Donetsk/Moscow, May 8
Pro-Moscow separatists in eastern Ukraine ignored a public call by Russian President Vladimir Putin to postpone a referendum on self-rule, declaring they would go ahead on Sunday with a vote that could lead to war.

The decision, which contradicted the conciliatory tone set by Putin just a day earlier, caused consternation in the West, which fears the referendum will tear Ukraine apart. US Deputy Secretary of State William Burns said Russia was heading down a "dangerous and irresponsible path" and the situation in Ukraine was "extremely combustible".

Denis Pushilin, a leader of the self-declared separatist Donetsk People's Republic, expressed gratitude to Putin but said the "People's Council" had voted unanimously on Thursday to hold the plebiscite as planned. "Civil war has already begun," he told reporters. "The referendum can put a stop to it and start a political process."A man holding a Kalashnikov stood behind him.

The announcement coincided with a sharp change of tone from Moscow, which had signalled a pullback from confrontation on Wednesday with Putin's call for the vote to be delayed and a declaration that troops were withdrawing from Ukraine's border. Russian markets sank after surging on Wednesday.

In Kiev, officials promised to press on with their "anti-terrorist campaign" to retake control over the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk regardless of the rebels' decision on the vote. Political analysts said Putin may have expected the rebels to go ahead with the referendum, showing that they were not under his orders.

By distancing himself from a process that will not be recognised by the West, Putin may also hope to avoid further sanctions as earlier measures begin hitting the economy. Putin's spokesman said the Kremlin needed more information about the rebels' decision. He said the rebel statement came only after the Western-backed government in Kiev had declared it would press on with its military operation, implying that Ukraine was to blame for the rebels' refusal to heed Putin.

NATO and the United States have both said they have seen no sign of a Russian withdrawal from the frontier despite Putin's announcement he had pulled back troops. When NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasumussen tweeted as much, the Russian Foreign Ministry tweeted back that "those with a blind eye" should read Putin's statement.

NATO has accused Moscow of using special forces in the separatist takeover of mainly Russian speaking eastern Ukraine after annexing Crimea from Ukraine in March. Putin acknowledged his troops were active in Crimea after initially denying any role there but says they are not involved in eastern Ukraine, a densely-populated steel and coal belt responsible for roughly a third of Ukraine's industrial output. — Reuters

Kano, May 8
World powers, including the US and China, have joined in the search for the more than 200 schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram Islamists who have also killed hundreds in the country's northeast this week.

A woman during a march in support of the girls kidnapped by members of Boko Haram, in Cape Town on Thursday. Reuters

Amid global outrage over the kidnapping of the teenagers, the US, Britain and France are sending specialist teams to Nigeria.

China promised to supply "any useful information acquired by its satellites and intelligence services" to Nigeria. The police yesterday offered $300,000 for information leading to the rescue of the girls.

The latest insurgent attack targeted the town of Gamboru Ngala on the border with Cameroon, where gunmen this week razed scores of buildings and fired on civilians as they tried to flee.

Area Senator Ahmed Zanna put the death toll at 300, citing information provided by locals, in an account supported by numerous residents. Zanna said the town had been left unguarded because soldiers based there had been redeployed north towards Lake Chad in an effort to rescue the kidnapped girls.

Nigeria's response to the kidnappings has been widely criticised, including by activists and parents of the hostages who say the military's search operation has been inept so far.

President Goodluck Jonathan's administration has sought to appear more engaged with the plight of the hostages in recent days, especially after Boko Haram chief Abubakar Shekau released a video threatening to sell the girls as "slaves". — AFP

Bangkok, May 8
In a double whammy, deposed Thai premier Yingluck Shinawatra was today indicted by an anti-graft body over a disastrous rice subsidy scheme and will face impeachment that could see her banned from politics for five years, a day after a court dismissed her from office.

The National Anti-Corruption Commission voted unanimously to indict 46-year-old Yingluck on charges of dereliction of duty in overseeing the controversial rice subsidy programme.

The Constitutional Court ousted Yingluck and nine cabinet members yesterday after finding her guilty of abuse of power for the benefit of her powerful family in a 2011 case of transfer of then National Security Council chief Thawil Pliensri.

The controversial rice-pledging scheme for which she was indicted today saw farmers selling rice to the government for more than the market value. The scheme proved to be costly and the government was unable to pay the farmers.

Yingluck was accused of negligence linked to the rice scheme with her political foes alleging the scheme drained Thai finances, damaged the country's rice producing industry and fostered massive corruption.

"The commission considers there is enough evidence to indict (Yingluck) and refers (the case) to the Senate," Panthep Klanarongran, chief of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) told reporters.

The case will now be voted on at the Senate. If impeached, Yingluck will be barred from politics for five years. Both the rulings are a huge blow to the pro-government "Red Shirt" movement. Yingluck, Thailand's first woman premier, had been in office for two years, nine months and two days since her Pheu Thai Party won the 2011 election. — PTI

Johannesburg, May 8
South Africa's ruling ANC today looked set to win a fifth consecutive term but with a significantly reduced margin after around a third of the votes had been counted in the landmark general election, the first since the death of anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela.

The African National Congress was leading with 63 per cent of the counted votes, while the opposition Democratic Alliance had won 22 per cent. The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party had won 4.8 per cent of the votes and the Inkatha Freedom Party bagged 2.3 per cent votes.

An ANC win will give Jacob Zuma his second term as President, despite huge controversies including claims of corruption during his first tenure.

Analysts said the ANC would have a significantly reduced majority from the 66 per cent it won in the last elections in 2009.

The EFF was launched last year by Julius Malema, former ANC Youth League leader, after he was expelled from the party for outspoken comments about nationalisation of assets and other rhetoric not in line with the party policy.

The only other parties from the 29 contesting the polls that had gained sufficient votes for a seat in the Parliament were the National Freedom Party and the United Democratic Movement.

Parties have to get more than one per cent of the ballot in the proportional representation system in which voters choose parties, which in turn send members to Parliament.

Final results are expected by Saturday as counting continues, but the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) said counting was progressing well and the results could come soon.

The electoral commission said voting passed off peacefully in most areas, with turnout of just over 72 per cent. A record 25 million voters were eligible to vote in the elections.

Dissatisfaction with the government has been growing over high levels of unemployment, a lack of basic services and allegations of widespread corruption. — PTI

London, May 8
Forty-four Indians, including 17 women, are among 705 aspirants shortlisted for an ambitious private mission to send four people on a planned one-way trip to Mars in 2024 to colonise the red planet.

Netherlands-based non-profit organisation Mars One announced that 353 hopefuls from around the world have been eliminated from the selection programme to become the first human Mars colonists.

The number of people remaining in this "once-in-many-lifetimes opportunity" is now just 705, including 44 Indians of whom 27 are men and 17 are women. The Indian aspirants come from cities such as New Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, Pune and Thiruvanathapuram.

The applicants came from over 140 countries and more than 20,000 Indians had applied for the first round. The remaining candidates will be interviewed by the Mars One selection committee.

In December 2013, Mars One announced the selection of 1,058 candidates, including 62 from India, from the original pool of over 2 lakh applicants. Mars One asked them to complete two tasks by March 2014: to provide a medical statement of health from their physician and open their online Mars One applicant profile to the public. — PTI

New York, May 8
Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries leads the pack of 54 Indian companies in Forbes' annual list of the world’s 2,000 largest and most powerful public companies, with Chinese companies occupying the top three slots on the list.

The Forbes 'Global 2000' is a comprehensive list of the world’s largest, most powerful public companies, as measured by revenues, profits, assets and market value. China is home to the world’s top three biggest public companies and five of the top 10. The US retains its dominance as the country with the most Global 2000 companies at 564. Japan trails the US with 225 companies in aggregate. India is home to 54 of the world's biggest companies.

Reliance Industries is ranked 135th with a market value of $50.9 billion and $ billion in sales as on May 2014.

Reliance is followed by State Bank of India which is ranked 155 and has a $ 23.6 billion market value.

The other Indian companies on the list are Oil and Natural Gas ranked 176, ICICI Bank (304), Tata Motors (332), Indian Oil (416), HDFC Bank (422), Coal India (428), Larsen & Toubro (500), Tata Consultancy Services (543), Bharti Airtel (625), Axis Bank (630), Infosys (727), Bank of Baroda (801), Mahindra & Mahindra (803), ITC (830), Wipro (849), Bharat Heavy Electricals (873), GAIL India (955), Tata Steel (983) and Power Grid of India (1011). Also making the list are Bharat Petroleum (1045), HCL Technologies (1153), Hindustan Petroleum (1211), Adani Enterprises (1233), Kotak Mahindra Bank (1255), Sun Pharma Industries (1294), Steel Authority of India (1329), Bajaj Auto (1499), Hero Motocorp (1912), Jindal Steel & Power (1955), Grasim Industries (1981) and JSW Steel (1990). — PTI