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Bill a political statement, not a solution: BJP
Traders observe bandh to protest sealing of business establishments
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IN PARLIAMENT
More teeth for Gurgaon, Faridabad police
Bali gets contempt notice for breaking MCD seals
CM directs DJB to initiate interaction with RWAs to ‘Terror groups scouting for hideouts in NCR towns’
‘MCD ignoring unauthorised constructions of influential politicians’
Four persons get life sentence for murder
Feeder buses for Metro commuters
The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, which started commercial operations in Dwarka sub-city on April 1, has been continuously making efforts to provide the facility of feeder buses to commuters so that they can have easy access to Metro stations.
‘BSES upgrading fire-fighting measures’
Students of Bhatnagar International School, Vasant Kunj, performing a cultural programme at Manav Sthali School auditorium, New Rajendra Nagar.
Illegal bottling plant unearthed
The Delhi Police have unearthed a spurious bottling plant meant for manufacturing soft drinks of reputed soft drink companies. The police have arrested one person in this connection, identified as Nitin Kumar (27), a resident of Badarpur. 
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Bill a political statement, not a solution: BJP
New Delhi, May 11 It is said that the government has sought one-year time for making some changes in the by-laws. The Bill, likely to be tabled tomorrow, will just provide temporary relief of one year, sources in the government said. The general-secretary of the Confederation of All India Traders, Parveen Khandelwal, said that the government was seeking one-year time to stop sealing of shops and demolition of unauthorised construction through the Bill. It has no intention to stop the MCD’s drive completely to provide traders permanent relief. He said this is a political game being played by the Congress-led government in the State as well as in the Centre. Hardly nine months are left for the Municipal election and the drive could harm the Congress party’s prospects. Once the election is held, the MCD may start the drive again. The chief of the Delhi unit of the BJP, Dr Harshvardhan, said that the Bill was like a political statement, not a solution of the problem. “As I have come to know, the Bill is not solid in nature. There is no amnesty scheme and no change in Master Plan has been mentioned”, he said. According to the record of the MCD, so far 13,000 shops and other business establishments in residential areas have been sealed and 2,490 buildings have been demolished. They will not get relief through the Bill. The government is tabling the Bill for whom, he questioned. If the Bill is tabled and it is passed, only the MCD will get relief. The Engineering Department of the Corporation has been busy since the beginning of the sealing and demolition drive, he said. The MCD has taken major action against more than four hundred engineers, who were suspected to have been in connivance with the builders, the spokesman of the MCD said.
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Traders observe bandh to protest sealing of business establishments
New Delhi, May 11 There was no trading activity as all commercial markets including those at Connaught Place, Chandni Chowk, Kashmiri Gate, Sadar Bazar, Karol Bagh, Pahar Ganj, Nai Sarak as well as several major markets in South, North and East Delhi remained completely closed in response to the ‘Bandh’ call by the Confederation of All India Traders, Delhi Traders’ Sangharsh Morcha, Karol Bagh Traders Federation and several other trade bodies. “There has been a tremendous response to the ‘bandh’ with all markets being closed today,” Confederation of All India Traders secretary-general Praveen Khandelwal said. The traders are also demanding that the Centre introduce an amnesty scheme under which all business establishments as on date should be regularised. Thousands of traders from all parts of Delhi held a ‘sangharsh rally’ at Jantar Mantar today to protest the sealing of shops and demolition by the MCD.
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IN PARLIAMENT
New Delhi, May 11 This was stated today by the Minister of State for Urban Development, Ajay Maken, in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha. The percentage of migration from States of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan into the National Capital Territory of Delhi was reduced during 1991-200, he said. The Union Minister for Urban Development, Mr Jaipal Reddy, informed the Rajya Sabha that the government has issued revised norms for floor area ratio, number of dwelling units, height etc., in respect of plotted residential development vide notification dated July 23, 1998. He said the draft Master Plan for Delhi 2021, proposes further liberalisation in respect of number of dwelling units to be permitted in plotted residential development. Mr Reddy said the MCD has reported that the task force, regarding the rehabilitation of colonies, has prepared its draft report, which was considered in a meeting held on October 10, 2005. Comments received from the concerned departments have now been taken up for consideration before finalisation of the report. In response to a question, Mr Manikrao Hodlya Gavit, the Minister of State for Home Affairs, informed the Rajya Sabha that the proposal to grant statehood to Delhi has been referred for an in-depth examination to an Inter-Ministerial Committee of officials, which includes a representative of the Government of NCT of Delhi.
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More teeth for Gurgaon, Faridabad police
Gurgaon, May 11 The Inspector General of Police, Gurgaon Range, Mr Mohinder Lal, disclosed here that there was a plan to set up separate units, each in Gurgaon and Faridabad, to look after intelligence and security areas on the pattern of Delhi. The units would tackle crimes such as terrorism. He said the menace of terrorism had to be kept in mind on account of the high voltage industrial installations in Gurgaon and Faridabad as well as the influx of a large number of multinational companies. With cities like Gurgaon drawing worldwide attention of various quarters, it was only natural that terrorists would carry out their nefarious activities here. There is also plan for setting up a special bomb disposal squad in the two cities. The present set-up is ‘primitive’ in nature, added the IG. To cap it, broadband surveillance system would be set up in the two cities. This would mean that IP cameras would be installed at various places of the cities and monitored by the police control rooms. Every movement, especially of vehicles would be monitored by the control rooms. Mr Lal said 60 places in each of the two cities had been identified for installing the cameras. Besides, an atomised system would be set up at Bilaspur junction to keep a tab on all vehicles. Referring to the traffic front, he said there was a plan to set up an independent unit with two traffic police stations in Gurgaon. While one of the police stations would have a jurisdictional area from Delhi borders to IFFCO crossing, the other one would have the areas from IFFCO junction to Bilaspur in Gurgaon district under its control. Besides, there is a plan to set up additional seven general police stations and one station for cyber crime in Gurgaon. A senior official of the rank of DSP, Crime, would exclusively preside over a team of 30 personnel specialised in the key areas relating to crimes in Gurgaon. The specialised personnel will be part of special squads and groups related to crimes, their prevention and follow-ups. The assignment would also include keeping tabs on various criminal groups. The strength of the manpower under DSP, Crime, would be increased with the passage of time following provision of more personnel in the district. There is a plan to increase the manpower of Gurgaon district police by another 2,000.This would allow the authorities to rationally restructure various components of the force, he said. There was plan to add 30 more PCRs in the present fleet. The addition would also be made in Faridabad. The patrolling operations would be made independent of the SHOs, added the IG.
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Bali gets contempt notice for breaking MCD seals
New Delhi, May 11 A Bench headed by Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal asked Balli to explain why action should not be taken against him for violating the court’s order. The court issued notice after the Monitoring Committee brought to its notice a videotape showing Balli breaking seals of shops. The Bench made it clear that no court would entertain any plea regarding the ongoing sealing drive as the matter is being heard by the apex court. Accepting the Monitoring Committee’s recommendation, the court directed the MCD to issue requisite public notice with regard to the action against commercial establishments running from residential premises on roads with a width of 60 feet or more as may be directed by the committee. The court made it clear that the ongoing sealing and de-sealing operation would continue. It also asked the Monitoring Committee to examine the impact of the government’s notification dated March 28 on mixed land use on the infrastructure and facilities like water, electricity and sewage. The Committee was also asked to indicate in its next report its perception of small shops. The court also asked MCD to file an affidavit within four weeks about those violating its order on sealing. It listed the matter for further hearing on July 17. Meanwhile, the Centre today withdrew its application seeking a stay on the ongoing sealing process to enable it to conduct a survey of the Capital.
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CM directs DJB to initiate interaction with RWAs to ease summer woes
New Delhi, May 11 She asked the DJB to introduce modern management practices, which would go a long way in overcoming shortage of drinking water during the summer season. The Chief Minister today held a meeting with the representatives of various RWAs and joint front of RWAs in the Delhi Secretariat. The Chief Secretary, S. Reghunathan, CEO Jal Board Arun Mathur and senior officers of the Delhi Government were also present in the meeting. At the outset, while underling the constructive role of RWAs in decision-making under the Bhagidari Movement, the Chief Minister called upon representatives of the associations to present constructive and workable suggestions for bringing about improvements in the services of the DJB. The suggestions presented by the representatives of the association members included standby arrangements for pumping sets in case of power cuts, cleaning of underground tanks, separation of sewage and water lines, monthly interaction with DJB officials, streamlining of water supply through tankers, augmentation of complaint system, rainwater harvesting, putting an end to sale of illegal water, recycling of water, curbing pilferage and leakage, identification of on-line boosters, monitoring peak period consumption of water and training of DJB staff for better communication and public dealing. The CEO of the DJB Arun Mathur while responding to the suggestions explained that the Jal board would act in a pro-active manner for redressing consumer complaints. He also emphasised the need for people to get their old residential pipelines, which may be rusted or corroded, checked through a licensed plumber to protect themselves from contamination of water. He also assured the RWAs that DJB would act promptly on all the suggestions mentioned by them. Mrs Dikshit instructed DJB to chalk out a plan of action for smooth functioning of the water distribution network and have the apex committee and 25 zonal committees constituted immediately. She also instructed to give due representation to the RWAs, which would help in providing useful feedback. The meetings of the zonal committees at the Executive Engineer level would be held once a month. She further directed the DJB to provide more telephone lines at complaint centres and start a concerted campaign to bring awareness on water conservation.
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‘Terror groups scouting for hideouts in NCR towns’
Noida, May 11 These towns are perceived to be safer than Delhi by the terrorist groups because of comparatively slack local intelligence network. Besides, houses can easily be had on rent in these towns with out any fuss. The names of terrorists like Zakaria, Bashir and Mustaquim are on the hit list of all the secret agencies. They specialise in bomb making and exploding them. The serial bombs made by them had killed over a dozen people in Varanasi and Delhi. Now these terrorists are reportedly targeting smaller NCR towns for creating disturbances. The Delhi and Ghaziabad police and STF are all on a lookout for them, including Ummer, who is reported to have returned after training from Pakistan. After the arrest of five terrorists along with Varanasi blast mastermind Walli Ulla in Lucknow on April 5 and the input provided by them, the attention of intelligence agencies seem to be concentrated on Delhi and NCR towns. After Abu Hamzaa’s disclosures, who lived in Ballabgarh of Faridabad in Haryana, the STF and the Delhi Police are also trying to nab those youth who had been sent by Zuber to Pakistan and have since returned via Dhaka after undergoing explosives training in Pakistan. According to sources in the intelligence wing, over two dozen youth have sneaked into towns such as Muzzafarnagar, Meerut, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Noida etc. The police and the intelligence agencies are also making enquiries in Javer, Kakod, Rabupura, Dankore in Gautam Budh Nagar, Greater Noida and Noida about some new and unfamiliar faces recently seen here. Three years back the STF had shot dead a terrorist in Noida while a number of ISI agents have been apprehended in Noida, according to local police sources. Even a Pakistani secret agent had been caught in Sector-37, Noida, the police added. Reports of criminal-terrorist nexus have also emanated Even from Gurgaon. Maninder, an accused of a number of murders in Gurgaon, is reported to have a hideout in a temple, where police have found an American carbine and a number of other foreign weapons. Similarly, Akhtar of Gumat Bibari village in Mewat had also come in to news following raids by secret agencies after a cache of arms and weapons were seized from Gujarat. Now, the CBI has announced Rs 50,000 reward on his arrest. Indications of ISI agent presence in Mewat in Haryana are also there. An Army jawan was caught from an STD booth while passing some intelligence input. The Gurgaon Superintendent of Police, Hanif Quereshi, said a special cell for identification of tenants has been set up. The police and intelligence agencies are reportedly on full alert in this connection.
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‘MCD ignoring unauthorised constructions of influential politicians’
New Delhi, May 11 “The MCD is not touching unauthorised constructions owned by the influential politicians and that only cosmetic demolitions were being undertaken”, Leader of Opposition Subhash Arya and BJP councillor Vijender Gupta alleged in joint press conference. The court has directed the MCD to take action first against the buildings belonging to influential people. But the demolition squad of the civic body is not following the court order, they alleged yesterday while interacting with mediapersons. Mr Arya alleged that the BJP workers were being targeted under pick and choose policy of the MCD under the “guise” of court directions. The Municipal Commissioner, Mr A. K. Nigam, in a statement said that various political leaders have carried out unauthorised constructions at their properties. They have been issued show cause notices. The two BJP leaders, however, alleged that no action has been taken against their properties. It is only the properties of the BJP leaders and supporters that have been demolished, they alleged. The MCD had sent a file of unauthorised constructions to the Chief Law Officer (CLO) for advice. The CLO advised for strict action as per order of the court. But nothing has been done so far, Mr Gupta alleged. However, the spokesman of the MCD said, “there is no pick and choose policy in connection with the demolition drive. The civic body has set priorities for demolition. The first and foremost priority is demolition of ongoing constructions. The second priority is demolition of properties built on public land. We are also taking suggestions from court commissioners.” “We are doing our best to follow the court direction with resources available with the Corporation. Unauthorised properties of all nature will face demolition action subject to availability of resources,” he added.
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Four persons get life sentence for murder
Noida, May 11 According to the Assistant District Prosecutor, Chaman Lal Sharma, annoyed at giving support to their opponent during the 1997 panchayat election, Jagbir, Naresh Dheer Singh and Rajiv alias Rakesh had murdered Virinder on April 13. According to the prosecutor, they had attacked the brother of Verinder, identified as Satya Pal, with knives, who was grievously injured. Later, the four accused had made a murderous attack Virinder, when he was returning from his farm along with his father Uday Veer in a cart. Virinder died on the spot in the sudden attack by assailants. Hansaraj, the uncle of the deceased, had filed an FIR in Javer police station. The police had arrested all the four accused and presented them in the court. After seven years, the Fast Track court pronounced the judgment yesterday.
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Feeder buses for Metro commuters
New Delhi, May 11 As part of these efforts, the Delhi Metro has obtained approval from the State Transport Authority for 24 routes for RTV feeder buses. While bus operators have already been invited to run RTV buses on 18 of these routes, the other six routes have been approved this month and their tenders will be floated soon. So far, permits have been issued to 25 RTV buses to operate on these routes. Meanwhile, the DTC has made slight alterations to the routes of two of its buses so that these now touch the Dwarka Sector 9 Metro station. The buses include Dwarka Sector-23 to New Delhi Railway Station via the Sector 9 Metro station and the IGI Airport to Inderlok Metro station via the Sector 9 Metro station. The DTC has also started an inter-state bus between Dwarka Sector-9 Metro Station and Gurgaon bus-stand this month. Besides the routes servicing Dwarka, there are 12 approved RTV feeder bus routes for Line-3 of the Delhi Metro on which 56 such buses are
operating. — TNS
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‘BSES upgrading fire-fighting measures’
New Delhi, May 11 Reacting to a news item, “BSES fire-fighting measures only on paper, say firemen” carried in these columns on May 9, a BSES spokesman claimed that some of the measures taken at the grid stations and sub stations included, mobile CO2 fire extinguishers in the switchyard, soak pits for safe draining of oil, fire separation wall between two power transformers and dry type multi- purpose extinguishers. The spokesman said that the power distribution company was willing to upgrade these measures to the satisfaction of the Delhi Fire Service but no one from there had so far communicated to them.
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Cultural programme at Bhatnagar International School
New Delhi, May 11 The founder of Manav Sthali Organisation, Dr V.K. Bhatnagar, inaugurated the programme. In the inauguration ceremony, the little fairies and elves enthralled the audience by their performance. An English play, The Little Prince, was staged. A timeless classic of children’s literature of the 20th century, the play showcased the world as envisaged by children – the land of fantasy. The school choir set the mood for the evening with a musical composition. Another scintillating and reverberating English number came like a wisp of fresh air transporting the audience to places far away. ‘Srijan – The Nritya Natika’ encapsulated purity and tenderness through statuesque and sculptural poses, uplifting the dancer and the beholder to a higher level of consciousness. Applauding the efforts of staff and children of the school, Dr V.K Bhatnagar said that arranging such programmes help to explore the hidden talents and underlying potentials of children. The guest of honour on the occasion was Madhavi Mudgal. A number of dignitaries from various organisations and embassies were also present on the occasion. Large number of students from primary to senior secondary participated in the programme.
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Illegal bottling plant unearthed
New Delhi, May 11 He was allegedly running the spurious drinks manufacturing factory at E-98, Pandav Nagar, said the police. The police also claimed to have recovered a large quantity of bottles, raw material to manufacture soft drink, bottle caps, chemicals etc from the premises. The police received a tip-off about the spurious factory and subsequently a raid was conducted at the location and the accused was
arrested. — TNS
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