New Delhi, November 7
Coming to the rescue of students who are over stressed by various examinations they are subjected to, the National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA) has said that no student should be failed up to Class 10.

“At the tender age children should not be subjected to a rat race and such a competitive process can be avoided only by ensuring that no student is ever failed in any class up to and inclusive of the 10th,” said NIEPA Registrar P. R. R. Nair in an affidavit filed before the Delhi High Court. He flayed the procedures adopted by schools in Delhi for admission, saying there were no prescribed standards and methods.

“At present, the methods adopted by various recognised aided and unaided schools in Delhi for selecting children for admission leave much to be desired,” Nair said.

The affidavit has been filed in response to the court’s request for assistance from all bodies, individuals and schools interested in the matter. The Court is seized of a petition filed by three parents challenging a single Bench judgement of the same Court, which had on January 12 rejected the plea to ban interviewing of children and their parents.

Earlier, a Public Study Group on Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) Committees had suggested schools should decide kids’ admission through a transparent draw of lots. But in an affidavit filed in the court through counsel Punit Mittal, the Delhi Public School Society had opposed the idea saying school education should not be compared to or made to appear like a housing scheme or a lottery.

New Delhi, November 7
From the wonders of the Mughal-built Walled City, also known as Old Delhi, to information technology, the Delhi pavilion at the 24th India International Trade Fair to be held at Pragati Maidan here from November 14 to 27, will have it all in one broad sweep.

The underlying theme of this year’s pavilion will be a combination of agriculture and information technology and a fusion of the ancient and the modern, Delhi State Industrial Development Corporation (DSIDC) Managing Director Jalaj Shrivastava said today.

The visitors to the pavilion will enter through a large replica of the majestic Connaught Place, the city’s oldest and bustling shopping complex. Another attraction will be the India Gate, the First World War monument that symbolises the Indian Capital. The central fountain in the Connaught Place area and the Metro Rail system would be the other highlights of the pavilion. Mr Shrivastava said the visitors will also be greeted by a giant mobile telephone.

Delhi being a city having a rich history with its landscape filled with magnificent structures dating back to the pre-Mughal and Mughal times, the entrance of each hall in the pavilion will have replicas of Kashmiri Gate, Ajmeri Gate, Mori Gate, Lahori Gate and Turkman Gate (which symbolise the walled city) besides the Khooni Darwaza located across the Feroze Shah Kotla Maidan.

New Delhi, November 7
Delhiites have heaved a sigh of relief after the MCD has launched an online system for getting the birth and death certificates. Earlier, people used to spend hours for the certificates, but now it is available just a click away. The corporation not only makes these certificates available online, but also couriers it to the people. The scheme has been launched by the Health Department of the MCD so that the people will not have to wait in long queues. The software was developed by Dr S. Patnaik, a senior official of the MCD said.

People can collect birth and death certificates online from www.mcdonline.gov.in by using plastic money or credit cards, he said. Nine certificates have already been issued by using the technology and more and more people are availing this online service every day, he added.

However, he said that of the 450 hospitals in Delhi, 281 city hospitals and nursing homes have empanelled with the MCD website during the past one year and they were updating the data everyday regarding birth and death happening in their premises. The data was being compiled by the Deputy Health Officers of 12 MCD zones.

The hospitals issue an authorisation slip regarding such happenings and individuals could fill the form for birth and death certificate online using the particulars mentioned in the slip. By paying Rs 20 as fee for birth certificate and Rs 10 for death certificate along with a courier fee of Rs 10 in each case, people can get the certificates at their doorsteps, he informed. Any change and correction in the names, spellings in the certificate could also be done online.

“Delhi on an average witnesses about 2.5 lakh birth and 60,000 to 70,000 deaths every year, and the online service will make the registration of birth and deaths very easy,” he said. Meanwhile, the MCD has also launched a software, which would help in collection of data regarding spread of dangerous diseases within the city so that quick and effective remedial action could be taken.

New Delhi, November 7
The social activist and actress, Ms Nandita Das, yesterday inaugurated a pottery unit in the Ward number two of Tihar Jail. Ms Das is keen to display some of her considerable abilities as a potter.

The pottery unit is a place that has resolutely attempted to break free from the image of a nest of irredeemable souls and a hotbed of crime and corruption, that has been described by Indian cinema, Ms Das said.

Pottery is the latest in a series of activities the authorities have started for prisoners, to equip them with skills that will help them restart their lives once out of the jail.

Ms Das said she had always been curious to know if jails were actually like the ones portrayed in films. Thus, Tihar was a ‘’revelation’’ for her. ‘’It is more like an ‘Ashram’. The prisoners are taught so many different skills,’’ she said.

Jail number two, which is primarily a convict jail, already has weaving, hand-made carpeting, carpentry, chemicals, paper, bakery, tailoring and mustard oil making units.

The inmates are trained to manufacture high-quality products. The turnover of the factory has averaged around Rs 4 crore per annum in the past three years and the clientele so far comprises mainly government departments, Inspector General Gyanendra Shrivastav said.

Pottery, he said, has additional spiritual benefits. ‘’A piece of pottery can be created only when the clay is centered on the wheel. It is believed that unless the potter is centered within himself, he cannot center the clay. It is an element of meditation, which helps even a very short-tempered person stay calm.’’

The pottery supervisor, Mr Rajesh Srivastav, said they have started the course with diyas (earthen lamps) for Divali. This art will help them in making money and they will easily rehabilitate their life after coming out of jail. About 95 per cent of prisoners are from the poorer sections of the society and nearly 80 per cent are either illiterate or semi-literate, and a majority of them take to crime due to ignorance of law or economic compulsions, Ms Das said.

“I think nothing gives you more fascination than doing something for or accepting something from the underprivileged,’’ Ms Das said while accepting finished earthen pots from the prisoners. She gifted the inmates a book on Sardar Gurcharan Singh, her clay art guru, and a video cassette on pottery.

Diyas, hand-made woollen carpets, clothes and carved furniture made by the prisoners were put on display during the inaugural function. 

New Delhi, November 7
In an attempt to change the public perception and seek a more respect for themselves as well as the work they perform, more than a 1,000 wastepickers from different parts of the city staged a green cultural event at the India Gate here last evening.

The event organised by the NGO Chintan, comprised dramatic and colourful art installations, collages and paintings strung along the lawns as an exhibition. The event was held a week before Divali, with the intention of reminding Delhiites that although Divali was a time to clean their homes, it was also the time to remember Delhi’s cleaners.

The Waste-pickers sought recognition for their role in cleaning the city. The programme also comprised an art competition, where the Waste-pickers made paintings about their own lives.

MP Sachin Pilot and social activist Nafisa Ali gave away the prizes to the winners of the competition. The Waste-pickers put up a small cultural show on a stage named Kabarmanch. Reciting poems, they appealed to the public to spare a thought for the 80,000 plus people, who the clean the waste thrown out of homes. Put on display were tableau, artworks and posters, created with the assistance from a group of artists, in order to create public awareness.

Meanwhile, about 250 representatives of waste-pickers from across the national Capital presented a memorandum to the Chief Minister, Ms Sheila Dikshit, demanding a more dignified life here.

The memorandum, presented last week, seeks acknowledging waste-picking and waste trading as a profession, space for sorting out waste into sub-categories so as to ensure proper segregation. It also calls for formal spaces and norms for recycling depots to sell and store the waste instead of the illegal kabari shops available to them at present. The memorandum calls for formal recognition through the issue of I-cards and caps.

The waste-pickers also demanded a change in the people’s attitude towards them, not as dirty and undesirable but as people delivering an important service. The civic agencies like the police, NDMC and MCD should be educated about their work so that they stop beating and abusing them, the memorandum stated.

New Delhi, November 7
Monday, November 8, 2004 will go down as a red letter day in the history of the nation’s contemporary art history as the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) kicks off its golden jubilee celebrations with a specially curated exhibition aptly titled the “Signposts of The Times-The Golden Trail”.

The exhibition, which will remain on view till December 12, strives to showcase the works of some of the most talented artists of the country. The President, Dr A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, will inaugurate the celebrations in the presence of artists and art lovers.

The NGMA has played a critical role in promoting art and artists over the last five decades of its existence and has notched up an enviable reputation of being the sole repository of the largest number of works of modern Indian artists.

Not to be left behind in the cultural race, the Noida Development Authority is now planning to set up an Academy of Art in the memory of the late famous Hindi poet Harvansh Rai Bachchan, father of the renowned film star Amitabh Bachchan.

By this the Development Authority proposes to make the city on the outskirts of the National Capital Territory of Delhi into a major cultural and literary centre.

The Academy would be built on the lines of Vigyan Bhawan here with an open-air theatre, a multi-level convention centre and computerised laboratory for music research. Some elements from the internationally famous Shanti Niketan in West Bengal and Bharat Bhawan in Madhya Pradesh will be incorporated in the proposed Academy.

Meanwhile, art activity continues in the Capital. The PBC Art Gallery is showcasing 38 select paintings of the well-known artist, author and illustrator, Ludmilla Chakrabarty. The exhibition was inaugurated by Mr Yaron Mayer, Counsellor for Political Affairs of the Embassy of Israel here.

Born in Russia, Ludmilla has held several solo and group shows in Russia and India. The diverse Indian culture, the picturesque landscape and the vibrant colours are a big inspiration for Ludmilla. The exhibition will remain on view till November 14.

The Palette Art Gallery here is showcasing five frames of the noted artist Manjit Bawa. The five frames capture the pain of violence in the society and depict the insanity of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, the Gujarat carnage, 9/11 bombing of the World Trade Tower in New York and the recent Beslan school bombing.

The exhibition is notable for the fact that Manjit Bawa has rarely chosen violence as the subject of his paintings. The 62-year-old artist, who has made Delhi his home, was obviously pained and moved by these events to make him put them on canvas.

The Lalit Kala Academy here also put on view an exhibition of paintings by two Madhya Pradesh artists, Anis and Manoj Kachangal. Both award winning artists have held several solo and group exhibitions in various parts of the country and their works reflect not only nature in all its glory but religious symbolism as well.

New Delhi, November 7
The World Health Organization has released a new formula for Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS), a sodium and glucose solution, which is widely used to treat children with acute diarrhoea and dehydration. Since WHO adopted ORS in 1978 as its primary tool to fight diarrhoea, the mortality rate for children suffering from acute diarrhoea has fallen from 5 million to 1.3 million deaths annually.

DCGI has issued a notification to all companies manufacturing ORS formulations in India to change their old formulations and introduce the reduced osmolarity ORS with a total osmolarity of 245 mOsm/l, containing 75 mEq/l sodium, 75 mmol/l glucose.

The new improved formula is the result of extensive research sponsored by WHO’s Department of Child and Adolescent Health and Development and supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The study’s findings suggest that using the low-sodium, low-glucose ORS formulation reduces the need for intravenous fluids by 33 per cent. The effect of this reduction could result in fewer children requiring hospitalization, fewer secondary infections, a diminished need to handle blood with its potentially dangerous consequences and lower health care costs.

New Delhi, November 7
In a freak incident, a 70-year-old man lost his life after getting caught in a fight between some raging bulls. The incident occurred in the city’s Uttam Nagar, when the man had gone to answer the call of nature in a where some stray animals live.

Police sources said that the man who worked as a casual labourer was caught in the fight between some bulls and died of injuries. A resident of Uttam Nagar his body has been claimed by his brother’s family.

The police said that since a life has been lost, a case has been lodged against unknown person, who could be the owner of the stray animals. Investigations, they said, would be carried out to ascertain who the owner of these animals numbering to over 30 could be.

Ghaziabad, November 7
The students of Degree College, Ghaziabad, boycotted classes, jammed the traffic on G.T. Road for more than two hours near Navrang Cinema yesterday. They were protesting against delay in conducting elections of students union.

They were also involved in exchange of heated words with the police officials.

Chief organiser of Joint Action Committee, Yatinder Nagar, called a meeting in MMH College compound where the delay in elections to the students union of Degree College was condemned.

The students said despite the Chief Minister’s announcement, teachers have not taken any decision in the matter.

Later, a large number of students raised slogans and marched to the college,
preventing the teachers from holding classes.

At about 3 pm, students jammed the traffic on G.T. Road.

They had demanded immediate election in MMH College. As a long queue of vehicles had been formed on both sides of the road, students and transporters also exchanged hot words. The students stood their ground and gathered on G.T. Road in large numbers.

At 7.30 pm, seven students courted arrest, and warned that if election announcements were not made early, they would reinforce their agitation. The detained students were let off by 6 pm by the police.

New Delhi, November 7
The supply of drinking water has been hit badly for more than a week at the Jantar Mantar-based New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) headquarters. In absence of any alternative arrangement, the employees of the office are forced to carry water bottles with them.

The president of the NDMC Worker’s Federation, Mr Ganga Ram, said that there are two underground water tanks on the office premises for the smooth supply of water to the offices. One pond is for the drinking water and the other for general use. For more than one week, the supply line between the drinking water tank has been broken. “The matter is in the notice of concerned officials, but nothing has happened so far,” said Ganga Ram.

When contacted in this regard to the Director (PR) of the NDMC, Mr Madan Thapliyal, said, “They had already issued a tender for the repair of that broken supply line and hoped that it would be set right soon.”

Meerut, November 7
More than three dozen monkeys were found dead in Laliyana village under Kithare police station in the last three days. The reason for their sudden death could not be found, though certain villagers and Hindu organisations apprehend that some miscreants had poisoned them.

The area is still reeking of the obnoxious smell of the decomposed bodies. Villagers themselves burnt some of monkeys. The officials of the forest department are surprisingly unaware of their deaths.

A considerable tension gripped the area when some people of the surrounding villages and Hindu bodies protested against the sudden death of monkeys in the area on Sunday.

According to Moh. Abbass, a BSP leader and the resident of village Laliyana, two monkeys were found dead on Thursday evening in the

jungle and he thought that it was a case of natural death.

Later, he found four more bodies. He reported the matter to the villagers and the local police station Kithore PS the same day. Ten more monkeys were found dead in the same area the next day. When the villagers started searching the area, as many as 37 monkeys were found dead in the jungle. Villagers were very upset seeing such a large number of bodies. They burnt some of them.

The villagers told ‘The Tribune’ that monkeys often come to the village in search of food and some anti-social elements might have poisoned them.

Though the bodies had been found during the last three days and the police and the administration had also been informed, no official from the forest department bothered to visit the area. A forest official GP Sharma said that he had no information about the incident.

He even refused to give any information in this regard, saying that he was away in Lucknow for a meeting. While the district magistrate, Mr Chandra Bhanu, told the journalists that the sudden death of monkeys was a serious matter and he would look into it.

Gurgaon, November 7
The elevation of the District (Faridabad) and Sessions judge, Mrs Nirmal Yadav, as judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, has cheered up the residents of the Ahirwal belt of the state. Mrs Yadav, a native of the Ahirwal belt encompassing Gurgaon, Rewari and Mahendragarh districts, is the first woman to have made it big in the judiciary.

Hailing from a political family with her father late Rao Abhey Singh being four times MLA—first in joint Punjab and then in Haryana Vidhan Sabha—and brother Capt. Ajay Singh, several times minister and presently working chief of the Congress Legislature Party in the Haryana Assembly.

A large number of persons have been calling up her residence to congratulate the family. A local girl, Neeta Yadav, found the judge as an ideal. She is pursuing a law degree. “Nirmal Yadav has emerged as a role model for the young women,” she gushed.

While the women of the Ahirwal belt appear to be accepting Mrs Yadav as a source of encouragement and hope of women power, others feel that she has done the region proud.

Many remember her fondly and appreciate her contribution to the cause of the downtrodden of society.

Incidentally, Mrs Yadav is among the five members who have been elevated as High Court judges. While two of the members, including she herself, are from the Haryana quota, the other three are from the Punjab quota.

Mrs Yadav had topped the Panjab University, Chandigarh, in the LLM exams in 1974. Thereafter she was the first woman to be appointed as Assistant Advocate General for the state of Haryana to represent in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

In 1986, she was selected to the post of Additional District and Sessions judge. Thereafter she was selected as judicial member of Income Tax Appellate Tribunal of the Bombay Bench. She returned to her parent cadre as District and Sessions judge, Sirsa. Subsequently, she was assigned the job of Registrar-General of the Punjab and

Haryana High Court where she is said to have left her imprint by initiating several reformative measures. Later, she became District and Sessions judge, Faridabad.

Noida, November 7
A large number of children are down with viral fever, mainly due to change of season. Cough, fever and cold seem to have afflicted every second child in the area.

Water from eyes and nose, sore throat, chest congestion and fever are the most common ailments. Some cases of vomiting, loose motions, skin irritation, headache and pain in eyes along with high fever have been reported as well.

Some cases of type A and E of hepatitis have also been diagnosed. The period from October to December is considered risky for the spread of different viruses, as the temperature hovers between 10 and 20 Fh, doctors say.

One affected patient becomes a carrier of these viruses.

According to child specialist Dr Alok Bhatia, the virus of A and E hepatitis is most deadly. It causes jaundice among children. Lack of hygiene conditions, polluted water, cut fruit and vegetables help its spread. This also causes diarrhoea among the children which affects the cells in intestines straightway, Dr Bhatia added. Children are unable to digest lactose in milk and they start vomiting followed by loose motions. Influenza causes cough, cold and fever which can affect grown-ups also.

About 150 to 200 kids troupe into government hospital for treating common cold and fever. Quite a large number of people are taking treatment from the private nursing homes and hospitals in different parts of the town, it is learnt.

New Delhi, November 7
A city court has sentenced a man to life imprisonment for killing the father of his beloved for objecting to their relationship.

The Additional Sessions Judge, Mr. R. K. Jain, also imposed a fine of Rs 1,500 on Hamil Singh, who murdered Bhagwana on April 15 last year, while he was sitting outside his house here. Police said Hamil Singh had eloped with Bhagwana’s daughter Rajesh and was living in Punjab. Rajesh’s family objected to the relationship, which infuriated the accused.

The accused assaulted Bhagwana with a lathi, which had a knife tied at one end and also injured Santosh Devi, the daughter-in-law of the deceased, who came forward to save him.

The accused was, however, apprehended by Bhagwana’s grandson Jugnu with the help of one Mukesh from the neighbourhood.

Noida, November 7
No nation can defend its territorial integrity and national boundaries unless it has sound economy, healthy, strong and educated people with commitment to serve the country. Health care in India has entered an active phase of partnership between the private sector and the public sector.

This was stated by Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee while formally dedicating the world-standard multi-speciality Fortis Hospital with speciality in orthopaedics and neurosciences in Sector 62 of Noida in the afternoon today.

Fortis is a state-of-the-art multi-speciality tertiary care hospital which will also offer specialised care in oncology, trauma care, gastro-intestinal diseases, renal diseases, obstetrics and gynaecology, etc.

Health care in India has entered a partnership phase and it is for the hospitals like the Fortis, which have developed excellent infrastructure to stop outstanding Indian from leaving the country. Since society has made an investment on each one of us,
it has a claim on our talent and expertise, Mr Mukherjee said.

Motivation is a must for the growth of a society. Our doctors must go to the villages to serve the rural masses, the Defence Minister added.

Earlier, the Union Health Minister, Dr Anubhamani Ramadoss, said there has been a sea-change in the health care scenario in the country. Instead of people going abroad for specialised treatment, now foreigners are coming to India for advanced treatment.

Health and education have a place of importance in the common minimum programme of the UPA government and the country is poised to increase the spending on health care from 2 per cent to 3 per cent of the country’s GDP.

The Union Health Minister, however, highlighted some priority areas for special consideration of the medical fraternity like the health care of senior citizens.

Dr Ramadoss also made a strong plea to the private hospitals like Fortis to engage in research and development in medical science in a big way.

Chairman of UP Development Council, Amar Singh, MP, assured the Fortis Hospital that they can get as much land for further development in Noida as they desire.

He asked them to divulge the names of corrupt Noida authority and district administration officers who had been putting hurdles in their way. Mr Amar Singh made a forceful plea to the hospitals to give special consideration to the poor of the state who cannot otherwise bear the cost of specialised treatment at private hospitals like Fortis.

In his welcoming speech, chairman of the Fortis Health care, Harpal Singh said that Noida hospital was an integral part of Fortis vision of bringing world-class health care to the easy reach of the people.

This hospital, which is the first of its kind in NCR region will go a long way to fulfill the need of health care infrastructure in the country. The 350-bed Noida hospital, he said, had been constructed at a cost of Rs 100 crore on over 2,50,000 sq ft area. Fortis Hospital is promoted by Ranbaxy pharmaceutical company.

Fortis will be setting up another 20 hospitals in northern India at a cost of Rs 1,100 crore with 4,200-bed capacity, Mr Harpal Singh added.

Ghaziabad, November 7
An employee of Jahangirabad Sugar Mill was beaten up thoroughly in a panchayat meeting in which his arms were allegedly fractured. Sukhbir Gehlot, a Congress leader and former MLA and his family members have been blamed for the assault on the mill worker.

Meanwhile, Gehlot said that it was the handiwork of contrived tempo operators on Ghaziabad Gulawati route. Kamal Singh, a resident of village Sapnawat in Dholana, is an employee of Sugar Mill in Jahangirabad in Bulandshahr. It is said some electric motor fitted in water pumps in Sapnawat had been stolen for which the residents of the village were accused. These people were presented before a panchayat, which fixed penalty of Rs. 15,000 to be recovered from them.

Kamal Singh, whose both arms were broken, was presented before the presspersons by ex-BJP MP Ramesh Chand Tomar. It was alleged that Congress ex-MLA Sukhbir Singh and his family members had beaten up Kamal Singh and fractured his arms. Kamal Singh, it was alleged, was thoroughly beaten up and later abducted.

Sukhbir Singh, however, said he had nothing to do with the case. Kamal Singh was beaten up during the panchayat meeting in the village. He said that he had actually rushed Kamal Singh to hospital for treatment. He or any members of the family were not present when Kamal Singh was beaten up in Panchayat meeting, Sukhbir Singh said. He alleged that a transporter of the area was responsible for this incident who organizes tempo services in the area.

New Delhi, November 7
Thirty couples from Delhi and adjoining areas got married at a mass marriage ceremony organised by the Sant Nirankari Mission. Baba Hardev Singh Ji Maharaj, Head of the Mission, was present on the occasion. Caste played no role in deciding the wedlock. At least 13 couples had an inter-state marriage.

Besides Delhi, the brides and bridegrooms came from Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra. They presented a fine mix of the rich and the poor.

The simple ceremony was attended by the parents, relatives and friends of the couples and large number of devotees of the Mission. Some of the brides and bridegrooms came from outside.

Speaking on the occasion, Baba Hardev Singh Ji Maharaj congratulated the couples and their families on choosing this simple ceremony and thus earning the blessings of thousands of the members of Nirankari congregation. He said that the spiritual base being provided here is bound to strengthen their ties both at home and in society.

Baba Ji emphasised that it is in the company of saints that we learn the true art of living based on truth, love and peace. He said that life will become all the more beautiful if we treat each other a Mahapursha first and then whatever our worldly relation is.

New Delhi, November 7
The Delhi-based Tarun Mitra Parishad organised an eye check-up camp yesterday at Shree Digamber Jain Uttarprantiya Gurukul, Hastinapur, UP.

The Vice-Chairman, Meerut Development Authority, Mr Satyavir Singh Arya, inaugurated the camp. —TNS