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KOLKATA: Formal peace talks with ULFA have not yet started but the ground is slowly being prepared for bringing the two sides to the negotiating table. On the other hand, prospects of an early peace accord with the NSCN(I-M) remain as elusive as ever, mainly because of the stubborn insistence of the Naga leaders on the two demands of Naga sovereignty and integration of all Naga-inhabited areas in a greater Nagalim.

Executive Directors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has commended the Peruvian authorities for their impressive track-record of prudent macroeconomic policies which helped limit the impact of the global crisis and jump start a vigorous economic rebound. Given its strong fundamentals, the economy is expected to return to rapid growth. Peru's medium-term outlook remains bright, supported by the authorities' ambitious reform agenda.

New York: Security arrangements by Pakistan's federal and local authorities to protect assassinated Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto were “fatally insufficient and ineffective” and subsequent investigations into her death were prejudiced and involved a whitewash, an independent United Nations inquiry reported.

New York: Mexico became the first country to launch a national version of the United Nations-led “Blue Heart” campaign against human trafficking, which is regarded as one of the most lucrative forms of illegal activity for criminal groups.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission led by Marshall Mills visited Lomé during April 1-15, 2010 to conduct discussions for the fourth review of Togo's program under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF).

New York: China needs to tackle climate change and environmental degradation or risks reversing the social and economic progress that has made it the second largest economy in the world, according to a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) report.

New York: Migrant workers from a majority of Central America and the Caribbean countries were able to send home more money to their families in the first months of 2010 than at the same time last year but remittances to Mexico continued to suffer from the global economic crisis, a United Nations agency has announced.

New York: The United Nations Deputy Secretary-General has called for greater investment to ensure the health and wellbeing of women, stressing that healthy women can lead to better families and societies, and help achieve the globally agreed development targets with a 2015 deadline.

KOLKATA: Indian policymakers would do well to monitor China's plans to divert the Brahmaputra river (Yarlung Tsangpo to the Chinese) at its source in the Tibetan mountains.

Do we need a third front and is it a viable alternative? Although the idea pops up again and again, the country has found that the third front governments do not last long mainly because of the inherent contradictions. There is once again talk of forming a third alternative by the non-Congress-non-BJP parties. The only difference this time is that is well ahead of any elections as the next Lok Sabha polls are scheduled four years from now in 2014.