Terrorism: An Assessment

"Today's principal threats are abstract and mobile. Terror has no fixed address; it has attacked from Bali to Singapore, Riyadh, Istanbul, Moscow, Madrid, Tunis, New York and Washington. In the 1940s the solution to the crisis was straightforward, albeit difficult: to construct a defensive line in the center of Europe and an economic program to close the gap between public expectation and the reality of shortages that threatened domestic stability.

The contemporary security challenge arises form two unprecedented sources: terror caused by acts until recently considered a matter for internal police forces rather than international policy, and scientific advances and proliferation that allow the survival of countries to be threatened by developments entirely within another state's territory. "

Henry A. Kissinger
Newsweek - November 8, 2004.

Hotel blast kills 15

Baghdad - October 31, 2004 - An explosion that hit a hotel today at Sunubar Hotel in Tikrit killed 15 persons, and injured eight seriously including two policemen. All victims were Iraqis.

A.P.
The Hindu - November 1, 2004.

Bin Laden is 'sighted' in Eastern Pak - 'Indian intelligence' tipped FBI: Fox TV

New Delhi - A US television network reported on Sunday that "Indian intelligence agencies" had informed the American authorities that Osama bin Laden had been spotted somewhere in eastern Pakistan in the past few days.

The Asian Age - November 1, 2004.

Gunmen kill Baghdad official

Baghdad - November 1, 2004 - Gunmen assassinated the deputy governor of Baghdad on Monday, and wounded two bodyguards. It was a case of drive by shooting in the Dora District of the Iraqi capital.

Alistair Lyon
The Asian Age - November 2, 2004.

Suicide attack kills 4

Tel Aviv - a Palestinian suicide bomber blew himself up in a crowded outdoor market in central Tel avid on Monday, killing at least four and wounding 32, police said.

A.P.
The Times of India - November 2, 2004.

Chechen rebel threat

Chechen terrorist Shamil Basayev, who masterminded the Beslan school massacre, has threatened "10 more years" of war against Russia unless the Kremlin comes to terms with his demands. He has owned up responsibility for a string of deadly suicide bombings and abductions, including Beslan and the Nord-Ost theatre seizure in Moscow in 2002. The Kremlin has offered a reward of $10-million for information that could "neutralize" him.

Fred Weir, Moscow
Hindustan Times - November 2, 2004.

Blast rocks Iraqi Ministry

Baghdad - November 2, 2004 - A car bomb exploded on Tuesday near the Ministry of Education in a busy commercial area in northern Baghdad, killing at least eight persons, according to the Interior Ministry. Unknown assailants also blew up an oil pipeline on Tuesday in northern Iraq, according to an official with the Northern Oil Co.

A.P.
The Hindu - November 3, 2004.

Car bombs kill 37 in Iraqi city

Sammara (Iraq) - November 6, 2004 - Militants detonated four car bombs and attacked police stations in the Iraqi city of Samarra today, killing at least 37 persons and wounding 62, police officials said. The local commander of the Iraqi Rapid Reaction Force was among the dead in the first two blasts near the town hall and at a nearby checkpoint Samarra's mayor was wounded. In western Baghdad, a suicide car bomber detonated an explosion that wounded three coalition troops, the US military said.

A.P.
The Hindu - November 7, 2004.

Attack on BSF camp

Srinagar - November 6, 2004 - A two-member fidayeen squad attacked a Border Security Force camp early today near Sopore in north Kashmir, killing a BSF jawan. The militants tried to force their way into the camp at Fruit Mandi by hurling grenades and firing indiscriminately. In the exchange of fire, a sentry was killed. He, however, gunned down one of the militants. The Jamiatul Mujahideen has owned responsibility for the attack. In another incident, two army men were killed and four others injured when militants lobbed a grenade at the Army personnel in Lal Mandi area of civil lines.

Shujaat Bukhari
The Hindu - November 7, 2004.

Tech, intelligence help lower terror in J&K

Srinagar - The recent decline in infiltration and terrorist violence in Jammu and Kashmir is attributed by security forces to the use of sophisticated technology and equipment like thermo sensors, remote pilot and mobile phones. The thermo sensors installed at the border passes and other entry points of infiltration have helped in instantly indicating movement of people by sensing human temperature and thus alerting the security personnel.

Bisheshwar Mishra/TNN
The Times of India - November 8, 2004.

Militants kill 21 Iraqi policemen

Manama - November 7, 2004 - Iraqi militants on Sunday stormed a police station in the western province of Anbar. Twenty-one policemen were killed after they were disarmed by the attacking militants. There have been reports that more than 100 fighters have volunteered to drive suicide car bombs into the advancing troops. In Baghdad, the Iraqi Finance Minister survived an assassination attempt today, when a large car bomb exploded in his home street, killing two persons.

Atul Aneja
The Hindu - November 8, 2004.

Spies Foiled Terror Attack on Sydney

Australian spies working with police and French authorities foiled a probable terror attack on Sydney led by a suspected French al Qaida operative, officials said today. The strong co-operation stopped Willie Brigitte and a terror cell he led from launching an attack, according to the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation's annual report. Brigitte was arrested in Sydney in October last year and deported to France, where he was in custody on suspicion of having links to Osama bin Laden's al Qaida terrorist network.

Courtesy: Mr. Mayer Nudell, USA.

Rebels strike elsewhere, 45 die

Baqouba (Iraq) - November 9, 2004 - Insurgent attacks and clashes killed 45 people in the Iraqi city of Baqouba on Tuesday. Mr. Ahmed Fuad, in charge of the main morgue in Baqouba, said 32 people had been wounded, in addition to the 45 bodies he had received.

(Reuters)
The Asian Age - November 10, 2004.

US underrating Qaeda threat, says CIA official

Washington - November 9, 2004 - The Bush administration has failed to recognize that Al Qaeda is now a global Islamic insurgency and poses a much different threat than previously believed, a senior counter-terrorism official working at the CIA said. He said in an interview that the government "doesn't respect the threat" because most officials still regard Al Qaeda as a terrorist organization that can be defeated by arresting or killing its operatives one at a time. Al Qaeda has replaced many of those dead or captured operatives and continues to thrive as a guiding force for Islamic extremists around the world, he said.

New York Times Service
The Asian Age - November 10, 2004.

36 hurt in shopping mall blast in Nepal

Kathmandu - November 9, 2004 - Suspected rebels set off a powerful bomb in the Nepalese capital on Tuesday, wounding at least 38, people police said. No one has taken responsibility for the blast, but the police blamed Maoist rebels.

A.P.
The Asian Age - November 10, 2004.

CRPF camp in J&K attacked, 2 militants killed

Srinagar - A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp in Srinagar came under attack from three militants on Thursday. Two of the three militants were killed and four CRPF men, including an officer, injured. The CRPF spokesman told TNN that search for the third militant was on. Two suicide militants had earlier attacked another CRPF camp on September 11, killing three jawans. In Anantnag, the Army has killed six militants since Wednesday night. Two AK assault rifles, six magazines and 112 rounds of ammunition were recovered from three militants killed at Walarhama village.

Times News Network
The Times of India - November 12, 2004.

KAZAKHSTAN ARRESTS 17 'TERRORISTS'

Source: Reuters, report of Raushan Nurshayeva
Uploaded/Updated: Fri, 12 Nov 2004 10:54:44 GMT

Kazakhstan says it has broken up a network of Islamic militants linked to Al Qaeda who trained suicide bombers and planned a "terrorist act" against a top official in neighbouring Uzbekistan. "We must face up to the fact that terrorist organisations and people with terrorist intentions are in Kazakhstan, living among us," Vladimir Bozhko, deputy head of the KNB -- a successor to the Soviet KGB, told a news conference.

Email from Mr. Mayer Nudell, USA.

18 injured in Imphal blast

Imphal - Eighteen people were injured when a powerful bomb exploded in front of the main gate of the Assam Rifles headquarters at Kangla Fort. There was also an attack at a CRPF patrol in the Senapati district and militants engaged in a gun-battle with the security personnel in Churachandpur.

Sunday Times of India - November 14, 2004.

Kashmir militants gun down 3 policemen

Srinagar - November 14, 2004 - Militants dressed in Army fatigue killed three police constables keeping vigil at a minority community guard post at Nadimarg in Pulwama district, official sources said. The sources said the militants called out the constables on the pretext of exchanging pleasantries last night and when the policemen showed up, the militants shot them dead and decamped with their rifles.

The Hindu - November 15, 2004.

Maoist violence claims 49

Kathmandu - November 16, 2004 - 49 people, including 11 security personnel were killed in renewed clashes between Nepalese forces and Maoist rebels on Tuesday. The security forces gunned down 35 Maoist rebels and injured several others in a crossfire after an unsuccessful ambush attack by the rebels in Bhagawanpur jungle area of Kailali district, said a release by the Royal Nepalese Army. A nearly five-hour gun battle raging near a forest at Pahalmanpur resulted in the death of six security personnel and at least two Maoist insurgents.

Statesman - November 17, 2004.

Terrorism: Singapore

40,000 number of Singapore taxi drivers instructed by police to keep an eye out for terrorists. 40 number of militants with alleged al-Qaeda ties arrested in Singapore since 2004.

Time - October 25, 2004.

19 cops killed as Naxals blow up truck in UP

London - November 20, 2004 - Nineteen police persons were killed and six seriously injured on Saturday morning in Chandauli district of Uttar Pradesh when suspected Naxalites blew up a police truck. Senior police officials rushed to the spot and IG Varanasi told reporters "We suspect that MCC chief Mewalal Kharwar personally supervised the attack and was also present on the spot but no Naxalite outfit has yet claimed responsibility for the attack."

Amita Verma
The Asian Age - November 21, 2004.

Nine killed in Ramadi clashes

Ramadi (Iraq) - November 20, 2004 - Heavy clashes between US forces and militants in the Sunni triangle city of Ramadi on Saturday killed nine Iraqis and injured five others, said hospital officials. Militants attacked a US Army patrol on Saturday in Baghdad, killing one American soldier and injuring nine others, the US military said. Iraqi forces raided one of the country's most important Sunni mosques. Witnesses said at least three people were killed and 40 injured.

A.P.
The Hindu - November 21, 2004.

Red terror cuts wide swathe from Tamill Nadu to Nepal

New Delhi / Varanasi - The militants, who killed 17 Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) jawans on Saturday, looted seven self-loading and three AK-47 rifles, besides ammunition. The explosion threw the police vehicle into the air. The Centre appears bereft of a clear policy on how to deal with the naxalite problem affecting 11 states of the country and the Andhra government talking to armed naxalites has added to the drift. The merged Naxalite groups have further enhanced their reach even beyond the porous borders of the country by linking with the communist extremists active in Nepal.

Bisheshwar Mishra & Binay Singh/TNN
Sunday Times of India - November 21, 2004.

At least 34 die as Nepal troops clash with Maoists

Kathmandu - November 21, 2004 - Nepalese troops killed at least 21 Maoist rebels and lost 13 soldiers in overnight gunbattles across the country, officials said on Saturday. More than 500 guerrillas fired from forest hills on a security patrol at Pandaun in Kailali district, igniting the six-hour battle in which 16 rebels and 10 soldiers were killed. It was the single bloodiest clash since a temporary truce between the Maoists and the government ended last month.

The Indian Express - November 22, 2004.

9/11-type attack bids foiled

London - Security services in Britain have thwarted plans for September 11-type attacks by terrorists with Al-Qaeda links on high profile targets here, including the Heathrow airport, media reports said on Tuesday. The plan was to strike skyscrapers in Canary Wharf, a financial district of London, as well as the airport, the reports quoted "authoritative sources" as saying. Training programmes for suicide pilots who planned a spectacular attack on the financial center were disrupted, the Daily Mail said. ITV television news said plans to crash aircraft into the high-profile targets were among four or five attacks planned.

The Hindu - November 24, 2004.

US closes its consulate on terror threat

New Delhi / Mumbai - A warning of an imminent terrorist attack on US targets in India, especially in New Delhi and Mumbai, triggered a nationwide scare on Tuesday among US officials, forcing them to shut down the consulate and American Center in Mumbai for the day. Security was stepped up at other US establishments. In Delhi, the police ramped up its preparedness to high alert, especially at the US embassy and the American Center.

Times News Network
The Times of India - November 24, 2004.

Kashmir 'dog bomb' explodes, 4 injured

Srinagar - A bomb tied to a stray dog in Kashmir blew up on Friday, killing the animal and wounding four people, the police said. The bomb, believed to have been planted by militants, exploded near a bunker of Indian soldiers in Sopore town in the north of Kashmir, a spokesman said.

The Asian Age - November 27, 2004.

14 injured in blasts

Jammu - At least 14 people were injured in two separate grenade explosions in the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, Jammu, on Monday. The police said in the first incident militants lobbed a grenade towards a police patrol party near Bisco School at Lal Chowk around 10.45 A.M. injuring 11 pedestrians and constable Gulzar Ahmad posted at Kothibagh police station.

The Times of India - November 30, 2004.

12 killed in Ramadi blast

Manama - November - 29, 2004 - Violence continued to rage in Iraq, with a car bomb killing at least 12 people outside a police station in Ramadi, which is a short distance away form Falluja. At least 10 others were wounded in the attack. The US forces, in a bid to crush the resistance, are still engaged in fighting in Fallujah, which they had invaded earlier.

The Hindu - November 30, 2004.

Food for Thought

Message for Life
Sitaram says:

Do not look to Kashi or Benares or Jerusalem or Mecca for that which is sacred or sanctifying. Do not look for your personal sanctification, to your bathing in the Ganges or your Christian Baptism or your Muslim Wudu bathing, or your Jewish Mikvah immersion, or to your prayer beads or mala or to your prayer mat. Instead, make your very heart and mind and thoughts and daily life into something sacred. Do not depend upon external forms and objects or dogma and doctrine for what is sacred. Do not depend upon Prophets and Angels and Holy Books and Gurus and Miracles and Avatars and Mediators. Be your own miracle. Master yourself. Unite your own Self with the Divine. Don't lay around waiting for Muhammad or Jesus or Gabriel or Krishna or anyone else to do this for you. Rather, do it for yourself, with each day of your life, wherever you are, and whatever you are doing.

Courtesy: Mr. Rakesh Goyal, Mumbai.

Salve to the UN

The war in Iraq has brought to the fore the question of the future of the rule of law and the United Nations. As Secretary General Kofi Annan pointed out some months ago, going by the UN charter, the war in Iraq was "illegal". Fortunately, Mr. Annan has not just been an arm-chair critic. He set up a blue-ribbon panel chaired by Anand Panyarachun, former Thai PM, which is now ready with a far-ranging report on the issue of collective security in the face of new global threads. The UN has been accused of being unable to act when needed, yet its provisions are violated by its own members, principally those on the use of force.

Details of the report have already been leaked out and are doing the rounds of world capitals. The basic issue it confronts is the criteria for the legitimacy of the use of force. The UN charter permits wars of two kinds - for self-defence and those at the express orders of the UN Security Council. Needless to say, these provisions have been more observed in breach, and the US is not the only country that has transgressed them. Even when proposing new criteria for the legitimacy, the panel does not seem to have provided any room for the new US doctrine of preventive war, especially if the threat is not "imminent."

But at the heart of revitalizing the UN is the need for a changed UN Security Council whose permanent members are still the victors of World War II. The Panyarachun panel appears to have veered around a proposal that could get the 'aspiring four' - India, Germany, Japan and Brazil - in along with Egypt and South Africa. But the issue of a veto has been left untouched.

America's views will be critical to the proposals when these come up before the UNSC and UNGA, and the new Bush administration does not provide easy answers as to what these will be. But even the US knows that though it has taken Iraq apart, to put it back requires the world community which will only come forward under the auspices of the UN, however flawed it may be.

Prakash Chandra
Hindustan Times - November 29, 2004.

Pak spy held at Railway station

New Delhi - A Pakistani national, Saghir @ Sagar @ Ajit Singh, 35, resident of Lahore, allegedly working as a spy for intelligence agencies has been arrested by the special cell of Delhi police at Ajmeri Gate side near New Delhi Railway Station. Incriminating documents, including sketches of defence areas and photographs of vital installations, and a Pakistani Passport, have been recovered from him. The police has reportedly busted an espionage ring.

The Times of India - November 27, 2004.

'Open jail' planned for Kota

Jaipur - November 27, 2004 - An "open jail", allowing the selected prisoners to live with their families outside the confines of prison and even earn livelihood, will be established shortly in Kota. Similar jails are currently functioning at a few other places in Rajasthan, including Sanganer, near here. The Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, said here today that the notification for establishing the new jail would be issued recently.

The Hindu - November 28, 2004.

2 killed in Budgam firing, Rashtriya Rifles under fire

Srinagar - November 29, 2004 - Two persons died and five others were injured in a shootout today in Chitru Dangerpora village in Budgam district. The residents said they had been fired at by men of the Rashtriya Rifles. The Army maintained that militants had opened fire at the troops and civilians had been caught in. The incident sparked off demonstrations in the area, forcing police to register a case against the Rashtriya Rifles. The government has ordered an enquiry into the incident.

Mufti Islah
Indian Express - November 30, 2004.

Food for Thought

Sometime back, a world-wide survey was conducted by the UN.

The only question asked was:

"Would you please give your honest opinion about solutions to the food shortage in the rest of the world?"

The survey was a huge failure because...:

In Africa they didn't know what "food" means.

In Eastern Europe they didn't know what "honest" means.

In Western Europe they didn't know what "shortage" means.

In China they didn't know what "opinion" means.

In the Middle East they didn't know what "solution" means.

In South America they didn't know what "please" means.

In the USA they didn't know what "the rest of the world" means.

Courtesy: Mr. Rakesh Goyal, Mumbai.

Smart cars in next 20 years

London - November 7, 2004 - Cars that refuse to start when drivers are drunk, slow down when they are speeding and steer themselves if motorists nod off could be common within 20 years, claims a report by British MPs. The transport select committee is urging the UK government to make cars safer and more environmentally friendly - and to consider legislation to speed up their introduction. Its Cars of the future study says "cars that drive themselves" will soon be a reality, and that many gadgets currently restricted to luxury models could become mass-market features.

(London Correspondent)
The Asian Age - November 8, 2004.

A God's-eye view for US commanders - Pentagon plans own Net

The Pentagon is building its own Internet, the military's worldwide web for the wars of the future, with a view to giving all American commanders and troops a moving picture of all foreign enemies and threats - "a God's-eye view" of battle. This "Internet in the sky," would allow "Marines in a Humvee, in a faraway land, in the middle of a rainstorm, to open up their laptops, request imagery" from a spy satellite, and "get it downloaded within seconds." The Pentagon calls the secure network, the Global Information Grid, or GIG. Skeptics say the costs are staggering and the technological hurdles huge. "Possibly the single most transforming thing in our force," defence secretary has said, "will not be a weapons system, but a set of interconnections." Overall, Pentagon documents suggest, $200 billion or more may go for the war net's hardware and software in the next decade or so.

New York Times Service - Tim Weiner
The Asian Age - November 14, 2004.

Future cars to run on plant waste

London - November 21, 2004 - Vehicles of the future may soon be powered by leftover plant remains. Scientists have created genetically modified yeasts and fungi that can turn agricultural waste into fuel for cars and trucks. The technology - created with European Union money - uses corn stubble and other farm waste as basic ingredients for making ethanol. This can then be used as a substitute for petrol. The project uses biomass, organic matter from plants. Sources include wood, crops, and agriculture and forestry waste. "We can no longer afford to waste our biomass," said project scientist Professor Lissa Vikari, of the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. "Brazil makes 150,000 million litres of fuel by fermenting sugar cane. Europe has to match that."

The Asian Age - November 22, 2004.

IBM launches biometric 'Think Pad

New Delhi - November 23, 2004 - IBM India today announced the launch of notebook PC 'ThinkPad' with enhanced data protection features. The 'ThinkPad', equipped with an integrated fingerprint reader, offers an unmatched level of data protection through its new biometric capability and embedded security subsystem, an IBM release said. "The first biometric 'ThinkPad' combines a fingerprint reader with an embedded security subsystem, providing a layer of security that is built in, not bolted on," IBM India Brand Manager said.

P.T.I.
The Hindu - November 24, 2004.

Space for everyone

Time Magazine has chosen Space Ship One, the first privately-built rocket plane, as the invention of the year. Space Ship One solves the problems of suborbital flight (less than one complete orbit of the Earth) and re-entry into the atmosphere, and ends the monopoly of government-run space agencies over space flight. Space Ship One topped a list of remarkable inventions, which included JVC's humanoid-like robot, J4, the fire protection fluid 3M Novec 1230, Seway's prototype four-wheel sit-on-it scooter, Centaur, and Intel's wireless technology surfboard with its built-in webcam.

Prakash Chandra
Hindustan Times - November 29, 2004.

Food for Thought

Give in proportion to your means.
Give with courtesy.
Give as the God-fearing give.
Give to the deserving.

The Upanishad

Let noble Thoughts come to us from every side.

The Rig-Veda

Population pegged at 9 bn by 2300

United Nations - Three hundred years form now, the world's population will have stabilized at about 9 billion and we will look forward to living until age 95. In Japan, that bastion of longevity, people will be hanging around until they're 106. India, China and the United States will still be he most populous countries on the planet, if they still exist, and Africa's share of the world's population will double to 25 per cent. The average woman will give birth to two children. These are just a few possibilities projected in a UN report released on Thursday which lowers long-term population estimates because of new thinking about fertility rates in the future.

The Times of India - November 6, 2004.

Beware! Gambling is injurious to health

London - November 5, 2004 - Gambling is not only hard on your pocket but bad for your health, according to a British Medical Journal report on Friday. Those hooked can be affected by depression, insomnia, intestinal disorders, migraine and other stress related problems. Some become suicidal. Mark Griffiths, a professor of gambling studies in the psychology division of Nottingham Trent University, says doctors and other health professionals need to urgently develop effective strategies to help gambling addicts, now that Britain is to have Las Vegas-style super-casinos.

The Asian Age - November 6, 2004.

Universe to last for another 26 bn yrs

New York - The universe will last for another 26 billion years and not collapse in a "big crunch" within 11 billon years from now as predicted earlier, a new study has found. Relying on the theory of 'dark energy' - an unseen force counteracting the pull of gravity - astrophysicists have come to the conclusion that the universe is expanding faster than thought. The team's new conclusion relies on recent observations from the Hubble Space Telescope, which has found several supernovae that are moving away form us faster than any others seen before, implying that the Universe is expanding faster than we thought.

PTI
Sunday Times of India - November 7, 2004.

A brief history of a timely intervention

Durgapur - November 6, 2004 - Mr. Satyavarapu Nag Parameswara Gupta works with SAIL's Durgapur plant. His positions challenging the theories of Prof. Stephen Hawking and Mr. Roger Penrose were presented at two international conferences in Dublin and London in the past three months. Mr. Gupta has contradicted both the Big Bang and Black Hole theories, attributing a dynamic status to the universe, formulated by Prof. Hawking and his one-time collaborator Mr. Roger Penrose. Mr. Gupta presented his model at the GR-17 (general Relativity) International Science Conference in Dublic held from 18 to 23 July 2004, which was attended by both Prof. Hawking and Mr. Penrose. According to Mr. Gupta: "Prof. Hawking in his Big Bang theory described the supernatural cosmic activities that in the expanding universe show the existence of light-shifted galaxies. But the Big Bang model has failed to rectify the presence of blue-shifted galaxies which are smaller in number compared to the red-shifted galaxies." Challenging the Penrose version of the expanding universe, Mr. Gupta presented his new "line of approach" in Dublin. Mr. Penrose had proposed that red-shifted galaxies are expanding at random and blue-shifted galaxies are frequently decreasing to lend space to their red counterparts. Mr. Gupta, however, argued that "if the imaginary time axis as proposed by Prof. Hawking is taken into account, then the blue-shifted galaxies would have vanished from the scene due to continuously increasing red-shifted ones. But the Penrose approach fails to take this into account." In Mr. Gupta's theory, "the imaginary time axis as considered by Prof. Hawking is perpendicular to the present time axis and is not a real 'thing' that justifies the Big Bang theory." Mr. Gupta proposed, as an addendum that the parameters of forces of repulsion in the greater universe be ignored. His paper said: "In this simulation, dynamic universe was tested. It shows gravitating bodies do not collapse due to mutual gravitational forces of attraction. Newtonian gravitational forces with special relativity concepts are sufficient. No Big Bang, no Black Holes, no repulsion forces at any distance."

Statesman News Service
The Sunday Statesman - November 7, 2004.

Longest painting

New Delhi - A group of painters in China are now working on what could be the longest oil painting in the world on a 206-metre-long canvas, depicting the entire history of Mongolian people, including the life and times of Genghis Khan. It portrays a historical period of 206 years, from the birth of Genghis Khan, the founder of ancient Mongolia, in 1162 to the downfall of the Yuan Dynasty in 1368.

PTI, Beijing
Hindustan Times - November 8, 2004.

Airport security steps have positive impact

New Delhi - November 7, 2004 - The Airports Authority of India is enhancing the coverage of closed circuit televisions at the Indira Gandhi International Airport to check thefts of passenger belongings. The Central Industrial Security Force has made all the security-held areas transparent, taken to sensitizing passengers and staff, increased surveillance by the intelligence staff and introduced profiling of notorious characters to check nuisance. All these steps have had positive impact and the number of thefts inside the airport has dropped.

Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar
The Hindu - November 8, 2004.

'Naked' X-ray scan at Heathrow airport

London - An X-ray machine that sees through air passengers' clothes has been deployed by security staff at London's airport for the first time which produces a "naked" image of passengers by bouncing X-rays off their skin, enabling staff instantly to spot any hidden weapons or explosives. The process lasts about 45 seconds. But the graphic nature of the black and white images it generates has raised concerns about privacy both among travellers and aviation authorities. A female passenger, who did not want to be named, said: "It was really horrible. It doesn't leave much to the imagination because you're virtually naked, but I guess it's less intrusive than being hand-searched."

Dipesh Gadher
The Times of India - November 8, 2004.

Website to ensure immorality to humanity

London - November 15, 2004 - Immortality will be guaranteed on the Library of Life website, which will also raise funds for the 181 Red Cross and Red Crescent societies. The project aims to create a permanent record for future historians and biographers on the website www.libraryoffice.orga. The venture is the brainchild of Stephen Forsyth, an entrepreneur who wanted a way to preserve the memory of his late brother, James. The aim is to record the names and biographical details of as many people as possible. Anyone will be able to register and post a photograph and some biographical details for free. Henry Chamberlain, the managing director of the Library of Life Trust, told The Times: "The website will ensure that all future generations can learn from our experiences. We believe that it will become a duty for the young to help the older generations to take part."

The Asian Age - - November 16, 2004.

Opium production in Afghanistan

$30 billion Revenue from opium production in Afghanistan so far this year. 95% of the heroin used in Europe comes form Afghanistan. $7 daily wage for an opium labourer in Afghanistan, twice the average pay for an unskilled worker in the country.

Time - November 8, 2004.

Terrorism on Asian religious summit agenda

Jakarta - November 11, 2004 - Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim-populated nation is to host an Asian religious summit of Buddhist, Christian, Hindu and Islamic participants on December 5-7, 2004, to discuss issues including terrorism, it was announced. The summit will be attended by participants from the 10 member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, plus Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and East Timor. "The dialogue aims to act as a forum to exchange views among religious leaders in the region," Muhammadiyah Deputy Chairman Din Syamsuddin said.

(The Jakarta Port / ANN and Agencies)
The Statesman - November 12, 2004.

Beat this: Mach 10 - Around the World in 5 hours

Washington - November 17, 2004 - On Thursday, NASA moved the concept of dream planes closer to reality as its hypersonic Scramjet X-43A broke the speed record, achieving Mach 9.8 or nearly 7000 miles per hour over the Pacific. In a bare 10 seconds test flight, the 22-foot-long unmanned jet streaked across the sky at about 110.000 feet before a splashdown about 850 miles off the California coast. The scramjets promise more airplane-like operations with increased affordability in ultra high-speed flights within the atmosphere and for the first stage to Earth orbit. The engine, which has no moving parts, compresses the air passing through it, so combustion can occur. And it can also be throttled back and flown more like an airplane, unlike rockets. Nasa hopes its latest trials could one day lead to a new era in commercial air travel that would allow passengers to circle the globe in just five years.

S. Rajagopalan & Agencies
Hindustan Times - November 18, 2004.
The Times of India, November 15, 2004.

Want to lose weight? Have water

New Delhi - November 26, 2004 - Want to lose weight without really trying? Just replace some of the high calorie foods you eat with fruits, vegetables and other water dense foods that keep you just as full. New research suggests that it is possible to lose weight by making small changes in the diet.

The Asian Age - November 27, 2004.

Now, plastic waste for road construction

New Delhi - The Delhi State Industrial Development Corporation (DSUDC) is planning to use plastic waste to construct roads in the city. A proposed joint venture will combine state-of-the-art road longevity technology with city's compulsions for management of non-biodegradable plastic waste, so as to promote a cleaner and greener Delhi.

Sunday Times - November 28, 2004.

Back pain may increase brain shrinkage

Chronic back pain shrinks the brain by as much as 11 per cent, researchers at Northwestern University Chicago campus said. In a study, it was found that 1.3 cubic centimeters of gray matter, the part of the brain responsible for memory, is lost every year in chronic pain sufferers. They found the brain in those with back pain was equivalent to the amount of gray matter lost in 1 to 20 years of normal aging.

The Asian Age - November 29, 2004.

Food For Thought

Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.

Leo Tolstoy

You must be the change you wish to see in the world.

Mahatma Gandhi

Everybody wants to be somebody; nobody wants to grow.

Goethe