kammula@plato.engr.umbc.edu (Chandra Sekhar Kammula) (06/27/91)
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Source: [NEWSCLIPS/INFO.SERVICES.MAIL] MAIL/USA
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Subj: INDUSTRY LEADERS WELCOME NEW INDIAN GOVERNMENT ECONOMIC PLAN
NEW DELHI (JUNE 26) - Leaders of private industry on Wednesday welcomed the
new government's plan to use a current debt crisis to open up India's creaking
economy while opposition parties predictably flayed it.
"If the government sets the pace, industry will reciprocate," Hindustan
Construction Corp. executive Ajit Gulabchand said of the plan outlined Tuesday
by Finance Minister Manmohan Singh.
Mr. Gulabchand's comments were echoed by other industry leaders, most of whom
urged the government to "move forcefully", with P.N. Dhar of the institute of
Economic Growth cautioning that much would depend on implementation.
The minister said Tuesday his four-day-old government would slash government
spending and go ahead with plans to seek an International Monetary Fund (IMF)
bail-out loan to help pay off crushing short-term loan commitments.
But the flip-side of the austerity drive would be to open up the economy,
break down barriers to the entry of multinationals into India, sweep away red
tape and scrap sick public sector units draining the exchequer.
Saying "the world will not wait for India" if it took an ostrich-like attitude
to changes in the global economy that had led the Soviet Union and China to the
IMF's door, he also hinted strongly that India would meet any IMF loan conditions.
Opposition parties predictably flayed the programme, and newspapers said
Wednesday that Mr. Singh's own Congress (I) party was embarrassed by the way
"he called a spade a spade".
The mass-circulation Indian Express said the Congress were most embarrassed by
the way in which Mr. Singh had brushed aside their party's manifesto which had
promised to bring down prices and stabilise the economy within 100 days.
Mr. Singh in his maiden press conference Tuesday said the economic crisis, the
crippling 72 billion dollar foreign debt and declining creditworthiness
overrode all other considerations, and that economic recovery could only be
expected in three years.
Subj: INDIA MAY SEEK LOAN OF $5 TO 7 BILLION FROM IMF TO SUPPORT
FAILING ECONOMY
NEW DELHI (JUNE 26) - Strapped for hard currency, India is to seek a loan
of 5 to 7 billion dollars from the International Monetary Fund to tide over
its economic crisis, Indian newspapers said Wednesday.
The Hindustan Times and Times of India reported that India's new minority
government headed by Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao feels the economic
situation has reached such a stage that ''mere tinkering'' will not do.
New Delhi hopes to borrow two billion dollars from the IMF to tide over ''the
immediate crisis''. The international financial institution had lent India in
January India 1.8 billion dollars to shore up its foreign exchange reserves.
The reports come a day after Finance Minister Manmohan Singh had clearly
indicated that major economic policy changes were imminent to conform with the
IMF conditions to get the loan.
The structural reforms relate to trade, investment, as well as fiscal and
monetary policy.
Singh, according to the Times of India, has already written a letter to IMF
Managing Director Michael Camdessus spelling out India's requirements for
funds with an assurance that it will undertake the structural changes with
''India's social objectives''.
It was believed in New Dehli that the IMF is to decide on India's application
by the first week of August.
It would be the second time during the last ten years that India has sought
the IMF's help. The first time was in November 1981 when the IMF approved a
loan of 5.2 billion dollars.
New Delhi used only 3.9 billion dollars of the money, returning the rest to
the international financial institution.
Subj: SHARAD PAWAR BECOMES INDIA'S NEW DEFENSE MINISTER
NEW DELHI (JUNE 26) - Former Maharashtra state premier, Sharad Pawar,
Wednesday became India's new defence minister.
Federal President Ramaswamy Venkataraman administered the oath of office to
Pawar in New Delhi, a day after he had resigned the premiership of the western
state.
Pawar had been a contender for the post of federal prime minister last week,
but agreed to step down in favour of Narasimha Rao.
Rao retained the defence portfolio when he assumed office on June 21.
Subj: ONE ISRAELI TOURISTS ONE SHOT DEAD IN CONFRONTATION WITH INDIAN
MILITANTS
UPI Summary:
SRINAGAR, INDIA (JUNE 27) - Israeli tourists abducted by suspected Muslim
militants from houseboats in Lake Dal overnight tried to escape early Thursday
sparking a gun battle that killed one Israeli tourist and one captor, police
sources said.
The episode began 11 p.m. Wednesday when about 10 Muslim militants boarded the
Garden of Eden tourist houseboat in Srinagar's Lake Dal, locked the owner's
family in a small room and kidnapped six Israeli men and two women, police
sources said.
The militants released the two Israeli women almost immediately. The six men
were taken away in a small boat and reached the village of Sada Kadal along
the shore of Lake Dal about 3 a.m. Thursday, when residents heard gunfire,
police sources said.
The Israelis apparently made a bid to escape, with one tourist grabbing a
militant's rifle and opening fire, police sources said. One tourist and one
militant were killed in the exchange of gunfire. Four other people were
wounded, but it was unclear whether they were militants or Israelis, police
sources said.
Residents of the village found the body of an Israeli and a militant along a
road, police sources said. The five other Israelis kidnapped by the militants
had disappeared and apparently were still being held captive, the sources said.
In Jerusalem, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said the group of eight tourists
was made up of seven Israelis and one Dutch woman. The ministry confirmed one
Israeli was killed and three were wounded, one seriously enough to require
hospitalization. Also, the ministry said one tourist was ''missing,'' but did
not elaborate.
It was the first time Muslim militants have killed a foreigner since a
simmering secessionist movement in the Kashmir Valley broke into open revolt
about 18 months ago. It was also the first time militants have kidnapped
tourists.
The Kashmir Valley has long been a haven for tourists because of its scenic
Himalayan beauty. Because so many Kashmiris earn their living from tourists,
foreign guests have until now been considered out of bounds for militants who
want to maintain polar support.
The safety of foreign tourists has slowly eroded. Indian troops have been
living in former tourist hotels along the Lake Dal waterfront in Srinagar.
Militants have used nearby tourist houseboats as cover to fire rockets at the
troops in the hotels.
Militants kidnapped their first foreigners three months ago - two Swedish
engineers who live and work in the Kashmir Valley on a hydroelectric project.
Despite extensive efforts to negotiate their release, the two engineers are
still being held captive.
Authorities did not immediately identify the Israeli who was slain Thursday or
his captive friends. About 100 Israelis had been staying in houseboats on Lake
Dal at a time when few other tourists were visiting the valley, a houseboat
association official said.
Most of the Israelis staying in Kashmir were young men and women, the official
said. India is a popular tourist site for young Israelis who have just
completed their mandatory military service and have accumulated savings for
travel.
The remaininourists were shocked as word of the kidnapping spread
from houseboat to houseboat Thursday morning. The houseboat association
official said the group hired a bus and left the Kashmir Valley within hours
of hearing the news.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the kidnapping from any of
the large number of militant groups in the region. The Muslim Janbaz Force, a
pro-Pakistan group, is holding the two Swedish nationals hostage.
The Janbaz Force has offease the two Swedes once the India allows
Amnesty International and a U.N. human rights group to visit the Kashmir
Valley to document alleged human rights violations. India has rejected the
demands.
Kashmiris have accused Indian security forces of torturing suspected militants
burning villages, raping women and committing other human rights abuses. Some
of the abuses have been well documented by journalists.
Militants have also abused human rights. Some prominent militant groups have
executed suspected collaborators and kidnapped innocent civilians. Smaller
fringe groups have become little more than armed gangs that extort money or
favors from local residents.
Some militant groups are fighting for an independent Kashmir, while others are
seeking a merger with neighboring Muslim Pakistan. India accuses Pakistan of
training the militants, but Islamabad denies the allegations, saying it only
gives them moral support.
The secessionist movement has completely disrupted normal life in the Kashmir
Valley during the past 18 months. Thousands of Hindus fled the area. Indian
security forces have set up bunkers around Srinagar and frequetly engage in
shootouts with militants.
Militants say they want to secede from India because the Hindu- dominated
government in New Delhi has long discriminated against Kashmiri Muslims,
denying them equal access to state jobs, development funding and educational
opportunities.
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