Thaw At Last
Kasab our man: Pak
Top security adviser Durrani sacked
After initial hesitation, Pakistan’s foreign office on Wednesday confirmed that Ajmal Kasab, who is in Indian custody for his involvement in the Mumbai attacks, is a Pakistan national. National security adviser Mahmud Durrani was the first to break the news that investigations into the information provided by India have proved that Ajmal Kasab, the lone survivor among the band of Mumbai attackers, is a Pakistan national.

Boucher to be in Delhi today
New Delhi, January 7
India today hit out Islamabad for rejecting in less than 24 hours the evidence provided to it on the Mumbai terror attack as New Delhi deputed a high-level ministerial team to visit Europe later this month to launch a high-voltage diplomatic offensive against Pakistan.

Pakistan poses threat to India: US
New York, January 7
The “biggest” foreign-policy challenge awaiting US President-elect Barack Obama is “Pakistan” as its “turbulent border” region posed a threat not only to American forces in Afghanistan but also India and the world beyond, National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley has said.

Supply hit as oil officers begin strike
New Delhi, January 7
Officers of 13 oil PSUs today defied court orders and went on an indefinite strike, leading to a shutdown of gas supplies from the country's largest fields and cutting of output at key refineries. “The strike is total in all oil PSUs except Hindustan Petroleum. The strike began at 0600 hrs,” Oil Sector Officers Association (OSOA) president Amit Kumar said here.

Day 3
No pact on truckers’ strike
Prices of perishable commodities begin to head north

New Delhi, January 7 On the third day of the truckers’ strike today, both the transporters and the government remained adamant on their stance even as the prices of perishable commodities started showing a rise.
A driver relaxes with a newspaper in the cab of his truck parked on the outskirts of Hyderabad on Wednesday. — AFP

Nepal PM scraps decision to appoint new priests
Bending down before the mounting pressure, Nepal's Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Wednesday scrapped the appointment of new priests at the revered Pashupatinath Temple. Addressing the Legislature-Parliament session that resumed after three weeks, Prime Minister and CPN (Maoist) chairman Dahal said the priests’ appointment issue at Pashupatinath had aroused waves in “Nepal as well as in India”.

Brig’s sahayak dupes Army aspirants
Chandigarh, January 7
An army jawan staying at the private house of a serving brigadier in Panchkula as a caretaker has allegedly duped a number of persons aspiring to joining the Army worth lakhs of rupees. According to complaints lodged with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the jawan took Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.25 lakh each from the aspirants, promising to get them enrolled into the army through a senior officer.

India Shamed Satyam sunk by huge corporate fraud Boss Raju exits, faces jail Hyderabad, January 7 Under the shadow of an acquisition fiasco involving firms of his family members, the beleaguered chairman of Satyam Computer Services B Ramalinga Raju today made a disgraceful exit, admitting to major irregularities in the IT giant. If convicted, Raju faces up to 10 years in jail.