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September 14, 2003, Chandigarh, India
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BLAME GAME
IS ON Noida, September 13 The fear of spread of dengue had been expressed in Noida when the disease was detected in neighbouring Delhi. Four dengue patients have been confirmed in Noida for the past three weeks, three of them having come to light 14 days ago. Max Hospital in Sector-19 has confirmed that Pankaj of Sector-29 and Rahul of Sector-37 are suffering from dengue. Another two patients Sridevi Jadaun and Uma of Sector-12 have also been confirmed as victims of dengue by Noida Medicare Centre in Sector-30. According to Dr Ashok Mishra, the newly appointed district contagious diseases officer, Noida administration had been informed about it. The disease can be controlled through spray or insecticides for which the Noida administration is responsible. Besides, the authority should spray malathion within 100 metres as also inside the houses of the patients. In all, 11 dengue cases have been confirmed in Noida this year, who had been admitted to Delhi hospitals. Besides, many more people are suspected to be suffering from the disease but could not be accounted for, according to officials. The blood samples are normally sent to the National Institute of Communicable Diseases New Delhi for investigation. Dengue fever, according to doctors, is a serious disease which is spread by a particular mosquito and flourishes from July to November. The dengue mosquito which bites during daytime multiplies very fast in the body. It causes red spots on the face of the patients and bleeding can start from mouth, nose, and in scrota and urine. These mosquitoes can spread the disease within 100 metre area and fever has a gestation period of two to seven days. There is pain in heads, eyes, body, joints which is accompanied by body rashes. Dengue, a communicable disease, spreads from one man to another. It can be avoided. Initially, paracetamol tablets should be given to the patient. Dengue sufferers should be treated in separate wards. |
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With drive against pumps, industry feels the pinch Gurgaon, September 13 The reason for the discomfort among the industrialists is their supply of water getting affected on account of the administration’s singular focus against the private suppliers of water. A large number of industries along National Highway 8 and certain villages like Khandsa, Begumpur Khataula, Mohammadpur, Jharsa etc used to buy water from commercial tankers run by private persons. The reason for the units banking upon the private suppliers for water meant for drinking and industrial production is the availability of brackish water in these areas. On account of a directive from the Central Ground Water Authority, which has put the majority of areas in Gurgaon and Faridabad districts in the “danger zone” in the face of the fast-depleting underground water table, the administration here has launched a campaign against those submersible pumps which have not been registered with it. For the moment, the administration has focused on private parties who are indulging in commercial activities by selling water after tapping it from the ground source. A delegation of industrialists met the Deputy Commissioner, Gurgaon, and apprised him of the difficulties faced by the units on account of the order banning tubewells in some of the areas and also sealing the pumps. However, the administration has taken a firm view and will not hold itself back from taking action against the commercial tanks and their owners. The administration’s view is that it was unpardonable on the part of the private parties indulging in commerce and business in the face of indiscriminate exploitation of water base. |
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Faridabad roads in disrepair Faridabad, September 13 The authorities had recently announced that Rs 15 lakh would be spent on filling up the craters on the roads. The work of carpeting had begun but it was noticed that waste building material and earth had been used to fill damaged areas in many parts of the town, leading to no relief to the commuters. Saurabh Duggal, a student residing in Sector 16-A, said, “The earth (soil) used in filling up the potholes had come out and was leading to severe dust pollution. He said it was sheer nonsense to use earth to repair metalled roads. He said he had not come across any patch which was properly filled up with stones and gravel. He claimed the condition of roads in posh sectors had been very poor. Mr Swaraj Singh of Sector 14 said no repair work had been taken so far in the locality where he resided. He said he was apprehensive of the announced funds being properly used. He claimed he had been avoiding using his car these days due to deep craters on all roads. Mr Rajkumar, a resident of Sector 15-A, has demanded that the repair work must be taken up immediately. He said action should be taken against the contractors and officials for using substandard material in the construction of roads. |
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Humanoid robot’s tryst with children New Delhi, September 13 In a unique, high interest and involving event at the National Science Centre, ASIMO (advanced step in innovative mobility) showcased its skills to hundreds of schoolchildren. At the event, it felicitated the winners of the ASIMO Science Olympiad, an inter-school science model-making and quiz competition being in running for the past two months. A total of 120 teams from 60 schools all across Delhi participated in the competition. The participants for the model-making competition were judged by a panel of judges comprising Mr S Mukherjee, Professor of Robotics from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi; Dr Prasada Raju, Advisor Department of Science and Technology; and Mr Ramchandran, Science Journalist, The Hindu. The theme for the model-making competition was robotics, environment, energy conservation and mobility. Each participating team displayed their work of art and creative edge. The quiz saw more than 60 schools battling it out over two days. The last day was a mega final contested among six teams. It was the first time that ASIMO has featured in such a large-scale competition where he also actively participated and interacted with the children. The children immediately developed a bond with ASIMO and enjoyed the technology creation. The winning school team of the mega final won a free trip to Thailand, the first runner-up team was awarded a cash prize of Rs 15,000, and the second runner-up was awarded a cash prize of Rs 10,000. All the winning teams were given an ASIMO trophy, a blazer and a certificate, which was personally handed over by ASIMO. Also, the winning team’s school received a grand prize of Rs 1 lakh. Present on the occasion, Mr Brijmohan Lall, Chairman, Hero Honda Motors Ltd. said, “We always encourage and look to identify new and budding talents. There is no dearth of these bright children with big dreams who would represent our country tomorrow. ASIMO too is a representation of tomorrow, and is result of Honda’s ‘Power of Dreams’. One who has dreams must chase it whole-heartedly, only then can those dreams turn into realities.” This mega event began with an ASIMO Intra School Quiz, which began in July and carried on till the last week of August. Over 150 schools all across Delhi were involved and an ASIMO team went over to each of these schools and conducted the intra-school quiz. The winners of this competition were given passes to participate in the ASIMO Science Olympiad. ASIMO has been created after 14 years of intensive research and study by a dedicated team of specialists in the field of robotics. Today, ASIMO can walk, climb stairs, recognise people and even talk to people. Envisioned to be a helper to the people, ASIMO’s people-friendly size of 4 feet tall (120 centimeters) and 115 pounds (52 kg) weight makes it the perfect size for helping around the house, especially for the persons confined to bed or wheelchair. ASIMO’s size has been chosen to allow it to operate freely in the human living space and make it people-friendly. ASIMO also has two arms and hands enabling him to perform tasks such as switching lights on and off, move objects, open and close doors. |
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NCR WATCH New Delhi, September 13 However, the juvenile delinquency showed an overall stupendous rise under all crime heads except dowry deaths. This, according to the officials, was due to the inclusion of the juvenile boys of 16-18 years from 2001. These figures also showed that the boys under the age group are capable of committing criminal activities. This has been revealed in the publication, ‘Crime In India 2001’, prepared by the National Crime Records Bureau and released by Union Home Secretary N Gopalaswami on September 12. Even as the crime rate per one lakh population in 2001 showed a decrease of about 11 points as compared to 183.2 in 1998, there has been a continual decline in the conviction rate for the last four decades from 64.8 in 1961 to 40.8 in 2001. The All India crime rate was 1.4 million per 100,000 of population. During 2001, the police arrested a total number of 26,71,540 persons under various provisions of IPC as against 26,75,923 persons in 2000. Thus, the number of total persons arrested had marginally decreased by two per cent during 2001. There were a total of 2,30,930 cases of violent crimes reported in 2001 as against 2,38,381 cases in 2000. During 2001, 781 murders in Haryana, 738 in Punjab, 119 in Himachal Pradesh, 15 in Chandigarh and 547 were reported in Delhi. It was also observed that the Crimes Against Women reported an increase of 1.7 per cent in 2001 as against 2000 and over 24.2 per cent over 1996. As many as 3,393 in Haryana, 890 in Himachal Pradesh, 150 in Chandigarh, 2,361 in Punjab and 2,291 cases of crime against women were reported in 2001. Also in 2001, 16,509 cases of juvenile crimes were reported as against 9,267 in 2000, showing an overall increase of 78.1 per cent. From 2001, the NCRB had also included nine cities like Agra, Meerut, Faridabad, Jabalpur, Nashik, Rajkot, Vijayawada, Allahabad and
Amritsar under the mega cities category. For easy collection of crime data from next year, Mr Gopalaswami said that poll-net would be established. With the advent of poll-net, every district in the states will be linked to a central control room which in turn would be linked with the headquarters in the state capital, and later to Delhi. |
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Two arrested for sale of spurious drugs New Delhi, September 13 The Economic Offences Wing of the Delhi Police arrested Kamal Sharma, a resident of Mansarovar Park in trans-Yamuna here, while he was supplying spurious anti-inflammatory and anti-pyretic drugs purported to have been manufactured by a reputed company to a decoy customer, police said. Thereafter on the basis of his disclosure during interrogation, a raid was conducted at a house in Meerut where P.K. Gupta who allegedly supplied the medicines to him was arrested. A huge quantity of spurious drugs purported to have been made by a reputed company having its production units in Haryana and Punjab was recovered from them. |
Pulse polio drive yet to make its mark in rural areas Faridabad, September 13 No doubt, the religious and social backwardness of the people are a barrier in the total eradication of the disease, the inability to the officials to penetrate the interior region is a major hurdle. The authorities, perhaps, have no system to counter-check whether the workers are genuinely reaching out to the masses. According to reports, although the volunteers have been ‘directed to knock at each house’, they often complete the formality by just putting a sign on the houses and hardly bother to inquire from the household members. Moreover, experts feel that the present publicity campaign was more urban-oriented and targeted at the educated masses, with the result that it has failed to penetrate the affected rural areas. According to K L Gera, a social activist, putting up big advertisements and appeals in the English language and other dailies are, perhaps, of no use, as the polio problem is mainly found in the rural areas among the poor and illiterate strata. He said the reach of the print media is limited to the urban areas, as majority of the people in the villages hardly read newspapers. Instead of wasting resources in such unproductive campaign, he said, the authorities should involve various NGOs and volunteers in rural areas on a large-scale. He said due to the lack of awareness, education and shortage of medical and health facilities, the people in the rural areas are at the mercy of the ‘quacks’ operating in their neighbourhood. He said the pulse polio campaign should not be limited to certain period in the year, but should be made a regular activity throughout the year. |
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SPECIAL FOCUS
ON REWARI Rewari, September 13 Giving details in this regard, the Deputy Commissioner, Ms Neerja Shekhar, informed that 1.33 lakh kids in the age group of 0-5 years would be given polio drops throughout the district under the programme. She said the Health Department had set up as many as 580 centres for this purpose. Out of this, 485 centres would function in rural areas while 75 others would be functional in urban areas of the district. Besides, 20 mobile teams would also administer polio drops to children at bus stands, railway stations, brick kilns and slum dwellings besidesfar-flung hamlets. She further informed 2,280 employees and workers comprising 340 health workers and 700 teachers had been deployed to conduct this anti-polio drive on Sunday (September 14). Besides, 115 officials had been drawn from various departments who would act as supervisors during the entire campaign, she added. She also urged the officers and the voluntary organisations to extend their full co-operation in making the programme a complete success.
Rural water supply schemes The state government has made an allocation of Rs 1.86 crore which will be spent in the implementation of 16 rural water supply schemes in the district during the current financial year, according to the state Health Minister, Dr M. L. Ranga. Dr Ranga explained that adequate supply of clean drinking water would be made available to residents of 85 villages of the district through these 16 projects out of which six projects meant for the residents of 43 villages would be implemented at a cost of Rs 57 lakh under the low-cost accelerated rural water supply programme while five other projects covering 28 villages would be constructed at a cost of Rs 27 lakh under the drought development programme. Besides, four other schemes meant for the residents of four different villages would be implemented at a cost of Rs 13.50 lakh under the additional central assistance project while a Rs 88.76-lakh NABARD-sponsored project would cover 10 other villages of the district, he added. Dr Ranga went on to say that out of 404 villages of the district canal-based water supply schemes were working in 172 villages while the residents of the remaining 232 villages had been getting potable water through tubewell operated water supply schemes. He also informed residents of as many as 80 villages of the district were already in receipt of 55.70 litres of potable water per capita while work on Rs 5.92 crore drinking water augmentation projects in 35 other villages was in progress.
Award for inter-caste marriage Sudhir Kumar Yadav and his spouse Jinder Kaur are the first couple of Rewari district to have bagged the incentive award of Rs 25,000 under the Inter-Caste Marriage Incentive Project. It is noteworthy Sudhir Yadav, son of Surender Singh Yadav, who is an Ahir by caste, resident of Bhalki village of Kosli tehsil of Rewari district, recently married Jinder Kaur, daughter of Balwinder Singh, who belongs to the Ramdasia community which falls under the Scheduled Castes as notified by the Government of India and is a resident of Gurdaspur city of Punjab. The couple was given a cash incentive of Rs 10,000 along with a fixed deposit draft of Rs 15,000 by the Deputy Commissioner, Ms Neerja Shekhar, here recently. The DC explained that if any boy or girl belonging to the Scheduled Caste married a person from the non-Scheduled Caste, he/she was entitled to receive an incentive award of Rs 25,000 under the Inter-Caste Marriage Incentive Project which aimed at assuaging casteist sentimentalism. She also said the beneficiary under this scheme should be a permanent resident of Haryana. The incentive award was given on behalf of the State Welfare Department, she added.
Man impersonating SHO held Following a tip-off, a police party headed by Hoshiar Singh, Sub-Inspector of the Dharuhera police station, made a surprise check on the Delhi-Jaipur highway near the Sahibi Barrage on Wednesday and succeeded in arresting six persons whose leader allegedly was impersonating as the Station House Officer of Dharuhera and who were thus engaged in extortion from a truck driver after checking his papers. The persons nabbed by the police include Hari Om Yadav of Jadra village of Rewari district, Parmanand Yadav of Khushpura village (Rewari district), Krishan Kumar of Khandora village (Rewari district), Satish Jogi and Jagmohan Yadav of Khanpur village of the Mundawar police station of Rajasthan and Rajpal Yadav of Sidhrawali village of Gurgaon district. They have been remanded in judicial custody by a local court. The police, who seized their car (DL 6C B 1302), have registered a case on charges of impersonation, wrongful restraint and intimidation to commit extortion under Sections 170, 341, 385 of the IPC against them. It is stated that the truck, which was going from Delhi to Jaipur, was intercepted by the miscreants at a somewhat lonely spot on the barrage and when they were engaged in their extortion bid the police party happened to arrive at the spot. |
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Wheat rotting due to storage problem Sonepat, September 13 According to a report, the government is suffered huge financial losses, as the bulk of the wheat lying in the open has reportedly been damaged by the monsoon rains. Unfortunately, the authorities of the procurement agencies are hardly bothered about the damage being caused to the wheat by the rains and other adverse weather conditions. They officials have failed to visit the mandis and godowns to take stock of the situation and the extent of loss suffered to the procured wheat. Leaders of the Congress and the Haryana Vikas Party have urged the state government to order a high-level probe into the public complaints about the damage of wheat stocks procured by the official procurement agencies and still lying in the open. They have also demanded action against the officials responsible for losses caused to the procured wheat. They have urged the state government to take immediate steps for the lifting of the wheat stocks and stocking it in the covered godowns without any further delay. Meanwhile, non-supply of rationed commodities, particularly levy sugar and kerosene oil to a large number of families living below the poverty line (BPL) by certain depot-holders has caused widespread resentment among the holders of yellow and other ration cards. Even though the Public Distribution System (PDS) may have been devised for the benefit of poor people, it remains a pipe dream for them despite government claims to the contrary. Though the government has fixed the monthly quota at the subsidised rates, their non-availability to the targeted group has caused much resentment among the people. It is alleged that the PDS outlet owners have been diverting supplies to the black market in connivance with officials and inspectorate staff of the Food and Supplies Department.
Man injured Mr Karamvir, an employee of the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN), sustained serious burn injuries when he came into contact with a live wire while removing the fault in the electricity lines in a factory near Murthal village, about 8 km from here yesterday. According to a report, the injured employee was rushed to the local civil hospital where he was stated to be out of danger. The police are still investigating the case.
Cash, TV set
robbed Thieves are reported to have broken the shutters of a shop in Patel Nagar here last night and decamped with Rs 16,000, a coloured TV set and other goods worth about Rs 5,000 from it. According to a report, the shopkeeper has lodged an FIR with the Civil Lines Police Station in this connection.
CM’s visit The Haryana Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, is visiting Sonepat on September 15. According to a report, Mr Chautala will address a party worker’s meeting in the municipal park at 11 am. Mr Chautala will also visit Panipat on the same day. |
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Bitta exhorts Scouts, Guides to build bridge of harmony New Delhi, September 13 Speaking on the occasion, Mr M.S. Bitta lauded the efforts of the Scouts and Guides and urged them to participate in the process of nation building. He said their services could be utilised in promoting awareness among the people against various social evils, particularly terrorism. Mr Bitta went on to add that Scouts and Guides could act as channels to intensify the efforts to promote peace and harmony among the diverse communities belonging to different regions and cultures. He also urged the central government to make laws for compulsory training similar to that of the Army at the school and college levels so that during times of exigencies like a war the services of the youngsters could be utilised. He also administered the oath to fight against global terrorism to the Scouts and Guides. |
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SEARCH WITHIN In September, the Jains observe Kshamavani Divas (forgiveness day). This annual feature in their religious observances should interest men of other faiths as well because a forgiving spirit is an important element in maintaining all human relationships. And rightly, all scriptures contain exhortations to followers to develop a spirit of forgiveness and tolerance towards all fellow beings. On Kshamavani Divas, members of the Jain community seek each other’s pardon for wrongs or hurts and make restitution wherever possible. You will find them even inserting advertisements in the newspapers announcing their regrets over their “thoughts, words or deeds” that might have harmed others knowingly and unknowingly. Needless to say, this is a healthy exercise for building up a community of peace. Peace and reconciliation in families, communities and even among nations will be possible only when parties involved in a conflict of interests are willing to accommodate, forgive and accept one another. It is impossible to avoid conflicts and what is needed is a spirit of forgiveness that arises out of an awareness of the frailty of human nature. The strains implied in a wife-husband relationship or that of parents and children are part of common knowledge. Man by nature is self-righteous and is always ready to shift blame on the other for any sin, error or misdeed. It is when a man recognises the need for forgiveness in his own life, he becomes ready to forgive another who has offended or hurt him. “There is not a just man upon the earth, that doeth good and sinneth not,” declares the wisest of men, King Solomon, author of Ecclesiastics. (verses: 7:20) But it does not need much wisdom, but only humility, to acknowledge that at every step of the way, we are bound to step on somebody’s toe, by our acts of commission and omission. The power of forgiveness to heal our own hurts and the hurts that we inflict on others can not be exaggerated. Forgiveness, it is said, saves the expense of anger, the cost of hatred and the waste of spirits. Modern researches show that man pays a high price for psychosomatic illnesses caused by harbouring of resentments and bitterness. One the poison is removed from the system; they seem to get well in a miraculous way—a clear indication that forgiveness is a necessary medicine for mental health. A question may be asked as to how far a wrong doer can be forgiven. In fact, such a question was put to Jesus by one of His disciples, Peter. “Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times? ’’ Sharp came the reply: “I say not unto thee, until seven times: but until seventy times seven.’’(Matthew 18:21,22) In fact “forgiveness’’ occupies a central place in the Christian faith. Of Christ, St Paul proclaimed in the Gospel: “Through this Man is preached unto you, the forgiveness of sins, and Him all that believe are justified from all things.’’ Forgiveness is necessary to reconcile man with God and this is what Christ achieved on the Cross. He has removed every barrier between us and God the Father, taken every obstacle out of the way and made a road by which even the vilest sinner may return. The Jews observe every year a festival called “Yom Kippur’’ which is the culmination of 10 days of penitence, a form of moral accounting beginning with New Year Day. Such introspection and weighing of our habits, tendencies and manner of our living should be a welcome spiritual exercise. We scrutinise our record of the past, and “ask the help of the Divine within us and above us to correct the flaws in the texture of our soul, “as we lay on His altar the offering of remorse for the past and we determine to achieve amendment in the future. Frequent self-examination with a view to getting right with God and man is an essential component in most religious philosophies. Rabbi Ezeikal Malekar of the Jewish synagogue in Delhi restates the Jewish teaching that the Day of Atonement does not atone for offences committed by man against his fellow man until he has made direct personal atonement and redress to the one he has offended. Likewise, no one can be absolved from any obligation towards another except by action of the one to whom the obligation is due. M P K Kutty |
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Maken dispels fear of transportation problem New Delhi, September 13 The Transport Minister said the department had made internal arrangements and all vehicles would be fitted with the device, adding Monday was the next date for hearing in the case and the court had not given any deadline for compliance of the order. Asked about the difficulty in sourcing speed governors, Mr Maken said that only one company, Siemens, makes the device, and it has a limited manufacturing capacity. “They cannot make more than 15 or 20 units per day, which makes it difficult to fit the equipment on the large fleet of buses plying on the streets in the national Capital.” Four other companies have applied to Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), Pune, for licence to make speed governors, but have not received the approval as yet, he said. |
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DELHI DIGEST New Delhi, September 13 They said the minorities were not safe under his regime and had lost faith in him. Criticising the Bharatiya Janata Party, they said despite the Apex court passing strictures against the Modi government, it was coming to its rescue. Raising slogans, the demonstrators demanded that all those responsible for the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the Gujarat violence should also be brought to book. They said their movement would grow stronger if the government did not pay heed to their demands. The Supreme Court had asked Mr Modi to quit yesterday, if his government was unable to prosecute the offenders in the Best Bakery case.
Robbers nabbed The Railway police nabbed two desperate robbers yesterday and recovered Rs 32,000, jewellery, three wristwatches, suit cases and transistors from their possession. The suspects were identified as Satish Kumar alias Chhotu and Mohammad Irfan. They were involved in a bank-related robbery involving Rs 1 lakh and in a loot case of an Army Havildar. The railway police had constituted a special team to work out these cases. The Havildar noticed the robbers on platform number seven and subsequently, informed the police, who arrested them.
Unidentified sadhu killed A 55-year old sadhu was crushed to death by an unidentified truck on the Ring Road near ISBT last night. The victim has not been identified by the police. A case of causing death due to rash and negligent driving has been registered, the police said. |
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NCR BRIEFS Faridabad, September 13 Youth Crushed A motorcycle-borne youth was killed in road mishap in the NIT area here this morning. The deceased, identified as Sumit Gera (20), was riding a motorcycle when he was crushed by a school bus on the B K- Hardwar Road, near MCF Auditorium. A case has been booked against the bus driver.
Wood smugglers held Sonepat : With the arrest of four persons, the Forest Department officials have busted a gang of thieves and smugglers engaged in illegal felling of trees in this region. According to a report, the apprehended persons were identified as Vinod, Suresh, Pardeep and Babloo, all residents of Kakroi village. They were caught after a hot chase by the guards of the Forest Department. A tractor-trolley loaded with stolen wood worth several thousands of rupees was also seized from them. Giving the details of the illegal felling of trees, a spokesman of the Forest Department told mediapersons here today that an official received a tip-off about the illegal felling of trees along the Pai distributary by the smugglers. Thereupon, a group of officials swung into action and rushed to the site. However, they did not find anyone there. The officials then started chasing the smugglers and caught them near the Sheela bypass at Rohtak. OC |
Housewife kidnapped Sonepat: A young housewife Mrs Meena Devi was reported to have been kidnapped by a Maruti van-borne armed youths from Mehlana village about 5 km from here on Thursday. According to a report, an old enmity is stated to be the cause of the alleged kidnapping. The Sadar police have registered the case and further investigations were on. A massive hunt is on to apprehend the culprits. It is stated that one Dilbagh along with his supporters had assaulted Mrs Meena and injured her on the night of September 8. However, on September 10, Mr Man Mohan, husband of Mrs Meena, with his supporters had attacked Mr
Dilbagh, his wife Mrs Prem Lata and his father Mr Nafe Singh, and injured them. One day after the incident, Mrs Meena Devi was allegedly kidnapped. The police suspect it to be a case of settling scores.
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