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New York: High rates of deforestation and degradation of woodlands continue to threaten the world's forest biodiversity, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said today, but pointed out that there is a positive trend towards the conservation of forests in many countries.

While debating the implications of the Allahabad high court verdict on Ayodhya dispute, we all have overlooked an important subtext. In parivar circles they jubilantly call it a divine curse on those who gave a dhoka to the Ram cause after wresting power in his name. The reference is apparently to the NDA's deputy prime minister. Curse or plain human intervention, the chief hero of the 20-year-old battle for the Janmasthan now remains virtually banished by his own men. The charioteer of 1990 has been pushed into solitude and isolation within the party and parivar.

From single party rule to coalitions; from coalitions to dynastic politics; and, from dynastic politics to family rule. This is the route Indian politics has traversed during the 63 years of Independence. The lucrative route is now temptingly branching out to other arenas also. The trend is illustrated by two stories the media carried last week. One was about the appointment of relatives in the Organizing Committee of Commonwealth Games published by Indian Express as its front page lead. The other was the acquittal of the Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and his family members by a Mohali Special Court in the disproportionate assets case registered against them in 2003 when the Capt. Amarinder Singh-led Congress government was in power. The Badals acquittal was also conspicuously given front page treatment by the media.

MANILA, PHILIPPINES - Local currency bond markets in emerging East Asia had grown by an annual 18.8% as of the end of June, with $4.8 trillion in paper outstanding, according to the Asian Development Bank's (ADB) latest quarterly Asia Bond Monitor.

New York: The main United Nations body dealing with human rights has affirmed that the right to water and sanitation is contained in existing human rights treaties, and that States have the primary responsibility to ensure the full realisation of this and all other basic human rights.

New York: Consumers will now benefit from standardized seafood labels, thanks to the first-ever global guidelines for aquaculture certification having been adopted at a United Nations-backed meeting, it was announced today.

Developing countries on robust growth path are becoming the new engine of world economy, contributing half of global output, and their combined size could overtake that of developed nations, mired presently in post-crisis slowdown, by 2015, according to the World Bank.

An unnecessary debate is on in India over US president Barack Obama's public statement announcing tax disincentive to those American companies which outsource jobs. The Obama administration is also raising the entry bar to jobseekers from outside by raising visa fees and quota restrictions. Both the measures are intended to protect jobs for locals in the face of a high unemployment rate in the United States at 9.7 per cent. The latest 'household survey data' has put the number of unemployed Americans at 14.9 million. There is nothing wrong if Obama tries to call all stops to protect jobs for locals in his country, which he promised before he was elected to take over America's topmost job himself. Obama has not succeeded in keeping his promise so far.

The much-awaited verdict on the Babri Masjid-Ayodhya dispute has come after a wait for 21 years and the good thing is that the country has taken it in its stride. Although it is a please all verdict, the issue remains unresolved, as both the Hindu and Muslim petitioners are planning to knock at the doors of Supreme Court.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission visited Senegal during September 15-29, 2010 to conduct the sixth review under the Policy Support Instrument (PSI) and discussions on the authorities' economic program that could be supported under a successor three-year PSI. The mission met with the Prime Minister and the ministers in charge of economy and finance, international cooperation and infrastructure, energy, the budget, and other government officials. The mission also met representatives of the private sector and development partners. The current Policy Support Instrument (PSI) for Senegal will end this year.