India News

Raygarh (Orissa): Police have arrested two Maoists, both in their 20s, during a combing operation being carried out in Halam Gaon of Orissa’s Rayagada district.

The arrested persons have been identified as Narasimha Mamulka and Subhash Mamulka. Both of them have five cases already registered against them for different crimes.

"These two were involved and working with the Maoist organisations since 2004 and there were several cases registered against them under different sections," said Ashish Kumar Singh, Superintendent of Police (SP), Rayagada.

Government has witnessed a series of violent Maoist attacks after police arrested three top Maoist ideologues --. Kobad Ghandy, Chhatradhar Mahato and Chandrabhushan Yadav.

The Maoist rebellion commenced about four decades ago for the cause of poor peasants in the east, but has now spread to about 20 of India''s 29 states. The Maoists, who say they are waging war on behalf of the poor and the landless against the state, have taken effective control of interior areas of the countryside.

Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram has said the Government is willing to talk to the Maoists about issues such as poverty and corruption that are often blamed for stoking the violence, but for that the rebels must first stop violence.

Source ANI

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said that result-oriented dialogue is the only way for bringing peace and tranquillity in the State.

Addressing a ceremony on the annual police Martyrs day here, Abdullah said that lessons have been learnt from the previous failed rounds of talks and thus this time the talks would lead to a logical conclusion.

"We know that we have been victims of guns since last 20-22 years. But not even a single inch of land has been transferred on either side. It would be better for all us to understand and decide that talks are the only way to reach a solution for all issues," said Abdullah.

Abdullah also said that India-Pakistan talks, stalled after last year''s Mumbai attack, should be restored.

"We want that talks between India and Pakistan don''t break. The dialogue process should continue. As I already said that if we really want to get rid of guns and if we really want peace and tranquil environment in the state, it is possible only through talks," said Abdullah.

Earlier, Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram had said that the Central Government was open to peace talks on Kashmir.

Source ANI

New Delhi: The Territorial Army organised a blood donation camp on the occasion of its Diamond Jubilee celebrations, here on Wednesday.

Twnty-eight officers, 35 JCOs and 500 Other Rank of the Territorial Army donated blood to demonstrate their continued solidarity with the citizens of the country.

This act is the hallmark of the Terriers, who continue to be the torchbearers in showing the path towards selfless contribution, which reinforces the commitment of the Citizens, Army towards the Nation.

The blood was donated to the Rotary Blood Bank, located in Tughalakabad area.

The camp was graced by former Uttaranchal and Sikkim Governor Sudarshan Agarwal, former Additional Director General of the Territorial Army, Major General (Retd) KVS Lalotra and Additional Director General of the Territorial Army Brigadier HK Singh.

Source ANI

New Delhi: With international relations steadily becoming significant former Defence Minister and Rajya Sabha member George Fernandes has said the Government of India should build meaningful relations with Japan’s new Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama.

Writing in the latest issue of OtherSide, Fernandes has mentioned that India can build meaningful relations with Japanese Prime Minister Hatoyama.

“India can develop a truly meaningful relationship with Prime Minister Hatoyama although I also learned that his Foreign Minister is considerably pro-China. Perhaps we can turn this into an opportunity of a good China-Japan-India relationship which I had discussed with many friends during my many visits to Japan. Eastern civilization and culture have much to offer the world if we forget for a short time the ugly part of geo-politics and power games.”

Fernandes reminisced how after terrorist attacks on the Jammu and Kashmir State Assembly building and the Indian Parliament and with the complicity of Pakistan was coming into evidence, it was felt that as the Leader of Opposition (and the Head of the Democratic Party of Japan) Yukio Hatoyama should also visit India

The then Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was also apprised of his likely visit. But it was decided to convince him not to visit neighbouring Pakistan, as is the usual practice of anyone visiting South Asia. Even as some of his men had begun talking about a visit to Pakistan, Hatoyama graciously agreed to India’s suggestion and avoided that trip.  

Fernandes also welcomed the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Govt.’s announcement to rename the NREGS (National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) after Mahatma Gandhi. “ Congratulations to the government for occasionally remembering the real Gandhi,” Fernandes said in another write up for the same journal.

Source ANI

New Delhi: Chinese Ambassador to India, Zhang Yan, on Wednesday dismissed concerns over comments made by his country’s foreign ministry with regard to Kashmir.

“China is committed to advancing its relationship with India in a cooperative and mutually beneficial way,” Yan said.

On Tuesday, Beijing virtually sang Pakistan''''s tune on Kashmir.

In a regular press briefing Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ma Zhaoxu called Kashmir an issue left over by history that should be resolved properly through dialogue and consultation between India and Pakistan.

"Kashmir issue is a question left over by history that should be resolved properly through consultation and dialogue by India and Pakistan,” said Zhaoxu.

Zhaoxu’s statement came ahead of China’s Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi’s visit to India.

Jiechi would attend the meeting of India, Russia and China Foreign Ministers at Bangalore on October 27.

During the visit, Jiechi is expected to hold talks with his Indian counterpart, S M Krishna.

The meeting would pave way for both foreign ministers to exchange views on bilateral ties and regional and international issues of common concern in an extensive way.

Source ANI

Alang: A three-member investigation team has completed inspection of the US ship Platinum II for toxic materials.

The team led by SA Das, industrial advisor to steel Ministry, is set to submit its report to the Ministry of Environment and forests on October 23.

The team, which included two members each from the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, Mumbai, and the Central Pollution Control Board, Vadodara, inspected the ship for almost three hours.

The Platinum II is allegedly loaded with highly dangerous toxic waste but was granted permission to dock earlier this month. The Government''s move has had environmentalists protesting.

The inspection team however refused to divulge details regarding their findings.

"We have done our job and now we supposed to go back to Delhi and give report. We are not supposed to disclose anything. It is the Ministry of Environment and Forest that is supposed to disclose anything," said Das.

The damage content or the presence of radioactive material is not yet known.
"There are some problems which is visible. But they are only basically polluted items, but we do not know the damage content," added Das.

The US ship was given permission to anchor on October 8 after a desk review wherein the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB), the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) and the Central Customs Department gave it clearance.

The Supreme Court had passed a ruling that ships should be broken down in the country only after prior decontamination.

Earlier in 2006, the Supreme Court had stopped French ship Clemenceau from entering Indian waters because of 500 tons of asbestos on it. In the same year, the court allowed Blue Lady, another French ship for breakage.

Alang is one of the leading centres of the worldwide ship breaking and recycling industry.

Source ANI

New Delhi: The Lord Mayor of the City of London, Ian Luder, will arrive in New Delhi tomorrow along with a business delegation.

The Lord Mayor is arriving here to conclude his week-long visit to India. Earlier this week, he visited Hyderabad and Mumbai.

During his two-day visit, the Lord Mayor will meet Indian ministers and business leaders.

His discussions will focus on increased collaboration in areas such as insurance, banking and legal services. He will also discuss the benefits financial services can bring to all sectors of society and share his views on how global co-operation on regulatory reform can best be harnessed to ensure future growth.

The delegation will also share UK expertise on the corporate debt market and in the area of infrastructure finance. India has set a target of 500 billion dollars in infrastructure investment.

The Lord Mayor is keen to see how UK capital, public-private partnerships (PPP) and carbon-emissions trading expertise can contribute to India''s infrastructure development.

The business delegation includes senior representatives of all the major financial services sectors: banking, insurance, legal services and accountancy.

"Delhi is crucial to India''s expansion as a global economic powerhouse. I look forward to sharing views on how the City of London and the UK can help India build its future as a leading economy of the 21st century," said Luder.

"The City of London is a dynamic place to do business and the current crisis can be seen as an opportunity to develop partnerships to foster future economic growth," Luder added.

Source ANI

New Delhi: The National Aluminium Company Limited, (NALCO) has paid a dividend of Rs. 84.22 crore to the Government of India for the year 2008-09.

The cheque was presented to Union Minister for Mines and Development of North Eastern Region, B. K. Handique by the CMD of NALCO, A. K. Srivastava, here today.

The Secretary, Ministry of Mines,. Shantha Sheela Nair was also present on the occasion.
The NALCO, a Navrathna public sector undertaking of Ministry of Mines, has paid 50 per cent dividend for the year 2008-09.

Of the total 50 per cent dividend, interim at 35 per cent was paid earlier in February, 2009 and the balance final dividend at 15 per cent has been paid this month.

Together, the dividend pay-out works out to Rs. 322.15 crore out of which the Government share is Rs. 280.74 crore.

The Government of India holds 87.15 per cent equity in the Company.

The balance amount of Rs. 41.41 crore is disbursed to other shareholders of the Company like banks, financial institutions and individual shareholders.

NALCO''s profits for the 2008-09 took a knock with the near collapse of metal prices after the global melt down.

The profits reduced to Rs. 1,272 Crore from Rs. 1,632 crore earned in the previous year. The volumes of production and sale of its products remained almost at the same level as of previous year.

The Company has ambitious plans of growth in aluminium sector and for diversification in other metal and power sector. Some of these growth projects are planned abroad.

Source ANI

New Delhi: The Prime Minister''s Economic Advisory Council which is chaired by C. Rangarajan, on Wednesday projected a 6.5 per cent growth in the next financial year.

This is 0.2 per cent less than the current fiscal growth of 6.7 per cent.

Addressing a press conference here, Rangarajan said the Indian economy was able to weather the financial crisis well.

Committee projected around 23 per cent deficiency in monsoon will lower the agriculture output, but projected good prospects for the rabi crop.

He said, the food grains production is estimated to be around 223 million tones next year as compared to 234 million tones this year.

The council said country export growth been curbed due to the adverse conditions like recession, higher household savings and demand contraction in developed economies.

A further negative shock to the global financial system and global inflation could threaten growth in Indian economy, Rangarajan said.

In its report, the council asked the government to give more focus on agriculture and power sector and immediate steps to manage inflation, especially food price inflation.

Ragarajan led council also asked the government to strengthen the public distribution system (PDS).

The council also suggested the government to take steps to improve farm productivity with the optimal use of technology.

In the power sector council said that there is an imperative need to achieve targets and suggested to have an active plan over a time horizon of 15 years for capacity creation in electricity.

The council also asked the government to actively explore fuel sources like natural gas and nuclear energy to meet the demand in the power sector.

Source ANI

New Delhi: The National Seeds Corporation (NSC) on Wednesday presented a cheque of Rs. 1.85 crore as dividend for the year 2008-09 to Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar.

NSC Chairman S.K. Roongta presented the cheque to Pawar.

The NSC has made an impressive growth during 2008-09 and surpassing all its previous physical and financial results it achieved an all time record turnover of Rs. 292.42 crore as against Rs. 227.38 crore during 2007-08, thus recording a growth of more than 29 per cent.

Under the physical parameters the quantity of seeds produced increased from 8.6 lakh quintals during 2007-08 to 10.18 lakh quintals during 2008-09, a growth of 18 per cent. The quantity of seeds sold also increased from 8.15 lakh quintals to 9.96 lakh quintals, registering a growth of 22 per cent during the same period.

The NSC took several initiatives for improving its performance, including forging strategic business alliances for production, processing and marketing of seeds through partnership with various state governments, state seeds corporations as well as public-private partnership with leading seed companies.

It has also made serious efforts in providing quality seeds to farmers in remote areas including Jammu and Kashmir and northeastern states.

Under its scheme of corporate social responsibility, the NSC conducted free soil health testing, organized animal health check up camps, imparted training to seed growers and farmers, distributed seed storage bins and created water harvesting structures in seed villages.

Source ANI

New Delhi: India and China signed a major agreement on cooperation in addressing climate change issues here on Wednesday.

The five-year agreement was signed by Environment and Forest Minister Jairam Ramesh and China’s Minister for National Development and Reforms Xie Zhehua. It calls for cooperation on various issues related to climate change at various levels.

Speaking on the occasion Zhehua said China considers India a sincere and devoted friend and expressed confidence that both countries would make a positive contribution at the Copenhagen Summit.

"Both India and China are collaborating to ensure a fair and equitable outcome at Copenhagen. An outcome that is in keeping with the principles of the Rio Convention of 1992, the Kyoto Protocol of 1997 and the Bali Action Plan of 2007. There is to my mind virtually no difference between the Indian and the Chinese negotiating position," Ramesh said

"We will be discussing further what India and China should be doing to ensuring a successful outcome at Copenhagen that fully protects and promotes, not only protects but also promotes the interest of developing countries like China and like India," he added.

According to the new agreement both India and China will hold regular ministerial consultations aimed at deepening their cooperation in combating climate change.

An India -China Working Group will be established for an exchange of views on an annual basis on matters related to international negotiations on climate change.

The two sides agreed to increase their cooperation in technology development relating to reduction of green house gas emission in the fields of energy conservation, clean coal, afforestation, sustainable habitat and transportation among other issues.

Both India and China will also enhance their cooperation mitigating the impact of climate change. Joint research, capacity building, public private partnership are some of other aspects of climate change in which the two sides will cooperate.

Source ANI

Mumbai: Ahead of the vote counting on Thursday, elaborate security arrangements have been made in Mumbai which underwent State Assembly polls in Maharashtra two weeks ago on Oct. 13.

The results are likely to impact the political fate of Congress party and National Congress Party (NCP), Shiv Sena (SS), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the new Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) in near future.

Security has been beefed up and the police have made elaborate arrangements to tackle any mishap, ahead of the vote counting day here.

The counting of votes in the three states of Maharashtra, Arunachal Pradesh and Haryana will be held on Thursday (October 22).

Director General of Maharashtra police, S.S. Virk, has assured that the vote counting will go on peacefully.

"The arrangements have been made keeping in mind all kinds of situations. Like the elections went on smoothly and peacefully, in the same manner the vote counting will be completed without any problems," Virk told media.

Maoists and police exchanged fire near a polling booth in the forested, rebel stronghold of Gadchiroli in Maharashtra State where they killed 17 police personnel recently.

The assembly elections, seen as a key test of the ruling Congress party''s popularity since its landslide national win in May, were conducted in the three states of Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh on October 13.

Source ANI

New Delhi: Panic has gripped Jamua village of Jharkhand’s East Singhbhum district following gruesome killing of a fifty-five-year old lady, Mukhi Munda, by the Maoists.

Mukhi Munda was killed for not obeying the diktat of Maoists asking the Munda family to withdraw the case registered against Naxals for the killing of her only son, Lakhinder Munda, who was accused by them of being a police informer.

In another case, the Maoists had brutally beaten sixty-year-old lady, Gurubari Munda.

Her son Mukul Munda, was eliminated by the Naxals after branding him as a police informer.

Earlier, on May 30, the Maoists had killed sixty-year-old Gram Pradhan Lakhan Murmu.

Questioned about such killings, Kishan Ji, a Politburo member of the CPI (Maoist), said that the party had already offered unconditional apology for some of the unintentional killings in the past. But the apology does not carry conviction among the villagers who have not yet forgotten the gruesome beheading of Francis Induwar.

Kishan Ji is controlling the operation in Lalgarh and adjoining East Singhbhum district.

Recently, three persons, including the head of a parallel outfit called ''''Sastra People''s Morcha'''' (SPM), were killed in a Maoist attack in Chatra district.

According to police, the incident took place in Rajpur village where Umesh Mali, the head of the SPM, Umesh Singh Bhokta, a local leader of the Lokjanshakti Party, and another person, were watching a cultural programme.

Umesh Mali and two others died on the spot when the Maoists fired on them. A teenaged girl and two others were injured.

The CPI (Maoist) is involved in a turf war with the ''''Sastra People''s Morcha”, the Jharkhand Prastuti Samiti and the Tritiya Prastuti Samiti.

The Naxals, who claim that they are waging war on behalf of the poor and the landless, have taken effective control of large swathes of the countryside, scaring off potential investors. Their intention is to control the land rich in minerals.

Source ANI

Hyderabad: Taking a big leap in spreading awareness about AIDS, the Andhra Pradesh government has introduced sex education in schools’ curriculum to sensitise children on AIDS (Aquired Immmuno Deficiency Syndrome).

The State Education Department has sought the help of Andhra Pradesh State Aids Control Society (APSACS) to design a curriculum, which could be useful in imparting knowledge to the children in a proper scientific manner.

The objective behind introducing it in schools is to impart right knowledge to the kids and prevent them from looking at alternate and improper sources and end up getting improper knowledge on AIDS as sex education.

The subject has been included in the syllabus of standard XI and X students. The 16-hour syllabus imparts complete knowledge to the kids through a scientific approach in nearly 16,000 schools per year. Teenage pregnancy and safe sex are also some of the topics, which are highlighted in the curriculum.

"Parents don''t have that kind of time and in urban scenario, there is peer pressure, there are TV channels, there are other channels where a child tends to get information which is not authentic, not scientific. So that''s why school is the best place for a child to know about the subject, as a subject. When it is introduced as a subject, like any other subject, child comes to know about his body, how to respect it, how to value it," said Nirupama, Consultant, A.P. State Aids Control Society.

Meanwhile, the initiative to introduced sex education has also invited criticism from some quarters.

A section of people maintain their reservation on inclusion of sex education in school on the pretext that lack of properly trained teachers can ruin the very purpose of the programme. They say it may lead to leaving a wrong impression on the children''s minds, instead of giving them right information.

"All the teachers whom you are selecting as resource person for this awareness, you have to cross check doubly, that really the teacher is a teacher, very importantly. The teacher should have that capacity and also the teacher need some orientation," said Ved Kumar, President, Forum For Better Hyderabad and Principal, Oxford School.

India, has at least 2.5 million HIV infected people among its 1.1 billion-plus population.

Source ANI

Sariska (Rajasthan): A team of ministers and officials of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) nations is on a visit to the famed Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan to know about the country''s success in tiger conservation.

The delegation visited the sanctuary on Tuesday night and is also scheduled to go around the sanctuary to get a first-hand experience on India''s efforts in conserving tigers on Wednesday (October 21).

The SAARC ministers, who have come to India to take part in the two-day meeting on climate change being hosted in the national capital, New Delhi, were welcomed at Sariska in traditional Indian way.

The visitors were given a detailed description as to how with utmost care the tigers were relocated.

In one of the instances, a female tiger was relocated in Sariska wildlife sanctuary, when the mafia of poachers reportedly wiped out all the tigers here. Later, she was put in the company of a tiger and two more tigresses. All of them were relocated from the Ranthambore tiger reserve, a place also located in Rajasthan.

The SAARC delegates lauded the success story of the reintroduction of tigers to conserve them.

Kamran Lashari, Secretary of Pakistan''s Environment Ministry was all praise for the Indian wildlife rangers initiative in conservation programme and said his ministry is also preserving wildlife species proactively.

"We have brown bear, tiger and all sorts of other animals especially in northern areas… in Baltistan, the Himalayas in K2. We take care of them. We also take care that they are not illegally poached," said Kamran Lashari, Secretary with the Environment Ministry of Pakistan.

Prince Mohammed Mustafa Zahir, Director-General of Environment Protection, Government of Afghanistan observed that such an effort will help to preserve the fast dwindling number of the wild cat.

Ruing that the last tiger in Afghanistan was shot dead decades ago, Prince Zahir said other countries can take a leaf out of India’s success story and preserve tigers.

"The conservation project will protect tigers in India. This project with... is an example for other countries. My colleagues have done a great job. I look forward very much to see one of the magnificent creatures of God tomorrow," said Prince Mohammed Mustafa Zahir, Director-General of Environment Protection, Afghanistan on Tuesday night.

All the tigers in Sariska became victims of poachers by 2005 and the reintroduction of the wild cats will help restore their population in the sanctuary.

According to government data, India has little over than 1,400 tigers, against 10,000 a couple of decades ago.

Sariska National Park is home to numerous carnivores including the Leopard, Wild Dog, Jungle Cat, Hyena, Jackal, and Tiger. These feed on an abundance of prey species such as Sambar, Chitel, Nilgai, Chausingha, Wild Boar and Langur. Sariska is also well known for its large population of Rhesus Monkeys, which are found in large numbers around Talvriksh.

The avian world is also well represented with a rich and varied birdlife. These include Peafowl, Grey Partridge, Bush Quail, Sand Grouse, Tree Pie, Golden backed Wood Pecker, Crested Serpent Eagle and the Great Indian Horned Owl.

Within the Sariska wildlife sanctuary there are the ruins of medieval temples of Garh-Rajor, belonging to the 10th and 11th centuries. A 17th century castle on a sharp hilltop at Kankwari, provides a panoramic view of flying Egyptian vultures and eagles.  The area was declared a sanctuary in 1955 and became a National Park in 1979.

Source ANI

Srinagar: Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday criticised the allotment of land for security forces based in the state.

Talking to reporters here, she said that allotting agricultural land for security purposes was a matter of serious concern for Kashmiris.

"This is an issue for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, because there is already less land here. Already, land is not enough in our State, for agriculture purpose or for any other thing. And on top of it security forces use so much land and that too our forest area is also with them, which can be a matter of concern for any Kashmiri," Mufti said.

Reacting to the Kashmir cricket players being interrogated in Bangalore in a case related to residues of suspected explosive found in their kit, Mufti alleged that people of Kashmir were discriminated against across the country and even in their own state.

"Well, see this is very unfortunate. We are under siege, we are living under siege, as soon we step outside our house we become suspects. We are suspects in our own state, why to talk about that. Even here about fifty-sixty thousand people have been denied passports, just because some of their relatives even who are not alive now were involved in militancy," said Mufti.

Bangalore police on October 17 let off Kashmir''s two players, Parvez Rasool and Mehraj-ud-din who were questioned following a tip-off that the two might be carrying explosives.

Source ANI

New Delhi: Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni has said that there is the vital need to evolve a mechanism to address broadcasting concerns in the country.

Addressing an interactive discussion on ''Government Regulation or Self-Regulation'' in here on Tuesday, Soni said that concerns like broadcasting content and shortage of spectrum needed to be addressed.

"Let there be a mechanism, which not only addresses the concerns of what we see but also concerns like shortage of spectrum; how much bandwidth one broadcaster is going to get, should there be any rule governing more and more channels, 500 channels have already given permission. This can be addressed," she added.

She also pointed out that there were certain specific deficiencies in the coverage and telecast of the events by the private owned television channels during the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai.

"After 26/11when we all saw what happened in Mumbai, an attack on sovereignty of India. On an occasion as grave as that, there were deficiencies all around, those of us who should have been there to give authorised information and those of us who were broadcasting the information were affected by that information. There should have been a better connect. In the absence of a connect, we felt that the enemy who attacked us could probably have benefited," she said.

She noted that the Ministry wanted to address concerns, based on complaints from the viewers and cross section of the society.

Ambika Soni said at least 10-15 issues regarding television coverage like sting operations and media trials of sub-judice cases where a growing need for self-restraint was felt.

She, however, made it clear that the government would not do anything that would impose a regulator for the broadcasting media and emphasised on interaction and dialogue among all stakeholders to evolve the broadest possible consensus on this sensitive issue.

Source ANI

West Midnapore: West Bengal Law Minister Rabilal Maitra visited West Bengal’s West Midnapore district on Wednesday.

The visit was held a day after armed Maoists stormed a police station at Sankrail in the district and killed two police personnel besides abducting another police officer.

The Maoists, including women combatants, attacked Sankrail Police Station and robbed at least 19 firearms and several rounds of ammunition. The officer-in-charge of the police station was taken hostage.

Maoists have been demanding the release of an elusive tribal leader Chhatradhar Mahato, who has been spearheading an agitation since November last year against alleged police excesses in West Midnapore''s troubled Lalgarh area.

Mahato, leader of People''s Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCAPA), which has been spearheading agitation against alleged police atrocities, was nabbed from Pirka region, near Lalgarh village.

Police nabbed Mahato when he was about to give an interview to a journalist.

Mahato had been giving regular interviews when the paramilitary forces and the state police had launched the anti-Maoist operations in Lalgarh, the place declared as a liberated zone by the Maoists, on June 19 forcing him to go underground for some time.

The tribals under Mahato had a free run for nine months with the police withdrawing from the camps, before the paramilitary troops recaptured Lalgarh from the Maoists who were fuelling the tribal agitations.

Source ANI

Bangalore: The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) on Wednesday clarified there is no threat to the organization due to the arrest of senior American space scientist Daivd Nozette by the Federal Bureau of Investigation  (FBI) in the US.

The FBI arrested the NASA scientist Nozette, 52, on the allegation of spying for Israel on Tuesday.

ISRO’s Chief Security Officer, Bhaskaran Nair, said Nozette visited ISRO’s establishments in Bangalore twice during the Chandrayan project and interacted with scientists but had no access to critical scientific establishments during the visit.

Nair also clarified that there was no concern about loss of data.

"There is no threat to ISRO or to Chandrayaan. ISRO has strict security protocols for foreign scientists. Accordingly, Nozette had not been allowed access to critical establishments, as he was not allowed to the clean room. We ensured complete compliance to the protocol. Like any other foreign national, Nozette had no access to critical facilities," Nair said.

He added that the NASA has not contacted the ISRO yet, because the US scientist was charged for some other project.

During the Chandrayan project, the NASA raised numerous questions and delayed shipment of the Moon Minerology Mapper and the Mini- Synthetic Aperture Radar (Sar) to Bangalore for testing and integration with the spacecraft.

Nozette, a PhD in planetary sciences, was contacted by an FBI undercover employee last month posing as a Mossad officer and invited for lunch at a hotel in Washington DC to part with details about sensitive US satellite data for a sum.

Nozette reportedly quoted a price that went into several thousand dollars.

Source ANI

Panji: Goa Police on Wednesday did an about turn on their claim that the right wing Hindu group Sanatana Sanstha was behind the October 16 scooter blast in Margao.

They claimed they had never said the key accused in the case Malganda Patil and Yogesh Naik had links with the Sanstha.

"Nowhere have we said that the organisation Sanatan Sanstha is involved. We just said that the persons who were suspected of carrying out the attack have links with Sanatan Sanstha,” said Atmaram Deshpande, Superintendent of Police Crime Investigating Department (CID).

Earlier, State Home Minister Ravi Naik stated that the Sanathan Sanstha worker -- Malganda Patil planned and executed Friday’s blast near a church in Margao.

"Two persons, Malganda Patil and Yogesh Naik are involved. Patil works as an administrator with the Sanathan Sanstha. He has planned and executed the blast. He planted the bomb in the scooter and thus two people were injured," Naik had said.

The Sanstha, on its part, had denied the statement made by Naik, saying the entire allegation was a conspiracy.
 
Sanstha’s spokesperson Abhay Vartak, had said, "The accusation that we are involved in the blast is a rumor. It is a conspiracy. There have been no arrests and no incriminating material has been found."

Source ANI

New Delhi: New South Wales takes on Victoria in the first semi-final of the Champions League tournament here tonight. Here are some interesting facts related to the two teams.

In the 262 official matches between NSW and Victoria in the past 117 years, the closest the teams have gone to playing on neutral territory has been a Sheffield Shield match on the border-town of Albury in 1989 and a one-dayer in Canberra in 2006.

Tonight, they will meet at a stadium more than 10,000 kilometres from the SCG and MCG.

Although the (Victoria) Bushrangers and the (NSW) Blues have met in two Shield finals since 1990 the stakes - at least financially - have never been higher than for this clash: the first semi-final of the Champions League Twenty20.

The difference between winning and losing is at least 800,000 US dollars, or at most two million US dollars, if the winner of the match goes on to win the final as well.

Both NSW and Victoria are splitting the prize money between the players and the organization, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.

NSW''s success so far has been built on their formidable pace attack - notably Brett Lee''s extraordinarily stingy effort to concede only 54 runs in four matches - and their plundering opening partnership of Phillip Hughes (164 runs) and David Warner (140 runs), who sit first and fourth respectively on the tournament''s list of leading scorers.

Victoria coach Greg Shipperd said the Blues, who still lost only four wickets when beaten by Trinidad and Tobago, had yet to be challenged properly during the tournament.

''''They''ve played game plan A - everything''s worked for them. Our job''s to disturb that and see what they''ve got up their sleeve … We''ve played them about 10 times in the [tournament] preparation, minus [Brett] Lee and [Nathan] Hauritz basically, so we''ve got a really good fix on them as an opponent,” Shipperd claimed.

NSW coach Matthew Mott agreed with Shipperd''s assertion that virtually everything had gone to plan for its batting in the tournament.

''''That''s the aim of every side'''' - and predicted batting would be even more crucial than usual because of the poor state of the Delhi pitch. It''s probably going to be which batting unit comes out and applies the most pressure on difficult batting conditions that''s probably going to get over the line,'''' Mott said

Both teams have kept the same line-ups for all four matches they have played in the tournament.

Source ANI

Mumbai: Australian cricket team coach Time Nielsen has said that he fears that captain-in-waiting Michael Clarke will be hampered by recurring back problems for the rest of his career.

Though Clarke spoke positively about recovering from his latest flare-up in time to take part in the latter stages of the seven-match limited overs tour of India, Nielsen said he was more concerned about ensuring Clarke was fit enough to last the Australian summer and beyond, even if it meant not re-joining the squad until the first Test against the West Indies at Brisbane in November.

''''The issues are with discs and things with his back, so I''m not sure they''re ever going to be 100 per cent perfect,'''' The Age quoted Nielsen, as saying soon after the team’s arrival here for the seven one-day match series against India, the first of which will take place on October 25 in Vadodara.

''''He''ll have to manage it and he basically gets daily treatment on his back and his body when he''s away and playing and travelling, as do most of the blokes. So, I don''t think we can ever guarantee if he comes back saying he''s fit now that he''s not going to be sore or have flare-ups in the future again,” Nielsen said.

''''It''s important Michael is 100 per cent right before he comes back and tries to get back into it because he only knows one way and he''s going to go 100 per cent, flat-out in the field and bowl and bat as required. So there''s no point bringing him back half-baked and hoping we can nurse him through, because there''s nothing surer that it''d be a recipe for disaster for him,'''' he added.

Clarke’s latest bout of back problems in South Africa was put down largely to the amount of cricket and travel the Australian team had undertaken over the previous 12 months, but the schedule is not likely to be much less taxing in the future for the 28-year-old.

Source ANI

Mathura: Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee has ordered a inquiry into Wednesday''s train accident at Mathura, in which 15 people were feared dead.

Banerjee has asked the chairman of the railway board to oversee rescue operations.

About 150 army jawans are assisting in rescue operations. Medical teams too have been rushed to the site.

Meanwhile, a compensation of rupees five lakh has been announced for families of the deceased; rupees one lakh to the seriously injured and Rs 10,000 to those with minor injuries.

The incident occurred when the New Delhi-bound Goa Express rammed into the rear of the stationary Udaipur Express also called the Mewar Express at 5.00 a.m. this morning near Mathura.

Due to the impact, the last bogie of the Udaipur Express was completely damaged as the locomotive of the Goa Express telescoped into it.

"I was in Goa Express and the driver of the train was not driving properly from the very beginning. He was constantly changing track and then he rammed the train with another stationary train that was already positioned on the tracks," said Junaid, a passenger.

Rescue officials used welding machines and gas cutters to open the doors and the damaged shells of the bogies of the Udaipur Express and helped the trapped passengers to come out.

Some of the fortunate passengers also lent a hand in the rescue operation.

"Some passengers were sleeping on the upper berths of the train and when the accident occurred, they fell on us. We then realised something has happened. We came out and helped rescue some of the passengers," said Deepak, another passenger.

Meanwhile, police personnel who had rushed to spot said they were not in a position to give the exact casualty figure since the rescue operations are still on.

"I am not in a position to tell you exactly how many have died," said Sanjay Kumar, a police officer.

The injured passengers have been admitted to nearby hospitals.

Source ANI

Reasi: Three militants were killed in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district this morning.

According to sources, acting on a tip off, a joint operation was launched by Rashtriya Rifles troops and police in Pathria in Mahore area, at around 1:45 a.m.
 
The militants opened fire on them and in the ensuing gun battle they were killed.

Two assault rifles, a pistol and four hand grenades were recovered from them.

A search operation is on in the area.

Source ANI

Banka (Bihar): Maoists blew up a state-run primary school in Gerua village in Bihar''s Banka District on Wednesday morning.
 
According to police, the incident took place at around 2:30 a.m. when a group of Maoists surrounded the building. They used dynamite to trigger the blast.

The roof of the three-room school caved in due to the explosion.

Senior officials are at the site and a search operation is underway for those responsible for the blast.

Source ANI

New Delhi: The Supreme Court will continue the hearing into the gas row between estranged industrialist brothers -- Mukesh and Anil Ambani, here on Wednesday.

The apex court, which is hearing a petition related to the gas row between Mukesh and Anil Ambani, on Tuesday observed that there is a fight between the owners of companies, and not between the shareholders.

The court also observed that it is like persons heading two countries are fighting, but the people are not fighting.

The case between Reliance Industries, headed by Mukesh, and the Reliance Natural Resources Ltd, led by Anil, is over a deal to sell gas from the Krishna Basin Reserve to the Reliance Natural Resource Limited (RNRL) at below-market rates as per a family settlement.

Just ten days ago, Anil made a surprise truce offer to resolve the dispute amicably. But with Mukesh rejecting Anil''s olive branch, the action has now moved to the Supreme Court.

In a statement on October 11, Anil said all disagreements could be resolved within weeks, but RIL questioned the sincerity of the offer made "through the public domain" and said Anil could have easily contacted his elder brother directly.

RIL also asked Anil to demonstrate the bonafide of his intentions behind the latest overture, adding it welcomes this positive indicator and will not be found wanting in responding to them constructively.

The latest tussle between the feuding brothers, which stems from the 2005 break-up of the Reliance empire built by their father, has raised concerns it could discourage investment in the sector as India scrambles to shore up its energy security.

In July, the Supreme Court had said that it would club all petitions and applications in the case together.

The Government had earlier made a petition to intervene in the case, arguing that the gas is ''state property'' and that the private agreement between the Ambanis over the gas is not valid.

Source ANI

New Delhi: Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed will arrive here on a five-day visit today.

During his visit, President Nasheed will attend a conference on climate change and review the bilateral ties. He will be the guest of honour at the Delhi High Level Conference on Climate Change and Technology Transfer.

Nasheed is scheduled to meet the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh. Nasheed''s special focus in his talks with Dr. Singh will be a common approach on climate change issues ahead of December''s Copenhagen Climate Summit.

Both sides will also review ongoing cooperation in the field of health, education, economic projects and developmental assistance.

Nasheed will be accompanied by a large delegation of Ministers, MPs, and mediapersons.

The visit is being held on the invitation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

President Nasheed, who became President of the Maldives in November 2008, is visiting India for the second time.

Source ANI

Mathura: At least 15 people were killed and 50 others injured when the Delhi-bound Goa Express rammed into the stationary Mewar Express near Mathura on Wednesday morning.

The incident took place at around 4:00 a.m. between Mathura and Vrindavan stations.

The injured are undergoing treatment at Mathura and Vrindavan hospitals.

An unreserved compartment of the Mewar Express was damaged.

Railway authorities were using gas cutters to extricate trapped passengers from the damaged bogey. Army jawans are assisting in rescue operation.

Senior officers of Mathura administration and railways have reached on the site

Train traffic on this route of Agra division of Northern Central Railway is disrupted.

The Railways has opened helpline numbers for any inquiry. The numbers are: 1800-180 6131 (Toll free).

Delhi: 011-24359798; Ajmer: 0145-2429642; Udaipur: 0294-2483979
Mathura: 0565-2402008, 0565-2402009 and Agra: 0562-2421-41.

Source ANI

New Delhi: President Pratibha Patil will give away the 55th National Film Awards for 2007 here today.

The eminent music personality Manna Dey will also be conferred the Dada Saheb Phalke Award for the year 2007.

The National Film Awards aim at encouraging the production of films of aesthetic and technical excellence and social relevance contributing to the understanding and appreciation of cultures of different regions of the country in cinematic form, thereby also promoting integration and unity of the nation.

In the feature film section, the awards are given in 31 categories, which include Award for Best Feature Film, Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a director, Award For Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment, Award For Best Direction,

Actor, Actress, Editing, Lyrics and  Choreography.

In the non-feature film section, awards are given in 22 categories like Best Non-Feature Film, Best Biographical/Historical Reconstruction/Compilation Film, Special Jury Award and Best Audiography.

National Award for Best Writing on cinema and Best Film Critic are also given.

The awards aim at encouraging study and appreciation of cinema as an art form and dissemination of information and critical appreciation of this art-form through publication of books, articles and reviews.

Source ANI

New Delhi: The Indo-China joint workshop on National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) will begin here today.

The joint workshop is being held after considering the similarities of the National Action Plans of both the countries and to share the experience on scientific, technical and policy aspects relating to climate change issues.

During the workshop, experts from both countries will deliver lecture on subjects, which includes National Action Plan in India and China, policy and actions on mitigation, policies and actions on forests, policies and actions on adaptation and progress in climate change science.

A bilateral meeting between Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh and Vice Chairman of China’s National Development and Reform Commission, XIE Zhenhua, will also be held on the sidelines of the workshop.

Ramesh and Zhenhua will sign a memorandum of agreement on cooperation on addressing climate change between India and China.

The agreement would strengthen the cooperative activities between the two countries on mitigation, programmes, projects, technology development and demonstration relating to greenhouse gas emission reduction including energy conservation efficiency, renewable energies, clean coal, methane recovery and utilization, afforestation and sustainable management of forests and ecosystems, transportation and sustainable habitat.

Senior officers of both the Governments will also participate at the meeting, which will focus on domestic initiatives, issues in multilateral negotiations (mitigation, adaptation, technology transfer and finance), and outlook for Copenhagen meeting.

Source ANI

New Delhi: Influential lobby groups of farmers on Wednesday expressed its fierce opposition to the commercial farming of Bacillus Thuringiensis Brinjal (Bt Brinjal) in the country.

“This is only a game plan of the multinational companies to sell their technology in India to make money and nothing else. It is not going to solve any food or environmental problems but will only increase them,” Vijay Jawandhia of Shetkari Sanghatana or Farmers'' Organization, told a news conference here.

The Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) on Wednesday approved the commercialisation of the genetically modified crop, but the farmers argue that the country has no scarcity of bringles.

“As far as the farmers are concerned, there has been no demand for Bt Brinjals from their side. Lots of farmers are growing brinjals all over the country and the production is also good, but despite of this the multinational companies are pushing hard to commercialize the farming of Bt Brinjals in India. There has been no shortage in the production of brinjals in our country, rather there has been a surplus production,” said Yudhvir Singh, Convenor of the Coordination Committee of Indian Farmers'' Movement.

The vegetable consumed by the masses will be the first genetically altered food crop to be commercially launched in India.

Bt Brinjal is a transgenic vegetable, which carries a gene called ''Bt'' from a bacterium, which releases toxin to kill fruit and shoot borer insects.

Source ANI

Mathura: A rescue operation was in full swing at the train accident site at Mathura in which at least 22 persons reportedly died and many others suffered injuries.

The accident occurred in the wee hours of the morning on Wednesday when the New Delhi-bound Goa Express rammed into the rear part of a stationary train, Mewar Express at 5.00 a.m (local time) near Mathura, officials said.

The impact of the collision left a couple of compartments of the trains mangled, and rescue workers used cutting machines to reach passengers trapped inside.

Rescue personnel say there still may be bodies trapped in and under the mangled compartments.

"Rescue operation is almost complete. Now the restoration operation is being conducted by the Railways. Our priority is to search for the bodies and inform the families," said B Paulson, Mathura''s Senior Superintendent of Police.

Security personnel were pressed into service and some locals and passengers helped the rescue operation.

"Army has helped a lot in the rescue operations. Moreover, the role of locals is also worth praising," said Mohammed Azharuddin, former cricket captain and a Member of Parliament.

A passenger who had a narrow escape recounted his ordeal after reaching the Indian capital, New Delhi.

"About 4.15am, when we were asleep, there was a sudden collision and we felt that the train had derailed or it had collided with another train. There was an emergency window near our seats and I pushed myself out of it. As I looked back I saw the engine of the Goa Express had rammed into a ladies'' compartment, a compartment for physically disabled persons and the guards'' cabin. My compartment was safe," said an unidentified passenger.

Injured passengers were rushed to nearby hospitals.

It was not immediately clear how the two trains came to be on the same tracks.

Source ANI

Mumbai: Ahead of their seven-match ODI series against Australia, Indian cricket squad spent a couple of hours practising hard at the nets on Wednesday here.

The first match of the series will be played at Baroda on October 25.

The venues of the other matches are Nagpur, New Delhi, Mohali, Hyderabad, Guwahati and Mumbai.

For the first two games of the series, opener Virender Sehwag has been recalled to the India squad.

Sehwag missed the Twenty20 World Cup, and the ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa while recovering from the surgery.

Batsman Yuvraj Singh, who missed the Champions Trophy with a broken finger, was named in the 15-player squad with the hope that he would be fit to start the seven-match series.

Uncapped 22-year-old pace bowler Sudeep Tyagi has also been included in the squad after some good domestic performances.

Australian skipper Ricky Ponting has said that the hosts (India) are a difficult side to beat at home.

As for the Australians, Michael Clarke was forced to withdraw from the Champions Trophy with a back injury.

The Kangaroos will also miss first choice wicketkeeper Brad Haddin, who is undergoing rehabilitation after finger surgery and left-arm paceman Nathan Bracken due to complications in his knee.

Australia won the ODI series 4-2 on their previous visit to India two years ago.

Source ANI

New Delhi: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabo will have an important meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Thailand this week.

Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hu Zhengyue provided the Information about the meeting.

Hu told reporters in Beijing that Wen and Singh would meet in Thailand during which they will discuss “bilateral relations, and regional and international issues”.

“This meeting between the two prime ministers is a very important one. There has been good progress in our bilateral relationship and we hope this momentum can be sustained,” Hu said.

The meeting comes in the backdrop of Beijing raking up its claim over Arunachal Pradesh by questioning Singh’s visit there on October 3.

Source ANI

Indore: Five activists of banned outfit Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) were arrested in Indore on Wednesday.

Two of the activists caught were wanted in the 2008 bomb blasts in Ahmedabad that killed 45 persons.

“ATS (Anti Terrorist Squad) and Indore Police in a join operation arrested five persons. Two of them are from Ujjain and three are from Khandwa. The two from Ujjain are wanted in the Ahmedabad bomb blast case that took place on 26th July, 2008. The arrested member from Khandwa is wanted for a case from the city," said Pawan Srivastav, ATS chief, MP.

The arrested members were identified as Mohammad Shafi, Yunus, Sheikh Sajid, Feroze and Arshad. They have been produced in the court.

The activists were reportedly residing in Indore.

No weapons or explosives were recovered from them.

"Two tape recorders, objectionable items and cash have been recovered from them. We have produced them in the court," said Sanjay Rana, IGP, MP.

Sixteen bombs rocked Ahmedabad city on 26th July 2008 killing at least 45 people, and a day after another series of bombings hit Bangalore.

A group called the "Indian Mujahideen" said it carried out the Ahmedabad attack, writing in an e-mail sent five minutes before the first blast.

Source ANI

Ludhiana: CPI General Secretary A B Bardhan on Wednesday rubbished the Chinese claim over Arunachal Pradesh, saying the state will always remain an integral part of India.

"Arunachal Pradesh is ours. There are no two ways about it. Everyone knows that India-China border dialogue is going on. There should be discussion on it. It can be resolved bilaterally through discussions," Bardhan told reporters in Ludhiana.

The issue of Arunachal Pradesh has come into the fore after Beijing objected to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh''s visit to the state.

China said it was “seriously dissatisfied” by the visit of an Indian leader to a disputed Himalayan region.

China''s foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu accused an unnamed Indian leader of ignoring China''s concerns by visiting the state of Arunachal Pradesh.

New Delhi reiterated that its leaders were free to visit states where elections are held.

China has also protested against the Dalai Lama''s planned trip to Arunachal Pradesh.

Source ANI

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee today assured the family of the police officer who was kidnapped by Maoists in West Midnapore district on Tuesday of swift action for the cop’s safe return.

Indrani, the wife of officer-in-charge of Sankrail police station Atindranath Dutta, conveyed Maoist leader Kishenji’s demand of seeking the release of women arrested by joint forces in exchange of her husband to the chief minister.

Dutta''s father, who along with the abducted officer''s 2-year-old daughter had also met Bhattacharjee, said that the chief minister gave an assurance that his government was looking into the matter.

"We hope that Kishenji will also keep his word that their hostage is safe," he said.

Bhattacharjee reportedly said that the government did not want another case of Francis Induwar, and swift action is being taken to ensure that the police officer returns home safely.

Francis Induwar, a Jharkhand Special Branch police inspector, was brutally decapitated by Naxals in Jharkhand.

Dutta was abducted from a police station by Maoists who shot dead two other officers on Tuesday. They also looted over Rs nine lakh from a nearby State Bank of India branch before escaping.

Later in the evening, Maoist leader Kishenji demanded the release of women arrested as suspected Maoists by the joint forces. He also assured Indrani over phone that her husband would not be harmed.

Kishenji had also asked her to meet the chief minister in this regard.

Source ANI

New Delhi: Union Law Minister today said that the Government intends to come out with a comprehensive bill to deal with complaints of corruption against judges, and added that the procedure of appointment of judges to higher judiciary will be given a fresh look.

The Law Minister said on Wednesday that the Government would not like to see that any ‘tainted’ person becoming a judge.

However, Moliy refused to be drawn into a discussion on Karnataka Chief Justice P D Dinakaran elevation to the Supreme Court, which has been kept in abeyance over allegations of land grabbing.

“Already there is a memorandum of procedure (on appointment of judges) which we are going by as of today. I am not reiterating that the same thing will continue. May be, we have to revisit the procedure. Whatever we do, we need to take the judiciary into full confidence,” he said.

Moily said the independence of judiciary without accountability has no meaning, no significance and there was need to resurrect its credibility.

Source ANI

New Delhi: Parliamentary Affairs Minister P K Bansal on Wednesday said that Parliament’s winter session will start from November 19 and will end on December 22, having 24 sittings in all.

The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs (CCPA) chaired by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday took the decision to this effect.

Both the government and the opposition at the end of the budget session this year had favoured at least 100 sittings of Parliament in a year and the winter session to be a six-week affair.

Normally, the winter session lasts for four weeks beginning in the last week of November and ending just ahead Christmas.

Source ANI

Srinagar: The Sher-E-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology is taking steps to introduce the world famous Mulberry Tea.

Mulberry leaves, which were earlier used to produce world''''s famous silk in Kashmir, will soon find a place in teapots.

Mulberry Tea has been in use in various parts of the world, and now researchers at the university’s Department of Sericulture, are focuses on bringing out the best tea locally.

Afifa Saheen Kamli, the head of the department said:  "There is not just one benefit of the Mulberry plant you can make jam out of it. You can extract juice from it. We will demonstrate to farmers which variety is suitable for extracting high quality tea, which can be used for jam and which one for juice, but our main aim will be to augment the income of farmers."

Khurshid Ahmad Parray, a technical expert with the same department, said : "As far the medicinal benefits of the Mulberry tea are concerned they are numerous. It helps to cure Type II Diabetes. It cuts cholesterol. Besides, the Mulberry leaf is rich in nutrients and can be recommended to someone who has calcium deficiency."

The department is also trying to acquire a natural colouring agent from the Mulberry fruit, which could be useful to the food industry.

The university has already produced a mulberry concentrate, mulberry jam, and mulberry resins from mulberry trees.

Farmers who own mulberry plantations can enjoy additional economic benefits from these plantations that have so far been used only for silk related items.

Source ANI

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked why the Ambani brothers cannot settle their gas supply row through a “suitable arrangement.”

During a hearing of the dispute over supply of gas by RIL to RNRL at 2.34 dollars per mmBtu, the bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan said the two parties could arrive at a "suitable arrangement" through arbitration.

The case between Reliance Industries, headed by Mukesh, and the Reliance Natural Resources Ltd, led by Anil, is over a deal to sell gas from the Krishna Basin Reserve to the Reliance Natural Resource Limited (RNRL) at below-market rates as per a family settlement.

RIL headed by Mukesh, told the court that it considered the government''s gas utilisation and pricing policy as the "suitable arrangement."

RIL counsel Harish Salve also opposed Reliance Natural Resources Ltd''s plea for dismissing RIL''s petition, saying only his client''s creditors or members of the Board can challenge maintainability of the petition.

Salve said RNRL was a third party and hence, cannot seek dismissal of RIL''s plea.

RNRL has also separately challenged the government''s petition in the dispute.

Just ten days ago, Anil made a surprise truce offer to resolve the dispute amicably. But with Mukesh rejecting Anil''s olive branch, the action has now moved to the Supreme Court.

In a statement on October 11, Anil said all disagreements could be resolved within weeks, but RIL questioned the sincerity of the offer made "through the public domain" and said Anil could have easily contacted his elder brother directly.

RIL also asked Anil to demonstrate the bonafide of his intentions behind the latest overture, adding it welcomes this positive indicator and will not be found wanting in responding to them constructively.

The latest tussle between the feuding brothers, which stems from the 2005 break-up of the Reliance empire built by their father, has raised concerns it could discourage investment in the sector as India scrambles to shore up its energy security.

The Government had earlier made a petition to intervene in the case, arguing that the gas is ''state property'' and that the private agreement between the Ambanis over the gas is not valid.

Source ANI