the several important positions held by him include commanding an armoured engineer regiment in the plains, a mountain brigade in the north-east and a Rashtriya Rifles Force in Jammu and Kashmir.

Prior to this new appointment as the Eastern Army Commander, Lt-Gen Singh Rai was placed as the Chief of Staff of the South Western Command headquartered at Jaipur, Rajasthan. He was awarded the Vishisht Seva Medal (VSM) as a Brigadier and Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) as GOC for distinguished service.

On taking over as the Eastern Army Comman-der today, Lt-Gen Singh Rai first paid homage at

the Vijay Smarak at Fort William by laying a wreath.A French judicial official says two suspects have been given preliminary charges for the murder with anti-Semitic motives of an elderly Jewish woman.

The two men have been jailed, the official said. He was speaking anonymously to discuss the ongoing investigation.

Leading Jewish group CRIF said the 85-year-old woman was slain last week in Paris' eastern 11th district. Mireille Knoll was found dead when a fire broke out in her flat. She had been stabbed several times.

The victim had reportedly escaped a round-up of Jews in Paris during World War II.

A silent march will take place Wednesday in Paris in memory of the victim.