Indian-American Suresh Kumar, who served as a special adviser to the Clinton foundation and was a news anchor in India from 1970 to 1985, has been appointed to a key administration post by President Barack Obama.
Kumar, known for his expertise of public-private partnership, has been nominated by Obama as Assistant Secretary of Commerce and [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Director General’
Obama appoints Indian-American to key post
October 30th, 2009 |
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Armed Maoists kidnap OC, injure ASI near Lalgarh
October 20th, 2009 |
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Suspected armed Maoists have abducted an officer-in-charge, injured an ASI and looted arms from a police station near Lalgarh in West Midnapore district, police said.
A group of about 25 Maoists on motorcycles raided the Sankrail police station, abducted officer-in-charge Atin Dutta and shot at assistant sub-inspector Sukhendu Mansata, they said.
They looted arms and ammunition [...]
Kosovo minister visits Brussels
October 13th, 2009 |
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Kosovo Minister Goran Bogdanović has discussed “the further functioning of the legitimate international presence in Kosovo“ with EU officials in Brussels.
In a statement, the Kosovo Ministry stated that Bogdanović had held meetings with the EU Council’s Director-General for External and Politico-Military Affairs Robert Cooper, EC Director-General for the Western Balkans Pierre Mirel and EULEX Chief Yves De Kermabon.
GHQ hostage saga ends
October 11th, 2009 |
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SHAHID RAO and ISRAR AHMED
RAWALPINDI – In a decisive and fierce commando action, the Special Services Group (SSG) personnel on Sunday morning killed four terrorists and arrested an injured terrorist Aqeel alias Dr Usman, the mastermind of the terrorist assault on Army Headquarters in Rawalpindi.
The SSG commandos also succeeded in recovering 39 hostages from security office near gate 2 of Pakistan ArmyÂ’s General Headquarters (GHQ), Rawalpindi. The security officials told TheNation that during the battle, two SSG commandoes embraced martyrdom while two others were injured. They further informed that three hostages were also martyred while five others (hostages) were maimed due to firing of the terrorists during this rescue operation of SSG commandos.
Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Major General Athar Abbas also confirmed the casualties saying that two SSG commandos and three hostages embraced martyrdom while two SSG commandos and five other hostages received injuries. The spokesman of the Pakistan Armed Forces further stated that there were 42 persons including many civilians who were held hostage by the five terrorists armed with lethal weapons and bombs. One terrorist was wearing an explosivesÂ’ jacket, he added.
According to details, the rescue operation was started at 6:00am which culminated at 8:45am with the release of 39 hostages safely.The SSG commandos including snipers took part in the rescue operation. At the beginning of the operation the snipers gunned down the terrorist, who reportedly was wearing a suicide jacket and was present among the 22 hostages in a room of the security compound outside the GHQ.
The snipersÂ’ shot was so sudden that the terrorist could not avail the chance of blowing himself up. To strike back, the terrorists who were inside the security compound opened fire on SSG commandos resulting in two soldiers embracing Shahadat. The terrorists also killed three hostages during gun battle. After this, SSG commandos killed the terrorists and freed the hostages from their custody.
Security officials told that in first attempt, Aqeed alias Dr Usman alias Ijaz managed to avoid his arrest but in second attempt SSG commandos succeeded to nab Aqeel alias Dr Usman. They further said that Aqeel, during resistance, received three bullet injuries two in leg and one in the arm.
He was shifted to special ward of Military Hospital (MH) amid tightest security. After providing him with necessary medical treatment, Aqeel was shifted to some unknown places for further investigation.
Before his arrest, Dr Usman heaped the caches of ammunition including hand grenades, detonators and land mines and set them on fire due to which a big explosion occurred, which also injured him. After that security forces rounded him up.
Those hostages who were killed were working as Naib Qasids and sweepers at security compound outside GHQ, security officials added. After the conclusion of operation, bomb disposal squad and forensic experts accompanied with trained sniffer dogs of Pakistan Army screened the whole area to find any land mines, possibly installed by the terrorists, who invaded on GHQ a day before. After an hour long search the whole area was declared clear and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani visited the operation site at security office gate 2 of GHQ. After operation, all hostages were transported to Trauma Centre of Combined Military Hospital (CMH), where they were given minor medical aid and served with breakfast before going home.
During the operation, Pakistan Army AviationÂ’s gunship choppers continued low trajectory flights over the security compound for aerial surveillance of operation area.
Police, Rescue 1122, Fire brigades and ambulance services were put on high alert outside gate 1 of the GHQ. Police horsemen and armoured vehicles kept patrolling around the Pakistan Army headquarter.
All the roads leading towards GHQ were closed for all kinds of traffic by placing barricades and concrete blocks.
The ice of silence broke at Sunday 1:00pm in Cantonment area, when authorities concerned opened the Mall Road for public movement after completing clear and search operation. However, GHQ was surrounded by Army officials.
It is learnt that master mind of the attack on GHQ, Aqeel alias Dr Usman alias Ijaz was serving as Nursing Assistant in Army Medical Corp (AMC) of Pakistan Army from where he absconded in 2006.
In 2007, he prepared a plan to assassinate former President General (retd) Pervez Musharraf by hitting his special aircraft with anti-aircraft gun from the vicinity of Banni, Rawalpindi.
Then, he managed the attack on Sri Lankan Cricket Team at Liberty Square, Lahore and then on Rescue 15 Building in Islamabad.
The government of Punjab had fixed the head money of Rs 5 million on alive or dead arrest of Aqeel alias Dr Usman.
The investigation team belonging to sensitive departments gathered DNA samples of the dead terrorists to move the process of interrogation in right directions. The photographs of three terrorists including master mind Aqeel alias Dr Usman have also been released by ISPR to media.
Earlier, the terrorists clad in Pakistan Army uniform riding a white Suzuki Carry van bearing Army number plate arrived at Gate 1 of GHQ on Saturday and tried to move inside but were stopped by soldiers on duty.
On this, the terrorist opened fire indiscriminately towards army officials and hurled hand grenades due to which 6 military officials including two army officers were martyred. In retaliation from Pakistan Army at picket number 2, four terrorists were killed.
Agencies add: ISPR DG General Athar Abbas said that intelligence officials were investigating possible links between the sole surviving militant Aqeel and the March attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore.
“Militants we arrested in Lahore had told us during interrogation that he masterminded the attack on the Sri Lankan team and provided weapons,” said an official.
Some hostage takersÂ’ phone calls were intercepted and they were speaking Punjabi, another security official said.
The Rawalpindi attack bore similarities to the March gun-and-grenade attack, which left six policemen and two civilians dead. Abbas said the militant held Sunday had the same name and alias as one of the Lahore attack suspects.
The hostages had been shifted to safer places and were in good health conditions while those injured were accordingly removed to CMH, Abbas said.
He said the combing and search of security office of General Headquarters, where the militants made hostage to the security personnel was over.
He said that there had been no senior officer among the hostages and the majority of hostages comprised army personnel and civilian servants.
There has been no claim of responsibility, but military and government officials blamed Taliban-linked militants.
The new Taliban leadership have vowed to avenge the death of their commander Baitullah Mehsud in a US drone missile attack in August, and are also keen to deter an assault on their stronghold, analysts say.
A total of 19 people were killed in the 24-hour operation.
Terror attack on GHQ
October 10th, 2009 |
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RAWALPINDI – In a deadly terrorist attack on Pakistan army headquarters (GHQ), four terrorists who launched the assault with sophisticated weapons were killed whereas six soldiers including two senior army officials were martyred here on Saturday.
Later, some four to five terrorists also took some 10 to 15 security personnel hostage in a security office near check post No 2 near GHQ.
Military officials said the attackers were surrounded, and efforts were being made to recover the hostages safely as the operation continued till the filing of this report.
Security officials and some eyewitnesses told TheNation that some terrorists riding in a white coloured Suzuki carry-van bearing army number plate reached a check post near GHQ where army personnel engaged the assailants in camouflage gear after they tried to enter the armed complex from gate No 1 at around 11:30am.
However, they tried to move to another check post when security guards intercepted them and security forces retaliated swiftly and effectively and killed four terrorists during an hour long action while six security personnel were martyred in the operation.
The security officials informed that at second check post near Hilal Road square, the vehicle was stopped for identification by security officials. But, the terrorists left the vehicle and took their positions within a moment and opened firing on army personnel. They also threw some hand grenades on the check post due to which six army personnel including Brig Anwar-ul-Haq and Lt. Col. Waseem were martyred.
Major General Athar Abbas Director General (DG) Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) confirmed that terrorists wearing forces uniform and riding in a white Suzuki van attacked first check post with automatic weapons.
“On the resistance of security guards, they tried to move towards another check point while four terrorists were killed during exchange of fire,” he added.
Spokesman Pakistan armed forces further told that six army personnel embraced martyrdom during the gun battle with suspected militant outside army headquarters.
Soon after the attack, security personnel cordoned off the whole area and search operation started in the area while air surveillance, with a view to locate the fleeing militants, was also commenced in the adjacent areas of GHQ.
Initially, it was said that the terrorists had been overpowered and the situation was under complete control. But it proved untrue as military officials later said that two more militants were still at large, after reports of sporadic gunfire in and around the compound.
Media sources said firing was still going on with up to five gunmen who had taken shelter in a security office and held hostage some 15 security men late night till filing of this report.
After the attack on GHQ, soldiers sealed off roads leading to the headquarters and helicopter remained hovering over the area to locate the escaped terrorists.
A high police official, on the condition of anonymity, told the reporters that the terrorists had latest guns, grenades and rocket launchers in such a big quantity , that they could fight for several hours but due to heroic retaliation from Pak Army, the terror campaign remained only for an hour or so.
After the incident people began to gather in large numbers but they were stopped near GPO Chowk. The army and police commandos cordoned off the whole area and traffic was diverted from Mall Road to other routes of the city.
The educational institutions were closed down and the parents rushed towards schools to collect their children. The security of all sensitive places in Rawalpindi was beefed up and extra contingents of police were deployed at different places.
Agencies add: Government ministers blamed the Taliban, who have also vowed to avenge the death of their leader Baitullah Mehsud in a US drone missile attack in August.
Another military official in Islamabad said there were at least six attackers in the assault on the heavily-fortified army command centre.
“Four were killed. Two are still missing. The hunt is going on,” said the official with Army’s media wing. He blamed the attack on Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
An AFP journalist at the scene of SaturdayÂ’s gun battle reported that the firefight began just before midday and lasted about an hour and a half, with helicopters ferrying the dead militants away after the battle ended.
Witnesses said that the militants hurled hand-grenades, with one man saying five explosions rang out amid the gunfire. “A car was signalled to stop outside Army headquarters,” local police officer on the scene Amjad Ali told AFP. “The occupants opened fire and threw grenades at security guards who retaliated.”
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani strongly condemned the attack, a brief statement issued by his office in Islamabad said, and met the Army Chief and the President to discuss the security situation.
Police officials said that security had been beefed up in Islamabad, amid fears of more insurgent strikes.
Monitoring Desk adds: Tahreek-e-Taliban (Amjad Farooqi Group) has claimed responsibility of the attack on Army headquarters. In a telephone call made to a private TV channel, a member of TTP Group demanded halt to operation in northern areas, accountability of former President Pervez Musharraf, return of Blackwater and closure of Western NGOs.
APP adds: Security officials are trying to manage the safe release of hostages being held by the assailants at the GHQ, ISPR officials said on late Saturday night.
More than two, probably four to five, terrorists are holding 10 to 15 hostages belonging to GHQ security staff, inside their office building, the officials told media.
The terrorists entered the building while making a run towards Check Post No 2 after initially facing resistance at the Check Post No 1 where all the causalities occurred.
In this regard, Director General Maj Gen Athar Abbas said four to five four to five terrorists were present in the building who made 10 to 15 persons as hostage, adding that the security forces had surrounded the area.
Mughal era pond found in Jammu and Kashmir
October 9th, 2009 |
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The Archeology and Museum Department of Jammu and Kashmir has found a pond dating back to the Mughal era during renovation work at a historical monument.
The department was carrying out a survey at the Dhara Shikoon Masjid, when the pond was discovered.
“This is an important constituent of the monument as it has remained untouched [...]
CRPF to raise four more battalions to counter Naxals
October 8th, 2009 |
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Director General of the Central Reserve Police Force, A.S. Gill, today said that four new commando battalions will be added to the paramilitary forces especially to fight left wing extremism.
He was talking to reporters after inspecting the 17th raising day parade of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) in Coimbatore on Wednesday.
“We are raising another three [...]
Chawla asks Maharashtra voters to go along with family to polling booth
October 8th, 2009 |
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Ahead of Maharashtra assembly polls, chief Election Commissioner Navin Chawla has said that voters should go with their families at polling booths in order to prevent bogus voting.
“It is necessary because the ration cards in Maharashtra do not carry photos of the family members. We do not want a misuse of the system, so we [...]
Pakistan throws out India protest
September 11th, 2009 |
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ISLAMABAD (APP) – The Deputy High Commissioner of India in Islamabad was called to the Foreign Office on Friday and Indian protest on Gilgit-Baltistan self-rule order was rejected.
The Foreign Office Director General (South Asia) emphasised that Pakistan rejects the Indian protest as the Government of India has no locus standi in the matter.
A Press release issued by the Foreign Office stated that the Government of Pakistan also rejects the Indian claim that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India. “Pakistan’s position on Jammu and Kashmir dispute is based on relevant UN resolutions.”
Two protest notes were handed over to the High Commission for Pakistan in New Delhi on Friday by the Ministry of External Affairs of India, on the Gilgit-Baltistan (Empowerment and Self-Governance Order, 2009); and construction of Bunji Dam in Astore District.
Monitoring Desk adds: The Indian Government on Friday summoned the Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan Riffat Masood and registered its protest against the Government of PakistanÂ’s so-called Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order -2009 and its move to construct the Bunji Hydroelectric Project, reported Indian media.
Insofar as the Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order-2009 was concerned, the Indian government charged Pakistan with denying basic democratic rights to the people in those parts of the state of Jammu and Kashmir under its illegal occupation for the past six decades.
New Delhi told the Pakistani envoy that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947.
A government spokesman described the so-called Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order-2009 was yet another cosmetic exercise intended to camouflage PakistanÂ’s illegal occupation of the region.
The Indian Government also lodged a protest on Friday over the proposed construction of the Bunji Hydroelectric Project.
The 7000-megawatt dam is being constructed at Bunji in the Astore District of the Gilgit-Baltistan area with the help of China.
Pilots of AI flight 829 de-rostered
September 5th, 2009 |
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The pilots of the Riyadh bound Air India flight (AI-829) whose engine caught fire in the Mumbai International Airport have been de-rostered on Saturday.
According to reports, Director General of Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Nazeem Zaldi, has confirmed that the pilots have been de-rostered.
Meanwhile, it has also been reported that preliminary [...]
Black Box of crashed Bell 430-chopper in which Andhra CM travelled found
September 5th, 2009 |
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The ”Black Box or the flight voice recorder of the Bell 430-chopper which crashed on Wednesday on the Pavurala Gutta of Nallamallah forest area, killing Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajashekhara Reddy, had been found by the police.
The Black Box will be handed over to the five-member enquiry committee appointed by the Director [...]
MPs demand British torture investigation
August 4th, 2009 |
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A parliamentary committee has called for an independent inquiry into claims of UK security services’ complicity in the torture of terrorism suspects.
The Joint Human Rights Committee of MPs and peers said it was unable to establish whether British officers were involved in mistreatment of suspects.
It also criticised ministers and the head of MI5 for refusing to testify to a parliamentary probe into the claims.
A spokesman said the government would neither solicit nor encourage torture.
In a highly critical report, the joint parliamentary committee said there was now a "disturbing number of credible allegations" of British complicity in torture.
These allegations include the rendition and alleged abuse of British resident Binyam Mohammed from Pakistan to Morocco, prior to being taken to Guantanamo Bay.
"It is unacceptable both for Ministers to refuse to answer policy questions about the Security Services, and for the Director General of MI5 to answer questions from the press but not from a Parliamentary committee"
Andrew Dismore, committee chairman
The Metropolitan Police is investigating the role of one MI5 officer in Mr Mohamed’s case.
Last week the High Court revealed that the same officer visited Morocco three times during the period that Mr Mohamed says he was being secretly tortured there.
The committee also looked at other cases where British men, two of whom have been convicted of terror offences, say they were visited by British intelligence officers while they were detained and allegedly mistreated by Pakistani authorities.
But in all the cases, the parliamentary committee said it could not get to the facts because too many questions were not being properly answered.
It said that both the foreign secretary and home secretary, as well as the director general of MI5, had declined to give evidence on what was known about torture or mistreatment.
The ministers appeared "determined to avoid parliamentary scrutiny", said the report, and had batted away important questions with standardised answers.
Committee chairman Andrew Dismore MP said: "The allegations we have heard about UK complicity in torture are extremely serious.
"It is unacceptable both for ministers to refuse to answer policy questions about the Security Services, and for the director general of MI5 to answer questions from the press but not from a Parliamentary committee."
Revised guidance due
The prime minister has pledged to publish revised guidance to intelligence officers but Mr Dismore added: "General assertions of non-complicity are no longer an adequate response to the many detailed allegations.
"A more obvious case of outsourcing of torture, a more obvious case of passive rendition, I cannot imagine"
David Davis MP
Torture complicity: Key cases"An independent inquiry is the only way to get to the bottom of these stories, clear the air and make recommendations for the future conduct and management of the security services.
"The recent allegations should be a wake-up call to Ministers that the current arrangements are not satisfactory. We look to the Government to respond positively to our recommendations and not to continue to hide behind their wall of secrecy."
Shadow foreign secretary William Hague said: "We also call on the government urgently to clarify what legally constitutes complicity in torture.
"All credible allegations of complicity in torture should be thoroughly investigated if public trust is to be restored."
A spokesman for the government rejected the call for an independent inquiry, saying that oversight was already sufficient.
"The government unreservedly condemns the use of torture as a matter of fundamental principle and works hard with its international partners to eradicate this abhorrent practice worldwide," said the spokesman.
"The government has already made clear it is committed to publishing guidance to intelligence officers as well as asking the Intelligence and Security Committee to consider new developments on detention and rendition."
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
CII team to meet Indonesian leaders, captains of industry
August 3rd, 2009 |
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The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) with the support of Embassy of India, Jakarta, and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, is organizing the “Made in India†(MII) exhibition from 7 to 10 August 2009 at Balai Kartini Exhibition Centre, Jakarta, Indonesia.
The MII will be inaugurated on August 7 (Friday) by [...]
Raman Srivastava takes over as BSF chief
August 1st, 2009 |
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Raman Srivastava, an IPS officer of the Kerala cadre, assumed charge as Director General of the Border Security Force (BSF) on Saturday.
Talking to reporters after taking charge, Srivastava said, “There are gaps in the border protection, which should be filled. The border is very long. There are gaps and we have to fill those. We [...]
Sibtey Razi sworn in as Assam Governor
July 27th, 2009 |
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Syed Sibtey Razi was sworn-in as Governor of Assam on Monday.
Gauhati High Court Chief Justice J Chelameswar administered the oath of office to Razi.
After the ceremony, Razi said his first duty would be to work for the welfare of the people in the state.
Razi, who was earlier the Governor of Jharkhand, succeeded Shiv [...]
Swine flu ‘reaches 160 countries’
July 24th, 2009 |
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The swine flu virus has reached 160 countries and could infect two billion people within the next two years, the World Health Organization has said.
A senior WHO official, Keiji Fukuda, said the virus was still in its early stages and would continue to spread for some time.
Mr Fukuda said work on a vaccine was intensifying but safety could not be compromised by rushing the process.
The virus is thought to have killed almost 800 people in recent months.
Mr Fukuda, the WHO’s Assistant Director General for Health Security, said the agency had been reporting only laboratory-confirmed cases, but that this was always going to be "only a subset of the total number of cases".
"Even if we have hundreds of thousands of cases or a few millions of cases, we’re relatively early in the pandemic," he told the Associated Press news agency.
"One of the things that is relatively clear is that we will continue to see spread of the virus; even though we are now three to four months into the pandemic, this is still pretty early into the overall period," he said.
Mr Fukuda said the WHO estimates two billion people, one third of the global population, could eventually be infected.
He said the figure was a reasonable prediction, based on analysis of previous pandemics, but that it was "really impossible to predict what the future will hold".
Pregnancy risk
World response to swine flu crisis Send us your comments
Mr Fukuda said officials and drug manufacturers were investigating how to speed up the process of developing a vaccine against the H1N1 swine flu strain.
But he said there could be no doubt over the safety and efficacy of the drug before it was publicly distributed.
"There is always a balance in this sort of situation. You of course want to get out vaccine and as much vaccine as possible, as quickly as possible. On the other hand there are certain things which cannot be compromised," he said.
"There are certain areas where you can make economies, perhaps, but certain areas where you simply do not try to make any economies."
The WHO says that in most affected countries, the majority of cases appear to be occurring in young people, around the ages of 12 to 17, although some reports suggest it is mainly older people who have required hospital treatment.
The organisation also said there was "accumulating evidence suggesting pregnant women are at higher risk of more severe disease".
But Mr Fukuda said the WHO "certainly has no recommendations on whether women should try to have children now".</p
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Swine flu vaccine to be manufactured three companies
July 24th, 2009 |
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The Centre has granted licence to three pharmaceutical companies to manufacture swine flu vaccine.
According to sources, these companies will contact the World Health Organisation for acquiring seeds.
A committee has been constituted to keep watch on the process of aquiring the seeds and manufacturing of vaccine. It will be headed by Director General of the Indian [...]
Vi typhoid vaccine protects young Indian children
July 23rd, 2009 |
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A currently available and yet unused typhoid vaccine has been found effective in protecting young children in India, according to researchers.
The research team from National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (NICED) in Kolkata, India and International Vaccine Institute (IVI), Korea showed that vaccine Vi polysaccharide is ideally suited to use in developing countries [...]