All India Motor Transport Congress Calls off Nationwide Strike
Strike was Proposed from Midnight of First April, 2013

The All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC) has called off the proposed strike after its representatives met the Secretary, Road Transport and Highways(RTH) here today. All India Motor Transport Congress has given call to suspend operations of goods transport and transportation services with effect from the midnight of April,1,2013 demanding that various issues affecting transport community are resolved by 30th March,2013. During the Meeting, the Secretary Road Transport and Highways, Shri Vijay Chhibber assured that Ministry appreciates the requests of AIMTC and will take steps to facilitate resolution of issues.

All India Motor Transport Congress(AIMTC),an apex body of transporters(both cargo and passenger) represent approximately 75 lac truckers and transporters and about 40 lac buses and tour operators. AIMTC claims that whole transport industry is hit by high input costs and deep recession resulting in huge economic viability gap. AIMTC has forwarded list of demands to the RTH Ministry for immediate redressal.

The demands of AIMTC include –Immediate withdrawal of unilateral hike of Third Party Insurance Premium(TPP) for Goods Vehicles w.e.f April,1,2013,Reconstitution of Committee for any TPP tariff revision, with AIMTC as its member; Immediate implementation of Toll Permit in line with the National Permit; Replacement of the monthly increase of Diesel prices with half yearly increase; ,demand for uniformity of diesel prices across the country; Fixation of minimum freight rates for Road Transport Sector; National Permit for buses on lines of Goods Vehicles; Action against States indulging in illegal Entry Tax/Mechanical Tax; Sales Tax/Commercial Tax issues, onus of any Sales Tax issues to be on consignor /trader, trucks not to be detained anywhere in the country; Centralisation of RC books; Standardisation of documents to be done across country; Removal of Anti-Dumping Duty on import of tyres; The reservation of the Road Transport Sector on Carriage by Road Act/Rules to be addressed immediately and Industry status for Road Transport Sector.

World News at Glance 30 March 2013

March 30, 2013

Four hundred thousand Syrian refugees sheltering in Lebanon – UN
UN is aiding nearly 400,000 Syrians across Lebanon, according to a new report published Friday. It was projected there would be over 500,000 refugees in Lebanon by the summer, but the current influx of people is outpacing estimates, local media said. The number of refugees waiting to register has increased to 145,524, and officials estimate there are between 200,000 and 500,000 more unaided refugees.Media agencies
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Pakistani Taliban claims Peshawar attack
Pakistani Taliban claims Peshawar attack that killed 10 near US Consulate.
The Pakistani Taliban has claimed responsibility for an explosion near the US Consulate in Peshawar on Friday. At least 10 people were killed and 31 injured in the blast, police said. A suicide bomber blew himself up near a Frontier Constabulary (FC) convoy in the city’s security area, by a military checkpoint near the US Consulate on Peshawar’s Fakhr-i-Alam Road. FC Commandant Abdul Majeed Marwat was reportedly targeted, but the senior paramilitary official managed to escape the attack in which 8 to 10 kilograms of explosives were supposedly used. Suicide blast kills 6 in Peshawar, Pakistan.A suicide bombing of a security convoy has killed at least six people, including two women, and wounded 15 more in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar. According to police officials, the explosion targeted Abdul Majeed Marwat, the head of the Frontier Constabulary, Pakistan’s paramilitary police force. Marwat was not injured, while three security officers and three civilians died. No group has claimed responsibility for the terror attack in Peshawar, a city that borders Pakistan’s tribal region, a Taliban militant stronghold. Media agencies
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30
Anastasiades:The bank crisis had been “contained”
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades said on Friday the island’s bank crisis had been “contained” following a tough bailout deal with the EU. “We have no intention of leaving the euro,” media quoted Anastasiades as saying in Nicosia. “In no way will we experiment with the future of our country,” the president added.
Cypriot central bank has announced that all domestic debit and credit card transactions are now unrestricted. On Thursday, Cyprus reopened the country’s banks following a 12-day shutdown, but imposed a 300-euro limit on all cash withdrawals. The Cyprus Stock Exchange extended its almost two-week shutdown, and will remain closed until April 1. The measures were introduced to deal with the worsening financial crisis in the country.
Cyprus Telecommunications Authority ‘Cyta’ will be offering free national calls to subscribers, both fixed line and mobile, for the month of April, said the company. Cyta added that it would not be disconnecting any of its subscribers who have not been able to settle their bills following the two week closure of the banks. The organization will review this decision on April 15 in light of the situation at the time. This measure is intended to help ease the blow from the economic crisis on the island.
Big depositors in lender the Bank of Cyprus are to receive shares in the bank worth 37.5 percent of their deposits over 100,000 euros, a source told media. The other depositors may never be paid back. 22.5 percent of deposits over the same amount will attract no interest and the 40 percent remaining will continue to attract interest. These conditions come in the wake of a banking crisis is Cyprus and are expected to be announced on Saturday. media agencies
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Mar
30
French troops to stay in Mali upto 2013
French troops to stay in Mali through end of 2013:Hollande. President Francois Hollande has said French troops will stay in Mali to fight Islamist militants at least through the end of 2013. However, the first of the more than 4,000 French troops in Mali will pull out in late April, Hollande said on France-2 television Thursday night. About 2,000 soldiers will remain deployed in the former French colony by July. By the end of the year, “1,000 French soldiers will remain,” the president said. The French troops could become part of a UN peacekeeping operation in Mali.
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30
China urges easing of tensions on Korean peninsula
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei called for an easing of tensions on Friday after North Korea put its missile units on standby to attack US military bases in South Korea and the Pacific.
The North’s move came after the US flew two nuclear-capable stealth bombers over the Korean peninsula.
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Mar
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Berlusconi ready for coalition with Italy’s center-left
Berlusconi ready for coalition with Italy’s center-left, opposes technocrat govt Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has said he is ready to support a coalition government with center-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani. Berlusconi met President Giorgio Napolitano on Friday, after Bersani failed to form a government and end a month-long political deadlock since elections last month. Berlusconi rejected another technocratic administration like the outgoing one led by Mario Monti, Reuters said. Roberto Maroni, leader of Berlusconi’s Northern League ally, also rejected the technocrats, saying it would be better to hold another election.
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Mar
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France Uphold EU embargo on arms to Syrian rebels
French President Francois Hollande has stated that the EU arms embargo on Syria would remain in place as long as France could not be guaranteed that weapons deliveries to the Syrian rebels would not “fall into the hands of terrorists.
” France and Britain have attempted to push for a relaxation of the embargo, which expires on June 1.
Hollande now says that no weapons will be supplied to the opposition until France is certain “there is complete control of the situation by the opposition.” Media agencies
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30
Kyrgyzstan sends nationalist MPs to jail
Kyrgyzstan sends nationalist MPs to jail for coup attempt. A court in Kyrgyzstan has sentenced three nationalist opposition MPs to up to 18 months behind bars for an attempt to seize power in the Central Asian republic. Prosecutors demanded a sentence of up to ten years for nationalist leader Kamchibek Tashiyev, Sadyr Zhaparov and Talant Mamytov. The three lawmakers of the Ata Zhurt party were arrested back in October, following a protest demanding the nationalization of the huge Kumtor gold mine in the former Soviet Republic. The rally resulted in clashes with police as protesters attempted to storm the parliament building in the capital of Bishkek. Several people were injured. On Friday, several hundred supporters of Tashiyev’s supporters were rallying near the court building demanding that the three MPs are released.Media agencies
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Sicily revokes US military satellite station build up
Sicilian regional government in Italy has withdrawn permission for the US to build a satellite station aimed at boosting communications capacity for the US military and its allies, its governor said.
The ground station designed on a part of the ultra-high-frequency satellite network Mobile User Objective System (MUOS). Government overturn is on possible health risks, such as fears of cancer from the station’s electromagnetic waves, had provoked protests on the island.
The demonstrations could have compromised operations at Sigonella, a U.S. naval base in Sicily, the Italian government said. Rome stated that the decision of the regional government of Sicily, which in January issued a special decree to suspend work on the station’s construction, harms the strategic interests of the country.
Media agencies