Chennai, Jan. 12 : Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi on Monday said that he would once again raise the matter about Sri Lankan Tamilians during his meetings with the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

Karunanidhi said he would ensure bringing about ceasefire in the ongoing conflict in the island nation

"I will once again speak to Prime Minister and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi over the Lankan Tamils issue," said Karunanidhi in the State capital.

Karunanidhi said that the country would do itself pride it could be stop the ongoing war in Sri Lanka.

Chennai, Jan. 12 : A Sri Lankan lawmakers delegation belonging to the Tamil National Alliance Party, on Monday, appealed to the Tamil Nadu and Indian Governments to intervene in the military offensive against the separatist Tamil Tiger rebels in the island nation.

The team of five legislators asked the Indian leadership to mediate and save the lives of thousands of innocent Tamils.

"We (are)appealing to chief minister Tamil Nadu and central government, we are expecting to stop the war immediately otherwise our people will die, definitely they will die. So stop the war immediately and take action for peace talks," said Sambandam, a Sri Lankan legislator.

Chennai, Jan 12 : The Dravida Munettra Kazhagam (DMK) won the Thirumangalam Assembly by-election by a huge margin of 39,266 votes on Monday.

DMK candidate Latha Athiyaman defeated her All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) rival M Muthuramalingam. Athiyaman polled 79,422 votes over Muthuramalingam''s 40,156 votes.

The Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) came third with 13,136 votes, followed by the Akila India Samathuva Makkal Katchi (AISMK) with a mere 831 votes.

Elections for the seat, which fell vacant after the death of MDMK MLA Veera Illavarasan last month, were held on January 9 this year and counting was taken up today.

MDMK Chief Vaiko asked his ally the AIADMK to contest the seat.

Chennai, Jan. 9 : Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) president S. Samy Vellu has severely criticised the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leader, P. Waythamoorthy, for distributing pamphlets containing severe allegations, at the ongoing Pravasi Bharatiya Divas here.

"All the allegations are lies. As a lawyer, he should know that he would have to pay for it if he tells lie," the Star quoted the MCI president Vellu, as saying.

Chennai, Jan 9 : Union Minister of State for Industries Ashwani Kumar has said that India is still a good growth story, as its economic fundamentals are strong.

Addressing the session ''Building Bridges: Trade and Investment'' at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2009 here, Dr Ashwani said: "A GDP growth of 6.5 per cent is expected, even while most countries are suffering economic downturn."

He stressed that the diaspora must bring funds into India. "At the same time, it should engage in skill-building activities in the country," he added.

Chennai, Jan 9 : Continuing on its objective to deepen engagement with the Indian diaspora, three concurrent sessions at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) 2009 addressed opportunities presented for participating in social development in India.

The PBD convention is being held here from January 7-9 by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs in partnership with the Government of Tamilnadu and the Confederation of Indian Industry.

Health and education have emerged as the key social sector areas for increasing diaspora engagement in India.

The concurrent session on healthcare for all took stock of the achievements made and the new directions that should be taken to increase disapora interaction in the medical field.