Siliguri (West bengal), Jan. 3 :Health and veterinary workers in West Bengal''s Siliguri region have started culling poultry birds after a reports of a fresh outbreak of the H5N1 virus that layman terms translates into bird flu.

The main epicenter of the flu has been fixed at Binay Krishna Pally off Siliguri in the District of Darjeeling. The latest outbreak of the virus in poultry is the fourth in West Bengal since 2007.

Bird flu first broke out in India in 2006 and millions of chicken and ducks had been culled to contain the virus.

Amritsar/Patna, Jan. 3 : Millions of Sikh devotees participated in the 342nd birth anniversary celebrations of their tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh.

In Patna, the birth place of Guru Gobind Singh, processions were taken out on Friday ahead of the celebrations on Saturday.

Free langars (meals) are also arranged and prasad (holy food) distributed.

"This is the birth place of our tenth and last Sikh leader Guru, Gobind Singh. He was the one who came with the concept of Khalsa

Jorhat (Assam), Jan. 3 : The Sri Sri Dakhimpat Satra a religious institution of India''s North Eastern Assam, recently hosted a five-day long Vedic Sammelan (conference) at Notun Dakhimpat Satra in Sotai with the aim of restoring peace and harmony in the entire country.

The conference was held between December 25 and 29, and was reportedly the first of its kind to be held here.

Islamabad, Jan. 3 : Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has appealed to both Iran and China to join the global war on terror.

Talking to special envoy of Iran Gholam Hossein Nozari who called on him at the Aiwan-e-Sadr on Saturday, Zardari said he was concerned about the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the Gaza Strip, and that there was a need for the international community to step in and halt the violence that has claimed over 430 lives so far.

New Delhi, Jan. 3 : Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram met US Ambassador David C Mulford here today and reportedly discussed the Mumbai terror attack investigations.

The meeting took place after Washington assured India of all help in the attack probe.

The meeting is being considered important as India is said to have compiled sufficient evidence on the role of Pakistan-based terror elements in the November 2008 attack.

Though Pakistan continues to deny the use of its territory in the carnage, India says it is ready to share the evidence gathered with the world.

Narabet (Gujarat), Jan. 3 :Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has said that his state, which shares its border with Pakistan, needs a strategic airbase for security reasons.

After meeting Border Security personnel at the Narabet check post along the India-Pakistan border and reviewing security arrangements, Modi said he would urge the UPA Government at the Center to focus on developing more strategic airbases in the state.