Wednesday, June 19, 2002, Chandigarh, India
 Updated at 3:00 am (IST)

Pak waives duty on 600 Indian items
Islamabad, June 18
Notwithstanding the ongoing tensions between the two countries, Pakistan has offered India duty exemption on hundreds of new export items from June 15. As many as 600 Indian items have been given a 10 per cent duty exemption under the South Asian Preferential Trade Agreement (SAPTA). Interestingly, even the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) under the SAARC charter have not been provided any concessions on these items.

• Civilian dies in Pak shelling

• Pervez: Pak nukes can deter India

• India rubbishes Pervez’s claim

Shekhawat may succeed Kant
New Delhi, June 18
With the decks having been cleared for technocrat A.P.J. Abdul Kalam to occupy Rashtrapati Bhavan as the country’s eleventh President, the focus is beginning to shift to the long impending Cabinet expansion-cum-reshuffle and to Vice-President Krishan Kant’s successor.

• Mamata may be inducted

Kalam enters poll fray
New Delhi, June 18 The 71-year old noted scientist, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, who is virtually the country’s President-in-waiting, today entered the ring when his nomination papers were filed by all major political formations, barring the Left.
Prime Minister Atal  Behari Vajpayee with presidential candidate A. P. J. Abdul Kalam waves to the media after filing his nomination at Parliament House in New Delhi on Tuesday. — PTI photo  In video (28k, 56k)

Talks conclusive, says govt
BKU feels otherwise; to meet today
Chandigarh, June 18
The Haryana Government and the BKU apparently have divergent views about the outcome of the second round of dialogues between the government team and the BKU delegation at Jind yesterday.