Thursday, January 30, 2003, Chandigarh, India
Updated at 3:00 am (IST)

Jaitley, Thakur get Cabinet berth
Mahajan, Uma Bharti, Vasundhara drafted for party work
New Delhi, January 29
Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee carried out an extensive BJP-centric expansion by inducting two Cabinet ministers, one Minister of State with independent charge and five Ministers of State in his jumbo Council of Ministers here this evening.

The new incumbents 
Krishnamurthi  was offered other portfolios: PM

Sehwag to be on Time cover
New Delhi, January 29
India’s hope and Delhi’s hero Virender Sehwag (Viru) is all set to make it big. From the unpaved streets of Najafgarh village in the north-west of Delhi to be featured on the cover of the Asian edition of a multi-continental, multi-edition international news magazine, rated among the best in the world, Sehwag is all set to replace his very own idol Sachin Tendulkar as the “international icon” of Indian cricket.

PSEB ex-chief Sohal held
Patiala, January 29
The Punjab Vigilance Department arrested former Punjab State Electricity Board Chairman G.S. Sohal from Delhi early this morning on a charge of causing a loss of Rs 40 lakh to the board by going in for purchase of expensive meters.

Diploma hope for ‘creative’ mechanics
Chandigarh, January 29
If you are “innovative and creative” but unfortunately a “school dropout”, you still can hope to get a certificate or a diploma from the government, thanks to a special scheme proposed by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development, which is expected to be formalised by the middle of this year.

Rain brightens rabi prospects
Morinda, January 29
A light-to-moderate rainfall in various parts of Punjab and Haryana in the past 48 hours has brightened the rabi prospects in the region making, farmers as well as officials of the Agriculture Department happy.
A mustard field in full bloom was clicked by Tribune photographer Karam Singh near Morinda on Wednesday.

TRIBUNE IMPACT Archival records to remain in Rajindra Kothi Patiala, January 29 A major part of the archival records of as many as eight erst-while princely states will continue to remain in Rajindra Kothi, which houses the State Archives, with the Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority deciding not to shift the records to any other place. Earlier story on January 29: Playing with Punjab’s archival records Editorial: Irreparable loss