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Put pressure on Pak to return Hemraj's head: Army Chief
NEW DELHI: Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh said the Pakistan army should be
pressurised to return the head of Lance Naik Hemraj who was beheaded by its troops in Poonch sector in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Army Chief said he would also visit the home of Hemraj, whose family was on fast for the last six days demanding that his head be brought back from Pakistan.
"We have to make the Pakistan army accountable. There are diplomatic, political ways of doing it. As far as the Army is concerned, increasing force and violence is a national decision. We want the head back but what do you when a country and its Army are in denial mode?", Gen Singh said in his annual Army day press conference here on Monday.
"I think we should pressurise them nationally and internationally as part of our national element so that they are made accountable and they are made to return the head of our soldier which they have taken away," he said.
Gen Singh said that for getting the head back, "it will be taken up at the government level and you will have to appreciate that this has to to be done through diplomatic channels.
"It will also be conveyed to the DGMO. It is also being conveyed today in no uncertain terms. Let us see if
the Pakistan army heeds to our request and complies to it," he said. — PTI
India lodges strong protest with Pak at flag meeting
Jammu: The Indian Army today lodged a strong protest with Pakistan Army over the killing of two of its jawans, one of whom was beheaded, and continued ceasefire violations along the LoC in Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir.
"The flag meeting between brigade commanders of India and Pakistan started around 1300 hours and ended at 1332 hours at Chakan-Da-Bagh Crossing-Point in Poonch sector", a senior Army officer told PTI.
The Indian team was led by 10th Bridage (Krishnaghati Brigade) Commander Brig T S Sandhu in the meeting with the Pakistan brigade commander at Chakan da Bagh Crossing Point along the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district.
The officer said further details were awaited as the team was returning from the forward area.
The Army had lodged a strong protest with the Pakistan army over the brutal, barbaric and inhuman killing of two Army jawans after intrusion in Poonch sector on January 8 and also continued ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops.
The Indian Army had sent a hotline message to the Pakistan army on January 11 and called for a Brigade Commander-level flag meeting to discuss the issues of brutal killing of two jawans after major intrusion by Pakistani troops of 29 Baloch Regiment and increasing incidents of firing and ceasefire violations in Poonch sector.
Pakistan had yesterday responded to the request for flag meeting through
hotline, he said, adding that "we had sought flag meeting of the two brigade commanders".
Pakistan's High Commissioner Salman Bashir was earlier summoned in Delhi by Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai, who had lodged a strong protest over Pakistani Army action in which the two soldiers were killed and their bodies were subjected to "barbaric and inhuman mutilation".
Pakistan has suspended cross-LoC trade and travel at Chakan-Da-Bagh crossing point in Poonch sector since Thursday and Friday respectively.
— PTI
Lakhs throng confluence of Ganga, Yamuna for Maha Kumbh
ALLAHABAD: The Maha Kumbh began this morning with lakhs of devotees as well as ascetics and religious leaders of various orders converging on the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical river Saraswati in Allahabad for a holy dip on the occasion of Makar Sankranti.
The inaugural day of the two-month-long congregation, often described as the “greatest show on earth”, was marked by the first “Shahi Snan” of 13 “akharas” wherein Naga Sadhus
— a martial order of ascetics who move about either naked or scantily clad with matted hair and ash smeared bodies
— marched to Sangam in processions with their leaders perched atop ornately decorated elephants, horses and chariots and musical bands in attendance in a unique blend of austerity and opulence.
The first to move out were Mahanirvani and Atal Akharas, followed by Niranjani and Anand and then Joona, Awahan and Agni.
They are to be followed by Nirvani Ani, Digambar Ani and Nirmohi and Naya Udasin, Bara Udasin and Nirmal akharas in the same order fixed during the British period following a violent clash among ascetics of different akharas at a Kumbh congregation.
The akharas have been allotted fixed time, ranging from 30 minutes to about an hour depending upon the size of their respective procession, for bathing with routes for going to and returning from Sangam so separated as to ward off possibility of members of rival akharas coming in contact with each other.
Devotees from across the country had started pouring in since last evening and the influx continues despite cold weather and elaborate security arrangements on account of which devotees are being made to park their vehicles several kilometres away from the holy confluence and reach the Sangam on foot.
Vehicular traffic has been banned on most of the roads in the city from yesterday till tomorrow to facilitate movement of people.
The “Shahi Snan”, which is a star attraction of the event, began at around 6
am as curious, awestruck onlookers gathered on both sides of the over-a-kilometre-long road of metallic chequered plates on which the processions of “akharas” proceeded towards the Sangam.
The crowds were separated from the procession with the help of barriers.
Security personnel kept a steady, though anxious, watch on the movement of the “Naga sadhus” along the route, from watch towers and by monitoring CCTVs as their processions have sparked off violent clashes in the past.
The mela, held every 12 years, will go on for next two months and will conclude on Maha Shivaratri on March 10.
The administration is expecting a nearly 10 per cent rise in pilgrims attending the mass Hindu pilgrimage this year compared to the previous Maha Kumbh held here in 2001.
Exceptionally large crowds are also expected on Mauni Amavasya (February 10, 3 crore) and Basant Panchmi (February 15, 1.9 crore).
Besides, spiritual leaders like the Dalai Lama, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Baba Ramdev and Asaram Bapu, also have planned their visits.
The huge turnout of people, visits of high-profile gurus in addition to the presence of naga sanyasis have increased the pressure on police and administration for smooth functioning of the Kumbh Mela.
A lurking fear of terrorist strike has further heightened the challenges in recent years.
“More than 7,000 personnel of central paramilitary forces, including companies of the Rapid Action Force and the National Disaster Response Force, have been pressed into service,” IGP (Allahabad) Alok Sharma, designated as the nodal officer for security arrangements during the Maha Kumbh, had said. — PTI
Fog disrupts schedule of over 40 flights in Delhi
NEW DELHI: Dense fog on Monday returned to Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, badly affecting the schedule of over 40 flights, including diversions of eight to other cities.
Flight operations at the airport came to a standstill for around one-and-half hours, between 5
am and 6.30 am, as the runway visibility was less than 50 metres on both the runways, main (28/10) and third (29/11), airport sources said.
Eight flights coming to Delhi were diverted to Jaipur, Nagpur and Mumbai between 4
am and 6 am, when the runway visibility was less than 50 metres, which is the minimum required visibility for a flight to land using the most advanced Category III B of the instrument landing system.
The fog started to descend at the airport around 8 pm last night but it became dense from 11.30
pm.
The general visibility and the runway visibility worsened after 2.30 AM when it reduced to less than 50 metres.
A Royal Dutch Airline flight (KLM 872) to Amsterdam was delayed by over eight hours due to fog and subsequent completion of flight duty time limitations (FDTL) of the crew.
The flight took off at 2.30 am but had to return due to some technical reasons. In the meantime fog enveloped the airport and the visibility dropped to less than 100 metres, and flight was held up.
When visibility rose above the permissible limit, the FDTL of the crew ended and the flight was rescheduled for departure at 11.45 am, sources said, adding passengers have been accommodated in the hotels. — PTI
Retail inflation rises to 10.56
pc
NEW DELHI: Rising for the third consecutive month, retail inflation breached the double-digit mark at 10.56 per cent in December, driven by higher prices of vegetables, edible oil, pulses and cereal.
The retail inflation was 9.90 per cent in November and 9.75 per cent in October.
The vegetables basket in December recorded the highest inflation of 25.71 per cent among all the constituents that make the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
Vegetables were followed by the oil and fats segment at 16.73 per cent. Sugar turned more expensive by 13.55 per cent.
Pulses and cereals became dearer by 13.46 per cent and 13.70 per cent on an annual basis. Meat, fish and egg rose becoming 11.64 per cent more expensive.
Clothing and footwear witnessed 10.74 per cent increase in prices.
In urban areas, retail inflation rose to 10.42 per cent in December from 9.69 per cent in the previous month. The CPI for rural population increased to 10.74 per cent during the month from 9.97 per cent in November.
All India provisional General (all groups) CPI numbers of December 2012, for rural, urban and combined are 126.8, 124 and 125.6, respectively.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is expected to take into account the double-digit retail inflation when it comes out with its third-quarter policy review later this month.
Wholesale price based inflation for November was at 7.24 per cent, much higher than the RBI comfort level of 5-6 per cent.
Concerned over the persistent inflation, the RBI has kept key interest rates unchanged since April, 2012.
Industrial output growth rate had contracted by 0.1 per cent in November, from a robust 8.3 per cent in October. — PTI
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