The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Tuesday, January 18, 2000,
Chandigarh, India

THE TRIBUNE SPECIALS

50 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE

TERCENTENARY CELEBRATIONS

S P O T L I G H T

Port workers’ strike
NEW DELHI, Jan 17 (PTI) — Over one lakh workers in 11 major ports will go on an indefinite strike from midnight tonight demanding better wages following failure of talks with the Government even as the Centre called in the Navy as part of its contingency plan to deal with the situation. The federations are demanding among other things wage revision every five years and awarding of house rent allowance and city compensatory allowance with retrospective effect from January one, 1998.

5 crore bank robbery
AIZAWL, Jan 17 (PTI) — A group of six armed dacoits today robbed more than Rs five crore from the State Bank of India branch in Mizoram’s southern town of Lawngtlai, police said. Superintendent of Police CID-Special Branch, Shanliana, told PTI here that the robbers, armed with pistols and rifles, entered the branch in Lawngtlai district in the evening and fled with the money in a jeep.

Pak blast kills 8
KARACHI, Jan 17 (AP) — A powerful explosion shattered a congested neighbourhood in this southern port city today, killing at least eight persons (six, according to Reuters) and wounding 31 others, the police said. The explosion, which was a time bomb hidden in a fruit cart, destroyed three shops and sent an electrical power pole crashing to the ground, they said. The explosion occurred near a bus stop.

10 die in avalanche
MUZAFFARABAD, Jan 17 (Reuters) — An avalanche swept away an Army post in the Pakistan occupied Kashmir today, burying 10 soldiers, army sources said. They said rescuers had not yet found any survivors. The avalanche struck the post at Nekron in the Neelum valley near the line of control. Those buried included an Army captain.

Subramaniyam report
AMETHI, Jan 17 (PTI) — Congress President Sonia Gandhi today asked the Vajpayee Government to make public the report of the Subramaniyam Committee which went into the circumstances leading to the Kargil conflict.

Priyanka Vadra
BANGALORE, Jan 17 (PTI) — Karnataka Chief Minister S. M. Krishna today dismissed as “rumours” press reports that Priyanka Vadra would be contesting the Bellary Lok Sabha seat vacated by Congress President Sonia Gandhi.

Thackeray’s chopper
MUMBAI, Jan 17 (PTI) — Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray’s chopper was detained by the naval authorities after it mistakenly landed at a naval base at Uran in neighbouring Raigad district yesterday.