tribuneindia...Spotlight

			Friday, January 8, 1999
weather today's calendar

Insurance Bill referred to panel
NEW DELHI, Jan 7 (PTI) — The controversial Bill to open the insurance sector to foreign participation has been referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance headed by Congress Member of Parliament (MP) Murli Deora. A Lok Sabha bulletin today said the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) Bill, 1998 introduced in the Lok Sabha on December 15, was referred to the standing committee by Lok Sabha Speaker G.M.C. Balayogi last night. The committee would examine the Bill and table its report in Parliament, it said.

Landslip kills 50 in Indonesia
JAKARTA, Jan 7 (AFP) — A landslide killed about 50 villagers working to clean out an irrigation channel on the Indonesian island of Bali, the police and reports said today. Sergeant Major Pawana of the sub-district police in Tegallalang, Central Bali, said the slide took place at around 6.30 a.m. as villagers were working to clean a local irrigation channel.

Thackeray discharged
MUMBAI, Jan 7 (PTI) — Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray today returned to his Matoshree residence at Bandra here following his discharge from Lilavati Hospital where he was admitted yesterday with signs of fatigue. He has been advised rest for the next few days. He felt a little uneasy at his farmhouse in Karjat in adjoining Raigad district where he had gone for a family get together in connection with 67th birth anniversary of his late wife Meenathai. He was flown to Mumbai in a private helicopter along with his physician.

Dilip better
MUMBAI, Jan 7 (PTI) — Thespian Dilip Kumar, recuperating after a bypass surgery, was in "perfect" condition and would be discharged by tomorrow, a doctor attending on him said today. The veteran film actor was operated upon at Lilavati Hospital here on January 1. "Dilip Kumar is in perfect shape has been walking about for the past few days and even climbed one floor today", Dr Nitin Gokhale member of the team of doctors who conducted the surgery on the actor said here.

4 CRPF men die
IMPHAL, Jan 7 (PTI) — Five persons, including four Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel, were killed and seven of their colleagues and a civilian injured when extremists ambushed a convoy of CRPF vehicles in the Lairongthel area of Manipur’s Thoubal district, official sources said here today. An armoured truck was hurled into the air at the impact of the explosion and caught fire, killing four CRPF men on the spot.

Blast kills 2
GUWAHATI, Jan 7 (PTI) — Two policemen were killed in a bomb explosion in Upper Assam’s North Lakhimpur district today, official sources here said. The bomb, buried on a road by suspected ULFA activists, went off when the two Assam police personnel were passing that way on a scooter from Phulbari to Bidhbari under Lakhimpur police station, sources said.

26 get life term
GUNA, Jan 7 (PTI) — A court here has sentenced to life imprisonment 26 persons, including eight members of a family for murdering a man during the panchayat elections held in June, 1994. District and Sessions Judge Rajkumar Choudhary, who pronounced his judgement here yesterday also sentenced the accused to pay a fine of Rs 5,000 each. The amount will be paid to the father of the victim Mannulal of Pahwa village.