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CAG unveils flaws in MiG-29 maintenance
1985 blasts: five accused discharged
Rahul to appear in Tis Hazari today |
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No hike in railway fares: Lalu
NDA protest against fuel price hike today
Curfew relaxed in Aligarh for 10 hours
Panel attacks govt on judicial reforms
RSS advises BJP govts to reduce levies on fuel
Thalassaemia society asks firm to launch drug
Prithvi
test-fired
IT notice to Amitabh on bungalow
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CAG unveils flaws in MiG-29 maintenance
Chandigarh, June 11 The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has held the Air Force and the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) responsible for inordinate delays, poor performance and escalated costs in setting up and executing maintenance works. “This affected repair tasks over the period 1998-2005, leading to cannibalisation at all levels,” the report said. “Sub-optimal maintenance of the aircraft led to low serviceability of all aircraft, affecting flying tasks of the operational squadrons.” the report added. Serviceability status fluctuated between 43 and 62 per cent and there was a shortfall of flying task between 87.48 and 42.52 per cent between 1997-98 and 2004-05. “Despite executing appropriate agreements with the original equipment manufacturer (OEM), establishment of adequate repair and maintenance facilities lagged way behind,” The CAG, in its latest report observed. This resulted in continued dependence on foreign vendors besides requiring payments to the tune of Rs 500 crore. The MiG-29 was procured from the erstwhile Soviet Union in the late eighties to counter the Pakistani F-16s. The IAF operates three squadrons in the air superiority role and it is one of the most advanced aircraft in IAF’s inventory. Poor product support from the OEM was a recurring problem. Consequently, between 1998-99 and 2004-05, HAL sent1 1,280 lines of aggregates abroad for repair at a cost of Rs 72 crore. Likewise, 2,233 lines of spares against 57 orders were yet to be supplied at the No.11 Base Repair Depot leading to the cannibalisation. CAG noted that HAL was unable to meet the annual Full Overhaul (FO) task for engines. The shortfall between 1997-98 and 2004-05 ranged from 100 per cent to 12.5 per cent. The meantime between failure (MTBF) of HAL overhauled engines was also very low, with 74 per cent of engines that underwent FO during the last eight years being withdrawn prematurely. “This necessitated carrying out more interim overhauls at a cost of Rs 56.56 crore,” the report said. The MTBF of HAL-overhauled engines was just 60 hours whereas it was 213 hours for engines overhauled by OEM. The Air Force also pointed out that engines overhauled by HAL had been found to be with serious defects which had grave flight safety and maintenance implications. The report also revealed that the average turnaround time in India was 40 weeks as against 26 weeks by the OEM abroad. The Base Repair Depot concerned utilised 36.34 per cent and 47.73 per cent more than the prescribed man hours for the overhaul of each combat and trainer airframe, respectively. From the initially prescribed standard 50,000 man hours for overhaul of a single airframe, Air Headquarters revised it to 65,570 man hours for a combat aircraft and 67,662 man hours for a trainer. Despite this, BRD took 68,171 and 73,867 hours for a combat aircraft and a trainer, respectively. CAG also pointed out deficiencies in maintenance at the squadron level. In one instance it found out that available specialised tools were not being used resulting in misalignment of components leading to excessive vibrations in the engines.
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1985 blasts: five accused discharged
New Delhi, June 11 Additional Sessions Judge Vinod Kumar, who is trying the nine cases connected with the blasts, has discharged the five - Jagir Singh, Sukhjinder Singh, Paramjit Singh, Shahid Singh and Surjit Kaur - of all charges on the grounds that "the material on the judicial file was not sufficient to frame a charge against these accused persons under any offence". This is a significant development in the trial, suggests counsel Harvinder Kaur, who has been part of the defence since the case was registered, especially after the Delhi High Court's repeated directions to speed up the legal process in the case that has been dragging on for 21 years. Over the past few months, the court has framed charges of murder and attempted murder against half a dozen persons, setting the stage for trial to begin. However, the remaining accused, of whom at least four have died while the rest are out on bail, continue to wait and watch. The five accused who were discharged are among over 50 people named in the case registered in 1985 with Patel Nagar Police Station in west Delhi, according to which the main conspirator of the blasts was Delhi-based income tax lawyer Kartar Singh Narang, who died some years ago. The prosecution says Narang and his accomplices M S Oberoi and M S Khalsa (also deceased) planted bombs disguised as transistors to avenge the killings of Sikhs in and around Delhi in the 1984 riots that erupted after the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. On May 12, 1985, acting on information that transistor bombs were being manufactured at Narang's house, the police conducted a raid and arrested him along with Oberoi and Khalsa for their "involvement in unlawful activities". According to the police, the names of four of the five discharged - Jagir, Sukhjinder, Paramjit and Shahid - were allegedly written on slips of paper recovered by investigators from Khalsa and Oberoi. The police contended, Khalsa, in his disclosure statement, admitted to having given Jagir a transistor bomb to be planted in Bangalore, besides Rs 1,000 to purchase a gun. They also said Jagir was "instigated to take revenge against Hindus". However, the court pointed out that apart from the disclosure statement, there was nothing to prove any overt participation by Jagir in the conspiracy. Sukhjinder Singh was allegedly absconding when the police reached his house, and when eventually caught, investigators found literature suggesting that "he had knowledge of and had participated in the conspiracy to overawe the Centre". Similarly, Paramjit and Shahid were charged with alleged conspiracy, with the former accused of attending a meeting where he was "asked to participate in extremist activities". The court shot down these allegations, observing that there was no concrete material to show participation in the offence, or overt knowledge of conspiracy. The charges against Surjit Kaur were somewhat different, with the police relying on Oberoi's disclosure statement where he claimed to be on visiting terms with the accused. According to Oberoi, he had left six bombs at Kaur's house and told her to "keep them and wait for instructions". Apart from this disclosure, there was nothing in court records to suggest her participation in the crime. — PTI
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Rahul to appear in Tis Hazari today
New Delhi, June 11 A revision petition filed by the Delhi Police before the Patiala House Court, hearing the case related to Rahul’s alleged drug abuse, sought the transfer of the case to the Tis Hazari court as the Metropolitan Magistrate A.K. Chaturvedi, who was hearing the case and who had, on Friday, deferred Rahul’s bail application to June 13, would not be present on the said date due to the court holidays. In this context, the Delhi Police plea said the sections under which Rahul had been arrested made it necessary that the hearing of the case be held in a Special court. Accordingly, the court had issued a warrant to produce Rahul before the Tis Hazari court at 10 am tomorrow where his case would come up for hearing before Special Judge Neeraj Gupta. Tihar Jail Law official Sunil Gupta said the warrant had been
received by the jail authorities today. Rahul is currently serving his judicial remand in Tihar Jail, where he is lodged in jail No 3, in a cell close to RJD MP Pappu Yadav.
— UNI
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No hike in railway fares: Lalu
New Delhi, June 11 "I will not increase fares. I am looking for an alternative. We will electrify all trains so that diesel issue does not arise in Railways", Mr Yadav, who turned 58 today, told reporters before leaving for Patna. Last night, RJD leaders and Union Ministers P.C. Gupta, Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Kanti Singh and party MPs Jayprakash Yadav, Mutiur Rehman and Saroj Dube celebrated the pre-birthday bash of their party chief which also coincided with a 'kavi sammelan' (poets' meet) at his residence at Tughlaq Road here. However, in a lighter vein the Railway Minister said he was not aware of his real date of birth. "It could be 60 or 62. May be 48 or 65 or even 55. What is my real date of birth is not known", he said when asked what was his age as he looked younger. On the promises made by him to the poor and downtrodden, particularly on 'Garib Rath' train providing AC coaches at cheaper rates, the Railway Minister said it would be launched on October 2, this year. "They (poor) are suffering in heat and eating dust. They too are entitled for air-conditioned class", he said. To a specific question that he was now a "brand", the RJD chief said "What should I do.....everybody's business is going on. I am not asking money for it". About his forthcoming visit to five countries—the UK, France, Germany, Austria and Switzerland —beginning June 22, Mr Yadav said "I am going to see these countries as also their Railways".
— PTI
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NDA protest against fuel price hike today
New Delhi, June 11 Mr Vajpayee and other senior NDA leaders, including MPs, are likely to court arrest to protest against the fuel price hike. Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Mr L.K. Advani, the JD (U) president, Mr Sharad Yadav, and the BJP chief, Mr Rajnath Singh, are among those who will take part in the protest. BJP spokesman Prakash Javedkar said here that the responsibility to provide relief to consumers was being wrongly passed on states as it was the Centre which had raised the fuel prices. "The Centre must reduce the fuel prices instead of asking states to forgo sales tax on the increased price of petrol and diesel," he said. Mr Javedkar's comments came in response to questions about some Congress state governments deciding not to levy sales tax on increased price of diesel and petrol. Mr Javedkar said the country had the highest duties in the world on the price of some petroleum products. He said the price of diesel and petrol had not been increased by the states. "The Centre should first reduce the hike. If it wants, the government can call a meeting of the states for uniform tax rates on petroleum products," he said. Asked about the RSS mouthpiece, Organiser, suggesting to the BJP leadership to ask its state governments to reduce state levies on fuel, Mr Javedkar said, "We do not subscribe to this view."
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Curfew relaxed in Aligarh for 10 hours
Lucknow, June 11 Curfew was relaxed at Delhi and Sasni Gates, Kotwali, Banna Devi and Gandhi Park police station areas between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Curfew had to be imposed here on May 28 after a communal flare-up following the murder of a local trader and BJP leader O.P. Gupta. Two more BJP sympathisers had been killed in the week preceding the murder of Gupta. Three persons, including Gupta, had succumbed to the violence that followed. Over 300 persons had been arrested under various sections of the IPC. Speaking to TNS local MLA Vivek Bansal of the Congress gave betting to be the reason behind the recurrence of violence in Aligarh. “It was strange but this time a lot of rumours were doing the rounds. There was also a buzz that the satta bazaar had put their money on violence. I have reported the matter to the district administration, which is looking into it,” claimed Mr Bansal. He, however, is already on the job working to ensure that the fragile peace process is strengthened through people’s efforts. Through-out the day he was busy holding meetings with representatives of the business community and the administration to chalk out a strategy to avoid any further tension in the future.
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Panel attacks govt on judicial reforms
New Delhi, June 11 Some of the reports awaiting implementations were submitted by the commission to the government in 1950s, the anguished parliamentary panel said while recommending that the reports should be implemented in “letter and spirit.” The committee has rapped the Law Ministry for failing to provide statutory backup to the Law Commission. “The ministry should consider providing statutory backing to the Law Commission on the pattern of countries like the UK and Canada so that it could function more effectively with the desired empowerment,” the committee headed by E.M. Sudrarsana Natchiappan recommended. It reminded the government that the Law Commission’s reports formed the basis of the review of the judicial system, framing new legislation, amending the existing laws and repealing the obsolete ones, therefore, its role assumed special significance in the judicial and legislative system. The committee advised the Law Ministry to make “concerted efforts” to ensure timely implementation of the Law Commission’s various reports lying pending with the government for the past several years. The strong observations of the committee against the Law Ministry was based on the fact that the commission’s 51 reports are still awaiting government initiative for their implementation out of a total of 195 reports submitted by it since its inception. The anguish of the committee was more driven from the fact that even the sixth report of the commission, submitted in 1957, is still lying in the cold storage.
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RSS advises BJP govts to reduce levies on fuel
New Delhi, June 11 The editorial, written apparently before some Congress state governments decided to forgo sales tax on increased prices of petrol and diesel, said the BJP could “make a beginning instead of protesting on the street by stopping the wheels and adding to public misery.” Maintaining that the protests lacked intellectual honesty, the editorial has come down harshly on all political parties, particularly the Congress and the CPM. “The CPM and the Congress is protesting against fuel price hike as if the BJP is in power at the Centre. Ms Sonia Gandhi protests as if Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee is still running the country. Political farce cannot be more brazen,” it said. Referring to Petroleum Minister Murli Deora’s reported remarks about a major portion of the tax earning on fuel going to the states, the editorial said it was the “first instance that the government has officially admitted” that the Central and state taxes add to the actual cost of fuel. “Still the government is refusing to absorb the burden on the common man by reducing customs and excise duties on petroleum products. Can there be a more outrageous instance of political dishonesty and moral double standards?” it said. The editorial further said the Congress was protesting as if it had nothing to do with the fuel hike and the protests by Left had become “too predictable.” The editorial said, “Over 50 per cent of the retail price for fuel is made up of government levies. The BJP was the first to articulate this point. The party, when in power, was willing to separate the price-fixing mechanism from political interference. That decision was shelved under the UPA,” it
said.
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Thalassaemia society asks firm to launch drug
New Delhi, June 11 The society is optimistic that Novartis will keep its promise to them to launch Exjade in November and make it available at an affordable price. An oral iron chelator, Exjade was launched in the USA in November last year. It has no serious side-effects and can be dissolved easily in water. According to Novartis, iron overload is a potentially life-threatening and unavoidable consequence of frequent blood transfusions used to treat certain types of rare chronic blood disorders, including thalassaemi and sickle cell disease. The body has no inherent mechanism to remove excess iron and iron chelation is used as an effective treatment for transfusion-related iron overload. While announcing the first approval worldwide for Exjade by the US Food and Drug Administration on November 2 last year, Novartis says Exjade is the only iron chelator administered as a drink (the tablets are dispersed in a glass of orange juice, apple juice or water). The company compared its new iron chelation therapy with the current standard of care, which often requires a subcutaneous infusion lasting eight to 12 hours per night, for five to seven nights a week as long as the patient continues to receive blood transfusions or has excess iron within the body. Novartis says that the approval is expected to greatly enhance the acceptance of iron chelation therapy, especially for children, and offer a new alternative to the burdensome continuous infusion therapy.
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Prithvi
test-fired
Balasore, June 11 Scientists of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), who conducted the test with Army personnel at the Integrated Test Range (ITR), 15 km from here, described it as a "user trial". DRDO sources said the missile, mounted on a mobile launcher, was fired at 1.40 pm. "The user's trial was conducted to further fine-tune the missile delivery system," the source said. Today's trial of Prithvi was tracked by a sophisticated optical tracking telescope, different telemetry stations and a naval vessel positioned in the Bay of Bengal close to the point of impact. Considered a world-class medium range missile, Prithvi has with a strike range of 150 km or more and has been inducted into the armed forces. The Army had raised two specially trained missile groups, 333 and 355, to handle it. The 8.56-metre-long missile is part of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme. The other four missiles developed under this programme are Agni, Akash, Trishul and Nag. Prithvi, which has a launch weight of 4.6 tonnes, can carry a one-tonne conventional or nuclear payload, the sources said.
— PTI
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IT notice to Amitabh on bungalow
Mumbai, June 11 The bungalow was recently transferred in the name of Jaya Bachchan, wife of the superstar and a sitting member of Parliament (MP) in the Rajya Sabha. The recent notice by the IT Department is among a series of notices issued one after another to the superstar, some of them seeking details of his personal
accessories, clothings etc. The latest notice seeks information on tax papers, stamp duty, the cheque numbers and information on amount paid as penalty to transfer “Jalsa” in the name of Jaya Bachchan, IT sources said.
— UNI
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