• Politicians, militants hand in glove: J&K CM
• Highlights of Indo-US nuclear deal
• 3,000 expelled by Nagaland, Arunachal are Indians: Gogoi

• Ansari elected V-P
• India, US unveil text of 123 agreement

In a startling revelation, Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has said that his government has prepared a list of politicians who have links with the militants in the strife-torn Valley. According to the Chief Minister, the home department of the state government has narrowed down on the number of politicians and political workers who have been found supporting militant organisations. CM Azad made this shocking disclosure to the local media, admitting to the nexus between politicians and militants in the state. Azad also added that his govt would act firmly to tackle the problem. "I have identified some politicians who are supporting the Over Ground Workers (OGWs) of the various militant organizations. We are not going to warn them to leave all this but in coming time we are going to initiate action against these politicians," he said.

Courtesy: http://www.hvk.org, August 10, 2007

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On Friday, Ansari, backed by the ruling UPA coalition, scored a comfortable victory over NDAs Najma Heptulla. Third Fronts Rashid Masood ended up a poor third... Former diplomat Mohammed Hamid Ansari was declared elected the country's 13th Vice-President on Friday, winning by a convincing margin in a triangular contest. On Friday, Ansari, backed by the ruling UPA coalition, scored a comfortable victory over NDA's Najma Heptulla. Third Front's Rashid Masood ended up a poor third. While the 70-year-old Ansari, widely seen as a candidate chosen by the CPM, got 455 votes, former Rajya Sabha deputy chairperson Heptulla secured 222 while Samajwadi Party's Rashid managed 75. Surprisingly, there were 10 invalid votes out of a total of 762 who exercised their franchise. The electoral college - MPs are voters for vice president - of 788 has an effective strength of 783. Ansari will begin the new innings of his career on Saturday when he would take oath of office and conduct the Rajya Sabha as its Chairman from Monday. The polling, which began at 10 am, came to an end at 5 pm and saw a brisk turnout with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi among the early voters. Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and senior Congress leader Ajit Jogi came in wheel chair. While the four-member H D Deve Gowda-led JD(S) abstained from voting, Congress MP from Mandya, Ambareesh, who had resigned from his membership as well as ministership cast his vote. He, however, did not attend the House. Some of the Bihar MPs, facing criminal charges, also turned up for voting. D Raja of the CPI and Kanimozhi, daughter of DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, exercised their franchise for the first time in such a poll. Uttarakhand Chief Minister B C Khanduri, who is yet to resign from the Lok Sabha, also cast his vote.

Courtesy: www.deccanherald.com, August 11, 2007

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Following are the key aspects of the Indo-US civil nuclear deal:

The agreement not to hinder or interfere with India's nuclear programme for military purposes.

• US will help India negotiate with the IAEA for an India-specific fuel supply agreement.
• Washington will support New Delhi develop strategic reserves of nuclear fuel to guard against future disruption of supply.
• In case of disruption, US and India will jointly convene a group of friendly supplier countries to include nations like Russia, France and the UK to pursue such measures to restore fuel supply.
• Both the countries agree to facilitate nuclear trade between themselves in the interest of respective industries and consumers.
• India and the US agree to transfer nuclear material, non-nuclear material, equipment and components.
• Any special fissionable material transferred under the agreement shall be low enriched uranium.
• Low enriched uranium can be transfered for use as fuel in reactor experiments and in reactors for conversion or fabrication.
• The ambit of the deal include research, development, design, construction, operation, maintenance and use of nuclear reactors, reactor experiments and decommissioning.
• The US will have the right to seek return of nuclear fuel and technology but it will compensate for the costs incurred as a consequence of such removal.

Courtesy: www.expressindia.com, August 03, 2007

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The Indo-US civil nuclear deal provides for a consultative mechanism if termination of the pact is warranted due to any reason, including "changed security environment", apparently a fallback arrangement if New Delhi were to conduct an atomic test. The 123 agreement, whose text was unveiled on Friday, is silent on nuclear testing by India but makes it clear that the pact will not hinder or hamper New Delhi's military nuclear programme. The 40-year agreement, extendable by 10 years, commits the US to ensure uninterrupted fuel supplies to Indian reactors even if it terminates its cooperation and to help create strategic fuel reserve for Indian safeguarded nuclear reactors. It makes it incumbent upon the US to work with other Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) to ensure that India can have nuclear cooperation with the international community. "Either party (country) shall have the right to terminate this agreement prior to its expiration on one year's written notice to the other party," says the 22-page text of the pact reached last month. "A party giving notice of termination shall provide the reasons for seeking such termination," it says, adding the termination can be cancelled if the notice is withdrawn before the end of one-year notice period. Before the agreement is terminated, the two countries "shall consider the relevant circumstances and promptly hold consultations" to "address the reasons cited by the party (country) seeking termination", it says. Under the pact, the two countries "agree to consider carefully the circumstances that may lead to termination or cessation of cooperation.

"They further agree to take into account whether the circumstances that may lead to termination or cessation resulted from a party's (country's) serious concern about a changed security environment or as a response to similar actions by other States which could impact national security."This apparently refers to a possible situation wherein India might be compelled to conduct a nuclear test if it is convinced that its security interests are threatened. The party (country) seeking termination (of agreement) has the right to cease further cooperation under this agreement if it determines that a mutually-acceptable resolution of outstanding issues has not been possible or cannot be achieved through consultations," the pact says. "If a party seeking termination cites a violation of this agreement as the reason for notice for seeking termination, the parties (India and the US) shall consider whether the action was caused inadvertantly or otherwise and whether the violation could be considered as material," the agreement says. "If a party, seeking termination cites a violation of an IAEA safeguards agreement as the reason for notice for seeking termination, a crucial factor will be whether the IAEA Board of Governors has made a finding of non-compliance," it says. If the agreement is terminated, the US will have the right to require the return of "any nuclear material, equipment, non-nuclear material or components transfered" under the agreement as also any special fissionable material produced through their use. A notice by the country that is invoking the right of return shall be delivered to the other on or before the date of termination of the agreement. But recognising that exercising of the right of return would have "profound implications" on their relations, the two countries would undertake consultations prior to such a step. "Such consultations shall give special consideration to the importance of uninterrupted operation of nuclear reactors of the party (country) concerned with respect to the availability of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes as a means of achieving energy security," the agreement says. Both countries shall "take into account the potential negative consequences of such termination on the ongoing contracts and projects initiated under the agreement of significance for respective nuclear programmes of either party." However, if the US exercises its right of return, it shall "compensate promptly" India for the "fair market value thereof and for the costs incurred as a consequence of such removal".

Courtesy: www.expressindia.com, August 03, 2007

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The Assam Government on Tuesday said the 3,000 people who were "expelled" from Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland were "genuine Indian citizens" and not Bangladeshis. "I want to make it very clear that the Government has verified their cases and found they are all Indian citizens", Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said. Claiming that only 38 people among them were found to have "doubtful origins", Gogoi sought to warn the two states. "The Government will not allow Assam to be a dumping ground and to us Bangladeshi or foreigners coming from any other country is one who came to Assam after March 25, 1971. Anyone who has come after this date will be detected and deported," he said. Gogoi was referring to the recent deportation to Assam of people from the two states dubbing them as Bangladeshis. "We have probed the cases and found that all of them had inner line permits...."

Courtesy: www.indianexpress.com, August 01, 2007

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