Congolese rebels took an Indian pilot hostage on Saturday when they attacked an aircraft on a remote airstrip in a tin mining zone in the country’s North Kivu province, Army and mining officials said.
Congolese Army General Baigwa Dieudonne Amuli said Rwandan Hutu FDLR rebels were to blame for the attack in Walikale. Goma Express, whose aircraft was attacked, said a Russian colleague escaped and flew the plane back to Goma, the provincial capital 150 km away, with a wounded Congolese national on board.
The airstrip is often used to export cassiterite, a tin ore blamed for funding armed groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s simmering eastern conflict.
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Couple is murdered by families
Age Correspondent
Jaipur
A couple was murdered by their respective families on Saturday at Dhodhlia villager under Churu district. This was despite the couple — Ratan Meghwal and Raju Devi — having taken permission from their respective families to live together. The police booked two persons for killing the couple.
“It is not an honour killing but a family dispute,” says Ratannagar police inspector Rameshwar. But locals say the couple was killed as the families took it as an insult that they lived together. We have arrested the boy’s and girl’s fathers on charges of murder, says Rameshwar.
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Business to boom this year: CII poll
Age Correspondent
New Delhi
India Inc. is confident that the GDP will grow between 8.5 to 9 per cent this year, according to a CII poll.
“Businesses are upbeat on the domestic economy despite the global uncertainties and are maintaining their investment momentum,” said CII president, Mr Hari Bhartia.
While 56.4 per cent expected this outcome, 38.5 per cent expected GDP to grow at a more moderate rate of 8.0-8.5 per cent and 5.1 percent expected an even higher rate of 9.0-9.5 per cent.
On inflation front, a majority of 64.1 per cent of respondents expected the headline number for March 2011 to remain above 6.5 per cent.