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Viitasaari, Finland  - One of the last signs of civilisation is a supermarket at Viitasaari, a village in central Finland. It offers visitors the chance to embark on a shopping spree before a 38-kilometre trip into the back of beyond.

The route starts on the well-paved European Highway, the E 18 which stretches from Ireland to Russia, and turns later into a country highway, then a bumpy trail and finally a dirt track.

Alghero, Sardinia  - Holidaymakers heading for Sardinia are well advised to give the Costa Smeralda, that playing field for the rich and famous, a wide berth and make a bee-line instead for the rugged north-western coast of the Italian island.

Hong Kong  - Two lighting technicians with Russia's world-famous Bolshoi Ballet beginning 40-month jail terms in Hong Kong Tuesday for beating up and robbing a prostitute.

Mark Statsev, 26, and Yury Kovrigin, 30, pleaded guilty to robbing 45-year-old Yu Yuk-kam in their Hong Kong hotel room while on tour with the ballet company.

The pair, who were working on a production of Spartacus at Hong Kong's Cultural Centre, met Yu outside their hotel last September after drinking heavily.

New York/Tehran  - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged the Iranian government to put an end to the violence against opposition supporters protesting against the disputed re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

"The Secretary-General has been following with growing concern the situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran and is dismayed by the post-election violence, particularly the use of force against civilians, which has led to the loss of life and injuries," a statement released Monday said.

The District Health department declared an outbreak in Mohali village, after 28 more people with diarrhoea-like symptoms were taken to the hospital on Monday

Around 52 residents of slum area were admitted in Phase VI civil hospital with diarrhoea-like symptoms on Sunday.

Health authorities have forwarded water samples for examination to PGI to discover if there are any cholera-causing bacteria in them.
 
Like preceding years, health agencies are again blaming the water quality as a reason for diarrhea epidemic.

Tokyo  - Japan's key Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost more than 3 per cent Tuesday after Wall Street tumbled overnight, hitting a three-week intraday low.

The Nikkei index plunged 303.26 points, or 3.09 per cent, to 9,523.01 as investors sold export-oriented issues following the yen's advance against the US dollar. The stronger yen hurts the overseas earnings of Japanese companies.

The broader-based Topix index also dropped 24.37 points, or 2.64 per cent, to 898.11.