The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Another Texas nurse tests positive for Ebola She had travelled by jetliner a day before she reported symptoms Dallas, October 15 A second Texas healthcare worker who treated the first patient to be diagnosed with Ebola in the United States has tested positive for the disease, the Texas Department of State Health Services said on Wednesday. At least 4,447 people have died in West Africa in the worst Ebola outbreak on record, but cases in the United States and Europe have been limited. The virus can cause fever, bleeding, vomiting and diarrhea, and spreads through contact with bodily fluids. In Dallas, the worker at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, who cared for Ebola victim Thomas Eric Duncan, was immediately isolated after reporting a fever on Tuesday, the state health department said. "Health officials have interviewed the latest patient to quickly identify any contacts or potential exposures, and those people will be monitored," it said in a statement. Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings said at an early morning news conference on Wednesday the second infected nurse lived alone and had no pets. He said local health officials moved quickly to clean affected areas involving the second nurse and to alert her neighbors and friends. Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital is doing everything it can to contain the virus, said Dr. Daniel Varga of Texas Health Resources, which owns the hospital. "I don't think we have a systematic institutional problem," he said. At the same news conference, Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins, the county's chief political officer, said authorities are anticipating additional possible Ebola cases. Another nurse, 26-year-old Nina Pham, was the first person to have been infected by Ebola in the United States, and was diagnosed this weekend. She had cared for Duncan during much of his 11 days in hospital. He died in an isolation ward on October 8. The hospital said on Tuesday that Pham was "in good condition". The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement that it was performing confirmation testing of Texas' preliminary tests on the new patient. CDC Director Dr Thomas Frieden said on Tuesday that the agency was establishing a rapid-response team to help hospitals "hands on, within hours" whenever there is a confirmed case of Ebola. — Reuters Ebola fears fuel demand for protective gear Since the first US Ebola diagnosis in Dallas last month, demand for hazardous materials suits and face masks has surged, creating a boon for companies that manufacture and sell the protective equipment After Liberian national Thomas Eric Duncan was diagnosed with Ebola in Dallas, and later died, US hospitals rapidly increased orders for protective equipment The WHO says that three million protective suits will be needed to control the outbreak worldwide, to ensure healthcare workers and others do not come into contact with infectious bodily fluids such as blood or sweat UN sets 60-day deadline United Nations: The UN has given itself a period of 60 days to intensify the fight against the Ebola epidemic in West Africa and to prevent the disease from defeating international efforts to eradicate it. "Ebola is developing faster than us and is winning the race. We cannot allow Ebola to win," said Anthony Banbury, head of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER), on Tuesday. UN volunteer dies Monrovia: The UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) said on Wednesday that a volunteer who worked in UNMIL Medical passed away in hospital after testing positive for Ebola October 6. This is the second death in the mission due to Ebola, according to a statement reaching Xinhua from UN Secretary-General's Special Representative Karin Landgren Obama postpones trip WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama abruptly postponed a political trip he was to make on Wednesday to stay at the White House for a meeting on the Ebola outbreak. The White House said Obama's trip to New Jersey and Connecticut has been postponed. @
	2014 Man Booker goes to Flanagan London, October 15 Richard Flanagan's wartime novel ‘The Narrow Road to the Deep North' has won the Man Booker for year 2014, beating Neel Mukherjee's novel ‘The Lives of Others' that was the bookmaker's favourite. The novel, Tasmania-born Flanagan's sixth, is set during the construction of the Thailand-Burma Death Railway in World War II. The author's father, who died aged 98 the day the novel was finished, was a survivor of the Railway, which was constructed by prisoners-of-war and slave labourers in 1943. Flanagan said he did not expect to win the prize. "In Australia the Man Booker is sometimes seen as something of a chicken raffle. I just didn't expect to end up the chicken," the 53-year-old said. Chair of the judging panel A C Grayling described the choice as "a remarkable love story as well as story about human suffering and comradeship." The book is "a harrowing account of the cost of war to all who are caught up in it," the 2014 judges said. Questioning the meaning of heroism, the book explores what motivates acts of extreme cruelty and shows that perpetrators may be as much victims as those they abuse. Flanagan was presented with the coveted award by Camilla Parker-Bowles, Duchess of Cornwall, at a ceremony in London. — PTI The war story Novel ‘The Narrow Road to the Deep North’, Flanagan’s sixth novel, set during WW-II building of Thailand-Burma railway He becomes the third Australian to win the prize, following on from Thomas Keneally and Peter Carey Novel is more about human relationships than war India-born author loses out on award LONDON: India-born British author Neel Mukherjee lost out on the 2014 Booker Prize to Australian novelist Richard Flanagan. Mukherjee, who was born in Kolkata, had earlier emerged as the odds-on favourite to win this year. His second book, ‘The Lives Of Others’ was 5/2 favourite to win the £50,000 prize.
	Police attack on activist sparks anger in HK Hong Kong, October 15 The Hong Kong police battling activists for control of an underpass in the dead of night today sparked public anger after officers were seen kicking a handcuffed protester in the worst violence since street demonstrations for greater democracy began more than two weeks ago. Officers armed with riot shields, batons and pepper spray knocked activists to the ground, dragging dozens away, and tore down barricades protesters used as roadblocks around the underpass outside the government's headquarters. Outrage over their aggressive tactics exploded after local TV showed half a dozen officers taking the protester around a dark corner and kicking him on the ground. It's unclear what provoked the attack. Local Now TV showed footage of him splashing water on officers beforehand. "The Hong Kong police have gone insane today, carrying out their own punishment in private," said pro-democracy lawmaker Lee Cheuk-yan. "Hong Kong's values and its rule of law really have been completely destroyed by police chiefs." Beijing, meanwhile, issued its harshest condemnations yet of the protests, calling them illegal, bad for business and against Hong Kong's best interests. The central government has become increasingly impatient with the demonstrations, the biggest challenge to Beijing's authority since China took control of the former British colony in 1997. — AP China blocks BBC website amid protests The BBC's website was blocked in China on Wednesday, a day after a video of Hong Kong police beating and kicking a pro-democracy protester began circulating online. The move appears to be the first time the British broadcaster's website has been completely blocked in China since December 2010, when it was inaccessible for days ahead of the Nobel Peace Prize award ceremony for Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo. .
	Korean talks end without agreement Seoul, October 15 The first military talks between North and South Korea in more than three years ended with no agreement today, with the rivals failing to narrow their differences on how to ease animosities following two shooting incidents last week, South Korean officials said. Today, following a proposal by the North, military generals from the two Koreas met at a border village in the countries' first military talks since February 2011. During the meeting, North Korea repeated its demands that South Korea ban activists from dropping leaflets and media outlets from publishing articles critical of the North, ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said at a news conference. — AP
	War on doorstep compounds Turkey’s economic worries Istanbul/Ankara, October 15 Already struggling for substantial growth after at least a year of foreign and internal turmoil, the Turkish economy could have done without an Islamic State onslaught against Syrian Kurds on Turkey's border. Investors who until mid-2013 saw Turkey as a relatively safe bet in a chaotic region are increasingly alarmed that it might not only be dragged into the war in Syria but also lose the hard-won prospect of peace and economic revival in its own Kurdish region. "This is ethnic turmoil, we are very worried," said Atilla Yesilada, an economist with the New-York based Global Source Partners. "Difficult days are ahead for Ankara, and investors will eventually see that reality, and will push up the political risk premium permanently." So far, Turkey has resisted Western and Kurdish pressure to enter Syria's complex war by sending its tanks a few metres over the border to confront the jihadists of Islamic State, who have already driven 200,000 Syrian Kurds to seek shelter in Turkey. But by refusing to bolster the Syrian Kurdish forces trying to defend the town of Kobani, it has infuriated their brethren in southeast Turkey, whose protests last week reached as far as Istanbul and Ankara and triggered clashes in which at least 35 people died. A peace process to end a three-decade insurgency by the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) is under severe threat. Already, the Turkish lira has lost around 2.5 per cent against the dollar since the Kobani crisis started nearly a month ago, underperforming other emerging market currencies, while Istanbul's main share index is down around 3 per cent. Foreign investors sold a net $500 million in Turkish equities in September. — Reuters

Indian among 21 trekkers killed in Nepal

Kathmandu, October 15
An Indian was among 21 trekkers killed while 85 others remained missing after being hit by one of the worst snow storms in western Nepal today.

Sixteen persons — Nine Nepalese, three Polish, three Israelis and one Vietnamese — were killed and as many as 19 others were injured in Mustang district, officials said. Similarly, five foreigners have been killed in snowfall in Manang district. Among the deceased are four Canadians and one Indian national.

The incident occurred in Thorang Pass area which lies between border of Manang and Mustang districts at an altitude of 5,416 metres. The sudden heavy snow fall in the area is attributed to Hudhud cyclone. — PTI

BRIEFLY

presidential runoff on Oct 26: Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff (L) greets Aecio Neves, both presidential candidates, at the end of a debate in Sao Paulo. AP/PTI

Four Indians jailed for fraud in Singapore
Singapore: Four Indians were on Wednesday sentenced to jail terms up to 48 months and fined after being convicted of fraudulent Goods and Services Tax refund claims, corruption and money laundering. The four men — Sundar Panneer Selvam, Baskaran Uthirapathy, Pounraj Natarajan and Gobi Raman — had paid for receipts from bona-fide shoppers who had purchased jewellery and obtained electronic tourist refund scheme tickets from jewellery retailers, according to a media report. PTI

Death of 158 Indians registered in Kuwait in 3 months
Dubai: A total of 158 Indians have been reported dead in Kuwait during the last three months, according to the figures released by the Indian Embassy in Kuwait. Out of the 158 Indians reported dead from July to September this year, mortal remains of 125 Indian nationals were airlifted to India while the remaining 33 were buried in Kuwait as per the wishes of their family members. Pti

Indian woman on trial for killing husband
Dubai: A 28-year-old Indian woman facing trial for the murder of her husband in front of their young daughter in Bahrain has pleaded not guilty to the charges. The woman, said to have murdered her husband at their home in Bahrain's capital Manama in April, was charged with premeditated murder and she appeared in the court yesterday to deny the allegations. PTI

Indian-American in tough fight for Silicon Valley seat
New York: A prominent Indian-American lawyer, campaigning for a Congressional seat in the heart of the Silicon Valley, appears to be giving a tough fight to his contenders with support growing for his vision of strengthening the economy and fostering innovation. With US mid-term elections just three weeks away, new poll numbers suggest that Ro Khanna is closing the gaps with his contenders and is currently tied with Representative Mike Honda of San Jose at 38 per cent. PTI