IAEA delegation to visit Iran for n-talks

Tehran, Oct 4 (IANS) A delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) plans to visit Iran to continue nuclear talks.

Iran’s ambassador to the IAEA, Reza Najafi, Friday said that IAEA deputy director general and head of the department of safeguards, Tero Varjoranta, will head the team, Press TV reported.

Najafi also expressed concern about Iran’s secret nuclear information obtained by the IAEA being leaked.

“It is regrettable that classified information in the agency has not been protected again…,” he said.

He also called on IAEA chief Yukiya Amano and other officials to fulfil their responsibilities regarding the confidentiality of information obtained from Iran.

Iran and the IAEA have been holding talks on Tehran’s nuclear energy programme while discussions between Iran and the P5+1 group – the US, Russia, China, France and Britain plus Germany – on the same issue are also taking place simultaneously.

Iran and the IAEA signed a joint statement Nov 11, 2013, to outline a road map for mutual cooperation on certain outstanding nuclear issues.

IAEA delegation to visit Iran for n-talks

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Patna: Gandhi Maidan Stampede

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Patna: Gandhi Maidan Stampede

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Modi to start Maharashtra poll campaign from Mumbai

Mumbai, Oct 2 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will kick off his Maharashtra assembly election campaign with a weekender rally in Mumbai, party sources said Thursday.

The Bharatiya Janata Party rally will be addressed by Modi Saturday evening 7 p.m. at the Mahalaxmi Race Course in south Mumbai.

Top state and central BJP leaders are expected to be present at the much-awaited rally which the party hopes could turn the tables on the other four major contending parties – the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party, Shiv Sena and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena – for the Oct 15 elections.

This is the same venue where Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray launched his party’s poll campaign two days ago and blasted the state BJP for snapping the two parties’ 25-year-old alliance.

A BJP official said that besides Mumbai, Modi is likely to campaign in other parts of Maharashtra including Kolhapur, Satara and Sangli and strongholds of the Congress and the NCP, but the programme has not been finalised yet.

The build up to Modi’s rally has seen a series of public meetings by state BJP leaders and also union minister Nitin Gadkari in the state in the past few days.

The BJP hopes to independently come to power for the first time since it ruled the state in coalition with the Shiv Sena between 1995-1999.

Modi to start Maharashtra poll campaign from Mumbai

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India's Inderjeet wins men's shot put bronze

Incheon, Oct 2 (IANS) India’s Inderjeet Singh clinched the bronze in the men’s shot put final at the Asian Games here Thursday.

Saudi Arabia’s Sultan Abdulmajeed Alhebshi won the gold with a best throw of 19.99 metres while Chinese Taipei’s Chang Ming Huang took the silver with 19.97 at the Incheon Asiad Main Stadium.

Inderjeet’s best attempt of 19.63m came on his fifth try out of six.

India's Inderjeet wins men's shot put bronze

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US-led coalition again pounds IS strongholds in Syria

Beirut, Oct 2 (IANS/EFE) Aircraft of the US-led international coalition again pounded positions of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist organisation near the Syrian Kurdish town of Kobani where heavy fighting continued on the outskirts between the radicals and Kurdish fighters, activists reported Thursday.

The warplanes attacked areas where the jihadis had concentrated southeast of Kobani, which is located near the border with Turkey, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said.

Meanwhile, elements of the IS and the Kurdish militia battled southeast of the city.

Late Wednesday, fighting erupted west of Kobani where the extremists, using tanks, heavy weapons and mortars, advanced to within some two miles of the town and took control of a telecommunications tower.

At the same time, the Kurds were preparing for a possible assault on IS positions within the city.

The IS began their attacks on Kobani two weeks ago and continues its advance despite airstrikes by the US-led coalition.

–IANS/EFE

ab/vt

US-led coalition again pounds IS strongholds in Syria

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India's forex down $2.43 bn in September

Mumbai, Oct 2 (IANS) India’s foreign exchange reserves fell by $2.43 billion (provisional) to $315.59 billion in September.

According to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data for wek ended Sep 5-27, the reserves had decreased by $2.43 billion.

It had fallen by $101.3 billion for week ended Sep 19. The reserves plummet by 1.01 bilion for week ended Sep 12 and by 1.32 billion for week ended Sep 5.

According to the earlier data of RBI’s weekly statistical supplement, foreign currency assets, the biggest component of the forex reserves, decreased by $1.49 billion at $288.78 billion in the month under review.

The foreign currency assets had increased by $75 million fro week ended Sep 19, but drastically fell by 1.59 billion in week ended Sep 12.

The RBI said the foreign currency assets, expressed in US dollar terms, include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US currencies such as the pound sterling, euro and yen held in reserve.

India’s reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) slipped by $132.8 million to $1.55 billion.

The value of special drawing rights (SDRs) was down by $61.4 million at $4.32 billion.

The value of gold reserves was static at $20.93 billion for the month. The value of gold reserves fallen by $240.7 million at $20.93 billion for the week ended Sep 5.

India's forex down $2.43 bn in September

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Indian boxer Satish settles for Asiad bronze

Incheon, Oct 2 (IANS) Indian boxer Satish Kumar settled for the bronze medal after losing the semi-final of the men’s super heavy (+91kg) event of the 17th Asian Games here Thursday.

Satish lost 0-3 in an unanimous decision to Kazakhstan’s Ivan Dychko at the Seonhak Gymnasium.

Indian boxer Satish settles for Asiad bronze

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