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Crewman ‘possibly affected by alcohol’ when he died

April 15, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

An investigation has found a crewman who died on board a cargo ship at Townsville in 2008 may have been affected by alcohol.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has completed its final report into a fatal incident on the Maltese-registered container ship ‘Spirit of Esperance’.

In November 2008, a crewman died after falling four metres while trying to stow a cargo crane hook while the ship was berthed in Townsville.

The investigation found that the correct procedures were not followed during the docking of the ship and raised concerns about whether safety procedures were routinely met.

It also found that the crewman was probably under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident which may have affected his reaction time, balance and general ability.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: accidents, alcohol, Atsb, Australia, Australian Transport Safety Bureau, business-economics-and-finance, Cargo Crane, cargo ship, Container Ship, Crane Hook, disasters-and-accidents, industry, maritime-accidents, Qld, Reaction Time, safety procedures, sea-transport, spirit, Time Balance, Townsville, transport, Transport Safety Bureau

Documents reveal metro budget blowout

April 7, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

It has been revealed that planning officials knew last October that the Sydney CBD metro could cost up to $7 billion.

The budget blowout is contained in a NSW government document, one of thousands on the now cancelled underground rail project.

Only half the documents are available to the public. The other half have been classified top secret.

The project was announced in 2008 without a costing. An outcry prompted an estimate of $4 billion but that rose to $5.3 billion, and officially that is where it stayed.

But planning officials secretly conceded months ago it could go up to $7 billion.

“This is a total debacle and it shows the Government again not doing its homework and again letting taxpayers and commuters pick up the pieces to its mess,” opposition transport spokeswoman Gladys Berejiklian said.

She notes NSW Premier Kristina Keneally was the planning minister at the time.

“Yet it took her weeks and weeks and more wasting of money before she finally made the decision to axe the project,” Ms Berejiklian said.

There is plenty more information in the 91 boxes of documents, but 46 of them have been declared privileged.

The only people who have access are Upper House MPs, but they are sworn to secrecy.

In fact, if any information is divulged MPs could face jail.

“The project’s over, it’s finished. The Government said they’re not proceeding. There is not one reason at all for any of those documents to remain [privileged]. It’s scandalous,” Greens MP Sylvia Hale said.

The Greens will now appeal for the clerk to get an independent legal assessment, which could force the release of the privileged documents.

“After all it’s the public’s money that is being spent and it is the public that deserves to know how the Government has wasted that money,” Ms Hale said.

A spokesperson for the Transport Minister says the Department of Planning’s figure is wrong and it was never involved in costing the project.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Australia, business-economics-and-finance, government-and-politics, industry, nsw, states-and-territories, sydney 2000, transport

Brisbane garbage trucks off the road

March 30, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

The Transport Workers Union (TWU) says almost all of Brisbane’s garbage trucks have been taken off the road because of mechanical defects.

The Brisbane City Council outsources its garbage collection services to a company called SITA.

The Department of Transport says inspections of SITA’s fleet are continuing.

TWU state secretary Hughie Williams says union members told him about the problem late Monday.

“I’m just absolutely amazed at this really because I’ve never heard of a transport company or any organisation where 95 per cent or 98 per cent of their trucks have been put off the road because of defects,” he said.

“The fact that they have been put off the road is totally unacceptable and we expect the Council to make sure that their contractors have got the trucks safe for TWU members to be driving those vehicles.”

SITA says only 22 out of 96 of its vehicles have been stood down.

The Lord Mayor’s office says SITA has assured the council no services will be affected.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Australia, Brisbane City Council, brisbane-4000, business-economics-and-finance, department of transport, fleet, Garbage Collection Services, Garbage Trucks, government-and-politics, Hughie, industry, Local Government, lord mayor, Mechanical Defects, Qld, road transport, state secretary, transport, transport company, Transport Workers Union, Twu Members, union members

Cash grab as armoured truck drops $100k

March 27, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Americans made a frenzied grab for a bag of cash after more than $US100,000 ($110,247) tumbled out the back of an armoured truck onto a street in Ohio.

Local media reported the bag split open after it fell off the back of a vehicle and the driver drove away without noticing.

People saw the cash blowing down the street in a Columbus suburb and a mad scramble for the greenbacks ensued.

“People were jumping out of their vehicles,” one witness told NBC4 news.

“Like when you throw some fish in and you’ve got a school of piranhas and they haven’t eaten for a long time. It was funny.”

Another witness said people were laughing, smiling and taking as much as they could carry.

Workers at a nearby flower shop helped police gather the remaining money in boxes.

Many people later took some of the cash to the police station.

But only about $US10,500 ($11,582) was recovered by the end of the day, the Columbus Dispatch reported.

“We’re hoping that more people do the right thing,” an officer told the newspaper.

Police are examining surveillance camera video and photographs from cell phone cameras to try to track down people who grabbed the money.

- AFP

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Fraser fires back at Ferguson over QR float

March 26, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Queensland Treasurer Andrew Fraser has criticised Federal Resources rgy Minister Martin Ferguson over his stance on the sale of the Queensland Rail (QR) coal haulage business.

The State Government is facing strong opposition from unions over its plan to sell the business and Mr Ferguson has described it as a “recipe for disaster”.

Mr Fraser says Mr Ferguson seemed to think the same asset sales model was a good idea two years ago, when it was used in Western Australia.

“Mr Ferguson’s comments have no bearing on the position he held in 2007 in relation to Western Australia and they have no bearing for a Minister who should be interested in encouraging future investment and encouraging new entrants into the market,” he said.

Mr Fraser says he is happy to have further discussions with Mr Ferguson.

“We’ve provided information and talked with the Federal Government about our plans,” he said.

“Obviously this is a critical issue for the Queensland and national economy.

“We’ve taken our time to get this right and the model that we’ve chosen is world’s best practice and the one that we’re sticking with because it’s in the best long term interests of the resources sector and the Queensland economy.”

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Holmes a Court quits QR board

March 24, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Businessman Peter Holmes a Court is leaving the board of Queensland Rail (QR) after four years in the role.

Treasurer Andrew Fraser says new boards are being put together for both QR and the soon-to-be privatised QR National.

Mr Fraser has told State Parliament that Mr Holmes a Court is leaving to pursue other opportunities.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Andrew Fraser, Australia, brisbane-4000, bundaberg-4670, business-economics-and-finance, businessman, cairns-4870, gladstone-4680, government-and-politics, Holmes A Court, industry, longreach-4730, mackay-4740, maroochydore-4558, mount-isa-4825, Mr Fraser, Mr Holmes, parliament, Peter Holmes, privatisation-and-deregulation, Qld, Queensland Rail, rail-transport, rockhampton-4700, southport-4215, state parliament, toowoomba-4350, townsville-4810, transport

Gawkers blamed for Brisbane’s Clem7 tunnel congestion

March 23, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Slow motorists are being blamed for last week’s congestion on the new Clem7 tunnel, and the operators are urging motorists to keep to the 80 kilometre per hour speed limit.

Spokesman Flan Cleary says some motorists were slowing down to 20 kilometres in the tunnel – causing a backlog.

“We’re getting slow traffic at the bottom underneath the river, but we don’t have it when we’re coming in or when you’re leaving,” he said.

“So we think it’s people having a look around.

“We’re thrilled that so many people are interested, but we would ask people to go through it at a steady speed.”

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Australia, backlog, brisbane, brisbane-4000, business-economics-and-finance, Cleary, congestion, kilometre, kilometres, motorists, Qld, road transport, Slow Traffic, Speed Limit, spokesman, Steady Speed, transport

CEO report indicates solid industry recovery

March 23, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

A poll of Australian chief executives shows growth in the country’s manufacturing, construction and services sectors is expected to be reasonably solid, but uneven in 2010.

The result is contained in the latest CEO survey, Industry in Recovery Mode in 2010, conducted by the Australian Industry Group and Deloitte.

An improvement was expected across all three industries, with particular strength in the services and manufacturing sectors.

The survey also found improving consumer confidence in incomes growth and employment prospects, as well as rising household wealth and exposure to strong growth in China, would drive growth this year.

But the fading effects of the Federal Government’s stimulus and the impact of higher interest rates were likely to hit the construction sector particularly hard.

On average, manufacturers were anticipating a 5.6 per cent increase in the nominal value of sales in 2010 to about $415 billion.

Sales in the services sector were set to rise 6.6 per cent and construction sales were forecast to grow by 2.5 per cent.

Employment in the manufacturing industry was expected to rise 2.9 per cent, service sector employment was due to increase by 2.3 per cent, and the construction sector was set for employment growth of just 0.5 per cent.

Those employers surveyed said the possible re-emergence of skills shortages was a real worry, as the economy returns to growth.

The chief executive of the Australian Industry Group, Heather Ridout says the economy looks set to consolidate this year, but the rebound won’t be as strong as those that occurred after previous downturns.

“Despite the stronger sales and employment expectations, investment trends across these sectors remain soft and conservative,” she said.

“The challenges for policy and for business will be to strengthen the recovery while addressing the ongoing requirement to build on the foundations of longer-term growth.”

The manufacturing partner for Deloitte, Damon Cantwell says 2010 would provide businesses with a range of opportunities to make up ground.

“While 2009 was characterised as a year founded on survival, 2010 offers real opportunities for growth,” he said.

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‘Frustrated’ community demands rail return

March 19, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

About 1,200 people packed a community consultation session in Mildura last night, demanding the city’s passenger train service be restored.

The meeting was organised by consultants gathering information for the Victorian Government, which promised to return a passenger train when it was elected.

The meeting went for two-and-a-half hours and passed three motions, demanding the return of the train and criticising the consultation process.

However, the Department of Transport’s Sergio Lacchiana reassured those at the meeting the consultation process was in good faith.

“We have come here in force, we’re here to actually listen to all your feedback, so we are not taking this lightly,” he said.

“We’re not hiding, we’re here to listen to everything you have got to say, so that’s why we’re here.

“We need to have some clear understanding about what the community needs are.

“People’s travel patterns change over time. We need to make sure we have a clear understanding of what those travel patterns are, not what they were 10 years ago or 17 years ago.”

Consultants also met about 140 people during individual sessions during the day.

Waiting for 17 years

Mildura Mayor Glenn Milne says with a State election in November, commitments on the train need to come from both sides of politics.

“We’re not out to give either side a hard time … well we are, both sides, because we just want the train back from whichever side of the government is there at the time,” he said.

Councillor Milne says the meeting sent a clear message to consultants and the Government.

“I don’t think it got too heated, but there’s certainly a lot of passion out there amongst the people and I guess that really needs to come out,” he said.

“It’s been 17 years, people are really frustrated, nobody got right out of hand and they didn’t start swearing or yelling or screaming or abusing, but they were extremely passionate and I think that’s to be expected.”

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Worries aired over new bus plan

March 19, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

The New South Wales Government is being urged to make major changes to its integrated regional bus network for the Lower Hunter, due to concerns passengers will be disadvantaged.

NSW Transport and Infrastructure is due to release its report on the new network at the end of the month.

The State Government says the aim is to provide better services in new development areas of Port Stephens, Maitland and Cessnock.

But Newcastle representative, councillor Graham Boyd, says the review offers few substantial improvements.

“To introduce a new route, an existing route has to lose some services,” he said.

“There’s no guarantee of integrated timetabling and no interchangeability of fares.”

Cr Boyd says the new network was due to be in place this month but has now been delayed until mid-year.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Bus Network, Bus Plan, business-economics-and-finance, Cessnock, cessnock-2325, community-and-society, councillor, cr, Development Areas, Graham Boyd, industry, Infrastructure, Interchangeability, maitland, maitland-2320, New South Wales, New South Wales Government, newcastle, newcastle-2300, Port Stephens, Regional Bus, South Wales Government, state government, substantial improvements, Timetabling, transport, worries

Libs up the cost of Expressway duplication

March 19, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

The Liberals have not only matched the South Australian Government’s pledge to duplicate Adelaide’s Southern Expressway but have adopted Labor’s costings.

The Opposition initially costed the project at $280 million, but the Government’s duplication proposal was put at $445 million.

At the time, the Liberals said they would release an updated policy later in the election campaign.

Their transport policy has now been uploaded to the SA Liberal website.

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CLEM7 tunnel to open next week

March 15, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

The operators of Brisbane’s first under-river traffic tunnel say it will open some time next week.

The 6.8-kilometre CLEM7 toll road connects Woolloongabba and Kangaroo Point on the southside with Bowen Hills in the north.

RiverCity Motorway Group CEO Flan Cleary says last-minute checks are underway, and a public announcement will be made the day it opens.

“We did our emergency exercise with the police, fire brigade and ambulance, that was a key one,” he said.

“We still have to do some smoke tests and fine-tune communications and then we have to get the independent engineer to sign off and say everything is ready to go.

“The word will get out very quickly that it’s going to be open. Once we know, once we’re certain of a date, we will certainly be letting people know that it’s going to be open that night and available the next day.”

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European company develops mobile robots that are autonomous and multi-tasking

September 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Madrid (Spain), September 19 (ANI): An European company has developed innovative robots which are mobile, multifunctional, collaborative, autonomous and polyvalent, suitable for a wide range of work from street cleaning and rubbish collection to accompanying elderly people.

According to a report carried out in www.basqueresearch.com, this new generation of robots have been developed by TECNALIA Technological Corporation, and are a part of the European DUSTBOT research project under the remit of the VI European Framework Programme and in which TECNALIA is participating.

These latest generation robots are suitable for the monitoring of large spaces (open and closed), as guides for persons in large shopping areas (indicating to them where a particular shop or product is within a shopping centre), for accompanying elderly people or those with certain disabilities (both at home and outside), thanks to their functions of orientation, navigation, communications with others or tele-assistance centres.

They can also be used as guides in teaching spaces (museums, visitor centres), and for transport, storage and transport and goods deliveries, besides the cleaning of both open and closed surfaces, which have either difficult or easy access.

DUSTBOT has collaborative, multifunctional and autonomous robots that are capable of operating in partially destructured environments/situations based on information provided by a map.

The robots can also facilitate working in large areas, stations, airports and other types of public buildings, without being any obstacle for the activity of these places, given its reduced size, and without being a danger for members of the public, thanks to the novel system for the detection and avoidance of obstacles.

The rail station of the Euskotren company in the Bilbao neighbourhood of Atxuri in Spain was chosen for the public presentation of these devices.

The demonstration of two robot models was undertaken: the DustCart and the DustClean.

The DustCart robot, measuring 1.45 metres high and 70 Kg in weight, has a humanoid form and is designed to interact with the user and for the collection of low demand waste.

The DustClean robot, in the form of a small vehicle and measuring 96 cm high and 250 Kg in weight, cleans streets of dirt and dust. Moreover, both control the quality of air in real time.

“These robots are the solution for cleaning areas of difficult access and for the collection of rubbish at the very front door of, above all, persons who have mobility problems when moving the rubbish to the communal waste containers,” said Inaki Inzunza, Director of the Business Unit at the Tecnalia Technological Corporation. (ANI)

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India to build more highways than any other country in the world: Kamal Nath

September 17, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Zurich (Switzerland), Sep 17(ANI): Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Kamal Nath on Thursday said that in the next two years India will build more highways than any other country in the world.

Inaugurating “Building India: Road Infrastructure Summit” at Zurich, he also invited European investors to invest in the road and highways sector in India, and said that India as a nation is determined to build a comprehensive high quality infrastructure.

Nath also said that the next decade would belong to infrastructure sector, as the last decade had been the decade of IT.

Stressing on the strong fundamentals of the Indian Economy, he said India is a safe destination for investment even in the times of recession and showcased the opportunities and potential of the Indian road sector to investors from across Europe.

Addressing a strong gathering of investors, developers and financial institutions, Nath said that the Government is back with enhanced mandate and building infrastructure is one of its important focus.

Elaborating on the new vision on road sector, he said that Government is committed to increase the pace of highway development to 20 kms per day, which would unleash huge business and investment opportunities, amounting to 70 billion dollars over the next 3-4 years.

In addition, it would also lead to an inclusive growth and provide connectivity to all stakeholders in socio-economic development.

Inviting investors to be a partner in building road infrastructure in the country, the minister said that out of total investment required, 40 billion dollars are expected to come from private sector. (ANI)

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JKRTC hold demonstration over release pending salaries in Srinagar

September 15, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Srinagar, Sep 14(ANI): Hundreds of striking employees of Jammu and Kashmir Road Transport Corporation (JKRTC) suffered injuries on Monday, when they held a rally outside the corporations’ headquarters and marched towards the State Civil Secretariat near Lal Chowk in Srinagar, as police had to use teargas shells and water cannons to disperse them.

Police was forced to use force, as demonstrators were adamant to meet the State Finance Minister over his alleged remarks about them.

“Today is our 20th day. We are on strike. It has not affected the Government at all. We have given the Government two options. Either the Government should run the transport corporation effectively and pay the employees their salary or wind up the whole corporation and pay the employees their compensation,” said Muhammad Ashraf, an employee of JKRTC.

Demonstrators wanted to meet the Finance Minister of the State to press for their demands, but police stopped them.

“On earlier occasions also the police baton charged us, our women and daughters. Today also they are trying to stop us from going to the secretariat. We want to meet the state finance minister. We want to know why he said that there was nothing for transport employees,” Ashraf added.

The demonstrators have been observing an indefinite strike for 20 days, and want release of last five months pending salaries. (ANI)

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We will not let Commonwealth Games suffer: Shiela Dixit

September 15, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Sep 14 (ANI): A day after the chief of Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) Michael Fennel expressed reservations regarding the completion of work and preparations for the 2010 Commonwealth Games, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dixit on Monday admitted that there was enough room for improvement and it is being taken care of.

“We are monitoring transport carefully, we are also looking for alternatives. But, there may be things we are unable to complete on time. But, the alternatives are being looked after by our PWD (Public Works Department) Minister, our Transport Minister, our power guys, everyone. So, we will not, from our side, let the Commonwealth games to suffer,” Dixit told media after a cabinet meeting in the national capital.

“We are satisfied, but at the same time we are also nervous. There are many things, which we know, have to be done at this time,” Sheila Dixit Delhi CM said.

Fennel has expressed dissatisfaction over the preparations of the Commonwealth Games and has sought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s intervention in the issue.

Dixit also said that hosting the games was a matter of honour for the nation and Delhi would prove competent in hosting it, but admitted some things might not be complete on time.

She informed that Fennel had visited the Thyagraj stadium and was satisfied with the preparations. He, though, was sceptical regarding the availability of power.

“Mike Fennel did pay me a visit about a month back, he spoke to me about just one thing, he said that, we hope power will be available. So, we said, “yes it would be available”. He had come at a time when there was a power crisis in Delhi. Apart from that, he spoke about Thyagraj, saying that we have been around and we are quite satisfied,” said Dixit.

The CGF General Assembly is due to meet in New Delhi early next month to assess the work a year ahead of the Oct 3-14 games. (ANI)

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Scientists make first high-resolution 3D images of a polymer solar cell’s insides

September 14, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, September 14 (ANI): Researchers from the Eindhoven University of Technology and the University of Ulm in Germany have made the first high-resolution 3D images of the inside of a polymer solar cell.

This gives them important new insights in the nanoscale structure of polymer solar cells and its effect on the performance.

The investigations shed new light on the operational principles of polymer solar cells.

These solar cells do not have the high efficiencies of their silicon counterparts yet. Polymer cells, however, can be printed in roll-to-roll processes, at very high speeds, which makes the technology potentially very cost-effective.

Added to that, polymer cells are flexible and lightweight, and therefore suitable to be used on vehicles or clothing or to be incorporated in the design of objects.

In these hybrid solar cells, a mixture of two different materials, a polymer and a metal oxide are used to create charges at their interface when the mixture is illuminated by the sun.

The degree of mixing of the two materials is essential for its efficiency.

Intimate mixing enhances the area of the interface where charges are formed but at the same time obstructs charge transport because it leads to long and winding roads for the charges to travel.

Larger domains do exactly the opposite.

The vastly different chemical nature of polymers and metal oxides generally makes it very difficult to control the nanoscale structure.

The Eindhoven researchers have been able to largely circumvent this problem by using a precursor compound that mixes with the polymer and is only converted into the metal oxide after it is incorporated in the photoactive layer.

This allows better mixing and enables extracting up to 50 percent of the absorbed photons as charges in an external circuit.

The importance of the degree of mixing was clearly demonstrated by visualization of the structure of these blends in three dimensions.

Traditionally such visualization has been extremely challenging, but by using 3D electron tomography, the team has been able to resolve the mixing with unprecedented detail on a nanoscale.

From these images, the researchers at the Institute of Stochastics in Ulm have been able to extract typical distances between the two components, relating to the efficiency of charge generation, and analyze the percolation pathways, that is, how much of each component is connected to the electrode.

These quantitative analyses of the structure matched perfectly with the observed performance of the solar cells in sunlight. (ANI)

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General strike curbs Manipur’s normal life

September 12, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Imphal, Sep 12 (ANI): Normal life has been curbed in Manipur on Saturday due to a 24 hours general strike called by the Joint Action Committee (JAC) to protest against the alleged fake encounters.

The JAC is a group of NGOs, protesting the recent killing of a driver in an encounter.

The markets, shops, and business establishments in most parts of the state remained closed.

The transport services within the state and also with the neighboring states have been affected due to the strike.

A driver named Md Rehaman alias Tomba was killed along with five others, in an encounter with the security forces on September 8 at Awang Khul in Imphal West district.

The security forces maintain that the youths who were killed in the encounter were militants.

The All Manipur Rickshaw Drivers and Pullers Association (AMRDPA), said that Rehaman, who was member of the organization, was use to ferry passengers from Imphal to Moreh town from last 15 years. (ANI)

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Chidambaram discusses counter-terrorism, 26/11 update with US officials

September 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Sept 10 (ANI): Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram held meetings here with senior Obama administration officials, including National Security Advisor Lt. Gen. (retired) James Jones, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and the U.S. Attorney General Eric H Holder Jr. on Wednesday.

Enhanced co-operation between India and US on tackling terrorism particularly in South Asia dominated the discussions, sources said.

Pakistan’s inaction in dealing with the perpetrators of 26/11 was also raised.

Chidambaram also met Senator Dianne Feinstein, the Chairwoman of Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.

Chidambaram is scheduled to meet the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday.

On Tuesday, officials from FBI, intelligence and security agencies and the New York Police briefed Chidambaram about the measures being taken by them to prevent a Mumbai-type terrorist attack.

From walking at the Penn Station, to a briefing by the New York Police, which had made several changes in its counter-terrorism measures post the 26/11 attacks, Chidambaram and his team of officials got to know what a mega city like New York can do to protect itself from terrorists without inconveniencing its residents.

Chidambaram was also informed about the coast guard facility at Staten Island. It was an important aspect of his trip given that the terrorists who attacked Mumbai on November 26 last year entered Mumbai through the sea route.

Within hours of his landing in New York, Chidambaram visited the Joint Terror Task Force Centre of the FBI where he was given an exclusive briefing by the New York Police Department.

Before leaving New York City for Washington by train, Chidambaram was briefed about security of the Mass Transport System at the Penn station.

The Home Minister is also scheduled to meet the top US intelligence and security officials, including FBI Director Robert Mueller and Director of National Intelligence Dennis C Blair; besides meeting National Security Adviser, Gen (Retd) James Jones at the White House. A tour of the National Counter-terrorism Centre in Virginia is also on his itinerary.

Besides meeting experts and think-tanks” members, Chidambaram is expected to hold talks with key US lawmakers, including Senator Joe Lieberman, Chairman, Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee; and Congressman Sylvester Reyes, Chairman, House Select Committee on Intelligence. (ANI)

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Chidambaram meets FBI, New York Police officials, gets anti-terrorism tips

September 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

New York/Washington, Sep.9 (ANI): India’s Home Minister P. Chidambaram on Tuesday, was briefed by officials from FBI, intelligence and security agencies and the New York Police about the measures being taken by them to prevent a Mumbai-type terrorist attack.

Within hours of his landing in New York, Chidambaram visited the Joint Terror Task Force Centre of the FBI where he was given an exclusive briefing by the New York Police Department.

Before leaving New York City for Washington by train, Chidambaram was briefed about security of the Mass Transport System at the Penn station.

In Washington, Chidambaram will meet with top Obama Administration officials, heads of intelligence and security agencies and influential lawmakers over the next three days.

Apart from discussing the 26/11 dossiers that India has submitted to Pakistan,Chidambaram will also discuss issues related to combating financing of terrorism and steps which will need to be taken in this regard as well as with regard to prevention of money laundering.

Ways to strengthen Indo-US anti-terrorism cooperation are among the issues likely to figure prominently in the talks on Wednesday and Thursday.

Chidambaram will meet his counterpart Janet Napolitano; Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Attorney General Eric H Holder.

Besides meeting experts and think-tanks’ members, Chidambaram is expected to hold talks with key US lawmakers, including Senator Joe Lieberman, Chairman, Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee; and Congressman Sylvester Reyes, Chairman, House Select Committee on Intelligence. (ANI)

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