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Court seeks report on hygienic
Dreaded gangsters arrested, arms seized
HC orders probe into molestation by teacher
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Give account of offerings at Nizamuddin Dargah: HC
Is Assembly poll a vote on Sheila’s performance?
INLD govt to win on basis of its work: Dy Speaker
50 lakh to cast vote in 12 constituencies
Row in Cong over trifurcation
Law and order worst in UP: Jaiswal
SGSC urges youths to adhere to code of conduct
‘Arbitrary’ transfer of officials flayed
Rockets in 6 places point the finger at terrorists
MCD nod to ‘Partnership Project’ for waste disposal
NSUI demands date for Jamia poll
Pan vendors told to keep off schools
Students of engg colleges jam traffic
Teachers overburdened to produce result
Only Yoga has cure to the problems like stress: Ramdev
DoE holds debate competition
Engineer jumps to death
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Court seeks report on hygienic state of Safdarjung
New Delhi, October 6 A Bench comprising Chief Justice B. C. Patel and Justice B. D. Ahmed wondered when it has already come on record that there was no dearth of funds then why the poor patients have to pay for treatment received at the hospital. The direction was given to the Centre following a report by amicus curiae Sanjeev Khanna, which brought to the court’s notice that a sum of Rs 40 thousand was being charged even from the poor patients in Cardio Thoracic Department for the consumable item. After the Bench was informed that the hospital has an annual budget of Rs 60 crore and Rs 40 crore has been earmarked as non-plan expenditure, it sought to know how the funds are being utilised by the hospital administration. The report said major problems could be solved by better management and by appointment of doctors and para-medical staff. The cleanliness and waterlogging problem highlighted by the media report could be taken care of by better administrative handling as suggested by the amicus curiae, the court said. It said overcrowding of the wards could be controlled if authorities restrict the number of visitors coming to the hospital. This would also help to improve the sanitation condition of the hospital, the Bench said.
Compensation order in building collapse case
New Delhi, October 6 After it was informed that about Rs 15.5 lakh of the Rs 18 lakh likely to be disbursed among the victim’s families have been recovered from the concerned authority and persons, a Bench of Chief Justice B. C. Patel and Justice B. D. Ahmed directed that the remaining amount be paid by the three MCD officials, contractor and the property owners. The Bench said Rs one lakh would be paid by the erring contractor while Rs 75,000 each by the property owners and Rs 50,000 by the MCD engineers. Advocate Sanjeev Khanna, appearing as amicus curiae in the matter, had computed the quantum of compensation after taking into account various aspects of the Labour Law. The court had suo motu taken action into the incident and has been monitoring the probe as well as action taken by the MCD against the officials for allowing the unauthorised construction. The court had made it clear to parties responsible for the accident, which occurred due to unauthorised construction, that in order to avoid prosecution in the matter, they needed to take collective responsibility for the tragic incident.
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Dreaded gangsters arrested, arms seized
New Delhi, October 6 According to the police, Dimpy was wanted for his alleged involvement in several cases of murder and kidnapping. He was also seen with some senior political leaders of Indian National Lok Dal in Haryana, said the Joint Commissioner of Police, Special Cell, Karnail Singh. The police said that Pawan, one of the accused, is indulged in liquor business in Haryana and is the nephew of Haryana MLA Vidya Beniwal. The police recovered three Chinese pistols, one country-made pistol and 27 live cartridges from them. The police also recovered one Honda City car with VIP registration number –0009 from them. Dimpy had allegedly kidnapped Jaipuriya from Bangalore in 1997. Later, the police arrested him and the case is now with the CBI. He was also involved in the kidnapping of one Rungta of Banaras. Thereafter, he went to Haryana in 2000, where he was arrested but managed to flee from the clutches of the Haryana police while he was in a hospital for treatment. During interrogation, Dimpy disclosed that Darshan Lal, a liquor seller and a resident of Bhatinda, had cheated him, so he killed him. The police further said that Anurag and Ramesh were wanted by the UP police, too. Anurag was allegedly involved in seven cases of murder. Chain snatchers arrested 23 gamblers nabbed
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HC orders probe into molestation by teacher
New Delhi, October 6 A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice B. C. Patel and Justice B. D. Ahmed quashed the ‘internal’ inquiry conducted by the society after allegations by the parents of the minor, and directed for an investigation by a retired District Judge. All parties were ordered to cooperate with the inquiry officer and he was given the power to call for any record. The retired judge would submit his report to the High Court in a sealed cover and the society and the parents would share the expenses. The parties were told to jointly appear before the inquiry officer within two weeks. The High Court had directed the city police to expedite the trial proceedings in the case on August 11. The Division Bench told the Delhi Police counsel Mukta Gupta to ensure the disposal of the case as early as possible in view of the sensitive nature of the case. Acting on allegations that the internal inquiry was a ‘sham’, the High Court had also called for the record of the ‘internal’ inquiry into the incident conducted by the society running the private school. The High Court had issued notice to the Delhi Government and the society running the music school in the matter on July 23. The plea sought guidelines for protection of children studying in schools on the lines of the Supreme Court’s judgement on sexual harassment of women in work places. The Division Bench issued notice to the Delhi Chief Secretary, Joint Director, State Commission of Industries, State Director of Education, Delhi Music Society and its functionaries and the two Inquiry Officers, who conducted an in-house inquiry into the allegations made by the girl against the teacher. Alleging that the society was trying to hush up the matter, the petition sought an independent and proper probe. It was claimed that there had been similar incidents in the past also. On being informed that the accused teacher had been reinstated after the incident, the judges asked the State counsel to find out why a man accused of a crime involving moral turpitude had been allowed to join back. On March 23, 2004, an FIR had been filed in this connection. The accused was arrested and released on bail the same day.
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Give account of offerings at Nizamuddin Dargah: HC
New Delhi, October 6 A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice B. C. Patel and Justice B. D. Ahmed directed all parties concerned including the Peerzadas (caretakers) to file affidavits and documents to state the average amount of offerings that were made each day at the Dargah. The judges were hearing a PIL alleging “mismanagement and misappropriation” of funds by the caretakers of the Dargah. The court also directed the Survey Commissioner of the Delhi Waqf Board, who had been appointed by the court to monitor the offerings, to make a note of each and every item and offering. While the Survey Commissioner had reported that offerings worth more than Rs 7,000 per day were made at the Dargah, the caretaker families had claimed the figure to be less that Rs 5,000 per day. The petitioner had, however, claimed that about Rs 10,000 were offered each day and the offerings swelled to much more during the holy month of Ramzan and on Fridays and Sundays.
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Is Assembly poll a vote on Sheila’s performance?
New Delhi, October 6 “It is a one-sided election,” say Rajesh Lamba and Rajesh Lilothia, both of the Congress party, about the October 13 by-elections. The Rajouri Garden and Baljit Nagar (SC) seats fell vacant following the resignations of Mr Ajay Maken and Ms Krishna Teerath (both of the Congress), respectively, who were elected to the Lok Sabha in the last elections. The Congress has been winning both the seats for the last three elections. However, the candidates of the BJP, Mr Ramesh Khanna (Rajouri Garden) and Rajkumar Mehra, (Baljit Nagar) feel that despite the history of the two seats being in favour of the Congress, the day-by-day deterioration in civic services, coupled with the hike in taxes for these services, has created a feeling of disenchantment with the present government. However, according to Mr Lamba, his predecessor Ajay Maken has done enough developmental work in the constituency to ensure his victory. Fellow partyman Lilothia, the Delhi Youth Congress President, has the same arguments to put forward. “Development was the issue in the last election and it will be so again in this election,” said Mr Lilothia. The BJP, however, feels that the Sheila Dikshit government has taken several decisions during the last one-year, which have burdened the common man. “The steep rise in house tax under the unit area method, arbitrary closure of industrial units, impending hike in water charges after privatisation of its distribution, permitting bars and shops to open till late night, which is creating law and order problem, are some of the decisions that have made life of the common man difficult,” said the Delhi BJP chief, Dr Harshvardhan. Moreover, Ms Dikshit’s “backtracking” on the issue of statehood for Delhi cannot be overlooked by the people, he added. Realising the importance of interacting with the electorates, the candidates said they were concentrating more on door-to-door contact and Padyatras than on public meetings.
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INLD govt to win on basis of its work: Dy Speaker
Gurgaon, October 6 Mr Gehlot’s tone of utterances left no one in doubt that he was raising the bar regarding poll preparedness of the INLD. As if to drive home the point, he asserted that the INLD will win the election once again. Although Mr Gehlot won as an Independent candidate from the Gurgaon Assembly constituency in the last election, he is an INLD stalwart. He was denied INLD ticket as the seat had gone to the BJP in INLD-BJP alliance. However, it was clear in the election that the entire INLD cadre was behind him and was instrumental in getting the BJP nominee defeated. It is an open secret that his allegiance for the INLD is as strong as it ever was, even after he became the Deputy Speaker. Talking to mediapersons, Mr Gehlot made a mention of the creation of the special district called Satyamev Puram for the areas falling under Mewat in Gurgaon and Faridabad districts. He also referred to the mini-secretariat here, set up at a cost of Rs 14 crore. Taking on the opponents of the INLD, he said that they were unnerved by the development works done by the present government. To a question on the dismal showing of the INLD during the last parliamentary election in which both the sons of Mr Om Prakash Chautala lost and the INLD drew blank in all the 10 parliamentary seats, Mr Gehlot said that the issues involved in the Assembly elections would be different. The Congress had won nine of the parliamentary seats. The other one was bagged by the BJP. Referring to the Gurgaon Assembly seat, he said that he would win comfortably not on the basis of slogans but on account of development works. He said that he was instrumental, with the “indulgence” of Mr Chautala, in implementing development works for his constituency. In response to a specific question whether he was contemplating changing his seat in the coming election, he said that his preference is for Gurgaon. However, things are always elastic in politics, he added.
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50 lakh to cast vote in 12 constituencies
Ghaziabad, October 6 The Chief Election Officer of the state, Mr Vijay Kumar Sharma, said that polling will be held in 12 Assembly constituencies in the state: Ghaziabad, Ahirori, Milkipur, Sidhore, Mijhauna, Saidpur, Marohau, Karchana, Allahabad West, Attrauli, Iglas and Badhra. Ghaziabad Vidhan Sabha constituency has over 7.23 lakh voters. Mr Sharma said a total of 4,583 polling booths and 2,699 polling centres have been set up for the byelection. He said a large number of voters have been provided with photo identity cards, but those who have not got them, should be able to cast their vote by producing one of the 14 alternative documents at the voting booths. The Election Commission wants to ensure peaceful voting at all the segments for which strict instructions have been issued to the administration and the police officials, the Chief Election Officer said.
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Row in Cong over trifurcation
New Delhi, October 6 Addressing the mediapersons, Mrs Razia Sultana said that there would be financial burden on the corporation if it were trifurcated. She said that one third population of the national Capital lived in the Trans-Yamuna area, but the total property tax collection is only Rs 100 crore, while expenditure is Rs 600 crore. The question is how the huge difference of revenue and expenditure will be covered up, she added. The property tax is the main source of income of the corporations. The major part of the property tax is collected from South Delhi, which is spend in development of other areas of the Capital. If the corporation is trifurcated, the only option is of financial loan from state or Central government, but for how long, she questioned. She handed over a list of councillors who opposed the trifurcating issue of the corporation. In presence of the councillors, she said that authorities should strengthen the corporation instead of dividing it.
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Law and order worst in UP: Jaiswal
Ghaziabad, October 6 Mr Jaiswal warned the state government that if it tried to create any disturbance during the coming byelections, the Centre will view it very seriously. The Union Minister of State for Home was addressing a public rally in support of Congress candidate Satish Tyagi at Kela Bhatta, Ghaziabad. He said Mulayam Singh Yadav poses to be a secular leader, but if he was really so, he would not have helped Narinder Modi to become Gujarat Chief Minister again. His party candidates had contested from 65 seats in Gujarat without his party having any popular base. To weaken the Congress, he has put up 150 candidates in Maharashtra also, Mr Jaiswal said. State Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said the UP state government has miserably
failed to check the
criminals. Never before
so many industries
had closed down in UP,
he regretted.
Police to get modern arms
Modi Nagar (Ghaziabad), October 6 The IG said the police force of this zone, which is a part of NCR, will be equipped with new technology so that it can control crime in the area. The police in West UP, IG Zone said, will be equipped with NSAS rifles, modern vehicles, and mobile vans fitted with new technology gadgets on the pattern of Delhi police. Full data of criminals and action taken against them in each police station will be computer-fed and updated periodically. Contact will be established with all the police stations of the Capital through software and the Internet for better co-ordination between the police forces of NCR. For example, if an unidentified body is found, its full details and photograph will be fed to the Digital Crime Bureau which will transmit all data to the National Crime Bureau so that the identity of the deceased is established quickly. This computerised procedure has been called ‘Criminal Information System’, the IG said. He said the data pertaining to stolen vehicles and recovered vehicles
will be flashed to the computer centre in Lucknow every day. Mr Mumtaz Ahmed offered to provide the police force with all facilities for coping with the
incidents like Bhushan Steel factory in Sahibabad. Help from intelligence agencies, if required,
will be provided to
conduct a proper probe into this tragedy.
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SGSC urges youths to adhere to code of conduct
New Delhi, October 6 The appeal was issued in this morning’s meeting of the Shiromani Gurdwara Sewadar Committee in Tilak Nagar. The appeal urged the youths to shun alcohol and to not cut their hair and beard. It also asked the Dharam Prachar Committee of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) to perform its duty of preaching the Sikh way of life and morality.
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‘Arbitrary’ transfer of officials flayed
New Delhi, October 6 Most of the Councillors criticised the ‘arbitrary action’ of the Municipal Commissioner, who took action against the MCD officials after a complaint made by the Chief Minister, Ms Sheila Dikshit and the Urban Development Minister, Dr A. K. Walia. In his letter to the Municipal Commissioner, Dr Walia said that the Chief Minister had observed pathetic condition of roads, roundabouts and surroundings, which showed extremely callous attitude of the officers concerned on October 2, when the President, Vice- President, Prime Minister and other dignitaries attended the function at the Rajghat. He asked the Municipal Commissioner to take action against the officials concerned so that such incidents were not repeated in future. In her letter to Dr Walia, the Chief Minister said, “I was appalled to see the pathetic condition of the road, its roundabouts, turns and divider-gardens. The road going towards the Rajghat was filthy. Grills and railings were broken. The sorry state of affairs show an extremely callous attitude of agencies concerned. I would like an explanation within the next two days about this shocking ‘unpreparedness’. Responsibility has to be fixed to help avoid such incidents in future. I would also like this to be brought to the notice of the Mayor (MCD).” However, the Standing Committee members said that an inquiry into the case should have been made before taking any action against officials. Such actions will demoralise the officials of the Corporation. The Leader of Opposition in the Standing Committee, Mr Vijender Gupta, said that Ring Road, which passed near the Rajghat, was under the supervision of the PWD, Delhi Government. As such the action should have been taken against the PWD officials, who have been protected by the authorities concerned.
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Rockets in 6 places point the finger at terrorists
Ghaziabad, October 6 According to Mumtaz Ahmed, IG police, Meerut, the rocket shells and projectiles are a matter of serious concern. We cannot rule out hand of the terrorists, he said. Bulandhshahr District Magistrate R.K. Srivastava said, “Twelve projectiles, appear to be artillery shells, were found on GT Road near Arnia police station. Similarly, the projectiles recovered in Aligarh were similar to the one found from steel scraps in Bhushan Steel factory in which 10 workers had lost their lives. Another shell has been found from the jetty in Kandla, the port where all this lethal foreign cargo has been unloaded. This is being examined. The rockets found in Khurja were anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles. With the explosives found in Bhushan Steel scrap on the sixth day having distinct Iraqi markings, the whole case has taken a new turn. The Army experts had found a light machinegun, a tank chain and 15 shells of missiles from the scrap. The 12 rockets found in Khurja on a roadside were perilously close to a petrol pump, lending credence to the theory that it was the handiwork of a terrorist outfit, designed to cause an explosion of high magnitude. Earlier, two trucks had broken down near Aligarh border which resulted in a traffic jam. Meanwhile, a large number of workers, who were carrying on protest demonstrations for the last few days against the explosions in Bhushan Steel factory under the aegis of CITU, blocked the traffic and then pelted the passing vehicles with stones. As a result, most of the factories in Sahibabad Industrial area IV had locked their gates. The authorities had deployed additional force, including PAC companies in the area.
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MCD nod to ‘Partnership Project’ for waste disposal
New Delhi, October 6 The Municipal Commissioner, Mr Rakesh Mehta, said that private partnership was expected to reduce the burden on the Corporation while gaining value for money and share risk. The participation of the community, NGOs and MCD is important for the success of the scheme. This unique scheme has been launched for the first time in the country. The Municipal Commissioner said that the disposal of MSW was being undertaken in three phases– private sector participation in collection and transportation of the MSW; drafting the terms of reference for technical master plan and techno-economic feasibility study on the optimal manner of waste treatment and disposal; private sector participation in treatment and disposal of the MSW.
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NSUI demands date for Jamia poll
New Delhi, October 6 “Saying that the elections will be held is not enough. We need to have a fixed date. If the authorities fail to decide a date by the end of the week’s time that we are allowing them, we will then march to the office,” said Tausif, in-charge of the NSUI unit in Jamia. The announcement was made here yesterday during a peace march that the students organised. “We organised a felicitation ceremony for the DUSU panel and later led by Ashok Tanwar, under took a peace march,” said Tausif.
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Pan vendors told to keep off schools
New Delhi, October 6 The decision has spread a wave of insecurity among the tobacco vendors, as they believe that they would be unemployed by the decision and exposed to harassment by the local police and other law-abiding authorities. According to Jai Bhagwan Gupta, Secretary of Akhil Pan Vikreta Association, “As per the new law, we would not be able to sell or open the pan shops around any educational institutions up to 6.5 acres of land, which is a big area.”
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Students of engg colleges jam traffic
Greater Noida, October 6 “We had paid Rs 35,000 last year and this year, we were made to pay Rs 47,000 each,” they said. Incidentally, this is not the first time the students of Greater Noida colleges have demonstrated against the fee hike. The students had paid Rs 35,000 at the time of admission in 2003. A sum of Rs 12,000 has been charged extra from them for the last and current years. Despite having deposited money for medical attention, no medical facilities have been provided by the college. While the students said they will meet the District Magistrate in this connection, college management Chairman, Kishen Lal denied that any such instructions have been received from the district administration. The students also protest against lack of books in college library and medical facilities for them.
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Teachers overburdened to produce result
New Delhi, October 6 “It is a stressful job, because you are caught up in a tough situation. You are blamed if the students fail to live up to expectations and even when you are perceived to drive the students too hard. Teachers have to be cautious, especially when the stress that they undergo is either ignored or not acknowledged,” says a teacher of a reputed public school in the Capital. With the competition among the schools on the rise, it is invariably the teachers who are left to ensure that apart from academics, the students excel in all extra-curricular activities. “High scores in the boards are not enough, we have to prove ourselves in sports, debates and competitions… so we have to slog hard and sometimes at the cost of our personal needs,” she adds. Psychiatrist Dr Samir Parikh who conducts workshops for schools, calls schools a “micro-corporate”, and asserts, “more than 70 per cent of workers in an organisation are stressed and there is a perception that it is the stress that the teachers undergo, which is responsible for the continuation of corporal punishment”. He suggests, “Every primary and pre-primary class should have two teachers, instead of one. One should be a facilitator and the other a coordinator.” Density of the classroom, claim experts, plays an active role in determining the behaviour of students. “It is an established fact that whenever density is high, restlessness also increases,” says Dr Parikh. “We need to cut down the ratio to half, decrease the number of periods a teacher is allotted, change the system and work on the human resources potential of a teacher,” he adds. Though logistics may not favour their good intentions, principals agree that the number should be reduced. “A ratio of one teacher for 25 to 30 students is ideal, in case of special children, it can be brought down to 10,” says Principal, Sardar Patel Vidyalaya, Ms Kusam Warikoo. Though she believes that organising co-curricular activities is “more of a stress-buster” for teachers, she also recommends “workshops and meditation camps”.
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Only Yoga has cure to the problems like stress: Ramdev
New Delhi, October 6 Pranayama practice is beneficial for those suffering from obesity and thyroid disorders as also lung and heart ailments and leukaemia, he says. Swami Ramdev does not agree with those who call yoga an alternative system of medicine. He says yoga has permanent cure for many such diseases, which are merely “treated” by modern medicine. Keen to answer criticism about yoga not being “scientific,” Swami Ramdev is willing to put the results of pranayama practice under medical scrutiny. He, however, admits there is need for rigorous research in ancient Indian systems of yoga and Ayurveda. The Swami is setting up a treatment and research centre in 300 acre area in Haridwar at a cost of Rs 100 crore. He says the proceeds from donation cards for admission to yoga camps go towards construction of the research and treatment centre. The swami says that pranayamas taught at his camps have no side-effects on the body provided due precautions are taken. For curing ailments, the swami relies first on yoga and then on Ayurveda. Yoga, he says, fits perfectly to the dictum of `prevention is better than cure’ as its regular practice keeps the body healthy and relaxed. The swami also lays stress on blood donation and population control during his camps and warns people against female foeticide.
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DoE holds debate competition
New Delhi, October 6 Sanjeev Kumar of class XII, GBSSS, U Block Mangolpuri, Delhi stood first in the senior category, Amit Sharma of GBSSS, Kamdhenu Plot II Mangolpuri came second and Manoj Kumar of GBSSS, Q Block, Mangolapuri came third. In the Junior’s Category, Bhagwan Dev of class IX, S D Saraswati Bal Vidya Mandir, Rajeev Nagar stood first, the second prize was shared by Bablu of GBSSS, D Block, Sultan Puri and GBSSS, K II Mongolpuri, the third prize went to Danish of GBSSS, Y Block, Mangolpuri. Mr Ashish Chopra and Mr Dinkar Jassal of The Tribune distributed the prizes.
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Engineer jumps to death
New Delhi, October 6 The body of the deceased, Moti Lal, (56), was found at around 4.30 am on the ground floor on the PHQ premises, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) M. M. Oberoi said. The police said that Lal had apparently jumped from the 11th or 12th floor of the Police Headquarters, where the offices of the Public Works Department (PWD) are also located. “The family members and colleagues of the deceased said he was under a lot of stress in recent days because of the pressure of office work. He had also stopped taking food and talking to his family since the last couple of days,” Oberoi said. Yesterday, Lal reached office late in the evening in a very disturbed condition, his cashier told police. He then told his staff to leave and said he would stay late. The police did not find any suicide note in this regard. Further investigations are on.
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The Special Cell of the Delhi Police have arrested four persons, including Dimpy, one of the most wanted criminals by CBI, Haryana Police and Delhi Police.
There are many who see the contest for the two Assembly seats of Rajouri Garden and Baljeet Nagar (Reserved) as a test of popularity of the Sheila Dikshit-led Congress government in Delhi, who less than a year ago won for herself a second consecutive term in office.
New Delhi, October 6
