Indian doctor on US varsity board

New York (PTI): The American state of Florida has appointed an Indian-American physician based in St Petersburg to the powerful board of governors which oversees working of universities and other educational institutions.

Akshay M. Desai was appointed by governor Jeb Bush, who is the brother of President George W. Bush. The doctor is one of six persons appointed to the apex body that frames policy and oversees the management of state universities.

The members will have to be confirmed by the state senate and would serve for staggered terms of seven years, during which they will ?operate, regulate, control and be fully responsible for the management of the whole university system? that includes 10 universities with a combined budget of $4.2 billion.

The doctor, an active member of the Florida Republican Party and a formidable fund-raiser, serves on its influential ?committee of 100?.

Last year, in recognition of his abilities, both professional and political, President Bush had appointed Desai to the President?s advisory commission on Asian Americans and Pacific islanders, thus giving him the rare distinction of being appointed to distinguished positions by both the Bush brothers.

Station haul rings arms alert

Bangalore (PTI): Arms and ammunition were found in two abandoned bags at the Cantonment railway station on Monday, close on the heels of Delhi police uncovering a militant plot to attack software firms here.

The weapons were suspected to have been transported from Chennai to Bangalore, city police commissioner Mariswamy said.

The haul included three countrymade pistols, five machetes, a 9 mm sten gun and 149 rounds of ammunition. Some unidentified persons had abandoned the bags at the entrance to the station hoping to pick them up later, Mariswamy said.

The police, who spotted the bags, opened them to find the cache.

Intelligence agencies have been put on high alert and vigil stepped up in railway and bus stations and at airports, Mariswamy said, adding that all central establishments, defence units and software companies have been provided with more security cover.

Three in UK terror net

London (Reuters): A Briton, Mohammed Ajmal Khan, has appeared in court on the charge of belonging to the militant outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba, based in Pakistan.

He was among three Britons accused of plotting to fund terrorism and made a brief appearance at the Bow St magistrates? court in central London on Monday. Ajmal, along with Farzana Khan and Palvinder Singh, has been charged with conspiracy to provide money and other property for terrorist activities. Ajmal has also been charged for being a member of Lashkar-e-Toiba.

Collision deaths

Jaipur (PTI): Six persons were killed and 10 hurt in a head-on collision between two buses on the Sikar-Kotputli highway on Monday. While four persons died on the spot, two succumbed on the way to hospital in Kotputli town.

AIIMS ?suicide?

New Delhi (PTI): A postgraduate student of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences allegedly committed suicide on Sunday night. The body of Pankaj Aggarwal, 25, was found hanging from a ceiling fan in his house in Gautam Nagar where he was a tenant, police said.

Siblings dead

Kanpur (PTI): Three siblings were found dead on Monday in their home in the Bara Sirohi area under mysterious circumstances. Sudama Prajapati, the father of the deceased, has alleged that his two nephews, who had arrived on Sunday, had strangulated his two sons and daughter to get hold of his property.

Bed rest for Atal

New Delhi (PTI): Atal Bihari Vajpayee has been advised bed rest for a few days because of backache. Vajpayee, 80, is suffering from sciatica.

Ritual banned

Coimbatore (PTI): Police have banned a ritual at Vettaikaransamy temple at Poochiyur in which a priest wearing wooden footwear with nails attached to the soles walks over women devotees lying on the ground, on the day of Shivratri.

The Mughal Gardens at Rashtrapati Bhavan will be opened exclusively for the armed forces, paramilitary and Delhi police personnel and their families on March 15 and 16.