815 HRS

8^th October, 2013

THE HEADLINES:

• Four Union Ministers from Andhra Pradesh decide not to attend office from today to protest against bifurcation of the state; Power supply and train services continue to remain disrupted in Seemandhra region.
• Prime Minister reviews country's nuclear preparedness with top security officials, including three Service Chiefs.
• Jammu and Kashmir Assembly passes a resolution asking the Centre to conduct a probe into charges leveled by former Army Chief V K Singh about political payoffs.
• Maldives' Supreme Court declares first round of Presidential polls null and void; Orders fresh poll on 20th of this month.
• IAF celebrates Air Force Day today showcasing the country's air strike capabilities.

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Four Union Ministers M M Pallam Raju, K Chiranjeevi, D Purandeswari and Surya Prakash Reddy met the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi yesterday and requested him to accept their resignations over the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. They also decided not to attend office from today. Belonging to the Congress, all of them are from Seemandhra region of Andhra Pradesh. Home Minister Sushi Kumar Shinde also had a meeting with Dr. Manmohan Singh on the anti-Telangana protests. He assured all regions of the state of an amicable solution that safeguards the interests of all.

I would like to assure the people of Seemandhara that the Government of India remains fully committed to addressing all the concerns particularly with respect to safeguarding the interests of people living in Telangana, the concerns with regard to the education and employment opportunity in Hyderabad for the youth.

Large areas of Rayalaseema and Coastal Andhra regions continued to reel under the severe power crisis with electricity employees refusing to call off their stir. They have been striking work in protest against bifurcation of the state for the past three days resulting in a severe power crisis. Thousands of villages and cities especially in the 13 districts of Seemandhra regions including Visakhapatnam, Kakinada, Vijayawada have been without electricity for hours together while emergencies in key installations like airports and hospitals are being managed through alternatives. More from our correspondent:

The miseries that the common people are facing in Rayalseema andCoastalandhra regions of the state are unexplainable due to the ongoing indefinite strike. Public felt the pinch of power crisis, as they could not draw money from ATMs while suffering shortage of water, petrol and essential commodities. In Visakhapatnam, Airport, Port and Steel plant are being operated to some extent on generators. The impact was felt mainly due to complete shutdown of the Vijayawada and Rayalaseema Thermal Power Stations beside Sileru-Donkarayi hydel station and the right canal of Srisailam hydel project. Rail traffic has also been affected with the authorities canceling several passenger and express trains in Vijayawada division. With Henry in Vizag, Lakshmi, AIR News, Hyderabad.

Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy will hold talks with the agitating employees tomorrow. He appealed to power sector employees to call off their strike in view of the hardships to the general public.Curfew will be relaxed this morning for two hours in two spells in violence-hit Vizianagram town. 

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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh yesterday took stock of the preparedness of the country's nuclear arsenal with top security brass, including the Chiefs of the three Services. The command and control structures of the forces handling the arsenal are understood to have come up for discussion at the biennial meeting of the Nuclear Command Authority headed by the Prime Minister. The meeting was attended by National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon, Army Chief Bikram Singh, Air Chief N A K Browne and Naval Chief D K Joshi. The critical Tri-Service Strategic Forces Command was created in 2003 to manage and administer the country's nuclear arsenal. 

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The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly has  unanimously passed a resolution asking the Centre to conduct a thorough and time-bound probe into the charges leveled by former Army Chief, V K Singh about payoffs to politicians in the state. The resolution was adopted after a three and a half hour debate on the allegations made by Gen Singh recently. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah proposed the one-line resolution which was unanimously adopted by the House. He said such an enquiry is essential to restore the confidence of the people in the democratic process in the state and also in the important institution of the Army. 

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The Supreme Court will pronounce its order today on the plea of dentist couple Rajesh and Nupur Talwar seeking the reports of the polygraph, narco-analysis and brain-mapping tests conducted on their three helpers who were initially accused of murdering their daughter Aarushi. A Bench of Justices BS Chauhan and SA Bobde reserved the order after the Talwar couple, who are facing trial for allegedly killing their teenaged daughter, pleaded that these reports were essential to defend themselves. The CBI is opposing their plea saying that it is a tactic on the part of the couple to prolong the trial. 

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Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh will leave for  Bandar Seri Begawan tomorrow on a two day visit to Brunei. He will attend the 11th ASEAN Summit in Brunei and will later participate in the East Asian Summit in Jakarta. Dr. Singh's visit is expected to further enhance India's strategic partnership and trade ties with ASEAN nations.  In Bandar Seri Begawan, he is likely to have bilateral meetings with leaders of Australia and Brunei. Our correspondent reports that Brunei and India enjoy a fair degree of commonality in their perception of major international issues.

This is for the first time that Indian Prime Minister will be visiting Brunei in nearly 30 years of diplomatic relationship between the two countries. The Indian High Commissioner in Brunei L D Ralte expressed hope that Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh’s Brunei visit will provide a big boost to bilateral relations. In an exclusive interview to All India Radio, he said that efforts are on to provide Bruneian citizens facility of visa-on-arrival in India. Brunei is supportive of India’s 'Look East' policy and expansion and deepening cooperation with ASEAN. Brunei supports India’s claim for permanent membership in United Nation’s Security Council. Shariq Noor, AIR News, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei. 

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President Pranab Mukherjee has reiterated India's stand of resolving all bilateral issues with Pakistan within the framework of the Shimla Agreement. He said India's approach in respect of Pakistan is essentially bilateral with the exclusion of any third country intervention.  He was reacting to a question on the Turkish-Pakistan relationship by journalists on board during his journey back from a two nations tour last night. Mr. Mukherjee said during his discussion with the Turkish President and Prime Minister they have recognized that terrorism has no country, no respect for borders and no religion. The President has since arrived in New Delhi after paying a visit to Belgium and Turkey. 

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The Indian Air Force is celebrating its 81st anniversary  today. It will showcase its full range of modern aerial capabilities to mark the day at a grand parade at the Air Force Station Hindon in Ghaziabad. C-17 Globemaster, the biggest transport aircraft of the Air Force will be unveiled during the parade. It will be followed by a Sukhoi Su-30 MKI aircraft and Tigermoth, a vintage carrier. The culmination of the Air Force Day parade will be marked by three Mi-17 V5 helicopters, which will fly at a low altitude over spectators on the ground and sky divers of the Akash Ganga team will be seen dropping out of AN-32 aircraft.

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In Maldives, the country's Supreme Court has declared null and void the first round of the Presidential polls in which former President Mohammed Nasheed emerged as the winner. President Mohammed Waheed's Press Secretary Masood Imad said that the Supreme Court yesterday annulled the first round of presidential elections held on 7th of last month. The Maldivian High Commissioner to India said, the verdict was given by a majority of the judges of the 7-judge bench. The court also declared that fresh polls will be held before 20th of October and if there is to be a second round, it must be held before the 4th of November. Our correspondent has filed this report: 

The 4:3 verdict ignored the unanimous positive assessment by all international observers but mentions a confidential police report that claimed 5600 votes were ineligible. The report has not been made public. Grasim Ibrahim, the resort tycoon had filed the case demanding the result be annulled. Supporters of Nasheed have expressed outrage at the decision, while Abdulla Yameen's party welcomed it and called for the resignation of the head of Election Commission, Fuwad Towfeek, on moral grounds. Abhishek Dayal, AIR News. 

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Egyptian authorities have put the security forces and the police in a state of nationwide alert  after 10 soldiers and policemen were killed in gunfire and bomb explosions yesterday. More from our West Asia Correspondent: 

Three attacks targeting security personnel in Cairo, Ismailiya and Sinai have raised the specter of  terrorists threat looming large in Egypt. Six soldiers at an army patrol in Ismailiya were gunned down. Then a massive car bomb blast at military headquarters in south Sinai left four policemen dead while 48 others were injured. In Cairo a Nilesat uplinking facility was attacked. Anticipating trouble ahead, Special forces have secured all the entrances and exit to Cairo airport besides departure and arrival terminals and roads leading to airport. Authorities have also ordered removal of abandoned cars from streets for fear they could be used as car bombs by suspected Islamist insurgents. Atul Tiwary, AIR News.           

In yet another setback to Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's State Commissioners Authority, a body that advises the government on legal issues, has recommended the dissolution of its political arm - the Freedom and Justice Party. 

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A string of attacks across Iraq, including a coordinated wave of late evening bombings in Baghdad killed at least 45 people yesterday as al-Qaida claimed responsibility for a recent spate of suicide attacks in the relatively peaceful Kurdish north.  Police said a rapid-fire wave of bombings rocked the Iraqi capital shortly after sunset at eight different places causing causalities. A car bomb and a roadside bomb exploded in a market and nearby parking lot in the northern Shiite district of Husseiniya, killing seven and wounding 21. 

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NEWSPAPERS HEADLINES

• The total blackout in Seemandra as well as the Jammu and Kashmir assembly's unanimous resolution to probe into allegations of payoffs to politicians are the main stories on the front pages of almost all the dailies.
• "India rejects Pak denial on incursion" reports the Tribune; New Delhi stands "firm on maintaining LoC sanctity; PM meets chiefs of three services" and "is believed to have discussed the operation to flush out militants in the Keran sector."
•  Rejecting the BCCI suggestion for a probe by a special committee into the IPL match fixing scandal, the Supreme Court proposes a three member panel to conduct an independent inquiry into the scam, reports the Asian Age. "Court proposes Mudgal panel to probe spot-fixing" headlines the Hindu. "SC snubs BCCI" says the Times of India.
• Revealing the relationship between crime, wealth and politics, the Mail Today and the Times of India quote data analysed by the Association for Democratic Reforms showing that 43% of MLAs in Delhi Assembly face criminal cases followed by Madhya Pradesh "a poor second with 25% and Rajasthan is third with 16%." Also 69% of Delhi MLAs have crossed the crorepati line, Rajasthan is second with 46% and Madhya Pradesh with 38%.
• SBI gets first woman chief reports all newspapers. Arundhati Bhattacharya is the "first woman" to head the country's largest lender in its 207 year history."says the Asian Age.
• The Statesman reports "Autonomy for 45 top colleges on the anvil" by the end of the 12th plan, a decision taken by the Ministry of Human resource development and UGC. The Times of India adds, "Autonomous colleges to grant degrees", following an amendment in the UGC Act.
• And finally, in what could be a simple step in reducing anemia, the Times of India reports that "delayed clamping and cutting of the Umbilical cord, instead of immediately after birth, as is the normal practice, can lead to significant increase in hemoglobin levels in babies. A matter of seconds can make a huge difference to new born babies." 

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In Jammu and Kashmir, the child sex-ratio has shown a remarkable increase from 859 in 2011 to 913 in 2012-2013. Replying to a discussion over female foeticide in the State Legislative Council in Srinagar, Minister of State for Health Shabir Ahmad Khan said the increase in the ratio was the result of collective efforts by the State government and civil society, including NGOs and religious leaders.