North Korea to give up nuclear programmes
Beijing, September 19
In a major breakthrough, North Korea today agreed to abandon its nuclear weapons and programmes and rejoin the Non-Proliferation Treaty, accept inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency after the USA agreed to normalise bilateral ties and assured of non-aggression.

South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Song Min-soon (left) chats with North Korea’s chief negotiator Kim Gye Gwan at the end of six-party talks over North Korea’s nuclear crisis at the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing on Monday. — AFP photo

Natwar Singh meets Kasuri in New York
New Delhi, September 19
External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh, who has stayed on in New York because of back-to-back meetings and other business, met his Pakistani counterpart Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri yesterday and is scheduled to meet US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice later today.
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Nation page: Terrorist groups in Pakistan unaffected
Business page: India, Pak press for free trade
Punjab page: Pakistan identifies 42 more prisoners

Mystery of Daya Ram’s family resolved
Sonepat family withdraws claim
Amritsar, September 19
family from Sonepat (Haryana) today withdrew its claim over Daya Ram after meeting him again at Dr Vidhya Sagar Government Mental Hospital, here. This ended the week-long mystery over his real relatives.

Bofors case: PIL filed in SC

Nation page:
BJP for probe into Soviet agent’s charges

A huge pall of smoke is seen after a major fire broke out on Monday morning at a plastic godown located between Achud and Kalamboli villages in Navi Mumbai. — PTI

Next BJP head to have Sangh’s stamp
New Delhi, September 19
Despite BJP President L.K. Advani’s swipe at the RSS during the just-concluded National Executive Meeting of the party in Chennai, party insiders strongly felt that the Sangh will have an overbearing influence on who will be the successor to Mr Advani, who has decided to demit presidentship in December.

  Editorial: An outcome of dual loyalty

SC for regulating student unions’ poll
New Delhi, September 19
Concerned over the “unleashing of unrest” in colleges during student unions’ elections across the country every year, the Supreme Court today directed the Centre to lay down proper guidelines for conducting the elections and gave the government two-week time to submit its response on the issue and the proposed modalities.

Confusion in Gauhati High Court