Seoul, May 18 (PTI) India and South Korea today agreed to upgrade their ties to ‘Special Strategic Partnership’ and deepen cooperation in defence sector as the two sides signed seven agreements including on avoidance of double taxation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived here today from Mongolia on the last leg of his three-nation tour, held wide-ranging talks with South Korean President Park Geun-hye at Cheong Wae Dae, the office and residence of the President.

“We have agreed to upgrade the bilateral relationship to ‘Special Strategic Partnership’,” Modi said at a joint press interaction with President Park after their “excellent” talks.

“We have laid the foundation for a relationship that two major Asian countries with shared values should have,” he said, adding that decisions made today reflect how seriously the two countries take the new framework of the relationship.

Noting that India considers South Korea a “crucial partner” in its economic modernisation, Modi said South Korea can be a leading partner in India’s efforts to develop a world class manufacturing sector.

“Our relationship started with a strong economic emphasis. But, it has also now become strategic in content,” the Prime Minister said.

Modi said South Korea is the second country (after Japan) with which India will have a diplomatic and security dialogue in 2+2 format, referring to a bilateral dialogue process involving the foreign and defence ministers of the two sides.

Stating that the national security councils of the two sides will have regular cooperation, Modi said the two nations have agreed to expand cooperation between their armed forces.

“We intend to deepen our cooperation in defence technology and manufacture of defence equipment in India. This sector offers huge opportunities in India,” he said.

The Prime Minister said South Korean President’s response has been positive on the participation of Korean companies in the defence sector in India. .

New Delhi: Politicos across the country have condemned former Pakistan president general Pervez Musharraf’s statement on the Kargil War, accusing him of fabricating history.

Musharraf had reportedly said that the Pakistan Army had ‘caught India by the throat’ during the 1999 Kargil War, and adding that India will never forget the war.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesman Nalin Kohli told ANI, “The whole world knows about the Kargil War and how the Indian forces violently pushed out the intruders from Pakistan, and how, Pakistan was defeated in this exercise. I don’t know how Pakistan has arrived at this conclusion. But, it is not uncommon for Pakistan to create history, rather than look at the events, and even if required, fabricate history.”

Communist Party of India (CPI) leader D. Raja said, ‘India won the Kargil War: Musharraf should understand that. Now, he is an ex-army chief of Pakistan and he should understand that there are efforts to normalise the situation between India and Pakistan. He should not have made such provocative statements. Perhaps, he is doing this to find some space in the politics of Pakistan. Why is he digging up

the past issues? The fact of the matter is India won the Kargil War.”

Congress Party spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, “It is best for Musharraf to introspect on his tragic state as well as more tragic state of his country, rather than preaching to or giving

statements on India or on Kargil. It is the classic case of the pot calling the kettle black. This is not the right approach to be adopted, because it diminishes both Pakistan and Musharraf.”

The Kargil War, which took place in the Kargil District of Jammu and Kashmir in the middle of 1999, resulted in the complete withdrawal of Pakistani forces from Indian territory to the Line of Control and led to the worldwide condemnation of Islamabad’s policies. It is reportedly also the only instance of a direct conflict between two nuclear states.

New Delhi: The tussle between Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi LG Najeeb Jung over appointment of Shakuntala Gamlin as acting chief secretary took a turn for the worse, Monday, after the Delhi government targeted the bureaucrat who had issued orders for appointment of Gamlin.

Principal Secretary (Services) Anindo Majumdar was in for a shock when he reached his office today and found that it was out of bonds for him – on orders from Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s office.

Majumdar – on directions of LG Jung – had appointed Gamlin for 10 days after chief secretary KK Sharma went to the US on a personal visit.

The high drama today came two days after the Delhi government transferred Majumdar. Sources said that Kejriwal was not happy with the way Gamlin was appointed as acting Chief Secretary by the Lt Governor and Majumdar “instantly” issued her posting orders.

However, the LG, who is at loggerheads with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal over Gamlin’s appointment as acting Chief Secretary, overturned the decision saying that Majumdar’s removal does not have his approval and declared it as void.

A press release issued by Jung’s office said the order to remove Majumdar “does not have the approval of the Lt Governor, who is the competent authority to transfer officials of that rank. This order is ab-initio void.”

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has hit out at Jung over his position on the issue. He tweeted:

New Delhi, May 17 (PTI) Birds have the fundamental right to “live with dignity” and fly in the sky without being kept in cages or subjected to cruelty, Delhi High Court has said while holding that running their trade was a “violation of their rights”.

Justice Manmohan Singh expressed anguish that instead of being allowed to fly free, they were “exported illegally to foreign countries without availability of proper food, water or medical aid”.

“I am clear in mind that all the birds have fundamental rights to fly in the sky and all human beings have no right to keep them in small cages for the purposes of their business or otherwise,” the judge said.

The high court issued notice to Delhi Police as well as the bird owner, Md Mohazzim, and sought their responses by May 28.

The high court made the observations and issued the orders while staying the direction of a trial court which had allowed some birds to be released to the same person from whom they were rescued on his plea.

The trial court order was stayed on a plea by NGO People for Animals, which had challenged the release of birds into custody of owners without hearing the NGO which had freed the birds.

The NGO, in its plea filed through advocate S D Windlesh, has alleged that the trial court released the birds into Mohazzim’s custody despite arriving at a finding that he was not the owner of the birds.

Granting relief to the NGO, the high court said, “…This court is of the view that running the trade of birds is in violation of the rights of the birds. They deserve sympathy.

Nobody is caring as to whether they have been inflicted cruelty or not despite a settled law that birds have a fundamental right to fly and cannot be caged and will have to be set free in the sky.

“Birds have fundamental rights including the right to live with dignity and they cannot be subjected to cruelty by anyone including claim made by the respondent (Mohazzim).

Sambhal (UP), My 17 (PTI) Acting on the order of a local court, an FIR has been lodged against 16 people, including eight named, for allegedly cutting a cake prepared from cow dung on the birthday of BSP supremo Mayawati.

Station House Officer of Sambhal Anil Mishra said that on the occasion of the birthday of BSP supremo Mayawati on January 15, some persons had allegedly cut a cake prepared from mud and cow dung and made casteist remarks.

He said that one Amar Singh moved a complaint in the court in this regard.

On the order of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Moradabad, an FIR was lodged against Rajeshwari Tyagi, Najim, Shafeequ Rehman Malik, Asif Raza, Yaseen Ansari, Noon Khan, Chotte and eight other unidentified persons last evening.

He said the FIR has been lodged under various sections of IPC and SC/ST Act and the matter was being investigated.

Siliguri, May 17 (PTI) The Centre will seek a report from the West Bengal Labour Department on the actual condition of the workers of the tea gardens in the state, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said today.

The report is necessary in the wake of several complaints of reduction of fringe benefits, lack of water, power, educational institutions, medical facilities, malnutrition and Provident Fund default, she told reporters here after holding a high-level meeting.

On reopening of closed tea gardens, the minister said the matter would be discussed with the state government.

To a question whether the government has any plan to take over the closed mills, Sitharaman said such a step would not solve the problems.

The meeting was attended by Tea Board Chairman, Labour department officials, local MP S S Ahluwalia, local MLA Gautam Deb and representatives of several trade unions.

New Delhi, May 17 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China has redefined the economic partnership between the two largest and fastest-growing developing economies in the world, industry body CII said today.

Welcoming the business outcomes of the visit, it said: “Prime Minister Modi’s visit to China has redefined the economic partnership of the two largest and fastest-growing developing economies in the world”.

In a statement, it said: “The Prime Minister personally took up matters of concern to industry, and CII’s sense is that as a result, sentiments on both sides are very positive and upbeat.”

In the presence of the Prime Minister at the India-China Business Forum in Shanghai, Indian and Chinese companies exchanged 24 agreements for cooperation totaling USD 22 billion including investments and financing across sectors, the statement said.

Chinese initiatives in the sectors of railways, skill development, public health and medical education will further build on economic cooperation between the two countries, it added.

Ulan Bator, May 17 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi today gifted Mongolia a Bhabhatron, the indigenous machine developed by Indian scientists for cancer treatment, in the first demonstration of bilateral cooperation in the civil nuclear sector.

Modi, on a two-day visit to Mongolia, the first-ever by an Indian Premier, drove down to the National Cancer Centre here and gifted the centre the equipment to boost cancer care.

“It is state-of-art nuclear medicine cancer therapy machine, developed and manufactured in India,” he said about the machine developed by the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre.

Earlier today, while addressing the country’s Parliament, Modi said the Bhabhatron equipment “can help treat cancer in Mongolia. This will be the first demonstration of our cooperation in the civil nuclear sector”.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted a picture of the Prime Minister with the hospital staff at the Centre, saying: “Boosting cancer care in Mongolia. PM @narendramodi hands over Bhabhatron at National Cancer Centre.”

An MoU was earlier signed between India’s Tata Memorial Centre and Mongolia’s National Cancer Centre for gifting of Bhabhatron-II Tele-therapy Unit along with a Radiotherapy Simulator.

Mongolian Prime Minister Chimed Saikhanbile thanked India for its support for the development of peaceful use of nuclear energy in Mongolia, and appreciated the gesture of providing the Bhabhatron and the simulator to the centre.

On the second leg of his three-nation tour, Modi is on a two-day visit to Mongolia and will leave for South Korea tomorrow from here.

Cairo, May 17 (AFP) Egyptian authorities hanged six men convicted of killing soldiers today, police said, ignoring appeals to spare them amid allegations two of them had been in custody at the time of their alleged crimes.

A military court upheld the death sentences last March, following a trial in which the six were convicted of carrying out the attacks in the months after the army’s overthrow of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in July 2013.

Prosecutors said they were members of the Sinai-based Ansar Beit al-Maqdis jihadist group, which late last year pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria.

The sentence was carried out by hanging in a Cairo jail, the officials said.

Some of the men had been arrested when police and soldiers raided their safehouse north of Cairo in March 2014.

Two army explosive experts and six militants were killed in an ensuing gunfight, adding to the list of charges against the six men.

But human rights groups had appealed for a stay of execution, saying two of the defendants had been in custody at the time.

Amnesty International said the men underwent a “grossly unfair” trial and that the only witness during the trial was a secret police officer.

Mumbai, May 17 (PTI) A Maharashtra bride who got a “toilet” as her wedding gift from her kin as she preferred it over jewellery will now be given a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh by a sanitation NGO for taking a stand on the issue.

Inspired by ‘Swachch Bharat’ campaign, the woman from Akola district insisted on a toilet in her in-laws’ house, placing basic sanitation needs much ahead of other wedding presents.

Lauding the inspiring step by Chaitali Galakhe of Andura village in Balapur tehsil of Akola district, Sulabh International today announced Rs 10 lakh cash award for her.

While making the announcement, noted sanitation expert and mentor of Sulabh International Bindeshwar Pathak termed Chaitali as a great inspirer and messenger of sanitation.

Appreciating the step of the rural woman, Pathak saw it as an impact of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s campaign which motivates common people towards need of sanitation.

He announced to honour her soon with ‘Sulabh Sanitation Award’ carrying a cheque of Rs 10 lakh.

“I see it as an achievement of Modi when his government is completing one year in office,” Dr Pathak said.

Chaitali got married to Devendra Makode from a village in Maharashtra’s Yavatmal district.

Those who attended her marriage on May 15 at Andura village in Akola were surprised to see a new item on display, along with other usual household articles which form part of the articles given by parents/ relatives of the bride to her during the wedding.

Standing tall along with other items was a toilet. The pre-fabricated toilet with a water closet, a wash-basin and mirror standing around one foot above the ground, was the cynosure of all eyes at the event.