Home Updated on October 25, 2002  

--- South Asian News, August 16, 2002 ---(International)

Pakistani Police have arrested a 12-member gang of terrorists allegedly involved in the recent attacks on Christian targets and
confiscated a large number of sophisticated weapons from them. Hearing in the U.S. Consulate bombing case in Islamabad
rescheduled as jail officials failed to produce the defendants. India's Independence Day celebrations passed off peacefully in
Kashmir despite fears that Islamic separatists would try to disrupt the festivities. In business news, Pakistan's decision
to lift curbs on gold imports and reduce customs duty to just 1.5 percent is expected to increase smuggling of gold into India.

Africa

* India independence day blasted (News 24)
* India flays Musharraf for address on Kashmir (Vanguard)

Americas

* Christian convicted of blasphemy is freed (Globe and Mail)
* Indian Independence Day festivities end peacefully in Kashmir (The News Mexico)

Asia-Pacific

* Consulate bombing suspects fail to turn up in court (The Manila Star)
* Pakistani police arrest 12 militants for alleged role in attacks against Christians (Xinhuanet) (Channel News Asia)
* Nepali army claims gains in fighting against insurgents (Xinhuanet)
* Pakistan 'hypocritical' on terrorism (Australian News)
* Musharraf welcomes Russian role in defusing Indo-Pak tension (Xinhuanet)
* Pakistan Election Commission begins poll process (Xinhuanet)
* Five killed in Sri Lankan military aircraft crash (Australian Broadcasting)
* Nine injured as bomb rips through Indian train (Australian Broadcasting)
* 28 killed in Kashmir bus mishap (Xinhuanet) (Australian Broadcasting)
* Pakistan slams India as 'hypocritical' for terrorism remark (Channel News Asia)
* Pakistan's ex-PM Bhutto to challenge election ban (Channel News Asia)

Europe

* Indian bomb injures six in Pakistani Kashmir (Swiss Info) (Guardian)
* Musharraf 'plotters' to be tried in jail (BBC)
* Indian minister defends reputation (BBC)
* Pakistan militants 'target government' (BBC)
* Pakistani court frees 'blasphemer' (BBC) (Swiss Info)
* Three dead, 22 hurt in explosions in India (RTE Interactive)
* Atleast 29 die in India bus crash (Guardian)
* Three popular leaders face arrest if they dare to return (Economist)
* Bhutto challenges election bar (BBC)
* Sri Lanka's displaced head home (BBC)

Middle East

* India warns Pakistan on disrupting Kashmir poll (Financial Review)
* India, Pakistan trade charges (Arab News)
* Musharraf sees danger in Israel-India ties (Gulf News) (IRNA)
* Victims of chapel raid mourned (Gulf Daily News)
* Colombo plans vital statute reforms (Gulf News)
* Kashmir Committee team meets Shabir Shah in Srinagar (IRNA)

Editorial/Opinion

N/A

Business/Technology

* India's fuel price cuts won't slow inflation, Economists say (Bloomberg)
* India's industrialists lead recovery (Asian Times)
* Pakistan's liberalized gold imports might trickle into India (IRNA)

Africa

* India independence day blasted

Ranchi, India - At least nine people were seriously injured when a bomb exploded inside a passenger train on Thursday in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand, officials here said. Jharkhand police chief R R Prasad said the blast occurred in one of the carriages of the Rampurhat-Sahebganj passenger train near the town of Kotalpokhar, some 200km from state capital of Ranchi.
The explosives, concealed in a lunchbox under a seat, were stuffed with nails and stone chips, he said. G S Rath, the chief of state police's antiterrorism wing, did not rule out the involvement of rightwing Maoist rebels, who virtually run a parallel administration in tribal-majority Jharkhand.

http://www.news24.com/News24/World/Asia/0,1113,2-10-20_1242597,00.html

* India flays Musharraf for address on Kashmir

India on Wednesday launched a verbal barrage at Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf for his comments on Kashmir and warned Islamabad against trying to disrupt the upcoming provincial elections in the disputed Himalayan territory. The hard-hitting Indian statement came hours after Musharraf vowed that Pakistan would not compromise on the right of Kashmiris' to self-rule and rubbished the polls, to be held in September and October, as a bid to legitimise India's "illegal occupation". "It is regrettable that general Musharraf should continue to indulge in such negative posturing and seek to heighten tensions by provocative language," Indian foreign ministry spokeswoman Nirupama Rao said in a statement in New Delhi. "We have taken note of his intention to disrupt peaceful elections in Kashmir and to continue his hostile postures towards India.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/news/articles/2002/August/16082002/w4160802.htm

Americas

* Christian convicted of blasphemy is freed

Islamabad -- Pakistan's supreme court ordered authorities yesterday to release a Christian sentenced to death in 1998 for blasphemy, The Associated Press of Pakistan said. Defence lawyer Abid Minto told the court his client, Ayub Masih, did not make the allegedly blasphemous statements but was a victim of a plot to steal his land, the agency reported. Mr. Masih was arrested in 1996 after a neighbour complained Mr. Masih made statements supporting British writer Salman Rushdie.

http://www.globeandmail.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/PEstory/TGAM/20020816/UREPON/International/international/internationalAsiaHeadline_temp/2/2/2/

* Indian Independence Day festivities end peacefully in Kashmir

Srinagar, India - India's Independence Day celebrations passed off peacefully in Kashmir Thursday despite fears that Islamic separatist guerrillas would try to disrupt the festivities in the Himalayan territory. Security forces were on a highest state of alert throughout the Indian sector of the divided state of Kashmir, but officials said the main Independence Day function in the summer capital of Srinagar passed off peacefully. Security had been especially tight in Srinagar because of intelligence reports that rebels could carry out suicide attacks.

http://www.thenewsmexico.com/noticia.asp?id=32971

Asia-Pacific

* Consulate bombing suspects fail to turn up in court

Karachi, Pakistan -- A judge on Friday rescheduled a hearing for three militants charged in the car-bombing of the U.S. Consulate here after jail officials failed to produce the defendants. Judge Ale Maqbool Rizvi of the anti-terrorism court scheduled a new hearing for Monday and ordered the superintendent of jails to also appear and explain why the suspects were not produced for Friday's hearing. There apparently was some confusion over whether the trial would take place in court, or inside the jail for security reasons.

http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2002/8/16/asia/con160802&sec=asia

* Pakistani police arrest 12 militants for alleged role in attacks against Christians

Pakistan's Punjab Police have smashed a 12-member gang of terrorists allegedly involved in terrorism in Taxila, Murree and at the Islamabad Church and confiscated a large number of sophisticated weapons from their possession. The police took the action on the directive of President General Pervez Musharraf to eliminate the terrorists from the society, the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported on Thursday. "All the terrorists represent new terrorists' group whose ages range between 20 to 28, belong to various parts of Punjab provincewhile some of them have links with defunct Lashkar-e-Jhangvi," APPquoted Inspector General of Punjab Police Malik Asif Hayat as saying at a press conference in Lahore on Thursday.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2002-08/16/content_526436.htm
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southasia/view/16226/1/.html

* Nepali army claims gains in fighting against insurgents

The Royal Nepal Army (RNA) has claimed major gains in its fighting against the anti-government guerrillas in the Himalayan kingdom, The Rising Nepal reported Friday. The anti-government guerrillas have suffered heavy losses both in terms of their fighters and their organizational structures, while the RNA has got the complete information about the insurgents' intelligence network, the state-run English daily quoted Colonel Deepak Gurung, spokesman for the RNA, as saying. "More than 3,100 anti-government guerrillas have been killed and over 300 others wounded so far in actions taken by the security forces since the government imposed the state of emergency on November 26 last year," said Gurung at a press conference held Thursday here.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2002-08/16/content_527200.htm

* Pakistan 'hypocritical' on terrorism

Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has accused Pakistan of "double standards" on terrorism and assured the people of troubled Kashmir that past mistakes would be corrected, as India celebrated its 55th Independence Day amid unprecedented security.Fearing Islamic militants would use yesterday's celebrations to launch an attack, intense security measures were taken not only in New Delhi but also in Kashmir and the restive states of northeast India.

http://theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,4908927%255E2703,00.html

* Musharraf welcomes Russian role in defusing Indo-Pak tension

Pakistan desires for peace and stability in South Asia and believes all differences should be resolved "amicably and in the spirit of good neighborliness and sovereign equality," President Pervez Musharraf has said. Musharraf made the remarks in an interview published in a Russian daily "Izvestia" on the occasion of Pakistan's Independence Day, which falls on Aug. 14, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported on Thursday. Musharraf said, "We are keen that the festering issue of Kashmir should be resolved at the earliest" and Pakistan is prepared to enter into a "meaningful dialogue" with India to address all outstanding issues.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2002-08/15/content_526282.htm

* Pakistan Election Commission begins poll process

The Pakistan Election Commission(PEC) has begun receiving nomination papers from the candidates tocontest the upcoming parliamentary elections, an official announcement said Thursday. "The nomination forms for the National and Provincial assemblies have been supplied to all returning officers for onwardsupply to the prospective candidates of national and provincial assemblies constituencies," the PEC announcement said. The forms are available with the returning officers throughout the country, and the contesting candidates are advised to contact the concerned returning officers for obtaining the nomination forms, according to the announcement.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2002-08/16/content_526422.htm

* Five killed in Sri Lankan military aircraft crash

Five people died today when a Sri Lankan military transport aircraft crashed into a rice field during a test flight. Rescue workers found the charred remains of the five-man crew of the Chinese-built Y-8 aircraft which caught fire and plunged into the field in the Kalutara district, just outside the capital Colombo, officials said. Defence ministry spokesman Sanath Karunaratne said the aircraft reported engine trouble and the control tower had advised it to return to base before it crashed 35 kilometres south of Colombo.

http://abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s650048.htm

* Nine injured as bomb rips through Indian train

At least nine people were seriously injured when a bomb exploded inside a passenger train in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand. Jharkhand police chief RR Prasad said the blast occurred in one of the carriages of the Rampurhat-Sahebganj passenger train near the town of Kotalpokhar, some 200 kilometres from the state capital of Ranchi. The explosives, concealed in a lunchbox under a seat, were stuffed with nails and stone chips, he said.

http://abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s650065.htm

* 28 killed in Kashmir bus mishap

At least 28 people were killed and 28 others injured when a bus skidded off the road and fell into Trungli Nullah valley in Poonch district of Jammu and KashmirFriday morning. The bus, carrying 56 people, was proceeding to Poonch town fromBandi Cherchina village when the mishap took place, police said, adding 20 passengers died on the spot while eight died on way to hospital. Of the injured, conditions of 10 were stated to be critical. A helicopter was pressed into service to airlift the seriously injured to Jammu Medical College Hospital, according to the Press Trust of India. In another accident, one person was killed and 18 others injured when a bus fell into a gorge in Kali Char forest ranges inRajouri district Friday.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2002-08/16/content_527679.htm
http://www.abc.net.au/news/justin/nat/newsnat-16aug2002-115.htm

* Pakistan slams India as 'hypocritical' for terrorism remark

Pakistan has branded as "hypocritical" an allegation by Indian premier Atal Behari Vajpayee that Islamabad is guilty of "double standards" and is continuing to sponsor terrorism. A statement by Pakistan's Foreign Affairs Ministry referred to the allegation made Thursday by Mr Vajpayee in an Indian Independence Day speech as an example of India's own "double standards".
"Such allegations are routinely levelled by Indian leaders to cover up the reign of terror let loose by Indian security forces in Indian-controlled Kashmir," the statement said. "In the face of India's own sordid record of fomenting terrorism across South Asia during the past several decades ... the Indian Prime Minister's reference to 'double standards' is hypocritical."

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southasia/view/16199/1/.html

* Pakistan's ex-PM Bhutto to challenge election ban

Pakistan's former prime minister Benazir Bhutto has launched a legal challenge against laws used to keep her from contesting the country's October elections. She has filed a petition in the Sindh High Court to overturn President Pervez Musharraf's decree banning premiers who have served twice before from running for a third term. A two-judge panel will decide whether to hear the petition, which also challenges the law barring convicted persons from contesting elections. Last week the government said that Ms Bhutto, who lives in self-exile in London, will face 12 charges of corruption if she returns.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southasia/view/16231/1/.html

Europe


* Indian bomb injures six in Pakistani Kashmir

Six people have been wounded after a mortar bomb fired by Indian forces exploded near a bus in Pakistan-ruled Kashmir, according to a government official. The bus was coming from Athmuqqam in Neelum Valley when it was "targeted" by Indian forces near Lasva village, some 70 km (43 miles) northeast of the regional capital of Muzaffarabad at 10 a.m. (4 a.m. British time), Deputy Commissioner Mahmood-ul-Hassan said on Friday. "It appears that the Indians wanted to target the bus as only one mortar shell was fired by them," he told Reuters. Hassan said the driver of the bus and an eight-year-old boy were seriously wounded when hit by splinters from the bomb. He said all the six wounded had been taken to hospital. Pakistan and India have amassed over a million troops along their border after an attack on India's parliament in December that New Delhi blames on Pakistan-based militant groups.

http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/Swissinfo.html?siteSect=143&sid=1277898
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-1950526,00.html

* Musharraf 'plotters' to be tried in jail

The trial of three suspected militants charged with plotting to kill Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf will be held inside prison instead of in ancourt. "The Home Department (in Sindh Province) has issued notification that the trial will be held inside the prison," a senior official at Karachi central jail said. The authorities are believed to be concerned about security. Three men, Mohammad Imran, Mohammad Hanif Ayub and Mohammad Ashraf, are charged with murder, conspiracy to murder and terrorism..

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2197406.stm

* Indian minister defends reputation

A senior Indian minister has denied accusations that he was involved with a journalist who was murdered three years ago. Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs Pramod Mahajan - who is also an influential figure in the ruling BJP - described the allegations as "absurd". His statement follows an appearance on Indian television by Madhu Sharma, whose husband police say is the main suspect in the murder of the journalist, Shivani Bhatnagar.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2197000.stm

* Pakistan militants 'target government'

Police in Pakistan's Punjab province say Islamic militants arrested in connection with attacking Christian targets were planning attacks on the government as well as on foreigners. Punjab Police Chief Malik Asaf Hayat, speaking to journalists, refused to identify who in the government might have been the prime target, saying he did not want to create panic. The details came out as hundreds of Christians protested against a series of attacks on their community in recent months.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2195726.stm

* Pakistani court frees 'blasphemer'

August 15 -- Pakistan's supreme court has overturned the conviction of a Christian who was sentenced to death for blasphemy.His death sentence had led a Catholic bishop to commit suicide outside the courtroom in protest. The supreme court ordered that the Christian, Ayub Masih, should be released immediately. Mr Masih was sentenced to death more than four years ago after being found guilty of blasphemy in a public place.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2196275.stm
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/Swissinfo.html?siteSect=143&sid=1276418

* Three dead, 22 hurt in explosions in India

Three soldiers have been killed and 22 people were injured in two explosions in Jammu and Kashmir, in northern India, today. No groups have claimed responsibility for the attacks. The soldiers were killed when an army vehicle ran over a landmine near Pahalgam, 100 km southeast of Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir. A police official said security forces cordoned off the area and were searching for suspects. Pahalgam is the starting point for an annual Hindu pilgrimage due to start next month..

http://www.rte.ie/news/2002/0627/india.html

* Atleast 29 die in India bus crash

Jammu, India -- An overcrowded bus fell into a deep mountain gorge in Indian-controlled Kashmir on Friday, killing at least 29 people, police said. Twelve other people were injured when the bus toppled into the gorge near Punch, about 149 miles northwest of Jammu, the winter capital of Jammu-Kashmir state, police said. Ten of the injured were in critical condition and being airlifted to hospitals in Jammu. Police said the driver could not negotiate a sharp bend in the steep mountain road. That, combined with overcrowding that kept the bus off-balance, caused it to topple over, they said. The bus was designed to carry only 22 passengers.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-1950626,00.html

* Three popular leaders face arrest if they dare to return

"I MISS Pakistan," says Benazir Bhutto. "I want to return to my country." That is easier said than done. Twice elected as prime minister of Pakistan and twice deposed, accused of corruption, Miss Bhutto languishes in self-imposed exile in London. Should she return to her country to lead her Pakistan People's Party (PPP) in the general election promised for October 10th, the country's current military dictator, General Pervez Musharraf, says she will be arrested. Miss Bhutto's husband, Asif Zardari, has spent the past five years in jail, facing charges of corruption and murder that he denies.

http://economist.com/world/asia/displayStory.cfm?story_id=1284087

* Bhutto challenges election bar

August 15 -- Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has launched a legal challenge to laws which would prevent her from running in October's general election. Farooq Naik, a lawyer for Ms Bhutto, has lodged an appeal in the Sindh High Court against two laws. These stipulate that a defendant can be convicted automatically if they fail to appear in court to hear a case against them and anyone thus convicted is barred from running for office. Ms Bhutto has been sentenced for failing to answer corruption charges and is also barred separately from serving as prime minister for a third term.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2195818.stm

* Sri Lanka's displaced head home

August 15 -- The United Nations refugee agency says more than 100,000 internally displaced people in Sri Lanka have returned home so far this year. Their return has been made possible by the current ceasefire between the government and Tamil Tiger rebels, which has restored freedom of movement across the former front lines. Record numbers of Catholic pilgrims have also taken advantage of the ceasefire to visit what was the country's most popular annual church festival before the civil war - in the rebel-held town of town of Madhu.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2195850.stm

Middle East

* India warns Pakistan on disrupting Kashmir poll

India will seek to counter any attempt by Pakistan to disrupt elections in the northern province of Jammu and Kashmir, a spokeswoman for the external affairs ministry said. Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf said on Wednesday his Government regards the polls scheduled for the next two months as an attempt by India to legitimise its rule in the disputed province and will not support the elections. "The Government of India will take the necessary measures to counter Pakistan's designs," said Nirupama Rao, the external affairs ministry spokeswoman, in response to General Musharraf's comments. "We have taken note of his intention to disrupt peaceful elections in Jammu and Kashmir and to continue his hostile postures towards India."

http://afr.com/asia/2002/08/16/FFXBLWPJV4D.html

* India, Pakistan trade charges

Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, using his strongest language against Pakistan since the two countries pulled back from the brink of war in June, accused Islamabad yesterday of "cross-border terrorism" in disputed Kashmir. Pakistan promptly described the allegation as "hypocritical". A statement released by the Foreign Ministry in Islamabad referred to the allegation made yesterday by Vajpayee in an Indian Independence Day speech as an example of India's own "double standard". "Such allegations are routinely leveled by Indian leaders to cover up the reign of terror let loose by Indian security forces in Indian-controlled Kashmir," the statement said.

http://www.arabnews.com/Article.asp?ID=17809

* Musharraf sees danger in Israel-India ties

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf yesterday underlined the "dangers" posed by the Israeli-Indian connection during a meeting with Syrian Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister, Farouk Al Sharaa, officials said. He stressed that the entire Muslim-Arab world should take unified and concrete steps to counter the nexus between Tel Aviv and New Delhi, an official statement said. Al Sharaa, who has been sent to the region by Syrian President Bashar Al Assad to help reduce India-Pakistan tension, arrived here Wednesday after talks in New Delhi with the Indian leaders.

http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/News.asp?ArticleID=60716
http://www.irna.com/en/world/.ewo.shtml

* Victims of chapel raid mourned

Some 200 people gathered yesterday to mourn the dead and console those wounded by three suspected Muslim militants in an attack on the Taxila Christian Hospital chapel last week. Members of the congregation filed silently between craters created outside the chapel last Friday by grenades which killed five - including four Pakistani nurses and one of the assailants - and injured 25 other worshippers as they emerged from a morning prayer service. As nervous and heavily-armed police stood by, inside the chapel, its splintered window frames testimony to the force of the blasts, mourners sat in quiet contemplation before the pastor, Reverend Alla Ahrasi, began his sermon.

http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/arc_Articles.asp?Article=30164&Sn=WORL&IssueID=25149

* Colombo plans vital statute reforms

A day after the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil guerrillas clinched a deal topeace talks in Thailand next month, the ruling United National Front (UNF) declared that it was looking for more political stability and intends reducing powers of President Chandrika Kumara-tunga. Constitutional Affairs Minister Prof. G.L.Peiris told a news conference in Colombo that they intend to present to parliament before the talks an amendment to the constitution which provides to scrap Presidential powers to dissolve parliament one year after the last parliamentary election.

http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/News.asp?ArticleID=60721

* Kashmir Committee team meets Shabir Shah in Srinagar

Srinagar, Aug 16, IRNA -- The Kashmir Committee headed by Ram Jethmalan Friday met moderate leader and Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party (JKDFP) chief Shabir Ahmad Shah here. Soon after arrival from New Delhi, the even-member delegation headed by its chairman and former law minister of India drove straight to the residence of Shah at Sanatnagar on the outskirts of Srinagar.

http://www.irna.com/en/world/.ewo.shtml

Editorial

N/A

Business/Technology

* India's fuel price cuts won't slow inflation, Economists say

New Delhi, August 16 -- Fuel price cuts that took effect today won't probably be enough to slow India's inflation rate, which is at an eight-month high and may rise as the worst drought in 15 years pushes up food costs, economists said.
State-run oil refiners yesterday reduced prices of gasoline and diesel by about 0.6 percent for the 15-day period to Aug. 31 following last month's decline in global crude oil prices. It's the first cut since the government in April allowed refiners to set the prices of oil products, ending more than two decades of control over India's $65 billion oil market. Refiners revise prices every 15 days to align them with international levels. ``The fuel price cuts are too small,'' said Sanjeev Sanyal, regional economist at Deutsche Bank in Singapore. ``By itself it will not be enough.''

http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi?mnu=news&ptitle=South%20Asia%20News&tp=topfinancial&T=as_storypage99.ht&s=APVyh2hUySW5kaWEn&ao=6544168

* India's industrialists lead recovery

Jaipur - Industrialists in India are a happy lot at present. After a sluggish two-year period there are encouraging signs of a modest recovery in the economy. Industrial production rose 4 percent in June 2002 against growth of 2.6 percent in the same period last year, exports are rising and the business confidence index recorded a gain of 9.3 percent in July this year over the previous round last year. "The signs are slowly but surely pointing to a recovery in the economy, which could provide room for better corporate profitability in fiscal 2002-03," says M M Mehrishi, a professor of economics at a Kolkata management institute. And his optimism appears to be not entirely unfounded. A 5.5 percent growth in six core sectors - crude, petroleum refining, coal, steel, cement and electricity - in the month of May 2002 against 1.7 percent a year ago has raised hopes of economic revival. The growth was driven by increasing demand for steel and cement.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/DH16Df02.html

* Pakistan's liberalized gold imports might trickle into India

New Delhi, August 16, -- Pakistan's decision to lift curbs on gold imports and reduce customs duty to just 1.5 percent is expected to increase smuggling of gold into India. World Gold Council regional manager G.S. Pillai said, "Reduction in customs duty on gold by any neighboring country, whether Nepal, Bangladesh or Pakistan, normally leads to some increase in parallel
imports, or smuggling," reported Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) on Friday. "As India shares a border with Pakistan, there could be some increase in smuggling, which had come down in the last couple of years since India reduced the import duty on gold to Rs.250 per 10 grams," said Pillai.

http://www.irna.com/en/world/.ewo.shtml


========================================================================================================

---South Asian News, August 16, 2002 ---(International)


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