Events in January 2003
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Jan 1
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N.C. Vij takes over as Chief of the Army Staff , succeeding S. Padmanabhan. |
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Jan 2
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India and Pakistan exchang lists of nuclear installations and facilities as stipulated under a 1988 agreement. |
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Tenure of Liberhan Ayodhya Commission of Inquiry extended till June 30. |
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Jan 3
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Cellular phone companies announce sharp reduction in charges for cell-to-cell STD calls and also promise cuts in other tariff from time to time to "kill competition in instalments." |
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The President gives his assent to the Representation of People (Amendment) Bill 2002, which was passed in the winter session of Parliament. |
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The first six-day Asian Social Forum (ASF) begins with a call to fight out the neo-liberal and imperialist agenda of globalisation, besides communalism and war. |
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Jan 4
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The Bihar bandh called by Opposition parties to protest the killing of three youths by some policemen in a `fake encounter', turn violent. |
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Eighteen persons killed and 55 injured as three coaches of the Secunderabad-Manmad Express derails. |
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Distance runner Sunita Rani's ordeal was finally absolved of doping charges by the world athletics body, paving the way for her participation in international events and return of medals snatched from the Busan Asian Games. |
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Jan 5
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India announces a set of political principles and administrative arrangements to manage its arsenal of atomic weapons, more than four-and-a-half years after declaring itself a nuclear weapon power. |
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Justice S.N. Phukan, a retired Judge of the Supreme Court, is appointed new chief of the Tehelka enquiry commission. He succeeds Justice K. Venkataswami. |
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Jan 6
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At least 35 people, including four Central Reserve Police Force personnel, were injured when suspected militants lobbed a grenade at a CRPF patrol party in the crowded Kulgam bus stand in South Kashmir. |
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Jan 7
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The President Abdul Kalam convenes a Governors' Conference at the Rashtrapati Bhavan where all 28 Governors and three Lieutenant- Governors are expected to attend. |
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Jan 8
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The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) announces return of the two medals that Sunita Rani won at the Busan Asian Games in October last year. |
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India, Japan are ``close partners'' says Japanese Foreign Minister, Yoriko Kawaguchi. |
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Jan 9
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Talks with Pakistan only when terrorism ends, reiterates Vajpayee. |
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Cold wave worsens, toll 181. |
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A major fire in the premier Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) destroys a large number of original copies of popular black and white films of the 50's, regarded as the golden era of Indian cinema. |
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Kalam calls for second green revolution. |
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Jan 10
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The Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, announces the Government's decision to permit ``dual citizenship'' for People of Indian Origin (PIO) ``living in certain countries.'' |
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The meeting of the leaders of the Naga secessionist movement, Isak Swu and Thuingaleng Muivah, and the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, ends on a positive note with NSCN (I-M) chairman, Swu, describing the approach of both sides as "mature" and "realistic". |
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India successfully test-fires the 800-km-range `Agni missile' and plans to undertake more tests shortly. |
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Jan 11
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The Government announces major measures marking a forward movement towards capital account convertibility, permitting Indian individuals to invest in companies abroad. |
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The President gives his assent to the Freedom of Information Bill, 2002, and it is notified in the Gazette of India as Act No. 5 of 2003. |
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Jan 12
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The Election Commission announces Assembly elections to the four States of Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura to be held on February 26. |
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Senior IPS officer, Kiran Bedi, becomes the first woman and also the first Indian to be appointed to the prestigious post of United Nations Civilian Police Adviser. |
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Jan 14
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Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani, says the security situation in India was "extremely grave.'' |
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The Kashmir Times journalist, Iftikhar Gilani, released from prison after seven months of incarceration for a crime he did not commit. |
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India declares it has no intention of reviewing its policy of no-first-use of nuclear weapons. |
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Jan 15
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U.S. Protestant missionary, Joseph Cooper, grievously injured when attacked by a 10-member armed gang of suspected RSS activists near a gospel convention venue at Koppam Harijan colony in Kilimanoor police station limits. |
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J&K Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, effects the long-awaited expansion of his Ministry by inducting 19 new Ministers. Governor, Girish Chandra Saxena, administered the oath of office and secrecy to the Ministers at the Jammu Raj Bhavan. |
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Deposing before the Justice Liberhan panel as a witness, former Prime Minister V.P. Singh, reiterates that the defiant attitude of the BJP and the VHP was the root cause for the Ayodhya imbroglio, which had become complicated and the country had to suffer for this. |
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Jan 18
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Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, exhorts small investors to return to the stock market. He also called upon market regulators and intermediaries to make the capital market in India the safest place in the world to invest. |
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Jan 19
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Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, says that the Centre would invest over Rs.10,000 crores in projects of Public Sector Units in Kerala during the next few years. |
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Medium-range surface-to-air missile `Akash' was successfully test-fired at 3.25 p.m. from the Interim Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur-on-sea, about 15 km from Balasore. |
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Noted Hindi poet and filmstar Amitabh Bachchan's father, Harivanshrai Bachchan (96), dies at Mumbai after a prolonged illness. He is survived by wife Teji Bachchan and sons Amitabh and Ajitabh. |
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Jan 20
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Twenty-five people were injured when militants hurled a grenade in Kulgam township of south Kashmir at a police bus at around 3.30 p.m., but it missed the target and exploded on the road, injuring civilians. |
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Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, announces that an inter-island helicopter service would be launched soon with 90 per cent subsidy, in a bid to spur the development of Andaman and Nicobar islands. |
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About five persons were killed and 24 injured when three cable cars of the Pavagadh ropeway taking them to a hilltop temple in Panchamahals district of Gujarat collapsed. |
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Jan 21
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Attorney-General, Soli Sorabjee, is understood to have given a favourable opinion on disinvestment of the oil public sector undertakings, HPCL and BPCL, which were acquired and nationalised in the 1970s through Acts of Parliament. |
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Jan 22
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Cellular phone companies declare that mobile-to-mobile incoming calls will become free as soon as their networks are re-configured. The benefits would be available to both pre-paid and post-paid cellular categories. |
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President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, stresses the need to update the national aeronautical policy integrating civil and military aviation facilities with an aim to develop 100-seater jets for civil aviation and unmanned supersonic long-range aircraft, better known as `Hyper Plane.' |
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Jan 23
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The Government expels two diplomats and two staffers from the Pakistan High Commission. The move was aimed at conveying India's extreme displeasure at the harassment of its diplomats in Islamabad that has continued despite strong protests. |
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Booker Prize winner, Arundhati Roy, is selected by the U.S.-based Lannan Foundation for its fourth annual $ 350,000 Prize for Cultural Freedom. |
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Participating in the international conference to mark the golden jubilee of Parliament at New Delhi, Parliamentarians from various parts of the world express concern over terrorism, terming it "a crime against humanity" and suggest enactment of stringent laws to deal with it. |
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Hundreds of Carnatic musicians pay homage to the saint composer Thyagaraja by rendering his `pancharathna kritis' (five jewels of his renderings) in chorus at the 156th aradhana at the saint's samadhi on the banks of the Cauvery at Thiruvaiyaru in Thanjavur. |
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Jan 24
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Eminent economist and president of the International Economic Association, P.R. Brahmananda, dies at Bangalore. He was 76 and a bachelor. |
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Jan 25
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The President of Iran, Syed Mohammed Khatami, arrives in New Delhi on a four-day visit that could help consolidate the new political partnership between two ancient civilisations. Khatami comes amid recent efforts by the two nations to physically link India to Afghanistan, Central Asia and Europe through Iran. |
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The President okays the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Amendment Bill 2002, and the Money Laundering Bill 2002. |
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Jan 26
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President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, calls upon all citizens to contribute to the best of their "ability and capacity" towards making India a developed nation, rather than leaving it to the Government. |
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The Government lists out 92 Padma awardees on the eve of Republic Day with four Padma Vibhushans, 34 Padma Bhushans and 54 Padma Shris. |
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India and Iran agree to step up work on transport projects that link the subcontinent with the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, Central Asia and Europe. The projects are expected to increase the leverage of India and Iran in the Great Game for accessing the landlocked resources and markets of Eurasia. |
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Jan 27
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The long-pending controversy over disinvesting oil sector companies finally ends with a decision to carry out strategic sale of the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) while reducing Government equity in the Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) through public offers. |
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The 'Brahmos' cruise missiles developed jointly by India and Russia was unveiled at the Republic Day parade at New Delhi. With a velocity 2.8 times the speed of sound, 'Brahmos' are capable of hitting targets 290 km away with a warhead of up to 300 kg. |
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Jan 29
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In a major breach of Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's security a car tried to intrude into his motorcade in South Delhi, police sources said. |
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At least 40 passengers were killed and over 15 critically injured when a bus from Baripada, Orissa, collided with a chemicals and paints-laden lorry on the Kolkata-Mumbai National Highway-6 at Panchla, Howrah, about 50 km from Kolkota. |
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Events 2003
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
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