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‘Metro is fully secure from
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Act on disaster management in Haryana soon
DU steps to check ragging
Government-run schools ‘most corrupt’: Study
High Court stays Noida land draw
Delhi HC demands solution to stray cattle menace in city
Govt to pay Rs 1 lakh to medical negligence victim
DHBVN to give quick connections in lieu of ‘kundi’ from tomorrow
Court notice to DSGMC on contempt plea
RI for kidnapping, marrying minor
Illegal land exchange by IAS officer
Two killed, 12 injured as truck overturns
Labourer killed as wall caves in
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‘Metro is fully secure from any attacks’
New Delhi, July 13 “The lessons from London and the modern, up-to-date devices in place here will make Delhi Metro fully secure,” she told reporters at a national conference on ‘Delhi Metro: The Story of Success’ here. She sought to play down fears of an attack on the Delhi Metro, saying that “just because it happened in London does not mean it will happen here also”. She did not say whether officials would be sent to London to study the security systems on its Metro network. The Metro stations and lines are under constant vigil by Delhi Police and DMRC personnel since the blasts in London last week. There is a likelihood that Central Industrial Security Force may be given charge of guarding it. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Managing Director Mr. E Sreedharan said the mass transit system had enough “in-built safeguards” against any terrorist attack. “A disaster management plan has been drawn up. We are fully prepared for any eventuality and stations can be evacuated in six minutes,” he said. Mr. Sreedharan said X-ray machines had been installed at some stations but they favoured manual frisking of passengers, since it was more “effective”. Mr. Shreedharan also informed that construction of Metro networks in Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad is likely to commence within this financial year. DMRC had prepared detailed project reports (DPRs) for these networks and will be the principal consultant during the construction. Speaking at the conference, Mr. Sreedharan said DMRC has also prepared detailed reports for Metro networks in Chennai and Kochi and a new line in Kolkata which will pass under the Hooghly river. He said officials from Sri Lanka and Pakistan visited the Delhi Metro and favoured DMRC preparing detailed reports for similar networks in Colombo and two Pakistani cities. “A team from Bangladesh is likely to arrive soon to discuss a Metro network for Dhaka,” he said. Japanese Ambassador Mr. Enoki Yasukuni, who was present at the conference, commended DMRC for achieving its targets ahead of schedule and said its experience will be helpful in other cities.
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Metro train grinds to a halt due to electric fault
New Delhi, July 13 A problem in the insulation of the Over Head Electric line between Shahdara and Shastri Park stations in East Delhi caused the train on the down line between the two stations to halt. The problem was eventually rectified and normal train services resumed. Trains coming from Kashmere Gate to Shahdara, however, ran normally, with Shahdara, Seelampur, Welcome and Shastri Park being the only affected stations. Train service had started on the Kashmere Gate-Shahdara section of the Shahdara to Rithala line on December 24, 2002.
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Act on disaster management in Haryana soon
Gurgaon, July 13 A hazard safety cell has also been formed in Public Works Department (Building and Roads) to implement national building code guidelines in all future construction of government and semi-government buildings. According to an official, the Education Department has also been asked to incorporate Disaster Management as a subject in school textbooks to inculcate awareness in the students. Dr Abhay Kumar Shrivastava, Head, Disaster Management, Haryana Institute of Public Administration (HIPA), has prepared the draft of Haryana State Disaster Management Act. Mr Shrivastave said the Haryana state would be among the few states in the country which has formed the Disaster Management Act. Gujarat, Orissa, Uttranchal Pradesh, Maharashtra and Tamil Naidu have fixed guidelines for disaster management. The bill on National Policy of Disaster Management, pending in Parliament, might be passed soon, informed Mr Shrivastava, who has been looking after the disaster management cell in HIPA since its inception in July 1994. According to Mr Shrivastava, Haryana may face disasters of five types: (1) Water and Climate-Related Disaster—flood and drainage management, hailstorm, cloud burst, heat and cold wave, drought, etc; (2) Geological Disasterr–earthquake, landslide; (3) Biological Disasters–biological disaster and epidemics, pest attack, cattle epidemic and food poisoning; (4) Chemical, Industrial and Nuclear Disasters–chemical, industrial and nuclear disaster; (5) Disasters related to accident—forest fire, urban or village fire, electrical disasters, major building collapse, serial bomb blast, air, road and rail accidents, capsizing of boats and oil spill. As per official sources, the government also intends to involve civil defence volunteers in disaster management. Therefore, Deputy Commissioners have been asked to update the list of civil defence volunteers or NGOs in their district. Besides, the Public Relations Department has been asked to carry out campaigns for creating an awakening among the people on disaster management. Haryana Institute of Public Administration, Gurgaon, has been asked to conduct special training programmes on Disaster Management. Around 7,000 employees of all grades, including IAS, HCS and other state employees have already been trained to meet unexpected eventualities, informed the Head, Disaster Management, HIPA. The fire departments of Maruti Udyog Limited and Hero Honda Limited gave practical training to the employees to control fire, added the officer. The official said that the Government of India had carried out a review of the emergency management and disaster management system in the country and proposed to institutionalize the training initiatives related to the Incident Management System in the country. A programme for this had been taken up in conjunction with the United State Forest Services. The specialized incident management team at the state level would be deployed to handle critical emergency requiring state-level intervention.
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DU steps to check ragging
New Delhi, July 13 At a meeting of the Proctorial Board of the University, held to deliberate on the measures to facilitate the smooth induction of students during the opening of the new academic year on July 16, DU authorities along with the Delhi Police have laid down certain rules to ensure that freshers are not subjected to any physical or mental harassment. A number of important decisions were taken in the meeting to ensure maintenance of discipline and prevention of ragging in the university’s colleges. Colleges have been instructed to strictly enforce DU’s rules and regulations and the provisions of Ordinance XV-B, XV-C and XV-D which pertain to maintenance of discipline, prohibition and punishment for ragging and Policy against Sexual Harassment. Two Joint Control Rooms, one in the North Campus, which can be contacted on 011-27667221 and in South Campus on 011-24119832, have also been set up. College hostels are being requested to restrict the entry of outsiders and to prominently display rules regarding prohibition of ragging and formation of disciplinary squads in colleges, including evening colleges, have also been planned. Colleges will have to make provision for sealed complaint boxes and to take immediate action whenever required, regular and unannounced inspections to detect unauthorised entry/stay in hostels and ban on guests staying in the hostels during the initial weeks of reopening of colleges.
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Government-run schools ‘most corrupt’: Study
New Delhi, July 13 Yes, government-run schools have topped the list of the most corrupt according to a study conducted by Centre for Media Studies on corruption in education. The study, which focuses on the bribe paid by parents for their children’s education, does not take into consideration bribes paid for recruitment, transfers and promotion of teachers. Revealing startling facts, the study cites that the monetary value of petty corruption in education up to class 12 in the country is estimated to be Rs 4,137 crore per year. While 71 percent of all households having school going children send their wards to government-run schools, the dependence on government schools in the rural areas is higher at 77 percent. It was pointed out that 71 percent of those who interacted with educational institutes had to make more than four visits to the department/institution. Of these, more than 34 percent needed to collect school leaving certificates, 21 percent felt that very often mid-day meals in schools were either not provided or were of very poor quality and 40 percent of the respondents who used “alternative process” to get their work done belonged to the lower income group. The study released by Transparency International indicates that rural parents are in the forefront of giving bribes, with the estimated figure at 1.1 crore households, compared to the urban localities where the figure is 0.4 crore households. Further, corruption tends to be higher in states
with low educational development. The report also cites that each year, schools ask parents to pay for enhancing educational programmes, maintaining school buildings and obtaining equipment or supplies and that parents tend to comply fearing their child will suffer if they refuse. The study also lists some suggestions provided to improve the situation, including giving over poorly-performing schools to teacher committees to run. The fund allocation to each school should be linked to outcomes including enrollment rates, attendance, dropout rates and grades of students passing out. The menace of private tutoring, making teachers and school administration accountable and overcharging of fees have also been discussed. Respondents also stressed the need for laying down the criteria for admission to schools in advance, issue of School Leaving Certificate within a fixed time and a Citizens’ Charter so that parents are clear about various aspects of the school. The study shows that an improvement of just two points in the corruption index would reduce the dropout rate by around 40 percent.
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High Court stays Noida land draw
Noida, July 13 In view of the piquant situation and confusing statements of the Noida authority officials on the fate of recent residential scheme draw, some people, including Deepak Sharma’s advocate Manu Khare had prayed before the bench of Justice Dr B.S. Chauhan and Justice Dalip Gupta
to stay the cancellation of the draw. Incidentally, Deepak Sharma is reported to be one of the successful allottees of this draw. The High Court has directed the Industrial Development Secretary, UP government and Noida authority, to file their reply before the court on July 19. The court has ordered that status quo be maintained till then. It also directed Noida advocate Anurag Khanna to present the relevant documents of the case, correspondence with all agencies connected with the draw and the list of successful allottees during the next hearing. According to the petition, Deepak Sharma had applied for a plot on December 14, 2004, under New Okhla Industrial Development Authority’s residential scheme 2004. Some 1,250 plots were to be allotted in this scheme through a lottery. Fifty per cent plots were to be allotted on the basis of reservation while the rest were for general category applicants. On July 2, draw of plots was held in the presence of the public through lottery. A list of 1,250 successful allottees was then formed and allotment letters were issued online, showing ‘undue haste’. Later, the draw was cancelled without a written order, the petitioner submitted.
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Delhi HC demands solution to stray cattle
New Delhi, July 13 Piqued over the failure of the civic agencies to get rid of the menace, a Division Bench of Chief Justice B C Patel and Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul said if they fail to file the joint report, Delhi Government Chief Secretary, MCD Commissioner and NDMC Chairperson will appear personally before it on the next date. “The matter is pending since long. The city is not free from the danger of stray animals,” the Bench, which was not satisfied with the progress made by the MCD and the NDMC on the issue, observed. Petitioner’s counsel Meera Bhatia alleged that stray cattle were seen loitering near the posh India Habitat Centre in the heart of the city. Starting with East Delhi, the MCD has started a drive in each zone to remove stray cattle from the city. On May 26, the court had given four weeks to MCD to free East Delhi from stray cattle. The Bench, which is monitoring the progress made in this regard on a weekly basis, had earlier taken strong exception to non-implementation of its order passed in 2003 wherein several directions were issued to the MCD.
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Govt to pay Rs 1 lakh to medical negligence victim
New Delhi, July 13 Justice Vikramajit Sen, who had earlier asked the Centre if it was ready to make an ex-gratia payment to 11-year-old Manju, ordered Rs 1 lakh as ex-gratia for her after the Additional Solicitor General, Mr. P. P. Malhotra suggested a mere Rs 20,000 for the victim. The Court also directed the Centre to bear the expenses of her treatment at Indian Spinal Injury Centre, Vasant Kunj here and provide her further treatment, if needed. It would be open to the petitioner to seek other civil remedies for claiming compensation. As per court’s earlier direction, Ajay Agrawal, Director of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare was present in the court. Earlier, Centre’s counsel Suresh Kait had said that the government would not pay any compensation or ex-gratia amount to the victim unless there was a court order. Manju’s father Om Prakash, a roadside barber has moved the court for a direction to the authorities for her further treatment, action against erring doctors and compensation for the lapses that resulted into her permanent disability. Earlier, hospital authorities had filed a report of a two-man committee that enquired into complaints against surgeon Yadu Lal, who allegedly fixed a rod upside down in her spine, resulting in the disability. The Committee of Dr. V. K. Arora and Dr Surya Bhan indicted Dr. Lal and recommended his immediate removal as Head of
the unit.
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DHBVN to give quick connections in lieu of ‘kundi’
Faridabad, July 13 According to a Nigam spokesperson, the scheme will remain effective till August 31 in all the nine districts, including Faridabad, Gurgaon, Mewat, Rewari, Mahendragarh, Bhiwani, Hisar, Fatehabad and Sirsa. He said under the scheme, the Nigam officials would organise camps to provide on-the-spot connections in the villages which have fewer connections compared to the total number of houses of consumers and where there are more incidents of power theft. According to a survey conducted by the Nigam, there are a number of consumers in the rural areas who still depend on ‘kundi’ connections despite the fact that many of them have been found guilty of power theft in this manner. It is claimed that waiving off farmers’ bills to the tune of Rs 1,600 crore recently has come as a major relief to the people. It is stated that the ‘kundi’ regularisation scheme may also be a success as many people have started paying their bills. The team that will visit the villages in this regard will be headed by an SDO and will include a junior engineer, lineman, clerk and a representative of the district administration. It is added that while the required papers and application form would be made available to the applicants on the spot, an electricity contractor would also be present there to provide the test report of the connection. The Nigam has warned that strict action would be taken against those found to be having a ‘kundi’ connection after August 31. A major drive would be launched in all the areas afterwards. According to the Nigam officials, the rural consumers could also pay their current bills at such camps and avail themselves of the advantage of load disclosure scheme.
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Court notice to DSGMC on contempt plea
New Delhi, July 13 In a contempt petition, moved by Khalsa Boys’ Primary School, Bangla Sahib and its Head Mistress, the notices were issued to DSGMC President Paramjit Singh Sarna and Acting President Baldev Singh Ranibagh. Notices were also issued to Parliament Street Police Station SHO, who was named as a respondent in the contempt application by the school. Mr Justice S Ravindra Bhat on May 30 had restrained the DSGMC from shifting the school from Bangla Sahib complex area at Ashoka Road to Mata Sundri Road in the interest of small children studying there. The contempt petition submitted that the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee had violated court order by shifting the school and initiating the demoliting of the structure despite the restraint directive by the High Court.
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RI for kidnapping, marrying minor
New Delhi, July 13 Additional Sessions Judge, Mr. J. M. Malik found 37-year old Mohammed Jaffer Ali guilty of intoxicating the victim and forcibly taking her away from her East Delhi residence to Bihar, where he married her and spend three months together. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 5000 on the convict who has been found guilty under section 363 (kidnapping) and 366 (abducting a woman to compel her to marry) of IPC. The court, however, absolved the convict from the charges of rape as the victim, aged above 16, “had willingly lived with him for three months” and even went to places like Kolkata, Guwahati and never lodged any complaint against him. Though the prosecution could not establish the charges of rape, the court convicted him for kidnapping citing that she was below 18, the age of consent for taking her away from her legal guardianship. Rejecting the defence plea that the convict should be absolved from the charges of kidnapping also, the judge said “it must be borne in mind that the accused was already married”. The girl had gone missing on February 20, 2002 when she went to the market near her house in Ambedkar Nagar from where the convict took her to Old Delhi railway station and took a train to Darbhanga in Bihar. Police had arrested him from there.
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Illegal land exchange by IAS officer
Greater Noida, July 13 A shady land exchange case has now come to light in Kasna village. The case involves a senior IAS officer, who as Commissioner, Meerut Division, had allegedly managed to get his land – located in a very remote area – exchanged with prime land worth crores near Greater Noida Golf Course which was an ‘abadi’ land in connivance with the then SDM, Secunderabad. According to information, Dori, son of Chet Ram of Kasna village, had purchased two-and-a-half acres from a scheduled caste person vide Khasra No. 1322. Later, he had sold this land to one Samedra Raj, son of Desh Raj Singh of C1/12 Pandara Park, New Delhi. Desh Raj Singh had been a former commissioner of Meerut Division. This land was within the notified land of UPSIDC. Since the rate of land compensation of UPSIDC was low, these people filed a suit in the court of the then SDM Secunderabd, R L S Yadav, that this land should be allowed to be exchanged with Gram Samaj land. The SDM permitted this land to be exchanged with land under Khasra No. 639 on November 30, 1994. Being in ‘abadi’, this land is now worth crores.
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Two killed, 12 injured as truck overturns
Ghaziabad, July 13 The driver of the truck, ferrying vegetables from Amroha to Delhi, is reported to have lost control near Shahpur Jat village under Babugarh police station. The passers-by helped to extricate the injured who were admitted to nursing homes in Babugarh and Hapur by the police. According to police, Sarvesh and Netram of Amroha were killed on the spot. The seriously injured included Ram Lal, Ramesh and Sukh Ram.
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Labourer killed as wall caves in
Faridabad, July 13 According to available information, the deceased, identified as Subedar Singh, was buried along with two others under the debris of a wall which collapsed this morning. While he succumbed to his injuries soon after, two of his associates got seriously hurt. This is stated to the first rain-related incident when a wall collapsed due to waterlogging and rains which have been lashing the town for the past three to four days. Meanwhile in another incident, the police have booked six members of a family for dowry harassment. The accused live in Sector-17 here and the case has been booked on a complaint lodged by their daughter-in-law.
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