Beijing: Quake-hit Sichuan province in China witnessed its worst aftershock 13 days after the main earthquake on May 12. The aftershock at 6.4 magnitude on Richter scale gave rise to serious fears of quake-created lakes bursting and causing serious floods. Initial reports showed that one person had died and 260 injured in the aftershock, but detailed reports were being awaited.

Buskirk (New York): A few years ago, Kathleen Breault was just another suburban grandma, driving countless hours every week, stopping for lunch at McDonald's, buying clothes at the mall, watching TV in the evenings.

Tangshan(China): Well before this city was destroyed by an earthquake 32 years ago, the coming disaster was loudly preceded by strange animal behaviour and other bizarre signals that survivors wish they heeded.

Millions Of Tonnes Buried By Norwegian Platform Sleipner Platform: With planet Earth engaged in a heated race against global warming, "carbon capture and storage' (CCS) has brought a ray of hope, and a Norwegian gas platform is leading the way. The Sleipner platform in the North Sea, a mammoth steel and cement structure, has successfully buried millions of tonnes of CO2 under the seabed for the past 12 years in a pioneering project.

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Reaping a golden harvest for the BJP in Karnataka, B S Yeddyurappa gave wings to a long cherished dream

Puducherry: There is a new delicacy that is in hot demand in hamlets in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry protein rich rat meat. It comes cheap, just Rs 2.50 per rat, and villagers swear nothing tastes better. Snake-hunting Irula tribals, desperate to peddle their rodent-snaring skills, have succeeded in getting the meat on the kitchen menu of villages in Cuddalore district and the Union Territory. The trend could catch on elsewhere too.

As more vehicles turn to CNG, the number of filling stations is proving to be inadequate Spiralling prices of crude oil are ringing alarm bells for the green fuel policy in the Capital. As more and more private vehicle owners switch to CNG and the government makes CNG mandatory for different categories of vehicles, the city is falling way short of the demand. Long queues at CNG filling stations mean one thing: the city needs an immediate augmentation of capacity. And it needs it fast.

Karaikudi: Non-ferrous metals major Vedanta Resources is in talks with three steel companies from Japan, Europe and India to be its partner for its proposed entry into steelmaking. The London-based Vedanta's chairperson Anil Agarwal said the group is even open to offering a majority stake in the venture to the new partner who would be bringing in the technology for making steel. The steel venture would mark Vedanta's foray into ferrous metals.