Extreme elements may have dented BJP's image: Jaswant Singh

New Delhi, June 11 (IANS) Calling for an 'ideological distillation of thought' in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), senior party leader Jaswant Singh has said 'extreme elements' associated with the party may have dented its image resulting in the poll debacle.In an interview to NDTV news channel, he said: 'There is a need for ideological distillation of thought. The BJP has to be a current party. It can't be a party of yesterday. I think there's lack of clarity on what Hindutva means.'Asked if groups like Vishwa Hindu Parishad had not become a hindrance in making it a modern party, the former central minister said: 'It is possible that extreme elements have dented this particular aspect. The BJP will have to address this aspect.'To a question if the BJP was 'living in yesterday', Singh, who was elected to the Lok Sabha from Darjeeling in West Bengal, admitted that the party had failed to convey its message to the masses.'Perhaps people didn't perceive it but we didn't succeed effectively in conveying what we're trying to do. The failure in conveying a message on what we stand for ended up with diminished electoral support.'He added: 'We had to reflect on what we are trying to address ourselves to. Come back to the issue that the party must be current, that it addresses today as well as tomorrow and doesn't continue to be living in yesterday.'Jaswant Singh, who was earlier leader of opposition in the upper house, conceded the election outcome this time was a 'bigger shock' than the loss in 2004 'when everybody said we were winning'.He said the party fared badly in some of the states where it expected to do better. The BJP won 116 seats, down from 138 in the previous elections.Asked about rumours that the BJP's prime ministerial candidate L.K. Advani would step down and if the party needed an overhaul, he said: 'Does the party need to look at itself? Yes! Does the party need to replace Advani? No!'He continued: 'The party must evolve into a succession, not arrive at succession because of an event. The event is a loss of an election...therefore you must change the leader? I don't believe so!'He did not see any merit in the argument of a section of the party leaders that throwing up Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's name as future prime minister when the elections were underway created confusion among the voters since the BJP had projected Advani for the post.A day after he reportedly demanded at the party's core group meeting that poll managers should be held accountable for the results, Jaswant Singh said: 'When it comes to evolution of the BJP, factionalism has afflicted us.'But added that there was no party not affected by it. He admitted he strongly voiced his opinion at the core group meeting, though they did not disclose the details.

India plans much solar power, slower emissions rise

India will submit plans within weeks to slow its rise in carbon emissions significantly and to generate more solar power by 2020 than the whole world generates now, a senior climate official said on Thursday.But the world's fourth biggest emitter of greenhouse gases cannot say when its emissions will peak and start to decline, said Shyam Saran, special climate envoy to Prime Minster Manmohan Singh.Saran was speaking on the sidelines of a June 1-12 climate meeting in Bonn, the latest round of U.N. talks meant to lead to agreement in December on a pact to replace the Kyoto Protocol.The talks are stuck on how far developing countries should share the cost of preparing for and curbing the worst effects of climate change and helping its victims."We are prepared to look at a significant deviation from business as usual (emissions)", provided this is supported by financing from rich countries, said Saran.The European Union wants developing countries collectively to reduce their emissions of planet-warming gases by 15-30 percent below current trends by 2020.India can neither be so specific nor say when its emissions will peak, Saran said. That depends on ambitious carbon caps and financial support from rich countries which are not yet on the table, he said.India is about to publish eight climate "missions" to boost efficiency, renewable energy and sustainable development."We hope that will be completed in the next few weeks," said Saran. One policy aim is to install about 20 gigawatts of solar power by 2020, he told Reuters.It's around 20 gigawatts, that's something we've been talking about."
CONCERNThe world now produces about 14 gigawatts (GW) of solar power, about half of it added last year. Analysts said they want details of the Indian plan before hailing what would be a big lift to a small but burgeoning market.Targets are great but meaningless without policies behind them," Jefferies Bank analyst Michael McNamara told Reuters in response to the mooted Indian target. "We need to know what the incentives are, where the funding is coming from."
Environmental groups and most developing countries have criticised the level of ambition shown by many rich countries at the Bonn talks, including a new Japanese climate goal announced on Wednesday."Some individual targets ... fall far short of what is required," said Saran. He declined to comment on Japan's plan to cut emissions by 8 percent below 1990 levels by 2020, compared with a goal to cut these by 6 percent by 2008-12 under Kyoto.Russia is the last large developed country still to announce a 2020 target. Victor Blinov, head of the Russian delegation told Reuters on Thursday: "This issue is under very serious consideration".

No dilution of Women's Reservation Bill: Govt

The Government has ruled out any dilution of the proposed 33 per cent quota for women in state legislatures and Parliament to take some of the opponents of Women's Reservation Bill on board.
"There is no question of dilution," Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal told reporters, adding that the question "is hypothetical". He was responding to questions on the disclosure made by Samajwadi Party leader MulayamSingh Yadav in the Lok Sabha on Monday that the Congress had scuttled a compromise formula envisaging 20 per cent quota during the NDA's rule.Regarding any move for a consensus on the Bill, Bansal said the Government would endeavour for a consensus on every issue. As far as the Women's Reservation Bill was concerned, it was before the Standing Committee. He refused to commit himself to any time-frame saying, "We would await the report of the committee."Though the Government had pledged itself to an "early passage" of the Bill in the Presidential address, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had avoided anyreference to it while responding to the debate that followed. JD (U) president Sharad Yadav, SP leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, RJD leader Lalu Prasad Yadav and former UP chief minister Kalyan Singh had registered their strong opposition to the Bill.ansal said the Budget session of Parliament would commence either towards the end of this month or the beginning of the next month. This would be without the customary Presidental address. Nor would the Budget go to committees. The presentation of budget would be followed by a general discussion. Regarding the Insurance and Banking Bills, Bansal said both had lapsed.Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Prithviraj Chavan said in reply to a question that an amendment to the Atomic Energy Act needed a "political decision". The issues which had to be resolved included a regulatory arrangement and private participation.

French submarine begins Airbus black box search

A French nuclear submarine with advanced sonar equipment began searching on Wednesday for the flight recorders of an Air France airliner that crashed into the Atlantic last week, the French military said.The Emeraude was sent to the area to hunt the "black box" recorders, which may help explain the disaster and which are believed to lie on the ocean floor.Investigators face a long search for clues to what went wrong when the Airbus A330 jet disappeared on a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris killing all 228 people on board, French military spokesman Christophe Prazuck said."Up to now, the time frame for the search for victims and debris has been of the order of days or a week. Here, at the very least, it's going to be of the order of weeks or months," he told LCI television.The Air France flight is believed to have run into trouble when it hit a violent storm midway over the Atlantic Ocean and potential problems with speed sensors have become one of the focal points of the inquiry.
The European Aviation Safety Agency said on Tuesday it issued a reminder to pilots on how to proceed when they suspect airspeed readings are unreliable.It said it was analyzing speed sensor data "with a view to issuing mandatory corrective action." The agency added it would not prejudge the outcome of the investigation and reiterated that Airbus planes are "airworthy and safe to operate."Late on Wednesday, Airbus denied a report in an early edition of French daily newspaper Le Figaro that it was considering grounding its fleet of A330 and A340 planes following the crash."We are not considering grounding the fleet because it is safe to operate," said Airbus spokesman Stefan Schaffrath.Other causes have not been ruled out, but France's interior ministry said two passengers identified as suspicious turned out not to be a concern. The website of the French weekly L'Express had quoted a French military spokesman as saying they could have been linked to Islamic terrorism.
WEATHER HAMPERS SEARCH
Brazilian military search teams using planes and ships had recovered 41 bodies by Tuesday, but none were found on Wednesday. Briefing reporters, Air Force Brigadier Ramon Borges Cardoso said visibility had been poor in the search areas.Television pictures showed a military plane preparing late on Wednesday to fly the first 16 bodies found to Recife on mainland Brazil from the archipelago Fernando de Noronha off the northeast coast, where the search operations are based.The 16 bodies had undergone preliminary identification procedures which would be continued in Recife.Cardoso said the search for bodies would continue until around June 19, but could go on further if weather conditions and ocean currents were favorable.Military planes expanded their search into airspace controlled by Senegal due to ocean currents that may have swept some bodies in that direction, Brazil's Air Force said, but searches there on Wednesday were interrupted by bad weather.France has sent about 400 military personnel, three planes, one frigate with a helicopter, and a research vessel with mini-submarines as well as the nuclear submarine.In the search zone, where scattered pieces of debris including a large section from the aircraft tail have been recovered, vessels are trying to comb a rugged area of the ocean floor, thousands of metres below the surface.Prazuck said searchers had taken two weeks to locate the black box recorders after the crash of a Boeing 737 at Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt in 2004, despite much easier conditions."Here the accident happened 1,000 kilometres from the coast. The situation is very complex," he said.He said the Emeraude was searching an area of 36 square kilometres and the search zone would change daily. If the recorders are found, miniature submarines from the Pourquoi Pas, the French exploration and survey ship, could be used to retrieve them.The doomed plane sent 24 automated messages in its final minutes on June 1, detailing a rapid series of systems failures.The speed sensors that gauge how fast an aircraft is flying have become the focus of the investigation after some of the messages showed they provided inconsistent data to the pilots.Air France said on the weekend it had noticed icing problems on the speed sensors known as pitot tubes in May 2008 and had asked Airbus for a solution. Airbus responded by reaffirming existing operating procedures, according to Air France, which decided to go ahead and change the sensors from April 27. The A330 that crashed had not yet been modified.

India crucial global partner says William Burns

New Delhi, June 11 (ANI): US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, William Burns said that India was a major foreign policy priority for the United States. He said this while speaking to media persons after meeting India's Foreign Minister S M Krishna and the Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon at New Delhi on Wednesday.Burns said President Obama has sent him with a personal message highlighting India as a crucial strategic partner for the United States.

Chidambaram to review security situation in Kashmir

New Delhi, June 11 (ANI): Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram will leave for Srinagar on Thursday for a detailed review of the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir.During his two-day visit, he is scheduled to meet the Governor, the Chief Minister and other State Ministers.He will also attend a meeting of the Unified Command.The Home Minister will also discuss with the State Government issues relating to the economic development of Jammu and Kashmir.This will be the first visit of Chidambaram to Jammu and Kashmir after installation of the new Government at the Centre. (ANI)

India's 'renaissance man' Kalam honoured in UK

London, June 11 (IANS) Ten years after describing a shabby-looking fuse box as something that appeared to have been 'put in by an Indian', Prince Philip applauded as an Indian engineer, who happened to be a former president, was presented with one of Britain's top engineering awards.Former Indian president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, who is on a lecture tour of Britain and Ireland, was presented the 2008 International Medal of the Royal Academy of Engineering at a gala dinner in London Tuesday night.The award was given by Academy president Lord John Browne, former chief executive of British Petroleum.According to the Royal Academy, the International Medal is awarded occasionally to an individual resident outside the European Union for his or her 'outstanding and sustained personal achievement in the broad field of engineering, including commercial or academic leadership'.At the dinner Tuesday night was the Academy's Senior Fellow Prince Philip, husband of Queen Elizabeth II and a man who is famous for making controversial off-the-cuff remarks.In August 1999, Prince Philip caused a stir by remarks made during a trip to a factory in Edinburgh, Scotland.According to The Guardian, the Prince was at the Racal-MESL factory to unveil an award for its rail safety system technology.As he walked around the building, he stopped in a corridor and looked up at the fuse box, which appeared somewhat less sophisticated than other devices in the factory, with electric cables stretching into the ceiling above.'Terry Nisbet, managing director of the company, noticed the Duke's interest and joked: 'That's the national grid.' The Duke replied: 'It looks as though it was put in by an Indian',' the paper said.The remarks prompted a barrage of criticism from political parties and race campaigners, leading the Prince to admit that 'what were intended as light-hearted comments were inappropriate'.The former Indian president was also given an honorary degree Wednesday by the prestigious Queens University Belfast, whose Vice Chancellor Peter Gregson described him as 'a scientist and engineer of international stature'.'Few people so clearly personify the term 'Renaissance Man',' Gregson said.A spokeswoman for the Royal Academy said the Prince gave away the 40th MacRobert Award, Britain's biggest prize for engineering innovation, to the British firm Arup.