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Protests mark World Disability Day
Noida green belt needs the kiss of life
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PM to open Expo India Mart in Gt Noida on Dec 20
Gurgaon to become a shoppers’ delight
Sports tournament for special kids opens
Jamia students hope for poll on schedule
‘Soft skills’ to prepare students for job market
A culture of acceptance for differently abled important
BDO suspended for irregularities in land transfer
Nigerian held for cheating
Human traffickers from Punjab in police net
JNUTA Executive Committee takes charge
Mini sewage plants to be set up in villages
Cold wave-like conditions prevail in the Capital
Man gets 7-yr RI for raping minor
Paperex on at Pragati Maidan
7 new dengue cases in Capital
Factory worker ‘abducted’ in Faridabad
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Protests mark World Disability Day
New Delhi, December 3 The Executive Director of the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People, Mr Javed Abidi, demanded that either there should be a special ministry for the handicapped or the ministry of human resource development should take up their cause. “If there can be a ministry for NRIs and northeast affairs, why cannot there be a ministry for physically challenged? At least the matter should be transferred to the HRD ministry from the ministry of social justice,” he said. “Disability is a human resource issue and it should not be considered a matter of social justice. If the potential of these persons is developed, then India will progress fast,” he added “It’s a great day for all of us. Like Divali and Holi we enjoy the day with many children. All of us should not feel neglected but develop courage to face the society and move ahead,” said Sagar, a 14-year-old handicapped boy. Director of The Deaf Way, Mr Arun C. Roy said, “the community deserves equality not sympathy. In the name of social justice and welfare the country is not doing any good towards physically challenged people. The bureaucratic mindset of sympathy and favour should change immediately”. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit released blue and yellow coloured balloons on the occasion and shook hands with some of the children. A delegation of handicapped people will meet President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam to submit a 10-point memorandum highlighting their demands, including special privileges in the private sector and strict enforcement of the three percent quota in government jobs for the handicapped. According to the 2001 census, there are around seven million disabled people in the country in the working age group of 18-50 years. There are 22 million people with some form of disability among India’s population of one billion, a delegation member said. Meanwhile, scores of visually challenged people took out a rally and courted arrest today as part of a protest to press for filling up of backlog in seats reserved for them and made other demands. The rallyists started from Jantar Mantar and marched towards Vigyan Bhawan, venue of the government function marking World Disability Day, before police stepped in and arrested them. They were released soon after. The National Federation of the Blind, which organised the rally, said the protest was held to press for early action on a 12-point charter of demands, including amendments to the Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995, and reservation for the visually challenged in the private sector. Concurrently, a protest demonstration was also organised by the Rashtriya Viklang Party at the Jantar Mantar seeking 10 per cent job reservation for the disabled and other demands. The party was also scheduled to submit a memorandum listing their demands to President A P J Abdul Kalam. On her part, Delhi Chief Minister Ms Sheila Dikshit today said that physically disabled people do not need people’s sympathy, but needed opportunities. The Government and NGOs should take up programs towards creating confidence among physically challenged people and they should be provided with opportunities to lead a normal life. Stating this today while inaugurating “Walk to Freedom” programme at India Gate on the occasion of World Disability Day, Ms Dikshit said that it is not only the responsibility of an individual but also that of the entire society to see how best they could make use of these facilities. Ms Dikshit said that the Delhi Government has constantly aimed at evolving sensitive policy framework that takes care of all needy citizens apart from the extremely marginalized like disabled people. Delhi has also earned the distinction of being one of the states where government expenditure of about 52 per cent on social sector and services is the highest. She further said that physically challenged people must not consider themselves helpless and inferior to others. By the latest technological progress they can lead a normal life with confidence. Delhi Government is also providing all possible help to them by offering various projects to their development, she added.
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Noida green belt needs the kiss of life
Noida, December 3 On the whole over 30 per cent of the area of these parks has been handed over as industrial plots; this is being taken as a yardstick of industrial development in Noida. Random enquires have revealed that the green belt in most of the sectors has just vanished. A lot many changes have been brought in the Noida Plan. A green belt near Noida entrance has been converted into a police control room. The green belts are dying a slow death everywhere. Smaller green belts inside the Noida complex office have just vanished. In Sector-5, there was a huge park some 20 years ago. According to people of Harola village, Noida authority had developed an orchard on 5 acres which the horticulture department staff used to tend. Now the staff quarters stand on the spot with the orchard having gone to seed. From Rajni Gandha crossing to Choda More crossing and from Sectort-19 to Ramleela ground is the area which has suffered worst. Hardly 30 per cent of greenbelt is there in this area now. According to original inhabitants, telephone exchange, police station, Sector-20 have all come on green belt. A 110-metre-wide link used to come from Sahibabad to Badarpur via Noida over 3 km under 220 KV lines. But now thousands of slums have come up on this green belt in Sectors 8, 9, and 10. The biggest park in Sector 26 has disappeared. Large hospitals, a club for the elite, a residential apartment complex of a leading bank and a private higher secondary school have come up in its place. The Noida authority officials have gone out of their way to oblige some vested interests by changing the land use of the area. Another green belt on 5 acres in Sector-18 has almost disappeared. A part of the area has been handed over to a mall in Sector-27 as a parking lot. Green belts and parks have been converted into restaurants, nursing homes, servicing treatment plants, water treatment plants and staff quarters.
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PM to open Expo India Mart in Gt Noida on Dec 20
Greater Noida, December 3 The District administration and the police have already started preparation for the maiden visit of the Prime Minister to Greater Noida. The Expressway is being spruced up and decorated as never before. Signboards, flowers, arches and banners are being put up on the broad roads. Expo India Mart spread over 55 acres in Knowledge Park has been the venue of two international exhibitions, but it is for the first time that Expo Mart is being organized by Greater Noida authority. The roads and sideroads are being washed, flower plots placed on either side of the road and indication arrow-markers used at appropriate places. Since both Noida and Greater Noida have a common Chairman, Mr Rakesh Bahadur, the teams of both the authorities are working in tandem preparing for the big day. While the quality of infrastructure developed at Expo Mart in Greater Noida has been lauded by even foreign delegations, there is no 5-star hotel here for their stay. Poor connectivity with New Delhi also has a direct bearing on the number of people who come to see the exhibitions. People from rural areas are also looking forward to Prime Minister’s visit with lots of expectations as they feel Dr Manmohan Singh’s visit will speed up the development process of the area and solve some of their lingering problems.
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Gurgaon to become a shoppers’ delight
Gurgaon, December 3 The top officers of the Haryana Tourism department and the local administration today held a brainstorming session here with private players having business in shopping malls, restaurants, clubs, golf courses, etc on ways to promote Gurgaon as a shopping destination. Giving details of the discussion the department had with the private players, the Principal Secretary-cum-Financial Commissioner, Public Relation and Tourism, Mr Sanjay Kothari said that an overwhelming opinion was in favour of holding seminar and for taking other promotional measures. The proposed seminar could be held sometime in April next, in which a broad spectrum of people would be invited. It would include embassies of various countries here. The majority opinion was also in favour of organising a shopping festival in Gurgaon, much on the pattern of Singapore and Dubai. A committee has been constituted to work on the details on the proposed promotional campaign. Representative from both the department and private sector will be on the committee. Dwelling on the issue, he said that a good number of people from Punjab and Chandigarh go to Singapore and Dubai on a shopping binge. Promotion of Gurgaon would also help in diverting such people to this place. Mr Kothari made it clear that the government would play the role of a facilitator only. He urged upon the private sector to contribute their worth in further attracting the audiences from far-flung areas. The underlying thought behind the promotional campaign of the department stems from a large number of shopping malls coming up in the National Capital Region (NCR) zone. In response to a question, Mr Kothari said that the department has introduced limited privatisation in its tourist complexes in the state. While the department would stick to the core areas of restaurant, etc, the open spaces in the tourist complexes are being allowed to the private parties to provide amusement services. He debunked the theory that Haryana has fallen behind from the front-ranking position it held in highway tourism after the country’s new Economic Policy (1991).
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Sports tournament for special kids opens
Faridabad, December 3 The wife of the Chief Minister, Mrs Asha Hooda, who was the Chief Guest, inaugurated the tournament and called for better facilities for the physically and mentally challenged children. Mrs Hooda said that the authorities concerned should work hard to serve such children. The authorities claimed that there had been around 12,000 physically handicapped persons in the district and all of them had been provided with aids and equipment. Though there is no independent agency which could certify this claim and prove that such persons had been benefited. Surprisingly enough, the wife of the Chief Minister also read out the facts and figures regarding the schemes launched by the state government in connection with the welfare of the disabled. It was told that the Haryana government had earmarked a budget of about Rs 250 crore in the current fiscal year to take up various welfare schemes. This includes the target of providing education to all children with special needs and the Haryana Prathmik Shiksha Pariyojna Parishad had already got admitted about 32,000 such children in schools this year. It is claimed that while a sum of Rs 66 crore had been made for the games and sports for the disabled in the state, the government had already spent Rs 33 crore on other welfare activities. It was disclosed that besides the hike in the monthly allowance of the disabled, the retainer allowance for the blind chair weavers had been raised from Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000 per month. The unemployment allowance for the blind has also been hiked this year. An ambulance was presented to the B.K Civil Hospital from the Red Cross Society on the occasion. The Haryana Education Minister, Mr Phul Chand Mullana, presiding over the function, also addressed the gathering. Some of the MLAs and district and state level officials, including the Additional Deputy Commissioner, Mr Sanjay Joon, were among others present.
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Jamia students hope for poll on schedule
New Delhi, December 3 The university authorities deferred the poll after the situation deteriorated on the campus due to a hunger strike held from Wednesday afternoon by disgruntled students whose candidature had been rejected as they did not measure up to the criterion listed in the JSU constitution. Subsequent to their rejection, six students had sat down on an indefinite hunger strike on Wednesday afternoon. However, by Thursday the situation spiralled out of hand when Harif, one of the boys on hunger strike, became unconscious. In the evening, a band of enraged students went on the rampage. They stoned the Proctor’s vehicle and held traffic for two hours demanding that the eligibility criterion be reviewed and relaxed. However, many students are keenly awaiting the VC’s return on Monday as they feel that the VC will not back off from the firm commitment given to students to hold elections at Jamia after a ban of eight long years. Says MA previous student, Shams Pervez, “We have been keenly awaiting this election at Jamia, especially considering that this is the first election after eight years. I do think that before taking such drastic action the university authorities should have waited for the VC to return. After all, there were just six boys on hunger strike with a small following and they did not represent the majority of the students. It is possible that there are some people among the university authorities who do not want elections to be held. Anyhow we want the poll to happen and on the same date given before, December 15.” Another student, Mohammad Mansur Ali, pursuing a PG diploma in political science, got his candidature rejected but he feels, “I have lost out on criterion as I did not fulfill the one year condition but I do not have a problem about criterion. Only a limited group of students have a problem about criterion and they followed it up with the hunger strike, most of us have not participated in it. We want the elections to happen under all conditions and are waiting for the VC to come.” Badri Alam from MA previous public administration says, “I think the administration has overreacted to what was a small protest by a small group. Most of us agree with the criterion and want the polls to happen on the same date. In general majority of the students want elections given that it is
occurring after eight years.” However, opinion in the university does stay divided with the majority wanting the poll, a group of disgruntled students are sore on criterion and have yet to plan the way ahead on their protest. However, there is a substantial group of female students and some serious students who feel that elections will only cause more trouble and disrupt their studies. For instance, Nazia studying Chemistry Honours, feels, “This is going to prove very damaging for all of us, already the students are getting divided into groups as a result of the approaching election. Right now lots of groups are forming and soon there will be intra-group clashes. We are expecting lots of trouble here, there could be strikes in the future once the students union gets formed and though classes are going on fine now but they could get affected in days to come. I really don’t think that elections should happen at Jamia.”
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‘Soft skills’ to prepare students for job market
Faridabad, December 3 The government has started a scheme to develop ‘soft skills’ in the students, while they were on the rolls of the college, besides their regular academic course, for which it has agreed to meet the financial burden. According to authorities of the local Jawaharlal Nehru Government College here, about 70 students appeared for the entrance test to take admission in this special course, known as ‘Soft Skills Course’. The course will be optional and will run for about 162 days during the session. Though there has been no indication that the availability of the course would be more than once during an academic session, the authorities feel that the popularity of the course could affect its viability also. As per the details, the state government has awarded a contract to an agency attached under the Union HRD ministry to run this special course which will aim to improve the presentation and communication skills of a student. While the fee is around Rs 4,000 per course, the state government has agreed to bear a sum of Rs 3,000 per student. The beneficiary student will, however, be asked to pay the rest of the amount, i.e. Rs 1000 at the time of admission. Special extra classes will be held after the routine work, in which the experts will focus their attention on developing confidence, teamwork concept, positive attitude, skills regarding facing interviews, time management, coping with the stress and report writing and presentation. The communication part of the course include the importance of communication, English speaking, presentation skills, business talks, non-verbal communication, basic telephone etiquette and listening skills. The course module outlines include developing proper voice and accent, pronunciation, voice modulation, neutralizing mother tongue effect and inter-personal behaviour. According to Mr P.D. Sharma, a lecturer in the college, the lack of communication skills and proper presentation were still the main hurdles for the students who go in for employment or higher studies after finishing the college. He said this had been a crucial phase when there was no one to guide and train as the majority of the students had a semi-urban and semi-rural background. He said though many students who go in for the professional courses develop some of the skills, those doing their three-year degree course to complete graduation or postgraduation, hardly get an opportunity to hone up their skills. He said the response to the course was likely to go up as it was the first time and many students might not be knowing about it.
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A culture of acceptance for differently abled important
New Delhi, December 3 Integrating millions of differently abled population in the mainstream and enhancing their employability should be the current national priority. This came out strongly at the two-day “Career Development Forum - Promoting Inclusive Employment Opportunities” organised jointly by FICCI-SEDF (Socio-Economic Development Foundation) and AADI (Action for Ability Development and Inclusion, formerly The Spastics Society of Northern India) here on Friday. Inaugurating the Career Forum, Mr Arun Shourie, Rajya Sabha MP, highlighted the importance of integrating people who are differently abled into the workforce. He said while such people would bring their capacities to the fore and contribute beneficially for the economy it would also enable companies and organisations to stretch their creativity. This would further the cause of inventing newer devices which would aid in facing the challenges they face daily. He pointed out the need for developing innovative devices, software and tools, which would enable blind children to use computers and Braille printers efficiently. The present difficulties can be looked at as an opportunity where appropriate aids can be developed for right livelihood in India today for the differently abled. Delivering the keynote address at the event, Mr P. M. Sinha, President, FICCI-SEDF, informed that FICCI had embarked on a new initiative called Action for Harnessing Employment Avenues for Disabled (AHEAD), which aims to increase access to decent employment for persons who are differently abled through identification and facilitation in training and placement, thereby improving their status and integration them into society. He further added, “Persons with disability represent a rich talent pool that is often overlooked. When employers hire qualified employees with disabilities, they discover untapped skills, talents and abilities. Knowledge and skills can be acquired but ultimately it is the attitude that counts”. Furthermore, he added that FICCI-SEDF was committed to enhancing the employability of differently abled people in the private sector and would persuade the top management of the companies to consider such people for in-house training and employment. The Chairman, RCI (Rehabilitation Council of India), General Ian Cardozo, referred to the Disability Act 1995 and said it was one of the most important legislations on the methods that could be used for employing people who are differently abled, but the issue was who and how these laws were going to be implemented. He said, “Charity perpetuates disability”. There is a marked difference between doling out charity for the disabled and enabling their effective integration in the socio-economic mainstream. It is the latter that needs to be done today in a bid to create a diverse work force-a work place culture that treats abled and the differently abled equally, a place of work that is sensitive to the needs of the disabled working population.
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BDO suspended for irregularities in land transfer
Gurgaon, December 3 The residents of village Badshapur, led by State General Secretary of Panchayti Raj cell of Congress, Mr Ranjit Singh Yadav, have demand the registration of a criminal case under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against those involved in the ‘scam’. The entire land of village Badshahpur is considered to be in the prime location zone on account of it being part of Gurgaon urban estate. A probe was conducted by Commissioner, Gurgaon Division, Dr Avatar Singh, which led to the suspension order. It is alleged that the parties in whose favour the decree was made, had laid claim to the land on the basis of furnishing false submission of being residents of the village. It is alleged that the private parties sold the land to others immediately after the decree. It is claimed that the departmental probe has established the irregularities and fixed the responsibility for it on the BDO.
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Nigerian held for cheating
New Delhi, December 3 The police said Dr Martin Edwards, the accused, flashed on Internet that he was looking for a financial consultants who could help him in township development. The accused also promised to give huge margins and other benefits in return. Lured by the offer, Ram Mushty contacted him and in turn the accused demanded £ 3250 as endorsement fees. The accused also said that he would send one Tim Perkins to receive the payment. Ram Mushty was asked to come Delhi to deliver the payment. Meanwhile, the Crime Branch of the Delhi Police was also looking for the same accused and also got to know about the scheduled meeting going to be held between Ram Mushty and the accused. A trap was laid and the accused was arrested while he was coming after receiving the cheque of the same amount from Ram Mushty. A case under the Foreigners Act has been registered at the Vasant Kunj police station. During investigation, the accused told the police he hailed from Benin city, Nigeria, and was putting up in a posh colony in South Delhi. He had also allegedly cheated another innocent lady just two weeks back on the pretext that she had won a lottery of £ 7 million which she had actually not played. She was also asked to deposit Rs 3 lakh in the ICICI Bank branch in a certain account for getting the lottery money, said the police.
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Human traffickers from Punjab in police net
New Delhi, December 3 The police officials said that the accused were evading arrest for many years. One of the accused who was declared proclaimed offender was wanted since 1987 by Delhi Police. Besides, one Mukhtiar Singh alias Baba, one of the biggest travel agent who was allegedly involved in a number of cases of cheating and human trafficking, was also nabbed by the police. During interrogation, the accused disclosed that his son was settled in Philippines and he had sent a number of persons to Philippines on fake visas and passports with the help of some Customs officials and police officials posted at the airport. The accused has also disclosed some names of the immigration officials of Customs department and Delhi Police who helped him in crossing the high security and checking zone at the airport for some gratification, said the police sources. The police sources further disclosed that they were verifying his statements and were coordinating with the Customs officials in this concern.
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JNUTA Executive Committee takes charge
New Delhi, December 3 While Dr Rupamanjari Ghosh has taken over as the president for the second consecutive term, Mr Chaman Lal of the School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies and Mr Madan C. Paul of the School of Social Sciences are the new Vice-Presidents. Mr Rohan DâSouza of the School of Social Sciences is the Secretary and the Joint Secretaries are Mr D. K. Lobiyal of the School of Computer and System Sciences, Ms Rohini Muthuswamy, School of Life Sciences. Mr M. M. Kunju, School of International Studies, is the Treasurer. Mr T. V. Vijay Kumar is the representative from the School of Computer Science and Systems Science. From the School of Internal Studies the representatives are Mr Subodh N. Malakar and Mr V. G. Hegde. Mr Devendra K. Choubey and Ms Ritoo M. Jerath are the representatives from School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies and from the School of Life Sciences Ms Neelima Mandal is the representative. From the School of Social Sciences the representative is Ms R. Mahalakshmi and the joint representative from the Schools of Aesthetics and Arts, IT, CBT, CMM, CSLG and CSS is Mr Andrew M. Lynn.
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Mini sewage plants to be set up in villages
New Delhi, December 3 The State Development Minister, Mr. R. K. Chauhan, made this announcement after a meeting of the officials concerned and representatives from the areas. Funds already allocated to the villages for the purpose would be utilised and where the funds were not available Delhi Government would foot the bill, he said. The work would start first in those villages where Gram Shabha land was available for the purpose, he added.
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Cold wave-like conditions prevail in the Capital
New Delhi, December 3 Cold wave-like conditions are prevailing in the Capital and some parts of Punjab, Haryana and west Rajasthan, the weather office today said. The mercury today rose slightly to five degree Celsius, not much of a difference to yesterday’s temperature. The weather office said the minimum was likely to hover around the same tomorrow also. It said that if the temperatures fall four degrees below normal, cold wave-like conditions can be said to be prevailing.
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Man gets 7-yr RI for raping minor
New Delhi, December 3 A Patiala House Court Special Judge held Sunil Kumar guilty of raping the minor girl and sentenced him to seven years’ imprisonment. The court further slapped a fine of Rs 2,000 on him also. On November 7, 2002, Sunil had enticed the girl out on the pretext of taking her to a movie. After kidnapping the girl from her Badarpur home, he had taken her to Lucknow where he confined her and raped her between November 7 and 18. The police recovered the girl from the custody of Sunil on November 18. There were 14 prosecution witnesses in this case. A charge sheet was filed against Sunil on April 9, 2003, according to the prosecution. Sunil was convicted under Sections 363 (kidnapping), 366 (kidnapping to cause defilement) and 376 (rape) of the IPC.
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Paperex on at Pragati Maidan
New Delhi, December 3 As many as 230 participants from 21 countries are participating in this conclave. According to a senior officer of the main organiser of this event, TAFCON Projects (India) Pvt. Ltd, a high-level technical conference, ‘The Challenges Ahead – Paper Industry’ will also be organised during the exhibition. The conference will have national and international participants and is being held in nine sessions and
31 papers are scheduled to be read out.
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7 new dengue cases in Capital
New Delhi, December 3 Five of the newly-infected patients belonged to Delhi, while one was from Uttar Pradesh and another from Rajasthan. While 1,002 people have been affected so far, nine have died of the disease this season, an official of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi said. Of the total number of dengue patients, 643 were residents of the National Capital Territory of Delhi while 150 were from UP, 67 from Haryana, one from Rajasthan and 141 from other states.
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Factory worker ‘abducted’ in Faridabad
Faridabad, December 3 He had gone to work but failed to return. His family alleged that a former employer of the victim had kidnapped him, since the accused had failed to pay his pending salary am ounting to Rs 50,000. Though the accused named in the complaint has denied his role in the
missing of the victim identified as Joginder (32), one Sunil, brother of the
victim, alleged that Joginder had been abducted and kept somewhere. The police have booked a case, but no arrest has
been made so far.
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