Headline News

[M.G.Balakrishna Rao]

Source : Deccan Herald
Country : India

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JULY 19
=======

CENTRE OKAYS SOCIAL AID SCHEME
NEW DELHI - A national social assistance scheme providing for old age
pension, survivor benefit to the poor families on the death of primary
bread earner and maternity benefits was approved in principle by the
Union Cabinet tonight.

ENRON REVIEW REPORT IN, FINAL DECISION FOR CABINET

GOVT APPEALS FOR RELEASE OF TOURISTS
SRI NAGAR - The Govt today made appeals over the electronic media to the
Al-Faran outfit to release the five foreign tourists it has been holding
hostage, but there was no word from the captors.

LANKAN ARMY DENIES REBEL CLAIM OVER RECAPTURED AREA
COLOMBO - The claims and counter-claims by the Sri Lankan army and the
Tamil rebels continued today with the rebels claiming that they had
pushed back the army to its earlier position in the Jaffna peninsula
and the army dismissing the claim.

34 KILLED IN MADAGASCAR PLANE CRASH

CENTRE UNLIKELY TO HEED STATE STATE PLEA ON DROUGHT

RAJIV ASSASSINATION CASE
JAIN PANEL DIRECTIVE PUTS TRIAL IN JEOPARDY

BJP BRACES UP FOR ALL-OUT BATTLE TO CAPTURE POWER

UN ASKED TO END 'GENOCIDE' OF LANKA TAMILS

BOFORS: CONG(I) DENIES PRESSURE TO SHIELD NAMES

2 MORE INVOLVED IN TANDOOR MURDER CASE IDENTIFIED

RAZING OF DISPUTED STRUCTURE AT AYODHYA
ADVANI, THACKERAY HATCHED PLOT: CBI
LUCKNOW - The CBI today submitted to the specially Designated Court hearing
the Ayodhya demolition case that a conspiracy to demolish the disputed
structure was hatched in October 1990 between Mr L K Advani and Mr Bal
Thackeray on the occasion of rath yatra, and gradually other people joined
because of their commitment to the BJP.

NOTORIOUS POACHER HELD
Notorious poacher, Sansar Chand, wanted in over 40 cases of poaching and
trading of protected animal skins, has been arrested by Delhi Police, reports
PTI from New Delhi quoting police sources.

DISPUTES IN S.ASIA MAY LEAD TO ANOTHER INDO-PAK WAR: REPORT

SHARP RISE IN RBI NET CREDIT TO CENTRAL GOVERNMENT
NEW DELHI - The RBI's net credit to the Centre has registered a sharp
increase of Rs. 12,999 crore during the first quarter of the current
financial year.

GOVT LIKELY TO RESTRUCTURE PSUs

BHEL BAGS WORLD BANK ORDER
India's premier engineering enterprise, BHEL has bagged a World Bank
financed order for supply of control and instrumentation system with
accessories for 500MW thermal unit at Chanrapur super thermal power
station in M'rashtra, UNI reports from New Delhi.

WIPRO LAUNCHES NEW LINE MATRIX PRINTERS
Wipro Peripherals has launched a new series of heavy duty, high volume
line matrix printers from Printronix, USA. The new range consists of
4 models - from the MVP, which is a 200 lines per minute printer, to
the 9212, which is a 1200 lines per minute printer. With these Wipro
Peripherals have ushered into a new generation of high reliability
printers into the country. These will replace the older band printers
which have become extinct internationally.

WORLD BANK LOANS UP BY 8%
The World Bank has said on Monday that loan approvals jumped by over
8% in 1994-95, placed by big increases in credits to Latin america, the
Caribbean, eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, Reuter reports.

FIRM TREND CONTINUES ON DALAL STREET

JULY 20
==== ==

PAK LEADER MAY NEGOTIATE RELEASE
FATE OF FOREIGNERS STILL UNCERTAIN; ABDUCTORS SILENT
SRI NAGAR - Appeals and intensified efforts to secure the release of
5 foreign tourists held hostage by the Al-Faran militant outfit had
no desired effect and the fate of the hostages continued to remain
uncertain for the 16th day today.

FILM ACTOR BALAKRISHNA IS DEAD
B'LORE - Octogenarian Kannada film comedian T N Balakrishna, who had
entertained lakhs of cinegoers through his bewildering variety of
roles - hero, comedian, villian amd lunatic - and created a record
by acting in 512 films died here tonight following lung cancer. He was 82.

NEIGHBOURING STATES ACCUSED OF ENCROACHMENT
ORISSA GOVT PROTESTS TRUNCATION OF BORDERS

CENTRE WON'T SCUTTLE PROBE' ON JAYA AIDE
MADRAS - Tamil Nadu Cong(I) Committee President Kumari Ananthan said here
today the Enforcement Directorate inquiry against relatives of CM J
Jayalalitha's aide Sashikala Natarajan was only the beginning and the
"net will widen soon".

POISONOUS GAS KILLS 7
Seven people were feared dead after inhaling poisonous gas inside a well
in a village near Jaipur today, PTI reports.

ENQUIRY INTO MULTI-CRORE HAWALA RACKET
ANTICIPATORY BAIL DENIED TO NEPHEW OF JAYA'S AIDE

INDIA, SA SIGN TECHNOLOGY PACT
India and South Africa on Wednesday signed the first ever science and
technology cooperation agreement that is expected to strengthen bilateral
cooperation, reports PTI from New Delhi.

MAGSAYSAY AWARD FOR BANNED INDONESIAN WRITER
MANILA - Indonesian novelist Pramoedya Ananta Toer (70), whose works
have been banned in his home country, has been awarded the Ramon
Magsaysay Award for literature, the award foundation announced here today.

SEBI TO INITIATE REFORMS IN MAJOR SES
LONDON - A series of significant changes will be introduced in the Indian
Stock Exchanges over the next 6 months, Securities and Exchanges Board of
India (SEBI) Chairman D R Mehta told foreign investors at a meeting here.

THERMAL PLANT TO GET 184.2 MT COAL
The Ministry of Coal has agreed to supply 184.2 million tonnes coals to
the thermal plants during 1995-96. The supply is expected to maintain
the Plant Load Factor (PLF) at around 62%, reports UNI.

TITAN TO LAUNCH SHOES IN DOMESTIC MARKET
Titan Foods & Fashions Ltd, manufacturers and exporters of quality leather
shoes, will soon enter the domestic market by Aug 1995. Leather Shoes
crafted by Italian designers with exclusive models and designs would
be launched shortly in B'lore & Bombay.

DHANALAKSHMI BANK TO PAY 25%
The Board of Directors of the Dhanalakshmi Bank has proposed of 25% to
its share holders for the year ended March 1995. The decision was taken
at the Directors meeting held recently.

JULY 21
==== ==

CENTRE TO RELEASE RS 29.62 CR FOR DROUGHT RELIEF

7 MORE KILLED IN KARACHI VIOLENCE

NF MAY PART COMPANY WITH DMK, ROPE IN SP, AIADMK
NEW DELHI - The National Front was all set today to broadbase its grouping
by roping in the AIADMK and the Samajwadi Party into its fold while showing
all signs that it would virtually part company with the DMK.

'INDIA HAS RIGHT TO MAKE N-WEAPONS'
B'LORE - Former Foreign Secretary A P Venkateshwaran today asserted that
no country could question India's right to manufacture nuclear weapons if
its security was at stake. There was a gap between preaching and practice
of the countries, which were trying to force Nuclear non-Proliferation
Treaty of India, he added.

PM LIKELY TO VISIT ORISSA IN AUG

SEBI TO DECIDE ON FORWARD TRADING SOON

APPLE LAUNCHES DIGITAL COLOUR CAMERAS
B'LORE - Strengthening its commitment to offer complete imaging solutions
for image capture, manipulation and output, Apple Computer today announced
in B'lore,the Quick Take 150 digital colour camera for Macintosh, Power
Macintosh and Wipro Computers.

[M.G.Balakrishna Rao]

Source : Deccan Herald
Country : India

* * * * * *

JULY 26
==== ==

ECONOMIC PROGRAMME TO BE CONG(I)'S MAIN POLL PLANK
PVN ASKS PARTYMEN TO EXPLAIN REFORMS TO POOR

ENVIRONMENT MINISTER GIVES NOD FOR COGENTRIX POWER PLANT IN MANGALORE
TALKS REOPENED ON PPA
PROJECT TO BE CLEARED IN FOUR DAYS: DEVE GOWDA
BANGALORE - Even as the environment bosses remained tightlipped about
granting clearance for the 1000-mw Cogentrix power project near Mangalore,
representatives of the US firm, now camping in the State, reopened
negotiations on the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) signed with the Karnataka
Electricity Board (KEB).

IA PROPOSES 20 PC FARE HIKE
NEW DELHI - Indian Airlines is contemplating a 20 per cent hike in fares
to meet escalating costs and to cut down losses.

FOREIGN HOSTAGES REMAIN UNTRACED, 23 KILLED
SRINAGAR - The whereabouts of the five foreign tourists, held hostage by
the AI-Faram militant group, remained unknown on their 22nd day in
captivity today as militants killed two local hostages in the Kashmir Valley.
Elsewhere in the valley, 21 people, 13 of them militants, and two engineers,
were killed and 36 militants apprehended during the past 24 hours.

ISRO ACHIEVES ANOTHER MILESTONE
BANGALORE - With the successful ground firing of the liquid engine, for use
in the strap-on stage of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle the ISRO
has achieved a milestone towards the GSLV.

LAND ACQUISITION FOR AIRPORT AT DEVANAHALLI NEAR B'LORE CHALLENGED

RAO, VP & SHEKHAR PLOTTED RAJIV MURDER: TEWARY
NEW DELHI - Former union minister Prof. K.K. Tewary today accused three prime
ministers, including P.V.Narasimha Rao, of having "Masterminded" the
assassination of former premier Rajiv Gandhi.

CHRISTIAN FACTIONS IN KERALA INTENSIFY WAR
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - Legal war between the two factions of the Malankara
Syrian Orthodox Church (St. Thomas Christians) seems to be far from over
despite a Supreme Court verdict (Dated last June 20) which seemed to offer
a way out of the schismatic impulses being pursued by both.

NTR, SON HEADING FOR SHOWDOWN
HYDERABAD - Events are moving fast towards a showdown between an angry
father, CM N.T. Rama Rao, and his rebellious son, Nandamuri Harikrishna,
and the question is: What will the fallout be on the all-important
parliamentary elections and on the administration of the State?

LEADING BREWERS JOIN HANDS
Three of the country's leading alcoholic beverage manufacturers-the UB Group,
Shaw Wallace and Jagatjit Industries have joined hands in a confederation
formed to deal with issues related to the industry and to clearly present and
explain their viewpoint to the various bodies interacting with it, reports
from Bombay say.

SINGAPORE TARGETS SOUTH INDIA FOR TOURISM PROMOTION
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - The Singapore Tourist Promotion Board(STPB) is seeking
to develop Karnataka and Kerala as thrust areas in south India to attract
upmarket tourists to the island state which has seen a fall in Indian
visitors.

SENSEX CROSSES 3,500 MARK
BOMBAY - The rally witnessed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in the past
couple of weeks gained further momentum today. Pivotals firmed up on higher
support from institutions due to reports that Securities and Exchange Board
of India (Sebi) would discuss forward trading in the coming board meeting
scheduled for July 27.

NATIONAL GAMES/STADIUM PROJECTS BEHIND SCHEDULE
COMMITTEE HOPEFUL OF MEETING DEADLINE
BANGALORE - It may seem like an empty rhetoric now, but the National Games
Organising Committee does not tire of claiming that the mega event will be
held on time.
The refrain persisted even today as newsmen were taken on a visit to the
various venues in the city. If the pace of work is any indication, the Games,
scheduled to take place from january 28 to February 7, 1996 will certainly
be postponed.

ICC TO HOLD WORLD CUP ON ITS OWN
CALCUTTA - The International Cricket Council (ICC) will organise all the
World Cup championships itself after the 1996 edition.

JULY 27
==== ==

ONE KILLED, 52 HURT IN JAMMU BLAST
JAMMU - One sadhu was killed and 52 others were injured - 4 of them
seriously - in a powerful bomb blast near the Ranabireshwar temple
on Shalimar road and subsequent clashes between mobs and police here today.

SANJAY DEJECTED WITH LIFE
Jailed film star Sanjay Dutt is so dejected by his prision life that he sees
death as his only salvation, reports UNI from Bombay.

HC ISSUED NOTICE TO PEREIRA IN 'TANDOOR' CASE
NEW DELHI - Whether or not Naina Sahni murder-case accused Sushil Sharma
would be found guilty, the Delhi High Court today issued notices to
Additional Commissioner of Police Maxwell Pereira for his reported statement
"we have enough proof to hang Sushil".

UDF TO DECIDE ON PILLAI ISSUE TODAY
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - The high power committee of the United Democratic
Front met here on Tuesday evening only to put off the decision on whether
or not to jettison Transport Minister R Balakrishna Pillai from the Cabinet
to tomorrow, when it is scheduled to meet again.

NTR TURNS BLIND EYE TO SON'S REBELLION, SUSPENDS AIDE
HYDERABAD - The father rather than the party leader took precedence when AP
CM and Telugu Desam Party President NTR chose to give a gentle slap on the
wrist of his rebellious son, Mr Nandamuri Harikrishna.

COGENTRIX DEAL FAR FROM FINAL, CLARIFIES J H PATEL

D K NAICKER IS NEW STATE CONG CHIEF
NEW DELHI - Mr D K Naikcer, backward class leader and Lok Sabha member from
Dharwad North, will be the new President of the Karnataka Pradesh Cong(I)
Committee (KPCC-I).

CBI NABS TWO MORE BLAST ACCUSED
The CBI has nabbed two more accused in the Bombay bomb blast case.
The duo, Saleem Mir Qasim ali Alias Kutta and Jameed Qadri, were declared
proclaimed offenders and were absconding for a long time, CBI said on
Wednesday.

NO DECISION YET ON INDIAN AIRLINES FARE HIKE, SAYS MODY

CPI DENIES THREAT TO QUIT FRONT
LEFT UNHAPPY WITH NF PLAN TO WOO AIADMK

TIRUCHIRAPALLI TO BE TRIFURCATED
Tiruchirapalli district will be trifurcated for administrative reasons,
with Tiruchirapalli, Karur and Perambalur as the new headquarters, PTI
reports from Madras.

FLOODS KILL 100 IN PAKISTAN
Floods, landslides and lightening strikes wreaked havoc in Northern Pakistan,
killing at least 100 people, the state-run television said, reports AP from
Peshawar.

ENRON COULD RELOCATE PROJECT IF CONTROVERSY CONTINUES
WASHINGTON - Enron may consider taking its investment elsewhere in India if
the controversy over its $2.8 billion Dabhol power project is not resolved
soon by the Maharashtra govt, a senior company official has indicated.

KOTAK MAHINDRA TIES UP WITH GOLDMAN SACHS
The Goldman Sachs group, the international investment banking and brokerage
firm, has picked up a 28% stake in Kotak Mahindra Capital Corporation, an
investment banking subsidiary of the Kotak Mahindra group.

VERIFONE TO EXPAND R&D CENTRE IN CITY
B'LORE - Verifone, the transaction automation company, announced plans to
expand its research and development centre in the city and to establish a
direct sales office to tap the growing Indian market.
Verifone's direct sales office is to be opened here on September 1.
Mr Giri Khatod, who has been named the country manager, will head the
office. The strength of the R & D centre in the city, established in
1990, is proposed to be doubled to 200 by the end of the year. Towards
this, a recruitment drive is being launched to pick the best of talents,
Mr Tyabji said. VeriFone's development centre in Bangalore received the
IS0-9001 TickIT certification recently.

BILLIARDS/GRAND SLAM FIRST LEG
CHAPMAN OVERWHELMS SETHI
MADRAS - Even to a hardened pro like Geet Sethi it was not easy to believe
the manner in which the balls rolled for him on the opening day of the
first leg of the Grand Slam series.

JULY 29
==== ==

KERALA: BALAKRISHNA PILLAI RESIGNS

STATE LIKELY TO GET VOLKSWAGEN CAR UNIT
SINGAPORE KEEN ON TOURISM PROJECTS, INFRASTRUCTURE: CM
B'LORE - The Singapore Govt has evinced interest in facilitating a Volkswagen
car manufacturing unit in the State, CM H D Deve Gowda announced here today.
Addressing a press conference after a 4-day official visit to Singapore, he
said Singapore business houses had also shown interest to participate in
infrastructure and tourism development projects in the State. The investors
have specifically asked to allot land in B'lore-Mysore corridor for setting
up a satellite township, he said.

SEBI APPROVES FORWARD TRADING
BOMBAY - In a significant move, the Securities and Exchange Board of India
(Sebi) today agreed to introduce a revised carryforward system in the stock
market and transactions would now be allowed to the carried forward for
a period not exceeding 90 days.

NO UNIFORM CIVIL CODE, SAYS PM

BLAST: KHALISTAN OUTFIT CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY
SRINAGAR - The Khalistan Liberation Force (Shaheed group) today claimed
responsibility for the bomb blast in Jammu Yesterday which left one dead
and 32 wounded.

COGENTRIX: BJP SEEKS CBI PROBE INTO COST-PADDING

JAIN PANEL PROBE ENTERS CRUCIAL PHASE
NEW DELHI - The Jain Commission of inquiry is poised to enter the most
crucial phase in the next two days when the chiefs and two top officers
of the IB and RAW enter the witness box.

M'RASHTRA TO BAN COW SLAUGHTER

GOVT TO SHIFT MISSILE LAUNCH PAD
BHUBANESHWAR - The launch pad for the test firing of India's missiles
including Agni is being shifted from the coastal township of Chandipur
in northern Orissa to the Wheeler Islands off Orissa coast.

MAJOR AIRLINES SLASH FARE TO INDIA
DUBAI - Air fare from the Untied Arab Emirates to Delhi and Bombay have
been slashed for the lean season by several major airlines.
The decision to bring down the fare from August 1 was taken at a meeting
of the Yield Improvement Committee (YIC) yesterday.

300 INDIANS STRANDED IN SAUDI
More than 300 Indians have been stranded in Saudi Arabia after their sponsor,
who brought them in violation of labour laws, died in a fire, reports PTI
from Dubai.

WTO TAKES UP INDIA'S CASE
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has convened a meeting next month between
India and the United States on the latter's 'unilateral' imposition of
quantitative restrictions of Indian woollen garments, reports PTI from New
Delhi.

GOVT NOD FOR IOC'S JV
The Govt has approved IOC's proposal to have Kuwait Petroleum Corporation as
its joint venture partner for the proposed east coast refinery thus bringing
to an end uncertainty over the multi-crore project, reports PTI from New Delhi.

CHUGH MAY BE FORCED TO QUIT
CALCUTTA - The future of ITC chairman-cum-managing director, Mr Kishan
Lal Chugh, hangs in the balance once again with the London -headquartered
BAT Industries, the company's single largest shareholder, insisting on his
resignation.

SUN MICROSYSTEMS OFFICE IN CITY
B'LORE - Sun Microsystems International Operation on Wednesday announced
the establishment of its India office in B'lore. Mr Murray Heron, MD, Sun
Microsystems (South Asia) who made the announcement said that Sun perceived
India as a growing market in information technology. Opportunities
available here will be used as a leverage for future investments, he added.

SCRIPS RULE STEADY ON BSE
BSE sensitive index opened at 3,553.99 points and moved up moderately to
settle down at 3,556.95 points, whereas the national index eased by 7.35
points to 1635 points.

DAVIS CUP /REBEUH NAMED AS UMPIRE
NO CHANGE IN INDIAN TEAM
NEW DELHI - There will be a star on the side line when Croatia meet India in
the World Group Davis Cup qualifying tie here from Sept 22 to 24.