M A I N   N E W S

Poll on schedule: Badal

Ludhiana, August 28
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today ruled out any possibility of holding poll for the state Assembly before due date early next year.

Addressing a public meeting after laying the foundation stone of a Rs 40-crore “Maharaja Ranjit Singh Bridge” over the Sutlej on the Jagraon-Nakodar road, the Chief Minister said the Assembly elections would be held “on schedule”.

He sought to impress that the newly formed Panthic Morcha of other Akali factions would not effect the electoral prospects of the ruling combine in any manner as the former was a group of persons, who had been rejected by the masses.

Lambasting the Congress for the economic backwardness in the country, Mr Badal said the party, even as it ruled for the maximum time, brought only poverty and unemployment. “The way the Congress always pursued the divide-and-rule policy by raising the bogey of religion, caste and creed and inter-state disputes is all before you,” he said. He said the minimum support price for paddy will be declared on September 3.

Talking to reporters at Mehatpur, Mr Badal said that a meeting would be held with Mr Shanta Kumar, Union Consumer Affairs and Food Supply Minister, on September 3 to discuss the issue. UNI, PTI

PM, Bush to have one-to-one meeting
Rajeev Sharma
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 28
Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee will have a one-to-one meeting with US President George W. Bush in New York either on September 23 or 24, well-placed sources in South Block said here today.

This will be the first-ever face-to-face interaction between Mr Vajpayee and Mr Bush since the latter took over as President some eight months back. Mr Vajpayee is likely to apprise Mr Bush of the latest developments since his initiative of inviting Pakistani military ruler Gen Pervez Musharraf to India, his discussions with General Musharraf at the Agra summit and why the Agra summit failed.

Mr Vajpayee will meet General Musharraf on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York “any day between September 23 and 26”, the sources said.

Pakistan’s Foreign Office had on Sunday sent an official letter to India seeking a meeting of General Musharraf with Mr Vajpayee on the margins of UN General Assembly in New York, saying that General Musharraf would be available for such a meeting between September 19 and 27.

Mr Vajpayee is to leave India for Cyprus on September 20. From Cyprus he would go to the USA and reach New York on September 22 evening. He is likely to address the UN General Assembly on September 25. The Prime Minister is scheduled to leave New York on September 26 evening for Tunisia for the final leg of the tour.