New Delhi, December 13
The Special Cell of the Delhi Police has claimed to have nabbed a desperate inter-state criminal along with his four associates and recovered arms and ammunition from their possession.

The accused were identified as Vijay Dahiya, alias Boda, (27); Anil Kumar, alias Pahelwan; Ashok Kumar (23); Bijender Singh, alias Bijju, (21), residents of Sonepat; and Nanu Ram, alias Raju, (22), resident of Hissar.

The gang was allegedly involved in at least 25 cases of murder, attempt to murder, robbery, dacoity and extortion in Delhi
and Haryana.

The sleuths received a secret information that Vijay Dahiya would come to Nafajgarh along with associate Anil Kumar in a black Scorpio vehicle. Acting on the tip-off, the police nabbed them.

A Webley Scott revolver with six live cartridges was seized from them. The vehicle in which they were travelling had also been stolen from the Inderpuri area.

During interrogation, the duo disclosed that they were supposed to meet their other associates near Sai Baba Mandir in Najafgarh. All of them were nabbed later. Three country-made pistols and six live cartridges were recovered from them.

New Delhi, December 13
The Municipal Commissioner, Mr Rakesh Mehta, today inaugurated Delhi’s first night shelter for women in the walled city at Shankar Gali on Asaf Ali Road.

While inaugurating the night shelter, the Municipal Commissioner said that the facilities would be provided in collaboration with an NGO, Aurobindo Chaudhary Memorial Great India Dream Foundation.

The NGO works under the guidance of Dr M.K. Chaudhary, the founder-director of the Indian Institute of Planning and Management. The facilities include provisions for blanket, blanket covers, daris, etc. The arrangement will be supervised by a matron. A security guard will also be posted there.

Initially, the shelter will have a capacity of 20 inmates which is likely to be extended to 50. Hitherto, there was no woman shelter in the national Capital.

The Municipal Commissioner said that the MCD was going to open another night shelter within a few days at Jahangirpuri. This is a small beginning, but it will be extended further keeping in view the demand. The MCD will not levy any charges for the stay of women. The shelters will be open from 7 pm to 7 am.

Dr M.K. Chaudhary of the Great Indian Dream Foundation, said that the NGO proposed to provide vocational training, health facilities and food for the inmates.

The Deputy Chairman of the Standing Committee, Mr Ashok Jain, who represents the area, said that the MCD was running as many as 12 night shelters on permanent basis with the total capacity of 2,000 inmates. Out of these, two shelters at Fatehpuri-Railway station and Chandni Chowk are being run by an NGO known as Aashray Adhikar Abhiyan.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr M.K. Chaudhary said, “A large number of the urban population dwell on the pavements without basic pre-requisites of proper shelter, sanitation and food. Their lives get more miserable during winter. They are not only deprived of the warmth of a home, but remain hungry for days. It is our moral duty to support such a cause and try to minimise the deplorable living conditions of these destitute women in the city.”

The Additional Commissioner (Slum and JJ), Mr K. D. Akolia, said that the MCD would make all the night shelters functional by December 15. All arrangements, including the mattresses, blankets and other facilities are being provided by the Slum and JJ department in respect of the night shelters run by the corporation.

New Delhi, December 13
With the arrest of two persons, the South-West district police has claimed to have busted a gang involved in cheating the public by selling duplicate FDRs of DDA MIG scheme, Rohini, issued in 1981. A large number of forged FDRs were recovered from their possession. They were identified as Babu Lal (47) and Maharaj Singh, alias Chotu, (37), both residents of Mangolpuri.

New Delhi, December 13
Brick kiln workers from Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh led by the Confederation of Indian Trade Unions today held a demonstration at Patel Chowk to protest against the notification issued by the Central and state governments on compulsory use of fly ash.

Members of Parliament Dipankar Mukherjee and Jibon Roy, CITU secretary Tapan Sen and others addressed the rallyists.

New Delhi, December 13
If dropping into a soft chair or sinking into a comfy bed is a temptation you cannot resist, remind yourself of the damage that you are unwittingly doing to your back. Experts claim that the cosseted life of soft beds, armchairs and car seats can lead to backache.

Blaming the ‘cyber age’ for backaches, Dr Archana Sharma, physiotherapist, G M Modi Hospital, says: “Every bit of work is implemented from the comfort of a chair. Out of the 24 hours in a day, on an average, one spends nearly 14 hours on a chair. The free gift that comes with this comfort package is backache!”

She adds, “Back pain is caused broadly by physical strains known as mechanical strains and various stress factors, thereafter extending its after-effects.”

Other causes of backache are deteriorating changes, known as degenerative changes, in the vertebrae, discs and other parts of the spine, Dr Sharma says.

“Back pain is not always caused by slip disc, nor does having a bad back mean that you have to live with it forever. Symptoms of slip discs are not always the same nor does disc trouble lead to arthritis,” says Dr Sharma, referring to some myths about backaches.

Offering solutions to the problem, Dr Sharma says, “Stand tall and straight. Do not bear your weight on one leg for too long.”

She adds, “Avoid any sustained activity requiring forward-bending, execute your bench work, including kitchen surfaces, ironing, washing, etc, at an appropriate height from the ground. This height can easily be calculated by standing against the bench with relaxed arms.

The appropriate height of the bench for you is at your wrist level. It is advisable that the bench should be on a high level rather than being low.”

Sitting with adequate back support that prevents sagging or slumping, choosing a chair that is the right height so that you can avoid leaning forward all the time and compensating for badly designed seats with firm pillows in the haul of the back to prevent sagging are other pieces of advice.

“While lifting weight, keep the weight close to your body, keep the back as straight as possible. Use your hips and knees to bend rather than your back. This is probably the most severe stress you can put on your back,” says Dr Sharma.

She adds, “Office-goers should avoid sitting in the same position continuously. Keep changing your position after every half an hour. For those with neck problems, avoid lifting heavy weights and pulling strains. Keep from activities like painting ceilings, cleaning fans and use thin pillows.”

Dr Sharma’s prescription for avoiding a bad back includes an exercise wherein one has to keep hands at the centre of the back and press the spine, count five and relax for two seconds and then repeat. Or one could while sitting on the chair, cycle legs in the air, stretch knees straight and pull the feet up and down.

New Delhi, December 13
The Central Board of Secondary Examination (CBSE) today announced that aspirants for the All India Engineering Entrance Examination-2005 should send their forms individually as forms sent in bulk by private organisations would not be accepted.

The CBSE, which will conduct AIEEE on May 8, 2005, said in a release here that the application
forms will be sold by identified branches/institutions from December 15 to January 31.

It made clear that in no case will the application forms sent in bulk by some private institutions be accepted. So all the candidates should send their applications forms individually only by speed post/ registered post.

Ghaziabad, December 13
The police have arrested Munish Pandit, a strongman of BSP, for his alleged involvement in the murder of Naresh Yadav, a Samajwadi Party leader.
Four weeks ago, Naresh Yadav had been murdered in the busy market of Gandhi Nagar.

According to the police, the murder was perpetrated due to property dispute and electoral vengeance between the two. Munish was the BSP candidate in the recent by-elections to the UP Assembly. According to SP (City), Umesh Srivastava, electronic surveillance of cell phones had aroused police suspicions on BSP strongman for his involvement in the crime. Pandit had now confessed to the crime in police interrogation, he said.

Early on Sunday morning, a strong posse of police from Kotwali and Sihane Gate police stations had raided the residence of Munish Pandit and arrested him. The sleuth had to use force as Pandit and his coterie resisted the arrest.

According to the SO and police inspector Ajay Chaudhri of the Sihani Gate police station, Naresh Yadav had wanted to buy the Gandhi Nagar Market just opposite Munish’s house. Munish Pandit had also reportedly having an eye on the same. Beside, Naresh had also got some voters to vote in favour of SP candidate opposing Munish in the by-elections. So, both were at daggers drawn position with
each other.

Faridabad, December 13
The Haryana Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, has laid the foundation stone of Utawar Link Channel, a new canal system to provide irrigation water to several parts of the Hathin sub-division of the district today.

The construction of the project will cost around Rs 4.30 crore. The project will be funded mainly by the National Agricultural and Rural Development Bank (NABARD). Mr Chautala also inaugurated a ‘water supply augmentation scheme’ for the Hassanpur town costing about Rs 1.47 crore.

According to the state irrigation department officials, the Utawar Link Channel on completion will be able to provide irrigation water to several villages of the areas, especially those falling in the Mewat area. The 25,000 feet long channel will emerge from the Gurgaon canal and will be able to take about 91 cusecs of water in two phases benefiting villages including Hathin, Buraka, Hudhithal, Khandawali, Dheeranki, Paharpur, Ghurawali and Malluka. These villages, including many others situated in this region, were not getting water for irrigation as the existing Utawar Rajbaha channel was not properly suited to take water due to high slope area.

According to the sources in the department, due to short supply in the main canal, the water did not reach the tail-ends throughout the year. The department claims that an area of about 17,174-acre will be irrigated by the new channel, which is likely to be completed within two years. The channel will merge into the Utawar Rajbaha at the end.

The Chief Minister also inaugurated the water supply augmentation scheme for Hassanpur town, which according to the Public Health Department, will now be getting about 70 litres of water per person daily instead of just 45 litres up to now. It is stated that the new scheme has been designed to provide enhanced water supply to a population of over 15,000. The water supply system here will have four tubewells, with the daily capacity of about 12.40 lakh litres. A budget of about 1.47 crore has been spent on this project. It is reported that the water augmentation scheme project had been undertaken to enhance the daily supply to 70 litres per person, in about 121 villages of the district. While there are about 442 villages in the district, majority of these were getting water supply of about 40 to 45 litres per person daily, against the target of 70 litres.

According to the department sources, the government has sanctioned a plan worth about Rs 425 crore to enhance the supply to the target in about 72 villages of the district within the next couple of years. A project worth about Rs 19.55 crore was also on under the National Capital Region plan, which will benefit about 121 villages of the district, the sources added.

Ghaziabad, December 13
The police have not yet initiated any action in the abduction case of a one-year-old son of a furniture merchant in Arthla area of Sahibabad on Saturday.

A young man, employed by the furniture merchant on Friday, had taken the child out. However, he just disappeared.

The 17-year-old boy had asked for some job and was kept by businessman Mohammed Bundru in his house in Sanjay Nagar Colony in Arthla area of Sahibabad.

After Bundru left for his workshop, the young servant Rakesh took his baby son from his wife just to take him out in the air. His wife and neighbours had tried to locate the servant but could not trace him or the child. When Bundru went to the police station, the abduction report was filed only as a missing person report. The police have not taken any action so far.

Faridabad, December 13
The local administration may not be able to honour the announcement of the Chief Minister that all the roads in the district will get repaired by December-end. While just above a fortnight is left for this deadline, several roads in the town were still in a state of disrepair and the authorities seem in no mood to take up the pending work.

Ironically, the residents of various sectors were amazed when the officials concerned got dumped heaps of soil to fill up the craters of some of the roads. This led to ‘dust storm’ like conditions and acute dust pollution in such areas. However, there was none who could be approached as they were told that it was the decision of the authorities concerned to repair the road in such a manner initially.

Sachin Kumar, a resident of Sector-9, said that the ‘dumping’ of soil on the dividing road of Sector 9 and 10 has increased the problems of the commuters and the residents residing nearby. He claimed that it is nearly impossible to cross the stretch without mask and glasses. There were clouds of dust at any time and the situation worsens after dark, as one was not able to see the objects at a distance of more than 10 metres. And it has become a nightmare for the two-wheeler riders to go to other end of the road due to acute dust pollution.

An owner of a travel agency operating from a shop on this road, said that while the civic body demolished the ramps built by the residents under the garb of anti-encroachment drive, he said their life had been reduced to ‘hell’, as the road had been lying in a state of disrepair for the last one year. He claimed that many people may fell prey to various kind of disorders if the situation do not improve. ‘The Resident Welfare Associations of various sectors and pockets had raised their demand of repairs of the roads, but no action had resulted so far.

Despite the announcement made by the CM himself a, few months ago, said a doctor practising in the Sector 7-10 market here, the repair of some of the main roads had been taken up, but that does not solve the problems of the residents of the areas. No work has began or done in several roads, said Mr K. L Gera, a social activist based here.

The president of the women cell of the district Congress party, Ms Sharda Rathaur, alleged that the present INLD government has failed to provide even the basic civic amenities in the past five years. She said it appeared that the state machinery had stopped functioning and the commitment made by the CM will remain be a distant dream for many.

Greater Noida, December 13
Having severed his relations with the Bharatiya Janata Party, Sunil Shastri, son of former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, has decided to revive his father’s slogan - “Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan”.

During his visit to Greater Noida area yesterday, Sunil Shastri, while addressing the party workers in Alpha Sector, said that he would revive the slogan “Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan”.

The Congress party would fight for the rights of farmers, workers and other weaker sections of society.

“I want to serve the weak and deprived people with a renewed vigour. Though some people say that I have left BJP as I was not given a post, I want to make it clear that like my father, I have never hankered after a post or rank,” Sunil Shastri said.

To make India a self-sufficient country was the biggest dream of my father and we have to realise his dream.

It may mean a life of acute struggle, but we will certainly achieve this goal, he added.

Sunil Shastri also lamented the falling standards of electioneering atmosphere. The ethical standard of electioneering needs to be improved urgently.

Commenting on the beauty of Greater Noida, Sunil Shastri said it looks like a city in a foreign country.

Explaining the significance of Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan Mazdoor party, Sunil Shastri likened Jawan to Ganga, Kisan to Yamuna and said we have to create a confluence of all these forces for strengthening our motherland.

“Jawan (soldier) Kisan (farmer) and Mazdoor (industrial worker) are the backbone of our country and have a pivotal role in making our nation strong. All our party workers, including my own sons, will be fully committed to achieve these ideals,” Sunil Shastri said.

Former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, who had led the nation in its first war with Pakistan in 1965, is remembered and revered for his sacrifices, ideals of honesty and simplicity and concern for the common man.

Faridabad, December 13
A state-level meeting of the Association of the Parents of the Students will be held here on December 25. It will be organised by the ‘Faridabad Abhibhawak Ekta Manch’ to discuss the measures to improve the standard of education and to check the exploitation of the students and their parents.

Stating this, the general secretary of the Manch, Mr Kailash Sharma said that efforts are on to set up a state level body of the parents and those who are interested to improve the education base at various levels. Claiming that the policies and programmes of the Union and state governments were neither matching nor reaching the target areas, resulting in no change in the education scenario so far.

He said all the measures were taken on the files and not reaching the ground level. The Manch had taken up various problems and issues relating to the welfare of the students and the society as a whole, he added. The red-tapism in the officials’ circles and the negative attitude of the authorities concerned have made the things very murky. There was a need to setting a body with wider base and support, so that the government machinery could be pressurised upon to take and implement new and constructive steps in this direction.

Faridabad, December 13
The Citizen Welfare Association, a social welfare body based in Palwal town, has asked the police department to protect the human rights of a common man while investigating a case or interrogating a suspect.

This issue came up at a seminar organised by the association at Panchayat Bhawan recently.

Speakers attended the seminar from various walks of life, including police officials and lawyers. The speakers pointed out that though there had been an increase in the general awareness on the subject, many a times their rights were quashed, especially when the victims were poor and uneducated.

Mr Trilok Chand Gupta, President of the Association, in his address said that every person had a right to live with dignity and without being subjected to any oppression, injustice or discrimination of any kind.

He said a proper awareness had to be created not only among common man, but also among government departments, including police employees, so that the chances of violation of the rights were minimal. Mr Ranvir Singh, DSP, and Mrs Khuban Devi, Chief of the Municipal Committee, were the guest of honour at the function. The participants included various professionals, including doctors, engineers and teachers.

New Delhi, December 13
The experts attending the five-day Asian Pacific Association for the Study of Liver (APASL) conference here largely agreed that there is a definite link between increasing liver and other related disease with obesity and changing lifestyle.

Speaking at the meet, Dr S. K. Sarin, president, APASL, said, “More than 60 million people suffer from the disease of liver in India and this is largely due to an increase in alcohol intake, obesity and stress.” He further added that a record 3,000 delegates have already registered for the very first day of the 14th biennial conference. In any terms, this marks the unequivocal success of the conference not only among the medical community, but also among the people in general.

The fact that there are so many experts present at the meet clearly underscores the importance and the criticality of the liver and its ailments for India and the world at large.

The APASL India 2004 conference was inaugurated yesterday by the President Dr A. P. J. Abdul Kalam at the Vigyan Bhawan. World’s eminent liver science specialists and experts on liver diseases are participating in the seminar. Besides, Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil, Union Health Minister Dr Anbumani Ramdoss, Dr Veena Malhotra, secretary-general of APASL also spoke on the occasion.

According to Dr S K Sarin, “The conference - the APASL India 2004, represents the finest brains in the study of liver diseases from 49 countries across the world coming together on a common platform to present the latest developments and breakthroughs in the study of liver diseases.”

Noida, December 13
After a long wait, the Commerce Ministry has finally given the green signal to the setting up of a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Noida. The Ministry has asked the Export Promotion Council of Handicraft (EPCH) to work out modalities regarding the construction of the zone. The Executive Director of EPCH, Mr Rakesh Kumar, today met the Chairman of the Noida Development Authority, Mr Devdutt, and had a prolonged discussion on the proposed project with him.

Mr Kumar said after the meeting that they were planning to develop it on the lines of the huge SEZ constructed at Changmai in Thailand. “It will be developed in about 700 acres of land and will be the first of its kind in India.” However, we have not yet earmarked the exact location for the development of this zone. We are planning to add almost all facilities here like establishing technical product centre, spinning plant, furnishing plant etc to provide maximum benefits to the exporters,” said Mr Kumar.