GO TO SOURCE UNITED KINGDOM, August 27, 2001: The once huge domestic market for tea in India is shrinking. Indian tea producers have warned that they are heading for a crisis. With prices of tea at their lowest point for three years –one kilo costs just US$1.37 — and soft drinks replacing tea as the domestic drink of choice, they…
GO TO SOURCE USA, August 30, 2001: The evangelical web site, Persecution and Prayer Alert issued the following report. HPI has not received independent confirmation of the incidents mentioned here, but the site usually has a reliable source for its information. “Late Sunday night, as Christians were celebrating a festival, Hindu militants ransacked a church building in the Indian state…
Source: Rediff on the Net TRIPURA, INDIA, Aug, 29, 2001: Tribal Hindus in Tripura have formed vigilante groups to thwart attempts by separatist militants to convert people to Christianity at gunpoint, community leaders said. “It is a very serious threat to Hinduism with armed militants of the outlawed National Liberation Front of Tripura forcibly converting tribal villagers to Christianity,” said…
GO TO SOURCE JAMMU, KASHMIR, August 28, 2001: A curfew has been declared in the town of Poonch in Indian-administered Kashmir following the murder of two Hindu priests by suspected militants late on Monday, according to this BBC report. Police say a group of militants entered a temple dedicated to the Hindu goddess Kali near Surankot in the mountainous district…
Source: India Times CHENNAI, INDIA, August 22, 2001: Vinayaka Chathurthi was celebrated with religious fervor and gaiety in the city today, with special pujas and functions being conducted at various temples on the occasion. Songs and hymns praising the elephant-headed Lord rent the air from the early hours of the morning. In colonies and apartment complexes, residents performed puja. Hundreds…
GO TO SOURCE MUMBAI, INDIA, August, 23, 2001: Indian leather exporters have suffered a major setback after four big US retail chains, Casual Corner, LL Bean, Timberland and Eddie Bauer, decided not to buy its goods in protest against the ill-treatment of animals following a sustained campaign by the Indian arm of the US-based animal rights group, People for Ethical…
GO TO SOURCE JAFFNA, SRI LANKA, Aug, 23, 2001: Two decades of civil war in northern Sri Lanka have caused widespread psychological trauma to an estimated 40% of Tamil civilians of Jaffna by years of bombardment, displacement, disappearances and terror at the hands of both Tamil militants and the Sri Lankan army. In a conservative society where people traditionally don’t…
GO TO SOURCE TEXAS, USA, Aug. 25, 2001: A Texas company’s attempt to patent a type of basmati rice became a touchstone for anti-globalization protest in the 1990’s. But the long-simmering issue was largely settled this week, when the United States granted a narrower patent to the company, Ricetec of Alvin, Texas. The United States originally granted the patent in…
Source: Afternoon Dispatch MUMBAI, INDIA, August 23, 2001: Celebrating Ganesha’s birthday with pomp and gaiety has always meant prosperity for merchants in the city. While this still holds true for those shopkeepers selling puja accessories such as flowers, incense sticks, coconuts, fruits, Ganesha murthis, and the ever popular modaka (a round sweet made from rice, coconut, and sugar), other merchants…
Source: The Hindu VELLORE, INDIA, August 21, 2001: Even as an unprecedented water scarcity affected the business of moulding clay and making idols, the traditional potter families of Vellore carried on their job without any let-up on the eve of Vinayaka Chathurthi. The potter families spread over the Kuttaimedu, Salavanpet and Kosapet areas had to struggle to fetch water for…