New Delhi, April 19
The Delhi High Court has directed the Committee for Prevention, Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals to respond to allegations that about 200 research projects at AIIMS involving experiments on animals were held up and awaiting its clearance.

A Division Bench, comprising Chief Justice B C Patel and Justice B D Ahmed, ordered the committee to respond within three weeks to an application claiming that research projects, funded by international organisations like WHO, and theses of students were suffering due to delay in clearance by the CPCSE.

The delay was despite the fact that the projects have already been cleared by the Institutional Animals Ethics Committee at the All India Institute for Medical Sciences, which had a nominee of the CPCSE in it, it was stated.

The application also challenged the Breeding of and Experiments on Animals (Control and Supervision) Rules and its amendments, contending that it violated the Prevention of Cruelty against Animals Act 1960, because it allows experiments on animals for medical research while the rules framed by the committee imposed curbs.

It also wanted to know what were the educational and technical qualifications of the members of CPCSE and what was the mode for their appointment.

There was a need to balance animal rights with the requirements of medical research, the court observed. Earlier, the high court had stayed the operation of a letter from the CPCSE threatening to close an AIIMS laboratory housing animals, if certain conditions imposed by the committee were not complied with.

The court was hearing a petition, filed by three AIIMS professors belonging to the Physiology and Pharmacology Department.

A division bench had also issued notices to the government, the committee and two experts nominated by the committee, asking why the petition should not be admitted.

The petition said the 1998 and 2001 (Amendment) Rules were formulated even while the 1968 Rules existed. The 1998 and 2001 Rules also exceeded the powers given under the Act and were prohibitory in nature, it added.

Whereas the Act says that nothing contained in it would render unlawful experiments conducted on animals for the purpose of advancement of physiological knowledge or which would be useful for saving and prolonging the lives of human beings, animals or plants, the Rules say that any experiment conducted without prior approval of the committee would be illegal, it said.

The petition also opposed the delegation of powers by the committee to two veterinary expert nominees, as there was no such provision either in the Act or the Rules. The petitioner, through their counsel Mukul Gupta, said the Committee, chaired by Ms. Maneka Gandhi, had asked for unreasonable facilities like air conditioners and backup power units for the animal lab to be set up within six months, failing which it could be closed.

Mr Gupta added that the existing facility, in fact, had already received the sanction of the AIIMS Institutional Animals Ethics Committee, which had been created in accordance with the Rules and had one representative of the committee.

New Delhi, April 19
The Municipal Commissioner, Mr. Rakesh Mehta, today said that the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, which maintains most areas of the Capital, needs to formulate new building bylaws and promote transparency in their implementation as the existing bylaws were outdated. (These bylaws were laid down two decades back).

The Municipal Commissioner said that the existing bylaws applied to all parts of the city, even though it had grown in size in its historical progression since the Mughal era. In reality, there were many Delhis, which coexist. For example, there is the walled city, a relic of a bygone era; the Lutyens’ Delhi, a legacy of the British; and then there is the city that the DDA has developed since the 60s.

Besides, there were the large number of unauthorised colonies. There are also 135 urbanised villages.

He said that the existing bylaws, which were laid down in 1983, attempted to impose western building norms on the walled city, urbanized villages and unauthorised colonies. However, this attempt had proved to be a fiasco. The bylaws define the depth of rooms, the light source, height of bathrooms etc. Getting a building approved was a tortuous job as a number of formalities had to be fulfilled; so, generally people do not bother about bylaws.

Before new bylaws can be laid down, many other things need to be debated such as the relationship between the Master Plan, the Zonal Plans and the Building Bylaws. Since 1990 the Environment Protection Act is being enforced, but it does not reflect in the existing bylaws; nor do they find a mention in the DMC Act.

The municipal commissioner disclosed that 35 PILs had been filed in connection with unauthorised constructions, which was one reason for need to form new building bylaws.

He claimed that the new bylaws will take care of the citizens of the Capital; they will be transparent, preserve the green character of the Capital and its heritage. The bylaws will help Delhi rise to international standards, encourage the development of decaying parts of the city, so that they could be rejuvenated, and enable the use of high technology in urban areas.

New Delhi, April 19
Several parts of East Delhi eked it out without power from 0200 hours to 1130 hours today due to the snapping of conductors in the Kondli Dallupura 66 KV line circuit.

The reason: The supply was hit by an attempted theft. The thieves had cut the cables and were attempting to remove the conductor when the BSES repair team reached the site; however, the thieves fled, leaving the area wallowing in darkness. Later, the areas were back fed by an alternate source.

Speaking about the problem, Rakesh Aggarwal, Chief Executive, BSES Discoms, said, “We are working on a war footing to ensure normalization of supply to the affected area. Such incidents of cable theft are tantamount to vandalism of public property. Active cooperation from the public would be of tremendous assistance in combating the menace of cable theft, which troubles thousands of consumers.”

The areas effected in East Delhi due to the attempted cable theft were Ashok Nagar, Vasundhara, Express Society, Abul Fazal Society. AIIMS Society, Dainik Jagaran Society, Highland Society, Manavsthali, Mayur Vihar - Blocks - A,B,C and D — and other surrounding areas.

New Delhi, April 19
There was a major flutter this morning at the New Delhi Railway Station, when highly decomposed bodies of two children in the 6-9 age group were found in a cardboard carton. The carton was abandoned in the mini passenger hall on the Paharganj side by a middle-aged couple last evening, which was found by the staff of the railways. The police said that both the bodies had ligature marks on the neck; possibly the children had been strangulated to death. The bodies were spotted by the staff at around 10.30 am, wrapped in a polythene bag inside the carton.

The sniffer dog squad and fingerprint experts were called in and the bodies were later sent for the post-mortem examination to the Subzi Mandi mortuary. The police said that one child, who was around six years, was found wearing a half pant and blue shirt while the other one, around nine years, was wearing a khaki full pant, a checked shirt and a kara.

A large number of curious onlookers thronged the mini passenger hall after the bodies were discovered and the police cordoned off the area to facilitate investigations.

New Delhi, April 19
The Northern Railway has extended the unreserved ticketing system to 31 locations in the national Capital, spelling relief to a major segment of passengers who travel in unreserved compartments, an official spokesman release said today.

The new locations are New Delhi, Delhi, Nizamuddin, Okhla, Delhi Shahdara, Vivek Vihar, Sahibabad, Ghaziabad, Naya Ghaziabad, Daya Basti, Delhi Sadar Bazar, Delhi Kishan Ganj, Vivekanand Puri, Mangolpuri, Subzimandi, Delhi Azadpur, Naya Azadpur, Badli, Shivaji Bridge, Tilak Bridge, Sarojini Nagar, Faridabad, Faridabad New Town, Ballabgarh, Palwal, Delhi Sarai Rohilla, Delhi Cantonment, Gurgaon and Tughlakabad.

The facility is already available in 33 location in the Delhi area. Under the system, unreserved tickets can be purchased three days in advance from the booking counters that will remain open 24 hours. Facilities for refunds and cancellations are available according to rules.

New Delhi, April 19
Superstar of yesteryears’ Rajesh Khanna today tried to justify Sonia Gandhi’s foreign origin, relying on his characteristic rhetoric. Canvassing for the Congress candidate, Mr Ajay Maken, Mr Khanna dismissed the issue, saying, “Ghar mein beti hoti hein, bahu to bahar se hi aati hein (daughter belongs to the house while daughter-in-law comes from outside).”

Playing to the gallery, he then went on to attack the BJP for “misleading” the electorate with its ‘feel-good’ campaign and demanding a “punishment” for BJP’s “callousness towards the poor”.

Mr Khanna also flayed the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, for taking senior party leader Lalji Tandon along with him while filing his nomination papers from the Lucknow seat. Mr Khanna was the second screen star to address the crowd. Earlier, Suresh Oberoi campaigned in favour of the BJP’s Delhi Sadar candidate, Mr Vijay Goel.

Meanwhile, for former Delhi Chief Minister, Mr Sahib Singh Verma, chose to highlight the “murder of democracy by the Congress”. Addressing a meeting in Nassempur constituency, Mr Singh said the Congress, through dynastic rule, was trying to stifle democracy in the country. Claiming that his tenure as the Chief Minister and also as a Member of the Parliament has been fruitful for Delhi, especially the outer Delhi parliamentary constituency, he said the Congress had never managed to the same.

Mr Singh spoke of the network of road laid in outer Delhi and the various provisions that he provided to the residents of the illegal colony.

The campaign of the BJP candidate from Karol Bagh, Ms Anita Arya, saw actor Mukesh ‘Shaktimaan’ Khanna highlight the virtues of the Vajpayee government.

Addressing a public meeting in Manakpura Subzi Mandi, Mr Khanna said the BJP under Vajpayee had accomplished in five years what the Congress has not achieved in the last 50 years.

Lashing out at her opponent, Arya said the Congress candidate, who also represents Baljeet Nagar, has not been able to achieve any significant milestone in her constituency. Ms Arya also inaugurated an election office in Patel Nagar zone this morning, and began a padyayatra, which ended at Ranjeet Nagar.

The Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president, Chaudhary Prem Singh, addressed two gatherings, one at Ambedkar Jayanti at Hodal and the second at Raghubir Nagar in the South Delhi constituency.

Speaking at Hodal, Mr Singh dwelt on the life and contributions made by Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar for the uplift of the downtrodden. He said that it was because of his efforts that the Dalits were unified as a major force so as to secure their rights.

Sonepat, April 19
The former minister and HVP candidate, Mr Jagbir Singh Malik, has taken strong exception to furnishing of “Z” security to BJP candidate Kishan Singh Sangwan and alleged that it was a political stunt. He further alleged that it was an attempt to give an impression to the voters that there was a threat to his (Sangwan’s) life from the chief minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala.

Addressing a Press conference, Mr Malik remarked that Mr Sangwan had not received any threat from any quarter; even a case of simple quarrel had not been registered against him. He wanted to know why Mr Sangwan had not demanded security before the elections.

Before the campaigning began, he pointed out, Mr Sangwan did not hesitate to avail the facilities extended by the government and the administration. He would get all his jobs done, for instance, issuing of NOCs.

Rewari, April 19
The senior Congress leader and party candidate from Mahendergarh parliamentary constituency Rao Inderjit Singh has stated that the ensuing Lok Sabha elections in Haryana were virtually a semi-final for the Congress party in its run-up to the coming Haryana Vidhan Sabha polls.

He made this statement while addressing party workers soon after the inauguration of his election office here today. Exhorting the workers to put in their sincere, strenuous and unified efforts to win this semi-final with flying colours, he said that a resounding victory in almost all the ten parliamentary constituencies of the state alone would pave the way for a grand finale. He said that when the people, who were fully fed up with the misrule of the Chautala regime, wanted a total change in Haryana; they would have to target the assembly elections too in advance.

Faridabad, April 19
Two of the three central observers appointed by the Election Commission to oversee the poll process in the Faridabad parliamentary constituency have arrived here. The third observer is expected to arrive by tomorrow morning.

According to the officials, Mr S. Bhale Rao and Mr S.P.Nanda, both I.A.S, reached the town this morning and have been lodged at the NTPC guesthouse.

While Mr Rao belongs to Andhra Pradesh, Mr Nanda is from the Orissa cadre. They will work as the general observers.

The authorities have provided a telephone number (2401830) at the guesthouse for any one who wish to contact them in case of any irregularity in the election process.

The third observer, Mr Shubh Chintan, an IRS officer, will be arriving by tomorrow morning.

Mr Chintan will be looking after the poll expenditure of the various candidates during the elections. It may be recalled that the Election Commission has set the upper limit of the poll expense of a candidate at Rs 25 lakh. Mr Chintan will also be staying at the NTPC guesthouse.

Meanwhile, the district election authorities have set up a ‘helpline’ for the benefit of the voters during the polls.

Anybody who wish to know about their respective polling booth and other relevant information regarding the polls could contact the ‘helpline’ numbers during the working hours.

Meerut, April 19
With every third polling booth in the Meerut division being declared as sensitive, the administration faces a mighty challenge in the form of conducting free, fair and peaceful elections in the division.

In western Uttar Pradesh, 20 seats will go to polls on May 10, and every third polling booth of the six districts of the Meerut division has been declared sensitive.

Meerut division includes Meerut, Bulandshahar, Ghaziabad, Baghpat, Muzaffarnagar and Saharanpur. Muzaffarnagar has been considered as the most sensitive.

Sonepat, April 19
Drinking water problem continues to haunt the residents of the city with a population of more than two lakhs and a district headquarters in Haryana.

According to a report, the entire old section of the city has been literally left high and dry as it has not been getting its evening supply of water since March 15 last. Many residents said that there was a time when they used to have plenty of water. However, for the past two years, the scene has become so worse that there is hardly enough water to survive.

Some aged residents said that they were unable to fetch water from the distance places in the absence of water supply. How long can they approach the authorities of the district administration and the Public Health Department for their problems? The authorities have failed to provide adequate drinking water to them, they said. Their only request to them is just give them enough water to drink, they added.

Several residents of these areas said, “It is a regular affair. Forget evenings, we hardly get water for 15 minutes or so in the morning. Tell them, they can still buy Bisler for drinking purposes, but how do they wash their clothes or, worse still, flush the toilets.”

New Delhi, April 19
The leader of the Opposition in the Standing Committee of the MCD, Mr Vijender Kumar Gupta, has demanded that the timings of the Metro Rail services be extended from 10 AM to 11 PM. He said this was necessary as the Metro rail services has now been extended up to Rithala. There is an urgent need for increasing the frequencies from the existing 6 minutes to 4 minutes.

He said that feedback received from various residents/RWAs and the increasing rush necessitated that the Metro Rail timings be rescheduled from 6 AM to 11 PM. Most of the users of the Metro Rail are such that they have to return home late at night. Obviously, as these passengers are unable to use the Metro Rail, it is also detrimental to the financial interests of the DMRC.

"According to estimates, 13 per cent of all deaths in India by 2020 will solely be due to tobacco use. World over, the clinical evidence between smoking and hypertension, premature heart attacks, strokes, diseases of retina, kidneys, brain, lung cancer etc, have been over whelming", says Dr Talwar.

Women and children form a significant portion of the total smokers. But unfortunately the extremely harmful consequences of smoking on both these segments go unrecognized.

The government should put a ban on tobacco and smoking advertising campaigns, Dr Talwar feels.

Dr Talwar started this department in November 2002 at Metro Hospital to help smokers quit smoking. So far, the department has handled around 500 cases successfully. He claims over 60 per cent success rate.

According to Dr Talwar, the most important factor that would help a smoker get rid of his habit is his will power and a mind open to persuasion. To get help through their department, one is required to pay a token money of Rs 500, which, he says, is used in conducting various tests and for opening the patient’s file. Earlier, this amount was Rs 1,000, but it was later halved so as to help a larger number of people including those from weaker sections of the society.

Dr Talwar has had over 20 years of experience after completing his post- Graduation in Respiratory Diseases (MD and DTCD) from VP Chest Institute, Delhi. He was awarded Diploma in Respiratory Diseases by the National Board of examinations in 1987 and in Internal Medicine in 1989.

Dr Talwar has presented about two dozen professional papers in various national and international conferences. He was one of the first to have qualified from PGI Chandigarh for DM Pulmonary Medicine– Post–doctoral Fellow in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, in 1991. He was awarded fellowship by the College of Chest Physicians (India) in 1999 and then by FCCP (USA).

He has worked in various hospitals in India and abroad, including VP Chest Institute, Dr RML Hospital, LNJP Hospital and Maulana Azad Medical College, R B T B Centre and PGI Chandigarh.

His name also featured in the Limca Book of Records in year 2000.

The department, which includes a team of dedicated professionals, is working successfully towards achievement of this objective. Patients come to us with different levels of motivation. Our work is to clear their doubts, encourage them at every step of the quit- smoking process, build up and reinforce their motivation by every possible means available. So far, the endeavor has been amply rewarding.

We have enrolled nearly 500 smokers so far and our success rate is nearly 60 per cent. However, considering the epidemic proportions of the disease, we are quite aware that we still have a long way to go.

The current scenario in India so far as smoking and tobacco use is concerned is alarming with a total number of 18.4 crore users. According to modest estimates, 13 per cent of all deaths in the country by the year 2020 are estimated to occur solely due to tobacco abuse.

A habitual or a chronic smoker runs a series of risks such as hypertension, atherosclerosis, premature heart attacks, increased rates of stroke, peripheral vascular disease, disease of the retina, kidneys, brain, chronic obstructive airway disease, lung cancer and many more.

World over, the clinical evidence between smoking and the above mentioned disease conditions like high blood pressure, heart attacks, cancer etc. have been overwhelming.

The Indian Council of Medical Research has also conducted surveys in India and smoking has been found to be strong risk factor of chronic lung disease, heart attack, stroke and cancer.

Extensive awareness campaigns are the need of the hour. We constantly need persuasive publicity to catch the attention of the smokers and bring them to departments like ours. Anti-smoking campaigns are generally overshadowed by attractive advertisements by tobacco industry in print and electronic media.

And the inconspicuous statutory line "smoking is injurious to health" merely makes a mockery of the government’s efforts to discourage and dissuade people from smoking.

Women and children form a significant proportion of the total number of smokers and they are, in general, also aware of the ill-effects of smoking. Smoking among women during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, premature birth, very small or weak babies. Smoking in women and children often goes unrecognized and its seriousness is underestimated. Special drives and campaigns targeting women and children are required.

Government and legislative bodies should come forward with bold steps like totally banning advertisement campaigns in favour of smoking and all forms of tobacco including gutkha, zarda etc. in press, TV channels and outdoors.

Political will and efforts could go a long way in eradicating such vices.

Ban on advertisements promoting tobacco use, particularly during important national and international events, cricket etc. could be a good lead.

In many sections of the western society, smoking, which used to be a fashion two-three decades ago, is rather seen as a health hazard today. In India, there is a legislation banning smoking at public places.

However, apart from problems regarding proper implementation, the fact that law cannot change the behavior of individuals and the society also acts as a barrier in eradicating this problem.

Awareness campaigns and empathic media coverage could gradually help bring change in the social thinking

Generally speaking, there is no direct correlation between smoking, alcoholism and use of drugs.

New Delhi, April 19
The New Delhi Municipal Council today demonstrated mock fire exercises at Palika Kendra. The mock exercises were organised as part of the Fire Week celebrations of the Delhi Fire Service.

Mock exercise included rescue operation carried out in high-rise building, sliding by stretcher, chair-note, flying fox, extinguishing fire by automatic sprinkler system and CO2 flooding systems in the LT and HT electric panels. Besides, extinguishers, automatic sprinkler system and dry chemical flooding system were also operated during the demonstration.

The chairperson of the NDMC, S.S. Khullar, also inaugurated the fire tenders procured by the Council recently. Ms Khullar said, “Three events, fire, flood and earthquake, which are said to be act of God, occur without any prior indication. Therefore, we should always be prepared to face these accidents.”

“Unless we are aware of the safety measures, we cannot take preventive measures,” she said.

Jhajjar, April 19
The district police have arrested a proclaimed offender wanted in a number of cases of looting and dacoity in the Line Par police station area.

A pistol was also seized from him. A case under the Arms Act was registered against him. According to the police sources, the CIA staff of the Bahadurgarh police arrested Rajesh, son of Dalip Singh, resident of Dulhera village under the Arms Act.

New Delhi, April 19
With the arrest of four persons, the South-West district police claimed to have busted a gang of car-jackers involved in a sensational car-jacking-cum-kidnapping case. A stolen Toyota Qualis, country-made weapons, wireless set and a mobile phone were seized from their possession.

The accused persons were identified as Manish Chauhan (27), Ranjeet Kumar Bose (33), both residents of West Bengal, Saji John (27), resident of Kerala and Raman Ghera (20), resident of New Delhi.