Singapore - The Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has reached tentative free trade agreements with three major trading partners - India, Australia, and New Zealand - after years of negotiations.

Though the full terms the agreements reached Thursday in Singapore during a meeting of ASEAN ministers would not be made public until the signing in December, they cover more than 400 goods with India and goods, investment, services and intellectual property with Australia and New Zealand.

"This is the most comprehensive free trade agreement that ASEAN has ever entered. It is the largest free trade agreement that Australia has ever negotiated," Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean told reporters in Singapore.

A non-profit group raised an issue regarding the deaths of 49 children during clinical trials of new medicines in AIIMS during the last two-and -a-half years. This group believes that the children enrolled for the clinical tests were from poor families. The Uday Foundation for Congenital Defects and Rare Blood Groups had sought information about the trials through a freedom-of-information request.

The hospital denied that children involved in the trails had poor socio-economic background. Moreover the children enrolled for the trials represented the "prevailing mix" of patients treated at the premier institute AIIMS on Tuesday said that the drugs used in the trials were found safe in earlier studies and "not known" to have fatal complications.

The mobile version of popular Indian social networking site is released on Thursday. The social networking website is very popular among Indian youths and it can now be accessed through mobile phone.

It mobile version is called ‘Mobile Adda’, which can be used like a full fledged PC. After signing in, users are allowed to receive, read, reply and send scribbles to their friends. It also supports search profiles and invitation sending options on the network.

New Delhi, Aug. 28 : Links between Central Asia and South Asia stand a chance of improving only if the historical linkages of the past are given their due importance and applied in the modern context, a strategic affairs expert has said.

Jammu, Aug 28 : The fourth round of talks between Shri Amarnath Yatra Sangharsh Samiti (SASS) and the panel appointed by the Jammu and Kashmir Governor headed by SS Bloeria has been postponed and is likely to be held on Friday.

According to an official spokesman due to the minor illness of the committee’s chief SS Bloeria the meeting has been rescheduled on Friday (August 29).

Earlier, the Convenor of SASS Leela Karan Sharma has received invitation from the Governor''s panel for fourth round of talks to be held at a Guest House here around
1630 hours, Samiti''s spokesperson Narinder Singh said.

New Delhi, Aug 28 : India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Thursday successfully concluded six years of negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) at Singapore.

The formal FTA covering trade in goods will be signed by leaders at the ASEAN-India Summit scheduled for December in Bangkok.

During a joint press conference of India-ASEAN economic ministers, Union Commerce Minister Kamal Nath said, "It took six years for India to understand the sensitivities of ASEAN, and for the ASEAN to understand the sensitivities of India."