NEW DELHI (Reuters) – The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) will demand the London Olympic Games axe a sponsorship deal with Dow Chemical Co (DOW.N: Quote, Profile, Research) because of the U.S. corporation’s ties to the Bhopal gas disaster that killed thousands in 1984, a senior official said on Thursday.

The sponsorhip deal has angered many Indians, including current and former Olympic athletes. Some have called for a boycott of next year’s competition.

NEW DELHI, Dec 15 (Reuters) – India’s Olympic body
will demand the London Olympic Games axe a sponsorship deal with
Dow Chemical Co because of the U.S. coporation’s ties to
a major industrial disaster in 1984, a senior official said on
Thursday.

The sponsorhip deal has angered many Indians, including
current and former Olympic athletes. Some have called for a
boycott of next year’s competition.

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Fallout from a botched attempt at retail reform, a weak economy that has some analysts muttering darkly about India’s balance of payments, a renewed threat of street protests and looming state elections that mean progress on tough reforms are unlikely, are the major risks to watch as the year ends in the world’s largest democracy.

RATINGS (Unchanged since November unless stated):

S&P: BBB-

MOODY’S: Baa3

FITCH: BBB-

The cost of insuring against default on 5-year sovereign debt, in common with debt markets elsewhere in the world rose in November then fell to around 100 basis points in December, up 30 since the start of the year.

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Police filed charges on Wednesday against the Karmapa, a Tibetan spiritual leader who fled China a decade ago and is tipped to take on the mantle of the Dalai Lama in the future, following the seizure of $1.4 million from his monastery in Himachal Pradesh.

However, the charges filed by police in a district court against 10 people including the Karmapa, who is revered by Tibetan Buddhists as the 17th reincarnation of a 900-year old spirit, related to a smaller amount of money.

NEW DELHI, Dec 7 (Reuters) – Indian police filed
charges on Wednesday against a Tibetan spiritual leader who fled
China a decade ago and is tipped to take on the mantle of the
Dalai Lama in the future, following the seizure of $1.4 million
from his monastery in India.

However, the charges filed by police in a district court
against 10 people including the Karmapa, who is revered by
Tibetan Buddhists as the 17th reincarnation of a 900-year old
spirit, related to a smaller amount of money.

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – India’s navy said on Thursday it was monitoring an Iranian cargo ship, with armed men on board, which had been moored off the country’s southern coast for more than a month without explanation.

Shipping data showed the ship MV Assa was owned and operated by Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), a company facing sanctions from the United States and the EU.

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Tibet’s Karmapa Lama is revered by followers as a 900-year-old soul in the body of a youth, and tipped to assume the mantle of Tibetan spiritual leadership when the present Dalai Lama dies.

But the 26-year-old who is the current embodiment of the Karmapa Lama, a sacred role in Tibetan Buddhism, shies from the expectations that surround him.

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Security forces likely killed top Maoist military commander Koteshwar Rao in a West Bengal jungle on Thursday, the government said, striking a major blow to fighters who control large, impoverished but mineral-rich swathes of the country.

The government describes the guerrilla movement as India’s biggest internal security threat.

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Security forces likely killed top Maoist military commander Koteshwar Rao in a West Bengal jungle on Thursday, the government said, striking a major blow to fighters who control large, impoverished but mineral-rich swathes of the country.

The government describes the guerrilla movement as India’s biggest internal security threat.