Grandmaster D Harika missed out on some chances to settle for a draw with Georgia's Sopiko Guramishvili, while Padmini Rout survived a scare before enforcing a draw with China's Tan Zhongyi in the first game of the third round of World Women's Chess Championship here.

Playing black, fourth seeded Harika pulled all the right strings for a long time against Guramishvili but failed to find a way to force a victory.

However, the Indian will have white pieces in the return game, an opportunity for her to score her first victory in the Classical format here.

All Harika's wins in first two rounds came only in rapid tiebreak games.

Facing her third higher ranked opponent in a row, Padmini yet again managed to salvage a difficult position against Zhongyi. Padmini showed some fine preparation and excellent attacking acumen as white. And return game gives her all the hopes for an encore.

The world championship this year is being held under knock-out rules. The USD 450000 event started with 64 players and is now down to 16 with three more rounds to go after this.

Till the finalists have been identified, there are two games under Classical time control and if the scores are tied, games of shorter duration are played to determine the winner.

Harika faced the in-vogue London system against Guramishvili and equalised comfortably out of the opening by opting for a solid system. As the game progressed, the pieces changed hands at regular intervals and Harika was able to secure a tangible advantage in the ensuing queen and minor piece endgame.

It was on the 33rd move that Harika missed a chance to win a pawn and once she decided against it, Guramishvili came up with some sterling defense to hold her position. The game lasted 49 moves.

Padmini went for a surprising opening choice in Semi-Tarrasch and felt the heat as white went for some known plans to take command of important central squares. Padmini lost a pawn and the endgame looked completely worse at some point. However, the Indian hung in there just long enough for Zhongyi to make a mistake and once black won the pawn back, it was already a forced draw. The peace was signed after 60 moves.

There were three decisive games in all in the first game of pre-quarterfinals. Second seed Anna Muzychuk outclassed Pham Le Thao Nguyen of Vietnam, Nana Dzagnidze of Gerogia defeated Shen Yang of China while former champion Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria almost put an end to the aspirations of Georgian Nino Khurtsidze.

The other three games were drawn. Top seed Ju Wenjun of China could not force matters against Olgay Girya of Russia, while another former champion Alexandra Kosteniuk of Russia also could not break the ice against veteran Pia Cramling of Sweden. The other draw also involved a Russian — Natalija Pogonina was held by Ni Shiqun of China.

Results round 3: Ju Wenjun (Chn) drew with Olga Girya (Rus); Pham, Le Thao Nguyen (Vie) lost to Anna Muzychuk (Ukr); Alexandra Kosteniuk (Rus) drew with Pia Cramling (Swe); Sopiko Guramishvili (Geo) drew with D Harika (Ind); Nana Dzagnidze (Geo) beat Shen Yang (Chn); Natalija Pogonina (Rus) drew with Ni Shiqun (Chn); Antoaneta Stefanova (Bul) beat Nino Khurtsidze (Geo); Tan Zhongyi (Chn) drew with Padmini Rout (Ind).

Grandmaster D Harika missed out on some chances to settle for a draw with Georgia's Sopiko Guramishvili, while Padmini Rout survived a scare before enforcing a draw with China's Tan Zhongyi in the first game of the third round of World Women's Chess Championship here.

Playing black, fourth seeded Harika pulled all the right strings for a long time against Guramishvili but failed to find a way to force a victory.

However, the Indian will have white pieces in the return game, an opportunity for her to score her first victory in the Classical format here.

All Harika's wins in first two rounds came only in rapid tiebreak games.

Facing her third higher ranked opponent in a row, Padmini yet again managed to salvage a difficult position against Zhongyi. Padmini showed some fine preparation and excellent attacking acumen as white. And return game gives her all the hopes for an encore.

The world championship this year is being held under knock-out rules. The USD 450000 event started with 64 players and is now down to 16 with three more rounds to go after this.

Till the finalists have been identified, there are two games under Classical time control and if the scores are tied, games of shorter duration are played to determine the winner.

Harika faced the in-vogue London system against Guramishvili and equalised comfortably out of the opening by opting for a solid system. As the game progressed, the pieces changed hands at regular intervals and Harika was able to secure a tangible advantage in the ensuing queen and minor piece endgame.

It was on the 33rd move that Harika missed a chance to win a pawn and once she decided against it, Guramishvili came up with some sterling defense to hold her position. The game lasted 49 moves.

Padmini went for a surprising opening choice in Semi-Tarrasch and felt the heat as white went for some known plans to take command of important central squares. Padmini lost a pawn and the endgame looked completely worse at some point. However, the Indian hung in there just long enough for Zhongyi to make a mistake and once black won the pawn back, it was already a forced draw. The peace was signed after 60 moves.

There were three decisive games in all in the first game of pre-quarterfinals. Second seed Anna Muzychuk outclassed Pham Le Thao Nguyen of Vietnam, Nana Dzagnidze of Gerogia defeated Shen Yang of China while former champion Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria almost put an end to the aspirations of Georgian Nino Khurtsidze.

The other three games were drawn. Top seed Ju Wenjun of China could not force matters against Olgay Girya of Russia, while another former champion Alexandra Kosteniuk of Russia also could not break the ice against veteran Pia Cramling of Sweden. The other draw also involved a Russian — Natalija Pogonina was held by Ni Shiqun of China.

Results round 3: Ju Wenjun (Chn) drew with Olga Girya (Rus); Pham, Le Thao Nguyen (Vie) lost to Anna Muzychuk (Ukr); Alexandra Kosteniuk (Rus) drew with Pia Cramling (Swe); Sopiko Guramishvili (Geo) drew with D Harika (Ind); Nana Dzagnidze (Geo) beat Shen Yang (Chn); Natalija Pogonina (Rus) drew with Ni Shiqun (Chn); Antoaneta Stefanova (Bul) beat Nino Khurtsidze (Geo); Tan Zhongyi (Chn) drew with Padmini Rout (Ind).

Afghanistan on Saturday dubbed Pakistan's absence from the South Asian Speakers Summit as "unfortunate" and said Islamabad has adopted terrorism as its policy which would prove a serious threat for it.

"It is unfortunate that Pakistan is not attending the summit. We don't know the reason, perhaps they can say it better. Being the neighbouring country we would have been happier if Pakistan would have attended the summit," Abdul Raouf Ibrahimi, Speaker of National Assembly of Afghanistan, told IANS.

Dubbing terrorism as a serious threat to South Asia, Ibrahimi said that Pakistan has adopted terrorism as it policy.

"Terrorism remains a threat to the South Asian countries, including Pakistan but unfortunately rulers of Pakistan have always supported terrorism. This policy of Pakistan is not in the interest of the South Asian region. In the future it is going to be a big threat to Pakistan," he said.

Ibrahimi also said that terrorism is a very serious threat to Afghanistan.

"We invite cooperation from India towards improvement in people's life, security and political areas in the region. We believe that this is in the interest of the people of South Asia," he said.

Lauding India for its approach towards Afghanistan, the Speaker said, "India is a big country and is an effective and influential power in the region. India has been a brotherly friend to Afghanistan and in the last 15 years it has supported Afghanistan with more than $2 billion aid."

"What we want from India is this relation to be further improved and developed. We want improvement in security and also enhanced relations between both countries. Hopefully it will continue in the future," he added.

Afghanistan has several times in the past voiced concern over terrorism emanating from Pakistan, and accused its neighbour of harbouring the Taliban in the border areas. India and Afghanistan, joined by South Asian neighbours Bangladesh and Bhutan, had boycotted the Saarc summit in Islamabad in November, leading to its deferment.

Afghanistan on Saturday dubbed Pakistan's absence from the South Asian Speakers Summit as "unfortunate" and said Islamabad has adopted terrorism as its policy which would prove a serious threat for it.

"It is unfortunate that Pakistan is not attending the summit. We don't know the reason, perhaps they can say it better. Being the neighbouring country we would have been happier if Pakistan would have attended the summit," Abdul Raouf Ibrahimi, Speaker of National Assembly of Afghanistan, told IANS.

Dubbing terrorism as a serious threat to South Asia, Ibrahimi said that Pakistan has adopted terrorism as it policy.

"Terrorism remains a threat to the South Asian countries, including Pakistan but unfortunately rulers of Pakistan have always supported terrorism. This policy of Pakistan is not in the interest of the South Asian region. In the future it is going to be a big threat to Pakistan," he said.

Ibrahimi also said that terrorism is a very serious threat to Afghanistan.

"We invite cooperation from India towards improvement in people's life, security and political areas in the region. We believe that this is in the interest of the people of South Asia," he said.

Lauding India for its approach towards Afghanistan, the Speaker said, "India is a big country and is an effective and influential power in the region. India has been a brotherly friend to Afghanistan and in the last 15 years it has supported Afghanistan with more than $2 billion aid."

"What we want from India is this relation to be further improved and developed. We want improvement in security and also enhanced relations between both countries. Hopefully it will continue in the future," he added.

Afghanistan has several times in the past voiced concern over terrorism emanating from Pakistan, and accused its neighbour of harbouring the Taliban in the border areas. India and Afghanistan, joined by South Asian neighbours Bangladesh and Bhutan, had boycotted the Saarc summit in Islamabad in November, leading to its deferment.

Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh on Saturday said that demands for separate homeland in the state are unrealistic and impossible dreams.

"If the demands are reasonable and realistic all of us are ready to follow the footsteps of the armed groups. Some valley-based outfits are demanding the pre-merger independence status of Manipur while some hill-based outfits are demanding a separate homeland to be carved out of the present territory. These are impossible demands" Ibobi said.

He was speaking at the formal launch of Deputy Speaker Presho Shimray's election campaign.

The chief minister maintained that misunderstandings and differences can be sorted out.

"The Nagas, the Kukis, the Meiteis and others are the children of the same soil. There could be some misunderstandings here and there, which can be settled," he added.

Meanwhile, BJP spokesperson Okram Joy, in a political conference at Awang Sekmai in Imphal west district, said that the framework agreement between the Indian government and the National Socialist Council of Nagaland – Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) shall not affect the people of the state. 

"The Indian government had signed the agreement within the ambit of the constitution and as such it cannot hurt any community or the territorial integrity of the state," Joy said.

Congress leaders however, have been refusing to accept such oversimplifications pointing out that those who speak on it have not seen the agreement. The All Manipur Students Union has been launching agitations demanding the details of the framework agreement.

(With inputs from Agencies)

Alleging that the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) had pushed Uttar Pradesh into chaos, BJP chief Amit Shah on Saturday said that his party will get absolute majority and form the government in the crucial state.

Addressing a press conference in Gorakhpur, Shah said: "Under the SP government their is utter chaos in UP for the past five years and with their newly forged alliance with the Congress they are on their way out of power."

He said that the people of UP have "made up their mind to vote for a BJP government" and claimed that opposition parties — the BSP and the SP-Congress alliance will bite the dust.

He also took on the BSP chief Mayawati for doing nothing but lip service for Dalits. 

Claiming huge support in favour of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the first and the second phase of polling in the state, Shah further stated that the indication was clear that a BJP government was "on its way in UP". 

In the rounds to come, he added, be it Poorvanchal, Bundelkhand or central UP, the BJP will make huge gains.

(With inputs from agencies)

Raising hope for an anti-ageing drug in just two to three years, a group of Russian and Swedish scientists have managed to slow down ageing of mice with the use of a novel compound.

Development of typical traits of ageing was dramatically reduced in the group of mice treated with the compound – artificial antioxidant SkQ1, showed the results of the study published in the journal Aging.

This compound — that appears to work by protecting animal cells from the toxic byproducts of mitochondria, known as intracellular powerstations — was developed in the Moscow State University by Russian biologist Vladimir Skulachev.

"Our study opens the way to the treatment of ageing with mitochondrially targeted antioxidants," Skulachev, a co-author of the study, said.

Experiments involved a special strain of genetically-modified mice created and characterised in Sweden. 

A single mutation was introduced into genome of these mice resulting in the substantially accelerated mutagenesis in mitochondria which leads to accelerated ageing and early death of the mutant mice. They live less than one year (normal mouse lives more than two years). 

The mutation promotes development of many age-related defects and diseases indicating that the major defect of these mice is indeed ageing.

Starting from the age of 100 days one group of mutant mice was treated with small doses of SkQ1 (approximately 12 micrograms) added into their drinking water. 

Another group of animals served as a control group receiving pure water.

Differences between the two groups became obvious starting from the age 200-250 days.

Animals in the control group aged rapidly as expected. They were losing weight, their body temperature decreased, severe curvature of the spine (as a result of osteoporosis) and alopecia were developing, their skin became thinner, and in case of females estrus cycle was impaired. 

Finally their mobility and oxygen consumption were decreased. 

The development of all these typical traits of ageing was dramatically decelerated in the group treated with SkQ1. 

Some of the ageing traits did not appear in that group at all, the study said.

This work "clearly demonstrates the key role of mitochondrially produced reactive oxygen species (free radicals) in the process of ageing of mammals", Skulachev said.

An oral form of the compound is now in the process of clinical trials in Russia. 

The researchers believe that in case of positive results of these trials, such "anti-ageing" drug can be approved for use in two to three years.

Paving way for direct cargo vessel movement between India and Bangladesh, the first container ship from Kolkata arrived at Dhaka's Panagon river port, media reports said.

The 'Shonartori Nou Kalyan-1' reached the Pangaon Inland Container Terminal at Keraniganj upazila on Friday with 65 containers on board, bdnews24.com reported.

With this — the bilateral 'Coastal Shipping Agreement' signed during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Bangladesh in 2015, which allows direct movement of ships at sea between the two countries — came into effect.

It has helped in improving connectivity between the two neighbours by reducing shipping time from 30-40 days to 4-10 days.

The inauguration of unloading 65 containers from the ship was witnessed by Bangladesh Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed, Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan, State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid and other dignitaries.

Ahmed said that cargo ships will now reach and depart from Pangaon to India every 15 days, adding that buyers from home and abroad would be benefited from the operation of the Pangaon container terminal.

Welcoming the arrival of the container ship, Indian High Commissioner to Dhaka Harsh Vardhan Shringla in a message said: "For the first time a ship carrying cargo has sailed from Kolkata to Pangaon which is just over 20 km from Dhaka."

"Today's event is significant as so far, the movement of ships was limited between seaports like Chittagong and Visakhapatnam," the Daily Star quoted Shringla as saying. 

For his part, Bangladeshi Shipping Minister Khan said that the link between the Pangaon terminal and India will save time and money. "The shipping ministry is in the process to procure 36 more ships to boost the use of this network."

With Jat leaders threatening to intensify their agitation for reservation by observing "Balidan Divas" (day of sacrifice) tomorrow, the Haryana police on Saturday said that there will be maximum deployment of forces to prevent any untoward incident.

The agitation seeking reservation in education and government jobs for the Jat community among other demands entered its 21st day on Saturday.

"There will be maximum deployment of forces from Haryana and of the forces from outside the state tomorrow," Haryana's ADGP (Law and Order) Mohd Akil told reporters here.

In view of the fresh round of stir, he said there will be deployment of 37 companies of the paramilitary forces.

He said the Jat leaders spearheading the stir had held a round of talks with a Haryana government-appointed committee of senior bureaucrats and the next round was likely to take place on February 20, which could be held in Panipat, venue of the previous parleys.

Akil said he hoped that those sitting on dharnas would maintain peace the way they had been doing in the current round of stir.

On being asked whether drone cameras would be used to monitor the agitation on Sunday, the ADGP said local field commanders would take a call in that regard.

He said no traffic advisory had been issued for the public for tomorrow.

Akil also stated that the Haryana Police, Central forces and other agencies were coordinating with each other to ensure peace and law and order was maintained.

To a query, the official said action will be taken if anybody was found involved in spreading rumours or misinformation on the social media.

The All-India Jat Aarakshan Sangarsh Samiti (AIJASS), the main body spearheading the fresh stir, had announced that they would decide the future course of action on Februray 19.

AIJASS president Yashpal Malik had said, "February 19 would be observed as 'Balidan Divas' at different places in the country in memory of those who lost their lives during last year's agitation." .

Telecom regulator TRAI will review the rules of tariff assessment with regard to promotional offers and predatory pricing, issues that have triggered a public spat between Reliance Jio and incumbent operators.

These contentious issues would be debated as part of a consultation paper on 'Regulatory Principles of Tariff Assessment' issued by TRAI.

"The consultation paper deals with emergent issues and challenges…related to regulatory principles of tariff assessment, for example, transparency, promotional offers, disclosures and non-discrimination, adherence to the principle of non-predatory pricing, meaning of predatory pricing, relevant market, assessment of dominant position," a TRAI statement said.

TRAI said the consultation "aims to bring about greater clarity in interpretation of various regulatory principles set out in the Telecom Tariff Order in consonance with the best global practices".

The industry and other stakeholders have been asked to submit written comments on these issues by March 17, 2017.

The issues to be debated include new measures that need to be prescribed by the regulator to ensure transparency in the tariff offers made by telecom operators, and strengthening of definition relating to "non-discrimination".

TRAI has sought views on which tariff offers should qualify as "promotional offers" and the need to limit the number of promotional offers that can be launched by an operator in a year one after another or concurrently.

It also seeks suggestions on definition and criteria for "dominance" in relevant telecom markets.

"How to assess significant market power in each relevant market? What are the relevant factors which should be taken into consideration," are questions that have been posed by TRAI in the latest consultation paper.

It will also review the methods and processes that should be applied by the regulator to assess predatory pricing by a service provider in a relevant market.

The review comes amid a standoff between newcomer Reliance Jio and incumbent operators such as Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea Cellular on issues such as predatory pricing, market dominance and extension of promotional offers.

The telecom tribunal is currently hearing a plea by Bharti Airtel and Idea Cellular challenging the regulator's decision to allow Reliance Jio to continue free promotional offer beyond the stipulated 90 days.

At least 680 illegal migrants were sent back to Cuba following the end of "wet foot, dry foot" immigration policy by former President Barack Obama in January, the media reported on Saturday.

A total of 979 illegal migrants returned to Cuba from neighbouring countries this year after a new US immigration policy took effect on January 12, Xinhua news agency reported.

So far, 115 Cubans have been returned from the US and 246 were deported from Mexico.

The long-standing policy granted residency to Cubans who arrived in the US without visas. The special US immigration treatment for Cuba was in place for around 22 years.

After the new policy came into effect, thousands of Cubans have been stranded in countries in Central America and the Caribbean in their attempt to reach the US.

US President Donald Trump has not made any statement regarding the new policy, only saying that his administration is reviewing the thawing ties with Cuba.

The US has pledged to grant at least 20,000 visas for Cubans every year to come to the country legally.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has announced job vacancies for the posts of Scientist/ Engineer on the official website isro.gov.in.

In all, 87 vacancies have been notified and the ISRO Central Recruitment Board (ICRB) has released the detailed notification on the official website isro.gov.in.

Vacancies are available for the post of Scientist/Engineer 'SC' in the disciplines of electronics, mechanical and computer science.

Of the total number of available vacancies, 24 are reserved for persons with disabilities and after selection, candidates will be appointed in level 10 of pay matrix.

Young graduates with minimum educational qualification of BE/BTech or equivalent should apply.

Candidates must have a minimum of 65 per cent marks or CGPA 6.84/10. Those having the qualification of AMIE/ Grad IETE should have secured 65 per cent marks (6.84 CGPA) in Section 'B' alone.

Applications should be submitted online at the official website of ISRO (isro.gov.in) and candidates have to register their applications online between February 15 and March 7, 2017

Candidates should keep the registration number generated after successful online registration and are required to submit the prescribed application fee.

Police on Saturday took into custody DMK MLAs as they sat on protest, led by party chief M.K. Stalin, on Marina beach here against the manner in which the party legislators were evicted from the state assembly.

DMK's Working President Stalin, along with party MLAs, sat on protest near the Mahatma Gandhi statue on the Marina beach.

Police later took the DMK MLAs into custody. DMK supporters blocked the police vehicles at the venue.

A couple of hundred metres away at the Marina beach, there were scenes of jubilation by the AIADMK faction led by V.K. Sasikala on Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami winning the vote of confidence.

Palaniswami, his ministers and other AIADMK party men arrived at the beach to pay their homage to late Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa at her memorial in Marina.

Earlier, Stalin met Tamil Nadu Governor C. Vidyasagar Rao and lodged a complaint against the happenings in the assembly.

Speaking to reporters after he and his party legislators were evicted from the assembly, Stalin said the party had demanded secret ballot to decide on the motion of confidence moved by Chief Minister Palaniswami.

He said the party demanded adjournment of the House for a week so that legislators can go back to their constituencies and seek the people's views before they come back to vote on the confidence motion.

The DMK leader said he sat in protest inside the assembly to press his demand.

Stalin alleged he was forcibly evicted by the marshals and suffered injuries while his shirt was damaged.

He also alleged that the party legislators were assaulted by the marshals while evicting them.

Sandeep Kumar of Haryana smashed his own national record en route to winning the gold medal in the gruelling men's 50km event of the National Race Walking Championships here on Saturday.

Sandeep clocked three hours 55 minutes and 59.05 seconds in a brilliant performance to win the race and qualify for the London World Championships in August. The earlier national record which stood in his name was 3:56:22 which he clocked in the IAAF World Race Walking Cup at Taicang, China in May 2014.

Services athletes Jitender Singh (4:02:11.58) and Chandan Singh (4:04:18.41) won the silver and bronze respectively in the energy-sapping race. Both Jitender and Chandan also booked their berths for the August 4-13 World Championships.

The entry standard for the men's 50km race walk event for the World Championships is 4:06:00.

"I'm very happy to have won the race by smashing my own national record and to have qualified for World Championships in London. It gives me confidence that I can keep on improving and better my timing in future also," Sandeep, who led the race from start to finish, told PTI after the race.

"I will prepare for World Championships in London and I hope to do well there. My target is to win a medal in the Commonwealth and Asian Games next year and then to do even better in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics," said the 30-year-old army man who currently trains at the SAI Center in Bangalore.

DMK Working President MK Stalin on Saturday sat in protest near the Mahatma Gandhi statue on Marina beach against the manner in which he and his party legislators were evicted from the state assembly.

Earlier, he met Tamil Nadu Governor C. Vidyasagar Rao and lodged a complaint against the happenings in the assembly.

Speaking to reporters after he and his party legislators were evicted from the House, Stalin said the party had demanded secret ballot to decide on the motion of confidence moved by Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami.

He said the party demanded adjournment of the House for a week so that legislators can go back to their constituencies and seek the people's views before they come back to vote on the confidence motion.

The DMK leader said he sat in protest inside the assembly to press his demand.

Stalin alleged he was forcibly evicted by the marshals and suffered injuries and his shirt was damaged.

He also alleged that his party legislators were assaulted by the marshals while evicting them.

Saudi Arabia, for the first time, appointed two women to head the Kingdom's stock exchange and a leading newspaper in a move that underscores the current leadership's goal to gradually empower women in a highly conservative society where women's movements and public presence are curtailed by regressive laws.

Sarah Al-Suhaimi, who will be heading the Saudi stock exchange (Tadawul), also became the first female CEO of National Commercial Bank (NCB) when she took over the top post in 2014. She replaces Khalid Al Rabiah at the largest bourse in the Middle East, the media reported on Friday.

She is one of only a few women with a top job in Saudi finance. Her appointment, which was announced on Thursday, was in line with an ambitious economic and social reform programme Vision 2030, which aimed to develop women's role in the economy. 

The programme also aimed to increase their participation in the workforce from 22 per cent to 30 per cent in the coming years.

Before joining the NCB, Suhaimi was the chief investment officer at Jadwa Investment, a closed joint stock company in Saudi Arabia and a senior portfolio manager at banking firm Samba Financial Group. 

She is a Harvard University alumni and her father Jammaz was head of the country's Capital Market Authority between 2004 and 2006.

In another such significant step in the country, the English-language Saudi Gazette announced on its website that journalist Somayya Jabarti will take the helm at the newspaper, the first woman ever to hold the editor-in-chief's position of a Saudi daily newspaper.

Her predecessor, Khaled Almaeena, called Jabarti as a "determined and a dedicated journalist" and said that "it was not a question of gender but of merit that decided and earned her this opportunity", reported the National newspaper.

A record number of over 300 poets will recite their poems at the Agartala Book Fair on Saturday and Sunday.

"The poets are from at least 10 linguistic background who will particiapte at the 35th edition of the fair," Tripura Rabindra Parishad secretary Kalyan Gupta said.

They are from across the state and also some women.

Gupta, along with another poet, Bidhan Roy, is coordinating the programme.

Besides Bengali, poems in different tribal languages are also in the list.

The Tripura government's Information and Cultural Affairs (ICA) Department has been organising the book fair since 1981.

ICA official Debashish Lodh said that the government has been providing transportation allowance to the participating poets from faraway places.

Publishers and book sellers from New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Guwahati, besides Tripura have set up 121 stalls at the fair.

For the first time no publishers and book sellers from Bangladesh were seen taking part.

A record number of books – about 400 titles are expected to be published.