A strong aftershock of magnitude 7.1 jolted Japan's northeast on Monday on the one-month anniversary of the devastating quake and tsunami that had left thousands of people dead, prompting authorities to evacuate workers from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant. The epicentre of the latest quake, which occurred at 17:16 hours local time, was in an area in Fukushima prefecture, about 164 km northeast of Tokyo, and it struck at a depth of just 10 km.

Adding to Japan's misery, the strongest aftershock since the devastating March 11 quake and tsunami killed at least four people, knocked out power to millions of houses and sparked fresh concerns about the radiation-leaking Fukushima nuclear plant where the crisis is far from over.

Battling highly radioactive water from leaking into the sea, desperate Japanese engineers on Monday pumped coloured powder to trace leakage, as the operator Tokyo Electric Power Company announced plans to dump 11,500 tonnes of contaminated water into the ocean to clear storage space at Fukushima nuclear plant.

High radiation has seeped into groundwater under the crisis-hit Fukushima nuclear plant, authorities said on Friday, as Japanese and United States troops launched an intensive air and sea search for thousands of people who remained unaccounted for after the March 11 quake and tsunami.

The fear of being affected by radiation has prevented authorities from collecting around 1,000 bodies of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami victims from within the 20-kilometer-radius evacuation zone near the troubled Fukushima nuclear plant.

In what mimics the classic sci-fi movie 'Journey To The Centre Of The Earth', British scientists claim to be planning to drill through five miles of solid rock to Earth's mantle for the first time, and bring back samples.

The identities of around 4,000 bodies collected following the March 11 9.0-magnitute earthquake and ensuing tsunami still remain unconfirmed, the country's National Police Agency has said.

The Supreme Court dismissed former Kerala Power Minister R Balakrishnan Pillai and another official P K Sanjeev' petitions seeking bail and review of its judgement awarding one year rigorous imprisonment in the Idamalayar dam corruption case.

VJM-04, Force India's car for the 2011 Formula One season, completed its first ever laps with Adrian Sutil on driving duties on the first day of the second pre-season test at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit in Spain.

The Supreme Court on Thursday awarded one-year rigorous imprisonment to former Kerala power minister and senior most member of the Opposition United Democratic Front R Balakrishnan Pillair in the Idamalayar dam corruption case. Two others --Rajendran Nair, the then chief engineer of electricity and V K Sanjeevan, the contractor of the Idamalayar -- were also given the same sentence.

Joined by two new teammates, Adrian Sutil, Force India's senior most driver for the 2011 season, refused to be labelled as lead racer of the team, but is optimistic of breaking the podium duck this year.

Force India has launched its 2011 car, the VJM-04, which will carry the hopes of Adrian Sutil, British rookie Paul di Resta and test driver Nico Hulkenberg in the coming Formula One season. The team finished seventh in the constructors standings in 2010 -- its best-ever finish -- and chairman and team principal Vijay Mallya is expecting even better results in 2011.

Karun Chandhok will test for Team Lotus in Spain next week as a potential reserve for the Formula One outfit, principal Tony Fernandes said on Sunday.

Blocking internet access with a simple flip of the switch, called 'kill switch', is becoming a reality in many countries.

If Indian soldiers became known worldwide for their professionalism as fearless fighters in many campaigns, including World Wars I and II, from India's Independence onwards, their natural instinct and expertise for humanitarian work got established and acknowledged by the United Nations Organisation, since their first assignment in Korea, where, as part of the Custodian Force, they did the task commendably.

A train carrying 900 passengers left from Yichang City, central Hubei Province for Chongqing in Wanzhou district.

Team Rediff.com asked veterans Congress watchers all over India to give their opinion about Congress's weaknesses and strengths in the states and how people perceive the local leadership. The opinions outline the perception that the party is suffering from terminal cancer. Only a miracle can save it.

Steven Moneghetti, chef de mission of Australia, on Tuesday lashed out at Commonwealth Games organisers, saying that his country's contingent were "treated like cattle" as they were forced to wait in a tunnel "in cauldron conditions" for a long time before the march past in Sunday's opening ceremony.

The United States-based Apple's latest iPhone4, which was launched in China five days ago, contains censored maps depicting Arunachal Pradesh as part of the Chinese territory.

In a quiet move, Pakistan is handing over de-facto control of the strategic Gilgit- Baltistan region in the Occupied Kashmir to China in an area witnessing a simmering rebellion against Islamabad. The New York Times said that there were two important new developments in Gilgit-Baltistan; a simmering rebellion against the Pakistani rule and the influx of an estimated 7,000 to 11,000 soldiers of the Chinese People's Liberation Army in the area, which is closed to the world.

China is gearing up to road test an eco-friendly "straddle" super bus, which is high enough to allow a two-lane tunnel beneath it for cars to pass through.

After several missed deadlines, the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the main venue for the Commonwealth Games, was finally inaugurated by Sports Minister M S Gill and Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Tuesday.

England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who has had two knee operations since helping England win the Ashes, hopes to make his long-awaited return from knee surgery 'in the next few weeks'.

Pakistan has invited India for a meeting to discuss the appointment of neutral experts for the controversial Kishanganga hydel power project.The meeting is scheduled to take place on July 13 in Islamabad. Both India and Pakistan have agreed on international arbitration over the controversial project in Bandipora district of Jammu and Kashmir.However, if the two countries fail to reach a consensus during the talks, the experts will be decided by a draw of lots by World Bank,UN

However you may be feeling right after a break-up, you need to remember that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and your grief, however deep it is, will not last forever.

The dreaded Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam may have been wiped off from Sri Lanka, but its lessons to Naxals are showing in the form of attacks carried out by improvised explosive devices with precision in the hinterlands of Chhattisgarh. The Left-wing extremists used the technique to blow-up a civilian bus on Monday in which at least 50 people were feared killed, officials said. The Maoists staged the attack by digging a tunnel on either side of the road.

Amid a general alert across Mumbai, a thick security blanket has been thrown in and around Arthur Road Jail where a special court will pronounce its verdict in the Mumbai terror attacks case tomorrow.

Pakistani gunman Ajmal Kasab has complained to the special court that jail authorities are giving him food laced with drugs as a result of which he feels 'giddy.'

With private consumption growing 3.6 per cent versus 18.1 per cent for government in April-September 2009, and investment growth falling to around half, any decision on phasing out has to be taken carefully.

The new Malaysian-backed Lotus F1 team are ready to start wind tunnel tests on a scale model of their car only a month after they were handed a place on the 2010 starting grid. Gascoyne, who has worked at various Formula One teams including Renault and Toyota, said Lotus are aiming for a roll out of the new car in mid-February to test it before the season-opener in Bahrain in March.

Falguni Pathak, the Queen of Dandiya gets candid with her fans.

Here's a look at the winners.

The Wake Up Sid team -- producer Karan Johar, director Ayaan Mukherjee and cast Ranbir Kapoor and Konkona Sen Sharma -- came together to launch a video blog to promote their film.

Directors Soham Shah and Pradeep Sarkar wish the star.

Called the 'Sikh National Conference: Taking Heritage into the 21st Century,' the event was organised by the Kaur Foundation in Washington in collaboration with the division of the library and the Asian Division Friends Society. It featured a series of lectures, panel discussions, film screenings and photo exhibits.

Shruti Haasan talks about her first film, Luck.

Few players in world football fit the Galactico description better than Cristiano Ronaldo and the Portuguese box of tricks appears to be on the verge of re-locating to his natural habitat at Real Madrid.

Vijay Nair, a 25-year-old Mumbaikar, has worked to put India's indie music scene on the map. His hard work is starting to pay off, as recently he was named the British Council's Young Music Entrepreneuer of the Year.

Automakers finish 2008 on a bleak note. Expect 2009 to be worse.

As the borewell was just one foot in diameter, army engineers have dug a parallel 55-ft tunnel to pull out the child, rescuers said. "It will be extended by 5 ft or so and then a trench will be dug towards the borewell," they added.