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Lukewarm officials leave MCD students shivering in the cold
VAT ‘step in right direction’
Cops, corporate sector ‘bhagidari’ for professional policing
Bid to loot Daryaganj financier foiled
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Israeli team visits DU
NGO embarks on police sensitisation
No taker for these flats in time of boom
Big haul
of heroin, opium
A mesmerising show from tiny-tots
HEALTH
WATCH
Website info on
pre-natal test under scanner
Martyrdom Day to be observed
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Lukewarm officials leave MCD students
New Delhi, December 23 The Chairman of the Standing Committee, Mr Mukesh Goel, said that the tepid attitude of the officials had resulted in delay in distribution of school uniforms. The officials had been told to purchase clothes from the open market to speed up the work. Instead of following the directive, the officials contacted the National Textile Corporation, a government agency that supplies materials on high rates. He also said that by the end of the month 3.83 lakh jerseys would be distributed in the MCD schools. So far, only 26,000 jerseys have been distributed. Leader of Opposition Subhash Arya said that winter was at its peak but 9.5 lakh children in MCD schools were without jerseys. Besides, tenders for purchase of uniforms have not been floated so far. The contract of supplying mid day meal are being awarded to firms allegedly accused of supplying contaminated meals. The funds allocated for primary education under plan head will remain unspent due to inefficient administration. Last year, a sum of Rs 18 crore in the education fund had lapsed. This year the corporation had Rs 55 crore for purchase of woolen clothes and uniforms. If this money is not spent, it will be lapse, he warned. He alleged that the Congress-ruled corporation had awarded contract of supplying jerseys to firms which do not have the capacity to supply the required number of jerseys. He expressed doubt whether these firms would be able to supply 3.83 lakh woolen clothes. Out of 46, 000 jerseys 20, 000 have been rejected due to their poor quality. He said that on the recommendations of the Education Committee, the MCD had accorded approval for purchase of two sets of uniforms to children. These had to be supplied latest by December 3, but the education department has not so far started the tender process. He also said that the MCD had accorded approval for purchase of uniforms by open tender process, ensuring transparency and open competition. However, the officials were purchasing uniforms from the National Textile Corporation, which supplies material at a rate 30 per cent higher than the market rate.
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VAT ‘step in right direction’
New Delhi, December 23 Welcoming the introduction of VAT from April next year, Mr Magazine said that the VAT system “intends to ensure that the government realises the tax due on consumption of all goods taking place in Delhi”. Under this new system there are essentially four rates of taxation – one per cent, four per cent, 12.5 per cent and 20 per cent. He said that concerns about availability of credit for local sales tax paid on the stock held on the date of implementation of VAT and when credit would be available has been dealt with satisfactorily under the new Act but pointed out that books, periodicals and maps have been exempted while paper and newsprint is at four per cent. “This anomaly,” he said, “needs correction”. The CII, he said, was confident that the Delhi Sales tax Department was geared to deal with the new taxation system. The CII would be organising a session with the Sales Tax Department for the stakeholders – industry, traders and the general public, said Mr Pankaj
Mohindroo, convenor of the Economics and Taxation panel of the Delhi State Council. Meanwhile, traders in Delhi have protested against the introduction of VAT. The traders have formed an apex body comprising representatives of all leading traders association in the Capital. The Confederation of All India Traders was spearheading the agitation against VAT.
Khurana accuses Sheila of
volte-face
The BJP today charged the Delhi Government with reneging on its promise of not implementing Value Added Tax (VAT) in the Capital. A senior leader of the party and a former governor of Rajasthan, Mr Madan Lal Khurana, today said that Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit
had concurred with him when he had rallied with the erstwhile NDA Government against the implementation of VAT last year. The former chief minister of Delhi demanded an explanation from Ms Dikshit for the somersault. He said that businesses would be adversely affected in Delhi, which is a distribution centre for
many products. On the alleged privatisation of Delhi Jal Board, he claimed that the French company, which was to buy the water utility, was convicted in several cases of bribery and corruption.
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Cops, corporate sector ‘bhagidari’
New Delhi, December 23 The new initiative will improve the police functioning as it is prevalent in advanced countries. It has become important to involve the business community in the initiative as it has a very high stake in ‘’high quality policing’’ that directly affects commerce. Former CBI Director and Business Initiative for Professional Policing (BIPP) project Advisor R K Raghavan said that the project is based on the premises that effective policing was actually in the ‘’wider interest’’ of the business community. It would also present a model road safety system in Delhi over a 10-km stretch. He added: “The cooperation sought from the captains of the industry is for using their leverage with the government to introduce professionalism and autonomy in the system
to improve the functioning of the force and furbish its image.” The two-year project — to make a 10-km stretch between Vijay Ghat and Burari Chowk in North Delhi a ‘’model zero-tolerance and accident free zone’’ — was not a move to transform the police but a step towards improving its standard, said Mr Rohit Baluja, President of the Institute of Road Traffic Education, with whose cooperation the initiative is being undertaken along with the Delhi Police, the Ford Foundation and
ASSOCHAM. ‘’The initiative aims at presenting a model road safety system in Delhi which could help develop statistics for further improvement in the system to be adopted in other parts of the country.’’ While in Delhi the project has taken the shape of a road safety initiative, in Mumbai model police stations have been set up. Both the models are ‘’exploratory steps’’ towards effective and professional policing in the country, he added. Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Qamar Ahmed said the move is a valuable step towards ‘Bhagidari’ (partnership) between the police and business community. ‘’Road safety is not just our responsibility, it is as much of the public and of the concerned class. We need the support of all — the road engineers in designing technically sound roads, flyovers and crossings, disciplined public to follow traffic rules and community support to educate people on changing their mindset.’’'
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Bid to loot Daryaganj financier foiled
New Delhi, December 23 While the police apprehended two members of the gang, the other three managed to escape under the cover of darkness. The accused persons have been identified as Amir, alias Babu, and Asif, alias Chanda, alias Chhotoo, both residents of Aligarh. Acting on secret information that an inter-state gang is active in Delhi and planning to loot a financier of Daryaganj, the cops laid a trap in the Shakarpur area and apprehended two of them. During interrogation the accused persons disclosed to the police that they were involved in a murder, attempt to murder and robbery in the Sansi Gate, Kas Ganj, Kotwali and Aligarh and were wanted for several heinous crimes. In another case, the North-East district police claims to have foiled an extortion bid in the Vijay Park area with the arrest of five persons. The extortionists had demanded Rs five lakh from a bakery owner and threatened to kill him and his family members if he failed to pay the amount. The accused persons have been identified as Riazuddin alias Kallu (24), Maksood (23), Rifakat Ali (30), Akbar Saeed (24), all residents of Vijay Park, and Nadim (24), a resident of Kabir Nagar. Six mobile phones, including two phones which were used for making extortion calls, were seized from their possession.
Based on a complaint from the bakery owner that someone claiming to be a dreaded criminal, Sanjeev Sabharwal, was telephoning him at his residence and threatening to pay the money, the police conducted extensive investigation and zeroed in on one Riazuddin, alias Kallu, a resident of Vijay Park. Riazuddin disclosed that they were threatening the bakery owner as they desperately needed money.
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Israeli team visits DU
New Delhi, December 23 Taking to the Tribune, Mr. Hasson, who interacted with the students and the staff of the Delhi University here today, said: “Like the youngsters in Israel, the Indian youth too seem passionate about change. They are so eager to change and rule the system”. Awed by the “successful running of such a large democracy and the way the state assemblies and the state machinery works”, Mr. Hasson is hopeful that with the peace process having begun in his home country the “friendly ties between both the countries will emerge stronger”. “We do hope that there can be some kind of a cultural exchange between the youth of the two countries. It could be an enriching experience for the Indian youth, especially of the economically weaker sections, to visit Israel and learn more, similarly the Israeli youth could come to India for enhancing their knowledge”. Claiming that higher education has “witnessed a revolution”, Mr. Hasson pointed out, “With the establishment of colleges and Universities in Israel students can now get what they want”. He said: “A similar revolution is now going to take place in the school sector as well. The Government has decided to hike the salaries of the school teachers, because if you pay more money, you get more good people and we need good people to teach”.
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NGO embarks on police sensitisation
Faridabad, December 23 In a seminar that was held here recently, about 60 policemen, including several SHOs and sub-inspectors of the Haryana police posted in the district, were given a special talk and demonstration about the manner and means needed to be used while handling cases relating to women and children. This was perhaps the first time such a function was held to create awareness among cops, who are generally ‘callous’ in their attitude and approach while handling such cases. Ms Renu Suri from the Centre for Social Research and Studies, Delhi, delved on the problems faced by a woman or child while approaching the police for help. Normally, victims dread the police more than the criminal; thus, they often become victims of gross injustice, harassment and other crimes. In the circumstances, the criminal or the accused often gets away, taking advantage of the inability or marked reluctance of the victim to approach the police, she said. Even though there are women cops and special police stations in certain areas, it is important for policemen in general to handle gender cases with kid gloves and win the confidence of the victim, she added. Mr Rajiv Haldar, a member of a Delhi-based NGO, Prayas, elaborated on the techniques used to sensitise the cops, so as to provide equal opportunities to women, especially from the poorer section of the society. He said the police ought to conduct regular training programmes to train its staff to be more helpful and cooperative in all kind of cases. Mr Haldar also exhibited a film on the issue of dealing with crimes and complaints concerning women. Mr Ravi Kant of the Shakti Vahini, an NGO which had organised the workshop, highlighted trafficking of girls in rural parts of the district, especially in Mewat region, and said that the police needed to be more vigilant, if the menace was to be checked. Several issues regarding juvenile justice and crime against minors were still to get the proper attention they deserved. Shakti Vahini claims to have launched a 24-hour helpline to tackle cases like crime against women and children.
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No taker for these flats in time of boom
Ghaziabad, December 23 The Delhi Police and the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) had earlier shown some interest in taking possession of the 640 flats of this colony some time back, but recently they had expressed their reluctance on the ground that the flats were not up to mark for residential purposes of their personnel. The Officer on Special Duty (OSD), Mr Ramesh Chandani, said that was a big setback for them. “We were hoping that after their occupation, rest of the flats and other plots of the residential colony will easily be taken by others. Now, we are looking at other options.” The actual situation is that most of the flats of this colony have developed cracks and other flaws because of absence of proper maintenance and initial substandard construction. To prompt the buyers, the GDA replaced its old name with Indraprastha Residential Colony three years back but that marketing gimmick also failed to attract buyers.
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Big haul
of heroin, opium
New Delhi, December 23 Based on a tip-off that one drug trafficker is active in Delhi and supplying drugs to his local contacts, the sleuths laid a trap and nabbed the person who was later identified as Dalip Singh (58), a resident of Agra. The police intercepted Singh near Inder Chander Shastri Marg, Shakti Nagar, and seized the opium from his possession. Singh was residing in a house in Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi. In the other case, one Mohammad Saifuddin, alias Babbi (48), a resident of
Badayun, was arrested near Sri Oil Company in Noida with the heroin consignment.
MCD initiative on mosquito breeding
The Health Department of the MCD organised a three-day training programme of nodal officers and master trainers for creating public awareness and initiating measures to check mosquito breeding. Representatives of various resident welfare associations of Delhi participated in the programme, which was inaugurated by the Mayor, Mr. A. R. Verma. Speaking on the occasion, the Mayor said that Delhi faced an epidemic of dengue in 1996 when more than 10, 000 cases were reported and 423 patients died. The MCD is making
continues efforts to control breeding of mosquitoes. It has launched various public awareness programmes as a result of which there is marked decline in dengue cases.
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A mesmerising show from tiny-tots
New Delhi, December 23 The occasion was the 14th Annual Day of Step by Step School and as Ramesh Suri, CMD, Subros, put it, “a very special day for the parents, staff, teachers and children alike.” Enriching the celebration was the commissioning of a new wing of learning for children with special needs or as the school calls them ‘Special Children’. Suri also informed the gathering that their special wing now had over 40 children who are under specialised care of the school’s dedicated staff. The school is a pioneering effort of Director Ritu Suri. “Fourteen years ago, we took a small step to providing different education in a comforting and congenial environment for the children,” Ramesh Suri said.
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HEALTH WATCH
New Delhi, December 23 Participating in a debate held as a part of the Jatha under the Year of Scientific Awareness held at Katwaria Sarai, Shahpurjat and Zamrudpur, HCFI President, Dr K. K. Aggarwal, said that five peg intake at one time can be associated with sudden cardiac death, accelerated hypertension with brain hemorrhage, acute heart attack or dangerous arrhythmias (irregularities of the heart). Dr Aggarwal said that the safe limit of alcohol is 30 ml of whisky or 50 ml of wine in one hour and not more than 60 ml of whisky or 100 ml of wine in one day. Heavy dining along with drinking and non-stop dancing on the Xmas eve can be dangerous for those who are not accustomed to exercise. People at the age of 45 should avoid dancing if they are not used to it.
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Website info on
pre-natal test under scanner
New Delhi, December 23 Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) Reena Singh Nag asked the SHO Special Cell to submit a report in this regard by February four, 2005. The advertisement was found on Reliance Infocomm website d_home.
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Martyrdom Day to be observed
New Delhi, December 23 Besides, Shabad Kirtan and Asa Di Vaar would be performed by the Ragi Jatha of Bhai Harjit Singh and Shabad Vichar would be performed by Giani Sahib Singh Jee of Shahbad. The programme schedule includes Nagar Kirtan at the three Gurdwaras. Thereafter, the Guru Ka Langar would be served to all people present there.
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