US HOLDING PRELIMINARY TALKS WITH TALIBAN: GATES

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

Washington, June 19: A day after Afghan President Hamid Karzai's assertion, the US today acknowledged that it is engaged in preliminary "outreach" talks with the Taliban along with some other countries to politically settle the decade- long conflict in the country. Defense Secretary Robert More

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Marriage breakdowns: A disturbing trend in Saudi Arabia

ARAB NEWS

Jeddah, June 19: A research study finds half a million divorce cases in Saudi Arabia in 19 years There were 500,000 divorce cases in Saudi Arabia in less than two decades, Asharq Al-Awsat, a sister publication of Arab News, reported Friday quoting a field study that claimed the figures represented More

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Obama to personally tweet from Twitter account

Minneapolis, June 19: President Barack Obama is taking a more active role on Twitter, 140 characters at a time. Obama’s campaign said in a posting on its website Friday that Obama will tweet regularly from the popular social media service and his personal tweets will be signed “-BO.” The More

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Karachi in grip of ethnic violence; 50 killed in a week

Karachi, June 19: Pakistan's biggest city was in the grip of a fresh round of ethnic violence with 10 people found dead today, taking the number of killings in a week to almost 50. Police officials said they had recovered bodies of 10 more people who appeared to have been killed in different More

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Musharraf asks Sharif to stop 'misleading' people about Kargil

M ZULQERNAIN/PTI

Lahore, June 19: Pakistan's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf has dismissed PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif's allegation that he was responsible for the Kargil fiasco, asking the ex-premier to "stop misleading the masses about the Kashmir and Kargil issues". "Nawaz Sharif is lying about his More

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Annual medical check-ups' expenses to be exempt from I-T

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

New Delhi, June 19: In a major relief to employees, the Government has said they would no longer have to pay income tax on money drawn from welfare funds for annual medical check-ups.   The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has issued a notification in this regard. As per More

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TEENAGE OBESITY RAISES CANCER RISK

AGENCIES

London, June 19: Men who were overweight or obese as teenagers are more likely to die from cancer in later life, says a study. Even losing weight during middle age did not appear to cut the extra risk of developing lung, skin, kidney and prostate cancers, the Daily Mail reported Thursday, citing the More

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Syrian govt launches military campaign to crush uprising

Amman, June 19: Syrian troops and gunmen loyal to President Bashar Assad stormed a town near the Turkish border on Saturday, burning houses and arresting dozens, witnesses said, in a persistent military campaign to crush popular revolt. The latest assault followed another Friday of deadly protests More

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28 militants, 8 soldiers killed in Pakistan

Islamabad, June 19: At least 28 Taliban militants and eight soldiers were killed in two major clashes with the Pakistani security forces near the Afghan border, Xinhua reported Sunday. A two-day military operation jointly launched by the Pakistan Army, Frontier Corps, police and the air force More

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‘Modern-day fathers play a more motherly role’

Recent Survey Shows Evolution Of Parents As Confidants

Father’s Day

New Delhi, June 19: ‘It is a wise father that knows his own child' — Shakespeare's words continue to resonate in the modern world where fathers are moving away from being strict, disciplinarian figures to a source of emotional support for their children. "My father is not just my father! More

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EU allows drug tests on pets

London, June 19: Concerns have been raised in Britain over a European Union directive allowing drug tests on pets, a media report said Sunday. The plan could trigger a dramatic rise in the number of pets used in laboratory experiments, the express.co.uk reported. British law allows tests More

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Lokpal panel to meet today

Sonia Writes To Hazare

New Delhi, June 19: A day before the next meeting of the Lokpal bill joint drafting panel, Congress president Sonia Gandhi Sunday replied to reformer Anna Hazare's letter accusing her party of maligning his image and said that her stand on the issue has not changed. "As far as the questions More

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Tatas wealthier than Ambanis

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

New Delhi, June 19:  Tatas may not be known for being on the stock-based rich lists, but changing market dynamics have led to the salt-to-software conglomerate overtaking the combined market wealth of the two Ambani groups put together.       The share prices More

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