Pregnant US woman Caitlan Coleman missing in Afghanistan with husband

Mr Coleman says his daughter needs medical care

The family of a pregnant American woman missing with her husband in Afghanistan have made a fresh appeal for her safe return.

Caitlan Coleman, 27, is due to give birth in January and needs urgent medical attention, her father told the Associated Press news agency.

James Coleman said she had been travelling with her Canadian husband across Central Asia.

There are fears they were abducted, but no ransom has been demanded.

India rolls out cash transfer scheme for poor

The government says that cash transfers will be a game-changer

India has rolled out an ambitious plan for a cash payout of subsidies to the poor in 20 districts, officials say.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram said the scheme would benefit more than 200,000 people initially, and would cover the entire country by the end of 2013.

Authorities say it will bring the country's poorest citizens "into the mainstream".

But opposition parties have accused the government of "bribing the voters" ahead of the 2014 general elections.

India's Kingfisher Airlines loses licence to fly

Kingfisher's licence has been suspended because of concerns over finances and safety

India's troubled Kingfisher Airlines has lost its flying permit after a deadline to renew its suspended licence expired, the aviation regulator said.

The debt-ridden carrier has been grounded since October after repeated strikes by workers over unpaid wages.

The airline said there was no cause for concern as rules allowed the renewal of a permit within two years of expiry.


Kingfisher has $1.4bn (£870m) in debts and it is looking to raise funds after lenders refused to give fresh loans.

"Kingfisher's flying permit has lapsed," news agency AFP quoted the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) chief Arun Mishra as saying.

"They failed to provide additional details on the funding of operations," Mr Mishra said, referring to Kingfisher's revival plan submitted to the DGCA last month.

The airline said it was "confident of securing approval from the regulator on the restart plan, licence approval and reinstatement of its operating permit".

Owned by flamboyant billionaire Vijay Mallya, Kingfisher has made annual losses for five years in a row.

The firm's debt woes have increased and it has not been able to pay its dues to staff, airports, tax authorities and its lenders.

Recently, the airline said it was in talks with Etihad Airways Andy other investors to take a stake in the embattled carrier.

Some reports said that Kingfisher planned to sell a 48% stake, though the firm did not confirm the claims.

Pakistan: Explosion 'hits Karachi crowd'

A big explosion has hit a crowded area in the Pakistani city Karachi, killing one person and injuring several others, local media report.

Geo News television said it was a "major blast" near a market.

Police have arrived at the scene and the injured are being taken to hospital.

Karachi has long suffered outbreaks of violence, caused by Taliban militants or by rival political groups fighting turf wars.

India gang rape: New Year celebrations scaled back

The attack has triggered an outpouring of anger across India

India has scaled back New Year celebrations, as it mourned the death of a woman whose gang rape on a bus a fortnight ago sparked public outrage.

The army has cancelled all official celebrations as have the states of Punjab and Haryana.

The president of the governing Congress party, Sonia Gandhi, also said she would not be celebrating.

Meanwhile, protests continued on Monday in the capital, Delhi, where the 23-year-old medical student was assaulted.

Pakistan: Seven charity workers shot dead

The driver of the vehicle (in white) was injured in the attack

Seven charity workers, six of them women, have been shot dead in north-west Pakistan, police say.

The women, some of them teachers, were attacked near a children's community centre. A male colleague died with them. All were Pakistani citizens.

Their vehicle came under gunfire near the centre run by Pakistani charity Ujala, or Light.

Militants targeting a vaccination programme are suspected. No group has said it carried out the attack.

The incident happened in the Swabi district close to a road connecting Peshawar to the eastern city of Lahore.