 |
|
|
Noidaites happy with PM’s nod to Metro
Accounts of house tax defaulters attached
Gurgaon industry resents power cuts
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Patients forced to trudge extra distance as MCD fails to clear encroachment
Adopting Delhi to make
it big in life
Officials making light of prolonged power crisis in Faridabad
Power surcharge waiver scheme extended
Govt policy to honour doctors comes under flak
Industrialists urged to conserve energy
Builders ordered to pay compensation for substandard construction
Student gang raped in Noida
Delhi gets another bright day
Man shot in dispute over plot
|
||||||||
|
Noidaites happy with PM’s nod to Metro
Noida, January 7 “I am truly delighted at the growth of modern amenities and infrastructure in this part of Uttar Pradesh. An airport and the Metro link are legitimate aspirations of the area,” the PM had remarked while inaugurating the India Expo Centre and Mart in Greater Noida yesterday. Mr Amar Singh, Chairman, UP Development Council, said finance was not a problem for the projects. According to Greater Noida Chairman Rakesh Bahadur, a site near Mirzapur village has been identified for the airport and the entire hub will be built on 10,000 hectares of land. A Special Economic Zone on 2500 acres has also been planned along with this hub. “By the time we get approval from the state government and the Union Aviation Ministry, our infrastructure planning, site identification and other studies would be complete which will ensure speeder execution. The extension of Greater Noida to Javer has given impetus to the GNIDA airport project,” Mr Rakesh Bahadur said. The airport project is considered to be a boon for Noida and Greater Noida. The project will give the twin cities a global edge with the new India Expo Centre and Mart already in place. Meanwhile, an additional international airport in Greater Noida will help decongest IGI Airport in Delhi where non-availability of parallel runways is known to cause delays in flight take off and landing. Besides, the terminals at IGI are cramped as they handle more than double the number of passengers they were designed to handle. Besides, the number of new planes coming into the market has grossly outnumbered the parking bays. The Prime Minister said he was happy to note the India Expo Centre and Mart like Delhi Metro had been completed on time and without cost escalations. The country had now established a healthy tradition whereas earlier delays in time-frame and cost overheads of important projects had become a joke. Dr Manmohan Singh remarked that for centuries India was known for the quality of its textiles east of Suez Canal and had a long and rich tradition for handicrafts and handloom textiles which our craftsmen and artisans had inherited from their forefathers. But the country had missed the opportunity after Independence to showcase these excellent products of artisans and craftsmen competitively at the international level. “But now the country is on the threshold of a textile revolution and we must exploit environmental sensitivity of our handicrafts and handlooms. We need sensible policies for the development of the industry and to exploit the vast potential of our traditional crafts which in no case should be neglected.” “Our main competitors are USA and the European Union nations. The Prime Minister hoped the India Expo Centre and Mart would develop as a national and international centre for exhibition of other sectors of economy like machinery, automobiles and technology-based sectors. The India Expo Mart and Centre is expected to herald a boom for weavers, rural artisans and craftsmen of the country, especially those of Uttar Pradesh.
|
|
Accounts of house tax defaulters attached
New Delhi, January 7 The Municipal Commissioner, Mr Ashok Kumar Nigam, had said in the last Standing Committee meeting that the bank accounts of defaulters would be attached to pressurise them to deposit the tax. Notices have also been sent to government departments to inform them that their accounts might also be attached due to the non-payment of tax dues. Among the government bodies, which have been sent notices include the DDA, universities, Transco, India Habitat Centre, the Airports Authority of India. Besides, private bodies like the BSES and the NDPL have been issued notices for payment of their outstanding property taxes, an MCD spokesman said. Further, 40 malls located in Jasola, Rajouri Garden, Pitampura, Vikas Marg, Saket, Karol Bagh and Masjid Moth among other areas have been issued notices for payment of house tax. The MCD has set up a special recovery squad for collection of outstanding property tax from various defaulters. As part of its drive to punish defaulters, the MCD has also attached the bank accounts of Victoria Girls Senior Secondary School and Butler Memorial Senior Secondary School. The notices for the recovery of the property tax follows the members of the Corporation expressing concern at a meeting of the Standing Committee earlier this week at the huge shortfall in revenue because of non-payment of property tax by various commercial properties as well as several government organisations in Delhi.
|
|
Slum dwellers take their case to
New Delhi, January 7 These slum residents drew the Chief Minister’s attention to their everyday problems of sewer, sanitation, water, electricity, public toilets and other civic amenities. They also sought the setting up of primary schools and health centres. Some of these women also apprised the Chief Minister of the police personnel misbehaving with them and even raised a voice against corruption. The Chief Minister on her part told these women, who came from Govind Puri, Jasola, Sonia Camp, Nehru Camp, Tuglakabad, Bhumihin Camp, Navjivan Camp, Sangam Vihar, Okhla and other slum colonies that the ever increasing population of Delhi is the reason for electricity and water shortage. With the number of those migrating to the city also on the rise, finding employment too has become difficult she said. The consumption of water and electricity also goes up with the increase of population, she pointed out and said the rate of increase in consumption of water and electricity in Delhi is highest in world. Ms Dikshit mentioned that Delhi has to depend on supply of raw water from other states. Urging the women to use water and electricity rationally, she assured them of immediate action against their complaints. She said that the MCD would be instructed to set up primary health centres and primary schools for the slum dwellers. The slum dwellers also raised issue of unsatisfactory mid-day meal being served in the school and complaints about public distribution system. They also said they are finding difficulties in filling different forms and getting information about government assistance. To the issues of insecurity and corruption within the police force, Ms Dikshit exhorted the women to organise themselves and resist corruption. She said women have the force and the power to curb corruption at all levels. “The session was an interactive one so as to sensitise the authorities and the representatives on the concerns of the community and make the ‘Adalat’ more meaningful and responsive,” said Kriti Singh, an organiser closely associated with the event. “The ‘Katha Adalat’ is only a continuation of the community resurgence, based on the philosophy of bottom-up rather than top down approaches to solutions to the community’s problems,” added Kriti Singh. The six-day Utsav is going to organise various programmes such as outreach event, city stories, seminars and book fair apart from open ‘Katha Adalat’ in which enormous issue relating to health, education, civic amenities were raised before senior bureaucrats of Delhi Govt. and other agencies.
|
|
Gurgaon industry resents power cuts
Gurgaon, January 7 The concern by the industry was voiced at a meeting of a section of industrialists with the authorities of the power utilities in the state. It was organised by the GCCI headed by Mr Mohit Jain. The chairperson of the Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam Ltd (HVPN), Lt-General O.S. Lohchab and the Director of the organisation, Mr A. S. Chug, took part in the meeting. The charge from the industry side was led by the former president of the PHDCCI and founder chief of the GCCI, Mr P. K. Jain, who expressed concern at the authorities discarding the policy of leniency in imposing power cuts to “continuous processing” industrial units. The prolonged cuts were of long duration every day. Mr Jain said the industry had witnessed several power crises in the past. But the current one was the most severe and things could have been better managed by the utilities. Earlier, in his introductory speech, Mr Mohit Jain said Haryana, especially Gurgaon, which is a declared free cut power zone, had experienced the “worst ever” power crises in the recent past. In fact, the entire industrial operation came to a grinding halt. The industry was subject to power cuts for nearly 15-20 hours every day. The industrialists, however, lauded the efforts made by the Haryana Government to augment power generation in the state and its efforts to strengthen the transmission and distribution department relating to the power sector. Lt-General Lohchab responded by saying that the complaints raised regarding abandoning the policy of leniency towards the continuous process units would be given a sympathetic consideration. However, he said that the power cuts imposed were due to the crisis faced on account of shortage in the pool of available power with the state. The reason for the shortage was the outage problem on account of maintenance and repair of some of the units in the northern states which feed the northern grid from which Haryana gets its major supply. Also, a couple of thermal power plants in Panipat were not functioning at optimal capacity as they had developed snags. He was optimistic that things would improve by January 15.
|
|
Patients forced to trudge extra distance
New Delhi, January 7 According to sources, the gates leading to the emergency, OPD and mortuary wards are closed due to heavy encroachment by the local slum dwellers. Due to closure of these gates, patients have no other option than to use the only one way leading to the main gate. “Using that way means, you have very little option than to travel an extra distance of 2 – 3 km to reach the main gate, as it passes through the staff quarter’s by-lanes,” said the source. A doctor attached with this hospital said that the hospital is dubbed as the second biggest hospital in the trans –Yamuna area after Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, Dilshad Garden. Apart from this, the hospital is the first super-speciality hospital of East Delhi. “The hospital was constructed way back in 1991 to provide quality healthcare facilities in this area. Interestingly, some times after the inauguration of the hospital local slum dwellers started encroaching upon the open spaces around the hospital. They did not even spare the 100 - feet wide road around the hospital, resulting in the closure of three main gates of the hospital,” said the doctor. According to the president of ‘Bharastachar Nirodhak Morcha’, Mr Narendra Kumar Singh, local politicians and representatives of this area have been patronising these slum dwellers turned encroachers. For them, these people are like a vote bank that can be used for their politicking at any time. “It is strange that they are trying to settle them by providing them facilities like drinking water, electricity, sewer system. We have written many times in this regard to the concerned authorities but nothing has improved as yet,” he said. When contacted, the Medical Superintendent of this hospital, Dr S. C. Bhalla, said that he was aware of this development. “The matter has been promptly raised at the recently held meeting of the hospital committee. Almost all members of the advisory committee have opposed this encroachment and had assured taking immediate action in this regard.” said Dr Bhalla.
|
|
Adopting Delhi to make
it big in life
New Delhi, January 7 While the universities of Pune, Manipal,
Roorkee, Mumbai, Mysore and Punjab equally tempt the ambitious students, the national Capital remains one of the favourite in terms of educational opportunities offered. According to a recent newspaper report, Delhi University alone enrolls around 6000-7000
non-Delhiites every year. With as many as 9 universities, 79 colleges, 47 management institutes, 7 medical colleges, 7 engineering colleges and a number of computer institutes and higher secondary schools spread across the city, Delhi provides multiple choices to almost every student seeking a good career. “Somehow students find Delhi as the magical formula for success. Not only have institutes like DU,
JNU, IIT, AIIMS, IIMC acquired international status, but it is indeed true that students passing out of these institutes excel in their respective professional fields and become authorities on their subjects”, said Dr Santosh Luthra, a retired lecturer from Gargi College. The national Capital also finds some extremely enterprising and talented aspirants among the non-Delhi students, who take full advantage of libraries, museums, embassies and cultural centres here to expand their horizons. Talking about the kind of exposure one gets in Delhi, Vipasha Singh, a student from Bihar pursuing Fashion Designing course from JD Institute, says, “I came to Delhi as there are no such vocational courses available in Bihar. Moreover, Delhi also gives me an opportunity to get acquainted with the culture discs. So Delhi promises me job satisfaction compounded with opportunities to enjoy”. In effect, the opportunities are accepted along with the numerous problems in terms of budget, food and lodging, so that they make it big in their adopted city.
|
|
|
Officials making light of prolonged
Faridabad, January 7 The situation in the rural areas has been more serious. “Though the present government has claimed that measures are being taken up to improve the power generation and supply in the state, the cuts have been unprecedented and the power has become a rare commodity these days,” claimed a local resident. He said the cut starts as soon as one gets up in the morning and continues till late in the night causing inconvenience to all sections of society. He said since the students were facing Board exam, the shortage of power had been badly affecting their studies. Though a majority of the households had inverters, even they failed as they did not get charged so fast, he regretted. Rajesh Kumar, a resident of NIT here, said that the crisis had been getting longer against the expectations and it was perhaps the first time that it had crossed over one month, that too, in winter when the demand was lower. He said many people who come to Delhi or other far-off areas in connection with their job or business had to wake up early in the morning to reach their place of work on time. However, they would not find power to get some warm water. It disrupted the routine of a large number of residents, he claimed. He said schoolchildren also got late many times due to the power crisis. The complaint centres had been rendered useless, as they were not able to say on the number of cuts or duration. Their stock reply was: it has been off from the receiving end, the resident pointed out. Mr Shailender Singh, an activist of the Punarjagran
Sanstha, a social body, said that as the problems were the same, there had been hardly any difference between the previous government and the present rule. He said the government should consider the issue seriously and take all measures to ensure proper supply. He said shortage of rainfall, canal water and power had caused problems for the farmers who could face severe losses to the rabi crop. “The supply to the industrial areas had also been thin and could affect the production and profits of the units, if the problem was not removed soon,” claimed an entrepreneur here.
|
|
|
Power surcharge waiver scheme extended
New Delhi, January 7 The scheme, which started on December 7 last year and was to end yesterday, had now been extended till February 6. It would allow 100 per cent waiver of the late payment surcharge on payment of full principal amount of outstanding electricity dues. The scheme would apply to arrears of the entire erstwhile Delhi Vidyut Board and post reform periods. The Delhi Government had endorsed the scheme. In the cases where the outstanding electricity arrears are in excess of Rs 50,000, consumers can request the Discoms for accepting payment in two equal monthly installments for the incremental amounts. No interest will be levied for payment in installments. To avail a benefit under the scheme, the consumers can approach their nearest district or division offices of the BSES and NDPL. In those cases where there are disputes or which are under litigation, consumers can avail the benefit under the scheme if they agree to withdraw the case from court on any other statutory legal forum and pay the full principal amount of outstanding electricity arrears. If consumers do not wish to withdraw the case but wish to mitigate the liability of an adverse outcome of the case, they can pay the principal amount. If any difference between the amount paid under the scheme and amount finally decreed by the court, the consumer will be paid the amount of difference.
|
|
Govt policy to honour doctors comes under flak
New Delhi, January 7 While on the one hand the Centre had set up a
committee under former Health Secretary Javed Choudhary to stop outflow of trained manpower and super-specialists from the government institutes and speciality hospitals, on the other if the government went on to bestow ‘Padma’ awards to those very persons who left government jobs for better remunerations, it would send contradictory signals, official sources pointed out. Sources said that former G B Pant cardiologist Professor Dr K K Sethi and All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Professor Upendra Kaul are reported to be on the list of Padma awardees this year, which shall be announced on the eve of the Republic Day. Dr Sethi left the GB Pant Hospitals for starting his private practice at Sir Ganga Ram Hospitals and then moved to Delhi Heart and Lung Institute. Dr Sethi unleashed a chain reaction as Professors D S Gambhir, G S Kalra, J C Moha and Mohan Nair left the G B Pant, subsequently leaving the Cardiology Department, once reputed to be Asia’s premier institutions, in a shambles. Dr Kaul did the same when he left AIIMS for Batra Hospital because at least four cardiology professors, including a Paediatric Cardiac Surgeon migrated to other hospitals leaving the country’s premier institution “directionless”. If specialists like Dr Sethi and Dr Kaul are given national honours then who would like to serve the common man and the message to those who are still in old-fashioned government hospitals would be to leave and go to private sector to be able to get recognition from the government, a Padma award winner of yesteryears observed.
|
|
Industrialists urged to conserve energy
Gurgaon, January 7 Inaugurating the function, Mr S.P. Gupta, HUDA administrator, appealed to the industrialists to take measures for conserving fuel oil in industries, which consume approximately 25 to 30 per cent of petroleum products. Industries should endeavour to use the latest monitoring instruments, modern maintenance and creation of energy cell to optimise energy conservation, added the officer. This will help the country achieve sustainable growth. Moreover, with the opening of the Indian economy, the industries have to keep a vigil on their input cost, so as to keep the end use price more competitive, said Mr Gupta. Mr V K Bhargava, Director-PS, Northern Region of PCRA in his keynote address, informed about PCRA’s efforts towards petroleum conservation in industries by undertaking energy audit in almost all type of industries. In his welcome address, Gurgaon Industrial Association (GIA) president V P Bajaj said that the energy conservation is related not only to the industries but also to the household. As industrial units are facing power problem, this seminar is organised to guide the industries on how to use minimum energy without affecting its production.
|
|
|
Builders ordered to pay compensation
New Delhi, January 7 “As it is apparent from the architect’s report, the building was not constructed as per draft plan and also poor and substandard material was used in spite of having received extra amount for better construction,” said Justice J D Kapoor, president of the Delhi State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission. The Commission asked Vinod Behal and Rajinder Madan, who along with Anita Kalara entered into an agreement with complainant R P Oberoi to build a four- storey building, to pay Rs two lakh as compensation within two months. Kalara, the third respondent, was asked to pay Rs 50,000 to Oberoi. As per the complaint, Oberoi, a Mumbai-based retired railway officer, entered into an agreement with the builders for the construction of a four-storey building on his plot in Kailash Hills locality in the Capital. Builders, as per the terms of the contract, were entitled to get two floors while rest two would have gone to Oberoi. However, the complainant also gave additional Rs one lakh to builders for better quality construction.
|
|
Student gang raped in Noida
Noida, January 7 According to police, the girl is daughter of Dharmveer, a resident of Nithari village, had gone to her paternal aunt’s house on Thursday evening, but her aunt was not at home. While she was returning home, five miscreants forced her into their Maruti car and raped her during the night. Next morning she had found herself abandoned on a roadside. Meanwhile, the girl’s family beat up a young man, Bupesh, a small-time shopkeeper in the locality, suspecting him to be one the rapists. The girl herself has named Rajbeer and Udeybeer as among those who had raped her. The Sector 24 police, who have registered a case and sent for her medical examination, said further action could be taken on receipt of the
medical-examinaiton report.
|
|
Delhi gets another bright day
New Delhi, January 7 The Weather Office recorded night temperatures in the city at four degree Celsius, three degrees below normal. Morning flights arrived and departed on schedule from the Delhi airport, officials said. Also, there were no weather-forced delays in train departures although several Delhi-bound trains were running behind schedule, a Railways statement said. The Delhi-bound Sadbhavana Express from Muzaffarpur and the Brahamputra Mail from Dibrugarh were six hours late, the statement said. The Rajdhani Express from Chennai, scheduled to arrive at Hazrat Nizamuddin was three hours behind schedule, it added. The Saryuyamuna Express from Darbhanga was also running late.
|
|
Man shot in dispute over plot
Ghaziabad, January 7 According to information, Intezar, a resident of Kola village under Meerut police station, had been living in Charan Singh Colony in Vijay Nagar, Ghazibad, for the past 8 years. He was having a 200 sq. mt plot in Charan Singh Colony over which he had a dispute with some residents of Bau village. Earlier also, they had clashed on this issue. On Friday, some people were getting construction work done on the plot. When somebody informed Intezar about it, he rushed to the spot and opposed the construction. As a clash ensued, the miscreants took out a local revolver and shot Intezar dead. The assailants had fled from the spot after Intezar’s murder. SO Vijay Nagar police said the family members of the victim recognised the assailants who are all resident of Bau village.
|
|
Man tries to immolate himself
New Delhi, January 7 The reasons behind his self immolation is still unclear said the police sources. “He is not in a condition to give statement,” said the police official.
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
