HARARE: The much-vaunted Indian batting failed to click today as the visitors slumped to a humiliating 61-run defeat with over a day to spare in the one-off Test against Zimbabwe at the Harare Sports Ground here today.

US Visa Bill

WASHINGTON: A Bill that would have increased the number Of United States visas to foreign hi-tech workers died in the Senate yesterday, with backers warning of dire consequences, as the computer industry tries to solve the millenium bug. Both the House of Representatives and the Senate had passed earlier versions of the Bill, and a compromise with the White House had been worked out but a small number of senators were able to block a vote on the Bill late yesterday, killing chance of its passage this year.

Indian Airlines fare

NEW DELHI: The Government on Saturday exempted flights to Jammu and Kashmir, Andaman and Nicobar islands as also those already announced on the North-Eastern routes from the recent fare hike. The IA hadhiked the fares of all routes except for those to the North-East by 11.2 per cent with effect from this month.

Special court

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Government on Saturday constituted a special court exclusively for the conduct of trials in the cases registered in connection with the recent caste clashes in the southern districts of the State. The court would hold its sitting at Madurai, a release said adding that the Madras High Court had cleared the State Government's recommendation in this regard.

Threat to Rushdie

CAIRO: An Iranian student group has offered more than 300,000 dollars to anyone who kills Salman Rushdie, the threat coming just weeks after Tehran distanced itself from an earlier edict already against the author.