1.   Buddhist tribal rebels fighting for political and economic autonomy in the southern hills region have urged the new government in Bangladesh to reopen a political dialogue suspended last year.

2.   The Prime Minister said that after signing the historic CHT peace accord , the government had undertaken many programmes for overall development of the hill region.

3.   Bangladeshi tea is grown largely in southeastern and northeastern Bangladesh hill regions and this port city of Chittagong serves as a major centre for its domestic trading and export.

4.   Election officials said the voting was brisk in areas close to the Pakistani border populated mainly by Hindus and in the Buddhist hill region of Ladakh.

5.   The outlawed tribal Shanti Bahini rebels in the hill tracts region, bordering India and Burma, were a major source of weapons, police said.

6.   It was brisk in border areas populated mainly by Hindus, who are outnumbered by Moslems in Kashmir, and in the Buddhist hill region of Ladakh.

7.   Medical sources said hundreds of troops fighting tribal insurgents and officials in the hill region were suffering from malaria, with many cases of plasmodium falciparum.