Pakistan reports more polio cases: Pakistan reported four polio cases just two days after the much-publicized anti-polio campaign concluded on October 16. Three polio victims are from Punjab and one from the North West Frontier Province. These cases take the number of children incapacitated by the disease this year to 81. Five cases of polio surfaced in the capital city Islamabad, seven in the

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is studying a private loan funding proposal for the Mawanana mini-hydro project in Sri Lanka.
The Bank has just completed a 14-month due diligence mission on the proposed project, which would have an installed capacity of 5.4MW.

The world is still trying hard to over come the double crisis of sky rocketing energy prices, as well as the increasing costs and fears of food shortages. Some of the options being proposed and tried out in some countries, by converting food grains into bio fuels is being blamed at least partly for the increasing cost of food.

South Asian economies could benefit hugely if they unlocked their energy potential, especially plentiful hydro-electricity in Nepal and Bhutan, Bangladeshi business leaders told a regional meeting on Sunday.

The Jaffna Peninsula will be supplied with 24 hour uninterrupted power from early November, Power and Energy Ministry sources said.
The construction of the 36 MW thermal power plant in Chunnakkam has been completed and would be commissioned in early November, a Ministry spokesman said.

Power and Energy Ministry says the Jaffna peninsula is to receive uninterrupted power supply from November following the completion of the 36 MW thermal power plant in Chunnakkam.
A Ministry spokesman said the construction is near completion and the power station will start its operation early November.

energy-starved Sri Lanka has levied a tax on incandescent bulbs of over 40 watts and soon plans to ban the import and manufacture of bulbs of 75 watts and above. The target is to completely ban the se bulb by 2010. Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (sea) hopes the move will help promote energy efficient compact fluorescent (cfl) bulbs.