Tuesday, December 31, 2002, Chandigarh, India
Updated at 3:00 am (IST)

We were ready for war: Gen
Army Chief Padmanabhan retires today

New Delhi, December 30 The outgoing Chief of the Army Staff, General S. Padmanabhan, today clarified that it was not Pakistan’s nuclear capability which had deterred India from going across the border but no decision on the part of political leadership had held the troops back.

In video (28k, 56k)

Outgoing Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, Gen S. Padmanabhan (right), hands over the baton to his successor, Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Madhvendra Singh, at a farewell to General Padmanabhan in New Delhi on Monday. — PTI photo

  Graphic: Chiefs of Army Staff

Pak was ready to use N-arms
Karachi, December 30
Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf said today that he had been prepared to use nuclear weapons if India crossed into its territory earlier this year when tensions were at a peak.

    Troops exchange fire on border

‘Saffronisation’ alarms historians
Walkout by BJP-backed forum members
Amritsar, December 30
The 63rd session of Indian History Congress today concluded on the note of caution that society should remain vigilant about the subversive activities of communal forces.

Mongia, Yuvraj for World Cup
Kolkata, December 30
Stylish batsman V.V.S. Laxman was today ignored for India’s World Cup campaign in South Africa, yielding his place in the 15-member squad to left-hander Dinesh Mongia, as the national selectors reposed their faith in the old guard.

  Sports page: Dalmiya fires another salvo

Hawala racket unearthed
Jalandhar, December 30
In a major crackdown on hawala operators throughout the state, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) today unearthed a Rs 31 lakh hawala money racket and seized cash and valuable items to the tune of Rs 16 lakh. The ED has also sealed two bank accounts through which the hawala money was suspected to have been transacted during the past year.

Vaiko, 8 others chargesheeted
Chennai, December 30
A charge sheet against MDMK chief Vaiko and eight others, arrested in July under POTA for their alleged remarks supporting the banned LTTE, was filed by the Tamil Nadu police today.

Barnala shifted to Andhra
New Delhi, December 30
In a significant move, the Centre today shifted Uttaranchal Governor Surjit Singh Barnala to Andhra Pradesh. A Rashtrapati Bhawan press note said here that former Rajya Sabha Secretary General Sudarshad Agarwal had been appointed as the new Governor of Uttaranchal replacing Mr Barnala.

Monuments linked with Bhai Kanhaiya in neglect Anandpur Sahib, December 30 Mohiwal, a sleepy village situated in the lap of picturesque Shivalik hills, near here, was declared ‘first heritage village’ at the time of tercentenary celebrations of the birth of Khalsa by the then state government, may face threat of extinction due to ‘criminal negligence’ of all concerned.