The petrol dealers in the city have sought intervention of the Centre in reducing the VAT on diesel in the city to bring it at par with that of Haryana and Punjab so that they do not continue to lose out on business.

Delhi on Wednesday got its new industrial policy after a gap of 28 years with chief minister Sheila Dikshit stressing that the government was committed to implementing the document, which stresses on the service sector and environment-friendly growth.

The MCD contractors, who have been on strike since July 21 protesting against non-payment of their dues, on Wednesday threatened that they will involve their family members, including children, if the dues were not cleared within four days.

Vidya Stokes was on Thursday elected Hockey India president after defeating former national captain Pargat Singh in the much-awaited HI polls here.

India’s sports minister on Thursday sought to allay fears over New Delhi’s preparations for the Commonwealth Games in October, which have been mired in delays and allegations of corruption.

Senior BJP leader L.K. Advani along with a delegation of party MLAs from Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to discuss the prevailing situation in the Valley and demanded that the Centre intervene to restore normalcy.

There are 793 Indians in Pakistani jails, out of which 582 are fishermen. Of the remaining 211, who are all civilians, India has so far been given consular access to 33 prisoners only, external affairs minister S.M. Krishna said, adding that “it is believed that there are 178 other Indian nationals in Pakistani jails, who have not been provided consular access.”

With Pakistan trying to broker a deal between the Taliban and the Afghan government, India on Thursday warned against “external integration” in the reintegration process, saying it would be detrimental for the future of a democratic and stable Afghanistan.

Leaving beleaguered Commonwealth Games (CWG) Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi in the lurch, the Congress on Tuesday defended Union urban development minister S. Jaipal Reddy, Union sports minister M.S. Gill and Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit in connection with the alleged corruption charges by giving them a clean chit.