Picture shows wreckage of Sukhoi plane broken into many small pieces

The Search and Rescue Agency on Thursday displayed the picture of wreckage of the Sukhoi super jet- 100 plane that was broken into many small pieces at the slope of a mountain in Bogor regency near Jakarta,

Fannie Mae back in black for first time since 2008

U.S. mortgage giant Fannie Mae said Wednesday it had returned to profitability and would not need Treasury aid for the first time since the financial crisis.

SOCIETY IN BRIEF 10/5

Dong Nai authorities inspect petrol stations; More remains of Vietnamese martyrs repatriated from Laos; Two Chinese held for allegedly robbing taxi; Foreigners seek stem cell treatments

Road maintenance fee proposal draws fire

VietNamNet Bridge – The Government should put off collecting the road-maintenance fee until the economy recovers, transport operators told a conference in HCM City yesterday, May 9.

Vietnam’s position unchanged on FIFA rankings

VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam still ranks 97th on the FIFA rankings for April, taking the lead in Southeast Asia. In the top 100, Argentina moves on grade to replace Denmark at 9th position.

Banks would not slash interest rates unless they are forced to do so

Businesses, economists and bankers all have raised doubts about the application of the fixed interest rate margin set up by the State Bank of Vietnam.

Merger of Hanoi’s theaters cancelled

VietNamNet Bridge – Being protested by many artists, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has decided to not merge the Vietnam Drama Theatre and the Youth Theatre into the Vietnam National Drama Theatre.

Da Nang Airport’s belt forest in fire

VietNamNet Bridge – After two explosions, the forest to the west of the Da nang International Airport flared up. The Air force Division 372, which is garrisoned near the airport, sent troops to extinguish the fire.

Truck crashes into coach, 12 sent to hospital

VietNamNet Bridge – On the afternoon of May 9, a coach carrying over 20 passengers from Tien Giang province to HCM City was crashed by a 15-ton truck on Nguyen Van Linh Road, HCM City.

Vietnam ousted from Asian Football Cup

VietNamNet Bridge – In the last match of group H, Navibank Saigon was trounced 2-6 by Indonesian FC – Arema. This was the last Vietnamese FC that was rejected from the Asian Football Cup (AFC Cup).

Giving more space to cars, Saigon’s gateway in congestion

VietNamNet Bridge – In the last few days, serious traffic jams occurred during rush hour on the Northwestern gateway of HCM City. Thousands of motorbikes moved inch by inch while there were several vehicles on the lane for cars.

Vietnam to clear dioxin contamination by advanced technology

Experts from Vietnam and the US met at a seminar in Hanoi on May 8 to discuss the use of ‘In-Pile Thermal Desorption’ (IPTD) technology to clean up Agent Orange or Dioxin contamination from the Da Nang Airport area.

Vietnam to tone down public investment funding

At the 8th session of the 13th Standing Committee meeting of the National Assembly in Hanoi on May 5, it was discussed that even though public investment funding on construction projects had increased, the results were far from effective.

Nearly 550 fires, explosions in four months

The first four months of 2012 saw 546 fires and explosions that left 23 dead and 42 injured, and caused total losses of VND128.5 billion, the police department for preventing and extinguishing fires reports.   

Government stops imports of outdated equipment

Vietnam has put a halt to the import of outdated second-hand machinery, equipment and production lines because they are energy hungry and harmful to the environment.

SPORTS IN BRIEF 10/5

Adi Pratama to practise with top seeded Nguyen Tien Minh; Local players to compete at Asian Beach Games; Return to Countryside cycling event to kick off

Liem claims third win at Asian chess tourney

VietNamNet Bridge – Liem continues his winning streak after beating compatriot Nguyen Van Huy in the fourth round at the Asian Chess Championships currently being held in HCM City.

U.S. president announces support for gay marriage

U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday announced his support for same-sex marriage during an interview with ABC News, reversing his long-standing opposition to the matter.

Viettronic brand falls into oblivion

Like Da Lan, Viettronic was once a “brilliant brand” on the Vietnamese electronics market, but it has fallen into oblivion when foreign manufacturers flocked to the country.

Hydropower plants in central region and the warned disasters

VietNamNet Bridge – It is estimated that one megawatt of hydropower plant swallows up 16 hectares of forests.

Local colours inspire Indian art

VietNamNet Bridge – Indian artists were so inspired by Vietnamese landscapes and people that, after only a 10-day visit, they created beautiful artworks in honour of the Viet Nam-India fine arts exhibition held last weekend in Ha Noi.

Winning gold at Grand Prix, Vietnam doesn’t have Olympic card

VietNamNet Bridge – On the first day of the Asian Grand Prix 2012, Truong Thanh Hang won a gold medal for women’s 800m running but she did not get a ticket to the Olympics yet.

Conjoined twin girls to be split today

VietNamNet Bridge – The Hanoi-based Central Pediatrics Hospital is going to perform a separation operation on the conjoined twin girls which were born in Ha Giang last week this afternoon, May 10.

Russian plane missing with 46 on board in Indonesia

Search and rescue was underway after a Russian-made commercial plane with at least 46 people on board went missing on Wednesday in West Java, Indonesia, spokesman of Transport Ministry Bambang Ervan said.

Hanoi nursery schools enroll pupils through… lucky draws

The parents in Hanoi have been told that they would not have to stay all night queuing up for registering to study for their children any more. State owned nursery schools in Hanoi have decided to organize lucky draws to choose pupils.