The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Understanding key to relations with China: Antony Tribune News Service New Delhi, September 2 Defence Minister AK Antony today talked about a two-pronged Indian approach on relations with China. India, he said, was trying to have “more understanding” with China while at the same time it was strengthening its capabilities along the disputed frontier with its neighbour. Antony was talking to reporters after inducted the US-built C-17 heavy-lift transport aircraft formally into service of the IAF at the Hindon Air Base. Latter speaking on India-China relations, he reiterated that the two countries have an unsettled border. “Talks are going on to find an amicable solution to the long pending dispute. We are trying to have more understanding with them,” Antony said. He then went on to talk about the second part of the Indian approach. “Like China, we are also strengthening capabilities on the border”. Elaborating further he said: “We are taking these two steps together; of strengthening capabilities and of dialogue”. Negotiations are underway to have a “more practical and effective” mechanism to prevent face-offs between Indian and Chinese troops on the LAC and efforts are being made to have confidence building measures, Antony pointed out. On being asked about the face-offs between Indian and Chinese armies due to difference in perception about the Line of Actual Control (LAC), Antony said: “Efforts are on to have more understanding between the two militaries. Apart from diplomatic channels, we are trying to have better understanding between the militaries”. For this, a greater number of border personnel meetings have been proposed. Along the LAC, there are a more than a dozen disputed sites. Antony said: “Sometimes unfortunate face-offs do take place. Our Army and security forces are free in handling these incidents effectively”. On being asked if the government has cancelled a trip by IAF chief Air Chief Marshall NAK Browne to China next month, Antony said it is “not correct” as he was visiting friendly foreign countries as per his wishes and invites by them. Reports in a section of the media said the IAF chief’s trip to China has been called off. Antony, on being asked if India was tilting towards the US since so many planes are being purchased from the US, said: “We are not tilting towards anyone. We have strategic partnership with many countries including the US. But we are very particular. We will not be party to any military bloc”. At the induction of the C-17 Antony said: “The plane’s induction is a giant stride for the force and it will perform tactical and non-traditional operations”. Three of the planes were inducted and named the ‘Skylords squadron”. The IAF has procured 10 C-17 Globemaster III aircraft from the US under a deal expected to be over Rs 20,000 crore. Air Chief Marshall NAK Browne said the plane would be operated from the advanced landing grounds in the northeastern states as well as from high altitude bases in north and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, indicating the wide sweep of the plane that can carry 70 tonnes of load and fly for 4,200 km non-stop. Till now the biggest plane in the IAF inventory was the IL-76, which carry some 40 tonnes of load.
	Jaitley fumes over ‘hurried’ ordinance Tribune News Service New Delhi, September 2 The BJP today said the UPA government was resorting to "gimmicks" ahead of the General Election and accused it of violating Constitutional norms by issuing the Food Security Ordinance even while a Parliament session was less than a month away. "The Food Security Ordinance is an abuse of the legislative power," asserted Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley while speaking on a statutory resolution for disapproval of the ordinance, Jaitley who was joined by the CPM, CPI and AIADMK in moving it, said it was issued in a hurry. "An ordinance is brought if there is a matter of utmost urgency and it can't await the session of Parliament...What would have happened in 30 days that we couldn't wait. The Constitution does not allow so...It is misuse of your right to issue an ordinance," Jaitley said. Terming it as a "repackaging" of existing food schemes, Jaitley said the total amount of subsidy provided under various food schemes like PDS, ICDS and mid-day meal scheme is Rs 1,24,844 crore and that provided in Food Security Bill is Rs 1,25,000 crore. He said many states already had better public distribution schemes and cited the example of Chhattisgarh. Picking holes in the government's Bill, he pointed out that 75% rural population and 50% urban population that the scheme aimed to benefit is the upper cap and not the base. His colleague Venakaiah Naidu dubbed the Bill as a "gimmick".
	Telangana: Cabinet to consider Antony panel input Aditi Tandon/TNS New Delhi, September 2 The Union Cabinet will consider the input of Congress-appointed Antony Committee on the issue of formation of Telangana state. The committee, in the process of finalising its recommendations, will hold yet another meeting with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and state Congress chief Botsa Satyanarayana tomorrow amid indications that in the final decision, it may agree to lift the cap of 10 years fixed for Hyderabad to serve as the joint capital of Telangana and residual Andhra Pradesh states. Top sources in the Congress today said the cap could be removed to address the concerns of Seemandhra people who have invested heavily in Hyderabad in the hope that it would remain a capital of united Andhra. “The issue also is that never in the past has a capital been announced by a ruling party in the event of formation of a new state. It was not done in Chhattisgarh or Jharkhand and not in case of Punjab and Haryana. So what power does the Congress have to give away Hyderabad to Telangana? The argument that Hyderabad is geographically a part of Telangana is flawed,” a senior party leader said. Top sources in the party indicated that the Government could even consider converting the Antony committee into the official committee to address the Telangana issue, if need be. Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde today said a Cabinet resolution on Telangana would come in about 20 days. Meanwhile, the Antony Committee is expected to meet Congress MPs from the state once again. Congress’ Rajya Sabha member Renuka Choudhary today said the issue of admission of Seemandhra students to hundreds of educational institutions in Hyderabad was a concern. “There has to be a mechanism to ensure that Seemandhra people get ensured admissions to institutes in Hyderabad which were meant for the entire state and not just Telangana. It could be quotas or even if you don’t call it a quota, there has to be some kind of a survey first to know what kind of student inflows happen to these institutions from Telangana and Seemandhra and then see that the latter’s right to admission is protected. I will raise this issue before the Antony panel,” she told TNS. Hyderabad, for instance, has an IIT which was recently set up. Congress leaders from Seemandhra say the Centre should have thought ahead if it was to give Telangana as a separate state. “In that case, the IIT should have been set up in a far-flung district rather than the Hyderabad region which is now being promised as a capital of new Telangana,” said a Congress MP.
	Telangana issue wrecks LS; nine MPs suspended again Aditi Tandon/TNS New Delhi, September 2 Sentiment against the division of Andhra Pradesh returned to disrupt the Lok Sabha which was adjourned for the day around lunch today after three suspended Telegu Desam members refused to vacate the House despite instructions from the chair to leave. Unprecedented scenes preceded final adjournment of the Lower House where Speaker Meira Kumar was forced this morning to suspend nine anti-Telangana MPs (five Congress and four TDP) under Rule 374 A of the House proceedings for gravely disrupting the proceedings. A Sai Pratap, Anantha Venkatrami Reddy, N Rajagopal, Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy and K Bapi Raju of the Congress and N Kristappa, M Venugopal Reddy, K N Rao and N Sivaprasad of the TDP were suspended. The suspension of the same MPs twice in one session happened for the first time in the history of the Lok Sabha today. Earlier on August 23, the Speaker had under the same rule suspended 12 MPs, including the nine she named again today. As soon as the House assembled at 11 am, TDP members stormed the Well protesting the division of Andhra Pradesh to form a separate Telangana state. Siva Prasad agitated the Congress men when he wore a mask of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi to remind them that she was for united Andhra. The act not just caused the first adjournment with anti-Telangana Congress MPs joining their TDP colleagues in the well, it also triggered a verbal spat between Siva Prasad and Congress’ chief whip Sandeep Dikshit. Both exchanged bitter words though Siva Prasad later removed the mask. These ugly clashes happened after the Speaker had adjourned the House and later led to Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj complaining to the Speaker against Dikshit and Congress’ Telengana MP Madhu Goud Yakshi, saying they threatened the TDP members “to come out of the House and talk” and used abusive language against them. Similar charges flew from the Congress benches while eight crucial legislations listed for the day remained suspended. When Speaker announced the first adjournment she had hoped the named MPs would leave the premises allowing order but three TDP members were still protesting in the Well when the LS reassembled at 2 pm, causing the final disruption. They will not be allowed to enter the LS tomorrow with the sources saying all pending bills would be passed. The extended monsoon session’s last sitting is scheduled for September 6 with talks today of another extension if the Bills are not passed. “We will pass all the pending bills by then,” said a Congress leader. Earlier in Rajya Sabha, Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien suspended TDP’s CM Ramesh and YR Chowdhary under rule 255 for disrupting proceedings. Bills still pending in LS National Highways Authority of India Amendment Bill 2012; Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Bill 2011, RTI Amendment Bill 2013, Securities Laws Amendment Bill 2013, Appropriation Bill 2013, Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Amendment Bill 2011, Prohibition of Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Bill 2012, Street Vendors Regulation Bill 2012.
	Sonia flies to US for check-up Tribune News Service New Delhi, September 2 UPA chairperson and Congress President Sonia Gandhi today left for New York for her routine medical check-up at the institute where she was operated upon in August 2011. Her daughter Priyanka Vadra is accompanying her on the three-day trip. Congress sources ruled out any link between Sonia’s travel itinerary and her recent illness which led her to cut short her presence in the Lok Sabha during the ongoing debate on the Food Bill. Sonia was rushed to AIIMS while she was later said to be stable. “The Congress president has left for the US to get a routine check-up done. It is a scheduled medical check-up which was fixed way back. Not much should be read into her absence during the ongoing monsoon session because no one knew that the session would have to be extended. The meeting and appointments with doctors were fixed long back,” said a party leader.
	‘Juvenile’ rape accused to undergo bone test Shiv Kumar/TNS Mumbai, September 2 One of the accused in the photojournalist gang-rape case will undergo a bone test to determine his age after his family claimed that he was 16 years of age. The decision to subject the accused to a bone test was taken after his relatives produced a birth certificate and a school-leaving certificate in support of their claim. The accused was not produced before the court last week. "We will conduct the bone test on him to determine his age since the birth certificate produced by his relatives were not clear," Home Secretary Amitabh Ranjan told reporters. Shortly after their arrest, all five accused persons were subjected to various medical tests as per the protocol. The Mumbai police usually depends on X-rays of the bones of those accused in rape cases where there is doubt over age. Though under the law birth certificates and school-leaving certificates are enough to determine the age of a person, the Maharashtra Government has decided to conduct the bone test on the accused as part of the efforts to build a fool-proof case in the matter, sources said.
	Punjab, Haryana farmers taken into preventive custody Tribune News Service Chandigarh, September 2 On the second day of the two-day “adhikaar march”, scores of farmers from Punjab and Haryana led by BJP Kisan Morcha national president Om Prakash Dhankar were arrested at the border of Chandigarh as they were insisting to go up to the Governor’s House to submit memorandum detailing farmers rights. Detailing the 16 rights of farmers mentioned in the national charter of demands, Dhankar said the Kisan Morcha took to streets asking for right in profit of crops, purchase and bonus rights, security rights in times of danger, right to cheap resources availability, access to farmer friendly economic organisations and banks, rights to subsidised inputs, right to maximum loan limit, right to land ownership, right for irrigation of every field, right to seeds, right to the availability of fertilizer and pesticides, right to ownership of agriculture implements, right to uninterrupted power supply for irrigating fields, right to animal feed, right to pension in the old age and right to treatment in event of falling ill. Dhankar also demanded implementation of pro-farmer policies that lie buried in the files, assured source of monthly income to farmers, promoting pro-farmer policies and implementing recommendations of Farmers’ Commission and the Hooda Committee report. National spokesperson of Kisan Morcha Vineet Joshi said surrendering before the worst economic crisis, farmers were asking for permission to sell their organs to sustain the expenses of their families. “Except urea, all other inputs in farming are in the control of multinational companies roaming in the market,” he alleged.
	Mentally ill woman raped in Pune hospital; 2 held Shiv Kumar/TNS Mumbai, September 2 The Pune police have arrested a watchman and a ward boy employed at the Bhosari Civic Hospital in Pune for allegedly raping a mentally ill woman. The incident happened on August 27. Ward boy Shailesh Jadhav (30) brought the woman on a stretcher to the ground floor of the hospital where no one was present. He along with the hospital watchman Pramod Mandekar (28) took turns to rape the woman inside the lift, said the police. The woman was then transported to the ward where she was admitted, it said. The woman was an inmate of an institution for the differently abled and was taken to the hospital after falling sick. The two were arrested based on the description given by her to hospital authorities, the police said. Both the accused were arrested on Friday and produced before a Pune court on Saturday. They have been remanded in police custody till September 4. The incident sparked off angry protests in Pune on Sunday. The police came in for flak from local residents for trying to play down the incident. 4-yr-old serious after rape z A four-year-old girl has been admitted to a Mumbai hospital in a serious condition after being raped by a man z The girl was assaulted in suburban Oshiwara by a man who lured her to an isolated park on Sunday z The alleged attacker has been arrested on the basis of the child's statement to the police z The child is admitted to Cooper Hospital in suburban Mumbai where her condition is said to be serious
	Notice to Centre on PIL plea for banning pentavalent vaccine R Sedhuraman Legal Correspondent New Delhi, September 2 The Supreme Court today issued a notice to the Centre on a PIL seeking an immediate ban on the administration of a vaccine to new-born babies under the universal immunisation programme (UIP) to stop the deaths being caused by it in Haryana and other states. A Bench of Chief Justice P Sathasivam and Ranjana Desai sought the Centre’s response to the contentions in the PIL that the vaccine, pentavalent, had been introduced in the UIP in the wake of a collusion between the government, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the corporate sector ostensibly to prevent diphtheria, pertusis and tetanus (DPT), besides influenza-B and hepatitis-B in children. But the vaccine, administered thrice to infants in sixth, 10th and 14th weeks, had resulted in 21 deaths, including 17 in Kerala and Tamil Nadu in 2011-12 and one in Jasaur Kheri village in Jhajjar district of Haryana on January 12, 2013. Ignoring the deaths and a PIL pending in the Delhi High Court, the Union Health Ministry was going ahead with the introduction of pentavalent in Jammu and Kashmir, Gujarat, Karnataka, Goa and Puducherry next month, the PIL said. The petition has been filed by Dr Yogesh Jain who has been Assistant Professor of paediatrics at the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here and a member of the high-level expert group of the Planning Commission to develop a blue print for universal health coverage. The PIL pointed out that pentavalent had already been banned in the United States, Japan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and several other countries. In 2007, the then Union Health Minister discontinued the production of DTP vaccine by state-owned companies (PSUs) at low prices on the ‘specious ground’ that the units were not following good manufacturing practices. Subsequently, the ministry switched over to pentavalent (DPT plus hepatitis-B and influenza-B) for the UIP to pre-empt the reopening of DPT production by PSUs, the PIL said.
	Don’t victimise ordinary people in Darjeeling: Mamata Tribune News Service/PTI Bagdogra, September 2 Beginning her two-day visit to the troubled Darjeeling hills today, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee came down on the sponsors of the indefinite shutdown stating that ordinary people were victimised. Talking to reporters at Bagdogra airport in north Bengal on way to Kalimpong, she said politics should not be linked to development activity and observed that bandhs never do any good; it is only an impediment to development. Taking exception to the GJM’s “Ghar Bhitra Janta” agitation coinciding with her visit to the region, she said: “Asking the people to remain indoors is nothing but a shutdown call. They are obstructing the development in the hills.” She appealed to the hill party to withdraw its shutdowns and ensure that the GTA functioned properly. “Whatever is happening in the hills, common people are becoming the victims. Politics should not be linked to development activity. Bandhs do not do any good. It is not fair. It is an impediment to Darjeeling’s development,” she said. “We love all democratic movements. We respect all democratic set-ups. We respect the Constitution. We run the government as per the Constitution. Every six months if anybody wants to break to constitutional obligation (it cannot be supported),” Banerjee, who had declared the shutdowns as illegal and urged the GJM to accept the court verdict in this regard, said. She expressed her shock particularly at the children not being able to attend schools because of the bandh and said: “Even the poor people are not getting their ration and food. People are not able to go to the hospital as the cars (carrying patients) are being burnt.” Tea was not being allowed to be exported, she said pointing out it was the constitutional obligation to carry out the 100-day work programme. She also urged the GJM leadership not to pay heed to any “outside forces” to create unrest in the hills, saying, “I will appeal so that by listening to anyone from outside they do not set their own houses on fire.” The chief minister will be accorded a felicitation by the Lepcha community tomorrow at Kalimpong.
	Drop in coffee crop likely in 2013-14 Coonoor (TN), September 2 A 10 per cent drop in the post blossom estimates for coffee cannot not be ruled out in 2013-14 season (October-September), Coffee Board Chairman Jawaid Akthar said today. Chairing a session on Commodity Outlook here, preceding the 115th Annual Conference of United Planters Association of Southern India (UPASI) tomorrow, he said the board has placed the post blossom estimate at 3.47 lakh tonnes, 9.05 per cent higher over the 2012-13 target of 3.20 lakh tonnes. "Good blossom showers followed by delayed backing showers and drought and continuous heavy rainfall has affected the crop, causing fruit drop and incidence of black rot and stalk rot in certain high rainfall area," Akthar said. Coffee growers, however, expected the production to fall by 20 to 25 per cent compared to Board's conservative estimate of 10 per cent, he said, adding that going by the estimates, it appeared that 2013-14 should have been a record year for coffee, production-wise, but was probably not to be. "Augmenting production to retain export share and meet domestic demand is a major challenge at this juncture," he said. The Board has a scheme for re-plantation and expansion in traditional and new areas, he said adding "We have found that coffee can be grown in Darjeeling and the area under coffee is growing, particularly in Andhra Pradesh." The Board has initiated programmes to strengthen transfer of technology and capacity building by setting up of Directorate of Extension, amidst stagnation in productivity, which was reportedly affecting the cost competitiveness of the industry. — PTI
	Nitish makes fun of ‘tweeting’ politicians Patna, September 2 In an apparent dig at BJP leaders like Narendra Modi for using Twitter to score points, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar today said they were turning the sweet chirping of birds (dictionary meaning of twitter) into the jarring sounds of politics. "Some leaders seem to have no other work in a day than to make political statements for the media," the chief minister said ridiculing leaders using it as a political weapon. — PTI
	India, South Korea discuss ways to boost defence ties Ashok Tuteja/TNS New Delhi, September 2 India and South Korea today discussed the potential for enhancing bilateral defence ties, ranging from cooperation for peace and stability in the Asia Pacific region to joint defence production. The two sides also agreed to step up cooperation in the spheres of maritime and cyber security at the 3rd India-South Korea foreign policy and security dialogue (FPSD) held in Seoul. The Indian side was led by Ashok Kantha, Secretary (East) in the External Affairs Ministry while the South Koeran delegation was headed by First Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Kim Kyou-hyun. Both India and South Korea have been concerned over the increased Chinese assertiveness in the region, particularly on matters concerning the disputed South China Sea. In the field of defence, the two countries have been considering cooperation in futuristic defence technology areas. At today’s meeting, the two countries also discussed potential for space and nuclear cooperation and upgrading of the bilateral trade and economic ties. Both sides also expressed desire to further expand and deepen their strategic partnership. There was also a discussion on the possible outcomes from South Korean President Park Geun-hye's forthcoming visit to India. Discussing regional and international subjects of mutual interest, the sides agreed to step up coordination on East Asian regional issues. South Korea also provided a briefing on the situation in the Korean Peninsula. Views were also exchanged on the recent developments in Afghanistan. China factor The two sides also agreed to step up cooperation in the spheres of maritime and cyber security at the 3rd India-South Korea foreign policy and security dialogue held in Seoul Both India and South Korea have been concerned over the increased Chinese assertiveness in the region, particularly on matters concerning the disputed South China Sea The two countries also discussed potential for space and nuclear cooperation and upgrading of the bilateral trade and economic ties
	IPL spot-fixing: Court defers order on bail pleas New Delhi, September 2 A Delhi court today fixed September 5 for its order on the bail pleas of nine accused, including suspended cricketer Ajit Chandila, arrested in connection with the IPL spot-fixing scandal. Additional Sessions Judge Dharmesh Sharma, who was scheduled to pass the order on the bail pleas today, deferred it for September 5 saying he needs some clarification from the Special Cell of Delhi Police as well as from the defence counsel. The court, had on August 30, reserved the order on the bail pleas of Ajit Chandila, alleged bookies Jitender Kumar Jain, Ashwani Agarwal, Ramesh Vyas, Deepak Kumar, Sunil Bhatia, Firoz Farid Ansari, ex-Ranji player Baburao Yadav and Chandra Prakash Jain, alias Chandresh Jain, who was allegedly accepting bets by the name of Jupiter. Earlier, Chandila's advocate had sought bail on the grounds that his client was a “successful cricketer” and the police had not been able to place any evidence that he was having any common intention to commit such a crime. He had argued that Chandila was “falsely implicated” in the case and there was no evidence of his alleged links with either underworld don Dawood Ibrahim or Chhota Shakeel. Similarly, the lawyers, appearing for other eight accused, had also said that police wrongly invoked the provisions of Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) in the case. They had argued that the accused be granted bail on the ground of parity as 21 others are out on bail. The police, however, had opposed their bail pleas saying the accused knew that their activities were part of Dawood's syndicate. The prosecutor had argued that there is a syndicate of Dubai and Pakistan-based Dawood, Chhota Shakeel, Javed Chutani and Salman and India-based Ashwani Agarwal, Ramesh Vyas and Firoz Farid Ansari all of whom are accused in the case. Police had filed a 6,000-page charge sheet against 39 persons, out of whom 21 are out on bail, nine are in jail and the remaining nine are absconding. Chandresh Jain, the 40th accused, was arrested after filing of the charge sheet in the case. Chandila was arrested along with two other cricketers S Sreesanth and Ankeet Chavan of Rajasthan Royals along with 26 others in the case. The police had, in its charge sheet, said Dawood and Chhota Shakeel, who have been “controlling the fixing and betting market” in cricket in India, were behind the IPL spot-fixing. — PTI 6,000-page charge sheet The police had filed a 6,000-page charge sheet against 39 persons, out of whom 21 are out on bail, nine are in jail and the remaining nine are absconding. Chandresh Jain, the 40th accused, was arrested after filing of the charge sheet in the case The police had, in its charge sheet, said Dawood and Chhota Shakeel, who have been "controlling the fixing and betting market" in cricket in India, were behind the IPL spot-fixing