 |
Wednesday,
January 22, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
|
Follow Gandhi’s path, Kalam urges youth
Dist officials ‘harassing’ BJP men
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Nagaland poll: Cong suffers reverses
I will quit, if PM wants: Jana India embarks on diplomatic coups Missile tests ‘no signal’ to anyone RSS to honour 600 for service during Partition Togadia for President’s rule in Bengal Dar crosses swords with Salahuddin AG’s opinion on oil
PSUs given to PM Pooja Express
derailed Snake deaths make people panicky Row over Buddha’s ashes Foreign secy to leave for Geneva Pooja Bhatt to make
thrillers Salman’s plea on vehicle rejected
|
|
Follow Gandhi’s path, Kalam urges youth Kolkata, January 21 This was president’s first visit to Kolkata after taking over office last year. The President landed at the Netaji Subhas international airport last night, where the governor, Mr Viren J. Shah, and the Chief Minister, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, were present to welcome him. The President’s day began with a function at Ramakrishna Vivekananda Mission at Barrackpore, 20 km from Raj Bhavan, where he addressed the students. He also spoke at a function organised by the Aeronautical Society of India at Grand Hotel. The President asked young scientists and technologists to explore new methods that would ensure better airtravel even in the midst of fog and other hazards. Over 8,000 children from different schools of Kolkata and the adjoining areas were present in the stadium to listen to the President. Dr Kalam also had an interactive session with students of Sealdah Loreto and Kolkata Foundation at Raj Bhavan. In the afternoon, the President attended a function at St Xavier’s College, organised by the World Congress of Jesuit Alimni. He also visited Netaji Bhavan and attended a meeting of the Indian Chamber of Commerce at Kala Mandir before returning to New
Delhi. |
|
Dist officials ‘harassing’ BJP men Lucknow, January 21 “Katiyar receives more than 12 letters almost everyday, elaborating on the biased attitude of district officials towards the BJP,” said a senior party functionary. Party workers are complaining that the district administration is working as a “puppet” in the hands of BSP ministers and leaders, alleging that BJP leaders are being implicated in false cases. Piqued over the increased interference of BSP leaders in administrative affairs, the district party unit of Ghaziabad has even threatened to stage a fast-unto-death outside the state party office if the harassment of party workers is not stopped. The vice-president of the party, Mr Hridaya Narain Dixit, said the BJP was concerned about the problems of its workers. “We are getting information of harassment and partisan behaviour of the administration against BJP workers and the matter has been taken up with Chief Minister Mayawati,” he said. Party workers from Chitrakoot in their letter to Mr Katiyar have alleged that ADM Karvi is harassing BJP workers at the insistence of a BSP minister. Mr Rajendra Prasad, district unit chief of Jaunpur, told Mr Katiyar that with the increase in cases of harassment, they were not able to convince workers that they were part of the government. Ms Pushpa Anuragi, a BJP leader from Mahoba, had written that land belonging to Dalits was grabbed by upper-caste people and their complaints were ignored by officials. Urban Development Minister Lalji Tandon, who is also the leader of the BJP legislature party, had to face the wrath of party workers in Nawabganj, where they openly blamed BSP leaders for shielding criminals. A BJP legislator, Dr Ganga Bux Singh, who was among the 10 dissident MLAs who had raised a banner of revolt against the government, said corrupt officials were being patronised by a BSP minister. |
|
|
Nagaland poll: Cong suffers reverses Kohima, January 21 Chief Minister S.C. Jamir became the first one in the state’s history to complete two terms. The Congress emerged victorious with 53 seats (43 unopposed) against seven seats won by Independents. Now the Opposition has united though not without fissures. Unless for last-minute glitches, the BJP and the Nagaland Peoples’ Front (NPF) are set to go for a pre-poll alliance as well as seat adjustment. Mr Jamir faces a dual problem. Talks are under way between the Centre and the NSCN-IM and there is new found unity in the Opposition camp. Yesterday, Cabinet Minister T Chuba, Vice-President of Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee Imkong L. Imchen and four associate Congress MLAs, along with an Independent resigned from the ministry and the party. Former Home Minister Neiphiu Rio had resigned from the Cabinet last year while former Power Minister Kewekhape Thiere was ousted on May 16. In separate notifications, the Assembly secretariat yesterday informed that five legislators had resigned from the Assembly during the day. UNI |
|
|
I will quit, if PM wants: Jana New Delhi, January 21 He, however, categorically stated that he would not accept any gubernatorial position and will be happy to retire from politics and spend time with his family members in Chennai. “Prime Minister has the prerogative to bring anybody to the Cabinet and drop anyone...the Prime Minister himself asked me to join the Cabinet and if he asks me to quit, I will do so immediately,” Mr Krishnamurthy said when asked to react on reports in a section of the press that he could be dropped from the Cabinet on health ground. Asked whether he would accept any gubernatorial position in place of the Cabinet ministership, Mr Krishnamurthy replied in the negative and said he had been thinking to quit politics since 1995 and would prefer to retire from politics and spend the remaining time with the family in Chennai. “I would also take up to writing based on my experience in politics,” he said. “Nobody grumbles if any minister is asked by Prime Minister to leave the Cabinet. That is the culture of our party,” he asserted. Asked about his health condition, Mr Krishnamurthy said after a bout of viral fever, he was feeling very tired and exhausted. “There is no problem now and my doctors have allowed me to attend to office work,” Mr Krishnamurthy said. The Union Law Minister said his ministry was working over time to ensure that the backlog of cases in the courts was removed. “By March 31, nearly 1,200 fast-track courts will be functional across the country,” he said, adding that several other major initiatives were being taken for speedy administration of justice. |
|
|
India embarks on diplomatic coups New Delhi, January 21 After successfully tackling an intransigent Pakistan for accessing Afghanistan with the help of Iran and reaching out to Afghanistan without using Pakistani territory, India has embarked on another diplomatic coup to bypass another troublesome neighbour — Bangladesh —for accessing its own North-East and South-East Asia with the cooperation of Myanmar. Myanmar Foreign Minister U Win Aung’s one-to-one talks with External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha here yesterday were aimed at putting the bilateral ties on a strategic pedestal in view of the growing inimical attitude of Dhaka. Mr Aung’s visit — the first by a Myanmar Foreign Minister to India in 15 years though the number two in Yangon’s foreign office has come here in between — has brought the two countries closer in the fields of infrastructure, power, oil exploration and information technology. Sources in the Ministry of External Affairs said India hoped to achieve the following strategic objectives by consolidating its ties with Myanmar in pursuance of its “Look East” policy: * Accessing its own North-East by building a strategic road network connecting the North-East with the Indian mainland through Myanmar, thus circumventing the troublesome Bangladesh. Dhaka has been creating hurdles in all such efforts for political and economic reasons. * Accessing South-East Asia and that region’s vast economic potential by forging close ties with Myanmar. * Jointly exploring, producing and using Myanmar’s huge proven reserves of oil and gas. Myanmar’s proven gas reserves are a whopping 90 trillion cubic feet. The sources said during the one-to-one and delegation-level talks at Hyderabad House yesterday, India assured Myanmar that it would soon be releasing the third Line of Credit after its two earlier LCs totalling $ 25 million. Myanmar asked India for deep-drilling machines for joint on-shore oil explorations in Central Myanmar. Yangon told New Delhi that it was looking for joint projects with India in areas bordering India for the mutual benefit of the two countries. It was music for the Indian officials when Myanmar’s Foreign Minister reaffirmed his country’s resolve that it would not allow any anti-Indian activity from its soil. |
|
|
Missile tests ‘no signal’ to anyone
New Delhi, January 21 He told newsmen here that the objective of the tests was part of measures to bolster the country’s defence preparedness and to test the efficacy of these systems. “The tests have nothing to do with sending any signal to anyone and Pakistan does not have any reason to be worried on this score,” Mr Fernandes said on his return from Moscow with a stopover at London. Replying to questions, he said India was opposed to any war on Iraq but if any action was contemplated, it should be with the sanction of the United Nations. “We are not in favour of war and I feel other countries also feel the same way,” he said. Mr Fernandes said the Iraqi crisis figured in his talks with his British counterpart during his brief halt at
London. PTI |
|
|
RSS to honour 600 for service during Partition
New Delhi, January 21 Apparently pursuing its agenda of ‘Hindu Rashtra’ and reviving the ghost of Partition, the RSS also announced its decision to initiate steps to infuse nationalism in young minds “to the levels witnessed during Partition days, when they protected the Hindu community from Muslim oppression”. RSS chief K.S. Sudarshan would honour the veteran ‘swayamsevaks’ (volunteers) by presenting ‘smriti chinh’ (memento) at the Shaurya Smriti Samaroh in Amritsar on January 29, RSS karyavah (secretary) in charge of north India Devendra Prasad Gupta told reporters here. Attributing the rising incidents of “minority terrorism” to the lack of nationalistic spirit in today’s youth, Mr Gupta said, “The scene unfolding before us is indeed scary. Parliament, Red Fort and temples are being attacked. Pakistani militants aided by the ISI have let loose a reign of terror across the country. Today’s youth is not raising its voice. That nationalistic fervour is missing”. RSS Punjab chief Brij Bhushan Bedi said it was the outfit’s volunteers who had come forward to save “Hindu samaj” during Partition. “In the absence of such an effort, lakhs would have lost their lives or would have been forced to convert to Islam,” Mr Bedi said, hoping that the Amritsar event would “infuse a new wave of nationalism” in the youth. PTI |
|
Togadia for President’s rule in Bengal Kolkata, January 21 He said it was essential to have an extended period of the President’s rule with a retired General or a senior intelligence official as Governor to destroy the ‘’false documentation channel’’ created in the Muslim-dominated villages of Murshidabad, Malda and Midnapore.
UNI |
|
Dar crosses swords with Salahuddin New Delhi, January 21 Amidst reports that severe clashes had broken out between supporters of Salahuddin and Dar at the Haripur camp in Pakistan, the Dar faction was now contemplating retaliating in the valley by expelling Salahuddin from the Hizbul Mujahideen. According to a Hizb militant, who was arrested at the border recently in North Kashmir, a clash between the two groups turned ugly after Salahuddin brought in foreign mercenaries into the camp to beat the loyalists of Dar. The militant revealed that the clash had taken place on January 15 forcing the ISI to shift the Dar loyalists back to the Tarbela camp in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir.
PTI |
|
AG’s opinion on oil PSUs given to PM New Delhi, January 21 The AG was asked to give opinion on whether the government needed to take Parliament approval for disinvestment in the HPCL and the BPCL and several points of law had been considered, Mr Shourie said, but declined to say what the opinion given by Mr Sorabjee was.
PTI |
|
|
Pooja Express derailed
New Delhi, January 21 There were no casualties or injuries, he said adding that the cause of the derailment was yet to be ascertained. Additional manpower had been pressed into service and the track cleared for normal traffic after seven hours, the spokesman said, adding that the Pooja Express had since left for Jammu Tawi at 10.05 am.
The Delhi-bound Ahmedabad-Delhi express and Jodhpur-Delhi Mandore Express were earlier halted at the Delhi station following the derailment.
PTI |
|
|
Snake deaths make
people panicky Patna, January 21 Meanwhile, zoologists have issued appeals to the people not to be panicky as the snakes are dying of unprecedented cold. Villages in Bikram subdivision of Patna district and about 26 villages of Vaishali district have reported of snake deaths in large numbers. “Ten big cobras were found around my house in the past five days, all in a dormant state. Though I offered them warm milk and rice flakes, they would not eat”, said Vishnu Mandal of Bithauli village. “This is a sure sign of a big earthquake coming in the next 15 days,” he said, adding that he and his wife were performing tantrik puja to appease Shiva. Special prayers were also reported from many temples all over Vaishali district and the subdivision of Vikram, adjacent to the state capital. According to zoologists, snakes are cold-blooded animals which need external source of heat for keeping warm. Veterinary doctors and zoologists said extreme cold conditions had made the snakes come out of hibernation. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has appealed to the farmers not to kill the snakes. |
|
Row over Buddha’s ashes Patna, January 21 The residents of Vaishaligarh, where the ashes were found, has threatened a stir, seeking to bring back the ashes. Buddha’s ashes are presently kept in Patna Museum. The controversy arose after the Dalai Lama and the 17th Karmapa gathered in the state along with over 200,000 Buddhist pilgrims and foreign tourists for the Kalchakra puja at Bodhgaya that concluded yesterday. Tourism Department officials said there had been demands from Indian Buddhists to keep the ashes of Buddha Mahaboddhi Temple in Bodhgaya. They wanted to keep the ashes for pilgrims in Bodhgaya during the Tibetan fest. The state government, however, ruled out moving away the ashes. “The state government did not receive any proposal to move the ashes from Patna Museum to Bodhgaya during the Kalchakra fest”, state Tourism Minister Ashok Kumar Singh said. However, Buddhists said keeping the ashes in a museum was an insult. |
|
Foreign secy to leave for Geneva New Delhi, January 21 The event assumes importance in view of the fact that India is assuming the presidentship of the forum for the next four weeks. The 66-member CD is the sole negotiating forum on disarmament. |
|
|
Pooja Bhatt to make thrillers New Delhi, January 21 Accompanied by her celebrity father Mahesh Bhatt, Pooja, who interacted with the audience after a special media screening of the film here, said: “The box office success of ‘Jism’ shows that the new mantra to enrapture film-goers is to give them a film that has a good dose of suspense and can boast of good production quality.” Pooja said her production house is at the moment scripting two thrillers, one of which is going to be directed by Amit Saxena, the director of “Jism”, and the other will be directed by her.
PTI |
|
Salman’s plea on vehicle rejected Mumbai, January 21 Magistrate S.Y. Sishode committed the hit-and-run case involving Salman to a Sessions Court for trial. In keeping with a judicial directive, the actor appeared before the court.
PTI |
LOVESICK COP SUSPENDED TWO UP MINISTERS ACQUITTED ALBUM OF MEER TAKI’S POEMS KISHEN KUMAR TURNS HOSTILE |
 |
| 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 | |
Video
x
