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Protests intensify in AP over safety of non-Telangana people in capital
Drass-Kargil flare-up
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Congress gears up for Twitter war against Gujarat CM
Govt plans study to test Pentavalent vaccine safety
Govt being unjust to disabled soldiers, say MPs
Pension is akin to right to property, says SC
MEA to add 900 officers by 2018
Riot police deployed after tension in Mumbai locality
SAIL achieves tech breakthrough in warship steel
‘Maruti go back’ protests in Gujarat villages
NIA: Can’t share Headley’s statement with CBI
26 new drugs permitted for sale without trials
Sindhurakshak Op
2 detained for Bodh Gaya serial blasts
Rs 2.12 cr seized ahead of K’taka LS bypolls
Bhagat Singh’s martyr status not dependent on records: PM
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Protests intensify in AP over safety of non-Telangana people in capital
Hyderabad, August 18 The Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions have been witnessing angry protests and shutdown for the past two weeks, focussing mainly on the fears over the safety and security of the people from these regions who have made Hyderabad their home for generations. While endorsing the plan to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) had said Hyderabad would be the common capital for Telangana and the remainder of the state for a period of 10 years. At the end of 10 years, the city would become the permanent capital of Telangana. The plan chalked out by the Congress leadership provides for financial assistance by the Centre in building a new capital for Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions, jointly referred to as
“Seemandhra”. After widespread protests in Seemandhra, the Congress has constituted a committee headed by Defence Minister AK Antony to address the concerns of the two regions. With the status of Hyderabad emerging as the main sticking point, the Centre is said to be exploring a middle path that can satisfy all stakeholders while going ahead with the decision to bifurcate the state. Legal and political analysts point out a few options to address the issue surrounding Hyderabad. The first one is to keep Hyderabad a Union Territory for 10 years, accommodating the capitals of Telangana and AP. The second option suggests converting Greater Hyderabad into Hyderabad Capital Region (HCR) on the lines of the National Capital Region (NCR). The analysts further say the HCR can have a Legislative Assembly on the lines of Delhi. The Assemblies and the chief ministers of the HCR, Telangana and AP will not have any executive or legislative power on “public order, police and land”. Finally, if Hyderabad does not have an Assembly, the Telangana Assembly might be given all administrative controls over Hyderabad, except public order, police and land management. While Seemandhra leaders, cutting across party lines, want Hyderabad to be made the permanent capital of both states or even a Union Territory, the elected representatives of the city are strongly opposed to it. “We strongly object to the proposal to make Hyderabad a Union Territory. Nothing short of Telangana state with Hyderabad as capital will satisfy us,” said D Nagender, a minister from the city. The Majlis Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM), a political force in the city with one MP and seven MLAs, has threatened to launch an agitation if the Centre declares Hyderabad as Union Territory or a permanent capital post-bifurcation. It would be against the spirit of the Constitution to declare a new state without powers over law and order, police, and land and revenue management, said Prof Madabhushi Sridhar, coordinator, Center for Media Law and Public Policy, NALSAR University of Law. “Without amending the Constitution, it is not possible to divert the key powers to the Centre even after Hyderabad is made a Union Territory,” Prof Sridhar said. It is also being argued that Hyderabad could not go the Chandigarh way because it will not have geographical contiguity with the remainder of AP post-bifurcation
But there are others who strongly favour Hyderabad as the permanent joint capital. “Hyderabad is the first choice for the educated youth of the state. It offers opportunities for all kinds of skills. It is the fear of loss of this advantage that has made the youth of Seemandhra districts protest in anger,” argued Dr Ramachandraiah, a Professor in Urban Studies at the city-based Centre for Economic and Social Studies
(CESS). Over the past few decades, Hyderabad has attracted lakhs of people from the Seemandhra region. In fact, they constitute about 35 percent of the city’s population. the concerns
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Drass-Kargil flare-up
New Delhi, August 18 After August 14, the Drass-Kargil axis flared up with Indian and Pakistani troops exchanging fire across the LoC a few
times — a first since the 1999 conflict. India says Pakistan breached the ceasefire in this sector and its own troops only retaliated. The barren and rugged expanse of these parts of the Himalayas is today guarded by three brigades of the Indian Army which have ground troops permanently stationed at key ingress routes. 155 MM artillery guns are located at vantage points and helipads have been built to land troops in emergencies. At night, thermal imagers give a picture of movements while UAVs can be sent up to beam live pictures for better assessment. Troops are stationed round the year atop mountains in fully concrete and protected bunkers. Post-1999, India has set up a corps at Leh. A division -- some 15,000-odd troops -- is tasked specially for the LoC. These are stationed between Zojila pass and running eastwards till the last point on the LoC near Turtok and Siachen base camp. Presently, Indian troops are almost double of what Pakistan has tasked on its side. This is a sea change from 1999 when India had only an independent brigade at Kargil. In winter, troops used to vacate the icy heights. They would return in summer to reclaim the posts. In May 1999, Pakistan occupied these very posts which resulted in the conflict. Since then, Indian troops have been stationed permanently. On Srinagar-Leh National Highway 1-D, the Kashmir division ends at Zojila pass. East of it lies the Ladakh division. This portion of the northern limit of Indian-controlled Jammu and Kashmir had been under threat from Pakistan in 1948, 1965 and 1999. If the Pakistani army make a successful military thrust in Ladakh, it can cut off India’s only road access to Siachen and interdict the NH 1-D, the key road route for civilian and military supplies. It can also sandwich Indian troops in a precarious position along the tense and un-demarcated Line of Actual Control with China, says an Indian assessment. The saving grace is that there is no militancy in these areas which are Shia-Muslim dominated unlike the Sunni-majority Pakistan. In the past few days, Pakistan army has upped the ante in this sector. The fire, so far, has been limited to light machine guns. Unlike the other areas of the LoC where Indian highways are clear off Pakistan’s line of sight, Pakistan can clearly see several points of the highway in Ladakh. The most vulnerable point in Drass is Point 5353. A crack Pakistan Army team is stationed there. This point overlooks a large section of NH-1D near Drass town. On its side, Pakistan has built a permanent road for supplies. Incidents of cross-LoC firing from Pakistan have increased. In 2011, there were 51 incidents. The number till August 16 this year is 69. Nine Indian soldiers have died this year. On Friday, a round-table discussion in Islamabad hosted by the Jinnah Institute, a think tank, blamed India’s “short-term thinking and reactive responses for endangering the fragile peace process in the region”. Preventing a repeat
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Congress gears up for Twitter war against Gujarat CM
New Delhi, August 18 Slated for August 22, the workshop scheduled to be held for Social Media and IT functionaries of all state Cogress units, will focus on the use of social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to spread the party ideology and counter the misinformation in the political discourse space. Being organised under the charge of Congress general secretary Ajay Makan, who heads Congress’ communication department, the event will see Congress East Delhi MP Sandeep Dikshit and Rohtak Lok Sabha member Deepender Hooda among resource persons. Hooda is currently taking care of the party’s social media strategy and is developing modules to train the participants for the Twitter wars which are expected to get worse as elections to five state assemblies and later the Lok Sabha draw near. The plan is to prepare Congress’ youth brigade to address the eight crore strong population which accesses various forms of social media. The BJP campaign unit,under Modi, is already actively engaged in the e space with Modi reportedly having outsourced his entire campaign to professionals. The Congress, on the contrary, is attempting to train its cadres for the job to keep the Twitter lively and active. In the recent past, as part of a calculated strategy, Congress leaders like Digvijay Singh, Manish Tewari, Rajeev Shukla, Shakeel Ahmed and Shashi Tharoor have remained active on the Twitter. The party high command has asked the state Congress chiefs to name five persons each for the day-long workshop which will come close on the heels of the media workshop which Narendra Modi, BJP’s campaign committee chief held for party panelists, spokespersons and leaders here today. The August 22 workshop will be a sequel to the
one organised for spokespersons and media panelists in the capital in July. Congress Vice- President Rahul Gandhi had addressed that workshop. Punjab Congress unit has named the following local leaders to attend the Congress’ social media workshop: Gurpratap Singh Mann, SMS Sandhu, Rajinder Deep, Gursimran Singh and Jignesh Kumar. For social media functionaries
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If Muslims can vote for BJP in Gujarat, why not elsewhere: Modi
New Delhi, August 18 Addressing BJP’s national office-bearers, state presidents and other important leaders at a meeting convened to discuss the party’s preparedness for the Assembly elections in five states later this year and the Lok Sabha elections next year, he said the people were fed up with the Congress ‘misrule’ and were eager to throw it out of power at the first available opportunity. “We need to do effective campaigning by reaching out to each and every voter, particularly the young and first-time voter,” he is understood to have told the meeting attended by more than 50 leaders. Pointing out that a large number of Muslims in Gujarat had voted for the BJP in the Assembly and the local body elections, Modi wondered why the trend could not be replicated in the coming elections if earnest efforts were made. He said the 20 sub-committees formed by the party must reach out to various sections and function with more speed over the next 200 days. Inaugurating the meeting, BJP president Rajnath Singh called on party workers to make “Mission 272+” a success by cashing in on the UPA regime’s ‘failures’. He criticised Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for ‘failing’ to manage the country’s economy, resulting in hardships for the common man. He said the PM’s speech on Independence Day was so uninspiring that it had further eroded the confidence of domestic as well as foreign investors.
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Govt plans study to test Pentavalent vaccine safety
New Delhi, August 18 The National Committee on Adverse Events Following Immunization under the Ministry of Health with Inclen Trust, which works on vaccine strategies, will follow children who are administered the Pentavalent vaccine beginning October 1 this year. Children aged six to 18 weeks will be enrolled for the study post-parents’ consent and the study will happen in Kerala, the first state along with Tamil Nadu where the Pentavalent vaccine was introduced in December 2011. Since then the vaccine has been rolled out in six more states (Gujarat, Goa, Haryana, Karnataka, Puducherry and J&K) under the Universal Immunization Programme. However, concerns around its safety continue to linger on given the 21 reported infant deaths following the administration of this five-in-one vaccine in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. So far 20 lakh doses of the vaccine have been administered nationwide. The vaccine protects children against five deadly childhood diseases - diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, hepatitis B and haemophilus influenza type B (HiB). It’s an addition to DPT vaccine was already part of India’s national immunization programme. The vaccine provides added immunity to hepatitis B (a viral disease that can cause leads to severe liver infections) and HiB (a bacterial infection which causes pneumonia and meningitis). The Global Alliance for Vaccine Initiatives (GAVI) is footing the vaccine bill in India for the first three years of the programme. However, since its introduction, 21 deaths of infants injected with Pentavalent vaccine have been reported with the leading journal, Indian Journal for Medical Ethics, recently questioning the justification for its use in India when serious adverse events are found associated with it. Though the National Committee on the AEFI investigated these deaths and found them unrelated to the vaccine, need has been felt of tracking infants who get the shots so that causes of deaths among them, if any, can be pin pointed to rule out panic. NK Arora, Chairman of the National Committee on AEFI said the new study was being planned with partners - the Kerala government, Health Ministry, Inclen Trust, among others to follow up vaccinated kids for 30 days and determine the cause of death if any. Pentavalent vaccine comprises three shots and is administered at weeks 6, 10 and 14. The study will lead to a system of surveillance of children post-vaccination. “Every time a new vaccine is introduced, there are concerns around its safety. Tomorrow we may introduce Rotavirus vaccine and Pneumococcal vaccines. We should be prepared to answer concerns around vaccine safety in general,” Dr Arora said. Pentavalent vaccine is important for India which has the highest pneumonia mortality in the world. Out of 16 lakh pneumonia deaths in under-5 children globally last year, 3.7 lakh happened in India.
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Govt being unjust to disabled soldiers, say MPs
Chandigarh, August 18 Supported by MPs across party lines, Irani stated in the Upper House that though rules for grating disability pension to disabled soldiers were inherently liberal as also held by the Supreme Court in a recent judgment of Dharamveer Singh vs Union of India, the same were being technically and restrictively interpreted by the ministry, leading to denial of disability pension. She also stated that while employment of civilian employees was protected in case of disability, the same was not applicable on defence personnel who could be released without any kind of pension on account of non-service connected disabilities if their service was less than 10 years, leading to denial of the right to live a life of dignity. The tendency of the MoD of filing appeals in the Supreme Court against verdicts of high courts and the Armed Forces Tribunal in disability pension related matters was also brought to light by her when she stated that majority of civil appeals and SLPs filed by the MoD in the apex court were against their own disabled soldiers. She further claimed that far from safeguarding the welfare of retired soldiers, sailors and airmen, many of them disabled from battle injuries or the bleak conditions of service, the MoD’s Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare (DESW), ironically, stonewalled the benefits of military veterans till they were either dead or broke. More than 1 lakh retired defence personnel have been adversely affected. Military veterans have long protested the policies of the DESW, which they feel harbours an anti-military sentiment and heaps multiple litigation on veterans, disabled soldiers and their families in pensionary matters, unlike the Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare for civilian employees which is highly positive in its approach. Even decisions of courts and tribunals are openly defied by DESW on the ground that the decisions are ‘against government policy’. Veterans also feel that that they or the military establishment have no representation at policy formulation level in the Defence Ministry. It is probably for the first time that the issue has been strongly raised in Parliament and supported by MPs of other parties too. Forced litigation and negatively interpreted policies are a cause of major dissatisfaction amongst ex-servicemen.
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Pension is akin to right to property, says SC
New Delhi, August 18 A Bench comprising Justices KS Radhakrishnan and AK Sikri directed the Jharkhand Government to pay a litigation of cost of Rs 10,000 each to two such retired employees for dragging them to the apex court. The state government had refused to release 10 per cent of the pension of one of them as he was facing a corruption case and a departmental inquiry at the time of his retirement. He had also been denied salary for his seven-month suspension period. The state government had acknowledged that there was no provision for withholding part of pension or gratuity, but contended that this could be done on the basis of administrative instructions - a well-settled legal position endorsed by a Constitution Bench of the SC in 1968. The state had moved the apex court after losing the case in the high court. Rejecting the state government’s arguments, the SC Bench said: “A person cannot be deprived of pension without the authority of law which is the Constitutional mandate enshrined in Article 300A of the Constitution. It follows that attempt of the appellant to take away a part of pension or gratuity or even leave encashment without any statutory provision and under the umbrage of administrative instruction cannot be countenanced.” “It hardly needs to be emphasised that the executive instructions are not having statutory character and, therefore, cannot be termed as law within the meaning of aforesaid Article 300A,” the apex court clarified.
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MEA to add 900 officers by 2018
New Delhi, August 18 Nearly 520 personnel are expected to be added to the elite Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and around 380 to the IFS-B cadre as part of the recruitment drive, official sources said. For all its size and the role it seeks to play in global affairs, India is woefully short of diplomats to take care of the country’s interests in nearly 160 Indian missions abroad. This has clearly affected India’s image as an emerging power. Even a small nation such as Singapore claims to have more diplomats than India. There are more diplomats posted in New Delhi alone as compared to the number of Indian diplomats posted across the world. Certain recent foreign policy setbacks, particularly in India’s neighbourhood, seem to have accentuated the need to bolster the strength of the diplomatic corps. Estimates suggest India needs around 1,200 more diplomats to play a meaningful role in the global arena. Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor, who has been a diplomat and a junior Minister for External Affairs, has even advocated a separate examination for the IFS to increase the strength of the Indian diplomatic corps, reeling under an acute shortage. Sources say the government is also drawing up a mandatory mid-career training programme as part of which each officer will have to undergo training thrice during the career. “We are trying to link the training programme with what we are supposed to do.” The IFS officers will be required to attain expertise in fields such as global warming, disarmament, security, environment and other such issues that dominate the global discourse. The MEA is also enhancing its interaction with think tanks and other such institutions as part of the training programme. Since the knowledge of a foreign language is a must for IFS officers, emphasis is also being laid on learning widely spoken languages such as French, Spanish and Arabic. Diplomatic hurdle
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Riot police deployed after tension in Mumbai locality
Mumbai, August 18 The police said two groups clashed this morning after some youths collecting donations on behalf of a Ganesh mandal got into a row with shopkeepers. “The youths roughed up some shopkeepers who refused to give them money and were in turn beaten up by the shopkeepers,” a police officer at the Agripada police station said. The issue, however, flared into a riot between two groups of people in the Jhula Maidan area, the police said. Contingents of the Rapid Action Force were moved in to contain the situation. “We have imposed Section 144, CrPC, preventing assembly of three or more people in the area,” a local police officer said. Three persons, including one policeman, have been injured in the violence, the police said. Some youths playing cricket in the maidan who got into a fracas with the youths from the Ganesh mandals for assaulting the shopkeepers had also been picked up, the police said. The police in riot control gear dispersed the crowds by afternoon after people from surrounding areas came out on the streets. The police said leaders from the Congress, the Jamaat-e-Islami-Hind and other outfits were in touch with local leaders to calm down tempers. Clash over donations
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SAIL achieves tech breakthrough in warship steel
Kochi, August 18 The indigenous warship steel, though more expensive than the regular products forged by SAIL, comes at a fraction of a cost of imported substitutes. Besides the achievement of self-reliance in the field of specialised steel, it will also help save precious foreign exchange. According to SAIL chairman CS Verma, the company supplied 26,000 tonnes of this high-grade steel to Cochin Shipyard Limited for the fabrication of the carrier. At the same time, SAIL also supplied the same grade of steel for the construction of four corvettes being built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders, Kolkata. “Developing our own high-grade steel was critical to the success of the project,” said Alok Sahay, SAIL’s General Manager, Defence Marketing, said. “The DMR 249 family of steel, which has five variants for different applications, has been developed indigenously specially for naval ships. The equivalent grades were earlier 100 per cent imported by the Indian Navy,” he added. Naval ships need steel plates with high strength, high formability and high weldability coupled with very good low-temperature properties so that the steel does not fail in sub-zero temperatures and corrosion resistance. Imparting high strength to these naval plates increases the strength-to-weight ratio so that thinner, yet stronger plates can be used for construction for minimising the weight of the ships. SAIL claims that its warship steel would retain its effectiveness in temperatures as low as minus 60°C. “The ‘unsinkable’ Titanic sank after colliding with an iceberg as its steel plates developed cracks after the impact. These plates -- produced in the first decade of the 20th century -- had poor low-temperature properties and became brittle in sub-zero temperatures. Hence, retention of adequate toughness even at very low temperatures is an important attribute for naval steel plates,” Sahay said. As far as aircraft carriers are concerned, apart from the steel plates required for making the hull, there are special requirements for making the top deck from where the aircraft take off and land. Landing operations of aircraft impart high impact to the deck. The construction of the top deck needs plates with extra strength which can absorb the impact when aircraft take off and land. SAIL’s achievement has ensured the availability of plates when refits will be needed for any vessel. This had become a bottleneck earlier when steel plates and ships were sourced from Russia, Italy and other countries as at times, steel from these countries with required specifications did not come and refits would be held up.
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We must preserve credibility of judiciary: CJI
Guwahati, August 18 The public esteem and credibility it enjoys deserve to be cherished and preserved. However, there is, unfortunately, a growing crisis within it.” “The manifestation of this crisis lies not only in the ever increasing arrears of cases in courts, and the consequent delays in our justice delivery system, but also in the steady decline in the reputation of the judiciary as also of the legal profession,” Justice Sathasivam said. He reiterated, “This institution unlike the other institutions in the democratic set up thrives only on the trust and the confidence of reposed by the people. Thus the virtuous image of the institute in the eyes of the public is paramount for the dispensation of justice. We should always conduct ourselves befitting to the status we hold.” He said, “To be fair judge you need not travel outside the prescribed law. My experienced colleagues, always remember, judges are under the Constitution, not over it.” “The lawyers should prevent corruption and bias entering the portals of courts. Role of lawyers in enabling administration of justice using PIL is very apparent. The PIL is envisaged as the platform for justice to disadvantaged sections of the society, provides an avenue to enforce diffused or collective rights and enables civil society to not only spread awareness about human rights but also allows them to participate in government decision making. The lawyers must not abuse the process by filing frivolous PIL cases with ulterior motives,” he added. “Need for sensitised judiciary is as imperative as an active judiciary. It may not be enough if a judge is only energetic and diligent in the performance of his duties. Sometimes, he has to go beyond being an active judge and has to be an activist judge.
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‘Maruti go back’ protests in Gujarat villages
Ahmedabad, August 18 The slogan of “Maruti go back” rent the air when some 5,000 people from Hansalpur and neighbouring villages organised a special flag-hoisting ceremony on Independence Day at Dalod village to voice their protest against the Narendra Modi government’s invitation to Maruti to set up its manufacturing unit in Hansalpur under the Becharaji-Mandal Special Investment Region (SIR) covering parts of Ahmedabad and Mehsana districts. The Maruti Udyog had selected lands adjacent to the Hansalpur village to set up its second car manufacturing unit following periodic labour unrest at its main plant in Manesar in Haryana. The Rs 4,000 crore plant was expected to go into production by 2015 and though the Maruti authorities had denied having any plan to shut down the Manesar unit, the Gujarat government authorities believed that steady progress at Hansalpur could ultimately lead to the company bidding good-bye to Haryana. When the state government issued the notification a couple of years ago about the setting up of the Becharaji-Mandal SIR covering 44 villages, the villagers were opposing the move, refusing to part with their lands to allow the government to invite industrial houses to set up units. Following widespread agitation by the farmers, Modi was forced to give a public hearing to their representatives and agreed to set up a committee of four members of his cabinet to talk to the affected farmers and ascertain their views about setting up of the SIR. At the recommendation of the committee, the state government, on August 14, agreed to withdraw 36 of the 44 villages from the list - to cover only eight villages - including Hansalpur, under the new SIR notification. Dr Kanubhai Kalsaria, a former BJP member of the state Assembly, who had turned against the Modi government over industrialisation of the agricultural lands, however, claimed that the people of eight villages listed under the new SIR were also opposed to the move, but the government was not prepared to delist Hansalpur because it was keen to bring Maruti to Gujarat to justify Modi’s claim that the state was developing into Asia’s biggest automobile hub. While the state government’s revenue records show the lands allocated to Maruti to be partly government wasteland and partly cattle-grazing land, the villagers claimed that most of the land was fertile cultivable land and the farmers were tilling the land till it was allocated to Maruti and fenced to prevent cultivation. Unhappy over the cabinet sub-committee’s “political report”, Kalsaria demanded appointment of a committee headed by a retired judge of the High Court for a referendum among the people of the eight listed villages over the setting up of the SIR. He claimed that the August 15 demonstration, which also included burning of a replica of a car, was by far the biggest protest against Maruti and demanded that the car manufacturer shelve the Hansalpur project.
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NIA: Can’t share Headley’s statement with CBI
New Delhi, August 18 The Home Ministry is caught in a catch-22 situation over providing the statement of Headley to the CBI owing to the undertaking given to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) that the same would not be shared with any other probe agency other than the National Investigation Agency (NIA). The CBI had written to the NIA seeking sharing of the statement to check the veracity of the reports claiming that 2004 Gujarat encounter victim Ishrat had links with Pakistan- based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba. The NIA has informed the Home Ministry about the demand of the CBI and conveyed that it cannot share Headley's statement with the CBI as the FBI had agreed and arranged the meeting with Headley in 2010 under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with a condition that the NIA will not share his statement with anyone. The NIA has made it clear that it could share the information provided the government gave a go-ahead for it, official sources said. According to the sources, sharing of Headley’s statement would amount to flouting the commitment given to the US authorities and this step is fraught with a danger as America may not cooperate with India in future. The NIA has cited the confidentiality clause with the US government in the Headley case, according to which evidence collected in the 26/11 probe cannot be used in any other case. Faced with the situation, the Home Ministry has decided to seek the opinion of the Law Ministry before taking any final decision as CBI has been pressing for handing over Headley’s confessional statement to ascertain facts whether Ishrat, who was killed in an alleged fake encounter in Gujarat nine years ago, had links with LeT. The CBI is probing the encounter case and there have been demands from various quarters, including Congress leader Digvijay Singh, to clarify whether she had any links with LeT. The CBI is also probing the role of former Intelligence Bureau officer Rajinder Kumar and three others in the Ishrat case. Headley, who had recced the 26/11 targets in Mumbai and currently in the custody of the US authorities, was questioned by NIA in 2010 as part of its investigation in the Mumbai terror attack case. Reports have suggested that the NIA investigators initially said that Headley had disclosed that LeT commander Zaki-ur-Rahman Lakhvi had told him (Headley) in 2005 of a terror operation that had failed in India as Ishrat and those assigned for it with her had died. This information was reportedly contained in the 100-page interrogation report, prepared by NIA after questioning of Headley over for seven days in the US, which was given to the IB. The document was also said to have been made available to some mediapersons. But later, the two paragraphs that reportedly referred to Ishrat were missing from the NIA report. NIA sources have been maintaining that Headley’s comments are not legally admissible in any case other than 26/11 and his account is based on second hand information so it should be treated as 'hearsay'.
— PTI
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World’s shortest woman releases biggest book
Jaipur, August 18 "I have become the world's daughter...Jain Muni's book is good and the people of Jaipur are nice," she said. The book weighs 2,000 kg and is 30 feet high and 24 feet wide. About 1,500 kg iron, 100 litres of colour and 400 kg flax were used by ten workers who came from Ahmedabad and Nasik. It took them four days to make the book. A representative of Limca Book of Records presented a certificate of a new record to Jain Muni and Jyoti Amge. This book has beaten Limca Book of Records' earlier citation of 25x17 feet made on July 28 last year in Ahmedabad.
— PTI
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26 new drugs permitted for sale without trials
New Delhi, August 18 Sources in the Health Ministry admit that as many as 26 new drug molecules have been approved since 2010 without testing them through drug trials on local populations. While eight new drug molecules of biologicals and non-biologicals were approved by the country's apex drug regulator, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation, last year, two have already been allowed for sale. As many as 13 such new drugs were approved in 2010 and three more were approved in 2011. Officials of the health ministry say that new drugs have been approved without clinical trials after taking adequate caution.
— PTI
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Sindhurakshak Op
Mumbai, August 18 Search for bodies of 12 sailors is still on, the authorities said. Six bodies have so far been recovered and sent for a post-mortem examination. All of them have been burnt beyond recognition. The authorities are collecting blood samples of the relatives of the sailors to conduct DNA tests to determine the identity of the dead. The authorities have also sought professional help to salvage the submarine. Preliminary surveys have commenced, the Navy added.
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2 detained for Bodh Gaya serial blasts
Darbhanga (Bihar), August 18 “Complying to a NIA notice, a Darbhanga police team picked up Md Farooq and Shashi Ranjan Sahu two days ago and handed them over the same day to the agency probing the Bodh Gaya blasts for their interrogation,” Superintendent of Police Upendra Kumar Sharma said. He said that NIA had earlier sent a notice to the Darbhanga police asking it to produce the two suspects before it for questioning in connection with their alleged role in Bodh Gaya serial blasts last month.
— PTI
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Rs 2.12 cr seized ahead of K’taka LS bypolls Bangalore, August 18 “We intercepted two vehicles heading towards Kengeri in Bangalore Rural district and seized the unaccounted cash in the denominations of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500,” they said. The accused, residents of the city, were booked under various sections of the CrPC and the Indian Penal Code, the police said, adding they were investigating the case with income tax officials to find out the trail of the cash. “We are investigating the case with police and income tax officials to ascertain the source of the unaccounted cash, where it was being carried and for what purpose by the accused who claimed to be from a security agency that transports currency notes of various banks to ATMs in the region,” said a poll observer for the byelections. With the model code of conduct in force for the Wednesday's byelections, officials of the election commission, police and excise departments have been on high alert to prevent movement of unaccounted cash, liquor and other material that might be used to woo the electorate. The byelections are being held following the resignations of JD(S) MPs HD Kumaraswamy and N Cheluvaraiswamy after getting elected to Legislative Assembly in the May 5 elections. Kumaraswamy's wife Anitha Kumaraswamy and CS Puttaraju are JD(S) candidates for Bangalore Rural and Mandya Lok Sabha seats, respectively. They are being challenged by ruling Congress candidates DK Suresh Kumar and Kannada film actor Ramya, respectively. Kumar is the younger brother of former Congress minister D.K. Shiv Kumar.— PTI
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Bhagat Singh’s martyr status not dependent on records: PM New Delhi, August 18 The PM termed the controversy on the matter as "hurtful to a nation that is indebted to the sacrifices of our freedom fighters" and made an appeal to people to desist from creating a row over it. “That Shaheed Bhagat Singh was a martyr in the supreme national cause of independence is a fact. It is not dependent on the presumed presence or absence of official records. His role in our freedom struggle is an inalienable part of the discourse of our independence,” the PM said. The statement came against the backdrop of the Home Ministry's reply to an RTI application. — PTI
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The workshop is scheduled to be held for social media and IT functionaries of all state
Congress units