New Delhi, Aug 14 : President Pratibha Patil will address the nation today on the eve of the 62nd Independence Day.

The address will be telecast over all channels of Doordarshan in Hindi followed by English from 7:00 p. m. onwards, said a statement issued on a government website.

The address will also be broadcast over all channels of All India Radio (AIR) in Hindi followed by English from 7:00 p. m. onwards.

Srinagar/New Delhi, Aug 14 : The Election Commission will today review the poll preparedness in Jammu and Kashmir for the state assembly elections, which are expected to be held in sometime in November-December.

The term of the Assembly would expire on November 20.

According to sources, the Election Commission will review the poll preparations with the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of the state.

New Delhi, August 13 : National Knowledge Commission Chairman Sam Pitroda today in his vision statement stressed for generational change to bring in quality education and change the educational scenario in the country.

Speaking at the NKC seminar on “Building India’s Knowledge Economy”, Pitroda said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will provide 65 billion dollar to revamp the educational scenario in the country.

He emphasised on the proper allocation, deregulation of institutional set up and public private partnerships.

New York, Aug 13 : With Islamabad refusing to heed New Delhi’s advice not to interfere in India’s internal matters, the problem before the Indian side is that by talking to the new civilian government of Pakistan, it is no longer negotiating with those who have the power to decide between war and peace.

“The real power,” said one Indian official “is so far away from the structures the world deals with.”

New Delhi, Aug 13 : Road and railway traffic in several parts of the country was affected on Wednesday after Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) activists blocked them as part of their protest against the Amarnath land row.

The protest that lasted for two hours from 9:00 a. m. to 11:00 a. m., left many office goers stranded and also affected vehicular movement across the country.

Jammu/ /New Delhi, Aug 13 : Truck drivers have nullified claims of an economic blockade in the Kashmir Valley, saying that traffic is moving smoothly on the Lakhanpur-Jammu-Srinagar National Highway. Traffic is also moving smoothly on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway.

Supplies of essential commodities are getting normalised in Jammu and Kashmir. The movement of apples from the Kashmir Valley to various markets across the country is also picking up, official sources claimed.