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| Wednesday,
September 13, 2000, Chandigarh, India   
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EC hopes for early resolution Unconsummated marriages on rise: expert Patna crash: ‘no
emergency
call made’ Specifications
for paddy tightened Decision on WB after PM’s returns HC pulls up DDA for not shifting godowns PM’s remark: minority
leaders show concern |
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Rain in some J&K areas Navy to induct
missile boats on Sept 28
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EC hopes for early resolution NEW DELHI, Sept 12 — The Chief Election Commissioner, Dr M.S. Gill, today hoped for an early resolution of vexed issues pending before the Supreme Court on its jurisdiction over poll officials and on the time of enforcement of the model code of conduct in view of the Assembly poll in four states and a union territory early next year. “In our view in cases where the Election Commission and the executive is involved it should be resolved among themselves through dialogue. Why should such cases be decided by the court,” Dr Gill told reporters here. The Chief Election Commissioner pointed out that the commission was making constant effort to resolve the pending issues before the Supreme Court like the cases on its jurisdiction over poll officials and on the implementation of code of conduct and hoped that these issues will be resolved amicably at the earliest. To resolve the jurisdiction on poll officials issue, which is hanging fire for the last seven years, the commission and the Centre have moved a joint petition in the Supreme Court, Dr Gill said hoping that the matter will be disposed of at the earliest. The resolution of this issue was important in view of the Assembly poll in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Kerala, Assam and Pondicherry, he said. Though the Constitution has vested the commission with powers to control, superintendence and discipline, the Centre had given the view that the poll panel had no power to take disciplinary action directly against the officers deployed on poll duties prior to the filing of the joint petition, he said. “The experience has been that during the course of election, almost all parties and contesting candidates have some grievance or other, about bias or misconduct on the part of election officials,” Dr Gill said. To resolve the differences on the time of implementation of the code of conduct, the commission has called an all-party meeting on September 16 to have a consensus on the issue. “The model code of conduct was evolved, not by the commission unilaterally, but by the consensus of all political parties for ensuring a level playing ground for them. Its implementation from the date of announcement of poll is necessary for the conduct of free and fair election and to ensure that no political party particularly the party in power gets an undue advantage,” he said. The Punjab and Haryana High Court in a judgement in 1997 had upheld the commission stand on the implementation of the code of conduct saying that the code should come into operation from the date of announcement of poll and not from the date of notification of poll schedule. However, the then Union Government filed a special leave petition challenging the high court order which is still pending. Dr Gill hoped that the September 16 meeting will help in arriving at a consensus on the issue and upon which the commission would write to the Centre for the withdrawal of the case. On the photo identity card issue, Dr Gill said after the Haryana experience, the Supreme Court was in agreement with the commission’s insistence on photo identity cards for voting. The commission had successfully made use of photo identity cards and electronic voting machines in the recently concluded Assembly poll in Haryana. He pointed out that in the event of not getting the photo identity card, the voter can exercise his franchise by establishing his identity, to the satisfaction of the Returning Officer, by showing passports, ration cards, license, bank passbook, etc. The Chief Election Commission expressed dismay over the tardy progress on the photo identity cards programme in Tamil Nadu. “We want to conduct all future elections through electronic voting machines and make photo identity cards a must. So, we are not happy with the speed with which the photo identity cards were being issued in Tamil Nadu,” he said. However, he said the progress made by West Bengal and Kerala in providing voter identity cards was “good”. He said an average of 65 per cent of the voters across the country had been provided with the voter identity cards, with some states making good progress while some trailing far behind. Meanwhile, the Commission today fixed September 29 for giving its verdict on the Janata Dal symbol issue and gave a week’s time to the Janata Dal (United) to submit whatever documents it wanted to give it in writing. The three-member panel, chaired by Chief Election Commissioner M.S. Gill, heard representatives of both JD (U) headed by Civil Aviation Minister Sharad Yadav and JD (Secular) led by former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda in the dispute appeal filed by Mr Gowda seeking “chakra” symbol. |
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Unconsummated marriages on rise: expert NEW DELHI, Sept 12 — Number of unconsummated marriages are on the rise in India, according to a study by Delhi’s lone qualified sexologist. The findings of the study also contradict the presumption of male impotency as the singular cause of non-consummation of marriage. Dr Mahesh Nawal, who has been practising in Delhi and Indore since 1994 says that he has examined 500 cases of unconsummated marriages due to vaginismus, a condition in which vaginal muscles move from voluntary control into involuntary control. Over 90 per cent cases of vaginismus are due to psychological reasons and only five per cent cases may be due to organic causes.’’ “The number of such patients is increasing. Now through various channels of information couples want to save their marriages. Earlier, couples had been presuming that the man was responsible for nonconsummation. I get about seven-eight cases of nonconsummation due to vaginismus every month from Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, Bhopal and other towns in Madhya Pradesh. The problem is more pronounced among the urban women,’’ he says. Dr Nawal says that another disturbing fall-out of the problem is that some men even start contemplating divorce when they learn that the problem lies with their partners. In some cases, they even begin to look for relationships outside marriage. Dr Nawal, who is the organising secretary of the National Association of Sexology (India) and has worked with Mumbai-based sexologist Dr Praksh Kothari, says that at least 10 to 11 out of 1000 couples in India are going through this crisis in their married lives. He plans to make a presentation on the subject at the World Conference on Sexology in Paris scheduled to be held in June 2001. He feels that the problem is serious but it can be treated with counselling. “Most common causes of vaginismus are fear of pain during first intercourse, forceful attempt at penetration in the beginning, a history of molestation, incest, rape or child sexual abuse. The problem cannot be addressed by prescribing creams, oils or through surgery. It can be cured easily by counselling and gradual dilation of vagina in conscious state. One needs special technique and skill to address the problem.” As a sex physician, Dr Nawal is credited with reporting maximum cases of vaginismus in India says that a patient has to go through six to 10 sittings to be free from vaginismus. The entire treatment costs about Rs 6000. “A man may not have any problem but failure to perform the first time, induces performance anxiety. This results in failure the second time and he finds himself in a state of depression. This induces secondary impotence which was not present earlier,’’ Dr Nawal said. The most common causes of male impotence are performance anxiety, lack of proper knowledge on sex and organic causes as failure to achieve proper erection and early ejaculation. He pointed out that the problem was more acute in small towns which did not have a qualified sex therapists. So, couples suffering from this problem go to general practitioners who are not qualified to treat such problems. In some cases, they go even to quacks. Dr Nawal is of the view that the problem can be addressed by pre-marital counselling to enable individuals lead happy and successful married lives. |
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Patna crash: ‘no
emergency
call made’
NEW DELHI, Sept 12 (PTI) — About a minute before it crashed near the Patna airport on July 17, the Alliance Air Boeing 737 was on a “normal flight path” and had made “no emergency call”, even while losing height, Air Traffic Control Officer has told the court of inquiry probing the mishap in which 58 persons were killed. Having given permission to the plane to carry out a 360 degree orbit, the ATC Officer spotted the plane near the Patna Secretariat tower about 2 km from the threshold of the runway, he told the inquiry panel headed by Air Marshal P. Rajkumar, Programme Director, Aeronautical Development Agency, Bangalore. “At that time, he noticed the aircraft was on a normal flight path,” the panel said, according to the details of investigation available on the website for the first time. The plane’s alignment with the runway centre line was, however, “high on the approach”. Thereafter, he noticed the plane turning left after crossing the Secretariat tower and losing height all of a sudden, the panel said. |
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Specifications
for paddy tightened NEW DELHI, Sept 12 — The government today decided to tighten specifications for the procurement of paddy during the kharif marketing season 2000-2001 and advised procurement agencies to ensure strict compliance. It was decided at a meeting of Food Secretaries, called by the Union Ministry for Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution, here the maximum limit of broken grains in parboiled rice be reduced from 16 per cent to 14 per cent. The maximum limit of damaged/slightly damaged grains may be reduced from 4 per cent to 3 per cent in parboiled rice subject to the condition that the percentage of damaged grains should not be more than 2 per cent. The maximum limit of discoloured grains in parboiled rice is to be reduced from 5 per cent to 4 per cent. Agencies have also been told not to procure rice with moisture content above 14 per cent with value cut as presently provided. The meeting was told the government was expecting an increase of three lakh tonnes of rice over last year’s production of 882.5 lakh tonnes. The states and central government agencies procured 171.98 lakh tonnes of rice for the central pool last year. The Centre gave thrust on formulating a kharif procurement policy to provide price support system to the farmers without burdening the storage mechanism of the Food Corporation of India. Secretaries from the main paddy procurement states like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab and Tamil Nadu attended the meeting. The Chairman and Managing Director of the FCI and the Chairman of the Agricultural Costs and Prices Commission were also among those present at the meeting. Addressing the meeting, the Secretary, Food and Public Distribution, Mr P.
Shanker, said there was a need for strengthening the public distribution system by increasing the off-take of foodgrains allotted to state governments under
PDS. |
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Decision on WB after PM’s returns NEW DELHI, Sept 12 — Even while taking exception to the State government approach to the Centre’s three advisories, the
BJP today said the Government would not take any decision on West Bengal till the Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee returned from his US trip. Talking to mediapersons, the BJP Senior Vice-President, Mr K. Jana Krishnamurthy said that: “Minimum democratic courtesy demands that the State government responds to the Home Ministry’s query on the break down of the law and order situation in some parts of the state”. Defending the Defence Minister, Mr George Fernandes’s visit to three districts of West Bengal for an on-the-spot study of the law and order situation, Mr Krishnamurthy pointed out that he had gone there as convener of the NDA following a complaint by one of the constituents — Trinamool Congress. He had not gone there as a Defence Minister, the BJP leader asserted. Asked about the need to send Mr Fernandes when a five-member parliamentary team consisting of NDA MPs had toured the affected areas last month and submitted its report to the NDA convener, Mr Krishnamurthy said: “May be he wanted to cross-check facts before submitting the report to the government”. The BJP leader, however, pointed out that the Union Home Minister, Mr L.K. Advani had said that he was awaiting the West Bengal Government’s report. The state government’s report along with Mr Fernandes’ report would be placed before the Prime Minister for consideration on his return, he said. Asked whether it was advisable to impose President’s rule now, Mr Krishnamurthy said it all depended upon the Congress attitude. “There are technical difficulties in getting it passed through the Rajya Sabha”, he pointed out. The Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) will strongly oppose any attempt at Central intervention in West Bengal in any form whether through use of Article 356 or declaration of any parts of the state as “disturbed” areas. In a press statement, the CPI (M-L) General Secretary, Mr Dipankar Bhattacharya, said the growing violence in rural areas in the state was a cause of concern. “We appeal to the democracy-loving people of West Bengal to resist the Trinamool Congress campaign of terror and violence as well as the CPM policy of counter-terror”, Mr Bhattacharya said. Meanwhile, the BJP has defended Mr Vajpayee’s assertion in the USA that he was a Swayamsevak first and then the Prime Minister. A senior party leader, Mr J.P. Mathur, said the Prime Minister’s statement was an indirect message that the concept of Hindutva was not confined to Hindus alone. |
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HC pulls up DDA for not shifting godowns NEW DELHI, Sept 12 (UNI) — The high court today came down heavily on the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for its failure to develop an alternative site for shifting hazardous chemical godowns from the walled city. On July 10, the court had directed the DDA to develop the Ghazipur area within three months so that wholesale chemical trading activity could be shifted there. Today, DDA counsel Ansuya Salman said several traders found the site to be unsuitable and hence the Holumbi Kalan area in Narela had been selected. She said tenders were being called, the Lieutenant- Governor was having weekly meetings on the matter and it would take at least one-and-a-half years to develop the new site. Hundreds of booking offices and godowns with hazardous chemicals are currently located in the walled city. One such godown in Lal Kuan was engulfed in a devastating blaze last year, killing 57 persons and injuring 27 others. “It seems no effort has been made so far to relocate the godowns”, said a Division Bench of Mr Justices Anil Dev Singh and M.K. Sharma. “Precious lives have been lost and you are still calling tenders. Considering your pace, it will take another 10 years to shift these godowns. Who can rely on you? You are sleeping”. The court said the new site for shifting hazardous chemical godowns must be developed quickly even if it required working day and night. It should be ready within three months. If there was any real and genuine difficulty, then the DDA should file its response. The court also asked the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to conduct a survey of godowns in the walled city and submit a report within two weeks. The MCD must also fix responsibility for those guilty of the Lal Kuan tragedy, the judges said. Meanwhile, the court allowed an impleadment application filed by the Chemical Merchants Association (CMA) and the Rang Rasayan Vyapar Sangh (RRVS) which said no list of obnoxious, hazardous, polluting or inflammable chemicals had been provided by the authorities. But as a measure of caution, the apex bodies had submitted a list of 434 chemicals as detailed in Schedule 2 of the environment protection rules 1986 to the MCD. None of these chemicals was being stored within the walled city by the CMA and RRVS members, the application said. A magisterial inquiry report submitted on March 31 last year said the MCD and the police were negligent before the Lal Kuan tragedy occurred and did not check the godowns. The MCD claims it cannot be held directly responsible as it does not have the authority to seal such godowns. The police says it is not a licensing authority in any case. The case will come up for next hearing on November 29. |
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PM’s remark: minority
leaders show concern NEW DELHI, Sept 12 (UNI) — Reacting to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s remark in the USA that he was a sayamasevak first than anything else, various leaders from the minority communities have said, “Such assertion coming from the executive head of a democratic state will dent its secular credentials and pluralistic composite culture”. Participating in a seminar on “Minorities at the Crossroad” here last evening, former National Commission for Minorities (NCM) member James Massey said, “Till the date Mr
Vajpayee is holding the Prime Minister’s office, he represents all citizens of the country and not a particular section of the society, how large it may be”. The Prime Minister is heading the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government which does not subscribe to the RSS ideology, Mr John Dayan, a journalist and Christian leader said. Mr Massey, another leader of the Christian community asserted that political parties were at crossroads and not the minorities. The political leaders always swore by the secular Indian Constitution but never refrained from communalising the situation for their narrow vested interests, both alleged. Recounting the recent attacks on the Christians, they said it was not the growing number of violent incidents that spoke of gravity of the situation but the rising “hate elements” among a miniscule fanatics proudly donning role of spokespersons for the majority community. |
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Rain in some
J&K areas NEW DELHI, Sept 12 — Rainfall: Rain or thundershowers have occurred at isolated places in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, east Rajasthan and the plains of Uttar Pradesh. Weather was mainly dry in the rest of the region. The chief amounts of rainfall in cm are: Rajasthan: Bharatpur and Sawai Madhopur 1 each. Forecast valid until the morning of 14th: Rain or thundershowers are likely at isolated places in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, south-east Rajasthan and north-east Uttar Pradesh. Weather will be mainly dry in the rest of the region. Forecast for Delhi and neighbourhood valid until the morning of 14th: Mainly clear sky with possibility of thundery development towards evening/night. Strong surface winds are likely during day time. Farmers’ weather bulletin for Delhi: Forecast valid until the morning of 14th: Thunderclouds are likely to develop at a few places. Outlook for the subsequent two days: No large change. |
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Navy to induct
missile boats on Sept 28 NEW DELHI, Sept 12 — The Indian Navy will launch Yard 14794 and the fast-attack craft, INS Trinket, on September 28. The MDL Yard 14794, built by Mazagon Dock and to be launched at Mumbai, will be the seventh indigeneously built 1214RE class of ship. These ships are among the world’s most sophisticated missile boats fitted with the state-of-the Art detection system, multi-sensors, guns and a missile system. Propelled by four high-powered gas turbines, the ship is the modernised version of a previous ship of the same class, with greater indigenous content and more advanced weapons and sensors. The 1214RE class of ships are intended to destroy enemy warships, aircraft transportation ships and landing crafts. These would strengthen the arms of the Indian Navy in the vast exclusive economic zone and would be the foremost constituent of the flotilla for these tasks. The ship displaces 477, tonnes has an overall length of 56.1 metres and is designed to attain a speed of 35 knots. With a large indigenous content, the ship would give yet another boost to the Indian Navy’s drive towards indigenisation and self-reliance. INS Trinket is the first of the four fast-attack craft being built for the Indian Navy. These ships are equipped with the state-of-the-art detection system and multi-sensor guns and armament. It is intended for patrol duties in coastal waters and around island territories. The ship may also be used for policing, anti-smuggling and fisheries protection in coastal waters. As such, these would strengthen the arms of the Indian Navy in the vast EEZ and be the formest constituents of the flotilla for these tasks. INS Trinket displaces 260 tonnes, has an overall length of 46 metres and is designed to attain a speed of more than 25 knots. |
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