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Traders uneasy over admn survey on encroachments
Fiery finale to Dasehra celebrations in Capital
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NDMC defers license fee hike till 2006
Two Dhaulana cops killed mercilessly
SP candidate’s brother held for extortion
Newly-wed woman, father allege torture at in-laws’ hands
MCD staffer acquitted after trial over three decades
Toss-up between left parties in JNU elections
Tension in IP Extension due to slum dwellers
Five persons chargesheeted for cheating
Justice Katju sworn in as new CJ of Delhi High Court
Buy a new vehicle, pay ‘extra’ charges to RTO
Largest software technopark of North India ready at Noida
Hoax caller falls in police net
Narcotics worth Rs 6.5 cr seized from 4 drug traffickers
Ganga canal shut for maintenance
Fake cold drinks unit busted
Minor arrested for raping 4-year-old
Students present ballet on Ramayana
Pak High Commission opens bank account for donors
Health checkup camp held
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Traders uneasy over admn survey on encroachments
Gurgaon, October 12 The Deputy Commissioner, Gurgaon, Mr R. P. Bhardwaj, has constituted a committee to conduct the survey for necessary action against the shops and buildings that have violated the rules. The members of the committee, consisting of officials of the Gurgaon Municipal Council, have already visited a number of shops and commercial sites in some of the busy pockets, including the main Sadar Market, located in the heart of the old city area. According to sources, the members of the committee are visiting the sites between 5am and 7 am in order to avoid the public and have a full measure of the possible encroachments and the area of the illegal basements. With the apparent jumpiness among the business community, the local units of the Vyapaar Mandal and the Vyapaar Sangh have entered into the frame. They are lobbying with those who matter to save those who have violated construction rules. According to a senior member of the district administration, the stern step has been taken as the shopkeepers and owners of other business establishments were not heeding the official warning regarding clearing the encroachments on their own. In fact, in the last few months the authorities listed about 50 structures and business sites which had either encroached or had set up basements without any prior approval. There are reports of continued encroachments in the main markets and other busy centres. Although the encroachments and illegal basements have been set up in non-business centres too, the focus, however, seems to be on business sites. According to many, the hard measure from the district administration was a long needed one. There is general animosity among the public here about the large-scale encroachments in the main markets and other commercial centres of the old city area. Visit any market and the visitors have to walk cheek-by-jowl due to the shrinking roads in them. Due to the heavy congestion anti-social elements have a field day. There have been reports of complaints from ladies of the discomfort they feel walking on the roads in the markets, and also the harassment they experience during the season of festivals when the rush increases. According to many, big shopowners have also formed an organised group in the main markets. They allow the vendors to set up stalls in front of their shops. They collect
monthly or weekly rents from them. Shopowners encourage them for the official hullabaloo subsides. Although the general public apparently is happy about the administration’s latest reformative move, there are many who feel it would have the same old anti-climactic end. The shopowners have a powerful lobby and they have been influencing the decision makers in the past. When everything fails they net in the local politicians and the same vote-bank politics proves to be the nemesis of the administrative moves to free the markets and the busy centres from encroachments. Also, the reason for doubt in some quarters on the efficacy of the latest move is the general negative opinion of the role of officials of the municipal council. The overwhelming feeling is that the illegal basements and the encroachments do not come up in a day. They are a gradual process and they cannot come up without the connivance of the functionaries of the municipal council.
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Fiery finale to Dasehra celebrations in Capital
New Delhi, October 12 As the effigies were set ablaze at sunset, people applauded the demise of demon king Ravana at the hands of Lord Rama, marking the end of ten-day Dasehra festivities. A surcharged atmosphere of festivity pervaded
all over as people attired in their best came out in large numbers to see the demon kings going up in flames to the chants of
‘Jai shree Ram’ at sunset. Spectacular fireworks preceded the fiery end of the demon trio. After nine days of festivities and fasting, the grand finale was Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh shooting an arrow at Ravana’s effigy at the historic Ramlila ground to symbolise the victory of good over evil. Among those who witnessed the moment were Congress President Sonia Gandhi and a host of other dignitaries. Speaking on this occasion, Dr Singh exhorted the countrymen to take inspiration from the festival, which reminded people that good always, triumphs over evil. “Such festivals being celebrated since the centuries teach us the value of truth, amity and brotherhood, ‘’ he said and called upon the people to work for strengthening the unity, integrity and prosperity of the country. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Dr Singh’s wife Gursharan Kaur were also present on the occasion. Elaborate security arrangements had been made by the Delhi Police
to avoid any untoward incidents during the festival. As per the Hindu calendar, Vijaya Dashami marks the victory celebrations of the battle when Goddess Durga kills the demon Mahishasur. It is celebrated in northern India as Dasehra, marking the triumph of Lord Rama over Ravana. Apart from the major Ram Lilas performed in
the city, effigies were burnt in various parts of the Capital. Towards the evening, city roads were
a motorist’s nightmare with seemingly endless jams and diversions giving a harrowing time to
the public.
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Ravana goes up in flames with pomp
Gurgaon, October 12 While addressing a large gathering, the minister said Dasehra was a symbol of the victory of good over evil. Ultimately, it was honesty which ensured success, though sometimes it may take more time.
At the New Colony Ram Lila ground, the effigy of Ravana of 70 ft, Meghnath and Kumbhkaran of 65 ft each was consigned to flames. After being hit by the burning arrow, the effigies went to flames lighting up the entire sky. Another important event was organised at the Old Dlf Colony near Sector 14 where the effigies of
Ravana, Meghnath and Kumbhkaran were set afire. A large gathering also witnessed the fireworks demonstrated by the organisers. The Dasehra celebrations at Arjun Nagar also witnessed high effigies going up in flames. Various committees also took out colourful processions in the Main Sadar Bazaar. In the processions, actors playing the roles of Ram, Laxman, Hanuman, Ravana and others from the Ramayana on moving vehicles entertained the large crowds with their dialogues and actions. There was a large crowd in the Main Sadar Bazaar. Policemen on duty were finding it difficult to manage it.
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Durga Puja festivities come to an end
New Delhi, October 12 Married women played sindur khela, sprinkling each other with vermilion and distributing choicest of sweetmeats, as they bade farewell to Goddess Durga, who is believed to be visiting her parents’ home during the period. Several pandals took out idols of the goddess in a procession for immersion in the river banks. With the Bengali almanacs differing on the last day of the Durga Puja, a number of organisers have decided to observe ‘Dashami’ tomorrow as mentioned in ‘Visuddhasiddhanta Panjika,’ the almanac based on the national ephemeris. After the immersion, devotees took some water from the river back to temples and their home. People turned out in their best attire for the three-day festival, which was marked by cultural programmes and music concerts. Noted singers Usha Uthup and Sonu Nigam were among some celebrities who kept the audience spellbound by their rendition of popular numbers in the national capital and its adjoining areas.
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NDMC defers license fee hike till 2006
New Delhi, October 12 According to sources, the NDMC had announced its estate policy last year, under which it was proposed to hike the license fees of shops, stalls, kiosks and other similar properties at the rate of 10 per cent every year. “After the announcement of that proposal, it was opposed by a lot of people. The NDMC Market Federation even staged a series of agitations and demonstrations at that time. Then the NDMC revised it and presented a fresh proposal to hike the said fees at the rate of 8 per cent in lieu of that. Despite that, not even members of the federation, most members of the council were against the revised proposal,” said a senior official of the council. A senior member of the council Mr. Ashok Ahuja said that the license fees should not be hiked more than 10 per cent in 15 years as most of such property owners came from a very low income strata. “Apart from this, they should be given some basic facilities like drinking water, electricity, sanitation etc. There are so many such stalls in the NDMC area in which rear portions are vacant and their owners sublet them. They should be charged on the basis of Tehbazari system. Due to poor upkeep, the NDMC is losing lakhs of rupees per month. It can be estimated from the report prepared by the audit department of the council which reveals that the council lost a whopping Rs. 3.84crores in a single financial year because of this very reason,” he said. According to the president of the NDMC Market Federtion Mr Ashok Randhawa, it will bring some respite to all petty shop owners of the area. “However, we want some permanent solution to this problem,” he said.
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Two Dhaulana cops killed mercilessly
Ghaziabad, October 12 The bodies of the two cops were found in a pool of blood on Tuesday morning at the Samana trijunction. Villager who first saw them informed the police that the bodies of two cops were lying on the road. Two criminals were often seen going on a motorbike, they said. The IG, the DIG and other senior officers had visited the scene of crime. The deceased cops belonged to Aligarh. Joginder Singh and Ram Dhani were aged 44 and 50 years, respectively. The cops had been most brutally murdered. There were dozens of stab injuries on their bodies. Even their throats had been slit. The cops were ordered to carry out combing operations by the IG Zone and the DIG to trace the service rifles of the murdered cops. It was also reported that the cops had picked up a quarrel with some people at night after getting drunk. A cyclist coming from that side had informed the Dhulana police station at 10 pm.
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SP candidate’s brother held for extortion
Greater Noida, October 12 Sonu Bhatti is a brother of the Samajwadi Party candidate for the zila panchayat elections. An IEC College student, Prateek Raghav, had filed a report on September 24 against Sonu Bhatti and others for extortion and threatening to kill those who resisted his demands. The police had arrested three young men and sent them to jail in this connection but Sonu had been absconding. Even when he was arrested he kept on threatening the cops: “I shall fix you and have your uniforms removed”. The SO police station, Mr S. K. Sharma, said Sonu had been arrested at the gate of Gama Sector-II with a revolver and cartridges. Since it was a licensed weapon, the SSP has ordered cancellation of his arms licence and booked Sonu Bhatti under the Gangster Act. The SO said Sonu Bhatti was the brother of Samajwadi Party candidate from Ward No 4 and a cousin of former SP MLA Sumeer Bhatti. After his arrest he had bragged that he was the “real brother” of the Samajwadi Party candidate for the panchayat elections. The SO said the police had got clues about Sonu Bhatti’s involvement in some other crimes also which were under investigation now. Sonu Bhatti has been sent to jail after presenting him before a magistrate’s court.
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Newly-wed woman, father allege torture at in-laws’ hands
Ghaziabad, October 12 The traumatised young woman has now returned to her parent’s house in Sector-23, Kavi Nagar, Ghaziabad. Sarita was so badly beaten up that she had to be admitted to a Ghaziabad hospital for a couple of days Sarita was married in April 2005. Her father had responded to a newspaper advertisement and the marriage was solemnised with pomp and show. Dowry and gifts were also given to her in the marriage. But soon after marriage she was so badly beaten up that she had to be hospitalised and police help sought. She is at present in her parent’s house, E-129, Sector 23, under the Kavi Nagar police area. Her father is a bank employee. According to Sarita, she had been tortured soon after her marriage at her in-laws’ house in Dehra Dun. Not only had the whole family, including her husband, often beaten her up but they had also insulted her parents for dowry. Her father said his daughter had been so badly beaten up that she had to be admitted to a Dehra Dun hospital and then to Ghaziabad’s Shivan Hospital for treatment. They are trying to contact the women’s cell and report the matter to the police.
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MCD staffer acquitted after trial over three decades
New Delhi, October 12 “Most of the prosecution witnesses have not said anything against the accused at all. There is hardly any material on record sufficient to substantiate the allegations against him,” Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Manoj Jain observed while acquitting Hari Singh Sharma. He is the only surviving accused in the case, as two of his accomplices – Kirpal Singh and Mange Ram Singhal – died during the pendency of the 27-year-old trial. According to the Vigilance, which probed the case, Sharma, who was a storekeeper at the MCD’s Nigam Bodh Central Office and the two other accused made personal gains by not maintaining proper stock registers and misappropriating purchase funds. The court ordered
the MCD to make full payment of Sharma’s pending wages and allowances from the time of his suspension to the date of the
judgement.
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Toss-up between left parties in JNU elections
New Delhi, October 12 “There is no doubt, the fight is bipolar. We are geared to fight the AISA, because the NSUI and the ABVP can hardly boast of any presence on the campus anymore,” said Muqbil Ahmar an AISF activist. Both the SFI-AISF and AISA are unanimous that the campus, which is swayed by ideology, remains unfazed by, “any show of strength”. “Unlike the Delhi University where freebies and promises are the arsenal to woo voters, JNU has a mind of its own. It is not easy to fight on the basis of money or muscle, because at the end of the day the students make their choice based on the ideology they subscribe to,” Ahmar asserts. Left to defend themselves, the ABVP activists are quick to point out that their supported candidates have won the elections in the hostels. “ The rumours about in-fighting in the ABVP is an attempt to distract attention by our opponents who are losing their support in the campus. In the recently concluded elections in four hostels, our candidates have won in all,” said Shiva Shakti Bakshi of the ABVP. Refuting that the party is struggling to prevent fissures within the organisation from widening, he said, “difference in opinion is not in-fighting. If there are issues, we resolve them as well”. Bakshi also trounced the left’s claim of a bipolar election. “There is no question of dismissing the ABVP, which has a very strong support base. In fact it is the NSUI who are yet to find their feet”. For the NSUI winning elections in the JNU is a dream yet to materialise. The party, which was banking on the Congress support in the last elections, had to face defeat. This year the party, say sources will need more than the “blessings from Senior Congress
leaders”. “They could not replicate their performance in the Delhi University here, despite claiming to have supporters in the campus, their performance was far from impressive. A few hundred votes does not mean support. And roping in national leaders for electioneering if a gimmick that JNU does not buy,” said an AISA activist.
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Tension in IP Extension due to slum dwellers
New Delhi, October 12 Agitated residents of the group housing societies alleged that the demolition drive to remove the slum clusters in deference to the orders of the apex court was just a mockery as the situation has remained unchanged and even grown worse. The residents alleged that after the slums were demolished with much fanfare, the oustees for some inexplicable reason were allowed to occupy a section of the busy road. As a result, one section of the busy road has now been cordoned off forcing heavy traffic to go around it, leading to chaotic scenes and some serious accidents. Agitated residents alleged that the authorities and some local politicians were hand in glove, otherwise there was no reason for the oustees to have been allowed to occupy the busy road. The oustees were supposed to be taken to alternate site provided by the government. The section of the road has been converted into a mini township with tea stalls and small shops, thus defeating the very purpose behind the demolition move to clear encroachments. Residents of the area, particularly those living in housing societies near the site, claimed that the situation was now getting out of hand and was leading to considerable tension. The police and the civic authorities expressed their helplessness in dealing with the situation because of lack of clear orders. Meanwhile, the Residents Welfare Associations of the housing societies of the area have repeatedly petitioned the authorities to take immediate steps to remove the squatters from the busy road.
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Five persons chargesheeted for cheating
New Delhi, October 12 In the charge-sheet filed before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Reena Singh Nag, the Special Cell of Delhi Police said that Rajiv Tyagi, who had left Mandavali after the August 8 rape there, was active in Janakpuri area where he was cheating banks and insurance companies with the help of four others. The charge-sheet will come up for consideration before the court on October 18. Tyagi, the charge-sheet said, had opened an office in Janakpuri here for arranging personal and car loans. The accused, who used to take loan on forged documents, used to sell them before filing a theft report with the police. They had lodged ten vehicle theft cases, police said. The other accused in the case are Arvind Kumar, Vinod Kumar Kaushal, Fakir Mohammad and Satyanand Tiwari.
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Justice Katju sworn in as new CJ of Delhi High Court
New Delhi, October 12 He succeeds Justice B C Patel who retired in August this year. Justice B A Khan, who took office as the acting Chief Justice, was transferred to Jammu and Kashmir as a Judge. Born on September 20, 1946, Justice Katju took his law degree from Allahabad University in 1967. He began his legal practice at the Allahabad High Court during which he specialised in labour laws, taxation and writ petitions. He also served as a member in International Association of Refugee Law Judges before being elevated as a judge in the Allahabad High Court. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, some of her Cabinet colleagues, a number of judges of High Court, subordinate courts and members of the Bar were present on the occasion. Later, Mr Joshi said Delhi was “very fortunate” to get a Chief Justice of “such experience”. Justice Katju said he was happy to be sworn in on the auspicious occasion of Dasehra.
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Buy a new vehicle, pay ‘extra’ charges to RTO
New Delhi, October 12 This pertains to the authority delegated by RTAs to vehicle dealers to allocate registration numbers to new vehicles directly on their behalf after collecting the prescribed fee, which includes road tax. The earlier practice was to issue a temporary registration number and the vehicle owner had to visit the RTA to pay this tax and get a permanent registration number. Although this has indeed facilitated the process from the vehicle owners’ point of view considering the hassles faced by someone visiting any government department for the smallest of tasks, there is a price to pay for it. An illegitimate price of around Rs 2,000 per car charged by car dealers under miscellaneous heads such as “car waxing and polishing charges” which are actually “RTA charges”. When questioned, a sales executive of a leading car dealer in south Delhi admitted that all car dealers in Delhi are collecting Rs 2000 per car, which is given to some ‘agency’, which in turn shares it with officials of the Road Transport Authority (RTA) to ‘facilitate’ issuing of a Registration Certificate (RC). Thus large amount of such money is being collected and paid to concerned officials. Hapless buyers have no option but to pay this amount in addition to regular road tax, which has gone up manifold. According to S.K Mahajan, a resident of Faridabad who recently bought a Tata Indica car from an agency in south Delhi, he was charged Rs 2000 under the head of ‘G Parking Tax’ over and above other charges. When he protested, he was told the amount had to be paid to the RTO and there was simply no option. The Motor Licensing Officer (MLO), Road Transport Authority, Sheikh Sarai could not be contacted for his comments on the issue despite repeated attempts.
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Largest software technopark of North India ready at Noida
Noida, October 12 Some of these small companies have now grown to medium and big size companies employing a large number of professionals. “It is our sincere effort to support IT/ITES companies by giving them international class infrastructure so that they concentrate in their core activity. It should prove a boon to the small companies, Mr Shakti Nath said. Logix Park has four towers and is spread over five acres. It has been completed at a cost of Rs 50 crore. It has facilities like a restaurant and a desk for getting small errands done without personally having to bother about them. The UP IT Policy, 2004, made by the UPDC is a positive steep in this direction. “As a result of the extraordinary international class services provided by us and tremendous faith of IT companies in us we had achieved 75 per cent occupancy in Logix Technopark even before completing the entire facility”, Mr Shakti Nath added. Mr Shakti Nath is confident that the approach road will be fully metalled by
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Hoax caller falls in police net
New Delhi, October 12 The police said that for the last one week the accused was calling on the PCR number saying that there was a bomb explosion in which a number of people had died. Besides, he also informed on the number that a series of explosions had taken place at different places. The police further said that the accused misbehaved with the lady staff present at the police control room. Seeing the gravity of the situation, the case was handed over to the ACP Ravi Shankar in the Special Cell. The police said that he was calling from his mobile phone, thinking that the police would not be able to trace out him as he was using a stolen mobile number.—TNS
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Narcotics worth Rs 6.5 cr seized from 4 drug traffickers
New Delhi, October 12 Two African nationals have been arrested here on charges of drug peddling and narcotics worth Rs two crore have been seized from them. The two men, in their early 30s, were nabbed in Moti Bagh area of south Delhi while they were exchanging drugs, sources said here today. At least 100 grams of cocaine, valued at around Rs one crore in international market, and one kg of heroin, worth Rs one crore, were allegedly recovered from them, they said. In a separate case, NCB sleuths arrested a resident of Rajasthan and claimed to have seized one kg heroin, they said. One Mange Lal was arrested in Mandsaur in Madhya Pradesh and 3.5 kgs of heroin was allegedly recovered from him, they said.
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Ganga canal shut for maintenance
New Delhi, October 12 “There is no need for panic and we are prepared to meet any eventuality. While our daily water requirement is of around 700 MGD, we can manage a supply of 600 MGD water at present,” Ms Dikshit told reporters here. Water supply to Delhi, Noida and Agra is set to be affected due to maintenance work being carried out in Ganga canal. The canal will be closed from October 12 to November 1 for maintenance work affecting about 30 to 40 per cent of water supply.
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Fake cold drinks unit busted
New Delhi, October 12 Police got the information about the fake unit yesterday from the officials of Coca Cola India Ltd. Subsequently, a team was set up who raided the said premises and arrested the accused. The police claimed to have recovered 23 carats and 236 bottles of soft drinks from the premises. A case has been registered under different sections of IPC in the local police station and further investigations are on.
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Minor arrested for raping 4-year-old
New Delhi, October 12 As per the report filed at the Gokulpuri police station the victim was playing outside her home in Shiv Vihar Phase IV in Gokulpuri last evening. She went to her neighbour’s house where the accused allegedly raped her after threatening her. The girl later told her parents about the incident who reported the matter to the police.
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Students present ballet on Ramayana
New Delhi, October 12 According to the principal of the school, Dr. Jayotsna
Minocha, the students of the school presented many cultural programmes on the occasion. A ballet on the theme of Ramayan was spell bounding. They also performed short plays on burning issues like AIDS and Consumer Rights.
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Pak High Commission opens bank account for donors
New Delhi, October 12 An account for accepting donations for quake relief has been opened with the ABN Ambro Bank branch at Barakhamba Road, said Pakistan’s Minister of Press at the High Commission Rai Riaz Hussain here today. The donations could be sent to the account marked as ‘Pakistan High Commission — Earthquake Relief Fund-2005’.
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Health checkup camp held
New Delhi, October 12 According to the convenor of this programme, Mr Anuj Atrey, a blood donation camp and free eye checkup camps were also organised at the same venue. Apart from these activities, under a tree plantation drive launched on the same day, about 500 saplings were planted at the open ground of the police station.
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