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| Will official seating protocol be changed? | | Sonia Gandhi after all isn't an ordinary MP | | | SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI, AUG. 14: In a signifcant development, the Union Home Ministry has its task cut out. It officals are busy changing official seating protocol for the Independence Day celebrations.
That is because according to the present protocol, Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, should be seated in the back row as an ordinary member of Parliament (MP) on Independence Day as she is no longer the chairperson of National Advisory Council.
Sonia may not even get to stand next to the Prime Minister when Manmohan Singh unfurls the tricolour, for the government protocols clearly lay down that the UPA chairperson is now just another member of Parliament and 21st in the order of precedence as regards the seating arrangements of VIPs.
But the government is busy trying to change that. “We have written to the State governments and will get the final inputs in two or three days,'' Home Secretary, VK Duggal, said. This measure, however, will not be in time to get Sonia Gandhi a front row seat. Besides Sonia, there are other VIPs too who do not find a mention in... | |
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FRONT PAGE STORIES |
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| 'Pakistan is a strong nation' | | India can never dare cross LoC: Musharraf | | | B L KAK
NEW DELHI, AUG. 14:
Gen. Parvez Musharraf has warned that Pakistan and its armed forces will not remain passive in the event of any military adventure by India against his country.
Pakistan President has also warned that India can never dare to cross the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir. Gen. Musharraf's warning came in his speech at a midnight function to mark Pakistan's 59th aniversary of independence. "We do not threaten anyone and we do not accept threats from anybody", he said in reference to reported suggestions by some Indian political parties of punitive retaliation for the July 11 serial bombings in Mumbai that killed over 200 people.
Gen. Musharraf w... | |
| | | | Sharpshooters stand atop vital installations | | Delhi will be no-fly zone for several hours Aug. 15 | | | B L KAK
NEW DELHI, AUG. 14:
An unprecedented security measure on Tuesday, August 15: Delhi will be a no-fly zone for several hours when the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, hoists the national flag from the Red Fort. Roads leading to the Red Fort will be shut to normal traffic then.
The celebrations on August 15, which mark India's independence from Britsh rule in 1947, have been frequently disturbed by insurgent groups who use the national day to mount atacks and underline their presence, forcing hightened vigil. This time alarmed by blasts in Mumbai, a terrorist plot in Britain and a U.S. warning of a likely Al Qaeda attack, India has raised security to its highest levels in years ... | |
| | | | Governor’s Independence Day Message | | Sinha calls for united fight against terrorism | | | EARLY TIMES REPORTER
SRINAGAR, AUGUST 14 :
Governor Lt. Gen (Retd) S K Sinha has called upon people to fully organise themselves for giving a united fight to cancer of terrorism which has been eating into the vitals of Jammu and Kashmir.
In a message on the 60th Independence Day, the Governor said that while the State is marching towards a better tomorrow, security of the people remains a major concern particularly in the wake of terrorists’ atrocities like throwing grenades, slitting throats of innocent citizens and massacre of soft targets. A whole generation has been virtually destroyed in our State in the ongoing militancy. The number of innocents killed by terrorists exceeds the... | |
| | | | Sharp shooters, commandos deployed in Kashmir on I-Day eve | | | | EARLY TIMES REPORTER
Srinagar, Aug 14
Sharp shooters and commandos have been deployed in strength in all sensitive areas and vital installations in the summer capital and other parts of Jammu and Kashmir today on the eve of the Independence Day to thwart any attempt by militants to create large-scale disturbances in the state.
Security forces have detained more than 150 former militants and anti-social elements as preventive arrests in the entire Valley ahead of August 15.
Srinagar city wore a near deserted look as very less traffic plied and hardly few people were seen on the roads.
Though shops and other business establishments were open, only a few buyers visited them. Schools and... | |
| | | | I-Day function main venue sealed in Srinagar | | | | EARLY TIMES REPORTER
SRINAGAR, AUG 14 :
The venue of the main Independence Day function here has been sealed and police and security personnel given special identity cards to prevent a repeat of the militant attack on a Congress rally in May.
Tight security arrangements were in place around most vital installations particularly near Bakshi Stadium, the venue of the main function tomorrow, officials said.
Several roads around the stadium had been put off limits for civilian traffic and patrolling intensified in view of inputs about militants planning a major strike ahead or during Independence Day, they said.
They said police and security force personnel had been provided special identi... | |
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