted list for last many years. The former cricketer is the son-in-law of a leading business family. Indian authorities have been pursuing Dawood for some unlawful activities in Mumbai, including his alleged involvement in the 1993 serial bomb blasts in that city that claimed close to 300 lives and left more than 2,000 injured.

'Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Enterprise' brand name of Anil's share (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: In a significant development after the seven-month row which ended yesterday, Anil Ambani today announced that the new corporate brand name of his share will be "Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Enterprises" Addressing a press conference after the Board meeting of Reliance Energy Limited (REL), Anil Ambani thanked his mother Kokilaben D Ambani, elder brother Mukesh Ambani and sisters for their co- operation and active role in solving the issue. He also informed the media that Reliance Energy Board has elected him as Chairman of the Company. Talking about the expansion plan of Reliance Energy Limited, Anil Ambani said, "we intend to investt 1000 crore in the company." He also announced that the share of the company will be priced at Rs 573 rupees and there will be eight percent premium over the next six months. "We intend to make Reliance Capital into a full fledged financial institution," he said. Before the start of the meeting, REL released a list of board members - Chairman and Managing Director Anil Ambani, Executive Vice Chairman Satish Seth, Director (Business Development) J P Chalasani, Director (Operations) S C Gupta, Director (Finance) K H Mankad, independent directors Gautam Doshi, V R Galkar, Gen V P Malik, S L Rao, Leena Srivastava and company secretary Ramesh Shenoy. "All the Board members including Chairman and Managing Director Anil Ambani attended the meeting," a REL spokesperson said. After this the Board meeting of Reliance Capital Limited (REL) another enterprise which has gone to younger brother Anil Ambani's share will take place at the same. The spokesperson informed that both the Boards have some common board members.

     Earlier, senior Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) Director, Y P Trivedi said that both the Ambani brothers Mukesh Ambani and his younger brother Anil are free to use the powerful corporate brand name 'Reliance and its logo' as part of the settlement between them over the ownership issues of over Rs 100,000 crore business empire. Yesterday, the seven-month-old row for ownership of Reliance ended with the empire split between the Ambani siblings. As a part of settlement, Anil Ambani got Reliance Infocomm, REL, Reliance Capital and Reliance General Insurance. RIL board, headed by Mukesh Ambani, approved a demerger plan as part of separation of group companies Reliance Energy and Reliance Capital to create a separate entity for younger sibling Anil Ambani. The decision to demerge listed group companies RIC and REL was part of the settlement to end the seven-month long battle between the Ambani brothers over the ownership issue of Reliance empire, highly placed sources said after nearly an hour-long meeting of the flagship company RIL.

     The announcement of the settlement between Mukesh Ambani and Anil Ambani was made through a letter by their mother Kokilaben on Saturday. Kokilaben, widow of the Reliance patriarch Dhirubhai Ambani, disclosed the details of the settlement after a marathon family meeting, which lasted all through Friday night. As part of the settlement, the elder Ambani sibling Mukesh Ambani will buy out Anil Ambani's stake in Reliance Industries and will control the family's share. The agreement is based on recommendations of ICICI Bank chairman and family friend K V Kamath and Kokilaben. Of the Ambani family's 34 per cent shareholding in RIL, both brothers own 30 per cent each while the mother holds 40 per cent of this stake. In effect, Mukesh will now control 60 per cent of the family's share in Reliance Industries.

Anil Ambani heads for Tirupati: Board meet off (Go To Top)

     Mumbai: Anil Ambani has decided to go to Tirupati and in the wake of this development the board meetings of Reliance Capital Ltd and Reliance Energy Ltd have been deferred to another date. The board meet was to be convened to consider a proposal to raise long term funds through equity offerings. Reliance Capital is the financial services arm which floated Reliance Mutual Fund and General Insurance Company. Earlier on Saturday, Anil had termed ownership settlement with his elder brother Mukesh as the "dawn of my new life". "I wish my respected elder brother the very best in future and I am confident that under his leadership, Reliance Industries will continue to scale even greater heights," Anil said after coming out of Reliance Centre.

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