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 Anna hardens stance but PM tells him not to fret
Says Lokpal Bill will be introduced in this session of Parliament
New Delhi, December 17
Shortly after Anna Hazare shot off another letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and reiterated his threat to go ahead with his fast and “jail bharo” agitation, the PM today said the government was working “day and night” to give shape to the Lokpal Bill and will make all efforts to pass it in the ongoing winter session of Parliament, which concludes on December 22.

Anna Hazare at a public rally against corruption at Freedom Park in Bangalore on Saturday. — PTI

Sukhbir is man in a hurry, opens unfinished projects
Ludhiana, December 17
In an apparent tearing hurry to stake his claim to every inch of development in the state before imposition of the model code of conduct, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal today inaugurated two incomplete projects in the city.

Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal inaugurates the City Bus Service Project in Ludhiana on Saturday. Tribune photo: Himanshu Mahajan

Nancy Powell new US envoy to India
New Delhi, December 17
In the midst of what is seen as a cooling period in relations between India and the US, the Obama administration has named career diplomat Nancy Powell as America’s next ambassador to India.

PM: FDI in retail after Assembly elections
On board Air India One
December 17
In the back drop of corporate and foreign investors being miffed over the government suspending its decision on foreign equity in multi-brand retail, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday said his government will take up implementation of this policy next year after consultations with opposition parties once elections to various assemblies are over.

Bhagvad Gita faces ban in Russia
Moscow, December 17
The Bhagvad Gita, one of the holiest Hindu scriptures, is facing a legal ban and the prospect of being branded as “an extremist” literature across Russia. A court in Siberia’s Tomsk city is set to deliver its final verdict on Monday in a case filed by state prosecutors.

No Facebook for daughters: Obama
London, December 17
US President Barack Obama who relied heavily on the social media to boost his presidential campaign in 2008, has banned his daughters from using Facebook, a media report said today. The 'First Social Media President' said it "does not make much sense" to put the most private details of his family life on public view. He doesn’t want "strangers knowing" their family business, UK's tabloid Mail Online reported.