Pro-Taliban men take over Pak. district, airstrip
Islamabad, Oct. 29. Armed supporters of the Taliban took administrative control of the Chillas district - about 350 km north east of Peshawar - and its isolated airstrip, on Sunday,

U.S. on the verge of major offensive
Washington, Oct. 29. The U.S. may be on the verge of taking on the Taliban militia in a major and decisive way, while the Northern Alliance is planning a major offensive around Mazar-e- Sharif. The opposition hopes that when it begins the ``final operation'' against the Taliban, the U.S. air support will be there in a big way.

N-weapons not ruled out?
Washington, Oct. 29. The Bush administration has refused to rule out the possibility of using nuclear weapons in its campaign against Afghanistan if the present military hardware is unable to flush out terrorists and their operational facilities from the underground tunnels and caves.

Open ballot for RS elections mooted
New Delhi, Oct. 29. The Cabinet today approved changes in the laws governing elections to the Rajya Sabha. It has suggested that voting be through an open ballot (as against secret voting at present) and that the candidate need not be ``ordinarily resident'' in the State he or she seeks to represent.

SC won't drop case against Arundhati
New Delhi, Oct. 29. The Supreme Court today declined to drop the contempt proceedings initiated against the Booker Prize winner, Ms. Arundhati Roy, and posted the case for hearing in January next.

Suicide bomber kills two
Colombo, Oct. 29. A suspected LTTE suicide bomber blew himself up in a residential area here, killing a police officer, who was chasing him, and a passer-by and wounding at least 15 others.

New Navy chief
New Delhi, Oct. 29. Vice-Admiral Madhvendra Singh will take over as the next chief of Naval Staff on December 29 in place of Admiral Sushil Kumar. Vice-Admiral Singh is the Vice Chief of Naval Staff.