Opinion April 30, 1985, Forty Years Ago: Akali Leaders Meet
Meeting for the first time after Operation Blue Star, the three top Akali leaders — Harchand Singh Longowal, G S Tohra and Parkash Singh Badal — discussed the Punjab situation following their detention in June last year. The three leaders, who were released recently, are understood to have reviewed the party's strategy in light of the 'positive response' from various quarters to their stand on several issues troubling Punjab.
Uneasy Peace
While there was a marked improvement in the law-and-order situation in Ahmedabad, and the situation in Baroda and Surat was described as peaceful but tense, clashes between caste groups were reported from two villages in Mehsana district, leaving six injured. The authorities have decided to relax the curfew for 10 hours from 8 am across Ahmedabad city in view of the improved situation.
Challenger Blast Off
The space shuttle Challenger, carrying the Indian payload Anuradha, blasted off for a week of round-the-clock research in a European-built Spacelab. One of the most extensive space research projects ever undertaken began at 9.32 pm IST, when the space plane thundered to life and darted quickly out over the Atlantic Ocean on twin towers of fire and a massive trail of smoke. Anuradha is a Rs 4-million payload that will search for low-energy cosmic rays for seven days in space.
Price Rise Woes
Food and civil Supplies Minister Birendra Singh conceded that there had been an 'unprecedented' price rise during the last four weeks following the Union budget but shifted much of the responsibility for containing prices onto the states. The minister told the Lok Sabha that the government had expected a general increase in prices when it imposed additional levies in the budget and effected an upward revision in railway freight charges.
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