From the archives of the Hindustan Times: November 7

Pataudi is skipper (1974)

Bombay- Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi has been re-called to lead India in all the five cricket Tests against the visiting West Indies team.

This was announced here this evening by Prof M V Chandgadkar, honorary secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

The selection committee, which met here today (November 6) under the chairmanship of Mr. C.D Gopinath, was unanimous in its choice, he said.

Answering questions after the announcement, Prof Chandgadkar said several names came up for consideration but the ultimate choice was unanimous.

Prof Chandgadkar said India’s team for the first Test will be announced on the second day of the match between South Zone and the West Indies in Hyderabad beginning on Nov. 16. “That is the programme at present.” he added

He said that Mansur Ali Khan had already been told about his selection as captain. The captain will be in Poona tomorrow when the West Indies start their tour with a match against West Zone.

Pataudi regains captaincy of India after he was dropped from that position late in 1970. Because of business and other commitments he had written to the Board that he was not available for tours abroad so he was not considered for India’s tours of the West Indies and England in 1971 and also earlier this year for a repeat tour of England, all under the leadership of Ajit Wadekar who has since retired from first-class cricket. Pataudi, however played under Wadekar in three Tests in the home series against England in 1972-73.

Clinton re-elected for second term (1996)

Washington- President William Jefferson Clinton tonight (November 6) became the second Democrat in 60 years, after the legendary Franklin D. Roosevelt, to be elected to a second term in the White House.

Clinton did it in style, with 50 per cent of the popular vote to Republican challenger Robert Dole’s 42 per cent. Billionaire Ross Perot, the gadfly Reform Party candidate, found his share of the vote come down to 8 per cent from the 19 per cent he had won in 1992.

However, Republicans have kept control of the US Senate after winning 16 of the 34 senate seats to give them a 51-seat majority.

The President’s coattails were not able to sweep Democratic contenders in congressional elections to a victory. Projections are that the Republicans will continue to control both the Senate and the House of Representatives.

President Clinton’s performance in the electoral college vote was even more impressive. Although all the returns had not come in, he was projected to win over 400 of the 538 electoral votes in what would be considered a landslide. Only 270 electoral votes are required to win the election.

Mr. Clinton caused an upset in Florida, generally considered a Republican State that gave him a valuable 25 eletoral votes. Clinton had campaigned hard in the State, hoping to wrest it away from the Republicans. His television blitz, portraying Dole and the Republicans as uncaring about safeguarding Medicare benefits, apparently went down well with the large number of retirees in the State. Clinton also benefited from the gender gap, with 55 per cent of women voting for him against 41 per cent of the men.

Mr. Clinton’s hope of wresting Texas from the Republicans did not work. Despite a sustained campaign and use of considerable resources, Dole won the State and its 32 electoral votes.

GRACIOUS IN DEFEAT: Dole conceded defeat before midnight, putting a brave front on a multi-month effort that failed. “Tomorrow will be the first time in my life I would not have anything to do,” he quipped in a speech at his campaign headquarters where he informed his supporters that he had already congratulated President Clinton. He pledged his support in whatever endeavours the President might make as we go into the 21st century.

Jobs, trade for US dominate Day 1 (2010)

Mumbai- American and Indian companies signed deals worth billions of dollars on the first day of US President Barack Obama’s visit to India, underlining the increasing role economic ties will play in relations between the two countries.

American firms have signed more than 20 deals with Indian companies that will lead to nearly $10 billion in US exports and support more than 50,000 jobs at home, the US president announced to a gathering of CEOs from both countries in Mumbai on Saturday. The deals are valued at nearly $15 billion, the White House later said in a statement.

“The United States sees Asia, especially India, as the market of the future,” said Obama, who is travelling with what is probably the largest contingent of CEOs and corporate heads ever to accompany a US president on a foreign trip. “We don’t simply welcome your rise, we ardently support it. We want to invest in it.”

Obama told the gathering of CEOs that the US would ease export restrictions that would allow the two countries to cooperate in high-tech sectors.

This would allow American companies to do business with several Indian defence and space organisations that the US had blacklisted after India conducted nuclear tests in 1998.

Obama’s failure to mention Pakistan’s role in the 26/11 terror attacks at his speech earlier during a memorial service for the carnage’s victims already indicated that economics and not geopolitics would dominate his visit.