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Sunday,
July 21, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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PMO
directive to MoD on pensions Central plan to meet drought threat House
attack : expert confirms voice sample Narayanan denies tension with PM |
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Rajnath
works to woo back Dalits Dikshit ‘shielded’ spy case convict Paswan’s
LJP forms alliance with NCP Eunuch
MLA needs ‘lesson in etiquette’ Kalam’s
village folks to attend swearing-in NCM for
visas to all Sikhs abroad Plea
rejected in Salman case Manipur Govt may
arrest Naga leaders Russia
for trilateral effort on Afghanistan
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PMO directive
to MoD on pensions New Delhi, July 20 The MoD has been told to ensure that the multiple chain for the disposal of cases is drastically reduced in consultation with the three armed forces. Defence Secretary Subir Dutta and other MoD officials were summoned to the PMO in South Block on July 16 by the Minister of State (PMO), Mr Vijay Goel, who is also in charge of the Public Grievances Cell in the PMO. According to Mr Goel, of all ministries, the public complaints relating to the MoD were the largest. On an average, the PMO refers 300-350 petitions every month to the MoD. The maximum number of petitions pertain to pension/family pension/revision of pension. Mr Goel told the Defence Secretary that he could invite the officials to effectively curtail the multiple chain. Each of the three forces - Army, Air Force and Navy - could depute a grievance officer who might directly forward the complaint to the Record Office. The MoD officials told the PMO that they are handling cases of 16 lakh pensioners and three lakh widows. Apart from this, 60,000 persons are getting discharged from the service every year. This is a huge number being attended to by the pension office, headed by the CDA. The MoD officials admitted that the channel which responds to a public petition has to move through many tables. For example, when a petition is addressed by the PMO to the Defence Secretary, it is marked to the Joint Secretary. The Joint Secretary marks it to the section concerned of public grievances. The section concerned forwards it to the Army headquarters, which, in turn, forward it to the Command headquarters. The Command headquarters forwards it to the Divisional Headquarters which forwards it to the Record Office. The Record Office of the regiment verifies the service record to ascertain why the complainant is not getting the pension. In case of any objection, the same drill is repeated. Another reason for the delay is due to the fact that before 1983, a service person did not have the option to nominate a pensioner. The practice of nominating the family pensioner started after 1983. Mr Goel suggested to the Defence Secretary that as per guidelines of the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, a regular monitoring mechanism for the disposal of complaints under a Joint Secretary designated as Director of Public Grievances must be active and the monthly review meetings by the Defence Secretary regarding the disposal of grievances must be held. The Minister also suggested that all surviving persons who retired before 1983 may be given the option of mentioning the name of the family pensioners so that in case of their demise, the widow or the family pensioner does not have to go through the same drill for establishing their eligibility. |
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Central
plan to meet drought threat New Delhi, July 20 A drought, if it takes place, could send several projections haywire, as a fall in the kharif foodgrain output would have adverse multiplier effects on other sectors. It is learnt that a meeting of the state relief commissioners has been convened next week to lay out a comprehensive blueprint in the eventuality of a drought. The meeting of the relief commissioners will take place in lieu of the state cooperative ministers as had been planned earlier. The meeting assumes significance in view of the fact that a possible drought in the major agrarian districts of the country could send all projections of economic growth into a tailspin. India’s economic recovery is critically dependent on growth in the agriculture sector. The very fact that the impetus for a robust 5.4 per cent GDP for 2001-02 was premised upon a strong recovery in the farm sector further reinforces the point that the rural economy holds the key to economic growth. Agriculture and financial sectors emerged as the major engines of growth last year with the farm sector clocking a 5.7 per cent growth during the year. Significantly, the last quarter (January to March 2002) proved to be the most productive, with agriculture and allied activities registering an unexpected 7.6 per cent growth — a major turnaround as compared to negative 4 per cent growth in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Only recently, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee had told his Economic Advisory Council and the Council of Trade and Industry that the government was determined on laying out policy prescriptions to ensure that the targeted 8 per cent growth rate is achieved during the 10th plan (2002-07). This year, the Prime Minister had projected, was estimated to grow beyond 6 per cent. From a purely statistical point of view, the numbers suggest that India should be in a position to successfully manage potential drought-like situation, considering the fact India’s food storage has reached a phenomenal 65
million tonnes. This has been powered by the bumper harvest last where foodgrains output stood at 209.2 million tonnes, out of which kharif accounted for 108.5 million tonnes and rabi accounted for 100.7 million tonnes. |
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House attack : expert confirms voice sample New Delhi, July 20 Deposing as prosecution witness, Dr Rajinder Singh, Senior Scientific Officer, CFSL told Special Judge S.N. Dhingra that he had examined the cassettes containing the taped voices and sample voices forwarded to him and found them similar. “It is concluded that the sample voices were probably of Shaukat and Afsan,” he said. The police had intercepted phone calls of militants following the seizure of cellphones from the terrorists who were killed by the security forces in the Parliament House complex. Another witness, Dr Upender Kishore, who had performed autopsy on the body of a Pakistani terrorist said JeM militant Mohammad Afzal had identified the body in the hospital mortuary. “On December 17, I conducted the post-mortem on the body of Hamza, about 27 years, identified by Afzal,” he said. Besides Hamza, four other Pakistani militants — Mohammad alias Leader, Haider, alias Tufial, Raja and Rana — were killed by security personnel. He said before the post-mortem, two pieces of paper were found on the body of Hamza which were handed over to the police. Another witness, K.K. Behal, a cellphone shop owner, said two JeM militants, Afzal and Shaukat, had purchased cellphones from him.
PTI |
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Narayanan denies tension with PM New Delhi, July 20 |
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Rajnath works
to woo back Dalits New Delhi, July 20 The BJP high command, in anticipation of the souring of ties with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in the next few months, wants to keep alternative strategies so that it is not caught napping if and when unpredictable Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati decides to pull the rug, party sources said. Mr Rajnath Singh, who was in UP till the formation of a BSP-BJP government, saw that his policies were being dismantled by Ms Mayawati and he was being marginalised in the state. Mr Rajnath Singh’s policy of providing reservations in jobs for the most backward castes was recently undone by Ms Mayawati. Reports from villages and cities have also been unnerving as the traditional BJP voters are being alienated by the administrative machinery of the state. What has further encouraged the newly-appointed General Secretary is the fact that former state Chief Minister Kalyan Singh is again coming close to the new power centre in the BJP. Mr Kalyan Singh had left the BJP as he had developed differences with Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee but he had always been warm to Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani. With Mr Advani’s grip on the organisation tightening, Mr Kalyan Singh, who is in touch with former Defence Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav, is also understood to have emitted some positive signals. The BJP is of the view that the backward class electorate of the state and the neighbouring states of Bihar, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh has always had a weakness for the party. With Mr Kalyan Singh going out of the BJP, backward classes did become a bit alienated but they can be brought back if proper strategy is evolved and executed. Mr Yadav has been busy in bringing backwards and the Dalits under one political banner by coordinating with Mr Kalyan Singh and president of the Apna Dal Sonelal Patel. Mr Yadav knows fully well that backward classes alone cannot fulfil his political ambitions and that is why if a proper understanding with the BJP can be evolved then he can become Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister again. For this, Mr Yadav’s all-powerful General Secretary Amar Singh has been in touch with Mr Rajnath Singh. Mr Yadav has been out of power for a pretty long time and it is not easy to sustain in politics without power as resource crunch starts staring in face, sources said adding that a long-term understanding could also be evolved between the backward leaders and the BJP. Although the strategy seems to be well throughout, it can die a premature death if loose ends are not tied, sources added. |
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Dikshit
‘shielded’ spy case convict New Delhi, July 20 Charging Ms Dikshit of “shielding” Malhotra, the Delhi BJP President said he had proof to establish that the convict had been working as the Chief Minister’s assistant in her official residence at Mathura Road for the past nearly four years. Making public the copies of the letters written to Mr Advani and Mr Kapoor, he said only an independent probe by the CBI could bring out the truth as the matter was of very sensitive nature. “The CBI should carry out an inquiry to establish whether Malhotra, who has been sentenced to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment in the spying case, had been working in the Chief Minister’s office or not and also whether she protected him deliberately,” Mr Khurana demanded. He said he would also meet Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on the issue. The state BJP chief said Malhotra was appointed with the help of Ms Dikshit’s father-in-law and Congress leader Uma Shanker Dikshit in the Prime Minister’s Office while she was the Minister of State in the PMO. “It is highly objectionable and criminal to allow a person with such a background to assist the Chief Minister in her official capacity. The CBI should investigate the activities of Malhotra both inside and outside the Chief Minister’s residence,” he said. An unperturbed Ms Dikshit, however, strongly denied the allegation, saying the BJP’s charge was a “tissue of lies” and smacked of a political gimmick. “I don’t deny my acquaintance with Malhotra who was a personal assistant to my father-in-law Uma Shankar Dikshit while he was the Union Home Minister. But he was never a part of my official set-up nor did he figure in my staff at my residence,” Ms Dikshit told a press conference later. Malhotra was convicted by a court earlier this week along with 13 others for supplying confidential military and commercial documents to agents of Polish, West German and French embassies. Five of the convicts including Malhotra, were working in the PMO when the scandal came to light. |
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Paswan’s LJP forms
alliance with NCP Patna, July 20 The new front was announced on July 18 with much fanfare. Mr Paswan chose the occasion to say that very soon the Congress would “backtrack from its alliance with the RJD”. Mr Paswan urged those forces having an ideology opposed to the RJD to join the front. He said his party had talks with the Congress and it would “take an appropriate decision” vis-a-vis the RJD in October or November. |
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Eunuch MLA needs ‘lesson in etiquette’ Bhopal, July 20 The committee has made the recommendation in its report dealing with the complaints of breach of privilege made by Shabnam Mausi and Mr Bisahulal Singh, another MLA, against each other. Both come from Shahdol district. Mr Bisahulal Singh, who is a former minister, stated in his complaint that on November 30, 2000, when the House was in session, Shabnam Mausi abused him in the lobby saying that he was asking too many questions in the House and was always levelling charges against the officers whom Shabnam Mausi got posted in her constituency. Shabnam Mausi even took out her chappals and would have hit him but for the intervention of some other members, he said. Mr Bisahulal Singh had given the notice of breach of privilege on the same day. Shabnam Mausi gave her notice on December 3, claiming that Mr Singh had abused her and misbehaved with her in the lobby. The 10-member committee headed by Chaudhary Rakesh Singh of the Congress took statements of the two complainants as well as of those who they had claimed were present there. The committee came to the conclusion that the issue between them concerned with the local politics of their district and did not relate to their legislative responsibilities and, hence, no breach of privilege of either member, was committed. The committee also felt that Shabnam Mausi had abused Mr Singh. The committee observed that Shabnam Mausi’s behaviour was not in consonance with the parliamentary procedure and recommended to the Chair to direct her to improve her
behaviour. |
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Kalam’s village folks to attend swearing-in Rameswaram (TN), July 20 Family sources said here the team would leave for Chennai enroute to New Delhi by train tomorrow. Besides family members, including Dr Kalam’s 86-year-old elder brother A.P.K. Muthu Marakkayar, popularly called as “Chinna Marakkayar”, and cousin Nooruddin, who had studied with him at the primary level, friends and relatives from this temple town would also be a part of the team. The team’s expenses would be borne by Dr Kalam. Family sources maintained that Dr Kalam had rejected the government’s offer to fund the team. Breaking caste and creed barriers, the team includes people from all religions like Mr Venkatasubramania Sastrigal, whose father was closely associated with Dr Kalam’s father, and Thevar Peravai leader Durairaj. “It will be a unique experience for us. We will go as a family and come back as a family,” one of his family members said. The team would return on July 26.
UNI |
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NCM for
visas to all Sikhs abroad New Delhi, July 20 In a meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr L.K. Advani, Mr Tarlochan Singh apprised him about the recent meetings with various Sikh groups in USA and UK and their eagerness to come to Punjab to meet their relatives. All of them have no grouse against the government on any account and have assured the NCM Vice-Chairman that they have shunned all such activities that go against India. Mr Singh said Mr Advani had advised the Home Ministry to take up the cases of all those who had been denied visa. Mr Tarlochan Singh also requested the Deputy Prime Minister to further help the Hindu/Sikh refugees from Afghanistan. Mr Singh said all the refugees may be given one year multiple visa to go to Afghanistan so that they can see their houses and re-start their businesses. |
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Plea rejected in Salman case Jodhpur, July 20 Chief Judicial Magistrate
S. K. Mathur rejected the application moved by the Assistant Director (Prosecution) after the defence counsel opposed it on the ground that since the arms — a pistol and a gun — were seized from Khan in another case, they could not be sought as exhibits in this case. The court held that since the arms were lying in its store in another case against the actor, they cannot be summoned in the current trial related to killing of protected wild animals near Mathania four years ago. Khan is facing trial in three different cases of poaching wild animals.
PTI |
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Manipur
Govt may arrest Naga leaders
Mumbai, July 20 “We will not give up the cases ... they could be arrested on their return if they enter Manipur,” said Chief Minister Ibobi Singh, who is here to attend the North-East Chief Ministers’ summit. Justifying his move, Mr Ibobi Singh said his intention was not to sabotage the “hard-earned” peace process but hastened to add that “the manner in which the NSCN (IM) continues to disturb peace and tranquility in the region is not acceptable”. The Chief Minister alleged that NSCN (IM) militants “in total violation of ground rules for the ceasefire”, were extorting and creating havoc on national highways 39 and 53, the vital lifelines of the state.
PTI |
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Russia for trilateral effort on Afghanistan New Delhi, July 20 Addressing a press conference in the Russian Embassy here, Mr Trubnikov said he was going to Iran to hold further discussions on the subject. On the question of India’s demand to declare Pakistan a terrorist state, Mr Trubnikov said he was personally opposed to any state being declared a terrorist state. “My personal view is that no state should be condemned as a terrorist state.” |
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SSP suspended in UP
Lucknow, July 20 |
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