CHANDIGARH: India's prime minister appealed for calm Monday as riots spread to several northern Indian cities to protest a deadly shooting at a Sikh temple in Austria. Hundreds defied a curfew and army patrols, attacking police stations and torching the car of a senior officer and several trains. In two places police opened fire on mobs, wounding at least four people, said senior police officer Khubi Ram. The violence centered on the north Indian city of Jalandhar, a stronghold of the Dera Sach Khand, a Sikh sect comprised of mainly``untouchables,'' or Dalits. A leader of the sect was killed and another preacher wounded Sunday when Sikhs wielding knives and a handgun attacked the two in Vienna. At least 15 other people were wounded, Austrian police said. Witnesses said the perpetrators were fundamentalist Sikhs from a higher caste, who accused one or both of the preachers of being disrespectful of the Holy Book.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, India's first leader of the Sikh faith, said he was ``deeply distressed'' by the attack and subsequent violence. ``Whatever the provocation, it is important to maintain peace and harmony among different sections of the people,'' Singh said, adding that ``Sikhism preaches tolerance and harmony.'' Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna said India was working with Austrian authorities to ``ensure that the perpetrators of this completely mindless and wanton attack are brought to justice. `` Late Sunday after news of the Vienna attack, hundreds of Dera Sach Khand followers, supported by other local Dalit organizations, took to the streets of Jalandhar, burning several vehicles and a bank, stoning buses and blocking railway lines and roads, police said. Sporadic violence was also reported from several nearby towns, said Sanjiv Kalra, a senior police official at Jalandhar, some 210miles (337 kilometers) northwest of New Delhi. On Monday morning, about 400 soldiers patrolled the area and police set up roadblocks across the city. Initially it appeared that the move had restored calm, but later protests spread to at least five nearby cities.``Curfew in the entire district has been extended for an indefinite period and five columns of army have been deployed to control the violence,'' local government official A.S. Pannu told news agency.
Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo...
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