In India, so sad....
GUWAHATI, India (Reuters) - Separatist rebels killed 16 people, mostly school children, in India Sunday and wounded dozens in bomb and grenade attacks on independence day ceremonies in the troubled northeast and disputed Kashmir. The children were taking part in a parade in the insurgency-racked oil and tea-rich state of Assam when a powerful bomb ripped through a college ground, police said.
"Suddenly there was an explosion, it left a deep crater," said police inspector general Khagen Sharma said. At least 20 people were wounded.
Several underground guerrilla groups fighting Indian rule in the northeast had called for a boycott of the independence celebrations, saying it was a black day. The rebels accuse New Delhi of plundering the region's rich resources.
In Kashmir, the site of a 15-year revolt against Indian rule, Muslim militants lobbed a grenade in a school in Baramulla district wounding 15 people who had gathered for the independence ceremonies, police said. Tens of thousands of soldiers were placed on alert across the country and authorities closed off air space over New Delhi, where Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made a public speech, to ward off possible attacks during the celebrations. Guerrillas fighting Indian rule in Kashmir, the far-off northeastern states, including Assam, and left-wing extremists have in the past sought to target parades and ceremonies marking independence from British rule in 1947. An angry mob attacked police vehicles, incensed over the death of children in the bomb blast in Dhemaji town of Assam, prompting police to open fire, an officer said. "There is tension in the town," he said. India's northeast is home to dozens of insurgent groups, some demanding more autonomy and others secession. PEACE WITH PAKISTAN In New Delhi, Singh vowed to carry forward peace efforts with Pakistan and said New Delhi wanted results from the dialogue that began this year. "We have always been in favor of a purposive bilateral dialogue with Pakistan to resolve all outstanding issues," Singh said, referring to concern in Islamabad that India could be dragging its feet in the talks on the main dispute of Kashmir. New Delhi regards the whole of Muslim majority Kashmir as an integral part of the country, and blames Pakistan for stoking the revolt there that has killed thousands of people. Pakistan denies involvement in the rebellion and seeks a plebiscite to determine whether Kashmir should be folded into India or merged with Pakistan. Singh, speaking from the ramparts of the 17th century Red Fort in the old quarter of Delhi, said cross border violence in Kashmir could be a stumbling block to peace efforts with Pakistan. "Trends of cross-border terrorism and violence make our task more difficult and complex," he said speaking from behind a bullet-proof glass. Guerrilla violence has mounted in recent weeks in Kashmir where the main separatist alliance All Parties Hurriyat Conference called for a strike on the Indian independence day. 08/15/04 05:45 © Copyright Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved. The information contained In this news report may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of Reuters Ltd.
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