 |
Wednesday,
February 27, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
|
Poverty down to low of 26 per cent Railways to ‘rightsize’ workforce Price issue delays Hawk deal |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Now, body bags trouble for George Tiwari meets Speaker on coffin scam Sonia charges BJP with doublespeak Secular Front to form govt in Manipur Conference on cancer begins New ration cards for residents Fine fails to deter violators
|
|
Poverty down to low of 26 per cent New Delhi, February 26 It witnessed a steady decline from 55 per cent in 1973-74 to 36 per cent in 1993-94 and 26 per cent in 1999-2000. Though the poverty ratio declines, the number of poor remained stable at around 320 million for a fairly long period of two decades, (1973-1993), due to a countervailing growth in population. The latest estimates for 1999-2000 reveal a significantly reduced number of poor, at about 260 million out of a total population of 997 million, the survey said. The poverty ratio on a 30-day recall basis, is estimated at 27.09 per cent in rural areas, 23.62 per cent in urban areas and 26.10 per cent for the country as a whole. An analysis of the poverty ratio at the state level indicates that while states such as Punjab and Haryana have succeeded in reducing poverty by following the path of high agricultural growth, others have focussed on particular areas of development e.g. Kerala has focussed on human resource development, West Bengal on vigorous implementation of land reform measures and empowerment of panchayats, and Andhra Pradesh on direct public intervention in the form of public distribution of foodgrains. While Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed a phenomenal decline in poverty by 21.69 per cent, Haryana has registered a 16.31 per cent drop, Himachal Pradesh 19.70 per cent and Punjab 5.61 per cent during 1999-2000 as compared to 1993-94. In Punjab, the poverty ratio in urban areas was 5.75 per cent and in rural areas 6.35 per cent during 1999-2000, while in Haryana it was 9.99 per cent in Urban areas and 8.27 per cent in rural areas. The Survey clearly makes out that though poverty has declined at the macro-level, rural-urban and inter-state disparities are visible. The rural poverty ratio is still relatively high in Orissa, Bihar and the North-Eastern states. In Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, the urban poverty ratios were in the range of 30.89 per cent to 42.83 per cent in 1999-2000. There has been a significant reduction in poverty during the period in Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir, Goa, Lakshadweep, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, West Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar Islands. |
|
Railways to ‘rightsize’ workforce New Delhi, February 26 Replying to a question at a crowded press conference at Rail Bhavan here this afternoon, the Chairman, Railway Board, Mr R.N. Malhotra, said the Railways started the policy of rationalising workforce from 1991-92 right up to 1997. “We were able to reduce a workforce of 1.8 lakh per year which constituted 1.5 per cent of the total workforce. For every 3 per cent of persons retiring, we will continue to recruit only 1 per cent personnel”, he said. He said the passenger fares for short distances in the ordinary second class had been deliberately kept low in the interests of poor passengers. Talking to mediapersons at Rail Bhavan here this afternoon, Mr Malhotra said there was no increase in fares and freight across the board and an effort has been made to rationalise the fare and freight in the Railways. He said the percentage hike in passenger fares in various classes would be different classwise. Mr Malhotra said for some classes, the increase was after 20/30 km and 40 km. “The fare was kinky in some slabs and we have tried to smoothen out by rationalising the tariffs”, he said. He explained that while the rationalisation of the passenger fares was estimated to fetch Rs 910 crore, the rationalisation of the freight fares would fetch Rs 450 crore. Spelling out the salient features of the Budget, Mr Malhotra enumerated funding from sources other than the Central Government, wagons with improved speed of 100 kmph on the Golden Quadrangle which takes 75 per cent of the freight traffic, the liquidation of arrears of replacement of the safety assets, continuation of Rs 17000 crore corpus of Safety Fund during the ongoing Five-Year Plan, rightsizing of the staff strength and improving security and the purification of drinking water for passengers. He said certain other policy initiatives which had been announced in the Railway Budget pertained to public-private partnership and public-public partnership. Apart from this, steps had been taken to attract freight traffic and high-speed refrigerated parcel vans were being proposed to cut down wastage of perishable commodities like fruits and vegetables. The Chairman also mentioned the pilot project for computer-based unreserved ticketing system. He said 16 Jana Shatabdis were proposed to be started on April 16 to mark 150 years of the Railways. These trains would have second class chair car in
addition to AC chair car and provide a link with most state capitals. As the name suggests, the train has been introduced to ensure that more passengers can afford to travel by these trains. Member (Traffic), Railway Board, Mr M.C. Srivastava, told TNS that the proposed additional resource mobilisation through rationalisation of passenger earnings worked out to 7.8 per cent when compared to passenger earnings of Rs 11,400 crore of 2001-2002. According to the breakdown of additional resource mobilisation through rationalisation of passenger earnings, the Railways is expected to generate Rs 116 crore from second class ordinary, Rs 8 crore from sleeper (ordinary), Rs 150 crore from second class mail/express, Rs 342 crore from sleeper class mail/express, Rs 61 crore from chair car, Rs 50 crore from AC three-tier, Rs 9 crore from first class, Rs 68 crore from second AC and Rs 8 crore from AC first class, Rs 76 crore from second class monthly season ticket and Rs 16 crore from MST (first class). |
|
Railways to
produce bottled water New Delhi, February 26 In an informal interaction with mediapersons at Rail Bhavan here this afternoon, Mr Nitish Kumar sounded excited about the new project of the unreserved ticketing system. He said to save the passengers the trouble of buying tickets in serpentine queues. “About 13 million persons travel every day of which 12 million travel without reservation. The new system will enable passengers to buy a ticket from any place other than the starting point of the train in
advance," he said. Replying to a question on complaints from Punjab that no trains had been started linking the Capital with the Malwa region, he said: “We have apportioned approved schemes in different states to create regional balance. Trains linking the Capital with Punjab and Haryana have already reached a saturation point.” He said the rationalisation of freight rates would have a negligible effect on the price of edible salt. Acting on complaints of poor quality of bottled water sold at railway stations, the Railways has decided to manufacture pure drinking water. The Indian Railways’ Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd will set up plants for manufacturing packaged drinking water under the brand name of “Rail Neer.” Mr Nitish Kumar said the Udhampur-Katra and Qazigund-Baramula sections would now be completed in three years. Apart from this project, the northern region stands to gain from promises made in the Railway Budget. Apart from the existing Shatabdi between Chandigarh and Delhi, Chandigarh will get one of the 16 Jana Shatabdis proposed to be introduced from April 16. The inter city train services, better known as Jan Shatabdis, will have a major second class component besides AC chair car coaches. The fare of the Jan Shatabdi is yet to be worked out. Another good news for Chandigarh residents comes with the extension of the 4231/4232 Lucknow-Saharanpur Express to Chandigarh. The Railways is also introducing several express trains including the Pathankot-Delhi (thrice a week) train and another train linking Jammu Tawi with Hardwar. The 5211/5212 Amritsar-Darbhanga Jansewa Express via Narkatiaganj will now run every day instead of two days a week. The train has been renamed Jan Nayak Express. The frequency of 5209/5210 Amritsar-Barauni Jansewa Express via Bhatni, Chhapra and Shanopur Patoree has been changed from five days to all days. |
|
Price issue delays Hawk deal New Delhi, February 26 A senior Defence Ministry official, claiming that the deal was likely to be struck very soon, said the price issue was the only “hitch”. Speaking to reporters after the sixth meeting of the Indo-UK Defence Consultative Group (DCG) here, Defence Secretary Yogendra Narain said the issue was being discussed. The British side to the DCG was led by the Under Secretary of State of the Ministry of Defence, Sir Kevin Tebbit. “The negotiations are very much alive and are going on smoothly. Very early we hope to reach a settlement,” he said. But Mr Narain said it would be difficult to give a time frame. The AJT issue is also likely to figure during the talks that British Foreign Minister Jack Straw will have with Defence Minister George Fernandes tomorrow. The DCG, which during the past two days deliberated on military exchanges, defence equipment collaboration and research and technology, discussed the Hawk deal and said it looked forward to an early conclusion to the current negotiations. The group discussed issues relating to product support for acquisition by India from the UK, relating in particular to US equipment for the British-made Sea King helicopters and Sea Harrier aircraft, both used by the Indian Navy. India and the UK have agreed to discuss opportunities for cooperation in the field of high-energy materials as well as radars and thermal imaging. With regard to defence equipment cooperation, the DCG decided that emphasis should be given to encouraging industrial partnerships of a strategic nature, including joint ventures, co-production and joint production development. |
|
Now, body bags trouble for George New Delhi, February 26 Rajya Sabha member and senior advocate R.K. Anand today alleged that according to the documents in the booklet itself while the rate of body bags mentioned was $ 27.50 per bag, the deal was finally signed at a rate of $ 85 each. Speaking to mediapersons here, Mr Anand, who last month received a letter from Defence Minister George Fernandes along with a booklet issued by freelance journalist R.V. Pandit to clarify the issue, said he had unearthed the discrepancy on the basis of the official notes in the booklet. The booklet, which was brought out by Mr Pandit although on his own initiative, but it had the backing of the Defence Minister and the Defence Ministry. He was provided with the official documents and later Mr Fernandes in an apparent bid to absolve himself had circulated the booklet among the MPs with his personal letter attached. The booklet cited an official note quoting the price for a casket at $ 2,500 and that of a body bag at $ 27.50 “as per information received from our MA (military
attaché) in Washington.” But while citing the contract purchase order, Mr Anand alleged, the booklet missed out the rate of the body bag deliberately. The MP, however, procured a
notarized copy of the contract from a Texas firm wherein the rate for body bags was mentioned at $ 85. Mr Anand also demanded that Mr Fernandes be booked under the Official Secrets Act for circulating the official documents for public consumption. Reading from the booklet, he also pointed out that companies from France, the UK and Germany had previously offered caskets at much less price than the one at which the government purchased them in August, 1999. He also questioned the credentials of Mr Pandit who came to the defence of the Defence Minister by bringing out the booklet, describing it as “nothing but sham.” Referring to the Defence Minister’s claim that the casket deal was not seen by him before it was struck, Mr Anand said why did he not take action against the Army officials responsible for it. “If he is not himself involved in the issue, what was the need for getting a booklet published to defend him,” he asked. |
|
Tiwari meets Speaker on coffin scam New Delhi, February 26 “My meeting with the Speaker was inconclusive. I plan to meet him again in the next two-three days along with certain documents,” Mr Tiwari said after a 45-minute meeting with Mr Balayogi. The committee is going into the CAG report which has pulled up Defence Ministry on some Defence purchases, including import of coffins from the USA for martyrs of armed forces during the Kargil conflict. |
|
Sonia charges BJP with doublespeak New Delhi, February 26 Addressing the general body meeting of the Congress Parliamentary Party, Ms Sonia Gandhi, accused BJP and Sangh Parivar leaders of speaking in different voices on the issue. The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha criticised Mr Vajpayee for his “contradictory” statements on the temple issue and said all parties must patiently await the decision of the Supreme Court on the issue. She said pronouncements and actions of Mr Murli Manohar Joshi continued to cause great anxiety to the Congress. “Not content with politicising the NCERT and subverting the way our composite history is interpreted and written, he has now packed the ICHR with individuals of dubious academic credentials,” Ms Sonia Gandhi said. The Prime Minister, she alleged, was turning a blind eye to “blatant communalisation of our intellectual infrastructure.” |
|
Secular Front to form govt in Manipur Imphal, February 26 Both state party President O.Ibobi, who won from the Khangabok Assembly constituency and seniormost party leader, Mr Devendro, who returned from it Jiribam Assembly constituency, are in the hot race to don the mantle of party’s stewardship in the state legislature.
Agencies |
|
Conference on cancer begins New Delhi, February 26 Mr Arun
Jaitley, Union Minister for Law, Justice and Company Affairs, said this after he inaugurated a three-day international conference on “Cancer treatment in developing countries and the problems and opportunities for clinical research” in New Delhi today. The ASCO-endorsed APACC is being jointly organised by major cancer organisations of the Asian region, Indo-American Cancer Congress and the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital. |
|
New ration cards for residents
Hanumangarh, February 26 The work of printing these cards was pending since a long time as the DSO had no funds for the same. Now the department has decided to get the cards printed from the State Publication Department and the payment would be made from the collections made after the distribution of these cards, sources said. The department had made an estimated requirement of about 50,000 ration cards but gave an order for 60,000 cards, keeping in view that some get wasted during the procedure of issuance. At present, 30,000 cards have been issued. The new cards would be valid for 10 years and would bear the name of the head of the family. The cards would be available in three different colours — pink, green and blue for different categories. The sources said employees of the department would visit the houses of residents and distribute application forms for issuance of cards to those interested. The work of printing of new cards was lying pending because the department had no funds for printing the application forms. The department had borrowed Rs 5,000 from a local sugar association for printing these forms. While half of the bill of printing has been paid, the other half was still pending. The printing of the cards would cost about Rs 1,25,000 and no private printing press had agreed to do the job without getting the payment immediately, the sources added. They said earlier the department was also not ready to print the cards without getting an advance, but officials of the department were made to agree with the efforts of the DSO. A sum of Rs 5 would be charged from the residents for a single ration card and the amount collected from them would be used to pay for the printing work. |
|
|
Fine fails to deter violators Hanumangarh, February 26 Under the local municipal council, Cleaning and Clearness Sub-Act, 1965, there is prohibition on urinating, defecation and obscenity at public places. A provision for a fine of Rs 200 is also there if the allegation are proved against the violators. Though the municipal council made it a law years ago but no steps were taken to ensure that the law was not violated. There is a shortage of urinals at the public places in the city and because of that the residents have no other option but to do it in the open. There are a total of 14 public urinals in the city, which are never cleaned. The urinals are not used by the public as these stink very badly and people make ample use of the public walls and abandoned places. For defecation the municipal council had got only five complexes, one each at the two bus stands in the city, two in the grain markets one each at the junction and the town and one in the government hospital in the town, but in the markets and at other places such as railway stations, no such complexes exist. Women suffer most in the situation. The population of city has crossed one lakh and when the number of complexes and urinals constructed are compared, it is inadequate. In this situation where public is facing problems the city also is getting defaced. The municipal council on the one hand is not constructing urinals and complexes for defecation, on the other it has also failed in stopping the violation of the laws made by it. |
|
A correction Mr L C Amarnathan is the new Director-General of the Bureau of Police Research and Development and not the chief of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) of the Cabinet Secretariat as mentioned inadvertently in the headline yesterday. The error is regretted. |
 |
| Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir | Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs | Nation | Editorial | | Business | Sport | World | Mailbag | In Spotlight | Chandigarh Tribune | Ludhiana Tribune 50 years of Independence | Tercentenary Celebrations | | 122 Years of Trust | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
(
