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| Wednesday, August 2, 2000, Chandigarh, India   
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Bandhs hit
life in Karnataka Centre to
streamline process HP Bill:
Centre seeks clarification Putin
thanks PM for pilots’ release |
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Prove
professional misconduct beyond doubt: SC
Heavy
rain likely in HP, J&K Walkout
over disinvestment policy Laxman
to file papers today Three
killed in accident
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Urdu poet Ali Sardar Jafri dead MUMBAI, Aug 1 (PTI) — A crusader against imperialism and exploitation and a leading light of progressive Urdu poetry, Ali Sardar Jafri died here this morning following a protracted illness. He was 86. He is survived by his wife, two sons and a daughter. He was admitted to a Bombay hospital for treatment of brain tumour which was detected in March last. The third Urdu language recipient of the country’s highest literary award Jnanpith after Firaq Gorakhpuri and Quratulain Haider, Jafri, an active member of the CPI, began his career with a collection of stories ‘Manzil’ in 1938 and made his mark as a poet with ‘Parvaz’ in 1943. He has nine books of verse, two plays, a collection of stories, a memoir besides collection of critical essays to his credit. His acclaimed work ‘Sarhad’, a compilation of poems, was carried by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to Lahore during his historic bus journey for presentation to the then Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Mr Vajpayee, who regarded him as a poet of "compassion" said at the Jnanpith Award ceremony in 1998 that "one may differ with his views, but not with his vision." In a condolence message, Mr Vajpayee said "throughout his life Jafri used his intellectual abilities to relentlessly campaign against imperialism, oppression and class discrimination". Jafri was deeply disturbed by communal disharmony and wrote: "Ai watan khake watan who bhi thujhe de denge, bach gaya hai jo lahoo abke fasadat ke baad (On my country’s soil, I will dedicate to you whatever blood is left in me after the latest riot). He was recently offered the Nehru Fellowship and was writing a book under that project on the poetic vocabulary used in Urdu and its nuances. Much inspired by Urdu poet Mohammed
Iqbal, Jafri took up the cause of the suppressed class and highlighted
realities of life. He was imprisoned during the Independence movement
for his writings against the British during his days as a student
leader in Aligarh Muslim University. |
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Bandhs hit life in Karnataka BANGALORE, Aug 1 (UNI) — Normal life was paralysed in Karnataka for the second day today as several cities and towns observed bandhs and processions were taken out to protest against the abduction of thespian Rajkumar by forest brigand Veerappan on Sunday night. Official sources told UNI the response to the bandhs was "near total". Barring stone throwing incidents in Bijapur district and on the outskirts of the city, the situation was, however, peaceful. Buses were off the roads and most of the business establishments had downed their shutters. However, life was normal in most of the places in the coastal districts of the state. At some places, effigies of Veerappan were burnt. The bandh had been called by the Kannada Chaluvali Kendra. Even in Bangalore city, a bandh was observed. Meanwhile, the central forces staged a flag march in the city to instil confidence among the people. The sources said over 350 anti-social elements had been taken into preventive custody. Three companies of the central forces had been deployed in Bangalore and Mysore and three more were expected to arrive tonight or tomorrow. City Joint Police Commissioners Nagaraj and Ajay Kumar Singh told reporters though tension prevailed the situation was peaceful. Two companies of the central force, including the Rapid Action Force and 60 platoons of the armed reserve police, had been deployed in the city. Karnataka Transport Minister C.R. Sagir Ahmed told reporters the state road transport corporation had suffered a loss of Rs 2.5 crore following suspension of some of the operations yesterday. The corporation’s revenue stood at Rs 3.5 to 4 crore every day. He said 89 buses were damaged in the incidents yesterday. A decision on plying the services would be taken this evening. Meanwhile, railway officials said most of the trains were running normally. The reservation counters, closed yesterday, would be opened on the availability of adequate staff. However, the Chennai-Bangalore-Chennai Brindavan Express had been suspended for today. While most of the public sector units
in the state had declared a holiday, the central and state government
offices reported thin attendance. |
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Paddy
procurement NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — The Centre has proposed to streamline the paddy procurement process in Punjab as it feels the procurement through the custom milled rice (CMR) route was prone to "corruption". Dismissing charges that procurement of paddy through the levy route was "anti-farmer", the Minister for Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution, Mr Shanta Kumar, said he would hold talks with the Punjab Government to convince it about the benefits of procuring paddy through the levy route system. The market arrivals in Punjab during 1999-2000 were 108.66 lakh tonnes out of which 26 lakh tonnes were purchased by the millers and 83 lakh tonnes by the Food Corporation of India and state agencies. Mr Shanta Kumar said the advantage of buying through the levy route was that farmers got the minimum support price and there were no irregularities. Mr Shanta Kumar said that while the Centre would not force any decision on Punjab, it would try to convince the state that procurement of paddy through the levy route was more beneficial for the farmer. He said various options, including the procurement of paddy through the levy route system rather than the CMR route, were under consideration. The procurement of paddy for the Central pool of the government is generally undertaken through the levy route and the CMR route system. Under the levy route a certain portion of the finished product is handed over to the FCI at a fixed rate as per the levy orders whereas under the CMR, the FCI and state governments procure paddy from the mandis and get it milled in the rice mills for which the state government has to pay incidental charges for their operation which covers the cost also. Highlighting the benefit of the levy route operations for procuring paddy, Mr Shanta Kumar said the procurement of rice through the levy route was a simple operation where the only aspect to be checked was the percentage of levy prescribed and the quality of rice. Procurement through the CMR route was more complicated as paddy had to be stored for an indefinite period, converted into rice and then finally delivered to the FCI. In this route, the deterioration in quality and storage losses are also involved and operation is more costly for the Union Government, as rates under the CMR are higher than levy rates. Mr Shanta Kumar said the procurement of paddy through the CMR route bred corruption and pointed out that the CBI alone had registered cases for corruption where the loss had been estimated at more than Rs 400 crore. Further, the procurement through the CMR route also entailed other problems like choking of storage space. He said the Expenditure Reforms
Commission too was of the opinion that an arrangement where the FCI
procured rice through the levy system was more beneficial and all
states should move towards this. |
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North
India in Parliament NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — The Centre has sought a clarification from the Himachal Government over some provisions of the state Himachal Pradesh Public Moneys (Recovery of Dues) Bill, 1996, the Minister of State for Finance, Balasaheb Vikhe Patil, told the Rajya Sabha today. Answering a question by Ms Chandresh Kumari whether the HP Government had requested the Centre to make suitable provisions in the Himachal Pradesh Public Moneys Bill to make pending recoveries expeditiously as arrears of land revenues, the minister said the Himachal Pradesh Public Moneys (Recovery of Dues) Bill 1996, for making suitable provision in the Himachal Pradesh Public Moneys (Recovery of Dues) Act, 1973, (Principal Act) was received in the Ministry of Home Affairs on October 7, 1996, for obtaining administrative approval of the central government before its introduction in the state legislature. Clarifications on certain provisions of the Bill had been sought from the state government, he said. No scheme for Ladakh: There is no specific centrally sponsored tribal scheme initiated or identified for the Ladakh region and other far-flung areas of the country, the Minister for Tribal Affairs, Mr Jual Oram, told the Lok Sabha.To a question by Mr Hassan Khan, he said the schemes implemented by the ministry for the overall socio-economic development of the Scheduled Tribes were equally applicable for the Ladakh region and other far-flung areas of the country entirely consisting of tribal population. Poverty alleviation: To a question by
Mr Abdul Rashid Shaheen about the poverty alleviation schemes
implemented in Jammu and Kashmir, the Minister for Rural Development,
Mr Sundar Lal Patwa, said three poverty alleviation schemes —
Swaranjayanti Gram Samridhi Yojana (SGSY), Employment Assurance Scheme
(EAS) and Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojana (JGSY) — were being
implemented in all states and union territories, including Jammu and
Kashmir except Delhi and Chandigarh. |
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Recast
Constitution: Badal NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today demanded recasting of the Indian Constitution to make it a "true federal structure" with more fiscal autonomy to states and scrapping of Article 356 which empowers the Centre to dismiss any duly elected state government. "Our profound belief is that a true federal structure is a pre-requisite for turning India into not just a strong nation but a world force," Mr Badal said speaking at the sub-committee meeting of the standing committee of the Inter-State Council here. Favouring scrapping of Article 356, the Chief Minister said: "The entire country agrees today that this Article is remarkable only for its misuse." Expressing his reservation against Articles 256, 257 and 365 on the statute seemingly designed to ‘secure’ coordination from states by the Centre, he said these Articles should be removed from the statute as these were "offensive to the dynamics of federalism and, in fact, were aimed at destroying the very concept." "Going by past experience, it can safely be said whatever can be misused will be misused and the only way to ensure the smooth functioning of our democracy is to do away with all those portions of the Constitution that lend themselves to being so grossly and so consistently misused," he said. Disagreeing with the proposals of the Sarkaria Commission that "utmost caution" on the part of the Centre was the ultimate, if not the only safeguard against the misuse of these Articles, Mr Badal described the opinion as "wishful and unrealistic". The Sarkaria Commission’s belief that the Union Government could explore all possibilities for settling points of conflict by "all other available means" was "historically untenable", he said. Hailing the Vajpayee government for setting up the Constitution Review Commission, he said "in a certain way, it (CRC ) will alter the very social and political idiom which has been corrupted over a period of time through wilful neglect of value system by those in power." He lashed out at those who projected
the Constitution as a holy book and said "the country comes above
the Constitution". |
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Putin
thanks PM for pilots’ release NEW DELHI, Aug 1— Russian President V. Putin has thanked Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee for the release of five pilots from Indian prison last week. In a telephonic conversation last evening, the Russian President thanked Mr Vajpayee for the helpful and positive attitude of the Government of India in connection of the release of five pilots of Russian origin who were arrested in December, 1995, for arms dropping in Purulia in West Bengal. Briefing newspersons
about the telephonic talk, a spokesman of the Ministry of External
Affairs said the Prime Minister told Mr Putin that the decision was
due to good relations between the two countries and reflection of deep
friendship between their people. |
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Koirala
to take up ISI issue with PM NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — India and Nepal today agreed to give a boost to bilateral ties with the visiting Nepalese Prime Minister, Mr Girija Prasad Koirala, stating that New Delhi’s concerns about Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency operating from the Nepalese soil would be "settled" during discussions with the Indian leaders. Mr Koirala, who arrived here
yesterday evening on a week-long official visit to India, held
wide-ranging discussions with the External Affairs Minister, Mr
Jaswant Singh, on regional, international and issues of mutual
concern. |
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Prove
professional misconduct beyond doubt: SC NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — The Supreme Court has ruled that since the charge of professional misconduct is in the nature of a quasi-criminal charge it ought to be proved in the manner of proving a criminal charge beyond reasonable doubt. Although a three-Judge Bench of the apex court comprising Chief Justice A.S. Anand, Justice R.C. Lahoti and Justice K.G. Balkrishnan delivered the ruling in a case about professional misconduct in the legal field, it is of immense significance for professionals in different fields as well. The appellant H.V. Panchaksharappa on getting information that his advocate K.G. Eshar, had also been engaged by his opponent litigant, filed a complaint before the state Bar Council on charges of professional misconduct against the advocate. The state Bar Council decided that although the advocate had been engaged by the appellant’s opponent litigant in a suit, that suit had nothing to do with the appellant’s instant case and dismissed the charges of professional misconduct as not being proved. The Bar Council of India on appeal upheld the state Bar Council’s verdict. The Supreme Court Judges, while dismissing the appeal against the Bar Council of India, found that most of the allegations levelled against the respondent-advocate could amount to a negligent act of not disclosing to the appellant that he had been retained in another case by his opponent-litigant but there was no malicious intent involved. The Judges, however, observed that according to the best traditions of the Bar, the advocate should have disclosed to the appellant that he had been retained by his opponent litigant in another case. "Though withholding of the information may not amount to professional misconduct, nonetheless the action does not speak well of the respondent (advocate), the Judges stated in their six-page judgement. "There may not have been any
clash of interest but since the defendant was his client in another
suit, the information should have been disclosed to the appellant. It
is just a plain and simple obligation of a counsel to disclose such
facts to his client", the Judges pointed out. |
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More
Central funds for modernisation of police NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — Home Minister L.K. Advani today assured the Rajya Sabha that the Centre was providing funds to the states for modernisation of police forces to equip them for dealing with law and order problems and terrorism more effectively. Making a statement in the House at the start of calling attention motion on recent incidents of bomb blasts in various parts of the country, Mr Advani said as a result of prompt investigations conducted by various state police forces, a number of cases of bomb blasts had been successfully worked out and involvement of various outfits had come to light. Appropriate follow-up action was being taken by all concerned, the Home Minister said. He said the major concerns of the internal security scenario in the country centred around Pak-sponsored terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, inter-linked and externally supported subversive activities of militant groups in the North East and the violence perpetrated by the Left-wing extremist groups in some states. The Home Minister said in Jammu and Kashmir militants had been using sophisticated explosive devices and causing damage to life and property. Use of explosives for causing blasts in trains by various terrorist and insurgent groups in some parts of the country had also been reported. The Left-wing extremist groups in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar had also been using IEDs. They had also been stockpiling explosives for use during elections. The Home Minister said a series of bomb blasts had also occurred in churches in Goa, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka in June and July. The investigations carried out by the Central agencies and the police forces of the three states revealed that a group known as Deendar Anjuman having links in Pakistan, was involved in the incidents with the aim to create differences between various communities. Nine culprits had been arrested so far, he said. The Central Government had been
regularly reviewing the situation with the states to sensitise them on
various dimensions of internal security problems and to take stock of
action taken in response to developments. |
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Heavy
rain likely in HP, J&K NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — Monsoon has been active in Jammu and Kashmir. Rainfall: Rain or thundershowers have occurred at most places in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and the hills of west Uttar Pradesh and at isolated places in Haryana, Punjab, East Rajasthan and the plains of West Uttar Pradesh. Weather was mainly dry in west Rajasthan. The chief amounts of rainfall in cm are: Haryana: Chhachhrauli 2 and Chandigarh and Naraingarh 1 each; Himachal Pradesh: Chamba 4, Kangra and Kumarsain 3 each, Dehragopipur, Gohar and Shimla 2 each and Arki, Bangana, Barsar, Berthin, Kahu, Kasol, Pandoh, Rajgarh, Sarkaghat and Una 1 each; Jammu and Kahsmir: Kathua 3, Batote, Pahalgam and Srinagar 2 each and Banihal 1; Punjab: Nangal 2 and Ropar 1; and Uttar Pradesh: Ayodhya and Kakardharighat 7 each, Basti, Marora and Regoli 5 each, Birdghat, Bahraich, Banbasa, Ghazipur, Hardwar, Joshimath, Jaunpur and Khadda 3 each, Kakrahi, Mirzapur and Shardanagar 2 each and Bansi, Balrampur, Chillaghat, Katerniaghat, Mukhlispur, Palliakalan and Varanasi AP 1 each. Forecast valid until the morning of August 3: Rain or thundershowers will occur at many places in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and north Uttar Pradesh, at a few places in South Rajasthan and south Uttar Pradesh and at isolated places in the rest of the region. Heavy rainfall warning: Heavy rain is likely at isolated places in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and north Uttar Pradesh during next 48 hours. Forecast for Delhi and neighbourhood valid until the morning of August 3: Generally cloudy sky with possibility of one or two showers/thundershowers in some areas. Farmers weather bulletin for Delhi: Forecast valid until the morning of August 3: Light to moderate rain is likely at a few places. Outlook for the subsequent two days:
No change. |
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Cong
names conveners NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — The Chief Ministers of Congress-ruled States Mr Ashok Gehlot, Mr Digvijay Singh and Ms Shiela Dikshit have been made conveners of three important working groups of the Economic Reforms Committee headed by senior Congress leader Mr Pranab Mukherjee. The Rajasthan Chief Minister Mr Gehlot has been made the Convener of Working Group on Governance, while Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh has been appointed Convener of the Working Group Rural Development, Poverty and Employment. Their Delhi counterpart, Ms Dikshit,
has been made the Convener of the Working Group on Urban Development. |
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No
comment on N-test results: Kalam NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — The Principal Scientific Adviser, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, today refused to comment on doubts expressed by a leading member of the scientific community on the country’s May 1998 nuclear tests. "I will not comment. I do not have access to the data. So I will not comment," Dr Kalam said when asked to react to the doubts expressed by the former Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, Dr P.K. Iyengar. Dr Iyengar had said scientific data indicated that the core of the hydrogen bomb had burnt only partially during the nuclear test. The bomb design included two components — a boosted fission device (a small atomic bomb) that triggered the secondary core of the hydrogen or fusion bomb. The boosted fission device released about 20 kilotons (kt) of energy that triggered the fusion core that produced another 20 kt, giving a total yield of 40 kt. This indicated that only about 400 gm of the fusion device had burnt. Dr Iyengar had also said that larger megaton devices could not be made with such devices. India needed to test more hydrogen and neutron bombs with complete burning of the core before signing the comprehensive test ban treaty. He had said more tests would be
needed to try out different designs like boosted fission devices, the
stage II fusion device and the neutron bomb which India was yet to
test. |
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Walkout
over disinvestment policy NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — The Opposition walked out in the Rajya Sabha today during a debate on the disinvestment policy. Opposition members walked out after Congress member Suresh Pachauri urged the Disinvestment Minister, Mr Arun Shourie, to spell out whether the policy was transparent and would be under parliamentary supervision. Mr Shourie’s speech was interrupted by the Congress member, Mr Kapil Sibal who said the House wanted a relook at profitable enterprises besides a transparent policy under parliamentary supervision. Earlier, Mr Sibal said the disinvestment policy lacked transparency, had no policy framework and was only for profit-making public sector undertakings. "Unless you delineate this, people will think you are making good the shortfall in the fiscal deficit." The Law Minister, Mr Arun Jaitley, said the Punjab Government had announced its decision to set up a disinvestment commission and the Haryana Government had indicated the same last week. Mr Jaitley said there were several aspects which the government had to take into consideration as well as protecting the interests of workmen. He said in the absence of a better alternative, the disinvestment policy of the government was unquestionable. Acknowledging the "constructive suggestions" of the members, Mr Shourie expressed the hope that the Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment chaired by the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, would get to know each of these suggestions. Mr Shourie said the culture of public sector undertakings was such that it hindered these from doing the kind of job they ought to be doing. Responding to criticism by members on appointment of global advisers, the Disinvestment Minister said it was a four-staged process. Indian advisers were also being appointed through prominent advertisements in Indian and foreign media. Citing profit and loss figures of
various public sector undertakings, Mr Shourie said efforts had been
made in the past three decades to revive various PSUs such as
Rashtriya Ispat, Heavy Engineering Corporation and Hindustan Shipyard. |
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Laxman
to file papers today NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — Minister of State for Railways Bangaru Laxman will file nomination papers for the post of the President of the Bharatiya Janata Party tomorrow morning. Announcing this here today, the party spokesman, Mr M. Venkaiah Naidu, said Mr Laxman, who emerged as a consensus choice of the top party leaders, will file nomination at the party headquarters here in presence of the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, the Union Home Minister, Mr L.K. Advani, the present party President,Mr Kushabhau Thakre and other top leaders. Mr Laxman, who is a Dalit leader, is from Hyderabad and has been active in state and national politics for several decades. Sixty-year-old Laxman will be the first leader from the South to don the mantle of the BJP President. In keeping with the party’s principle of one-man one-post, Mr Laxman would relinquish his ministerial post on assuming office. He would assume charge at Nagpur on August 27 during the National Council meeting, Mr Naidu said. Earlier, Mr Naidu criticised the Opposition for raising "hue and cry" on the sacking of the Law Minister, Mr Ram Jethmalani. In response to a question on what
action would be taken against Mr Jethmalani, Mr Naidu said he was
confident that the government would abide by the rules and keep all
factors in mind while proceeding further on the issue. |
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Three
killed in accident NEW DELHI, Aug 1 — Three persons, including a one-and-a-half-year-old girl, were killed in an accident when a Jeep collided with a Blue Line bus in Narela in north-west district today. The driver of the Jeep, Mukesh Kumar (24), was injured and admitted to Hindu Rao Hospital. The deceased was identified as Narender (18) of Narela. A woman (26) and her one-and-a-half-year old daughter could not be identified. Their bodies have been kept in the mortuary of Hindu Rao Hospital, the police said. The police said Rs
10,060 were recovered from the bag of the woman. |
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