Washington, Nov 20 : Scientists have discovered a direct link between insulin—a hormone long linked to metabolism and metabolic disorders such as diabetes—and core body temperature.

This is the first time the hormone has been associated with the fundamental process of temperature regulation.

Kanchanpur/Janpui (Tripura), Nov 20 : Tension continues to prevail in border areas along Mizoram and Tripura.

A violent mob set fire over 360 Reang tribals huts, in around 15 villages in Mamit and Kolashib districts in Mizoram on November 14, displacing over 5, 000 people. The Mizoram government has issued shoot-at-sight orders to bring the situation under control.

London - The announcement Thursday night of Briton Catherine Ashton as the first-ever European Union "foreign minister" drew mixed reactions from politicians and media outlets Friday.

"It will ensure, of course, that Britain's voice is very loud and clear," said British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

But many media outlets were less full of praise.

The Sun tabloid said her appointment was a "consolation prize," given that the top job of president of the European Council had gone to Belgian Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy.

Stock market analyst Ashwani Gujral has maintained 'sell' rating on Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL) to achieve a target of Rs 311.

According to Mr. Gujral, interested investors can buy the stock with a strict stop loss of Rs 366.

Mr. Gujral said that after selling the stock, the interested investors can enter the stock again at a low price, for medium or long term prospective.

Today, the shares of the company opened at Rs 341.10 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

Imphal, Nov 20 : Suspected militants lobbed a grenade on an army convoy here on Thursday, injuring two soldiers.

The attack took place when the convoy of four vehicles was moving from Imphal to Thoubal near the Singjamei Bazarb market.

Officials said the two injured soldiers belonged to the Assam Rifles.

One of the injured was taken to a local hospital and the other to an army hospital.

Security forces have launched a manhunt to nab the militants. (ANI)

Stock market analyst Ashwani Gujral has maintained 'sell' rating on DLF Ltd to achieve a target of Rs 330.

According to Mr. Gujral, interested investors can buy the stock with a strict stop loss of Rs 385.

Mr. Gujral said that after selling the stock, the interested investors can enter the stock again at a low price, for medium or long term prospective.

Today, the shares of the company opened at Rs 364 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

Current EPS & P/E ratio stood at 9.80 and 38.02 respectively. The share price has seen a 52-week high of Rs 476 and a low of Rs 124.15 on BSE.

Kabul - A suicide attack in western Afghanistan killed 10 civilians and three policemen on Friday, while three other civilians were killed in a roadside blast in the country's eastern region, officials said.

A bomber riding an explosive-laden motorbike targeted a senior police official in Farah, the capital of the western province of the same name Friday morning, Mohammad Faqir Askar, the provincial police chief said.

Pune, Nov 20 : The Indian hockey team''s Spanish coach, Jose Manuel Brasa, has denied reports of a rift between him and the players.

He said this on the sidelines of a training session here on Thursday.

New Delhi, Nov 20 Pakistan was using "terror as an instrument of state policy" and the US must use "all its influence" to get it to desist from that path, says Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh ahead of his visit to Washington.

"We have been the victims of Pakistan-aided, -abetted and -inspired terrorism for nearly 25 years. We would like the United States to use all its influence with Pakistan to desist from that path," Manmohan Singh in an interview to the Washington Post.

New Delhi, Nov 20 With 25 new dengue cases reported in the capital Friday, the total number of people affected with the vector borne disease touched 970, health officials said.

According to the Delhi health department, the dengue cases are likely to come down within next 7 to 10 days with the fall in temperature.

"The temperature has recorded a fall in past two days and it will help in checking the breeding of mosquitoes," state nodal officer for dengue cases Debashish Bhattacharya told IANS.

Srinagar, Nov 20 : About half a million migratory birds have arrived for their annual sojourn at the Hokersar wetlands in Kashmir from Central Asia.

Some of the popular migratory birds visiting the region are waterfowls, goose, shoveller, red-crested pochard, white-eyed pochard, common teal, mallard, pintail, gadwall, wigeon, coot and greylag.

The winged visitors from Siberia, China, Central Asia, North Europe and the Indian subcontinent add colour to Kashmir''s wetlands and fresh water lakes in the winter.

Kathmandu, Nov 20 Nepal's historic peace pact, which ended a decade of violent communist insurgency, turned three years Friday under the threat of unravelling.

On this date in 2006, the shadowy leader of Nepal's Maoist guerrillas, Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda, emerged in the capital from underground to ink a comprehensive agreement with the major parties.

The pact pledged peace, a new constitution and general elections within six months of that.

Ladakh, Nov 20 : Buddhists in Ladakh recently celebrated the two-day Chemday monastery festival.

The festival is celebrated every year according to the Tibetan calendar on the 28th and 29th days of the ninth month.

Monks gather around the monastery to perform a sacred mask dance to begin the festival. Locals are also allowed to take part in the festival.

Dhanbad, Nov 19 Congress president Sonia Gandhi Friday asked the people of Jharkhand to vote for her party in the coming assembly elections so that the state could have a stable and corruption free government that would ensure development for the tribals.

Ludhiana, Nov 20 : The grand set of Hollywood''s blockbuster ''The Mummy'' is being recreated in Ludhiana for a pre-wedding ceremony.

To make the pre-wedding ceremony of his son memorable, Gulshan Kumar, a realtor based in Ludhiana is leaving no stone unturned to develop an exact replica of the set of Stephen Sommers''s ''The Mummy'' for the pre-wedding ceremony.

Singapore - Asia's airlines saw some signs of recovery after passenger demand slumped during the global recession, the head of a regional industry body said Friday, but the business environment continued to be challenging.

"Hopefully, we are at least through the worst of the downturn," Andrew Herdman, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) told an industry forum in Singapore.

"There are some encouraging signs that air traffic is starting to recover," he said.

London, Nov. 20 : America’s first and only legal marijuana coffee shop has been opened in Portland, Oregon.

''Cannabis Café'' which looks like any other coffee shop in America has a special corner for marijuana.

The customers do not have coffee pots in front of them, but “vaporisers” with digital readouts indicating when the plant samples have been heated to precisely 375F, at which point a thin mist rises from them into large transparent plastic bags.

Moscow - A prominent priest in the Russian Orthodox church has been shot dead in his own Moscow church, reported the Interfax news agency on Friday.

Daniil Syssoyev, 35, was known as an active missionary. Authorities have not ruled out religious motives for the attack on Thursday, which left Syssoyev dead with multiple gunshot wounds.

A masked man was seen entering the sanctury Thursday night before shooting Syssoyev in the head. Another clergyman was injured in the attack.

London, Nov. 20 : England football star David Beckham has sprung to the defence of under fire French striker Thierry Henry, who has been widely condemned for handling the ball in a World Cup qualifying match against Ireland, which set up the lone goal that denied the latter a place at the World Cup.

Beijing - China is considering the deployment of its first combat troops as part of a growing role in United Nations peacekeeping operations, a UN official said on Friday.

"I understand that they are considering sending combat troops but no decision has been made at this stage," Alain Le Roy, the UN under-secretary for peacekeeping operations, said after meeting Chinese military leaders in Beijing.