>> welcome to "newsweek south asia." cloud bursts and flash floods wreak havoc. the u.s. holds direct talks with the taliban in doha.

one of the worst tragedies of the millennia has hit a northern indian state. flash floods and cloud bursts every tactic in the region. thousands are thought dead and trapped. a rescue operation has been mounted i the army and the air force. the death toll from flooding and landslides following heavy monsoon rains in the northern indian studio has passed 500. bodies can be seen floating or buried in slush. the army is working to recover them. the charity organization action aid said 5000 people are missing in the area, many stranded hindu pilgrims visiting local shrines.

the worst affected is holy town town where the temple was completely devastated by mother nature's ferry, described as a himalayan tsunami. >> [speaking a foreign language] >> the prime minister described the situation as distressing, and announced in a package for the state. the relatives of those missing a weight the news. there is a relief effort, with

medicines and food flown to the flooded areas. >> assistance and aid to the families of those who lost their lives. 50,000 to those who have been injured will be provided from the prime minister's national relief fund. further, we will provide, from the prime minister's national relief fund, additional assistance to those whose houses have been completely destroyed, and at least 50,000 each to those whose houses have been damaged. i have decided to provide an amount of rupees two disaster relief, of which at least 135 will be released immediately.

>> the monsoon has come early. the heavy rains have swollen the ganges river. up ahead, there is evidence of land slips. the disaster has been described as the worst tragedy of the millennium. so far, more than 20,000 people have headed to safety, but 50,000 people are still trapped. >> [speaking a foreign-language]

>> more than 2000 vehicles with stranded pilgrims have been moved out of the area. 36 air force helicopters have been carrying workers, doctors, equipment, food, and medicine. another seven aircraft came to the region. hundreds of people looking for relatives demonstrated in the state capital. flood survivors were taken there by helicopters. the united states has decided to open direct talks with the taliban in doha. the taliban has already opened its office, where secret talks have been taking place.

miffed by the development, they pull out of the process by the afghan president. it is believed pakistan has bought -- brought the taliban to the table. the u.s. wants to wrap up its operation in 2014, and is desperate to broker some kind of peace arrangement. here is the report. >> the u.s. government and taliban delayed their direct high-level talks, expected to start soon in qatar's doha. the talks, aimed at ending years of fighting, or also meant to draw in afghan officials. but before the talks had even started, things got off key. black suv's, likely belonging

to american security personnel, showed up in the new taliban office. the president was due to meet taliban representatives for the first direct, open, high-level u.s.-taliban meeting. secret discussions began to years ago. the taliban office opened in doha under the name of the political office of the islamic emirate of pakistan. >> i want to publicly commend president karzai for taking this courageous step, and his determination to end the conflict and build a future of security, peace, and prosperity for the afghan people. i know the president shares my view on this. we will continue to support these efforts, in partnership with the afghan government. i want to repeat -- we do not

anticipate this process will be easy or quick. what we must pursue it in parallel with our military approach. we, in the meantime, remain fully committed toward military efforts to defeat al qaeda and support the afghan national security forces. >> afghan president hamid karzai was outraged, and he canceled his delegation. part of the controversy has been the flag of the islamic emirate of afghanistan, was hanging in the office before it was taken out, along with the office being painted. afghan president hamid karzai said his government would not join u.s. with the taliban until they were led by afghans, adding that it would suspend negotiations with the united states on a troop pact.

however, karzai said in a statement as long as the peace process is not afghan-lead, the high peace council will not participate in the talks in qatar, referring to a body he set up in 2010 to seek a negotiated peace with the taliban. >> we hope that our brothers, the taliban, also understand that the talks for the use progress will move to their own soil in afghanistan soon, to ensure the peace in afghanistan. >> india has come out in strong support of afghan president hamid karzai, following his spat with the u.s. over overtures to the taliban, stating the reconciliation process should not seek to create equal status between the government and insurgent groups.

there were mixed reactions on the street of couple over the opening of the taliban office in qatar. -- in the streets of kabul over the opening of the taliban office in qatar. >> [speaking a foreign language] >> today, we condemn the office of the taliban in qatar, because it is not acceptable at all for us. any other name, even if they use the islamic emirates of afghanistan, the name of the taliban when they were in power of afghanistan -- the name of afghanistan, according to the constitution, is the islam of afghanistan. also, the flag and the political office. it seems to me that is their embassy. it is assumed to be an embassy. we condemn and reject that.

we ask thomas according to the constitution, and the agenda for peace, and he talk, needs to be approved by the parliament of afganistan. i think suspending the security agreement talk is not the right decision. speeding the process is a decision. 's eating the process means making more united states commitment to what they promised to the people of afghanistan. even more speed to that, signing as soon as possible this agreement, with the frame of the afghan national interest, is priority. through that, we will receive military assistance for the afghan national security force. >> the white house insists that peace with the taliban can only be achieved at the bargaining table, and not on the battlefield.

the taliban said it wants the guantánamo bay prison closed, detainees released, and foreign invaders out of the country. it added, until then, no cease- fire. it has been more than a decade since the u.s.-led coalition forces invaded afghanistan. their aim-to ouster the taliban out of power. they did, and out of sight, they did not will stop after thousands of lives have been lost, a new chapter might be written. >> what is going on here is a symbolic battle over the recognition of the taliban as a legitimate faction in the future of the state. republic, emirate, the conversations are the same. they have been going on for two years. there has been no change in what

the taliban want and what the americans want. it has been ongoing. >> pakistan's powerful military has in a central role in convincing afghanistan's taliban rebels to hold talks with the u.s.. a shift from widely held views in washington that it was obstructing peace in the region. u.s. and taliban officials were due to meet in doha, the capital of qatar, in the next few days, raising hopes for negotiated keys after 12 years of war between american-led forces and the islamist insurgents. neighboring pakistan's role in the war has been ambiguous. it is a u.s. ally, but has a long history of supporting the taliban as its proxy in afghanistan. part of its wider jockeying with regional india.

>> we extended facilitation through the doha process. we think that process is part of the larger reconciliation process. which in turn will help bring an end to the war, and bring lasting peace to afghanistan. our stance remains that it has to be an all-inclusive intra- afghan dialogue. what is happening in doha is a part of that reconciliation process. it is our hope and expect haitian that all stakeholders in afghanistan will be part of the national reconciliation process. >> western officials believe pakistan may now calculate that its interest is better served by helping to broker peace.

that would lead to the emergence of a friendly government in kabul, capable of stabilizing afghanistan, and preventing chaos from spilling over the border. >> it is time now for a break, but stay tuned after the break. pakistan's job government donates millions of rupees two a power center. and an upcoming romantic thriller will release its first look in mumbai. now, after the break -- the campaign in the run-up to the elections promised to take stern action against militant groups. ironically, instead of taking action, the sharif government has allocated huge funds to the

band terror outfit. the government of the job robbins has allocated millions of rupees in its budget for fiscal 2013-2014 to the largest center of a front for the band group. -- banned group. besides a grant in aid of over 61 million rupees for the center, the provincial government has allocated at least 350 million for setting up a knowledge park in the center, and other development initiatives. >> [speaking a foreign language]

>> details of the allocations were presented in budget documents tabled in the job assembly by the government. the center is located on the outskirts of lahore. shortly after the un security council designated the group a front, in the wake of the 2008 mumbai attacks, the punjab government took over the center. at that time, job was ruled by the pmf. since then, the government has

allocated money in its annual budget for the administration of the center. in 2009, the government provided more than 82 million rupees for the administration of j.u.d. facilities. >> [speaking a foreign language] >> in the past, the punjab government defended its decision of allocating money to the j.u.d. by saying the grants have been awarded for the administration. there is no formal band on the -- ban on the j.u.d., and the

chief lives freely in lahore despite a $10 million bounty offered on him by the u.s. the mother organization has been responsible for masterminding one of the deadliest attacks against india, including 2611. >> moving onto bali would, we take a sneak peak. the cast and crew of an upcoming romantic thriller film released a first look in showbiz capital move by. quite -- capital mumbai. ♪ ♪

>> the cast and crew of an upcoming romantic thriller watched its first show in mumbai. ♪ ♪ starring bali would actors, it was deduced under the banner of [indiscernible] the lead actor of the film said his role is a mixture of

everything. >> [speaking a foreign language] >> [speaking a foreign language] >> it is a perfect wreckage to create character. i grab on. >> stupid. >> the entire cast was seen promoting it as they unveiled its poster.

the director of the movie told the reporters how he came to the idea of making this film, and how producers, after rejecting his previous scripts, finally supported this one. >> [speaking a foreign language]

>> it is a romantic thriller inspired from "romeo and juliet ." it contains mafia. the film is set to release in theaters on july 26, 2013. >> [speaking a foreign language] >> [speaking a foreign language]

>> with that, we come to an end of this week of newsweek south asia. next week, more news, views, and analysis from the subcontinent. meanwhile, keep writing in to us. this is a sign off on behalf of the entire production team of newsweek south asia.