India, U.S. JWG to counter terrorism
India and the United States today decided to establish a Joint Working Group (JWG) to counter terrorism and work together to ensure that the perpetrators of the recent hijacking of the Indian Airlines aircraft were brought to justice.

India expels Pak. staffer
Close on the heels of the expulsion of a staffer by Pakistan, India today asked Islamabad to ``withdraw'' one of its officials from its High Commission here.

U.P. wary of action against striking staff
The Uttar Pradesh Government today claimed further improvement in the power generation and transmission situation in the State even as the strike by more than 90,000 employees of the State Electricity Board entered the fifth day. The Government apparently was moving very cautiously to deal with the striking workers and was in no hurry to take penal action as announced earlier that those failing to join duty by this morning would be deemed to have resigned.

India, Singapore to set up free trade zone
India and Singapore are likely to set up a joint task force to work out modalities for creating an Asian free trade zone.

Lifting of sanctions hinges on security talks: Summers
The American Secretary of the Treasury, Mr. Lawrence H.Summers, has said that the question of granting the `Most Favoured Nation' (MFN) status to India could be considered only if Indian companies adhered to the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) regime.

UNP backs reforms package
Sri Lanka's Opposition United National Party (UNP) has said that it would extend parliamentary support to the proposed constitutional reforms package, put forward by the Government to solve the ethnic crisis.

Goh's warning on convertibility
The visiting Singapore Prime Minister, Mr. Goh Chok Tong, today cautioned developing countries such as India against haste in moving towards capital account convertibility, even while seeking greater liberalisation on foreign investment flows.

BJP panel to meet again today
None of the four would-be National Democratic Alliance partners for the Bihar Assembly elections has been able to get started with the process of selecting candidates as an agreement on seat-sharing continues to elude them.

TRAI to be disbanded
The Union Cabinet tonight decided to divest the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) of its judicial powers by setting up a a separate dispute settlement and appellate tribunal. Consequently, it also decided to disband the present Authority and appoint a new one in its place.