New Delhi, January 11
External Affairs Minister S M Krishna today spoke to his Australian counterpart Stephen Smith and told him in unequivocal terms that relations between the two countries could be affected if the Australian authorities failed to satisfactorily address the issue of attacks on Indian students Down Under.

Krishna recalled that Australian leaders had time and again assured India that they were treating the incidents of assaults on Indian students with utmost seriousness. However, the incidents were still continuing. “Non-redressal of this vital issue will cast a shadow on our otherwise excellent bilateral relations,’’ he told his Australian counterpart, emphasising that the Australian Government must immediately ensure that the concerned state authorities deal with ongoing investigations with sensitivity and a sense of urgency.

“I spoke to the Foreign Minister of Australia. I have drawn his attention to the increasing assaults, some of them fatal, on Indian students. And I have requested him to expedite the investigation so that the culprits can be brought to justice,” Krishna told reporters later.

Krishna’ call came following the killing of Nitin Garg, a 21-year-old Indian student over a week ago, In another incident on Saturday, Jaspreet Singh, a 29-year-old Indian man, was attacked and set on fire by four unidentified men at Essendon in Melbourne while he was parking his car. The Australian authorities have again denied that the attack on Jaspreet was racial.

According to sources, Krishna raised concern over the nature of these assaults as contrary to the “opportunistic urban crime”, as being maintained by the Australian authorities, nothing seems to be stolen during the assaults, indicating they might be racially motivated.

He conveyed his deep concern at the recent series of attacks in the last 10 days, which occurred after a period of relative calm of a few months. Reiterating the need for immediate corrective measures, the minister pointed out that the issue had consistently figured in Parliament also.

The Australian minister told Krishna that he was conscious of the need for an early breakthrough in the ongoing investigations concerning these incidents and that his government attached the highest priority to ensure the continued well-being of Indian students.

Conveying his condolences over the tragic deaqths of Indian students, he said he fully understood the spirit in which Krishna had underlined the concerns of New Delhi over these attacks.

Mumbai, January 11
Investigators are turning the heat on builders who were associated with tainted police officer Pradeep Sharma, who has been arrested for killing an alleged gangster in a fake encounter a few years ago.

A special investigating team set up to probe the killing of Ramnarayan Gupta, alias Lakhan, in 2006 was questioning several persons, including builders, said to be associated with Sharma.

Sources say Sharma used to settle disputes among builders and in the process had managed to amass unaccounted wealth. Sharma is under probe for masterminding the killing of Gupta at the behest of a builder with whom he had a dispute, sources said. Gupta was alleged to be a member of the Chotta Rajan gang. The SIT is trying to find out how much money the police officers were paid to eliminate Gupta. Apart from Sharma, four others, including one of his bodyguards, have been arrested.

Gupta’s brother Ramprasad, who is a petitioner in the case, has alleged that the encounter was carried out by Inspector Pradeep Suryawanshi of the DN Nagar police station at the behest of Sharma.

Pradeep Sharma was suspended from service in 2008 and subsequently sacked after a probe revealed that he had amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. Later, Sharma challenged his sacking before the Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal, which ordered his reinstatement. However, the state government was yet to reinstate Sharma.

Patna, January 11
RJD chief Lalu Yadav is working hard to enforce a complete bandh in Bihar on January 28. “I have asked my workers to ensure that no one ventures out on the streets and all shutters remain down on that day. The RJD workers would not allow even an ant to move in Bihar during the bandh,” said Lalu describing the preparations being made by his party for Bihar bandh.

The main opposition party in the state, the RJD, has decided to launch a national agitation on the issue of rising prices of essential commodities. And the agitation would begin by enforcing a bandh in Bihar. The RJD’s ally and the Ram Vilas Paswan-led LJP have also extended its wholehearted support to this bandh.

Addressing the RJD national executive committee meeting here on Sunday, Lalu exhorted his party men to be prepared for an intensive agitation against the Nitish Kumar government in Bihar as well as the UPA government at the centre.

Announcing the party’s plan to launch a ‘jail bharo abhiyan’ soon after the Bihar bandh, he also declared that the party symbols for contesting the assembly polls would be given to only those who would remain in jail for a longer period. “There will be no applications for seeking party tickets this time. The certificates issued by the jail authorities would be a mandatory requirement for allotting the party ticket,” Lalu clarified.

In his inimitable style, Lalu allured his party men not to fear jail captivity by saying that they would all get warm blankets, bed sheets, pillows and khadi clothes to wear behind the bars. And after being released they could take it all back home. Expressing his desire to accompany all of them to jail, Lalu jested that if he would remain behind the bars, who would campaign for the party in his absence?

Taking a dig at the Centre, Lalu said the UPA-1 government in which he was a minister had exercised control over the prices of essential items but the UPA-2 (present dispensation) had no control over it at all. According to him there seems to be no governance either in Bihar or at New Delhi. Lalu also told his party men that he was not going to sit idle at Patna and watch the people face hardships.

“I will raise my voice in Parliament as well during the coming budget session,” he said.

Chennai, January 11
The Tamil Nadu Assembly witnessed the first big battle this year, with AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa today crossing swords with senior ministers, in the presence of Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, and made a series of allegations against the government.

Though the ministers intervened numerous times to counter Jayalalithaa, they did not deny her charges, but cited similar charges against the previous government and resorted to negative arguments. When Jayalalithaa pointed out a recent incident in Tamil Nadu when a sub-inspector was murdered and made some remarks against two ministers, the Speaker expunged them. Health Minister MRK Panneerselvam recalled the death of many devotees during the Kumbakonam Mahamagam festival, which was attended by Jayalalithaa and asked why the AIADMK leader did not save the dying people.

The former Chief Minister said it was ridiculous to name the life-saving insurance scheme after Karunanidhi. To this, another minister K Ponmudy intervened and justified naming schemes after Karunanidhi by saying that one of the government transport corporations was named after Jayalalithaa during the previous regime.

As soon as the Leader of the Opposition started her speech, she asked the ministers not to interfere as the Chief Minister would be replying to her remarks later. “If Ministers interfere during my address, it would amount to not having confidence in the talent of their leader (Karunanidhi)”.

But, Law Minister Durai Murugan, who intervened said the AIADMK ministers intervened many time during Jayalalithaa’s regime when opposition MLAs were speaking in the Assembly and asked “Does this mean she (Jayalalithaa) lacked skills?” he said.

Some of the ministers resorted to personal attacks on the opposition leader and asked why she was staying in Kodanadu estate and her farmhouse in Hyderabad. Even senior minister K Anbazhagan indirectly recalled Jayalalithaa’s film career as an actress.

Withstanding all personal attacks and negative replies, Jayalalithaa concluded her speech quoting the lines of a popular song from AIADMK founder MGR’s movie which roughly translates as “Let anything happen. Let justice be concealed under darkness. Justice will come out. God exists. Do not worry”.

New Delhi, January 11
Engineering education in India remains ill-suited for competitive needs of our industry and economy, with less than one per cent of the total engineering graduates opting for research.

Over 75 per cent of these graduates are taught at the 1100 private engineering colleges, most of which are affiliates and lack academic and financial autonomy, affecting the quality of education imparted. The first in-depth analysis of engineering education in the country shows that the sector remains elitist and far removed from research. Whereas 2.3 lakh engineering degrees (B Techs) and 20, 000 engineering masters degrees (M Techs) were awarded in India in 2006, just 1000 engineering PhDs were awarded - less than one per cent of all B Techs.

This compares poorly with the world, with percentages of engineering doctorates to engineering degrees being 10 for the UK, 9 for the US, 8 for Germany and 3 for Korea.

Top institutes like IITs and IIScs are also making meagre contribution in terms of graduate output and research (selectivity of students in IITs is among the lowest in the world at 2 per cent), with the two contributing less than one per cent of the engineering graduates, 20 per cent of M Techs and 40 per cent of PhDs. If that was less, only one per cent or less of the graduating B Tech class of IIT opt for M Tech in India; only 2 per cent of the graduating M Tech class opt for PhD. “Though we now have only about 15 per cent B Techs from IITs and IIScs going abroad for masters (as against 30 per cent a decade ago), we don’t see Tier 1 institutes graduate as research institutes,” Rangan Banerjee and Vinayak Muley of IIT, Bombay, and authors of the study today told The Tribune.

They said that with current projections, the share of IITs and IIScs in the total engineering graduates in India would be just 0.5 per cent in 2012 and 0.6 per cent in 2017. Tier 2 institutes like National Institutes of Technology (NITs) would fare no better, with their share in the total engineering graduates dropping from 2.9 per cent now to 1.7 in 2012 and 1.4 per cent in 2017. This due to lower growth rate of these institutes as against the overall growth of other engineering institutes.

If that be it, India would be overproducing engineers, putting them at the risk of unemployment. “Considering the correlation between engineers per million population and GDP, the number of graduates in 2012 would be 3.3 lakh and in 2017 about 5.3 lakh. After recession, if lower GDP growth rates of 7 to 8 per cent are expected, we would be overproducing engineers, resulting in unemployment,” Banerjee said, adding that the government must shift focus from quantity to quality and increase the number of doctorates to 2 per cent of engineering graduates.

For this to happen, the experts, whose book published by the Observer Research Foundation was released today by HRD minister Kapil Sibal, say the IITs must increase their engineering output from 860 per IIT to 2000 by 2017, and PPP model must be used to establish quality institutes - something Sibal aggressively seconded, promising a law that allows businessmen to set up education institutes.

Several international engineering institutes already have a great output. Urbana Champaigne awards 1950 degrees, Purdue 1840 and Gerogia Tech 2300 degrees, says Banerjee, calling for a national PhD initiative to expand research.

New Delhi, January 11
Former Samajwadi Party (SP) general secretary Amar Singh today scribbled more emotional entries into his blog, slamming top party leaders for politicising his decision to resign from party positions, saying the “decision was clear like water and non-political.”

Claiming moral high ground for stepping aside from posts he was unable to attend to due to illness, Amar made caustic remarks on SP leader Janeshwar Mishra and his aide Brij Bhushan Tiwari, who have termed the former’s resignation as a “tantrum”.

“Mishraji has been unable to attend to his duties as parliamentary party leader in Rajya Sabha. Is he also throwing tantrums?” Amar asks, saying he does not want to enjoy positions he can’t contribute to because of his illness. The former SP spokesperson further talked of how he helped Mishra get elected to the Rajya Sabha.

“It was this very capitalist who generated the missing support to ensure Mishraji election to the RS,” says Amar of the man described as “Chhote Lohia” in the SP. He embarrasses Mishra further by citing how the latter had always teased him to become a “Samajwadi” instead of a “Mulayamwadi”.

“Well, I am still a Mulayamwadi,” says the former SP spokesperson, turning tables on all his enemies in SP and accusing Mulayam’s brother Ram Gopal Yadav and Mohan Singh of hypocrisy.

About Mohan Singh, he writes: “You praised Raj Babbar over Mulayamji in one of your articles. You now say I am distancing myself from party because I have been unable to further Anil Ambani’s capitalist interests. Can you deny the fact that Gandhiji was close to Birlas and Bajajs and Lohia had connections with Badrivishal Pitti, all capitalists?” asks an unsettled Amar, reminding Mishra of how he got him airlifted to safety once. “I requested the Ambanis to get you airlifted while you were ailing,” he writes of Mishra, blasting all his detractors for reading motives into his personal decision.

“I am suffering more than Mishraji and am begging leave. I have not consulted Amitabhji, Jayaji, Anil and Tina for this decision. This is my life and my decision,” Amar writes, adding that he has left Dubai and does not know where his next stop would be.

The SP pointsman, whom SP chief Mulayam Singh today called up seeking his presence at a music festival in UP, further ensured he mentioned the monetary help extended to Mohan Singh on the eve of LS elections.

New Delhi, January 11
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said India’s Solar Energy Mission would aim to generate 20,000 MW of solar power by 2022.

The Prime Minister also urged the industry to create ‘Solar Valleys’ on the lines of Silicon Valleys and asked business houses to view the Solar Energy Mission as a business opportunity. Launching the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission “Solar India”, he said the success of the mission had the potential of transforming India’s energy prospects while contributing to national and global efforts to combat climate change.

The solar mission assumes important because it holds the centrestage of the country’s activities to combat climate change. The mission is an important part of the country’s National Action Plan on Climate Change and is trying to establish the country as a global leader in solar energy, not just in terms of solar power generation but also in solar manufacturing and generation of this technology.

The mission targets 1,100 MW grid solar power, 7 million sq m solar collectors and 200 MW off grid solar applications in first phase by 2013, and 20,000 MW grid solar power, 20 million sq m solar collectors and 2,000 MW off grid solar applications by the year 2022.

The PM said the success of the mission had the potential of transforming India’s energy prospects.

New Delhi, January 11
Subtle hints in the BJP that it might reward its Pilibhit MP Varun Gandhi with an important post in the party or even the charge of his home state UP under the dispensation of the new president Nitin Gadkari has raised hackles in the party with veterans like Vinay Katiyar showing public annoyance with his party.

Katiyar, once the Hindutva face of the BJP, who represented the Ayodhya/ Faizabad Lok Sabha constituency a couple of times since the demolition of Barbi Masjid in December 1992, has announced his intent to give up politics and go on “Kalpvas (political retirement) from his hometown Faizabad, leaving his party leaders here speechless.

Vinay Katiyar currently the national general secretary of the BJP was the chief of RSS’ Youth wing Bajrang Dal and was the face of firebrand Hindutva. In spite of that he lost a couple of Lok Sabha elections as the temperatures on the Mandir-masjid issue started coming down.

At present, he is a member of the Rajya Sabha having lost the last Lok Sabha polls as well. In the meantime Vinay Katiyar, a Kurmi OBC, also started articulating the cause of the OBCs in his party and on other fora.

He was recently invited by the premium Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband to its function and he in turn declared, “We should be proud that we have institutions like Deoband,” clearly hinting at his softening on communal issues.

Varun Gandhi raised communal temperatures in UP in the last general elections by making disparaging remarks about Muslims and even Sikhs, leading to a general outrage over his attempts to communalise the situation. It also led to several BJP candidates from UP publicly condemning Varun and blaming him for their eventual defeat at the hustings.

Katiyar’s declaration that he wants to distance himself from politics and move towards spiritualism has strengthened the view in the party that Katiyar is sulking over Varun Gandhi replacing him as the new icon of Hindutva.

While formally the BJP refused to react to Katiyar’s Kalpvas, privately they disclosed that Katiyar has is taking their calls and conceded that he seems to be upset with some development.

Katiyar had told newsmen in Faizabad, ''I am disturbed with the state of affairs in contemporary politics and want to take a break. He claimed he wanted to move away from politics and developed an inclination towards spiritualism.

New Delhi, January 11
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has taken up for investigation the three cases filed in the Ruchika molestation case, after the Union government gave its consent under Section 5 of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act (DSPE). This step has been done on request of the Haryana government. This is the second time that the CBI would be probing the matter. Rathore has already been convicted in these cases.

The CBI will probe the fresh cases registered by the Haryana police against former Haryana DGP SPS Rathore and others in the Ruchika molestation case.

The first case has been registered under various sections of the IPC, accusing Rathore of abetment to suicide.

The other two FIRs, filed by Ruchika’s father SC Girhotra and her brother Ashu, have charged Rathore with attempt to murder, wrongful confinement and forging of Ruchika’s post-mortem report.

Ruchika had committed suicide three years after she was molested by the former IPS officer on August 12, 1990.

The SP of Special Crime Unit-1 (CBI) has been appointed as the chief investigating officer to look into these three cases. The SP will be assisted by a team of legal experts and investigating officers.

The CBI has appealed to all persons in the know of the facts and circumstances of these cases and to those who are willing to give evidence in the court that they should contact the chief investigating officer through e-mail or personal basis.

According to the CBI, the cases were registered against Rathore, then Panchkula superintendent of police KP Singh, sub-inspector Prem Dutt, and assistant sub-inspectors Jai Narayan and Sewa Singh.

These cases were earlier registered at the Sector 5 police station in Haryana’s Panchkula district.

Chandigarh, January 9
Challenging the denial of anticipatory bail by a lower court in the two fresh FIRs registered against him in the Ruchika Girhotra molestation case, the former DGP of Haryana, SPS Rathore, today filed a petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Here too, Rathore did not get any immediate relief, as his case was posted for hearing on Tuesday.

As the matter came up for hearing late in the afternoon, Rathore’s lawyer-wife Abha kept on asking for interim protection against ex-DGP’s arrest. But, Justice Sabina did not pass any orders.

Attributing the earlier rejection of bail plea to “media pressure”, Abha argued that there was nothing to connect the former IPS officer with the alleged offences. She maintained that the sessions court had rejected their petition “without going deep into the legal submissions only on the basis that the media was doing a good job”.

Launching a scathing attack on the media in the open courtroom, Abha said it (media) was reporting false statements. “Media pressure will create problems,” she contended.

Citing medical reasons, Abha argued that Rathore was 68 years old and had undergone aortic valve surgery. “The pressure was bad for his health… He is not running away, and will stay put in his house,” she said.

As Justice Sabina asked advocate Pankaj Bhardwaj whether he was appearing for the opposite side, he nodded in affirmative before saying he had serious objection to the relief being sought for Rathore. “Arrest (of Rathore) should not be stayed,” he pleaded.

Justice Sabina also questioned the perceptible presence of media in the courtroom. Abha apparently used the query to support her contentions on media pressure. She said the media was all over, inside and outside the courtroom, sending messages and making phone calls as if a press conference was being held.

After hearing Abha Rathore for considerable time, Justice Sabina fixed Tuesday for further hearing in the matter. Justice Sabina directed the case should be listed along with other urgent matters while advising Abha Rathore not to “rush it up”.

Notably, the petition was filed this morning and fixed for hearing today itself after obtaining necessary orders. Abha Rathore was apparently under the impression that the petition would come up before Justice SS Saron -- the senior-most judge in the criminal roster.

Swarmed by the media, she reached Justice Saron’s court at about noon (till lunch) and again after lunch. As she made a request to Justice Saron to take up the issue, Abha was told the matter was not before him, and she should find it from the high court registry.

Meanwhile, Rathore has also moved the high court for quashing of the FIR registered against him under Section 306 of the IPC relating to abetment to suicide by Panchkula police. 

New Delhi, January 11
Maintaining that recommending the elevation of Karnataka High Court Chief Justice PD Dinakaran to the Supreme Court was not a mistake, Chief Justice of India KG Balakrishnan today, however, said any judge found to have grabbed land was not fit for promotion.

“Collegium takes a decision. I have to weed out things…I don’t think so we have committed a mistake,” the CJI told NDTV in an interview.

He said he was of the “firm view that if any judge has trespassed any land or has done anything against law, he is not fit to be elevated to the Supreme Court.”

The CJI, however, said there were no allegations against Dinakaran when the collegium made its recommendation.

“There was no allegation even when he was a judge in the Madras High Court and Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court.”

Asked whether the judiciary’s image had been dented in the eyes of the public in the wake of the episode, he said people don’t take these things seriously.

Meanwhile, Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari is in the process of setting up a three-member probe panel in connection with the impeachment proceedings against Justice PD Dinakaran, facing charges of land grab and other irregularities.

The move has gathered pace following CJI’s recommendation, suggesting four judges, two each from the Supreme Court and the High Courts, for induction into the proposed panel.

The RS Chairman would choose two of the judges suggested by the CJI and pick up the third member of the panel on his own from among the eminent jurists. The inquiry committee is expected to be put in place shortly.

Ansari has admitted a notice by a group of 75 Rajya Sabha members demanding impeachment proceedings against Justice Dinakaran. The probe panel would investigate the charges contained in the notice and in the process would give ample opportunity to the judge in question to explain his position and rebut the charges.

The initiation of the impeachment proceedings in the House would depend on the findings of the probe team.