The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Thursday, January 20, 2000,
Chandigarh, India

THE TRIBUNE SPECIALS

50 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE

TERCENTENARY CELEBRATIONS

S P O T L I G H T

Uma firm on resignation
NEW DELHI, Jan 19 (PTI) —Tourism Minister Uma Bharati tonight met Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and pressed for acceptance of her resignation, ignoring his plea to her to reconsider it. The Prime Minister advised her to meet Home Minister L.K. Advani and BJP president Kushabhau Thakre to discuss the issue. The Tourism Minister, who would meet Mr Thakre in Bhopal tomorrow, said the picture would be clear by tomorrow afternoon.

Port staff’s strike
Tribune News Service
NEW DELHI, Jan 19 — The port and dock workers indefinite strike entered the second day today but essential services like water and power supply, communication and fire fighting were not affected, according to an official statement. There were no further negotiations between the government and the five port federations representing about one lakh port workers.

4 travel agents held
MUMBAI, Jan 19 (UNI) — Four persons trying to obtain Indian passports for two Pakistanis have been arrested, the police said. Mehmood Mohammad Sayyed (36), Sultan Gulam Vani (55), Junaid Mohammad Ahmed Baig Belim (22) and Dilip Damodar Navwani (40), all passport agents, were arrested during raids on Tuesday, Deputy Commissioner of police (Detection) Sunil Paraskar said today. They have been remanded to police custody till February 2.

TUs’ call for stir
NEW DELHI, Jan 19 (PTI) — Five central trade unions including ruling BJP-affiliated Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) today called for a nationwide public sector token strike on February 2 to protest against the “repressive” economic policies of the Central Government. The five trade unions under the common platform of ‘National Platform of Mass Organisations’ said that they would hold a one-day convention on January 20 to protest against government’s deliberate attempt to liquidate all PSUs in the country.

Karmapa
NEW DELHI, Jan 19 (PTI) — The 17th Karmapa Ugyen Trinley Dorji, who arrived in India recently, has no plans to go to Rumtek Monastery in Sikkim, a spokesman for the so-called Tibetan Government-in-Exile said today. “No one is trying to rush to Sikkim or Rumtek and I don’t think the 17th Karmapa, who is here, has that kind of a view”, Minister for Religion and Culture in Tibetan Government-in Exile Tashi Wangdi said tonight.