Mating of the mobile with location sensing devices may launch the next big wave in personal appliances Way to go: The first GPS enabled phone for pedestrians. From the star of Bethlehem that guided the three Magi to the manger where Christ was born to John Denver's soulful ballad which went, "Country road, lead me home!,' location sensing and guidance has remained high on our wish list of fervently sought-after technologies. But wishing does not always mean getting and navigation: celestial, maritime or personal, has remained a complex and often exacting science.

The Delhi Government has taken possession of land given by the DDA for construction of a gas-based power plant at Bamnauli. The 50 acres that will be owned by the Delhi Government and leased to the Power Department has fetched the DDA Rs.109 crore. The land will be used for setting up a 750 MW gas-based power plant. Power Department officials said the environment impact assessment would now be carried out by NTPC and the plant would be completed by 2010. A MoU has already been signed with Petronet for supply and purchase of gas.

Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje on Tuesday called upon the Centre to include "frost' and "cold wave' in the notified disaster list of the Calamity Relief Fund (CRF) and sought prompt disbursal of financial assistance to the affected farmers in the State. Ms. Raje, who met Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil at his North Block office in New Delhi, pointed out that the cold wave sweeping North India had severely damaged rabi crop in many districts of Rajasthan and affected agricultural economy. Ms.

The Central Water Commission failed to secure an agreement between Delhi and Haryana over sharing of water and power from the Renuka Dam at meeting here on Monday. With Delhi refusing to give in to Haryana's demands and depart from the agreement signed in 1994 on sharing of water and power, the matter is now likely to be referred to the Planning Commission for a resolution. Haryana's demand for a share from the water and power that will be generated once the Renuka Dam is commissioned has struck a discordant note as Delhi has objected to the change in agreement.

Union Minister for State for Mines T. Subbarami Reddy (third left) greets the president of the All-India Granites and Stones Association, Munavar Basha, (second left) at the valedictory function of "Stona 2008' on the Palace Grounds in Bangalore on Saturday. Bangalore: Union Minister of State for Mines T. Subbarami Reddy has said the country will have a new mining policy shortly.

The recent snowstorms in China have signalled that "freak weather' is becoming increasingly more common, a United Nations body that seeks to mitigate the impact of natural disasters has warned. The unprecedented scale, cost, and human impacts of China's snowstorms, its worst in 50 years, herald a need for the world to get ready for "new kinds of disasters,' said the Geneva-based International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR).

The recent snowstorms in China have signalled that "freak weather' is becoming increasingly more common, a United Nations body that seeks to mitigate the impact of natural disasters has warned. The unprecedented scale, cost, and human impacts of China's snowstorms, its worst in 50 years, herald a need for the world to get ready for "new kinds of disasters,' said the Geneva-based International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR).

Not very optimistic about return of Siberian cranes to Keoladeo park JAIPUR: Ornithologist Peter Kaestner has suggested reaching out to the "aam aadmi' (common man) through "charismatic mega fauna' such as the tiger and the elephant for long-term conservation goals in India. Conservation should be presented to the public in such a manner that they would understand it and relate it to their lives and ethos, he said.

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