S P O T L I G H T

Strike hits work at ports
Tribune News Service and agencies
NEW DELHI, Jan 18 — Port related work in the country was seriously affected with over one lakh employees resorting to an indefinite strike from today demanding higher wages even as the government said it would take harsh measures if the strike was not immediately called off. The unions’ demands include wage hike every five years, house rent allowance and a city compensatory allowance with retrospective effect from January 1, 1998. Addressing a press conference here today, the Union Surface Transport Minister, Mr Rajnath Singh, said that the strike called by five federations at a stage when conciliation proceedings were going on and not heeding to his appeal was “uncalled for”.

Mobile phone users
NEW DELHI, Jan 18 (UNI) — Cellular phone users will soon be paying lower monthly rentals and airtime charges following today’s order of the Delhi High Court. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has been directed by a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice S.N. Variava and Justice S.K. Mahajan that benefits of the revenue sharing formula must go to consumers. Once the abnormally-high licence fee regime for service providers was removed and replaced by a revenue sharing formula on August 1, 1999 under the National Telecom Policy (NTP), TRAI had asked operators to bring down monthly rentals from Rs 600 to Rs 475.

Kohl quits
BERLIN, Jan 18 (PTI) — Former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl today resigned as the honorary chairman of the Christian Democrats after heading it for 25 years in the backdrop of financing scandal involving him. Mr Kohl’s brief announcement in a press statement came within hours of the top Christian Democratic Union (CDU) leadership issuing an ultimatum to him to quit the post if he refused to disclose the identity of donors of money he admitted to have accepted as campaign funds. Mr Kohl is under investigation for accepting undeclared donations totalling $ 1 million and for operating a system of secret funds.

CM ready for probe
BHOPAL, Jan 18 — Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh today said that he was ready to institute an inquiry into the incident of alleged police action against BJP corporators during the election to the Bhopal Municipal Council on January 13 if the BJP called off its six-day-old agitation unconditionally. Reiterating that he was open for talks, he said discussions could only be fruitful if the BJP gave up the path of confrontation. The Chief Minister had already offered for an administrative inquiry into the incident.