New Delhi, September 23
Delhi is said to be unsafe for women at night. A new study now says the city is equally unsafe by day. According to the Centre for Social Research (CSR), a non-government organisation, incidents of rape occur in the city during the daytime too.

"The research proves that Delhi is equally unsafe for girls even during daytime," a statement from the CSR said today.

The research is based on a study of 58 first information reports (FIRs) filed in rape cases in the southwest police district of the capital city.

As high as 30 per cent of rape incidents took place between 12 noon and 6 pm, and 12 per cent between 6 am and 12 night.

"This data reveals the lies of the Delhi police commissioner, who recently said, 'You (women) can't go out at 2 in the night and then say you were the victim of a crime'," the CSR statement said.

According to the CSR, 18 women are raped or molested every hour in the country, and most of the sexual offences are committed by close acquaintances.

"Rape is soon becoming an increasing form of violence against women. As many as 18 women are battered in some form or other every hour across the country," the CSR said.

According to the study, some 22 per cent of the rape cases were of girls below ten years of age and 31 per cent of older school and college girls.

The age group of the accused varied from below 18 years to above 50 years.

"When the CSR did an indepth study of the relationship of the accused and the victim, it was appalling to find that in most of the cases, the offender was a close acquaintance of the victim," the statement said.

In 22 cases, the accused were neighbours of the sufferer; in five cases the attackers were relatives, and in 10 cases the offenders were friends.

"Shocking findings also emerged of the accused being a father, husband, brother, teacher, lover and stepfather," the CSR survey showed.

The study adds that the victims, in many cases, did not lodge a complaint immediately.

"Out of the 58 cases, only 27 victims lodged the complaint on the same day, 18 victims lodged a complaint a day after the incident, and 12 cases after longer period," it said.

"Another reason for the victims not filing their complaints is because they fear a reprisal from the assailant," it added. - IANS

New Delhi, September 23
The delay in the possession of the flats is giving nightmares to the successful applicants of the Delhi Developing Authority (DDA) Housing scheme-2010, with the house loan interest rates heading north.

Earlier, the sending of verification letters to the applicants had got delayed by more than a month. Now, the next step of sending the demand letters seems to be moving on the same track. The applicants were expected to receive the letters by the start of this month, but are yet to get them.

Most of the applicants are worried about managing the loan that they have taken for the flats.

"Had I got the flat five months ago, I would have got the home loan at a much cheaper rate of interest," said Sunidhi Gupta, a lucky applicant who got a flat in Rohini.

"With the Reserve Bank of India hiking the key interest rates on Friday, the 12th time since March, the loans are set to become costlier. The delay in the possession is only adding to our woes," said Manish Sisodia, another applicant who has got a flat in Dwarka.

However, agency officials said they had already dispatched the demand letters to the allottees and that if somebody had not received it, he/she could collect it from the headquarters.

"The process has been so mismanaged by the DDA that getting the house has become a nightmare. The rate of interest on home loans has already reached 10.7 per cent," said Sumit Vohra, who has been allotted a flat in Pitampura.

The applicants who have got flats in Vasant Kunj's D-6 will only receive intimation letters as of now, as some of the flats are yet to be completed and so their final costs are yet to be estimated.

After receiving the demand letter, the allottees will get 90 days' time to pay the whole cost of the flat. They can also pay the amount within 180 days. However, in that case, they will have to pay some interest. After 180 days, the DDA will cancel the allotment of those who fail to pay up. The process of possession would take two months after the payment. The land development agency held the draw of lots for the nearly 16,000 flats on April 18. 

New Delhi, September 23
Delhi revenue minister AK Walia today exhorted all agencies concerned to speed up the enrolment work for the Aadhar cards in the Capital.

Expressing concern over the "slow pace of work", Walia said the residents had been eagerly waiting for their Aadhar numbers.

At a review meeting of the department concerned, Walia stressed the need for an early completion of the process as the Aadhar numbers would be helpful to the people for a number of purposes. It would also put an end to duplication in claiming benefits under various welfare schemes, he added.

"The government will take stern action against the non-performers. He instructed the divisional commissioner to forfeit the security deposit of M/S Tera Soft responsible for a dismal performance in east and south districts. These districts are at the bottom of the list as far as the percentage of enrolment is concerned. Further, M/s Strategic Outsourcing is being issued a warning for its unsatisfactory performance.

The district authorities have been authorised to replace non-performing agencies with agencies with good credentials.

In all, 10 agencies have been involved in this work.

Walia said on an average, only 69,763 enrolments are being done in a day. If the pace was not increased, it would take another more than six months to complete the remaining 73 per cent enrolment, the minister said.

It has been decided that the average enrolment per day should be raised to 1.25 lakh to enable the agencies to complete the enrolment in the Capital by early January 2012. 

New Delhi, September 23
The newly introduced Cluster Innovation Centre (CIC) at Delhi University is all set to conduct its entrance examinations for BTech/BSc on September 25.

The decision to have a Cluster Innovation Centre for a four-year BTech on innovation in mathematics and information technology was approved by the Delhi University Academic Council (DUAC) and Executive Council on September 3.

The two entrance exams will start from 11 am and soon after, the list of short-listed candidates will be put on the DU website, www.du.ac.in.

The candidates will then be called in for the final interview round.

Classes will begin soon after. According to the approved proposal, the first batch is to have 40 students.

However, during the proposal meetings both in the academic and executive councils, there were allegations that the proposal document had been copied from websites like Wikipedia and university websites from abroad.

All elected members (22 in number) of the academic council had expressed dissent on the procedure of calling emergency meetings and for taking up the CIC issue in a hurried manner. The members were not against the innovation centre, but the way it had been introduced without any clarity. Four members also expressed their dissent on the courses to be offered by the CIC.

However, the vice-chancellor had accepted responsibility for everything that happened at the meetings and assured that the portions lifted from different sources would be removed and the draft reworked.

New Delhi, September 23
Students from 10 schools in and around Delhi got together at the Jantar Mantar today to observe the autumn equinox, the NGO which organised the event said. An equinox occurs twice a year when the day and night have approximately equal length.

"Around 200 students from various city schools participated in the event," an official of the NGO, Science Popularisation Association of Communicators and Educators (SPACE), said.

According to SPACE, an international citizen science project - "Project Paridhi - Measure the Earth Again" was also flagged off on the occasion.

"The kids performed experiments to measure the earth using a gnomon (a stick/sundial) to measure the shadows and in turn getting readings," said an official.

"Simultaneously, the experiments were performed by students in the cities falling on the same longitude as Delhi like Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh), Bangalore (Karnataka) and Nagercoil (Tamil Nadu)," added the official. - IANS

Gurgaon, September 23
Umeshkant Pandey, an employee at the 42nd milestone toll plaza on the Delhi-Jaipur National Highway No 8, was shot dead by a Bolero-borne commuter after a minor altercation over payment of toll tax late last night.

A spokesperson for the Delhi-Gurgaon Super Connectivity Limited said Pandey, who was posted at the toll plaza near Kherki Daula village in the district, was immediately rushed to Medanta Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

"We at DSC Limited are deeply shocked and hurt by this gruesome incident and extend our deep condolences to the family of the deceased. A complaint has been lodged with the local police and the matter is being investigated," the spokesperson maintained.

The spokesperson for the concessionaire added that as a company policy, all their toll collectors were insured and they would ensure that suitable compensation reaches the family at the earliest.

New Delhi, September 23
The body of a computer scrap dealer, Mohammad Faheem (22), was today morning found in a sack in East of Kailash.

The body was noticed by sweepers who informed the nearby residents, who reported the matter to the local police.

Faheem's father Mohammed Salim (45) had reported the matter to the police from Muzaffarnagar, UP, at 10 pm yesterday, when he noticed his son's mobile phone was switched off after an unusual response, according to the police.

"Faheem had saved his father's number under the name of papa in his mobile phone. When his father called him, someone picked it up and said papa. The father became suspicious because his son always called him Abba," said a police official.

The father identified his son's body after he was called by the police.

"Faheem's body was found in a sack in East of Kailash. He seems to have been killed by strangulation. He was a computer scrap dealer. His body has been taken to the AIIMS Hospital for a post-mortem," added the official.

Faheem belongs to Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh. His maternal uncle, Mohammed Sabir, said that Faheem was staying at Prakash Mohalla, Garhi, in Delhi.

Sabir said that Faheem was missing since last night.

"Between 9 and 10 last night, he was in Lajpat Nagar. We tried searching for him, but could not contact him because his mobile phone was switched off. His body was found by the residents of D-1 Block, East of Kailash, around 6 am today. They reported the matter to the police," said Sabir.

Faheem's paternal uncle said that his nephew had received his call at 8 pm last night.

"He said that he would be back in a while. Faheem left his house in Garhi probably for a deal, since he was carrying Rs 60, 000- 80, 000," he said.

New Delhi, September 23
Two persons were killed in two separate road accidents in east and south districts of Delhi since last night.

In the first incident, a law student of Jamia Milia Islamia, Zaveriya Mehmood (17) was killed after her scooty was hit by a tempo, according to the police.

The incident occurred in Laxmi Nagar at 5 pm today.

Police received a call around 5 pm, regarding the accident, which happened near Ramesh Park, Samuday Bhawan in Laxmi Nagar.

She was identified as the daughter of Mehmood Ali, who works with the law ministry.

"Witnesses took her to a nursing home. Doctors there referred her to Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital. At the hospital she was declared brought dead," said a police official.

The driver of the tempo, Arun (24), has been arrested and a case registered against him at the Shakar Pur police station.

The official added that Zaveriya was returning to her home after attending tuition classes in Laxmi Nagar. She resided at Milan Apartments.

In the second incident, an employee of the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) died after he was hit by a truck in Fatehpur Beri, south district.

The accident took place around 11.30 last night.

The deceased was identified as Ram Kishan (30), who was a resident of Fatehpur Beri.

Sources said the truck hit him while he was crossing the road at night.

"Kishan was hit by an unknown truck while he was crossing the road. A case of hit and run has been registered. He was taken to the AIIMS trauma centre, where he was declared brought dead," said a polic.

Ghaziabad, September 23
A special CBI court here awarded life imprisonment to two people and a three-year jail to a third person held guilty in the 2006 murder of Meerut University professor Kavita Chaudhary.

The court awarded life term to Ravinder and Sultan for hatching a conspiracy, abducting the professor before killing her, destroying evidence, and extorting money from former state irrigation minister Merajuddin Ahmed.

The court awarded three-year jail term to Yogesh, the third person held guilty.

Yesterday, Special CBI Judge AK Singh convicted Ravinder and Sultan for murder, abduction, conspiracy, extortion and causing disappearance of evidence. Yogesh was convicted for extortion and criminal conspiracy. Ashok, a fourth accused, was acquitted.

"Another accused, Ravinder Pradhan, died in the jail during trial," said the senior public prosecutor.

Ahmed had to resign as minister after his name figured in the murder of the professor, who was abducted by five assailants on October 23, 2006, from Garhmukteshwar.

Senior public prosecutor for CBI Ejaz Khan pleaded for capital punishment.

The CBI submitted its chargesheet on March 23, 2007, after the case was transferred to it for investigation on January 12, 2007. During its investigation the CBI presented 33 witnesses. Of them, three - Merajuddin, Ravinder and Amit, alias Ashu, - turned hostile.

The CBI chargesheet stated that Kavita had intimate relations with Merajuddin and made a CD showing her with him in a bedroom.

Ravinder and the other accused in the case, along with Kavita, then started blackmailing the minister to make their CD public, the chargesheet said. The five assailants then extorted Rs 35 lakh from Merajuddin. While Kavita received Rs 4 lakh from it, Ravinder Pradhan kept the major share with himself.

A dispute over sharing the money led to Kavita's murder. The chargesheet also stated that Kavita was also in an intimate relationship with RP Singh, the then vice-chancellor of Choudhary Charan Singh University.

She also had close relations with Kiran Pal Singh and Babu Lal, both ministers in the Uttar Pradesh government from Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) quota, the chargesheet stated. - IANS

New Delhi, September 23
The police yesterday arrested Khalikuddin (40) for allegedly conducting a surgery to remove the genitals of a man, Ramesh, without his consent, after he was given a sedative.

He was arrested in Etah, Uttar Pradesh.

On May 25, Ramesh reported to the police that on May 24, Lalita, Ram Babu Gupta, Shobha and Laxmi gave him a cold drink with a sedative. He said he then became unconscious and when woke up the next day, he did not have his genitals.

Lalita and Gupta had been arrested on May 26.

According to the police, Shobha and Laxmi were not involved in the crime.

"A eunuch, Bobby, had hired Khalikuddin from UP, who conducted an operation on the complainant. On September 22, Khalikuddin was arrested from Etah.

Bobby was granted anticipatory bail by a court," said BS Jaiswal, DCP (outer district).

Khalikuddin said he was working as an assistant with a doctor, Fateh Mohammed Siddiqui. Siddiqui was arrested by the UP police for his involvement in sex-change operations.

After Siddiqui's arrest, Khalikuddin started conducting similar operations.

"Khalikuddin gave sedatives to the person who wanted to become eunuch. He then conducted an operation to cut off the private parts of the person. He charged Rs 15,000- 20,000 per case. The accused said he had been involved in more than 20 such cases," added the DCP.

New Delhi, September 23
Some Muslims today protested outside the Constitution Club where the International Ahmadiya Muslim Jamaat has organised a three-day exhibition on the teachings of the Quran.

They demanded that Ahmadiyas should not be considered as Muslims as they do not believe that Mohammad was the last Prophet of Islam, which is a basic condition to be called a Muslim.

Some of the prominent protestors were Samajwadi Party general secretary Kamal Faruqui; Yahya, younger brother of Shahi Imam of the Jama Masjid; Hassan, Dalit Muslim leader and Aejaz Qasmi.

They had placards which had slogans like "Ahmadiyas are not Muslims. They do not believe in the basic principles of Islam."

However, spokesman of the Ahmadiya Muslim Jamaat, Salauddin, said, "The Ahamadiyas believe in all principals of the Islam. They believe that Prophet Mohammad was the last Prophet of Islam. It's wrong to say that Ahmadiyas are not Muslims."

"We are hosting an exhibition on the teachings of the Quran. The protestors should have come in and see the things that we are doing," he said.