National News

Coming down heavily on Opposition leader LK Advani's statement that the Jaipur blasts were a result of the CPM's softness on terror, the CPM said Advani is trying to inflame communal passions.

On the eve of Congress president Sonia Gandhi's visit to Jaipur to meet victims of the serial bomb blasts, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje questioned the purpose of the visit, saying if Gandhi wanted to make a "political point", this was not the time.

The government on Wednesday underlined the need for a federal security agency to deal with terror attacks in the country even as it, without naming the country, pointed fingers at Pakistan for the serial explosions in Jaipur that killed 64 and injured over 140.

Ending the waiting game, Telugu megastar Chiranjeevi is likely to launch his party in June, soon after the by-elections in the Telengana region of Andhra Pradesh.

The state of Punjab is quite confident of procuring bulk milk this summer season. Thanks to the efforts made by the Punjab State Cooperative Milk Producers' Federation Ltd (Milkfed) over a period of time. The average daily milk procurement in Punjab is already up by over 20% at 9 lakh kg/day as compared to the same period last year when the milk procurement was around 7.5 lakh g/day.

Haryana Tourism Corporation has achieved a record turnover of Rs 188.02 crore in the year 2007-08 as against the turnover of Rs 171.69 crore last year, registering an increase of Rs 16.33 crore.

Though the adoption of the value added tax (VAT) regime in Uttar Pradesh was ridden with protests and opposition, the state has witnessed unprecedented buoyancy in collections of VAT in the first three months after implementing it.

After threatening physical curtailment of power of Uttar Pradesh for the non payment of arrears towards unscheduled interchange (UI) charges for overdrawal, the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has expressed severe displeasure over Jammu and Kashmir's failure to liquidate UI arrears of Rs 666.68 crore.

The BJP on Wednesday revived its demand for bringing Pota back, arguing that it was the only potent weapon in the hands of security agencies to combat terror attacks like the one that rocked Jaipur on Tuesday.

Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal on Wednesday called for chalking out a multi-pronged time bound strategy to achieve the objective of 'safe drinking water for all' through proper monitoring of rural water supply schemes by application of reverse osmosis, silver ionization and ultra violet techniques depending on the quality of water.

Notwithstanding it having been party to the Cabinet meeting approving the draft women's reservation Bill, the RJD on Wednesday flagged its staunch opposition to it by nominating Devendra Prasad Yadav in the key parliamentary committee that will look into the legislation.

With India and Germany having recently enhanced their bilateral air traffic rights from 50 to 69 flights a week, premier German carrier Lufthansa will launch an all-business flight from Pune to Munich next month exercising new rights.

Kashmir valley is abuzz these days with tourist arrivals, air tickets to the valley are at an all time high and hotel industry is jostling to accommodate bookings, a phenomenon witnessed after a gap of nearly two decades.

The National Consumer Commission has held that a builder cannot deny compensation to a buyer on its failure to deliver a flat within a stipulated time.

In a sign of the increasing recognition of the Indian art on world canvas, 26 works from contemporary Indian artists would go under the hammer at the International auction house Christie's Spring 2008 sales of Asian Contemporary Art.

The Congress leadership might have snubbed HRD minister Arjun Singh for his comments on loyalty and sycophancy, but he had an unexpected visitor on Sunday evening in CPM general secretary Prakash Karat.

Track two diplomacy on Jammu and Kashmir is expected to get a major fillip later this month when President Pratibha Patil inaugurates a school on Kashmir Studies in Kashmir University that will be attended by a high-profile crowd from SAARC countries.

It is exactly a year since Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati stunned everyone with her amazing electoral victory.

The Haryana Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Ltd (Hafed) is going to start marketing of organic products from Haryana under group certification after sourcing them from the existing certified fields.

Violence during Panchayat elections in Punjab which claimed three lifes on Monday has not only created a wedge between ruling alliance of Shiromani Akali Dal and Bharatiya Janta Party but has also resurrected Congress party in Punjab that had become a divided house after it lost power in the state.