Unconfirmed reports said that the Holy Father was given 'last rites' unction when his condition deteriorated on Thursday.
Media and language skills of the new pope will be more important than ever after a globe-trotting multi-lingual Pope, said a media report. Mumbai's archbishop Ivan Diaz knows 16 languages.
On Wednesday, a brief silent appearance by the visibly ailing 84-year-old pontiff at his apartment window heightened concerns about his health, despite Vatican attempts to downplay such fears.
A senior Cardinal says this is best left to the ailing Pontiff's conscience.
Chief architect of Pope John Paul II's traditionalist moral policy, Cardinal Ratzinger, has emerged as the top papal candidate within the Vatican hierarchy, Time magazine said.
Earlier, Musharraf and Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi jointly opposed any expansion of the permanent members of the UN Security Council.
The Vatican has made arrangements for worldwide telecast of the event on October 19.
Among the many Indians who met the Pope is the spiritual leader, Sri Chinmoy.
"Since Catholics believe that the Holy Father is elected by a move of God, the Holy Spirit, prayers are necessary to elect the best man from among the good, in these trying times for the universal church."
In his message, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said the Pope was 'a strong force for critical self-evaluation by the Church itself'.
His breathing is shallow, his blood pressure is low and he is having difficulties with both his heart and kidneys, a spokesman said.
The nun belongs to the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church.
The Year of the Rabbit, according to the Chinese calendar, began on Sunday, January 22.
Here are some of the best photos of Mother Teresa's illustrious life.
Mother Teresa will be declared a saint by Pope Francis of the Roman Catholic Church in a canonisation ceremony in Vatican City on Sunday in the presence of over a lakh of her followers from all over the world.
The event was also attended by Prince Charles.
Kolkata police sergeant Guruprasad Banerjee, who acted as an escort to Nelson Mandela's convoy during his visit to Kolkata in October 1990, recalls the legendary anti-apartheid activist as one of the most down to earth international dignitaries.
In a jubilant moment for the Christian community in India, two beatified candidates from Kerala Fr Kuriakose Elias Chavara and Sister Euphrasia will be conferred sainthood by Pope Francis at Vatican on Sunday.
This must be the first time in India's history that it has found itself bracketed with countries in a category which political scientists will not rate very highly if only because the group recalls Nazi Germany as one of its most infamous past members, notes Amulya Ganguli.
Kolkata-based artist and co-worker of the Missionaries of Charity, Ritu Singh, who has had a long association with the order, fondly remembers the gentle Sister Nirmala, who passed away on Tuesday, sharing anecdotes that truly uplift the spirit.
In his first speech after touching down in the city of Krakow, the pontiff said the way to "overcome fear" was to welcome people fleeing conflict and hardship.
Indonesia president Joko Widodo declared the 18th Asian Games open in a glittering ceremony on Saturday, launching what promises to be a frenetic fortnight of breathless sporting action featuring the best of the continent's athletes.
Mother Teresa is expected to be officially canonised in Rome on 4 September as part the pope's Jubilee year of mercy.
At a crowded beachfront mass, Pope Francis canonised Sri Lanka's first saint on Wednesday.
Pope Francis on Sunday declared Father Kuriakose Elias Chavara and Sister Euphrasia Eluventhinkal from India as saints at Vatican.
What is strange, for someone who spent a lifetime in seva, is that St Teresa's own personal journals and communication with the Church hierarchy reveal someone in "spiritual desolation", says Sankrant Sanu. Could the Indian sacred traditions have helped her?
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