MOGADISHU, March 20 (Xinhua) -- Somali government forces have vacated three military bases to protest non-payment of salaries, a move that may jeopardize years of security gains, officials and local residents said on Wednesday.

Security officials who declined to be named said the Somalia National Army (SNA) soldiers vacated three bases in middle Shebelle, stoking fear among the residents that the al-Qaida allied terrorist group, al-Shabab may take over the abandoned bases.

Varanasi/Mirzapur, Mar 20 (PTI) Wrapping up her three-day tour of Uttar Pradesh in Prime minister Narendra Modi's Varanasi constituency, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra called the coming Lok Sabha elections a new freedom struggle .

In a blistering attack on Modi on the last day of the trip, by boat on the Ganga, she asked him not to treat people as fools.

In Varanasi, party workers from the Congress and the BJP confronted each other with slogans, with some of them scuffling with each other.

New Delhi, Mar 20 (PTI) In a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the issue of jobs, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that his policies destroyed one crore jobs last year and said "India's PM is a joke".

Gandhi's criticism of Modi came over a media report which claimed that the actual size of India's male workforce, or men who are working, has shrunk for the first time since 1993-94.

NAIROBI, March 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese companies and government have taken the lead in promoting the use of cleaner vehicle technologies around the world through partnerships with national and city authorities, a UN Environment Programme (UNEP) official said.

Jane Akumu, program officer in charge of Air Quality and Mobility Unit at the Economic Division of UNEP, said through its work with Chinese authorities, progress is being made locally and regionally to introduce cleaner city transport technologies in Africa.

MANILA, March 20 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has dissolved the government panel negotiating peace with the leftist rebels, driving another nail into the coffin of peace talks between the Duterte administration and the insurgents.

The panel was chaired by Philippine Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello. In letters addressed to Bello and the four panel members dated March 18, the Office of the President said their appointments are now terminated since Duterte already ordered the scrapping of the talks in November 2017.

Lucknow, Mar 20 (PTI) Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati Wednesday announced that she will not contest the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, but kept open the option of fighting a parliamentary by-election later.

"In view of the present circumstances and the need of the country and the interests of the party, the movement and the public, it is the need of the hour that I do not contest the Lok Sabha polls. And this is the reason that I have decided not to contest the Lok Sabha polls," Mayawati said here.

Aizawl, Mar 20 (PTI) The Mizoram assembly Wednesday unanimously adopted a resolution asking the Centre not to reintroduce the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in any form in future.

The civil societies, churches, political parties and the people of the state are against the bill, Home Minister Lalchamliana said after moving the resolution.

Silchar (Assam), Mar 20 (PTI) A BJP panchayat president in Assam has been shot dead and another party worker critically injured by unidentified gunmen in Cachar district ahead of the three-phase Lok Sabha polls in the state next month, police said on Wednesday.

Unidentifed gunmen opened fire on Sukhendu Das, the president of Borkhola Hatichora panchayat, in front of his residence in the village on Tuesday night in which he and another person was grievously injured.

KANPUR: City’s famous Green Park is going to be equipped with various new features in next to no time. Like the cricket match, the football matches will also be played under the milky lights which would help the fans enjoy the matches during the night. The Central UP Gas Limited, a joint venture between GAIL (India) and Bharat Petroleum has agreed to install such lights at the stadium.  

New Delhi, Mar 20 (PTI) On a day fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi was arrested in London, the Congress accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of snoozing when he escaped from the country.

In a tweet, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said Nirav Modi, who he referred to as "Chhota Modi", was arrested after the Opposition party questioned "Bada Modi", a term he has been using to target the PM.

Jammu, Mar 21 (PTI) An Army soldier was killed when Pakistan violated the ceasefire by heavily shelling forward areas and posts along the Line of Control with mortar bombs in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district Thursday, officials said.

Pakistani troops violated the ceasefire in Keri belt of Sunderbani sector this morning, they said.

One soldier was was killed in Pakistani firing, they added.

Pakistani troops have violated the ceasefire over 110 times along the LoC since January.

New Delhi, Mar 19 (PTI) Finance Minister Arun Jaitley Tuesday dubbed the "108 purported economists" alleging government interference in statistical data as a "fake campaign", saying these compulsive contrarians have repeatedly signed memorandums of manufactured political issues against the present regime.