Malkangiri (Orissa), Apr 13: Naxalites have been feverish in their efforts to disrupt the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Orissa.

They have set up training camps in the forests, skirting border areas of Orissa and Chhattisgarh.

At these training camps, the Naxals have horses, which can be used to commute through forests and mountainous areas. Special educational classes are being organised for the cadres and arrangements for their entertainment have also been made.

Islamabad, Apr. 13: Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) chief Maulana Masood Azhar who was once kept under house arrest in Bahawalpur in Pakistan has been mysteriously and `officially' declared missing from the country, The Daily Times reports.

Pakistani authorities had placed restrictions on the movement of Azhar, by confining him to his multi-storied concrete compound in the Model Town area of Bahawalpur.

Quetta, Apr. 13: One police constable has been killed and several others were injured in rampant riots that erupted in Balochistan following the murder of three Baloch nationalist leaders.

Banks, vehicles and government offices were set on fire in different towns and a complete wheel-jam and shutter-down strike paralyzed life in Balochistan, The Nation reports.

The strike call was jointly given by all Baloch nationalist parties.

During the fourth day of Balochistan violence, all shops and business centres remained closed on Sariab Road, Brewery Road, Liaquat Bazaar, Jinnah Road, Joint Road and other areas in Quetta.

Jahanabad (Bihar), Apr 13: To persuade villagers of Jahanabad District, who till now were staying away from voting due to fear of local goons, the Bihar authorities are making special arrangements to provide adequate security.

The state authorities claim that they have paid notice to the complaints of the residents of Vishunpur and Kishunpur villages, and are doing their level best to make available safe polling booths to the villagers.

The villagers had complained that some local goons, hired for vested interests, were stopping them from casting votes.

Behrampore (West Bengal), Apr 13: Union External Affairs Minister and senior Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee on Monday filed his nomination papers from West Bengal's Jangipur parliamentary constituency.

Mukherjee, who won his first Lok Sabha election from Jangipur in 2004, filed his nomination papers to Murshidabad District Magistrate at 1.30 p. m.

The 74-year-old leader defeated Communist Party of India- Marxist (CPM) leader and three-time MP Abul Hasnat Khan by over 36,860 votes.

Johannesburg - Ticket sales for the 2009 Confederations Cup in South Africa were given a boost Monday with the news that international specialist banking group, Investec, has purchased 50,000 tickets for the tournament. The tickets, valued at 3.5 million rand (388,000 dollars) across various ticket categories, will be distributed amongst the company's staff and to deserving local communities, Investec revealed.