Internet and telephone facilities in trains soon Govt fixes 26% cap on foreign investment in TV News Channels

keralamonitor.com March 18, 2003

Internet and telephone facilities in trains soon

New Delhi,Tuesday, March 18, 2003: The RailTel Corporation of India Ltd, a public sector undertaking under the Ministry of Railways, is planning to install internet service in trains and net kiosks at the New Delhi Railay station. Internet service connection would be provided in one of the trains as a pilot project during 2003-2004, an official statement said here today, adding the train and routes were under finalisation. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Railways has issued detailed guidelines to Zonal Railways for providing internet services at railway stations to enable rail users to communicate with their near and dear ones without any extra-payment. There is, however, no scheme at present to provide Doordarshan and other TV channels at stations and in trains. So far, four pairs of Shatabdi Express trains have been provided with telephone services. These are: New Delhi-Kala Shatabdi Express, New Delhi-Kalka Shatabdi Express, New Delhi-Amritsar Express and New Delhi-Amritsar Swarna Shatabdi Express, it added.

Govt fixes 26% cap on foreign investment in TV News Channels

New Delhi,Tuesday, March 18, 2003: In a setback to Star TV's proposed 24-hour news channel, Government tonight fixed a cap of 26 per cent on foreign investment in Television news channels seeking to uplink from India. It asked existing news channels having foreign equity like ZEE News to disinvest within a year to fit into the foreign investment limit of 26 per cent. Briefing reporters after a meeting of the Union cabinet which fixed the cap, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said foreign investment in news channels includes Foreign Direct Investment, Foreign Institutional Investment, External Commercial Borrowings and investment by NRIs.

However, for entertaiment channels there will be no cap as they could have 100 per cent foreign investment under the existing policy, Swaraj said. At the same time, entertainment channels having news bulletins or current affairs programmes would fall under the 26 per cent cap, she said. Star TV, which was the first wholly-owned foreign channel to request for uplinking from India for a news channel, will now have to apply afresh. After Star TV, which is to launch its news channel on April one, similar requests were made by BBC and CNBC.

Bush gives 48-hour ultimatum to Saddam to leave Iraq

Washington,Tuesday, March 18, 2003: Setting the course for war on Iraq without the UN backing, US President George W Bush today gave a deadline of 48 hours to Saddam Hussein and his sons to leave the country, saying that terrorist threat to America and the world will be diminished the moment the "tyrant" Iraqi leader is disarmed.

"Saddam Hussein and his sons must leave Iraq within 48 hours. Their refusal to do so will result in military conflict, commenced at a time of our choosing," Bush said in a 15-minute address televised worldwide directed at the American public, allies, Iraqi military and its citizens. The deadline began at 0630 hours IST, the time when Bush delivered the speech in which he said that UN Security Council has failed to live upto its responsibilities, "so we will rise to ours." "Iraq will not disarm so long as Saddam Hussein holds power," he said criticising France and Russia for threatening to use veto on the resolution seeking UN approval for military action to disarm Iraq. "Some permanent members of the Security Council have publicly announced they will veto any resolution that compels disarmament of Iraq. These governments share our assessment of the danger but not our resolve to meet it." Bush asked all foreign nationals, including journalists and weapons inspectors to leave Iraq immediately.

Iraq, Arab League reject US ultimatum; Australia, Japan back

Washington,Tuesday, March 18, 2003: Iraq, joined by Arab League, today rejected US President George W Bush's 48-hour ultimatum to Saddam Hussein to leave the country or face military action, a deadline sharply criticised by several countries including Russia, France, China and Germany which said there was no justification for a war.

US' close allies, including Japan and Australia, backed Bush's decision. Australian Premier John Howard also announced his government would commit 2000 troops to the US-led attack on Iraq while Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said "it was a decision that had to be made."
Malaysia, current chairman of the Non-aligned Movement, said the unilateral use of force and taken without the support and authorisation of the UN Security Council and not in self-defence against any armed attack is clearly in violation of the principles of the international law and UN Charter.
Iraq's Ambassador to UN Mahmood al-Douri said that US would be committing "a grave mistake" by using force to oust Saddam Hussein from power. "This will destablise not only the region but other parts of the world. So, I think this would be a mistake, a grave mistake on the part of the American administration to launch this war against my country." Accusing US of acting "outside international legality", the Arab League said it cannot accept "such a final warning". "We regret the US decision to act outside the UN Security Council and international legality," spokesman of Cairo based pan-Arab organisation Hisham Yussef, said.

Two UK ministers resign protesting Blair's Iraq policy

London,Tuesday, March 18, 2003: In a major setback to British Prime Minister Tony Blair, two of his ministers resigned today protesting his government's policy over Iraq, a day after leader of the House of Commons and former minister Robin Cook put in his papers. Junior Health Minister Lord Hunt and Home Office Minister John Denham announced their resignations as Blair pleaded for his Labour Party's backing for joining the US in military action against Iraq and said that the crisis will determine the shape of international politics for a generation. "Back away from this confrontation now and future conflicts will be infinitely worse and more devastating in their effects," said Blair opening a critical debate in the the House of Commons, which is effectively being asked to sanction Britain's participation in a war to disarm Saddam Hussein.

However, Blair got a boost when International Development Secretary Clare Short, who had earlier threatened to resign on the issue, changed her mind but said she was still "very critical" of the way the crisis had been handled. Lord Hunt said that he decided to resign as he did not support "the pre-emptive action which is going to be taken without broad international support or indeed the clear support of the British people." Denham said he was quitting because he could not vote in support of the government for a House of Commons motion to endorse a military strike on Baghdad.
"I met the Prime Minister this morning to explain my reasons," he said, adding he hoped to speak during a 10-hour debate on Iraq in the Commons. Cook, the leader of the House of Commons who was foreign minister during the Kosovo crisis, resigned yesterday.

In a Commons statement that followed his resignation as the leader of the House, Cook said he could not back a march towards a war which did not have international and domestic support. "Neither the international community nor the British public are persuaded that there is an urgent and compelling reason for this action in Iraq," he said. Observing that Iraq's military strength was less than half of what it had been at the time of the 1991 Gulf War, Cook said it was, therefore, illogical to argue that Iraq presented a threat and moreover that that threat justified war.