 |
Wednesday,
April 16, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
|
Govt ‘in spot’ over ITDC dues PM’s rally in Srinagar on April 18 Bandh against Togadia’s arrest: hundreds detained SP workers go on rampage |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bt cotton has failed: NGO Review fertiliser policy: panel ICF ignoring health norms Move for 6 more
Jan Shatabdis Postpone panchayat poll in Bengal: BJP Basu calls BJP ‘barbaric’ Orissa minister’s resignation drama ends SC ruling on family courts No free
sex here, please Thousands perform puja in Bhojshala MCC ultras kill 9 cops Three dead in hailstorm One killed in communal clash CMO caught accepting bribe
|
|
Govt ‘in spot’ over ITDC dues New Delhi, April 15 A division Bench comprising Ms Justice Usha Mehra and Mr Justice Pradeep Nandrajog also has taken Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL), MTNL and the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) to task for failing to recover over Rs 9 crore arrears of telephone, electricity and water bills from several former and sitting MPs. As government counsel pointed out that there had been a considerable progress in the recovery of ITDC dues, which during 2000-2001 stood at Rs 44.48 crore, the court said the reduction was mainly due to disinvestment in corporation’s several hotels rather than any special efforts by the officials concerned. According to a report placed before the court by the ITDC, the total outstanding dues as on June 30, 2002, against VIPs, political parties and tour operators stood at Rs 35.03 crore. The report also said up to June 30 last year 13 of the 35 hotels, which had to recover the money, had been disinvested. These included Agra Ashok, Airport Ashok, Kolkata, Patliputra Ashok, Patna, Lodhi, Qutab and Ranjit Hotels, New Delhi, Bodhgaya Ashok and Bangalore Ashok. Recoveries of about Rs 11.67 crore had been passed on to the private parties, which had bought these assets in the disinvestment, the report indicated. It said the defaulters among the VIPs included politicians, political parties and organisations related to them, who had availed credit facilities in the ITDC hotels since 1984 and failed to foot the bills. However, the report did not mention the names of the politicians, political parties and their affiliates who had yet to make the payment, but said a decree had been passed against the All India Congress Committee for Rs 7.88 lakh, the Indian Youth Congress (Rs 8.98 lakh and Rs 2.92 lakh in two cases) Mr Raghunath Chandelia (Rs 7.19 lakh) Mr Om Pathak (Rs 13.45 lakh) and Mr Suresh Kalmadi (Rs 4.49 lakh). The report was placed before the court by the government in response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by a farmers’ organisation — Krishak Bharat—which alleged that the authorities had developed a “cold feet” in taking action against defaulters because of the political clout they wielded. The petitioner had also stated that while subsidy to farmers on farm products and fertilisers was being gradually reduced by the government, MPs and politicians were enjoying on public funds and did not bother to pay for the feasting at the ITDC hotels. The NDMC in its reply stated that a balance of Rs 2.17 crore against the current demand was pending for water and electricity bills from MPs of whom 32 had arrears over Rs 25,000. Among the MPs who owed the NDMC more than this amount, included Mr Raghuvansh Prasad Singh (Rs 1.57 lakh), Mr K Yeran Naidu (Rs 95,469) Mr Chandra Shekhar (Rs 6.32 lakh), Mr K Karunakaran (Rs 2.76 lakh), Rama Pilot (Rs 14.47 lakh), Mr Ashok Pradhan (Rs 1.30 lakh), Mr Vilas Mttemwar (Rs 2.28 lakh), Mr Naval Kishor Rai (Rs 1.11 lakh), Mr Sis Ram Ola (Rs 1.68 lakh), Hiphei (Rs 3.97 lakh), Mr D.P.Yadav (Rs 1.79 lakh) and Mr Shibo Soren (Rs 4.98 lakh). The BSNL and MTNL officials told the court that it had become “difficult” for them to realise the phone bills from former and the sitting MPs as any officer who dared to initiate action would be “victimised”. They also stated that some of the cases had been referred to arbitration as the MPs had raised doubts over the bills. |
|
PM’s rally in Srinagar on April 18 New Delhi, April 15 Embarking on a two-day visit to the state on Friday, the Prime Minister would be addressing a rally at Sher-e-Kashmir University grounds and all security measures have been completed for the same, official sources said. Mr Vajpayee would be sharing the dais with the Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammed Sayeed, much to the annoyance of the National Conference. Already some rumblings appear to have started within the National Conference over the decision of Mr Vajpayee to share the stage with a Congress-backed coalition in the state. The Prime Minister is also scheduled to address a public rally at Qazigund where he would be reviewing the work of the prestigious National Highway Development project. Mr Vajpayee’s public meetings come 16 years after the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had addressed a public meeting in the Kashmir valley in 1987. Ironically, all Prime Minister’s and important political leaders had shied away from addressing any public meeting in the state till last year when the Congress President and Leader of Opposition Ms Sonia Gandhi, addressed an election rally in the Srinagar city. Among other engagements, the Prime Minister would be laying a foundation stone for the expansion of Srinagar Airport which would be completed at a cost of Rs 45 crore. He would also be attending a convocation of Kashmir University. The Prime Minister is likely to lay the foundation stone for the first railway station in the Kashmir valley. The Railway Ministry had given a time table to complete the prestigious project in the state by 2007 and the Union Minister Mr Nitish Kumar, had also visited the valley on February 3 and distributed cheques to the people from whom land had been acquired to lay railway lines. During the visit, Mr Vajpayee is also scheduled to chair a meeting of the Unified Headquarters to take stock of the militancy in the state. The state government, besides other things, is expected to apprise the Prime Minister about the power facility in the state and also seek a considerable assistance from the Centre for various Hydel power projects. |
|
Bandh against Togadia’s arrest: hundreds detained
Jaipur, April 15 The bandh passed off peacefully. The police said a few hundred VHP, Bajrang Dal, BJP and Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP) leaders and workers were detained for violating prohibitory orders in different cities. VHP state unit President Jagannath Gupta, state BJP chief spokesman Kalicharan Sarraf, treasurer Mohandas Agarwal, Member of Parliament Girdhari Lal Bhargav, MLAs Bhawarlal Sharma, Jaswant Gurjar and Shivram Kushwaha were prominent among those detained by the police during the day. Mr Madan Dilawar, MLA from Atroo, was arrested in Baran for carrying the banned dagger-shaped trident. He was remanded in judicial custody, Inspector-General of Police (Law and Order) A.K. Jain said. “The bandh was by and large peaceful. No major case of damage to public property, assault or intimidation occurred,” he said. A VHP spokesman claimed that 1,200-1400 of its cadre and an equal number of members of supporting organisations had been detained by the police across the state. “It was like the Emergency,” said BJP Vice-President Onkar Singh Lakhawat. Prohibitory orders had been clamped in more than 10 towns of Rajasthan in the wake of the bandh call. Section 144 of the CrPC was promulgated in the Ajmer district and in all municipal towns of Bhilwara district. Inspector-General of Police (Intelligence) M.K. Devrajan said 88 persons had been detained as a precautionary measure in Ajmer, Nagaur, Tonk and Bhilwara towns yesterday. Reports said the bandh was successful in Ajmer, Bhilwara, Barmer, Jhalawar and Kota towns. All markets in Ajmer, where Mr Togadia is lodged in jail, remained closed. Over 20 persons were rounded up for violating prohibitory orders in the town. Three persons were also arrested under the Prevention of Public Property Act for throwing stones at a roadways bus, Mr Devrajan said. In Jaipur, however, most shops and business establishments were open. Schools and government offices were closed on the occasion of Mahaveer Jayanti. Traffic was normal on the roads and city buses were plying as usual.
UNI |
|
|
VHP holds bandh in Rajgangpur Rourkela, April 15 Most shops and business establishments in the town, 50 km from here, continued to pull up their shutters for the fourth day today as tension prevailed in the area. No untoward incident, however, has been reported so far. Prohibitory orders under section 144, CrPC, continued to be in force in the town, though it was relaxed for two hours on
Ramnavami. PTI |
|
|
SP workers go on rampage Lucknow, April 15 Over 3,000 SP workers have been arrested all over the state, said a spokesman at the DGP office here today. He said over four jeeps had been torched and government properties had been damaged in Jhansi. The state SP president, Mr Ram Saran Das, said thousands of workers were arrested and the police used force to quell the peaceful demonstration of party workers in Jhansi and Sant Kabir Nagar. Mr Das said hundreds of his party workers were injured in the lathi charge. “The party workers had burnt the effigy of the Chief Minister demanding that false charges against Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav and other senior party leaders, including national General Secretary Amar Singh should be withdrawn,” he said. She also declared that her government had registered 136 FIRs in 40 districts against Mr Yadav for allegedly mis-using CM’s discretionary fund. She also announced that an enquiry had been instituted against senior Congress leader Motilal Vora for distributing Rs 18 crore from his discretionary fund to different organisations during his stint as the Governor of the state. In the state capital, SP workers staged a demonstration outside the SP office on the Vikramaditya Marg. They burnt the effigy of the Chief Minister, said Mr Faquir Siddiqui, city president of the party. |
|
|
Bt cotton has failed: NGO New Delhi, April 15 Seeking government’s intervention in the matter, Gene Campaign, an NGO active in the field of environment, demanded that Monsanto, the company whose Bt cotton varieties were approved in March, 2002, should pay compensation to the farmers who suffered losses. At least 60 per cent of Bt farmers were unable to recover their costs and actually were in the red to the tune of Rs 80 per acre,” Dr Suman Sahai from Gene Campaign claimed, while releasing field data involving 100 farmers from 16 villages in Warangal in Andhra Pradesh and Yavatmal in Maharashtra. Farmers sprayed same amount of pesticides on Bt crop as on non-Bt crop, she said adding that “the data shows that Bt cotton varieties are not resistant to the bollworm and there was no great saving in terms of pesticide spray. Bt cotton plant is weak with small boll size, shorter fibre length and less yield.” She claimed that cotton traders were not lifting Bt cotton and were paying better price for non-Bt cotton harvest. Dr Sahai said “in blatant violation of the rules for the regulation of GM organisms under the Environmental Protection Act, 1989, GM crop cultivation had been sanctioned and allowed to continue in states even though the mandated regulatory authorities have not been set up”. Besides, the varieties which were released are known non-performers, she said and added that 98 per cent of farmers
surveyed said they would not grow Bt-cotton in the next season. PTI |
|
Review fertiliser policy: panel New Delhi, April 15 “A regular system should be established through which the availability of urea and other fertilisers at affordable prices across the country can be assured,” said the committee headed by Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav. The report, presented in Parliament, observed that the committee did not find anything tangible done by the government for preparing the industry to face the challenge of global competition. The committee found that under the new dispensation, the Department of Fertilisers had restricted the Essential Commodities Act allocation cover up to 75 per cent for kharif (2003) and 50 per cent for rabi (2004) and complete decontrol thereafter. |
|
|
ICF ignoring health norms Chennai, April 15 Workers in the Shell division of the factory are exposed to hazardous conditions as they work on conventional coaches in two different shifts without welding shields, gloves, goggles or shoes. The decision makers in the ICF are well aware of the health risks involved, but give implausible explanations to counter criticism about non-adherence to minimum safety standards. The Chief Workshop Engineer in the Shell division, Mr K. Swaminathan, tried hard to convince visiting
mediapersons from the national Capital that the workers were a little causal about using the safety equipment as it was lunch time. “It is not supposed to be allowed,” he said while agreeing that exposure to such hazardous conditions could lead to visual impairment. The media team came across four welders and their assistants who did not have access to full welding equipment. These included a worker with 38 years of service in the ICF. Asked why he was wearing slippers, he said the pair of shoes given to him were not of his size and he was awaiting the right sized pair. Another workman was seen shielding his eyes with his hand in the absence of a welding shield. The Chief Workshop Engineer said in a reassuring tone, “We are covered under the Factories Act. You have not seen a large cross-section of people. You should see the factory in full working condition. We take action against supervisors if the workers get into some kind of unsafe situation. Fitters, who assist welders, sometimes tend to shield their faces with their hands just as drivers of two-wheelers avoid wearing
helmets. The Workers are tempted to take short-cuts.” Mr Swaminathan told TNS that the ICF needed about 10,000 pairs of shoes every year. “The shoes are given to the workers in the beginning of summer. This year, we are late and this has led to resentment among staff. We ordered a large number of shoes but the supply did not match prescribed quality standard. So, we are exploring alternatives. We go through the process of open tenders. The next tender has already been opened and samples have been sent to the Central Leather Research Institute Laboratory in Chennai for approval.” |
|
Move for 6 more
Jan Shatabdis Chennai, April 15 The Railway Board is understood to have indicated to the
ICF,Chennai, to make coaches for six more Jan Shatabdis- a grand ambition which does not find any expression in the Railway Minister’s passenger friendly Budget speech for 2003-’04. Sources in ICF are confident that their experience of making the first rake for Jan Shatabdi in a record time of 45 days will enable them meet new challenges. The ICF has supplied 16 Jan Shatabdi rakes of nine coaches each to the Railways since February 12 when the decision to introduce 16 Jan Shatabdi trains was first conveyed to them. The ICF claims an installed capacity for 1000 coaches and has so far contributed 32,790 coaches to the Railways. It has also exported 425 coaches and 359 bogies. Recent welcome initiatives taken by the design department of the factory include introduction of disaster management features as emergency exit through roof in the event of accident, modfications to ensure injury free interiors. And provision of centre buffer couplers to prevent coaches climbing one over the other in the event of accident. |
|
|
Postpone panchayat poll in Bengal: BJP Kolkata, April 15 A memorandum submitted to the Governor said if the poll could not be entirely put off, the state Election Commission be directed to extend the last date of filing nominations, which expires tomorrow, by three to four days, and the candidates be given security to submit their papers. “Now that filing of nominations have become difficult in BDO offices, arrangements can be made to submit them at SDO offices for reasons of security,” state BJP general secretary Rahul Sinha told newsmen later. The Governor, he said, assured the delegation of looking into their demands. The memorandum alleged that the police had become partisan in allowing the CPM to commit atrocities on Trinamool and BJP candidates to prevent them from filing their nominations. BJP and Trinamool Congress candidates were forcibly prevented from filing their nominations in 33 blocks in Hooghly, Bankura and East and West Midnapore districts where over 20,000 seats in the three-tier panchayat system were likely to be won uncontested by the Marxists, Mr Sinha said. The delegation comprised state BJP president Tathagata Roy, general secretaries Rahul Sinha and Badal Bhattacharya, as also the Trinamool all-India general secretary Mukul Roy and state leader Partha Chatterjee.
PTI |
|
Basu calls BJP ‘barbaric’ New Delhi, April 15 Taking exception to Human Resource Development Minister Murli Manohar Joshi’s recent remarks in Kolkata against the CPM, Mr Basu called the BJP as “barbaric”. “His party and the RSS are the biggest enemies of the nation. If they are not removed from power, the nation will be in peril,” the former Chief Minister told newspersons when asked to comment on Mr Joshi’s accusations against the CPM and the ruling Left Front in West Bengal. Mr Basu, who is here to attend a two-day meeting of the party’s Polit Bureau, said though Dr Joshi was an educated person, “He and his party are perpetrating barbarism and are uncivilised. People should understand this.” Dr Joshi had yesterday accused the Left Front government of unleashing “state-sponsored terrorism”. Polit Bureau member Anil Biswas rejected Mr Joshi’s demand for the postponement of the May 11 panchayat poll, saying that the “process has already begun and it will go as scheduled”. |
|
|
Orissa minister’s resignation drama ends Bhubaneswar, April 15 “As you see, K.V. Singh Deo, my Cabinet colleague, remains very much in my Cabinet. I told him we will sit down together and settle any grievance he has,” Mr Patnaik told reporters at his residence, on his return here from Delhi this afternoon. K.V. Singh Deo, who had gone to Delhi from his constituency, Patnagarh, after announcing his resignation and returned along with Mr Patnaik today, was also present with the Chief Minister. “I am happy that the episode has come to an end,” Mr Patnaik said adding that the issues raised by the Industries Minister would be sorted out in consultation with other ministers and officials at the district level.
PTI |
|
SC ruling on family courts New Delhi, April 15 A three-judge Bench comprising Chief Justice Mr V.N. Khare, Mr Justice S.B. Sinha and Mr Justice A.R. Lakshmanan said the jurisdiction of the family court could extend in relation to the property of both spouses, or either of them. “It is now a well-settled principle of law that the jurisdiction of a court created especially for the resolution of disputes of a certain nature should be construed liberally,” the apex court ruled, adding that any restricted application of the Family Court Act would “frustrate” the very object for which these courts were set up. |
|
|
No free sex here, please
Koovaagam (Tamil Nadu), April 15 Every year thousands of transexuals and transgenders visit the Lord Aravaanan temple here in the Tamil month of ‘’chitirai.’’ As per a legend, the Aravaanis are eligible to marry only Lord Aravaanan and thereafter free to indulge in sex with anyone but only for one night. The very next day they attain symbolic widowhood by breaking their bangles and ‘mangalsutra.’ Ever since the word spread about this strange ceremony, men from far and near have been thronging Koovagam, a remote village, 25 km from Villupuram. ‘’This is not true and there is no sex orgy happening here. We do not indulge in sex with just anyone after the ceremony,’’ Tamil Nadu Aravaani Association (TNAA) president Asha Bharathi told UNI. The disinformation had resulted in men becoming a nuisance and harassing their community, she lamented, explaining that it was only to ward off such harassment that some of them resorted to violent behaviour. Security arrangements were stepped up in Villupuram town, where the visiting Aravaani population had lodged in six hotels.
UNI |
|
|
Thousands perform puja in Bhojshala
Dhar (Madhya Pradesh), April 15 Eyewitnesses said nearly 2500 persons participated in the religious ceremony. Among them was the chairperson of the Indore Municipal Corporation, Mr Kailash Sharma. Mr Sharma later told newspersons that “political parties have unnecessarily blown this issue out of proportion.’’ He also urged the administration to
make efforts to bring the idol of Goddess Saraswati back from London.
UNI |
|
|
MCC ultras kill 9 cops Nawada (Bihar), April 15 Official sources said the extremists also opened fire on the police squad patrolling on the occasion of the “Satuani” fair, held every year at Kakolat, a famous religious and tourist spot in the district. Officer-in-charge of Govindpur police station Shailesh Kumar Ram was killed in the blast. The two injured policemen were rushed to Nawada government hospital in a serious condition. Police Superintendent Bachhu Singh Meena is camping at the spot with reinforcement.
UNI |
|
Three dead in hailstorm Sheohar (Bihar), April 15 A man and a woman were killed when their houses collapsed in the worst-affected Mathurapur village while another woman died in a similar incident at Tajpur village of the district, District Magistrate Navin Kumar Sinha said. AIZWAL: Thirty persons were injured and 35 houses were destroyed by a storm at West Phaileng village in Mizoram’s north-western district of Mamit, officials said here today. Two injured persons, whose condition is stated to be serious, were brought to the Aizwal Civil Hospital.
PTI |
|
One killed in communal clash Daltonganj (Jharkhand), April 15 Police sources said angry over the arson, a group of people, indulged in vandalism which led to clashes between people of the two communities. The district administration promulgated prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the
CrPC. Additional District Magistrate (Law and Order), Jaikrishna Prasad said indefinite curfew was clamped in the area around 5.30 pm as tension still prevailed.
PTI |
|
|
CMO caught accepting bribe Kota, April 15 Aggrawal had demanded the bribe from Abdul Ansari for not inspecting his clinic, SP Alok Vashist said here.
UNI |
 |
| Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir | Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs | Nation | Editorial | | Business | Sport | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh Tribune | Ludhiana Tribune 50 years of Independence | Tercentenary Celebrations | | 123 Years of Trust | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
Videos
