Assembly rejects deal, Jogi steps up offensive
The Chhatisgarh Assembly today rejected the Union Government's decision to privatise the BALCO, a day after Parliament gave its nod.

Missiles fired at Buddha statues
Afghanistan's ancient Buddha statues in the central Bamiyan province came under a barrage of rocket and tank fire from the ruling Taliban militia today as the world watched in horror.

'Bring statues to India'
Parliament today expressed unanimous condemnation of the Taliban's intent to destroy the two Buddha statues in Bamiyan, Afghansitan. In a unanimous resolution adopted by both Houses of Parliament, India condemned ``in the strongest possible terms'' the Taliban's decision to destroy the statues.

PM writes to Council members
In a bid to mobilise international opinion, the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, has written to the United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, and the leaders of the five permanent members of the Security Council to rescue the ancient statues of the Buddha in Afghanistan.

15 policemen killed in Rajouri ambush
Fifteen policemen were killed and nine others injured when militants ambushed a police vehicle near Rajouri in Jammu today. The fate of two policemen is not known.

Budget will help NDA in polls: Sinha
The Finance Minister, Mr Yashwant Sinha, is optimistic that his budget proposals will help the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) during the coming elections to State Assemblies.

Coca Cola slashes prices
Coca Cola India today announced an across-the-board reduction in the prices of all its brands with immediate effect following cut in excise duty rates on beverages in the Union budget.

Akash test fired
The indigenously built multi-target surface-to-air missile `Akash' was today test-fired from the Interim Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur-on-sea, about 15 kms from here, according to sources.

Sanskrit in Central schools
Decks have been cleared for the introduction of Sanskrit for 9th, 10th and 11th standard students in Central schools.