Asian Lite News Archive

Category: Asia News

  • Modi should not visit disputed border region: China daily

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      Prime Minister Narendra Modi must not visit the disputed border region in pursuit of his own political interests, a leading English daily of China said . The daily’s advice comes only days ahead of Modi’s official visit to China this week. It describes the Indian leader as pragmatic rather than a visionary. “Due to…

  • Sharif arrives in Kabul

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    Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif arrived in Afghanistan on a one-day official visit. Sharif is accompanied by his Advisor on National Security and Foreign Affairs, Sartaj Aziz, army chief General Raheel Sharif, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and other senior officials, Khaama Press reported. Afghan Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabani received the…

  • Quake jolts Nepal and Delhi

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    Hundreds of thousands of people across Nepal fled from their homes and offices after a strong earthquake shook buildings, reminding them of the horror of the April 25 temblor. The earthquake measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale on Tuesday caused panic among the residents of Kathmandu, according to eyewitnesses. Many thousand people had again assembled…

  • Manisha Koirala to support Nepali women

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       Bollywood star and social activist Manisha Koirala has announced her support for the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) as its Goodwill Ambassador for Nepal to work for pregnant women, new mothers and their infants, girls and young people displaced by the devastating earthquake of April 25. “I am truly happy to renew my partnership with…

  • Fresh avalanches paralyse search operations in Nepal

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    More avalanches in Nepal’s Langtang valley have hampered the search for 300 people, reported missing in the area since the April 26 earthquake, an official said. Nepalese rescue teams in Langtang have moved to safer locations after avalanches in different parts of the valley since Friday night, Assistant Chief District Officer Gautam Rimal told Himalayan…

  • Afghan gets a pair of hands from a Keralite

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    By Sanu George  Thirty-two-year-old Abdul Rahim, a former captain with the Afghan security Force has now got a fresh pair of hands, thanks to a brain-dead Keralite and to a team of doctors at a leading private hospital here who conducted the double transplant. The surgery was conducted on April 10 by a team of…

  • Sharif chairs high-level meet

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    Prior to an important Afghanistan visit, Pakistan Prime Minster Nawaz Sharif chaired a high-level meeting here to discuss the dimensions related to Pakistan-Afghanistan relations. Sharif, accompanied by his army chief Gen. Raheel Sharif, will be going on a two-day visit to Afghanistan on Tuesday following an invitation from President Ashraf Ghani. “This will be Sharif’s…

  • India will bring Dawood back: Rajnath

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    Home Minister Rajnath Singh  said that “India would do everything possible” to bring back from Pakistan Dawood Ibrahim, the underworld don who is believed to be involved in various crimes, including terrorism. Speaking in the Lok Sabha, the home minister said Pakistan was under international obligation to find him out as Interpol has already issued…

  • US labels Al Jazeera bureau chief as Al Qaeda member

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    The US government has labelled Al Jazeera’s bureau chief in Pakistan’s capital as a member of Al Qaeda and put him on a watch list of suspected terrorists, an online magazine reported. Ahmad Muaffaq Zaidan, a Syrian national based in Islamabad, has covered the Taliban and Al Qaeda throughout his career and has conducted a…

  • Kabul retakes Taliban district

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    Afghan security forces recaptured Nawa district in Afghanistan’s eastern Ghazni province and established government control there after 10 years of Taliban rule, an official said. “Units of national security forces after 13 days of fierce operations evicted Taliban militants from Nawa district and established government control there for the first time in the past 10…

  • Sharif: Taliban claim is bogus

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    Pakistan denies as ‘bogus’ Taliban claim of shooting down chopper Pakistan dismissed as “bogus” Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan’s claim of shooting down a military helicopter that led to the death of the ambassadors of Norway and Philippines in the northern area of the country. Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry ruled…

  • Rajapaksa denies ‘assets abroad’

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    Former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse denied allegations that he had siphoned off state funds during his decade-long presidency and held assets worth $18 billion overseas….reports AAsian Lite, UK’s No 1 newspaper for British Asians Rajapakse’s response came a day after Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera said that according to intelligence reports, Rajapaksa had stashed away…

  • Parliament passes Bangladesh land accord bill

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    The Indian parliament passed a key constitutional amendment bill to give effect to the swapping of border land enclaves between India and Bangladesh under a 1974 agreement. Prime Minister Narendra Modi called up his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina to convey his greetings on the occasion. The Constitution (One Hundred and Nineteenth Amendment) Bill, 2013, which…

  • India won’t discriminate on basis of religion: Modi

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    Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declared that his government views all religions at par and won’t tolerate any discrimination. In an extensive interview to Time magazine, the prime minister said his and the BJP’s philosophy was “Sabka saath, sabka vikas – Together with all, progress for all. “Wherever a (negative) view might have been expressed…

  • British aid provides shelter for over 65,000 Nepalese people

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    Britain has already provided much-needed emergency shelter to more than 65,000 displaced people across Nepal and more shelter kits are being delivered in the coming days, International Development Secretary Justine Greening announced today. The majority of the shelter kits already distributed had been put in place before the earthquake struck, as part of DFID’s preparation…

  • US has given Pakistan arms worth $5.4 bn

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     Since the September 11, 2001 terror attack, the US has given Pakistan arms worth about $5.4 billion for counter-terrorism operations, along with many “big ticket” platforms more suited to conventional warfare. Sales of F-16 combat aircraft and related equipment account for nearly half of these Foreign Military Sales agreements with Pakistan, according to a report…

  • Permanent seat for India is ‘urgent’: France

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      To bolster the legitimacy of the UN in a changed world, it is “vital” and “urgent” to expand the Security Council’s permanent membership to include India, France has declared. France’s Permanent Representative Francois Delattre said Tuesday, “France favors enlarging the Security Council’s both categories of membership, permanent and non-permanent, and supports Germany and Japan,…

  • Nepal may call off Everest expeditions for 2015

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    Nepal may call off the expeditions to Mount Everest this year after an elite team of sherpas informed the government that they would take at least two months to set up a new route to the top of the world’s highest peak after an avalanche on April 25 hit the traditional route. Hundreds of climbers…

  • Kerala targets Arab market with Ayurveda

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    Lush green flora, placid backwaters, monsoon downpour and Ayurveda were the main themes of the Kerala Tourism pavilion which welcomed visitors at the Arabian Travel Market 2015, being held at the Dubai World Trade Center. The four-day annual event that began provides a great opportunity to network with the tourism trade in the Middle East.…

  • Gurkha land is in ruins

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    By Gaurav Sharma  Ran Bahadur Gurung is scouring for his belongings in the rubble which once used to be his house at this remote but picturesque village of Gurkha in Nepal, the epicentre of the devastating earthquake in Himalayan nation. While rummaging through the ruins, he stumbles across a mangled aluminum container. He flings it,…

  • Bangla land boundary accord cleared

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    The union cabinet  cleared the bill to operationalise the land boundary agreement with Bangladesh which entails exchange of both countries’ enclaves, sources said. They said that decision to approve the Constitution’s 119th Amendment Bill, 2013, on the land boundary agreement between India and Bangladesh was taken at a meeting of the cabinet chaired by Prime…

  • Modi’s rope trick to befriend Chinese

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    Chaitanya Mallapur  Ahead of his visit to China — from May 14 to 16 —India’s social-media friendly Prime Minister Narendra Modi joined the Chinese social media platform Weibo to connect with Chinese citizens. Sina Weibo is the largest Chinese micro-blogging site with over 140 million monthly active users, and China, with 1.29 billion subscribers, has…

  • Modi to visit China

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    Prime Minister Narendra Modi will pay a three-nation official visit to China, Mongolia and South Korea from May 14-19. In China, Modi will visit Xian, Beijing and Shanghai from May 14-16. He will hold bilateral meetings with the country’s leadership and participate in cultural and business events. The prime minister will also attend an event…

  • Everest to remain shut this season

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    The Nepalese government has decided to shut Mount Everest for this season as routes above the base camp which were hit by violent avalanches, were found impossible to be refixed, media reported. Special teams of Sherpas, known as Icefall Doctors assigned by Nepal’s Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC), said that numerous avalanches triggered by the…

  • Islam snubs Tobacco campaigns

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      London researchers say tobacco companies have perceived that Islam as a threat to its attempts to sell more tobacco products in emerging markets in Asia …writes Kaliph Anaz for Asian Lite, UK’s No 1 newspaper for British Asians Researchers have found evidence of attempts by the tobacco industry to reinterpret Islamic teaching to make smoking…

  • Modi govt Pakistan policy lacks clarity: Shourie

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    Former union minister Arun Shourie said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s policy on Pakistan lacked clarity and he is under the illusion of an out-of-box solution to the vexed issue. In an interview with Karan Thapar for Headlines Today, Shourie, who was a minister in the first National Democratic Alliance government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee,…

  • Normalcy returning to Kathmandu

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    By Gaurav Sharma  Normalcy appeared to be returning here finally over a week after a devastating 7.9 magnitude earthquake rocked Nepal, leaving over 6,000 killed and more than 10,000 injured in this Himalayan nation. But aftershocks were still keeping many people outside their houses. It was a bright sunny day in Kathmandu on Friday, with…

  • India ‘a life saver’:quake survivors

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    Narayan Ghat Nepal’s quake survivors are grateful to India for its prompt response and have described it as “a life saver”. India was quick to respond to the disaster by launching a massive relief and rescue operation within hours of the temblor that has left over 6,000 people dead. “It is the Indian government that…

  • Perishable items rot as vehicles idle at Nepal-India border

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    Fruit, bread and other perishable commodities have begun to go bad as vehicles carrying relief material to quake-hit Nepal wait at a clogged border crossing. The better known route to the Himalayan nation from Uttar Pradesh is the Sunauli border near Gorakhpur. The route is choked these days as hundreds of transport vehicles, light motor…

  • Nepal quake toll cross 6000

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    The toll in the massive earthquake that devastated Nepal has risen to 6,166, the Nepalese home ministry said. According to Nepal Police, the total number of injured is over 10,000, Kantipur News reported. As many as 12,064 houses have been reported destroyed. “This is just the preliminary data. We are still in the process of…

  • Malala’s attackers get life term

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    An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Pakistan sentenced ten men to 25 years’ imprisonment in the case related to the 2012 attack on child activist Malala Yousufzai. The ATC in Swat district of Khyber-Pakhtunkwha province awarded life imprisonment to the 10 men who attacked Malala, who was campaigning for the education of girls. Those sentenced were…

  • Clothing giants urged to help Rana Plaza victims

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    The European Parliament adopted a strongly worded resolution to mark the Second Anniversary of the Rana Plaza building collapse in Bangladesh, which caused the the death of over 1100 people and left some 2500 people injured. The Rana Plaza building collapse was Bangladesh’s worst-ever industrial disaster and the deadliest accidental structural failure in modern history. While 27…

  • Visitors lending helping hand in Nepal

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    Foreigners who were in Nepal when a devastating earthquake struck the country are lending a helping hand. They are working alongwith thousands of Nepalese youth who are assisting the injured and the grief-stricken. Emmy, who hails from Canada, was visiting Nepal when the quake struck on Saturday. She was to go trekking, but dropped the…

  • Tagore’s Gitanjali echoes in RCGP corridors

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    The headquarter of the Royal College of GPs (RCGP) in Euston Square, London, now has a room named ‘Gitanjali’ named after the famous work of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, writes Anjana Parikh   Sponsored by Manchester-based medic, Dr Vikram Tanna and his family, the room has an image of Tagore and an extract from ‘Gitanjali’…

  • Sharif lauds Indian rescue efforts

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    Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif called up Prime Minister Narendra Modi to express condolence over the deaths in India due to the quake and appreciated India’s rescue operations in Nepal. “Got a call from PM Nawaz Sharif. He expressed condolences on the loss of lives in various parts of India due to the earthquake,” Modi…

  • Over 50,000 pregnant women affected in quake

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     Some 50,000 pregnant women were likely affected by the devastating earthquake in Nepal, a UN agency said on . Initial estimates by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) indicate that some 50,000 pregnant women and girls could be among the survivors in quake-affected Nepal where at least 4,347 lives were lost in the temblor. The…

  • Indian Army will continue operations in Nepal

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    The Indian Army said  that it will continue with its major relief and rescue operation in quake-hit Nepal till the situation becomes normal. Since an earthquake measuring 7.9 on Richter scale hit Nepal, the army has rushed medical and engineering teams along with equipment and even reached the epicenter. “We are committed to help Nepal……

  • Ghani, Modi hold delegation level talks

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    Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani met here  for delegation level talks. The talks are being held at Hyderabad House. President Ghani earlier met External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who called on him at the Dwarka Suite of Rashtrapati Bhavan. Earlier, Ghani was accorded a ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan. Several union…

  • Oman offers amnesty

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    Around 60,000 Indians may benefit from an amnesty scheme announced in Oman, under which people without valid documents could either return to their country without being penalised or can rectify their papers, said a diaspora expert. The Oman government announced the schemeand said it will run from May 3 to July 30. S. Irudayarajan, who…

  • Nepal earthquake toll rises to 4,347

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      Rescuers, including foreigners, worked feverishly across Nepal as the country grappled with an acute water scarcity and the toll in the devastating earthquake shot up to 4,347, authorities said . People spent their third uncomfortable night out in the open, worried that an earthquake may strike again. They had to make do with whatever…

  • CIA had flexible US drone policy in Pakistan

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    US President Barack Obama tightened rules for the US drone programme in 2013, but he secretly approved a waiver giving the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) more flexibility in Pakistan than anywhere else to strike suspected militants, according to current and former US officials. According to a report published in The Wall Street Journal, the US…

  • Tenzing’s son leads 10 Indian women trekkers to safety

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    By Radhika Bhirani  A team, including 10 Indian women, led by late Nepalese mountaineer Tenzing Norgay’s son Jamling, halted their trek towards the Mount Everest Base Camp after the earthquake jolted Nepal. According to information reaching here, the group has cut short its 17-day trek and is now waiting to be evacuated by helicopter from…

  • Relief materials blocking Kathmandu airport

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    After four aircraft of Indian Air Force carrying relief material were forced to return from Kathmandu, highly placed sources said it was partly due to piling up of relief material at the Tribhuvan International Airport. “A lot of relief material has reached the Kathmandu airport but it is not going out which has resulted in…

  • Virtual media drives rescue operations

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    Considering the popularity and reach of social networking sites in the modern world, the Indian government is pro-actively using Twitter and Facebook to reach out to those affected in quake-ravaged Nepal. From giving information about the missing ones to offering aid, the government and netizens have gone all out to utilise the power of social…

  • Ashraf Ghani to visit India

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      Afghanistan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani will be in India for a three-day state visit and will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and attend delegation-level talks. Scheduled to arrive here at 8 p.m. on Monday, Ghani will receive a ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan and hold talks with President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday. A communique…

  • Nepal grieves for its dead

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  • World rushes aid to Nepal amid 2,300 deaths

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    By Anil Giri   Another tremblor measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale shook Nepal on Sunday causing fresh panic as rescuers pulled out bodies from debris, a day after a 7.9 magnitude earthquake left over 2,300 dead and forced tens of thousands to spend the night on the streets. As the world rushed emergency aid to…

  • 19 bodies found at Everest base camp

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    Nineteen bodies have been recovered from Everest base camp which was hit by an avalanche following Saturday’s 7.9-magnitude earthquake in Nepal, the Indian defence ministry said  even as the stranded climbers kept tweeting about themselves for the world. “Nineteen bodies have been recovered from the Everest base camp. About 50 others are injured,” defence ministry…

  • India will wipe the tear of every Nepali: Modi

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    Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India stands with Nepal in its time of sorrow following the massive quake and will do its best to wipe the tear of every Nepali, hold their hand and be with them in this hour of tragedy. In his monthly edition of Mann ki Baat radio address, Modi said he…

  • Malala condemns female activist’s murder in Pakistan

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    Pakistani Nobel Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai has condemned the killing of female human rights activist Sabeen Mahmud in Karachi and demanded the earliest arrest of the assailants, a media report said. Mahmud, who founded the social forum T2F, was shot dead on Friday night minutes after the end of an interactive discussion on “Unsilencing Balochistan”.…