Betwa Sharma

Stories by Betwa Sharma

Delegates gear up for negotiations at Copenhagen

Delegates gear up for negotiations at Copenhagen

Rediff.com   7 Dec 2009

Major nations in the group are concerned over several drafts of a potential agreement that are floating around including the Danish proposal, which is yet to be fully disclosed.

'Most nations want Kyoto Protocol to continue'

'Most nations want Kyoto Protocol to continue'

Rediff.com   7 Dec 2009

Chairperson of Ad Hoc Working group on Kyoto Protocol, John Ashe, said parallel negotiations on the Kyoto Protocol are being carried on at the conference and will be wrapped on December 15 after which a report will be presented.

Concern over too many climate treaty drafts

Concern over too many climate treaty drafts

Rediff.com   7 Dec 2009

Ahead of the key climate summit here, representatives of the G-77 group of developing nations and China spent two days in a conference room in Copenhagen, discussing their strategy for the meeting and speculating on possible outcomes and their position on specific issues.

UN warns against premature withdrawal of stimulus

UN warns against premature withdrawal of stimulus

Rediff.com   3 Dec 2009

The recovery in the second half of 2009 would be largely due to the hefty stimulus packages.

Global leaders call for saving planet

Global leaders call for saving planet

Rediff.com   3 Dec 2009

On Monday, the Conference will kick off in the Danish capital, and in two weeks, negotiators from over 100 countries are expected to produce a document that captures agreement on key political fronts to tackle climate change that will be worked into a legally binding treaty early next year.

Pic: White House gate-crashers met Obama, PM

Pic: White House gate-crashers met Obama, PM

Rediff.com   28 Nov 2009

American couple Michaele and Tareq Salahi, who gate-crashed into a State Dinner on Tuesday, came face to face with United States President Barack Obama as well as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the event, in the White House. A White House picture posted on several US websites showed the reality TV stars being greeted by Obama at a reception line with Manmohan Singh standing alongside.

PM invites Indians worldwide to return home

PM invites Indians worldwide to return home

Rediff.com   26 Nov 2009

Prime Minister Singh highlighted the five Es -- economy, energy, environment, education and empowerment -- that forms a critical part of the 'next phase' of the relationship between the two countries.

US media's 'wrap-up' coverage of PM's visit

US media's 'wrap-up' coverage of PM's visit

Rediff.com   26 Nov 2009

The American media, over the past few days, has covered the flair and panache of first state dinner hosted by US President Barack Obama for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, more than the politics of the visit.

India's growth critical for global economy: Nooyi

India's growth critical for global economy: Nooyi

Rediff.com   24 Nov 2009

Noting that India's rapid growth is a critical engine of global economy, PepsiCo chief Indra Nooyi has said the business community in the United States was eager on playing an active role in the country's future economic development.

India, US ink two IPR agreements

India, US ink two IPR agreements

Rediff.com   24 Nov 2009

A Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL) Access Agreement signed between the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) and US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Women worst hit by climate change

Women worst hit by climate change

Rediff.com   19 Nov 2009

The report, Facing a changing world: Women, Population and Climate, released in the United Nations, stressed that the majority of the 1.5 billion people living on one dollar a day or less are women, and they have so far been overlooked in the Climate Change debate.

India's kids stunted, undernourished, wasted: UN

India's kids stunted, undernourished, wasted: UN

Rediff.com   12 Nov 2009

India has the largest number of stunted children below the age of five in the world, according to the latest United Nations Children's Fund report. Approximately 200 million children, under the age of five, suffer from stunted growth in the developing world. The report 'Tracking Progress on Child and Maternal Nutrition' found that stunting is primarily caused due to childhood under-nutrition, which contributes to more than a third of all deaths in children under five.

Hedge fund scam suspect is in Mumbai: FBI

Hedge fund scam suspect is in Mumbai: FBI

Rediff.com   9 Nov 2009

While Shah is a former analyst at the Moody's Investor Service, Shankar who has already pleaded guilty is a former proprietary trader at Schottenfeld Group in New York.

India hesitant about endorsing UN's report on Gaza

India hesitant about endorsing UN's report on Gaza

Rediff.com   5 Nov 2009

India has expressed its reservations about making an 'unqualified endorsement' on the findings and recommendations of the Goldstone report at a special session of the United Nations General Assembly. "We have reservations in making unqualified endorsement of the various recommendations as well as some of the procedures adopted by the Goldstone report, including the involvement of the International Criminal Court and that of the Security Council," MP B K Hariprasad said.

300 mn South Asian children stuck in poverty: UN

300 mn South Asian children stuck in poverty: UN

Rediff.com   4 Nov 2009

Unlike any other region in the world, because of 'persistent and deep inequalities' in South Asia, children in the region are trapped in an unrelenting cycle of discrimination at several levels, Unicef regional director for South Asia Daniel Toole said.

'Indian aide of Hezbollah' pleads not guilty

'Indian aide of Hezbollah' pleads not guilty

Rediff.com   29 Oct 2009

An Indian national charged with attempting to provide material support to Lebanon's Hezbollah, a US designated foreign terrorist group, and illegally possessing fire arms and ammunition has pleaded not guilty.

We are not intimidated by China: India

We are not intimidated by China: India

Rediff.com   22 Oct 2009

India is not intimidated by China and the border dispute between the two countries could be settled by talks, Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur has said, noting that the media was overplaying the recent tensions between the neighbours."We are not intimidated by China. I think we are very confident of our own strength but certainly we are very confident that this issue can be settled by talks," said Kaur. "There has been a lot of media hype," she added.

Wall Street fraud: 2 Indian Americans among 6 held

Wall Street fraud: 2 Indian Americans among 6 held

Rediff.com   17 Oct 2009

If convicted all of them face imprisonment of up to 20 years, according to the indictment, which reads that the defendants "routinely received inside information directly or indirectly from insiders and provided it to each other for the purpose of trading based on the information", filed in the US court.

India ready to walk the extra mile for Pak but...

India ready to walk the extra mile for Pak but...

Rediff.com   16 Oct 2009

"The action that is expected from Pakistan has to take place before we can engage once again in the kind of comprehensive dialogue process that we want," Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor said.

'India has nothing to do with Baloch insurgency'

'India has nothing to do with Baloch insurgency'

Rediff.com   15 Oct 2009

India has no role in insurgency in Pakistan's Balochistan province and unlike 'certain other countries' it does not follow the policy of destabilising its neighbours, Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor said on Thursday.