DECEMBER 2008

NATIONAL NEWS DECEMBER 2008 MONTH

Dec. 1
The interrogation of Mohammad Ajmal Amir Iman, the only terrorist of the ten-member group involved in the Mumbai mayhem to be caught alive unfolds background story.

The Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister R. R. Patil resigns.

India serves demarche on Pakistan asking it to take action against the perpetrators of the Mumbai massacre.

Dec. 2
Three persons are killed and 30 injured after extremists trigger a powerful blast on board the Lumding-Tinsukia passenger train at Diphu station in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district.

Over 72 per cent voting is recorded in Mizoram Assembly polls.

Kazakh film director Sergei Dvortsevoy’s Tulpan bags the Golden Peacock at the 39th IFFI. Dvortsevoy also gets the Best Director’s award.

Dec. 3
Eight kg of RDX is found near the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai.

No terrorist or enemy of our republic can destroy nation’s unity, says the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the IISc centenary fete inaugural in Bangalore.

Vikar Ahmed, a terror suspect wanted in the May 18, 2007 Mecca Masjid blast case escapes after firing at policemen in Hyderabad’s Santoshnagar area.

Dec. 4
The Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh submits resignation to Governor S. C. Jamir.

Over 68 per cent polling is recorded in Rajasthan Assembly elections.

Bird flu spreads to fresh areas of Assam’s Kamrup district.

Historian Romila Thapar is chosen for the 2008 Kluge Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Study of Humanity.

Dec. 5
India and Russia clinch a mega uranium deal in New Delhi following a summit between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Dmitry Medvedev. Four more nuclear power plants for Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu.

Ashok Chavan Industry Minister in the Vilasrao Deshmukh Cabinet is named Maharashtra Chief Minister. Chhagan Bhujbal is to be Deputy Chief Minister.

Sensex slips below the 9000 - mark again with IT stocks taking a beating.

Dec. 6
The Congress suspends Narayan Rane for his outburst against the party leadership.

“Hand in Hand 2008”, the Sino-Indian joint military exercise gets under way in Belgaum, Karnataka.

Dec. 7
The Government unveils a stimulus package to shore up economy. Four per cent cut in Cenvat, Rs.20,000 crore set apart for industry, export sectors for the current fiscal.

Fifty five per cent polling is recorded in the fourth phase of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections.

The Haryana Deputy Chief Minister Chander Mohan is sacked for being “absent from his office since past some time”.

Dec. 8
The Congress retains Delhi for the third term, wrests Rajasthan from the BJP and dislodges the Mizo National Front in Mizoram securing a four-fifths majority. The BJP holds on to Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

Ashok Chavan is sworn in Maharashtra’s 24th Chief Minister. Chhagan Bhujbal takes office as Deputy Chief Minister.

Rajiv Mathur to be new Intelligence Bureau Director.

Dec. 9
The Mumbai police release the names of the nine terrorists killed for their role in the November 26 bloodbath.

Forty pilgrims are killed after the bus in which they were travelling catches fire in Firozabad, U.P.
Dec. 10
Lok Sabha MP, Chaudhary Munawwar Hasan dies of injuries sustained in a road accident in Haryana.

Dec. 11
Parliament condemns with one voice the Mumbai terror attacks. The Prime Minister Manmohan Singh apologises for the government’s inability to prevent the carnage and says Pakistan is the epicentre of terrorism.

Lalthanhawla is sworn in Mizoram Chief Minister and is the first to be elected to head the state for a fourth term.

Avian flu spreads to six districts in Assam and till date 2.5 lakh birds have been culled.

Dec. 12
Shivraj Singh Chauhan is sworn in Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister. Raman Singh takes office as Chhattisgarh Chief Minister.

Dec. 13
Ashok Gehlot is sworn in Rajasthan Chief Minister.

Fiftyseven per cent polling is recorded in J & K fifth phase elections.

Dec. 14
“Pakistan has a great deal to answer for”, says the British Prime Minister Gordon Brown after talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi.

Dec. 15
The Union Cabinet gives nod for setting up a National Investigation Agency. Proposal to amend the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967 cleared.

The Right to Children to Free and Compulsory Education Bill, 2008 is tabled in the Rajya Sabha.

Dec. 16
The government introduces in the Lok Sabha a bill on setting up a National Investigation Agency and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Bill, 2008.

The Kishore Chandra Deo parliamentary panel exonerates SP and Congress MPs Amar Singh and Ahmed Patel in the “cash for votes scam”.

Sensex regains the 10000 level after 22 sessions.

A postage stamp on Field Marshal Manekshaw is released at a function in New Delhi.

Dec. 17
The Lok Sabha passes two Bills — the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act Amendment Bill, 2008 and the National Investigation Agency Bill, 2008.

Sheila Dikshit takes oath as Delhi Chief Minister for the third consecutive term.

Sixty per cent polling is recorded in phase six of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections.
Parliament passes the Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Bill, 2008.

Rajya Sabha nod for Gram Nyayalaya Bill, 2008.

Dec. 18
BrahMos supersonic cruise missile is test-fired in a vertical launch configuration for the first time by the Navy.

Parliament nod for anti-terror Bills.

The indigenous cryogenic engine passes a “flight acceptance hot test” at Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu.

Dec. 19
Union Minority Affairs Minister A.R. Antulay whose remarks on the killing of three senior Maharashtra police officers in the Mumbai carnage created a furore ‘submits resignation’.

The Delhi High Court reduces to one year the two-year RI awarded to the Ansal brothers in the June 13, 1997 Uphaar cinema fire that claimed 59 lives.

Dec. 20
More than 4.25 lakh birds culled in Assam so far even as the avian flu has struck 120 villages in seven districts.

Dec. 21
“We can be hurt but not knocked down,” says Ratan Tata as the Taj Mahal Palace And Tower in Mumbai reopens its doors.

Dec. 22
The Insurance Laws (Amendments) Bill, 2008 seeking to hike FDI cap on private insurance firms from 26 per cent to 49 per cent is tabled in the Raj Sabha.

The Life Insurance Corporation (Amendment) Bill is introduced in the Lok Sabha.

Dec. 23
Parliament passes Information Technology (Amendment) Bill that provides for stringent punishment for cyber crimes. Cyber Appellate Tribunal planned.

Satyam Computer is barred from doing business with the World Bank for eight years on charges of data theft.

Tamil poet Melanmai Ponnusamy among 21 litterateurs chosen for the Sahitya Akademi awards for 2008.

Dec. 24
Voters defy secessionists and exercise ballot in final phase of Jammu and Kashmir polls.

Dec. 25
The Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed offers help in “Observing” the Indian Ocean. India extends a $ 100-million standby credit.

Dec. 28
The National Conference emerges single largest party in Jammu and Kashmir as the poll verdict throws up a hung Assembly.

Dec. 30
The Congress to support the NC government under Omar Abdullah.

Dec. 31
The new anti-terror laws come into force after presidential assent.

The Indian Maritime University is inaugurated in Chennai.

Sensex closes the year at 9647.31 having surrendered 10640 points in the said period.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS DECEMBER 2008

Dec. 1
Hillary Clinton is named U.S. Secretary of State, Robert Gates to continue as Defence Secretary. Susan Rice to be Ambassador to the U.N.
Dec. 2
An Iraqi Court condemns Saddam Hussein’s hatchetman ‘Chemical Ali’ to death for war crimes.

Thailand’s constitutional court unseats Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat and disbands his People’s Power Party for electoral fraud.

Israel bids emotional farewell to Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka killed in the terror attack at Nariman House in Mumbai.
Dec. 3
Norway becomes the first signatory to the Convention on Cluster Munitions finalised in Dublin in May.
Dec. 4
Wrangling over pollution trading rights holds up a major climate change accord even as EU Environment Ministers begin a key meeting in Brussels.Armed robbers pull off one of the world’s biggest jewellery heists at a Paris store and make off with valuables worth $102 million.
Dec. 5
At least 22 persons are killed and 70 injured in a massive car bomb explosion in a crowded market in Peshawar in Pakistan’s North West Frontier Province.
Dec. 6
The Malaysian State of Malacca presents ‘Datuk’ title to Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan, making him the first foreign actor to get the honour.

A youth Alexis Grigoropoulos dies in Greek police firing after 30 youth attack a police car.
Dec. 7
The London weekly, The Observer confirms that Mohammed Ajmal Amir, the lone surviving Mumbai mayhem suspect hails from Faridkot village in Okara district of Pakistan.

At least 160 vehicles meant for use by the NATO forces in Afghanistan are destroyed by pro-Taliban militants in Peshawar, Pakistan.

Pakistan military mounts an “intelligence-led operation” against a banned militant organisation in Pakistan – administered Kashmir and effects arrests of among others, LeT commander Zaki-ur-Rahman Lakhvi, suspected to be the mastermind behind the Mumbai attacks.
Dec. 8
Hundred more NATO vehicles are set ablaze by militants at a container depot in Peshawar.Krishnammal Jagannathan of Tamil Nadu receives the Right Livelihood Award, known as alternative Nobel Prize in Stockholm.

Grand funeral for Russia’s Orthodox Patriot Alexy II.

Tribune Co., owner of the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune files for bankruptcy.
Dec. 9
The Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is arrested for bid to sell U.S. President-elect Barack Obama’s recently open Senate seat.

Greek protesters clash with police guarding Parliament. Unrest spreads across more than 10 cities.

Lord Swraj Paul becomes the first Asian Deputy Speaker of the British House of Lords.
Dec. 10
The former President of Finland Martti Ahtisaari is presented with the Nobel Peace Prize at a function in the Norwegian capital Oslo.

A general strike cripples Greece. Thousands take out a march to Parliament.

The slain former Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto is awarded the U.N. Human Rights Award.

The U.S. automakers get a $14 billion government lifeline.

Two Indian Navy officers of a large crude carrier are jailed by a South Korean court for an oil spill on the Yellow Sea coast on December 7, 2007.
Dec. 11
Pakistan begins a countrywide crackdown on Lashkar-e-Taiba front organisation Jamat-ud-Dawah. and places its leader Hafiz Mohammed Saeed under house arrest in Lahore for three months following U.N. sanctions.

At least 45 persons are killed and 93 injured in a suicide blast at a restaurant in Kirkuk, Iraq.

U.S. President – elect Barack Obama chooses Chinese – American Steven Chu for Energy Secretary post.

The U.S. Senate rejects the Federal government’s bailout package for troubled auto majors General Motors, Ford and Chrysler.

Bernard Madoff, former chairman, Nasdaq Stock Market is arrested for a $ 50 billion fraud.Dec. 12. A British court absolves Scotland Yard officers who shot dead a Brazilian youth Jean Charles de Menezes at a London underground station on July 22, 2005 mistaking him to be a terrorist of unlawful killing.
Dec. 12
Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso announces a new $255 billion stimulus package to shore up his country’s economy.

Asian stocks tumble on hefty losses on the Wall Street.

The U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change Summit in Poznan, Poland operationalises an Adaptation Fund.
Dec. 13
Ksenya Sukhinova is crowned Miss World 2008 at an extravaganza in the South African capital Johannesburg.
Dec. 14
The first model of Japan’s bullet train has a farewell run 44 years after it transformed overland travel.

Somalia’s Prime Minister Hassan Hussein Nur is sacked by the President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed.
Dec. 15
China and Taiwan start direct air and sea transport and postal services, a historical step in cross-strait relations.

Thailand’s House of Representatives elects Abhisit Vejjajiva Prime Minister.

Najam Sethi Editor-in-Chief of Friday Times and Daily Times in Pakistan is awarded the 2009 Golden Pen of Freedom, the annual freedom prize of the World Association of Newspapers.
Dec. 16
The Woolwich Crown Court finds a U.K. – based Iraqi doctor Bilal Abdulla guilty of plotting to bomb the Glasgow airport on June 30, 2007.
Dec. 17
Bangladesh lifts emergency that was imposed in January 2007 ahead of parliamentary polls slated for December 29.The Time magazine names U.S. President – elect Barack Obama Person of The Year 2008.
Dec. 18
The U.N. – based International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda sentences to life Theoneste Bagosora for masterminding the 1994 genocide.

Rangzieb Ahmed, a British Pakistani, accused of being a high-profile Al-Qaeda activist is found guilty of “directing terrorism”.
Dec. 19
NRI industrialist Lord Swraj Paul creates history by becoming the first Asian to preside over the House Of Lords.

Hamas ends six-month-old ceasefire with Israel.

The U.S. gives $ 13.4 billion in emergency loans to prevent the collapse of General Motors and Chrysler.

Japan unveils Auriga Leader, the world’s first large ship partially using solar power at a shipyard in Kobe.
Dec. 22
A 36-member Thailand Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjejiva is sworn in in Bangkok.
Dec. 23
Australia’s high-power probe clears Dr. Mohamed Haneef saying he “was wrongly charged” in July 2007 on suspected links to a terrorist plot in Britain.
Dec. 24
Palestinian fighters in Gaza launch a barrage of rockets into Israel.
Dec. 27
Over 200 persons are killed in an Israeli air raid on Gaza.
Dec. 29
The Awami League-led Grand Alliance heading for a landslide in Bangladesh elections.

Somalia’s President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed resigns.
Dec. 30
The Awami League gets a massive mandate bagging 230 seats in the 299-member Parliament.

Israel begins naval attack even as the toll in the air raid touches 385.

An Air New Zealand jet part fuelled by vegetable oil completes a two-hour flight

SPORTS NEWS : DECEMBER 2008

Dec. 6
Football legend Diego Maradona visits Kolkata on a private tour.
Dec. 7
Jeev Milkha Singh wins the Nippon Series JT Cup in Tokyo.
Dec. 13
Indian boxers Akhil Kumar, Jitender Kumar, A.L. Lakra and Dinesh Kumar win bronze medals at the International Boxing Association’s World Cup in Moscow.
Dec. 15
India wins the first Test in its two-Test series against England at Chennai. Sachin Tendulkar makes his 41st Test hundred in guiding India home.
Dec. 21
Mohun Bagan bags Federation Cup football championship in Kolkata.

South Africa wins the first Test against Australia at Perth, chasing 414 in the fourth innings – the second highest ever successful chase.

The Indian women’s hockey team wins bronze at the Under-21 Women’s Junior Asia Cup at Kuala Lumpur.

Manchester United wins the Club World Cup at Yokohama, beating Liga de Quito 1-0 in the final.
Dec. 23
India seals a 1-0 win in the Test series against England, and moves to No. 2 in the ICC Test rankings, with a draw at Mohali in the second test.

The Test series between New Zealand and West Indies ends in a 0-0 draw.
Dec. 26
Sahu Mewalal, 82, two-time football Olympian, dies in Kolkata.
Dec. 28
Railways wins both the men’s and women’s titles at the National Volleyball Championships in Visakhapatnam.

Golfer Jyoti Randhawa wins the BILT Open in Noida.

Kruttika Nadig wins the National ‘A’ Women’s Chess title at Delhi.
Dec. 30
South Africa seals the Test series in Australia, winning the second Test at Melbourne by nine wickets.

OBITUARY NEWS : DECEMBER 2008

Dec. 5
Russian Patriarch Alexei II (79), the iconic religious leader who restored the church from a post-Soviet shell to an institution of power and privilege aat his Moscow home.
Dec. 11
Bettie Mae Page (85), one of America’s most photographed pin-up girls during the 1950s of pneumonia in Los Angeles.
Dec. 14
Saraswathi Gandhi (86), veteran freedom fighter and widow of Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson Kantilal Gandhi, at a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram.
Dec. 18
H.N. Nanje Gowda (74) former Irrigation Minister in the Devaraj Urs Ministry and an expert on inter.State river disputes iin Bangalore.

Mark Felt (95) the man known as Deep Throat, the secret informant in the Watergate scandal that led to the downfall of President Richard Nixon in 1974 at a California hospice.
Dec. 19
Carol Chomsky (78) wife of Noam Chomsky known for her work in psycholinguistics of cancer at her Lexington home.
Dec. 20
Robert Mulligan (83), director of the Academy award winning film “To Kill A Mockingbird”, at his home in Lyme, Connecticut of heart disease.
Dec. 24
Harold Pinter (78), the Nobel prize winning British playwright after a prolonged illness.

Samuel Huntington (81), political scientist in Martha’s Vineyard, Harvard University.
Dec. 25
Eartha Kitt (81), the versatile American singer and actor of colon cancer.
Dec. 28
Tuanku Jaafar Tuanku Abdul Rahman (86), Malaysia’s former king in Kuala Lumpur.
Dec. 29
Manjit Bawa (67) renowned painter in New Delhi.

Agnihotram Ramanuja Thathachariar (100) renowned Vedic scholar in Chennai.

Freddie Hubbard (70) jazz legend at a hospital in California, of complications from a heart attack.

Surya Shekhar Ganguly wins the National ‘A’ Men’s Chess title, for the sixth year running, at Mangalore.
Dec. 31
Former Indian Davis Cupper Premjit Lall (68) dies in Kolkata.