Over the weekend, Yahoo! India launched the "Ask the Planet" forum on Yahoo! India Answers.

Through this platform, Yahoo! intends to highlight some of the pressing issues facing the world today, hoping to spark-off meaningful debate and discussion around the same.

The launch of "Ask the Planet" was kicked off with the first question posted by none other than the Hon'ble President of India, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. Kalam's question is "What should we do to free our planet from terrorism?"

Several leading personalities, including Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Dr Kiran Bedi, Leander Paes, and Akum Longchari have given answers to the President's question.

The best answer will be picked up by the President himself in the month of February.

The "Ask the Planet" series will continue for around 6 weeks, allowing users to answer a string of questions posed by other Indian luminaries and achievers in various fields. The questions will cover subjects such as Education, Health, Law and Enforcement, Games and Recreation, Society and Culture, and so on.

Yahoo! India Answers was initiated by Yahoo! in April 2006, and is an online community where anyone can ask and answer questions on any topic. In June 2006, Yahoo! started its "Ask the Planet" series, inviting luminaries such as Dr Stephen Hawking, Former US Vice President - Al Gore, U2's Bono, amongst others, to post questions on a variety of subjects ranging from survival of the human race to eradication of poverty.

And, these questions have reportedly elicited numerous answers from people across the length and breadth of the globe.

Commenting on the India launch of 'Ask the Planet', George Zacharias, MD of Yahoo! India, said, "We are delighted to bring 'Ask the Planet' Series to India. In line with the objective of Yahoo! Answers in creating a rich knowledge repository, the ATP Series will provide an innovative platform for the millions of Indians based on their real life experiences, to answer some of the biggest questions that touch our lives today."

All those interested can register for this forum by visiting the Yahoo! India Web site at www.yahoo.co.in.