China air chief lands before Hu

New Delhi: The commander of China’s air force,General Qiao Qingchen, is in Delhi at the head of a military delegation to participate in one of a series of meetings ahead of the visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao scheduled for November, reports our special correspondent.

General Qiao was said to have met defence minister A.K. Antony and was briefed by officials at air headquarters. He is the commander of China’s People’s Liberation Army Air Force.

During a visit by former defence minister Pranab Mukherjee to Beijing this year, India and China had decided for the first time to formalise military exchanges. The exchanges are rudimentary but mark a step ahead in confidence-building measures.

The year 2006 is also designated by the two countries as the year of friendship.

CPM tugs at DMK ties

Chennai: The CPM has threatened to sever ties with the DMK if it does not take action against the large-scale violence and booth-capturing during the recent Chennai civic polls, reports our special correspondent.

The CPM, which supports M. Karunanidhi’s government from outside, has alleged that its workers, too, were attacked by “goons” employed by the ruling party.

“We want to tell the DMK leadership that if no action is taken to mitigate the fallout of the atrocious violence let loose during the local body polls, particularly in Chennai, our political ties will snap,” CPM state secretary N. Varadarajan said at a rally.

Witness killed

Mumbai: A key witness in the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust arms haul case was stabbed to death by unidentified assailants at Padgha in Thane district.

Police said Narsinh Mama was returning from Shirdi when he was attacked. As many as 37 foreign-made pistols and 1,280 rounds of cartidges were recovered from a godown in May.

Marshland death

Jalandhar (PTI): A youth, who was trapped on marshland at a village in this district on Wednesday evening, died after rescue efforts were stalled at sundown. The body of the youth, who was allegedly drunk, was recovered on Thursday.

Climbers missing

Dehra Dun (PTI): Two Mexican members of a mountaineering expedition have been reported missing after they failed to return to the base camp from the Changbang peak in Uttaranchal. They had left for the peak on September 22.

IIT Madras has agreed to start a satellite campus in Kerala. The location for the Rs 800-crore campus, to be set up on 250 acres, is yet to be finalised.