Terrorism treaty on Blair’s plate

SHIMLA: It may have been the erstwhile summer capital of the British Raj where viceroys spent time, but it is for the first time that it will have the privilege of hosting a British premier, who is to be here on September 8.
Tony Blair will be here with his wife and will fly into the Kalyani helipad, located near the Retreat, which also happens to be the summer residence of the President of India.
From the helipad he will drive to Wildflower Hall, where he and PM Manmohan Singh are to sign a treaty against terrorism.
Incidentally, this will be the second important agreement to be signed by two heads of the state in this historic city.
The first was the Shimla agreement that was signed by late PM Indira Gandhi and Pakistani premier Zulfiqar Ali Butto.
Though Blair will be in the city for just a...
... couple of hours, he will have a special lunch hosted by PM Manmohan Singh, at Wildflower Hall and then an aerial view of the place.
Wildflower Hall, today a hotel owned by the Oberoi Group, at one point of time it was a favourite retreat of Lord Ripon and later acquired by Lord Kitchener, the then commander-inchief of the Indian Army.
Located on top of a hill, about 1,000 feet higher than Shimla, it is in the midst of pine woods with acres of lush green lawns and has housed famous names like the UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and her family and cricketer Sachin Tendulkar.